February 5, 2020 Vol. 90 Issue 1

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Thursday, February 6, 2020

Volume 90 • Issue 1

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)

SAC Winter Formal Business Students Help

Public with Tax Returns

BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS

Vincienza Alicandri ‘23 (left) and Rachet Bartlett ‘20 (right) dancing during SAC’s Winter Formal event on Feb. 1. (See story on Page 5 for more details and additional photos on Backpage)

Following last year’s launch of MCLA’s participation in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, the business department looks forward to bringing it back this spring. The program looks to help the public work with the tax systems with the help of trained student volunteers.

The program will begin on Monday, Feb. 10 to Wednesday, April 15, and will be utilizing the business department’s office spaces in Murdock Hall. VITA will run on Mondays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., Wednesdays from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“Taxes are always going to affect us. It’s a part of life, you have to pay your taxes. So, one of the big things with VITA is just understanding enough of tax and tax law to be able to explain it to people,” said Claire Klammer ’20 who will be working with VITA this year.

The VITA program works to help people file their tax returns. It’s available to anyone whose household income is $56,000 or less, has a disability, English as their second language or is over 60 years old.

Professors Tara Barboza and Adam Rice in the business department set up and pilot MCLA’s involvement with VITA with the help of Professor Thomas Whalen, who used to be president of the boardCentral Berkshire’s Habitat for Humanity.

“It’s free and open to the public and almost all of our students are going to qualify. So, if they worked part time or had some extra income and need to file a return we can help them on that,” Barboza said.

“The VITA program is a collaboration between MCLA and Habitat for Humanity and it’s sponsored by the IRS,” said Barboza. “What it is, is we train students, and they take a rigorous exam, and they become cer-

VITA, Page 3

Cell Tower Installation Finally Complete

BY NATALIA GIACOMOZZI STAFF WRITER After several unexpected delays, the new Verizon cell tower is finally installed and operational.

In November, The Beacon reported that the cell tower would be in place by the end of that month. Installation was previously planned to be finished in September.

Ian Bergeron, associate dean of information technology, said completion was delayed due to Verizon running into obstacles with the layout of the cell tower’s fiber optic connections. “[Verizon] encountered deprecated, municipal systems that included wooden piping and a street that is no longer even named,” Bergeron explained in an email, mentioning that the winter weather was a factor.

“By using our property to host the tower, Verizon increases its network range. For that benefit, they pay for the project,” Bergeron said.

According to Bergeron, Verizon is responsible for monitoring and maintaining the cell tower to ensure that it is working correctly. He did not say how often Verizon will check on the cell tower, but that MCLA will

be informed of any outages and testing.

He said to Beacon Web News that Verizon will also pay the state rent as part of the responsibility of hosting the cell tower.

“The payment arrangements were made with the Commonwealth’s Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM),” he said.

Instead of making a campus-wide announcement MCLA chose to announce that the cell tower was functional on Facebook and Twitter on January 7.

“It was expected that this medium [social media] would have the best reach during intercession,” Bergeron said.

Despite posting about the cell tower on Facebook and Twitter, students like Rowan Justice ’23 were unaware of the cell tower’s existence.

“I use AT&T, and I don’t think [the cell tower] will affect me but this is also the first time I’m hearing about it,” he said.

Justice suggested that MCLA should work to accommodate other cell service carriers in the future.

“I had Consumer Cellular when I first got here and just had flat out no service at all. Now I have service about

PHOTO BY NICHOLAS WEBB

Verison cell tower during installation last fall. The tower, now operational, will provide a boost to all Verison coverage in the North Adams area 80 percent of the time [with AT&T],” he noted.

Brooke Schlundt ’22 has Verizon as her cell service carrier and did not realize the cell tower belonged to Verizon.

“I haven’t noticed any changes to the internet speed on my phone, but there is no problem with my phone’s connection,” she said.

Schlundt said that she generally gets service on her phone, but mainly contacts people through Facebook Messenger

and Instagram, apps which work through WiFi. “I have more people on those apps because I don’t have many people’s numbers,” she said.

Bergeron noted that the school initially received interest in building a cell tower from AT&T. “The proposal [from AT&T] did not meet the requirements set by DCAMM and MCLA. That solution would have been limited to the Freel

library and the campus center and would not have provided coverage to the whole campus,” he said.

About three years ago, MCLA sent out a request for proposals (RFP) to the closest cell carrier companies in the interest of working towards providing better cell service on campus. Bergeron told The Beacon in November that Verizon was the only cell carrier company to respond to the RFP.

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SGA

Sexual Violence Prevention Day in the Works

BY BRIAN RHODES SENIOR NEWS EDITOR SGA discussed Sexual Violence Prevention Day, parking and club budgets during their first two meetings of the semester, held on Jan. 27 and Feb. 3.

As part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, MCLA, in cooperation with SGA, will host Sexual Violence Prevention Day on April 9th, along with several other events relating to sexual violence during that week, according to SGA President Dean Little.

“Part of the discussions that I’ve had with Cathy [Holbrook] is, that entire week, we are going to try to fill it with a bunch of events focused around sexual violence prevention,” Little said.

Little noted that there are already several confirmed speakers for the day, including MCLA Professor Travis Beaver, Regi Wingo from North Adams’ Elizabeth Freeman Center, and Title IX Coordinator Nicole Comstock.

SGA Coordinating Vice President Samantha Schwantner discussed potential ideas

for the day, such as involvement from Public Safety and the North Adams Police Department, consent, sexual health, sexual violence survivor presentations, and engagement from the wider North Adams community.

According to Little, due to not being presented to the Academic Policies Committee in time, there will be no official class cancellations on Sexual Violence Prevention Day. Little said that he hopes professors will be willing to allow students to miss class for the day’s events.

“Go to your department chairs and talk about this day, about how you can get class excused. Go to your professor and talk now about what this day means to you as a student,” Little said. “We’re going to have administration, through Vice President [Adrienne] Wootters’ office, recommend that classes be exempt.”

SGA Treasurer Nicholas Strezynski said that SGA affiliated clubs, excluding SAC, have spent approximately $48,389 as of Jan. 27, which accounts for 32% of the overall club budget. Of

Green Living Seminar

PHOTO BY BRIAN RHODES SGA Senators Sophie Smith, Cameron Gasco and Bradley Odell listening to Treasurer Nicholas Strezynski’s report on remaining club budgets for the spring semester. this $48,389, over half was devoted to fixed expenses from the beginning of the Fall ‘19 semester according to Strezynski.

“Except for those fixed expenses, we have really only spent $24,000. We are in good financial shape,” Strezynski said. “We are not going to dip into the reserve account, I do not expect us to spend a dollar this year from the reserve account.”

Strezynski also noted that SAC has spent about $30,000 of its $75,000 budget.

SGA also discussed the Berkshire Towers parking lot, which currently has 12 spaces fenced off due to the continued collapsing of the retaining wall, according to Little. He mentioned that plans on how to deal with this problem are still in discussion, but expects the recently purchased lot on 8-10 Montana Street will replace the lost parking spaces once paved.

