The Daily Free Press
Year xli. Volume lxxxii. Issue lxxxxi.
MOVIN’ ON UP?
Fewer high-ranking women at BU sticks with trend, page 3
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Thursday, April 5, 2012 The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University
TOO LITTLE HUNGER?
Columnist questions media’s view of ‘Katniss’ actress, page 6
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TOP DOGS
Lacrosse stays hot with third straight conf. win, page 8
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Occupy MBTA protests fare hikes, cuts at State House MBTA increases fees, tries to close 2012 budget gap By Jasper Craven Daily Free Press Staff
More than 100 protesters shouting “Free Charlie” crowded the hallways of Massachusetts State House chambers Wednesday as they decried the 23 percent fare hikes the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority board officially approved. Holding signs such as “Cut Carbon, Not the T,” the Occupy Boston working group Occupy the MBTA launched the beginning of what an Occupy Boston press release called a 10-day occupation called Camp Charlie. During this time, Occupy the MBTA members will protest the fare hikes while encamped on the steps of the State House, according to the press release on the Occupy Boston website. While describing the slogan of “Free Charlie,” Occupy Boston member Noah McKenna stood on a staircase of the State House and told the parabolic story of Charlie, a “normal, working class guy.” While Charlie was on the T one day, fares rose and he was not allowed off the train until he paid the increased price, McKenna said. “Public transportation is a right,” McKenna said. “There is no reason, in this country, with all this money around, that we should have people being cut off the map.” McKenna said cutting lines and service from communities eliminates economic opportunities and social interaction. The MBTA, which has an estimated $185 million budget gap, is putting the measures in place to cut the deficit. “Under the proposal, MBTA will use a combination of administrative efficiencies, fare increases, service changes and one-time revenues to close the gap,” according to a press release on the MBTA website.
By Samantha Tatro Daily Free Press Staff
JUSTINA WONG/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Erik Thorkildsan of Cambridge rallies with Occupy Boston members outside the State House Wednesday afternoon against the recent MBTA decisions to increase T, bus and commuter rail fares and cut some routes.
The changes follow “more than two months of public meetings where 6,000 customers weighed in on proposals,” according to the press release. McKenna said the new Massachusetts Department of Transportation Chief Financial Officer Dana Levenson was privatizing public transportation. Before working at MassDOT, Levenson was the chief financial officer for the City of Chicago. “He’s responsible for the selling of parking garages in downtown Chicago,” McKenna said. “He was there when they made plans to sell off parking meters.” After the meters were sold and privatized,
the price rose from $2 to $6.50, McKenna said. The new fare changes require $2 for a subway ride with a CharlieCard and $1.50 for a local bus ride. For students, a subway ride will be $1, and a bus ride will cost $.75. Cat, a protester who asked to keep her last name anonymous, was involved in organizing against proposed public transportation cuts in her hometown of Somerville for five months. The MBTA was proposing cutting five or six bus lines, Cat said. Cat spoke of many necessary improvements to the MBTA, including better service, newer vehicles and service to more areas.
Occupy, see page 2
BU Biolab to begin tuberculosis research, continue training By Gina Curreri Daily Free Press Staff
Boston University’s Biosafety laboratory is expected to start housing level-2 tuberculosis research this week, officials said. Ellen Berlin, the BU spokeswoman for the biolab, said the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories’ Biosafety Level-2 laboratory would launch research by Thursday. Since its completed construction in 2008, the biolab has been used for training and office space, but not research. “We certainly started this process a long time ago,” Berlin said. “This is a really important milestone for the NEIDL.” Two TB research projects, which have begun on a different level-2 lab on campus, will be transferred to the biolab in the South End, Berlin said.
“Tuberculosis affects nearly one-third of the world’s population, so it’s a really important public health issue,” she said. Research at a lowerlevel received preliminary approval in early December, according to an article published in The Daily Free Press Dec. 5. College of Engineering Associate Professor James Galagan will continue to lead his research team in studying a non-pathogenic, M. smegmatis, related to the organism that causes TB, according to a Tuesday NEIDL press release. The studies should help researchers “gain insight into how key gene control mechanisms work,” according to the release. A second team will study host resistance to TB bacteria and work toward vaccine potency and safety. Associate BU School of Medicine Professor Igor Kramnik leads this team.
Fifteen researchers comprise the two teams. Funding for the research totals more than $4.5 million in grants. Higher-level research at the lab awaits approval and the National Institutes of Health meets with the public to discuss its Risk Assessment of level-3 and level-4 research April 19, Berlin said. Level-4 research is set aside for infectious diseases, which are usually life threatening, according to the NEIDL website. NIH completed its 1,756-page Draft Supplementary Risk Assessment in February. Results showed the risk of infections or deaths to the general public living near the NEIDL are “generally very low to only remotely possible,” according to the 23-page Reader’s Guide. The public comment period ends May 1, after which NIH will prepare its Final Supplementary Risk, according to the NIH website.
