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Friday September 17, 2021 vol. CXLV no. 50
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U. AFFAIRS
STUDENT LIFE
Class of 2025 discusses systemic racism during orientation By Ngan Chiem Staff Writer
MARK DODICI / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
The Mathey College dining hall.
Dining halls face staff shortage with start of in-person semester By Sandeep Mangat Staff Writer
The Butler-First dining hall saw a staggering 1,500 students during lunch on Sept. 8. According to a staff member interviewed by The Daily Princetonian, there were only 20–25 staff members working that shift. “We’re trying our best to keep our composure,” said one staff member as the staff in the residential college dining halls, operating at full capacity this fall,
are bearing the brunt of the recent worker shortage. Several Campus Dining staff members were granted anonymity throughout this story. There was “not enough to keep up,” they said. “It does feel a lot busier for us here.” According to the interviewee, the Butler-First dining hall also lost several temporary workers in the week dating from Aug. 30 to Sept. 5. “It was just too much, it was too overwhelming, so they left and went some-
where else,” they said. In response to an inquiry from the ‘Prince,’ Ayana Okoya, the University’s Media Relations Specialist, wrote that Campus Dining is actively seeking to address staffing issues. “Like many employers, Campus Dining is dealing with staffing challenges as it ramps up service to normal levels for the first time since March 2020 due to COVID-19,” she wrote. “Campus Dining is actively recruiting professional staff and rebuild-
ing its student workforce, including partnering with Human Resources to host a job fair this week and recruiting student staff at the fall Activities Fair,” Okoya added. Twenty-four job openings within Campus Dining are presently listed on the University’s human resources website, and the job fair will be held on Sept. 22. The University is also attempting to minimize impacts on services by offering overtime to emSee DINING page 2
The Class of 2025 was the first to engage with a new orientation training module designed to facilitate discussions of the University’s racist history and the power of student activism. The module centered around the To Be Known and Heard virtual gallery, which depicts vignettes of “Princeton’s long and complex relationship with racism” starting from the 18th century to modern time, according to the site. During the training session, residential college advisers (RCAs) led their first-years through explorations of the virtual gallery and discussions on how to navigate conversations around race and identity. In companionship with the gallery, RCAs and their first-year mentees viewed a pre-recorded roundtable discussion between four Princeton faculty members, highlighting certain events found within the gallery. RCA for Butler College Patrice McGivney ’23 mentioned how the first-years in their group maintained an atmosphere of respect that allowed for honest conversations. “Several of my ’zees shared ... that Princeton was the most diverse place they’ve ever been ... They were glad for the video, they felt like they needed to learn more about how to be respectful See 2025 page 3
U. AFFAIRS
Name of Woodrow Wilson Honorary Debate Panel faces contention By Sam Kagan
News Editor Emeritus
MARK DODICI/ THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
The Woodrow Wilson Honorary Debate Panel (WWHDP) has been the subject of contention and student activism of late, as the American WhigCliosophic Society (WhigClio) subsidiary reckons with the legacy of its namesake. Once a staple on campus, the name of former University President Woodrow Wilson Class of 1879 has been removed from a number of high-profile institutions — including the
now-renamed First College and the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 explained the change in June 2020, writing, “The trustees concluded that Woodrow Wilson’s racist thinking and policies make him an inappropriate namesake for a school or college whose scholars, students, and alumni must stand firmly against racism in all its forms.” Wilson served as President
of the United States after his tenure at the University. During this time, he resegregated parts of the federal government, verbally supported the Ku Klux Klan, and refused to admit Black students to the University. Despite the other renamings, the WWHDP retains the former president’s name — at least for now. According to the American Whig-Cliosophic Society website, the WWHDP “sponsors and promotes prize deSee PANEL page 3
BEYOND THE BUBBLE
Princeton ranked first by U.S. News, third by Forbes By Hadley Kim Staff Writer
For the 11th year in a row, Princeton University has ranked first place in the U.S. News and World Report’s annual Best National University Rankings. The University also ranked third on Forbes Magazine’s America’s Top Colleges list, an increase from its previous placement of fifth in 2019. Tied for second place are Harvard University, Columbia University, and the Massachu-
In This Issue
setts Institute of Technology, whose rankings were second, third, and fourth, respectively, in the 2021 rankings. For the other members of the Ivy League, Yale University follows close behind at fifth place, while the University of Pennsylvania stands at eighth, Dartmouth College at 13th, and Cornell University at 17th. Outside the Ivy League, Duke University’s position jumped significantly, securing a top 10 spot at ninth, while it ranked 12th in 2021. The University ranked first
in “Senior Capstone,” defined as a culminating project that students have to complete before graduation. It also ranked in the top 10 in five other categories — sixth in “Learning Communities,” fifth in “Undergraduate Research/ Creative Projects,” eighth in “Computer Science,” and third and fourth respectively in “Best Undergraduate Teaching” and “Best Value Schools.” “We are always grateful when the University is recognized for the steadfast pursuit See RANKING page 5
THE PROSPECT | PAGE 11
In observance of the 20th anniversary of Sept. 11, The Prospect asked Princeton community members — students, faculty, staff, and alumni — to share brief personal reflections and anecdotes. Responses were lightly edited for concision and clarity.
OPINION | PAGE 8
JON ORT / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
SPORTS | PAGE 14 The Tigers fell to Stanford 16–5 while defeating California Baptist 16–10, Johns Hopkins 20–12, Bucknell 18–10, and Fordham 13–6.
“Tenna’s perspective on the danger that large social events pose to high-risk students illuminates two substantial shortcomings in the way COVID-19 safety is typically discussed at Princeton.”
The Daily Princetonian
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Friday September 17, 2021
Singer wins $1 million Berggruen Prize for Philosophy & Culture BEYOND THE BUBBLE
By Naomi Hess
Associate News Editor
On Sept. 7, Professor of Bioethics Peter Singer was named the recipient of the 2021 Berggruen Prize for Philosophy & Culture. He joins past recipients including Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Paul Farmer, and he plans to donate the entirety of the $1 million award. Singer is a philosopher who began teaching at the University in 1999. He is known for advocating for humanitarian giving and animal rights, as well as for his controversial views on the viability of disabled lives. According to the announcement from the Berggruen Institute, the prize is “given annually to thinkers whose ideas have profoundly shaped human self-understanding and advancement in a rapidly changing world.” The Berggruen Jury is chaired by Kwame Anthony Appiah, former Professor of Philosophy and the University Center for Human Values. Singer received an email from Appiah a few weeks ago in which Appiah requested a Zoom in order to tell him some news. Singer found out he won the award during his call with Appiah.
“Few academic philosophers have ever had the impact of Peter Singer,” Appiah said in the announcement from the Berggruen Institute. In an interview with The Daily Princetonian, Singer expressed his gratitude for how the prize commends his life’s work. “It’s a form of recognition for what I’ve been trying to do for the past 50 years, that is, to do philosophy in a way that has an impact on the world,” he said. “The second thing is that it comes with a million dollars, which is a great opportunity to do good. I don’t need that million dollars myself, so I immediately started thinking of what I could do with it to have the best possible impact,” he continued. Singer has no desire to keep the prize money. He has argued in papers including “Famine, Affluence, and Morality” that people have the obligation to give as much money as possible to humanitarian causes around the world. “I really don’t need it and just to take it or even part of it and spend it on myself would have little impact on my well-being and happiness,” Singer said. Singer plans on donating
half of the award to The Life You Can Save, an organization he started in 2009 that curates a group of nonprofits that help the most lives per dollar. Since its founding, $35 million in donations have gone to the most effective charities fighting global poverty, according to Singer. He said every dollar spent by The Life You Can Save results in an average of $17 in donations for the nonprofits the organization recommends. A portion of the prize money will go towards organizations working to combat animal cruelty, specifically factory farming. Much of Singer’s philosophical work focuses on animal rights, and this work stands out to Singer as particularly influential. “I’m proud of having played a role in making people more aware of animal suffering and the moral status of animals,” he said. The public will have input on the recipients of the last portion of the prize money. This includes Singer’s students in his class CHV 310/PHI 385: Practical Ethics. Every year, Singer runs a class exercise he calls a giving game, during which each precept receives $100 to allot
COURTESY OF PETER SINGER
Peter Singer.
to their desired organizations and charities. Singer said that the class this year will get more money to dedicate to the organization of their choice. Singer received this award despite years of backlash from disability rights advocates, including a group called Not Dead Yet that blockaded Nassau Hall in 1999 to protest his appointment. In his book “Practical Ethics,” Singer suggested that parents of a newborn with a disability should be able to end the life of their baby.
