Summer 2003 volume 99 issue 3 : letters
Re: Enlisting Women
Regarding Olivia Mancini's “Learn About Enlisting Women,” in the Winter 2002 Vassar Quarterly, we were interested, as always, to learn about Vassar's history from a well-researched piece. The article did a fine job of honoring the “dozens of alumnae [who] have served their country” in a military capacity, and of teaching us about how Vassar was involved. Regarding your choice to feature this article — which mentions nothing of the horrors of war and engages in a visual “retro” glorification of war propaganda — at a time in which the majority of U.S. media is focused on war in the same light, was somewhat unnerving to us. Surely more than dozens of Vassar's alumnae/i have been involved in peace work over the years (we know many of them ourselves!), and in these bleak-feeling days it would have been refreshing to open the quarterly to find tribute to these individuals, as well. Perhaps a sister article to follow?
Caroline Loomis ‘02, Berkeley, California
Lauren Bouyea ‘02, Green Gulch, California
Jesse Feldman ‘01, San Francisco, California
Laura Anderson ’02, Oakland, California