March 28, 2019 Vol. 88, Issue 7

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City Council

Theater Vote Postponed, First Amendment Tensions Rise

Thursday, March 28, 2019

Volume 88 • Issue 7

New Comm. Degree, New Options for Students

BY JAKE VITALI EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Tuesday night, the North Adams City Council voted to refer an order authorizing the Mayor to execute a purchase and sale agreement for the Mohawk Theater back to the Community Development Committee, with a return date of April 23.

Councilor Benjamin Lamb said that the city council considered the option of changing the process of issuing a Request for Proposals so that there could be more checks and balances throughout the process.

“The solution that we were suggesting at the last committee, just to refresh everyone, was flipping the process of RFP and disposition of property,” Lamb said. “So instead of declaring it surplus property at the beginning, we would do it in the middle after RFPs have been put out there through the mayor’s office.”

However, Lamb said that legal counsel found that the council would need to follow the process as it was originally laid out with an RFP going out at the beginning.

Councilor Jason LaForest cited that the city council had the ability under Massachusetts General Law to issue potential restrictions on the RFP put out by the mayor.

This is now the fourth time that the council has delayed action on the mayor’s request for an RFP since he first made his intentions clear during his state of the city address in January.

Also at the heart of the meeting were ongoing concerns over the council’s restrictions on community members being able to speak on individual agenda items.

Before the Hearing of Visitors at the start of the meeting, Council President Keith Bona offered an apology to Councilor Rebecca Cohen, who was absent for the evening’s meeting, for his comments toward her at the March 12 meeting.

“I want to offer an apology to Councilor Cohen of how the last meeting ended,” Bona said.

“At the time I did interrupt her during Councilor’s Concerns because at that time I felt there was a rule that existed about continuing a statement [for] multiple meetings.”

Bona stated that while there was no rule that directly applied to his opinion at that moment, he reminded councilors that they should not

CITY COUNCIL, Page 4

PHOTO BY JAKE VITALI

Andrew Strout operates a camera in the television studio with Professors Shawn McIntosh and Michael Birch, who worked on creating the Communications major that will be housed within the English/Communications department and expand current offerings for students.

BY JAKE VITALI EDITOR-IN-CHIEF On Tuesday, March 12, the Board of Higher Education voted to approve a new Bachelor of Arts in Communications at MCLA. The decision creates a new major that will be offered within the English/Communications Department.

Paul LeSage, chairperson of the English/communications department, made it clear that the department is not splitting, but rather simply adding the new major. LeSage said the department will stay united as students get to pursue more classes that fall in line with their interests.

“This is an answer to many of the assessment reports that students put in semester after semester, over

quite a few years,” LeSage said.

The new major is the culmination of ideas, plans and discussions that go back all the way to 2004, when Michael Birch, professor of English/communications, created a vision to expand communications offerings in 2004 as part of the college’s strategic plan.

Starting in the Spring 2016 semester, professors Birch, Joseph Ebiware and Shawn McIntosh held weekly informal meetings to discuss ideas about what a new communications major would look like.

They built on material that had been proposed by Birch and LeSage in years past, taking into account the latest developments in the field and, in the later stages of the discussions, LeSage joined the regular meetings to discuss the major’s direction.

“One of the nice things about the new major is that we primarily use existing classes but with different emphasis in certain areas that better align with the knowledge that students interested in communications need,” said McIntosh, who is also assistant professor of digital journalism and communications.

“We’ve added two new classes, Media Writing & Production, and Communication Research & Methods, in order to fill important knowledge and skill gaps for English/communications students.”

With the major now approved, the department will work to get the major into the academic catalog so that students can begin studying under the new program.

Once the new major is officially a

COMM MAJOR, Page 4

Obasohan and Daly Named to BCC’s 40 Under 40

BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE SENIOR NEWS EDITOR Berkshire Community College’s fourth annual “40 Under Forty” awards grant recognition for those individuals who work to improve the quality of living for residents in the Berkshire region.

This year’s awards included MCLA’s own Michael Obasohan, coordinator of the Multicultural Education Resource Center (MERC), and Michelle Daly, coordinator of the Berkshire Cultural Resource Center.

Obasohan, in particular, received four separate nominations for consideration for the award.

“It was an honor to get nominated by the people because I [often] don’t notice the work that I’m doing. I just do it because I enjoy being involved in the community,” Obasohan said.

The award moniker applies to the constraint it follows: 40 recipients under the age of 40. Its purpose is to encourage young professionals to participate in localized outreach programs.

“A lot of the work I do in the community really focuses on promoting diversity awareness,

diversity inclusion, cultural competency — and [I] really wanted to create an atmosphere where our students, especially our students of color and LGBTQI students, feel comfortable in the North Adams community,” Obasohan said.

“I do what I do not for recognition or for the award. My [personal] reward is: seeing a family that’s happy, seeing a student succeed, whether it’s in the community or in classes or on campus.

That’s the reward,” Obasohan continued.

40 UNDER 40, Page 4

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SGA

Spring Nomination Papers And Club Budgets Have Arrived

BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE SENIOR NEWS EDITOR Coordinating Vice President Dean Little ’21 explained that SGA would have $60,000 less to give as an overall amount allocated to clubs. Coincidentally, this is the exact monetary amount requested collectively by every club, which would over-budget SGA by $60,000 if it fulfilled every request.

“We had to go back and be harsher than we wanted to and that’s something that we really were trying to tell folks,” Little said, “that most of these decisions we have to make we didn’t want and we initially didn’t, but going back it proved to be more difficult.”

“We’re actually going to tell you what things we’re

recommending you not to fund, so we’re not just going to give you a number,” Little explained. “We’re going to say, ‘This program, this program, and this event we suggest you not budget for.’”

Little wanted to push that the Budget Finance Committee tried to analyze each subject based on the question: How is this going to improve the College campus community?

It was suggested that clubs still looking to put on larger events should cosponsor with other clubs. This, in turn, would encourage good interclub relations while simultaneously bolstering attendance for events.

“We’re really emphasizing cosponsorships for next year, so it’s a big thing for us to try to do something

like that,” Little said. “I’m gonna also be working on that with clubs, and I’ll be working on trying to figure out some sort of workshop-style thing to promote cosponsorships and another to promote transitions between clubs.”

SGA has opened up nomination papers for spring general elections. Papers are available in the SGA office on the third floor of the Campus Center, CC 316.

Final submission date for all positions is April 8.

Aramark food services will work alongside the food pantry by supplying a new product: frozen meals. Leftovers from food services will be frozen and available for students as microwavable meals, dding to the pantry’s options.

SGA will possibly be

PHOTO FROM SGA FACEBOOK PAGE

Coordinating Vice President Dean Little ‘21. hosting their “Milkshake Bar” outreach event during Springfest Friday, April 19.

The event will encourage the MCLA community to

learn more about SGA and its role on campus.

The Student Government Association meets in Murdock 218 Mondays at 7 p.m.

Green Living Seminar

Improving Efforts to Reduce Campus Waste

BY NATHAN BIRON STAFF WRITER On Thursday, March 14, the Green Living Seminar focused on ways of making the earth a better place to live through new and different ways of reducing our waste.

The lecture was led by MCLA’s John Kozik, general manager of MCLA Dining Services, and Anthony Fiorentino, executive chef for MCLA Dining Services.

“Our program is built not only to reduce waste but save the consumer money also,” Kozik said.

The waste of local towns and the College are handled by TAM, a trash and waste removal company based out of Vermont. MCLA and TAM use what is called the Lean Path System. This system lets administration and staff check what is going in and out of the kitchen and also make sure their inventory is on the right track.

