Hannukkah Items: Ranked
The holiday season is upon us! This also means that my annual pro-hanukkah tirade is beginning. Here is my objectively correct rating of every Hanukkah item I could think of: Chanukiahs: 10/10 A necessity for the core of the Hanukkah celebration. A well made kosher chanukiah will last you a lifetime. I prefer the kind…
How To Write Bias In Six Easy Steps: Analyzing The Quest’s Coverage Of “Shut Down Reed for Palestine”
The Reed College Quest catapulted itself into campus-wide controversy last month when it published an article reporting on a November 9 protest against the Israel-Palestine conflict that some have accused of inaccurately portraying pro-Palestine activism as antisemitic and violent. The article, titled “Reed College Protest Ends in Four Student Arrests, Demonstrators Chant ‘Globalize the Intifada,’”…
Opinion: A Better Paradox Review
By Connor Gilligan and Ishani Hirata-Chandran Two weeks ago, the Quest printed a brief review of Paradox titled ”Because it’s Paradox.” In the span of a few paragraphs, the author admits to not knowing how to consume the drinks he’s reviewing, not having done even a modicum of research on the topic, and makes a…
Letter From an Editor: Believe Them the First Time
On Wednesday, a few hours before this letter was scheduled to go to print, a reporter alerted me to an anonymous Missed Connections post that had just gone out to the whole student body. It said, and I’m quoting in full, “I am voting NO QUORUM because the Quest hasnt [sic] apologized for endangering literally…
Letter to the Quest Editors
Dear Quest Editors, I have been following the events of the last few weeks in the Levant with great sadness. The tragedy, the horrific loss of life, is difficult to overstate. It is my moral belief that preserving human life is of utmost importance. The discussion of the geopolitical situation, upon which I am about…
Our Reporting Process on November 9
Dear readers, This is neither a defense nor an apology. As an editor of the Quest, it is not my responsibility to defend my own work, nor is it my place to express views on the events I cover. Indeed, it is my obligation not to. That is why I have, until now, kept silent…
Letter to the Editor: What I Know Now
Dear Editors, Journalists sometimes obtain information they know to be both newsworthy and accurate, but which – if they do their jobs properly – will never be printed. Sometimes the information cannot be printed because it reached the newsroom through improper channels, sometimes because its publication would cause a level of harm not commensurate with…
Letter to the Editor: James Aas
Dear Editors of the Quest, After reading the article last week regarding the college’s resistance to divestment from companies who are associated with Israel, I felt like the College was shirking responsibility associated with where its investments lie. My issues with the journalistic integrity of announcing you’re a journalist partway through a meeting you attended,…
Letter to the Editor: Mud Bentley
I have been appalled by the way The Quest has covered (and not covered) recent events. The latest piece on protests on campus was needling and accusatory of social justice groups. The lack of a piece on the current genocide against the Palestinian people reveals that the Quest leadership is either blind to the publication’s…
Letter to the Editor: Dylan Holmes ’17
Hello, As an alum, I am incredibly disappointed in the Quest’s insanely biased coverage of last week’s Palestine protest. It felt like I was reading a NY Post article. With all your disingenuous and borderline libelous paragraphs looking to draw a parallel between the student protestors and the Nazis who committed Kristallnacht, it’s almost like…
Letter to the Editor: Our Grief must not be Weaponized in Service of Genocide
Editor’s Note: As with all Letters to the Editor and opinions submitted to the Reed College Quest, this opinion does not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Quest, its writers, or its editors. We understand the journalistic pitfalls of sensationalism, and our intentions are not to provoke a response, especially around such a…
Letter to the Editor: Concerning Statistics, Ethics, and Journalism
On Friday October 13th, The Quest rather aptly published Mr. Declan Bradley’s article, “New York Times Ranks Reed in Bottom 8th Percentile for ‘Economic Diversity’ Among Selective U.S. Colleges [italicization added].” The article, under the dubiously labeled “Insight” column (the author at one point explicitly states he is expressing an opinion), argues for a reorientation…
Letter to the Editor: Putting Action Where Reed’s Mouth Is
By Lennox Reeder Howdy, Over the past decade and some changes, Reed College has undergone a profound and noteworthy demographic transformation. One of the supreme highlights of this moment has been the outburst in gender equity at the college that has allowed for a vast and unique effort at gender desegregation of campus facilities, from…
Letter to the Editor: An Intro to JBoard and How to Keep it Student-led
We’ve heard from a number of students that they are unsure of exactly what the Judicial Board (JBoard) does, we hope this intro clears up some uncertainties! Hi! We are the JBoard Co-chairs, Nana Branker-McLean and Nicole Chan (she/hers), and we – like our other members – joined the Judicial Board because we care about…
JBoard Case Summaries Fall 2022-Spring 2023
Fall 2022 The complaint for this case has been formally withdrawn at the request of the complainant. The Hearing Board for this case contained the following members: Hearing Board Chair: Sage Curry-Wynne Hearing Board Members: Kenneth Vounzi, Nicole Chan, Alondra Loza, Iris Zhang Procedural Aide: Riley Ellis The Judicial Board adjudicated a complaint alleging a…
What is Sukkot?
