Category Archives: Wes Off-Campus

Wes Students Support Yale Grad Student Union in “The Fast Against Slow”

UNITE HERE 217 and Wesleyan Students at Yale for the start of the occupation/strike

Wesleyan students from United Student/Labor Action Coalition and Wesleyan Democratic Socialists joined Yale graduate school employees from UNITE HERE Local 33 on Tuesday evening to kick off a hunger strike meant to pressure Yale administration into entering contract negotiations with the newly-formed union. Eight graduate school employees from Local 33 have committed to an indefinite hunger strike being called “The Fast Against Slow.”

Read more about the strike after the jump:

Overcoats Perform on NPR’s All Songs Considered

Overcoats perform a Tiny Desk Concert on March 1, 2017. (Marian Carrasquero/NPR)

As the electronic duo OvercoatsHana Elion ’15 and JJ Mitchell ’15 are quickly making a name for themselves in the indie music world. Yesterday they performed on NPR as part of All Songs Considered‘s Tiny Desk Concert series, which is a pretty big deal given who else has been featured. They also performed at this year’s South By Southwest festival earlier this month.

In their Wesleyan days, Overcoats played everywhere from Earth House’s intimate living room to the Spring Fling stage. Even as undergrads, their combination of sparse electronics and warm vocal harmonies allowed them to occupy a unique space in the campus music scene. Now, they’re looking forward to their debut album, Young, which comes out April 21.

You can watch Overcoats’ full Tiny Desk concert after the jump:

VIDEO: Wesleyan Students Protest #MuslimBan at Bradley International Airport

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On Sunday afternoon, Wesleyan students joined over 1,000 protesters at Bradley International Airport in The Council on American-Islamic Relations – Connecticut‘s protest against President Trump‘s Executive Order banning Muslim immigrants from 7 countries and halting immigration from Syria.

The President signed the order at 4:42 PM on Saturday, January 28th, to the dismay of millions of people worldwide. Just before 9 PM on Saturday, a federal judge ruled to block parts of the Executive Order preventing some of those detained from being immediately deported. However, the ruling failed to free those detained as a result of the ban, leaving many travellers unable to leave the airport or government custody despite having proper green cards and visas.

How to get to New Haven for $9.75 Using M-Link and Amtrak

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Did you pay $40 for an Uber (ew, Uber) from New Haven to get back to Wes from break? If you did and found yourself wishing for a cheaper alternative, read past the jump for a full guide on how to get from Wes to New Haven for just $9.75. Here’s the tl;dr:

  1. Go to Meriden using M-Link Bus from Wesleyan Campus (William and High) 30 minutes and $1.75.
  2. Take Amtrak from Meriden Station to New Haven 30 minutes and $8. NOTE: Buy tickets beforehand, construction disrupting train schedule until May 2017.
  3. Starting January 2018 new commuter line will connect Meriden and New Haven with high speed trains making this an even better travel hack for Wesleyan students :)

Students, Alumni React to Trump’s Muslim Ban

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Earlier today, thousands gathered at JFK International Airport to protest the detaining of 12 people from the list of seven majority-Muslim countries covered in Trump’s executive order from yesterday. This order has suspended all immigration from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Yemen, Libya and Somalia for the next 90 days, regardless of visa and permanent resident status. The order also bans entry of all refugees for the next 120 days and the entry of Syrian refugees indefinitely.

Among those at JFK earlier today was Casey Smith ’17, who gives more information about what’s going on there:

At least a dozen refugees and immigrants from the now-banned Muslim-majority countries were detained by Customs and Border Patrol inside JFK and more–unclear how many–were detained at airports around the country. The protests were posted on Facebook by immigrants’ rights and human rights activists, including Linda Sarsour. Lawyers from the International Refugee Assistance Project and the ACLU were inside the airport, by the arrivals gate, working to get in touch with the detained refugees. At the time of writing one Iraqi refugee had been released but the others were still detained. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez (NY-7) was inside the airport and at the protests all day to advocate for CBP to release the refugees. Protestors shouted “no ban, no wall” and that immigrants/refugees/Muslims are welcome here.

Smith also said that it is important that those who are directly affected by the ban be centered in conversations about the policy. Read past the jump for reactions to the news:

Anarchist Histories and Activism

From the American Studies Department:

Come hear Wesleyan students publicly present their research from the American Studies course, Anarchy in America: From Haymarket to Occupy Wall Street, taught by Professor of American Studies J. Kehaulani Kauanui. The course focused on anarchism as a political philosophy and practice—a little known aspect of American culture and society. Students examined select aspects of anarchist political thought and praxis in the United States and the ways that anarchism has been represented positively, vilified, or dismissed. The class included histories, philosophies and theories, and activism; it explored a range of diverse political traditions including individualist anarchism, socialist anarchism, anarcha-feminism, black anarchism, queer anarchism, indigenous influences and critiques, and other schools of thought. Professor Kauanui will moderate the following two panels.

