June 17, 2021
IDS Indiana Daily Student | idsnews.com
'Having fun' p. 4
BLACK VOICES
Local drinking water is safe By Phyllis Cha cha1@iu.edu | @phyllischa
The City of Bloomington Utilities published their annual drinking water quality report which found Bloomington drinking water to be free of 65 contaminants, according to a press release Tuesday. The report found 12 contaminants in Bloomington’s drinking water, including disinfectant byproducts, lead and copper which were all within the Environmental SEE WATER, PAGE 5
Illustration by Donyá Collins | IDS
Rosetta Tharpe was a trailblazer
Arrest made in case of vandalism By Phyllis Cha
Who knew rock ’n’ roll wouldn’t exist without a black, queer woman? By Donyá Collins doscoll@iu.edu | @artbyyay
AC/DC, Kiss, Bon Jovi, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Little Richards and Prince. All these musicians have contributed to and played rock ‘n’ roll. Growing up, rock ‘n’ roll was characterized as white people music, devil music, weird, etc. Even the artists I was taught about in school were commonly white, therefore the genre was seen as a hallmark of Americanized white culture. Now imagine a black kid, we either were them or knew them, someone who listened to these bands. People with a grunge aesthetic typically. I was one of these kids and the thing I heard the
most was, “That’s that white music,” or “Why you listening to that white people music?” It was just as annoying as it was repetitive. But did you know none of these artists would exist had it not been for a Black, Queer woman? Her name was Rosetta Tharpe. Tharpe, born Rosetta Nubin, was born in 1915 in Cotton Plant, Arkansas. Her mother was Katie Bell, who Tharpe sang with when she was as young as 6 years old. Bell and Tharpe toured in an evangelical troupe to perform at various church occasions and meetings. Due to being in this troupe, Tharpe became known na-
tionwide as a musician and singer. Rock ‘N’ Roll was born from the marriage of gospel music, electric guitar and jazz/ blues. Her music was a precursor to the genre of the electric blues, and her song “Strange Things Happening Every Day” with Sammy Price has been called both a precursor of rock and roll and the first rock and roll record, according to a biography by Gayle F. Wald. With songs like “Tall Skinny Papa” which has risqué lyrics, Tharpe at times offended her gospel fans. This wasn’t the only way Tharpe was challenging
the norms of her time as it was a relatively open secret she was either bisexual or queer. Tharpe would tour with her partner, Marie Knight, with Rosetta playing the guitar and Knight playing the piano, according to a biography from The Ohio State University. Their relationship was known within the music industry, but was kept a secret from the public by Tharpe. One of their more well known songs is “Up Above My Head, I Hear Music In The Air.” Knight was traumatized and drifted away from Tharpe after her mother and two children died in a
fire. As usual when it comes to history, especially American history, despite Tharpe being credited with inspiring legends like Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Elvis Presley, many people don’t know about her trailblazing influence. Rosetta Tharpe paved the way for rock ‘n’ roll despite challenges from the gospel community, racism and sexism. So it might do you some good to do your research before you tell someone, “that’s that white people music.” Chances are it’s another thing the Black community popularized first.
Former U.S. Senators to join IU in the fall By Phyllis Cha cha1@iu.edu | @phyllischa
Former U.S. Sen. and Indiana Gov. Evan Bayh and former U.S. Sen. and Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats will join IU, according to a press release from IU. Bayh will work through the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and is being appointed as a distinguished scholar and executive at large. Coats will work at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies and is being appointed as a distinguished scholar and ambassador at large, according to the release. The two will partner together to support the master’s degree in international affairs, a joint one-year degree shared by the O’Neill School and HLS. Bayh served two terms as Indiana governor from 1989 to 1997 and two terms as a U.S. senator from 1999 to 2011. He served on multiple committees, including Armed Services, Small Business and Entrepreneurship and Senate Intelligence. In the Senate, Bayh worked to seek consensus on financial services reform and health care, according to the release. As Indiana governor he sought out welfare reform. Coats was Indiana’s representative in the U.S.
cha1@iu.edu | @phyllischa
There were multiple cases of vandalism in downtown Bloomington Monday morning, according to Bloomington Police Department Capt. Ryan Pedigo. The places that were vandalized include Circle K on Kirkwood Avenue, Alley Bar on Kirkwood Avenue, La Una Cantina on Walnut Street, Bauer Law Firm, a business at the 400 block of S. Walnut Street, Shalom Center and three additional businesses in the 400 block of W. First Street, according to Pedigo. There was a reported dumpster fire at the 300 block of S. Grant Street, he wrote in an email. An arrest was made for the broken window at the Shalom Center, according to Pedigo. Officers were able to receive video footage and positively ID suspect Douglas Ferguson, 53, Monday from the Shalom Center, Pedigo said. Ferguson was also the suspect in the dumpster fire and officers arrested him Tuesday while responding to an unrelated call at the Shalom Center, Pedigo said. Ferguson was remanded for the charges of arson, a level six felony for the dumpster fire, and criminal mischief, a class A misdemeanor at Shalom, according to Pedigo. Whether he was involved with other broken windows is still being investigated, Pedigo said.
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Armond Hill is named director By Patrick Felts patfelts@iu.edu | @patrickjfelts
FILE PHOTO BY ALEX DERYN
The Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies is located at 355 N. Jordan Ave. Evan Bayh and Dan Coats will partner together to support the master’s degree in international affairs, a joint one-year degree shared by the O’Neill School and HLS.
House of Representatives from 1981 to 1989 and in the U.S. Senate from 1989 to 1999 and 2011 to 2017. He was an ambassador to Ger-
many from 2001 to 2005, as well as the director of national intelligence from 2017 to 2019. Coats was a member of
multiple committees such as the Senate Armed Services Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Accord-
ing to the press release he focused on issues of national security, health care, education and human resources in the Senate.
Former Columbia University head coach and NBA assistant coach Armond Hill has been named IU men’s basketball’s new Director of Basketball Administration, the team announced Wednesday. Hill was the head coach at Columbia from 1995 through 2003 and spent 17 years as an assistant coach in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics and Los Angeles SEE HILL, PAGE 5