Misc 5.2.19

The Miscellany News

Since 1866 | miscellanynews.org

Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY

Volume CLI | Issue 23

May 2, 2019

After delay, VSA Holi festival of color kicks off spring elects take office Delila Ames Reporter

Mack Liederman Editor-in-Chief

wo Sundays ago, VSA President Tamar Ballard ’19 and Vice President Rori Chuck ’19 addressed a packed senate meeting. The decision long awaited by students across campus came swiftly and unceremoniously: The VSA would not hold a re-election for Executive Board positions.

The resolution concluded weeks of uncertainty surrounding the elections. The original confusion resulted from technical glitches in the voting portal, which ultimately forced VSA to reopen all constituent-based elections.

According to Chuck, Computing & Information Services’ statistical analysis on the results found that despite the voting portal being available to over 6,000 accounts, no illegitimate votes were submitted.

VSA Executive Board electees had rightfully won their seats.

However, a new challenge to the election’s legitimacy has surfaced. In an online petition,

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ibrant colors swirled through the air, blowing with gusts of wind and landing in rainbow smatterings upon revelers at the Holi celebration on April 27. Clouds of dust settled, coloring sweaters and jeans vivid shades of blue, green, red, pink and purple.

Participants giggled, sprinting across the quad lawn while flinging handfuls of powder, all to the soundtrack of bouncy Bollywood music.

The colored powder, called gulal, plays a role in many Hindu rituals, including Holi, also known as the Festival of Colors. Holi is celebrated primarily in India, but in other South See HOLI on page 3

Courtesy of Diana Weina Liu

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anonymous organizers called for a re-election of all VSA positions, writing, “[W]e can implement a re-election for VSA All-Campus positions by gathering signatures.”

There is further confusion surrounding the legitimacy of the petition itself, as it may be based upon a misinterpretation of VSA bylaws. Article XI, Section 12 reads in part, “Any constituency shall have the power to recall any officers elected by that constituency ... If the constituency is campus-wide, the petition to recall must contain the signatures of at least 15% of the VSA,” as opposed to 15 percent of the student body. However, Ballard stated in an email that the petition is considered legitimate by the present Executive Board.

The petition—now closed— further suggested that other nebulous influences could have swayed election results.

It read, “[S]o many confusing emails...said: ‘not to vote.’ This could have negatively affected See VSA ELECTS on page 4

Tossing colorful dust into the air, students celebrate the forthcoming of spring and triumph of good over evil in Vassar’s Holi celebration. Although rooted in Hinduism, the festival transcends cultural and territorial borders.

Tallon’s legacy emerges from flames Taylor Stewart

Assistant Arts Editor

“N

ice to have an apartment across the street there, to watch the building as it changes,” muttered Andrew Tallon in a 2017 video, guiding a camera along the roof of Notre-Dame. He looks disconcerted as he points out the disrepair: a broken pinnacle, the remains of a gargoyle (a lead pipe sticks out

of what used to be its head), a flying buttress with water damage. Little did Tallon know that years later, he would represent all hopes for a newly restored Notre-Dame.

Now back to that cloudless day in Paris; we can hear construction work and sirens at street level, the sounds of the city. Tallon, who was an Associate Professor of Art at Vassar, discusses the structures and material of

Notre-Dame intimately: the oxidized limestone and the structural importance of pinnacles. He worries over the damage like a parent. “What I hope you can see by walking through this forest of stones is that they’re suffering,” he says. “That through exposure to water, through exposure to atmospheric pollution, they need some attention. And they’re gonna See NOTRE DAME on page 7

Survival stories take center stage Peek behind AFC ‘bar’ with Antonia Sweet Kelly Vinett

Guest Reporter

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eaving between reality and memories of coping and longing, playwright Melisa Tien and director June Prager’s developing production “Broken Dolls” made its debut in the Aula this weekend in the form of a staged reading.

Set in a shelter for human trafficking survivors in the United States, the play was developed in collaboration with the New York City-based Mirage Theatre

Company and the Vassar Underground. The Underground is a student-based coalition that aims to spread awareness about human trafficking, or those that have “fallen through the cracks of society,” as expressed by founder Grace Roebuck ’20.

So, what does trafficking in the post-modern, 21st century world look like? To provide insight about human trafficking in the United States and abroad, co-founders of the Maya Gold Foundation Elise Gold and Matthew Swerdloff host-

ed a panel before the play. Swerdloff said the foundation has visited Nepal four times now. He spoke about how the statuses of girls and women in Nepal are much lower than those of boys and men, and how girls are seen as burdensome.

Sometimes, parents will sell their girls to traffickers, and due to the deeply entrenched religious and cultural customs tied to gender inequality, this is extremely difficult to combat.

Yet, there are ways to take acSee BROKEN DOLLS on page 6

Abby Tarwater/The Miscellany News The Vassar Underground collaborated with the New York City-based Mirage Theater Company to present the developing production “Broken Dolls” on April 26 and 27. The performance was supplemented by a panel discussion that concerned the modern, global systems of human trafficking.

Inside this issue

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Deece chef dishes out life story through carefully FEATURES curated fruit carvings

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Work-Study proves inaccessible to OPINIONS students in need of employment

Jonah Frere-Holmes Reporter

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ome Vassar students, faculty and staff know Antonia Sweet well. Some know her name, and say hello to her on a daily or near-daily basis. Some people might not know her name, but would still recognize the “woman at the Athletics and Fitness Center (AFC) desk” if they saw her. Undoubtedly, some residents of Vassar’s campus have no idea Sweet exists, and would not be able to recognize her even if she were standing right in front of them.

During my first-year orientation week, I belonged to the final category. I was trying to shoot around in the gym one morning, and, peering up at the retracted main baskets with obvious longing, I was confronted by a woman in a Vassar hoodie and sweatpants. After an occasionally rocky back-and-forth in which she told me only varsity basketball players had access to the main hoops, I explained that I wasn’t one of those but I might be. Sweet lowered the main basket. That inter-

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action feels far older than nine months ago. Similarly outdated was my understanding that day of the AFC’s oculus and self-titled bartender. I sat down with Sweet to access a perspective that, while visible to thousands of people daily, is shared by only a select few.

Sweet sees, coordinates, advises, sees, greets, chats and still sees. Every day, the flow of students heading for the weight room, gym, pool and trainer’s room passes right by her desk.

So too does the less populous procession of coaches, administrators and building staff. After-school programs chock-full of younger kids from Poughkeepsie and its environs also make their way past Sweet’s desk. It is perhaps this group that presents her with the most frequent opportunity to direct the geographically confused and correct the itinerantly misled.

As I sat with her for a little more than an hour, no fewer than seven families, anxious about the absence of their children’s See AFC on page 19

Lack of support for women’s basketball points SPORTS to larger sports misogyny

The Miscellany News

Page 2

May 2, 2019

Editor-in-Chief Mack Liederman

Senior Editors

Frankie Knuckles Jessica Moss

Contributing Editors Leah Cates Sasha Gopalakrishnan

Features Duncan Aronson Opinions Steven Park Jonas Trostle Humor and Satire Hannah Gaven Arts Holly Shulman Abby Tarwater Sports Teddy Chmyz Myles Olmsted Design Rose Parker Lilly Tipton Copy Lucy Leonard Online Anastasia Koutavas Social Media Natalie Bober Photo Yijia Hu Courtesy of Simone Karuga Simone Karuga ’20 spent the past couple weeks in and around the island of Viti Levu, Fiji. Upon arriving in the village of Rukurukulevu, she writes, “[C]hildren ran up to us and shouted, ‘Bula!’ and since that was the only Fijian word we knew, we repeated it back. Adults greeted us similarly albeit less enthusiastically, waving at us from their homes. ‘Bula!’ has become not only one of my favorite greetings but also one of my favorite words ever. Its meaning extends beyond hello and originally translates to life. The entire greeting, Ni sa bula vinaka, translates to ‘wishing you happiness and good health’ which is similar to Malo le soifua, a common Samoan greeting.” Read more about Karuga’s experiences in Fiji at http://farandaway.miscellanynews.org.

The Miscellany News 2

May

Thursday

Late Night at the Lehman Loeb 5:00 p.m. | The Loeb Atrium | The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center

Survival Stories and Soup

Rewriting the Body, Reconstructing the World in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

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May

Friday

4

May

Saturday

Sunday

Budgeting & Renting 101

Students of Sobriety Group

Paper Critique

12:00 p.m. | RH 200- Auditorium | Career Development Office

9:30 a.m. | RH 211 | AA Poughkeepsie

9:00 p.m. | Rose Parlor | The Miscellany News

Storytime at the Museum

Soccer (W) Alumni Game

2:00 p.m. | The Loeb Atrium | The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center

10:00 a.m. | Prentiss Field | Athletics

Loretta Ross

10:00 a.m. | Prentiss Field | Athletics

3:00 p.m. | RH 300- Auditorium | LGBTQ and Gender Resources

Soccer (W) vs. Marist College

Field Hockey Alumni Game

Founder’s Day 12:00- 5:00 p.m. | Ballantine Field |Vassar College

5:30 p.m. | SC 212-Auditorium | English Dept.

4:00 p.m. | Prentiss Field | Athletics

Vassar College Chamber Ensembles

Vassar College Orchestra

Rugby (M &W) Alumni Game

8:00 p.m. | SH Martel Recital Hall | Music Dept.

10:00 a.m. | Vassar Farm | Athletics

8:00 p.m. | SH Martel Recital Hall | Music Dept.

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May

Courtesy of Vassar College

7:00 p.m. | Bayit MPR | Religious and Spiritual Life Office

Weekender_

Soccer (M) Alumni Game 12:00 a.m. | Prentiss Field | Athletics

Join President Bradley on Ballantine Field this Satuday for Founders Day! See the full schedule of events online.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Assistant News Olivia Watson Aena Khan Assistant Features Gillian Redstone Assistant Humor Izzy Migani Assistant Arts Taylor Stewart Assistant Online Chris Allen Reporters Delila Ames Ariana Gravinese Jonah Frere-Holmes Tiana Headley Columnists Catherine Bither Alex Barnard Jimmy Christon Jesser Horowitz Dean Kopitsky Emmett O’Malley Sylvan Perlmutter Blair Webber Copy Adelaide Backhus Anna Blake Samantha Cavagnolo Madeline Seibel Dean Amanda Herring Phoebe Jacoby Caitlin Patterson Mina Turunc Cartoonist Frank Crossword Benjamin Costa

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

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

May 2, 2019

NEWS

Page 3

Planned Parenthood, state officials address Title X gag rule Olivia Watson

Assistant News Editor

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any college students are aware of Title IX, but few are aware of Title X, which ensures that low-income and underinsured people have accessible and affordable reproductive health care and birth control. In New York State alone, over 300,000 people receive treatment through Title X funding.

Recently, the Trump Administration issued a rule aimed at restricting Title X, dubbed a “gag rule” by critics. The restriction obstructs funding to health care providers involved in performing or referring abortions. Thus, Planned Parenthood has taken an especially hard hit, as it performs Title X services for 52 percent of New York’s Title X patients. The gag rule also directly targets people of color, as 21 percent of patients in the Title X program identify as Black or African American and 33 percent identify as Hispanic or Latino (Planned Parenthood, “Who Does the Gag Rule Harm the Most?”).

The Trump administration’s gag rule would further prevent health care providers from referring women or trans people under the Title X program to an abortion provider, inhibit doctors’ ability to fully share all of the reproductive options available to women, and restrict patients from receiving birth control from Planned Parenthood (Planned Parenthood, “#ProtectX: Why the Title X Gag Rule Is Our Next Big Fight”).

In response, Congressman Antonio Delgado (N.Y.-19) attended Planned Parenthood Mid-Hudson Valley’s (PPMHV)

patient roundtable on the gag rule to hear from Title X patients. Delgado spoke with two patients who received treatment through the Title X program, as well as PPMHV president Ruth-Ellen Blodgett.

PPMHV hosted this event to bring awareness to the detrimental effects the gag rule would have on women’s health care in New York State.

“Health care is a human right, and patients deserve to hear all their reproductive options, no matter where they live or how much they make.”

Delgado found that hearing the patients’ personal stories demonstrated the importance of equitable health care. “Hearing directly from Planned Parenthood patients and advocates about the dangerous impacts of the proposed gag rule further personalizes the issue and illustrates how integral the Planned Parenthood facility in Monticello is to residents,” said Delgado. He further mentioned how these gag rules jeopardize the funding that health centers need to provide important Title X services and that he is proud to stand with Planned Parenthood.

According to a press release from PPMHV, during the patient roundtable, Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington State Stanley Bastian issued a national preliminary injunc-

tion against the gag rule, preventing any enforcement of this rule for the current moment. However, this injunction is temporary, and a successful appeal from the Trump administration would again put the health care of over 300,000 New Yorkers at risk (Planned Parenthood, 2019).

Communications Manager for PPMHV Lacey Seidman explained that this gag rule prevents women in need from receiving proper reproductive health care and restricts Planned Parenthood from providing services through the Title X program, as Planned Parenthood delivers care to 41 percent of the 4 million people relying on the Title X program.

Seidman further explained over email, “If the Trump-Pence administration’s dangerous and unethical gag rule is implemented, the most vulnerable members of our communities—low-income women and people of color—would be blocked from accessing essential healthcare services like wellness exams, cervical and breast cancer screenings, birth control options and STD screenings.”

Delgado released a statement in a press release on February 25, 2019, condemning the gag rule: “It is fundamentally wrong for women’s health care decisions to be influenced by the government because of information censorship.” He continued, “I strongly support women’s reproductive rights and am proud to stand with organizations like Planned Parenthood in opposing this gag rule.”

Seidman asserted the gag rule is a directed attack from the Trump administration on reproductive rights. “In many com-

munities, Planned Parenthood is the only provider of affordable reproductive health care, or the only provider that offers specialized care like an IUD or the birth control shot,” she said.

She explained that this impact is especially concerning for patients 150 percent below the federal poverty level, who constitute 78 percent of Title X patients (Planned Parenthood, “Who Does the Gag Rule Harm the Most?”).

In response to this controversial move by the Trump administration, President of PPMHV Ruth Ellen Blodgett released a statement, reaffirming PPMHV’s dedication to providing healthcare for everyone, regardless of financial or insurance status, which reads, “Health care is a human right, and patients deserve to hear all their reproductive options, no matter where they live or how much they make” (Planned Parenthood Mid-Hudson Valley, “Trump Releases Final Gag Rule, Continuing Attack on Women and Families with Low Incomes,” 02.25.19).

Seidman pointed to additional work needed in order to resist the gag rule, and that Planned Parenthood is just one group spearheading the fight against the Trump Administration’s attempts to obstruct basic health care rights. Seidman concluded, “The American Medical Association and Planned Parenthood Federation of America are suing President Trump to stop his dangerous gag rule ... We need to keep raising awareness in our communities and keep fighting in the courts and across the country until the Title X gag rule is defeated— for good.”

Holi festival celebration captured in colors across Quad Asians and non-South Asians alike are encouraged to come together as a campus in this vibrant and joyous celebration. SASA Co-President Aditi Chandna ’19 commented, “Holi is technically a religious Hindu festival in South Asia, but it’s just one of those festivals that is more of a cultural thing celebrated across South Asia.” She also described the spirit of Holi: “The essence of Holi is to take color and drop it on someone and say ‘Happy Holi,’ to celebrate the onset of spring.”

Spring was definitely in the air among streams of powders and the smell of food.

Festival-goer and SASA First-Year Representative Vandana Dronadula ’22 added, “Holi connects you to somewhere that you feel really far away from.”

Holi is an important celebration for the South Asian community at Vassar, partly be-

Courtesy of Diana Weina Liu

HOLI continued from page 1 Asian countries as well, to mark the arrival of spring and the triumph of good over evil. In huge public celebrations, people of all ages and classes come together to throw brilliantly colored powders and water at each other.

On Saturday, April 27, the South Asian Students Alliance (SASA) hosted a celebration of Holi on the quad, replete with energy and colorful pigments. The crowd ranged from young children to adults and people of all backgrounds joined in on the fun. With music blasting and people lining up for sweet foods, the powders rained down on the quad in flurries as people tossed them playfully at each other. Holi is celebrated every year at Vassar as a way to bring people together and form meaningful connections. It revels in culture, color and community as South

A venerated day in Hindu culture, Holi is widley celebrated across South and Southeast Asia. The South Asian Student Alliance (SASA) brought the vibrant festival to Vassar.

Courtesy of Diana Weina Liu Above, Vassar students execute a proper celebration of the Holi holiday by throwing colorful powder at one another. Numerous international students in attendence explained that Vassar’s festival connected them to their homes—however distant they may be.

cause it provides a reminder of home. With her hair and face coated in red and pink, Sasha Gopalakrishnan ’20 [Full disclosure: Gopalakrishnan is a Contributing Editor for The Miscellany News] stated: “As a South Asian, it’s a very important festival at home; it’s the festival of color. It helps me feel my connection to home while I’m still here.

Also, it’s a nice expression of community.”

Many participants agreed that SASA’s celebration fostered a sense of home at Vassar.

Director for Religious and Spiritual Life and Contemplative Practices (RSLCP) Sam Speers and Associate Dean of the College for Residential Life and Wellness Luis Inoa helped to organize and plan the event. Reverend Speers remarked, “[Inoa and I have] been coming for the last several years. Holi means community and celebration and col-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

ors and springtime and the strength of our amazing SASA community at Vassar.” SASA worked together with these offices to purchase the colors over a month in advance and to make sure that they were organic and could be washed off easily.

As an ALANA identity org, SASA’s mission is multi-faceted. Chandna emphasized that, in addition to hosting many cultural events of which Holi is one, the org also focuses on building a sense of community among South Asians on campus. Further, SASA hopes to raise awareness about South Asian culture within the broader Vassar and general Poughkeepsie community.

Streaked with color and bubbling with glee, SASA and Vassar as a whole welcomed the arrival of spring amongst the luscious greens and pink petals of the quad.

Page 4

NEWS

May 2, 2019

VSA leadership elects share aspirations for coming year VSA ELECTS continued

from page 1 the election due to the election process not being transparent and ultimately caused people to abstain from voting.” Vice President-elect Mendel Jiménez ’20’s resignation also cited illegitimacy concerns. He wrote in a letter to The Miscellany News, “I do not believe the elections were legitimate … I cannot in good conscience assume the position of Vice President.” According to Chuck, interviews for the Vice President and Chair of Residential Affairs vacancies have been conducted, with an appointment decision to be announced this Sunday. Below, The Miscellany News has collected statements from those already chosen to serve on the 2019-2020 VSA Executive Board.

President Carlos Espina Throughout my campaign, I proposed many policy proposals and I intend to do everything I can to fulfill them during my term. Although each issue will be approached in the manner most appropriate under the given circumstances, an overarching theme will be to make sure that administrators and President Bradley take the VSA seriously and understand that the interests of the student body come before all else. Beyond this, I will engage and work with students, faculty, administrators and community members to identify realistic and efficient solutions to the problems on campus.

Chair of Organizations Happy Xu Now that I’ve been elected as the incoming Chair of Orgs, my number one goal is to provide more transparency and understanding for org-related concerns, whether that be defining clearly what qualifies as a pre-org and org or how to effectively program events with the SARC and other orgs. I also want to make the Fall Leadership Conference an impactful and meaningful experience for everyone and ensure that the Activities Fair runs smoothly.

