The Miscellany News
Volume CXLIX | Issue 11
December 8, 2016
Since 1866 | miscellanynews.org
VCVI splits sides at finale
Trigger warnings questioned
Andrea Yang
Emily Sayer
Reporter
n the night of Dec. 2, student comedy troupe Vassar Improv presented their last show of the fall semester. The event’s description read, “For 99 Nights of improv by the Class of ’99. We have 99 nights left for improvising.” As to the idea for the show, Co-President Albert Muzquiz ’17 acknowledged, “[It] was partially dedicated to the seniors like myself, maybe we thought that we could confuse the seniors into coming to our show instead of the actual 99 Nights event.” Co-President Carinn Candelaria ’18 jokingly admitted, “The title is mostly silliness and a little bit capitalizing on an event probably more popular than ours.” The show carried special meanings to each and every member of the group. As the last event they will collaboratively perform, Muzquiz dedicated a warm farewell speech to Candelaria at the end of the show. Muzquiz said of their relationship through the org and friendship, “Carinn and I have been in this group together since the beginning. I didn’t get into improv my freshman year, but they convinced me to re-audition as a sophomore (the same year we took Carinn). I’m so grateful I re-auditioned, I’m so grateful for what she’s taught me and I See IMPROV on page 7
Features Editor
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n Friday, Dec. 2, the Vassar Conservative Libertarian Union hosted a discussion in Rockefeller Hall on trigger warnings and their implications for free speech. Before the presentation began, Treasurer of the VCLU Pietro Geraci ’18 gestured to a stack of pocket constitutions piled at the front of the room and recommended that all in attendance pick one up, either to reference over the course of the conversation or perhaps in other crusades on the First Amendment. Geraci said of the event, “The main talking points centered around trigger At each event in the “We Got You, Too” discussion series, the student organizers handed out buttons and had warnings, safe spaces and their impact attendees write their names on paper hearts. Organizer Tamar Ballard ’19 hopes to eventually display all the hearts. on free speech. The argument was, ‘Does it hinder it, does it promote it?’ It was a very healthy discussion.” The conversation was facilitated by President of the Long Island University Laurel Hennen Vigil process, last week dorm house teams organized by the Noyes House Team CW Post Young Americans for Liberty News Editor continued August’s “We Got You” at the start of the semester, was pri- chapter and YAL New York State Chair t Vassar—an institution founded discussion with “We Got You, Too,” a marily focused on the experiences Pooja Bachani. by and for (and in many ways, series of six conversations about as- of students of color on campus. NoyBachani screened a video clip lamstill dominated by) the wealthy, white, pects of identity such as race, gender, es Student Fellow and host of both basting the behavior of the proponents able-bodied and cisgender—students class/socioeconomic status, ability, events Tamar Ballard ’19 explained of trigger warnings at Brown University, who fall outside these categories of- sexuality and religion. The talks will the rationale for creating a new series: which has come to symbolize the free ten need to make a considerable ef- culminate with a dinner at 6 p.m. on “Talking to people who have had the speech debate for institutions of higher fort to find others who understand Sunday, Dec. 11 in the Aula. same experiences as you and who can learning. their experiences. To help ease this The original “We Got You” event, See WE GOT YOU on page 4 See VCLU on page 7 Laurel Hennen Vigil/The Miscellany News
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Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY
Students broaden identity talks A
Drama Dept. modernizes classic Swim and Dive thrive in League Championships A Elena Schultz Senior Editor
Fiona MacLeod Guest Reporter
T
Courtesy of Leo Hilton
lthough “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” remains an unwavering staple to the theatrical canon after four centuries, the Experimental Theater was undaunted in its quest to uniquely reinterpret the classic play in nearly every way imaginable. Directed by Christopher Grabowski, Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” was presented to members of the Drama Department in a hidden part of the Martel Theater from Dec. 1 to 3. Designed for a limited audience, the play began as a small crowd of people were led into the main stage of the Martel—the props were sparse, a lighting crew was in plain sight and, most notably, the majority of the stage itself had been removed, revealing an unlit pit that seemed to descend indefinitely. While the story was told through the original text, nothing else about the production was traditional: audience members were quickly roused from their seats and led through a hallway, in which another scene was performed, and were then brought to the “trap room,” or the space underneath the stage, where the rest of the production took place. Mimicking the original story in which characters escape to a magical forest, the trap room felt like an alternate reality in which magic might really exist. Cast member Jacqui Anders ’19 elaborated, saying, “The most See MIDSUMMER on page 15
Pictured above is Emily Burke ’18 in the role of the fairy queen Titania in the Drama Department’s production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
Inside this issue
4
NEWS
Professor’s oration reveals fugitive slave situation
9
Vassar fashion culture’s effects can be harmful, OPINIONS complex
his past Saturday, Dec. 3, both the men and women of Vassar’s swimming and diving program ventured to Rochester, NY to compete in the Liberty League Championships. The men held a constant ranking from their performance last year and finished in sixth place, while the women took home seventh place. During the opening session on Friday, the men finished sixth out of nine teams after winning 167 points altogether. These points were accrued by a multitude of the Brewers. “Everyone had at least one solid performance of which they can be proud of,” shared Head Coach Lisl Prater-Lee, who has been leading the Brewers since 1993. The men’s team started off by finishing in sixth place in the 200-yard freestyle relay, with participation from senior Anthony Walker, junior Jonah Strand, sophomore Ian LaBash and freshman Matthew Imiolek. “We were very happy about our 200-yard freestyle relay race,” relayed Strand. “We all finished close to our best splits in the relay.” This crew embodied much experience and talent from upperclassmen Walker and Strand. Heading into the championships, Strand was ranked third in the Liberty League and 62nd in the nation for the 100-yard breaststroke, with a time of 59.49. Meanwhile, Walker was ranked
19 SPORTS
in the top six places of three different swimming events. He was ranked third in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 53.19 and second in the 200yard butterfly with 1:58.73. A time of 2:02.13 in the individual medley ranked him sixth in the Liberty League. Both Strand and Walker competed and earned success in the 200-yard individual medleys, finishing in the top 11 spots. Strand finished with a season best of 2:00.21, which earned sixth place and 24 points for the Brewers. A bit over two seconds behind Strand, Walker completed the race in 2:02.35. Coming in 11th place, he snagged 16 points for the team, which, combined with Strand’s, totaled up to 40 Vassar points. In the individual medleys, freshman Jordan Kalina finished in 13th place with his best time on the season thus far, 5:01.40. A point from LaBash, who earned a time of 5:10.29, joined the 14 points earned from this performance. The Brewers next placed in sixth in the last relay of the session, the 400yard medley, as senior Chris Cerutti, sophomore Lukas Harries, Strand and Walker finished with a time of 3:56.64. These impressive finishes accumulated major points for the squad and granted Vassar a sixth-place finish for day one. Though the Vassar men had impressive performances in the followSee DIVING on page 19
Athletic admissions raise student suspicions
The Miscellany News
Page 2
December 8, 2016
Editor-in-Chief Rhys Johnson
Senior Editors Emma Jones Elena Schultz
Contributing Editor Yifan Wang
Courtesy of Claire Harper
Pictured is the view from Claire Harper’s guest house in Varanasi, India, overlooking the Ganges River. Harper traveled from New Delhi to Varanasi with her program to learn about the city’s religious history and the Ganges. To read more about Claire’s adventures, visit farandaway.miscellanynews.org!
The Miscellany News 8
December
Thursday
Student Theater Gala
6:00pm | Villard Room | Philaletheis
Open Women’s Soccer
6:00pm | Kenyon Hall Gymnasium | Athletics
Contrast Fall Launch Party 7:00pm | Rose Parlor | Contrast
Habitat for Humanity Fall Fundraiser 8:00pm | College Center 223 | Habitat for Humanity
Measure 4 Moms
8:00pm | Mug | Measure 4 Measure
Camerata Winter Concert 8:00pm | Skinner Thekla 400 | Camerata
BAM Presents: final eggBAMs 10:00pm | Rocky 200 | BAM
Weekender_ 9
December
Friday
Making the Most of Your Winter Break 12:00pm | Rocky 200 | CDO
Garden Party
2:00pm | Rocky 200 | Home Brewed
Polar Bearcapella
5:30pm | Rocky 200 | AirCappella
Winter Folk Dance and Music Festival
10
December
Saturday
Female Empowerment HipHop Workshop 6:00pm | UpC | African Students Union
UJIMA Winter Showcase
11
December
Sunday
We Got You Too! Dinner 6:00pm | Aula | Noyes House
Vassar Devils Final Concert
7:30pm | Rocky 200 |Vassar Devils
7:00pm | Villard Room | UJIMA: A Groove Society
News Laurel Hennen Vigil Features Emily Sayer Opinions Nick Barone Humor and Satire Evelyn Frick Arts Noah Purdy Patrick Tanella Sports Olivia O’Loughlin Design Talya Phelps Charlotte VarcoeWolfson Online Kelsey Quinn Copy Laila Volpe Assistant Copy Assistant Social Media Web Designer Web Master
Claire Baker Hannah Nice George Witteman Andy Carrera
Reporters Sasha Gopalakrishnan Meg Howell Kaitlin Prado Clark Xu Andrea Yang Columnists Jimmy Christon Jesser Horowitz Steven Park Kirk Testa Design Scarlett Neuberger Maya Sterling Yoav Yaron Copy James Bonanno Gabriela Calderon Leah Cates Diana Henry Sumiko Neary Jessica Roden Laura Wigginton
HEL Sketch Comedy Show 8:00pm | Sanders 212 | Happily Ever Laughter
6:00pm | Aula | ENST Dept.
Tappy Holidays
8:00pm | UpC | Vassar on Tap
Indecent Exposure Sketch Show
8:00pm | Sanders 212 | Indecent Exposure
Big Night In Hosts De-Stress Craft Night
8:00pm | College Center 223 | Big Night In
Beauty and the Greeks
Courtesy of Anna Emy
8:00pm | Rocky 200 | Beauty and the Beats
Indecent Exposure Comes Out
8:00pm | Sanders 212 | Indecent Exposure
Vastards Final Concert
10:00pm | Rocky 200 | Vastards
Vassar on Tap performs at Tappy Holidays 2015 in the Villard Room. This Friday, 50 tap dancers will be accompanied by a live jazz band in UpC.
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
CORRECTION POLICY The Miscellany News will only corrections for any misquotes, resentations or factual errors for ticle within the semester it is
accept misrepan arprinted.
December 8, 2016
NEWS
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Hiking hobbyist turned wilderness lobbyist visits Vassar Eilis Donohue
Outgoing News Editor
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ness ethic,” an understanding for the intrinsic value of untamed land. He decided then that the next stage of his dedication to the outdoors would be as an active protector of the remaining wilderness in New York. He and some like-minded friends founded the nonprofit Adirondack Wilderness Advocates, and their current mission is to protect the Boreas Pond tract. The area is the largest and highest elevation wetland ecosystem in the state of New York, and home to a variety of endangered species, but the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) has proposed expanding the surrounding area for recreation use. They offer four options, with varying levels of access to the pond, but Socash and his associates are advocating for the consideration of a full wilderness option, which would allow no vehicle access to the delicate pond habitat. On Dec. 6 the APA hosted the penultimate public hearing in a series of eight around the state, in the Bear Mountain Inn in Tomkins Cove. Citizens crowded the room to hear APA officials explain the land classification plans for the Boreas Pond
Eilis Donohue/The Miscellany News
ust a few hours north of Poughkeepsie lies the Adirondack Park, the largest protected area in the lower 48 states and larger than the Yellowstone, Glacier, Everglades and Grand Canyon National Parks combined. That illusion of abundant wilderness is negated by the fact that less than 3 percent of the Lower 48 is classified as a protected wilderness area. The rest of the contiguous United States is crisscrossed and carved by roads and freeways, and quartered neatly into suburban yards and city blocks. Wilderness advocate, New York native and hiker extraordinaire Tyler Socash came to Vassar on Dec. 5 as part of a tour of several colleges around the state, where he has been speaking about how his passion for outdoor adventure has recently developed into an ardence for wilderness protection. He is spreading the word about an opportunity to help save Boreas Pond, one of the most critical ecosystems in the Adirondacks, which is currently under threat of human development. Socash hails from the Adirondacks, where his love of the outdoors began. “I hope to explain how I developed a wilderness ethic for the backcountry because I grew up in a beautiful place,” he remarked. “Aldo Leopold said, ‘You can only develop a land ethic if you have a love for location.’” After graduating college, Socash found his passion as a hiking guide, and spent two years completing challenges such as hiking all 46 peaks higher than 4,000 feet. “If you can discover where your attributes and your passions align, you’re in your element and you should pursue that professionally, because then it’ll never feel like work,” he urged. Then he discovered a love for thru-hiking; “I developed a reckless sense of confidence which changed me forever,” Socash described. Eventually, after working a desk job for a few years, he decided he needed to return to the wilderness and embarked on a great adventure: thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), the Te Araroa (TA) Trail in New Zealand, and the Appalachian Trail (AT), a total of 6,600 miles, in just one year, a feat that had
not been accomplished to date. He impressed the crowd on Monday with tales of his adventures, his struggles and joys, and the fantastic fellow thru-hikers he befriended—who eventually convinced him to spend an extra month on the trail, making the total journey 13 months, which, Socash assured, he does not regret. Some of the trails were more remote than others, but the AT was the most shocking because of the through road built along the entire range. “You are never out of earshot of the hum of civilization, and this stood in stark contrast to the TA and the Pacific Crest Trail,” he said. “Let me put it into perspective: you cross a road every four miles when you walk the Appalachian Trail, on average. On the Pacific Crest Trail, which is 2,650 miles long, you walk through four towns.” Another unpleasant surprise awaited him at the end of his odyssey. “I returned to the Adirondacks deeply disturbed because I found them overused,” Socash lamented. The woods were littered with waste, due to an increase in hikers in recent years combined with a lack of what Socash calls “wilder-
Dylan Finley ’17, Tyler Socash, Hailey Steichen ’17 and Emily Burke ’18 attended a public hearing by the Adirondack Park Agency to determine the fate of the Boreas Pond tract.
tract, and to offer their thoughts on the matter. Several Vassar students who had been inspired by Socash’s talk the night before accompanied him to the hearing, and took the stage to endorse the wilderness option. Vassar Outing Club (VOC) Co-President Hailey Steichen ’17 stated, “I’m from New Mexico, so you can imagine when I came up here for college and I got to visit the Adirondack Park, I was blown away by the pristine waters, the beautiful leaves, and this very unique, beautiful area that you all have here. I believe that having motorized access to [the pond] would eliminate a lot of these magical things.” She concluded, “I think that this area, the high wetland complex, especially needs to be preserved and protected.” Other speakers were more concerned with access to the pond, particularly those who are elderly or physically unable to access the high elevation area without motorized vehicles. Many of these citizens remember passing time by the pond in their youth, or enjoy using snowmobiles in the area, and argued for an option that would include at least partial road access to the pond. However, refuted VOC Co-President Emily Burke ’18, “There are plenty of places to snowmobile, over 8,000 miles in NY state alone. But Boreas Pond is the only wetland of its kind.” Wilderness advocates reasoned that the pond should be protected for its value as an ecosystem as well as for its serenity and aesthetic beauty. “It’s an important ecological community and it’s going to become ever-increasingly important as climate change affects the regional area. We’re going to see flora and fauna migrate to higher latitudes and higher altitudes, and places like this that are on high elevation are going to become more important ecological communities,” explained Dylan Finley ’17. The fate of the Boreas Pond tract will be decided at the end of the month. Anyone who still wishes to help protect it can write to the APA at this address before Dec. 30: classificationcomments[at] apa.ny.gov. More information about the Boreas Pond and its importance can be found on the Adirondacks Wilderness Advocate Facebook page.
#OurVassar fundraiser nets Panelists discuss prevalence over $200K in 24 hours of region’s food insecurity Meg Howell Reporter
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n Nov. 29, Vassar College’s Office of Alumnae/i Affairs and Development (OAAD) launched #OurVassar on the collegiate crowdfunding website Give Campus. The fundraiser was created in the spirit of Giving Tuesday, a hashtag activist movement whose mission of charity serves to counteract the consumerism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Igniting morale was an anonymous donor who pledged to give $100,000 under the condition that at least 1,000 people contribute at least $1 to the Vassar Fund, whose projects range from scholarships to campus preservation initiatives. 24 hours after the event had been announced, on Nov. 30, 1,370 people—including the aforementioned anonymous donor—had given $213,770. In an email, OAAD Director of Development Communications Bridget Hollenback commented, “We chose the hashtag #OurVassar, because all of our constituencies, from alums to parents to students, are truly the people that make our college what it is. The success of the campaign, which harnessed the power of social media, is evidence that many people feel the same and wanted to show their support for the Vassar community.” Explaining why the majority of Vassar fundraisers deemphasize reciprocal forms of revenue generating such as raffles and galas, she continued, “We have found that Vassar’s constituents consistently and generously respond to a ‘pure charity’ approach because they, like we, believe that Vassar is a cause worth giving to, with no quid pro quo needed—unless you count the impact Vassar has had on each donor’s life.” The success of the #OurVassar campaign comes during an uncertain time for donations. Citing statistics taken from the 2016 Voluntary Support for Education survey, The Poughkeepsie Journal recently listed Vassar as one of three Hudson Valley institutions of higher learning that experienced drops in donations. In 2015, donations to Vassar dipped 13.2 percent, generating $35.87 million as opposed to $40.6 million in the previous fiscal
year (The Poughkeepsie Journal, “Donations increase for DCC, SUNY New Paltz,” 1.20.2016). Reactions to the fundraising campaign were as varied as the donation amounts. Associate Dean of the College Edward Pittman said, “I was excited to see the campaign and the positive energy it created about Vassar. I learned about it on Twitter, so it caught my attention. As an alum and an administrator, I was glad to participate. The enthusiasm was contagious and I think [the power of social media was the] contributing factor to the campaign’s success.” While certainly helpful, donations cover only nine percent of operating costs (Vassar and the Economy website, “Budget Overview”). Expressing skepticism over the more volatile long-term success of the Vassar Fund, an economics major who requested anonymity said, “It’s hard to understand how impactful these donations are without understanding the context of past donations.” They went on to allude to Vassar’s insidious financial concerns and unsustainable tuition-discounting, which were brought to the forefront of campus discourse following the publication of Professor of English Don Foster’s May 12, 2016 article in Boilerplate Magazine (“When the Vassar Bubble Pops, Then What?”). Recent tuition hikes, which have made Vassar one of the nation’s most expensive colleges, have not helped alleviate cynicism about fundraising either, as many students graduate with high loans. Speaking on the issue of overburdening students with both high costs and demands for donations, Hollenback said, “We well understand that most students as well as younger alums are not in a position to make a large contribution at this point in their lives, and that loan debt may be a factor [...] That being said, donating a dollar to Vassar costs less than a cup of coffee at the Retreat, And, make no mistake, that single dollar is important to Vassar. The largest single gift to our college in the last campaign came from the combined power of donations to The Vassar Fund, most of which were in the form of small gifts that, together, added up to something very big.”
