Clackamas whitewater rafting
NEWS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 ARTS & culture............ 6 OPINION........................ 10 ETC................................ 13 SPORTS........................ .. 14
Outdoor Program to host day trip out on the rapids Sports page 14
PSUVANGUARD.COM
FREE The Vanguard is published every Tuesday and Thursday
Published since 1946
Portland State University Thursday, March 7, 2013 | vol. 67 no. 44
One student’s American dream
Undocumented students closer to receiving instate tuition Senate to hold public hearing this month Jaime Dunkle Vanguard Staff
to people that I love,” she explained. One night while Mutepfa was contemplating how best to accomplish her goals, an idea came to her: She decided she could reach out to those currently in her dream career field for guidance. “I didn’t have a clue how people get a talk show,” Mutepfa said with a laugh. “I only knew they graduated from college and then got into these
The Senate Committee on Education and Workforce Development will hold a public hearing this month on the recently passed tuition equity bill, which grants undocumented immigrant students in-state tuition in Oregon. “I can tell you it’s going to be heard this month, but we don’t know exactly when,” committee assistant Kristalyn Cassell said. The Oregon House passed the tuition equity bill Feb. 22. Tuition equity has been a hot topic for a decade but has just now made it out of the House. House Bill 2787 received strong support, and the House voted 38–18. If the committee does not make alterations to the bill and it goes directly to the floor, it will then be passed to Gov. John Kitzhaber. Andrew Riley, public policy director at the Center for Intercultural Organizing, said he believes all residents will benefit if Oregon has better access to education. “The vote on [Feb. 22] was historic,” Riley said. “It’s a pretty fundamental step for everyone having access to education, no matter what country they’re from.” The Oregonians for Immigration Reform argue that tuition equity will dilute the value of American citizenship, according to Riley.
See zanele mutepfa on page 4
See tuition equity on page 4
jinyi qi/VANGUARD STAFf
Zanele Mutepfa, a junior communication student, has been reaching out to people working in her dream career field for professional advice.
Zanele Mutepfa’s journey from Zimbabwe to TV Ryan Voelker Vanguard Staff
College students rarely grasp the full potential of their opportunities. But one Portland State student, originally from Zimbabwe, sees her opportunity as a stepping-stone toward achieving the American dream.
“I want to be a talk show host,” Zanele Mutepfa declared with a confident but humble smile. She’s a junior at PSU and studying communication is the first step toward realizing that goal. Mutepfa lost both of her parents by age 11 and came to the U.S. to live with an adoptive family. She said that despite her loss she feels fortunate. She wishes to spread that message of hope to others by connecting with television audiences.
“It’s not about fame or money,” Mutepfa said. “There is nothing more impactful than the media, and I want to create an outlet to inspire people to be better.” One of her biggest role models is talk show icon Oprah Winfrey. Mutepfa said she began watching Oprah’s show while in high school and became fascinated by her level of influence on society. “It’s not just her position, it’s her heart. It’s her passion to help and talk
Students for Unity to offer free courses on revolutionary movements Classes will feature history of Black Panthers, the Women’s Movement and other revolutionary groups Jesse Sawyer Vanguard Staff
Activism and revolutionary groups have been an integral part of Dominic Nigro’s punk-rock background, and next term he intends to bring that knowledge to Portland State students. In the ’80s, Nigro was entrenched in the punk-rock scene. By virtue of his punk roots, he became heavily politicized. Subsequently, the teachings of revolutionary groups began to take hold. The Black Panthers, the Gay Liberation Front and the Women’s Movement are only a sampling of some of the groups that Nigro has firsthand experience with.
In collaboration with the Students for Unity student group, Nigro is offering two free courses this coming spring at PSU. The first will be on the history of the Black Panthers, and the second will focus on other revolutionary groups. Each course will consist of 10 lectures covering a variety of topics and events that define these revolutionary movements. Both courses will focus on the groups’ activities from the 1960s through the ’70s. When asked about his motivations for teaching these courses, Nigro said, “I felt a drive to do it, and © Stephen Shames
The black panther party for self-defense on the steps of the Washington State Legislative Building in 1969. See Revolutionary on page 4
2
NEWS NEWS NEWSNEWS •••TUESDAY, TUESDAY, Thursday, • TUESDAY, JANUARY JANUARY March MAY24, 17, 1, 7, 2013 2012 • VANGUARD
Vanguard ••Tuesday, Thursday, Jan. Nov. March 31, 8, 2013 2012 7, 2013 • news • news • news
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF EDITOR@PSUVANGUARD.COM
Erick Bengel
NEWS EDITOR NEWS@PSUVANGUARD.COM
Deeda Schroeder
ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR ARTS@PSUVANGUARD.COM
Louie Opatz
OPINION EDITOR OPINION@PSUVANGUARD.COM
Meredith Meier
SPORTS EDITOR
NEWS
Vanguard Staff
SPORTS@PSUVANGUARD.COM
Marco España
ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR ASSOCIATENEWS@PSUVANGUARD.COM
Whitney Beyer
PRODUCTION MANAGER production@psuvanguard.com
Elizabeth Thompson
PHOTO EDITOR photo@psuvanguard.com
Karl Kuchs
Online Editor online@psuvanguard.com
Claudette Raynor
CALENDAR EDITOR calendar@psuvanguard.com
Jordan Molnar
COPY CHIEF copy@psuvanguard.com
Emily Gravlin
ADVERTISING MANAGER vgdispad@gmail.com
Sam Gressett
ADVERTISING DESIGNER
Editor: Deeda Schroeder news@psuvanguard.com 503-725-3883
Campus safety: how PSU compares with the Urban 21 Stephanie Tshappat
As the debate continues over whether Portland State should have armed officers on campus, many are looking to other universities’ safety models for comparison. PSU is included in a group of universities informally referred to as the Urban 21, a collection of four-year colleges that have self-identified as having similar demographics and settings. The unifying factor for the Urban 21 is that all universities on the list have campuses that sit in the middle of an urban community in a major U.S. city, thus posing a unique set of challenges most universities don’t have to deal with. Being grouped into the Urban
21 allows universities to compare their operations with other schools that face similar issues. Urban 21 universities include the University of Illinois, Chicago; the University of Pittsburgh; the University of Houston; the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and others. When drawing comparisons between the Urban 21 universities’ safety models, PSU stands out as the only university without a sworn campus police department. Every other college on the list has a fully sworn campus police department, most with a mixture of sworn police officers and unarmed security officers. Temple University in Philadelphia has the highest number of sworn police officers in its agency, with 118, while the
University of Missouri, St. Louis, has only 22. But there is another school without armed officers, even though it has a sworn campus police department staffed with 50 police officers: City College of New York, located in New York City. City University of New York runs the CCNY, said Lt. Anthony Laperuta of CCNY’s Public Safety Department. CUNY has 24 different campuses in New York City, some of which have armed officers, like the Bronx Community College, and some that don’t, like CCNY, he said. “Every campus has a different policy based on that college’s president,” Laperuta said. “We have people who are trained and able
Romeo Salazar
ADVISER Judson Randall
ADVERTISING ADVISER Ann Roman
DESIGNERS Tom Cober, Danielle Fleishman, Dillon Lawerence, Colton Major, Maria Perala
WRITERS Kat Audick, Zach Bigalke, Mary Breaden, Adam Bushen, Chris Carpenter, Gino Cerruti, Becca Cotton, Ryan DeLaureal, Jaime Dunkle, Matthew Ellis, Stephanie Fudge-Bernard, Crystal Gardener, Melinda Guillén, Rosemary Hanson, Breana Harris, Alyck Horton, Heather Jacobs, Coby Hutzler, Ravleen Kaur, Joseph Kendzierski, Nicholas Kula, Emily Lakehomer, Andrew Lawrence, Turner Lobey, Austin Maggs, Alex Moore, Erik Mutzke, Suraj Nair, Rabia Newton, Kaela O’Brien, Kevin Rackham, Ashley Rask, Eva-Jeanette Rawlins, Jeoffry Ray, Benjamin Ricker, Patrick Rogers, Duncan Ros, Jesse Sawyer, Gwen Shaw, Shilpa Esther Trivedi, Stephanie Tshappat, Ryan Voelker
PHOTOGRAPHERS Daniel Johnston, Riza Liu, Kayla Nguyen, Miles Sanguinetti, Corinna Scott, Adam Wickham
VIDEOGRAPHER video@psuvanguard.com
Jann Messer
COPY EDITORS Kylie Byrd, Rachel Porter
ADVERTISING SALES Brittany Laureys, Kari Tate
DISTRIBUTORS Matthew Ellis, James Putnam
The Vanguard is published twice weekly as an independent student newspaper governed by the PSU Publications Board. Views and editorial content expressed herein are those of the staff, contributors and readers, and do not necessarily represent those of the PSU student body, faculty, staff or administration. One copy of the Vanguard is provided free of charge to all community members, additional copies or subscription issues may incur a 25 cent charge. The Vanguard is printed on 40 percent post-consumer recycled paper. ©2011 Portland State University Vanguard 1825 SW Broadway Smith Memorial Student Union, Rm. S-26 Portland OR, 97201
daniel woolridge, pictured in an all-black Temple University Campus Police uniform, is sworn in with other graduating officers in 2008.
[to carry firearms] but it’s the college’s present decision [that we not carry firearms].” Similar to the recent talks at PSU, there is a lot of discussion about changing CCNY’s safety department’s ability to carry firearms, although the outcome is still unknown, Laperuta said. “[College] shootings are becoming a frequent thing—a copycat thing. My personal feeling is we should be armed for the nature of what we do,” he said. CCNY’s safety department has been serving as a law enforcement agency for the college for over 20 years. Being around for that long, it has a good working relationship with the New York Police Department, Laperuta said. “We work very closely with the local police department; we train with them. We have a good rapport with them,” he said. Like PSU’s Campus Public Safety Office, CCNY’s Public Safety Department officers carry only asp batons and pepper spray. CCNY has 16,000–17,000 students on campus and the campus itself spreads across approximately 10 city blocks, while PSU has approximately 29,000 students enrolled and a 50-acre campus.
The Urban 21 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Portland State University University of Alabama, Birmingham University of Missouri, St. Louis University of Cincinnati University of Missouri, Kansas City Cleveland State University University of New Orleans Florida Ag and Mech University City College of New York Georgia State University University of Pittsburgh University of Houston University of Illinois, Chicago Temple University Indiana University, Purdue University of Toledo University of Massachusetts, Boston Virginia Commonwealth University University of Memphis Wayne State University University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
Class profile: ‘Science: Power-Knowledge’ Gwen Shaw Vanguard staff
Michael Flower, a professor of interdisciplinary science studies, has been teaching some form of the class “Science: Power-Knowledge” for much of his career. Before coming to Portland State, he taught a less-developed version of the class at Lewis & Clark College, which he has since fine-tuned at PSU. The class looks at what Flower called politicoscientific controversies. “The point is to try to think about the sciences, especially contemporary sciences, in an interesting, sophisticated way, politically,” he said. Flower added that “the course really depends upon rethinking
what science is, what politics consist of, what the role of the public is in respect to the work of the experts.” Over the years, Flower has created a website to support the class. The website has many resources for students, including a syllabus, descriptions on what the course is about and will cover, how to complete the projects done throughout the class, and examples of assignments from previous years. The website is very interactive, and Flower says he has a good time adding new elements to improve discussion and understanding for students. The course is a University Studies junior cluster course,
and fulfills two different clusters: Science in the Liberal Arts and Freedom, and Privacy and Technology. Students who take the course come from a wide variety of disciplines, so Flower makes sure to teach the course with that in mind, avoiding straight, hard science. Though trained as a molecular developmental biologist, Flower said he has been looking at the science from very interdisciplinary ways since the mid-’80s. “When you look closely—at the mix of science, politics, economics, morality and all that— it’s a very entangled situation,” he said. “Science travels along with many other things, even from the very get-go.”
