VOLUME 76 • ISSUE 39 • MARCH 9, 2022
INTERNATIONAL
SPORTS
OPINION
African citizens left behind in Ukraine invasion P. 4
Portland Thorns FC draw in preseason opener P. 6-7
The great unmasking is upon us P. 11
CONTENTS
COVER DESIGN BY LEO CLARK
NEWS PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCES END TO MASK MANDATE
P. 3
INTERNATIONAL UKRAINE RECEIVES BACKLASH FOR BLOCKING AFRICAN CITIZENS FROM REFUGE
P. 4
THIS WEEK AROUND THE WORLD
P. 5
SPORTS VIKS WIN SERIES AGAINST ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY
P. 6-7
ARTS & CULTURE CREATIVE’S SPOTLIGHT: EMILY MILLER
P. 8
FIND IT AT 5TH AVE.: GODZILLA
P. 9
OPINION THE DISEASE PLAGUING THIS COUNTRY
P. 10
THE GREAT UNMASKING
P. 11
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY TECH COMPANIES RESPOND TO THE RUSSIAN INVASION
P. 12
STAFF EDITORIAL EDITOR IN CHIEF Béla Kurzenhauser
OPINION EDITOR Justin Cory
MANAGING EDITOR Karisa Yuasa
ONLINE EDITOR Lily Hennings
PHOTO EDITOR Sofie Brandt
COPY CHIEF Mackenzie Streissguth
SPORTS EDITOR Eric Shelby
DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Tanner Todd
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Ryan McConnell
MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Olivia Lee
ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Tanner Todd
CONTRIBUTORS Karina Agbisit Alex Aldridge Whitney Griffith Nova Johnson Milo Loza Jesse Ropers
INTERNATIONAL EDITOR Alberto Alonso Pujazon Bogani
PRODUCTION & DESIGN CREATIVE DIRECTOR Shannon Steed
ADVISING & ACCOUNTING COORDINATOR OF STUDENT MEDIA Reaz Mahmood
DESIGNERS Leo Clark Whitney Griffith Fiona Hays Mia Levy Astrid Luong Anastasia Pargett
STUDENT MEDIA ACCOUNTANT Maria Dominguez
TECHNOLOGY & WEBSITE TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANTS Kahela Fickle George Olson Kwanmanus Thardomrong
STUDENT MEDIA TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR Vacant To contact Portland State Vanguard, email editor@psuvanguard.com
MISSION STATEMENT Vanguard ’s mission is to serve the Portland State community with timely, accurate, comprehensive and critical content while upholding high journalistic standards. In the process, we aim to enrich our staff with quality, hands-on journalism education and a number of skills highly valued in today’s job market.
ABOUT Vanguard, established in 1946, is published weekly as an independent student newspaper governed by the PSU Student Media Board. Views and editorial content expressed herein are those of the staff, contributors and readers and do not necessarily represent the PSU student body, faculty, staff or administration. Find us in print Wednesdays and online 24/7 at psuvanguard.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @psuvanguard for multimedia content and breaking news.
WE’RE HIRING Online Editor & News Editors EMAIL RESUME AND COVER LETTER TO EDITOR@PSUVANGUARD.COM
PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCES END TO MASK MANDATE DECISION FOLLOWS AS STATE-WIDE RESTRICTIONS LIFT JESSE ROPERS Portland State University announced on Thursday, March 3 that it will be ending its current mask mandate. Starting March 19, masks will no longer be required in classrooms, offices or any indoor campus space. The university’s end date comes a week after the Oregon Health Authority is slated to end any statewide mask mandate. Restrictions will remain in a few specific locations on campus. The first of these is at the Student Health and Counseling (SHAC) building. Masks will be required during any SHAC appointment in line with state law that makes masks mandatory in health care settings. Another PSU service required to continue the current mask policy
are campus childcare providers. The Helen Gordon Child Development Center, ASPSU Childcare Center and both the Little Viking and Baby Viking centers will still require mask use for the foreseeable future. The reason given for maintaining this policy is that many of the children cared for in these centers are ineligible to receive any COVID-19 vaccination. School-related programs that occur off campus—including externships and practicums—are independent of direct school policy, and may continue current mask policies at their own discretion. Students are directed to follow any mask rules requested by said programs. The announcement briefly touches on advised interactions between stu-
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
dents and colleagues on campus, stating that everyone should be treated with respect—no matter if they choose to wear a mask or not. Notably, the announcement denounces anyone from requesting another member of the PSU community to put on a mask. PSU stated the decision to lift mask requirements came after discussing the issue with the Oregon Health Authority and Multnomah County Health Department. The school also said that it has monitored the current public health environment closely. Factors referenced in the decision include regional decline in COVID-19 cases, decline in hospitalizations due to the virus and a very high vaccination rate within the PSU community.
