FRESHMAN FIFTEEN, 3
GALLERY, 4
EDITORIAL, 6
BU nutrition professors discuss the myth of freshman year weight gain.
Student photographers capture the world’s oldest marathon.
Boston Police Department has apologies to make.
CE LE B RATIN G
THURSDAY, OCT. 14, 2021
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MÚSICA ESPAÑOLA, 7 For Hispanic Heritage Month, we look at music recommendations. J O U R NA LI S M
THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY
YEAR LI. VOLUME C. ISSUE VIII
South Campus Domino’s Pizza robbed by armed suspect Jesús Marrero Suárez Madhri Yehiya Tanisha Bhat Daily Free Press Staff An armed individual stole a pizza from the Domino’s Pizza at 508 Park Dr. in South Campus at approximately 2 p.m. Wednesday. The suspect was described “as a male, dark skin with facial hair, late 40’s early 50’s 508-510 in height, wearing a dark colored hooded sweatshirt, dark pants, wearing a fanny pack” in a Boston University Police Emergency Alert sent to the BU community at 2:46 p.m. The alert said the armed robbery created “significant police activity” in the area and also advised students to be cautious. BUPD also said those in the area
should exercise increased caution while the individual remains at large, having fled the scene towards Brookline on Buswell Street after the robbery. As of an emergency alert update sent at 5:37 p.m., the suspect had not been apprehended. A Domino’s worker who wished to remain anonymous due to contractual obligations banning them from speaking on behalf of the corporation, said they were witness to the man walking into the restaurant, grabbing a pizza left inside and promptly exiting. “I saw him going out with the pizza, so I tried to call him and he just walked out,” they said. “The drivers went after him, and he pulled a gun on the driver.” The worker noted Boston Police Department officers arrived within minutes, asked routine questions and left about 10 minutes later. The restaurant was back in business by
4:40 p.m. “It was not a big deal,” he said. “If the drivers hadn’t gone after the guy, nothing would have happened. He would just have stolen a pizza.” Rich Gbessi, a sophomore in the College of Communication and resident of South Campus said the robbery did not make him concerned. “I wouldn’t expect a college campus to get robbed but I mean, it happens, because robbers don’t care where anything’s located. So you can’t really blame the college or anything,” he said. “S— just happens.” Gbessi added the incident does not change his impression of South Campus and that he will continue to be a customer at the Domino’s in question. “I grew up in the Bronx, so I’m getting used to robberies happening around the city,” he said. BU spokesperson Colin Riley said it is not advised for witnesses to get involved in situations such as this. “We don’t encourage anyone to in-
AMANDA CUCCINIELLO | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Domino’s Pizza at 508 Park Dr. An armed individual stole a pizza from the restaurant at approximately 2 p.m. Wednesday before fleeing toward Brookline on Buswell Street.
tervene in a situation, we want them to protect themselves and others,” he said. “Call BUPD and or 911.” Police presence was recorded around the store at 4:45 p.m. Riley added the area will now receive increased monitoring.
“There’ll be extra patrols, BUPD in the area,” he noted. “It’s very likely they won’t be the only ones patrolling the area. There’s lots of law enforcement, from state police, transit police, Brookline, Boston, that go through campus on a regular basis.”
Boston Marathon pushed to same day as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, sparking concerns of obscured holiday attention to colonialism. Executive director of Wings for America — a nonprofit that supports young Native runners — and Navajo Nation member Dustin Martin said he initially believed running the marathon on Indigenous Peoples’ Day was a chance to honor the legacy of past Native champions. “But the more that I learned about the way that the Boston Marathon initially kind of dismissed the criticisms of the Indigenous community in the Boston area, I realized that they were not very sensitive or really graceful in the way that they recognized the holiday,” he said. Pierite said NAICOB, United American Indians of New England
and various town committees set forth demands for the BAA to address their rescheduling in the spring of 2021, but Pierite added that how the BAA scheduled the marathon was “harmful” and “done with very little consultation.” The BAA expressed their apologies in an August press release to those “who have felt unheard or feared the importance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day would be erased” and said in selecting the date the Association “in no way wanted to take away” from the holiday. They did not respond to email and phone requests for comment on this article in time for publication. The BAA also donated to the Indigenous Peoples’ Day Newton
Committee to help fund their firstever celebration, according to the release. Additionally, before the start of the race, an acknowledgment ceremony of the course’s path through Native land took place. Robert Peters, a Mashpee Wampanoag artist, painted a BAA-commissioned mural highlighting Indigenous history in the Boston Marathon in the land acknowledgment ceremony. Five Indigenous runners were included on that mural canvas, including Ellison “Tarzan” Brown, Patti Catalano Dillon, Tom Longboat, Andrew Sockalexis and Jordan Marie Daniel. “I insisted that I wanted to paint ‘Tarzan’ Brown,” Peters said. “He was
the only one that was painted and the other ones were cutouts that were glued over the work.” Cici Yu Martin said early conversations Daily Free Press Staff with a BAA representative, who said the organization was considering doing more to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day, provided The 125th Boston Marathon, the opportunity to recognize the postponed from its typical date on history of champion “Tarzan” Brown Patriots Day, was moved to the same specifically — a member of the Monday as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Narragansett tribe who won the 1936 prompting concerns from Indigenous and 1939 marathons. advocates on the overshadowing of “It’s always frustrated me that there the holiday. is no monument to Tarzan Brown on Though the second Monday of Heartbreak Hill and Newton,” Martin October was previously recognized by said, noting Brown’s victory over other cities and states as Indigenous Johnny Kelly in the 1936 race. “There Peoples’ Day to celebrate Indigenous are actually two statues of Johnny communities, Acting Mayor Kim Kelley in that section of the course, Janey recognized the holiday in but no