“I think many of those criticisms are to some extent based on a misunderstanding of my views,” he said. Singer clarified that he does not think every disabled infant should be killed and instead advocates for parental decision making about the viability of their child. “My position is that just as pregnant women now have the option of ending the lives of babies after a prenatal diagnosis showing a disability, and just See SINGER page 6
Staff remains hopeful about the return of student dining hall workers DINING
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ployees to help fill staffing gaps, according to Okoya. A staff member in the Whitman College dining hall who spoke with the ‘Prince’ also observed a larger volume of students coming in for meals than
they are used to, adding to the feelings of being overwhelmed. “We’re doing 433 for breakfast, it used to be like 250 to 280 at the most. For lunch, we’re doing on average between 580–680 when it used to be 500 at the most,” the staff member said in an interview. They added that the dinner
HEADLINE FROM HISTORY
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crowd averages around 700, when in past years it “used to be around 500 to 550.” According to Okoya, these early-semester fluctuations are typical. “Guest counts in the residential dining halls are consistent with the previous years and stabilize around October,” she wrote. “We appreciate the patience of our students and the hard work of our staff through these busy days.” For the Butler-First employee, however, the mounting work resulting from staff shortages is unsustainable. “You’ll hear from a lot of the staff that it’s too much for everybody. In the kitchen, you’re feeding thousands of people, but you only have two to three cooks … it’s overwhelming how much work there is,” they said. They added that Butler College dining “just wants to add more things to the menus.” “They’re pushing for a lot of different food options — like for the grill, we have simply cheesesteaks, hotdogs, hamburgers, and fries. Now they want us to do grilled cheese, and that’s cooked to order. Or quesadillas, which have
been killing us … we have to make four to five hundred just for dinner, with just a few hours to do that, on top of everything else,” they described. “We just can’t do it as people. We should be keeping it simple, if possible, with variety. But they just want to add more probably because we’re opening up for the first time in two years and not just doing boxed lunches,” they added. A Forbes staff member told the ‘Prince’ that in their multiple years working in that residential college’s dining hall, they have “never seen anything like this.” They are hopeful that the return of student dining hall workers will help. “We would have students working in the first week of school. Even on Sundays we’d have four or five people. Now we have two.” Similarly, the ButlerFirst employee thinks that student employment “will help us, especially in the night.” But while Okoya noted that Campus Dining is actively hiring, the ButlerFirst employee expressed their frustration with the time it is taking. “We found a couple more
temps, but I feel we should be still bringing in more,” they said. For students, the staffing shortages have resulted in some temporary changes in the dining hall experience. Belinda Wu ’25, a student in First College, told the ‘Prince,’ “It was weird to walk into the dining halls, sometimes there were paper plates and sometimes there would be regular plates.” “I still went wherever was convenient,” she added. For the Butler-First employee, the past few weeks have been stressful, but they noted that they are not alone. “At first, I thought it was just me, being overwhelmed just coming back to work, but hearing everybody else, you realize it’s not just you; it’s everybody here. And it’s probably for the managers too,” they said. “Change needs to happen, and soon.” Sandeep Mangat is a staff writer who frequently covers the University administration and campus events. He can be reached at smangat@ princeton.edu and on Twitter @s_smangat.
MORE ONLINE NEWS
USG hears from Wintersession coordinator, discusses task forces NEWS
Mudd Library reopens after renovations THE PROSPECT
Grammy-award winning composer explores intersections between personal
The Daily Princetonian
Friday September 17, 2021
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Chaffers: We’re reevaluating who we want to emphasize and who we want to elevate as the faces of the society PANEL
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bates,” hosting competitions in which various members of the community are invited to compete in a range of speaking events. As a consequence of various bequests, the events boast prizes worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. In an interview with The Daily Princetonian, WWHDP President Courtney Cappelli ’22, citing the same issues as Eisgruber, indicated the presence of a movement to remove Wilson’s name from the group’s official title. “As all the issues were occurring last year, with Black Lives Matter, and even before then, I think there were many voices on campus who wanted to get Woodrow Wilson’s name off of anything possible,” she said. “And so I sent an email to the trustees and to Kauribel [Javier ’19], who was the WhigClio coordinator, and was told that it’s being worked on,” Cappelli continued. “Since then it’s been about a year and a half and we’re still not seeing any progress, and I’d really like to see the name changed.” Javier, former Whig-Clio Program Coordinator in the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students, did not respond to several requests for comment from the ‘Prince’. President of Whig-Clio Julia Chaffers ’22 agreed with Cappelli’s sentiment. “[Wilson’s] policies … were defined, in many ways, by racism, and not just in the context of his time … we want to be an inclusive and diverse and welcoming society where people can have political discourse in constructive and productive ways,” she said. “I just think what he stood for and what he did and what he said through-
out his life goes against all of the things that make up the mission of Whig-Clio.” Chaffers is a Senior Columnist for the Opinion section of the ‘Prince’. Chaffers additionally noted that her predecessors had already informally started referring to the organization without Wilson’s name, rendering it “The Honorary Debate Panel.” Clyde “Skip” Rankin ’72, Chairperson of the Whig-Clio Board of Trustees, indicated that, while the Board is receptive to the wishes of students, especially Whig-Clio leadership, legal constraints surrounding endowments and the wishes of donors might complicate potential changes. Regarding the name of the panel, Rankin indicated that he “can go either way.” Rankin further explained the considerations necessary in renaming the panel. The Board must ensure that the act of renaming would not violate the terms under which individuals gave money to the panel or the panel’s founding charter. “If the students wish to change [the name], I would not object,” the attorney and former Whig-Clio president said, “but I just want to make sure we’re not interfering with any particular donor intent, and how the history of this was set up.” “We’re looking into the history of the naming,” he continued, “because the trustees will look into the matter about renaming it but we also want to be very careful we’re not violating any of the establishment documents.” The University has encountered this variety of complication before. Despite the school’s pivot away from Wilson in June 2020, legal and monetary complications
required that he continue to serve as the namesake of the Woodrow Wilson Award, the highest honor for an undergraduate alum. “The Woodrow Wilson Award, unlike either the College or the School, is the result of a gift,” the University Board of Trustees wrote in a statement last year. “When the University accepted the gift, it took on a legal obligation to name the prize for Wilson … The University will continue to recognize extraordinary public service by conferring the award as currently named.” Rankin attributes the delays surrounding renaming to inaccessible records in the University library system, specifically those at the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, the primary archival source on campus. Mudd Library, which reopened two weeks ago, had been undergoing renovation for a few years. “What we’re waiting to get, frankly, is the records, which are in Mudd Library,” he said. “I just inquired about that two weeks ago, for a variety of things, but apparently access is still restricted.” Large collections of the documents in Mudd Library are also available through online databases maintained by the University, including some about the WWHDP. It is unclear which specific papers Rankin and the Board require to proceed. Regardless of its cause, Wilson’s continued presence as the panel’s namesake has not gone unnoticed, causing some students to avoid WWHDP competitions. “He had a strong belief about not allowing African Americans into the [University],” said Khari Franklin ’24, a member of the Whig-Clio subsidiary Princeton Mock Trial. “I would not want to partici-
pate in, feel welcome in, feel accepted by a space, a club, an activity, where there was an endorsement of Woodrow Wilson, a seeming continuation of his legacy,” he noted. When asked if he would ever consider participating in the WWHDP, Franklin took a clear stance. “With the name Woodrow Wilson? No,” he said. Rankin indicated he does not perceive Wilson’s name as a continuation of the former President’s legacy, further noting that concerns like Franklin’s are important to the Whig-Clio Board. “I certainly would hope they don’t think the name is ... endorsing certain issues associated with Mr. Wilson,” he stated. “So if that’s troubling people, that would certainly be something we would take into account at the Board level.” Chaffers indicated that she has been reexamining the historical individuals who retain prominence in WhigClio, especially in the context of the University’s decision to remove Wilson’s name from other campus institutions. Earlier in her tenure as president of Whig-Clio, Chaffers encountered a debate regarding whether the organization should rescind an award from Senator Ted Cruz ’92 (R-Texas) following his involvement in the Capitol Riots on Jan. 6, 2021. Although the Whig-Clio Board of Trustees ultimately decided to allow Cruz to retain his James Madison Award for Distinguished Public Service, images of the senator were removed from the group’s website. “[We’re] reevaluating who we want to emphasize and who we want to elevate as the faces of the society,” she said. “I think naming is really important, symbols are really
important for communicating the values of an organization and so, for us, sort of stepping away from Wilson for numerous reasons, but most recently because the University is stepping away from Wilson, makes the most sense.” Despite the University’s decision to remove Wilson’s name from several prominent bodies, Deputy University Spokesperson Michael Hotchkiss noted that matters relating to the WWHDP fall squarely in the domain of Whig-Clio. “Student organizations serve and are led by students,” Hotchkiss wrote in an email to the ‘Prince,’ “and each organization is responsible for its governance and decisionmaking.” All the same, Rankin indicated that he spoke with Eisgruber about the WWHDP. “The president of the University did reach out to me … and he said that, really, it was independent of the trustees’ decision about the Wilson School and College, and that the trustees’ decision was not that Wilson’s name had to be cancelled in any context where it might be used.” Should Wilson’s name be removed from the debate panel, conversations remain about who or what may replace him. Some favor cutting any namesake to create “The Honorary Debate Panel” while others would prefer to rename the institution after another prominent alum. Sam Kagan is a senior writer with experience reporting on university finances, alumni in government, university COVID-19 policy, and more. He previously served as a news editor and now leads the surveys section. You can reach Sam at skagan@princeton. edu or on Twitter @thesamkagan.