Clark Xu Reporter
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symptom of rising socioeconomic inequality in America is the emerging gulf between those who always have enough food to eat and those who regularly worry about where their next meal is coming from. The nonprofit organization Humanities New York invited panelists and local community members to share ideas and experiences of the underlying causes and social impact of—as well as possible responses to—food insecurity at the Family Partnership Center in Poughkeepsie on Dec. 6. The United States Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as unreliable access to food in households due to socioeconomic conditions. Vassar Sociology Professor Leonard Nevarez framed the extent of the food insecurity in the local community by elaborating on results of surveys conducted from 2010 to 2012, saying, “An estimated 26 percent of households in the City of Poughkeepsie were food insecure.” Nevarez continued, “That was a survey that was taken four to six years ago...Sadly, we don’t know of any reason to believe that it has gotten better.” Other panelists generally agreed with the results of the survey and described their experience working with households suffering from food insecurity. During her time with the Women, Infant and Children (WIC) program at Hudson River Health Care, Nutrition Educator Bintou Hinds said, “One person who really stayed with me [was a mom whose] husband had been laid-off [and who] was working a minimum wage job.” Hinds had to inform the woman, who had three young children, that her kids were either ineligible for or wouldn’t receive food vouchers for a few weeks. She continued, “The mom crumpled right in front of us. She’s a working mom, she has a lot of pride and as she got up to leave, she mumbled, ‘You’re going to starve my baby.’” Food insecurity can affect all individuals— from families with small children to young people or the elderly—who experience a shortage in personal finances. Scenic Hudson Urban Designer
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
Peter Barnard elaborated, “I was actually extremely food insecure after graduating from college. I was a guy who basically only ate because I worked at a restaurant. I would be working 14 hour days, and a slice of pizza at the end of the day was the highlight of my day ... When food insecurity hits, it catches you completely off-guard.” The shift from local food sources to globalized supply chains and international economy has contributed to food insecurity by raising the cost of and lowering access to nutritious food. From the Benjamin Center of SUNY New Paltz, Senior Research Associate Joshua Simons explained, “When you have somebody who is working poor or impoverished or food-insecure, they’re faced with a decision on how to eat: the way that they stretch their dollar is not toward nutrition but calories. And we have a food system that benefits from that [by selling] calorie-dense and nutritionally void foods [for cheap].” Reversing the trend towards large quantities of low-quality food production by agribusinesses requires a change in government policy and creativity on the part of local farmers. Director of the Local Economics Project Bob Dandrew commented, “Our food system is largely governed by about 20 corporations nationally [subsidized by the government]. They don’t subsidize any of the farmers here at Dutchess County.” In addition to increasing the distribution of food from local farmers, Nubian Directions AmeriCorps Director Mario Johnson reiterated the importance of educating youth to eat healthy and suggested, “One thing that’s fortunate is that we’ve maintained the 22 community gardens throughout the City of Poughkeepsie...What we did is give students the opportunity of connecting to the earth. When the plants started to grow...when [the students] started seeing that and started taking it home, there was a connection there.” Revisiting the stakes of food insecurity, Nevarez concluded, “We have to remember that [poverty] is disproportionate among children. And so they are someone we have to take care of. They are also our future, they have a lot of energy and they have promise.”
NEWS
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December 8, 2016
Slave narrative prompts dialogue on politics of friendship Clark Xu Reporter
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review - a true account that reads as a novel,” 01.16.16). Syedullah was inspired to study Jacobs’ historical narrative by her friendships and close contact with individuals in the prison system. She recounted, “As a sophomore in college, I volunteered for SPACE, which is an acronym for Space in Prison for the Arts and Creative Expression. And we would team up and go inside to medium-security women’s prisons and facilitate creative writing workshops, poetry workshops with them.” Describing her experience in broad strokes, she continued, “I learned very quickly that their experiences and mine were not far apart; the things that really separated us were the privilege that I had gained access to through my education. I learned that separation in society left those without means of protection vulnerable to kinds of violence that I had never seen before, and left those incidents invisible to those with means to avoid them.” Composed of volunteer college students and community fellows from Providence, Rhode Is-
Clark Xu/The Miscellany News
cholars who study society from the perspective of those who have been historically discouraged or blocked from sharing their life experiences in public discussion can transform the familiar landscape of thought and feeling into a new world. Broadening to include the historical narratives of Black women, the Education Department, the Africana Studies Program and other offices presented a lecture on Dec. 1 from political theorist and Visiting Assistant Professor Jasmine Syedullah about the autobiographical fugitive slave narrative of Harriet Jacobs. Syedullah’s lecture concluded the series entitled Centering the Lives of Black Women and Girls, which previously featured social justice educator Sheltreese McCoy, choral singer Ysaÿe Barnwell, science fiction critic Adrienne Brown and children book writer Andrea Pinkney. Discussing the past as a backdrop to social controversies posed by American politics, Syedullah explained, “We’re first introduced to the fugitive justice of Jacobs’ abolitionist politics in the twenty-first chapter of ‘Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl’ written in 1861, the same year that this school was built, or opened. After years spent struggling to ward off unsolicited and aggressive requests for sexual submission from her master, struggles for sexual autonomy, what will eventually require her to struggle for something she calls akin to freedom, Jacobs introduces her readers to her moment of retreat.” In order to elude discovery and recapture, Jacobs hides in the garret to a shed near her grandmother’s house for seven years. Syedullah interpreted Jacobs’ hiding place as an example of how marginalized individuals use institutional weaknesses to survive in the face of hostile dominant ideologies. She elaborated, “The lessons of the fugitive slave narrative of Jacobs challenges us to read modern freedom against itself, as a loophole in and of itself, as a site of both license and liability, a place some live in and some live on. We seek them out in search of a way around that which stands in the way of the only way we know how to live.” Syedullah’s interpretation of Jacobs’ story as one of occupying institutional loopholes offers a strong historical framework for understanding trends in contemporary mass political movements, such as the Black Lives Matter campaign. Chris Dietz ’17 suggested, “Professor Syedullah also brought out elements of her story to do
with resistance that focused on the tension between ‘outright refusal’ and ‘fugitive subversion.’ This difference, embodied in [Jacobs’] story, helped to complicate the dichotomy between a resistance that looks like pure revolution and other actions that are seen as upholding the status quo. This is a nuanced account of resistance that should be helpful for anyone interested in social justice.” In its historical context, Jacobs’ work not only represented a challenge to the denial of literacy and political participation to slaves in captivity, but also advanced feminist and women’s rights issues. As she considered Jacobs’ work in a book review, journalist Victoria Segel wrote, “Harriet Jacobs’s account of her life as a North Carolina slave was one of many narratives printed to further the abolitionist cause. It was remarkable at the time, however, for bearing rare witness to the female experience of slavery, not only highlighting the threat of sexual exploitation but also appealing directly to female readers” (The Guardian, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
In the lecture series “Centering the Lives of Black Women and Girls,” Visiting Assistant Professor of Sociology Jasmine Syedullah discusses the story of escaped slave and author Harriet Jacobs.
land, SPACE operates at the Rhode Island Adult Correctional Institute where volunteers meet with current inmates from the men’s and women’s facilities to plan and conduct creative workshops. The literary production of the program is published biannually as a magazine, the content ranging from memoir and non-fiction essays to plays and poetry. Participants in the program determine the selection of genre as well as the structure and focus of the collaborative sessions (Brown University, “Swearer Center for Public Service,” 2016). Syedullah’s talk and the lecture series as a whole also complemented an interdisciplinary course on issues in contemporary education led by Associate Professor of Education Colette Cann, Associate Professor and Chair of Anthropology Candice Swift, Associate Dean of Students Luis Inoa and Director of Religious and Spiritual Life Samuel Speers. The course combined a wide range of readings with weekly workshops and group projects focused on topics such as race and ethnicity in the classroom. Dietz connected Syedullah’s lecture with the coursework, commenting, “In continuing to focus on issues of race, class and gender with this class, my eyes have continued to be opened to alternative ways of seeing the world, and certainly to realities that I don’t personally experience every day, though I am implicated in them. A set of questions this lecture asked me to grapple with: What did it mean, for example, for white plantation owners to feel ‘natural’ in their dominant position? What did it mean for [Jacobs] and her family to live under slavery? What is the continued legacy of that reality in the present?” Urging her audience to grapple with difficult questions, Syedullah continued, “Meditating on the kind of freedom that Jacobs wrote in defense of those millions of enslaved women still in bondage requires more than a mastery of political theory. It required a less traditionally disciplined approach to the study of freedom, one that drew from the black radical tradition, black feminist theory, student struggles for ethnic studies.” Syedullah concluded, “I am interested in how we can make possible a new politics of friendship, a new practice of the political, a new way of being together in which we can imagine the value of freedom anew, not as an abstract set of ideals that conceal the consequences of our freedoms, but as a practice of mutual respect, restorative justice, reconciliation and repair.”
Student-led discussion series on identity a success WE GOT YOU continued from page 1 relate to you and won’t judge you is really important. So we figured that we would have that same kind of space, but more broad, and have different spaces for different topics, because everybody isn’t just [defined by] race.” She added that the series’ title is a play on words, with the “too” referring to both the expansion of identities discussed as well as the fact that this is the second event of this nature. Both Ballard and Noyes House President and fellow event organizer Takunda Maisva ’19 said that although all the talks went very well, they felt that the discussions on race and class stood out as the true highlights of the series. At both events, students admitted that they felt disoriented when they arrived at Vassar because they suddenly felt like they stood out in a way that they hadn’t before. “People in my [hometown] community were pretty rich, but they weren’t Vassar rich,” said one attendee. Added another, “Vassar kids don’t look like us.” Though 60 percent of current Vassar students receive financial aid, many at the discussion on class felt that it was difficult to find others who understood the experience of growing up in a low-income household. Several had troubles connecting with their fellow group because of the disparity in socioeconomic status, a problem exacerbated by the fact that class is seldom discussed openly at Vassar but is nonetheless made apparent in more insidious ways. One attendee, for instance, brought up how criticism of the All Campus Dining Center can be covertly classist; students from wealthier families have more dining options, as they can afford to eat more meals at on-campus dining centers, like the Retreat, which don’t accept meal swipes. These students also have the op-
tion of frequenting more expensive off-campus restaurants, which often isn’t possible for low-income students. Many of the students in attendance had participated in Transitions, a pre-Orientation program for low-income, first generation and undocumented students. These students said that they found Transitions extremely valuable in helping them adjust to an environment that is very different from the one in which they grew up. Others who qualified for the program, however, said they could not attend because it was financially unfeasible for them to leave a summer job early, a reality they felt the Vassar administration failed to take into consideration. In a similar vein, several attendees felt that although Vassar works very hard to be generous with financial aid, the school doesn’t offer many resources for low-income students, such as subsidies for textbooks, once they’re here. A few also remarked on their annoyance at Vassar’s spending on projects that these students consider more aesthetically pleasing than truly necessary, like the recent construction of the Bridge for Laboratory Sciences—part of the $90 million Integrated Science Commons—or the landscaping of the area that formerly housed the Mudd Chemistry Building. At the discussion on race, students expressed similar feelings about not always fitting in and having to work to find a community that understands the struggles students of color deal with every day. For example, several students connected through their examination of how internalized racism can lead to negative self-image. While some of these students have since come to love their looks—“Color makes the world beautiful,” one attendee declared—others are still in the process of getting to that place of
self-acceptance. The racial identity discussion soon turned to sharing impassioned reactions to the presidential election and especially to Donald Trump’s campaign promise to deport millions of undocumented immigrants. Several students at the event had family members who don’t yet have a green card or who had just gotten their papers in the past few weeks. Attendee Kenji Nikaido ’20 commented on his experience at the event, saying, “I came on a whim, because my friends were coming, but it ended up being a very emotionally [cathartic] experience, especially the talk about the election...I had a lot of pent-up feelings about that. But here, it felt safe to be true to what you’re feeling.” The discussion organizers explicitly stated that the events were not affinity spaces, and all students were encouraged to attend. However, the identities of most in attendance generally aligned with the topic being discussed. Attendee Eugene Lopez-Huerta ’20 commented, “The hardest part is that talks like We Got You are voluntary, and you inevitably have people who come to them over and over again. But you don’t see the kinds of people who might benefit the most from being in a space like this, where [aspects of identity different from their own] are being talked about.” He added, “In such a diverse group of people, I think we have an opportunity—maybe of a lifetime—to listen and share our experiences even if [the topic doesn’t] necessarily pertain to your identity or background.” Maisva noted, “[The expansion of the series to include identities besides race] is really important, because it shows the role that intersectionality plays in the identities of people on this
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
campus.” He added that attending many of the events allowed him to recognize his own privilege. Despite facing the marginalization that comes with being a person of color in our society, for instance, he realized at the discussion on gender that, as a cisgender male, he does benefit from some privileges that others don’t have. Ballard said that while there are no concrete plans to host another “We Got You” next semester, she would like the tradition to continue next fall and hopes that the events have inspired students to have these kinds of discussions in their everyday lives. She commented, “The inherent problem is that people don’t feel comfortable just being in a space and talking. I think once people start getting more acclimated to having these conversations, they won’t feel so much like they’re going to be judged.” Ballard added that education about issues surrounding identity, even if a particular issue doesn’t personally pertain to a student, goes a long way toward making students more comfortable having these types of conversations. Another idea for easing students’ nervousness about discussions of identity and exposing them to other viewpoints is to have more events like this during Freshman Orientation. Lopez-Huerta, who recently joined the Orientation Committee, elaborated, “Vassar is a place that boasts [of having a certain kind] of mindset, where you can be out of your comfort zone and be in a group of people that you wouldn’t have been in back home. But I think it’s also very easy to stay in your comfort zone here. I think Orientation is an important period of time for everyone to challenge that and learn to not be so uncomfortable [exploring different ideas].”
December 8, 2016
FEATURES
Page 5
First generation grad student, alum delves into research Emily Sayer
Features Editor
K
atie Jensen ’09 is currently doing her dissertation at the Univeristy of Texas-Austin. She’s studying the refugee status determination process in Brazil, where she was doing research for the past year in Rio de Janeiro. She accredits her passion for research to her time at Vassar. Q: What are you doing? Where are you living?
Q: How do you feel your Vassar education has affected your life/career?
A: I wouldn’t be pursuing my PhD if it wasn’t for Vassar. Vassar provided me with so many amazing opportunities. The support of the Burnam and Maguire Fellowships provided me with the opportunities to travel to Argentina in order to conduct my own research projects, and to realize that doing field research was something I had a passion for. Without that, I don’t think I would
Courtesy of Katie Jensen
A: I just got back two weeks ago from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I had been living there for the year, but now I’m back in Austin, Texas where I’m finishing up a PhD in Sociology at the University of Texas at Austin. In Rio I was doing my dissertation research. My dissertation is on the refugee status determination process in Brazil. I’m interested in how the asylum process works in practice, and with what consequences for those who apply. In Brazil I was working at a Refugee Center, working with officials and asylum seekers and refugees - speaking in Portuguese, Spanish, English - helping people apply for refugee status, know their rights, apply for travel authorizations, get family reunification, etc. I also interviewed asylum seekers, refugees, civil society actors and state officials to understand the process and the experiences of those who participate in it. But, now I’m back in Austin! And I’m working on analyzing my dissertation data - fieldnotes, interview data, documents– and on writing my dissertation to finish my PhD next year. And, hanging out with my dog (Zoe, a chubby black lab) that I missed so while I was in Rio.
Katie Jensen ’09 just returned from a year in Rio de Janeiro, where she worked at a refugee center with officials, asylum seekers and refugees. Her dissertation is on refugee status determination.
was able to work with different local initiatives and organizations - tutoring at the Poughkeepsie Middle School and as an ESL Teaching Assistant at the Poughkeepsie High School. Above all, I was involved in Rural and Migrant Ministry as the Educational Assistant for the Youth Arts Empowerment Group. That was incredibly formative and transformative for me. It’s an amazing organization and I was so lucky to get to know those kids, spending my Friday nights with them organizing social justice conferences, producing spoken word poetry, painting, chatting, all while eating cheap pizza or Chinese food in Newburgh. I was the selected student representative on the Good Neighbors Committee with the Religious and Spiritual Life Office, which worked with and helped fund Hip Hop Theater. Q: Favorite memory on campus?
A: Wow, just one?! Founder’s Day my senior year? Throwing my senior thesis into the bonfire the night before graduation? Streaking through the quad to the library (do people still do that? I hope so!)? Taking a beer tasting mini-course in the Mug? Runs on the Vassar Farm? How can I choose! Q: What’s next for you?
have thought graduate school was for me. As the first in my family to pursue a graduate degree, I don’t think I would have thought it was a possibility. And it certainly would not have been possible without the coursework and mentoring I got at Vassar. Leslie Offutt was an incredibly supportive and dedicated advisor. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have gotten into graduate school without the wise advice that Katie Hite gave me when I was on the eve of applying. And Joe Nevins’ coursework pushed my thinking, to think critically on a number of issues in ways that continue to this day to affect me theoretically and politically. My Vassar education laid the groundwork for my future, a future that would not have otherwise
been possible for me. Q: What were you involved in at Vassar?
A: I did a BA in Latin American and Latino/a Studies, with a minor in Political Science. I loved my dorm and did a lot to build community in Cushing (as one of the aptly named “Community Fellows”). I would put on the Spot of Tea on Sunday nights for Cushing, and also worked to have a lot of educational programming put on– coordinating with the faculty who lived there at the time. We did a photography exhibit of the US-Mexico Border course, after Joe Nevin’s inaugural course with the Spring Break trip to Arizona-Sonora (then with Sam Speers). We screened Spike Lee’s “When the Levees Broke,” etc. Through the amazing work study program I
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MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
A: Now I have to write my dissertation, and then turn it into a book! I’ll finish up my PhD in Sociology in May 2018, and then I hope to work as a Sociology professor. I want to teach critical race theory, immigration, and qualitative methods. Q: Any words of wisdom for current students?
A: Often the best courses are not necessarily the best because you’re interested in the course material, but because of the professor. Ask around and take classes with those really amazing professors, rather than just based on your interest in the topic. Those will be the ones that will most change you, and that will leave the largest lasting impact. Get off campus when you can, get out of the Vassar bubble, and go get to know Poughkeepsie!
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FEATURES
December 8, 2016
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Call For Papers The Vassar College English Majors’ Committee is proud to announce the launch of the Vassar Critical Journal, a student-run publication sponsored by the English Department that publishes critical works on literary topics from Vassar undergraduate students. The goal of the Journal is to stimulate public intellectual discourse among students on literary topics, to acknowledge the high quality of the written work created by Vassar literature students, and to provide opportunities for Vassar students to learn about the academic publishing process. For the inaugural 2017 issue of the Vassar Critical Journal, the English Majors’ Committee would like to invite the submission of papers on literary topics from all current Vassar students. Students from all disciplines are invited to participate, as long as their work focuses on some literary work or aspect of literature. The papers should be academic in content, style, and tone, and should adhere to MLA guidelines for citation and formatting. In order to encourage the inclusion of underclassmen writers, the Journal will not be accepting full theses. However, thesis chapters which are edited to stand alone are acceptable. Papers will be read and evaluated by a volunteer editorial board from the English Majors’ Committee, under the guidance of English Department faculty. Works will be selected for publication based on the originality of ideas, strength of argument, and effectiveness of academic techniques in the paper. Submission guidelines: All papers should follow MLA style, focus on a work or works of literature or engage theoretical approaches to literature, and should be literary/critical in content, form, and style. Submissions should be at least five pages double-spaced, and no more than 20 pages (excluding Works Cited). All essays must be submitted in English, and any essays that analyze a text in a language other than English should provide translations for quoted material. Each student may submit up to two papers for consideration. All materials should be submitted online via the Vassar Critical Journal website no later than February 20, 2017. For papers that focus more on philosophical ideas than the analysis of literature, we recommend that students submit to the The Vassar College Journal of Philosophy instead. We encourage students focusing on literature relating to Jewish Studies to consider submitting to Neshama, Vassar’s Jewish Studies journal, as well. If you are submitting the same piece to more than one journal, please indicate this on your submission. No identifying information should appear on your document. Members of the The Vassar Critical Journal editorial board may submit their own work for consideration, but the Editor will ensure that any board member’s anonymized submission will be reviewed only by a different member of the board. Visit pages.vassar.edu/VassarCriticalJournal for more information.
