Misc.09.24.2020

The Miscellany News September 24, 2020

miscellanynews.org

Vassar College’s student newspaper of record since 1866 Volume 154 | Issue 4

‘We’re on the front lines’: Gordon Commons Local employees feed campus amid the pandemic businesses suffer

SEIU Vice President and Assistant Chef Cathy Bradford. Courtesy of Joshua Sherman.

Tiana Headley News Editor

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he first weeks of the pandemic were terrifying for Isatu Rashid. The Gordon Commons Chef Helper and other dining staff returned to work after spring break to feed remain-

Inside this issue

ing on-campus students. Dining staff did their best to social distance, but working in close quarters came with uncertainties. Rashid could not help but wonder: What did her coworkers’ commutes look like?

That collective fear trans-

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Olivia Watson

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News Editor

pproximately 2,100 Vassar students arrived at a newly formed campus “bubble” this past August. Due to the stipulation that students cannot leave campus for the duration of the semester, local businesses along College Avenue realized that after an already difficult summer, their fall revenue would be similarly dismal.

“Without Vassar students, the streets are empty,” said Arlington Business Director Robert Legacy.

For some businesses, particularly those that offer products that cannot be delivered, this has proven to be deeply threatening to the vitality of their finances. According to Legacy, multiple local businesses were not able to survive the losses from the pandemic and had to close, including Nails Plus and Julie’s Restaurant & Catering.

Many of the businesses that have been able to stay open have See Businesses on page 3

Upcoming presidential election spurs DM into action Tori Lubin

Ever wonder what was happening om FEATURES campus during spring quarantine? Four House Fellows share tales and community gardening pursuits.

formed her tight-knit work culture into one of isolation. “We used to sit down to have lunch together, but we didn’t do that when we came back. Everybody was in their little corner,” she said. Exchanging her daily hugs and handshakes with students

for curt delivery of packaged food was most painful. Thankfully, the fall semester has reunited students and dining staff such as Rashid. But this reunion has been a double-edged sword.

Much has changed in Gordon Commons. This has included compulsory mask wearing, exclusively takeout dining and signs to enforce social distancing. What has not changed is the natural ebb and flow of foot traffic in a day. Of the 2,466 students enrolled this semester, a total of 2,105 are on campus.

The usual dinner rush still runs between 6 and 7 p.m. Long lines sometimes span the building.

In these ways, dining staff have arguably the most human contact out of all campus workers in the work week. “We’re on the front lines. Yes we’re wearing masks and we’ve got the barriers [at the stations], but we’re still on the frontlines,” said Assistant Chef and local Service Employees International Union (SEIU) chapter Vice President See Gordon on page 4

Guest Reporter

ed, white and blue stickers and voting forms decorate the Democracy Matters registration table perched outside the Vassar College center on Sept. 22: National Voter Registration Day. “Are you registered to vote?” various Democracy Matters members call out to the students shuffling and skateboard-

ing by.

Democracy Matters (DM), established at Vassar in 2001, is a nonpartisan organization that operates at the College as part of a nationwide effort for voting accessibility. In the past, DM has worked to secure fair elections and voter rights as well as to eliminate big money from politics.

While DM activities are heavily tied with Washington

D.C. and lobbying at a national level, the Vassar chapter focuses on ensuring that all eligible Vassar voters have the information they need to vote in all local and national elections.

Cassie Cauwels ’22 and Sara Lawler are the current co-presidents of DM. Cauwels articulated what drew her to their work.

“With the way the current political landscape was looking even back in 2018, I wanted to be

more hands-on with activism and I saw that Democracy Matters was working on that here on campus,” she explained.

Lawler illustrated what makes their org unique from comparable ones at other schools.

“I think because we are such a small campus, we definitely have more influence on a student body than we would if we See Voting on page 9

Senior turns Tarot readings into BLM funds Merrick Rubinstein Guest Reporter

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When the West Coast is up in flames, climate change OPINIONS is no longer a partisan problem, argues guest columnist.

16 SPORTS

Cyclists, essayists and Rosh Hashanah give rise to reflection in the Sports Section.

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his year has been one for the history books, and college students are not excluded from its hardships. With families struggling in the economic downturn, many students have been forced to support their own educations in an unforgiving job market. Many internships, which are typically in-person, were canceled. And with the nationwide of the Black Lives Matter movement, many young college progressives have been torn between joining the fight for justice and keeping their vulnerable family members safe from COVID-19.

But it is often in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges that the most creative ideas emerge. And that is exactly how Vassar student Sabrina Surgil ’21 rose to the occasion. Surgil See Tarot on page 8

. Courtesy of Sabrina Surgil.

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September 24, 2020

COVID19 AT VASSAR 6,703

Total Tests Administered

THE MISCELLANY NEWS SEPTEMBER 24TH DATA VIA VASSAR TOGETHER

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF MANAGING EDITOR SENIOR EDITORS

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Total Student Cases to Date

Aena Khan Ted Chmyz Taylor Stewart Abby Tarwater Duncan Aronson Jessica Moss Holly Schulman

Tiana Headley Olivia Watson Lucille Brewster ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR Janet Song FEATURES EDITOR Gillian Redstone ASSISTANT FEATURES EDITOR Jonas Trostle OPINIONS EDITOR Meghan Hayfield ARTS EDITOR Isabella Migani HUMOR EDITOR Madi Donat ASSISTANT HUMOR EDITOR Alex Eisert SPORTS EDITORS Dean Kopitsky Natalie Bober SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Alison Carranza ASSISTANT SOCIAL MEDIA Sherry Liao ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITORS Grace Rousell Jacqueline Gill COPY EDITORS Phoebe Jacoby Caitlin Patterson Julián Aguilar GRAPHICS EDITORS Juliette Pope Alexis Cerritos VIDEO PRODUCTION MANAGER Alex Barnard AUDIO EDITOR Ben Scharf LIVE EVENTS CHAIRPERSON Emma Tanner BUSINESS MANAGER NEWS EDITORS

02

Total Employee Cases to Date

0

Total Active Cases

REPORTERS

COLUMNISTS

COPY STAFF

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Lucy Leonard

For daily updates on Vassar's testing and cases, visit https://www.vassar.ed u/together/dashboard

CROSSWORD

Delila Ames Alysa Chen Carissa Clough Olivia Diallo Rayan El Amine Sara Lawler Leila Raines Francisco Andrade Sawyer Bush Madison Caress Doug Cobb Rohan Dutta Helen Johnson Xin Rui Ong Nina Ajemian Taylor Gee Jason Han Jake Johnson Emma Kahn Tiffany Trumble Frank

CORRECTION POLICY The Miscellany News will only accept corrections for any misquotes, misrepresentations or factual errors for an article within the semester it is printed.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. Staff editorials are the only articles that reflect the opinion of a two-thirds majority of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

September 24, 2020

NEWS

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College Avenue businesses cope with closings, campus 'bubble' Continued from Businesses on page 1 had to slash their hours significantly.

“We have changed the hours and we cut them relatively and significantly at first, but as the world becomes more and more normal we are increasing the hours again,” said Crafted Kup owner Tanner Townsend.

For Dollar Yard, a discount variety store on College Avenue, the loss of revenue from students has owner Rajesh Sehgal wondering how much longer the business can survive.

“We are basically struggling. We don’t have enough fare to come up with the rent, so we are behind on rent,” said Sehgal.

Sehgal estimates that 65 percent of Dollar Yard customers are Vassar students. He said that with this majority vanished, and the remaining 35 percent struggling from the pandemic, Dollar Yard has retained 25 percent of its usual consumer base. “We typically do quite a lot of business during backto-school, so these three months in which we generate revenue help us all year. In February and March we were struggling, and we were opening and hoping things would get back to normal, but then we realized that campus has a different policy. It’s been adding up. I don’t know how long we can break [even] like this.”

Sehgal said that he tried to apply for government loans, but by the time he had collected all of the necessary forms and information, food chains such as McDonald’s claiming to be small businesses had taken all of the money. “I got all the information and the forms, and when I approached different banks they had all run out of money. I could

not get any assistance from the government,” said Sehgal. Legacy explained that this was a nationwide problem: the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a $349 billion stimulus plan from the Federal government, quickly ran out of funds after several large chains claimed the money. Some chains like Shake Shack and Ruth’s Steak House later gave the money back.

As Vassar owns many of the buildings on College Avenue, the College has tried to find ways to reduce the amount of rent businesses owe.

“When all businesses were forced to close in March, we allowed all our tenants who had to close to stop paying rent. When businesses started reopening, we worked with each tenant on a plan that worked for them which included a combination of forgiving rent and deferring rent payments into the future.

During this whole time we've suspended late payment fees because we knew the businesses needed time to recover,” said Vice President for Communications Amanita Duga-Carroll.

Local restaurants have adjusted to the current circumstances by finding ways to serve students from a distance. Many offer delivery services through apps such as DoorDash and Uber Eats, and several come to campus up to three times a week to sell their food in outdoor booths to students.

Twisted Soul, a local restaurant offering a variety of foods from boba to empanadas, estimates that 75 percent of its customers were Vassar students. “Our whole operation is built around the school, the students and the fac-

ulty,” said owner and Head Chef Ira Lee. Lee mentioned that business was difficult when the students were not on campus, but now that they are back they are able to make some income from deliveries and coming on to campus twice a week.

When asked if deliveries and selling on campus is equivalent to the amount of business they usually get from students, Lee responded, “It’s not the same, not even close.

Students used to frequent our place all the time.” He continued, “But [on-campus sales and deliveries] are gonna help us try to sustain, which I’m not complaining about. It is what it is.”

Beyond coming to campus for food sales, some businesses have found that the local community has frequented their stores enough to offset the absence of Vassar students.

Manager of My Market II Minoo Amirhosseini shared that more community members started coming to the store to avoid having to go to large supermarkets. However, their business has been much slower without Vassar students, who, according to Amirhosseini, account for 50 percent of their consumers.

Initially, My Market II was able to bring items to students quarantined at Vassar; sometimes parents even called and requested for supplies to be delivered to students, but they cannot deliver any more due to limited employees currently working.

“Unfortunately we don't have enough people working here: Only two in the morning and two in the afternoon. We talked about

the possibility of [doing deliveries] with the owner and other ones here but looks like it may be really difficult and impossible for us to do that. One thing is getting the orders, and the delivery issue that one person has to leave the store, and there is nobody to cover for him” she explained.

As a potential solution, Amirhosseini proposed a plan in which someone from Vassar could collect supplies from the store and deliver them to campus. Such an arrangement would require approval from the College.

Legacy explained that beyond food and drug stores, nearly all local businesses are suffering from the lack of Vassar students.

He mentioned that the Post Office has lost business, as have local beauty salons, laundromats and the local transportation companies, since no Vassar students now ride the buses. Another factor is that visiting parents no longer come to Vassar, a demographic which usually brought in revenue for businesses on the weekends. Prospective students visiting campus for admissions reasons are another lost source of income.

Legacy shared that in order for these businesses to recover financially, it will take lifting the 50 percent occupancy maximum for restaurants and allowing Vassar students to leave campus. Seghal reiterated that point and was hopeful that students might soon be able to visit businesses on College Avenue next semester. “We’re just hoping that Vassar will give some flexibility to the students so that they can come out on certain days and shop at certain stores,” said Seghal.

Vassar EMS temporarily sidelined due to pandemic Lucille Brewster

Assistant News Editor

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erving as the Vassar College Emergency Medical Services (VCEMS) Co-Captain is not a responsibility Ellie Janitz ’21 takes lightly. She has put hundreds of hours into VCEMS, and amid a global health emergency, medical community care feels more imperative than ever. But as students returned to campus with the COVID-19 pandemic still raging, VCEMS leadership, Health Services and the Vassar administration made the difficult decision to postpone being on call.

“I'll be honest, it's disappointing,” said Janitz. “As a senior, I've seen some of the impact our organization has had on this campus community the last three years and I really think we provide an invaluable service.”

A long-running volunteer student-run organization, VCEMS provides crucial medical treatment for Vassar students.

However, VCEMS’ peer-to-peer treatment is the very reason it poses a high risk for spreading COVID-19. Still, despite having to postpone their services, VCEMS will still operate this semester. Students that are part of EMS are looking forward to being back in action, hopefully in the next few weeks should COVID-19 cases remain at a manageable level.

Pre-pandemic, VCEMS was on call in the event of an on-campus emergency when Health Services at Baldwin were closed.

VCEMS does not provide transport to the hospital, but will call an ambulance if needed. This semester, due to the possibility of COVID-19 transmissions, having a student organization traveling all over campus to respond to medical emergencies posed a health risk to the community. “It's a double-edged sword,” she commented. “VCEMS is really amazing in that it's peer-provided medical care, but that also means we're liv-

ing with you all and potentially spreading anything we come into contact with.”

The decision to suspend services was not taken lightly by students involved with the organization. “We really love being on call and miss it,” said Assistant Captain Kaiya Bhatia ’22. “We want to be there to help out, especially during this stressful time.”

Janitz concurred: “You can ask anyone on VCEMS—we all love being on-call and being able to provide medical care to the Vassar community. The biggest concern of mine is that we’re ‘disappearing’ in such a difficult time.”

Since VCEMS is an organization that relies on training and an orientation period, this delay prevents first-year students from starting their VCEMS careers. Many students on VCEMS use their time on call as clinical experience for graduate and medical schools.

With fewer on-campus emergency resources available, some students are concerned about the Poughkeepsie Police Department having a stronger presence on campus. Students have made posts in the “Vassar: the Virtual Version” Facebook group about seeing police cars driving through campus or parked in front of dorms or academic buildings.

Janitz and Bhatia specified that the police can be notified if EMS is responding to a drug/alcohol or psychological emergency. Usually when EMS responds to one of these calls, they stay within the college’s own alert system. Unless EMS has to call for transport to a hospital, which is handled by the Arlington Fire Department and Mobile Life, the police would not be notified. According to Janitz and Bhatia, now that every emergency call is going to the Arlington Fire Department and Mobile Life, the Police Department could be the ones to respond.

VCEMS members say it is rare for the police to show up on campus, even when they

are notified. “I've only ever seen them show up for calls involving hard drugs or mental health emergencies,” commented Janitz.

