Opinion Columns
Alex Silberzweig | How Penn can better care for its student-athletes
With a balancing act like no other, it becomes exceedingly difficult for student-athletes at Penn to perform well without forgoing their physical and mental health.
Pearl Liu | We shouldn’t accept a culture of sleep deprivation
The notion that being in college and living a healthy lifestyle are mutually exclusive is concerning. Treating sleep deprivation as a given and sleep as a luxury feeds an unhealthy culture of impossible standards
Pearl Liu | Don't ignore your impact on the environment
While navigating everyday life, we often neglect our responsibility to the environment. Our actions have consequences for the environment, and we should care.
Alex Silberzweig | You don't have to live in New York City
For many Penn students, New York often seems the only possible destination after graduation. You might think you need to do whatever it takes to make it there.
Rebecca Alifimoff | I'm a feminist, and I love The Bachelor(ette)
For a long time, I passed my Bachelor obsession off as escapism. I would watch episodes of it on my phone at the gym. It was the digital version of Skinny Pop, a sort of entertainment nothing with just the right coating of ballgowns and beaches to make it go down easy.
Sophia DuRose | Free food or fear food?: Navigating Penn with an eating disorder
There’s a fine line between overstepping a boundary sheathed in judgement and crossing that boundary because you’re concerned for someone’s health. Straddling this line is difficult and confusing, but it begins with a conversation.
Jennifer Lee | How to ask an Asian-American person where they are from
As a rule of thumb, one should always avoid saying things they wouldn’t otherwise say to a white person. It’s always those good-natured comments like “I voted for Obama” or “I love Chinese food” that end up being deceptively hurtful.
Lucy Hu | What it’s like to be a DP columnist
The opinion pages should help us understand and make sense of the world, and it is my duty to do the investigations so readers don’t have to.
Senior Column by Ellie Schroeder | Figuring it out
I’m starting to realize that, just as I’ll never find the single interpretation of a poem or novel, I’ll never have “it” quite figured out.
Senior Column by Ilana Wurman | Does it ever drive you crazy?
I used to obsess over being remembered. If my name was on enough walls or mastheads, it would prove that all the hours were worth it.
Senior Column by Saumya Khaitan | One for the books
What made my 20-plus hour weeks at the office worth it was seeing people read the paper every morning and knowing I had a role to play in making that happen.
Senior Column by Amy Chan | Redefining greatness
My whole life, I have pictured greatness as Instagram flashes of beautiful girls fisting champagne on boats, people in fine coats promenading down Fifth Avenue.
Senior Column by Caroline Simon | Relying on ourselves
While we wait for the results of yet another vague, directionless task force, we can be there for our friends, supporting each other through the constant intensity of life on this campus.
Senior Column by Carter Coudriet | What I learned in boating school is …
I’m still far from the best version of myself … but no matter what, whether my days are productive or failure-ridden, when my head hits the pillow I know that I matter.
Senior Column by Alessandro van den Brink | You can take the boy out of the DP, but you can’t take the DP out of the boy
Yet, in 20 years from now, I may not be able to recite a single column I worked on, both as a writer and as an editor. I will, however, always remember the impact those people at the DP left on my life.
Senior Column by Dani Blum | Calling bullshit
I loved, and still love, Penn, and I woke up on my plastic twin mattress feeling grateful to be here. But I also saw a campus steeped in classism, bigotry, and sexism.
Senior Column by Dan Spinelli | My final words
I understand now the importance of balance and the value of just being present with those you love.
Senior Column by Lucien Wang | Crossing the bridge
It’s a melancholy, a nostalgia, a longing for something that has happened; yet it is also an assurance, a "knowing" that it will never happen again.
Rebecca Alifimoff | Girls just want to have fun: Why we should let sororities throw parties
The unequal rules surrounding alcohol possession and consumption in Greek life, which tilt the social power balance in favor of fraternities, are at the heart of some of Greek life’s biggest problems.