The Daily Northwestern Wednesday, January 29, 2020
DAILYNORTHWESTERN.COM 8 SPORTS/Men’s Basketball
3 CAMPUS/Technology
Wildcats seek to upset Michigan State
City Health Teach develops hand-washing device monitor, collects data on washing
Find us online @thedailynu 4 OPINION/Davies
What Burke taught me about Northwestern
High 33 Low 28
NU-sponsored travel to China prohibited Coronavirus spread prompted change for undergrads By ISABELLE SARRAF
the daily northwestern @isabellesarraf
Jackson Miller/The Daily Northwestern
The teach-in included presentations and small group discussion on Illinois’ proposed income tax reform.
Group hosts talk-in on tax reform Jewish Council on Urban Affairs discussed Illinois Income tax change By JACKSON MILLER
the daily northwestern @jacksonfire123
The Jewish Council on Urban Affairs held a teach-in on Illinois
income tax reform in Locy Hall Tuesday night. The event facilitated discussion on the proposed reforms, economic justice and ways attendees could support the Fair Tax 2020 Campaign. Gov. J.B. Pritzker
signed a bill last June amending Illinois’ Constitution to include a progressive income tax wherein higher earners pay a higher rate. The amendment will go into effect if a simple majority of voters, including those who skip the
question, approve it or at least 60 percent of those who vote on it approve it come Election Day this fall. Currently, Illinois has a flat » See FAIR TAX, page 6
The University announced in a Monday release that due to the coronavirus outbreak, NUsponsored undergraduate travel to China is prohibited at this time. The announcement responds to reports that the U.S. Department of State on Monday established a Level Three travel advisory suggesting Americans “reconsider” travel to China. On the same day, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also issued a Level Three health warning, recommending Americans “avoid nonessential travel” to China. Previously, the CDC’s warning only applied to Wuhan, Hubei province. Luke Figora, senior associate vice president and chief risk and compliance officer, said the decision to prohibit University-sponsored travel was triggered by the escalation of government-issued travel warnings and restrictions. He said NU has a policy that restricts undergraduate-sponsored travel to countries beyond Level Three status.
“The University, at this stage, is strongly recommending against any voluntary travel to the region until we know more or until the various public health departments give different guidance,” Figora said. “At this stage, our policy speaks to undergraduate travel.” Julie Friend, director of global safety and security, said all undergraduate programs planning trips to China during spring break will be diverted to other locations. This includes the Medill Global 301 course, “The Journey of the International Student,” in which students explore the intersections of identity, race and culture in journalism. Students in the course planned to travel to Shanghai over spring break, but Friend said it will be re-routed elsewhere, meaning Medill faculty and staff will now have to find and book flights, accommodations and activities for students in the next two months. The course begins meeting Feb. 10. Medill Prof. Mei-Ling Hopgood, who teaches the Global 301 class, said student safety is the largest consideration in the assessment of the Shanghai program moving forward. Hopgood has led the spring break trip to China since its inception three years ago. “The safety and security of our » See CORONAVIRUS, page 6
NU to host U7+ Summit in June
Residents travel for election work
the daily northwestern @yunkyomoonk
the daily northwestern @jacobnfulton1
By YUNKYO KIM
President Morton Schapiro announced Tuesday that Northwestern will host the seconwd annual U7+ Summit on June 2 and 3 in Evanston and Chicago. The event is co-sponsored with Georgetown University, Columbia University and University of California, Berkeley. It will precede the summit of the Group of Seven, an intergovernmental economic organization composed of the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Japan, France and Italy. The U7+ Summit is an annual convention of the U7 Alliance, which is the first international association composed of university presidents committed to global issues and civic responsibility. Representatives from more than 45 universities attended the U7 Alliance’s inaugural summit in 2019, and more than 50 have been invited this year. “We are honored to host this important gathering of universities committed to global leadership,” said Schapiro in a statement. “It is imperative
that today’s universities come together to play a leading role in addressing global challenges that can be solved through collaboration across disciplines and geographical boundaries.” Hosting the summit, Schapiro added, is also a testament to the University’s commitment to global research and education. The University is preparing an “ambitious global strategic plan” to develop strong partnerships and commitments in alignment with the U7 Alliance, he said. The two-day event will continue discussing key topics from last year, including the global role of universities, climate, societal inequality, technological advancements and community impact. University officials will develop and vote on a series of concrete commitments in Evanston, the release said. These commitments will then be considered in the G7 summit discussions. Annelise Riles, executive director of the Northwestern Buffett Institute for Global Affairs — which will help organize the summit — said Northwestern will comprise a unique role in the summit. yunkyokim2022@u.northwestern.edu
Serving the University and Evanston since 1881
Local activists have taken their passion for candidates over state lines By JACOB FULTON
In an election, citizens only have one vote. But in Evanston, activists are moving beyond the polls — and over state lines — to affect elections on a larger scale. Since the 1992 presidential election, Illinois has remained reliably blue, voting for Democratic nominees in seven consecutive elections. Evanston has elected a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives every year since 1948. As a result, organizers in groups like Indivisible Evanston and the Democratic Party of Evanston have focused their efforts on state and national elections outside of Illinois. Some activist organizations in the area, including the regionwide coalition Midwest Alliance of Progressives, formed after President Donald Trump won the 2016 election. The organization is one of a few that focuses on voter participation and education. » See IMPACT, page 6
Source: Postcards to Wisconsin on Twitter
A Postcards to Wisconsin letter-writing event. Volunteers for the organization are working to hand-write 500,000 letters to voters in Wisconsin.
INSIDE: Around Town 2 | On Campus 3 | Opinion 4 | Classifieds & Puzzles 6 | Sports 8
2 NEWS | THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2020
AROUND TOWN Chicago homicide rate decreases for 3rd straight year By ANDREW MYERS
the daily northwestern
The number of people killed in Chicago dropped from 567 in 2018 to 492 in 2019, marking a 13 percent decrease and the third year in a row where homicides have declined in Chicago. The drop in homicides follows one of Chicago’s deadliest years on record — in 2016, the city saw 762 murders, 3,550 shooting incidents and 4,331 shooting victims. From 2015 to 2016 there was a 42 percent increase in homicides. In May 2018, political science Prof. Wesley Skogan worked with Northwestern’s Institute for Policy Research to offer insights on reducing violence in Chicago. Skogan said the dramatic decline in homicides over the past three years was a result of a sharp increase in violence in 2016. “There had been a three year decline because in that first year there was an enormous spike,” Skogan said. “There was an increase of 35 percent in the measures of violence that I use, which is a huge spike. It was the third biggest crime spike in the city’s history.” Skogan, who is also in the process of writing a book on crime in Chicago, said there were three reasons as to why the homicide rate increased in 2016: a collapse in the ability for Chicago police to solve crimes, a decline in public support for the police and an increase in the size of bullets and high capacity magazines.
