NEWS | 3 WFU Theatre closes season with 'She Loves Me'
FEATURES | 5
OPINION | 8
SPORTS | 11
LIFE | 16
Walker
Old Gold&Black WA K E F O R E S T ’ S S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1 9 1 6
VOL. 108, NO. 25
APRIL 7, 2022
“Covers the campus like the magnolias”
Provost Kersh steps down; Gillespie to succeed Kersh will continue at Wake Forest as a University Distinguished Professor CHRISTA DUTTON & EMILY TORO News Editors Dean of the College Dr. Michele Gillespie will succeed Provost Dr. Rogan Kersh as Wake Forest University’s provost beginning July 1, as Kersh returns to full-time teaching and research, Wake Forest University announced Tuesday. Gillespie will be succeeded in her current role by Senior Associate Dean Anthony Marsh, though the university hopes to have a new dean permanently installed by 2023. Kersh, who received his B.A. from Wake Forest in 1986, returned in 2012 as provost and professor of politics and international affairs, fulfilling the opportunity to support and enhance the academic visions and mission of the university. While he is stepping down from his position of provost that he has held for the past 10 years, he will remain at Wake Forest as a distinguished university professor after taking a sabbatical year in which he plans to travel and teach abroad. “I have loved engaging with the incomparable Wake Forest community on and beyond campus every day, with so many colleagues I’ve learned from and am honored to call friends,” Kersh said in a press release. Under Kersh’s leadership, sponsored research support has more than doubled, and the university’s faculty has expanded, adding 125 new teacher-scholars. During his tenure, the university also opened Wake Downtown and expanded its academic programs to include pro-
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest University
After 10 years, Provost Rogan Kersh will step down as provost in order to pursue fulltime teaching and research, and Dean Gillespie will succeed him beginning July 1. grams in Charlotte, Washington and Silicon Valley stateside, as well as abroad locations in Barcelona, Copenhagen, Santiago/Southern Cone, Florence and multiple locations in China. Additionally, Kersh has taught at least one class per semester, which is unusual for a provost. Now, he will be able to fo-
cus solely on teaching and research. “Ten years is a good long run in this demanding role,” Kersh said in a Wake Forest press release. “... While I have cherished the opportunity to help advance the core university mission of learning, research and creative work, I am also delighted to return to the class-
room and research activity full time.” Many of Kersh’s colleagues spoke highly of his leadership and collaboration skills, including Divinity School Dean and Dean of Wait Chapel Jonathan Lee Walton.
See Provost, Page 3
WFU medical student placed on leave of absence Fourth-year medical student Kychelle Del Rosario penalized as a result of misleading tweet CHRISTA DUTTON News Editor
A fourth-year medical student at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Kychelle Del Rosario, has been placed on a leave of absence “as a result of [an] inappropriate and misleading post”, according to an official statement released by the School of Medicine. Del Rosario shared a misguiding post on Twitter on March 29 that suggested she intentionally missed the vein of a patient while drawing blood because the patient made an insensitive comment
about the pronouns displayed on her nametag. Del Rosario tweeted: “I had a patient I was doing a blood draw on see my pronoun pin and loudly laugh to the staff, ‘She/Her? Well of course it is! What other pronouns even are there? It?’ I missed his vein so he had to get stuck twice.” Del Rosario tweeted this in response to a tweet from Dr. Shirlene Obuobi, a Ghanian-American physician, that referenced her experiences with transphobia from patients. Del Rosario’s tweet gained attention when the account “Libs of Tik Tok” am-
plified Del Rosario's tweet by posting a screenshot with the caption: “A @wakeforestmed 4th year medical student says she abused a patient because he laughed at her pronoun pin. She has since deleted her account.” Wake Forest School of Medicine responded to another account that shared Del Rosario's tweet, saying, “Thank you for bringing this to our attention. This student’s tweet does not reflect how Wake Forest University School of Medicine treats patients and provides patient care. We are taking measures to address this with the student.”
In its official statement, the School of Medicine said they reviewed the incident as soon as Del Rosario’s tweet surfaced. The school’s protocols require documentation of all student interactions with patients, and the school found that the description of the incident on social media did not accurately portray what actually occurred. All students must have a certified medical professional perform a second attempt of a blood draw if the first attempt is unsuccessful. The school found that Del Rosario correctly followed the guidelines.
See Tweet, Page 4
Old Gold & Black This column represents the views of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board
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The Old Gold & Black celebrates Autism Acceptance Month The month of April marks Autism Acceptance Month (AAM) — previously called Autism Awareness Month. Awareness is knowing that a person has autism, whereas acceptance is the connection and inclusion of these persons. As with most months which center around the experiences and history of nondominant groups, there are quite a few missteps that allistic — a person who is non-autistic — allies make during AAM. The foremost misconception allistic allies have is that Autism Speaks is anything other than a hate group. A former executive of Autism Speaks said in a promotional video that she had contemplated driving off a cliff with her
autistic child to kill them both. Additionally, the autistic community at large has criticized Autism Speaks for years for not representing the autistic community and having no autistic individuals on its board. Autism Speaks’ mission is to “cure” autism and root it out from society instead of honoring and celebrating those whose brains are wired differently. On Wake Forest’s campus, advocacy for autistic and otherwise neurodivergent people has come a long way. Last April, the student organization formerly known as Autism Speaks WFU disaffiliated from Autism Speaks. The organization was later renamed Deacons for Neurodiversity, as a measure to include all students who struggle
with mental health. This is a positive step. In terms of what allistics at Wake Forest can do to support their autistic peers, there are many options for support. In interpersonal conversations, using tone indicators to help autistic people who have trouble detecting differences in inflection is a great first step. Additionally, allowing autistic individuals to unmask their autistic traits — such as self-stimulating behavior — goes a long way in decreasing the quotidien exhaustion of autistic people. Another great way to be an ally to autistic people is to defend them when they are not in the room and to make a point to push back against the use of ableist slurs — especially the one that
If you have autistic people in your life, it warrants asking them to explain their support needs. Our Wake Forest community needs to be as inclusive as possible — these steps and others go a long way toward autism acceptance." begins with the letter “r”. This is a non-exhaustive list, and autistic people are not a monolith. If you have autistic people in your life, it warrants asking them to explain their support needs. Our Wake Forest community needs to be as inclusive as possible — these steps and others go a long way toward autistic acceptance.
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News | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, April 7, 2022 | Page 3
Provost: University selects Gillespie for the position Continued from Page 1 “Dr. Kersh has been an exceptional chief academic officer,” Walton said. “People are often amazed at the collaborative and collegial relationships among the deans. Provost Kersh set that tone. Rogan has modeled meaningful collaboration for deans, department chairs and program leaders.” Now succeeding Kersh beginning July 1, Gillespie, since arriving in 1999, has assumed positions as a teacher-scholar and administrator, serving as associate provost for academic initiatives from 2007-2010. Gillespie’s academically driven background made her a strong contender in the selection for the new provost. “When considering Dr. Kersh’s successor, I knew Wake Forest would be
well served by another leader who embodied the teacher-scholar ideal,” President Susan Wente said in a press release. “Dr. Gillespie has earned great respect for her ability to balance academic rigor with holistic learning and community engagement.” Gillespie said that being named the next provost is a great honor for her. “Across the Undergraduate College, Graduate School and our professional schools, Wake Forest faculty, staff and students are second to none,” Gillespie said. “To serve as the University’s next chief academic officer is a tremendous honor.” Wente believes that internally hiring Gillespie will be beneficial because of her familiarity and experience with the university and its mission. “As far as thinking about our momen-
tum and strategic visioning, it is important to have a leader like her with her strengths so we will not have to miss a beat,” Wente said. “We won’t have to pause, and we can keep moving ahead. As someone who is new to Wake Forest, she will be a great partner to work with.” The university will begin the search process for the next Dean of the College immediately by assembling a search committee, collaborating with a search agency and holding forums to give space for community input. Wente described that the candidate for dean will have the qualities of an excellent scholar and communicator. “[We are looking for] someone who can bring people together to work toward academic excellence, as well as someone who is student-centric, innovative and creative,” Wente said.
“The university hopes to hold interviews for the candidates this upcoming fall and have a new dean chosen by the Spring 2023 semester.”
Contact Christa Dutton at duttcd20@wfu.edu and Emily Toro at toroer20@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest University
Dean Gillespie will assume her new role beginning July 1.
WFU Theatre closes season with ‘She Loves Me’ HOPE ZHU Staff Writer The Wake Forest Theatre is performing “She Loves Me” as its last production of the season this weekend on Tedford Stage in Scales Fine Arts Center. Written by Joe Masteroff, “She Loves Me” is a Tony Award-winning musical adapted from the 1937 play “Parfumerie” by Hungarian playwright Miklós László, a play that has seen many adaptations, including “You’ve Got Mail” (1998), a romantic comedy starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. Set in a parfumerie in 1930s Budapest, “She Loves Me” tells the humorous story of the struggle to find true love. Two bickering coworkers spend the musical trying to uncover the identity of their secret admirer only to discover what the audience knows the entire time — that they are each other’s secret admirer. “She Loves Me” premiered on Broadway for the first time in 1963 and was revived twice on Broadway later in 1993 and 2006.
Now, directed by Dr. J.K. Curry, chair of the Wake Forest Department of Theatre and Dance, the musical will be performed on Tedford Stage. Unlike other plays the Wake Forest Theatre has performed this season, such as “The Normal Heart” and “John Proctor is the Villain”, “She Loves Me” strives to be more of an entertaining story than an explication of pressing social issues. “When I teach dramatic literature classes I usually want to spend time with plays that tackle various social issues,” Curry said. “However, sometimes I also enjoy a piece of theatre that is just for entertainment. ‘She Loves Me’ fits the bill with a romantic story, humor and a variety of enjoyable songs.” All of the songs in the musical are performed by a full student orchestra conducted by musical director David Hagy, who is retiring from Wake Forest after 26 years. “She Loves Me” will be his final production. The joyful nature of “She Loves Me” is inseparable from the context in which it was created. In the same way that it brought
light-hearted entertainment to the world in the ‘60s, the musical now serves a similar role during a pandemic. “‘She Loves Me’ was written during the ‘Golden Age of Broadway’, where musicals were made because they were nice to listen to and entertaining to watch,” sophomore Evan Souza, who plays one of the leading roles, Ladislav Sipos, said. “It’s important that we get to watch this story now that we are edging slowly out of the storm cloud of emotions that the pandemic brings.” Sophomore Georgia Orchid, stage manager of “She Loves Me”, is proud of how the production turned out, highlighting how the show’s success comes from resilience to failure. “There’s no better way to learn something than to jump right in and fail at it,” Orchid said. “By taking the risks, we’ve crafted this beautiful show that is chalked to the brim with talent from every corner of the Theatre and Dance Department.” Light designer Kevin Frazier described the breadth of effort it takes to make the show successful.