STUDENTS WEARING MASKS IN A CLASSROOM IN THE KARL MILLER CENTER. JESSE ROPERS/PSU VANGUARD
NEWS
3
UKRAINE RECEIVES BACKLASH FOR BLOCKING AFRICAN CITIZENS FROM REFUGE
PROTESTORS GATHER AT A PROUKRAINE RALLY IN TRAFALGAR SQUARE, LONDON, UK. COURTESY OF ALISDARE HICKSON
NOT ALL UKRAINIAN RESIDENTS GRANTED ACCESS TO PROTECTION FROM RUSSIA ALBERTO ALONSO PUJAZON BOGANI Since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s televised address on Tuesday, Feb. 22, the war between Russia and Ukraine has continued to rage on through this current week, and seems as if it will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. The war has already accounted for hundreds of lives lost, including Ukrainian civilians and Russian soldiers, as reported by Reuters. In just seven days, over one million Ukrainians fled as refugees—in what the United Nations claimed to be one of the fastest exoduses in history. Although many found this news rather uplifting as people in Ukraine tried to flee the war-stricken country, there has been some harsh backlash in the responses shared on social media. There are several unauthenticated videos from unverified accounts appearing to show Ukrainian citizens blocking African citizens from leaving the country, as reported by Reuters. Additional reports make similar claims, including the fact that many Africans in Ukraine are students. Buchizya Mseteka, a South Africa-based spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), reported that the agency had not verified the reports, but still urged countries bordering Ukraine to welcome all refugees and ensure protection for all. “UNHCR is aware and is very concerned about reports of racial profiling, we’re aware of many of these reports, we’re following up and where possible we’ve made interventions,” Mseteka said. “Our position is that irrespective of nationality and race, people seeking protection should be allowed to seek safety and to leave the country.” One Ghanian engineering student studying in Ukraine,
4
INTERNATIONAL
Percy Ohene-Yeboah, detailed his experience for Reuters. On the morning of Feb. 24, Ohene-Yeboah witnessed the chaos ensuing in Kharkiv, Ukraine from his apartment window, watching as the street filled with traffic and hurried pedestrians attempting to evade the Russian missiles striking the city. He packed his bag and immediately made his way to the nearest underground train station seeking shelter. “In a situation like this, you’re on your own,” he told Reuters from a church basement by phone. “You’ve got to find the best way to find refuge for yourself.” Tens of thousands of African students reside in Ukraine, studying a range of careers from medicine to engineering to military affairs. Morocco, Nigeria and Egypt are all in the top 10 countries with foreign students in Ukraine. The students who spoke to Reuters reported that they had received no help from home, with African governments struggling to support their citizens from thousands of miles away while flights were grounded. In a joint statement, African Union Chair Senegal’s President Macky Sall and head of African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat stated, “Reports that Africans are singled out for unacceptable dissimilar treatment would be shockingly racist and in breach of international law.” They also addressed that all people, regardless of nationality or race, should be granted the equal right to cross borders during international conflict and enjoy the opportunity to cross to safety from Ukraine. Aside from backlash to the refugee crisis in Ukraine, several reporters have faced intense criticism for backhanded and rac-
ist comments about the Ukrainian conflict. On Monday’s episode of The Daily Show, host Trevor Noah showed multiple clips of several reporters expressing surprise about the location of the ongoing war. “A lot of people on TV didn’t expect a war like this to happen in, let’s say, certain neighborhoods,” Noah said. What followed was a series of clips of reporters speaking on the war: “This is not a developing third world nation, this is Europe.” “These are prosperous middle-class people, these are not people trying to get away from areas in North Africa, they look like any European family that you would live next door to.” “This isn’t a place with all due respect, you know, like Iraq or Afghanistan. You know this is a relatively civilized, relatively European, I have to choose those words carefully too, a city where you wouldn’t expect that.” Noah then went on to point out that, beyond the racism, the reporters had all seemed to have forgotten that fighting wars was historically common in Europe—and that they should not be surprised when war breaks out in predominantly white European countries as opposed to areas such as Iraq, Afghanistan and North Africa, which the reporters had insinuated were more prone to war due to not being as civilized. “I was shocked to see how many reporters, around the world, by the way, seem to think that it’s more of a tragedy when white people have to flee their countries,” Noah said. Editor’s Note: This story covers an active conflict and all pieces of information are subject to change.