I plan on doing these things by communicating effectively with orgs, VSA and exec, staff members, etc. ahead of time to make sure that everyone is on the same page and knows what to do to help orgs be successful.

Chair of Equity and Inclusion Kevin Arce Arce did not respond to The Miscellany News’ requests for comment. This year’s Chair, Eloudia Odamy ’21, commented the following: I am excited for Kevin to take over as the Chair of Equity and Inclusion. I have had the privilege of knowing Kevin since I participated in the Transitions program and, through that, I have seen that he really values helping low-income and/or first-generation students settle at Vassar.

Because of this, Kevin is someone that you can talk to about anything as he would take time to listen and give advice. He is hardworking, and equity, diversity, and inclusion are important to him and I know that he would take the job very seriously and bring change to the campus!

Chair of Finance Emily Janoski I will work to demystify VSA Finance so that all orgs, treasurers and students are familiar with the options open to them for funding. Early in the fall semester, I hope to arrange comprehensive training for treasurers to alleviate any confusion, as well as open applications for new members of the Finance Committee so that we can continue including new and diverse voices. I will also be reformulating the training materials and instructions for treasurers so that they will be easier to understand and access.

Letter to the Editor

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All photos provided by elects.

(37 years!), I wish to briefly highlight the historical value of the Williams buildings with three points: They were an early example of an urban planning initiative (they were built together with the Alumnae House and the big lawn); they were built for female faculty members so they would have independence from the administration in 1921; and last, they were built with a very generous 50th reunion gift from Harriett Williams, an alumna of Vassar College class of 1870. Each of these three points is of interest and worthy of further study. As such, it would make sense to locate the Inn/Institute elsewhere.

Last, this rush to tear historical buildings down is puzzling to me, perhaps because I was born in another country where tearing down a building almost never happens and is considered irreverent and disrespectful. The history of a place and an institution is also given by its buildings and urban planning. This past week, Michael Kimmelman wrote about the lasting impact that tearing down the original Penn Station has had on NYC in the New York Times (New York Times, “When the Old Penn Station Was Demolished, New York Lost Its Faith,” 04.24.2019).

Although Williams is certainly not

Penn Station, some of Kimmelman’s arguments regarding tearing down old buildings are applicable. A current exhibit at the renovated Trolley Barn (489 Main St) brings this point closer to home as it details the decisions to bulldoze Poughkeepsie neighborhoods to build the Route 9 arterial in the early 1960s and the east-west arterial in the late 1960s to mid-1970s. The exhibit highlights the unforeseen consequences of bad urban planning and how it can impact a community. We certainly don’t want Vassar to make a similar mistake. The closing event is Friday, May 3 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

When Kimmelman wrote “New Yorkers embraced the mantra of change, assuming that what replaced a beloved building would probably be as good or better,” my personal story is reflected.

Since my arrival to the U.S., my family was forced to move three times in the 1970s, because elite residential buildings were being built on the site of tenement buildings in Manhattan. My elementary school and my high school were torn down to build new skyscrapers. My neighborhood church, a Gothic church built in 1886, was torn down in 1969 to build a new skyscraper. At Vassar, Mudd Chemistry, a building that I worked in for

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

32 years, was torn down but three years ago. What next?

In closing, to my colleagues and members of the administration who stated they could not wait for the new Inn to be built so they could walk to a quality restaurant, many of the current Williams tenants would be happy to invite you over for a delicious home-cooked meal.

Thank you for reading.

Sincerely, Miriam Rossi, Professor of Chemistry on the Mary Landon Sague Chair

Courtesy of Vassar College via Twitter

want to start my letter, as Professor Hunsberger did last week, by thanking The Misc for writing the article on April 4, 2019 describing the resolution to demolish Williams apartments (The Miscellany News, “Faculty Housing to be demolished,” 04.04.2019). Considering the impact of this decision (there are 21 apartments and at least that number of people getting evicted), there was little public discussion of the topic, so the Misc’s initiative to bring this issue to the community is much appreciated.

The Faculty meeting devoted to this decision (in February) was overwhelmingly dominated by President Bradley’s polished PowerPoint Presentation outlining the many reasons why demolishing Williams was the only solution to the problem of where to locate the Inn/ Institute. Among the justifications was the promise of better faculty housing that would be built in the near future to “replace” Williams apartments. Perhaps because the discussion was framed to have only “one” best possible solution, and many persons in attendance (myself included) were exhausted by her nearly one-hour-long presentation, the vote was overwhelmingly in favor of President Bradley’s (and the board’s) decision.

So, as a long-time resident of Williams

Chair of Academics Milo Mitchell I think my main priority as the new Chair of Academics is working to make the transition to the rebalanced curriculum as smooth as possible, which includes devising a process for students to spearhead intensive proposal. I’d also like to explore expnding more resources for TVE students and crediting students for natural science labs.

NEWS

May 2, 2019

Page 5

Vassar hosts college preview for Poughkeepsie students Mary Retta

Guest Reporter

“P

Po

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al Round c i t li Ae n a K h a n

In Our Headlines …

[CW: Contains discussion of mass violence.]

A gunman entered the Chabad of Poway Synagogue, 25 miles away from San Diego, and opened fire on the congregation with an AR-15, killing one woman and leaving three people wounded on April 27, 2019. This attack took place during Shabbat and the final day of Passover. It is one of the most recent attacks against a house of worship on a holy day—after the shooting in New Zealand during Friday Prayers and the bombs against Christians observing Easter in Sri Lanka—occurring exactly six months after the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. The gunman, a 19-year-old San Diego native, shouted anti-Semitic expletives as he entered the synagogue. Police have categorized the attack as a hate crime. The rabbi, who was one of the wounded, stated that the victims were given medical care at a hospital. The number of people present at the synagogue was larger than usual in observance of the holy day, and the deceased woman was there to mourn the recent death of her mother (The New York Times, “One Dead in Synagogue Shooting Near San Diego; Officials Call It Hate Crime,” 04.27.2019).

For the third year in a row, President Donald Trump skipped the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, which celebrates the press and its coverage of the President and White House. Trump has not attend-

ed a single Correspondents’ Dinner taking place throughout his presidency. This year, historian Ron Chernow delivered the keynote address in place of a comedian, following Hasan Minhaj, a Muslim-American who ripped Trump’s Muslim ban, and Michelle Wolf, whose set was labeled risque and harsh after she criticized Sarah Sanders. Chernow still took the opportunity to make several jokes, including a jab at Trump’s statement that George Washington should have named Mount Vernon after himself. Likewise, Chernow criticized Trump’s frequent attacks on the press, stating, “When you chip away at the press, you chip away at our democracy.” Trump himself was in Green Bay, Wisconsin, at a rally ahead of the 2020 presidential election (Insider, “The White House Correspondents’ Dinner didn’t have Trump in attendance or a comedian as host, but there were still a few jabs at the president,” 04.28.2019).

Attorney General William Barr and House Democrats clashed this past weekend over Barr’s refusal to testify about his summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report in front of the House Judiciary Committee. Specifically, Barr rejected both the way Thursday’s testimony is to be structured and its focus on the Special Counsel report. Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) stated that the House would subpoena Barr if necessary as the fight over the Trump administration’s past misdeeds and filings come into greater scrutiny. White House lawyers indicated that they told officials such as former White House Counsel Donald McGahn II not to comply with subpoenas, not long after the administration refused to turn over Trump’s tax returns (The New York Times, “Barr Threatens Not to Testify Before House, but Democrats May Subpoena Him,” 04.28.2019).

Courtesy of Diana Weina Liu

art of building inclusive communities means seeing our community partners and neighbors as both potential learners and producers of knowledge and expertise” said Professor of Hispanic Studies Eva Woods Peiró, a leader of the Bridging Campus and Local Communities group, when the Bridging Campus and Local Communities group of Vassar’s Engaged Pluralism Initiative (EPI) brought members of the Poughkeepsie community to campus to learn more about college on April 27, 2019.

The event, titled “Connecting Our Communities,” focused on building lasting relationships with students from historically underrepresented groups and their families, in order to make Vassar’s campus more accessible to the greater Poughkeepsie community. Vassar students and faculty provided bilingual tours of the campus, while representatives from DCC, Marist, Vassar and SUNY New Paltz conducted college information sessions.

Aside from making Vassar’s campus more inclusive and accessible, the event aimed to illustrate different aspects of college life to Poughkeepsie high school students, who made up the majority of the audience. Vassar student and faculty volunteers hosted various events, such as frisbee tournaments, chemistry experiments and soccer games, to not only get to know Poughkeepsie students better but also to show them different aspects of a college’s academic and social life.

“I know a lot of Vassar students through the Exploring College Program,” said Tania,

a junior at Poughkeepsie High School, “but today has been cool because I got to meet more people and see more of the school.”

Professor Woods Peiró reflected on the history of this event how it fits within the group’s mission: “Bridging Campus and Local Communities works to invigorate our critical understanding of and practice community partnership by reimagining our involvement with local and diverse communities in the area as bidirectional, open and integral to our liberal arts curriculum and to our development as critical global citizens.”

It is clear that the event had the best possible outcome that Woods could have hoped for; over 150 Poughkeepsie high school students attended, with many expressing their gratitude and joy for being on campus.

A junior at Poughkeepsie High, Michelle, enjoyed the events and the friendly environment she found at Vassar. “I’m excited for the soccer game later,” she says, “and everyone has been very nice and welcoming.”

As Michelle pointed out, Connecting Our Communities used many volunteers from Vassar’s students, faculty and staff to ensure that Poughkeepsie high schoolers were introduced to different members of the Vassar community. Margaret Edgecombe ’22 was eager to volunteer, as she felt the mission of this event was important to Vassar’s community. “I found out about the sort of work that Eva Woods is doing when I took her class, Building Inclusive Communities,” said Edgecombe. “That’s when I wanted to be involved. This is my first time volunteering, but I think today is

In its college preview, Vassar hosted high school students with the purpose of building greater inclusivity on campus. The program showcased educational programs at local colleges, including those of Vassar, Marist, DCC and SUNY New Paltz, to over 150 teens. going really well! The purpose of this event is to make it clear that Vassar is inclusive for people who historically would not feel comfortable here, even if they live in the area. I think it’s really important work.”

A Vassar Computer and Information Services employee and fellow volunteer, Jean Ross, mentioned how the event was a big success, saying, “I’ve worked with this EPI group for a while, helping with printing flyers, making programs and planning events … This is one of the best events I’ve seen.

People have been signing up for events and everyone seems really happy.”

As Ross noted, elation was definitely in the air of the Bridge building that day. Connecting Our Communities brought food, a live student band and several other Vassar student organizations. The atmosphere was optimistic and points to further connections between Vassar and the larger Poughkeepsie community.

This communal ambiance is exactly what Peiró was intending with the event. “We’re hoping to hold Connecting Communities every year,” said Peiró, “I hope that everyone on Vassar’s campus can be a part of making that happen.”

Around the World…

After the largest terrorist attack against an Asian nation in modern history on Easter in Sri Lanka claimed the lives of over 250 people and wounded several hundred others, violence has spread across the island. Fifteen people, six of whom were children, died in bomb blasts in the seaside town of Sainthamaruthu, home to a large Muslim community. The police were looking for suspects responsible for the string of terror attacks and on April 26, 2019, the vice-chairman of a local mosque reported concerns to police from a local landlord, who stated that the new occupants of his building were behaving suspiciously. The man who answered the door when members of the mosque visited the home came from Kattankudy, the town of origin for the main orchestrator of the terror attacks.

After the locals from the mosque asked him and his group to leave, a local shopkeeper stopped by the home and was threatened by the man from Kattankudy. The bombs were then detonated, destroying the house and much of the street. The police, after arriving on the scene, discovered a house three miles away with more explosives.

The man from Kattankudy, identified as “Niyaz,” was shot dead. Sri Lanka’s president denounced the Islamic extremism and is taking measures to track individuals, as was done to identify separatist Tamils after the end of the civil war in 2009 (The Washington Post, “A Sri Lankan town grew suspicious of the newcomers. Then came mayhem as police closed in,” 04.27.2019) Voters in Spain went to the polls for the third national election in four years, in a snap election that represents the nation’s increasing polarization and drift towards the far-right. Last June’s elections came when current Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the Socialist party ousted his Popular Party predecessor, Mariano Rajoy,

over a corruption scandal. Now, Sánchez is calling for a snap election after his coalition in the Parliament collapsed over votes for a national budget in February.

Among the key issues of this election is the conflict over Catalan secession, and opponents of the Socialist Party accused Sánchez of treason for engaging in dialogue with Catalan and Basque nationalists. The Socialists are expected to gain the most seats among Spain’s five major political parties, but not enough to earn the 176 seats required to form a majority. Likewise, the far-right Vox party, which calls for controls on illegal immigration and the removal of regional governments, is expected to gain more seats. The election, set for May 26, is one of the most unpredictable in Europe right now (The New York Times, “Spain Election: Divided Nation Holds 3rd National Vote since 2015,” 04.28.2019).

The Libyan capital of Tripoli emerged at the center of a conflict between the current government and the Libyan National Army, headed by General Khalifa Haftar. On April 28, 2019, airstrikes in the city killed four people and wounded four others, according to a statement from the currently recognized government headed

by Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj. All victims were civilians. One source present at the time of the attacks stated, “Most of the strikes hit areas in the district of Abou Slim...[but] none hit military targets.”

Clashes between the government and the LNA have turned the streets of Tripoli into a battlefield, and the fighting thus far has killed 278 people, wounded 1,300 and forced more than 35,000 to leave their homes. The UN, supported specifically by Germany, France and the United Kingdom, attempted to broker a ceasefire on April 18.

The United States and Russia opposed the failed truce (Deutsche Welle, “Libya: Tripoli hit by airstrikes,” 04.28.2019).

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May 2, 2019

‘Play It Loud’ exhibit revitalizes rock ‘n’ roll relevance Dean Kopitsky Columnist

here’s a multi-million-dollar work on display at the Met this spring. It isn’t paint on canvas, and it’s not a bronze sculpture. It is, “Contoured alder body, two-piece maple neck; 25 1/2 in. scale; Olympic white finish; bolt-on neck with black dot inlays.”

It’s Jimi Hendrix’s guitar. The one he played at Woodstock. Maybe the most famous guitar in the world.

The exhibition “Play It Loud: Instruments of Rock & Roll” runs from now until October, and displays one of the most remarkable collections of guitars, drum kits, synthesizers and basses ever assembled.

The current narrative surrounding rock is that is it is dying. Its most recognized voice, the guitar, is going with it too—or people keep trying to kill it, anyway. Rock is long past its heyday when it and pop music were one and the same. In 2017, Eric Clapton, one of the most influential guitarists ever, said, “Maybe the guitar is over” (Billboard, “Eric Clapton on Declining Guitar Sales: ‘Maybe The Guitar Is Over,” 09.11.2017). Earlier this month, Rolling Stone ran an article titled, “Is the Guitar Solo Finished?” It cited a perfunctory but welcomed John Mayer solo on the Khalid track “Outta My Head” as the last of what was once a staple of every pop song.

Is this how guitar dies? In a modern pop song, overshadowed by synth and played by John Mayer, a guy with his own laundry detergent? (People Magazine, Laundry Aficionado John Mayer Put His Name on an ‘Out West’-Scented Detergent, 10.06.2016) Not at all. The guitar is still an integral part music in all genres, even if we don’t realize it. Rap artists utilize live sound, and indie

Dean Kopitsky/The Miscellany News

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music is still lauded on the crunchier of college campuses. Frank Ocean’s magnum opus “Blonde” is built on guitar. The sweeping, weeping sound of the album is punctuated by the melody and rhythm of a guitar. The album isn’t the same without that sacred instrument that is supposedly dying.

Of course, this may all be eager and selective listening. As the Rolling Stone article points out, the fact that guitars are now displayed behind glass in a museum means its most important work is behind it, meant to be glorified but not revamped.

Hopefully this is not the case. Guitars are beautiful works of art, but they are also tools.

The exhibit showcases rare instruments, but any enthusiast would want to take one from the wall and play it loud themselves. Guitars of the ’50s and ’60s, of the ilk played by their heroes, are cherished for the unique sound, technical achievement and simplistic purity.

The exhibit signals how much the public still covits these instruments, and perhaps the Met is playing on their cultural relevance.

The packed exhibit halls and giddy atmosphere within them seemed to prove just that.

It was an indescribable experience seeing the Jimi Hendrix Stratocaster that played the legendary “Star Spangled Banner” at Woodstock ’69. Led Zeppelin was famous for their audacious onstage theatrics, and the Met secured a Jimmy Page telecaster that he played with a bow at their live shows. The drum set that Ringo Starr played on the Ed Sullivan show is displayed along George Harrison and John Lennon’s Rickenbackers.

Rock ‘n’ roll would never have come into existence without two men whose guitars are also displayed. One is the red ’57 Telecaster that Muddy Waters nicknamed “Hoss.” He

The above photo captures the guitar of legendary singer-songwriter Jerry Garcia of the rock band The Grateful Dead. The instrument is on display at the Met exhibit “Play it Loud: Instruments of Rock & Roll,” which will run through Oct. 1. played it from 1957 until the ’80s, and can be seen in most recordings of him from that era The blues-inspired Rolling Stones took their name from his song, “Rollin’ stone.”

The other is Chuck Berry’s Gibson ES. Nothing stands out more in the history of rock ‘n’ roll than the twang of that Gibson.

If you’ve seen “Back to the Future” or heard “Johnny B. Goode” (very few people can say neither), you know that sound. As John Lennon once said, “If you tried to give rock ‘n’ roll another name, you might call it ‘Chuck Berry’” (CNN, “Musicians remember Chuck Berry’s genius,” 03.18.2017).

When I was little, I wanted nothing more than to play guitar. I sheepishly outlined the swooping curves of a Fender Stratocaster to demonstrate the one I dreamed of playing.

And though I was still on the younger side of those gawking at vintage guitars at the exhib-

it, streaming services open endless opportunities for any generation to admire the studio and live performances of rock history.

If the folk guitarists of the Delta had never been discovered, the blues might have ceased to exist with their passing. If a select few of those giants never moved out of Mississippi and plugged electric pickups into their guitars, then a bunch of post-war English teens scrounging for anything that wasn’t post-war England would not have sought out their records and created rock ‘n’ roll.

The story of guitar, and the story of rock, is remarkable and stubborn. Who is to say it ends now? Here’s to hoping that a new generation is inspired by the alder and ash body statues showcased by the Met. That they do more than admire their “spaghetti” Fender logo and “lipstick” pickups and yearn to “play it loud” themselves.

‘Broken Dolls’ dramatizes human trafficking narratives BROKEN DOLLS continued from page 1 tion against trafficking. Safe Homes of Orange County Executive Director Kellyann Kostyal-Larrier explained that trafficking is a man-made disaster, as the root cause is the traffickers themselves. She then asserted that trafficking is not something out of our control as long as we learn to identify the signs that lead to coercion.

A main takeaway from the panel was that technology has created a growing supply and demand for trafficking. “Social media is increasingly used to lure, engage, entrench and entrap victims,” said Koystal-Larrier.

Traffickers often come across as harmless on the internet, especially when they com-

municate through Tinder or Facebook messages. She also explained how the dark web is a common site for trafficking, as it is easily accessible and untraceable. Thus, the digitalization of human trafficking has become increasingly psychological and even harder to criminalize.