“The system runs in real time and can be checked by anyone in the company at any time,” Fiorentino said. “Other things that are beneficial to reducing waste is some foods are made to order; for instance, the pizza is made when needed.”

Fiorentino also mentioned that waste is significantly reduced with

PHOTO BY NATHAN BIRON

General manager John Kozik, left, and Executive Chef Anthony Fiorentino, right, of Dining Services. dining staff serving the students.

Kozik and Fiorentino work closely to achieve their goal of saving money and reducing waste, according to Kozik.

Check out this week’s Beacon Web News

With the future in mind, Kozik suggested new ideas and different ways MCLA could continue improving, including a push for more involvement with local farms

and businesses as well as the ongoing paper straw program that was started before the College’s involvement with Aramark.

“We sometimes are able to get Jaeschke’s Orchard apples, which is a close local business,” Kozik said. “One of the big problems that comes along with that is we are not allowed to buy any foods that are considered to be local [over] 400 miles from us, but Sysco helps bring the local foods to the school.”

Despite partnering with SGA, Kozik and Fiorentino still want students to check out their mug program to encourage recycling and raise students’ awareness of personal waste. “[We’re] trying to get back to the basics of recycling and making sure we are not damaging our living environment anymore,” Kozik said.

The Green Living Seminar series takes place Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. in CSI Room 121. Tonight’s Green Living Seminar, “The Farm Bill: What it is and what it means for farming in the U.S.,” will be presented by Justin Chase, director of Farmer Training Programs with Tufts New Entry Sustainable Farming Project.

on YouTube or MCLA-TV on Philo!

News

Mar. 28, 2019

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Public Policy Lecture Series

Scholar Sarah Smarsh to Discuss Socioeconomics in Rural America

BY MAYA MCFADDEN STAFF WRITER For its 11th year, MCLA’s Public Policy lecture series will host author, educator, speaker and journalist Sarah Smarsh for a talk discussing specific challenges faced by the U.S. working class to be held in the Church Street Center auditorium Thursday, April 4, at 7 p.m.

With a theme of growing inequality in the U.S., the organizing committee for the lecture series agreed upon and officially invited Smarsh during the fall 2018 semester. The committee is comprised of four faculty members, three students, and several staff members and administrators.

“Sarah Smarsh is someone who writes from personal experience while also having a history as a scholar and accomplished author,” said David Cupery, assistant professor of political science and public policy.

Cupery helped with the lecture’s organization process and said that planning for Smarsh’s lecture began last year. According to Cupery, the theme and lecturer for the series were chosen for their relevance to the student body and greater Berkshire County community.

“We had a great lecture last fall by Ta-Nehisi Coates that addressed the racial dynamics in our country,” Cupery continued. “We wanted to pair that with some analysis and lived experience of

the socioeconomic gap between urban and rural and whitecollar and blue-collar analysis.”

Smarsh is the author of The New York Times best-seller, “Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth,” a finalist for the 2018 National Book Award.

With a professional focus on socioeconomic class, politics and public policy, her “Heartland” memoir “examines historic economic inequality and tells the story of her upbringing among the working poor on a Kansas farm,” as stated on MCLA’s website.

Smarsh’s lecture will be free and open to the public. She will also hold a classroom meeting exclusively for students at 3 p.m. in CSI Room 121 during her visit.

A 2018 Joan Shorenstein Fellow at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, Smarsh has worked as a media commentator on topics dealing with socioeconomic class, politics and rural issues, frequently appearing on CNN, CNN International, Public Broadcasting System and various radio stations around the world.

According to her own website, Smarsh’s essays and criticisms on cultural boundaries have been published by “The Cut,” “The Texas Observer,” “The Morning News” and more.

In “Best American Essays,” Smarsh’s essays “Poor Teeth” (Aeon) and “The First Person on Mars” (Vela) were both listed as notables.

PHOTO TAKEN FROM MCLA WEBSITE.

Sarah Smarsh, The New York Times bestselling author, is coming to MLCA Monday, April 4.

MCLA’s Public Policy lecture series was established in 2008 to make “public policy forums an ongoing part of the College’s longterm speaker offerings in complement to MCLA’s major in political

science and public policy,” according to MCLA’s website. The series occurs biannually with a spring and fall installment. Both are funded by the Ruth E. Proud Charitable Trust.

Blood Drive

American Red Cross Blood Drive Coming to Campus

BY JOHN MORRISSEY STAFF WRITER Despite declining involvement from MCLA in recent years, the American Red Cross will host a blood drive Friday, April 5, in Venable Gym from noon to 5 p.m.

According to Richard McGravey, American Red Cross recruitment manager, the upcoming blood drive’s target goal is to have 20 donors from the MCLA community.

“Our donations have dropped considerably at MCLA over the years and we are at a loss as to why,” McGravey said.

McGravey also emphasized the American Red Cross’s constant need for blood.

“We are in a particularly dire situation now because of the lack of blood on the shelves,” McGravey said.

“Only about 2 percent of the country actually donates, which supports the other 98 percent who rely on blood transfusions.”

According to the American Red Cross website, every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood — surgery patients, transplant patients, those battling cancer, and accident and burn victims.

“Every donation that an individual donor makes potentially goes to help three individuals because blood is divided into three components,” McGravey said.

“Taking time out of your day can possibly change three people’s lives immeasurably.”

The American Red Cross website states that donating blood is the most common type of donation, during which approximately one pint of “whole blood” is given, taking

about an hour. Individuals can choose to donate whole blood, “power red” cells or platelets. All types of blood are needed and accepted.

The website also explains that “power red” donations collect red cells, but return most of the plasma and platelets to the donor.

These donations require donors with A-, B-, or either O- or O+ blood types to meet specific eligibility requirements.

In attracting new donors, one of the biggest obstacles facing the American Red Cross is the fear of needles.

“If you’re willing to spend a few minutes facing your fears you may find that the satisfaction you feel makes it worth it,” as stated on the American Red Cross website.

“We are always asking for help from colleges and universities and they have re-

PHOTO FROM WIKIMEDIA COMMONS.

Petty Officer 1st Class Kevin Trahan, a health services technician assigned to Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville, Fla., takes a few minutes out of his day to donate blood to the Blood Alliance, a local non-profit community blood bank, Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009. The American Red Cross claims only three out of every 100 people in America donate blood. U.S. Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher Evanson. ally helped us tremendously in the past [to reach our goals],” McGravey said.

Although walk-ins are welcomed, you can sched-

ule an appointment through the American Red Cross’s website or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) for availability.

News

Mar. 28, 2019

Student Satisfaction Survey Now Available

BY JAKE VITALI EDITOR-IN-CHEIF On Monday, students received an email from Catherine Holbrook, vice president of student affairs, inviting them to take a survey designed to give feedback on their student experience.

“It’s a national assessment from a company called Ruffalo Noel Levitz that many schools use to learn more about what their students think about a number of issues related to their experience as a student — library, residence halls, advising, parking, are people in various areas helpful and caring, etc.,” Holbrook stated in

an email.

The survey asks students to rate their satisfaction level on a variety of topics on a 1 to 7 scale. In addition, students have the option to write longer comments about their experiences in a confidential manner.

Holbrook said the survey will be offered repeatedly and compared against other colleges to see how successful they are in making improvements.

“MCLA really wants to understand how our students feel and to use this data to make strategic decisions about the priorities for improvement based on what is most important to students?

