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On Options and Variety in the Dining Hall

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Just yesterday, I walked into the Mary Fisher dining hall and found myself pleasantly surprised by the options on display. I thought, Oh, wow. I can finally have a balanced meal today. So onto my plate I heaped some tasty looking fried rice, pork butt, and green beans and went to take my seat in the fishbowl. I eagerly dug in, and everything was fine for a little while. The pork butt was maybe a bit too salty for my taste but the rice was decent and I was having a good time.

Until I got to the green beans.

The second I bit down on the first one, alarm bells rang in my head. Specifically, in my mouth, where I had the unpleasant sensation of hearing squeaking as I chewed. Now, I don’t know about you, but this is the first time I’ve ever eaten green beans that squeaked as I ate them. The incredibly discomforting rubbery texture of the vegetables put me off of them, and I avoided touching them for the rest of the meal. To my dismay, my dreams of having a well-balanced meal for dinner were dashed before they even began.

The fact of the matter is, the dining hall has some pretty shoddy options when it comes to vegetables. Sometimes, there’s an odd wax texture on them, which I suspect must have been the reason for my rubbery green beans. There was a case of rotting lettuce in the salad station even!

However, the case of bad vegetables only nominally affects me, when I don’t have any dietary restrictions due to food allergies, personal beliefs, or religious reasons. For some of my friends, this is not the case. In fact, I was inspired to write this because of a vegetarian friend of mine. I would often see that the only thing she ate was a bowl of cottage cheese. While she was quick to assure me that that wasn’t the only thing she eats, she had her reasons for why she had it so often.

“It’s…one of the only protein sources available other than tofu, and I can’t eat tofu every day,” she told me. “They could just have more variety. [There’s] so many things that you can make…that aren’t just blocks of tofu.”

Another friend of mine is a Jewish girl who, along with keeping kosher, has a plethora of food allergies that limit what she can eat, such as certain fruits and seasonings, along with generally not consuming animal products as a vegan. While the kosher station can often meet her needs as they generally make allergy-free vegan options, she sometimes feels like the rest of the dining hall is less accessible.

“Sometimes there are [not any] options that I can actually eat, so I end up having a salad or just plain bread,” she said. “I would appreciate it if there was…[a consistent] vegan pasta dish…[and] made sure their [all of] vegan dishes were allergen-free.”

She is also tired of the lack of variety, claiming that the vegan beef and vegan chicken are “not really always the best depending on the dish.”

But, according to one junior I interviewed, Goucher can make good vegan meat. Gabie has been a vegetarian her entire life, and has noted that a lot of their meat substitution options often fall by the wayside, especially the notoriously terrible black bean burgers.

“Sometimes they have…quality meat substitutes like…the fake meatloaf and things that are genuinely good but…[they’re] a once or twice a semester thing,” Gabie stated. “They have proven that they can give us actual good meat substitutes and they don’t and it’s very frustrating.”

So the issue here is not a lack of capability. Clearly, there are the occasional good meals that our fellow non-meat eating students can have. But the lack of effort on Goucher’s part to consistently provide all of their students that have dietary restrictions with good, nutritious food is a travesty. It honestly shouldn’t even happen, considering every student who lives on campus is required to have a meal plan. This problem isn’t limited to the dining hall, but also the student market.

A common complaint I’ve heard is that there are very limited vegetarian options to get. Besides the salads and vegetable sushi, there’s not much non-meat eating students can get. Meanwhile, even if you get a salad, you can choose between a ceasar salad (the meatless option still contains cheese) or a plain garden salad consisting of only lettuce. The portion sizes of the rare vegan options are also notably getting smaller, leading to unsatisfying, unfulfilling meals for anyone who chooses to forego the dining hall.

I don’t think it’s asking for much for Goucher to do better. Providing students with accessible, actually good food should be a non-issue. It wouldn’t take much for them to add more non-meat protein options—such as beans—and provide more vegetarian/vegan foods to the student market, like bringing back the black bean burgers that many students actually liked. As many students don’t consume dairy for a variety of reasons, dairy-free desserts such as sorbet should also be common in the dessert station.

But until Goucher gets better, it is up to students to keep reminding them that not everything is up to far. Until that happens, here’s some advice for future vegan/vegetarian Goucher students given from Gabie: “…When there’s good things, get them, because you don’t know when they’ll be back.”

By Jaiden Johnson ‘27

Disclaimer: This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

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Defying the Tomb: Gaza We Won’t Let You Die

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A written response to an email Statement from CREI on Reaffirming their Commitments to Social Justice

“If the world is upside down the way it is now, wouldn’t we have to turn it over to stand up straight?” – Eduardo Galeano, Patas arriba. La escuela del mundo al revés  

In my home country of Peru, the reactionary forces produced a historically particular set of vocabulary to push the opposition on the defensive. The Peruvian right wing produced a tactic of terruqeo, calling anyone a terrorist for opposing the right wing.

