October 7, 2020

The Emory Wheel Since 1919

Emory University’s Independent Student Newspaper

Volume 101, Issue 8

Slow Progress on CBOC Demands

By Musa Ya-Sin and Matthew Chupack Staff Writer and Contributing Writer Nearly two months after Emory committed to advance racial justice in response to demands from the Coalition of Black Organizations and Clubs (CBOC), the University has made some progress toward realizing the initiatives promised by President Gregory L. Fenves in an Aug. 13 letter to the community.

In June, CBOC released a list of demands for the University to address its culpability in upholding anti-Blackness.

CBOC’s demands respond to earlier statements from Interim Provost Jan Love and former-University President Claire E. Sterk about the nation’s racial reckoning in March.

“Though the sentiments of these expressions are laudable and heartfelt, these immaterial affirmations of allyship and ‘empathy’ are insufficient to the task of addressing material antiblackness,” the demands read. “There is no remedy to the historical experience of racial trauma.”

CBOC urged administrators to rename University property memorializing Confederate slave holders, disarm and defund the Emory Police Department (EPD), provide faculty

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

diversity and sensitivity training and protect Black affinity spaces. CBOC has met with Fenves, the chief diversity officer and other administrators every month to discuss progress toward their demands.

Fenves’ Aug. 13 letter outlined eight specific initiatives to address racial inequities at Emory, some of which included assessing the EPD’s relationship with the Emory community, renovating affinity spaces, evaluating campus buildings dedicated to slave owners, implementing a race and ethnicity general education requirement (GER) and hiring a director of diversity and inclusion.

Vice President of Academic Communications Nancy Seideman wrote in a Sept. 24 email to the Wheel that no major updates are currently available regarding the University’s progress toward these initiatives.

Though CBOC leaders appreciate the University’s willingness to have these conversations, they remain concerned about the University’s lack of a definitive timeline for implementing these initiatives.

The University’s Progress Fenves’ letter said that Justice and Sustainability Associates (JSA),

See BUILDING, Page 4

Courtesy of Emory Photo

James T. and Berta R. Laney Professor in Moral Leadership Robert Franklin will contest a runoff election on Dec. 1 against former Atlanta City Council member Kwanza Hall.

Franklin Advances to Runoff

By Sarah Davis Contributing Writer

Former Atlanta City Council member Kwanza Hall and Emory theology professor Robert Franklin will advance to a runoff election for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District on Dec. 1, after none of the six candidates in the Sept. 29 special election received a majority vote. The winner of the runoff will spend a total of 33 days in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Hall received 32.3% of the vote and Franklin, the James T. and Berta R. Laney professor in moral leadership at the Candler School of Theology,

received 28.1% of the vote.

Both Franklin and Hall have ties to the late congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis, whose seat they hope to fill. To Franklin, Lewis served as an “intellectual equal” with whom he often engaged in long political discussions in Lewis’ Washington D.C. office.

Lewis was Hall’s next-door neighbor, long-time friend and “source of inspiration” to be active in politics.

“We had a long true standing relationship,” Hall said of Lewis. “He’s known me since I’ve been born. We worked on projects together of personal significance to him.”

One such project Hall aims to

By Claire Fenton Contributing Writer

Isaiah Poritz/Executive Editor

The Woodruff P.E. Center has transformed into one of two COVID-19 testing sites on Emory's Atlanta campus. On-campus residents must be tested weekly.

Sophomore Advisors Demand Pay With COVID-19 campus guidelines escalating student staff stress this year, Sophomore Advisors (SAs) are requesting compensation from the University.

Unlike Resident Advisors (RAs), who are compensated with $8,984 in housing, a $1,500 stipend and two credit hours for a training course, SAs are volunteers. SA benefits include early residence hall check-in, a movein T-shirt, training meals, leadership

NEWS

Community Remembers Prof. Lilienfeld ...

PAGE 3 P

See HALL, Page 3

Off-Campus Freshmen Endure Social Isolation

COVID-19 TESTING

By Caelan Bailey Contributing Writer

continue is the Prince Mason’s Building Project, which extends the national historic district to include the Southern Leadership Christian Congress (SLCC)’s former headquarters where Martin Luther King Jr. and Lewis worked. The SLCC played an integral part in the Civil Rights movement, beginning around the time of the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

On Monday, Lewis’ son John-Miles Lewis endorsed Hall to fill his father’s seat. He cited his father’s long history with Hall as his reason and called Hall “the perfect candidate to maintain his

With nearly a quarter of Emory and Oxford College’s Class of 2024 living away from campus this semester, they have had a far from conventional start to their college experiences. Online coursework has presented its own challenges, but for those students living at home, establishing personal connections with peers has been daunting and at times impossible.

Off-campus first-years describe living in a social purgatory: they don’t belong to their hometown circles anymore and can’t fully integrate into an online Emory community. Zoom calls end with the click of a button, eliminating the natural downtime in between classes where students get to casually interact.

“I wish I could talk to my classmates more,” Maya Joseph (24C), a Brooklyn native said. “In real life, you might happen to wear something and talk about liking the same brand or liking the same shows or something like that.

That’s hard to achieve online because you’re either in class or doing something [academic], so it’s hard to gauge people’s personalities.”

Some students who decided to remain at home cited the financial benefits of doing so, as Emory’s hous-

ing fee totals over $18,000 for the academic year.

Shiyeon Kim (24C), from Corpus Christi, Texas, said that the University’s decision in July was the deciding factor for her, especially since the change meant a large reduction in the number of in-person classes and increased restrictions on students’ freedom to explore the campus.

“My parents weren’t sure if going all the way to Atlanta would be worth it with the tuition, room and board fees and everything, so they just decided I should stay, ” Kim said.

Joju Olojede (24C), who decided to remain at home in McKinney, Texas, echoed Kim’s sentiments.

She too did not see many benefits of returning to a restricted campus environment.

“I feel like sometimes people forget about us,” Olojede said. “Everything is so limited on campus. I just thought for my safety, and since I’m not getting a full college experience, it would make sense to stay home.”

While living at home can have its perks – Olojede likes having her parents as an immediate support system, and Kim now has more time to focus on hobbies, especially cooking – connecting with others, both inside and outside of Emory, remains challenging.

Engagement depends on interpersonal connection, which Pittsburgh

experience and “new friends and fun,” according to the position description.

Students can apply to be an SA halfway through their freshman year.

If accepted, SAs complete staff training before starting the school year.

SAs are not required to be available for residents during certain time periods, patrol the building during designated rounds or file incident reports, all of which are tasks required by RAs. SAs do coordinate floor community building programs and mentor their be first-year residents.

SA Michael Bole (23C) first voiced

his request for compensation at a Sept.

16 town hall organized by Residence Life staff.

“It’s a weird conflict between wanting to do something that you genuinely are passionate for —helping others, being engaged in the community, trying to help people with their first-year experience — [but] also feeling like your work [should be] compensated,” Bole said.

While he said the “sentiment of the SA position is one that should be paid,”

EDITORIAL

A&E Atlanta Film EMORY LIFE SPORTS Stadiums to Festival Highlights Student Activists Uplift Transform into Election Resilience ...

PAGE 7 Biracial Voices ...

PAGE 9 Super Centers ... Back Page

Compensate Sophomore Advisors Now ...

PAGE 5

See SAs, Page 2

See STUDENTS, Page 3

2

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

The Emory Wheel

COVID-19 Cases Increase Across Campus

By Vrushali Thakkar Contributing Writer The Latest Cases

Emory reported 15 new cases in the since Sept. 26, up from nine new cases the week before. Of the new cases, 12 were reported on campus, the greatest weekly increase in on-campus cases since the semester began. Seven cases were found in separate undergraduate residential halls. Five of the new cases were staff members and nine were students.

University officials have noticed the uptick but have not found a connection between cases yet, Executive Director of Emory Student Health Services Sharon Rabinovitz said. The University is expanding its communication to on-campus students that weekly testing is mandatory.

“We are trying to maximize the tests available because they are not all utilized at this point,” Rabinovitz said.

“In the case that we have to [acquire] more, we can do that in the case of a cluster investigation.”

The University will continue to monitor the new cases. No single threshold of new cases will determine if the University will change its operating conditions, however.

The Oxford campus has experienced an uptick of three positive cases in the last week. The campus processes cases in a similar fashion to Atlanta campus and students are tested on a weekly basis.

“Oxford has done a tremendous job in response this past week … hopefully we caught this uptick early and there won’t be any impact of it,” Rabinovitz said.

Harris Hall residents were informed of a positive COVID-19 finding as a part of the University’s testing of wastewater according to an Oct. 2 email to residents. Individual student testing has not resulted in any positives to date, according to the email.

High-touch areas are being cleaned more often than before. In the event of a positive diagnosis, the Health Services and Building & Residential Services are contacted immediately to treat common spaces.

Operating Status The University’s response to the virus is categorized by the Operating Condition Status, a framework to evaluate risk via visual communication that informs people about current COVID-19 conditions. The system was created by the Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response (CEPAR)

and uses a conglomeration of public health factors, including community spread, worker attrition and resources for tracing, to determine Emory’s current risk level.

The University has operated under the “Orange” status since Sept. 18, which indicates that the prevalence of COVID-19 transmission is elevated or trending unfavorably, with significant prevention policies in place and few people permitted in public areas on

campus.

Differences in status level impact gatherings and the likelihood of inperson classes.

“Right now we are less than 10 people with face coverings and time limits,” Rabinovitz added. Moving to the “Yellow” level would permit moderate density environments and easing of facility restrictions.

The status is evaluated by CEPAR every few weeks as trends change.

Flu Vaccine and COVID Testing Emory’s current flu vaccine campaign has provided free vaccines to 1,020 students in September. The vaccine is available for students from now to Oct. 6 after completing their COVID-19 test at the Woodruff Physical Education Center, and from Oct. 8 to 21 for students being tested at the Emory Conference Center Hotel.

From Oct. 12 to Nov. 20 students can make an appointment with Student Health Services to receive a vaccine.

“I think we can’t underestimate the impact that flu could have in the context of the pandemic,” Rabinovitz said, adding that getting vaccinated benefits “individuals as well as the health care system.”

— Contact Vrushali Thakkar at vcthakk@emory.edu

SAs Detail Greater Workload, Responsibilities Continued from Page 1 he credited the town hall as a welcome avenue to voice his “biggest concern at the time.”

The Sept. 16 town hall occurred over Zoom and organized by Residence Life, with Senior Director Scott Rausch present along with all complex directors, for students and student staff to voice general housing concerns.

Residence Life held another forum on Sept. 30 to facilitate further discussion about SA compensation to be reviewed by the Residence Life Selection Team, according to Vice President of Academic Communications Nancy Seideman.

Seideman also told the Wheel in a Sept. 28 email that the SA position “was originally designed as a volunteer position that would allow sophomores to give back to first-year communities” and “has always been a volunteer mentor and programmer position.”

Rausch met with Bole individually on Sept. 29 to discuss SA requests for compensation, and according to Bole, Rausch said the SA role “started out as more of a lenient position but has come to take on more responsibility over the years.”

Bole felt that Rausch was “on the same page about a lot of things,” including a “forward direction” toward compensating the position, although Rausch did not review any specific form of compensation.

Rausch was unavailable for comment by press time.

Praneeth Kolli (23C) told the Wheel that being an SA is “so much more than a volunteer position.”

“Residents will call me at like 11 p.m., and say, ‘Hey, I’m freaking out about this club application; what do I do?’” Kolli said. “I’ll gladly help them.

But at the same time, that’s not a typical volunteer position. I’m busy; I have

my own work to do. It’s not necessarily a 24/7 job, but I’m living with the people I volunteer for 24/7.”

All the SAs that spoke to the Wheel pointed to the impact of their own SAs in their first-year transition as motiva-

“Because of this unpaid time commitment, not everyone that wants to be an SA can apply to be an SA.” — Praneeth Kolli (23C) tion for taking the volunteer position.

“I really liked the concept of helping lead community bonding with freshmen especially this year,” Kolli said.

“A lot of people become SAs knowing

there aren’t any major benefits for them.”

SAs pointed to housing as a fair form of compensation; Oxford campus RAs, who are sophomores, have the same responsibilities as main campus RAs and receive free housing. Kolli underscored that “it seems very fitting that we live in first-year housing, and we’re doing this not as a typical resident.”

Ahmed Abdel Naby (23C) emphasized that this is “an extraordinary year” to be an SA while dealing with COVID-19 restrictions, and he hopes current SAs can receive some form of compensation for their work this year.

However, Kolli and Bole view compensation for future SAs as a more realistic and significant goal.

“I can afford to have this time commitment that’s not paid,” Kolli said.

“Because of this unpaid time commitment, not everyone that wants to be an

SA can apply to be an SA. And I think that’s huge. At least, if you’re not going to pay people that don’t need it, you need to offer some sort of incentive for people that literally cannot afford to be an SA right now.”

Bole echoed these sentiments, adding that the responsibilities that come with being an SA should mean they are compensated for their work.

“I think the only way or only world in which it shouldn’t be compensated is if the position was drastically redefined in terms of responsibilities and engagement,” Bole stipulated. “That’s really the only way. You would have to drastically minimize the workload to really consider it a genuine volunteer position, but I think at that point it would also lose its purpose.”

— Contact Caelan Bailey at cjbail3@emory.edu

NEWS

The Emory Wheel

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

3

Students Miss Out on Emory Mourns Prof. Lilienfeld College Experience

By Anjali Huynh Asst. News Editor

Continued from Page 1

as time is passing, they’re not really resident Madison Jones (24C) feels her putting in as much effort into doing it.

Maybe they think that students have online classes lack.

“I miss the relationships you build found friends and their own college with people in your classes and the setup.”

Social media posts from students dynamic a group can have together,” Jones lamented. “It’s a lot harder to living on campus only increase feelreplicate that online, just because we ings of dejection and isolation for all have our mics muted and when those living off campus. Olojede, who we talk it’s just committed to the strongly considered transferring to material.” a community college this summer, Connecting over the internet is typi- was frustrated while watching others cally the only way for stay-at-home explore and enjoy Atlanta.

