Jackie Brant, Opinions Editor

December 6, 2019

 Democrats in the Ohio General Assembly have recently introduced a bill to the state legislature that would abolish the statute of limitations for sex crimes in the state. This same bill would also eliminate exemptions for sex crimes including spousal rape and sexual battery.  The introduction of the bill comes in response to Governor Mike Dewine’s comments following the exposure of previous sex crimes committed at The Ohio State University. Richard Strauss, a former athletic trainer at OSU, was found to have committed at least 177 separate cases of sexual abuse...

Leo Hochberg, Columnist

December 6, 2019

 In the canon of weaponry often involved in crimes against humanity, what comes to mind for most people is a realm of technology including biological weapons, chemical gas, and drones. However, in recent decades, land mines have risen to prominence as a grave security threat for civilian populations in war-torn countries and disputed territories. This is because landmines are an indiscriminate weapon; because they are triggered by the victim instead of the attacker, there is no assurance that a buried mine will not take the life of a child, civilian, medic, or aid...

Nathan Carpenter, Editor-in-Chief

November 22, 2019

 Editor’s note: This column is part of a series that will focus on Oberlin’s history as a town and an institution. The series will be published regularly throughout the fall semester. When then-First Lady Michelle Obama spoke at Oberlin’s commencement ceremonies in 2015, she had the institution’s social justice reputation in mind. “If you truly wish to carry on the Oberlin legacy of service and social justice, then you need to run to, and not away from, the noise,” Obama said. “Today, I want to urge you to actively seek out the most contentious,...

Leo Hochberg, Columnist

November 22, 2019

 In mid-November, The New York Times released a trove of leaked Chinese Communist Party files detailing a massive government crackdown in the northwestern Chinese state of Xinjiang. The leaked pages make a clear statement: China has systematically targeted, imprisoned, and mistreated members of the Uighur ethnic minority who have traditionally called Xinjiang home.  Several of the leaked documents detail a private speech by President Xi Jinping to party officials in which he argues that the Uighurs, a Muslim religious minority, are Islamic extremists whose dangerous...

Jackie Brant, Opinions Editor

November 15, 2019

 Just over three months ago, a mass shooting at Ned Peppers — a local bar in Dayton, OH — left 27 injured, 17 from gunshot wounds. Ultimately, nine people died as a result of the shooting on Aug. 4, 2019. When the shooter fired into a large crowd at the bar, he was carrying an automatic rifle that held 100 rounds, which he had previously ordered online from a Texas distributor. He also had numerous ammunition magazines with him, along with body armor, a mask, and hearing protection. Until the time of the shooting, he had been hiding the gun and the ammunition...

Leo Hochberg, Columnist

November 15, 2019

 After eight years of bloody conflict in Syria, numerous brutal and horrific urban battles, and the slaughter of thousands of members of Iraq and Syria’s religious and ethnic minorities, the infamously brutal Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant finally appears to be subdued. The terrorist group once controlled territory spanning from the rich oil fields of Northern Iraq to the urban and rural heartlands of Eastern Syria. Now, most of ISIL’s living fighters sit captive in holding camps throughout the Syrian northeast — an area that’s controlled by the Syrian...

L. Lee Butler, OC ’06

December 6, 2019

 I am a 2006 Oberlin graduate and an alumnus member of Kosher Halal Co-op — formerly a part of the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association. I also served as the archivist and librarian for OSCA during the 2005–2006 academic year, and took a seat on the OSCA board as part of that role. For three-and-a-half out of my four years at Oberlin, I planned, cleaned, cooked, sang, budgeted, laughed, and worked with my peers to make not only food for our members, but also a deeply entwined interfaith community. All of my most indelible memories of Oberlin took place in that...

Booker C. Peek, Professor Emeritus of Africana Studies

November 22, 2019

 David Gibson, co-owner of Gibson’s Bakery, succumbed to pancreatic cancer last Saturday; he leaves behind a grieving and loving family of a wife, two children, and “Grandpa Gibson,” who is approaching 92, a special man still full of warmth, respect, and kindness — traits David himself embodied to the end. David’s sense of fairness, level-headedness, and endless search for the truth will be sorely missed. I join all who knew David in sending heartfelt condolences and prayers to his survivors as they mourn his passing. David is in Heaven, a most secure...

Booker C. Peek, Professor Emeritus of Africana Studies

November 15, 2019

 Legally, there will be one winner and one loser in the lawsuit filed by Gibson’s Bakery against Oberlin College. But on all other levels — reputation, emotional, historical — Gibson’s, the College, and the City of Oberlin will suffer from the devastating effects for generations to come. Are there no prayers or people capable of getting the two sides and their reinforced, high-powered lawyers to settle their differences privately? The answer some may give is “no.” The bridge for a settlement has crumbled. As the dispute heads to an appellate court,...

David Marwil OC ’70

November 8, 2019

 I urge the College to refrain from appealing the Gibson’s case. Instead, Oberlin must turn inward and reflect on what led to this unfortunate state of affairs in the first place. The behavior of the College, by which I mean students and administrators alike, revolves around the false premise that Gibson’s was a racist institution. The College’s actions towards Gibson’s were arrogant and mean-spirited throughout. My sense is that Gibson’s would not have filed suit if the College had treated them well, even if they had already suffered some losses. My...

Booker C. Peek, Professor Emeritus of Africana Studies

November 8, 2019

 Ted Koppel struck out with the bases loaded this past Sunday on CBS News’ “Sunday Morning.” The segment focused on the nearly $50 million lawsuit filed by Gibson’s Bakery against Oberlin College; Koppel’s question was, “What is the fair price for a family’s good name?” Koppel was easily one of America’s most respected, and perhaps most admired, TV journalists over the past 40 years because his approach to find the truth was undergirded by the fiercest resolve to be fair and balanced — until now. Informally known as “Grandpa Gibson,” Allyn...

Linda Slocum, Vice President, Oberlin City Council

November 1, 2019

 As the Nov. 5 City Council election approaches, I’d like to hear from Oberlin College students and give them a chance to meet me. I’ll be in Azariah’s Café on Friday, Nov. 1 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 2 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 3 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., and Monday, Nov. 4 from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. I’m councilmember Linda Slocum and have served as vice-president of Oberlin City Council for the past four years. I’m running, along with 11 other candidates, for a third term. The College community is an integral part of this small city. Stop...