Joshua Fang

I still remember the date. It was January 24 of 2020, and my family was enjoying a trip in Langkawi, Malaysia. I got a call from the elders in Shanghai saying there’s a serious disease spreading from Wuhan, China, and the government has encouraged people to stop gathering. They didn’t know what to do since we have never canceled our Sunday service before—even during severe persecution.

For years, the Harvard Republican Club has sought to welcome “everyone to the right of Marx,” according to former member M. Tyler Jenkins ’19. In a sense, the club can’t afford to be too picky. At a university that President Richard M. Nixon once called the “Kremlin on the Charles,” politically conservative students have long been a small minority, and their beliefs have ranged widely across the right half of the political spectrum.

Harvard College Students for Bernie launched a campaign calling on University administrators to use their financial resources to provide protections for workers and students during the coronavirus crisis. The campaign, entitled “40 Billion For What” in reference to the University’s endowment, demands that all Harvard workers receive paid sick time through May 28.