Although the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority officially passed its final budget proposal Wednesday, many Bostonians said they hesitated to express their approval of the measure. “They’re in a bit of a pickle,” said Daniel Lampariello, a Suffolk University sophomore and a “Boston to a T” blogger, referring to the public’s response to the MBTA’s official proposal to close its $185 million budget gap for fiscal year 2012-13. The proposal, which will go into effect July 1, is set to include a 23 percent fare increase and some service cuts, said MBTA Spokeswoman Lydia Rivera. Under the plan, bus fares will climb from $1.25 to $1.50 and CharlieCard subway fares from $1.70 to $2, according to an MBTA press release. The 30-cent increase on subway fares will be “fine” for him as a college student, Lampariello said. “As a college student, I use the T every day,” he said. “I’m still going to keep paying for it, and 30 cents won’t make a big difference for me.” In fact, increasing prices is a valid move on the MBTA’s part, he said, because “people need to use the T, and they’ll pay either way.” Fare hikes are better than drastic service cuts, said Megan Green, an Allston resident who stood at the Boston University West T stop on the Green Line as she explained her perspective. “If I had to pick, I’d rather pay the 30 cents more because I need the T to get to work,” Green said. “But $2 a ride is still pretty pricey for me.” She said the service cuts would not always affect her as much as price hikes. “But I know that so many people depend on certain routes, and once they’re gone, they’re gone,” Green said. “At least with the price hikes, they can then lower prices again.” But Noah McKenna, a representative from Occupy Boston’s Occupy the MBTA working group, called the T’s proposal “unacceptable.” “One of our goals is to stop those . . . fair hikes and service cuts . . . from going into effect,” he said. “We need a transportation plan that helps to build equality and helps the 99 percent. The Legislature has continued to procrastinate and now they’re attempting to directly pass the bill against the most vulnerable citizens.”
MBTA, see page 2
Students attend ‘Kony 2012’ screening, continue support despite controversy By Mary Yatrousis Daily Free Press Staff
Adongo Quinto, an Invisible Children “roadie” from Uganda, remembers hiding in the jungle and seeing the Lord’s Resistance Army chase another boy, he said to Boston University students Wednesday night. “We strongly believe that what Joseph Kony is doing is absolutely wrong,” Quinto said. “We have to do something to ensure that this war comes to end.” About 30 students attended a “Kony 2012” screening designed to raise awareness of the political strife in Unganda and to continue IC’s mission of galvanizing public outcry against Kony, a Ugandan war lord made famous in recent weeks by IC’s campaign. Quinto said he joined IC in 2006. He
recently left his family and job behind in Uganda to begin a 10-week tour with IC. “Kony 2012” received an “overwhelming” response, said Caleb Riddle, an IC “roadie” from Virginia. The nonprofit organization’s goal for number of views by the end of 2012 was crushed in the first 10 hours of the “Kony 2012” premiere. Riddle said he hopes more people reach out to their representatives. “The resolution is for the [U.S.] to see the conflict to the end,” Riddle said. “We know by capturing Joseph Kony, it necessarily won’t end the war. He’s got a lot of top commanders that still need to be captured after him.” Though a resolution is in the works, 90 co-sponsors are not enough to pass the resolution, he said. U.S. Sen. John Kerry, of Massachusetts, is among politicians “unof-
ficially” supportive of the IC’s cause. Amanda Crawford-Staub, a College of Arts and Sciences sophomore, is the president of BU IC, “I think the impact [of “Kony 2012”] so far has really accomplished what it initially set out to do,” Crawford-Staub said. Though “Kony 2012” has had some negative impact, College of Engineering freshman and BU IC executive board member Garrett Moore said it has caused more conversation and questions about Kony. “I feel anytime you have something that gets attention very quickly from mass media, or just a lot of the population, especially a population of youth, there is going to be backlash,” Moore said. Moore said some of the backlash was
Kony, see page 4
SPENCER WARDWELL/Daily Free Press Staff
Invisible Children volunteers Caleb Riddle (left) and Adonga Quinto speak to the crowd after viewing the organizations film “Kony 2012.” IC held a screening of the film in the College of General Studies Wednesday night.
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Thursday, April 5, 2012
Protesters: fare hikes ‘false choices’ MBTA: From Page 1
He said Occupy the MBTA sees the fare hikes and service cuts as “false choices.”
“Unless the state government tries to intervene,” Lampariello said, “as of right now, we’ll be in the same place next year.”
Similar problems ahead for MBTA Occupy: From Page 1
“Public transportation is necessary for a sustainable society,” she said. “Right now, we don’t even have public transportation that does a good job for the 20th century.” MBTA spokeswoman Lydia Rivera said she strongly refutes comments regarding the MBTA’s own lack of outreach to the community. “We had 31 meetings,” she said. “We invested thousands of dollars promoting these meetings.”
Rivera said the protesters have a right to voice their considerations and the MBTA does its best to listen. “We firmly stand by the fact that we proposed a fair and equitable increase of 23 percent,” she said. She said the MBTA is still looking for creative ways to fund the T with minimal negative effects on customers. “This is not the end of our issues,” Rivera said. “We will be back here next year with the same problem.”
The Daily Free Press Crossword By Tribune Media Services Across 1 Persian Gulf emirate 6 Aptly named novelist 11 Check for drinks 14 Rocket scientist Wernher von __ 15 Use for dinner, as dishes 16 Realm from 8001806: Abbr. 17 Jazzy O’Day 18 On the __: broken
48 HVAC measure
52 Not expected back at work until tomorrow
59 Nebraska city
63 Mauna __ 64 Lees competitor
23 More intimate
68 Sharp-eyed bird
25 __-mutuel: type of betting
Down 1 Trade name abbr.
