Issue 2 Spring 2021

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February 24, 2021 VOLUME XLI, ISSUE 2 Online-Only Edition

Canvases and Celebration: Black History Paint Night

ALYSSA DAUGHDRILL/THE OBSERVER

From left to right, committee members Jemina Molines, FCLC ’21; and Katelyn Figueroa, FCLC ’24; pose with event participants Mary Olivette Bookman, FCLC ’24; Molly Schwarz, FCLC ’21; and Samantha Yu, FCLC ’21, and their finished paintings.

By ALYSSA DAUGHDRILL Asst. Photo Editor

Fordham’s Black History Month Committee hosted a hybrid paint night on Feb. 19 to celebrate Black history through the use of art and self expression. Students signed

up to receive a paint kit and were able to pick out stickers when they arrived. Those who attended the event virtually were shipped their paint kits ahead of time so that they could participate without issue. As more attendees arrived, they spread among the tables

UNICEF Club President Resigns

Oo cites the UN’s lack of action in Myanmar as her reason for stepping down

By MARYAM BESHARA Contributing Writer

Han Nway Oo, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’21 and a Burmese American student, resigned from her role as president of the UNICEF club following the 2021 Myanmar coup. “I cannot be associated with an organization I do not support,” Oo said in the announcement on Instagram on Feb. 4.

On Feb. 1, the Myanmar military detained members of the ruling party, the National League for Democracy, in a coup. The Parliament of Myanmar was set to swear in elected officials from the November 2020 general election on Feb. 2, but the coup delayed this action. Now, the country is under military rule, with access to the internet limited and flights de-

parting Myanmar canceled. The military’s leader justifies the coup, saying it was on the side of the people.

While the country struggles with the aftershocks of the coup, the global community has done little to offer support. A social media blackout in place across the country has prevented the people of Myanmar from speaking out on the international level.

The U.N. vows to maintain international peace and security, and UNICEF is committed to ensuring that disadvantaged children receive special protection. The U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres shared his remarks regarding the coup, saying that he condemns the use of deadly force in Myanmar. see UNICEF page 2

with their canvases and paint and began to work on and personalize their projects.

Students quickly fell into conversation with those sitting nearby while they painted and made use of their time to interact with peers in person rather

than through a computer screen.

Relaxing and mindfully mingling was a welcome respite from homework and quickly approaching midterms.

Molly Schwarz, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’21, said that she was “really glad

that this event (was) being held because even in the midst of the pandemic ... it’s important to celebrate these things,” and that the paint night was “a nice thing to do in the middle of the semester.” see BHM PAINT NIGHT page 10

Students Report Missing Items From Dorms

By CHLOE ZELCH Staff Writer

Rose Hill and Lincoln Center students have reported items missing from their dorm rooms upon returning to campus from winter break and when moving out last May. Attempts to locate the missing items through the Office of Residential Life (ResLife) have not been successful, leaving students frustrated.

Elena Morales, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’23, created a post in the Reddit thread r/Fordham titled “Welp.

Literally of my stuff is gone now” on Feb. 1. It was reposted on the @letstalkaboutitfordham Instagram page.

Students left comments in the Reddit thread and on the Instagram post echoing similar situations, with several incidents occurring last March when students

ANDREW DRESSNER/THE OBSERVER

When returning to campus after leaving last March, some students found their items missing and unable to be located by ResLife.

were sent home after in-person classes were suspended.

Morales moved back into her dorm room in McMahon Hall on Jan. 30 after leaving at the end of the fall semester to discover that cooking supplies, bedding and clothing were all missing.

She filed a report with her Resident Assistant (RA) and ResLife and was told to make a list of everything missing and its approximate cost. Morales is hoping for compensation.

Another McMahon resident, Duncan Taylor, FCLC ’22, reported lost AirPods, which he left on his desk in his dorm room in March before leaving campus. When he returned for the scheduled moveout in May, they were gone.

“I asked my roommates if they had seen them or taken them by accident and nobody had done so,” Taylor said. “Since it was already May and move out when I found them missing, there wasn’t really anybody I could reach out to about them missing because I had no idea where they would’ve gone or who I could’ve even talked to about it.” see RESLIFE page 3

News

Features

Sports & Health

Opinions

Arts & Culture

President Loreen Ruiz reflects on progress in first semester

Fordham Law Review elects first Black editor-in-chief

Women’s basketball coach and players react to season pause

Why federal funding is the only way forward

Fordham juniors release their new single “Sell My Soul”

Page 2

Page 3

USG Mid-Year Review Historic Appointment

Sports Shutdown Page 5

Reopening Schools Page 9

The Student Voice of Fordham Lincoln Center

The Adjacents Page 11

2

News

February 24, 2021 THE OBSERVER

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Ruiz Reflects on First Half of Academic Year

USG president discusses her midterm review and her plans for her final semester in student government in part to divestment from Aramark. While doing so has proven difficult due to a lack of planning and alternative dining services, Fordham students remain adamant that more inclusive and higher quality dining options be offered on campus.

Ongoing initiatives also center around supporting students at FLC, specifically Burmese students after the military coup that took place in Myanmar earlier this month.

By MARIN HOWELL Contributing Writer

United Student Government (USG) President Loreen Ruiz, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’21, released her midterm review on Feb. 6, in which she listed her original campaign initiatives and summarized the progress made on each of them.

Ruiz is the first USG president to release a midterm review, and she committed to doing so during the USG presidential debate this past April. The goal of the review was to revisit and update students on Ruiz’s other campaign promises.

Among Ruiz’s initiatives was instating a two-business-day email policy — a practice USG has successfully implemented. Ruiz said she is most proud of this policy as it prioritizes students.

“I came up with this policy because not only is it professional, it also shows students that we care about their concerns and work to get them resolved in a timely manner,” said Ruiz.

During her term, Ruiz has focused on inclusivity at Fordham, particularly when it comes to working with student organizations. One of Ruiz’s ongoing initiatives is to spotlight a multicultural club at Fordham Lincoln Center (FLC) in an event addressing stereotypes.

During her time in office, Ruiz also spearheaded Fordham’s first-ever anti-discrimination policy for student organizations.

Co-hosted by USG, the event would highlight a student organization and address a topic specific to that club’s interest. The plans for this event are still in the works, as Ruiz said she wants the event to be driven by student input.

“In terms of the subject or content matter of the event, that would depend on who we collaborate with,” Ruiz said. “I want to make sure we’re doing an event on a topic they (student organizations) are interested in.”

USG has worked toward supporting student organizations in

“ I hope that even when

my time at Fordham ends, clubs will continue to think about how they can be inclusive in their leadership programming. ”

Loreen Ruiz, FCLC ’21 and USG president

COURTESY OF LOREEN RUIZ

Loreen Ruiz, FCLC ’21 and USG president, released a midterm review at the start of her last semester in USG. She reflected on the accomplishments of her two-business-day email policy, the Start With Us anti-discrimination policy and USG’s support of student organizations during the pandemic.

other ways this past semester.

One way of doing so was by offering accommodations to clubs impacted by the pandemic, an initiative that Ruiz credits to USG Chair of Operations Rachana Komatireddy, FCLC ’22.

These accommodations allow for clubs to have partial membership. Ruiz said that with distanced learning making it difficult for club members to stay active, partial membership offers grace to student organizations.

“That sort of intermediary status means that clubs won’t immediately go inactive. We give them extra time to find club leaders if there have been resignations, and we’ve also given some extensions on deadlines for clubs to submit their budget,” Ruiz said.

During her time in office, Ruiz also spearheaded Fordham’s first-ever anti-discrimination policy for student organizations. The policy is called “Start With Us,” and it is a voluntary initiative consisting of seven

foundational tenets. By signing onto the policy, clubs commit themselves to inclusive practices and agree to be held accountable for any identity-based discrimination that takes place under their jurisdiction.

At the start of this academic year, 15 student organizations and three other organizations at FLC were signed onto the Start With Us policy.

Filipinos of LC Offering Welcome (FLOW) was one of the student organizations to sign onto this new policy. Aaron Silva, FCLC '21 and FLOW's secretary, said that the Start With Us policy embodies FLOW's values and cultivates a positive environment on campus.

“Loreen’s goals, reflected in the Start With Us policy, aligned with FLOW’s commitments to the greater community we interact with daily,” Silva said. “Loreen has not only influenced the initiatives we’ve done and will continue to do. Even further, her

voice and efforts have given us a healthy environment to work in to make a difference. Our signing of said policy elucidates that fact.”

Ruiz said USG hopes to have more student organizations sign onto the Start With Us policy at USG’s Networking Dinner on Feb. 25.

