April 17, 2015

Founded 1876 daily since 1892 online since 1998

Friday april 17, 2015 vol. cxxxix no. 49

WEATHER

{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } HIGH

LOW

71˚ 51˚

EISGRUBER GREETS FIREFIGHTERS

ACADEMICS

HUM to eliminate applications

Cloudy skies with occasional rain. chance of rain:

60 percent

Follow us on Twitter @princetonian

In Opinion

By Zoe Toledo

The Editorial Board discourages the student body from voting in favor of divestment, and columnist Christian Wawrzonek differentiates dissent from racism.

PAGE 4

contributor

Today on Campus 11:30 a.m.: Manna’s Open Small Group will be hosting a lunchtime talk with Princeton professors on the Christian worldview. Frist Campus Center Lecture Hall 302.

The Archives

Feb. 17, 1947 The Association of Northeastern Flying Clubs, founded as a forum for flying enthusiasts, had its first gathering at Yale. “The formation of the club should result in cheaper flying rates for universities and lead to the purchase of new airplanes” said Princeton representatives Bill Tiernan’44 and John Jessup’ 45.

got a tip?

Email it to: tips@dailyprincetonian.com

News & Notes Stanford announces it will not participate in divestment from companies in Israel

Stanford will not divest from companies operating in Israel, according to the Stanford Daily.

The announcement was made on Tuesday afternoon by the Stanford Board of Trustees in response to a request from the Stanford Students for Justice in Palestine, who had asked Stanford to divest from a list of companies that allegedly profited from human rights abuses in Palestine.

According to the statement, the Board believed that any action to divest would create deep divisions among the Stanford community. It read that the University’s mission and responsibility of allowing and encouraging diverse opinions on campus would be compromised by taking a position on such a complex issue.

Earlier this year, there had been two separate votes by the Associated Students of Stanford University Senate regarding divestment. The conf lict was so significant that several students shouted, and one was reportedly moved to tears.

CHRIS FERRI :: ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR

The Princeton Student Firefighter Association met with University President Christopher Eisgruber ‘83 at Nassau Hall.

STUDENT LIFE

U N I V E R S I T Y A F FA I R S

Yik Yak to consider disabling U. campus posts from local area

By Olivia Wicki staff writer

After an unknown individual emailed Yik Yak with a request to showcase posts from the University on the application’s “Peek” feature, a Yik Yak support agent replied that the company is considering banning all future posts in the area.

Yik Yak is a Twitter-like application that allows users within a certain area to share anonymous posts from their phones. Though users can only comment on posts from their area, they can “Peek” at other locations to see what is being

said there.

In the April 7 email, the agent explained the company’s position by citing a trend of harassment at the University.

“We have received an unusually large number of reports from this area, in the past few days, which has gotten our attention,” the agent wrote. “We are currently considering implementing manual submission approval or possibly disabling submissions from this region completely.”

Yik Yak representatives did not respond to requests for comment.

See YIK YAK page 3

LECTURE

Prager discusses antiSemitism, politics of religion in lecture

By Jacob Donnelly news editor

A moral compass can be determined to be valid or invalid based on whether Jewish people are treated fairly, and Islam may not pass this test, Jewish radio host Dennis Prager said at a heavily attended discussion moderated by jurisprudence professor Robert George on Thursday.

Prager drew an analogy between the few number of Germans who were actually mass killers during the Nazi era and the few number of Muslims who are actually terrorists, adding that just as a few Germans were Na-

The Humanistic Studies Program will no longer require prospective freshmen students to apply to the intensive year-long Humanities Sequence.

Students, including nonfreshmen, can instead reserve a spot by emailing Lin DeTitta, the program manager for Humanistic Studies and Journalism.

The Humanities Sequence is a year-long sequence of courses that is designed to represent an interdisciplinary approach to examining Western literature from antiquity to the 20th century.

Originally, the emphasis on faculty-led precepts forced limits on the number of students who could enroll, said Kathleen Crown, executive director of the Council of the Humanities.

The program has evolved over time in regard to the number of faculty and students involved with the program, she added.

“There is nothing in the origins of the sequence to indicate that the HUM Sequence should be limited to a select group,” Crown said. “The goal

was to reach as many students with diverse disciplinary interests as possible and bring them together.”

Kelly Rafey ’16, an alumna of the Humanities Sequence, said the decision to move away from an application would ultimately allow more people to take the class.

“On another level, having the application is a clear indicator that course requires a bit more than a standard course, due to the incredible work load,” she said.

Rafey said her experience with the Humanities Sequence inspired her to take Latin, to be able to read texts in their original language and continue to learn additional languages. She said the Humanities Sequence aided in her decision to independently concentrate in linguistics.

Both Luke Gamble ’18 and Robert Marshall ’18, who are currently in the program, said the application process was fairly easy and short. The application itself consisted of a prompt to write a one-page analysis on a book of their choosing.

The faculty-led precepts are one of the defining aspects of the Humanities Sequence, See HUMANITIES page 2

zis did not excuse Germany from having a Nazi problem, few Muslims being terrorists does not excuse Islam from having a terrorism problem.

Israel is now a target of annihilation just like Jewish citizens in Germany once were, Prager said.

Prager also said he believed that Jewish and Christian conservatives have more in common now than with liberals in their own religions.

Prager recalled an incident in which a caller was giving a rabbi who was a guest on a radio show a hard time about the chosen staSee LECTURE page 3

Gender gap in disciplinary committees sparks discussion

By Ruby Shao associate news editor

The current 2014-2015 Faculty-Student Committee on Discipline has six male and two female undergraduate members. Over the past decade, there has only been one year in which more female students than male students were represented on the committee.

A related group, the Undergraduate Honor Committee, does not keep such records of past rosters, but currently has ten male and two female members.