26 Funny Costello
2 Caterer’s vessel
27 Abel’s slayer
3 Controversial financial rescues
only one?!”
12 Prefix with -scopic
35 South Korea’s first president
13 “Scram!” 21 New employee
37 Altar promise
22 End result
38 “Drinks are on yours truly”
5 “Be right there!”
23 Littleneck, e.g.
39 MLB league
6 Get a better int. rate, probably
24 Centers of activity
40 Letter-shaped fastener
28 Actress Swenson
51 “West Side Story” heroine 53 Music genre that experienced a ‘50s-’60s revival 54 Sign of the future 55 Sitarist Shankar 56 That’s partner 57 Corned beef dish
29 Smartly dressed
43 Flip back and forth, as an on-off switch
61 Commercial prefix with -cro
30 Obstetrician’s calculation
44 Like some denim patches
62 Prior to
10 Automaker Ferrari
31 Psychic’s asset, for short
45 Letter-writing friend
11 Store to “fall into,”
33 “Surely I’m not the
7 Make on the job 8 Working busily
42 IRS agent
9 “The lady __ protest too much”: “Hamlet”
46 Slangy agreement
in old ads
4 Cars
41 Conceived of
43 What ballerinas dance on
Sudoku
65 Ocean ship
67 Kosher deli offering
36 Failing to grasp a key element
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60 Tee shot
20 Daydreaming
34 Pressed for time
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58 Econ. yardstick
66 Bigger picture: Abbr.
32 It follows the overture
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50 Uproar
19 Approx. landing hr.
30 Tsar or emperor
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49 Utah city near Provo
47 Circular gridiron gathering
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Campus & City City Crime Logs You’ve Got Mail By Meg DeMouth & Amelia Pak-Harvey Daily Free Press Staff
The following crime reports were taken from the Allston-Brighton District D-14 and the South End District D-4 crime logs from March 28 to April 3. At about 4 p.m. March 28, police arrested two men impersonating mailmen for breaking and entering into a home on Marlborough Street in the South End. Police responded to a call from a woman who claimed that while at home with several children, one of the suspects shouted in her yard and then handed her mail, stating, “I have your mail.” When police arrived on the scene, one of the suspects was dressed in a U.S. Postal Service uniform, and the second suspect, the one who had allegedly handed the victim her mail, claimed to be helping deliver his mail. Both were under the influence. The suspect in uniform had a hypodermic needle on him, as well as a cell phone taken from an opened package in a mailbox on the street. After arresting the two men, police found that the suspect not in uniform is a registered Level 2 sex offender. Let’s paint the town An off-duty officer saw four men painting graffiti near Goodenough and North Beacon Street in Brighton at about 11 p.m. on Monday. While the suspects were about to spray paint a second wall, the officer observed them passing cans to each other and looking out for possible detection. With the help of another officer, three of the men were arrested for graffiti. The fourth man initially ran away, but went back and confessed to the officers, who also arrested him.
U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and his Democratic opponent Elizabeth Warren are averaging a 3.6-percent difference in multiple polls, according to Real Clear Politics polling data. The candidates are pulling close numbers so far in the senate race. The data, which averaged polls dating from Jan. 31 to March 27, showed Brown leading the way by 3.6 percent. Brown gathered 45.7 percent while Warren counted for 42.1 percent. With seven months until Election Day, the validity of these polls on accurately predicting the winner may be unclear, according to officials. “The further removed you are from anything, the less stock you should put in polls,” said Boston University political science Professor Doug Kriner. “The polls are an accurate representation of public opinion at the time, but they can’t be sure the public opinion will remain constant until November.” Kriner said having Obama at the top of the ballot might play a crucial role for the success of Warren.
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Fewer high-ranking women at BU, follows trend Health care sans mandate would fail, analyst says
By Maha Kamal Daily Free Press Staff
Of the 12 Boston University faculty members promoted to full professor positions this year two professors, Nazli Kibria and Susan Fournier, were women, BU officials said. “We encourage the search committees to hire an excellent and diverse pool,” said Julie Sandell, associate provost for faculty development at BU. Sandell said within the BU professorial ranks the womento-men ratio grows increasingly smaller as the ranks grow more senior. Women comprise about 47 percent of assistant professors, 35 percent of associate professors and 21 percent of full professors, she said. While women are generally underrepresented in certain fields, their status is undergoing change, with more and more women entering increasingly higher-ranked positions, said Kibria, who will become a full professor of sociology in the fall. “The move from associate professorship to full professorship does not have a particular schedule,” Kibria said. “You have to request it and women may be more reluctant to ask because of family responsibilities, etc. It’s a nationwide trend, not just at Boston University.” BU’s gender ratios within professorial ranks are similar to those of other universities, Sandell said. At Harvard University, women represent 30 percent of assistant professors, 20 percent of associate professors and 9 percent of full professors during the 2011-12 academic year, according to the school’s Faculty Development and Diversity report for the year. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, women-to-men ratios are low because MIT is “primarily a science and engineering school,” said Nancy Hopkins, a
Brown, Warren deadlocked in recent poll on senatorial race By Mitch Harkey Daily Free Press Contributor
Thursday, April 5, 2012
“Having Obama’s support will be helpful for any Democratic candidate,” he said. Brown’s campaign has recently criticized Warren’s “weak” energy policy and her defense of Obamacare, according to a Brown press release. “Elizabeth Warren’s vigorous support of Obamacare and its medical device tax will translate directly into job losses in Massachusetts,” said Jim Barnett, Brown’s campaign manager, in a press release. “New taxes taking effect in 2013 will harm the medical device industry in Massachusetts, which consists of more than 400 companies employing nearly 25,000 people.” Warren’s campaign has criticized the “extreme amendment” Brown helped sponsor, which allows employers to refuse healthcare service based on moral objections, according to a statement from Warren’s campaign. “Sen. Brown took sides with Rick Santorum, Mitt Romney and the right wing of his party, against the people of Massachusetts, who in tough economic
Poll, see page 4
By Shayan Banerjee Daily Free Press Staff
PHOTO COURTSEY SUSAN FOURNIER
PHOTO COURTSEY NAZLI KIBRIA
Susan Fournier, left, and Nazli Kibria, right, were recently promoted to full-time Boston University faculty members. Together, they make up the only two female professors to earn full professorships.
