News
Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor Talks Justice, Civic Engagement at Radcliffe Day
News
Church Says It Did Not Authorize ‘People’s Commencement’ Protest After Harvard Graduation Walkout
News
‘Welcome to the Battlefield’: Maria Ressa Talks Tech, Fascism in Harvard Commencement Address
Multimedia
In Photos: Harvard’s 373rd Commencement Exercises
News
Rabbi Zarchi Confronted Maria Ressa, Walked Off Stage Over Her Harvard Commencement Speech
To the editors:
Re: “Appiah To Leave Harvard” (Jan. 30)
Caswell Professor of Afro-American Studies and of Philosophy K. Anthony Appiah is just the sort of professor that one hopes to encounter when one comes to Harvard as a bright-eyed first-year. He is wise, cosmopolitan and incisive, and he makes you think that you can be so too. In office hour discussions, he never looks at his watch. He chats thoughtfully and patiently, never trying to impress you, never making you feel like you’re failing to impress. The fact that he gets along with everyone is not reflective of a wariness to take a stand, only that when he does take a stand—in faculty meetings, in decisions about students, in philosophical discussions—he does so with so much politeness, so much humility, that one can not help but welcome his input.
We in the Harvard community should take a moment to reflect with gratitude on all the good work that he has done during his decade here. Appiah has enriched the students and faculty at Harvard for more than 10 years, and as he heads off for Princeton, it is thankfulness, rather than loss, which should be foremost in our hearts and minds.
Daniel B. Baer ’00
Oxford, England
Jan. 30, 2002
The writer was a social studies and Afro-American studies concentrator.
Want to keep up with breaking news? Subscribe to our email newsletter.