October 19, 2023

THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA • FOUNDED 1885

PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

VOL. CXXXIX

NO. 24

DONOR BACKLASH At least a dozen of Penn’s most influential alumni have halted donations to the University, with many calling for President Liz Magill and Board of Trustees Chair Scott Bok to resign

DESIGN BY LILIAN LIU, PHOTOS BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL AND DIEGO CÁRDENAS URIBE

Jon Huntsman Jr. and Ronald Lauder are among donors pledging or threatening to “close their checkbooks,” citing admin. response to antisemitism on campus JARED MITOVICH, MOLLY COHEN, AND NITIN SESHADRI Senior Reporters

Penn is fighting to contain mounting donor backlash, in which some of the University’s most influential alumni are “closing their checkbooks” and calling for the resignations of President Liz Magill and Board of Trustees Chair Scott Bok. The unusual public retaliation is centered around Penn administrators’ handling of antisemitism on

campus since the Palestine Writes Literature Festival and the start of the ongoing violence between Israel and Hamas. Spurred by a public letter from the Chair of the Wharton School’s Board of Advisors, nearly a dozen of Penn’s most consistent backers have announced that they will reconsider donating or stop giving to the University altogether, with some pledging to make $1 See DONORS, page 2

Alumni pushback leaves students and faculty on edge, skeptical of Magill Some Penn community members cast doubt on the University’s intentions in light of alumni halting donations

Gavin was from West Chester, Pa. and was a defensive lineman with Penn football CALEB CRAIN Sports Editor

Monday's walk out — which lasted from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. — began with Ahmad Almallah, a Palestinian poet and artist in residence in the Creative Writing and English departments, who said that he missed two of his classes to be present at the event. Other students and faculty members echoed similar stories of walking out of class throughout the day.

Over the course of the day, organizers distributed food and water to attendees, and students told The Daily Pennsylvanian that they valued the sense of community and solidarity on campus. Throughout

The donor controversy that unfolded at Penn over fall break left some students and faculty on edge and skeptical of University leadership.

Penn President Liz Magill issued a statement on Sunday condemning Hamas and emphasizing the University's position on antisemitism. Multiple students and faculty that spoke with The Daily Pennsylvanian had generally positive reactions to Magill's latest statement, which reiterated Penn's plans to combat antisemitism — but others were disappointed and cast doubt on the University's intentions in light of the donor backlash.

Since Penn first responded to the ongoing violence between Hamas and Israel, a growing number of notable alumni and trustees have ended or considered halting their donations, with a trustee also resigning in protest of University leadership. Many of the alumni have expressed their beliefs that the University should have done more to distance itself from the Palestine Writes Literature Festival held three weeks ago and condemn antisemitism more forcefully.

Among the alumni halting donations are Jon Huntsman Jr., who on Saturday said his family would "close its checkbook" on giving to the University. The next day, Magill released her second, extensive statement on the war, describing the Hamas attacks as terrorism, a difference from her first statement.

In her second statement, Magill also acknowledged some community members' anger and said she should have spoken out sooner to condemn some speakers at the Palestine Writes Literature Festival.

“It's great to finally see that Penn clearly stands against antisemitism,” College senior Eyal Yakoby said, “but what I am worried about is that it's words and not action.”

College first year Eyal Lubin agreed, calling Magill's second statement "very well put." However,

See RALLY, page 2

See PUSHBACK, page 2

See GAVIN, page 3

PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

Community members rally for Palestine, challenge Magill’s statement at walk out events Pro-Palestine rallies held on Monday and Wednesday were met with pro-Israel counter-demonstrations DEDEEPYA GUTHIKONDA, SARA FORASTIERI, SOPHIA ROSSER, DIAMY WANG, VIDYA PANDIARAJU, AND ETHAN YOUNG Senior Reporters, Staff Reporters, and Contributing Reporter

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Penn sophomore Michael Gavin died Oct. 14

Penn sophomore Michael Gavin died on Oct. 14.

Vice Provost for University Life Karu Kozuma notified the Penn community of Gavin’s death in an email sent on Oct. 16, on behalf of President Liz Magill and Provost John Jackson. The news was also announced in a statement posted on the Penn Athletics website on Monday.

Before coming to Penn, Gavin hailed from West Chester, Pa. and attended the Hun School of Princeton and the Haverford School. At Penn, he was enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Gavin was a member of Penn football as a defensive lineman. He did not see any game action for the Quakers last season, but received the Coach Lake award for demonstrating leadership and Penn pride.

In high school Gavin put together an impressive 2021 season, which earned him All-MAPL, All-League, and All-Prep recognition, and saw his team crowned MAPL Champions.

Gavin learned that he had a rare form of brain cancer without a cure in June 2022, and, according to a statement that Gavin's family provided in the email to the Penn community, he "accepted the devastating news and decided that he wanted to fight the disease as a Penn student-athlete."

"The entire Penn community that came into contact with Michael demonstrated that kindness is everywhere, meeting him where he was throughout his battle and fueling his will to live," his family wrote.

According to football coach Ray Priore, the team learned of Gavin’s death prior to its game against Columbia on Saturday, which the Quakers won 20-17.

After the game, Priore told The Daily Pennsylvanian that the news “puts into reality what things are important and what things aren’t important.”

“I had to tell the [team] this morning, and they came back and played like champions, and I’m so proud of them for that … they did it for Michael today,” Priore said on Saturday.

In the statement emailed to the Penn community, Priore added that Gavin "will forever be one of the toughest and bravest men I have ever met."

"His legacy will live on in all our hearts, and he will forever be a part of the Penn football family," Priore wrote. "On behalf of the staff and team, I offer my deepest condolences to the Gavin family and to

EMILY SCOLNICK AND JESSICA WU Staff Reporters

Hundreds of Penn community members gathered in front of Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center on Monday and Wednesday, standing in solidarity with Palestine and criticizing President Liz Magill’s recent statement about the ongoing violence in the region.

Dozens of speakers — including faculty members, students, and Philadelphia residents — delivered speeches, poetry, song, and dance at the walk out events. On both days, the rallies were met with counter-demonstrations of students and community members holding Israeli flags and news articles about the conflict, including headlines and images of the hostages being held by Hamas.

contributions until Magill and Bok step down. One trustee has resigned in protest of University leadership and joined calls for their resignation.

Members of some of Penn’s most well-known families are among the major donors who have sent letters to Magill, including 1987 College graduate Jon Huntsman Jr. and 1965 Wharton graduate Ronald Lauder.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

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RALLY, from FRONT PAGE

PHOTO BY JESSE ZHANG

The Penn Board of Trustees at president Liz Magill’s inauguration on Oct. 21, 2022.

PUSHBACK, from FRONT PAGE Lubin, like other community members, said the statement took on a different meaning given the mounting turmoil among trustees and alumni.

"I think the messaging was necessary and important to say, but it does feel like it was a little bit forced at this point,” Lubin told the DP. Magill released a third statement on Oct. 18, warning that hate speech and violence are not tolerated amid recent rallies in solidarity with Israel and Palestine.

Magill expressed support for peaceful protests and the University's support of free speech while emphasizing the Division of Public Safety's work to ensure the safety of community members. She acknowledged that the "deeply held and disparate views of the Israel-Palestine conflict," expressed at multiple demonstrations on Monday and Wednesday, have caused tension in the Penn community.

However, many other Penn community members, including faculty, disapproved of Magill’s statement on Sunday and her first message sent on Oct. 10.

The Oct. 15 statement was “cast as an act of compassion and inclusion,” but it was actually “an act of cruelty and injustice” and made it evident that Magill does not stand with Palestinians, political science professor Anne Norton wrote to the DP. “You acknowledge the pain of those who have lost family and friends in Israel but are silent about the pain of those who have lost friends and family in Gaza," Norton said. "That is cruel."

English and comparative literature professor Max Cavitch said that Magill’s statements were "transparent efforts at donor appeasement, rather than honest, compassionate remarks in support of non-violence and free speech.”

There is no evidence confirmed by the DP that donors had a direct role in crafting Magill's statement. The DP has confirmed that the University Board of Trustees held two meetings where Magill was present on Oct. 13 and Oct. 15.

Board of Trustees Chair Scott Bok wrote in a statement to the DP that at the meetings, "President Magill provided a briefing on the University's response, sharing her recent community messages, describing support for students on campus, and outlining plans to enhance education and training to combat antisemitism on campus. She committed to communicating progress toward these plans broadly to the Penn community."

Professor Roger Allen, the former chair of Penn’s Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations Department, said that Magill’s statements favored the Jewish segment of Penn’s community and ignored the “vastly under-represented opinions and status" of Arab and Palestinian community members.

He added that Penn should promote diversity and debate of viewpoints, while acknowledging that nothing could justify the attacks by Hamas — who he said should be considered a separate entity from Palestine and the Palestinian people.

The campus debate surrounding the Palestine Writes Literature Festival reignited on Oct. 11, when the Wharton School's Board of Advisors Chair Marc Rowan called for all alumni to cease donating to Penn until Magill and Bok resign.

Responding to Rowan’s claim that Magill should have done more to distance the University from the Palestine Writes Literature Festival, Allen said that Rowan represents a population that is “weaponizing the idea of antisemitism to reflect opposition to the policies of the Israeli government.”

Allen added that Rowan’s comments “make it clear that he can no longer serve as a trustee of anything at Penn” and that he should either resign or be fired.

Cavitch said he hopes that Rowan, along with alumni and trustees, “reconsider their misguided actions against the ideals of an inclusive, worldclass university.”

“Penn risks becoming something less than that if the official rhetoric of its leaders and donors

remains so inflammatory and misleading,” Cavitch said.

Yakoby called the trustees' resignation and donors’ announcements that they would stop giving to Penn “unprecedented.”

“This sort of stuff doesn't happen unless something is inherently wrong, and that's what needs to be addressed,” he said.

Yakoby, who recently started a petition to denounce the statements that some Penn-affiliated clubs have made in the wake of the attacks, said that students — both Jewish and non-Jewish — and alumni have approached the administration about the safety of Jewish students since the Palestine Writes Literature Festival. Magill previously committed to increased security at Penn Hillel and the Lubavitch House.

“The reason people are pulling money is because there is a lack of shame to be antisemitic on Penn's campus," Yakoby said. "There is a lack of shame and accountability.”

Lubin said donors no longer have faith that Penn "can come back from this" and maintain a strong community. He also expressed concern with the ramifications of donors pulling their funding, adding that the Jewish community may be hurt if donors do not continue to contribute funds that could help them flourish.

Even amid disagreement about whether or not the administration’s reaction to the situation has been appropriate, multiple students and faculty said that the best thing to do is support community members impacted by the conflict in Israel and Gaza and the rising tensions on Penn’s campus.

