The Georgetown Voice 1_18_2019

VOICE The Georgetown

New Language Access Law Makes Strides but Comes Up Short page 8

Students Bring Gun Control Group to the Hilltop page 12

January 18, 2019

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JANUARY 18, 2019

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE Volume 51 • Issue 9

staff editor-in-chief Margaret Gach Managing editor Sienna Brancato news

executive editor Jake Maher Features editor Jack Townsend news editor Noah Telerski assistant news editors Damian Garcia, Caroline Hamilton, Roman Peregrino

culture

executive editor Santul Nerkar Leisure editor Dajour Evans assistant leisure editors Emily Jaster, Nicole Lai, Ryan Mazalatis Sports editor Aaron Wolf Assistant sports editors Tristan Lee, Will Shanahan

“Join the voice!” by EGAN BARNITT

opinion

contents Editorials Carrying On: To All the Tinder Boys I’ve Ignored Before Sienna Brancato #MuteRKelly: Black Girls Need Support, Too Dajour Evans The Brand New Truths of Social Media Advertising Rachel Weinman Lost In Translation: New Language Access Law Makes Strides but Comes Up Short Santul Nerkar On Their Own Turf: The D.C. Divas Fight for Recognition Claire Goldberg Marching On: Students Bring Gun Control Group to the Hilltop Caroline Hamilton Finding His Voice: John Baldoni Recalls Pictures, Protests, and the Early Days of the Voice Inès de Miranda Capernaum Depicts Life in Lebanon with Haunting Realism Maia Farrell Pulse Is a Clever Expression of Biometric Data Mary Mei The opinions expressed in The Georgetown Voice do not necessarily represent the views of the administration, faculty, or students of Georgetown University, unless specifically stated. Columns, advertisements, cartoons, and opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or the General Board of The Georgetown Voice. The university subscribes to the principle of responsible freedom of expression of its student editors. All materials copyright The Georgetown Voice, unless otherwise indicated.

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Executive editor Emma Francois voices editor Julia Pinney Assistant Voices editors Natalie Chaudhuri, Leina Hsu Editorial Board Chair Claire Goldberg Editorial Board Sienna Brancato, Chris Dunn, Nick Gavio, Emily Jaster, Alex Lewontin, Jake Maher, Phillip Steuber, Noah Telerski, Jack Townsend

halftime

Leisure editor Juliana Vaccaro de Souza assistant leisure editors Skyler Coffey, Anna Pogrebivsky, John Woolley Sports editor Teddy Carey Assistant sports editors Nathan Chen, Josi Rosales

design

Executive editor Delaney Corcoran Spread editor Jake Glass Photo Editor Hannah Song cover Editor Egan Barnitt assistant design editors Camilla Aitbayev, Jacob Bilich, Josh Klein, Olivia Stevens Staff designers Kathryn Crager, Alex Wang, Amy Zhou

copy

copy chief Cade Shore assistant Copy editors Sophie Stewart, Neha Wasil editors Mya Allen, Emma Bradley, Natalie Chaudhuri, Brendan Clark, Emily Kim, Maya Knepp, Stephanie Leow, Moira Phan, Madison Scully, Maya Tenzer, Kristin Turner, Megan Wee, Rachel Weinman

online

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editor@georgetownvoice.com Leavey 424 Box 571066 Georgetown University Washington, DC 20057

Podcast editor Kayla Hewitt assistant podcast editor Panna Gattyan social media editor Katherine Randolph MULTIMEDIA editor Isabel Lord Content manager Margaux Fontaine

business

general manager Anna Gloor assistant manager of accounts & sales Eman Rahman assistant manager of alumni outreach Beth Cunniff

support

associate editors Rachel Cohen, Brynn Furey, Inès de Miranda, Lizz Pankova, Katya Schwenk

Staff writers

Kent Adams, Luis Borrero, Annemarie Cuccia, Haley D’Alessio, Jorge DeNeve, Max Fredell, Errol French, Bradley Galvin, Amy Guay, Peter Guthrie, Dominic Parente, John Picker, Zach Pulsifer, Cam Smith

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Page 3 An eclectic collection of jokes, puns, doodles, playlists, and news clips, from the collective mind of the Voice staff

A Halftime Leisure Preview

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s a … Gondola?

by Jack Townsend

No, Georgetown will not be starting another satellite campus on a ski mountain. No, Georgetown will not dig canals through the Hilltop.

Just a few years from now, you could be able to ride a gondola from Georgetown to the Rosslyn Metro stop. In 2016, architects determined that the idea was technically and legally feasible.

The idea lost steam in 2017 after Arlington County said it wouldn’t help fund the project. But it saw a renaissance last month as a coalition including Georgetown University was formed to move the project forward.

A university spokesperson said that the proposed aerial transport would help ease some of the neighborhood’s transportation maladies, and that the university has also been investing in other forms of transportation.

But an inaugural gondola ride is still a long ways off.

Current students will not experience the joys, or terrors, of travel by gondola. Nonetheless, Alex Oddo (COL ’21) said he was even willing to have his tuition increased in order to pay for the gondola. “Sign me up!” he said. “I would go out of my way to use the gondola.”

Oddo, who waved his hands excitedly as he spoke, said he was also in favor of aquatic gondolas like they have in Venice, Italy.

Is it possible for someone to mash together electronic music with a banjo? Yes. Is it possible for that to sound even remotely good?

Shockingly, the answer is still yes, and Mumford & Sons’ new album, Delta (2018), proves it. For more, check out John Woolley’s take online at georgetownvoice.com!

S.P.O.R.T.S * The Voice’s Playlist of the Week

by Claire Goldberg

Teal Blues by Noah Telerski

1. “Garden” by Hinds 2. “Across The Multiverse” by Dent May + Frankie Cosmos 3. “Love As A Weapon” by Little Scream 4. “Junie” by Solange 5. “Just Like Tropica-L” by Soft Powers 6. “Panama” by Sports 7. “It’s Gonna Be Lonely” by Prince 8. “Blonde Blood” by Boyscott

For the Hoyas, light blue jerseys aren’t new.

They’re a throwback to the finals team in ‘82.

Uniforms aren’t magic, But it is a bit tragic That when they wear them they Can’t play like that too.

John Picker

Vocab Word of the Week

Dionna White (11) looks for an opening during John Picker Georgetown’s matchup with DePaul on Friday. The Hoyas had a difficult week and saw their losing streak extend with losses to both DePaul and Marquette.

Insanity In · san · i ·ty / noun Definition: the act of doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.

Example: Provost Groves sending the annual email announcing tuition hikes.

Margaux’s Animal Doodle *See People On Recondite Teams Sporting

EDITORIALS

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JANUARY 18, 2019

Hold Republicans Accountable for Government Shutdown On Dec. 22, 2018, parts of the federal government shut down after Congress and President Donald Trump could not agree on a budget for a wall at the southern border. On Jan. 12, 2019, it became the longest government shutdown in the history of the United States. While this editorial board is concerned about a range of issues relating to the shutdown, we have grave misgivings about the present situation at press time as it affects the livelihoods of the roughly 800,000 federal employees who are furloughed or working without pay.

The federal government has failed to pass appropriations bills or continuing resolutions three times in the last 23 years. Between 1996 and 2013, the government remained in continuous operation. Then in October 2013, House Republicans, encouraged by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), refused to pass any spending bills that would fund the Affordable Care Act. The government was closed for 16 days.

In January 2018, the federal government shut its doors for three days when a Republican-controlled Senate refused to include funding for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in its proposed budget. The present closure is the direct result of Trump’s refusal to sign any bill that does not include over $5 billion in funding to construct a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, a proposal that has widely been criticized as expensive and ineffective.

All three cases have originated in Republicans’ attempts to block important progressive policies. This editorial board strongly condemns the practice of holding the government hostage for this purpose, as it imposes significant hardship on the lives of many federal employees. Some of these workers are already living paycheck-to-paycheck, and this indefinite period of unemployment is a storm that our

country cannot ask them to weather for partisan squabbles.