Coby Hutzler Vanguard Staff
Portland State is working with the city of Beaverton to craft a minority outreach plan that would encourage civic engagement by the city’s ethnic minorities. This joint effort is the first iteration of a major new initiative being pursued by the center, and is tentatively being dubbed the Public Service Innovation Laboratory. The exploratory project will culminate in a listening forum in Beaverton this June, when city officials and community minority leaders will meet over the course of two days to discuss and prioritize the needs of the city’s minority communities. It’s possible that the laboratory partnership will be renewed at that point, but the steps that are taken afterward will depend entirely on the outcome of the forum. “The whole point is to try to
The class is based on the work of Bruno Latour, a world-famous anthropologist. “[Latour] has developed a very interesting approach to the sciences that I use, and I’ve known Bruno since before his work became famous. We have been colleagues for many years,” Flower said. Flower employs a discussion-based method of
teaching. Readings from Latour or other sources are assigned before a discussion is held in class. Flower requires three responses to be turned in on the readings, in addition to the discussions in class. He gives no examinations, but his class is project-oriented, leading up to one final project.
This project is to explore a politicoscientific controversy, look at arguments being made on both sides and analyze what is being questioned. Flower said that some examples of these controversies would be fracking, genetically modified foods or stem cells. “Something where the science is uncertain, or it’s provoked,” he said.
Every week, the Vanguard interviews members of the Portland State community in the Park Blocks and asks them a timely question.
This week’s question:
“How are you coping with end-of-term stress?”
PSU reaches out to Beaverton minorites [promote] outreach to diverse communities…especially to those interested in engaging the city’s political and decision-making processes,” said Dr. Masami Nishishiba, associate director of the Hatfield School of Government’s Center for Public Service and director of PSU’s involvement in the project. “[There is] a strong intent to keep the forum and make it into more of a kind of ongoing effort on the part of the city of Beaverton to engage diverse communities,” she said. In October, the CPS distributed a request for letters of interest in partnership to 40 nearby municipal jurisdictions and received six responses; they chose Beaverton’s proposal for a number of reasons. Feeling as though they were both well-suited for the complex challenge and poised for great gains, the creation of the PSIL aims to help the CPS engage its students and the broader community more effectively. “I think the laboratory and this project exemplify the kind of work that the Center for Public Service does in the public administration community,” said Jeff Bailey, an innovation analyst for the first phase of the project.
Karl Kuchs/VANGUARD STAFf
Michael Flower, a professor of interdisciplinary science studies, is teaching “Science: Power-Knowledge.”
Class profile: ‘Philosophy of Work and Leisure’
© Anna zhilkova/ttn
City will be first to benefit from Center for Public Service pilot program
3
Gwen Shaw Vanguard Staff
Nash McDonald, 20, a third-year electrical engineering student, said he believes it’s important to keep the big picture in mind. “I think the key is to deal with it early on, and stay with your work,” McDonald said. “Physical exercise really helps a lot.”
Karl Kuchs/VANGUARD STAFf
Alex Sager, an assistant professor in the philosophy department, is teaching “Philosophy of Work and Leisure.” Gwen Shaw Vanguard staff
kayla nguyen/VANGUARD STAFF
Dr. masami nishishiba, associate director of the Hatfield School of Government’s Center for Public Service, is the director of PSU’s involvement with the city of Beaverton minority outreach plan. “This project in particular will reaffirm the focus on innovation that the center has, and through that, the students who pass through the program will have a better understanding of what innovation looks like in a public service setting.” Daniel Vazquez, Beaverton’s first cultural inclusion coordinator, helped draft the city’s response during his first week in the position. “This stage will be one of
several that we conduct with PSU that will be part of the groundwork for the [composition] of a city-wide diversity and equity action plan for the city of Beaverton,” he said. The city’s population is diverse indeed. Thirty percent of Beaverton’s 91,000 residents are non-Caucasian, and 96 languages other than English are spoken in the homes of Beaverton School District’s 38,500 students. “[Nearly half ] of these
students self-identify as people of color,” Vazquez said. “It’s only been in the last 40 years that this ethnic minority population has really grown.” “[Beaverton’s population] has gone from 99 percent white to 33 percent nonwhite,” he added. Vazquez stressed the importance of the minority inclusion effort in Beaverton. “It’s going to take time…but it’s being done,” he said. “We have a good team.”
Alex Sager, an assistant professor in the philosophy department, is currently teaching a new course titled “Philosophy of Work and Leisure.” “We spend most of our lives either at work or engaged in leisurely pursuits, and it’s sort of a philosophical inquiry into what that means,” Sager said of the class. One of the questions the class looks into is that of value. How should we understand work and leisure, ethically and politically? How do we want to reform work places and policies? Since this is the first time the class is being offered, it’s still in its formative stages. Sager said that, so far, it’s going well. “We’re having good discussions; we looked at humor in life a couple classes ago, and we’ve looked at democracy, and then sexual harassment
policies in the workplace last class,” he said. “It’s just a really fun course to offer.” The class is taught as a lecture but is open to a lot of class discussion. Sager said he tries to introduce larger controversial issues to get students involved. He then tries to ground the conversations with philosophical literature so that students challenge their own views. The course is open to anyone interested in the subject matter. Sager said he even has an 80-year-old woman auditing the course right now out of personal interest, and that she is running a discussion group with some of her friends on topics covered in class. “It’s a pleasure for anybody to take the class when they’re not obligated to do so,” Sager said. The course is offered as a University Studies class in the Knowledge, Values and Rationality junior cluster,
which combined the Morality and the Knowledge and Rationality and Understanding clusters this year. Sager said the course has been developing for a while. A few years ago there was an open position at a university in Montreal for a philosophy of leisure class. Sager said he didn’t know much about the topic but he took the job, immediately researched it and Googled various syllabi. “I thought it was a really important and fundamental topic,” Sager said. When he came to Portland State, Sager proposed the idea to his department, and they told him to write up a course proposal. He added the element of “work” to the course and it was approved. “We don’t spend enough time thinking critically about what we do and why we do it, and its value and its impact on ourselves, and our development and other people,” Sager said.
Mackenzie Weber, 20, a third-year mechanical engineering student, makes sure to keep everything balanced. “I try to stay on top of things. But, you know, you’ve got to balance it out with a day or two off when you can. I’d rather cram for a day or two and have some time off,” she said. “If I have money, I’ll go do some work on my car or work out at the gym. I need to keep my hands and my brain occupied.”
Taylor Westcott, 20, an undeclared sophomore, makes sure to stay on top of things. “I really try to manage my time wisely. I try to make sure I get my homework and studying done when it needs to get done,” Westcott said. “Playing basketball and working out actually is a good way, I’ve noticed, to relieve stress.”
Kori Redman, 21, an applied linguistics senior, said she really just tries to ignore it. “I’m a Heroclix player, so I play a lot of that. It’s so intense that you can’t think about school while you’re thinking about it,” Redman said. “If I’m not thinking about school, I’m happy, and that relieves my stress.”
4
NEWS NEWS NEWSNEWS •••TUESDAY, TUESDAY, Thursday, • TUESDAY, JANUARY JANUARY March MAY24, 17, 1, 7, 2013 2012 • VANGUARD
VANGUARD • Thursday, March 7, 2013 • News
Zanele mutepfa from page 1
tuition equity from page 1
Student sent 2,000 letters to people working in media Bill garners criticism from immigration reform group positions. I wondered what happened in between that time, so I reached out to them.” Mutepfa sent out letters to about 2,000 people working in the media and received responses from only six. One of them was Anne Kreamer, a well-known author and former executive vice president of Nickelodeon. Kreamer was so impressed by Mutepfa that she not only responded, but in February also wrote an article about her in Harvard Business Review called “Make a Stranger Believe in You.” Mutepfa’s story has since received international attention. “I’ve heard from some of the best public relations firms, and they want to meet with me,” Mutepfa said. “One girl reached out to me from Singapore to tell me how much I’ve inspired her. It makes me feel like all those nights I stayed up writing letters paid off.” Mutepfa said that she also has aspirations to become an author. The first story she would like to write is her own, because it holds so many lives in it. She said it’s more than just about her. It’s about her family and friends, too. “They make me who I am,” she said. “If I can tell my story, then I can also tell their stories.”
A major source of fuel for Mutepfa’s motivation comes from her biological mother, who passed away in 2003 from heart failure. Despite being well-educated and ambitious, she struggled to meet career goals because she lacked American citizenship.
“My passion is people. My passion is to inspire and empower others. If I do the best I can, I think I can find a door.” Zanele Mutepfa Junior communication major
“She was so intelligent and so articulate,” Mutepfa recalled proudly of her mother. “I feel like the only thing hindering her success was a piece of paper saying she was American. If she had that, I think she could have done absolutely anything.” Realizing how fortunate she is to have American citizenship, Mutepfa serves as the assistant coordinator of African-American Student Services at PSU, helping others to succeed. She works to address issues like finances
by assisting students in finding scholarships. She also pioneered the Empowering Sisterhood program last year, which is a support network for women who are struggling. They come together to meet once a month to empower each other. “It’s about taking the time to appreciate things about yourself so you won’t need the world’s confirmation,” she said. Mutepfa’s media experience so far includes working as a host for programs on PSU TV and REAP TV, short for Reaching and Empowering All People. She hopes that with her new media industry contacts she will find an internship to gain even more experience. “I feel comfortable on camera,” she said. “Right before the cameras start rolling I feel nervous, but once it gets going it’s just a conversation.” Mutepfa is unsure how long the road toward becoming a TV talk show host will be and recognizes that some doors may not open. But one thing she is certain of is her passion. “My passion is people. My passion is to inspire and empower others. If I do the best I can, I think I can find a door,” she said.
Revolutionary from page 1
Nigro aims to encourage community with free classes I have a responsibility to pass this information on.” Nigro further explained that the history of these groups is largely misunderstood—if people even know anything about them in the first place. In addition to learning about these groups, students will also learn about their relationships with the FBI. “People need to understand that they didn’t just fizzle out,” Nigro said. Most of these groups have a bad reputation because of the FBI’s efforts at smear campaigns, he explained, whether by internally disrupting these groups or by discrediting them from the outside. “It’s our past, and it was buried by our government,” Nigro said. These courses are not only meant to teach a part of history mostly unknown to the
public, they’re also meant establish a sense of community, he said. Nigro explained that people today are silenced for two
“I want people to wake up. The only thing that comes to a sleeper is a dream.” Dominic Nigro Community activist
primary reasons: they are afraid to speak out against our government, and they are apathetic. He said that people today think movements have to start big in order to have an impact. Nigro wants people to realize, however, that movements often start small and with individual
enthusiasm. He cited the Black Panther movement and the fact that it started with just two people. Ultimately, Nigro hopes that attendees, after understanding the struggle these people went through, will be able to walk away from these courses with a greater sense of community. “I have empathy for people who react to learning this,” Nigro said. “But it’s a process that you can’t turn your back on.” The exact dates and times for these courses are pending. Nigro said this information should be coming soon and will be available on Students for Unity’s website in the near future. “I want people to wake up,” Nigro said when asked what he hopes to see happen in the class. “The only thing that comes to a sleeper is a dream.”
