History is littered with the remains of our innate desire to escape the monotony of everyday life and seek adventure. As humans, we reject notions of impossibility and obligation, dreaming of a day when we can break free from the status quo through sheer passion and curiosity, carving our own paths to greatness.
In 2023, a study found that young people’s voting habits are heavily influenced by the voting patterns of where they grew up. That has certainly been the case for me. I grew up in Oakland, Calif., which belongs to the most Democratic-leaning congressional district in the country. I went to a high school with a very progressive student body, and now I’m at Tufts with a similarly progressive student body.
In the weeks since he reassumed office, President Donald Trump’s actions on the global stage have shocked observers, both internationally and domestically. Most recently, the U.S. State Department froze nearly all foreign aid for 90 days, subjecting foreign aid projects to a review based on which projects, in the words of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, serve to make America “safer, stronger and more prosperous.” This move has set off alarms, especially among Latin American countries, with some pointing out that a decrease in U.S. support is likely to result in increased immigration to the United States.
The Tufts Community Union Senate, representing the undergraduate student body, stands in support of the full-time lecturers and Professors of the Practice in their priorities for livable salaries and manageable workloads. We stand in support of a change in workload policies and more transparent responsibilities related to their role. The undergraduate students of Tufts University hold a direct interest in all faculty members being fairly compensated so that they can retain their remarkable and world-class faculty.
Over winter break, I was back home in Beijing, China, where I was once again struck by the stark income inequality that defines so much of our society. This inequality does not hit me as hard when I’m in Medford, where the visual uniformity of the suburbs– where differences in wealth are more subdued – allows me to often overlook it. But in Beijing, the contrasts are impossible to ignore. The sight of Bentley cars just about everywhere I go, coupled with delivery workers who are sprinting tirelessly to their destinations just to make a living, leaves me grappling with difficult questions: how should I view income inequality, not just as an abstract economic concept, but as something more personal? What kind of lifestyle should I strive for in a world where privilege and deprivation coexist so seamlessly?
Every president makes mistakes while in office, no matter the overall achievement of their term. Former President Barack Obama famously left office having failed in his campaign promise to close the Guantanamo Bay facility, and former President Woodrow Wilson exited the White House unable to convince the United States to join the League of Nations, which he created. Now after four hard years at the helm, former President Joe Biden has also left office with a black mark on his record:Venezuela.
Though some of us prefer Apple Music and others prefer Spotify, we all have soft spots for the artists and genres that get us through our busy lives, accompanying the wide array of experiences we undergo. Among my own playlists lie folk acoustics for evening walks around campus, upbeat melodies for summer drives to the coast and high-energy classics for a night out with friends. Even in times of grief, hopelessness or contemplation, music can enhance our feelings, change our perspectives and allow us to relive memories. Although we all have different tastes in genres or artists, music universally helps us feel.
Our working conditions are our students’ learning conditions. Unfortunately, there are significant salary and workload challenges that make it increasingly difficult to deliver on Tufts’ mission of providing transformative experiences. In our bargaining sessions with the administration that started in April 2024, we have repeatedly stressed the need for livable salaries and fair, equitable workloads so that we can continue to provide an exceptional education for our students.
Starting on Jan. 7, our screens became filled with harrowing images of the California wildfires. Near-dystopian videos of fires raging through neighborhoods that had never before been at risk of burning spread online. We all watched as the environmental disaster-filled future climatologists have been warning us about for decades finally arrived.
I spent the night before I left for winter break crying to my friends. I opened the floodgates, ignoring my anxieties and sharing my recent body image issues. I have come incredibly far with my efforts to eat and exercise in ways that nourish, not drain, my emotional and physical health. However, in the weeks leading up to winter break, whispers of inaccurate and harmful rhetoric about food and exercise from a little invisible creature had been getting louder, and its presence had been creeping upon my shoulder more frequently.
Generation Z craves community. It’s why we almost exclusively prefer relatable content curated specifically for us — tailored to our interests, dislikes and opinions. In fact, the majority of Gen Z gets news at least daily from social media platforms that capitalize on our desire for this community, in place of traditional news sources.
