The Daily Northwestern Monday, November 21, 2016
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Waa-Mu confronts calls for diversity By MARIANA ALFARO
daily senior staffer @marianaa_alfaro
D
uring “Gold,” the 84th Waa-Mu Show, Communication senior Adhana Reid found herself on stage, singing a song she never felt comfortable with. “There were a number of microaggressive things that happened during that show’s process,” Reid said during a panel last month. “One of the things being the song that I sang with the other singular black character in the show. When we got on stage together, we sang a gospel song, but it didn’t make sense to me because the whole rest of the show was contemporary musical theater.” The song, “Greater than the Games,” featured Reid and her fellow black castmate singing about track runner Jesse Owens as they observe his historic win during the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. Behind them, a crowd of mostly white performers quietly observed their duet, chiming in with the chorus. Before the show premiered, Reid brought her concerns to the show’s co-chairs, but it was too late.
A New
Local politicians respond to Trump By SAM KREVLIN
the daily northwestern @samkrevlin
When Evanston residents vented their frustration in the election of Donald Trump at an event on Sunday, U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) told them she would remain firm
in her beliefs while avoiding total gridlock in Washington. Several Democratic elected official answered questions from an audience of more than 400 on Sunday afternoon, discussing the party’s future and how it will handle Trump’s administration. Schakowsky was joined by state Sen. Daniel Biss (D-Evanston), state Rep.
Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston) and other officials. “If I see a plan coming out of the Trump administration or the Republicans that would actually be good for us and all of us would agree, then we certainly want to cooperate,” Schakowsky said. “But when I say we need to reach out to the people who voted for Donald
Trump, that is not to say that we will support his agenda.” Carol Ronen, a Democratic committeewoman in Cook County and former state senator, consoled those who may feel “betrayed” or “left-behind” by the idea of working with Trump. » See ELECTION, page 5
City leaders stand with immigrants By KRISTINA KARISCH
the daily northwestern @kristinakarisch
Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl said at a rally on Sunday that she hopes Evanston will seek to alter its code to ensure federal authorities cannot ask the city to hold people they are looking to deport. Tisdahl reaffirmed Evanston’s status as a sanctuary city, saying the term means city police do not ask about people’s immigration status. City manager Wally Bobkiewicz told Th e Daily last week that although there are multiple definitions of “sanctuary city,” he believes Evanston classifies as one. “Th e threat is they’ll cut off federal funds to every city that is a sanctuary city in the
United States of America, and if we give in to that threat Trump wins. So what are we going to do?” she said. “We are going to go forth from here … I’m terribly proud of Evanston: we love one another, we celebrate diversity.” Tisdahl made the comments at a rally in Fountain Square on Sunday organized by community faith leaders with the intention of standing with minorities and people of all religious beliefs in response to Donald Trump’s victory on Nov. 8. A crowd of about 200 people gathered to hear speeches from Tisdahl, U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and several faith leaders. The focus of the rally was a statement from Evanston interfaith clergy, city leaders and community members outlining their commitment
Serving the University and Evanston since 1881
to maintain Evanston’s inclusiveness in the wake of the election. “We who are representatives of faith communities in
Evanston are resolved to stand in mutual solidarity with those groups who may be exposed to » See FAITH, page 5
Daniel Tian/Daily Senior Staffer
A crowd of about 200 Evanston residents and faith community members met at Fountain Square on Sunday afternoon. The event was organized to show solidarity with those in the city feeling marginalized after the recent presidential election.
The show was close to opening day, and although Reid said she felt her concerns were heard, the number remained as written. “I know for a fact that people raised their voices and said they had an issue with it. Black female writers in the room, and their voices were also squandered,” Reid said. “They said they had a problem. People said that they cared, and they didn’t do anything to change it.” The Waa-Mu Show, a production written, produced and performed entirely by students under the direction of music theater Prof. David Bell, has been called the “greatest college show in America” by the Associated Press and has been a part of Northwestern’s theater history for 87 years. For four quarters, students write and rehearse original songs and dialogue that will ultimately make it to the show, once approved by Bell. All in all, it takes about 200 students to put on the musical. Bell, who had the final say on the gospel song, told The Daily he only found out about Reid’s complaints after opening night. After hearing criticism about the number, Bell said he acknowledged the concerns and apologized. “You always have the problem
NU responds to ‘sanctuary campus’ petition
Northwestern released a statement Friday saying NU is “strongly committed” to being a welcoming and inclusive place, a few days after thousands signed a petition asking the University to become a “sanctuary” for undocumented students, workers and their families. The petition, which began Monday morning, asks University President Morton Schapiro and other administrators to declare NU a “sanctuary campus” in the wake of the election of Donald Trump. Sanctuaries do not alert federal authorities about individuals who violate immigration laws. The petition was closed Thursday night with 2,234 signatures from faculty, staff, students and alumni, said English Prof. John Alba Cutler, who started the petition, in an email to The Daily. Friday’s statement — signed by Schapiro, Provost Dan Linzer, vice president for student affairs Patricia Telles-Irvin, vice president and general counsel Philip Harris and Executive Vice President Nim Chinniah — said the University’s commitment to inclusivity has not changed as a result of the presidential election. NU will keep providing full financial aid to undergraduates who graduate from high schools in the United States, regardless of the their citizenship status, the statement said. As in the past, the statement said, University Police will not question anyone it stops
that the majority of the writers, certainly the experienced writers, were not people of color,” he said. “We were actually writing shows that are specifically targeted for an African American, in this case, character, that were written by senior, nonAfrican-American writers.” Reid’s complaint is one of several Waa-Mu leaders have faced in the last few years as the show attempts to become more inclusive. Students who criticized the show’s inclusivity pointed to casting practices, representation in the writers’ room and the historical whiteness of NU’s theater program. This year’s Waa-Mu co-chairs told The Daily they are making a concerted effort to create a show that more accurately represents the student body. But in about five months, they also need to put on a full-scale musical.
A story from the Oregon Trail
Lorenzo Gudino couldn’t bring himself to go to 2016’s Waa-Mu Show, “Another Way West.” In telling a story about the historical colonization of the West, an » See WAA-MU, page 6
about their citizenship.NU takes the petition signatories’ concerns seriously, the statement said, and the University will continue to provide support for all members of its community. “We hope all members of the Northwestern community will join us in our efforts to make the University a safe and welcoming environment,” the statement said. The petition, which was also published as an open letter in The Daily, references Trump’s plans to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, which was passed by President Barack Obama and temporarily shields people brought into the United States illegally as children from being deported. It also references comments Trump made about his intention to immediately start deportation proceedings against millions of undocumented immigrants in the country. Although it’s too early to know what may happen, the statement said, the University is “following closely” any changes to visa programs and the DACA program, which may affect students, faculty and staff. “Northwestern today is a diverse place, with students, faculty and staff from many different countries and many different backgrounds,” the statement said. “The result is a vibrant intellectual and social community that includes people with widely divergent beliefs and ideas. We’re proud of that — it’s one of the things that makes Northwestern such a special place. We are determined to keep it so.” — Peter Kotecki
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