Spring 2019 Issue 3

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THE STUDENT VOICE OF SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1927

TUESDAY, FEB.12, 2019

FIRE

GAS LINE EXPLOSION DISPLACES RESIDENTS Construction company error sparks fire, destroys businesses and homes in Richmond district SAHAR SWALEH, CELINE HERRERA, AND NATALIA POURAZAR Xpress Reporters staff@goldengatexpress.org

An SF State student lost his home and most of his belongings in the three-alarm blaze triggered by a gas leak near the intersection of Parker Avenue and Geary Boulevard on Wednesday.

Firefighters contained the blaze more than two hours after it ignited when PG&E was able to shut off the gas line, but not before Associated Students freshman representative Derwin Deon Brown II lost his home and the majority of his possessions. Luckily, no lives were lost in the inferno.

“It is with a heavy heart that I announce my home has been destroyed by a large fire, losing all of my clothes, my home and majority of my belongings,” Deon Brown II said on his GoFundMe page. “I am extremely hopeful in God and the universe’s plan for me.”

Deon Brown II was not available for comment as of

“I am extremely hopeful in God and the universe’s plan for me."

-Derwin Deon Brown II, AS freshman representative, fire victim

press time Monday.

According to PG&E spokesperson Teresa Jimenez, the fire engulfed Hong Kong Lounge II, a popular dim sum restaurant in San Francisco’s Richmond district, at about 1:20 p.m. Wednesday. The Michelin-rated restaurant was under construction when a gas line got clipped, spewing gas and soon after 30 foot flames into the sky.

The fire spread to five buildings, including residential units — one of which was home to Deon Brown II. Everything in a one-block radius had to be shut down for the investigation.

Jimenez said the fire started when a third-party construction crew struck a 4-inch plastic distribution line that

CHRIS ROBLEDO/Golden Gate Xpress

Flames engulf a building after a gas explosion near the intersection of Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019.

was already marked by PG&E workers on Jan. 28. Verizon has been identified as the third party whose contractor was directly involved with the accident.

“The Feb. 6 fire in San Fran-

cisco’s Jordan Park neighborhood is tragic for the people impacted by the incident and resulting power outage,” Verizon spokesperson Heidi Flato said. “Verizon is grateful for the brave efforts of all the

first responders who ran to the crisis.”

The Verizon vendor MasTec is the contractor that was working on the site during

•

FIRE Turn to page 3

CALENDAR POLICY

Academic Senate to vote on finals week requirements JULIE PARKER Campus News Editor jparker1@mail.sfsu.edu

The Academic Senate proposed a new draft to the university’s Academic Calendar Policy in their Feb. 5 meeting that would ameliorate some of the concerns of California Faculty Association representatives with regard to finals week scheduling.

The CFA took issue with the Academic Senate’s most recent Academic

Calendar Policy F17-242 for its requirement that instructors hold classes during finals week regardless of whether they intended to proctor exams, but S19-242, which would supersede the previous policy if approved, eliminates this requirement.

“For now, the optional final exam week is a significant and more palatable difference [in policy],” said CFA representative professor Larry Hanley. “Let's wait and see what the final, approved policy looks like, but so far things are moving in the right direction.”

The union says they were not consulted on F17-242 before the Academic Senate approved it Oct. 31, 2017, and when they were alerted to it by confused faculty members last July just over a month before it was set to go into effect, they sent a request to the Chancellor’s Office invoking their collectively bargained right to meet and confer on policy changes that affect their working conditions.

•

POLICY Turn to page 3

INFO • The Academic Calendar Policy draft proposal will be brought back to the floor of the Academic Senate's next meeting, Tuesday Feb. 19.

• Language from draft proposal S19-242: "The fall and spring semesters are 17 weeks. This includes 15 weeks of direct instruction, one week of fall or spring recess and an optional final exams week."

2 CAMPUS

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Proposed study abroad program to Palestine garners excitement LORENZO MOROTTI Editor-in-Chief lmorotti@mail.sfsu.edu

A proposed two-week study abroad trip to Palestine review process is being prolonged by administration, according to Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas studies professor Rabab Abdulhadi.

The AMED program, under the race and resistance department, intends to send 25 students from various majors, universities and backgrounds to attend lectures at An-Najah National University in Nablus from July 8 to 21.

If approved, this would be the University’s first study abroad program to Palestine.

Saliem Shehadeh, AMED lecturer and co-faculty trip leader, said the proposal has been signed by the College of Ethnic Studies Dean Amy Sueyoshi and race and resistance department Chairperson Jason Ferreira.

Shehadeh said it was then sent to the Office of International Studies, but he is concerned that the review questions sent from Enterprise Risk Management are biased.

“They have a whole-year study abroad to Israel,” Dr. Abdulhadi said. “We are only asking for two weeks.”

Shehadeh said he is concerned that the questions were not sent from any sort of academic oversight committee and are focused on AMED’s academic partnership with An-Najah and the scheduled meeting with the Israeli Peace Movement.

“Only one of the questions was about format and not content, like the other two were,” Shehadeh said. “It’s been in a really prolonged process — despite that, there is still an immense amount of excitement.”

Noel Madbak, a humanities major in the AMED program, helped organize the Google Docs interest survey to support the proposal.

Madbak, who signed the interest survey herself, said the program has attracted a lot of support from the SF State community.

Students who filled out the interest survey are part of organizations like the General Union of Palestine Students, the Black Student Union, La Raza, MEChxA, Students for

Quality Education, Students for Justice in Palestine, Jewish Voice for Peace in Berkeley, Muslim Women Association and the League of Filipino Students.