“We've heard these [concerns about police presence] from students and we completely agree. We realize that police presence presents both physical and emotional danger to many in the Vassar community.”

Dean of the College Carlos Alamo-Pastrana emphasized in an emailed statement that there has not been an increase in police presence on campus. “Police have been called to campus twice in recent weeks, once by a parent, and once because of a situation in which there was concern for the safety of a student. In both cases, the Administration also enlisted alternative sources of support, such as counselors, the [Dutchess County] mobile crisis intervention team, and several administrators.” Alamo-Pastrana added that VCEMS’s suspension was unrelated to recent incidents in which police were called to campus. “[I]t is incorrect to draw any correlation there.”

With proper PPE—including N-95 masks, gowns, shoe covers, and face shields that will be provided for students through Health Services—VCEMS students should

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

be back on call in the upcoming weeks.

“This will hopefully, if all goes well, be done before the end of the month,” explained Bhatia. The campus has moved into Phase Two after 14 days of no active COVID-19 cases, and the loosened restrictions for student gatherings are catalyzing the process of getting VCEMS up and running.

Although VCEMS has not been on call, its members are anything but idle. VCEMS members have been working with Health Services on the campus’ contact tracing program and checking in on quarantined students over the phone. Additionally, the EMS social media pages have been sharing public health information.

EMS hopes to eventually hold small in-person training sessions for students to learn basic first aid skills, such as wrapping a sprained ankle and taking care of a drunk friend. The organization also has a response form posted on their social media pages informing students about other ways they can help the campus community.

“While we can't be in service, we want to provide you all with the tools you need to stay healthy and support each other,” said Janitz.

Courtesy of Vassar College EMS..

NEWS

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September 24, 2020

On isolated campus, Deece workers continue to serve Continued from Gordon on page 1 Cathy Bradford.

The early weeks of Vassar’s phased move-in plan were frightening for Kitchen Worker Dhurata Sulollari. The rush of packaging food for long lines of hungry but patient students has helped her overcome that fear: “It is scary, but sometimes when it gets busy, you forget because you have to keep going and keep working.”

Mask-wearing protocols have also made working in a bustling, high-heat kitchen difficult. “It’s very, very hot in the kitchen. Sometimes you have to go outside, remove your mask and take some fresh air,” said Rashid.

The end of the workday is always a time to rest, but the threat of the virus has also changed dining staff’s home lives. Sullolari’s youngest son used to run to kiss her when she came home. “I had to stop him because it's scary, you know, I have to change out of my work clothes and take a shower. Now he’s learned that things have had to change,” she said.

Operation Assistant Andrea Hall has not been able to visit her mother who lives in Brooklyn since Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered strict lockdowns. “We just communicated on the phone and through FaceTime. When things started to die down [my sister and I] did go there separately,” she said. Their visits are quick. They drop off supplies, ask how their mother is doing and rush out without a touch.

Rashid and her husband have physically distanced themselves from each other and their loved ones. “We don't get that close interaction like we used to,” she said. “We don't allow any visitors at home and we don’t visit anyone. [But] I have to go to work because that is where I'm getting my daily bread.”

Some workers believe things could be worse. The College’s testing and isolation plans, which have resulted in zero on-campus cases, and students and staff following safety protocols have brought a greater sense of security among the staff.

Hall contrasts this with what she’s heard about other schools.

“Compared to what you hear on the news, I think we as a school are working as a team. Students and staff are working

together,” she said.

Vassar had anticipated entering Phase Three of the reopening plan on Sept. 26.

This would have entailed resuming indoor dining in Gordon Commons and at the Retreat. Vice President for Communications Amanita Duga-Carroll said that the College has postponed those plans.

“The senior team has evaluated the conditions and while the campus is doing well, we do not yet feel conditions are right to begin Phase Three,” she said. “The initial dates noted for the phases were estimates, and we believe that a measured approach to changes in protocols is best.”

When the time comes, students can reserve a seat and time slot to eat in Gordon Commons using the Waitwhile app.

These time slots will include collecting food and eating at seats distanced six feet.

Students will not be able to move seats out of this distance. They will also be asked to clear and sanitize their dining area before leaving. Those without reservations can only enter to pick up their food and exit.

Associate Dean of the College for Campus Activities Teresa Quinn said that each hour can accommodate 254 people, but that number will be reduced to 230 so that workers can go on break. Seating times, zones and capacities for every hour are as follows:

Above, Isatu Rashid. Grace Rousell/The Miscellany News.

Above, Dhurata Sulollari.

Grace Rousell/The Miscellany News.

Above, Andrea Hall. Grace Rousell/The Miscellany News.

Top of the hour: Third floor (22 seats), second floor (64 seats) 15 min past the hour: Zone A in main café (64 people) 30 min past the hour: Zone B in main café (100 people) Every person in a zone will be asked to leave so that workers can sanitize before the next group arrives.

Limited seating will also return to the College Center South Atrium area. Each table will only have one seat, with each distanced six feet from each other. Students will not be able to move these seats and will have to clear and sanitize their area before they leave. There will not be seating in the North Atrium.

While workers commend the College for its COVID-19 testing and response system, any indoor dining in Gordon Commons has its risks. “I know some of the students are taking precautions, but I know that some of them are not social distancing,” said Rashid. “I don’t know where they’ve been. It’s hard to control the freedom of a person.”

Bradford noted that staff are not always behind the food stations’ clear barriers.

“It’s not like there’s a flat glass covering

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

over our heads. [And] we still gotta go out in the open and around the students to get things. Now that they’re opening [indoor seating] back up, how safe is that gonna be?” she wondered.

If all goes well for Vassar, the campus community will make it to Nov. 20 and complete the rest of the semester online.

Bradford shared that SEIU-represented employees returned to work in the fall without being told the state of their jobs for the semester’s digital home stretch.

The union’s main office sent the College a letter Friday detailing these frustrations and demanding transparency regarding these plans.

Students have also taken to championing their cause through the Student-Labor Dialogue. Student members Mae Boda and Parvaneh Jefferson shared that the group’s focus will be multi-fold this semester. They are demanding transparency from administration and greater worker involvement in decision-making processes regarding Bon Appétit contract renegotiations and post-November compensation. They will also collect union grievances, with the goal of ending outsourcing, and support Cathy Bradford in her transition to president of the SEIU chapter.

Regarding work after Nov. 20, Duga-Carroll shared in an emailed statement that some students would remain on campus. This would require some employees to continue working through the remaining semester.

“These include some international students, students for whom it is unsafe to return to their homes as well as students for whom Vassar is their home address,” she said. “Given the very limited number of students that will remain on campus, this will require some additional services and staff through the end of the semester.” The College does not have plans for additional furloughs at this time.

Whether they are braving campus for their jobs or working alongside students, Bradford said that workers’ passions lie with students: “We love the students.

That’s number one, and that’s always been a number one for us.”

September 24, 2020

NEWS

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From Vassar to NYS politics: an interview with Karen Smythe '82 Alex Wilson

Guest Reporter

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n many regards, Karen Smythe ’82 was the quintessential Vassar student. She fondly recounts her time serving as the soccer team’s five-foot-three goalie, singing with the Night Owls and practicing squash—the whole time maintaining a delicate balancing act of running back and forth between the soccer field, Skinner Hall and the squash courts in Kenyon at all hours of the day.

A few decades later, Smythe is vying to represent the district of her alma mater in the New York state Senate. Last week, The Miscellany News spoke with Smythe on a variety of topics, from racial justice reform, to running a small business, to empowering young people to vote.

To be clear, Smythe is no career politician.

After college, she worked as a marketing executive before returning to Poughkeepsie to run her family’s union construction business, C.B. Strain & Son, for 16 years (which, coincidentally, installed the HVAC for Vassar’s Bridge for Laboratory Sciences).

Her attention didn’t shift to politics until after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2014 decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, which affirmed for-profit companies’ right to deny their employees health coverage for contraception in the case of religious objection. For Smythe, it was a shock to come to terms with the fact that women’s access to contraception is still up for debate. “I thought this is crazy... that was the realization for me that I was taking for granted the fact that we were moving forward,” she explains. In 2016, as the country listened to Donald Trump repeatedly making controversial comments about women across the airwaves, she reached her breaking point: “I need to now stop yelling at my TV, yelling at my radio, and I need to channel that energy into something productive.”

The next year, she was approached by a leader of the Dutchess County Democratic Committee at an event for Planned Parenthood and, suddenly, the foundation of her first senate bid began to fall into place. Smythe readily admitted, “I’d never knocked on a door before, I’d never made a voter call, I’d never made a campaign fundraising call before—it was all new.” Nonetheless, that first campaign was full of successes—one of the most gratifying was seeing her first two union endorsements come from the two largest unions she worked with at C.B. Strain & Son. She credits these endorsements to her insistence on seeing her union employees as partners, not adversaries.

Smythe ultimately came just 0.6 percent—688 votes—away from toppling GOP Senator Sue Serino. Two years later, Smythe, unfazed by her narrow loss and more confident than ever, is challenging Serino to a rematch.

Smythe’s priorities—health care reform, preventing the climate crisis, eliminating systemic racism in education—haven’t changed much from the last time around, but in the midst of a pandemic, with the scourges of ecological destruction and racism simultaneously reaching an inflection point, her campaign has a newfound urgency.

COVID-19 has highlighted the failures of the U.S. healthcare system, a problem Smythe is passionate about mitigating. “Health care is something that we need to address...maybe we don’t have the right financial model for our health care system, because when we need it most, it’s actually hurting,” she said.

She noted the rise in hospital layoffs resulting from the financial hardships before the pandemic before explaining the challenges that come with tying healthcare to employment, such as managing gaps in coverage during

lapses of employment. In her experience as a small business owner, working to maintain quality health insurance for employees while insurance costs rise by double digits each year has been extremely difficult to manage.

Smythe emphasized the necessity of reproductive rights within the healthcare system, the very issue that inspired her to enter the political arena in the first place. After Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away on Friday evening, Smythe’s campaign released a statement saying that Smythe will “commit to carrying on her fight.” In the statement, Smythe insisted that Serino “is not a woman who supports women,” and lambasted Serino’s vote against the Reproductive Health Act. Smythe’s campaign has been endorsed

by Planned Parenthood, EMILY’s List and the National Institute of Reproductive Health.

Speaking about the impetus for sweeping racial justice reform, Smythe mentioned the fatal shooting of Dutchess Community College student Maurice Gordon by a New Jersey State Trooper on May 23, 2020. The dash cam audio from that day points to Gordon experiencing a mental health crisis over the several times he was stopped by police before he was shot in his last traffic stop. Smythe explained, “In the state of New York, we have been pulling away funding in support of mental health services, and that is absolutely the wrong direction. We use our criminal justice system to manage mental health issues, which is absolutely the wrong place to put it.” Regarding the racialized disparity between drug use and drug-related convictions, Smythe insisted that community safety programs, not fully armed police officers on the doorstep, are the right answer in many situations. She identified Poughkeepsie’s recent hiring of a mental health professional to accompany police officers on calls as a step in the right direction.

Policing isn’t the only racial justice issue that Smythe hopes to tackle: she hopes to dismantle inequality in education and housing. She also identified a wealth gap among Poughkeepsie residents, the effects of which have only been exacerbated since the pandemic. “The way we fund our public schools is fundamentally inequitable. Again, the City of Poughkeepsie schools have a very significant poverty rate…and yet they don’t get the funding that really covers those issues,” she explained. “Right now, the situation that we’re in with all this online learning, there’s going to be a disproportionate negative effect on low-income families, and certainly families of color.”

According to Smythe, the capital required to start a business is distributed just as disproportionately. Her solution? Create a targeted community fund that gives Poughkeepsie’s middle-to-low income community—predominately people of color—the capital and tools to start their own businesses.

Building pathways to home ownership and expanding affordable housing are just as important to Smythe. “If you keep a certain group of people away from being able to own desirable property, you’ve also kept them from being able to accumulate wealth,” she explained. She elaborated on how the eventual lifting of eviction restrictions will pose a serious problem for renters in the district.

Smythe does recognize that some reforms will come easier than others. She discussed an incident in July when a Black Lives Matter rally in Pleasant Valley erupted in violence upon the arrival of Support the Blue counter protesters. Having marched with the Black Lives Matter group that day, Smythe recalls how their organizer did everything right, and how deeply troubling it was to look into the faces of those spouting intense anger and hate.

Smythe blames this hatred on leadership that

Above, Karen Smythe. Courtesy of Karen Smythe 4 NY State Senate.. seeks to divide instead of bring people together: “It really broke my heart, because that’s not who we are…and yet, I was also very happy to be there, because, if I’m going to be there for the Black Lives movement, I need to be there when it’s ugly, not only when it’s easy.”

When asked what else she hopes to tackle in the state Senate, Smythe quickly turned to the need to champion legislation that will aggressively attack the climate crisis—which, she insisted, can no longer be ignored. She plans to ensure that the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act is followed through to completion. Passed in 2019, the act sets binding goals for the state on reducing carbon emissions and moving towards 100 percent clean energy—an 85 percent emissions reduction is required by 2050. Just as importantly, the bill ensures that at least 35-40 percent of spending on climate infrastructure is directed towards disadvantaged communities that have been the most harmed by the fossil fuel industry. The sitting senator, Sue Serino, voted against the legislation. “If she isn’t even willing to agree to the goals, she certainly isn’t going to support the steps we need to take to achieve those goals,” Smythe asserted.

Also on the docket: broadband, the most used and high-quality form of internet access. “[Broadband is] clearly something that is no longer a luxury,” Smythe pointed out, “There are plenty of people who don’t have access, and then there’s areas where you have access but you can’t afford it.” In such a geographically diverse state, strengthening broadband accessibility does not come easy. She explained that in cities like Poughkeepsie, municipal broadband would be an option, yet she would have to pursue other possibilities for more rural areas.