“I miss the social aspect of colfirst-years to meet their classmates, and Jones said she often lacks the lege,” Olojede explained. “I have major motivation to initiFOMO seeing other kids on campus going ate virtual meet-ups after spending all “I feel like sometimes out to all the restauday on her computer. people forget about rants and Ponce City “Sometimes, at the us. Everything is so Market and the park.” end of the day, you just Despite the fall limited on campus want to eat your dinsemester being dis... Since I'm not ner and relax.” appointing for Jones, getting a full college Joseph, Kim and In an attempt to bridge the gap, she experience, it would Olojede, they agreed reached out to other that they have no make sense to stay first-years, taking regrets about their home.” advantage of social decision to stay home. media platforms to “I feel really con— Joju Olojede (24C) introduce herself to tent with how everypeople with similar thing’s working out … interests.

In a way, it’s kind of nice to have this Joseph took a different approach, gradual transition to college where we preferring to accept the situation and are taking college classes but still in refrain from “forcing” friendships. a familiar environment,” Jones said.

Aside from participating in the “[But] the fact that if I don’t go next Black Women’s Immersion Experience, semester my whole freshman year which brings together a small group of would be online sort of deters me from students for a casual and reflective staying home again.” discussion once a week, she has largely Kim is eager to truly “start colput off getting socially involved until lege” before her sophomore year and she arrives on campus. is encouraged by the relatively low University initiatives to integrate number of cases at Emory thus far. off-campus first-years has largely Olojede would be more inclined to receded since its aggressive push dur- move to Atlanta in the spring if the ing orientation in August. Students University hosted more in-person received emails almost daily in the classes and brought upperclassmen on weeks preceding classes contain- campus. Likewise, Joseph will almost ing information about asynchro- certainly be on campus since she feels nous content geared toward making more comfortable about her ability to everyone feel like a part of the Emory stay healthy.

While the factors most important community.

The University also created vid- to each student differed, all four meneos, organized small-group meet- tioned that finances influenced their ings and promised students who choices, and all four wonder whether completed all the required assign- Emory’s price will accurately reflect ments an Emory “swag box” in the experience they will provide – and September. Now in October, with no the experience that freshmen deserve boxes delivered and little acknowl- – in the future.

“I know it’s cliché,” Kim said with edgement from administration, some off-campus first-years feel the a wry smile. “But I just want the full college experience.” enthusiasm waning.

“I appreciate Emory [trying] in the beginning, they really did try to con— Contact Claire Fenton at claire.fenton@emory.edu nect us together,” Kim said. “I think

The Emory Wheel Volume 101, Issue 8 © 2020 The Emory Wheel Alumni Memorial University Center, Room 401 630 Means Drive, Atlanta, GA, 30322 Business (404) 727-6178 Editor-in-Chief Madison Bober madison.bober@emory.edu Founded in 1919, The Emory Wheel is the financially and editorially independent, student-run newspaper of Emory University in Atlanta. The Wheel is a member publication of Media Council, Emory’s organization of student publications. The Wheel reserves the rights to all content as it appears in these pages, and permission to reproduce material must be granted by the editor-in-chief.

The Wheel is printed every Wednesday during the academic year, except during University holidays and scheduled publication intermissions. A single copy of the Wheel is free of charge. To purchase additional copies, please call (404) 727-6178.

The statements and opinions expressed in the Wheel are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Wheel Editorial Board or of Emory University, its faculty, staff or administration.

The Wheel is also available online at www.emorywheel.com.

Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Psychology Scott Lilienfeld died on Wednesday, Sept. 30 after battling stage IV pancreatic cancer for nearly a year. Though Lilienfeld’s groundbreaking work as a clinical psychologist led to international recognition as a pioneer in psychopathy research, he is remembered by Emory students and colleagues alike as a passionate, caring mentor.

“His humor, kindness, and generosity was contagious in and out of the lab,” Caroline Lee (22C), an undergraduate research assistant who worked with Lilienfeld, wrote in an email to the Wheel. “Dr. Lilienfeld was the best adviser a student could ever have.”

Born and raised in New York City, Lilienfeld attended Cornell University (N.Y.) as an undergraduate. It was there he met then-assistant professor and later Emory colleague, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Psychology Elaine Walker. Walker, who knew Lilienfeld for nearly four decades, recalled that he came to her for advice on graduate school, asking if he would be a competitive candidate.

“There was no doubt in my mind about that,” Walker wrote in an email to the Wheel. “He was very bright and genuinely intellectually curious.”

After graduating with a B.A. in psychology in 1982, Lilienfeld went on to get his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1990. He served as an assistant professor of psychology at State University of New York at Albany for four years before joining the Emory community in 1994. He became a tenured professor in 2008.

Lilienfeld’s research focused on various areas in clinical psychology, ranging from analyzing personality disorders to debunking popular psychology misconceptions. His contributions to psychology literature were immense: authoring over 200 articles, Lilienfeld helped redefine key concepts like psychopathy and greatly expand research on human behavior in ways Walker called “critically important” and “paradigm-changing.”

“I am honored to have known Scott for so many years and to have witnessed his rise to a major figure in the field,” Walker wrote. “His creative intellect and the depth of his character will continue to be an inspiration.”

Lilienfeld also founded the journal “Scientific Review of Mental Health Practice,” served on editorial boards for 12 publications and held executive positions with numerous national clinical psychologist societies. In 2013, Lilienfeld received the James McKeen Cattell Fellow Award from the Association for Psychological Science for his extensive contributions to the field.

Academic accomplishments aside, colleagues and students respected Scott for his diligence and dedication to teaching psychology and assisting students with research at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

“Scott was the perfect colleague and over the six years I served as chair in psychology, he was the closest thing to the ideal faculty member,” Emory Professor of Psychology Harold Gouzoules wrote to the Wheel. “He was a champion for what is good and brilliant about psychology and worked tirelessly to make the field better.”

Lee echoed Gouzoules’ sentiments from a student perspective. Though she was initially intimidated by Lilienfeld’s prowess, she later came to see him as a professor who would maintain relationships with students in small ways, from striking up conversations in Starbucks to giving out snacks while they worked in the lab.

“Dr. Lilienfeld took me in as a research assistant even though I was a bumbling freshman at the time,” Lee wrote. “I’m not sure where I would be if not for Dr. Lilienfeld’s mentoring.”

Most recently at Emory, Lilienfeld taught Introduction to Psychology II, Science and Pseudoscience in Psychology and The Psychology of Scientific and Unscientific Thinking — a course that student and advisee Grace Shen (21C) said changed her life.

“Going into the class, I had very little knowledge of the field in general and didn’t really understand scientific thinking,” Shen said. “He told us during class that it’s not intuitive to humans because we process information with the least effort possible, and

because I learned scientific thinking, I gained a very new perspective of the world that I never had before.”

Shen took the class in fall 2019, coinciding with when Lilienfeld discovered he had stage IV pancreatic cancer. Though she said the class was “shocked” to discover their beloved professor had the fatal disease, Shen admired that her professor “was so strong” and did not let his condition impact his teaching.

“He said, ‘If I can’t fight it physically, I’m going to fight it psychologically,’” Shen recalled. “It felt like he never had the illness, like he was just there trying to teach us.”

Now, following his death, Shen hopes Lilienfeld knew of his impact on students and the field of psychology alike.

“He changed my life in ways that I never really imagined … and I would definitely not be the same person today without him,” she said. “I am really grateful that I had him as my professor, my adviser, my mentor and my friend.”

Many former students, colleagues and admirers took to social media to post about the impact of Lilienfeld’s death. Emory fourth-year doctoral student Shauna Bowes (17C, 19G, 23G) expanded on Lilienfeld’s legacy for Psychology Today, noting that Lilienfeld always “made his students feel supported” despite his busy work and global acclaim.

“In his honor, I hope all of us can strive to be even just a little bit more intellectually humble, open-minded (but still skeptical), curious and courageous,” the article reads. “The most important parts of his legacy, it seems, are to be kind, be thoughtful and do good work.”

On Monday, the Emory psychology department created a discussion board for students to post thoughts and memories about Lilienfeld.

From furthering innovative discovery to inspiring future generations of psychologists, it is undeniable that Lilienfeld left an everlasting impression on those he interacted with during his time at Emory and beyond.

— Contact Anjali Huynh at alhuynh@emory.edu

Hall Encourages Franklin to Withdraw Continued from Page 1 legacy.”

“I was honored to have his support,” Hall said. “It means far more than just words.”

John-Miles also expressed his frustration that the seat will remain empty until the runoff election, encouraging Franklin and the rest of the candidates to step down so that Hall can be sworn in immediately.

“It’s legally possible,” Hall said. “If everyone else agrees, we can do this.

All it takes is unity and unanimity of all the people in this race.”

Hall hopes to convince Franklin to withdraw from the race so that he can assume the position immediately.

Franklin said while he shares in John-Miles’ frustration with the slow process, he was unsurprised by John Miles’ endorsement.

“I certainly respect him and his friendship and long standing relationship with Mr. Hall,” Franklin said. “In that respect, I found it unremarkable that a friend would endorse a friend.”

Hall also wants to ensure a smooth transition between himself and the candidate elected in the Nov. 3 election.

Franklin’s campaign focuses on the distinction between transactional and transformational politics, something he learned from talking to Lewis.

“One of the things that distinguished John Lewis and one of the things he encouraged me to think about is to bring a vision of American Kwanza Hall, former Atlanta City Council member Courtesy of Kwanza H all

moral possibility off how this nation could improve and repair its faults,” Franklin said.

Of the six candidates, Franklin raised the most money, totaling over $128,000 since August. He attributes his success to his ability to offer a “value proposition” of moral leadership during a national crisis and his tenure as president of Morehouse College (Ga.) from 2007 to 2012.

“People responded to that in part because they see my track record, my stature and reputation for service, for bringing people together and working on difficult issues,” Franklin said.

When it comes to carrying on Lewis’ legacy and style of leadership, Franklin believes he is the best candidate for the job and has leadership skills that Hall does not have.

“I am closer to the style and leadership position of John Lewis — that is, moral and intellectual leadership, offering moral clarity and hope at a time of national crisis,” Franklin said.

“I have a track record of doing that.”

However, Hall believes that he has more relevant experience in politics and social justice issues.

“We need to make sure we are serving justice even for things that are not getting the media attention, like those cases right in our backyard,” Hall said.

“I’ve already done this kind of stuff. It’s been my daily job for 15 years.”

To make the most of his month in office, Franklin has laid out three goals: participate in appropriations and budget decisions, hold the Trump administration accountable, and offer moral clarity amid a national crisis.

“Following the Nov. 3 election, there will be enormous polarization,” Franklin said. “Someone who brings a background in ethics and in pastoral leadership can name those difficult issues and can open difficult dialogues.”

Hall placed an emphasis on unity, stating,”that’s how we honor Congressman Lewis.”

— Contact Sarah Davis at sgdavi4@emory.edu

4

NEWS

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

The Emory Wheel

SPC Hosts Obama Staffer Music from EMORY and around the world

Camille Thomas, cello | performing April 9, 2021 Photo by Edouard Brane

only on the

SCHWARTZ CENTER

VIRTUAL STAGE SCHWARTZ.EMORY.EDU

By Sarah Davis Contributing Writer The Student Programming Committee (SPC) hosted Alyssa Mastromonaco, the former White House deputy chief of staff for operations under President Barack Obama, on Oct. 1 to discuss the current state of the country and relive her time in the White House. In total, 128 people tuned in to hear her talk.

SPC members Olivia Milloway (22C) and Ruby Wiener (22C) moderated the event, asking Mastromonaco about the Trump administration, the recent presidential debate, the Supreme Court and her political ascension.

“There is no governing happening whatsoever,” Mastromonaco said about the Trump administration. “You can’t even count Amy Coney Barrett being nominated because it is just brazenly political … I’ve never seen any administration like this ever.”

Mastromonaco served as deputy chief of staff for operations from 2011 to 2014 and held several other positions prior, including director of scheduling for Obama’s senate campaign, political director of Hope Fund during the 2006 midterm elections and director of scheduling and advance during his presidency.

In addition to her political background, Mastromonaco is a New York Times bestselling author, a co-host of Crooked Media’s “Hysteria” podcast and a board member of Headcount. org, a non-partisan voter registration organization.

The first discussion of the night revolved around the first presidential debate. Mastromonaco is experienced in the art of political debates, having served on the campaigns of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Obama.

“Donald Trump’s theory of the game was essentially to be a monster,” Mastromonaco said. “I do not know what a human could have done to stop that freight train.”

Mastromonaco first entered poli-

tics as a student at the University of Vermont, where she majored in French and minored in Japanese. The summer after her sophomore year, she applied to be an intern on Sanders’ congressional campaign in 1994.

“Bernie, to me, was a real distinction between politics and public service,” Mastromonaco said. “And what I fell in love with in 1995 was public service.”

Through her internship, she learned how to rise to the upper echelons of the campaign.

“I always tell young people that if you don’t do the shitty stuff, they’re never going to give you the actual good stuff,” Mastromonaco said. “And so I did the shitty stuff really well.”

After proving herself proficient in grunt work, she was tasked with shuttling Sanders from the airport to various events. She recalled being “very nervous” the first time she picked him up and read articles from The New York Times and The Washington Post to keep up to date on the latest political news.

“I start bragging in the car, like, ‘Well, here’s what happened, according to so-and-so in the New York Times,’ and he’s like, ‘Enough with that. What happened in Vermont?”’

Mastromonaco said. “So after that, I read the Rutland Herald and the Burlington Free Press and all the other papers.”

After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she transferred after her sophomore year, she worked for the World Trade Center until joining Kerry’s presidential campaign in 2000. Through this opportunity, she met future president Barack Obama, with whom she would work closely throughout his political career.

“He is someone who leads with curiosity,” Mastromonaco said. “He never assumes he knows someone’s whole story. One of the things that he always talked about was disagreeing without being disagreeable.”

— Contact Sarah Davis at sgdavi4@emory.edu

Building Renaming, Affinity Spaces Top Priorities Continued from Page 1 a Washington, D.C.-based firm, will evaluate EPD’s use-of-force policies and publish its findings later this semester. Chief Executive Officer and Principal of JSA Don Edwards told the Wheel that no updates are available at the moment, but stated that work is steadily progressing.

The University is working to repopulate a committee to evaluate campus buildings names, which will include representatives from CBOC. The committee will offer recommendations to the Board of Trustees regarding building names, although no communication has taken place yet, CBOC founder and Emory NAACP Political Action Committee Chair Ronald Poole (23C) said.