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
THIS WEEK
around the
WORLD
Feb. 27-March 5
3
2
1
1
March 3
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
Following flash floods triggered by heavy rain on Thursday, Australian authorities issued more orders for people to leave their homes in Sydney. Officials warned that worse was to come, and an anticipated 500,000 people are likely to face evacuation orders. Moving from Queensland to Australia’s east coast, the severe weather system has submerged hundreds of homes and farms as well as cut off entire towns. So far 13 people have been reported killed by the harsh weather conditions. New South Wales state Premier Dominic Perrottet told reporters, “We do believe that things will get worse before they get better in the state.” Perrottet reiterated that evacuation orders and warnings would affect half a million people. He also added that in some areas flooding would be worse than in the past year—which have been the worst floods the country had seen in 60 years. The mean rainfall in Sydney for March is approximately 5.5 inches so far, with some areas seeing higher rainfall. “Conditions are going to be unstable for the next 24 to 48 hours,” Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told reporters. “I haven’t seen storms and floods like this, all being thrown at
us at once.” Some business owners spoke of the damage the floods had been causing to their stock. One clothing store owner in Lismore, a New South Wales town hit hard by the floods, posted to Facebook the images of debris scattered along her flooded store floor. “We are shattered and my heart is aching,” she wrote. “Not sure when roads will be clear...what a week!” 2
March 3
TAIPEI, TAIWAN
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen bestowed a presidential honor on former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for contributing to boosting relationships with the island on Thursday, according to Reuters. Following his departure from office at the end of former President Donald Trump’s term, China placed sanctions on Pompeo for repeatedly criticizing the country, particularly its leading communist party, as well as expressing support for Taiwan which is claimed by China. “A visit from such a good friend as Secretary Pompeo attests to the strong Taiwan-U.S. friendship,” said Tsai about meeting with Pompeo at the presidential office in Taiwan. Pompeo received the Order of the Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon,
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
previously received by former U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. “It is not provocative to say that one demands freedom,” Pompeo said while in office. “Indeed to walk away from these things demonstrates the absence of resolve.” He has faced harsh criticism from China for his actions and support of Taiwan, with Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin saying, “The relevant actions from Pompeo are despicable and inevitably a futile effort.” 3
March 4
LVIV, UKRAINE
Russian forces seized the biggest nuclear power plant in Europe on Friday, according to Reuters. The assault created alarm around the world, with the U.S. stating that it had risked catastrophe. However, officials have since reported that the Ukrainian facility was safe, despite continued violence in the country. One southeastern port city, Mariupol, has been encircled by Russian forces. “We are simply being destroyed,” said Mayor Vadym Bochenko, describing how the city was left with no water, heat or electricity—and is running out of food following five continuous
days of attack. Ukraine reached out for support, though NATO allies rejected Ukraine’s appeal for no-fly zones, stating that stepping in directly would lead to a much broader, more brutal war. Putin’s actions have drawn worldwide condemnation, and sanctions have been levied against Russia in response. Peter Harrison, the chief executive officer of global investment firm Schroders, said Russian stocks and bonds are “in the realms of utterly uninvestable” on March 3. Markets worldwide have been rocked, with the price of oil skyrocketing. The resulting boost in commodity stocks was accompanied by a crash in the Russian ruble and in share markets. In his March 1 State of the Union Address, President Joe Biden mentioned the sanctions as he assailed Putin and banned Russian planes from U.S. airspace. “[Putin] has no idea what’s coming,” said Biden, deviating from his prepared speech. Biden urged both Democratic and Republican lawmakers to make a display of unity for Ukraine, despite being deeply divided over issues such as taxes and voting rights. “Let each of us if you’re able to stand, stand and send an unmistakable signal to Ukraine and to the world,” Biden said.
INTERNATIONAL
5
OLIVIA GREY AND PAETYNN LOPEZ REACTING TO A STRIKE OUT. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
VIKS WIN SERIES AGAINST ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY THORNS AND REIGN DRAW IN PRESEASON OPENER ERIC SHELBY
MEN'S BASKETBALL
The Vikings continued their winning streak with a win over the Idaho Vandals in Moscow, Idaho. Marlon Ruffin led the team to a win with 19 points, shooting 7-10. Ezekiel Alley stayed consistent with 15 points, two steals and a three-pointer. Khalid Thomas wasn't far behind with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Michael Carter III shot 11 points, shooting 3-6 and 4-6 on the free throw line. Damion Squire put up nine points, with three steals and a threepointer. The game was tight with 12 lead changes, but a lot of fastbreaks at the end of the game secured the win 79-68. The Viks finished out their regular schedule in Cheney, Washington, playing the Eastern Washington Eagles. The
6
SPORTS
Viks couldn’t take out the Eagles and lost 83-75. Thomas led the Viks with 24 points, 11 rebounds and three three-pointers. Ruffin had 15 points, scoring 7-15 with nine rebounds. Mikal Starks had 13 points, two steals and two three-pointers. 11 points came from Alley with three turnovers The Viks finished the season with a record of 12-16 and 10-10 in the conference. The record does not define them, though—the Viks had a record of 8-3 in their last 11 games of the regular season. Now, the Park Block Vikings will travel to Boise for the Big Sky Conference tournament. Their first opponent will be Idaho State—which the Viks swept in the regular season, most notably with their overtime win on Feb. 26.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
The Idaho Vandals were too much for the Viks as they lost 73-68 in a close game at the Pavilion. Esmeralda Morales put up 22 points with three steals and three threepointers. Savannah Dhaliwal put up 19 points, shooting 9-14. Alaya Fitzgerald put up 10 points, with two three-pointers under her belt. Even with 10 lead changes and six ties, the Viks couldn't finish. The last basketball game played at the Pavilion was on Senior Night, when the Viks played their Pacific Northwest rivals: Eastern Washington. The Viks recognised their only senior, Dhaliwal. Morales led the team again with 17 points, three steals and four three-pointers. Jenna Kilty went 2-4 on three-pointers and 10 points. Dhaliwal put up eight points, 2-3 on the line. University of Idaho is the Viks’ first opponent in the Big Sky Conference tournament in Boise. The Viks finished their season 5-23 and 0-20 in conference.