“Once Cathy [Holbrook] does hear back about this, for sure an email will go out to all students,” Little said. “There

are about 12 spaces there and we lost about 12 spaces [in the BT parking lot].”

In a statement to The Beacon, Vice President of Administration and Finance Lawrence Behan clarified that fixing the wall is still in the college’s plans for FY21.

“The work can be completed over the summer when the weather is more favorable for an effective, permanent repair,” Behan said. “We’ve had to fence off the area as with each winter storm, the sloping hillside is more vulnerable.”

Conflict Prevention and Resolution Lecture

Seminars to Tackle Stanmeyer Returns for Lecture Major Local Topics

BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

BY NICOLE LEMIRE STAFF WRITER MCLA’s yearly Green Living Seminars started on Thursday, Jan. 31 with a presentation from Chris Reddy, a marine chemist and geochemist with 23 years of experience at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, titled “Plastic in the Environment: Separating Myth from Reality.”

Reddy explained how difficult plastic is to study, how little is known about it, and the great amount of misinformation online about the “lifetime” of plastic and its impact on the environment.

“Every piece of plastic in the environment is like a snowflake -- none of them are the same,” Reddy said.

The Green Living Seminars are a series of public lectures organized by Elaina Traister, professor of environmental science. The theme for this semester is environmental pollution, with major topics being plastic, ozone, and mercury.

“All the speakers will be talking about issues that are widespread and in this area,” Traister said.

She explained that speakers were chosen based on locality

and their expertise in the area.

Some topics that will be discussed are water quality in the Hoosac River and acid rain.

“This is a unique opportunity to not just hear about important issues, but to learn about them from the experts,” Traister said.

In addition to being a lecture series, the Green Living Seminars also counts as a class available for MCLA students.

“Students take a two-credit course where they meet before the lectures to discuss the topics and take part in service learning opportunities,” Traister said. “It also allows for students to make professional connections with the guest speakers.”

There will be 11 seminars given in total, taking place every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in Feigenbaum Center for Science and Innovation room 121.

Tonight’s seminar with Paul Godfrey has been cancele, but the series will continue on Feb. 13 with Vicky Kelly’s lecture on “Road Salt: The Problem, The Solution, and How to Get There.”

Seminars are also broadcast on Northern Berkshire Community Television Channel and uploaded as a podcast.

MCLA’s 2015 Hardman Journalist-in-Residence John Stanmeyer is set to return this spring to speak in the Conflict Prevention and Resolution Lecture.

This will not be Stanmeyer’s first formal visit to the school, his first taking place in 2015 alongside his wife, Anastasia, to speak about his experiences as a photojournalist with National Geographic and Time magazine. His wife is an editor of Berkshire Magazine.

His works have been featured on multiple cover pages for both publications and received the World

Press Photo of the Year Award in 2013 for his work in Djibouti city, capital of the African country of the same name.

The Conflict Prevention and Resolution Lecture, which began in 2014, as a way of exploring world conflicts and perspectives with special input from guests such as Joanna Slater from the Washington Post and Kevin Cullen of The Boston Globe.

For his lecture, Stanmeyer has years’ worth of experience with global conflicts attributed to his time as a prominent photojournalist.

His work took him around Middle-Eastern, Asian and African countries to study

and document things like social unrest, other cultures, political and human rights, natural disasters and the war in Afghanistan.

Stanmeyer’s Hardman lecture back in 2015 showcased his project with National Geographic called “Out of Eden” which he worked on alongside his colleague Paul Salopek.

The project served to track the path of humanity’s migration out of Ethiopia over 60,000 years ago and emphasized equality regardless of race.

The lecture will take place at 5 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 10 in Murdock 218. The event is free and open to the public.

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Feb. 6, 2019

Massachusetts Legislature

Cherish Act Could Give $500 Million in Funding for Higher Education

BY BRIAN RHODES SENIOR NEWS EDITOR The Cherish Act, a bill currently in the Massachusetts legislature, could potentially provide over $500 million worth of funding to public higher education.

Filed by Senator Joanne Comerford, the Cherish Act seeks to increase funding based on recommendations from the Higher Education Finance Commission (HEFC), freeze tuition and fees for the next five years and create a minimum amount of funding for public higher education according to the Massachusetts Teachers’ Association (MTA).

MCLA President James Birge voiced his support for any legislation that would provide funding for public institutions in a statement to The Beacon.

“Any funds that the Legislature appropriates for support of public higher education is welcome at MCLA,” Birge said in an email.

Birge noted that MCLA specifically would benefit more than most from additional funding. He remarked that the college

spends an average of $1000 more on institutional aid per student than other state colleges, necessitating the need for extra funding.

“Given the financial need of our students, MCLA spends a higher percentage of institutional aid than the other state universities, an amount equivalent to 6% of our state appropriation vs. 3% at most other state universities,” he said in the email. “Any additional funds for MCLA student aid and/or for college operations would be helpful.”

The HEFC report, which the Cherish Act is based upon, suggests that the state should work to solve several issues including low state funding, increasing student costs, antiquated funding allocation systems and lack of transparency.

The Cherish Act’s sister bill, the Promise Act, was combined with several other bills to create the Student Opportunity Act, which was signed into law by Governor Charlie Baker on Nov. 26, 2019. According to the MTA, The Student Opportunity Act, which focuses on K through 12 education, will increase fund-

ing by about $1.4 billion by 2027, with emphasis on low income and special education students.

MCLA Trustee and state Representative John Barrett III discussed the need for the Cherish Act at the President’s Breakfast held on Jan 21.

“I think it’s important, however, that people focus on making sure that we provide quality higher education for the young people of this state, and other states as well,” Barrett said at the breakfast.

Barrett recognized that, while funding kindergarten through grade 12 is necessary, funding public higher education is equally valuable.

“They have to make a greater commitment to higher education in the state, the same way they made it this past year to our secondary schools,” Barrett said at the breakfast.

The Cherish Act and Student Opportunity Act, are backed by the MTA and the Fund our Future Coalition (FOFC).

The Cherish Act is currently being reviewed by the Joint Committee on Higher Education.

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VITA

From Page 1 -tified tax preparers and they prepare taxreturns for the public.”

Business student volunteers are required to go through special trainings before they can participate in the program.

“The students actually start [their training] in December,” Barboza said. “They take an online course with the IRS. They have the option of taking the basic course or the advanced course and all of our students are taking the advanced course. And so, it teaches them the basics, from who’s required to file a tax return to calculating credits, to itemized tax returns, to brokers’ exchange, documents.”

Crystal Wojack ’20 was one of the students who participated in the program during MCLA’s first involvement with VITA last year.

“When we first got into it last year,” Wojack said.

“We nailed down the basics for the program. So, we had a couple in-class meetings where we met in the computer labs and we did some practice tax returns that way.”