“The number of students involved is of a magnitude different than what we’re used to,” Frazier said. “It’s just a much larger undertaking than normal shows.” Curry echoed Frazier’s sentiments, saying how she enjoys how many people are involved in the production. Not only was she encouraged by the number of people behind the curtain but also by the number of people in front of it, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect live audience attendance. “One of the things I enjoy about working on a musical is the number of students, faculty and staff who are brought together to create the production,” Curry said. “For ‘She Loves Me’ it has also been exciting to see audiences back in the theatre in good numbers to enjoy live performance.” “She Loves Me” runs April 7-9 at 7:30 p.m. and April 10 at 2:00 p.m. at the Tedford Stage in Scales Fine Arts Center. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for senior citizens and $7 for students.
Contact Hope Zhu at zhuq21@wfu.edu
POLICE BEAT Underage Consumption/Drugs: • • • •
A student fell down after consuming alcohol in North Campus Apartments and refused transport to hospital. The report was filed on April 1 at 1:11 a.m. A student drank punch that contained an unknown type of alcohol while at the Theta Chi house. Student was not transported to the hospital. The report was filed on April 2 at 2:55 a.m. A student had consumed alcohol and smoked marijuana behind Angelou and was transported to Baptist Medical Center by Forsyth EMS. The report was filed on April 2 at 11:44 p.m. A student had been drinking at an off-campus party and was transported to Baptist Medical Center by Forsyth EMS. The report was filed on April 3 at 2:24 a.m. Assault:
• • • •
A victim stated that they were assaulted with airsoft-style weapons outside of Olin Hall. Wake Forest Police were unable to locate the subject. The report was filed on March 30 at 9:20 p.m. A victim stated that they were assaulted with airsoft-style weapons on March 25. The report was filed on March 31 at 1:00 p.m. A student stated that they were assaulted with airsoft-style weapons on March 26. The student refused to speak with the police. The report was filed on March 31 at 1:40 p.m. A victim stated that they were assaulted with airsoft-style weapons on March 26. The report was filed on March 31 at 7:14 p.m. Miscellaneous:
• •
An unknown subject(s) took a bag containing soccer cleats and shin pads from Benson University Center. The report was filed on March 28 at 8:12 p.m. Two students remained in Angelou during a fire alarm. The report was filed on March 29 at 3:37 p.m.
Page 4 | Thursday, April 7, 2022
Old Gold & Black | News
Tweet: Student issues apology for online post Continued from Page 1 “Our documentation verifies that after the student physician was unsuccessful in obtaining the blood draw, the student appropriately deferred a second attempt to one of our certified professionals. The student did not attempt to draw blood again.” Del Rosario herself also explained what happened in her apology statement to the school. “For the event mentioned in the tweet, I was performing a blood draw on a patient and during our conversation they had shown dismay at my pronoun pin,” Del Rosario wrote in her statement. “I calmly shared my thoughts about pronouns and did not escalate the situation further. When I was doing the blood draw, I missed the first time due to my inexperience as a student, and per our policy, my supervisor performed the successful blood draw the second time. During
this encounter, I never intended to harm the patient.” Her apology ends with: “I am truly sorry for poorly representing our school and our health system. I will reflect on responsible social media use as a professional and my duty to care for all my patients, regardless of any differences of belief.” Contact Christa Dutton at duttcd20@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest University
Del Rosario has since been placed on leave of absence.
Photo courtesy of Daily Mail
Del Rosario’s tweet and her account have since been deleted, and she has issued an apology to the school.
Elaine Pagels delivers ‘Why Religion’ lecture Pagels, an award-winning author, speaks on how tragedy inspired her religious journey KATHLEEN KERR Staff Writer
Hosted by the Wake Forest School of Divinity, Dr. Elaine Pagels delivered a lecture on March 31 in Wait Chapel about her experience with the Gnostic gospels and the freedom those texts offered her in the face of tragedy. Pagels is a religion professor at Princeton University, a National Book Award winner and a New York Times bestselling author. Pagels’ talk was based on her book “Why Religion?: A Personal Story”. The memoir focuses on her experience losing her husband and young child while also wrestling with questions about religion’s role in everyday life. Differing from her more academic works on Gnosticism and early Christianity, this book uses personal reflection to answer bigger questions about why people are religious and how belief presents itself in people’s lives. The talk was the first in the Strickland Series, an initiative that invites religious scholars to present on campus. The series was established in 2021 by Elizabeth Strickland in honor of her late husband, Robert Strickland, to continue his commitment to theological education at Wake Forest. In her lecture, Pagels weaved together her knowledge of the Gnostic or “secret” gospels — Christian texts that are not a part of the Biblical canon — with her personal experience with Christianity to explain the importance of these noncanonical texts. “Many of us who do academic research and academic publishing are certainly driven by our own questions and our own experiences, but we don’t often talk about it in a personal way,” Associate Professor of New Testament at the Wake Forest
School of Divinity Katherine Shaner said. “When academics like Professor Pagels do speak about their personal lives and experiences alongside the way they do their academic work, I think it only strengthens their academic work. It gives it a context, and it helps people make meaning with things that could seem a bit esoteric.” Pagels began her lecture by recounting how she became Christian even though her parents did not support religion. She joined the evangelical church after attending a Billy Graham crusade and feeling as if she gained “another dimension of experience.” Pagels touched on how she left the Evangelical Church after a year because she felt that they were more focused on doctrine than the love of God. This led her to explore Christianity further in her studies at Harvard, where she became infatuated with the Gnostic gospels, which focus more on how we experience life and less on what we believe. “For me, it was liberating to not focus on a set of doctrines I had to believe in,” Pagels said in her lecture. The liberation Pagels found in the secret gospels allowed her to find meaning again after losing both her child and husband. Through her connection with the secret gospels and its focus on the connection between all people, she was able to think more critically about how to experience religion in more diverse ways. Pagels explained that looking at texts such as the secret gospels can allow people to explore more diverse Christian views that are not necessarily present in the traditional Biblical canon, which focuses more on a unified Christianity. She believes that identifying Christianity as a set of things one needs to believe in is limiting to how people experience religion. “One of the trends in the past 30
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest School of Divinity
A historian of religion and professor at Princeton University, Pagels’ research focuses on Gnosticism and early Christianity.
years in mainline Protestant churches is a decline in participation, but one of the things we haven’t seen is a decline in the need for meaningmaking or some kind of spiritual fulfillment,” Shaner said. “Even if the church as we know it isn’t meeting the needs of people, the needs are still there.” Pagels ended her lecture by highlighting the need for critical thinking as well as new and diverse views in religion, especially within Christianity, as people’s spiritual needs evolve and demand more than what
is offered in traditional religious settings. “To hear her own synopsis of her book and to hear her voice her journey was helpful to apply the healing, meaning and belonging that religion brings,” third-year divinity student Ellen Snow said. “Dr. Pagels affirmed through her own story that religion has no limit to what can be learned from it, and in turn, what can be learned about ourselves, humankind and the world.” Contact Kathleen Kerr at kerrke21@wfu.edu
FEATURES
Chase Bagnall-Koger, bagncm21@wfu.edu Meredith Prince, prinmc21@wfu.edu Asst: Una Wilson, wilsui20@wfu.edu
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
PAGE 5 THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2022
DEACON PROFILE
Corey D.B. Walker There are courses that were offered here at Wake Forest that fit within an interdisciplinary framework of African American studies, and we looked at those courses with our colleagues and departments to see what courses would fit. African American Studies, as a discipline, has certain theories, methods and conceptual frameworks, and we provide a way of integrating in those courses for students. Students have to take a course in slavery or race in the making of the modern world, because when you look at over half a millennium of the transatlantic slave trade and European colonialism, you can’t think about the modern world outside of that context. Also in African American studies, we have courses that range from the aesthetics of the Black arts movement to Africana philosophy to organic leadership.
MADDIE SAYRE Staff Writer Corey D.B. Walker is the Wake Forest Professor of the Humanities and the director of the African American Studies Program since its establishment in 2021. Walker helped found the program’s major and minor, as well as design its course curriculum. He is the author of “A Noble Fight: African American Freemasonry and the Struggle for Democracy in America,” published by the University of Illinois Press. Walker continues to support the expansion of the discipline and promote Africana philosophy, knowledge and community at Wake Forest through his work on the “Slavery, Race and Memory Project.” Tell me about your path to Wake Forest? I’ve been in the academy for a number of years and taught at a number of schools. I taught at the University of Virginia and then at Brown University, where I was chair of Africana Studies. I was dean and the Hanes Professor of the Humanities at Winston-Salem State University, where I interacted with colleagues in the humanities here at Wake Forest — particularly with Dean of the Library Tim Pyatt and Provost Rogan Kersh – and worked with them on what began what is now the Slavery, Race and Memory Project. I [later] came here, first as a consultant with the Slavery, Race and Memory Project and then was invited to join the faculty as the Wake Forest Professor of the Humanities.
What is your personal expectation for a student who successfully completes a major or minor in this program? We want students who are critical thinkers and who continue to exhibit a level of curiosity about the world and human experience that goes beyond the classroom. We want students who see the intimate connections between knowledge and the ability to create new worlds and connect with the community beyond the university. Most importantly, we want to create students who are committed to creating a more humane and just future. In many ways, that is the core goal of Wake Forest University. That’s our motto: Pro Humanitate. So we see African American Studies is right within the center, creating knowledge for humanity.