Now hiring: news writers Get paid $8.95 an hour/4–12 hours per week to write. See your work in print every week. No newspaper experience required. Must be enthusiastic about reporting, willing to cover any event and responsive to constructive criticism.
Apply online at psuvanguard.com, or drop by the Vanguard office in the Smith Memorial Student Union sub-basement.
The role of alcohol in suicide New study headed by PSU professor looks at different ethnic groups Kaela O’Brien Vanguard Staff
© harry esteve /the oregonian
Oregon house members consider the tuition equity bill on Feb. 22. The House voted to grant in-state tuition rates to undocumented high school graduates who meet certain criteria. “I don’t think that’s true, because we’re talking about kids who worked hard to graduate from high school, and they’ve worked hard to get into college,” Riley said. “Their ultimate dream and goal is to get a college education. To me that drive to get an education affirms American citizenship.” Students residing in Oregon who are from other countries won’t necessarily have access to education if the bill passes, but the cost will be reduced— out-of-state tuition is typically three times or more the cost of in-state. Undocumented students will not be eligible for financial aid, which means no government grants or loans. “It’s not going to cost anything; it’s going to have money coming into the system,” Riley said. Jim Ludwick, communications director for OFIR, said colleges in Oregon would lose money because of the difference between out-of-state versus in-state tuition costs. “I wouldn’t call that tuition equity, I’d call that tuition inequity,” Ludwick said. He said he was concerned about Oregon falling prey to the
losses he claimed the California university system has endured since it started offering in-state tuition for what Ludwick refers to as “illegal aliens.” “Our hope is that we don’t have much hope. We defeated it five times. The people who will pay the price for this [are] regular students,” Ludwick said. Jaime Limon-Guzman is a youth and public policy organizer at Oregon Dream Activists. He said providing in-state tuition would give undocumented students like himself the chance to attend college. “We still have to find our own way to pay for college— this just gives us the opportunity to pay in-state tuition, as our peers [do],” LimonGuzman said. California and Washington already offer in-state tuition to undocumented students. “Right now, I think it’s really exciting to see the tuition equity [bill] pass. This is not new; it’s been around for 10 years. We’re just closer to seeing it come into law,” LimonGuzman said. “Especially…being an undocumented student, it’s good to see Oregon take that leadership.”
Annicia Limon-Hernandez is an undocumented freshman majoring in psychology at Portland State. She spoke as an advocate on the floor to representatives in favor of the tuition equity bill. She said she moved to Oregon when she was a toddler. “I don’t remember my country much. I’ve been molded as an American. I know more about America than my own country,” she said. Limon-Hernandez works part-time and said it will be much easier for her to pay for college if she qualifies for instate tuition. “I have my own aspirations and my own dreams; with or without a social security number is not going to stop me from accomplishing my dreams,” she said. Her friends from high school, who are also undocumented, had plans to attend college, but they couldn’t afford it. “Seeing those high numbers just shuts the doors in their faces,” Limon-Hernandez said. “We’re fighting for what we want, and nothing is going to stop us.”
5 3
A Portland State professor found new data on the presence of alcohol among suicide decedents, which points to a higher presence of alcohol among American Indians and Alaskan natives. “In general, the AI/AN group showed the highest prevalence of alcohol,” said Dr. Mark Kaplan, the study’s principal investigator. Kaplan and a team of specialists set out to look at the general role of alcohol in suicidal behavior at the start of the study, which spanned three years. The team examined the blood alcohol content of every death by suicide from 2003– 09 in 16 U.S. states, for a total of 59,384 suicide decedents, male and female. With acute alcohol
intoxication defined as a BAC greater than or equal to 0.08 grams/deciliter, the levels of suicide decedents who tested with a positive BAC varied greatly among ethnic groups. The AI/AN group tested highest, with 47 percent of suicide decedents testing positive for acute alcohol, while Hispanics followed at 38 percent, whites at 33 percent, blacks at 26 percent and Asians/Pacific Islanders at 23 percent. “Also a bit of a surprise was the levels of intoxication,” Kaplan said. Those who tested positive within the AI/AN group had the highest mean BAC level at two to three times the legal intoxication level, Kaplan said. “However, it is important to note that the AI/AN group does not encompass all tribes.
Not all are equally at risk and it is important to not lump these different groups together,” he added. Kaplan and his team also tried to get the best sense of the role that alcohol played in the act of suicide. “We found two basic types of alcohol users. The first type is the person with a chronic alcohol disorder, and the second is the person who may have turned to alcohol for a more immediate role,” Kaplan explained, also noting that alcohol reduces inhibitions and can be known as “liquid courage.” With suicide as the 10th leading overall cause of death in the U.S. as of 2009, Kaplan feels it is important to take a better look at prevention strategies. Other sections of the study focused on different variables in alcohol’s role in suicidal behavior. Kaplan and his team looked at how alcohol might affect the means of death, as well as if there were any gender differences among suicide decedents.
“Alcohol does play a big role in gun violence,” Kaplan said. “Firearm suicides are high in the AI/AN group, and twothirds of all gun deaths are suicide.” Kaplan believes that a combination of alcohol availability, gun access and untreated mental-health issues are the cause of many suicides. “It’s been proven that the more alcohol available, the more social problems,” he said. While Kaplan feels that limiting access to alcohol could greatly decrease the number of suicides, especially among those in the AI/AN group, Rachel Cushman, a specialist from the PSU Native American Student and Community Center, disagrees. “I don’t think [limiting alcohol availability] would do much—many ‘dry’ reservations still have high alcoholic rates,” she said. While Cushman was unfamiliar with the exact numbers relating to alcohol use in AI/ AN suicides, she noted that she was not surprised to hear
that they tested positive the most frequently. “It is commonly known that Native Americans have some of the highest alcoholic rates, but it is often overlooked that they also have some of the highest recovery rates,” she said. Rather than addressing alcohol availability, Cushman believes that there is a great amount of healing that needs to be acknowledged and taken care of. “With only 2 percent of the Native American population left, there is a great historical trauma to be dealt with stemming from years of removal and boarding schools,” she said. “Most tribes have the same, if not less, access to alcohol, and so I believe it is the healing that first needs to be addressed,” she added. Cushman suggested increasing education about ways to cope and heal, as well as a greater focus on the positives of Native American culture rather than the negatives. Problems that Kaplan and his team had to face during the
study included “a general lack of uniformity in quality and quantity in death investigation reports,” he said. By increasing the standard of quality for such reports, Kaplan believes that more accurate information could be used in continuous suicide prevention efforts. Kaplan said his team members worked extremely well together and that they “were able to get things done together that would have been impossible to get done separately,” he said. “It’s great when you can have faculty who are engaged in research and they can bring it into the classroom,” Dr. Carlos Crespo said of Kaplan. Crespo is a PSU professor and the director of the College of Community Health. “Textbooks are outdated before they are even published, so for students to learn about updated and relevant research in the classroom better prepares them to go out and work,” Crespo said. The study will be published in May.
6
ArtsArts & Culture & Culture • Thursday, •Tuesday,March Jan. 31, 7, 2013 • VANGUARD
VANGUARD ••TThursday, uesday, THURSDAY, TUESDAY, Jan. JANUARY OCTOBER Nov. March FEBRUARY JANUARY 31, 8, 2013 2012 7,10, 25, 2013 26, •2, 2012 2011 ARTS •2012 ARTS • ARTS ••&•OPINION OPINION CULTURE &ARTS CULTURE & CULTURE & CULTURE
ARTS & CULTURE
EDITOR: Louie Opatz ARTS@PSUVANGUARD.COM 503-725-5694
Documenting Warsaw’s ghetto Power of documentary medium explored in A Film Unfinished Vanguard Staff
“Another women covers her eyes, saying ‘I am no longer immune. Today I am a human. Today i can cry.’ That’s what hit home for me: She’s not a historian, she’s not a documentarian. She was a victim, and she experienced this firsthand.”
This footage was a recent discovery that had never been seen or used prior to this documentary, and director Yael Hersonski felt it was of vital importance that the public see this new information. Unfinished begins with footage of a town filled with average, normal-looking people: They walk down the street, enter shops, go to restaurants, ride the trolley. It’s only after a brief introduction that we discover these people are trapped inside the city walls, and that these average, normallooking people are, in fact, actors. They’re not actors in the sense that they sat in a room waiting for their name to be called, crossing their fingers, hoping they might get the opportunity to play the role of Woman in Hat #3. They were the healthiest-looking people available on that particular Warsaw street at the time. Once these people were filmed, they were never seen again. Cameramen and photographers were brought in at the direction of the SS (Schutzstaffel, the armed wing of the Nazi Party) to film and document what was happening in the camps. This particular footage never became a movie, so its specific purpose will never be known. Based on what was captured, however, one can infer that the Nazis intended to use the footage for propaganda. Essentially, the Nazi Party wanted to show how grand and luxurious life was in the camps for the Jews: plenty
A warmer kind of Chill ’80s classic The Big Chill screens at 5th Avenue Cinema
Tess Anderson
It’s been 70 years since the Nazi atrocities of World War II, and to this day the events that took place in the ghettos and concentration camps still horrify history buffs and students alike. Next week, the Portland Center for Public Humanities will screen A Film Unfinished as part of Portland State’s Holocaust and Genocide Studies Project. The screening will be followed by a group discussion led by PSU associate professor of Judaic Studies Natan Meir. Using diaries, witnesses and footage from May 1942, the film focuses on life in the Warsaw ghetto and how Jews were exploited for propaganda. (For those less versed in the film’s subject matter, a mass extermination of the camp’s inhabitants occurred in July 1942; the death toll reached 300,000.) Unfinished does its best to remain a fairly objective film, considering that the topic is so subjective and emotional. As Meir, who is a member of the advisory committee on the HGSP, said, “Anything having to do with the Holocaust is difficult material, emotionally speaking, and this movie is no exception.” The movie was released at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. It presents an aspect of the history of the Holocaust that has otherwise been left unexplored, showing how the Nazis used film to create a “documentary” to spread misinformation about the Jews and the nature of their society.
Breana Harris Vanguard Staff
© Oscilloscope Laboratories
Unfinished but not undocumented: This screen shot from Yael Heronski’s 2010 film A Film Unfinished shows Nazis rounding up Jews in the Warsaw ghetto. Unfinished will screen next week at The Oregon Holocaust Resource Center as part of Portland State’s Holocaust and Genocide Studies Project.
of food, dignified burials for the dead, and rich people who felt superior to the beggars. The propaganda was meant to justify the violence that was happening against the Jews by portraying them as villains. However, the men who did the filming claimed to be unaware of the purpose of the footage. They filmed what they were told to, along with everything else going on in the ghetto. They filmed the good, the bad and the ugly, sometimes all in one shot. We meet a number of witnesses throughout the movie—people who were alive and present at the time of filming. Their reactions to seeing the raw ’40s footage for the first time are recorded. One woman states early on, “I hope I don’t see anyone I know.” When corpses are shown onscreen, another woman covers her eyes, saying, “I am no longer immune. Today I am a human. Today I can cry.” That’s what hit home for me: She’s not a historian, she’s not a documentarian. She was a victim, and she experienced this firsthand. The event itself is sponsored by the Oregon Holocaust Resource Center. After the screening, attendees can expect to partake in a discussion led by Meir, which will give the audience historical context. The center is sponsoring the series of films with the intention of educating the public on “genocide from an interdisciplinary perspective,” according to Meir. “It would be nice for the public to be aware of this relatively new Holocaust and genocide project,” Meir said.
