Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016 | Indiana Daily Student | idsnews.com
Turkish Flagship displays culture
IDS
By Sanya Ali siali@indiana.edu | @siali13
The Turkish Flagship Center’s culture night and informational event began with a lesson in Turkish dancing. Students got up from tables set up around the room and gathered in the front to watch the instructor. The evening also included a variety of Turkish food and the opportunity to speak with other students following a presentation on the Turkish Flagship Program.
“If you look at Turkey and then you go all they way to the Pacific Ocean, all of that region has Central Asian Turkic languages spoken there. If you start with Turkish, these are languages that you can jump to pretty easily.” Rececca Mueller, flagship program coordinator
MATT RASNIC | IDS
Doug Bauder receives the Indiana Bicentennial torch from Angelo Pizzo at the corner of Indiana and Seventh streets.
Carrying history LGBT progress in state represented by Indiana bicentennial torchbearer By Lydia Gerike
Rebecca Mueller, program coordinator with the flagship, invited those among the attendees who knew the dances to come up to instruct the nearly 30 other students in the basic steps and formations. Everyone followed the counted steps and kicks after watching a complex routine done by a high school dance team from a YouTube video. The Tuesday evening event, which took place in Hutton Honors College’s Great Hall, was geared toward informing interested students about the Turkish Flagship Program, sharing a bit about Turkish culture and giving reasons why they should consider studying the Turkish language during their time at IU. “Besides the fact that it’s really fun to be part of the flagship, Turkish is a pretty major world language and there are a lot of Turkic languages,” Mueller said. “If you look at Turkey and then you go all the way to the Pacific Ocean, all of that region has Central Asian Turkic languages spoken there. If you start with Turkish, these are languages that you can jump to pretty easily.” Turkey is an emerging market economy that acts as a bridge between the East and the West, Mueller said. It is currently the largest economy in the Middle East, and has been significant in the news because of the recent attempted military coup and the open borders during the Syrian refugee crisis. The flagship certification, combined with professional-level proficiency with Turkish language, opens the door for many other career opportunities, including government jobs, NGO positions and many more, upon graduation, Mueller said during her presentation. Similarly, those in ROTC positions may have interest in Turkey because of military connections to the region. Students also have the opportunity to study in Azerbaijan in connection with Turkish study, Mueller said. “In Azerbaijan, Azeri is spoken, and Azeri is pretty close to Turkish,” Mueller said. “You get two critical languages for the price of one, and I love the former Soviet Union. I went to Georgia, and it opens up a whole different piece of the world to you.” Jeff Heerdink, manager of the Hutton International Experiences Program, spoke to students about the HIEP grants available to help make study abroad for any location or length of time easier. “If you’re doing an internship, we have a grant for that. If you’re doing research, we have a grant for that. If you’re doing a creative activity, if you’re a fine arts major, SEE TURKISH, PAGE 9
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Doug Bauder, director of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Student Support Services Office, said he was surprised to find himself among IU’s chosen Indiana Bicentennial torchbearers. “When I got the letter, I honestly had to laugh a little,” Bauder said. The torch came through campus Tuesday afternoon as part the statewide relay to celebrate Indiana’s 200th anniversary of statehood. Between Sept. 9 and Oct. 15, the torch will reach all 92 counties in Indiana and be passed between citizens who have made significant contributions to their county and the state. In addition to Bauder, the torch was also carried by IU Board of Trustees secretary Debbie Lemon; Department of Theatre, Drama &
Contemporary Dance professor George Pinney; alumnus writer and producer for “Hoosiers” and “Rudy” Angelo Pizzo; Jacobs School of Music senior lecturer Sylvia McNair; and Assistant Vice President for Strategic Partnerships Kirk White. Bauder said he is honored to be part of the day alongside other great torchbearers, although he finds his participation in the state event funny when Indiana’s government has been known to pass anti-LGBT legislation like the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. He doesn’t know what Gov. Mike Pence would think of the situation, he said. As a gay man, Bauder said carrying the torch is symbolic for him as well as for the rest of Indiana’s LGBT population. He said he is glad to represent Monroe County and Indiana communities. For Bauder, the honor
shows just how far the state has come in recent years. In the past, LGBT support was much more difficult. He said the state legislation was originally against the GLBT office proposal in 1994. At the time, it threatened to withhold about half a million dollars of public funding from the University if the office were created. With the support from then-president Myles Brand, funding of the organization was privatized, and the GLBT office opened. Now, through support for national marriage equality and opposition to the RFRA, Bauder said he sees how far progress has come. “I’m representing a group of citizens that don’t get recognized, and they’re a part of history,” Bauder said. GLBT office graduate assistant Danielle Hernandez said she doesn’t see why Bauder was surprised to be
nominated because he is an important part of the campus community. Dondeerie Dumayas, a member of IU’s GradQueers organization, said he agrees. “Doug is the leader,” Dumayas said. “His leadership helps determine how well the center moves forward.” Hernandez said she believes the representation comes at an important time for the LGBT community in Indiana. “It makes our office proud to be recognized as a part of the community as well as the state,” Hernandez said. For Dumayas, the significance is about all the progress he said he’s seen through equal marriage and open military policies. “The community’s here to stay, and we’re going to fight for the community to ensure fair and equal rights for the state of Indiana,” Dumayas said.
