In her opening remark at the College’s convocation on Sept. 3, President Paula Johnson declared her commitment to increase understanding in conversations about conflicts in the Middle East, evoking a range of student reactions across campus.
Each year, the President addresses faculty, staff, and students on the first day of class to celebrate the commencement of a new academic year. Convocation speeches generally welcome the incoming class, remind them of Wellesley’s vibrant community, and revel in students’ efforts to make it to where they are today. This year, however, Johnson referenced nation-wide issues regarding the 2024 election and conflicts in the Middle East.
She opened her speech with praise for Simone Biles in how she overcame obstacles and succeeded in the 2024 Paris Olympics and proceeded to highlight Vice President Kamala Harris as another “soaring” woman.
“Whatever your political leanings, it’s impossible not to delight in another soaring woman, the unprecedented presidential candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris, a Black and South Asian woman, a daughter of immigrants, as the nominee of a major party. It is something to celebrate,” Johnson said.
Wellesley students similarly expressed an appreciation for how Harris’s role in the nation uplifts women, regardless of one’s political belief.
“It’s really exciting for me to see a woman of color running for president. I think it will make a huge impact on the BIPOC community within the United States as a whole, and things feel especially exciting at Wellesley as a historically women’s college,” said Claire Talmon ’27.
At the onset of the 2024 election, Johnson urged the College community to exercise the right to vote, especially in light of the Jan. 6 Capitol violence. Notably, she announced that Wellesley joined 76 other colleges and universities in an effort sponsored by the Institute for Citizens and Scholars to connect classroom education with societal challenges.
“It’s more important than ever that we exercise our right to vote in order to allow for the peaceful transfer of power,” Johnson said. “In such a politically polarized time, young people can sway the course of the future.”
At that moment, an individual in the lower area of the theater interrupted her speech and shouted, “Free Palestine.” Johnson continued her speech after a single cheer and a brief pause.
“Voting is an expression of hope, and there’s no progress without the hope that things can be better, that life can be freer and fairer in the future,” she said.
Past protests over Clinton Center spark continued debate on campus dialogue
Johnson noted that the start of a new year presents a fresh opportunity to hold conversations “characterized by mutual respect” on the “devastating and fraught” situation in the Middle East.
This comes as the Israel-Gaza conflict spurred protests and encampments across U.S. universities and colleges. Although there was never an encampment at Wellesley, students organized numerous Pro-Palestinian demonstrations targeted toward the newly created Hillary Rodham Clinton Center. The largest protest occurred on Saturday, April 6, the day Hillary Clinton visited Wellesley to celebrate the new center’s inaugural summit.
In the days leading up to Clinton’s arrival, a pamphlet titled “Dearest Hillary” was circulated around campus. The pamphlet called Clinton “Wellesley’s most beloved war-criminal” and quoted Clinton’s past declarations of support for Israel.
When Clinton arrived on campus on April 6, she was met with a Pro-Palestinian protest. The crowd chanted phrases such as “Hillary, Hillary, you’re a liar; we demand a cease-fire.”
On April 5, the day before the summit, Vice President and Dean of Students Sheilah Shaw Horton sent a campus-wide email titled “Dear Wellesley Students” that outlined demonstration policies, stating that any student who violates the code of student conduct will be required to leave the summit and receive honor code charges.
The demonstration policy detailed that students must notify the College at least two days in advance of the demonstration. Several students feel that this rule counteracts the very nature of a protest.
“The timing [of the email] was definitely intentional … Protest is supposed to be disruptive, and if you’re trying to make a demonstration policy, essentially its only goal is to make the protest the least disruptive as it possibly can be, and then the spirit of the protest is gone,” said Raines Seeley ’25. “When we’re constantly being told how to protest and how to conduct ourselves, it feels like every statement we try to make is dampened out by the rules of protest.”
Frustration over perceived administrative barriers to student activism
Certain individuals agree that the administration’s actions last year suggest a desire to suppress students’ ability to hold true open dialogue.
“I just think it’s interesting that President Johnson says they want to hear us and want to have open dialogue with us about what is going on but then immediately shuts us down when we start to have those conversations on campus,” said Fabiola Ramirez ’26.
Furthermore, there is a sense that the administration should support Wellesley students’ involvement in political activism.
“If anything, Wellesley College should be proud of its students for engaging in protest in nonviolent ways,” said Anna Li ’25.
Nearly all students The News interviewed believed the last academic year was marked by contentious tension between the student body and the administration.
“They [the administration] sometimes appeared to make students quiet instead of letting them express what they truly believed, and I think that created a lot more tension and a very polarized ecosystem,” Talmon said.
From having conversations with upperclassmen, Anya Moore ’28 picked up on the emphasis on conversations over any form of activism.
“It already feels like there’s more of a focus on ‘let’s just talk it through’ and ‘let’s be civil about it,’ [as if] protests and activism is a lesser form or worse approach to these big issues,” said Moore.
As the campus is marred with polarizing issues such as the Middle East conflicts and the election, the College reiterates its demonstration policy at the start of the first of the school year while implementing more seminars and workshops on meanings and perspectives on Zionism and Israel/Palestine, starting on the week of Sept. 16.
Johnson emphasizes open-mindedness in fostering campus unity
In her convocation speech, Johnson further posed questions that prompted individuals to consider how to avoid “targeting and excluding individuals due to their ideas or beliefs or backgrounds.” She discussed the significance of a community open to new ideas that can be contradictory.
Students agree that open-mindedness is integral in sustaining a positive college community.
“I really hope students can have more of an open mind on campus because since it’s such a far-left school, everyone who is in the in-between or on the other side [politically] doesn’t feel safe or as if they have a place here. Even if you don’t agree with what someone believes, just listening to them and open discussion is the most important thing because if you just get mad at someone that’s not going to do anything,” said Talmon.
Johnson ultimately addressed students directly and pledged the College’s commitment to increasing understanding.
“The commitment that I make to you, our students, at this moment of renewal is that as a community, we will work very hard to increase understanding all the way around. Of course, community is at its essence a collaborative effort,” said Johnson.
Contact the editors responsible for this story: Valida Pau and Sazma Sarwar
