APRIL 3, 2018
THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO SINCE 1892
VOL. 129, ISSUE 36
Aldermanic Candidate Condemns CBA Rent Increase BY ELAINE CHEN NEWS REPORTER
Gabriel Piemonte, candidate for Fifth Ward Alderman, condemned April 1 rent increases in Jackson Park Terrace, an apartment building across from the proposed Obama Presidential Center, in a press release on Friday. “The gouging has begun before a shovel has pierced the ground for the Obama Center,” Piemonte wrote in the press release. On Tuesday, members of the Obama Library South Side Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) Coalition protested rent increases in the apartment building, claiming that the incoming Center has incentivized the building owner, Leon Finney, to increase rents by between $100 and $300. The Coalition also demanded that aldermen pass a CBA ordinance to protect residents from displacement. Incumbent Fifth Ward Alderman Leslie Hairston, who will be running for re-election, said she will not support a CBA ordinance and argued that rent increases are not linked to the Center but instead are happening because tenants previously did not pay the full price of
their apartments. Piemonte challenged Hairston in his release: “Where is the Alderman?” Piemonte said. “She should be standing up for these constituents. Instead, she defended the rate increase.” Piemonte called on the Chicago Housing Authority, which subsidizes the building, to freeze current and future rent increases in Woodlawn. He also announced that he is launching a citizens’ investigation into other properties owned or managed by Finney in and around the Fifth Ward. “Government agencies must recognize that folks who live here are at risk of losing their homes to ruthless speculators like Finney,” Piemonte wrote. In the past, the Woodlawn Community Development Corporation, a nonprofit that Finney founded, has amassed code violations for the buildings that it managed. The press release asks residents to “document poor conditions at properties owned or managed by Leon Finney or the Woodlawn Community Development Corporation and text them to 773-717-2842 or email them to gabriel@piemonteinthefifth.org.”
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Phoenix Farms Finalists for $25k BY RIMSHA NAZEER NEWS REPORTER
Phoenix Farms, a beekeeping and gardening RSO, has entered the final round of the Students with Drive Contest, a video submission competition sponsored by Zipcar and Ford for a grand prize worth $25,000. Breaking down the award, the RSO is competing for the chance to win $10,000 for Phoenix Farms along with $10,000 for the school’s scholarship fund and $5,000 in Zipcar credit.
The competition entry requires a video submission about how Zipcar and Ford can help the organization. The winner is determined through number of votes, views, and shares by people on social media as well as judges’ critiques. UChicago alum Mimi Wilcox (A.B. ’16) and Victor Tadashi Suarez filmed and directed the video for Phoenix Farms. Last Friday, the RSO offered free honey samples at Reynolds Club to people who confirmed their Continued on page 2
Yao Xen Tan
The University’s coed Bhangra team performs at SASA’s 31st annual cultural show.
Epsilon Club Votes to Become Coed BY EMILY MAO NEWS REPORTER
Following its recent decision in December to disaffiliate from the national Sigma Phi Epsilon (Sig Ep) fraternity, the Epsilon Club has moved further away from its roots as a fraternity. This past January, the club announced it would no longer be an all-male club. Women will now be welcome in the organization. Varshant Dhar, president of the Epsilon Club, first thought the introduction of an all-gender club would be too immediate of a change following the recent decision of disaffiliation. “However, we were amazed by the strong interest a number of women had in immediately joining our fraternity following disaffiliation,” he said. Dhar noted that the newfound gender inclusivity came about as a “natural progression” rather than as a sudden development, in part because female friends of Sig Ep members have expressed interest in becoming involved before. Dhar also added that the club’s new all-gender status represents a step toward its
“mission of increased inclusivity.” T he change came about th rough a unan imous vote that was reached after multiple meetings and discussions which lasted throughout January. “ We subsequently held a unanimous vote in February to bid two women, Katie Kasperian (third-year) and Emilia McLennan (fourth-year), who have since accepted membership into the Epsilon Club. Furthermore, to support this initiative, we also reached out to two female seniors, Tunisia Tai and Meggie Carroll, who have agreed to join as ambassadors (that is, in a non–dues paying capacity) to support our outreach efforts as we continue to bolster our female membership,” Dhar said. Kasperian said that joining “was mostly kind of natural for me. I’ve hung around what used to be Sig Ep since my first year or so. One of my best friends decided to rush and would bring me around, so I became close to a lot of the guys. When they had initially told me they were going co-ed, it was a really exciting moment because I knew that it
Court Theatre Delivers Commentary With a Side of Comedy
was something they had been tossing around for a while.” Overall, Kasperian recognizes her decision to join as largely positive. “Joining has kind of just given me an excuse to hang out with wonderful people who I already loved to be around, and allowed me to become closer to members who I didn’t know as well. It’s brought a lot more antics and laughter into my life, and I’m really thankful that I get to be a part of this transition,” she said. Dhar said the club’s all-gender status will help promote a safer, more inclusive culture overall. “In addition to embracing a new sexual misconduct policy, we believe this decision is also the right step towards making events hosted by the Epsilon Club safer and more comfortable.” Dhar concludes on the success of the change, saying, “The Epsilon Club and our newest members have fit remarkably well together and we’re thrilled to continue moving forward as a coed social fraternity.” As of March 31, the Epsilon Club’s rush process is open to the entire student body.
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Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner is entertaining, but it’s dubious whether the arguments raised by the play leave any real impact.