mention permanently of Boston via an Oct. 6 executive Tarzan Brown, the person who order, making Oct. 11 the really gave that area of the course first Indigenous Peoples’ Day its famous name.” officially observed by the City. For Peters, land The order came after the acknowledgment in a ceremony Boston Athletic Association isn’t enough. He said giving rescheduled due to COVID-19 Indigenous populations more in a January announcement. sovereignty would truly be a Jean-Luc Pierite, a member recognition of Native history. of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of “If they really wanted to Louisiana and president of the acknowledge the land, they North American Indian Center would give it back,” he said. “They of Boston, said the executive would give us back land and give order affirms Indigenous us back control over things that sovereignty and acknowledges we had.” colonial violence’s specific Pierite said he also wanted to impact over the past centuries. caution that changes the BAA “It’s not just the holiday, it’s made should not act as a “onenot just about taking down and-done” situation. Columbus Day,” he said. “But it “I’d like to see a land is an affirmation of sovereignty acknowledgment at every Boston and it lays out several action Marathon because the Boston steps as well for Indigenous Marathon is still running through community members to better Indigenous territories,” he said. relationships.” “It starts in Hopkinton, in the Some Indigenous territory of Nipmuc, and it ends Bostonians, however, said COURTESY OF CSUF PHOTOS VIA CREATIVE COMMONS in Boston, in the territory of the the Boston Marathon A woman dancing in an Indigenous Peoples’ Day celebration. Indigenous advocates in the Boston area voiced concerns over the signifi- Massachusett. It’s something that overshadowed efforts to draw cance of the holiday being overshadowed by the 125th Boston Marathon, both of which occurred Monday. should be ongoing.”
2 FEATURES
BU nutrition professors, student talk about the impacts of the ‘Freshman 15’ myth Ashley Soebroto Daily Free Press Staff For incoming freshmen, learning to balance academic studies while handling new responsibilities such as meal-prepping and laundry is a challenge. These responsibilities are daunting as some students desperately avoid the myth of the infamous “Freshman 15.” “Freshman 15” is the belief that some students will gain 15 pounds during their first year of college. No credible scientific studies have ever found the “Freshman 15” to be accurate, while numerous studies have disproved the myth. According to a 2011 study by Ohio State University, the average freshman may gain between 2.5 to 3.5 pounds. Joan Salge Blake, a clinical professor in nutrition at Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, was interviewed on Boston 25 News last month. She discussed the “Freshman 15” myth popularized by a 1989 Seventeen magazine article where the author recounted their own experiences with gaining weight during college. “Science suggests that on average, students consume freshman year about three pounds,” Salge Blake said. “Those that don’t go to college right out of high school … gained almost just about the same amount of weight.” Salge Blake said misconceptions regarding college diets can foster unhealthy relationships with food. “They’re worried about when they go off to college ... and what happens is they end up restricting their diet to the point where they’re not eating
healthily,” Salge Blake said. “There’s enough anxiety in the freshman year that they don’t need to be worried about something that’s not based on science.” Mia Sugarman is a senior at Sargent and a student ambassador for Sargent Choice Test Kitchen, an extension of Sargent’s Nutrition Center. There, they learn recipes from BU professional dietitians and “if they’re hit, sometimes they make it into the dining hall,” Sugarman said. The Test Kitchen also has a blog with recipes.
Sugarman said incoming freshmen can have issues creating a balanced diet because many students are not used to cooking for themselves. “When a lot of students come to university, they’re leaving home for the first time,” Sugarman said. “Figuring out what it means to cook and how to feed themselves, as well as doing homework and going to class and being sociable, can be really challenging.” Karen Jacobs, clinical professor, program director of post profession-
al doctorate in occupational therapy and the associate dean for Digital Learning & Innovation Department at Sargent, said it can be particularly difficult for students as they transition back from online classes to in-person classes, and Jacobs recommends “resetting your schedule.” “I really encourage students as they’re back on campus, to look at what’s really important for them, to look at what they’re passionate about, to think about what things they want to accomplish and to let go of the
COURTESY OF DEBORA CARTAGENA VIA PIXNIO
A scale. Nutrition faculty in the Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences demystify and explain the problems with the “Freshman 15” myth, the belief that some students will gain 15 pounds during their first year of college.
things that perhaps are not essential right now,” Jacobs said. Salge Blake also said diet myths can have an impact on college students due to stress, even those who are not incoming students. “It doesn’t matter what year they’re in in college,” Salge Blake said. “It’s unnecessary stress and anxiety that they don’t need to be worried about.” According to a study published in 2020 in the journal Nutrients, students with higher stress levels engaged in less healthy dietary behaviors. Salge Blake said that especially with the growth of social media, harmful diet culture has become increasingly widespread. “There’s the diet books and health books written by people that do not have the proper credentials,” Salge Blake said. “This has been going on forever.” Jacobs said it is important that students reach out to professionals if they feel anxious about maintaining a balanced diet. “No one needs to feel alone,” Jacobs said, “and if they’re feeling stressed out about what should I eat, how do I cook, there are resources out there for them.” The Sargent Choice Nutrition Center offers a wide range of nutrition services, including seminars, workshops and counseling. Sugarman said that the Test Kitchen is a place students can also use to healthily improve their dietary habits. “The Sargent Choice Test Kitchen provides a place where students can learn how to cook easy and healthy recipes together and talk about food in a very positive atmosphere,” Sugarman said. “It also gives people the place to learn new skills about cooking and to learn how they can improve their eating habits.”