USG Vice President Robert Sundstrom, FCLC ’22, also reflected on the past semester, celebrating the work that USG members were able to accomplish despite challenges posed by the pandemic.

“I would just like to commend the current USG Senate on their commitment and dedication during this pandemic, last semester was one of the most productive for USG that I have experienced and I am extremely hopeful that the coming semesters with the current representatives will be equally if not more fruitful,” Sundstrom said.

Looking ahead, Ruiz plans to dedicate the spring semester

“I would like to continue providing support and advocacy for Burmese students and to the Burmese community worldwide,” Ruiz said. “I want to make sure that we continue supporting Burmese students, whether that means sharing ways to help on social media or helping organize a team support session if there’s interest.”

As a senior, Ruiz is beginning to think about what kind of legacy she hopes to leave behind at Fordham. Ruiz hopes that future leaders of USG continue to prioritize inclusivity on campus.

“I hope that even when my time at Fordham ends, clubs will continue to think about how they can be inclusive in their leadership programming,” said Ruiz. “I think that Start with Us is a policy that can stick around for years to come.”

As for her personal legacy, Ruiz said she wants to be remembered for the work she has done for students at FLC and beyond.

“I want to be remembered as someone who used their energy for change at Fordham and in the world at large,” said Ruiz. “We all have a finite amount of energy in our days, and I choose to put mine toward listening to students and advocating for them.”

Following Myanmar Coup, Club President Loses Faith in UN UNICEF from page 1

After recent events, Oo said that she no longer believes in the U.N. and UNICEF’s mission statements. “Our club wasn’t about glorifying UNICEF, it was about bringing people who work there and shedding light on the truth behind UNICEF.”

“ UNICEF’s mission

and their lack of action, especially the U.N., is the reason why I’m doing it. ” Han Nway Oo, FCLC ’21 and former president of the UNICEF club

Myanmar’s democracy has been threatened throughout its history, including previous military coups and uprisings in 1962 and 1988.

COURTESY OF @HANNWAYY VIA INSTAGRAM

Former UNICEF Club President Han Nway Oo, FCLC '21, attended the Feb. 9 protest outside the U.N. Headquarters in New York. She stepped down as president due to UNICEF's lack of action in the Myanmar coup.

Across the United States, protests in solidarity with the people of Myanmar have taken place. On Feb. 9, protesters, including Oo, marched outside of

the United Nations Headquarters in New York as they demanded that democracy be restored.

“For me, I was born there and lived there for the past 10 years

and then I came here as an asylum because I was marching on the street with my dad,” Oo said.

“The reason I quit UNICEF is because my family went through

all those events but the U.N. is not taking any action,” Oo continued. “We didn’t even have a permit to protest. We were protesting because we really wanted to be seen and heard.”

Oo was president of the UNICEF club at Fordham for one year. When asked about why she joined the UNICEF club in the first place, she said that people had told her it was the best way to help her country. She emphasized that everything she does is out of passion, and when something does not align with her views, she no longer pursues it.

“I want to work on only doing things that align with my values and fighting for democracy in my country is my value right now. UNICEF’s mission and their lack of action, especially the U.N., is the reason why I’m doing it,” Oo said.

Oo was the only member to step down; she no longer wanted to have an affiliation with the club. The club is still holding meetings to determine how to move forward.

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THE OBSERVER February 24, 2021

News

3

Tatiana Hyman Elected Editor-in-Chief of Fordham Law Review

By JOE KOTTKE News Editor

Growing up, Tatiana Hyman, Fordham University School of Law ’22, used to always tell her family that she was going to be the president of the United States. Though no one in her family worked in the government or law, Hyman’s dedication, grit and leadership propelled her to reach many of the goals she set for herself.

She developed an interest in law at a young age, which she attributes to her relatives. “Some family members put a bug in my ear when I was younger by saying that ‘lawyers like to talk,’” she said.

With the encouragement of her parents, emigrants from Jamaica, Hyman began her path toward studying law as a first-generation student.

She arrived at Fordham in 2019 and involved herself in the community by joining Fordham’s Black Law Students Association — going on to become the chapter’s vice president. That same year, she started researching the Fordham Law Review.

“When coming into law school, all you know is that the Law Review is this shining star you want to aspire to,” Hyman said.

Historically, most law review journals have a thorough selection process that includes the examination of an applicant’s grades and writing skills. Members must receive an invitation to join the publication, unlike at other academic clubs where the member can choose to join — making staff positions highly coveted and sometimes even required by law firms and judicial clerkships.

By her second year, the opportunity presented itself for her to apply to the journal’s highest position: editor-in-chief. “When ranking the position I thought, should I really be this bold? And I thought yes, I should be bold and just go for it.”

Hyman is the first Black editor-in-chief of the Fordham Law Review since its founding over 100 years ago in 1914. Although her work is already underway in reviewing submissions, she will be responsible for overseeing the production of volume 90 of the journal — which begins at the start of the next academic year — and managing a staff of almost 100 students.

“I don’t think I am an anomaly,” Hyman said. “I feel really grateful that a barrier has been broken, but I don’t think I am much different than any other Black law student before me. There are so many institutional hurdles that I overcame with support from my mentors to

go for things that seemed way out of my capability.”

Among the obstacles that she listed as reasons for the publication’s historical lack of diversity was the limited access to quality education in Black communities.

“If you are starting from a foundation that doesn’t put you on a level playing field with your peers, there are already those hurdles there,” Hyman said.

In 2021, historic election processes were ushered in across the United States. The law review publications of University of Minnesota, Tulane University and the University of Virginia — all founded over 100 years ago — recently elected their first Black editors-in-chief.

“ When you have

parents who didn’t go to school in the U.S., they can’t tell you what opportunities are out there — you have to find it through the community. ”

Tatiana Hyman, Fordham University School of Law ’22

Antonio Milton, the new editor-in-chief of the Tulane Law Review, was only the 10th Black student to be on staff in the journal’s 105-year history, according to Hyman. “I am sure that the numbers (at Fordham) are not too far from that,” she said. There were no Black students on the Fordham Law Review staff when Hyman entered school her first year, although 5% of the 2019 Fordham School of Law entering class is composed of Black students.

She said she hopes to encourage future students of color to join the Law Review since they can now see a Black student who is able to be successful on the Law Review in “a space where students of color are outnumbered and historically have been outnumbered.”

A Life of Leadership Hyman grew up in the Bronx, New York, where education and success were prioritized in her family. Her parents made a lot of sacrifices for her to go to school.

She attended The Loomis Chaffee School, a boarding school for high schoolers in Windsor, Connecticut, where she was presented with a number of leadership

opportunities. Hyman served as a residential assistant (RA) and a lead tour guide.

During her time at the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) from 2013 to 2017, she served as president of God’s Property — a Christian fellowship for Black students — and director of the gospel choir.

She originally majored in sociology but transferred into the criminology program because of her interest in its intersection with the field of law. She was also driven by her desire to understand the issues of policing and racial profiling she witnessed growing up in the Bronx.

Throughout both her high school and undergraduate careers, she sought to connect with lawyers of color. One of her most pivotal connections was with Samantha Jallah, a founder of Liberian Awards, which grants scholarships to first-generation students. “She was a very important pillar in my law school application process,” Hyman said. “She was someone I could call and just tell her how I was honestly feeling about the process.”

Roberto Lebron, an assistant attorney general at the Harlem Regional Office, became another one of Hyman’s mentors after she interned with him while still enrolled at UPenn. Hyman said he helped her understand how to incorporate public interest opportunities into private sector work and inspired her to consider clerking.

Despite her persisting interest in the law, Hyman did not pursue law school directly after her graduation from UPenn. Instead, she went on to work as a compliance analyst at Morgan Stanley where she began to realize just how much she wanted to become a lawyer.

“I realized that I liked working in that environment and developing relationships with the lawyers,” Hyman said. “I got to hear the diversity of ways they were able to make change in their communities, such as advocating for a more equitable legal profession, or creating their own nonprofits.

I saw the diversity of impact that they could have.”

Hyman has always had a passion for advocacy — specifically in education equity — and she realized that being a lawyer would give her the practical ability to make effective changes in local communities. She enrolled in law school because she wants to provide not only more access to educational opportunities but also the necessary information to access those resources.

“When you have parents who didn’t go to school in the U.S., they

COURTESY OF TATIANA HYMAN

In her new position as editor-in-chief, Hyman hopes to increase the publication’s transparency, build community and elevate underrepresented voices.

can’t tell you what opportunities are out there — you have to find it through the community,” Hyman said. “I want to be that conduit for other students.”