The New York Times has reported that TSA agents working at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport are being forced to choose between paying utility bills and buying groceries, and many are relying on food banks to feed themselves and their families. This example is particularly egregious considering that TSA agents have been designated as essential federal employees and are continuing to work during the shutdown without pay.

Historically, both essential and nonessential employees have received back pay after the end of a shutdown, but Congress must act in the affirmative to make this happen.

As such, there is no guarantee that they will ever be compensated for this labor, making the practice of requiring certain federal employees to work during the shutdown essentially a form of involuntary servitude. However, this editorial board commends Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) for her introduction of bills that would guarantee federal workers and federal contractors with back pay, and we urge both chambers of Congress to pass these proposals.

Regardless of whether this guarantee is approved, the shutdown will have lasting effects on the ability of the federal government to function, as the threat of having to face such difficulties will dissuade talented workers from accepting federal employment.

This editorial board believes that the attitude and actions of the current executive regarding this shutdown are unconscionable. Shutting down the government is not an acceptable tool to achieve one’s political ends, as it has significant impacts on people’s lives. The insistence by Trump on funding for a border wall is the direct cause, and the “bothsidesism” displayed by much of the media when discussing the shutdown is dangerous and wrong.

The attitude of this administration has added insult to injury. The Office of Personnel Management has posted several documents on Twitter, suggesting, among other things, that furloughed federal employees do odd jobs for their landlords in exchange for a rent reduction. The implication that those denied the ability to perform their jobs should seek out temporary, unstable employment to make ends meet is condescending and does not help an already fraught situation.

Going forward, we urge all concerned members of Congress not to pass any legislation that would fund the federal government at the cost of giving Trump money for a border wall. Conceding to these demands legitimizes shutting down the government as a political tool and demonstrates its effectiveness, which will only encourage this behavior in the future. In taking this position, we cite the voices of federal workers, the majority of whom oppose the wall according to a poll released by the Government Business Council and GovExec.com on Jan. 15.

We also urge individuals who are not members of Congress to help federal workers in their communities however they can. We commend all businesses and organizations who are helping to better the lives of federal workers during this furlough. Creditors and landlords should view late payments leniently and afford furloughed federal workers the benefit of time. All should donate to food banks which feed federal employees and their families. Call your congresspeople and vocalize your opposition to Trump’s border wall. And most importantly, know that your vote matters, and make sure that those who have held the government and its workers hostage will not be rewarded with your support in the next election.

D.C. Homeless Shelter Replacement Plan Falls Short During Hypothermia Season As Georgetown students enjoyed the snow day after last weekend’s storm, many homeless residents of D.C. were stuffed into shelters due to the inclement conditions and low temperatures. A number of the city’s homeless shelters still require maintenance well into the winter season. Within the scope of D.C.’s ongoing plan to reshape its homeless shelter system, the city’s last-minute push to revitalize its shelters into livable condition before winter further demonstrates the irresponsibility of the project.

In November, the D.C. government opened a new 50-unit shelter in Ward 8. The opening was part of a planned overhaul of the District’s shelter system, which included the closing of D.C. General—formerly the city’s largest homeless shelter— and replacing it with smaller shelters interspersed amongst the District’s eight wards. This editorial board believes the plan is well-intentioned, but we question the city’s ability to carry out its shelter revitalization project within the predetermined timelines.

Any project that affects as many lives as this one does should be carried out more efficiently and effectively than the District has done so far.

Despite the clear need to revitalize the city’s shelter system, many of the replacement locations proposed in the wake of D.C. General’s closure have not yet been completed.

Some are not slated to open until 2020, and one, in Ward 3, was locked in a stiff legal battle with its future neighbors

and is currently behind schedule. An elevator in the Patricia Handy Place for Women, a shelter in Ward 2 that serves many disabled and elderly women, recently stopped functioning, requiring the city to move a number of women to more accessible locations. As per D.C.’s right-to-shelter laws, all people experiencing homelessness are guaranteed beds during when temperatures drop below freezing during the hypothermia season, which started on Nov. 1. However, many of the city’s locations have had problems, necessitating the usage of local establishments as overflow housing.

In the height of hypothermia season, some of the city’s homeless shelters have not acted with the health and safety of District residents in mind. According to multiple women staying in the Community for Creative Non-Violence (CCNV), a volunteer shelter that the District contracts with during the winter, they were required to sign contracts that forced them to leave the shelter on Nov. 1, the beginning of hypothermia season. The women were allowed to return after staff told them they actually did not have to leave, but this glaring example of miscommunication is unacceptable.

Perhaps even more egregious, a longtime case manager at CCNV told City Paper that “you don’t see any men complaining” about the shelter’s conditions.

Demolishing D.C. General was the right decision, but its closure was marred with mistakes that threatened the

lives of the most vulnerable D.C. residents. This editorial board wrote in April 2018 about complications of the shelter’s demolition and the disregard for the health of D.C.’s homeless residents, some of whom were still living in the shelter during this time, as a result of D.C. General’s preemptive destruction.

Given this lack of consideration, we also call on Georgetown students to help the District’s homeless population whenever possible. The Center for Social Justice sends out Hypothermia Outreach Teams on cold winter nights, and many local shelters, such as the Grace Episcopal Church on Wisconsin Avenue, accept volunteers. To help address the clear structural issues with the D.C. shelter system, students should also call their city councilmembers and Advisory Neighborhood Council representatives to urge changes within the system as a whole.

The nonprofit organization Community Connections estimates that approximately 40-50 D.C. residents experiencing homelessness die each year of complications from cold weather. This is clearly unacceptable. The city’s plan to decentralize its shelter system from D.C. General to a variety of shelters in different areas is the right goal; however, it has not been carried out effectively and responsibly. In the winter, the District must ensure that all residents are given safe housing and shelter from the cold and snow.

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

VOICES

Carrying On: To All the Tinder Boys I’ve Ignored Before

Olivia Stevens

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Content Warning: Physical and sexual violence, harassment

“Would you be opposed to undressing me and smothering my naked body in peanut butter?”

I’m the Tinder girl most Tinder boys seem to hate. You know, the one who carries on a basic conversation but suddenly stops responding out of nowhere? How annoying, right?

I’m the silent girl, the wary girl, the sudden-ghost-girl. The girl who doesn’t think you need to know her exact location or the high school she attended after exchanging two messages.

“If you were my pinky toe, I’d bang you on every piece of furniture in the house.”

Honestly, I use Tinder almost exclusively as a confidence booster if I’m down, or if societal beauty standards have got me feeling bad about myself. It does feel strange objectifying men with a single glance, even though society traditionally does the same to women.

Some may say that’s inconsiderate to the guys who are actually looking for love on Tinder. But to them I ask, “Where are these men?” Tinder has a reputation for being a place to find hookups, a place where most guys don’t take conversations seriously. So why do men get mad at me for doing the same? Why does the woman automatically have to be more emotionally invested, more polite, more considerate?

“I’m single and my type is somewhere along the lines of ‘smart, smells nice, and fucks good.’”

“What are you here for?” is a loaded question. I don’t know.

Sometimes I think I want to find someone to share everything with. Sometimes a relationship is the last thing I want, and I’m too scared to be vulnerable. Sometimes I’m too exhausted to start the whole get-to-know-you process all over again.

And honestly, sometimes I’m just not willing to deal with the sexist and disrespectful behavior I’ve often observed in men I try to get to know. The way they treat women like they own them, the way they judge value based on physical appearance, the way I’ve seen their thoughtless actions destroy the self-image of some of my close friends.

“What’s your number?” “How long are you here for?” “What are you into?” “Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?” “What’s your type?” “So why’s a pretty girl like you on Tinder?” “What does a man have to do to get a reply?”

One guy even told me that he Googled my tiny, one-traffic-light hometown so he could see it on a map and named a landmark near my house.

In theory, I could just delete Tinder. I could unmatch. I could silence their voices with the touch of a button.