“We all condemn terrorism but should not alienate and exclude part of our student body, people and societies,” Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations lecturer Feride Hatiboglu wrote to the DP. “They are all our people, and we can find solutions to problems including everyone and listening to their voices."

DONORS, from FRONT PAGE Both Huntsman and Lauder accused the University of having a lackluster response to the ongoing violence between Israel and Hamas and last month’s Palestine Writes festival, prompting their decisions to withhold or threaten to halt funds.

Huntsman — a former University trustee, governor of Utah, and United States ambassador — wrote in an email to Magill on Saturday obtained by the DP that the Huntsman Foundation will “close its checkbook” on future donations to Penn because the University had become “almost unrecognizable” due to administrators’ response to antisemitism.

“Moral relativism has fueled the university’s race to the bottom and sadly now has reached a point where remaining impartial is no longer an option,” he wrote to Magill after a meeting of the Board of Trustees on Friday night.

Huntsman’s family has donated tens of millions to Penn over the course of three generations. His father, the late Jon Huntsman Sr., is the namesake of Huntsman Hall at 37th and Walnut streets and funded the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business with a $10 million gift.

Lauder, whose donations helped create and renovate the Lauder Institute and contributed to the construction of Lauder College House, echoed a similarly strong sentiment in his email to Magill on Monday. He wrote that Penn administrators were “forcing” him to reexamine his financial support “absent satisfactory measures to address antisemitism at the University.”

In response to a request for comment, Magill wrote that alumni “are important members of the Penn community.”

“I hear their anger, pain, and frustration and am taking action to make clear that I stand, and Penn stands, emphatically against the terrorist attacks by Hamas in Israel and against antisemitism,” Magill wrote.

She added that the University supports and encourages “the free exchange of ideas, along with a commitment to the safety and security of our community and the values we share and work to advance.”

Huntsman expressed disappointment in Penn’s alleged “silence” to the attack by Hamas on Israel.

“The University’s silence in the face of reprehensible and historic Hamas evil against the people of Israel (when the only response should be outright condemnation) is a new low,” Huntsman wrote. “Silence is antisemitism, and antisemitism is hate, the very thing higher ed was built to obviate.”

One day after Huntsman’s letter, Magill issued a statement on Oct. 15 where she re-emphasized the University’s position on antisemitism and said that

Penn could have been more forceful in communicating its view on the festival, distancing itself from the event’s speakers who, she wrote, had a “public history of speaking out viciously against the Jewish people.”

“The University did not, and emphatically does not, endorse these speakers or their views,” Magill wrote.

“While we did communicate, we should have moved faster to share our position strongly and more broadly with the Penn community.”

That message was one of three separate statements that Magill has sent to the Penn community so far about the ongoing violence between Hamas and Israel.

Alongside Provost John L. Jackson, Magill issued her first statement on the Hamas attacks on Oct. 10, while University Board of Trustees Chair Scott Bok condemned the “atrocious terrorist attacks” on Saturday.

Since then, Magill explicitly condemned Hamas and emphasized the University’s position on antisemitism in her statement on Sunday. In her message, Magill referred to the violence from Hamas as a “terrorist assault,” a change from her initial statement.

Palestine Writes organizers posted a response to Penn’s statement on X, the site formerly known as Twitter, writing that Magill’s statement was “cowardly, immoral, and dishonest.”

“We will continue to call out zionists for the white supremacists colonizers that they are,” Palestine Writes wrote. “We are not afraid, nor are we intimidated by craven statements of individuals who genuflect before powerful billionaire donors to attack the weak and marginalized, and who cannot spare an iota of sympathy or even acknowledgement with those are literally experiencing genocide and erasure.”

Most recently, the University released yet another statement yesterday that warned Penn community members that hate speech and violence are not tolerated amid recent rallies in solidarity with Israel and Palestine.

Huntsman did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether his position has changed since Magill’s latest message. In his letter to Magill, Lauder wrote that Penn’s response to the Palestine Writes festival “lacked a clear apology” to Jewish students.

“The conference has put a deep stain on Penn’s reputation that will take a long time to repair,” Lauder wrote to Magill.

The Palestine Writes festival previously sparked criticism from some campus and national Jewish groups who said that the event featured speakers who had made antisemitic comments in the past. Magill and other University administrators released a statement

in response to criticism of the festival on Sept. 12, condemning antisemitism and emphasizing the University’s support of free speech.

This statement was the first time in recent memory that the University responded to criticism of a campus event.

Students and other Penn community members have also pushed back against the University’s recent statements for not including any mention of the ongoing violence against Palestinians in the region or the toll of the conflict on Palestinian students on campus. On Monday and Wednesday, over 100 people gathered on campus to stand in solidarity with Palestine and criticize Penn’s recent statement about the ongoing violence in the region.

Lauder’s letter potentially represents another substantial loss of a major donor to the University, which has come under growing fire from top donors and alumni who have given tens of millions to dollars to Penn. Other prominent names include former Penn Engineering overseer and venture capitalist David Magerman, 1983 Wharton graduate Jonathon Jacobson, and 1988 Wharton and Engineering graduate Cliff Asness.

The mounting backlash from donors began on Oct. 11 when Chair of the Wharton School’s Board of Advisors Marc Rowan called on Magill and Bok to step down last week, citing the University’s handling of antisemitism on campus. The DP also reported that multiple trustees were allegedly pressured to step down from their board positions after publicly criticizing Penn’s response to the Palestine Writes festival.

Following a three-hour emergency meeting of the Board of Trustees on Friday, trustee Vahan Gureghian announced his resignation in protest of University leadership, citing his decision as resulting from Penn’s response to the Palestine Writes Literature Festival.

1979 College graduate and Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees Julie Platt previously told the DP in a statement that she had “full confidence” in Magill and Bok’s leadership.

“The University has publicly committed to unprecedented steps to further combat antisemitism on its campus, reaffirmed deep support for our Jewish community, and condemned the devastating and barbaric attacks on Israel by Hamas,” Platt wrote.

Following vandalism at Penn Hillel and Meyerson Hall, Penn released another statement condemning the antisemitic acts. In a letter to the Anti-Defamation League, Magill outlined steps Penn would take to combat antisemitism on campus, while a gift from the Goldhirsh-Yellin Foundation recently established two funds: one for studying Jewish history and culture in Israel and another for studying antisemitism.

the rally, which was organized by Penn Against the Occupation in conjunction with faculty members, attendees marched down Locust Walk multiple times while waving the Palestinian flag and chanting phrases such as “free, free Palestine” and “the occupation has got to go.”

Speakers criticized Magill’s recent statements for not mentioning the ongoing violence against Palestinians in the region or the toll of the conflict on Palestinian students on campus throughout the rally. “[The statement] was a complete shock to me,” professor of Arabic literature Huda Fakhreddine said at the walk out on Monday. “I could not fathom that in the midst of actual literal genocide being broadcasted live on the air, [Magill] had time and energy to write that letter without a single mention of Palestine.”

A University spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment about the demonstration by publication.

Representatives from Penn Police, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the Philadelphia Police Civil Affairs Unit were present at the gathering. Open Expression observers were also present throughout the duration of the day.

During the third march down Locust Walk, an individual, who was seen tearing down posters of missing Israeli citizens and pushing a bystander, was taken into custody, according to the Division of Public Safety. DPS confirmed that the individual is not affiliated with the University, adding that there are no reported injuries to the bystander. The individual was charged with simple assault and disorderly conduct.

“The Division of Public Safety will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to share information on protests, rallies, and other gatherings happening in the region. Nothing is more important to us than the safety and wellbeing of all members of our community,” DPS wrote.

After interrupting the speakers on several occasions, a line of over a dozen counter-demonstrators holding up Israeli flags and news articles assembled across the walkout. Engineering first year Beni Romm said he was a part of the group.

“After spending about 45 minutes listening to the event, I thought it was worthwhile to start standing with Israeli flags to show solidarity with Israel,” Romm said.

On Wednesday, nearly 200 pro-Palestine supporters came together in front of Van Pelt for a walkout and vigil, organized in partnership between Penn Against the Occupation and Drexel University Students for Justice in Palestine. Fifty pro-Israel supporters silently stood opposite of them. Other pro-Israel supporters, separate from the first group, marched down Locust Walk and then stood behind the first group on College Green.

The event on Wednesday started at noon with pro-Palestine supporters holding news headlines and images of victims from the violence in Gaza, followed by a series of speakers. Speakers delivered their remarks, while supporters held signs in support with messages such as “Jews for a Free Palestine,” “Anti-Zionism is not Anti-Semitic,” and “Penn Support Your Palestinian Students.”

“We are here to mourn, but we are here also to vow that we will take action, that we will hit the streets, that we will continue to protest,” Almallah said yesterday at the rally. “We the organizers of these gatherings have been getting threats, death threats.

Students have had the audacity to tell us as faculty, watch your words.”

Facing the Palestinian vigil, a group of students, staff, and broader Philadelphia community members supporting Israel stood quietly on College Green — holding Israeli flags and signs or headlines supporting an end to the Hamas violence.

College junior Kevin Bina, who was part of the pro-Israel demonstration group, said that he had no issues with the fact that the Palestine rally itself was happening, but he said that some of the content from Monday did not bode well with many Jewish students.

Bina said that the point of the pro-Israel demonstration was not to “heckle” the Palestinian rally, but rather to offer support to Jewish students who may feel ostracized by the situation.

Shortly after 1 p.m., as the Palestinian vigil and protest was beginning to conclude, a second group of pro-Israel demonstrators holding a banner that read “Kidnapped, Bring Them Home” marched towards the initial group of pro-Israel demonstrators.

Several members of the group had fake blood on their clothes and were wearing handcuffs.

Tali Reiner Brodetzki, an assistant professor at La Salle University, who is formerly a postdoctoral student at Penn, was part of the second ground of counter protesters.

“I’m here because students on this campus don’t feel safe to walk around,” Reiner said, adding that the fact that the University is allowing these calls for terror here on campus is unthinkable — specifically referring to the Palestine demonstrators’ call for "intifada."

College senior Ariella Linhart, who said she was a part of the initial group of Israel demonstrators, told the DP that the second group of pro-Israel demonstrators was “separate” from the first.

“The goal of [the initial group] coming here today was to silently stand here, be dignified, and be respectful,” Linhart said.

At approximately 1:30 p.m., the pro-Palestine demonstration marched towards Drexel’s campus.

Prior to leaving, Almallah invited the pro-Israel counterprotestors to “join [them] in mourning.”

After the majority of the pro-Palestine demonstration left, around 30 pro-Israel and pro-Palestine demonstrators engaged in a conversation. Open Expression Observers were present, as well as members of Penn Police, and monitored the conversation.

Reflecting on the demonstrations, students said that they felt affirmed by event and the community it brought together. “[The protest] was one of the most empowering actions because I didn't know that many people on Penn's campus could come out and stand with us,” a student involved with PAO, who requested anonymity out of fear of retaliation, said.