“Then when we moved into our actual space we started to work on our soft skills like interactive with clients and we developed a script that we would use when clients came in and we had to work with them,” she said.

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Students become formally VITA certified once training is complete which, according to Barboza, is big for their resumes.

“I wouldn’t say they can use it [their new VITA certifications] other places but I can say that the students who participated last year, it was a huge area of interest for potential employers and it definitely helped our students get positions in the accounting field last year. It was one of those things that when they went to interviews that they [employers] were very curious about.”

Students volunteers receive credit for their participation and, while the program is mainly set for upperclassmen, any student within the business department is welcome to apply for next year’s program.

“Students participating in the program are not only learning a great deal about taxation and developing soft stills, dealing with clients and all that,” Barboza said.

“I think they should do it,” said Edwina Opoku ’20, who will be working with VITA this year. “It looks great on your resume. It’s a great experience, you get to learn interpersonal skills, get to learn about people who don’t have as much as you have.”

“It’s a great basis just to learn,” Klammer said. “[For] when you do your own taxes, to understand what’s being deducted, and why.”

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Black History Month

MERC “Remembering the Strength of our Roots”

A billboard in Campus Center highlights upcoming events for MERC’s “Remembering the Strength of Our Roots” series as a part of Black History Month.

PHOTO BY LISE MANSARAY

Multicultural Organizations On Campus Celebrate Inclusiveness and Culture

BY LISE MANSARAY FEATURES EDITOR The Multicultural Education Resource Center (MERC) highlights Black History Month through their series, “Remembering the Strength of our Roots”.

Arlene Theodore, Associate Director of Diversity Programs and Multicultural Education Resource Center, has already planned 16 different events for Black History Month with the a goal of educating students in a social and interactive environment.

“So a lot of the topics I chose were more so of what students need, versus what they want,” Theodore said. “However, I was very intentional in making sure that I was taking a social approach and an educational approach because I wanted students to feel very engaged for Black History Month.”

The first event, Black Card Revoked & Appetizers, took place Monday, Feb. 3, at 5 p.m. in Sullivan Lounge. During this event, students participated in a game while learning about Black History.

“Another upcoming event is NEXXUS Prison Reform and they did a performance on that in the

past,” said Theodore. “I thought that would be the perfect opportunity for them to share their experience on why they chose to perform about that and to further explain what is going on in our prison system.”

The Prison Reform event will be held Saturday, Feb. 22.

The LAS event, which will be held on Friday, Feb. 7, will focus on bringing people together for conversations surrounding, “Intersectionality in Latin America.”

“When you think of Intersectionality of blackness in Latin America, what does that look like?,” said Theodore. “I really wanted LAS to focus on that because I knew they would reach the specific target audience I was looking for.”

Theodore reached out to groups on campus such as NEXXUS, the step team, and Latin American Society Club to collaborate on some of the events.

“I would encourage other identities to come to these programs and events,” Theodore said.

“I think there’s a real opportunity to learn about Black History and it’s also just a different way than it would be normally facilitated because we are taking a very social and educational approach

through these events.”

Theodore emphasizes the importance of having events on campus that highlight Black History.

“It is very important to have these events because often times I think we forget where we come from, the powerful messages, and the things that our ancestors have done,” Theodore said. “It’s so important to realize how far we have come even in moments when we feel we have not come far enough.”

This series will also help to educate the students who haven’t had opportunities to learn about Black History much through school.

“A lot of people don’t know the history beyond the classroom,” Theodore said. “I think being able to further educate other identities about the beauty of blackness is so important.”

Although Black History Month only takes place in February, Theodore encourages students to learn and celebrate Black History outside of the month.

“I think it’s very important to sit there and educate yourself,” Theodore said. “Once you finish educating yourself I think that you should live that truth and do what you need to in order to further showcase and be prideful in the skin that you’re in.”

Math Society Gives Students a New Outlook on Math

BY ISABEL COSTA FEATURE WRITER When most of us think of math we think of long equations, lots of studying and many attempts to get it right. The Math Society at MCLA is more than just math.

Shantell Manizra 22’, the Vice President of the Math Society Club, is a mathematics and secondary education major with a passion for the subject.

“Math has always been a subject I loved and been good at. I always found it easy to pick up. I always use to make worksheets and math has always just been something that was easy for me,” Manizra said.

Manizra first heard about the Math Society when she was at freshman orientation. Already having an

interest to take part in the STEM Academy, she figured she would join when she found out they had Game Nights and went on field trips.

Manizra sites her junior year algebra teacher as her greatest inspiration for what she strives to do within the Math Society.

“My junior year algebra teacher was a mentor to me, she really made sure everyone understood math, and that’s what I want the chance to do,” Manizra said.

“It’s different than what you would think a normal math society is. When most people think of math they think; this is a hard thing.

They might walk in and learn something they never thought they would,” Manzira said.

“We are lining up guest

speakers, as well as a field trip to the Museum of Math in New York City this spring. We have been hosting game night, which has been a big success,” she said.

Manzira believes being involved in the Math Society has helped her in more ways then just using her math skills.

“It has pushed me to like math more, because we do a lot of math-related things.

It teaches me how to explain how to solve different equations. It opens my eyes to teaching things I would not see before,” she said.

Manizra also says that being involved with the Math Society has taught her how to work with a team.

“It is really about hearing students have that ah-ha, moment,” Manizra said.

According to Manzira,

PHOTO PROVDED BY GOOGLE

The Math Society encourages everyone to be greater than average. while math is the central focus of MCLA’s Math Society, it also encompasses making friends and learing life lessons.

They meet every Thurs-

day at 12 p.m. in Bowman room 103. They have an open enrollment policy and encourage people to just walk in and participate.

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Feb. 6, 2019

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Rugby Club Continuing to Build Team

BY LISE MANSARAY FEATURES EDITOR MCLA’s Rugby Club has been competitively competing since Fall 2011. Since then, the team has achieved some notable accomplishments such as being the last sports team to win a championship, which was about five to seven years ago.

Christopher Reyes ‘20, president of the Rugby Club, has been a member of the team for three years and looks towards their future.

“Our goal, since rugby is one of the fastest growing sports in the U.S. now, is to keep building our team.

Building our team so it can properly be passed towards the next generation of students coming to MCLA,” Reyes said.

Matthew Delgatto ‘20, another Rugby Club teammate, agreed with Reyes.

“In the future of the rugby team, I’d like to see us recruit more people. I’d really like to see our numbers go up a little more,” Delgatto said.

The Rugby Club is also working towards creating a women’s team. They currently only have a men’s team “The problem is that we need a girl to start it up because no girls team wants to be run by men, so we’ve just

PHOTO FROM RUGBY CLUB FACEBOOK PAGE

Rugby Club Team ‘17 at their first game of the spring semester against Williams College. been trying to get more people involved,” Reyes said.