Black Americans Have Lost Jobs, Too Page 5 Katsimpalis: Black workers—in addition to white ones—lost manufacturing jobs in the lead up to the 2016 election.
Baseball Battles to Victory Page 8
Excerpts from articles and comments published in T he Chicago Maroon may be duplicated and redistributed in other media and non-commercial publications without the prior consent of The Chicago Maroon so long as the redistributed article is not altered from the original without the consent of the Editorial Team. Commercial republication of material in The Chicago Maroon is prohibited without the consent of the Editorial Team or, in the case of reader comments, the author. All rights reserved. © The Chicago Maroon 2018
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THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3, 2018
Events 4/3–4/5
‘The Wardeness of the North:’ The Story of the Crossbow Meme BY LEE HARRIS
Today
NEWS EDITOR
Sherry Memorial Poet Lecture by Cecilia Vicuña Neubauer Collegium, 6–7:30 p.m. Poet, artist, and filmmaker Cecilia Vicuña, whose artwork is on display at the Neubauer Collegium gallery this spring, will deliver the Pearl Andelson Sherry Memorial Poet Lecture. Based in Chile and New York, Vicuña uses her work to explore broad social concerns, from ecological destruction to human rights to cultural homogenization. She was appointed the Messenger Lecturer 2015 at Cornell University and has published 22 art and poetry books. Anthony Ray Hinton: The Sun Does Shine The Seminary Co-Op, 6–7:30 p.m. Anthony Ray Hinton spent 30 years on death row after he was accused and convicted of murders he did not commit. In The Sun Does Shine, he recounts his experience living in prison and maintaining hope, even in desperate times. Wednesday
The Pleasure Workshop Harper Memorial Library, Room 140, 6–7 p.m. Peer Health Advocates will be discussing myths about sex and presenting a workshop on “what feels good.” Dinner from The Nile will be served. Thursday
A Conversation With President Zimmer International House, 6–7:30 p.m. The Student Government will host a forum with President Zimmer and Dean Boyer. The panel will be moderated by David Axelrod, and will focus on the current issues in higher education, with an emphasis on free expression policies. The event will be preceded by a reception with food in the Rockefeller Lounge. Students must register for the event online.
Support Our Advertisers Page Three: The Civic Knowledge Project will host Timuel D. Black, an associate of Dr. King. Page Four: Howa rd Brown Hea lth provides sexual health services. Rush University Medical Center is seeking participants for a study. Jimmy Johns delivers fresh sandwiches. The Fundamentals department will host a discussion on the power of books. Online: The University of Illinois is taking applications for its fall 2018 Master of Science in Financial Engineering program. If you want to place an ad in T he M ar o on , please e-mail ads@ chicagomaroon.com or visit chicagomaroon.com/ pages/advertise.
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“I desperately need to know which one of y’all had a crossbow in your dorm room,” Sam Joyce wrote in the Facebook group UChicago Memes for Theoretical Midwest Teens last month. His post shared a screenshot of a campus police incident report for “Found Property” at the Campus North residence hall: “Staff member found a cross bow / Turned over to UCPD for safekeeping.” Sam, meet Mickey, the self-described “Wardeness of the North.” In an exclusive interview, Mickey, who asked to be referred to by her nickname, describes her shock upon returning from spring break to learn that her treasured crossbow had been confiscated from her single dorm room. Realizing that her love of whimsy had led her to violate the campus policy on dangerous weapons, she voluntarily turned in a second weapon—a sword, given to her as a parting gift from her ex-boyfriend, which she refers to as “Dark Sister.” Mickey hopes to recover the crossbow and sword from UCPD once she moves out of University housing. “And from my conversation with housing I think that it will be possible, as long as they are not on campus ever again.” In response to request for comment, a University spokesperson confirmed that a dangerous object was confiscated from the dorm room and affirmed the University’s commitment to a safe campus. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity. (Full disclosure: Mickey is a friend of the reporter.) Chicago M aroon: What happened? What was the timeline of events? Walk us through what was ultimately confiscated, and what the University said. Mickey: Housing does room checks over break, and I didn’t really fare well as the most well-armed woman in North. Essentially, I had a Barnett Ghost 360 crossbow sitting at the foot of my bed. It’s pretty menacing—three feet long and 1.5 feet wide. I’d actually taken it for granted as room decor, but clearly it had a very striking presence when someone from the Housing staff came in. I had just come back to campus, and I was running an errand when my RH caught me by chance and told me to check my e-mail. That’s when I saw the summons from Housing and realized it had been confiscated by the UCPD. CM: Was it just the crossbow at that point? M: At the time, it was just the crossbow. It kind of felt like a Horcrux being destroyed. So I ran all the way back to North campus to check on my beloved “Vorpal sword.” CM: Vorpal sword? Can you tell me what that is? M: It’s actually nonsense. I just call it that because I love [Lewis Carroll’s] Through the Looking Glass. It includes a
Pete Grieve
poem about beheading the Jabberwocky with a “Vorpal sword.” My sword’s actual name is “Dark Sister” because it suits me, but also because that’s what Visenya Targaryen named her sword when she was conquering Westeros with her brother Aegon the First from Game of Thrones. CM: So this is a sword named after both Alice in Wonderland and Game of Thrones? M: It’s named after these two fictional swords, yes. So I check to see if Housing confiscated Dark Sister as well, and I see that she’s draped in clothing. The most use that it has gotten all quarter has been to let my laundry dry, unfortunately. I realized that since it was covered in clothing, it was probably overlooked. And I realized that I probably would have to turn it in the next day if I wanted to comply with housing rules. It was a short and serious visit. I volunteered my sword immediately to demonstrate that I am not a threat to the students at this school. I acknowledged that students are not allowed to have weapons in their dorm rooms. I also reassured them that since the crossbow didn’t have arrows or arrowheads—and since it didn’t even have a string to pull back the arrows—it was essentially as useless as a plastic toy. I meant no harm; I could do no harm. The sword, however, could do some damage. I did swing the sword at a block of wood earlier in the year to see if I could dent it, and I did. It’s very blunt, however. I’ve gone sword fighting with it before—without armor on— and I was never afraid of getting skewered, nor was I afraid of someone else getting skewered. So I promised Housing that I was an ally to humans, and to wild bunnies, and to feral cats everywhere running around campus. CM: What did they say to that?