When did you become involved in building the African American Studies Program? There was a collective of faculty started that work in Spring 2020, and then I joined the faculty and became Director of African American Studies, building a curriculum for the major — the B.A. in African American Studies — and a minor in African American Studies. We then went through all of the administrative processes for approval with the faculty, and then in July 2021, we formally started. Currently, we have upwards of 11 majors and minors, and we will graduate our first major, Sierra DeVeaux, in the spring of this year. She will be the first student to receive a B.A. degree in African American Studies from Wake Forest. What prompted the establishment of the program? It’s long overdue. Students have been agitating for Black Studies here at Wake Forest since 1967. Interestingly enough, it was a student who taught the first course in African American Studies, through it was through a student initiative on creating courses that were more amenable to student preferences. The student taught a course in 1968 in African American music, but, of course, African American Studies has been in the academy for over half a century, and students here at Wake Forest in the mid 1980s began agitating for a Department of Black Studies. In the 1990s, the university and faculty responded by creating American Ethnic Studies, in which parts of
What is your favorite part about teaching and helping to grow the program?
The American Spring, as I call it, the time of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, going back to Trayvon Martin in 2012, and of course, the Jena Six, is really a moment of fundamental transformation, inspection and reinterrogation of American democracy. In that moment, you have to reorganize and rethink the foundations of knowledge and the organization of knowledge in the modern university. That is what Black Studies does. In this moment, when you’re trying to fundamentally rethink a moment of rising authoritarianism globally, as well as locally. You’re trying to rethink movements of deep ethnic antagonism, deep political partisanship, rising moments of deep capitalist inequality and also a moment facing the diversity of the world and the planetary crisis. Black Studies provides us with the requisite intellectual skills to navigate a very complex world and understanding that it is not one disciplinary domain that can respond absolutely.
I love interacting with students. [In a recent] class on Amílcar Cabral, a great leader and theoretician, was amazing. We were talking about Cabral’s speech from 1972 at Lincoln University. We were connecting what Cabral was saying to today and how his method of theorizing political movements and society is deeply informative not only to students in 1972, but also students in 2022. Cabral is one of these key figures that is animating global movements. In African American studies, you get to study those global movements and those thinkers who are animating these movements for change, and that’s an exciting moment: students being able to connect and see how these knowledge formations are influencing today’s events. The beautiful thing about African American Studies is that we interrupt a disciplinary decadence in the academy - that [tells us] discipline is providing the answers. People with critical, creative and collaborative forms of knowledge, can then work better to respond to the crises of humanity and our existence. They also can tell us more about the ways in which people respond historically, in our past as well as in our contemporary moment.
How did you decide what themes and concepts would be addressed in each course?
Contact Maddie Sayre at ayrmm20@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest University
African American studies were taught, but that was insufficient. So, faculty got together in 2020 to begin to think through the question: ‘How do we build a robust African American studies program?’ Wake Forest was one of only two top-30 institutions in the nation without African American Studies. Most of our Ivy League colleagues not only have departments, but also have Ph.D. programs. Was the suggestion to introduce the discipline well supported by the university? We had great support. When coming here, [support] was one thing that I had to look [for]. Does the faculty want this? Is there student interest? We also have academic leadership at the university that’s critically supportive of the program and of this scholarship. The most important thing is that there is an opportunity for Wake Forest to not only develop a distinctive program that responds to the knowledges of Africans and persons of African descent across the diaspora, but also to respond to some of the unique opportunities for developing scholarship in WinstonSalem and in the Piedmont Triad area. How have recent social and racial move-
ments in the U.S. over the last few years influenced or changed the program’s curriculum?
Old Gold & Black | Features
Page 6 | Thursday, April 7, 2022
Finding community at the edge of the forest The Campus Garden offers a space for environmentally-minded students to connect IRIS CASEY Contributing Writer When driving down Polo Road, if you turn your head for just a second, you might miss a campus space. However, next to the sophomore parking lot, tucked behind a shed with a red pickup truck parked out front, lies an integral part of campus’s sustainable community: the Campus Garden. What was once an empty greenspace is now an oasis for sandal-wearing, ecokids and for anyone intereted in all things “susty”; a relatively versatile term for those in the know, which encapsulates the small, but mighty subculture of environmentalism and sustainable living within the Wake Forest community. “The garden is the door to access everything environmental at Wake,” sophomore Ty Zanders, one of the three student Campus Garden interns said. “Though it’s not the most impactful project in terms of reducing carbon emissions, it’s a visible space on campus for sustainability and proof that the school cares about this movement.” Since 2007, Wake Forest has proven its commitment to more sustainable practices through the Sustainability Strategic Plan. This plan entails several steps towards climate neutrality, including a 47% decrease in carbon emission reduction, much of which is attributed to university
building renovations improving efficiency, according to the Office of Sustainability. However, a helpful way to impact climate change isthough individual action. According to Project Drawdown data, one of the best strategies to fight climate change is reducing food waste. Discarded food ultimately wastes all the energy and resources expended to produce the food, worsening the modern agriculture industry’s greenhouse gas footprint, which accounts for a quarter of global emissions, according to Drawdown. This is largely due to the energy-intensive global production and transportation processes embedded within today’s industrial agricultural system, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Photo courtesy of @sustainablewfu on Instagram
Campus Garden’s “Connect & Cultivate” hours invites students to volunteer.
The Campus Garden’s “closed-loop food chain” is an example of a more sustainable, regional agricultural system and produces much less of a greenhouse gas footprint, Nathan Peifer, the garden’s manager says. The garden acts not only as an example of carbon-neutral agricultural practices but as a community center and primary teaching tool, says Peifer. According to Peifer, Campus Garden provides students with hands-on education surrounding sustainable food sourcing in the absence of an agriculture program on campus. Each semester, the garden works with 12-18 classes, as well as different student groups, clubs and individual volunteers. Campus Garden is primarily supported by the Campus Garden interns, the Cultivation Leadership Team (CLT) and Garden Ambassador Program, Peifer said. The pandemic sparked a larger influx of volunteers, which has allowed these teams to enact new engagement opportunities for the general student body. On weekdays from March 20 until the end of finals week, the CLT team is hosting hour-long “Cultivate & Connect” volunteer sessions, open to the entire campus. Peifer believes the pandemic response and new opportunities have transformed the garden into a space that benefits not only the environment, but also one’s
physical, mental and community wellbeing. “It’s not just about agriculture production,” Peifer said. “It’s about relaxation and meeting new people.” However, you don’t need to be fully plugged into nature or agriculture to find a home within the garden. “We’re often a catch all for people who aren’t caught up in the mainstream community,” Zanders said. “A lot of us were once in that spot, where we didn’t always feel welcome at Wake Forest. Here, we’re all just trying to support and spread that susty love.” Garden volunteers sophomore Ashlyn Segler and senior Sanford Miller both found community by getting involved at the garden. “A lot of people find their circle in the garden, or at least I know I did,” Miller said. “It’s a really chill environment.” “There are so many different events and programs through the Office of Sustainability,” Segler said. “It’s really helped me find people who are passionate about the same things as me.” Zanders described the Campus Garden as a doorway to the diverse ‘susty’ campus community. “The garden is how a lot of students first find the susty community, which is important,” Zanders said. “From there, people can connect you to other opportunities you’re passionate about.”
Contact Iris Casey at caseio19@wfu.edu
Campus clubs aim to put fast fashion out of style AVA COFIELL Contributing Writer It is human nature to try and look like everyone else and fit in with certain groups. The problem with this is that “fitting in” or being “stylish” without harming the environment, can be difficult. According to The Conscious Club, just one cotton shirt requires almost 3,000 liters of water to produce — the equivalent of 900 days of drinking water. The vibrant colors from clothing dyes is the second largest polluter of clean water in the world. Don’t forget the water that washing machines use or even the water used to grow cotton. As a matter of fact, the production of clothing accounts for over two-thirds of water use globally. “Anything we care about doesn’t exist on a dead planet,” said Madeline Mayr, a sophomore at Wake Forest who has created her own upcycling clothing brand. The abundance of carbon dioxide emissions from human activity is contributing to a climate crisis that has the earth barrelling towards a temperature increase of approximately 1.5 degrees Celsius. The fashion industry contributes to 10% of global greenhouse emissions, according to the U.N. Wasteful fashion brands have been a significant contributor to the crisis, and the “ingroup” nature of universities like Wake Forest supports the accelerated shifting of trends that fast and cheap fashion accommodates for. “It’s hard to resist … it makes looking cool so easy,” said Elsa Maurizi, a sophomore at Wake. Anna Price, a senior at Wake Forest and the Office of Sustainability’s Sustainable Con-
sumption intern, admits that environmentally friendly clothing is frequently expensive and difficult to find. “So many college students are thinking ‘I have a 10-page paper to write … I don’t have time to read ingredients,” she said. So, to combat this, people like Price and other members of the Office of Sustainability introduced on-campus alternatives. Price organized an extremely successful clothing swap last semester and is looking forward to another Sustainable Clothing Exchange this semester from April 4 - 8 in the Magnolia Lounge. In preparation over the past few months, Price has facilitated a campus-wide collection of clothes for the exchange. During the event, she and other volunteers will display the donated clothing on racks for students to peruse. In order to take a piece of clothing, anyone interested has to donate a piece of clothing in return. “We still want people to see clothes as valuable,” Price said.“There needs to be a mindset shift. People are detached from where their clothes come from.” The campus organization Greeks Go Green has representatives from every sorority on campus and most fraternities who are meant to serve as peer educators for their chapters about sustainability. Three sororities have sustainable clothingrelated goals for this year, and have suggested many ideas to combat the overconsumption often associated with Greek life, including an incentivized viewing of a documentary about fast fashion, clothing upcycling workshops, and clothing swaps within each chapter. Despite so many alternatives on and offcampus, the cyclical and short-lived nature of fast fashion trends still permeates Wake Forest’s
campus. However, some students are trying to shift the style culture on a more sustainable direction. Recently, thrifting has become more of a trend and has allowed second-hand clothing — which does not require any new production — to become socially acceptable. Mayr’s company, as mentioned before, capitalized on this romanticization of second-hand clothing with her brand “Where’s Dat From?” Her customers can send her Pinterest boards with their dream outfits and ideal colors to wear, and Mayr thrifts for an array of clothing for a “style pack” that her customers may like. Both Mayr and Price noted the importance of altering social norms to increase sustainable consumption. The glamorization of thrifting,
something that had been previously stigmatized as “dirty” or as something for people with lower incomes, is the epitome of “ingroup” mentality shifts for the better. Paige Bryan, the Office of Sustainability’s Greeks go Green intern, recommends clothing resellers like Depop and the Design Archives store in downtown Winston-Salem for sustainable clothes. Bryan also notes that although “people like to be cool … finding your own style is the best way to combat fast fashion.”
