Observer 2016-2017 Issue 2

Observer the

FEBRUARY 9, 2017 VOLUME XXXVIII, ISSUE 2

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Faculty Respond to Immigration Executive Order

By STEPHAN KOZUB News Co-Editor

STEPHAN KOZUB/ THE OBSERVER

Members of the Faculty Senate put tape over their mouths in silent protest of the Administration’s violation of University Statutes.

Faculty Senate Protest Statute Violations

By STEPHAN KOZUB News Co-Editor

Over 100 faculty members held a silent protest over violations of University Statutes on Feb. 2.

The protest, taking place outside of the Board of Trustees meeting in the Bateman Room of the Fordham Law building, included faculty members placing white tape over their mouths as members of the Board of Trustees and the administration made their way to the room.

In September 2016, the Fordham Faculty Senate filed grievances against the Board of Trustees and three senior officials of the university. The grievances, filed with the Hearing Committee of the Senate, came after the administration imposed a salary increase that was not approved by the Senate, violating the University Statutes.

A Faculty Hearing Committee independently investigated the issue and confirmed that the administration had violated the statutes, according to emails reported on by the Fordham Ram. University

“ We’re going to continue to fight until governance is respected.”

–

ANDREW H. CLARCK, PH.D,

Assoc. Chair of the Faculty Salary and Benefits Committee

Counsel Elaine Crosson said in an email on the results of the Committee that “since the Committee had no authority to act upon the grievances, the decisions of the Committee are not determinative.”

“We felt that, with student clubs and other things going on campus, there’s an increasing disregard for the kinds of governance processes in place,” Andrew H. Clark, Ph.D., chair of the Faculty Salary and Benefits Committee and associate professor of French and Comparative Literature, said. “We think that is a significant danger and threat to the health and future of this institution.”

Clark said that the first goal of the protest is “to remind faculty

that they are a strong, important voice that should be heard. It is to remind our interlocutors, the Board, the administration and other people that we take this seriously and we’re not so happy with the decision. We’re going to continue to fight until governance is respected.”

“We’re not going to get a topdown driven institution where people make decisions based on what they believe are savings without the input and serious discussion with faculty and joint decisions,” he continued.

At the protest, Clark also distributed red pins for faculty to wear to show their support for one another.

President of the Faculty Senate Anne Fernald, Ph.D., said that the goal of the protest was “to show the administration that all of us faculty members are united in our support for the faculty leadership, in our support of the statutes, in our hope and our expectation that we will come to a negotiation agreement on salary and benefits and our disappointment that we did not last year.”

Some of the faculty members taking part in the protest later attended the Board of Trustees meeting. Fernald said, “We have encouraged them to do so because we want to continue to seek ways to collaborate.”

She added that the protest was “not a strike” and that the participation in the protest was “an impressive show of strength from us, and I think we should be really proud of the way in which the faculty has united in support of the faculty governance.”

Patricio I. Meneses, Ph.D., as-

Asst. News Co-Editor

Late in the afternoon of Jan. 30, the Fordham Lincoln Center (FLC) plaza was filled with nearly 100 students and a handful of faculty members, assembled against President Donald Trump’s recent executive order on immigration. Organized overnight by unapproved club Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and members of Black Student Alliance (BSA), Muslim Students Association (MSA), Desi Chai, Student Organization of Latinos (SOL), Rainbow Alliance, Feminist Alliance, and the Student Solidar-

ity Network, the event’s speeches ranged from personal testimony about the executive order to a call for the administration to approve the SJP. Seen by many as a “Muslim ban” after aggressive campaign rhetoric by Trump promising to stop the entry of Muslim immigrants to the U.S., the Jan. 27 order entitled “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States,” barred from U.S. entry to virtually all people traveling on passports from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen for 90 days and barred all refugees for 120 days. It has drawn ire and fear

from civil rights and immigration advocates across the country. After only one day a federal judge had issued a temporary stay suspending implementation, though there were reports that it had been disregarded by a number of airports.

Fordham University President Joseph M. McShane, S.J., sent a statement out by email to the Fordham community on Jan. 29 revealing that at least seven students may be affected by the order, and that the university had reached out to them.

He included a link to a university information page with resources for undocumented students eligible for the Deferred Action for Child-

see PETITION pg. 5

see FACULTY SENATE pg. 2

Students Protest Trump Immigration Order

By ELIZABETH LANDRY

Mohammad Nejad, Ph.D., “could not have been happier in any other job” as an Assistant Professor of Marketing in the Gabelli School of Business.

“I love my work, my colleagues and the teaching philosophy we have at Fordham,” he said. “I’m not an easy professor based on what many students say, but this is because I love my students and want them to succeed and I think they know that.”

As a green card holder and dual citizen of Iran and Canada, Nejad lives in Westchester with his wife, a senior financial analyst who is also Iranian, and their son, who was born in the United States His parents and in-laws live abroad and are all in their late sixties and seventies. They made arrangements to annually meet up with one another in countries such as Canada, Italy, Germany and Iran.

When Nejad and his wife first made plans a while back to visit his parents and in-laws in Canada this March, they did not anticipate the risk that they might not be let back into the United States.

On the day that President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration was issued, he received an email from the immigration attorney for Fordham University advising him not to travel abroad due to the risk of not being able to return for 90 days. Since then, there has been mixed information regarding whether green card holders and Canadian citizens are included in the travel ban.

An appeals court, however, recently denied Trump’s request to reinstate the order after it was blocked by a Federal District Court in Seattle, but the legal battle is expected to continue.

“My wife and I need to visit our parents and our son also needs to visit his grandparents and the changes may simply take that away from us,” he said. “Moreover, in the case of an emergency, we may need to travel abroad to be there for our parents.”

“I know that the story of the refu-

hood Arrivals (DACA) program, to which Fordham adheres. “Please be assured that Fordham University stands with the tens of thousands of refugees and would-be immigrants affected by these laws,” he writes.

“We have a long history as a University of and for immigrants, in a city and a nation built by immigrants.”

“We must demand more than words from Fordham,” Sophia Dadap, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’18, said during the rally. She presented the three demands the clubs had for the university, which comprised clear and see IMMIGRATION pg. 4

THE STUDENT VOICE OF FORDHAM LINCOLN CENTER

OPINIONS

Point-Counterpoint The future in Trump’s America Page 8 ARTS & CULTURE

Faculty Spotlight 2017 New exhibit in Gallery

Page 13 FEATURES

Adventures Abroad A semester in Spain

Page 16

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News

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

www.fordhamobserver.com

Fordham Stands by SJP Veto Amid Criticism

By STEPHAN KOZUB News Co-Editor

Fordham is standing by Dean of Students Keith Eldredge’s Dec. 22 decision to deny a prospective Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) club official status, while organizations continue to write letters to the administration criticizing the move.

In a Jan. 20 letter, Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Jeffrey L. Gray responded to Palestine Legal’s and the Center for Constitutional Rights’ (CCR) Jan. 17 letter addressed to Fordham President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J. Gray writes that the decision “was based on the fact that chapters of this organization have engaged in behavior on other college campuses that would violate this University’s student code of conduct.” As an example, Gray says that “the Fordham University code of conduct would not permit students to disrupt public speaking events.”

Disruption of public events is a tactic of SJP chapters cited in a 2015 report on the organization by the Anti-Defamation League, an organization that “fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects civil rights for all.”

“Rather than supporting free speech at those events, SJP’s actions at other campuses have actually attempted to restrict free speech,” Gray continues. “Such behavior is antithetical to our values and code of conduct.”

Although the students seeking approval for Fordham SJP asserted that the club would be independent from the National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP), providing a letter from the organization corroborating their autonomy, confusion persisted between the parties involved regarding the relationship between the club, the NSJP and other SJP chapters.

“When asked to change the name of the proposed club and to distance themselves from the national organization, our students declined to do so,” Gray says in the letter. He continues that Fordham SJP has chosen “to affiliate with an organization that engages in behavior that is inconsistent with the University’s code of conduct” and that the influence of this “external organization” on the club could “adversely impact our students and our campus community.”

The NSJP’s website states that “beside sharing our points of unity as a guide, we do not dictate to SJP chapters: all individual SJPs are autonomous student orgs on their respective campuses.”

Gray’s letter also echoed the statement that Eldredge previously provided The Observer on the university’s decision.

He continues, “I want to emphasize that the University will protect the ability of all of our students to voice their political views–including students involved in attempting to organize a Fordham chapter of SJP. But that political dialogue must take place within the norms of civility set forth in the University’s code of conduct.”

He concludes that he and his staff “would welcome the opportunity to

ELIZABETH LANDRY/THE OBSERVER

Students protest the decision to veto the formation of the Students for Justice in Palestine.

“ By attempting to suppress rather than

encourage dialogue buttressed by critical thinking, it also threatens the principles and tradition to which Fordham as a Jesuit educational institution professes to adhere.”

–

MIDDLE EAST STUDIES ASSOCIATION (MESA), letter to Fordham

meet with these students to facilitate an appropriate forum for debate on the issues confronting Palestine and the Palestinian people.”

Palestine Legal and CCR responded to Gray on Jan. 26, stating that his letter “misconstrues the facts, misunderstands the law, and ignores Fordham’s contractual obligations to respect students’ freedom of expression, as promised in various University policies.”

In Palestine Legal’s and CCR’s letter, the organizations cite Fordham’s Mission Statement, Demonstration Policy, policy on Bias-Related Incidents and/or Hate Crimes, websites on Student Life and Student Leadership and Community Development, Distribution of Literature Policy, Publicity and Posting Policy and Speakers Policy.

They also cite the U.S. Supreme Court case Healy v. James, which “held that the denial of student group status based on the actions of a national group violates associational rights under the First Amendment.”

In the case, which Palestine Legal and CCR state is an “apt analogue” to the Fordham SJP situation, “students at Central Connecticut State College applied to start a Students for Demo-

cratic Society (SDS) chapter on campus.” The college president rejected their application on the grounds that it would be a “disruptive influence” and because he “doubted the group’s independence from the national organization,” even though the students had stated that their group “was not under the dictates of a national organization.” The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the students.

The organizations continue in the letter that “NSJP, a separate, independent organization, has not engaged in ‘disruptive’ activity,” stating that many of the claims of disruptive activities levied against SJPs are “unsubstantiated.”

They also add that “there is no ‘civility’ exception to free speech,” citing College Republicans at San Francisco State v. Reed, which held that restricting the free speech of a student group based on concerns of civility was unconstitutional.

The final section of their letter states that “Fordham’s banning of SJP raises concerns under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act,” an assertion they made in their Jan. 17 letter.

They conclude by offering to schedule a meeting with Gray, “along with students interested in starting

an SJP.” The Middle East Studies Association (MESA), the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) and the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) also wrote to the Fordham administration, criticizing Eldredge’s decision.

MESA wrote to Eldredge on Jan. 23, stating that “This decision violates the principles of academic freedom and the right to free speech. By attempting to suppress rather than encourage dialogue buttressed by critical thinking, it also threatens the principles and tradition to which Fordham as a Jesuit educational institution professes to adhere.”

While MESA states that as an organization it does not have a position on SJP’s political platform, they “vigorously support the rights of students and faculty to form organizations to advocate for their political views” and call upon the university to reconsider its decision on SJP in order to “uphold the commitments” articulated in Fordham’s mission statement.

FIRE and NCAC wrote a letter to McShane on Jan. 25, stating that Eldredge’s decision “violates the free speech promises Fordham makes to its students and must be overturned.”

They state that their understanding of the facts is largely based on the information provided by Palestine Legal and CCR in their Jan. 17 letter to McShane and ask that the University inform them of any believed error.

The organizations argue that “while Fordham is a private university and thus not legally bound by the First Amendment, it is both morally and contractually bound to honor the explicit, repeated, and unequivocal promises of freedom of expression it

has made to its students,” citing the university’s Mission Statement, Demonstration Policy and Bias-Related Incidents and/or Hate Crimes Policy.

They state that “Fordham may not deny SJP recognition based on its disagreement with SJP’s purpose and goals,” citing Healy v. James.

They argue that “Disagreement with a student organization’s expression is not a legitimate basis for denying it recognition,” citing the College Republicans, College Democrats, the Rainbow Alliance, the Environmental Club and the Feminist Alliance as clubs that already exist on campus “whose sole purpose is advocating political goals of a specific group.”

In the second section of the letter, FIRE and NCAC assert that “Fordham May Not Deny SJP Recognition Because Its Expression May Be ‘Polarizing.’” They cite Terminiello v.

Chicago and state that “The Supreme Court has explicitly held, in rulings spanning decades, that speech cannot be restricted simply because it may be controversial.”

For the reasons they discuss, FIRE and NCAC “urge Fordham University to immediately reverse Keith Eldredge’s rejection of SJP and reaffirm to students that Fordham University will not renege on its promise of free speech.”

Fordham responded to FIRE’s and NCAC’s letter with the same response they sent to Palestine Legal and CCR. FIRE and NCAC responded to that letter on Jan. 27, stating that the university’s response “fails to adequately address our concerns.”

They further state that they “are committed to using all of the resources at our disposal to see this matter through to a just conclusion” and request a response by Feb. 3.

Members of Faculty Senate Participate in Silent Protest FACULTY SENATE FROM PAGE 1

sociate professor of Biological Sciences and president of the Fordham University chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), said that “the goal is to unify the University, to have the faculty unified in their mission as to what it is that they see as important needs and important changes. It’s about governance, that a conversation needs to be had between us and the University that needs to be open and more two-way, rather than a one-

way street that it seems to be at the moment.”

Faculty members such as Senior Lecturer of Music Sevin Yaraman, Ph.D., were also among the participants.

“The major issue that I share with my colleagues is the breach of the statute and that the administration made a decision without the Faculty Senate’s approval,” she said.

Faculty members began gathering outside of Bateman Room at noon, passing out pieces of tape amongst themselves until 12:15 p.m., when

they formally began the protest. They continued until 12:45 p.m., when Fernald briefly addressed the group.

“We are completely overwhelmed by the support that you have shown us today and we could not be more grateful to you,” she said. “This is the beginning for us.”

For Clark, the protest touched on an issue of social justice.

“I think if you look at most of the issues with respect to social justice, [they] never affect just one population,” Clark said. “[They] always affect the whole community. So vio-

lating the statutes with respect to faculty gives precedence to how students can be treated, to how workers can be treated. So it’s not good for the community as a whole.”

Prior to the event, Bob Howe, senior director of Communications for Fordham University, told The Fordham Ram that “The University stands by its Nov. 11, 2016 letter to Professor Barry Rosenfeld, chair of the Faculty Senate Hearing Committee, specifically that the Fordham University Board of Trustees has the ultimate authority and responsibility

— by law and according to University statute — for setting the University’s budget in a timely and fiscally prudent manner.” The administration is “currently engaged in productive compensation negotiations with the Faculty Senate, and have every reason to believe that we will conclude the process on time, and present a University budget that is both equitable to faculty and reflects fiscal reality,” according to the statement.

The Observer reached out to the university, which did not provide further comment on the protest.

www.fordhamobserver.com

THE OBSERVER February 9, 2017

News

3

McShane Issues Statement on Trump Order University president stands by students affected by immigration executive order.

By STEPHAN KOZUB AND COLIN SHEELEY News Co-Editor and Contributing Writer

In light of President Trump’s Executive Order on immigration, Fordham President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J. has restated the university’s support for refugees and immigrants, especially those affected by the mandate. In an email sent to members of the Fordham community on Jan. 29, McShane reiterated Fordham’s position as a “University of and for immigrants.”

“Though we do not know the ultimate outcome of the president’s order (nor subsequent orders and legislation), please be assured that Fordham University stands with the tens of thousands of refugees and would-be immigrants affected by these laws,” McShane writes.

He adds, “I know the Fordham Community joins me in keeping the refugees and immigrants of all nations in our thoughts and prayers today.”

