Friday, September 15, 2023
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Land and Racial Justice in the Pacific Northwest
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Feature by: Eunice Blavascunas, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Environmental Studies
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Photo: Roger Amerman ’80, a Choctaw beadwork artist and geologist who now lives on the Nez Perce Reservation, uses Minam State Recreation Area as his classroom.
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Fifteen students participated in the summer field course, Land, Water, Justice in May and June of 2023. The course asked students to think about how to productively engage with difficult racial pasts and presents to help us imagine more socially just and ecologically sensitive futures in the Inland Northwest. Particularly we looked at what land justice means in the context of settler colonialism by listening the voices of Yakama, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Cayuse and Nez Perce tribal members, as well as the voices and stories of those who arrived as laborers on the homelands of Sahaptian speakers, such as Latinx farmworkers, rural descendants of Black logging communities and land trusts working to share land and resources. Students read about the connections between Manifest Destiny and decolonization and gained skills in digital storytelling, oral history and interviews.
To learn more, visit the StoryMaps website created by the course participants.
This course was generously funded by the Andrew Mellon Foundation through the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice, a consortium of partners from the University of Oregon, University of Idaho and Whitman College.
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Constitution Day This Sunday!
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Constitution Day commemorates the 1787 signing of the Constitution. Want to test your knowledge of the Constitution, and maybe even win a prize? Take our annual Constitution Day quiz! The top-scorer on this quiz will have the opportunity to have lunch with Professor of Philosophy Tim Golden and Pre-Law Advisor Noah Leavitt, as well as bragging rights for the next 365 days. (Please play fair. No looking up the answers on the internet!) Responses are due by the end of day on Sunday, Sept. 17.
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In response to recent questions about COVID-19 activity on campus, we wanted to share some information about what we are seeing so far this fall. You will recall that the college is tracking reported student cases for isolation purposes, but are not requiring employees to report COVID-19 cases.
Campus COVID-19 Cases
So far this week we have had 25 students report positive COVID-19 tests as of 9 a.m. Friday. This compares to 32 reported cases last week and 22 reported cases the first week of classes. Currently 16 rooms of isolation housing are in use. All of the students who are now in isolation have been vaccinated and are experiencing very mild symptoms.
While we discontinued weekly reporting through the COVID Dashboard when the federal Public Health Emergency expired at the end of the spring semester, college leadership is still monitoring COVID trends on campus and will communicate with the campus community as needed.
COVID Vaccines
Now that the CDC has approved a new COVID-19 vaccine, the college is looking into options for an on-campus vaccine clinic later this fall. If you would like to get a vaccine sooner, they will soon be available locally including at the Walla Walla Walgreens by appointment starting as early as Monday, Sept. 18.
Staying Healthy This Fall
It’s also important to note that COVID-19 is just one of the sicknesses that could interfere with classes and work this fall. In the weeks and months ahead, we expect to see an uptick in cases of the flu and RSV which have the potential to cause more severe symptoms than COVID-19. For that reason, it is important that each member of the Whitman community pay attention to symptoms, wash hands frequently and stay home if you are sick.
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Sherwood Closes Early for Home Volleyball Games
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As a reminder, Sherwood Athletic Center closes three hours prior to the start of all regular season home volleyball matches, starting today. Come cheer on the Blues this weekend, with games starting on Friday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. and on Saturday, Sept. 16 at 6 p.m. Free admission at the door with your Whitman ID. Additional tickets may be purchased in advance.
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Watch the Sunset Tonight on Ankeny Field
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Visiting Assistant Professor of Art Kyle Peets invites the Whitman community to join him for “Together At Last At Twilight Time” tonight at 7 p.m. on Ankeny Field. This event is a simple ritual of watching the sunset together in silence, beginning when the sun starts to crest below the horizon and ending 32 minutes later. (See attached flyer.)
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Sorority & Fraternity Recruitment Begins
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Whitman sorority or fraternity recruitment events officially get under way this weekend. Follow them on Instagram to learn more:
Panhellenic Association (sororities):
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The Northwest 5 Consortium (NW5C) for Community Engaged Learning will present an example-based virtual session title “Oral History as Public History - Building Reciprocal Relationships” on Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m. This timely discussion brings together three examples of successful collaborative projects to discuss project design and the role of public history in the academy and in the community. Panelists include Gaspar Rivera Salgado, Project Director at UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education and director of the Institute for Transnational Social Change, Tobias Higbie, Professor of History and Labor Studies at UCLA and Director of the UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, and Camilo Lund-Montaño, Assistant Professor of History at Whitman College. (See attached flyer.)
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Photo (@whitmancollegeorganic): The Organic Garden will host a build-your-own pizza party this Saturday at 5 p.m., featuring Organic Garden produce, a wood-fired pizza oven and the baking skills of Chef Jon Sodini. (See attached flyer.)
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State of the Arts: Curtis D. Shepard
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Freimann Studio Theatre, Harper Joy Theatre
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Faculty/Staff Climbing Hours
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Would you like to share an event with campus? Submit the information to the Events Calendar.
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“Whitman Today” is produced by the Office of Communications and is emailed Monday through Friday to Whitman College staff, faculty and students.
All submissions are welcome! If you have accomplishments to celebrate, an event to publicize or other content to share with the Whitman community, email whitmantoday@whitman.edu. Submissions of 125 words or less are due by noon for the following day’s newsletter. Submissions may be edited and/or held for a later date according to space and editorial needs. Your submission also authorizes use on Whitman's social media unless otherwise specified.
Previous issues of Whitman Today are archived on our website.
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Find us on social media: @whitmancollege
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