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College junior and Co-President of Penn Hillel Penn’s Jewish Eitan Weinstein said. “I trust that Penn Hillel and the administration of the University are going to make sure that students continue to be safe here.” students reflect Weinstein added that it was important for students to have the chance to process and mourn on safety concerns together.

College junior and Hillel Vice President of Israel Engagement Maya Harpaz echoed Weinas University stein’s sentiments, saying that the initiatives detailed in Greenberg’s email “are a really great extends Hillel opportunity for the Jewish community to come together and embrace each other and support each other during this really, really tough time.” security funding In regards to safety, Harpaz said that she “feel[s]

The University has committed extra funding to meet Hillel’s extra security needs through the end of the 2024-2025 school year HOPE SHERIDAN, CASSIDEE JACKSON, AND HANNAH SUNG Staff Reporters

PHOTO BY SYDNEY CURRAN

Graduate Employees Together University of Pennsylvania-UAW attempted to enter College Hall on Oct. 4 to deliver a letter declaring their unionization efforts to President Liz Magill and Provost John Jackson.

Graduate student workers criticize Penn’s FAQ page about upcoming union vote The Office of the Provost forwarded a webpage to graduate students via email on Oct. 11 detailing potential implications of unionization SOPHIA LEUNG Staff Reporter

Penn graduate students attempting to unionize criticized recent messaging from administration as being “anti-union.”

The Office of the Provost forwarded a webpage to graduate students via email on Wednesday detailing the potential implications of unionization for student workers at Penn. The page, which had previously been shared directly with faculty, includes a list of “frequently asked questions” about union elections, dues, and contracts, among other logistical aspects of unionization.

According to Graduate Employees Together University of Pennsylvania-UAW organizer and sixth-year College Ph.D. student Sam Schirvar, this is the first direct communication graduate students have received from the University about unionizing, adding that he considers it to be explicitly anti-union messaging.

Schirvar said that he felt the wording of the email itself was “mild” and “pretty neutral,” but that the linked webpage included messaging that was “full of misleading anti-union rhetoric.” He added that he was specifically frustrated that Penn was using language to “third-party” the union; in other words, representing the union as an external entity between the employer and the employees.

“The fact is that GET-UP is made up of thousands of graduate workers like myself and other people. It’s not a third party coming in to negotiate on our behalf. It’s simply us coming together to negotiate together, because we have shared concerns and interests, and we can address those better as a group rather than individually,” Schirvar said.

In a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian, University spokesperson Ron Ozio wrote that Penn is aware that “a group of students” has filed with the National Labor Relations Board and will “await next steps from the NLRB on voter eligibility and election information.”

“Penn is proud of its collaborative culture and the

many ways in which the University and its graduate students jointly address student concerns and enhance the academic experience. We encourage students to learn as much as they can about what unionization might mean for them,” Ozio wrote in the statement.

GET-UP organizer and College Ph.D. student Luella Allen-Waller said that she had been frustrated by the description of GET-UP as “a group of students” and its implication that GET-UP was not representing a majority of graduate students at the University.

“That language obscures the fact that 3,000 student workers signed on to this campaign and sort of muddies the water around who is involved, when the truth is a supermajority of graduate students are all in approval of this movement going forward,” Allen-Waller said, referring to the over 3,000 graduate students who signed authorization cards with the National Labor Relations Board as of Oct. 6.

Schirvar said that GET-UP’s letter to the University detailing their plans to file with the NLRB, which had roughly 600 signatures by the end of the rally on Oct. 4, has not received any other direct response from the administration.

Penn’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors, a faculty organization whose members received the same FAQ page from the University over the summer, released a letter in August calling on the administration to take down the “anti-union messaging.” The website has since been updated by the Office of the Provost to include information about the status of the NLRB filing.

Allen-Waller said that she had anticipated at least some communication from the University in response to the NLRB filing. Based on the administration’s response to the unionization of resident advisors and medical residents, as well as reactions of peer institutions to worker unions, she said she expected some pushback from Penn.

Prior to being overruled by the NLRB, Penn argued that the RAs are not employees of the University, but instead classified them as student leaders with an “educational relationship” to Penn since they are not on the payroll. Union organizers and RAs had told the DP that they saw these arguments as a way to delay the election to officially unionize.

Allen-Waller said that GET-UP is preparing to be challenged by the University on the inclusion of research fellows and trainees who receive external funding in the union. She said that like other graduate students, these fellows conduct research that “supports Penn mission,” help to run Penn labs, and often complete teaching as a part of their time at Penn.

“We are committed to representing as many graduate workers as we can,” Allen-Waller said. “If Penn challenges our right to represent trainees and fellows on external support, for example, or any subcategory of graduate student, we will respond to that challenge.”

GAVIN, from FRONT PAGE all of those who had the honor to know and love Michael.”

According to Penn Athletics, discussions about how to honor Gavin are ongoing ahead of Penn football's next home game vs. Brown on Oct. 27.

At this time, Penn is offering both in-person

and virtual resources for students and other community members. Kozuma wrote that student-athletes who are seeking support are encouraged to reach out to Liz Nobis, athletics psychologist in the Division of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics.

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Penn has committed extra funding to meet Penn Hillel’s extra security needs through the end of the 2024-25 school year, the organization said in an email addressing concerns about the safety of Jewish students.

In the email sent on Tuesday, Penn Hillel Executive Director and Rabbi Gabe Greenberg addressed the pro-Palestine rally held on campus on Monday and highlighted the Division of Public Safety’s commitment to protecting Penn’s Jewish community. He also praised DPS and the Philadelphia Police Department for having a strong presence during the event.

“I want to underscore how responsive and active Penn’s Division of Public Safety has been over the past several weeks,” Greenberg wrote. “I am grateful for our excellent working relationship in the service of our students.”

Still, Greenberg said that Penn Hillel has submitted formal complaints to the University regarding the conduct of the rally, specifically poster-tearing and some of the language used — which the email accused of violating the University’s Guidelines on Open Expression.

“As administrators of the Guidelines on Open Expression, University Life provides guidance for Penn community members’ questions or concerns about speech and actions that may infringe on speech,” University Life Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives Mike Elias wrote in a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian. “Formal complaints, alleging a violation of the University’s Guidelines on Open Expression, are confidential matters.”

While some Jewish students on campus echoed the need for unity and safety during the ongoing conflict and campus demonstrations, others expressed concern for those organizing in support of Palestine.

“I am proud of my identity, and I feel safe to express that here despite everything that’s going on,”

relatively safe,” but has had to become more vigilant of her surroundings given recent events.

Other students that spoke with the DP said that their perception of safety as Jewish students on campus depended on Magill’s acknowledgment of the challenges faced by Palestinian students.

“There are many Jews on this campus that are deeply scared by the behavior of Hamas. I count myself as one of those students," a student in Penn Chavurah, who requested anonymity due to a fear for personal safety, said. “But I will not feel safe as a Jewish student on this campus until I hear President Magill stand up for my safety and the safety of my peers unequivocal and independent of politics.”

The student added that witnessing some leaders of Jewish campus institutions of Penn Hillel stand by what the student called a “genocidal offensive” led by Israel made them uncomfortable.

“I feel unsafe walking around right now … never felt that way before at the University of Pennsylvania,” the student said. “I am concerned right now that my safety may be jeopardized as a broader assault on the safety of Penn students that stand for the humanity of the people in Gaza.”

College senior and Penn Chavurah member Sam Cheever, who said he does not fully support the Israeli government, said he has felt uncomfortable, alienated, and unwelcome — including by Penn Hillel — but not unsafe.

“The safety I genuinely worry the most about and what I would like to see the administration be really vocal about standing up for is the people who are organizing for Palestinian rights,” Cheever said.

The Penn Hillel email offered several resources for students to celebrate their Jewish identity and process recent events, including free “Thursday Together” dinners at Hillel, weekly processing groups, and a “Solidarity Shabbat Dinner” on Friday.

Greenberg mentioned the importance of making sure students feel secure in the midst of the “destructive toll taken by social media on our students’ mental and emotional health.” He later suggested students limit the amount of time they spend on Instagram and other social media platforms.

On Wednesday at 5:30 p.m., Penn Hillel hosted a virtual Zoom meeting where Greenberg discussed happenings on campus and at which student leaders spoke.

4 OPINION

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

Opinion

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Penn must not succumb to post-9/11 hysterics and anti-Arab rhetoric GUEST COLUMN |Penn’s community and administration must stand against Anti-Arab and Islamaphobic rhetoric

JESSE ZHANG President EMI TUYẾTNHI TRẦN Executive Editor IMRAN SIDDIQUI DP Editor-in-Chief LILIAN LIU Design Editor COLLIN WANG Design Editor JARED MITOVICH News Editor MOLLY COHEN News Editor SAYA DESAI Assignments Editor ALLYSON NELSON Copy Editor JULIA FISCHER Copy Editor ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL Photo Editor CAROLINE MAGDOLEN Opinion Editor KIRA WANG Social Media Editor CALEB CRAIN Sports Editor ALEXIS GARCIA Sports Editor

PHOTO BY KYLIE COOPER

GEORGE BOTROS Video Editor

Guest columnist Faresi Alfaresi argues that Penn and president Liz Magill have failed the Muslim and Arab communities on campus by excluding any explicit mention of them in her recent statements.

RIANE LUMER Podcast Editor

Since the Palestine Writes Festival and vandalism of Hillel took place last month, Penn students have been increasingly engaged in discourse regarding Palestine and Israel. Discourse surrounding a political topic as polarizing as Israel and Palestine is — or at least should be — welcomed in a university, especially one that offers courses dedicated to the region and to the conflict itself.

This discourse, however, should never come at the expense of the safety of Jewish, Muslim, and Arab individuals. In the days leading up to the Palestine Writes Festival, antisemitic, Islamophobic, and anti-Arab sentiments surged surrounding campus, and the vandalism of Hillel left a horrific impact on everyone and especially the Jewish community.

Language used was unfortunately heavily charged with stereotypical depictions of Jews, Muslims, and Arabs. For example, in response to the backlash, the Palestine Writes Festival organizers issued an official statement stating that “unlike [their] detractors, [they] do not operate in the shadows nor among elite decision makers”, which many felt echoed the harmful stereotype of Jewish individuals “manipulating” the world and the elite.

Further, comments alluding to the attack on Hillel being conducted by an “unknown violent member of campus” that was influenced by the festival were made on the Instagram post of the article covering the attack; and now-deleted comments proclaimed the individual as barbaric.

The use of such language turns discourse into nothing more than an action to smear, disvalue, and delegitimize other individuals.

This weaponizes discourse into a tribalist and hateful tool meant not to educate, but rather to prove the perceived other side of a wide spectrum as more hateful than the side

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one defends.

