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Volume #103 | Issue #15 | Feb. 11, 2019 | depauliaonline.com

Lighting the way Students successfully lobby DePaul administration to approve life-saving drug for overdose victims

By Angelina Korniyenko Contributing Writer

In November 2018 in Chicago’s Wrigleyville neighborhood, there were five opioid overdose deaths recorded in the span of two days. One of those deaths was a 22-year-old DePaul graduate.

He became one of 13,181 20-30-year-olds to die of an opioid overdose in the U.S. this year.

Every day, more than 130 people in the United States die after overdosing on opioids. In Illinois, opioid overdoses have killed nearly 11,000 people since 2008, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Students at DePaul try to embody the Vincentian mission, asking what must be done? Dominique Coronel is one of the students taking it upon himself to do exactly that.

Coronel, a vice president of Students for Sensible Drug Policy at DePaul, decided to take it upon himself and his organization to push the University administration to change its policies regarding the opioid crisis.

“The opioid crisis has been going for so long, and people tried to advocate for it for so long, but there wasn’t a lot of pressure on the administration to really get the ball rolling,” Coronel said. “What we did as an organization on first day of school of fall quarter, we met with the dean to let her know that it is something that needs to be addressed.”

To address it themselves, Coronel and Students for Sensible Drug Policy [SSDP] worked with Roosevelt University and DePaul’s Student Government Association to draft a new policy for the university. Their goal was to make DePaul change its policies to permit students access to naloxone and naltrexone, so-called “opioid-antagonist drugs,” in residence halls.

Since the number of opioid overdoses continues to grow, Coronel believes this new policy is good precautionary measure for DePaul to take.

“As a result of our advocacy and hard work, President Esteban has personally approved a plan to roll out the medication throughout our

See OPIOIDS, page 4

MARLEE CHLYSTEK | THE DEPAULIA

Faculty Council addresses diversity report, SNL restructuring

By Carolyn Bradley Copy Editor

DePaul’s Faculty Council offered several updates to university affairs as it addressed a newly released diversity report, amendments to the handbook and the School of New Learning restructuring at its Feb. 6 meeting.

The diversity report’s data reflected self-reported racial demographics from 2002 to 2017. The change in the full-time faculty demographic in 2017 accounted for 67 African-American faculty members, eight more than the 59 accounted for in 2012. White full-time faculty decreased to 584 in 2017 from 640 in 2012. Hispanic full-time faculty dropped from 59 to 52; multiracial full-time faculty remained the same at 8 and Asian full-time faculty stayed the same at 51.

Department Chair of Political Science Valerie Johnson told The DePaulia that though she commended the university for issuing its first diversity report, she found issues with the data it conveyed.

Johnson said the report was inaccurate because it did not reflect the shifts that occurred in 2018. A newer, more accurate report Johnson cited showed a 7.5 percent decline in African-American faculty from 2017.

“There should also have been in that report something about student

Life in the fast lane

XAVIER ORTEGA | THE DEPAULIA

The Chicago Auto Show returned to McCormick Place this past weekend, and all of the automotive industry’s hottest rides were on display, like this 2018 Alfa Romeo Sauber Formula 1 car above, which is valued at close to $100 million. If you can’t swing that price on a student’s budget, check out our resident gear-head’s pick for a more sensible car, as well as a few for if you want to go fast.

See FOCUS, page 14

populations that was not aggregated as a whole,” Johnson said. “I think there are some issues relating to undergraduate enrollment that we as an institution may need to examine.”

Johnson also said the report was incomplete because it did not address the decline in African-American student enrollment.

“We should be committed to recruiting and retaining faculty of color,” Johnson said. “Faculty of color are needed to assist students of color in matriculating at a

predominantly white institution.”

Johnson noted the black graduation rate, which was only 52.5 percent, she said.

She also said the student climate survey cited black students saying they are treated differently and encounter more racial issues. “[Black students] are not satisfied with the level of student diversity, staff diversity or faculty diversity,” Johnson said. “That may have an impact on these bottom line numbers.”

The council later addressed a change

to the Faculty Handbook regarding the definition of misconduct following former law professor Terry Smith’s civil rights lawsuit that alleged members of the law school painted him as a bully in response for his advocacy on racial issues.

Quinetta Shelby, chair of the chemistry and biochemistry department, said the misconduct section of the faculty handbook could feed into harmful stereotypes. She said the policy has led to her being accused

See FACULTY, page 6

2 | News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

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News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 3

Rotten to the roots MARLEE CHLYSTEK | THE DEPAULIA

Archdiocese of Chicago examines sex abuse policies following Attorney General’s investigation

By Cailey Gleeson Staff Writer

Prompted by abuse claims in Philadelphia in August, a December report from now former Attorney General Lisa Madigan found that the number of abusive clergy members in Illinois is higher than reported.

Madigan’s preliminary investigation found that while 185 clergy were “credibly” reported for abusive behaviors toward minors, the six dioceses in Illinois did not include the names of at least 500 additional clergy.

Fr. Jeremy Dixon, a pastor at St. Vincent De Paul Parish, shares the frustration felt by survivors and advocates alike.

“My hope is that this will all help to reform some of our structures in the church,” Dixon said.

“And eliminate the clericalism and sense of power that is at the root of this abuse and cover up.”

At DePaul, the largest Catholic university in the nation, professors within the theology department reflect on the history of abuse in the Church in light of the new scandal.

William Cavanaugh, professor at DePaul and director of the Center for World Catholicism and Cultural Theology, shares Fr. Dixon’s belief that clericalism is the root of the scandal.

“It’s responsible both for clergy who think they are entitled to prey on minors and for the bishops’ impulse to protect the clergy rather than those they abused,” Cavanaugh said.

Gina Orlando, part-time faculty at the School of New Learning and member of the Encyclical Working Group, believes that the Church’s “distorted sexual message” is partially to blame.

“It’s that sex is a sin unless you’re married and heterosexual,” Orlando said.

“I know it’s not a comfortable thing for some people to hear, but if it happened with just a handful of people that’s something different, but this is not a handful of people. We have to look at the system.”

Cavanaugh also notes the sense of “déjà vu” given the Church’s history of abuse.

“It seemed like the Church had sort of dealt with it,” Cavanaugh said. “I think in some ways the dismay is even greater because it seems like the problem was not fixed before and in some ways, it seems like the Church is incapable of policing itself.”

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) created the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in 2002, which focused on creating safe environments, healing for survivors and disciplining perpetrators.

Amidst this renewed scrutiny, nearly 130 officials will meet in Rome on Feb. 21 to 24 to assess current policies and propose new means of prevention.

Currently, the Office for Protection of Children and Youth (OPCY) handles abuse within the Archdiocese of Chicago.

Four subdivisions allow officials to navigate the different components of such cases: the Office for Abuse Investigations and Review, Office of Assistance Ministry, Safe Environment Office and Prayer and Penance Program.

The Safe Environment Office, led by Director Mayra Flores, focuses on the suitability of all individuals who work within the organization. All employees, volunteers and clergy members must sign the Code of Conduct form, which is the basis of the screening process, prior to employment.

Name-based background checks, fingerprinting and Child Abuse and Neglect Tracking (CANT) forms comprise the screening process for employees and volunteers; however, clergy members are

exempt from the fingerprinting portion, but are subject to all other screening components.

“If I get a background check that does not meet eligibility of an employee or volunteer, I notify either the pastor or principal depending on wherever that individual is,” Flores said. “And they are informed that the person’s application prevents them from working or volunteering with children.”

Following screening, individuals participate in Virtus, Mandated Reporter and children’s training. Virtus educates individuals over 18 on methods perpetrators take to gain access to children. Mandated Reporter training, also for adults, introduces state laws and means of reporting abuse. Children’s training is required for all age groups in every school, parish and religious education program, and focuses on recognizing signs of sexual abuse and teaches children how to report instances to adults.

“They’re taught that their parents will believe them,” Flores said. “And that there are other caring adults in the community who will help them if they ever find themselves in a situation they can’t handle alone, not just sexual abuse.”

The Office for Child Abuse Investigations and Review, led by Director Leah McCluskey, handles allegations of sexual abuse against any individual within the Archdiocese. When an alleged victim comes forward, McCluskey sets up an in-person meeting with the individual and a representative from the Office of Assistance Ministry—which provides support to survivors of abuse— to formalize allegations. The office then proceeds with their investigation of the claim and works closely with the Independent Review Board.

The Board is an advisory group of the Cardinal comprised of nine to 11 individuals. Six of the members are not

employed by the church in order to have an outside perspective. These individuals inform different components of the case, as they are a psychiatrist, a psychologist or social worker, an attorney, a parish council member, a parent and a victim/ survivor or a parent of a victim/survivor, according to the Archdiocese’s website.

“When there is a clergy member who is accused, but it could be found through the process that the accusation was unsubstantiated,” McCluskey said. “And certainly, there are accusations that have been substantiated, hence those clergy members have been listed in the public list on our website.”

The list, updated in November 2018, lists 71 archdiocesan clergy members with substantiated claims of abuse. In regard to the December report, McCluskey said that the office’s legal department was in direct contact with Madigan’s office throughout the investigation.

“It was written as collective information that their office had received from the six dioceses in Illinois,” McCluskey said. “The difficulty is understanding which, if there are issues, which diocese and if they’re talking about a religious community. I don’t understand clearly who it is that the report describes.”

Unable to comment on specific changes, McCluskey and other officials within the office await the implementation of policies to be discussed at the summit at the end of the month while performing annual audits.

Cavanaugh says that while proactivity in the Church has increased, much more work needs to be done.

“Lay oversight and discipline of bishops really needs to be the next step,” Cavanaugh said. “It needs to be said that this sense that nothing has changed really isn’t fair because a lot of changed since 2002. But more accountability needs to occur. How that accountability is going to look is still up in the air.”

4| News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 OPIOIDS continued from front university,” Coronel said.

Esteban and senior administrators have given full support for implementing an opioid overdose reversal program at DePaul. The effort was coordinated by the Department of Student Affairs under the direction of Vice President Gene Zdziarski.

“The opioid crisis is very real in our country and having resources on our campuses that could possibly save a life was an action senior administrators wanted to take,” Zdziarski said. “With input from students and student organizations, including Students for Sensible Drug Policy at DePaul and SGA, and from our student health care provider, we developed a program during the past couple of months to have opiate overdose kits available on both campuses that could be used when a member of the DePaul community or a member of the public was in an opiate overdose situation.”

There are 32 opiate overdose kits in 29 locations on both the Loop and Lincoln Park Campuses, and more than 100 people have already been trained to use the kits. They include Narcan, a Naloxone nasal spray that can counteract opiate overdose symptoms. The kits have four doses of Narcan, as multiple doses may be necessary.

“This past December, one hundred first responders were trained to identify the signs of an opioid overdose and how to administer the nasal spray when necessary,” said Shannon Suffoletto, director of the Office of Health Promotion and Wellness. “First responders include public safety officers, select staff in

Housing Services and Student Centers, as educational manager, who’s going to well as professional staff and Residence come and talk about the holistic approach Directors in Residential Education. [to addressing the crisis],” Coronel said.

A comprehensive training aimed at “And we are also going to have Campus educating our community at large will be Mission and Ministry there to lead us in offered for all those interested in learning prayer, and honor the lives of those lost more about this epidemic, including to opioid overdose.” addiction and recovery, as well as how to According to Coronel, the event administer Narcan.” will serve several purposes. In addition But that’s not the only thing that to being a educational opportunity and a DePaul students have done. According chance to share progress SSDP has made to Coronel, SSDP wants to achieve with the university, it will be a safe place more substantial for people who change at DePaul have been directly and continue to impacted by the educate students warn drugs and about the opioid the opioid crisis. crisis. One of these There new initiatives are people who is a partnership are dying because with the Office of opioids every day, Health Promotion but not so many are and Wellness as aware of it. Illinois well as with SGA state Rep. Kelly to develop a task Cassidy said in a force dedicated to TV interview on campus education Chicago Tonight programs.

On that we need more ANNALISA BARANOWSKI | THE DEPAULIA change.

February 12, this task force will host a “We need to do town hall hosted by SSDP to speak with a lot of things, including more public students about the opioid crisis and what education, a lot more thoughtful work,” they can do about it. A representative Cassidy said. “We have fallen down on from the Office of Health Promotion the behavioral health and treatment side and Wellness will speak at the town hall of things.” on this new opioid overdose prevention According to Coronel, people program. generally react positively to the work Coronel is particularly looking that SSDP does. He says that after every forward to the guests who will attend speech he gives to students about drug the event, including officials from SSDP. overdoses, he gets people approaching “At the national level, we have our drug him to say how thankful they are for the

outreach work being done.

“You have students come up and thank us for the work, as they say hey, I’ve lost my brother to opioid overdose, dad, etc. Me personally, I lost my mother to drugs,” Coronel said. “That’s the big reason why this work is so impactful to me, and I see that in souls and voices of so many people, related to me… us.”

Even though SSDP has been working on this project since September, many students are still unaware of the new changes that DePaul administration made. This seems mainly to be because there hasn’t been any coverage to deliver the news to students. Coronel said that it makes him feel very sad and somewhat angry of the fact that students work so hard to push for this movement for it’s not being acknowledged.

“Being the largest Catholic School, DePaul is very careful of how they go about things” Coronel said. “Once we said that we will protest, lining out on the quad with people representing the death those lost to opioid, DePaul decided to legalize it, not to have a bad press.”

With these new administrative policies in place, it would appear Coronel’s activism with SSDP was effective in bringing about change on campus.

“In developing the program, we’ve spoken with other schools and realize we’re on the forefront of this type of initiative, which in many ways is an expansion of our approach to drug and alcohol prevention education, and our philosophy and commitment to Take Care DePaul,” Zdziarski said.

