A week ago, a few of my peers and I published a letter and petition online that requested an apology from Senior Class President A.D. Hogan for intercepting Marvin Krislov’s CNN interview in a manner that we considered disrespectful. This letter intends to follow up the first, explaining how I have come to understand the situation differently. The opinions that follow are my own, and I do not purport to speak for my peers.

First, I want to sincerely thank everyone who took the time to share opinions, concerns and criticisms of our letter with me. While I have largely chosen not to debate these issues publicly, I read each and every comment and have great respect for all of the ideas that were shared with me.

When I started hearing concerns about the letter I had written, I was surprised. I was hearing that people felt that our words were silencing and invalidating their anger, which was not an effect that I expected the letter to have. My in- tention had only been to express my opinion and to provide an outlet for others with similar opinions to do the same, and I did not anticipate how far-reaching the effects of the letter would be. Realizing the true extent of the consequences of the letter — and the fact that I could not foresee those consequences — truly opened my eyes to how little I understood about privilege and allyship and how much I still need to learn.

I have been attending work- shops and having conversations with many people who have helped me realize the harmful effects of the letter. I now understand how so many people felt that the letter attempted to silence their anger, invalidate their feelings, and minimize the importance of the causes they are fighting for.

I would like to sincerely apologize to everyone who felt silenced, personally attacked or invalidated in any way by the words that I wrote. I now have a much deeper understanding of why the words were so hurtful, and sincerely regret having harmed any members of our community.

I know that I cannot undo the damage that has been done, but I am choosing to use this situation as a learning experience. I will continue attending workshops, having conversations, and doing every- thing I can to make sure that in the future, my actions will be helpful rather than hurtful.

–Emily Robinson
College senior