Do I Even Exist? I do not have numbers for physically disabled students, and I'm not sure if the College makes that information public. Amherst believes that the number of students with physical disabilities is small enough that providing a
Censorship
Snowflakes at Amherst
Amherst College is withholding important information about its disabled students by claiming a statistic has a right to privacy. 1 I recently wrote to Amherst College, my alma mater, to inquire how many blind and otherwise physically disabled
Tribalism in Amber
1 I like to believe I have fought through most, even all, of the prejudices I’ve held in the past. However, prejudice can be like a virus that keeps adapting and renewing itself. 2 Ignorant of Ireland’s history, I arrived in America from England
The King and the Dutchman
In some eras, lies of omission and commission are matters of career and even personal survival: the Spanish inquisition, communist and fascist totalitarianism, America's McCarthy era, today's Iran or Saudi Arabia. And now today's America, where fear
Dare We Enjoy Work by Authors Who Have Behaved Badly?
1 Is it wrong to appreciate works created by artists who have done bad things? These days the quandary arises around #MeToo transgressions, but it has been around for as long as there has been art. The question comes to my mind in connection with a
Identity
1 Even though I used to find public speaking a nightmare, I consented to be the senior speaker at my Amherst College commencement. I say “consented” because I’d promised Andy, the friend who nominated me, that I would go ahead if elected, as I was.