CITY COUNCIL

From Page 1

use the portion of the agenda to discuss previous votes or upcoming ones. Instead, Bona suggested it be used for things such as events or traffic.

Despite Bona’s apology to Cohen, city residents Robert Smith and Robert Cardimino continued to speak out against the rules during the Open Forum portion of the meeting.

Smith read an open letter entitled “Redundance, Suppression, and Personal” to the council.

“It became a personal against Mr. Sapienza, Mr. Cardimino, and myself who are the only three that speak at these meetings on a regular basis. Only Councilor Cohen is a true patriot on this council who knows that we should be heard,” Smith said.

Smith held up a copy of the constitution and reminded Councilor Bona of his oath of office. In Smith’s opinion Bona has not upheld his oath, and he suggested that Bona not seek

what are they least satisfied with?” Holbrook said, acknowledging some changes may require more time to implement than others.

Holbrook said the college will make the results available to students once they are available.

“In all likelihood, the summer will be used to implement strategies and in the fall, we will let students know what specific things have happened as a result as well as what is in the works,” Holbrook said.

Students who complete the survey are automatically entered to win gift cards from local vendors, as well as MCLA promotional items.

re-election should he not follow his oath.

“You will be held accountable for your suppression and personal tactics, you work for the citizens of our city and we have every right to be heard, so do the right thing and reverse that blatant negative vote,” Smith said.

Cardimino used his opportunity to express his feeling that Bona was a bully.

“When you chastised and interrupted Councilor Cohen, I think that was bullying on your part, and you should apologize for bullying because you try to bully everybody, including us three by cutting us out from speaking on agenda items,” Cardimino said.

Since the new rules went into effect, Cardimino has used signs to communicate his opinions to councilors, as well as taunt them. During Tuesday’s meeting, Cardimino’s signs took particular aim at Bona.

“If you want these signs to go away, reverse it, there will be no signs, and we’ll get back to a little civility at these council meetings,” Cardimino said.

40 UNDER 40 From Page 1

One of the first community activities Obasohan took on was part of the DisFUNK dance crew which he and some of his friends put together.

“We’d done some workshops with youth, teaching them dance routines and things like that. We performed at Downstreet Art, 3rd Thursdays in Pittsfield, MassMOCA, and Jacob’s Pillow,” Obasohan said.

Obasohan serves on the board for the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition (NBCC), an organization working toward empowering a more aware and active community in the area. He particularly likes working with their various public forums, which cover a wide range of needs.

“It’s great hearing the voices of the community and taking a needs assessment from the community and applying it for that year. Being a part of that work has been awesome, and seeing so much that they do,” Obasohan said.

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NEW MAJOR From Page 1

part of the catalog, students can officially declare it, and the department can look at who is eligible to switch over. The hope is that it will be as seamless as possible for current students to switch majors if they wish, according to McIntosh.

The new major also has a new concentration, Digital Media Innovation, and the existing concentrations of Journalism, Broadcasting, and Public Relations and Corporate Communications will move to the new major after final approval from the school’s governance committees. The film studies concentration will remain within the English major.

All the concentrations will also be offered as minors for students in any major, which will help students studying in other subject areas enhance their communications and media skills, said McIntosh.

The communications faculty had to consider many factors as they discussed the scope of the new major.

“There was a whole range of things that you had to look at,” Birch said.

“A whole range of courses that brought together this idea of how media was converging, the way in which new technologies were going to impact culture and society, but more specifically it was important for students to become familiarized with those new skills.”

There was an $800,000 wish list as part of the plan that Birch had originally created.

Since then, Birch received a $50,000 grant for the AVID editing machines. He also received $200,000 to renew the TV studio from former President Mary Grant. Cindy Brown, former vice president of academic affairs, offered $350,000 to make the TV studio a digital operation. There will also be a $10,000 grant coming by this summer for new audio equipment as part of a Title III grant the school received.

A Title III grant comes from the federal government to help improve education infrastructure.

Despite the money received so far, Birch is hoping to obtain additional money to continue equipment upgrades and to make Mark Hopkins Hall a state-of-the-art media production facility.

“As we’ve got new faculty coming in, as we have new possibilities, I think there’s still room for other things to happen,” Birch

said. “Part of the original plan was for animation to be part of a new media center.”

The new media center that Birch envisions will allow students to continue to emphasize the importance of converging media and learning skills to help them adapt to a changing media climate.

“It’s a new world now; very few people will have jobs that they stay in for a long, long period of time,” Birch continued. “Students will need to know how the economy changes, where their profession is going to change, and where they should look towards getting new jobs to feed not just them but their families.”

After departmental approval in the Fall 2017 semester, and getting approved through the school’s various governance committees and board of trustees in Spring 2018, the new major proposal was sent to the state’s Board of Higher Education for final approval.

On Tuesday, March 5, LeSage, McIntosh and Dean of Academic Operations Deborah Foss represented the College and went before the BHE’s Academic Affairs Committee.

Only one question, focused on internships available in rural western Massachusetts, was asked of the MCLA delegation. McIntosh answered, speaking of the opportunities available with local media outlets and opportunities for placement immediately following graduation.

The communications major was approved unanimously by the Board of Higher Education’s Academic Affairs Committee, with one member commenting that it was the kind of interdisciplinary major that the committee would like to see more of. President Jaime Birge received a letter from the Department of Higher Education dated March 14, stating that the new major was approved at the BHE’s main meeting on March 12.

For Birch, the hard work has paid off.

“This is testament to the idea that if you have a plan in place, if you have an idea, and a sound idea as a fundamental foundation then it cannot be ignored,” Birch said.

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Features

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Crystal Wojcik Receives First Barbara Iannoni Scholarship

BY TESSA SESTITO STAFF WRITER Crystal Wojcik ’21 received the Barbara Iannoni Scholarship from the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants (MSCPA), a $5,000 scholarship awarded to one student per state.

“I don’t come from a prestigious family, so I pay for my education on my own and it’s scholarships like hers [Iannoni’s] that are letting me work towards my goal, my dream career,” Wojcik said.

The scholarship will be used to pay for Wojcik’s tuition. Because she’s a commuter student, the money will cover about a semester-and-a-half for her.

When the scholarship became available, Barboza sent emails to her students urging them to apply. According to Barboza, she asked her class whether anyone had applied and Wojcik was the only student to raise her hand.

“It wasn’t someone from Bentley or someone from Harvard,” business administration professor Tara Barboza said. “It was MCLA student Crystal Wojcik and I am peacocking proud!”

The scholarship was established this year in honor of Barbara Iannoni who retired from the MSCPA after 20 years.

According to MSCPA’s website, “This scholarship is awarded to a student that embodies Barbara’s work ethic, spirit and dedication to the accounting profession.”

Barboza feels that the recent creation of this scholarship makes it even more special that it was awarded to Wojcik.

“I can’t imagine that they didn’t put thought and care into deciding who to award this scholarship to because everyone knew and loved Barb,” Barboza said.

According to Barboza, Iannoni was energetic and empathetic in her work; she worked closely with individuals, took everyone’s issues very personally and was really committed.

For Barboza, Wojcik exemplifies Iannoni’s commitment and empathy. She is committed to her academics and the institution as an admissions ambassador, volunteer at the VITA program and member of SAC.

Barbara Iannoni Scholarship recipient Crystal Wojcik ’21.

Business administration professor Chali Nondo recognized qualities in Wojcik similar to Barboza’s.