POLICE BLOTTER Coffee pot broken at Chase Bank A coffee pot was destroyed at the Chase Bank in the 1900 block of McDaniel Avenue at around 12:20 p.m. on Monday. The suspect, an Evanston man, is thought to have been dissatisfied with the bank prior to the vandalism, Evanston police Cmdr. Brian Henry said.
Graphic by Emma Ruck
The surge in homicides in 2016 was also “overwhelmingly” concentrated in black communities, Skogan said. The Chicago Police Department has not released its 2019 annual report on crime, but the Chicago Tribune has tracked murders that have taken place in the last 365 days. According to the Tribune, of the 526 homicides in
the last 365 days, 333 of those victims — or 63 percent — were black. Skogan attributed the disproportionate amount of violence in black neighborhoods to Chicago’s declining black population and the high concentration of black individuals in select neighborhoods. It is difficult to confirm specific reasons for
Chase Bank will not press charges for the destruction of property, but has banned the suspect from the location.
The vehicle’s owner, a Chicago man, reported the value of the faucet was approximately $290, Henry said. There is currently no information on the suspect.
Faucet stolen from unlocked car
A kitchen faucet was stolen from an unlocked 2016 Nissan between Sunday evening and Monday morning. The burglary occurred in the 1900 block of Colfax Street.
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Vehicle burglary leaves man missing medicine, cash
Cash, an expired credit card, medicine and miscellaneous items were stolen from an unlocked
the decrease in homicides, Skogan said. However, Kim Smith, the associate director of criminal justice initiative at the UChicago Urban Labs, said a 2017 policy implemented in the Englewood police district might have helped. “We saw that the introduction of an initiative called the Search and Decision Support Center led to a 26 percent reduction in shootings in that particular district,” Smith said. Smith said the program allowed police commanders to use information they have already collected on crime pattern to target their enforcement activities. She added that it was important to provide adequate and appropriate anti-gun violence resources to the communities most affected by homicides and shootings. “One thing we believe at the Crime Lab that is really important is to understand where the problem is most acute and to target resources to the population of individuals might benefit most from those programs,” Smith said. However, in the three years that homicide rates have decreased, Skogan and Smith both said it is difficult to credit any one initiative or policy with the decrease in homicides. “2016 was a huge spike, and the nature of spikes is that they go away,” Skogan said. “There was a confluence of things (to explain the decrease) and we only vaguely understand why.” andrewmyers2022@u.northwestern.edu 1997 Honda between Sunday evening and Monday morning. The owner, an Evanston man, reported that $30 in cash was taken, but the value of the other stolen goods is unknown, Henry said. The theft occurred in the 1900 block of Foster Street and there is no information about the suspect. — Molly Burke
THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN | NEWS 3
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2020
ON CAMPUS
City Health Tech develops new device By YUNKYO KIM
the daily northwestern @yunkyomoonk
City Health Tech’s award-winning product is only 3.5 inches tall, but it is mighty. The colorful 3D-printed monitor straps onto a faucet to count and collect data on hand-washing time. Its screen also plays engaging visuals to encourage hand-washing for the recommended minimum 20 seconds. The startup’s founder, McCormick senior Ibraheem Alinur, said the monitor can improve health issues for elementary school students, restaurant patrons and hospital patients. “You think about a sink,” Alinur said. “How do you detect hand-washing behavior? That’s something we found was crazy.” After growing up in rural Florida, Alinur said he enjoyed the efficiency and community unique to cities. He said he also observed people were getting constantly sick due to living in close proximity. When he formed City Health Tech in The Garage back in 2017, he knew the key to improving city-centered public health was a device that monitors and encourages healthy hand-washing time. Hand hygiene is the best way to prevent serious infections in healthcare, but healthcare providers on average wash their hands for less than half the recommended time, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2015, about 687,000 patients suffered from an infection they got while receiving health care. The modern technology to reduce healthcareassociated infections was hospitals hiring staff to sit in bathrooms with a stopwatch to time healthcare professionals’ hand-washing times, Alinur said. Beyond hospitals, the City Health Tech team found a niche in elementary schools. Alinur said many public schools are designated funding according to attendance rates, and individual absences can deduct from overall funding at about $6.5 billion nationally. Schools had a vested interest in encouraging their students to stay healthy and
receive consistent education, he said. The startup is currently running programs in Illinois schools and is partnered with North Shore Country Day School, Academy for Global Citizenship and the Hemenway United Methodist Church’s preschool program, among others. Despite the product’s success, Alinur said the startup is not in the business of putting financial burdens on low-income schools. Design engineer and McCormick senior Katherine Riedel said when she entered the diverse team of business strategists and engineers, the startup’s mission emphasized that it prioritized public health improvement above all. “We don’t want it to be another one of those devices that only helps people get rich,” Reidel said. “We do want to help people first.” Because of its simple but effective creation, the hand-washing device and the startup have won six awards and grants in the last year alone. This includes Improve NU and Wildfire’s Demo Day. Some of the prize money went to provide low-income schools
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City Health Tech’s hand-washing device monitors and collects data on hand-washing time. Team members believe it can reduce healthcare-associated infections and reduce school absences.
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with free products and services, Alinur said. The device currently costs $50 to install and an additional $5 monthly fee to maintain. This includes managing the devices, wireless analytics and updating animations, Alinur said. But there’s a method to focusing on the installation of the hand-washing device in schools. Alinur said teaching humans how to properly wash hands at a younger age is logically more effective to create public health impact long term. Irewole Akande, City Health Tech’s engineering manager, said he was excited that the startup was starting to gather the first data on actual hand-washing practices. The “baseline” of this data, Akande said, will enable scientists to conduct more quality research on the impact of hand-washing on public health. We’re trying to call it actionable data to serve as the basis,” Akande said. “The next generation of youth aren’t going to (need to) be taught how to actually have proper hand-washing hygiene.”