CAMPUS CRIME REPORT: January 23, 2019- February 5, 2019 LINCOLN PARK CAMPUS

LOOP CAMPUS

The Theatre School 5 4

Sheffield Square

3

1

5 3 8

2

DePaul Center

Arts and Letters Hall Student Center

6

3

3

55 E. Jackson 10

7

5

8

6

7

9

4

Assault & Theft

Drug & Alcohol

LINCOLN PARK CAMPUS

JANUARY 24 1) A possession of cannabis report was filed in

Sheffield Square. Chicago Police responded to the scene and took a person into custody.

JANUARY 29 4) An institutional vandalism report was filed for

coffee that was thrown on a wall in The Theatre School.

Other

LOOP CAMPUS JANUARY 28 6) A theft report was filed for a wallet stolen in 55 E. Jackson.

FEBRUARY 5 9) A theft report was filed for a person taking another person’s donut in the lobby of the DePaul Center.

FEBRUARY 1 2) A theft report was filed for a phone taken from FEB 4 7) A criminal damage to property report was 10) A criminal tresspass report was filed for 5) A criminal tresspass warning was issued to a restroom in Arts and Letters. filed for graffiti in the 6th floor women’s restroom a person trying to use a computer in the CNA JANUARY 26 3) A verbal threat report was filed for a person who was threatened in the Student Center restroom.

a person in the Student Center viewing obscene materials on a computer.

of the DePaul Center.

FEBRUARY 3 8) A criminal tresspass warning was given to a person yelling and swearing in the Library.

building. The same person was given a warning at Lincoln Park for viewing obscene materials.

News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 5

JESUS MONTERO | THE DEPAULIA

A student signs up for free HIV and STI testing at the Loop campus that was offered through a partnership between the Office of Health Promotion and Wellness and Lurie Children’s Hospital.

Students benefit from free HIV and STI tests on campus

By Carina Smith News Editor

Health Promotion and Wellness held a free HIV and STI testing for students last week in both the Lincoln Park and Loop campuses in an effort to promote sexual health.

Setting up shop in the different campuses on Feb. 5 and 6, volunteers from Lurie Children’s Hospital and

HPW provided the tools to perform tests for both HIV and STIs in an effort to promote healthy sexual lives and get rid of the stigma behind getting tested for all kinds of sexually-transmitted diseases.

Promoting sexual health to other students is important to sophomore Claire Kaczanowski, a neuroscience major who works as a Peer Health Educator with HPW and SGA’s senator for College of Science and Health. After finding out that DePaul does not offer

STI tests to their students, Kaczanowski decided it was time to find a way to provide students with an easy and affordable way to get tested.

“I realized that through these positions, I had a unique opportunity to utilize them to positively impact my community,” she said.

HPW and Kaczanowski brought the proposal to DePaul’s administration, who acknowledged the need for students to have easier access to the tests and gave the green light to continue. However, due to budgeting the university had to find a provider that would distribute the tests for free, as well as meet the holistic health approach to sexual education that DePaul promotes.

“I began searching for a provider at the beginning of this year, and in conjunction with HPW we were able to secure Lurie Children’s Hospital to provide testing,” Kaczanowski said.

HPW could not release the number of students who were able to get the free tests done last week, however they say there was an “extremely large turnout.”

More than half of U.S. teenagers have had sex before they turn 18, and teenagers can be susceptible to contracting STIs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one-quarter of the 12 million new cases of STDs throughout America occur among teenagers.

“One in two people will contract an STI before age 25, and Cook County is the second highest county in the nation for teens with STIs,” Kaczanowski said.

“Clearly there is a need in the nation, and our community for testing, and sexual health is often overlooked as a valid part of physical health due to stigma even though it is just as important as other parts of your physical health.”

The need to get tested on a regular basis is key to keeping a healthy sex life, whether it is annually or after you have a new sexual partner. Many diseases can go without being detected by the person, so students can live with an STI and have absolutely no idea.

“It is so important to get tested for STIs because a lot of the time people are asymptomatic meaning their bodies show no symptoms of having an STI,” said sophomore ShelLynn Beasley, a member of Students for Reproductive Justice (SRJ). “If left untreated STIs can cause serious complications and you run the risk of spreading the STI to your

sexual partners.”

SRJ works to promote healthy sex lives among DePaul’s students, which includes their controversial mission to pass out condoms to students despite the university’s strict regulations against it.

Many people may choose not to get tested due to the stigma around the idea of having a STI. Some believe that they cannot get a sexually-transmitted disease because it is seen as “dirty,” however anyone can contract any number of diseases and infections even if they practice safe sex.

“Getting tested is so stigmatized, but it is truly just part of taking care of your body and also being in control of your sexual health,” Beasley said.

Letting STIs go unchecked can lead to serious complications. Without knowing and treating the diseases and infections, people can continue to expose STIs to their sexual partners, creating more widespread issues.

Some diseases can lead to more serious issues, also. Syphilis is a common STI that can easily be cured in the early stages, but if left untreated the final stage can lead to damage to a person’s brain, nerves, eyes and heart.

Students who missed the testing on campus last week have plenty of affordable and free options around the city to get tested. Groups like Planned Parenthood, Center on Halsted and the Howard Brown Health have resources for testing and some specialize in programs that specifically cater to the LGBTQ+ community.

Kaczanowski said that the HIV and STI on-campus tests will hopefully move to being offered once a quarter through the partnership with Lurie’s Children Hospital to offer students more opportunities to be tested on a regular basis.

“I think there is a stigma surrounding sex in general in our country,” Kaczanowski said. “We have a rape culture and society that cultivates social norms and gender roles around sex that cause a lot of shame and stigma around sex which may cause people to be embarrassed to seek out testing.

This is why normalizing conversations about sex, providing free testing, and supporting each other in our looking out for our health is so imperative to a safe community.”

6| News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 FACULTY continued from front of being an “angry black woman.”

“What one person may define as a pattern of extreme intimidation and aggression may be very different from what someone else may define as that,” Shelby said. “The problem is that faculty of color may be the target of this.”

With the handbook revision, the definition would be open to interpretation, Shelby said.

Allison Ortlieb, the assistant dean of academic operations in the College of Law and co-chair of the Committee on Contingent Faculty, also addressed the potential amendments to the handbook.

She said that the proposal of professor nomenclature changes was due to adjunct professors not receiving benefits, regardless of how many years they had been teaching.

Ortlieb told The DePaulia that the proposal’s committee includes members from tenure-line faculty, full-time term faculty who are not on the tenure track and adjunct faculty, with two representatives from every college.

“Adjunct faculty don’t have much recognition in the faculty handbook and would like a mechanism to have an ability

“We should be committed to recruiting and retaining faculty of color. Faculty of color are needed to assist students of color in matriculating at a predominantly white institution.”

Valerie Johnson

Department chair of Political Science to be promoted and recognized for their service and mastery of teaching,” Ortlieb said. “This is our effort to try to make that happen.”

Acting Provost Salma Ghanem and Interim Dean for the SNL Don Opitz presented an update on the SNL restructuring. SNL has been in turmoil for months after restructuring efforts led to buyout offers for tenured professors and a failed effort at unionizing led to more uncertainty for faculty and staff teaching in the college.

Opitz said that the vision for the new

school will be a space of innovation. Part of what the faculty is buying into is being in that innovative space intellectually and in terms of creativity, he told the council.

“The moment that we fix what this school is gonna be about, it may need to change,” Opitz said. “It’s gonna be part of the dynamic. It’s moving forward.”

Ghanem said she wanted people’s opinions on how to proceed, and that her impression was that people wanted more structure than what currently exists.

“This is a broad outline—’draft’ is written all over it—so that people will

provide input if they see areas that are missing, areas that should be explored that might not have been explored in that structure,” Ghanem said.

Ghanem said she and Opitz wanted feedback on the framework of the structure that Opitz presented to the faculty and staff, with the understanding that current SNL programs will continue to be offered. She also said if faculty members do not want to take the voluntary buyout, they do not have to take it.

Ghanem said the exact detail is difficult to ascertain until they know how many people are willing to take the voluntary buyout.

The faculty should add updates and new decisions to build upon the document as an anchor for the restructuring process, Opitz said.

“Determining the future of this school is very much going to have to rely on the faculty and staff of the school,” he said.

“I fully expect my colleagues to be part of the conversation. You’re potentially influencing how people decide on their futures.”

News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 7

David Krupa announces lawsuit following alleged election fraud

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David Krupa, the 19-year-old DePaul University freshman running for alderman of the 13th Ward on the Southwest Side, has more work ahead before Election Day later this month.

Krupa announced about two weeks ago that he is suing his opponent, Ald. Marty Quinn, and Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan for allegedly trying to get him off the ballot in December.

In order to get on the ballot, Krupa had to file 473 signatures from ward residents. He submitted 1,703. However, Quinn’s campaign turned in 2,796 signatures from residents who supposedly wanted to revoke their earlier signatures supporting Krupa.

Quinn and Madigan also allegedly had “pairs of large male operatives” follow Krupa around while he went around collecting signatures to get on the ballot, according to a Chicago Tribune article.

DePaul College of Communication professor John McCarron, whose expertise includes Chicago politics, told the DePaulia that Krupa’s allegations don’t seem outside the realm of possibility.

McCarron said that Madigan has a loyal army of precinct captains and has used hardball tactics to keep control of the ward before. For example, he said Madigan has put up “bogus candidates,” which McCarron describes as individuals who run on behalf of Madigan’s machine against actual candidates who want to run.

“It just shows that Madigan and his senior people are either getting sloppy or overconfident,” McCarron said. “This kid was no real challenge. It was just a stupid thing for them to do.”

During an aldermanic forum hosted

by Krupa last month, he said that machine politicians like Quinn and Madigan “have been trying to take people off the ballot as far back as I can remember.”

One 13th Ward resident, Judy Ollry, told the DePaulia that she had tried running for alderman as well in 2011, but could not get on the ballot.

“If what I’ve seen is true, then yeah, [Krupa] has a lawsuit,” McCarron said.

“I’m not really sure what the remedy would be.”

McCarron said Krupa has “virtually no chance” of winning the race.

Madigan denounced the allegations

against him and Quinn.

“This lawsuit is a blatant defamation of me and [Quinn],” Madigan said in a statement to the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times. “But we’ve seen this highly political tactic before. Distracting voters with ludicrous claims is pulled directly from the ultra-right-wing playbook.”

More recently, 13th Ward residents received a letter on Chicago Teachers Union letterhead, signed by middle school teach Jan Muir, accusing Krupa of cyber bullying his former teacher and fellow students in high school, according to a Politico article.

“Mr. Krupa harassed and bullied me through breaching a school computer system and posting disturbing language and images that shocked me and my students,” the letter said. “In order to protect my students’ privacy, I will not share any additional information about the incident.”

Muir also wrote that she felt her sense of personal safety was violated and that she does not think Krupa should be alderman.

“Through his actions, Mr. Krupa demonstrates complete disregard for women and a pattern of judgment that disqualifies him from holding public office,” she said. “I respectfully request that you do not vote for Mr. Krupa in the upcoming municipal election.”

Krupa’s attorney, Tony Peraica, told Politico that the accusations are false.

“It’s a baseless, slanderous, scurrilous hit piece,” he told Politico. “David denies it, denies knowing this person, denies doing anything of the kind. He was never investigated, interviewed or charged.”

Krupa has been accused of behavior like this from his past before. In December, CBS 2 obtained documents showing his former high school girlfriend got an order of protection against him because of alleged abusive behavior.

He told CBS 2 that the allegations were false, that he was never charged and that Quinn and Madigan are using this to try to mislead voters.

“Anybody can file this,” he said in an interview with CBS 2. “Anybody can write this down and file it. We need to look at the machine and realize that this is a tactic they’re using to take the eyes and attention off of them.”

Krupa did not respond to requests for comment from the DePaulia.

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8| News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

News. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 9

Lori Lightfoot helps rebuild trust during mayoral race

By Emma Oxnevad Asst. News Editor

In a crowded political race, it can often be difficult for voters to feel like they have an effective understanding of each candidate. With long-winded speeches and dense jargon, it’s sometimes tricky to discover the essence of each candidate. For Chicago mayor hopeful Lori Lightfoot, however, the gist is clear: advocating for those who need it the most.

While this is Lightfoot’s first foray into the mayoral race, she is no stranger to politics. Lightfoot’s official campaign website details her previous experience as Assistant United States Attorney, President of the Chicago Police Board, and chair of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force, among other positions.

Lightfoot demonstrated her enthusiasm for the seat early on, announcing her candidacy four months before Mayor Rahm Emanuel stated he would not plan to run for a third term as mayor.

“I got into this race back in May because I know Chicago needs change.

In this city, we have world-class talent everywhere,” Lightfoot said in a candidate profile for WTTW Chicago. “What we have been lacking is a leader who is willing to take on the status quo and carve a new, progressive path forward for this city.”

Lightfoot’s humble background as the youngest of four children in a working-

class family seems to have influenced her politics. Some of Lightfoot’s proposed policies include eradicating racial and structural inequalities in Chicago Public Schools, a greater emphasis on environmental cleanup in the city and providing more affordable housing citywide, according to Lightfoot’s campaign website Lightfoot’s dedication to promoting equality among different demographics will help her appeal to young liberals in the city, many of whom feel that Emanuel’s time in office was overrun with corruption.

Ian Teunissen is a DePaul senior and operations intern on Lightfoot’s campaign. He believes that Lightfoot is sincerely dedicated to mending the distrust between the city and its government, stating that it sets her apart from other candidates.

“In my opinion, Ms. Lightfoot is set apart by her commitment to reform,” Teunissen said.

“She believes that Chicago city government needs to be cleaned up, and she backs her words with action.”

Lightfoot holds the distinction of being the first openly-lesbian candidate to ever run for the mayoral seat in Chicago. If elected, she will be both the first member of the LGBT community and the first black woman to serve as mayor.

Teunissen stated that, if elected, Lightfoot could highlight issues faced by both black and LGBT communities in Chicago.