In a spoken word poem called “Tinder Poem,” Talia Young describes harassment on Tinder and makes the point that deleting the app to avoid unwelcome attention from creeps and potential predators doesn’t work because Tinder is just their mouthpiece. They’re still there every time I walk on a sidewalk.

They’re still on the peripheries of sweaty, crowded parties, their wandering hands dismissed as simple accidents. They’re still in my classes and across this campus.

“Please tell me you’re not as innocent as you look.”

When going on dates set up with men found on Tinder, women often tell friends where they’re going and share their locations in case of an emergency. We set up contingency plans and pre-arranged phone call check-ins. We send our friends the photos and identifying information of the people we’re going out with, and sometimes a friend even tags along in disguise.

In contrast, men I’ve talked to say their greatest worry on dating apps is the ego bruise of rejection. This is not to say that men don’t face dating issues that should be taken seriously. But statistically, women face harm and violence at much higher rates.

According to a recent UN study, the most dangerous place for women is the home. Fifty-eight percent of the around 87,000 women killed in 2017 were killed by family members or romantic partners. Current or former partners were responsible for a third of the deaths of women in 2017.

In December 2016, the bones of a 26-year-old woman were found in a trash bag at the home of a man with whom she’d gone on several Tinder dates. The man allegedly dissolved her body using hydrochloric acid because she had refused to have sex with him.

In 2014, a woman in New Zealand allegedly attempting to escape violence at the hands of a Tinder date fell from a balcony to her death.

In 2016, 30-year-old Shane Steven Allen was arrested for the beating and kidnapping of a 20-year-old University of Kansas student he met on Tinder. After a successful first date, the pair met again. Convinced she was flirting with two of his friends, Allen punched her in the face and beat her. He then held her against her will for several days, supposedly until the swelling of her face decreased, and committed further violence upon her attempts to leave.

Last year, I matched and exchanged a few messages with someone who has since been accused by multiple women of being a sexual predator.

Jealousy, a feeling of ownership over the female body, and a sense of entitlement to sex can motivate men to commit brutal acts of violence against women. So how am I supposed to simply feel comfortable on dating apps, comfortable with vulnerability, when giving someone a chance could mean risking my life or my safety?

“A few friends and I are having a satanic blood sacrifice later if you wanna come. Super low key. Bring sweet snacks please. We already have goldfish.”

My radar has been refined through years of reinforcement, years of unwanted touches, harassment, and creepiness. One man I knew in high school has harassed me for the past four years, persistently messaging me on social media, attempting to form relationships with my family members, and even creating a new account to continue sending me messages after I had blocked him.

I remember male strength. I remember bruises. I remember one hand holding both of mine immobile. I remember the feeling of a palm on my throat, of an arm crushing my windpipe.

Male strength—benignly intentioned, accidentally demonstrated, or otherwise—poses a threat to my sense of security.

“I was just kidding, you know that, right? Are you always this serious?”

I have no reason to believe a random Tinder guy is joking when he makes an overtly sexual comment or an implicit threat.

We have to actively resist people’s attempts to gaslight us, to claim they were joking the whole time while harassing us or causing discomfort or fear. Our societal structure attaches female worth to male attention, and as a result, we can be so afraid of not being liked by men that we are much too quick to forgive, too quick to quail under accusations of excessive seriousness or overreaction.

I’m not saying I’m always right to not respond to the creepy messages I receive. Maybe not all of these messages come from dangerous people. My unresponsiveness is a personal choice, but it’s not a blanket solution for everyone. My idealistic hope is that men will fully realize the dangers women face and somehow collectively decide to stop inflicting violence. But until then, it’s essential to acknowledge the reality of these dangers rather than dismissing unresponsiveness as bitchiness. Men must at least stop lashing out against women who don’t feel safe enough to give them the attention they desire.

Our red flags go up for a reason. Women’s wariness, our trepidation, and our reluctance to trust are founded on credible threats of violence. So don’t call me a bitch for taking my safety seriously.

Sienna Brancato is a junior in the College. She is the managing editor of the Voice.

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Black Girls Need Support, Too

VOICES

#MuteRKelly

By Dajour Evans Content Warning: Sexual assault and abuse

JOsh Klein

In 2005, MadTV parodied R. Kelly’s urban opera, “Trapped in the Closet,” in a skit called “Trapped in the Cupboard.”

Within the first minute of the skit, Jordan Peele, playing Kelly, sings, “A voice calls out ‘hey baby’ / My woman comes in the scene / I think ‘oh, damn girl I wish you were 13.’” The audience roars with laughter, and so did I. I was eight and with my cousin when I first saw “Trapped in the Cupboard.” The skit parodies the episodic, melodramatic nature of “Trapped in the Closet,” which was common in the many parodies produced at that time. However, “Trapped in the Cupboard” was especially memorable because it made fun of Kelly’s controversial reputation. At the end of the skit, Peele’s Kelly gets arrested and sings “So here we are now / at the end of the story / and I’m going to jail / This time not for statutory.”

“What does ‘statutory’ mean?” I remember asking my cousin as we held our stomachs in laughter. She defined it, explaining Kelly’s past in subdued, generic terms, and we laughed some more.

This January, Lifetime released a six-part documentary called Surviving R. Kelly. This docuseries features interviews from former employees of Kelly, music journalists, psychologists, and, most importantly, survivors of Kelly’s sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. The interviews shine a light on the harrowing abuse that Kelly has subjected young black girls and women to for almost three decades—three decades in which his career continued to flourish.

Accounts of possible mistreatment against young girls first reached the media in 1995 when Vibe magazine published a copy of Kelly’s marriage license to the R&B singer, Aaliyah. The marriage certificate lists Aaliyah’s age as 18, but she was actually 15. Kelly was 27. The marriage was annulled a year later. Around the same time Kelly released, “I Believe I Can Fly,” and despite the clear offense of marrying a girl well under the age of consent, it became one of his universally-loved songs.

In December 2000, Jim Derogatis published a report in the Chicago Sun-Times, detailing allegations that Kelly had sexual relations with girls under the legal age of consent. A month later, a leaked videotape appeared to show Kelly urinating in the mouth of a 14-year-old girl—and then raping her. He was indicted in 2002 for child pornography, the same year he released “Ignition (Remix),” which is without a doubt his most successful song, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks. The trial didn’t begin until 2008, and the jury eventually found him not guilty. In the meantime, countless young girls and women continued to come forward with lawsuits and allegations against him. But no direct action was taken.

When the victims are black girls, no one cares.

Considering Kelly’s decades of abuse, his lack of accountability becomes clearer when we think about the ways in which society views black girls. In the second installment of Surviving R. Kelly, an older white man who was on the jury for Kelly’s trial states that he did not believe the girls who came forward because he did not like the way they talked, the way they dressed, or their hair. In other words, their blackness.

A 2017 study from Georgetown Law’s Center on Poverty and Inequality reported that black girls are likely to be seen as less innocent than white girls from as early as age five. This perception, what the report calls “adultification,” leads adults to believe that black girls need less support, comfort, and protection than white girls. They are seen as more independent and more knowledgeable about topics related to sex. Black girls being viewed as older than our actual age matters because no one feels they need to protect us.

Kelly’s dozens of victims’ stories, as such, have gone unheard or been completely disregarded. The black community, Kelly’s largest fanbase, continued to buy his music long after the Aaliyah marriage scandal, the videotape leak, the multiple reports of abuse, the lawsuits, and the trial.

Rumors of Kelly’s abuse of young black girls have always been prevalent. I remember watching countless skits poking fun at Kelly’s allegations including “(I Wanna) Pee on You” from Chappelle’s Show and the aforementioned “Trapped in the Cupboard.” Shows like The Boondocks took a more satirical look at Kelly’s reputation and the way the black community largely ignored it in favor of dancing to “Step in the Name of Love” at every family function. One Surviving R. Kelly episode is titled “Hiding in Plain Sight,” and it is devastatingly true: Kelly’s abuse has never been a secret. We remain complicit in supporting a predator and sexual abuser. That must change.