This should not be allowed or displayed at an educational institution. One should be allowed to voice their opinions without risking being stuck with labels; a surveyed student claimed that terms such as “terrorist”, “colonizer”, and “sympathizer of ethnic cleansing” are increasingly used on social media. We need not lose sight of our humanity and that we are labeling our own peers, no matter how we feel about the conflict at hand.

I feel compelled and obligated to point out the disparity in the support that the Jewish community has received from Penn as an institution, while the Muslim and Arab communities sit idly by and receive hateful comments all around their campus. These comments came from peers and with neither of Magill’s statements addressing the loss and hatred Arabs have endured. Moreover, it did not garner coverage from most non-Arab related student agencies.

Another side to this same problem is that Penn does not provide any centers for Arab student organizations. I reached out to a prominent Arab student organization and asked if they ever attempted to secure a cultural center. They responded that they were met with stalling for a while, and gave this official statement: “Arab students deserve a place to simply exist in, a place where they can turn to and feel genuinely welcome at Penn. They need a space to celebrate their identity and feel supported rather than constantly seeing being Arab represented as a problem.”

Additionally, I surveyed 22 Arab individuals around campus — personally and through a Google form sent out with the aid of PASS — asking them if they felt that Penn has helped Arab students integrate into the University and if they feel safe and supported right now. 90.9% of them said

that they noticed an uptick in anti-Arab sentiment around campus and 72.7% of them shared that they were directly and/or indirectly asked to comment on the current state of affairs.

The comments proved that a majority of these Arab students did not feel that Penn helped them with integration and resources, and half of them mentioned a perceived rise in anti-Arab and Islamaphobic rhetoric within the last month and especially within the last week.

The specific comments left by these students were devastating to read. An individual, who chose to remain anonymous, claimed “it took me a long time to be more comfortable with being more active with the Penn Arab/Muslim community, and now I don’t think I am as comfortable anymore being so open with my identity because of the level of hate we’re getting.”

Another anonymous surveyed student said, “we get weird stares that don’t feel friendly. Seeing that [Magill] is completely inconsiderate about this makes it even harder to feel safe since hostility against us isn’t getting any recognition or indication.”

Multiple students said that individuals have directly negatively and harmfully commented on or stared at their hijab, and approached them with questions regarding the conflict because of it.

At the peak of all of this hatred, Arab and Muslim students continue to suffer while being silenced and are at risk of doxxing from avenues such as the Canary Mission or even blacklisted from employment — regardless of how mild or non-existent their involvement with the conflict may be. At this peak, Liz Magill and the Penn community have focused only on how the Jewish community feels.

This is evident in Magil’s failure to mention Arab, Muslim, or Palestinian students in any

capacity in either of her official statements as well as the lack of recognition of Arab suffering from the majority of the non-Arab student groups. This one-sided stance also risks jeopardizing Penn’s connection with Arab donors and governments that have ties with Penn.

I am not here to say that the Jewish community is not oppressed. I am not here to say that the Jewish community is not allowed to grieve. That would be obscenely ignorant and antisemitic. The Jewish community deserved more protection after the vandalism of Hillel, and they deserved a near-immediate response from Magill regarding the vandalism of a cultural religious center on campus. I am not wishing for the under-represented Jewish community to be overlooked. Yet I cannot help but find it appalling that the president of the University can issue a statement in which the Arab victims are never mentioned and Palestinians are only allowed to exist within the context of a controversial festival.

If Liz Magill does not issue a formal statement condemning the conflation of Arabs with terrorism on Penn’s campus, then she and the rest of the administration risk carrying the blame for all the hatred that Penn’s Arab community is being subjected to and forced to endure with silent constitution. And in the absence of administrative action, I implore my fellow Penn students to be kinder to your Arab, Jewish, and Muslim peers during these polarizing times.

Read the full column on thedp.com.

FARESI ALFARESI is a College junior studying Political Science and Modern Middle Eastern Studies from Kuwait.

His email is alfaresi@sas.upenn.edu.

Moving beyond public statements GUEST COLUMN | Seeking a path forward in the wake of a difficult time

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Send your letter to the editor or guest column to letters@thedp.com.

Editorials represent the majority view of members of The Daily Pennsylvanian, Inc. Editorial Board, which meets regularly to discuss issues relevant to Penn’s campus. Participants in these meetings are not involved in the reporting of articles on related topics.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The Land on which the office of The Daily Pennsylvanian stands is a part of the homeland and territory of the LenniLenape people, known to the original Indigenous people as “Lenapehoking.” We affirm Indigenous sovereignty and will work to hold The Daily Pennsylvanian and the University of Pennsylvania more accountable to the needs of Native American and Indigenous people.

In my role as director of the Herbert D. Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies, I work closely with many Israeli scholars, and have many friends in Israel. So the fear and grief created by Hamas’ atrocities hit close to home, and I am grieving for the lives that have been lost, both Israeli and Palestinian.

Compounding the situation is my concern about Penn’s community. I have heard things on campus from protesters that have left me stunned, including the claim that it is completely justified to target civilians in Israel, and that if Jews don’t like it, they can go back to Minsk, Moscow and Berlin.

Such statements do not help anyone, but they certainly hurt.

I am by nature a hopeful person, and in my effort to find some way forward, I take a lesson from something happening in Israel over the last week. Even now, as Israelis are stricken by the brutal slaughter of loved ones, many are asking hard questions about what the right course of action is from an ethical as well as military perspective. I do not know where that process will lead, but I have been moved by the willingness to look within and admit mistakes at such a moment. It is my wish that the University community also finds a way to engage in its own process of self-examination about why it has been so easy for our sense of community to unravel.

Of course, people’s feelings about the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians are so intractable that there is no way an institution like Penn could overcome them.

However, it seems to me that the tensions developing on campus were amplified by certain institutional weaknesses exposed just three weeks before by the controversy surrounding the Palestine Writes Literature Festival and the platform it gave to a few speakers known for making antisemitic

statements or statements that endorsed (or clearly implied an endorsement of) mass violence.

Much of the controversy since that conference has focused on public statements from a new administration, but I want to call attention to longer term issues that existed before President Magill arrived to campus.

Here are some examples from my perspective as a professor of Jewish Studies: First, for a University with a mission to train its students to be global citizens, Penn is underdeveloped in the field of Israel Studies.

Students can take courses on Hebrew language and literature, and sometimes there are courses on the conflict taught by emeriti or visiting scholars. But what has been missing is a faculty member who can sustain relevant research and teaching as a permanent and consistent part of Penn’s academic culture. A scholar who can offer courses not just on the conflict, but on Israeli society, politics, religion and history and serve the campus and community as a resource. Whatever one’s political views, how can one overcome misunderstanding and ignorance if there are not enough opportunities to learn about Israeli society?

Second, it also does not help that one venue for informed discussion of the conflict has been weakened in recent years. The University invested so little in its Middle East Center that a few years ago, the center lost its federal Title VI funding as a result.

Although the School of Arts and Sciences has stepped in with some funding to fill the gap until the next application round, the Center has had to reduce its staff and is merely subsisting in terms of resources.

Beyond funding, there is another issue inherent in SAS’s structure. In contrast to departments like History and Political Science, non-departmental units like the

Middle East Center and the Jewish Studies Program cannot make their own case for a faculty hire. They depend entirely on the decisions of departments — and in my experience, no department ranks Israel Studies as a hiring priority. This situation has helped to institutionalize an intellectual vacuum: A field like Israel Studies falls in between departments, making it very difficult to advocate for it as worthy of support.

Third, Penn is only now beginning to acknowledge that its relationship with Jewish students had been changing significantly in the last few decades. Penn was a haven for Jewish students seeking a full Jewish life on campus, and still is: I am a parent of two Penn students, and they had a fantastic experience here.

However, the perception has emerged that it is not as welcoming to Jews as it once was, and these last few weeks have magnified that perception many times over. I certainly would not compare the experience of American Jews to minorities that have faced racial or gender-based discrimination in the U.S., but antisemitism is a part of American history; even today, the greatest percentage of religiously motivated hate crimes are targeted at Jews. The University has not fully registered the impact of such trends on how many Jews respond to a shifting climate on campus, and adding hatred to the mix in such a devastating period is a tremendous blow, as the reaction of Penn alumni is now demonstrating.

Fourth, I have been asking myself why faculty weren’t more helpful in this situation, and I include myself in this criticism. I have interacted with many faculty who have wanted to be helpful during these last few weeks but did not know how. I have begun to wonder if we have lost the

ability to model how to talk to each other across differences that feel existential.

The fault here does not lie solely with the faculty themselves. Our culture is so noisy, oversaturated by media and misinformation, contemptuous of expertise, and polarized that the deliberative, self-reflective and open-minded perspective that scholarship can bring feels out of tune with the times.

That said, I think it is fair to say that the faculty, not just the administration, bear responsibility for this situation.

The weeks ahead are going to be excruciating as the war in Gaza develops, and it is hard to watch things from afar while being able to do so little to alleviate the suffering. Here at Penn, however, we have the privilege of not being immersed in war, and if people directly impacted by the violence are finding the strength to look within even now and acknowledge mistakes, I feel we should be able to do so as well.

What has been erupting on campus these last weeks is not unique to Penn. Rather, it reflects larger social trends, but we have it in our power to take a different path if we can just muster the ability to recognize the humanity of others on campus and acknowledge what led us to this moment and then make the investments required to do better.

STEVEN WEITZMAN is the Ella Darivoff Director of the Herbert D. Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies and the Abraham M. Ellis Professor of Hebrew and Semitic Languages and Literatures. He is also the Undergraduate Chair of the Religious Studies Department. His email is wsteve@sas. upenn.edu.

THEDP.COM | THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN

OPINION 5

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

Social media is no place for real political discourse ALLISON’S ATTITUDE | The Israel-Palestine conflict is a reminder of how detrimental social media can be in times of true crisis The recent conflict in Israel and Palestine has been one of enormous tragedy and loss for not only the innocent civilians in those areas but many around the world who have friends and family there. And, as has become the norm with fraught political issues of our time, social media has become the chief forum that hosts discourse about the subject. I’ve heard from Jewish friends who have spent time in Israel that some members of the Israel Defense Forces have asked those abroad to spread awareness online of the realities of the Hamas attacks.

In theory, this is good. Ideally, the Internet is a place where many have the opportunity to share their voices to people and places around the world where they otherwise couldn’t reach. This is still true and important. However, the most productive discourse will never happen in an online, virtual forum.

While we argue about the inhumane tragedies of the world, we manage to forget our own humanity as well. I have never seen something so powerful as the force of social media to dehumanize those around us; it’s the best vehicle of hatred accessible to mankind. The veil of anonymity, coupled with the lack of in-person human interaction, enables us to see those online as almost unreal or very distant adversaries.