“I personally believe that greater

DANIEL X. O’NEIL | WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

political efficacy and confidence in government comes from seeing your ideas, issues, and beliefs represented on all levels of government,” Teunissen said. “Thus, seeing someone like Lori Lightfoot as mayor could be incredibly impactful for thousands within these underrepresented and marginalized communities.”

Lightfoot appears to recognize the impact of her status as a queer politician, with bolstering LGBT rights and visibility being a massive part of her campaign.

“I feel so lucky to have accepting parents, a loving wife and daughter, a strong community of friends, and an inclusive city—but I want to build a world where luck isn’t the primary part of the equation,” Lightfoot said in an oped for Essence. “All across the country, there are LGBT youth who risk losing their families when they come out, who must move across the country to find somewhere they can be themselves, and who must hide parts of who they are as they go to work each day.”

If Lightfoot were to win the race, she would join the surge of women elected to office in the past year. In the 2018 midterm elections, a total 117 women won elections all across the country, according to The New York Times.

According to the same report, 42 of the 117 were women of color and at least three belonged to the LGBT community.

The staggering amount of women elected lead many to call 2018 “The Year of the Woman.”

While Lightfoot’s status as a proud black lesbian running for office will certainly help endear her to liberal voters, she may face trouble capturing a more conservative vote. “[Lightfoot’s race and sexual orientation ] certainly would help her win favor in the LGBT community, and it certainly helps her with a lot of white liberals and the North Side millenial vote,” said John McCarron, an associate professor in the College of Communication and Chicago politics expert.

McCarron followed this point by

positing that while Lightfoot may be able to secure votes from young liberals, it is possible she will struggle to win over more religious, conservative members of the black community.

“A lot of people think ‘if you’re black, you’re liberal’ and guess what? It’s not always so,” McCarron said.

Lightfoot has consistently projected an aura of cool confidence and intelligence that will likely help her win favor with residents of Chicago looking for a positive change in office.

“She comes across as extremely intelligent, articulate, she has a very businesslike bearing about her,” McCarron said. “She seems to be an executive-type individual. My impressions so far have been very positive of her.”

With the crowded mayoral race heating up, Lightfoot has set herself apart from other candidates through her commitment to improving the lives of individuals, and translating that to a political forum.

“I hope my campaign can inspire people who grew up like I did, and that I can serve as an example of someone who dares to dream and stands up in times of uncertainty,” Lightfoot said in an op-ed for Essence. “I hope Chicagoans can join together in this campaign and beyond to build a city where everyone can live as their true and authentic self.”

10 | Nation & World. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

Nation &World Poland summit What to expect at this week's U.S.-sponsored "Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East"

OFFICE OF THE IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER | VIA AP In this picture released by an official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attends a meeting with a group of the air force staff in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. On February 13-14, senior U.S. officials will meet with other nations in Warsaw, Poland to discuss Middle Eastern security issues including Iranian actions in the region.

By Brian Pearlman Nation & World Editor

It was announced in early January: an international summit in Warsaw on February 13-14, sponsored by Poland and the U.S., with a focus on Iran and the Middle East. While the State Department said in a press release the "Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East" would "address a range of critical issues including terrorism and extremism, missile development and proliferation, maritime trade and security, and threats posed by proxy groups across the region,” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif was quick to label it an “antiIran conference” on Twitter, adding that “while Iran saved Poles in WWII it now hosts desperate anti-Iran circus.”

The summit’s announcement came amid U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s eight-day tour of nine Middle Eastern nations including Egypt, where he delivered a fiery address students at the American University in Cairo rebuking former president Barack Obama’s foreign policy in the region and touting a “new beginning” under the Trump administration. Pompeo spoke of how American partners from South Korea to Poland "have joined our effort to stop Iran’s wave of regional destruction and global campaigns of terror.”

The summit is the latest volly in the increasingly tense relationship between the U.S. and the Middle East’s secondlargest country. In May, the U.S. pulled out the of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Under the deal, which Iran agreed to along with the U.S., U.K., France,

"No practical results are likely to emerge from this talkfest.”

Paul Pillar

Former senior CIA officer and non-resident senior fellow at the Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University China, Russia and Germany, Iran was to lower its enriched uranium stockpile and the number of centrifuges it housed for 15 years, as well as submit to inspections and monitoring from the International Atomic Energy Agency. In return, Iran would get relief from sanctions imposed by the U.S., U.N., and EU. While international inspectors have repeatedly stated that Iran is in compliance with the bill, the Trump administration’s pullout went beyond concern over Iranian nuclear capabilities, according to DePaul political science professor Scott Hibbard.

“The reason the Trump administration and others feel the JCPOA was so horrific is that it only dealt with the nuclear deal and it didn’t deal with Iraninan support for [Syrian President Bashar al-] Assad, Hezbollah and all these other regional actors,” he said. “It did nothing to contain Iranian ambitions in the region.”

At the Poland summit this week, those concerns will likely be on full display.

Bruce Reidel, a counter-terrorism expert and senior fellow in the Brookings Institution’s Center for Middle East policy, said that while the U.S. does not have global support for its hardline stance on Iran, he predicts “In Poland Pompeo will get support against Iran’s involvement in terrorism but not much more.”

Last month in an effort to assuage concerns that the summit will be entirely centered on Iran, U.S. deputy ambassador Jonathan Cohen told a Jan. 22 U.N. Security Council meeting that “It is not a forum to re-litigate the merits of the JCPOA” and “It is also not a venue to demonize or attack Iran.”

Earlier in January Poland’s charges d’affaires expressed similar sentiments to an Iranian foreign ministry official, according to Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA. Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs later confirmed the meeting, saying in a statement that “the international community has the right to discuss various regional and global issues, and Poland — to co-organise a conference, whose goal is to develop a platform for actions promoting stability and prosperity in the Middle East region.”

While the full list of participants in the event is not known, E.U. foreign policy chief Frederica Mogherini, representatives from Russia and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas have said they will not attend. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed his attendance earlier this month.

Paul Pillar, a former senior CIA officer now with Georgetown University’s Center for Security Studies, said the summit is

unlikely to break new ground.

“European governments will participate with the intention of trying to steer discussion toward a broader examination of Middle Eastern security issues and not make it just an anti-Iran show,” he said. “Expect to hear speeches from the Europeans along this line and expect to hear primarily Iran-bashing from the U.S. participants.

“No practical results are likely to emerge from this talkfest,” he added.

Hibbard said another issue hovering over the event is the fact that while the U.S. has pulled out of the JCPOA, many European nations have not.

“Part of the trip to Poland is to put pressure on the Europeans and get them behind efforts to support this coalition to confront Iran,” he said. “Part of the idea is, Europe is split and this is an effort to further split it.”

The EU has been attempting to salvage the deal in part by creating a “special purpose vehicle” for monetary transactions that would allow it to bypass U.S. sanctions.

The U.S., meanwhile, enjoys support for its position on Iran from regional rivals like Israel and Saudi Arabia. When Pompeo speaks to these countries, “he’s preaching to the choir,” Hibbard said. But when he goes to other countries, as he and other top U.S. officials will in Warsaw, more questions remain.

“What about the Saudis? They’re still funding all these Sunni Jihadist groups,” he said. “What about the PalestinianIsraeli conflict? What about X, what about Y, what about Z? What about economic development in the region, what about human rights? Pompeo’s talked about none of those issues, and all he’s really talked about is Iran, Iran, Iran. It’s really striking.”

Nation & World. Feb. 11, 2019. The DePaulia | 11

State of the Union address calls for unity President also takes aim at 'ridiculous partisan investigations'

By Kevin Donahue Contributing Writer

President Donald Trump called the state of the union “strong” during his Tuesday address to Congress and the nation. In the 82-minute speech, which is the second longest in American history, President Trump reiterated familiar talking points including the defense of American jobs, improving infrastructure, reducing healthcare costs, fair trade deals, “America First” foreign policy and increased funding for border security.

The latter point was perhaps the most contentious in the halls of Congress. The 35-day partial government shutdown was mainly due to Congress not wanting to pass a budget that included money for a wall on the southern U.S. border with Mexico.

Congressional Democrats, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have fought back against the taxpayer-funded border wall and its $5.7 billion asking price.

On Tuesday, the president called for unity, saying, “victory is not winning for our party; it is winning for our country.” He touched on issues of common ground with Democrats, like paid family leave, funding for HIV and AIDs research and increased infrastructure spending.

DePaul political science Professor Wayne Steger, however, cautioned that appeals for bi-partisanship can have ulterior motives.

“Most calls for bi-partisanship are not a call for compromise, but a call for the opposition to stop fighting and agree to whatever the speaker wants to promote,” he said.

Another contentious moment came when Trump took a shot at Democrats for

DOUG MILLS | THE NEW YORK TIMES VIA AP President Donald Trump gives his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019 as Vice President Mike Pence, left, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi look on.

their “ridiculous partisan investigations,” a reference to the ongoing probe into possible collusion between the Trump team and Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign, as well as investigations by the House Intelligence and Oversight committees.

Trump argued in his speech the investigations against him and his campaign would hurt U.S. economic growth if they continued. While it may have surprised some that the president would bring up such a topic in a room filled with the very people who have the power to investigate him, it is not a new strategy, according to Steger.

“Republicans had been extraordinarily hostile and aggressive about investigations of Democrats when they have controlled the House of Representatives,” he said.

“They had 7 different investigations of Hillary Clinton, which they used to lower

her approval ratings and keep reminding the public why Hillary Clinton was not to be trusted or liked.” He added that investigations against one’s own party are almost always perceived to be partisan.

The State of the Union address did feature a few moments that got widespread applause. One was when Trump addressed all the new faces in the room, including 42 women who joined Congress in January.

Many of the women in Congress were wearing white in a tribute to the U.S. suffragists during the 20th century. After the acknowledgment, many of the women and members from both sides of the room stood up and chanted, “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!”, one of four such times during the speech.

Another large applause came when Trump introduced Grace Eline, a childhood cancer survivor, as one of his guests. As the audience cheered, he pledged to fight childhood cancer with more funding for

cancer research. And a standing ovation followed Trump’s introduction of Judah Samet, a survivor of both the October shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh and the Holocaust.

The reaction was mixed from DePaul College Democrats president Irese Obasuyi, who said the speech “wasn’t the worst Trump speech” she’s ever seen.

After the State of the Union Address, the Democratic rebuttal was given by former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. Her speech attacked what she said was the president’s agenda of keeping the government hostage over border wall funding. She also brought up voter suppression, saying, “The foundation of our moral leadership around the globe is free and fair elections, where voters pick their leaders — not where politicians pick their voters.” DePaul communications professor Kristen Pengelly said this has been a rallying cry for Democrats over the past year. “The Democrats made voter suppression a priority this year with their first bill, the ‘For the People Act,’ so it was great to see consistency,” she said.

Before Trump's address, the White House made it clear the focus of the State of the Union address would be on unity, with senior Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway saying on Monday that the president would call for an end to “resistance, retribution and … comity.” While Pengelly said “unity” is still a divisive topic in Washington, the spotlight will now be on both the president and Congress ahead of a Feb. 15 funding deadline to avert another government shutdown.

The end of the world as we know it?

Doomsday clock at 2 minutes to midnight

By Madi Garner Contributing Writer

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists released their 2019 update to the Doomsday countdown late last month, revealing that there has been no change from last year, with the clock remaining at two minutes till midnight.

Former California Gov. Jerry Brown and executive chair of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists described the situation as “playing Russian roulette with humanity,” at the press conference accompanying the announcement in late January.

The Bulletin, which is made

up of the Science and Security Board in consultation with the Board of Sponsors, which includes 14 Nobel Laureates, sets the clock each year based typically around climate change and nuclear war threats. The clock hands were farthest away from doomsday, or midnight, in 1991 at the end of the Cold War when they were 17 minutes away.

Since then they have jumped around slowly, remaining in the twos and threes in the last couple of years.

Being so close to midnight might make it seem like citizens have no chance to reverse the damage humans have caused to the world. Sarah Richardson, a

DePaul University professor who teaches about climate change, said she wavers “between worry and hope” when she think about the possibility of reversing climate change. “A lot of people all around the world are concerned and working on the problem,” she said. However, she also noted that many people still discredit evidence of climate change.

“Some of the consequences are far away, such as melting ice in Antarctica and others are happening over a long time, such as the increases in temperature in Illinois,” she added. In line with Richardson’s assertion, many Chicagoans think that climate change coincides with

the weather; a recent University of Chicago survey found that 74 percent of Americans say extreme weather influenced their opinions about climate change.

It’s a sentiment expressed by high school student Van Smith, who said that although he believes in climate change there is “no way that it will affect any of us any time soon.”

If it does?

“Oh well,” he said.

While apathy may be common regarding the end of the world, others perceive a kind of “bystander effect” at play. “It’s like how when people experience a tragedy they say, ‘Dang, I never thought it would be me,’”

suggested college sophomore Jesse French. “It’s the same for the apocalypse. We’ll read novels and watch movies about it, but no one actually thinks it’ll happen to us.”

Despite the dire predictions, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists signaled in a statement that annihilation can be averted — “if leaders seek change and citizens demand it.”

“It is two minutes to midnight, but there is no reason the Doomsday Clock cannot move away from catastrophe,” the statement reads. “It has done so in the past, because wise leaders acted — under pressure from informed and engaged citizens around the world.”

12 | Opinions. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

Opinions

The disconnect in alumni donations The incessent requests for donations after graduation without regard to the expenses of college itself needs to be re-examined

MARLEE CHLYSTEK | THE DEPAULIA

By Bianca Cseke Copy Editor

Another year’s annual Blue Demon Challenge is in the books and DePaul now has over $780,000 extra sitting in the bank.

The Blue Demon Challenge is DePaul’s annual giving day, in which the university pushes its alumni and other supporters to donate money that goes toward causes like scholarships and specific programs.

