Dear Editors,
My graduation ceremony was supposed to be a joyous event, and fun though it was, I cannot help but be annoyed by the behaviour of incoming AMS President Safiah Chowdhury.
Don’t get me wrong, policy-wise, I supported Team CHR in February’s election, but her conduct at the Convocation ceremony on Wednesday, June 9 at 2:30 was shameful.
While sitting on stage, in her capacity as AMS President, she selectively made herself a part of particular graduates’ moments on stage by approaching and embracing them. While I have no problem with Ms. Chowdhury displaying her affection for her friends, I do have a problem with her selectively showing favour to precious few graduates while ignoring the rest (including all the graduates in a later convocation ceremony).
Even her Vice Presiden,t Ben Hartley, who was also on stage during the same June 9 convocation, had friends graduate, but he waited for his friends to approach him before congratulating them, as other professors and officials on stage did.
For someone who has been so tied up in promoting ‘inclusivity’ at during her time at Queen’s, Ms. Chowdhury clearly has some lessons left to learn in the realm of professional behaviour.
Amrit Ahluwalia
ArtSci ’10
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