“There is a wide, diverse group of students who are all showing interest,” Madbak said. “It’s not just AMED students, although there are, it’s students from all over. There are a lot of people who are interested and excited.”

Shehadeh said the reaction to their announcing of a study abroad program to Palestine at the 2018 SJP national convention hosted by UCLA shows him there is interest.

“It was met with standing ovation,” he said. “It shows there is not just support at SFSU, but students across California and the U.S. Not only that, but also in Palestine. They are so excited to have us.”

He said An-Najah University already opened up their classrooms, earmarked professors to come and give guest lectures and offered these students the institutional resources available.

The proposed study abroad program is open to any student enrolled in the CSU, UC or California Community College systems, he said.

So far, the 39 students who have signed up via a Google Docs file have exceeded the limit for this study abroad trip, Madbak said.

According to the proposal shared with Xpress, students will visit Al-Quds, Birzeit, Hebron, Bethlehem and Jenin universities in a trip to old cities and Jerusalem.

Abdulhadi said the 14-day trip is an exploration into culture, history and social justice movements in Palestine and Jerusalem.

She said she is worried that it may be denied amid her ongoing lawsuit against top ranking administrators and various grievances alleging that administration is not providing her with same pay and a reduced workload due to health issues.

She is also concerned that a labor grievance she filed against Sueyoshi and Ferreira, and a discrimination lawsuit she filed against President Leslie Wong and other top-ranking administrators, will affect whether this study abroad program is approved.

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019 People enter and exit the 24th Street Mission BART station using their Clipper cards on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019.

LOLA CHASE/ Golden Gate Xpress

Gator Pass relies on student fee to boost BART discount JULIE PARKER AND GEOFF SCOTT staff@goldengatexpress.org

SF State students will receive a 50 percent fare reduction on BART rides with the use of the Gator Pass starting March 1, but because the program is funded by student fees and not used by all, some students feel duped.

An email from Student Affairs and Enrollment Management was sent to students Jan. 28 announcing the Gator Pass discount would increase from the current 25 percent, but the email didn’tdisclose that the fare reduction is actually a service students pay for with a $180 Gator Pass fee every semester.

Another issue of contention is, like the $160 Recreation and Wellness Center fee, the Gator Pass fee is a flat-rate, blanket fee regardless of whether students choose to take advantage of the program.

Computer science major Rishabh Bajpai uses BART to commute from Fremont and he thinks the fee should be paid only by students who elect to use the Gator Pass.

“I think that there should be more communication or it should be optional depending on if you want to have transit benefits,” Bajpai said. “I don’t think people should be paying for something they don’t use.”

Director of SF State’s Department of Fiscal Operations John Gates said the execution of the program required long negotiations with SFMTA and BART, and ultimately SF State worked out two separate contracts with the transit agencies.

The bulk of the fee, $128 per student, goes to Muni, for unlimited rides on buses and cable cars within its system, and the remainder covers the BART fare reduction on rides beginning and terminating at Daly City station.

The program first got off the ground after students voted in favor of assessing themselves the $180 fee in 2016 based on an ASI referendum.

But many students who matric-

ulated after the referendum was passed may have taken SAEM’s email referring to the fare reduction as a “discount” at face value, especially if they haven’t studied their student fees closely.

“I definitely feel like that form of advertisement is very misleading,” said senior Kim Slater, who studies in the music department. “I feel like we’re told that there is an amount of money we have to pay, but what we’re paying for is always ambiguous.”

Bajpai said that, as someone who does not need financial aid, $180 is not as burdensome for him as it might be for someone with less financial security.

“I think the bigger issue is that no one is told,” he said.

The university used transportation studies and surveys by Sustainable State SF to estimate student ridership rates for the development of the Gator Pass program. According to the 2018 survey, the drive-alone rate is steadily decreasing as more students commute via public transportation and split-fare ridesharing.

“When the fee was developed there was a certain assumption [about] BART ridership,” Gates said. “[But] that ridership has been significantly lower than planned.”

According to Gates, Muni negotiated a flat rate to provide the service but the structure of the university’s contract with BART is such that usage is tracked and accounted for, which presents the risk that student use could exceed the prepaid amount covered by student fees.

But because fewer students took advantage of the program than initially anticipated, an excess of funding was left on the table, which opened the door to a further reduction in students’ BART fares in 2019 without increasing the Gator Pass fee.

International business major Hajar Sertou, who commutes from El Cerrito, said she uses her Gator Pass to get to SF State, but because of the Daly City limitation, she does not always get to take advantage of the reduced fare.

“Sometimes I stop at Balboa Park [station] if I’m late to class and [then] I take the 29 bus,” she said. “But I have to pay more for that.”

Nevertheless, Sertou says she feels like she gets her money’s worth.

“I calculated it, and if we didn’t get the 25 percent that we get now, it would add up to more than $180 dollars [per semester],” she said.

“So it’s definitely worth it.”

But over the last decade the number of SF State students like Sertou living in the East Bay has gone up, with Alameda and Contra Costa Counties seeing an increase between four and five percent since 2008. Meanwhile in that same time, the number of respondents reporting their residential location as San Francisco has fallen from 54 percent to 41 percent.

Such demographics changes seem to indicate that expanding fare reductions to outlying transit agencies could potentially help a broader spectrum of the student body than unlimited Muni rides, but Gates said that extending such programs to the East Bay would be a huge undertaking and extremely expensive.

“The [current] fee would not support extending the discount throughout the East Bay,” he said.

One thing that is under consideration, however, is including Balboa Park station as a second entry and exit point eligible for a reduced BART fare.