M: They took me at my word. I’ve never had a history of causing any trouble, and the sword and crossbow had barely been in my dorm for very long anyway. I explained to them that I’m not a threat, that I’m just a collector of small and special things that make the heart feel warm. Weapons are sexy in general. There were definitely consequences for my actions, though I’m not sure if I should disclose them here. I was not given preferential treatment. And I want to establish that I did not break any Illinois laws. CM: The sword was on your wall? M: Yeah, the sword was mounted on the wall. I purchased two clothes hangers from Ace Hardware—I got the ones that can really support over 20 pounds each—and I just laid the sword horizontally on the clothes hangers. I draped my sorority’s scarves over the sword to add a little flavor. The crossbow was too heavy to mount, and it just sat there. CM: How did you end up having the crossbow? M: I actually bought the crossbow in New York, on eBay. It’s surprisingly easy. Before it came to campus, I went camping with a boy I was seeing in upstate New York. It was only our third date. For protection and hunting, we decided to bring the crossbow along with us. We drove out to the middle of nowhere, explored during the day, slept in a tent in an open field at night surrounded by howling coyotes, with the crossbow by our side. I think we both had this desire for something more than daily life; we felt like storybook characters, and we wanted to be well-armed like all our favorites were. I don’t really get to go on adventures here as much, so we agreed that we should continue exploring, trespassing, and scavenging together in Chicago. He took it back Continued on page 2
Student Beekeepers and Farmers Compete for Grand Prize Continued from front
vote for Phoenix Farms. Additionally, the club sold its harvested honey in glass and bear-shaped jars. Third-year John Havlik and Pritzker student Nick Lyon (A.B. ’16) began Phoenix Farms to provide a space for students to engage in agricultural activities involving gardening and beekeeping. Currently, the club maintains garden plots in Jackson Park and beehives on the rooftop of Harper Court. “[I was] drawn to this organization because of the opportunity to literally get my
hands dirty digging in the dirt and growing organic fruits and vegetables,” said Havlik, the head gardener. “It gives those students at UChicago who have never grown their own food an opportunity to understand agricultural and apiary dynamics.” “Building on UChicago’s long standing tradition as a botanic garden, students interested in permaculture can explore the concept of permanent, low-maintenance gardens,” said Lyon, the head beekeeper. The University has been designated as a botanical garden by the American Public
Garden Association since 1997. UChicago is one of the few colleges in the United States whose campus itself is considered a botanical garden or arboretum. Last year, Phoenix Farms was selected to receive $1,500 from the Uncommon Fund. The club now has over 170 likes on its Facebook page, 12 active gardeners, and 15 active beekeepers. The RSO is looking to increase its membership and is currently in the process of obtaining plots on campus to allow for easier access.
THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3, 2018
THE DAY DR KING DIED A CONVERSATION WITH PROFESSOR TIMUEL D. BLACK WITH MUSIC OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ERA
WEDNESDAY APRIL 4 12 NOON TO 1:15 PM ROCKEFELLER CHAPEL Starting with a half hour of music of the civil rights era played during the daily 12 noon carillon recital, Dr. Timuel D. Black — Dr. King’s associate, now 99 years old — speaks to Dr. King’s legacy on the 50th anniversary of his tragic assassination in Memphis. Lunchtime refreshments offered. Presented by the Civic Knowledge Project at the University of Chicago, with Rockefeller Chapel
5850 S. WOODLAWN AVE., CHICAGO, IL 60637
rockefeller.uchicago.edu
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THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3, 2018
“ I draped my sorority’s scarves over the sword to add a little flavor.” Continued from front
home to his very impressive personal arsenal of other weapons. He had many swords, many daggers. Certainly a weapons enthusiast. I had always been interested myself. I loved reading about modern missile interception and battle scenes. So the fact that he had swords—I thought it was something else, you know, very special. We would go dueling at the middle of the night; I’d take his lightest one, which just ended up being the one that I ended up keeping. Easier to swing with. CM: What do you mean by “dueling”? M: We’d go to an open space so we could
move around, outdoors, with grass, only at night. War paint on our faces. I’ve never gone fencing before but I imagine it was like that. We would just kind of tap each other. CM: You’d duel with real swords? M: Yes. But they were very blunt, as I said. We were never afraid. Unfortunately, he had to move to California in the middle of winter quarter for his occupation and that was very hard for both of us. While I never intended to bring my crossbow to North in the first place, I had to take it back from him before he left, as it was mine. The sword was a gift from this very sweet transaction we had at the end, when I told him I had always wanted a sword
as a young girl. I built him a website for a product that he was working on in return, because it’s within my skill set. CM: How do you feel about being featured on the meme page? M: It suits me. But there are so many pretenders tagging each other! I am the sword in the darkness, not you. I am the watcher of the wall. I am the Wardeness of the North (campus). CM: Do you plan on putting your weapons back on the wall in the future? If you move off campus, for example? M: No. I mean, I think I’ll return to that phase somewhere else in life, when I’m not living in close proximity to so many people,
and when there’s more time to use them. But here there’s really no point. The only boy that I know who would go sword-fighting with me has a katana, and it’s too sharp. So, maybe later in life. CM: What do the weapons mean to you personally? Why are they such a big part of your identity? M: The crossbow is important to me because it is functional as well as extremely powerful. As I said to you before, I want to live life largely, and I read way too many fantasy books as a kid, so I kind of expect… something more exciting, I guess. And things get a little bit mundane here for me.