The Evolution of the Journal Hyman said she has three main initiatives to implement when she formally begins her duties as editor-in-chief: transparency, community, and elevation of underrepresented voices.

As a first-year student entering law school, Hyman said she did not understand the significance of the journal. So in making its mission of contribution to legal scholarship more apparent, she hopes to incentivize more students to join the publication.

Another one of Hyman’s aspirations is to foster community within the journal — especially since relationships are more difficult to develop virtually with club meetings occurring online.

“I think there is a lot of value in making sound and strong relationships with people at the journal since we come from so many different backgrounds and areas of interest,” Hyman said.

The creation of mechanisms on paper to amplify voices “across all strokes of diversity” is Hyman’s third pledge. She emphasized the importance of making commitments now to ensure that the conversations around inclusivity continue even after her time.

Hyman wants to continue the publication’s legacy of publishing academic work on doctrinal topics — including concentrations such as property and constitutional law — while also focusing on the impact of those legal subjects on real people’s lives.

“Whatever we published can be cited in cases and by judges.

It can really shake and move areas of the law,” Hyman said.

Planning for the Future After she graduates in 2022 with her doctorate in law, Hyman hopes to find opportunities that allow her to continue to advocate for educational equity.

She is also thinking about governmental work — something she hasn’t realistically considered since she was a kid.

“We keep thinking about the law and not the people it is impacting,” Hyman said. “Having someone in the position that understands the people is really important.”

When one of her mentors, Lebron, heard that she was elected as editor-in-chief, he reminded her that Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, was also named the first Black editor-in-chief of the Harvard Law Review in 1990.

Suddenly, her childhood proclamations of becoming the president of the United States don’t seem unfathomable.

ResLife Mixups Complicate Move-In Process

Students at both Lincoln Center and Rose Hill claim they no longer trust the Residential Life Office RESLIFE from page 1

COURTESY OF ANONYMOUS STUDENT

An anonymous Rose Hill student didn’t notice their eyeshadow palettes were missing until they finished unpacking after they got home. They asked ResLife to check in their dorm, and the palettes weren’t there.

An anonymous Rose Hill senior also reported missing two eyeshadow palettes from their dorm room in Finlay Hall last March. After contacting ResLife, the senior said they felt dismissed by ResLife and never located the missing makeup.

Beatriz Barraclough-Tan, Fordham College at Rose Hill ’21, reported that she almost lost access to her dorm room. Barraclough-Tan was on a seven-hour drive to New York City when she called ResLife to confirm they had all of the coronavirus testing information necessary for her to move in.

After trying to locate her in the system for 20 minutes, Barraclough-Tan was informed that ResLife had received an Intent to Vacate form from her, which would indicate that she did not intend to return to her dorm room for the

spring 2021 semester — except she had never filled one out.

“I don't know why they had one, but thank god they were able to put me back into the apartment I was supposed to be in, since I was three hours away from the city with all my stuff,” Barraclough-Tan said.

These mixups have caused some students to distrust ResLife. “I don’t feel comfortable leaving anything in my dorm anymore. I mean, how could you get rid of someone’s personal belongings and not give them warning? I had to buy all of my stuff again,” said Morales. “The fact that I’m not the only person who had this problem tells me ResLife is very disorganized with this sort of thing and there’s nothing preventing it from happening again.”

Neither the Office of Residential Life at Rose Hill nor at Lincoln Center responded to The Observer’s request for comment.

Sports & Health

Sports & Health Editors Gus Dupree - adupree1@fordham.edu Patrick Moquin - pmoquin@fordhamw.edu

February 24, 2021

THE OBSERVER

Fordham Plans Ahead While Vaccine Rollout Slugs Along

By GUS DUPREE Sports & Health Editor

As cities and countries around the world roll out the long-awaited COVID-19 vaccine, many citizens have questions about when and how they can get vaccinated. In New York, universities and colleges must follow state guidelines on vaccination plans, and Fordham is already planning a vaccination program for students for the future.

“ The university is

working hard to have them available for all students who wish to receive the vaccine. ”

Mary Ann O’Shea, assistant director of UHS

However, until there is more guidance from the state, Fordham can only do so much to plan ahead for when it starts receiving doses. The university has yet to ascertain when doses will be available to the community as a whole, but in an email sent on Jan. 22, University President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., promised to administer vaccines to all community members free of charge. He also urged them to “take advantage of the opportunity to be vaccinated as soon as you can.”

While companies such as Pfizer and Moderna have produced and distributed 30 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, just

under half of them have been distributed nationwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

For now, the elderly, health care workers and those who are immunocompromised have priority to receive the vaccine. This rollout in New York City, however, has been far from organized, with reports of backlogging and confusing appointment schedules.

Since college students are mostly young adults, they will likely not receive the vaccine until a substantial portion of more at-risk populations has been vaccinated.

Mary Ann O’Shea, assistant director of University Health Services, stated that while Fordham does not currently have access to any vaccines, “the university is working hard to have them available for all students who wish to receive the vaccine.” However, O’Shea was unable to provide any additional information about the timeline.

Some within the Fordham community have been fortunate enough to be vaccinated.

According to a university statement on Jan. 11, some members of UHS and Fordham’s EMS organization (FUEMS) have received Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. Vice President for Administration Marco Valera stated in a COVID-19 update email on Feb. 10 that Fordham still has no access to any vaccines.

Dylan Garvey, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’21 and FUEMS head of day staff, was vaccinated on Dec. 27, receiving a second dose four weeks later.

While vaccine rollout has been plagued by delays, Garvey was

lucky to receive a vaccine from New York City’s partnership with the Regional Emergency Medical Services Council and the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, which have coordinated distribution efforts for EMTs and paramedics citywide.

Frontline workers and medical staff have borne the brunt of this pandemic, so Garvey felt very fortunate to have received a vaccine along with his fellow medical workers.

“As a frontline worker caring for the health and safety of the Fordham and New York communities, I think it’s important to note that this vaccine is an essential part of saving lives and ending this pandemic,” Garvey stated.

“ I know that the safety of my community is not secured until we reach our goal of herd immunity. ”

Dylan Garvey, FCRH ‘21 and FUEMS head of day staff

Garvey also acknowledged the lack of access to vaccines to the general public.

Garvey is also involved in planning Fordham’s vaccine rollout. Although he has been vaccinated, he continues to adhere to social distancing and wears a mask out in public, as is recommended by Fordham and by the CDC. “I know that the safety of my community is not secured

ANDREW DRESSNER/THE OBSERVER

Some University Health Services staff have managed to get vaccinated for COVID-19. While McShane has promised to vaccinate the entire Fordham community, the timeline for universities receiving the vaccine is unknown.

until we reach our goal of herd immunity,” he said, explaining that his community will be safe only through widespread vaccination.

“The best we can do is be patient with the rollout from the federal government and continue to follow the COVID-19 precautions as listed by the government and science community,” Garvey said.

Herd immunity is when enough of a population has immunity to a certain disease that it is prevented from spreading anymore. The exact proportion of community members needed to be immune in order for herd immunity to manifest is un-

known. Dr. Anthony Fauci stated in December that 75-85% immunity within a population would be necessary, and Garvey agrees that 80% of the community must be vaccinated.

However, herd immunity with the original strain is powerless against the new strains of COVID-19 that have begun to crop up worldwide. Specialized vaccines may need to be distributed to combat these new variants, as some have already proven to be resistant to current vaccines. We will have to face these new variants with the same caution and lifestyle changes that have defined this era of COVID-19.

Why Vaccinated People Are Not Exempt From Mask Mandates

By ANUSHA IMRAN Staff Writer

As the United States is ramping up its efforts to increase vaccinations, many people have started to raise questions about whether a person needs to wear a mask after they have received the vaccine.

Wearing a mask has become the new normal to try to decrease the spread of the virus, and we are now all accustomed to not being able to read other people’s faces or see their smiles. However, despite our desires to return to normal, we must continue to wear masks even after receiving the vaccine.

An mRNA Vaccine The Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are made using a harmless piece of the virus’s

spike protein that is found at the structural surface of the virus itself. Proteins are central players in cellular processes and are the prime targets of pathogens and viruses that can cause illnesses and severe or fatal diseases. Viral proteins’ complex characterization is an essential component for the development of antiviral vaccines.

Conventional live vaccines are created when researchers grow the virus in mammalian cells in labs over the course of months or even years.

However, this mRNA vaccine only needs a small quantity of the actual virus, which is used for gene sequencing to produce antigens that initiate an immune response in the body. These antigens prompt T-cell and antibody responses to that foreign toxin,

building immunity and memory.