“As soon as we have this program under our belt and have an idea of [what] it’s costing, if there’s money left over, we’ll look into doing that,” he said.

Such a move could combat the bottleneck problem students deal with at Daly City station, and Sertou is all for it.

“There are lines and lines waiting for the shuttle sometimes,” she said. ”You have to wait for the next shuttle to come and it’s not very organized. I think opening up Balboa Park [to the Gator Pass discount] would be a lot better.”

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CAMPUS 3

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019

Blaze devastates lives, investigation into cause halts work •

FIRE

the time of the accident. MasTec is cooperating with investigators to determine the cause of the incident and all work has been halted until further notice, according to Flato.

MasTec President John Higgins offered his condolences in a public statement: “On behalf of all of us at MasTec, we want to express our deep concern for those affected by the gas line rupture earlier today. We are working in close coordination with the public safety officials and understand that no injuries or fatalities were reported in connection with the incident.”

Hong Kong Lounge II also issued a statement online, informing the pubFrom page 1

lic that all guests and employees at the restaurant during the fire were accounted for and safe. In addition to thanking the community for its support, ownership wrote that it does not foresee the business reopening any time soon.

Approximately 2,500 PG&E customers lost power from the fire, which has since been restored. Jimenez said workers shut off the flow of gas at 3:36 p.m.

Some 300 customers will be without gas until the damage is repaired.

At a press meeting held near the incident, San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said a private contractor doing fiber-optic work caused the fire when workers hit a gas line.

“At this point there are no injuries associated with it,” Hayes-White said.

“We have cordoned off and set up a perimeter on a block on each side of where the incident is. All those buildings were searched to make sure residents were alerted and evacuated.”

The Huckleberry Youth Clinic is one institution that had to be relocated due to the explosion.

Higgins identified the two subcontractors working under MasTec as Fiber Works, Inc. and Kilford Engineering.

Construction companies are required to call 811 before they begin digging in an area to know what is below the surface, which is a “standard procedure,” Jimenez said.

Hayes-White said the the buildings affected by the blaze were businesses and residences.

•

POLICY

From page 1

“With something as significant as the question of the academic calendar, it definitely requires due diligence,” CFA’s SF State Chapter President James Martel said. “This has a huge impact on faculty time, on classrooms, on scheduling and on so many various issues that it would be negligent if we didn’t require a meet and confer as is required and made possible in the [union] contract.”

The Academic Senate and the Chancellor’s Office, however, held that F17-242 merely highlights the requirements of a 1976 policy that created finals week in the first place.

“San Francisco State University’s policy dating back to 1976 and the Academic Senate meeting minutes indicate that faculty will schedule a finals week every semester, and that all classes are expected to meet during finals week, regardless if a final exam is scheduled or not,” CSU Director of Public Affairs Toni Molle said.

“Academic Senate Policy F17-242 is not a new policy, but a restatement of the 1976 requirements.”

University spokeswoman Mary Kenny said that irrespective of whether more recent Academic Calendar policies failed to include language requiring classes to meet during finals week, the absence of such language didn’t supersede the old policy.

“The expectation for

The Academic Senate will put the drafted proposal up to its first vote at their meeting Tuesday, but Martel stressed that the CFA will still request to meet and confer with CSU on this new policy as well as a matter of course, because of the deep impact any changes to the academic calendar can have on faculty.

In addition to removing the requirement for classes to meet during finals, the draft proposal would allow classes to meet at their regularly scheduled days and times instead of following the finals schedule.

“I think and believe and hope that this new addendum about classes meeting during finals week being optional represents prog-

“Transparency and conferencing would help avoid these kinds of problems in the future.”

- James Martel, CFA SF State Chapter President

ress,” Martel said. “And I hope it helps the administration understand that reference to doctrine from the 1970s is not an adequate basis for claiming that something is or isn’t a new policy, especially a policy that has been moribund for many years.”

-John Higgins, MasTech president

“We anticipate some displacement and we have some reunification sites,” HayesWhite said. “One is at Mel’s Diner, up the street.”

The Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption provided shelter for Richmond District residents displaced by the fire, but no one checked in that evening according to a tweet from KRON 4 reporter Gayle Ong.

CORRECTION

Union challenges outdated requirements from 1976 classes to meet during finals week has been in place since 1976,” she said. “Given the policy and expectation for classes to meet during finals week has been long-standing, there is no obligation to meet and confer.”

But because the Chancellor’s Office took the position that they were not required to meet and confer, Martel and Hanley spread the word to faculty on behalf of the union that the policy is invalid.

“Transparency and conferencing would help avoid these kinds of problems in the future,” Martel said. “The union is entrusted, as is the administration presumably, in [creating] policies that are maximally helpful to the faculty, as well as following all required guidelines.”

More recently, Martel said, a representative for the CSU reached out to the CFA and offered to fulfill the CSU’s duty to meet and confer on policy changes over email, but the union viewed such an informal practice as insufficient.

Despite the Academic Senate’s stance that F17242 doesn’t affect faculty working conditions and is not a change in policy, they took a look at the issue anyway last week and came up with a drafted policy proposal that offers some relief to the concerns raised by faculty members who believed that their academic freedom is being tampered with.

“...we want to express our deep concern for those affected by the gas line rupture earlier today.”

In the last week’s issue on Feb.5 , the story “Faculty union contest Academic Senate final’s schedule,” the writer’s email was jparker1@sfsu.edul.com,” when it should have read “jparker1@ mail.sfsu.edu”.