“The award of the scholarship to Crystal exemplifies her strong work ethic, exceptional insight, and ability to take personal responsibility for her education,” Nondo stated in an email. “Her talents, however, do not end there. Crystal is also a perceptive and diligent student who always comes to class prepared.”

When applying for this scholarship, Wojcik asked both Barboza and Nondo for letters of recommendation. In their letters, they acknowledged Wojcik’s academic excellence, interpersonal and motivational skills, and willingness to work hard and go the extra mile.

“She [Wojcik] doesn’t have to be a leader, but she can be because she gives everyone a chance to succeed and volunteers information to help them succeed,” Barboza said.

The application for the scholarship included essay questions, including “Who inspired you to pursue a career in accounting?” For Wojcik, it was professor Barboza who inspired her.

“When I first came to MCLA I was actually an

Hardman Journalist-in-Residence

PHOTO TAKEN FROM THE MCLA WEBSITE education major and I was deciding between education and business, so I took a course in education and I took explorations in business and that’s where I fell in love with business,” Wojcik said.

“Then I took financial accounting for just a core requirement and Dr. Barboza reeled me in. It was pretty much her, overall.”

The ceremony for the Barbara Iannoni Scholarship will be held Wednesday, May 22, at 5:30 p.m. at a golf club in Quincy. Wojcik will be networking with other scholarship recipients, as well as the sponsors for all of the scholarships, accounting faculty and other leadership personnel. The MSCPA chairman will be presenting the awards, followed by dinner and dessert for attendees.

“This scholarship is really an investment in Crystal’s education for the MSCPA because she’s going to really help the profession,” Barboza said.

Barboza is hoping that Wojcik receiving this award will inspire other business administration students with an accounting concentration to apply to other MSCPA scholarships as well as MCLA’s own accounting scholarship, the Bernard “Bud” Riley Scholarship, which awards the recipient with $4,000.

This Week in Audio

‘La Voz’ Mng. Editor Mariel Fiori Discusses Catching up with NA Democracy and Journalism Tonight Mayor Bernard

BY TESSA SESTITO STAFF WRITER

This semester’s Hardman Journalist-in-Residence, Mariel Fiori, will give a talk entitled “Democracy and Journalism, the Hudson Valley, and What I Care About” tonight at 4 p.m. in Murdock 218.

Fiori, a Bard College alum, is currently the managing editor of the Bard-sponsored Spanish language magazine, “La Voz,” providing copies to Spanish-speaking citizens in five communities within the Hudson Valley.

English/communications professors Zachary Finch and Hannah Noel coordinated Fiori’s trip to campus.

“Fiori’s visit to campus offers an exciting and timely opportunity for MCLA students to engage with a

PHOTO TAKEN FROM “LA VOZ”

Hardman Journalist-in-Residence Mariel Fiori speaking tonight. dynamic, innovative, and community oriented journalist,” as stated by Noel on MCLA’s website.

Before coming to the U.S. in 2003, Fiori worked as a researcher, writer, translator, editor and radio and television producer for various mass media groups and independent media in Spain and Argentina.

She continued her work

upon arriving in the U.S., earning an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and Latin American and Iberian Studies from Bard College, where she is currently employed.

“While on campus, Fiori will conduct bilingual interviews with Beacon Web News and BWN Espanol and visit many courses like my Media and Immigration senior seminar and Intro to Latinx Studies courses,” as stated by Noel on MCLA’s website.

Fiori also serves on the advisory board of Re-Think Local Hudson Valley and Arts Mid-Hudson, and is a board member of the newly created Radio Kingston.

Fiori’s talk is free and open to the public.

In an interview that will air at 9 p.m. on WJJW March 31, Jake Vitali speaks with North Adams Mayor Thomas Bernard about economic development in the city and the debates over what should become of the vacant Mohawk Theater on Main Street.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

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Gallery 51

Opening Reception Tonight of ‘Reconnecting: MCLA Alumni Show’

BY JENNIFER VANBRAMER A&E EDITOR MCLA’s Gallery 51 will be holding an opening reception of its first-ever exhibition of alumni works in a show titled “Reconnecting,” happening tonight, Thursday, March 28, from 5 to 7 p.m.

A call for art went out earlier this year in search of artwork created by MCLA alumni. Everyone who submitted their works were able to get at least one piece juried into the show. Michelle Daly, director of MCLA’s Berkshire Cultural Resource Center, and Gallery 51 curator Arthur De Bow were the show’s jurors.

“Before I moved to North Adams about two and onehalf years ago, I was the curator and exhibitions director at the Oregon College of Art and Craft where I did an alumni show there every other year,” De Bow stated in an email. “When I started as curator at Gallery 51 and saw they had not done an alumni show I knew I wanted to schedule one.”

PHOTO BY JENNIFER VANBRAMER

Gallery 51’s “Reconnecting” art exhibition will feature 30 different works from a group of 20 MCLA alumni.

Featured in the exhibition are 20 MCLA alums, including at least one artist from the last five decades, starting with the 1970s.

Artists include: Adriana

Alexatos-Elfast ’12, Cara Finch ’11, Melyssa Fortini ’18, Michael Hagerty ’81, Jennifer Huberdeau ’00, Christina Kelly ’98, Dawn Klein ’00, Alex Meaney ’00,

Ben Mancino ’14, Nate Massari ’16, Makayla-Courtney McGeeney ’16, Amy Modesti ’14, Bill Righter ’80, Rakan Safa ’18, Ryan Scutt ’09, Sarah Tefft ’16, Theresa Terry

’71, Stephanie VanBramer ’14, Benjamin Warren ’11 and Isaac Wood ’17.

With 30 works selected, including paintings, prints, photos, ceramic pieces and drawings, this show brings a variety of artists together and highlights the contributions MCLA alumni have made in creative communities like North Adams and beyond.

De Bow described what he is most looking forward to at this show as “the connection of uniting alumni back with the College and showing the public the awesome work being done by our alumni.” “[I think someone should come to the show] to see the awesome work being done by alumni of the College [MCLA],” De Bow continued. “[As well as] to celebrate the College’s alumni and the amazing work they are doing since graduating.”

Catch Gallery 51’s opening reception of “Reconnecting: MCLA Alumni Show” tonight at 5 p.m. The show will be on display until Sunday, April 21.

Berkshire Art Associa on’s ‘College Fellowship Art Show’ Opening April 5 in Pi sfield

BY JENNIFER VANBRAMER A&E EDITOR The Berkshire Art Association’s (BAA) “College Fellowship Art Show” will have its opening reception at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts in downtown Pittsfield Friday, April 5, from 5 to 8 p.m.

Every year the BAA has awarded fellowships to encourage emerging college artists in their choice of visual arts as a means of expression. This show is open to any enrolled college student majoring in art who either grew up in Berkshire County or goes to college in Berkshire County.

“The range of work and the chance to see the work of emerging artists is great,” BAA President Mary-Beth Eldridge stated in an email.

“Some artists are chosen several years in a row, and it’s great to see their experience and development.”

This year’s event showcases over 30 works of art from 15 different artists, including some who come from Williams College, Massa-

PHOTO BY JENNIFER VANBRAMER

Over 30 works from 15 artists will be displayed in the “College Fellowship Art Show” at the Lichtenstein in Pittsfield. chusetts College of Liberal Arts, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Rhode Island School of Design, University of Massachusetts, Castleton University and Parsons School of Design.

“Seeing the young artists interact with each other and visitors to the gallery,” Eldridge said, describing

her favorite thing about the show. “The work is interesting, the overall appearance of the show is lovely, and some [of the art] is even for sale.”