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Fundamentals: Issues and Texts announces a public colloquium:
THE POWER OF BOOKS with
Robert Bird
Slavic Languages and Literatures
1525 East 55th Street Chicago, IL 60615 773.388.1600
Services provided by Howard Brown Health 55th St. include: sexual health services, including HIV/STI screening and treatment, sexual assault survivor services, primary care, transgender health services, insurance enrollment, case management, and more.
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Tuesday, April 10th, 4:30-6:30 pm — Classics 110 — Reception to follow This event is recommended for students considering a major in Fundamentals. Persons who may need assistance should contact fundamentals@uchicago.edu.
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THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3, 2018
Community Meeting Discusses 61st Street Development BY CAROLINE KUBZANSKY SENIOR NEWS REPORTER
The University and the Illinois Department of Transportation hosted a meeting for Woodlawn and Hyde Park residents to discuss improvements to the 61st Street area between Cottage Grove Avenue and Blackstone Avenue. 61st Street has increasingly become a focus of the University’s attention as it prepares to break ground on both the Rubenstein Forum and Woodlawn Commons. Residents’ concerns included the street’s appearance, the disparity between the north and south sides of the street, parking, and traffic speed. Following small group sessions in which residents discussed improvements they would like to see to the corridor, each group then presented its top priorities. A recurring theme throughout the meet-
ing was residents’ feeling of exclusion from the University community, aggravated by noticeable differences between the north and south sides of the street, and the various pedestrian barriers placed up and down 61st Street. First-year Jalen Jiang presented for his group and highlighted the “hostile design” differences between the University and Woodlawn sides of 61st Street. “When you look down 61st Street, on one side you have those tall, contemporary skyscrapers, and on the other side you have those three- or four-story apartments,” Jiang said. “On the University side the lighting is brighter, it has more trees, the buildings are taller, and on the south side of 61st Street, it’s often sidewalks, dimmer lighting. We would like to see a more symmetrical design to fix this hostile design.” Alum and Woodlawn resident Michael Madero agreed, emphasizing the need to
make sidewalks around the University more accessible to pedestrians and thereby help integrate the two communities. “Between Woodlawn and Kenwood [Avenues]...it’s virtually impossible to traverse from the south side to the north side. You have to walk all the way around to Woodlawn and then back over, which if you’re a resident, it’s a longer walk.... You feel like you’re a bit of an outsider,” he said. Madero presented for another group and raised questions about the speed of traffic. “Some of us think the traffic pattern as it is is fine,” Madero said. “There is a concern that maybe traffic moves too fast and maybe there are ways to calm that traffic a bit, through either bump-outs or other traffic slowing devices without necessarily instituting more stop signs.” Madero also raised the question of how Woodlawn Commons would impact service vehicles and street crowding.
“When the new dormitory is built…one of the issues that [my apartment] has is that by putting in permitted parking, sometimes you have two or three car spaces that are empty and you have trucks that then idle from the loading zones for the new dormitory,” Madero said. “Where is all the commercial traffic that serves the University going to go?” Fifth Ward Alderman Willie Cochran, who also presented at the meeting, was enthusiastic about the meeting’s outcomes and the questions raised, and expressed optimism about the process and its expected results. “Getting input from people is one of the best ways to [make changes],” Cochran said. “And that’s what we will do, listen to what the residents and the participants have said, take it back, look at it, and move forward from there.” Another meeting about the 61st Street development will take place in June.