“I definitely had this criticism going in. I noted that there is a very obvious gender disparity and I brought these

concerns to Jesse [Fleck ’15, the Honor Committee chair] directly and in conversation,” said Ella Cheng ’16, Undergraduate Student Government president and member of the Honor Committee’s selection committee. “He gave some honest and great feedback in response to what they’ve been trying to do to address that.”

Cheng is a former staff writer for The Daily Princetonian.

Fleck declined to comment.

The Committee on Discipline has consisted of five undergraduate students during each of the academic years encompassing 2005-2014.

Throughout this period, only one or two undergraduate members have been female,

with the exception of 2011-12, when there were four female members on the committee.

Cheng said the committee has not been idle in encouraging female applicants. She explained that efforts have included additional publicity efforts to reach out to women’s groups specifically, such as the Women’s Center and the Women’s Mentorship Program.

However, she added that even with the extra recruiting effort, more women are not necessarily applying.

“I think to some extent women are less inclined to want to apply to that. I think it requires you to be able to See GENDER page 2

AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA PERFORMANCE

YASH HUIGOL :: CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

Clarinetist Charles Neidich and the Australian Chamber Orchestra performed Thursday evening at Richardson Auditorium as a part of the Princeton University Concerts Series.

The Daily Princetonian

page 2

Friday april 17, 2015

Increasing transparency could affect gender gap in committee, Lossing says GENDER Continued from page 1

.............

Live.

Laugh.

Love.

Layout.

Join the ‘Prince’ design section.

Email design@dailyprincetonian.com

potentially have to make a decision that might mean that one of your classmates will have to leave school for a year,” said Cheng. “I have to be careful to what extent this is stereotyping, and to what extent this is what I’ve actually observed, but I think at least from what I’ve observed, a lot of women are really hesitant to take on that role, and so they kind of self-select out of that process.”

She added that the main issue behind lower numbers of women on the Honor Committee specifically is that fewer women apply, leading to a smaller pool of women that have a chance of being appointed to the committee.

Cheng stated that gender alone is not a determining factor, and the selection committee considers diversity and how the member would fit in with the committee.

“There are many different factors to evaluate, right? And it’s also a discredit to women to evaluate solely based on gender,” Cheng said.

She added that she thinks the selection process itself is very fair.

“The people on the panel are actually very unbiased, very considerate and thoughtful over the entire process and every applicant,” she said Sarah Lossing ’17 said the committee should strive to have an equal gender ratio, and noted that the committees should represent the student body.

“Everyone should have a fair

say, and so I think both demographic-wise and gender-wise, [the committees] should be as close to the University population as possible,” she said.

According to Nathan Wong ’18, equality would help protect against male committee members favoring male students accused of infractions.

“In my experience with an all-guys school, people were very quick to help their friends out and bail them out,” he said, adding that the University community would have more confidence in the committees if they had a 50-50 gender split.

“I think we’re probably losing out on interesting and meaningful perspectives if we don’t keep it balanced,” Ankit Buddhiraju ’15 said.

He added that increasing the representation of women would not necessarily affect the rigor of disciplinary proceedings, which probably are fine as they are.

“But just in terms of being empathetic with a student or understanding a student’s particular circumstances better, I would assume it’s more helpful if when there’s a girl, there are girls who can understand, and if there’s a guy, there are guys who can understand,” Buddhiraju explained.

He said he supports targeting more women in recruitment efforts, but would not want to give special consideration to female applicants, since the goal is to maintain or increase the quality of the committees by getting more women.

Denise Chan ’18 said she sees no issue with mostly male disciplinary bodies.

“Maybe there are going to be more males who apply. But if that’s the way it is, then that’s the way it is,” she said.

“I wouldn’t want to do special things just to recruit females, you know, because what if we’re going to recruit someone who may not be as dedicated as someone who applied by themselves? What would that mean in our final hearing, or when we’re debating about the student’s future?”

Chan works on the business section of The Daily Princetonian.

Charlotte McIntosh ’18 suggested that the committees balance their gender ratios by reaching out to individuals.

“People don’t really think about the Honor Committee and the Committee on Discipline all that much as far as student government or elected positions,” she said. “If you think of someone, your friend, who you think would be really good at that position, you should tell them.”

Lossing recommended publicizing the various roles of the committees, so that students begin seeing them as more than mysterious sentencing bodies.

“Increasing transparency, I think, would make women more interested in making changes to the Honor Committee and being a part of it,” Lossing said.

Dean of Undergraduate Students and the Chair for the Committee for the Discipline Kathleen Deignan did not respond to request for comment.

Staff writer Pooja Patel contributed reporting.

Humanities Sequence hopes to enroll as many students as possible in future HUMANITIES Continued from page 1

.............

Gamble said, adding that professors have always been open and inviting to interact with students.

“It seemed foolish to go through the motions of a selective process when it was becoming clear that we should trust to know whether they have the intellectual ambition and motivation to join this special community of scholars,” Crown said.

Tess Bissell ’17 took part in the full sequence her freshman year. As a student who was not accepted to the sequence at first, Bissell said she was motivated to participate in the course because it offered her a liberal arts foundation.

Bissell said the application

itself was not very robust but rather designed to ensure students know what they are getting into.

“Students have already selfselected,” Bissell said. “People have thought long and hard about why they are taking this class even before filling out the application.”

The Humanities Sequence was the biggest reason Marshall came to Princeton, he said.

Julia Herrle, a prospective freshman who was admitted to the class of 2019, said she believed the community of scholars found within the Humanities Sequence would extend learning into social life. If she chooses to attend Princeton, the HUM sequence would factor into her decision, she said.

Jamal Johnson ’16, another

alumnus of the Humanities Sequence, said he participated in the Humanities Sequence because of the exposure, community and his desire to read.

“I felt that [the Humanities Sequence] was a critical component of the Princeton experience,” he said.

Johnson said the exposure he received in the Humanities Sequence was something he could not have gained from any other experience at the University. He said he can appreciate the sentiment of extending this opportunity and allowing larger numbers to take advantage of it.

