The Miscellany News, Volume CXLVII, Issue 17 (March 27, 2014)

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The Miscellany News

Volume CXLVII | Issue 17

March 27, 2014

Since 1866 | miscellanynews.com

Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY

Supreme Court case spurs protest IS trip sparks tension, debate on VC campus O Marie Solis & Meaghan Hughes Senior eDitorS

Eloy Bleifuss Prados

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Jacob Gorski/The Miscellany News

n March 25, 2014, the Supreme Court heard two landmark cases, Sebelius vs. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. and Sebelius vs. Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp, regarding religious freedom and women’s health. Both involve for-profit companies which maintain that, in accordance with their religious beliefs, they should not be obligated to provide birth control coverage to female employees. Currently, these companies are required to do so under the Affordable Care Act. Hobby Lobby, a Christian-based craft store chain located in regions across the country and owned by founder David Green, is suing for their right to refuse coverage of emergency contraceptives to employees. As the Supreme Court justices in Washington D.C. grappled with the issue during what USA Today described as a 90-minute oral argument, protesters assembled at Hobby Lobby locations across the country, in a collective effort to have their stance heard on a case that affects people across the country. At noon this past Tuesday, members from the New York City National Organization for Women (NOW) arrived at the Hobby Lobby on Route 9, equipped with picket signs and a repertoire of chants. About fifteen women, young, old and in between, shouted in unison “Hey, Hobby Lobby / keep it in the craftroom / not in my bedroom!” as their See PROTEST on page 4

Protesters for the National Organization for Women (NOW) assemble outside of Hobby Lobby, a craft store that refuses to cover contraceptives for its employees.

featureS eDitor

he International Studies (IS) travel class recently returned from their spring break trip to Israel; however, campus debate and activism surrounding Israel-Palestinian issues seems unlikely to die out anytime soon. An annual tradition for almost 25 years, the International Studies 110 class travels to a different country each year during spring break, often to explore firsthand the roots and causes of geopolitical conflicts. This year’s IS trip, led by Professor of Earth Science and Geography Jill Schneiderman and Associate Professor of Greek and Roman Studies Rachel Friedman, looked at issues of water rights and access to the Jordan River, as well as disparities in water distribution in Palestine and Israel. According to a student in the class, along with traveling around Israel, the class also took trips into the West Bank, visiting a Palestinian refugee camp in Bethlehem. Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) have claimed that the travel class makes Vassar complicit in supporting Israel and perpetuating oppressive policies and actions against Palestinians.

Members of SJP have protested the class and organized a display in the Retreat called “Israel Apartheid Week.” Timothy Koechlin has been the Director of International Studies since 2010 and a member of the Steering Committee since 2004. He shared that the backlash against this year’s IS trip came as a surprise to him and his colleagues. “The course has received a level of scrutiny and protest that, I think, no one expected,” he wrote in an emailed statement. Previous IS classes have visited countries like Cuba, Zimbabwe, Indonesia and, in 1989, the USSR, but no recent trip has generated the same level of debate. Koechlin explained how every spring the IS Steering Committee, a group of faculty from various departments, reviews proposals submitted by professors for the following year’s IS 110 class. After considering a wide range of factors and even asking professors to revise and resubmit the trip details, the committee will vote to approve a proposal. According to Koechlin, the discussion of whether or not to approve the Israel trip was even more detailed than most years. In See ISRAEL on page 6

New review pinpoints Night Owls tour East Coast cities MTA safety priorities A Jake Solomon gueSt reporter

Anna Iovine

aSSiStant neWS eDitor

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rompted by the Dec. 1 Metro-North train derailment on the Hudson Line, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has undergone a comprehensive review of operations by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). The review found that Metro-North employees value time efficiency over protecting themselves and riders, and that the railroad had a “deficient safety culture” (The New York Times, “Report Finds Punctual-

ity Trumps Safety at Metro-North,” 3.14.14). “The past year has been a challenging one for Metro-North Railroad— for its 270,000 daily customers, for its 6,000 employees, for the taxpayers in New York and Connecticut who support its operations and for the millions of people whose livelihoods depend on a safe, efficient and well-run railroad to get to work, school and home,” said new MTA Metro-North Railroad President Joseph Giulietti in a released stateSee MTA on page 3

s legend has it, the Vassar Night Owls—a campus all-female jazz a capella group—was founded in the wake of the 1942 polio epidemic, when the entire campus was quarantined. A few adventurous students, however, snuck out of their quarters in the night and sang to students inflicted with polio. Today, the Night Owls continue their tradition of secrecy and

adventure. Before spring break, the Owls hosted a concert in one of the THs, held in secrecy. Most recently, the singers traveled by car—driving for hours on end—to tour over break. The Vassar Night Owls, who are one of the oldest all-female a capella groups in the country, brought their music outside of Vassar’s campus on their spring tour. Charlotte Candau ’14 and Brielle Brooks ’16 organized the Night

Owl’s most recent tour. The Night Owls visited many locations around the area known as the “DMV”—or D.C., Maryland and Virginia—to perform their songs. The tour was based in Annapolis, MD, and they traveled to nearby locations, such as Baltimore and Washington, D.C.. In Maryland, the Night Owls performed at Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital, Brighton Gardens Assisted Living Home, 49 West See NIGHT OWLS on page 16

High expectations for baseball season ahead Jonathan Safir reporter

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Inside this issue

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NEWS

Dialogue explores future of Native American studies

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courtesy of the Night Owls

oming off a season in which the team qualified for the Liberty League tournament for the first time in school history, expectations are at an all-time high for the 2014 Vassar College men’s baseball team. Returning from last year’s successful season are senior standouts Brett Zaziski and Joe Lovizio. Zaziski is aided by other returners, including sophomores Nick Johnson and Brooks English and senior Dave Robbins. Lovizio will anchor a young staff that will include sophomore Jonathan Hong and two freshmen, Trent Berg

and Adam Erkis, and will have sophomore Connor Cucalón in the back of the bullpen as closer. In an emailed statement, Head Coach Jon Martin wrote, “I expect the team to compete every day we take the field. We are a talented club with a variety of lineup options that should bode well for our Liberty League weekends.” He continued, “The only thing that matters in baseball is getting to the post-season. That is our ultimate goal, but to get there we need to play sound baseball, one game at a time. The season is a marathon, not a sprint.” See BASEBALL on page 18

Over spring break, the Vassar Night Owls embarked on their spring tour, traveling throughout the greater D.C. area to connect with alumnae from the historical all-female troupe, as well as other collegiate a capella groups.

Hamilton provides study materials for FEATURES AP Bio students

14 ARTS

Squirm seeks to represent spectrum of sex and sexuality


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