October 22, 2018 by Kentucky Kernel

YOUR VOICE. YOUR VOTE. kentuckykernel election preview | Monday, October 22, 2018

Monday, October 22, 2018

ON THE

COVER PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ROB FISCHER | STAFF LEFT: LINDA GORTON Lexington Mayoral Candidate Gorton is one of two candidates in the non-partisan mayoral race. She served on city council for 16 years and as vice mayor for four years. PHOTO BY MICHAEL CLUBB | STAFF

CENTER LEFT: AMY MCGRATH 6th District Congressional Candidate McGrath is the Democratic candidate. She served for 20 years in the Marine Corps as a fighter pilot and recently retired. PHOTO BY ARDEN BARNES | STAFF

CENTER RIGHT: ANDY BARR 6th District Congressional Candidate Barr is the Republican incumbent. He has served as the representative for the sixth district since 2013. PHOTO BY JORDAN PRATHER | STAFF

LEFT: RONNIE BASTIN Lexington Mayoral Candidate Bastin is one of two candidates in the non-partisan mayoral race. He was appointed police chief after a 30-year career in law enforcement and has served as Public Safety Commissioner since 2015. PHOTO BY MICHAEL CLUBB | STAFF

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Lexington mayoral race means new relationship between city and UK By Jacob Eads news@kykernel.com

The race to be Lexington’s next mayor is heating up, but while the city’s candidates may have their sights set on having the run of the town, neither have forgotten about another community right in their own backyards. The Lexington mayor’s office is roughly just a mile from the heart of UK’s campus– it might not be a stone’s throw, but a few recent steps have been taken to narrow the gap between Main Street and Avenue of Champions, according to current Mayor Jim Gray. Linda Gorton and Ronnie Bastin are each aiming to take over the reins of Lexington from Gray come Election Day on Nov. 6, and to do so, both are hoping to get the support of the city’s voters, some of whom are part of the UK community. While voter turnout among college students is stereotypically the lowest of any population, leaders of the Lexington community are calling for that to change. “It’s essential for University of Kentucky students to get involved in local elections,” Gray said. “While you’re in school, and perhaps beyond, you’re citizens of this city… citizens we need to hear from as we make decisions that affect the entire city. You’re very important to Lexington. You bring energy and bright young minds that fuel our economy. I encourage you to make your voice heard.” After serving on the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council for 16 years and as the city’s vice mayor for four years, Gorton, a UK alumna, has decided to dust off her jacket and get back into the political arena with a bid for mayor. While Gorton said she will take a fair share of experience into the job, should she be elected mayor, she said she’d also be bringing a love for the community, including UK. “We love the university. We love that it’s in the heart of our city, and that the students add so much to the vibrancy,” Gorton said. “We’re all in; we have lots of blue and white clothing.” Aside from her adoration for the UK community, Gorton is resting her campaign on the pillars of ideas like creating a safe and growing city. She said she is

PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CLUBB I STAFF Mayoral candidates Linda Gorton (above) and Ronnie Bastin participate in a forum in the Spectrum corporate office on Oct. 4, 2018, in Lexington, Kentucky.

aware of the city’s crime, and hopes to tackle crime using her background as a registered nurse. “The way we’re going to lower crime is to lower the drugs,” Gorton said. “As a city and a community, we’ve got to have an approach to this thing where we include public safety, we include addiction recovery experts, we include mental health experts.” Gorton said she’s also putting a premium on maintaining a growing economy by preserving jobs in the community. UK currently serves as the county’s largest employer, employing about 14,000 people, according to statistics from UK. This makes these jobs, and even those for recent graduates, important to the “health” of the city, according

to Gorton. “One really important thing to me is that we make a concerted effort to have enough available jobs here that our UK graduates can stay here,” Gorton said. Gorton said these pillars of her campaign will help to create an increasingly better “quality of life” index in the city. Mayoral candidate Ronnie Bastin is also relying on an extensive career in public service to carry him into the winner’s circle come election night. The UK alumnus has substantiated a more-than-30-year career on the Lexington Police force, and was eventually appointed police chief in 2008. Bastin has also served as the city’s Public Safety Commissioner since 2015. That experience has translated into knowledge on how to confront the