BU’s CleanTech on track to combat environmental harms through green tech Lindsay Shachnow Daily Free Press Staff Boston University CleanTech Club is harnessing the power of green technology to create positive impacts for the environment. CleanTech President Charles McGinn, a junior in the College of Engineering, said the club focuses on “changing the engineering that we’re using now into better and more sustainable and cleaner and more environmentally friendly solutions.”
“When you think of sustainability, you don’t often think of technology,” McGinn said. “But for us, it’s more about being innovative and being sustainable with our innovation, with the tech that we’re creating and the tech that we’re making better.” With these principles in mind, BU CleanTech Club is working to launch two new initiatives — RhettRides and Light Switch — that are designed to encourage more socially responsible behavior and combat environmental harms. RhettRides is in finishing stages, while Light Switch has recently begun organizing. Having been in the works for a couple of years, RhettRides will be
a platform for students to coordinate carpools with other students. Whether for a ride home or a weekend trip, students will be able to travel and “share the cost, share the carbon emissions and just share a fun ride together,” McGinn said. With the help of BU’s Sustainability Innovation Seed Grant, the group hosted a program last summer to conceptualize and program a RhettRides web app, which is in the final stages of production, McGinn said. Lekhya Sathi, the treasurer of CleanTech, leader of the two projects and junior at Sargent College, said, “hopefully, it’ll just become a regular thing that a lot of BU students use.”
She also said CleanTech is also in the early stages of a project to conserve energy at BU — Light Switch. “We noticed that [in] a lot of BU buildings, the lights are kept on even when no one’s using them,” Sathi said. “The aim of this project is to collect some data on that and work with facilities to get those turned off when no one’s using them.” She said that this might be through manually turning them off or installing automatic motion sensors. “It’s really nice to be able to look out over the Boston skyline and see all the lights lit up at night,” McGinn said. “And then you think about it, and you’re like, ‘Wait a second, those
ILLUSTRATION BY CONOR KELLEY
Front-end code. The Boston University CleanTech club is launching two green technology initiatives – a carpool web application “RhettRides” and an energy conservation project “Light Switch” – to combat environmental harms
lights are coming from rooms and buildings that are not being used.’” Richard Stuebi, an affiliated faculty member with the BU Institute for Sustainable Energy and the club’s faculty advisor, said technology serves as both the cause and solution in environmental issues. “Today’s solutions are tomorrow’s problems, and all the problems we’re having … as a result of climate change were due to a tremendous acceleration in human economic progress and standards of living around the world,” he said. “Technology is a potential path out of this climate change conundrum that we’ve found ourselves in the corner of.” McGinn said that society can “turn it around.” “We can use technology to combat the things that technology has done by replacing old technology with new technology that actually does the opposite and … heals the earth,” he said. He said that the club hosts members from all different majors and career paths. The group comes together “for an appreciation of technology and an appreciation for innovation.” “We like to be a focus for that intersectionality,” he said. Stuebi said technology is not the only solution to addressing and combating climate change. “As a society, we should be responding to climate change, and in my opinion, it should be, if not a very high carbon price, some sort of policy measures like carbon caps and carbon emission reduction trading programs,” he said. “Then that will unleash the innovation and spirit of the global economy to respond accordingly.”
PHOTO 3
GALLERY
125th Boston Marathon Conor Kelley Mohan Ge Daily Free Press Staff
Nearly 20,000 athletes ran the 125th Boston Marathon in person Monday after a 910-day hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Spectators lined the racecourse from Hopkinton, Mass. all the way to Boston’s Boylston Street to cheer on athletes in this year’s highly anticipated race.
CONOR KELLEY | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Marathon runners hydrate as they run on Beacon Street.
MOHAN GE | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Boston Marathon women’s elite winner Diana Kipyokei stands after being crowned.
CONOR KELLEY | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
A marathon athlete runs on Beacon Street.
MOHAN GE | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Boston Marathon men’s elite runners congratulate each other for completing the race.
MOHAN GE | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
A runner holds up a flag in celebration of completing the Boston Marathon.
CONOR KELLEY | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
A dog stands among the marathon spectators.
CONOR KELLEY | DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
A marathon duo team runs on Beacon Street.
