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NORTHWEST MISSOURIAN THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF MARYVILLE, MISSOURI
NWMISSOURINEWS.COM
Thursday
October 31, 2019 @TheMissourian
VOL. 108, NO. 11
GABI BROOKS | NW MISSOURIAN
Northwest senior Artie Bergren stands at their silent protest Oct. 30 at the International Flag Plaza. Bergren organized the protest in response to College Republicans raffling off an AR-15 80% lower receiver. Student Senate hosted a gun control debate Oct. 29 where audience members submitted questions about the raffle but the topic was avoided by moderators.
FINDING MIDDLE GROUND
Students debate federal firearm legislative issues
SAMANTHA COLLISON Campus News Editor | @SammieCollison
“In the U.S., should private gun ownership be regulated by the federal government?” was the question posed at the first Student Senate debate. Two committees teamed up to host the debate Oct. 29 in the J.W. Jones Student Union Ballroom. Inclusion committee chair sophomore Kevin Nguyen organized the event and moderated alongside governmental affairs chair sophomore Ben Kutz. The selected debaters were senior Taylor Moore, who primarily identifies as a Libertarian, and College Democrats President Spencer Owens. “The purpose of today’s debate is to educate and have civil discourse about a widely controversial topic,” Nguyen said. Of the 16 questions asked by moderators and the audience of around 30 students, Moore and Owens agreed more than they disagreed. Students asked questions through Sli.do, an interactive polling web app. They completely disagreed on six questions, partially agreed with some caveats on two questions and fully, or almost entirely, agreed on eight questions. The areas where Moore and Owens agreed primarily related to ideas that have become
known as “common-sense gun reform.” Although legislators from the municipal to national level disagree on the specific laws within this category, Moore and Owens identified universal background checks and mandatory waiting periods as necessary legislation that does not infringe on Second Amendment rights. Moore also proposed mental health screenings, and Owens supported red flag laws, which fall into a similar category, but are not exactly the same. Moore said mental health professionals should look for signs of antisocial personality disorder — better known as sociopathy — or severe depression to prevent those with suicidal or homicidal feelings from purchasing firearms. Red flag laws could prevent those deemed unfit by a mental health professional from purchasing firearms, but mostly they apply to those with a history of violent crime, especially domestic violence. The debate began with nit-picking discussion of proposed or passed legislation including concealed carry reciprocity laws, the Dickey Amendment, the Tiahrt Amendment and the “gun-show loophole.” However, the debaters became more animated and the audience more engaged when the discussion turned to active shooters and
GABI BROOKS | NW MISSOURIAN
Junior College Democrats President Spencer Owens and junior Taylor Moore discuss questions about gun control in Student Senate’s first student debate Oct. 29 in the J.W. Jones Student Union Ballroom.
guns in schools. While Moore and Owens agreed more research needed to be conducted on the effectiveness of active shooter drills, they said the research that has been conducted deems the drills effective for teachers and college-age students but potentially traumatizing for younger students.
“Being the child of an educator, I’ve helped participate in several active shooter drills,” Owens said. “For students our age, I think it’s a great thing on college campuses because we’ve seen so many issues and so many violent actions take place on college campuses.”
Biomed major crowned in pageant SAMANTHA COLLISON Campus News Editor | @SammieCollison
The Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. crowned this year’s Miss Black and Gold scholarship pageant winner Oct. 26 after an evening of talent, fashion and answering controversial questions in a short amount of time. Seven women competed, but Kari Frye edged out the competition to be crowned Miss Black and Gold. Frye is a biomedical science major from Kansas City, Kansas, who said her life goal is to conduct women’s reproductive research to help underprivileged women. Frye said she struggled to come up with a talent for the competition, since she can’t dance, write poetry or play an instrument like the other six contestants. “I thought, “What am I good at? What can I do?” Frye said. “So I called my mom, and she said I’m good at teaching. I said, ‘That’s not a talent,’ but I love to teach; I love science.” Frye said she loves science because it is everywhere, but learning it is not accessible for everyone. “Science can be a bit of an outlandish topic, especially for people
SYDNEY GARNER | NW MISSOURIAN
Senior Kari Frye lights up as she was announced the winner of the Miss Black and Gold Pageant, hosted by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. Oct. 26 in the J.W. Jones Student Union.
of color,” Frye said. For her talent, Frye used the metaphor of yeast breaking hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen gas, stabilized by soap, to illustrate how a supportive environment (the soap), motivation (yeast) and dedication (hydrogen peroxide) combined react to make personal growth. “What would you do if you were great and you knew it?” Frye said. “What will you do with the science all around you?”
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Contestants modeled three outfits each over the course of the evening: business wear, swimwear and evening gowns. Frye elicited the loudest cheers during the swimsuit portion, and her talent was memorable with the judges. Judges also said she scored high during the questioning portion. Frye’s question was, “Do you feel that students of color at predominantly white institutions have any responsibility towards that community?”
“I feel that African American students have the only responsibility of educating our counterparts,” Frye said. “I feel that it is very important so that social situations do not arise as we’ve experienced this year on campus, and I also feel that it is our duty to allow them to understand that they are a part of us as well. We are not a separate entity; we are a union.” Frye said she struggled to fit rehearsals for the pageant into her already hectic schedule. “The biggest challenge was also taking EMT classes at night, so it would conflict with pageant practice,” Frye said. “So being able to dedicate myself to those two separate things that were still overlapping was my hardest part.” At the end of the night, contestants shared what they learned or gained through the experience. Many said their self-confidence improved, including Frye. “My biggest takeaway was for me to really embrace who I am and to not compare myself to other people and just to allow me to thrive in my own environment,” Frye said.
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NEWS BRIEF Break in at the Olive DeLuce Fine Arts Building leaves students’ work in ashes A break-in occurred at the Olive DeLuce Fine Arts Building during the evening of Oct. 26 or the morning of Oct. 27. University Police Chief Clarence Green said property was damaged but could not comment further because it is an open investigation. Fine Arts Department Chair Kathryn Strickland said classes and resources are available to students as usual. “We are making every effort to make all the accommodations we can to assist students who have been affected,” Strickland said. “The saddest is the loss of creative work, which is irreplaceable.”
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