The Portland Center for Public Humanities presents A Film Unfinished As part of the Holocaust and Genocide Studies Project Oregon Holocaust Resource Center 1953 NW Kearney St. Wednesday, March 13, 7 p.m. Free and open to the public
7
Like most films, Lawrence Kasdan’s 1983 film The Big Chill is a product of its time. And yet there’s a wistful yearning for the past in the story of a group of college friends who reunite after one of them commits suicide. There’s a reason the film’s famous soundtrack is made up entirely of iconic songs from the 1960s, from Motown hits to the Rolling Stones: In the early ’80s, hippies and flower children were in their 30s, facing careers and parenthood and an increasingly commercial and technological world. The loss of youth, the loss of passion and ideals and especially the loss of hope all inspired the film’s title. The Big Chill is literally about the fear of turning cold. It’s ironic, then, that the opening credits feature the body of Alex, the member of the group who has just slashed his wrists in the guest-house bathroom of his friends Sarah and Harold Cooper, played by Glenn Close and Kevin Kline, respectively. The trivia behind this sequence is wellknown. Alex is played by a young Kevin Costner, whose face is never shown on screen. Costner also filmed several flashback scenes as Alex, but they were cut from the final film, and Kasdan has refused to let the footage be shown to this day.
Still, the fact that we never see Alex actually works so much better. His presence is strongly felt throughout the film; through the anecdotes of the other characters, it’s easy to get an idea of who he was. Sarah and Harold are the hosts of Alex’s funeral reception, which is attended by several of their college friends—a veritable master list of great 1980s actors. Jeff Goldblum is the cynical People Magazine writer, Michael. Mary Kay Place plays Meg, the disillusioned lawyer who wants to have a baby. Tom Berenger is Sam, now a famous television actor. JoBeth Williams is Karen, who brings along her stodgy husband, Richard (Don Galloway). William Hurt plays Nick, a Vietnam vet rendered impotent who has become a drug dealer. And Meg Tilly is Chloe, Alex’s younger girlfriend, who discovered his body. The film explores the various relationships and history between the characters, and it includes several discussions of adulthood, cynicism and whether life is as meaningful as it once was. Much of their reminiscing turns to the topic of Alex, who is revealed to have been a physics prodigy who turned his back on his potential and wandered through life aimless and unhappy. The idea that Alex was never fully able to grasp how to make it in the “cold world” is everpresent and serves as a trap that any of them could have fallen into. At the dinner table, the friends lament all the ambitions they had in college that never came to fruition. Harold wonders if all their talk means, “We were great then, but we’re shit now.” Sentimentality is a big threat to The Big Chill,
© CPE US NETWORKS, INC.
these white folks sure seem happy: The stars of Lawrence Kasdan’s 1983 film The Big Chill talk about ’80s stuff, like crack and trickle-down economics, in this screen shot. and it can sometimes seem hokey and dated. Dancing around the kitchen to “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” almost seems beneath the film’s more poignant and intelligent themes, and yet it’s probably the most famous scene. But there’s something about this film that just resonates, and it is an incredible portrait of a moment in time. I’ve loved this film for years, and I can’t even say why: It could be because my parents were disillusioned hippies, or maybe because it says something profound about growing up, and the even more difficult process of getting older. While all of the characters are immensely likeable (except for Karen, who seems to exemplify the weakness they’re afraid of), Hurt’s Nick is the best and strongest presence in the film. The similarities between Nick and Alex are alluded to many times, and like Alex, Nick is a cynical and wounded man who may be spiraling out of control. If there was a death pool for who’d be next in that group, Nick would certainly be the one to put your money on, and yet he proves himself capable of redemption in the most understated of ways.
When Chloe says he reminds her of her late boyfriend, Nick plainly states, “I ain’t him.” Although he’s much colder than the others, his coldness is actually refreshing. I would have loved a whole movie just about this character and the slow unraveling and rebuilding of his emotional life. It’s one of Hurt’s finest performances. I could probably write a book on how much I love movies from the ’80s. It was probably the last great decade for imagination, originality, passionate storytelling and that blend of commercial and quality filmmaking. But there are few movies from that decade that accurately represent what life was like as well as The Big Chill does. At the start of a decade filled with big, brazen movies, this is introspective storytelling at its best. Remember Ally Sheedy in The Breakfast Club? She said, “When you grow up, your heart dies.” The characters in The Big Chill came from a generation of people who believed that. And yet the struggle to keep your blood warm just a little longer is one that everybody faces, in some form or another.
Rethinking the war on drugs Drug policy discussed through film The House I Lived In Melinda Guillén Vanguard Staff
Every Friday, six to 15 students congregate in Portland State’s Smith Memorial Student Union building to talk about America’s drug policy. For an hour, ideas are shared, opinions discussed and guests present talks about the current drug laws. This weekend, however, these students will branch out in their biggest event thus far and invite the greater Portland community to join them in discussion. On Friday and Saturday, Students for Sensible Drug Policy will host its inaugural Drug Policy Film Festival in order to further educate the public about current drug policies and their consequences. Both days will include the screening of a documentary, a guest speaker and a viewing of a feature film. The first day will feature a screening of Eugene Jarecki’s The House I Live In followed by guest speaker and assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice Mark Leymon. Leymon will guide the audience in a discussion of the criminal justice system and how drug policy is embedded within it. The film Trainspotting will conclude Friday’s events. The following day, the festival will pick up
with a showing of The Union. Shortly after, Director of Student Legal Services Lissa Kaufman will explain the variety of legal services available to students at PSU. The festival will conclude with a screening of Richard Linklater’s adaptation of Phillip K. Dick’s A Scanner Darkly. Junior Romain Bonilla, a communications major and one of the leading players in the creation of the film festival, explained the motives behind the event. “[F]irst off, it’s part of our mission to educate the public and to educate about drug policy issues,” he said. “Movies are great because it’s a pretty social event that keeps the educational factor on education policy. The idea is to educate the public and to start a discussion on the drug policy issue.” Planning for the event began in January and, according to Bonilla, the organization had many films to choose from. After allowing voters to pick the movies through a Facebook poll, the two documentaries and two films chosen were arranged to enhance the messages of the others. Khephran Heru-Ra-Ha, a freshman majoring in sociology, elaborated on the film selections. “They’re…informational films. Two of them are theatrical films and two are documentaries,” Heru-Ra-Ha said. “SSDP is committed [to] finding alternatives to the drug war, so by showing these movies we try to help people think of alternatives to the drug war and look at the failings of it and look to change the way drug users are dealt with. “I really like Trainspotting as a movie just
COURTESY OF SAMUEL CULLMAN
walk of shame: An inmate is escorted to court in this still from Eugene Jarecki’s The House I Live In, screening this week as part of the inaugural Drug Policy Film Festival. because it really accurately portrays drugs,” Heru-Ra-Ha continued. “Out of the documentaries, I really like The Union because it got me educated and it was one of the first drug films I ever watched, so it changed my view on how drugs are being handled.” The speakers were also carefully selected for their ability to best inform and motivate the audience about drug policy. Heru-Ra-Ha believes the day’s themes will be tied together by the films, the criminal justice seminar, the discussion of drug policy and the presentation by SLS. “I think [the speakers will] help provide talking points around the films, so people will be able to think more critically about what they just watched and it will also help to dive into the Portland community and the Portland area to see how the topic affects people,” Heru-RaHa said. “I’m really happy that we have experts that are coming to talk about the films as sort of a broader movement and the struggle going on with it.” The importance of the drug policy topic also lies in the larger role its consequences play in everybody’s daily lives, according to Bonilla.
“The discussion has already started—even President [Barack] Obama has admitted that there is a serious national conversation…about marijuana policy and there is a huge criminal justice system that is mostly growing with drug users,” Bonilla said. “The biggest thing we’re discussing is that students need to get involved and informed about the consequences of this issue. “These are certain issues that make you rethink what we should do with our policies,” Bonilla said. “Why should people care? There are people being mistreated in an oppressive system. This is something that is ruining lives. This is how our tax money is being spent. It’s spent on policies that don’t work for the American public.”
PSU’s Students for Sensible Drug Policy presents Drug Policy Film Festival Friday, March 8, 1–7 p.m. Saturday, March 9, 1–7 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 228 Free and open to the public
6 8
VANGUARD ••TThursday, uesday, THURSDAY, TUESDAY, Jan. JANUARY OCTOBER Nov. March FEBRUARY JANUARY 31, 8, 2013 2012 7,10, 25, 2013 26, •2, 2012 2011 ARTS •2012 ARTS • ARTS ••&•OPINION OPINION CULTURE &ARTS CULTURE & CULTURE & CULTURE
Singin’ for change At the Hop! fuses gay pride with ’50s doo-wop Ryan Clapper Vanguard Staff
The 1950s might seem like an odd era to mine for material in support of gay rights. But an area lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender chorus thinks singing tunes from your grandpas’s sock hop is a perfect way to entertain for a good cause. Starting March 8, Confluence: Willamette Valley LGBT Chorus will begin its newest show, “At the Hop!,” a production that makes a seemingly odd-couple combination of bygone pop hits from the 1950s and LGBT singers. The show, which will tour three of Oregon’s biggest cities, will also help collect signatures for the group Basic Rights Oregon, which is supporting a proposed ballot measure that will legalize same-sex marriage in the state. Now in its 13th season, Confluence has come a long way from its humble beginnings. Originally starting with only nine singers in its first year, the chorus has since grown to 40 or 50 singers. “We just keep getting bigger and bigger,” said Susie D’Anna, the vice president of Confluence’s board. The chorus tours Salem, Portland and Corvallis three times per season: once in December for Christmas-themed shows, in March with productions that are more varied in artistic style—like this season’s ’50s show—and in June to celebrate Gay Pride Month. Confluence’s artistic director, Ray Elliott, a Portland State alumnus who graduated in 2007
COURTESY OF ray elliott, confluence
Chorus line: Confluence, The Willamette Valley LGBT Chorus, rehearses for a performance. The chorus will perform three shows in three nights in three different cities this weekend. with a music degree, said that the chorus felt inspired by the ’50s doo-wop era. “I asked what the chorus wanted to do,” Elliot said, and the chorus chose music that was once popular and is still familiar. Elliot knows that it’s difficult for small, community choruses to stay competitive, though Confluence relishes the chance to do just that. “It’s a challenge to stay afloat,” Elliot said, though he added that he’s been pleased with the season and audience reaction thus far. “Hopefully they are going to get a kick out of [the show].” Sam Sappington, who has been a singer with the chorus since its first season, in 2000, said that in the previous season Confluence had
performed songs from the ’70s and that some members of the chorus wanted to continue the theme this season with a new decade. He thinks that the young people of this generation, many of whom have never been exposed to ’50s-era music, would feel a connection with it, calling to mind the era of American Bandstand, Elvis Presley and the birth of rock ’n’ roll. Sappington feels the chorus did a “good job of capturing some of the stuff that spoke to young people back in the ’50s.” Sappington and the other chorus members are in high spirits for this season and take pride in Confluence’s diversity, both in its singers and its target audience. He refers to the chorus’
eclectic makeup and taste in sound as “one big moving flow of music.” Confluence’s members are cautiously optimistic about the more political purpose of the tour, the upcoming ballot measure. Elliott said that the show and its artistic decisions were not directly inspired by the politics surrounding the upcoming ballot measure regarding same-sex marriage in Oregon but said, “If it helps, that’s great.” Sappington, however, was more enthusiastic about the political aspects of the event. “We’re always trying to do what we can to get the message out there [to] try to be a voice for the gay rights movement,” Sappington said. “This particular concert does not speak to this message specifically—[it] doesn’t have a political message.” As far as the music goes, Confluence is simply hoping to get attendees to “remember some good music from that particular decade,” according to Sappington. Sappington remains hopeful: Though a 2004 ballot measure updated the state constitution by mandating that marriage is strictly between a man and a woman, he feels that times have changed. “There’s been a huge shift in cultural thinking since then,” Sappington said.
