Camille Wilder is a Trinity first-year. Her column runs on alternate Thursdays.
I volunteer most weeks at a nursing home near Duke. I am painting portraits of the residents there; I work on sketches when I visit.
One of my math teachers in high school had a quote on her wall that said, “If the focus is on learning, the grades will follow.”
I hear a lot of people at Duke say, “I’m [wealthy, or white, or straight, or male], but at least I know that makes me privileged.”
As I laid in bed on a Monday mid-afternoon, I envisioned studying biology, doing my English homework, or even editing this column.
I have written about introversion and social anxiety, but now it’s time to talk about their dear friend: awkwardness.
I have a problem where I can rationalize that my insecurities are unfounded, yet I cannot bridge the gap between rationality and acceptance.
I have heard every one of my friends speak to the fact that Duke has made them feel terrible about themselves some point.
I think a lot of other people are stuck in a cycle of avoiding things that make them uncomfortable.
The hookup girl, the friend or any sexual assault victim is also someone’s child, girlfriend or sibling. She is not an anonymous face for someone to sleep with, send off and boast about the next day. This is where the unbalanced power dynamic surfaces: when men get to engage in predatory behavior, are not held accountable and fail to understand the pain they cause.
Duke’s current social climate prioritizes having a large amount of friends, though it is impossible to be close to all of them.