MIT biology professor who organized and chaired the school’s first Gender Equity Committee. In general, women are underrepresented in such fields as math, physics, computer science, mechanical engineering and economics, she said. At Harvard, the differences between the percentage of women teaching humanities and social sciences and the percentage of women teaching natural, life and physical sciences grew more stratified as the ranks climb in the 2011-12 academic year, according to the FD&D report. Among the full professors at Harvard this year, the percentage of those teaching humanities and social sciences, about 45 to 49 percent, were about twice as large as the percentage of those teaching “hard sciences,” about 6 to 20 percent. “Women with doctorates are much more common in social sciences than in engineering,” Sandell said. Variability not only exists among different disciplines, but also in BU’s promotional process from year to year, she said. “This year, 17 percent . . . of the new full professors are wom-
en, less than the percentage of women in the associate professor pool,” Sandell said. “But last year it was 42 percent . . . more than the percentage of women in the associate professor pool.” Victoria Jue, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, said that she hasn’t noticed much disparity. “I think the ratio of male to female professors has been more or less equal in my experience,” she said. However, Gareth Goh, a student in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, said the majority of BU professors seem to be men. “I went for my undergrad here as well and in general I find that there are a lot more male professors than female professors,” he said. While she hasn’t spent as much time at BU as Jue and Goh, College of Communication freshman Marisa Flit said she has only been taught by one female professor at BU. “I don’t know if it’s because they don’t employ them,” Flit said, “but the classes I’ve been taking have generally been taught more by male professors.”
GSE AD 5.875x6_Layout 1 3/26/12 8:47 PM Page 1
President Barack Obama’s landmark healthcare law will not be nearly as productive without the individual mandate included, said healthcare policy analyst Jonathan Gruber. Gruber, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology economics professor who influenced the health care initiatives of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Obama, said the bill would cover at most half the uninsured individuals it would otherwise – should the Supreme Court declare the mandate unconstitutional. “If you get rid of the mandate you have a bill that is much less effective, much less efficient and much more uncertain,” Gruber said. Gruber said when he conducted research on healthcare during the Romney administration, he determined a law lacking a mandate would fail to achieve its primary goals of controlling costs and universal coverage. “If you give someone a subsidy it’s not enough to make them buy the good,” he said. He said even individuals who buy health care tend to be sickest, which raises prices. Professor Kathleen Carey from BU’s School of Public Health said without a universal health care system paid for entirely by the government, mandatory participation in the private market is essential. “It is not in the personal interest of many people to purchase insurance unless they need health care,” Carey said. Gruber said those individuals bring up the cost of care when they have to go to the emergency room and receive treatment without insurance coverage. “[They] should have to pay for the
Health care, see page 4
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Thursday, April 5, 2012
MIT prof. calls Supreme Court decision ‘nailbiter’ Health Care: From Page 3
costs imposed on the rest of society,” he said. Gruber said critics should take note of the religious exemption in the law and that those who choose not to buy insurance will only have to pay a small fine. “It’s not like you get thrown in jail – you just pay a penalty,” he said. Gruber said while those mostly young and healthy individuals may not like the mandate now, in the long run the policy helps everyone. “We’re all beneficiaries because this bill will help slow cost control, which is really the major threat to our democracy,” he said. Randall Ellis, an economics professor at Boston University who serves as president of the American Society of Health Economists, said the only way to make healthcare affordable is to force the healthy to buy insurance. “Without enrolling the healthy to hold down the premiums, not everyone will be able to afford health insurance,” Ellis said. Calling Obama’s health care bill a “pretty
conservative solution,” Gruber said the mandate was the only realistic method toward achieving these benefits. “There are no real alternatives that are nearly as effective and politically feasible,” he said. Gruber said the mandate is also necessitated by the fact that four million people have lost their employer insurance over the last three years alone. “Employer-sponsored insurance is disappearing,” Gruber said. Gruber said the success of Massachusetts in implementing the mandate should ward off those who seek to remove it. “[Massachusetts] covered about two-thirds of our uninsured residents with that solution,” Gruber said. Despite the benefits and lack of alternatives, Gruber said he is not as confident as he once was that the Supreme Court would choose to uphold the mandate. “I still think they’re more likely to uphold it than not,” Gruber said, “but it’s a nailbiter.”