Confluence: Willamette Valley LGBT Chorus presents At the Hop! Saturday, March 9, 7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Community Church 2400 NE Broadway Tickets are $18 general admission, $15 students For more information, visit confluencechorus.org
Lemony linguine A fresh and tangy Italian dinner Kat Audick Vanguard staff
Try this tasty spring recipe as an alternative to your traditional pasta and red sauce. This lemony linguine is easy to make, and it’s a perfect low-budget meal. Serve it alone as a light dinner or pair it with roasted chicken or pan-fried fish. Savory and tart all at once, you will love this delicious and delicate dish. Whole-wheat or regular linguine both work well for this recipe. When cooking pasta, it’s usually recommended that you lightly salt the water. For this recipe, try even saltier water (a little less briny than ocean water) to really bring out the natural flavor of the pasta. Be sure to rinse your leek carefully, pulling back the outer leaves to remove any remaining grit that may be trapped inside. When making the lemon sauce, stir ingredients in one at a time, letting each become entirely incorporated before adding the next. This will prevent your creamy and acidic ingredients from separating. If your lemon sauce becomes too pasty, stir in some additional hot water before adding parsley and chives to smooth out the texture.
Instructions Cook linguine al dente per the package directions, drain and set aside. In a large skillet over
medium heat, saute shallots, garlic and leek in butter about 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly until tender. Reduce to medium-low heat, and stir in sour cream, 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, milk, lemon pepper, lemon juice, zest and salt and cook for 2 more minutes. Add chopped parsley and chives and cook an additional minute, then toss with linguine and add additional lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with remaining Parmesan and parsley sprigs and serve immediately.
Ingredients 1 8-oz package linguine 2 large lemons 1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter 2 medium shallots, minced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 leek, white and light-green parts only, chopped 3/4 cup light sour cream 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided 1 tbsp milk 1 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice (approximately 1/2 lemon) 1/4 tsp salt 1/3 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped 1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped Zest of one whole lemon
Karl Kuchs/VANGUARD STAFf
Call it “springuine”: This linguine recipe is light and tangy—perfect for springtime. Enliven the dish with fresh parsley, chives and Parmesan cheese.
16 10
OPINiON • Thursday, March 7, 2013 • VANGUARD
VANGUARD •• Thursday, THURSDAY, March NOVEMBER 7, 2013 10, 2011 • OPINiON • SPORTS
OPINION
EDITOR: Meredith Meier OPINION@PSUVANGUARD.COM 503-725-5692
Feminists, leave Beyonce alone!
Oh, for the love of—
A hypocritical oath
Texas learns the importance of prevention…just a little late
Texas teenager sheds light on state’s reproductive health problems
Save the negativity for another day Everywhere and Here Eva-Jeanette Rawlins
©T.J. Watt
Green times Should environmentalism be politicized? One Step Off Emily Lakehomer
L
ike leaves falling from trees only to disappear into nothingness, the environment has been relatively absent from major news reporting lately. While it’s true that there are bigger issues going on, nature and how we treat it should be a more important aspect of our everyday lives. That’s just what Craig Rosenburg has been working to do for years now. The 29-year-old lawyer-in-the-making was once considered the “face of ecoterrorism” by critics of the environmental protection movement. Rosenburg spent his 20s representing the Earth Liberation Front, a group known for its controversial tactics in defense of the environment. Like the Portland anarchists recently pulled from their homes and imprisoned (now set free), Rosenburg and his fellow environmentalists have dealt with their fair share of police run-ins. This includes home searches by the FBI and personal items being confiscated by authorities. Despite many not-so-positive experiences with cops and the legal system, Rosenburg is now a lawyer. According to Bryan Denson of The Oregonian, Rosenburg doesn’t see anything strange about his career choice. In a recent article, Rosenburg said, “I consider it consistent with just my own development as someone that’s trying to make a positive difference in the world.” He added, “Every single thing I did has been along the lines of trying to fight against the injustices out there, to make the world a better place for all.” Apart from gaining a new role as a lawyer, Rosenburg has made a documentary with the hope of showing others that “human-caused climate change is real.” However, there is very little legal and political activity
11
devoted to fixing this issue. With that in mind, Rosenburg’s decision to become a lawyer makes perfect sense. However, it raises the question of why so little political activity is going on, especially in this climate of heavy changes across the board. Back when Rosenburg was summoned before grand juries in the late ’90s, he made the choice to use his Fifth Amendment rights. He chose not to incriminate himself in the face of the law. In the following years, Rosenburg took the Fifth more than 50 times. During one of the trials, the FBI’s domestic terrorism chief stated that ELF and the Animal Liberation Front had “caused $43 million in damage on U.S. soil.” Rosenburg told The Oregonian that he became disillusioned with the violent tactics used by ELF after the group attacked multiple farms suspected of growing genetically modified trees. The attack was based more on rumors than actual facts, and it was what made Rosenburg change his mind about what approach was best for the future of the environment. However, neither ELF nor Rosenburg are completely in the right—or the wrong. Burning things down, though wonderfully symbolic, is, under most circumstances, detrimental to the environment’s well-being. Ignoring scientific fact and furthering technological and sociological developments that hurt the environment is even worse. If we’re to enact environmental change, it needs to be something that everyone can get behind. Environmental issues need to be politicized, and on a broader basis. But they also need to be something that can be implemented in everyday life. Genetically modified, organism-free foods should be the only food options available to consumers, and
environmentally friendly technology, such as solar panels and hybrid cars, shouldn’t be luxuries only available to the upper class. From violent activism to working on the legal plane, Rosenburg has had quite the journey in his activity to save the environment. ELF and ALF both have good intentions. Protecting the Earth and its denizens is very important, but when it comes down to it, the Earth has been around for a lot longer than we humans have (depending on what you believe, of course) and it will probably continue for much longer than the human race will (or animals in general. Being green is a good step, but the political sphere needs to be more invested in the welfare of the physical world. President Barack Obama has hinted that he cares about the environment, but actions speak louder than words. We, as citizens of this planet, need to demand social and environmental change. Violence won’t solve a whole lot, but it does demand attention from the media, which in turn informs the public. If environmentalism is to be politicized, it needs to be done in such a way that doesn’t vilify environmentalists, and it also needs to put emphasis on the fact that being “green” doesn’t necessarily mean “liberal” or “left-wing.” This isn’t Star Trek or Battlestar Galactica. We don’t have the means or the technology to go off in search of a new planet to ruin, so we should probably take care of the Earth while we still have the ability to do so. If the public makes enough of an effort, even without the help of the government, change can and will happen. Rosenburg is using his experience as a political activist to enact change for the better. While we don’t all need to become lawyers, we can certainly use his example to build our own environmental agenda. This Earth is all we’ve got at the moment, so let’s do our best to give it back everything in return.
S
ome feminists drive me crazy. Yes, I said it. You’re not supposed to admit things like that but, well, sometimes I just want to wring their necks. Despite being a feminist myself, it feels like I can’t do enough lately to earn that title. It’s like there’s a high-jump bar held just out of reach, and no matter how hard I strain to fling my body over, inevitably it comes crashing down, with me unceremoniously following suit. What’s the problem? I heard a discussion on the radio the other day that made my blood boil and, as I was driving at the time, my fellow motorists were the unsuspecting targets of a few choice words. But, seriously, people need to learn to just get out of the way. Let me explain. Beyonce Knowles’ documentary Life Is But a Dream just came out, offering unprecedented glimpses into both her career and personal life. I happened to watch her interview with Oprah preceding the documentary’s premiere, and while I wouldn’t consider myself a “Bey” fanatic, something I heard made me want to jump to her defense. In between Oprah’s at-timesabsurd fawning over the star— she called Beyonce’s Super Bowl performance “where art meets God” (OK, Oprah)—she asked the singer about her relationship with her husband, rapper Jay-Z. Beyonce replied, “I wouldn’t be the woman I am if I didn’t go home to that man.” The minute she said that, I knew she was going to get it. It was only a matter of time.
Sure enough, a few nights later, I turned on National Public Radio and found myself in the middle of a Tell Me More segment with a panel including, among others, Danielle Belton, editor-at-large of Clutch Magazine, an online feminist publication. The discussion was centered on the same Oprah interview. According to Belton, Beyonce’s admission pointed to a “lack of introspection [that] causes her not to realize it doesn’t 100 percent jive with her same language about female empowerment.” She went on to say, “part of your team is your incredibly powerful husband and you credit him in many ways with making you the performer and woman you are today…it’s a story of both independence and interdependence.” First of all, judging someone’s level of introspection is arrogant. Second, last time I checked, interdependence isn’t a bad word; in fact, we sorely need more of it in every sphere of society—from our politicians, global leaders, religious leaders and social activists. It’s kind of what makes the world go round. Belton’s use of the word, apparently, was meant as an indictment. That’s what makes me angry. The suggestion that to be a powerful woman you can’t acknowledge that you need someone else is one of the most un-empowering statements I’ve heard in a while. Feminist ideology is meant to free women from societal constraints, not replace them with new,
equally confining ones. When we succumb to either/or philosophies, we incapacitate our discourse. Beyonce represents so much of what women have been fighting for over the last century. Forbes included her in its coveted “World’s 100 Most Powerful Women” list and the singer, producer, actress and businesswoman makes an estimated $40 million a year. She appears to have achieved a successful balance between career and family, and works alongside Michelle Obama in the fight against childhood obesity. What more can you ask for? At what point will it be enough? That’s just it. It’s never enough. They say when someone elicits a strong reaction in you, it’s not so much about them as it is about you. It’s true. Belton’s censure of Beyonce was really a censure of me and many women I know. I don’t think we should have to choose between independence and interdependence. We shouldn’t be thought less of because we acknowledge the roles men have played in shaping who we’ve become. Nobody should. That’s not true feminism. Instead, as bell hooks says in Feminism Is for Everybody, feminism is about freeing everyone’s minds from the violence of patriarchy, and that is achieved through partnership. She suggests that “without males as allies in struggle the feminist movement will not progress,” and that together we can create a “beloved community…live together, realizing our dreams of freedom and justice, living the truth that we are all ‘created equal.’” Yes, please.