DePaul, like most other universities across the country, relies more on donations than ever before — these contributions make up more than $14 million of the university’s annual budget — but this puts an unfair burden on recent graduates.

A student at DePaul will begin receiving requests for donations as soon as they graduate, regardless of whether they have found a job or how high their student loan payments are. The frequency of these requests varies by individual, but almost always includes letters in the mail and sometimes even calls from current students hired to do so, according to DePaul’s website. The requests will stop for the rest of the fiscal year if the university receives a donation or a request to be taken off the potential donors list.

“It depends on many factors — their past giving history, their class year or college of graduation and what kind of contact information we have,” said Sarah Myksin, DePaul’s director of annual giving. “In general, we try and contact

every alumnus for whom we have contact information and who have not opted out of fundraising communications at least once per fiscal year. DePaul’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.”

One bright spot, other than having the choice to opt out of getting all these requests every single year, is having the opportunity to decide where exactly your donations will go. For the first year ever since the annual challenge began in 2014, the 2019 Blue Demon Challenge gave donors incentives to give to specific colleges or programs within the university.

For example, the College of Education received an additional $25,000 from an outside donor, but only after receiving 60 other gifts while the Blue Demon Challenge was going on.

“From our perspective, these minichallenges were a big motivator to donors to unlock funds for areas and initiatives that they cared about,” Myksin said.

Incentives like these and the ability to direct gifts to specific funds, the latter of which has always been possible, would make me more willing to give to DePaul after I graduate. Of course, that’s if by that time I’ve found a program that I connect with strongly enough to want to financially support.

Myksin said that sending donations make alumni feel more connected to DePaul after they’ve moved on.

“Through this act of generosity, these donors are interacting with DePaul’s

mission of providing access to education to all,” she said. “One of the things we emphasize to alumni is that gifts of any size collectively have a big impact on what DePaul is able to do.”

That relies on the assumption that graduates both felt connected to DePaul while they were students and that they have the financial means to give back, especially when they start getting calls and letters for money right after getting their degrees.

This definitely isn’t always the case and the stress of paying back large amounts of student loans seems to be a common theme among several graduates.

“I understand the importance of donations, and I think it’s great that people’s donations get put towards these scholarships and programs,” said Diane Abbasi, who graduated from DePaul in 2016 with a degree in urban planning. “If you are able to contribute then that’s great, but I don’t really know if they should rely on funds from alumni, especially recent graduates. We are still working on establishing our careers and paying back our loans so it’s hard to commit to making these donations every year.”

Another student, Blanca Almanza, agrees. She told The DePaulia she hasn’t donated to DePaul, despite thinking it’s

a good cause, because of the financial burden she faces from graduate school and student loans.

“Contacting alumni immediately after graduation when they are trying to strive and get into graduate programs, find a job, etc. is not the appropriate time to contact them for donations,” Almanza, who graduated in December 2017 with a degree in biological sciences, said. “A few years after graduation would be a better time.”

By the time I graduate from DePaul with a master’s degree in Spring 2020, I will owe tens of thousands to pay back the loans that have paid for me to attend DePaul and my undergraduate school. Although I currently send $5 per month to my undergrad school’s student newspaper, this isn’t because of a letter or call I received from that university. Also, I can only see myself continuing to do this if I receive a good enough job when I’m done with school that will not give me significant trouble with paying both my bills and my loan payments. And I would need to find something specific to give to before considering giving any more money to DePaul when I graduate.

Alumni donations do play an important role in helping keep DePaul funded without raising tuition even higher than what may already be planned, and I don’t suggest the university should entirely stop soliciting them. But this could still be done without hounding new graduates who are already stressed enough with loan payments and other new financial responsibilities.

Opinions. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 13

From Top 8s to mutuals MySpace's forgotten influence on how we interact with the internet

ANNALISA BARANOWSKI | THE DEPAULIA

By Marty O'Connell Contributing Writer

Despite what you may think, MySpace still exists. The social networking site, which reigned popular in the mid-tolate-2000s, was purchased by the media conglomerate Meredith Corporation in late January of 2018 (two years after being purchased by Time Inc.). While the site may not be as popular as it once was, its influence can still be felt in 2019 through our celebrity obsession, today’s social media networks and music discovery.

MySpace was founded in 2003, serving as a platform that carried over the most popular aspects of Friendster while adding more multimedia elements.

It quickly became successful, and by 2005 the site was so big that Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg offered to buy it for $75 million. By 2006 there were over one million accounts, and by 2007 MySpace was valued at $12 billion.

By 2008, however, Facebook began to overtake MySpace in web traffic rankings.

As time passed, Twitter, Instagram and Zuckerberg’s Facebook soared in popularity while the user base on MySpace shrank smaller and smaller, to a point where it was not much more than a joke. But in its time as a prominent social networking site, MySpace left a significant and lasting influence on our culture.

For one, MySpace helped birth a new crop of celebrity: the Internet Celebrity. People like Paris Hilton and Tila Tequila soared to popularity through their MySpace presence. Some, like Kim Kardashian and Kendall and Kylie Jenner, still have their profile pages up and accessible. These high-profile users gave others a reason to constantly check the website and keep up with their feeds, just like most of the social media networks

"I do think MySpace influenced the way we conceive being online ­ instead of simply going online like it's repository of information, [a giant electronic library], MySpace showed that you could go online just to hang out."

Paul Booth

Professor, Media & Cinema Studies today. According to Paul Booth, an associate professor of media and cinema studies and digital communication and media arts, the celebrity presence on MySpace allowed “everyday people [to] feel closer to celebrities” and feel like “they’re just like us.” This aspect of MySpace moved the perception of social networking - and the internet as a whole — to something new.

“I do think MySpace influenced the way we conceive of being online — instead of simply going online like it's a repository of information [a giant electronic library], MySpace showed that you could go online to just hang out,” Booth said. “That was an important move in the history of the web and it led to a lot of of new social interactions.”

Karoline Bacewicz, a 21-year-old student, calls MySpace her “entire middle school experience.” She describes the site as something that stood out on its own as a site that “was more about expressing yourself through the profile you have along with what you post” and

“entirely centered around aesthetic and presentation.”

MySpace wasn’t only a place for sharing details about your friends and lives; it was a space for users to share and discover their favorite music. Just as users could show off their top friends on their profile, they could do the same with their top artists. Artists like Katy Perry, Arctic Monkeys, Vampire Weekend and Sean Kingston found fame through the website.

Some artists that eventually became stars (like Lana Del Rey, who published under her real name Lizzy Grant) got their start uploading songs to MySpace. These artists were able to share songs that were able to accessed immediately by their fans, building a more intimate connection than fans would get from simply purchasing a CD at a store.

Reasons like this helped the site appeal to music fans, so much so that Pitchfork recently published a video asking if it was “music’s best social media platform.”

Judy Berman, the Pitchfork contributor behind that video, compares

MySpace to Bandcamp as a way to learn more about an artist you just heard about.

MySpace had a community feel to it as well — Berman said the site “empowered fan communities to organize and make their voices heard on a large scale, in the same way that you now see followers of Beyonce or Nicki Minaj or BTS rallying on Twitter.”

Part of that community feeling of MySpace had to do with discovering music through real people. In today’s digital age, streaming sites like Spotify still give users recommendations, but they come in endless playlists created by algorithms; it lacks the human touch that was present on MySpace. Berman cites friends and colleagues, music and culture publications like Pitchfork, and sites like Bandcamp and Soundcloud as places she discovers new music now (avoiding Spotify recommendations because “discovering new music through algorithms creeps [her] out”).

Ty Yamamoto, a 20-year-old student, seconds the desire for discovering new music through other people. He tends to prefer discovering music “mostly through word of mouth and various musicoriented publications.”

Of course, the time removed from MySpace’s glory days could have us looking back with rose-tinted glasses.

Maybe MySpace would have fallen ill to harassment problems like those that plague Twitter. Maybe our friend Tom From MySpace would have to give testimony in front of the US Congress just like Mark Zuckerberg did. If MySpace were to start up again and gain back a large user base, it probably wouldn’t be as fun as we remembered. But that’s okay.

For now, we’ll always remember MySpace, like Bacewicz calls it, as “the forgotten alternative culture social media platform.”

The opinions in this section do not necessarily reflect those of The DePaulia staff.

14 | Focus. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

Focus Revved up Here are three top picks from the 2019 Chicago Auto Show that will make you stop on a dime

The Sensible Choice

ALL PHOTOS BY XAVIER ORTEGA | THE DEPAULIA

Matthew Zaiff

Contributing Writer DePaul students are used to navigating an urban campus. A new offering from Honda promises to be the perfect city companion.

The 2019 Honda HR-V is the latest compact SUV offering in the market. With a starting price of $21,920 for the base trim all-wheel drive model, the HR-V is great for students or grads that want a value. Despite its dwarfish dimensions, the HR-V offers up to 58.8 cubic feet of cargo volume with the seats folded.

“I really like the utility the Honda offers,” said Brian Shea, 27. “The options available at this price seem like a real value to me.”

Strong gas mileage and safety ratings help cement the Honda as a ‘must-consider’ vehicle for students looking for a smart purchase. If the Honda isn’t for you, I’d suggeschecking out the Hyundai Kona as another option.

"I really like the utility the Honda offers. The options available at this price seem like a real value to me.”

Brian Shea

Auto Show Attendee

The Eco-Friendly Choice The original Acura NSX debuted at the 1989 Chicago Auto Show. When it came out, it was ahead of its time. The NSX was the first mass production car made from lightweight Aluminum.

The original NSX was the car that forced Ferrari to step up their game. Thirty years later, Acura celebrated the NSX anniversary in Chicago with a champagne toast.

The 2019 NSX, while significantly more complicated than its predecessor, is an excellent supercar in its own right. While original NSX was powered by a naturally aspirated V6, the latest NSX features a twin turbo V6 supplemented by two electric motors on the front axle.

“If you look at what the car can do and the technology, the value is terrific,” said Csaba Csere, former editor-in-chief of Car and Driver magazine. “You can compare this to the million-dollar McLaren as far as technology--this is not an inexpensive car--but compared to that McLaren, it’s pretty cheap.”

I had the chance to drive the new NSX at Road America and found the acceleration to be addicting. With the addition of hybrid power, there are no points in the rev range where power drops.

W in A ca

With the two eclectic motors up front offering full torque vectorng, exiting corners is a joy. The car rips out of the bends. The Acura NSX is a perfect example of hybrid technology enhancing a ars performance capability.

Focus. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 15

The “I Just Want To Go Fast” Choice America’s three vehicle manufacturers have been locked in a horsepower war for over a decade. Ford’s new offering aims to take the top spot as the best sports car in the segment.

The 2020 Ford Shelby GT500 graced the Chicago Auto Show this year, and it certainly makes a statement.

While exact figures are still under wraps, we know that the Shelby will produce more than 700 horsepower, which will be good for a mid-three-second 0 to 60 mph.

Ford also teased that the GT500 will complete the quarter mile in the 10 second range.

The vehicle achieves these supercar levels of performance with a supercharged version of Ford’s 5.2-liter V8 mated to a brand new 7-speed dual clutch transmission from Tremec.

“We have a lot of extreme cooling to get what we need from the frontal area that we have to keep that engine cool to get that power constantly there [sic],” said Ford Icon Communications Manager Jiyan Cadiz.

“That’s one of the things we’re very proud of and will be touting as we go to market. We don’t want our cars to have any degradation in performance when you’re driving them hard.” The 2020 GT500 hits showrooms later this fall.

"We don’t want our cars to have any degradation in performance when you’re driving them hard.”

Jiyan Cadiz

Ford Icon Communications Manager

16 | Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

Arts & Life

DePaul's Chinese New Year A celebration of culture and community

MIKAYLA PRICE | THE DEPAULIA

The annual Chinese New Year Gala at DePaul officially kicked off with the performance of a lion dance, a traditional performance supposed to bring luck and good fortune.

By Mikayla Price Contributing Writer

The Year of the Pig started off warm and welcoming at DePaul’s 11th annual Chinese New Year Gala.

Red, warm, sold out, and pig — these are the words to describe this year’s event.

Held at the Student Center on Saturday evening, an eager crowd trailed through the building waiting for the doors to open. Promptly at 6 p.m. gala attendees flooded in. Before finding a seat;however, there was a table covered in red envelopes.

“It is a new year blessing that people send to children,” said Kristen Smaga, the secretary of the Chinese Studies Association, or CSA. People typically draw on the envelopes and send them to children with money inside.

Like many previous years, 2019’s Gala was a sold out event. Newcomers and faithful alumni equally occupied the

room. Nikki Roberts, an undergraduate student, has attended the event each year she’s been at DePaul.

“I had to cover the Gala for a homework assignment my freshman year, and have come back ever since,” Roberts said.

Chuck Huang came with his wife, Sarah Huang, who recently graduated from DePaul. Their 2-year-old, Andrew, sat between them. “I met my wife on her study abroad trip that she was on while attending DePaul,” Huang said. “She was a Chinese and Communications major, and now we come back to this event every year.”

A CSA-produced video played before the festivities kicked off. The video explained that even though the Lunar New Year falls during DePaul’s midterms, it does not stop them from celebrating — and the best way to bring people together for celebration is food.

The buffet was full of traditional Chinese cuisine and nearly ran out after the crowd made their way through after the video. After everyone settled down with their food, the opening remarks began with President A. Gabriel Esteban.

He warmed the crowd up and joked, “who checked their zodiac before coming here?”

Esteban ultimately wished everyone a year of prosperity and was followed by speeches from the presidents of both the CSA and the Chinese Students and Scholarship Association spoke in which they expressed their gratitude for the outcome of guests.

The celebration officially began with a lion dance, a traditional performance where two people in a costume mimic a lions movements which is said to bring luck and good fortune. They pranced around the room, weaving through the tables of attendees eventually making their way on to the stage.

