Thursday, June 18, 2020
IDS Indiana Daily Student | idsnews.com
Man facing 3 counts of rape
Randle El makes ballot, page 4
New guide for fall operations released
FARMERS MARKET
By Lilly St. Angelo
By Carson TerBush
lstangel@iu.edu | @lilly_st_ang
cterbush@iu.edu | @_carsonology
Lemarquist McClee, 46, from Gary, Indiana, was charged with three counts of rape in the past week. All victims were 22-yearold women. The first woman told officers Wednesday at the Bloomington Police Department she was raped the previous night by McClee. Police located him quickly and arrested him. Officers obtained a search warrant for McClee’s cell phone Thursday and discovered videos of the alleged rapes of two other women. The first victim said she had met McClee at Brother’s Bar and Grill the night the rape occurred. She said she knew him through mutual friends but not well. McClee bought her a drink and offered to drive the woman and her friend home from the bar that night after they had both had multiple drinks. They accepted his offer, but
IU administration released a “Return to Campus Guide” for the fall semester last week with details of how different parts of the university will operate under new COVID-19 restrictions. According to the new guide, facial coverings must be worn in buildings, on public transportation and outdoors if social distancing is not possible. Every IU student and employee will receive two facial coverings from the university when they return to campus. Handmade cloth masks and surgical masks are also acceptable face coverings if students or employees would prefer to wear their own. The guide’s instructions include washing hands frequently, cleaning work areas more often and more intensely, sanitizing mail and packages and physically distancing at least 6 feet from others whenever possible. COVID-19 training about how to prevent getting sick at work
SEE RAPE, PAGE 3
Taste of Bloomington replaced with Taste to Go By Jaden Amos jamamos@iu.edu | @jadenamos
Due to COVID-19 the traditional celebration was canceled, according to a release, and replaced with a week-long “Taste To-Go” event from June 20 to June 26. Taste of Bloomington is an annual one-day festival in June celebrating local food, drink and music. Typically, the festival draws thousands downtown to eat from some of Bloomington’s most popular restaurants, drink and socialize. During this week, people can order to-go food from participating restaurants. The full list of participating restaurants is to be announced soon, according to the SEE FOOD, PAGE 3
FILE PHOTO BY TY VINSON | IDS
Tom Westgard carries a sign Nov. 9, 2019, through the Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market in protest of Schooner Creek Farm, whose owners have been tied to a white nationalist group. A statement made by the market's Broadening Inclusion Group on Facebook drew criticism from the community and led to the dissolution of the group after a vote from the Farmers’ Market Advisory Council.
Advisory council dissolving Broadening Inclusion Group By Lauren McLaughlin lrmclaug@iu.edu | @l_mclaughlin8
The Farmers’ Market Advisory Council voted to dissolve the Broadening Inclusion Group in a meeting Monday evening attended by over 150 people. The Broadening Inclusion Group, a subcommittee of the council made up of volunteers, received widespread criticism over a statement posted on the market’s Facebook page addressing the death of George Floyd and other Black people killed by police. The statement also condemned Blackon-Black violence, which was the source of the criticism. Council member Janice Lilly made the motion to dissolve the Broadening Inclusion Group. She said she thought the best decision is to start anew. “I believe the name ‘Broadening Inclusion’ unfortunately now is probably not usable because of the statement that was published and the fact that it’s been on social media,” she said. “That statement has caused a lot of pain and a lot of conflict.” She said some vendors also
wanted to see the group dissolved. The vote was 6 to 1 with two council members marked as abstaining because they did not respond over Zoom. Council member and chair Cortland Carrington moved to suspend the Broadening Inclusion Group until the council writes a charter detailing how the subcommittee should work. “I believe the B and I mission is too important to abandon and my concern is that by dissolving it, it appears that we’re abandoning it,” he said. “I believe we need input from civic leaders and citizens alike as we equip it with a right and proper charter.” The motion failed with three council members in favor and six opposed. Before the council voted on each of these motions, council members were allowed to comment on the motions. Council member Lynn Schwartzberg commented on her concerns about the Broadening Inclusion Group’s statement and the importance of listening to others. “It concerns me very deeply that the reactionary behavior of
our community can cause such upheaval,” she said. “I think one of the biggest challenges as a society that we are living in right now is that we must all learn to listen to one another because we are all completely different people. We all come from completely different places, and we all see the world differently, and we must learn to close our mouths, which I will do now, and listen.” Council member Suzanne Mann said she also wanted to hear from the public but drew criticism in the chat when she characterized the public’s reaction as “emotional.” “This is moving very fast,” she said. “We react so quickly and it’s an emotional reaction, and I would like to have a little more cerebral activity.” Community members were then allowed to comment. About 30 community members publicly commented, including community activists and three IU professors. Jada Bee of Black Lives Matter B-town and others called for not only the disbanding of the BroadSEE MARKET, PAGE 3
Bloomington couple struggles to keep B&B alive By Wei Wang daviwang@iu.edu | @DavidWazman
It was supposed to be their last job before retirement. A last big endeavor after a life full of adventure that had brought them from Indiana to the Rocky Mountains and back. But Zack and Donna Malham, resident hosts of Wampler House Bed and Breakfast, now have their only source of income on the line. Having closed the house on March 17 due to coronavirus, the 68-year-old couple now live off social security while mostly relying on government grants to keep their business. Located south of Bloomington, the Wampler House is a historic property built in 1857. Zack and Donna acquired the house in 2015 before they learned it was less than a quarter of a mile away from where they lived as newlyweds in 1977. Bloomington was where the couple first met, dated and got married. Here, Zack studied under a professional chef for three years, whom he said catapulted his career into becoming a corporate chef without attending culinary school. “That just doesn’t happen anymore,” he said. “Opportunities like that don’t present themselves anymore.” Zack got a chef position in Denver, Colorado, and he and Donna spent 40 years in the restaurant industry there. They dictated their own schedules, worked long hours and rewarded themselves by traveling across the United States. But in these 40 years of what Donna calls a “side trip” in the West, the couple had always thought of Bloomington as home.