Photo courtesy of @sustainablewfu on Instagram
Clothing exhanges and buying clothes secondhand or from thrift stores can reduce fast fashion consumption and better the environment.
Thursday, April 7, 2022 | Page 7
Features | Old Gold & Black
Is Winston-Salem becoming a college town? Wake Forest University’s attempts to rebrand the city have elicited mixed feelings from residents MASON JOHNSON Contributing Writer
Christopher Livengood, a partner at EMBER Audio + Design and a lifelong city resident, credits restaurant owners and artists with the revitalization of downtown. So when he saw signs from Wake Forest University that read “Deactown” — in reference to the demon deacon — being put up downtown, he was disturbed. “Krankies was literally built by hand by a group of great locals with less support than you’d think possible, and after that, we saw restaurants like 6th&Vine and Sweet Potatoes,” Livengood said. Winston-Salem is a city historically known for being built on tobacco, but recently, Wake Forest University is trying to brand it as more of a college town. The university moved to Winston-Salem in 1956 and has since contributed $3.3 billion to the economy, according to a study commissioned by the University of North Carolina school system. Still, the question remains: do non-Wake Forest affiliated residents want Winston-Salem to be a college town? Wake Forest moved its medical school downtown in July 2016. That same year, the Wake Downtown program began, which offers interdisciplinary and engineering courses to under-
graduate students in the Innovation Quarter. With more students downtown there has been a push to make the area more college-friendly. In an attempt to gain more support for Wake Forest athletics, the university’s marketing department has put “Deactown” signs all over Winston-Salem. These are intended to create a college game day experience for sports fans. According to Rhett Hobart, the Assistant Athletic Director and Director of Fan Experience and Brand Development, the development is “all about connecting with the greater Winston-Salem community, particularly those who don’t consider Wake their No. 1 team.” One “Deactown” sign is across the street
Photo courtesy of Mason Johnson
Some question if the money dedicated to rebranding may be better used elsewhere.
from Bailey Park in the Innovation Quarter, across from Wake Forest’s medical school and downtown campus. The “Deactown” branding of downtown has not gone over well with some residents. Last September, Nicholas Schmidt, an artist who lives in Winston-Salem, painted a mural depicting the Wake Forest mascot as a robber baron. This mural was approved and funded by a nonprofit called Art for Art’s Sake. Days after the mural was painted, Henry Knabb, the CEO of Art for Art’s Sake, decided that it was too controversial and had to be painted over. Schmidt said that he meant the painting as a commentary on capitalism. “The term robber baron was used to criticize the wealthy elites of the 19th century. Men who made their millions of dollars exploiting and displacing the working class as they saw fit. That’s what the behemoth institution of Wake Forest University does to the working-class people in Winston-Salem,” he said. Schmidt said that the money Wake Forest has invested downtown doesn’t change his mind. “It has not improved the lives of people who might never qualify for a mortgage and have to pay rent their whole lives,” he said. “Less affordable housing has led to an increase in unhoused people in our town. So, who has benefited? The people who already hold all the capital and wealth in this city.”
Many other downtown residents echoed Schmidt’s opinions. In response to a query posted on the Winston-Salem Downtown Neighborhood Facebook page, Vickie Morrison wrote that the signs seem like Wake Forest is “taking ownership of something a lot of small businesses worked for…” Delana Vickers posted that the signs seem arrogant. Many other residents on the downtown WinstonSalem resident Facebook group agreed that Wake Forest needs to read the room before trying to brand downtown as its own. Some residents are either unbothered by or support the Deactown signs. Jeremy Thorne posted, “It’s simply advertising for Wake Sports.” And many others agree that this initiative will be over soon enough and is nothing to be upset about. Josh Hartle provides a different perspective as both a Winston-Salem native and a Wake Forest student. Hartle, a freshman and a top baseball recruit out of high school chose Wake Forest for the academics and the great baseball team. “I’ve been a Wake Forest fan my whole life,” he said. “I like the advertisement for Deactown and fully support it. I look forward to building a bigger fan base for the community.” Contact Mason Johnson at johnml20@wfu.edu
‘Living in Color’ raises awareness of diversity ADDISON SCHMIDT Contributing Writer
It was six years ago when Dr. Teresa Sanhueza, a Spanish professor at Wake Forest since 1996, and her former colleague John Friedenberg in the Department of Theater, came up with the idea of teaching a First Year Seminar that focused on the experiences of minorities in the United States. What emerged was a First Year Seminar entitled “Living in Color: The Experiences of Minorities in the US through Art”, a class dedicated to raising freshmen’s awareness of diversity and inclusion issues. “In our years here, we have seen more diversity at Wake Forest,” Sanhueza said regarding her and Friedenberg’s initial thinking behind the course. “The inclusion part was not doing very well.” Originally focusing on Sanhueza and Friedenberg’s shared knowledge of theater, the class began in the Spring 2017 semester as a course designed to teach students about the challenges faced by minorities through the lens of theater. Students were taught course material with the supplementation of theater and were expected to collectively write and perform a play as a final project to conclude the semester. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 — as well as Friedenberg’s retirement around the same time — prompted Sanhueza to rethink the design of the course when it came time to teach it alone for the first time. Since then, the students’ final project has been an art exhibit instead of a self-written play. Additionally, Sanhueza changes the content of the course to some extent every semester. This semester, the focus is on the experiences
of Black and Hispanic minority communities. The perspectives that have been brought into the course — whether that be Sanhueza’s own as a Latin American immigrant, Friedenberg’s as a white, middle-class man, or those of the students themselves — have allowed the course to take shape. “I think what we have as a result of this is a student population that’s much more aware of what’s going on and now aware of the city in which they are going to live for three more years,” Sanhueza said. To raise her class’s awareness of the community, Sanhueza has had the opportunity to take her students on field trips off-campus in the larger Winston-Salem community. Sanhueza has also invited two professors from WinstonSalem State University (WSSU) to speak about housing issues and criminal justice. This semester’s field trips, funded via grants from the Interdisciplinary Arts Center, the Dean’s Office and the Humanities Institute, included a visit to the oldest African American community in North Carolina, Happy Hill, as well as the Southeastern Center for Community Art (SECCA) to view the Black@Intersection Exhibit. “I really like going off-campus, getting a new experience and meeting new people,” freshman Kamille Coleman, who is in the class, said. Aside from field trips and guest speakers, day-to-day coursework and readings have allowed the class to conduct discussions on race, class and privilege through the lens of various perspectives. “Living in Color” this semester kicked off with a few weeks of material related to general concepts and ideas, such as race and class, that are needed to discuss the upcoming topics, a minority voices unit and a unit on Winston-
Salem. Students showcase their knowledge throughout the semester in the form of papers, presentations and their collective final project. Freshman Lisi Chapin was first inspired to take the class when she met one of the course’s two teaching assistants, volunteers who had taken the course in a previous semester and had been asked by Sanhueza to help out with this semester’s cohort of students. “It’s a class everyone should have to take, it’s amazing,” Chapin said. “Out of all my
classes here, my FYS is probably the most important class I’ve taken here.” Sanhueza does not believe her class is a silver bullet for solving every issue about diversity, equity and inclusion, but she is hopeful about what she has seen in her class these past few years. “We’re not going to be able to cure racism,” Sanhueza said. “But maybe we can do something about it and we can definitely schmac21@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of Lisi Chapin
Students in “Living in Color” visit the Southeastern Center for Community Art to view the Black@Intersection exhibit as part of their curriculum.