The rest of the night was filled with lively songs and dance. In light of Valentine’s Day, performers Noah Lande and Zander Shainlin covered the song, “The Moon Represents My Heart” — as the lunar cycle provides the guiding foundation behind traditional Chinese calendars. Additionally, DePaul’s Chinese 105 and 102 classes used the song “Learn Chinese With Me” to teach the English speaking audience Chinese basics with the lyrics.

This year marks the Year of the Pig, the first since 2008. Out of the 12 animals of the cycle, the pig is at the end. According to one myth, the Jade emperor decided the order of the zodiac was the order in which the animals arrived to his party. The pig overslept and ended up as last one to the party. The Year of the Pig is supposed to bring luck, romance and prosperity to those celebrating.

GRAPHICS BY ANNALISA BARANOWSKI | THE DEPAULIA

Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 17

The N.ACE Dance Group performing during the gala. This marked one of many music and dance performances that graced the stage throughout the night.

Chinese New Year Gala The Year of the Pig

Chen Huang during his solo performance at this year's gala.

Humphrey Liu reads out the winning numbers for the raffle.

Noah Lande and Zander Shaindlin peform "The Moon Represents My Heart" in honor of the Lunar Calendar, the foundation of the celebration.

ALL PHOTOS BY MIKAYLA PRICE | THE DEPAULIA

18 | Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

Super Bowl ads change as culture evolves

By Brian O'Connell Contributing Writer

In today’s media landscape, the Super Bowl is the only annual event where an extensive amount of the U.S. population comes together to watch the same program.

People come together to watch the National Football League’s two remaining teams battle on the gridiron and some of the most entertaining advertisements of the year.

Because of this, Super Bowl ad spots are like gold to broadcasters. In 2019, the average cost of a Super Bowl ad on CBS was $5.25 million for a 30-second spot, according to CNBC. With this being said, do Super Bowl ads have the same influence on the population as they used to?

With a more politically conscious culture in the U.S., advertisers have changed the way they deliver messages to consumers.

Dorothy DeCarlo, former director of marketing for ESPN and adjunct professor in DePaul’s College of Communication, said advertisers have transformed the way they create ads for the Super Bowl.

“Advertisers are more socially and politically aware or at least try to be. In the past, ads have gone for shock value and sometimes stereotypical portrayals.

This year was void of either,” said DeCarlo.

“Advertisers must adjust as the climate changes. The target audience is now younger and more tech savvy and would not tolerate any of the past misogynistic or stereotypical ads.”

In a way, advertisers have to play it safe when it comes to the brands they are representing. The prevalence of social media in society functions as an easy way for people to interact with ads. If an ad

IMAGE COURTESY OF ASSOCIATED PRESS

Hart says he won’t be hosting the Oscars, due largely to the lack of preperation time. offends a person, social media platforms allow consumers to voice their opinions on what they believe is wrong.

In an article published on the Driehaus College of Business and Kellstadt Graduate School of Business news page, James Mourey, an assistant professor of marketing at DePaul, said the money spent on Super Bowl ads is worth it depending on usefulness, but it can also be self — destructive.

“Companies would be wiser to pay attention to, first, how their ad may be received and discussed on social media and, second, whether their strategy includes a deliberate social media component

integrated into the campaign,” said Mourey.

Advertisers do not have to necessarily change a brand’s image, but their approach must be more self-aware than before.

Kris Kaizer, an account manager at advertising agency Channel Factory, said Super Bowl ads are made to entertain, but now they must be more tasteful.

“Historically, ads were meant to entertain and strengthen a brand’s identity.

With today’s technology, brands have to think bigger than a $5 million placement.

Brands should be asking how their story can live socially,” said Kaizer. “The thinking should be how can we entertain, or create a movement, rather than how can we sell

a product.”

One Super Bowl ad that conveyed a message for a movement was by The Washington Post. The Washington Post’s ad sent a message to the public that journalists are an integral group in society.

The ad highlights how reporting empowers the public and how knowing information keeps Americans free.

Another ad that addressed a real social problem was the Microsoft Xbox spot.

Their ad in the Super Bowl didn’t tackle a social justice issue, but it focused on a new product, the adaptive controller. The adaptive controller allows differently abled people, who may not be able to use the original controller, to interact with their friends through video games. The message behind the ad stated that with the controller everyone can play.

Still, entertainment is vital to the success of Super Bowl ads. After all, the game serves as entertainment alone. Thomas Flynn, a public relations and advertising major at DePaul, said he has noticed the difference in entertainment over the past few years.

“They used to be very eye catching and fun to watch. They were the main reason I even watched the Super Bowl,” Flynn said.

“They were mostly uninteresting and dull this year.”

On a stage as large as the Super Bowl, ads display how marketing efforts are changing in society. No longer are brands simply trying to sell you a product, but they are selling you on what they stand for.

Consumers are altering the way decisions are made to purchase products.

Consumers believe that brands should do more than just offer services or an assortment of products. People respond better to companies who hold themselves accountable with corporate responsibility.

Unconventional ways to celebrate ANNALISA BARANOWSKI | THE DEPAULIA

Galentine's Day

Celebrate this special day just with the girls. No men allowed!

It is great way to show your girlfriends how much you love and care about them. You can go out for a brunch, make reservations at a fancy restaurant or even spend the day doing face masks and manicures. It’s your Galentine’s Day, so you can choose what you want to do.

Something Spooky

Valentine’s Day is considered to be a holiday about romance, joy and fun. However, you could take the holiday in an entirely new direction by going to one of the many haunted locations in Chicago. Explore some spooky abandoned buildings or take a tour of your town’s most notorious spooky locations.

"Quirkyalone Day"

There are a lot of anti-Valentine’s parties thrown on Feb. 14 with heart-shaped piñatas that singles smash to represent their hatred and protest the holiday. But instead of going all against this celebration, you can participate in International Quirkyalone Day, when singles around the world throw feel-good parties celebrating empowerment, romance and gratitude.

By Angelina Korniyenko Contributing Writer

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and we all know what it means — Valentine’s cards with hearts, bouquets of roses, movie theatres playing romantic comedies, restaurants booked for romantic dinners and much more. But what if you want something different this Valentine’s Day? Then you are on the right page. Here are 10 untraditional ways to celebrate the Valentine’s Day:

Find out your future If you are unsure about your partner, or just want to know when you will have one, you can visit a psychic or get a tarot reading to know whether your intuition is correct. At the end of the day, it is your choice whether to believe it or not.

Just skip it

Valentine’s Day is a big celebration, but it’s not as huge as Christmas. People don’t get a day off on this day, so don’t feel obliged to celebrate it. Instead, you can just skip it and go out the next day. Restaurants will be less crowded, florists will bring down their prices and all the Valentine’s Day candy will be on sale.

Learn about love in a new culture

There are so many different countries in the world that have their own cultures and traditions. Though Valentine’s Day is considered to be an international celebration, people do celebrate it differently in each country.

For example, in Japan, women give men chocolates on Feb. 14. Some parts of Britain serve buns baked with caraway seeds and raisins. Not only you can learn more about the celebration around the world, but also try to incorporate some traditions into your own date night.

Volunteer

The world needs more love from people, so why not spend this Valentine’s Day helping those in need? Pick a charity with a special someone and spend the day together helping out in any way you can. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, help out in community garden, read a book to nursing home residents, or play with some furry friends at an animal shelter.

Horror Movie Marathon

If you want to just stay at home and relax, but don’t want to follow stereotypical rom-com movie night, have a horror marathon. There are lots of great horror movies that have come out in in the past few years like “It Follows” and “The Babadook.”

Get some snacks and drinks, and make a night of it.

Take a cooking class Instead of going for a dinner or buying a take-out, sign up for a masterclass. Learn how to make your favorite meal or try out a new recipe. You can learn something new, spend amazing time with friends or your partner and eat delicious food all in one day.

Give an alternative gift If you’ve seen the film “No Strings Attached,” you would know what this means. Roses might be romantic, but they’re also rather generic. Instead, you can be creative and give a different kind of “bouquet.” You can give a potted plant that will stay much longer than a bouquet, or give a candy bouquet if you want to give something sweet. If you feel crafty, you can make flower bouquet using origami. Or if you want to be quirky as Ashton Kutcher in a movie, you can give a bouquet of carrots.

Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 19

From soulmates to self-care

The modern rom-com and its budding romance with self-love

Julia Roberts in "Pretty Woman" as she enjoys the luxuries of a high-end hotel room paid for entirely by her wealthy suitor.

By Mackenzie Murtaugh Opinions Editor

Was it “The 40-Year-Old-Virgin,” “Knocked Up,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” or another romantically absurd, yet poignant, film to come out of the powerhouse Apatow Productions in the 2000s that told audiences the modern romantic comedy was going to be different?

These films still had the sinisterly overused and charming tropes like the meet-cute, opposites attract and the revelation of true love — or love lost — in the final moments.

How they differed from the genre’s Golden Age, roughly from 1989 with “When Harry Met Sally” and ending somewhere in the late-90s or early-2000s, was the internalization, appreciation and eventual satirization of the tropes. Coming to terms with your deepest insecurities or biggest resentments, in cahoots with the tropes like the typical rom-com relationship arch, opposites attract and replacing your ex, helped the Apatow characters find love in the end. Somewhere along the way, rom-coms became self-aware and turned their low-hanging-fruit romances into internalized battles with self-actualization and, even more apparent, self-love by placing these two as necessities before any romance.

This Valentine’s Day, Todd StraussSchulson’s rom-com “Isn’t It Romantic” hits theaters with Rebel Wilson as its star.

It follows Wilson’s character Natalie, a staunch believer that the rom-com presents complete fiction and distorts society’s view on romance. After being knocked out, she finds herself trapped inside of what she despises the most: a rom-com! Hilarity — and romance — obviously follows.

Strauss-Schulson isn’t one to shy away from meta-genres and trope-awareness; his 2015 horror comedy “The Final Girls’” title speaks to the horror genre’s trope of one woman making it out of the bloodbath alive when in this case, it’s a group of slasher movie fans.

“We’ve got a string of rom-coms today which are very much about improving themselves, and I think that really kind of fits with the general self-improvement vibe in our society and this pressure we have to improve ourselves and be the best person that we can be."

Paul Booth

Professor, Media & Cinema Studies Once the trailer for “Isn’t It Romantic?” dropped in the fall of last year, audiences drew comparisons to Amy Schumer’s 2018 rom-com “I Feel Pretty,” which finds Schumer as an insecure career woman who miraculously gains an extreme level of confidence after suffering a head injury. The two films get at the idea of selfreferential romances, where Wilson gains some confidence in finding love sans a cheesy montage, and Schumer finds that she didn’t need to be the conventional beauty to find love, just a bit more of that highly-sought-out confidence.

But the plot of these films and others like it does not trivialize one singular romance. As far as titles go, it doesn’t seem that neither “Isn’t It Romantic?” nor “I Feel Pretty” center in on the development of a relationship. The title “When Harry Met Sally” gives you all you need to know about what’s going to happen. “Pretty Woman” leaves no room for imagination in how the leading male will view Julia Roberts’ character. The modern films are both a little tongue-in-cheek and self-aware with their titles. The phrase “isn’t it romantic?”

is the noise-heard-around-the-world if that world were rom-coms. The leading woman gazes deeply off-camera and thinks back to whatever charming and sentimental gesture the leading men did. “I Feel Pretty” doesn’t even signal to the audience that the film would have any two-person romance in it at all. Modern rom-coms don’t concern themselves with the damselin-distress, the knight-in-shining-armor or even the hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold.

They’re flipping typical tropes on their heads and fashioning new ones, where the lead character must practice a little bit of self-care before the universe gifts them that meet-cute.

“We’ve got a string of rom-coms today which are very much about improving themselves, and I think that really kind of fits with the general self-improvement vibe in our society and this pressure we have to improve ourselves and be the best person that we can be,” said Paul Booth, professor of media and cinema studies. “It’s kind of part of our everyday discourse. You see that in all sorts of different media popping up, this idea of being self-efficient.”

IMAGE COURTESY OF IMDB

The self-efficiency Booth alludes to has saturated not only the entertainment industry but many other aspects of society. Social media advertisements sell us lollipops that will eliminate our protruding stomachs, and delivery services like Amazon exist to lessen the hassle of the easy things so we can focus on what matters more. The term “self-care” barely has a meaning anymore since we’re all so blindly chasing it. Rom-coms simply jumped on the self-care trend and didn’t look back. It shouldn’t come as a surprise because that is precisely how film genres evolve over time.

“In order for rom-coms, and any genre film, to modernize itself, it has to reflect the social and political frameworks it’s framed in,” said media and cinema studies student Cody Corrall. “Now we’re seeing romcoms where the protagonists are people-ofcolor, queer, disabled and other identities that never fit in the traditional rom-com.

It’s not to say that the traditional formal is inherently bad, but it has to adapt and be seen through a modern lens.”

While the films mentioned are all white, cisgendered and heterosexual relationships, the main characters don’t look like Julia Roberts or Meg Ryan. They reflect something the viewers had yet to see — someone complex enough to challenge the previous importance placed on finding their soulmate and replacing it with finding themselves. The cheeky, rose-tinted and skewed glasses are hopefully gone, and we will always have our favorite rom-coms to remember when lovers simply needed to accidentally pour orange juice on a stunning and harsh actress to fall in love a la “Notting Hill.” The genre’s progression is promising, as more LGBTQ+ and POC representation continue to get greenlight.

Steadily, rom-coms, as predictable as they are cheesy, proclaim the deepest desires and most harrowing needs of the contemporary dating world — acceptance, inclusion and a dash of comedy to ease the anxiety.

GRAPHICS BY ANNALISA BARANOWSKI | THE DEPAULIA

20| Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

21 Savage arrest fuels further criticism of ICE 21 Savage performs at the Voodoo Music Experience in City Park in New Orleans. The artist is currently being held in immigration custody.