We have seen this polarization unfold in real time in the United States, as the current domestic political mood is the most divisive and bleak it has been in decades. We saw it materialize during the Black Lives Matter movement, too. The black square started from a place of solidarity but quickly became a performative act that flooded the #BLM hashtags with useless non-informational black squares. We must take this, and other examples, as a lesson that social media can only be a small tool in the avenue that we want to create change.

Our sole, or even chief, reliance on social media activism promotes a lousy form of engagement with current social and political issues and also is a massive vessel for misinformation. Furthermore, false news travels much faster than true news, specifically six times faster than true news on X (previously Twitter), which is likely due to the fact that it contains more alarming and inflammatory material. Wartime is already infamous for secrecy and deception, which is only further reinforcing

the rampant misinformation and disinformation that we are seeing now shaping views on the IsraelPalestine conflict.

We must remind ourselves of this fact when faced with an overwhelming amount of opinions and material online. Not only do posts lack the humanity behind conflicts when they are technologized on social media, it is nearly impossible to decipher what is true and what is not. Furthermore, social media reposts help limit activism to reposting an infographic and nothing else. The very same and unwanted performative activism is perpetuated by the looming force of feeling judged or punished by not posting an infographic.

I’ve also noticed a tragic pattern in those who do post. Once someone posts in allegiance to one side of the conflict, all following posts maintain that same allegiance. But the suffering on both sides of the conflict is incomprehensibly tragic. Both deserve recognition as such. I thus assert that social media reposting forces us into oppositional binaries that discourage us from expressing sympathies for innocent civilians who deserve our support and sympathy, regardless of religion, race, or nationality.

I accept that social media does have a space in the activism world, especially for communities that have their voices suppressed or marginalized otherwise. However, it should be far from an end-all be-all method to resolve disputes. It’s unlikely that anyone thinks that social media should be end-allbe-all, but the reality is that for some it has become that.

Furthermore, social media should not be viewed as a perfectly authentic extension of the self in any context. Therefore, it’s unfair to set expectations about how people politically engage on social media.

I prefer to discuss heavier topics in person, where nuance and emotion are more easily and accurately captured. I believe what’s more important than a performative box to virtue signal is doing the legwork that it takes to be educated and enduring the emotional labor of discussing these issues and topics with friends, family, and loved ones.

It’s true too that hearts and minds have probably never been changed by any of these infographic activist posts — and I would assert that at times they simply ignite more division and confusion. We

PHOTO BY DEREK WONG

Columnist Allison Santa-Cruz argues that social media can be a vehicle of misinformation and polarization that is counterintuitive to social issues. have seen this unfold on Penn’s campus already, as a video posted by @jewishbreakingnews claimed that pro-Palestine protesters were chanting “we want Jewish genocide.” However, Penn Against the Occupation asserts that protesters were actually saying “we charge you with genocide.” As a social media user, it is virtually impossible to differentiate truths from falsehoods, especially in video format.

We must stop letting social media dictate how we view others we barely even know — or worse, make assumptions about their character and their beliefs.

I have refrained from posting about this conflict online. My silence has not come from a place of complacency but rather one of respect. I view social media as an inadequate forum to discuss issues that deserve more than a lackadaisical repost of an infographic.

Let’s return to the forum of human discussion and interaction. Let’s never underestimate the power of real conversation. Let’s trust in legitimate sources that have been backed by reputable organizations. Let’s ask our friends who have different backgrounds than us their lived experiences and perspectives.

This conversation would be incomplete without mentioning Penn’s lack of adequate reaction to these recent tragic events unfolding in Israel and

Palestine. President Magill released a delayed message condemning Hamas but did not offer much else. There has been little effort to provide a forum for Jewish and Palestinian students who desire to share their thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

All students deserve to feel safe in their identities at school. We need to encourage conversations that embrace nuance but reject antisemitism and Islamophobia. We need conversations that can differentiate religion from distinct political regimes.

And for those of us who are still trying to learn the complex and nuanced history, Penn has failed us too. As a world-renowned institution with a strong Jewish community and international community, this is the least they could do to support students connected to one of the most tragic and horrifying geopolitical and religious conflicts of our time. We need to be reminded of our humanity as much as can be possible in a time dominated by virtual communication.

ALLISON SANTA-CRUZ is a College junior studying communications from Jackson, Miss. Her email address is allisant@sas.upenn. edu.

What I heard in my five hours at the walkout for Palestine GUEST COLUMN | When Palestinian solidarity spirals into hate

PHOTO BY CHENYAO LIU

Students hold the Israeli flag during a counter-demonstration to the vigil for Palestine on Oct. 16.

If you’ve never made eye contact with a hooded, masked figure while listening to him call for you to be rooted out of society and warning you to go back to where you came from, don’t. Note that “where you came from” includes countries that committed mass genocide against your grandparents and 6 million other members of your people less than a hundred years ago, and where you do not, in fact, come from but wound up living after being forced out of every other country you had attempted to peacefully reside in. The experience was zero out of 10; would not recommend.

While The Daily Pennsylvanian has reported on the speeches, poetry, and song shared at the Oct. 16 walkout for Palestine that took place outside of Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center, I’d like to share a very

different perspective on the event. I stood outside of College Hall with an Israeli flag and a peaceful group of fellow Jewish students for most of the day. The five hours I spent there included some of the worst moments of my life thus far – moments I doubt I will ever forget.

“There is only one solution: Intifada revolution.”

These words played on a loop in my mind for the rest of the evening and are still ringing in my ears now. The “one solution” advocated for by the protesters is not a peaceful reconciliation that recognizes the legitimacy and humanity of both Israelis and Palestinians – which my friends and I are adamantly in favor of and which Palestinian leadership has rejected time and time again – but one of “Intifada.” Historically, the Second Intifada in Israel resulted in the murder of over

a thousand innocent Israelis. My mom spent a year in Israel during the Second Intifada, a period in which she feared riding on buses because of the regular suicide bombings on Israeli public transportation routes, targeting Israeli civilians and tourists.

Although, as was repugnantly expressed by a speaker at Monday’s demonstration, perhaps there are no true Israeli civilians, as “anyone who forms a settler colony is putting forward an act of war against a collective population. Therefore, all settlers and all settlements are legitimate military targets and they will be targeted.”

The only thing more disturbing than the legal and historical inaccuracy of this statement is the absolute moral bankruptcy required to blame the families, teenagers, and infants who were burned alive, butchered, and murdered en masse in their homes for the purely evil actions of their murderers.

I wish I could say I was surprised when I later saw the aforementioned speaker being carried away by police after assaulting a Jewish student.

Another popular chant was “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” which can be interpreted as a thinly veiled call for the elimination of the Jewish state and denial of the Jewish people’s right to selfdetermination in their historic homeland. As I stood in silence for five hours, speakers repeatedly pointed at my friends and me, calling us the enemies of peace – the harbingers of violence, the “real antisemites.” We stood there not in defense of the Israeli government, nor in denial of the plight of the Palestinian people, but rather in insistence of the Jewish people’s right to self-determination in our homeland, asking for little more than acknowledgment of historical fact and recognition of our humanity.

One speaker claimed that while he would never be satisfied so long as the Jewish state exists, we would

be welcomed in a secular, socialist Palestinian state.

I’m not so sure about that, seeing as the only Jews living in Gaza right now are there as hostages and the closest thing the Middle East has to a secular, socialist society is … Israel.

One well-intended demonstrator engaged me in conversation. After about 10 minutes of respectful dialogue, he acknowledged that my people certainly do need a home, as his people do, but why did we have to “choose” Israel to be that home? I’ll tell you now what I told him. We didn’t “choose” Israel. Just like we cannot and do not choose our parents or ancestors. Can there be a choice where there are no true alternatives?

When the need for a Jewish state became most salient, our heritage, our tradition, and our history all pointed us to our one indigenous homeland. The Jews have had a physical presence in Israel since Biblical times. It is the conclusion of nearly every promise in our Torah and the direction of most prayers in our liturgy. Our weddings are centered around a remembrance of Jerusalem and our mourners are comforted with references to Zion.

Israel is not something we chose, nor a conflict we inserted ourselves into. It is our heritage, our ancestral home, our birthright, our religion, our culture, our dream, our family, and our identity. On Monday at Penn, recognition of that identity was denied. And simply put: It broke my heart for the second time this week.

Rowan describes in his letter. If anything like this was said, we of course strongly condemn it.

Rowan’s letter also describes an open letter, signed by more than 4,000 people, that told “President Magill and UPenn that they were heading in the wrong direction.” In reality, the brief letter focused entirely on the PWLF and called for specific action steps in regard to that. Magill’s statement and subsequent letter to the ADL, both of which were issued in the same few days during which that letter was gathering signatures, addressed those requests specifically.

What Rowan means by “heading in the wrong direction” is unclear. But his later derisory references to “double standards,” “pursuit of social justice,” and “politically correct speech” hint at a political agenda that far exceeds the mandate suggested by the words of that open letter.

Rowan’s attempt to draw a connection between the PWLF with the heinous terrorist attack on Israel is shameful. While Rowan actively works to divide our community, hundreds of Penn community members gathered for a peaceful vigil on College Green to acknowledge the innocent lives that have been lost and to comfort one another. Magill and other University leaders were in attendance.

Penn is a remarkable institution with a vibrant community of students, faculty, staff, and alumni.

It is a place where people care for and about one another. I am filled with gratitude for what it did for me, and I know so many of my fellow alumni feel the same. The Penn community is not monolithic. The diversity of views and perspectives means there will be disagreements and not everyone will be satisfied — particularly in fast-moving, horrifically tragic situations where emotions are understandably raw and inflamed.

I hope we can continue to work together to get through those moments, to learn from them, and to move forward as an institution, for the benefit of community we serve. Magill and I remain committed to maintaining Penn as a beacon of light, a place where knowledge is created, and where our Jewish students and faculty — along with students and faculty of every race, creed, and nationality — feel supported and can thrive, especially during such difficult times.

SYDNEY FREEDMAN is a Wharton junior studying Business Analytics from Boca Raton, FL. Her email is sydneyfr@wharton.upenn. edu.

Setting the record straight GUEST COLUMN | A response to Marc Rowan’s recent letter I write in response to Marc Rowan’s letter that was recently published in PhillyVoice and is broadly circulating in the Penn community. Rowan is a respected alumnus and benefactor of the University and is entitled to his views.

Regrettably, Rowan’s letter creates confusion and division at a time when clear thinking and solidarity are so badly needed. I feel compelled to clarify the record and try to unify our University community at this difficult time.

Let me first reiterate my views and those that President Liz Magill has expressed to the Penn community. We are horrified by the terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas and the ongoing and unimaginable violence being carried out against innocent people. We condemn those attacks in the strongest possible terms. Penn stands with our Jewish community, our students and their families, our faculty and staff, our alumni, and the people of Israel. And we strongly condemn antisemitism in all forms and everywhere. As Magill wrote when she addressed two antisemitic incidents on campus, it certainly has no place at Penn.