The same error was made in the “Campus holds open search.” It should read “cherrera@mail.sfsu.edu”.

In this same story, the last two paragraphs were from the “Hit-and-run kills SF State student visiting home during winter break,” story that ran on the Jan. 28, 2019. The story was used as placement text by the designer and was overlooked.

In the story, “Photographer turns lifelong passion into profession,” on page 5 of the Feb. 5, 2019 issue, Nathan Kosta was quoted saying he gives away his art for free. Kosta said he has given art away in the past but is currently selling his artwork.

The article also innacurately states he is a “curator” when he is a “creator.”

On the page 7 of the issue, the schedule next to the story “Men’s rugby falls to University of Nevada-Reno Wolf Pack...,” is for the softball team.

The Xpress regrets these errors.

SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY

A NNOUNCEMENT PROPOSED CHANGES TO PROGRAM IMPACTION EFFECTIVE FALL 2020 San Francisco State University will hold a series of three public hearings to discuss proposed changes to admissions guidelines for the 2020-2021 academic year. These changes will affect freshmen and community college transfers. The proposed changes involve the removal of impaction at the program level at San Francisco State University for five (5) majors. To receive input from the public, hearings will be held on: Friday, 02/22/19, 11am-12pm, City of College of San Francisco, MUB 39 (Room M27) Friday, 03/01/19, 4-6pm, College of San Mateo, Building 10, Room 468 Monday, 03/04/19, 11 am-12pm, SFSU, Student Services Building, Room101 These meetings are wheelchair accessible. Individuals requiring other accommodations should contact SF State at 415-338-7227 as soon as possible. For more information on San Francisco State University program impaction, please visit the Impaction website at http://future.sfsu.edu/impaction

4 CITY

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019

Snow and hail dust Bay Area CARLY WIPF AND RYAN LEE Xpress Reporters cwipf@mail.sfsu.edu rlee13@mail.sfsu.edu

A sudden drop in temperatures brought rain, snow, and hail to the Bay Area for the first week of February, taking many residents by surprise with no signs of stopping in the days to come.

Bay Area residents reported chunks of hail pelleting the ground after temperatures dropped to as low as 40 degrees on Feb. 5. Data from the National Weather Service showed the normal temperature for this time of year ranges in the mid-40s.

SF State meteorology professor John Monteverdi said while hail and snow are rare, they are normal weather patterns and are not caused by climate change.

“In a typical lifespan someone is going to experience it maybe hundreds of times,” Monteverdi said. “But [to] a person who has only

been here a few years, it seems unusual to have such cold and snow to low elevations.”

There is a good chance showers will continue this upcoming Wednesday, Thursday and Friday following the recent storms, according to Steve Anderson, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service.

“We’re keeping an eye on a weather system developing now for next weekend,” Anderson said.

This system, known as an “atmospheric river”, has the potential to increase rainfall in the Bay Area, according to Anderson.

Snow blanketed Bay Area peaks such as Mount Hamilton, Mount Helena and Mount Diablo during the cold spurt.

The frozen flakes fluttered down as low as 920 feet above sea level and dusted San Francisco’s Twin Peaks early Feb. 5.

Anderson said the snow did not last long and seeing snow this heavy again will be highly unlikely because the last time the Bay Area experienced

such conditions was in 2011.

Temperatures are still bound to chap the Bay Area, but will at least remain above freezing, according to the National Weather Service.

The daytime highs in the region this past week were on average five to seven degrees cooler than usual for this time of year. San Francisco received 2.1 inches of rain in the first eight days of February, which is slightly above average.

“If it feels a little cooler than normal, then you are correct,” Anderson said. “It is cooler than normal, but only by a few degrees.”

Even slight differences in temperature and precipitation are causing some local organizations to take action.

San Francisco Public Works provided free sandbags for San Francisco residents whose homes are prone to flooding on Feb. 2.

“With a lot of rain there are a lot of leaks,” said Jon Hardisty, a

JAMES CHAN/Golden Gate Xpress

People walk through the rain outside the Cesar Chavez building at SF State on Monday, Feb. 4, 2019.

“The weather is around us, it makes a difference every day...It can be catastrophic.”

-John Monteverdi, SF State meteorology professor

painter for SF State’s maintenance department.

The recent change in weather caused many University buildings to leak and require patching and painting by the faculty.

The change in weather also affected many homeless in San Francisco, as shelters braced for an influx of people seeking refuge from the elements.

“When the weather

becomes extreme, an alert is sent out and we provide an additional 25 mats,” said Shari Wooldridge, executive director of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. “Most days we are at capacity of the 340 beds we have.”

Scott W. Walton, manager of the Shelters and Navigation Centers, a program associated with San Francisco’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH), sent a memo

on Feb. 7 stating that all HSH partners should focus on wellness checks of individuals in need of medical treatment or emergency services. The HSH also provides assistance for those seeking shelter.

The San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team will also be providing socks and ponchos to homeless, according to the memo.

“The weather is around us, it makes a difference every day,” Monteverdi said. “It can be catastrophic…ultimately people are worried about that because it could affect their lives.”

CALIFORNIA SEA LIONS KILLED TO PRESERVE OREGON FISH CARLY WIPF Xpress Reporter cwipf@mail.sfsu.edu

California sea lions, like the ones Bay Area residents know to lazily sunbathe on Pier 39, are being killed by Oregon wildlife officials for dining on diminishing fish populations.

An estimated 93 sea lions per year will be euthanized by lethal injection as an emergency measure to protect endangered winter steelhead and spring chinook salmon, a move that is creating friction between marine mammal advocates and fish preservationists.

