To the campus community, We are writing to respond to the recent op-ed that was released in The Dartmouth claiming that the selection of the 2018 Trips Directorate was purposefully discriminatory towards men, specifically white men. The author of the article criticizes the Trips Directors for appointing a Directorate that is 80% female and finds it “impossible” that this selection was based only on merit. The Inter-Community Council expresses its outrage towards this article and declares firm solidarity with the Trips Director, Assistant Director, and all of the members of the Directorate. As a group composed of campus activists who are focused on improving the Dartmouth experience for WOC and other marginalized communities, the ICC cannot stress enough how violent this article is in erasing the work of WOC on campus who have done nothing but make this institution a better place. This article specifically co-opts the vocabularies that WOC have used to critique systems of power and subverts their meanings to give credence to the very systems they aim to dismantle. We would also like to express our disappointment towards the editors of The Dartmouth, who appear to have sacrificed the safety and wellbeing of students in favor of supposed non-partisanship. It is important to point out that in the past, anyone who has written a remotely organized, researched, and radical opinion piece and submitted it to The D has had to undergo extensive scrutiny prior to publication. We call into question the lack of citations and of substantive research in this piece. The fact that The Dartmouth’s protocols allow for publishing opinion pieces that slander members of the student body is highly problematic. They clearly had no regard for the impact that the op-ed would have upon being published. It is concerning to see how easily privileged grievances make their way into print. The Dartmouth has suggested that those who disagree with the article write a response piece. However, a response would only validate the author and imply that his opinions are credible and worthy of debate. Opinions that perpetuate violence and systematic oppression do not deserve a public platform. Instead, we urge The Dartmouth to retract the article and issue an apology to those whom the article has harmed. We stand by and offer support to all of those harmed by these violent actions. Sincerely, The Inter-Community Council Inter-Community Council I-CC Website<http://sites.dartmouth.edu/icc/> - Calendar<http://sites.dartmouth.edu/icc/calendar/> - Bias Incident Report Form<https://publicdocs.maxient.com/reportingform.php?DartmouthCollege&layout_id=3> People of Dartmouth Form<http://sites.dartmouth.edu/icc/people-of-dartmouth/> - OPAL Website<http://www.dartmouth.edu/~opal/>