Letter from the Editor

Dear Reader, Merriam-Webster defines the slang term “crash out” as “to become suddenly, uncontrollably angry or distressed.” During the first month of Senior Fall, I’ll admit, I’ve crashed out more than a couple of times. My friends will second this, yet they’ll be surprised to learn that most of my crash outs in front of them are purely for laughs—believe it or not, I don’t really crash out that much. Growing up, I’d always—at least subconsciously—think that I shouldn’t display my extreme emotions. Always bottling up my emotions however, has had terrible ramifications when I finally do need to vent. In those moments, I feel utterly stripped of self-autonomy, acting in a regrettable fashion to everyone close to me and then feeling terrible about it afterwards. After experiencing many of these intense emotional moments this year, I found the silver lining to be this: self-censoring my emotions is dangerous. And during my moment of reflection that came upon this revelation on the importance of self-expression, it reminded me of another pertinent issue plaguing American life today: the sanctity and security of free speech. Charlie Kirk’s assassination on September 10, 2025, was one such case. Disney’s temporary cancellation of the Jimmy Kimmel Show after being strong-armed by the Federal Communications Committee Chair Brendan Carr marked another case. Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, freedom of speech is a nonpartisan issue. And right now, more and more people on both sides of the political spectrum are being silenced for exercising their inalienable right to free speech. I understand that in uncertain times we tend to stay quiet to avoid conflict. However, it’s especially in times like these that we can’t afford to—we mustn’t let our fear be the driver behind our self-censorship. If we do, we are surrendering to those who wish to strip us of our rights. Furthermore, you are depriving society of possible benefits that’ll arise from your input. For a recent writing assignment in Mr. Romick's Creative Nonfiction English class, we’re writing profiles on a classmate, interviewing the person’s friends, parents, coaches, advisors, etc. to craft a holistic image. Haley Hickman, who’s writing the profile on me, interviewed Chloe Xue last week and invited me to listen along. I had fully expected Chloe to make good-natured fun of my crash outs (which I often did in front of her last year), so I was in shock when her response was entirely opposite, instead framing my release of emotions in public as “a healthy expression of [my] emotions,” which encouraged her to also feel free to vent whenever she needed to, in public or not. Because Chloe thought that my crash outs were real, and because I frequently crashed out, Chloe got the confidence and freedom she needed to let out her own feelings in public. In a call with her later that week, she told me that regularly crashing out now has helped her manage anxiety at college. I’d like to emphasize that I’m not condoning crash outs. However, there is a common thread between suppressing your emotions in public and not speaking up: self-censorship is dangerous. Speaking up isn’t an act of resistance or defiance, and it's not a tool to purposefully incite conflict. Rather, it’s a simple expression of our fundamental freedoms, guaranteed by the Constitution. So Deerfield, I encourage you to speak up and share your ideas. Do not allow those who wish to silence you succeed at taking away your rights by staying silent. Because you never know: something you say or do can benefit others in a much more signifcant way than you can ever imagine. Yours in Service, John Qi Liu