Three weeks ago, our campus faced controversy over the Palestine Writes Literature Festival, an event that included reprehensible speakers.

Thousands of outside speakers come to Penn’s campus every year, invited by various student and faculty groups. There is not and should not be a centralized vetting process to determine which speakers are acceptable and which are not. Like any leading university, Penn has a long history of providing a forum for free expression.

Before the event took place, Magill was unequivocal in condemning antisemitism in all its forms. Presidential statements made in advance of speakers coming to campus are both highly unusual and very meaningful. President Magill followed her first statement by publishing a detailed letter she sent to the president of the Anti-Defamation League, repeating her condemnation of antisemitism, and outlining a series of steps the University is taking to combat antisemitism. One of these steps is reviewing the University’s processes for how outside events are hosted in campus facilities.

Our Executive Committee of the University Board of Trustees, a diverse group of Penn alumni and longtime volunteers, has unanimously endorsed the University’s responses to the PWLF. As for what was actually said at the PWLF, we heard multiple firsthand reports during and just after the event, none suggesting the reprehensible comments that

SCOTT BOK is the Chair of the University of Pennsylvania’s Board of Trustees. His email is scottlbok@gmail.com.

6 NEWS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

Students solve timed challenges at annual Ideathon held at Five Below’s headquarters The Ideathon is an event hosted by the Baker Retailing Center where teams have 24 hours to come up with solutions to retail challenges and create a presentation NEEMA BADDAM AND EITAN MALKUS Contributing Reporters

Penn's Baker Retailing Center held its annual Ideathon, where 20 student teams worked on the retail challenges presented to them by executives from Five Below.

At the Ideathon, teams had 24 hours to develop solutions to retail challenges and create a presentation. This year's corporate partner, Five Below, randomly assigned each team one of two challenges. Each team then had the opportunity to present to Five Below executives and faculty judges for a chance to win first-place prizes of $10,000 or second-place prizes of $5,000.

This year’s competition, which took place on Sept. 22, was distinctive because it was hosted at Wowtown, Five Below’s headquarters in downtown Philadelphia, while previous years’ competitions were hosted at nearby hotels. Susan McMullen, Director of Academic and Industry Partnerships at Baker, helped plan and run the Ideathon with her team.

“Wowtown is a really cool collaborative working space with reclaimed wood, lots of natural light, and really cool design features,” she said.

“It gives you a really good energized feeling just walking into the space.”

Wowtown has a concept store, as well as a brick-and-mortar store on the bottom floor. At the event, students could access both stores while they worked, McMullen said.

During the competition, McMullen took on the role of facilitating introductions and meetings between Five Below executive mentors and student teams. She spoke about how instrumental Kenn Bull, chief operating officer of Five Below, was in organizing and putting on the event.

Bull spoke at the event, presented the challenges, and helped decide what data was available to students. Part of Bull’s executive team was also there to mentor the students while

PHOTO COURTESY OF LUCA BISI

The team who won the first challenge of forming a loyalty program for Five Below in Penn’s third annual Ideathon.

they worked, as well as several other Five Below employees who were there to do student tours of the space and act as additional mentors.

Wharton junior and exchange student Luca Bisi, who was part of the team that won the first challenge of forming a loyalty program for Five Below, felt that the experience of being mentored late into the night at Wowtown emphasized the energetic, innovative atmosphere of the company.

“My favorite part was the point when we had to brainstorm all these different ideas and pick one,” he said. “I played the part of stress-testing each idea. For example, one of our ideas was to gamify the app. So I’d ask why should I play a game on the loyalty app when I have Clash Royale or Clash of Clans, which are actually games?”

While many students signed up with their teams, some, like Wharton MBA first year and winner of the first challenge Delaney Sheetz, formed their teams upon arriving at the event.

Sheetz found that coming together with students from different schools was their key to success,

as they could provide different perspectives and skills in planning.

“Having two people who didn't come from [a consulting] background to challenge some ideas, I think, ultimately led to better outcomes,” Sheetz said. “I would say it was a mix of our experience, like knowing how to do a consulting project and approach a problem like this, but also having people question us along the way so that we weren't all thinking exactly the same.”

College and Wharton junior Aravind Krishnan believed his team’s life sciences and healthcare background led them to their winning idea for Five Below’s next big thing: expanding Five Below to new markets with pop-up shops that can have Five Below products for public and private events.

“A few people on the team have worked on a similar idea for health care applications, like mobile clinics for underserved markets,” he said.

“While at first glance it might appear that only people in retail or marketing are fit for Ideathon,

we all gained transferable skills and learned how to apply retail principles to a background in life science and healthcare.”

Throughout the competition, students also had opportunities to be creative and have fun. At the same time, they worked splatter paint stations, customizable Converse shoes, and more experiential stations aimed at giving teams a mental breather.

College junior Diya Amlani, whose team worked on the second challenge, appreciated the emphasis on the creative process and recommended Ideathon not just to those in retail or marketing but to anyone who enjoys applying creativity to new problems and challenges.

“As a team, I feel like we learned a lot about idea generation in terms of how you actually use the research that you get, like financial statements and market research, and convert that into a tangible idea that you build from the ground up,” she said. “The best solutions are the ones that come from places you wouldn't expect.”

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

NEWS 7

Advance Registration Guide Pick up a copy on Oct. 26 Featuring our popular double count article

8 SPORTS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

TENNIS from BACK PAGE The team is noticeably younger this year with just one senior, but it seems that the fresh faces on the roster haven’t missed a step.

“Three of our first years have had really good starts,” Bonfiglio said. “Parashar Bharadwaj, Luka Butera, and Aaron Sandler have all gotten off to really good starts — both on the singles court and the doubles court.”

Additionally, sophomore Manfredi Graziani has already qualified for the ITA Northeast Super Regionals, coming up this weekend. The lone senior, Sameer Gangoli, has been a strong performer, having not yet lost a match — a feat Bonfiglio described as a “breakout fall.”

“We have a 10-man team, but I feel like everyone’s doing a good job. We’re a younger team, so there’s a lot of opportunities for guys to step into new roles — whether that means from starting in the singles/ doubles lineup, to leadership roles,” Bonfiglio said.

“They love tennis and they embrace working hard.

They’re really buying into the culture that we’re trying to build here.”

SOCCER, from BACK PAGE

Even Bonfiglio was surprised at how impressive the team has looked through the first couple of months. “I think we’ve probably performed better than I would have anticipated coming into this year,” he said.

“I think the practices can get a little stale, [but gameplay] helps keep everything exciting and helps keep a goal in mind,” Bonfiglio said. “No matter how hard you’re working in practice, you can’t replace those match reps and that pressure that you feel in those situations. It helps keep practices exciting and it helps keep us competition-ready looking ahead to the spring.”

The Quakers will play at the ITA Northeast Super Regionals in Princeton, N.J. this weekend from Oct. 20 to 23. Gangoli, Bharadwaj, Graziani, and sophomore Kian Vakili have all qualified to play in the singles competition. In addition, the Quakers will have three doubles teams participating in the event, which include the four Quakers mentioned above as well as junior Zachary Lim and freshman Aaron Sandler.

SPRINT, from BACK PAGE said.

Game Two — Penn 21, Cornell 9 In their second outing, the Quakers showcased their fighting spirit by clinching a win against the Big Red at Franklin Field. This marked Penn’s 10th consecutive win over Cornell since 2013. Freshman sensation and running back JT Goodman rushed for two touchdowns, while junior quarterback Ty Scherer — despite some interception woes — contributed significant yardage both through the air and on the ground. The defense remained solid, keeping Cornell’s scoring in the single digits.

Goodman’s electrifying performance earned him the title of CSFL Rookie of the Week. Additionally, sophomore linebacker Gavin Griswold was recognized for his nine-tackle performance, earning an honorable mention. “[The recognition] is a great thing, but what really matters to me is what my team thinks of me as a whole,” Goodman said.

Game Three — Penn 7, Army 31 Facing Army at Shea Stadium was a tough proposition for the Quakers. Despite spirited efforts, the team was restricted to just 112 yards of total offense.

Yet, individual performances shone through, with freshman defensive back Andy Falletta leading in receptions and junior linebacker Jake Inserra spearheading the defense with 10 total tackles and an interception. The game marked Penn’s seventh consecutive defeat to Army.

Game Four — Penn 19, St. Thomas Aquinas 15 In what can only be described as a theatrical display of grit, the Quakers mounted a thrilling

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

fourth-quarter comeback against St. Thomas Aquinas on Oct. 13. Trailing 15-5 as the team entered the final quarter, Penn scored 14 unanswered points to secure a 19-15 victory. Goodman and Scherer were once again at the forefront of the attack, with Scherer scoring the game-winning touchdown.

“This was a great game; a great team win for us,” coach Jerry McConnell said. “I’m so happy for our kids. It puts us in a position for when we play Navy, we’ll compete for the CSFL South Division Championship. Our team never quits. We talked all week about this game being a street fight and our guys stepped up and did an unbelievable job. Just so proud of this group.”

Four games into the season, the Quakers stand with a balanced 2-2 record. The team has showcased resilience, particularly in its recent comeback win.

Fresh talents like Goodman have risen to the occasion, and consistent performers like Montemayor have maintained their high standards.

However, challenges remain. The Quakers must address vulnerabilities that led to their defeats, especially capitalizing on momentum shifts and reducing costly errors. The defense, while formidable, will need to further tighten up as the Red and Blue head into their final two games of the year — all with a CSFL South Division Championship on the line. The coming games will undoubtedly test their mettle, but if the season so far is any indication, they have the spirit to face any adversity head-on.

“While it’s clear what our exact flaws and potential solutions are,” McConnell said, “the implementation of those solutions is anything but easy.”

7 in the team’s only conference win so far. Across the four Ivy games, the Quakers have only found the back of the net twice.

The team’s goal-scoring habits this season have placed them at the bottom of the Ancient Eight, joined by Columbia. It is not for lack of trying; Korzeniowski has attempted 11 shots – seven of which are on goal – and Curran, coming off the bench, has the second-most attempts with six.

In their first two conference games against Yale and Dartmouth, the team attempted 15 shots in each.

While they only had one goal to show for it, the Quakers’ efforts were there, proving that the offense could work its way through the opponent’s defense.

However, the offense has not been the same in their two most recent games against conference opponents: against Cornell, it only attempted three shots, and against Brown, there was a slight improvement, but still only five shots were attempted. With three games left, the Quaker offense needs to get back into the rhythm it had earlier this season — which included a three-goal performance against No. 14 Penn State on Sept. 8 — to give them a fighting chance.

Much of the fight for Penn has come from their defense.