Despite numerous requests from the Wheel, the University declined to provide committee member names.

Renaming buildings that memorialize racist figures is an especially pressing demand, Poole noted. With every year that building names stay the same, a new generation of Black students are subjected to an uncomfortable environment.

“It’s another way in which my existence on Emory’s campus is paradoxical, that I’m not supposed to be there, that these spaces were not designed for me, weren’t named in recognition of any of the work that my people have done,” Poole said.

Many students cited the freshman

residence hall Longstreet-Means as harmful.

The building was named after Augustus Longstreet and Alexander Means, both of whom were slave owners. Longstreet wrote defenses of slavery and Southern succession while he served as University president in the mid-1800s.

CBOC member Teffin Benedict (21C) considers the renovation of affinity spaces another crucial initiative.

“At a predominantly white institution, it’s important to have spaces where Black students can celebrate their own culture and bond together,” Benedict said.

Efforts to improve affinity spaces have not made significant progress, Benedict stated, as these spaces are currently in the Alumni Memorial University Center, an older building where renovation is costly.

Accordingly, affinity space renovation will not be completed by the end of the semester. Poole noted that while he could not reveal exact locations, the administration has promised to provide a “larger space that is not on the ground floor.”

Another one of CBOC’s stipulations is to recognize and resolve demands from previous Black students in 2015.

One of these demands included the creation of a race and ethnicity GER for students.

In May, the Emory College Senate passed a resolution to incorporate a race and ethnicity GER into the cur-

riculum. The new GER will go into effect in Fall 2021, affecting the class of 2025 and beyond.

“Faculty felt that to be an Emory graduate requires some kind of understanding of the way that racial inequities … shape our world,” Emory College Dean Michael Elliott explained. “This requirement is about giving students an opportunity to learn about those issues in some way.”

Elliott created a committee led

by Longstreet Professor of English Michelle Wright to implement the new course.

The committee will review current and future courses that meet criteria to raise awareness of historic racial inequities and instruct how to better communicate with others from diverse backgrounds. If a course does not meet the criteria, the committee can suggest changes that professors can choose to accept. Although some current courses, such as Introduction to African American Studies (AAS 100) and Race & Ethnic Relations (SOC 247) will fulfill the GER, Elliott noted that many new faculty hired over the last four years “work on topics that are directly related to this GER.” Altering academic requirements is a tedious and inordinate process.

Elliott noted that the time it took to pass the race and ethnicity GER in the College Senate was due to debate over its implementation.

Initially, faculty aimed to review all GERs, which contributed to a time lag.

Faculty later decided to move forward with the race and ethnicity GER without finalizing other requirements.

The University has convened a committee to screen applicants for the director of diversity and inclusion education and outreach position, which opened on August 11.

The committee consists of eight University administrators including Chief Diversity Officer Carol E. Henderson. The director of diversity position differs from the chief diversity officer position in that it focuses specifically on education for staff and faculty.

“The goals will be developing educational programming and training for staff, faculty and leadership around issues related to diversity, inclusion and bias prevention,” Assistant Vice President for Learning and Organizational Development Wanda Hayes, a committee member, said.

“They will serve as a thought leader who builds, maintains and shares resources, tools and training opportunities across campus.”

The committee is still evaluating applicants and have received over 200 applications.

They will conduct a second round of interviews later this month and hope to have a candidate hired by the end of the year.

Looking Forward The University’s response to CBOC

demands to the Emory community writ large gave Poole and Benedict hope.

“I’ve been in more meetings than I even care to reflect on about Emory’s racist legacy and the experience of Black folks in the Emory University system,” Poole said. “It was good to see some concrete actions that were broadcasted to the entire University system and not just us.”

Benedict didn’t see this level of University engagement in his previous three years at Emory, but hopes that moving forward, “Black students coming here would be assured that this is going to be a place where they are listened to and respected.”

Poole acknowledged, however, that the relatively quick responses to Black student demands from other peer colleges, such as Princeton University (N.H.) and Vanderbilt University (Tenn.), left him questioning Emory’s relatively sluggish timeline.

“These other colleges that Emory considers peers have made these necessary changes and have been responsive,” Poole said. “This is not to diminish the ways the University has been responsive to CBOC, … but it just makes you think.”

— Contact Musa Ya-Sin at musa.ya-sin@emory.edu and Matthew Chupack at mchupa@emory.edu

The Emory Wheel

Opinion

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 | Opinion Editors: Ben Thomas (ben.thomas@emory.edu) and Brammhi Balarajan (bbalara@emory.edu)

Editorials

Compensate Sophomore Advisors Now Black, Indigenous People Need Health Care Equity

At a town hall on Sept. 16 and a follow-up discussion on Sept. 30, Sophomore Advisors (SA) voiced concerns over their lack of monetary benefits despite their many, often thankless, public health-related responsibilities.

“The only way or only world in which it shouldn’t be compensated is if the position was drastically redefined in terms of responsibilities and engagement,” SA Michael Bole (23C) said.

He is neither alone nor wrong in that opinion.

SAs are overburdened and overworked, but receive no compensation for their commitment to keeping the Emory community safe. As vociferous as their town hall complaints were, many SAs are fearful of University retaliation should they speak out about their lack of pay; even when speaking to the Wheel, most requested to remain anonymous.

SAs should not be afraid to demand rightful compensation for their role in cultivating a safe and exciting environment at Emory.

Their jobs are already demanding even before the additional COVID19-related responsibilities, so Emory should, at the very least, provide all SAs with discounted housing and need-based stipends.

Many SAs are frustrated with the gap between their increased responsibilities and lack of remuneration.

One interviewee expressed that they did not feel the desire to enforce rules because of lack of pay, while another called it “unethical” to employ students during a pandemic without compensation.

If campus proctors and Resident Advisors (RA) are compensated for enforcing mask and social distancing guidelines on campus, SAs should be as well.

SAs faced demanding time commitments even before accepting additional responsibilities outlined in Emory’s reopening plan, not the least of which included playing an active

role in many first-years’ initial college experiences.

For example, SAs normally plan Songfest, host programming events for their residents and work to ensure that all first-years’ transitions into college are as smooth as possible through one-on-one meetings.

Today, SAs no longer stop there.

They now also feel pressure to monitor student behavior and enforce safety standards across campus as outlined in the Emory Community Compact.

Despite not being required to do so, SAs have labored to organize events that both fulfill the University’s social distancing guidelines and engage their residents.

What would have been a single inperson event last year must now occur at multiple times and include options for virtual participation. Moreover, SAs are expected to interact regularly with their “virtual residents,” or the off-campus first-years assigned to their residence halls.

SAs do receive some benefits, but they are nominal at best and condescending at worst: the perks listed on Emory’s housing site include early move-in, a T-shirt, meals during training, leadership experience and “new friends and fun.” In regards to their housing and dining, one SA stated that they “hate the fact that they pay as much as the freshmen.”

Nevertheless, many SAs believe the hard work is worth it because their experiences will help them become RAs, even though being an SA does not guarantee an RA position.

Although SAs are not prohibited from seeking part-time employment, the position’s demands make doing so prohibitively difficult.

The role’s time commitment is unpredictable — sometimes totaling 10 hours or more per week — and makes working a job on top of academics and extracurriculars unrealistic.

One SA lamented that “it feels like a full-time job.”

Consequently, low-income students who must work to afford their educa-

tion may find becoming an SA financially impossible.

At the very least, Emory should create a need-based stipend to alleviate that burden.

Not paying students who put so much time and energy into creating a welcoming and safe environment for first-years, even as they risk their health to do so, exposes the University’s profound apathy toward these students.

The University, however, disagrees.

In a statement emailed to the Wheel, the Office of Residence Life (ResLife) claimed “Sophomore Advisors do not have pandemic-related additions to their role” and that the “expectation on them… is the same as it is for all students” regarding enforcement of the Community Compact.

Those are not reasons; they are hollow excuses with no basis in students’ experiences.

As SA Praneeth Kolli (23C) told the Wheel, being an SA is “so much more than a volunteer position.” Bole agreed that the University would “need to minimize the workload to really consider it a genuine volunteer position, but… at that point it would also lose its purpose.”

When asked why SAs remain uncompensated, ResLife could only state that the position was originally designed as a volunteer opportunity.

That reasoning is blatantly circular; the role’s status as unpaid cannot justify itself.

Whether they are explicitly required to do so or not, SAs’ circumstances obligate them to perform the equivalent of a part-time job every day. SAs believe that has always been the case, and in the age of COVID-19, their work is more intense and dangerous than ever before.

For far too long, Emory has taken advantage of unpaid student labor.

It is inexcusable and embarrassing.

Their silence and complacency is reprehensible.

There is no clear alternative: compensate SAs now.

These editorials represent the majority opinion of the Wheel’s Editorial Board.

The Editorial Board is composed of Sahar Al-Gazzali, Brammhi Balarajan, Viviana Barreto, Rachel Broun, Kemal Budak, Jake Busch, Sara Khan, Demetrios Mammas, Meredith McKelvey, Sara Perez, Ben Thomas, Leah Woldai and Lynnea Zhang.

The Emory Wheel Volume 101 | Number 8

Madison Bober Editor-in-Chief Isaiah Poritz Executive Editor Ayushi Agarwal Managing Editor Ryan Callahan Managing Editor Caroline Silva Managing Editor Jacqueline Ma Copy Chief Ninad Kulkarni News Editor Ben Thomas Opinion Editor Jesse Weiner Interim A&E Editor A ngela Tang Emory Life Editor Jessica Solomon Sports Editor Forrest Martin Photo Editor Jackson Schneider Photo Editor Cailen Chinn Chief of Digital Media

Mileen Meyer Business Manager Yifei Gao Design Manager

Phyllis Guo Asst. Copy Editor A njali Huynh Asst. News Editor Brammhi Balarajan Asst. Opinion Editor Gabriella Lewis Asst. Multimedia Editor Becca Moszka Asst. Multimedia Editor A idan Vick Associate Editor Christina Yan Associate Editor Zach Ball Associate Editor Business/Advertising Email emorywheelbusiness@gmail.com

The Emory Wheel welcomes letters and op-ed submissions from the Emory community. Letters should be limited to 300 words and op-eds should be at least 500. Those selected may be shortened to fit allotted space or edited for grammar, punctuation and libelous content. Submissions reflect the opinions of individual writers and not of the Wheel’s Editorial Board or Emory University. Send emails to emorywheelexec@gmail.com or postal mail to The Emory Wheel, Drawer W, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322.

The U.S. was founded on the of slavery and racial subjugation.

Those institutions of oppresforced labor of enslaved Africans and Indigenous people. Today, this legacy sion fostered social, economic, of oppression endures in our health housing and medical disparities; care system, and COVID-19 has only African Americans received secondunderscored the racism inherent class health treatment and facilities therein. throughout the 20th century. Many COVID-19’s ruinous consequences were also denied basic care and seg— mass unemployment, a strained regated into underdeveloped “black health care system, the deaths of near- wards,” thereby exacerbating African ly 210,000 Americans — are by now Americans’ distrust of the health care system. well-established.

Today, African Americans are more Our discourse, however, has failed to adequately highlight the degree to likely to be uninsured and suffer from which that harm has fallen on Black chronic health conditions, which have resulted in a middle-age mortality rate and Indigenous communities.

They, more than any other group, that is among the highest in the nation.

All increase the risk of severe illness have borne the brunt of the pandemic.

In light of that suffering, the federal from COVID-19.

These preexisting health condigovernment, through existing state infrastructure, must fund a drastic tions, coupled with the poverty and expansion of Medicaid to Native and social stratification that predisposed African Americans in order to mitigate African Americans to work in essenthe institutionalized health care ineq- tial jobs during the pandemic, have exacted a heavy toll on the community. uities from which they suffer.

As former Vice President Joe Native Americans have been hospitalized for COVID-19 at a rate Biden noted during last week’s presifive times higher than that of white dential debate, one in 1,020 African Americans; they are Americans have died also more likely to from the virus — develop severe longthe highest mortalThis country has term complications ity rate in the nation, from COVID-19. abused, beaten down one that’s twice as The Centers for high as that for white and neglected African Americans.

Disease Control and Americans and Prevention (CDC) One way to assist attributes these disthe Indigenous and Native Americans African American crepancies to social for centuries, and communities would determinants, such as education level and while expanding their be to expand their access to Medicaid, income, that disadMedicaid coverage vantage communities would only scrape the a program that proof color most severely. vides health care covThe COVID-19 surface of justice, it is erage to low-income pandemic is not the an absolute necessity. and marginalized first to decimate groups. More Native Native American Americans would communities. receive quality, lowWhen white cost medical care, European colonists arrived in North and relative poverty would fall among America, they brought with them viru- minority communities.

Moreover, states that have already lent diseases, measles and smallpox among them, that killed large swaths approved Medicaid expansions have weathered the storm against COVIDof vulnerable Indigenous populations.

By the 1800s, approximately 70% of 19 and the recession better — often to the Native population had died from the benefit of African Americans and Indigenous people. these diseases.

Though it may not eliminate sysIn the centuries following that tragedy, the U.S. government continued temic racial inequality, expanding to unjustly target Native American Medicaid would nevertheless alleviate tribes, forcing them into ever-smaller the disproportionate burden that these reservations and attempting to force- communities bear.

As a nation, we have a duty to look fully assimilate them into mainstream after our fellow Americans no matter society.

As a result, descendants of the sur- where they live or who they are, but we vivors are saddled with the burden of have thus far failed to assist the comgenerational trauma, and the health munities who need our help the most. care disparities that wrack their comThis country has abused, beatmunities today stem directly from en down and neglected African those historical injustices.

Americans and Native Americans for Those disparities are also directly centuries, and while expanding their evident in U.S. law. Among the many Medicaid coverage would only scrape issues that Indigenous people face in the surface of justice, it is an absolute receiving proper health care, inade- necessity.

We must not let these underserved quate funding is the most egregious; per capita spending on the Indian communities down.

It’s up to us to push our politicians Health Service was only $3,107 in to make sure these individuals get 2014.

For the average American, it’s the health care equity they deserve and become allies in rectifying their $8,097.

How is such a wide disparity injustices.

We must remember America’s forjustifiable?

Similarly, African American com- gotten communities and ensure, once munities have endured long-standing and for all, that their voices are finally health disparities rooted in centuries heard.