©Larry busacca/getty images
Concepts and Commentary Janieve Schnabel
A
t least twice a week, I check the news, see something about Texas, bury my face in my arms and weep for the future of the United States. Okay, that’s hyperbolic. But my roommate has become very accustomed to hearing me sigh, “Damn it, Texas,” and then resume clicking on the keyboard. Which should tell you something about the sorts of things for which Texas enters the national spotlight. For example, Texas only just learned what the old adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” means. Only in this case it was more like “$73 million in funding for family planning services can keep your state from having to pay $273 million to support the thousands more unplanned pregnancies that happened as a result of not having good family planning services.” To be fair, Texas is at least consistent with its baffling failures of logic. The reasoning legislators gave to justify their decision to defund and close more than 50 family planning clinics statewide was that clinics that provided family planning services might be affiliated with abortion clinics. I’m not going to get into the ethical considerations of abortion. Suffice it to say that they are actually a very important part of family planning, particularly for women and families that can’t financially or emotionally support a child, healthy or otherwise. By attacking family planning clinics in an attempt to limit access to abortions, however, legislators failed to consider the multitude of research indicating that access to birth control, comprehensive sex education and family planning services reduces abortion rates far more than trying to shut down abortion clinics ever does. Then again, this is Texas. This is the legislative session that tried to outlaw the teaching of critical thinking skills in 2012, no doubt in an attempt to ensure the next generation of legislators is as incompetent as they are. In case you were wondering, that particular legislative body (the 82nd Legislature) comprised 146 men and a mere 39 women. That’s almost four men for every woman. And despite how much men seem to love talking about
and making laws governing women’s bodies, they rarely have an accurate idea of what family planning consists of, other than “insert sperm, make baby” and “no sperm, no baby.” Abstinence is not effective family planning. Research has all but proven this. Not that Texas cares about research. I used to wonder why they didn’t bother reading it, but then I remembered that they tried to outlaw
There are now plans to use $100 million to fund women’s health clinics around the state so the problem doesn’t get any worse. A good start, I guess, but unless Texas wants me to keep providing my roommate with a soundtrack of exasperation and utter disappointment on Sunday and Wednesday mornings, it’s going to have to try harder. It’s time for legislators in Texas to use some of those critical thinking skills they’re so vehemently opposed to to consider the real source of their problems. It’s time for them to take part in preventing unplanned
A Woman’s Right Shilpa Esther Trivedi
T
he Texas Center for Defense of Life says its mission is to “aggressively defend the sanctity of human life in Texas and federal courts from conception through natural death.” But just this week, Stephen Casey, lawyer and founder of the center, used Roe v. Wade to argue in support of one of his clients. This all began when a 16-year-old high school junior discovered she was pregnant.
Every woman has the right to decide when (or when not) to have a child. Just as no one should be coerced into continuing a pregnancy she doesn’t want, so should no one be forced into terminating her pregnancy. When I first saw that a teenager was successfully asserting her right to control her own body in a state with a history of attempting to prevent women from making their own reproductive health care
Jinyi Qi/VANGUARD STAFf
critical thinking and allow academic degrees in creationism—because science is made up of theories. Honestly, sometimes it’s too easy to make fun of Texas. I almost feel guilty. Regardless, now they’re paying the price for their ignorance. Or, at the very least, taxpayers are. It’s (shockingly!) far more expensive to support 24,000 additional unplanned pregnancies and births than to provide women with services that can help prevent unplanned pregnancies. So, the $73 million Texas “saved” actually cost them more than $250,000,000. Thankfully, Texas’ current legislative session has recognized just how bad that number could get in the long run.
pregnancies early on by teaching comprehensive sex education—real science, not Judeo-Christian dogma. Funding family planning. Recognizing that a woman’s body is her business, not something to be legislated. And recognizing there is so much more to family planning than simply “how do we get women to stop spreading their legs?” I’m skeptical about whether Texas will be successful, but they might manage to do it… in a few decades. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if all those unplanned kids can make their voices heard—or, at least, if a $273 million loss is sufficient to get the government’s long-term attention. Until then, say it with me: Damn it, Texas.
She and her boyfriend, also 16 and a sophomore in high school, decided they wanted to get married and keep the baby. Her parents didn’t think this was the best decision and urged her to have an abortion. She refused; in response, her parents took away her car and cell phone privileges. The boyfriend’s mother, a former teenage parent, contacted the TCDL. With the organization’s support, the girl sued her parents, claiming they were forcing her to obtain an abortion. Her parents deny this claim. An injunction was granted for the span of the pregnancy. The girl’s parents have been ordered to pay all medical bills, allow her to use the car and return her cell phone. Their daughter married her boyfriend.
decisions, my gut reaction was to celebrate. But there’s something really off about this lawsuit. First, there’s no real evidence that this girl’s parents actually tried to coerce her into doing anything. They tried to give their daughter a clear idea of the obligations she might face should she choose to marry and have a child. Contrary to what some 16-year-olds might believe, no one is entitled to a car or a cell phone paid for by his or her parents. Choosing to marry and have a child is a valid choice, as valid as other options such as abortion or adoption. However, if you assume adult responsibilities, you shouldn’t expect your parents to foot the entire bill if they don’t
want to. Suing, in this case, hardly speaks to the girl’s maturity. Don’t get me wrong: Absolutely, she should be allowed to choose for herself. But her parents shouldn’t have to financially support her choice if they don’t want to. Second, the message this lawsuit sends is disconcerting. Yes, it’s illegal in Texas to try to force anyone to have an abortion, but it’s not explicitly illegal to try to force anyone to keep a pregnancy—interesting, considering Texas has parental notification laws on the books. While this teen is backed by an anti-abortion organization with its own agenda, teenagers who find themselves pregnant and decide they want to have an abortion actually need to obtain parental permission. Even in cases of rape or incest, the process of obtaining a judicial bypass is arduous and neither logistically nor financially feasible for many teenagers. Still, the Texas center used a 16-year-old girl to create media hype around the false impression that women and teenage girls are being forced to have abortions. On the other hand, there’s been considerable legislation that physically prevents women from obtaining abortions, effectively forcing them to give birth against their will. If nothing else, this case exposes the hypocrisy behind the anti-choice movement. Casey has said things like: “Parents think they’re making a decision for their daughters like pulling a tooth or getting their tonsils out…But now that the girl is pregnant, the parents become grandparents and they can’t make a decision for the girl about her unborn child.” I hope he stops and thinks about the message he’s sending, because as much as I disagree with his language, his fundamental point is right on the mark: Parents, the state, legislators and pretty much anyone else should have no part in a woman’s choice about a pregnancy—it’s the woman’s decision. “Roe v. Wade goes both ways, and choice goes both ways,” Greg Terra, president of the center, told the media. Maybe it’s time the TCDL took a step back from preventing safe-sex education, from preventing funding for organizations like Planned Parenthood, and from blocking women from choosing abortion. It needs to consider how this statement pertains to all women, no matter what choice they make.
12
ETC. ETC. • •Thursday, Thursday, March Nov. 8, 7, 2013 2012 • VANGUARD
VANGUARD • Thursday, March 7, 2013 • Opinion
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Erick Bengel EDITOR@PSUVANGUARD.COM 503-725-5691
Meteoric inspiration Russian meteor provides hope for space travel
Conversation Nation Megan Hall
L
ast month an asteroid raced into our atmosphere and across the Russian skyline, much to the delight of many Russians who conveniently had videocameras mounted on the dashboards of their cars. Scientists used video of what’s now referred to as the Chelyabinsk meteor to calculate that it came from the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids. Its arrival blew windows out of buildings, injuring many people with the broken glass. Videos of the event have gotten millions of views on YouTube. Despite the destruction, or perhaps because of it, a 15-meter-wide rock hurdling toward Earth is exactly what we needed to rekindle our love for space. Scientists have tried, on several occasions over the last few years, to get us excited about space, especially after the recent defunding of NASA. The 2012 DA14 asteroid, which was predicted to be the “closest ever Earth approach,” had its own countdown clock on most cable news channels, but it was barely noticed—its lackluster arrival 16 hours after the Russian meteor couldn’t compete. SpaceX made history as the world’s first private company to deliver cargo to the International Space Station last year, and its continued success has been both exciting and sad, as it’s a constant
reminder of NASA’s current state. And now, with the Sequester and other impending government-induced financial disasters, money for space travel seems further away than ever.
Spending our money on scientific research that sends people beyond the atmosphere isn’t a frivolous expenditure.
Everyone’s favorite astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson, is often quoted as saying that “by defunding NASA, we have defunded our national imagination.” In essence, the commitment made with government dollars to discovering the unknown gives us the inspiration to be creative and dream. This is especially important when it comes to children who are now being raised in a country without a space program. Children’s imaginations depend on seeing the possibilities
Suraj Nair/VANGUARD STAFf
of our universe. Kids who grew up in the 1950s and ’60s not only witnessed the regular occurrence of people being sent into space but also saw them walk on the moon. We’ve lost that wonder because we’re no longer willing to spend the money. Instead, government squabbles emerge every few months, monopolize the news and offer nothing but discouragement. All the while, they’re defunding more scientific endeavors. So, in order for us to look up again, space had to come straight at us, in the form of the Chelyabinsk meteor. What seems most resonant about the meteor’s arrival is that it brought some perspective. Amid the constant impending governmental disasters, it’s often hard to remember that we’re hurtling through space. Spending our money on scientific research that sends people beyond the atmosphere isn’t a frivolous expenditure; it’s necessary for our sense of imagination. By demonstrating our ability to push the current limits of scientific research, we inspire others in our communities as well as children growing up in this world. While our current shift toward “local everything” has brought about great innovation in our communities, looking up and beyond could do wonders for our sense of possibility. Funding space exploration would show that there are no limits to our creativity. The Russian meteor’s appearance lasted only a few moments, and days later we were back to the grind. For a moment, though, there was a possibility that a kid who’d never considered becoming an astronaut suddenly thought about exploring space. Or a kid who had never considered where asteroids came from thought about becoming an astrophysicist. As for me, it made me check up on Curiosity, sitting way out there on Mars. It made me look up the SpaceX Dragon’s progress on docking with the International Space Station (Twitter-savvy Canadian Chris Hadfield is commanding the ship). And it made me think about whether my academic endeavors might one day lead me to do research in space. All we need is a little inspiration to consider the endless possibilities, and if we’re unable to convince our government that funding a space program is a necessity, then I’m glad that space itself can send us a few reminders every once in a while.
Monday, March 11
Online comments
Vocal Area Master Class 3:40 p.m. Lincoln Hall, room 75 1620 SW Park Ave.