Peralta: My hope is that first-years understand the importance of building on the archival and investigative findings regarding the U.’s history 2025
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Screenshot of the To Known and Be Heard website.
THE MINI CROSSWORD By Owen Travis Co-Head Puzzles Editor
MINI #1
1 6 7 8 9
ACROSS Ford of the automobile industry “That one’s ___” (“Wasn’t MY fault”) Fix, as a printer Tournament ranking Consumes
1 2 3 4 5
DOWN Monopoly purchase Nine, in Athens The Empire State football player, for short They all lead to Rome, it’s said “De-e-elish!”
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of different identities,” McGivney said. Some of the faculty in the video spoke about the crucial work of student activists in making the University a more inclusive and introspective place over the years. Associate Professor of History Beth Lew-Williams mentioned the 1995 sit-in at Nassau Hall organized by 17 student activists to protest the lack of diversity in the University’s curriculum and to advocate for hiring faculty for Asian-American and Latino Studies. In the round-table discussion, Associate Professor of Classics Dan-el Padilla Peralta also talked about the future of alliances between activists of different backgrounds. “As the University, under pressure from student activism, really begins to reimagine its purpose and obligation beyond the FitzRandolph Gate, the possibilities for coalition building will only multiply,” he said. “My hope is that firstyears took away from the video the importance of the archival and investigative work required to assemble the virtual gallery’s institutional history, and the urgency of supporting and building on that work instead of running away from its findings,” Peralta wrote in a statement to The Daily Princetonian. Likewise, Lew-Williams wrote to the ‘Prince,’ “When students arrive at Princeton, they enter a community, institution, and space that was produced, in part, by past racial beliefs and systems of power. It’s better to understand this legacy we’re living within than try to ignore it.”
The theme of student activism resonated with many first-years and RCAs. Sydnae Taylor ’23, an RCA in Butler College, talked to the ‘Prince’ about feeling empowered by the virtual gallery. “I personally didn’t know how important Princeton students were in activism spaces here, and how their work was so essential in terms of changing and creating all the spaces that we have today,” Taylor said. “It showed me, and all the people who engaged with the program, how as students, our voices matter.” The virtual gallery itself came about as a result of Princeton students’ activism. “[The gallery was] a response to Princeton students who frequently reach out to Campus Life offices because they want to learn more about Princeton’s history of race, racism, and anti-racism,” wrote Director for Wintersession and Campus Engagement (OWCE) Judy Jarvis and Assistant Dean of Diversity and Inclusion and Director, The Carl A. Fields Center for Equality and Cultural Understanding (CAF) Tennille Haynes in a joint statement to The Daily Princetonian. The gallery was created by the OWCE and CAF. “Our gallery does not represent an official institutional view or perspective, nor is it a complete recounting of Princeton’s history,” wrote Jarvis and Haynes. “Instead, it uses race as the organizing principle and lens to understand our present, recent past, and present moments.” Two University professors recently penned an op-ed in the New York Post criticizing the orientation event, referring to it as a “one-sided and negative picture of Princeton’s history.”
Other community members felt that the gallery was limited in informing students about systemic racism. McGivney pointed out that in its focus on historical wrongdoings, the presentation failed to give incoming students a picture of the current struggles of inequality within the University. “It’s much easier to admit to past mistakes than to ongoing stuff,” they said. Taylor also mentioned that the tone of the gallery, in attempting to present nuanced depictions of racist men, fell short of directly condemning their actions. “I’d like to see [the gallery] call it out as clearly wrong, no ifs, ands, or buts,” she said. Asked about the potential role of To Be Known and Heard in future orientations, Jarvis and Haynes wrote that nothing has been decided yet. ”Each year, the orientation organizers and their campus partners determine the diversity, equity and inclusion sessions, so we will return to that conversation in the spring of 2022 to figure it out with orientation leaders.” They stressed the importance of students’ perspectives, stating, “We will particularly take into account student feedback (especially first-year students and RCAs) to determine what’s next for To Be Known and Heard.” Ngan Chiem is a junior in the Politics Department pursuing a Certificate in Creative Writing. In her free time, if she’s not cooking Viet food, Ngan enjoys covering student activism on campus. She can be reached at nchiem@princeton.edu and on Instagram @nganstop.
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The Daily Princetonian
Friday September 17, 2021
On 20th anniversary of 9/11, Princeton community gathers to honor alumni lost ON CAMPUS
By Marie-Rose Sheinerman Senior Writer
“Robert L. Cruikshank ’58. Charles A. McCrann ’68. Philip Guza GS ’72. William E. Caswell GS ’75. Martin P. Wohlforth ’76. Robert J. Deraney ’80. Joshua A. Rosenthal GS ’81. Karen Klitzman ’84. Jeffrey D. Wiener ’90. John Schroeder ’92. Christopher Ingrassia ’95. Robert G. McIlvaine ’97. Christopher Mello ’98. Catherine MacRae ’00.” While reading each name and class year of the alumni killed in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, President of the Alumni Association Mary Newburn ’97 paused as University Trustee Kim Goodwin ’81 rang the bronze “Remembrance Bell” standing at the entrance to the 9/11 Memorial Garden. Around 50 community members gathered early Saturday morning at the entrance of the small garden wedged between East Pyne and Cannon Green Halls to honor the 14 Princetonians whose lives were lost 20 years ago on Sept. 11, 2001 in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. The reading of the names followed remarks from President Christopher Eisgruber ’83, who reflected on his own memory of the tragic day, as his wife had journeyed that morning into downtown Manhattan, recalling how students and faculty on campus struggled to access news and flocked around the few televisions they could find. “My wife could not get home and had to stay in Manhattan,” he said. “Even now, even 20 years later, it is heartbreaking that nearly 3,000 others, including 14 treasured alumni of our university, never made it home at all.” Eisgruber also shared words that then-newly-
appointed President Shirley Tilghman spoke a few days after the tragedy as the campus community came together to grieve on Cannon Green. “We all have a responsibility to prove what we know to be true: that love is stronger than hate, that justice is stronger than injustice, that democracy is stronger than despotism, and that freedom does allow for the fullest flowering of the human spirit,” said Eisgruber, quoting his predecessor. Earlier in the ceremony, Associate Dean of Religious Life Matthew C. Weiner led a moment of silence and four University chaplains offered words of remembrance and prayer. “As we gather on this day to hold in our hearts all those who are hurting from loss and pain,” said Imam Khalil Abdullah, “we ask, oh Allah, oh God, for healing. As we remember, as we reflect together, help us to stand on the firm ground of our humanity.” Rabbi Julie Roth shared her experiences from 9/11 when, on the day of the attacks, she had traveled to downtown New York City to meet with one of her mentors. “It wasn’t until many hours later that I reached my parents,” Roth said, remembering how she wandered the streets of the city, trying to call her parents from a phone booth but couldn’t because all the lines were jammed. “I remember asking my father, who is a Holocaust survivor, if he was frightened now to be in America,” she said. “He said to me, his heart was just filled with sadness, that even at Auschwitz-Birkenau, so many innocent lives had not been taken so instantaneously.” Hindu Chaplain Vineet Chander also spoke to the community members and offered a benediction.
“May our consciousness become spontaneously absorbed in the rapture of pure love unto the one transcendent Supreme.” Rev. Dr. Theresa S. Thames asked attendees to join her in prayer and urged them to remember their shared humanity. “Dear God, we declared 20 years ago that we will never forget as we watched the world change before our very eyes,” Thames said. “Yet 20 years later, with tears in our eyes, we seem to have forgotten our united front. We have forgotten that strangers of every background and hue offered prayers, support and lifted prayers to
their God. We have forgotten that we all lost, though our losses may have been different.” Outside Fitzrandolph Gate, town residents came together to permanently honor the victims of the 9/11 attacks. The Princeton 9/11 Memorial Committee held a remembrance ceremony at noon on Saturday in front of the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad Headquarters at 2 Mt. Lucas Road, dedicated to those who perished on the day and to “the strength and courage of the families and friends who continue to mourn their loss 20 years later,” according to
the event announcement. The ceremony featured the dedication of a permanent memorial, which includes a nine-foot steel beam from the wreckage of the World Trade Center and plaques describing the events of the day. Marie-Rose Sheinerman is a senior writer who has reported on COVID-19 policy, faculty controversy, sexual harassment allegations, major donors, campus protests, and more. She can be reached at ms78@princeton.edu or on Twitter at @rosesheinerman. She previously served as an editor of news and features and now assists with content strategy.