By Rowan Horowitz The Jewish holiday of Sukkot lasted from the evening of September 29 until the evening of October 6. Sukkot is the third of the three “high holy days” holidays, and is the most whimsical of them all. On Sukkot, Jews from all over the world build little huts, called sukkahs, in their…
Beyond the Squared Circle
A tribute to kayfabe wrestlers and modern-era performers By Alex Diamond It’s a widely acknowledged fact that pro wrestling is scripted. The charming concept of Kayfabe, the belief that professional wrestling was real, died in 1996, nine years before I was born, with the curtain call. Even if I hadn’t seen Razor Ramone hug Diesel…
Read a Source’s Response to IT’s Email to All Students
Dear Editors of the Reed College Quest, I am one of the sources for the recently-published article on vulnerabilities related to the Reed ID system. The Information Security department sent out an email in an apparent attempt to address the issue before the Quest could release their story; however, it is very misleading and even…
Letter to the Editor: Union of Reed College Housing Advisors
Dear Reader, We hope this letter finds you well. As a group of dedicated Housing Advisors (HAs) working diligently within Reed College’s ResLife, we would like to bring several pressing issues to your attention. These concerns revolve around the constant changes in HA role responsibilities and job descriptions, as well as several other matters impacting…
Returning From Study Abroad
By Adrian Keller Feld Yes, I am going to be that returning study abroad kid, the one everyone despises, who doesn’t shut up about their time abroad: how much better everything was, and how weird it is coming back. Before going abroad I disliked that person too, thought they were exaggerating, and while they were,…
Letter to the Editor: Reed and Holistic Admission
By Milyon Trulove, Vice President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Reed College Even before the release of the 237-page Supreme Court ruling in June, Gallup and Pew data show most Americans, including Americans of color, agreed that Affirmative Action in college admission was a bad idea. So when the Supreme Court banned…
Orientation Week: A Freshman’s Perspective
By Ray Perry Orientation week is supposed to teach you all about college…right? Well, it sort of did the job. While some parts were helpful, I did create 120 origami cranes throughout the week due to boredom. Here’s a rundown of what worked and what didn’t. The departmental information sessions were really useful, and I…
Princeton Review Ranks Reed College #2 for “Reefer Madness”
Reed College is known for its unofficial motto, “Atheism, Communism, and Free Love.” Many assume that, under those three values, cannabis use is ubiquitous on our campus, especially since it’s quite popular in Portland. But somehow, Reed College had the title of the #1 for pot consumption stolen right from under our noses by none…
Black Country, New Road: Why True Friendship Keeps Music Alive
By Owen Fidler; Photography by Owen Fidler We live in an era where music is more accessible than ever, where finding music can be as simple as scrolling through 10-second clips generated from a Spotify homepage category titled “what indie love song r u?” Consequently, one can feel awfully disconnected from the art that beats…
The Overwhelming Realm of Taylor Swift
By Lindsey Babcock I don’t know how many fellow Swifties roam this campus, but as one, my life is never boring. Taylor Swift has recently decided to bombard the world with new updates on her projects much more frequently than is usual for herself or other artists. This frequent release of cryptic messaging leads fans…
Letter to the Editor: Staying Safe During O-Week
[Trigger warning: This letter concerns mentions of non-consensual intoxication and sexual assault, which may be triggering for some readers. We advise all those reading to prioritize their own wellbeing, and to feel free to stop reading or take breaks at any time if you foresee this topic may be personally distressing for you. You may…