  They called their opponents terrucos, removing the -ista in the Spanish terrorista and adding -uco a common suffix in Quechua to racialize and marginalize their oftentimes Indigenous opponents. 

Goucher, notably CREI in their latest statement, echoes this tactic by presenting the ongoing struggle of the Palestinian resistance as a “conflict between Hamas and Israel” (Hernandez). They claim to “see us” and understand “historical atrocities” but they reduce the events of the Al-Aqsa flood to an isolated conflict rather than placing it within the context of 75 years of colonization (Hernandez).

Goucher has set out from a ridiculous premise “[condemning] acts of terrorism and violence” but refusing to condemn the Zionist entity for keeping hundreds of children hostage in their prisons, refusing to condemn the Zionist entity for cutting off water, electricity, and gas, and refusing to condemn the Zionist entity for targeting bakeries, hospitals, shelters, places of worship, journalists, and children (Hernandez). How can we as workers, students, and people of color “safely talk about these issues” when our college misrepresents the issue of Palestinian liberation (Hernandez). 

Goucher claims to “[call] for proportionate and responsible responses” but only groups one side as terrorists, reducing the conflict into terrorists versus Israel, and refuses to condemn the state terrorism of Israel (Hernandez). 

Goucher calls for “social justice… for an end to violence” but fails to contextualize what it means for Indigenous people across our America and across the world to resist colonization (Hernandez). Álvaro Garcia Linera, former Vice President of Bolivia and Indigenist scholar, guides us arguing that “everything sprouts from and inevitably returns to the Indian: wealth, power, colonialism and the republic are different names given to the confiscation of the creative powers that emanate from Indian muscles and minds (2014 [1998]: 145). We people of color won’t let the Palestinian people suffer, we will not let them die; we stand committed to their liberation and through historical memory understand the context in which they find themselves. 

We agree with Goucher in that “ultimately, social justice requires us to call out power and oppression in all of the ways it exists” (Hernandez). We look to dissolve the colonial narrative and revindicate the Indigenous narrative. 

We: Postulate the community and its rebellion as a basis for illuminating that which is called indigenous… with communal rebellion, the entire past becomes actively concentrated in the present but unlike in times of quiet, when the subaltern past is projected as the subalternized present, now it is the accumulation of the rebellious past that is concentrated in the present in order to overcome past docility… the future is seen, at last, as the extraordinary invention of a common will that flees without shame from all prescribed routes, recognizing itself in this audacity as its own sovereign maker (Linera 2014 [1998]: 156). 

For social justice to be properly engaged with the fragmentation that is ordered on the life of Palestinian people must be negated. Social justice is, for the Indigenous people of the world, the ability to reinstate communal patterns of quotidian life, i.e., social reproduction or national-Indigenous self-determination). 

Goucher continues to skirt historical narratives arguing that we must pursue a fictional land in which “injustices are met head on with action and difficult dialogues” (Hernandez). Have we ever seen a dialogue between a national liberation movement and the colonial power? Or as Engels famously put, “have these gentlemen ever seen a revolution” (1978 [1872]: 733). We reject completely this “conversations between the sword and the neck” (Kanafani 2016 [1970]). A dialogue can only be carried out when both sides have met each other in a neutral position or when one side is ready for capitulation. National liberation movements do not exist in the realm of wanton violence, they aim to carry out a concrete political goal and their means cannot be “considered in isolation from their purpose” (von Clausewitz 1976: 87). 

CREI hilariously inserts itself within the struggles of Baltimore claiming that they “have a role to play [in] setting the tone for our community” (Hernandez). Despite this they refuse to condemn the genocidal narrative coming out of the Zionist entity. The Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy, headed by Meir Ben Shabbat former National Security Advisor to Netanyahu, published a paper arguing that the current crisis presents “a unique and rare opportunity” for the “relocation and final settlement of the entire Gaza population” (Ofir 2023). The movements such as the Baltimore Bloc, not bourgeoisie institutions, that arose out of the 2015 uprising in Baltimore have supported the Palestinian resistance to the hilt. The people’s movements in Baltimore and beyond are setting the tone for us, not the fraudulent institutions of the masters. The people present real guidance for us as student and labor organizers. 

We recognize the continuous demonization of national liberation struggles across the globe by institutions within the strategic territory of white Euro-America, CREI finds itself firmly located in this camp. We won’t forget what the Euro-American world said about the FLN in Algeria, the NLF in Vietnam, Tupac Amaru in Peru, and the Armée Indigène in Haiti. In Peru, the production of revolutionary art by Quechua people reminds us of the position in which we find ourselves now, “manañan muspaykuchu ni puñuykuchu kunanqa allintam rikchariyku” which means “we are no longer delirious or asleep. Now we begin to fully awaken” (Valencia N.d.: 114). 

