April 2017 FREE, AS in BEER
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Olin’s unofficial, FRANKLY student-run news SPEAKING source. volume 8, issue 7 April 2017 FREE, AS IN BEER FreeLogan Davis Soapboxesabout the words that you matory to notHere being creative Interviewee were reading, the statements enough. Granted, some of could suddenly be read as the statements were solicited Here at Olin, we inten- rather banal. from other sources, such as tionally and deliberately But even though we know “self-identifying conserva- teach students how to ex- that government can be inef- tive / right of center” Oliners: press their ideas. Every first ficient, and that Islam is not Logan says that “Everyone year takes one writing course terrorism, and that literally Has A Right To Life”, “Gov- and two courses with design everyone has bad ideas, a ernment Can Be Inefficient”, reviews to showcase and jus- number of community mem- “Corruption Is Not Good”, tify their progress. We give bers were made very uncom- “Reporters Have Responsi- students lots of venues for fortable by the statements.. bilities”, and “People Need- presentations, public white- The first morning of the ed Coal Jobs” were inspired boards to gauge public inter- project, the three poster by conversations with such est, and well, there’s also this boards vanished after the ad- students. piece of paper that you’re ministration requested their None of these statements, reading. removal to clean up for a tour not the right nor left nor the A few weeks ago, as part group. Later that afternoon center-leaning ones, were of a project for Six Books (and following a hunt for meant to be attacks. “If any That Changed The World, who and why and how to get of them were attacks [on an Logan Davis put up three them back), the boards were Oliner’s identity], I kind of presentation boards around back up. failed. I didn’t want them to campus, each bearing seven Phase 1 of the project, be controversial.” black and white posters. Listening, was off to a roar- Regardless of whether or The posters carried political ing start. not they felt attacked, Olin- statements like “Neo-Nazis Despite the fact that no ers gave feedback, and those Have Bad Ideas,” “The Press one uses QR codes (Logan’s that chose to do it anony- Should Be Free,” “Govern- chosen method for con- mously allowed Phase 2 to ment Can Be Inefficient,” tact), he was able to receive happen. Logan took a thick and “Islam Is Not Terror- feedback through both his red marker and scrawled the ism.” coded form and the Therapy anonymous comments about “What was the goal of mailing list. Logan said that each statement over its re- this?” you might ask. he, “was trying to put these spective poster. According to Logan, he things out in a very public Many of us saw this art- wanted to push a button. way and see what people ist-executed graffiti. Many of More specifically, his goal did… and people did inter- us stopped to notice what had was a weeklong experiment esting things.” changed about the posters that, on its surface, was very Complaints about the that had been in our periph- political. But if you stopped project ranged from the eral vision for the past week. for a second and thought statements being too inflam- continued on next page How many of us thought want to speak their minds about the vitriol behind the Literal Physical Removal but they don’t want to be red words? And how many by the Administration – judged by others for what of us would have spoken up signs getting taken down they say. for or against these state- from public space, presum- ments if they had been said ably or explicitly by the ad- The Myth of Olin – the to our faces? ministration. myth being that Olin is apo- To round off his project litical. We don’t show poli- for Six Books That Changed Literal Physical Removal tics on tours. Our students The World, here are Logan’s by Students – signs getting don’t talk about politics, Six Mechanisms of Silence: taken down from student for fear of ostracism and for spaces, presumably by stu- fear of being the ostraciz- Obfuscation and Adminis- dents. ers. “Being apolitical is just tration – there is no formal an endorsement of the way process for putting up signs Anonymous Directed things are.” like this, but the activa- Feedback – e.g. emails and tion energy required to first feedback forms that went to So why do we have such ask a professor and then go Logan. It’s not a dialogue/ an aversion to putting our through facilities and StAR conversation if your target names on our opinions? And and then go find the means can’t respond. It’s bullying. do we actually want silence, of actually displaying post- or to make it safe for our ers is a wild goose chase that Anonymous Public Feed- voices while drowning other acts as a rather powerful de- back – e.g. the Therapy opinions out? terrent. email thread, because people MentalMegan McCauley minutes.Health Whenever I started atwith ADD, anxiety,Olin and de- Contributor working on one assignment, pression. I would suddenly remember What I found out sur- Eighteen months ago, I something else that I desper- prised me. So many of the was diagnosed with attention ately needed to do. I couldn’t people that I talked with had deficit disorder (ADD), anxi- go back to the first thing I also had been dealing with ety, and depression. was working on until I add- similar problems. Some of Let’s back up. I am six ed the just remembered task them had just started their weeks away from graduat- to my To Do list. This went journeys. Others had been ing. I have accepted a full on and on until it was hours handling them for years. I time job at a company I am later, I had a million Chrome was stunned. Many of my excited to work for. I have a tabs open, and my To Do list friends and peers were strug- solid core group of friends filled up the front and back of gling with the same problems and a happy family. I spend a piece of paper. that I was, and yet, I had no time with my suitemates and I want to use my personal idea. friends, love to read, and experiences as a catalyst to Talking with other people breezed through high school start the conversation about about mental health chal- with all A’s. But this is all on mental health, especially as lenges is something that I go the surface. it relates to engineering. I out of my way to do. Some- What people couldn’t see, felt so alone with my prob- times all it takes is one con- even my best friend from lems for such a long time. versation to realize that you home, even my parents, was But after I got the help that have more in common with the me who struggled to stay I needed, I started to open up someone than you thought. focused on one homework to my friends, and even to My goal is to break subject for more than thirty strangers, about my struggles down the barriers that sur- round talking about mental reach out and get the help I reaction and realized that health. To allow those who needed. Too long. I spent al- these weren’t tears of sad- are struggling or those who most every night during my ness. They were tears of re- are watching someone else sophomore year curled up in lief. Someone else had final- struggle to not be afraid to my boyfriend’s bed, sobbing ly been able to see inside me, speak up and speak out re- uncontrollably. Nothing and now, I was going to get garding their experiences he said or did could make the help that I needed. This and their feelings. I want my tears stop, but his pres- was the last moment that I people to know that it’s okay ence made me feel better. I had to feel alone, hopeless to ask for help. had enough experience with and helpless, surrounded by I think that my personal these nights to know that my problems. struggles were perpetuated when the sun came up, these I think a big part of go- by the demanding envi- feelings would go away. At ing to therapy is knowing ronment of an engineering least, until the next night. what you are there for. You education and the ambition I went on feeling this want to be clear about how of the culture and people way, barely scraping by, for you are feeling and what around me. At Olin, we all an entire year. I got a C- and you want to walk out of your try to do everything, from a D in the two classes I was sessions with. I had thought school work to clubs to hav- taking in my major. I knew that I was struggling with ing a social life. But the truth that something was wrong. depression -- that was why is, you can’t do it all. There I knew that Olin students I had gone to therapy in the are only so many hours in had access to mental health first place -- but to have an- a day and when you take resources and therapists. But other person, a doctor, spend time out to sleep, because I was scared.