3 SPORTS
4 ARTS
The Reactive and Equivocal Politics of the NBA
The Melacast Network: A Casting and Collaboration Platform for POC by POC
3 CULTURE
5 OPINION
Students Reflect on Quarantining in NYU Housing
Providing Spaces for Black Students Does Not Mean Segregation
VOLUME LV | ISSUE 1
MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 2020
Class Syllabus Features Discriminatory Language Against Low-Income Students
PHOTO BY MATHILDE VAN TULDER
The Edgar Starr Barney building on Washington Square houses NYU’s Steinhardt school. A Steinhardt professor has fallen under scrutiny for discriminatory language in her class syllabus against low-income students who may not be able to afford the supplies.
Students enrolled in the American Sign Language II class are demanding action after seeing their syllabi feature exclusionary language against low-income students.
By AARUSHI SHARMA Deputy News Editor Last Friday, CAS sophomore Ron Hall noticed discriminatory language in his syllabus for the American Sign Language II class taught by Steinhardt Professor Carmen King. “If you cannot afford the textbook and the DVD, then you cannot afford to take this class,” the syllabus reads. Hall posted a screenshot of this section of the syllabus on Twitter on August 28, although he did not initially reveal Professor King’s identity.
“Frankly, I felt the presence of the language was not only tone deaf but goes directly against creating an environment that is inclusive to low-income [students],” Hall wrote in a text to WSN. “And while I do not personally consider myself low-income, I recognize that it is important to not only shed light, but work to dismantle institutional barriers that disproportionately impact low-income students.” As more students interacted with the tweet, Hall created an email template to encourage fellow NYU students to email the department’s and course’s
representatives to address the discriminatory language in the syllabus. The particular language featured on the ASL II and ASL I syllabi does not solely express Professor King’s views, as the syllabus is universal across all sections of the class. In an email shared with WSN, Ramy Ebied, the Academic Program Administrator Head, expressed his regret for the language deployed by the department. “This language was clearly unacceptable,” Ebied wrote to WSN. “NYU, Steinhardt, and the Applied
Psychology Department are committed to providing an education to all students regardless of their socioeconomic status. Please know that I have reached out to the instructors asking them to remove that language from the syllabus immediately, and the department is working to ensure that this never happens again.” Steinhardt sophomore Shamon Lawrence, expressed concern that the added costs for the course material might be posing barriers to potential low-income students like himself. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
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NEWS
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MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 2020
Edited by MATTHEW FISCHETTI and MINA MOHAMMADI
Class Syllabus Features Discriminatory Language Against Low-Income Students CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
“As a FGLI [First-Generation, Low-Income] student when I saw that last year before taking the course I was intimidated,” Lawrence wrote in a text to WSN. “Had it not been for my Opportunity Programs stipend, I would’ve been one of the students who needed to unenroll. She is the best at what she does, and is a great teacher. ASL should be accessible to students regardless of if they can afford a book.” Lawrence –– who identified the professor before Hall’s tweet –– stated that King’s classroom decorum also made some groups of students feel marginalized and voiceless. “I immediately knew it was her sylla-
bus when I saw the font and the spacing,” Lawrence wrote. “When I read it I was sure. Those are words that I could never forget. Those words were my first encounter with imposter syndrome here at NYU.” This news is coming at a time when low-income students across the country are struggling due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the looming uncertainty of possible suspension of in-person classes. NYU has previously been ranked fourth among top colleges enrolling the highest percentage of low- and middle-income students by the New York Times in 2017 as well as eighth on the economic mobility index, which
measures access and outcomes for students as well as their ability to improve their economic status. There have been several instances of NYU not enacting socio-economically conscious decisions. Since quarantining students moved into the residential halls on Aug. 18, several have spoken about being served inadequate meals with some getting meals as late as 11 p.m. This came after NYU revealed that tuition costs would be raised by 2.95% despite the pandemic heighting economic hardship. Delmy M. Lendof, the Associate Dean for Student Affairs at NYU Steinhardt also expressed her regret for the use of such exclusionary lan-
guage, in response to Tisch Junior Samantha Garcia’s email demanding accountability. “I have spoken to the chair of the department and she is committed to ensuring this concern is reviewed and steps are put in place to ensure it does not happen again,” Lendof stated. “I will be working on providing language to be included in sillaby that focuses on resources for students that may have concerns about accessing the needed materials to be successful in a course.” Co-leaders of the First-Generation Low Income Partnership (FLIP), CAS junior Renee Reed and CAS senior Bianny Magarin, consider the rhetoric of the ASL faculty to be classist. They
are hoping for appropriate action from the university. “We believe there should be no barriers to low-income students, especially in regards to adding even more obstacles in their already difficult journey to obtaining an education,” they wrote in an email to WSN. “If nothing is said [by NYU], NYU will have made their true feelings towards low-income students very clear.” Professor Carmen King and University Spokesperson John Beckman did not respond to WSN’s request for comment by time of publication. Email Aarushi Sharma at asharma@nyunews.com.