By Sebastian Mendoza ‘24

REFERENCES

Engels, Fredrick. 1978 [1872]. “On Authority.” Pp. 730-33 in Marx-Engels Reader, New York: W.W. Norton and Co. 

Hernandez, Juan M. E-mail message to student body, Oct 24 2023. 

Kanafani, Ghassan. 2016 [1970]. “A conversation between the sword and the neck- Ghassan Kanafani.” Oct 23. Video, 1:50. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHgZdCJOUAk.

Linera, Álvaro Garcia. 2014 [1998]. “The Colonial Narrative and the Communal Narrative.” Pp. 145-58 in Plebian Power, Chicago: Haymarket Books. 

Ofir, Johnathan. 2023. “Israel think tank lays out a blueprint for the complete ethnic cleansing of Gaza.” Mondoweiss, Oct 23. Retrieved Oct 24, 2023 (https://mondoweiss.net/2023/10/israeli-think-tank-lays-out-a-blueprint-for-the-complete-ethnic-cleansing-of-gaza/).

Valencia Espinosa, Abraham. N.d. “Las batallas de Rumitaqe” Pp. 112-14 in Rebeliones indígenas quechuas y aymaras, Cusco: Centro de Estudios Andinos. 

von Clausewitz, Carl. 1976 [1832]. On War. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 

Disclaimer: This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

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Opinion: Ancient Wisdom for Peacemaking on Campus

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Growing up as a secular American Jew, the number one principle impressed upon me by my mother and grandmother was the commitment to caring for others. This is how I choose to actualize the traditional Jewish identity as the “chosen people” – a people chosen by a greater power, or just self-volunteered, to put the wellbeing of the world first.

To be human is to feel for one another. Not just to sympathize, but to empathize – we read reports of war and we see ourselves or our loved ones there, lacking food and clean water and being bombarded with rockets with no way to flee. We feel alongside them. At its most barebones, this is what it means, to me, to be a Jew. We hold not just our own pain, but the pain of the world.

As the first century sage, Hillel famously put it: “If I am not for me, who will be for me?  And when I am for myself alone, what am I? And if not now, then when?” (Pirkey Avot 1:14)

This teaching is more relevant now than ever – here’s how I’ve been understanding it.

“If I am not for me, who will be for me?”

It has been almost a month since the worst massacre of Jews since the Shoah (Holocaust), enacted by the terrorist group Hamas against Israeli Jews, Arabs, and almost 200 foreign nationals visiting or living in Israel. I use this comparison because for me, and for millions of other Jews, the fear and fury wrought by this disaster is familiar to us. It’s engrained within our bodies, passed down from ancestors who survived pogroms and displacement and a genocide from which our tribe still hasn’t recovered. In response to these collective traumas, people tend to retreat and lash out in different ways to ensure their survival.

In the past, I have placed Jews intentionally behind other marginalized groups seeking equality – believing that self-sacrificing activism would spare me from antisemitism. I can no longer allow the safety of my upbringing, as an assimilated American Jew, to blind myself to the reality of Jews across the world who do not have such a privilege. No one else will advocate for me, or for the Jewish people, if we do not first champion our own needs. I am proudly Jewish, and proudly a Zionist – I believe wholeheartedly in the right of the Jewish tribe to self-determination and safety in our homeland. Alongside preserving my people’s safety, I wholeheartedly believe in the right of the Palestinian people to the same.

“And when I am for myself alone, what am I?”

I commit to holding space for myself and my people to mourn, first and foremost, and I refuse to let the awful pain and trauma prevent me from holding space for Palestinian pain, too. I have enough compassion inside me, still, to do both. For some days after the massacre, I thought my well of empathy had been scraped dry. I saw the tragic numbers of civilian death being reported from Gaza, and all I saw on the back of my eyelids were the Jewish lives brutally cut short by Hamas’ attack.

Connecting with other Jews was what allowed me to realize that I was still capable of holding love and compassion for people outside my tribe. Being able to mourn publicly and share the fear that was governing every facet of my existence was enough to be able to understand again that Palestinians were feeling the same way. We are both people of the Levant, and more importantly, we are both human. Outside of the vocal minorities on both sides, seeking continual war, death, and destruction, there are two peoples who simply demand safety, access to basic needs, and sovereignty.

“And if not now, when?”

The unspeakable horrors inflicted on Israel by Hamas, and the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the besieged Gaza City, represent a cyclical pattern of violence that has been developing for centuries. It also represents a chance to do better – to reaffirm our commitment, as Jews and citizens of the world, to holding humanity sacred. As the news cycle changes over and the attention of the West wanes, I pledge to stay present.