Rick Swart, spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, said that although they are permitted to euthanize 93 animals annually, he has only seen 40 at a time come through the department.

Swart said their euthanization program would not drastically reduce the number of sea lions at Pier 39, but would help stabilize salmon and steelhead

populations that are vital to Oregon’s fish industry.

From the sea lion rookery, or breeding ground, in the California Channel Islands, male sea lions leave the females to care of their pups before they head north until the next breeding season. They take a route along the Columbia River into Oregon where they feast on the trove of fish along the Willamette River and the Bonneville Dam. Michael Milstein, spokesperson for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Oregon, said the situation at the dam was unique due to the fish ladder, a stair-like structure that allows the schools to bypass the dam.

Here the flow of salmon and steelhead is congested, making the area particularly exciting for the hungry sea lions, who consume 25 percent of the native annual steelhead population, according to data from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“If your entire run is 2,000 fish and change and you whack 500 of them by the sea lions ... you don’t have to be a math wizard to figure out if you’re going to run out of fish in a hurry,” Swart said.

The capturing of sea lions for euthanasia began in December 2018 when Congress passed the Endangered Salmon Predation Prevention Act, allowing NOAA to issue permits authorizing the culling of sea lions.

Swart said sea lions “self-select,” or willingly go into open trap doors set by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to determine which sea lions get euthanized.

The other legal green light for euthanasia: If a sea lion is seen near Willamette Falls eating at least two fish.

Sea lions can easily consume double that amount each day.

“They don’t even eat them all … they just rip them up sometimes,” Swart said. “It makes me sort of sick to my stomach to see those fish get thrashed.”

Dr. Jeff Boehm, executive director of the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, said his organization understands the economic and social complexities of the steelhead shortage, but called the sea lion killings short-sighted.

“First and foremost our interest is the marine mammals that we care for and their ocean home,” Boehm said.

“And we just simply think there are other solutions, other issues that should be addressed before killing sea lions as the short-term solution.”

Sea lions were endangered until the 1970s. The Marine Mammal Protection Act went into effect in 1972, which commenced the Bay Area marine mammal advocates’ decades-long battle to keep the population from going extinct.

California sea lion numbers climbed from 88,924 to around 300,000 since the act passed.

This is why preservationists like Boehm are calling the cullings an “assault” on the very

act responsible for elevating the sea lion population back to healthy numbers.

“California sea lions themselves, especially here in San Francisco Bay Area, are just iconic for the region,” Boehm said. “They are welcomed in the San Francisco Bay, celebrated at Pier 39 and are just a part of our natural history culture on this coast.”

Milstein said, “The challenge here is to find the balance between [sea lions and fish] that allows both species to recover and be healthy.”

Both sides agreed that creating better fish habitats as opposed to killing sea lions is ideal in a long-term preservation plan. Swart suggested alternatives such as helping facilitate fish migrations and supporting hatcheries.

“The erosion of the ecosystem is something that none of us wants to happen and every incremental loss in the ecosystem hurts the system as a whole,” he said.

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

CULTURE 5

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019

MFA students explore human condition, melancholy through ‘Laughter and Tears’ LEFT & BOTTOM: A performance art troupe acts out “The Genesis of Leymusoom,” a story developed by UC Berkeley student Heesoo Kwon, during the “Laughter and Tears” art show curated

by SF State MFA students at Embark Gallery in the Marina district on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019.

ALL PHOTOS BY TRISTEN ROWEAN/Golden Gate Xpress AUDREY ESOMONU Xpress Reporter aesomonu@mail.sfsu.edu

Glittery bananas and poopshaped ceramics were among the whimsical art on display at the “Laughter and Tears” art exhibition.

The “Laughter and Tears” exhibition opened Friday night at Embark Gallery, located in the Marina district of San Francisco. The show was curated by two SF State Master of Fine Arts candidates, Natasha Loewy and Kristen Wong.

Four of the 11 artists featured are current SF State graduate students.

Through a variety of media like ceramic, chewing gum and marble, the exhibition demonstrated a theme of juxtaposition by displaying artwork that alluded to intense social issues with humor. According to the gallery guide, the exhibition aims to create laughter and to further explore the melancholy and absurdity of the human condition.

At the beginning of the exhibition, the lights in the gallery dimmed and UC Berkeley student Heesoo Kwon’s performance, “Genesis of Leymusoom,” began.

Kwon, alongside six other performers, danced to honor the religion Kwon created called Leymusoom to support

a feminist dystopian society.

Together the troupe mimicked, danced and acted to a recording on the written piece of the Genesis by Kwon.

The performers donned black and wore patterned paper masks with colorful cotton-stuffed stockings hanging from their heads like wigs. The costumes were original pieces of Kwon’s exhibit “Bbobbos and Eebbobbos,” through which she wished to spread the ideology of a world that appreciates all of Earth’s creatures.

When the performance concluded, the gallery was left littered with pieces of brown ceramic shaped like feces, much to the audience’s confusion and wonder.

The show’s singular ending, according to Kwon, was representative of day five of the Leymusoom Genesis when god fed the Bbobbos great foods of fulfillment, causing them to collectively defecate.

The feces-shaped ceramics were not the only unusual installations at the exhibition.

SF State graduate art student Calum Craik showcased his piece titled “Monument,” which consisted of a large piece of gum attached to a steel stick poking up from the gallery’s wooden floor. With this piece, Craik aimed to discuss social issues like employment and the narrowing workforce.

The gum art took just 30 minutes to create, at a cost of $7.50 and it is now on sale for $1,200. He described his piece as something simple yet subliminal.