Lone Voices and the Power of Novel Sounds
Music is an everyday part of life for many people. It fills the silence as you do chores, thrums in the background as you talk with friends, and drifts through elevators, stores, and concert halls. Music is versatile in how and when it can be played, what stories it can tell, and who it can…
O(pabinia) Week
Transport yourself back 505 million years ago to the middle Cambrian. The earth is unrecognizable. The continents we know today have not yet formed, and the greenery we associate with life has not yet evolved. The land is barren and rocky. The oceans, however, are brimming with life, and it is some of the most…
Letter to the Editor from SHARE’s Policy and Accountability Committee: Reed’s Need for an AOD Amendment
CW: This amendment concerns the issue of non-consensual intoxication, which may be triggering for some readers. We advise all those reading to prioritize their own wellbeing, and to feel free to stop reading or take breaks at any time if you foresee this topic may be personally distressing for you. You may also consider returning…
Letter to the Editors: Wi-Fi Expansion
Howdy, I saw y’all had some questions in Senate Beat about Wi-Fi expansion. I’m the student representative to the Computing Policy and Planning Committee, at present, and I can report on what I’ve learned about the Wi-Fi from recent communications regarding the project. Feel free to format this in whatever way works for further communication…
Opinion: Portland Sucks at Snow
As I am sure you have noticed, it recently snowed quite a lot here in Portland. Overall, this last week got us around 12 inches of snow, with many referring to the event as a “snowpocalypse.” And while, yes, this was some record-breaking snowfall – the snowiest day since 1943, apparently – this is something…
Senate Responds to Judicial Board Co-Chairs’ Statement
Anoushka and Sage (and the Quest!), Thank you for your concern. It is important to hear from the Chairs of our Accountability groups, and we appreciate your feedback. However, we would like to share some information regarding the situation with the Restorative Justice coalition. We apologize for any strain placed on the working relationship between…
Update: Elon Musk is Still in Hell
Recently I found myself sitting in the Quest office (Quoffice, if you will), contemplating an increasingly sparse slate of news content, when I thought to myself, “Man, I wonder what Elon’s up to?” An odd thought, perhaps, but it’s true — I’ve been so busy with my studies lately that I haven’t even had time…
Judicial Board Co-Chairs’ Statement on Senate’s Defunding of Restorative Justice Coalition
We as Judicial Board (J-Board) co-chairs wish to express our concerns about the decision to defund the Restorative Justice Coalition (RJC) mid-year. We as the current J-Board chairs were never consulted about the grievances against RJC, or the plan to defund RJC in an official capacity. To our understanding, the previous J-Board co-chairs expressed concerns…
The Turkey Plague Has Come to an End
Rejoice! The Turkey Plague has ceased to be, and Amanda Reed smiles upon us! With our turkey stock replenished, hot turkey sandwiches may be once again found in abundance on Thursdays between 11:30am and 1:30pm in commons. By Will Howes
How to Become a Reed Legend in 13 Easy Steps
Amongst the names and sentiments that have been written throughout the years in the sign-out book at the Reed College ski cabin, this list is between the pages. It dates back to 1979, nearly 50 years ago, and details instructions on how to become a “Reed Legend.” So without further ado, below are the steps…
Letter to the Editors: David Comfort (’71)