OPINION
PAGE 8 THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2022
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Sophie Guymon, guymsm20@wfu.edu Maryam Khanum, khanmg20@wfu.edu
The views expressed in all opinion columns represent those of the article’s author, not the opinions of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board
Healthcare
Criticism of Wake Forest medical student is excessive Kychelle Del Rosario has faced undue criticism, while the bigotry of her patient has been largely ignored SOPHIE GUYMON
Opinion Editor
Wake Forest medical student Kychelle Del Rosario is coming under fire — particularly from right-wing news outlets — over a now-deleted tweet. “I had a patient I was doing a blood draw on see my pronoun pin and loudly laugh to the staff, ‘She/Her? Well, of course it is. What other pronouns even are there? It?' I missed his vein so he had to get stuck twice,” Del Rosario tweeted on Tuesday, March 29. Twitter users were quick to condemn Rosario for purportedly violating the Hippocratic Oath to do no harm and “assaulting” a patient over “[differences] in political beliefs", while failing to offer any substantive or nuanced criticism of the bigotry expressed by her patient. The crux of the issue at hand is not the conduct of Del Rosario, but the bigotry expressed by her patient. In response to this backlash, Ewen Liu — also a Wake Med student — came to Del Rosario’s defense. “[I] heard this story firsthand weeks ago and [it] seems like [people] are misinterpreting (understandably from the phrasing). To clarify, the missed stick was COMPLETELY an accident and just seemed ‘karma-tic’. She is kind and professional and would never harm anyone intentionally,” Liu tweeted. Liu’s tweet has also since been deleted. The Wake Forest School of Medicine released a statement to the media on Wednesday, March 30. “The actions described in this student’s social media post do not in any way reflect the quality of care and compassion that Wake Forest University School of Medicine strives to provide to our patients each and every day," the statement read. "We stand behind our values that include trust, excellence and a space where all belong, and we actively reinforce those values with learners and providers. While federal law does not permit us to share specific information, we are taking the proper measures to address this matter with the student, school leadership is involved." A review of the incident described in Del Rosario’s tweet revealed that all procedures were followed while caring for this patient. The School of Medicine’s protocols require documentation of all student actions while treating a patient. If a student has an initial unsuccessful blood draw, the student should not make additional attempts, but have a separate certified medical professional perform the second attempt. The documentation of this incident verified that after Del Rosario was unsuccessful in obtaining the blood draw, she appropriately deferred a second attempt
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Photo courtesy of Getty Images
Wake Forest medical student Kychelle Del Rosario has been placed on leave after posting a tweet on March 29 about a patient who criticized her pronoun pin. to a certified professional. Del Rosario has also apologized for her tweet. “I am writing this as an apology for a very irresponsible tweet that I sent on Twitter that I highly regret. For the event mentioned in the tweet, I was performing a blood draw on a patient, and during our conversation they had shown dismay at my pronoun pin. I calmly shared my thoughts about pronouns and did not escalate the situation further. When I was doing the blood draw, I missed the first time due to my inexperience as a student, and per our policy, my supervisor performed the successful blood draw the second time." Del Rosario continued: "During this encounter, I never intended to harm the patient. I understand how my misguided tweet read that I did intend to harm them as retribution. In an emotional moment, I sent the tweet without thinking about the consequences. I am truly sorry for poorly representing our school and our health system. I will reflect on responsible social media use as a professional and my duty to care for all patients, regardless of any differences in beliefs.” Nonetheless, Del Rosario has been placed on a leave of absence “as a result of [her] inappropriate and misleading post,” per Paula Faria, the associate vice president at Wake Forest Baptist Health. While Del Rosario’s tweet was unprofessional, the criticism that has been directed toward her is disproportionate. As the School of Medicine’s review revealed, she followed protocol and certainly did not attack her patient. Missing a patient’s vein is a common occurrence when drawing
Respecting and validating someone's ... gender identity should not be a matter of political belief ... but of simple human decency." blood, and is unlikely to cause harm. A prior review of the incident revealed that Del Rosario followed procedure. Alleging that she attacked her patient simply because she disagreed with a remark they made and chose to tweet about it is an unwarranted logical fallacy. Accusing Del Rosario of medical malpractice without evidence minimizes real incidents of malpractice, a serious issue that disproportionately affects marginalized groups. Data from the Center for American Progress shows that LGBTQ+ people frequently avoid healthcare because they experience discrimination in these settings. Eight percent of lesbian, bisexual and queer respondents said that a doctor or other healthcare provider refused to see them because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation, while 29% of trans respondents reported that a provider refused to see them because of their actual or perceived gender identity. Respondents also reported the use of harsh or abusive language from these providers, being misgen-
dered and experiencing unwanted physical contact. Respecting and validating someone’s pronouns and gender identity should not be a matter of political belief or ideology, but one of simple human decency. Everyone has pronouns, regardless of whether or not their gender identity aligns with their biological sex. When cisgender people display their pronouns on social media or wear pronoun pins, it helps foster a safe and accepting space for their trans peers. These acts of solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community should not be mocked — when people shrug off this mockery as a lighthearted joke, they are enforcing cisnormativity and transphobia, encouraging discrimination not just in healthcare, but in other spaces as well. It is appalling that the vast majority of the media coverage surrounding Del Rosario’s tweet is critiquing her lack of professionalism rather than her patient’s display of bigotry. She has been placed on leave over a poorly-worded tweet, but there has been no known follow-up with the patient concerning the problematic nature of their comments, or even any documentation of their inappropriate behavior. If the School of Medicine is truly “a space where all belong,” as they expressed in their statement condemning Del Rosario’s tweet, they should not ignore expressions of bigotry, but combat them by seeking to educate their patients and practitioners on the importance of pronouns and respecting others’ identities. Contact Sophie Guymon at guymsm20@wfu.edu
Opinion | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, April 7, 2022 | Page 9
Medical Gaslighting
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Practitioners often diminish women's concerns due to implicit biases, preventing them from receiving helpful diagnoses Lucy Roberts
Staff Columnist robels20@wfu.edu
For centuries, women, especially Black indigenous women of color (BIPOC women), have been suffering from a lack of public understanding of their health and wellbeing. These centuries of misogyny and racism have led to a society where these issues are still very much embedded, especially in fields such as medicine. “Medical gaslighting” is a term that patients have been using to describe their experiences with medical professionals who diminish concerns regarding their health. These patients are most often BIPOC women. This all-too-common dismissal of women’s health problems is not a recent issue, but rather one that can be traced back to Ancient Greece, where the term “hysteria” originated from the Greek root word hysterika, which translates to “uterus.”
Women were diagnosed with hysteria when they acted in ways that deviated from the accepted standard of behavior, reinforcing patriarchal values and trapping them within harmful stereotypes. Hysteria was recognized as a psychological condition up until the 1980s, but women still suffer from misdiagnoses due to these prevailing beliefs. Women may be unfairly perceived as overly dramatic or emotional when reporting symptoms to medical professionals. According to a study conducted by the Journal of Women’s Health, women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with a mental health condition after detailing the same physical symptoms as men who were diagnosed with a heart condition. This study reflects how women may be dismissed as prone to overreaction despite experiencing the same symptoms as men who are able to obtain a physical diagnosis. The overarching perception of women as hysterical and irrational has dangerous consequences, with women then suffering from undiagnosed — and therefore untreated — health problems. Implicit bias plays a huge role in how all women are treated in the healthcare
The experiences [of women of color] must be acknowledged if there are to be true advances made in ... women's health and wellbeing." system, but its most detrimental effects can be seen in the experiences of women of color. One example is the harmful stereotype of the “angry black woman”, which can affect how these women are treated when they require medical attention. This stereotype may unconsciously reside in the minds of many medical professionals. When a Black female patient is assertive, or advocates for her physical pain to be acknowledged, doctors may end up automatically attributing her behavior to a false, preconceived image rather than viewing her complaints as reasonable and valid. Women who do not speak English as their first language also have trouble being taken seriously due to implicit biases that unjustly diminish their credibility as a patient in the eyes of the medical professional. For the women who fall victim to
these vicious stereotypes, the dismissal of their experiences can result in valid displays of emotion, such as frustration and anger. However, these natural emotions may then be used to further invalidate and discredit the women as patients and instead, paint them as simply hysterical. By perpetuating these racialized and misogynistic stereotypes, the experiences of women of color are continuously denied. These experiences must be acknowledged if there are to be true advances made in medicine that pertain to women’s health and wellbeing. In order for there to be solutions to these systemic issues within the healthcare system, medical professionals should be required to undergo more extensive training in the areas of implicit biases and study how these unconscious biases can affect how a patient is treated, whether one means to or not. Women must feel comfortable and safe in the hands of their medical professionals, but this can only happen if the healthcare system takes active steps in improving how they treat patients, especially those from marginalized communities.
Campus Issues
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Aaron Nataline
Contributing Columnist nataae21@wfu.edu
When I was moving into my dormitory last August, I had botched some directions to Babcock Residence Hall. My dad, who was nearing the tail end of an eight-hour drive, was slightly agitated. My mistake was entering campus from the opposite side we had intended to enter from. We rode on the segment of Wake Forest Road that hugs Davis Field — the largest green space on our campus. My dad decelerated as my entire family stared at eager freshmen tossing frisbees, flinging footballs and starting conversations on that field — that first day of college conversations and activities that we thought determined our time at school. Davis Field helped spur those first steps, while also providing green space, trees and shade which create a naturally gorgeous place on campus. Next year, Wake Forest plans on paving a road straight through Davis Field, a vertical one that will slash through this idyllic place. A previous Old Gold & Black news article written by staff writer Jackie Thacher communicates the benefits that the university foresees will come with the construction of the road.
These benefits include traffic decongestion around the ZSR Library and a more efficient entrance into Wake Forest’s main hub. However, bisecting Davis Field is not worth the benefits it could provide. To be fair, not many perks would encourage me to support any development that means less green on campus. Less grass and fewer trees is all I take away from Wake Forest’s press release on the subject. I'm a very nuanced reader, I know. As someone who took his college tours during the COVID-19 pandemic, I did not get to venture into many buildings of any universities that I visited. Understandably, I was restricted to strolling around campus squares and outdoor plazas. The most astute and genuine compliment I could give to a campus was “mhm, lots of green space here. Love that for them.” We certainly don’t lack green space on campus. Most faculty and students — myself included — seem to believe that we are lucky to have such a gorgeous campus. Both Manchester and Hearn Plazas are a pleasure to walk through on sunny days. You can do some of the things you can do on Davis Field at these locations, whether that be tossing a football for fun or reading for leisure. Davis Field is not the only available place to engage in recreational activities with trees around you. However, Davis Field is unique in that it’s the only place that offers a space to relax away from the traffic of
Davis Field [is] ... a tranquil haven [for students] ... this new road will sully an incredible spot on our campus." students walking to and from class. It’s the singular place to hold large events hosted by a variety of Wake Forest’s phenomenal organizations. It’s home to three holes of a beloved frisbee golf course. While I rest on a hammock pitched on Davis Field, I can forget about the jackhammer going to work on a new building 50 feet away from my dorm. When I go to Manchester or Hearn, this construction is still well within earshot. Cars traversing Davis Field disturb a tranquil haven on campus, a haven that people look to for a mental health break, where people can hold picnics and walk dogs. The paving of the street itself will uproot trees and generate roadside litter. While I can’t speak from an uber-knowledgeable perspective regarding environmental science, I view this new road as a project that will sully an incredible spot on our campus. However, Aidan Norris, another firstyear student at Wake Forest who also opposes the construction of this road actually does have experience researching the ways humans impact the environment. Norris has volunteered with environmental engineering projects in the past and is currently involved
with sustainability groups on campus. Two weeks ago, Norris began sharing an online petition that calls to halt the road’s construction. Since then, it has garnered an impressive 518 signatures. “I disagree with the decision to build the road because Davis Field is one of my favorite spots on campus," Norris said when asked about his disapproval of the road. "It was the first thing that impressed me when I visited campus and is a place that has time and time again reminded me of the natural beauty of our campus." Norris continued: “Some responses I’ve gotten from other students mention the [beneficial] mental health effects of having such a beautiful space on campus to relax and unwind in. This would be diminished by the presence of cars and traffic through the field." At least 516 individuals who attend Wake Forest or are somehow related to the students agree with the stance that Norris and I share. I should mention that Norris was the first person to alert me of the news of the road officially being approved. I believe his passionate response to it stems from both a genuine love for nature and a burning desire to give students a voice. So, why not just a walking path, Wake Forest? While this may not address the traffic problem that supposedly exists, I am a fan of the idea. I know that the people affiliated with this school who signed Norris’ petition would likely endorse such a compromise as well.