“We are committed to finding the resources to allow as many students as possible to enroll, while continuing to have the faculty lead small, high-quality precepts,” Crown said.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: The Daily Princetonian is published daily except Saturday and Sunday from September through May and three times a week during January and May by The Daily Princetonian Publishing Company, Inc., 48 University Place, Princeton, N.J. 08540. Mailing address: P.O. Box 469, Princeton, N.J. 08542. Subscription rates: Mailed in the United States $175.00 per year, $90.00 per semester. Office hours: Sunday through Friday, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Telephones: Business: 609-375-8553; News and Editorial: 609-258-3632.

For tips, email news@dailyprincetonian.com. Reproduction of any material in this newspaper without expressed permission of The Daily Princetonian Publishing Company, Inc., is strictly prohibited. Copyright 2015, The Daily Princetonian Publishing Company, Inc. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Daily Princetonian, P.O. Box 469, Princeton, N.J. 08542.

The Daily Princetonian

Friday april 17, 2015

page 3

Alleged racist, personal attacks cause Yik Yak concern Prager, George debate YIK YAK civil rights legislation Continued from page 1

.............

According to the email, Yik Yak does not feature schools based on user suggestions and chooses schools to list on “Peek” based off content quality.

In early April, after videos featuring the student group Urban Congo emerged, students expressed their outrage on social media forums.

In response, other students turned to Yik Yak to expose and harass those who had expressed discontent with Urban Congo.

A BuzzFeed article earlier this month presented screenshots of Yik Yak posts on campus that made offensive statements about African culture and posts that harassed individual students by including their initials and class years in posts.

“Personally, as an African, I was really offended and hurt that people think that way,” Audrey Chebet ’18 said.

Chebet added that although she was not singled out, she felt directly affected and had observed her friends being named and harassed on Yik Yak. Brandon Holt ’15 said that

he found it interesting that Yik Yak, rather than the University, had intervened so actively.

“It’s the responsibility of the University to make sure that all students feel safe,” Holt said. “If there is a particular mechanism that is contributing to the unsafety of students, the University intervenes.”

Michele Minter, Vice Provost for Institutional Equity and Diversity, said that administrators assess each harassment case individually and it is sometimes difficult to ascertain whether a situation ref lects harassment or is the product of freedom of expression.

“In order to be harassing in a way that can be disciplined, a student has to be directly targeted based on a protected characteristic,” Minter said. “Typically the harassment has to be rising to a level where its quite pervasive or quite severe.”

Minter said that it is very difficult to discipline or identify those who have made the harassing posts, due to the anonymous nature of the app.

“I find Yik Yak problematic because it facilitates cowardly attacks on others,” she

said, adding that disabling Yik Yak could remove one problematic way that people interact with each other on campus.

The University faculty adopted a statement from the University of Chicago affirming the University’s commitment to the principles of academic freedom and freedom of expression on April 6. The statement said that the University is not meant to shield individuals “from ideas and opinions they find unwelcome, disagreeable, or even deeply offensive.”

According to the University Policy on Discrimination and/or Harassment, updated in February 2015, protected characteristics are “those personal traits, characteristics and/or beliefs that are defined by applicable law as protected from discrimination and/or harassment,” and may include “race, creed, color, sex, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, ancestry, religion, physical or mental disability, veteran status, marital or domestic partnership status, affectional or sexual orientation and/or other characteristics protected by applicable law.”

Achille Tenkiang ’17 said that students should delete the Yik Yak application, as it is not a platform for productive conversation.

“I think a lot of people say things on Yik Yak they wouldn’t say in person,” he said. “We need to be held accountable for our actions.”

Tenkiang added that he would push back on arguments in favor of complete freedom of speech and expression when they challenge people’s humanity and that there is a difference between hate speech and free speech. He explained that this distinction not being recognized is what spurred student actions during the gathering led by University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 at the University Chapel on Sunday.

Asanni York ’17, one of the students to make the demands during the gathering, said that if Yik Yak cannot be completely disabled, there should be a way for the University to regulate Yik Yak posts.

“Maybe there could be a way for someone to moderate Yik Yak so no one can … make racist, sexist or transphobic or homophobic comments,” York said.

INNOVATION TOWER BUILDING

LECTURE Continued from page 1

.............

tus of Jewish people, and a Catholic priest called in to say, “God chose the Jews. Get a life.”

“To be a Jew is to be a member of the chosen people, not because we ever asked to be chosen,” Prager said. “Being chosen has not benefitted us, if that means leading normal lives without being gassed and burned throughout history.”

Prager went on to explain his theory about how religious beliefs relate to environmentalism.

Worldviews that place a heavy emphasis on protecting the environment tend to signal that those belief systems are incorrect, Prager said.

“Once environmentalism becomes central to any theology, I know we’ve lost it,” he said. “What bothers me is evil now. I’m infinitely more worried about Israel having a nuclear weapon dropped on it than f looding 50 years from now.”

While Catholicism is socially conservative, Prager said, it is economically liberal, citing Pope Francis in particular as a theological “leftist.” He said that leftism was a problem that should be eliminated.

“Christian communities are being annihilated and the great issue for the pope is global warming,” Prager said. “Do people understand the gravity of that? It breaks my heart.”

Prager added that he is

happy when Christians return to church, as it is ethical behavior that follows the Torah that makes one worthy in the eyes of God rather than strict belief in one ideology over another.

America was founded as an explicitly Judeo-Christian nation, and Americans in this sense are almost the second chosen people, Prager said, noting that a verse from the Torah is the only inscription on the Liberty Bell.

Prager also said there was a direct line from civil rights legislation in the 1960s to deprivation of liberty by forcing businesses to accommodate people of all sexualities and religions and that he now agrees with Barry Goldwater that the legislation wasn’t advisable.

George, however, who had agreed with a number of Prager’s points throughout the discussion, began an argument with Prager over the legislation.