Editor’s note: As with all Letters to the Editor submitted to the Reed College Quest, this letter does not reflect the views or positions of the Quest, its writers, or its editors. We understand the journalistic pitfalls of sensationalism, and our intentions are not to provoke a response, especially around such a serious and painful…
Marketplace Drink Tier List
The Reed Marketplace is a highly competitive establishment for drinks. With one of the most diverse drink selections in the country, the meta is always changing, with new drinks arriving and replacing old ones constantly. What makes a good drink is its ability to monopolize a niche. For example, water is such a successful drink…
Opinion: The OGL 1.1 In Summary (& Retrospect)
The Summary (Of Events) In late December, the news outlet Gizmodo reported on a leaked document that would soon provoke massive outrage and give the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) community – and the whole Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) community at large – its greatest shake up in a long while. The leaks indicated that Wizards…
Albert’s Fun Facts Science Corner: Blockchain Eats the Internet or Dies Trying
In his 1992 science fiction novel “Snow Crash,” Neal Stephenson coined the word “metaverse.” To Stephenson’s characters, the metaverse represents a sort of egalitarian ideal. Separate from the constraints of material reality, what you can achieve in the metaverse isn’t limited by your wealth, but by your ability to arrange information, to program, to innovate.…
Missing Narcan: It’s Not About the Money
Taking doses of Narcan from the overdose emergency boxes on campus without telling Community Safety may cost someone their life. That’s a harsh and jarring statement–and it is true. Community Safety collaborates with Reed’s Health & Counseling Center (HCC) to provide two doses of Narcan nasal spray to every residence hall on campus, as well…
Your Anti-Trans Bigotry Is Not Feminism: On TERFs, From a Trans Woman
This year, among the student body, there has been a small but vocal group of people—colloquially called TERFs, “Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists”—who have given voice to a certain kind of anti-trans bigotry, masquerading as feminism. I, someone who has recently come out as a trans woman, would like to respond to these voices. I’m hesitant…
“Protocols, Not Platforms”: A Mantra For The (We Can Only Hope) Post-Twitter Internet
CW – briefly mentions misgendering & deadnaming Sooo, Twitter’s a hot mess. I think we all kinda know the modern internet sucks in a lot of ways; privacy is dead, objectivity is dead, customizability and user-friendly design are dead, competition is dead, democracy is dead (not that it was ever really alive). If you’re a…
Women’s Basketball Is Awesome and You’re in Denial
Back during the start of the school year, I decided that I wanted to get into the WNBA. The playoffs were just starting, and Oregon Duck darling Sabrina Ionescu was having somewhat of a breakout year as a starting shooting guard on a halfway decent New York Liberty team. Knowing absolutely nothing about the league…
It’s Official, Elon Musk is in Hell
It’s come to this. I’ll be honest — when Elon Musk first announced his intention to buy Twitter back in April, I didn’t believe it. I said foolish things like, “This is absurd,” and “he’s just trolling us, there’s no way he’ll actually go through with it.” Well, dear reader, he went through with it.…
Letter to the Editor: Emergency Contraceptives Available at the Bookstore
Dear Reedies, Emergency contraception (aka “Plan B”, morning-after pill; generic name: levonorgestrel) is now available at the Bookstore/Homer’s Hut for $16! Since the beginning of the year, Jessica Valeske, the bookstore director, has been working with the HCC to locate a supplier for over-the-counter emergency contraception (the bookstore already had the required drug outlet licensing).…
Opinion: “Voluntourism” is a minefield. Consider WWOOF to navigate it.