Richard Bond, an SF State studio art major in attendance, described Craik’s piece as his favorite of the night. Bond attended the show because Craik had invited some of the students from his class. Craik is a teacher’s assistant at SF State. “‘Monument’ provides an uplifting energy to the gallery,” Bond said.

Many attendees passed right

by Craik’s installation Friday without noticing it because of its placement. But once viewers caught on to the subtle art, they often laughed and knelt down to examine it more closely.

His second installation, “Vessels, Barriers and Containers (i),” was created from a piece of marble from a San Francisco condo-development site. The chunk of marble leaned against the white wall and at its base was a bronze lemon slice attached by a black elastic hairband. Craik said the abstract piece alludes to a variety of topics but he believed the most relatable theme is the constant development of housing in urban areas.

SF State graduate art stu-

dent Leslie Samson-Tabakin’s “Cloud Pleaser” exhibit was also a crowd pleaser.

It featured real bananas covered in glitter and hanging from the ceiling. Attendees were encouraged to and did interact with the installation by spinning the bananas and taking pictures, videos and boomerangs of the whirling, glimmering fruit.

Samson-Tabakin attempts to use whimsical absurdity and material seduction in her installments in order to provoke questions in the minds of viewers.

Other installments in the exhibition featured video animation, pigment print, hematite, porcelain and a mood ring.

Guests expressed appreciation for the venue and its open nature to featuring such

outspoken art.

“Artists are very unrepresented right now,” said attendee Isaac Vega.

He said he thinks exhibitions like “Laughter and Tears” are good for the culture, especially because Embark Gallery offers a space for Bay Area art students to exhibit their work and feel represented.

Many of the pieces featured in the show are for sale and the prices are included in the gallery guide available at the exhibit.

The “Laughter and Tears” exhibition will be open at Embark Gallery every Thursday through Saturday from 1-6 p.m. until March 30.

6 OPINON

Xprëßß Gøldëñ Gåtë

EDITORIAL BOARD VOL. 109, ISSUE 3 Lorenzo Morotti Editor-in-Chief lmorotti@mail.sfsu.edu Monserrath Arreola Print Managing Editor marreola@mail.sfsu.edu Julie Parker Campus News Editor jparker1@mail.sfsu.edu Paul Eichenholtz City News Editor peichenh@mail.sfsu.edu Alexis Manzanilla Lifestyle & Culture Editor amanzanilla@mail.sfsu.edu Jailene Escutia Opinion Editor jescutiachavez@mail.sfsu.edu

Lola Chase Photo Editor lchase1@mail.sfsu.edu Devon Haripal Sports Editor dharipal@mail.sfsu.edu Ildar Sabirov Assistant Sports Editor isabirov@mail.sfsu.edu Cody McFarland Copy Editor cmcfarla@mail.sfsu.edu Chelsey Schallig Assistant Copy Editor cschallig@mail.sfsu.edu Christian Urrutia Art Director curruti1@mail.sfsu.edu

President search needs voices

A

s President Leslie Wong’s turbulent tenure leading SF State comes to an end, we believe our next president should be more transparent and accountable to the most important constituency groups — teachers, staff and students.

Last fall, Wong announced that he is retiring at the end of July.

During his time, Wong and other administrators in Academic Affairs and Student Affairs and Enrollment Management (SAEM) have been routinely criticized for responding poorly, or outright ignoring crucial issues like housing, tuition costs, harassment and student organizations autonomy.

Most recently, the coalition of student organizations called the Third World Liberation Front occupied the hallway outside Wong’s office in the Administration Building to commemorate the 1968 student-led strike.

Students in organizations like the General Union of Palestine Students, MEChxA, La Raza and the Black Student Union chanted as Wong hid in his office.

Eventually, Vice President of SAEM Luoluo Hong and Vice President of University Enterprise Jason Porth intervened, ejecting protesters from the hallway.

This tactic in dealing with the Third World Liberation Front seems to echo the aftermath of the

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2016 Hunger Strike. Students refused food for 10 days to demand support for the funding-starved College of Ethnic Studies — the first and only in the nation.

The university finally signed off on a series of demands, but to this day many of those demands have been left unmet. Frustrations about these issues surfaced at the President Search Committee Open Forum held in McKenna Theater, Feb. 5.

At the open forum, students, staff and faculty members aired concerns about the lack of transparency among administrators and criticized the fact that only one member of the Advisory Committee to the Trustees Committee for the Selection of the President (ACTCSP) is a student.

“If we talked about student issues with administration on this campus we would be here for days,” Kaiden Talesh, African studies major, said during the meeting.

“Activism is not a footnote on this campus, it’s a legacy. This legacy is not ended.”

Xpress agrees, but for the institution to embody this requires that administration listens to the people who are most invested in activism — students.

Talesh also pointed out that the only student representative is Associated Students Inc. President Nathan Jones.

This concern led the Associated Students Inc. board of directors to pass a resolution to add two more student representatives to the search committee, according to an AS press release.

“The AS calls for the improvement of transparency and shared governance in the process for selection of the university president at SFSU both in policy and in practice and for changes to be enacted immediately for this and all future searches,” the resolution read.

While this is a move in the right direction, it does not at all ensure that the student voices will be represented.

It also raises questions regarding how these two additional students will be selected and which groups they are going to represent.

This campus is a salad of different cultures, religions, political ideologies and ethnicities that should be listened to, not ignored.

Three students are not enough.

An entire board of students representatives, not from ASI, would provide a better sense of what students need in a college president.