Ultimately, although my soul is in Eretz Yisrael (The Land of Israel), my body is 5,800 miles away on Goucher’s campus. As tensions on campus grow, as a microcosm of the conflict in the Levant, the same fear-based reactions I see in the global Jewry – retreating or lashing out – I see in my peers, and in myself.

The belief in the sanctity of human life is not a uniquely Jewish one. I believe, truly, that the vast majority of Goucher’s community ultimately have the same hope: peace, safety, and self-determination for all inhabitants of the Levant. In the frenzy of an active war, there is little we can do from campus. What we can do – what I commit to doing – is listening, even when someone’s opinions contradict my own. Learning from all sides, recognizing propaganda for what it is and never presuming my own expertise. To love and mourn and fight for the safety of Palestinians as I do my own tribe. Most importantly, to always hold their humanity alongside my own.

By Em Klein-Luce

* Disclaimer: This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

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Palestine: The Men Deserve Our Help Too. 

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Over the past few weeks, the Israeli siege on Gaza has left many a “think of the children” narrative circulating social media.

We have been bombarded with images of deceased children, we know that nearly half of Gaza’s population is under 18, and we know that most people being treated in Gaza hospitals and refugee camps were children as well. 

Coverage of women and children in Gaza and the West Bank is essential, it is a gateway into the reality of the brutalization of the Palestinian people. 

Countless scholars have written about how women and children are the first and last to lose in war because war is a feminist issue, and Palestine is no exception. However, when Palestinian men are out of focus in the conversation, we are signing their death certificates as well. 

I want to be extremely clear, reader, that this article is the very antithesis of “All Lives”, and “Men Cry Too”, sentiments. This is about persecuted men of color, semantics be damned. 

If you’re a background supporter it’s easy to say that the men of Palestine are martyrs and that it’s admirable to die for your state, but we should ask ourselves why this is the present narrative. Is this after decades of being desensitized to seeing black and brown men give up their lives? Have we fallen for the trick that men of color are supposed to die for the cause?

The internet is circulating videos of Palestinian men saying they wish to stay and die there, but there are also videos of men saying that they are terrified and praying for their safety. Why is one story more marketable than the other?

We could implore ourselves to focus on some men because they are fathers, husbands, sons, and brothers. (A similar argument among the Liberal West for why we should have women’s rights – because they are mothers, daughters, etc).  But why do you need to belong to someone to deserve dignity? 

We could show support for Palestinian men because they work in the hospitals, they drive the aid trucks, and they pull their own from collapsed buildings. Pray tell, why do they need to be heroes to deserve a home?

 Where is the room for ordinary men to be saved? Where is our grief for the “regular” guy? Why do body bags have to be tiny for the world to pay attention? 

The current demand for a perfect victim in women and children likens the conflict to a television show. As if, it’s not “entertaining” enough to see “ just another brown man” suffer.  After all, we’re used to it by now. 

Now is not the time to reinforce a hyper-masculine idea of survival, now we need to exercise the most careful empathy, for everyone’s benefit. Palestinian men, just like all persecuted men of color, deserve to grow old in their own homes. 

Palestinian men are central in their communities of course. In many cases, they are heroes, fathers, and whatever romantic idea we may want to place on them. Above all, however, they’re just people, just people who deserve better. Just people whose survival depends on the advocacy and attention of us as just people. 

* Disclaimer: This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

Nostalgic Halloween Costumes For Your Duo or Group

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Happy (almost) Halloween Gophers! This year,  Halloween trends seem to reflect a need for nostalgia, specifically late 90s and early 2000s nostalgia. In the midst of the Barbenheimers and Travis and Taylor’s of the world, here’s some 2000s cartoon duo or group costume inspiration for Halloween 2023. 

For The Girly Girls – The Spies from “Totally Spies!”

Sam, Alex, and Clover are here to save the day and your Halloween evening. They may be less well-known than other groups on this list, but they’re still iconic and incredibly easy since each spy has her own signature color palette. Bonus points if you add a “Jerry” to your group for a fully rounded cast. 

Image courtesy of IMDB

For The Goth Girlies – The Hex Girls from “Scooby-Doo and The Witch’s Ghost”

An inspiration for some, the bi-awakening for many, the Hex Girls from Scooby-Doo are a great choice for those with lots of blacks, reds, and purple in their closet. If you’re a musician this is the perfect time to walk around with your bass or guitar for maximum realism. If you’ve got a ton of people in your friend group – you can of course add the original Mystery Incorporated into your pack. 

Image courtesy of Choice Fine Art 

For The Sweethearts –  Eustace and Muriel Bagge from Courage The Cowardly Dog 

Courage The Cowardly Dog is the stuff of nightmares, – we can question if as children we should have been watching it late at night back in the 2000’s but what we can’t question is how Eustace and Muriel are the perfect (oblivious) old married couple. 