While these new COVID-19 vaccines have been proven to prevent illness in the vaccinated individual, they do not entirely prevent the vaccinated individual from spreading the virus to others.

Possibility of Silent Spreaders Like many other respiratory infections, the coronavirus enters through the nose, where the replicating process starts. When the virus enters a person who has already been vaccinated, their immune system starts to produce antibodies in enough quantity to keep the person from getting sick. However, there isn’t much evidence on how fast or where the antibody pool is being mobi-

lized in a vaccinated person because the virus can still disperse when a vaccinated person sneezes or breathes out into the air.

In an interview with The New York Times, Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, who represents the American Academy of Pediatrics at meetings of the Federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, noted the danger of vaccinated people still being able to spread the virus.

illustrates the need to still wear masks and adhere to social distancing guidelines.

“In order to provide herd immunity, a potent vaccine is needed to induce immunity that prevents both reinfection and disease,” said Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist at Yale University, in an interview for The New York Times.

“ Vaccinated people who

Vaccinated individuals have protected themselves from becoming seriously ill from the virus if they contract it. However, they can still be contagious to others and threaten transmission rates. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the president’s chief medical adviser, urge everyone to continue to wear masks since the number of cases and deaths are still increasing at present.

People with compromised immune systems and those who cannot be vaccinated still need to be protected even if most individuals are vaccinated. The 94-95% effectiveness rate of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines is not the case for people with heart disease and cancer, which is why transmission to them can be very rapid. Wearing a mask prevents this spread since there may be asymptomatic vaccinated spreaders who can circulate the virus without knowing. There are a limited number of vaccines, so U.S. experts predict that herd immunity may not be reached until the fall or winter of 2022.

have a high viral load but don’t have symptoms would actually be, in some ways, even worse spreaders because they may be under a false sense of security. ”

Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, American Academy of Pediatrics

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY PAMELA PAJARES/THE OBSERVER

“Vaccinated people who have a high viral load but don’t have symptoms would actually be, in some ways, even worse spreaders because they may be under a false sense of security,” Maldonado said.

For example, a 33-year-old man in Hong Kong was one of the first people to be reinfected with COVID-19. He did not present symptoms, but he was still able to infect others, as he contained enough of the virus to do so. This

Why Wearing Masks Is Crucial

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THE OBSERVER February 24, 2021

Sports & Health

Women’s Basketball Reacts to Rose Hill Pause

5

Coach Gaitley calls for trust in Fordham administration as team postpones five games

By PATRICK MOQUIN Sports & Health Editor

In the fast-paced world of college basketball during the COVID-19 pandemic, the events of a single week have the power to alter the course of a team’s entire season. On Friday, Feb. 12, the Fordham women’s basketball team was in second place in the Atlantic 10 (A10) standings and had just won its fifth straight game against Saint Joseph’s University. The Rams seemed unstoppable.

However, just two days later, on Sunday, Feb. 14, University President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., announced that the student body on the Rose Hill campus had experienced a spike in COVID-19 cases. In the preceding two weeks, 112 cases were reported, an increase that required immediate countermeasures to “reduce the infection rate.”

The solution, in accordance with New York state guidelines, was to institute a two-week pause on in-person instruction and on-campus activities. This included a temporary shutdown of all athletic programs.

Within 48 hours, the women’s basketball team’s remaining regular-season schedule was slashed from five games to two. Fordham’s game against La Salle University later that day was postponed soon after the announcement, and two road games on Feb. 18 and Feb. 20 against George Mason University and George Washington University, respectively, were also postponed.

After leaving the final two games of the season in play in the hopes of returning to action early, on Feb. 22, Fordham officially announced that the team’s final two games on Feb. 26 and Feb. 28 would also have to be rescheduled.

The problem with three postponements so late in the season is obvious, as Fordham has a very limited amount of time to reschedule them. In addition, the team had a great deal of momentum and a massive winning streak entering the twilight of

the regular season and is now essentially on a mandatory cooldown.

The loss in momentum was not lost on team captain Kaitlyn Downey, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill ’22, who expressed concern about the team’s ability to prepare for the final games of the regular season and postseason.

“Right now, we’re really playing well, we’re really connecting, and to stop that for a two-week pause would be devastating,” Downey said.

Downey cited several sources of frustration for the team. Their game against La Salle on Sunday was supposed to be Senior Day, an opportunity for players to honor their graduating teammates. From there, the team’s next two games were on the road, which meant that the players could have attended those games without disrupting campus life at Rose Hill.

“ We of course respect

our institution and President and are proud to be Rams; we simply believe we earned the opportunity to complete our journey safely. ”

Kaitlyn Downey, women’s basketball team captain

In addition to scheduling frustration, Downey also cited the team’s successful adherence to health protocols. Beyond a COVID-19-related scare involving Head Coach Stephanie Gaitley back in December, the team has not had a single COVID-19 case. Despite the players’ limited impact on the number of cases at Rose Hill, their season has been halted anyway.

“The players of our team are never trying to minimize how COVID has affected communities and programs all around us,” Downey said. “However, our diligent efforts of abiding to all safety precautions is something that should not be overlooked.”

For the captain and her teammates, a two-week pause also created a world of fear and uncertainty after the events of last season. After losing in the semifinals of the 2020 A10 Tournament, the team earned a bid to compete in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament, which was later canceled due to the pandemic.

Downey recognized the “scary reality” of losing another postseason, something that could occur if Fordham’s case number doesn’t decrease in the coming weeks. In fact, in the first five days following the pause, the number of cases at Rose Hill increased from 112 to 215. Losing such a significant amount of playing time so late in the season not only reminded the players of what they had already lost, but also helped motivate them to act.

On Tuesday, Feb. 16, Downey, with support from her teammates, started a petition asking McShane to allow the women’s basketball team to play a modified road schedule instead of taking a two-week pause.

“We of course respect our institution and President and are proud to be Rams; we simply believe we earned the opportunity to complete our journey safely,” Downey said.

The petition currently has 3,717 signatures, but McShane and other administration officials have not taken action yet.

While the team has every right to appeal to McShane, it’s unlikely that any change could be made regarding the two-week pause protocols, even with a cooperative and sympathetic administration. New York state guidelines, which Fordham has followed dutifully since the pandemic’s early

days, explicitly state that athletic competition “must be suspended” when a university enters a two-week pause.

It’s unlikely that the twoweek pause will end prematurely for the women’s basketball team, but A10 officials have made several adjustments to the conference schedule that will assist Fordham. These changes will also help other affected teams like the University of Massachusetts, which just ended its own two-week pause on Feb. 21.

“ This is nobody’s fault.

We’re just going to trust the process across the board and focus on what we can control.”

Stephanie Gaitley, women’s basketball head coach

In addition to moving the A10 Women’s Basketball Tournament starting date back an entire week to March 10, seeding eligibility has also been adjusted. Teams that have played more than 60% of the median number of conference games played by all 14 teams will be seeded by winning percentage within the conference.

Any team that meets this threshold will also be eligible to win the regular season title, and with 10 games played, Fordham’s immediate future following the pause is secure. The additional week before the A10 Tournament will also allow the team to reschedule more postponed games. The team is technically still in the running for the regular season title and will receive a high seed in the tournament regardless.

The only question that remains is whether or not the twoweek pause will affect the team’s performance. When asked about this potential impact, Gaitley

laughed and admitted that she was coaching under unprecedented circumstances.

“I don’t know, I guess I’ll find out,” the head coach said. “We obviously have very good talent, but we just have great chemistry, so I’d like to think that if we’re capable of getting a few practices under our belt, we’ll just pick up where we left off.”

Like Downey, Gaitley also stressed the importance of trusting McShane in his effort to ensure the safety of the entire student body. The head coach said that her team has conducted itself well during the pandemic but that in a world constantly affected by similar shutdowns, easy answers were hard to come by. She recognized and appreciated the president’s efforts, even as they sidelined her team.

“This is nobody’s fault. We’re just going to trust the process across the board and focus on what we can control,” Gaitley said.

When Fordham returns to the court, they may reschedule games on short notice against some of the best teams in the A10, like Dayton University, currently 11-1 in the conference.

The team may also have to play Saint Louis University, the team that recently gave Dayton its first conference loss. It could be a very difficult schedule for a team coming off a long break.

Uncertainty is as prevalent now for Fordham Athletics as it has been since the pandemic first began. It’s unclear if the women’s basketball team will continue their winning streak against better-conditioned teams, and an elusive bid in the NCAA Tournament may now seem ever so slightly further away. There’s even a chance the team will miss further playing time as Fordham’s COVID-19 number of cases continues to increase.