After the informative panel came time for an emotional production: a dramatized narrative of four survivors of sex and labor trafficking. In contrast to the formality of the panel, the production tapped more into the feelings and memories of survivors.

Each character stumbled onto the stage in their own respective stupor, symbolizing the years they spent in a psychological and phys-

Abby Tarwater/The Miscellany News Above, members of the Mirage Theatre Company perform a staged reading of the harrowing drama “Broken Dolls” in the Aula. The play expresses the trauma that human trafficking victims cope with through words, music and movement.

ical cage.

Though Prager and Tien devised the script with basis on literature written about or authored by survivors themselves, “Broken Dolls” does not depict any one homogeneous victim account. Rather, the play shows the multifaceted experiences inherent to trafficking, as not every human story is the same. “It’s all kind of sewn together,” said Broken Dolls Initiative Leader Lindsay Irwin ’21.

In one scene, “Good girl, smart girl, so pretty” is a line repeated to portray how victims are subjugated so they will sexually perform. The play also grapples with the question, “Are you a slave if you never want to leave?” Oftentimes, trafficked victims have little money and connections for proper escape, which is why they have little option but to remain trapped. Yet, dreaming can help victims escape within themselves, at least for a little while until reality hits and another client has arrived.

For example, one of the victims in the play has always aspired to become a dancer. This character, who was sex trafficked in Russia, took her sweater off to dance in an attempt at bodily liberation. However, she then accidentally revealed to the audience her branding tattoo “Property of 4097.” This exposition triggered embarrassment and retreat that then prompted her to wallow in shame, dismissing a dream suspended in a better life.

False promises of upward mobility and otherwise better lives are often mechanisms traffickers use to entrap vulnerable women.

One victim’s story began with a stranger’s promise of a good job and a flight out of India. When she arrived to board the plane, the wrong name was written on her boarding

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

pass and a man approached the information desk saying, “I know this girl.” But she didn’t know him. He told her, “You will get your passport when we arrive.” This entrapment was the beginning of years spent in sharing a room and a single bed with other women trafficked for sex.

Music was integral to the production, as the victims used it to recall good times left behind. Actor Yanzi Ding sang a haunting rendition of the aboriginal Taiwanese song, “Standing on the High Peak.” The quiet that followed encouraged the audience to empathize with the victim’s pain.

Roebuck said the play has been in the works since Prager, the director, approached her two years ago when she was a first-year.

Roebuck gushed, “I’m excited for the dialogue I think the play can foster, and I’m excited to see it travel and evolve over time.”

For Roebuck, this is just the beginning of “Broken Dolls.”

Roebuck spoke more about why the Underground’s message is vital: “I think we need to teach people that these issues are more interconnected than we think. Though trafficking is largely absent from conversations about inequality, it has become a present part of everyone’s lives, even if most are not aware of it.” She continued, “I think a lot of people think the 13th Amendment ended slavery and that’s that. But the persistence of trafficking proves otherwise, and that is the message the Underground hopes to impress upon the community by hosting events like ‘Broken Dolls.’”

Irwin similarly articulated her goal for the production: “What I want to do is create art that inspires people to make change. Not just as a piece for entertainment, but one that makes an impact.”

May 2, 2019

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Four years later, Neon Indian endures, evokes nostalgia Jimmy Christon Columnist

Vega Intl. Night School

Neon Indian Mom + Pop, Transgressive

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ot too long ago, I reviewed this album. I gave it four out of five stars. I said that it isn’t a perfect album, but that it was a fun one. And I still generally agree with what I wrote way back when in my first year. I’m gonna give it five stars now, however, because I have to go out on a high note.

This was the first album I reviewed for the Misc in my very first column for the paper. Since then, there have been lots of other things I’ve been kicking myself for not reviewing. Death Grips released two albums—three if you count “Steroids (Crouching Tiger Hidden Gabber)”—and I didn’t review a single one. It doesn’t really matter; they all would have received five stars anyways. My last wish for this paper is that more people who read this listen to “Steroids (Crouching Tiger Hidden Gabber).”

I have also just straight-up gotten more things wrong than right. I gave Kali Uchis and Childish Gambino lukewarm reviews for albums that I truly love now. I was harsh on Rupi Kaur’s poetry for no real reason other than it was affecting me more than I thought it would. And I feel like I never reviewed enough books.

But there are also some reviews out there that I am proud of. I thrashed Kanye West’s

overrated “808s and Heartbreaks” recently.

I also thrashed “The Life of Pablo” when it came out during my first year. That review was unique as well, as it prompted someone to write a second review of that album claiming that I got it wrong. I also wrote a little memorial piece to Ursula K. Le Guin the week after she passed.

But these are all just my opinions, and opinions are certainly something I learned to express in this publication. I also wrote my fair share of articles, but they also came across more as personal reflections than classic reporting. Those are probably the pieces I feel the most proud about, but those are somewhere on the Misc website.

This article is supposed to be a review.

Neon Indian is the musical project of one Alan Palomo. “Vega Intl. Night School” has actually turned into the outfit’s last album as Palomo has pivoted into acting, even appearing in Terence Malick’s new misgoynysticlly masturbatory masculine mystical movie (I mean come on, have you guys seen “Knight of Cups”)? Neon Indian is a group that is colorful and well worth your exploration.

Cuts like “Deadbeat Summer” from the album “Psychic Chasms” are real classics for me. You’d better believe this song was my anthem every summer I was at home in Oregon, dog-sitting instead of interning.

And, of course, we’ve all heard the band’s hit “Polish Girl” from their “Era Extraña.”

If you haven’t, go listen to it and you will quickly see what the hype is about.

But, after a thorough four-year consideration of the band’s discography, I can’t help but consider “Vega Intl. Night School” to

be the best album from Neon Indian. This album is a smooth romp through a musical world that was just escaping from its chillwave cocoon. The opener “Hit Parade” still has all the best qualities of such wavy music.

But, if I’m being honest, this album excels when it gets far away from those influences. If the chillwave/vaporwave movement is seen as a downer—something that blurs the boundaries of the world together—“Night School” is undoubtedly an upper. Songs like “Annie,” “The Glitzy Hive” and “News from the Sun” revel in clear vitality. These songs bounce, interject and groove like all things reprising the ethos of the ’80s.

In other words, this was a great album to carry with me through my time at Vassar.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been overly caffeinated, walking around the lunch rush in the Retreat, finding moments in songs like “Smut!” that just take me out of my body. Or whenever I would find myself leaving campus on some break, “Annie” has always been right there beside my high-flying mood.

My favorite memories of this album come from its undeniable masterpiece: the epic nighttime trilogy that everyone deserves the pleasure of experiencing. I’m talking about the songs “Slumlord,” “Slumlord’s Release” and “Techno Clique.” I’ve listened to these songs everywhere and at every time of day, and they are jammin’.

“Slumlord” is a journey. Surfing through wavy synths and bright, glitzy keyboards, this track details the cruel rule of the landlord. This song takes its time getting started, but when it ascends into its groove, it

is impossible to come back down. And it just keeps getting higher and higher until its sublime transition into “Slumlord’s Release.”

A mainstay of my college experience has been walking to class, walking to the Deece, walking to the bathroom and fast-forwarding to the end of “Slumlord” just to hear this transition. Palomo nails it. This drop from ecstatic heights to the broiling, groovy depths of “Slumlord’s Re-lease” is like turning on a light switch on the dopamine center of your brain. It’s like all of “Miami Vice” distilled into one pure, liquid shot injected straight into your ear.

And then there’s “Techno Clique.” If “Slumlord’s Re-lease” was the fall into the pit, “Techno Clique” is the splash you make once you hit the bottom. What I love about all three of these songs is how they incorporate aspects of each other into their structure and DNA. “Techno Clique” could only come after the other two tracks because it is the culmination of everything started in “Slumlord.”

I’m going to leave this review here, just like I usually leave this album. There’s an ending to it, but I always feel quite exhausted after “Techno Clique.” There’s a lot more to this album that I didn’t touch on, but the majority of it is just the personal stuff I have attached to each song, and I won’t bore you with the details. If I can leave this paper with one last wish, it would be that more people go out and listen to this epic trio of tracks, in some setting where other people are present. (And that you also go and listen to “Steroids (Crouching Tiger Hidden Gabber)).”

Precise, revered, vital: Tallon’s work may save Notre-Dame

Courtesy of Craig W. Stapert Late Assistant Professor of Art Andrew Tallon’s spatial models of Notre-Dame give force to restoration plans after the fire. In Paris and beyond, the laser-exacting images that Tallon created have garnered international attention and applause.

NOTRE DAME continued

from page 1 get some attention, because there is a restoration campaign afoot right now.”

The art historian is talking about Friends of Notre-Dame de Paris, which he co-founded in the U.S. The Archbishop of Paris and the Diocese of Paris created the charity after the French Ministry of Culture stopped financing repairs to the cathedral. Tallon sounds hesitant when he says restoration is underway. Years after he filmed the vlog, disaster would catalyze preservation efforts.

The Apr. 15 fire attracted the attention of audiences around the world, and alongside with the cathedral in much of the news coverage was Tallon’s name. He died just months before the fire, in November (“Andrew J. Tallon,” The Poughkeepsie Journal).

In the days after the fire, donations

reached $1 billion, which the French government encouraged: President Emmanuel Macron promised to “rebuild the cathedral more beautiful than ever” in just five years (“Notre Dame: experts explain why Macron’s five-year restoration deadline is impossible,” The Art Newspaper, 04.26.2019).

This five-year plan is dubious. Beyond the heat and water damage, talks of repairs raise a number of issues about artistic and religious betrayal, and the varying purity of plans for Notre-Dame’s future. Macron’s government announced an international architectural competition for a new spire “adapted to the techniques and challenges of our time,” generating controversy over whether to rebuild the cathedral as it was or modernize a building that was a major cultural center before there even was a Paris.

Some fear that Macron is sacrificing structural integrity for speedy reconstruction, especially with the Paris Olympic Games approaching.

The building, however, is no stranger to change. Tallon explains in his video that Notre-Dame underwent a major restoration in the 19th century, when Victor Hugo’s novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” drew attention to the crumbling state of the cathedral. Like Tallon, Hugo shows a parental worry over the decay, albeit in fictional form. “Beside each wrinkle on the face of this old queen of our cathedrals,” he writes, “you will find a scar” (“Notre Dame Cathedral Is Crumbling. Who Will Help Save It?,” Time, 04.15.2019). But the 1844 restoration involved low-quality stone and cement, creating a host of recent structural problems.

Considering the heat and water damage, it might take a decade, but Tallon’s efforts will expedite repairs—or, rather, he will make them possible. In 2015 he created a painstakingly detailed digital model of the cathedral with lasers, providing a near-perfect replica (“Four years ago, an art historian used lasers to digitally map Notre Dame Cathedral. His work could help save it,” CNN, 04.17.2019).

The Vassar community recalled these renderings after the fire. On Monday, Apr. 22, the Department of Medieval Studies, with the support of the Religion and French and Francophone Studies departments, hosted a pop-up conversation about Notre-Dame at Taylor Hall. Professor of Art Molly Nesbit called the conversation “[A] way to call up our dear departed Andrew Tallon, whose work grounds everyone’s understanding of Gothic architecture, especially at Vassar.”

Professor of Religion Marc Epstein also revealed a personal connection to the cathedral: There is a picture book called “Ad-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

elaide” by Tomi Ungerer about a kangaroo with wings who visits Notre-Dame. This was Epstein’s first time seeing the building.

The kangaroo marvels at the gargoyles. “We all look for ourselves even in buildings as iconic as the Notre-Dame,” he reflected.

Visiting Assistant Professor of Art Lindsay Cook said her first experience of Notre-Dame was clipping out its image in elementary school. Cook discussed her research on its architectural and institutional history, walking us through structural details with an enthusiasm that rivals that of Tallon and Hugo. As she displayed a panorama of the building, the Chapel tolled in the distance—the whole room seemed to mourn.

Cook clarified that buildings change and they are meant to change. The history of Notre-Dame is a series of upheavals and restorations: the emergence of Christendom, the French Revolution, two world wars, the recent blaze. In the early 13th century, masons updated the windows to match contemporary tastes. Anti-clerical Enlightenment ideals inspired a translucent, brighter glass design. Cook said the goal of the 19th-century restoration was to “put back the building in a way that it may never have looked in the first place.” Concerning the Paris cathedral, preservation always aimed at alteration.

Change is inevitable in the face of disasters, erosion, political turmoil and variable aesthetic tastes, making his renderings as important as good upkeep.

After Hugo published “Hunchback,” Parisians took photos and made plaster models, which now serve as historical records. Tallon’s model, with its billions of laser-measured points, is the most meticulous of these records, boding well for the future of Notre-Dame.

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Kanye’s Krib

May 2, 2019

Installments VII & VIII: ‘TLOP & ‘Ye’

The following are the final installments of a series documenting the discography of Kanye West. Below, the Arts Editors analyze “The Life of Pablo” and “Ye” in chronological order.

Abby Tarwater Arts Editor

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he protracted and tempestuous road to the release of Kanye West’s seventh studio album remains one of the most notorious in rap history. West began working on the record in 2013 under the working title “So Help Me God,” promising a 2014 release date. In 2015, he changed the title to “SWISH,” only to revise it again a year later to “Waves.” These frequent alterations were coupled with numerous iterations of the LP’s tracklist and album art, as well as highly publicized Twitter scandals about West’s sensual beef with ex Amber Rose and his assertion of Bill Cosby’s innocence following copious sexual assault allegations against the comedian. When the record finally dropped under the title “The Life of Pablo” on Feb. 14, 2016, the arduous lead-up proved to be more enticing than exhausting—the album immediately prompted widespread contention, its kaleidoscopic contents mirroring the chaos surrounding its release.

“TLOP” was West’s most polarizing album to date, which is no small feat. Kanye is no stranger to experimentation, yet his unparalleled perfectionism made even his boldest risks venerable. Ye proved that he could master, and even invent, genre after genre, from sparse, emotional electronica on “808s & Heartbreak” to lush stadium pop on “Graduation” to abrasive industrial rap on

Holly Shulman Arts Editor

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ne Thursday night near the middle of this semester, I sat on a dorm room floor engaged in a tipsy debate centered around the question of our generation: What is up with Kanye West? The conversation turned from his politics to his music (not a far leap, considering the way in which the two are inextricably intertwined), initiating the familiar argument over which of the rapper’s albums is the best. An idea popped into my overly eager, newly appointed-Co-Editor-ofThe-Misc-Arts-section head.

“Would any of you want to write an article about your favorite Kanye album?”

The response was enthusiastic. Just like that, Kanye’s Korner was born. The rationale for the series is this: Love him or hate him, the rapper’s importance in the music and fashion worlds, the Kardashian family and the White House render him deeply relevant to our generation. His thoughts, expressed through his albums, reveal volumes about our current moment. In many ways, Kanye is contemporary American culture, so his commentary on it is invaluable.

Increasingly, however, the above claim is controversial. As the rapper continually espouses political agendas that separate him from his key fan base (simply put, MAGA hats do not appeal to the majority of rap fans) and exhibits more and more erratic behavior (as evidenced by his canceled tour dates due to a hospitalization in the UCLA Medical Center for stress and exhaustion), his relevancy has been called into question (The Washington Post, “Kanye West Hospitalized in Los Angeles, Placed on Psychiatric Hold,” 11.22.2016). On the night when Kanye’s Korner began, one of my friends illustrated this point: Smirking at me, he said, “Good luck finding someone to write about ‘ye.’”

Kanye’s latest solo album, which dropped June 1, 2018, is perhaps his only release since the beginning of his career that did

“Yeezus.” While I hold the opinion that no Kanye album is without its flaws—“Graduation” has “Drunk and Hot Girls,” and even magnum opus “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” has the second half of “Blame Game”—these misfires were anomalies in otherwise immaculate artworks.

With this in mind, it’s evident that Kanye could have produced a polished, untainted gospel-rap record, which is the sound that loosely holds “Pablo” together. Instead, he released an album that unabashedly displays all of Ye’s flaws as both a musician and a married father, making “TLOP” the most intimate, maddening and complex album of his career. The messiness of “Pablo” feels less shocking in light of West’s flagrant fall from grace during the summer of 2018, in which his ardent Trumpism, questionable self-diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder and egregiously bland eighth record “Ye” led to widespread calls for him to be “canceled.”

However, in 2016, “Pablo” felt monumental in what marked the first time that Kanye’s art became just as combative and complicated as its creator.

“That’s not to say that “Pablo’s” experiments are all, or even mostly, successful.

The most glaring fault on this record is the tasteless and crass lyrics throughout, which often seem to ruin otherwise compelling songs. At times, the vulgarity of “Pablo” comes across as hilarious in its bla-

not come out amid a cloud of excited anticipation from fans. Instead, the lead-up to the record was laden with anxious dread and riddled with assertions that the rapper had peaked long ago. In a review for Rolling Stone, Rob Sheffield described it best: “[‘ye’] isn’t the career-torpedoing disaster that many fans were bracing themselves for, but it sure didn’t turn out to be the heartwarming redemption story it angles to be” (Rolling Stone, “Review: Kanye West’s Chaotic, Insecure ‘Ye’,” 06.05.2018). While I’m not sure if “ye” strives to redeem Kanye, exactly, Sheffield’s assessment of the work’s mediocrity rings true. At best, the record is an eye-opening glimpse into the rapper’s seemingly unfathomable thought processes; at worst, it’s the manifestation of an artist attempting to keep up with the ever-present shadow of his former genius.

The manner in which “ye” was created speaks to the latter argument. In April, 2018, Kanye took to Twitter, promising the release of five G.O.O.D. Music albums. He was set to be the executive producer of each, and they were all to drop over a five-week period, with a week separating each. Two of the albums, “ye” and “Kids See Ghosts,” would be Kanye’s own projects, the latter in collaboration with Kid Cudi. In order to accomplish this feat, the rapper holed up in Jackson Hole with a group of artists and producers, creating a body of work that has come to be known as the Wyoming Sessions.

This rapid-fire production style rings reminiscent of Kanye’s past. While working on his first album, “The College Dropout,” the artist famously produced five beats a day for three full summers, a feat rendered even more impressive by the fact that he did so with equipment that is far less advanced than the tools used today (Vibe, “‘The College Dropout’ Turns 13: An Oral History Of Kanye West’s Classic From An Engineer’s Perspective,” 02.10.2017).

Surely, time was once of no obstacle to

tant stupidity, such as the infamous model/ bleach line in the glorious “Father Stretch My Hands” sequence and the iconic Taylor Swift reference in “Famous.” Perhaps these insensitivities are tolerable due to their early placement on the album, because by the time the abysmal seventh track “Highlights” rolls around, Kanye’s middle school-esque lyricism already feels inexcusably excessive. Sexism and insolence are mainstays of West’s discography, but nowhere else is his obscenity this gratuitous and brazen.

West’s hedonistic treatment of sex and materialism is especially jarring given its juxtaposition with profound musings about family, religion, depression and morality, often within the same track. Why should Kanye’s most spiritual, personal, gospel-influenced record also be his most crude?