NY State Says One-Hundred COVID-19 Cases Means Remote Learning for NYU By TRACE MILLER Deputy News Editor
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If 100 or more members of the NYU campus community test positive for COVID-19, the entire university will have to transition to remote learning for at least two weeks; Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the new statewide guidance on Thursday, Aug. 27. Athletics and extracurriculars would be suspended and dining halls would only offer take-out; however, students could stay on campus. “We’ve seen troubling reports of students congregating on college campuses, so we are setting a threshold that says if colleges have 100 cases or if the number of cases equal 5% of their population or more, they must go to remote learning for two weeks, at which time we will reassess the situation,” Cuomo’s press office announced. The press release adds that if, after two weeks, the college has not contained the outbreak, the local health department could require more remote learning or, in consultation with the State Department of Health, impose “other mitigation measures.” The day before the governor announced the guidance, NYU’s administration released a COVID-19 update reporting that “between August 1 and August 23, more than 3,000 NYU faculty members, employees and researchers were tested for COVID-19, all of them negative; 7,772 students were tested, too—five of them positive.” The report also states that five other members of the NYU community were reported to have contracted COVID-19, bringing the university’s total to 10. They were quarantining in isolation under the oversight of the COVID-19 Prevention & Response Team as of Aug. 26. “While these data suggest a low prevalence of COVID-19, newly identified cases among members of the NYU community highlight the importance of NYU’s layered approach to safety and health, which will include robust, mandatory ongoing COVID-19 testing,” the report states. Notably, even if a college or university doesn’t reach the COVID-19-case threshold, the local department of health or State
ALEXANDRA CHAN | WSN
NYU students go through mandatory COVID-19 testing at the testing site on Gould Plaza prior to the start of classes. New York Governor Cuomo unveils new policy that would mandate two weeks remote learning for any university reporting 100 COVID-19 cases or a number of COVID-19 cases exceeding 5% of the student population.
Department of Health could still order the school to suspend activities on campus. On Aug. 30, Cuomo deployed a SWAT team and contact tracers to contain a COVID-19 cluster at SUNY Oneonta. “If clusters of positive cases emerge on particular areas of a campus while still below 5 percent or under 100 students, but strain the college’s ability to isolate and contact trace, the college must return to 100 percent distance learning with limited on-campus activity,” the press release reads. Although new COVID-19 cases are remaining mostly steady in New York, some of the state’s schools attempting a return to on-campus, in-person models are already dealing with outbreaks. On Saturday, Aug. 29, the Cornell Daily Sun reported that Tompkins County Health Department had identified a nine-case COVID-19 cluster at Cornell University while schools such as
UNC have moved to remote learning just a week after starting in-person classes. NYU has taken numerous steps to avert a return to 100% distance learning, such as capping many university spaces at 50% capacity and creating one-way stairways and hallways. All members of the NYU community must wear masks — unless eating, in their office, or in their own housing unit — and socially distance at least six feet at all times. On the first day of in-person classes, students will pick a seat and stick to it for the rest of the semester; in a mandatory video delineating NYU’s new health and safety rules, students are strongly discouraged from visiting bars or attending parties. “We should anticipate clusters and that’s what we’re seeing,” Cuomo concluded. “Be prepared for it, get ahead of it.” Email Trace Miller at tmiller@nyunews.com.
MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 2020
SPORTS@NYUNEWS.COM
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SPORTS
Edited by KEVIN RYU
The Reactive and Equivocal Politics of the NBA By KEVIN RYU Sports Editor It was the second time in league’s history — and the first time since 1964 — that NBA players had organized a strike. Back then, the players striked for a pension and an athletic trainer on every team. This time, when the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court against the Orlando Magic on Aug. 26, it was as a protest against the police shooting of Jacob Blake. The Bucks’ call to action quickly reverberated across the sports world, with all NBA and WNBA games and 10 MLB games being shelved across Wednesday and Thursday. NBA games resumed on Aug. 29 after the league and players released a joint statement on initiatives they hope to pursue in the future. A condition included in the statement was that each team that owns its arena would convert it into a polling station for the November election. Contrary to what the joint statement suggests, the announced initiatives were concessions the players extracted by leveraging their work and not a sign of what a cooperative discussion between the league and the players can achieve. The NBA players’ demands denoted frustration towards the lack of ini-
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tiative on the part of the owners, making the statement the league released when George Floyd’s shooting galvanized protests across the country seem all the more hollow. Back in June, when players voiced their concerns that basketball might distract attention away from the protests, NBA commissioner Adam Silver told the players that they were as equally committed to amplifying messages of racial justice as the players were. “In terms of social justice issues, it’ll be an opportunity for NBA players and the greater community to draw attention to the issues,” Silver said. Two and a half months later, the need for the league to once again promise to “further our collective efforts and actions in support of social justice and racial equality” is a clear condemnation of the league’s follow-through since Silver’s public pledge. It is another reminder that the league and its owners have yet to proactively make commitments to fighting racial inequality, as if trumpetting empty platitudes of support on social media fulfilled their responsibilities. In the wake of George Floyd’s shooting, owners league-wide released statements vowing to become a part of the solution. However, it was only when they realized some players could not be sold on the idea they could both play and use their platform
for social justice that the owners vowed to create a $300 million foundation to economically empower black communities. And although teams committing to convert their arenas to polling stations is an example of concrete action, questions should be asked why some owners did not make such a commitment sooner. The Hawks, the Pistons, the Bucks and the Kings had all already pledged to use their arenas as safely-distanced polling stations across June and July. Still, no other owner followed suit until the strike, even amid reports of President Donald Trump’s assault on the United States Postal Service and its implications on the November election. The NBA might give its athletes more latitude for expression than any other league, but the spotlight placed on NBA players as agents of change has allowed the league to avoid addressing the contradictions between their public rhetoric and their organizations’ ethos. Organizationally, many teams still work or are associated with the police. In Milwaukee, the Bucks continue to outsource security from their police department, even though one of their players, Sterling Brown, was illegally tased over a parking dispute. The Fiserv Forum also held two badge nights to celebrate law enforcement personnel since the video of
Brown’s wrongful detainment surfaced. Tilman Fertitta, owner of the Houston Rockets, is the chairman of the board for the Houston Police Foundation. Campaign donation reports also bring to question whether certain owners align with what Silver presented as a unified support for the players’ call for police reform and racial equality. For example, Jerry Reinsdorf, majority owner of the Chicago Bulls, recently donated to the congressional campaign of Sean Parnell, who vows he will protect law enforcement on his public website and has tweeted that “THE ANARCHISTS DESTROYING OUR NATION” are to blame for the social unrest. By allowing players to become the league’s spokespeople for issues of racism and police brutality, the owners have yet to confront ways in which their actions run contrary to their public messages. At a time that demands more action than ever before, the NBA has maintained its allure of progressivism without confronting its own contradictions by deferring its moral obligations onto the athletes. If fighting racial inequality is the collaborative effort that Silver promised, it has until now been a pretty one-sided collaboration. Email Kevin Ryu at kryu@nyunews.com.
CHELSEA LI | WSN
NBA players strike to hold their organization and owners accountable for not taking a stand for social justice. The NBA’s lack of real action shows their progressive image is an empty promise.
CULTURE
Edited by BELLA GIL
Students Reflect on Quarantining in NYU Housing
PHOTO BY STEVEN ZAMBON
Tisch first-year Steven Zambon experiences his mandatory 14 day quarantine in his Lipton Hall. Students share and reflect on their experiences with the 14-day quarantine in NYU dorms.
