September 29 2025

September 29, 2025 Newsletter 

Ella's Collected Documents from the Pratt Archives

Dear Prattlers,

Did you know that Pratt Students once occupied Thrift Hall? Back in the 1960s, Pratt students performed a multitude of strikes pertaining to the rising admissions costs and the mishandling of protesting students by administration. The Thrift Hall Takeover was led by the Boricuas Unido, or the Puerto Rican Student Association, because they felt that the lasting strikes demonstrated by students, faculty, and staff were ineffective, and they thought that closing down one of the buildings in the institute would call enough attention to have their demands met. 

I visited the Pratt Archives as a part of my Archive Fever class, where I was given multiple documents on this matter. The specific archival document I received about the Thrift Hall Takeover was a detailed account of how the Takeover unravelled. Boricuas Unido wrote that everything was being handled peacefully, until the Head of Security, Cliff Chandler, broke the door window and blocked students and staff from entering and leaving the building. One student tried to leave the building and was physically assaulted, and some students were cut by flying glass.

Thrift Hall Takeover

Other materials we visited pertained to Pratt’s former ROTC program, which I had no idea existed. We even had a military ball with our very own German-born Military princess. We also had a sorority of women who could not join the ROTC but who wished to support them (wrote them fanmail and held very enticing soirees). ROTC recruits marched around the perimeter of campus and performed drills with guns on campus, which would be quite strange to see now… One of my favorite documents was a list of demands aimed at the former President, James Donovan, who was a lawyer-turned-president who was not well-liked among his students and faculty. Something I found very interesting was that Donovan invited plain-clothed police officers onto our campus to detain protesters—and his defense was pretty much this: “well… I won’t call the police on students, but if the police are already there… then what can you do?” This seems eerily familiar, especially in comparison to the occupation of Dekalb hall last year, and how the police were threatened upon a peaceful gathering of students and faculty, as one of my classmates pointed out. The last archival document I’ll bring up here was a proposal for a Black and Chicano Studies program here at Pratt, which was beautifully detailed and supported by the likes of students and faculty, but was ultimately ignored by Donovan, which led to the mass distrust of his administration among BSU members, Boricuas Unido members, and anyone with any sort of basic empathy and thirst for knowledge. 

Donovan Lies to Faculty (1969)

I can’t help but feel inspired by the protests of past Pratt students and wish that we could feel free enough to protest everything that we are unsatisfied with now. With the advent of social media and the surveillance state, it is increasingly difficult to remain true and vocal to the issues that really matter because so much is on the line. These protests were also at a time, after the Kent State Shooting, where students became even more enraged and motivated to organize because injustice was so rampant. Injustice is rampant now. What will we do about this?

In a time where speaking out about any injustice feels like allowing everyone on this planet access to your most personal details, it is hard to feel empowered. The surveillance state steals our faces, our data, our creative projects, and everything deriving from or making up our lives. Multi-billionaires sell data to whoever wants it. The MTA is using facial-recognition software. Siri and Alexa are always listening to you. It is hard to feel safe and protected anywhere. Our administration continues to have flaws, some of which we have noticed, and some of which we have not. This is not unique to our time period, but we must not let it become normal. I wish for anyone curious about Pratt’s daring past to make an appointment with the archives through the library website to learn more about student resistance. It is important that we remain strong in our dignity as students who pay tuition to receive Pratt as a service. We must have our demands met as students, as faculty, as people.

The Prattler has been and will continue to be a place for students and faculty to advocate for themselves, circulate important information, and voice relevant opinions. I want the newsletter to act as a space for information circulation. So, if you have any insights—short opinion pieces, tweet-length hot takes, or longer newsletter drafts you want to be included—please email me (eferrero@pratt.edu) for a chance to be featured in the next newsletter. I would love to hear from you and include more voices that accurately reflect the thoughts and feelings of our students.

Turning towards Prattler-specific news, we are releasing a new theme this week! Yay <3! Be on the lookout for details. Rumor has it that this next issue will keep your brain and your soul well-fed.

Stay well-read, stay safe, stay sexy.

XOXO,

Ella Ferrero

Managing Editor

The Prattler