One of our main goals at The Scroll is to address current issues facing the school community and to provoke discussion about these issues throughout the student body and faculty. However, over the past few years, we have occasionally heard that individuals have taken offense at certain article. These articles have often been related to race, socioeconomic and drug issues.

We believe that as the school’s student-run newspaper we have the right to address any issue we view as important, as long as what we report is true. In our reporting, we, as a group, are not offering our personal opinion on the given issue. Instead, we try our best to present all sides. Specifically, the views expressed in opinion pieces are those of the individual contributing writer, not of The Scroll Board.

Readers may disagree with certain opinions expressed within these pieces, for while articles are written with the goal of being objective, the opinions proffered by individuals interviewed are exactly that—opinions. But to find fault with these issues being reported and being discussed is to wish for the community to retain a stifling silence on issues of great importance to student, faculty and alumni populations.

When The Scroll publishes articles about drug issues on campus, examples of racism or political differences, the goal is to stimulate conversation and healthy dialogue. Would you rather that we turn a blind eye to marijuana issues on campus? Or issues of race and socioeconomic class? Pretend these issues don’t exist, because they can be uncomfortable to admit to, and to discuss?

Deerfield is not a perfect place, but we love it, and that is why we are not afraid to say: we want to make this place better. And lying to ourselves and pretending Deerfield is perfect the way it is is not the road to progress.