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BU students expect to favor Warren come Nov. Poll: From Page 3
times rely on insurance to get the health care they need,” according to the statement. Students said they had mixed feelings about the senate elections. College of Communication sophomore Katarina Luketich said she is not following the race too closely, but if she were to vote she would vote for Warren just because she
is a registered Democrat. However, strictly going with the candidate’s party is not the only way for a voter to be partisan. COM sophomore Taylor Aube said voters might let the state’s political tendencies decide their vote. “Since Massachusetts is a ‘Blue State,’’ Aube said, “I think the general consensus would to stick with our liberal blue state values.”
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Anti-‘Kony 2012’ sentiment became ‘hipster’ Kony: From Page 1
coming from people who had not done all of their research. CAS freshman Bridget Larkin said the video continues to receive mixed reviews. “A lot of people have been hearing about it, and a lot of people are negative about the response it’s getting because people aren’t as sincere,” Larkin said. “It’s getting the
information out there, which is what [IC] wants.” Jennifer Owens, a CAS freshman, said she became interested in the cause after she watched it, and students’ loss of interest became “very hipster.” “[People said], ‘Oh, I can’t like it anymore because a bunch of people like it,’” Owens said.
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2013 AAAS ANNUAL MEETING 14–18 February • Boston www.aaas.org/meetings
Call for Symposium Proposals Symposium proposals for the 2013 AAAS Annual Meeting are now being solicited. To submit a proposal, visit www.aaas.org/meetings.
The deadline for submission is Thursday, 26 April 2012.
The Beauty and Benefits of Science The theme for the meeting points to the “unreasonable effectiveness” of the scientific enterprise in creating economic growth, solving societal problems, and satisfying the essential human drive to understand the world in which we live. The phrase, “unreasonable effectiveness,” was coined in 1960 by physicist Eugene Wigner,
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6T
hursday, April
Opinion
5, 2012
The Daily Free Press
Food for thought
The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University 42nd year F Volume 82 F Issue 93
Steph Solis, Editor-in-Chief Tim Healey, Managing Editor Emily Overholt, Campus Editor
Sydney L. Shea, City Editor
Meredith Perri, Sports Editor
Sofiya Mahdi, Opinion Page Editor
Kira Cole, Features Editor
Audrey Fain, Ricky Wilson, Photo Editors
Praise Hong, Advertising Manager Kaylee Hill, Layout Editor Valerie Morgan, Office Manager The Daily Free Press (ISSN 1094-7337) is published Monday through Thursday during the academic year except during vacation and exam periods by Back Bay Publishing Co.,Inc., a nonprofit corporation operated by Boston University students. No content can be reproduced without the permission of Back Bay Publishing Co., Inc. Copyright © 2010 Back Bay Publishing Co., Inc. All rights reserved.
Bald Barbie The power of a following via social media has proved to be significant. However, the publicity resulting from the ability to gather thousands behind a cause does not always yield tangible results. Many Facebook and Twitter movements have gathered momentum, made headlines and then slowly faded away from the public’s minds. However, one Facebook campaign has made headlines and caused the toy company Mattel to create a revolutionary new Barbie doll. The cause created a Facebook page, complete with a description that reads, “Beautiful and Bald Barbie! Let’s see if we can get it made.” Two women, who both have daughters who lost their hair as a result of gruelling cancer treatments, pioneered the cause in January. According to an article published in TIME Wednesday, the toy manufacturing giant has promised to manufacture the bald doll, which will be accompanied by different outfits, wigs and other accessories. Furthermore, instead of stocking this Barbie on the shelves for profit, the newest item will be donated to numerous children’s hospitals, as well as the National Alopecia Areata Foundation. This is an enormous step toward allowing the
infamous doll to pursue an image that helps girls that feel marginalized by their conditions. Furthermore, the fact that these dolls will not be sold commercially in their initial stages proves that the corporate backing of the cause is sincere. Mattel deserves recognition for pursuing an idea that had its humble beginnings in a Facebook movement. This step will bring optimism to those who have shamed the company in the past for being a negative influence on young girls. Barbie has been criticized for its promotion of an unrealistic appearance, but the latest addition to its inventory will certainly be an encouragement for its promoters and a welcomed change for its critics. It remains to be seen whether this is indicative of a greater shift in which Facebook campaigns will continue to yield tangible results. In addition, the next hurdle for the Bald Barbie campaign is to get the dolls on store shelves alongside the other versions. If and when this occurs, children who are resigned to coping with hair loss at such a young age due to treatment or other conditions will finally feel acknowledged and included by the toymaker industry.