December 8, 2016
FEATURES
Page 7
VCLU combats trigger warnings, calls for free speech VCLU continued from page 1
The premise of the video is that trigger warnings are akin to censorship, and as such, are an affront to First Amendment rights. It represents Brown students as unruly, rash and disrespectful. In response to sensitive topics, the video proposes that those who disagree with a subject, speaker or setting abstain from it/them. Addressing these concerns after the video, students delved into the intricacies of censorship, and whether or not a trigger warning truly constitutes censorship. Some noted that trigger warnings already serve the purpose that the video suggested, but that the label itself prepares individuals for the information they’re consuming and then gives them the opportunity to process it. Geraci said, “The general take-away, I would
say, was... a little bit of both. Offensive ideas shouldn’t necessarily be silenced simply because they’re offensive, that’s what we generally agreed on, but by the same token a lot of people [said] that you should still be warned about these things, sensitive topics that could possibly, you know, trigger someone. But, free speech should still be respected.” A phrase quoted in the video, “Education is the antithesis of comfort,” also seemed to resonate with the attendees, yet there was no one in attendance who readily dispelled the trigger warnings-as-coddling myth. It did, however, pave the way for a conversation regarding institutional priorities, rights and obligations. Should private institutions regulate speakers or events brought to campus, even if the motivation is to foster an envi-
Talya Phelps/The Miscellany News
VCLU collaborated with President of LIU CW Post Young Americans for Liberty chapter and YAL NY State Chair to facilitate a discussion on trigger warnings and free speech.
ronment that is both productive and safe? Geraci responded, “I mentioned how we had Marc Theissen at Vassar a few years ago for the VCLU, and [how] people were complaining even before he came that he was Islamophobic and racist... But he was still able to come and give his lecture. You see at some schools, they boo the speaker off the stage, the whole event is canceled... We didn’t have that. The event ran for its full time and people said that was right, that was the correct way to go about it, that he had every right to come here and give a speech, and the students have every right to criticize him for it. That was probably one of the more important things we took away, that offensive ideas shouldn’t be silenced.” When asked about the message that Vassar or any institution sends by hosting a speaker whose actions and beliefs are perceived as toxic by the majority of the community, Geraci replied, “Vassar College is private, I believe in private property rights, I believe that the college can regulate speech and who they bring in—I don’t necessarily agree with it, but they do have that right and I respect it. If we were to bring in a racist, bigoted, or otherwise hateful speaker, does that say that the college itself is racist? I wouldn’t necessarily say so ... maybe if they were brought in by the President’s Office you could make that connection, but if a student org brings them in...” Even though the VCLU is funded by the VSA, Geraci maintains, “That doesn’t necessarily mean that our events are sponsored by the VSA. They can issue a statement saying that [they] don’t agree with this and that [it] conflicts with their viewpoints. I think that would suffice. I wouldn’t say necessarily that the college would take on a racist or hateful image.” He continued. “As far as bringing someone in—I wouldn’t be very inclined to bring in one of those speakers, but say an org brought in such a speaker—I still think there’s an educational benefit to it, because you can go there and debate him, and pry into the inner workings of his or her thinking. You can challenge those ideas, and if they really floun-
der, maybe you’re slowly getting through to them.” Sophomore Sevine Clarey who attended the event voiced similar sentiments with regard to the value of unbridled dialogue. She stated, “My surprise to the outcome of the election made me realize just how isolated I really am and I want to change that. I think it would be a shame if the already existing actions (seen in the Brown students shutting down speakers and censoring articles) were amplified, especially as a response to the election. We really need to discuss this as a population and as a campus.” In defense of his conceptualization of free speech, Geraci added that “silencing opinions” is stifling intellectual development not only at Vassar, but on campuses across the country as well. He believes that monitoring hateful, offensive, or painful speech doesn’t have an impact on violence against minorities, and that language in and of itself isn’t a tool for violence. When prompted on this, he said, “As violence? I would disagree with that. Speech is speech. I mean, words can hurt, but if you’re inciting violence, well now you’re going off of hate speech, and now it’s more than [that]...” In general, the attitude of the discussion was receptive and open. The issues discussed, however, deserve a comprehensive debate that doesn’t involve just the VCLU and select students outside its membership. More students need to recognize the prevalence of opinions on campus that can affect their own wellbeing and education, and for those who already do, it’s crucial that they engage in the dialogue as they’re able and comfortable. Secretary of the VCLU Keon Karimabady ’17 summed up the tenor of the conversation well: “I think it is most important for both sides to realize that whenever we distance ourselves from the perspectives of others we don’t agree with it is easy to demonize them. Dialogue must therefore be about progress first and foremost, never victory or defeat. Our first step as a student body should be to approach dialogue as an opportunity to learn and empathize, not to alienate and shame.”
VCVI strikes a chord, funny bone reflecting on progress IMPROV continued from page 1
listening to each other and expanding on each other’s jokes. Because we obviously never know what the content will be, we need to know the bare-bones rules of improv so we can make each other look good. We meet twice a week and just goof around, sometimes focusing on new characters, or new accents, or making a more cohesive world in our long-form.” For Linker, inspiration often comes in the midst of rehearsal. The freeform nature of improv rehearsal allows him to experiment more with his humor. He explained, “One of the benefits of improv is that show preparation is really easy. We don’t have much to prep ahead of time since improv is on the spot. When we prepare for a show we decide what games we’re gonna play, and then we practice them. It’s a much easier process than, say, a sketch show. Rehearsal is more informal, and I think we end up making more jokes suited to each other’s sense of humor. That’s to say, dumber. I really love dumb jokes.” Linker reflected that the art of improvisation is simultaneously about each individual’s relation to self and the group. He elaborated, “I think improv is sort of like a balancing act between being aware and going with the flow. Listening to each other is key, but if you’re tense or nervous, you get in your head. If you can feel yourself intentionally thinking, then you’re not focused completely on the action of the scene. It’s sort of like letting all the different sensory information in, and then letting your body react appropriately. It definitely gets easier with practice, but once you’re in a long-form with your friends and you’re really jiving, there’s no better feeling.” Members of Vassar Improv were brought together by their shared passion for comedy. Muzquiz recalled, “I got involved with improv my freshman year of high school. My school was an arts conservatory and I was a theatre major. I kind of felt out of place until I discovered improv. All of my classmates were so good at dramatic scenes and serious stuff, but I just didn’t take to it as easily. And then I discovered improv. This has been my eighth year of doing improv and I really enjoy/dread it. It’s a scary and wonderful thing and it’s wild that I’m a co-president of the group now.” New member Sarah Barash ’20 stated, “I had
done some improv back in high school so it was something I was interested in. Then, I went to the comedy showcase thing first weekend of school and Vassar Improv was really great and I knew it was something I would love to be a part of.” Linker remarked that he initially was more interested in sketch comedy, but joining Vassar Improv brought him unexpected joy and growth. He shared, “I actually hadn’t done much improv prior to coming to Vassar. I went to an improv club on Wednesdays in 7th grade, and once in a while we’d
play improv games in theater. I feel like, as a member of improv, I get to work with the funniest people I’ve ever met. That’s a blessing in itself, but an added bonus is you get to see what kind of humor happens naturally within these people.” Candelaria, who will leave campus to study abroad next semester, fondly concluded, “I will miss Improv dearly. I am so proud of the group we have brought forth and have no doubt they will continue boogie, groove and play at the top of their intelligence together.”
Courtesy of Vassar College Vassar Improv
eagerly await the next chapter of our comedy career with bated breath.” He spoke highly of Candelaria’s comedic talents, exclaiming, “Carinn has always amazed me with her improv skills. She didn’t have a lot of improv experience before she came to Vassar, but you wouldn’t know it, would you? Some people just have a gift when it comes to improv, they make it look so easy and so fun and I think Carinn is one of those people. She has an energy that people gravitate towards and every time she opens her mouth on stage, she gets a laugh.” Muzquiz then reminisced on their camaraderie, saying, “As improvisers, as artists, as whatever we want to call ourselves, as humans, we only encounter people like that maybe once in a lifetime. Carinn and I are different leaders with different approaches, but I will be so sorry to see her go. She’ll back next year, funnier than ever (that always happens when people go abroad, they get funnier), but that was my last show with her at Vassar and that makes me sad.” Candelaria responded, “I have loved growing up in this world of Improv with Albert, in which we can challenge and support each other and, more than anything, share lasting memories of our temporary art.” Other members of Vassar Improv expressed shared praise for each other, their art and the performance itself. Aaron Linker ’19 noted the significance of teamwork to this success: “Last night’s show reminded me how much each improviser makes a difference. Two of our members had to miss the beginning of the show because they were involved in ‘Midsummer.’ When they did arrive, I could feel our dynamic shift. That’s encouraging to a performer, because each perspective brings entirely different comedic opportunities, since each person’s since of humor is different.” It takes time and practice to achieve the harmony and collaboration necessary to keep a fastpaced improv performance running smoothly. Unlike a sketch show, however, preparation for improv allows for more flexibility. Muzquiz explained their process leading up to a performance, saying, “In terms of preparation, we make sure to go over the rules. We work on
Pictured from bottom to top, at Harvard University: Yael Haskal ’19, Ethan Fox ’19, Aaron Linker ’19, Carinn Candelaria ’18, Anya Bernstein ’20, Albert Muzquiz ’17 and Sarah Barash ’20.
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
OPINIONS
Page 8
December 8, 2016
The Miscellany News Staff Editorial
Ed. Secretary pick portends commodification of students
O
n Nov. 23, 2016, President-elect Donald Trump announced that billionaire education lobbyist Betsy DeVos would be his administration’s nominee for Secretary of Education. An adamant proponent of charter schools, DeVos has spent nearly 30 years of her life advocating for school vouchers—certificates of public funding for a student to attend a private or religious school chosen by the student or the student’s family. Conservative politicians have praised Trump’s choice, citing DeVos’ work expanding publicly funded but privately operated charter schools. Conversely, teachers’ unions and liberal advocates for public education have been highly crticial of the choice. As The New York Times reported, “Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, referred to DeVos as ‘the most ideological, anti-public education nominee’ since the secretary of education was elevated to the cabinet level four decades ago” (The New York Times, “Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Education Pick, Has Steered Money From Public Schools,” 11.23.2016). DeVos’ weaponization of wealth and political connections prove to be a key part of an alarming trend towards the corporatization and commercialization of public education. The wife of billionaire Dick DeVos—heir to the Amway fortune)—she is among many socalled “philanthropists” who use their financial clout to garner influence in the realms of primary and secondary education. In addition, DeVos’s tenure as Secretary of Education may signify a shift away from secularism in schools. In 2001, she said that she wanted to use education reform to “advance God’s kingdom” (Politico, “Trump’s education pick says reform can ‘advance God’s Kingdom’,” 12.02.2016). The rise of charter schools, and their support from wealthy Republican donors like De-
Vos, can be seen as a response to ailing public school systems. Many of these institutional failures disproportionately impact students of color as well. In September 2016, The New York Times reported, “On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, 46 percent of white fourth graders across the country read at or above ‘proficient,’ compared with just 18 percent of their black peers. 51 percent of white fourth graders were at or above proficient in math, compared with 19 percent of black fourth graders” (The New York Times, “An F-Minus For America’s Schools From a Fed-Up Judge,” 09.08.2016). However, without the proper oversight that governs public schools, charter schools often prove to be equally harmful. For example, DeVos championed a disastrous charter school initiative in Michigan, where falling scores in math and reading directly correlate with the expansion of charters over the last 20 years. In addition, charter schools lack sufficient institutional intendance, allowing schools, educators and administrators in particular, to perform poorly yet continue to enroll students. The Michigan law DeVos helped to pass granted permission to a number of for-profit organizations to start charter schools, effectively commodifying the essential common good of public education and continuously depriving children of proper instruction with little to no repercussions. In the National Assessment of Educational Progress, Detroit performed dead last in reading and math, about on par with its traditional public school counterparts. In light of such calamitous failures, Tulane University Professor of Economics Douglas N. Harris is right to propose that, “The DeVos nomination is a triumph of ideology over evidence that should worry anyone who wants to improve results for children” (The New York Times,
“DeVos and the Wrong Way to Fix Schools,” 11.25.2016). Moreover, we at The Miscellany News believe that DeVos is eminently unqualified to serve as Secretary of Education. Though she would not be the first Secretary of Education not to have an education degree, DeVos has never had any teaching experience and has never even attended a public school. The issues that affect the quality of education for the United States’ most vulnerable citizens have never intimately affected her life (The New York Times described DeVos as being “a daughter of privilege”), nor does she have the professional or educational background to tackle these issues with any serious lucidity. Vassar may be a private institution of higher education, but its students do not all come from a background in private school. 69.8 percent of the Class of 2020 was educated in public schools before matriculating. If a highly respected and renowned college like Vassar accepts most of its students from public education systems, the system must not, therefore, be completely defunct or without tangible merit. Granted, the students who attend Vassar are often very privileged in other ways, and the College is also highly selective, requiring rigorous academic performance and more from applicants. Yet, higher education is not quite the great equalizer it is made out to be. Studying in a private or public school for 12 years does shape a child in many ways, and the resulting differences in a college population are palpable, if not necessarily quantifiable—and so the great debate over which system scores better on tests, public or private, continues to rage. Public schools often bring together several districts of students, which, in theory, creates a learning atmosphere richer in diversity of
thought and experience. However, the reality is that the opportunities for an equal education for all in public schools are rapidly diminishing. According to the Government Accountability Office, public schools have been resegregating in recent years: high-poverty schools are serving increasingly Black and Hispanic student bodies, while low-poverty schools, measured by the students’ ability to pay for school lunch, are serving more affluent, white populations (Washington Post, “On the anniversary of Brown v. Board, new evidence that U.S. schools are resegregating,” 05.16.2016). The academic curricula within public schools further deepen the divide. Students of color are generally less likely to attend schools that offer advanced placement or honors courses, particularly in STEM subjects, than their white peers, which places them automatically at a disadvantage; if the courses are not offered, students who are otherwise qualified to do well in higher-level classes and take those exams are deprived the opportunity to do so (The Atlantic, “The Race Gap in High School Honors Classes,” 12.11.2014). For all of the suffering public school systems in this country, there are also functioning systems that turn out well-educated, prepared students—but not enough to adequately serve the nation’s children. DeVos’s efforts to privatize education will do an immense disservice to the hard-working teachers and faculty of public schools, not to mention to the young students for whom private education is not feasible but who deserve a quality education all the same. — The Staff Editorial expresses the opinion of at least 2/3 of The Miscellany News Editorial Board
Trump’s rise signifies long road ahead for writers, artists Nick Barone
Opinions Editor
S
ince the election of Donald Trump on Nov. 8th, I have not written a single word for the Opinions Section of The Miscellany News (a publication for which I have now written for over a year and a half). While I have attempted to chalk up this inaction to the dearth of articles our section has received over the last three weeks, the truth of the matter is I felt (and still feel) like I had (and still have) nothing intelligent or productive to say about what’s happened. For weeks, I mulled over what iota of originality I could offer in an analysis of Trump’s (alleged) establishment-shattering rise to the presidency. Where does one even start? I could reiterate my belief that Donald Trump’s forced entry into the realm of mainstream politics must not, must never become normalized under any circumstances (unless he irrevocably alters his rhetoric and positions which, given recent events, doesn’t seem likely). I could snidely remark that I’ll give Trump as much of a chance as Republicans gave Obama in 2008. I could argue that his Cabinet appointments reflect not only a break from his oft-repeated campaign promise to “Drain the Swamp,” but a renunciation of any form of bipartisan solidarity. As Julie Pace and Josh Boak of The Washington Post reported, “So far, the president-elect is tapping people with deep ties to Washington and Wall Street as he fills out his Cabinet, turning to two power centers he vilified as greedy, corrupt and out of touch with Americans during his White House campaign ... Two of Trump’s early picks are wealthy financial industry insiders with ties to the kinds of institutions he railed against as a candidate [Elaine Cho and Jeff Sessions]” (The Washington Post, “Trump’s Cabinet: ‘Draining the swamp’ or diving right in?,” 11.30.2016). I could deride his appointment of white nationalist and Neo-Nazi dog whistler Steve Bannon to Counselor of the President, a move that tacitly brings the toxic, racist politics of the Breitbart News Network into direct contact with
the White House. I could slam Trump for his egregiously irresponsible phone call to the President of Taiwan on Dec. 2nd, eschewing 40 years of diplomatic precedent and drawing the ire of the Chinese government. I could posit that this move, coupled with Trump’s cozy relations with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and the United Kingdom’s Nigel Farage, foreshadows an administrative embrace of potential international discord in the name of protectionism and “economic nationalism.” I could further maintain that the rise of authoritarianism within the United States must be viewed in a global context, especially considering the rise of far-right parties across Western Europe. I could contemplate the idea that Trump might inevitably lose interest in the presidency and resign (or, as Professor Allan Lichtman of American University predicted, that he will be impeached). I could then deconstruct the notion that this would be a better situation for the country’s marginalized people. I could further remember that Governor Mike Pence has historically expressed support for gay conversion therapy, effectively legalized discrimination against queer/trans people and vociferously fought for defunding Planned Parenthood. I could recall arguing this point to my father about this very topic, when he said, “At least Pence [in comparison to Trump] is competent,” to which I replied, “Exactly my point.” I could remind readers that the narrative of white working class people being the sole impetus behind Trump’s victory erases the complicity white folk as a whole had in his ascent. According to the Pew Research Center, “Trump won white voters by a margin almost identical to that of Mitt Romney, who lost the popular vote to Barack Obama in 2012 ... White non-Hispanic voters preferred Trump over Clinton by 21 percentage points (58% to 37%)” (Pew Research Center, “Behind Trump’s victory: Divisions by race, gender, education,” 11.09.2016). I could urge folks to demolish the idea that poor white factory workers in Wisconsin were any more responsible for Trump’s rise than my well-educated white grandparents in New Jer-
sey. I could further implore readers to remember that Trump voters, on the whole, had higher incomes than Clinton voters. I could say that the oft-repeated bromide that this election was a working-class rejection of elite, East Coast liberalism necessitates further scrutiny too. The Guardian reported right after the election (using data collected from the CNN’s Edison national election poll), “Broken down by income bracket, 52% of voters earning less than $50,000 a year–who make up 36% of the electorate–voted for Clinton, and 41% for Trump. But among the 64% of American voters who earn more than $50,000 a year, 49% chose Trump, and 47% Clinton” (The Guardian, “White and wealthy voters gave victory to Donald Trump, exit polls show,” 11.09.2016). I could contend that voter suppression must not be ignored, either. I could echo the words of Jeffrey Toobin, who wrote, “Jill Stein can’t call for the recount of uncast votes, but there were clearly thousands of them as a result of voter-suppression measures ... In 2014, according to a Wisconsin federal court, 300,000 registered voters in that state lacked the forms of identification that Republican legislators deemed necessary to cast their ballots ... In Milwaukee County, which has a large African-American population, 60,000 fewer votes were cast in 2016 than in 2012” (The New Yorker, “The Real Voting Scandal of 2016,” 12.12.2016). I could pensively consider the future of this newspaper in a country ruled by Trump. I could recall the words of Jelani Cobb, who wrote, “A Trump Presidency would represent a threat to press freedom in the United States, but the consequences for the rights of journalists around the world could be far more serious. The United States’ failure to uphold its own standards would embolden dictators and despots to restrict the media in their own countries. This appears to be of no concern to Trump” (The New Yorker, “Protecting Journalism from Donald Trump,” 11.29.2016). I could remember Trump’s tweet (I know, I know, I know I should stop looking at his Twitter), “Nobody should be allowed to burn the
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American flag–if they do, there must be consequences–perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!” (Twitter, 11.29.2016). I could further remember the historically chilling effects that silencing domestic dissidents have on the health of a democratic republic. I could pat myself on the back and say I’ve done my part for writing this column to an audience of predominantly left-liberal college students. I could then remember that putting final edits onto this column and sending it off to print is only the beginning of the work that needs to be done, not the end. As the election slowly fades from nightmarish catastrophe to tense, uncertain reality in the crevices of American collective consciousness, there is one ever-resonant truth that has stayed with me since the election was called: productive outrage can never and should never end. I have come to further realize that silence is simply not and will never be an option. While progressives should be aware of what New Republic’s Eric Sasson calls “outrage porn,” the efforts to prevent Trump’s normalization must and should continue, loudly, well past Inauguration Day. What that means for my role as the Opinions Editor of a newspaper at a liberal arts college of 2,450 students in a blue state...I’m still figuring that part out. On the morning of Dec. 3rd, I read an article in the New Yorker by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “Now Is the Time to Talk About What We Are Actually Talking About.” Adichie’s words provided me with a path forward: as an artist, as a writer, as an editor, as a student, as a citizen. Adichie wrote, “Now is the time to burn false equivalencies forever. Pretending that both sides of an issue are equal when they are not is not “balanced” journalism; it is a fairy tale—and, unlike most fairy tales, a disingenuous one ... Every precious ideal must be reiterated, every obvious argument made, because an ugly idea left unchallenged begins to turn the color of normal. It does not have to be like this.” I remembered it does not have to be like this.