McShane details that he has contacted at least seven students that may be affected by the order. Additionally, the university has created a resource page for undocumented students.

The page states that “as a Catholic and Jesuit University, Fordham values the dignity of all members of the University community. For our entire 175-year history, we have kept faith with the vision of Archbishop John Hughes who founded Fordham to serve immigrants and their sons, daughters, grandsons and granddaughters.” It continues

LISA SPITERI/OBSERVER ARCHIVES

Fordham University President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J. supports refugees and immigrants.

that the university stands with undocumented students and “will do all we can to be effective advocates” for them.

Among the listed categories of resources are Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, Sensitive Locations, Other Statements of Sup-

port and Local Immigration Legal Services.

The site also links to McShane’s Dec. 1 statement in support of undocumented students, which McShane echoes in the statement he released this afternoon.

Thirteen faculty members have

also signed the Academics Against Immigration Executive Order petition, which currently has 4,888 signatures. It states that the executive order is “discriminatory,” “detrimental to the national interests of the United States” and “imposes undue burden on members of our

community.”

Full text of Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J.’s University Statement on the Status of Refugees and Immigrants: Dear Members of the Fordham Family, As I’m sure you are aware, President Trump’s executive order on refugees and immigration has shocked and unsettled many Americans. Last night a federal judge issued a temporary stay suspending implementation of the order, but to say that the landscape is unsettled for those seeking refuge in the United States would be a vast understatement.

We have identified at least seven students who may be affected by the current order, and we have reached out to them to offer support and advice. While we struggle to understand the shifting legal landscape, we have created an information page that may be of some help: Resources for Undocumented Students (DACA).

Though we do not know the ultimate outcome of the president’s order (nor subsequent orders and legislation), please be assured that Fordham University stands with the tens of thousands of refugees and would-be immigrants affected by these laws. We have a long history as a University of and for immigrants, in a city and a nation built by immigrants.

I know the Fordham Community joins me in keeping the refugees and immigrants of all nations in our thoughts and prayers today.

Sincerely, Joseph M. McShane, S.J.

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4

News

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

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Rise in Tuition Gives Students Partial Scholarships

By KATHERINE SMITH Ast. News Co-Editor

Fordham students with partial merit scholarships could soon see the cost of attending grow when the amount of their scholarships does not increase with rising tuition.

As previously reported by The Observer, Fordham raised their tuition by 3.75 percent over the summer, and cost of attendance is expected to increase annually. The amount of aid given from a partial scholarship will remain the same amount, adding a higher cost to the amount that the students already have to pay.

Fordham is not alone, as students around the country have seen spikes in their tuition while their financial aid and scholarships remain the same. According to College Board, tuition rose faster than inflation in 2015. Director Alan F. Edwards, Jr. for Virginia’s State Council of Higher Education believes this is due to cuts in public funding.

According to the New York Times, federal figures have shown that lower-income students are hit the hardest, particularly at “taxpayer-supported” public universities where there have been state budget cuts for higher education.

At Fordham, The Presidential Scholarship and scholarships for semifinalists are the only two full

BROOKE PARRETT/THE OBSERVER

Some students will suffer when tutition rises and scholarships do not.

scholarships that rise with expanding tuition costs. They are offered to less than 1 percent of the admitted freshman applicants, according to Angela Van Dekker, associate vice president student of financial services.

“The Presidential Scholarship is our most prestigious scholarship

and as such we commit to covering full tuition charges that are not covered by various government and external sources,” Dekker said.

For some Fordham students with partial scholarships, the rise in tuition is troubling.“I feel like if it’s merit-based or need-based, as long as I’m maintaining my grades and my

parents are making the same amount of money, it should increase,” Elizabeth Pustinger, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’19, said.

“Rising tuition causes us to scramble for money elsewhere like loans, which causes an even bigger problem, like debt,” Stephanie Nunez, FCLC ’18, said.

As the budget becomes tighter and the cost of attendance is expected to rise over time, the solution is unclear. Some schools have decided to launch capital campaigns, the current one at Fordham aiming to raise $175 million in order to provide additional support with financial aid.

For students who might struggle with the rising tuition costs, Dekker encourages them to come to the financial aid office and meet with a counselor. She also acknowledges that meeting the tuition expenses is difficult for many students and their families and points out that financial aid is one of the largest items in the university budget.

“We work very hard to increase endowment support for financial aid and scholarships, to contain the rate of increase in tuition and to make Fordham more affordable for families,” Dekker said.

For students like Pustinger and Nunez, there is concern over how the change in cost will affect their futures.

“Fordham provides me with everything I need education wise,” Nunez said. “I enjoy my classes and professors, but the fear of affording school here is real.”

“I’m really happy I got the scholarship and chose Fordham,” Pustinger said. “If [the cost] rose a significant amount, I’d probably have to transfer.”

Clubs Rally in Solidarity with Immigrants, Refugees IMMIGRATION FROM PAGE 1

public denunciation of the “Muslim ban,” and the Trump administration “for its blatant racism, and clear and public commitment to “the absolute protection of all its students, especially its oppressed students, regardless of what laws are in place.”

Students from several of the cosponsoring clubs spoke at the event, punctuated by chants against the Trump administration. Three drew from their families’ histories to illuminate their message. Martin NuñezBonilla, FCLC ’18, represented SOL, and painted an image of an immigrant mother who is now told she is not welcome, “when all she has done is contribute her body and soul to a country in hopes of calling it home.

That is not democracy,” he added, and called the ban racist for barring immigrants based on where they come from.

Hend Elmadboly, FCLC ’18, represented MSA, and spoke about her father’s life and her family’s journey from Egypt, through middle America to New York. “[My father] sacrificed everything and has truly fulfilled the American Dream,” she said. “I have no intention of denouncing any part of my identity, no matter how uncomfortable it makes others.

This country is held up by us immigrants, not held back.”

Areeg Abdelhamid, FCLC ’17, described the difficult divide between her family, first-generation immigrants, and the American perception of and violence against Muslims, saying, “We were murdered abroad, our children starved, our lands were covered with the ashes of drones and here we are, running back to her, asking her for refuge, to open her doors because we are not ready to die.

Asking that she protects us, that she

helps us just as we have built her.” She closed with a quote on unity from the Qur’an in both Arabic and English.

Alysha Kundanmal, FCLC ’17, who represented Desi Chai, said that the executive order is racist and xenophobic. “But we will not tolerate fascism,” she said. She also called McShane’s statement “deeply flawed” because the administration has stood by its decision to refuse SJP approval.

The students from SJP took the opportunity to call attention to their year-long club application process which ended in an approval by United Student Government (USG) but a veto by Dean of Students Keith Eldredge. “Now we’re just going ahead with whatever we wanna do because that’s ridiculous,” said Dadap. “I mean, the whole point of a statement of solidarity with Muslim students, with immigrant students, it’s nothing if you don’t actually take any action

to support those students.”

Sapphira Lurie, FCLC ’17, said on behalf of SJP, “We will continue to build a militant, fight-back movement against apartheid and occupation, against US imperialism, against Israeli settler-colonialism,” to isolated cheers.

At the end of the event, a student from the audience read an excerpt from poet Emma Lazarus’ “The New Colossus” which is inscribed at the feet of the Statue of Liberty. Lurie and Lexi McMenamin, FCLC ’17, encouraged the audience to continue to be involved in campus organizing and activism in public forums. “You cannot be indifferent right now,” McMenamin told the crowd.

After the rally, Eldredge said, “It’s certainly an important issue that’s affecting not just Fordham students but the country at large and so I’m glad that the students were able to come

together and take action on campus to express their opinions.” He added, “I am glad that one of the organizers of the rally reached out to me in advance as per the University’s demonstration policy so that I could work with her and the organizers and offer the university’s support to the event.”

Audience member Jolee Cobb, FCLC ’19, said she has been involved with activism both on and off campus, and that “I feel like it would be nice to see more support from professors and actual faculty. Last year when we had the solidarities for the black students here, there was a larger gathering, but hopefully with time it will get bigger.”

Judge James Robart of Seattle issued a temporary nationwide suspension of several key provisions of the order in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Feb. 3, which was upheld on Feb. 5, suspending the ban.

Dear Mr. President: Catholic Teaching and a Trump Presidency

By VICTORIA MICALIZZI Contributing Writer

How can Catholic teaching help us understand and approach the Trump presidency? That’s the question that attracted Fordham students, alumni, and faculty to the McNally Amphitheatre on Jan. 26, six days after Trump’s inauguration.

This discussion engaged a wide variety of members of the Fordham community seeking guidance and insight. When asked the reason for her attendance, Mary Segers, a political science professor from Rutgers in attendance said, “I’m very worried about the president’s actions in the first week of this administration. It’s clear that we have to be a lot more active than passive so, anything these people have to say that helps that is great and I’m willing to hear it.”

Arranged a few months before the election, the event was changed from a discussion about the future of civil discourse in a divisive political climate to “Dear Mr. President: Catholic Social Teaching, Civil Discourse, and the Trump Presidency.”

J. Patrick Hornbeck, Associate Professor and Chair of the Theology Department, opened by asking

the panelists what they would like Trump to know about “matters dear to the heart of the Fordham theology department: Catholic social teaching and civil, pluralistic discourse.”

In regard to this question and having “alternative facts” on their minds, many of the panelists gravitated toward truth and “speaking truth to power.” Rev. Bryan Massingale, Fordham professor of theology, stressed the Catholic teaching of devotion to preserving fundamental human rights, including the right to be truthfully informed about public affairs. Father Massingale explained that Mr. Trump’s “loose association with the truth” is “profoundly dangerous” because truth is required for “just and humane social living” as well as effective civil discourse.

Natalia Imperatori-Lee, Ph.D., graduate of Fordham College Rose Hill and associate professor of Religious Studies at Manhattan College, connected the theme of truth with the tradition of Catholic education.

“We have Catholic universities because we believe the pursuit of truth is not only possible, but worthwhile and divine,” she said. “We have a responsibility to stand up for what is true.”

“ We have Catholic universities because we be-

lieve the pursuit of truth is not only possible, but worthwhile and divine.”

–

NATALIA IMPERATORI-LEE, PH. D,, Assoc. Professor of Religious

In instructing the audience on speaking truth, Rev. Massingale referred to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as an example of someone who has reminded people of the uncomfortable truth and therefore was demonized and vilified. He told the audience to wear this vilification “as a badge of honor.”

Christine Emba, columnist at the Washington Post, responded to the overarching question that it is time to accept reality. “Donald Trump is the president now.” she said. “It’s time to look forward to the future.”

Hornbeck and the other panelists agreed that it is time to move on from the election. David Gibson, a national reporter from Religious News Service, said it is time to get down to business and “organize,

Studies at Manhattan College

vote, do politics.” And “work with people who disagree with us.”

Emba added that the public can make change through politics, but also on the level of the individual by looking out for our neighbors, looking out for the poor and standing in solidarity with those who are especially threatened and will be negatively affected by Trump’s policies.

The other two panelists touched upon compassion and understanding for those individuals disagree with as another approach to the future. Natalia Imperatori-Lee advised the audience to listen to those who support Trump. She told them, “Don’t talk, just listen,” and to understand that Trump supporters are hurt and in pain.

Massingale shared the story of

the days after the election where he postponed an exam to have a discussion about not only the fears of those who are against Trump, but also the fears and ideologies of those who voted for him.

After the discussion, Vasiliki Patsiogiannis, a senior theology major from Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) shared that what struck her the most was when Rev. Massingale mentioned the silence from Christian leaders. “There was silence from all Christian bishops in America and that was something that I had never thought of before,” she said.

“When Catholicism is supposed to be shedding light on confusing and complex and hurtful perspectives and issues, there was complete silence which is astonishing to me.”

While there was some backlash toward Trump from Christian leaders, Pope Francis in particular has been vocal ever since he accused Trump of not being Christian in February of 2016. Preaching kindness and sympathy, he has especially been hard on Trump for supporting a proposed restriction on Muslims entering the United States and a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

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THE OBSERVER February 9, 2017

News

5

The March Becomes the Movement

By CECILE NEIDIG News Co-Editor

“Women united will never be divided,” went one of the more memorable chants from the Women’s March on Washington. The sea of pink roared this mantra while waiting for the rally before the march to commence.

When I arrived at the march on the morning of Jan. 21, I was in awe of the mass of people gathered in D.C. In the hour that it took my friend to walk from our lodging to Independence Avenue, we passed clusters of people in knitted pink hats, and as we got closer, the clusters of people became groups of hundreds. Then we reached the giant mass of march participants.

We found ourselves at the rear of the protesters already assembled for the rally. At 9:30 am we couldn’t see the stage—we couldn’t even see the second monitor that broadcasted the rally in real time.

Unsatisfied with our positions in the crowd, we went around the block from Jefferson Drive and 4th Street SW and made our way to the right of the main stage. Our new vantage points not only gave us a clear view of the speakers, but we could also see them coming on and off the stage. Gloria Steinem, Cecile Richards and the Mothers of the Movement waved to the crowd as they walked up the stage.

Many speakers gave an anti-hate formula for proceeding past this election. The right to access safe abortions, the wage gap, rights for immigrants and anti-Islamophobia were among the topics discussed which have an effect on the lives of women.

“We know that it is right for this nation to prioritize women’s issues,” California Senator Kamala Harris said to the crowd. Women’s issues, she proclaimed, include the economy, national security, health care, education, criminal justice reform and climate change. “Because we all know the truth, if you are a woman trying to raise a family, you know that a good paying job is a woman’s issue.”

ERIN O’FLYNN/THE OBSERVER

Around 500,000 people attended the Women’s March on Washington in D.C. on Jan. 21.

Inclusion was a prominent theme of the day—the idea that all women, no matter race, class, sexual orientation, would be represented and fought for in this movement.

Fists went up and cheers erupted throughout the speeches. Each person there seemed to be boundless in their promise, determination and resolve to fight for these issues.

It did not feel like a protest. It felt like a movement – it felt like a collective unit tied together by shared grievances and by shared compassion.

“This is a women’s march, and this women’s march represents the promise of feminism against the pernicious powers of state violence,” Angela Davis, activist and academic, said. “An inclusive and intersectional feminism that calls upon all of us to join the resistance to racism, to Islamophobia, to antiSemitism, to misogyny, to capitalist exploitation.”

Davis called for a “collective resistance.” Its genesis, as I saw it, already begun to materialize in this march and its sister marches around the world.

Later in the day, TVs showed live shots of those marching across the world: Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Melbourne, Nairobi, Berlin. The list goes on, in fact, to include the names of 673 cities in which marches took place with a total of nearly five million participants globally, according to the Women’s March on Washington website.

The march, or marches, did not end once the last protester went home. The leaders of the march are continuing to fight for women and planning what comes next. On its website, leaders of the march are posting “10 actions in 100” days to facilitate the movement.

The march is over. The signs have been cleaned up. The participants went home. But people are still chanting. People are still fighting. And people are still taking action and making their voices heard in this movement. What comes next in the movement is a fight for what is right and just and fair.

Faculty Sign Academics’ Petition Against Trump Order PETITION FROM PAGE 1

gees is much more critical and I know for many it’s death and life, but I’m trying to highlight that the executive order does not just affect the lives of those people,” he explained. “It also affects the lives of people who are living and established here and are contributing to our society.”

Nejad is not the only faculty member in the Fordham community that feels that way. He is one of 57 academics at the university to sign the Academics Against Immigration Executive Order, a petition which at the time of publication had over 42,000 signatures, 62 of which were of Nobel Laureates and over 32,000 of which were of U.S. faculty members.

The growing number of signatures comes after Trump called James Robart of the Federal District Court of Seattle a “so-called judge” after blocking the order and over 100 companies have filed an amicus brief against the order.

“I think that this executive order is unconscionable, un-American and cuts at the heart of what America is, like so many of Trump’s executive orders,” signatory Jason Morris, Ph.D., associate professor of biology, said.

While Morris said that he doubts the petition will have any impact on Trump himself, he believes that “members of his party still have respect for people with expertise.”