The defensive line — Do, sophomore Oliver Pratt, junior Leo Burney, and senior Mattias Hanchard — have each played in all 360 minutes of Ancient Eight play this season. The tenacity and strength of the defense has only allowed three goals, two to Dartmouth and one to Yale, and contributed to keeping Brown scoreless in a 0-0 draw. Even in the Quakers’ 2-0 loss, the defense kept the Big Green from even attempting a shot until the second half. They repeated that defensive success against Cornell — translating to a win.

Between the posts, senior goalkeeper Nick Christoffersen has been remarkable for the Quakers.

With only three goals allowed, this ties Penn for the second-best in the conference. Christoffersen has notched a save percentage of 0.786 off of eleven saves. Christoffersen has been stringing together strong performances that have kept Penn in contention in much of its games despite the offensive tally.

Up ahead, Penn has three Ancient Eight foes to face: Harvard, Columbia, and Princeton.

Harvard right now is the team to beat, with an offense that has tallied seven goals and a defense that has been on par with Penn’s. Princeton too has seven goals to its name, but the poor conference standing stems from the Tiger defense allowing an average of two goals per game. Their offense has not been enough in most games to bail out their defense. Both will be difficult match-ups, especially Harvard who has yet to lose in conference play. But, both matches are at Penn Park, where the Quakers remain unbeaten. The question now is if they can maintain that streak in the final stretch of the season.

Meanwhile, Columbia sits right now as the worst overall team with no wins. This is partly due to the Lions’ defense, which has allowed an average of three goals per game. They are the most vulnerable team out of their three remaining, and thus a win over Columbia could help lodge Penn out of its three-way tie for fourth.

But, keep in mind that the teams are all quite close in the standings right now. Even though Harvard is in first place, the Crimson currently have eight points, only three ahead of the Quakers. A win over Harvard could put Penn in a much better position to qualify for the Ivy League Tournament.

Penn’s final position in the table — and ultimate fate for the season — will be contingent on the team’s ability to put all the pieces together with three crucial games remaining.

PHOTO BY ANA GLASSMAN

Junior forward Stas Korzeniowski scored Penn’s only goal against Cornell to secure the win on Oct. 7.

YALE, from BACK PAGE Despite the penalties, Penn had a number of the Year, Nolan Grooms, and company. The dualpositives to take away from their first Ivy League threat quarterback has rushed for 279 yards and victory of the season, including freshman running thrown for 966, adding 12 touchdowns with only back Malachi Hosley. After a combined 181 total two interceptions so far this season. yards and three touchdowns in the Georgetown and “You got to approach him differently than other Dartmouth games, Hosley has emerged as the lead quarterbacks you play against,” Priore said. back for the Quakers. His 14 carries on Saturday He added that his strong arm and athleticism were the most by any Penn running back in a single combined with a strong supporting cast make him game this season. After his performance last week, very difficult to defend. Yale finished last season as Hosley was also named to the Jerry Rice Award the No. 1 offense in the Ivy League. So far this year, Midseason Watch List for the best overall fresh- Penn’s defense is ranked at No. 5 in the conference, man in the FCS. According to Priore, Hosley will allowing an average of 21.2 points per game. continue to receive the bulk of the carries moving “We have to just finish,” Priore said. “Finish forward. every play. Every play on offense, every play on Priore added that the team will still look to use defense, special teams plays. If we do that, we have other running backs in certain situations, refer- a good chance.” encing Mulatu’s important catch at the end of last The Quakers will head to New Haven on Saturweek’s game. day for a noon kickoff at the Yale Bowl. This will On the other side of the ball, Penn’s defense will be the 81st matchup between the two teams, and The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation have a lot on its plate as the team attempts to con- New Penn’s in the series is 38-41-1.

620 Eighth Avenue, York, record N.Y. 10018 tain the reigning Ivy League Offensive Player ofCall: 1-800-972-3550 For Information For Release Thursday, October 19, 2023

NEWYORKTIMESCROSSWORDPUZZLE Edited by Will Shortz Crossword

35 Tenants’ collective protest 36 Fossil fuel alternative 37 Congratulations 39 Sidewalk shader 40 Reef builder 41 Creator of the nine circles of Hell 44 Film character who takes “the red pill” 45 Get a little punchy?

46 Comes (from) 48 Site of the Wailing Wall 50 Actress Thompson 54 Hidden 57 “The Wizard of Oz” prop 58 Bat mitzvah figure 59 Common directive in 17-Across … or what to do with five squares in this puzzle 62 Anyone who’s “in” this is out

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE

Check back next week for answers to today’s puzzle!

63 County in New York, Ohio or Pennsylvania 64 Phrase that’s a real gamechanger?

65 Impede 66 Expert service provider?

67 Disney queen DOWN 1 Nation that switched from right- to left-hand traffic in 2009 2 Preceder of the Chen dynasty

team. I think my team would rather be tested and challenged, and learn and get better and grow.”

Her players agree. Senior forward Allison Kuzyk believes it’s “good to play good competition” so players can better themselves. “When they’re a highly ranked team, a highly competitive team, it is just a good challenge, especially early on in the season,” she said. “It prepares us well for anything we’re going to have after.”

And prepare them it did. Penn has only dropped one of five games against Ivy opponents this season. With two conference matchups left, the team hopes to continue their in-conference success.

Of course, a season is going to have its ups and downs. One of the biggest strengths that both Fink and players pointed out was the team’s mentality.

“I think our mindset has been incredibly strong,” senior goalkeeper Frederique Wollaert said. I think we’re a really supportive group, supporting each other on and off the field, and we’re really helping each other to get better every day.”

Junior midfielder Meghan McGinley agrees.

“We’ve been doing a lot of work on the mental side of things and approaching the game the same no matter who our opponent is. We still have a lot of tough games to go, but I think that having this good mindset is really valuable going into the rest of our season.”

On the flip side, Fink and her players pointed out that corners and converting scoring chances have been issues they’ve been working on throughout the season. But for the little issues, the Quakers try to target them early so they don’t become a long-term problem.

“We made a list of what we learned from each

SUDOKUPUZZLE

3 Prefix meaning “correct”

4 Strongly urge 5 Successfully pitched 6 Body image focus group?

53 Rabbit ears, e.g.

8 Low-pitched woodwind

54 Standing on the street

27 “Aux innocents 38 Unknown quantity ___ mains pleines” in a 10-Down (“Fortune favors 39 Off-roader, in brief fools”) 41 Great salt lake 9 Actress Mirren 29 Giant in chemicals 42 Add up to manufacturing 10 Problem that may have several 30 Decline 43 Zero factors 46 Dr. based out of 31 2012 film 11 Good thing to be Compton, Calif. centered around a in 47 Snap with a stick, hostage crisis maybe 12 Numeral on some 32 Kindergarten sundials 49 Alpine athlete series 13 60 minutes, for 51 Bad-tempered 33 Decline one expression 34 Singer Bareilles 18 L’Oréal competitor 52 Wraparound garments 36 Honeybun 22 Unfamiliar

25 Body shop fig.

Skill Level:

3 PUZZLE BY VASU SERALATHAN

7 Sounds of realization

24 Toon with the catchphrase “You eediot!”

game, and we tried to come up with a few things that we should work on from that game,” Kuzyk said. “So just focusing on weaknesses from one game and trying to improve them for the next one, so that there’s not something that’s a lingering weakness.”

“I think that every team has their strengths and weaknesses,” McGinley added. “We do watch film on other people, but we also watch it on ourselves.

We don’t get bogged down in the nitty gritty mistakes.”

For the rest of this season, the Red and Blue look to continue to build upon their strengths while taking things one game at a time.

“I think the focus right now is [to] continue to tap into the things that have made us successful so far,” Fink said. She also knows “that other teams are scouting us, other teams are going to identify what those things are and try to take those things off the table.”

“I’m just taking it one day at a time,” Wollaert said. “But I think it’s definitely good to think about all the lessons we’ve learned throughout the season. … I think just being aware of our strengths and using those to capitalize on big opportunities is something that I want to keep in mind.”

As for their chances on an Ivy League title, they all seem to be very confident, as they should be given the team’s strong play against Ivy competition this season.

“I have a lot of confidence in this team and this coaching staff,” said McGinley, “and I think that our team this year is really special. We’ve seen a lot of people being able to contribute. We still have a lot of work to do, but ultimately [a title] is the goal and I’m really excited to see what we can do.”

55 Sport with a stick 56 Published remembrance, for short 57 Divided by, in fractions 60 Middle-earth menace 61 What an impostor tries to sell

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6

8 4 9 7 1 5 2 8 8 3 9 7 1 7 2 2 9 6 6 7 3 2

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit 1 to 9.

7

Solution to Previous Puzzle:

4 5 1

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ACROSS 1 Blackthorn 5 Motion to strike?

9 Noted figure in genetic research 14 Affectionate gesture that might get some blowback?

15 Govt. workplace overseer 16 Provide things for 17 Where students may be plotting 19 Saint ____ (West Indies nation) 20 Customer service state?

21 Enter on tiptoe 23 Focal point of ancient Athens 24 Take exception to 26 Power tool used for mosaics 28 Early voting site 32 They’re often “baked in” to podcasts

No. 0914

FIELD HOCKEY, from BACK PAGE

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SPORTS 9

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

Football showed its true colors in Columbia win CRAIN | With the season halfway in the books, the Quakers haven’t been perfect, but you don’t have to be to win games — or an Ivy title

PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

Freshman running back Malachi Hosley hurdles over Columbia’s defensive line during the game on Oct. 14.

Last Saturday, Penn football went to New York, and played Columbia. Three hours later, the clock hit zero, and the Quakers had won 2017.

That much is certain; these are facts. Everything else, though, is not.

Some people would think that Penn spent three quarters playing down to inferior competition and making mistakes, before Columbia had a series of defensive miscues in the fourth quarter that let the Quakers leave Manhattan with a narrow win. That's certainly what some people implied to me postgame.

But that's not what I saw at Wien Stadium. Instead, I saw a group of players on the road, in inclement weather, playing their utter hearts out.

I saw an offense find itself late in the game — as junior quarterback Aidan Sayin distributed the ball effectively, the offensive line gave him plenty of time in clean pockets, and the skill position players made big plays. I saw a defense make plays all game long, and shine in the

biggest moments.

And most of all, I saw a team that has the essential DNA necessary to win its first Ivy League title since 2016.

Don't get me wrong, the Penn football team that took the field yesterday has flaws. Sayin made a costly interception in the first quarter, and the offense stalled out in the red zone twice.

But with the 2023 season halfway over and a wide open Ivy League, why can't the Quakers win the Ancient Eight?

Currently, Harvard is the only undefeated team in conference play, and Columbia the only winless one; the other six are all 1-1. And with the bulk of the Ivy season still to go — including three more conference home games — Penn is firmly in control of its own destiny.

That just means Penn can theoretically win the Ivy League; here's why I don't think it's crazy to say that they have a great shot at it.