Americans volunteering abroad tends to reinforce the same gimmicky tropes: there’s the group of teenagers building orphanages and finding Jesus, the shameless PR stunts put on by the US heralding development, the environmental projects pinky-swearing they’re saving the *insert endangered animal here* and not just a glorified petting zoo… the list could go on. The…
Opinion: Pool Hall Menace
Reed’s Pool Hall, home to events such as the Thursday tournaments, pool ball, pool formal, strip pool, Them’s and Fems Tuesdays, and many other themed pool-related events, has been returned to its former glory after a short hiatus due to multiple pool cues being repaired. Why did the pool cues require repair, one might ask?…
Opinion: Smokers vs. Non-Smokers, An Ongoing Conflict Over Smoke Spaces On Campus
If you’ve read the recent Missed Connections, then you are quite aware of the discourse between smokers and non-smokers on campus. From an MC on August 31, 2022, which called for Reedies to stop smoking in front of Commons, a full-blown war began, with smokers and non-smokers alike posting anonymous (and not anonymous) MCs bashing…
Opinion: Stepping Into The Road
Let’s step out into the road together. It’s Woodstock, at 17:30 on a Friday, everyone is rushing around to get to wherever it is that thirty-something Portlanders go when they’re not at the office pretending to be useful on Macs and phones and office paraphernalia. Don’t call it jaywalking–call it reclaiming space. (Jaywalking of course…
Letter to the Editors: Restorative Justice’s Response to Last Week’s Senate Public
My name is Robin Hart, and I have been one of the co-chair’s of Reed’s Restorative Justice Coalition (RJC) for over two years. We were recently given the surprising news that the Student Body Senate had made the decision to revoke our funding for the coming semester. I will start with a summary of our…
It’s Time to Bring Back The Scrounge
For some truly risk-loving individuals, the scrounge never left. The Commandments may have been stripped from the Commons wall, the table covered in half-eaten sandwiches and picked-at bowls of rice may have been cleaned and folded and packed away, but for some, the spirit of the Scrounge has remained. Despite the plague risk, the spinning…
Reedies Should Hold One Another Accountable in the Career Search: Maybe We Can Start with the Blackstone Group
Reed’s renowned leftism—“the most liberal college in the country” the Atlantic propounded—has year after year shown its force on campus. Just in the last few years alone, Reedies have fundamentally changed the college’s core curriculum, pressured the Board to divest from fossil fuels, and demanded the firing of a recently exposed racist and tenured professor,…
The Behemoth Lives On
From all available evidence no black man had ever set foot in this tiny Swiss village before I came. – James Baldwin, “Stranger in The Village” When I received my acceptance letter to Reed two Decembers ago, I knew that I just had to make it. I wasn’t worried about making it through my last…
God Save the King? Long Live the Republic?
In November of 2021, Barbados became the first Commonwealth nation since Mauritius to formally remove Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state and declare itself a republic. During the ceremony, the peaceful transfer of power was symbolized by a final salute to the Royal Standard flag, before it was then lowered one final time…
Letter To The Editor: Imperialism in HUM 110
Co-authored by Claire deVroede and Lydia Mead On Thursday, February 10th, we gathered in the GCC to discuss an upcoming Humanities 110 paper. We, a freshman Humanities 110 student (Aakash) and a senior writing tutor (Claire), reviewed the prompts, one of which shocked us: Some scholars argue that the Tira de la Peregrinación remains unfinished,…
Letter To The Editor: A Response to the OpEd 3/21
Before I get started, I recommend pulling up and reading Lennox Reeder’s OpEd on 3/21 side-by-side with my response to follow along. I would like to applaud Lennox for their exposition on the subject of individualism from the perspective of a Black student at Reed College. Lennox critiques the “progressively racist” environment students harbor by…
Marino Café and the Importance of Special Spaces
If somehow you find yourself having escaped the Reed bubble, wandering about like a little lamb in the vast, unfathomable void of suburban Portland, you just might have seen it: an unassuming late-night café on Division street known as Marino Adriatic Café. I love this place so much. Striking murals paint the walls, and all…
Let the Voices Extend: A Personal Reflection on Institutional Inequality at Reed as an International Student
A protest against racism was going on. Students were making noises. Our voices need to be heard, so that actual anti-racism actions can be taken. We demand and deserve no tolerance for hate speech. But beyond introducing no leniency on any speaker of racist speech, what are the long-term actions we want, exactly? When we,…
Opinion: WHOSE JUSTICE? WHICH RATIONALITY?