Dear readers, Welcome back to another semester on the Hill! My name is Arghya Thallapragada, and I am the Editor in Chief of The Tufts Daily for the spring 2025 semester. I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the Daily and tell you about our intentions for reporting this semester.
“Auld Lang Syne,” we sing as we clink champagne flutes and bid each other a happy new year; “Old Long Since” — when translated — suggests one final recognition of and reflection upon the year past. And yet, even before the cheers die down and the clock strikes 12:01 a.m., we turn our attention to the year ahead and make our New Year’s resolutions, pledging to change ourselves for the better.
At Tufts, I am surrounded by curious students and knowledgeable professors. I have never been more cognizant of the inner dynamics of American politics, the countless Constantines of Byzantium, or the various dynasties of pre-modern China. Outside the classroom, I have long conversations with my friends about politics and social dynamics.
In recent weeks, the H-1B visa program has faced an onslaught of criticism. Intended to encourage skilled immigration to the United States, H-1B visas allow companies to hire temporary foreign workers in specialized occupations. Today, most H1-B visa holders hail from India or China and the biggest beneficiaries of the H-1B visa program are tech companies like Amazon, Google and Microsoft.
The year is 1960. In a blur of Cold War anxieties and lunch counter sit-ins, viewers await the presidential debate with bated breath. The assertion that this was the first televised presidential debate is technically false — that distinction belongs to former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and Sen. Margaret Chase Smith in 1956. Nevertheless, it is true that Americans in 1960 saw, for the first time in the nation’s history, two presidential candidates arguing important issues on live television.
If you’re like me, you’ve never thought much about baby carrots. At most, you’ve contemplated why they’re so small: Was it by natural design? Or was it something more heinous, like chemical mutilation? But the extent of your curiosity probably ends there. Until recently, I’ve never paid much attention to carrots, regarding them as a mere vehicle for hummus and not much else. But when dozens became sickened by carrots contaminated with E. Coli, I suddenly became fearful of those 4-inch orange sticks. What other innocent foods are Trojan horses for bacteria?
The United States stands as the world’s largest economy by gross domestic product and a leading force in technology, mass media and the protection of free speech. For decades it has also been at the forefront of space innovation, sending humans to the moon and dispatching robotic explorers to Mars. It truly seems no frontier is beyond its reach. Yet, for all its remarkable achievements beyond Earth’s atmosphere, the United States remains the second largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world. As the wounds of the climate crisis deepen, the onus will fall onto the next generation to bridge this paradox and push for climate reform through innovation, bold actions and urgently needed accountability.
With December coming to a close and the headlights of 2025 racing toward us, many are beginning to think about their New Year’s resolutions. Some of us will be vowing to hit the gym, eat healthier or spend less time on social media. While these common goals are valid and attainable, the idea that we should transform ourselves into our ‘best possible versions’ is both damaging and impossible. This mindset of “personal optimization” is not just an issue during New Year’s. We live in an age where self-improvement is seemingly everywhere. An atmosphere of optimization feels as if it’s closing in, attempting to morph us into something we believe we should become.
This year, a famous Ukrainian rock band, Okean Elzy, celebrated its 30-year anniversary. The group has become a symbol of resistance for all generations of independent Ukraine. For my parents, Okean Elzy became an integral part of the Orange Revolution in 2004 and 2005, when Ukrainians protested against election fraud, and Euromaidan in 2013 and 2014, when the citizens objected to pro-Russian governmental policies. I strongly link the band’s music with those events as well, but mainly with Ukraine’s counteroffensive and defense during Russia’s full-scale invasion. This October, Okean Elzy performed in Boston as part of its global tour. The day after the concert, I had a chance to listen to a talk by the lead singer Svyatoslav Vakarchuk at Harvard.
Op-ed submissions are an integral part of our connection with you, our readers. As such, we would like to clarify our guidelines for submitting op-eds and what you can expect from the process.
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