The principles behind the legislation were sound, but race-based advocacy was later hijacked by extremists who implemented other, less responsible policies, George said.

Prager, however, disagreed.

“I want liberty for anti-Semitic bastards,” he said, even if he wouldn’t be allowed in their establishments.

The lecture, “A JewishChristian Dialogue on Religion, Culture, and Politics” took place at 7:30 p.m. in the Friend Center Auditorium and was sponsored by the James Madison program.

Oop s, sorly, Dos theeS butherr u?

Join the ‘Prince’ copy department.

Email join@dailyprincetonian.com

MELANIE HO :: CONTIRUBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

Students compete for t-shirts and intramural points by building towers out of a variety of makeshift materials with Innovation Magazine.

Look at our pretty photos! photo.dailyprincetonian.com

Informed dissent is not racism

Opinion

Friday april 17, 2015

page 4

{ www.dailyprincetonian.com }

Christian Wawrzonek columnist

I

nitially, I did not understand the rage in response to Urban Congo. I was indifferent to the performance and found it nothing more than slightly amusing. This reaction arguably occurred for many reasons, not least of which is the fact that I am not a minority. However, once the extent of the backlash became apparent, I was very interested in learning exactly what the issue was and, more importantly, why it warranted such extreme action against the offending parties. So naturally, I tried engaging the offended parties seeking clarification on the issue. The response I received was perhaps the least productive and least convincing discourse I have ever encountered.

It’s no secret that most of the discussion regarding Urban Congo unfolded on Facebook, so naturally this was the forum for much of my debate. After reading an overt censure of the student body and a public outcry against the high emotional toll minority students must pay at this school, a friend and I decided to push back. A polite rebuttal and request for clarification quickly devolved into a heated discussion on race and cultural appropriation. I fully expected an exhaustive debate given the complexity and deeprooted emotions surrounding the issue. Yet, almost immediately my criticisms were dismissed and belittled because of my (purported lack of) race and so called ignorance regarding the issue. There was a disturbingly common willingness of people to dismiss intellectual arguments and to gawk and insult dissenters for even questioning the validity of their response. Even asking for simple clarification was marked as disrespectful because somehow, the onus of proving their points was placed on me, and I was insulted for not researching their opinions enough.

Here are a few select quotes from the discussion, all receiving substantial “likes” and support.

“But the thing is this: Why do we need to explain why this is wrong?”

“You have Princeton students from Cameroon, Nigeria and Ghana speaking about their disgust. They shouldn’t have to assert anything.”

“You are not a minority. You don’t have a poker chip in this game.”

And my personal favorite, “No, *****, there does NOT need to be a “formal discourse” whenever someone is offended. Are you kidding me? That is absurd.

Who needs this “formal discourse”?

The default response seems to be zealous rhetoric and spiteful criticisms. The prevailing emotions are anger and contempt. Worst of all is the assumption that any sort of dissent, no matter how respectful, is fueled by covert racism or a malicious intention.

For the record, I do not doubt that many people were offended by Urban Congo. Clearly that’s not up for debate. However, it seems that those offended think that simply stating that minority students have been offended is a universally acceptable justification for any demands the offended parties have, including the absurd mandate of expelling those students involved with Urban Congo. Certainly, offense and suffering is a net negative on society that I am entirely in favor of eliminating. But simply stating that you are offended does not afford you the right to make demands on other’s behaviors and lives. This requires further justification.

Here is an analogy to flip the tables. There are many members of the religious right who find gay marriage appallingly offensive. Does this mean that devout Christians who are offended by gay rights can demand that the gay community curb their behavior simply on the grounds that it is offensive? Does this mean they do not have to justify their offense? Certainly not. The religious right doesn’t have a logical justification for restricting marriage to only a man and a woman, and I’m very ready and willing to offer a strong defense of why marriage is most fair when applied equally to any sexual orientation. Of course, the threshold for justifying offense is far greater in the case of gay marriage because it affects the course of people’s entire lives, whereas disbanding a comedy troupe probably won’t make much difference in the long run. But the point is fundamentally the same.

Just because you are offended does not inherently mean that my actions are wrong.

I entered into a discussion ready and willing to change my opinions if sufficient justification was offered. Instead, I was dismissed because of my race and insulted because my opinion did not align with an absurdly overhyped narrative. Now, I’m not standing here asking for sympathy for being white. Many would be quick to point out that I certainly don’t need sympathy, and I completely agree. I’m simply acknowledging the fact that fighting discrimination with discrimination is counterproductive, not to mention ironically hypocritical. Take it from somebody who has a differing opinion: I’m far less willing to take the issue seriously now if what I heard is the extent of justification that exists on the other side. The uproar surrounding Urban Congo has clearly not been fruitless. At the very least, it has gotten me to reflect quite a bit on the issue of race and culture. But it has failed entirely at generating sympathy and gathering support from the very audience it alienated — the would-be dissenters and people who were genuinely interested in exploring the many facets of the issue.

I applaud the administration and their recent espousal of open discourse and free speech regardless of its offensive nature or apparent political incorrectness. And yet, how was the administration’s attempt to mitigate constructive discourse met? Oh, that’s right, with open protest to University President Eisgruber ’83 in the midst of the Chapel meeting held explicitly to address the concerns of the offended parties. Many opinions may indeed be disrespectful, insensitive, misinformed or worse. I am very willing to accept that my opinions may be profoundly ignorant. However, if you refuse to engage me and instead choose to dismiss my opinions because of my race (or lack thereof), how can you expect me to listen to yours?

Christian Wawrzonek is a computer science major from Pittsburgh, Pa. He can be reached at cjw5@princeton.edu.

EDITORIAL

P

Eisgruber and Hate Speech

rinceton is not perfect.

