The Miscellany News
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Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY
Volume CLI | Issue 17
February 28, 2019
Alum talks Portraits illustrate prison epidemic Columnist U.S. voting taps into injustice M ‘sappy’ self Taylor Stewart Columnist
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n Friday, Feb. 22, Vassar students, faculty, alums and Poughkeepsie residents filled the Vogelstein Center’s Martel Theater to converse with seventh President and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) Sherrilyn Ifill ’84. A civil rights attorney, law professor and national expert on voting rights and judicial selection, Ifill engaged in an hour-long dialogue that was moderated by Professor of History Rebecca Edwards. The conversation touched on a myriad of contemporary issues confronting equality and suffrage rights for Black communities, examining the connection between modern-day conditions and patterns in U.S. racial history. The first half of the talk offered insight into LDF’s emphases on navigating contemporary civil rights discourse amidst what Ifill termed “a difficult and unrelenting See NAACP on page 4
Courtesy of Nicole Fleetwood
Ha Bui
Guest Reporter
ass incarceration is an epidemic in the U.S., home to 25 percent of the world’s prison population and only five percent of the world’s people (American Psychological Association, “Incarceration nation,” 10.2014). Despite its ubiquity, from smaller-scale jails to teeming state and federal prisons to publicly traded corporations, the U.S. corrections system remains perplexing to many citizens. Media outlets and policymakers frequently render the prison system an unquestioned characteristic of the country—too daunting to be tackled in political debates, much less through legislation. Likewise, there is a tendency to neglect the humanity of the millions of incarcerated people and their loved ones. Examining imprisoned people’s art is a not only a study of this system, but also a means to display the functions of portraiture and the artists’ strong will. Nicole R. Fleetwood explained the value of such a practice on Wednesday, Feb. 20 when she delivered the Claflin Lecture, “Interior Subjects: Portraits by Incarcerated Artists.” A former Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral
On Wednesday, Feb. 20, Professor at Rutgers University Nicole R. Fleetwood delivered the Clafin Lecture in an event sponsored by the Art Department and the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center. Fellow, Fleetwood studied Visual Literacy at Vassar from 2001 to 2003. She is now an accomplished writer, curator and professor of American Studies at Rutgers University. Fleetwood wrote the forthcoming “Marking Time: Art in the Era of Mass Incarceration” and the 2015 piece “On Racial Icons: Blackness and the Public Imagination.” She co-edited an issue of Aperture Magazine, “Prison Nation,” which focused on the role of photography in represent-
ing the prison industrial complex and convicts themselves. Her projects about the visual culture of punitive captivity are those of personal interest; she talked about her cousin, Allen, who received a life sentence at 18 years old, and who writes to Fleetwood regularly. He sends her pictures taken by incarcerated photographers, posing, sometimes with props, in front of painted backdrops also made by inmates. OthSee PRISON ART on page 6
Tamika Whitenack Guest Colunmist
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s thoughts of spring flutter in the approaching future, maple sugaring season is in full swing! A year ago, maple syrup was merely something I associated with Canada and other people’s pancakes—I prefer my own plain. However, all this changed during spring break of 2018, when I spent two weeks as a volunteer at Magic Forest Farm, a small family operation outside of Albany, NY. I came to Magic Forest Farm as part of Workaway, an online service that connects homestay hosts with volunteers interested in traveling for various types of projects, including organic farming. My two weeks as a volunteer were transformative; one of my most exciting experiences was participating in the process of maple syrup production. Magic Forest Farm has 225 acres of mostly-forested land. In keepSee MAPLE SYRUP on page 10
Shiva documents refugee stories Women’s tennis hosts historic Seven Sisters Elizabeth Johnson Guest Reporter
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Over five million people have fled Syria since 2011.” Vassar alum and filmmaker Alexandra Shiva ’95 begins her latest documentary “This is Home: A Refugee Story” with these words flashing across a black screen, reminding us of the almost decade-long Syr-
ian refugee crisis that has shaken the world. The film, screened in the Martel Theater last Thursday, Feb. 21, was presented by the Consortium on Forced Migration, Displacement, and Education, which was established by Vassar Refugee Solidarity (VRS) and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. “This is Home” is a documentary Courtesy of Elizabeth Johnson
Filmmaker Alexandria Shiva participated in a panel discussion with Margaret Edgecombe ’22 and Sabrina Surgil ’21 at a screening of Shiva’s 2018 documentary “This is Home: A Refugee Story.”
that follows four Syrian refugee families resettling in the Baltimore area with the help of the International Rescue Committee (IRC). The film’s 91-minute runtime takes us right into the families’ worlds: into their homes, into their English language and employment classes and deep into the emotional pendulum of restarting their lives in America. Shiva graduated Vassar in 1995 with a degree in Art History and has since made her name in the documentary film world. Starting in the early 2000s, she has directed and produced four films, notably including “How to Dance in Ohio,” which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. While this film tells the story of teenage girls with autism in Columbus getting ready for their prom—a vastly different See REFUGEE CRISIS on page 7
Teddy Chmyz Copy Editor
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fter 37 years, the final Seven Sisters Women’s Tennis Championships took place last weekend, Feb. 23 and 24, in Vassar’s Walker Field House. This year, for the 18th year in a row, Vassar and Wellesley earned the top two spots and, although the Brewers entered the event its four-time reigning champions, the Blue ultimately triumphed 4-1 in Sunday’s final. Despite this loss, Vassar remains atop the historic Seven Sisters leaderboard, with 15 wins to Wellesley’s 14 and Smith’s 8. However, for all of the participants, the Seven Sisters Championships developed into more than
just another tournament. The special format and friendly atmosphere of the event led to a weekend that, while still competitive, was not all about who takes home the trophy. The Championship—which included a banquet on Saturday night—served as an opportunity for attendees from all of the competing schools to bond and interact. Vassar Head Coach Kathy Campbell reflected on the significance of the event, explaining: “This is the last Seven Sisters, so it’s kind of a hallmark event … It is something that our team has always really cherished, we have a banquet [and] you get the sense of camaraderie among the Seven Sister colleges, off the court and on the court.” See WOMEN’S TENNIS on page 19
Breaking News Article Pending
Board of Trustees appoints Carlos Alamo-Pastrana as Dean of College, concluding search Inside this issue
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Don’t snap pics and depart; intern promotes FEATURES engagement with art
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After Lagerfeld’s passing, fashion world must reflect OPINIONS on industry’s misogyny
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A disgruntled celebrity chef’s take: Gordon “Ramslay” HUMOR rails on Gordon Commons