However, considering Downey’s actions on behalf of her teammates, there is a guarantee that the Rams will be eager to return to the court when the time comes. It’s this resiliency that Gaitley is counting on to bring her players out of dormancy and back to the highest level of college basketball.

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

The temporary pause of in-person activities at Rose Hill, now in its second week, forced the women’s basketball team to postpone three regular-season games less than a month from the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Opinions

Opinions Editor Emily Ellis - eellis14@fordham.edu

Why Is It My Fault? The Shifting of Personal Responsibility in Environmental Policy CLARA GERLACH Asst. Opinions Editor

Before the pandemic, everyone was concerned about straws. It was decided quite quickly that those who used disposable straws weren’t concerned about the environment, much less the sea turtles.

By focusing on straws, we were ignoring the overarching problem. It’s not about individual choice. We should be holding plastic manufacturers accountable instead.

Don’t get me wrong; I personally use a reusable tumbler and have avoided having any plastic or single-use waste whenever I can. I try to avoid eating too much meat or buying fast fashion, and I recycle. I think individuals also control their own priorities, and this article is not an excuse to litter, pollute or buy fast fashion. But the burden of environmental degradation shouldn’t be on us. It should be on the corporations that produce this waste in the first place.

So How Did This Burden Shift From Producer to Consumer?

When soda manufacturers switched their packaging from glass bottles to cans, they began saving a lot of money. The only problem was that this garbage was finding its way into parks, onto the ground, anywhere imaginable. There wasn’t a lot of infrastructure in place for recycling, and the amount of non-biodegradable trash, namely plastic, increased.

Instead of taking the blame, soda companies (like Coca-Cola), as well as can and bottling companies, funded Keep America Beautiful. This campaign created ads that were anti-polluting and anti-littering.

At first, the premise is irrefutable: We shouldn’t be polluting parks, highways and water. However, if you look closer, this completely removes the blame from companies that switched to less sustainable, single-use materials in return for a higher profit.

Instead of blaming companies for making this switch, the blame shifted to the individual, something harder to target.

By making us think this is a consumer issue, it limited our choices as to what to do about plastic. It makes environmentalism an individual choice, where suddenly the pollution in the ocean is the result of people littering, and one doesn’t look at the label on the bottle floating in the ocean but rather the person who might have caused it to get there.

Bills to mitigate the plastic that place more of the financial burden on the companies and result in more recycling, like bottle bills, have long been opposed by bottle companies because although this would result in more plastic returns, it would cost companies like Coca-Cola billions that they’re not willing to part with.

Because of a couple of well-executed

yet racially problematic ad campaigns, Americans found themselves with the personal responsibility of keeping the world clean. The focus was no longer put on the producer’s choice of material but on what happened after personal consumption: emphasizing recycling and ending litter.

But Isn’t Recycling Beneficial to Society?

It’s estimated that Coca-Cola, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever produce half a million tons of plastic pollution every year.

They create enough plastic to cover an entire soccer field every 20 minutes.

While, theoretically, some of this plastic could be recycled, many of the developing countries that consume plastic lack the infrastructure to recycle, leading waste to pile up, get burnt or pollute water. This creates the perfect conditions for poor turtles to find themselves choking on plastic straws.

Additionally, as much as New Yorkers may take their recycling program for granted, many areas of the United States don’t have convenient or any recycling facilities near them. This leads to a lot of recyclable materials finding their way into landfills. I won’t even delve into the fact that the U.S. exports this trash, but the point is that American trash isn’t only on American soil.

Unfortunately, the infrastructure for recycling isn’t the whole story. While metals and glass can be infinitely recycled, plastic isn’t recyclable more than one or two times.

Recycled plastic can also be about three times as expensive as virgin plastic, lowering further the incentive for companies to use it, apart from the ability to greenwash their products.

Even when accessible, and working, recycling isn’t the solution we have been conditioned to believe it is.

What About the Other Pollution?

There are many other examples of companies not taking personal responsibility for their mistakes or choices, whether in the meat, dairy, fashion or tech industries.

Negative externalities aren’t seen as things to avoid — they’re what companies can pay a small fine to continue doing.

And so companies keep going, as nothing’s stopping them. Many have heard the Carbon Majors’ 2017 study findings that 100 companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions. Worldwide food waste, often overlooked, is the third largest contributor of greenhouse gases, second to only the United States and China. These aren’t just the results of an individual’s actions.

Factories, hydraulic fracking and landfills alike have been, and still are, contaminating the water of communities that may not be aware or powerful enough to stop

MICHAEL RIVERA VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Coca-Cola was one of the companies that funded a recycling campaign called Keep America Beautiful, which placed the blame of single-use plastics onto consumers instead of the corporations that chose to switch to them.

it. Fracking might even have contributed to Flint’s water crisis, and although the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has said the previously lead-contaminated water is safe to drink, there are still doubts.

It’s not just Flint; there are too many cases to count of poor communities being used as dumping grounds, unable to defend themselves and unable to gain virtually any retribution.

We have for too long fed into the story that we’re not doing enough for the environment, not concentrating on who this “we” consists of. It’s time we shift our focus to the main contributors — the companies releasing tons of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere.

Is Reducing My Own Carbon Footprint Not Enough?

Not buying plastic or being zero waste, which places the burden on the consumer, is not enough. We must also rally for more comprehensive legislation and EPA policies. The EPA currently maintains very consumer-centric policies with recycling and composting goals but includes very little about what companies should be doing.

Stop the guilt and start the corporate responsibility. While this article mostly delves into the problem of pollution, the point is that climate change isn’t going to go away because we all decide to ban straws or bring a thermos to our local coffee shop.

We have for too long fed into the story that we’re not doing enough for the environment, not concentrating on who this “we” consists of. It’s time we shift our focus to the main contributors — the companies releasing tons of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere.

So Who’s to Blame?

This is a highly contested question with a lot of finger-pointing. Again, many companies, like oil companies, place the blame on consumers who choose to use fossil fuels. However, since 1965, just 20 companies have contributed to 480 billion tons of carbon dioxide. According to The Guardian, this is one-third of all carbon emissions in the “modern era.”

While it’s tempting to follow just the numbers, pollutants like plastic also contribute to the current amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Plastic and other trash that isn’t recycled can get burnt, common in emerging countries like China, India, Brazil and Mexico.

Burning trash can actually give rise to immense amounts of carbon dioxide. As previously mentioned, American companies like Coca-Cola, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever produce and sell to countries without proper infrastructure, knowingly contributing to an endless cycle of single-use plastic being used and then thrown away.

While some companies have made pledges to “do better,” it’s unfortunately not something we currently are strictly regulating. The United States government is lacking in regulation, from judicial, executive and legislative standpoints. It doesn’t hold companies accountable for their direct pollution, let alone the pollution they have packaged and sold.

We need to realize that eating vegan and composting won’t be enough if we continue to allow large corporations to contribute ridiculous amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and then blame us.

February 24, 2021 THE OBSERVER

Observer the

Editor-in-Chief Sophie Partridge-Hicks Managing Editor Marielle Sarmiento Business Manager Owen Roche Online Editors Andrew Beecher Gillian Russo Layout Editors Lara Foley Maddie Sandholm Asst. Layout Editors Pamela Pajares Olivia Stern News Editors Joe Kottke Katrina Lambert Asst. News Editors Michelle Agaron Allie Stofer Opinions Editor Emily Ellis Asst. Opinions Editors Stevie Cortez Clara Gerlach Arts & Culture Editors Vicky Carmenate Ethan Coughlin Asst. Arts & Culture Editor Madeline Katz Features Editors Samantha Matthews Nicole Perkins Asst. Features Editor Mia Agostinelli Sports & Health Editors Gus Dupree Patrick Moquin Asst. Sports & Health Editor Maggie McNamara Photo Editor Andrew Dressner Asst. Photo Editors Esmé Bleecker-Adams Alyssa Daughdrill Fun & Games Editor Esmé Bleecker-Adams Head Copy Editors Alyssa Macaluso Jill Rice Social Media Editors Roxanne Cubero Grace Getman Asst. Social Media Editors Sunnia Khan Maca Leon Multimedia Editors Alison Ettinger-DeLong Mateo Solis Prada Retrospect Hosts Cate Galliford Corbin Gregg IT Manager Evan Vollbrecht

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THE OBSERVER February 24, 2021

Opinions

7

Stop Asking Me About Kids: Women Are Not Required to Have Children JESSICA YU Staff Writer

Queens, Queers and Everything in Between My roommates have baby fever.