Of course, there’s one new obstacle to running on a progressive platform this time around: When Smythe ran in 2018, the GOP held control of the Senate. Today, that’s no longer the case, and conservative criticisms of Democratic leadership have become a popular GOP campaign strategy. Just last month, Senator Serino made a pointed jab at Democrats in a virtual press conference, saying that Democrats left citizens adrift and afraid by refusing to provide even a timeline

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

of reopening the economy. In response to Serino’s criticisms, Smythe acknowledged that the state’s response to COVID-19 was flawed.

Because the situation in New York State escalated so quickly, she said that learning how to manage the pandemic fast enough to keep the infection rate under control was difficult.

She continued, “It’s all well and good to say ‘All Democrats are terrible,’ however, she’s the elected official, so it’s her job to engage with her fellow senators to come up with solutions that actually work,” Smythe said.

She made sure to credit this Democratic majority for the major voting reforms passed since 2019—none of which came to the floor for a vote until Democrats took control of the state chamber. Earlier this year, New York voters discovered that COVID-19 was not acceptable grounds on which to apply for an absentee ballot, but legislation subsequently passed making fear of illness, including COVID-19, proper justification—a bill that Serino opposed, along with a bill establishing a nine-day early voting period.

Smythe implores the Vassar community to take advantage of these voting reforms.

Her advice for young voters? “The reason why young people are not as listened to by politicians is because, as a block, you don’t vote enough. Seniors all vote, and you can count on their vote. Young, college-aged people, if you look at the percentage of that age group that votes, it’s quite low. Which means that you can, as a politician, ignore [young voters], because if you don’t vote, it’s someone else who’s going to get you elected,” she said.

“You have power in your vote. Don’t give up your power to someone else. Use it.”

Students can change their registration to Dutchess County until Oct. 9 and request an absentee ballot electronically until Oct. 27 (although the application deadline is seven days prior to the election, the Post Office has stated that they cannot guarantee timely ballot delivery for applications submitted less than 15 days before the election—Oct. 20).

With less than 50 days until the election, Smythe feels confident. This year, her campaign seems to have hit its stride—after all, 2018 was just unfinished business. “This is the year that I’m going to win,” she declared.

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September 24, 2020

Supreme, Yamamoto languish in streetwear comfort zone Massimo Tarridas

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Guest Columnist

few weeks ago, a rumor emerged that Yohji Yamamoto and Supreme were working on a collaboration, which was largely met with incredulity. In terms of audience and style, Yamamoto and Supreme could not be further apart. One is considered a legendary master tailor, the other a classic skate brand that in recent years has appealed primarily to people looking to conspicuously consume. The former is dark and experimental; the latter mostly sticks to standard silhouettes and patterns.

Yohji Yamamoto is one of the two most important designers of the 20th century—the other being Rei Kawakubo—and has been working since the early ’70s on his brand of avant-garde fashion, a genre that he practically invented along with Kawakubo. Primarily black, oversized and irrespective of trend, his first Paris shows in the early ’80s were explosive because they were the exact opposite of what was popular at the time: Gianni Versace, a brand known for crudely gilded appliqués, imitation Greco-Roman art and screaming color prints. Since then, nearly all of Yamamoto’s collections have been ongoing explorations of that original design language.

In 1994, James Jebbia started the streetwear brand Supreme to service New York City skaters with basic clothing, accessories and skateboards and it likely needs less of an introduction than Yamamoto does.

The gap between them is evident in the awkward final product, which has lots of Supreme and very little Yamamoto. Both of their logos are plastered onto T-shirts, beanies, parkas, leather jackets, with some

supplementary art by past Supreme collaborators: Sancheeto and Peter Saville (Saville designed print catalogues with Yamamoto in the ’80s and ’90s but is so entrenched in the

(plural, as he has a whole universe of diffusion lines) have a long history of collaborating with what could be perceived as low-brow culture: New Era, One Piece, Neon Genesis

world of music that it’s difficult to see him in any other context). It’s bizarre to see the world of gritty skateboarding and graffiti art combine with Yamamoto’s artisanal signature. The most Yamamoto this capsule ever gets is in its slight sartorial angle with a suit jacket and drawstring suit pants, as well as a button up shirt in black and white. One of Saville’s images is printed squarely across the back of these, with two tiny logos reminding us who came together to produce it.

From a design perspective, it’s all pretty boring—and it didn’t have to be. Although people gawked at the idea of Yamamoto “stooping” to the level of Supreme, his brands

Evangelion, even the estate of Marilyn Monroe… And the results with these were often striking, or at least connected both aesthetics in a way that felt authentic and thought-out.

Usually, these collections printed artwork from whichever intellectual property onto typical Yamamoto silhouettes, but of course, because the garments themselves were Yamamoto’s own, they were intrinsically elegant and creatively paralleled the identity of the lower-brow brand. And then there’s the Y-3 label, a partnership with Adidas whose debut of Y-3 in 2003 was one of the most groundbreaking moments in the marriage of high and low. Since then, almost any high-profile

Via Modern Notoriety.

collaboration between fast fashion and haute couture owes something to Y-3 for having created a previously unimaginable bridge.

But with Supreme, it seems Yamamoto allowed his signature to be printed alongside whatever graphic Supreme wanted. There’s no real reason to be surprised by this, but the compromise is disappointing considering how many interviews Yamamoto has done where he pronounces himself to be in constant movement against the grain. He has always rightfully declared himself an outsider, a pirate, and has always been one.

And if we compare Supreme’s collaboration with the aforementioned Kawakubo—to be clear, a collaboration by proxy, as it was with one of her diffusion lines called Comme des Garçons SHIRT—it’s very clear that Yamamoto probably had no real input. Past CDGSHIRT/Supreme collections flipped the red and white logo backwards, placed polka dots atop camouflage prints, made t-shirts with plain front panels and wacky back panels and split the very structure of the T-shirt down the middle and across the back…In short, even though these were still fundamentally basic garments, there was a definite playfulness.

This is not to say that Yamamoto necessarily had to play with Supreme’s trademarks, but one would have hoped that his vision would interfere more with the brand’s comfort zone. When Louis Vuitton and Supreme came together in 2017 to copy and paste one logo on top of another ad infinitum, at least it was consistent with each brand’s past offerings. This effort between Yamamoto and Supreme is not quite as brain dead as LV’s, but it’s just as stale.

For Swift, isolation yields storied lyrics, musical maturation Leila Raines Reporter

Q

uarantine twisted these past six months into an endless void. As days blurred into weeks and spring stretched into summer, I spent hours reading, drawing, painting and listening to music to find ways to liven my boredom and forget about my loneliness. Taylor Swift provided one of my most treasured doorways to escapism with the release of her latest album, “folklore.”

In late July, Swift surprised the world with the announcement of her eighth studio album, a collection of 16 songs she wrote during the pandemic. As the world started to freeze and endless performances and music tours were canceled (including Swift’s own tour for her previous album “Lover”), Swift took these months of isolation and filled them with sentimental musings. And by sharing her new assemblage of music, she helps to mend the gap between musicians and listeners that has formed during this time of social isolation,

all while expressing her musings and reflections through her new songs.

“In isolation, my imagination has run wild and this album is the result, a collection of songs and stories that flowed like a stream of consciousness. Picking up a pen was my way of escaping into fantasy, history, and memory,” Swift captioned one of the numerous greyscale photos she posted on Instagram in promotion of her new album.

Though it was released only a year after “Lover,” “folklore” strays from the typical pop of her recent albums. Swift’s newest songs adopt a soothing, softer tone, featuring hypnotizing blends of piano and acoustic guitar, a contrast to some of her other hits. While I would often jump around my room blasting “Cruel Summer” or “Dancing With Our Hands Tied,” I now find myself swaying contemplatively to “invisible string” and “illicit fairs.” Each song shapes an enchanting individual story of love and heartbreak, but the album as a whole depicts the next chapter in Swift’s journey as a maturing artist. As each album deviates from the one before it, she continues to craft music with her trademark resonant lyrics while demonstrating her fluidity as a musician.

While showing off Swift’s musical talent and range, “folklore” also exhibits her power as a storyteller. The album features a rich cast of characters, with each song focusing on a different narrative. “It started with imagery…Pretty soon these images in my head grew faces or names and became characters,” Swift said in the introductory note she posted on her Twitter account when announcing her album. She goes on to list various examples of the perspectives she incorporated into her songs.

“An exiled man walking the bluffs of a land that isn’t his own, wondering how it all went so terribly, terribly wrong,” Swift lists, alluding to her collaboration with Bon Iver in “exile.” The duet tells the story of two lovers contemplating their past relationship. Throughout the song, there are moments where one voice echoes the other.

Together, Swift and Bon Iver’s lead singer Justin Vernon pose the question of “How did we get here?” with the use of a metaphorical figure in exile, capturing the calamity of a broken relationship: “You were my crown, now I’m in exile, seeing you out.”

Another character: “An embittered tormenter showing up at the funeral of his fall-

“Swift's new album offers a library of stories to get lost in.” en object of obsession.” Starting with sweet choral vocals, “my tears ricochet” presents the perspective of a ghost haunting her toxic past lover. “And if I'm dead to you why are you at the wake?/Cursing my name/Wishing I stayed/Look at how my tears ricochet,” Swift repeats throughout the song. The chilling lyrics exemplify Swift’s mastery of songwriting; she creates sorrowful yet impactful images that twist the beautiful song into a tale of mourning and devastation.

“A seventeen-year-old standing on a

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

porch, learning to apologize.” Out of all of her newer songs, “betty” reminds me the most of Swift’s country roots. With a guitar strumming and an accompanying harmonica, the song brings me back to the days of “You Belong With Me” and “Love Story.”

But the most distinctive features of the song are its connections to two other songs in the album; “betty” forms a love triangle with “cardigan” and “august,” each song spotlighting a different voice in this tangled story of teenage love. In “betty,” Swift assumes the voice of a teenage boy named James who cheated on his girlfriend. “I’m only seventeen, I don’t know anything/But I know I miss you,” Swift sings as her character struggles to mend his relationship with Betty.

Swift continues in her exegesis, “A misfit widow getting gleeful revenge on the town that cast her out.” In “mad woman,” she revives the theme of witch hunts in a song that focuses on female anger. “And there's nothing like a mad woman/What a shame she went mad/No one likes a mad woman/ You made her like that,” Swift sings, accompanied by the brisk, urgent beat of a piano and drums. One of my favorite songs in the album—her use of sarcasm and irony artfully enhances the message and essence of the song—“mad woman” captures how frustrating it can be when society tries to associate female emotion with insanity.

Swift’s new album offers a library of stories to get lost in. Just as one can escape into fictional worlds by opening a book or turning on a movie, “folklore” serves as a gateway to the realms of one’s imagination; with beautiful compositions and mesmerizing lyrics, this collection of songs made from and for isolation is some of Swift’s best work.

September 24, 2020

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f

Kathryn Antonatos '22 When we were all suddenly swept inside in March, I, like most, felt uneasy, displaced and cooped up. As a “filmmaker” and film major, I have often found solace in personal expression through moving image and sound, but with (what seemed like) doom upon us and a migration from in-person life to facsimiles on screens, creating videos no longer felt like a reprieve. It felt like work.

The idea of compiling components of a film and editing for hours on the same screen through which virtually all of my social interactions took place was beyond unappealing.

My world had become so far removed from any basis of reality, and I found myself needing to do something tangible and real, something with my hands that would produce an end result with which I could physically interact away from outlets and power sources.

With no access to dedicated art spaces, I arrived at drawing, a medium I absolutely hated as a young kid because I had zero ability to accurately represent the real. This time, I threw reality and representation to the wind, wrestling with the upending of our worlds.

I invested in a notebook and some pens, and whenever I felt overwhelmed or disconnected, I would pop on a podcast or recordings of live concerts on YouTube and get lost in a meditative state of lines, shapes, colors, the feeling of ink on paper. I found solace and reminders of reality in meditations on abstraction, encountering a grounding force in an unlikely place. The resulting drawings now fill a red notebook I have started calling my COVID-19 therapy journal. It serves as a continuing reminder that physical, tangible reality can exist in an increasingly unrealistic world and that a project can be fulfilling even in dauntingly disrupted and unproductive times.

Banner design by Juliette Pope/The Miscellany News.

Tim Nguyen on YouTube mockumentary "Lathrop" Nina Ajemian Copy Staffer

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s one of the smallest and most tightly knit Houses on campus, Lathrop has earned a reputation of not existing. As a resident myself, I’ve become used to comments like, “Wow, I’ve never met anyone from Lathrop before!” when meeting Vassar students from other houses. If anything, though, being forgotten has given residents experiences to bond over and contributed to the unique culture that makes the House so special.

In Lathrop, September marks the return of Tim Nguyen ’23’s original series “Lathrop.”

The show, inspired by the comedic mockumentary “The Office,” follows a core cast of Lathrop residents (mostly current sophomores) through daily life. It is as funny and offbeat as its inspiration and all-over-theplace in the best possible way.

“Lathrop” episodes are bite-sized, ranging in length from seven to 14 minutes. The pilot was released on YouTube on Sept. 26, 2019, and it is currently the series’ most-watched episode at 490 views. The show has become a fixture within the Lathrop community, and Nguyen can often be spotted shooting scenes on the quad or throughout the dorm. While the show focuses on a main group of characters, brief cameos and guest appearances are common; Nguyen will often walk up to Lathrop residents to ask something along the lines of, “Hey, wanna be in an episode?”

After making a cameo in the season finale’s cold open (try to spot me!), I was excited for the show’s return this fall. I was also curious to learn more about “Lathrop’s” origin story; I’ve watched every episode, but realized I know relatively little about the work Nguyen puts into creating the series.

Following back and forth texting trying to schedule an interview with Nguyen, we finally found a time (a little after 8:30 p.m.)

and a place (Lathrop’s MPR) to meet. As I step into the newly reopened but still empty MPR, where much of the show takes place, the space feels like a shell of its former self.

The silence reminds me of how alive this room felt last year, full of friends working and laughing. Minutes later, however, Nguyen bursts through the door, bringing a bit of the room’s old energy with him as he strides over to my table. Nguyen is both eager and reflective as he outlines the process behind the product; he is clearly passionate about the little world he has created with “Lathrop.”

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

The Miscellany News (M): For those who haven’t seen the show, can you give a little background on “Lathrop” and how it started?