“Indulgence for the royalists, cry certain men, mercy for the villains! No! mercy for the innocent, mercy for the weak, mercy for the unfortunate, mercy for humanity.” – Maximillien Robespierre When I went back home for Winter Break, I found myself feeling repeatedly frustrated while having casual conversations with friends and family. Whenever I was…
There is a Glowing Blue Presence Beneath the Surface
There is a balm in Gilead. Modern permissive authority is serpentine and consumptive, it is the Apophis to the Ra of individuality. And yet, at Reed, a supposed wellspring of good progressive individuality, we collectively play boss to one another. I find that to be not only antithetical to basic moral hygiene, but also a…
Debt and Financial Justice at Stanford North
Why the Quest’s coverage of the Paradox deficit is deeply troubling Edited by Cyana Ruiz This is a story of forgetting: how Reed has forgotten social and financial justice. (Though you may still dissect its corpse in your conferences.) But forgetting isn’t something passive or inevitable: at Reed, the administration is enforcing forgetfulness about forms…
Letter to the Editors: The Stars Were Bright, Faletra
They were shining there for you and me, for humanities, Faletra Dear Reed College Quest, I am writing to express my enthusiastic agreement with Albert Kerelis’s “How to Hear the Starry Message” in your March 4, 2022, issue. The article captures well Galileo’s sense of wonder at his first telescopic observations, and Kerelis’s salutary…
The Jewish Experience: Anti-semitism at Reed
Many people who are not Jewish think they understand what “being Jewish” means. In reality, this is often far from the truth. There are a lot of detrimental misconceptions about us that aid in our continued persecution. We will preface this article with an overview of what Judaism is in order to give non-Jewish readers…
Opinion: Why We Need a Speed Limit For the Internet
The term “externality” refers to any effect, positive or negative, on an uninvolved third party because of the actions of a different party. Externalities create economic inefficiencies because the cost or benefit to the third party is not accounted for by the deciding party. In our economic system, there are a few ways in which…
Letter To The Editor: Concerning Paradox
Recently, news of Paradox and its financial situation have been a large part of Reed’s Student Senate discourse. Paradox has existed to the beat of its own drum, and without the oversight or consultation of Senate. We respect that, and up to this point, they have been able to maintain an important space on campus…
A Letter from Concerned Computer Science Juniors
We, a subset of Computer Science juniors, hope to bring to the college’s attention the issues we have faced in the major, and how these issues have a unifying cause: the understaffing of the Reed CS department. Our most pertinent concerns are with our upcoming thesis experience, our experience with grading and feedback of courses…
Lines Crossed
My family crossed the border from Guatemala to Mexico in the ‘80s following the purposeful destruction of our indigenous village. My abuelos led their small children across the border where their names were changed to Spanish and their culture was dismissed as basic and barbaric. Our gods were said to be wrong and our clothes…
Diary of a Plague Year: Ten Days in the Covid Quarantine Dorm
Day Zero, Tuesday, 5:30 p.m.: The call comes Tuesday evening. I am in line at Commons, but I step outside for the phone call that I had pretty much guessed was coming. Gently, the Area Coordinator on the phone tells me she has some bad news. I know what she’ll say before she opens her…
How much do you know about the Chinese New Year?
Last week, Reed celebrated the Lunar New Year. The Commons offered a Lunar New Year dinner consisting of traditional Asian cuisine. The International Student Services, in collaboration with Chinese eHouse, OSE, ISAB, and the Chinese department held a variety of activities including: fortune telling, mahjong, paper crafts, calligraphy, a Polaroid camera photo booth, and a…
Opinion: Deep Ecology Doesn’t Care about Divestment
Hello again. I write in often to discuss the social ecology of our shared home, but few of you know that I am, in a practical sense, a nature writer. I was drawn to Reed by the effervescent legacy of alum Gary Snyder and the heady influence of his writing (please read Turtle Island). Gary…
Reed Should Not Have Grass Lawns
Imagine a post-carbon Reed College. What has changed? Our generation and the generations to follow will experience the devastating impacts of climate change, and will inevitably be forced to change aspects of how we live that have been central to long-standing institutions since their beginnings. Fundamental societal shifts will take place, either in order to…
Opinion: Why Reed Will Never Divest from Anything
This article begins with a correction to last week’s story titled “Greenboard Asks for Transparency about Divestment.” The story stated that “Reed President Paul Bragdon announced in 1986 that Reed would be divesting from South African businesses during apartheid.” In reality, Bragdon announced that Reed would only maintain investments in companies that adhered to the…