I think back to a younger me who laughed at the tape scandal, a situation that was very real for a 14-year-old girl, and I feel immense shame. We must not continue to support Kelly by listening to his music. We, as a community, have to hold ourselves accountable by removing his music from our devices, by no longer playing “Step in the Name of Love” at family functions, and by supporting #MuteRKelly, a movement spearheaded by black women that aims to cancel Kelly concerts, stop radio stations from playing his music, and ultimately bring Kelly to justice.

However, Kelly cannot be brought to justice by black people alone. If you are a non-black person who has not heard of Kelly’s decades of abuse, it’s important to think critically about why.

Despite the efforts of the #MuteRKelly movement, journalists like Jim Derogatis who has been following this story since 2000,

and the numerous brave women who have come forward and told their stories, many people still remain blissfully unaware.

When the #MeToo movement took off, major news outlets and celebrities spoke out against predators like Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby. Surviving R. Kelly, however, was largely met with silence from the same platforms and celebrities that spoke out just a year prior. I scrolled through Twitter, browsed major media platforms, looked at my own friends here at Georgetown, and found the silence to be the most difficult part to process.

When I would bring it up in conversation, most friends had no idea this docuseries was even airing. It’s incredibly telling, and endlessly frustrating, that the same outpouring of support for #MeToo is not present when the victims of abuse and assault are inner-city black girls. That must change.

Research Kelly’s past—don’t expect or wait for a black woman to explain it to you. If you can, as it could possibly be triggering for survivors of sexual assault and abuse, watch the documentary in its entirety. These women, these brave survivors, have been ignored for decades and we—all of us—owe them our attention.

I’ve been to enough Georgetown functions to know that “Ignition (Remix)” is a common song on playlists. Delete the song and any other Kelly song you may have on your devices.

Follow the #MuteRKelly movement and spread awareness either through social media or personal conversations. Time and time again, black women consistently do the work to not only protect ourselves, but every other demographic in this country— whether it’s through voting or the #MeToo movement, which was started by Tarana Burke, a black woman, to help black girls a decade before the movement became focused on white women.

Black girls’ lives matter, and I urge people to do the work to uphold this fact. As a black woman, it is disheartening to see my non-black friends remain unaware of issues like this because they don’t directly affect their own communities. Enough with the silence, enough with the false ignorance, and enough with not caring about black girls. #MuteRKelly.

As of today, there are still families who have not seen their daughters in years because of Kelly’s abuse. We must mute R. Kelly, and we must ensure that black girls and women are listened to, are believed, and are protected. Black girls need support, too—so start giving us some.

Dajour Evans is a junior in the College and current leisure editor for the Voice.

7

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

VOICES

camilla aitbayev

The Brand New Truths of Social Media Advertising The World Wide Web is a beautifully bizarre land where a Kickstarter for a man making potato salad can raise $55,000. At the same time, the 2017 Women’s March, the largest single-day demonstration in U.S. history, can become a reality through a grassroots Facebook campaign.

“Weird” doesn’t even begin to cover the stupidly influential amalgamations created by the online hivemind.

Social media, in particular, has evoked both praise and criticism by activists and concerned grandparents alike. And while online connection is only bound to increase in the coming years, its full ramifications are currently unknown. But there is one apparent consequence of the growth of social media: brands like Pop-Tarts, Wendy’s, MoonPie, Denny’s, and Burger King have risen to the status of social media superstars.

In a blatantly obvious attempt to appeal to a younger audience and our self-deprecating, sarcastic, and often nonsensical humor, company Twitter accounts have begun to transform from straightforward advertising platforms to a method for cultivating online followings. By dropping the guise of professionalism, these brands have developed a new form of advertising based on the sensibilities of their target audience.

When MoonPie enters into a Twitter debate with NASA over destroying the sun or the official Netflix account tweets the f-bomb, it’s hard to remember that these companies are still attempting to capitalize on their audiences’ attention.

The people running these accounts are professionals. A few years after the integration of the younger and more internet-savvy generations into the workforce, these company Twitter accounts have evolved into fine-tuned machines dishing out relatable humor. Their work is carefully designed to bypass the knee-jerk discomfort that usually accompanies attempts to connect with “fellow kids.”

However, this leaves brands in the precarious position of balancing humor with the sensitivity of painful subjects. While I may be able to apologize, claim ignorance, or simply delete a post I make, the mistakes these brands make are forever immortalized. Take DiGiorno Pizza, for example, which rightfully received immense backlash in 2014 when the account jumped onto a trending hashtag and tweeted, “#WhyIStayed You had

pizza.” #WhyIStayed had been circulated across Twitter to fight victim-blaming in cases of domestic abuse, and DiGiorno’s attempt to advertise their tasty pizza trivialized the issue.

DiGiorno did apologize, but the damage was already done and plastered across the internet. While many varieties of darker humor depend partially on discomfort, DiGiorno’s comment crossed the line into controversy. For this reason, brands rarely, if ever, dabble in politically- or emotionally-charged humor, instead focusing on the mundane or the abstract. Even so, a mistake like this demonstrates that the trend of brands developing cults of personality for the sake of monetary gain should not be normalized.

The need for brands to inject themselves into every part of entertainment—product placement in movies, commercials on the radio, celebrity endorsements—is an expected, albeit almost universally disliked result of the profit-maximizing goal of our capitalist system.

However, there is something fundamentally different about social media: It is personal. Clear walls between people and brands are a necessary safeguard to stop big business from becoming more intimately involved in people’s lives. These brands have become Twitter celebrities, with their accounts garnering hundreds of thousands to millions of followers attempting to spark a conversation with their online representations.

Commodifying internet humor, the humor of our generation, in an attempt to make more money should feel unseemly at the very least.

I certainly do not like being manipulated. However, when I see Pop-Tarts tell Toaster Strudel to “Delete your account,” I can’t help but smile. Despite their hilarity, every single joke or conversation thread is a veiled attempt at exploitation. Nothing these brands post has the genuine intention of spreading joy or humor. The people writing the tweets are paid to further brand recognition and loyalty while obscuring that this ulterior motive exists. Since the time of brand accounts only posting updated menu options or new coupons, money has always motivated each tweet and comment.

Now, each account has a defined personality—Wendy’s is a roaster, Denny’s is an abstract pun master, MoonPie is an absurd

and nonsensical mess. People are not just tolerant of these new personalities, they like them. These advertisements are forms of entertainment in and of themselves.

When I was younger, I could recognize fast-food logos before I could locate our capital on a map. If brands become synonymous with entertainment, children in the future could receive marketing signals from brands even more deeply embedded in our pop culture: Captain America may become Captain Coca-Cola. On our current trajectory, a fabricated friendship with a snack or the notion of a superhero based around a sassy carbonated drink may not seem so disconcerting anymore.

Steak-umm, a brand of frozen, thin-cut steak, summed it up best in one of their final tweets of 2018: “this tweet is advertising. it is also entertainment. we are a brand. we are also people behind the brand. you’re receiving both overt and covert messages. welcome to the paradox of technological integration between brands and people. strap in, 2019 is only gonna get weirder.” After concerns surfaced about the problematic nature of this comment, Steak-umm’s social media managers argued in the replies that this isn’t dangerous territory, merely the natural evolution of advertisement.

By following these brand accounts, people are subscribing to manipulation and exploitation for the sake of jokes, albeit some pretty funny ones. Even though this novel genre of advertising is undoubtedly bound to increase in popularity, people should at least remain aware of these brands’ problematic and pervasive position in their lives.

Otherwise, we’ll be lining up for the next blockbuster hit, Starburst Wars: The Taste Awakens.

Rachel Weinman is a freshman in the SFS pursuing a major in International Politics and a minor in Lau cubicle art.