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DOWN 1 Serena's equipment 2 Everest climber's equipment 3 Polygon point 4 Online craft market 5 No-win situation 6 Cut 7 Medieval castle feature 8 Posseses 9 Speedy plane 10 Like some difficult pushups 11 Gluts 12 Like snow after a blizzard 13 Knitting material 18 Shakespearean king 19 Sordid people 24 Snowboarders' shredding material? 25 Wildcat Welcome discussion 28 Tyler Perry title role 29 Doctors' org. 30 Org. that's got your number 31 Cowboy movie 34 The olden days, in the olden days 35 Kobe Bryant, five times, e.g. 36 Deluges 37 In favor of 38 Extreme adverb 40 Chi-town superstation 41 Uses a promo code 43 Dawgs 44 PC competitor 45 Clever 46 Like some flowy jeans 47 1840s presidential family 51 Prefix with logical 52 Lawyer's case 53 Bullfight chants 54 Feminine suffix 56 Lover 57 Hart
OPINION
Join the online conversation at www.dailynorthwestern.com Page 4
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
What Burke taught me about nonbinary students at NU ADAM DAVIES
OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR
Martin Luther King Jr. once described how our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. Yet time and time again, Northwestern and the individuals who work and study here have shown silence on trans and nonbinary students, as though we do not matter. The Tarana Burke event at Northwestern was just another instance of how NU treats its trans students as an afterthought, even as nonexistent. Burke, an activist behind the #MeToo movement, spoke on campus as a part of the Martin Luther King Jr. events scheduled for this week. What most in the audience didn’t realize at the event was that when one of the sponsors — the 150 Years of Women campaign — was introduced, there was a failure to mention nonbinary students. This was an act of violence done against students who had worked so hard to expand the campaign, created to honor the first woman student, to include nonbinary students who also experience gender-based marginalization. Any celebration at Northwestern that aims to bring attention to the hardships and systemic barriers that women face due to their actual or perceived gender identity, should naturally extend to trans women and nonbinary individuals. A celebration without these people explicitly erases the narratives of oppression that they have faced at Northwestern for the past 150+ years. And even in her speech, Tarana Burke occasionally defaulted to gendered language when it came to talking about survivors of sexual violence, a pattern that occurs at Northwestern all too often. The messaging was clear — sexual harassment and violence is an issue that applies only to women. Nonbinary individuals should not and do not have a place at the table in that conversation at Northwestern. The campus climate survey, a 2019 survey about sexual assault and misconduct at Northwestern, shows rates of violence against undergraduate students who identify as TGQN — trans men or women, genderqueer or nonbinary, questioning, or not
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Writer misses the mark with column on anti-Semitism
It is clear that anti-Semitism is on the rise in the West. However, while it is imperative to condemn and combat the insidieousness of anti-Semitism, we must not in turn scapegoat other marginalized groups for anti-Semitic tragedies. Columnist Zach Kessel’s recent op-ed, “Anti-Semitism is a problem, not a political tool,” does exactly that. Filled with incongruencies and at times blatant lies, the Islamophobia and anti-Semitism within his own piece are harmful to not only the Jewish community, but black and Muslim communities as well.
listed — are actually the same as or higher than those for undergraduate women. Yet TGQN students remain an afterthought in our discussions of sexual violence on campus. The survey reported that rates of experiences of nonconsensual sexual contact for TGQN students were nearly identical to those for cisgender undergraduate women: 30.7 percent for the former and 30.8 percent for the latter. The survey data is also skewed. Due to having too small of a sample size, it combines rates of nonconsensual sexual contact for graduate and undergraduate TGQN students, although rates of nonconsensual sexual contact for TGQN graduate students are significantly lower than those for undergraduate students. This statistic reflects that either TGQN graduate students experience sexual violence at significantly higher rates than cisgender graduate students, or TGQN undergraduate students experience sexual violence at significantly higher rates than cisgender undergraduate trans students, or some combination of the two. The purpose of pointing this out is not
to invalidate the experiences of female survivors of violence, but to argue that trans students should be included in the conversations as well. Rates of harassment for TGQN students were higher than those for women; 45.4 percent reported harassment as opposed to 34.4 percent of undergraduate women. It is not a surprise, then, that the report found that among TGQN students at Northwestern, only 13.9 percent reported feeling extremely connected to the campus community, as opposed to 38.3 percent of undergraduate women. It’s important to note as well that surveys of this nature that have been conducted on larger populations similar to the Northwestern undergraduate community indicate that trans and gender nonconforming (TGNC) students of color experience nonconsensual sexual contact at rates that are significantly higher than their white TGNC peers. But, because the University could not even establish a baseline for undergraduate students, there is no data that allows for a specific comparison for undergraduate or graduate TGNC students of color at Northwestern.
Evan Robinson-Johnson/Daily Senior Staffer
Activist Tarana Burke delivers a keynote address on community healing from sexual abuse in marginalized communities. Burke has been organizing for years and is the founder of the #MeToo movement.
Kessel’s approach is not genuine in tackling anti-Semitism, and his claim to “see both sides” is misinformed and dangerous. We believe it necessary to push back against the fallacies that go unchecked in his piece. Kessel opens his piece citing a deleted tweet of US Representative Rashida Tlaib’s (D-Mich.), writing that “Tlaib deleted her tweet and did not offer any further condolences,” after learning that an anti-Semitic shooting had not been perpetrated by white people. In this, Tlaib was initially offering a necessary critique of whiteness. By mischaracterizing Tlaib’s response, Kessel ignores the reality that white supremacy is intimately tied to anti-Semitism regardless of the race of the perpetrators. Instead of locating anti-Semitism within a larger logic of white supremacy, Kessel villifies Representative Tlaib, a non-Jewish person of color who is clearly seeking to forge
meaningful alliances with the Jewish community. Further, Kessel’s focus on Tlaib and Omar throughout the piece is uncomfortably Islamophobic and reflects mainstream, white supremacist discourse which attempts to attack Black and Brown Muslim women. In his insincere efforts to critique both the left and right, Kessel misses the mark: white supremacy informs anti-Semitism in America. Kessel further argues that anti-Semitism exists on the left, yet only references criticisms of Israel. Being critical of violence enacted by a military regime is not an attack on Judaism. Kessel continually conflates anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism — a conflation which is itself anti-Semitic, as it predicates the Jewish faith on support for the Zionist project. His piece plays a part in the larger Zionist project to distort definitions of anti-Semitism to shield Israel from any form of critique. We must be stringent in what we consider anti-Semitic.