CANDACE DO / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
The Daily Princetonian
Friday September 17, 2021
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BEYOND THE BUBBLE
Princeton to lead Northeast Innovation Hub with grant from the National Science Foundation By Ashley Fan and Diya Kraybill Staff Writer and Assistant News Editor
Supported by National Science Foundation (NSF) funding, a new innovation hub led by the University will aim to accelerate entrepreneurship, scientific research, and socioeconomic impact. On Aug. 25, the NSF announced the establishment of its Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Northeast Hub, one of five new federally funded hubs. Each hub will be allocated $3 million per year for five years and will expand by adding new affiliates each year. The University will lead the Northeast Hub in collaboration with the University of Delaware and Rutgers University. Five other institutions — New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Rowan University, Lehigh University, Temple University, and
Delaware State University — are also affiliated with the project. Dean for Research and Professor of Chemical and Biological engineering Pablo Debenedetti will be guiding the overall governance of the hub. Rodney Priestley, Princeton University’s Vice Dean for Innovation and a Professor of Chemical and Biological engineering, will be the Co-Director of the hub alongside Julius Korley, Director of Entrepreneurship and Strategic Partnerships in the College of Engineering at the University of Delaware. “The idea is to accelerate the economic impact of federally funded research so it provides a structure for bringing research to the market,” Debenedetti explained in an interview with The Daily Princetonian. “And the other important thing is our commitment to do so in an inclusive way that reaches out
to communities that have been traditionally underrepresented in entrepreneurship.” Priestly emphasized the hub’s focus on helping identify pathways towards the commercialization of academic research and laboratory discoveries via the formation of startups and new ventures. “At Princeton, we strongly believe scholarship can have an impact, especially the scholarship around science and technology that we are involved in to solve the world’s pressing problems,” Priestly said. “But even if we do great research here on campus, what is to the benefit of humanity if we do not create avenues by which we can translate that research?” Another key focus of the hub is to support greater diversity in entrepreneurship through acknowledging groups that have been historically underrepre-
sented in the field and providing them with the necessary resources and mentorship network to succeed. “We are committed to recruiting mentoring teams that reflect the diversity of the country, and we are committed to reaching out to faculty that belong to traditionally underrepresented minorities,” Debenedetti said. Priestly added that by working in partnership with Delaware State University, a historically Black college or university (HBCU), the University aims to reach out to other HBCUs and bring in more affiliate institutions focused on minority-serving populations. The hub aims to have farreaching impacts for citizens not only of the northeast region, but also of the nation due to its capacity to invigorate research and innovation across a variety of sectors.
According to the Office of the Dean of Research, the hub will make use of its proximity to “deep-tech industries” and will aim to accelerate discoveries in health care and pharmaceuticals, energy, the environment, earth- and water-friendly “green and blue” technologies, financial technologies, agriculture, communications, and digital information. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), further emphasized the hub’s impact, stating in the University’s release that it “will invigorate the capacity for federally funded research to improve people’s everyday lives.” Diya Kraybill is a staff writer who often covers student groups and university affairs. She can be reached at diyak@princeton.edu. Ashley Fan is an assistant news editor. She can be reached at ayfan@ princeton.edu.
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of its goal to be a world-class research institution with a distinctive commitment to teaching at the undergraduate and graduate level,” University Spokesperson Ben Chang wrote in an email to The Daily Princetonian. Heather Madsen ’24 told the ‘Prince’ that while the University provides “a lot of opportunities that would be inaccessible without this institution,” she still sees “flaws with the American education system.” “I think that the rankings are just one barometer of Princeton’s value,” she said. “They definitely should be taken with a grain of salt because the holistic experience of Princeton University cannot be encapsulated by a single number.” One change to the U.S. News’ ranking method this year included “more averaging of Best Colleges ranking factors” — average class size, faculty salaries, and two indicators of student debt — through a two-year average instead of just the previous year’s data. “This reduces the year-toyear volatility of these ranking indicators,” explained U.S. News. Furthermore, in light of the growth of test-optional policies during the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. News lowered a threshold for the percentage of incoming students who submitted standardized test scores. In previous years, 75 percent of new entrants needed to submit SAT/ACT scores,
or the institution would be penalized in the ranking for the standardized test category. This year, only 50 percent of new entrants needed to submit test scores before institutions were penalized in the rankings. Forbes Magazine’s America’s Top Colleges rankings also changed their methodology to take into account the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The magazine did not publish a list in 2020. Following the change in methodology, the University of California, Berkeley, was named the highest-ranking institution. This was the first time a public university has taken the top position — Harvard University held the coveted spot from 2017 to 2019, while Berkeley placed 13th in 2019. Yale ranked second this year, followed by Princeton, Stanford, and Columbia. For this year’s America’s Top Colleges, Forbes placed the heaviest weight on alumni salary (20 percent), while allocating 15 percent to factors such as debt, return on investment, graduation rate, and placement on the Forbes “American Leaders List.” The new methodology also diverged from Forbes’ previous system by now taking into account “the average number of years it took students to pay their college costs.” Forbes explained this refined methodology as a product of reflection during the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on higher education. The magazine now considers the accessibility of education for lower-income students by considering the percentage of undergraduate recipients of Pell Grants in each institution.
Pell Grants are federal scholarships that are provided to students from low-income households to fund their college education, and do not need to be repaid. At Harvard, 12 percent of undergraduates receive a Pell Grant, while Pell Grant recipients make up 27 percent of Berkeley’s student body. At Princeton, 22 percent of the Class of 2025 are eligible for Pell Grants, likely contributing to its third place ranking. However, for U.S. News’ “Top Performers on Social Mobility,” which considers universities that have “large[r] proportions of disadvantaged students awarded with Pell Grants,” the University ranked 192nd. According to U.S. News, such lists are in a process of “constant refine[ment].” The company also had to make use of data that “pertained to fall 2020 or earlier” in lieu of more recent data, as a result of complications from the pandemic. Forbes Magazine also reflected on how they only “rank a slice of America’s colleges and universities,” and “elite private institutions still scored high” despite 80 percent of undergraduates in the nation attending public schools. Hadley Kim is an associate staff writer interested in reporting on the international student experience. On campus, she is also involved with the Princeton Debate Panel and The Princeton Diplomat, and intends to major in East Asian Studies. She can be reached at minjuk@princeton. edu or @hadleymkim on most major social media platforms.
CANDACE DO / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
The School of Engineering and Applied Science.
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Friday September 17, 2021
STUDENT LIFE
Campus cafés reopen after 18 months
Singer plans to donate prize money to The Life You Can Save, organizations working to combat animal cruelty SINGER
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JULIAN GOTTFRIED / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
By Eliza Shaffer Contributor
Alongside the resumption of in-person instruction, two favorite locales of the University campus have reopened — Coffee Club and Murray-Dodge Café. Both institutions function primarily by and for Princeton students, providing unique spaces to study and socialize. Located at 5 Prospect Avenue, Coffee Club can be found in the downstairs Tap Room of Campus Club. It was established in 2019, and with a staff of 31 students, Coffee Club is the only entirely student-run coffee shop in the Princeton area. At the start of the semester, Coffee Club was allowed to reopen after 18 months of being closed. “Congregating means so much now,” said Katie Heinzer ’22, a barista at Cof-
fee Club and podcast editor for The Daily Princetonian. While the club is currently not hosting largescale indoor events, it still functions as a place for students to congregate and socialize, especially with the backyard as an outdoor alternative. “The events have changed, but the spirit of them is the same,” noted Heinzer. Already, students experiencing Coffee Club for the first time this semester are coming to know and appreciate it. “I love it because the environment is really cute, and everyone that works there is so nice,” said Sarah Pedersen ’24. “In the first two weeks, I’ve already filled up a full punch card. So to say the least, I’m obsessed.” Part of Coffee Club’s unique appeal is that it is
entirely run by students. “It’s people who want to do this and to work for the experience [Coffee Club] provides to both the customer and yourself,” explained Heinzer. While the downstairs space offers a more social environment, for those who would prefer a quiet place to study, the upper floors of Campus Club provide a convenient alternative. “It’s pretty ideal for studying and socializing,” Heinzer noted. “You don’t really have to pick one or the other.” On the other hand, Murray-Dodge Café offers “a Frist-type study environment,” said Juliet Sturge ’23, one of its two student managers. While virtual, MurrayDodge Café produced a weekly baking-focused newsletter. But like Coffee Club, this fall, it was able to
The menu at Coffee Club located in Campus Club. open in person for the first lacios ’24, a recent first-time time since students were visitor to the café. sent home in March 2020. The fact that everything Hidden in the basement at Murray-Dodge Café is of Dodge Hall, Murray- free not only makes it a Dodge Café is an under- convenient option, but also ground space that not contributes to its singular only serves as a place for environment. students to study, but also “There’s no exchange of provides free coffee, tea, money, so it’s very casual and fresh-baked goods. — there’s usually no line,” However, the recent con- added Sturge. struction on campus someIn addition, students are what obscures the entrance welcome to make suggesto the café, making it more tions to the staff about the difficult for students to café’s ever-evolving menu spontaneously stumble of baked goods, which is upon its basement door. vegan on Wednesdays and While it “used to really gluten-free on Sundays. be an institution on camFor those interested, pus,” noted Sturge, “it’s Coffee Club is open weeknow a place students kind days from 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. of have to be ‘in the know’ and Saturdays and Sunabout.” days from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Once discovered, Murray-Dodge Café is open though, Murray-Dodge daily 3 p.m. - 12 a.m. Café provides students with a unique experience. Eliza Shaffer is a news con“The cookies were deli- tributor at the ‘Prince.’ She can cious — I couldn’t believe be contacted at elizas@princit was all free,” said Ana Pa- eton.edu.
