Be Bold, Boisterous, Barnard.

To Whom This May Concern (read: you),

I have spent far too long existing in silence. I feel the call inside me stir, the bird opening her beak in song. We will not be quieted by the bright lights nor the pressure to sit and study with our heads down, in avoidance of others, in avoidance of the truth. We will not give up on our essential noise, our glorious cacophony of clamor. I will rise, with my fellows alongside me, and into the night we will scream our unalienable truth, the truth: Milstein Two is meant to be a talking floor. 

How bold we will be as we raise our laughter into the rafters, as we sing sweet commiserations into each other’s ears through a problem set or never-ending paper. As we discuss our impressions on the Hewitt lunches we see and focus instead on the Diana personal pizzas we aspire to create.  I urge you, free yourselves from the profound fear of social abandonment, you are bold, you are beautiful, you are Barnard. Why fear your fellow sister’s silence, know in your heart that when you emancipate yourself, you too set her free. Milstein Two is not a floor meant to be silently read on. It is meant for large groups of studying souls, group projects, and loud projections. Go forth into the night, knowing that you are meant to be heard. Major in unafraid as you raise the decibel of the collective thrum, as you invest in the sounds of tomorrow. That the silence is not mandated, it is assumed, and as a Barnard student, you have the capacity to negate all assumptions. Society is dynamic, silence is a construct. Your social commentaries Milstein holds games and zines, large group tables, and comfy chairs, do you honestly believe that we are serving its casual comfy atmosphere justice? Nay! raise your voice as we defy the notion that a women’s college should be seen and not heard. It was constructed to your benefit, all you need to do is pick the forbidden fruit, so perfectly assembled for your social/studying needs. Please, unchain yourself from the unwelcome silence. Allow yourself the full liberation of the collaborative atmosphere you so deeply desire. I will be by your side, speaking in semi-hushed tones in dreams of a world to come. 

Until then, in solidarity,

Bwossip Girl

Millie As God Intended via Barnard