Dear Reader

By Art and Maura Keene

Notes on This Issue

This week we introduce a new gardening column, Adventures of a Native Plant Gardener by Laura Quilter.  In her inaugural column Quilter looks at the attractive but invasive plant Siberian Squill, or Scilla siberica.  Gardening season is about to commence. Check it out!

This week, in Art’s regular column, From Other Sources: News for and About Amherst, he provides the usual compendium of links to local and regional news stories that we were unable to cover in the Indy. And he also offers links to a set of articles to help folks prepare for the solar eclipse on April 8, and also a point-counterpoint featuring psychologists Jonathan Haidt and Candace L. Odgers debating whether social media is rewiring the brains of our kids and not for the better.

It’s appointments season in Amherst and Town Manager Paul Bockelman notes in his Town Manager Report that he is beginning the arduous process of filling openings on the town’s more than 30 committees.  The Indy is interested in the kinds of experiences folks have had in applying for positions on town committees and the reasons that they do and do not apply.  We have developed a short, online survey. Please fill it out and invite folks in your networks to do the same.

There has been a bit of a kerfuffle over who will sit on the Charter Review Committee.  The town’s home rule charter gets reviewed only once every ten years (in years ending in 4) and the upcoming review is the first chance that Amherst residents have to formally address concerns that have been raised during the first five years of governance under this charter. This week the Government, Outreach and Legislation Committee of the Town Council proposed that the size of the committee be reduced from the originally proposed nine members to seven members, in order to “ensure that the committee have sufficient diversity.”  The Town Council, at their meeting on April 1, rejected that proposal.  There are currently 18 applicants for positions on the committee and applicantions will remain open for the time being.  Who gets appointed to this committee is consequential and residents ought to be paying attention and demanding that a wide range of interests and constituencies are represented.

Debates about the school budget will continue while the Indy is on vacation. We’re deeply worried that cuts to personnel and programs that are being considered may do irreparable damage to the district. We offer a few thoughts on the matter.

This week residents had a chance to meet the two finalists to be Amherst’s new police chief. The Indy was unable to cover that meet and greet but you can read a report on the event in the Daily Hampshire Gazette or view the tapes of the finalists’ meetings with the public at the links below.
Gabe Ting
Todd Ahearn

Hand in Hand Schools
Back in October 2023, we posted a profile of Israel’s Hand in Hand Schools which, against formidable odds, successfully promote Muslim/Jewish/Christian solidarity in a country where such aspirations are unwelcome, especially amid the ongoing invasion of Gaza. In our introduction we stated:

“In a country where not just education, but daily life is rigidly segregated, Hand in Hand schools bring together Israeli Jewish and Israeli Arab children to learn together…to learn about each other’s culture and history. Together with their parents and teachers, they create a meaningful community based in mutual respect. Each Hand in Hand classroom has a Jewish teacher and an Arab teacher. Instruction is in both Arabic and Hebrew, and the students become proficient in both languages. Culture and history of both peoples are studied and celebrated. Children and their teachers and parents, despite living in separate (Jewish and Arab) segregated towns and villages, develop deep friendships and a palpable passion for their school and its mission, in spite of the disapproval and hostility that they may experience from their friends and neighbors within their own segregated communities because they participate in this multi-cultural experiment.”

With all of the despair surrounding the situation in Gaza, we have been seeking alternative narratives to counter the understandable burgeoning hopelessness. From time to time we have revisited in this space, the state of things at Hand in Hand, within the context of the ongoing war. At a time where peace seems impossible, Hand in Hand offers a glimpse of possibility for creating an alternative better world, grounded in compassion and mutual aid and solidarity. In their mid-year report, they share:

“To call these recent months difficult would be a grim understatement, and Hand in Hand families and staff members have lost loved ones on both sides of the war. But for most of us, being a part of Hand in Hand has felt like an emotional lifeline. Here at Hand in Hand are people who believe that all human beings deserve safety and opportunity, who recognize the humanity of victims in both Israel and Gaza, and who continue to fight for these values, even on the darkest of days. While the polarization between our two peoples widens by the day, Hand in Hand remains an anchor of connection and empathy in the storm. We are grateful for our Hand in Hand home and grateful to you for your support. We know how eager people are for stories of hope right now, which is why Hand in Hand was recently covered in major news outlets including The New York Times and National Public Radio. Following are reflections from four of our staff members on their experiences at Hand in Hand during the past few months.”

Read the reflections of Hand in Hand staff and families on the current situation and on their efforts to sustain solidarity and resilience in the face of so much tragedy.  Follow Hand in Hand schools on Facebook here.

Reporting During the Indy’s Vacation
There is a lot that is happening while the Indy is on vacation. Middle School Principal candidates will visit Amherst (see What’s Happening in Amherst for the schedule), a new police chief will likely be chosen, and the school budget debates will continue. We want to encourage folks to pay attention, keep a record of what’s happening, and to share your observations and your thoughts in reflections in the pages of the Indy, so that there is not a gap in the reporting of the news or in our understanding of it, as a result of our absence. So please – pay attention to what’s happening, hold forth on how you feel about it, write up your observations and your reflections and send them to us at amherstindy@gmail.com and we’ll post it when the Indy resumes publication on April 23.  Got breaking news?  Send it to us at the same email address and our editors will do what they can to get it into print sooner.

Thanks for reading the Indy,

Art and Maura Keene