Tim Nguyen (TN): I’ve always wanted to make a little sitcom show. I’ve been filming since sixth grade and I started watching “The Office” very late and I really liked the format of it. I thought it was really funny, very unique, and I wanted to try something like that. So one day I said, “Why don’t we just make a parody in Lathrop?!” We filmed the whole first episode in one day, and we put that up on YouTube and people liked it, so we continued it—and the rest is history.

M: How much of the show is influenced by “The Office?” I know it was your starting-off point, but have you referenced the show throughout?

TN: I think the biggest thing we stole from it was definitely the zoom-ins. We try to create our own stories and I let people improvise their lines. There isn’t really a script; it’s more like, “This is what’s happening in this scene, so have fun with it and do what you want.” But now this year, I’m trying to make “Lathrop” my own original thing.

M: So you said there aren’t scripts, but

what is the creative process for storyboarding or coming up with ideas like?

TN: I usually have one or two people with me and we write out how many scenes we want—we usually go for an estimated length.

And we write detailed bullet points so that we’re not, you know, totally unprepared the day of the shoot. But we want there to be flexibility and creativity from the actors because I think they can come up with some pretty funny stuff, which you can see in the show.

M: How many takes of one scene do you normally film?

TN: [Laughing] It really depends on the person. Sometimes I do many takes because the scene is so funny that I want people to try different things. Sometimes it’s genuinely like they mess up, so we’ll do the scene again and again. And sometimes it’s one perfect take and I’m like, that’s perfect. [This process takes] maybe four to five hours, not too bad.

And the editing—five or six hours. That’s definitely the longest process, but it's my favorite process, so it doesn’t feel like too long at all.

M: Why is it your favorite process? What do you like most about editing?

TN: I think what I love about editing is watching everything come together and seeing this final product. It’s like finishing up the icing on the cake. You get to see it in its full glory.

M: How has COVID, specifically with social distancing and masks, affected the show this season?

TN: During quarantine, I envisioned a maskless show; I don’t know why, I just had that optimism. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, so we have to shoot with masks. I like the challenge though, because it’s not fun to do audio for things like that. The situation also teaches you aspects of film that you wouldn’t normally do when you don’t have

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

obstacles like that. For [episode one of season two], we did a lot of voice-overs, which I never usually do. And it kind of made the episode come out better than I expected, because you now understand everything that the characters are saying. As for the distancing, you can be a little creative with the shots there, and I don’t think that’s too much of a problem. And we address COVID in the episode, so it’s not too much of a big deal.

M: This is a broad/vague question, but what inspires you?

TN: [Starts laughing] What inspires me?

OK, this is kind of a long story. Last summer, I watched this show called “Community” and there’s this actor in it named Donald Glover.

I didn’t know he was in it, and I thought he was probably the best character on the show.

Back in sophomore year of high school, I didn't know any music; I didn't really listen to a lot of genres and Childish Gambino was the first person to really open my eyes to the world of music. After realizing that he’s Donald Glover and seeing him in the show, I looked him up and discovered that he’s also written a TV show, won awards for that and he started out as a comic. I think doing all these different things is inspiring; you don’t have to be the best at anything, but being good at a lot of things, I think, is really cool and it’s something that I strive to do.

M: What’s in store for season two, without spoiling anything?

TN: [Laughing] Oooh, this is like an interview!

M: It is an interview!

TN: Oh, wow! OK, there’s a lot of romance, deception, murder—maybe not murder. But definitely more in-depth characters.

We’re planning on releasing eight episodes, one per month. Get ready for more, I don’t know, action, adventure. There's going to be a lot more going on that we’re excited to film.

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September 24, 2020

House Fellows reflect on spring 2020: a time of community Olivia Gross

Guest Reporter

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n March 2020, most of the Vassar community saw their spring break turn into a semester-long stay at home.

Students and faculty were parted from their belongings as courses shifted from crowded classrooms to lonely bedrooms.

But the campus remained a part of daily life for many—namely about 250 students, 200 essential employees and the house fellows who, along with their families, call the Vassar dorms home.

The Miscellany News sat down with four house fellows to learn about their experiences living on a mostly deserted campus.

Associate Professor of German Studies and Josselyn House Fellow Elliott Schreiber lives on campus with his partner, 12-year-old son and dog Pepper. In a Zoom interview, he noted that spring is always the most beautiful time at Vassar—the flowers are in full bloom, the birds have returned, and everyone is full of energy and happy to be back from break.

Schreiber’s smile then faded. “You feel guilty for enjoying it,” he admitted. “This is what the students should be enjoying.”

He stared off for a moment before his smile returned. “Many more people from the surrounding community came on campus and gave it the feeling of a park.

Lovely. The campus played a big part in making those weeks more bearable for a lot of people from the community,” he said.

When asked if he would handle another shutdown differently, Schreiber remarked: “We were all in such a state of panic. I’d be more worried about the folks around the campus than the ones on the campus itself. I hope folks have learned that you can keep going on.”

Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Statistics Lisa Lowrance lives in Jewett House with her partner and two sets of young twin daughters. Her seven-yearolds, accustomed to happily getting into

everyone’s business on campus, have had to adapt a bit. Instead of jumping into the hammocks of random students, they stick to their own. Instead of crawling onto comfortable-looking picnic blankets with students doing homework, they have learned to stay one huge step away from everyone except their immediate family.

“We used the quad as our own personal front yard. We set up a kiddie pool in front of Lathrop every day,” Lowrance said as she reflected on the family’s experiences in isolation. The Lowrances stayed on campus for the entirety of the state-mandated quarantine. When asked why they didn’t choose to move to a more secluded location during those months, Lowrance commented, “We signed up to open our lives up. We’re not going to leave because of a pandemic.” She emphasized that she is optimistic about Vassar remaining open for the duration of the semester. “It seems like if things are ever to get back to normal, this is the ideal experiment. If any place can make this happen, it’s going to be here.”

The Strong house fellow is Assistant Professor of Psychological Science Lori Newman. She spent the spring and summer with her partner, seven-year-old son and dog. The four spent their days going on walks and taking trips to their plot of the community garden, where they grew about a dozen different summer vegetables.

For Newman, the most shocking part of the pandemic was how quickly it began.

“In the beginning of spring break, I was joking with a student from Washington about how he had to be careful because they had just found the first case of coronavirus in his state. And then things blew up.”

Newman conducts research on rats that focuses on astrocytes, support cells in the brain. She had to close her lab during the campus shutdown, and many of her students lost their summer internships (a team of animal care personnel took care

Above, Mathematics Professor and Jewett House Fellow Lisa Lowrance's children play in the grass outside of Lathrop on a sunny day. Courtesy of Lisa Lowrance. of the rats). When asked about how her scientific background affected her feelings about the pandemic, Newman said it troubled her to see people believing that everyone who contracted the virus would die, when in fact the vast majority survive. She repeatedly stressed one point: “I realized that there were other things just as dangerous as COVID affecting people during the isolation. In terms of the brain and psychology, trauma and stress and generalized fear is not good for people.

They cause real damage to well-being and development.”

Assistant Professor of Political Science and Lathrop House Fellow Taneisha Means made a similar point about mental health. “We would set up pools outside of Lathrop with the Lowrances and sit in picnic chairs and have snacks…our kids needed each other. It revealed the interdependence between all of the house fellow kids that I had taken for granted,” she shared.

Means also concurred with Schreiber’s reflection about the abundance of Poughkeepsie residents who enjoyed the campus during the shutdown. She explained,

“Vassar became an important space for community members from the surrounding areas. It brought up the question: how many spaces are this beautiful? There was a group of 10 or 15 60-80 year olds who would get together in the green space between Main and the library in a huge circle. They may have been a book club of sorts. It was really beautiful.” Means also reflected on the newfound connections forming between students and their professors as everyone adjusts to new ways of learning, understanding, and protecting our peers. “Students see professors in more human ways, and professors see students as more human as well. It’s been more of an equalizing space.”

The broader Vassar and Poughkeepsie community took the place of many students in enjoying the campus’ striking beauty this spring. During this time, house fellows began developing a sense of normalcy, which is now slowly spreading to students and professors as they get used to living at a distance. As Means put it, “It’s not too optimistic to remember that life still goes on. It has to.”

It's all in the cards: Student's Etsy business takes a star turn Continued from Tarot on page 1 is a history and French double major, aspiring law student and invested member of Britomartis student theater, Burlesque and the Vassar Refugee Solidarity organization.

As of this summer, she is also a proud business owner.

Surgil’s relationship with Tarot—an ancient practice which seeks guidance through card-reading—began a few years back when a Vassar friend gifted her a deck

of Tarot cards. She quickly grew to love the art, and practiced reading often with her peers and loved ones. When asked what drew her to Tarot, Surgil said it was the logic and intuition embedded in the spiritual elements. “I believe Tarot is a tool of perspective,” she said. “Tarot readings aren’t meant to bring major epiphanies or realizations.

Usually, they’ll tell you what you already know about yourself and your life (but may be avoiding for one reason or another).”

Above, Surgil's business logo. Courtesy of Sabrina Surgil.

Until recently, Surgil’s affinity for Tarot reading was merely a fun hobby. But when her family was struck by pandemic-related financial troubles and the BLM movement reached her home city of Pittsburgh, she was spurred into action. Surgil explained that Pittsburgh has had a history of racism, segregation and police brutality. She referenced the murder of Pittsburgher Antwon Rose, a 17-year-old Black student who was shot by a white officer while fleeing a traffic stop in summer 2018. The officer was acquitted soon after. “I couldn’t actually protest in person because I live with my elderly grandmother and had to be extra careful about the pandemic, so I really wanted a way to support racial justice causes from home,” said Surgil. With a dash of ingenuity, she was able to help out remotely.

The Sun, The Star, and The Moon Tarot Readings, Surgil’s Etsy business, offers live one-on-one appointments and personal video recordings. The site currently features nine different Tarot styles tailored to love, life, healing, past lives and more, as well as dozens of glowing reviews from satisfied customers (all 5/5 stars). Many of her ecstatic clientele spare no words when praising her thoroughness, insight, compassion and eagerness to educate inexperienced users.

However, Surgil is most proud of her philanthropy toward racial justice organiza-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

tions. Surgil donates at least 25 percent of all proceeds to Pittsburgh’s mutual aid organizations, bail funds and at-risk individuals.

She explained, “As a low income student, I could rarely donate to causes in the past, so I’m proud of being able to redistribute money now, but also to spread awareness for specific organizations in my hometown in the process.” One of her most recent donations went to the Bukit Bail Fund, an abolitionist fund in Pittsburgh fighting to free protesters from the Allegheny County Jail. Surgil’s advocacy work can be found on her Instagram (@thesunstarmoontarot) and Tiktok (@sabkaye), along with her Etsy account (thesunstarmoontarot).

Since a New York Times feature this summer accelerated her business’ momentum, Surgil plans on furthering her social media presence, expanding her business and continuing to give back to her community. She intends to add to The Sun, The Star, and The Moon’s tarot-reading variety and offer party readings once in-person business becomes safe again.

In the meantime, Surgil leaves Vassar students with this bit of advice for those considering online business during this socially distanced time: “If there’s something you’ve been wanting to do or try, my advice is to just put yourself and your product ‘out there’ into the social media-verse and see what happens!”

September 24, 2020

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Democracy Matters advocates for student voting accessibility Continued from Businesses on page 1 were at a large research university. I think we try to take advantage of that and differentiate our chapter from those at other schools,” she said.

Sept. 22 was just one of many tabling events DM has hosted this semester. DM set up voter registration tables to give students an opportunity to ask org members questions about voting. Last year, DM established the dorm voting advisor system.

Now run through Residential Life and the Office of Community Engaged Learning (OCEL), the advisor system assigns volunteer students to specific residential sites on campus. Students living on campus can direct their questions about voter registration to the volunteer assigned to their residential site.

As the 2020 presidential election—one which Professor of Political Science Richard Born identified as possibly “the most important presidential election in our history”—rapidly approaches, DM’s responsibilities weigh heavier than ever.

Since COVID-19 has changed the way voters might cast their ballots, voter accessibility is in a particularly precarious state.

According to DM’s estimates, about 300-400 Vassar students will vote locally this election. Around 20 percent of the student body is registered to vote in Poughkeepsie, with the majority of campus voting absentee for their home states or being unable to vote in U.S. elections.

But for both local and absentee voters, COVID-19 has introduced new challenges to campus voting in particular. Last year, DM members delivered absentee ballot forms directly to students’ dorm rooms.

However, because of restricted access to dorm buildings in accordance with Vassar’s COVID-19 safety policies, this is no longer an option.

Cauwels and Lawler are brainstorming new methods to better student voter accessibility and combat this setback. As of now, students can drop off their voter registration form in the College Center, where a Vassar employee will collect them and drop them off at the Vassar College Board of Elections.

Born noted that the multiple steps required to obtain an absentee ballot is a barrier in student voter accessibility. “Absentee voting has always been somewhat more difficult than in-person voting.

That’s a really, really important factor,” he highlighted.

For students voting in Poughkeepsie, factors like the uncertainty of being able

to leave campus and having to re-register if they’ve moved from a dorm to apartment style-living create more barriers to casting their vote. Vassar has also made tentative plans to provide safe transportation to polling locations as an exception to the stay-on-campus mandate.

Still, Cauwels urges these local voters to apply for an absentee ballot. In the state of New York, COVID-19 is considered a valid reason for any voter to request an absentee ballot. Should students who are registered to vote in Poughkeepsie be allowed to leave campus come election day, their absentee ballot can then be disregarded.

Registering to vote locally can be a particularly difficult process at Vassar because the campus is divided into three districts, meaning that students moving to different residential locations on campus may have to repeatedly update their registration. This also poses a challenge for students who are forced to travel farther to certain polling locations.

Born explained that Vassar transportation to the polls is a necessity. Cauwels acknowledged the challenges of ensuring that Vassar students submit all the appropriate information and have a voting plan

by Election Day. “While students may be aware of certain things and be able to discuss them, trying to get students to update their voter registration for example, that’s a difficult

Democracy Matters members Sammy Solomon '23 and Sara Lawler '23 table in front of the College Center, where they help students register to vote, order absentee ballots, secure transportation to the polls and answer any questions students have.

