Justice
March 25, 2021
‘Scapegoating must stop, harassment must stop, hate must stop’
With flags of the world lining Sauder Concert Hall in anticipation of the 2021 International Student Coffeehouse last Saturday, a striking red poster made by junior Yujin Kim took center stage. “Stop the spread of racism,” it read. “Asian hate crimes increased by nearly 150% in 2020. Over 2,000 hate crimes have been reported since the beginning of the pandemic.” This call for justice came just four days after eight people were killed at massage parlors in the Atlanta area. Six of the people killed in the shooting were Asian, raising fears that the crimes may have targeted people of...
November 19, 2020
Biology professor’s murder suspect found guilty after nine years
After nine years without answers, it took a jury two and a half hours last Thursday to find Winston Corbett guilty of murder of Goshen College professor James (Jim) Miller and attempted murder of his wife, Linda Miller. Corbett, 16 years old at the time of the murder, was arrested on Oct. 28, 2018 and could now be facing up to 65 years in prison for each charge. The tragedy in 2011 left the GC community aching the loss of a biology professor of 30 years. “Goshen College was Jim’s world in so many ways,” Linda Miller said. “He loved...
October 15, 2020
Students draft justice resolution for MennoCon21
When the Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) assembly meets in 2021, they will be presented with a call for legal reform, written by two Goshen College students. The “For Justice In the U.S. Criminal Legal System” resolution calls for MC USA to commit to “reforms to the criminal legal system of the United States of America.” The resolution was written by Zack Begly, senior broadcasting and journalism double major, and edited by Elizabeth Reimer, junior peace, justice and conflict studies and Bible and religion double major. The criminal system “causes pain and suffering,” the resolution states, “especially [among] poor people...
October 15, 2020
Bias Matters webinar to focus on race
Goshen College’s office of diversity, equity and inclusion launched its first webinar in a four-part series titled “Bias Matters: a campus conversation in four weeks” last Wednesday, Oct. 7. The webinar seeks to provide space for those in the GC community to better understand bias and the implications of how it shows up in individual and community interactions. “The whole series kind of evolved as an answer to the question that we've heard over the summer, or when other issues of social injustice have arisen, whether they are nationally or locally,” said LaKendra Hardware, director of diversity, equity and inclusion....
November 13, 2019
Panel features PJCS and sustainability experts
Conversation sparked last Wednesday, Nov. 13, as four panelists gathered for a discussion entitled, “Where sustainability and social justice meet.” Senior Lydia Dyck brought the panel together in order to carry out discussion between professionals and students on the topics of peace, justice and conflict studies (PJCS) and sustainability. The panel consisted of associate professor of sustainability and environmental education, Jonathon Schramm; sustainable food systems educator and Merry Lea farm manager, Jon Zirkle; professor and department chair of PJCS, Regina Shands Stoltzfus; and sustainable peace and development practitioner from Zimbabwe, Sibonokuhle Ncube. All panelists came to the event with varied...
February 21, 2019
Schrock-Shenk leaves legacy through Inside-Out class
Following a brief hospitalization, Carolyn Schrock-Shenk, retired professor of peace, justice and conflict studies (PJCS), passed away on Feb. 6. Schrock-Shenk played a defining role in the setup and functioning of Goshen College’s Inside-Out May Term class. Without Schrock-Shenk, there would not be an Inside-Out Exchange Program at GC. Inside-Out, according to the Inside-Out Center, is a national program to bring college students from the “outside” and inmates, the “inside” students, together for a class. The program allows students to interact with inmates and puts everyone on an equal level. The original Inside-Out program is based out of Temple...
February 15, 2018
Students attend restorative justice conference
Thirteen students from Goshen College braved the snowy roads and traveled to Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada for the Intercollegiate Peace Fellowship (ICPF) conference. The three day (Feb. 9-11) conference explored the meaning, history and practice of restorative justice. Among those who went from Goshen College was first-year Emma Nouri. “I attended this conference because as a peace justice and conflict studies major, I felt that it would be a great experience of learning and interaction about restorative justice, which is an aspect of peace and conflict studies that I have been very curious about,” Nouri said....