By BELLA GIL Culture Editor Move-In Day for students living in NYU’s residence halls this year was probably the most different it’s looked in NYU’s history — to say the least. Students returning to campus from hotspot areas for positive COVID-19 cases had to move in 14 days before the start of the semester to ensure that proper safety and health precautions were met before classes officially began. During these 14 days, students endured unreliable meal delivery, faced two mandatory COVID-19 tests and enjoyed a bit of free time before the semester began to unwind. The email originally announcing these measures did not come with much time to prepare students to move in on relatively short notice. It was sent on July 30, less than three weeks before the proposed arrival back to campus. As most students coming from hot spot
areas moved in during the third week of August, the logistics behind NYU’s move-in plan were finally put to the test. For CAS junior Bradli Washington, moving into Senior House was pretty simple. Students were told they were only allowed to take one cart when bringing their belongings up to their room, and Washington was able to achieve this with the help of her dad that day. In regards to what returning residents are allowed to do, Washington explained how much contact and free-range movement is permitted inside the residence halls. “We’re not allowed to leave the apartment unless we’re leaving to take the covid test at Stern,” Washington said via Instagram Direct Message. “Can’t do laundry, can’t take out the trash, nothing. They gave us little packets of laundry detergent to hand wash clothes is [sic] necessary,and all our mail is delivered to our door by staff. We have to leave our trash outside the door, and staff takes it out for us.” Washington didn’t expect her quarantine
experience to be quite so rigidly contactless, previously thinking that she’d be able to move among the hall to carry out normal move-in routines, but she said that she understood the limitations due to safety assurances. While quarantining, she has spent time watching Youtube, playing video games on her Nintendo Switch and making phone calls to her friends. She also participated in a 30-day language program via Twitch where she studied for an hour every day, allowing some sort of structure throughout her days. “I think having something that I felt obligated to do everyday at the same time helped me stay sane,” she said. “I think the only issues with transitioning into classes are going to be figuring out exactly what’s in person and what’s not, and fixing my sleeping schedule.” Gallatin first-year Greg Corn has been quarantining in Third North temporarily since Aug. 19 and will be moving into Founders Hall this upcoming week, as Founders was his original housing assignment. Corn has been interacting with other residents through posting signs on his door saying messages like “hello” and spending his time watching movies. “I definitely wasn’t expecting the days to go by this fast,” Corn said. “I thought I would be staring at a wall for most of the day, but there’s so much to do. I’m keeping myself busy and I’m actually having a good time.” Corn also attended a couple Zoom meetings, each hosted by either Third North or NYU Welcome Week’s virtual programming. Some of the topics discussed in these meetings ranged from thrifting to music interests. He enjoyed them but wishes he attended more because it allowed him to interact with other students who are all going through a similar experience like him. “I’ve met so many new people over the Zoom events the school has put on, and
I’m really excited to meet them in person,” Corn said. Tisch first-year Steven Zambon moved into Lipton Hall on Aug. 14 and has been trying to keep busy while in quarantine before the semester starts. He typically does some workouts, takes photos, reads, naps and watches movies. “Sporadically I listen to music or journal, no particular time, just when I feel like it,” Zambon said via text message. “I haven’t had interaction with other residents beyond a couple organized Zoom calls to break the ice.” One thing that surprised Zambon about his quarantine experience was the food delivery controversy. “I wonder what would have happened if the food mishaps didn’t reach the news,” Zambon said. “[It] definitely was fun to see my fellow students on the news or on viral Tik Toks, though.” As the new semester approaches, Zambon worried how he’s going to adjust to his new schedule. “I’ve just been so stagnant for two weeks, feeling really bored a lot of the time [and] that it’s going to be a big shift to hit the ground running with classes,” Zambon said. “Although it will be nice to have more to do, I’m afraid I’ll have trouble mustering the motivation for class.” Zambon said that what’s getting him through his quarantine is the “beautiful” view of the New York City skyline he’s got from his dorm window, with the Empire State Building smack-dab in the middle. CAS junior Pierre-Philippe Falcone, who currently resides in Alumni Hall, highlighted the importance of having a healthy balance of being productive and doing absolutely nothing. “Honestly I’ve either had very productive
days or the complete opposite,” Falcone said. “I think it’s easy to fall into either, it all just depends — for me — how I start my day. If it’s a lazy beginning, it’ll be a lazy day.” Coincidentally, Falcone has been quarantining in the same exact dorm room he had last year, which he says feels so surreal given the fact that it was once decorated to the brim with his “muchness,” but now feels so empty. “It feels very different, largely because I guess I’m not the same person I was when I left here,” Falcone said. “Obviously the room physically hasn’t changed either, but without my belongings in their original places either, it feels very different. I never got to properly say goodbye to my once-home, and so to come back with it entirely empty has all been very jarring.” Falcone said that he’s been reminded how much he’s fascinated with people watching these past two weeks. Looking out his window, watching everyone going about their lives — while his is on a temporary halt — has shown him that he’s not entirely alone despite quarantining in solitude. While the two-week quarantine is set to end in the next couple of days as the fall semester begins, students are still in the process of learning day-by-day what NYU is expecting from them this semester. Those moving into residence halls from the tristate area and those previously placed in temporary housing are set to move in the upcoming weeks, which will most likely bring new challenges and obstacles. Though every week is going to bring new experiences, it’s all a matter of playing by ear and hoping these measures allow students to stay on campus for the entirety of the semester. That being said, it’s important to remember to social distance, wash your hands and wear a mask. Email Bella Gil at bgil@nyunews.com.
