Looking Forward

When the editors of The Exonian embarked on Since 1878, the scale of the project was—in a word—daunting. The project became more daunting the farther we ventured into the archives. Writers and editors realized, squinting at scanned issues, that we would not be able to read through every article. Even if we did, our staff would miss the events the paper never covered. Without assistance from individuals who lived through a time, details and nuances from the past would remain unreported. And, even if we did have individuals from every decade in the newsroom, distilling experiences would still present its challenges.

We chased a moving target, then, regarding both the history we’ve already attempted to report and the new history made each day. 

In sum, to encapsulate race at the Academy is impossible. We knew our goal, to provide an accurate historical record of race at the Academy through The Exonian’s archives, would likely remain out of grasp. 

The only solution to this inevitable failure—the editors of The Exonian decided—is to make Since 1878 continuous. This way, as new history is made and old history is demystified, Since 1878 can provide the most honest record of the Academy’s history with race that the project can. 

Continuation addresses another failure: this project was done by a majority-white and Asian Board. We hope that, as more voices are included in and on this project, a better record of history will result. 

Looking forward, we will continue to explore themes running through our decades. We see in our pieces recurring, even cyclical, themes that underpin the Academy’s racial dynamics. In the coming years, we hope to name and research these themes. 

The next piece we commit to writing is a continuation of our timeline to the present day. In this exploration of the past two decades, the editors of The Exonian will reflect year-by-year on the Academy and race to connect our history and our present. This article will be released as soon as possible. 

As another form of continuation, we hope that alumni will contribute to our historical record by writing into the project with commentary, experiences or reflection. 

Most importantly: though we have done our best, we expect that Since 1878 will be regarded as outdated and lacking in the future. The next generation of editors and readers will look back on our work and examine how we, too, have contributed to racism at the Academy. We embrace their reflection. Then, as now, we will reach over time and try to name justice and injustice where we see them. 

Gratefully,

Anne Brandes and Felix Yeung