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Volume XXXIII Issue 2 September 27 2024

Page 1

27 September 2024

scrippsvoice.com

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“Neutrality and Coffee”: The Motley team comments on administration’s policies regarding hanging the Palestinian flag By Frances Walton ’26 and Belén Yudess ’25 Editor-in-Chief and Copy Editor ote: All Motley baristas and manN agers who interviewed with The Scripps Voice (TSV) have requested

anonymity due to concerns for their employment. On Sept. 9, Interim Special Assistant to the Vice President for Student Affairs Deborah Hebert ordered the removal of the Palestinian flag hanging in the coffeehouse’s window in an email to The Motley manager team. In a follow-up email, Hebert said that The Motley “violated campus policy and conduct standards” by allowing the flag to remain in the space. After the staff refused to comply with these demands, Hebert sent an email ultimatum on Wednesday, Sept. 11: “Removal of the flag is a condition to being able to open the Motley. As such, if you want to open the Motley for business on Friday, it needs to be removed by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday.” Contrasting earlier emails sent by Hebert, the Sept. 11 correspondence was “sent to our Motley Gmail, but also to both of our student emails [with Dr. Sha] CC’d, and an attachment of the screenshot [of a photo of Motley training with the Palestinian flag in the background] from our Instagram story,” a manager said. “I felt isolated in my position by that message and by that sort of framing.” Following Hebert’s ultimatum, The Motley, in a joint post with other oncampus organizations, set up a show of solidarity in the coffeehouse on Thursday, Sept. 12, at 4:15 p.m., right before the ultimatum deadline. Approximately 160+ members of the 5C community attended in support of The Motley. “The flag that is currently hanging is not part of some broader display recognizing the international students at Scripps,” Hebert said in the Sept. 11 email. In response, students adorned The Motley with flags representing their heritage before the gathering. Motley staff opened the gathering but invited any community member to speak as the crowd waited for Hebert to arrive for a meeting with the managers to ensure the flag’s removal at 5 p.m. Two students, one of Jewish heritage and the other of Palestinian heritage, chose to speak at the gathering. Both explained that the Palestinian flag made them feel more comfortable in The Motley. The gathering culminated with Hebert leaving a voicemail to the managers stating she was “stuck in traffic

Frances Walton ’26 • The Scripps Voice

[and would] not make it there [that] evening.” The managers were confused. “I guess that begs the question: Do we get an extension on our deadline? Are we opening tomorrow?” a manager said at the event. After a meeting with Hebert on Friday, The Motley opened Friday night with the “Motagascar” opening party and continued with their regular business hours starting Monday, Sept. 16. However, on Sept. 18, Hebert and Executive Director of Facilities Management & Auxiliary Operations Josh Reeder emailed the managers’ student emails. Seven minutes later, that same email, with an introduction from Dean of Students Dr. Sha Bradley, was sent to the Scripps Student List. The subject line read, “Commitment to Freedom of Expression and Inclusion-Motley Coffeehouse.” In the email, Hebert and Reeder requested that the managers “promptly remove any unauthorized signage, decorations, flags, posters, or other materials from The Motley.” Earlier in the email, Hebert and Reeder cited the Principles of Community and the college’s posting policy and said, “Adherence to all applicable policies related to the business environment is a condition of employment.” “I was glad such a blatant display of hypocrisy and self-contradictory messaging [was made] accessible to the inbox of every other student on this campus,” a manager said. “I think it was a move that was supposed to make us feel visible and vulnerable,

but I was glad that [they sent] such a ridiculous email where so much nothing was said.” The managers saw contradictions between The Motley’s actions and the posting policy Hebert and Reeder cited. “From what I understand where it does talk about [postings], it talks about flyers, like, event flyers,” a manager said. “It doesn’t talk about decor. It doesn’t talk about wall art. It doesn’t talk about permanent installations.” Part of The Principles of Community, mentioned in the email from Hebert and Reeder, states that “recognizing that such expressions [of free speech] may offend, provoke, and disturb, Scripps affirms its dedication to encourage rather than limit expression.” The email stated that The Motley employees “displaying decorations or signage that advocate for specific positions or statements may inadvertently limit the expression of diverse opinions and beliefs within a shared space.” A manager believed that Hebert and Reeder’s request “put [the managers] in a position where they have to make up for the pitfalls of admin, and it’s super stressful,” she said. “It’s super, super inappropriate, and it adds so much [pressure]; we’re not full time workers.” When TSV asked Hebert for a statement regarding her correspondence with The Motley, the Office of Marketing and Communications referred TSV to the email sent to the Scripps Student list. They declined to comment further.

On Sept. 20, the managers sat down with Hebert and Reeder for a meeting, scheduled before the Sept. 18 email, regarding the flag’s presence in the space. Hebert first asked the managers to recount what had happened in The Motley, “despite her being the one who’d been imposing all of these policies and restrictions on us,” a manager said. Then, the managers pressed Hebert and Reeder to identify the specific policies that they were breaking. “We received no citations of any clauses that could be applicable to the situation whatsoever,” a manager said. “We got no clarity from the meeting, only a deadline, which is that the flag needed to come down by close of business on Monday [Sept. 23] evening.” Reeder said little in the meeting while Hebert answered questions posed by the managerial staff. From the managers’ perspective, Hebert seemed unprepared to answer many of the specific questions they asked. “Whoever told her to enter that meeting and say whatever she had to say, they gave her no policy to back it up with,” a manager said. Already struggling to understand the rationale behind the mandate to take down the Palestinian flag, the managers sought clarity on how Scripps would handle future decor. “We were like, ‘who’s deciding this?’ And she goes, ‘Well, unfortunately, that’s going to have to be me,’” a manager said. “And we were like, ‘is

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Continued on page 2

IN THIS ISSUE

“When is someone gonna tell me that?” Changes to the Guide to Student Life and Code of Conduct

1030 Columbia Avenue | Claremont, CA 91711 | IG: @scrippsvoice | scrippsvoice@gmail.com | Volume XXXIII | Issue Two


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