4 SPORTS
SPORTS
The Red Corner:
Men’s flyweight prospect preview Charles Moore Daily Free Press Staff The UFC’s men’s flyweight division is by far one of the promotion’s most intriguing. Standing as the UFC’s most junior men’s division, the lightest men’s weight class has also had the most volatile history. With only 36 fighters, the flyweight division is also the UFC’s most shallow men’s division. This is indicative of the 125-pound limit — flyweights can’t physically be all that tall or heavy. Current flyweight champion Brandon Moreno (19-5-2) is the tallest UFC flyweight to be crowned champ at 5-foot-7. All those before him — Demetrious Johnson, Henry Cejudo and Deiveson Figueiredo — were at or below the UFC flyweight average of 5-foot-5, according to The MMA Guru website. Therefore: Flyweights are hard to come by. They have to be stocky martial artists willing to make the hardest cut in MMA. All the same, the flyweight division, for the first time in its near-decade history, is starting to bolster more than one legitimate talent. Johnson (30-4-1) made the division borderline unwatchable with his 11-title-defense reign. All credit to Johnson, he is one of the greatest to ever step into
the Octagon, but his domination of the division begs the question of the quality of opponents he faced. In 2018, Cejudo (16-2), another name in the MMA GOAT conversation, beat Johnson in a rematch. Cejudo vacated in 2019, spurring a two-fight title series between Figueiredo (20-2-1) and Joseph Benavidez (28-8). Figgy won both, had a couple of title defenses of his own and was beginning to get the
Askar Askarov (140-1) If it’s not a sustained title reign for Moreno or Figueiredo, “Bullet” Askarov is 100% the future of this division. Askarov is undefeated in his MMA career and has three rather dominant unanimous decisions in the UFC. His one blemish is a split-decision draw with Moreno in 2019, but that in and of itself is an impressive feat. Askarov is extremely well-rounded. In a ILLUSTRATION BY PETER MOORE division where few fighters have knockout power, Askarov may be the king of the mat, with his exhaustive vernacular of submissions. His slick wrestling exhausts opponents, and his grappling is truly the best in a division where BJJ and MMA are same ‘unbeatable’ title that his synonyms. predecessors had earned. Before the UFC, Askarov Then Moreno caught Figgy in boasted a 100% finish rate, and a rear-naked choke at UFC 263 within the UFC he has dominant and became the first Mexican- UD wins over three very born UFC champion. Now legitimate ranked opponents in Moreno and Figueiredo are set Tim Elliott (17-12-1), Alexandre for a trilogy fight, scheduled for Pantoja (24-5) and former title UFC 270 in January. challenger Benavidez. In the meantime, here are three Su Mudaerji (14-4) flyweight prospects who will Contributing to the recent be knocking on the door of the influx of talented and successful 125-pound division in the coming Chinese fighters in the UFC, Su, years. who is 25 years old, debuted in
the UFC on the losing end of an armbar submission to Louis Smolka (17-7). Since then, Su has racked up three straight wins, including a 44-second knockout of Malcolm Gordon (13-5). Su’s strength comes from his lightning-quick hands and remarkable power for a flyweight. Eleven of his 14 career wins have come via knockout or technical knockout. In the UFC, he has two wins by unanimous decision and one via the knockout of Gordon. His grappling has shown to be a weak spot, as all four of his losses have come via submission. The armbar loss to Smolka has been his one loss in the UFC. Jeff Molina (9-2) Jeff Molina is the freshest and youngest prospect on this list, but his future may be the brightest. The Glory MMA product is currently on an eight-fight win streak, including a unanimous victory in his UFC debut over Qileng Aori (18-8) at UFC 261. Molina handled a 2020 appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series, earning a contract on the back of a dominant unanimous decision. Molina has exhibited both well-trained jiu-jitsu and tight striking in his career, earning three wins apiece via submission and knockout in his ongoing win streak. Molina will welcome a fellow well-rounded young flyweight in Daniel Lacerda (11-1) to the UFC on Oct. 23. As always, keep up with @RedCornerDFP for picks, predictions and MMA news.
Off the Post:
Carey Price departure must prompt change around mental health in NHL Belle Fraser Daily Free Press Staff The Montréal Canadiens’ star goaltender and franchise face Carey Price announced his voluntary leave of absence to join the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program, which provides resources for mental health ILLUSTRATION BY ALEXIA NIZHNY
and substance abuse issues, among others, for players and their families. The Oct. 7 press release follows an outstanding 14-year career with the Habs, and the team believes Price will return to the ice this season. Price’s decision to prioritize his mental health is courageous in a league and industry that too often turns a blind eye to the ‘invisible’ injuries their players face. The stigma around mental health exists in all
facets of our society, but especially in a sport where the expectation is to be superhuman. Hockey players take pride in the grit and toughness that is required to survive at the professional level. In 2015, Ryan McDonagh played a handful of playoff games for the New York Rangers on a broken foot, freezing it before each competition to numb the pain. Zdeno Chara dressed for multiple games for the Bruins in
the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals with a broken jaw. The Lightning’s Victor Hedman powered through a torn meniscus for months during the 2020-2021 campaign. It is, to some degree, what makes the sport so lovable — these guys will do whatever it takes to raise the Stanley Cup, and as a fan, that gets you amped up. But when is the line crossed? When do these injuries turn from a matter of pride to a matter of deep concern? The NHL culture breeds superheroes. Players are praised for their strength and what they do on the ice, but what happens when they step off the big stage should be of matching importance. The game doesn’t only take a physical toll, it takes a mental one, too. But the only doctors in those NHL locker rooms are for missing teeth and fractured hands — there seems to be a hole in where players can turn for emotional support. Price has been showered with love and encouragement from the Canadiens organization and hockey fans around the world since making his departure public. The response speaks to the gradual positive change in how the sport’s community understands matters of mental health. The problem in my eyes, though, is that it got this bad in the first place. It’s easy for the NHL to show its support for Price once he has already
hit his breaking point. From a PR standpoint, the posts and tweets look good — but that’s not how tangible change is made. The league needs to take a hard look at the ‘tough-guy’ system that has been perpetuated since its founding and implement preventive resources rather than waiting until their players can’t take it anymore. Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner had a lot to say about this topic in his Sep. 28 interview with the “Spittin’ Chiclets” crew. From an inside perspective, he stressed that like any other people, players are struggling too, but mental illnesses such as OCD and anxiety are masked as being superstitious or stressed for a game. Lehner called for greater education and awareness of these serious issues in locker rooms, and that must come from the top. This needs to be a cultural shift, an uphaul of the stigmas that don’t disappear unless actively worked against. Price — being the superstar that he is — has a tremendously influential platform in the league. Taking this step for himself and his family will hopefully serve as a message to his counterparts around the world that it is okay to ask for help — that it doesn’t mean you’re showing weakness, but instead, strength. Now it’s up to the NHL to be there for their players in a way they haven’t been before.