Yet, if this administration has taught us anything it’s that it will pick the path of least resistance when interacting with students and simply agree to changes while hiding in their ivory tower.

- Golden Gate Xpress Editorial Board

And the Academy Awards host is...no one

Tahnia Ortega Social Media Editor tortegag@mail.sfsu.edu

Kim Komenich Photo Faculty Adviser komenich@sfsu.edu

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019

STAFF EDITORIAL

Brian Vu Multimedia Editor bvu2@mail.sfsu.edu

Jesse Garnier Faculty Adviser jgarnier@sfsu.edu

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

MONSERRATH ARREOLA Print Managing Editor marreola@mail.sfsu.edu

T

he Academy Awards has it all — celebrities, prestige, glamour and per usual controversy. For the first time in 30 years, the pinnacle of award show season will have no one onstage providing that reliable comedic relief. This announcement follows nearly two months after Kevin Hart fell into hot water for his resurfaced homophobic tweets shortly after being announced as the host. This foolishly bold decision has gotten more attention than any Oscar snub this awards season, as it should.

The first Academy Awards in 1929, hosted by Douglas Fairbanks and William C. deMille, was the beginning of what has become a long-standing tradition for the show. A tradition they’ve strayed from only a handful of times starting in 1939, 1969-1971 and lastly in 1989. Previously, the academy opted for returning hosts including Bob Hope (19 times) and Billy

Crystal (9 times), to serve as the face of the show. In recent years, returning hosts have become rare and the academy has opted for a trendy, popular host like Hart.

Award show hosts serve a bigger purpose than just telling a few jokes. They warm up the crowd, set the tone for the evening and serve as a symbol of the network’s constant effort to boost ratings. It’s no secret that television networks have experienced declining viewership for decades, a result of an influx of entertainment mediums and possibilities. In a binge watching era where 30 second commercials seem to last a lifetime, awards shows need everything possible to lure viewers to sit through a nearly four hour broadcast. It is undetermined what the structure of the show will look like but chances are they will be relying on big name presenters to bridge the gaps.

Hart’s resignation is divisive in itself. Some, including Hart, believe that his tweets should be left in the past and people should accept that he’s changed, while others feel they hold weight to this day and are unsatisfied with Hart’s response.

However, the decision from the academy to simply forgo a host instead of replacing him seems out of left field, especially looking back at the last time the show went hostless in 1989.

The 61st Academy Awards isn’t best remembered for Rain Man

winning best picture, Dustin Hoffman winning best actor, or Jodie Foster winning best actress. No, it’s remembered for the weird, confusing musical number “I Want To Be An Oscar Winner” that replaced the usual monologue slot. Thirty years later, the academy finds itself in the same predicament of figuring out how to maintain interest while avoiding a major flub again.

Given the recent 2015 #OscarsSoWhite movement, created by April Reign, seeking to call out a lack of diversity in the academy’s nominees, it is understandable that the academy wants to steer clear from criticism as best it can.

Despite Hart’s early on resignation as the host, critique seemed to continue and the show couldn’t find it’s way back. To the academy’s credit, this could be the solution to its ongoing struggle to cut down the broadcast’s length. Without a host the show has a fighting chance to land closer to the three-hour mark.

As they say in show business, the show must go on. Host or no host, the 91st Academy Awards is set to broadcast on Feb. 24. Only time will tell if the academy dodged a bullet or bit the nail in its coffin by forgoing this award show staple.

There’s one thing everyone can agree on, the only thing worse than forgoing a host, would be a repeat of the infamous co-hosts, Anne Hathaway and James Franco fiasco.

What concerns are you hoping to see addressed with the upcoming SF State President search?

Jerson Picasso, 18 Electrical Engineering “I know there has been a problem that there has not been enough counseling for students [...] so I would want for them to provide some more counseling.”

Rachel Hanley, 19 Cinema

“I’m looking for someone that’s going to be more of a help with solving issues like student and teacher homelessness, food security, and other issues students on this campus have tried to make an effort for.”

Hind Zeitohn, 18 Astrophysics

“One big thing that I always hear about but I don’t hear the university president mention enough is the amount of sexual assault on campus, so I think we should value students’ health more.”

Jon Mulry, 44 Campus Painter “I would just want them to keep the liberal attitude of the school going.”

ALEXIS MANZANILLA AND JAMES CHAN/Golden Gate Xpress

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

SPORTS 7

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Sonoma State humbles Gators in home loss ALEJANDRO NAVARRO

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Xpress Reporter anavarro10@mail.sfsu.edu

The women’s basketball team came out flat in their loss to Sonoma State 78-65 at The Swamp Saturday.

The Gators fell behind from the start of the game, trailing by eight points by the end of the first quarter. They fell by as much as 11 points with 1:25 to play in the first.

“We weren’t sharing the ball with each other,” said Danielle Parker, senior guard for the Gators. “We were all playing by ourselves.”

Yet another lackluster performance extends the Gators losing streak to six.

The team’s leading scorer, Jhaina Stephens, averaging 14.5 points per game, struggled most of the game, shooting 1-4, giving away two turnovers and committing three fouls in eight minutes. She got into early foul trouble and the offense became stagnant without her on the court.

“We ended up playing hero ball,” said Natasha Smith, head coach of the Gators. “[Stephens] is a great defensive presence and she is our greatest offensive weapon, so anytime she is sitting, it hurts.”