6

OP-ED

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

TikTok Is a National Security Risk. Ban It. Aayush Gupta The paradox of privacy is more obvious than ever. Ask anyone whether they value their privacy and the odds are that they do. Yet most of our online behaviors suggest otherwise.

The age of social media has brought extraordinary amounts of information and entertainment to our fingertips at the expense of our personal freedoms.

While recent controversies around ByteDance’s TikTok have dominated headlines, companies such as Facebook and Google have privacy issues of their own. We should take heart, however, in the fact that democratic institutions can hold corporations accountable for their actions. Legislation can prescribe guidelines on what firms cannot do with user data. Antitrust regulations can be enforced. This is not the case in China, however. In light of this, the U.S. government has sought to ban TikTok.This move does not come in isolation; the world’s economic decoupling from China has been years in the making. Australia and China are headed toward a trade war, stemming

from Australia’s vocal efforts to investigate the origins of COVID-19. India has banned hundreds of Chinese apps, even as the two nations remain locked in months-long border tensions over Chinese intrusions on Indian territory. India has also massively curbed Chinese investment into its economy.

Germany has called for a united front against China in what it terms a “new Cold War.” Given these instances, the Trump administration’s move to ban these apps and take an increasingly hostile stance is not only justified, but obligatory. China is no communist state. But neither is it capitalist. The basic tenets of capitalism champion a free market with minimal government intervention. While the regime of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) breaks from the traditional definition of statesponsored economics, they practice a hybrid Maoist-capitalist model, wherein most private enterprises, particularly medium-sized ones, are required to include a “Party Committee” in their organizational structure.

Representatives from the CCP are present on the board of directors or

exist as an independent supervising entity within each company. In essence, any firm, Chinese or foreign, operating in China, must privy the Party to its decision-making process.

The notion that private enterprise and the state can remain separate in China, therefore, is laughable. Thus, while TikTok may deny that it is influenced by the CCP, it is subject to the same draconian laws – such as Hong Kong’s new national security law – that make a mockery of privacy rights and civil liberties. Privacy, however, is not the only thing at stake here. TikTok has been mired in controversy for numerous reasons. ByteDance has been linked to the systematic oppression of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang, where the CCP has subjugated ethnic minorities to an Orwellian police state and torture and genocide in concentration camps. TikTok is also known to censor videos and suspend users for discussing sensitive topics or those offensive to the CCP’s hegemony, including Tibet, Xinjiang, the Tiananmen massacre and pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The criticism against the decision to ban TikTok, hence, is

not only unwarranted, but incredibly naive. At the turn of the millennium, former President Bill Clinton had successfully lobbied for China’s entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO).

When asked about his decision, Clinton had claimed, “By joining the WTO, China is not simply agreeing to import more of our products, it is agreeing to import one of democracy’s most cherished values, economic freedom.”

Such hopes of economic and social liberalization have not only proven futile, but have also returned to haunt the U.S. two decades later, as the WTO ruled against tariffs on Chinese goods.

Ironically, American companies, including Google, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and Wikipedia, among many others, are already prohibited in China as part of the “Great Firewall.”

The WTO, in this absurd ruling, displayed its own hypocrisy, as foreign companies face harsh restrictions and unbalanced playing fields within the Chinese market. The continuing prosperity of Chinese companies overseas should be a slap in the face to any capitalist as China flouts the WTO’s own principles of free and fair trade,

The Emory Wheel

transparency, and promotion of fair competition.

While many of President Donald Trump’s policies, particularly those concerning COVID-19 and racial injustice, have earned him well-deserved condemnation, this should be the rare exception. Your thoughts on his administration notwithstanding, it is in America’s and the world’s best interests to wake up and begin a rapid decoupling from China. While this may be detrimental to Americans in the short run, in the long run, it is paramount to rid ourselves of the CCP’s duplicity. While Trump has his issues, he seems to be held in higher regard in Asia as compared to Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who is viewed with skepticism due to the failings of the Obama-Biden era foreign policies that led to China’s ascendence.

The good old days are behind us.

The U.S. cannot purport to uphold peace and fairness in the world if it sticks to an antiquated foreign policy better suited to a different millennium.

Aayush Gupta (22B) is from Singapore.

America, Watch the Debates Vote for Truth, Brammhi Balarajan and Ben Thomas As we all settled in to watch the first presidential debate on Sept. 29, none of us expected to be witnesses to a squabble between preschoolers.

Moderator and Fox News anchor Chris Wallace’s remarks cast the debate as a war zone, stating he’s “never been through anything like this.” In the aftermath of the debate, former Vice President Joe Biden described it as a “national embarrassment.” The only person who might have felt some semblance of satisfaction was the problem himself: President Donald Trump, who succeeded in turning a normally productive and enlightening debate into a night of interruptions, lies and madness.

The debate included six 15-minute segments on the coronavirus, the economy, the Supreme Court, race and violence in the U.S., Biden and Trump’s previous records, and the integrity of the election. Wallace struggled to maintain control as Trump blatantly disobeyed his requests, continuously interrupted Biden during his time and did not allow anyone but himself to speak. At one point when Wallace attempted to retain control, Trump even declared that he wasn’t just debating Biden, but Wallace as well. Frankly, Trump’s actions in this debate more closely resembled that of a petulant child than a sitting president. Our natural instinct may be to recoil from this debate season’s caustic political theater. The debates may be defined by their vitriol and bedlam, but so will this fall’s election, and nothing will prepare us more effectively for that than seeing Trump lay waste to democratic norms on stage.

Trump’s primary goal throughout the debate was to undermine the integrity of the election and anyone who sought to establish any guise of fairness. He proclaimed that the mailin ballots already being used were “a fraud and a shame” and declared “a rigged election,” casting doubt on voting should he not win come November. Beyond that, he repeatedly misconstrued Biden, equating him to a puppet for the “radical left” and a “socialist,” without giving Biden his due time throughout the debate. The most enlightening part of this lawless night may very well be the truths it brought to light about Trump himself.

Biden said it best: “everybody knows he’s a liar.” We know Trump does not

care about the American people. We know that he’s racist — his refusal to condemn white supremacy and his abysmal record are more than demoralizing. We know he doesn’t care about order or justice, but he doesn’t get to decide who stays in office, despite his theatrical debate performance and attempts to sow discord. From his colossal lies and efforts to sabotage the debate, it is clear that Trump’s only goal is reelection, no matter what the American people say. It’s up to us to make sure that doesn’t happen.

As horrific as Tuesday’s spectacle was, you likely had the option to turn your television off and make it stop.

On Nov. 3, you will have no such option. Trump has repeatedly refused to commit to a peaceful transition of power should he lose, and he has spent months laying the groundwork to contest the results. The U.S. has grown increasingly polarized in recent years, but 2020 has seen that partisanship reach a fever pitch. Thanks to COVID19, Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric, our reckoning with racial injustice, climate change and the myriad other crises wracking the nation, America has become a powder keg.

All signs indicate that Trump plans to use that peril to unleash electoral chaos. In anticipation of contested vote totals following Election Day, Republican Party officials have already begun to coordinate with state legislatures on selecting their own slates of electors to send to the Electoral College. All states have chosen to grant their residents that power for over a century, but most remain able to rescind it whenever they please.

Trump’s tireless efforts to suppress political participation and discredit mail-in voting could ensure that some do, and his team is ready to seize that opportunity if it arises. Numerous other possibilities exist as well; the House of Representatives could be forced to choose the next president, states could send multiple groups of electors to the Electoral College or a legal dispute could punt the decision to the Supreme Court. At the end of the day, anything could happen in November. Odds are that it will satisfy neither side, and the results could be catastrophic.

More so than during any election since at least the end of the 19th century, this year’s contest could turn violent on a massive scale. Far-right militant groups have seen ballooning registration this year. Gun sales have

surged. The threat of right-wing terror will likely grow in the weeks preceding the election, and even left-leaning groups are preparing for the worst.

If the results are at all questionable, political violence could become ubiquitous. We need to either brace ourselves for the worst or find a way to prevent it.

Luckily, Trump has given the American people a way to prevent his reelection. On Tuesday night, he embodied unthinking brutality, and he will likely do the same in his next two debates with Biden. He chose to out himself as cruel and barbarous to the American people, and we cannot waste this opportunity. Democrats have already seen a flood of donations in the aftermath of the debate, but we cannot stop here. That these debates are excruciating to watch is true, but therein lies their true value. Watch Trump expose the danger he poses to our democracy and push everyone you know to do the same. Most importantly, start talking about his unfitness for office and don’t stop. A resounding Biden victory will by no means stop Trump from casting doubt on the legitimacy of the process, but it could forestall the worst of the mayhem that a near-draw could precipitate.

The last three years have revealed Trump to be uniquely unfit for office, but the unmitigated catastrophe that was the first presidential debate made the extent to which that is true abundantly clear. Once and for all, the president proved himself a demagogue and a charlatan who will burn the world’s oldest democracy to the ground for four more years of power. As individuals with stakes in that 244-year tradition, we must resist. Prepare yourself for November’s chaos by actively watching the debates and help prevent the worst of it by bearing witness to and acting on what you see. Do you find what you saw on Tuesday distasteful? Disgraceful? Horrifying? If you do, tune into the next one on Oct. 15. Let everything you see and hear galvanize you; tell the world how it made you feel. Check whether you’re registered to vote and tell everyone you know to do the same. Donate to or volunteer for Biden’s campaign. Talk to your neighbor. Make a plan. Vote.

This November, centuries of democracy will turn on just one day. Don’t screw it up.

Brammhi Balarajan (23C) is from Las Vegas. Ben Thomas (23C) is from Dayton, Ohio.

Not Trump

Even in the scope of previous presidents, Trump’s lack of transparency is startling. Modern presidential tradition has led each former president, On Sept. 27, The New York Times except former President Gerald Ford, unapologetically released President to voluntarily release tax reports so the public is informed that their taxes are Donald Trump’s tax returns.

The reports reveal that Trump paid being used appropriately.

This is simply an act of political a mere $750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and no income tax at all for 10 transparency and responsibility. Time of the 15 years prior. The reports also after time, we have seen Trump outshow an alarming $26 million vaguely right lie and dismiss evidence of his marked as “consulting fees” paid to failure to pay his taxes. And on Sept. unknown recipients between 2010 and 29, we watched him lie without hesi2018 without explanation. tation during the presidential debate The illegal nature of such large- about his federal tax returns. These ly considered tax fraud or evasion is actions all point to the lack of worth highlighted by former White House Trump ascribes to the truth.

But Trump’s evasion of income lawyer Micheal Cohen who explained, “If I went to jail for 36 months on taxes also reflects his disregard for his own country. In 2011, tax evasion — which Trump declared, “The probably should have amazing thing is that been tax omission half of the country is — Donald Trump paying nothing. Zero. should do 360 years.”

Taxpayers run And even if you don’t When asked to America: they fund make a lot, you should justify the minimal taxes paid, Trump our education and our have to pay something. credited the small infrastructure, so why Just something to be a of the game.” sums to aggresshouldn’t Trump pay partIronically, it seems sive losses in assets, dues as well? as if Trump hasn’t been despite his “success“a part of the game” for ful businessman” years despite his abilibrand.

While the release ty to contribute greatly of Trump’s financial records are in taxes and monetary participation. shocking, former Vice President and Taxpayers run America: they fund our Democratic presidential nominee Joe education and our infrastructure, so Biden’s response proves to be on par why shouldn’t Trump pay dues as well? with the reveal. Just hours before the Trump’s self-proclaimed “smart” first presidential debate, Biden and tactics that have kept him from conhis running mate Sen. Kamala Harris tributing toward America’s future do (D-Calif.) voluntarily released their nothing more than play into his perown tax returns, purposefully show- fidious character.

As the elected leader of the U.S., the ing that Biden paid nearly $300,000 president should always uphold transin income tax in 2019.

Biden’s move strategically com- parency and eagerly participate in the pared the two candidates’ financial systems that sustain our country.

The recent release of tax returns contributions as well as highlighted Biden’s subscription to forthright poli- from both sides of the general election tics. Meanwhile, Trump aimed to keep clearly reveals which side strives for up the guise of paying “millions” in transparency and which subscribes to income taxes during the first presiden- dishonesty.

When you vote come November, tial debate despite hard evidence blatantly falsifying his claims. Numbers vote for truth. Vote for transparency. aside, this comes down to transpar- Vote for someone who takes an active ency. Biden voluntarily releasing his role in not just being a leader, but being tax returns contrasted with Trump’s an American. lengthy battle speaks immensely to Lena Bodenhamer (24C) is from their personal valuation of truth withFort Collins, Colorado. in their respective campaigns.

Lena Bodenhamer

&

The Emory Wheel

Arts Entertainment Wednesday, October 7, 2020 | Interim Arts & Entertainment Editor: Jesse Weiner (jweine8@emory.edu)

documentary review

‘Boys State’ Showcases Absurdity of U.S. Politics

album review

Film festival

You Should Listen to ‘Nectar’ Right Now

By Jeffrey Rosen Contributing Writer

By Cailen Chinn Chief of Digital Media

Grade: A What could go wrong when one thousand Texan high schoolers participate in a government stimulation?

“Boys State,” the latest documentary produced by A24, chronicles the journey of Texan students as they participate in a week-long, mock political government program. In the documentary, filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine follow a diverse group of charismatic, hard-core and entertaining high school participants who lead the gubernatorial campaigns for the 2018 American Legion Boys State annual leadership program.

Following these contestants over the course of nearly two hours is not only wildly entertaining but also a politically powerful experience.

The central objective of the Boys State program is to create a new political party with a corresponding political agenda, and then successfully run an election campaign for the coveted position of the governor of Boys State.

The attendees are divided into two parties based on historical political parties — Nationalists and Federalists — and are tasked with voting for a party chair, creating their own agenda and nominating a candidate for the gubernatorial election.

The film finds its rhythm at the onset of the preliminary campaign speeches as the student candidates introduce their platform and themselves to the conference. Instances such as these speeches make it clear

See doc, Page 8

Joji

“Nectar” (2020)

By Saru Garg, Alison Rothman and Bridget Barnsley Staff Writer and Contributing Writers

For the most part, film festivals have adapted to COVID-19 complications, and this year’s Atlanta Film Festival, which ran from Sept. 17 to Sept. 27, was no exception.