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ARTS
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MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 2020
Edited by SASHA COHEN and KAYLEE DEFREITAS
The Melacast Network: A Casting and Collaboration Platform for POC by POC By NICOLAS PEDRERO-SETZER Film & TV Editor It was celebrated Senagalese filmmaker Djibril Diop Mambéty who stated, “I am interested in marginalized people because they do more for the evolution of a community than the conformists. Marginalized people bring together a community into contact with a wider world.” It seems as though that’s exactly what Tisch alumna Ewurakua Dawson-Amoah and Rutgers University alumna Ewuradjoa Dawson-Amoah are doing alongside Adrian Sobrado, Tisch sophomore, with the creation of The Melacast Network: a new casting and collaboration platform devoted to bringing film creatives of color together. Created at a time when people of color barely account for 14% of film leads as of 2018 and the issue of racial imbalance permeates discussion around awards shows like the Academy Awards, which has yet to award a Black filmmaker a Best Director award over the course of its 91 years of transmission. As of today, only six Black directors have been awarded a Best Director nomination, and “Moonlight” and “12 Years a Slave” remain the only two films directed by Black filmmakers to win Best Picture. Additionally, not a single Black woman has ever been awarded a Best Director nomination despite films like Ava Duvernay’s “Selma” and Dee Rees’s “Mudbound” garnering other nominations like Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. Noting the inadequate representation of voices of color in the film world today, Melacast seeks to diversify the film industry by putting people of color on the big screen, behind the camera and on sets. Melacast believes that only an increase in diversified representation can allow the cinematic form of storytelling to continue to evolve, as stories and faces that were oft neglected by the industry begin to interrogate the medium and shock the status quo. “I really feel like with everything that’s going on in the world right now, especially in the United States, I really feel like the best way to make a change in the people who don’t really understand the background of different cultures and different ethnicities that exist in the film world is [Melacast],”
Sobrado said. “I think Melacast can actually make a change in that regard and hopefully make a bigger change in the industry.” Not believing the idea that she was the first person to ever come up with this idea, Ewurakua scoured the internet in search of counter-evidence. Her search was fruitless. “There’s a lot of diversity initiatives happening right now, especially now, with everything that’s going on, but when I first had the idea for Melacast [three years ago], I was shocked to see that there was no such thing in casting and collaboration platforms, specifically for people of color,” Ewurakua said. “The common theme that I saw was that when an initiative like this was talked about and it came into play, they were kind of put down into the non-profit category and treated like a charity, and not treated like an actual, functioning, for-profit organization that could work in the film industry with companies like Backstage and Actors Access.” Long-brooding, it was not until the outbreak of the pandemic that Melacast finally started coming together. “When quarantine happened, I just sent out a bunch of surveys to every actor that I knew and I just asked them to answer a bunch of questions about their experience as actors of colors and things that they see, and things that they would want, and the common answer that we would get was that they wanted a platform where they could go and find projects that catered to them, where they would be able to find meaningful roles instead of stereotypes, you know, really cut-and-dry roles,” Ewurakua said. “So that’s when we really started to make it happen and we got our website together, slowly but surely it’s been coming together.” Having met rather recently upon producing Ewurakua’s thesis, Sobrado noted the confinement produced by the outbreak of the virus really forced the entire team to stay motivated as they worked to accomplish their goals one Zoom Meeting at a time. The sudden lack of direction from the outside world awarded them the time to develop their own. “We really got into it over corona, which was actually really interesting because since we were so confined, you know, in our rooms and our houses, we got work done, you know, we were really
serious about it and we were motivated,” Sobrado emphasized. It is here that notions of traction and resilience come into play, as emerging platforms seeking to bring about change are forced to figure out how to sustain their relevance in an ever-changing, rapid market, and how to inculcate their goals over a prolonged period of time. Created during a time of disconnect, Melacast has been able to generate a sense of community by spotlighting their members and plans, as well as developing Zoom meet-and-greets and panels that aim to maintain their network genuinely connected as they continue building their platform. “I think the main pushback is that a lot of these things start and fall because they don’t get enough traction, because they aren’t held to the same standards as these big organizations that are already running Hollywood and the film industry and I just think, for something like this, persistence is key and making sure that we’re true to our mission statement and our vision and most importantly, to our members is what’s going to keep it running,” Ewurakua said. It’s only been eight weeks since The Melacast Network officially unveiled itself and they’ve already managed to assist in the completion of Tisch sophomore Cole Swanson’s “Baby,” a short film that aims to “challenge cinematic tropes that surround Black Individuals in the media” whose partnership with Feeding America aims to provide meals to families that are struggling right now. Additionally, Melacast coordinated the production of a web-series filmed throughout the course of the pandemic and managed two more projects all while working on casting and production for future members who plan on filming as soon and safely as possible. “I just really think production and development has really been the key to corona,” Sobrado said. “People have the luxury of time to work, so they’ve been able to refine their scripts while we’ve been working on casting, and Ewurakua was talking about all those projects that are happening, I mean, some are just happening online, which is crazy. But, it’s interesting and it’s creative.” Speaking about his experience working with Melacast, Swanson noted they quickly
IMAGE VIA THE MELACAST NETWORK
Ewurakua and Ewuradjoa Dawson-Amoah launched Melacast network, an organization aimed at bringing POC creators together eight weeks ago. The founders sought to create a space where under-represented voices are magnified and have the ability to diversity the film industry.
