Waking up on Nov. 6, 2024 brought a familiar sense of fear upon many students at Mount Holyoke. For me, it reminded me of how my brother and I slept on the floor of my parents room on Nov. 8, 2016, and woke up the next morning to our mom telling us Trump won. I remember the cries of the unknown we let out that morning, of confusion. We were sad, but why? At the ripe ages of 10 and 11, all we were aware of was that President Donald Trump hated us. Little did we know, those who silently mourned alongside us, invisible to our juvenile consciousness, would become his supporters in 2024; those who forgot the previous fear instilled in our daily lives all for “cheaper gas.”

Locating and attempting to recreate a “home away from home” is not a small feat for a person of color at a predominantly white institution such as Mount Holyoke College. This reality is one that many students of color must learn to overcome day by day, as the effort of bringing little pieces of home on their transcontinental and cross-country journeys to Mount Holyoke is essential to one’s identity and sense of belonging. Despite Mount Holyoke’s pride in its diverse campus, a majority of inclusion and community fostering efforts are student-led. This allows the College to effortlessly benefit off of the hard work and determination of students’ ongoing fight for inclusivity instead of reallocating funds and resources to create safe places on campus that are rich with culture and familiarity.