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Here’s what some of them said. PHOTOS AND INTERVIEWS BY AUDREY FAIN
ARLENE GRACIA
“They should advertise themselves better and let the student body know what they are doing” - CGS Freshman
SABA HAMEDY
ennifer Lawrence, the awesome heroine who plays Katniss in the epic “Hunger Games” series, has been under scrutiny by many people for not looking thin enough to play her role as a tribute. Apparently Hollywood Elsewhere author Jeffrey Wells called her “fairly tall, bigboned lady” who is “too big” for Josh Hutcherson, who plays fellow tribute and eventual love interest, Peeta. Hollywood Reporter author Todd McCarthy said Lawrence’s baby fat is too apparent in the film. The ultimate consensus among some critics: Lawrence isn’t hungry enough. Hold up – not hungry enough? Oh no! Lawrence doesn’t look thin enough to pull off malnourishment. Quick – call Hollywood dieticians or, better yet, get the girl to allow society to let her fall into using drugs. These articles from respected publicationare an example of how the public has an appetite for malicious critiques of normal people. And for the record, Lawrence is not fat, she is normal – something more girls should aspire to be. She’s just a strong young adult portraying a strong, independent teenager. I know this isn’t about London, per se, but being here has made me realize that body image is not something to fret over. Obviously being healthy should be a priority for everyone – children, teenagers and adults alike. But being healthy doesn’t mean being stick thin, and being big should not be a bad thing. In London, girls wear whatever, wherever and don’t care what their bodies looks like. I’ve seen all shapes and sizes in the streets of this city and never once a nasty look from a catty girl. Not once a whisper about how someone should not be wearing something that tight. Reality shows in America like “The Hills” put only the skinny girls in the limelight. Whereas in London shows like “The Only Way is Essex” glorify curves (okay, as well as fake boobs and fake tans, but still). Also in the U.S., people are known for being heavy. News reports constantly highlight the obsession with getting fast food and “super sizing” all portions. In London, while people love and value food as well, portions are smaller and people do not engulf their meals because they appreciate them, bite by bite. Perhaps I am perpetuating too much of a “Mean Girls” outlook on the American public’s idea of beauty, but growing up in Los Angeles has sort of warped my idea of what the “perfect body” should be. I’ve even joked
about weight gain in my columns, complaining about how being abroad makes me eat more and exercise less. But with one month left, I think I can now accept that part of being abroad entails eating. Brussels without Belgian waffles and chocolate would have just been a playground for the European Union. Paris without a crepe would have just been wrong. And when I go to Italy (EAT-ily) in May, I plan on packing on some pounds and eating my feelings . . . feelings of happiness. I remember before coming here everyone said, “Oh you’re going to lose so much weight over there – the food sucks!” And just about a month ago, NPR ran a piece on how British dining has a reputation for being atrocious. The thing is, food here is not atrocious. It’s delicious . . . and at first I didn’t want to admit it to myself, but I can’t not eat. Take Brick Lane, for example. If you want something ethnic, you go here. The Sunday Market was like a tour around the world. My friend and I literally spent six hours there, tasting and gawking at food – from paella to samosas, there was nothing missing here. And the people! Their appreciation for food made me appreciate the food more. They eat it all with no remorse. On this particular Sunday, the sun was shining and hipsters were not sparse. The entire market was filled with people packed like sardines, and hundreds lounged in the vast expanses of parking lot. Or any pubs. Order fish, chips and cider. Enough said. If this doesn’t satisfy you, go to Borough Market where there are fruits, vegetables, fish and meat – oh my! Like a farmers’ market to an unprecedented level, there is nothing missing from this place either. Not to mention Camden Market. While mostly home to clothes and the alternative crowd, the market also has a small but delicious area for eats. Similar to Brick Lane in that it has cuisines from all over the world, this is where you go when you want to shop and eat. But I’m not even scratching the surface. My point is, food is too good to pretend not to crave, and an emphasis on the “perfect body” is pointless. We all only live once, so we might as well stuff our faces and work it off later. Saba Hamedy is a College of Communication and College of Arts and Sciences junior, Fall 2011 editor-in-chief of The Daily Free Press and now a weekly columnist. She can be reached at sbhamedy@bu.edu.
Terriers Talk
Boston University’s Student Union The Daily Free Press asked what students would like to see change within Student Union next semester
Winning London
MATT CIALINI
“Could they do something to bring more places that use dining points?” - CAS Sophomore
OLIVIA SHALLET “I think that we should implement a campus-wide awareness program on consent and awareness on rape culture.” - CAS Sophomore
PETER GILMORE “I don’t really know what goes on.” - CAS Senior
Thursday, April 5, 2012
7
Rychcik: BU’s most talented team in league MARASCO: Kentucky, Calipari bank on elite talent Softball: From page 8
chcik said. “I thought we played really good against some really good competition and you know, a lot changes.” With two outs in the top of the fifth, Bryant tied the score. Outfielder Lauren Guy hit a two-out single up the middle before being brought home when second baseman Laura Bowen hit a home run to left field. The Bulldogs scored the winning
run in the top of the sixth when a fielder’s choice allowed catcher Kendall Corder to score from third. Despite having two runners in scoring position with only one out, the Terriers did not score after rookie left fielder Mandy Fernandez and sophomore first baseman Chelsea Kehr struck out. BU had no base runners in the bottom of the seventh. After being hit by a pitch in the hand during the first game in Sunday’s doubleheader, junior second
baseman Emily Roesch did not play for the second game in a row. While BU has lost four of its last five, it has a chance to break its current slump up north at the University of Maine this weekend with a threegame series. “We’re the most talented team in the league,” Rychcik said. “We have the best pitching, I think we have the best hitting still. . . . Talent-wise I know we’re still the best team in this league.”