COURTESY PHOTO
The Wampler House Boutique Hotel Bed & Breakfast Inn is located at 4905 S. Rogers St. Government emergency relief grants have helped resident hosts Zack and Donna Malham keep the business afloat.
Having planned to run a bed-andbreakfast for 20 years, they decided to return to Bloomington in 2015. Before long, they purchased the eight-room Wampler House, already a B&B under its previous owners. “That’s an absolute full circle – Halley’s Comet,” Zack said. “I mean, this was just meant to be.” For the past five years, Wampler House has welcomed regional guests as well as Bloomingtonians looking for a stay-cation. The couple lives on-site, and Zack said although there are high and low seasons, the business usually keeps them busy. As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the U.S. in midMarch, the couple had to shut down the B&B, both being in the high-risk age group for the virus. Brandon Howell, lecturer in the Department of Health & Wellness Design at the School of Public Health, said hospitality workers are frontline workers because
they deal with the public directly. B&Bs also have more intimate settings than hotels with tighter living spaces and hallways and more interaction between the customers and innkeepers which makes it harder to socially distance. Andrew Butters, assistant professor at the IU Kelley School of Business, added that B&Bs might be less well-funded to meet rising cleanliness standards and social distancing protocols. For Wampler House, the couple’s only reasonable choice was to shut it down. Now entering the third month of the house being closed, Zack and Donna are struggling to balance their risk of exposure and running dry on money, like many small business owners throughout the country. Zack calls this “panicking in place." “Without heads in beds, we’re dead in the water,” Zack said. “We have no revenue.” The couple’s personal living costs are now entirely dependent
on social security, which includes mortgage and utility bills for their own residence separate from Wampler House. “The meter kept running,” Zack said. The expenses include money owed to vendors, utility companies, insurances, mortgage plans and internet costs. Zack said he has tried to be transparent and reach out proactively to these businesses. Talking to people about money has become his daily routine. But there have been glimmers of hope. Zack said people have been forgiving about money challenges. “Everybody’s working with everybody to get people through this because this is real," he said. "This is not a test." With the help of government emergency relief grants, they have managed to keep their business. A small proportion of the relief came from the federal Payment Protection Program, but Zack said what really took the pressure off of them has been the Monroe County Food & Beverage COVID-19 Virus Relief grant. It has substantially helped the couple pay for the mortgages and utilities of Wampler House. “We are both prayerfully optimistic that we are going to be able to survive and ride out the pandemic,” Zack said. Howell said that before the pandemic ends, the B&B experience will suffer from stricter health protocols. “What’s sad about the whole thing is that hospitality is based on experience,” he said. “The people who work in these places are the product. If you put masks on, the SEE B&B, PAGE 3
SEE FALL, PAGE 3
CROSS-COUNTRY
Course to be named after coach Sam Bell By Tyler Tachman ttachman@iu.edu | @Tyler_T15
IU’s new cross-country course will be named after the late Hall of Fame coach Sam Bell, IU athletic director Fred Glass announced Tuesday morning. During his 29-year stint with the Hoosiers starting in 1970, Bell led the track and field and cross-country teams to a total of 26 conference titles, the most of any coach in IU Athletics history. He was also named as Big Ten Coach of the Year six times while coaching 20 individual NCAA champions. “Sam was a legend in his profession and an extraordinary teacher and mentor to hundreds of students and colleagues during his 29 years at Indiana University,” Glass said in a release. “His impact on his students extended well beyond their time in Bloomington, and his impact on Indiana University extended well beyond his coaching tenure. He is very deserving of this recognition and honor.” Before his time with the Hoosiers, Bell led the 1961 Oregon State University men’s crosscountry team to a NCAA championship. He also coached the U.S. Olympic men’s distance running team in 1976. Bell was inducted into the U.S. Track Coaches Hall of Fame and the National Track and Field Hall of Fame before his death in 2016. “The Indiana University cross country program has been synonymous with success on the Big Ten and NCAA levels,” IU Deputy Director of Athletics Scott Dolson said in a release. “I am excited not only to see Sam honored in this way, but also for what the completion of the Sam Bell Cross Country Course means for our current students. They now have an exceptional course to compete and train on, one that also now honors the rich tradition of our program.” The new $540,000 trail covers 40 acres east of the 45/46 bypass. The layout was designed by Bloomington resident Bledsoe Riggert Cooper James. It can be used as a 3K, 2K and 1K course. Glass noted that a formal announcement of the honor will be planned for a later date depending on the future complications of coronavirus. The IU men’s cross-country team finished 13th in the NCAA championships last year, while the women’s cross-country team took 19th.