We have persistent problems with race, gender and class that affect members of our student body every day. Far too often, it falls upon the most affected groups to work alone to combat these problems. The fact that the University shares this dynamic with the rest of society does not make the situation excusable. We can do better, and we should do better. Being in the service of a righteous cause, however, does not exempt activists from criticism. We, the Editorial Board, disapprove of the misconstrual of the words of University President Eisgruber ’83 during the protest at the Chapel on Sunday and commend Eisgruber for his thoughtful response to the discussion surrounding Urban Congo and Big Sean.

The protesters on Sunday willfully chose to misinterpret Eisgruber’s statement that “the controversies [comedy, satire and state performances] provoke may be genuinely painful, but they are also fundamental to the life of any great University.” One protester held a sign with the phrase “[Racism] is also fundamental to the life of any great University” and several others (including those who penned the manifesto) referenced the quote using the same reading. The protesters read the quote in this way out of a misguided belief that Eisgruber meant this to say that performances such as the one by Urban Congo are essential to the well-being of the University.

However, the previous line of the email, which reads “Comedy, satire, and stage performances inevitably transgress boundaries,” reveals this is not the case.

Performances such as the one by Urban Congo are in extremely poor taste, and Eisgruber’s own email quotes a group member describing them as “inexcusably offensive.” The protesters are right that hate speech and vitriol are not part of a thriving University. Rather, it is the discussion of the boundaries they cross that is essential to our University. It is important for us, both as thinkers and as members of society, to engage in such discourse, which is precisely what Eisgruber references in his email. We believe that discussions about what constitutes hate speech are important and productive.

Furthermore, the protesters’ logic is suspect. In labeling discussion about what constitutes hate speech as itself hateful, they assume a resolution to that discussion that does not exist. Their flagrant misquoting of Eisgruber’s response is intellectually dishonest because it refuses to engage in the relevant question of what should and should not be labeled as hate speech. The protesters are eager to call a class of speech they detest hateful, but they give no way for us to adjudicate what is and is not hate speech. While their discussion is rooted in the need to protect vulnerable students, they ignore the long history of hate speech codes being used to protect the powerful from the powerless. Saying that we reject hate speech is the easy part of this argument, but the hard part is defining what we reject.

vol. cxxxix

While the Urban Congo performance was clearly tasteless, there is often a blurry line between acceptable artistic expression and offensive speech, as illustrated by the mixed response to Big Sean headlining Lawnparties.

Activism is an important tool for advancing ideas, and it finds an important home in our protections for free speech.

However, activism is not immune from criticism and, in this case, we think that the protesters misconstrued what was a commendable response from Eisgruber.

Hate speech has no place in our society, and it has no place in our University; however, conversations about what hate speech is and what we should do about it are important and vital to any community. These conversations can be painful and uncomfortable, but they are necessary if we are ever to make progress towards resolving social issues of our time.

We, the Board, have always believed that only through open and fair discussion of our problems can we join together to solve them. We commend Eisgruber for his thoughtful response reminding us of that need.

Andrew Tsukamoto ’15 and Jill Wilkowski ’15 abstained from this editorial.

The Editorial Board is an independent body and decides its opinions separately from the regular staff and editors of The Daily Princetonian. The Board answers only to its Chair, the Opinion Editor and the Editor-In-Chief.

Slippery Slope Jack Moore ’15

Anna Mazarakis ’16 editor-in-chief

Matteo Kruijssen ’16 business manager

EDITORIAL BOARD chair Jeffrey Leibenhaut ’16 Allison Berger ’18 Elly Brown ’18 Thomas Clark ’18 Paul Draper ’18 Daniel Elkind ’17 Theodore Furchgott ’18 James Haynes ’18 Zach Horton ’15 Mitchell Johnston ’15 Wynne Kerridge ’16 Cydney Kim ’17 Daphna Le Gall ’15 Sergio Leos ’17 Carolyn Liziewski ’18 Sam Mathews ’17 Lily Offit ’15 Connor Pfeiffer ’18 Ashley Reed ’18 Aditya Trivedi ’16 Andrew Tsukamoto ’15 Jillian Wilkowski ’15 Kevin Wong ’17

NIGHT STAFF 4.14.15 senior copy editors Grace Rehaut ’18 Do-Hyeong Myeong ‘17 Belinda Ji ‘17 news Olivia Wicki ‘18 Zaynab Zaman ‘18

..................................................

Divestment and Egypt Guest Columnists

A

n Egyptian-American activist, Mohamed Soltan, was recently sentenced to life in prison by an Egyptian court.

His sin? Participating in a sit-in in protest of the 2013 ousting of Mohamed Morsi, the first democratically elected president of Egypt in over thirty years, by a violent military coup that left thousands dead.

As Egyptian-Americans, the idea of our government arresting any one of us for engaging in peaceful acts of dissent is despicable. We believe we have a strong moral duty to denounce, just as Soltan did, actions undertaken by the Egyptian government that violate human rights or contravene international law.

For 8 years, the Egyptian government has enforced an illegal blockade of the Gaza strip that has systematically denied Palestinians their basic human rights in Gaza. Although Egypt only shares a 12-kilometer border with Gaza, it has, along with Israel, implemented a system of collective punishment through domination of Gaza’s air, sea, and land borders. There has been no indication of any easing of the blockade, and tensions have only recently increased.

In the fall of 2014, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi razed over 800 homes and displaced 10,000 people in Rafah, a Palestinian border town, to create a “buffer” zone between Egypt and Gaza.

El-Sisi justified this action under the pretense of a string of terror attacks on military targets in the Sinai peninsula.

However, this claim fails to hold up to careful scrutiny. The rising force of militants in the region comes directly from the exclusion of Bedouins and other Arabs in the Sinai from participation in the economic development of the region after the Camp David Accords of 1979. As the head of Amnesty International said, “[the buffer zone] is not a solution to growing militancy in the Sinai region as it does not address the roots of the problem.” Such actions are representative of the collective punishments inflicted regularly against civilian populations in Gaza for the actions of a few, and el-Sisi’s pretext not only continues the depiction of Palestinian life as worthless, but also places relations between Egypt and Gaza at an alltime low.