COLUMNS 5
Wear Me This:
OPINION
If you’re tired of seeing Docs, bad news, they’re the face of what fashion means today
Sujena Soumyanath Columnist Fashion Week has officially completed its rollout, and the verdict from Paris has returned: heels are back and dominating the season. That’s all well and good, but for those of us in rainy New England running late for our 9 a.m. class, strappy stilettos aren’t exactly optimal. Innovation seems best left to the Gaultiers of the world because the classic black boot has reared its head for yet another year. Of course, variations abound. I’ve seen Chelsea boots, for fans of the 9th grade English teacher look, shiny Prada footwear, a pretty quick marker of arrival to Boston via first class international plane ticket, and 2020’s newest addition, tractor-trek sole boots. The latter has an admirable utilitarianism, but in my opinion, whatever steroids the platform sole took to be a tractor boot pushes its outfit a little too close to a U.S. army cosplay. It’s no wonder then that most people have
ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIA FLISSLER
turned back to the perfect balance of rugged utilitarianism and universal class present in only one shoe: Dr. Martens, commonly known as Doc Martens. From their very conception, Doc Martens were made for durability. If they’re in your closet, they’re easily the most long-lasting pair of shoes you own, not to mention your most trusted for bad weather. There’s something to be said for their classic design too. Though you can find almost any variation to suit your style, the trademark yellow stitching and strong yet understated platform make for a shoe that will go with any outfit while also providing character to it. The biggest proof of Doc Martens hegemony is the diversity of groups who have claimed it for their own. Before Brandy Melville poster children and Brooklyn art students, the iconic shoe was made for Germany’s housewives in the early ’50s. Since then, it has cycled from postmen to
skinheads to punks to ’90s grunge artists. Now, the boots grace Gigi Hadid’s feet and Vogue features of Emma Chamberlain, proving that at least one subculture will always lay claim to its powerful design. Its popularity hasn’t always evaded controversy, however. It doesn’t take a teenage boy fresh off a first reading of the Manifesto mansplaining late-stage capitalism to you to realize that a brand’s success in general means more profits and more international outsourcing. In the case of Doc Martens, a 2003 bankruptcy scare led the brand to outsource production to Asia the next year, prompting criticism that the quality had gone down. Despite these comments, the brand holds that overseas factories use the same manufacturing methods as the ones in England. Personally, because many of these complaints in more recent years come from online shoppers populating
Reddit, it is hard for me to give them weight. The brand doesn’t seem to have suffered much from this either. I mean, the chances of getting a classic pair of Docs before they sell out rapidly on ASOS is still next to nothing. To me, the lasting popularity of Doc Martens represents something larger about the way fashion is moving. No matter what outfit they’re paired with, the shoes hold a sense of power and rebellion. They’re universal and unisex, and you know the person wearing them has something important to do or somewhere important to go. Where before the elitist world of fashion would have turned up their noses at these masculine, working-class traits, the boots have started dominating high fashion. Out in the real world, people of all genders, races and groups have embraced the iconic shoe and its energy. In my view, out of all the trends and clothes being thrown at us today, Docs are among the few classic enough to be claimed by everyone and gate-kept by none. All of this is evidence that fashion today is moving towards no longer being separated into spheres. More and more, clothing and accessories, and the cultural sentiments they represent, are not particular to one group of people. Fashion can be utilized by anyone for any purpose, and the feeling of wearing a certain piece belongs to anyone who uses it in their outfit. It may be true that the 1960’s English postman never imagined his shoes on this year’s most unlikely duo, Kourtney Kardashian and Addison Rae. But it just goes to show the universality of what we wear and how it makes us feel. Let’s hope this shift to clothing without casting calls, to freedom to claim something regardless of our identity, extends to opportunities, rights and everything else that matters.
