If we keep spreading the narrative that WashU is a place of suppression of expression, then yes, it will be a space of uncomfortable silence. We, the student body, have both passively and actively created that perceived reality for ourselves.

While Graham Chapel’s stage frequently serves as a platform for influential speakers, these events are currently not an integral part of campus culture. We urge WashU to prioritize these events by making them more accessible to the student body, and we urge students to give these events a chance.

I deeply value the intellectual community I have found at WashU, and am regularly struck with admiration for the students, faculty, and staff who constitute it. That is why it pains me to see our community represented in a national news outlet by such a morally unserious statement. WashU deserves better.

These policies reach beyond the scope of the suspensions after April 27. WashU administrators have the authority to evict students from housing based on subjective criteria and without an investigation, conduct hearing, or confirmation that the student has somewhere to go.

If administrators only answer certain criticisms, are students really being listened to?

I can only imagine the fear young Jewish college students felt when they were abruptly shaken from their studies to such violent chanting by unknown strangers who had descended upon their campus.

Divestment campaigns have achieved their goals at other universities. So what’s stopping divestment at WashU?

The Association of Black Students (ABS) published a list of grievances and demands for WashU’s administration over winter break in a series of Instagram posts titled “Enough is Enough.” 

The group criticized the administration’s response to a number of events in recent years that have affected students of color.

Chancellor Andrew Martin released a statement on Oct. 10 on behalf of the Washington University administration in response to the “devastating events in Israel and Gaza” that occurred over the weekend.

The University must consider other areas such as legacy admissions to further demonstrate continued commitment to socioeconomic diversity.