By Richard Requena & Erick Zepeda Contributing Writers

Sheyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, better known as 21 Savage, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Super Bowl Sunday. The believed Atlanta born rapper is actually from the United Kingdom, coming to the U.S. with his family when he was 7 years old.

“Mr. Abraham-Joseph entered the US legally in July 2005, when he was a minor, but subsequently failed to depart under the terms of his nonimmigrant visa,” said ICE spokesperson Bryan Cox. “He became unlawfully present when his visa expired July 2006.”

Abraham-Joseph's lawyers believe it’s an unnecessary punishment to be held without bond which they believe is being used as a way to intimidate him.

In a statement, his attorney Charles Kuck said, “Mr. Abraham-Joseph is clearly not a danger to the community, and in fact, his contributions to local communities and schools that he grew up in are examples of the type of immigrant we want in America.”

The rapper hosted his third “Issa Back to School Drive” event last year, donating his time and $10,000 to Atlanta’s Continental Colony Elementary School.

“Giving back to where I grew up means a lot to me,” Abraham-Joseph told Billboard in an interview. “These kids need it and I use to be one of those kids.”

He also launched his “21 Savage Bank Account Campaign” on “Ellen,” promising 21 teenagers $1,000 each in a scholarship fund to help them with financial literacy.

Using his hit song “Bank Account,” he helps kids who come from similar backgrounds as him to learn valuable money-management skills.

“I had no clue [about his charity work],” said Michael Deleonardis, a fan of the artist.

“I just like his music, I never pictured him to be a charitable person.”

According to Abraham-Joseph’s lawyers, his application for a U visa is pending. This particular visa is reserved for “victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and are helpful to law enforcement or government officials” according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Reportedly, an incident in 2013 left his best friend dead and Abraham-Joseph physically affected.

The detainment of Abraham-Joseph has sparked support from celebrities and other rappers such as Cardi B, Meek Mill, Post Malone and Jay-Z. In addition to vocally supporting him, Jay-Z took it a step further when his recording company Roc

Nation hired a lawyer to assist with the immigration charges.

Celebrities are not the only ones supporting him. Black Lives Matter cofounder Patrisse Khan-Cullors set up a #Free21Savage petition, which has nearly 400,000 signatures.

“It’s just not right that someone can be uprooted from their family and home,” said Robert Zepeda a fan who signed the petition. “Regardless of being a celebrity or not, it’s just not right.”

A statement released by AbrahamJoseph implies that he was detained in response to his recently released song “A Lot,” that had lyrics slamming immigration officials.

Abraham-Joseph, a prominent figure in the Atlanta community, has also received support from government officials that believe ICE is a problem, not a solution.

Georgia State Representative Hank Johnson wrote a letter to an immigration judge on behalf of the rapper.

“I’m very concerned about the ICE crackdown and what appears to be a targeted operation,” wrote Johnson. “I have a hard time believing that if this was a white singer from Great Britain under the same circumstances that ICE would be going after them with such enthusiasm.”

While the debate about immigration in the U.S. currently revolves largely around Latinx immigrants, it’s important to note the impact ICE has on black immigrants.

According to the State of Black Immigrants, a research institute in California, “more than one of out of every five noncitizens facing deportation on criminal grounds before the Executive Office for Immigration Review is black.”

Furthermore, in a statement Kuck said that dreamers “come from all walks of life and every ethnicity.” While a large percentage of those who face legal status issues are of some sort of Latinx heritage, it is by no means all encompassing.

According to ICE fiscal reports from 2017, about 16,000 people not from a Latinx country were removed from the U.S. Erica Thomas, another Georgia State Representative, has also spoken out to support him.

“Mr. Abraham-Joseph shares the story of millions of children brought here under circumstances unbeknownst to them.” Rep. Thomas acknowledged his community presence in Atlanta and further questioned ICE’s authority. “This country is getting more and more divided every day when we allow ICE to start choosing who they think should be here over others. This country is a melting pot and that is what makes us great,” Thomas said.

In a conversation with family friend German Alvarez about 21 Savages arrest he said, “Coming from a family of immigrants it’s scary to think that something similar could’ve happened to me years ago,” German Alvarez said. “Just because my family moved here to live a better life. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be separated from your family and have no control over it.”

Like many detained by ICE, AbrahamJoseph has been stripped away from his family, including his three small children.

DePaul senior Mohammad Hasan legally became a U.S. citizen when he was eight

IMAGE COURTESY OF AMY HARRIS/INVISION/AP

years old after immigrating from Pakistan with his family. Hasan said that he has had friends personally affected by ICE policies.

Hasan remembers “some childhood friends being deported” at the age of six or seven and that a family he knew “got ripped apart — two or three brothers being able to stay while two other brothers had to return to Pakistan.”

The detainment of Abraham-Joseph is the just newest of many examples of the brutality and injustice of ICE policies.

Hopefully, the widespread support of Abraham-Joseph sheds light on the issues many households deal with daily.

Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 21

Festival favorites

IMAGES COURTESY OF DANNY MOLOSHOK/INVISION/AP

The sun rises outside the Egyptian Theatre on Main Street in Park City, Utah during the 2019 Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 25, 2019.

By Michael Brzezinski Staff Writer

PARK CITY, UTAH — Last week, I had the amazing opportunity to escape from the polar vortex of Chicago and attend the closing weekend of the Sundance Film Festival in the beautiful mountain valley of Utah. The Park City fest is most known for not only being the first big festival of the every year but also being an amazing place full of fresh cinematic talent, unique perspectives, and amazing films. It is an absolute dreamland for independent distributors to pick up films that will set the scene for the year ahead. Some of the most popular films that have premiered in the past few years include “The Witch,” “Manchester By The Sea,” “Whiplash,” “Call Me By Your Name” and “Eighth Grade.”

This year was rather special for the film industry.

Nearly 60 percent of the narrative films in competition at the festival were directed by women. On top of that, several major indie studios spent mounds of cash acquiring some of the fest’s hottest films. Amazon Studios came out on top, spending an estimated grand total of $47 million, which is easily a record for the fest.

Being my first time at the fest, I was overjoyed with the experience — big shout out to the volunteers and programmers for making for what might possibly be the best film festival experience I’ve ever had. I got to see 13 films in the span of five days, so here’s the rundown on some of the highlights from the fest and what you should/shouldn’t see.

Velvet Buzzsaw

An ultraviolent horror-comedy satire on the Los Angeles modern art world starring Jake Gyllenhaal as an art critic named Morf Vanderwalt sounds like something that should be a slam dunk. Unfortunately that’s not the case with this film that ends up being aesthetically repulsive, smug and thematically dull. It dropped on Netflix a mere five days after premiering at the fest.

Wounds

Iranian filmmaker Babak Anvari follows up his deep critical hit “Under the Shadow” with this tonally confused and druggingly paced body horror film centered around the toxic masculinity of a New Orleans bartender (a vivaciously entertaining Armie Hammer) after he discovers a cursed cell phone. I love the idea of it, but the execution just has zero sense of purpose.

The Wolf Hour

An aggressively mediocre film if I’ve ever seen one. Naomi Watts gives it her all as a paranoid broken author in this single-location film set in her musty apartment in the volatile Bronx in the summer of 1977.

It’s a dynamite recipe for an emotional and compelling film and it dabbles in that from time to time, but mostly misses the mark executionally.

Fighting With My Family Selected as the surprise screening for the festival, it tells the true story of Paige, a professional wrestler’s rise to fame in the WWE. The film boasts some genuinely great performances and some touching grand gestures.

Unfortunately, it has significant trouble breaking away from the sports crowd-pleasing film formula to truly stand out on its own.

The Death of Dick Long

Daniel Scheinert exploded into the indie film scene at Sundance in 2016 when his co-directorial debut “Swiss Army Man” rocked audiences. He followed that up at Sundance this year with this equally-as-weird tale of a backwoods Alabama metal band trying to cover-up the embarrassing death of their lead singer. It navigates its tone bizarrely, between moments of absurdist humor and sincere human drama, but it meets its end goal spectacularly.

Hala This lowkey coming-of-age tale about a Muslim teenager coming to terms with her faith and her difficult home life made headlines when it became the first major festival purchase by Apple. It’s a good and safe choice for them. The film, while somehow being both simultaneously too slight and way too overstuffed, is deeply impactful in how personal and in-touch it is. Lead actress Geraldine Viswanathan solidifies her movie star status.

Them That Follow Pentecostal snake churches in Appalachia have always been a weird interest of mine. It’s also a topic that has gotten nearly no cinematic attention which is what makes “Them That Follow” feel so special. Directors Britt Poulton and Daniel Savage treat the subculture with respect and a fitting critical eye. It’s wildly impressive for a debut feature and has some of the best performances I saw at the festival.

Apollo 11 A groundbreaking documentary achievement that chronicles the amazing story of the Apollo 11 lunar journey, the film uses real never-before-seen archival footage. It has its fair share of staggeringly dry moments but it also boasts some of the most awe-inspiring and beautiful imagery I’ve ever seen. This should be required viewing for all schools across the country.

Greener Grass

“Greener Grass” is a demented and deeply hilarious deconstruction of the vicious conformity of upper-class suburbia. While definitely not for everyone, it has the potential to be a massive midnight-movie cult sensation.

Directors Jocelyn DeBoer and Dawn Luebbe not only write and direct the film but they also lend tremendous leading turns.

Big Time Adolescence This will be reductively labeled as “The Generation’s [insert any teen party comedy]” but what Jason Orley does with this film goes beyond others. He makes a teen comedy that is not only gut-bustingly funny, but also sincere and with an honest sense of sadness. It also solidifies Pete Davidson as a bonafide comedy movie star.

The Souvenir By far the most divisive of the films I saw at Sundance, the slow pace and idiosyncratic nature of Joanna Hogg’s deeply personal semi-autobiography prompted several to walkout at the screening I attended. For me, this was a gripping and heartbreaking look at the intersection between personal tragedy and artistic aspiration. Honor Swinton-Byrne lends a sublime debut lead performance.

Honey Boy Shia LaBeouf ’s autobiographical recount of his traumatic childhood and the ensuing destructive aftermath was the buzziest film going into the fest and for good reason. Not only disarmingly tender and visually stimulating but also profoundly cathartic. In a world where it proves difficult for men to be open and emotional about their pent-up inner demons, this proves to be quite refreshing and groundbreaking in a way. LaBeouf and Lucas Hedges deliver career-best work.

The Last Black Man in San Francisco This film is a lot of things. It’s a deeply personal look at a struggling gentrified city, a battle cry for widespread sincerity, a meditation on our connection to our surroundings and a sensitive portrait a very particular kind of platonic codependent male friendship. This is a film that immaculately tows the line between being an intimate, affectionate film and a grand, stylish visual gesture. It’s invigoratingly singular and it reminded me why I’m even in film school to begin with.

22 | Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

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Arts & Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019 | 23

what’s FRESH on HBO

Life of the Party

Tag

After her husband suddenly leaves her, Deanna (Melissa McCarthy), a longtime housewife, decides to go back to college — just in time to start freshman year with her daughter (Molly Gordon.) Once on campus, she dives in head first to the college experience: classes, cliques, frats and all.

A group of friends begins a game of tag while in high school. Now as they are well into their adult lives, the game continues 30 years later for the entire month of May. Based on a true story, as only this premise could be, this epic game crosses international lines as they try to determine an official winner after one of them considers retiring.

“Life of the Party” comes from the creative minds of Melissa McCarthy and her husband Ben Falcone. This marks the third film from the couple following “Tammy” in 2014 and “The Boss” two years later. In classic McCarthy fashion, physical comedy is highlighted along with a more poignant message underneath — one of redemption and reinvention.

While not nearly the caliber of McCarthy’s performances in “Bridesmaids” (which earned her an Oscars nomination) or later alongside Sandra Bullock in “The Heat,” her prowess as a comedic actress is undeniable and predictably enjoyable.

LACEY LATCH | THE DEPAULIA

Comprised of an all-star ensemble cast, the taggers include Jon Hamm, Ed Helms, Jeremy Renner, Nick Johnson and Hannibal Buress. Aside from the sheer insanity of a 30-year game of tag, the lengths these men will go to win rivals even the most dedicated of athletes. Tag attempts include while one of them is at the altar getting married and while one is holding his wife’s hand during childbirth. In short, nothing is off limits.

The absurdity in something so seemingly menial provides a thoroughly entertaining comedy in itself, but the real message of friends finding a reason to stay in touch after high school is salient.

LACEY LATCH | THE DEPAULIA

In theaters & upcoming films Feb. 8 “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part” Emmet, Lucy and Batman are back to defend Bricksburg from invaders from space.

Stars: Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett

Feb. 13 “Isn't It Romantic” A women wakes up after an accident to learn that she is the star of a romantic comedy in an alternate universe.

Stars: Rebel Wilson

Feb. 8 "What Men Want" After being passed over for a promotion at work, a women uses her ability to hear men's thoughts to turn the tables.

Stars: Taraji P. Henson, Tracy Morgan

Feb. 14 “Fighting With My Family” Two people who grew up in a wrestling family attempt to become World Wrestling Entertainment superstars.

Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Lena Heady

Feb. 8 “Cold Pursuit” Based on the 2014 Norwegian film 'In Order of Disappearance,' a snowplow driver seeks revenge after the death of his son.

Stars: Liam Neeson, Emmy Rossum

Feb. 22 “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” Hiccup searches for "The Hidden World," a secret dragon utopia, before a hired tyrant finds it first.

Stars: Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Kit Harington

24 | Arts &Life. The DePaulia. Feb. 11, 2019

St.Vincent’s

DeJAMZ

“Spinning fresh beats since 1581”

1 4 1

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Explore Reckless Records for these DeJamz and more

By Lacey Latch Arts & Life Editor

Everyone’s favorite rockstar, celebrity mom and mid-00s icon has officially received the recognition she deserves. Alecia Moore, better known as P!nk, was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Feb. 5. Now, her influence on a generation of radio-listeners is cemented in history forever, just as it should be. Her contributions include but are not limited to her extensive discography and her always changing, always impressive hairstyles. Even better, her newfound location on the Walk of Fame lies next to the stars of Jackie Chan and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson — not too shabby neighbors, if I do say so myself.