city’s crime issues, according to Bastin. As mayor, Bastin would push for “tough” enforcement for violent crimes, but he said he knows you can’t “arrest your way out of crime.” Bastin said that promoting a healthy economy and securing jobs for the community are also priorites. He plans to shift a portion of his focus toward the city’s small business operations as well. “In order to create jobs, we want to attract jobs to Lexington,” Bastin said. “But an important responsibility of a leader is to be able to manage that… We want everyone to stay in Lexington.” Aside from his badge and career, Bastin said one thing that has always been at the core of his life is UK. Bastin said that if he were to be elected mayor, he realizes the importance of a strong relationship between Lexington and the university. “I have more skin in the game when it comes to UK than almost anybody I know,” Bastin said. Just three weeks away from Election Day, Bastin has said that he would be able to get to work from the minute he is elected mayor, thanks to his long career in the city. “I know what works and what doesn’t work. I’ll be able to go in day one… There’s no learning curve for me,” Bastin said. While Bastin is confident in his ability to effectively lead as the city’s mayor, he said he’s still encouraging voters to look at the differences between each of the candidates. As both Gorton and Bastin ready up for the last legs of their respective campaigns, those in the UK administration are hopeful that, regardless of the outcome of the election, the city of Lexington and UK can continue to maintain a prosperous relationship. “We are fortunate to have a strong and dynamic relationship with the community that is home to our main campus, a relationship we look forward to growing as our fortunes and futures are inextricably linked,” UK President Eli Capilouto said. “Both candidates– as with Mayor Gray– have recognized the impact UK has in terms of fueling Lexington’s economy and helping ensure a highly skilled workforce. They are committed to UK as UK is committed to Lexington.”

Will Snapchat, Twitter and Taylor Swift get more college voters to the polls? By Cathryn Perini news@kykernel.com

Voting registration has never been easier now that Instagram and Snapchat have taken matters into their own hands. With reminders and direct links, social media platforms are encouraging users to register to vote. “Because ideally, our society wants people to have a voice, and when you have the ability to open doors for people, and you want those people to engage, you do it,” said Stephen Haggerty, a faculty lecturer and CIS 111 Coordinator for UK’s School of Information Science in the College of Communication & Information. Influential people have begun to publicly take political stands, and, more importantly, sides. Kanye West has spent some time on Twitter and in person endorsing President Donald Trump. According to the New Yorker, Kanye referenced Trump as a validation for his masculinity. Taylor Swift took to Instagram to convince her followers to vote. She also declared her political beliefs and said that she has always voted for the candidate that protects the people, especially the LGBT+ community. “In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now,” Swift’s Instagram post said. According to USA Today, Vote.org reported that more than 65,000 people registered to vote in reaction to Swift’s Instagram post. Snapchat gave users the ability to register to vote directly through the app. Voting is one of the most important forms of self-expression we have in America, according to Snap Inc.’s website. According to Pew Research Center, 78 percent of 18-24 year olds use Snapchat, and 71 percent

of users visit the platform more than once per day. Snapchat’s user profile page included a Register to Vote! button prior to National Voter Registration Day. Snapchat used a system called TurboVote, which helps users register to vote, receive election reminders and apply and receive an absentee ballot. Instagram didn’t provide the direct ability to register in the app, but the app connected users with the information they need to properly register. On Nov. 6, they will provide an ‘I Voted’ camera

Falk, a UK junior and international studies and Spanish double major, in response to low voter turnout in her age group. However, many other platforms, including Facebook, have reminded users to register to vote, and their efforts have been effective. Nearly 3,000 people in Fayette County have registered to vote since August. Only 9,000 have registered to vote since January of 2017. As part of National Voter Registration Day, 800,000 people

GO VOTE!

MCKENNA HORSLEY I STAFF

sticker so users can share their voting story. According to a 2012 Pew Research Center study, 22 percent of registered voters tell others if and how they voted through a social media platform, while 20 percent of registered voters have previously encouraged others to vote on social media. In Kentucky, turnout for the 2018 primary elections amounted to only 14.1 percent of female registered voters between the ages 17-24 and 12.7 percent of male registered voters of the same age group. Comparatively, 32.6 percent of registered females and 37.1 percent of registered males of the 62+ age group voted. Social media still has some work to do on its target age group. “People need to do better and be better and care more about their future,” said Victoria Cruz-

nationally registered to vote. According to Time, the National Voter Registration Day campaign aimed to register 300,000 people. The actual figure far exceeded their expectations. National Voter Registration Day wants to make sure everyone has the opportunity to vote, according to its website. To register to vote in Kentucky, one must be a U.S. citizen and a Kentucky resident for at least 28 days, be at least 18-years-old (an exception is made for 17-yearolds who will be 18 before the General Election), not be a convicted felon, not be mentally incompetent and not claim voting rights outside of Kentucky, according to the Commonwealth of Kentucky State Board of Elections. This year’s midterm election will take place on Nov. 6.