With a mix of virtual and drive-in screenings, the festival continued its celebration of diverse stories and voices in this new, safer format. Many of these films showcased themes anyone living through our strange time should be familiar with by now: resilience in the face of socioeconomic hardships.

Wheel writers Bridget Barnsley (20Ox, 22C), Alison Rothman (23C) and Saru Garg (22C) viewed some of the festival’s virtual offerings, and below are capsule reviews of the films they saw.

“Curtis” (2020) Grade: AChris Bailey’s sports drama follows former basketball star Curtis (Dwight Henry) as he searches the streets of Detroit for his lost championship ring.

Curtis suffers from schizophrenia and finds himself stuck in the past, unable

Online Semester Leaves Music Dept. Disconcerted

Without live concerts and in-person rehearsals, Emory’s Wind Ensemble, Concert Choir and Symphony Orchestra have struggled to replicate the traditional musical experience and camaraderie found during in-person instruction.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that singing is a dangerous thing to do,” said Director of Emory Concert Choir Eric Nelson. “It’s been some version of awful to not be able to do those things out of enjoyment.”

Nearly halfway through the semester, the directors of all three ensembles have toiled to reenergize students and foster a meaningful community.

“There are things that you can do academically that are related to the discipline, but it’s just not the same,”

See Festival, Page 8

See Joji, Page 8

ATLFF Highlights Hardship, Resilience

Emory music

By Grace Lee Contributing Writer

been an ever-present part of human history, and nowhere has it been more prevalent than in the Middle East. The latest film from Afghan filmmaker Shahrbanoo Sadat, “The Orphanage,” focuses on an especially vulnerable population of orphans during the Soviet Union’s occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s. Sadat sets her film during 1989 — the last year of the occupation — and follows a group of orphans, including 15-yearold Qodrat (Qodratollah Qadiri), that has recently arrived at an orphanage in Kabul.

Though it takes place during a precarious and historical time, much of the film feels very much like a slice-of-life, coming-of-age film. The audience watches the boys in this movie talk about their crushes on girls, play football and attend their (Sovietsponsored) classes. This may have been boring in a lesser filmmaker’s hands, but Sadat imbues the film with a sense of transportative realism that makes the audience feel as if they are right there experiencing these days with the characters, mostly unaffected by a war that rages all around them.

From now on, when I think of the color red, it will remind me of Joji.

The album cover of “Nectar” is simply a portrait of the artist washed in red light, reflecting themes of love, desire and the dark side of human frailty.

A sophomore album can be a defining moment in an artist’s career, and Joji takes his personal style and music to the next level with his latest release.

The 18-track album uses Joji’s established style to create a cinematic, electrifying and contemplative listening experience.

“Nectar” is defined by its grand, digital sonic qualities that are paired with relaxed yet urgent messages concerning the things that everyone is “innately drawn to and the ends they’ll go to reach it.”

Joji touches on ideas of moving away, from and back toward love with a voice that calmly oscillates like a pendulum. Written and produced entirely by the singer-songwriter, Joji’s talent is put on display in the most raw, authentic way.

“Nectar” pulls influence from R&B, bedroom pop and lo-fi in a way that the genres become indistinct from each other. Each track blends into the next seamlessly, while still remaining distinct from the rest on the album.

Particularly, the subtle difference between the opening tracks, “Ew”

Courtesy of Atlanta Film Festival

Nelson commented. “The heartbreaking thing is that everybody is signed up for choir and we’re enjoying being together, but it’s just not choir.”

However, he praised the University for its handling of the situation and appreciated the online class preparation training faculty members received.

“The plan is working okay,” Nelson said. “I think the choices are good ones, and I don’t think more time would have led to different choices.”

Director of Orchestral Studies Paul Bhasin, who conducts the Symphony Orchestra, echoed these sentiments.

“Emory is doing an amazing job with everything they’ve undertaken,” Bhasin said. “I am very happy Emory waited until the last minute because they were looking at public health data

See Music, Page 8

to come to grips with everyone around him moving on from high school. The film follows Curtis in this cycle as he meets a young boy (Alex Henderson) who tries to help him find his ring and get to know who he really is. The two form a bond over their mutual love for basketball, as Curtis agrees to coach the boy in exchange for his help finding the lost ring.

The film successfully juxtaposes both Curtis’ point of view with those around him, pushing the audience to empathize with and recognize Curtis for what he is. The darker tones of the film are well balanced with Curtis’ relationship with the boy as he tries to coach the boy at basketball. The film beautifully sheds light on the confusion and hurt that coincide with mental illness and normalizes this pain in a palatable way. “Curtis” shows that everyone has a backstory, even the random people you see on the street, and stresses the importance of not immediately judging them or brushing them aside.

“The Orphanage (Parwareshghah)” (2019) Grade: AWartime and occupation have

carlos museum

Carlos Explores Southeast Native American Art

By Eythen Anthony Staff Writer

While COVID-19 has negatively impacted the art community, art institutions nationwide have been preparing for their reopening. New exhibits and precautions highlight this revival, and the Carlos Museum is no exception. Amid these exhibitions is an updated presentation of Native American art, highlighting the Southeast tribes of North America.

Upon entering the exhibit, you will first see, to the right, a fringed, yellow jacket originating from the Plains. The same enclosure also hosts two pairs of moccasins — one covering the ankles and the other below. Turning to your left, you will see a red and black drum with a painting of a dogfish on the batter head. A beaded belt with red and blue tassels line the bottoms, and a matching bandolier bag can be found to the left of the jacket enclosure, both originating from the Cherokee people.

One of the biggest additions to the

exhibit is its inclusion of Cherokee baskets, ranging in size and pattern.

Two of these baskets were made by renowned 20th century basket weavers Eva Wolfe and Rowena Bradley.

The first thing I noticed about the two baskets is their color, as the orange comes from the dye of bloodroot and the brown from walnut dye. Bradley’s double weave basket is recognizable due to the repetition of four brown arrowheads surrounding an orange arrowhead around the piece. The shape is reminiscent of a fish, fitting given that the pattern is similar to the “Flowing Water” weave pattern.

Wolfe’s basket, on the other hand, is taller and consists of four rows consisting of either squares or triangles.

The squares resemble “The Eye of the Sacred Bird” weave pattern while the triangles are similar to the “Arrow Point.” The baskets highlight a major facet of Cherokee history and culture, and further exemplify the importance of this updated exhibit.

When asked about the COVID-19

safety measures in place, Director of Education at the Carlos Museum Elizabeth Hornor noted there are capacity limits but “students on campus can absolutely visit the new installation.”

Alongside the updated exhibit, the Carlos Museum has included new virtual lectures that further explore the history of Southeast Native American Art. On Sept. 10, University of Georgia Native American Studies Professor Jace Weaver gave a presentation on the evolution and variety of Cherokee art. Weaver focused primarily on the history of basketry and mask-making, particularly booger and bison masks. While the lecture itself was insightful as it provided background information on their techniques and art styles, it also spotlighted contemporary Native American artists.

Featured in this section were basket maker Shan Goshorn, whose baskets pop with color and design, and artist

See Exhibit, Page 8

8

A&E

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

The Emory Wheel

Music Students Laud Creative Curriculum Continued from Page 7 that centered on student experience and their safety.”

Both the directors and Wind Ensemble Conductor Tyler Ehrlich looked to the bright side of using technology in their classrooms. The unconventional semester brought newfound student connections for Ehrlich in a “very low-pressure” virtual environment. He attempts to “foster community” in the ensemble through the use of breakout rooms, Google Slide introductions and Kahoot games.

“Everybody would prefer plan A, which is in-person music-making, but I feel the students have had some revelations about what the experience is like — not just as a performer but also as a conductor and an audience member,” Ehrlich said. “[These] are the additional lenses I want the students to experience the music-making process through.” Nelson and Bhasin emphasized the opportunity for students to connect with professional musicians and conductors from around the world via Zoom. The Concert Choir recently held a lecture and Q&A session with composer and Emory alumnus Joel Thompson (10C, 13G).

“Students are getting masterclasses

with world-renowned musicians like the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Vega Quartet,” Bhasin said. “In a normal year, 90% of this would not have happened.” To further diversify and enrich his students’ learning experience, Ehrlich focuses his teaching on score studies, or analyzing the composite of the musical parts in an ensemble. He hopes to elevate his students’ musicianship through learning based on the repertoires and interpretive decisions of conductors. Highlighting the importance of musical and technical skills needed for future in-person programming, Bhasin said students could expect the music department to employ new learning techniques.

“They’re certainly not treading water or finding arbitrary things to do. It’s all deep and meaningful, just not everyone in the same room,” Bhasin said.

Nelson emphasized his main goals of maintaining the academic, musical and social well-being of his students.

He meets with the 15 first-year students of the Concert Choir for weekly in-person rehearsals but teaches the rest of the ensemble through Zoom.

“In some ways, it might even be better because I’m able to work with freshmen by themselves and meet them where they are, and not just imply to them to catch up,” Nelson said. For their upcoming performances, Nelson plans to give musical instruction through video recordings and have students compile individual recordings into a comprehensive piece using sound design software. Bhasin has implemented a similar instruction style but utilizes more direction from his section leaders. Rather than putting together a virtual performance, Ehrlich has chosen to compile past recordings for the upcoming fall concert in order to reduce the pressure on his musicians.

Graham Crain (22B), a trombonist in the Wind Ensemble and Symphony Orchestra, commented on the positive takeaways from being involved in both groups. “The Wind Ensemble is more social and is more of a take away from academics, but it’s hard to say which one’s better because I really enjoy playing and the rigor of it, but also fun and relaxing,” Crain said.

California-based Trisha Sengupta (24C), a bassoonist, credits her involvement in both ensembles for making

Exhibit Pays Homage to Cherokee

her experience more well-rounded.

“I like orchestra because we’ll eventually have a final product, and when I’m recording myself, there’s a lot of new things I realize I have to consider and listen for,” Sengupta said. “In band, I’ve never had to do score studies … it’s giving me a new perspective.”

Sengupta also discussed the difficulties of making friends while remote, citing different time zones and her introverted personality for keeping her from “build[ing] relationships.”

In an effort for upperclassmen to connect with first-years, the social committee in the Symphony Orchestra plans to implement a one-on-one mentoring program, “Music Mates.” Crain hopes to meet more people through it.

Nelson was “moved” by the firstyear and returning members who chose to remain active within the choir despite current circumstances.

“It just means a lot to me,” Nelson said. “I’m so amazed that rather than washing their hands of it and walking away, they are absolutely engaged in making the best of it. And what more could we ask for?”

John Henry Gloyne, who blends classic Cherokee and Mississippian images into tattoos and modern art, as seen in his “The Process of Weeding Out” painting. Weaver hosted a thorough analysis of Cherokee art and pointed to the community’s new pieces.

The beauty of art is not only found in the creativity of the piece but also within its message and history.

Southeast Native American art is a piece of a culture, one highlighted by natural colors and unique patterns.

The updated North American Natives exhibit provides insight into these nations and encourages patrons to further explore the artwork.

Emory students can visit the exhibit on weekdays from 10 a.m to 4 p.m EDT through summer 2021. People who are taking classes remotely can access a video of the exhibit here.

— Contact Grace Lee at grace.lee4@emory.edu

— Contact Eythen Anthony at eaantho@emory.edu

Festival Displays Films on War, Sports and Bigfoot

This naivete, obviously, does not last, and this is where one of Sadat’s boldest and most innovative choices comes into play. Qodrat is shown at the outset of the film, before he arrives at the orphanage, as a movie ticket scalper who is enthralled by the Bollywood films that are popular in Kabul.

In the course of the film, Qodrat processes events that happen to him through the lens of Bollywood films, and the film illustrates this through sudden shifts into Bollywood reenactments, complete with lipsyncing that mimics both the costuming and the camerawork of popular 1980s Bollywood movies. At first, these reenactments are few and far between, and Qodrat uses them to

process feelings such as his first love.

However, as war invades his peaceful life and violence begins to envelop his reality, these reenactments become more frequent.

With this motif, Sadat illustrates the power of cinema’s escapism and the incomprehensibility of war for the young.

“15 Things You Didn’t K now About Bigfoot: Number 1 Will Blow Your Mind” (2020) Grade: D This film is a comedy mockumentary that follows a journalist, his cameraman and a bigfoot hunter as they get into trouble in the woods while trying to find the infamous sasquatch.

Joji Playfully Syncs Styles in New Album Continued from Page 7 and “MODUS,” is glossed over as the two songs blend into each other. “Ew” opens the album with cinematic piano and strings.

“MODUS” picks up the same instrumentation, but drops a jarring, fast beat that Joji raps over. The heavy bassline and Joji’s experimentation with sound lend themselves to more electronic tracks like “Pretty Boy (feat.

Lil Yachty)” whereas the rich, acoustic feeling of piano and strings shine in the intros of “Mr. Hollywood” and “Like You Do.” These two styles intertwine throughout the rest of the album. Joji’s falsetto in “Sanctuary” feels just as natural as his alto in “777” and rapping in “Tick Tock,” with each song seamlessly flowing into the next.

I was more drawn to tracks with abrupt, electronic backbeats for their sonic quality, noting the way the sound moved and what Joji’s voice did with the music.

On the complex, symphonic and production-heavy tracks, I got wrapped up in the lyrics of the song.

I also found the auditory qualities of the album to almost outweigh Joji’s vocals — how can Joji’s plush, gentle voice compete with the electric guitar run on “Run”? I was looking for the album features (think Diplo and Lil Yachty) to contribute more than they did on their respective tracks — as it happened, the tracks without a feature were my favorites.

The songs with just one vocalist came across more sincerely while the features made lyrics and perspectives seem disjointed and flat. Solo tracks allowed for Joji’s production, vocals and songwriting to be appreciated in their entirety.

“Nectar” nearly doubles in playtime from Joji’s debut album “BALLADS 1,” demonstrating a clear sense of growth and skill since 2018.

Joji’s increased playfulness with sound from his previous work shows us that while he was already in a league of his own, he is on a trajectory toward musical genius.

— Contact Cailen Chinn at cailen.chinn@emory.edu

However, unlike other films within the same genre, director Zach Lamplugh’s film is disappointingly unfunny. The movie begins by introducing the main character, Brian (Brian Emond), a cynical and arrogant journalist who believes he is too good to be covering small stories.