provided him with crew members to work on the production of “Baby” and offered him support with casting in light of the intricacies of shooting at a time like this one. “It’s really great to be included in what appears to be a movement,” Swanson said. “I know they’re still growing their platform so to see it continue to develop from where it was when I first got involved is really inspiring.” With a movement developing, Melacast’s co-founders are now looking at ways to preserve the voices they plan on promoting. The importance of planning is essential for emerging entities, and Melacast has begun reaching out to film festivals and organizations that promote POC filmmakers in order to expand their impact. Actively finding ways to establish genuine connections among more established programs, Melacast is looking to foster an emergence of new voices in cinema by introducing the aforementioned entities to new ways of thinking, modes of storytelling and cultural stories that haven’t been displayed on the big screen yet. “I hope that Melacast can serve almost as a ‘union’ of sorts,” Swanson said. “Like SAG-AFTRA [The Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists] or DGA [Directors Guild of America]. Promoting Black and Brown voices is one thing, to protect Black and Brown voices is another and I hope that
Melacast can give their artists agency and ownership over their work, performances, and/or creative ideas.” An air of extreme inclusivity impregnates Melacast, as they aim to unite under-represented voices to create more jobs, better work environments and reify a multitude of pitches that would have been previously dismissed due to the lack of platforms catering to people of color with a slew of meaningful, honest and nuanced roles. “There’s no age-limit to being a part of Melacast, [...] that’s something we want to break, there’s no age limit to start reaching streams and entering the industry and as long as people know that, we’re doing the right thing,” Ewurakua said. “And you don’t have to be in film school to join Melacast either. In fact, we encourage everyone from all walks of life to join Melacast because that’s what makes the most worthwhile film experience, in my opinion.” Built for change, the emergence of platforms like Melacast at the hands of young creatives points to a sense of dissatisfaction with constant underrepresentation and a drive to refashion that source of dissatisfaction. Together, Melacast’s co-founders and their members represent a treasure trove of trailblazers who carry the ideas and ambitions to revolutionize the film industry. Email Nicolas Pedrero-Setzer at npedrerosetzer@nyunews.com.
What It Means to Be an Artist in Our New World By SASHA COHEN Arts Editor
CHARLIE DODGE & LEO SHEINGATE | WSN
A mixed-media piece by WSN Creative Director Charlie Dodge captured in her dorm room. The concept of art and what it means to be an artist has shifted during the course of 2020.
What does it mean to be an artist? To some, an artist has to paint a picture, sing a song or bust a move. To others, an artist has to have their name shouted by thousands of adoring fans or written in a playbill. While these conceptions are mainstream and often accurate, I cannot help but challenge how unnecessarily rigid such associations are. These definitions focus on what it meant to be an artist a year ago: creating fine art, sharing it in large group settings and participating in expansive promotional campaigns. However, we do not live in the same world anymore; in a matter of months, the entire arts industry was turned upside down due to the pandemic and its safety protocols. We cannot collaborate in person. We cannot congregate in person. We cannot create in person. So if the world is a completely differ-
ent place, how can we even consider using an outdated interpretation of what an artist is? Right now, artists should be challenging dated practices, creating new opportunities and connecting in unconventional ways to ultimately improve their talents and keep their industries alive. I know this is easier said than done, but hear me out. Artists are inherently perseverant. When society pressures people to conform, artists find a way to stay true to themselves and help others find their voices — like Lady Gaga and the “Born This Way Foundation.” When institutions silence or marginalize individuals because of their racial, religious, gender or sexual identity, artists shout to be heard — such as “Glee” star Samantha Marie Ware speaking out about the mistreatment she faced on set. When it feels as if every original idea has been thought of, artists always invent new genres. The pandemic resulted in a period
of time filled with an infinite amount of questions, but uncertainty is the very environment artists flourish in. Equipped to adapt to the given situation, explore artistic impulses and tackle any obstacle, artists are taking control of their work more than ever to focus on what really matters: how the art evokes an emotion, challenges themselves or educates the public. These past six months have shown that when the flashing lights and adoring fans disappear, all that is left is the art; Taylor Swift may not be touring the world, but her new album “Folklore” allowed her to experiment with a new sound; filmmakers may not be on set, yet “Homemade” on Netflix is a way for them to discover what they are curious about through short films. The lack of public interaction does not mean artists or their art are worth any less. If anything, an artist’s identity and art are more valuable than ever before.
