• About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
The Wellesley News -
  • News and Features
    • The Wellesley (COVID) 100
      The Wellesley (COVID) 100
    • In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
      In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
    • Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
      Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
    • News
      • News in Brief
      • Nation & World
      • President’s Corner
      • Senate Report
    • Features
      • Alumnae Spotlight
      • Eye on Science
      • Faculty Focus
      • LGBTQIA+ Column
  • Opinions
    • The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
      The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
    • Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
      Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
    • No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
      No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
    • Staff Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • The Elephant in the Room
  • Arts
    • Be/longing Centers Connection and Care
      Be/longing Centers Connection and Care
    • No image
      Birds Falling Upwards: Wellesley College Theater’s The Moors is a Must-See
    • No image
      Sometimes you just need to read a YA “Groundhog Day” to feel something
    • Arts In The News
    • Reviews
    • Music Peek
    • Books Before Boys
  • Health and Wellness
    • February Student Athlete of the Month
      February Student Athlete of the Month
    • Athletics Update
      Athletics Update
    • Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
      Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
    • Athlete of the Week
    • Boston Sports Update
    • The Vegan Digest
    • The SHE Corner
  • The Wellesley Snooze
    • Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
      Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
    • Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
      Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
    • Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
      Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
  • Miscellanea
    • President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
      President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
    • Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
      Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
    • 50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
      50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
    • The Dose
    • The Olive Branch
    • Multimedia
      • Galleries
      • Infographics
      • Videos
By Kimberley Chia Yan Min News, News and Features, President's CornerNovember 7, 2018

PRESIDENT’S CORNER: 11/7

College Government President Kimberly Chia Yan Min offers a message of hope. Photo Courtesy of Ashley Kim ’19.

Dear Wellesley Community,

I do not know about you, but news headlines have felt very sobering to me lately. It not only seems like something is going wrong each day – there’s tangible evidence to back that up. It’s seeing elected politicians emphatically deny people the right to exist based on their identity. It’s seeing violent delights actually become violent ends, with terrible consequences. It’s seeing a sheer lack of character in politics that has become self-serving.

I remember coming across an online comment that said: in times like this, the only radical thing left to do is to hope and to love. It really does sound so fluffy – it’s times like this where I struggle, asking out loud – Where is the justice? How I am supposed to live in a problematic world which does not care about the people I care about? Why should I continue to hope and to love when I am so tired of it all?

But honestly, that’s all we have left to offer: to hope and to love anyway. To hope in spite of fear, and to love in spite of hate and apathy. My understanding is that to hope and to love is not just a fleeting feeling: it is a conscious act of your will. The worst thing we can do is to descend into cheerful nihilism, where all things lose their meaning to us. 

Instead, I urge us all to understand our power, our place, and our ability to really make an impact in the communities we are a part of – and that includes Wellesley. To love means holding our community to a higher standard, to hope means to be bold in proposing changes, to do both means fighting the injustice that we see. It also means checking in with your friends and loving yourself enough. I challenge us to live out a truer definition of Non Ministrari sed Ministrare (“Not to be ministered unto, but to minister) here on our campus, and carry that with us in our lives. I’m not perfect at this, but let’s throw perfection to the wind – just listen to what this world needs, and just try.

I also wish to use this week’s column to offer love and support to everyone on campus who has gone through a tough time last week, and who still is going through a tough time. You exist, you matter and you are so very loved. And it is very much okay to disengage to take better care of yourself – that’s a radical act too. And for those who are radically loving and hoping for better things to come, I see you too and you’re the reason why I get inspired at Wellesley on the daily.

Keep on going on,

Kimberly Chia Yan Min

College Government President ‘18-’19

Share on

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Google +
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Previous articleCommunity Members Honor Victims of Pittsburgh Shooting at Memorial Service
Next articleOutside the Bubble: 11/07/18

You may also like

The Wellesley (COVID) 100

In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays

Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

Top Articles

Sorry. No data so far.

Recent Tweets

Tweets by @Wellesley_News

The independent student newspaper of Wellesley College since 1901.

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

  • About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
COPYRIGHT © 2022 THE WELLESLEY NEWS
Back to top