1. “So What” - P!nk The triumphant break-up anthem following her split from then-boyfriend-now-husband Carey Hart is the epitome of P!nk. The lead single off of her fifth album, “So What” is as much an icon as the artist herself.

I mean, it truly doesn’t get better than the repetition of “Na na na na na na na, I wanna start a fight.” It’s been a long while since she’s powerfully led a generation of people to take everything in stride and just say, “So what?”

And like the iconic hits that came before it, it’s held up to the test of time and it looks as if there’s no end in sight.

Crossword

2. “Raise Your Glass” - P!nk What’s better than watching P!nk succeed? Joining in to celebrate, of course. And that’s exactly the idea behind “Raise Your Glass,” a song she released to celebrate the 10 years of her career since her debut in 2000.

The song serves as an anthem for P!nk and her fans to look back on how far they’ve come and how far they have to go. Ten years later, two decades into her career, she and her fans can officially raise a glass to the journey they’ve taken together that led them all the way to a shiny star on a sidewalk.

Across 1. “Brian’s Song” star James 5. Come out of one’s skin 10. Selfcongratulatory 14. Radius’ comradein-arms?

15. Youngest-ever Oscar winner 16. Folkestone farewell 17. “B 5!” “C 11!”?

19. Took ___ (snoozed) 20. Downed 21. Typing type 22. Considers carefully 24. “Emma” author Austen 25. Hersey’s bell town 26. Place or site 29. Transverse beam 32. Itsy-bitsy bits 33. “In ___ trust” 34. Recipe word 35. Cravings 36. Emulate “Old

3. “Who Knew” - P!nk In the most relaxed tune of the bunch (all things considered) P!nk describes the loss of a friend.

Just hearing the opening notes rush me back to a simpler time, when the lyrics would be entirely unapplicable to my life but struck a chord in my soul regardless. In classic P!nk fashion, the chorus begs to be screamed at the top of your lungs, but the bridge and other verses allow you to take that much-needed break to catch your breath. And when you do, buckle up because there’s another chorus ahead of you.

Blue Eyes” 37. Kid’s “seat” on Santa 38. Alternative to .net 39. Less extroverted 40. TV’s “Cosmos” creator 41. Author’s explanation 43. Yuletide songs 44. Backup sounds 45. Random sampling 46. “Monkey Trial” teacher 48. Seafood choice 49. Josh 52. Door section 53. John Wayne character, larger-thanlife?

56. More than suggest 57. Recording studio alert 58. Water sport 59. Some antique autos 60. Family men 61. Bud holder

4. “Get the Party Started" P!nk After discussing it with my best friend, it was determined that I am legally, ethically and morally obligated to include this on the list. Searching through her Spotify was a pleasure in general, but the second I got to this song, things were really cookin’. You might not remember this song by the title but I assure you, the chorus will take you back to years of middle school angst and much fewer responsibilities. Remember when you didn’t have to pay bills?

Now that makes me want to get the party started more than anything.

Down 1. Island south of Florida 2. Dismounted 3. Archer or Heche 4. Endless faultfinder 5. Home of the John Deere headquarters 6. Like beverages at barbecues 7. Al Capp character 8. Fielder’s choice?

9. Trooper’s warning 10. Wood-surface applications 11. Tropical fruit dance?

12. Great Salt Lake state 13. Adjusts, as a spark plug 18. Multicolored gems 23. “___ on Down the Road” 24. Traffic tangles 25. Eagerness 26. ___ the land (how things stand) 27. Alamogordo’s

country 28. Kinshasa drum?

29. Australian bush call 30. Just right 31. Wonderlands 33. Southern breakfast dish 36. Auto despair site 37. Marx or Benz 39. Pirate’s knife 40. Town of many trials and hunts 42. Plains homes 43. Plays with crayons 45. Lecterns 46. Tim Duncan, for one 47. Kind of package 48. Cold spell 49. Nautical mile 50. Not going anywhere 51. Condemn 54. “Put __ Happy Face” 55. Photo ___ (media events)

Sports

Sports. Feb. 11 2019. The DePaulia | 25

DePaul stays in Total Control with 5-0 start By andrew hattersley Sports Editor

Before heading on the road for close to two months, DePaul (5-0) kicked off its season at the Total Control Sports Invitational at Rosemont, Illinois. with five wins over three days.

The weekend started with a 5-4 victory over Green Bay on Friday afternoon.

Saturday’s rematch was a different story as the Blue Demons scored early and often in a 10-1 win over the Phoenix.

DePaul was tested again Saturday afternoon in its second game, when they narrowly held off a late rally by UMKC to win 2-1 after sophomore pitcher Natalie Halvorson entered with the tying runner on third base and just one out, only to record the final five outs and preserve the victory. New DePaul head coach Tracie Adix-Zins said she has been proud of the progress her team made in just a couple days.

“We're learning as each game is going on,” Adix-Zins said. “[Friday], our first game, we started out a little rough in terms of just offense and then we didn't take care of the ball as well as we could have, but you keep seeing them continue to make adjustments from game to game with just their offense, defense and even pitching.”

After a throwing seven innings and giving up just one run a few hours earlier, Halvorson and Adix-Zins both said the key to entering in relief of Dalgarn, who pitched well in her own right allowing just one run over 6 ⅓ innings, was more about being ready mentally than physically.

“Going to be honest, it was kind of a whirlwind. I knew I was there for Krista; she needed me so I stepped up. But my defense was there behind me. I trusted them if something was going to get put in play,” Halvorson said. “You have to stay mentally

NEW ERA, continued from back page assistant coaching positions later in the summer.

DePaul was picked fourth in the 2019 Big East Softball Preseason Coaches’ Poll. Though some players might have that ranking in the back of their heads, Adix-Zins is not worried about it.

“I think DePaul always puts themselves in a position to fight for the championship, just because we have that mentality,” Adix-Zins said. “It’s a new conference, to be completely honest. There’s been a lot of changes between teams of losing players, of graduating players or bringing new players in.”

Perhaps one of the biggest things that Adix-Zins learned from Lenti was how much value the program places on being close-knit.

“DePaul is a family,” Adix-Zins said.

“Just kind of building that family atmosphere where family comes first so we take care of that. But also, getting the team to realize that they are our family. Like they’re our family when we’re not with our own families.”

While Adix-Zins seeks to continue Lenti’s tradition of competitiveness, her coaching style is different, so the players have had to adjust this year. Senior infielder Alysia Rodriguez mentioned that infield, hitting and pitching drills are starting to come together.

“She just brings more of a chill vibe, so we kind of had to adjust to that especially when we make an error or something,” said senior

JONATHAN AGUILAR | THE DEPAULIA

DePaul outfielders Kate Polucha (left), Angela Scalzitti (center) and Brianna Viles (right) celebrate DePaul's win over Green Bay. ready all game. Obviously there are only two of us, so we know that any point your number could be called, so it's just knowing that I have to be ready at any point.”

While the Blue Demons mustered just two runs against UMKC, they scored 27 runs over the course of the weekend, far surpassing the 18 total runs they scored in four games in the same tournament last year.

Notably, DePaul has done much of their work without the service of the home run ball. Maranda Gutierrez did hit a long home run left field during the Blue Demons’ victory over Green Bay on Saturday, but the other nine runs all came off base hits.

“I think the smaller hits are adding up together and getting us the runs we need,” infielder Alysia Rodriguez. “(Lenti) isn't there to yell at us, so we have to get back and go on our own so I think in the fall it was hard to adjust but now that we've had a few months I feel really comfortable with her as a coach.”

Being a former pitcher, Adix-Zins places a strong emphasis on fundamentals. From working on how to properly throw a softball to retooling batting stances, players have already begun to take in the revised wave of culture that Adix-Zins has brought.

“Our practices are super fundamental,” said freshman utility player Taylor Young.

“This fall I was actually injured, so just sitting and watching everyone come together from our first practice to now we've grown so much together as a team and you can see that girls have improved so much from day one to now and our fall season the longer we played together the better we were.”

That being said, Adix-Zins has set a precedent since she came in that everyone’s position, regardless of seniority, can be up for grabs at any time throughout the season.

“I think the biggest thing any athlete has to understand on a team is nobody’s guaranteed anything,” Adix-Zins said. “So having the constant competition within drills or just within their teammates continually helps everyone get better.”

This season, DePaul faces an uphill battle of competing with just two pitchers on the mound following Kennedy Garcia’s graduation last summer and both Missy Zoch and Pat Moore transferring. Junior Krista Dalgarn and sophomore transfer

senior Alysia Rodriguez said. “So if everyone just does their job, those big hits will come later, but right now I think we're just doing a good job of fighting through each inning.”

Adix-Zins said she was also happy with the fight and discipline her team showed throughout the weekend.

“We haven't struck out a whole lot, which is nice,” Adix-Zins said. “They are being conscious of what they're swinging at and trying to put the ball in play and make pitchers work. But they've definitely shown that they're going to continue to fight and get better each game.”

While noting the Blue Demons are not likely to be a big home-run hitting team, Adix-Zins said that moving forward, being

able to move runners over will be important and getting timely hits will be an important key for DePaul.

“I don't think we're going to be a home run hitting team,” Adix-Zins said. “If it happens it's great, but I don't want us to be that type of team that tries to live and die on the long ball.

It's definitely nice that we're manufacturing a lot of runs putting some bunts out there. We haven't done much in terms of stealing right now but everyone seems to be getting those clutch hits to move the runners.”

After a couple much-needed days off after playing double-headers on both Friday and Saturday, the Blue Demons are back in action Friday in the Samford Tournament, where they will take on Eastern Illinois.

JONATHAN AGUILAR | THE DEPAULIA

DePaul head coach Tracie Adix-Zins (left), Krista Dalgarn (front) and catcher Jessica Cothern discuss the most recent inning during DePaul's 2-1 win over UMKC. Natalie Halvorson are going to be the team’s primary aces.

The coaching staff will have a better judgment as to how many days both pitchers are going to have off and how much they are going to throw between tournaments after DePaul’s first couple of games.

“Obviously I want to throw well, it is only me and Krista this year so we both have to perform well,” Halvorson said. “From the getgo we've tried to set our standards high.”

Adix-Zins stressed that DePaul is going to have to limit streaky outings with hitting and limit big innings with pitching in order

to win the Big East Championship for a third consecutive year. Adix-Zins also added that DePaul’s offense is going to have to be more aware of where the team is on the mound to help support it. “[Dalgarn and Halvorson] really took it to heart of understanding they’re kind of what we got this year,” Adix-Zins said. “So they did everything that they needed to do over break in terms of strength and conditioning, athletic training and just training for pitching that I think we’ll be okay. We just gotta manage them.

26 | Sports. Feb. 11, 2019. The DePaulia

DePaul finishes off season sweep of Georgetown

By Lawrence Kreymer Asst. Sports Editor

Playing in their last game of the season at McGrath-Phillips Arena, DePaul (17-7; 8-4 Big East) hosted Georgetown (1113; 5-8 Big East) and was able to cap off another impressive season at McGrathPhillips with a 76-71 win on Sunday afternoon.

The Blue Demons were coming into the game against the Hoyas with a win over Villanova on Friday night, 93-70, where senior forward Mart’e Grays had a career night, scoring 31 points on 12-13 shooting and 4-5 from the 3-point line.

For Grays and DePaul to follow up that strong performance was always going to be a tall task, but the Blue Demons were able to put together another complete game for their eighth conference win of the season.

“Make a layup,” DePaul head coach Doug Bruno said after the game. “If we make a layup this game is a really different basketball game. The person sitting to my left, Mart’e Grays, has 31 the other night and then when the game starts tonight a couple of point blank [misses]. We just have got to get better at focusing and finishing our point blank two’s.”

Early on in the game DePaul carried over their hot shooting shooting from Friday night, starting the game 5-9 from the field and 4-6 from the 3-point line, while jumping out to a 14-10 lead.

However, Georgetown was able to shake off any early rust that they had coming from their Friday night loss to Marquette, and started going toe-for-toe with the Blue Demons. The Hoyas ended the first quarter on a 16-5 run and took a 26-19 lead into the second quarter.

“I’m proud of our team to have the resiliency to be up nine in the second half and to give away that lead, I guess you could say Georgetown took the lead from us,” Bruno said. “Have the toughness down the stretch to finish the game. I’m proud of what everyone here has done.”

That didn’t matter, though, as the Blue Demons quickly took back their lead by shutting down the Hoyas offense, limiting them to only nine points quarter on 4-13 shooting and 1-4 from the 3-point line. On offense, junior forward Chante Stonewall scored 10 of the team’s 19 points in the quarter on 4-7 shooting from the field and had 15 points in the first half. The Blue Demons also were able to get in transition because of their stellar defensive effort in the second quarter and get easy looks inside.

“Just trying to be aggressive and get our team going,” Stonewall said. “They were guarding us really tight and they switched on a lot of screens. So, just trying to find the slips and find myself available.”

DePaul senior guard Rebekah Dahlman was one of the players who helped spark the fast break for the Blue Demons, not only just in the second quarter, but the in the second half as well.

Dahlman, only finished with seven points on 2-6 shooting, but still contributed with eight rebounds and two assists to help out her team pull out a win.

For DePaul, while they were able to come away with the win, they still had to hold off an eager Wildcats squad whos 1-10 in their last 11 games against the Blue Demons. However, DePaul was able to extend their lead to eight after the third quarter, thanks to Grays going off for eight points in the quarter on 4-4 shooting.

