As I prepare this fifth issue of The Black Mirror, I cannot believe that we are mid-way through the fall semester. Time is genuinely elusive as it passes through us, and we always seem to be scrambling to catch up with it knowing fully well that we will never meet.

By Pushpa Iyer and Jason Buchanan

We truly appreciate the time and effort that each of you put into reading, answering, and commenting on our interactive section “Reflection and Response.” We enjoy the interactions and feel that with each issue the engagement grows in depth if not always with numbers.

In this section, we highlight the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives underway at the library, the activities of MIIS International Cultural Gathering, and a workshop on decolonizing knowledge.

This section presents personal stories and experiences of some of our community members. In this issue, we highlight Lotus Chen, Raymond Aycock, Alisyn Gruener, and Paige E. Butler.

Last semester was challenging, but also a very successful one for Allies at MIIS. We engaged in deep reflections during this period, while also taking time to consolidate the initiative. Three years after the start of Allies at MIIS, it was time to look back and take stock.

By Pushpa Iyer (with contributions from Jason Buchanan)

Discussions of the environment are omnipresent—in our politics, in our media, and on our campus. It is imperative we speak about the environment and primarily climate change. The courage and passion of sixteen-year-old Greta Thunberg is a testament to the fact that the younger generation (our students included) are concerned, as those who will deal more closely with environmental changes, and want to have their voice heard.

Safe spaces have been the buzzword in academic spaces for some time now. It is also one of the most misunderstood and misused concepts. To be sure we are on the same page, let us look at some definitions and the origins of safe spaces.   

News coming out of other higher education institutions is interesting for our work on diversity, equity, and inclusion. In this issue, we are looking at the recent ruling by a federal judge that clears Harvard of explicit bias against Asian-American applicants and a book burning incident at Georgia Southern University as a reaction to comments made by a Latina author on white privilege.

We’re recommending a movie and a book in this issue. If you know of any books, movies, shows, etc. that you would like to recommend, feel free to let us know!