Page 10 | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, April 7, 2022 | Opinion
Mental Health
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Mental health issues persist post-pandemic COVID-19-related isolation has exacerbated mental health issues such as depression and alcoholism Natasha Heisenberg Staff Columnist heisng20@wfu.edu
In March 2020, the world changed dramatically, with the spread of COVID-19 and the newfound fear that the pandemic generated gripping the nation, forcing people into their homes and redefining daily activities. As people’s lives shrunk to the size of their rooms and the bounds of socialization became constrained to four walls, the country plunged even further into a mental health crisis. And while hospitals and intensive care units filled with those afflicted, millions more suffered in silence, debilitated from a pervasive and silent struggle that would only worsen as the pandemic continued. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), anxiety and depression increased globally by 25% during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, women and young people were identified as those most likely to be impacted at a disproportionately high rate and were found to be at an increased risk of self-harming be-
haviors. COVID-19 had effects on conditions apart from depression and anxiety, however. In a Massachusetts General Hospital study, researchers found that excessive drinking rose by 21% in U.S. adults. The extrapolated data warns of 100 expected deaths and 2,800 additional cases of liver failure by the year 2023, all attributed to heavy alcohol use due to COVID-19. Aside from the health implications on individuals, researchers noted the relational impacts of such coping behaviors, and the need to examine the societal stigma surrounding mental health and alcohol abuse. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism described the positive feedback loop that ensues once alcohol is used to ameliorate symptoms of anxiety and depression. Despite the fact that alcohol temporarily placates the body’s natural response to stress, these fleeting effects wear off and can produce physiological changes in the brain that cause more intense stress responses in the future. As this loop progresses, individuals may consume larger quantities of alcohol to elicit the same response, yielding a higher incidence of liver damage and exacerbating mental health issues. The increased utilization of alcohol as a coping mechanism is not unique to the
Over these last two years, it has become apparent that mental health must be considered with the same gravity as COVID-19." COVID-19 pandemic. Other stressors, such as natural disasters, financial burdens, or familial troubles have been demonstrated to also result in elevated alcohol consumption. The longevity of the pandemic, and the helplessness associated with restricted and distant social interactions have served as a catalyst for this unhealthy dependency. One main issue that persists amongst those vulnerable to — and experiencing — alcohol abuse, is the prejudice associated with alcoholism and the false conflation between addiction and morality. The stigma around addiction perpetuates a narrative that separates those afflicted with alcoholism from those not genetically predisposed. The parallel that many incorrectly draw between presenting alcoholic tendencies and possessing a flawed system of values prevents those in need from seeking help and further worsens the fatal silence that prevails over discussions of addiction. Another issue that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to alcohol abuse
was the difficulty in finding and receiving treatment proved to be. Treatment centers — which sought to prevent the spread of COVID-19 through their facilities — were detrimentally impacted and prevented from admitting patients. Thus, those confined to their homes had unobstructed access to the substances they relied on and little to no access to counseling or in-patient services. Moreover, therapy centers adopted a telehealth model in order to aid in reducing the rate of viral transmission, which dually lowered public health risks while raising the number of those who refrained from seeking help. COVID-19 has made a multitude of systemic inefficiencies apparent to the general public, with the link between mental health and alcoholism displayed on a stage of unseen proportions. Ultimately, to comprehensively address this issue, the prevalence of alcohol abuse cannot solely be attributed to COVID-19, nor can it be swept under the rug as restrictions and policies ease and vaccinations become more accessible throughout the country. Over these last two years, it has become apparent that mental health must be considered with the same gravity as COVID-19 and must be recognized for its place as an invisible epidemic that has possessed this country and the world.
International Politics
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Pakistan's prime minister should stay in power Imran Khan's decision to dissolve Pakistan's National Assembly has caused political turmoil Maryam Khanum Opinion Editor khanmg20@wfu.edu
On Sunday, April 3, the Parliament of Pakistan motioned toward a vote of no-confidence which would remove Pakistan’s sitting prime minister, Imran Khan, from office. This decision came after Khan was abandoned by his coalition government, with his partnering parties and 17 of his own party members agreeing to vote against him, giving the opposition 177 votes. They would only need a simple majority of 172 votes for the motion to go through. However, deputy speaker Qasim Suri refused to entertain the vote of no-confidence “in accordance with the constitution”. This delay gave Khan the opportunity to avoid the vote altogether by dissolving the National Assembly, plunging Pakistan into a constitutional crisis. Khan then called for an early election to take place. Pakistan’s future now rests in the hands of its Supreme Court. The Court could overturn Khan’s decision and reject an early election, in which case Khan may be forced to face another vote of no-confidence — one he will likely lose. On the other hand, the Supreme Court could rule in his favor, or even decline to make a ruling and allow a snap election — an election that happens within 90 days of being called, prior to the regular election cycle — to be conducted.
This sudden political turmoil has launched questions regarding Khan’s capabilities to the forefront of discussions. However, Khan is still the best candidate to lead Pakistan’s government in spite of the uncertainty surrounding him. Since entering the political sphere, exposing the ubiquitous corruption in Pakistan’s government has been a large goal of Khan’s campaign, as he demanded all those running for political office should declare how much they have paid in taxes. His call came after many Pakistani politicians were exposed for tax evasion, including former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who paid only 6,000 rupees in taxes in 2011 (about $33 today). Khan has repeatedly dedicated himself to the advancement of Pakistan’s working class. In 1994, he established Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital, for which he raised $25 million by combining donations and his personal funds. As Pakistan’s largest tertiary care hospital, about 70% of Shaukat Khanum’s patients receive treatment free of cost. In 2008, he established Pakistan’s first public university in his ancestral hometown of Mianwali. Graduates of this university would receive degrees from Bradford University in England, of which Khan is chairman. Pakistan, with its lack of industry and large-scale production, has mainly depended on agriculture. Khan developed a plan to tackle this and industrialize the country. This process would enlist the help of neighboring countries such as China in order to increase per acre production and benefit farmers. Furthermore, in 2019, Khan called for the implementation of the “Ehsas” plan which
One of [Khan's] largest take accountability for the shortcomings of his government." would allocate 80 billion rupees (over half a billion dollars) toward the goal of alleviating poverty. However, over the course of his term, Khan has not only observed but contributed to many problems in Pakistan’s political sphere. His inability to condemn Russia in the face of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is his most recent contribution, with Pakistan having joined the 35 countries that abstained from voting to condemn Russia in the United Nations General Assembly. In addition to this, Khan has made a number of shocking statements while in office that he later had to retract. In July 2021, he caused outrage by stating that increased rates of sexual assault in Pakistan were attributed to the rise of “vulgarity”. After being chastised for victim-blaming, Khan retracted his statements. “Anyone who commits rape, solely and solely, that person is responsible,” Khan said. Khan also jarringly defended the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in December of 2021, later condemning the humanitarian crisis they created in the region and holding the government of the U.S. responsible for the formation of that crisis. Most recently, Khan has launched a series of baseless accusations against the government of the United States, stating that they are colluding with his opposition in an attempt to remove him from power and install a government in Pakistan that will favor their
interests. He spoke of a letter outlining this attempt despite constant denial from the U.S. State Department. Khan is by no means a perfect candidate, and one of his largest flaws is his inability to take accountability for the shortcomings of his government. However, Pakistan is a notoriously difficult country to run, especially considering the fact that not one out of Khan’s 18 predecessors was able to complete their five-year term. Despite his defects and weaknesses, the fact remains that Khan is the only candidate able to help the nation as it stands now, and his removal will only plunge the country further into turmoil.
Photo courtesy of BBC
Khan has called for an early election to decide the fate of Pakistan.
SPORTS
Christina DeNovio, denoca20@wfu.edu Essex Thayer, thayse20@wfu.edu
Follow us on Twitter @wfuogbsports OLD GOLD & BLACK
PAGE 11 THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2022
Photo Courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics
Baseball goes 2-1 against Boston College Wake Forest is now the No. 28 team in the NCAA according to the USA Today rankings ESSEX THAYER Sports Editor
Following a solid mid-week victory against Coastal Carolina, a team that defeated Wake Forest earlier in the season, the Demon Deacons secured a 2-1 series win over Boston College in Chestnut Hill. The victories moved Wake Forest to 21-7 on the season and 6-6 in conference play, good for fourth place in a strong Atlantic division. The Demon Deacons were also in third place in the “also receiving votes” section of the USA Today Poll, effectively ranking them as the No. 28 college baseball team in the country. In a 15-10 Friday win, Wake Forest was powered by their offense. Sophomore Brock Wilken hit two home runs in the victory, notching seven RBIs. Redshirt
junior Brendan Tinsman also performed well, knocking four hits for three RBIs. The victory marked the second-fastest time in program history for the team to reach 20 wins and the fastest time in Coach Tom Walter’s career in WinstonSalem. On Saturday, the Demon Deacons were once again successful at the plate in a 20-8 win. Three batters had over two hits. Redshirt junior Michael Turconi led the team with four hits for six RBIs, while freshman Tommy Hawke secured three hits with one RBI. Wilken again showcased his big-hit ability with his third home run in two games. To close the series, Wake Forest did not reach double-digit runs for the first time against the Eagles, losing 7-6. Sophomore starting pitcher Teddy McGraw was tagged with six earned runs. In the first inning on Friday, Boston
College got on sophomore starting pitcher Rhett Lowder, scoring four runs. After a double to begin the inning, two additional Eagles got on base with an error and a hit-by-pitch. A double play then brought in the first score of the game. Following a single to bring in the second run, a two-run home run brought in the final two. “I was really proud of the way Rhett battled,” Walter said after the game. “We dropped a fly ball there in the first inning and it ended up costing us a fourspot. [Lowder] made two bad pitches and Boston College made us pay for it. They're a good offensive club.” Wake Forest did not respond to the early onslaught by Boston College until the fifth inning, when one hit brought the game back to even. With redshirt sophomore Pierce Bennett, freshman Nick Kurtz and Hawke reaching base,
Wilken knocked a deep grand slam to left field. The Demon Deacons did not score another run in the inning, but a once-dormant offense was awoken. In the top of the seventh inning, Wilken struck again. With Hawke and Kurtz on base, he hit a second home run to left field, giving Wake Forest its first lead of the game. Following the home run, Turconi walked and was then advanced by a Tinsman single. A single by redshirt sophomore Adam Cecere then brought in Turconi. Then, with the bases loaded after a single by sophomore Jake Reinisch, Bennett was hit by a pitch, bringing in another run. To end their scoring in the inning, two additional runs were scored on a fielder’s choice and error, expanding the Demon Deacon lead to 11-4.
