I am an alumna of Smith College. On May 21, I saw this headline in the Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Musician Evelyn Harris returns honorary degree to Smith College after plagiarized speech.” On May 22, I saw this headline on the back of the Smith Alumni Quarterly: ”Cancelling Cancel Culture.” There are surely as many viewpoints on what constitutes plagiarism or “cancellation” as there are possible paths forward now. I graduated 25 years ago and chose to stay in the Valley largely because of its culture of inclusivity and care. I think Smith is an important contributor to that culture and has an opportunity to reconsider this situation now with an ethic of care at the center.
To be clear, I have no opinion on what Ms. Harris wrote or how Smith responded, but I would like a better outcome for all involved. Here is my hope: I would propose “re-awarding” Ms. Harris an honorary degree in 2026 where the acceptance speech is jointly delivered by Ms. Harris and someone from the college. I imagine that would be very difficult, but it could also be deeply corrective; a desperately needed exemplar of how we make mistakes, hurt each other, say or do things we sometimes regret, are misunderstood, and are brave enough to try again. Those two headlines are hard to reconcile; my hope is that Smith College and Ms. Harris can find a way to do so.
Heidi Zahra
Westhampton