as parents now have the option in consultation with doctors of withdrawing life support from very severely disabled babies who need life support, I think that they should have the option of ending the lives of severely disabled babies if they judge that’s in the best interest of their child and the family,” he explained. At the same time, he said he understands that “people are still disturbed by that.” “I should say, as I’ve been saying for many years … I fully support the right of people with disabilities to live their lives as fully as possible,” he continued. While these views are considered controversial, Singer has embraced the opportunity to spark public discourse, recently founding the Journal of Controversial Ideas. “I welcome criticism of my views. People should be free to express views critical of mine, just as I should be free to express my views, and that’s something that’s been important to me throughout my time at Princeton,” he said. Singer will receive the prize at a ceremony in Los Angeles, Calif. next spring. Naomi Hess is an Associate News Editor who focuses on university policy and alumni affairs. She can be reached at nihess@ princeton.edu or on Twitter at @ NaomiHess17.
The Daily Princetonian
Friday September 17, 2021
page 7
Instrumentation By Owen Travis Co-Head Puzzles Editor
ACROSS
1 Ammo for an air gun 4 Hides 9 Good-looking emoadjacent male TikTokker, maybe 13 ___ Spring 15 Large bay window 16 “When you play the ___ of thrones, you win or you die” 17 Ride a wake? 18 Insurance giant 19 FBI agent, informally 20 *Pay someone to play a miniature instrument in the lute family? 23 Wolf (down) 24 Web services provider with an exclamation mark in its logo 25 Shake variety 28 Old Russian royalty 32 *Throw a tarp over a set of large upright instruments? 38 Nickname for a young Darth Vader 39 “Watermelon ___”(Harry Styles song) 40 Its symbol is Sn 41 *Use smaller instruments when violas aren’t available? 46 “Well done!” 47 YouTuber Chamberlain 48 On the water 52 With 11-Down, Minnesota congresswoman
56 Where bow users sit in orchestras … or what the answers to the starred clues all have 60 Smoothie bowl ingredient 61 Steaming at the ears, say 62 Like some hairs or hares 63 Walk anxiously 64 ___ code 65 Tennis score that might come before or after deuce 66 Reasons to do something 67 Delay 68 Key that might mean “Get me outta here!” 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 21 22
26 “He who hesitates is ___” DOWN 27 Threaded fastener You might draw them 29 Sparkling Italian wine Boston hockey player 30 Pull (in) Hummus brand that once used the tagline 31 IDs on some tax forms “How do you ‘mmus?” 32 Pasta or rice, informally 33 Unique individual It stands for “Mother Of All Bloons“ in Bloons 34 MasterCard competitor Tower Defense 36 Ctrl+S Zone 37 It may be flat on a hat Do nothing 42 Pair in the reproductive Its capital is Nairobi system / 43 Indonesian word for Game where it’s bread important to have a hard 44 Leave out shell “Roll Tide!” school See 52-Across Japanese currency “Sauce that cold one over here” Many miles away Tiny bit
45 What FC Barcelona and Real Madrid compete in 49 Uses scissors 50 Snowy bird 51 Yoga pose 53 Throng 54 Sister in “The Amazing World of Gumball” 55 Boy band with Justin Timberlake 56 Lasting mark 57 Offering from Taste of Mexico, in Princeton 58 And others: Abbr. 59 Battery 60 DoorDash, e.g.
HANNAH MITTLEMAN/ THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
MINI #2
ACROSS
1 2021 Disney hit 6 Bad sign 7 2016 Disney hit 8 General idea
9 Many a dorm room
DOWN
1 Onetime rank for Sulu in “Star Trek”, familiarly 2 Sch. with an Amherst campus 3 ¢ 4 Actress de Armas 5 “The Wizard of Oz” production co.
The Minis MINI #3
ACROSS
1 End of sem. assignment for a course 5 Was under the weather 7 Court fig. 8 Circles the tarmac, maybe 9 Highway division
DOWN
1 Princeton’s ___ Pyne Hall 2 Crucial 3 Echoey voice? 4 Russian revolutionary 6 One shot, for the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, e.g.
By Ana Pranger and Luca Morante Constructors
Scan to check your answers and try more of our puzzles online!
Friday September 17, 2021
Opinion
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Doing enough:
vol. cxlv
What high-risk individuals can teach us about COVID-19 safety Genrietta Churbanova
Assistant Opinion Editor
A
fter the first week of classes, one thing is apparent: a large portion of the student body has wholeheartedly embraced the University’s “return to normal.” Aside from the University’s indoor masking requirement and the eating clubs’ members-only policy, few indications on campus show that the COVID-19 pandemic is, in fact, still ongoing. Everything from inperson classes and fullcapacity dining halls to the widely-attended Pre-rade and Triangle Frosh Week Show contributes to the feeling that we are living in a post-pandemic Princeton. In our highly vaccinated, regularly tested Orange Bubble, it is easy to forget about COVID-19. However, many students do not have the luxury of forgetting. Not everyone is equally at-risk for COVID-19. According to the CDC, individuals with certain medical conditions — ranging from diabetes to asthma — are at significantly higher risk of developing serious illness if infected. For high-risk students, the pandemic is still very much a reality. I spoke with Bétel Tenna ’24, who is at high-risk for COVID-19, about the challenges of campus life for high-risk individuals this semester. While the insights sparked by my conversation with Tenna are not representative of all high-risk students’ experiences, they still enrich our understanding of the challenges currently facing high-risk Princetonians. According to Tenna, the most concerning and inaccessible aspect of campus life thus far has been Universitysponsored social events, such as the Step Sing. She has chosen to skip many of these events due
to the huge, predominantly maskless crowds they attract. As Tenna noted, “the risk [of attending these events] is not worth it.” Although she also mentioned that she would feel safer if large lectures were held over Zoom, her primary concern lies outside of the classroom. Tenna’s perspective on the danger that large social events pose to high-risk students illuminates two substantial shortcomings in the way COVID-19 safety is typically discussed at Princeton. First, her concerns make obvious a gap in the discourse surrounding Princeton’s updated COVID-19 Policies and Guidelines: social events are rarely addressed in such discussions. Instead, much of the dialogue focuses on academics. For example, last month, the English Department called on the University to allow for remote teaching. In response, Assistant Vice President for Environmental Health and Safety Robin Izzo defended the University’s return to in-person classes. Social events did not feature prominently in either appeal despite their centrality to student life. Second, Tenna’s perspective highlights a flaw in the framing of pandemic safety discourse on campus. When considering COVID-19 safety measures, the first question that comes to many students’ minds is: Is the University doing enough? Posing this question can lead to heated debate about a range of policy issues, including whether or not Princeton should be implementing a mask mandate. Such dialogue only goes so far. It is clear that the University has a degree of responsibility for keeping students safe during the pandemic, but the responsibility does not lie with the University
alone. After speaking with Tenna, I urge students to ask themselves an additional question: Am I doing enough? At first ask, this question is difficult to answer. But here are a few suggestions about what doing enough might look like. It does not mean boycotting all the in-person events we have been looking forward to, but it does mean attending them responsibly. An example raised by Tenna was if you chose to go out of town, be extra careful not to put people at risk of contracting COVID-19 until you get a negative test result. You can also mask indoors even if you are off-campus — especially considering that vaccination rates offcampus are much lower than in the Orange Bubble. Lastly, if someone in your life discloses their high-risk status to you, take it seriously. Regardless of University COVID-19 policy, it is possible for each of us to “do enough” to make campus safe for high and low-risk individuals alike. Tenna feels comfortable living in a quad because she trusts her roommates. She doesn’t mind if they go out of town for the weekend because she knows that if they do so, they will do so safely. This is further evidence that doing enough does not have to mean returning to last semester’s strict restrictions, and nothing here should be interpreted as a call to do so; rather, doing enough means engaging with our new normal responsibly. For those of us on campus with the luxury to forget about COVID-19, Tenna leaves us with a final note: “I feel like people think [COVID-19] is over. It’s not.” Genrietta Churbanova is a sophomore from Little Rock, Ark. She can be reached at geaac@princeton.edu.