Monday, October 22, 2018

Big picture: Kentucky’s multimillion-dollar House race has clear national implications By Rick Childress news@kykernel.com

Like any risky investment, the most expensive House race in Kentucky history has much to gain and much to lose for both sides of the aisle. Multiple media outlets have pinned Kentucky’s Sixth Congressional District race— which involves Lexington and many of the surrounding counties— as having immense importance for the battle for majority in the House of Representatives. Should Democrats wrest majority away from their Republican counterparts this November, they may have power to undermine the agenda of President Donald Trump’s White House and better dictate the direction of legislation. In the 435-seat House, Republicans currently hold 235 seats and Democrats 193, with seven seats vacant. For a party to have a majority, it needs at least 218 seats. According to the Cook Political Report, a non-partisan report which measures the competitiveness of elections, there are 31 different races across the country that are listed as “toss-ups”— meaning that the seat could easily swing right or left. Twenty-nine of those toss-up seats have Republican incumbents. UK political science professor Stephen Voss said that the Democratic Party has “better-than-even odds of taking the House of Representatives” in the upcoming midterm elections. The race between Republican incumbent Andy Barr and Democratic challenger Amy McGrath is listed as a “toss-up,” and the money raised by both campaigns shows that both sides feel the magnitude of a potential win. According to campaign finance filings that show how much each campaign has raised through Sept. 30, Barr’s and McGrath’s campaigns combine for more than $10 million in funding. Outside of the Sixth District, Kentucky’s five other House district races have raised only a combined $5.1 million. Barr has raised more than $4 million, which would have been a state record had McGrath not raised over $6 million since announcing her candidacy 14 months ago.

Trump’s visit to Richmond to stump for Barr and former Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Bath County in early October are also clear indicators that this Kentucky race could have resounding effects on the country as a whole. “The election of Andy is a really important thing,” Trump said before the Richmond crowd. “It could make the difference between unbelievable continued success and, frankly, failure where we fight for two more years with these people, with these obstructionists.” Biden also talked about the uniqueness of this race. “No matter how young or how old you are you’ve never been through an election quite like this,” Biden told the crowd in Bath County. “Our basic values, our basic American values are under assault, Kentucky values... Kentucky values that the people right here in Bath County teach their children every day.” According to Voss, should Democrats win control of the House they would have a great amount of control on the passage of federal budgets “because the House gets to be first mover on budget bills and because ultimately no budget bill passes without their support.” According to multiple reports from the McClatchy D.C. bureau, Democrats are gearing up for a long series of probes and investigations into the president’s actions should they win the House. In one report, anonymous sources within the White House told the news service they were worried that the White House may not have enough staff to handle the number of inquiries made by Democratic House members. “Democratic House committee chairs would be able to launch investigations, engage in aggressive oversight of executive-branch agencies, and otherwise exploit the other forms of indirect power that does not come from passing bills,” Voss wrote in an email to the Kernel. Voss said that should Trump find the House to be a road block, he may resort to pushing policy with executive orders, but “he’s having less success in the courts with those initiatives than (President Barack) Obama did.” “For many of the GOP’s policy goals,” Voss wrote, “there really is no substitute for passing actual legislation.”

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Monday, October 22, 2018

kernellifestyle

New shop allows ‘excited’ customers to safely eat cookie dough By Emily Baehner lifestyle@kykernel.com

Lexington now has a place for people interested in indulging in the guilty pleasure of eating raw cookie dough without the threat of listening to their mothers tell them it isn’t safe. With the opening of NoBaked Cookie Dough, a gourmet edible cookie dough dessert shop, visitors can say “Don’t mind if I dough!” NoBaked, located at 3735 Palomar Centre Dr., #220, held its grand opening on Oct. 14. Employee Whitney Griffin, age 16, said that after a soft opening on Thursday and Friday of the same week, the grand opening went well. “We’ve gotten a lot of compliments on the setup and the store design. People also really seem to like the milkshakes and variety of flavors,” Griffin said. Daniel Sizemore, a customer who tried the Chocolate Chip and the Confetti Sugar, said the store was bigger than he thought it would be. He said the cookie dough “tastes really good.” The Lexington location of NoBaked Cookie Dough is

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about 1,300 square feet and features indoor and outdoor seating. With counter service ordering and pink décor reminiscent of traditional ice cream shops, the store is sure to attract dessert lovers. Megan Beaven Feeman, CEO and founder of NoBaked, launched the company in March 2017 as an online store. Two locations in Nashville and one in Louisville led to the franchise location in Lexington. The idea for the company, she said, came from her own love of cookie dough. “I grew up eating raw cookie dough instead of baking the cookies. It has always been my favorite dessert, so I couldn’t think of anything else I’d rather build a company around,” Feeman said. Feeman looked forward to the grand opening, as it gives customers the chance to see what the company is about and how it works. “The grand openings are always the first chance to try flavors and different menu options. Customers are usually hesitant and then more relaxed once they realize that the store is pretty simple

PHOTOS BY EMILY BAEHNER I STAFF Three of the available flavors at the newely opened NoBaked Cookie Dough located on Palomar Centre Drive in Lexington, Kentucky.

and works similarly to an ice cream shop,” she said. Visitors to the store, the first franchise of the brand, had the opportunity to taste several raw cookie dough flavors, including Chocolate Chip, Brownie Batter Chip, Confetti Sugar, Peanut Butter, Red Velvet, Snickerdoodle, Cookie Monster, with plenty of topping options. Made without eggs and using heat-treated flour, the dough is completely safe to eat. One scoop costs $5, two for $7, and three for $9.