Brian and his cameraman, Zach (Zach Lamplugh), are sent on an assignment to cover a Bigfoot festival in northern Georgia where they meet Jeff (Jeffrey Stephenson), a Bigfoot expert with a large YouTube following.

The story continues as Jeff takes Brian and Zach into the woods on a camping expedition to find Bigfoot.

Here, nearly nothing of note happens as most of the dialogue is Brian either making fun of Jeff or complaining

about being in the woods. Toward the end of their trek, however, the trio discovers what appears to be a decaying corpse lying under a tree, with no clear cause of death. Immediately after this incident, the audience is bombarded with confusing plot twists, new characters and unrelated storylines that have little to no relevance to the film thus far.

In the end, Bigfoot saves the day during a shoot-out with a drug cartel and the three main characters get the satisfying endings they never deserved.

Zach and Brian get promoted and Jeff’s ex-girlfriend suddenly falls back in love with him.

With nauseating camerawork, excessive narration and uninspired performances, “15 Things You Didn’t

Know About Bigfoot” really misses the mark.

The horror isn’t horrifying, especially since the cameraman always seems to just miss the action.

The comedy also isn’t well-developed, relying on simple conflicts toward the beginning of the film and changing course with complicated, incoherent twists at the very end.

This film doesn’t really stand out in any memorable way and, unfortunately, I didn’t learn anything about Bigfoot that I didn’t already know.

— Contact Saru Garg, Alison Rothman and Bridget Barnsley at sgarg34@emory.edu, ajrothm@emory.edu and bbarnsl@emory.edu

that despite their serious and mature proclamations, these are high schoolers. The distinction between serious ideology and comedic performance is sometimes difficult to distinguish.

One of the most thrilling characters to watch in “Boys State” is Steven Garza, the calm, quiet and collected son of an immigrant. Unlike many of the Boys State attendees, Garza is a self-proclaimed Bernie Sanders supporter and participant in Black Lives Matter protests. Despite these odds, Garza skillfully employs patriotic rhetoric to appeal to core American values shared by most Boys State attendees.

Garza lauds hard work and respect for veterans as he queries in his first speech, “I want to know what is on your mind. … Will we show the world what patriots are made of?”

Other key figures in the film include students Ben Feinstein and Rene Otero, who serve as the district chairs for their respective parties. Feinstein is a Ronald Reagan-loving philosophical conservative who exemplifies the realpolitik mindset. Otero, my favorite attendee, joins Garza as a shining beacon of diversity in thought and race: as a leftist and Black man in a sea of white conservative Texans, Otero stands out with his charismatic confidence and razor-sharp rhetoric. As one of the few Black men at Boys State, he tact-

fully handles racial discrimination and bigotry against him and his campaign.

Although the movie itself does not have a protagonist or antagonist, certain people like Feinstein and gubernatorial candidate Robert MacDougal are depicted as manipulative and even malicious in their political schemings.

At one point in the film, Otero moderates a debate session and prevents his opponent from speaking out of turn. Feinstein, a true Machiavellian, pounces and accuses Garza and Otero of biased and unfair moderation; Feinstein continues to bring up this event throughout the rest of the campaign period, much to the chagrin of Garza’s campaign.

In a Zoom interview with college media outlets, Feinstein admitted he had expected the film to simply portray the fun times he had at Boys State and the success of his campaign. He was surprised by how stressed and controversial his peers appeared in the final cut, and upon reflection, he disapproved of some of his own decisions. Feinstein’s reflection here adds an important layer to how this film reflects real political behavior — he felt as if he was doing well for both himself and his party, and having fun.

However, the documentary paints a more grim picture of self-interest, mudslinging and power dynamics.

Although the program is a mere political simulation, the high schoolers in the film were willing to go against their own morals and beliefs for the sake of attaining political power, and look back at unethical betrayals fondly and wistfully. Unadulterated absurdity and duplicity of American politics is on full display for the masses to witness and gawk at. The expectation that these students should be kinder, more compassionate and more understanding of each other’s positions because they are young is habitually subverted by their behavior, representing a grand reflection on human behavior as a whole. MacDougal learned that, regardless of our political differences, coming together and having respectful, productive dialogues is still within reach. But “Boys State” also reveals the core political assumptions, insidious manipulation and racism that ground the United States more generally. With the election a month away, “Boys State’’ is a necessary and critical experience for everyone living in this country.

Most importantly, “Boys State” underscores the gravity of voting. Make sure to cast a ballot in the 2020 election — lest we allow the Machiavellian politics of Boys State dominate America.

Doc Dives Into Youth Political Experiment

— Contact Jeffrey Rosen at jrose77@emory.edu

The Emory Wheel

Emory Life

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 | Emory Life Editor: Angela Tang (angela.tang@emory.edu)

SATIRE

Where to Eat on Campus

By Christine Plaster Contributing Writer

Although we may be ranked 21st among national universities, Emory students know too well that the University’s food options are certainly not included in this ranking.

After ruining the campus’ aesthetic for many years, the R. Howard Dobbs University Center was torn down and the Emory Student Center and Dobbs Common Table (DCT) opened in Fall 2019.

This dining hall is currently only serving take-out due to the pandemic, but that doesn’t mean the portion sizes are too small to feed your average, hungry college student. Just in case you get tired of microwavable spicy chicken ramen, here are some effortless and edible meal options to grab on campus.

DCT Without the forced guidance from helpful upperclassmen, ignorant freshmen have turned to calling the DCT, “Dobbs.” Gone are days of the “DUC.” With lost freshmen feeling rather overwhelmed by the endless void that is adulthood, responsibility and a lockdown browser, the one constant they can turn to is Dobbs and their seasonal vegetables, olive oil tossed over pasta and seasoned, grilled chicken breast.

One new feature at the DCT that adds a particularly new flavor to this fine cuisine is the to-go factor, which adds a whole new variable of movement to the food. So, after freshmen

have wandered aimlessly around campus for 20 minutes to find a socially distanced seat, their alfredo pasta, turmeric chicken and fried rice have become a curious grain bowl that the Culinary Institute of America has asked to include in their course curriculum.

Because of campus’ random dining hall hours, freshmen have become fearful of starvation and have turned to hoarding food from Dobbs, particularly the sugary cereal and chips.

Students now fill brown bags to the brim with these snacks, as if they had just taken the shuttle to the nearest Kroger and didn’t know if they would be back.

The two biggest issues with the DCT are the napkins and lines. The plastic cutlery — which contains a single-ply three-by-three inch square of what some may call a napkin — isn’t working out. Sure, it helps to clean half my pinky finger mid-meal, but when I am desperately trying to eat my barbeque ribs and keep what little friends I’ve managed to find, it’s not doing the job.

In order to get food, one is ushered into one of four lines. These may all appear the same to the eyes of commoners, but all seasoned DCT-goers can explain in detail the pros and cons of each line. For the most part the lines are similar, as long as you don’t get sent to line 4b.

Picture this: you are sent to a line with the biggest station. As you prepare to turn right and get some thai curry fried chicken, a staff member points left to a desolate corner and

See A BEGINNER’S, Page 10

COMMUNITY SPACES

Group Creates Space for Biracial Identities

By Kaitlin Mottley Contributing Writer

In spring 2019, film and media major Taylor McGhee (21C) was tasked with creating a short film for her documentary production class. Inspired by her experiences as a biracial woman, McGhee’s film focused on the modern implications of Loving v. Virginia (1967), a landmark Supreme Court case that legalized interracial marriage throughout the U.S. McGhee researched extensively, interviewed other biracial students and won a $2,500 grant for the film along the way. Her final project would soon develop into a commitment to empowering biracial youth like herself: The Grayscale Movement, a grassroots organization meant to spread the stories of biracial individuals nationwide.

Research during her filming pro-

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

cess gave McGhee the idea to create something larger than the film itself.

McGhee sought to build a narrative and community for biracial people, something she felt she never had.

“I don’t want the next generation of biracial children to grow up without seeing themselves represented,” McGhee said. “I didn’t see any role models that looked like me. That’s why I became really passionate about this; I want to share stories and create a community of biracial people.”

Aleia Ringel (17Ox, 19C) has been a close friend of McGhee since high school. Currently a master’s student at Augusta University (Ga.), Ringel said that an initiative like the Grayscale Movement was missing in her life as a biracial child.

“I grew up feeling stuck in this identity purgatory where I was never fully accepted by one identity group or the

other,” Ringel said. “I think Grayscale matters, because if I had seen a group of biracial women talking about their successes and challenges, their joy and their fear, I would have felt seen. My identity would have made sense long before I was in my early 20s.”

The movement’s mission is to foster open discussion among interracial communtities and ensure others enjoy the representation that McGhee and Ringel did not. To this end, McGhee has expanded her movement with help from the Emory Faculty in Residence (FIR) program.

She has had the opportunity to work with several professors to gain direction for her initiative, including Ana Catarina Teixeira, the director of the Portuguese program and senior lecturer in Portuguese, who noted that McGhee’s focus on personal narratives

See GRAYSCALE, Page 10

ADVICE

Emory Students Turned TikTok Sensations Navigating the Time

By Kaitlin Mottley Contributing Writer

When Rishika Jikaria (20C) and Marissa Ren (22B) open TikTok, they don’t simply scroll through the myriad of videos on the massively popular social media service. Instead, the trend-savvy junior and recently graduated Juris Doctorate candidate at Fordham University return to a platform where they have garnered astounding popularity.

With 1.1 million followers and 36 million likes on her videos, Ren creates content on fashion, beauty and college tips. Jikaria follows close behind with 565.6k followers and 8.2 million likes for her short videos focusing on South Asian dance.

Widely known for her fashion videos, Ren started her account in September 2019 as a simple pastime.

Although her mission was just “to post dances and meaningless videos for fun,” this hobby soon became lifechanging, with her first video going viral the next month at over 2.5 million likes.

“It was just me trying on my mom’s clothes,” Ren said. “I’m very embarrassed of it now!”

Jikaria recalled similar humble beginnings. She began by posting dance videos with her two sisters back in March 2020 as a means to make quarantine less lonely.

“We’ve been dancing together since we were really young,” Jikaria said.

“We’ve always been choreographing together, taking videos and posting them.”

Apart from dancing, as South Asian-Americans, the sibling trio aimed to bring more cultural repreRishika Jikaria (20C), Student TikTok Star

Courtesy of R ishika Jikaria (20C)

sentation to the app.

“We thought it would be cool to bring our own perspectives [and] create videos that reflect that. That’s what inspired us,” Jikaria said.

Michelle Zheng (19Ox, 21C) met Jikaria through Emory Karma Bhangra, an Emory’s co-ed Bhangra dance team, where they immediately became close. Zheng noted the trio’s Marissa Ren (22B), Student TikTok Star

Courtesy of M arissa R en (22B)

impact on diversity across TikTok. “They are such big inspirations to so many South Asian women who don’t see people like themselves represent-

ed,” Zheng said.

After amassing over 2.5 million likes on her first TikTok, Ren began taking content creation seriously. One of her most popular series follows Chinese street fashion and showcases some of the country’s recent fashion trends.

Amy Zhang (21C) was close to Ren before coming to Emory and wasn’t at all surprised when she became viral.

“She has always had an eye for these types of things and a very good sense of style,” Zhang said.

Ren is also part of TikTok’s Creative Learning Fund, a COVID-19 relief effort providing over $50 million in grants to educators in need. Creators like Ren will also contribute to the platform’s dedication to learning by providing users with educational content about traditional clothing across Asia. From now until October, Ren is committed to uploading informational videos to foster greater acceptance of global cultures.

Ren’s roommate Tian Zhu (22B) said that her commitment to quality makes her content captivating.

“She spend[s] hours filming,” Zhu said. “I would say she has a very strong work ethic.”

Ren is not the only one taking advantage of the app’s opportunity.

Jikaria is part of the TikTok Creator Marketplace, which allows creators to take requests from those interested in working with them to start trends

See Jikaria, Page 10

Zone Difference

By Kennedy Zhang Contributing Writer Since August, Emory’s international students have been facing a tall hurdle — a significant time zone difference. Though some professors upload recorded lectures, others still require frequent attendance and participation.

What’s the best way to deal with this? By applying a couple of time management skills and helpful habits, international students can overcome this untimely challenge.

Don’t Procrastinate in the Name of Time Difference Finish your work early and develop a healthy sleeping schedule. For international students, assignments can be due at arbitrary times.

Instead of scrambling to finish an assignment by midnight, international students may find themselves with early morning deadlines.

Don’t make the mistake of setting alarm clocks for extremely early hours to finish homework or exams at the last minute while extremely sleep deprived. Instead, finish assignments before you go to sleep, even if the deadline is hours away.

Create Daily To-Do Lists Either before going to sleep the previous night or first thing in the morning, create a to-do list for the day.

Professors usually announce deadlines and exam dates in Eastern Standard Time (EST), which can cause international students who momentarily forget the time zone difference to accidentally miss due dates.

Check your Canvas page every morning to ensure you know which assignments must be completed and at what times before you go to bed.

Use the notes app on your phone and place the list on your background to ensure you remember.

Bond With Other International Students Though quarantine is isolating, there are thousands of other Emory students going through this experience.

Discussing and sharing your struggles with others who can sympathize with you can be comforting.

Create or join group chats with friends, discuss your worries, remind each other of deadlines and just talk

See EMORY, Page 10

10

EMORY LIFE

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

A Beginner’s Guide to Emory’s Food Scene

Continued from Page 9 says “go that way please.” You silently cry as you pass a tumbleweed and walk to 4b, the fyre festival of all DCT food lines. This station has virtually no food and feels like the Island of Misfit toys.

The DCT gets a bad rep, and this is mostly because they are absolutely swamped come dinnertime. An important tip is to head to the DCT for weekend brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

There’s nothing like sitting down and opening a to-go box filled with only carbs and greasy, golden brown foods that provide none of the phytonutrients your Health 100 class advised you to eat.

Sure, the brunch may irreparably clog your arteries, but tell me how you feel after a bite of a chocolate pancake, followed by some crispy tater tots and greasy bacon — you’ll be left speechless.

There is so much to say about the DCT. There’s the grilled chicken, which could double as the foundation for the next campus construction, the fascinating variety and color of sheet cake and the rather unproblematic pasta.

But what sets the DCT apart from all other food destinations is the staff.