editor-in-chief Emma Treadway ’22 business manager Louis Aaron ’23
BOARD OF TRUSTEES president Thomas E. Weber ’89 vice president Craig Bloom ’88 second vice president David Baumgarten ’06 secretary Chanakya A. Sethi ’07 treasurer Douglas Widmann ’90 assistant treasurer Kavita Saini ’09
trustees Francesca Barber Kathleen Crown Gabriel Debenedetti ’12 Stephen Fuzesi ’00 Zachary A. Goldfarb ’05 Michael Grabell ’03 John G. Horan ’74 Rick Klein ’98 James T. MacGregor ’66 Abigail Williams ’14 Tyler Woulfe ’07 trustees ex officio Emma Treadway ’22 Louis Aaron ’23
145TH MANAGING BOARD managing editors Harsimran Makkad ’22 AG McGee ’22 Kenny Peng ’22 Zachary Shevin ’22 content strategist Omar Farah ’23 Sections listed in alphabetical order. head cartoon editors Sydney Peng ’22 Akaneh Wang ’24 associate cartoon editors Inci Karaaslan ’24 Ambri Ma ’24 head copy editors Celia Buchband ’22 Isabel Rodrigues ’23 associate copy editors Catie Parker ’23 Cecilia Zubler ’23 digital news design editor Anika Maskara ’23 associate digital news design editor Brian Tieu ’23 graphics editor Ashley Chung ’23 instagram design editor Helen So ’22 print design editor Abby Nishiwaki ’23 newsletter editor Rooya Rahin ’23 head features editor Alex Gjaja ’23 Rachel Sturley ’23 associate features editors Annabelle Duval ’23 Ellen Li ’22 Tanvi Nibhanupudi ’23 multimedia liason Mark Dodici ’22 head photo editor Candace Do ’24 head podcast editor Isabel Rodrigues ’23
associate podcast editors Jack Anderson ’23 Francesca Block ’22 Katie Heinzer ’22 head video editor Mindy Burton ’23 associte video editors Uanne Chang ’24 Daniel Drake ’24 Marko Petrovic ’24 head news editors Evelyn Doskoch ’23 Caitlin Limestahl ’23 associte news editors Bharvi Chavre ’23 Naomi Hess ’22 Marissa Michaels ’22 head opinion editor Shannon Chaffers ’22 associte opinion editors Won-Jae Chang ’24 Kristal Grant ’24 Mollika Singh ’24 head prospect editors Cameron Lee ’22 Auhjanae McGee ’23 associte prospect editors José Pablo Fernández García ’23 Aster Zhang ’24 head puzzles editors Gabriel Robare ’24 Owen Travis ’24 head sports editor Emily Philippides ’22 associte sports editors Ben Burns ’23 Sreesha Ghosh ’23
145TH BUSINESS BOARD chief technology officer Pranav Avva ’24 assistant business manager Benjamin Cai ’24 business directors Gloria Wang ’24 Shirley Ren ’24 Samantha Lee ’24 David Akpokiere ’24 lead software engineer, system architect Areeq Hasan ’24 project manager Ananya Parashar ’24 business-tech liason Anika Agarwal ’25
software engineers Rishi Mago ’23 Joanna Tang ’24 Dwaipayan Saha ’24 Roma Bhattacharjee ’25 Giao Vu Dinh ’24 Eugenie Choi ’24 Daniel Hu ’25 Kohei Sanno ’25 business associates Jasmine Zhang ’24 Jonathan Lee ’24 Caroline Zhao ’25 Chief Technology Officer Emeritus Anthony Hein ’22
THIS PRINT ISSUE WAS DESIGNED BY Abby Nishiwaki ’23 Juliana Wojtenko ’23 Thanya Begum ’23 Dimitar Chakarov ’23 Jessica Cui ’24 Esha Mittal ’23
AND COPIED BY Cecilia Zubler ’23
JON ORT / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
East Pyne Hall.
Done reading your ‘Prince’? Recycle!
Opinion
Friday September 17, 2021
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Afghanistan and the decline of American reliability
Juan José López Haddad Senior Columnist
T
he fall of Kabul to Taliban forces this past August was undoubtedly one of the most calamitous events that the international community has witnessed in recent memory. The successive conquests of surrounding cities culminating with the quick and sudden capture of the capital were reminiscent of the falls of Constantinople and Rome in ages past. As I witnessed these events virtually, my thoughts immediately went to the number of lives that would be changed forever — or even snuffed out. Much has been said already about this event’s devastating toll on human rights, women, and Americans and their allies on Afghan ground. However, as the dust settled, I began to wonder what this meant for one of America’s most salient dilemmas with the international community: credibility and reliability. While the beginnings of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq involved promises that the United States could not keep, the Trump administration’s populist, hyper-nationalist, and protectionist rhetoric worried many about America’s commitment to global affairs. Trump’s words and expectations turned into actions that were unprecedented in their disregard for United States allies and any semblance of coherence. The delicate framework of treaties, agreements, and relationships that previous administrations had built almost came crashing down. Many moments in Trump’s foreign policy exhibit this pattern of destruction: The repudiation of the Paris Agreement on climate, the refusal to uphold the Iran nuclear deal, and the frequent threats to undermine the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Even during moments of dire crisis, Trump refused to be a dependable
cooperator, as seen by the United States’ attempted withdrawal from the World Health Organization at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe Biden ran and won the 2020 presidential election on several promises, but a significant one was rebuilding international confidence in the United States as a global player. Nevertheless, not even a year into his presidency, he has neglected this duty. I do not insinuate that the decision to withdraw from Afghanistan was erroneous. Long before the Biden administration decided to finalize the withdrawal, the nearly 20-year war had turned into an unsustainable situation, in which nothing would have been enough to satisfy the goals of nation-building that the United States had set in Afghanistan. However, the United States’ exit showed an irresponsible level of neglect which exposed deep cracks in its ability to lead internationally. The unreliability of Trump’s America was manifested primarily displayed through the failure to honor external commitments, emanating from his disregard for international institutions and his admiration for authoritarian en-
emies of the United States. Biden’s unreliability has come from a greater transgression: the abandonment of his own citizens and those who helped them. While keeping foreign alliances is a matter of honor, the protection of a country’s people is a question of fundamental duty. The legitimacy of the state originates in the consent of the governed, in part in exchange for protection — violating this fundamental clause of the social contract is the highest form of betrayal a government can commit. In an exit operation that was hastened seemingly without clear reason or purpose, no precaution was taken to ensure the safety of everyone at risk of suffering from an inevitable Taliban takeover. Americans and their Afghan allies were made to scramble desperately to leave the country as the Taliban closed in on Kabul. Even after the capital had been taken and the efforts to withdraw had “concluded,” many still remained stranded, fearing for their lives and without any assurance that the United States would protect them. This despicable action was not motivated by political reasoning but by sheer
haste and neglect, and this unfortunate reality diminishes the nation’s credibility more than many of Trump’s erratic stances in foreign policy. What does it say of a nation’s government when it cannot keep its citizens safe? What does it tell of a leader when they show no interest in securing a safe exit, not only for their countrymen but also for their long-standing allies? What does it reveal about American foreign policy when these embarrassing, dangerous, and preventable blunders force the government to negotiate and trust a perfidious enemy? The international community longs for the return of an America that can keep its promises, but if the United States cannot honor its most fundamental duty towards its citizenry, it cannot be expected to be a reliable ally. But why does this even matter at an international level? While the fall of Kabul may signify the twilight of America’s influence on the global stage, some have held that this is necessary. I both agree and disagree in parts. The recent events in Afghanistan do show the futility of prolonged involvement in protracted foreign conflicts.
U.S. MARINE CORPS STAFF SGT. VICTOR MANCILLA/ DEFENSE VISUAL INFORMATION DISTRIBUTION SERVICE
Evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport.
However, it also exposes a world in need of strong international action with robust leadership. Despite its many flaws, the United States is still a key piece for that reality to happen. Few other nations command the necessary power while preserving a largely democratic government and strong mechanisms that safeguard it from despotism. Furthermore, few other countries boast the institutional robustness that the United States possesses, which has held the nation together even in times of extreme political polarization and discontent. If the United States takes a step back from world affairs it opens up the field for comparably powerful, yet more sinister regimes, to take over a vital role in international cooperation. The United States might not be the ‘Land of the Free,’ but relative to other comparable powers, it is indeed the ‘Land of the Freer.’ Now, during the 20th anniversary of the heinous terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, it is critical for all Americans to reflect on whether Washington has really kept the promises it made when it vowed to fight terrorism, both domestic and foreign. A considerable portion of this duty falls upon my fellow Princeton students, many of them involved with matters of foreign policy and gearing toward an influential career in the field. As the world approaches a critical juncture where globalization transforms most local issues into global ones, the leadership of a country that regards the rights of all humans as sacred is integral. But the United States must make sure it upholds these democratic values not only domestically but internationally. Juan José López Haddad is a senior concentrating in history from Caracas, Venezuela. He can be reached at jhaddad@princeton.edu.