Delagatto has been playing on the team for three semesters. He currently plays a position called Hooker, where he hooks the ball with his foot in the scrum.

A scrum is a method of restarting play that involves players packing closely together and attempting to gain possession of the ball.

However, Delgatto admits to not having much experience prior to joining the team.

“I’m one of the most important positions now but when I joined, I didn’t know anything about rugby,” Delgatto said. “That all just changes and you just fall in love with the sport.”

Over time, Delgatto has built a bond with the team and describes them more as a brotherhood.

“Rugby offers brotherhood unlike a lot of other sports,” Delgatto said. “I mean when I say we’re a team, we really are a team. We hangout all the time and do a bunch

of things together.”

He also found it important to address some of the stereotypes surrounding rugby.

“A lot of people I have talked to on campus think rugby is scary because it is a contact sport, but you don’t have pads like football. People think you’ll get seriously injured but getting seriously injured is rare,” Delgatto said.

“I think the whole scare about rugby is a little fabricated. It’s important to stress knowing how to fall, taking a hit, and playing the game

intelligently. Knowing those will keep you from getting injured,” he continued.

He encourages those to join who may be considering.

“Rugby is one of those sports that’s a little hard to describe. You really have to just try it,” Delgatto said.

“It’s like a combination of football, soccer, there’s a lot of running so you can even say track. If you are into any of those other sports you will find something you love in Rugby.”

The Rugby team doesn’t require participants to have prior experience to join. They also don’t have a period of tryouts, so anyone who is interested in joining is accepted into the team.

“New players start from the ground and work up just like I did,” Delgatto said.

Players typically meet throughout the week in changing times on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for practice, giving new players the opportunity to pick up the rules of the game.

The season is scheduled to start up sometime in March and the team has recently been working towards having indoor practices.

If you are interested in joining the Rugby Team please contact Luke Labendz, the coach at luke. labendz@mcla.edu

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Feb. 6, 2019

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North Adams’ 23rd Annual Winterfest

BY SABRINA DAMMS A&E EDITOR North Adams Tourism will be hosting its 23rd annual Winterfest Saturday, Feb. 15 from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Winterfest is a great opportunity for people to leave their houses in the cold winter months to socialize with friends old and new.

Helping with the event is Suzy Helme, the director of Tourism and Community Events.

“It’s a day of fun and free activities to do on a cold winter Saturday. It’s a great time to get out and reconnect with friends and neighbors or meet new people,” Helme said.

The festival will consist of a variety of family-friendly events including a Kids’ Winter Carnival, Wagon Rides, Free Ice Skating & Skate Rentals, a Farmers’ Market and a Craft/Art Market.

“There are various family-friendly events in the immediate downtown area, plus a free public skate from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Peter Foote Vietnam Veterans Skating Rink on South Church Street,” Helme said. “Hopefully, people have fun, spend some time and money at the businesses, and want to come back again next year, and maybe bring along a few friends.”

“It’s [Winterfest] a great excuse to get the community out of the house and socialize. Winters are long in the Berkshires and can be isolating,” Helme said. “WinterFest is a great excuse to go

out and shake off some of the cabin fever everyone gets from being indoors so much at a time of the year when there isn’t as many events going on and the tourist season is in hibernation.”

Winterfest will consist of both indoor and outdoor activities to preserve attendees from the chill from the white, cold, winter.

“Unlike other city festivals, WinterFest doesn’t have a ‘rain date’ because the basic expectation is that it will [be] cold or snowy. People know to dress for the weather, rather than push the event later in hopes of better weather,” Helme said.

The festival aims to celebrate winter and bring people to the area during a lull season for tourism and business.

“Winter tends to be a really slow season for our downtown businesses. The event’s goal is to bring foot traffic to downtown and hopefully offer a boost of business on what would otherwise be a slow winter weekend,” Helme said. “Also, the event brings visitors from outside of our area to North Adams and gives them a taste of the fun, friendly, active community we have here.”

North Adams Office of Tourism is still looking for volunteers who are available for two to four hours wiling to help with several of the events happening at the festival.

Those interested in volunteering the day of the event call 413-664-6180 or email them at tourism@ northadams-ma.gov

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8

-Colonial Theatre Rachel Louise Snyder Colonial Theatre 5:30 p.m.

- SAC’s Willy Wonka Night Sullivan Lounge 8pm-10pm

- IGE Gayme Night Brokeback Mountain Sullivan Lounge 7pm-9pm FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7 PERIODIC TABLE DAY

- Register to Vote Susan B. Anthony Womans Center Marketplace 11am-2pm - Dylan Giirouard performance The Parlor Cafe 7pm-10pm

KITE FLYING DAY

- Comedy Night with Chole Hillard HiLo North Adams 8pm-11pm SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 9 READ IN THE BATH DAY

- The Magician of Auschwitz North Adams Museum of History & Science 2pm-2:45pm TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11 MAKE A FRIEND DAY

- Pokemon Go to Sullivan Thursday February 13 Sullivan Lounge 8pm-10pm

PHOTO COURTESY OF NORTH ADAMS OFFICE OF TOURISM

Participants Having Fun at North Adams’s 2017 Winterfest.

- IGE LGBTQIA+ Black History Month Event Thursday February 13 Campus Marketplace 11pm-2pm

- Global Film Series Presents The Last Black Man in San Francisco Monday February 24 Sullivan Lounge 6pm - Spires Spring 2020 Open Submissions Word Document to spires@mcla.edu Deadline: March 8th 2020

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SAC Hosts First-Ever Winter Formal

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BY AIDAN RAWSON A&E WRITER Student Activities Council (SAC) and the Student Government Association (SGA) co-sponsored the first-ever Winter Formal on Feb. 1 in Venable Gym. Students enjoyed a buffet style dinner catered by Aramark, music from student DJ Jeriyah Morris, and had the chance to vote for “MCLA Royalty.”

SAC President Crystal Wojcik ‘21 and Fabby Bogardus-Street, ‘20 and SGA Senate Chair, helped to coordinate the event.

“We were toying with the idea of a dance last semester and even the year before that and it just never really happened until this year,” Wojcik said. “It’s something that students have asked for over the years. It was a long process, but we were able to make it work.”

Wojcik went on to remark on how the event was well-attended, seeing over 100 students throughout the evening. MCLA students also voted on MCLA Royalty during the event, crowning Heather Brzykcy ‘20, Hannah Snell ‘20 and Edgar Perez ‘23 with the title.

While at the event, Natalie Sanford ‘20, described how beautiful everyone looked in their formal attire, and how delicious the catering was.

“I think it’s absolutely beautiful and I’m having so much fun. The food is great. Aramark did a great job. I also love that it’s in a big space but it’s also small enough to see everyone who is here,” Sanford said.

The chicken alfredo, garlic bread, flavored water, amongst other options were highly rated along with the event’s atmosphere.

“On a scale of one to ten, ten being the most fun, I’d give this event a nine out of ten. I would give it a ten out of ten if there were more people dancing. I must say though that the food is really good,” Leo Skobble ‘22 said.

PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS

A special backdrop for photographs was provided at the event by SGA Treasurer, Nicholas Stezynsk ’20 who took pictures for attendees.

The DJ for the evening, Jeriyah Morris ‘22, played a variety of music throughout the evening. Morris has DJ’d a few events for MCLA in the past year, including Moonlight Madness.

Students also complimented the free photographs at the photo booth taken by SGA Treasurer Nicholas Strezynski.

“The photographer tonight was really nice, and I loved the music. I’m re-

ally happy to hear some Shakira in the playlist,” Kathleen Hayman ’21 said.

Devin DeLuca ‘20 was also pleased with the event, saying he decided to attend the event because he thought it would be a good time.

“My expectations were exceeded.

The food was bomb and the music was great,” DeLuca said.

“Overall, this event was worth every ounce of effort we put into it. It

has been in the works for over four months and I couldn’t be happier with how it all turned out,” Wojcik said. “The students looked incredible in their attire for the evening, there were so many smiling faces and happy people, and that is all we could ask for.”

Wojcik has expressed SAC’s willingness to host similar events like the Winter Formal in the future.

Berkshire Dance Theatre Performs at MCLA

BY JACOB MACK A&E WRITER Local dance students from all across the county took the stage on Saturday Jan. 25, for the Berkshire Dance Theatre’s (BDT) 2020 Winter Showcase. MCLA’s Church Street Center was filled with the sounds of excited families throughout all 36 pieces, there to cheer on their loved ones over the sound of heavy rain bouncing off the roof.

Among them, cheering above the rest, was Becky Ahamad, co-director of five years at BDT. “It shouldn’t be a stressful thing to get on stage and dance,” Ahamad said “When learning dance, just like learning anything else, fun and passion should come first”.

BDT as an organization, which first formed in 1982 as a non-profit, maintains its original “commitment to high quality and professionalism in dance instruction and a fun and rewarding experience for its students,” according to their website, and was exemplified by Ahamed and those who worked on the showcase alongside her.

This attitude is echoed on the BDT website, stating, “Berkshire Dance Theatre prides itself on teaching the art of dance, not the sport of dance.”

Ahamad supported this statement on attitude while supporting her students with encouraging shouts and “woos”.

These dance pieces ranged from upbeat hip-hop “It always helps [when] you love what you’re dobreakdowns to dramatic ballet ensembles, even ing and support others in their love of it,” she said. briefly touching on musical theatre with a perforMore information on future Berkshire Dance mance of “It’s a Hard Knock Life” from the Broad- Theatre events can be found on their website, berkway show “Annie.” In spite of some slight lighting shiredance.org or on their Facebook page. problems, the dancers pushed through with smiling faces.

“Our dancers come from every corner, and even outside of, the county from Pittsfield to Southern Vermont,” Ahamad said. “Our youngest dancer is about two and-a-half, and our oldest [is] 70, so we’ve got dancers of all ages.”

Although this wide age range of dancers is present in BDT as a whole, this year’s Winter Showcase consisted mostly of middle and high school-aged students, five of them performing solo numbers and two sets of dancers performing two different duets.

Though visually striking, the large majority of the performances had minimal costume work, many pieces using only bare bones, one-color outfits, prioritizing the choreography and skill of the dancers over frills and sequins.

The showcase, though a “super informal” event according to Ahamad, kept on schedule, pieces switching relatively seamlessly, and dancers kept their choreography in time with the music, leading to a well-produced show.

PHOTO FROM BERKSHIRE DANCE THEATRE WEBSITE Ahamad credits the success of the show to the Berkshire Dance Theatre performers of all ages exhibit their drive of the dancers in it. talents at MCLA’s Church Street Center.

Sports

TheOnlineBeacon.com

8

MLB

Dodgers Acquire Slugger Mookie Betts, Starter David Price From Sox

BY MIKE DIGIOVANNA LOS ANGELES TIMES The Dodgers jostled a sleepy offseason awake with a blockbuster three-team trade Tuesday that will bring 2018 American League most valuable player Mookie Betts and 2012 AL Cy Young Award winner David Price to Los Angeles from Boston, according to two people with knowledge of the transaction.

The Red Sox, in search of salary relief after carrying baseball’s highest payroll for the past two seasons, dealt the star right fielder and veteran left-hander to the Dodgers, who sent second-year outfielder Alex Verdugo to the Red Sox and right-handed pitcher Kenta Maeda to the Minnesota Twins.

The Twins reportedly shipped minor league pitcher Brusdar Graterol to the Red Sox. In a separate deal, the Dodgers reportedly traded outfielder Joc Pederson to the Angels for middle infielder Luis Rengifo, who batted .238 with seven home runs in 357 at-bats as a rookie last season, a move that will bring some payroll relief to the Dodgers. Pederson hit a career-high 36 home runs last season and will make either $9.5 million or $7.75 million in his last year of arbitration, depending on an arbitrator’s decision.

All the trades are contingent on players passing medical examinaPHOTO FROM WIKIMEDIA COMMONS tions and neither the Dodgers nor Mookie Betts won Major League Baseball’s MVP award in 2018 with the Boston Red Sox. Angels announced the trades Tuesday night.

Best for the Dodgers, none of the players they dealt are minor league prospects, let alone top prospects Gavin Lux and Dustin May. Betts, 27, will team with third baseman Justin Turner to give the Dodgers two right-handed sluggers to complement their array of premier left-handed batters that includes Cody Bellinger — the reigning National League MVP — Max Muncy and Corey Seager. Price, 34, will help offset the loss of free-agent starters Hyun-Jin Ryu to Toronto and Rich Hill to Minnesota.

Betts, who will make $27 million in his final year of arbitration this season, will be eligible for free agency after 2020, and he could command a multi-year deal in excess of $300 million next winter.

The Red Sox would not grant the who can rival Angels star Mike honors and help the Red Sox beat Dodgers a window to negotiate an Trout for his blend of power, plate the Dodgers in the World Series. He extension with Betts, but he probably discipline, speed and defense. He finished second in MVP voting in wouldn’t have engaged with them has a career .301 average and .893 2016, when he hit .318 with an .897 anyway because he wants to become on-base-plus-slugging percentage OPS, 31 homers, 42 doubles and 113 a free agent after this season. Price with 139 homers, 470 RBIs, 229 RBIs in 158 games. has three years and $96 million left doubles, 613 runs, 126 stolen basBetts batted leadoff nearly 70% of on the seven-year, $217-million con- es, 464 strikeouts and 371 walks in the time with Boston. He likely will tract he signed as a free agent with six seasons. bat leadoff for the Dodgers, who for Boston before 2016.