VIEWPOINTS Black Communities Have Lost Manufacturing Jobs, Too Black workers—in addition to white ones—lost manufacturing jobs in the lead up to the 2016 election
Aaron Katsimpalis Following the 2016 election, a main narrative from the politico class was that the blame for Trump’s win and Clinton’s loss stemmed from white, Rust Belt voters with economic anxiety, due to the large loss of manufacturing jobs in the region. True, “employment in the [manufacturing] sector plunged from 18.9 million jobs to 12.2 million” in a 30-year decline, as an MIT report suggests. False, this loss has been constrained to whites in metropolitan areas. According to an Atlantic article written by UChicago Urban Labs, the plight of many of Chicago’s black communities is due to “the disappearance of industrial jobs in factories, steel plants, and logistics companies.” The lack of policy effort to fill this vacuum of joblessness has resulted in the poverty and violence we now see in the city. Although about one-quarter of households in the Chicago area earned more than $100,000 a year in 2016 according to the aforementioned Urban Labs article, the problems of violence and poverty in the city
have been well-documented on both a regional and national level. Suggested policy solutions have included stricter gun laws, more lenient gun laws, more taxes, less taxes,—the list is endless. These ideas have not changed the stark contrast between The Loop and Woodlawn, Michigan Avenue and North Lawndale, Gold Coast and the formerly-gleaming Bronzeville. For every Motorola making its headquarters downtown, there is a weekly Chicago Tribune report on the killings of the weekend. Berkeley economics researcher Enrico Moretti has found that every educated worker job creates five service worker jobs; with Chicago being on an economic tear, why have some communities not kept up? A manufacturing job has long represented vital opportunities for those striving to improve their place in society. The stability and competent wages come with the requirement of only a high school diploma, allowing those with a lower level of education to still have the ability to earn a
middle-class income. Previously, companies like Western Electric, Acme Steel, International Harvester, and General Mills all housed plants in the West and South Sides of Chicago, and all primarily employed by minorities. All have left. The recession, of course, has not helped the situation, but even Detroit, the face of the manufacturing recession, is doing better. But the communities outside of The Loop are not, and this manufacturing loss has hit black men hardest. The manufacturing recession led to government-sponsored retraining efforts of white workers to help them get jobs outside of the declining field of manufacturing; after the plants in black areas left, there were no such retraining efforts. That the plants left is objective. The previously mentioned
Atlantic article states, “In 1960, 33 percent of black workers in Chicago were employed in manufacturing, according to a report by the Great Cities Institute. By 2015, just 5 percent of black workers were employed in manufacturing.” That white workers were retrained after the recession is good. That black workers have been ignored is not. The focus of political efforts on white workers is no surprise; they constitute a key voting demographic. Black workers have either not thrown the same tantrum that whites have to their representatives or not had their voices heard, with either leading to the same effect. Improving the parts of Chicago stuck in poverty and violence through economic development creates a safer, more equal community that would please everyone, from Gold Coast to Woodlawn.
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THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3, 2018
ARTS Court Theatre Delivers Commentary With a Side of Comedy BY LEONE FANG MAROON CONTRIBUTOR
The Court Theatre’s Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner opens with an empty, upper-class living room furnished with minimalist furniture. Home to the Draytons, a liberal white family living in 1960s San Francisco, the setting is initially calm. In moments, however, everything will change when Joanna Drayton (Bryce Gangel) brings her fiancé John (Michael Aaron Pogue), an African American doctor, to dinner. Adapted by director Todd K reidler from the groundbreaking 1967 film of the same name, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner portrays a family choosing to uphold their liberal principles despite widespread racism. The drama is structured around a series of conversations that take place in the living room, with each character taking on a different perspective of the “situation,” “issue,” “problem”—all words used to describe the prospective interracial marriage between John and Joanna as tension escalates throughout the play. Although Joanna’s father, Matt (Tim Hopper), is the ostentatious head of a liberal newspaper, he reacts most strongly against the prospect of a black man in his family, while his wife Christina (Mary Beth Fisher) soon regrets her initial hesitations and becomes determined to take her daughter’s side. Both parents struggle to uphold their liberal principles in the face of
obvious discomfort. Their discomfort is initially expressed as a reluctance to expose their daughter to the social judgement that comes with marrying a black man, but in fact Matt seems uncomfortable with very idea of familial ties with a black man, later ludicrously noting the violence that John’s family could inf lict upon his daughter. The conf lict eventually evolves into a conversation between the Draytons and their friends, triggering heated arguments. One of Christina’s colleagues attempts to plot a break-up between the couple, while Monsignor Ryan (Dan Waller), Matt’s friend, is fully supportive of the interracial marriage and accuses Matt of being unable to live up to his purported principles. Through these conf licts the audience observes each character revealing, intentionally or otherwise, opinions that often differ from their superficial ideals. Despite these tensions, however, the play does not lack humor. The awkward intrusions of guests and the confusions they encounter are all met with laughter from the audience. The comical scorn of the family’s black maid toward John, and the gallery holder’s elaborate plan to make the “chocolate lose its flavor” (as if John were a novel flavor to be tasted), proves humorous in its absurdity. Yet, while entertaining, the play makes it impossible to deny that such aggressions still remain relevant today. However, changes in the characters’ attitudes are at times given little ex-
planation, seeming only to serve as plot devices. For example, Joanna’s father reconciles his beliefs and accepts the marriage at the end of the play despite no change in his opinion on the harms of interracial marriage. He becomes supportive due to familial pressure, a change that is necessary for the play’s unrealistically optimistic ending, but one which yields no insight into a more stable, or applicable, solution. The play thus outlines problems without portraying a sincere reconciliation.
The entertaining aspects of the production definitely make it worthwhile, but it is dubious whether the conversations and arguments raised by the play leave any real impact. Guess W ho’s Coming to Dinner certainly deserved its standing ovation; yet the societal pressures Joanna and John’s marriage will face, and the concerns voiced by opponents of the marriage throughout the play, dissipate without sufficient reasoning to strengthen the play’s premise.
Courtesy of Michael Brosilow
From left to right, Mary Beth Fisher, Tim Hopper, Bryce Gangel and Michael Aaron Pogue in Court Theatre’s production of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.
