This commentary is by Katherine Brennan, a senior at the University of Vermont.
My name is Katherine Brennan, I am 22, and I am from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. I am a senior in religion, and I will not allow the University of Vermont to destroy the religion department and major.
I had the pleasure of working with professors Andrus, Borchert, Brennan, Clark and Morgenstein Fuerst over the past four years and I hear only great things about the professors that I have not worked with personally. I am grateful for the encouragement to be unapologetic in my pursuit for justice and knowledge. I am who I am today because of the incredible people who make up the religion department, and to all of you, sincerely, thank you for believing in me.
In four years, I transformed from a quiet student to an accomplished scholar, an activist, a soon-to-be law school student, and an advocate for the religion department. Without all the religion professors, the major, and the department, UVM is going to lose future advocates, lawyers, politicians, teachers, professors, seekers of justice, and others who would bring religious literacy with them to every aspect of their life.
Let’s talk about calendars (thanks and shoutout to Keeping it 101 EP101). The UVM academic calendar does not formally recognize any religious holidays and UVM employs a university-wide holiday policy for religious students. Sounds good, right?
Allow me to draw your attention to the fact that despite not officially favoring any religious traditions, “winter” break happens to fall directly in time for Dec. 25 every year. I am sure no one is surprised, because almost everywhere is closed on Dec. 25 — it’s Christmas! That it feels incredibly normal for us, whether Christian or not, to celebrate Christmas is proof that Christianity is ingrained in our society and that religion plays a significant role in governing us.
If you are still not convinced, consider Rosh Hashanah — the Jewish New Year. Off the top of your head, do you know what time of year Rosh Hashanah occurs? Do you notice how I can say Dec. 25 and you immediately know that I am talking about Christmas, and that it needs no primer? I do not need to tell you about Christmas because you likely already know, as it is ingrained in our society.
In contrast, in 2021 Rosh Hashanah will occur Sept. 6 through Sept. 8. This year, Sept. 6 is a Monday and, as luck would have it, is also Labor Day. As such, there are no classes that day. Don’t worry (I know you were worried), classes will resume on the Sept. 7. Every year that Rosh Hashanah does not line up with a nationally recognized holiday, classes continue as usual.
So, why does any of this matter? At the beginning of each semester, Jewish students who wish to avoid an unexcused absence for Rosh Hashanah or any other holiday must “out” themselves as being Jewish to their professors, not to mention that excused absences still mean work to make up. UVM’s supposedly secular academic calendar means that Christians get to be Christians comfortably and Jews must do labor to be Jews (not to mention all other religious minorities).
Still unbothered? Does it really matter if a Jewish student must ask the professor to skip class? Yes, it sure does. Forcing minorities to do labor to make up for systematic failures is committing a violence against those minorities.
The United States legal system and government is imbued with Christianity and to this day favors Christians by rendering Christianity as “secular” and therefore invisible. According to U.S. law, government, culture, economy, etc., Rosh Hashanah is a religious holiday, but Christmas is not. If you are not Christian, you may still exchange gifts with family on Dec. 25, but I bet Sept 6, 2021, is still just going to be Labor Day.
As a scholar of religion, I am trained to notice and to advocate for positive systematic and institutional change. I did not arrive at UVM aware of how much religion impacts us, and my limited worldview was shattered by my education with the religion department. I am taking this knowledge with me for the rest of my life and the world will be better for it.
How can the University of Vermont cut the religion department and major, inevitably firing professors and phasing out the program entirely, when the administration would likely fail a test on religious literacy basics? How can the university administration cut the religion department and major when the academic calendar actively discriminates against religious minorities?
Proposing cuts is inherently a value statement, and it is clear to me where UVM stands. Diversity classes are a requirement for students who attend UVM. It is high time that diversity classes are also a requirement for UVM administrators.
The loss of the humanities in higher education means the loss of humanity in society. Learn some stuff: https://keepingit101.com/ . Sign some petitions: http://chng.it/gwkXpGBr and http://chng.it/8zbNcwgHjQ. Call and email the UVM administration and voice your concerns. Follow the situation on https://uvmunited.org/ . Get loud about it. They cannot silence us all.