The fellowship show will showcase a variety of paintings, photographic works, graphic design creations, fiber art, sculptures and even

ceramic pieces on display.

“We hung the show Tuesday [March 19] and we had BAA members pitching in to help and, more importantly, to lend aesthetic judgment in arranging the work,” Eldridge said.

Students involved in this year’s show were able to submit images of their work

to a website, artcall.org, where a group of jurors took time to evaluate and choose what works would be part of the show. Artists were given the chance to have a few or even all of their submitted works chosen by the show’s jurors.

Jurors of the fellowship show this year include filmmaker, writer and creative director Juliane Hiam; sculptor and education coordinator at The Clark, Chelsea Neveu; and painter Ilene Spiewak. These jurors will award $5,000 in prizes to the show’s artists. “[The show] will be part of Pittsfield’s First Friday Artswalk, so there will be lots of art downtown, including an MCLA art show at the new Allen Street MCLA space, quite near the Lichtenstein,” Eldridge said.

Catch the BAA’s annual “College Fellowship Art Show,” with an opening reception Friday, April 5, at the Lichtenstein Center in downtown Pittsfield. The show will be on display until Friday, April 26.

Mar. 28, 2019

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

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’Cloudburst’ Movie Night with Identity and Gender Equality Center March 29

BY SABRINA DAMMS A&E WRITER It’s that time again in the semester when stress is piling up at the same rate as assignments. To relieve some stress, join MCLA’s Identity and Gender Equality (IGE) Center for its movie night Friday, March 29, in Sullivan Lounge at 7 p.m., where it will be showing “Cloudburst.”

“Cloudburst,” written and directed by Thom Fitzgerald in 2011, stars Olympia Dukakis, Brenda Fricker and Ryan Doucette. The film follows the story of a lesbian couple who escape from a nursing home and run away to Canada to get married; along the way, they pick up a young male hitchhiker.

“I hope students get to go to the movie and meet new people and relax,” said Daniel Ober ‘19, third-year office assistant for IGE and planner of the event. “With this time of year it can be stressful with midterms, so I want them to come, relax and enjoy some free pizza and soda.”

Ober first found this film while browsing the LGBTQ section on Netflix, but has since been removed from

the streaming service. After watching the film, he found it to be very cute. When given a chance to share this film with the MCLA community, Ober jumped at the opportunity.

“I really liked the movie and I wanted to share it with people who would be willing to show up to a movie event,” Ober said. “I wanted to show a movie that is not well-known.”

Since 2017, Ober has planned every movie night that IGE has put on at MCLA. In the past, IGE has shown movies, including “Rent” and “Rocky Horror Picture Show.”

“Cloudburst” has won 33 awards, including: Atlantic Canadian Award for Best Screenplay at the 2011 Atlantic Film Festival; the Audience Award for Lesbian Films and Best Feature Film at the 2012 Copenhagen Gay & Lesbian Film Festival; and Audience Awards for Best Feature at both the 2012 Southwest Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and 2012 SHOUT Film Festival in the UK. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to see “Cloudburst” Friday, March 29, at 7

PHOTO FROM IMDB.COM

IGE will be hosting a movie night with the film “Cloudburst,” Friday, March 29, in Sullivan Lounge at 7 p.m. p.m. in Sullivan Lounge.

Also, keep a look out for more of IGE’s upcoming

events, including a tabling for Sexual Assault Awareness April 10 and 16, and

Pride Week from April 22 to 26. IGE’s next movie night with “Carol” will be April 26.

Review

New TV Series ‘Always a Witch’ Premieres on Ne lix

BY SALI BAH A&E WRITER “Siempre Bruja,” or “Always a Witch” in English, is the 2019 TV show we never thought we needed.

The Columbian drama follows a 17th century darkskinned, Afro-Latina witch and slave named Carmen Eguiluz (Angely Gaviria) who is sent to the present day by a wizard in exchange for saving her true love, Cristobal (Lenard Vanderaa), son of a slave owner.

The series, created by Ana María Parra, is inspired by Isidora Chacón’s 2015 novel, “Yo, Bruja.”

In the first episode, Carmen is being sold at the slave auction. Cristobal, a white man, takes pity on her and pleads for his father to buy her. Although forbidden, Cristobal falls in love with her. When their love is revealed, Cristobal refuses the spreading of the accusation that she bewitched him.

While Cristobal renounces the religion that keeps him and his love apart, his father states that his “son’s destiny will never belong to the devil” before shooting him.

Lying in her cell crying,

Carmen meets a wizard named Aldemar The Immortal (Luis Fernando Hoyos) who resides in a cell next to her. He tells Carmen to repeat a spell, causing her to levitate. Thinking Cristobal is dead, he gives her a proposition to travel into the future and complete a mission for him: find a witch named Ninibe (Veronica Orozco), and I will revive your dead boyfriend and return you to him. Although this means returning back to her life as a slave, Carmen agrees.

Carmen is soon led to a stake where she is to be burned for using natural herbs, curing people miraculously with her powers and, most seriously, for “seducing” the slave owner’s son with her spells and potions. As everyone watches, the priest sentences her to hell and sets the stake on fire. As the flames start to reach her, she starts murmuring to herself the same words that Aldemar told her to repeat, and suddenly she wakes up on the beach in present-day Cartagena, Columbia. This is just the beginning of her long journey.

Now a fish-out-of-water,

there are many new things Carmen has to learn. She has to become acquainted with technology, attend a new university, fit in and hide her powers.

Carmen finds Ninibe, a professor at the University, who warns her of an evil bruja hunter, Lucien, who will burn witches into dust if he finds them. He can sense if a witch is nearby when they use their powers, so Carmen has to keep her powers at bay.

Soon, Ninibe is taken by Lucien, but Carmen is not on her own anymore. She befriends a group of college students who don’t know Carmen’s origins until the end when they help her complete her mission.

Carmen’s character is the perfect example of a black, powerful witch — often misrepresented in pop culture. The narrative between Carmen and Cristobal is one that has been used time and time again, humanizing the oppressor and romanticizing the slave-and-master dynamic. Despite this, Siempre Bruja delivers a brilliant performance filled with twists and betrayal.

Stream it now on Netflix!

PHOTO FROM IMDB.COM

“Always a Witch,” starring actress Angely Gaviria, is now streaming on Netflix.

Sports

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PHOTO BY MCLA ATHLETICS

Freshman right-handed pitcher Micheal Urbaniski was selected for the MASCAC Rookie of the Week. He had a total of 10 strikeouts, four walks and one error while allowing three runs and five hits.

MCLA Falls to Keuka College in Doubleheader

BY JABARI SHAKIR SPORTS CO-EDITOR The MCLA men's baseball team lost in their doubleheader with Keuka College Wolves Friday, March 22, at Lake Myrtle Park in Auburndale, Florida.

The Trailblazers' record drops to 5-9 overall while the Wolves improved to 3-9 overall.

Game One The final score of the first game was 12-11. The game tied at 11 all, forcing the Trailblazers in extra innings.

On the mound pitching for MCLA were senior Bobby New, freshman Tyler Wade, sophomore Edwin Veras, freshman Mike Urbanski and freshman Max Gabrielly.

New began the game, throwing four strikeouts and one walk.

He allowed eight hits and nine runs, including a two-run homer on three innings played.

In the bottom of the first inning, freshman center outfielder Christian Seariac and freshman outfielder Austin Rachiele both hit triples, placing MCLA on the board with a 2-0 lead. Next, junior shortstop Logan Rumbolt hit a single and added another run bringing in Seariac.