The answer perhaps lies in the record’s album art, which appears shallow, sloppy and visually unappealing. The cover features a peachy orange background overlaid with two photos—one of a demure family on a wedding day, the other of a nude model— as well as dense text that repeats the title “The Life of Pablo” and the phrase “Which/ One.” The record, then, can be thought of an exploration of Kanye’s inner conflict as he struggles to decide “Which/One”—righteousness or sin—he wishes to let define him. The ultimate takeaway is that no such dichotomy exists; despite Kanye’s former

Kanye—but 14 years elapsed between his freshman effort and “ye,” and the type of immediately accessible, at-your-fingertips creativity he once possessed seems to have fled. Simply put, Kanye can no longer string together a brilliant beat in a matter of hours, and his process with “ye” suggests he fails to recognize that.

The artist used to be aware of such newfound limitations, though. “The Life of Pablo,” for instance, was released a full two years after its original drop date. As with “ye,” the rapper announced a timeline for the album on Twitter. Unlike with “ye,” he then announced another timeline, and then another. When the intended day finally arrived, Kanye delayed once again, tweeting that the album wasn’t out because Chance the Rapper had insisted they finish the song “Waves” so it could be included in the final tracklist (Rolling Stone, “‘Blame Chance’: Kanye West Explains ‘Life of Pablo’ Album Delay,” 02.13.2016). That type of commitment to quality over deadline was lost with “ye,” as the artist attempted to meet unrealistic production goals in order to prove his continued relevancy and musical genius.

The project suffered for it.

Ultimately, that is my central critique: While each of Kanye’s albums since “The College Dropout” has innovated in some way, “ye” is more of a look back into the rapper’s past successes than a new triumph.

The harshness of the pulsing beat in “Yikes” sounds like “The Life of Pablo”-era tracks such as “Feedback,” while “Wouldn’t Leave” recalls “Devil In A New Dress” from “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.” The ghosts of Kanyes past scatter throughout “ye,” giving new meaning to the title of the Cudi collab released a week later, “Kids See Ghosts.”

Despite the lack of sonic ingenuity, “ye” is valuable in that it gives listeners unprecedented access into Kanye’s often baffling thoughts. For instance, the track “No Mistakes” gives a succinct description of the

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

self-identification as a god, he, like the rest of humanity, is both humble and egotistical, profound and foolish, loving and lustful.

This balance is what makes “Pablo” such a fascinating document. Despite the garishness of “Highlights” and “Freestyle 4,” Ye delivers some of his most sentimental moments ever on album standouts “FML” and “Real Friends,” as well as late addition “Saint Pablo.” On the latter track, West opens up about his financial instability, crippling mental health issues, social media controversies and rocky relationships.

Although many fans associate early Kanye with authenticity, on “Pablo,” Ye has finally embraced all that makes him such a captivating and disputed figure.

Of course, the once-admirable candor of “TLOP” is now more unsettling than refreshing. Since 2016, Kanye’s public image has transformed from “asshole genius” to simply “asshole.” What that means for “Pablo” in 2019 is the knowledge that we should view the record as neither a prodigy’s anomalous blunder nor an enlightening opus. Listening to Kanye fat-shame his brother-in-law and disparage the looks of his ex-girlfriend makes clear that not everything West releases is a grand, brilliant artistic statement. The value of “The Life of Pablo” instead lies in its glimpse into the real Kanye: wholly problematic, heinously absurd and somehow endlessly alluring.

rapper’s state of mind: “I got dirt on my name/I got white on my beard/I had debt on my books/It’s been a shaky-ass year/Let me make this clear/so all y’all see/I don’t take advice from people less successful than me.” This further nuances the claim that “ye” was an attempt to prove Kanye’s continued relevance—the first half of the above quote shows the artist’s cognizance that he was losing his grip on the world’s attention; the second half reaffirms his commitment to ignoring doubters and maintaining his place at the top of the cultural food chain.

“I Thought About Killing You” dives deeply and darkly into Kanye’s struggles with mental health. He repeats the refrain “I think about killing myself,” and then asserts that such thoughts are not born from lack of self-love, which he has traditionally claimed to have in abundance, but an urge to “Just say it out loud, just to see how it feels/Weigh all the options, nothing’s off the table.”

Throughout the song, he alludes to the fact that he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder: “The most beautiful thoughts are always besides the darkest.” This sheds light on the album’s cover art, which bluntly states, “I hate being Bi-Polar its awesome.” Although the status of Ye’s diagnosis is a little fuzzy (he told President Trump that he did not, in fact, have bipolar disorder, but last month Kim Kardashian affirmed that he does), he uses the disorder to contextualize “ye.”

Kanye may or may not actually have bipolar disorder, and we will probably never know for sure. Either way, the diagnosis would not change the fact that his public persona has always felt dichotomous. His assertion about the proximity of beautiful and dark thoughts essentially sums up his career: The rapper has always been both brilliant and nonsensical, inspired and misguided. Hopefully this series has done justice to the multi-faceted, often facetious and ultimately fascinating enigma that is Kanye West.

May 2, 2019

ARTS

Campus Canvas A weekly space highlighting the creative pursuits of student-artists

Page 9 submit to misc@vassar.edu

Emma Kang-Rosenthal Education Major Class of 2021 She/Her/Hers “In my photos I wanted to capture different relationships, both with strangers and people I know. On a trip to Spain I focused on pairs of people whose body language signified a relationship. And in my portraits I captured my friends and family and tried to convey a sense of comfort through the camera.”

Excuse me, What’s your kink?

“The bros.”

— Leif Lyon Miller ’20

“The sound of a skateboard slowing coming up behind me on the pavement.”

—Dana Chang ’19

“Being tied up ;).”

— Sofia Calder ’21

“A good descending chromatic step-wise bassline.”

— Kara Lu ’21

“Pineapple on pizza.”

— Mike Jaklitsch ’21

“The outdoors.”

—Mirit Rutishauser ’19

Hannah Gaven, Humor & Satire Izzy Migani, Assistant Humor & Satire Hannah Benton, Photography

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

FEATURES

Page 10

Quite Frankly

Philosophy student muses on possibilities for social self Prat Parhi

Frankie Knuckles

Senior Editor Quality Advice-Giver

Have a question you want answered? Submit your quandaries at http://bit.ly/2RFnXfk Hey Frankie, I love my boyfriend more than anything, but unfortunately he’s prone to being a thoughtless a-hole at times (as most men are). How do I learn to call him out without being nasty, and still show him how much I appreciate everything he does manage to do right?

Sincerely, In Love and On Edge

Dear Lovers,

Q

I hate to say it, but I’ve been stricken with that terrible, terrible affliction known as love. My girlfriend means everything to me. How do I show her more how much I appreciate her?

Sincerely, In Love and Also Thoughtless

experience, in which any criticism of actions gets transmogrified into a personal attack. If you are clear at the outset that you’re addressing a specific behavior, and not your partner as a whole, the conversation will be much more productive.

The timing of the conversation is important for similar reasons; if you let certain irritations go unaddressed for too long, each successive micro-transgression snowballs your feelings about the first instance. If the behavior you’re identifying to your significant other is a recurring problem, you might devise a quick code word you can use to signal your partner that they’re doing the same thing you guys already talked about curbing.

Switching gears a bit, now. Most people probably assume that “negative” communication, like corrections or difficult conversations, is the hardest kind.

I disagree. Giving positive input to your partner can be very tricky, because coming up with compliments and little reminders that don’t sound too trite can be a challenge. Here’s what I suggest to show appreciation.

Think outside your norm. Sure, a “good morning” text can speak volumes—it lets your partner know they’re on your mind right when you wake up— but there are more creative ways to show you care. For instance, consider a nice handwritten note, or another small token that requires a bit of effort on your part.

Time the delivery when you know your partner will need a pick-me-up, like between two taxing classes. That way, not only did you put in the effort to make the thing, but you cared enough about your significant other’s schedule to notice when the best delivery time would be.

This example highlights a key concept of appreciation: Showing it goes further than saying it.

Genuine appreciation can be really hard to capture linguistically. One good way to go about jumping this hurdle is to vary exactly how you say it. Sure, “I appreciate you” is fine, but try to highlight specific reasons, or get creative with your verbs.

Guest Columnist

W

hat does it mean for us to know, to truly know, the people that we live with on this campus? How do we go about knowing each other? How do we go about knowing anything at all? How does having or not having one kind of social experience shape my other social experiences?

How does the negative space left by the removal of one experience actually create a positive excess of possibility that we can never capture, even in our most creative imaginings?

The other day, I encountered a social situation that made me reflect on these questions; I was forced to choose between two possible courses of action. Would I continue my conversation about the Deece, or would I go watch “Adventure Time” with a friend? That moment of choice brought me to a realization about my two possible paths and their interrelations. Two lands, two domains, two worlds are created here: the known and the unknown.

Can I even imagine these two worlds?

Can I list what meanings I affirm through the two discrete types of social actions and then decide which one is more valuable?

Probably. But does this mean that I can imagine the worlds that I must pick between? No. There will always be a measure of unknowability.

What if, by the very act of choosing between these experiences, I unwittingly create unknowable consequences for future choices? Without one kind of experience, will I be in a headspace to enjoy other experiences? Without more Deece conversation, can

watching “Adventure Time” hold value?

The unknown does not just lie outside our realm of the known; it also lurks within the discrete fragments of my known world.

The known and the unknown are always in flux, shaping one another with each thought. Time spent in one moment allows me to retreat from a given experience into another.

The unknown thus creates context. I have already spent time talking about the Deece today, and that is why right here,

Best Wishes, Frankie P.S. In all relationships, the best communication methods emerge through trial and error. When you mess up, don’t be afraid to have a conversation together to unpack what did or didn’t work.

right now, I can enjoy watching “Adventure Time” with you. My conversations about the Deece may play no visible role in how or why I watch a TV show with a friend.

The knowledge from the first experience is lacking in the second. It joins the unknown. Yet it is through this absence that I can affirm whatever meaning watching a TV show holds for me, whatever social value the experience brings.

In order for something unknown to have meaning in my life, I must bring it into my known world. I am not going to try to comfort if I don’t know that you’re going through a hard time. Humans are very good at linguistical-

ly affirming such a metanarrative of two worlds. I know the deeper thoughts that you might be having right now. Or, I cannot delve beyond the surface of this person’s character. We tell ourselves that we function

in the world through such acts of boundary-making. We tell ourselves that we privilege knowledge, knowing and acting from inside the known world. But am I then misconstruing the domain of the known as the sole domain of meaning?

I engage in one discourse because it stands alongside other seemingly “discrete” discourses. I am a different fragment in different moments. Each fragment affirms one kind of knowledge while naively deeming all else to be unknown or removed. And yet these fragments resonate with one another. What is a lack (a negative or unknown) in one context is the reality-constructing excess that creates another context.

How do we choose between the fragments of our selves when discarding a fragment could transform the meaning of all other fragments? In every choice, meaning as we know it is itself at stake.

In the light of this realization, how do we then still make choices and not become lethargically open-ended selves who embrace all experiences? Or do we instead want to be open to any and all experiences?

There is much that we don’t know and a lot that we go about pretending to know.

This is how we tell ourselves that we have a ground to walk on.

Courtesy of Collin Knopp-Schwyn via Wikimedia Commons, Lisa Fotios via Pexels

uite frankly, “communicate” is the best relationship advice anyone can ever give, ever. Yet, it’s also probably the hardest skill to put into practice. It seems like both of you could use a primer in effective (affectionate) communication.

As you probably learned during, like, your pre-verbal phase of childhood, words are powerful things. When you babbled something that sounded nearly coherent, odds are the big people around you got really excited. In a romantic relationship, the same principle pretty much holds. When you do finally manage to release the emotions you’re trying to express in a constructive way, your partner will be—if not always happy, period—happy to hear you out. If they’re not, there’s a bigger problem to address in your relationship.

But how do you go about expressing yourself? You folks both probably know that the best kind of communication doesn’t involve just saying whatever comes to mind, as soon as it comes to mind. We can be fragile, emotionally delicate creatures (even those of us who project an unflappable, firm exterior).

Especially in a situation where your partner has said something...ugh...lessthan-charming, the urge to immediately and viciously shut them down can be difficult to ignore. These knee-jerk reactions tend to be nastier in tone than 1) you mean and 2) will be helpful to your partner.

Likewise, bottling up your initial reaction and saying ~nothing~ also isn’t helpful, and does nothing to address underlying problems with the way your partner behaves (toward you, or toward others in the future).

A healthy form of critical communication can, in contrast, have lasting positive effects on your partner and on your relationship. Exactly what’s ideal differs significantly depending on the people involved, but here’s a basic template to start with.

As soon as you can, after you note a particular thoughtless behavior, let your partner know that you’d like to have a conversation about it. A good way to do this: “Hey, I felt that what you just did/ said wasn’t cool. Let’s chat about it, either now or soon.” You need to point to a specific behavior that you wish to discuss, rather than just saying your partner has been thoughtless as a whole. This will avoid a common pitfall that couples

Hey Frankie,

May 2, 2019

Should one talk about the Deece or watch “Adventure Time?” As Parhi demonstrates, these images can inspire philosophical reflection, despite lacking an obvious relationship.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

May 2, 2019

FEATURES

Page 11

Deece chef carves fruit animals, displays cooking heritage Am Chunnananda Guest Columnist

E

Courtesy of Am Chunnananda

very now and again, the window display of the Deece’s Oasis station looks not like a shrine for EnjoyLife cookies and energy bars, but like an exhibit for exquisite animals carved out of fruit, be it an apple swan or an orange bear, sometimes accompanied by a tomato rose. Seeing these displays of food art as I complete my usual lap across the meal stations has never failed to make me smile.

Last week, I was fortunate enough to sit down and have a chat with the man behind the masterpieces, Assistant Chef Benito Vona. We had only exchanged a handful of “how are yous” and “thank yous” across the shielding glass up until that point. But after many friends animatedly expressed how much they enjoy his artistic creations and eagerness for kind conversation, I’ve been itching to learn about the story behind Benito’s food carvings and his path to Vassar.

As I made my way over to the bottom of the Deece stairs, I didn’t recognize Benito at first. He was dressed in a t-shirt, shorts and trainers, instead of his usual chef’s jacket with a white label slot containing an embroidered, cursive “Benito.” It was a Thursday, which meant a day off from his usual 1-9 p.m. shift for him. We made our way upstairs, and as we asked each other about how the other was doing, Benito put on a bright smile, proudly mentioning the yard work he was able to accomplish, a favorite pastime of his—besides cooking, of course.

As we found a table to set up camp not too far from the entrance to the Upstairs Deece, I asked Benito to share a little more about his background. Benito and his family moved from Italy to the United States in 1973, making him a first generation immigrant. Food always played a huge role in his life: “I started cooking when I was two-and-a-half years old,” he explained. He learned how to make many Italian foods from scratch, like mozzarella cheese or his grandmother’s homemade pasta. Both of his grandfathers were also cooks, making food a central force in his upbringing that always brought people together. His paternal grandfather, for example, never stopped cooking even after retiring by he came to America. “Christmas time was, like, 30, 40 people at my house … it was loud, and a lot of food,” Benito fondly recalled.

Benito attended Orange Ulster Boces, a

trade school located in Dutchess County, in his penultimate year of high school, where he would eventually earn a two-year culinary degree. “I got kinda tired of Italian food by, like, 16,” he confessed. Attending Ulster Boces right around that time in his life was serendipitous, for it allowed him to branch out and start cooking foods of different backgrounds. Because of his strong performance in his junior year, Benito was placed into an advanced college course program in his senior year—an achievement that accelerated his journey to becoming a chef.

After high school, Benito didn’t attend college after graduating with his culinary degree—his father had passed away when he was 14, so doing so would not have been a feasible option. After bouncing around between a few restaurant jobs, he became a SousChef at the Hilton Garden Inn in Newburgh, which, as he reminisced, “was fun—a lot of stories over there, a lot of famous people.”

Compared to cooking in a restaurant, the Hilton’s banquets, big weddings and sweet sixteens made his day-to-day very intense.

“Sometimes we would go from cooking for 120 football players to a wedding, which is so much food,” he shared. “It was very fast paced … I get in the zone from the adrenaline, but, you know, I loved it. I couldn’t see myself doing anything different.”

Afterwards, Benito went on to serve as a Chef Instructor at Regional Economic Community Action Program’s (RECAP) Fresh Start Café in Middletown, a not-for-profit vocational training program that strives to equip individuals from vulnerable communities with employable skills. In recognition of his meaningful work there, Benito received the “Champion of Trauma” award from the Trauma Institute of Orange County, which is given to “non-clinical people living or working in Orange County who have shown ongoing care, tolerance, compassion and understanding for traumatized citizens” (Recap, “Chef Awarded for Trauma Support,” 09.03.2016).

“Receiving this award was such an...honor,” Benito reflected, pausing as he searched for the right words to express his gratitude.

“The award usually goes to police, military [personnel] or judges.” Thus, it was very special for him to have earned it as a chef. Benito still keeps in touch with an individual he worked with. He shared, “She’s a good friend … she’s like family. She’s part of me, you know?” As he told me about how

Assistant Chef Benito Vona poses with a bouquet of his aesthetic food artwork. The platter is his original solution to spicing up the food displays, which he deemed too dull. talented of a baker she was, it was evident how much of himself he poured into his job, including his relationships with coworkers.

I couldn’t help but think about how much I hope to be able to share and live my passion as meaningfully as Benito does.

Benito’s first day at Vassar was August 27, 2018 (as was mine, along with the rest of the Class of 2022!). When I asked him how things have been going for him here, he responded simply, “I love it.” He actually applied for the job six years ago, but didn’t get in then, which led him to work at Fresh Start Café instead. “I just figured, let me give it a[nother] shot, and it worked out. I was really excited when I got the job,” Benito elaborated. “I still had the paper from six years ago, and I was like, wow ... I finally got it.”

Working at the Deece has allowed Benito to pursue his love for lifelong learning—of continually having a new and unique experiences, which were all centered around food.

As one of 12 Assistant Chefs, he is constantly

learning from his coworkers: “We’re all different, we all have different ideas, different backgrounds, so … you’re learning about the person plus the food and the culture.” Having little familiarity with vegan and vegetarian dishes in the past, working at Root has also pushed him to be more creative when it comes to curating menus and learning recipes. “You learn everyday. No matter if I had 40 years of experience, [I’d] still learn, definitely.”

Our conversation proceeded to take a million different turns, from him drawing similarities between Italian and Asian cuisine, to his experience with discovering his gluten and nut allergies last January and navigating the challenges of adopting a new diet. When we circled back to talking about his current position at the Deece, I asked him about his favorite station to cook at. He responded, “I don’t have one—if you just put me in a kitchen, I’m just happy. No matter how much food or anything, I’m just happy to cook.”

Friends’ conversations turn to fertile ground for podcasting Annie Xu

Guest Columnist

I

n the New Yorker last November, Rebecca Mead wrote, “Beyond the top of the charts, there are half a million other podcasts available, fashioned for every conceivable interest or taste.” When my friend Zoya Qureshi ’20 and I read that quote, it only strengthened our desire to create our own podcast, one that would amalgamate our eclectic interests. Before becoming co-hosts of our new podcast “Cortado Cafe,” the two of us became friends through the Life Fitness boxing classes offered at the Athletics and Fitness Center. At the post-boxing dinner table, Zoya and I discovered that we shared interests in podcasting, films, technology at large, hot beverages, impressionist art, baroque sculptures, science and medicine. We delved into these various categories and engaged in stimulating discussions—ranging from the latest research in neuroscience and films from Francoist Spain, initiated by Zoya, to fertility tracking apps and bioethical dilemmas, initi-

ated by me. She was effortlessly sociable and affable, and I tried.