Furthermore, in the past year alone, el-Sisi has closed the Rafah Crossing, the Egyptian border with Gaza, multiple times. As a result, trade in Gaza and people seeking asylum face more and more challenges. The Rafah Crossing is absolutely essential for allowing food, materials and other supplies into Gaza.

Its closing only facilitates and amplifies the crippling effect of the blockade on Gaza. Trade becomes stifled, while asylum seekers may find themselves stuck in Gaza for months at a time.

These are only the most recent examples of a long history of Egyptian persecution against the Palestinian people. El-Sisi has continued the herding

of Palestinians into overcrowded and unsanitary refugee camps, limited the number of Palestinian immigrants into Egypt, and has continued the legacy of his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak, in working with Israel to maintain what various human rights organizations such as B’tselem have called the “largest open air prison in the world.”

The siege imposed on Gaza by Israel can only last with Egyptian support, and our government has refused to change its destructive policies towards the people in Gaza. Its continued devotion to the blockade stifles the development of infrastructure and economic stability in Gaza, two crucial elements required to ensure the self-determination of the Palestinian people.

It is with these crimes in mind that we feel compelled to denounce the actions of the Egyptian government. The sad state of Egyptian politics is that Egyptians today have very little freedom to criticize and challenge the policies of their government. As such, it often falls on expatriate Egyptians living abroad to bring these issues into the public eye and speak for those who cannot.

As such, we must support divestment from corporations that profit from the illegal blockade of Gaza. The continued dehumanization of Palestinians by any government, including Egypt’s, is wrong, but especially in the face of injustices perpetrated by our government, we are moved to speak out.

Divestment represents the best non-violent solution to this humanitarian crisis and the most compelling action we can

take as students. It is our obligation as Egyptian-Americans, and more importantly as human beings, to support divestment.

We feel a personal connection to the pain of Palestinians in Gaza because our countrymen are directly responsible for their suffering. To dismiss these atrocities in the name of nationalism, or to disparage divestment movements such as this one as anti-Egypt or targeting Egypt unfairly, in the way many have attempted to paint it as anti-Israeli or unfairly targeting Israel, is a moral obscenity. This line of reasoning is disingenuous and intellectually bankrupt.

The call to divest is a moral imperative, and in particular for all those whose countries participate in the oppression of the Palestinian people.

This divestment movement calls for companies to end their complicity in human rights violations in the West Bank or Gaza. The onus to support divestment falls on all Princetonians whose university profits from the suffering of the Palestinian people, and we call on those who have roots to either Egypt or Israel to lead this call.

Mohamed El-Dirany is a freshman from Cairo, Egypt. He can be reached at mohamede@princeton.edu.

Mohamed Shalan is a sophomore from Cairo, Egypt. He can be reached at mshalan@ princeton.edu.

Yasin Hegazy is a senior from from Doha, Qatar. He can be reached at yhegazy@ princeton.edu.

The Daily Princetonian

Friday april 17, 2015

page 5

Men’s lacrosse to face off against Harvard M. LAX

Continued from page 6

.............

percentage (55.2 percent) while allowing the highest goal total (112 goals). The number of shots on goal allowed by Harvard’s defense is somewhat surprising, considering the presumed quality of its close defense — juniors Robert Duvnjak and Stephen Jahelka earned first and second-team all-Ivy recognition in 2014.

On Harvard’s offense, attackman Devin Dwyer holds a commanding point lead with 46 (19 goals and 27 assists). He earned all-America honorable mention status last season, but will struggle to deal with the physicality of Princeton’s close defenders.

Should the Tigers prevail this weekend and the Big Red likewise top Brown, the resulting tie in the standings would set the stage for a

season-ending showdown between Princeton and Cornell to decide the Ivy League’s regular season champion and postseason tournament venue.

What kind of an advantage does hosting the Ivy League tournament yield, you ask? Empirically, it remains unclear. The Ancient Eight (minus Columbia) have only engaged in the postseason competition five times. Of this small sample size, only once has the home team hoisted the trophy — Cornell’s Schoellkopf Field saw the Big Red eviscerate Harvard in a 15-6 final.

Subjectively, of course, no team would deny the benefits of playing on home turf.

Friday’s action is scheduled to begin to begin at 6:00 p.m. ESPN U will broadcast the contest with Princeton legend Ryan Boyle ’04 and Notre Dame’s Eamon McCananey giving the call.

CHRIS FERRI :: ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR

The men’s lacrosse team (7-4 overall, 3-1 Ivy League) will continue the hunt for the Ivy League title this weekend against Harvard.

Tigers to play tough Softball looks to push Penn off the top of Ivy games in matchups League South division standings this weekend V-BALL

Continued from page 6

.............

vance to the conference semifinals, making this weekend’s events crucial in developing the playoff picture. Though it seems likely that the Tigers can advance to the postseason for the fourth consecutive year, finishing in second or third would guarantee avoiding Penn State until a potential championship matchup.

This prospect is all-the-more appealing considering that the Nittany Lions have ended Princeton’s season for the past three years.

In its first battle this season, Penn State bested Princeton in straight sets (25-19, 25-21, 25-23), despite a strong performance from senior star Cody Kessel. Perhaps more present in the minds of both teams, though, are two of the three meetings between the schools from 2014. At home last spring, the Tigers ended a 35-match losing streak to the perennial powerhouse team from State College, Pa., sending a packed Dillon Gym into hysterics and marking the program’s most monumental victory since perhaps winning the 1998 EIVA championship. In the finals of the EIVA tournament, though, the Nittany Lions held strong and fought off another Princeton upset effort to get revenge and clinch the league title and a trip to the NCAA tournament.

After early season struggles against strong competition

that included a six-game losing streak, Penn State will enter Dillon Gym in top form, winners of 11 straight matches. Princeton, on the other hand, has struggled of late, dropping five of its last seven games. However, the Tigers found their groove last Tuesday, beating Kean in straight sets (25-20, 25-21, 25-21) to give the team some momentum heading into Friday night’s battle.