Firstly, Penn's aerial assault this year has been phenomenal. The Quakers are averaging

High jumper Kampton Kam competes at Asian Games with eye to national record The sophomore represented Singapore, and he ultimately finished seventh VIVIAN YAO Sports Associate

PHOTO BY BENJAMIN MCAVOY-BICKFORD

Now-sophomore Kampton Kam competes in the high jump at the 2023 Penn Relays on Apr. 29.

While at Penn most students were stressing over their next midterm exams, track and field sophomore high jumper Kampton Kam was facing a different kind of stress on the other side of the globe.

Kam, who hails from Singapore, set his country's indoor national record in the high jump at 2.06 meters in his first ever collegiate competition last winter, and then extended it to 2.08m at the Wesley A. Brown Invitational. But since then, things haven’t exactly gone to plan for Kam. Early on in the college season, Kam sustained a lingering injury that would end up derailing most competitions his freshman year. Overall, the campaign was one to forget for Kam, who has had his eyes set on the Singaporean national high jump record of 2.22m set by Wong Yew Tong in 1995 for quite some time.

Using the summer to recover and train, Kam’s next opportunity to compete came early in the fall at the Asian Games. The Asian Games, which take place every four years, were held in Hangzhou, China this year from Sept. 23 until Oct. 8. Representing his native Singapore, Kam came out strong in the qualifying rounds, posting a season's best 2.15m, which was more than enough to punch his ticket to the finals.

Unfortunately for Kam, 2.15m would prove to be his limit in this competition. After being unable to push past that height, he ultimately placed seventh, with Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim taking gold as the only jumper to clear 2.19m. Despite not reaching the podium, Kam walked away from the experience with more positives than negatives.

“My favourite part of the games is definitely jumping in the finals with my high jump heroes Mutaz Barshim and Woo Sanghyeok, in a stadium filled with 80k spectators,” Kam reflected. “It’s one of the largest if not the largest crowd I’ve jumped in and that atmosphere is crazy. I even got a signed windbreaker by Mutaz after the victory ceremony.”

While it would have been nice to medal, Kam is more than satisfied knowing that he is on track to getting back to where he was pre-injury.

“I’m relieved and feel blessed to have the opportunity to be here,” Kam said. “To qualify for the finals is just a bonus for me. It’s been a very tough year for me [with] a lot of injuries … so I can’t complain about ending the season with a season’s best.”

Now, Kam will be looking to rejoining his teammates with Penn track and field who have been studying for midterms while he has been competing. For someone who takes competing so seriously, it can often challenge his ability to simultaneously succeed in the classroom. After missing nearly two weeks of school, Kam will be coming back to Penn with a number of exams to make up. Alas, the grind never stops — even for internationally competing athletes.

While Kam gets back to studying, there is more than enough to be excited for as the next track and field season approaches. Clearing 2.15m on such a high-pressure stage sets the stage for what Kam hopes will be a much better sophomore season. The confidence booster was one that was much needed and bodes well for Kam’s record-setting ambitions.

291 yards per game, enough for second in the Ivy League. Quarterbacks are completing over 67% of their passes, and averaging a respectable 6.4 yards per attempt. Much of this can be due to Sayin and sophomore quarterback Liam O'Brien's excellence, but the offensive line deserves credit here as well. Penn signal callers routinely have plenty of time for receivers to get open, and the Quakers have only surrendered five sacks so far this year.

Let me also address the running game, which is currently last in the Ivy League at under 100 yards per game. It's not ideal, but it can be managed. Plus, the Quakers have been led in rushing for the past two games by freshman running back Malachi Hosley, who is a bona fide star in the making. As the season progresses, he should get more touches, and I wouldn't be surprised to see the overall numbers tick up moving forward.

Moving to the defense, there is little to say besides the fact that it's been excellent. It ranks second in both rushing and passing yards

allowed, while forcing five interceptions and 12 sacks so far this year.

Most importantly, this team just has the it factor. Something that I just can't put my finger on, but that I know is there. It was apparent yesterday, as the team walked through drenching rain to the locker room after a win. It's been there in practice, from the scorching days in training camp to the freezing mornings that are sure to come. And it's been there each of the last two weeks, as the Quakers manage to find a way to win.

And it's this intangible aspect of the team — not the stats or the stars, although they certainly help — that is why I think Penn has what it takes to win the Ivy League this season.

CALEB CRAIN is a junior and current sports editor studying European history and statistics from Los Angeles. All comments should be directed to dpsports@thedp.com.

SPORTS

THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA • FOUNDED 1885

PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2023

VOL. CXXXIX

NO. 24

FALL SPORTS REPORT

PHOTOS BY CHENYAO LIU, CYNTHIA DONG, AGUSTINUS PORAJOW, AND WEINING DING

Sprint football eyeing CSFL South division title

Field hockey in thick of Ivy title race with three games to go

Men’s soccer finds Men’s tennis itself in the middle showing progress of the Ancient ahead of ITA Eight pack Super Regionals

From blowout losses to thrilling comeback victories, the Quakers’ season has been a rollercoaster

Coach Colleen Fink praised her team’s mentality and ability to push themselves to learn

The defending Ivy League title holders have struggled finding the back of the net in Ancient Eight play

The Quakers look to turn some heads at the upcoming Northeast Super Regional event

EVAN POWERS Sports Associate

ANDREW STRATTON Sports Reporter

KRISTEL RAMBAUD Sports Reporter

ASHIL SRIVASTAVA Sports Associate

The 2023 sprint football season for the Quakers has been a rollercoaster, with moments of brilliance and periods of struggle. Just past the midpoint, let’s take a moment to reflect on the journey so far.

Game One — Penn 10, Chestnut Hill 27 The Quakers’ season opener against Chestnut Hill on the road proved challenging. Despite a strong start and a potential momentum swing when Chestnut Hill missed a field goal in the third quarter, Penn failed to capitalize. Chestnut Hill’s two late interceptions, including a 30-yard pick-six, eventually sealed the defeat for Penn.

Despite the loss, though, junior wide receiver Adrian Montemayor was recognized as the College Sprint Football League Special Teams Player of the Week — an accolade he’s quite familiar with, having won the award twice last year. Beyond his team’s prowess, Montemayor was a defensive thorn for the Griffins, forcing a fumble and blocking a punt.

“It may be déjà vu, but at the end of the day, the feeling of contribution is still great,” Montemayor

With just a few games left this season, Penn field hockey has shown a lot of progress and development. Following last year’s 7-10 finish, there were a lot of questions about the Quakers and their prospects for this season.

So far, while not everything has gone their way, the Red and Blue have certainly made the most of their opportunities. At 6-7 on the season — and 4-1 in Ivy League play — with three games left, there’s a lot to be hopeful about with this team.

To start the season, Penn played three top-10 ranked opponents in North Carolina, Louisville, and Northwestern. Despite the difficulties such a tough opening schedule provides, coach Colleen Fink and the rest of the team welcomed the challenge.

“You know, there’s an argument to be made that, maybe if you play a different type of schedule, then that might breed more confidence,” Fink said. “I don’t think that is the life fabric of my

Fall in America is largely dominated by football, but you can’t forget the other fútbol.

Penn men’s soccer (3-3-5, 1-1-2 Ivy) — the defending Ivy League Champions – are four games into its Ivy League season and just wrapped up their non-conference slate with a 5-0 win against Lehigh University on Tuesday evening. As of now, the Quakers sit in a three-way tie with Cornell (6-3-2, 1-1-2) and Yale (6-4-2, 1-1-2) for fourth place in the conference standings, on the cusp of qualifying for the conference tournament next month, which the top four teams will attend. With half of conference play left to go, let’s look back on the first half and assess the team’s shot at reclaiming the title.

The Quakers opened Ivy League play against Yale, a match ending in a 1-1 tie. Their lone goal was scored by junior midfielder Brandon Curran via a header off an assist from junior defender Ben Do. Junior forward Stas Korzeniowski scored off a penalty kick to secure the win against Cornell on Oct.

Although the official collegiate season has yet to commence, Penn men’s tennis has been thrust into action in multiple International Tennis Federation and Intercollegiate Tennis Association events this fall. The Quakers have had some strong showings to start and look to continue their momentum.

“Fall is our non-traditional season,” coach Rich Bonfiglio said. “It’s a little bit more individual-based competition. We hosted [the Penn Invitational] with about eight teams and we actually ended up winning that invite.” At that event, the Quakers bested Yale by a score of 5-2 — a good indicator of the team’s stellar chances at a conference title when the spring season rolls around.

Penn also got to compete against other teams in different conferences at the Orange and Blue Classic in Virginia. Competition at this event featured some big names like the University of Virginia — the two-time NCAA defending champions — and Vanderbilt. “I thought that gave us some good preparation for going into the ITAs,” Bonfiglio added.

See SPRINT, page 8

See FIELD HOCKEY, page 8

See SOCCER, page 8

See TENNIS, page 8

‘Like a playoff game’: Football hits the road to take on defending champs Yale The Quakers won 20-13 at home last year after a last-minute rushing touchdown GRIFFIN BOND Sports Associate

While Penn football may have defeated Yale last season, the Bulldogs, as the 2022 Ivy League Champions, will have the bragging rights when the Quakers take the field in New Haven, Conn. this weekend.

A year after Penn’s (4-1, 1-1 Ivy) victory, both teams are in the thick of an extremely tight Ivy League title chase. Six teams have Ivy League records of 1-1, with Harvard — the only remaining undefeated team — leading the way at 2-0. The Bulldogs are coming off of three straight wins and will look to continue their title defense by avenging last year’s loss, giving this game incredibly high stakes.

“From here on out, it is all Ivy play, so each and every game is going to be a playoff game coming up,” senior wide receiver Joshua Casilli said.

A season ago, the Quakers defended Franklin Field with a 20-13 win after fifth-year senior running back Jonathan Mulatu scored a one-yard rushing touchdown with 20 seconds remaining to put Penn ahead. It would be Yale’s only conference

loss of the season, while Penn’s losses against Harvard and Brown denied the team a conference title.

Speaking of close games, the Quakers’ 20-17 win over Columbia last weekend was their third straight game that was decided by one score.

“Being put in the same situation multiple times gives you comfort, gives you poise,” Casilli added.

“Like I said before, we trust in our abilities, we trust ourselves, and we trust the person next to you and we feel confident in those types of situations.”

Against the Lions, Penn committed seven penalties for 46 yards, including a fourth-down offsides infraction that allowed a Columbia drive to continue and ultimately finish in a touchdown.

According to coach Ray Priore, the team needs to work on their concentration to avoid shooting themselves in the foot this week.

“There are some penalties that you understand can happen. A quick face masking penalty, that can happen,” he said. “There are those ones that you use the phrase undisciplined penalties that you have to erase. We will work hard on that this week.”

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PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

Now-junior quarterback Aidan Sayin during last season’s Homecoming matchup against Yale on Oct. 22, 2022.

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