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
SOFTBALL
The Viks had their season opener last week against Robert Morris University (RMU), and took two wins in the series. A run by RMU in the fourth inning sparked a reaction from the Viks, who scored four runs in the bottom of the inning. Paetynn Lopez gave the team two RBIs after a double and brought Emily Johansen and Olivia Dean home. Mariah Rodriguez, with a single to left field, brought Logan Riggenbach home. A ground out by Shea Garcia brought Lopez home and Rodriguez advanced to second base—for 4-1, Vikings. Johansen reached on a fielder's choice in the fifth inning, and Maddie Thomspon scored. Dean made it home after a fielder's choice by Riggenbach—and the Viks led 6-1. A run by RMU in the sixth made it 6-2, but the Viks finished out and won. Olivia Grey got her seventh win of the season, and pitched the whole seven innings, allowing six hits and two runs.
The Viks fell to the Colonials in the second game of the double header 8-1. Five runs came from Robert Morris in the first inning and one run from the Viks. The Viks could not get a run for the rest of the game. The pitcher for RMU, Rachael Rhinehart, pitched the whole game and only allowed four hits and one run. The Viks shut out the Colonials 4-0 in the final game and finished the series strong. Grey only allowed three hits and no runs—and got her eighth win of the season. She advanced to 8-1. Garcia got an RBI and Johansen ran home. Lopez got a homerun in the third inning to give the Viks a 2-0 lead. Ellie Babbitt scored on a wild pitch in the third inning. Riggenbach singled in the middle, but advanced to second base off a throwing error by the Colonials. Lopez came home and the Viks led 4-0 in the sixth. Grey closed it and the Viks advanced to 11-7 on the season.
MIDFIELDER YAZMEEN RYAN AND JESS FISHLOCK. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
OLIVIA DEAN THROWS TO MADDIE THOMPSON FOR AN OUT. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
GOALKEEPER BELLA BIXBY DEFLECTING A GOAL. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
DAMION SQUIRE ON THE COURT. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
MEN'S TENNIS
The Viks traveled to Sacramento State last week to play the Hornets. Nils Plutat and Oliver Richards fell 6-2 in doubles. Sam De Vries and Tommy Hsu fell 2-6. Otto Holtari and Andrew Vu fell 6-0. In singles, Plutat fell 6-3, 6-3. Richards fell 7-5, 6-1. Holtari fell 6-4, 6-4. Hsu fell 6-1, 7-5. De Vries fell 6-4, 6-1. Vu fell 6-1, 6-1. The Viks lost 7-0 to the Hornets and traveled to UC Davis less than 24 hours later to play the Aggies. Nils and Richards fell 6-1 in Davis, California. Holtari and Vu fell 6-0. The match with Hsu and De Vries went unfinished. Vu fell in singles 6-0, 6-1. Hsu fell 6-0, 6-4. Holtari fell 6-0, 6-2. Richards fell 6(10)-7(12), 2-6. Nils fell 3-6, 7-5, 8-10. De Vries fell 6-4, 2-6, 8-10 in the last singles' match.
WOMEN'S TENNIS
The Viks on the court traveled to Ogden, Utah to play the Weber State Wildcats. Capu Sanoner and Nika Beukers won their doubles match 6-4. Emily Rees and Makoto Ohara fell 6-2 in their match. Jacinta Milenkoski and Majo Hernandez fell 6-3. In singles, Sanoner fell 6-3, 6-3. Milenkoski fell 6-3, 6-2. Maddie Egan fell 6-2, 6-1. Rees fell 6-4, 6-1. Ohara fell 6-3, 6-3. Beukers won 6-4, 4-6 and finally, 10-7. The Viks lost 6-1 in their conference game against Weber State. Boise, Idaho was next on the map as they played the Boise State Broncos. Beukers and Sanoner fell 7-5 in doubles. Milenkoski and Ohara won 6-4 in their match. Rees and Hernandez fell 6-3. In singles, Rees fell 6-1, 6-1. Ohara also fell 6-1, 6-1. Beukers fell 3-6, 6-1, 1-6. Egan fell 6-1, 6-0. Milenkoski fell 2-6, 6(10)-7(12). Hernandez won 6-4, 1-6, 1(13)-0(11).
PORTLAND THORNS FC VS OL REIGN PRESEASON
SAVANNAH DHALIWAL SHOOTS AT THE FREE THROW LINE. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
The Thorns played their Pacific Northwest rivals, the OL Reign, in the first of three preseason games played at Providence Park. Before the match, both teams got together to honor the late Katie Meyer, a goalkeeper for Stanford University who passed away at 22 years old. Both teams got a clean sheet to start the preseason, but the Thorns’ goalkeeper, Bella Bixby, had multiple saves despite all the corner kicks. The Thorns could have pulled off a goal in the eighth minute by Hannah Betfort—but called back because of a foul against Portland. Bedford got a yellow card in the 70th minute. The Thorns now prepare for their season.
