To the Board of Managers:
On behalf of the members of the Department of History, I am writing in support of Mountain Justice’s campaign to have Swarthmore College divest its endowment from the fossil fuel industry. I hope you will agree with my colleagues and myself that our students represent the best of the liberal arts tradition. They draw upon their diverse academic and intellectual pursuits to work toward a society rooted in social, economic, and political justice and equality. In particular, we are impressed that they have been inspired by their History courses to develop the critical and analytical skills required for effective civic and political engagement. While we might expect students who work under the auspices of the Lang Center or in Community-Based learning courses to engage in social and political activism, we are pleased that our program of study in the Department of History informs Mountain Justice’s engagement with pressing problems of contemporary American society. There is no greater testament to the value of a liberal arts education than Mountain Justice’s campaign for divestment.
Bob Weinberg
Professor of History and Acting Chair