One dinner, Zoya and I agreed that our conversations were engaging enough to take place on-air and engage others. “How about a podcast?”, we asked ourselves. Later, at a coffee shop in New York City, we began to sketch out the description of our podcast. We threw out all sorts of questions: What would the style be? What kind of tone would we take? What would we cover? In our brainstorming notes on my iPhone, we threw in dynamic words: “A series of….culture; science; collision; a space for conversation and divergent thinking; challenging; surfacing new ideas.” We finally landed on this: “A series of freeform podcasts that blurs the line between science and arts, melding together topics from current events to neuroscience to architecture to everything in between. From the perspective of two skeptical undergrads who somehow manage to have their minds blown by new discoveries several times a week.”

All of our podcasting preparation was precipitated by a post from Baynard Bailey on Moodle’s Site News. In that post, Baynard described what Vassar has to offer in terms of audio recording: “If you need to record an interview or some voiceover, we have a sound treated space in the basement of Chicago Hall that has two great microphones.”

If we had any doubts about where we would record before, they were swept away. This would be the place!

We enlisted the help of fellow student Matheus Simoes ’22 to teach us, with great patience, how to use the audio editing software. After the episode was recorded and edited, we began the process of getting our podcast approved by iTunes, which took several weeks and was less circuitous than expected.

Our first instalment of “Cortado Cafe” is now out on iTunes. It covers my fertility app research and Zoya’s reaction to a neuroscience discovery. Our next episode is in the works—Zoya’s in Madrid for Junior Year Abroad and I’ve been finishing my thesis and

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

preparing for graduation. We’re attempting to use gaming software to record our podcast and figure out the perfect time to record, Madrid being six hours ahead of Poughkeepsie.

Zoya will share some of her insights about traveling and studying abroad in Spain (she’s taken new classes like Urban Studies, so maybe some Walter Benjamin?) and I will share some items on the multiple-universe theory in theoretical physics, from an STS perspective.

Neither of us had podcasting experience nor tech-savvy audio recording and editing skills. Yet we were able to turn conversations into “Cortado Cafe.” We supported and encouraged each other along the way, coming away with a closer friendship, new skills and personal growth. But ultimately, we found an interest and boldly pursued it, and before we knew it, a boxing class led to an iTunes-approved podcast.

Want to hear more? The first epsiode of “Cortado Cafe” is now available on the online version of this article at miscellanynews.org

OPINIONS

Page 12

May 2, 2019

Professor of Philosophy examines Vassar climate ethics Jeffrey Seidman

Chair of Philosophy

H

Courtesy of Daderot/ Wikimedia Commons

ow should Vassar, as an institution, respond to climate change? Combating climate change is not part of Vassar’s mission, and Vassar’s financial resources are finite. So resources that Vassar spends to reduce our carbon emissions are, often, resources that Vassar could instead be spending on its core, educational goals. How should Vassar, and those responsible for stewarding its resources, think about this tension?

The urgency of this question is increasingly obvious, even as most non-scientists still fail to appreciate the magnitude of the emergency we face and the speed with which it is rushing at us. The world has warmed 1.1 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The 2018 report of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) describes what a 1.5 degrees world will look like. It will be a world with far more, and much more intense, extreme weather, like the hurricanes now savaging Mozambique; a world in which wildfires, like the extraordinary ones that choked the American West last summer, are larger, more intense and normal; it will be a world in which large swaths of the world’s population face severe water shortages and food insecurity due to diminishing agricultural productivity and outright crop failures; it will be a world in which warming oceans kill the fisheries on which human populations depend; it will be a world of climate refugees numbering in the hundreds of millions—dwarfing by orders of magnitude the refugee flows which have already destabilized European politics.

And it will be a world of severely diminished economic growth, with trillions of dollars of wealth destroyed. On its current trajectory, the world may hit 1.5 degrees of warming as soon as 2030; we will blow past that milestone to a much, much worse 2 degree rise in the decades after that, and will hit a civilization-threatening 3.1 degree to 3.7 degree rise by the end of the century (IPCC, “Global Warming of 1.5 ºC,” 01.2019; The World Bank, “Groundswell : Preparing for Internal Climate Migration,” 03.19.2018).

Thinking about how it is appropriate to respond is difficult, not only because we are in an emergency that few recognize as an emergency. Climate change confounds ordinary moral intuitions. Morality evolved for direct, observable causal relationships: If A aims a gun at B and pulls the trigger, everyone knows how to assign responsibility for B’s death. The causal relationship between burning fossil fuels and the suffering and death wrought by climate change is, by contrast, indirect and diffuse. Most people have not internalized the fact that fossil fuel emissions cause suffering and death at all, and no one can trace a path from a few cubic

meters of natural gas burned to a few extra pounds of CO2 in the atmosphere to any single death.

And yet, precisely because the scale of suffering and death from climate change is so enormous, we can draw a direct line from our decisions to their human consequences. On our current trajectory, hundreds of millions of people will suffer or die from climate change in just the coming decades.

Every miniscule fraction of a degree of warming adds to the toll, and every ton of CO2 we pump into the atmosphere warms the earth by a miniscule fraction of a degree.

We do not know precisely whom we harm when we burn fossil fuels (though we know that most of the initial death and suffering is already being felt by the world’s poorest and most vulnerable, who are responsible for few emissions, and that the most widespread and severe effects will be felt by generations who are not yet born). But we do know, with certainty, that with each new increment of gas we burn, we are killing people, as surely as if we fired a gun into a crowd.

Once we understand our responsibility for climate suffering, a clearer moral framework for thinking about decisions around sustainability comes into view. The philosopher Robert Nozick points out that we do not ordinarily think of respecting the rights of others (for instance, by refraining from murdering them or stealing from them) as a goal for our actions, to be weighed or traded off against other goals. Rather, we think of it as a side-constraint on our actions, as we pursue our goals—the boundary between actions that are “on the table,” eligible to be chosen among, and actions that are simply off the table, out of consideration (Robert Nozick, “Anarchy, State, and Utopia,” 1974).

This is how morally decent people think in ordinary cases, where the causal connections between our actions and the results they bring about are direct and obvious. It is not how many morally decent people think about climate change, where the indirectness and diffuseness of the effects of our actions obscure them for us. But the cases are fundamentally the same. Words like “sustainability” mask this truth—and distort our moral understanding of the decisions we face. Sustainability sounds like a positive goal, something that is desirable to achieve, but sounds like that it is appropriate to trade off against other, worthy goals. But when we talk about “becoming more sustainable,” what we’re really talking about is pulling back from ways of operating that are causing and will cause suffering and death to human beings.

What does all this mean for Vassar? In 2016, President Hill formally adopted a Climate Action Plan for Vassar, which committed us to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from their current level of over 20,000 met-

The Adam Joseph Lewis Center, at Oberlin College, is just one building in a new generation of net-zero emitting structures springing up on college campuses. Seidman asks: Why can’t Vassar emulate such a model in its future infrastructural projects? ric tons per year to net-zero by 2030 (Vassar College, “Climate Action Plan,” 08.12.2016).

This is an aggressive plan. It will require retrofitting much of the existing energy infrastructure of the College, including the central heating plant. As the IPCC report makes clear, if the world as a whole becomes this aggressive, we can limit warming to 1.5 degrees, and avoid the worst of the disaster that our current global trajectory is pointing toward.

The good news is that we have, in President Bradley, a president for whom climate change is a priority, and who is taking leadership on the issue. President Bradley restated the commitment to net-zero by 2030 in her inaugural address, and she regularly attends meetings of the Climate Action and Sustainability Committee. Under her leadership, the College has commissioned a well-regarded engineering firm, Ecosystem, to study Vassar’s energy infrastructure and to lay out exactly what reaching net-zero will require. We will have the results of that study in the autumn, with an array of options and their associated costs. When that report lands, it will be a moment for some collective soul-searching, and for a College-wide conversation about what we stand for.

In the meantime, the College faces two more immediate questions, both stemming from the planned Inn and Institute (I/I), and both of which will likely be made this summer. On April 25, engineering consultants to the architect for the I/I presented three options for energy use to Vassar’s I/I committee. Two of these involved burning natural gas on the premises; the third option, which President Bradley has asked the consultants to explore further, would see the I/I powered entirely by electricity which could come from renewable sources. Likewise, the College is in the process of seeking developers to offer proposals for new faculty housing to replace Williams, which will be torn down to make room for the I/I. The College must decide this summer whether or not to

consider proposals that would burn natural gas. If we adopt natural gas for these brand new buildings, we will lock it in for decades to come.

The costs of decarbonizing our existing infrastructure will likely be formidable, and so the conversations around them, in the autumn, may be difficult. Whether or not we agree about the questions we will face then, we should agree on something simpler in the meantime: When you’re in a hole, stop digging. Putting fossil fuel infrastructure into new buildings would mean we are actively choosing to pursue our institutional goals at the cost of increasing our carbon footprint.

If we conclude that it really would be too expensive to build the I/I without doing this, then we should conclude that we cannot afford to build.

If an institution with the knowledge and resources of Vassar College will not find a way to stop burning fossil fuels, or even to stop adding to our fossil fuel infrastructure, then of course we cannot expect that others will. This fact speaks to a central insight of Immanuel Kant. Kant argues that, in figuring out how it is morally permissible to act, we ought to ask what would happen if everyone acted on the principles that we are considering acting on (Kant, “Groundwork for the Metaphysic of Morals,” 1795). In this case, the answer is simple. If everyone continues to add fossil fuel infrastructure, we will collectively raise the world’s temperature well beyond 1.5 degrees, and we will collectively doom ourselves—starting with the most vulnerable among us, but soon enough leaving no one untouched—to a world of devastation and suffering that will only intensify for our children and grandchildren.

The converse is true as well. If Vassar joins the ranks of those aggressively decarbonizing, we can act as a leader, and inspire others to follow, by giving one more proof that it can and must be done. Our actions can be a source of hope, rather than despair, in a world which could sorely use some hope.

Celebrating Vassar’s multidisciplinary programs: A poem Please, Tell Us More!

By Tim Koechlin Tim Koechlin is the Director of Vassar’s International Studies Program, a participant in Vassar’s Urban Studies and Latin American and Latinx Studies (LALS) Programs, and a devout and enthusiastic multidisciplinarian. The opinions expressed here­—foot by foot—are his own.

We engage history, mathematics and art bell hooks, Kuhn and Things Fall Apart.

Got a canon? Just name it.

In class, we’ll reframe it, With our head, with our hand, with our heart.

We study order, contradiction, precarity, Climate change, economic disparity.

We expect consternation, And rich conversation.

That’s how we do multidisciplinarity.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

May 2, 2019

OPINIONS

Page 13

Giving back: Why we need to take better care of Vassar Steven Park and Catherine Bither Opinions Editor and Columnist

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s students who live at Vassar for nine months every year, we probably have the strongest opinions when it comes to the topic of its dorms and apartments.

From the first-year who finds themselves stuck in a less-than-ideal dorm room to the jaded senior who has given up on relying on the Office of Residential Life, it’s not uncommon for Vassar students to feel unsatisfied with the state of their on-campus housing. So naturally, we have a tendency to complain about the quality of Vassar’s dorms, apartments and other facilities when given the chance.

According to the accounts of various students, Vassar has a long list of problems that should immediately catch the attention of Facilities Operations, the administrative organization in charge of Building Trades, Ground Services, Custodial Services and other maintenance groups.

There have been complaints about damaged bathrooms, rodent and pest infestations in dorms, broken laundry machines and elevators, flaws with plumbing, heating and flooring—that’s just to name a few. In general, these grievances seem to center around the poor quality of the infrastructure that makes up Vassar’s housing and the lack of accommodations. Given the age of most of these buildings, some of the dorms seem to be simply falling apart into ruin.

This concern can be best represented with the state of Raymond House, which has developed somewhat of a negative reputation compared to the other dorms in terms of living conditions (The Clove, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” 11.03.2016).

“The flooring can be a problem…There are door handles that can be a problem sometimes in Raymond. It’s not uncommon for a student to say ‘I tried to open my door and the door handle fell off’ and we have to get facilities to go put it back on. Our windows have been perpetually a problem…[Y] ou can push down on the lip of the window to close it but because of the warped vinyl, it doesn’t fit into the frame very well, so when you push down it could actually push the window out which has happened over the course of the years,” stated Raymond House Advisor and Associate Director of Residential Education and Residential Life Michael Drucker when asked about the common complaints that he receives.

Drucker further explained that the sames types of problems that he hears about Raymond can also come from students living in other dorms like Main and Noyes. These issues can range from elevator malfunctions to toilets going out of order due to blockages. However, perhaps the greatest source of the students’ frustrations is the long delays that accompany any complaint that they send to the administration, even when the issue is dire. Sometimes, a problem can take several days to fix. Other times, it seems as if all the complaint just get lost in a void of unopened emails and unanswered phone calls, never to be heard of again.

The lack of an immediate response by the college may seem to signify administrative incompetence, but in truth, quickly addressing the grievance of 2,500 students is nearly impossible, especially while respecting the time and labor of workers.

“The timing for work getting done depends greatly on the scope of the work, the capacity that our partners over in Facilities Operations have at the time to complete the work, the personnel on hand, the resources and materials to do whatever work it is,”

Drucker explained. “Sometimes there is a barrier to doing certain work because of the time of year. There can be work that really requires there to be no residents living in the area so the work will be postponed until a break, over winter break, over summer break because it can’t be done while people are cohabitating with that area.”

But before we criticize Vassar for its lackluster living conditions, we must first consider whether our own actions are impeding the progress of Facilities Operations.

In fact, it’s likely that we’re at least partly responsible for the College’s slow response time in addressing its service requests.

According to a series of interviews with the staff at Facilities Operations, it takes an incredible amount of time, manpower and money for the workers to complete the multitude of maintenance tasks that allow Vassar to function every day. Starting early in the morning, custodial teams go through and clean an established list of academic and residential buildings. Concurrently, trade groups respond to a long list of work orders where they take care of multiple issues in one building at a time and troubleshooters follow around-the-clock shifts in order to perform emergency repairs and extreme weather responses whenever they arise. This entire procedure is finely tuned to match the precision of clockwork, and these workers have a lot to do and very little time. That’s why whenever they receive an emergency service request regarding a damaged bathroom stall or a broken elevator caused by a handful of roughhousing students, they must delay their scheduled repairs to respond to the sudden request.

“These garbage cans are very heavy… [but students] throw them in the lake all the time...” “[T]he other day, we had a point brought up that the sinks in a certain dormitory bathroom had been plugged and don’t drain and had been that way forever. And the reality was that, no, they weren’t plugged.

They were not flowing because one bathroom sink had had the contents of a fishbowl dumped into it—including the lava rock and the pebbles—and it backed up.

Another sink next to it had the residual of vomit in it, which someone tried to wash down instead of taking the solids out which plugged the drain, so it backed up,” stated one Facilities Operations staff member.

“Obviously, these are two situations and they’re unique in that they’re behavior that caused a problem with the facilities which impacts the whole community.”

According to the workers, these kinds of incidents occur countless times everyday, often as a consequence of students’ thoughtlessness. For instance, one of the most time-consuming endeavors for the maintenance staff is performing repairs on the Walker Field House roof system due to frequent leaks. At first, they were puzzled over why so many leak areas kept appearing shortly each repair. However, after finding graffiti, furniture and foot imprints on the roof of Walker, they discovered that the leaks were caused by students climbing on top of the building, which not only allows water infiltration that damages the roof system but also produce dangerous conditions for students underneath the roof within the building. Staff members have observed this pattern of water leaks in other buildings as

well. Whenever they have found evidence of people climbing onto the roofs of dorms, such as beer cans, chairs and cigarette butts, they have also observed an increase in water leaks and roof damage in those areas.

However, this is just one of many examples of easily preventable issues that regularly hinder Facilities Operations’ progress in refurbishing the dorms and facilities.

According to another member of the staff, the workers in charge of Grounds Services are continually hindered by reports of students knocking and kicking heavy metal trash cans into the Vassar lakes. Every time this happens, the team must stop whatever repairs that they are working on to drive a backhoe to the Sunset Lake or the Vassar Lake and fish out the trash can from the water. Afterwards, several workers have to carry hulking, soaked trash cans back to their original positions, usually on top of a hill. In addition, despite how unbelievable it may sound, these incidents have occurred so many times—around six times a semester for the past several years—that the College has resorted to simply removing some of these trash cans from the campus permanently.

“These garbage cans are very heavy… [but students] throw them in the lake all the time...And the ones that get kicked over [happen] on a regular basis, weekly,” explained one staff member. “[For some,] we actually removed the cans because we were tired of pulling them out of the lake.”

Another large time commitment for Facilities Operations workers is the inexhaustible amount of trash which must be cleaned up in areas with a high concentration of students. According to the workers, much of their time that could be going towards improving the quality of the campus is spent picking up the endless stretch of litter that accumulates in student dorms, inside the College Center, around the Gordon Commons, in Noyes Circle and outside the College Center where the food truck is parked. Among the residential areas, the townhouses and the terrace apartments as well as Josselyn, Jewett and Cushing Houses generally accrue the most disheveled garbage in the dumpster areas. In contrast, areas around Strong and Lathrop House are among the most well-kept.

The most extreme cases of garbage accumulation occur after large student events such as Halloweekend, Founder’s Day, move-in day, move-out day and graduation.

Clean-up after these events is described by staff as “10 times worse” than usual, often taking up an entire week of their limited available time while employees still have to perform all the other daily tasks that they are required to finish. During senior week alone, the staff estimates that it takes a total of around 250 hours for a standard team of six people to return the campus back to its original state. On top of that, the amount of time and effort that goes into cleaning up Graduation Hill is in a class of its own. One employee remarked, “After we have graduation...[i]t looks like a bomb of garbage went off on that hill. We haul it out of there by the dump truck. They don’t have enough garbage cans there.”

Whether or not these problems are the result of carelessness and laziness on the part of students, the responsibility to address all these issues and cleaning the college falls under the jurisdiction of Facilities Operations. However, the sheer volume of these student-related incidents has only exacerbated the long service request wait times that Vassar students are so frustrated

about.

In truth, Vassar has several large-scale restoration projects laid out at the behest of the students, but the enormous resource burden that Facilities Operations have to shoulder have ended up causing major delays. These projects include campus-wide sidewalk repairs, lawnwork and dead tree removal.

Not only that, Facilities Operations is planning to undertake a series of major dorm renovations in response to the campus-wide complaints about shabby living conditions. Starting with Cushing and Ferry Houses in 2018 and transitioning to Josselyn and Raymond in 2019, the team has set up a detailed schedule in which they aim to completely overhaul the student rooms, hallways, bathrooms and common spaces with new floors, furniture and utilities. Daily calls for miscellaneous repairs only eat away the limited, precious time they have available in the day that could be better served in turning these renovation plans into reality. “[T]he more time we have to put into repairing things [and] the more things that are damaged by unusual use or abuse, the less time we have time to do the proactive things in the dorms to make them in a continuous good state of shape or condition,” a Facilities Operations staff member explained. While they were quick to stress that these problems were not the fault of every student on campus but a select few, they noted that a more attentive mindset of campus care within the Vassar community can go a long way in helping Facilities Operations respond to the needs of the students. “[L]ike any place, the majority of the students respect their community property and respect each other, but you do have incidents where, somehow, there’s a misdirection or a loss of awareness of the damage they’re now co-occurring...within the area they live.”

