Yale Daily News

I've been talking to a lot of alumni recently, and I've been struck by the fact that they are still as diverse in opinion as they probably were as students. But one thing is constant. They all, like me, love Yale.

Last week I interviewed several alumni of the Yale anti-apartheid movement in the mid-1980s. They were still excited as they talked about the support they got from the student body, faculty members and New Haven residents. They saw Yale as a great place, and as the place that trained them. Perhaps more than other alumni, most of them were very aware of the ways Yale could change for the better.

It is time for me to become one of those alumni, perhaps to be the person in 15 years who will be called by some Yale history major wanting to know more about the anti-sweatshop movement. I hope that Yale won't have changed too much when those kids call me. I hope it's still a place that fosters discussion and controversy, that encourages debate, and that supports minds being changed. I hope it's still a school that leads and that trains leaders.

I also hope that Yale is better than it is now. I hope that this contract negotiation round will finally put to bed the past 30 years of acrimony. I hope that Yale will work even more to improve New Haven. I hope that Yale will no longer earn money from the fruits of unethical corporations.

There is still much work to be done, and I want to play a part in it, even as I become an alumnus. That is why I am joining Alumni for a Better Yale, a network of progressives who want to make sure their alma mater is a responsible, moral and environmentally friendly corporate investor, New Haven neighbor and world-class educational institution.

ABY membership is free to those of us who have graduated in the last five years. Yale is a great place. Join with us to make it even better.



Jacob Remes is a senior in Saybrook College.