Image courtesy Variety Magazine

For The STEM Bros – Phineas, Ferb and Baljeet from Phineas and Ferb 

Of course Phineas and Ferb rival actual architects for some of their inventions over the course of their 104 days of summer vacation, but we don’t give enough credit to Baljeet for how smart he is – see One Good Scare Ought To Do it. 

Image courtesy of  Tumblr

For The Cultured Group – The Proud Family (and Dijonay) from The Proud Family. 

This is a group that doesn’t even need a description, if you know you know. If you’re just a duo, Penny and Dijonay are perfect, but it’s honestly a disservice not to have BeBe, CeCe, and Suga Mama proud to up the chaos. 

Image courtesy of Disney+

For The Hyper Femme Folks – The Main Fairies from The Winx Club 

Absolutely no relation to the newest live-action adaption but what better excuse to absolutely douse yourself in color, glitter, and fake wings? The Winx Club girls are incredibly drag/gender-bend friendly as well. 

Image courtesy of WWW.WinxClub.Com

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Remember?

The following is a poem by Xyn Evans Remember?  Of course I do. Everything looked so vibrant and exciting. It

Opinion: The Student Market is one of Goucher’s most active spots, so why is it closed so early?

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Located in the heart of the Goucher community, the student market gives students an alternative to the dining hall on a campus without many food options. Being one of just three food sources at Goucher, the student market’s value is clear, which begs the question: Why is it being treated like an afterthought?

Over the summer, as part of the many changes made to Mary Fisher, the decision was made to cut the hours of the Student Market. To put this into perspective, when I first arrived at Goucher, the Market stayed open until 8pm. Those hours were ideal for students with varying schedules, allowing us to grab what we needed before, in between, or after classes. It’s a place full of activity and foot traffic, making it even more surprising to return to campus this year and discover that the hours had been reduced, with the market now closing at 5pm.

Understandably, this decision has not been met with widespread enthusiasm among the student body. Last year, the Market was a reliable dinner alternative for many. Now, with its early closure, the number of food options available on campus after 5pm goes from low to even lower. This places students with night classes, afternoon-heavy schedules, and especially athletes, in a difficult position, as they may not be able to get to the market before it closes. It also makes the dining hall the sole option for dinner, which is difficult considering Mary Fisher’s hit-and-miss nature.

In the broader context of society, 5pm may signal the end of the workday, but that’s far from the case on a college campus. In the life of a college student, there are still many hours between 5pm and the end of our “workday,” especially when classes run as late as 10:30pm, so it raises a valid question: Why shouldn’t the Student Market’s hours reflect that reality? It offers

options that no other place on campus provides, and students already utilize the dining hall and Alice’s until they close. So, why should the Market be the one to get the short end of the stick?

Recognizing the Student Market’s role on campus is an essential first step; despite not being a place where students spend a lot of time, it is one of the busiest spots at Goucher. The Grab-n- go offers a faster meal option, and the market’s assortment of snacks, drinks, and stations makes it a cornerstone in the Goucher community and should be treated as such.

Students clearly understand the value of the student market, which means it’s time for the administration to do the same. On a campus already short on food options and with tuition on the rise, actively limiting those options further is counterproductive, and the lack of transparency on this decision is even more frustrating. A decision like this with no student consultation or heads-up shows a lack of consideration for the inconvenience it causes us and only further displays the disconnect between Goucher’s student body and its administration.

At the very least, the Student Market’s old hours should be reinstated to close at 8pm. This way, students who don’t have time to go to the dining hall or aren’t feeling the food that day can have a reliable alternative. I urge the administration to recognize the value of the Student Market and take action to ensure that it remains a foundation of the Goucher community.

This QR code links to a petition to change the student market hours! Scan it! 

By Theo Efron ‘26

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The Last Shall be the First: Zionism, Decolonization, and National Liberation

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“When history is written as it ought to be written, it is the moderation and long patience of the masses at which men will wonder, not their ferocity.” -CLR James The Black Jacobins

*The bourgeoisie media continues its role of being stenographers for the ruling class, playing the same role as in 2001, they regurgitate wild claims and racist language of the American capitalist class and its imperial outposts in Europe and Israel. However, there can be no mistake, no miscalculation, Israel is a settler-colonial project. Sir Ronald Storrs, first British Governor of Jerusalem called the Zionist mission one of creating, “a little loyal Jewish Ulster” (Cronin 2017). Despite the massive reorganization of the capitalist world-system since Storrs (the death of the British Empire, the Cold War, and American unipolarity) Israel maintains its position as an extension of Euro-American power. Theodor Herzl (1955) expresses this sentiment arguing “we should there [Palestine] form a part of a wall of defense for Europe in Asia, an outpost of civilization against barbarism” (p.254-55).

