Good morning!

On Sept. 19, a truck with a jumbotron was spotted driving around Princeton displaying messages such as “Shame on Princeton and President Eisgruber.” The truck was sponsored by the Jewish Leadership Project and was in response to the inclusion of a controversial book entitled “The Right to Maim: Debility, Capacity, Disability” on the syllabus for the class “NES 301: The Healing Humanities: Decolonizing Trauma Studies from the Global South.” The truck messages also denounced the hiring of State Department official Robert Malley, the lead negotiator on the Iran nuclear deal.

External groups have a history of weighing in on campus debates, especially those related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In April 2022, students voted on whether to recommend disassociation from the Caterpillar company in part due to the use of its bulldozers by the Israeli government. At the time, outside pro-Israel groups spent over $1000 on ads denouncing the result.

READ THE STORY →
Analysis by Sidney Singer

Today’s Briefing:

Class of 2027 sees smaller class size, decelerating expansion to meet campus goals: In 2016, the University outlined their plan to expand the student population from 5,200 to 5,700 in the span of five years. Only 1,366 students joined the Class of 2027, a 8.93% decrease from the Class of 2026’s record enrollment numbers. This brings the average enrollment across the two classes close to meeting the University's target class year size of 1,425 per year through the Class of 2029.

Senior Columnist Ndeye Thiobou ’25 discusses the struggles hijabi students face on campus, particularly when dealing with the communal bathrooms. Thiobou talked with multiple hijabi students, who recounted uncomfortable experiences. 

“Overall, no student should have to share a bathroom with the opposite gender if they do not feel comfortable doing so,” writes Thiobou, arguing that the University should fix the inequitable housing situation regarding student bathrooms to make all students more comfortable.

READ THE COLUMN → 

More from Opinion:

• Letter to the Editor: Tired tropes add nothing new to campus free speech discourse

Following the departure of Head Wrestling Coach Chris Ayres, the University announced that Joe Dubuque — previously associate head coach — would take over the role. Dubuque is best known for his work with Patrick Glory ’23 and Quincy Monday ’22, who both took their respective weight classes’ NCAA division I titles. 

“This is definitely a dream job for me,” said Debuque.

READ THE STORY HERE → 

At an event titled “SOS: Race, Art and Activism” in Richardson Auditorium this Tuesday, Grammy award-winning artist SZA took to the stage to discuss growing up in New Jersey, being a Black Woman in the music industry, and her activism. She began by discussing her childhood growing up in New Jersey, surrounded by a “strong Black and Islamic culture,” and how it wasn’t until later in her life that she began to feel ostracized and discriminated against as a Black woman, especially within the music industry.

The panel ended with a roundtable discussion discussing black activism. “I can show what it’s like being a Black woman in a space that isn’t welcoming. It’s like they want to hear what you have to say until it’s annoying or aggressive or abrasive or frightening,” SZA said. “That is my act of activism — screaming anyway.” 

READ THE STORY → 

At your leisure

• PODCAST: Listen to the latest episode of Daybreak, The Daily Princetonian’s daily news podcast.