10 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. Historical Genealogies & Radical Analysis

“Free Love, Motherhood, and Spiritism: Reading Anarchy Through the Writings of Luisa Capetillo,” Iryelis López ’17
“Love as Prefigurative Politics: A Critical Examination of the Revolutionary Potentials of Non-Monogamy,” Sarah Lurie ’17
“Black Feminist Resonances: The Overlaps and Intersections With Anarchist Principles,” Kaiyana Cervera ’19

Noon to 1:30 p.m. Community Resistance and Diverse Forms of Direct Action

“Encrypted But Not Cryptic: An Intro to Crypto Anarchy and Practical Resistance of the Modern Surveillance State,” Kate Pappas ’18
“Threads of Anarchism: A Look at Flint Community Action Amidst a State Crime,” Aura Ochoa ’17
“Power to the People! Energy Democracy and the Socialization of our Energy Infrastructure,” Joshua Nodiff ’19

Date: Saturday, October 1
Time: 10AM-1PM
Place: Russell Library (NOT Russell House!), 123 Broad Street, Middletown, CT 06457

Wes Students Join Area Residents in Action Against Dakota Access Pipeline

“Our politicians are turning a blind eye to the protesters and to the native peoples as a new tyranny of oil is taking over our government” – Josh Nodiff ’19

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On Friday, September 9, Dragonfly Climate Collective, a local anti-capitalist environmental justice group, organized an action outside of TD Bank on Washington Street to protest the bank’s investment in the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). Over 125 people from Wesleyan, Middletown, and greater Connecticut area turned out in response to a call for solidarity actions from the Camp of the Sacred Stones and the Red Warrior Camp, the two camps that have been leading the resistance against the DAPL. The Dragonfly Climate Collective report on the action can be found here.

Overcoats Talk and Concert !!

overcoatsAfter playing Spring Fling last year, the rad alumnae of Overcoats return to campus after an impressive year of touring, recording, and general badassery:

Folktronica duo Overcoats (Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell ’15) will share their experiences as female musicians at Wesleyan and beyond. After graduating in 2015, the duo headed to Ireland and the UK to tour their debut EP. Now back in New York, they’ve been playing shows and recording new music. The duo has had a lot of success in the past 10 months, playing festivals alongside Leon Bridges and Ibeyi, performing at NPR’s Mountain Stage, and showcasing at SXSW in Austin in March.

They wish to return to their alma mater to speak about the music they make and their experience of gender dynamics in the industry (especially within electronic music). They aim to facilitate a discussion on the power dynamics of gender within the music scene. They will talk about themes like strength and vulnerability, knowledge as power, technology and skill, and more. The forum discussion will be followed by a performance of their original music.

They will also be performing with Old Soles, Ives, and DJ Kfeelz at Earth House: they go on at 10:30 Saturday night !

Date: Saturday, April 23
Time: Talk – 4 PM // Concert – 10:30 PM
Place: Earth House

Wes Kids Did Cool Shit Over Spring Break

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We are (only) a week back from break, so hopefully everyone’s stopped asking what you did during it. These questions can be genuine…or loaded and empty. They can also be opportunities for class privilege to shine strong. However, every year, a few student groups and Wes departments help facilitate some truly dope spring break trips that bring students from around campus together and get them out of central Connecticut for a few days. Doing spring break with a student group or academic department often lifts organizational (and sometimes financial) burdens off of individual students and also tends to be hella fulfilling and really fun.

So, we’ve reached out to a few groups who did cool shit over break and put together a roundup post of some cool Wes spring breaks. We apologize to any thesis writers who may have been here all break nibbling on a Twizzler in their thesis carrel every day, but we promise we’ll make it up to you. But for now, take a look at these folks’ fun times:

USLAC Meeting

From Aviv Rau ’19:

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Interested in worker’s rights? Want higher wages for
students, Sun Services staff, construction workers, and others both on and off campus? Wesleyan’s United Student Labor Action Coalition is
definitely the student group for you. Come check out this week’s
meeting and get involved! *Snacks will be served.*

Date: Tuesday, March 29
Time: 9:00 PM
Place: UOC