Courtesy of Democracy Matters.

“Once you start, it becomes easier the second, third, fourth time,” said Born.

“It’s a habit, and like almost all habits, getting started is difficult but once you get started then it just becomes automatic.”

Dutchess County is currently run by a Republican majority, which may explain why the notoriously liberal Vassar cam-

"It's inconceivable that young people, even young people in college, are going to be voting as much as their elders, but in battleground states that are closely divided maybe that will make the difference.” process sometimes,” she commented.

Despite the efforts of organizations like DM, voter participation among college students has been historically low. According to Born, there are many factors that influence whether or not someone votes.Since voting is, in his words, a “habitual behavior,” younger people may be less likely to vote if they haven’t previously.

Democracy Matters member Rafaella Zanetti '23 tabling outside of the College Center on Sept. 22, National Voter Registration day. Courtesy of Democracy Matters.

pus has three voting districts.

“Whether there’s a coordinated effort or not, I don’t know. I don’t know whether you need a coordinated effort, but it's pretty clear from the standpoint of state after state where Republicans are in power, they have been engaging in voter suppression,” Born said. College communities are typical targets of GOP gerrymandering because they tend to lean blue.

Another concern for local voters is the understaffing of polling locations. Polling volunteers tend to be older, and thus are less likely to help out this November for fear of contracting COVID-19. Cauwels emphasized DM efforts to recruit poll workers for November. Although Vassar students living on campus are not permitted to volunteer themselves due to Vassar’s COVID-19 safety policies, Cauwels encouraged off-campus students to consider working the polls if possible.

Born noted that while there were some complications due to understaffing during the primary race, such as those in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, they will likely be less of an issue in the November election, “now we’ve calmed down and we understand what the risks are and how we can protect ourselves with masks and washing our hands and so forth.” While Born doesn’t foresee an understaffing problem at voting locations near Vassar campus, he speculates it could be more of a problem in bigger cities.

Despite all these complexities, Cauwels

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

and Lawler are aiming for 100 percent voter participation for eligible students in the upcoming race.

“Not only are first-years reaching out about registration, I’ve gotten more questions from sophomores and upperclassmen, which is great to see,” said Cauwels.

In the 2018 midterm elections, more 1829 year olds voted than in previous midterm races, indicating a potential uptick in voter turnout for an age demographic that is known for not showing up to the polls. Fifty Vassar students voted locally that election.

“The standard fact of life is that there’s a strong relationship between your likelihood of showing up and your age,” Born reflected. “It's inconceivable that young people, even young people in college, are going to be voting as much as their elders, but in battleground states that are closely divided maybe that will make the difference.”

Cauwels and Lawler, young people who buck the trend of apathy, are confident that Vassar is dedicated to voting accessibility this November.

Cauwels affirmed, “I feel really supported and I hope that conveys the same message to students. Vassar is here to make sure your vote is counted and your voice is heard.”

Democracy Matters Co-President Sara Lawler '.23 tabling Sept. 8. Lawler is working to achieve 100 percent voter participation among eligable students.

Courtesy of Democracy Matters.

HUMOR

Page 10

September 24, 2020

Breaking News

From the desk of Izzy Migani, Humor Editor

Students fret about whether it is currently crop top or turtleneck weather. Crop turtleneck weather?

Exclusive inside scoop: Vassar's failed COVID solutions Francisco Andrade

Enemy of the Administration

F

ellow students: As we head deeper into the school year, we are all probably starting to get a bit tired of social distancing and wearing a mask everywhere. Still, I am very happy with the results, as we currently have zero active cases on campus (don’t fuck it up). It’s safe to say that the implementation of mandatory mask-wearing, outdoor classrooms, no campus visitors and other methods taken by the administration has been an absolutely resounding success. But every solution is the product of a hundred failures, and as someone who has been at Vassar throughout the entirety of this pandemic, I feel it is my responsibility to whistle-blow the ideas that didn’t quite work. This will surely put a target on my back, as the Vassar shadow council wants to keep this a secret, so if you don’t hear from me after this article I have surely been ground up and turned into chocolate. Luckily enough, this treat will be available to you at President Bradley’s house.

Failed Idea #1: Mandatory mask usage for all members of Vassar.

I know what you’re thinking—this did get implemented, and it did work. Well, yes— but only for all humans on campus. Originally, the Vassar Vegans Group (or simply VEG for short) had the idea to put masks on all animals that traverse the campus. The Veggies (as they demand to be called) actu-

ally managed to catch and convince all deer to wear masks. Unfortunately, deer travel in mobs and refuse to social distance, so in the end this did not work. The Vegemites (junior members of the org) did speak to the squirrels, but the squirrels pointed out that since they only stand still or run, they are technically following guidelines by not wearing a mask. The members of VEG attempted to convince the squirrels to do their part by telling them stories about the pandemic, but the rodents just weren’t interested in their Veggietales.

Failed Idea #2: Build a biodome around campus.

OK, so frankly I helped pitch this one.

The original plan was to build a great glass structure around Vassar in order to keep out COVID, visitors and the elements. Though the school had the money and materials for this project (which have since been directed to the luxury hotel Vassar is building), it eventually had to be scrapped due to projections from the Physics Department that combined anxious screaming from all students dreading their situation would cause the glass to shatter. Oh, and also something about students not wanting to be imprisoned as if they were in jail or on a cruise ship.

Failed Idea #3: Hydroxychloroquine.

No comment.

Failed Idea #4: Putting your fingers in your ears and ignoring the virus.

Oh sorry, I have been told that this is actually something many Americans have in fact done.

Failed Idea #5: Students smear their hands in paint.

This got proposed by mistake: the administration didn’t watch the videos put out on Moodle by the CCT or whatever, so they got confused and thought smearing hands in paint was an effective way to prevent COVID-19, not a demonstration of good handwashing technique.

Failed Idea #6: All students camp out on the Vassar quads.

This one looked very promising; we had plenty of space and students were excited to be one with nature. However, it soon be-

came clear that communing with the outdoors is not all that the Disney+ nature documentaries make it out to be. It’s cold outside.

And sometimes rainy. But mostly, students had a hard time understanding why living in tents outside meant a raise in the Room and Board charge. The administration tried to explain that it was due to the landscaping fees and the fact that they had to pay the womp womps to relocate, but students weren’t buying it.

And finally, Failed Idea #7: No one returns to campus and we conduct all classes online this semester, so as to prevent any spread and any further danger until the countrywide numbers begin to dip. … Wait, why didn't we do this?

Above, two rebellious Vassar deer refuse to wear masks or social distance.

Courtesy of Nick Goodrum/Flickril

How I learned to love my gluten-free neighbor (you can, too!)

Shannon Tilley

Ex Gluten Free Bigot

I

never thought I was a prejudiced person. I grew up in a quaint little town with a fresh bakery down the road, one that I loved and cherished throughout my childhood. The smell of bread wafted through the air each day as I walked to school, and I came to associate yeast with happiness (this is not at all related to my beer addiction as an adult). It was idyllic; it was peaceful. Everything changed when one day, I went to the bakery after school to pick some bread up for my mom and me.

The person at the front of the line asked a question I had never heard before: “Excuse me, do you make any gluten-free bread?”

“Gluten-free? What in the hell is that?” asked the baker.

“I’m allergic to gluten, and I’d just like to know if you have gluten-free breads or pastries,” the customer replied.

I saw the baker turn red in the face. Holding back his anger, he muttered “get out” through tears of rage.

The customer walked out of the store with their head down, clearly ashamed of themselves. After they left, I gave the baker a look like, “Can you get a load of that guy?”

Like really, who the hell is so audacious to announce they’re gluten-free to the world?

Some say to love the sinner and hate the sin—but come on. They were right in front of me, displaying that...that filth in public.

Not being able to digest the delicious food above is embarrassing and strange and unnatural. But the gluten-free are still people, and they need allies. Via Pixabay.

I didn’t used to think of myself as hateful; I was just raised to hate people who were gluten-free. It’s unnatural. Your body is supposed to digest gluten. Don’t give me that tapioca flour xanthan gum shit. I want the real shit. The wheat, baby. Because my town is so small, we were just so accustomed to our bakery using the local wheat crop for flour. It’s just how things are done around here, and, frankly, should be done everywhere. Jesus ate bread, and I’m damned sure it wasn’t gluten-free.

Anyways, I eventually decided to go to college in New York. On the first day of orientation, I met my freshman year roommate. As we didn’t yet know anyone else, we decided to get dinner together. She seemed nice, but there was something a little off about her. When we got to the dining hall, I saw her leaving my side as I walked to the main area. I was confused as I saw her head for the allergen-free section. It’s okay, I thought to myself, she’s probably just lactose intolerant. There are a lot of lactose intolerant people. But when we sat down next to each other, I noticed that her food was topped with cheese. “That looks... interesting,” I said, “Why did you get the allergen-free dinner?”

When she responded, “Oh, I’m gluten-free!”, the world went dark. She kept talking like she didn’t shoot a bullet through my heart, but the rest of what she said faded into the background. I was so angry, so hurt. I didn’t know what to think of her. Yes, she seemed like a kind, decent person—but she couldn't even digest glu-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

ten. How could I look past that?

I told her to her face. “I don’t know if I can live with someone who’s gluten-free.

What if you look at me while I eat my freshly baked bread? What if you try to feed me gluten-free snacks?”

She looked confused. “I don’t know why this would be an issue to you, since what I eat doesn’t affect you in the slightest. I mean, are you allergic to anything gluten-free?”

“Well, no…I was just taught that it was unnatural to have an intolerance to gluten.

It’s how I was raised.”

“Oh...I suppose it can be a bit controversial. I was just born this way. I can’t really do anything about it, and if I ignore it, I’ll have a world of shit to deal with..”

After that initial conversation, it took me a while to understand what living with a gluten intolerance is like. I slowly warmed up to her and her bizarre diet.

Once she started cooking for me, I began to understand that there is a world outside of gluten. It may be scary and strange at first, but I’ve learned that just because someone is gluten-free doesn’t mean that they’re any less of a person. I now realize the way I was raised is antiquated. My roommate has changed my outlook on people and the world. I’ll leave you with this: If someone you know or meet is gluten-free, don’t be afraid to show them your support. Make yourself known as an ally. God knows they need them right now. Next time you have some bread, send a thoughtful text to a gluten-free loved one.

HUMOR

September 24, 2020

Dr. G's Love Advice: Cuffing Season Edition Dear Dr. G, COVID is ruining my sex life! My annual pattern of hooking up with four different people a week so I can find a hook-up buddy to cuddle for the winter is a bust! How can I find a friend with benefits this semester?

-Promiscuous by Nelly Furtado Dear Nelly, Yes, I’m certain you are not the only one facing the frustration of swiping to the end of your Tinder options or remiss over the lack of condoms on House Team members’ doors. The phenomenon you are referencing is a side effect of “cuffing season.”

For the young cubs on campus, cuffing season is the trial-and-error period we all go through over the course of the fall semester, in which you start from a robust pool of possible options and narrow them down by important qualities to find a partner, hook-up buddy or “Winter Cling” (the opposite of a Summer Fling). Traditionally, we may narrow them down by prowess in the sack, mutual interests, if they play devil’s advocate when you talk about your women’s studies reading or if they’re in an a capella group (this can either be a strong positive or negative—certainly a polarizing issue on campus). This process typically starts when you come back from summer break and everyone has fresh beach pics and interesting personal lives to talk about.

You should generally pick your final two

to three choices by Halloweekend so you have a few messy hook-ups lined up, and finalize your decision on Thanksgiving while you’re home with your family and sort of tipsy—it is here that you text them something sort of raunchy or a few tasteful holiday nudes. The advantages to a successful cuffing season are numerous: you may get a long term partner or a study buddy for your orgo final. Better yet, you might find someone who lives in a single with a projector.

This year, however, the process is disrupted (“Queered”, as your Queer Studies correlate friend may tell you) by the current global situation. But, lucky for you, I am here to give you the rundown of the revised and unspoken schedule of cuffing season. First: I hate to inform you, butwe are already far behind. By now, experts recommend you have had a distanced Deece meal with each possible draft pick by the end of the Add Period. (To catch up on your deadline, we encourage you to reach out to the Registrar and ask them to sneak you into your crush’s Zoom class.)

This year, your finalists should be selected and notified by the end of the Drop Period.

If you are stressing about your Math-126 final but have also not selected your final draft options for cuffing season, experts recommend that you seriously reevaluate your priorities. This may be counterintuitive, but considering this semester ends

even before Thanksgiving, your final pick should be selected and submitted to your friend group no later than Halloweekend for final approval.

This revised schedule may vary slightly for each individual. For example, we suggest that Vassar lesbians make their first formal statement of interest to a potential partner no sooner than spring 2022, and only after sleeping together in the same bed for at least three months and watching the entirety of “The L Word” together. For any further questions or concerns about the cuffing season timeline, please contact the friend in your group with the strongest main character energy.

Page 11

HOROSCOPES Madi Donat

Astral Projector

ARIES Mar 21 | Apr 19 As it begins to get cold outside, make sure your fashion is in order. I am very powerful, and thus have the ability to decide the color of the season––it’s green. Make of that what you must.

TAURUS

Apr 20 | May 20

A few weeks ago I ate Raisin Bran for dessert. But the only thing sadder than eating Raisin Bran for dessert is thinking back on it and getting down. This is a metaphor. I don’t know what for, though.

GEMINI May 21 | Jun 20 Remember reading for fun? Find a book that you enjoy and just sit down with it––it can be something you’ve already read, it can be short, it doesn't matter. This one isn’t funny; I just think reading is neat.

CANCER Jun 21 | Jul 22

If you follow Dr. G's advice, this will be you, successfully cuffed, by Halloweekend.

Courtesy of Ritwik P via Pixabay.

Frog and Toad are Frenemies

by Julianna + Olivia

Stillness is not the same as stagnation. Take your time, or push forward if you need to.

Someone will meet you along every step of your journey, and if you can’t find someone, I’ll do it. My number is LEO Jul 23 | Aug 22 Things are stressful, but material pleasures are rarely the answer. There are lots of other pleasures, like those emotional, or spiritual, or even physical. Just please adhere to social distancing if you choose that last one.

