INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun Vol. 129, No. 5
FRIDAY, AUGUST 24, 2012
!
ITHACA, NEW YORK
16 Pages – Free
Minority Orgs.: Response To Attack Good First Step Leaders call for focus on ‘anti-oppression’ By JINJOO LEE Sun Senior Writer
DAVID STEIN / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Sigma Pi | The University placed Sigma Pi on probation this month after a guest threw bottles and shouted racial slurs at passing students from the roof of the fraternity house.
Sigma Pi Placed on Probation By REBECCA HARRIS Sun News Editor
A previous version of this story first appeared on cornellsun.com on August 17. Though no longer suspended for a racial attack that occurred at the fraternity in May, Sigma Pi has been placed on probation for the 2012-13 academic year, according to a statement issued Aug. 16 by Kent Hubbell
News Secret Garden
Supporters of the Ithaca Community Gardens pled their case before the Common Council to prevent the gardens’ sale to a developer. | Page 3
Welcome Week
New students provide positive and negative reviews of this year’s Orientation Week. | Page 3
Opinion Identity Crisis
Nicholas Kaasik law criticizes the necessity of voter identification laws. | Page 7
Arts A Film to Not Remember
Gina Cargas ’14 slams the latest remake of the film Total Recall, calling it totally boring. | Page 10
Sports Cornell athletes express awe at their achievements of their fellow Cornellians at this summer’s Olympic Games. | Page 16
Weather Sunny HIGH: 88 LOW: 61
See ATTACK page 4
See RESPONSE page 4
Concert Comm.Samples D.J.’s, Mashup Artists By LIANNE BORNFELD Sun Staff Writer
News
Cornell in London
’69, dean of students. Also in response to the incident, the University has created a new staff position to oversee diversity initiatives specific to the Greek system. In the early hours of May 6, at least 10 people were on the roof of Sigma Pi when an individual, who was later determined not to be a student at Cornell, threw beer bottles
The racial attack at Sigma Pi last spring prompted an outpouring of demands from the leaders and supporters of minority organizations on campus. Now that the University has responded to the incident — creating a new staff position, placing the fraternity on probation and offering a new course on intercultural dialogue — protesters both expressed cautious optimism and emphasized the need for further reform. Rebecca John ’14, one of the founding members of the Cornell University Women of Color Coalition, said that several of the University’s measures “could be positive” but stressed that none of them would be a cure-all solution. “I don’t know what benefit the suspension of one frat would [have] for the larger Cornell community,” John said. “I hope it’s a
catalyst for larger structural and cultural change.” Similarly, Selam Gebre ’14, copresident of Black Students United, praised facets of the University’s most recent diversity push. “I do not have any objections with the decision and the punishment placed on the fraternity, as long as they recognize their accountability and responsible steps are taken moving forward,” Gebre said. Sigma Pi has apologized for the incident. Still, she said that Cornell must do more to eradicate forms of bias on campus. “The role that diversity plays in increasing the learning environment is really dependent upon the University taking an accountable role in strengthening and encouraging the experiences that we have with one another,” Gebre said in an
The Cornell Concert Commission has booked an increasing number of mashup artists and D.J.’s over the past four years –– an upswing CCC attributes to both to the current state of the music industry and to the organization’s belief that these acts attract larger audiences than musicians of other genres. From Girl Talk’s show in 2009, to Major Lazer’s appearance last semester, the trend is clear: Cornell’s concert venues have seen an uptick in mashup artists and D.J.’s in recent years.
It is a pattern that seems to be continuing, with The Cataracs and Avicii already lined up for this semester. “There are a lot of successful D.J.’s right now, and that’s just where the industry is today,” said Dave Rodriguez ’13, executive director of CCC. The universal appeal of these artists makes them a great selection when trying to please thousands of Cornell students with varied tastes in music, he added. “[With artists] like Avicii, it doesn’t matter if you’re into classic rock, indie or hip-hop. If ‘Levels’ is playing at a party, you’re going to be able to dance to it,” he said.
SUN FILE PHOTO
Finding the perfect tune | The Super Mash Bros. perform at the free concert on the Arts Quad during Orientation Week 2010.
“They’re all the songs that you already love, just reinvented in a different format, so it really is able to reach a wider audience than, say, a four-piece indie rock band.”
CCC has selected a mashup artist or D.J. for its free concert on the Arts Quad during nearly See CCC page 5
New C-Town Bar Promises Not to ‘Settle for Loud and Dark’ By JONATHAN DAWSON Sun Staff Writer
A previous version of this story first appeared on cornellsun.com on July 14. After witnessing an exodus of bars from Collegetown this year, students returning to campus in the fall will be greeted by an addition to off-campus nightlife. A new bar,
The Gates, is set to open this fall at 422 Eddy Street, near Level B. The Gates’ projected opening, initially set for early August, was pushed back due to a delay in acquiring a liquor license from the New York State Liquor Authority, according to Marian Flaxman, the bar’s owner. The bar will open “ASAP,” likely
toward the beginning of September, she said in an email Wednesday. The Gates will primarily serve a wide variety of cocktails, including “innovative cocktails you can't find anywhere else,” Flaxman said. The bar will also serve beer, hard cider and wine. She said she hopes to create a bar “with a focus
on cocktails rather than beer, a wider variety of entertainment and a newer, cleaner environment.” The bar is also planning on getting “some great musical acts,” both local and from out of town, to play in the fall. There will be a full bar, a D.J. booth, a stage for live entertainment and a private lounge for special
events, she said. “A lot of bars seem to settle for loud and dark, and we hope to do much more than that with our space,” she said in an email. “In terms of undergrad[uates] versus [graduate students], I would say I expect a blend of both. Live music attracts varied See GATES page 5