See Baseball, Page 12
Page 12 | Thursday, April 7, 2022
Old Gold & Black | Sports
Baseball: Continued from Page 11 Following a two-run bottom of the seventh for Boston College, Wake Forest scored three runs right back. With Turconi on third base after a triple, Tinsman homered to left field. Then, Cecere scored on a balk. In the top of the ninth, the Demon Deacons added one additional run on a double by Tinsman. Despite a late, two-run push by Boston College in an attempt to mount a comeback, sophomore Camden Minacci came in to secure the elusive final out. After the win, Walter was pleased with the overall performance but was concerned with the ninth inning. “I am disappointed that we had to go to Camden Minacci at the end there,” Walter said. “It is what it is, and it’s a win on the road. It is always good to win on a Friday night in our league.” The following day, Wake Forest took far less time to jump on the Eagles’ pitching. In the first inning, Turconi knocked in Wilken, who reached base with a walk, for the Demon Deacons’ first run of the game. Then after another walk, two more players scored on a double by Reinisch. A Bennett single then brought Reinisch home. Freshman Danny Corona added to the scoreline with a triple that scored Bennett, and then Corona himself scored on a wild pitch, giving the Demon Deacons an early 6-0 lead from the inning. After a one-run first inning for the Eagles, Wake Forest went right back to work in the second. With Kurtz on base from a double, Wilken hit his third
home run of the series to left field. Boston College added three runs in the bottom of the inning, reducing the Wake Forest lead to 8-4. After a quiet third inning, the Demon Deacons added more runs in the top of the fourth. With Hawke and Kurtz and Wilken on base, Turconi ripped a single to right field, scoring both freshman baserunners. Then, a Tinsman single brought home Wilken. With two outs, Turconi hit home plate on a Bennett single, marking the fourth and final run of the inning for Wake Forest. Boston College responded with two runs in the bottom half of the inning, which left the Demon Deacons with a 12-6 advantage. After each team added an additional run in the fifth inning, Wake Forest scored four runs in the top of the sixth. With Reinisch, Bennett and Corona on base, Hawke singled to right field, plating one. Then, a Kurtz walk, Wilken single and Turconi sacrifice fly each added another run. Boston College fought back with a solo home run, its last run of the day.. Over the final three innings, Wake Forest scored three runs. Turconi brought in two runs in the seventh inning with a double, and graduate Kyle Joye, a reserve on the team, singled in a runner in the ninth inning. “It was a good six-run first inning,” Walter said after the game. “That was the difference in the game. We grabbed the momentum early and didn’t give it back.” Despite a slower game with the bats on Sunday, Wake Forest was successful in the first inning for a second straight
day. With Kurtz and Wilken on base, Turconi singled to right field, bringing in the freshman for the first run of the day. Then, a triple by Cecere scored Wilken and Turconi, giving the Demon Deacons an early 3-0 lead. Following a one-run bottom of the first by Boston College, Wake Forest added two runs in the second inning. On an infield pop-up by Turconi, a throwing error allowed Hawke to score. Then, a Tinsman single brought home Kurtz. In the bottom of the inning, the Eagles scored one run, reducing their deficit to 5-2. In the bottom of the fourth, Boston College took its first lead of the game. Following a two-run home run that brought the Eagles within a run, a single tied the game. Then, a sacrifice fly to left field scored the final run of the inning. Trailing 6-5, Wake Forest tied the game in the top of the fifth inning. After a double by Cecere, a single by Corona brought in the runner. The 6-6 score remained until the bottom of the seventh inning. With redshirt sophomore and closing pitcher Eric Adler on the mound, Boston College scored the final, and most consequential, run of the game, a home run to left field. In the final two innings, despite an “Immaculate Inning” — three-pitch strikeouts for all three batters — by Minacci, Wake Forest only got one runner on base, giving them little chance of mounting a comeback and ending their hopes of a series sweep. “It was a really disappointing day,” Walter said of the loss. “We didn’t have enough quality at-bats.”
Wake Forest is left with another good opportunity at a series sweep this coming weekend when they return home to face off with Duke, one of the unranked teams in the ACC. Contact Essex Thayer at thayse20@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy Wake Forest Athletics
Friday: Brock Wilken and teammates celebrate after a grand slam.
Men’s tennis goes 2-0, women’s 0-2 over weekend IAN STEFFENSEN Staff Writer
Wake Forest men’s tennis continued their regular season campaign, facing off against Notre Dame and Louisville this past weekend away from home. The No. 7 Demon Deacons’ utter domination in doubles gave them the edge over both the Fighting Irish and Cardinals.
Photo courtesy Wake Forest Athletics
Men’s tennis will face off against No. 65 Clemson at home on Friday.
Against Notre Dame, Wake Forest’s doubles pairing of senior Siddhant Banthia and graduate student Jurabek Karimov got the Demon Deacons going with a 6-2 victory. Over on Court 3, junior Matthew Thomson and graduate student Jakob Schnaitter jumped out to an early lead and were able to provide another tally, winning 6-3. In singles, Wake Forest went 4-1 against the Irish, winning two of the matches in straight sets. The clinching win came from junior Taha Baadi, who picked up his 10th singles win this season. Baadi’s match went three sets, and he clutched up, winning the tiebreaker in the final set (6-1, 1-6, 7-6). The win gave Wake Forest its 10th consecutive win over Notre Dame and the momentum needed heading into Sunday’s contest at Louisville. In doubles against Louisville, the pairing of Banthia and Schnaitter dominated the Cardinals with a resounding 6-1 victory. On Court 3, Ben Draper and Thomson rallied to earn a 6-3 win over Louisville, securing the doubles point for a 1-0 advantage in the match. Fifthyear Rrezart Cungu won in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1. Additionally, fifth year student Eduardo Nava won in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4 to extend the Demon Deacon lead
to 3-0. Senior Melios Efstathiou put on a masterclass, winning in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 to clinch the match for Wake Forest and complete the sweep. The resounding victory by the Demon Deacons ended Louisville’s 11-match home win streak. “I’m proud of the team today. They came out to a red-hot Louisville squad that has not lost at home all season long and swept them,” Head Coach Tony Bresky said. “Now, we play the next eight matches at home, and we are excited to get to play in front of our fans.” Wake Forest women’s tennis continued conference play facing off against North Carolina and Duke this weekend at home. On Friday evening, the Tar Heels jumped out to an early lead capturing wins in doubles to secure the point and go up one. Senior Saby Nihalani won the Demon Deacons’ first singles match of the night, winning 6-4, 6-3. A hardfought first set that ended in a tiebreaker gave graduate student Samantha Martinelli the momentum needed to win her match in three sets. This victory cut into the North Carolina lead, but eventually, Wake Forest fell 5-2. On Sunday, Duke controlled the momentum early, winning all three of its
doubles matches to take a 1-0 lead over Wake Forest. Martinelli was quick to answer, winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1 to secure a singles victory. Sophomore Brooke Killingsworth also tacked on a singles victory winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. These wins put the Demon Deacons up 2-1 over the Blue Devils. Later on – thanks to wins in singles matches – Duke rallied to take a 3-2 lead over Wake Forest. With the match at 3-2, Senior Carolyn Campana rebounded after dropping her first set 6-2 to win her match in the third set, tying it a 3-3. On court five, senior Anna Brylin battled in the third set of what would be the clinching match. Yet, Brylin came up short, losing 6-4 in the third set. Wake Forest fell 3-4. “I was very proud of how we competed today,” Head Coach Jeff Wyshner said. “If we keep playing with the heart this team plays with, some of these close matches will start to go our way.” Wake Forest’s women’s tennis will head on the road for next weekend’s matchups against Virginia and Virginia Tech. Contact Ian Steffensen at
Sports | Old Gold & Black CHRISTINA DENOVIO Sports Editor
Junior Jacob Schulte is the current co-vice president and co-president-elect of the men’s lacrosse team. Established in 2003, men’s lacrosse at Wake Forest is a part of the SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference, MCLA (Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association) and ALC (Atlantic Lacrosse Conference). With weekly games against conference opponents, the team is among the most impressive club teams Wake Forest has to offer. As Schulte approaches the end of his third year on the lacrosse team, he is grateful for the experiences the sport has given him, in particular the sense of community. While the team will finish this season sometime in May, depending on future results, Schulte’s senior year will allow him the opportunity to lead his team, along with his future co-president, junior Dakin Moore.
Thursday, April 7, 2022 | Page 13
Jacob Schulte
Deacon “Sportlight”
Christina DeNovio: When did you first start playing lacrosse? Jacob Schulte: I started playing in sixth grade. I transitioned from football to lacrosse because I moved to Greensboro right around that time, and they didn’t have a football team. I played mostly baseball growing up. I had a coach named Ira Vanterpool, who played at Syracuse, that ended up making the lacrosse team a really good experience for me. I played club pretty much all throughout high school. Then, I started playing club lacrosse here my freshman year. CD: Did you think about playing Division I or Division III lacrosse in college? JS: I got a few Division III offers, and I didn’t really pursue it that much because that’s not what I wanted out of school. My experience playing club lacrosse here has allowed me to make so many friends outside of my current social circle. It’s allowed for the intermingling of Greek Life and people who are involved in so many different things. I’ve met so many really respectable people. It’s just been a really nice thing for me because it’s not too intensive, but we’re also able to come out and play at a high level. CD: What made you decide to become a part of club lacrosse here? JS: My senior year of high school, I went to this senior All-Star game in Greensboro — it was a Triad thing. A bunch of my club teammates were there. The Wake Forest club lacrosse coach is also the coach at Davie High School, and he was there. He came up to me after the game because he realized that I was going to Wake Forest. He told me that I should definitely come out and that we’d be in contact. During my freshman year, he sent me an email on the first day of practice for me to come to the club interest fair. I got my name down on the email list, and I ended up coming out to practice. CD: Could you describe the try-out process? How does playing time distribution work? JS: People can basically just join the team. It’s kind of a system where the guys who show up the most get playing time. If you don’t come to practices, then you don’t get to play in games. It’s flexible in the sense that if you have too much going on that week, you don’t really have to come to the field. It’s not too much of a commitment. In previous years, it was a more intense commitment — you could get cut and more was expected of you. That shied players away from trying out and being on the team. We started doing it in a way where you come out when you need to and allow the most committed players to play in games. That’s really
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics
just brought out a lot more people and it’s made our team a lot better. CD: How did you get your leadership position on the team? JS: The previous leadership was run by one guy, Jeffrey Guiliano. He was the president throughout COVID-19. He just sent out a leadership application. I had been coming out during COVID-19, which is not something that many people were doing. I kept on coming to practice because I enjoy playing, and it’s good for exercise and stuff. So, I just sent in an application and got the co-vice president position this year with Dakin Moore. Dawson Muller and Jack Sanders are the co-presidents right now. We were happy to be working together. CD: How often do you practice and play games? What months of the year do you play?