Ignoring the language of civilization and barbarism that defines colonialism I’d like to examine the colonial project of Zionism further. In 1902, Herzl presents the Zionist political project as “something colonial” in a letter penned to Cecil Rhodes (1960: 1194). The later revisionist Zionists understood their task at hand as part of a historical process: 

It is utterly impossible to obtain the voluntary consent of the Palestine Arabs for converting Palestine from an Arab country into a country with a Jewish majority. My readers have a general idea of the history of colonization in other countries. I suggest they consider all the precedents with which they are acquainted, and see whether there is one solitary instance of any colonization being carried on with the consent of the native population. There is no such precedent… This is equally true of the Arabs. They feel at least the same instinctive, jealous love of Palestine as the old Aztecs felt for ancient Mexico, and the Sioux for their rolling prairies… Every native population in the world resists colonists as long as it has the slightest hope of being able to rid itself of the danger of being colonized. That is what the Arabs of Palestine are doing, and what they will persist in doing as long as there remains a solitary spark of hope that they will be able to prevent the transformation of Palestine into the Land of Israel (Jabotinsky 1923: 2-4). 

It is clear that Zionism is not a radical reinterpretation of the world or decolonial self-determination as some try to erroneously claim. Zionism is the colonial ideology of Euro-America repackaged to protect the interests of the imperialist powers during the hegemonic interregnums. What remains perfectly clear to us as workers, students, and people of color is that the oppressed people of the world have a right to resist and assert their existence. 

The Zionists have presented their political project to us clearly and there can be no hesitation who to side with. Walter Rodney (2019 [1969]) asks us “by what standard of morality can the violence used by a slave to break his chains be considered the same as the violence of a slave master” (p. 16). The colonial world is not one simply of exploitation, it delineates the world between man and beast. It transforms the colonized people from subjects of history to objects of history. The extirpation of Palestinian lands necessitates the ideological extinction of the Palestinian. The State of Israel seeks to classify the Palestinians as a relic of the past therefore erasing their possibility of contributing to the future. Dr. Gish Amit, while conducting research for his PhD, uncovered documents in the Israeli State Archives from 1957 calling for the destruction of 26,000 books that were deemed “unsuitable for use in Arab schools in Israel, [because] some of them contained inciting materials against the State, and therefore their distribution or selling might cause damage to the State” (State Archives). Amit (2008) says: 

This untold story of the fate of Palestinian ‘abandoned’ books clearly demonstrates how occupation and colonization is not limited to the taking over of physical space. Rather, it achieves its fulfillment by occupying cultural space as well, and by turning the cultural artifacts of the victims into ownerless objects with no past. Israel’s collection of Palestinians’ books marks the transformation of a lively and dynamic Palestinian culture into museum artifacts. Thus, Palestinian’ books were placed within the shrine of Israeli libraries, fossilized on the shelves- accessible and at the same time completely lifeless (p. 7). 

It is imperative for the Palestinian people to reconnect that suppressed past to build the future that struggles to be born. This historical erasure is a quotidian violence toward the colonized, it manifests itself in the banning of textbooks, flags and other national symbols, placing other languages in a subaltern position, etc. 

The strategies of the Zionist entity to displace and dispossess Palestinians of their land are not novel. Similar strategies were deployed by the United States in the 1830s; having put up a façade of respecting treaties made with Indigenous nations there was a growing sense of frustration among the American ruling class that the Indigenous people had not yet died off or traded their land. Within this context the American government encouraged land speculators and settlers to cross the Appalachians and seize land as a paramilitary extension of the American government. Settlers, historically and contemporaneously, have never constituted an apolitical civilian role. The settler represents the primary point of struggle, the struggle over land. Fanon (1963) elucidates this point, “for a colonized people the most essential value, because the most concrete, is first and foremost the land: the land which will bring them bread and, above all, dignity” (p. 44). 

The colonial regime originates violence at the first point of contact between the colonist and the native. How can the colonized people be asked to condemn themselves when they fight back against the entity that produces an atmosphere of violence against the spirit, mind, and body. This is the sort of: 

Violence in everyday behavior, violence of the past that is emptied of all substance, violence against the future, for the colonial regime presents itself as necessarily eternal. We see, therefore, that the colonized people, caught in a web of three-dimensional violence, a meeting point of multiple, diverse, repeated, cumulative violences, are soon logically confronted by the problem of ending the colonial regime by any means necessary (Fanon 2018 [1960]: 654). 

We stand with the Palestinian resistance because we carry with us, in our bodies, our souls, our minds, the prints of colonialism. To be marked is to be in eternal solidarity. We cannot be silent. Our siblings in Palestine represent, for us, a struggle of historical proportions, a struggle that carries with it the hopes and dreams of our ancestors that imagined a world turned upside down. The colonial system can’t be undone, it can only be done away with. Assata Shakur (2001 [1987]) affirms this for us, “if I know anything at all,/ it’s that a wall is just a wall/ and nothing more at all./ It can be broken down” (1). 