Kathryn Kueny, professor of theology, director of the Middle East Studies Program and director the Religious Studies Program, also signed

SCREENSHOT FROM NOTOIMMIGRATIONBAN.COM

Over 27,000 academics signed the petition.

the petition.

“As a scholar of Islam I believe this ban targets Islam and Muslims, and therefore is illegal and unethical,” she said in an email statement. She continued that the ban “demonizes Muslims and fans and inflames false and harmful beliefs about Islam,” and “also serves to justify hate crimes, stereotyping, prejudice and the persecution of Muslim minority populations in the US.” Robert Davis, Ph.D., assistant professor of theology, signed the petition and said “I was proud of [University President Rev. Joseph M.] McShane’s strong statement of opposition to the order and commitment to supporting our students who are affected, and proud, as well to see Fordham students among the demonstrators at

Battery Park.”

For Elizabeth Johnson, Ph.D., CSJ, distinguished professor of theology, the ban is “morally repugnant.” “It is prejudicial to people in need, and to people from Muslim countries,” she said. “Both are against everything I believe in.”

As a long time advocate of the DREAM Act, Johnson is particularly close to issues of immigration. “My religious commitment, my membership in a religious order, as well as my role as an academic, make me very interested in this issue,” she said.

She also quipped that “It occurred to me that one way to solve this problem of the seven nations whose citizens are now being kept out of our country is to have Trump build a Trump hotel in each one of those countries. If you

notice, not one of them has a Trump hotel and I think that might solve it. Let him make a buck and he’ll let them in.”

Fawzia Mustafa, professor of English, comparative literature, African American and African studies, and women’s, gender and sexuality studies, also weighed in on the petition and the executive order.

“We can’t beg ignorance, lack of precedent or exceptional circumstances that can in any way justify or explain away such an action on the part of the executive branch,” she said.

“It’s pure fear-mongering, xenophobia, racism and mean-spiritedness, not to mention plain wrong.”

While some signatories such as Terrence W. Tilley, the Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., professor of Catholic theology say that the petition is “a very small effort that is part of a series of protests,” he added that “We can offer moral support and by that I mean we are by trade concerned with the values inherent with public discourse and in personal action. So we play a small supporting role and a cheering section from the ivory tower.”

He also added a point of comparison to understand how the executive order affects people coming to this country.

“I also know of Americans who have been denied entry as academics into the United Kingdom, put on a plane, sent back here to get the proper paperwork done and after two weeks of struggle, were able to get back to the UK and resume their temporary

positions in the UK,” he said. “These are people who, as they told me, had resources, had support groups, had at least money that they could get at so that it would not be a disaster. If it was a problem for middle class American academics, what of the poor and downtrodden whom the Statue of Liberty allegedly welcomes to this shore?”

For Jeannine Hill Fletcher, Ph.D., professor of theology, the executive order relates to her recent work on “the Sin of White Supremacy and the Christian ideology of superiority that has run throughout the history of the United States.”

“To me, this newest legislation is the next chapter in a long history of America’s ideology of White Christian supremacy,” she said in an email statement. “As a White Christian theologian, I need to do everything I can to oppose it.”

As more faculty members join these academics in signing the petition, the future remains uncertain for people like Nejad.

“Honestly I don’t know,” he said regarding what he intends to do moving forward. “We had plans in the very near future, which is our parents are traveling to Canada late February to early April and we were going to travel there and visit them. Now, I don’t know what to do about that.”

“In the longer term, I hope that this will be resolved because we are not in a situation to consider that we are not going to see our parents for the next few years,” he continued. “That’s not a choice for us.”

Opinions

Opinions Editor John McCullough - jmcculloughiii@fordham.edu

STAFF EDITORIAL

the

IMMIGRATION BAN THREATENS TO EXTINGUISH AMERICA’S FLAME

I

n the current political climate, it is hard to separate politics from personal feeling. When it comes to the immigration executive order, however, the situation has evolved into something more than a political issue. It is a social justice issue.

In late January, President Trump signed an executive order that banned individuals from seven Muslim nations from entering the United States for 90 days. This executive order also suspended the Syrian Refugee program for 120 days.

Unsurprisingly, this order was met with fierce resistance by members of Congress, the legal community and many citizens.

Following the issue of the order, there were intense protests outside international airports in multiple major cities, including New York and Chicago. Many opponents have called this ban “grossly un-American” and a “betrayal of American values”.

These strong reactions stem directly from the impact the

order has on thousands of innocent people. Travelers were detained in various airports and many were sent back to their home countries as their friends and families waited outside. There have been nu-

“It cuts at the core of what this country has stood for and continues to stand for.” merous stories of parents and children as well as husbands and wives being separated due to this ban. The detainment ended once a Federal Judge ruled against the enforcement of the ban. The Trump Administration is currently seeking ways to overturn this ruling.

The Muslim ban is disturbing to say the least. In a message from University President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J.,

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

we know that seven Fordham students have been affected by this ban, but there are larger implications. The executive order, Islamophobic in its nature, is something that must be opposed.

Not only does it prevent people who have already uprooted their lives incoming to this country, but it also cuts at the core of what this country has stood for and continues to stand for.

The United States does not by any means have a spotless record when it comes to immigration—one needs only to open a history textbook to see discriminatory laws like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

But the immigration executive order and Trump’s plans to build a wall along the border with Mexico threaten to snuff out the flame of the Statue of Liberty’s torch. If Trump wants America to be an example to all nations, the country must continue lift the lamp “beside the golden door.”

Observer Editor-in-Chief Ben Moore Managing Editor Matthew McCarthy Business Manager Michael Veverka Layout Co-Editors Sabrina Jen Katie Maurer Asst. Layout Editor Elodie Huston News Co-Editors Stephan Kozub Cecile Neidig Asst. News Editors Elizabeth Landry Katherine Smith Opinions Editor John McCullough Asst. Opinions Editors Alex Seyad Kathy Yoo Arts & Culture Co-Editors Elena Ciotta Ana Fota Morgan Steward Asst. Arts & Culture Co-Editors Maryanna Antoldi Samantha DeAssis Features Co-Editors Ruby Buddemeyer Asst. Features Editor Carson Thornton Gonzalez Reese Ravner Sports & Health Editor Shobair Hussaini Asst. Sports & Health Editor Alexander DiMisa Artemis Tsagaris Photo Co-Editors Hana Keiningham Asst. Photo Editor Aseah Khan Brooke Parrett Literary Editor Erika Ortiz Asst. Multimedia Producer Kaylee Kilkenny Copy Co-Editors Izzi Duprey Erika Ortiz Morgan Steward Social Media Co-Managers Andronika Zimmerman

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Opinions

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The immigration ban inspired huge crowds of protestors at many airports where travelers had been detained, including JFK International.

“Extreme Vetting” Is A Stain On America’s History JORDAN MELTZER Staff Writer

This week, I got a text from my mom that read, “You are living in one of the darkest times in American history and it makes me really sad.” Unfortunately, at least to some extent, I agree with her assessment of the state of our union.

If you had told me last year that Donald Trump would be our president—and that he would sign an executive order within his first week in office that bans citizens of seven Muslim-majority nations, including Syrian refugees indefinitely—I would have laughed in your face.

The absurdity of such a claim would have been funny to me.

But this is not a joke—far from it.

This is reality. And it is scary, hatefilled, and, like my mom told me, one of the darkest times in Ameri-

can history.

There is so much wrong with the president’s “extreme vetting” executive order. Logistically, it is a disaster; it is contrary to everything our great country is supposed to stand for; and it might be one of the first steps in sending the Pentagon’s alert system to DEFCON 1—imminent nuclear war.

The specifics of the order make little sense. According to CNN, none of the countries listed in the ban are linked to the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, the most lethal terrorist attack in American history, reportedly because of business ties Trump has in those countries.

Meanwhile, according to the Cato Institute, a Libertarian think tank, people from these seven countries killed exactly zero people in the United States between 1975 and 2015. The only records of a person dying in this country at the hands of a refugee were from the

1970s. Clearly, this ban will not do anything to hinder terrorism in the United States.

With regard to American values, this ban falls miles short of the standard. The executive order uses crafty language to help certain refugees based on their religion.

A small blurb in the order, section 5(b), states that if a refugee is experiencing religious persecution and that their religion is a minority in their home country, an exception may be made and the United States may accept the refugee. This is cunning language that gives Christian refugees an advantage over Muslim refugees.

Trump’s previous rhetoric against Muslims—calling for a “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States” in late 2015—helps build the case that this ban targets Muslims. This ban directly contradicts a central tenet of the First Amendment of the

Constitution—freedom of religion.

It is completely and utterly contrary to American principles.

Despite Trump’s repeated desire to “make America safe again,” this ban is counterintuitive to his stated mission. He has claimed that his intent is to keep “bad dudes” off American soil, but what he is doing is just the opposite. He is antagonizing these Muslim-majority nations and fueling the delusional belief held by extremists that “the West” hates the Middle East and other Muslim-majority nations. To put it simply, he is poking actual radical Islamic terrorists with a proverbial stick, which they will see as a dare to attack.

His eagerness to both “bomb the hell out of ISIS” in 2015 and “expand [America’s] nuclear capability” in 2016 do not bode well for American safety and stability, either, if those two ideas intersect. The future, it seems, is nuclear.

President Trump seems to have a warped sense of reality regarding this executive order, which —let us not mince words—is a Muslim ban. He does not quite comprehend many of the facts about immigration and terrorism in the United States.

If he did, he would not have tackled these very serious issues with an irresponsible restriction on the presence of immigrants from seven Muslim-majority nations whose influence on American terrorism is minuscule. Or maybe he just had not done enough research to have seen these facts and decided to write up an executive order just a week after he took power. Regardless of the circumstances, it is important to recognize this ban’s dangerous potential repercussions. It is a catastrophe, a disgrace to American values and a stain on American history. My mom was right—we are truly living in one of the darkest times in American history.

Sex is Not the Only Way to Sell JESSICA ZIMMERMANN Contributing Writer

The U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights defines ‘sexual harassment’ as an “...unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature, which can include unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other verbal, nonverbal; or physical conduct of a sexual nature.”

Pretty straightforward, right?

It is unwelcomed and it does not matter what the victim was wearing or how they were acting. There has not been a significant decrease in instances regarding sexual harassment, despite the efforts of schools and organizations. The reason for this is because they are targeting the victims rather than perpetrators. Meaning, these efforts are in place to assist victims after the fact or to provide guidelines on

When a larger source has the power to control the way the community perceives an entire category, it also has the power to change it. how “you can prevent” an unwelcome situation. These preventative measures perpetuate the belief that sexual harassment is inevitable and create a culture that treats people as objects in the world of sex.

Of course you do not have to be a woman to understand what it feels like to receive unwanted sexual attention, but a survey done by the American Association of University Women in schools across the country in 2010-2011 shows a higher percentage of women experiencing this type of attention than men. The book “Crossing The Line: Sexual Harassment in Schools” by Catherine Hill and Holly Kearl de-

scribes these findings in detail and concludes that “...girls are sexually harassed more frequently than boys are and that girls’ experiences tend to be more physical and intrusive than the boys’ experiences” (Hand & Sanchez, 2000). This is not to say that sexual harassment of boys is any less serious, but a culture exists of women being viewed as objects of sex, which leads to an increasing percentage in the cases regarding women. Who is to blame for this culture? Well, it is a multitude of sources varying from stereotypical gender roles, books, movies, television shows and advertisements.

Jean Kilbourne has a new ap-

proach. Her documentary “Killing Us Softly” is award-winning, and Kilbourne was named by New York Times as one of the three most popular speakers on college campuses.

The documentary travels through the evolution of advertisements in America and its negative mark on the culture of women’s standards of beauty. Despite the fact that the unrealistic images of a woman’s body support the increasing issue of eating disorders and numerous other issues, the ads transform women into objects and visions of sex. We act by what we perceive to be okay and these ads tell us that it is okay to view a woman as an object and, as Kilbourne mentions, this leads to violence. When something is dehumanized, it becomes much easier to justify taking advantage of that “thing.” So what is the solution?

Well, as Kilbourne would agree, the advertisements need to construct a new angle.

This is not to say that other

efforts have gone unnoticed. It is incredibly important and effective to provide numerous outlets and safe communications for victims.

In addition, there needs to be a shift in the way we prevent the problem.

It is not the responsibility of any individual to feel as if it is their fault for getting felt up. Rather, it is the advertisements’ job to produce more respect for women to abolish this negative view. When a larger source has the power to control the way the community perceives an entire category, it also has the power to change it. More of these companies need to assist women in feeling more confident in confronting their assaulters and less like they were the cause. Jean Kilbourne’s documentary is frighteningly real and I would recommend it to anyone. Let’s move forward in continuing the fight to decrease the percentage of any type of unwelcome sexual attention by transforming the way women are perceived through advertisements.

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Opinions

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

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How Can We Move Forward?

Only Socialism can Defeat Trump’s “Barbarism” JOHN MCCULLOUGH Opinions Editor

In 1916, Rosa Luxemburg declared that a world ravaged by war, disease and the rise of far-right populist currents had two options: build a new system in which the working class could control its own destiny, or submit to fascist brutality.

Put more concisely, the choice faced by this world was “socialism or barbarism.”

While there are substantial differences between the Germany of 1916 and the United States of a century later, this central point holds true. The story of the 2016 Presidential Election was the failure of centrist liberalism to effectively counter right-wing populism. The inability of the Clintonian “third-way” to protect people of color, women, queer folks and the entire working class should stand as a reminder that political movements must address the pressing economic concerns of human beings if they seek to gain momentum.

Even a relatively modest insurgency against the ruling neoliberal order was considered intensely threatening by those in power. In the Democratic presidential primary, Hillary Clinton’s most die-hard supporters in the media unleashed a flurry of baseless attacks on her opponent, Bernie Sanders. His platform, which essentially consisted of capitalism with a strong social safety net, was so unfathomably “radical” to centrist media figures that he was relentlessly accused of naivety and idealism. And yet, the holes in Clinton’s firewall, the states she lost that everyone had expected her to win, were almost all won by Sanders in the primary.

There is little reason to doubt that a Sand-

ers/Trump general election would have had a very different outcome.

While support for moderately leftwing social democracy will be vital in raising expectations of the American working class in their relation to politics, we must also keep in mind that it is not a permanent fix. Comprehensive welfare states have risen in many countries since the Second World War, and almost all of them are now falling under the siege of “free-market” ideologues and right-wing plutocrats. In response to this, a radically different system must be established, one that channels power away from an unelected economic ruling class once and for all. To empower the working class in a lasting way, the hierarchy and inequity of capitalism must be replaced with a socialist system characterized by working people’s control of the economy at the point of production. For a long-term solution to Trumpism, we must switch our thinking from mere redistribution of wealth and begin to imagine a future in which wealth is created in an inherently democratic way. This future is possible, but to build it we need radical unions, accountable political groupings and direct action in the streets against the status quo.

To create a dynamic political opposition in the age of Trump, we need to aspire to a bold vision of the future, one that is uncompromising in both its demands and its humanity.

Moving forward, it is fundamentally important that we reject the narrative that has reigned supreme since the fall of the Iron Curtain. With all our power, we must constantly fight the idea that it is impossible to create a better world. The situation we face today is not far from that of Rosa Luxemburg. Our choice now, as in her time, is simple: socialism or barbarism.

The National Endowment for the Arts Must Be Funded LAUREN PAGANO Contributing Writer

In today’s heated political climate, policy and legislation are inevitably bound to cause strife between people.

Something most people agree on despite all the political divisions at play is the importance of the arts in American society.

The arts have been known time and time again to transcend barriers that often seem impossible to break in the everyday world. Despite differences in gender, sexuality, race and religion, the most diverse of people can come together to enjoy the magic of the arts. This is why it has come as such a surprise to political supporters and opponents alike that, less than a week after the inauguration, President Trump’s administration has threatened to defund the National Endowment for the Arts, an integral tool in the development of the country’s arts community.