December 8, 2016
OPINIONS
Page 9
Vassar’s fashion fixations require radical rethinking Evelyn Frick
Humor and Satire Editor
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am approximately 5’1” and 145 lbs. I know what you’re thinking, because I’ve thought it about myself for most of my life; that’s not an ideal body type. It’s small but not small in the way that counts. I can’t remember when I didn’t have a tummy or jiggly thighs or large breasts. Despite my bodily surplus, I am quite fit. I work out everyday; 40 minutes of cardio, then I alternate between arm and abdominal workouts. But none of that matters to the casual observer of my body, or to myself sometimes, because I am decidedly not skinny. Vassar has been such a confusing space to be in, in this body. The culture of self-love and acceptance here brutally clashes with our campus’s performative fixation on high fashion and aesthetics. Consequently, at this campus the way I view my non-skinny, non-perfect body has gone through some of the highest highs and the lowest lows. I don’t think that we as a Vassar community need to decide which of those spheres to polarize towards, rather, I think we as a student body need to clarify and modify the way our love affair with aesthetics can be toxic. If I were to ask anyone on this campus if my body is beautiful, I’m certain I would receive an affirmative answer and a list of reasons why it’s the truth. But bubbling beneath the surface is the performance game which I feel so excluded from because of my body shape. Here are a list of vogue clothing pieces that I do not always feel comfortable wearing: crop tops, mom jeans, bodysuits, bralettes, bodycon dresses, halter tops, miniskirts, clothing that requires not wearing a bra, I could go on. I am not suggesting that these are pieces of clothing which we must abstain from wearing, that it is anyone’s fault but mine for my body type, or that people who do feel comfortable wearing these clothes should feel ashamed. But I think part of the conversation often left out when we
talk about fashion at Vassar is that the fashion trends here, the pieces of clothing that grow to popularity, are more accommodating for smaller bodies. It’s easier to wear something that forces bralessness if the wearer knows that their nipples will be at the correct height and that their breasts will not sag underneath their own weight; it isn’t as mentally draining to wear a bodycon dress if you know that your stomach will not protrude like an uninvited guest. And thus, the most likely people to be revered for their fashion choices are more likely to have a more “socially acceptable” body type than not.
“Vassar has been such a confusing space to be in, in this body.” It is a delicate choice to make if you’re full-bodied, whether or not to wear these types of clothes. On the one hand I could do what makes me feel most comfortable and not wear them. But then I would forfeit the game, I would automatically lose. If I don’t wear the clothing article x, y or z, which is trendy right now, then I’m not a part of Vassar culture; then I lose the social capital. One the other hand, I could make myself uncomfortable and wear clothing article x, y or z. But the trick is, if you’re 5’1” and 145 lbs., there is no way for you to win the aesthetics game. Even if you wear the cool clothes, you’re wearing them wrong. Because nobody wants to see the girl with the overlarge ass try to squeeze her way into those tight, high-waisted jeans. Those jeans were meant to be worn by someone skinnier and we all know it. I can probably get a little social capital for trying though. Something often left unacknowledged is that Vassar students, living in close proximity to one of the fashion capitals of the world, and mostly coming from privileged enough backgrounds to buy expensive clothing, work in tandem with the fashion industry. Just walk around campus and
you will see any number of students wearing Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, J. Crew, American Apparel or Urban Outfitters. By glorifying and normalizing these fashion giants, Vassar culture glorifies, normalizes and inherently supports an industry which perpetuates an idealized, sometimes unhealthy body type. In September, Tim Gunn wrote a powerful editorial for The Washington Post stating just as much. Gunn wrote: “I’ve spoken to many designers and merchandisers about this [the trend for high fashion to be geared towards smaller women]. The overwhelming response is, ‘I’m not interested in her [plussize women].’ Why? ‘I don’t want her wearing my clothes.’ Why? ‘She won’t look the way that I want her to look.’ They say the plus-size woman is complicated, different and difficult, that no two size 16s are alike. Some haven’t bothered to hide their contempt. ‘No one wants to see curvy women’ on the runway, Karl Lagerfeld, head designer of Chanel, said in 2009” (The Washington Post, “Tim Gunn: Designers Refuse to Make Clothes to Fit American Women. It’s a Disgrace,” 09.08.2016). To be a curvy woman on this campus, I can’t help but feel jaded towards the hypocrisy of our two clashing cultures; one telling me to love myself unconditionally and the other telling me that I’m not good enough if I don’t look a certain way. I think the problem is that our campus culture tends to spend a lot of time discussing self-love. Let me explain. There is not a day that passes by where I don’t have someone tell me to be empowered by my being and my body. That’s not the issue. Rather the issue is that conversely, Vassar students expend very little energy talking about how our fashion forwardness translates into a performative game of aesthetics, which sets rules about what is beautiful and what is not. In the end, this mostly serves to exclude those that are average-sized and praise those that are privileged enough to, firstly, have an idealized and socially acceptable body type, and secondly have the resources to keep up to date on fashion trends. This in turn highlights two other ways the
Jokes at Raymond House’s expense must be critiqued Raymond House Team
O
n Nov. 3rd, 2016, a publication that held problematic sentiments was published on The Clove, a Vassar unaffiliated satirical publication website, written by a first-year student. The article was entitled, “Everybody Loves Raymond.” As Raymond House Team, we have felt the need to address some of the more pressing issues that made a mockery of serious topics while also perpetuating toxic misconceptions about Raymond House as a whole. The mockery that was present in this article had ableist tones and perpetuates the stigmatization of mental health, an act that Raymond House has not and does not condone. The depiction of Raymond residents as mentally unfit is a malicious and false pretense that targets residents who are actively trying to build community and pride within their house. The author goes as far as to state that Raymond residents need professional help from Vassar psychologists. As a House Team, we are fully against this characterization of the Raymond Residence because of its further stigmatization of seeking help. We believe that finding ways to better yourself actively through counseling, treatment or any other means is something to be proud of, not ashamed of. In fact, taking care of yourself is wonderfully badass. This article was particularly problematic in its Stockholm Syndrome diagnosis of all Raymond residents. This ableist commentary uses a real, serious condition as an object of ridicule. To compare the opportunity to live and study on Vassar’s campus to a scary, difficult and confusing mental health condition is disrespectful and ill-judged. The article also makes fun of Raymond residents that display Ray Pride and are generally happy with their house.
This is hypercritical and unfair since it is ridicule people for being happy. Attributing a Raymond resident’s happiness to mental health issues is disrespectful to the hard work we as a House Team put in to foster community. Further, the article was written by a resident of a different house. They inaccurately yet purposefully attack Raymond’s facilities for the purpose of a satirical article. While we are aware that Raymond does need to be updated, we also find that the article directs a bit of blame about the lack of recent renovations on residents of our house, which is also unfair. Raymond has some structural issues but once again to reiterate, a lot of the problems brought up are not unique to only Raymond, including pests and structural issues with bathrooms. We believe that pitting the dorms against each other with these harmful comparisons is wholly unproductive. All in all, the intention behind this article was not to create change but spread malice and hatred. The public shaming of Raymond is something too commonly faced by our residents. To make judgment calls about the physical, emotional, mental or any state of any House is wrong. No one wants to come home, feeling ashamed of where they live due to a hyperbolic depiction of their House. Please don’t speak on behalf our residents, principally since this article perpetuates privileged world views. Simply put, we, as the Raymond House Team, say together–we don’t accept anybody making fun of our House. We welcome anyone who wants to help us advocate for our much needed renovations–we do not welcome this at the expense of the stigmatization of mental illness and the ostracization of your fellow peers. Much love and Ray Pride, Raymond House Team
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high fashion culture here is problematic. As a campus, we need to more readily realize that as we praise socially acceptable bodies, we are also reinforcing the white and western ideals which make those bodies more acceptable. I do not believe it is a coincidence that the people we think of on this campus as being the most fashionable are, more often than not, skinny and white. Further, the issue of class is not often discussed publicly in conjunction with fashion. This is ridiculous to me. When we praise people who can easily buy new clothes we are ignoring and minimizing class privilege. When we shop at Goodwill or Salvation Army, or engage in the particularly toxic trend of “hobo chic,” we are making light of the very real concerns and lived experiences of people who live in low-income households. The reason why this topic is not often discussed here? To be blatantly honest, I think it’s because Vassar students would rather look really good than acknowledge our entitlement. Perhaps we are not as progressive as we pretend to be.
“When we praise people who can easily buy new clothes, we are ignoring and minimizing class privilege.” Instead of ignoring the side effects of a campus culture which fixates on fashion, we need to focus discussion on how our fashion choices are complicit in body-shaming and how we, as a student body, can attempt to alleviate these ill effects and make our campus a more accepting space. Until then, the mantra of self-love endlessly preached here seems to be insisting that people with larger bodies should love those bodies in spite of themselves; not because we actually think they’re beautiful.
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OPINIONS
Page 10
December 8, 2016
Democratic Party in dire need of long-term overhauls Jesser Horowitz Columnist
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or Democrats and other liberals across the country, the results of the 2016 presidential election came as tremendous shock, as the polls and mainstream media overwhelmingly assumed that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would win the presidency. The victory of the Republican presidential nominee, controversial businessman Donald Trump, despite losing the popular vote by a plurality well over two million, has thrown many of us, especially at Vassar, into a state of disarray. The ascension of Donald Trump to the presidency, especially as both the House of Representatives and the Senate are controlled by the Republican Party, puts many of the progressive ideals Democrats hold dear, and Barack Obama’s legacy, in serious peril. This, combined with the growth and success of right-wing movements throughout Europe, threatens the fabric of global progressivism. The success of Brexit in the United Kingdom, the resignation of Matteo Renzi in Italy, the near-success of Norbert Hofer in Austria and the growing strength of the National Front and Marine Le Pen in France all make the international left ill at ease. With that said, there are reasons for leftists abroad to be a little more optimistic. It has become very possible that, despite the outcome of the referendum, Brexit may never actually occur. Although he made it quite far, Norbert Hofer ultimately lost his election to the candidate for the Green Party. Marine Le Pen still faces an extremely uphill battle if she wishes to win the presidency next year (although those hoping for a Socialist Party comeback should prepare themselves for a disappointing election season). Unfortunately, those of us living in the United States have considerably less cause for optimism. Despite what certain left-wing blogs might be telling you, Donald Trump will be the next president of the United States. The re-
counts and petitions to the electors may make us feel better about the situation, but they will not change the outcome of the election. Even in the best case scenario, the Republican Party will control all three houses of government for the next two years at least. Progressives must acknowledge before productively moving forward. This may appear to be hypocritical considering my last article, in which I published an email I sent to the electors urging them to vote for Hillary Clinton instead of Donald Trump. While I have hope that at least one of them will read what I wrote and change their mind, I’m not hedging my bets.
“The most we can hope for is that the Democratic Party acts as obstructionist as possible.” Unless something truly extraordinary happens, Donald Trump will take office in January. The most we can hope for is that the Democratic Party acts as obstructionist as possible, takes back the Congress in 2018, and goes on to defeat Trump in 2020. If that occurs, then it’s possible that American progressives can limit the damage to a point that can be easily fixed by the next administration. This could even occur without much soul searching for the Democratic Party. In a CNN Money poll, about half of economists said that they “believed there will be a recession at some point in the next four years” (CNN Money, Will Donald Trump get hit with a recession?” 11.09.2016). Such a recession, if poorly handled, could make the Republican Party especially vulnerable, and may turn the tides in the Democrats’ favor. However, the Democratic Party may have
some need for soul searching, although perhaps not in the fashion that many seem to be advocating for. The calls I’ve seen have tended towards an ideological shift, a push for the radicalization of the Democratic Party. The perceived lesson of 2016 appears to be that the answer to an increasingly polarized society is to move further to the left, become more populist and feed into the same anger and resentment that fueled Trump’s campaign. I fear that the Democrats will take this election as signal that centrism is dead, and that they will assume from this that Americans can easily get behind a radicalized candidate despite the fact that the left’s radical lost the primaries and the right’s radical lost the popular vote. Instead, the Democrats need to increase outreach towards white, working class voters such as those that handed Trump the White House, and in the future will need to adjust their strategy of governing that shows political courage. Very soon, there will be a day when a candidate is unable to be elected president merely with support from the white populace. Obviously that day has not come. Until that point, the Democratic Party cannot operate under the belief that white, working class voters are unimportant. Many have used this as evidence that Bernie Sanders could have fared better. I would argue that’s an incorrect interpretation, although if you’d really like to know which candidate actually may have a shot against Donald Trump, I’d have bet my money on Joe Biden. Of all the potential Democratic candidates, he would likely have been the best equipped to speak to the concerns of white working class voters. Furthermore, the Democratic Party must reckon with the fact that Trump’s victory was at least partially the result of failed policy. It is not a coincidence that right before the election, the White House announced that insurance premiums would increase by double digits in 2017. Forget James Comey, that’s the
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real October surprise. Obamacare was an accomplishment, but it is not a lesson in political courage. The legislation, while it helped a great many people, is deeply flawed. Had the Democrats shown real political courage during the early days of the Obama years, before the Republicans took back the House of Representatives, we’d likely have a public option by now. Instead, the current healthcare system, while a step above where we were eight years ago, is marred by imperfections. Again, that’s not to say that Obamacare was a failure, for it can be credited with allowing millions of Americans the opportunity to have health care who never had that opportunity before, but through insistence on compromising even when it wasn’t necessary, we hurt our chances of something better. The Democratic Party can and will bounce
“We need to find better ways to reach out to working class voters...” back from this defeat, but as a party we must reevaluate our electoral and governing strategies. We must look at the critical errors Clinton and other establishment figures (and there were many) made on the campaign trail and rectify them. Specifically, we, as Democrats, need to find better ways to reach out to working class voters and, when in power, govern in an ambitious way that shows political courage. In opposition, we must obstruct efforts by the Trump administration to circumvent American values and oppress minorities, and we must redouble efforts to take back the House and Senate in 2018. As citizens, we need, and are morally obligated to, vote in the next midterm elections in order to return the House and Senate to the Democrats and set the country back on the right course.
December 8, 2016
OPINIONS
Trump victory due to more than bigotry Pietro Geraci
Guest Columnist
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n the days after the election, I saw countless posts on social media about how Donald Trump’s victory was rooted in racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia and other forms of bigotry. Such posts effectively erased the (very legitimate) concerns of millions of people and attributed his rise to sheer discriminatory attitudes and beliefs. Apparently the United States is chock-full of bigotry. Don’t get me wrong, bigotry is still prevalent and problematic in society, but to say that all of America is racist or sexist or that everyone who voted for Trump is racist or sexist or whatever is grossly ignorant. America still has a long way to go on civil rights, but it has come a long way as well. People claim that while not all those who voted for Trump are bigoted, their voting for him indicates their complacency with bigotry, and thus the majority of the country condones bigotry. I say this is not true. Donald Trump was one of the most unpopular candidates in history. Many Republicans disapproved of him but found him to be a better alternative to the also unpopular candidate, Hillary Clinton. Most Trump voters did not wish to see a bigot occupy the Oval Office. When they went to the polls, they did not see “Hillary Clinton” and “Donald Trump” on the ballot; they saw “status quo” and “change.” These voters, which included disillusioned Democrats and more Black people and Hispanics/Latinos than Mitt Romney garnered in 2012, are desperate for something new, a departure from the last eight years of failed policies and political stagnance. President Obama ran on a campaign of leveling the playing field. He railed against the cards supposedly being stacked against the common American, and this propelled him into office. Eight years later, few people are better off than before. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the labor participation rate is close to its
lowest point in 40 years, more people are living below the poverty line according to the Heritage Foundation and the US Census’ Survey of Income and Program Participation reveal that more people are dependent on federal welfare today than when he took office-amounting to over 100 million people. In addition, the threat from terrorists has increased dramatically due to the rise of ISIS, which Obama is responsible for since he pulled out of Iraq and refused to take ISIS seriously until it was too late, even calling it a junior varsity team at one point, and Obamacare cost five million people their insurance plans, forced millions more to obtain coverage they did not want or need and, according to the New York Times and Kaiser Family Foundation caused still millions more to choose to pay the fines levied for not obtaining health insurance because they were less expensive than the insurance options available to them.
“Trump promised change, Clinton promised the status quo. The people voted for change.” Barack Obama is a failed president. Hillary Clinton built a campaign around continuing Obama’s policies. Donald Trump ran as a non-establishment alternative to the seasoned politicians in Washington, just as Obama had done in 2008. Trump is seen as a beacon of hope for millions of disillusioned Americans who desperately want to “drain the swamp” of politicians in Washington, who want to see the trade deals that cost them their jobs reworked, who believe that as a successful businessman, Trump knows how to negotiate and pursue policies that will encourage job creation. They have put any
bigotry on Trump’s part aside and placed their faith in him, believing wholeheartedly that he will deliver and, from their perspective, make America great again. Simply put, Donald Trump did not win because of bigotry, he won because Hillary Clinton had virtually nothing to offer America. That is the bottom line. In an age where people mistrust the government in record numbers, as the Gallup poll shows, nominating an establishment figure beholden to the big banks and corporations of Wall Street was a terrible idea, especially against a candidate who promised to stir things up if elected. The people who elected Trump cast personality aside this election and focused on policy. They saw a choice between letting things continue as is–a sluggish economy and big business-owned big government and the potential for something entirely new; something that would clean up the mess in Washington and set America back on track. This is evident in the fact that Trump swayed vast numbers of white working class Americans, many of whom voted for Obama, in his favor. It was obviously not racism that led them to switch sides. They were voting in favor of their own interests. Self-interest voting, which almost everyone does, is what won Trump the White House. Yes, there are people who want to see all illegal immigrants deported, and this viewpoint can be rooted in racism. Yes, there are people who want to ban all Muslims from entering this country and believe that Islam is evil. Yes, there are people who believe LGBTQ people should burn in hell and want to block our right to marry, and, yes, there are people who believe that a woman’s only place is in the home. Yes, there is bigotry in America. Yes, it is a problem, a major problem, but it is not to blame for the impending Trump presidency. Trump promised change, Clinton promised the status quo. The people voted for change.
Pratfalls of populism must be interrogated Sylvan Calko Perlmutter Guest Columnist
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ollowing the election of Donald Trump and the concurrent Republican takeover of Congress, many progressive voices have called for an ideological shift in the Democratic Party from a conciliatory centrism to a more forceful left-leaning populism, populism being defined by Wikipedia (Encyclopedia Britannica is for elitists) as a “political doctrine that stems from a viewpoint of struggle between the populace and a ruling faction” (Wikipedia, “Populism”). This reformist faction has pushed for Keith Ellison’s candidacy for DNC chair and points to how Bernie Sanders’ populist stances were enthusiastically received by many of the White working class voters in the Rust Belt that ended up voting for Trump. To hold back the conservative agenda and defeat Trump in 2020, they argue, liberals and progressives must make an even more forceful case that Trump did against the oligarchical elites that pervert the functioning of American institutions while at the same time condemning the white nativism, sexism and Islamophobia that came to characterize the Trump campaign. With this end in mind, progressives like Bernie Sanders have stated that they are willing to cooperate with Trump on a limited set of issues pertaining to empowering the working class. Clearly, the Democratic Party has become estranged from much of the population, with 2 million fewer people voting for Hillary in 2016 than for Obama in 2012, and so an embrace of populism is necessary for the Democrats (sorry, but I don’t take the Green Party seriously) to regain the trust of the average citizen and tackle the problems facing this nation. All the same, this is not something to be undertaken blindly. Since our nation has not directly experienced a genuine populist government since FDR, it is easy for us to delude ourselves into thinking that a Left populism would not permit the same possibilities for socio-economic disaster as its more conservative counterparts. Progressives need to make a painstaking survey of the pitfalls of populism before embarking on such a project.
