Maggie Dougherty
View Points Editor
Makeda Teklemichael
View Points Editor
Chloe Burdette
Editor in Chief
Samuel Casey
Editor in Chief
Megan Tuennerman
Managing Editor
Dear Scots,
As the 2020 presidential election draws closer, we recognize that political polarization is higher than usual. In an effort to ensure that members of our campus community treat one another with respect during this time, we have decided to institute a new Election Year policy to guide our publication decisions for the Viewpoints section. Our policy, as can be found on The Wooster Voice website, reads:
“We recognize that election years are a time of heightened polarization in which members of our community may feel especially strongly about certain issues. As always, The Wooster Voice is committed to protecting Freedom of Speech and Expression for our writers. That being said, in an effort to maintain goodwill amongst our campus community, we will be doing our best to balance speech and expression protections with respect for human dignity. As always, we will not print personal attacks against individuals or Viewpoints that disrespect the dignity of any group based on identity characteristics.”
Moreover, in Viewpoints, it is common to acknowledge that those who don’t agree with you may have a different opinion. You certainly do not have to agree with that opinion, but we also will not tolerate language which disparages the individuals who think differently than you as being less intelligent for their opinion. When writing Viewpoints, we encourage you to interrogate why those who disagree with you hold their opinions and to entertain the idea that there might be valid reasoning for them to feel a certain way, even if you do not.
Finally, in recognition of recent developments in the Black Lives Matter movement, we want to underscore the sentiments expressed in a recent email from the Board of Trustees of the College, sent on Tuesday, Sept. 22 from Secretary of the College Angela Johnston. In their statement, the Trustees write, “We recognize that anti-Black violence and other disheartening examples of anti-Black racism are neither new nor isolated. We also recognize that intentional racial discrimination, unconscious bias, and the legacies of slavery and white supremacy contribute to anti-Black violence and perpetuate gross racial disparities in education, housing, employment, healthcare, and other structures of contemporary society.”
In accordance with the Trustees’ message, The Wooster Voice unequivocally recognizes that Black lives matter, and that Black people in the United States face racial discrimination in many forms. We will not publish a Viewpoint which argues that Black people do not face racism, as we believe this would bring harm to our community. We will not publish any Viewpoints which invalidate or undermine the experiences of other individuals, especially in regard to race.
Thank you for adhering to these guidelines to commit to kindness towards our campus community.
Kindly, your editors:
Maggie Dougherty
Makeda Teklemichael
Chloe Burdette
Samuel Casey
Megan Tuennerman