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JANUARY 18, 2019

Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lost Lostin Lost Lost Lost in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in in inin ininin in in in in in Translation Translation in Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation Translation New Language Access Law Makes Strides but Comes Up Short

By Santul Nerkar Andrea Tacconi remembers a day when a young girl could not get medical treatment at school because her family only spoke Spanish. In Tacconi’s written testimony to the D.C. Council in April 2017, she recounted the incident, which occurred when she worked for Teaching for Change, an educational nonprofit based in the District. To receive treatment for the girl’s fever, her family would have had to fill out English-language forms. When the girl’s mother approached the school to seek a translation from English to Spanish, the school did not have enough Spanish-speakers on its staff to help the family provide documentation for their child, causing the school to deny her treatment.

This story is one of many that have inspired a decade-long struggle to lower the daily barriers for non-English speakers in Washington, D.C. The campaign reached an important milestone last month, when the D.C. Council officially passed the Language Access for Education Amendment Act. The council voted unanimously with one absence to approve the bill, which alters a 2004 law mandating that the D.C. government provide all residents equal access to government activities and services, regardless of their English abilities.

The 2004 bill made the District a pioneer in providing expanded government resources to people identified as Limited English Proficient (LEP). But language access proponents have since grown frustrated with the law’s limitations. Advocates argued that its mandates were not universally enacted by its intended targets, causing the bill to fall short on many of its stated goals to ensure that non-English speakers in the District can access government services. Seven members of the council introduced the 2017 amendment as a corrective measure.

The fight in the District for language access rights is a microcosm of a larger, nationwide push for greater accommodation of non-English speakers.

“These people are largely immigrants who are not English proficient,” said Yemisrach Wolde, coordinator of the D.C. Language Access Coalition. “They are paying their taxes, they’re contributing to society. We have to step away from always pleading that our rights are at least as important as everyone else’s.”

“This is a right, it should be provided, that’s it. That’s my argument, and I think it should suffice.”

••• Importantly, language access is viewed by organizers and advocates as such a fundamental issue that it is separate from the protections against discrimination provided by the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which states that no person shall be discriminated against “on the ground of race, color, or national origin.” Broad-

ly defined, language access in the United States concerns the ability of non-English speakers to take full advantage of services, programs, and activities that English speakers regularly use.

Many states and municipalities have followed federal guidelines on language access, which generally require means to translate documents for essential services and the creation of a language access implementation plan. Some have also mandated different, more expansive requirements for their language access laws, following President Clinton’s Executive Order 13166 in 2000 that required federal agencies to devise language access plans. In Washington, D.C., one part of the 2004 law stipulates that government programs, departments, and services “provide written translations of documents into any non-English language spoken by a limited or non-English proficient population that constitutes 3 percent or 500 individuals” who are served by that agency.

Despite the existing requirements, evidence and trends from the past few decades suggest a greater need for language access in the District and throughout the United States. A report by the Migration Policy Institute found that the adult population in the country identifying as LEP has swelled from 11.6 million in 1990 to more than 22 million in 2015. In the District, foreign-born individuals account for over a third of the population growth since 2007, according to a 2014 report by the Urban Institute.

Today, the demand is even more pronounced, as approximately 95,000 city residents, or roughly 14 percent of the city’s total population, are immigrants. Additionally, no single country of origin comprises more than 16 percent of the foreign-born population. The D.C. Office of Human Rights (OHR), which oversees complaints of violation of the Language Access Act, has identified six languages with a sizable enough population of speakers to necessitate further language access accommodations: Amharic, French, Chinese, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Korean.

But even now, 14 years after the first language access bill became law, city and school services are not always available in those languages. Advocates, city officials, and non-English speakers have grown frustrated with the rocky implementation of the law.

Despite an overarching mandate, each individual agency is responsible for funding its own language access services, resulting in an uneven distribution of resources across agencies, according to the Urban Institute report. This decentralization, as well as anecdotal evidence ranging from Tacconi’s testimony to stories of non-English speakers being ignored by D.C. government agencies, demonstrates the challenges that D.C. agencies have faced in providing language access to LEP residents.

Against this backdrop of disappointment with the original law, the D.C. Council passed the amendment, which created several new requirements. The bill increases the number of “covered entities”—programs, departments, and services with “major public contact”—who are subject to the original Language Access Act. Another new condition of the amendment is that public and charter schools have to provide translations of “essential information” to students, parents, and guardians.

Additionally, local education agencies, including D.C. public and charter schools, must designate a dedicated language access staff, consisting of a language access coordinator and language access liaison. Other components of the amendment clarify OHR’s complaint filing and appeals procedures and allow OHR to levy $2,500 fines on covered entities for violations of the Language Access Act. In theory, even though agencies are still responsible for funding their own language access divisions, the fines provide greater incentives for compliance with the law.

The nuances of the amendment, as well as its volatile journey, belie its quiet passage in the D.C. Council. Nonetheless, some language access advocates believe the new law is still incomplete. Following the 2004 law, the Language Access Coalition, a group of organizations which promote language access in the District, has pushed for additions to the law. One such proposed addition is a legal cause of action which would allow individuals to take noncompliant organizations to court. The original law was silent on the issue, and the coalition wanted to codify this legal recourse. The new law, however, specifically bars this; instead, OHR has the ability to award the fines it levies to complainants.

The cause of action was one of the primary “teeth” the coalition had been fighting for, and its exclusion from the final version of the law has left some advocates dissatisfied. Allison Miles-Lee, managing attorney for Bread for the City, an advocacy group in the Language Access Coalition, described the reaction as one of discontent.

“There’s certainly disappointment amongst advocates,” MilesLee said. “I wouldn’t say this is a total win for the community in that it got everything that everyone wanted, and I think people are disappointed because it feels like people weren’t heard.”

Wolde was also disappointed with the outcome of the amendment, citing the omission of a cause of action provision as an example of D.C. government shirking responsibility.

“It’s very disappointing,” Wolde said. “Government agencies, again, are trying to be less accountable. A private right of action is supposedly an inalienable right.”

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Testimony at D.C. Council hearings from politicians, including Councilman Phil Mendelson, and school officials may have played a role in striking the private cause of action, as well as the elimination of fines for schools. Miles-Lee noted that while private cause of action was in the works, Mendelson advocated for its removal. “[He] was concerned it would open up the government to being sued constantly,” Miles-Lee said.

Some critics of the new plans for language access coordinators have pointed to the costs they impose on schools that are already strapped for resources. This argument was a part of the

drive toward exempting D.C. public and charter schools from the $2,500 fine. Brian Pick, chief of teaching and learning at D.C. Public Schools, said as much during an April 2017 D.C. Council hearing.

“While federal Title VI already requires school districts to provide information to parents when necessary in their required language, we have overall concerns about the schools’ capacity to translate and pay for the broad range of documents identified,” Pick said at the hearing.

But Miles-Lee is skeptical of claims that the new provisions would create more fines, and thus, more paperwork and over-

head costs for agencies. She said the agencies need to be more willing to adapt to the law’s stipulations.

“The law is what it is, so if you follow the law you’re not going to get fined,” Miles-Lee said. “We’re not creating a new right here for people. That’s already been decided. [Language access is] a right that people have in D.C.” As for what advocates can continue to do in the meantime, Wolde emphasized the importance of engagement with LEP communities.

“It’s not just about raising awareness,” said Wolde. “It’s about letting people know that they are powerful.”

JANUARY 18, 2019 JACOB BILICH

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ALL PHOTOS: HANNAH SONG

Two boys’ lacrosse games were finishing up across the field, but the D.C. Divas were just starting to warm up for their second practice of the season. Roughly 35 women were sprinting, jogging, and jumping in preparation for the drills they would do later. After almost 45 minutes, as part of the field was still taken up by the other teams, the women moved to the weight room.

It was almost 90 minutes before they actually started practice.

Due to a logistical mix-up, their field time was almost over by the time practice actually started.

The team won back-to-back national championships in 2015 and 2016 and another in 2006. They’ve taken home 14 division titles and have made 15 playoff appearances in their almost 20-year history. They’re full-tackle, have a roster of over 60 women, and they’re based right here in the District. But they play their games in front of half-empty stands.