You leave the dining hall like you leave your grandmother’s house: barely able to move because you are carrying so much food.

Unlike the Kaldi’s staff, who aggressively scream everyone’s name but your own, and the Cox staff, who hint that you should cut back on calories as you try to snag another fudgy brownie, the DCT welcomes you with open arms and encourages you to take more. There is nothing like walking in and hearing, “what do you want, sugar?” Nothing beats that southern hospitality.

The Depot by K aldi’s Coffee Kaldi’s is where all Dooley Dollars

with each other. Some classes feature group projects and it can be difficult to find a time convenient for everyone, especially when group members are spread across the globe.

See if you can work with fellow international students with a similar time zone to meet up at a more reasonable time.

Reach Out to Your Professors Reaching out to your professors can be intimidating. However, many professors are understanding and willing to accommodate any concerns you may have.

Instead of taking an exam with four hours of sleep, see if you can move back that deadline by a couple hours to a more reasonable time.

If you don’t understand a topic, but office hours are inaccessible, consider emailing your professor to schedule an alternative time to ask your questions.

Though many professors require attendance, some are willing to accommodate international students and allow them to instead watch recorded lectures. You won’t know unless you ask.

Ayushi Agarwal/Managing Editor

Dobbs Common Table, ever since only freshmen have been welcomed back to campues, have offered to-go meals only.

go to die. When freshmen are not crying about their five weekly ALEKS assignments for biology, or just doing nothing because they are a pre-business or political science major, they are usually wasting money on the newest chai-matcha fusion.

Kaldi’s is a solid option if you are willing to drop some Dooley Dollars, and then wait an hour for a piece of bread with an avocado smashed on top that you could have had faster if you walked to Publix and back. By the time you get your food it’s bound to be cold, but hey, nobody’s perfect. An item that is not talked about enough is the barbeque chicken flatbread — it deserves the hype so much more than the avocado toast.

Cox Hall If you’re in the mood for lunch, and only lunch, Cox dining hall is open between the useful hours of 11 a.m. t0 3 p.m. Cox has meals for any mood and I dare say the food is flavorful. If you are in the mood for quantity, however, Cox is not for you. While the DCT staff will let you take an entire basket of

lectures at 4 a.m. can be physically exhausting, but there are some silver linings for international students.

While some classes may be in the middle of the night, others might actually now be during a more desirable time slot.

Classes that used to be at 8 a.m. in Atlanta can be anywhere from noon to the late evening, depending on the time zone.

College is often an overwhelming and fast-paced environment, and early mornings can be calming and rejuvenating. Appreciate the sunrise in the mornings.

Enjoy a fruit smoothie and some meditation as you watch it rise. Check in with yourself — make sure you aren’t too overwhelmed to tackle another day of challenging courses with a nearly nocturnal itinerary.

Conclusion Though navigating a large time difference can be everything from inconvenient to taxing, many members of the Emory community are willing to help alleviate the burden. Do your best to stay organized and manage your time well, but don’t be afraid to reach out to others for help.

Appreciate the Positives Pulling yourself out of bed to attend

Jikaria and Ren: A Million and Counting

Continued from Page 9

Emory International: Managing Night Classes Continued from Page 9

The Emory Wheel

— Contact Kennedy Zhang at susan.zhang@emory.edu

bananas and the shirt off their backs, if Cox hall employees so much as see you look at a second banana the wrong way they will open field tackle you on the spot.

This is also true about the desserts.

A freshman once walked out with two delectable rice krispy treats and security pulled up in one of the campus’ deceivingly fast golf carts and picked her up without slowing down. No one has seen her since.

Conclusion It’s really quite simple — if you’re in the mood for quantity and some hospitality, head to the DCT; if you’re in the mood for a solid but smaller meal, head to Cox Hall; and if you are in the mood for spending money and waiting an ungodly amount of time for a piece of toast, head to Kaldi’s.

When you get tired of the same four items that you deemed consumable on campus, head to Emory Village for a change of pace.

— Contact Christine Plaster at christine.plaster@emory.edu

from their music. She and her sisters have accepted a few requests from creators who have asked them to dance to their songs.

Aditi Chunduru (19Ox, 21C), a close friend of Jikaria’s, said the opportunities that Jikaria has been able to take advantage of are a product of her hard work. “[Jikaria] puts her 100% effort into anything she is doing,” Chunduru said.

“She will not quit until she truly given it all she has got.”

For both of the TikTok stars, the transition back to school has made it difficult to create content. However, this has given them time to reflect on their recent accomplishments.

In May, Ren was invited to be a part of TikTok’s first Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month event, where she connected with other Asian creators like Michelle Phan and Patrick Starrr. The event celebrated the cultural history of the AAPI community and their contributions to the app.

Similarly, Jikaria has had the opportunity to collaborate with Lowe’s Home Improvement store this past summer on a Fourth of July themed TikTok that celebrated being with family during quarantine. She’s worked with DJs, such as DJ Jamz and DJ Jamsal, and well-known brands, including Anita Dongre Designer Clothing.

Ren and Jikaria have also credited the app for both personal and professional growth. Studying marketing and human health, Ren’s love for social media is shaping her academic decisions.

“Before last year, I thought I would go into accounting or finance, but I did

not like it,” Ren said. “After starting TikTok, I realized that I wanted to do something more creative.”

Ren spent the past summer as an intern for takeme.to, a social media marketing product by San Francisco start-up Scout. She helped content creators grow their audiences, and said that TikTok was a key player in working for the company.

“I don’t know if I’ll be a full-time content creator, but I really enjoy working with social media and content creation,” Ren said. “From TikTok I’ve learned a lot about engaging with audiences, user preferences and things like that.”

Jikaria said that the dedication required to upload videos consistently has shaped her work ethic and diligence tremendously. Prior to TikTok, she hadn’t realized how much effort it takes to run a social media account.

Jikaria claims that TikTok has taught her a lot about professionalism, too.

“Professionally, I’ve learned how to negotiate and how to advocate for myself,” Jikaria said. “When we do brand deals, it’s really important to understand your interests and the other party’s interests [so] you can both gain the most out of the collaboration.”

With a continually growing fanbase on TikTok, Jikaria and Ren are excited to embark on new journeys through the platform.

Neither students expected fame, but they think of TikTok as a vehicle for ordinary people to shine.

“No one knew me before TikTok,” Ren said. “The cool thing is that anyone can blow up.”

— Contact Kaitlin Mottley at kmottle@emory.edu

McGhee Seeks to Educate, Increase Representation Continued from Page 9 has made the Grayscale Movement a success.

“Listening to others’ stories is fundamental to building empathy – arguably the most essential characteristic one must seek to forge a more just society,” Teixeira said. “She is thoughtful and intentional in pursuing answers to questions that often narratives about race seem to overlook.”

With the added guidance, the Grayscale Movement has begun to develop digital workshops on racial justice and provide other nonprofits with racial education resources, such as lists of local Black- and biracialowned businesses to support.

The Grayscale Movement is also working to launch a curriculum guide, a resource for professors and administrators alike, to help them guide college students in class-based discussions on racial justice issues.

“There’s a lot going on, but [the Grayscale Movement] is centered on education and trying to collect information to spread it in the most accessible way possible,” McGhee said.

The organization is also using social media to spread awareness. Alongside the Grayscale Movement’s Instagram, McGhee and her team have launched both a podcast and blog to share their mission.

“So many conversations show a very ‘black and white’ issue,” McGhee said. “It’s not simply about being biracial, so I like to bring a whole host of people to the podcast.”

The podcast has included guests

from her sister, who was her very first guest, to social activists and others from the Middle East, South Africa and Europe. McGhee hopes to ignite overarching support for multiracial individuals by giving a voice to those facing social adversity around the globe.

The podcast currently has six onehour episodes and over 200 active listeners. Listeners mostly consist of 18-to-24-year-olds, but McGhee has also seen listeners from the 50 to 60 age group.

Taylor McGhee (21C), the Grayscale Movement Founder

Courtesy of Taylor McGhee (21C)

The movement’s blog has followed with similar topics of racial injustice, but McGhee is preparing to add two new series.

The first will be recurring spotlight features, highlighting the rise of influential biracial individuals. Tracee Ellis Ross, star of the American sitcom “Black-ish” will be the first feature.

While the spotlights serve to draw attention to well-known biracial individuals in the media, McGhee hopes to conduct interviews with prominent multiracial figures as well. McGhee also wants to incorporate a photography series into the blog, focusing on biracial people in black and white portraits.

These photos will be paired with

a brief story of the person pictured.

McGhee hopes to collect more stories with which her biracial audience can identify.

In the future, McGhee hopes to repurpose her short documentary into a feature-length film, as well as take the Grayscale Movement to other college campuses.

Her main goal for right now, however, is to establish a multicultural safe space for biracial Emory students.

“We have [groups] for Black students, Asian Americans and more,” McGhee said. “But there’s not one for biracial students. My hope is that, whatever college [biracial students] attend, they can find a way to build community.”

To continue building fellowship among multiracial people, McGhee encourages both her biracial and monoracial peers to follow the Grayscale Movement on social media, engage in the digital workshop they plan to announce in the spring and reach out to her or her team directly.

McGhee is working to create a stronger presence on campus amid COVID-19. She remains a strong advocate for biracial people struggling with self-acceptance across the U.S. McGhee believes that the Grayscale Movement is an opportunity to foster pride in all sides of one’s identity.

“There are other people like you,” McGhee said. “You’ll start to see that being biracial is not as invisible as society makes it out to be.”

— Contact Kaitlin Mottley at kmottle@emory.edu

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

SPORTS

The Emory Wheel

Yankees, Dodgers, Braves to Shine in Playoffs

Continued from Page 12

Series as MLB is allowing 11,500 fans to attend each game. This will be the first opportunity fans will have to catch baseball in person in 2020.

The MLB chose to play the majority of its playoff games at these few parks to form a “bubble” for the postseason.

To ensure safety and limit possible exposure to the virus, teams will stay together in these cities.

While it’s difficult to focus on the actual game of baseball itself among the chaos of the state of the country, there are a few teams in particular that stand out. While other teams may surprise in the postseason, the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers are teams to keep an eye on throughout playoffs. The Atlanta Braves, too, have a serious chance at the Commissioner’s Trophy. But only time will tell who ultimately will take the crown.

New York Yankees The Yankees are arguably the hungriest team heading into the postseason. In 2017, the team faced and lost to the Astros in the ALCS. But the Astros were found guilty of stealing signs from the Yankees some months after the Astros went on to win the World

Teams Promote Turnout

Series. Over the 2019 offseason, the Yankees gave former Astros starting pitcher Gerrit Cole the second-largest contract in MLB history, paying him $324 million dollars over nine seasons. Many believe that Cole has been the missing piece to a Yankees team that has dominated offensively over the past couple of seasons but has lacked in pitching.

While the Yankees’ bats have been continuously hot, their injury report has been consistently lengthy, which has caused them to fall short of titles in the past few seasons. But the Yankees finally have the majority of their key players healthy, such as All-Stars outfielder Aaron Judge and designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton.

Infielder DJ LeMahieu and first baseman Luke Voit, who led the league with 22 homers, have both put up MVP-worthy seasons. LeMahieu recorded the highest league batting average at .364. These players, along with infielders Gleyber Torres and Gio Urshela and outfielder Aaron Hicks, present a terrifying batting lineup for opposing pitchers.

If closing pitcher Aroldis Chapman and relief pitcher Zack Britton continue to pitch lights out in the postseason, and if the roster remains healthy, the

Yankees are set to bring their 28th title back to the Big Apple.

Los Angeles Dodgers The Dodgers are currently one of the hottest teams in baseball, having lost only twice since Sept. 15. They had the best record at season’s end and led the league in run differential by 52 during the season with +136. In past years, in which they have reached the NLCS in three of the last four seasons and lost the 2017 World Series to the Astros, the Dodgers have struggled late in the postseason. The key to their run will be All-Star pitcher Clayton Kershaw’s performance. Kershaw has been one of the league’s most dominant starting pitchers for 10-plus years, winning three Cy Young Awards in that time. However, Kershaw currently holds the record for the worst playoff ERA in history. Nevertheless, Kershaw secured L.A.’s ticket to the Texas bubble with a shutout win over the Milwaukee Brewers in the wildcard round.

Los Angeles will also rely heavily on starting pitcher Walker Buehler, who is highly regarded throughout the league. In addition to the team’s pitching, the team’s lineup, which fea-

tures 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger and 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts, is unmatched. Outfielder A.J. Pollock rounds out their star-studded outfield, and first baseman Max Muncy and 2016 NL Rookie of the Year Corey Seager highlight their infield. Closing pitcher Kenley Jansen and relief pitcher Blake Treinen’s performances in relief will also be a crucial factor for the Dodgers. This may be the year the Dodgers get over the hump and bring a title home for the first time in over 30 years.

Atlanta Braves Prior to sweeping the Cincinnati Reds in the NL wild-card series last week, the Braves had lost 10 consecutive playoff series dating back to 2001.

Atlanta has certainly played like a team that can make a serious run at a title and looks to bring their newfound momentum into Texas. The Braves scored the second-most runs in the league this season with 348, trailing the Dodgers by only one run. Atlanta also broke a NL record by scoring 29 runs against the Miami Marlins in early September, the most by a NL team since the MLB formed. Nine days later, the Braves scored 15 runs

11

against the New York Mets. Runs were piled upon other teams throughout the season with the help of All-Star outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr., first baseman Freddie Freeman and outfielder Marcell Ozuna. Acuña Jr. is one of Atlanta’s rising stars, leading the team with a .987 on-base plus slugging percentage, and Ozuna hit the third most home runs in the league with 18 during the regular season.

The biggest question surrounding Atlanta is their starting pitching. Their bullpen, led by Mark Melancon and Will Smith, has been effective all year, but their starting pitchers have been hurt all season. Starting pitchers Mike Soroka and Cole Hamels are out for the season, but Max Fried appeared impressive, posting a 7-0 record and 2.25 ERA. In his first postseason outing in 2020, Fried went seven innings without giving up a run and led the Braves to a win. Rookie pitcher Ian Anderson has also been sharp since being called up in September. Atlanta will have a quality team to root for this postseason and may even get the chance to celebrate a title come October.