“Cookie dough is already a unique dessert because it is so different than ice cream or cupcakes. Our cookie dough is especially unique because of the ability to eat it raw and without worry, and the special recipe and ingredients we use,” said Freeman. The store also offers waffle cones, a half-baked sundae and milkshakes made with any cookie dough flavors and ice cream. These unique options surprised yet satisfied some customers. “I didn’t know they were

A sign reads “don’t mind if I dough” at the newely opened NoBaked Cookie Dough.

going to have milkshakes and sundaes, and stuff, so I think that’s pretty cool,” said Leslie Hancock, who tried scoops of the Chocolate Chip and Red Velvet. Feeman finds excitement in watching her customers experience the grand open-

ing. “My favorite part is seeing how excited customers get when they eat the cookie dough. You can tell that they’re excited about being able to eat something that they were always told they shouldn’t,” she said.

Monday, October 22, 2018

Former Kernel editor receives awards for Appalachia documentary By Lauryn Haas lifestyle@kykernel.com

A former Kernel editor has been collecting honors and awards for her documentary delving into the stereotype of the “hillbilly.” Ashley York, a 2002 UK journalism grad, won the Documentary Award at the LA Film Festival in September, qualifying the documentary, called hillbilly, for the Oscars. In the documentary, York and her co-producer and co-director Sally Rubin aimed to explore how Appalachian bias plays into today’s political climate. York was born and raised in eastern Kentucky, where her family has lived for six generations. Filming for hillbilly took place in Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia, but mainly in her home of Kentucky. York wanted to “expand the way people see and think about poverty, southern, and rural identity in contemporary America.” “My intention in making this film is to contribute something meaningful to the culture about this complex topic and to bring a personal perspective,” York said. “I hope this film can serve as a productive way to bring voice to some very challenging issues and inspire critical discourse that raises consciousness and advances progress.” The film features a long list of notable people, according to the website, including bell hooks, Ronny Cox and Billy Redden from Deliverance, director Michael Apted, activists and writers Frank X Walker, Crystal Good, and Silas House, and musicians Sam Gleaves and Amythyst Kiah. York said she is “motivated by innovative approaches to storytelling, and by the desire to elevate the voices of marginalized and vulnerable people.” She said she finds great inspiration in the work of bell hooks. “I learned about her work while a student at UK, and her work and scholarship transformed my perspective in every way,” York said. “It was a dream come true to inter-

PHOTO PROVIDED BY ASHLEY YORK The York family, Karen Vaughn (left), Regina York, Tim York, Helen York and Ralph York, poses for a portrait at Sears in 1968. Ralph took the day off from his job in the coal industry for a photo session.

view her for the film.” During time as a UK student, York worked for various news agencies and publications, including the Lexington Herald-Leader, WUKY, WRFL and the Kentucky Kernel. She worked as Kernel news editor before serving as editor-in-chief during the 2001-02 academic year. “My work at the Kernel was transformative because it gave me access to a space where I could learn how to write news and begin the practice of reporting and working with people to tell their stories,” York said. “It was also a space where I began to understand ethics in storytelling and learned how to collaborate with others and work toward a common goal of publishing a daily newspaper.” Documentary form first began to interest her while she was a student. She remembers watching Barbara Kopple’s Harlan County, USA (1976) and being deeply in-

spired. This film, along with Anne Lewis’ Fast Food Women (1991) and Elizabeth Barret’s Coalmining Women (1982), inspired her to make documentary films. “Seeing that film was an ‘aha’ moment because it was the first time I saw the people of east Kentucky be portrayed in a way that was nuanced and complex and it was unlike so many of the mass media portrayals of rural people I saw growing up, which were ultimately negative and hateful,” York said. After graduating from UK with a degree in journalism, York moved to Los Angeles and enrolled in an MFA program at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. During her second semester, she interned at a production company on a feature documentary. She has now been producing documentaries and doc-series for 16 years for Netflix, Sundance Channel, Dis-

covery, HBO and National Geographic. Her first film, Tig, was a Netflix Original and premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. York has been teaching for nine years at the USC School of Cinematic Arts in the Division of Media Arts + Practice. She is a member of Women in Film, the International Documentary Association and a founding member of Take Action Games. York used her journalism degree in a non-traditional way and offers advice for students who are hoping to succeed in the journalism world and beyond. “Be truthful. Trust that the stories you want to tell need to be told. Trust your own voice and tell stories that no one else can. Learn to honor and speak your truth. Be experimental in your approach. Work with people you both agree and disagree with. Work with people who challenge you,” York said. “Listen and be kind.” The documentary will screen

UK alumna Ashley York won the Documentary Award at the LA Film Festival in September, qualifying the documentary hillbilly for the Oscars. on Monday, Oct. 29, 2018, at EKU as part of Appalachia Days. More information is available at https:// foreignlanguages.eku.edu/events/ appalachia-days-screening-hillbilly.