On Monday, Jan. 14, female football players from across the country, including some members of the Divas, held a press conference on the steps of the NFL headquarters in New York City, where they asked for greater recognition of women’s football. The press conference was framed in terms of “football equality,” and participants called for the NFL to establish a

Women’s National Football League by 2020. They demanded that 0.1 percent of all NFL players’ salaries, which amounts to over $10 million dollars annually, be diverted to funding the women’s league. In addition, they asked that each NFL team establish a semi-professional sister team.

Divas engage in tackling drills.

“With the NFL’s massive popularity and fan support, we believe the WNFL would quickly become a profitable sports league and establish one of the strongest fan bases in women’s sports,” read a Facebook post on Victorious, a page dedicated to a documentary about the Divas.

The Divas, founded in 2000, are part of the Women’s Football Alliance (WFA), which includes over 50 semi-professional teams in cities from Los Angeles to New York. But the players don’t make any money playing; in fact, they have to pay to play.

Most of the players on the Divas have full-time jobs in addition to their football schedule, and many of them have spent thousands of dollars just to participate in the sport.

Amanda Congialdi, the Divas’ 26-year-old quarterback, has been playing football since she could walk. She began her semipro career with the Philadelphia Phantomz before joining the Divas in 2015.

“Football was the first sport that I ever remember playing,” she said. “It’s a sport that really drives me as a woman because I get to do something that’s deemed a man’s sport.”

Kristin Jones, one of the Divas’ offensive linewomen, has been with the team for three seasons. She is a financial business consultant by day and joined the team when one of her

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

sorority sisters, who also plays for the Divas, encouraged her to come to tryouts.

“I never knew that I could play football until I was introduced to the Divas. I just assumed that it was a guys-only type of deal where I would only be able to play in a flag capacity,” Jones said. “I didn’t realize that the opportunity existed.”

Jones was formerly a tennis player and a cheerleader, but she said football is the most physical sport she has ever played.

The sport’s competitiveness drew her in, she said. But, with no trace of irony, she also described herself as a girly girl from Queens, New York.

“My favorite part about playing for the Divas is being part of a really fought-for legacy,” Jones said. “I love being a Diva just in the name, but also coming out, being proud, representing this area, and just building on that legacy. I like being a part of that.

It makes me feel proud.”

Congialdi echoed Jones’ sentiments about the team’s success and legacy. Both women expressed their pride in being able to play for a team that has been at the forefront of women’s football for almost two decades.

“It’s really an established culture here,” she said. “There are no exceptions, no excuses. Everybody is treated the same.”

The players and staff alike repeated two things in their interviews: the feeling of camaraderie within the team as well as the need for more community support. Many of them emphasized that being on the team has led to lifelong friendships. Rachel Worsham, a former player and current member of the team’s staff, is married to one of her former teammates. Worsham said that another player had to be positioned between them on the

The Divas bring it in for a huddle to close out practice. field at one point because when the two were next to each other, they couldn’t stop talking.

In 2016, after the Divas defeated the Dallas Elite to win the 2015 WFA national championship, the team was invited to the White House by President Barack Obama for a ceremony to recognize their achievements. It was the first ceremony of its kind—a president had never before honored a women’s football team in such a way. Their successes and achievements are undeniable, but still, even after an invitation to the White House, these women still lack widespread recognition.

“We need support because a lot of people don’t know about women’s football. The only thing they know is the Lingerie League, which is cool, or flag football. It’s a whole league, three or four leagues, that people don’t know about. We’re playing good football,” strong safety Quiana Ford said. The Lingerie Football League, which was rebranded as the Legends Football League in 2013, is a women’s full-tackle football organization where the uniforms are intentionally revealing.

The team just started practicing and will play their games at the St. James in Springfield, Va., which is 450,000 square feet

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of space for every sports-related activity a person could imagine.

Worsham said one of the reasons she is excited for the team to be based there is because there are always a million things going on around them, from high school lacrosse games to fencing tournaments to ice hockey matches. She hopes that when all of these people see a women’s football practice, their interest will be piqued.

optimistic for the future, one that includes a professional women’s football league.

“I do feel like it is realistic,” Congialdi said. “Just seeing the growth of women’s football from when I started to now—it’s grown tremendously.”

She pointed out the existence of women’s football camps.

Last year, the Redskins put on a clinic as part of their Women of Washington program, a club for female fans. At this particular camp, hundreds of women participated. Congialdi also noted that many of the coaches for women’s football teams are former NFL or college players and coaches.

“I’m very hopeful,” she said. “Not just because of [these opportunities], but because we have a drive and passion, and it’s very evident.”

Gaskins said that from the time he started coaching to now, many people have become aware of women’s football, and more women want to come out and play. Curtina Pope, who started playing for the Divas last season, said that she wants women’s football to have not just support, but respect, too.

“A lot of people don’t know who we are or what we do and that this is real,” Pope said. “I want us to be respected, I want us to be televised, I want us to be paid like everyone else.”

The team’s fans are split roughly 50-50 between men and women. “We offer a family-friendly environment, and you see that reflected in fans from all over the DMV,” Daniel said. “Fans at our games are able to come onto the field at the end of games to meet our players, get autographs, play catch, etc.”

The Divas’ season begins on April 13 with a home game against the Pittsburgh Passion at the St. James. Daniel said that the Divas will be the first women’s football team to play there. The team hopes that with the new facility and the push for greater visibility, they will finally get the recognition they deserve.

“I think the biggest [obstacle] is getting people to know about us and getting people to come out and support us,” Worsham said. “Because it’s one thing to say women’s sports are great, but it’s another thing to actually show up at the door.”

Right before she stepped on the field for practice, Congialdi mentioned that she does not understand why there isn’t professional women’s football.

“I think the quality of play is just as good as men,” Congialdi said. “Anyone I’ve ever brought to a game is always like, ‘This is football: not women’s football, not men’s football, but football.’”

She ran onto the field and stood front and center, ready for practice to start.

“We’re super excited to be here because there’s all kinds of people around all the time,” Worsham said. “So even if they’re not buying a ticket to see the game, they’re gonna be like, ‘Oh, there’s a women’s football game going on, what is this?’”

Head coach Greg Gaskins, who has been coaching the Divas since 2013, noted that he has seen recognition of the Divas increase over the past six years. He started playing football in fifth grade and played at the University of Pittsburgh on a full scholarship. But coaching is only a part-time job for him. He also works as a business manager at Friendship Public Charter School by day.

“Like any football team or any team, we’re gonna have different players, different skill levels, different dynamics, different personalities,” Gaskins said. “But I feel like with the Divas, this is something these women are doing technically on the side.

They’re not getting paid to play. This is something they’re doing for the love of the game.”

Despite all of the team’s triumphs, including the three national championships they’ve won, they still face many obstacles. Though the team makes some money from ticket sales and sponsorships, according to Worsham, each team member had to spend roughly $800 to play last year. They also have to purchase their own gear, equipment, and uniforms, which can cost hundreds of dollars each. Worsham started her job as the Divas’ director of football operations at the end of 2018, and she adjudicates toll violations by day. She said that the team’s new owner, Rich Daniel, has made an effort to decrease costs associated with playing.

Daniel became the team’s owner in October 2018. Though he had already been working with the Divas as a general manager, his background is in local TV news, and he was once a videographer for the Washington Redskins. But despite all of the obstacles—from not being considered a professional team, to not being paid, to having to work full-time jobs instead of playing full-time football—and all of the lack of recognition, most of the Divas are The Divas stretch out before practice.

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JANUARY 18, 2019

Delaney Corcoran

Marching On: Students Bring Gun Control Group to the Hilltop

By Caroline Hamilton

When Kira Pomeranz (COL ’22) talks about gun violence, she gets intense, waving her hands and sighing about the enduring prevalence of the problem.

“Quite frankly,” Pomeranz said, “the reason I am so passionate about this issue is because I see it as a problem with a very simple answer.”

Pomeranz, one of the leaders of Georgetown’s new chapter of March for Our Lives, was surprised to find that the university did not already have a chapter or any other group with a similar mission of preventing gun violence.

