NEWS $6.8 million in federal funds given to Massachusetts for opioid treatment. p. 3
SPOTLIGHT Interview with Sacha Baron Cohen on new film “The Brothers Grimsby” p. 6
42°/61° LIGHT RAIN
SPORTS The men’s basketball team ignited its postseason run Wednesday night, beating Fordham away from home. p. 12
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THURSDAY, MARCH 17, 2016 THE INDEPENDENT WEEKLY STUDENT NEWSPAPER AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY YEAR XLIV. VOLUME LXXXIX. ISSUE VIII.
Muslim students aim to break stereotypes through public prayer BY ALYSSA MEYERS DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
The Islamic Society of Boston University hosted a public prayer Wednesday evening at Marsh Plaza, where 16 ISBU members prayed as pedestrians walked down Commonwealth Avenue. Executed at approximately 7:15 p.m., the public prayer was one of the many programs ISBU is holding for Islam Awareness Month. The prayer also aimed to support the Gender Advocacy and Progress Week and to raise awareness of diversity on campus, ISBU President Taiba Zahir said. “Something most people don’t know much about is that Islam is a very empowering religion for women,” Zahir, a junior in the College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said following the prayer. “There are many stereotypes about that, and this is the perfect opportunity to break those stereotypes.” A male student led the prayer that comprised of six male and 10 female students. The male students prayed in a straight line on a stretched rug directly behind the imam, the leader of the prayer, while the female students, also in a straight line and on a stretched rug, prayed behind them, forming a third line. Zainab Kazmi, ISBU sisters’ social chair, said ISBU hosts the public prayer annually at Marsh Plaza, a central spot on campus, because the organization strives to break Muslim stereotypes by increasing exposure. “If you see a bunch of people in weird positions, you’d be intrigued because you don’t really see that in your daily life,” Kazmi, a senior in Sargent, said referring to the prayer’s movements. “The purpose of a public prayer is just to spark that interest in people.” Nadea Zahra, ISBU sisters’ religious chair, also participated in the prayer. Zahra explained that in light of the current presidential election and recent depictions of Muslims in the media, ISBU members feel CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
PHOTO BY MADI GOLDMAN/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Boston Mayor Martin Walsh signed an ordinance Friday that will crack down on the residency law that requires municipal employees to live in the city limits.
Dispensary owners lobby for city ordinance BY LUIS CASTRO AND KENNEDY DAVIS DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
In light of an ordinance signed Friday by Boston Mayor Martin Walsh establishing a “buffer zone” between marijuana dispensaries, public records reveal that dispensary owners donated funds to campaigns of public officials in an effort to lobby for the ordinance. The new zoning laws, if approved by the Boston Zoning Commission of the Boston Redevelopment Authority, will “limit the siting of any marijuana dispensary, whether medical, recreational or any other type, no closer than one half of a mile, or 2,640 feet, from any other existing dispensary,” according to the ordi-
nance. Samantha Ormsby, a spokesperson for Walsh, wrote in an email that the mayor supports the zoning amendments despite his opposition to recreational use of marijuana. “While Mayor Walsh voted against the legalization of medical marijuana, he supports the law that is in place and wants to make sure it is implemented correctly for the people of Boston,” Ormsby wrote. Councilor Michael Flaherty offered this order regarding a text amendment for the Boston Zoning Code for marijuana dispensaries. According to the ordinance, potential recreational marijuana dispensaries established in the future will be affected by the zoning law. Jim Borghesani, a spokesperson for the
Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, said the ordinance only applies to medical marijuana dispensaries. “There is no buffer zone now for liquor stores,” Borhesani said. “There’s no buffer zone for a store that sells tobacco products. And yet, the City Council saw fit to impose this ordinance, which at this point applies only to medical marijuana dispensaries because no other dispensaries exist.” Borghesani said the ordinance would benefit Patriot Care, the only dispensary owner in Boston. “I think it would be proper for voters to question what’s really behind this ordinance,” CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
First university-wide general education program begins review process BY ELLEN CRANLEY AND DAVID FRANCO DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
The Boston University Task Force on General Education has submitted a report to the University Council that outlines a vision for the first ever university-wide general education program as the initial step before the program’s scheduled implementation in the fall 2017 semester. The program, titled “BU Hub,” aims to bring together students from different schools to ensure valuable undergraduate education and prepare students for the real world, according to the task force’s website. The task force has been collecting the ideas of current students to see what they think can be added to the general education program and what could make it more effective for future students, according to Co-Chair Elizabeth Loizeaux.
“Starting at the very beginning [of] last Spring when we were first start gathering ideas, [students’] feedback has absolutely influenced the vision the report sets out — in fact the idea of the BU Cross-College Challenge came from students, as did the ‘Life Skills’ courses,” Loizeaux, associate provost for Undergraduate Affairs wrote in an email. The BU Cross-College Challenge, a signature BU Hub program, is deemed to highlight BU’s unique characteristic. Completed either during a student’s junior or senior year, the challenge fosters a collaboration of six students “from across the university” to address current issues through producing “a tangible product” such as a work of art or an exhibition, among many. “Life Skills” courses would be a two-part offering, one during a student’s freshman year and another in their senior year, the report outlined. The first part aims to introduce students a number of resources for academic and social success
at BU. The latter part would focus on professional skills such as basic personal finance and worklife balance. Aelish Benjamin-Brown, a member of the Student Curriculum Committee, said forming a general education program would dull the different characteristics each college contributes to campus. “The idea of creating [general education] across all colleges within BU kind of defeats the purpose,” the sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences said. “The reason that a lot of current students came to BU is that each college has its own nature and culture. I think creating gen ed kind of mutes that.” Members of the SCC, a newly formed group dedicated to addressing concerns of underrepresented groups at BU, were present at a Feb. 4 town hall-style meeting to discuss the then-developed General Education Program and expressed disagreements with the idea following
the meeting, The Daily Free Press reported Feb. 5. The Task Force had met with faculty members across alumni, staff, BU’s 17 schools and colleges, student groups and the Parent Leadership Council throughout the fall 2015 semester and held additional consultations in the spring 2016 semester, according to the report. The report will receive additional comments by several councils, such as the Faculty Council and the Council of Deans and faculty members. If approved, a second task force, the General Education Implementation Task Force, will be appointed in the summer or fall and will develop steps for the program’s implementation, Loizeaux noted. “Like any proposal for a new program, [it has to be] considered and voted upon by the University Council, BU’s faculty governance system,” Loizeaux wrote. “The goal would be … CONTINUED ON PAGE 3