— Contact Michael Mariam at mmariam@emory.edu

Giannis The Resilience of the Miami Heat Faces Heavy Decision

NBA FINALS

By Madison Bober Editor-in-Chief

Continued from Page 12 has solicited numerous other teams to offer their stadiums as polling sites, including the Los Angeles Clippers, Washington Wizards, Golden State Warriors and several other franchises across various other leagues.

While being unable to host fans for games, participating franchises are still eager to host voters.

Hawks CEO Steve Koonin tweeted, “Let your voice be heard … get out to vote. We look forward to welcoming Fulton County voters to State Farm Arena.”

While the creation of such super centers reflects the power and influence of athletes on political society, only time will show the effect these super centers will have on actual voter participation.

— Contact Sofia Himmel at sjhimme@emory.edu

Only one team has ever come back from a 3-1 deficit to clinch the NBA championship. It was the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.

The Miami Heat could easily be the second.

If you’re from Miami, you know how deep the Heat run in the fabric of our city. When the Heat won the NBA Championship in 2006, 2012 and again in 2013, fans flooded Hialeah’s 49th street with their cazuelas (cooking pots), vigorously parading until the early morning hours.

I’ve been a Heat fan since birth. I idolized the friendship between guard Dwyane Wade and center Shaquille O’Neal when they were teammates in the mid-to-late 2000s, and I decided Udonis Haslem would be my favorite player when he joined the team in 2003.

Like most other Heat fans right now, my eyes have been glued to the TV, witnessing the Heat’s historic ascension to the NBA Finals — the first time since 1999 that a team seeded fifth or lower has reached the NBA’s final stage. The Heat might also join the 1995 Houston Rockets’ as the latest team to win the Finals as a fifth seed or lower.

But to be a Heat fan is to also embrace unpredictability and great loss. LeBron James famously and stunningly arrived in South Beach in 2010, delivered us two championships and promptly left.

When Wade left the team after 13 seasons in 2016, he left a gaping hole in the Heat franchise and in the hearts of South Florida residents. Wade is gone, yet James and Heat are again in the Finals. This time, however, as opponents.

Within the last six years, the Heat have ebbed and flowed to and from the NBA playoffs. Last year they didn’t even reach the postseason, and the preseason odds they would even make it to this year’s Finals were 60-1. After all, the Heat finished the regular season fifth in the Eastern Conference and featured only one top-10 draft pick, wing Andre Iguodala, who was drafted in 2004.

But the Heat have shown throughout the postseason that they are anything but the underdog title that’s been ascribed to them by fans and commentators alike: “So what that nobody picked us to be here,” Heat forward Jimmy Butler retorted to an ESPN reporter. “At the end of the day, we truly don’t care.”

After losing center Bam Adebayo and guard Goran Dragic to injuries in the first two games, everyone seemed ready to write the Heat off. Adebayo and Dragic contributed an average of 37.7 points per game during the postseason and their absences, especially in the first two games, were definitely felt.

From a 0-2 deficit, the Heat came back to win Game 3. Butler totaled a 40-point triple-double in Game 3 Sunday night — the third of its kind in NBA Finals history, after LeBron James’ in 2015 and former Los Angeles Lakers guard Jerry West’s in 1969.

Game 4 was a close game throughout and the Heat gave the Lakers a run for their money. In the end, however, they couldn’t pull through.

After Game 3, Butler said, “We’re coming to realize that we belong here.”

The Heat have staked their claim, matched decades-old records and defied expectations.

If any team is capable of winning the 2020 championship, it’s the Miami Heat. They represent so much more than the underdog — they embody hope and determination. Don’t count them out.

— Contact Madison Bober at madison.bober@emory.edu

Continued from Page 12 direction. Head coach Mike D’Antoni announced he will not return to the team next season, and trade speculation throughout the roster abounds.

The Russell Westbrook experiment failed in the postseason due to his inability to capitalize when defenses double Harden, and the team will not look back on trading Chris Paul for him favorably. Harden’s spectacular numbers look empty without a ring, and his chance at one with the Rockets might have already come and gone.

Harden may jump ship if he feels the team is continuing to sink toward mediocrity.

The offseason decisions for each of these teams will shape the NBA landscape. If the Bucks, Clippers or Rockets can conjure up an ideal combination of talent to complement the game-breaking superstars they already have, any of these teams could be looking at championship glory next season instead of repeating the agonizing defeat of this season.

— Contact Charlie Scruton at charlie.scruton@emory.edu

W Sports is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.

Contact jessie.solomon@emory.edu for more information.

Students Puzzled by Activity Restrictions Continued from Page 12 lowing the rules of the Community Compact, I think it’s a great way for students to meet people and [will] help benefit their college experience.”

While Emory encourages socializing outside with masks, masks are not needed for physical activity on campus.

Some students, however, are upset that outdoor athletic facilities, like McDonough Field, are not open for use.

Sports like tennis, or even passing around a soccer ball, can be done

socially distanced with little to no physical contact.

“It’s really unfair to the students that Emory decided to close our tennis courts,” freshman and recreational tennis player Josh Elenowitz said.

“Tennis is a sport where we can stay socially distant and still have a really fun time.”

While the future remains blurry with the unpredictable nature of COVID-19, one thing is for certain: Spikeball is here to stay at Emory.

— Contact Scott Rosson at scott.rosson@emory.edu

The Emory Wheel

Sports

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 | Sports Editor: Jessica Solomon (jessie.solomon@emory.edu)

ELECTION 2020

Stadiums Transform Into Voting Centers

By Sofia Himmel Contributing Writer

Gabriella Lewis/A sst. Multimedia Editor

Students play a game of Spikeball on Emory’s Atlanta Campus. The game has risen in popularity both at Emory and globally.

Spikeball Takes Campus by Storm

By Scott Rosson Contributing Writer

The pandemic has been destructive in every sense of the word, from its deleterious health ramifications to the mental health effects of limited human contact. With social distancing guidelines in place, one major facet of global culture has been stripped: sports, recreationally and professionally. While professional sports associations have devised plans to resume play, recreational play hasn’t been easy to restart.

Some activities, such as running and golf, hit their peak during quarantine as they allowed for social distancing. But with athletic facilities closed and tennis nets stripped on Emory’s Atlanta campus, freshmen are limited in their opportunities for exercise.

Yet, despite all odds, one unorthodox sport has captivated Emory’s grounds: Spikeball.

Spikeball is a four-person game

in which two-player teams face off in a game to 21 points. The setup only requires a circular net centered between four players and a small, yellow ball. Each point begins with a serve off of the net. The opposing team then has two passes to cleanly hit the ball back onto the net with their third hit. Whoever does not return the ball back onto the net loses the point. The general perception of Spikeball is that it is a fun, recreational game. But in recent years, Spikeball has gained recognition and popularity, establishing itself as a competitive, global sport.

While students find the sport extremely fun to play, it also provides them with a demanding form of exercise.

“I love how you can either play leisurely or super competitively,” freshman Jesse Bernstone said. “When it gets competitive, it’s a great form of exercise since the gyms aren’t open on campus.”

Students looking to blow off steam

or seeking competition can find a handful of Spikeball games set up on the grass patch outside the Emory Student Center. While Spikeball offers physical exercise, the game also adheres to Emory’s social distancing guidelines. Generally, Spikeball is played outside, where the virus does not spread as easily. Sharing the ball is the only violation of the social distancing guidelines, so sanitation should be performed immediately after play.

Nevertheless, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes the virus also does not spread easily on surfaces. Residence Life staff have not shut Spikeball down on campus and are instead excited that students have found a fun, socially-distanced physical activity.

“I think it’s a great way of students being able to interact with each other,” senior Resident Advisor Ally Render said. “As long as people are still fol-

See STUDENTS, Page 11

With the 2020 presidential election less than a month away, the question of voter turnout is omnipresent.

Public figures writ large have utilized their outreach to encourage voter participation — a key group being professional American sports leagues.

Teams across almost every league are transforming their stadiums into election super centers in an effort to facilitate voting and increase voter turnout.

A year that kicked off with an unforeseen pandemic and powerful racial justice movements will soon be topped off with a historic presidential election on Nov. 3.

This highly anticipated election has kept American citizens glued to their phones and TV screens, especially with the recent presidential debate on Sept. 29. The election will boil down to voter turnout.

A significant issue underlying recent elections has been whether or not citizens are taking advantage of their right to vote.

In 2016, just 61.4% of the eligible voting population voted. Many people believe that if there was a higher voter turnout, the results of the 2016 election would have influenced the Electoral College vote.

Stadiums, it turns out, allow for social distancing even with the long lines and wait times that usually accompany Election Day. This supercenter movement is led by the Election Super Centers Project, whose goal is to help sports organizations work

with election officials to open venues, such as stadiums, as polling sites.

By partnering with as many sports teams as possible, the project is encouraging as many voters as possible to exercise their right to vote.

Before the emergence of the Election Super Centers Project, however, players were already ensuring their stadiums were converted.

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, through his new voting organization More Than a Vote, announced in June the Detroit Pistons and the Atlanta Hawks would open their stadiums for polling.

The Atlanta Hawks’ State Farm Arena is Georgia’s largest voting center.

Atlanta is a city that experienced weeks of protests following the deaths of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks, as well as institutional voter suppression during the 2018 gubernatorial election.

Such occurrences struck a particular chord with the Hawks organization, especially with head coach Lloyd Pierce.

Pierce, the chair of the NBA’s racial justice committee, is calling upon citizens to vote to hopefully enact change that will improve the racial inequities in the U.S. “I was born a Black man, and I know one day I’ll die a Black man,” Pierce said. “But I don’t want to die because I’m a Black man.”

There will also be free parking at the stadium throughout the voting period.

The Election Super Centers Project

See SPORTS’, Page 11

NBA

MLB PLAYOFFS

A Look Ahead at the The Uncertain Future of NBA Free Agency MLB Postseason

By Charlie Scruton Senior Staff Writer

By Michael Mariam Senior Staff Writer After a delayed start to the regular season, the MLB began 2020 season play on July 23. The league’s restart was filled with rule changes, COVID19 complications and empty seats, but the regular season was played through and finally came to an end on Sept. 27.

America’s pastime now continues with postseason play through Oct. 28, when a champion will be crowned.

The 2020 season was supposed to begin March 26, but along with other sports, the MLB was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the regular season hadn’t begun before the league suspended its operations, spring training was ultimately cut short. In preparation for the restart, teams went through “summer camp” in July in their home ballparks, and opening night occurred in the nation’s capital, home of defending champion Washington Nationals.

Instead of a normal 162-game season, teams only played 60 games, with 40 of them against their division rivals and the remaining 20 against teams in the opposite league but in close geographic proximity. This unique format led the players association and the

league to agree to let 16 teams in the postseason this year rather than the normal 10. The two teams with the best records in each of the three divisions in each league made the playoffs, and the other two slots in each league were filled by teams with the next best record.

On top of a vastly different regular season, the MLB made distinct changes to the postseason as well. The first round is a best-of-three series hosted at the higher seed’s home ballpark. Once the first round is played, American League teams will fly out to southern California to play games at either Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres, or Dodger Stadium, home to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

National League teams will play the second round in Texas either at the Houston Astros’ Minute Maid Park or the Texas Rangers’ brand-new stadium, Globe Life Field.

The NL Championship Series will be in the Rangers’ park and the AL Championship Series will be in the Padres’ park. The World Series will be played in Globe Life Field. Fans will be able to get their first glimpse at the new ballpark in the NLCS and World

See YANKEES, Page 11

As the NBA playoffs near their end, 26 of the 30 NBA teams are already wondering how they can reload during the offseason for the 2020-21 season.

While the eight teams not invited to the bubble in Orlando, Florida, have been in offseason mode since March, others recently had their championship aspirations crushed and must quickly switch gears toward addressing difficult roster and management decisions in order to continue challenging for titles. The Milwalkee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers and Houston Rockets — three powerhouse teams that failed to meet their lofty expectations — are headed toward identity-altering offseasons.

This year was supposed to end in championship glory for the Bucks.

One of the best regular-season teams in NBA history, led by the reigning back-to-back MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, was not supposed to be dispatched in five games by the fifth-seed Miami Heat. To make matters worse, Antetokounmpo has one year left on his contract and just about every team in the league will try to entice the 25-year-old superstar to lead their teams come next free agency.

Luckily for the Bucks, Antetokounmpo seems intent on staying with the team to bring Milwalkee its first champion-

ship since 1971. However, if the Kevin Durant and Golden State Warriors saga has proved anything, it’s that loyalty can wear thin in the absence of winning.

The onus this offseason will be on the Bucks’ front office to surround Antetokounmpo with talent capable of greater postseason success. The majority of the deep supporting cast are destined to stay, but questions loom over whether the team has enough star power to complement their star.

Wing Khris Middleton, the team’s only other All-Star, struggled throughout the postseason; evidently, the Bucks need another piece if they want their regular-season success to translate into the postseason. Their championship window is still open, but the clock is ticking. If Antetokounmpo believes the Bucks aren’t acting in his best interests, he will likely look elsewhere to fulfill his quest for an NBA title.

The Clippers underachieved in similar fashion to the Bucks; predicted to still be on the court when the season’s final buzzer sounded, the Clippers didn’t even make it out of the second round. Fortunately, with forward Kawhi Leonard and guard Paul George potentially under contact until 2022, the team has the ability to run it back next season with a team just as powerful — on paper. Yet, the magnitude of their playoff collapse raises questions over whether their formula can

ever produce the desired results. The Clippers didn’t just lose: they crumbled out of the playoffs in dramatic fashion after the Denver Nuggets came back from being down 3-1 to win the series.

The Clippers looked completely out of sync for large stretches, and George once again could not break free of his reputation as a poor playoff performer.

The team might look at sign-andtrade options for soon-to-be free agent power forward Montrezl Harrell if they are looking to inject new life into their roster. While the idea of not trying to re-sign the reigning Sixth Man of the Year seemed preposterous during the regular season, his poor postseason defense rendered him of little value in the Nuggets series. Serious changes have already been made: former Clippers head coach Doc Rivers, now the only coach to lose three series after being up 3-1, has parted ways with the team after seven seasons in Los Angeles.

The Rockets didn’t have the same expectations of winning it all that they had had in recent years. But after yet another early playoff exit, there are doubts as to whether the James Harden era will ever result in a championship. The Rockets — after years of competing for titles with a unique, analytics-based approach — might finally be headed in a different

See GIANNIS, Page 11