As students of Vassar, we have an obligation to take better care of our home. Rather than treat these facilities as if they will magically reset to normal at the end of every day, we should be more mindful of our behavior and how it affects the rest of our community. Most importantly, we must remember that even the smallest actions can lead to large consequences.

For instance, it’s a popular trend for Vassar students to steal something from the Gordon Commons, whether it be a cup, plate or silverware. Given how much cookware dining services has, many people assume that no one will notice if they took one or two for their own personal use.

However, what they don’t realize is that each attempt to restock all the cookware costs around $16,000.

Furthermore, so much cookware goes missing so frequently that these purchases end up occurring multiple times in a semester. According to an interview with Food Services, the collective damage of the stolen cookwares can amount to more than $64,000 in a year.

Ultimately, our own actions heavily influence the quality of our living conditions at Vassar. Instead of passively criticizing all the aspects that are unsatisfactory with the campus, everyone needs to play an active role in turning Vassar into a place that we can be proud of. Starting with the upcoming Founder’s Day Weekend and throughout the rest of the semester and beyond, let’s treat our home with better care and respect for the sake of not just the students on campus but the entire Vassar community.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

OPINIONS

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May 2, 2019

Dark times: How Georg Hegel predicted today’s turmoil Abram Gregory Guest Columnist

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hese are foreboding times. At a moment when queerphobia, white supremacy and religious zeal appear in the forms of mass violence and repressive government regimes, it is easy to feel swept away in the morass.

Moreover, the pressure of a time limit is imposed when we recall that the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ Doomsday Clock is still at two minutes to midnight, with the minute hand still ticking (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, “2019 Doomsday Clock Announcement,” 01.24.2019.) That is, an international group of scientists has calculated how close humankind is to destruction (midnight), measuring in increments of natural disasters, government aggression and carbon emission. With 1440 minutes in a day, two minutes to midnight is too close for existential comfort. When confronted with the haunting reality of humanity’s precarious position, it is tempting to renounce hope, and to either deny facticity or throw our hands up in nihilistic resignation. In contrast to what our feelings of safety in the Vassar Bubble may lead us to believe, there is no clear future.

Despite our thoughts, prayers, ramblings of wokeness and gripes with the human psyche, there is no clear solution.

A word of counsel, however, may be found in the writings of nineteenth century Prussian philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. The idealist thinker ascribed the world’s inner workings to the transcendental force of Spirit. This is detailed in his “Phenomenology of Spirit,” a story

following the trajectory of a vague protagonist forming itself in the world produced therefrom (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel,” 02.13.1997). Just as the “Phenomenology of Spirit” describes the development of the individual, it also prescribes the fate of the world as well as the consequences of its development.

Hegel was a dialectician, meaning that he explained the development of any action as the meeting of a thesis and antithesis to form a synthesis, which then becomes the new status quo. In other words, whenever there is change, the present must be met by its opposite to make the change happen.

As this applies to culture, he speaks of the “pure insight” that individuals caught up in the world may have; a revelation about something which ought to change. Whether this revelation is for the better (say, the discovery of the medicinal properties of penicillin) or for the worse (the formation of eugenicist race theory), it is described as an “infection,” a “disease,” which takes over every part of society’s being. Later juxtaposing absolute freedom against terror in culture, Hegel further explains that just as the status quo is met by a dramatic shift in thought or action, i.e., by an ideological revolution or an extremist act of violence, “What has emerged is a new shape, that of the moral spirit [of the people]” (Hegel, “Phenomenology of Spirit,” 1807) When the world turns against us, Hegel’s account can be daunting. It is of little comfort to explain the persecutions against particular sexualities, ethnicities, religions or genders as merely being within the pa-

rameters of the spirit of the time. However, Hegel and like-minded thinkers can also demonstrate that brighter times lay ahead, so long as we decide to be harbingers of positive change.

The bleeding-heart liberal in me has been as crestfallen as every other bleeding-heart liberal that witnessed the highest point in recent American democracy being followed by the present administration.

The queer in me is perpetually heartbroken to hear of atrocities like the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting or the retroactive legislation in Brunei making gay sex punishable by death (The Guardian, “Brunei introduces death by stoning as punishment for gay sex,” 03.28.2019).

“By choosing to act, we can right the ship...”

However, when already imperfect times are met by the forces of bigotry and ignorance, Hegel reminds us that absolute freedom and the liberties carried with it can be sought out as a means of subverting and negating the “terror of death.” By choosing to act, we can right the ship, though it will not be easy. Nothing worth achieving comes easy, and Hegel recognizes this in stipulating that “The sole work and deed of [achieving] universal freedom is thus death.” As expected, the journey to changing a faulty world is a pilgrimage fraught with obstacles, some more dangerous than others. Activists risk being jailed and killed, and those who speak out against a system are similarly at peril of being black-

balled.

The question is whether we are up to the task of being the change we seek. To fully ground ourselves, an important step we can take is devoting attention to goings-on within the Vassar Bubble. We already see positive movement in the forms of student activism that focuses both on campus-specific phenomena and issues in the world at large. Causes such as the Vassar Asian American Studies Working Group ought to be applauded for their efforts to expand Vassar’s curriculum to be more inclusive (The Miscellany News, “VC calls for Asian American Dept,” 02.21.2018). Campus-based chapters of national and international groups deserve the same respect.

It is tempting to rest on our haunches and complain about microaggressions from the uncontrollable subconsciousness, or quarrel over how many commas our student newspaper uses. But student groups such as the Black Student Union and Students for Justice in Palestine, as well as many other alliances, orgs and communities, use pre-existing passions honed by a liberal arts education and take to the streets to reify their goals.

Vassar students have demonstrated an eye for progressive sentiment, judging by our recent VSA executive election results.

Perhaps the Vassar student populace is more than merely “woke,” though it certainly has much to do. Both within the Vassar Bubble and out in the open world, we must be the change that we seek, and be sure to remember that despite the dire situations we face, our passion and labor will lead to a better future.

Vassar work-study leaves students jobless, dismayed Griffin Trayner

Guest Columnist

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s part of its financial aid program, Vassar College distributes Federal Work-Study (FWS) grants for low-income students to help manage the cost of higher education. As someone who received a work-study grant as part of my financial aid package, I assumed I would find a job—maybe not one I’d love, but I would have one. But one year later, I have yet to find a suitable work-study job, even though I meticulously followed the instructions the college provided. In talking to other first-years, I realized I wasn’t the only one. While the FWS program is designed so that students can relieve some of their education costs, Vassar’s execution of this program fails to make these funds accessible to the students who need them most.

Ideally, here’s how the job application process should work. In August, the Student Employment office (SEO) instructs students to apply for 10 to 15 positions on JobX—the website Vassar uses to manage work-study applications. Depending on their past experience or interests, students can apply to any available jobs that they want, from mail clerk to observatory assistant. They list their qualifications, upload their resumes and hope for the best.

During orientation, students may get an offer or two, but by the time classes start, most students will have a job. Those who aren’t employed yet continue to apply, and will likely find a position in short order.

This was was my impression going in.

Based on interviews conducted by The Miscellany News with other students, what seemed like a simple process was

actually full of pitfalls. Going into orientation, an email from the SEO is the only information students receive about their job search. There were two information sessions about work-study during orientation, but the college did little to promote these sessions. From the tone and content of the email, students were led to believe that the process of finding a work-study job would be straightforward. Outside of these two hours, there was no other time during orientation dedicated to making sure that students found employment.

“This all raises the question: Why do so many students end up jobless?”

As orientation came to a close, it wasn’t surprising to find students in the dark about the status of their applications—still waiting to hear back. Once classes started, the situation became more dire: Not only were students transitioning from home to college life, but they were beginning to juggle papers and problem sets, trying new clubs, meeting new people and coming to terms with huge changes in all parts of their lives. By this point, those who were still unemployed had even less time to focus on finding a job. Many likely blamed themselves as they tried to figure out whether they had done something incorrectly or if they were just extremely unlucky. Guidance from the administration for unemployed students was nonexistent, as many students continued to wait in the

coming weeks to see what happened with their applications, uncertain of what else to do.

Unfortunately, waiting only makes the situation worse. On Oct. 1, jobs become available to all students, regardless of whether they have a FWS grant or not.

This policy seems to imply that if a student with a grant wants a job, they will have it by the end of their first month at Vassar, provided that the student follows the instructions given to them. This is clearly not the case, and this practice only further discourages students about the process, making their chances of getting a job even more slim.

Faced with more difficulties, many students look to the SEO for counsel, but their results often vary. In an email correspondence, Associate Director of Student Financial Services Audrey Zahor said that the SEO recommends students send follow-up emails with their applications to show interest to their employers. Students on work-study are not told to do this at any point during orientation or through email.

The default information we are given assumes that we will find a job without much trouble and that employers will be just as diligent in the application process as students are. In fact, the Vassar JobX “Quick Start Guide” instructs students to wait for employers to respond to their applications, giving no mention of following up with employers individually (Vassar, “JobX Student User Guide”). Conflicting information is a major contributor to the stress and confusion inflicted on first-year students by the work-study application process.

This all raises the question: Why do so

many students end up jobless? One of the most confusing aspects of the job application process is deciding where to apply. At first, it seems best to apply to jobs that fit your interests and qualifications, balanced with the volume of positions available for that job. However, many positions already have a person lined up from a previous year, making applying to the job nearly useless—the employer has already made their decision. First-year students don’t know this, leading many to apply for jobs for which they have no chance of being hired. So, instead of having a chance at the suggested 10 to 15 jobs, students could be wasting their time with several of those applications, leading to a lower chance at employment than they expected. Indicating in some way that a student is already being considered for a position would be helpful, and if this is too difficult, students should at least be told that this situation is a possibility in the application process.

In the same vein, employers do not properly update JobX to reflect the state of a job. As it turns out, employers often don’t reject applications even when it still appears that they can hire more employees.

This leaves students in a state of limbo— they don’t know whether to move on or wait for a response. When this happens, a students sees that there are open positions for a job, but they are unaware that the employer doesn’t intend to hire anybody else.

Again, this causes students to waste time applying for jobs that will not get them hired—but which appear the same as any other position. Employers need to be more engaged in updating their jobs to accurateSee WORK-STUDY on page 15

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

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Student Employment broken, but viable solutions exist WORK-STUDY continued

from page 14 ly reflect whether it is worth it to apply or not.

Even worse, the process treats firstyears as if they have the same amount of information as returning students. Firstyear students are not guided through this application process like they are with so many other new aspects of life at Vassar.

In this way, almost all of the responsibility is on students to apply for jobs, to follow up with employers and to piece together an understanding of the job application process. Student employment needs to be more proactive in finding jobs for students, as well as in informing them about the difficulties of the application process.

Even if the SEO is already spread thin, if the office at least informed students about potential problems that could crop up while applying to jobs, perhaps students would be more able to help themselves along.

In order to solve this problem, firstyears on financial aid need to be given

special attention. Ideally, this would mean that if a student indicates that they want to get a job using their work-study grant, student employment would make sure that that student applies to positions they have a good chance of getting, and if their applications didn’t work out, the office would advise that student on where to turn next. It could keep track of which students are receiving work-study and their employment status.

This list could be used to check in, asking them to reach out to the office if they hadn’t found a job yet. A proactive and timely check-in could make the difference between a confused and dismayed student and one who feels welcomed, affirmed and supported by the Vassar administration. Even better, a special job application process which guides first-year students along, much like with the first pre-registration, could be included as a part of orientation. This would require either pushing forward the period in which only students on work-study can apply to jobs,

or asking employers to start work a little bit earlier. Both of these are small sacrifices that could help first-year students on work-study have just as smooth of a transition as their peers.

“Financial Aid needs to seriously review the information it provides students...”

If this would spread the financial aid office too thin, funding could be increased, but this would take time. In the meantime, increasing the information about job applications available to students is the least the administration could do. This would be a relatively small change—a few more emails and a program at orientation would suffice. The office already knows that students should follow up with their employers over email, and that students should contact them if they don’t get a response,

but most first-years don’t know this. Additionally, the office likely knows how difficult the process can be, and that many first years end up jobless. Being transparent about the issues that can come up makes students more prepared when they encounter them, and allows them to reach out for help earlier. Financial Aid needs to seriously review the information it provides students and compare it with the reality they encounter.

I want to give the Financial Aid Office the benefit of the doubt: I am sure its employees are trying their best to provide students with a pleasant experience. Vassar as an institution does a fantastic job of being inclusive to students from a variety of economic backgrounds, and it is a leader among its peers in financial aid.

However, the school has an obligation to address this problem before the Class of 2023 arrives on campus and suffers the same fate. If Vassar wants to live up to its ideals, students on work-study who want jobs need to have jobs.

Judge Rotenberg Center tortures its disabled students Jesser Horowtiz Columnist

[TW: This article describes physical, emotional and sexual abuse, including use of restraints and electric shocks.]

“I

nstead of showers, I was bathed tied to a restraint board, naked, while staff washed me, putting their hands over me.

All in front of cameras, where Monitoring watched, including men. Being tied on a restraint board, naked with my private areas exposed to the staff in the bathroom and the cameras was the most horrible, vulnerable, frightening experience for me. I would scream out ‘rape, rape!’ And these were recorded as major behaviors for me” (Autistic Hoya, “Judge Rotenberg Center Survivor’s Letter,” 01.15.2013).

“It was very difficult to sleep at [the Judge Rotenberg Center] (JRC). There are several alarms in the room and over the bed. Every time someone moved in bed it would set a loud alarm off that could be heard throughout the house. Most of us on [Graduated Electronic Decelerators] (GED) had to sleep with the devices on. That means locks and straps that get all tangled around you and make it very hard to lay down in a comfortable way. I was very anxious to close my eyes, always fearing a shock for something I might not have even known I did. My fears came true one day, and I was given a GED-4 shock while I was asleep.

It was not explained to me why I got this shock. I was terrified and angry. I was crying. I kept asking why? And they kept telling me ‘No talking out’...After this incident I really stopped sleeping. Every time I closed my eyes they would jump open, anticipating that jolt somewhere in my body” (ReunifyGally, “Letter from Former Resident at Judge Rotenberg Center,” 01.11.2013).

“A staff would rush in at various times during the school-day, yelling and screaming while entering the room and racing to the student, and place either a plastic knife or a metal spoon to the student’s mouth, and yell, ‘Do you want to swallow a knife?

Do you want to swallow a knife?’ The staff would hold the plastic knife to the student’s mouth in a life-threatening manner, the student would scream loudly as though it was his last breath, and another staff somewhere in the room would push a hidden remote

control button to shock this student who was already physically helpless to move his body an inch in any direction while being attacked” (Autistic Hoya, “Letter from Former Teacher at Torture Center,” 01.16.2013).

These accounts don’t come from Guantanamo Bay. They’re not from Abu Ghraib.

They’re not from a prison camp in North Korea or a re-education camp in China.

They’re not from a gulag or a death camp.

They’re not from pre-1960s American psychiatric wards. In fact, all three of these stories are from survivors of the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center, a school for disabled students in Canton, Massachusetts that is still open today—running on taxpayer dollars.

I have been writing about disability rights for The Miscellany News for my entire four years at Vassar College, and today I write my final article. I don’t want to leave you with more kvetching, though certainly that is something I am quite adept at doing. So instead, for my very last op-ed, I am going to tell you, my loyal readership, a story about one of the worst places in America, and at the end I will tell you what you can do to help.

The story begins in 1971, when psychologist Matthew Israel founded the Behavior Research Institute in Rhode Island. The school housed autistic people and people with intellectual disabilities. The school would use physical aversives to dissuade them from undesirable behavior. At the time, aversives meant, “[S]praying children in the face with water, forcing them to smell ammonia, pinching them, slapping them, subjecting them to painful muscle squeezes, spanking them, forcing them to put hot peppers on their tongues, and forcing them to wear a white-noise helmet that emitted static” (Mother Jones, “The School of Shock,” 08.20.2007).

The center later moved to Massachusetts and was renamed after Judge Ernest Rotenberg, who ruled in favor of the institution during a legal struggle with the Massachusetts Office for Children, after the government agency had grown concerned about the staff abuse that led to the death of 22-year-old Vincent Milletich (Autistic Self Advocacy Network, “Prisoners of the Apparatus: The Judge Rotenberg Center,”

08.09.2014). Today, it is known as the Judge Rotenberg Education Center, or JRC for short.

The school still uses physical aversives on its students: most famously electric shocks.

In 1988 Matthew Israel developed the GED, a device used to administer electric shocks on unruly students. The current model, the GED-4, can deliver a shock of 45.5 milliamps (Autistic Self Advocacy Network, “Prisoners of the Apparatus: The Judge Rotenberg Center,” 08.09.2014). According to the Electronic Library of Construction, Occupational Safety, & Health, 30 milliamps is enough to cause respiratory paralysis (Electronic Library of Construction, Occupational Safety, & Health, “Electrical Safety: Safety & Health for Electrical Trades (Student Manual),” 01.2002).

As one survivor stated, “The GED is harmful. Even the GED-1. I was burned many times, and I still have scars on my stomach from being repeatedly shocked there, by the FDA approved GED-1. The electrodes had actually burned into my skin. I experienced long term loss of sensation and numbness in my lower left leg, after getting a shock there. I felt searing pain all the way down to the bottom of my foot, and was left with no feeling in my skin from the knee down for about a year” (PsychCentral, “Judge Rotenberg Center: One Patient’s Story,” 07.08.2018).

This survivor went on to say, “[L]ife with GEDs is a life of constant anxiety. I experienced heart palpitations daily, had a very hard time sleeping and eating, and become rather paranoid, always wondering if I was about to get shocked and constantly alert in all directions” (Autistic Hoya, “Judge Rotenberg Center Survivor’s Letter,” 01.15.2013). According to the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, “Some students receive hundreds of shocks per day. One student received 5,000 shocks in one day. Students are shocked over an extremely long period of time—of the 109 students receiving electric shocks at JRC…48 have been receiving these shocks for at least 5 years” (Autistic Self Advocacy Network, “Prisoners of the Apparatus: The Judge Rotenberg Center,” 08.09.2014).

The JRC also uses restraint and seclusion to humiliate students. As one survi-

vor attests, “I was put in a GED seat board, strapped onto a chair. They turned a key to turn it on and it would automatically trigger a shock if I stood up without asking. I was in the chair for several months. I was also put in a room by myself and put in a 4-point chair—feet and chest tied to chair. I was strapped to the chair, except when I was sleeping, for four months.” The mother of a survivor told Mental Disability Rights International that the during her son’s first few months in JRC, he son was put in restraints.

She said, “When he was in restraints, they put him in diapers—he was a teenager—he was never in diapers before and he always used a toilet. But they didn’t want to untie him and let him use the bathroom” (Mental Disability Rights International, “Torture Not Treatment,” 2010).

“Even the United Nations itself views these practices as a form of torture.”

Even the United Nations itself views these practices as a form of torture. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture formally called for the U.S. government to intervene. Former United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Manfred Nowak, in response to claims that the actions of the JRC are justified in the name of medical treatment, said, “[E]ven for a good purpose—because the same is to get from a terrorist information about a future attack, is a good purpose. To get from a criminal a confession is a good purpose…You cannot balance this. The prohibition [on torture] is absolute” (Autistic Self Advocacy Network, “Prisoners of the Apparatus,” 11.23.2015).