By Sebastian Mendoza

REFERENCES

Amit, Gish. 2008. “Ownerless Objects? The Story of Books Left Behind in 1948.” Jerusalem Quarterly 33: 7-20. 

Cronin, David. 2017. “Winston Churchill Sent the Black and Tans to Palestine.” Irish Times, May 19. Retrieved October 9, 2023 (https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/winston-churchill-sent-the-black-and-tans-to-palestine-1.3089140).

Fanon, Frantz. 2018 [1960]. “Why we use Violence.” Pp. 653-659 in Alienation and Freedom, London: Bloomsbury Academic. 

Fanon, Frantz. 1963. The Wretched of the Earth. New York: Grove Press. 

Herzl, Theodor. 1955. Theodor Herzl: A Portrait for this Age. Cleveland: World Publishing Co. 

Herzl, Theodor. 1960. The Complete Diaries of Theodor Herzl, New York: Herzl Press and Thomas Yoseloff. 

Jabotinsky, Vladimir. 1923. The Iron Wall. http://en.jabotinsky.org/media/9747/the-iron-wall.pdf. 

Rodney, Walter. 2019 [1969]. Groundings with my Brothers. Verso Books. 

Shakur, Assata. 2001 [1987]. Assata Shakur An Autobiography, Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books. 

State Archives, Jerusalem, GL-1429/5

* Disclaimer: This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

Getting To Know Towson!

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As the temperature slowly begins to wane, and as the days get shorter and shorter, we can safely say goodbye to summer salads and fresh farmer’s market fruits, and look forward to the quintessential fall comfort food. That’s right, it’s soup season! And what better way to start off soup season than with a heavy helping of a college favorite- the humble bowl of ramen?

If you’re craving this classic, look no further. Akira Ramen and Izakaya is situated on East Joppa road, right above the bustling Towson Town Center. It’s a relatively small establishment, but you can bet that most weekends, nearly every table and booth are packed to the brim all the way until closing time at 10:30 PM, a testament to the quality of the food.

(Source: Whisk + Quill) 

When it comes to the dishes themselves, each order of ramen comes with a delicious tonkatsu broth, full of healthy collagens and fats, as well as wood ear mushrooms, a jammy egg, corn, bamboo shoots, scallion, and their specialty noodles, which come in two styles: curly, or skinny, depending on your order. Where each ramen differs depends on what protein you decide to get. The seafood ramen, my personal choice, comes with squid, mussels and shrimp, while their more traditional Akira, Volcano/Spicy Akira, and tonkotsu miso bowls come with pork belly. Some even have their protein on the side, such as their karaage (fried chicken) ramen or their tempura shrimp ramen. Some don’t even have meat at all, such as their vegetable ramen, which forgoes it in favor of bok choy. 

Each ramen comes in at around 13 USD to 20 USD depending on the bowl, and if you see something you really want, you can add extra toppings, egg, or meat for a little bit more. 

But Akira doesn’t just serve ramen, and it would be a crime to discount their other dishes, after all, it is an Izakaya establishment. Izakaya literally translates to “Stay-Drink-Place”, and as such carries appetizers, skewers, sushi, and rice dishes to pair with alcohol, soda, or milk tea. Though, if you’re getting sushi, I would say go with a roll rather than their sushi donuts. They’re a lot more creative and you get more sushi. If you’re struggling with picking an appetizer, I would say get the karaage, or spurge a bit for their Towson crab dumplings- their take on crab rangoons- with spicy mayo, nice and hot from the fryer.

And if you still want more after all of that, Akira also carries desserts in connection with it’s next door neighbor, Kyoto Matcha. You can pick up all sorts of yummy treats such as mochi, ice cream, crepe cakes, a matcha tiramisu, or a best seller- the Dream of Sakura, a set of two raindrop cakes made with agar agar, with cherry blossoms inside and covered in a sugary soy powder glaze (though, the best time to get these would be in April or May, right as cherry blossom season is in full swing). Cakes usually go from 11.95 to 15 dollars, with their mochi costing around 4.95 and Dream of Sakura costing around 12 USD. 

(Source: Kyoto Matcha)

Going back to the atmosphere, Akira Ramen and Izakaya focuses on the traditional laid-back atmosphere of a Japanese Izakaya. Even with the crowded nature of it all, you never feel like it’s too much. In fact, the restaurant feels intimate at times. Classic J-pop and anime openings play at a comfortable volume, you can see into the back of the kitchen as the chefs prepare your dishes, and the staff are accommodating and welcoming no matter how many people are in- even their robot waiter, who comes equipped with enough shelves to carry an entire table’s worth of orders directly to the right group, along with a cute cat face!

