A Plea for Peace Amidst Pluralism

Here are some of the resources available for Whitman students, faculty and all employees to help support them through and beyond election season.

Normally around this time of year we send out a message calling on the Whitman community to mindfully engage in Halloween festivities. We request that people steer clear of any appropriative costumes and genuinely consider the potential harm that a seemingly innocent representation of another’s culture can have on our community. But this is not that message. This is a plea for peace in the interest of community wellbeing. 

Over the last several years, we have been through it. The trauma and loss of connection wrought by the pandemic. The stress of reduced and constrained institutional resources. The growing doubt in the value proposition of higher education. An incessant series of regional, national and global tragedies. We’ve experienced political polarization, multiple wars, threats to our democracy and, for some, assaults on our humanity. And that does not include the various personal challenges each of us has faced in our lives during these times. Loss of loved ones. Financial insecurity. Health crises. Academic struggles. Loneliness and isolation. Many of us are reeling. 

But in the midst of all of these seemingly insurmountable and multiple drains on our wellbeing, each of us has the benefit of being a part of the Whitman community. We have put together a collection of resources to provide additional support to our community as we move through these next few weeks. You can find details about the different election season resources available to Whitman students, faculty and all employees in the attached documents.

A hallmark of Whitman is generosity of heart. Prospective students and candidates for employment alike routinely remark about how their visit to our campus presented them with an overwhelming sense of care and joy. They recount interactions with members of our community where people went above and beyond to provide support and to make them feel welcome. Many of our alumni remain engaged and speak to the close-knit nature of the campus community and fall over themselves to provide support to current faculty, staff and students. The heart of a Whittie is as big as all outside and we see evidence of that every day. 

As caring as we are as a community, we are also a very thoughtful and passionate bunch. Our campus today is more diverse than it has ever been and our varied backgrounds, experiences and opinions are a boundless and irreducible gift that we must cherish. Diversity of views and passion require a steady hand to balance. But balance we must. 

We are in a unique semester. Not just the kind that occurs every four years and tests our capacity for humility, but one where tensions are high and bandwidth is low. No matter the outcome of the election, we are heading towards difficult times. Stress and anxiety levels are increasing. Mid-term season is upon us. Project deadlines are fast approaching, while the nights are getting longer and colder. In moments like these, what we most need is wellness and each other. Andrew Jolivette challenges us to “be medicine” for those with whom we are in community. Be healing. Be empathetic. Be gentle. Take care of yourselves and take care of each other.

As we all continue on our Whitman journey, take time to consider your contributions to our shared wellbeing. Are you inviting or confronting? Are you inquiring or challenging? Are you bombarding people with your views or seeking consent before you engage someone in a political dialogue? Are you leading with care and generosity or are you asserting power and authority? While we recognize that proximity does not automatically translate into community, we have some shared needs and we may want to keep them in mind as we navigate the remainder of this semester together. We make the community we deserve, one action at a time. This is my plea for peace, because we will all need personal and collective wellness to weather the storms ahead. 

Go Blues!

Special thanks go out to the Office of the Provost, Identity and Belonging, Human Resources, and the Wellness unit in Campus Life for coordinating and sharing these resources to help support the Whitman community.