I’m writing as an acquaintance of Evelyn Harris and a career journalist to say that Smith College and the Daily Hampshire Gazette should apologize to her. Smith employs a team of writers and editors larger than the newsrooms of most New England newspapers. Why no one could have offered her editorial assistance to help her clean up any misattributions in her speech before she delivered it is beyond me. Further, the Gazette’s cowardly story let Smith, an institution of power and prestige, hide behind a scrim of secrecy in asserting Harris’ plagiarism, an offense for which Smith should bear most of the blame. Two powerful institutions left a musician, not a professional speechwriter, to twist in the wind. Apologize to Evelyn Harris, and do your jobs.

Alex Hanson

South Royalton, Vermont