“On the defensive end, our girls were playing hard,” Smith said. “They were playing hard, but it was not smart. Once they were out of position, it put everyone else at risk and there’s no help to help the

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Balser’s game-winner stuns Seawolves JULIAN MONCALEANO Xpress Reporter jmoncaleano@mail.sfsu.edu

The Gators men’s basketball team won their third-straight game on Saturday, Feb. 9 against the Sonoma State Seawolves 7068.

Graduate guard Jordan Balser led the way with a 31-point performance, a new career-high, and the Gators now own the season series against the Seawolves.

Balser came out firing and scored the first 10 points for the Gators as they jumped to an early lead, but Sonoma’s Jordan Hickman kept the Seawolves in the game by adding 19 points off the bench.

The Seawolves turned up the defense in the last two minutes of the half, preventing the Gators from scoring. The Seawolves closed the half strong and finished on a 5-0 run.

Balser scored 22 of the Gators

games left.”

SEAWOLVES Entering the fourth quarter, GATORS Stephens only had two points, but she was able to get aggressive in the fourth. She scored 17 points in the last quarter alone.

With a few minutes left and the game all but won for Sonoma, Stephens stayed aggressive and drove to the basket where she was hit midair and took a hard fall on her hip. She got up, walked it off and appeared fine. ”I do not remember that,” Stephens said. “I just could not get my feet under me when I was falling” The Gators had a miserable shooting TRISTEN ROWEAN/Golden Gate Xpress Toni Edwards (3) drives the ball down the court as the SF State Gators play the night, with only 36.5 percent and 26.3 accuracy from beyond the arc.

Sonoma State Seawolves at The Swamp on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019.

“We try to rush things, [that’s] the bighelper.” the paint. gest problem,” Parker said. “We will play The game seemed out of reach at “They wanted it more,” Stephens said. hard, but we’re not doing the right thing.” halftime as the Seawolves nearly doubled “They were outhustling and outworking With the Gators, down as much as 27 the score on the Gators, 41-22. The lowest us until we decided to turn it on. The points and not leading at all during the scoring Gator half since Dec 1st. sense of urgency they had compared game, it was their self-respect that made “I think our problem was that we did to us, they would go for loose balls and them keep playing. not keep our poise,” said senior Gators everyone for Sonoma was cheering.” ”It is a pride thing,” Smith said. “You guard Amani Alexander. “We were trying Parker was able to put in 10 points have to give everything that you have to score right away instead of relaxing from the bench, the team’s second-leadlike you should anytime you step on the and [running] a play.” ing scorer and was also able to grab three floor.”

Overall, the Gators allowed Sonoma offensive rebounds.

SF State looks to get back on track State to shoot over 55 percent from the “I was confident,” Parker said. “My when they play at Cal State East Bay on field and 40 percent from downtown. teammates gave me some good passes, so Thursday, Feb. 14th at 1 p.m.

The Seawolves were able to penetrate San that helped of course. I got to play hard.

Francisco’s defense and score 46 points in I am a senior, so I only have a couple of

35 points in the first half, yet they trailed by two heading into the second half.

The Gators came out of the locker room lacking energy and coach Vince Inglima needed a spark off the bench.

Senior guard/forward Chiefy Ugbaja answered the call and changed the momentum of the game with his aggressive play.

“We got really stagnant and really flat,” said Inglima. “Chiefy’s such a dynamic athlete and he’s an energy giver that plays with such intensity. He really changed the dynamic of the game in the second half.”

Ugbaja’s energy started an 11-0 run that included a big time three from senior Ryne Williams and gave the Gators an eight-point lead.

After starting the first half on fire, Balser did not make a shot in the second half until the 12-minute mark, which was all he needed to get started.

“It came down to JB tonight he was on his stuff and that 31-point performance saved us. This was a big win for us. We’re going on three-straight [wins] right now,” Williams said.

Down the stretch Balser and Hickman were battling, but it was Balser who had the last say. With the game tied 68-68, Balser scored the game-winning shot with six

65

seconds GATORS left on the clock.

The Gators shot a SEAWOLVES combined 52 percent from the field including eight 3-pointers, four of them coming from Balser and three from Williams. Balser was the only player in double digits for the Gators, but the Gators elite team defense kept them in the game.

The Gators leading scorer, graduate guard Jiday Ugbaja, was held in check and finished with his second-lowest scoring performance of the season, managing to score only four points.

Ugbaja will get his chance to bounce back next week against the Cal State East Bay Pioneers.

He dropped 20 points in their first meeting earlier in the season.

The Gators will need to improve on the bench as they were outscored 29-15. SF State’s bench was successful in their last bout against the Pioneers, outscoring them 22-17.

But even with the bench winning their battle, the Gators were downed by the Pioneers 83-76.

“They got us here earlier in the year and they don’t beat themselves. We’ve won three in a row and we’re starting to play better and we’re hitting our stride,” said

70 68

TRISTEN ROWEAN/Golden Gate Xpress

Chiefy Ugbaja (23) shoots to score as the SF State Gators play the Sonoma State Seawolves at The Swamp on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019.

Inglima.

The Gators visit the Pioneers on Thursday, Feb. 14 at 7:30 p.m. with coach Inglima seeing this matchup

as an opportunity to gauge just how good his team can play with momentum.

8 PHOTO

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 2019

Bystanders watch as flames engulf a building near the intersection of Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue after a gas explosion in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco, on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019.

Inferno ignites Inner Richmond ALL PHOTOS BY: CHRIS ROBLEDO/Golden Gate Xpress

Flames engulf a building after a gas explosion near the intersection of Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019.

Flames are extinguished by local SFFD firefighters after a gas explosion burned multiple buildings near the intersection of Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019.

Bystander talks to police as flames engulf a building near the intersection of Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019.