SPORTS
7
CREATIVE’S SPOTLIGHT:
Emily Miller
PACIFIC NORTHWEST ARTIST CREATES FROM RECLAIMED FISHING NETS, WATERCOLOR
TOP: EMILY MILLER AT WORK. COURTESY OF SHELBY SILVER BOTTOM: EMILY MILLER COLLECTS GHOST NETS FOR HER ARTWORK AT CAPE LOOKOUT, OR. COURTESY OF EMILY MILLER
8
ARTS & CULTURE
KARINA AGBISIT With bright blues, vivid yellows and mossy greens, artist Emily Jung Miller’s handwoven baskets immediately catch the eye. The baskets are part of Miller’s Ghost Net collection, an ongoing project which has been repurposing ghost nets into art since 2015. Ghost nets are fishing ropes lost at sea by fishing vessels, which often wash ashore onto beaches. The rope collected for Miller’s baskets are from beaches in Maine, Oregon and Kauai. For ghost nets sourced in Oregon, Miller collaborated with local communities, including beach cleanup groups, to source her materials. Sometimes her materials come from friends who live along the Oregon coast who collect ghost nets they come across on the beach. “They’re like ‘oh I’m going to save this for Emily, she’ll be able to do something with it,’” Miller said. “And that’s great too, that feeling of not just, oh no here’s more of the problem, but oh great, this can be part of the solution.” For Miller, the power of the Ghost Net collection lies not only in calling attention to the issue of plastic pollution in the oceans, but in the empowerment of everyday people to consider how they can use their skills and talents to enact change. Miller expanded the sourcing of fishing ropes to include responsibly reclaimed materials from local fisheries, bringing those in the fishing industry into the search for solutions. Her sculptural installation “Undersea Garden” is made entirely of plastic marine debris and reclaimed fishing gear. The collection also invites the public to make art with these materials, putting the power in the hands of the viewer to create art from what would otherwise be trash. “I feel like there’s been a lot of media coverage about the problem and I think that, in a lot of ways, that way that’s been approached has been sort of easy to despair,” Miller said. “640,000 tons of ghost net enter the ocean every year, like what am I supposed to do about that? As an individual I can’t fix that. I think that’s where we get left a lot of the time. Now we’re onto the next segment, and everybody’s just like—‘Help?’” By inviting the community to use their own hands and creative imagination to repurpose waste into art, Miller hopes to get people thinking about how they can do their part to help solve larger issues. “You don’t have to be an artist to do this sort of work, to make a difference, to be creative,” Miller said.
One of Miller’s installations, “Ghost Net Landscape,” is a series of communal, interactive, traveling art made from fishing ropes— which will be on display at Artists Repertory Theater, where it will accompany the spring performance of The Children, April 4–May 15. Beyond the Ghost Net collection, Miller’s art also includes photography, sculpture, public art installations and painting. Her current art installation, “1000 Moons,” has been launched for virtual exhibition, and will open for in-person viewing at the Patricia Reser Center for the Arts Mezzanine Gallery in Beaverton on June 21, 2022. Miller started “1000 Moons” after the passing of her grandparents due to COVID-19. “That put a full stop to everything in my life,” Miller said. “I couldn’t keep doing the same work I had been doing. I had a choice… I can say nothing, or I can talk about this.” The installation consists of 1,175 circles cut from paper Miller made from kelp, sheet music and other materials linked to the history of her grandparents, each representing a full moon within her grandmother’s 94 years of life. The moons hang from the ceiling, surrounding the viewer with the physical representation of these years. “It’s been a process-based project for me,” Miller said. “I didn’t want to wait until I was done to talk about it because that would have been years.” “1000 Moons” also offers a critique on the grief process in the United States—and the lack thereof. On her website, Miller shares that the absence of traditions of mourning and grief in the U.S., especially “during a moment in history when existing grief rituals have been scattered,” means that her work has become a new tradition “to understand, honor, and process the length of a life.” The virtual community conversations that have accompanied “1000 Moons” stem from Ghost Net highlighting the value of community work, especially for Miller as an artist. “What a difference it makes to my ability to keep going and working on really difficult topics,” she said. Miller is one of seven new artists in the Portland Art Museum’s Rental Sales Gallery. Curious viewers can catch an exhibition of her watercolor work at the New Artists Show, open now through the end of March.
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
FIND IT AT 5TH AVE.