This prevents the institution from appropriately advocating for students who exist at the intersections of these identities. We as a University are failing our trans and gender nonconforming students and survivors, yet we refuse to talk about it. In fact, although the University sponsored a genderqueer, nonbinary, and trans (GQNBT) Task Force last year, the results — although completed by September of 2020 — have yet to be released to the Northwestern community. That report was built on the backs of TGNC and queer students, faculty, and staff at Northwestern like myself. The words in that report would be a first step in starting the conversation on how to support these members of our community. In her speech, Tarana Burke described how Northwestern is a community where everyone deserves protection and safety. This means that trans people at Northwestern deserve protection and safety. For that, we need to exist. Right now, we are continually erased, mentioned as a footnote, the subject of a task force or one day in a quarter-long class. I’m someone who is not only a nonbinary survivor, but who has witnessed my trans and nonbinary friends and community experience discrimination, harassment, sexual violence, mental illness, medical leave of absence and trauma at astronomically high rates here at Northwestern. Even something so small as refusing to include nonbinary people in the conversation at an event about sexual violence, like the Tarana Burke event, hurts. Northwestern needs to take a moment to pause and spark a conversation about its nonbinary students that is not behind closed doors, obscured or ommitted whenever convenient. Because until we start talking about our TGNC community members, we cannot talk about the ways TGNC students, faculty and staff experience sexual violence and how to stop it from happening in the future. Northwestern has been silent about us too long. It’s time for you to join me in asking for a change.
Adam Davies is a SESP senior. They can be contacted at adamdavies2020@u.northwestern.edu. If you would like to respond publicly to this op-ed, send a Letter to the Editor to opinion@dailynorthwestern.com. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern. When one considers anti-Zionist thought to be anti-Semitic, one disingenously uses and manipulates Jewish suffering to erase Palestinian suffering at the hands of Israel. It is not an attack on Judaism to acknowledge Israel’s violent occupation of Palestine. It is not an attack on Judaism to condemn the 600-plus military checkpoints in the West Bank. The 43 years of occupation of Gaza. The horrifying torture of women. The withholding of water and food. The destruction of homes. We must denounce Zionism as a settler colonial project steeped in white supremacist ideology, and we cannot tolerate Israel’s refusal to discuss Palestinians’ right to return. It is self-defeating to center the discourse on what can or cannot be said about Israel, rather than on the gross violation of human rights. — Students for Justice in Palestine
The Daily Northwestern Volume 141, Issue 15 Editor in Chief Troy Closson
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THE DAILY NORTHWESTERN | NEWS 5
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2020
Organization helps provide creative arts therapies By DELANEY NELSON
the daily northwestern @delaneygnelson
Brad Drozdowski said his therapy clients speak to him through hand drums, tambourines and other small percussion instruments. Drozdowski is a music therapist and volunteer coordinator at the Institute for Therapy through the Arts, 2130 Green Bay Rd, a nonprofit organization that provides creative arts therapies. While ITA is based in Evanston, it has over 50 locations in the Chicago area and partners with over 40 schools, nursing homes and other community organizations, development director Jessica Gardner said. The organization began in 1975 as a part of the Music Institute of Chicago, becoming an independent nonprofit five years ago. Since the 1980s, it has provided art therapy, drama therapy, music therapy and dance or movement therapy for clients with a wide range of backgrounds, including autism, Alzheimers, substance abuse and trauma. Last year, ITA served 1,520 people from ages 2 to 97. ITA exists to serve clients who need a more active, “holistic” therapy experience, executive director Jenni
Rook said. But not everyone knows about the opportunity of art-based healing, she said. “They might not know that they need to be more connected to their body and try dance movement therapy, or that the best way to express themselves is through their music,” Rook said. “Because our clients aren’t artists and musicians. They’re just people.” None of ITA’s therapies require previous art experience, Drozdowski said. The therapies don’t focus on skill. Rather, they prioritize communicating what words fail to say and engage many different sectors of the brain, he said. Drozdowski said even when clients don’t meet their stated goals or have a difficult session, he finds his work fulfilling. “There’s still always that sort of ground benefit of people connecting,” Drozdowski said. “The fact that I get to do it with music — I can’t think of anything better,” Bella, an ITA client, participates in the organization’s art therapy program to help with her anxiety. At their annual Healing Arts Celebration fundraiser, Bella told her story in front of 150 people. Gardner said Bella was “so poised and so eloquent.” “I’ve heard her talk about what she sees in her in her future that she didn’t imagine possible just a few years ago,” Gardner said. “To me that that says
everything.” Rook said she feels most rewarded when she sees clients discover abilities they didn’t know they had, like regain speech after a stroke or communicating with loved ones. “I will never work as hard as my clients; they work extremely hard,” Rook said. “But I’m going to work as hard as I can to make sure that I try everything possible to help them to rehabilitate.” ITA is working to make these experiences more accessible to all people. They provide financial assistance on a sliding-scale basis, meeting clients at their financial need level to reduce fees. While she said Evanston is an “arts-rich and accepting” community Rook said art therapy should extend everywhere, so she wants to open more locations throughout the state. ITA will host a conference in March as part of their goal to expand creative arts therapies, with a focus on “expressing the unspeakable,” including conversations about sex and disabilities and gender identity. Drozdowski said he spends nearly all of his time working for ITA in some capacity. “It’s one of those dream jobs,” he said. “You really just don’t ever want to leave.” delaneynelson2023@u.northwestern.edu
Facebook photo from Institute for Therapy through the Arts
The Institute for Therapy through the Arts provides art, drama, music and dance or movement therapy for clients with a wide range of backgrounds.
A student’s guide to the 2020 Democratic primaries By HANNAH FEUER
the daily northwestern @hannah_feuer
The day before the first 2020 primary election, members of the Northwestern College Democrats will knock on doors five hours away in Iowa, one of the most hotly contested election battlegrounds “It’s a huge opportunity for people who are really passionate about individual candidates to go into a state that is just so important to the election,” said Adam Downing, public relations director for the College Democrats. College Democrats members will canvass Iowa on Feb. 2 to persuade caucus-goers to support U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). A trip to canvass for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) was canceled
due to difficulties with transportation and timing. Democratic primaries will run from Feb. 3 to June 6. Illinois’s primary election will be held on March 17.
How to register to vote
NU Votes is the University’s nonpartisan initiative that aims to provide students with accessible voting information by leading voter registration on campus. Students can register to vote in person at the Center for Civic Engagement, 1813 Hinman Avenue. Although Illinois has same-day voter registration, acting director of the center Rob Donahue said he encourages students to register earlier in case something goes wrong. Voters looking to register in Illinois by mail or online must do so by Feb. 18 and Feb. 29, respectively. Donahue said he recommends students register inperson since the process varies by state and can feel
intimidating. Out-of-state students also have the option to register in their home state. Many prefer to register in their home state as underclassmen, but as they start to feel more connected to the Evanston community they may want to change their registration, Donahue said. Some students from swing states, such as Weinberg freshman Nick Bakaysa from Indiana, choose to register to vote in their home state because they feel like their vote will matter more there than it would in Illinois. “I want my voice to be heard,” Bakaysa said.
