Dear Readers,
What a first few weeks it has been. Lots of new faces on campus, lots of sunshine (much to my chagrin) and lots of cookies given out by the folks in blue. This is the first year I have been at Evergreen since the pandemic, and seeing the campus crawling with Greeners has really set my heart alight.
Here at the CPJ we have been doing a lot of tabling, thinking, plotting, reworking, and cleaning (Thanks Grace!!) and we think that it really shows in the first collective edition of the CPJ made by our 22-23 staff.
You will hear about a sinister bill that is attempting to be passed by congress with support from both sides of the political arena. You get another tasty installment of Lee’s Feeding the Diaspora series. And you will get a chance to see the artwork of our new illustrators alongside all of the other sweet sweet content we have produced to feed your eyeholes.
On a separate note, I would like to talk a little bit about the death of Evergreen’s theater department and what seems to be an abandonment of the arts here at Evergreen. In classes, hallways, and in the hearts of all of us who are a part of Evergreen’s arts department the sad departure of the theater program (along with the costume shop) has left a hole. The death of this department is another signal in what is becoming an obvious attempt to destroy the arts by the administration here at Evergreen. Our funding is clear-cut on a yearly basis. Long-time professors are driven away from the college after attempting for years to just get some kind of help. And arts students are given almost no space on campus for performing or presenting their creations.
I am bringing this to attention because I believe students, alumni, and faculty in the arts departments should consider taking larger action in order to make sure that Evergreen does not become another STEM-centered come-here-to-get-a-job research institution that pumps out boxes and boxes of techies that have no idea how to connect with other human beings and the larger world around them. This action can take many forms, and it is not something that I believe should happen overnight, but I believe the best way to start is to organize. Though I have no concrete ideas on how this is to be done exactly, I would love to be a part of the discussion, and so would the rest of our staff here at the CPJ.
If you were a part of Evergreen’s theater department or have anything at all to say regarding the arts here at Evergreen please write us at cooperpointjournal@gmail.com We would love to help you tell your stories.
I hope that the year has started off well for everyone, and I am glad to have met so many lovely new folks in our strange little pocket in the woods.
Good luck,
Mj Richards
Editor-in-Chief