(source: Google)

Each table is always given a complimentary jug of iced water to serve themselves, and the waitstaff make sure you never run out. At the end of your meal, feel free to grab a melon hard candy from the front to cleanse your palette. 

This may seem like a no-brainer to many established with the Towson area. But for those newly acquainted with the space, or those who were a little hesitant regarding if they should go or not, then I would say: go! Enjoy soup season, maybe catch a movie at the local Cinemark afterward, or just spend time with friends at this cozy little location. 

By Katelyn Krapf ’24

Disclaimer: This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

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Bathroom Break

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Edition 02

Alcock First Floor: ★★★★

Dear reader,

It has long since been customary for one to require some sort of reading material to accompany them on particularly long trips to the loo. In decades passed, the frequent choice of entertainment was the daily paper. With the advent of the modern day telephone, that practice has faded into obscurity. However, it has become no less important for one to be educated in the variations of restroom quality, so that one can make the vanguard selection for location to do said business. With that in mind, we have taken it upon ourselves to present to you, dear reader, our rankings of the most proper, and the most horrid, of all the restrooms on this fine establishment’s property, so that you may have the best bathroom experience possible. 

As some of the oldest dorms on this hallowed establishment, the humble halls of each building in the Frolicher trio contains water closets which are, to be blunt, sad. However, the ground floor loo in Alcock, while quaint, has a warm, wholesome, homey feeling to it. To be clear, this loo is not without its quirks. Its four sinks contain mismatched faucets. The stalls are located around a hidden corner (providing privacy, at the very least) and are narrow. There is also a disturbing lack of Wi-Fi and cellular service for one using these facilities. There is a peculiar shelving system that, despite consisting of cubbies that are too narrow to use efficiently, takes up an entire wall of yet another narrow corridor. The showers only have one curtain, making it impossible for one to change without literally standing in the shower, and, for some reason, there is a full-sized bathtub. 

Despite these (admittedly many) oddities, one can’t help but be charmed. Perhaps it’s due to the delightful amount of natural light emanating from the full wall of fogged-glass windows. More likely, it’s due to the housekeeping efforts of Tina, the intrepid overseer of this shabby building, who keeps things clean with a vengeance, and has a penchant for decorating with an overabundance of wall-hangings containing inspiring messages, a plethora of air fresheners, and a stunning amount of live houseplants, which she tends to with a passion. Whatever the reason, these loos, which are objectively run-down, feel almost like home. 

On grounds of size, accessibility, cleanliness, and privacy, we rate the Alcock first floor bathrooms four stars.

By “Little John” Flusher 

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Goucher Students Weigh In On Concerns Over Campus Safety Communications

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As the year progresses, one of several concerns raised by Goucher students has been the speed and urgency at which the Office of Campus Safety communicates issues to students. These concerns range from Campus Safety not addressing serious issues that affect the entire college, such as the recent contamination of the water supply, to sending alerts to students regarding issues that are more specific to a single dorm or area of campus. 

Tiffany Justice, Director of Campus Safety, says that her office has not received any specific complaints regarding how they communicate. She notes that there are multiple methods that her office uses to communicate, including “Timely Warnings, Emergency Notifications, [and] Goucher Alerts”.  According to Justice, each of these options can be sent through both email and/or text, and also have the ability to be made utilizing various screens on campus. Regarding the threshold for a problem to warrant warning the entire campus, she says that, “this is considered on a case by case basis.  Some requirements and or thresholds are established by the Department of Education.”

Meanwhile, a survey of Goucher students* shows a mix of opinions on Campus Safety communications. 50% of students each agree that there have been times when there has been a major issue, either campus-wide or in their dorm area, and Campus Safety has failed to acknowledge/inform the community about it, and that there have been times when Campus Safety has sent a campus-wide alert over a relatively minor issue; the rest either disagree with the statement or are uncertain. More specific concerns include not responding quickly enough in time to an emergency, especially one that brings emergency vehicles to campus, as well as a “condescending tone.”

When asked about how they would change the way Campus Safety communicates with students, most agreed that the office needed to be faster in sending out information about emergencies, more honest and open, and not leave out important information. Meanwhile, one student brought up the CampusShield app, which they noted was underutilized by Goucher’s Campus Safety Office. They noted that if more people downloaded the app, “it could be worthwhile and useful for a way to securely report information to Goucher students.”

*Disclaimer: The survey discussed in this article was not sent out to a random or comprehensive sample of Goucher students, and therefore is not intended to be representative of opinions of the student population at large.

This piece was published as a student’s op-ed submission. The Quindecim is a space for all students within the Goucher community to express their views and beliefs. These pieces are released in the name of journalistic integrity and not in an attempt to antagonize or reflect the institution of Goucher as a whole.

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