What to expect on election day
Polling places will be open to Illinois voters on March 17 from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. If you are in line by 7 p.m., you are entitled to vote. NU Votes coordinates
with the local election board to locate polling places conveniently. Typically, there is one on North campus and one South campus, Donahue said. No photo ID is required to vote in Illinois, unless a voter has registered by mail without verification and is voting for the first time. In the past, NU Votes has set up a “voter van” outside the center for early voting, which runs from March 2 to March 16. Students who are unable to make it to their polling place on election day or participate in early voting can vote by mail and should request an absentee ballot in advance, Donahue said. “There are so many (college students) around the country, and it turns out so few of us actually vote,” Downing said. “But at the end of the day we’re the ones who are going to be inheriting this country.” hannahfeuer2023@u.northwestern.edu
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Across Campuses Ex-coach charged in admissions scandal accuses UCLA of admitting unqualified athletes LOS ANGELES — Jorge Salcedo, the former UCLA men’s soccer coach charged in the college admissions scandal, accused the school of using athlete admissions “as a vehicle to raise funds” in a motion filed by his attorneys in U.S. District Court in Boston. The motion filed late Thursday seeks authorization to subpoena a wide variety of documents from UCLA and the University of California. “UCLA’s own internal documents reveal that, for many years, its Athletic Department has facilitated the admission of unqualified applicants — students who do not meet UCLA’s rigorous academic or athletics standards — through the student-athlete admissions process in exchange for huge ‘donations’ by the students’ wealthy parents,” the motion said. “These documents, which UCLA did not disclose to the government before this prosecution, tell a compelling behind-the-scenes story, one that undermines the Superseding Indictment’s narrative by definitely proving that UCLA is not a victim of a fraud scheme,” it said. The motion alleged, as well, that UCLA has
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2020 admitted non-athletes as sports recruits to help boost team grade-point averages. No names or other specifics were provided. Salcedo resigned in March after being arrested by FBI agents as part of the nationwide investigation into fraudulent college admissions dubbed “Varsity Blues.” Prosecutors alleged the longtime coach accepted $200,000 in bribes from Rick Singer, the scheme’s admitted mastermind, to facilitate the admission of two students to UCLA as soccer recruits though they didn’t play the sport. Salcedo, the only UCLA coach linked to the investigation, faces five charges, including conspiracy to commit racketeering. He has pleaded not guilty. A UCLA spokesman didn’t immediately comment on the motion. The filing by Salcedo’s Boston-based attorneys, Thomas Frongillo and Christina Lindberg, revolves around a confidential investigation UCLA conducted in 2014 into the admissions of two students as athletes. The Times first reported in April details of the probe, which had not been previously disclosed. The report from the UCLA investigation found that one student was admitted as a recruited track and field athlete, despite having personal-best times that weren’t competitive at the college level, as “quid pro
quo” for her parents giving $100,000 to the athletics program. Singer tried to get another student admitted as a water polo player, the report said, though she didn’t play the sport. The college admissions consultant also advised at least two students recruited for the UCLA men’s tennis team, according to the report, despite the school categorizing their athletic ability as “limited.” The report said the admission of the would-be water polo player was rejected after her lack of experience in the sport was discovered. The motion, however, alleged that UCLA “reinstated its prior decision” to admit the student and that she graduated from UCLA. The school responded to the report’s findings by disciplining a handful of coaches and banning donations from families of athletic recruits until they enrolled. “Well before the events regarding Mr. Salcedo are alleged to have occurred, there is compelling and persuasive proof that UCLA — not Mr. Salcedo — had originated and executed ‘The Student-Athlete Recruitment Scam,’” the motion said. “Immediately following news of the indictment, UCLA feigned shock and outrage about the allegations concerning Mr. Salcedo and defended its student-athlete admissions process as one of the toughest in the country.”
Across Campuses Harvard arrest ups the US ante on China as a security threat BOSTON — A Harvard University chemist, an ex-Coca-Cola Co. scientist and a University of Kansas researcher. All three have been swept up in a U.S. crackdown on intellectual property theft sponsored by China and linked to the Thousand Talents Plan, a Chinese government program to recruit overseas researchers. The charges unveiled Tuesday against Harvard’s Charles Lieber — that he lied to U.S. investigators about his role in recruiting people to pass along scientific research to the Chinese government — mark a high-profile escalation of the Trump administration’s effort to root out economic espionage in academic institutions. While the Justice Department’s “China Initiative” has focused on bringing garden-variety cases against engineers and executives accused of stealing technology from American companies for Chinese corporations and startups alike, U.S. officials also have cast greater suspicion on scholars with ties to Beijing-controlled research institutions. As part of the newest prosecutions announced Tuesday, authorities charged a Boston University researcher who prosecutors say was a lieutenant for the People’s Liberation Army and a cancer researcher who allegedly tried to smuggle 21 vials of biological materials in his sock. “China’s communist government’s goal simply put is to replace the United States as a superpower,” Joseph R. Bonavolonta, the FBI’s special agent in charge of the Boston Field Division, said at a press conference. “China is also using what we call nontraditional collectors such as researchers, hackers and front companies.” Prosecutors said Lieber lied to U.S. Defense Department investigators about his involvement with the Thousand Talents Plan and concealed that he was paid $50,000 a month and received more than $1.5 million to establish a lab and do research at Wuhan University of Technology. His deceit caused Harvard to make false statements to the National Institutes of Health about his work with China, because grants that Harvard received required disclosure of ties with foreign governments, the U.S. said. Lieber’s lawyer declined to comment on the case. Agencies across the federal government have mobilized against potential Chinese industrial spies, warning companies and universities and anyone else with intellectual property to be particularly vigilant when dealing with Chinese business partners and employees. Tuesday’s action comes
Andrea Pistolesi/TIPS/Zuma Press/TNS
An aerial view of Harvard University campus in 2013. The prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda, annoyed that the university has ignored repeated requests from his government to make amends for Antiguan slave labor contributions to the creation of Harvard Law School, has personally written to the university’s president
