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Thursday September 28, 2017 vol. CXLI no. 75
{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } BEYOND THE BUBBLE
IMAGES COURTESY OF KYLE LANG
Left: Lang sitting in the Atlantic Ocean, celebrating the end of his run. Right: Lang was joined by friends along the way.
Lang ’19 runs across country, raises $23,000 By Katie Peterson staff writer
This summer, Kyle Lang ’19 ran 3,016 miles, drank nearly 12 gallons of slushies, and raised about $23,000. The slushies were for energy — running an average of 40 miles per day, from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean, burns a lot of calories. The money was for charity. Each of the three nonprofit organizations benefitting from Lang’s cross-country fundraiser was part of a community that has had an impact on Lang: Great Rivers United Way, which serves in areas of education, income, health, and community basics in his home of La Crosse County, Wis.; Every Hand Joined, a cradleto-career initiative in Red
Wing, Minn. at which Lang interned last summer; and Special Olympics New Jersey, which provides sports training and athletic competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities in the state he calls home during the school year. Donors sponsored a mile or state by contributing through Lang’s website. In addition to dedicating the entirety of his long dreamt-of trip to these nonprofits, Lang also dedicated each mile to a cause. On his website, supporters could submit intentions about which Lang, a devout Catholic, thought and prayed while he ran — anything from the help of a friend’s parent to violence going on in the world. “The run was then about something beyond myself,”
Lang said. It also involved many people besides himself. Lang’s parents accompanied him, driving their car with a pull-behind camper to provide food and rest along the road and, on some nights, a place to sleep. They would drive a few miles ahead of where Lang began his run and wait for him to catch up to the camper, where a snack or meal would be waiting. According to Lang, an ideal day went something like this. “I’d wake up between 5:15 and 5:30 — my parents would wake up between 4 and 5 — we’d get on the road around 6,” he said. “I’d run 20 miles until about 11 o’clock, and then take an hour break. And then noon to 4, I’d cover 13 to 15 miles, take an hour break, and then
ON CAMPUS
in the evening cover between 7 and 10 miles, depending on the day. I ended at 7 p.m. and then we drove to wherever we spent the night.” Over the 76-day trip, the family stayed in 30 different hotels, spent several nights in churches or Walmart parking lots, and spent 10 nights at friends’ houses along the way. On two occasions, in desolate stretches of Montana, they slept in the trailer on the side of the road. While that may not sound like everyone’s idea of a family vacation, Lang is grateful they were able to do it together. “They know me outside of running, so they can say, ‘Kyle’s not doing well today, mentally,’ and they’re able to help me,” Lang explained. “I would say we definitely got closer.”
The most difficult part for his parents, Lang guessed, was watching him go through the physical trials of the trip. “After I would take a break I would get up and start running again — and running is a pretty generous term — but [my mom] having to watch me just limp away. And knowing that this is what I signed myself up for. There were times that I was just walking horribly and in a lot of pain, and would still go out and try to cover the miles for the day.” Despite the toll that the exertion took on his physical health, Lang listened to his body, made necessary mileage adjustments, and kept going. There were two messages Lang gave himself when the going got tough. The first, he See LANG page 5
BEYOND THE BUBBLE
Agencies bracing for lower refugee cap staff writer
IMAGE COURTESY OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS
“The Hedgehog and the Fox,” the sculpture on which the swastika was found.
Swastika found near Lewis Library By Sarah Hirschfield Senior senior writer
A swastika was drawn on “The Hedgehog and the Fox” sculpture by Lewis Library on Sep. 8, two days before Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, according to Paul Ominsky, the executive director of Public Safety. Following a response from the Department of Public Safety, the University Art Museum arranged for the drawing to be removed. Drawn with a white waxy substance, the swastika was approxi-
In Opinion
mately 18 inches by 18 inches, according to Ominsky. No suspects have been found. “The safety and security of the campus are important and a priority for the Department of Public Safety,” said Ominsky. “It is also a partnership between the community and DPS. We rely on members of the community to participate by reporting incidents, including suspicious activities.” The Center for Jewish Life and the art museum have not responded to requests for comment.
New columnist Daniel Yassky discusses vocational tracks in colleges, and three guest contributors share letters to the editor. PAGE 6-7
This was not the first time a swastika was found on the statue. In 2015 and in Jan. 2017, swastikas had been drawn and removed from the statue. Also, last April, anti-semitic flyers were found around campus. The flyers were removed after a complaint was made to the University, but not before being found taped to Stanhope Hall, the Center for Jewish Life, the door of Murray-Dodge Hall, and East Pyne Hall. In 2016, a hacker and the Daily Stormer, a white supremacist website, claimed responsibility for the attack.
Refugee agencies across the nation are bracing themselves for President Trump’s presidential deliberation on the refugee cap for the coming fiscal year. An official decision is due on Oct. 1, but the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the cap will be lowered to 45,000. This would be a drastic cut from the 110,000 permitted under the 2016 fiscal year budget, and the lowest ever since the Refugee Act was signed into law in 1980. Among organizations that would be affected by cuts to the cap are Kentucky Refugee Ministries and Nassau Presbyterian Church. Both work to resettle refugees, but operate on vastly different scales. KRM is a statewide organization that resettled about 1,190 refugees during the last fiscal year, and Nassau Presbyterian Church is a community sponsor that has resettled eight refugee families in the last 25. John Koehlinger, the executive director of KRM, said that it was “unfortunate” that there was no congressional or judicial countermand to the presidential deliberation.
Today on Campus 12:30 p.m.: Join your fellow students, faculty, and staff in midweek mindfulness meditation. Murray-Dodge 104
“It’s just a piece of paper he signs with a number on it,” he said. Koehlinger also criticized the Trump administration’s attempt to frame refugees as an economic burden to the public, citing its rejection of a Department of Health and Human Services study that found that refugees have brought in $63 billion more in government revenue over the past decade than they have cost. Tom Charles, a member of Nassau Presbyterian who works closely with the refugee families the church sponsors, reacted similarly to Koehlinger and called such a reduced refugee cap “catastrophic and very unpatriotic.” Both men agreed that Trump’s decision would have an immense impact on funding for refugee resettlement agencies across the nation. A significant portion of the funding for referral and resettlement agencies comes from the State Department, which gives money to these organizations for every refugee they receive. Consequently, a drastic decrease in the number of refugees arriving in the United States means a sudden drop in funding for the nation’s refugee resettlement infrastructure. See REFUGEE page 2
WEATHER
By Rose Gilbert
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75˚
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Sunny chance of rain:
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