OPINIONS

Tuesday, OcTOber 11, 2022

The MarqueTTe Tribune OPINIONS

Andrew Amouzou, Executive Director Megan Woolard, Managing Editor of The Marquette Tribune Hope Moses, Editor of Diversity and Inclusion

ediTOriaL bOard

Grace Cady, Executive Opinions Editor Laura Niezgoda, Assistant Opinions Editor Randi Haseman, Content Coach

Julia Abuzzahab, News Executive John Leuzzi, Sports Executive Izzy Fonfara Drewel, A&E Executive Skyler Chun, Investigative Executive Emily Reinhardt, Copy Chief RJ Siano, Design Chief Isabel Bonebrake, Chief Photographer Nancy Flaherty, Social Media Executive Sarah Richardson, General Manager of MUTV Emily Bittman, General Manager of MURadio Kimberly Cook, Managing Editor of The Marquette Journal

STAFF EDITORIAL Gender inclusivity essential on campus

In an education system that has seemed to make strides to become more inclusive, sometimes gender identity is left in the dust. As we become more evolved students and members of society, we must remember to make space for the wellness and prosperity of people of all genders. Students no longer need to be addressed as simply “men and women of the world” – because, although traditional, it is naive to sort all people into these two categories when gender identity stretches far beyond them.

When it comes to the conversation surrounding gender, it seems like a lot of the world continues to have wool over their eyes. There are notable differences between sex, gender and gender identity. The term “sex” refers to the biological status that a person is assigned at birth due to their external anatomy. “Gender” is often recognized as the socially constructed norms and expectations surrounding various sexes. And, “gender identity” is a person’s sense of gender whether that be as a man, woman or otherwise.

The medical center at Marquette University is divided into two sectors – men’s healthcare and women’s healthcare. The center provides specialized services for each division including pap smears and pregnancy testing for women on campus. However, it fails to recognize individuals who are not cis-gender.

Not having a more holistic approach to the health services at Marquette inherently excludes individuals who are transgender or non-binary. To close our eyes, minds and clinics to people who are not cisgender is to do the LGBTQ+ community a disservice and risk their health and wellness as a result.

As progress continues on the new business building at Marquette, the question of whether or not all-gender bathrooms will be included has been raised. The new $60 million, 100,000-squarefoot building is said to include a collaborative classroom, lab spaces, study spaces, event spaces, a cafe and faculty offi ces. But, will it include more accessibility for transgender or non-binary students?

This raises the question of who has a seat and who is left out of the “room where it happens.”

As decisions are being made regarding innovations and improvements to Marquette’s campus, it is important that people of all identities and walks of life are being represented. Without people of different genders being a part of important conversations encompassing the direction of projects on campus, those decisions are fragmented.

Being students at a Jesuit university, it is likely that many at Marquette have heard the commonly used tagline “becoming men and women for others.” Although on the surface this phrase may sound simple, understandable and even encouraging, it explicitly leaves out students of other genders.

Marquette must make a conscious effort to be more inclusive of students who transgender and nonbinary so that they too feel they have a place at the university. Even what may seem like small changes such as updating university taglines and referring to students in non-gendered terms can make a signifi cant difference.

There are a few notable resources on campus available for students with various genders.

Located in the AMU, the LGBTQ+ Resource Center at Marquette welcomes students of all sexualities and genders to seek out support. The center describes itself as a “welcoming and inclusive space, open to all, and seeks to provide an atmosphere of great dialogue, engagement and compassion.”

The center’s website features a specifi c section for gender identities. The “Queer Closet” is also a part of the center. This closet provides Marquette students with access to free gender-affi rming clothes and accessories. Spaces like this help not only affi rm but also inspire students to feel that they can be their authentic selves.

There are also student organizations that provide students of all genders with a safe place and sense of community. This includes the Gender Sexuality Alliance. The alliance aims to provide support and understanding for students of minority genders and sexualities so that they feel welcomed and empowered on campus.

Marquette and its student body must ensure that they are actively supporting the queer community in all aspects. Students who attend this university need to feel not only accepted but appreciated by their peers, educators and school faculty.

“Rust” fi lm back in production, protect actors’ mental health

People in society view actors as immensely talented people capable of switching emotions, performing seamless stunts and drawing us to the screen, on the edge of our seats. But, we often forget that they are human too. With pressure from leaders in the fi lm industry and fans alike, actors mental health can suffer as a result of strenuous work environments.

Recently, we have seen an extreme example of this.