The National Endowment for the Arts was established in 1965 under President Johnson and is an independent federal agency that uses its funding to bolster the American Arts community. They help to make the arts more accessible to the public as well as award grants to artistic companies and collectives in need of financial assistance. They’ve donated to countless local and state outreach organizations whose goals parallel their own in making the arts an open and inclusive endeavor. But most importantly, thanks to the past 51 years of the Endowment’s generosity, we as a society have come to formulate a

strong cultural identity.

The Trump Administration is claiming that this decision to eliminate the endowment is purely with financial, but the statistics suggest otherwise. The National Endowment for the Arts funding as of 2015 only made up .004 percent of the federal budget, so its elimination couldn’t possibly establish any positive economic change. This raises a question among the public regarding potential ulterior motives for shutting down an agency whose legacy lies in the foundation of modern American arts and culture.

Without the National Endowment for the Arts, many people within our society that we consider today to be the pillars of American Arts and Culture wouldn’t be remembered. New York City Ballet, Maya Lin, David Foster Wallace and Merce Cunningham are some of the most recognizable figures and establishments in their respective fields who’ve received financial assistance at one point in time or another. The National Endowment has defined America’s cultural and artistic past over the last 51 years and there’s no telling the impact it can have on the artists of tomorrow.

George Washington once said “To encourage literature and the arts is a duty which every good citizen owes his country” and that legacy thus far has remained true to the identity of American culture.

The National Endowment for the Arts helps foster this duty into a daily reality, and it is with great anticipation and hope that the American public aims for this to remain true, long past the time of our 45th president.

We Must Return to the “Middle Way” if We Want to Prosper ALEX SEYAD Asst. Opinions Co-Editor

The conflict between opposing political ideologies was something that President George Washington warned against in his farewell address; a warning that has been lost in time. We see that the battle between left-wing liberals and right-wing conservatives has reached its climax in the recent election, but these sides have been given different labels.

What many political pundits believe is that the answer to how our nation’s government can make progress and effectively serve the people lies in the middle. If leaders from both sides of the aisle reached out to find a median, then we wouldn’t be faced with the discussion of what congress has failed to do because of petty differences between parties. At a first glance, this idea is completely crazy.

The notion that politicians can bury their pride for the greater good can be mindboggling, but if we show our politicians that we are willing to remove them if they fail to adequately serve us then we, the people, will be in control.

To say whether socialism or conservatism is right will be a matter of personal choice. I personally side with the economic side of conservatism. They hold the idea that a capitalist system with minimal government interference will be the most beneficial for our economy. The notion of socialism can be daunting for baby-boomers and generations who view the ideology as a resurgence of communism and a call back to the cold war.

What drove many away from self-proclaimed socialist, Sen. Bernie Sanders,

was that many weren’t willing to openly support a socialist. Others thought that from an economic standpoint, his policies would have a negative effect on economic growth and his targeting of Wall Street and large corporations would have significant effects on the economy and job market. His policies regarding raising the middle wage and granting free college education were very popular with younger voters, but lead others to believe that his platform was too idealistic and his policies would be too expensive.

The new face of modern conservatism washes away the golden reputation of Republicans in the Reagan era. While many criticize the implementation of trickledown economics and social policies of this time period, modern conservatives have become even more right wing.

The prevalence of Christian ideology in conservative decision-making has led many to question the separation between church and state. The social policies of conservatives make it very easy for many Americans, especially millennials, to turn their backs on them. Furthermore, many anti-immigration policies have cost conservatives a major voting bloc which they had in years prior.

If we can find a good mix of conservative economic policy with liberal social policies, then we can avoid having to chose between two sides. We have to show the people that it isn’t the working class versus the elites and it isn’t the government versus the people. It will be hard to reaffirm the American people’s trust in their government with a Trump administration that is hell-bent on establishing a record for most protest-causing policies. Moving forward, it is time for politicians to actually reach across the aisle instead of just talking about it.

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In Trump’s America, Stay Conscious and Resist KILEY CAMPBELL Contributing Writer

The 20 and 21 of this January will stand out in history as two gravely important, albeit controversial days in America. The 20 saw the inauguration of Donald J. Trump as President of the United States. The 21 saw one of the largest protests in American history, against him. The Women’s March drew together an estimated 4.8 million people from all 50 states and seven continents (yes, even Antarctica). Exactly how effective this march was in swaying Trump has yet to be seen. In the last two weeks, he has stuck to his wild campaign promises, signing executive orders as though he were giving out his autograph. In the wake of the extreme measures already passed, the terrifying ones that have yet to come, and how determind the administration is on lying to the public, the American people have to prove their commitment to halting fascism in all its forms.

The 2016 presidential race was a long, horrifying road that ended in a way most professionals couldn’t predict. On the day of the election, pollsters predicted that Trump had less than a 25% chance of winning.

Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by nearly three million. Let me repeat that figure: three million.

This is only the fifth time in American history that a candidate won the presidency despite losing the popular vote, due to the antiquated Electoral College. The day after the election also saw widespread protest, as well as the trending hashtag “#NotMyPresident.”

ADRIANA BALSAMO-GALLINA/ THE OBSERVER

Millions traveled to D.C. for the Women’s March to express their displeasure with the new administration.

The 2016 election became a forum for the American politics on women’s rights, minority rights, LGBTQ+ rights and immigration.

Now, under the Trump administration, marginalized groups fear for their civil rights and lives.

The prominence of neo-Nazis like Richard Spencer and Steve Bannon in Trump’s America are terrifying enough.

It isn’t just the politicians Americans fear. The day after Trump’s election win, reports of violence against women, minorities and LGBTQ+ people poured in across the country. With celebrations by the KKK and giant swastikas spraypainted on walls, the United States has dialed back to the 1930s.

Knowing that there are average American citizens perpetrating these acts is the most subtly terrifying part of the last three months. It may be easy to forget, as well. The Women’s March was about more than just Trump. The marches were a stand against the rhetoric that Trump and the far-right in America spew like sewage.

Protesting Trump is vital, every minute of every day. Those of us that didn’t vote for him, those of us he does not represent, must involve ourselves in everything possible to prevent him from destroying the social progress of the last forty years. At the same time, our efforts must be focused on the everyday.

Richard Spencer has been punched

in the face twice since the election, both times on camera. The racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, and transphobia in America can be combated at more than just a legislative level.

Even within the Women’s March and the Democratic Party, things aren’t perfect. Corruption within the Democratic Party led to Bernie Sanders losing the nomination, even though early polls showed he would have defeated Trump in a landslide. Even now, as legislation is being passed at a rapid-fire rate in Congress, left-leaning politicians are cowering away rather than taking a stand.

Bigotry doesn’t end with explicit statements or actions. Case

in point: the Women’s March.

Countless signs in numerous cities boasted slogans centered around female anatomy: “P**sy grabs back” and “No Uterus, No Opinion” come to mind. The intentions of these signs and others are clear and wellmeaning.

After the shocking things Trump has said about sexually harassing women, of course the natural response would be to twist his words around and reclaim them. The problem arises when these sorts of slogans become the embodiment of the Women’s March, or the modern feminist movement. After the march, “P**sy grabs back” seems to be the one slogan that had the most power.

What this slogan and others end up doing in the process, is essentially saying that having a vagina is what makes someone a woman. That anyone who doesn’t have a vagina doesn’t matter in these scenarios, effectively eliminating transgender people from the picture.

That isn’t to say that this message is on purpose—far from it. As a trans person, I completely understand the intent behind the slogan, and have nothing but respect for it. However, in its popularity, it does end up a bit alienating. My identity as female is not defined by my anatomy, and my voice is just as important.

This is just one example, though, and a mild one at that. It should remind us to be conscious of our own actions in this dark time. Participating in a protest does not mean exoneration if you make a mistake.

We all have to be held accountable.

No matter what, though, our protest, our actions, our mindfulness and our voices are what matter.

Summer Session 2017

It’s not too late!

New York Summer in the City Internship Program Application deadline: February 15 • Find an internship for this summer • Work with Career Services to polish your resume and cover letter • Earn 4 credits through a weekly internship seminar at Lincoln Center

Or choose from more than 200 available courses!

Session I: May 30–June 29 Session II: July 5–August 8

Learn more at fordham.edu/summer eeo

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Photo Feature

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

Fordham Student Documents

By CARSON THORNTON GONZALEZ Assistant Features Editor

Documenting movement through travel has been a fundamental subject in the field of photography. For any aspiring photographer, it is essential to know the likes of Walker Evans and Robert Frank; photographers that took iconic road trips across the United States to study humanity and the environment in which we thrive. Following in their footsteps, Sam Robbins, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’18, set out on his own road trip after finishing his sophomore year to begin forging his own artistic path.

The first step in any project like this one is to acquire a budget.

Luckily, Robbins found ample funds within the university. “I received the Butler Grant from the Visual Arts department, which is a Fordham grant, and basically it’s for photo students to go on a trip over the summer and photograph what they do,” explained Robbins. “The other one

was a Fordham research grant, which is from the university, and not the Visual Arts department, and I had a thesis which was my project — my trip.” With the money he received, Robbins was able to buy gas for the journey as well as supplies like color film, buying enough to shoot multiple rolls each day.

In order to receive these grants, Robbins had to present a thesis that he would “prove” throughout his trip. Like the creative process for any artist, Robbins’ central idea has grown and changed with time.

“I’m really interested in surfing and California,” he explained, “I’ve only been there a couple of times, but my original project was to travel the California coastline and document the…beaches and surfing.”

He continued, “I just didn’t even think about it I guess. There’s 3,000 miles in between [California and New Jersey] each way…it morphed into something a lot larger.” Instead of focusing on just California, Robbins ended up traveling through almost 30 states, racking up over

Photos taken by Sam Robbins during his travels last year. Most of the photos were captured along the west coast of the U.S. with color film.

11,000 miles total. When asked what h was, he laughed, “I’m still working on it are as Americans.”

Part of what made Robbins’ project u of the road trip in photography. As Joe L raphy at FCLC noted, “The road trip – p in hand – is a time honored way of worki going back to Walker Evans. Sam put tog ect that sort of carries on in that lineage, ued, “Having a car, an open mind and a c like he said ‘I’m going to this state and itinerary with an open mind as to what m photograph.”

Robbins began his own cross-country ed in New Jersey at my parents’ house,”

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Photo Feature

11

Journey Across the Country

his new thesis for the project t. It’s just America. What we

unique was the sheer iconicity Lawton, professor of photogphotographer, car, and camera ing in American photography gether a very interesting proj, if you will.” Lawton contincamera, and traveling. It’s not doing it this way.’ It was an might be meaningful things to

y trip in May of 2016. “I starthe explained, “went south to

New Orleans, and then went west across Texas and Arizona and all the southwestern states. I tried to stay with family everywhere to try and get a local flavor.” By doing so, Robbins was able to capture more intimate moments in each place, garnering a better understanding of the diverse and varying cultures that exist throughout the United States.

But the project did not end there. After returning home, Robbins has had to complete work for the grants he received. “I did submit photos, like a portfolio, to the Fordham Review Journal, which is a peer reviewed interdisciplinary journal that I had to do for the Fordham grant. [And] for the Butler Grant we get our photos hung in the third floor gallery,” he explained Robbins also has a photography book in the works, compiling all of the photographs from his trip into one cohesive narrative. “[I’ve been] editing and scanning and thinking about what it all means, because it became so much larger than I thought it was,” he commented.

Besides photography, Robbins also has a talent for screen printing and oil painting. He built a screen printing press over the summer, making t-shirts and beginning to brand himself as an artist. He also has a talent for oil painting. Working out of his parent’s house in New Jersey, Robbins has the space to cultivate his work from home, painting, drawing, and developing his own film in the bathtub.

Artists often use their art to make sense of the world around them.

Robbins has emulated this idea in his art, especially throughout the documentation of his road trip. After one month, 11,000 miles and 60 rolls of film, Robbins was able to create an interesting and reflective piece of work that will help him, and those viewing his work, better understand the world in which they exist. What the future holds for Robbins is unclear, but his obvious talent will undoubtedly carry him far.

To check out more of Sam Robbins’ work, visit creativegraverobbins.com.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF SAM ROBBINS

Arts & Culture

Arts & Culture Editors Elena Ciotta - eciotta@fordham.edu Ana Fota - afota@fordham.edu Morgan Steward - msteward2@fordham.edu February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

FCLC Features New Filmmaking Club

KATARINA MARSCHHAUSEN/THE OBSERVER

The new Filmmaking club posing together in SL24-L, where they hold weekly club meetings to discuss all aspects of film.

By CASEY ROBINSON Contributing Writer

As Oscar season draws near, the media is full of stories about this past year’s films, actors and box office triumphs. But while Hollywood takes a brief pause to reflect on another year of cinema, one club at Fordham continues moving forward, ceaselessly developing their own independent films.

The Fordham Filmmaking Club (FFC) serves as a creative outlet for members of the Fordham Lincoln Center community interested in the art of filmmaking. By bringing together motivated students—from writers, directors and actors to editors, composers and cinematographers—FFC creates an environment

in which artists can collaborate on and develop their personal projects.

This organization is designed to promote innovation and exploration in developing cinematic projects. Despite a modest budget and limited technological resources, they “have heart and soul—the most important ingredients in creating a compelling and worthwhile artistic work,” said Luke Momo, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’19, the club’s founder and president.

Last year, Momo began his time at FCLC with the hopes of developing his cinematic skills in and outside of his classes. This past fall he took the initiative to formally create the FFC, after discovering the absence of extra-curricular groups designed to bring together artists

for independent filmmaking. The primary focus of group meetings is workshopping the scripts and visions of its members. At its core, the purpose of the FFC is nurturing a passion for film in all of its forms, whether that is talking about the latest films in theaters, bringing in guest filmmakers to share their experiences or creating an environment that fosters progress in independent works. A new member of the club, Liam Haber, FCLC ’19, reflected on what brought him to the group. “I like to write, so before this club all I did was work on short things for myself and never produce them. Now I’m making movies all on my own, and I feel much more accomplished.”

Personal accomplishments are

just the tip of the iceberg for FFC. Last year, the group participated in Campus MovieFest, the world’s largest student film festival, in which “We Regret to Inform You,” a film by Emmi Shockley, FCLC ‘19, won Fordham’s branch of the competition. Shockley’s film received awards for best cinematography, best actor, best director and the Jury Choice Award. The film was consequently nominated to the Terminus Film Festival in Georgia for Luke Momo’s cinematography. Finally, Shockley’s film was selected to go to the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in France for the festival’s 70th anniversary this upcoming May. This honor demonstrates what passion and collaboration can accomplish—and the Fordham Filmmak-

ing Club is only getting started.

In addition to weekly meetings, every few weekends members of the club gather to shoot their latest projects on location throughout New York City, and completed works are screened by the club to celebrate members’ successes. Everyone is welcome to join the FFC in their endeavors; interested parties are encouraged to visit the meetings, whether their interest in film springs from a love of writing, acting or just watching movies.

The club acts as a support system for budding artists and presents an opportunity to engage with likeminded people, the city and the creative process. The club gathers every Thursday at 11:30 a.m., during activity block, in SL24-L.

Explore Theater’s Best at NYPL’s “Curtain Up” Exhibit

By BESSIE RUBINSTEIN Staff Writer

For many Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) students, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts (NYPL) offers a change of scenery when they get a little tired of studying in Quinn Library. Students walk through the revolving doors, turn right and go upstairs to do homework in the midst of quiet, book-filled aisles. This month, however, there is a reason not to go straight to the second floor and get to work. The library is showing “Curtain Up: Celebrating that Last 40 Years of Theatre in New York and London.” Entry is free, and no library card is required. The exhibition, featuring artifacts from some of the most iconic shows to hit New York and London, boasts materials from all departments of the theatre—fashion, literature and tech enthusiasts alike will find the short walk across Lincoln Center well worth it.