Betts hit .346 with a 1.078 OPS, years have struggled to find a conThe 5-foot-9, 180-pound Betts 32 homers, 47 doubles and 80 RBIs sistent leadoff batter who combines is one of few players in baseball in 136 games to win 2018 MVP the ability to reach base with pow-

The 5-foot-9, 180-pound

Betts is one of few players in

baseball who can rival Angels star Mike Trout for his blend of power, plate discipline.

er and speed. Betts has batted .302 with a .910 OPS from the leadoff spot in his career.

Price won his Cy Young Award in 2012 when he went 20-5 with a 2.56 ERA, striking out 205 and walking 59 in 211 innings, for Tampa Bay. He spent the first six years of a 12-year career with the Rays under then-general manager Andrew Friedman, who is now the president of baseball operations for the Dodgers.

Price was slowed by a left-wrist injury in 2019, going 7-5 with a 4.28 ERA in 22 starts and undergoing surgery to remove a cyst from the wrist in late-September. He also missed time in 2018 because of carpal tunnel syndrome and circulatory issues in the same wrist.

Price’s fastball velocity according to Fangraphs has slipped from an average of 94.3 mph in 2017 to 92.7 mph in 2018 to 92.0 mph in 2019. He also throws a cut fastball, curve and changeup.

Verdugo batted .294 in 343 at-bats as a rookie last season but missed the last two months with an oblique strain and a back injury. Verdugo played all three outfield positions.

Betts will play right field. Maeda was a valuable arm in the starting rotation and bullpen since coming over from Japan four years ago.

Until this trade, the Dodgers’ only significant moves this winter had been the signing of free-agent reliever Blake Treinen to a one-year, $10-million deal. The Dodgers were outbid for ace Gerrit Cole and were told by top-tier free-agent third baseman Anthony Rendon that he didn’t want to play for them. The Dodgers also signed two starting pitchers coming off injuries — Alex Wood and Jimmy Nelson — to oneyear deals.

The trade would make it more likely that the Dodgers would pay a luxury tax for exceeding the $208-million competitive balance tax threshold for the first time in three years unless the Red Sox take on a significant portion of Price’s contract. However, it’s not certain because the tax is assessed on payroll at the end of the season, not the beginning.

The Dodgers and Red Sox are no strangers to blockbuster deals involving high-priced players.

The Dodgers acquired first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, outfielder Carl Crawford and pitcher Josh Beckett in a 2012 deal in which roughly $250 million in salary obligations moved from Boston to Los Angeles.

And Friedman is no stranger to Red Sox rookie general manager Chaim Bloom. Friedman hired Bloom to work for the Rays after Bloom graduated from Yale in 2004.

Times staff writer Jorge Castillo contributed to this report.

Sports

Feb. 6, 2019

TheOnlineBeacon.com

Men’s Basketball

SCORE BOARD

Men’s Season Buoyed By 9-Game Win Streak; Leading MASCAC

Men’s Basketball

BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

MCLA (89), Elms (72) Dec. 10

Following a decent start to their season, the men’s basketball team blew away the competition during their mid season with a nine-game win streak.

Which, according to the MCLA Athletics website, is its longest streak since the 2010-2011 season.

Before Wednesday’s game at Fitchburg, the MCLA men’s team was leading MASCAC standings with 6-1 in conference play and an overall score of 13-6 this season.

While it was a welcome sight for many, head coach Derek Shell remains cautious about the rest of the season.

“It’s always a bonus to have a nine game winning streak during any year at any point of the season.

However unless it is your last nine games the most you can hope for is that it served to put you in an advantageous position to close out the year strong,” he said in an email after the streak concluded.

“We were fortunate during the streak to be shooting the ball very well. But that is something you can’t count on every night so we are going to have to focus more on defense and rebound-

MCLA (95), Norwich (76) Jan. 4 MCLA (74), Bridgewater State (68) Jan. 11 MCLA (78), Fitchburg State (65) Jan. 14 MCLA (98), Salem State (84) Jan. 16 MCLA (67), Framingham State (64) Jan. 18 MCLA (88), Worcester State (87) Jan. 22 PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS

Noah Yearsly ‘21, making a shot in the game against Bridgewater State on Feb. 1. He went on to score 11 points in the game. ing down the stretch if we are going to max out this groups’s potential,” he said in the email.

Even so, the streak has done a lot to bolster the spirits of the players who haven’t yet seen a comparable record for the team in their MCLA college careers.

“There is a quote that says ‘success is not a straight line’ which illustrates that some days you’ll be worse than others. But if I had to measure where we are now against where we were on October 15th, I’d say we have certainly gotten better; not as

good as we can be and not as good as we are going to have to be, but yes positive strides have taken place,” Shell said in the email.

The men’s team snapped its streak in their game against Hunter on Jan. 24 in a close 84-79 game, but won against Westfield a few days later with a score of 82-81.

“Hayden Bird and Noah Yearsley have been scoring and shooting the ball very well as of late and Chris Becker has given us an inside presence that we have not had for a while.”

“Ki-Shawn Monroe and

Mike DeMartinis (who have been our leading scorers on a few occasions this year) along with Quentin Gittens are the guys who do the dirty work of defending, rebounding and sacrificing their bodies for the benefit of the team,” he said in the email.

“You need a healthy combination of different types of skills on a team and so far, more often than not, ours has worked out for us. I look forward to even more guys stepping up as we head down the final stretch of our season,” Shell said in the email.

Women’s Basketball

Trailblazers Lose Against Bridgewater

BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Women’s basketball lost their game on Saturday, Feb. 1. against Bridgewater State in an 86-57 game.

Highest scoring was Kylah Langston ‘20, who scored 20 points duing the course of the game. Followed by Hannah Mazzeo ‘23 who got 10 points and made 7 rebounds, and Erika Ryan ‘20 with 8 points and 5 rebounds.

Previously, the women’s team scored 72 points in their game against Westfield, who won with 96.

Brooke DiGennaro ‘23 scored the Trailblazers the most points that game with 23 and getting 9 sucessful rebounds. Langston scored

MCLA (92), Rivier (69) Dec. 7

MCLA (79), Hunter (84) Jan. 24 MCLA (82), Westfield State (81) Jan. 29 MCLA (67), Bridgewater State (78) Feb. 1 @ Fitchburg State Feb. 5, 7:30 p.m. @ Salem State Feb. 8, 2:00 p.m. vs. Framingham State Feb. 12, 7:30 p.m.

Women’s Basketball MCLA (40), Smith (89) Dec. 7 MCLA (28), Union (N.Y.) (62) Dec. 10 MCLA (43), Curry (56) Jan. 4 MCLA (42), Bridgewater State (76) Jan. 11 MCLA (49), Fitchburg State (65) Jan. 14 MCLA (40), Salem State (59) Jan. 16 MCLA (47), Framingham State (78) Jan. 18 MCLA (43), Worcester State (70) Jan. 22 MCLA (31), Trinity (Conn.) (43) Jan. 24

PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS

Kylah Langston ‘20 who went on to score 20 points for the Trailblazers in their game against Bridgewater State last Saturday.