On April 24, 2014, the Food and Drug Administration held an advisory hearing that concluded that GEDs cannot be used without harming the patient. Still, the FDA has failed to ban the use of physical aversives on disabled people (Autistic Self Advocacy Network, “#StoptheShock,” 04.29.2018).

If you have five minutes, call the FDA, call your Congressperson, and please tell them that it’s finally time ban these devices. I believe in you. We can do this.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

HUMOR & SATIRE

Page 16

May 2, 2019

Breaking News

From the desk of Hannah Gaven, Humor & Satire Editor

Founder’s Day leads to kinky orgy when Traditions Committee surrenders all whips to rodeo attendees Local girl wins small but consequential insect battle Izzy Migani, reporting from the warzone

O

kay, now that it’s the end of the year and I am set to go abroad in the fall, I think it’s time to tell you all the full story about my personal war with ants. As some may know already, I recently wiped out a squadron of 200 ants, and I am hearing more of them in the walls as we speak.

These ants were not looking for food or anything of that nature. My room is very clean and I keep it that way for a reason, due to past experiences with ants. However, even back then an occasional 10 or 20 ants would pop up on a monthly basis.

Ever since I’ve tidied every square inch of this room, I haven’t encountered this problem. Of course, I see the occasional ant crawling around in the surrounding hallway, but never within the confines of my space. Tonight, however, was different.

While everyone was at the Deece, the library or safe in their beds, the ants wanted to tango with the Devil and decided to disturb my peaceful slumber and ultimately

my whole sleep schedule. Again, I have to stress that these particular ants weren’t out looking for food or even shelter. They were there for the KILL. The ants knew I have killed many of their brethren, and they wanted to have their revenge. They wanted revenge for the many family members they’ve lost due to me and how malicious I may have seemed using the 4-inch Steve Madden platform as my ant-killer of choice. Tonight was the night they finally decided to express their hatred for me, and they came well-equipped to do the job and do it correctly.

Out of the 400 that attacked me, about one third of them were equipped with tactical wings to make aerial combat easier for them to achieve. If you hate flying ants, imagine a trained ant with his eyes fixed on you, trying to fly towards you at supersonic speed, while only achieving a speed slightly faster than that of a bumblebee. That’s what those ants were like. Of

course, I had no choice but to stomp them down with my favorite ant-eliminator of choice: tactical ant spray.

Up next were the high-maneuverability ants. In order to make an effective squad that is capable of taking out humans, you need scouts to provide you with proper reconnaissance and intel to provide you with a large tactical advantage. These were the fast and agile ones, and whenever I tried to fight back, they always took cover under the floorboards as quickly as possible.

That’s what the most elite, most experienced ants were. They hid in the corners of my room and under the floorboards while scouting the area. When it was time, they called in the reinforcements of the aerial combat ants and made their final move on me when I was peacefully sleeping.

That’s when I woke up, however, and then attempted to defend myself as best as I could. The ants, unfortunately, possessed no semblance of mercy in their small,cruel

ant bodies, and continued their very tiny yet very scary attacks on my person. The battle waged on deep into the night, and eventually I emerged victorious.

So, in conclusion, the ants I’ve encountered in my room were obviously highly trained military ant combatants that attempted to ambush me while I was asleep.

I will guarantee you that you have NEVER experienced ants like these, nor would I ever wish this fate upon my greatest enemies. Even now, I fear that I have missed some of the ants, that they are still lurking and lying in wait for me to drop my guard. I am stuck in a perilous loop, forever locked into a battle of man versus ant. While I am large, their force is mighty and powerful, rivaling that of a grown human adult. I pity the poor soul who receives this room next semester. For them, I have only one message: The ants will find you, no matter how hard you try to hide. Your only hope is to run, and run fast. Godspeed.

ADVERTISEMENT Frank’s Womp-Womp World

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

HUMOR & SATIRE

May 2, 2019

Page 17

Desperate students confide in womp-womp for advice S

tudents, it is the end of the year and many of us are going to summer jobs or internships for the first time, or perhaps are graduating and getting ready to tackle the job market. Meanwhile, others are just finding themselves saddled with questions about daily life. In an effort to help the student populace, The Miscellany News has established an ask column with our college expert who will be known as Womp. He has watched over 300 hours of college movies and has been studying at Vassar for six years. Also, all of his internship applications were denied so he has plenty of time to help.

Dear Womp, I am a third year Vassar student majoring in chemistry, history, neuroscience and international studies. I keep a 3.8 GPA and I am captain of a local charter of the Youth of America organization. But recently I was wondering if I should take up an instrument as well. I hear it’s good mental exercise, and frankly I only play three sports. I have so much free time that life gets boring.

Sincerely, AvgJoe. Joe, Thanks for the question. I actually have a few questions for you in order to help more effectively. First: Were you excavated form Da Vinci’s secret lab? Who is your creator?

Not in a cosmic sense; I am honestly assuming you were crafted in some SpaceX bunker that Elon Musk forgot about. Second:

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and Pinging

Francisco Andrade

Womp-Womp Whisperer

How does one go about getting a time turner? I have not seen a Professor McGonagall at the school, so I am not sure who to ask.

Where did you get yours? Perhaps it’s better to assume you built it yourself in between creating nanotechnology and curing Ebola.

And finally: Try getting a harmonica. They are fun, portable and completely underrated instruments that make a great accompaniment to any ensemble.

Hope that helps, remember me when your species takes over the planet.

Best, Womp Dear Womp, Yesterday morning I parked my car in the South Lot, and as I was walking back to the Bridge, a deer came out of nowhere and frightened me. I ran into the trees and snagged my shirt, which caused me to trip.

I fell in the mud, and I am pretty sure I was bitten by a tick. I have been feeling feverish and I am quite sure my ankle is twisted. I have three quizzes tomorrow I can’t miss.

What should I do?

Thanks, Unlucky Duck Duck, What color was your shirt? If it was a dark color, to remove the mud, simply wait for it to dry and scrape the excess off with a knife.

Then dab it with detergent solution and the stain will come right off. If it was a light color you want to let it soak in the solution for at least two hours. If there is any blood, use a salt or saline solution to get it off.

Oh and try to not get TICKED off! Haha-

Here’s my humble interpretation of Womp.

This obviously took a very, very long time. I hope Womp likes it. It’s my magnum opus. hahaha. GO SEE A DOCTOR. Sincerely, Womp Dear Womp, I was recently accepted for a paid internship opportunity in the city. They grant me housing and a stipend, but I will be sharing an apartment with three friends. Though we each have a room, I have never had that many roommates in a space like that before.

As I will be doing a lot of writing, I’ll be at home a lot. I am very nervous about it, and just want to have my stuff left alone and have a good time. What are some tips for sharing a space with others, especially since we will always be around each other?

Dearly, Gloomy Roomie

HOROSCOPES

GR, OH. YOU GOT AN INTERNSHIP. MUST BE NICE HUH. “Oh, Womp, help me! I have summer opportunities and prospects! I get to live with a bunch of friends in the best city in the world. ThEy gRAnt mE HoUsiNg” UGH. Fight me.

Anywaaaaaaaay, if you don’t want people going in your room, I would recommend bear traps. Lay them all over your room hidden by carpet “Raiders of the Lost Ark”style. This way is messy, so see above for blood removal tips. Actually, what’s your budget? You can set up a pretty good laser grid for just under $3,000 that will will alert you to any movement or unauthorized entry. I would spring for the mini-gun turret attachment, though, or else what’s even the point?

As far as getting along and ensuring a habitable home environment, I recommend a list of apartment rules that all roommates agreed to, as well as a chore list and an environment that encourages constant open communication. Oh and fear works great too. Worried one of your roommates won’t adhere to the rules? Well I’m not saying torture is the solution, however… You do outnumber them three to one and own bear traps. So, the ball is in their court.

Good luck with your pAiD InTeRnShiP (sorry, still salty) and remember the old saying “Friendship is forever, but roomateship is until they eat the dino nuggets I had in the freezer since THOSE WERE MY NUGGETS BARBARA. HOW DARE YOU.” Bitterly, Womp

Hannah Gaven

amateur astrologist

ARIES

March 21 | April 19

TAURUS

April 20 | May 20

GEMINI

May 21 | June 20

CANCER

June 21 | July 22

LEO

July 23 | August 22

VIRGO

August 23 | September 22

My plants are finally sprouting, which is pretty exciting. Sadly, I will have to murder them at the end of the semester when I leave.

Good riddance though—they are so needy.

Please kill them for me. I don’t have the heart.

You are destined for greatness this week.

You will save a puppy, cure cancer and will be dared to drink a nasty concoction of soap, pickles, hot sauce and pee. Always remember, braveness is a virtue, young one.

My new hobby is standing naked in my window watching tour groups walk by. Perhaps it’s less of a hobby and more of a perpetual accident. Either way, it’s a great way to scare off prospective students. I suggest trying it out for the thrill.

It’s time for some r&r. Get naked. Take a nap. Have sex with your plants. Light some candles. Burn the test you failed. Accidentally burn your dorm down. Run from the police because they think you are an arsonist. “Vacation” to the Cayman Islands.

It’s about time that you shake your booty.

Not your actual butt, but rather your metaphorical butt. Dig deep inside yourself to release all of the crap. Let it all out.

I got trapped in the 24 hour section of the library last night. I angrily shushed a chatty friend group then realized it was 2 a.m. and that I didn’t know how to get out. If you do want to hang in the library in the wee hours of the morning, please to shut the fuck up.

LIBRA

September 23 | October 22

SCORPIO

October 23 | November 21

SAGITTARIUS

November 22 | December 21

CAPRICORN

December 22 | January 19

AQUARIUS

January 20 | February 18

PISCES

February 19 | March 20

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Founder’s Day is coming up, so it’s important to remember to protect yourself.

While there are signs warning people about snorting too much sunscreen and not using enough acid, there’s a bigger threat that no one is talking about: ALIEN ABDUCTIONS! It’s literally going to be the alien Wild West.

Now’s the time in the semester to stop turning in your homework. The stars suggest that you’ll fail anyways, so stop putting in all of the extra effort.

I know you’ll miss me when I’m gone. What I suggest is creating a Hannah-themed shrine in the places I frequent, such as late night, Strong MPR and Sanders Physics. Please include some sexy lines of computer code.

Sometimes I walk all the way to Rocky (from Strong) and then remember that I have to hike up to the third floor. If any of your classes next semester are on third floor Rocky, just drop them now. You won’t go and we both know it.

You are bound to find yourself in some tough interpersonal dynamics this week. Instead of evoking compassion and agreeing to compromise, fight them. Take that sucker down. NO ONE DISOBEYS YOU!!!

I hope room draw went okay and that you’re not living with a scary stranger.

However, if poor luck has befallen you, no need to worry. Simply greet them on movein day lathered in lotion and sliding around on the floor.

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May 2, 2019

Liberty saga proves typical of undersupported WNBA Emma Mertens Guest Columnist

W

hen the New York Liberty was founded in 1997 as one of eight inaugural teams in the WNBA, the team played its games in Madison Square Garden (MSG), possibly the most famous basketball venue in the world. In 2018, however, the Liberty only played a whopping two games in MSG. Instead, the Liberty hosted opposing teams at the Westchester County Center (WCC) in White Plains, N.Y. Two seasons ago, the Liberty were owned

by Madison Square Garden, Inc. and its controversial Executive Chairman and CEO James Dolan, also the owners of the New York Knicks. At this time, Dolan announced his desire to sell the team, and a year later moved the Liberty to the WCC, where the operating costs for a game are 20 times less than at MSG. (StarTribune, “A year later, the New York Liberty still for sale,” 11.16.2018).

This move makes sense at first, as the Liberty were plagued with low attendance during their stint at MSG, until you look both at the cause of the problem and the consequences of the solution.

First, the cause of the problem: MSG was losing money due to of low attendance. But what causes low attendance? It’s definitely not that women’s games are less exciting than their male counterparts. Anyone who has watched a WNBA game in person would be hard-pressed to admit that the level of game-play or the general energy of the match is anything but thrilling, and it definitely does not fall below the quality of the Knicks (who are currently the WORST team in the NBA— yikes—but still sell out MSG most games). So then, I guess, we have to fall back on good old-fashioned sexism. And sexism in the WNBA has long been an obvious problem.

I am often reminded of this when I dare

to look at the comments of pictures that the WNBA posts on Instagram, which never fail to overflow with exceptionally creative responses like “go make me a sandwich.”

We as a society, and as a Vassar community, should be livid at these blatant expressions of bigotry. And the WNBA should be, as well.

It should not tolerate these messages on its social media, and should block these hateful commenters. Their failure to do so signals a larger problem, which is also the cause of the move to the WCC: The WNBA fails to support its own players.

Many know about the discrepancy between WNBA and NBA wages. The 2018 first overall draft pick for the WNBA, A’ja Wilson, was paid $52,564 for her rookie season.

Meanwhile, Deandre Ayton, the first overall pick the same year in the NBA, made $6.8 million. The WNBA set the 2018 salary cap at $110,000, while the NBA capped teams at $101,869 million for the 2018–19 season (Grandstand Central, “Yes, the WNBA Wage Gap is a Real Thing,” 07.13.2018). The WNBA also pays its players only 20 percent of revenue, while the NBA pays its players 50 percent. The WNBA owes these women more (literally and morally), and by refusing to pay them, they signal to the world that WNBA is not worth watching.

The WNBA also loses essential talent by failing to pay, as many athletes play overseas in the off-season, where they are paid significantly more. In 2015, Diana Taurasi, seven-time All Star and 2009 league MVP, sat out the WNBA season because the team she played for in Russia paid her more to not play than the WNBA would pay her to play. And on April 14, Breanna Stewart, the 2018 MVP, ruptured her Achilles tendon while playing in the EuroLeague, which will cause her to miss the 2019 WNBA season. I repeat—the WNBA owes these women more.

ESPN will be showing a total 16 WNBA games this season (and only two of those on actual ESPN, three on ABC and the remaining on ESPN2). Not a single one of those games will showcase the Liberty. The WNBA did sign a new TV deal with CBS that will showcase 40 games, which is a step forward, but not nearly enough. It is hard to imagine interest in the team growing with few new eyes having the opportunity to see the games.

The point I’m trying to make is that, as we know, sexism is not just pathetic trolls on the internet. It is a systemic undervaluation of women and woman athletes, propagated by lack of advertisements, lack of airtime and lack of supportive structures surrounding the WNBA. These women deserve better. A severe undervaluation of the Liberty caused the move to the WCC, and the consequence of the move is the creation of a self-fulfilling prophecy that only serves to confirm the doubts of people who hate women’s sports: that they are unpopular and not worth watching.

I had the opportunity to go to a Liberty game this summer. They were playing against my home team, the Phoenix Mercury, and for the Mercury, I made the trek up to the WCC. The first problem: I was staying in the Bronx and it took me over an HOUR to get there.

The second problem: When I finally did, I was shocked to see that the stadium itself felt like a high school gym.

The average attendance of the Liberty in 2017 was approximately 10,000 people per game, making them the fourth most attended team in the league. But the WCC was only configured to seat 2,319 people, approximately four times fewer than what the Liberty were seating in the 2017 season (StarTribune). The move inherently undermines the fan base and the team. As a result, the Liberty now have the lowest attendance in the league.

In the 2018 season, the Liberty had a 7–27 record, the worst in franchise history. It would be ridiculous to ignore the impact the move to the WCC had on the team. The WCC is home to the Westchester Knicks, the minor league NBA affiliate of the New York Knicks.

But the Liberty are not a minor league team, and they should not be treated like one.

It’s hard to not see the move to the WCC as a direct sabotage of the Liberty, in a time when the owners did in fact have the means to support the team (Dolan’s net worth is $1.5 billion). Thankfully, the team was sold to Joe Tsai earlier this year, a 49 percent owner of the Brooklyn Nets (WNBA, “WNBA Announces Sale of Liberty to Joe Tsai,” 01.23.19).

While the Liberty are confirmed to continue playing at the WCC in the 2019 season, there is hope of a new home at Barclays Center (home of the Nets) in its future.

The Liberty have been grossly disrespected by the move to the WCC, which seems to be both a representation and symptom of a larger problem in society and in the WNBA. If the WNBA does not support these women, how can they expect the public to?

What we truly need is a cultural change.

We need people to stop disparaging and start respecting women’s sports. But while it may be difficult to change the culture, we can all do our part. We owe it to these women to show them that New York has not given up on them. As the Vassar community, we know the importance of showing up. But most importantly, I assure you, the excitement and energy of women’s basketball is intoxicating.

So, if you will be in New York City this summer, I urge you to show your support for the Liberty. Try to make the trip to Westchester and experience the game for yourself, or if you happen to find yourself somewhere else this summer, attend a local WNBA game—go find your new home team!

USWNT primed for second straight World Cup win Arianna Cascone Guest Columnist

O

Courtesy of Joshjdss via Flickr

n June 7, 2019, the eighth edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup (WWC) will be underway. In a couple short months, 24 teams from all over the world will duke it out in France for the biggest prize in soccer: a World Cup title. The United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) will be on the hunt for its second consecutive title and its fourth overall. So, does the USWNT have a shot? Absolutely.

Back in December, the USWNT was officially drawn into Group F, along with Thailand, Chile and Sweden. Fortunately for the USWNT, all three of these teams are familiar foes. Most recently, the United States faced Chile, routing them both times with scores of 4-0 and 3-0 in late summer of 2018. The team also saw action against Sweden and Thailand in 2017 and 2016, respectively. Thailand proved to be no match for the United States, but Sweden put up a good fight, as the USWNT eked out a 1-0 win. I would bet that of these three teams, Sweden poses the biggest threat to U.S. aspirations of back-to-back World Cup titles.

Sweden is currently ranked ninth in the FIFA Women’s World Rankings and met the top-ranked United States in the last four WWC group stages. Sweden is one of only seven teams to have appeared in every single WWC, along with the United States, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Nigeria and Norway.

Meanwhile, Thailand, ranked 34th, will be competing in the WWC for only the second time, and 39th ranked Chile will be making its WWC debut.

If there’s one thing the USWNT has on its side this World Cup, it’s experience. And while Head Coach Jill Ellis has not yet released the 23-player roster for this summer’s World Cup, I can predict that several veterans will be on the pitch wearing the red, white and blue.

Expect to see the likes of Alex Morgan, Tobin Heath, Megan Rapinoe and Carli Lloyd in the front line for the United States. Morgan is coming off of one of the best years of her career, as she averaged a goal per game and reached the 100-goal milestone earlier this month. Heath—recently nicknamed “Tobinho” as an homage to soccer legend Ronaldinho—is one of the best with the ball at her feet. Rapinoe is a consistent, reliable player on both sides of the pitch game after game for the United States, and I have no doubt that she will continue to be a threat to her opponents throughout the World Cup. And Lloyd, who scored the only and fastest hat trick in WWC final history, will likely return as a goal-scoring machine for the Americans.

The middle of the pitch will be dominated by players like Lindsey Horan and Julie Ertz. Horan, the reigning National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Most Valuable Player, had an incredible year. Along with Ertz, Morgan, Heath and Rapinoe, Horan was nominated for 2018 US Soccer Female Player of the Year, and carried her NWSL team to the championship match. Ertz, the US Soccer Female Player of the Year in 2017, played more than 1,000 minutes in the midfield in 2018. Ertz will be a staple in the starting 11 and an impact-player in the midfield during the tournament.