VIRGO

Aug 23 | Sep 22

There’s no nice way to say this: Twitter is bad.

It is! Make it your mission this week to find increasingly niche social media platforms. I like communicating through my public Spotify playlists. Whatever works for you.

LIBRA

Sep 23 | Oct 22

What do you want? Say it, out loud. No, really. If you can’t do it right now, wait until you’re alone and say it. You aren’t going to die from it. In fact, if you don’t say it, the wanting might eat you alive.

SCORPIO

Oct 23 | Nov 21

Too many good things exist for you to hide from them. Like, I can type the name of any small animal into YouTube and there will inevitably be a video of it being cute. Also penicillin.

SAGITTARIUS

Nov 22 | Dec 21

Make an effort to learn about yourself, but don’t live life under a microscope. Learn the difference between what’s good and what isn’t; what’s quirky and idiosyncratic versus what’s just plain weird.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 | Jan 19 Take a risk. Just one. It doesn’t even have to be big. Wear a color you wouldn’t normally (Aries can tell you that green is always a good choice) or buy a different brand of something. No wrong answers.

AQUARIUS Jan 20 | Feb 18 Sometimes it’s easier to explain your feelings without words. Write a multi-act dream ballet to get your point across; that always does the trick for me. Don’t skimp on the props though. I’ve made that mistake before.

PISCES Feb 19 | Mar 20 No one deserves to be held at arm’s length by the people they love most. Vulnerability is not a crime; try telling your friends boring things about you that nobody else knows, like what you had for lunch.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

OPINIONS

Page 12

September 24, 2020

Climate change covers the West Coast in flames Sanya Malhotra

R

Guest Columnist

esidents of the West Coast peer outside their windows to see a sky of flames: an apocalyptic red-orange haze covering the states of California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Already the cause of 35 deaths and tens of thousands of displacements, these fires do not just pose a threat to land (more than five million acres burned), but to the lives and livelihoods of many in vulnerable financial situations. Mobile home parks in particular have fallen victim to the wildfires, further expanding the cascade of damage and distress for residents who now must find temporary shelter. These wildfires of the past year are much more frequent and deadlier than past ones, due to the ravaging effects of climate change.

The use of a pyrotechnic device for a baby’s sex reveal party on Sept. 5, 2020 has been labeled as one of the primary causes of the wildfires, igniting first in Los Angeles and then rapidly expanding. As of now,

fires still blaze on the Pacific-bordered states, with dryness and rising temperatures only fueling them further. Firefighters are in constant dispatch to quench the fires that they can safely, but that’s only a small proportion of the ever-growing destruction. Mandatory evacuations are forcing many people onto the streets, a dangerous situation made even worse by a groundswell of armed vigilantes who are trying to protect their property from vagrants.

As fear and flames engulf the West Coast, so too does the smoke that’s causing multiple hazardous air warnings in the region. Airlines are suspending flights across these due to low visibility from the smoke and haze.

Composed of noxious chemicals, this wildfire smoke has serious health consequences including compromised immune systems and an increased possibility of lung infections. With Western states battling the wildfires and COVID-19 at the same time, the combined effects of the smoke and the virus put their populations in a state of extreme

vulnerability, especially for the displaced people living in shelters This Western wildfire smoke has made it all the way to the New York skies on the East Coast, bringing haze and vivid sunsets. It has even traveled thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean, where the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service in Europe has detected these particles in the air. The effect of the fires on the atmosphere has also been recorded by space agencies, which state that the smoke and pollution are accelerating global warming.

Climate change is directly linked to the recent prevalence and expansion of wildfire and extreme weather events, but in the United States, no real attempts have been made to progress fundamental legislation to heal the damaged environment. Perhaps this is not surprising, as those most deeply affected by climate change are poorer communities and communities of color, demographics often ignored by those in power. Just as the neglect of science in this pandemic has cost

hundreds of thousands of lives, similar consequences await if we do not listen to experts and take action.

Many words are being thrown around by the 2020 presidential candidates under the topic of wildfires. While President Trump has highlighted the need for better forest management, and evidence does show that forest managers can reduce the risk of fires spreading and smoke emissions, his political rival Joe Biden has called for a much greater reckoning of climate change. Due to these unprecedented times brought on by the harmful impacts of climate change, even the traditionally non-partisan Scientific American announced that it is backing Biden for the presidency.

Human-caused climate change is stated by researchers as a key factor in increasing the risk of forest fires, meaning it is up to individuals, be them leaders of an environmental club, concerned citizens or lawmakers, to take action. Wildfires are not a two-sided political issue, but a matter of fact and science.

Uighurs in China: the genocide in the shadows Danielle Recco

Guest Columnist

“I am Chinese. I am proud. I pledge allegiance to the Communist party.”

Their dormitories are barred with iron.

They glimpse the sky from a tiny window that is placed too high. They are injected with medication; some have been sterilized. They are tortured and beaten. They have chains wrapped around their ankles.

They have an inadequate supply of food and water. Their cells are overcrowded, so they must sleep on the floor. They are dehumanized and detained for the most benign actions: a woman who travelled to her home country, a man who worked as an English translator, a woman who wore a scarf, someone who had a photo of a girl praying on their phone, a student who messaged her friends on WhatsApp, a pop star who championed human rights. They are convicted based on the possibility that they may commit a crime against the government. There is no justice system to save them. They are made to pledge their loyalty and remain under the gaze of the flag indefinitely. They are being re-educated.

Genocide is the intent to destroy a specific group of people through the use of killings, sterilization or other means. This does not apply to political opponents according to international criminal law but to a specific identity (religion, ethnicity, etc.) of the group. We can all point to the obvious example of the Holocaust. We think that this type of ideology is in the past. That is 2020, and now we know better.

And yet, another genocide is upon us today. One in ten Uighurs have been imprisoned without trial in the region of Xinjiang, alongside Kazakhs and other minorities. Over one million innocent people have been sent to these camps in total. In order to fully understand the scale of this genocide, it is important to understand its background, as well as the skewed perceptions surrounding it.

Who exactly are the Uighurs, and why are they the victims of the Chinese Communist Party? The Uighurs, a Muslim minority who reside in the Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, are one of the world’s oldest Turkic-speaking people, dating back to the third century CE. Historically, Uighurs resided in villages in East Turkestan,

or modern Xinjiang, although many have recently relocated to factories across China as the country has become more industrialized.

In the 1950s, Han Chinese began to move into Xinjiang. The ethnic tensions and economic disparities between the Uighurs and the wealthier Han led to protests by the Uighurs. In 2009, violence escalated into the Ürümqi riots mainly due to economic inequalities. Some Uighurs turned to more extreme methods, such as stabbings, arson and suicide bombings—some of these crimes were linked to major terrorist organizations. To quell violence, the Chinese government suppressed any sign of dissent with the use of force.

After Xi Jinping’s ascent to the presidency in 2012, China announced its Belt and Road Initiative, a series of trade routes connecting Asia, Europe and Africa with major projects in Xinjiang. By 2017, the state police had established a surveillance state in Xinjiang. According to Jen Kirby of Vox, “Authorities divide each city into squares, with about 500 people. Every square has a police station that keeps tabs on the inhabitants.” Cameras wait at every turn, police stand at every corner, facial recognition cameras invade privacy, phones are regularly confiscated and searched and detention camps are constructed. There are now approximately 260 active camps, and that number is increasing.

These “re-education” centers are seen as methods to prevent terrorism in the eyes of the Chinese government. In essence, they are prisons for pre-criminals. According to Chris Buckley and Austin Ramzy of the New York Times, “Putting them in steady, supervised government-approved work, officials say, will erase poverty and slow the spread of religious extremism and ethnic violence.” However, the detainees are not terrorists. They are mothers, fathers and honest citizens.

According to the hundreds of testaments on UyghurAid, family members disappear without a trace, leaving their loved ones panicked and confused. Prisoners are not allowed to communicate with those outside of the walls. Chinese officials say that the camps allow Uighurs to learn vocational skills, such as sewing and carpentry. They also learn Mandarin and proper Chinese etiquette. Sun Yijie, a former soldier and

current executive of one of these centers, spoke to the New York Times about the activities practiced there. “Beginning with military drills before they start their jobs, we foster a sense of discipline,” he said.

“They practice military drills, learn patriotic Chinese songs, and listen to lectures warning against Islamic zeal and preaching gratitude to the Communist Party.” Despite its appearance as a “school,” watchtowers and walls surround the facility, and detainees are not allowed to leave for any reason.

Journalists who wish to survey the area have been arrested, as in the case of these France 24 reporters, who were arrested seven times and interrogated for attempting to see the compound. The interrogators told the reporters that there was no camp in the area, although satellite imagery proved this to be false.

If these camps are truly instituted for positive educational purposes to help Uighurs, why are authorities blatantly lying about their existence? Chinese government officials denied the camps’ existence until they no longer could, changing their narrative to one of education and reform.

In Chinese newspapers such as Chinadaily, the treatment of Uighurs both in the compounds and in society is painted in a positive light, in which reform is constantly being achieved.

According to this German teacher in China, “The Uygur students can enjoy preferential policies given by the government, such as extra college entrance examination points, special policies for college admissions, employment policy support, etc.” Yet it is also hard to ignore the testimonies of migrants who are studying in other countries for fear of persecution, who claim that fasting during Ramadan is banned, amongst other discriminatory laws.

Within Xinjiang, some towns have been completely emptied and now stand abandoned. Neighbors and family members disappear overnight without warning. One daughter worries for her mother, because she is diabetic and relies on Insulin. It has been months, but she has received no word if she is alive.

Not only are people being forcibly taken within China, but officials have been deceiving Uighurs outside China’s borders.

For example, one woman living in France

The opinions expressed above do not represent those of The Miscellany News as a whole.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

needed her birth certificate to renew her permit. In order to receive it, Chinese officials told her she had to come to China and physically pick it up. After she left France, Chinese officials invalidated her passport, and she lost contact with her family. They later found that she was placed in a re-education facility.

This ethnic cleansing deserves more attention than ever, with COVID-19 threatening the prisoners in overcrowded cells.

Of course, reports on this will not be disclosed for a very long time, if ever. Even before the virus, it is estimated that hundreds have died within the camps, but no numbers have been released. On top of this threat, prisoners are being made to manufacture masks: a large majority of facial coverings are currently being manufactured in Xinjiang.

While major companies are paying more attention to forced labor in the region and have begun boycotting certain product lines, this is not enough to push the Chinese government to reconsider the economic benefits of forced labor. However, Disney’s new movie, Mulan, was filmed in Xinjiang and consequently sparked outrage, drawing more attention to the region. President Trump recently signed the Uighur Human Rights Act of 2020, which can imprison officials who violate human rights and sanction those responsible for inhumane treatment towards the Uighurs, a positive step towards worldwide recognition of their captivity.

According to Kirby, “It is the largest mass internment of an ethnic-religious minority group since World War II.” The Chinese government’s treatment of the Uighurs clearly fits the definitions of ethnic cleansing (an attempt to get rid of members of an unwanted ethnic group) and genocide, but it has not caused international upheaval.

Through violence; the suppression of native culture and the enforcement of another; the separation of families and involuntary renunciation of certain faith practices, as well as forced birth control and monthly injections to numb patients, genocide is being perpetrated in the region of Xinjiang as the international community stands by. We must think about those who cannot fend for themselves. It is time we pay attention and hear their cries for freedom.

September 24, 2020

OPINIONS

Page 13

Keep your camera on: recording and consent in the age of Zoom Claire Miller

Guest Columnist

I

click the link. The Zoom window opens, showing me a preview of my camera image. I adjust my hair, slip my clunky headphones over my ears, and enter the call.

A message flashes across the screen: By continuing to be in the meeting, you are consenting to be recorded. I click “accept,” even as I wonder whether that’s really the answer I want to give.

Recording images or videos for class discussions isn’t a new concept. But in the age of online learning, the frequency of this recording practice has increased astronomically. As not all remote students are able to synchronously join classroom calls, classes are being recorded to accommodate time zone differences and other conflicts. But in the process, those who might not want to be recorded are being put in a difficult position.

Unlike the thorough guidelines around COVID-19 era health practices that can easily be located within Vassar’s reopening plan, a specific explanation of classroom recording policies is nowhere to be found. Dean of Faculty William Hoynes confirmed that, while a general guidance email about recording practices had been sent out to faculty, “We do not have a formal policy on recordings of class meetings.” There are brief mentions of online teaching and recorded classrooms in the reopening plan, but no details about how student privacy will be protected, especially given that videos posted on Moodle, a learning management website used by Vassar, can be downloaded and redistributed. As many classes are at least partially online, these details feel important. Why, then, are they omitted?

One contributing factor may be that students are always alerted when they are being recorded. Zoom, Vassar’s video call platform of choice, asks for your consent before you

may join a recorded call. Given this gesture of transparency, an elaboration on the details may seem unnecessary. The problem lies in the difficulty of opting out of recorded classes. While students who don’t wish to be recorded may potentially be able to participate asynchronously, or participate with their camera off, this solution is flawed. At best, it limits students’ ability to directly interact with fellow students and professors, and at worst it could lead to a drop in their grade because of their inability to demonstrate participation. Additionally, even if students aren’t participating in the recorded sessions, they may still be required to post videos of themselves, as has become the case for many classes now that Moodle and similar platforms have become central to classroom interactions.

The requirement of consent to be recorded is fairly new, and beyond protections to prevent explicit or hidden recordings, there are few laws in place to prevent unwanted recording in the United States. In most circumstances, anyone can be legally photographed or recorded in public without their consent, and nearly 40 states, including New York, are one-party consent states. With some minor exceptions, this means that as long as one person in a conversation consents to be recorded, the communication can be legally recorded regardless of the other people’s wishes.