Introducing Reactions: Opinion’s snappy and succinct mini-columns Rohit Narayanan and Zachariah Sippy Reactions Co-editors
When James Madison Class of 1771, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay wrote the Federalist Papers — some of this country’s most important opinion editorials — they had seven months to write nearly 70,000 words. The stakes of the modern era are no lower, yet news comes at an exponentially faster rate. To keep up with this pace, central debates have shifted away from journals, magazines, and newspapers to social media platforms. There is no question that instantaneous Twitter threads rival (if not eclipse) the traditional, slower-topublish, 800-word op-ed. The Daily Princetonian celebrates its historic opinion section, but we also understand that, for many, the barriers to entry
remain too high and the process too slow. That’s why we are proud to inaugurate Reactions, a new effort to increase diversity of thought and reader engagement at the ‘Prince.’ After major scoops and stories on campus, Reactions will host a series of snappy, prompt, roughly 250-word pieces, staking out different points of view. These mini-columns can engage with each other directly, explore different sides of the issue at hand, and — importantly — prioritize timeliness. Look for Reactions from our devoted opinion columnists, but if you see a big piece of news and have an opinion, we want to hear from you, too — no different than a thread of two to five tweets. Look for more detailed instructions on the ‘Prince’ website and at the bottom of major scoops in the coming weeks. We look forward to reading and sharing your
SYDNEY PENG / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
reactions soon. Rohit Narayanan is a sophomore from McLean, Va.. He
can be reached at rohitan@ princeton.edu. Zachariah Sippy is a junior from Lexington, Ky. He can be reached at
zsippy@princeton.edu. They are co-editors of The Daily Princetonian’s new opinion series: Reactions.
The Daily Princetonian
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Cartoon
Friday September 17, 2021
We Are The Future By Payton Croskey ’23
NHL Teams Guide By Sydney Peng ’22
Masks By Sandy Lee ’22
Revealing the truth, one story at a time.
the PROSPECT. The Daily Princetonian
Friday September 17, 2021
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ARTS & CULTURE
Remembering the day the Towers fell Reflections from the Princeton community on the 20th anniversary of 9/11
By Guest Contributors
Content Warning: This article contains descriptions of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In observance of the 20th anniversary of Sept. 11, The Prospect asked Princeton community members — students, faculty, staff, and alumni — to share brief personal reflections and anecdotes. Responses were lightly edited for concision and clarity.
Twenty years later, I still see those who jumped. - Susan Wheeler, Professor of Creative Writing in the Lewis Center for the Arts
“The Only Plane in the Sky” by Garrett M. Graff is the best reflection on 9/11 I’ve encountered. It combines years of research and hundreds of voices to give a stunning tribute to all those impacted (all of us) by the event. I hope it can provide a model for historical storytelling, American identity, and excellent writing and research for others. - Anonymous
I will always be a New Yorker. - Anonymous
On 9/11, we lived half a mile north of the Twin Towers. Claire and a friend from Italy were having coffee when the first plane flew overhead. “That plan is flying awfully low,” Claire said. Seconds later, they heard the “thwump” of impact. I was at our office, watching the news on TV as we waited for a meeting to begin. We saw the second plane appear, and an instant later, it crashed into the second tower. My partner Mike, quoting someone I cannot recall, said: “Gentlemen, we are at war.” Fifteen minutes later, I was walking the four miles to my home. About halfway there, I started seeing people heading north, covered with ash, looking shell shocked and desperate. They didn’t want help, they just wanted to keep moving. I stopped at a grocery store. It was packed. But looking at the carts, no one could decide what they wanted in the face of this crisis. At home, I baked an apple pie. The phone rang all day long with friends wanting to know if we were all right. We were. After dark, I walked along Canal Street, the northern edge of the protected zone. American flags were up for sale everywhere, and no one had any idea where they came from. In a vacant lot at the corner of Sixth Avenue, I saw a young woman surrounded by dozens of candles. She said, “If I can just keep some of them going until sunrise, maybe things will be OK. - Jim MacGregor ’66
The Daily Princetonian
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Friday September 17, 2021
On 9/11, I was the Political Counselor at the American Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. We were in a temporary building because the original embassy had been destroyed by Islamist terrorists affiliated with Osama Bin Laden. Almost all our Kenyan staff had lived through the 1998 bombing. Our temporary building was located below the approach flight path to two airports, so we had planes flying low over us all the time. The attack happened near the end of the work day Kenya time, so I was already on the road home when word reached me that the two towers had collapsed. I remember wondering if any of our Kenyan staff would decide not to come in the next day. None did. Everyone showed up. Later that morning, a large group of young Kenyans came marching up to our building, not to protest, but to express their solidarity with the American people in the face of terrorism. - Terry Pflaumer ’71
I was a staff director in the U.S. Senate on 9/11. I was watching the Senate “floor” from my office in the Dirksen building that morning and saw the senators running out of the chamber. I had never seen anything like that and knew immediately something was very wrong. Shortly after, someone screamed, “Get out!” I ran through the offices to make sure people were leaving and then started down five flights; at some point, I abandoned my high heels. With no emergency plans in place, the Senate staff congregated in the park across from the Senate buildings. We could see the smoke rising from the Pentagon, but no one knew at that time that it was coming from the Pentagon; in fact, it would have been inconceivable to think that the Pentagon had been attacked. Many of us, including me, had loved ones who worked in federal buildings and, of course, no one could reach anyone; those moments of watching the smoke rise will be with me forever. I decided that no staffer should take public transit, so we organized carpools or stayed in homes on Capitol Hill. Others walked home. On Sept. 12, I got on the Metro and returned to the Senate for a previously planned hearing on protecting the nation’s critical infrastructure. Each year on 9/11, I take time to remember the incredibly brave people on Flight 93 who very likely saved my life. I always wonder if I would have had the courage they had. - Joyce Rechtschaffen ’75
On 9/11, I left a windowless hotel dining room in New York City at around 9 a.m. with no idea of what had happened. Approaching 5th and 44th, I wondered why so many people were looking into the window of an electronics store so early in the morning. I looked south and saw flames from the South Tower and assumed there had been an accident. At that moment, my colleague’s husband called to tell her that planes had crashed into both towers. I walked to the office. Later I learned from my wife that our son, who had worked a few hundred yards from the towers, saw the second plane as he exited the subway and tried to return to his apartment, but the neighborhood was closed off for the next couple weeks. I remember seeing the eerie sight of thousands walking north on Park Ave., some with fine ash on their clothes. I worked until 3 p.m., and when I left work, I bumped into two commuters from my bus who said there were long lines at ferries. We took the subway to the George Washington Bus terminal. I offered $20 to a construction worker stopped in traffic on his way to New Jersey to take us across the bridge where my wife picked us up. - Bob Nahas ’66
The Daily Princetonian
Friday September 17, 2021
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TIGER TOWN TREATS
By Sydney Eck The Prospect Senior Writer
We tried 6 iced lattes in Princeton so you don’t have to
Hey there Tigers! Welcome back to a new year and a new batch of Tiger Town Treats! For those of you who are not yet familiar with our vital work, Tiger Town Treats is a Prospect series where we compare delicious snacks-’n-sips from local businesses so you know where to go to satisfy that one craving or reward yourself after that rough p-set!
Bread Boutique
Tasting experience Bread Boutique’s iced latte was light and nutty, but fairly weak and neither sweet, bitter, nor acidic. While it was refreshing, I wish it had packed a bit more of a punch. It seemed as though a fair bit of ice had already been melted into the cup by the time it reached me, leaving me generally underwhelmed.
Staff Recommendation
A piping hot cup of café au lait ($3.73). The lack of ice melt-off and the unsweetened coffee is a wonderful pairing for any of their many impressive traditional French pastries.
Vibe:
Bread Boutique gives the vibe of a hole-in-the-wall European café. With light tiling and small, intimate tables, it immediately presents itself to customers as a casual place where you can stop by briefly or sit for hours. The smell of fresh pastries and bread is intoxicating and irresistible.
Price: $4.50
Final thoughts:
This Installment’s Treat: Iced Vanilla Lattes!! I sampled sweet iced coffees from six establishments in town. In alphabetical order, they are Bread Boutique, the Coffee Club, Rojo’s Roastery, Sakrid Coffee Roasters, Small World Coffee, and Starbucks. At each location I got a small iced vanilla latte (unless the location did not carry vanilla syrup) with “regular” milk in order to make a fair comparison. But of course, every shop has its own specialties, so I also asked the staff about their favorite specialty drinks. Along with my reviews you can find other recommendations for location-specific (and delicious) ways to get your caffeine fix! In addition to my reviews, I’ll also be giving you my impressions of the “vibe” of each shop.