Exhibit [A]rts Tuesday [4/3] Mindful Joint 2018: Contemporary Korean Art in Conversations Logan Center for the Arts and Cochrane-Woods Art Center, April 2 –3, free. Beginning the evening of April 2, this two-day symposium brings artists and scholars from South Korea and the U.S. together for screenings and panel discussions to explore artistic practices and cultural backgrounds. Student Creativity Grant Application Information Sessions Reynolds Club, South Lounge, 4:30 p.m., free. Interested in having your artistic endeavors funded? Learn more about how to apply for a grant from the University! The same session will take place on Wednesday in Logan 801 at 10:30 a.m. Thursday [4/5] Still Motion: Truth, Memory, and Image in East Asia Regenstein Library and Cochrane-Woods Art Center, April 5 –7, free. Presented by the Center for East Asian Studies, this workshop includes dance performances, art exhibitions, and lectures centered around the exploration of “image” in East Asia throughout history. Pearl Andelson Sherry Memorial Poetry Reading by Cecilia Vicuña
and other remote glaciers. Her work, informed by her background in fine arts and fish ecology, has been featured worldwide.
and Southeast Asian cultural show. The event will offer food at 5 p.m. and a show featuring K-pop and traditional South Asian and Chinese dance.
Third Annual Washington Park Arts Festival Friday [4/6] 5350 South Prairie Avenue, 12 –3 U lysses Owens Jr.’s Songs of p.m., free. Freedom An afternoon of performance, food, Logan Center, 7:30 p.m., $38 gen- and retail vendors, this festival will eral public/$30 faculty and staff/$10 brighten up your weekend. Campus students. groups like the Chicago Swing Dance This concert will feature landmark Society and the Underground Collecsongs from the 1960s by Joni Mitchell, tive will showcase their skills as well Abbey Lincoln, and Nina Simone. Mu- as community groups like Burke Elesicians Theo Bleckmann, Alicia Olatu- mentary School Band. There will be ofja, and Joanna Majoko will appear on ferings from Yassa African Restaurant stage alongside Ulysses Owens Jr. and Jennifer’s Edibles and retail items like Cutie Bumps and Better Belly. UC Dancers Presents: RISE Logan Center Theater West, April The Sensasia Show 6–7, 7:30 p.m., $8 general/$5 students Logan Center, 7:30 p.m., $10 for dinR I SE fe at u r es st udent - chor e o - ner and show/$5 show alone graphed contemporary performances Following on the heels of SASA, the from the longest-running dance troupe Sensasia Show is UChicago’s first East on campus. The show aims to express through dance, music, and poetry what “empowerment” means for women today.
Premios OLAS Mandel Hall, 5–10 p.m., $12 for dinner and show/$8 show alone Organized by the Organization of Latin American Students, this cultural show will feature a range of student performances (ranging from a telenovela skit to merengue) and dinner from local Chicago food vendors!
Logan 801, 6 p.m., free Through her poetry, artist, and activist Cecilia Vicuña explores issues from ecological destruction to human rights. Her artwork will be exhibited at the Neubauer Collegium until June 3.
Saturday [4/7] Jana Winderen Spring Bloom in the Marginal Ice Zone Stage Lab, Reynolds Club, 5 p.m., free. Watch Norwegian artist Jana Winderen showcase an eight-channel mix of sounds recorded at the North Pole
7
THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3 2018
What’s Up, Doc: Films for Spring Quarter BY PERRI WILSON ASSOCIATE ARTS EDITOR
With a fresh quarter comes fresh Doc Films programming and, as always, the student-run film society promises to provide entertainment every day of the week. This quarter’s program started out with some current hits, including Jordan Peele’s Get Out and the newest Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Following a strong first week of popular movies, the calendar promises to maintain momentum throughout the quarter. Mondays: Beyond Hollywood North: Contemporary Canadian Voices and Visions Drawing from Canada’s diverse cinematic landscape, this series guarantees a range of movies. Each will display a unique subset of Canadian culture and will be united only by their national identity. With the sponsorship of the Consulate General of Canada in Chicago, programmer Francesca Lambert curated the series in an effort to introduce viewers to Canadian films, which are frequently overshadowed by American cinema. Her selection focuses primarily on films made in the 1990s drawn from the Toronto Film Festival’s list of 150 essential Canadian films. Picture of Light (Week Two) follows the director Peter Mettler and his crew to Manitoba in a journey to capture the Aurora Borealis. Laurence Anyways (Week Five) is a romantic drama in a more urban setting that follows a Quebecois poet’s gender transition. Doc Films’s screening of Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (Week Nine) may be one of the few opportunities to see this stunning adaptation of an Inuit legend on the big screen. The film’s dialogue is spoken entirely in Inuktitut, the indigenous Inuit language, and was made by Inuit people themselves. Though representative of rarely-explored cinema, this series is anything but niche. Tuesdays: Tremors of an Unknown Past: A Michael Haneke Retrospective. Pursuing questions of violence, morality, and romance, Austrian director Haneke has never shied away from controversy. His earlier movies include a cast of disturbed and sadistic young characters, including a violence-obsessed 14-year-old in Benny’s Video (Week Two) and a pair of psychopathic teens in Funny Games (Week Four). Perhaps his most famous movie, the psychological thriller The Piano Teacher (Week Six) stars Isabelle Huppert as an emotionally repressed teacher with masochistic obsessions. Tuesdays at Ida Noyes promise to be a rollercoaster of almost all of Haneke’s thought-provoking works, screened for the most part in 35mm format. The series programmer, Alfredo Fee, will be discovering many of these movies alongside the audience. “I’ve seen maybe three films of this series and am watching the rest for the first time!” said Fee.