GODZILLA A LEGENDARY MONSTER MOVIE RETURNS IN BLACK-AND-WHITE
CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP: GODZILLA DESTROYING TOKYO WITH HIS ATOMIC BREATH. GODZILLA WREAKING HAVOC ON TOKYO BAY. THE TITULAR MONSTER IN GODZILLA (1954). COURTESY OF TOHO CO. LTD
MILO LOZA Find It At 5th Ave. is a recurring column that reviews, previews and explores running and upcoming films at PSU’s independent movie theater, 5th Avenue Cinema. Starting on Friday, March 11, 5th Avenue Cinema will be showing a black-and-white pop culture classic: 1954’s Godzilla. Directed by legendary Japanese filmmaker Ishirō Honda, the eternal monster’s legacy began with another fire-breathing behemoth— the nuclear bomb. The movie begins with a United States military nuclear test that results in radiation mutating a harmless lizard into the legendary monster we know today. The film follows the JSDF (Japan Self-Defense Forces) trying to defend the citizens of Japan from the monster before it devours the entire country. Now, almost three-quarters of a century after its first release, the film has been selected and programmed for screening by 5th Avenue
Cinema’s Nayeli Naranjo-Robles, an Art History Student at PSU. Created shortly after World War II, Godzilla can be considered a reaction to the events of the war. In fact, following the war, there was a large spike in war-related media. “In general, Japan kind of exploded with a lot of comic books, anime and cinema,” Naranjo-Robles said. “If you look at a lot of post-war material, there [are] a lot of references to war and the nuclear fallout.” Nuclear bombs used by the U.S. didn’t only impact Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but the entirety of Japanese culture. In the aftermath, the creative choice that Godzilla was born from a nuke in the Pacific Ocean made sense, NaranjoRobles said. “As an area that has had all these bombings and tsunamis, it kind of makes sense that some mutant creature is coming out of the ocean to terrorize the city,” she said.
PSU Vanguard • SEPTEMBER 1, 2020 • psuvanguard.com PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
In many ways, Godzilla can be seen as a political statement about the United States’ impact on Japan. A movie where U.S. bombs have even more consequences is a clear message on its own, but Naranjo-Robles argued that Godzilla serves a deeper purpose as well—more of a coping mechanism than a political statement. “Sometimes there isn’t necessarily a direct criticism of politics,” she said. “But there can be art created as a way to process all of that.” At the time of its release, Godzilla was meant to be a thriller film—and it was. “When it was first shown, it really shocked people,” Naranjo-Robles said. “People were truly scared when they saw it in theaters.” Audiences reportedly left theaters amazed. In 1954, Godzilla’s level of detail and imagery was unprecedented for its time. Additionally, visual standards for films were lower, and it was easier to impress audiences with special-effects wizardry.
The movie’s added bonus was dealing with situations that mirrored real-life events. Today, however, it’s hard not to wonder if Godzilla would be able to create the same effect if released for modern audiences. In contemporary cinema, monster movies now rely so heavily on action and computergenerated imagery (CGI) that a vintage film like Godzilla has a hard time keeping up. Despite this, the film’s black-and-white format and 1.37:1 aspect ratio give it a vintage appeal, especially with cinephiles and classic-film buffs. 68 years after its release, a movie created originally for a Japanese audience is ready to be loved in 2022 by nerds of cinema, Japanese culture and post-war history—curious viewers can check out Godzilla at 5th Avenue Cinema, where it is screening March 11–13.
NEWS ARTS & CULTURE
9 9
THE DISEASE PLAGUING THIS COUNTRY FASCISM IS ALIVE AND WELL AND NEEDS TO BE SQUASHED ALEX ALDRIDGE The hopeful and dismissive thinking that fascism isn’t spreading—or is being exaggerated—is both ignorant and dangerous. Looking at what is happening politically throughout the country right now, we only need to examine Texas, Florida or Rhode Island before we realize that the disease of fascism has spread out among the entire country—and has been for a long time. Fascism is alive and well in the United States, and it needs to be addressed for the problem that it currently is—rather than being looked at as potentially not quite here yet. This is not a problem to be pushed to the side or to be imagined that it doesn’t exist. Robert Paxton defined fascism in his book, The Anatomy of Fascism, as “a form of political behavior marked by obsessive preoccupation with community decline, humiliation, or victimhood and by compensatory cults of unity, energy, and purity, in which a mass-based party of committed nationalist militants, working in uneasy but effective collaboration with traditional elites, abandons democratic liberties and pursues with redemptive violence and without ethical or legal restraints goals of internal cleansing and external expansion.” The word fascist gets thrown around a lot—sometimes to the detriment of its meaning. Dismissing the very real rise of the aforementioned, nationalist militants who seek to create a violent ethnostate is dangerous and irresponsible. For example, the current state of Ukraine exposes how nuance is essential when using the word fascism as a descriptor. While fascist groups exist in Ukraine, calling the entire country—or even Russia—a fascist state lacks any critical thinking. The people of Ukraine have shown at the polls that they don’t agree with fascist ideologies, as the far-right received only 2% of the vote in 2019—the same 2% of Ukranians were estimated to be nationalists. The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who won more than 70% of the vote in 2019, is both Jewish and the descendant of a Holocaust survivor. When contrasting Ukraine and our own country, things become a lot more grim. At the end of February, we had current representatives in Congress with a history of spewing antisemitic and other hateful rhetoric taking part in white-nationalist events like the America First Political Action Conference. When questioned about the event—hosted by white nationalist, Nick Fuentes— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed that she didn’t know the views of Fuentes or who he was before she spoke at the event. At what point do the claims of ignorance to such things become negligent and potentially dangerous to the marginalized people of this country, whom fascists love to blame as reasons for their false sense of victimhood? Despite her vast history of antisemitic remarks, I guess we are supposed to sleep better at night knowing that Greene got her committee assignments taken away, at least. How much longer do we continue to call these comments dog whistles, rather than the hateful and violent words they are? While fascism is continuing to take and hold its roots in our government, we are also witnessing its reach into our school
10
OPINION
systems through the Satanic panic-like book bannings across the country, as well as the demonization of any teaching on the factual racist history of the foundation of the U.S. Our school boards have been a focal point of energy for right-wing extremists, in order to push through book bannings and the banning of teaching of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in schools, despite CRT curriculum not being taught in K-12. These bannings have largely become possible due to a national takeover of school boards across the country by QAnon conspiracy theorists and far-right individuals militarized by fake local news sites funded by right-wing, conservative individuals and organizations. The attack on the marginalized children of this country continues, with anti-LGBTQ+ laws being passed nationally, including in Arizona, Texas, Florida and South Dakota. Texas has been at the forefront of the news due to their antitrans rhetoric. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton compared gender-affirming surgery to child abuse, while Texas Governor Greg Abbott put out a letter instructing teachers and doctors to report the parents who provide gender-affirming care to their children, much in the same manner of the abortion reporting laws that went into effect last year. Though both letters from the Paxton and Abbott aren’t legally binding, their rhetoric is incredibly dangerous and harmful to transgender youth, in addition to other anti-LGBTQ+ laws that were passed in the state. All of these anti-LGBTQ+ laws—as well as laws that suppress voting rights and restrict access to abortion—are fundamental to the movements of fascists in their aim to disempower marginalized people in the U.S. through the violence these laws cause.