Gaming the System:
Economic incentives are preventing desperately-needed game archiving
Nick Speranza Columnist For many years now, there has been an ongoing debate about the artistic merit of video games. As a form of media, should they be held in the same regard as movies, TV and music? In terms of archiving, at least, video games lag far behind these counterparts. Video games hit store shelves as soon as the technology for playing them began to be invented, and as a result, the hardware was constantly evolving. The Nintendo Entertainment System came out in the 1980s, with games loaded onto chips inside big plastic cartridges. Graphics became more advanced and cartridges grew smaller until, eventually, games moved to disc formats, with developers releasing a new console every few years to keep up. This makes playing a retro video game on the original hardware extremely difficult. If you don’t already own everything you need, you will need to track down the original console and
original game when new copies of either haven’t been manufactured in perhaps 20 years. As the founder of the Video Game History Foundation explained in an interview with CBC, “It would be like the only way to watch Back to the Future is to have a VCR and an old tape that you had to buy on eBay.” The easiest solution to this problem is emulation. In a broader tech context, “emulation” refers to any instance of a computer replicating another computer. In video games, it refers to a program on a computer that simulates a gaming console. Legally, emulation usually counts as piracy. Emulating the function of a video game console on a computer is itself legal, but emulators are almost always used to play copies of old games downloaded from the Internet, and this process is the source of legal issues. The thing is, it is only the developers’ fault that people so readily turn to emulation in the first place. In terms of archiving, ROMs — digital copies of the software on game cartridges and disks, derived from “read-only memory”— are critical for preserving the source code of games because developers are notoriously bad about doing it themselves. Legendary game studio SEGA, for instance, couldn’t even put the original games from their Ninja Gaiden franchise on a re-release of multiple installments in the series because the code was almost entirely lost. Also of note is that no one, not even Nintendo, knows the release date of the original Super Mario Bros. Even the code of the original Super Mario Bros. may be lost to time — a re-release of the game for the Nintendo Wii was later discov-
ered by hackers to be based at least in part on a ROM ripped by a fan many years ago. While the exact reason for this is unknown, the game was possibly not well preserved by Nintendo themselves. Such re-releases point to the way developers are economically incentivized not to allow easy access to their titles. Disney’s “vault” approach of restricting sales of old properties except for specific releases is quite lucrative, as Nintendo is likely aware. Disney was also the group lobbying so hard for copyright laws to be tightened — game developers can thank Mickey Mouse for their ability to safeguard their intellectual property. The state of video game emulation, then, is a
strange one. While not technically illegal, using emulators to play a ROM file that you received from someone else — by far the most common use of emulation — is illegal, and yet it is the best way to preserve games. Developers cannot be counted on to preserve the code of their works, and playing retro games legitimately on the real hardware is very difficult, and may even be impossible if consoles continue to decay. Instead of pinning the blame entirely on developers, we should instead focus our attention on the ways they are incentivized to limit the release of their work: the market economy and draconian copyright laws. If we work to reform those, the positive effects will reach far beyond just the gaming sphere, too.
ILLUSTRATION BY YVONNE TANG
6 EDITORIAL
EDITORIAL
Recent settlement from Boston Police Department emblematic of systemic issues with policing ILLUSTRATION BY YVONNE TANG
In April of 2019, Al Copeland, a 62-year-old Black man, experienced a stroke while driving. The Boston Police Department found him slumped in his car in front of Berklee College of Music and promptly arrested him. They did not call an ambulance and alleged he smelled of alcohol in their report. Copeland, who could barely stand, was taken to the police station. When he fell and hit his head, he was left in his cell to “sleep it off,” according to police records. Police officers only called an ambulance after Copeland had been at the police station for five hours. Once he reached Tufts Medical Center, medical providers assumed Copeland was drunk and left him in the emergency room for another seven hours. They only treated him once his wife arrived, where doctors found no alcohol or drugs in his system. Delays in treating strokes have serious consequences, such as leading to paralysis or death. Copeland has long-term cognitive damage due to the incident and has trouble walking, among other impairments. Negligence and active racism by both Tufts Medical Center and the Boston Police Department show that systemic racism is rampant throughout both the criminal justice system and the healthcare system. A 2016 report published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science found
that half of white medical trainees believe racist myths that Black people experience less pain than white people. These preconceptions have led to negligent care, with Black patients less likely to receive prompt care and pain medication. The Tufts Medical Center later apologized for its negligent care of Copeland and created a diversity, equity and inclusion center to reduce disparities in care. While this is a step in the right direction, the creation of this center is first, grossly overdue, and second, nowhere near enough to address blatant disparities in medical care. The City of Boston’s response was to award the family a $1.3 million settlement. But none of the officers in question have been disciplined for their actions, nor have they apologized to Copeland and his family. Two of the officers were cited for not responding quickly enough once Copeland hit his head, but not for assuming he was drunk or arresting him in the first place. Even if the officers who made the arrest had been properly disciplined, what about the officers in the station that watched Copeland be shoved into a cell? What about the officers who let him sit in that cell for five hours without calling for an ambulance while the man was suffering a stroke? This incident comes in light of a 2020 report which found that out of the people stopped by