15 points with 9 rebounds of her own.

Ryan made the most with 13 by game conclusion and getting 4 points.

The women’s team is currently 0-7 in conference play and 2-16 for the overall season.

The Beacon reached out

to the women’s head coach Loren Stock and assistant coach Courtney McLaughlin for comment but recieved no responce.

Read more about your Trailblazers, watch games, and see dates for upcoming games at Athletics.mcla.edu

MCLA (72), Westfield State (96) Jan. 29 MCLA (57), Bridgewater State (86) Feb. 1 @ Fitchburg State Feb. 5, 5:30 p.m. @ Salem State Feb. 8, 12:00 p.m. vs. Framingham State Feb. 12, 5:30 p.m.

Opinion

TheOnlineBeacon.com

A Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day for Red Sox Fans

JAKE VITALI A SLICE OF AMERICANA On Wednesday night, the Boston Red Sox traded Mookie Betts and David Price to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Betts was not only the Red Sox best player, but a perennial All Star, capable of challenging the spot for MVP awards each season - winning it in 2018.

In return, the Red Sox received prospects in outfielder Alex Verdugo and Minnesota Twins right-handed pitcher Brusdar Graterol.

Verdugo at 23 years old produced decent numbers this season in the big league hitting 0.294 with 12 home runs and 44 RBI. NBC Sports Boston reported that Verdugo missed significant time with a back injury that he sustained in early-August and has not resumed baseball activities as of Jan. 31. His status for opening day remains unknown.

Verdugo’s numbers were respectable, but even without the injury concern, would be incapable of replacing Betts’ production immediately. In 2019, which many considered a down year for Betts, he still managed to hit 0.295 with 29 home runs and 80 RBI. Graterol on the other hand struggled mightily in the majors with a 1-1 record last season and an ERA of 4.66, his stats in the minors weren’t much better with an ERA of 5.06.

The move shows where the Red Sox priorities are currently placed.

In five days, pitchers and catchers will report to spring training and will do so without a manager, as the team had a “mutual parting of the ways” with Alex Cora following revelations that Cora was mainly responsible in the Houston Astros cheating scandal.

So, players will report to spring training, where a culture and strategy for the season is established, and will do so with a massive void in player and coaching leadership They’re directionless and this trade proves that the Red Sox’s season is a lost cause as well as a sentiment that many followers felt when the team hired Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom - that the team was more concerned with being under the luxury tax threshold than winning championships.

By moving all of Betts’s $27 million dollar salary for the 2020 season and half of Price’s $32 million salary, the team is officially below the $208 million threshold.

If the Red Sox truly just wanted to get under the luxury tax and focus on the future, it could have been done without trading a player of Betts’s caliber.

This off-season alone, the team gave Jackie Bradley Jr. an $11 million contract, a $5.5 million contract to Martin Perez, and a deal worth $2.5 million to Mitch Moreland.

Earlier this offseason it was reported that the Red Sox and Betts, who will be a free agent after the 2020 season, were about as far apart on contract negotiations as Boston is from Los Angeles.

According to team-insider Lou Merloni, Betts was asking for a 12 year contract at $420 million, which is in the same ballpark as Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout.

That contract would still be slightly less than Trout’s 12 year $430 million contract but above the contract that Bryce Harper received from the Philadelphia Phillies at 13 years and $330 million contract. It makes perfect sense, Betts is better than Harper but not quite the player that Trout is.

However, according to Merloni, the Red Sox want Betts to take even less than Harper with a 10 year and $300 million contract.

They had the money in the budget to pay Betts, and could have done it before another team offered, the rate he wanted, if not more.

For a team that has won four World Series titles since 2004, letting Betts walk away is astonishing. Any other major league club in a big market would have extended themselves to resign a player of Betts’s caliber. It’s impossible to see the Yankees, Dodgers or Cubs making a

decision like this without getting a king’s ransom in return.

In 2019 alone, Betts was ahead of Trout in batting average, stolen bases and doubles. Despite it being a regression from his MVP campaign in 2018, Betts also proved more efficient than Trout at the plate with 706 plate appearances and 101 strikeouts, compared to Trout’s 600 plate appearances and 120 strikeouts.

It’s important to remember that Betts had never asked for a trade or even stated a desire to sign elsewhere, but rather, Betts wanted to test free agency and be paid accordingly. Are we really supposed to blame him after the Red Sox have continually lowballed him in their offers the past two years? Of course not.

By acquiring Verdugo and Graterol, it is evident that the team is looking towards the future. However, an ideal Red Sox team of the future should have had Betts at the forefront.

The Red Sox have a core of young players that can carry them for the next decade or so with Xander Bogaerts, Andrew Benentendi, Rafeal Devers, and Michael Chavis. Many predict that Triple-A prospect Bobby Dalbec will contribute well this season as well as Single-A prospect Triston Casas in a few years.

The desire to acquire prospects would be more understandable if the team acquired players with better track records of success. Originally Luis Campusano, the current MVP of the single-A California League, had been rumored to be a part of the deal. It was also reported that the team could have received four top prospects from the San Diego Padres if they agreed to take on part of Will Myers salary.

Focusing on the minor leagues makes sense to a degree. Former President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski depleted the minor leagues to acquire talent for the 2017 World Series run. The Red Sox have only one prospect in Baseball America’s Top 100 with infielder Triston Casas. Casas is 19-years old, spent most of his season with the Lowell Spinners and is at least a year away from making any major league impact.

However, the Red Sox should not be so focused on rebuilding minor league teams that they lose incredible homegrown talent like Betts.

Instead, the Red Sox would have

10

been better served by entering the season with Betts and making an effort at competing with the current roster.

If contract negotiations continued to stall throughout the season and the Red Sox weren’t competitive, a Betts trade may have made sense at the trade deadline. A team expected to be a World Series contender like the Dodgers may have been willing to offer more for a player who’s the X-factor in winning a title.

Paying Mookie Betts would also show that the Red Sox have learned from their 2014 mistake with Jon Lester. Only after the deal, sending Lester to the Oakland Athletics, was consummated did they realize what they had done. That off-season they attempted to convince Lester to come back only for Lester to sign with the Chicago Cubs for a contract less than what the Red Sox were offering.

Left without an ace for the starting rotation, the Red Sox signed David Price, traded for Chris Sale and wound up in the position they find themselves now. The team’s track record indicates that in two years time, they’ll flex their ability to spend once again and make another bad deal like they did with Carl Crawford and Pablo Sandoval.

The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004. The lovable losers became one of the league’s most dominant teams, but it’s been a pretty unstable journey to reach this point.

Since 2004, the team has had four managers in Terry Francona, Bobby Valentine, John Farrell and Alex Cora – and at some point in the near future they will have a fifth. The team has also had four different baseball executives in Theo Epstein, Ben Cherrington, Dave Dombrowski and Chaim Bloom.