Alec Baldwin is a talented actor with an impressive resume, detailing 40 years of experience and over 100 projects. Baldwin has also been nominated for, and won, several major awards such as an Emmy and Golden Globe.

While working on a new project, he accidentally killed someone.

While fi lming the movie “Rust’” in Oct. 2021, Baldwin used a prop gun that was loaded unbeknownst to him. The gun was not properly checked prior to it being fi red. He fatally shot cinematographer Haylna Hutchins and wounded producer Joel Souza.

The movie went into an indefi nite suspension after that.

The production company was ultimately the ones to blame for cutting costs and not doing routine checks on the props. Despite everything being an accident, Baldwin’s mental health still suffered severely.

Baldwin felt tremendous guilt for the death of Hutchins and took to social media to apologize publicly.

The movie was just picked up again for production in January.

Producers and fans demand so much out of actors. However, they sometimes forget that actors also have mental, emotional and physical limits. Baldwin certainly isn’t the fi rst actor to endure mental health issues under all of this pressure.

Actor Kit Harrington had to check himself into rehab after his television show, “Game of Thrones“ ended. He had been acting on the show for over eight years and checked himself in after the stress became too much for him which caused him to turn to alcohol as a coping mechanism.

Many actors suffer from mental health issues because their job is very demanding.

They have to memorize lines, jump from one emotion to another, work long hours and act out potentially uncomfortable scenes. This is all just what they experience while fi lming, though it is important to remember that being away from loved ones and frequent travel can also pile on the stress.

Production companies need to add mental health resources to their budget, as acting can take a toll on a person. It’s hard to have the pressure of needing to please everyone on your shoulders.

If actors are expected to memorize lines, they should also be expected to take care of their mental health.

Resources production companies should include is an on-site mental health counselor and mandatory therapy sessions so that when actors are feeling overwhelmed, they have someone to talk to rather than having to endure mental health issues on their own and in silence.

Many actors may experience mental health issues from all the backlash and hate that they receive through social media, as well. As fans, we can do our part by making sure we don’t say or post anything that can further trigger mental health for the actors.

The fi lm industry is one of the main sources of our entertainment as there are many successful projects being created every year, enticing a growing audience.

It’s also a place where people follow their passions and pursue dream careers. However, mental health needs to remain at the forefront of the fi lm industry. We tend to forget that actors are people too.

The reason why we get to turn on our favorite tv show at night is because of the effort actors put into their work. If their mental health isn’t being supported, then we might not get to see the next episode.

Marquette must geographically diversify

Western museums need to return antiquities taken in violence and conquest to their rightful owners. These objects from the global south have been stolen and housed in Western museums on a massive scale.

The Smithsonian approved returning 29 bronze sculptures from the Kingdom of Benin in June 2022. These sculptures were looted from the palace of the King of the Kingdom of Benin, which is now in modern-day Nigeria. They were taken in 1897 after British soldiers punitively and violently invaded. The many riches within the palace were taken to pay off the cost of the invasion itself. The Smithsonian is an early adopter of the repatriation of stolen antiquities.

Similarly, U.S. authorities have confi scated 200 objects surrendered by museums and collections. Many are from Italy, a majority of which were initially acquired through a 30-year smuggling operation which was run by 70-year-old Roman Edoardo Almagià.

Unfortunately this practice has only come to full fruition in select parts of the United States. Many European countries and other parts of the States are less willing to return stolen antiquities.

Indigenous people in the States have advocated for the return of cultural artifacts to the proper communities.

Chip Cowell in the Op-ed “As Native Americans,We Are in a Constant State of Mourning” writes about western fascination with “primitive” art. Cowell states, “Indigenous peoples often tried their best to preserve their sacred objects and to protect the graves of their ancestors. But most communities were unable to stop the plunder.”

The largest offender of stolen antiquities is none other than the British Museum. The British Museum’s collection includes some of the Benin bronzes, the Maqdala collection, a plethora of real human remains and much more.

The Maqdala collection includes ceremonial crosses, chalices, processional umbrella tops, weapons, textiles, jewelry and religiously signifi cant altar tablets. They are from what is currently northern Ethiopia. In 1867, British soldiers led a military expedition to the area. Subsequently they killed hundreds of people and wounded thousands more. They then looted the fortress, library and treasury.

Some of the strangest pieces in the possession of the museum are human remains. For research and on display they have over 6,000 human remains.

On the British Museum’s website, they attempt to justify their ownership of these remains, which keep in mind have been taken from their resting places without any authorization of their descendants or the people when they were still alive. The museum says that they try to keep a “record of the varied ways different societies have conceived of death and disposed of the remains of the dead.”