the Boston Police department, 70% of them were Black. News of this lawsuit is one of many recent instances of the Boston Police Department’s corruption. Last April, documents released by the city of Boston revealed the BPD’s union — the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association — protected officer Patrick Rose from being fired after he was accused of sexually assaulting children in the 1990s. This officer later became the head of the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association from 2014 to 2018, during which he allegedly preyed on more children. Last June, acting Mayor Kim Janey fired the police commissioner Dennis White due to domestic violence allegations. In September, multiple officers were charged with fraud after filing for overtime they didn’t work for almost three years. Last December, body camera footage was released of Boston police sergeant Clifton McHale bragging about intentionally hitting protesters at Black Lives Matter rallies with his vehicle. The department’s response was to put him on unpaid administrative leave for at least eight days just last Friday. The mayoral race has provided prime ground for open discussion of reform of the Boston Police Department. Strengthening discipline measures, diverting funds and duties from the police department
to crisis intervention teams and expanding the use of police body cameras are among some of the proposed changes to the department by mayoral candidates. We look forward to seeing if and how these changes take place. But given the calls from many activists for abolition and clear evidence that bias training and body cameras are not effective against stopping police brutality, one wonders why the abolition of these departments seems so far from view. As exhibited in the Al Copeland case, the issue with policing in Boston and this country is not a matter of a few bad apples. How can increased discipline measures be useful when the entire system is corrupt? Al Copeland’s life is forever-harmed by the actions of those police officers. He will have permanent cognitive and physical impairments for the rest of his life because of the Boston Police Department. He is one of many. We are looking forward to active reforms and change from Boston’s new mayor. But the news of the lack of action from the Boston Police department in disciplining the officers involved is nonetheless troubling. How can we expect actual change from the Boston Police Department if they can pay out a million-dollar settlement to a man they permanently injured without an apology?
EDITORIAL BOARD Lily Kepner, Editor-in-Chief Madhri Yehiya, Campus Editor
Emma Sánchez, Managing Editor Isabella Abraham City Editor
Sonja Chen, Sports Editor
Yvonne Tang, Layout & Graphics Editor
Conor Kelley, Photo Editor
Katrina Liu, Lifestyle Editor
Bini Ollivier-Yamin, Opinion Editor Veronica Thompson, Podcast Editor Molly Farrar, Features Editor GRAPHIC BY ALEXIA NIZHNY KK Feuerman, Multimedia Editor
LIFESTYLE 7
LIFESTYLE ‘C(ooking)logs’: Cooking log of Winsor Dim Sum Café Melina Nguyen Daily Free Press Staff I enjoy eating dim sum with my family and in college with friends. Many Asian countries enjoy the cuisine as a communal eating experience best enjoyed with family on Sundays where the adults have a break from work. My journey to find the ultimate dim sum restaurant in the Boston area to satisfy my dumpling and tea cravings started at a quaint spot in Chinatown. Dim sum is a traditional assortment of small dishes accompanied by tea. Originating in the Guangdong — or Canton — region of Southern China, travelers along the Silk Road would enjoy rejuvenating teas paired with complementary dishes. Winsor Dim Sum Café, located on Tyler Street in Chinatown, was packed on a Sunday at noon, with two lines assembled on the crowded sidewalk. Every grouping from couples to large families waited patiently for a table in the cozy shop. My friends and I climbed two sets of stairs into the fragrant room after over 30 minutes of waiting. Scanning the other tables, I silently yearned for the plates of steamed dumplings, savory noodles and scorching hot soups others were already enjoying. After we were seated, we quickly scratched down numbers on our order ticket next to the
specific dishes we wanted. Visuals of boiling tea in cute ceramic cups, spicy chili oil in saucers and clanking chopsticks in preparation for food surrounded us. We received our assortment of orders in batches, frantically digging in. I have few complaints and an overwhelming array of compliments for the chefs. I don’t normally like tea, but the jasmine tea we drank before any
food went in our systems acted as a calming heating pad lining my belly. Hot, soothing and a hint of bitterness, the tea had just the right combination of leaf and hot water taste. When I visited before, I had been trembling in excitement for the baked BBQ pork buns. However, it wasn’t available at the time. This time, the dim sum deities showed mercy, and they were available for order the
second time. The soft, warm buttery bun was absolutely delightful — it was fluffier than the unicorn plushie in “Despicable Me.” Although there was less pork filling than I had hoped for, the pork was sweet and hearty. The steamed shrimp rice noodle with soy sauce was salty, chewy and sticky. The shrimp was so filling and the little cilantro pieces scattered throughout provided
COURTESY OF RAJAT SARKI VIA UNSPLASH
Dim sum. Melina and her friends went to Chinatown’s Windsor Dim Sum Café as part of a journey to find Boston’s best restaurant serving the Southern Chinese dish.