The story doesn’t stop when the print hits the page. Don’t like something you read in the Vanguard ? Want us to cover a story? Do you feel there’s more to be said? You have the opportunity to praise us or rip us apart here at the Vanguard. Post a comment online or write us a letter. Tell us what you think. Here are some online highlights from psuvanguard.com. “Student reports offensive touching” Vol. 67 No. 42 Feminist March 4 I’m pretty sure that’s attempted sexual assault, or just plain sexual assault. But well done using a euphemism, I think making it seem less serious is a great choice. “In praise of nerd-dom” Vol. 67 No. 42 Jon Holt March 1 Schnabel-san, I read your essay with interest. I particularly liked how you trace the redeeming qualities of passion and compassions in geeks and nerds (except for some of the sexist, brain-dead ones). Like otaku geeks in Japan, there is something to be said about people — young and old alike — who genuinely feel passion for this area of the arts. I didn’t go this year to Comic Con — I’m a selfprofessed geek professor who teaches manga (and anime, check out my Japanese Scifi class this year
Opera stage director Kristine McIntyre and conductor coach Robert Ainsley will be offering a free master class for students with an interest in vocal FREE studies.
in Summer Session I — JPN 399) — but the ticket price prohibited the trip to the Con. $35.00 for one day??? Does Stan Lee still need that much money from us? One wishes that it was easier to go and be a geek. Jon Holt Assistant Professor — Japanese Literature World Languages and Literatures
Dad’s Group 4:30–5:30 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 462 1825 SW Broadway St.
If you are a father as well as a student at Portland State, the Resource Center for Students with Children welcomes you to Monday meetings where you have the chance to connect with others in your position and FREE enjoy some free snacks.
“Smoke-free challenge introduced at PSU” Vol. 67 No. 42 M March 1 “Not everyone is a health hut that does every thing in their power to be as healthy as physically possible. There’s nothing wrong with that.” Except that when you inevitably must get treated for your tobacco-caused lung cancer (or mouth cancer, emphysema, heart disease, etc. etc. etc.) then the rest of us end up footing your bill. I have no problem with folks choosing to be smokers; it’s just that they fail to realize they are freeloaders as well. Why should I be subsidizing your personal habits?
© gary spect0r
The Swingin ’60s burlesque show at Bossanova Ballroom features Golden Pastie Award winner Bettina May. Check out the show Saturday, March 9, at 7 p.m. Ticket prices vary.
Thursday, March 7
Graduate School of Education Open House Noon–2 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 238 1825 SW Broadway
What’s your $0.02?
If you are interested in looking into a career in education, this open house will help you discover what your opFREE tions are at Portland State.
Matthew Hernandez: How Custom Influences Religious Belief and Why It Matters 5–7 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union Room 294 1825 SW Broadway
Guest speaker Matthew Hernandez will be at the Smith Memorial Student Union to facilitate a discussion about how specific cultural customs can influence religious beliefs and FREE why this is important.
Eskrima Workshop 6–8 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 236 1825 SW Broadway
Got something to say? Share your thoughts at psuvanguard.com
Eskrima is the Filipino weaponbased martial art fighting system that refers to the use of blades and is considered a living art in the Philippines. Join the Filipino-American Student Association in a free demonstration of this art, and feel free to bring your own sticks to participate in learning techniques. (No knives or blades of any kind will be allowed.) FREE
Friday, March 8
Undergraduate Student Conference: The Middle East 9 a.m. Smith Memorial Student Union 1825 SW Broadway
The Portland State Middle East Studies Center invites any and all undergraduate students to come to the Smith Memorial Student Union to connect with their peers and learn more about the Middle East by participating in or listening to studentFREE led talks.
First Annual Drug Policy Film Festival 1–7 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 228 1825 SW Broadway
Kick off the first day of a film festival focused on drug policy that stretches over two days. Free food and a Qand-A will be featured as well. For more information and showtimes, visit pdx.edu/events/first-annualdrug-policy-film-festival?delta=0. FREE
Let’s Go To Israel!: A Presentation of Travel Opportunities 5:30–7 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 047 1825 SE Broadway
Portland’s Israeli Shlicha (emissary), Natalie Nahome, will present information on different ways that you can travel to Israel, such as by studying abroad or participating in FREE service trips.
Guzheng: Lecture and Recital 6:30 p.m. Education and Business Administration Building, room 490 631 SW Harrison St.
The Confucius Institute at Portland State presents a recital featuring two experienced musicians performing music on a unique Chinese instrument. Along with these performances will be a lecture about the history of the instrument and significance to FREE Chinese culture.
Saturday, March 9
Shimmy! Shake! Shindig! 7 p.m. Bossanova Ballroom 722 E Burnside St.
The Bossanova Ballroom presents a burlesque to rival all others, in and out of town. Dancers, music and drinks are waiting for you at the Shimmy! Shake! Shindig! Tickets range from $10–100; more information about the event and where to purchase tickets can be found at bossanovaballroom.com. 21+
Tuesday, March 12
Portland State Convenes: The Future of Criminal Justice and Public Safety in Oregon 7 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, third floor ballroom 1825 SW Broadway
The combined efforts of Portland State President Wim Wiewel and The Oregonian bring a town hall style discussion to campus that will talk about sentencing, corrections and public safety proposals currently being debated by the Oregon FREE Legislature.
Wednesday, March 13
Scott Kritzer, Classical Guitar: A Classical Guitarist’s Sojourn into the Baroque 1–2 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 236 1825 SW Broadway
Retired Associates of Portland State University presents Scott Kritzer, a classical guitarist with a widely experienced background, in a discussion and performance centered on the FREE baroque style of music.
Film screening: A Film Unfinished 7 p.m. Oregon Holocaust Resource Center 1953 NW Kearney St.
A Film Unfinished is a 2010 documentary that chronicles the filming of the Warsaw ghetto with a look at life on the inside and commentary from both sides of the camera. The film will be followed by a discussion led by Natan Meir on the content.
The School of Theatre and Film Presents: The Festival of Short Plays 7:30 p.m. Lincoln Hall, room 115 1620 SW Park Ave.
Come to Lincoln Hall to enjoy a series of short plays put on entirely by students. The festival will run from March 12–15. For more information, FREE visit pdx.edu/events/all/210.
13
ETC.
Timothy Donnelly Reading 7 p.m. Smith Memorial Student Union, room 296 1825 SW Broadway
Portland State will host visiting poet Timothy Donnelly for a reading of his works. Donnelly is an esteemed writer and winner of many awards who currently resides in in Brooklyn, N.Y., and is the poetry editor for the Boston Review as well as a professor in the writing program at the Columbia University School of FREE the Arts.
Thursday, March 14
Master of Real Estate Development Information Session 6 p.m. School of Business, room 270 631 SW Harrison St.
You are invited to attend an event with the director of Portland State’s Master of Real Estate Development degree to find out more information about the program. The evening will include talks about what the program can offer as far as a multidisciplinary approach to the field or real estate and will offer admissions tips and information as well as provide an opportunity for questions. For more information, visit FREE mred.pdx.edu. = on PSU campus FREE = free of charge FREE = open to the public 21+ = 21 and over
14
SPORTSETC. • Thursday, • TUESDAY, March Nov. 6, 7, 2012 2013 • VANGUARD
VANGUARD •• Thursday, TUESDAY, JANUARY March 7,10, 2013 2012• SPORTS • ETC.
SPORTS
EDITOR: MARCO ESPAñA SPORTS@PSUVANGUARD.COM 503-725-4538
Making sense of the Madness NCAA men’s basketball tournament’s top 5 teams to watch Gino Cerruti Vanguard Staff
As bracketology experts begin the painstaking process of calculating the positions for the 2013 NCAA Basketball Tournament, Kansas, Gonzaga, Indiana and Miami fans can rest easy knowing that they’ll be seeing some March Madness action. All four schools are predicted to enter the tournament as No. 1 seeds, and if each team continues its incredible run, they’ll most likely be a part of the Final Four pandemonium. But what would the tournament be without some upsets? Here is a list of five teams that have the momentum to shake up the top ranks of college basketball.
12 games played, including victories over every ranked team they have come across in the regular season. With their firm grasp on the No. 1 position in the Mountain West Conference and a healthy Kendall Williams in the mix (who recently scored 46 points against Colorado State), the Lobos pose a serious threat to the rest of their section.
march madness is set to begin in less than two weeks, during which 68 teams will compete for the NCAA championships.
4. California Golden Bears Gliding on a seven-game winning streak (with wins over ranked Arizona and Oregon along the way), coach Mike Montgomery’s squad has been getting the attention of sports pundits lately. For the first three weeks of February, the Pac-12 Player of the Week was awarded to two different Cal players— Allen Crabbe and Justin Cobbs. The team relies heavily on its defense; opponents will have to break through that wall if they hope to make any headway against the Golden Bears.
5. New Mexico Lobos
3. North Carolina Tar Heels
The Lobos are on a tear right now—10 wins out of their last
In a conference with both Duke and Miami stealing the
©marvin fong/the plain dealer
spotlight lately, North Carolina have been forcing their way into the headlines. They currently have the highest average for assists and boast one of the most underrated forwards in college basketball—James Michael McAdoo. Although not as consistent as someone like Creighton’s Doug McDermott, McAdoo has the ability to dazzle the opposition. Look for this confident team in the late stages of March Madness.
2. Saint Louis Billikens It’s tough to take a team seriously with a mascot named and modeled after a charm doll, but the Billikens have beaten their last 11 opponents, including two over Butler, and with eight of those wins coming by double-digits. What makes the Billikens so formidable is their well-rounded offense— they have five players with
an average above nine points per game. Their rise out of the ashes of the Atlantic 10 Conference was a surprise to most, so expect this passionate team to take some major strides this year at the big dance.
1. Wichita State Shockers Wichita State was one of the big stories in the first few
months of NCAA ball, losing only two of their first 21 games. They slipped a bit at the end of January with a three-game losing streak and recently lost their last two games, to Evansville and Creighton. But their well-reported resiliency should play to their advantage when trailing on the scoreboard—the Shockers are always looking for a chance to do exactly that, and shouldn’t be counted out come tournament time.
Clackamas whitewater rafting Outdoor Program to host day trip out on the rapids Katie Hoyt Vanguard Staff
Coming up on March 16, the Outdoor Program is hosting a whitewater rafting trip on the Clackamas River, one of the most highly anticipated outings of the season at Portland State. “This is definitely one of the most popular trips,” Outdoor Program Logistics Coordinator Steve White said. “People typically come in to reserve their spot on the trip on the first day of the term, which is the earliest that people can sign up.” The day trip will be led by three experienced rafting students, including Taylor Hazen, who noted that, apart from the thrill of the experience out on the water, whitewater rafting is a good way to meet new people on campus. “You start the day off not knowing anyone, really, and by the end of the day it feels like you have known them your entire life,” Hazen said, “probably because you were all battling Class IV rapids together while cracking jokes and taking in the beautiful Oregon scenery.” Groups usually include eight or nine people, and the trip is open to beginners and experienced rafters. But participants should be sure to dress warmly.
13 15
“We strongly encourage folks to bring a synthetic base layer…such as polypropylene or capilene, a pair of polyester fleece pants and one or more polyester fleece jackets—depending on whether they typically run hot or cold—and a pair of synthetic or wool socks,” White said. According to White, that’s all you’ll need—PSU takes care of the rest. “The Outdoor Program provides all other gear, including raft, paddles, dry suit, neoprene booties, neoprene gloves, helmet, personal flotation device, first aid kit and rescue gear, spare warm layers, and transportation to and from PSU,” he said. For Hazen, one of the highlights of the trip is watching participants bond over their experience on the rapids. “There is nothing like seeing a group of random people come together to overcome mother nature and leave the grips of the city for once,” Hazen said. The deadline to sign up is next Wednesday, March 13, at noon, with a pre-trip meeting scheduled for the same day, at 5 p.m. The cost is $35 for Academic and Student Rec Center members and $70 for nonmembers. For more information, contact the Outdoor Program at 503-725-5668 or visit their office at 505 SW Harrison St. (at the southeast corner of the Rec Center).
