Secretary Lhamon Discusses Enforcement, Future of Civil Rights in Education

Students and faculty gathered for an event on the future of civil rights in education with Catherine Lhamon ’93, the assistant secretary for civil rights at the United States Department of Education, on Thursday, March 23.

Politics at Amherst: Affirmative Action (Part 1)

"Politics at Amherst" seeks to enrich political discourse on campus by bringing underrepresented perspectives into the conversation. On this episode, host Aaron Holton ’25 is joined by Tim Carroll ’25 in the first of a two-part series on affirmative action.

The AAS Is Changing for the Better — Will Students?

The Editorial Board calls on students to match the productive changes the AAS is making with democratic enthusiasm, in order to make this spring a fresh start for student government.

Politics at Amherst: Episode 1

How do Amherst students engage in political discourse? In the first episode of The Student’s newest podcast, Aaron Holton ’25 discusses how political ideologies manifest on the Amherst campus with Isaiah Doble ’25.

What Does Amherst Owe Democracy?

Those elite institutions that send their alumni into leadership positions in our country have a responsibility to educate truly civic-minded leaders, Zane Khiry ’25 argues.

The Global Importance of Brazilian Democracy

Contributing writer Oliver Polachini ’26 reflects on the global importance of Brazilian democracy in light of the nation’s recent presidential elections.

Let’s Talk About Israel and Palestine

Mason Quintero ’23 makes the argument that peace and mutual understanding are necessary to even begin conversations about the conflict in Israel and Palestine, emphasizing the necessity of “a nation for both peoples.”

Mass. Insider: On the Ballot

In preparation for next week’s elections, Mass. Insider columnist Shane Dillon ’26 provides a quick rundown of this year’s ballot.

Mass. Insider: Our Politics Are Weird, But Changing

Mass. Insider Columnist Shane Dillon ’26 attempts to make sense of a central paradox of Massachusetts politics.

Mass. Insider: Maura Healey’s Bid For Governor

Columnist Shane Dillon ’26 begins his new column with a discussion of upcoming Massachusetts general election and the Democratic nominee Maura Healey, who, unusually for a Democratic candidate, may be poised to win.

Elon Musk's SNL Performance Crash-Lands

Saturday Night Live’s (SNL) ratings have been dropping since the 2020 election [https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/tv-ratings-saturday-sunday-dec-5-6-2020-4101715/amp/] , probably because there are fewer jokes to make about Donald Trump. In an effort to boost ratings, SNL brought business mogul and engineer Elon Musk on as host this past week. With his controversial reputation and significant viewership on Joe Rogan’s YouTube channel, Musk seemed like an apt choice

Closing Out "Politics and Poetry" Series, Martin Baron Discusses Polarization and Truth in Journalism

On Thursday, April 29, Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities and Latin American and Latino Culture Ilan Stavans discussed ideological polarization in the American media with journalist Martin Baron in the final event of the college’s virtual “Politics and Poetry” series [https://www.amherst.edu/news/campus_community_events/virtual/politics-and-poetry] . The series was made possible by the Seminars on Opposing Views Fund, which was established by the Class of 1970. Baron has been the executive e

Seeing Double: Pros and Cons of Court-Packing

In October 2020, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell made the controversial decision to fill the seat of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg with Justice Amy Coney Barrett. The move gave Republican appointees a six out of nine majority on the nation’s highest court, a balance that could have far-reaching consequences for national law. Since then, some Democrats have advocated for adding more justices to the Supreme Court, known as court-packing. Last month, President Joe Biden form

Symposium: Cancel Culture Doesn't Work

Content Warning: Mentions of suicide, sexual harassment and assault; discussion of racism and sexism. Language is shifting all around us, every day, whether we notice it or not. Just last year, Merriam-Webster added [https://web.archive.org/web/20210329222735/https://www.merriam-webster.com/topics/words-were-watching] “petrichor,” “swole” and “stan” to its dictionary. So it should be no surprise that, even in just four years, new terminology has come to dominate our political discourse. Canc

MLB Moves All-Star Game Due to Controversial Georgia Voting Law

On April 2, Major League Baseball (MLB) announced that its 2021 All-Star Game will no longer take place in Atlanta, Georgia after the state passed a controversial voting law last month. Coors Field in Denver, Colorado was later named as the replacement location for the game, which will still be held on its original date of July 13. Georgia Senate Bill 202 [https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20212022/201498], the Republican-sponsored bill at the center of the controversy, introduc

As Mississippi and Texas Repeal Covid-19 Restrictions, Amherst Students Express Concern

On Tuesday, the governors of Texas and Mississippi announced that they had lifted state-wide mask mandates and rolled back a substantial number of Covid-19 health mandates. The announcements, which came merely a day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned against the ongoing dangers of Covid-19, have raised significant concerns for Amherst students and alumni who hail from Texas and Mississippi. In Texas and Mississippi, which have both been ranked within the top 10 [h

David Brooks Discusses Inspirations, Shortcomings and the American Dream in Virtual Lecture

On Thursday, March 11, the college hosted its first event in a new virtual series titled “Politics and Poetry.” The six-part edition [https://www.amherst.edu/news/campus_community_events/virtual/politics-and-poetry] of the Point/Counterpoint series was a conversation between Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities and Latin American and Latino Culture Ilan Stavans and David Brooks, an op-ed columnist for The New York Times, political commentator for the PBS NewsHour and former professor at Yale U