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Monday, October 22, 2018

Heated race pits first-time female candidate against Trump-backed incumbent

By Sydney Momeyer In a tight race, the Sixth Congressional District candidates are down to their final weeks of campaigning before the election. As of Oct. 17, polling website FiveThirtyEight shows that the race is close, with incumbent Republican candidate Andy Barr ahead of Democratic candidate Amy McGrath by just two points. According to Barr’s website, his largest concerns are national security, the opioid epidemic, financial services, economy and jobs, energy, health care, fiscal responsibility and veterans. “The national liberal ‘resistance’ and extreme left are funding Amy McGrath’s campaign because she’ll be another vote for Nancy Pelosi’s liberal agenda,” Barr campaign spokeswoman Jodi Whitaker told the Associated Press. According to McGrath’s campaign site, her biggest focal points are health care, foreign policy, sexual harassment, medical marijuana and legalization, guns, money in politics, climate change, teachers’ pensions, the opioid crisis and immigration. As a veteran, McGrath has also campaigned a great deal about the importance and value of the military. “I spent 20 years as U.S. Marine and flew 89 combat missions bombing Al-Qaeda and the Taliban,” she said in 6 | kentucky kernel

TOP LEFT: ARDEN BARNES I STAFF Retired Lieutenant Colonel Amy McGrath addresses her supporters during the rally on Oct. 12, 2018, at Bath County High School in Owingsville, Kentucky. LOWER LEFT: ARDEN BARNES I STAFF Anti-Trump protestors hold signs and chant across the street from the rally President Donald Trump held for Andy Barr on Oct. 13, 2018, in Richmond, Kentucky. BELOW: ARDEN BARNES I STAFF Former Vice President Joe Biden speaks to Amy McGrath supporters during the rally on Oct. 12, 2018, in Owingsville, Kentucky. TOP RIGHT: JORDAN PRATHER I STAFF President Donald Trump speaks during the Make America Great Again rally on Oct. 13, 2018, in Richmond, Kentucky. MIDDLE RIGHT: JORDAN PRATHER I STAFF Congressman Andy Barr and President Donald Trump exit the stage together during the make America great again rally on Oct. 13, 2018, in Richmond, Kentucky. BOTTOM RIGHT: JORDAN PRATHER I STAFF Attendees yell at the media during the rally on Oct. 13, 2018, in Richmond, Kentucky.

an ad that aired in August 2017. McGrath and her campaign have repeatedly said that she has refused to post attack ads against Barr, while Barr has posted nearly 20 against McGrath. The attack ads range from calling her “too progressive for Kentucky,” to accusing her of being pro-abortion until the end of the third trimester. “The reason I have continued to run a race that is entirely focused on my values, on our values and the issues is because first, I trust the voters to see through this sad, wornout tactic of negativity and lies,” McGrath said at her rally in Bath County on Oct. 12. “It is not who we are. Second, because we desperately need change in our political system, in our politics and our country. That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing.” According to an article posted in the New York Times, Barr and supporting Republican groups have spent more than $3 million in ads through Lexington alone. The two have campaigned long and hard in their final months leading up to the election. The Sixth District race has gained national attention in recent months, particularly among McGrath’s campaign. While she is not the first to run, McGrath would be the first woman to represent Kentucky’s Sixth District if she wins.

Monday, October 22, 2018

‘Year of the Woman’

“Right now, there are more women in Afghan’s Parliament than women in Congress,” McGrath said in an interview with the Kernel at her rally on Oct. 12. “That’s sad to me.” McGrath’s campaign has also gained attention on the national scale because of the large amount of women running. Many media outlets have called this election period the “Year of the Woman.” “It’s definitely been stunning that there have been so many women who have come out to run in this election,” said Tiffany Barnes, UK associate professor of political science. “We know from previous research that women run in elections at much lower rates than men. When women do run for election they tend to be better qualified than their male competitors. Because of that, when women run, they tend to have equal levels of electoral success as their male competitors.” Here on UK’s campus, students have noted the importance of this election, one of those students being political science major Olivia Antigua. “As a woman who studies politics and cares a lot about the government, it is so exciting to see women running,” Antigua said. “We are not equally represented on any level of government and this is just the start toward true equity.” See RACE on page 8 fall 2018 | 7

Monday, October 22, 2018

RACE

of the appeal.”