So what does this mean for artists all over the world? While this time may seem like some sort of punishment, try to think of it as an opportunity. Right now is not a time to remain complacent, but a moment to truly focus on who you are and where you want to go without any distractions. Listen to your voice. Pursue your passions. Find new ones. Instead of waiting for change, be the change. Set a goal. Try your best. Didn’t meet it? That’s okay. To be an artist, you must make the most out of every situation by refining your skills, defining your aspirations and redesigning what being an artist means to you and only you — ignore everyone else. Remember the artist you were and imagine the better artist you are destined to become. Rejuvenate. Innovate. Create. Email Sasha Cohen at scohen@nyunews.com.
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OPINION
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Edited by EMILY DAI and HELEN WAJDA
UNIVERSITY LIFE
NYU’s Impossible Financial Situation
By EMILY DAI Opinion Editor Like many other universities, NYU faces an impossible catch-22 as our government’s incompetent response to the pandemic causes COVID-19 to continue to ravage this country. NYU can either reopen and take on the risk of a coronavirus outbreak or upset the thousands of students who have already moved in and go remote. We’ve seen this decision play out before. Within one week of students arriving on campus, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill went completely online after 130 students tested positive for coronavirus. The University of Notre Dame moved classes online and closed public spaces for at least two weeks after a spike of coronavirus cases only eight days into the semester. Other universities, though, such as the University of Georgia — which recorded at least 390 cases — still plan to hold in-person classes. These numbers are clearly concerning, yet many colleges are betting on the pipe dream that students won’t be reckless, that people can effectively remain six feet apart, that the coronavirus will skip over a particular college campus. In response, NYU has come up with extensive preventative measures to minimize the spread of COVID-19 as it partially opens back up. All students, faculty and employees are required to get tested and submit verification before entering NYU buildings. A randomized sample of students, faculty and employees are required to be tested each week. Students from a list of restricted states were required to quarantine for two weeks. The hassle of enforcing these preventative measures against the daunting reality that it only takes one student to make a poor choice that will force everyone to go home seems too much to bear. Yet, NYU is still choosing to reopen anyway. In fact, roughly 60% of universities plan for some form of an in-person semester. In order to understand NYU’s decision — one many other universities have made — we must analyze the economic circumstances for higher education institutions. In reality, the decision to reopen a school isn’t solely based on what is best for the student body. NYU Professor Scott Galloway published an article in Business Insider analyzing the future of higher education in these dire circumstances. Galloway notes that “college is an expensive operation with a relatively inflexible cost structure.” This means that if students don’t return in the fall, the revenue source many universities receive is severely diminished. The universities that have opted for the much safer option of holding the semester remotely all have one thing in common:
Submitting to
they can afford to. Schools like Harvard and Yale, each touting endowments in the tens of billions, will be able to absorb whatever loss of revenue occurs even if they go mostly online. When a college chooses to go online, it will inevitably lose a portion of its students and forgo the money they receive from residence halls and dining facilities. Galloway predicts that many universities that have high tuition and admit rates, low endowments and less name-recognition will perish as their financial situations become too dire to confront the changing circumstances. NYU and other similar universities are backed into a ruthless financial market. NYU needs to continuously poach famous professors, retain the name-brand ones with high salaries and keep shelling out money for campus amenities that can be featured on glossy brochures. To exacerbate these circumstances, Baumol’s cost disease explains that salaries in jobs that have had little to no increases in labor productivity will still experience upward salary pressures. At NYU, this has resulted with certain professors and administrators receiving generous kickbacks. Those excluded from NYU’s financial equation, such as adjunct professors, are stuck with insecure, low-paying jobs. Right now, NYU is in a unique position. Unlike many other universities, NYU is even more vulnerable to the coronavirus. With no gates to guard campus, it doesn’t even need to be a student to catalyse the next outbreak — it could be any passerby on University Place. Though NYU touts a large $4.3 billion endowment, its large student body makes its endowment-to-student ratio considerably lower, ranking at only #195 in the country. This corners NYU into a more fragile financial situation than its endowment may suggest. In fact, last semester, NYU revealed that they took on the most severe financial damage done in 50 years. The spring 2020 semester incurred approximately $100 million in costs and the summer resulted in a revenue shortfall of as much as $150 million. Despite all of these circumstances, NYU’s new robust set of policies have been working so far — out of over 10,792 students and faculty tested so far, only 10 have come back positive. The possibility that NYU could spearhead the plans universities must carry out to hold a successful hybrid semester has not been extinguished quite yet. However, the recent food fiasco for students in quarantine harbinger a more dire future. Two weeks ago, NYU welcomed thousands of out-of-state students into its residence halls. In a couple of days, thousands more students from the tri-state area will move-in. As students begin to come into contact with more and more people, NYU will be carefully weighing out its financial options. The fluctuating health of the city, the level of carelessness the student body chooses to embark on and the balance of NYU’s checkbook will determine whether or not students will go home in a couple weeks.