“I was disappointed when I came to campus because I don’t see gun control as a partisan issue,” Pomeranz said. “It’s something where, in certain instances, over 90 percent of Americans agree on something.” So she started reaching out and eventually joined forces with other students passionate about preventing gun violence to form March for Our Lives Georgetown early in the fall semester.

The chapter is associated with both the national March for Our Lives movement and the regional D.C. organization, which encourages local high schools and universities to found their own chapters.

Margaret Gleason (COL ‘22), one of the co-chairs, explained how the club came together. “The head of the March for Our Lives D.C. is a freshman at GW [George Washington University] named Eve Levenson,” Gleason said. “I DM’ed her on Twitter, and then we started chatting from there.” From Levenson, Gleason learned about resources for starting a university chapter and then coordinated with other student leaders.

Though the chapter was organized too late to apply for official university recognition in the fall semester, Pomeranz said that its first meeting, held Nov. 19, was well-attended. “Honestly, I had very low expectations,” she said. “I thought like five people were going to come to our first meeting, and I think we had over 20 kids come.”

Since survivors of the Feb. 14, 2018, mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., founded March for Our Lives, it has emerged as the leading organization in a surge of grassroots activism against gun violence.

Parkland students took to social media, town halls, and national television to broadcast their anger with current gun legislation and the influence of the National Rifle Association.

They joined groups such as Everytown for Gun Safety and Americans for Responsible Solutions in advocating for stricter gun control measures.

The momentum manifested on March 24, 2018, when hundreds of thousands of people in D.C. and—by The Washington Post’s account—more than 2 million across the nation and world marched to call for stricter gun control.

The founders and participants of the protest itself formed the organization March for Our Lives, which has held nationwide protests and walkouts­, established chapters around the country, and sustained a national dialogue about gun violence.

Young people—school shooting survivors, university and high school students, and newly-of-age voters—have been especially prominent in the movement, a fact not lost on the Georgetown chapter’s all-freshman leadership team. Gleason noted that while a few upperclassmen are on the club’s mailing list, meetings have been mostly attended by freshmen.

“There are a lot of people in [the freshman] class who wanted to get involved with gun violence prevention advocacy,” said Chris Stauffer (SFS ’22), a co-chair.

Gleason admitted that the club has been limited in some ways by its young demographic. To start a club recognized by the university, and thus get access to university benefits, students must first go through the Council of Advisory Boards (CAB) and the Center for Student Engagement (CSE). “Navigating the bureaucracy of CAB and the CSE as freshmen has definitely been difficult,” she wrote in an email to the Voice. “As has recruiting upperclassman members.”

Still, at barely a semester old, the club has already jumped into action. Members attended a Nov. 8 vigil for victims of the Thousand Oaks, Ca., shooting, as well as various gun violence prevention events in the District. On Nov. 27, club leaders, along with students from George Mason University, local high schools, and an activist group called Students Demand Ac-

tion, met with a legislative aide from the office of then-House Minority Leader and now House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to discuss gun control.

“We certainly want to be going to the Hill a lot and advocating for things like the repeal of the Dickey Amendment,” Stauffer said. The 1996 amendment prohibits the Center for Disease Control from researching gun violence, “[a]long with things like a universal background check system.”

“The top legislative priority for March For Our Lives is passing HR-8, which would require a background check for every gun purchase,” Gleason wrote. She hopes that the new legislative session and start to the 2020 presidential campaign will prompt action. “It cannot be just a talking point when lives are at stake.”

Although the club does not yet have university recognition, it will have a table in the unofficial student group section at the upcoming spring CAB Fair on Jan. 19. This semester, they plan to apply for official university recognition and expand the club’s on-campus presence, including through collaborations like an event in February with the Black Student Alliance.

While the Georgetown chapter will coordinate with March for Our Lives on a national level, the co-chairs hope to get involved with local issues as well. “Even though we’re kind of isolated here on our campus, we are part of the D.C. community,” Gleason said.

Stauffer said that Georgetown students have an obligation to be informed about gun violence issues that directly affect vulnerable D.C. populations, though they may seem far away from the lives of some students. “Our goal is to make sure that people in Georgetown are aware that gun violence disproportionately affects communities of color.”

“There is a lot of classism and racism that goes into gun violence that we should be talking about,” he added. “That’s what we want to bring to campus.”

Gleason believes that Georgetown students have a responsibility to make their voices heard on the issue of gun violence.

“We need to use our voices and our abilities to make a difference.”

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Finding His Voice: John Baldoni recalls pictures, protests, and the early days of the Voice

By Inès de Miranda

As the Voice nears our 50th anniversary in March, we are looking back at our history, alumni, and life after the Voice.

John Baldoni (COL ’74) arrived on the Hilltop in 1970, a year after Georgetown became co-ed and while Vietnam War protests were rocking the country. The Pentagon Papers scandals were one and three years away, respectively, and Washington, D.C., was about to undergo drastic changes.

Wanting to take part in the District’s active political scene, Baldoni quickly joined the The Georgetown Voice as a photographer. The Voice had just been created the year before, and the small staff meant that Baldoni was taking the majority of the photos for the magazine as a freshman.

“I was recruited to join by the original editor, Stephen Pisinski (COL ’71),” Baldoni said. “I was interested in photojournalism, and there was a lot happening in the city in those days, and so I got a lot of access to political events and demonstrations, all kinds of things.”

Baldoni started taking pictures when he was 16 because it was a skill that ran in his family. “It was something my father did as a hobby, and my grandfather too, so it was just a way of self-expression that I enjoyed.”

The Voice was founded in 1969 by a faction of staffers from The Hoya who were frustrated by the newspaper’s lack of coverage of war protests and other major off-campus events.

“In those days, The Hoya was the preppy paper, and it covered on-campus, and we covered off-campus,” Baldoni said.

“The Voice was interested in things that were happening off campus, as was I, so that was why I joined it, and that’s why I stayed with it.”

By the time Baldoni got to Georgetown, photography was already an integral part of his identity. So when he got involved with the Voice, he was able to see the political scene up close as well as improve as a photographer, both of which were equally important to him. In his role as the Voice’s photo editor, which he held for most of his time at Georgetown, Baldoni not only had a creative outlet but also got the unique experiences he wanted from living in the nation’s capital.

“It was wonderful, it was very enriching,” Baldoni said.

“That was a time of student foment, the anti-Vietnam War

movement, and then later it morphed into the Watergate hearings and things like that. It was an exciting time to be a part of that. It also gave me a ticket to hone my craft.”

Baldoni’s most memorable assignment for the Voice was photographing President Richard Nixon’s second inauguration in January 1973. He received a press pass to cover the parade, where he was able to walk alongside Nixon’s limousine, flanked on both sides by the Secret Service.

“Nixon was in a bubble but decided to stick his head up out of the bubble, which—you know, this is 10 years after the Kennedy assassination, and presidents didn’t really do that at that time—so I remember as soon as he did, I raised my camera to take a picture,” Baldoni said. “I don’t know if I did take it because I was immediately grabbed by a Secret Service agent and pushed roughly to the side of the street, and I said ‘Hey, I have a press pass!’ But he said: ‘Nobody walks with the president.’”

Today, Baldoni is an executive coach, consulting leaders on how to live and work more purposefully, and the author of several books on leadership. But when he was a Georgetown student he had very different ambitions.

“I wanted to be a filmmaker,” Baldoni said. “I subsequently went to the London Film School, and then I ended up in Los Angeles, but along the way, I discovered that I really liked to write.”

Even though he ended up a long way from where he thought he was going, Baldoni draws a parallel between what he did for the Voice and his current career.

“The photography I was able to do was creative expression, which is the same as what I’m able to do today,” Baldoni said.

“Instead of telling stories with pictures, I’m telling stories with words.”

Baldoni said that student journalism is an excellent proving ground for those who want to go into journalism or creative fields and an enriching experience for others like himself.

“It was a wonderful opportunity, and I wouldn’t have changed anything for it,” said Baldoni. “It’s not what I do now, but it was good preparation for expressing your voice, no pun intended.”