While Friday’s ledger is the weekend’s marquee matchup, Saturday’s duel against EIVA foe St. Francis is equally crucial for the Tigers in terms of playoff positioning, as a win over the Red Flash would clinch a postseason spot for the Tigers. The Orange and Black won 32-30, 25-16, 25-22 in the first meeting between the teams this season. Junior Devin Stearns played a prominent role in that victory, leading his team with 11 kills. The Red Flash are searching for its first victory over Princeton since March 31, 2012.

This weekend’s games will carry even more weight than usual — not only because of the name on the uniform of the opposition or the playoff race at stake, but because it will be the last home matches in Princeton uniform for seniors Kessel, Will Siroky, Conor Dube and Tony Ensbury.

While these four seniors have already established a legacy that will survive their graduation, they will be looking to add a few more highlights this weekend.

SOFTBALL Continued from page 6

.............

with the bases loaded in the third inning. The pitching duo of freshman Ash ley LaGuardia and sophomore Erica Nori helped the Tigers stay af loat through the fifth and sixth innings, but in the seventh inning a two-run home run from Lehigh’s Jessica Calv ini left the Tigers catching up in the bottom of the inning. Eventually, three hits between four batters tied up the game, with junior in f ielder/outf ielder Kate Miller hitting a double and senior infielder/outfielder Rachel Rendina hitting a single before junior catcher/first baseman Cara Worden pinch-hit a double.

Follow us on Twitter! #BeAwesome

@Princetonian

Don’t be mad.

Don’t be sad.

Be glad, and BUY AN AD! (it’s the hottest fad.)

For more information, contact ‘Prince’ business.

Call (609)258-8110 or Email business@dailyprincetonian.

The game continued into the eight, ninth and 10th innings w ithout either team getting on the board, while Nori and Lehigh relief pitcher Christine Campbell kept the score tied at 4-4. The pace picked up in the decisive 11th inning with the Mountain Hawks mounting a rally that scored three runs.

Meanwhile, the Tigers were only able to field two of their own runs, including a home run from junior first baseman Emily Viggers and another RBI off of a hit from sophomore catcher Kelsey Smith. Finally, a f lyout and strikeout ended the inning with a runner on third base. Miller led the Tigers in batting, going three for four on the day, one of four Tigers with

multiple hits and setting a new career high for the junior.

Senior infielder Alyssa Schmidt leads the Tigers with a batting average of .300, followed closely by Rendina and senior first/ third baseman Sarah McGowan, each with batting averages of .278, and sophomore outfielder Marissa Reynolds with an average of .276. The Tigers have a team average of .245. The Tiger pitching staff has an average ER A of 3.29, with last week ’s Iv y League Pitcher of the Week, junior Shanna Christian, leading the pack with an ER A of 2.62, followed by LaGuardia with an ER A of 3.29.

Penn has two players batting over .400, led by infielder Jurie Joyner at .430,

and two more players batting over .300 with another one falling just below there.

The Quakers have a team batting average of .287. The Quaker pitching staff has an average ERA of 3.64, led

by Mason Spichiger with a 2.62 ERA on 26.2 innings.

The Penn pitcher with the most innings pitched, Alexis Borden, has a 3.52 ERA on 109.1 innings pitched.

The Tigers and the Quakers have had some overlap in their seasons so far, with Penn falling 0-10 and 0-3 to Lehigh on March 18. Both teams have also faced off against Dartmouth and Harvard, with Penn splitting the doubleheader against Dartmouth and sweeping Harvard while the Tigers dropped both twinbills two weeks ago.

Sports

Friday april 17, 2015

page 6

{ www.dailyprincetonian.com }

THE

AROUND I V I E S 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

DANIELA COSIO :: PRINCETONIAN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

The Princeton women’s lacrosse team is ranked no. 13 in the country.

VOLLEYBALL

8.

As the Ivy League regular season begins to come to a close for women’s lacrosse, it becomes increasingly apparant which teams will be competing for the top spot in the postseason. Here’s how the Ancient Eight stacks up:

After defeating league rival Penn on Wednesday, the Tigers (10-3 overall, 5-0 Ivy League, ranked No. 13 nationwide per the ICWLA poll) have clawed their way to the top of the league. The result hopefully bodes well for the Tigers in the postseason — the team is still smarting after a loss to Penn in the final game of last year’s tournament. As the Tigers return home to face Brown and Columbia, it appears they are in the drivers’ seat as they hope to make waves in both the Ivy League and NCAA Tournaments.

Despite its perfect record in Ivy League play coming to a close on Wednesday evening, this Penn squad (10-3, 4-1) will be a top threat when the Ivy League Tournament takes place. The Quakers are looking to win the tournament for the third year in a row, and it looks like they still have the tools to do it. The dynamic duo of Tory Bensen and Nina Corcoran, who led Penn in points in both 2014 and 2015, will continue to cause defense problems as the postseason rears its head.

A third-place ranking fits a team that has had close encounters with the league’s top two, but has been unable to pull out the victory. It has not been at a loss for scoring — this Cornell squad (7-9, 3-2) has been on a tear this season, leading the Ivy League in goals per game at 14.06, more than two goals ahead of any other team in the league and the ninth-best in the country. Star attack Lindsay Toppe, twice an All-Ivy First Team nominee, continues to shine, leading the conference in goals with 42 this season.

While tied for third in the league along with Cornell, this year’s Harvard team (6-6, 3-2) isn’t one I’d bet the farm on for upset potential when the Ivy League tournament rolls around. Judging by its results, its looks to be a tier below the top two dogs in the league. It fell to both this season: a 8-6 loss to the Quakers, and a 17-12 defeat at the hands of Princeton, on its home field to boot.