Upon entering the exhibit—located at the back of the first floor of the building—one is faced with a wall of brightly lit screens displaying prominent artists and stars (such as Lin-

ERIN O’FLYNN/THE OBSERVER

“Curtain Up” is on view until June 2017

Manuel Miranda and Sutton Foster) discussing their work on the red carpets of Tony and Olivier awardwinning shows. These two awards, the most prestigious in New York and London theatre, respectively, decorate the records of almost all of the shows represented.

Deeper in the library, observers find themselves in a gallery bursting with theatre history. Mannequins loom into view, arrayed in costumes from the original 1997

production of “The Lion King.” The sun from the show, made out of 30 ribs of Aluminium and silk, hangs on the wall. Other items on display include the dress Helen Mirren wore to play Queen Elizabeth in the 2013 production of “The Audience,” a pair of feathered breeches from the 2001 ballet/drama “Swan Lake” and the quintessential red boots from the 2013 Tony-Award winning musical “Kinky Boots.” Visitors might want to make a habit of looking up

while viewing the exhibit; the library makes use of a smaller gallery space by suspending Mary Poppins’ costume from the 2004 musical “Mary Poppins” and Idina Menzel’s Elphaba costume from the original 2003 production of “Wicked.” Both “Wicked” and “Mary Poppins” won Tony awards for their costuming.

A second room features another selection of history-making artifacts; most notable are the Phantom’s mask and masquerade costume from the 1986 production of “The Phantom of the Opera.” This production was the first to implement two now-iconic moments: the falling chandelier and the boat ride across an underground lake. Michael Crawford won the Tony for his portrayal of the Phantom, and the musical, which is still playing at the Majestic Theatre, has gone on to become the longest running show on Broadway. A letter from Harold Prince, an American producer and director, to Andrew Lloyd Webber, the composer of “Phantom,” is also shown, concerning another of Webber’s celebrated musicals, “Evita.”

This isn’t the only letter worth looking at in the exhibit—valuable documents are all around the gal-

lery, including Ian McKellen’s note to his understudy in 1980’s “Amadeus,” the original design for the famous “Les Miserables” barricades and the script and rehearsal notes from the first 1993 production of “Angels in America.”

For the technically-minded, NYPL has curated a collection of gorgeous, intricately detailed set models. Among them are 2007’s “War Horse,” 2008’s “In the Heights” (featuring Lin Manuel Miranda), 1994’s “Carousel” and 2012’s “Matilda.” In the corner stands the sound design booth from “Hairspray.” Each of the five shows are Tony award recipients—“Hairspray” has garnered the most with eight Tony wins in 2003. With screens around the room showing video clips straight from the stage, visitors can see why the shows are so celebrated.

As visitors exit the exhibit, they will find vintage Olivier and Tony awards: a physical representation of everything the many shows have accomplished. “Curtain Up” will be on display until June 2017 at the NYPL. Next time you’re studying upstairs, take a break to experience 40 years of theater history gathered in one place.

www.fordhamobserver.com

THE OBSERVER FEBRUARY 9, 2017

Arts & Culture

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A Variety of Visual Arts on Display in Gallery

By LINDSAY JORGENSEN Contributing Writer

Located inside Fordham College at Lincoln Center’s (FCLC) main entrance, the Ildiko Butler Gallery is holding its annual Faculty Spotlight showing. This year, three professors from the Visual Arts Department are presenting their work: Associate Professor Colin Cathcart, American Institute of Architects (AIA) medalist, Associate Professor Joseph Lawton and artist-in-residence Casey Ruble.

The left side gallery contains the architectural designs of Professor Cathcart. Displaying over 40 years of architectural projects, drawings, writings, models and awards, Cathcart not only presents his viewers with green and sustainable architectural designs, but also the personal history of his architectural career. Starting with his framed high-school diploma at the Central Technical School in Toronto, Cathcart’s early work in the mid-’70s are hand-drawn sketches, as technology was not developed enough yet for virtual architectural design. One of the designs he is proudest of was featured on a calendar in the 1980s that is found in the center of his exhibition—it was one of Cathcart’s first designs on a computer.

“It shocked so many people that a computer could create something so realistic,” Cathcart said. “It even was displayed in a prestigious exhibition, which was very exciting.”

A few other noteworthy pieces are his wire sculpture prototype of a weather mast, his sketch of “The (old) New Museum,” which has been renovated into a clothing store, and his Green Apple Award that he received in 2005 for housing the homeless. “We’ve been green since 1983,” Cathcart said. His ex-

ASEAH KHAN/THE OBSERVER

The faculty show at the Ildiko Butler Gallery opened on Jan. 25, 2017.

“ Visual poetry can be found in the everyday life. Realizing that, seeing, is a gift.”

–

JOSEPH LAWTON, Associate Professor, Visual Arts Department

hibition finishes off with some of his current sketches and designs.

Located on the center wall of the gallery is an excerpt of Professor Lawton’s “Made in Time.” A series of 10 photos derived from a larger body of work titled “Plain Sight,” Lawton chose to display this specif-

ic portion so that each photo “can be read on their own or in relation to each other.”

These photos range from 1983 to 2014 and were taken all around the world including New York, Italy, Sulawesi, Russia, Vietnam, El Salvador and Turkey. “Visual poetry

can be found in the everyday life,” Lawton explained, “and realizing that, seeing, is a gift.”

From photos of women looking for change in Russia to children in Saigon, Vietnam observing a chained-up elephant in a zoo, Lawton wanted to capture the scenes of his photos as he saw it. “There is a great joy of just looking,” Lawton explained. The prints of his photos in the gallery were even printed in the dark room at Fordham University—a modest tribute to the college.

Lastly, the right side of the gallery displays the work of Fordham’s artist-in-residence, Casey Ruble,

titled “Great Wandering Shadows.”

Depicting ordinary areas found today—a diner, a bathroom stall, a school, an elevator—Ruble’s work provides a deeper historical meaning by depicting the gentrified locations of four major riots dating back to the 1800s.

“Disconnecting people from their roots in this way is a powerful means of perpetuating their oppression,” Ruble stated. “My hope with these pieces is to remind people that no matter how mundane, anonymous or bleak their surroundings may seem, that place has a backstory, and knowing that backstory may give you a sense of agency you may not have felt otherwise.”

Ruble’s creative process began with intensive research on a specific riot, then visiting the location and taking photos of the area. Next, she selected the picture she wanted to work from—“generally one that gives a sense of what the place feels like today, but also has a strangeness that suggests a hidden history.”

After translating the scene to paper, the artist researched the location and history of the area further for articles and press releases accompanying her work.

In addition to these four pieces is a paper effigy found on the floor of the gallery in dedication to the Zoot Suit riots of 1943. “Effigies have an interesting history,” Ruble explained. “In some cases they are burned as an act of protest against the person they represent. In others, they serve as a consecration of the person. I thought this dichotomy was interesting, complicating ideas of condemnation and commemoration and alluding to the complicated meaning that riots continue to have in the history of our country.”

These works are on view at the Ildiko Butler Gallery until Feb. 13.

“A Series of Unfortunate Events” Gets Fortunate Reviews

By SAM DEASSIS Asst. Arts & Culture Co-Editor

Whether you read the book series by Lemony Snicket or simply watched the creepy 2004 film starring Jim Carrey, you have more than likely heard of “A Series of Unfortunate Events.” However, since the movie’s release, fans have heard little to nothing from the lovable Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire. But on Jan. 13, to the delight of many, Netflix heroically swooped in with a new series based off of Snicket’s appreciated tales about three orphans and the evil man seeking to steal their inheritance.

As someone who was only familiar with the story from the 2004 film rather than the books, I had less of an emotional connection to the lives of the Baudelaire children. However, I was still extremely excited to see the new series pop up on my Netflix account. Once I realized that Neil Patrick Harris was to star as the evil, manipulative, money-grabbing Count Olaf, my excitement soared.

With such an acclaimed comedic actor cast in the lead role, it was highly unlikely that this new series would go on without the intense attention of the public eye.

And it clearly has not. On Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus, it is hard to find someone who hasn’t already watched the series at this point. It seems that Fordham is full of die-hard fans of Snicket’s original book series. “I was really excited when I found out that ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events’ was coming out starring Neil Patrick Harris,” Daniela Silva, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’20, said. “He did such a great job and I was very happy with the way the show turned out. It was very true to the books and just an enjoyable watch.”

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

The first season of the television series is available now on Netflix.

Contrary to the negative feelings that often surround books taken to the screen, students at Fordham all generally seem to approve of this

remake. “I was worried the show wouldn’t be able to capture the whole meta aspect of the books without being heavy-handed, but I was amazed

at how well it worked,” Kiley Brian, FCLC ’20, said.

“The Netflix series does a great job of closely following the books,

down to the titles of the episodes,” Melanie Katz, FCLC ’20, agreed. “In some ways the online series even has an advantage over the books, as it is able to utilize visuals for symbolism and foreshadowing.”

True to the books, the new series follows the unlucky lives of Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire, as they lose their parents in a housefire and are taken in by an evil man by the name of Count Olaf. Clearly not a child-lover, Olaf treats the Baudelaires like slaves, directing them to clean his repulsive house and suffer inhumane living conditions. However, this depressing-sounding tale is far from a tearjerker—and Count Olaf’s character is hardly unenjoyable to watch.

From the very first episode, it is clear that Neil Patrick Harris stole the show in a manner similar to Jim Carrey in the 2004 movie. He successfully embodied a villain that all viewers can love to hate—or love to laugh at. With his exaggerated portrayal of child-like, obvious evil, Harris perfectly executes the ironic comedy that is held so dear to Snicket’s original tales. With a story plagued by death and misfortune, the use of humor causes it to be a uniquely enjoyable mix of tragedy and comedy.

What makes the series even more respectable is that it was originally intended for children, but with the delay in starting the remake it is now something enjoyed largely by young adults and college students.

The well-produced eerie ambiance along with the arrangement of lovable characters is something that can be enjoyed by almost anyone, regardless of whether or not they read the books.

Contrary to the gloomy title, “A Series of Unfortunate Events” may not be so unfortunate after all.

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Arts & Culture

FEBRUARY 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

www.fordhamobserver.com

Editors React to This Year’s Oscar Nominations

By MARYANA ANTOLDI, SAM DEASSIS, MORGAN STEWARD Arts & Culture Staff

JILLIAN JAYMES/THE OBSERVER

JILLIAN JAYMES/THE OBSERVER

JILLIAN JAYMES/THE OBSERVER

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

BEST PICTURE

SAM’S PICK

MARYANNA’S PICK

MORGAN’S PICK

With all of the Golden Globe wins taken by “La La Land,” it is not unreasonable to guess that it will achieve similar success at the Oscars.

The fact that it is the only movie with two songs nominated in this category also raises the probability that “La La Land” will win. Both “City of Stars” and “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” are well produced, but “City of Stars” clearly holds more weight to the plot of the movie overall than the latter. Although both songs are artistically relevant and unique, because of the larger notability of “City of Stars,” I’m guessing it will take the win.

But it is also reasonable to guess that “Moana” can get the oscar with “How Far I’ll Go”.

Many Fordham students are hoping for this, as the large array of Lin Manuel Miranda fans are keeping their fingers crossed for him to get his Egot. “How Far I’ll Go” is a happy-go-lucky song that, when keeping in mind both Disney and Lin Manuel Miranda’s past success in songwriting, is not to be underestimated in the rankings of who may or may not take home the Oscar.

But due to the past success of “La La Land” in the Golden Globes, I’m guessing it will take the win over “Moana.” As for the rest of the nominees: “Can’t Stop the Feeling” may be catchy, but the predictable lyrics hardly make it Oscar-worthy. And as for “The Empty Chair,” I have never heard anything about this song or “Jim: The James Foley Story,” so I would honestly be shocked if this song won.

This year’s Oscar nominations for Best Animated Feature may provide some of the toughest competition to date. Walt Disney Animation, which has taken home the Oscar for the past four years due to their collaboration with Pixar Studios, has two feature films, “Zootopia” and “Moana,” up for the award, proving to be a tough competitor. However, not to be ignored is the “The Red Turtle,” a film without dialogue co-produced by Wild Bunch and Studio Ghibli, and “Kubo and the Two Strings,” an excellently written stop-motion film produced by Laika.

French-Swiss “My Life as a Zucchini,” the final film nominated, is also a stop-motion film acclaimed for its touching and resilient plotline.

While all the films nominated are excellent triumphs of animation, the competition will most likely rest between Disney’s “Zootopia” and “Moana.” Both films are stunning examples of 3D animation with incredible storylines, but “Zootopia” will most likely snag the Oscar along with its Golden Globe. With its plot teaching people of all ages about prevalent social issues such as racism and sexism, this movie is extremely relevant in today’s political and social climate. “Moana,” while providing a look at Polynesian culture through an exciting and heartfelt plotline, will always stand as a stunning animated film. However, the cultural relevance of “Zootopia” seems to be the more logical choice for the Oscar. If either film wins, though, Disney Animation will continue its streak for the fifth year in a row.

With nine amazing movies nominated for this year’s award, it is hard to pick a clear winner from the pack. Damien Chazelle’s “La La Land” has taken the awards season by storm, but I wouldn’t consider it a shoo-in for Best Picture. Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester By the Sea” is a heart-wrenching drama that should not be underestimated. At times, this film can be painful to watch—the scenes are so honest and at times awkward, that they mimic what would actually happen if this scenario were to happen “in real life.” The movie is not all sad though; Casey Affleck and Lucas Hedges each have standout comedic moments that provide much needed comic relief during heavy scenes.

Also not to be overlooked is “Hacksaw Ridge,” the incredible true story about the world’s first conscientious objector during World War II. Starring Andrew Garfield as the pacifist soldier, “Hacksaw Ridge” marks Mel Gibson’s directorial debut since his very public meltdown in 2010. As a Fordham student, I must mention Fordham Lincoln Center’s favorite alum, Denzel Washington, for his nomination with “Fences,” a film adaption of August Wilson’s play that Washington also won the Tony Award for in 2010.

Two surprising nominees are “Arrival” and “Hell or High Water,” films that garnered great reviews from critics, but were seemingly absent from the public’s dialogue about movies this past year.

While many loved “La La Land” for its fun song and dance and Old Hollywood feel, “Manchester By the Sea” seems like a more deserving film for this year’s Oscars.

Dawley’s Double Life From Campus to Carnegie

By JENNA BATTAGLIA Contributing Writer

Roger Dawley, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’19, lives a double life as a college student and performer. Majoring in Communication and Media Studies, Dawley is also pursuing what he calls a “degree in the hard-knock school of musical theater” through independent performance endeavors in New York City. Most notably, he is a continuing performer at 54 Below, a dining club featuring nightly shows by accomplished singers and Broadway stars.

Dawley got involved with 54 Below in the spring of 2016 after the teachers of his off-campus theater class chose him to be in the ensemble of an upcoming show. Since then, producers of the venue have continued to hire Dawley for a variety of singing gigs, ranging from ensemble work to featured solos.

Dawley balances these professional performances with his career as a full-time student, as well as with dance and theater classes that he attends outside of Fordham.

“It’s a matter of staying focused,” Dawley said of the experience. “The busier I am, the better everything goes. So if I rack up dance classes and voice lessons and this-and-thisand-that, I am more likely to actually do my French homework than I would if I were just sitting in bed all day.”

Many prominent Broadway per-

BROOKE PARRETT/THE OBSERVER

Roger Dawley, a sophomore, balances performing at 54 Below and school work.

formers come through 54 Below, where, at only 19-years-old, Dawley gets to share the stage with them.

“It’s weird to stand in that place and use that microphone and think oh my god, six months ago so-and-so touched this. It’s definitely daunting.”