ALL PHOTOS JOHN BALDONI

January 18, 2019

LEISURE

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Capernaum Depicts Life in Lebanon with Haunting Realism

By Maia Farrell

In December, Capernaum (2018) broke ground by becoming the first Lebanese film to be nominated for Best Foreign Language Motion Picture at the Golden Globes. Although the prize was taken by Roma (2018), the nomination was a resounding success for director Nadine Labaki, solidifying her place in the world of film.

Set against a chaotic Lebanese backdrop, Capernaum is a heart-rending tale of child poverty and neglect—two issues that are extremely pertinent in the country’s current social climate.

Labaki’s camera follows Zain (Zain Al Rafeea), a 12-year-old boy, as he runs away from home, navigating the Lebanese streets on his own and attempting to sue his parents for bringing him into the world.

The film handles topics such as child marriage, human trafficking, the struggle of being undocumented, and the modern-day realities of Lebanon with care. The on-screen relationships are powerful, making for emotionally raw moments that are particularly present in the dynamic between Zain and Yonas (Boluwatife Treasure Bankole), a baby boy who Zain takes care of when his mother disappears. Labaki’s storytelling maintains the childlike nature of Zain’s character as he looks after Yonas, while simultaneously displaying the maturity that such a daunting task requires of him. In a humorous moment, Zain exhibits youthful creativity, placing Yonas into a pot attached to a skateboard to use as a stroller. These tender moments of innocence— moments that remind the audience that Zain is just a kid—are then contrasted with the harsher realities of his circumstances, such as when Zain struggles to provide for Yonas and himself by selling counterfeit prescriptions of strong painkillers to adults.

Photo: IMDB

Largely comprised of amatuer actors, Capernaum features a cast whose real-life stories closely mirror those of their characters.

Most notably, Zain Al Rafeea, who portrays the main character of the same name, was a Syrian refugee working as a delivery boy in Lebanon until he was discovered by Labaki on the streets of Beirut. His character is charged with rage—rage that is largely directed at his parents. Al Rafeea’s on-screen presence is haunting, and he excels in embodying Zain’s tough exterior. As his sister Sahar (Haita “Cedra” Izzam) is ripped from his arms, Al Rafeea displays fury in his eyes so powerful that it could only be performed by an actor with his experience of the consequences of poverty.

In an interview with the Voice, Labaki explained that the suggestions the actors brought based on their first-hand experiences were incorporated into the film, regardless of whether they strayed from the original script. “Of course the fact that they have very similar experiences helps,” she said. “It was almost like research for me. It helped me find a balance between the real situation and my fiction.”

Despite having a phenomenal cast, Capernaum’s plot lacked focus. The film follows a non-linear narrative and is structured around the trial against Zain’s parents. The opening scene takes place in the courtroom, then flashes back to Zain’s chaotic life at home. However, combined with a minimal amount of dialogue, the shifts between these varying time periods confuse the audience as we lose track of the timeline of events. Flashing back to the court scenes disrupts the emotional buildup of Zain’s journey and would have been better placed solely at the end.

Labaki faced the difficult task of creating the beauty and power of movies like Slumdog Millionaire (2008) and Lion

(2016). Both of these films were successful without relying on the tropes of “poverty porn” and its emotional manipulation. Like Capernaum, Slumdog Millionaire is structured around one specific moment, in that case, a game show. Labaki’s similar strategy with the courtroom seems unnecessarily complex.

Her directorial strengths, nonetheless, still manage to shine through. She is able to avoid turning Capernaum into a film that fetishizes poverty. Al Rafeea’s unforgettable performance allows for this, as he is able to create a distinct personality for Zain rather than portraying his character as simply a casualty of his circumstances. With this, the film remains an emotional powerhouse that touches upon the most horrific realities of poverty in Lebanon without using the audience’s guilt as a crutch. Capernaum is a film that calls for change without any of the overpowering emotional manipulation present in poverty porn.

“Not only as a Lebanese artist, but as a human being, I feel responsible to influence change in the way that I know best because I know my voice counts,” Labaki said. “My research helped me identify the problems, and the film helped me highlight them to viewers.”

The harrowing narrative of Zain’s journey successfully sheds light on the larger societal issues in Lebanon. Labaki’s storytelling is exceptional and is not without hints of humor and moments of levity, regardless of the film’s heavy subject matter.

Despite its structural faults, Labaki’s seemingly effortless clarity of style, combined with stellar performances from the cast, create a piece that is both moving and painful.

15

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

LEISURE

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Pulse Index, 2008 All Photos: Cathy Carver

Pulse is a Clever Expression

By Mary Mei of Biometric Data For Mexican-Canadian artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, the human heartbeat fulfills its poetic potential best when heard as one among many. Lozano-Hemmer’s introduction to his newest exhibit at the Hirshhorn Museum, Pulse, explains his desire to establish a platform for participation, in which the sum of heartbeats can “create unforeseen biometric landscape beyond the symbolism or medical importance of a single heartbeat.”

Pulse, on display through April 2019, is a three-part series on the second floor of the Hirshhorn. It is also the museum’s largest interactive technology exhibit yet. Visitors are able to translate their own biometric data (heartbeats and fingerprints) into audio and visual displays, demonstrating Lozano-Hemmer’s common theme of merging art with technology.

The first installation—Pulse Index—is composed of a grid of thousands of projections that feature the enlarged fingerprints of visitors. There is something deeply fascinating, yet profoundly disturbing about the seemingly endless panels of magnified index fingers plastered along the curvature of the Hirshhorn’s circular wall. The content of the human data is incredibly personal, but its presentation before the visitor is jarringly foreign; one is confronted with the incredible power of the security state in the digital age and its broader potential for both helpful and sinister purposes. Luckily, all of the visitor data is systematically wiped out of the exhibit’s database.

Pulse Tank, the second installation, can be heard before entering its darkened space. Sensors that measure the pulses of visitors transform their heartbeats into ripples on a shallow water tank. The resulting ripples are reflected onto the walls, creating illuminated shadows that move amidst a disparate, but harmonious chorus of magnified heartbeats. The process by which

Lozano-Hemmer translates heartbeats from their initial pulse to a glimmery and transcendent shadow is truly innovative. Even through all these different mediums, the importance, familiarity, and movement of that sound is never lost. This method of translation also reinforces the universality of the original beat and its shared significance.

The last room in the Pulse series is arguably the most dramatic. Aptly titled Pulse Room, the otherwise empty hallway is filled with hundreds of hanging light bulbs. A single sensor placed at the end of the space transmits one visitor’s pulse to the first light bulb and eventually to all the others. The ensemble of flashing bulbs, as outlined in Lozano-Hemmer’s exhibit introduction, is inspired by the film Macario (1960) in which the character encounters Death’s dark cavern and thousands of candles—each one representing a life.

Lozano-Hemmer and the staff at the Hirshorn have demonstrated a masterful use of the museum’s space. The rooms flow together as a seamless progression of three very distinct, yet conceptually cohesive installations. While the participatory element of Pulse drives home Lozano-Hemmer’s commentary on the use of biometric data, one can’t help but wonder if the exhibit’s core focus is diluted amongst the clamor of an enthusiastic public to measure and admire its data, primarily for visual satisfaction.

Pulse is certainly entertaining to interact with and observe, but its emphasis on the compilation of human data in history and modern culture is its most intriguing feature. In his introduction, Lozano-Hemmer argues that biometric data should be used as a unifying force, where the compilation of individual traits can flourish.

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Pulse Room, 2006 Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Pulse Tank, 2010

“At a time when we are seeing ethnic nationalism on the rise, dividing people along simplistic categorizations, it is critical to misuse these mechanisms of control to create connective, anonymous landscapes of belonging,” Lozano-Hemmer writes.

The significance of this message could not be more appropriate, particularly in this period of walls and borders. It is crucial to remember the underlying characteristics that bind us together, regardless of race or nationality, into a single and powerful collective.

Info Session: Jan. 26 1 - 2 p.m.

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