While many have recognized the amount of women running as important, Stephen Voss, a political science professor at UK, said he feels UK students are focusing more on the campaign these women are running than on their gender. “I hear very little explicit discussion about what’s happening this election focusing on the gender of the candidates,” Voss said. “There’s a lot in the news and the editorial pages about the historic shift in who’s running. When I hear the students excited about Amy McGrath, for example they rarely, if ever, mention her sex as part

If Barr were to win, Kentucky would remain mostly represented by Republicans. Currently, Kentucky is represented by five Republicans and one Democrat in the House of Representatives, and two Republican Senators, Rand Paul and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. “To continue the greatest movement in the history of our country, or maybe any country, you need to vote Republican,” President Donald Trump said in a stump speech for Barr on Oct. 13. “On Nov. 6 I need you to get your friends, get your family, get your neighbors and your co-

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Barr: A win for Republicans

workers and get out and vote for Andy Barr.” Barnes said McConnell’s status as Senate majority leader contributes to the high level of attention this congressional race is receiving. “I think another reason this Kentucky election really catches national attention is because the Senate majority leader is from Kentucky,” Barnes said. “Right now Kentucky has a disproportionate amount of power in the Senate. For a small state to have so much influence is truly unprecedented.” Students like Antigua want to encourage other younger generations to pay attention to elections outside of just presidential

elections. “There has been this constant narrative that our generation doesn’t care about anything,” Antigua said. “That we are selfish and that our voices don’t matter. Based off the people that I know and the generation of young activists rising on the internet, that stereotype is anything but true. College students are worried about their future, and if they want to be in charge of what happens, they need to vote.” The Kernel reached out to Barr’s campaign for further comment about the election but had not received a response at the time of printing. The general election will take place Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018.

JORDAN PRATHER I STAFF Congressman Andy Barr is welcomed by the crowd during the Make America Great Again rally on Oct. 13, 2018, at Alumni Coliseum in Richmond, Kentucky.

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Monday, October 22, 2018

Avoiding a ‘guilty until proven innocent’ mentality in sexual assault cases SARAH LADD Opinions Editor

John Steinbeck had the dust bowl, Mark Twain had slavery, Ernest Hemingway had a war, and today’s writers have sexual assault. It’s a challenging time to be a journalist, a woman and a caring citizen. Some might even say it’s a “scary” time. We are in the wake of #MeToo, a powerful viral campaign that exposed powerful sexual assaulters across our country from Harvey Weinstein to Larry Nassar. Closer to home, the Kernel has defended itself against a UK lawsuit as we battle over who to defend in sexual assault cases: the accuser or the accused. UK updated its sexual assault guideline policies recently to allow more rights for the accused party. In our congressional district, a recent ruling would allow persons accused of sexual assault to question their accuser in court. And on Oct. 1, The Washington Post reported that Donald Trump Jr. said he is more worried for his sons than his daughters in our country, and President Trump later said it’s a “scary” time for young men because they are “guilty until proven innocent.” This is a serious statement that deserves response because it suggests that the entire judicial system is undermined, due process ignored and reputation instead of evidence is believed in our most sacred courtrooms. We believe survivors. It’s a statement that went viral and has served as the basis for many protests and campaigns across this country over Justice Brett Kavanaugh and the #MeToo movement. Does this statement indicate that if a person claims he or she was assaulted by another person, that is evidence enough for a conviction? This is what the president and his son seemed to indicate, but it is not accurate.

According to a 2016 report by the Center for Prosecutor Integrity, 23 percent of all exonerated cases in the United States from 1989 to 2012 were over sexual assault. A 2013 heartwarming story from NPR told the story of how Brian Banks, who was wrongfully charged with rape, was cleared after his accuser confessed that she lied. He served five years in prison and five years probation, being a registered sex offender and unable to work. After his exoneration, he was signed by the Atlanta Falcons and able to pursue his lifelong dream of playing football.

Everyone should always be innocent until proven guilty, and we owe them that right. There have been many cases like his: men accused wrongfully of sexual assault for any number of reasons. It hurts me to think of an innocent man serving time in prison due only to another person’s personal ambitions. As tragic as this is, it does not represent a majority of the sexual assault cases in our country. According to a 2015 USA Today story, tens of thousands of rape kits go untested each year across our country. And in 2015, more than 3,000 rape kits were untested in Kentucky alone, according to a state auditor. For each untested rape kit, a rapist remains innocent in the eyes of the law, and if history is any indication, will stay innocent for decades and perhaps even for life. Despite the trauma a woman (or man) may endure during a rape, undergoing a rape kit is an add-

ed horror that includes pubic hair pulls, internal exams and swabs as well as having pictures taken of internal and external genital injuries. And after undergoing this no doubt humiliating exam, it may never be tested and may never amount to anything. The assaulters do not undergo this exam. After the violation of an assault or rape and the humiliation of a rape kit and the victimization family and friends place on a person who’s gone through this, he or she now has to stand in court and, in some cases, tell the entire world about the most vulnerable moments of their life. So yes, we believe survivors. I believe survivors. Statistically, it is far more likely that if a person says she was assaulted that she’s telling the truth. I also recognize that not everyone who testifies is a survivor, as in the few cases we discussed earlier. This is where due process comes in. It is barbaric at best to have a balance of power tucked away in the “he said, she said” age-old debate. More weight has been granted male voices for centuries, and we cannot afford to lean too far in the other direction. We must reserve judgement until we hear both sides. We must not let one person’s word hold more weight over another’s. Evidence, not emotions, should guide us. Everyone should always be innocent until proven guilty, and we owe them that right. In the majority of cases, they get that right. In most sexual assault cases, the guilty party never suffers any inconvenience thanks to the humiliation and fear the victim faces if she or he comes forward. Having said that, we should listen to both sides and be moved by evidence rather than emotion, and we should take sexual assault allegations very seriously. Nothing could be more detrimental than the violation of a person’s humanity. Believe survivors, but listen to both sides first.