ANASTASIA PARGETT
The El Paso shooter, the synagogue shooters in Pittsburgh and Poway, the man who murdered nine Black parishioners in a Charleston church and the man who murdered Heather Heyer in Charlottesville at the Unite the Right Rally in 2017 were all white nationalists with views steeped in racism, white supremecy, antisemitism and other core tenents of fascist ideology. The prevalent white-nationalism that is so intertwined with the fascism in this country causes an enormous amount of harm to the marginalized, including the communities of Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) and LGBTQ+ people, women, immigrants and other groups who become victims to fascist violence. The growing fascist violence is rooted in nationalism, white supremacy and false victimhood, all of which were the inspiration for much of the Nazi racial theory, as well as the United States’ racial conception of who was a citizen or not. Fascism needs to be treated like the disease it is, rather than being dismissed while more people become victims.
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
WHITNEY GRIFFITH
MASK MANDATES ARE BEING LIFTED LEAVING MANY IN THE LURCH JUSTIN CORY State officials made the decision to lift the mask mandate in Oregon on March 12, just as the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is in decline. We’ve been here before. We all recall the optimism of our impending hot-vax summer last May. “If you’ve been fully vaccinated, you no longer need to wear a mask,” President Biden said gleefully. “It’s vaxxed or masked.” Those pronouncements did not age well. A massive wave of a more lethal and more transmissible new variant of COVID-19 surged throughout the summer—a season in which many believe airborne virus transmission to be less frequent. The Delta variant crushed all our optimism and relegated us back to a cautious mode of remote learning, Zoom sessions, indefinite mask wearing and vaccination boosters. As if that were not enough, just as the Delta wave finally started to decline, an even more transmissible variant dubbed Omicron was emerging that promised to overwhelm the world and its healthcare services. Scientists at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health estimated that about three out of four people in the United States will have been infected by Omicron by the end of this surge. According to Carla K. Johnson of the Los Angeles Times, “half of eligible Americans have had booster shots, there have been nearly 80 million confirmed infections overall, and many more infections have never been reported. One
influential model uses those factors and others to estimate that 73% of Americans are, for now, immune to Omicron, the dominant variant—a proportion that could rise to 80% by mid-March.” In spite of this rosy outlook, it is worth looking at the statistics and what they currently reflect. A visit to the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 dashboard provides some sobering details glossed over in the stampede to reopen and unmask society. As of March 4, there have been 3,216,847 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 28 days, with 57,070 deaths from the virus in the U.S. Over the course of the entire pandemic, that figure soars to 79,199,366 total cases and 956,349 people dead in the U.S. Worldwide figures reported are 442,528,817 total cases and 5,984,384 deaths. Nearly a million people have died in the U.S. Internationally, that figure is close to six million. This age of hyper-distractedness may have desensitized us to really sitting with these realities. These figures rival the casualties of many wars— and yet many seem resolute on putting the virus and the pandemic in the rear-view mirror. Worryingly, in our collective rush to move on— or as some want, to get back to a so-called normal—our hastiness is leaving many behind. In spite of what some may desire, we cannot go back to normal—whatever normal was—and should we even want to? The ableism of our culture has been unveiled. All along, we have been able to make work and
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
school—and really most activities—more flexible for all members of our society to participate. It is appalling that we only did so when it impacted the economy. We can tell a lot about our culture’s values through these behavioral trends. Now, when there is this mass rush to take off the masks and get back to crowded, germ-infested public spaces, we should pause and ponder who we are endangering around us. “The overwhelming number of deaths, over 75%, occurred in people who had at least four comorbidities,” said CDC Director Rochelle Walensky on ABC’s Good Morning America in January. “So really these are people who were unwell to begin with and yes, really encouraging news in the context of Omicron.” No matter how these comments were intended, this smacks of an almost-eugenicist indifference to the suffering, illness and death of those who are “unwell to begin with.” The subtext of this implies that those with comorbidities are such a small minority that we should feel encouraged that the able-bodied will prosper. Let’s get back to business and take the masks off, right? While the statistics on who is most likely to land in the hospital and die don’t lie, trying to reassure three-quarters of the population by downplaying and minimizing the suffering and death of the other quarter is a disgusting and devaluing sentiment. Unfortunately, this sentiment is exhaustingly common across the U.S. Further, in our collective rush to live with the