April 6, 2017
Faith in action: Schlabach reflects on injustice
Tina Stoltzfus Schlabach spends a lot of time inside Eloy Detention Center. Schlabach is there by choice, and she can leave whenever she wants. She chooses to return as part of a group of visitors time and time again to be watched by a guard in a gray visitation room while she talks, laughs and sometimes cries with women being held in the immigration detention center. Eloy Detention Center is a for-profit prison-like facility that houses around 1,400 immigrants from various countries. Schlabach is part of a community visitation program run through Casa Mariposa, an organization in the Tucson area...
February 23, 2017
Summit for justice meets at Merry Lea
This past weekend, while students gathered outside on the lawn to enjoy warm temperatures, a group of 45 students gathered at Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center for the Fourth Annual Sustainability Summit. This year’s theme: justice. Environmental justice, social justice and the drive to “let justice roll on like a river, righteousness as a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5:24). This is all to facilitate a conversation surrounding ways to create change in one’s own life and community. The weekend began with the showing of the documentary “Eagle Gone” by film-maker Terry Doran, which explores the story of Native Americans in Indiana....
February 16, 2017
Divestment: an ongoing discussion
Amid conversations on campus concerning how Goshen College will respond to calls for divestment from Chase Bank, which is helping to finance the Dakota Access Pipeline, the Army Corps of Engineers has granted the easement allowing for the continued construction of that pipeline. Students who are campaigning for the divestment have met with key administrators: Ken Newbold, the provost; Deanna Risser, the interim vice president for finance; and Glenn Gilbert, the utilities manager and sustainability coordinator. These conversations were held on Feb. 2 and 14, with a shifting national narrative as the backdrop. The proposed pipeline, which would carry 470,000...
September 8, 2016
“A Justice That Heals” fills Umble
Over 400 students, faculty and staff and community members filled Umble Center on Tuesday night to witness an incredible story. The evening began with the opening question, “What’s the right thing to do when one man kills another?” A documentary exploring that question followed. In June of 1996, the day after he graduated from high school in Chicago, 18-year-old Mario Ramos pulled a trigger and ended the life of 19-year-old Andrew Young. Amidst the 90 homicides in Chicago that month, it seemed to be nothing more than a number lost in the statistics. But the aftermath of this tragedy is...
January 14, 2016
Regina Stoltzfus awarded ICRC’s highest honors
Regina Shands Stoltzfus, professor of peace, justice, and conflict studies, has been awarded the Indiana Civil Rights Commission’s 2016 Spirit of Justice Award, the commission’s highest honor. According the ICRC’s website, the award was created to recognize those “who have devoted their personal and professional efforts to creating social justice in the State of Indiana.” The Spirit of Justice Award recognizes individuals “who have made significant contributions to the advancement of all Hoosiers and maintain a focus on achieving equality,” who “promote peace within their community, understand and improve communication, and facilitate cooperation between diverse populations,” and encourage leadership in...
October 15, 2015
Students work for climate justice
Two weeks ago, Mike Tidwell roused GC students to step out of complacency about the impending climate crisis and instead, to get involved in local climate action efforts. He lauded the work of two Goshen College student groups who are already hard at work on this issue: EcoPAX and GC Divest, two groups working to create both grassroots and policy-level change. Tidwell’s message was energetic, but not everyone agreed with the entirety of his speech. The week after his Yoder Public Affairs lecture, Hannah Barg, a senior and leader of EcoPAX, noted that Tidwell “missed the huge component of social...
October 1, 2015
Tidwell calls for rally to climate action
Author, filmmaker and climate activist Mike Tidwell challenged Goshen College to fight for climate justice in three public lectures this week. Tidwell’s appeal to the GC community centered on the idea that a solution to the climate crisis is possible and while it “can’t happen overnight, it has to happen soon.” Tidwell called students in particular to action, stating boldly that “We need a mass movement to overcome the very very powerful fossil fuel industry.” Young people, Tidwell pointed out, have a unique influence in the realm of advocacy, from changing college policies to national laws. “[Authority figures] don’t look...
October 11, 2012
New clubs to bring tails, justice, quiet to campus
This fall, Goshen College adds to its cultural diversity with the formation of 5 new student clubs: the GC Pet Club, Rock Climbing Club, Salsa Club, Social Reform and the Introvert Club. A group of GC students were fed up with living in a society where one's ambition and leadership ability are assumed to be linked to sociability and extroversion, so they decided to do something about it by forming a club for introverts. The introvert club will compliment large-scale events with smaller, quieter and more intimate options for introverts. The group has a number of ideas for for these...