Grays struggled early on to score after she scored 31 points in the previous game;

ALEXA SANDLER | THE DEPAULIA

DePaul forward Mart'e Grays attempts a free throw during DePaul's victory over Villanova Friday night at McGrath-Phillips Arena. she started Sunday’s game 0-4 from the field and picked up two early fouls, which only limited her to eight minutes of action in the first half. She wasn’t going to let one bad half of basketball deter her from regaining her confidence and ended up scoring 18 points on 8-12 shooting and 2-3 from the 3-point line.

“Just like I said in the last press conference it’s all about focus, and I was clearly not focused in the first half missing like coach Bruno said point blank layups,” Grays said. “But later on you just got to move on, we will forgive each other. I just stayed in the moment and finish my next layups. That’s all.”

Even with Grays playing at such a high level and DePaul taking an eight-point lead into the final quarter, that didn’t stop Georgetown from putting together a run to get back in the game. The Hoyas kept fighting the entire quarter, making the Blue Demons uncomfortable on offense and on the other end making tough shots after tough shots to cut into the lead.

Georgetown was able to tie the game at 67 with 1:48 left in the fourth quarter.

Thanks to the play of freshman Lexi Held, she scored four straight points when the Blue Demons badly needed someone to step up and provide some offense. Up until that point DePaul only scored eight points in the quarter and were in danger of letting the game slip away from them, but Held stepped up when her team needed her to. She finished the game with 11 points on 3-6 shooting and 4-4 from the free-throw line.

“Lexi Held did a very good job down the stretch as a freshman,” Bruno said.

“We had her in the game at crunch time, so everybody went in together and I’m really proud of the win.”

DePaul will be back in action next week on the road against Seton Hall and St. John’s. The Blue Demons have defeated both of these teams already once this season at home.

Sports. Feb. 11, 2019 The DePaulia | 27 XAVIER, continued from back page there on bodies on both the outside and on the inside. I thought that was what opened up our offense, quite honestly, because then we played a lot freer offensively.”

It’s the second straight game DePaul has gone on a late run that once again proved to be the turning point. Last Saturday against Providence, DePaul led 57-55 with 3:15 left to play, and it was really anyone’s game to win, but the Blue Demons stepped forward with a 10-0 run to close the game and win 67-57.

A week later, DePaul put on a similar display, finishing the game on a 21-5 run over the last 5:28 and won another game that could have gone either way.

“Overall, just extremely happy, in this league to go on the road and win,” Leitao said. “As I said, a venue very difficult for anybody to come in here and be successful at.

The second game in a row that hung in the balance and we finished with a flurry. We did that against Providence last week and we did that again tonight.”

While the final stat line suggests DePaul enjoyed a good shooting night, going 28-62 from the field, it didn’t look like it was going to be that way in the beginning minutes. Both teams started 2-22 from the field and 0-5 from the 3-point line. With nearly 10 minutes gone in the first half, the score was just 5-5.

However, the final 10 minutes of the half saw both teams start to find an offensive rhythm.

For the Blue Demons it was their usual duo who came through again after halftime in sophomore forward Paul Reed and senior Femi Olujobi, who combined for 18 of the team’s 30 points in the second half. Reed and Olujobi both finished the game with 15 points each and 17 total rebounds between the two of them.

The Blue Demons also did a great job of creating fast break points for themselves, getting 14 in the game while Xavier could muster just two. DePaul also used their size to its advantage, securing 14 offensive rebounds, which led to 18 second-chance points for the Blue Demons.

BIG EAST, continued from back page strategic things that go on in everyone else’s gym that you got to be prepared for,” Leitao said. “There's a lot of skill, there's a lot of talent and then teams make a lot of adjustments so you got to be on your toes as a coach. From a coaching standpoint it's really exciting.”

Despite being 5-6 in league play this season, DePaul has improved on both sides of the court averaging 75.9 points per game this season, which is more than four points better than last year. Defensively, DePaul has given up just 72 points per game, also an improvement over last year.

According to Leitao, a lot of this has to do with an increased amount of talent led by the growth of Paul Reed, who’s averaging 11.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, as well as, graduate transfer Femi Olujobi, 13.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. This has allowed the team to have a better mindset offensively, as well as better movement. On defense, the whole group has also had better attention to detail than past seasons, he said.

“It's allowed me as a coach each day that I walk into the gym to really be encouraged,” Leitao said. “One, I really like these guys and they want to play well together and they want to do the same things that everybody wants to do so it's kept me encouraged but there's just progress you can see.”

For Reed, his growth has been especially notable and he said it starts with simply enjoying himself more on the court.

“The biggest thing I learned is you got to have fun with it,” Reed said. “You

JOHN MINCHILLO | AP

DePaul senior Max Strus drives to the rim against Xavier's Quentin Goodin and Tyrique Jones during DePaul's win Saturday night.

When these two teams met for the first time this season on Dec. 29 to open conference play, it was Xavier who went on a 19-4 run late in the game to win, 74-65.

However, with the Blue Demons being able to get their revenge on Saturday, that snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Musketeers and was DePaul’s first win in Cincinnati.

“Congratulations to DePaul,” Xavier head coach Travis Steele said. “I thought they play a really good game, obviously deserved the

win. I told our guys after the game, I thought we had a lot of carry over from practice as defense went, probably our best defensive effort we have had in the Big East play so far.”

Late in the game, Xavier had five costly turnovers that led to easy transition points for DePaul and something the Blue Demons can build off for the future. In the last two games, it has been their defense late in games that has caused Providence and Xavier to play out of control and allow DePaul to swing the

momentum.

“We had a couple of turnovers in a row; that’s what got them going,” Xavier forward Paul Scruggs said after the game, regarding the effect the turnovers had.

The Blue Demons’ 13 wins this season are also the most since the 2014-2015 season.

DePaul will be back in action against Marquette at Wintrust Arena on Tuesday.

The Blue Demons currently sit tied for third in the Big East at 5-6.

Big East wins/losses through 100 games in new Big East

ANNALISA BARANOWSKI | THE DEPAULIA

can't just go out there with the mindset of playing for the coach you just got to have fun with it.”

The Blue Demons have also been better this season at avoiding losing streaks. After losing three games in a row four times last season during the regular season, the Blue Demons have only had one such streak this season, which they snapped Saturday with a win over Providence. For Cain, that big win followed a team meeting senior guard described Max Strus as the moment the Blue Demons said six conferences losses were already too many and it was time to go.

“It was big, it was really big,” Cain said. “No night in the Big East is an off day, no team has an off day like you said [Wednesday night] Villanova was No. 1 and they went to OT with Creighton so it's no off-night in the Big East. You got to bring your game every night and you can

lose three, you can lose seven in a row. It was really big to snap that losing streak and get back on the right track and winning.”

The journey for Cain has been a rewarding one so far after the Blue Demons won no more than four conference games each of the last three seasons.

“It's really fun being that this is my last go-around it's what we worked for,” Cain said. “It's what me and coach and everybody has been around for four years had envisioned that some day it was going to happen and right now it's just our opportunity. We're playing pretty well right now sitting in the middle of the pack and we just got to keep pushing and win those close games and do what we believe we can do.”

Down the stretch, DePaul is looking to finish strong and at least match or surpass their six-win mark that remains their high point since joining the new Big East. Leitao

compared this stretch run for DePaul to a golf tournament looking to make their run in a crowded conference.

“This time of year in golf you call it moving day and February you start to determine what's what and who's who,” Leitao said. “You don't want to keep exchanging wins for losses, you want to kind of get some rhythm and the way you do that is to one, keep your guys fresh so you're not practicing as long but yet you are practicing equally as hard. They got to stay fresh mentally and stay encouraged through highs and lows and so I think the team that does that will continue to emerge.”

That challenge continues with a home game against Marquette, who currently sit in second place in the conference but another of those teams who sits under .500 since the new Big East formed.

Sports

Sports. Feb. 11 2019. The DePaulia | 28

Lessons learned for DePaul in first 100 games of new Big East

By Andrew Hattersley Sports Editor

Villanova’s overtime win against Creighton Wednesday night not only helped the Wildcats open up a twogame lead atop the Big East standings, but also meant each team had played 100 games in the Big East since realignment prior to the 2013-2014 season.

Coming as no surprise, Villanova has dominated the league by compiling a conference record of 87-13 and two national championships in that time period. On the other end of the spectrum, DePaul sits just 22-78 since the new Big East formed featuring 10 teams that now include Butler, Xavier and Creighton that replaced Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Notre Dame, Connecticut, Rutgers and South Florida.

After former head coach Oliver Purnell won just nine conference games in DePaul’s first two seasons in the league, in stepped Dave Leitao for his second stint with the Blue Demons.

It has been tough sledding for DePaul, which have accumulated a record of 14-51 in conference play following their win over Xavier Saturday night.

In those 65 games, Leitao said the league reminds him of his first stint with DePaul, that lasted for three seasons from 2002-2005, in which every night brought a new challenge — home or away.

“The high level of games that we play,” Leitao said. “The competitive nature of the games we play which reminds me a lot, there’s different teams, so it’s not 100 percent the same [but] it’s the Big East that I was always a part of. Knowing that if you walk into somebody else’s gym you’re taking your life into your own hands because it’s very difficult to win on the road and you’re getting some high-quality coaching, as well as, some high quality players.”

Senior guard, Eli Cain, who arrived at DePaul at the same time as Leitao also pointed to the competition of the league as one of the biggest things he’s learned over his four years.

“I always say this is, if not the most competitive, one of the most competitive leagues in the country,” Cain said. “Every year we have at least four to seven teams make it to the NCAA Tournament, NBA guys, actual teams, it’s not like a league where we just have good players on just bad teams, we have national championship teams, it’s one of the most versatile leagues in the country.”

This challenge of slowing down star players has included the likes of Kris Dunn, Henry Ellenson, Justin Patton, Josh Hart, Mikial Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVencenzo and Omari Spellman, who were all drafted following their playing days. The mix of talented coaches and players is something Leitao said he’s told other coaches is type of thing that keeps you up late at night preparing for these many matchups.

“There’s a lot of really good

See BIG EAST, page 27

JOHN MINCHILLO | AP

DePaul senior guard Eli Cain celebrates while Naji Marshall hangs his head during DePaul’s victory over Xavier Saturday night.

DePaul uses late run to snap streak against Xavier

By Lawrence Kreymer Asst. Sports Editor

Never before had DePaul walked into Cincinnati or the Cintas Center and came back out with a victory.

That changed Saturday night, when DePaul closed out the game on a 31-11 run over the final 10 minutes and pulled away from Xavier for a 74-62 victory giving them five wins in the Big East with seven games left. That marks the highest Big East win total since they won six games during the 2014-2015 season.

With 10:47 left in the second half, DePaul (13-9; 5-6 Big East) trailed Xavier

(11-13; 3-8 Big East) by eight, 51-43. It was the third time in the half the Blue Demons were down by also eight. The next trip down the floor, senior guard Max Strus knocked down a jumper for his seventh point in the game and cut the deficit to six at 5145. That jumper not only sparked Strus, but also sparked the rest of his teammates who would go on a massive run to close the game.

A game that was hanging in the balance for the majority of the game suddenly was in DePaul’s hands down the stretch, and it started once again with their work defensively.

“Our teams thus far, we will see what

happens going forward, has been resilient on the road,” head coach Dave Leitao said after the game. “We haven’t always played well or pretty, but we have been pretty resilient. We went back-and-forth with them for the first half. Marshall got free, he’s a tremendous player, he’s big, strong, can shoot it, put it on the floor and he hurt us from both the 3-point land and driving to the basket. Our defense loosened up [in the second half] a little less than I would have wanted to; we talked about it each timeout.

Then at that six-minute mark we started to go over screens, more tight, we were getting

See XAVIER, page 27

New Era: Tracie Adix-Zins begins first season at DePaul

By Evan Sully Staff Writer

For the first time in 37 years, DePaul softball is under different leadership at the top with its new head coach Tracie AdixZins.

After former head coach Eugene Lenti, the brother of Athletic Director Jean Lenti Ponsetto, suddenly retired in June 2018, Adix-Zins was hired to lead the softball program. Adix-Zins is a former student athlete and All-American pitcher at DePaul and played under Lenti.

As a player, Adix-Zins led DePaul to the 2007 Women’s College World Series with a 22-4 record as a senior that included a 10-0 record against Big East opponents.

Furthermore, Adix-Zins finished the 2007 season with a 0.89 ERA, which was the fifth-best among Division I pitchers. She also threw 10 complete shutout games while striking out 168 batters en route to earning Big East Pitcher of the Year and a second team NFCA All-American honors.

Before returning to DePaul, Adix-Zins served as an assistant coach at University of Wisconsin, Oklahoma State and North Carolina State. While at Wisconsin from 2010 to 2014, Adix-Zins compiled a 14475 record in what was the program’s first Big 10 Tournament title in 2013 and first NCAA Regional appearance since 2005.

Adix-Zins has big shoes to fill. Lenti had a successful tenure at DePaul, racking

JONATHAN AGUILAR | THE DEPAULIA

DePaul’s newest addition Carte’Are Gordon was in attendance for DePaul’s game against Butler Wednesday night. Gordon announced his commitment on Jan. 15. up over 1,300 wins, a milestone he achieved athlete just from the standpoint of there’s a last season. By doing so, Lenti transformed lot of similar people here, so it hasn’t really DePaul into one of the top softball programs been that big of a transition.” in the Big East Conference. Namely, DePaul Adix-Zins credits her seniors and other captured four Big East Tournament titles in upperclassmen on the team for making 2008, 2014, 2017 and 2018. Last season, her transition smooth. In addition to Lenti DePaul finished with a 35-17 record and exiting, two assistant coaches, Lindsey Platt went 15-3 in conference play. and Lynsey Ciezki, left alongside him. Joe “It’s been good,” Adix-Zins said when Yegge and Amanda Buchholz filled both asked about her transition as head coach.

See NEW ERA, page 25 “It’s the same as when I was a student-