Dawley performs at other ven-

ues in New York City as well. Last May, he had the honor of performing “Mozart’s Requiem” at Carnegie Hall. He has also worked with contemporary theater writer Ryan Scott Oliver on developing new works— a process that can be stressful, especially for a full-time college student.

Dawley worked on a show called

“Rope”, which was put together entirely in just one week of rehearsals.

“I think it was five days, then we were doing it front of real people, so that was terrifying, but great.” The pressures of creating a new work are worth it for Dawley. “The stuff that I enjoy the most is the new material because no one else has touched it

before. If you put something unique on that, it’s yours and no one else can really take that away.”

After graduating in 2019, Dawley hopes that his degree in Communication and Media Studies will help him to get a stable job while still pursuing theater. “I know a lot of people who are actors and that’s it. They work at XYZ and are really down and not happy because they are not making enough to sustain a living doing what they love. So I’m taking this weird 50-50 route, where I get to enjoy communications and actually make money to sustain myself. If I were to book something huge, I would quit that communications job and I would take that. So that’s the weird plan, and I’ll see how it goes. It’ll be interesting.”

Majoring in communications has already proved to be useful to Dawley, who runs the social media page for Actor’s Therapy, an intensive theater program he’s attended.

Of social media, Daley says “Everything that has to do with theater has to have this PR aspect to it. Running the social media page for Actor’s Therapy is a job that I enjoy because I get to talk about all the stuff I’m interested in. I think it definitely overlaps a lot.”

Dawley is not currently working on any shows, as much of New York City’s show-business is spontaneous and sporadic. However, we can expect to see many performances from this ‘hard-knock’ musical theater performer in the near future.

Features

Features Editor Ruby Buddemeyer - rbuddemeyer@fordham.edu

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

The Mowgli’s Wow at Winterfest

By MARYANNA ANTOLDI Asst. Arts & Culture Co-Editor

The stage was set in Pope Auditorium this past Friday as hundreds of students filed in for Fordham Lincoln Center’s (FLC) annual Winterfest concert event, hosted by the Campus Activities Board. The talent this year was a clear success, with popular alternative-rock band The Mowgli’s headlining, along with two opening acts featuring Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) and Gabelli School of Business Lincoln Center (GSBLC) undergrads.

Many students took advantage of the event, raving not only about the cheap ticket prices, but also the selection of The Mowgli’s as the headliner. “It’s nice that Fordham allows its students to have great opportunities to have a lot of fun with cheap events like Winterfest. It’s really exciting,” Jean Kim, FCLC ’18, said.

This enthusiasm carried into the auditorium itself as the entire room was remodeled to resemble a typical concert venue, complete with colorful lights and a massive sound system. Students buzzed with excitement waiting for The Mowgli’s to take the stage, but one factor of the evening that should not be overlooked is the incredible talent of both opening acts.

The first opening act, Bleachbear, was a slow, rhythmic pop group that featured three freshmen—Tigerlily Cooley, (GSBLC) ’20, Hara Chung, GSBLC ’20, and Megan Johnson, FCLC ’20. The three performed seamlessly, with Cooley strumming the guitar and Chung and Johnson contributing their strong voices towards covers such as “Crazy in Love” by Destiny’s Child and “Take Me to Church” by Hozier, as well as some of Cooley’s original songs. The group’s harmonies were ethereal and spot on, and it was easy to tell the amount of hard work they put into both their incredible singing talent

GEORGE HORIHAN /THE OBSERVER

The Mowgli’s performed hit songs such as “San Francisco” and “I’m Good.”

and their cohesion as a group.

The Inoculated Canaries was the second opening act, a rock band whose incredible skill was evident in each of their songs. Featuring Michael Rubin, FCLC ’20, on lead guitar and vocals, Jeremy Kaplan on bass and keys, and James Terranova on drums, it was easy for the audience to pay attention to the band when their music was so exhilarating and heart-pounding. Performing a mixture of original songs and covers such as Elvis Presley’s “Hound Dog” with a modernized rock n’ roll twist, the band did an excellent job earning the audience’s praise and attention with their fast riffs, constant improvising and carefree attitude.

“We were so impressed and amazed by how great and involved the audience was,” Rubin explained.

“That’s the most important part of the show—it’s not the band or how good we are; it’s how intimate the audience is, and they were fantastic.”

Needless to say, after two incredible openers, the crowd was properly exhilarated for the main act—The Mowgli’s.

The Mowgli’s music combines the genres of pop and rock to produce songs that are not only catchy, but carry messages of positivity and love. Drawing on their Californian heritage, their songs utilize the rhythmic strumming of the guitar and fast pounding of the drums to create an unforgettably energetic sound.

“Their music is really, really fun, and it encourages us to love ourselves and one another and be at peace all the time. I just think their music is

very uplifting and it is always what you need,” Chiara Camillieri, FCLC ’20 explained.

The show’s setlist included songs from all three of the band’s albums— ”Waiting for the Dawn” (2013), “Kids in Love” (2015) and “Where’d Your Weekend Go?” (2016)—with beats that enthused and captivated the crowd. Some tracks included “Love is Easy,” a slower ballad which encourages listeners to spread love instead of hate, “I’m Good,” a perky and catchy tune that was written for an anti-bullying campaign and promotes self-love, and “San Francisco,” an energetic anthem about living life without regrets.

The band’s Winterfest performance was just as upbeat and enthusiastic as their songs. Lead vocalist Katie Jayne Earl and guitarist Josh

Hogan commanded the stage, their voices powerful when paired with the music pulsating behind them.

Their harmonies were seamless, and background vocals of drummer Andy Warren, bassist Matthew Di Panni and keyboardist Dave Appelbaum contributed to the strong sound emanating throughout the evening.

The band was also unafraid to show their own enthusiasm along with the Winterfest crowd. Earl and Hogan’s incredible chemistry on stage was apparent in their movements, dancing and singing to each other in an excited frenzy, encouraging the crowd to move along with them. It was easy for the Fordham crowd to join in the motions, singing and shouting at volumes conveying that twice the amount of people were in the room. The environment was utterly infectious in the best way, everyone thriving from the addicting energy of their music.

One massive feature of the concert was the band’s conversations with students during the performance. Earl and Hogan were extremely willing to personally discuss the meanings behind their songs and encourage the FCLC audience to take steps towards living more positive lives.

“I need you all to repeat after me, ‘I’m good,’” Earl shouted to inspire everyone before launching into the hit song. Through these conversations, it is clear that The Mowgli’s not only have a talent for performing—they also have a talent for truly getting to know their audience, which made their Winterfest performance so unique for everyone who attended.

Overall, this year’s Winterfest was a success, with 441 total students in attendance. Both The Mowgli’s as well as the two opening acts did an incredible job of providing an energetic and immersive experience, leaving the FLC student body excited for what is to come next year.

#PutAPriceOnIt: Students Bring Carbon Tax to Campus

By RUBY BUDDEMEYER Features Editor

Climate change is an enduring global issue and millennials, the generation that will arguably be most affected by climate change, are at the forefront of the fight. At Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) two sophomores are making waves on campus with #PutAPriceOnIt, a climate change campaign that urges young people to raise awareness for and work towards a carbon tax. On Feb. 1, Samuel Blackwood and Kyle J. Kilkenny organized the first FCLC event, which featured a screening of Emmy-award winning documentary series Years of Living Dangerously, followed by a panel discussion.

While Blackwood and Kilkenny have only just begun to make their mark on FCLC, #PutAPriceOnIt has an impactful future ahead. #PutAPriceOnIt was created in 2016 by Our Climate in partnership with Years of Living Dangerously, and enables students like Blackwood and Kilkenny to bring attention to climate change on college campuses across the country. Blackwood became a field rep for #PutAPriceOnIt in August 2016, and was joined by Kilkenny in October. Additionally, as of December 2016, Blackwood and Kilkenny are both fellows for Our Climate. Blackwood, however, has been involved with the climate change movement for four years.

“My father started talking about climate change at the dinner table,” Blackwood explained, “and every night [there] was something new.”

JILLIAN GALLAGHER/THE OBSERVER

On Feb. 1, 2017 , #PutAPriceOnIt held their Fordham/NYC kickoff.

His father encouraged the idea that climate change is an enduring issue, and millennials, like Blackwood himself, would be responsible to mitigate its effects. “I’ve always wanted to have the biggest impact possible that I could on the world, and I think that I started formulating these ideas about climate change and how we can address them and I was like, ‘Climate change is the biggest issue facing humanity, and if I really want to have that impact, this is the issue to go about.’ And it’s not just about me. It is a huge issue that is facing the world.”

Blackwood decided that Kilkenny, a charismatic and active FCLC

voice, would be an ideal partner, and persuaded him to join Our Climate and #PutAPriceOnIt. “We started meeting in September, and by the end of September, beginning of October, we had sent out an email to Father McShane, we were meeting with Dean Eldredge, we were meeting with Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Jeffrey Gray, we were meeting with Vice President for Facilities Management Marco A. Valera,” Kilkenny said. “What we’re looking to do is educate the Fordham community as to climate change … and in the climate that we are dealing with right now in Washington, we really want people to be

holding their public servants accountable and by showing that this is something that millennials care about … we definitely want to work towards building a Fordham community that can not only identify the causes of climate change but also work towards solving them.”

Since the beginning of the Spring 2017 semester, Blackwood and Kilkenny’s team has grown. The two were joined by Ailey student Madeleine Kim, FCLC’18, and Isaac Bird, FCLC ’19, who are now official field reps for #PutAPriceOnIt. The team’s Feb. 1 event featured a panel discussion between Charles Komanoff, Director of the Carbon Tax Center, Elizabeth Yeampieree, Executive Director of UPROSE and Fordham University Alum, and Blackwood.

The event had an impressive 75-person turnout, and Kilkenny emphasized the importance of including the community at large, not just students and faculty. “We don’t want to only educate Fordham [and] we recognize that there are a lot of people in this community. We are very fortunate to live in the Upper West Side and to live and breathe New York, but we also have to account for the air that we are breathing in and what that means,” he explained.

While #PutAPriceOnIt aims to educate the community, the group’s main goal for 2017 is to get Father McShane and the Fordham Administration to endorse the campaign and address the issue of carbon pricing. Kilkenny explained that Father McShane established a sustainability plan well over ten years

ago, with a goal of reaching 30% sustainability. As of 2016, Fordham has reached about 18% of that goal.

While Fordham is committed to this plan, Kilkenny said that students should be involved. “We really want students to be engaged in this process, as students are engaged in a lot of things at Fordham, be it dining issues, be it student affairs, be it race and bias incidents. This is an issue that affects the Fordham community at large… [and] this is something that we can work towards and we’re building off of initiatives that have already happened on campus,” Kilkenny noted.

Following the event, Blackwood and Kilkenny have already received positive feedback from a variety of students who hope to get involved with the campaign. “Going forward I think we’re going to have different teams and different committees, [all] working towards the ultimate goal of influencing our representatives and legislators and telling them that a carbon price is what the next generation, or the new generation, of voters care about,” Blackwood said.

He added, “I think it’s just inevitable that one day we will have legislation that deals with it.”

Kilkenny concluded, “We’re hoping that after this event our team is going to grow and then we can utilize other people’s’ talents to address carbon pricing and really galvanize students to get involved in our movement.”

To get involved with #PutAPriceOnIt, contact Samuel Blackwood or Kyle J. Kilkenny.

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Features

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

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Lincoln Center Welcomes Fashion for Philanthropy

By KARIN HADADAN Contributing Writer

With a campus located in the fashion capital of the world, amid the craziness that is New York Fashion Week and the Met Gala, it comes as no surprise that many of Fordham College at Lincoln Center’s (FCLC) students have an affinity for fashion. FCLC’s prime location is just blocks away from the world’s leading department stores, a quick subway ride to some of the greatest fashion exhibits, and only steps away from the headquarters of prestigious fashion magazines. It seemed that our campus was in dire need of a club dedicated to this industry and luckily, Fashion for Philanthropy (FFP), Rose Hill’s well-known fashion club, is now officially a part of the Lincoln Center community.

Back in 2009, students at the Rose Hill campus came together to create Fashion for Philanthropy, a club that merges Jesuit ideals with the apparel and textile business to generate funds to donate to different philanthropic organizations. With several events throughout the year, ranging from previewing collections of top-notch designers, such as Jimmy Choo, to their annual spring fashion show, FFP members use their creativity, their connections and their jesuit values. They collaborate with sponsors to raise money to donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of New York, while also learning more about the world of fashion.

While Fashion for Philanthropy at Rose Hill has been around for almost a decade, Lincoln Center’s fashion presence has significantly grown. FCLC’s popular Fashion Studies minor was added over two years ago. Additionally, the creation of the Fordham Law School served as the first ever Fashion Law Program.

With such strong fashion-focused programs at the Manhattan campus, it’s surprising that it wasn’t until the fall of 2016 that FFP made its way to FCLC. Paola Aguayo, FCLC ’17, decided to take matters into her own hands and help bring this association to our campus.

Aguayo, who is extremely familiar with the industry due in part to her internships at luxury designers such as Moschino and Jimmy Choo,

KATARINA MARSCHHAUSEN / THE OBSERVER

Fordham Rose Hill’s well-known club Fashion for Philanthropy has made its debut at FCLC.

used to commute two hours every Monday evening to the meetings that were held at Rose Hill. At those meetings, FFP members would strategize and plan their biggest event, the spring Fashion Show, where different stores would donate their products and Fordham students would model them to raise money. Paola specified, “I loved the club and everything it stood for, but I wasn’t able to do that weekly with my class schedule.”

That’s when she got in contact with Holly Young, the Career Services director and the current FFP advisor for Lincoln Center, to create a Manhattan chapter of the club. The motivation behind her actions rested in the fact that she simply didn’t want to take a trip to Rose Hill every week for a club she knew belonged at her home campus. She explained, “I would see girls on the Ram Van who were just like me, passionate about fashion and interested in getting involved with community service, who would say,

‘Ugh! I hate doing this, why don’t we have this at Lincoln Center?’” After a long process filled with paperwork and true dedication, Paola’s goal came to fruition in the fall of 2016.

The biggest appeal of this club to FCLC students lies in the mere fact that it’s an emergence of both fashion and humanitarianism. According to Aguayo, “Besides FLASH Magazine, which is a fashion magazine, we’re the only fashion club. So if you’re interested in excelling in all aspects of this industry and not just the editorial field, it’s the club to join.” She added, “Plus, you get to give back to our community while being affiliated with something that you enjoy.”

When asked about its biggest rewards, she affirms that “Having Holly Young as our club advisor is one of the biggest advantages — she knows everyone, is very diligent with helping FFP students and is extremely informative and useful when it comes to career advice.” Not only does this

club have its perks for aiding the community, but also for preparing FCLC students for their futures.

Nicole Shapiro, FCLC ’19, joined FFP not only for its philanthropical reasons, but also for networking opportunities with potential hirers.

Like Aguayo, Shapiro also praises Young as an excellent advisor and resource. She explained, “Holly has been giving the club really good tips for resume and career building, as well as providing us with fashion contacts.” At FFP, you can give back to your community, learn about the fast paced industry and network to meet the highest and most prestigious employers in New York.

Shapiro was extremely drawn to the long-term benefits that FFP offers. As treasurer of the club, she held a meeting with a discussion on fast-fashion companies such as Zara and H&M using slave labor methods to produce clothing that also heavily pollute the environment. Shapiro

uses this club as a gateway to understand how our generation can make the world a better place by being informed and creating better systems that are already in tact. Shapiro’s vision for FFP is to “be versatile in a sense where you can really apply it to many facets of your life, whether it be for your career or philosophy.”

While the Rose Hill campus is more established, with a list of dedicated sponsors located in the Bronx and a history of profitable charity events, FFP at Lincoln Center is “energetic, new and authentic,” according to Ella Hanover, FCLC ’19.

Hanover, a fashion and lifestyle YouTube Vlogger, feels that “being based in Manhattan makes the fashion club more relevant.” When FCLC students walk out of the 60th street entrance, they’re instantly immersed in one of the fashion capitals of the world.