Given the lack of legal protections to promote consensual recording and our increasing reliance on recording technology, being filmed has become a familiar, even comfortable process to many. When I asked some of my professors about their recording practices, they discussed the logistics of how content would be posted online, and did not consider the aspect of student privacy in relation to the recorded classes until I explicitly mentioned it. “I hadn’t thought [of] the need

to do that,” admitted Professor Nevarez, in a statement that echoed that of other professors. While the Dean of Faculty office’s general guidance email on recordings encouraged staff to “talk with...students about the use/access/purpose of any recordings”, it seems that many classes are not having these

told me they felt they must always demonstrate engaged posture and expressions and are often distracted by the presence of themselves on screen.

How, then, do we address these concerns without disadvantaging asynchronous students who may require recorded class ses-

"As not all remote students are able to synchronously join classroom calls, classes are being recorded to accommodate time zone differences and other conflicts. But in the process, those who might not want to be recorded are being put in a difficult position." discussions, beyond a brief comment or two on where to find recorded lessons. Similarly, among my peers, I heard little discussion about discomfort arising from being recorded. This general outward consensus makes it difficult for students and staff alike to deviate from the common recording practices that have been adopted by most of the wider community.

However, concerns are still being raised.

The Dean of Faculty office stated that “[An] issue that has been concerning a number of faculty is that of the security of recorded class sessions, recorded videos related to course materials and potentially inappropriate release of recorded material to wider audiences." While strong opposition to being recorded is rare among students, more subtle expressions of discomfort at being in front of the camera are noted by many, who

sions? Increased transparency with students about what is being done with the recordings, both through in-class discussions and a general policy, as well as an explanation of the factors used to help protect student and staff privacy, may help alleviate concerns.

Sending only the class audio to asynchronous students instead of video may also be a potential strategy, although an untenable one for classes that require visual aids.

In such an unprecedented situation, it is difficult to strike a balance between ensuring student access to class resources and protecting student and staff privacy. As our education becomes increasingly digitalized, I suspect new questions of consent and privacy will emerge, too. But regardless of the issues that may surface in the wake of this new educational medium, I am confident that Vassar’s community can rise to the challenge.

NYC’s inequality accentuated by response to coronavirus Karina Burnett

A

Guest Columnist

s a New Yorker, I’ve grown up hearing stories about “how things used to be,” before even the grittiest parts of the city became high-end and widespread gentrification created a bleak culture void. With this shift in mind, I’ve realized that to grow up in modern New York is to live with an implanted sense of loss and nostalgia—a desperate and slipping grasp on the past. The spread of COVID-19 heightened this desperation, sending the city into an apocalyptic shutdown that laid bare its shocking socioeconomic disparities and made it excruciatingly clear who is deemed valuable. Even after flattening the curve and limiting the spread of the virus, the looming threat of widespread closures brings back the hopelessness that accompanies the loss of beloved neighborhood haunts and landmarks, lasting evidence of the city’s unique identity. The iconic corner store Gem Spa on St. Mark’s Place is an example of this fading history—while New Yorkers rallied around the struggling shop and successfully saved it from closing before the outbreak, it was forced to permanently close when the city shut down.

While this social and economic devastation has been accelerated by the coronavirus, we must reckon with the fact that New York City has had the largest wealth disparity in the United States since 2014. This is not a new problem—it has just taken a global pandemic to wake the privileged up to its consequences.

Once the lockdown started in New York, the city’s institutional inequality revealed it-

self on the streets. Many upscale residential areas seemed abandoned as wealthy New Yorkers fled to vacation homes, and in many neighborhoods the only ones out were delivery people or health workers. While some professionals were allowed to work from home, many more low-paying jobs were deemed “essential,” forcing workers to risk their lives for a low-wage salary. The insular microcosms of Twitter and other social media platforms can quickly lead one to believe that everyone in the city had a similar quarantine experience, but in fact, as the Economic Policy Institute reports, under 30 percent of workers were able to work from home. Additionally, NowThis News details that more than half of New York City’s frontline workers were not born in the United States. The coronavirus outbreak has revealed the structural racism in cities, and the erasure of frontline workers— who are disproportionately people of color—is only the latest injustice in a long history of institutionalized dehumanization.

An obvious sign of this systemic injustice is in the city’s segregated residential areas and school system. Redlining policies that were adopted in the 1930s—policies that unjustifiably deemed many nonwhite areas “high risk”—continue to limit the economic opportunities for people living in those “undesirable” neighborhoods. Thanks to these racist zoning policies, the generational wealth accumulated through property ownership was denied to many nonwhite New Yorkers. On top of that, the public schools in these redlined neighborhoods are generally underfunded,

further limiting opportunities. These factors, and many more, intersect to trap disenfranchised groups in a lower economic class and limit social mobility. During the peak of the coronavirus outbreak in New York City, this historical subjugation was brought to the forefront of people’s minds as it became clear that the most vulnerable population was peo-

Once the lockdown started in New York, the city’s institutional inequality revealed itself on the streets. ple of color. Whether this is because people of color are more likely to have preexisting conditions such as asthma—a common side effect of living in areas more affected by pollution and toxins—or because frontline jobs are often worked by people of color, it is clear that the disproportionate COVID cases are a product of years of racist and classist policy and leadership. Privileges like the ability to work remotely and easy access to healthcare

The opinions expressed above do not represent those of The Miscellany News as a whole.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

and medical information are only available to a small portion of the population—namely rich and white people—and this is not a coincidence. Now, after New York’s coronavirus peak, the city’s unemployment rate has risen to over 14 percent, many storefronts and restaurants have permanently closed, and many are struggling to pay their already overpriced rent.

For New York, all that’s certain is this: This crisis could either bring New Yorkers together across socioeconomic lines, attaining political power as a collective, or serve as the last breaths of an already strained and unequal urban society. What began with the coronavirus outbreak has turned into a full-blown reckoning of decades of institutional malpractice and oppression. In a city so used to romanticizing and grieving the lost symbols of “Old New York” like CBGB or FAO Schwarz, it’s something else entirely to recognize the city’s current struggles and to mobilize around struggling fellow New Yorkers. Significant ways this organization could occur are through wealth redistribution and fighting against classist and racist zoning laws. With enough awareness and empathy, this devastating crisis could allow for a transformation of the city’s structure and an opportunity to rethink all the outdated and prejudiced facets of urban theory. As people continue to die alone from the virus and endanger themselves every day for a minimum wage job, with an incompetent president and a not-so-appealing challenging candidate, it’s hard to imagine a time more ripe for upheaval.

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SPORTS

September 24, 2020

VC athletes offer final reflection on institutional flaws [CW: mentions of sexual misconduct, sexual violence, racism, transphobia and discrimination.]

This article was co-written by five current and former Vassar student-athletes: Claire Basler-Chang (volleyball), Lena Stevens ( formerly volleyball), Reis Kissel (soccer), Liam Condon (squash) and Kai Mawougbe (track and field).

Personal Experience What is the end result of a recruiting culture that does not prioritize recruiting from diverse populations and does not combat the overwhelming lack of diversity in Vassar Athletics? When we do recruit athletes of color, they are placed in an environment where it is almost impossible to find fellow athletes who look like them, or who understand their experiences as people of color in a white-dominated society.

However well intentioned the coaches or players are, these few athletes are often tokenized, forced to serve as ambassadors of their race or forced to educate their white teammates. Lena Stevens shares her experience as a Black woman on the predominantly white women’s volleyball team at Vassar: “Islanded. That is how it felt to be the only Black woman on my team. I was oceans away from everyone and I couldn’t bridge the gap no matter how hard I tried.

As a team, we ate dinner together every night and lifted weights together every morning. We laughed, cried, screamed and cheered together. Even with my name on the roster and a jersey on my back, I felt so out of place. To this day, I have a difficult time identifying why I felt so alone. I

“Islanded. That is how it felt to be the only Black woman on my team. I was oceans away from everyone and I couldn’t bridge the gap no matter how hard I tried." was loved and valued by almost everyone, and still I spent six-hour bus rides sitting by myself, racking my brain for ways to make myself more likable, more palatable, more wanted.

My first year was the hardest. I have an anxiety disorder, which I hadn’t quite realized as a freshman. Being in social settings and unfamiliar environments gave way to a paralyzing fear that inhibited my ability to create meaningful relationships. ‘Fake it till you make it’ was my motto. So everyday before practice, I’d lace up my shoes and put a smile on. I cheered until my throat bled, clapped until my hands were red and suppressed every pang of profound loneliness till I was absolutely numb. Looking back now, I think I was trying to provide others with the comfort and support that I felt I was lacking. If I could make sure that

no one else felt as lonely as I did, that was enough.

The second semester of my freshman year, tragedy laid waste to my mental health. I didn’t tell anyone on the team exactly what was going on. It took everything I had to force myself to go to practice, and it brought me to tears on more than one occasion. To make matters worse, one of my teammates obviously did not like me. I conditioned myself not to react to her comments, and I refused to speak up because I was petrified of being labeled as a confrontational Black woman. Over time, things got worse, and I wanted to quit. Other teammates had noticed that she was rude to me, and I imagine coaches did as well, but no one ever asked if I was okay. No one ever stood up for me, not that I saw.

Later, one of my teammates told me that they had asked her why she didn’t like me.

Her response was that I was confrontational. Hearing this, I feel defeated. I knew that no matter what I did, no matter how I censored myself, I was going to be perceived as an angry Black woman.

By my sophomore year, I had found communities that felt like home—better than home even, as I had always felt lonely as the only Black person in my family.

I recognized the importance of acting with self-preservation and put more effort into relationships and orgs outside of athletics. On multiple occasions teammates and coaches asked me where athletics fell on my list of priorities. I spoke candidly about how important it was for me to invest time in identity orgs and other campus activities. Those questions brought on feelings of guilt and shame. I worried that I was neglecting my team by embracing a community of BIPOC students who could relate to my feelings of isolation.

After my second season, I quit. Remorse and anxiety made me second-guess myself, but I know now that I made the right decision. My quality of life and mental health have improved substantially since I left athletics, but even after everything, I am incredibly grateful for the relationships I formed while on the team.

There is great potential to cause unintentional harm to students of color, but current athletes have the opportunity to provide much needed love and support to their BIPOC teammates and peers. Vassar is not yet a safe and healthy environment for POC, especially those who are in the LGBTQIA community, and that is something that absolutely must change.

If you’re on a sports team, consider asking your teammates of color how you might better support them, acknowledge your privilege and make space for their voices to be heard. It is imperative that we speak candidly about race, sexuality, gender, intersectionality and lack of diversity within athletics. Failing to have these conversations and acknowledge harm done perpetuates a cycle of suffering. If we are going to see any change, we need to be receptive to criticism and listen to those whose voices we have suppressed.”

Engagement Beyond Athletics Vassar Athletics is dangerously insular.

Many student-athletes engage predominantly with teammates and members of other sports teams, the overwhelming majority of whom are white and cisgender. Lack of exposure to students outside of athletics makes it easy for athletes to overlook the impact of their actions on marginalized communities within Vassar.

“Marginalized” is a word frequently heard around campus, so much so that we often forget what it actually means. In the words

of Abrianna Harris ’21, “To be marginalized is to be forced into periphery, to be situated discursively in a no man's land.” Individuals in these communities are pushed into the outskirts, so that their very existence is only acknowledged as an afterthought, if at all. It is impossible to provide care for those

sity and inclusion. We would like to conclude with a few questions for Vassar students and the administration.

Why is the administration claiming that Title IX policy prevents more from being done to protect survivors when our fellow institutions such as Amherst College have

"Vassar Athletics is dangerously insular.

Many student-athletes engage predominantly with teammates and members of other sports teams, the overwhelming majority of whom are white and cisgender. Lack of exposure to students outside of athletics makes it easy for athletes to overlook the impact of their actions on marginalized communities within Vassar."

that hardly cross our minds at all, and Vassar Athletics has perpetuated a culture of willful blindness that makes it so easy for athletes, particularly cisgender white athletes, to enact harm upon their BIPOC and LGBTQIA peers.

One of the few occasions where athletes engage with the larger student body is at parties. @VassarSurvivors has shown that parties hosted by sports teams regularly give rise to sexual misconduct, and that many athletes have acted and continue to act in predatory ways at social events.

There is no question why students have been extremely critical of Vassar Athletics, given the ways in which the department has perpetuated a culture of violence and complacency. According to the NCAA, it is the responsibility of SAAC (Student-Athlete Advisory Committee) to promote communication between the athletics administration and student-athletes, build a sense of community within athletics and much more. Given their role, SAAC should be an exceptional resource for those who have struggled to find community within athletics and those who have been wronged by members of the department. However, SAAC is a predominantly white group of students, some of whom have expressed homophobic, transphobic and racist sentiments. Although many of these things may have been said without malicious intent, how can we expect those who have been harmed to look to those who have hurt them for comfort and support?

The Athletics Department has failed to address harmful patterns of behavior and failed to speak candidly about prejudice and lack of diversity. These errors have made it so that athletes and staff can navigate their entire careers without ever acknowledging their inherent biases and the impact that their privilege has on their peers. Athletes and staff, I ask you to recognize that your silence does not protect anyone. In fact, it has and will continue to cause harm within Vassar Athletics and the campus at large if we do not make it a point to change.

Conclusion As we have all seen, there are serious issues surrounding the culture and policies of Vassar Athletics, particularly when it comes to sexual assault and lack of diver-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

shown that this is not the case?

How can we use the structure of athletic teams to create a system which holds its members accountable instead of protecting and privileging them?

What role can coaches play in this system? What about fellow teammates?

How can we claim to be a progressive and diverse school when we are actually a PWI trending in the wrong direction?

What does it say about the priorities of our administration that demographic data clearly showing unsettling disparities has been available, yet unanalyzed for years?

Why is there so little emphasis on athletics interacting and engaging with the greater Vassar community?

What can you personally do to ensure athletes and all students of color feel welcome at Vassar?

What can you do to actively work against systems and cultures of harm?

We each have a role to play, and we have ignored the problem for far too long. It’s time to make a change. To the athletic department specifically: we are asking you to make an accountability statement recognizing the role you have played in allowing this harmful culture to form, because only then can an earnest effort to create a safer community begin.

"We each have a role to play, and we have ignored the problem for far too long. It’s time to make a change."

This article is the fourth and final installment on community and institutional failures within the Vassar athletics department. Click here to read the full version of this piece.