Wednesdays: Elia Kazan: A Retrospective Wednesday nights are sure to fascinate those with an interest in acting. Director Elia Kazan, who cofounded the Actors Studio, revolutionized acting techniques, including “method acting,” and is responsible for launching the careers of many famous actors, including Marlon Brando. Drawing from decades of directing, each film in the series is important in its own right and is marked by riveting performances by impressive casts. Vivien Leigh portrays a Southern Belle with stunning realism in Kazan’s adaption of Tennessee Williams’s play, A Streetcar Named Desire (Week Three); to end the series is The Last Tycoon based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, which stars Robert De Niro alongside a typically strong ensemble. Thursdays: “Love is a Matter of Timing…” Serin Lee, a first-year from Seoul, programmed this series during her very first quarter at the University as a sort of “small love letter to film, but also to all the crazy forces” that brought her to the UChicago community. Indeed, “crazy forces” is a theme that runs throughout the series, which tracks chance love encounters that defy time and space, as in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Week Four). Other relationships are examined through a more constrained time frame, tested by brevity, as in the critically acclaimed romances Before Sunrise and Before Sunset (Weeks Two and Three). Similarly part of a trilogy, polish filmmaker Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Three Colors: Red is a movie that Lee recommends to just about everyone, calling it “a warm movie in every way.” The series itself seems to be a sort of conversation across time and will appeal to any romantic. Thursdays (9:30 p.m.): Shattered Visions: Loss of Identity in Cinema This late night series, programmed by Alexander Fee, is sure to keep you up at night with its mind-bending stories of confused identity and the loss of self. Fee curated the series with an eye towards his own personal experience as a twin, and the confused identity that comes with it. In Hiroshi Teshigahara’s 1966 film The Face of Another (Week Five), for instance, a man wears a mask of synthetic flesh in an attempt to adopt a new identity. In The Tenant (Week Eight), directed by and starring Roman Polanksi, a new tenant moves into an apartment recently vacated when the previous occupant committed suicide. As his neighbors seem to close in on him, he is surrounded by a disturbing atmosphere of conspiracy and confusion. Other films in the twin-inspired series include Dead Ringers, Sisters, Suture, and A Zed & Two Noughts.
Fridays: Programmers’ Picks As always, the programmers at Doc Films have selected a wide range of delightful and entertaining films, creating a hodge-podge of great cinema. Among this quarter’s films is Dazed and Confused, the beloved depiction of the lives of small-town American teens in the ’70s. Richard Linklater’s amusing film, starring Matthew McConaughey, will have three screenings during the weekend of Fourth Week. Another offering, and one of the Marx brothers’ most popular movies, will be A Night at the Opera (Week Nine), which lets the comedic crew’s hallmark style shine while aboard an ocean liner. Saturdays: New Releases The perfect opportunity to see the greatest new releases that you couldn’t catch in theaters, Saturday nights at Doc Films deliver everything from filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami’s exploration of photography in 24 Frames (Week Four) to record-breaking blockbuster Black Panther (Week Ten).
Sundays: Miracle on the Han River: The Korean New Wave This series, programmed by Alex Kong, aims to draw attention to the sudden, early 2000s success of South Korean cinema. But the series’ theme goes beyond shifts in the film industry, exploring a more widespread undercurrent of disruption and destabilization in post-war times. In fact, Kong chose the title “Miracle on the Han River” to reference the postwar economic boom, which brought with it what he describes as a “profoundly disorienting” test to “the country’s social fabric.” “I wanted to draw attention to another aspect of this set of films that I find fascinating, which is their pronounced element of social critique,” Kong explains. While the films are each exciting for their fresh stylistic choices (Save the Green Planet! is a genre-bending film involving beekeepers and alien conspiracy theories), they are also relevant representations of a nation in turmoil. Be sure to catch Kong’s personal favorite, Peppermint Candy (Week Three) in a rare screening, shown in its original 35mm format which was imported all the way from South Korea for the series. Photos courtesy of Doc Films
8
THE CHICAGO MAROON - APRIL 3, 2018
SPORTS
Baseball Battles to Victory BASEBALL
BY VIKRAM PRASAD SPORTS STAFF
The UChicago baseball team had a dominant performance in Jacksonville, IL, on Saturday, March 31, routing Illinois College in a doubleheader, winning by a score of 14– 0 in the first game and 7–1 in the second game. The wins increase their record to 9 – 6. The South Siders began the first ga me w ith a one -r u n homer f rom third-year Connor Hickey, a sign of great things to come. The offensive power came out in full in the fourth inning, with four runs scored, and the fifth, with six runs, for a total of 14 runs. The team also had a season best 18 hits. Pitching was equally solid, as thirdyear ace Brent Villasenor pitched six innings of the first game, allowing only three hits and striking out four batters. The success allowed Villasenor to pick up his second win of the season, and cement his place as one of the team’s best pitchers. The strong effort continued in the second game, as Hickey started the
game with a single, stole second, and eventually scored after a wild pitch and a grounder from third-year Ian Bohn. Once again, the bats came out in full force in the fourth and fifth innings. Underclassmen have played a major part in the team’s success so far this season. In the first game, firstyear shortstop Brian Lyle scored three runs, second-year third-baseman Drew Ventrelle scored two, and first-year second-baseman Jimmy Kelly scored one. This continued in the second game, as Ventrelle and Kelly scored one run each. The Maroons had little chance to rest, as they made their home-game debut this Monday, April 2, with two games against Beloit. In the wake of Zoe Kaiser Saturday’s resounding victories, the team felt confident going into its first Third-year Brenton Villasenor concentrates as he throws a pitch. home games. First-year pitcher Scott Rothschild, care of business. I think it puts us in The Maroons’ next set of games will who relieved for Villasenor in the final a good place not only for tomorrow but be a doubleheader at home against inning of the first game, was proud of into the future because there’s a lot Central College. The first game will be the team’s performance and showed of talent and potential to win a lot of on Saturday, April 7 at 12 p.m., and confidence about the team’s future. He games.” the second game will be on the same said, “I think we played well and took day at 3 p.m.