Opinion: A Reflection on How Things Were Before
I was watching a TV show alone in my apartment, a scene I think we’ve all grown even more accustomed to within the past year, and was thinking about how grand it might have been to share the experience of other people. Because my mind is addled with Reed Lore, I thought first about FK,…
Chill With SHARE
With Pool Hall Formal and Daft Ball on the calendar, campus nights are coming back to life! SHARE staff (advocates, Night Owls, and sexual health educators) want to be sure students know about resources available to assist them in staying safe and getting help. Tonight (11/19) from 10 p.m. – 2 a.m., SHARE advocates and…
Letter to the Editor: Permanently Missed Connections
Regarding a permanently missed connection: I think we can all agree that Reed is a community in crisis. This is not terribly abnormal; it is an institution full to the brim with young people advancing through the most turbulent times of their lives. But critically, amid the shifting mass of administrators and a confluence of…
Opinion: What We Owe to Each Other
As a Reedie, I had gotten used to the words Honor Principle being tossed around in everyday life. I had heard professors urging their students to abide by the Honor Principle and not cheat, speeches from deans of departments, and the endless O-week propaganda. The Honor Principle is introduced to students right as they arrive.…
Opinion: Reed Unions in a Time of National Division
From the period of 1963 to 1973 the college held twenty one Reed Unions; from 2010 to 2020, the college held five. Reed Unions were originally envisioned by a first year student in the 1940s as a ceremonial way to have a meal as a community and discuss some topic of import. Topics for these…
Opinion: On Fall Break
A week? In the middle of October? Where are you going? Are you spending money on expensive tickets to fly home and spend the same amount for Thanksgiving break? Or are you twiddling your thumbs in Commons, waiting to escape the turkey burgers and claustrophobia? The upcoming fall break is inconvenient for international students and…
Honor Council’s Letter to the Student Body
Dear Reed community members, Last week, the Vice President of Student Life sent an email that discussed ongoing matters at Reed in a one-sided and condescending manner. The Honor Council would like to clarify that the definition of the Honor Principle that was used to justify scolding the student body is not what the Honor…
Opinion: Untenable Student Life Emails
In a great number of ways, our community is in flux. New administrators are joining, old ones are leaving, students who have not spent time on campus are coming together; I’m certainly excited to be seeing people I haven’t seen in years together again. This commotion is going to cause some friction, but outside of…
Opinion: The Honor Principle is Dead. Long Live the Honor Principle.
Content warning: Discussion of sexual assault Maybe I’m just a fool for thinking the college’s keystone policy would show its face in times of strife. Maybe I should expect nothing more from the institution that didn’t shovel for days after the paths were covered in snow. Maybe we should all be considering Reed as a…
Opinion: Afghan Refugees, U.S. Immigration Policy, and the Demands of Justice
We’ve all seen the harrowing headlines and the gut-wrenching videos. After President Joe Biden officially announced his decision to withdraw the remaining U.S. military presence from Afghanistan in mid-August, thousands of panic-stricken Afghans flooded Hamid Karzai International Airport, some of them clinging onto the landing gear of U.S. planes as they prepared for take-off. The…
Opinion: The Nine Kings of the United States
“The court now stands in defense of one thing, and those are the values of the members sitting on it.” The Supreme Court has allowed Texas its own little human rights holiday. Roe—and to a greater extent Casey—is still the law of the land, but this is simply a minor inconvenience to the 6-3 conservative…
A Letter from SHARE Advocates
Dear Survivors, We wanted to take a moment to acknowledge how difficult these last few days might have been for some of you. There has been a lot of public discourse regarding events that happened over the last fortnight, a lot of which has happened in ways that have been retraumatizing or triggering for many…
Opinion: The Case for Systemic Student Autonomy
The college had a plan. Under then President Kroger, Reed paid a consulting firm, K&A, to produce a plan on student success. This firm established six chief areas of concern where Reed needed to improve, focusing on: Community, inclusion, advising/wayfinding, wellbeing, the Reed “bubble,” and lack of systematic data collection. In a few more words:…
Letter to the Editor: A Reflection On Humanities 110
