Opinions The Marquette Tribune
Tuesday, April 12, 2022
PAGE 10
Editorial Board
Alexandra Garner, Executive Opinions Editor Hope Moses, Assistant Opinions Editor Aimee Galaszewski, Executive Director Benjamin Wells, Managing Editor of The Marquette Tribune Skyler Chun, Managing Editor of The Marquette Journal
Megan Woolard, News Executive John Leuzzi, Sports Executive Randi Haseman, A&E Executive Lelah Byron, Projects Editor
Eleanor McCaughey, Copy Chief Grace Pionek, Design Chief Izzy Bonebrake, Executive Photo Editor Nancy Flaherty, Social Media Executive
Andrew Amouzou, Station Manager of MUTV Reese Seberg, Station Manager of MURadio Alex Rivera Grant, Editor of Diversity and Inclusion
STAFF EDITORIAL
Support student well-being, revitalize food access
To address food barriers on campus and better support students, Marquette University should consider implementing more flexible dining hours, food options and meal plans. It’s important to recognize how food connects with culture and religion to offer more inclusive dining options. The month of Ramadan began April 2, and is a time in which Muslims engage in prayer and self-reflection. It is observed as one of the holiest months of the year. During Ramadan, Muslims who are able to will fast from predawn to sunset. The sun will typically set in Milwaukee between 7:15 p.m. and 8 p.m. during April this year. Muslim students who celebrate Ramadan may find it difficult to find dining halls that are open when their fasting ends. Straz dining hall closes at 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and doesn’t offer dinner hours Friday through Sunday; Cobeen’s
dining hall closes at 7:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7:15 p.m. on the weekends; Erbert and Gerbert’s, Power Bowl, Grill 155 and Taqueria in Marquette Place in the Alumni Memorial Union also close at 6:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, at 4 p.m. on Fridays and are closed on the weekends. There are only a few food locations that are very accessible for students celebrating Ramadan who are on the Anytime Dining meal plan based on their closing time: The Commons, Schroeder and The Union Sports Annex. The Commons typically closes at 11 p.m. Monday through Sunday; Schroeder dining hall closes at 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday and at 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday; the Union Sports Annex closes at 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and at midnight Friday and Saturday. To better support Muslim students during Ramadan, Marquette should consider keeping
dining halls open later. This is important to supporting their health and well-being by providing accessibility to meals across campus. University spokesperson Lynn Griffith said that Marquette dining services has served fish dishes on Fridays to accommodate Catholic students during Lent. Marquette can create more religious inclusivity by making accommodations for Muslim students during Ramadan as well. Creating food inclusivity is also important for students with dietary restrictions. The university has implemented recent changes to better serve students with vegetarian and vegan diets. The Commons’ dining hall opened a new Plant-Powered Grill, offering sustainable and vegan meals sourced from Morningstar Farms, a company that offers vegan and vegetarian food options. The university should continue implementing a variety of food options across dining spaces on
campus, as well as engaging with students to hear their input. To increase food accessibility the university should also consider offering more meal plan options. Marquette currently offers the Anytime Dining meal plan as its only meal plan option for firstyear students and sophomores who live in residence halls. The Anytime Dining meal plan costs $2,430 for the fall 2021 and spring 2022 semesters. According to the university meal plan page, “Students living in the residence halls must purchase this meal plan. The costs … are built into your residence hall agreement and payments.” Students with dietary restrictions may still find it difficult to eat food that they like, despite Marquette making changes to food offerings. Some Marquette students may also not be able to afford the meal plan. And students may want to have more flexibility in their meal options. For students not living in
residence halls, the only two meal plans are the Anytime Dining and the Loyalty 50 plan, which costs $450 a semester. Students get 50 swipes per semester, and can purchase the plan twice in a semester. Marquette should look to other universities that offer more than one meal plan option. Loyola University Chicago is one university that provides several meal plan options for students: All-Access plans, dining Dollar plans and Block Plus plans. Unlike Marquette that offers two plans that range from $450 to 2,430, Loyola offers eight different plans that combine access to dining halls and dining dollars and range from $500 to $2,890. From socializing with friends to receiving nourishment to be healthy, food is a central part of college life. Making sure students are satisfied with their options while at Marquette is essential to supporting their health, wellbeing and academic success.
Abolish military draft, strive for gender equality Krisha Patel The United States has made significant progress in addressing the inequality that women experience in America, such as granting women the right to vote and the right to an abortion. However, the possibility of a military draft still upholds gender inequality for men. While it has been over fifty years since there was last an indication to use the draft, all males are still required by law to register for the Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthday. The same goes for immigrants, regardless of status. The penalty for not registering for a draft is five years in jail or a $250,000 fine. Currently, approximately 17 million draft-eligible men
are on file with the Selective Service System. The first draft occurred May 18, 1917 through the Selective Service Act which require all men between the ages of 21 and 30 to enlist in World War I because there weren’t enough volunteers. However, some forms of the draft occurred before then, dating back to the American Revolution and Civil War. Since World War I, the draft has been used three more times, the most recent time being in 1973 during the Vietnam War. Since then, the draft has been inactive and the military has relied on volunteers. As the conflict continues between Ukraine and Russia, discussions of the United States entering war with Russia seem to loom across the nation. That possibility is largely unpopular among Americans and scholars, but there are still conversations about the potentiality for
a draft. Recently, the war between Russia and Ukraine has increased fears that a possible world war might emerge. Tensions rose between these countries since 2014 when Russia invaded the Crimean Peninsula and have recently worsened when Russia invaded Ukraine Feb. 24. In the event of a draft, there are some exceptions, according to the Selective Service System. Any current college student has the choice not to go through with the draft if they get selected, and anyone with mental or physical disabilities is also exempt from the draft. Abolishing the current draft would be the most progressive decision, considering that women are excluded from it and men are disproportionately impacted. Despite this solution, there have been efforts by the federal government to maintain it, but make it more gender inclusive.
Congress recently tried to change the draft making it inclusive to women, rather than make attempts to abolish it altogether. However, the charges were dropped in December 2021 due to conflicting views between the Democratic and Republican parties about whether women should be included in the draft or not. While requiring women to also register for the draft would virtually create gender equality between men and women, the current draft requirement for men is discriminatory. Moreover, the draft should be abolished because it limits people’s ability to choose; this came to fruition in the Vietnam War draft. In addition to largely being opposed to the war in Vietnam, people were against the draft. As many as 40,000 young men were drafted each month. Some men even fled the country Canada to
avoid the draft. By abolishing the draft, the U.S. military would have stronger units with volunteers rather than using people through force. Historically, volunteers for the military are older and more educated than young men who are picked from the draft. In the end, people will still have their voice if the draft is eliminated completely. Abolishing the draft will enhance our countries ideals of freedom. When it comes to the potentiality of war, in the near or far future, it’s important that everyone is valued equally and even more importantly, everyone is there by choice.
Alexandra contributed to
this
Garner story.
Krisha Patel is a junior studying nursing and Spanish for the health professions. She can be reached at krisha.patel@marquette.edu
