The Daily Northwestern Wednesday, October 11, 2017
DAILYNORTHWESTERN.COM 8 SPORTS/Women’s Soccer
3 CAMPUS/Speakers
Wildcats prepare for critical Big Ten game
Medill Prof. Melissa Isaacson describes her experience as a woman in sports journalism
Find us online @thedailynu 4 OPINION/Letter to the Editor
Don’t criticize athletes without empathizing
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NU looks back on historic takeover University recalls Bursar’s Office sitin 50 years later By MADDIE BURAKOFF
daily senior staffer @madsburk
In May 1968, approximately 100 students occupied the Northwestern Bursar’s Office and presented a list of demands to the University — an event that left a lasting legacy on the black student experience at NU, said Jeffrey Sterling (Weinberg ’85), president of the NU Black Alumni Association. “The actions of those individuals in 1968 really represents a line in the sand, a starting point for when the University really began ... engaging in meaningful growth,” Sterling said. “Now, everyone is able to have a voice and contribute to the ongoing evolution of the University.” Hundreds of students and alumni — including some participants from the historic sit-in — gathered at the Black House on Friday to kick off a series of events commemorating the protest’s 50th anniversary, Sterling said. Students led the 38-hour
peaceful protest after the University failed to meet a list of black students’ demands, which included calls for NU to desegregate its real estate holdings, admit more black students and add a program in black literature, history and art, The Daily reported in 1968. Students originally presented these demands on April 22, 1968, but when they could not reach an agreement with administrators, they took over the Bursar’s Office — now part of the Office of Treasury Operations — on the morning of May 3. The sit-in played a major role in the creation of the Black House and the establishment of an African American Studies program, Sterling said, and “set the stage” for future groups to voice their concerns. To commemorate the landmark anniversary, he said NUBAA and the University will hold programming throughout the academic year. He added that a special slate of events is scheduled for May 3-6, aligning with the protest’s anniversary. The May weekend will feature about 15 related events, Sterling said, including a procession across campus and a symposium » See TAKEOVER, page 5
Rachel Kupfer/The Daily Northwestern
A resident holds up a sign opposing Albion Residential’s proposed apartment tower. The development has caused controversy in Evanston.
Aldermen table Albion tower vote By RYAN WANGMAN
daily senior staffer @ryanwangman
After hours of discussion, aldermen tabled a decision Monday on Albion Residential’s controversial proposal to construct a 16-story apartment tower on Sherman Avenue. At the City Council meeting, officials cited concerns over the tower’s size, location and aesthetic appeal, and agreed they needed more time to review information about the building before voting. Ald. Melissa Wynne (3rd) said
while there are positive aspects of the proposal — like the addition of more affordable housing to the downtown area — she worries the length and width of the site will “create a wall.” She said the decision on this plan will set a precedent for future development. “This then demonstrates what the city will approve, which then changes the land price throughout Evanston,” Wynne said. “I don’t want to send that signal. I want to send a signal that shows that we want a different mix of affordable housing.” The building would add 286 residential units — 15 of which
will be set aside as affordable housing — and 186 parking spaces to the Evanston community. It would be erected on the lot currently housing Prairie Moon and Tommy Nevin’s Pub. Robert Strom and Rohit Sahajpal — who own Prairie Moon and Tommy Nevin’s Pub, respectively — both said during public comment that they supported the new construction. Representatives from both Albion Residential and an opposing citizen-formed group, “Evanstonians for Responsible Planning,” debated the project’s merits to the council in 15-minute
presentations. Clare Kelly, who represented the citizen group, said the development would undermine a sense of community, threaten fairness in housing for residents and negatively impact the downtown area’s aesthetic appeal. A Change.org petition, started by Evanstonians for Responsible Planning, calls on the city to stop the “mega-development on Sherman” and had received more than 1,850 signatures by Tuesday evening. More than 30 people spoke » See ALBION, page 5
D65 adds gender neutral bathrooms University creates King Lab, Park School establish transgender-friendly facilities
Hub to emphasize diversity research, spur conversation
By AMELIA LANGAS
daily senior staffer @amelialangas
Some schools in Evanston/ Skokie School District 65 have begun to establish transgenderfriendly bathrooms in the wake of Evanston Township High School’s decision to enact a transgender locker room policy. This academic year, gender neutral bathrooms were created in the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Literary and Fine Arts School and Park School, district superintendent Paul Goren said. Lauren Heckathorne, a special education teacher at Park School who identifies as non-binary and uses they/them/their pronouns, said single-stall staff bathroom signs were changed last August to read “gender neutral” instead of “men” and “women.” Prior to implementation, Heckathorne said they felt “invalidated” by the gender labels assigned to the bathrooms. “To see a sign that includes me in it, even if it’s somewhere as simple as a bathroom, creates a much more inclusive environment in a space where I feel seen and respected,” Heckathorne said. “It brings a sense of belonging.” Heckathorne said they and principal Marlene Grossman
democracy center
By ELIZABETH BYRNE
the daily northwestern @lizbyrne33
Daily file photo by Katie Pach
Park School, 828 Main St. Park School, along with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Literary and Fine Arts School, have labeled single-stall bathrooms as gender neutral.