weeks after the Trump administration signed a Phase One trade deal with the Chinese. China has tried to lure overseas scientists for years. Government initiatives, such as the Thousand Talents and Changjiang Scholar programs, offer funding to experts to work at least part time in China. A 2018 report by the U.S. National Intelligence Council called such efforts a thinly veiled way “to facilitate the legal and illicit transfer of U.S. technology, intellectual property and knowhow” to China. A top official at the National Institutes of Health said in December that the agency has investigated 140 scientists at 70 institutions over failures to disclose income and other significant resources they received from other countries while working on NIH-funded grants. Prior to Lieber’s arrest, the Justice Department has taken action against other researchers with alleged Thousand Talents ties: The ex-Coke scientist was accused in February of seeking a reward from the talent program while trying to steal trade secrets valued at $120 million from companies working with the soft-drink giant
on the chemical coating used in bisphenol-A-free (BPA-free) containers. Xiaorong You has pleaded not guilty and faces a trial in April in Greeneville, Tenn. Franklin (Feng) Tao, a University of Kansas associate professor, was indicted for allegedly defrauding the U.S. government by taking federal grant money while he was employed and paid by a Chinese research university and failing to disclosed that he was chosen for a Changjiang Scholarship. He, too, has denied wrongdoing. Turab Lookman, a former Los Alamos National laboratory scientist, pleaded guilty in a New Mexico federal court in January after being charged with lying to an investigator about participating in the talent program for compensation. Van Andel Research Institute, a Michiganbased biomedical research institution, agreed to pay $5.5 million as part of a settlement with the U.S. over allegations that two NIH-funded scientists failed to disclose grants from the Chinese government. To U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, who worked on a committee report in November that highlighted
The motion added: “This information was a veritable road map to what the government now calls the ‘Student-Athlete Recruitment Scam.’” In mid-April, UCLA said in a statement that it had voluntarily shared information about the report with authorities. Two weeks later, Eric Rosen, an assistant U.S. attorney in Boston, wrote in an email to Salcedo’s attorneys, which was attached to the motion: “I don’t have the compliance review from UCLA _ you’ll have to seek from UCLA.” A UCLA spokesman said the school provided a copy of the report to authorities in August. Frongillo, part of Salcedo’s legal team, declined to comment on the motion. The potential subpoena to UCLA seeks material across 48 categories, including an unredacted copy of the 2014 report, communication from top athletic department officials such as athletic director Dan Guerrero and senior associate athletic director Josh Rebholz, pledge agreements, investigative records and wide-ranging documents about any dealings between Singer and the school.
-Nathan Fenno Los Angeles Times
concerns with the Thousand Talents program, Lieber’s arrest signaled validation. “The charges show the lengths that China will go for access to top-notch research here in the United States,” the Ohio Republican said in a statement. But some scholars say the intense scrutiny U.S. law enforcement officials are applying to ethnic Chinese scientists and, now, U.S. researchers, carries a downside: It chills academic freedom and stifles scientific progress. “On the one hand, it’s good that the U.S. government is looking beyond ethnic identity for these cases,” said Frank Wu, a professor of law at University of California Hastings. “On the other hand, the increasing scope of these investigations threatens American science more generally.” The push to stanch China’s well-documented and costly theft of U.S. innovation and knowhow has also raised questions about overzealous prosecutors and racial profiling. Two Tulane University professors, one of them a Chinese citizen, were charged in May with tradesecrets theft after downloading a software model that predicts how the Mississippi Delta will change over time. In July, the Justice Department abruptly dropped the case, saying “extensive investigation” showed prosecutors can’t prove the charges. “Every prosecution should have all the fundamental facts and materials in place before they’re brought forward,” said Jeremy Wu, a retired federal official and member of APAJustice.org, a group that addresses racial profiling. He said the federal government’s approach to the Thousand Talents Plan “is generating a lot of fear and suspicion, especially for those working in the health fields.” Tao, the Kansas professor, has mounted an aggressive defense, claiming both that he never accepted a teaching position in China and that he was framed by a vindictive co-worker. He argues the prosecution’s case is based on “fabricated tips” from a visiting scholar who was angry because she thought Tao didn’t give her enough credit on some research papers. Lieber, whose Harvard biography page lists him as an honorary fellow of the Chinese Chemical Society, was placed on indefinite administrative leave by the university after his arrest. Harvard called the charges “extremely serious” in a statement and said it’s cooperating with federal authorities. At a court hearing scheduled for Thursday, prosecutors are set to argue that Lieber shouldn’t be released on bail because of the risk he’ll try to flee before his trial. -Janelle Lawrence, Chris Dolmetsch and Malathi Nayak Bloomberg News
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American Studies
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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2020
FAIR TAX From page 1
income tax rate of 4.95 percent. The proposed changes would create a system of tax brackets. Most significantly, additional income past $250,000 would be taxed 7.75 percent. SESP sophomore Marissa Levy and SESP senior Bevy Daniel, JCUA local fellows, referred to this policy as a “fair tax” during their presentation. “The lowest 20 percent of earners in Illinois are bearing two times the tax burden of the top one percent, which is completely unfair and unreasonable,” Levy said. The campaign argues a uniform rate begins to appear asymmetric when contextualized by the number of people who continue to be systemically and institutionally discriminated against and, as a result, have less money. Levy and Daniel said Illinois’ budget issues persist despite the current tax scheme, citing the pensions crisis and cuts to health-related services. They said the changes would only result in higher taxes for three percent of Illinois taxpayers while simultaneously increasing revenues by $3.5 billion in its first year. “But those three percent of people are the highest income earners who potentially have a really huge stake in not seeing fair tax passed,” Daniel said. The teach-in included a number of small group discussions with the roughly 20 attendees. SESP
sophomore Matthew Albert’s group discussed how tax policy itself connects to numerous other policy areas. Coming from New York, one of the 41 states without a flat income tax, Albert said he was fascinated by the current situation in Illinois. “We talked a lot about how no issue can be viewed in isolation,” Albert said. “Tax policy bleeds into education policy, which bleeds into health care, which bleeds into all sorts of other things.” Weinberg senior Lucy Yang, a Kentucky native, said she came to the event uninformed about Illinois’ tax policy. She said her group’s conversation provided insight on what they could do to push for state ballot initiatives such as tax reform. “Even though I’m not from Illinois, there’s an impact I could make,” Yang said. Levy and Daniel touched upon this themselves when explaining why JCUA wanted to present the Fair Tax 2020 Campaign to Northwestern’s students. The towns near Northwestern, they said, are likely to have residents who will see tax increases under the tax amendment — a challenging but rewarding demographic to win over. JCUA also has older members working on the campaign, but Daniel said it’s exciting to bring the energy and perspective of a younger group into the movement. “Northwestern is in the perfect spot to shoot out canvassers to go and talk and educate and get involved with that sector of the electorate,” Daniel said. jacksonmiller2023@u.northwestern.edu