Badly. One of them daydreams out loud about what it would be like to be a mother in 10 years, cooing over photos of celebrity babies on her phone. The other worries about her boyfriend’s uncertainty toward kids, hoping he will come around one day because as much as she loves him, she could not give up motherhood.

My third roommate has a list of baby names in a password-protected Notes document on her phone — each name is unique, carefully crafted so that no other child in the world would have that name.

She’s wanted to be a mother since she was eight, when she attempted to adopt a child online after her parents refused to give her baby siblings.

The topic of babies comes up quite a bit in our apartment and whenever it does, I put in my headphones and pretend I cannot hear their conversation. They turn to me anyways: “What about you, Jess?” I don’t have an answer, just an awkward little lump in my throat.

During the very first discussion for my Transatlantic Modern Women class this semester, my professor asked us, “What is not illegal but feels illegal due to societal standards?”

After a few seconds of uncomfortable Zoom silence, I went first: “I don’t want children. That is technically not illegal, but everyone expects me to be a mother one day.”

My mom has already decided I will

have two kids, a boy and a girl.

Plus, I’m gay and an only child, so it feels especially illegal to not pop out a few kids, by age thirty on top of that.

I hate that pressure because I don’t believe parenthood is something you can force yourself to simply get on board with. It is a choice, a personal choice, and should be treated as such. I’m a firm believer that unless the thought of not having children of your own absolutely devastates you, you should not be a parent; this applies to everyone, regardless of gender or marital status.

Also, unless you know you will love your child no matter how they are born or who they grow up to be, you should not have kids.

Bringing a child into the world is a lifelong commitment. A child does not ask to be born so it is not fair to a child to exist out of obligation and not love. Personally, I have never dreamed of having a baby, so it would not be fair for me to be forced to bring one into the world.

Babies have always freaked me out. I cannot understand the connection between infants and the word “cute.” My roommates also laugh at me for subconsciously

referring to babies as “it” instead of “him” or “her” or “them.” It’s an honest mistake, I promise.

Toddlers and older kids have their moments. At the end of high school, I worked with some kids that I actually became quite fond of. And, of course, I find it heartwarming when people are good with kids. That still does not mean I want any of my own.

Whenever people ask, I just say, “I don’t think I want kids, but maybe that will change one day.” I do that because before, when I’ve just flat out said, “I don’t want kids,” it’s usually responded to with, “Well, you never know, you might want them when you’re older.” I can feel people not only thinking that I will definitely change my mind eventually but also hoping I will, as if my ideas of my future family are any of their business. It’s as if everyone is convinced that time will do the trick — sooner or later, I must warm up to motherhood.

As much as I hate it, I do it to myself too — guilting myself into staying open about the topic of kids. If I’m being really honest, I stay open to it because I’m afraid that sticking to my own intuition will rob me of some sort of conven-

tional happiness and I’m not sure unconventionality will bring me more happiness.

The happy housewife fantasy, as Sarah Ahmed discusses in “The Promise of Happiness,” sold the idea that women are happier being housewives as a way of keeping them in an oppressive role. To a certain extent, we have all internalized this fantasy. It is hard not to question if avoiding motherhood will be wasting my so-called potential as a woman.

Also, I tell myself, it’s far too early to make a decision. Twenty is too young to be asked these questions. I’m a sophomore in college; I should not be expected to know these things about my future.

Motherhood seems incredibly irrelevant at this age. Yet somehow, it comes up fairly regularly.

When it comes up, the question is always, “How many kids do you want?” or “When do you want to start having kids?” Both these questions assume that I want kids.

I rarely notice people asking the boys my age about kids. If they do, the question is “Do you want kids?”

Implicit here is that men have the freedom to choose parenthood, while it is expected of women.

thank god no

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY OLIVIA STERN/THE OBSERVER

Both of these things, the happy housewife fantasy and the differentiation in the phrasing of questions, refer to motherhood as an obligation: While things are certainly changing, women are still expected to play a larger role in raising kids. We still confront subtle and not-so-subtle indicators that women are naturally better parents than men.

Do a quick Google search, and you will find articles that base their arguments on biological essentialism, implying that fathers have less responsibility. However, whether foundational biological differences between men and women exist or not, it is not an excuse for treating motherhood as obligatory but fatherhood as something men can opt out of at any time. This then helps explain why in the United States, single parents are disproportionately mothers and why maternity leave is more common than general parental leave.

Are women really “naturally” better with kids, or are we just constantly pressured into putting other people’s desires above their own?

I know that the idea of having kids does not make me happy. I also know that I have been sold the idea that kids are a source of happiness, and that I will be missing out if I don’t have them.

Some days, I genuinely do not know where I stand. So, for now, I’m happy knowing that all my best friends will let me be the cool aunt to their children. It’s a happy middle ground, really — I will shower their kids with love and affection, but I won’t have to commit to raising my own.

In the meantime, please stop asking me how many kids I want or when I plan on having them. If you’re going to talk to me about kids at all, which I advise against, at least start with whether I want any in the first place.

Reopening Schools Is Only Possible With Federal Funding SHAQUILLE KAMPTA

Staff Writer

In March of 2020, millions of students across the country were forced to substitute their in-person education for virtual instruction. It has now been 11 months since the shutdown, and most schools have remained closed or are in a hybrid model of learning, costing children their education. Now, it is up to the federal government to equip students, teachers and parents with the resources to facilitate a safe return to in-person learning.

As part of his plan for his first 100 days in office, President Joe Biden wants to reopen schools. But teachers across the country have significantly pushed back against any proposals related to this.

However, teachers are just one side of the issue. Many essential workers, who have been a vital part of the COVID-19 response efforts, cannot afford to keep their children at home while schools are closed.

There have been as many as 3 million U.S. students who have not received any formal education since the beginning of the pandemic.

Recent studies show that school closures have significant negative consequences in both the short term and the long term.

Specifically, younger children who come from disadvantaged households suffer more than any other age group and socioeconomic bracket. These children typically have parents who work grueling hours for minimum wage jobs, and quite a few of these workers were required to work throughout the pandemic at the risk of their own safety. Many others were simply

fired and had to rely on backed-up unemployment checks.

Schools offer many things that benefit families beyond education.

Food, daycare and technological assistance are just some of the additional benefits that parents receive, and often, so desperately need.

Since the pandemic, schools have introduced a system where parents can pick up lunches and breakfasts for their children. Additionally, some schools have lent out laptops to help with the online learning required for students.

However, many schools lack the resources to fully support online learning, leaving lower-income families to bear the burden of school closings. In recent studies, and to no surprise, financially stable parents are much more prepared to help their children tackle the struggles of online learning and have more incentive to do so than lower-income parents.

While parents are significantly impacted, these children also feel the weight being placed upon them.

In one corner, they have to worry about their next meal, and in the other, they have to keep up with their stressful school work.

However, the concerns of these parents and their children are not the only deciding factor in the decision to reopen schools.

Teachers are very concerned about their safety and the safety of their students. Most teachers find that the best way to continue school is through a virtual setting, and reopening schools, even through a hybrid model, is not practical while the country is facing a deadly pandemic. At the start of the fall semester, 82% of K-12 teachers stated that they were concerned for their

safety while teaching in-person, and more than two-thirds wanted to teach remotely.

Since then, these numbers have remained the same, but now there is a far greater push by government officials to return to in-person learning. Biden has stated that he plans to reopen schools within the first 100 days of his presidency, but given the significant pushback from teachers’ unions, he then suggested that only K-8 schools reopen, excluding high schools. Republican lawmakers are also struggling to maintain their suburban voter base, which is growing tired of their children completing school at home.

Without the proper safeguards, schools cannot maintain in-person operations. But what are these proper safeguards? Many teachers believe that proper ventilation, touchless sinks, touchless hand sanitizer stations and social distancing initiatives are needed before even considering in-person education.

The safety concerns of these teachers cannot simply be dismissed to help fulfill a political agenda.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released new data that suggests that transmission within schools remains extremely low. According to their reports, the best way to ensure safety within schools is to stop the spread of the virus within the surrounding communities. The CDC also points to the results of the fall semester in which many schools offered an in-person method of learning and there were very low rates of transmission. Unfortunately, lower rates of transmission do not mean fewer deaths nor fewer infections.

The solution to reopening

schools is simple: intervention by the federal government. Without proper funding from the federal government, states cannot properly equip schools to handle in-person learning. Moreover, without proper funding, schools cannot continue to handle remote learning. It is uncertain whether most teachers would consider going back to schools even with proper safeguards.