They’re inspired by the idiosyncratic street style, the never-ending events and the fascinating glamour. It’s clear that Fashion for Philanthropy was bound to have a Manhattan chapter.

Although it is challenging to balance rigorous coursework with demanding internships or jobs, adding a club such as FFP offers truly rewarding experiences. Hanover feels that “FFP can benefit you in any way that you like. If you’re interested in PR, come work with the PR team. If you like marketing, join our club as a marketing team leader.” The versatility of this club is a reward in itself, since you can excel in all fields of fashion and pursue various realms of the industry. For Hanover, FFP benefits her because she “loves being around creative, thoughtful people who are interested in both fashion, art and community service.”

Fashion for Philanthropy is one of the newest clubs at Fordham Lincoln Center, and if you’re intrigued by the fashion industry, humanitarianism and learning how to succeed in such a fast-paced city, this club will teach you everything you need to know.

From it’s incredible list of alumni to its versatile history of events, FFP will open many doors for students passionate about fashion. As Aguayo mentioned, “FFP is now located in the greatest city in the world. With more Fordham students, we have so much potential to make it something incredible.”

Morocco Offers New Perspectives for Fordham Students Abroad

By REESE RAVNER Assistant Features Co-Editor

On Jan. 27 at 5 a.m., a group of 29 students studying at Fordham’s Spanish immersion program in Granada, Spain began their journey to Morocco, unaware of the perspective they would gain in just four short days. A known perk of being abroad is the ability to travel and experience new cultures. Fordham’s partnering with the program, Morocco Exchange, allowed us to explore the country and the culture of Morocco in a more intimate way than we would have been able to do by ourselves.

The weather was less than pleasant the morning we left. We woke up at 4 a.m. and took a bus to Tarifa to catch a ferry to Tangier. Due to the rain and turbulent winds, our ferry was canceled. Luckily, our trip organizers, Melissa, who is from Seattle, and Claire, who is from France, were experienced travelers and were able to book us tickets on another ferry out of a port about an hour away.

The ride itself was very rocky due to the weather, and after our hour long journey, the boat pulled into TangerMed port, and we were greeted by a large Arabic inscription on the side of a hill, visible from the boat.

As soon as we parted ways with the boat, we boarded a bus that would take us to Tangier. As we drove, I no-

ticed the powerful presence of nature in the Tangier outskirts. There were full flocks of sheep roaming the grassy hillsides around the scattered houses. Because I had not done my research—I had decided I would just go along for the ride—, this is what I was expecting most of Morocco to

The main religion in Morocco is Islam, and these first three students exemplified right off the bat how different each Muslim’s experience and interpretation of the religion could be. One of the two girls was wearing a hijab, and she explained that it was a personal choice to wear one. Lat-

“ Despite the language barrier, they were in-

credibly warm to us, and were excited to share their food and culture.”

–

be like. However, when we arrived in Tangier, I was met with a developing, modern city. This was the first of many surprises Morocco would give me on this trip.

We had lunch—our first of many meals consisting of couscous, chicken and vegetables—at Darna, a Moroccan women’s association that aims to support women, children and families in difficult situations. In Arabic, Darna means “our house.” We spoke to three local college students about their experiences with school and growing up in Morocco. Each had very different opinions about their government, such as the extent of its corruptness, and their religion.

REESE RAVNER , FCLC ’19

er, our guide informed us that this thinking was progressive and somewhat exclusive to the larger cities.

That night, we traveled to Rabat and met the Moroccan families we’d be staying with for the next two days. We were greeted with hugs and kisses in homes decorated with beautiful tile and rugs. We stayed with a mother, her sister, and her 15-yearold daughter, who was learning English and was very excited to practice with us. Despite the language barrier, they were incredibly warm to us, and were excited to share their food and culture.

We were all floored by the immense hospitality we were shown.

The families differed in terms of their occupations and size—some of us stayed with traditional families, consisting of a mother, father, and children, while others of us stayed in atypical situations.

My Spanish roommate, Katie DeFonzo, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’18, gushed about her host mother’s three-year-old grandson, who lived with her. She and her roommates in Morocco played with him for hours, and she commented, “smiles and laughs really transcend language.”

This was our first interaction with Moroccan hospitality, and the days that followed were filled with nothing less. We met more students in Rabat and hung out with them in small groups. My friend Dounea Elbroji, whose father is Moroccan, found a connection with one of the Moroccan students we had tea with—they both liked country music and began singing a Luke Bryan song in the restaurant.

The following day, we visited a family who lived in a rural part of the Rif mountains. Their lifestyle was much slower paced than that of those in the cities we visited, just as one may find when comparing small towns and big cities in the United States. After they served us more of the delicious couscous we grew accustomed to over the four days, we talked with the women and were able

to ask them questions about their lives.

Someone asked the three children, all under the age of 13, what they wanted to be when they grew up.

One of them replied that she wanted to be a doctor, and the other two that they wanted to be engineers. This moment solidified my recognition of the large emphasis on education we had seen over the past few days.

College in Morocco is free, and, especially for the students in the cities, is widely pursued.

Our final stop was in the beautiful “Blue City” of Chefchaouen in the Rif Mountains. It was here that I noticed the new level of comfort I felt in Morocco, something that had grown in just four days and that I attributed to the kindness we were shown.

Visiting Morocco altered my perspective on the world in a way I did not expect. Because of the program we traveled with, we were able to experience the country in a very intimate way. This intimacy, a result of meeting individuals and bonding with them, showed me how much more enriching traveling to a new place can be if you get out of your comfort zone and talk to real citizens about their daily lives, as opposed to solely seeking out picturesque monuments. I returned to Spain with an elevated appreciation for kindness and warmth, the embracing of differences and Moroccan food.

Sports & Health

Sports & Health Editor Shobair Hussaini - mhussaini2@fordham.edu February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

Students Look to Stay Fit On and Off Campus

By ARTEMIS TSAGARIS Asst. Sports & Health Co-Editor

Since the weather in January is in the ’20s and ’30s, students can no longer go for a long run in Central Park without feeling the effects of the weather, unlike the spring and summer. They are forced to find alternatives, and there is a wide selection of options to choose from in New York City.

Many students prefer to stay in the McMahon gym because it is close and easily accessible, even though some criticize it for its small size and lack of proper equipment.

Rachel Meyer, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’20, said, “When I go to the gym, usually I start by stretching. Then, I do a cardio exercise, so I [choose] the elliptical or treadmill.” She finds many options around her in order to “stay fit and active.” Becca Parrillo, FCLC ’20, agreed. “I go on the elliptical usually, sometimes I do [abdominal]warm ups on the floor and squats. The gym is nice and it has everything I could ever want.”

Casey Gardner, FCLC ’20, disagreed. “I love to exercise at the Rose Hill gym before dance team practice, but on days when I don’t have dance, I will go to the McMahon gym. Our fitness center lacks diversity. I don’t have any specifics, but more equipment would be nice because doing the same exercises everyday can be kind of boring.”

New York Sports Club (NYSC) locations are scattered throughout New York City, and the closest one is on 62nd Street. There are a lot of mixed reviews. Some say that the personal trainers and sauna are great, however, there is no diversity.

Westside YMCA is located on 63rd Street. It is the largest YMCA in the world. Many people love to participate in the plethora of programs they have to offer. Steve Howard, FCLC ’20, has a tight schedule he fol-

BROOKE PARRETT/THE OBSERVER

There are many places to go to stay fit on and around campus, inluding the Westside YMCA on 63rd Street.

lows every time he goes. Every day, except for Saturday, he focuses on a certain area of the body he wants to strengthen. He said he exercises there because “you can do any exercise you wish—like swimming and basketball.”

CrossFIT SPOT can be found on Amsterdam Avenue. Members can sign up for nine different workout programs. If someone doesn’t know how to do crossfit, they can sign up for the “My Spot” program, where

students can learn how to properly participate in such exercises. There is also a “Youth Program” for kids, in which they can learn how to safely participate in crossfit. If students decide not to work out and instead want to focus on their eating patterns, they can sign up for the “Nutrition” program, in which a professional nutritionist comes in and creates a special program accustomed their needs.

On 103rd and Broadway, Yoga to the People is a great donation-

based yoga company that anyone can join. The suggested donation is $10.

“It’s a great workout that’s about an hour. It’s a really thorough workout that’s based on your own body—it’s invigorating and gives you a good connection to your breath,” Annalee Tomanelli, FCLC ’20, said. There are three classes: Traditional Hot Yoga, Power Vinyasa Flow and Hot Vinyasa.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has an interesting program for

a limited time. A small group of people are allowed into the museum before it opens up to the public and they experience a physical and interactive journey. The workout is led by a choreographer and dance partner—Monica Bill Barnes and Anna Bass, respectively. They both wear sequined dresses and tennis sneakers as they lead the group of participants through the exhibits. Tickets are $35 each and the event goes through the second week of February.

Sleutjes Succeeds as Student and Swimmer

By ANGELIKA MENENDEZ Asst. Social Media Editor

Hailing from over 1,000 miles away in Sherman Oaks, California, Christopher Sleutjes, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill (GSBRH) ’20, is a freshman on the Fordham University swim team.

He specializes in the butterfly, freestyle and distance races. In swimming he has specifically taken part in the 500 yard, 1,000 yard and the mile races. Sleutjes said his favorite event to compete in is the mile. As a freshman who came from across the country, Sleutjes had to learn how to handle everything New York had to offer, from the weather to all the attractions just a few subway stops away. Balancing school, athletics and a social life seems like a lot, but Sleutjes has managed to do it all, while having time to visit Manhattan every now and again.

After practicing nine times a week and competing in many different swim events, the team shares many moments together. According to Sleutjes, they become like a family. With all the moments they share with each other, it may seem hard to pick one that stands out, but Sleutjes decided his favorite was competing against the University of Massachusetts.

“My favorite moment on the team was this weekend when we beat the University of Massachusetts for the first time in school history and being a part of that was a great experience,” Sleutjes said.

Before coming to Fordham and sharing these moments with his

ASEAH KHAN/THE OBSERVER

Sleujtes has learned how to thrive both in the classroom and in the pool.

teammates, Sleutjes had to get his start somewhere. He began swimming on his church’s swim team and has been swimming for approximately 14 years now. His favorite part of Fordham’s team is that since they practice nine times a week together there is a real family atmosphere. He believes that “it is a great community feel knowing that your teammates are always there by your side.”

During his time at Notre Dame High School Sleutjes managed to

maintain a high GPA and attain a high PSAT score that earned him the title of being a National Hispanic Merit scholar. This title is given to students across the nation who score high enough on the PSAT their junior year and have maintained a 3.5 GPA or higher.

“I am Mexican American and won an award for my test scores, so I got to be a part of the program, and it’s actually how I got a scholarship to Fordham, which opened many doors by making the school

affordable for me,” Sleutjes said.

Along with this, during his four years of high school, Sleutjes’s grades earned him the honor of magna cum laude. This year, Sleutjes became a student at the Gabelli School of Business at the Rose Hill campus majoring in finance. He says he is still trying to decide between finance and accounting. He loves the Jesuit education and being at Fordham has surpassed all his expectations. Sleutjes exclaimed that Fordham is great,

and he loves being a Ram. Sleutjes found out about Fordham from his friends back home, which resulted in him gaining interest and applying to the school. He chose Fordham over schools such as Boston College and Tufts University, that also gave him offers. However, no other school offered him what Fordham did. Sleutjes believes that he is getting “the best of both worlds [at Fordham]. I receive an affordable education with a chance to compete at the division one level.”

As for being in New York, for Sleutjes, the hardest part is adjusting to the weather. He doesn’t believe that there is much a difference in the people or the way of life compared to how it was back home Although New York gets a bit cold for him, he believes everything is great as is. To combat the idea of being far away from home he calls his parents and friends all the time. His parents are even flying out to his swim meet in February. Despite missing home at times, Sleutjes still manages to take advantage of the city and have fun. In fact, he goes on weekly adventures with his friends where they explore New York and find the best burger spots.

When it comes to upcoming events, Sleutjes is looking forward and currently training for the swimming Atlantic 10 Conference that takes place Feb. 15–18. Most importantly, he is ready to focus on getting work done in and out of the pool. Sleutjes not only values his time in the pool, but is very focused on receiving the best education possible at Fordham.

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Sports & Health

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Meditation Might be the Stress Reliever You Need

By JADE GRIFFIN Staff Writer

College is undoubtedly hectic with the multiple classes and the many homework assignments that come with them. Not to mention, many of us have jobs and want to maintain a healthy social life as well. Meditation is a great method of relieving a lot of the stress that all people experience. Meditation is a solitary and personal practice, thus everyone can reap their very own, intimate benefits.

Meditation has grown from an ancient Hindu practice, tracing as far back as 1500 B.C.E. in India, to one that is universal and encouraged for anyone to embrace.

Its ultimate goal is to provide one with a sense of realization, specifically self-realization, on the deepest level. Furthermore, it brings great peace and level-mindedness to one in their daily life. Meditation often consists of silence and closing your eyes, sitting comfortably, relaxing, and focusing on your breathing. Most importantly, the mind should intend great contemplation.

The best part of mediation is that there is no specific way to do it. It all depends on one’s experience and simply, what works best for an individual.

Nicole DeSimone, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’20, attested to the power of her own meditative practice. “Meditation has helped me in all aspects, such as feeling more peaceful in stressful situations, more relaxed, and overall, much happier. I tend to meditate in the morning, making for a day of positive energy.”

Dr. Natasha Black, Ph.D and Licensed Psychologist, Fordham University Counseling & Psychological Services, meditates on a regular basis. Her background is in mindfulness and she emphasizes the benefits of being mindful as a result of meditation. Black stated, “Being more mindful is something that I think helps me put situations into perspective a lot faster and the reason I am able to be more mindful is because I’m practicing meditation.

The benefits are lasting even when

ERIN O’FLYNN/THE OBSERVER

Students can use meditation techniques to better cope with stress and their academics.

you’re not in the moment, mediating.”

Black’s meditative practice “helps [her] manage [her] stress on a number of levels. Also, because [she’s] a practicing therapist, it helps [her] regulate a lot of difficult emotions that get stirred up in [her].”

Aside from stress, “there are so many [benefits to meditation] that it’s actually hard to name,” Black continued. “It really does help improve people’s sleep and can regulate a lot of bodily functions, like weight management. Mindfulness can also improve one’s concentration, and improve one’s memory substantially. Not only will meditators have better cognitive function in the moment, but they tend to have less cognitive degradation as

they age, as compared to people who don’t, resulting in better alertness.”

Of all benefits, however, stress reduction is most targeted. It is common for many of us to feel stressed or threatened in any circumstance, therefore succumbing to our body’s natural “fight-orflight” response. The “relaxation response,” pioneered in the 1970s by Harvard doctor Herbert Benson, is intended to counter this very “fightor-flight” response through a state of deep relaxation, faster breathing and increased bloodflow to the muscles. This is triggered by repeating a certain word, such as “uhm,” or rather, using one that holds a special meaning to you. As a result, the “relaxation response” is more of an immediate method of countering

stress through meditation.

In a particularly relevant sense, Black mentions that, “a lot of people talk about having improved relationships outside of their physical and personal health because they are able to see things more clearly in the moment as they are happening, allowing one to manage personal conflicts with more ease.” Subsequently, mediation proves beneficial in all aspects of one’s personal life, both long and short term.

For those considering meditation, there are a plethora of meditation techniques to try. For instance, a daily meditation practice among Buddhist monks focuses directly on the cultivation of compassion. This involves recasting negative events and emotions in a positive light by

transforming them through compassion. As there are a broad range of meditative mindset practices, one has the freedom to choose one that seems most interesting and manageable to them.