This is a poor justifi cation for having the bodies of humans who in no way authorized the research of their remains.

The museum is in possession of several Maori preserved heads. The Maori are a still existing Indigenous group from New Zealand. The heads were donated by Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks who is a revered “collector” of antiquities, or in better terms, a graverobber.

The idea that the museum has these culturally signifi cant pieces is frankly disgusting and their endeavor to treat it as normal, and even moral, only makes the situation more insidious.

Kirsten Lyons is a first-year studying journalism. She can be be reached at

kirsten.lyons@marquette.edu

I love Marquette, I really do. I remember touring the university as a high school sophomore back in the spring of 2019. Being a kid from Boston, Massachusetts, looking to leave the Northeast and see what else the country had to offer me, Marquette seemed fl awless in my eyes.say or post anything that can further trigger mental health The students were nice, the professors even nicer and the city of Milwaukee itself had to The fi lm industry is one of have been the best part of it all. the main sources of our enThere were plenty of places in tertainment as there are many the city I could explore and learn successful projects being crewhat the Midwest truly has to of-ated every year, enticing a fer. It had everything I wanted in a school, and at age 16, I already It’s also a place where people knew I wanted to go here.follow their passions and pursue dream careers. However, Fast forward three years later and I am still beyond happy as mental health needs to remain a 19-year-old sophomore. I have at the forefront of the fi lm inmade close friends, learned about dustry. We tend to forget that being independent and eaten at the familiar Culver’s too many The reason why we get to times to count. Even though I am turn on our favorite tv show at happy, I have learned that Mar-night is because of the effort quette is not fl awless, because actors put into their work. If a problem remains: I still have their mental health isn’t being never met anyone at Marquette supported, then we might not from Rhode Island, Vermont, Maine, or Connecticut. At fi rst, I didn’t mind. Throughout the fi rst couple of weeks at school as a fi rst-year student, I learned very early on that most of the students I was

The Natural History Museum in Vienna recently returned the preserved Maori heads, also known as toi moko, mokomokai and upoko tuhi, that were in their possession to New Zealand.

William “Pou” Temara, chairperson of Te Papa’s Repatriation Advisory Panel, said “It is always a spiritual relief and privilege to welcome back our ancestors who have been victims of such wrongdoing. Culturally we know that they are weeping with joy now that they have returned to Aotearoa where at last they will rest in peace.”

The importance of the returning of these objects is a matter of cultural identity. They hold cultural roots to the people whom they originally belonged to. The return of these artifacts is essential in order to heal the wound left in their place.

the Midwest.

I feel like I can do as much of my part as possible. I am constantly in contact with students in respective New England schools, talking to them about what Marquette has to offer and how attending the university will be one of the best decisions they could make.

However, I need to ensure that the university also feels that way. I love all of my friends from Wisconsin and Illinois, but I would love some other friends from the Northeast area and then some.

Graphic by Erin Schneider erin.schneider@marquette.edu

meeting were from the surrounding areas. Towns that I had never heard of quickly became familiar to me by week two of the semester after hearing about them so much. By the end of October, it felt that everyone was from either Naperville, Evanston or Schaumburg.

Of the Marquette fi rst-year class, 41% of the Class of 2025 are from Illinois and 33% of students come from Wisconsin. With nearly 75% of my sophomore class being from either Illinois or Wisconsin.

College is a place where students are supposed to learn about new subjects, explore new cultures and most importantly meet people from several different backgrounds. It is diffi cult to meet people of different backgrounds when more than half of our sophomore student body is from the same place.

I recognize that it can be expensive for students to pay out-of-state tuition as well as fl y back and forth between the city of Milwaukee and cities in the Northeast, but I think that there is no excuse to have under 100 students from the New England area.

As a fellow East Coaster, I know fi rsthand what they look for. The stereotype that people from the Northeast are a little more on the “snooty” end is unfortunately true.

Students from the Northeast are not going to leave behind their Boston University, MIT or Boston College unless they have a reason to.

Marquette needs to be that reason.

I consider myself lucky to have been exposed to Marquette as a person residing in the Northeast. Although I grew up in Boston, my dad and step-family live in a suburb of Chicago known to many: Oak Park. I was fortunate enough to have been exposed to this area at a young age, and I knew I wanted to go to school in

TJ Dysart is a news multimedia journalist at the Marquette Wire. He can be reached at

theodore.dysart@marquette.edu

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The opinions expressed on the Opinions page refl ect the opinions of the Opinions staff . The editorials do not represent the opinions of Marquette University nor its administrators, but those of the editorial board.

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