IMPACT
From page 1 Founded by the DPOE in fall 2017 and launched in early 2018, the group gathers Democrats in 10 counties across Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. For the 2018 election, it focused on flipping seats from Republican to Democrat in competitive races, and program project leader Barb Cornew said she foresees that the group’s work leading up to the 2020 election will impact both presidential and congressional races. Cornew said the 2016 election attracted an influx of new activists. Her team has since organized a variety of opportunities, ranging from phone and text banking to canvassing, to allow volunteers to participate in targeted out-of-state races at a variety of levels. “In the Clinton years and Obama years, people here in Evanston have gotten involved in races all different ways,” Cornew said. “Then, because everybody was so upset after 2016, there’s all these new volunteers that haven’t worked on campaigns before. So we need to engage them too.” Similarly, the organization Postcards to Wisconsin was founded to return Wisconsin to Democratic control, as some experts project the state will be a key swing state in 2020. Founder Reid McCollum said the program began in 2018, when he organized a group of volunteers to send approximately 200,000 postcards to Illinois’ 6th congressional district in support of U.S. Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) who ultimately defeated Republican incumbent Peter Roskam. After McCollum saw the results in 2018, he said he wanted to channel that momentum toward the 2020 election, setting a goal to send 500,000 postcards to Wisconsin voters before the state’s April 7 primary. He partnered with
CORONAVIRUS Claire Proctor/The Daily Northwestern
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Vogue Fabrics has been a staple of the Evanston community since 1945. Rogie Sussman Faber — a third-generation co-owner, director of the catalog and in-house graphic designer — offers a look into the 75-year-old fashion house and fabric store. — Claire Proctor
From page 1
students (are) paramount,” Hopgood said. “We have to decide what we need to do to make sure this is a rewarding experience.” Ceci Rodgers, director of global journalism learning, said she doesn’t think Medill’s long-term programs will be impacted from the coronavirus outbreak. Friend said no decision has been made on
Indivisible Chicago to fund the effort, which aims to increase voter turnout state-wide. “Our cards are nonpartisan,” McCollum said. “They’re all just trying to encourage people to vote. But we are targeting voters who we think are extremely likely to be progressive and vote in line with our values.” However, Evanston residents’ work has extended beyond phone calls and postcards. Nancy Bruski, an organizer working with Indivisible Evanston, has coordinated canvassing trips to Wisconsin with a focus on voter identification issues. Bruski said a new voter registration law in Wisconsin limited the documents residents could bring as valid identification when they vote. Her teams educate voters in majorityblue neighborhoods about the law’s requirements to maximize Democratic turnout. “When you find a new person who’s interested in voting, you give them the information about registering, and then the Democratic Party now has a new potential voter,” Bruski said “In order to win, we have to identify every possible human being who could vote Democrat in 2020.” Donna McDonald, a volunteer who has canvassed in multiple elections, including twice for President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, said it can be difficult for voters to remain focused on elections and issues. As a result, she said activists and canvassers play a key role in reminding constituents about what’s at stake. McDonald said she saw this play out in the elections of Casten and U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.). “Grassroots efforts are significant for any election,” McDonald said. “Ads and commercials are great, but grassroots initiatives are what can turn an election.” jacobfulton2023@u.northwestern.edu summer and fall study abroad programs in China, because they have time to wait for the outbreak to run its course. “We have an advantage of being on the (quarter system) calendar,” Friend said. “Our summer programs, particularly the undergraduate study abroad programs, don’t really start until mid- or end of June. That’s why we’re saying those programs are still on schedule.”
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SPORTS
ON DECK JAN.
30
Women’s Basketball Michigan vs. No. 23 NU, 7 p.m. Thursday
ON THE RECORD
I feel like I’m coming back fine. I’m just trying to come back and play the right way. — freshman guard Boo Buie
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Wednesday, January 29, 2020
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Northwestern set for game against Big Ten’s best By GABRIELA CARROLL
the daily northwestern @gablcarroll
Northwestern almost shocked the world when it played No. 14 Michigan State close on Dec. 18. The Wildcats (6-13, 1-8 Big Ten) couldn’t pull it off, but it felt like a sign of better things to come. Going into their second matchup with the Spartans (155, 6-2), NU is in almost the exact same place — still a team just on the verge of breaking through. “When you play Michigan State, you talk about transition points, and you talk about offensive rebounds,” said coach Chris Collins after the game against the Spartans on Dec. 18. “Those are the two things they’ve done notoriously for many many years.” Michigan State is tied for the best conference record in the Big Ten and is 9-1 at the Breslin Center. The Cats are 1-5 on the road this season, and have struggled in conference play, with only one Big Ten win that came at home against Nebraska on Jan. 11. In order for NU to upset the Spartans, it will likely need a strong offensive performance from freshman guard Boo Buie, who made big strides in his second game after returning from injury against Ohio State on Jan. 26. Buie scored 10 points, but struggled with his accuracy and shot only 25 percent from the field. Buie’s highest-scoring performance of
Northwestern at No. 14 Michigan State East Lansing, Michigan 5:30 p.m. Wednesday
the season came against Michigan State on Dec. 18. He came off the bench to score 26 points, which helped the team rally back from a 16-point deficit to keep the game competitive. “I was just taking the open shots, and playing aggressive,” Buie said after the game against the Spartans. “Whether who’s in front of me, I’m going to do the same thing that I do.” Buie’s return to prominence on offense will take some of the load off of the Cats’ leading scorer, sophomore forward Miller Kopp. Kopp scored 15 points in the first half of Sunday’s contest against Ohio State, but in the second half, the Buckeyes increased their defensive pressure on him, and he was only able to add five more. Buie’s return from injury has also helped to spread the floor, since NU played with a four forward lineup without him, with grad transfer guard Pat Spencer as the only guard on the floor. In the past two games, Buie has not shown signs of injury, and was able to rally and continue to play after a hard fall Sunday against Ohio State with no issue. “I feel like I’m coming back fine,” Buie said. “I’m just trying to come back and play the right way, make the right play and help my team win.” Joshua Hoffman/The Daily Northwestern