In the bottom of the third inning, the score was 5-2 after Keuka College scored a two-run homer by junior shortstop Brooks Vertoske.

Later that inning, designated hitter sophomore Tyler Broderick hit a two-run double and scored on a passed ball.

The Trailblazers answered with a two-run score to tie the game at five-all.

Senior catcher Antonio Archina hit a two-RBI single to bring in Rumbolt and Seariac.

Also, junior pitcher Dillon Maxon hit a ground out

RBI single to third base to bring in freshman utility Matt Pearson.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, the score was 9-5 after the Wolves went on a four-point lead to take over the game.

First, freshman left outfielder Nick Boyle singled and junior Anthony Mashewske scored.

Second, freshman second baseman Anthony Brown hit a two-run triple bringing in Boyle and Broderick.

Finally, third baseman and catcher Dan Bamman hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Brown.

The Trailblazers answered back with four special runs of their own to tie the game at nine-up in the fourth and fifth innings.

Next, Seariac began the run with a single, advancing to second and Rachiele scored on an unearned error by the junior shortstop Vertoske.

Rumbolt then hit a two-run RBI single bringing home Seariac and senior shortstop and second baseman Jeff Bink.

In the fifth inning, Rachiele hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Maxon to tie the game.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Trailblazers took the lead with a two-run single by Maxon, bringing home Archina and freshman pinch hitter for Pearson, Marco DiNichola.

Later, the Wolves answered in the seventh inning tying the game to 11 and forced an extra three innings to take the win.

Overall, the Trailblazers had 47 total at-bats, 15 hits, 10 RBIs, one walk and 10 strikeouts. Seariac finished with six at-bats, three runs, three hits and one RBI. His teammate, Maxon, followed up with five at-bats, one run, four hits and three RBIs. The Wolves had 42 at-bats, 14 hits, 11 RBIs, five walks and 11 strikeouts.

Brown had five total at-bats, three runs, two hits, two RBIs and one walk. His teammate, Broderick finished with two at-bats, two runs, one hit and two RBIs. Game Two In the second game, the final score was 10-5. Junior MCLA pitcher Dillon Maxon led his team with three strikeouts, two walks and five errors, allowing five runs and seven hits in three total innings played.

Two other pitchers for MCLA were Tyler Wade and Ryan Ruef. Wade and Ruef together completed with five allowed runs and five hits.

The Wolves controlled the game and used the momentum from the first game to take a five-point lead at the bottom of the third.

MCLA answered back with two runs of their own to cut the lead down to three.

Freshman catcher Dan Buchanan hit an RBI double bringing home DiNichola.

In the top of the sixth inning, Buchanan doubled and tried to advance to third and was thrown out by senior right fielder Tyler Freedman and Vertoske.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Wolves dominated, scoring four runs to secure the game for the win.

The Trailblazers finished with 31 at-bats, five hits, 11 RBIs, one walk and seven strikeouts.

While the Wolves concluded with 32 at-bats, 12 hits, three walks, nine RBI's and three strikeouts.

Their pitcher, sophomore Daniel Steve, led them with seven strikeouts, one walk and five errors, allowing 11 hits in seven innings total played.

Check out the Trailblazers' first conference away game Friday, March 29, against the Framingham State Rams at 11 a.m. at the New England Baseball Complex in Northboro, Massachusetts.

Keuka College Wolves vs MCLA Trailblazers Game One Keuka MCLA

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Mar. 28, 2019

Sports

Softball Swept by Rhode Island College, Losing Streak Extends to Four

BY BRADY GEROW SPORTS CO - EDITOR The MCLA Trailblazers softball team fell in back-to-back games against Rhode Island College (RIC) by scores of 13-3 and 9-1 Sunday, March 24. Both games were five innings long and with the losses, the Trailblazers continue their second losing streak of the season.

Game One The Blazers got things going quickly in the opener with two outs. Junior Erika Quackenbush recorded a stand-up triple to put a runner in scoring position early for the Blazers.

Needing to capitalize, junior infielder Kaylyn Holliday took advantage after an RIC player had dropped a popped-up foul ball.

On her next pitch, Holliday took RIC’s Briana Gough deep to center field for her first home-run on the season.

Holliday got off to a bit of a late start this season, as last year she hit multiple home-runs in just the team’s trip to Florida.

Holliday’s homer put the Blazers up 2-0 early, but would only be able to hold onto their lead until the second inning.

RIC’s Emma Simmons scored on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the inning and a Britney Walsh single drove in Kelsey Burgess in the second inning, tying the contest at two apiece.

From that point forward, RIC took complete control of the game while the Blazers were only able to record two more hits. RIC exploded over the next two innings, putting up four runs in both the third and fourth innings while keeping the Blazers scoreless over that span.

The Blazers were finally able to score a run in the fifth when a Quackenbush single brought junior Kayla Baker home from first to cut

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SCORE BOARD MCLA Lacrosse

MCLA (10), Sage College (12) Kim Granito (MCLA) 6 Goals

Anne Risler (Sage) 3 Goals

MCLA Baseball

MCLA (5), Keuka College (10)

Dan Buchanan (MCLA) 2-4, 1 Run, 2 RBI’s, 2 2B

Brooks Vertoske (Keuka) 2-3, 2 Runs, 3 RBI’s, BB, 2B, 3B4 Ast, 2 Blk 16 Pts, 7 Reb, 1 Stl

MLB

Chicago Cubs (16), Boston Red Sox (7)

Phillip Evans (CHI) 2-2, 3 RBI’s, 1 Run 10-12. 100 yds, 0 TD

Sam Travis (BOS) 2-2, 1 Run, 5 RBI’s, HR

PHOTO FROM MCLA ATHLETICS

MCLA junior infielder Kaylyn Holliday in an at bat in another game. Holliday had a big game one against RIC, going 1-1 with a two run home-run to open up scoring for the game. Holliday was not in the lineup for game two. After having a good performance in the previous double-header against Albertus Magnus College, going 3-6 with two RBI’s and two doubles, Holliday was awarded MASCAC [Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic conference] Player of the Week in softball. the deficit to seven.

RIC responded quickly as Marissa Cushman belted a three-run shot in the bottom half of the fifth that would end the game giving RIC the 13-3 decision.

Game Two In game two, RIC got to work early as they exploded in the second inning for nine runs on offense to get them out to an early 9-0 lead over the Blazers.

RIC recorded eight hits to score their nine runs, including Emma Simmons’s grand slam in the

PHOTO FROM MCLA ATHLETICS

MCLA junior Erika Quackenbush at bat in a game earlier this year. Quackenbush went 2-6 over the double-header, having scored two runs, recorded an RBI, and hit a triple. Quackenbush has a .364 batting average so far this year, with a respectable .545 slugging percentage in 44 at-bats. She also pitched two innings in game two, giving up two hits and walking three batters.

middle of the inning to put RIC up big yet again.

The Blazers made an attempt to cut the deficit in the third inning, as Quackenbush would record the only run scored for the Blazers off a single to center-field from sophomore Alanza Quinones.

The run in the third inning would prove to be the only runs the Blazers would score the rest of the contest, leading to the eventual final score of 9-1 in another five inning game.

The Blazers made one last run in the fourth when they filled the bases following two walks and a base hit.

However, following the lead runner being forced out at home plate and an infield pop fly, RIC was able to get out of the inning with the score still 9-1.

Baker and junior Kara Adams each had two hits for the Trailblazers.

Quinones would have the team’s only RBI in the loss.