Softball struggles in Tucson Portland State loses four of five at the Wildcat Invitational Rosemary Hanson Vanguard staff
The Portland State women’s softball team went to Arizona over the weekend, and once again came away with mixed results. An 11-3 rout of the University of California, Riverside was the only bright spot during the three-day event, which included back-to-back losses to the nationally ranked University of Arizona. In the other two games, the Vikings were shut out 1-0 in the first matchup with UC Riverside and lost 8-3 to Boston University in the second game of the day’s doubleheader. After the opening loss to UC Riverside, Portland State got some help from their offense against Boston. Candice Orozco and Sadie Lopez each homered for the Vikings, and the teams were tied going into
the sixth inning. But the Terriers had the final say, getting the go-ahead run in the top of the sixth and tacking on four more in the seventh to come away with the victory. The following game was a different story, as the Vikings came out firing against UC Riverside in the third game of the weekend. The Highlanders got on the board early with a run in the top of the first but the Vikings responded with a five-run effort in the bottom of the inning and cruised from there. “The main change was momentum,” sophmore Brittany Hendrickson said. “We really wanted to get revenge on them for the past couple losses…and we were determined to win.” Senior second baseman Carly McEachran started things off in the first inning with her sixth home run of the season. Sophomore shortstop Alicia Fine followed up two batters later with a double, after which freshman catcher Lauran Bliss worked through nine
© goviks.com
brittany hendrickson trots home to her teammates during the Wildcat Invitational last weekend. Hendrickson drove in five runs in an 11–3 win over UC Riverside in Saturday’s game. pitches to get a walk, and Hendrickson sent them all across the plate with a home run of her own. Senior designated player Alexa Morales added a solo shot to cap the inning. Johnson held the Highlanders scoreless for
the next three innings and the Viking offense closed the deal with RBI singles by Bliss and Hendrickson in the fifth. Hendrickson’s five RBIs led the Vikings, but the team got production from the rest of the team as well.
“We don’t rely on one person,” Hendrickson said. “We have a lineup where our girls—one through 17—are capable of getting the job done every day.” The Vikings are back in action this weekend in the
Pepsi Malihini Kipa Aloha Tournament, hosted by the University of Hawaii. They’ll take on East Carolina University in the first game of the tournament on Friday at 3 p.m. Live stats can be found at goviks.com.
Timbers season underway
© thomas boyd/the oregonian
diego valeri celebrates after scoring a goal in the first half against New York on Sunday.
Jeld-Wen comes alive in Portland’s season opener Matt Deems Vanguard Staff
courtesy of nathan shoutis
rafting on the Clackamas River is one of the highlights of the Outdoor Program’s schedule this year. On March 16, participants will spend the day navigating the waters with a group of experienced guides from PSU.
The Portland Timbers launched into the 2013 MLS season with a dramatic season opener against the Eastern Conference’s New York Red Bulls. The matchup took place at a sold-out Jeld-Wen Field and was broadcast nationally on ESPN2. The Timbers have made quite a few changes this year. They are led by a new head coach, Caleb Porter, and have begun employing a new offensive system. Portland enjoyed some success in the preseason, going 3-2-2. The Red Bulls got on the board first when Fabian Espindola capitalized on a mistake by Portland’s Mikael Silvestre in the eighth
minute. Timbers goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts received a bad pass from Silvestre that he fumbled, and Espindola pounced to give New York the early lead. Five minutes later, the Timbers drove down the field and Kalif Alhassan dealt a pass to Diego Valeri, who pulled a beautiful dribbling move to lose his defender and send a shot past Red Bulls goalkeeper Luis Robles to even the score. New York answered in the 24th minute, as Espindola took advantage of another gap in the Timbers defense and scored an easy goal to put the Red Bulls ahead 2-1. They got another from Jamison Olave in the 28th minute, taking a twogoal lead into halftime. Coming out after the break, the Timbers needed to rebound quickly, and found an opening in the 56th minute as the team pressed downfield.
Valeri thrust a shot at Robles, who was able to block it with a diving save, but the rebound landed in front of the Timbers’ Darlington Nagbe, who placed the ball in across the line to bring the Timbers within one goal. In an effort to level the score, Nagbe booted a heavy-footed shot on goal in the 83rd minute that Robles blocked, sending an arching rebound to Jose Valencia, who punted a shot toward the goal that deflected off Olave and found the net. The Timbers continued to push the ball to take advantage of the reeling Red Bull defenders, but were unable to add another goal and left with a hard-earned draw. The season continues this weekend, as Portland welcomes the Montreal Impact at Jeld-Wen Field on Saturday. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m.
16
VANGUARD •TThursday, uesday, Jan. March 31, 2013 7, 2013 • SPORTS • SPORTS
Men’s tennis rebounds with a win Vikings dominate Pacific after tough showing against the University of Portland Matt Deems Vanguard Staff
The Portland State men’s tennis team took to the courts on Friday for a clash with their crosstown rivals, the University of Portland Pilots. The match started out well for the Vikings, as Antoine Bechmann and Ian Risenhoover squared off against the duo of Jackson Martin and Michel Hu Kwo and caught the Pilots’ 57th nationally ranked doubles team flat-footed as they notched an 8-6 victory. The team of Abhinav Mishra and Alec Marx followed with a win of their own, securing the match’s doubles point for Portland State. Unfortunately,
the team failed to translate their success into singles play, losing what turned into a lopsided match by a score of 6-1. Following a tough showing against the Pilots, the Vikings were able to turn things around when they hosted Division III Pacific University in a midseason tune-up on Sunday. After a four-match losing streak, the Vikings rebounded with a 6-1 victory over the Boxers. The No. 2 doubles team of Bechmann and Risenhoover claimed a win over the Boxers’ Brian Kyaw and Lorne Bulling, and the pairing of Mishra and Marx prevailed in a close match to once again claim the doubles point for PSU. As the match progressed, the Vikings continued to overpower Pacific. PSU’s Lukas Kortus was the first to leave the court in straight-sets with a win over Bulling, and Connor and Stratton Gilmore kept the momentum going, each
Upcoming Thursday, March 7
Women’s Basketball
vs. Vikings vs. Weber State Peter Stott Center 7:30 p.m.
Men’s Basketball
@ Vikings @ Weber State Dee Events Center 6 p.m.
Friday, March 8
Softball ©larry lawson/goviks.com
ian risenhoover helped to secure the doubles point for Portland State in both of the team’s matchups over the weekend. The Viking’s lost 6–1 to the University of Portland but came back to defeat Pacific by the same score. winning their matches at the No. 2 and No. 3 singles spots to secure a much-needed team victory for Portland State. Although the contest was already decided, the Boxers were unwilling to give up the fight, as Pacific’s Troy Zuroske overcame Wil Cochrane at No. 1 singles, 7-5, 7-5. The
opponents as they work to try and meet their goal of reaching the postseason for the first time in school history. The Vikings are currently in contention for a playoff spot and will look to get off on the right foot against the University of North Dakota on Sunday at 1 p.m.
remainder of the matches went to the Vikings, however, with Zach Lubek logging a 6-3, 7-6 (3) win over Brandon Schlack and Risenhoover blowing past David Yanagita 6-0, 6-1 to close out the afternoon. Portland State now moves into a four-match stretch at home against conference
Basement Notes: Putting Green Preservation Society The battle between custom and customization on the links Zach Bigalke Vanguard staff
Perhaps you’ve seen it on your local course—a weekend golfer using the chin or navel to anchor an extra-long putter on the green. Maybe you’ve only ever seen them on television, where 15 of the 94 official PGA Tour events over the past two years (including three of the past five majors) have been won by linksmen employing the technique. From the suburbs to the pros, the practice has been steadily integrated into the game over the past three decades. And it appears that the United States Golf Association and the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews in Scotland have finally had enough. With their announcement of a proposed ban on anchor-putting, the two main governing bodies in the sport sparked a showdown between tradition and innovation, one that brings into question the very definition of what it means to play golf. The tour, for its part, is predictably divided on the issue; 63 percent of its players have vociferously argued against it, while other prominent stars like Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have supported the motion with equal vehemence. Those who would like to see the ban instituted suggest that there might be a growing competitive imbalance gained from the technique, which provides more
stability and therefore requires less effort on the part of the golfer to establish an even stroke. Anchoring the putter, it is argued, undermines the entire spirit of a game that is meant to reward those with a steady and carefully coordinated swing. But the numbers don’t seem to back them up. The upper level of PGA putting statistics are not overpopulated with anchoring golfers—in fact, there are no prominent long-putters to be found among the top 25 in any major putting statistic. “There is no compelling data to say one is better than the other,” R&A Chief Executive Peter Dawson said of anchoring versus conventional putting. “It’s an individual thing for individual players. But I emphasize, the reason for proceeding with this rule change is not performancerelated. It is about defining what is a golf stroke.” And this is where the central question of this whole dispute arises—why should we even want to define a golf stroke? If there is no convincing evidence to support the claim of an unfair advantage on the green, then why reduce the number of options available for players to develop and customize their own style? What feels right to one person will invariably feel awkward to another; it is the same reason that some people ride a snowboard facing left while others face right, or why a cyclist might be more comfortable with drop handlebars over flat ones. The proposed anchoring ban has nothing to do with protecting the tradition or integrity of golf. Sports, as
Pepsi Malihini Kipa Aloha Tournament Honolulu, Hawaii
vs. Vikings vs. East Carolina Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium 3 p.m. Forecast: high of 80 degrees, mostly sunny
NBA
vs. Blazers vs. San Antonio AT&T Center 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 9
Women’s Basketball
vs. Vikings vs. Idaho State Peter Stott Center 2 p.m.
Men’s Basketball
@ Vikings @ Idaho State Holt Arena 6:05 p.m.
Women’s Tennis
vs. Vikings vs. Montana Club Green Meadows 1 p.m.
MLS
vs. © ap photo/steve helber
webb simpson used a long-putter on his way to winnings the U.S. Open last year. with any other cultural institution, are forever malleable; golf has evolved from a pastime first played by shepherds on the coastal, topsoil-covered sand in Scotland—where they would rely on the sections of terrain grazed closely by their flock—to the lush landscaping and NASA-grade alloys that drive the sport today, and the changes are, almost without exception, viewed as positive trends in the ongoing progression of the sport. No one at either organization
is calling for a return to the days when woods contained wood and irons were actually made of iron. A ban would be a clear step backward, and despite all the assurances that this move is not intended to stifle creativity among golfers at any level, that is exactly what would happen if it goes into effect. Golf has stagnated in recent years, as the rising costs and extensive time commitment required to put in a round have dulled its allure among the
recreational public. Instituting guidelines that force participants to conform to an arbitrary historical convention of the game only exacerbates the problem, regardless of the motivation behind the ruling. The USGA and R&A have positioned themselves as solemn and resolute stewards of a game whose roots stretch back more than five centuries. If golf is to be allowed to move forward, it may just have to be done without them.
Timbers vs. Montreal Jeld-Wen Field 7:30 p.m. Forecast: high of 57 degrees, sunny
Sunday, March 10
Women’s Tennis
vs. Vikings vs. North Dakota Club Green Meadows 1 p.m.
WHL
@ Winterhawks @ Victoria Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre 5:05 p.m.