Photo courtesy of the MHC Archives
“Every generation of Black people, up until now, has had to face the reality that no matter how hard we work we will probably not see the end of racism in our lifetimes. Yet many of us keep the faith and try to do all we can to make change now.” — Barbara Smith, in the introduction of “Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology” (1983)
These words from Barbara Smith ’69 – groundbreaking author, activist, and co-founding member of the Combahee River Collective – were written almost 40 years ago. Though the 1980s often feel very distant from us living in 2020, our nation continues to struggle with the same deeply entrenched anti-Black racism. It permeates all aspects of our society and manifests in how we build our cities, construct our laws, and engage with one another.
Your class board feels strongly in stating that Black Lives Matter. That the lives of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Aubrey, Tony McDade, Nina Pop, and thousands of other victims of police violence and racially-motivated hatred matter. The events of the last few weeks, and in reality the events of the last 400+ years, have caused irreparable harm to Black communities throughout the US and globally.
Honoring and attempting to heal this harm will not happen overnight and, as a board of volunteers, we know that our contributions will be limited to what is within our control. Luckily, we, as a class, do have control over who serves on this board, how we prioritize our class goals, and how we engage with Mount Holyoke at-large and hold the school accountable. Over the next few days, we’re going to share some of the issues that came up in our class meeting this last weekend — specifically around diversity, inclusion, and leveraging our resources.
Together, we will find a path forward for how we can make meaningful change now and in the future.
Mount Holyoke College Class of 2010 Class Board — June 10, 2020