Above, the USWNT poses before a friendly match against England in 2015. The team would go on to win the Women’s World Cup that year, defeating Japan in the final.

This year, a stacked squad with many of the same faces hopes to repeat as champions.

Becky Sauerbrunn, Abby Dahlkemper, Kelley O’Hara and Crystal Dunn will likely command the back line during the WWC. Sauerbrunn is a level-headed center-back who played every minute of all seven matches in the 2017 WWC and is on track to repeat that feat in 2019. Dahlkemper has recently proved herself as a reliable go-to for the other center-back position, and she and Sauerbrunn will work well together to defend as a unit for the United States. O’Hara and Dunn, two former forwards, have been fixtures in the U.S. backline recently and will likely continue to shine in the fullback positions.

Unfortunately for the United States, there seems to be a big question mark at the goalkeeper position. In the post-Hope Solo era

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

of U.S. soccer, the team has been unable to rely on one keeper consistently. It seems likely Ellis will bring Alyssa Naeher and Ashlyn Harris to the tournament, but the starting position is still up for grabs. Regardless of who wins the starting role, both Naeher and Harris will have big gloves to fill, as they will be stepping into a role that was once dominated by one of the best goalkeepers the women’s game has ever seen.

No matter who is on the field or in goal for the United States, I am confident that the 23-player roster will be talented enough to provide depth at every position. And if all goes well, any and all combinations of talent will lead to a WWC title on July 7 for the United States Women’s National Team.

May 2, 2019

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Page 19

Columnist gets super meta and weird with final column Emmett O’Malley Columnist

“W

ho gets to speak and why? [...] is the only question,” (Chris Kraus, “I Love Dick,” 1997).

Dear Reader: I want you to read this like it’s for you. I want you to respond to it like it’s for you. Because without you, I would be wholly trapped within my myopic psyche of self-denigration, first-guessing and second-guessing.

Does that make sense?

When I first tried writing my last column for the Misc—this column—I tried to make it some massively polemical manifestation of a swelling rage. I wanted it to focus the amorphous blob of anger that pushes around within me whenever I have a chance to think about anything for an extended period of time.

(To clarify, I do not want to lose that blob.

I want to understand it. When I feel without it, sometimes in its place is the silent bleed of apathy. That scares me far more.)

(Anger I can sometimes direct. Apathy is a fog.)

I wanted this last column to cause something. I wanted to feel as though the words I have careening around in my brain could be concentrated in such a way that brings about tangibility. I wanted to feel as though the things I spend all day thinking about are more than the solipsistic turmoils of an overtrained, utility-less, 21-year-old brain.

And selfishly, I wanted my last column for the Misc—this column—to organize my mind. I wanted it to be what all final things are supposed to be: comprehensive and closure-providing, definitive and impassioned, melancholic and hopeful.

So when I sat down in the library to write, I partly expected to be overcome with emotions and thoughts more profound than what I’ve otherwise sat with. I partly expected to

be overrun with the conclusive ruminations of a somebody whose brain works teleologically—constantly rushing toward some moment of clarity.

But that isn’t what happened. Instead, I was confronted by the same fear and hollowness that confronts me—and maybe everybody—every time I am asked to create. Because in forums like this, creation is a social project. This is something that is written to be shared. It is something that is written with other people, even when it is not written with other people.

Or else it is just a journal. And journals are supposed to be for us (singular). This writing is supposed to be for us (plural). The problem is, I’m not sure that either us exists.

Does that make sense?

II. “Study’s good, because it microcosms everything—if you understand everything within the walls of what you study you can identify other walls too, other areas of study. Everything’s separate and discrete and there is no macrocosm, really. When there are no walls there is no study, only chaos. And so you break it down,” (Kraus).

Dear Reader: I want you to read this like it’s for you. I want you to respond to it like it’s for you. Because without you, I would be wholly trapped within my myopic psyche of self-denigration, first-guessing and second-guessing.

Does that make sense?

Unsurprisingly, I have been asked more than once this year why my columns appear in the sports section. Surely, this particular column—my last column in The Misc— would raise the same eyebrows. The answer to this question is revelatory of more than just my own comfortability with the discussion of sports.

The answer to this question also might not be all that interesting, but that’s not for me to

decide. I will roughly sketch the reasons out plainly, because that makes sense to me, and maybe makes more sense to you, too: I like Myles and he is the editor of this section. I like writing knowing that Myles is going to be the one who edits the column because Myles is smart and good at editing and good at talking.

Refer to the quotation that begins this section.

Further contemplation of the quotation that begins this section is crucial to understanding these answers. Because these answers support two guiding philosophies of my life: (1) that relationships undergird all thought, feeling and communication, and (2) that to understand big things you must look at small things—you have to “microcosm everything.” Without microcosm, there is “only chaos.” The multitudinous contradictions of society and the interpersonal, then, become more lucid through an analysis of sports and the metaphorical walls that surround them.

That is not always a good thing. I have written about how white supremacy, patriarchy and capitalism exist within sports. I have written about how these same phenomena are reified by sports. I have written—not enough, I might add—about the ways in which the very competition that is constitutive of sports is so steeped in different forms of toxicity that maybe the very existence of sports should be called into question.

But regardless of your belief in the potential of sports to be a crux of progress, the presence of structurally influential phenomena within and around them is undeniable.

Perhaps I think that sports illuminate fundamental elements of the human condition.

Perhaps I think that, in this way, they may even transcend the idea of human plasticity—an idea that is so often affiliated with critical theory and the idea that “politics means accepting that things happen for a

reason,” (Kraus).

Perhaps that’s true.

Perhaps it’s not.

III. “To perform yourself inside a role is very strange,” (Kraus).

Dear Reader: What is funny about these columns—funny—is that I can never go back and read them. Every time I do, I shrivel; embarrassment reaches from the words towards my scrunched visage, and I decide it feels safer to read something else. To read something that doesn’t involve my own grapplings.

In writing these columns, I am quite cognizant of this stifling fear. Maybe that is why I write about sports and politics and the personal. Because for whatever reason sports are the only thing I do not feel at all inadequate discussing. (Reason(?): Much of my masculinity has been constructed in such a way that sports were the only place where it was okay to express unbridled emotion.)

Tethering my conscience from running among a world of imposter-dom, then, is my knowledge of sports. And thus, drawing a line between those two worlds—one world in which I am comfortable, the other in which I feel out of place—is the only way that either world does not consume me; one by way of comfort, the other by way of elitism, delusion and emotional detachment.

Does that make sense?

I’m not sure.

IV. “You are trying to find some way of living you believe in. I envy this,” (Kraus).

Dear Reader: Does that make sense?

It does to me.

V. “I hate ninety percent of everything around me! [...] But then, the rest I really love. Perhaps too strongly,” (Kraus).

Dear Reader: Thank you for reading.

I’m out of room.

Antonia Sweet connects, directs, sees all from AFC desk AFC continued from page 1 youth swimming coach, sought counsel at Sweet’s desk. Witnessing her oscillate between the constant conversation of her work and our chat, I was treated to a daily routine that is too frenetic to be misrepresented, a lily too vital and happening to be gilded. After one of the mothers in question trudged away, having been told that the official AFC schedule didn’t seem to include the desired swim coach for that day, Sweet sighed, “I hate to disappoint people.”

Sweet was born on Long Island, where she stayed for seven days before moving a total of 37 times prior to the age of 13. Her father, a teacher and actor, moved the family around as his two careers demanded, and it wasn’t until high school that Sweet settled for multiple years at a time. After spending all four years of high school in Geneseo, which she refers to as “home,” Sweet attended SUNY New Paltz, the University of Rochester and SUNY Geneseo, ultimately graduating from Geneseo.

After receiving degrees from Northwestern State in Louisiana and the University of South Dakota (confusing USD with South Dakota State is a Mount Rushmore-sized mistake; the rivalry is akin to Duke-North Carolina, with slightly less publicity), Sweet came to Vassar, in part to be near her elderly grandmother, who lived on Long Island.

Coming from South Dakota, a place she described by saying, “You’re either white or you’re Native American,” Sweet ex-

pected Vassar, when she arrived in the late ’90s, to be a remnant of the days of Woodstock. The school’s reputation for openness and variety was a fond reminder of New Paltz, which she described as a “last gasp of the ’60s, but in the ’70s.”

“As Sweet sees it, the College is a place in which ‘You can be as different as you want, as long as you’re just like me.’”

Twenty years later, Sweet now sees Vassar differently. As Sweet sees it, the College is a place in which “you can be as different as you want, as long as you’re just like me.”

Citing opposition over a decade ago to the formation of a Young Republicans group on campus, Sweet identified that college campuses are rarely, if ever, true bastions of diversity, neither in background nor in thought. It would be definitely incorrect, however, to identify Sweet as a closeted conservative bemoaning Vassar’s liberal ethos; she recalled gathering with a group of students and administrators in the wake of the 2016 election and “commiserating,” just being together in disappointed solidarity.

Sweet’s daily work goes beyond who she has to help or ask for guidance as a third

party, or even what actually goes on in the AFC. Her vision for what the building and campus in general could be harkens back to the beginning of her time at Vassar, and is exciting to consider.

She told me that a juice bar used to exist behind what are now the seldom-opened copper doors above the counter in front of the basketball gym. Revamping the kitchen as a purveyor of smoothies and other quasi-healthy snacks is just one idea she floated.

Sweet also pointed out that opening the kitchen to students of different backgrounds, perhaps wanting to cook a meal that reminded them of home, would be a way to bring people to the AFC who don’t play a sport or work out. This emphasis on people, on the unavoidable nature of being around them and the resultant importance of getting to know them, was central to my conversation with Sweet and, indeed, to her outlook on Vassar.

Sweet and I also discussed the tendency of students to whip their phones out the minute a dead moment occurs, be it in a class, during a meal or just in ordinary interactions with others. Take eye contact, for example. Something that is so central to simply conversing with people, let alone connecting with them, is avoided by so many (including myself; this stance on Vassar is not a disembodied polemical that doesn’t apply to me). The “If you can’t see me, I can’t see you” strategy is another aspect of Vassar’s occasional disconnectedness that Sweet noted.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Even teammates, she observed, will walk right by each other without so much as a hello or a smile in greeting. “How could you be on a team together?” Sweet questioned.

There is no all-encompassing solution to the fact that college students, living by the thousands in close quarters and in a period of personal and physical growth that renders vulnerability absolutely necessary and yet difficult to reach, are not always able or willing to meet and get to know people.

Sweet, as somebody who is always seeing and talking to people, often engaging in what she characterized as “glib, surface-level” interactions, sees her own role as being a connector. Using the title of “bartender,” she expressed a desire to provide people with what they need—namely directions to a class or access to a piece of equipment, and to get to know those people.

The swimming coach so desperately sought after did eventually show up.

Sweet was able to give the good news to late-arriving families, and the business of the AFC went on. I left her at her seat behind the desk, where I’m sure she continued to watch students filter in and out, greeting the ones she knew. That seat, which so many of us pass by on a daily basis, provides the opportunity to take a step back and observe a large part of Vassar’s population. What you see from that seat, and who sits in it, are two things worth considering.

SPORTS

Page 20

May 2, 2019

Athlete shares hometown wrestler’s setbacks, successes his last regular season match. ican status.

Hemida, he remained eager to compete in And he continued to win.

Despite his outstanding season, Hemida Romania. “My mom would have wanted for wo-time NCAA All-American and Despite only wrestling in one regular sea- was still not satisfied. He did not just want to me to wrestle,” he explained. So, he did just U23 World Championships runner-up son match, he took first in the postseason be a top wrestler nationally, he wanted to be that. In early November, he flew out to RomaYoussif Hemida has overcome many obsta- divisional tournament. Then, as the 13th one of the best wrestlers in the world. This nia, with his coaches beside him. After a grucles, both on and off the wrestling mat. In seed in the sectional tournament, he again past summer, he earned a spot to compete in eling week of competition, he earned a silver high school, the fate of Hemida’s wrestling placed first, becoming the school’s first-ev- the U23 World Championships. The tourna- medal at the 2018 U23 World Championships career was called into question multiple er wrestling section champion. In the New ment was to be held in Bucharest, Romania, in the heavyweight division, demonstrating times due to serious physical injuries. Last York State Championships that followed, he in November of 2018, and he would be repre- that he was one of the best wrestlers in the October, Hemida faced his most difficult placed seventh. senting Team USA. world for his age group. challenge, when his mother and grandfaFollowing his success at the State ChamBut in the weeks prior to the ChampionIn his final collegiate season, Hemida went ther passed away within two days of each pionships, Hemida continued to train during ships, his circumstances drastically changed. 21-9 and again achieved NCAA All-Amerother. the offseason. Before the season began in his Early in 2018, his mom began to suffer from ican status. Glued to my computer screen, While he has faced many difficulties senior year of high school, he wrote one line a recurrence of cancer and an infection that I watched as he placed sixth at the NCAA during his journey, time and time again he to himself, which he put above his desk. It spread to her lungs. When he was notified tournament, marking his best performance has demonstrated his resiliency and passion read, “undefeated state champion.” that his mother was in a hospital in New York there in his collegiate career. Although his for wrestling. Growing up alongside him in With that note to himself in mind, Hemi- City, Hemida traveled from Maryland to vis- time wrestling with the Terrapins has ended, Mamaroneck, New York, I have continuously da would go on to achieve his goal. He went it her. “I was used to seeing my mom in the his career is far from over. been inspired by his character and what he undefeated his senior-year season, winning hospital,” said Hemida, as he discussed his When reflecting on the many obstacles has accomplished in the face of adversity. the New York State Championships. Over- mother’s previous battle with cancer. He was he has faced, Hemida expressed, “ChallengIn high school, his goal was to be a state come with joy and excitement, he was barely confident that her health would improve. es can serve as opportunities to learn about champion. Unfortunately for Hemida, he able to sleep that night. The recovery from However, her health continued to decline. yourself and grow. For me personally, some would face multiple setbacks due to injuries. injuries, the multiple practices a day, the trav- In early October she was moved an intensive of my most difficult moments in the past Witchcraft And Wizardry Ben Costa Junior year, while in a pre-season practice, eling and all the other sacrifices that he had care unit. As her condition worsened, Hemi- have motivated me to work hard and become he fractured the C6 cervical bone in his neck. made culminated into this victory. “It was all da’s worries escalated. He began to travel the best version of myself.”

He was put in a neck brace and told that his worth it,” he stated. from Maryland to New York multiple times 34.Moving forward, Hemida hopes ACROSS 3. Botch Western Australian cityto embody recovery period would be at least 10 weeks, After graduating from Mamaroneck High a week. He felt overwhelmed as he struggled his mother’s work ethic. “She was selfless.

Unlocked pie went on to continue wres4. Fruit ripener spell!for us to provide my which meant he could not compete for1.the School, Hemida to come to terms with his mother’s health, 35.

SheUnlocking was always working majority of the season. tling at piercer the University of Maryland, College while de trying to keep mountains up with his academics 39. older sister and me with opportunity, up un5. Leather 5. Tour France Not picky Beyond the disappointment that came Park. Under the mentorship of his head and prepare for the World Championships. til the moment she couldn’t physically work 8. Burnt bread 6. Make overtures to 40. Aviv city with not being able to compete, “Simple coach, Kerry McCoy, he felt that he could On October 23, 2018, his mother passed anymore.”

13.to Circle with 7. More or days lessafter the sudden death of her 41.Hemida Ruinous 'run'to look to the future to tasks such as eating, sleeping or just trying reach his fullradius potential1as an athlete. By his away, two continues look to the side were all a burden” explained sophomore-year father. powder “We didn’t tell her about her father’s 43. see Skating where his pavillion wrestling will take him. “My 14. Fruit cereal season, Hemida had made 8. Baby Hemida. The thought of never setting foot on a name for himself on the national level. He death before she passed. In the state she was champ,” his mother would call him, regard16. Third lightest 2 Down gas 9. America's Favorite Cookie 46. Dripping vegetables the wrestling mat again crept into his mind. went 23-13 and qualified for the NCAA tour- in, we thought that it would break her.” The less of the outcome of his wrestling matches. netting 10. loss King who warredand with Returned-to square As challenging as this period of time17. was Tight nament.

His junior year would prove to be of his grandfather hisTroy mother over 47.

A true winner at heart, he carries these two for him, he still went on to make a full recovmore successful.

He finished the season with the course of two days was what Hemida dewords from his mother him as book a con18. Dismissive bear 11. Titanic's message 48. Nabokov's mostwith famous ery and began wrestling before the regular 30 wins and eight losses and placed eighth in scribed as “the worst week of my life.” stant reminder of how far he has come and 19. Infimum element 12. Bugs Bunny bomb toll this took on 52. season ended. He competed in—and won— the NCAA tournament, achieving All-AmerDespite the emotional howBribe-able much he still has left to achieve.

Nick Lee

Guest Columnist

T

20. Nunneries or monasteries 15. Test tube 22. Seinfeld or Friends 21. 'King' of the dinosaurs “Witchcraft and 24. Actor Emma 23. Roman military parade Wizardry” 25. Big Dipper animal 25. Necklace component

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Returned-to square (abbr.)

55.

Unit of politeness 8. Burnt bread 36. Line with one endpoint 31. Staggered chord 48. Nabokov’s most famous book 58. Make a choice 13. Circle with radius 1 37. U-containing 32. Half of excitement 52. Bribe-able 59. Cow cash 14. Fruit cereal 53.

Fetching spell!

61. Bird or fruit it resembles 16. Third lightest 2 Down chemical 38. Siblings or offspring 33. Town announcer 63. Largest pre-Columbian South element 41. Greek container American empire 17. Tight netting 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 64.

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Fruit 41. Greek container 58. Make a ripener choice 5. Tour de France mountains 42. Un-creased 59. Cow cash 33 34 35 36 6. Make overtures to 43. Diminutive demon 7. More or less 44. Negative or 61. Bird or fruit it resembles 8. Baby powder 38 39 40 45. Active ingredient in booze 63. Largest pre-Columbian 9. America’s Favorite Cookie empire 49. 17th Greek letter 10. Kingfestival who warred Troy of with Haman's Answer to last week’s puzzle64. Jewish 42 43 11. Titanic’s message defeat12. Bugs Bunny bomb 45 46 15. Test tube 65. Smooch, in England 21. ‘King’ of the dinosaurs 66. Follow, asmilitary a spyparade 49 50 23. Roman Necklace 67. A 25. very largecomponent 17 Across 27. Gourd percussion instrument 55 56 57 68. Barbie's boo 28. Grouchy movie award 30. 3-5 shrub AM 69. Singe 59 60 61

53. Fetching spell!

54. Dry bread 56. Landed 57. "Hello" tag 58. Plus or minus 54.Efficiency Dry bread measure 59.

56. Landed 60. possessive 57. Plural “Hello” tag 58.

Plus or minus 62. Tale of disaster

The Miscellany Crossword

31. Staggered chord (abbr.)

32. Half of excitement 33. Town announcer DOWN 34. Western Australian city 1. Light spell! spell!

35. Unlocking 39.

Not picky 2. Unresponsive 40. Aviv city

64 67

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

65

59. Efficiency measure 60. Plural possessive 62. Tale of disaster 8

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