September 2023
Welcome to the 2023-2024 Academic Year
At the end of August, I was reading a series of articles on the 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington. One piece that particularly captured my attention included cameos of a number of the participants, now senior citizens in their respective communities, talking about their experiences as leaders, organizers, and participants — being in the moment of transformative change with all the excitement, trepidation, and uncertainty that these moments bring — not really knowing how transformative it would be, whether people would show up, and whether the police might respond with violence. Sixty years later we can reflect on the enormity of this moment — the flow of people from all over the country to the capital, the work that went on behind the scenes, the power of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “Dream” speech and so many of the other inspiring voices and messages, the many glorious steps forward, and the excruciating pushes back with continued racial violence and exclusionary practices turning so many of our communities locally and globally away from the “Dream.”
Our NYU Common Read, Clint Smith’s How the Word is Passed reminds us of the importance of revisiting our histories — our most painful and shameful ones, attempts to conceal violent practices of enslavement and displacement, and erase voices of dissent and liberation, our deep contradictions, cleavages, and disparities, our celebrations of survival and triumph, and our struggles for transformative change. The LS and campus-wide discussions of Smith’s book remind us of the ways in which a global liberal arts curriculum empowers us to explore the roots of our contemporary global challenges from the vestiges of colonialism and imperialism to the legacies of slavery; excavate structures of exploitation, domination, racism, and violence; uncover narratives of erasure, struggle, and triumph; and most importantly, create new stories or new vehicles through which to amplify and celebrate the previously silenced voices and give them space to grow.
Let’s use this amazing opportunity that we have in Liberal Studies to take on the challenges of our past, present and future through our studies, research and creative production, teaching, advising, collaboration, and service in our global, interdisciplinary, and engaged overlapping communities. By embracing this opportunity together, we can chart the way to a more just future.
I’m looking forward to working toward this mission with you.
My best,
Dean Julie Mostov