Its next game, versus Cornell, could be a chance to inch closer to the top two spots and show it’s legit in this league.

A thrilling win over Dartmouth may be just what the Bulldogs (7-6, 2-3) needed to make a push to get into the Ivy League tournament. It appears that a strong defense (second in the league in goals allowed per game) can’t outweigh what’s been a struggling offense this year, which ranks seventh in goals scored per game. Their road toward an appearance in the tournament won’t come easy — they finish out the season on the road and would have to grab a win against either the Quakers or the Crimson.

Success against teams outside the conference does not necessarily translate. After starting 3-0 against non-Ivy teams, the Bears (76, 1-4) have run into a buzzsaw when facing their fellow Ivy foes. It’s a pattern continued from last year, where they went 9-6 overall but 2-5 in league play. Not helping the case has been the Bears’ significant offensive drop-off from last season to now, scoring at a rate of 2 goals per game or less. It seems they’ve been feeling a void after losing last year’s leading scorer, attacker Bre Hudgins.

It’s been an up-and-down season for Columbia (5-8, 1-4) and its play has been all over the place after losing the first five games this season. Near the bottom of the league in many statistical categories, it’s hard to pinpoint whether its issues are more offensive or defensive, and it’ll want to correct errors as soon as possible to compete with Princeton this Saturday.

Long ago feels 2012, when the Big Green won the Ivy League championship. Now, Dartmouth (1-11, 1-4) is following up a disappointing 3-4 Ivy League record from 2014 with an even bigger stinker. While it are almost certainly unable to compete in the postseason, Dartmouth fans can take solace in the fact that its team will face the league’s two other worst teams to finish the year.

SOFTBALL

Critical games to come for men’s volleyball

By Mark Goldstein staff writer

With playoff aspirations on the line, the Princeton men’s volleyball team (10-10, 5-4 Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association) will welcome No. 7 Penn State (15-9, 9-0) and Saint Francis University (6-17, 4-5) to Dillon Gymnasium at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights for a critical

home swing — the last of 2015 for the Tigers.

With Penn State already having clinched the EIVA outright, the rest of the league is battling for second place. While Princeton currently has the inside track, Harvard, George Mason and St. Francis remain in the hunt. The top four squads in the seven-team field will adSee V-BALL page 5

NATALIA CHEN :: ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR

The Princeton women’s softball team fell to Lehigh this week in a close defeat and will now take on league rival Penn this weekend.

Tigers fall to Lehigh, face Penn

By Sydney Mandelbaum associate sports editor

JACK MAZZULO :: PRINCETONIAN CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

The men’s volleyball team will take on ECAC rivals this weekend.

Coming off of a disappointing 11-inning loss to Lehigh University on Wednesday, the Princeton softball team will head south to Penn this weekend in an important pair of twinbills that will determine Iv y League South

division rankings. Princeton (14-19 overall, 6-4 Iv y League) is currently tied for first with Penn (16-16, 7-5) in the Iv y League South division, with both teams coming off of a loss this past week. The games will be played at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Saturday before the competition resumes at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday.

The game against Lehigh was an incredibly long one, lasting for almost three and a half hours, and opened w ith the Tigers getting on the board right away, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first inning after a double from junior first/third baseman Kayla Bose sent two batters in and put Princeton up

2-0. Lehigh pitcher Emily Bausher entered the game with the 19th-best ER A in Div ision I softball, but by the end of that inning had already exceeded that.

Despite the strong start, Lehigh got on the board in the top of the fourth inning after the Tigers retired the Mountain Hawks See SOFTBALL page 5

MEN’S LACROSSE

Men’s lacrosse looks to win out and host the Ivy League Tournament

By Andrew Steele senior writer

The men’s lacrosse team (7-4 overall, 3-1 Ivy League) will have a chance to tally its second straight conference win this weekend against a strong Harvard side (6-6, 1-3). Head coach Chris Bates will lead his team under Friday Night Lights in an effort to improve on

the 2-3 record against the Crimson amassed during his tenure.

Overall, Princeton holds an imposing the 57-23-1 series lead. Last time out, however, the Tigers suffered their third one-goal loss of their 2014 campaign after a 7-0 early run by Harvard proved insurmountable.

Should the Crimson wish to stay alive in the postseason hunt,

they will need to repeat some of last year’s magic. Last weekend’s loss to Penn dropped Harvard into a tie for last place in the Ivy League standings.

At the other end of the table, Princeton’s domineering win over Dartmouth last Saturday gave the Orange and Black a share of first place. Senior attackman Mike MacDonald continued his scoring tear,

racking up five goals and an assist. His classmate Kip Orban, the Tigers’ second-leading scorer after MacDonald, added a quartet of goals on the day.

While those upperclassmen should be counted on for consistent production, Princeton has had some recent adjustments between the pipes. Freshman goalkeeper Tyler Blaisdell has started the last two

for the Tigers, relieving senior Eric Sanschagrin.

The Crimson stands as proof that, on any given day, any given Ivy League team can take down a conference rival. Its three most recent in-league matchups have been decided by a single goal. Its most recent Ivy tilt came against Penn’s Quakers, who squeaked out a road win with a late rally. However, the

Cambridge side’s home win over Cornell undoubtedly ranks as its most impressive. In a contest where no team held an advantage greater than two points, Harvard emerged victorious thanks to balanced scoring and goalkeeper Bryan Moore’s save percentage of 59 percent.

Through his 12 starts, Moore has amassed the league’s best save See M. LAX page 5

Tweet of the day

Inside

Follow us

‘Got turned away from intramural innertube water polo at Dillon and this is honestly the most disappointed/ upset I’ve felt all year’

Men’s volleyball will play important games against EIVA opponents this weekend.

SPORTS PAGE 5

‘Prince’ Sports is on Twitter!

Follow us at

Kathleen Mulligan `17, sophomore on the swimming and diving team (@kathleen_mully)

www.twitter.com/princesports

for live news and reports!