JAKE MULLIN
Staff Writer
Makynzie Horvath ‘18, a women’s and gender studies major from Toledo, Ohio wears many hats around campus on any given day. As Vice President of Denison Feminists, student assistant for the Center for Women & Gender Action, a S.H.A.R.E. advocate, and fellow for the Women’s and Gender Studies department, Makynzie is heavily involved and passionate about issues of equality on and off campus.
“What I love about feminism is that it originated as a movement for women but it serves as a gateway for several other social justice movements.”
You don’t have to look long to find proof of this. For the past few weeks, Horvath -along with Sara Hartsock, Taylor Zick, Justine Morelli, and the Denison Feminist’s executive board- has been organizing a fundraising campaign to collect donations for protesters at the Standing Rock Sioux reservation. The reservation has been increasingly featured in the news as the conflict over the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) gains more coverage. The protest is an environmental and indigenous one. The pipeline will not only potentially contaminate the drinking water of over 18 million people (via the Missouri river), but it will also cross through native Sioux territory and sacred lands.
Horvath has been tabling in Slayter, spreading brochures, and hanging flyers around campus in an attempt to raise awareness for this issue. The United Church of Granville has even expressed their willingness to lend their aid and reach out to their congregation for help.
The idea for the project was first conceived of through her feminist theory class.
“We are just trying to aid and start a conversation. No one is having this conversation on campus, so we [Denison Feminists] have to.” she said. “We don’t know all of the people or the exact issues, but we want to stand in solidarity with the people there.”
For more information on the DAPL, the water protectors, or to get involved with Horvath and her project, email the Denison Feminists organization at [email protected].