In that time, the Red Sox have been in a cycle of: trading top prospects and signing big name free agents to bad deals, winning a title, having a bad season the year after and cutting payroll, rebuilding the minor leagues and finally changing the team’s leadership in the process.

Stability equals success in any profession, especially in sports. The cycle that the Red Sox have been caught in is anything but stable - it’s unsustainable. It’s a pathetic way to run a team and Mookie Betts was just collateral damage.

Want to write a guest column for The Beacon?

If you’re interested in writing a guest column, contact Corey Mitchell-Labrie at cm5449@mcla.edu

Opinion

Feb. 6, 2019

TheOnlineBeacon.com

11

Editorial

American State of Confusion

On Tuesday, President Trump gave his State of the Union address with all the smugness on his face of the winner of a hot dog eating contest.

Throughout the address, Trump managed to weave backhanded compliments, tiptoe around his most controversial actions at the border, and made remarks that contradicted with his white house administration.

When Trump made his address about China and trade deals, he made the point to praise his own changes to their tariffs and emphasized that China respected it because, “They respect what we’ve done because, quite frankly, they could never really believe that they could get away with what they were doing, year after year, decade after decade, without some country stepping up and saying, ‘That’s enough.’”

Public criticizums of world leaders have become commonplace in the Trump organization, as seen with Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un. Trump made sure to give his hypocrisy time to shine when discussing Medicare and pushing the affordability of pharmaceutical drugs stating: “I’m calling for bipartisan legislation that achieves the goal of dramatically lowering prescription drug prices. Get a bill on my desk and I will sign it into law immediately.”

This rightfully caused an uproar on the Democratic side of the room with many holding up hands and chanting “H. R. 3,” the name of a proposed bill by the Democrats that passed in the House of Representatives but was pushed aside by the Republican-controlled Senate.

The bill would have required Medicare companies to negotiate prices for drugs, but the president released a statement in early December opposing it.

The statement ended by formally saying that if the bill were presented to the president, he would veto it.

During his address, President Trump decided it would be a good idea to talk about and praise ICE and their efforts at the border. Specifically, he avoided talking about the absolutely horrific circumstances around separating parents and children and locking them up.

Trump had stated the end to a “catch and release” practice in which illegal immigrants were arrested and then re-released back into the country “never to be seen again”.

But CNN cites that roughly 90% of asylum seekers, illegal immigrants fleeing to our country for safety, do show up for their court hearings.

Previous State of the Union addresses have seen President Trump speak adamantly on military spending. This notably included rebuilding when it came to our nuclear arsenal, something the previous administration was trying to deplete.

President Trump announced that America had spent $2.2 trillion in military spending, which was met with applause from the Republican side, but motionless bodies and darting eyes from the Joint Chiefs present.

Nancy Pelosi notably tore up her transcript of the president’s speech, an act that sent ripples through the GOP, calling it petty and disrespectful.

Marco Pubio Tweeted out, “The Speaker embarrassed herself by ripping up her paper copy of the speech in dramatic fashion. So pathetic.”

Liz Cheney also Tweeted about her, saying, “She is an embarrassment and unfit for office.”

Where was this outrage and passion from the GOP when he was locking up children, who had no-idea what was going on? Where was the anger when he was attacking world leaders who were supposed to be our allies? And why weren’t they upset about the complete turn around when it came to prescription dugs?

The Right Way to Have an Opinion

SABRINA DAMMS IT’S A DAMMS THOUGHT People have opinions for everything, but some people are not prepared for the responsibility that comes with having one. Having an opinion comes with a lot of dedication and work, and is not an easy pursuit.

It is a grueling task that challenges a person’s sense of self and it is forever evolving. People who are willing to go through the trials must be willing to experience constant growth and reform.

The process of forming an opinion can be exhausting and it is never-ending. Being open and surrounding yourself with diverse people, views, and environments make us develop as people and further informs our viewpoints.

Silencing ideas that do not correspond with our own would leave us stagnant as a society and further divide us. In 1643 the English Parliament passed a law known as “An Ordinance for the Regulating

of Printing” which required that written works, like books or pamphlets, be reviewed and licensed by the English government before publication.

John Milton, a seventeenth-century English poet, wrote in his pamphlet “Areopagitica” protesting this ordinance saying, “Where there is much desire to learn, there of necessity will be much arguing, much writing, many opinions; for opinion in good men is but knowledge in the making.”

Censorship is a common reaction to fear and can be seen throughout history in many countries. Fear of change in ideals and shift in power led the dominant discourse to censor new ideals that could challenge the current world view.

Could it be possible that some of us are also self-censoring other ideas and views because we are afraid of having our own viewpoints challenged?

Being surrounded by new ideals and perspectives is an uncomfortable thing to do. Leaving our comfort zone is very intimidating because we are entering into the unknown.

Yet, this is still an important feeling to experience. Being uncomfortable when experiencing or learning new viewpoints further develops our understanding and builds on the opinions we have.

We can think of how our experiences shaped who we are and what our opinions are. Experiencing new things expands our own opinions and allows us to grow as people.

We can see an example of this when we look at American rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer, Snoop Dog, and his experience being a father.

In 2011, Snoop Dog said in an interview with The Guardian “because women are in a position now to voice their opinion… women are getting empowered. The more power they get, the more voice they get to shift certain things around. Now I have a daughter, I understand. When I didn’t have a daughter, I didn’t understand.”

Snoop Dogs’ experience with his daughter helped change his perspective on women empowerment.

Experiencing new things, like music, art, sports, or anything that we are not accustomed to or maybe outside our comfort zone broadens our horizons and expands our perspectives.

We should not get angry when someone has a difficult time understanding our perspective because they have not experienced the same things you have. Instead, be patient and try to explain your views. Don’t forget to be open to listening to them because it may inform your opinion even more.

A good opinion is formed with diligent research, exposure to diverse experiences and ideas and when two objective people have a conversation about their opposing views.

Fear and anger should not push us away from learning from each other’s experiences and expanding our own perspectives.

The Beacon is published Thursdays during the academic year and is distributed to the MCLA community.

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Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief

Corey Mitchell-LaBrie

Senior News Editor

A&E Editor

Brian Rhodes

Sabrina Damms

Features Editor Lise Mansaray

Editor-at-Large

Jake Vitali

BWN Executive Producer Symantha Kehr

Staff Staff Writers Natalia Giacomozzi Nicole Lemire

Features Writer

A&E Writers

Isabel Costa

Aidan Rawson Jacob Mack

BWN Reporters Mei Craig Giovanni JaJoute

Robert Wehry Antoinette Webster

Photographer Kylan Martus

Advisers Shawn McIntosh Jim Niedbalski

Feb. 6, 2019

12

Fun, Friends, and Winter Formal Photos By Kylan Martus

Students danced to music from DJ Jeriyah Morris, enjoyed a buffet style dinner, and voted for ‘MCLA Royalty’ with their friends at the Winter Formal co-hosted by Student Government and Student Activities Council on Saturday night.