kernelopinions

Effects of 6th circuit decision about sexual assault trials yet to be seen HANNAH WOOSLEY Asst. Opinions Editor

Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee: These states have something new in common as of Sept. 7, and whether it’s a good thing or not is still debatable. These four states are included in the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and, after a ruling from that court last month, now allow persons accused of sexual misconduct at public universities to cross-examine their accusers when credibility is at issue. While considering all that an alleged victim undergoes throughout the entire process of naming their assailant and eventual possible court trials, one must also think of the other side before naming fault. On May 7, USA Today reported on two men, VanDyke Perry and Gregory Counts, who were exonerated from a 1991 rape accusation that the accuser now admits never happened– 26 years after the men’s sentencing. Perry was 21 and Counts 19 at the time of their conviction. Not often does a case this extreme happen, but imagine if these two men were offered the chance to cross-examine their accuser. According to a report from the New York Times, their accuser’s story was inconsistent: There was no physical evidence, and semen recovered from the woman didn’t match the two men. These men may not have spent a combined 37 years in prison for a crime they never committed; they may have had the chance to discharge the lies from the accuser’s mouth. Due process for all is an important part of our legal system; everyone should be presumed innocent until proven guilty, but this idea is becoming much more difficult in the wake of the era we’re in. Every time you turn your TV on or scroll through your news app, it seems as if a new sexual assault allegation has risen– against the president, the newly nominated supreme court jus-

tice, famous actors– but many often have corroborators, multiple accusers or physical evidence. Sexual assault was, and still is, becoming an epidemic. Then #MeToo was born and became an important part of the conversation about sexual assault. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, one in five women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives, and one in three women and one in six men experience some form of sexual contact violence in their lives. These are alarming numbers for anyone, and #MeToo was just trying to end the abuse by putting these sexual assault stories out for the world. In no way am I advocating that victims should not be allowed the chance to speak their piece or should fear opening up with their story; I am advocating that an equal judicial system follow for both parties, so lives like Perry’s and Counts’ are not destroyed. But the fear of this new ruling may force victims to hide, rescind or deny allegations in worry that they will have to face their assaulter in court; this is where the problem arises. We’re in a he-said, she-said time. Without physical evidence or eye-witnesses, it’s difficult to prove a claim; it’s even more difficult to produce, or even clear, a conviction. When thinking of both affected parties– the accuser and the accused– and the struggles that could come of this new ruling, there’s no clear answer except to listen. Listen to both sides, versions, recounts equally. Hear each side with equal weight. Then, and only then, come to a conclusion. We must stop rushing to judgment, pointing fingers before testimonies are spoken and written words are signed, on both sides. Only in the years to come will we know what will amount of the sixth circuit’s ruling, but one thing is sure: We must take every claim, every investigation and every story seriously and finish an investigation before sides are taken, or this ruling will surely fail– for everyone.

fall 2018 | 9

Monday, October 22, 2018

kernelsports

Two things must happen for the Wildcats to contend for a championship By Chris Leach sports@kykernel.com

10 | kentucky kernel

Another season of Kentucky basketball is near, and the standard for the season is what it always is: national champions. In order for that goal to be met, a lot of things will need to swing Kentucky’s way, but ultimately what the Wildcats do is more important than what teams around them do. At Kentucky’s media day, head coach John Calipari said two things need to happen for the team to be national champions. The first thing on Calipari’s list: The Wildcats need someone who they can depend on at all times, someone who will lead the team when times get tough. “We need someone who’s going to bring us all together and pick everybody up, hold people accountable,” Calipari said. “Are you willing to hold somebody accountable who’s not doing right in this room?” Calipari calls those types leaders catalysts. Calipari’s best teams had multiple catalysts, and in order for this team to be among the greats, someone will need to step up and fill that role this year. It is early, but no player has emerged to be a catalyst yet, according to Calipari. Last year it was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who emerged as the team’s leader and go-to guy in crunch time. Gilgeous-Alexander developed into that role because of his work ethic. He was one of the team’s hardest workers, and it showed as the season went on. “He was here at 7 in the morning shooting, he watched video of himself and other people, he was in the weight room, he was un-

JORDAN PRATHER I STAFF Men’s basketball head coach John Calipari speaks during Big Blue Madness on Oct. 12, 2018, in Lexington, Kentucky.