Softball Takes On WashU
T&F Among the Top
SOFTBALL
TRACK & FIELD
BY MIRANDA BURT SPORTS STAFF
The University of Chicago women’s softball team made the trip down to St. Louis this weekend to play a host of games against rival Wash U. The Maroons went 1–1 on Friday, and the Saturday double header was canceled due to inclement weather. The games brought the South Siders to 9–7 overall and 2–2 on the road. The Maroons handily won the first contest on Friday by a final of 10 – 5. While the scoreboard after seven innings firmly held the Maroons on top, the Bears in truth held the lead 3 – 0 after three innings. However, Chicago was able to take the lead 9 –3 in the sixth with the help of Wash U errors (six in the game) and firepower at the plate. Third-year Carly Schulz led the Maroons with three RBIs. Second-year Holli Jones and first-year Skye Collins, who both had two RBIs, and second-year Serena Moss and first-year Abby Hayes, who both had one RBI, also helped lead the way offensively. Fourth-year pitcher Molly Moran went the distance in the circle, giving up seven hits in seven innings while also recording six strikeouts and two walks to bring her record to 4–3. Second-year Emma Nelson, who finished the weekend with three hits and three runs scored, spoke of the season so far and the first win: “ We started
out the season with some strong competition and competed well in Florida. Our record isn’t representative of how we battled against some top-ranked teams. We’ve shown resilience, coming back in games that the other team has gotten out to an early lead. Our pitchers and defense have done a solid job keeping us in games, and we have some pop at the plate. This weekend at Wash U showed a lot of what Florida had—we came out battled through being behind and our bats came alive to take the first game.” The second game, however, did not fare as well, as the Maroons dropped the contest 9 – 0 in five innings. Nelson and Schulz were the only two Chicago batters to record hits, both singles. Wash U was able to score its nine runs off of 10 hits. Nelson spoke of the second contest, adding, “ The second game we unfortunately didn’t get the chance to rally as their bats were hot. As a team, we have a lot of talent and it shows at different points throughout each game. We are just missing a little something to bring it all together—once we figure it out, we will be a force to be reckoned with. We have our home opener today and are looking forward to this home stretch to bring in some wins.” The Maroons hit the diamond again this Thursday with a double header against Aurora.
UPCOMING GAMES SPORT Softball Softball Baseball Baseball
DAY
Opponent
Thursday Thursday Saturday Saturday
Aurora Aurora Central Central
BY ANDREW BEYTAGH SPORTS STAFF
The University of Chicago men’s and women’s track and field teams kicked off the 2018 outdoor season this weekend at the Augustana College Viking Olympics. The UChicago men’s and women’s teams look to maintain their strong performances from the indoor season to the outdoor events. On the men’s side of things, two performers continued to shine as they had during the indoor season. First-year Ryan Cutter and fourth-year Nathan Downey have been on form all indoor season and have maintained their form into the first week outdoor. Cutter took first place in the 1,500-meter this weekend with a time of 4:00.04, nearly breaking the four-minute threshold. The time places Cutter as the top performer in the UA A so far this season. The other Maroon in peak form is fourth-year Nathan Downey, just a few weeks off of an All-American performance at the DIII NCA A indoor meet. Downey took first with a mark of 4.60 meters in the pole vault at the Augustana Viking Olympics. The men’s scoring was rounded out by numerous high places across the board with fourth-year Peter Kruech and second-year Andy Kates finishing second and third respectively in the 5,000-meter. Other notable performances included fourth-year Cristen Bublitz who took
second in the javelin, second-year Alexander Scott, who took third in the shot put, and second-year Tyson Miller who took third in the 200-meter dash. On the women’s side, fourth-year Khia Kurtenbach continued her dominance. Kurtenbach blasted away from the field in the 5,000-meter, beating the next opponent by 14 seconds. Kurtenbach finished the 5,000-meter with the third-best mark in the NCAA with a time of 17:29.55. The Maroons continued their form by capturing event titles in the 800 by first-year Maddie DeVoe, the 1500 by fourth-year Cassidy McPherson, and the high jump by fourth-year Ade Ayoola. When asked about the transition from the indoor to the outdoor seasons, fourth-year Nathan Downey responded by saying, “Moving from indoor to outdoor always requires a bit of a transition physically as well as mentally. Races are run differently and you have to deal with fluctuating conditions like the weather and wind. That being said, the team is putting up great marks especially in our middle distance and distance events. Finally, as far as momentum goes, it is easy to think of track and field as one long season. And by thinking about it that way, it is easier to build off indoor marks heading into the outdoor season.” The Maroon track and field teams continue their outdoor season this weekend at the Wheaton Invitational.
M AROON
TIME 3 p.m. 5 p.m. 12 p.m. 3 p.m.
SPORT Track & Field Baseball Baseball Softball Softball
SCORE BOARD W/L Opponent W W W W L
Augustana College Illinois College Illinois College WashU Wash U
Score 2nd 14–0 7–1 10–5 9–0