virus, the U.S. has time and again hastily relaxed pandemic precautions, throwing scientific evidence aside in favor of business interests, political calculus and public impatience. This—along with the discriminatory crisis standards of care some medical institutions implemented during this pandemic—has been just one of many policy choices that have explicitly discriminated against people with pre-existing conditions. It is with this in mind that I urge us all to pause and reflect on our social ties and our connection to our larger communities through our interdependence. We literally breathe the same air. Your flourishing provides the possibility of my flourishing, granted you don’t tear up the road behind you so others cannot follow. While PSU and many other institutions and businesses are lifting their mask mandates, it seems extremely apparent that they are doing this largely to avoid confrontation. With the local and federal government no longer willing to be the scapegoat for masking policies, many are deciding that the political costs of mask policies without a government mandate are untenable. I will continue to wear a mask in public indoor spaces until this virus is much farther removed from our daily lives, and I will also continue to interrogate the ways that my own behaviors and thoughts—and those of our culture—perpetuate a callous indifference to the disabled community. If we all do this, what a different world we could co-create.
OPINION
11
TECH COMPANIES RESPOND TO THE RUSSIAN INVASION
ASTRID LUONG RYAN MCCONNELL As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to devastate Eastern Europe and stir unrest across the globe, many tech companies are finding ways to fight back against the Russian state. SpaceX sent a cargo of Starlink terminals to Ukraine on Feb. 28, 2022 in order to bolster the country’s cyber infrastructure and keep the country connected to the internet. Additionally, starting March 5, SpaceX reprioritized bolstering its cyber defense and signal jamming near conflict areas in Ukraine. Alphabet Inc. has also taken an active approach. Google Maps was disabled in Ukraine after worries that traffic data could be a tool for the Russian military. Yandex, known colloquially as the Russian Google, has remained online. However, even that may be subject to change. As stated in a report issued March 4, the economic sanctions imposed on Russia could collapse the search engine’s ability to pay off its debts. Yandex handles roughly 60% of the country’s internet traffic, and hosts a ride-hailing business similar to that of Lyft. Liveuamap, a tool that many journalists and humanitarians use to follow the conflict, was the victim of a DDoS cyberattack March 1 for approximately 18 hours. A DDoS, or distributed denial-of-service attack, is a common cyberattack where computer bots pretending to be real people flood a website
12
SCIENCE & TECH
with so much traffic that the website crashes or becomes unusable. Think of a traffic jam where cars are stuck for hours on end, unable to move. While companies such as SpaceX and Alphabet took a more direct approach against the invasion of Ukraine, other tech companies have provided responses to the crisis in a tidal wave of restrictions. Visa and MasterCard have both suspended operations in Russia. While anyone issued a card from either of these companies will still be able to pay for products and services in Russia, the transactions will instead be processed by Russia’s national payment card system, not by Visa or MasterCard themselves. This comes on top of the block of Russian financial institutions after the U.S. issued financial sanctions against the country. The consequences from these actions are still unclear, however the strain this could bring to Russian financial institutions remains undeniable. The suspensions don’t stop there, with restrictions continuing to increase. To see a full list, Rest of World’s website displays all tech companies currently taking action against Russia, updated daily. Microsoft issued a formal statement on Mar. 4, announcing that all new sales of Microsoft products and services have been suspended in Russia. Apple has also suspended all product sales
in Russia, as well as severely limiting the use of Apple Pay and access to Russian state media apps. Many media companies—both social and streaming—also took action against Russian state-backed media outlets. Meta has continued to fact-check Russian media outlets despite the country’s division over censorship within the platform. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Snapchat have all restricted monetization features for ads in Russia, and prevented Russian state media from running ads on their platforms. Netflix, TikTok, Roku, Spotify and Reddit have all prevented Russian state-sponsored media outlets from either being viewed or linked to. Even Blizzard—a company that has not been known for its moral high ground—has suspended all video game sales in Russia, along with Epic Games and Poland-based publisher CD Projekt. All of these restrictions combined isolate Russia to a degree never before seen with such a technologically advanced country. Ultimately, it is the people of Russia who will be suffering the most because of the actions of their leader—actions that many within the country disagree with. What is clear, and perhaps most painful, is how heavy a price is paid for a war that the people of Russia did not even want. Editor’s Note: This story is ongoing and is subject to change.
PSU Vanguard • MARCH 9, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