believable,” Calipari said. “He never missed a class, never missed a tutor, did everything he was supposed to.” An obvious answer to who can be this year’s catalysts are the returners who were on last year’s team. Calipari mentioned P.J. Washington’s name multiple times last year as a guy who could lead the team, and now as a sophomore, he’s expected to have more of a vocal role in the team huddles and on the court. “I’ve been through it, I’ve been here obviously so I know what he wants, know what he wants out of the team,” Washington said. “I’m just trying to just lead these young guys to winning games and just telling them what it’s like to be a Kentucky basketball player.” Another player who could be a catalyst this year is someone who will don the Kentucky jersey for the first time, yet he is the oldest player on the team and spent the last four seasons playing for Stanford. “I’ve been a captain on every team I’ve been on, it’s a position that I’m not scared of, a position that I like,” Reid Travis said. “I like to be involved as far

as leading teams or leading guys and I really do think the young guys look towards me and they listen.” If the Wildcats are able to find their catalysts, that’s the first step toward the team becoming national title contenders. The second step will be for the catalysts to empower the entire team; that is, to take responsibility for the team and not just go to Calipari for all the answers. “To be empowered they’ve got to have more than one leader, and those leaders will have to understand if you lead, you’re serving,” Calipari said. “It’s servant leadership.” Calipari believes last year’s squad improved tremendously but never became empowered. They were still looking to Calipari for answers instead of relying on each other and figuring it out themselves. What he hopes to see is the catalysts, like Gilgeous-Alexander last year, encourage other teammates to put in extra work to become empowered. The thing that has made this year’s team exciting is that they’ve already proven they’re willing to put in extra work, as anyone who See WILDCATS on page 11

Monday, October 22, 2018

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those guys are in there,” Calipari said. This year’s team has tons of potential based on talent level, but in order for the team to be legitimate, the catalysts need to emerge, and they need to empower the team. If that happens, the sky is the limit. “If this team becomes empowered and it becomes their team, then this becomes scary,” Calipari said.

fall 2018 | 11

Monday, October 22, 2018

Baker likes to keep it ‘simple’ on the court and in his closet By Erika Bonner

sports@kykernel.com

The California kid doesn’t just bring three-pointers to the bluegrass state; he’s also brought his west-coast style to the south. Kentucky’s redshirt-freshman guard Jemarl Baker Jr. shared that his favorite thing outside of basketball is fashion, and projects himself to the best-dressed player on the men’s basketball team. He said his teammates would agree. “I like shopping for clothes, I like looking at clothes, and I like video games. Those are about equal,” Baker said. If you know anything about how much many 20-year-olds like video games, you realize how much Baker actually does like fashion. The California native said his closet is so full that he’s “running out of hangers” and needs to get more. Baker said he can’t pinpoint a favorite piece in his closet because of his abundance of clothing, but he has lots of Vans (he is from California, after all) and specifically

JORDAN PRATHER I STAFF Jamarl Baker Jr. competes in the threepoint contest during Big Blue Madness on Oct. 12, 2018, at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

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likes searching for jackets. He said even his friends like to take peeks into his closet. “I don’t know, I have a lot of stuff I like. Like everything I buy I like, and even when people come in my room they look in my closet and they like a lot of stuff too. So I don’t necessarily have a favorite,” Baker said. His favorite stores to shop at include Urban Outfitters, which he said is easy for him since it’s right in the downtown area of Lexington, and PacSun. Some of his clothes, though, are more special to him than any store can offer. “My friends have brands and I try to support them as well. Today I wore a sweatshirt in support of one of my friends, so I like to do that,” Baker said. Supporting his friends by wearing their brands is something that’s important to Baker because of his pride in where he’s from, and he said he likes to support the people who have always been there for him in any way that he can. The single word Baker would use to summarize his style? Simple. “I’m not really out there, my stuff isn’t crazy but I like to look neat and put together pretty well,” Baker said. His fashion sense isn’t the only part about himself that he describes as simple— his

style of play on the basketball court also warrants the “simple” label. “I don’t like to do too much on the court, I like to just get the job done, whatever that entails really. Whether it’s catch and shoot, one-dribble pull-up, just little things. Defending, that’s really simple I try to break down,” Baker said. “I’m just a simple guy. I don’t do anything really, I just stay in my room. On the court I’m simple, I don’t be doing a lot of moving all flashy and when I dress I like to be simple as well, just well put together.” Baker hasn’t been able to showcase his simple-play style on the court yet due to a knee injury he suffered last year, but he’s back to 100 percent and ready to play this season. The injury has motivated him to work hard to get healthy again and gives him a chip on his shoulder heading into this season. He credits his loved ones, coaches and teammates for keeping him positive throughout the process. “My family, the coaching staff, players, just I guess helping me be positive, telling me to be positive, and just telling me to keep smiling and just being myself,” Baker said. “Just through that, just working hard and now I’m where I want to be, so I’m happy.”

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