For example, Latin America furnishes us with numerous instances of the mixed blessings of Left populism. In the Argentina of Perón and Kircher and the Venezuela of Chavez the same general pattern of failed populism has played out. They embarked on massive increases in public spending and state-led growth which genuinely improved the lives of millions. However, these efforts were not sustainable as debts piled up and economic trends shifted. Venezuela’s social programs were created at a time when oil was $100 a barrel so when oil dropped to $50 dollars their country was plunged into turmoil. The inflation of the Venezuelan Bolivar is projected to be 465 percent in 2016.
“History shows that populism is a risky venture.” Argentina’s decades of turmoil are a result of the populist legacy of Juan Perón. He concentrated power in an inner circle while claiming to be a representative of the masses, and fired state employees who protested en masse. By claiming the role of the true representative of the people, he undermined the standing of the legislature and legitimate democratic procedure. The state of economic and political weakness he left Argentina in contributed to the takeover of a military junta and renewed cycles of populist incompetence. The last wave of Perón influenced Left populism occurred over the 2003-2007 presidency of Néstor Kirchner and the 2007-2015 presidency of his wife Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. They pursued admirable policies such as advancing Mercosur, a Latin American common market and legalizing gay marriage, but at the same time stalled Argentina’s economic development by refusing to pay its outstanding debts. This resulted in the shut out of Argentina from international lending markets. Without ready access to capital, the Argentinian economy could not cover the substantial increases in
spending the Kirchners embarked on to cover their social programs. Ultimately the Kirchners were replaced by Mauricio Macri, a conservative who might be able to restore Argentina’s economic health. Nevertheless, his election might mark the end of the increase in minority rights that the Kirchners promoted. History shows that populism is a risky venture. It can polarize societies, undermine representative democracy and leave economies in shambles. Latin America is our great cautionary tale. But the USA can avoid the mistakes of Latin America by sticking to several strategies. One, we must avoid personalist rule. In this way, Bernie was perfect. He wasn’t an exceptionally charismatic person; it was his ideas more than anything else that got people going. Personalism risks making revolutionary projects hinge on the charisma of an individual as the embodiment of national ideals instead of going beyond that and embracing horizontal organization. If this rule is adhered to revolutionary projects, they can far outlast their initial progenitors. Two, we must focus on the creation of new jobs and training people instead of fighting tooth and nail with highly protectionist measures to keep manufacturing in the United States. We can regulate against outsourcing to India or Mexico etc, but you can’t regulate the microchip. The continuing process of automation will probably wipe out these jobs during our lifetime, so it would be more advisable to dramatically expand the social safety net and make education more accessible to sustain the economically displaced and prepare them for the new economy. If we do not do this then populism will become synonymous with neo-luddism: more Ted Kaczynski than Bernie. Perhaps some radicals will scorn this vision, which I like to think of as “prudent populism,” as a “populism-lite.” Yes, it is certainly less radical, but it is a model that will be more successful in helping all people, and therein radical in deed for its sustained impact than the inflammatory words of the Kirchners of America.
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Word on the street What would Jesus do?
“I don’t know, I’m not Jesus” — Kenneth Lee ’18
“Your mom” — Zander Bashaw ’18
“He wouldn’t call his dad, because he has Daddy issues I assume” — Miranda Amey ’19
“Not what I’m doing” — Derek Sonntag ’19
“Because of finals, quit” — Izzy Schnake ’18
“Wait in line for coffee when he has a paper to write” — Robin Lyn ’18
Evelyn Frick, Humor & Satire Editor
HUMOR & SATIRE
Page 12
December 8, 2016
Breaking News From the desk of Evelyn Frick, Humor & Satire Editor Kind of like how spring can come in like a lion or a lamb, Finals Week has come in like a raging on-fire dumpster Role on Exec Board proves If you’re too lazy to reinvent funnier than Humor articles yourself, here are a few ideas Zander Bashaw Bye, Felicia
I
t could not be more appropriate that I am writing this article during a hectic Tuesday production night, a time that is supposed to be reserved for editing. When I was Humor Editor, I encouraged writers like Evelyn, for example, to turn in their pieces Sunday or Monday so that I would have time to leave comments on them and request additions or cuts. Now that the roles have been reversed, it seems that I would have not liked to have myself as a writer. It took Evelyn sending not just one text, but a follow up “Zander” for me to confirm that I indeed was alive, and more importantly was still intending to send in an article. Around the time of that text, I was hurriedly packing my school stuff into a bag as the Davison fire alarm auto voice informed me that there was a report of a fire in this building. Possibly more indicative of my scatterbrained nature was that I’m about 70 percent sure that the fire alarm was a result of my shirt being draped over my lamp to create mood lighting. The 30 percent uncertainty was that while it did smell like someone had snuffed out a candle in my room, it has definitely been a lot smokier in there in the past... So in this case, my reminder of my obligation to the Misc came at a time when my life was quite literally almost going up in flames. You would think that the reminder of yet another writing assignment would be the straw that broke the camel’s back at a time of such high strain. However, as I sit here yet to finish preparing two assignments, a presentation and an exam for tomorrow (well technically, later TODAY), I find myself in a calm and relaxed state. How could this be you ask? Because this production night allowed me to return to my original role with this paper: humor writer. Back during winter break, now almost two years, ago I emailed the Humor Editor at the time with a sample piece and an indication of my desire to join a nonexistent position of Humor Staff. The Article I sent was a vehement denouncement of some of my least favorite songs titled “The 9 worst songs ever,” which featured
an unambiguous #1 of “Hey Soul Sister” by Train. Much like the title’s inclusion of nine but not 10 songs, the article fell a little short of Chris’ expectations, but he was nice to me, and let me publish my first ever article in the semester that followed. Following my success (at least in my mother’s eyes) at the position of weekly writer, and sensing an impending depreciation of my own content, I decided to apply for Humor Editor. This way I could solicit the work of other, more talented writers and cartoonists. Luckily, Evelyn started writing that semester, so over the course of the year, I was able to train her to make it look like her taking my position was planned, and not happening because of her superior comedic genius. This semester, I have served as a Senior Editor and a member of Executive Board, a position I was drastically unqualified for, having quite limited experience working on sections where I cannot merely invent the content. During my time on Exec Board, I learned some invaluable skills, such as how to churn out filler content for desperately short articles, how to send a well crafted terse email, and how to function with so little sleep that caffeine intake merely increases heart rate without making a dent in exhaustion. The funniest and most creative content I ever created ironically came out this semester when I was in a traditionally serious position. Late one production night, fellow Senior Editor Emma and I, in a haze of tiredness, generated an uproariously undignified headline in the features section for a food column. The published headline read “Leaves have a’fallen, now lentil loaves are a’callin’.” I challenge all of the Misc’s regular readers to find anything with a more revolting aesthetic than the double apostrophe in “a’callin’.” Perhaps only putting it in quotes makes it worse. My future at this paper following my abroad experience is as uncertain as the tone of voice in those that tell me my humor articles are funny. But regardless of what happens, I will always have a soft spot for our fantastic Editorial Board, the Humor section and that rancid lentil loaves headline.
Yesenia Garcia 2017 Enthusiast
T
hree, two, one... as the clock strikes midnight, you step forward into the light and come face to face with your reflection in the mirror. Placing your palm against the mirror, you confidently whisper to yourself “New year, new me.” You fully embrace this mantra and even toy with the idea of getting it tattooed across your ribcage. You diligently add pins to your 2017 Pinterest board for all of about three days before slipping into your old habits because you lack the willpower to successfully carry out your plans. Does this scenario sound eerily familiar? If so, you are like millions of Americans who vow to change their behaviors every year only to abandon their resolutions within the first week of January. This year, instead of coming up with silly and unrealistic resolutions like “lose weight” or “save money” or “don’t disappoint my parents,” follow these simple and reasonable resolutions to make 2017 the best year ever (which won’t be hard considering the fact that 2016 set the bar incredibly low). Get a skin transplant. This may seem a little radical, but the most effective way to create a “new you” is to incorporate the flesh of other people into your body. Everyone knows that the easiest way to reinvent yourself is to start from the outside and work your way in, so go ahead: call up Baldwin and schedule an appointment for your procedure. However, you may want to keep your self-transformation limited to the outside of your body, because obviously, your emotional baggage is best to avoid at all times. Sit on the big side of the Deece. It is time that you finally got out of your comfort zone and did something a little crazy. Yes, the small side of the Deece offers many comforts—the salad bar, the waffle maker, the solace necessary to reflect upon your failures—but it is time to walk on the wild side and venture out into the real world. By willingly surrounding yourself with of other students, you are making a statement that you are an empowered individual
who is not afraid of social interaction. Be honest. Brutally honest. Instead of working on your own flaws, you should speak up and identify everyone else’s flaws. Tell your friend what you really think of their new haircut, and make sure to question all of their actions. Should they really have another plate of fries? Your friends and family will be very appreciative of your newly found honesty and will cherish your presence even more! Join a cult. It is no secret that most humans crave human interaction, and it is also no secret that you, presumably, are a human. Since Vassar is lacking in the Greek life department, you should join a cult in order to fulfill your social needs. Whether or not you choose to participate in sacrifices is up to you, but it would be an invaluable opportunity to bond with your fellow cult-mates. Procrastinate more. Instead of wasting your life completing meaningless assignments or “being productive,” you should spend your time binge-watching every series you possibly can on Netflix. Alternatively, you can simply lie on your bed throwing a baseball at the ceiling and catch it repeatedly for hours like a kid in a ’90s movie. Once you get a rhythm going, it is easy to slip into deep meditative thought and contemplate on every embarrassing thing you have ever done since seventh grade. Thinking about your past failures will distract you from thinking about present and future failures, which studies have shown to be incredibly therapeutic. Move to the Swedish countryside and raise cattle for a living. It is safe to say that 2016 has given us more than enough reasons to want to flee the country. Now is the perfect time to leave behind the hustle and bustle of Poughkeepsie, New York and move to the quiet countryside in order to live a more wholesome life. Feel free to indulge in this idyllic lifestyle by churning your own butter, embroidering pillowcases, collecting stamps and doing all the other things you have been secretly yearning to do for years.
Rad Brad’s Career Corner: Career Quiz Edition! by Leela Stalzer and Gabi Anspach, “Brad”
When choosing a career, there are many things to consider. According to The Wall Street Journal, Forbes Magazine, The Economist, Bloomberg Business, Business Insider, Business Week, Yahoo Finance, The New York Times and Efinancialnews.com, this quiz is the #1 Best Way to determine which career is right for you.
B) I am a trust fund baby, so I don’t plan to work more than two hours a week for the rest of my life
5. Outlet for Creativity
C)It doesn’t matter, as long as I am allowed to keep my impressive collection of succulents in the business basement 3. Pay
A) I plan to take up miserly money-hoarding by no later than age 29 B) Exploit me, nonprofit sector!
B) I love feeling frazzled and completely stressed out by 10 a.m. and overstimulated by entitled customers C) It doesn’t matter, as long as I am allowed to keep my impressive collection of succulents in the business basement
C) In just a few years, the U.S. currency as we know it will never be the same... 4. Satisfaction
A) No matter what, I’ll be as unhappy as a succulent plant in the business basement
2. Time Commitment
A) Work is a refuge from my highly sensitive, high-needs dachshund
A) Choosing which salad greens to eat at the deece already strains my creative capacity B) I’m a creative genius just waiting to be discovered...still waiting............
1. Social Environment
A) I thrive when subjected to at least nine hours of crippling isolation a day
C) I have no emotions
B) After two years in the field, my hope is to turn my job experience into a New York Times best-selling memoir that inspires millions
C) I’ve had couture iceberg and arugula salad dresses walk the runways at Paris Fashion Week If you picked mostly “A”s...You’re a Dental Hygienist! Your only good quality is an openness to the world around you, a shy curiosity that draws others to you. As a dental hygienist, you could explore the oral cavities of those in your chair, charming them with your quiet interest. We recommend that you avoid partnering with a sales associate at all costs. Your dispositions would clash horribly and cause your less-fine qualities of forgetfulness, sleepiness and self-centeredness to shine through.
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
If you picked mostly “B”s...You’re the Company Accountant! You’re always the first to tell others about depressing world events, and you have a charisma unbeknownst to anyone, including yourself, that will probably remain hidden for the entirety of your life. As company accountant, you will break barriers while making calculations you have probably done several times before. Avoid other best-selling novelists, as they will only take away from your fame and fortune. If you picked mostly “C”s...You are a Dachshund/Desert Botanist/Salad Green! Embrace your inner spirit animals and vegetables as you uncertainly navigate the harshest of Earth’s ecosystems. You are a vibrant, outspoken political critic who deigns to socialize with less talented creatures. Trust your instincts. Avoid at all costs interacting with physicians, as this could result in explosive verbal arguments. And take fair warning—choosing this career path will not make family relations any easier: Skeptical of your career goals, aunts and uncles may end up being condescending and herbivorous.
HUMOR & SATIRE
December 8, 2016
Page 13
How to celebrate Hanukkah in the anti-Promised Land Evelyn Frick
Jewish Grinch
I
t has been universally decided that 2016 has been one of the worst years in the history of humanity. Donald Trump’s election, the mass shooting in a gay nightclub in Orlando, the poisoning of the water in Flint, Michigan, all in all this year has been pretty rough. And to put the cherry on top of the dogshit sundae that was 2016, this year the first night of Hanukkah falls on the evening of Dec. 25. That’s right, Jesus gets to celebrate his b-day (despite that science has proved that he wasn’t actually born in the winter) with potato latkes and everyone’s favorite gateway gambling game, Dreidel. And this also means that this year, I get to celebrate Hanukkah in Ft. Wayne, Indiana with my Evangelical Christian grandparents! Hooray!
“I’m excited to look at the broken smiles on their faces when...[they] realize that, not only am I Jewish, I am also a radical liberal.”
“Octo-peace out”
Selfishly, I kind of hate going there because no matter what I ask for, for my “Christmas” presents (my grandparents always emphasize that they are buying my sister and I Christmas presents), my grandma gets me Avon soap. To be honest, I’m not sure where she gets it all from. I feel like she probably has hoarded thousands of bottles of Avon brand cucumber body-wash in the attic, next to a bunch of unused advent calendars from the ’90s. Literally though, no matter what I ask for I get Avon Soap. Ask for a puppy? Avon Soap. Ask for Bath and Body Works Soap? Avon Soap. Ask for acceptance of my decision to live as a Jewish adult? Avon Soap. Part of the issue beyond my grandparents, is that they live in Indiana. I mean, I understand
that my grandparents live there mostly because my immigrant great-grandfather “had to choose a place to live where he could find work” or whatever, but seriously? Come on Vassil, you could’ve done way better than Indiana: a racist, sexist hell hole straight out of a Conservative man’s wet dream. Particularly after this election I’m not feeling super great about having to spend time in Mike Pence’s (and my mother’s) home state. But in spite of all this, I’m still optimistic that Hanukkah can go well. Besides, at least it’s not Yom Kippur that I’ll be celebrating with them. With a full stomach of latkes and my grandmother’s food, I might be able to handle this. If I were fasting with them, I might have to convert.
Courtesy of Samana Shrestha
Don’t get me wrong, I love my grandparents. But celebrating Jewish holidays with them isn’t exactly ideal. You see, my mother, her daughter, was born into a very Lutheran family. And then, after going to college she decided that she would convert to Judaism. (No she did not attend Vassar.) My grandparents have never explicitly said that they were salty about this decision or that it meant my sister and I would be raised as Jews, but since they always use the freaky, Christian angel baby sheets on their guest bed, I have my suspicions.
Another reason I think they may be disappointed in my Judaism, is because their house is literally covered in Jesus paraphernalia; think of it kind of like how much shit stoners have that reference the fact they smoke weed ... my grandparents are like that but with Jesus. There’s this one picture of Jesus on their refrigerator which I really can’t figure out. No matter where I go, it definitely stares at me, but I can’t really tell what message he’s sending me. The look is telling me, “Hey, we’re both Jews, what’s up homie?!” Or, the drastically different, “Repent for your sins, pagan.” (Considering the context, I’m sure it’s probably the latter) Regardless, I’m not super excited to hang out with a bunch of creepy Nativity figurines by candlelight. I think there are some opportunities to reclaim the holiday though! My favorite part is saying Jewish prayers in front of them, because they literally have no idea what we’re saying. I could be praising Satan or ordering Pad Thai or not even speaking Hebrew, and they would still pretend to be super engaged and supportive. I imagine on Hanukkah, it’ll go something like this: My mother, sister and me: Baruch atah, Adonai Eloheinu, Melech haolam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tsivanu l’hadlik ner shel Hanukkah. My grandparents: *smiling, with confusion in their eyes* What does that mean? Me: It means, “Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of all, who hallows us with mitzvot, commanding us to kindle the Hanukkah lights.” My grandparents: Oh... that sounds nice! I also look forward to opening gifts in front of them. This year for Hanukkah I asked for nothing but donations to organizations that I support, such as Planned Parenthood, the Trevor Project, MALDEF, NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the Natural Resources Defense Council. I’m excited to look at the broken smiles on their faces when I open such gifts and realize that, not only am I Jewish, I am also a radical liberal.
The Miscellany Crossword
by Kim Carlson, Mackenzie Little and Apoorva Natarajan ACROSS 1. How to get a horse to stop 5. “Eat” in “Never Eat Shredded Wheat” 9. This guy only has 6 legs 14. Said when one hecks it badly 15. The way to enter 16. 16 in an lb 17. International oil cartel 18. How a rat might eat something 19. Element 86 20. What we hope to do to our finals (2 words) 22. The biggest impact to bear 23. How to cite many authors (2 words, abbr.) 24. Roman version of Demeter 25. Odor eliminating spray 28. Member of the clergy who represents the pope 30. Attribute to something 32. Aries animal 33. Popular programming language for AI 37. Group that regulates umbilical cord blood 39. The remainder 41. Enjoyed by sailors and mathematicians 42. Chemistry suffix 44. People... who... have things 45. Queen of Hearts tersely introducing herself (2 words)
Answers to last week’s puzzle
48. Gee Williker! 49. What buoyant things do 51. A river in Yorkshire, England 53. ‘Sup broseph lol 54. Notorious porn genre (you know the one) 59. Many of these make a new Netflix series 60. George and Tarzan’s preferred mode of transportation 61. Bad mountain name 62. Verbally fight 63. Bane of pubescents 64. That one berry everyone pronounces differently 65. Marshmallow birds & rabbits 66. Russian ruler 67. French for mountain
35. A weird type of number 36. __ de Cheval - ballet step or song by Panic! at the Disco 38. Fucked up ladder in our cells 40. Sugar is this and so are you! 43. Dirty poems 46. _ _ everywhere with Pa (2 words) 47. A Spanish governess 49. Solar action loved by J.J. Abrams
DOWN 1. Big dog sound 2. Arizonan Native American nation 3. “___ Sesame” - the password 4. Spore cells in fungi 5. Octopus leg count 6. Once a year 7. Office necessity (there are like 4 on campus) 8. Truck that steals other cars 9. Not ice cream 10. Montagues and Capulets are _______ 11. Unwarranted 12. Images of religious figures 13. Minor car damage 21. Placed in conjunction with, like dance with music (2 words) 24. An easter egg appearance 25. Usually bad foreshadowing 26. Snape thinks you’re _ _ something (2 words) 27. Used to climb walls by an octopus? 29. Small spotted fish 30. Octopus residue 31. To create, perhaps a dick in the snow 34. Mr. Krabs, I have one!