freshness among the saltiness. This was easily a standout dish. Of course, I needed to reorder classic dim sum favorites. The steamed shrimp dumplings were delightful as always: chewy, sticky and meaty. The steaming wrapping was a bit clumpy this time, but the taste overpowered any qualms I had about texture. Chicken feet with black bean sauce is a dish I will never stop raving about. Although the name seems intimidating, it ultimately is just saucy skin on soft cartilage. It’s fun to eat — sort of like eating crawfish since the eating experience doesn’t result in much meat. Nevertheless, the sweet and rich chicken skin was perfectly cooked and happily devoured. Some plates I ordered were not my cup of tea — pun intended. The Yu Choy with oyster sauce was a basic dish, but with a price of $8.50, it was underwhelming and not a dish I would purchase again at that price. The vegetables themselves were cooked well, but the oyster sauce was extremely salty. I did not enjoy the pan-fried white turnip cake with XO chili sauce. Again, it was too salty for my taste. The cake was chewy and had a texture almost like firm tofu. I liked the bean sprouts and sauce, but it was jarring with the turnip cake. Also, the sauce has a heat that spreads throughout your mouth — not too overbearing, but very present. Overall, this restaurant is a must-try for stellar tea and dim sum. I liked almost everything I tried, and there are countless other items I’ll order in the future. I don’t even feel compelled to visit another dim sum restaurant. This place has it all.
Hispanic Heritage Month music recs: rock y hip-hop en Español bachata, reggaeton, cumbia and other Caribbean beats. So it came as a shock to me when I heard on NPR’s “The Breakdown” that heavy metal is one of the largest genres listened to across Latin America, with big names in metal selling out stadiums particularly in South America. Don’t get me wrong, I love to bop to a Romeo Santos song now and then. But the following listed artists are my go-to’s when I’m letting out my inner “rockera.” They are mainly
from the Latin and Spanish rock and alternative music world and hip-hop Emma Sánchez scene. There are many other bands I Managing Editor haven’t mentioned — don’t think I forgot about “Maná” — but this is my Latin music — music list for those who’d like to dip their encompassing many countries of toe into that music world. origin, stretching many continents Enrique Bunbury - Spain and even non-Spanish speaking Song recommendation: countries like Brazil — has filtered “Despierta” into the global music scene, more Bunbury got his start as the lead specifically the U.S. market, and singer of 1980s Spanish rock band, has mainly been a fusion of salsa, Héroes del Silencio. In the’80s, Héroes del Silencio and many other rock bands popped up throughout Spain and Latin America to form what is known today as “rock en Español.” In his solo career, Bunbury developed his style to encompass genres such as cabaret, electronic music, Bowie-esque songs and Latin beats. Possibly my favorite Spanish artist, I can never get enough of Bunbury’s allencompassing music. Pair that with thought-provoking lyrics that will stick with you for life, and you have yourself a rock powerhouse. I plan to see him in concert in May — my first live concert since the start of the pandemic. La Ley - Chile Song recommendation: “Mentira” I recommend listening to this band for their lead vocalist Beto Cuevas’s smooth voice ILLUSTRATION BY CONOR KELLEY alone. La Ley is the perfect Popular songs by Mexican rock en español band Caifanes on Spotify. Emma shares her band to listen to when you’re Latin music recommendations for Hispanic Heritage Month, spanning rock, alternative in your feels. To get a sense of and hip-hop genres across various countries and cultures.
their lyricism, look up their MTV Unplugged performances to hear the band play slowed-down, acoustic versions of their hits. Caifanes - Mexico Song recommendation: “Perdí Mi Ojo de Venado” Caifanes is pure ’80s rock at its finest. You can blast their discography on a particularly scenic road trip as you’re taking in the view. Their songs have served as the soundtrack for many of my favorite memories. The band has garnered international fame, as their choruses are simple for even non-Spanish speakers to sing at the top of their lungs. Los Enanitos Verdes - Argentina Song recommendation: “Lamento Boliviano” Many may recognize Los Enanitos Verdes from their hit song often played on Latin radio stations “Lamento Boliviano” which I can’t help singing along to whenever it comes on. At the end of the music video for this song, the South American band writes “Sea este un tributo a todas las razas indígenas latinoamericanas,” which translates in English to: “Let this be a tribute to all Latin American indigenous races.” Puya - Puerto Rico Song recommendation: “Oasis” Possibly the band with the heaviest discography sonically on this list, the band fuses Afro-Caribbean beats into their heavy metal songs. While metal is usually seen as a counter to mainstream music, the band pays homage to classic salsa artists in their use of traditional salsa percussion instruments. Control Machete - Mexico
Song recommendation: “Si Señor” If you’re looking for some quintessential late ’90s, early 2000s hip-hop to walk down Commonwealth Avenue to, then Control Machete is the perfect group for you. Their music goes hard in an effortless way. Plastilina Mosh - Mexico Song recommendation: “Mr. P-Mosh” Plastilina Mosh, along with Control Machete, was part of a new wave hailing from Monterrey, Mexico called “La Avanzada Regia,” which served in stark contrast to the earlier wave of rock en Español. While groups from this musical movement used rock as a jumpingoff point, they melded genres and electro-lounge styles in their music, many utilizing the global popularity of rap in the ’90s as their vocal sound. Plastilina Mosh does this wonderfully with their bombastic style. Los Fabulosos Cadillacs Argentina Song recommendation: “El Matador” Los Fabulosos Cadillacs is a ska band from Buenos Aires, but their music spans genres, such as funk in the intro to their song “Surfer Calavera” and a salsa section in “Mal Bicho.” Most uniquely, a song will have abrupt genre switches, which can be unsettling or exciting depending on the listener. Each song in their discography is sure to get you out of your seat and dancing, as Latin percussion and powerful horn harmonies are plentiful in their music.