The Daily Northwestern — February 10, 2020

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The Daily Northwestern Monday, February 10, 2020

DAILYNORTHWESTERN.COM 8 SPORTS/Lacrosse

3 CAMPUS/Academics

NEXT emphasizes career exploration, alumni connections

No. 3 NU beats Detroit Mercy, No. 20 Duke

Find us online @thedailynu 4 OPINION/Ravid

Why I’m not watching ‘Fight Club’

High 33 Low 25

Students attend reparations panel Chicago Torture Justice Center talks police torture By SAMANTHA AGUILAR

the daily northwestern @samanthaguilar7

Molly Lubbers/The Daily Northwestern

Author Mark Caro (left,) U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) and Northwestern assistant Medill Prof. Jon Marshall participated in a panel about politics hosted by Beth Emet Synagogue on Sunday. Members of the synagogue ate brunch as they listened.

Schakowsky talks positive action Prof. Marshall, author Mark Caro moderate political landscape Q&A By MOLLY LUBBERS

the daily northwestern @mollylubbers

U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) said it is “imperative” Democrats win

this year’s presidential election while speaking Sunday at a panel hosted by Beth Emet Synagogue. “There’s the largest vocalization of activists right now that we need to turn into voters,” she said. “I believe this

election is literally existential that this country, this world, this planet cannot afford another four years of Donald Trump.” At “Lox, Bagels and Leaders,” Schakowsky and Medill prof. Jon Marshall answered

questions about the political landscape in a Q&A moderated by author Mark Caro. Schakowsky said a woman, Beth Emet member Louise Gross Motel, served her tuna » See SCHAKOWSKY, page 6

Northwestern students traveled to the Chicago Torture Justice Center on Saturday to attend a panel on the history of police torture in Chicago and the future of the reparations ordinance in the city. In 2015, the Chicago City Council unanimously approved the reparations ordinance put forward by city counselor Joe Moreno, and became the first municipality in the United States to provide reparations for racially motivated law enforcement violence. The ordinance was created to address the violence that occurred under Chicago police detective Jon Burge from 1972 to 1991. Burge led detectives in his South Side police district in torturing more than 100 black men to secure confessions. He was never prosecuted for his alleged crimes, including electrocution and smothering. The ordinance provides financial compensation and free college education for victims of police violence, as well as a counseling center, public memorial, formal apology and education on police torture in Chicago public schools.

Co-executive director Aislinn Pulley said since its creation, the counseling center for Burge torture survivors became the Chicago Torture Justice Center and is working to expand the ordinance to include more survivors of police torture. The Center for Civic Engagement and Asian American Studies co-sponsored the lecture, site visit, and panel that brought around 40 Northwestern students and faculty. “The reparations ordinance is a historic win,” Pulley said. “That does not by any means mean that justice has been served.” Panelist La Tanya Jenifor Sublett said at age 19, she went to the Chicago Police Department to turn in the perpetrator of a murder and provide information to detectives, who then suspected she had committed the crime. After 12 hours of interrogation and torture by police, Sublett signed a false confession statement. Two years later, she was sentenced to 42 years in prison for a crime she did not commit. “That is the system that we live in,” Sublett said. “That is the city that we live in.” Sublett said she exhausted every judicial method to get out of prison and faced even more challenges upon re-entering society after 21 years in jail. Seven years after her release, Sublett became a speaker and activist for the Chicago Torture » See REPARATIONS, page 6

Firefighters prepare for emergencies in Aquatic Center Evanston Fire Department f irst responders use pool to train divers, test recovery equipment By ARIANNA CARPATI

the daily northwestern @ariannacarpati1

Each year, search-and-rescue firefighters in Evanston and surrounding suburbs train in the Norris Aquatics Center to prepare for emergency situations. Although the firefighters practice in natural elements as well, they say there are benefits to doing drills in a controlled pool setting. Northwestern has one of the deepest pools in the North Shore, reaching a depth of 15 feet, which lends itself to a good training environment, Edward Martig, manager of aquatics, said. Martig said because it is difficult and expensive for all suburban fire departments to have large, specialized teams for search and rescue, Evanston Fire Department often partners with departments in neighboring areas. The search-and-rescue firefighters are included in a group of first responders called the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System, which

compose 38,000 of the 40,000 firefighters in Illinois. David Smrha, an EFD captain and paramedic, is the team leader of the Evanston’s nine-member dive crew. He said he responds in water-related emergencies in Evanston, but if there are calls coming from neighboring towns that need assistance, he plays a hands-off leadership role. Smrha said the team uses the Norris Aquatics Center at least three times per year; twice for scheduled dives in December and January with the whole MABAS division three diving team, and usually once more just with Evanston divers. The divers test their equipment and perform an underwater skills exam. “A lot of times (in Lake Michigan) you don’t have a lot of water clarity, and it’ll be 50- or 60-degree temperature which is really cold for water. For the rest of the MABAS dive sites, a lot of them are in murky ponds,” he said. “So to test new equipment in that environment would just be a disaster.”

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Smrha said they often test oxygen tanks for surface level recovery operations and face masks. This year, the team also did an underwater obstacle course that involved crawling through tight spaces underwater and maneuvering with their equipment. Smrha said the waters can be so opaque that divers can’t see their hands in front of their faces. The advantage of the pool is that anything the team wants to test out can be done in a controlled, safe environment. “Our divers on our team are top-notch,” he said. “I’m just proud to be on a team where from the moment the 911 call comes in we could be fully dressed and ready to come get a student or a civilian in under ten minutes.” Justin Norris, a diver on the EFD water rescue team, said he practices in the Norris Aquatics Center two or three times a year. He said the pool at Northwestern is the perfect practice » See FIRE, page 6

Daily file photo by Owen Stidman

Henry Crown Sports Pavillion. Search-and-rescue firefighters train for emergencies in the Norris Aquatics Center several times per year.

INSIDE: Around Town 2 | On Campus 3 | Opinion 4 | Classifieds & Puzzles 6 | Sports 8


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