Junior pitcher Morgan Watson took the loss on the mound for the Trailblazers in game two, while fellow junior Kara Adams would take the loss in the first game.

The Trailblazers are now 2-12 on the season, and will look to get back into the winning column today when they travel to Skidmore College to play yet another doubleheader.

RIC, now 7-5 on the season after getting two wins against Roger Williams University, will look to continue their dominance Tuesday, April 2, when they face Eastern Connecticut State at home.

MLB

LA Dodgers (9), LA Angels (2)

Matt Thaiss (Angels) 3-3, 1 Run, 2 2B2 Stl,

Cody Bellinger (Dodgers) 1-3, 1 Run, 3 RBI’s, HR

NBA

Boston Celtics (116), Cleveland Cavaliers (106)

Marcus Smart (BOS) 21 PTS, 6 REB, 4 AST

Collin Sexton (CLE) 24 PTS, 2 REB, 3 AST

NHL

Carolina Hurricanes (1), Washington Capitals (4)

Alex Ovechkin (WASH) Goal, Assist, 5 SOGAst, 2 Stl

Dougie Hamilton (CAR) Goal, 4 SOG 22 Reb, 3 Ast

NHL

Kings (4), Oilers (8) Leon Draisaitl (Oilers) Goal, Assist, 5 SOG, Ast, 2 Stl

Dustin Brown (Kings) Goal, 8 SOG 22 Reb, 3 Ast

Opinion

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Trump’s Executive Order Lose/Lose: The Los on College Free Speech Angeles Angels of Anaheim is Unconstitutional

BY ERWIN CHEMERINSKY AND HOWARD GILLMAN LOSS ANGELES TIMES A key section of President Trump’s latest executive order, issued Thursday, aims to protect free speech on campus. But in reality it does little to further that goal. Meanwhile, the order is so vague and ambiguous, it makes compliance by colleges and universities extremely difficult — and it is almost certainly unconstitutional.

The executive order’s key provision with regard to free speech is just one sentence: “The heads of covered agencies shall, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, take appropriate steps, in a manner consistent with applicable law, including the First Amendment, to ensure that institutions that receive Federal research or education grants promote free inquiry, including through compliance with all applicable Federal laws, regulations, and policies.”

It is tempting to shrug and say that this changes nothing. Colleges and universities receiving federal funds already must comply with all applicable “laws, regulations and policies” and what university doesn’t believe in “free inquiry.”

But what makes the executive order so disturbing is that it doesn’t set clear guidelines for what colleges and universities need to do to comply, leaving them uncertain of how to ensure that their federal funding is not in jeopardy.

Indeed, the examples that President Trump has pointed to of campuses failing to protect free speech make this vaguely worded executive order particularly troubling.

In February 2017, provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos was scheduled to speak on

the UC Berkeley campus.

Extensive security had been arranged at significant cost to the campus. Nevertheless, 150 radical Antifa protesters engaged in violence and vandalism on campus.

Then-Chancellor Nicholas Dirks felt he could not ensure campus safety in light of the ongoing riot. He canceled the scheduled speech and asked that it be rescheduled when even greater security could be provided.

There is no crisis concerning free speech on campuses in the United States. Every day on virtually every campus, speeches are given without incident.

Trump quickly responded with a tweet threatening to cut off federal funds if Berkeley “does not allow free speech.” But the school did not violate free speech by postponing Yiannopoulos’ speech under these extraordinary circumstances. The legal and moral duty to protect free speech coexists with the legal and moral duty to protect students, staff and faculty. Is the purpose of the executive order to withdraw funds from campuses if they ever declare an unlawful assembly and postpone a scheduled event?

Trump’s more recent example, which he mentioned in announcing his executive order, concerned Hayden Williams, a conservative activist who was punched while working a recruitment table on the Berkeley campus. Neither Williams nor his assailant are students, staff or faculty at the school.

As soon as university officials learned of the assault, they condemned it and conducted an investigation that led to the arrest of the suspected assailant. Is the purpose of the executive order to withdraw federal funds from a campus because two outsiders had an argument on campus that led to an assault?

This kind of uncertainty is what makes the order unconstitutional. The Supreme Court long has held that any conditions on federal funds must be clearly and explicitly stated. This executive order obviously does not meet this requirement.

Beyond that, the Trump executive order is unnecessary.

There is no crisis concerning free speech on campuses in the United States. Every day on virtually every campus, speeches are given without incident, including some by very controversial speakers.

Walk across either of our campuses on just about any day of the week, and the cacophony of diverse speakers is readily apparent.

To be sure, there are isolated instances of campus officials making bad decisions concerning expression. All campuses should ensure that the rules governing campus speech are viewpoint neutral, transparent and easy to understand. There is a need for more education about basic free speech principles.

Many difficult issues need to be addressed. At what point does speech that attacks people on the basis of race, nationality, sex, religion and other legally-protected categories become sufficiently “severe or pervasive” to create a discriminatory learning environment under federal law?

When does speech over social media constitute harassment that can be the basis for discipline? How much do campuses need to spend to ensure safety when there are controversial speakers?

Trump’s executive order addresses none of these hard questions. At best it is an act of political grandstanding that imposes no new obligations on campuses. But any effort by federal agencies to threaten campuses with the loss of federal funds would be an unconstitutional abuse of power.

Want to write a guest column?

If interested, contact Jake Vitali at jv1339@mcla.edu or Nicholas Bassett at nb3227@mcla.edu

Recently, the Los Angeles Angels gave outfielder Mike Trout a huge 12-year, $430 million extension. The contract will keep Trout with the team well past his prime and ensure that all of his best days are in an Angels uniform.

As a generational talent, five-tool player and, undisANDREW putedly, the best player in BAILLARGEON baseball, you would think that THE CALL this move was a no-brainer for the Angels. To be fair, it kind of was; Trout is simply the best player in the game. Period.

After Bryce Harper (a noticeably worse version of Trout per every relevant metric) got a huge deal with Philadelphia, the writing was on the wall for Trout to get seriously paid. Whether or not it was going to be with the Angels was initially the only question, which the organization has now firmly answered.

So what are the downsides to the deal? It’s easy to point at the exorbitant sum the Angels are going to be paying Trout, but the team’s revenue has skyrocketed since 2012—the year in which Trout won AL Rookie of the Year.

Combine that with a renewed sense of security—fans no longer have to worry about Trout leaving and causing the team to have to start over, and ticket sales should remain consistent.

It’s also easy to make the same arguments that were made against the Bryce Harper signing; the Angels will only get Trout’s best baseball for roughly half the contract, on average, and will ultimately regret the contract as it reaches its end.

However, here’s a new argument that this contract could be bad news. The Angels recently announced that Trevor Cahill would be the team’s starting pitcher on opening day.

Trevor Cahill has a career ERA of over four, the Angels are his seventh team, and this is his first season with the team. He is coming off of a season where he posted an ERA of over eight with the Kansas City Royals, and couldn’t hold down a starting rotation spot on one of the MLB’s worst teams.

And behind Cahill? You have Matt Harvey, Tyler Skaggs, Andrew Heaney and the 22-year-old Jaime Barria figuring to round out the Angels’ rotation, with perhaps the uninspiring Nick Tropeano waiting in the winds if the team ever opts for a six-man rotation.

In other words, the Angels’ pitching situation is incredibly bleak. The team doesn’t have the financial stability, after giving Trout the new contract, to hand a ton of money to a top-level starting pitcher. With the weak names currently taking up starting rotation slots, barring a miracle, this team will be doomed for another playoff-less season before opening day even arrives.