Monroe County joins in the celebration of the state’s bicentennial Tuesday By Sarah Gardner gardnese@umail.iu.edu @sarahhhgardner
A young girl looked down at a map of Indiana and pointed to a yellow star in the center of Monroe County. “Mom, is that where we are?” Sara Buehler, 8, asked. “That’s right,” her mother, Chris Buehler, said. “The torch is here today.” The Buehlers were visiting the celebration for Indiana’s bicentennial on the Monroe County Courthouse lawn. The Bicentennial Torch has been passing through each of the state’s 92 counties since Sept. 9, and it was Monroe County’s turn Tuesday. “We want to represent and celebrate everything our part of Indiana stands for and has to offer,” said Teal Strabbing, a member of the Bicentennial Planning Committee. “An anniversary of such a big year is really a once-in-a-lifetime thing.” The torch relay started in Ellettsville, Indiana, and the celebration started at the courthouse. Representatives from Hoosier National Forest, Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs, the Monroe County Public Library, the Monroe County History Center and several other organizations set up informational booths. The Boy Scouts and
Girl Scouts offered games for kids. The Bloomington Brass Quintet played on the courthouse steps, and visitors walked through a museum of notable Indiana natives and their accomplishments. Meanwhile, the torch traveled by foot, bike and car through the county, across campus, down Kirkwood Avenue and to a cauldron at the courthouse celebration. Sara Buehler said she wasn’t sure what was special about Indiana, but she was there that afternoon to find out. She walked past a limestone carving demonstration and asked her brother, Ben, whether they had limestone where they lived. She listened to her mother talk about her time at IU and asked whether she could go there for college, too. But for many of the other people at the courthouse, the bicentennial celebration represented some of their favorite parts of their life and history in Indiana. For Casey Winningham, life in Indiana revolves around its stone. Winningham carves and letters custom headstones made from Indiana limestone and has lived in the state for 61 years. He and several other carvers worked on headstones and sculptures for passersby to look at the cel-
STELLA DEVINA | IDS
The Bloomington Brass Quintet performs during the Bicentennial Torch Relay Exhibit on Tuesday at the Monroe County Courthouse lawn.
ebration. “I try to use my art to honor the people who have passed and give them the respect they deserve,” Winningham said. “And I do it with the stone that means so much to me and to the history of our state.” For Sharon Stoddard, a Bloomington resident for 38 years, life has a lot to do with music. Stoddard’s husband plays the drums in the Bloomington Brass Quintet and the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra every week, and she listens to him play as often as she can. “This part of Indiana doesn’t have a lot of hustle and bustle, but there’s always plenty to do,” Stoddard said.
“And look at all the culture and music we have right in front of us.” And for Elizabeth Mitchell, who has lived in Bloomington since 1979, Indiana’s most important thing is the people. Mitchell spent the last year working with IU faculty member Gladys DeVane, IU and Bloomington city administration to write a play about Indiana for the bicentennial. “Everyone here has a story and we live in a place where, in my experience, people want to know and help you,” Mitchell said. “So many people could choose to live somewhere else, but look how much love people have for where we live.”
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