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
50. Not small 52. Draco Malfoy’s facial reaction of choice 53. Noise you can make with one hand 55. Eve’s pal 56. Fashionable Chanel 57. I need this for tuition :/ 58. Send out, like radiation 60. Generally filled with either chocolate or poison
ARTS
Page 14
December 8, 2016
FlyPeople demonstrates emotional range of dance forms Sasha Gopalakrishnan Reporter
O
sad undertones of the song. The subsequent piece, “Flowing or Flowing Out,” was an alternative, contemporary work that matched the feel of its soundtrack: “Taro” by Alt-J. Hebert, one of the dancers, elucidated, “This piece is about transitions ... It’s about taking on new things while still holding onto your old life with a tinge of nostalgia. The piece also has some dark undertones, symbolizing the fear of change...” The finale of the night, “Flove,” was an upbeat, high-energy conclusion to a brilliant show. Hebert smiled and said, “Everyone has different dance backgrounds but we really came together as a unit throughout this show, especially in this piece.” FlyPeople spans all types of dance, from contemporary to jazz to hip-hop, and provides the opportunity for all members to choreograph. According to Artistic Director Kerri Bell ’17, the vibe of every
show is different. Since choreographers have full control over their pieces, they can take complete liberty with style, lighting, costuming and music, essentially designing completely unique pieces, which make for entirely differing shows. “This year,” Bell elucidated, “the show has a more mellow, feel-good, relaxing vibe to it, which is a nice change ... I also really enjoyed helping our first-time choreographers stage their pieces. Choreographers have a hard time because it’s one thing to picture a piece in your head but it’s quite another to then apply that choreography to the different styles and body movements of different people. But it’s very rewarding to incorporate everyone’s styles and bounce ideas off each other. That way, we all learn from each other, and each person is highlighted, showcased and just has a good time, which is what we strive for here at FlyPeople.”
Courtesy of Kimmie Nguyen
n Dec. 2 and 3, Vassar’s oldest student-run dance company, FlyPeople, hosted their annual Fall Show to exhibit the talent and diverse range of styles that each member of the group possesses. Comprising 10 pieces that were all choreographed by students, the Fall Show, held in the Frances Daly Fergusson Dance Theater, was teeming with students, parents and faculty. The show opened with “Bergamot and My Brain,” which used “Sea Castle” by Purity Ring as the soundtrack. A modern piece that combined flowing movements with jerky ones, it aimed to convey the various emotions one feels as they progress through the different stages of life. The piece symbolized the breaking of societal norms, and its intense contrast between the music and choreography, as well as the dark undertones of the lighting, translated the anger, frustration and madness beautifully. The next piece, “Process,” was distinctly unconventional. The instructional voice of Bill T. Jones from a fragment of “The Breathing Show” washed over the theatre, dictating the movements of the three dancers on stage. Yet each dancer embraced their own style, and the piece became progressively frenzied as the cast lost themselves in the music, each bringing their own interpretations to a standardized set of instructions. FlyPeople Executive Board member Tiana Chung ’19 relayed her understanding of the piece: “It tells us that there’s no defined way of moving; that there’s no right or wrong in the general realm of dance.” Titled “oh.,” the next piece was meant to extract exactly that reaction from the audience. With “Woke Up Today” by Jacob Collier as its soundtrack, this high-energy piece was a surreal experience that involves the passing on of happiness. Dancer Kaya Deuser ’20 shared, “I think Ryan, the choreographer, is a genius. I would call this a quirky, happy piece. I really felt that it expressed that everyone’s a child at heart, showcasing complete madness and joy.” “Push,” a contemporary piece, played with var-
ious dynamics. Co-choreographers Henry Gilbert ’20 and Turner Hitt ’18 explained, “We had ideas of how different relationships can seem supportive but are actually toxic, and how that disparity can play out. So, we tried to create movement that showed these ideas by incorporating lots of cause-effect motions and various interactions between the dancers.” The theme of imbalance that they played with was translated very emotionally to the audience, with grace that conveyed passion and angst and matched the mood of their music, “Push Me To The Floor” by Parlotones. “Heavy Metal & Reflective,” named after the song by Azealia Banks, was an absolute delight. The hip-hop style and distinct “street vibe” added a new dimension to the show. “We were a scooter squad,” Chung, the co-choreographer, joked. “This piece was meant to be high energy and edgy and showcase some of the hip-hop talent of the group.” Deuser, who danced in this piece, shared how much she loved it: “You just feel empowered after dancing this piece, ready to take on the world.” The next piece, “For a While,” was heart-wrenching, characterized by graceful movements, frantic running and melancholy lighting. Abby Hebert ’20, a dancer in this piece, explained, “It’s about losing someone dear to you but holding onto them. Our blue collared T-shirts symbolized wearing the T-shirt of someone you have lost, and feeling connected to them through it.” Appropriately, the piece was choreographed to “In this Shirt” by The Irrepressibles. The following piece, “Zoom,” was easy-going and mellow, with the soundtrack “Green Aphrodisiac” by Corinne Bailey Rae. Petch Kingchatchaval ’20 explained the choreographer’s intention behind this contemporary piece: “The dance was meant to be very organic, with a contrast between sharp and sensual movements.” Choreographed to “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman, the next piece was distinctly nostalgic, with the cast dressed in flannel shirts, as though longing for home, or for simpler, happier times. The chorus was the high-point of the piece, culminating into an energetic flurry of hope that contrasted with the
FlyPeople, Vassar’s student-run dance company, presented their fall showings on Dec. 2 and 3., showcasing a diverse set completely choreographed and art directed by student members.
Rock musical lays ‘bare’ the difficulties of fitting in Noah Purdy Arts Editor
With additional reporting by
Sam O’Keefe
“H
ere in a world, where there’s safety in falsehood, I have discovered the one thing that’s real,” sings one of the main characters at the climax of the musical “bare: A Pop Opera.” In additional to being a major plot point of the show, the wavering line between reality and fantasy is present in the theatrical experience as a whole, prompting audiences and performers alike to reflect on the contradictory artifices of everyday life and the barefaced honesty of a fictional world. This dichotomy permeated the directorial debut of Bianca Barragan ’19 in “bare: A Pop Opera,” an altogether multivalent musical unique in its format in that, like an opera, it was mostly sung. Rehearsals for the show began in September, and the semester’s worth of work culminated in per-
formances in the Shiva Theatre from Thursday, Dec. 1, to Saturday, Dec. 3. “The show,” explained Barragan in an email, “is centered around the lives of two boys, Jason and Peter [played by Aidan Anderson ’20 and John Kee ’19, respectively], at a Catholic boarding school who have been trying to navigate their relationship with each other for the past six years. The audience comes into their relationship during the second half of their senior year of high school.” Themes of identity, self-acceptance, shame and religion run through the show and constitute significant hurdles for many of the characters, including Jason’s sister Nadia, played by Chloe Catoya ’20. Barragan went on, identifying Jason and Peter’s major struggle: “However there is an issue—Peter wants to tell people about [his relationship with Jason] while Jason would rather keep it a secret. We also get to see other characters navigate their own issues through the con-
Courtesy of Rachel Wallace
The performances of “bare: A Pop Opera” this past weekend represented the culmination of a semester of hard work mastering the diverse musical styles, strong themes and emotional content.
text of a production of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ they are putting on. I don’t want to spoil the ending but let’s just say that tensions continue to flare as problems are not addressed and are dealt with in unhealthy ways.” This production of “Romeo and Juliet,” the play-within-a-play, is just one of the show’s many riffs on Shakespearean devices, such as dream sequences, masked identities and a complex web of relationships. As in the Elizabethan tragedy, drama runs high in “bare,” but levity is introduced through comical asides and an impressive score, full of surprises and fun nods and winks to other works. Think of the melodrama of the first season of “Glee” combined with the punk rock attitude of “School of Rock,” all set to a backdrop of music ranging from ballads and rap to English folk dance and a selection from Vivaldi’s “Spring” concerto. The superb live band accompanying the performances was indispensable to this musical journey, but their preparations for such a large stylistic scope were difficult at times. As rehearsal accompanist and keyboardist Colby Morrison ’20 stated, “I think one of the biggest challenges is the sheer amount of music in this show. ‘Bare’ is a pop opera, in the sense that it’s all music; there’s only one scene in the show with no music under it. For a fairly short rehearsal process with varied schedules, it was a challenge for everyone to learn and master the music, including myself. I spent lots of hours in Skinner, working through all the tougher passages of the show.” Actress Mary Retta ’20, who played Ivy, the character cast in the role of Juliet and subsequently plunged into a love triangle, expanded on the difficulty of this show: “This show was challenging both musically and thematically. Not only was there a huge amount of complicated music to learn but the show itself revolved around some tough themes such as homophobia, bullying and questioning one’s religion and path in life. We worked really hard to portray the correct emotion in every scene so that the audience understood what each of the characters was going through...[thereby] taking these issues and making them real and relatable to the audience.” Exploring these issues of identity and accep-
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
tance in crisis is as important as ever now, and the show masterfully portrays how people confronted with such struggles either cope or succumb to the pressure. “The main message of the show for me,” expressed Barragan, “is represented in one of the lines of the final number, ‘It’s so hard to find your way when you have no voice to guide you home.’” “For so many people in this world,” Barragan continued, “the story of ‘bare’ is a reality for them. They have to return home and navigate communities that do not offer them a voice of comfort because of profound discrimination ... I know for me, especially as someone who is bisexual, when I look at ‘bare’ I see myself and my community represented and that brings me great comfort.” The musical’s parallel plot with “Romeo and Juliet” tackles this notion of uprootedness in an interesting way, at the same time challenging the traditional love story and universalizing the ideas of forbidden love and social denial and exclusion. Theatre, both the fictionalized version of Shakespeare’s play in the musical and the “bare: A Pop Opera” itself, thus becomes a fictional arena in which to play out very real—though often hidden—tensions, sometimes just overly dramatized versions of real life. As Barragan commented, “One of the biggest challenges was being able to be flexible and give up this ‘perfect’ image of what I wanted [the show to be] in my mind for something that was more rooted in reality.” The self-referential aspect of this theatre production, moreover, complicates the genre itself, posing the problem of how to extricate one’s “true” self from a created or adopted persona. Where do your defense mechanisms end and you begin? “All the world’s stage,” the Bard wrote after all. “bare” certainly demonstrated the frequent difficulties that come along with being an actor, both in the technical, artistic sense of the word as well as the psychological and metaphorical. Reflecting on her involvement and the meaning of the production, Retta affirmed, “This show is incredibly important ... I hope that the audience walked away with an understanding of what it is like to be different and how hard it can often be to be oneself.”
December 8, 2016
ARTS
Page 15
Magical Shakespeare play breaks with stylistic traditions MIDSUMMER continued from page 1
The Drama Department’s production of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” utilized an unconventional set, and a section of the play was viewed from below the stage, as pictured above.
Courtesy of Leo Hilton Courtesy of Leo Hilton
of through the set, costuming and props. Fairies and lovers alike, for instance, were dressed in edgy costumes, which cast member Alexa Jordan ’17 expounded upon in an email: “We talked a lot about leaning into the darker side of ‘Midsummer’ and not playing into the ‘ooey gooey’ mood that the show often takes on, in general (I think the fairies’ crazy costumes, in particular, are a great example of that) ... The world of our play was also more modern (also exhibited in costumes, specifically that of the lovers: leather jackets, boots, etc.).” In keeping with the production’s rejection of many of the norms of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” many characters were reimagined outside of their traditionally male casting. Bentley, who played Puck, explained her newfound understanding of Shakespeare’s impish character. “One of the discoveries that was really a major lightbulb moment for me is that my version of Puck is non-binary,” she said. “This is a character who can literally transform into animals and inanimate objects, so it seemed silly to me that they would fit into a traditional understanding of gender. We’ve changed some of the language in the play to reflect this, and overall, I think it’s really been key to my understanding of the character.” The myriad changes made to “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” allowed for a modern interpretation of the original play in almost every sense possible, all the while paying homage to the classic text. Upon her second time participating in the show as the character of Helena, Anders noted, “I actually played the same role two and a half years ago, so it’s been really fascinating to work on the show again, this time with a very different concept and process.” Jordan reflected, “I think all of these changes really added a new, unique dimension to the show. I’ve certainly never experienced this play this way, and all of my friends and family who saw the show commented on how much the space influenced their interpretation of the play.”
Courtesy of Katie Scibelli
obvious difference in this iteration of ‘Midsummer’ is its location ... [When the audience does] get to the trap room, they get to be a part of the same magical environment that sweeps the characters away ... Performing in the trap room lets the audience step into the forest as well and experience the magic right alongside the characters.” The trap room itself was small, but every inch was put to use as characters swung from the rafters, appeared through trap doors, descended into the space through fire poles and even fell asleep in the arms of audience members. “The space is untheatrical, dark and a bare storage room,” elucidated Assistant Director Logan Pitts ’17. “Yet it is from this space that makes our production ignite into reality ... The room is small so the actors play intimately in every inch of it, including the audience.” The space also lent itself to a more industrial, modern interpretation of the play. Pitts remarked, “‘Midsummer’ holds a reputation for being light, cute, in this magical forest inhabited by fairies. This production tends to avoid all of these stereotypes.” Cast member Karli Bentley ’17 noted the play’s divergence from traditionally romantic productions, saying, “[T]he vision from the beginning has been to do a grungier, edgier ‘Midsummer.’ With this play, there’s a tendency to want things to be really pretty and cutesy because it’s set in this beautiful forest...but we’ve tried instead to tap into the sexually charged language that’s woven through the entire play and overall to make this production more gritty and dark.” Bentley continued, “I think that this way of framing the show definitely makes it a more exciting production and more appropriate for this campus. This isn’t your grandma’s ‘Midsummer’ (unless you have, like the coolest grandma).” The cast and crew’s less romantic conception of “Midsummer” was fully taken advantage
Above is actress Emily Drossel ’19, who played both a mechanical and a fairy, in one of the grungy, modern sets that diverged from traditionally ethereal and fanciful depictions of “Midsummer.”
Tap away your finals worries with Tappy Holidays Patrick Tanella Arts Editor
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inals are a stressful time on campus for every college student. If you are looking for a reason to take a study break or are enthusiastic about dance, Tappy Holidays promises to ease your worries with unique tap pieces and baked goods. This event from Vassar On Tap will be taking place in the Student’s Building at 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 9. Vassar On Tap is the College’s largest dance group, with almost 50 members performing at the upcoming event. Co-president Emma Butensky ’18 credits this achievement to heavily promoting the club to first years last fall by luring them in with cookies and the promise of a good time. Word of mouth from students raving about the organization has led to Vassar On Tap to have their largest group of student to date. In addition, the organization has classes for four different levels: beginner, intermediate 1,
intermediate 2 and advanced. There is a place for anyone who wants to tap dance, whether they have been doing it their whole life or have never danced before. This is what beckoned sophomore Wenjie Xie into tap her first year. She stated, “Coming from a background in which I’ve been dancing on and off for almost a decade, I realized that while I’ve experimented with almost every dance style, from jazz and ballet to belly dancing and hip hop, I’d never tried tap before! So of course, given the opportunity to learn tap as a beginner in a college dance org and [with]free tap shoes provided by said org, I had absolutely no excuse not to try it out.” While the tap shoes are definitely a perk, Xie explained that the fantastic group of people make it worth sticking to it. She continued, “I got to bond with fabulous people during a very overwhelming time, my first month at college. Vassar On Tap has improved my sense of
Courtesy of Emma Butensky
Vassar On Tap’s event, Tappy Holidays, brings tap dancers at all levels together to perform student-choreographed and traditional pieces with an accompanying jazz band.
rhythm, given me invaluable friendships and acquire the means to retaliate and irritate my downstairs neighbors!”
“ ‘The fact that even someone who has just been tap dancing for a semester can perform an entire dance is really rewarding for people...’ ” Tyler Boyle ’19 had a differing experience coming into Vassar On Tap. Put into tap shoes at age three by his mother, Boyle has been passionate about tap dancing for as long as he can remember. He was eager to join the organization once he found out it existed. Boyle explained, “I was super pumped when I saw that Vassar On Tap was a thing. I saw them perform when I was a prospective student during Focus Weekend, and I knew that I wanted to try it.” “I came in as a first year,” Boyle continued, “and thought that it would be super easy because of my 16 years of experience. Then I saw Butensky tap, and I was blown away. Vassar On Tap has challenged me while also allowing me to grow as a dancer and creating new friendships along the way. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.” Butensky is psyched for the Vassar community to see the hard work that everyone has put into the show and for those who have never performed before to be able to show what they have learned in just three months. Co-President with Megan Jackson ’18, Butensky has been tap dancing since she was seven years old. She is passionate about the genre because it is generally an underappreciated art form that people don’t tap, tap, tap into enough. She points out, “There’s like two colleges in the U.S. that have tap dance programs. They all have ballet, modern and all the white European dance forms, but they don’t have tap dance or other cultural dance options. Tap dance was created by Irish and English immigrants and Af-
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rican slaves. A lot of people do not know about tap dance, and some might even presume that it’s dead.” Butensky continued, “Vassar On Tap continues to appreciate and promote this art form to the people around us. The people in this club may not dedicate their entire lives to tap dancing, but they dedicate a whole lot of time to it. You’ll get to see how passionate they are about it.” Tappy Holidays will feature live performances of Vassar’s Jazz Band, while also having 48 performers for nine different pieces, which have been choreographed by either professionals or are originally choreographed by students in the club. As Boyle sums up, “It’s a nice halfhour break from dying,” alluding to the stress that many students on campus feel as finals approach. You can feel the passion radiating out of those in the club as they excitedly discuss Tappy Holidays or talk about their first time attending a class. Each member of Vassar On Tap is eager to showcase what they have been working on for the semester to their friends that may not understand what tap dancing really entails. Butensky explains, “There’s something about learning how to do something physical and having the reward of accomplishing it. The fact that even someone who has just been tap dancing for a semester can perform an entire dance is really rewarding for people, and also people seem to really like making sounds with their feet.” Tappy Holidays is coming together to be a wonderful celebration of tap dancing with accompanying jazz music and home-baked goods. Reflecting on the timing of the event, Xie said, “We all know that no one really starts cramming for exams until a day or two before, so why not take a short break from pretending to study to enjoy free food and watch a super festive, fun, tappy performance. As a bonus, for anyone that’s a fan of ‘Where’s Waldo,’ come and try to spot the person who’s constantly tripping and/or face-planting throughout the show (that would be yours truly)! If you’re a fan of happy feet, your tap friends and free food, you should come watch us tap that.”
ARTS
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December 8, 2016
Coming-of-age film highlights stresses of young adulthood Kaitlin Prado Reporter
Edge of Seventeen
Kelly Fremon Craig Gracie/Huayi Brothers
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ally relate to. Because this movie seemed to be advertised primarily to a millennial audience, I had high hopes for the soundtrack. Luckily for me, I enjoyed many familiar songs that underscored the film as well as a number of new tunes. I would especially recommend listening to “Don’t You Wait” by Cloves, and I challenge you not to feel angsty. Speaking of angst, another thing that I really enjoyed about the movie was the way that it represented Nadine’s social anxiety and selfdoubt through her inner narrations. Throughout the film, we heard a lot of what was going on in her head, and unlike a lot of what Nadine said out loud during the film, it was not for comedic effect. This narration showed just how defeated and upset she felt even if she was making jokes out loud.