For as great as Mike Trout truly has been, Trout has never experienced a postseason game before, and the teams he has played for in the past have certainly had better starting rotations than this year.

Of course, the Angels could not simply let Mike Trout go in order to address this problem. Mike Trout is the best player in the MLB, hands-down, and there would have been no conceivable way that the Angels could adequately fill the void of a Trout departure. There’s also something to be said about disappointing your fans and losing out on revenue.

Yet the Angels have never been a playoff team with Mike Trout before, and that doesn’t figure to change without a serious revamping of their pitching core. There is hope within the organization that Jaime Barria will be able to build off of the solid rookie campaign he had last year, but that alone will not be enough.

They will regain the services of the electric Shohei Ohtani on the mound next season, which will help, but the team will need to make a big trade at the deadline for a starting pitching arm if they want this investment in Trout to ever pay off.

It would help for the young Andrew Heaney to actually realize the potential the team has been hyping up for years now, as it would help for Matt Harvey to return to his earlier glory days with the Mets. Neither of those options are reliable, though, and more recent products would suggest that the Angels’ pitching situation is going to be rough this year.

As far as things with Mike Trout go, the Angels were damned that they did, just as they were going to be damned if they didn’t.

Opinion

Mar. 28, 2019

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Editorial

Fool Me Once, Shame on You ...

This past week Attorney General William Barr submitted a summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s findings to Congress, stating that Mueller did not find evidence that President Trump’s campaign conspired with Russia to influence the 2016 election.

However, Mueller’s investigation did not take a position on whether Trump obstructed justice by trying to frustrate the ongoing investigation. Barr quoted that, “While this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”

And that should be the key takeaway there: “[I]t also does not exonerate him.” The Mueller case did not take a clear stance on whether or not Trump obstructed justice during the ongoing investigation, and as a result, Trump was given the benefit of the doubt.

It also by no means washed his hands clean of the other 16 investigations currently looking into Trump’s possible ties with Russia.

It also doesn’t exonerate him from a series of ethically questionable decisions made throughout his presidency, many of which have showcased a considerable disconnect from the plights of not only Americans, but everyday people worldwide.

Keep in mind, this is a man who threw paper towels to victims of the hurricanes in Puerto Rico; referred to members of a white nationalist group as “fine people” after one drove his car into a crowd of protesters; has pulled immigrant children from the arms of their mothers and fathers at the border; and has taken it upon himself to attack the memory of Sen. John McCain, a man who deserves nothing but the utmost respect for his dedication to our country.

While the president, his staff and his base are currently treating this as a win for the Republican party,

the fact of the matter is that this is one less drop in a hypothetical bucket of Trump’s shortcomings. It is a victory, but given all that Trump has stacked up against him, it doesn’t seem like much of one.

Regardless of whether or not you agree with his politics, the U.S. needs to take a look at the United States that President Trump has helped to create. Party divide has never been wider and there is an unwillingness among everyone to extend a hand and find common ground.

International relations have also faced major strain due to actions by the Trump administration. We all remember his preliminary North Korean relations and their “Little Rocket Man” leader and his Twitter attack on Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, who he called “dishonest and weak.”

Then there’s the ongoing project for construction of the wall across the southern border. During elections he directly stated plans to have it built using money from Mexico, the country he was building it against, and just this past month called a national state of emergency to get the funding.

Finding no evidence toward a Trump/Russian conspiracy for the 2016 elections is a move in the right direction, but just one in a large series of steps.

And there are 16 more investigations to go.

There is no denying of the effects that Trump has had, and is currently having, on America’s relations with other countries and our country as a whole. The people of the United States need to decide if these effects are for the betterment of the country; if having a president who makes baby steps toward relations with North Korea is worth the loss of relations with an organization like NATO.

The Dilemma of ‘Leaving Neverland’ Music, like other mediums, is a complex area. Everybody has a soundtrack to their own life with music that means something to them — whether it’s songs that contextualize moments in your own life, make you remember good times, or force you to consider the world around you.

This could be the reason we are seeing people struggle to accept the claims waged by Wade Robson and James Safechuck in the documentary “Leaving Neverland,” in which they accuse pop icon Michael Jackson of sexual abuse when they were children.

Jackson’s music has the ability to bridge generations and still be considered important. “Thriller” is still one of the biggest selling albums of all time and is deeply embedded in the 1980s.

The album featured seven singles that made it to the top 10 of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart; it is the first notable use of music videos for record promotion and is credited with allowing black artists to get airplay on MTV. But if you look at the YouTube comments section for any interview with the film’s director or the accusers, you will find an overwhelming majority of commenters defend Jackson. These comments raise questions and call the families of Robson and Safechuck “gold diggers” who simply want payouts from Jackson’s estate.

Other commenters are quick to point out that Robson and Safechuck previously defended Jackson under oath, and in the case of Robson, very publicly during Jackson’s 2005 trial on sexual molestation. Even Barbra Streisand made comments suggesting that Jackson had needs that needed to be satisfied and said “You can say ‘molested,’ but those children, as you heard say, they were thrilled to be there. They both married and they both have chil-

JAKE VITALI ACCORDING TO ME dren, so it didn’t kill them.”

However, these allegations are not the first that Jackson has faced. In 2005, he was acquitted on charges of molesting a minor, intoxicating a minor to molest him, attempted child molestation, conspiring to hold the boy and his family captive, and conspiring to commit extortion and child abduction.

Though acquitted, legal experts often look back and point to it being a case of Gavin Arvizo’s mother having displayed a combative personality on the witness stand and admitting to lying in a previous lawsuit. Experts also say that the prosecutor viewed this particular case as a makeup for an opportunity to prosecute on similar charges in 1993 when Jordan Chandler accused Jackson of similar abuse.

Throughout all of the allegations when he was alive, Jackson always maintained his innocence, and that position is now maintained by his estate.

This is an important fact to remember, especially as there is no way to try a dead man.

However, it is important to remember that Robson and Safechuck appear to be telling the truth. There are pho-

tographs, memorabilia and mementos to back up these claims, including Safechuck’s alleged wedding ring from a mock wedding ceremony with Jackson. In an interview with Martin Bashir for the documentary “Living with Michael Jackson,” Jackson also admitted to sharing his bed with children he hosted at Neverland Ranch.

It is also important to remember that children do not necessarily understand that what happened was abuse until much later in life, and it can take years to tell the story of what happened for fear of ridicule or backlash. In the case of Robson and Safechuck, both men have received death threats from Jackson fans.

It is OK to continue to love the music and to respect the contributions an artist has made to society. Nobody can take away what a particular song means to you or how a particular artist impacted your life. Nobody is telling you to burn your copies of the music or pretend that it never existed.

However, continuing to purchase their records, attending their concerts, and streaming their songs is a decision to consider more carefully.

Even a stream on Spotify is putting money into the pocket of somebody who likely stands in direct opposition of your morals. By allowing somebody to continue profiting in the wake of these allegations, it sends a signal that it is OK. One should also consider looking at their favorite works from a new perspective. Ask yourself: “What lessons can I learn from this artist? Are there meanings in this work I previously overlooked?” or, quite simply, “How can somebody with all of the talent in the world, commit one of the most heinous crimes on the planet?”

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Mar. 28, 2019

IN OTHER BEACON NEWS

TRAVEL COURSES 2019 Last week, several members of the MCLA student body spent their spring break broadening their horizons and avoiding the cold New England climate in Mexico and South Africa.

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