initially requested the signage change at Park School, but ultimately worked together to bring the topic to the full school board. The two’s advocacy ensured signs were changed at Park School and King Lab, which already had single-stall bathrooms. “The request to the district was whatever we were going to do would be global for the district,” Grossman said. “That we weren’t doing something different one place, that we were doing (in) another.” Heckathorne said Park School only serves children with multiple disabilities, so no students have verbalized a want or need for gender neutral bathrooms. Instead,
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they added, the bathrooms are being used by staff and visitors. Besides looking to broaden the implementation of gender neutral bathrooms, staff from District 65 schools have also recently formed a group called the Gender and Sexuality Educators Alliance that meets monthly, said Heckathorne, who is a member of the group. The group discusses the district’s work on equity and diversity through the “lens” of the LGBTQ community, Heckathorne said. While the addition of the gender neutral bathrooms to Park School has not drawn complaints from the community, Heckathorne said some staff members “don’t understand the big deal”
about having such spaces. They added this stems from a “lack of understanding.” “We’re meeting to look at this equity and diversity piece that the district is working on from the lens of the LGBTQ community and looking at where the supports are currently for the districts, where they aren’t (and) education that needs to be taking place,” Heckathorne said. Staff at King Lab could not be reached for comment regarding the school’s bathroom policy. Goren said uniform implementation procedures for gender neutral bathrooms will » See BATHROOMS, page 5
In response to the current political climate, political science Prof. Alvin Tillery said the Northwestern community needed a place to start conversations about the relationship between diversity and democracy. “We’re living in an era where racialized politics have returned to the forefront of our political discourse,” Tillery said. “In our department, we have one of the top groups studying racial inequality and racial politics in America and we thought (a) center would be a really good way for us to crystalize our work around certain projects.” Tillery said the Center for the Study of Diversity and Democracy was created with the help of Weinberg Dean Adrian Randolph and associate dean for faculty Edward Gibson. The center consists of 19 faculty affiliates and is housed in the Department of Political Science. The center officially launched in May, Tillery said, and has since
been in a “quiet stage” to build capacity and apply for grants to fund initiatives. By the end of the 2017-18 academic year, Tillery, the director of the center, said he hopes it will have built up its programming on campus. Tillery said he wants the center to be a University initiative, where “everyone feels a stake in it.” He emphasized that he wants to hear opinions from the NU community, especially alumni, to investigate new questions the center may not have initially considered. The center is working on a polling and data analytics unit that would run comprehensive polls exploring the relationship between diversity and politics, Tillery said. Through these surveys, he said he hopes to better understand the American population’s views on race and share his findings with others. “Within three years, I hope that any reporter, private citizen or policy maker (who) wants to know the current state regarding research on diversity issues and relationships to democracy will look at our database and our center for guidance,” Tillery said. Prof. Sara Monoson, chair of the political science department, said the center is a great addition » See DEMOCRACY, page 5
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