05/05/2025
“The Observer joins a multitude of students, organizations, staff, alumni, and the school administration itself in condemning the detainment and unjust treatment of Tufts doctoral student Rümeysa Öztürk.”
A Statement on Current Events By Ashlie Doucette, Lucy Belknap, and Sofia Valdebenito
Print Design by Ahmed Fouad
Graphic Design by Emilia Ferreira
ID 1) A grainy dark purple pattern lines the top and bottom of the square, with the rest of the image being covered in a blue collaged image of leaves. In bold, italicized lettering reads “A Statement on Current Events By Ashlie Doucette, Lucy Belknap, & Sofia Valdebenito”
2, 3, 4) The same grainy purple pattern lines the top and bottom of the images, with a larger band in the middle on top of the blue leaves. On the second slide and inside the large purple band in the middle reads, “First and foremost, the Observer joins a multitude of students, organizations, staff, alumni, and the school administration itself in condemning the detainment and unjust treatment of Tufts doctoral student Rümeysa Öztürk.” The third slide with the same design reads, “While these and similar actions by the Trump administration necessitate the work of journalists to accurately communicate them to the public, to say that the circumstances of Öztürk’s targeting put student publications in a difficult position would be a severe understatement. We at the Observer have felt a deep tension between our urge to cover the details and nuances of these topics in full and our instinct to protect the safety of our staff and contributors above all else,” and the last slide reads, “We understand that choosing not to write about difficult or controversial topics is exactly the response the Trump administration desires, where each new case like Öztürk’s only reinforces the “chilling effect” that has spread across the broader public and college campuses in particular. All of this to say, we want to make clear that our efforts to cover these issues are far from over. We hope that you, our readers and contributors, will continue to join us here.”