gabrielacarroll2023@u.northwestern.edu
FENCING
The state of NU men’s basketball The expectations for Northwestern men’s basketball heading into the season were as low as they had been in years — almost every national media outlet had the Wildcats finishing the season in last place in the Big Ten. And now, about three months into the season, NU is right where everyone thought it would be — at the bottom of the conference. At 6-13 and 1-8 in Big Ten play, the Cats are on pace to finish with their second-worst record of the 21st century after the 2007-08 NU outfit that went 8-22 with only one conference win. The Cats have won just two games since the end of Fall Quarter, and they will most likely be underdogs in all of their remaining games. With so much inexperience on the roster coming into the season — a rebuilding year for the program — these results aren’t be super surprising. But NU should be better. It at least feels that way. Maybe that’s because of who handed the Cats some of those 13 losses. NU may play in one of the strongest conferences in recent memory and is one of the top 25 teams in the country in strength of schedule, but it also lost to Merrimack, Radford and Hartford at home! Nothing against any of these teams — all of which currently have winning records — but if you want to be a respected Power Conference team, you can’t lose to three lowmajors at home. Maybe that’s because the Cats haven’t gotten lucky. They played DePaul, Indiana and Illinois close to the end on the road. NU doesn’t win close games, despite the Cardiac Cats moniker. Heading into Tuesday night’s contests, NU ranked 349th out of 353 Division I teams
in Adjusted Luck according to KenPom. It marks the second straight season the Cats will finish in the top six of unluckiest teams in the country. Maybe it’s because the team can be fun to watch. Pat Spencer is one of the best stories in the country and it’s impossible not to enjoy watching him play his heart out every time his kicks hit the hardwood. Boo Buie’s exciting game of heat-check triples and aggressive drives to the rim is equal to his fun name. Miller Kopp is looking like a potential No. 1 option on the wing over the past month, averaging 17 points per game on 40 percent shooting from beyond the arc. Maybe it’s because the offense has demonstrated rhythm after playing like an out-of-sync middle school orchestra for large portions of last season. It’s not like the Boston Pops on the court this season, but there’s been flow, creativity and movement that was not there last season. Some of that has come from having two natural lead guards initiating the offense, but it also comes from having a more balanced offense attack. Maybe it’s because the team hasn’t been at full strength for most of conference play. Anthony Gaines, NU’s best defender and a captain, is out for the season and hasn’t played since Dec. 18. Buie missed about a month with a foot injury. AJ Turner missed a game with an injury. Robbie Beran is currently dealing with a knock. And these injuries have resulted in some wonky lineups, including the Spencer-Kopp-Nance-Beran-Young lineup that has started six games this season. And these hodgepodge fives haven’t been disasters. Yet, this NU team will finish with the worst record of the Chris Collins
era. Despite all of the positives that can be drawn out of the spin zone, the Cats once again struggle at the most important part of playing basketball: scoring more than your opponent. There are a lot of comparisons that can be made between this team and that 2007-08 team — the worst of the Bill Carmody era. The 2007-08 team was the eighth one coached by Carmody — this is Collins’ seventh season in Evanston. The 2007-08 season came after winning 13 games the previous season and 14 the year before that — NU won 13 last year and 15 games in 2017-18. Both squads were defined by their inexperience, with the 2007-08 team averaging 1.2 years of experience and the 2019-20 squad having only 0.8 years of experience. And what happened to NU over the next three years after that disastrous 2007-08 campaign: one 17-win, two 20-win seasons and three NIT appearances. Maybe the next three years will be similar to the 2008-2011 stretch. Maybe Kopp, Nance, Beran, Buie and others continue to drastically improve, Maybe an elite recruit or two enrolls. And maybe the Cats see the postseason as early as next spring. But to do that, NU needs to be better now. Peter Warren is a Medill junior. He can be contacted at peterwarren2021@u. northwestern.edu. If you would like to respond publicly to this column, send a Letter to the Editor to sports@dailynorthwestern.com. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern.
Cats do well versus solid field in Indiana
By CARLOS STINSON-MAAS
the daily northwestern @thepresidito
Northwestern entered this weekend’s DeCicco Duals in South Bend with a clear goal: beat No. 1 Notre Dame. The No. 9 Cats failed to do so, coming up just short in a 14-13 defeat. Despite the loss to the Fighting Irish, NU (19-9) defeated its other six opponents at the duals, finishing with a 6-1 record overall. The score “14-13” has been something of a trend this season for the Cats. They’ve lost four matches by that score, all to top-ten teams. “If a couple of breaks go a different way, we could get some really good outcomes,” coach Zach Moss said. “It’s a challenging and positive experience at the same time.” NU’s epee squad finished 7-2 against Notre Dame, but a 2-7 performance in sabre sunk the Cats. NU fared well in the rest of the tournament, going 129-33 in the rest of their games. Junior sabre Jacqueline Hua and senior epee Adelle Berdichevsky both finished 9-0 on the day, and freshman foil Isabelle Banin went 8-0. The Cats first took on Wayne State, winning 21-6. A sweep from Banin helped NU to a 17-10 victory over Cleveland State despite a 1-8 showing in epee. The Cats proceeded to handily beat Denison, going undefeated in both foil and sabre en route to a 25-2 trouncing. Banin once again notched a 3-0 sweep. The dominance continued against Lawrence, a team NU defeated 26-1 back at the Fall NU Duals. This match was a bit closer, but Berdichevsky and Hua both completed sweeps to lead the Cats to a 17-10 victory. After the close loss to Notre Dame, NU took on Florida. The Cats beat the Gators 25-2 back on Jan. 12 — history repeated itself, as once again NU clinched a 25-2 win.
The Cats took on Detroit Mercy in their final match of the day, and they pulled out a 24-3 rout of the Titans. “We saw some really good stuff and definitely saw some opportunity for growth,” Moss said. “So I’m feeling pretty good about it.” Earlier this year, Moss said he expects a top-ten finish from NU. The Cats entered the DeCicco Duals ranked ninth in the country, and the 6-1 performance likely won’t hurt their ranking. However, they have a huge test this weekend, as they’ll host some of the best teams in the country on Feb. 1 at the NU Duals. NU will fence in 12 matches, four coming against top-ten teams and another four coming against teams receiving top-ten votes. The Cats will get a chance at revenge, as they’ll once again face No. 1 Notre Dame on Saturday. Despite the difficult schedule, Moss said he thinks the team has a good chance to make a run in the NCAA tournament in March. “I think we should find some pretty good success over the coming weeks,” Moss said. carlosstinson-maas2023@u.northwestern.edu
Daily file photo by Brian Meng
A Northwestern fencer prepares to duel. The Wildcats participated last weekend in the DeCicco Duals.