Marasco: From page 8
would be between two traditional college basketball powers, Kentucky and Kansas. You heard all day Sunday and Monday about how Bill Self’s Kansas team had beaten the John Calipari-led Memphis Tigers in 2008 in the final. Analysts reached for any matchup edge they could to find a way to spin the game in Kansas’s favor. But from the opening tip, it really wasn’t ever close. Kentucky asserted its will early, built a 14-point lead by halftime and didn’t look back. Sure, Kansas had a run here and there, but that’s inevitable. The game never felt out of Kentucky’s control. Davis only had six points in the game, but he pulled down 12 rebounds and had four blocks. His unibrow added another four rebounds and two blocks, giving him a total of 16 and six. He seemed to dominate the game despite shooting just 1-for-10 from the floor – cementing his status as this year’s No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA draft. To me, the most remarkable aspect of all this – other than the fact that Davis willingly chooses to rock the single brow on national television – is Calipari and his mastery of the one-and-done aspect of college hoops. In a basketball landscape where the best players are only playing one year at the collegiate level, making continuity impossible for the top teams, Calipari has coached his teams to seven of the last eight Elite
Eights, and three out of the last four Final Fours. Now Calipari has a championship to boast as well. Through his first two seasons at Kentucky he’d already put nine players in the NBA, seven of which were first round picks, and you can bet that he’ll be putting in several more in the coming draft. Why wouldn’t you want to play for this guy if you were a top high school basketball player? If you can play, he’ll get you to the NBA. Heck, I’d grow a uni of my own to play for Calipari. He’s already signed three top recruits for next season, and seems to have an inside track to acquire at least one (if not both) of the first- and second-rated recruits, who are both undecided at this point. With this dominant championship run, Calipari and Kentucky have affirmed their recruiting pitch and created a college basketball empire on the strength of freshmen All-Americans – spitting in the face of the old cliché that you need experience to win championships. No, coach Cal and his Wildcats will continue to bank on elite talent, continue to construct one-year-only super teams loaded with first-round NBA picks and continue to be a dominant force of nature in college basketball. Calipari only needed three seasons to reach the pinnacle at Kentucky, and the only thing that could stop him now is his own ambition to return to coaching at the NBA level. The rest of college basketball will keep their collective fingers crossed that he does soon.
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The thought of ‘this team with a notso-good record right now has a chance to beat us’ just keeps rolling on you. -BU softball coach Shawn Rychcik
Page 8
The Empty Net
The Naturals
Frank Marasco The power of the unibrow could not be undone, as Kentucky, led by Anthony Davis, rolled through Kansas to take the NCAA men’s basketball title on Monday night. Kentucky barely seemed to break a sweat the entire tournament, causally beating team after team by comfortable margins. In the first round, the Wildcats beat their in-state “rivals” Western Kentucky by 15, despite seeming to sleepwalk through the first five or six minutes of the game against those “storied” Hilltoppers. In fact, Anthony Davis seemed annoyed that WKU was even trying to score and blocked seven shots. Next up was Iowa State, a legitimate Big 12 team that was coming off a win against the University of Connecticut, last year’s champs. “Iowa State won’t be an easy . . . oh . . . wow that looks really easy actually,” you thought while watching the Wildcats blow them out. Then there was Indiana. I was actually lucky enough to overhear a conversation between two of Kentucky’s players before the game: Player 1: “Oh, we’re in the Sweet Sixteen?” Player 2: “Yeah. You know what’d be fun?” Player 1: “What?” Player 2: “Let’s score 100 points today!” Player 1: “Yeah, that does sound fun. OK.” The Wildcats cruised to their third straight double-digit win and were primed for an Elite Eight showdown with Baylor. I apologize for the build up because it actually wasn’t much of a showdown. Kentucky turned on autopilot and advanced to the Final Four on the strength of its fourth consecutive win by 12 points or more. It gave up 16 offensive rebounds and had 13 turnovers in that game, but just shrugged and said, “Your point? We’re Kentucky.” Then came the semis. The Wildcats were set to face an actual instate rival, Louisville, who had won eight straight games and the Big East along the way – a daunting foe. Well, a daunting foe if you don’t have the future first two overall picks in this year’s NBA draft on the same team. Louisville kept the game close with an array of gimmicks: full court presses and half-court traps. The Cardinals pulled down 19 offensive rebounds and forced 14 turnovers. Still, the game never felt in jeopardy for the Wildcats. They settled for an eight-point win. The stage was set. The final
Marasco, see page 7
Sports
W. Tennis vs. UMass-Amherst, 2 p.m.
Toodaloo, Terrier The BU lacrosse team won it’s sixth straight contest and third straight America East game on Wednesday, p. 8
[ www.dailyfreepress.com ]
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Lacrosse wins third straight conference tilt By Kevin Dillon Daily Free Press Staff
After coming from behind to win its previous two games, the Boston University lacrosse team never trailed in a 13-8 victory over the University of New Hampshire Wednesday afternoon at Nickerson Field. “[Starting strong] was actually one of our 13 focuses in our BU pregame speech 8 of ‘Let’s go UNH out and set a tempo. Let’s go set the tone,’” said BU coach Liz Robertshaw. “I was really impressed by the fact that we did go on a run and we did get ahead, which shows that we can go ahead and stay ahead, which is important.” The win extends BU’s six-game winning streak and is the third Terrier (7-4, 3-0 America East) win in a row to begin America East play. Senior attack Molly Swain got the Terriers on the board twice in the first 10 minutes and gave her team an early 2-0 lead. Swain netted her first in traffic directly in front of the goal before firing a freeposition shot past UNH (3-7, 1-2 America East) goalkeeper Kathleen O’Keefe with 20:01 remaining in the first frame. The teams traded goals until
freshman attack Mallory Collins scored back-to-back goals of her own to give BU a 5-2 lead with 4:41 remaining in the first half. Collins’ efforts gave BU a three-goal lead to end the half and added her 30th and 31st goals of the season, a total that is best for a freshman in the America East Conference. UNH started the second half strong though, with midfielder Kate Keagins making an end-to-end rush and attack Kayleigh Hinkle scoring on the rebound. Hinkle scored the goal with BU junior defenseman Monica Baumgartner off with a yellow card, which was UNH’s second goal with a man up in the contest. A goal from Wildcat midfielder Amber Casiano brought the game within one before a quick shot from Ilana Cohen assisted by midfielder Laura Puccia tied the game at five with 20:55 left in the game. Puccia led the Wildcats in the game with three goals and two assists. With the score tied at 6-6, junior attack Danielle Etrasco took the ball from behind the net, faked a shot and then fed senior attack Catie Tilton who snapped in a goal that gave BU a lead that it would never surrender. Junior midfielder Kristen Mogavero scored her 19th goal of the season a few minutes later when
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JACKIE ROBERTSON/ DAILY FREE PRESS FILE PHOTO
Senior attack Molly Swain scored four goals during BU’s win over New Hampshire on Wednesday.