At the same time, low-income families will be suffering most from a prolonged virtual learning experience without any federal government assistance. Right now, states are scrambling to find the funds necessary to pay for programs that support low-income families. Even though the new administration plans to reopen schools, there needs to be some consideration given to the specificities of the problems and to the ones who are hurting the most.

The most important consideration is funding. In September

2020, the Independent Budget Office for New York City estimated that the city’s schools would need an additional $32 million per week to safely reopen their buildings. At the same time, the state is facing a $9 billion deficit, which renders it incapable of properly supporting school districts. Other states are facing similar challenges. In 2020, the estimated budget shortfall for the states was $22 billion with federal aid. Without federal funding, this number could be as much as $305 billion through the fiscal year 2022.

It is no secret that federal assistance is the only thing keeping states afloat during this pandemic.

But the plans to reopen schools in the next 100 days are impossible without this assistance, and in the past few months, the federal government has fallen behind with funding. It is now up to the Biden administration to bolster the needs of the states.

ESMÉ BLEECKER-ADAMS/THE OBSERVER

Schools like P.S. 176 will neither be able to handle a return to in-person learning nor continued remote learning without federal financial support.

Arts & Culture Editors Vicky Carmenate - vcarmenate@fordham.edu Ethan Coughlin - ecoughlin7@fordham.edu

Arts & Culture

February 24, 2021

THE OBSERVER

Rock Star Rams: The Adjacents Drop New Single

Fordham juniors Duncan Taylor, Kyan Hejazi and Cam Dasher team up on their new song, ‘Sell My Soul’

By ROSALINE STOYKOV Contributing Writer

“Tell me ‘you should stay’; I will if you want me,” are the opening lyrics of “Sell My Soul,” a new single released

by Fordham duo The Adjacents, which speak directly to those who have sacrificed their own identity to stay in a toxic relationship.

Duncan Taylor and Kyan Hejazi, both Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’22, comprise the band and collaborated with Cam Dasher, FCLC ’22, to release their new single on Feb. 14. They also received help from Liam Kenny, FCLC ’22, whose pictures were used to create the cover art.

“ I blindly wanted love

to conquer all, I had this obsession with it that I needed to let go. I literally would have sold my soul for it.”

Kyan Hejazi, FCLC ’22

Taylor and Hejazi met in their first year in the FCLC ’22 GroupMe and bonded over their shared love of Kanye West. As their friendship blossomed, they began making music together under the name Prototype Milk, which paid homage to a meme that they saw a few years prior. As they started becoming more serious about music production, they changed their name to The Ad-

Hejazi and Taylor brush off toxic relationships in their new single “Sell My Soul.”

jacents to indicate that while they have similarities to many of their influencers, they will never be exactly the same.

“We felt Adjacent was most fitting because we are adjacent to a lot of different influences ... but never really belong to any. It feels appropriate because we kind of move between different groups and

sounds, and art in general,” Taylor explained.

Inspired by a prolonged breakup, Hejazi wrote the ballad with the intention of being vulnerable with his listeners.

He made the decision to release the single on Valentine’s Day in an effort to take back the holiday from past experiences that tainted his outlook on it.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF DUNCAN TAYLOR AND KYAN HEJAZI

“I blindly wanted love to conquer all, I had this obsession with it that I needed to let go. I literally would have sold my soul for it,” Hejazi said of his muse.

The emotional lyrics of “Sell My Soul” draw from the styles of musical groups such as My Bloody Valentine and The Microphones, who are known for their raw and poetic writing. “‘Cover me in paint, all over my body. / Let me see your face, your eyes are like honey,’ is probably my favorite line,” Taylor said.

Hejazi agreed. Those lyrics “are one of the most specific references to the person I write this song about. She is actually a big reason I got into art and expression in general.”

The musical duo is extremely grateful for the support they have received from their listeners and friends, particularly those within the music community at Fordham.

Hejazi and Taylor agreed that getting over their imposter syndrome was vital to actually getting their song released.

The Adjacents’ indie-tronica style incorporates instrumentals that are heavily influenced by lo-fi guitar and drum beats, a theme that will also be present in their own upcoming EP. “We want people to feel it and groove to it, no matter what,” Taylor stated.

Their newest single, however, follows the dark wave genre more closely. Both Hejazi and Taylor attest that “Sell My Soul” is the track that they are proudest of. The duo knew

that Dasher’s background vocals would add a soul-stirring dimension to the track since they had collaborated with them before.

“Kyan and I both struggle with serious imposter syndrome, with making any sort of art where you really doubt yourself or are scared of what people will think ... This is our first song where we managed to beat that,” Taylor said.

The musical duo is extremely grateful for the support they have received from their listeners and friends, particularly those within the music community at Fordham.

“I’d like to see them outside of Fordham. If I saw a poster of them on the street or heard about a performance, I would definitely go in support,” said Caroline Todd, FCLC ’24.

The two musicians offered some words of encouragement for those who are new to the creative process and anxious about releasing music. Both Hejazi and Taylor emphasized the importance of not being afraid to step out of your comfort zone — to take that first step and record something, even if it doesn’t sound good at first.

From there, according to the musicians, a healthy dose of self-criticism will aid in the editing process and could lead to a piece that is worthwhile.

“Definitely don’t be afraid to just do it,” Hejazi advised, “Why not you?”

“Sell My Soul” is available on all streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play, YouTube and SoundCloud. Their Instagram account, @the_adjacents, is updated with information about their newest projects and releases.

www.fordhamobserver.com

THE OBSERVER February 24, 2021

Arts & Culture

The Problematic Nature of the 78th Golden Globes

9

This year’s ceremony and its lack of diversity has left fans feeling unheard and critics disappointed

By ISABELLA GONZALEZ Staff Writer

With a nearly canceled movie schedule thanks to the ongoing pandemic, film and television buffs were hoping the Golden Globes would acknowledge smaller, provocative projects that typically go under the radar and take more progressive steps toward a diverse future. Spoiler alert: They went backward.

COVID-19 might have pushed back dozens of films, from blockbusters to the next A24 breakthroughs, but it hasn’t stopped Hollywood from continuing to use its annual awards season to highlight what the industry views as the best of the best. After an almost two-month delay from its usual start date in January, Hollywood is finally ready to celebrate.

“ I think award shows

operate under the guise of simply recognizing and responding to talent, but that’s not true. They actively help to platform and legitimize films and filmmakers.”

Daejah Woolery, FCLC ’22

Run by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the annual Golden Globe Awards are known to be a major player during awards season. They are particularly noteworthy for films aiming for further acclamation, as many winners stop by to pick up a Golden Globe before taking home an Oscar.

In 2019, all four major acting awards at the Oscars were given to Golden Globe winners of the same year, like Joaquin Phoenix for “Joker” and Laura Dern for “Marriage Story.” Both music-cen-

tric awards, like Best Original Score and Best Original Song, had duplicate winners from the Golden Globes and Oscars as well.

2020 Golden Globe Nominations Due to the lack of films released in 2020, many were hopeful that underdog films like smaller-scale indie projects would receive more attention and praise.

Over the past few years, the televised film awards show has only recently distributed a series of nominations for fan-favorite films. Movie buffs were also wondering if this trend of blurring the line between industry and public interest would continue with a smaller library of work to choose from and more time spent scrolling on social media.

Sia’s Problematic Directorial Debut When nominations were announced on Feb. 3, the lack of recognition for “Sonic the Hedgehog” was not the only disappointment for film buffs. As usual, many beloved films went unnoticed by the HFPA, but what enraged most people were the numerous offensive projects the committee uplifted with a nomination.

Sia’s controversial directorial debut, “Music,” about a biracial, nonverbal autistic girl, received two nominations for Best Picture for Musical or Comedy and Best Actress for Musical or Comedy for Kate Hudson’s performance. Naturally, the news was met with outcry for several reasons.

Stevie Martin, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’23, was most alarmed by the casting of a white, non-autistic actress (Sia’s frequent muse, Maddie Ziegler) and the lack of strobe light and sensory warnings. “Having a non-autistic actress portray blatant stereotypes of autism in the movie directly contradicts the idea that this movie was meant to promote and support the community,” Martin remarked.

She highlighted an Instagram thread that made her aware of

the problematic nature of the film. “It’s important to listen to constructive criticism from those within the community,” Martin said. “If they recommend strobe warnings or explain why the main character’s portrayal of autism is harmful to the community, it is the responsibility of the filmmakers to respond appropriately in a way that accurately portrays the community.”

Daejah Woolery, FCLC ’22, was disgusted by the aforementioned elements and noted “the actual danger to autistic people” the film caused by depicting lethal force restraint during a scene. She said, “I think award shows operate under the guise of simply recognizing and responding to talent, but that’s not true. They actively help to platform and legitimize films and filmmakers. HFPA is culpable in this too for giving Sia and ‘Music’ some legitimacy.”