Small World Coffee Tasting experience
Small World’s lattes have a strong coffee flavor, and you can taste their vanilla syrup without the drink becoming overly sweet. Generally, Small World’s coffee tends to be a bit more bitter and acidic, which balances with the milk and sweetener for a fairly well-balanced drink. Small World’s lattes are perfectly adequate in every way. They are neither overly watery nor straight cream. They hit that sweet spot of a strong standard latte where the body of their coffee is complemented by the other elements, rather than them needing to mask one another.
Staff recommendation The Nola Iced Coffee ($5.00).
Iced coffee isn’t Bread Boutique’s specialty. Luckily they have a host of other delicious and impressive treats to sample. I will definitely be back. (You may want to keep an eye out for future Tiger Town Treats reviewing some of their pastries.)
The Coffee Club
Vibe
Tasting experience
Coffee Club’s latte was fairly typical. The coffee flavor was present, but not overly bold or complex, which is perfectly fine for a standard latte. The vanilla flavor wasn’t too sweet, just barely taking some of the bitterness off of the coffee. Coffee Club’s latte was creamy and smooth. Without turning into “milk with a bit of coffee,” it managed to be more filling than just black coffee. Sadly, the baristas had run out of both ice and icedcoffee cups by the time I arrived due to their insane popularity on opening day, but the coffee was still chilled and very enjoyable in its insulated cup.
Price: $4.25
Final thoughts
Fate will definitely bring me back to Small World. That, or one of their many other innovative menu items.
Sakrid Coffee Roasters
Staff recommendation
Macchiato ($2.50) with a pastry from the Gingered Peach ($3.00)!!
Price: $4.50
Vibe
I visited Coffee Club on their infamous opening day, full of clubs tabling, a capella groups harmonizing, and students literally lining up out the front door of Coffee Club as they waited to put in their orders. Even on less crowded days, Coffee Club has a unique vibe, as it is entirely student-run and student-frequented. At other coffee shops in town, you will find a mix of townies, tourists, professors, and students, but Coffee Club has a singularly “Orange Bubble” feel. Additionally, while other coffee shops in town are stand-alone store fronts, Coffee Club is located in the basement of Campus Club, one of the mansions on Prospect Avenue, making it feel all the more collegiate.
Rojo’s Roastery
Tasting experience Rojo’s did not have vanilla flavoring available, so I went for a standard iced latte. But Rojo’s coffee really can stand on its own: nutty, acidic, and aromatic, it was bold and packed a significant punch. Without being truly bitter, it still had that kind of “heavy” taste that sits in your mouth afterwards. The milk worked well to cut some of the acidity, but Rojo’s coffee really wants to shine solo. In the future, I might go for an espresso or just a plain black coffee.
Vibe:
Price: $4.60
Final thoughts
Starbucks
If you are a coffee person, go to Rojos. If you just like lattes, maybe check out some of the other spots on this list.
Tasting experience It is no secret that Starbucks coffee tastes slightly burnt and rather bitter. But coffee flavor is, in fact, present. So are copious and concerning levels of sugar. All of this evens out to produce a rather enjoyable, though supremely average latte.
Staff recommendation
Seasonal drinks such as the Pumpkin Spice Latte ($5.25).
Vibe:
Final thoughts:
Sakrid is light, bright, and airy. Just by stepping inside you feel more awake. With floor to ceiling windows, you have a fascinating view into the lives of all those who pass by on Nassau Street.
Sakrid has become my go-to for a sweet treat and effective pick-me-up. Whether this is due to the superb lattes or the proximity to my dorm, the world may never know.
Staff recommendation
Price: $5.25
Decadent. Sakrid’s lattes are a wonderful blend of robust coffee, soothing cream, and flavorful vanilla bean. Yes, that’s right: their house-made syrup is more than straight sugar. It carries the full flavor of real vanilla to elevate the drink. That being said, while their syrup isn’t just sugar, the latte is definitely on the sweeter side, so if you prefer your coffee less sweet, maybe ask for less syrup. But if you are in the mood to treat yourself, bop on over. Sakrid’s lattes have that full-bodied coffee flavor, and are rounded out by a generous helping of milk that offsets the intensity of its flavor. Sakrid’s lattes are rich, smooth, and most definitely substantial enough to help you power through that next chunk of reading.
The Lavender Latte ($4.89).
the Guatemalan roast ($20 for a bag to make at home)! Rojos is no-frills and high quality in everything they do. Their interior is dark and wooded with low lamplight, but a fair bit of natural light comes in through the windows if you are in need of a secluded corner to do work without having to strain your eyes.
Tasting experience
Staff recommendation
Final thoughts Coffee Club is a great place to swing by for a pick-me-up between classes when you don’t want to trek all the way up to Nassau Street. You are sure to run into a few friends and can find a nice study spot inside if needed.
Small World is a Princeton town institution. Local art fills the walls, and the shop’s signature red color flashes in every corner. Filled to the brim with flyers for Princeton events and various people of Princeton, you definitely won’t have a hard time spotting someone you know.
Vibe: Price: $4.25
Final thoughts
The Princeton Starbucks has very little to distinguish it from any other Starbucks in America. And I find great comfort in this fact.
All roads lead back to Rome, and I can say with 1000 percent certainty that I will be consuming this drink again many times throughout my life. Starbucks is a safe standby for any caffeine-dependent college kid. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Now that we are all back in class, be sure to give these coffee joints a try! In fact, try more than one! You never know when you will need that extra caffeine kick most, so it’s best to be prepared.
Friday September 17, 2021
Sports
page 14
{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } MEN’S WATER POLO
Men’s water polo wins four of five games at Princeton Invitational
By Rachel Posner
Senior Sports Writer
At the Princeton Invitational this past weekend, Princeton Men’s Water Polo played five games over the course of three days, notching wins against all but one opponent. In an interview with the ‘Prince’ following Saturday’s games, Head Coach Dustin Litvak pointed out that the Tigers only had “three days to train” in between their previous competitions and the start of this weekend’s invitational. “We had five games this weekend, so there was a short turn around.” The No. 12 Tigers started the weekend strong with a 16–10 victory over the No. 14 California Baptist Lancers on Friday evening. After a 16–5 loss to No. 3 Stanford on Saturday morning, the Tigers came back with a 20–12 win against John Hopkins that afternoon. “This morning was a tough one,” Litvak said of the Stanford loss. “We’re tougher than what we showed this morning. It’s all about resilience.” The first half versus Johns Hopkins on Saturday afternoon had prom-
ised a close game. Neither team was able to secure a lead of more than one goal. The score showed a tie game on six separate occasions over the course of the half. Often, Princeton would score a goal to take the lead, only for Johns Hopkins to score a few seconds later and tie the game. The Hopkins goalie made several impressive saves throughout the half. Each time Hopkins scored or saved, their teammates out of the water let out audible shouts and encouragement. Hopkins scored with three seconds to go in the second stanza, tying the game at 7–7 going into halftime. Litvak later described the Tigers in the first half as “dead and quiet, both in the water and on the bench,” adding, “That’s not who we are.” “We have to be who we are regardless of who we’re playing,” Litvak told the team during halftime. He commented on the team’s shortcomings during the first half, claiming “We can be better defensively.” The Tigers went on to make several steals and saves throughout the second half. Hopkins scored a goal
BEVERLY SCHAEFER / GOPRINCETONTIGERS.COM
within the first minute of the second half to take the lead, but after a penalty shot from Princeton and two more goals from either team, the score landed at 9–9. However, the tide turned after firstyear utility player Roko Pozaric intercepted the ball from Hopkins and swam in for a goal with 3:23 remaining in the third stanza. This kicked off the Tiger’s 8-tally run that went uninterrupted for about seven minutes. Princeton fans and teammates were audibly energized. “We talk all the time about energy,” Litvak
says, commenting on the Tigers’ powerful turnaround. “By the second half, we tired them out.” Hopkins broke up Princeton’s momentum, scoring with about five minutes remaining in the game. After another exchange of goals, Hopkins scored with 32 seconds remaining and junior attacker Alex Roose successfully shot back in the last second of the game. The final scoreboard read 20–12. Litvak was excited by the potential he saw in Saturday’s game. “The strength of our team has always been in its depth,”
he told the ‘Prince’. “It was good to get a lot of different people in the water today that don’t usually play.” Litvak highlighted the team’s several walkons, commenting: “They work really hard. They’ve earned it.” The Tigers kept up their momentum into Sunday’s games, defeating No. 16 Bucknell 18–10 and Fordham 13–6. Rachel Posner is a senior writer for the ‘Prince’ sports section. She also previously served as an Assistant Sports Editor. Rachel can be reached at rposner@princeton.edu.
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