Class Note 1992
Issue
September-October 2020
As I write this, the June edition of our ’92 newsletter, The Standing Bonfire, was just emailed. It begins with an introduction by Kimberly Malone Bobb, the class of 1992 executive committee liaison to the Black Alumni at Dartmouth Association (BADA).
Kimberly wrote: “As a former president of the Dartmouth Afro-American Society (AAm) and, ironically, having been our class historian, I look back on our years at Dartmouth with both nostalgia and angst, as I contemplate these challenging times in our nation and in our world.
“Speaking from a podium on the Green in our senior spring, I and others sought to bring awareness, at Dartmouth, to the cause of justice and the scourge of police brutality. When I agreed to serve as the class of 1992 committee’s liaison to BADA during our reunion in 2017, I could hardly have known that the events of 2020 would so clearly punctuate the current need to have mechanisms in place to amplify Black voices and perspectives.
“Black lives matter. With that said, our class leadership team invites you to listen to the contributors whom we’ve asked to share their experiences, both past and present, herein. Our hope is that we all will more consciously embrace the ever-present challenge to move from listening to ‘hearing’ and from hearing to action when it comes to confronting racism and systems of inequity and supporting intentional efforts toward equity and justice.”
Christine Griffith-Legette, in her essay, “Turning 50 Amidst Two Pandemics,” described her personal battle with Covid-19, encouraging classmates to research systemic racism and anti-racism. She wrote: “As members of the class of ’92, most of you should remember the protests about the Rodney King verdict that were a significant part of our senior spring. In viewing pictures from those protests, I realized that we could have taken many of the signs that we were carrying across campus in 1992 and recreated them to join one of the current protests. It disgusts me that these protests are still necessary 28 years later. These experiences cause undue stress to Black people. Our mental health is challenged by the graphic footage and inconsiderate comments made by those who do not value the lives lost or those of us still fighting for our lives and our rights.”
Willie W. Williams wrote “Reflections on Police Misconduct: From Rodney King to George Floyd.” He also looked back on spring 1992: “It was our senior year and graduation was taking center stage; however, the situation in Los Angeles grabbed our attention, particularly those in the Black community. I had a front row seat working on the executive committee of the AAm and with other allies interested in speaking up for justice. At the time I was editor of the Black Praxis newspaper, which was the official publication of the AAm. In the ensuing student actions, I was a reporter, photographer, and participant. We planned marches, a rally, and a sit-in at Parkhurst. We quickly published a special edition of the Black Praxis that we personally delivered door to door because we wanted to express ourselves to the Dartmouth community. Beyond expressing our anger, we gained modest support for diversity goals from college leadership.” He recounts experiences since then, concluding with: “I am tired. I am emotionally drained. I remain hopeful.”
I don’t have sufficient space to convey the full impact of these essays here. Be sure to carve out some time to visit 1992.dartmouth.org/june2020 and read the entire newsletter.
—Kelly Shriver Kolln, 3900 Cottage Grove Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52403; (920) 306-2192; dartmouth92news@gmail.com
Kimberly wrote: “As a former president of the Dartmouth Afro-American Society (AAm) and, ironically, having been our class historian, I look back on our years at Dartmouth with both nostalgia and angst, as I contemplate these challenging times in our nation and in our world.
“Speaking from a podium on the Green in our senior spring, I and others sought to bring awareness, at Dartmouth, to the cause of justice and the scourge of police brutality. When I agreed to serve as the class of 1992 committee’s liaison to BADA during our reunion in 2017, I could hardly have known that the events of 2020 would so clearly punctuate the current need to have mechanisms in place to amplify Black voices and perspectives.
“Black lives matter. With that said, our class leadership team invites you to listen to the contributors whom we’ve asked to share their experiences, both past and present, herein. Our hope is that we all will more consciously embrace the ever-present challenge to move from listening to ‘hearing’ and from hearing to action when it comes to confronting racism and systems of inequity and supporting intentional efforts toward equity and justice.”
Christine Griffith-Legette, in her essay, “Turning 50 Amidst Two Pandemics,” described her personal battle with Covid-19, encouraging classmates to research systemic racism and anti-racism. She wrote: “As members of the class of ’92, most of you should remember the protests about the Rodney King verdict that were a significant part of our senior spring. In viewing pictures from those protests, I realized that we could have taken many of the signs that we were carrying across campus in 1992 and recreated them to join one of the current protests. It disgusts me that these protests are still necessary 28 years later. These experiences cause undue stress to Black people. Our mental health is challenged by the graphic footage and inconsiderate comments made by those who do not value the lives lost or those of us still fighting for our lives and our rights.”
Willie W. Williams wrote “Reflections on Police Misconduct: From Rodney King to George Floyd.” He also looked back on spring 1992: “It was our senior year and graduation was taking center stage; however, the situation in Los Angeles grabbed our attention, particularly those in the Black community. I had a front row seat working on the executive committee of the AAm and with other allies interested in speaking up for justice. At the time I was editor of the Black Praxis newspaper, which was the official publication of the AAm. In the ensuing student actions, I was a reporter, photographer, and participant. We planned marches, a rally, and a sit-in at Parkhurst. We quickly published a special edition of the Black Praxis that we personally delivered door to door because we wanted to express ourselves to the Dartmouth community. Beyond expressing our anger, we gained modest support for diversity goals from college leadership.” He recounts experiences since then, concluding with: “I am tired. I am emotionally drained. I remain hopeful.”
I don’t have sufficient space to convey the full impact of these essays here. Be sure to carve out some time to visit 1992.dartmouth.org/june2020 and read the entire newsletter.
—Kelly Shriver Kolln, 3900 Cottage Grove Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52403; (920) 306-2192; dartmouth92news@gmail.com