Sadly, that’s not the only debatable decision the HFPA made.

Similar complaints have centered around James Corden, who identifies as heterosexual, playing an openly gay Broadway performer in “The Prom.” Ashanti Johnson, FCLC ’24, agreed with the criticism about his stereotypical portrayal: “He shouldn’t have been nominated. Or cast.”

HFPA’s View On “Minari” The treatment of critical darling “Minari” from A24 also made headlines. Despite being shot in America by an American filmmaker and being about the American Dream, the HFPA categorized the movie as a foreign language film due to the majority of dialogue being in Korean.

Miguel Bernal, FCLC ’23, believes that the current debate over the film’s placement “shows how ill-equipped the HFPA ruling system is for an American film culture that is becoming increasingly diverse.” “‘Minari’ is valuable as both a culturally American film and as a Korean one. The struggle to maintain identity is one of the story’s most important parts,” he continued. “You can’t consider it

“It’s being chosen over other, better, shows because it’s the kind of head-empty, easy to consume, generic content that fits in with what Netflix thinks its brand is now. It’s a show about someone who works in advertising, but the whole thing feels like an ad selling a vapid self-centered lifestyle.”

Woolery felt similarly, stating, “‘Emily in Paris’ getting a nomination feels like a sick joke. When you have writers on the show openly admitting they don’t deserve it, it’s so clear that white mediocrity can get you farther than Black excellence.”

She blamed the media for all the attention directed toward the Netflix original rather than more diverse productions. “Every article claiming it was vapid on purpose combined with all the people curiously hate-watching it earned it a spot it just didn’t deserve.”

“Diversity” in Hollywood

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY LARA FOLEY/ THE OBSERVER

an American film without diminishing the parts that make it undeniably Korean, and vice versa. It’s too complex of a beast to limit to one category in my opinion.”

The Backlash Behind “Emily in Paris” Throughout the award show’s history, the Golden Globes has gradually expanded to television as well. Unfortunately, just as many upsetting choices were made in those categories. In particular, people have shared their outrage over snubs like the universally praised “I May Destroy You” about Michaela Coel’s real experiences with sexual violence, overlooked in favor of nominations for Netflix’s critically panned soap opera “Emily in Paris.” The latter has been nominated for Best Musical or Comedy Series and Best Actress for a Musical or Comedy Series for Lily Collins’ titular role. “‘Emily in Paris’ pisses me off,” Catherine Chung, FCLC ’23, said.

Both Chung and Woolery called out the mistreatment of diverse shows and performers and the double standard of Hollywood.

Chung pointed out the cancellation of LGBTQ+-friendly Netflix original “I Am Not Okay With This.” “‘Emily in Paris’ is getting renewed for a new season and nominated while shows like ‘I Am Not Okay With This’ are being canceled after the writers already wrote the entire second season that they were cleared for,” Chung said.

Woolery called out the Golden Globes for their lack of nominations of Black artists. “You know what didn’t get a nomination? Michaela Coel’s ‘I May Destroy You.’ Jurnee Smollett and Jonathan Majors for their performances in ‘Lovecraft Country.’ Uzo Aduba’s performance in ‘Mrs. America.’

Black excellence was snubbed, and mediocrity was rewarded.”

Film and television fans alike can only hope their anger has reached the ears of industry leaders. Viewers will find out when the 78th Golden Globes Awards airs live on NBC on Feb. 28 at 8 p.m.

ET/5 p.m. PT, hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.

Painting a Place at Fordham

FLC’s Black History Month Committee hosts hybrid painting event munal event regardless of whether they were on campus this semester.

“ Really glad that this

event (was) being held because even in the midst of the pandemic ... it’s important to celebrate these things.”

Molly Schwarz, FCLC ’21

ALYSSA DAUGHDRILL/THE OBSERVER

Samantha Yu, Molly Schwarz and Black History Month Committee member Jemina Molines with finished projects from paint night.

BHM PAINT NIGHT from page 1

Both the pandemic and this semester’s snow days forced the Black History Month Committee to restructure its plans and events so that they are safe and accessible. Paint night was originally scheduled to be

held on Feb. 4, but after more than a foot of snow fell on Feb. 1 and 2, the event was postponed.

According to LC Cultural Programming Coordinator Jemina Molines, FCLC ’21, each committee’s goal is to have at least one or two events on campus; ensuring that

the event is something students can safely attend is a priority. Molines and fellow committee member Katelyn Figueroa, FCLC ’24, attended paint night on campus, and Laura Vasquez, FCLC ’22, handled the virtual portion of the event so that students could take part in the com-

Students took the better part of two hours working on their paintings as music from artists like Beyoncé and Rihanna played in the background. While everyone did not stay for the entire event, all the participants worked and chatted throughout their time there.

Mary Olivette Bookman, FCLC ’24, said that she was grateful for the events the Black History Month Committee has been holding because of the difference from

how Black History Month was celebrated where she grew up and because the events provide “an outlet to celebrate this month, this amazing month.”

The committee has held several events already, including a discussion on music and dance that Bookman attended on Feb. 8. Some committee members and students who attended expressed their anticipation for the Love Your Natural Hair Panel and subsequent giveaway set for Feb. 22 and 25, respectively.

Molines is proud of her committee members’ dedication and creative ideas and is “happy with any event turn out.” She is especially grateful for the virtual attendance the Black History Month Committee’s events have since it can be “frustrating for people to be on Zoom outside of classes” after the last year’s reliance on the platform. Students both on and off the committee, like Bookman, Schwarz and Figueroa, are grateful for the events and the chance to celebrate Black History Month despite the complications and safety concerns that come with organizing them.

un &

ames

Fun & Games Editor Esmé Bleecker-Adams - ebleeckeradams@fordham.edu

February 24, 2021 THE OBSERVER

Crossword: Getting in Shape

37. shiny quadrilateral 40. devotional verse 41. detest 42. war deity, in ancient Greece 43. type of reproductive cell 44. 5:30 ___; time of Observer workshop meetings: Abbr.

45. four-sided clothing compartment 51. singers Fitzgerald and Henderson 52. cancel or retract 53. beaver construction 56. June 6, 1944, to the Allied forces 57. well-rounded political headquarters 60. assistant, to an occupant of 57 Across perhaps 61. monkey of the genus Pithecia 62. flattens to remove wrinkles 63. stare offensively (at) 64. direction to disregard an edit 65. becomes weary

DOWN

By ESMÉ BLEECKER-ADAMS

ACROSS

1. pie nut 6. additionally 10. Door___ delivery service 14. idolize 15. “___ on Me” by Bill Withers 16. butter substitute also known as margarine 17. Competition without sides 19. tie (a boat) 20. takeoff plan, for an airplane: Abbr.

21. speak harshly, or signify approval with the fingers 22. subtraction word 23. three-sided darling 26. “Mamma Mia! Here We Go ___” 29. therefore 30. garment often worn over pajamas 31. Arabic greeting or gesture of respect 34. “meal” preceder, at breakfast

1. university that also has a Manhattan and Westchester campus 2. make changes, for a newspaper perhaps 3. necessity for phone charging or rock climbing 4. ___ en ciel; “rainbow” in French 5. South African president Mandela 6. group of aquatic plants 7. jumped or sprang 8. Cooke of “You Send Me” 9. United States country code, when calling 10. game piece with zero to

twelve dots 11. ___ with; in addition to 12. South Korean capital 13. equine 18. ___ sci.; discipline including natural history 22. fiery source of lava 23. disputed a verified election result, for example 24. extend a hand 25. furious 26. Lincoln Center dining option 27. “The ___ Place” 28. having the capacity (to) 31. puppy nose, for one 32. a son of Shem and a region in present-day Syria, in the Bible 33. permit or rent out 34. Shrek or Fiona, for example 35. some types of beers 36. event that might be take-home or in-class 38. employees of Santa 39. first, middle or last identifier 43. one who approves something 44. net gain, usually of money 45. bicycle propeller 46. song from a bygone era 47. group of evolutionary descendants of a common ancestor 48. tremble, often in fear 49. dark 50. fuss 53. fashion designer Christian 54. skin condition associated with the teenage years 55. ___ up; make a mistake 57. CIA precursor 58. tank for liquid 59. end of the traditional work or school week: Abbr.

Contact: ebleeckeradams@fordham.edu fordhamobserver@gmail.com

Want to make your own puzzles and games?

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Maze: Help the student bring their laundry to the washing machine