Courtesy of California Film Institute/Vimeo
fter a somewhat lonely Thanksgiving Break in which I hardly left my room in Main Building, I knew I had to peel myself out of my bed and do something fun eventually. When one of my friends returned from her visit to the city, I begged her to go see the movie “Edge of Seventeen” with me. I had a lot of hope for the film because of the miraculous 94 percent Rotten Tomatoes rating it had earned, as well as the strong “Juno” vibes it had been giving me during the many YouTube and Spotify advertisements I was subjected to during break. Settling into the oversized seats at the Poughkeepsie Galleria theatre, I didn’t quite know what to expect from the film whose tagline read: “You’re only young once...is it over yet?” But once I got over the fact that 20 to 30 year olds were playing high school aged students, I really began to get into the story. This movie centers around high school junior Nadine and how she feels that her life is completely falling apart once her big brother starts to date her best friend. It isn’t enough that Nadine’s older, more popular brother is dating her long time best friend though, which is just one of the many examples of life sticking it to Nadine. A few more notable things that have sucked for Nadine: As a very young girl she was bullied for no apparent reason (as is often the case), she lost her dad when she was a tween, and, as a teen, Nadine has to deal with a mom who seems to mean well, but is made to appear more or less not helpful. This movie shamelessly plays on some tropes that I’m sure the producers hoped many of us millennials would relate to from personal ex-
perience. We are invested in Nadine’s character and her plight because really, who among us has not spent time in the shadow of an oldest sibling? Who among us can’t say that we’re both conventionally attractive and smart while also being too painfully awkward to have any sort of social capital? Who among us hasn’t irrationally lusted after the hot silent-type who works at our local pet shop? Maybe those last two weren’t her most relatable qualities—but relatability aside, I rooted for this girl. I’m pretty sure we can all agree that the seventeenth year of life is a weird time to be alive, and this is why I was on her side. For a majority of the movie, her best friend and confidante was her history teacher and she never missed an opportunity for self-deprecation. Now there’s something that some of us can re-
The recently released movie “The Edge of Seventeen,” mainly geared toward a millenial audience, explores the stress of youth, summed up in its tagline, “You’re only young once...is it over yet?”
One thing that I thought this movie did especially well was balancing some very real moments with plenty of light-hearted and comedic ones. In this same vein however, I thought it was unfortunate that the movie chose to capitalize on the use of problematic jokes. I say capitalize, because while my friend and I cringed at a number of jokes that did not land for us at all, a majority of our fellow movie-goers were laughing out loud at these arguably insensitive lines, and I’m sure this split reaction could be found in many theatres. While I was bothered by the language of some of the jokes, many jokes used in the film were made in better taste and hit very close to home in my stress-addled and occasionally angsty brain. Looking past the bits of problematic humor and at the movie as a whole, I have to agree with many other ~real~ critics in saying that “Edge of Seventeen” was very well written. The way the dialogue served to characterize these teens felt very specific. To me, they were not teen caricatures, but instead, pretty effective representations of adolescence. The awkwardness seemed all too real to someone who has figuratively put her foot in her mouth on more than one occasion. And on the other hand, there were a number of well-crafted and truly sad moments that aren’t usually touched on during comedic coming of age stories. While the script clearly served them well, a script alone isn’t enough to carry a movie. The film relied on the talents of the actors to accomplish this, and speaking of the actors in this film, I would like to take the time to personally thank Melissa Kostenbauder the casting agent for this movie: Thank you, Melissa. Thank you for introducing me to breakout star Hayden Szeto. He played a believably awkward guy named Erwin who shares a class with and eventually befriends Nadine. Who cares if Szeto is a 31 year old man playing a teen? I would still 10/10 recommend that you Google search this guy in your free time, and of course, see the movie.
Childish Gambino lacking, derivative on new album Jimmy Christon Columnist
Awaken, My Love!
Childish Gambino Glassnote Records
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remember my freshman year of high school two of my friends were talking about something on one of their phones. They were sharing headphones and listening to one of their iPods: they were listening to “Troy from Community’s” rap album. The rapper, Childish Gambino (also known as Donald Glover), became a part of my high school experience. His sophomore album “Because the Internet” and accompanying screenplay of the same name came out my sophomore year, and his third musical release, “STN MTN / Kauai” came out my senior year.
It’s a shame, then, that I think Childish Gambino is so mediocre. I want to remember high school for things other than a mediocre screenplay and three subpar albums, but memories have a funny way of working like that. I’m being unfair to Gambino, though. His music wouldn’t be a part of my high school experience if I didn’t like it on some level. I just find myself continually disappointed by how almost-good his music has been. My problem with Gambino is that his music suffers from two problems: It’s inconsistent, and it’s pretentious. Donald Glover recently proved that he could craft something that avoided these two problems with his fantastic TV show “Atlanta” (I gave it 5/5 stars in my review for the show). This left me curious about this new album: Could Glover pull off the same feat with his new album? Can he avoid the pit of mediocre pretentiousness that has plagued his other musical forays?
Courtesy of John Biehler
Childish Gambino—the stage name of actor Donald Glover—continues to reach mediocrity despite fantastic vocals, range and few stellar tracks on his newest album “Awaken, My Love!”
In some sense, yeah, this album isn’t terrible— it’s pretty decent, actually—and it isn’t pretentious, thankfully. Gambino pulls off the switch to funk pretty well, so props to him for that. At the same time, I am also deeply disappointed with this album. There just isn’t enough in this album for it to stand up on its own. I always feel like I’m thinking of other musical acts while l listen to “Awaken,” and I end up wishing I were listening to them instead. First off, the things I like about this album: The singles “Me and Your Mama” and “Redbone” are fantastic, and they set the bar for the rest of the album. Gambino’s vocals are stellar. Gambino proves that he has got pipes, and the instrumentation is there to back him up. The other songs I like on this album are the ones that are crafted in this same vein: songs like “California,” “Boogieman” and “Riot,” where the vocals and instrumentals work as a couple. These tracks are where the album is at its best. “Boogieman” and “Riot” are songs that jam hard, and you can’t help but jam along. The track “California” I feel deserves special recognition because of how much it sticks out. This track sees Gambino vocoder-singing in this groany voice over very chill instrumentals. I can already tell that this will be a very polarizing track. But personally, I really liked how well it contrasts with the rest of the album, and I think it is the most original track by far (originality being something that this album is lacking in). Conversely, the songs I don’t like are the ones where the vocals and instrumentals do not match up, like the song “Stand Tall,” in which Gambino sings a ballad, but there’s a space odyssey going on in the background. Or where Gambino just doesn’t deliver the vocals that the instrumentation is demanding, like on the track “Zombies.” Gambino sings with this odd puffed-chest bravado inflection that just doesn’t work. There is also quite a bit of vocoder usage on this album. Sometimes I like it, like on the track “California,” where it gives the track this kind of lazy, relaxed feeling. But other times, like on the track “Zombies” or “Stand Tall,” it sticks out and doesn’t sound quite right. It just doesn’t work well with the instrumentals.
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Another big complaint I have about this album is that it isn’t original. If you’ve listened to Funkadelic’s “Maggot Brain,” you’ve heard a good portion of this album. Gambino’s track “Have Some Love” is almost a carbon copy of their “Can You Get to That,” and Gambino’s version doesn’t come close to touching on the original. He lacks that lighthearted playfulness that makes Funkadelic so great. This use of funk bothers me, and it’s one of my biggest complaints with this album. First off, funk isn’t something that just disappeared at the end of the ’70s. Funk has been a part of hip-hop and R&B since their respective inceptions (before Dre got his doctorate, he was part of the funk group World Class Wreckin’ Cru). So for Gambino to make a straight-up funk album and pull straight from the ’70s feels like he’s ignoring a lot that the genre has to offer. I’m pointing this out because some other artists have used funk throwbacks to make their own music, but they are just leagues ahead of Gambino in terms of musical success. 2014’s “Black Messiah” by D’Angelo and the Vanguard does everything that “Awaken, My Love!” doesn’t. Black Messiah doesn’t suffer from poor vocal performances or a dysfunctional relationship between instrumentals and vocals. Gambino’s use of funk simply isn’t original and falls short compared to other modern and old-school funk acts. Not to say that “Awaken, My Love!” isn’t worth listening to. It is. There are songs on here that are absolutely stellar. These tracks carry this album. The rest of the album, however, just feels derivative, weightless and boring. This puts “Awaken, My Love!” in an awkward place. Gambino is content with pulling from older acts instead of developing his own sound. So on one hand, it’s going to get compared to what he is pulling from: acts like Funkadelic and their “Maggot Brain.” And that comparison is never going to be favorable to the modern act. At the same time, “Awaken” is also going to get compared to its contemporaries, like D’Angelo and The Vanguard, and it’s clear that Gambino’s music is just lacking something that keeps it from rivaling acts like that.
ARTS
December 8, 2016
Campus Canvas
A weekly space highlighting the creative pursuits of student-artists
Page 17 submit to misc@vassar.edu
‘“
Excuse me, Which of your dreams died this semester?
“My hopes of having money in the future” — Cassie Jain ’20
“All of them, because I never sleep anymore” — Melanie Donnelly ’17 Hyperhidrosis my hands are almost always sweaty and a day never goes by where i don’t feel that i am gross i am foul i am not worthy of touch and even in colder winter months where everything is dry dry dry my hands are wet wet wet, slick with the anxiety of knowing that i am not worthy of you.
“Whether to use cooked green beans or canned for casserole” — Sheharyar Imran ’17
hyperhidrosis is a overreaction, a defense mechanism, fight or flight working on overtime a self hatred only reemphasized by every passing comment that triggers a mantra that only repeats how disgusting i am
“The unlimited dining bucks dream” — Jami Joy Gibson ’20
hyperhidrosis is wiping palms on dry jeans after awkward handshakes; and a refusal to hold hands fighting every nerve that wants to touch, to tame a beast that bites with no warning. and whenever i touch i am constantly reminded of what i already tell myself: how repulsive am i to the touch, how repulsive am i to even exist. — Christa Haryanto ’19
“I just ate a brownie cookie and a sandwich, so losing the freshmen fifteen” — Kaitlin Prado ’19 Christa Haryanto ’19 (they, them, theirs/ she, her, hers) is a political science and prospective media studies double major. From Jakarta, Indonesia, they like to express themselves through art forms such as poetry and drawing.
“Not being awakened at 4:40 by a fire alarm” — Sumiko Neary ’20
Evelyn Frick, Humor & Satire Editor
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SPORTS
Page 18
December 8, 2016
Brewers battle top-ranked foes in year’s hardest matches Kelly Pushie
Guest Reporter
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is busy for everyone, Blumenstock was proud of the way the team focused in on the task at hand rather than let the stress of finals impact their performance. She explained, “On paper, maybe not the best result, but this meet is our most challenging of the year. We’re a Division III team and we fenced all Division I teams today, pretty much just because we can. They’re some of the top teams in the country, so we just had fun fencing really great people.” In terms of upperclassmen who have influenced the team, Blumenstock specifically points out the seniors. “Olivia Weiss and Elsa Stoff are such supportive squad leaders for epee and foil, respectively. They both are great at coaching,” she shared. Having two seniors who have both great leadership qualities and fencing ability is a formula for a successful and capable team.
For the rest of the season, Blumenstock knows that the team has to focus on staying resilient as they continue. She pointed out, “Next semester is our busiest time of the season. We have a meet almost every weekend from the end of winter break to the start of spring break.” With this mentality, Blumenstock reiterates the importance of stamina as the season continues. Off to a solid 11-9 start, the team is showing a lot of promise for the rest of the season. With senior leadership and tough competition that is pushing them to become a better team, the Vassar women’s fencing squad is going into the second half of their season confidently. The team will take a reprieve from matches until the end of January when they continue their season in Cleveland, OH to compete in the Cleveland invitational.
Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton
his past Sunday, the Vassar College women’s fencing team traveled to Fairfield, CT to compete in six matches at the Sacred Heart Traditional Tournament. Up against some of the toughest opponents in the country, the team showed great resilience and a lot of heart while battling some of the best opponents they will see this season. The Brewers competed against players from Harvard, Sacred Heart, New York University, Princeton, Temple and Penn State. Unfortunately, the squad was not able to pull out a team win at the end of the day. They started off with a tough 23-4 loss to Harvard, ranked No. 4 nationally, and then fell to Sacred Heart University in a close match 17-10. Vassar then lost to NYU 18-9 and were defeated by No. 3 Princeton University 24-3. In their last two matches of the day, the team lost 21-6 to Penn State, who is No. 8 nationally and then to No. 9 Temple University 25-2. Even though the squad went 0-5 for the day, some members of the VC women’s fencing team battled against some of the best fencers in the country. From the epee team, seniors Olivia Weiss and Rose Hulsey-Vincent were able to pull through with a victory, both defeating Harvard’s Julia Carstens. Sophomore Sophie Blumenstock also had an exciting match, beating a senior foil from the Harvard team 5-2. In their closest match of the day, the Brewers had a strong showing from the epee squad, giving the team a 5-4 win, along with the foil team, led by Blumenstock, senior Elsa Stoff and sophomore Mirit Rutishauser, who all contributed pulling off a strong 6-3 win. However, the Brewers struggled to find some wins against the Sacred Heart sabre team, who won all nine bouts to ensure their victory. Against NYU, the Vassar squad put up a good fight, but in the end were unable to come out victorious. However, some individuals were able to rack up some wins, including Weiss who was able to secure three more wins alongside
Hulsey-Vincent, who won two bouts. Freshman epee Samantha Lottick also was able to come out victorious in a close 5-4 win. The foil team reached success in three bouts, but it was not enough to defeat the NYU Violets. Next up, VC took home three wins against the third-ranked team in the country, Princeton, coming from Hulsey-Vincent, Weiss and Blumenstock. Against Penn State, the six bout wins came from Weiss, Hulsey-Vincent, Rutishauser and Stoff. Finally, against Temple University Weiss and freshman Stephanie Gull picked up more victories. Although the Brewers did not pick up an overall win, individual performance was strong. For Vassar, Weiss had the most wins with 10 on the day while Hulsey-Vincent recorded seven. Back for his 12th season coaching for Vassar, Coach Bruce Gillman has been an influential part in the growth that the team has seen over the past few years. He was happy with how the team performed on Sunday, especially against such tough competitors. “The team performed very well, considering the high level of competition,” he explained. Gillman noted specific players who stepped up and did not let the tougher competition affect their performance. “Olivia Weiss and Rose Hulsey-Vincent on the epee squad and Elsa Stoff, Sophie Blumenstock and Mirit Rutishauser on the foil squad. All upped their games yesterday and had some great wins and close losses,” Gillman mentioned. In terms of the rest of the season, Gillman places an emphasis on consistency as they continue their season into January. He added, “The team should be aided by the return of standout fencers juniors Kirsten Denman and Annie Inness-Gold if they can seamlessly slot into the base that the others have created this past semester.” Blumenstock has been an integral part of this year’s fencing squad as she claimed 12 wins for Vassar thus far. Although this time of year
Sophomore Sophie Blumenstock defeats Division I competition at Sacred Heart Traditional Tournament. On Jan. 21, the team will next travel to Ohio to compete in the Cleveland Invitational.
Opposing team squashes Vassar men’s winning record Lindsay Wolk
Guest Reporter
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the No. 4 and 5 spots respectively. As for the rest of the team, Nadkarni was the only Brewer able to take his opponent past three sets. He played No. 2 Brett Raskopf and fell in four sets with scores of 11-2, 11-13, 11-5 and 11-9. Along with Mencotti, fellow teammates Bryenton, Fifer, Nadkarni, Riccio, and sophomore Caden Gruber all posted individual records of winning 50 percent of their 8 matches or more following this weekend. While No. 6 Gruber dropped both of his matches on the day, he acknowledged his weaknesses and is looking forward to working the remainder of the season to improve upon them. Gruber stated, “My individual play was characterized by mental weakness in my opinion. Squash is a game that requires mental acuity in addition to physical agility. Even if one is lacking, overall performance can falter dramatically. From this, I am planning on refocusing on the fundamentals, which should allow me to re-edi-
Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton
assar men’s squash faced their biggest test of the season on Sunday, Dec. 4 as they went up against Bard College and Tufts University, two undefeated teams thus far in the season. After an unblemished 4-0 start to the season, the Brewers dropped their first matches of the season, losing 1-8 to both Haverford College and Connecticut College on Nov. 19. This moved their record to 4-2 leading into the matches against Tufts and Bard, both higher-ranked opponents. Interim Head Coach David Ames reflected, “Our losses have been to far superior teams, so they were not upsetting. Players know that they only improve by pushing themselves against superior opponents. Winning today would have been huge as both teams are higher ranked and more experienced.” Despite falling 8-1 against Tufts and 7-2 against Bard, Coach Ames commends his players for their effort and hard work. He remarked, “The effort across the board was tremendous, I continue to see improvement in all my players. Hitting out of the back corners, better court awareness and better shot selection are all things we will be continuing to work on.” Senior Vincent Mencotti and freshman Viraj Nadkarni both had good outings on Sunday as Mencotti went perfect for the day winning both of his matches at the No. 1 spot while Nadkarni topped his opponent from Bard at the No. 2 spot. Mencotti defeated Rhys Nordstrom from Bard in four sets, dropping the first 9-11 but then going perfect for the rest of the match with scores of 11-6, 11-8 and 11-4. Nadkarni took Aya Maeda to five sets with scores of 11-5, 11-5, 6-11, 8-11 and 11-8 before finally securing the victory. The majority of the rest of the matches against Bard were decided by definitive 0-3 losses for Vassar with a few exceptions. Junior Alex Riccio took Satwik Sriknishnan to five sets at the No.7 spot before dropping the fifth set by a score of 11-5. It also took five sets for Theo Webb of Bard to defeat No. 9 Lucas Fifer as they
battled back and forth with Webb taking the first two sets and Fifer making a comeback winning the next two before dropping the final set with a score of 11-8. Mencotti credited the whole team for their effort against difficult opponents stating, “The team played great, especially No. 2 Viraj Nadkarni and No. 7 Alex Riccio. The opposing teams just outplayed us. Nothing we can do about that.” Mere hours after the loss, the Brewers suited up again to play Tufts, a decidedly even more difficult opponent. Despite mental and physical fatigue, the team came together and focused on playing to the best of their ability. Mencotti was particularly impressive as he swept Tufts’s No. 1 Alan Litman with scores of 12-10, 11-4 and 11-3. He racked up an impressive 6-2 winning record midway through the season, as he led the team both as the No. 1 spot and as a senior co-captain alongside fellow seniors Samuel Hammer and Richard Bryenton, who play at
Freshman Viraj Nadkarni proves young talent in matches against Bard and Tufts on Dec. 4. After such a tough day of competition, VC will take a break before facing Trinity on Jan. 21.
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
fy my gameplay from the bottom-up.” In terms of training, Coach Ames explained, “Preparation is about looking at what has worked in the past and what needs work along with squash specific fitness and movement drills. We really do not train differently for each up coming match.” Reiterating the team’s work ethic, Gruber emphasized, “As a team, we have all been practicing rigorously, competitively and critically so that we can maximize our potential for the match. The means by which we refocused (for these matches) was by critically analyzing our weaknesses and ramping up the conditioning.” Following the difficult matches that the team has faced in the past two competition days, they will look to recover both mentally and physically during their five week long hiatus from competition. Despite being away from Vassar for such a long break, Coach Ames ensures that all team members will continue to train over the break. He stated, “Some of the players will have access to courts at home and will continue to play. The rest will focus on squash specific fitness.” Following the break from practice, matches and schoolwork, the team will return to campus one week prior to the rest of the student body. Throughout that week, the team goes through intensive squash training in order to prepare for the second half of the season, which includes the Hudson Valley Team Tournament, the Liberty League Championships as well as the CSA championships. Coach Ames described, “Players arrive back on campus on Jan. 14, we will do two-a-day practices with fitness in the morning and technique in the afternoons for that week, culminating in matches on Jan. 21.” After such intense practices and well-deserved rest, Vassar will resume competition in January 2017. To start off the calendar year, VC will rematch Haverford College and Swarthmore College on Saturday, Jan. 21 in Haverford, PA. The Brewers will look to redeem themselves from a previous 1-8 loss against Haverford as well as improve upon their 6-3 win over Swarthmore.