September 24, 2020

SPORTS

Page 15

Statistical Chatter: Qualifying the value of NFL head coaches Jonas Trostle

T

Opinions Editor

here have been 60 National Football League head coaches since 2014. Considering 28 of them have had to seek different employment in the intervening years, we might ask: How can we judge a head coach to be good or not?

In my attempt to tackle this question, I used two multilevel Bayesian models, one with 60 varying intercepts for rushing and another with 60 varying intercepts and 60 varying slopes for passing. The end goal was to provide a very rough approximation of the value of each head coach. I decided to use the multilevel technique because it provided an apt middle ground between creating a separate model for each coach and putting them all into the same model without accounting for the variation between them—the varying slopes and intercepts allowed me to adjust for this. The first model was used to produce the average expected points added (EPA) from a running play under each head coach, with no extra variables controlling for running back skill, because of its minimal effect. The second model examined the average expected points added from a pass play, but with a wrinkle: Some head coaches have better quarterbacks. So, how do we mitigate the effect of better quarterback play when we really want to look at coaching? One method, which I use in this analysis, is to condition on some proxy of quarterback skill so that its effect on our head coach output is dampened. The most broadly useful proxy for quarterback skill is completion percentage over expectation (CPOE), which measures how good a quarterback is at completing passes compared to average after taking into account things like pass length. In using this measure, we have to make two assumptions: one, if a quarterback’s epa is different than what cpoe would predict, that difference is wholly attributable to the play design (and thus the coach), and two, play design has no effect on cpoe. These are both wrong (wide receiver skill may explain some of the difference and plays can be designed to have wide open receivers), but they are useful enough so long as we go in with the understanding that we are not perfectly eliminating quarterback skill, and that some elements of play design may not be captured.

Combining the outputs of the two models, we get the above chart. On the vertical axis is points per play pass epa, and on the hori-

Jonas Trostle/The Miscellany News. zontal is per play rush epa. The higher up a coach is, the better passing efficiency they have had during their tenure(s); the further to the right, the better the rushing efficiency.

Top right is good at both, bottom left is bad at both. Notice the entire horizontal axis is negative; rushing, except in particular circumstances, is less efficient than passing.

Turning to some of the labeled points in the upper right rectangle, we have a healthy mix of the surprising, interesting and expected. At the very top is the Rams’ Sean McVay, the “whiz” who, after being hired for the 2017 season, crafted some of the NFL’s best offenses, with Jared Goff and Todd Gurley as the focal points. Goff is average to below-average when it comes to completing passes, and Gurley was supplanted by C.J. Anderson and later cut, so it’s no surprise to see McVay take the top spot after making two mediocre players look like stars.

Next to McVay is Chiefs’ head coach Andy Reid, who earns an unsurprising spot for a known offensive guru, but it’s certainly higher than expected if you think that Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the league.

Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay. Courtesy of The 621st Contingency Response Wing via Wikimedia Commons.

Take a moment to ponder what it would look like if he were instead a Falcon, and Matt Ryan was starting for Kansas City. Would Ryan be the one coming off a Super Bowl victory just a year after a historic 2018 season?

Rounding out our top-right corner trio is Bill Belichick. Of the three, he’s the hardest to separate from his quarterback. Goff spent

"Turning to some of the labeled points in the upper right rectangle, we have a healthy mix of the surprising, interesting and expected." a season without McVay, and it was awful; Reid had Alex Smith and Chase Daniels before Mahomes; but Belichick, outside of 21 games since 2001, has only had Tom Brady.

However, if we judge Brady on how well he would have performed based on his accuracy alone, we can pretty safely say that he was buoyed substantially by the system around him, at least since 2014.

The rushing efficiency of these coaches is interesting in another aspect. If we now include Sean Payton and Jason Garret, we can see that these five are situated pretty closely horizontally. What’s obscured is how these teams got there. McVay is the most unique, since his rushing efficiency comes from running into light boxes and using his receivers as additional ball carriers. Reid has also shown a tendency to put his runners in the best position, while also having had the privilege of working with Jamal Charles, one of the most efficient running backs of this generation. Garret, Belichick and Payton all share a similar nexus for why they rush efficiently: quarterback sneaks. Quarterback sneaks, while rare, usually occur at the high-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

est leverage moments when it comes to EPA: third and fourth and short or on the goaline.

This means that they can greatly influence the overall efficiency. Brady, Brees and Romo were all masters of this art, and Dak Prescott has done well enough too. Coupled with very strong offensive lines, it’s no wonder that their efficiency was so much higher than average.

Before turning to the poster boy for bad coaches, we should ask ourselves why Dan Quinn, a defensive-minded coach from Pete Carroll’s tree, is so high in pass efficiency.

The answer can be found immediately to the right of Quinn. Kyle Shanahan is currently doing wonders for the 49ers offense, but before he was head coach there, he was the offensive coordinator under Quinn in Atlanta.

It seems far off now, but there was a point in time where Kyle Shanahan stood on the sideline and watched Julio Jones stride into the endzone to put the Falcons up 28-3 in the Super Bowl. This does highlight a problem with this chart of head coaches, as it’s impossible to separate them from their offensive coordinators, but over time successful coordinators drift to other teams and their effect is mitigated.

We won’t dwell too long in the basement of disappointment, but we need to talk about Jets Head Coach Adam Gase. There are 32 NFL head coaches, and somehow Gase is still one of them. His tenure with the Jets has not been easy, with a string of subpar quarterbacks and oft-injured first round pick Sam Darnold. Despite the odds, however, the bad quarterbacks under Gase have played worse than would be expected given their natural abilities. And not a little worse either, but much, much worse. Ryan Tannehill, who spent time languishing under Gase in Miami, only bloomed once he went to Tennessee. To fully nail in this point, going from Gase to average is as big of an improvement as going from average to someone like McVay or Reid, the aforementioned offensive masterminds.

Once again, I stress that this is not a perfect way to evaluate head coaches. But the fact that it broadly matches my intuition and general consensus lends some weight to its evaluations. This multilevel model is only a starting point, but it allows us to better quantify in what ways coaches are different and what makes a good coach good.

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September 24, 2020

Sports, seasons and birthdays prompt writer melodrama Dean Kopitsky

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Sports Editor

here are two birthday boys that I’d like to celebrate this week. I’ll start with the youngest of the pair because he did something spectacular last Saturday.

You have probably never heard of the cyclist from the tiny village of Komenda, Slovenia— let me acquaint you. Tadej Pogačar is a professional bike racer for the United Arab Emirates team. Yes, the UAE has its own team. No, this isn’t the Olympics. Professional cycling is just funny that way.

Pogačar is young and phenomenal. At the age of 20, he won the tour of California, and last year he became the very youngest rider since 1974 to win a Grand Tour, Spain’s La Vuelta. Despite his rising star, Pogačar is a domestique in grand tours, the venerable worker bee that grinds away in order to keep the team’s top rider safe and at the head of the race. In this year’s Tour de France, which started in September after a two month delay due to the pandemic, Pogačar auspiciously strayed from the team plan. His team leader was Fabio Aru, but after a week of racing, Pogačar made clear he was the best rider on the squad as he cemented himself in the top 10 of the Tour’s general classification.

At the end of stage 19, Tadej Pogačar was only 57 seconds behind the lead of the overall classification, Primož Roglič, a fellow Slovenian —and everyone’s favorite at the beginning of the Tour. Roglič’s team, Jumbo Visma, had mastered the front of the peloton. But in the penultimate stage, an individual time trial, Roglič didn’t have his team. On the roads and alone, Pogačar did more than make up for the time difference. He eclipsed it, and then put another 59 seconds between himself and

Roglič. The next day, he rode with champagne in hand and the Mailout Jeune on back, and the day after that, Sept. 21, he turned 22. The youngest rider to win the Tour de France since 1904, the year after the inaugural tour.

I had never heard of Primož Roglič or Tadej Pogačar before stage one. In fact, I took a seven-year break from professional cycling after the Lance Armstrong doping revelations. The self-destruction of my idol left a pit of indifference where boyhood love once dwelled. Maybe it was out of quaint interest in a Tour in September, maybe it was out of cosmic beckoning, but I watched the Tour from start to finish this year (although it was probably because my family just ditched cable for online TV service that lets you reverse and fast forward at any time). Either way, I’m happy about it.

I have been listening to Phil Liggett, Bob Roll and Paul Sherwin narrate men riding their bikes through France since before I was a zygote. The whole crew’s interplay, a venerable three-man weave of adoring commentary, will rattle around my auditory cortex until I am senile, I am sure. There isn’t a voice that makes the hairs of my nostalgia stand up like Liggett waxing poetic about how cycling really is as beautiful as the French countryside, and how this and that were the first time since then and before. Thankfully, they will narrate next year’s tour, which I am already thinking about.

The other birthday boy I’d like to toast here is Roger Angell, the esteemed sportswriter who turned 100 years old on Saturday, Sept. 19.

To welcome in his second century, the “New Yorker” republished some of his best essays and articles, and on the same lazy Saturday afternoon I watched Pogačar take yellow, I read up on Rog to celebrate his next trip around

1. fought by the Sith and the Jedi 5. light some on fire and call me a feminist 9. setting of 2001 Odyssey 14. to project outwards or produce 15. indigenous Japanese peoples 16. Army shout or pussy 17. volcano spit 18. street, road 19. relating to the parallel's counterpart 20. drawn over plastic with pre-cut shapes 22. cake levels 23. one official language of India 24. Mediterranean sailing/trading ship 26. card up one's sleeve 29. shoelace holes 33. describing edge with jagged teeth 38. reserved, modest, shy 39. cookie with icing filling 40. a production of absurd situations and events 42. whiteheads, blackheads, pimples

Answer to last week’s puzzle

In a life as long as his, Angell has made the irony of living its own fuel source. In “This Old Man” he dwells on that paradox. “He [death] was often on my mind thirty or forty years ago, I believe, though more of a stranger... I feel I know him almost too well by now.” Angell has tricked the game.

So questions for the birthday boys, what do you want from your next year? Not an easy question. Pogačar achieved the highest point in his profession in his first go around. Angell certainly has every writer’s award under the sun. What are the “events to look forward to?”

That line is the rub of it all. It felt poetic reading and streaming on my sun-baked porch, enjoying the afternoon of Rosh Hashanah— the Jewish new year. This was the same day Angell turned 100 and Pogačar stormed away from Roglič. Rosh Hashanah is for thinking back and looking forward. We ask how we can be better to ourselves and others in the coming year. Sometimes we fulfill our goals and we glow with accomplishment. Sometimes we fail and we fall back into habits we swore to leave behind. Year after year, the elliptical resolution becomes its own source of irony. Like Angell, it keeps us going, mercilessly. Fans of teams from Atlanta, Cleveland and Buffalo know of which I speak.

This year, I was removed from my usual spot on Rosh Hashanah. I missed borrowing my dad’s shoes, pairing my too small blazer with my perpetually wrinkled white Oxford shirt and walking with my parents into services. Then we get brunch with my very extended family, who I have seen grow to be adults and grow to be old. “They were alright,” said my dad about the Zoom services this year.

And you know, that’s OK. “Wait till next year,” the scriptures and the sages tell us.

The Miscellany Crossword

“Sci-fi Classics” ACROSS

the bases. Angell’s language is uniquely inviting. I imagine texting him after reading the piece to say “good stuff, Rog.” His pitter patter proclivities in “This Old Man,” a heartaching piece written in 2014, bounce effortlessly from self-effacing lists of medications to the surreal doldrums of becoming widowed at 93.

“Check me out” he begins the piece, “The top two knuckles of my left hand look as if I’d been worked over by the K.G.B.'' Yes, the old man still has it.

“Baseball caps were different back then,” Angell writes in “Early Innings.” To his memory they were, “smaller and flatter than today’s constructions—more like the workmen’s caps that one saw on every street.” I read that and my heart yearns. As Angell tells it, it isn’t the fuzzy black and white film or the charming names of old timers that give sports of yestere an undue halcyon glow. Things really were different. He lays in further: “Sports were different in my youth … a series of events to look forward to and then to turn over in memory, rather than a huge, omnipresent industry, with its own economics and politics and crushing public relations.” I wonder what he thinks of empty seats and fake crowd noise.

Angell has stayed in the game past his tenth inning, a conscious mistake for someone who knows baseball as well as him. When Casey Stangle, the decorated manager that presided over their mammoth 40s and 50s, reached the ripe age of 75, the New York Yankees fired him. “I’ll never make the mistake of being 75 again,” he said. He also said, “Most of the people my age is dead,” which is true but unfair.

Some people his age are president. Too old for baseball, but not too old for life—and to think people like Angell have told us those are one and the same.

by Frank

43. to cheat someone, quick removal of bandaid 45. malady or disease 47. fighting...stars...galactica..?

48. snow sport 49. brutal, severe 52. root of 'illicit' 57. 6th letter of Greek alphabet, plural 60. series of columns 63. mountain spinach 64. mature female reproductive cell 65. twirl, twist 66. specialized or specific 67. device that administers electrical nerve therapy 68. Greek god of love 69. to come into 70. a Star walk with Kirk and Spock 71. first word in TARDIS

DOWN 1. language of Wales 2. prolific violin makers of the likes of Guarneri and Stradivari 3. -dell, Elven river utopia 4. post sitting 5. home to Uluwatu Temple 6. Iranian currency 7. addition or joined space to a main building 8. velvety leather 9. sleep, rest 10. cop 11. first English letter and number 12. to burn, scorch, blacken 13. listening organs 21. Italian goodbye 25. to decorate 27. funds of an institution 28. estimated time of arrival

30. Italian for 'light' 31. sea eagles 32. graphic or golf, plural 33. smallest Slavic-speaking group in Europe 34. solo operatic song 35. sobbed, cried 36. consequence of too many sweets 37. abbreviation for 60 minute periods 41. Vassar's tech help 44. streaker's friend who doesn't run 46. clay oven

50. Travis, Michael, Montgomery 51. to linger, loiter, levitate 53. separate smaller image within larger image 54. delicious juice of the sun 55. nonsensical figure of speech 56. stressed, rigid 57. a defined area or region 58. archaic name for Ireland 59. discretion or social sensitivity 61. moon 62. Russia's seventh largest city