November 4, 2015

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Back in the water

Researchers design DART protein

Duke investigators hope the protein could one day cure HIV | Page 2

After surgery to remove her pancreas, Kiera Molloy is back in Duke’s lineup | Sports Page 4

The Chronicle T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM

ONE HUNDRED AND ELEVENTH YEAR, ISSUE 44

‘You never escape it’

ACIR advises

Panel discusses experiences with racism on campus

non-disclosure of Duke investments Neelesh Moorthy The Chronicle

Carolyn Chang | The Chronicle Several members of the Duke community gathered Tuesday to talk about the challenges faced by minorities at the University.

Kenrick Cai The Chronicle A panel of Duke community members illustrated the daunting day-to-day work and social environment navigated by black and Latino people on campus at an event Tuesday night. Lambda Upsilon Lambda and Alpha Phi Alpha fraternities jointly hosted “Salt of the Earth­ –A Conversation on Brown and Black Labor at Duke” at the Divinity School. Moderated by Sean Palmer, assistant director of the Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture, the panel featured a group of six black and Latino individuals representing different areas of Duke. Participants emphasized the challenges they face on campus to a crowd of more than 50 people. “In terms of credibility being questioned and having to prove yourself, that happens every day,” said Adrienne StiffRoberts, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering. “It never goes away. It never stops.” The panelists agreed that members of minority communities at feel a deep-

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rooted stigma from their peers on and off campus. When Palmer asked the panel to address an old alumni quote that “going to Duke as a black person is like going to dinner at a plantation,” panelists admitted that the notion could not be dismissed. “I think there’s a lack of respect for each other all the way across the board,” said Wallace Burrows, lead food service worker at Marketplace. “You can’t change people, but you can change yourself.” Antonio Viego, associate professor of literature and and romance studies and director of undergraduate studies, suggested that some students are unknowingly influenced by underlying racial sense of racism exhibited by some students. “In my intro to Latino studies course, I’ve had four papers that I would describe as pretty racist,” he said. “It’s taken me two days just to write the comments for one paper because I’m trying to do it in such a way that you let the person know that this is really a mess and this is really dangerous and you can’t talk like this anymore.” Housekeeper specialist Rosa Varela explained that despite Duke being the best environment she has worked in, it is inevitable that “some students don’t like several

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people, like Hispanic people.” The main remedy to the unspoken discrimination, the panelists agreed, is to understand the present social climate and to pick the battles to fight. “If you confront every single slight, number one, you will find your progress impeded and number two, you will drive yourself crazy,” Stiff-Roberts said. “Sometimes you have to learn to just let it go.” Senior bus driver Jose Valencia expressed his positive experiences working at Duke. He alluded to the racial stereotypes Latinos face but felt that the University was a comparatively open environment. “As a Latino, it gives me the opportunity to express myself and prove them wrong to show that Latinos are really hard-working people,” he said. “When we get the opportunity, we want to take advantage of it.” Despite the underlying discrimination black and Latino communities feel on campus, panelist Morgan Ramsey, a senior, said that minority students need to check their own privilege. She argued See LABOR on Page 3

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Duke’s Advisory Committee on Investment Responsibility recently recommended that the University not disclose the contents of its endowment’s investment portfolio. In a Sept. 21 letter from James Cox, Brainerd Currie professor of law and ACIR chair, to President Richard Brodhead, the committee responded to the now-defunct student group DukeOpen’s request for greater endowment transparency. ACIR cautioned against the “broad disclosure of the endowment’s investment holdings” due to the potential adverse effects of “reducing competitive advantages and jeopardizing existing relations with advisors.” Students, however, are not convinced that the committee’s decision stands up to scrutiny. “We should be hugely suspicious of any efforts to stack the deck against the ability of the community to engage in its self-governance,” said Bobo BoseKolanu, the founder of DukeOpen and a fourth-year graduate student in literature. In 2004, the University’s Board of See INVESTMENTS on Page 3

Special to The Chronicle James Cox, chair of the Advisory Committee on Investment Responsiblity, explained in a letter why Duke should maintain nondisclosure.

@dukechronicle

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© 2015 The Chronicle


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November 4, 2015 by Duke Chronicle - Issuu