December 8, 2016
SPORTS
Page 19
Misperceptions divide Vassar athletes and classmates Robert Pinataro and Mack Liederman Guest Columnists
W
hen the application hits the table, are academics the only factor that sets prospective Vassar students apart? 16 percent of Vassar students are varsity student athletes. Was it their status as athletic recruits that led to their acceptance, or are these students just as, if not more, qualified as the rest of the student body? These unspoken questions are a taboo that divides students, athletes, coaches and professors alike on campus. “Vassar is a tough school to get into, and every student here has to hit a high bar to be admitted. You don’t get to be here unless you deserve it,” said the men’s and women’s Cross Country and Track and Field Head Coach James McCowan. “As coaches trying to recruit excellent student-athletes, it is our job to understand what admissions is looking for as well as what it takes to compete athletically.” According to Coach McCowan, the recruiting and admission process starts with his staff creating a database of hundreds of prospects with the ability to compete at Vassar. Then, McCowan takes a look at a prospects’ transcripts and test scores. “It doesn’t matter how fast you are, we need to see the academic standing,” Coach McCowan explained. “While we can screen many of these ourselves after working closely with admissions for many years, we still send quite a few of these over to admissions for a quick read on their suitability as potential applicants.” “An early unofficial read of an application comes with being a recruit,” said freshman lacrosse player Grace Goodwin-Boyd. “My coach submitted my test scores and grades to admissions to get an early, non-official read of whether I would be admitted or not,” Goodwin-Boyd stated. “Then, I came for a clinic and showed that Vassar was my first choice school and my coach submitted my information again for a more official read.”
These pre-reads are critically important for high school athletes who want to continue their careers at an academically selective college. Freshman baseball player Maxwell Spencer noted, “When athletes are going through the recruiting process and have multiple options, it is very important to know whether or not they will be accepted before making their final decision. Pre-reads give prospective athletes security when making a very important decision.” Although there are early reads, Coach McCowan says that he and other varsity coaches at Vassar College cannot help students with admission or “greenlight” applications, a procedure characterized by guaranteeing acceptance to outstanding athletes even if they are not admissible. “It can be hard to get top prospects committed to Vassar. The academic window is small, and there aren’t a lot of truly exceptional scholar-athletes at the highest level,” Coach McCowan continued. “When it comes to actually applying, we have a limited number of recommendations we can submit along with students applications. These recommendations won’t change anyone’s prior academic performance.” This process can be disheartening for Vassar’s coaches. McCowan added, “It is definitely frustrating to see a great student who I know could succeed here, academically and athletically, be turned away. Even more frustrating when they end up admitted to a supposedly more rigorous school when they could not get in here.” Vassar’s Director of Athletics Michelle Walsh also said that there are no admission exceptions made for student-athletes. “Vassar is one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country and, as such, has rigorous admissions standards,” Walsh iterated. “Our coaches work closely with our colleagues in admissions to recruit prospective student-athletes that meet those high standards and demonstrate the ability to be academically successful.” Sophomore basketball player Paul Grinde, on the other hand, does not believe he would have
been admitted to Vassar if he was not a recruit. “There is probably a little bit of a discrepancy with non-athletes and athletes,” Grinde said. “There are probably students out there who are more deserving of an acceptance to Vassar than I am, but I used my athletics to put myself in the best possible school I could.” While most believe there are no special admits at such a prestigious liberal arts college as Vassar, this is not the case at all colleges and universities. Many other high level academic institutions, spanning across all three athletic divisions, have been known to grant admission to student-athletes of lower academic standing. Visiting Professor of Music at Vassar Justin Patch tutored student-athletes at the University of Texas, a large, well-funded Division I program that allows such exceptions for athletes. “My concern for admission standards for athletes had always been that if you want to look at what someone does athletically as a proxy for what they can do with extracurriculars, that’s fine,” Patch explained. “But if you’re bringing someone in who is not as strong academically as you want to be, it’s kind of a recipe for disaster.” In order for student-athletes to participate in NCAA sports, they must be able to maintain a certain level of academic performance. At a school like Vassar, where the academic requirements are so rigorous, coaches cannot afford to recruit players that will not excel in the classroom. Freshman basketball player Hunter Gettings believes that the athletes on campus are more than capable of meeting and exceeding Vassar’s academic standards. “I think athletes do just as well if not better than people who do not participate in sports,” Gettings said. “Having limited time on our hands it really helps us to stick to a schedule and get work done in a timely fashion.” At a school like Vassar, where athletes do not receive special tutoring or help, athletes must be completely responsible for both academic and athletic performance. In fact, most coaches enforce that their players always put academics
before athletes. Therefore, athletes will miss practices and even games in the event of exams, labs or the request of professors. Senior baseball player Adam Erkis told, “I do not think that athletes tend to struggle more in classes at Vassar. If anything, they can be more on top of their work, knowing that they have to account for time at practice or in the weight room.” Professor Patch agrees that Vassar athletes are more than capable students. “Our student-athletes are such great students, it’s not an issue here,” Professor Patch said. “I had a class last spring where 10 out of 30 of my students were athletes, and they were great students. They were good participators, they were fun, they were great in class, it was never an issue.” However, misperceptions of athlete’s academic abilities are still very prevalent on campus, according to Professor of Political Science Richard Born. In a study for one of Professor Born’s classes, students sent an email survey to all students at Vassar College, with a few of the questions about perception of athletes. Out of 489 responses to the entirety of the survey, 42.5 percent of students were generally negative about student-athletes, 21.3 percent were neutral, 31 percent were generally positive and approximately 5.2 percent did not respond. Grinde said that negative perception of athletes on campus is noticeable. “Yes, I feel judged by the non-athletes as being a dumb jock,” Grinde shared. “Athletes are treated as lesser people on this campus because most students believe we don’t deserve to be in this school. We deserve to be here as much as the non-athletes because we are able to keep our grades up. I work hard to be successful in the classroom and that is why I am here at Vassar.” So if athletes do not have advantages in the admissions process, why do such negative perceptions and misconceptions exist on campus? Although Vassar has homed athletes since its founding in 1861, a divide between athletes and non-athletes still exists today.
Liberty League Championships go swimmingly for VC mined to pull out fast times, despite issues they have faced this season so far. “Injury and illness have plagued our team this season, so we knew that the Liberty League Championships would be a team challenge,” Prater-Lee made clear. “However, we approached it well and still accomplished quite a bit this weekend as a more cohesive swim and dive program.” Senior Julia Cunningham, a two-time All-American and current team captain, along with sophomore Sammy Stone, have been outstanding swimmers for the Brewers and played a significant role in Vassar’s success at the championships. Cunnigham and Stone accumulated a multitude of points for Vassar throughout this meet. Right before entering the championships, Stone was ranked in the nation’s top 100 spots for both the 500-yard and 1000-yard freestyle events. Cunningham was designated as first seed in the Liberty League for both the 100-yard individual medley and the 100-yard butterfly, and second seed for the 400-yard individual medley and 200-yard butterfly. Nevertheless, their teammates contributed significantly to their efforts as well. Regarding the team’s feats throughout the championships, Prater-Lee commented, “We had many women who scored individual and swam or dove new bests, which are all huge accomplishments.” Freshman Laura Vidano, as well as sophomores Kael Ragnini and Meg Harrington, joined Stone in the first event for the Brewers. They won 44 points for Vassar in this 200-yard freestyle relay. Stone continued to perform remarkably, as she took third in the 500-yard freestyle, with her season-best time of 5:09.79. The most impressive finish of the day followed, as Cunningham narrowly missed firstplace in the 200-yard individual medley. Despite coming in second, she was able to nab 28 points for her team with a time of 2:10.90, only two seconds over the school record that she set in 2015. The women continued to push themselves throughout the two final sessions of the second day. Stone broke the existing record for the 1650yard freestyle, the longest event that takes place
Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton
DIVING continued from page 1 ing two sessions of the championships, they were unable to improve from their ranking of sixth. Nonetheless, the Brewers gave the meet their best efforts and completed incredible performances. “A three-session, timed finals meet in two days is a lot of swimming, particularly with warm-ups and warm-downs thrown in the midst,” conveyed Prater-Lee. “We were hoping to maintain momentum through the full two days, and we accomplished that.” The team agreed with Prater-Lee about the importance of upholding their energy. Many of the returning competitors emphasized this goal after experiencing the intensity of the races in previous years. “Last year, we were all very tired during the last session, but we’ve learned how to be smarter with recovery,” noted Strand. “We’ve talked a lot about being sharper with our finishes. It is important to finish out the last 10 yards of our relays with strength, and to not let exhaustion get the best of us.” Impressive performances from Cerutti and Walker highlighted the finishing day of the event. Walker came extremely close to taking first in the 200-yard medley relay with his season-best time of 1:57.30, but was just slightly beaten out by a competitor. Cerutti, Strand and LaBash joined him in order to earn the highest relay finish of the championships for the Brewers, with a collective time of 1:39.53. Cerutti attained impressive finishes in many of the second-day races, including ranking 15th in the 100-yard backstroke with a season-best time of 58.30, in addition to clinching 11th place in the 200-yard backstroke. The Brewers were overall satisfied with the finish, in which the men won 500 points throughout 16 events. “The final meet had many more men than women athletes this year, so the level of competition the men faced was very strong,” explained Prater-Lee. “The men’s team is pretty happy with its sixth place finish.” Meanwhile, the women of Vassar’s swimming and diving team maintained their ranking of seventh from the first session at Rochester, and finished the Liberty League Championships in seventh place as well. The team was deter-
Sophomore Sammy Stone zoomed through the 1650 yard free in 17:37.79 to claim first place and the league record at the Liberty League Championships. The team will next face Trinity on Jan. 14. during the championships, which has been standing since 2013. Additionally, Stone was an All-Liberty League performer in the 200-yard freestyle, in which she earned 28 points. “This meet is a great opportunity to race against tough competition and see where we match up at this point in the season,” Stone stated. “I tried to view this meet as a change to try out different race strategies and to really have fun competing. The overwhelming excitement and support we have throughout each other makes swimming here so amazing.” Cunningham did not disappoint in the final sessions of the meet, establishing herself as one of the highest point contributors in the competition. She accumulated a jaw-dropping 248 points for Vassar, finishing fifth in the 200-yard medley relay and swimming a cut time of 2:02.21. Her strength and ability helped her become named an All-Liberty League second-team in the 200-yard butterfly relay.
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
“While I went into last year’s championships without any real goals except to win my events, I came into this year with a different perspective,” Cunningham rationalized. “When my goal for last year didn’t work, I decided to enter the season with confidence that my training would pay off and to be excited to swim at each of our events.” In the 100-yard breaststroke, sophomore Haley Schultz took seventh place, followed by senior Julia Wieczorek, who earned 11 points, junior Emily McDaniels in 20th and freshman Sarah Boese in 24th. Both McDaniels and senior Kayla Schwab earned points in the 200-yard breaststroke relay for the Brewers. The women of Vassar finished the Liberty League Championships in seventh place with 576 points overall. The women’s team will resume its competitive season along with the men’s swimming and diving team against Trinity College on Jan. 14.
SPORTS
Page 20
December 8, 2016
Athletics wrap up 2016 with a bang, impressive finishes Olivia O’Loughlin Sports Editor
Men’s Basketball
Women’s Basketball
After falling to William Paterson on Nov. 28, the women’s basketball team sought revenge against a second New Jersey opponent, Drew University. From the onset, the Brewers did not give Drew a chance as they took the lead for the entirety of the game. VC entered halftime with a substantial 39-24 lead and eventually increased the margin to capture a 67-48 victory. Junior captain Ariella Rosenthal was once again the team’s highest scorer as she tallied 20 points against the Rangers. Rosenthal also tabbed five assists, seven total rebounds and a steal. Freshman Isa Peczuh had the game of her career against Drew as she notched a career-best 14 points, career-best three assists and two steals. Junior captain Samarah Cook and freshman Sophie Nick also reached the leaderboards for Vassar, adding 13 and 10 points respectively. Fellow junior
Men’s Swimming and Diving
After diving into the Liberty League Championships on Dec. 2 and 3, the Brewers emerged with a sixth place finish out of nine teams. Throughout the two days, Vassar participated in 16 events and accumulated a total of 500 points. In Rochester, senior Anthony Walker was crucial to the Brewers’ success as he earned points in a few different events. First, Walker claimed fourth place in the 200 medley relay alongside fellow senior Chris Cerutti, junior Jonah Strand and sophomore Ian LaBash. Walker then had two season-best swims, finishing the 200 fly in 1:57.30 and the 100 fly in 53.14 to earn second and fourth place finishes. In addition to team success in the 200 medley relay, Cerutti claimed individual victories as he finished at 15th in the 100 backstroke and 11th in 200 yard back. To reach the leaderboards in the 100 backstroke, Cerutti swam a season-best time of 56.49, beating his old time of 58.30. Meanwhile, Strand had the highest standings of the day as he clinched second place in the 200 backstroke and third in 100 backstroke. These finishes landed Strand All-Liberty League honors. Other strong VC swimmers include senior Patrick Lai who earned 18th in the 200 breaststroke and 22nd in the 100 breaststroke, and fellow senior Walter Gabriel who clinched the 26th seed with a time of 18:45.45 in the mile. After a few weeks off, Vassar will return to the pool against Trinity College on Jan. 14 in Hartford, CT.
Women’s Swimming and Diving
The women’s side finished in seventh place out of 10 teams at the Liberty League Championships hosted by the Rochester Institute of Technology on Dec. 2 and 3. With 576 points, the Brewers outscored Skidmore College but fell behind William Smith College and Saint Lawrence University. Sophomore Sammy Stone was a standout performer for Vassar, claiming the only first-place victory over the weekend. Stone zipped through the 1650 Yard free in 17:37.79, beating the second-place finisher, RPI’s Jen Enos, by over 16 seconds. With this finish, Stone rewrote the Liberty League record of 17:40.85, which was set by Enos in 2013. Senior Julia Cunningham also topped the leaderboards at the Championships as she finished in second place in the 400 individual medley and clinched fourth place in 100 butterfly. Cunningham collected 54 points for VC over these two events. Up next, sophomore Hayley Schultz took seventh place in the 100 breaststroke, followed by senior Julia Wieczorek in 16th and junior Emily McDaniels in 20th. Senior Kayla Schwab then took home 18th with a season-best 5:26.52 in the 400 IM. Following in the upperclassmen footsteps, freshmen Laura Vidano and Sarah Boese earned victories in their first showings in the Championships. Vidano placed in 24th for the 100 fly while Boese took home two victories, a 19th place finish in the 100 backstroke and 24th in the 100 backstroke. The Brewers will continue practicing over the next week weeks before heading to Hartford, CT to race against Mount Holyoke College and Trinity College on Saturday, Jan. 14. Women’s Squash
VC annihilated the Raptors of Bard College 9-0 before falling to the Jumbos of Tufts University 4-5. To start the day, sophomore Jia Min Wu, seniors Isabelle Bertram and Carly Scher, freshmen Sydney Nemphos and Alessandra Pilkington and junior Cherylann Mucciolo all won straight sets against Bard. Mucciolo won her sets with scores of 11-4, 11-0, 11-0, only allowing Bard’s Christa Gammage four points. Nemphos held Bard’s Audrey Hutchinson to merely one point, while Scher swept her match with 3 perfect matches 11-0. Nemphos and Pilkington continued their success against the Jumbos to go 2-0 on the day. Seniors Hannah Nice and Diana Howland were also victorious against Tufts. Nice won in four sets with scores of 11-6, 11-2, 9-11, 11-4 while Howland claimed the win 11-4, 11-8, 10-12, 11-8. Despite these strong showings, the Brewers were inched out by Tufts and were defeated 4-5. Going 1-1 on Dec. 4, the women’s squash team now holds an overall record of 6-2. VC will next take the court on Jan. 24 to face Haverford College and Johns Hopkins University in Haverford, PA. Men’s Fencing
Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton
Senior Mariah Ghant scores in match against Davenport, her penultimate game as a Brewer. After defeating the United States Coast Guard Academy, Vassar earns spot as No. 3 in the country.
On Dec. 4, the Brewers participated in the Sacred Heart University Multi-Meet and faced six very skilled teams. While Vassar defeated SHU 1611 and the New Jersey Institute of Technology 15-12, VC fell to Harvard 3-24, New York University 9-18, Princeton 6-21 and Penn State 7-20. Vassar’s sabre team led the efforts to defeat Sacred Heart Pioneers as they finished with a collective record of 8-1. Senior captain Campbell Woods and junior Eli Polston both went 3-0 against the Pioneers while freshman Graeme Mills posted the final two wins. For the epee squad, senior Ry Farley and juniors Jonathan Alperstein and Daniel Swerzenski all earned wins against Sacred Heart. To top things
Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton
On Thursday, Dec. 1, the Vassar men’s basketball team was defeated by its NESCAC opponent Williams College 55-78. The game started in Vassar’s favor as the Brewers gained a quick 8-1 lead in just over two minutes. For the rest of the half, the lead switched hands multiple times and Vassar entered the break with small deficit of 32-37. However, after the break, Vassar was unable to outplay William’s talent and height and the Ephs secured their win. Despite the result, multiple Brewers had strong showings to help VC stay in the contest. Sophomores Alex Seff and Mason Dyslin each totaled a team-high 13 points on the day, while junior Jesse Browne added another 12. Sophomores Steve Palecki and Chris Gallivan and freshman Owen Murray all tallied four more points for the Brewers. To lead the defensive end, Murray chalked up six defensive rebounds, followed by Browne with four, three from Seff and two from Palecki. Collectively, Vassar shot 40 percent from the paint and 29 percent from the 3-point line. These results are slightly downhill from the team’s percentages against Waynesburg, as the team tabbed 48.2 percent and 41.2 percent, respectively, against the Yellow Jackets. Vassar will next travel to Middletown, CT. to face second NESCAC competitor Wesleyan University on Wednesday, Dec. 7.
captain Kim Romanoff also led the team to victory as she contributed four points, eight rebounds and four assists. Fresh off of their win, the Brewers faced Ithaca College on Saturday, Dec. 3. The team entered the game ready to prove itself, as Ithaca will join the Liberty League next year and will become a regular conference opponent. Unfortunately, Vassar’s enthusiasm was not enough as Bombers took the game 72-53. Nevertheless, Rosenthal tabbed 18 points, while Nick added 10 and sophomore Nicole Teta notched eight more for VC. As a unit, Vassar shot 35.3 percent from the paint and 57.7 from the foul line. The women’s basketball team will next hop on a flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico to play Messiah College on Sunday, Dec. 18 at noon.
With second and third-place finishes, junior Jonah Strand was crucial to Vassar’s success at the league championships on Dec. 2 and 3. Vassar will race against Trinity College on Jan. 14. off, freshman Noe Berger earned two wins while fellow classmate Jack Holmes grabbed one win in foil. With Alperstein at the reins, the epee team steered the Brewers to victory against NJIT. Alperstein went 3-0 against the Highlanders, collecting two wins over NCAA Regional qualifiers. These impressive wins tallied a total of 12 victories for Alperstein on the day. In foil, Swerzenski also tabbed three more wins, while junior Tom Racek and Berger grabbed two more each. Then for the sabre squad, Polston notched two wins with one win apiece from Mills and Wood. After this hard day of competition, the Brewers will have a few weeks off before heading to Ohio to face Cleveland State University on Saturday, Jan. 21. Women’s Rugby
After a long bus ride to Greenville, SC, the Brewers were unfortunately defeated by Davenport University in the Final Four Championships. After trailing early in the game, Vassar decreased the margin to 22-29 as sophomore Jennie To scored for the Brewers. As the Panthers scored a penalty kick to make the score 37-22, senior Laila Blumenthal-Rothchild kept the Brewers in the game as she scored with 18 minutes left in the game. The remaining tries came from seniors Mariah Ghant, Nathalie Freeman and Lauren Workman and sophomore Rachel Elson. However, these points were not enough as the defending National Champions claimed the win with a score of 47-32. The very next day, Vassar turned things around to top the United States Coast Guard Academy 1510. With this win, Vassar was officially the third in the nation! Although the game ended with a close score, Vassar only allowed the Bears nine out of 80 minutes in their half. For the second day in a row, Freeman commanded the Brewer’s offensive efforts as she scored two tries. Senior Mary-Margaret McElduff added a try to seal the victory for VC. Finishing at the third rank in Division III with an impressive record of 12-2, the women’s rugby team will have much deserved time off before starting their spring season in 2017.
Weekend Scoreboard MEN’S BASKETBALL VASSAR
55
VS
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
WILLIAMS
VASSAR
78
67
VS
MEN’S FENCING
DREW
VASSAR
48
15
VS
MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE
WOMEN’S SQUASH
NJIT
VASSAR
12
9
VS
BARD
0