Furthermore, Black recommends the KORU mindfulness class offered at both Lincoln Center and Rose Hill campuses which promotes a mindful practice. “Counseling & Psychological Services also has an app that has a lot of guided meditations on it, called the ‘Stressbusters’ app, customized specifically for Fordham”. Black concluded, “if you are interested in meditation, you should try it. There are a lot of ways to get into it. You don’t have to have any experience to utilize the resources offered by CPS.”

Mets and Yankees Gear Up for Spring Training

By ANDREW DONCHAK Contributing Writer

With pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training later this month, both of New York’s baseball teams are beginning to finalize their rosters for the upcoming season after coming up short last season. The Mets (87–75) had their 2016 end in a crushing wild-card loss to the San Francisco Giants. The Yankees (84– 78) missed the playoffs altogether, yet finished with a winning record for an unfathomable 24th straight season. Both teams are looking to start 2017 stronger and better prepared for the future.

In the Bronx, the Yankees are looking to bounce back strong after their first rebuilding year in what has seemed like an eternity, trading away star lefty relievers Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller and aging power bat Carlos Beltran at the deadline. That said, it seems like there never is a Yankees team these days that isn’t competing in some fashion, and that’s exactly what they intend to do in 2017.

At first glance, the biggest reason for optimism would have to be the slugging young catcher Gary Sanchez, whose .299 batting average and 20 home runs after his August callup to the big leagues put him in the American League Rookie of the Year conversation. He eventually ended up second in voting even though he played a little less than two months of baseball. Sanchez will look to take the everyday catching spot in the

JEN GALLARDO/FLICKR

The Mets and Yankees look to bounce back with successful seasons

wake of the recent trade sending incumbent backstop Brian McCann to the Houston Astros.

Elsewhere in the lineup a oneyear, $13 million deal for righthanded slugger Matt Holliday seems to help without costing the Yankees much right now or anything down the road. The retirements of longtime mainstays Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira don’t hurt the team in any measurable way, and opens up an interesting competition for first base between Greg Bird and Tyler Austin, two talented young prospects.

Maintaining all other prominent position players from the past year means the team could easily score more runs this year, improving on

what was only the 22nd best lineup in the majors last year, when they scored 680 runs.

The starting pitching as it has been for years with this team, may be the shakiest part of this roster. Ace Masahiro Tanaka is unlikely to disappoint. Behind him, only Michael Pineda and CC Sabathia have enjoyed definitive success in a rotation before, the latter of which coming with a handful of his own personal question marks involving injury and struggles with addiction. That leaves some combination of Chad Green, Luis Severino, Luis Cessa, Bryan Mitchell and Adam Warren to start nearly 40% of all Yankees games next year, which is certain to give

manager Joe Girardi his fair share of headaches.

The bullpen once again figures to be the Yankees’ strong point, thanks to the five year, $86 million signing of Chapman. He had spent only a couple months away from New York, winning a World Series with the Cubs this past season. He teams up with Dellin Betances and midseason acquisition Tyler Clippard to make a new big three closing out games.

Ultimately, the Yankees have slightly improved. But, unless the rotation finds a way to put itself together, they don’t seem to be a playoff team that can compete with division rivals like Boston, Baltimore and Toronto in the American League East.

In another corner of the city, The Mets look to bring back to Citi Field what sparked their 2015 run to the World Series: Yoenis Cespedes and outstanding starting pitching. The Cuban outfielder has been the heart of this offense for over a year now, and with a new four-year, $110 million contract, Cespedes will be sticking around.

Outside of the Cespedes signing, however, the Mets have been quiet this winter. The only other major move was second baseman Neil Walker re-signing for one year and $17.2 million.

Most spectators thought the outfield would be addressed heading into the season, with Curtis Granderson and Juan Lagares in center and Cespedes, Jay Bruce and Michael Conforto. This gives the Mets five capable hitters competing for

only three starting jobs. There still is speculation that Bruce or perhaps even Granderson may be moved before the year begins.

The infield remains fully unchanged, while captain David Wright nears the twilight of what has been a very strong career in Queens.

But what will drive the Mets forward this year, if anything does, is one of the best pitching staffs in all of baseball, which last year allowed only 617 runs, which ranked the team 3rd in baseball. Noah Syndergaard is a Cy Young Award candidate once again, which is bound to overshadow the stellar seasons Jacob DeGrom, Matt Harvey and Steven Matz are likely to have. One would also be wise to look for 23-year-old Robert Gsellman to really make a mark in his first full year in the MLB himself.

The bullpen also remains largely unchanged, Jeurys Familia and Addison Reed return to anchor a pitching staff that will give teams a lot of trouble as long as they all manage to stay healthy, something that has eluded this team in the past.

As long as none of the big pitchers go down, and the offense at the very least avoids being stagnant, there’s no reason the Mets can’t compete for a wild card and maybe even take a run at Washington for the National League East crown.

Overall, this should be an exciting summer for baseball in New York, hopefully one of the two clubs can bring home the city’s first world series since 2009.

19

Sports & Health

February 9, 2017 THE OBSERVER

www.fordhamobserver.com

Fordham Needs to Add More Vegan Options

By COSIMA BALLETTI-THOMAS Contributing Writer

What is there to eat when one eliminates meat, dairy, eggs and anything else produced from the exploitation of animals? The answer: not much. Combine that with being a college student living in a dorm on a budget in one of the most expensive cities in the world and it’s even less.

The big question is, why are students with dietary restrictions forced into paying thousands of dollars for a meal plan that very minimally accommodates such restrictions?

Leah Johnson, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC), ’20, has been following a vegan diet for two years now. Her decision to go vegan was a reflection of ethical dilemmas and health concerns. Although Johnson is fully aware of the challenges faced by small schools to meet the needs of every student, she still argues that “It is quite simple to provide at least one healthy vegan option per meal.” Johnson added that she sometimes “[leaves] the dining hall having eaten only a salad or a bowl of oatmeal, [forcing her] to spend money on food off campus and buy groceries very frequently.”

While Johnson admits that the dining hall does sometimes offer healthy, vegan options, they are consumed by everyone and are therefore gone before many can take advantage of the occasion. Johnson sees it as a waste to swipe into the dining hall only to leave it having eaten a bowl of cereal or a plate of fruit. She speculated, “If we could count on the dining hall to provide a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains and proteins, food would be one less thing to stress about.” For the price that we are paying here at Fordham, it is not unreasonable to ask that there be more options for students with dietary restrictions, whether it’s by choice or not.

Kylie Rothwell, FCLC ’20, has been vegan for one year now and shares Johnson’s sentiments. She is frustrated because she is compelled to spend her earned money from past jobs on groceries “when [she is] already forced to pay for the meal plan.” Rothwell further states that rarely does the dining hall cause her to feel as fulfilled as the meals she

BROOKE PARRETT/THE OBSERVER

Fordham Campus Dining needs to introduce more food options for vegan students.

prepares in her room. The whole idea of a meal plan is to lessen the burden of buying groceries, but when such a service does not cater to every student’s needs, it in turn becomes more of a burden for the students and families paying for it.

These concerns are shared among other students as well. Chloe Griffith, FCLC ’20, offered her take, noting that “it would be beneficial and inexpensive for the dining hall to constantly have basic staples [foods] and then vegans could add on to that with whatever they wish and it would be a lot simpler.” Such staple foods, according to Rothwell and Griffith, include rice, beans and potatoes. She adds, “These [staple foods] can be left out like the soups are. Not everything has to be ‘made to order.” Rothwell expands that she “[does not] think vegans are asking for anything gourmet, [they] just want some easy options.” This is a

big issue with an easy answer.

In addition to their suggestions, another solution could be to ensure that there is a constant supply of meal add-ons such as almond milk, soy milk and tofu, in addition to fruits and vegetables. Many of Fordham’s meals that contain meat could be amended by separating it from the bulk of the meal thus opening it up as an option for more students to eat while meals cooked with butter could instead be cooked with olive oil, which is a healthier dietary option.

Jane Mackowiak, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH), ’19 opened up about her own campus’ dining services and how it has improved drastically with the recent introduction of Aramark as a replacement for Fordham’s previous food provider. Mackowiak explains, “Now, with Aramark, vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and lactose [free] op-

tions are much more attainable.”

While Aramark caters to both campuses, Mackowiak points out some keen differences, mentioning certain meals that are not available or at least low in quantity at Lincoln Center such as “sushi, vegan buffalo wraps, falafel [and] an entire station designed for students with dietary restrictions.” If these options were made available at Lincoln Center, vegan students would have more options to choose from and far more diversity in their diet.

Mackowiak does, however, discuss whether or not “these options [have] always been available.” She nonetheless maintains that “Aramark is very receptive to student’s opinions and constantly [updates] their menus to cater to what the students want.”

While Mackowiak does offer some encouragement for students who are dissatisfied with the dining hall, she nevertheless said, “There need to be

more options, especially for vegans, but because that’s such a slim and expensive dietary restriction, it’s not their top priority.” It is important to acknowledge the challenges that schools face to accommodate their student body as well as the fact that because vegans represent such a small population at Fordham, their needs do not trump the needs of the rest of the school. With that, the vegan students at Fordham should propose a few feasible changes to Aramark and work with them to improve the Fordham environment for everyone. The fact of the matter is that the Fordham Dining Services could very easily add more options for students with dietary restrictions if they are just willing to make a few minor adjustments to the menus. In doing this, Fordham would ensure that its students are able to enjoy and take advantage of the dining hall and get the nutrients they need.

Fordham Finds Success During Winter Sports Season

By ALEXANDER DIMISA Asst. Sports & Health Co-Editor

As the weather has gotten colder, Fordham’s winter sports have been in full swing. Fordham has long had strong athletics that pride themselves on success in every sport, and in the classroom year round.

You can still catch both men’s and women’s basketball, indoor track and field, tennis, swimming and diving. Here’s how our Rams have performed thus far.

Fordham Men’s basketball started off the year with a strong 5-1 record. But, after losing the next six games in the row, Fordham found themselves with a losing record.

Their record currently stands as 1013, putting the team in a tough spot for the postseason. However, after two dramatic overtime victories, the team finds themselves only four games behind the top of the conference, in the Atlantic-10 (A-10). With eight games remaining, and four of those at home in the Bronx, there is still plenty of time to see the Rams take the court and hopefully earn a postseason berth. Women’s basketball on the other hand has been surging as of late, and are looking like strong candidates to make the postseason. The Lady Rams have 16 wins, and only nine losses so far.

They are one game behind second

JILLIAN JAYMES / THE OBSERVER

Both of the Fordham basketball teams hope to make the postseason after their recent successes.

place, and three games behind the team in first place. With G’Mrice Davis, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’18, emerging as one of the best rebounders in the country, the Lady Rams have high hopes for the postseason. There are only five games remaining for Coach Stephanie Gaitley’s squad in the regular

season. Three of these games will be played at the Rose Hill Gym. Fordham Track and Field has also had a stellar start, and is performing well since the beginning of the new year. At the Metropolitan Championship in Staten Island on Feb. 3, the men finished in 4th, while the women took 5th place. On top of

that, Brian Cook, FCRH ’18, Thomas Slattery, FCRH ’18 and Michael Petersen, FCRH ’20, all won individual events. In addition, Petersen was named A-10 rookie of the week for the week of Jan. 31. For the women, Mary Kate Kenny, FCRH ’19, set a new school record in the 200-meter dash, when she ran it with a time of

25.09 second at the NYC Gotham Cup in late January.

So far this season, both women and men have found great success in the poll for swimming and diving.

Since the first meet back in January, the women have swept both La Salle, and Iona, while also defeating the University of Massachusetts. At the same time, the men defeated Iona, but lost to La Salle. The men also topped the University of Massachusetts for the first time in team history. Out of the pool, both the men’s and women’s teams were honored

by The College Swimming Coaches Association of America as a Scholar All-America Team. This means that they were able to to maintain high grade point averages while performing in the sport at a high level. The championships are nearing for the swim and dive team and will take place Feb. 16 through 18.

Finally, both men’s and women’s tennis teams have returned to action since their winter break hiatus. The men’s team lost their first match to Davidson College, 0-7, but redeemed themselves and defeated Saint Peter’s University 6-1. In the Lady Rams’ return to competition, they lost 1-6 to Drexel University. Both men’s and women’s teams hope to build off the success they had last semester, and gain wins in the packed schedule they have ahead.

www.fordhamobserver.com

THE OBSERVER February 9, 2017

Sports & Health

20

Lift the Weight of College Off Your Shoulders

By MARCO PEZZOLLA Contributing Writer

Free time is something often unheard of in college. Between having to wake up at crack of dawn for that 8:30 a.m. class, to having to submit a major paper the day before an exam, free time is something that when granted, should be maximized to the fullest extent. One day during your free time, you think about how soon the end of the school year will arrive.

Then, you decide that you want to get ready for summer. You choose to start going to the McMahon gym. Right? The McMahon gym is a decent-sized gym with many pieces of equipment ready to be used by the entire Fordham community. At almost any hour of the day, you will find students using the treadmills or just stretching. While these students may find the gym useful, others may not find it quite as impressive as others, primarily due to the “lack of machines”. Opinions are opinions but perhaps there are some things that could change people’s minds about the McMahon gym.

Students are split as to whether or not this gym is effective. It is not the largest in the entire world and it does not have all the equipment a gym ideally could have. However, everything is worth a shot and the gym should be no exception. The McMahon health center has over 20 machines, with each one serving a specific purpose, ranging from cardio workouts to machines designed to increase muscle strength. Located on the second floor in McMahon, the fitness center is in a convenient spot that is hard to miss. Commuters and residents from all grade levels are welcome to use the gym as often as they want.

Through personal experiences

“ You can go to plac-

es like the YMCA and walk there but there is still plenty of options.

You can get your pump in and work out but it’s not special.”

–

BROOKE PARRETT/THE OBSERVER

There are mixed opinions on the equipment in the McMahon gym

with the gym, it can be stated that the gym is a spacious and overall fantastic place to work out and pass the time. Even though the gym is missing some machines a gym is expected to have, it has things that substitute for it. For instance, the McMahon gym does not have any bench presses, but instead has one machine designed to work out the same muscles a bench press would. It may not feel quite like bench-press-

ing, but it is better than nothing.

Herbie Schwartz, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’20, shared his opinions of the McMahon gym.

He described it stating, “It’s fine. You can go to places like the YMCA and walk there but there is still plenty of options. You can get your pump in and work out but it’s not special.”

Another student, Jonathan Trinidad, Gabelli School of Business at Lincoln Center (GSBLC) ’19, gave a

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We encourage you to come discuss your master’s degree options and the benefits of joining the Gabelli School graduate business community.

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LINCOLN CENTER

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5 1:00 PM - 2:15 P.M. HUGHES HALL, HU208

THURSDAY, APRIL 6 11:30 AM - 12:45 P.M. 140 W. 62ND ST., ROOM 203

ALL ATTENDEES WILL RECEIVE AN APPLICATION FEE WAIVER.

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slightly less positive review, stating the gym is “kind of small” and that he wishes for more equipment. Trinidad’s desire for more equipment is reasonable, but despite him not being very fond of the gym, he still attends the gym for his convenience and ease of access.

Time management is another thing that can influence one’s opinion about the McMahon gym. The McMahon gym is open from 7 a.m

HERBIE SCHWARTZ, FCLC

‘20

- 11 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m - 9 p.m. on the weekends.

While the hours the gym is open seem to be reasonable, Most students have the most availability on weekends, which is when the gym closes the earliest. Some students may only be able to go on the weekend only after 9 p.m. due to jobs, homework or any other commitments. This along with a busy week may make students feel as if they just can’t get a workout in the gym.

If you feel this way about the McMahon gym, then one thing you could try is to use the gym for only specific workouts, perhaps workouts that are quick yet effective. Such workouts would include 10-minute jogs on the treadmill or even just some core exercises like crunches.

These quick workouts could be done during a study break, a gap in your schedule, or before work. Life requires us to make time for everything and if you are the kind of person who wants to stay fit in a casual manner, than the McMahon gym is worth a shot.