What was the point? As my first year in college comes to an end with a flurry of finals and essays, I have spent some time reflecting on the course that every Reedie must take – Humanities 110 (HUM 110). I find myself asking one basic question: what was the point? From the student perspective,…
Letter to the Editor: SCAPP Letter to the Student Body
Liberal Arts at Reed On March 15, 2021, the Committee on Academic Planning and Policy introduced the set of criteria which they would be using to evaluate tenure track requests this Spring to the rest of the faculty body. The announcement was followed by a flurry of questions and concerns regarding the implications of these…
Opinion: A (Shitty) Year in Review
“Seattle is in lockdown,” my friend bluntly explained. What was meant to be a quick dinner in between study breaks turned into a long discussion of the COVID-19. I had the privilege of ignoring the coronavirus until that point. But now an entire city was in lockdown. On my walk back to the library I…
An Open Letter to Audrey Bilger
Dear Audrey Bilger, As an Asian student here at Reed, I am in mourning. My friends, family, and community are grieving. As a student of color, I feel that there is a lack of compassion and support from this school. All we got was one email from you that felt like an advertisement for a…
Opinion: The Future is Now, White Man
The HUM 110 curriculum originated as a celebration of whiteness. Because students found this curriculum untenable, it was changed to be a broader survey of cultures and look beyond just Greek and Rome, but HUM 110 is still woefully stuck in the past. Frankly, HUM 110’s failure is just as much the fault of the…
Letter to the Editor: Less Anonymous Name-Calling, More Constructive Criticism
Submitted on March 14, 2021. Letters do not necessarily reflect the views of the Quest or the Editorial Board. Content Warning: Discusses suicide, mental health, opiate use and overdose, and death. Someone put a sticker on the Community Safety Honda that said “This Machine Transports Fascists.” That does not feel like constructive criticism. It doesn’t…
Letter to the Editor: A Statement from the Judicial Board
Submitted on March 17, 2021. Letters do not necessarily reflect the views of the Quest or the Editorial Board. The Judicial Board is a group of twelve students that hears formal complaints of alleged violations of the Honor Principle or college policy. Judicial Board members are appointed by the Senate Appointments Committee with the input…
Opinion: Bon Appetit Puts Less Effort into Nutrition Info than You Did for Any of Your Humanities Papers.
CW: Discussions of nutrition, food, and dieting It’s March 1, 2021, and I sit in a noir detective’s office surrounded by a smoky haze. Through the Mobile Order app, I purchase a sandwich with a number of toppings and a salad. My order will not be ready until ten full minutes after I set it…
Opinion: Tết during COVID
The silence stood out to me the most this year. The absence of firecrackers in our front yard, drums for the lion dances, and the dozens of voices that should be yelling over one another when my whole extended family reunites for the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, otherwise known as Tết. The author as a…
Opinion: Second Wave of Hate Crimes Hits Asian Community
At the start of January, my dad, a refugee from the Vietnam War, and I were making the usual rounds through Oakland’s Chinatown, popping into a few produce markets and dim sum restaurants to stock up on supplies for the week. As we turned the corner on our way out of the district, a man…
Opinion: I Was Exposed to COVID-19
What happened following a coronavirus exposure on campus On November 4, I received an email from Madison Riethman, the COVID-19 Response Coordinator, asking me to call her regarding “an important public health matter.” I called her when I finished classes, and she informed me I was exposed to COVID-19 and must quarantine for two weeks.…
Opinion: My Experience with COVID-19
An anonymous Reedie shares their struggle with “severe symptoms” CW: COVID-19, Mental Health, Vomit I tested positive for COVID-19, and this is an account of the days I spent in isolation. I do not know how I contracted it; I wore a mask anytime I left my dorm, rarely left campus, and followed safety protocols…
Letter to the Editor: Last Refuge of the Incompetent
Submitted on November 1, 2020 Letters do not necessarily reflect the views of the Quest or the Editorial Board. “Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.”* Most aphorisms break down at the event horizon between our ideal self and who we are in a moment of distress. Still, I find this quote from a…
Letter to the Editors: CAPP Retains Standard Grading Policy for Fall 2020 Despite Proposed Changes from SCAPP
Submitted on October 28, 2020 Letters do not necessarily reflect the views of the Quest or the Editorial Board. On October 26, 2020, the faculty Committee on Academic Policy and Planning (CAPP) rejected proposed changes to the grading policy for Fall 2020 submitted by the Student Committee on Academic Policy and Planning (SCAPP), maintaining the…
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