STAFF EDITORIAL
Providing Spaces for Black Students Does Not Mean Segregation As more than 4,700 Black Lives Matter protests took place in the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of a police officer in June, the Black Violets, a student-led advocacy group at NYU, created a petition requesting on-campus housing that provides Black-identifying students with a space to celebrate Black culture and find community and support. In late July, University Spokesman John Beckman stated that NYU Residential Life staff was working with the authors of the petition to see how they could best achieve their goal of creating a safe space for Black students on campus. More than a month after WSN published a story regarding the petition, conservative publications The Post Millennial and The Federalist printed articles criticizing NYU for approving “racially segregated” housing. The World Socialist Website also published a story calling the petition “vile”, and soon after critics took to Twitter to express their distaste for the petition. By deeming the Black Violets’ call for a space for Black students “segregation,” these arguments equate the creation of a space for a marginalized group with the subjugation of Black individuals in America under Jim Crow laws. NYU has not agreed to provide housing only designed for students of one race, contrary to the claims made in several articles. Instead, NYU has moved to implement a themed engagement community celebrating Black culture in residence halls. Themed engagement communities are a longstanding tradition in NYU dorms where students can apply to live on a floor centered around a common interest or theme. Existing engagement communities include one for First Generation students, one for international students and another for students passionate about French culture. Establishing spaces for various student populations to connect around commonalities is not a new practice at NYU –– the only difference now is that NYU is committing to providing Black students with that space. Calling themed engagement communities “segregation” –– a term heavily associated with the creation of white-only spaces under Jim Crow laws –– overlooks the oppression Black individuals suffered under legitimate segregation and the institutional racism that persists today. Under Jim Crow, Black individuals were not only segregated; they were kept from voting due to literacy tests, poll taxes and grandfather clauses, barred from testifying in court or serving on juries and from renting or buying property. This system was on top of centuries of additional oppression, dehumanization and enslavement dating back to the 1600s. But maybe it isn’t all that surprising that the World Socialist Website deemed the Black Violets’ petition segregation –– after all, when the New York Times launched the
1619 Project –– an initiative focused on reframing America’s narrative around the consequences of slavery and contributions of Black Americans –– the WSWS published a series of articles attacking the project for promoting a “racebased world view” in line with that of the Nazis. This comparison of a project intended to explore the consequences of slavery and Black oppression to Nazism suggests that a marginalized group reclaiming their long-erased history and a totalitarian system of beliefs looking to assert racial purity are the same. It’s also important to note that while Jim Crow laws might be behind us on paper, institutional racism persists. Black men are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by the police than white men and legitimate segregation still exists, though not by law: today, nearly one-fifth of public schools in America have almost no children of color, according to the Civil Rights Project at UCLA. White people have never experienced anything remotely close to systemic racism. While groups of white people have experienced discrimination in the past –– like the Irish in the 1800s –– there have never been laws put in place to oppress white people as a whole. In fact, anti-Irish sentiments were largely rooted in opposition to their Roman Catholic faith, and Irish immigrants were able to move up the socioeconomic ladder in America by oppressing Black people. Because of this, white people do not need a supportive space in residence halls the way that Black students do. By creating a space for marginalized students in residence halls NYU is not segregating dorms, but providing Black students with a supportive place within an institution where they represent just over 10% of the previous year’s incoming class. Claiming that white people are being segregated when Black students request a space where they can feel safe and supported not only misrepresents the reality of what NYU is doing, but overlooks the institutional racism that leads Black students to need a supportive space in the first place. There is a difference between a privileged group oppressing another group of people by excluding them from spaces due to race and a marginalized community asking for a space where they can find support. The argument that this is segregation only further shows that the nuances and history of systemic racism are still being completely, if not willfully ignored by many. If any student, in particular any BIPOC student, wishes to speak about their own experiences with student housing at NYU, please reach out to editor@ nyunews.com to share your experience privately or to opinion@nyunews.com to see how you can share your experience in our publication, if desired.
Email the Editorial Board at editboard@nyunews.com. CHAIR Emily Dai, Helen Wajda CO-CHAIR Kevin Kurian, Asha Ramachandran, Bianca Sproul CHAIR EX OFFICIO Cole Stallone, Abby Hofstetter,
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Email Emily Dai at edai@nyunews.com.
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