Bryant comes from behind to top Terriers Close games not uncommon BU unable to repeat recordbreaking outing against Bryant during first half of season By Sam Simmons Daily Free Press Staff
The Boston University softball team suffered a loss as it dropped a 3-2 decision to Bryant University Wednesday afternoon. The loss, its fourth in five games, marked another disappointment for a team that seems to be in a bit of a slump. “We’ve got 3 Bryant some work to 2 do going into BU this weekend, the next couple days,” said BU coach Shawn Rychcik. The last time BU (20-12, 4-2 America East) faced Bryant (8-17) the Terriers defeated the Bulldogs 13-3, smashing a record 19 hits as they pounded their opponents. Wednesday afternoon was a different story, as the Terriers could not keep the momentum going from their 8-3 victory against Stony Brook University Sunday afternoon. Junior Erin Schuppert took the mound again for the Terriers for her third start in as many games, holding Bryant to three earned runs before she was taken out and replaced by sophomore Holli Floetker. Schuppert (4-5) allowed only four hits while striking out four, but her
The Bottom Line
Thursday, April 5
The Daily Free Press
Friday, April 6 Track @ Stanford, All Day Track @ Florida, All Day
team’s offense could not make up the difference. Despite a 3-for-3 effort by sophomore shortstop Brittany Clendenny, including two doubles, the Terriers only put two runs on the board as their offensive struggles continued. The game remained scoreless for the first two and a half innings before BU scored two runs in the bottom of the third. Senior second baseman Melanie Delgado started off the inning for the Terriers with a lead-off single. She quickly advanced to second when sophomore right fielder Jayme Mask singled. Sophomore third baseman Megan Volpano reached first after a fielding error by Bryant shortstop Aubrey Mable, allowing Delgado and Mask to score, putting the Terriers’ only runs on the board. The Terriers held their lead through the top of the fourth and seemed poised for more runs when Clendenny hit a double to lead off the bottom of the fourth. Bryant, however, turned over three quick outs before she could score. “Obviously we haven’t played exactly how we did down south [at the beginning of the season],” Ry-
Softball, see page 7
Saturday, April 7
W. Lacrosse @ Albany, 2 p.m. Softball @ Maine, 12 p.m. Track @ Stanford, All Day Track @ Florida, All Day
By Tyler Lay Daily Free Press Staff
When the Boston University softball team routed Bryant University 13-3 on March 21, the decisiveness of the victory provided a much-needed sigh of relief for BU coach Shawn Rychcik and his Terriers. Before BU put on the recordbreaking offensive performance against the Bulldogs, 22 of its previous 25 games were decided by three runs or less. Bryant travelled to the Boston University Softball Field Wednesday for a second matchup with the Terriers, and the home team was certainly looking for another confidence boost after BU dropped a three-game series to conference opponent Stony Brook University last weekend, when it lost the first two games by one run. Despite the fact that Bryant decided to start the same pitcher that BU last saw, junior Brittany Hart, the Terriers could not produce significantly on offense. The result of the game was another close decision, a 3-2 loss. Since the passing of BU’s eightgame winning streak that stretched through the middle of March, the team has struggled to get back on
Sunday, April 8 Softball @ Maine, 12 p.m. W. Golf @ Brown, All Day
track. “We are a team of momentum, and, right now, it doesn’t take a whole lot to break our momentum,” Rychcik said. Of the 22 games it has finished within three runs of its opponent this season, the Terriers have won 13, eight by a single run and five by two. Although the Terriers have a solid rate of success in such games, the lack of decisive wins likely has a significant influence on the team’s inability to maintain momentum. Against Binghamton University two weeks ago, the Terriers managed to garner two of their three wins in the series by virtue of seventh-inning comebacks. Because the wins were heavily reliant on clutch batting late in the games, the offensive confidence of the team benefitted most, while pitching appeared to remain stagnant. Junior Erin Schuppert started Wednesday’s game against Bryant, but when the Bulldogs negated BU’s two-run lead in the fifth inning, sophomore Holli Floetker came in for relief. Rychcik noticed that the closeness of the matchup created
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Monday, April 9 W. Golf @ Brown, All Day