end against Coastal Carolina? JS: It was the best game of the season, absolutely. It was so intense from start to finish. It was back and forth the whole game. Going into the fourth quarter, the score was 8-8, and then it ended up 11-10 right at the end. It was insane because on the last possession, they had the ball, and we were up one and we basically had to keep them from scoring for the last minute or so. The game was full of a lot of ups and downs. CD: What are your favorite things about being a part of club lacrosse? JS: It really comes down to the friends I’ve made, because they’re people I probably would have never made friends with throughout my time at Wake Forest. It doesn’t really matter what year you are or which fraternity you’re in. People are always just excited to come out and play lacrosse — it’s really been a nice community to be a part of.
JS: We practice two times a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Kentner Stadium, where field hockey plays. We practice from 7 p.m. - 8:30 CD: Do you think Wake Forest lacrosse could p.m. We have games almost every Sunday. We one day become a Division I team? have one more game this year, and then we have the ALC semi-finals and finals. Hopefully, we’ll JS: There would have to be a lot of organizational go to Round Rock, Texas for the MCLA National things that would have to change for it to shift into Championships, but it is during exam week. We a Division I team. We’d need a Division I coach and do the Tuesday and Thursday practices throughout a lot more resources. I’m not sure how it works, but the fall, and we have a few just exhibition games it would definitely be cool to see. It probably won’t and scrimmages in the fall too. The spring is when it starts to pick up — Feb. 6 was our first game Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for clarity this year. And then the longest we can go would be and brevity. May 9 if we make it to the finals. CD: Can you describe your win this past week-
Contact Christina DeNovio at denoca20@wfu.edu
PAGE 14 THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2022
LIFE OLD GOLD & BLACK
Adam Coil, coilat21@wfu.edu Josie Scratchard, scraja20@wfu.edu
'Better Call Saul' sticks to cable
The prequel to 'Breaking Bad' calls viewers to leave behind binge-watching habits CONOR METZGER Staff Writer
“Whatever happens next, it’s not going to go down the way you think it is.” This sentence ends the trailer for the sixth season of “Better Call Saul”, the hit AMC show that has captivated millions. Anticipation has been building, with many excited for the final sendoff of the infamous character Saul Goodman. The show itself is a prequel to what is possibly the greatest mark of the “Golden Age of Television” — “Breaking Bad”. But, instead of exploring the high-stakes world of meth, “Better Call Saul” focuses on litigation and sibling rivalry. This series quickly became a hit to audiences and critics alike, albeit with some early questioning as to how “Breaking Bad” could be topped. Although I was originally a skeptic, I became invested after watching the season one episode “Five-O”, in which Jonathan Banks’ character, Mike Ehrmantraut, delivers the gut-wrenching “I broke my boy” monologue. This scene made me realize how little I knew about some of my favorite “Breaking Bad” characters.
That made me choose to tune in every week to catch the new episode, something unheard of in today’s modern world of binge-watching. “Breaking Bad” owes its popularity partly to its addition to Netflix. Viewers quickly took note of the show and began turning on their TVs to catch the new season after they had binged on the streaming service. Since then, “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” have continued to appear on Netflix, both remaining popular with the addition of each new season. However, “Better Call Saul” does not add new episodes to Netflix until the beginning of its next season. Even now, viewers cannot watch season five of “Better Call Saul” on Netflix, which aired in early 2020. Many people don’t want to wait that long to watch the new season, which is why “Better Call Saul” is projected to have successful ratings this spring — even with the end of cable television becoming more of a reality every day. This begs the question — is “Better Call Saul” the last great cable TV show? I sure think so. People no longer have the drive or the discipline to watch something every week at a specific time. The
allure of “watch anywhere — anytime” is too strong to allow people to do anything differently. For this reason, we are missing out on what used to be a great event watching television. This is partly why some streaming series are adopting weekly episode releases — to keep audiences in suspense and the conversation surrounding their services lasting longer than a couple of weeks, which is the average cultural lifespan of a hit streaming series. Honestly, if you want to know what really brings people together, it’s not a common enemy but rather something in which we can all find joy. Streaming services are a signifier of a lonelier time in television history, of which I am terrified. Even today, I try to organize “watch parties” for some shows just to participate in the communal aspect that TV can bring. Watching TV alone after a long day can be a good thing, but making a habit of it can be detrimental to one’s mental health. I encourage you to look at how much TV you are watching with friends. Also — with the rise of movies skipping theaters and going straight to streaming — we should be mindful of the loss of community that accompanies a change in our
Photo courtesy of IMDb
'Better Call Saul' continues the legacy that 'Breaking Bad' began. consumption of media. I know I have already planned for my group of friends to tune in for the new episodes of “Better Call Saul”, and I encourage you to find something to watch with your own friends. Let’s not leave TV-watching traditions behind and instead move back to a time when we could all find common joy in the shows we love so much. Contact Conor Metzger at metzcr19@wfu.edu
John Mulaney's career hangs in suspense The comedian's personal life interferes with audiences' view of him MCKENZIE MURPHY Contributing Writer
The reoccurring stereotype for comedians is a tragic life in which comedians use humor — and sometimes substances — to cope. Jim Carrey used to live in a van and work as a janitor. Gilda Radner died at age 42 from cancer. Other comedians’ lives diminished too quickly, such as Chris Farley, John Belushi and Robin Williams — all passed away from addiction or mental illness. John Candy from “Uncle Buck” died of a heart attack from a speculated bingeeating disorder brought on by personal
Photo courtesy of IMDb
John Mulaney kickstarted his career on "Saturday Night Live" in 2009.
issues. The downfall of many of America’s most beloved comedians is not an uncommon narrative, and John Mulaney has recently added to this trend. Mulaney is the voice of the awkward, pubescent Andrew Glouberman on the animated Netflix series “Big Mouth”. Similarly, his stand-up on Netflix illustrates a narrative of an anxiety-filled, young kid who observes the world around him with humor but has a seemingly strong head on his shoulders. I would anoint John Mulaney as “the comedian for the people” — the fivetime “Saturday Night Live” host brings a style of humor to which people can relate. Mulaney guides us towards the idea that we are allowed to laugh at society's downfalls as well as our own. We all have felt awkward moments or noticed something peculiar in everyday life that Mulaney emulates in his comedy, making his performance style personal and relatable. Throughout Mulaney’s stand-up, he often shares his failures as a laughing point for the audience. Mulaney often recalls how he auditioned and was denied for “Saturday Night Live” multiple times but was then offered a position to be a writer on the show. I tend to find enjoyment in the content of his oddly-dominant French bulldog, Petunia, whom he portrays with human-like characteristics. Mulaney’s “Street Smarts” bit makes
me giggle every time. His portrayal of grade school assemblies and the bizarre guest speakers that would inevitably be presented in front of a room full of eightyear-olds who have no concept of what is happening is hilarious. One of his classic — and my favorite — bits is of how much he loves his now ex-wife, Anna Marie Tendler. Even with the outstanding comedy and relatable content that Mulaney gives to the world, he could not escape from the craziness of Hollywood. From December 2020 to about December 2021, Mulaney attended rehab for cocaine addiction, divorced his wife who helped him through it, and immediately began dating Olivia Munn a week after he announced his separation with Tendler. Just two months after Mulaney started dating Munn, he announced she was pregnant. The math just doesn't add up. I have to argue that there was overlap in the two relationships, especially because Olivia Munn occasionally would speak about how she was a fan of Mulaney even before becoming friendly with him. Usually, I would not care about this celebrity drama — this is not a surprising turn of events for the typical celebrity— but I declare that this is a great injustice that cannot be ignored. Tendler attended multiple schools for writing, psychology and design and became a make-up artist and hairstylist. Tendler was not an A-list celebrity by any
means — she often purposefully stayed out of the spotlight. Throughout Mulaney’s career, he constantly gave props to her saying how amazing of a woman Tendler was and dedicating many moments in his routines to professing his love for her. Mulaney threw her into the spotlight, embarrassing himself — and his now exwife — with the quick turnaround at the end of his marriage and the reunion with Munn. I consider John Mulaney to be on a personal decline — this dramatic event has not painted him in a good light as he once was seen as a devoted, loving husband and now is a victim of the classic Hollywood relationship whirlwind. As far as his career, I think that this negative publicity could either offer him opportunities or turn more of his fans like me against him. While I can no longer bring myself to connect with Mulaney as a fan, I am glad that his almost-tragic downfall story took a turn for the better by his success in rehab and the birth of his son. I most likely will continue to follow his career through “Saturday Night Live” and his Netflix specials. It remains to be seen if the comedian behind "The Comeback Kid" can still turn it around. Contact McKenzie Murphy at murpma21@wfu.edu
Life | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, April 7, 2022 | Page 15
Exploring the fascinating world of Wordle knock-offs Wordle inspires a new generation of daily guessing games MELINA TRAIFOROS Staff Writer Nowadays, completing the New York Times Wordle puzzle is routine. Seeing five green squares in a neat row is an omen for a good day. The game has inspired a slew of spin-offs, and I am going to try seven: Taylordle, Absurdle, Heardle, Globle, Mathle, Who Are Ya and Semantle. First, I tackled Taylordle, which is a variation of Wordle using only words related to artist Taylor Swift. According to Spotify Wrapped, she was my most listened to artist last year, so I knew I had this in the bag. Gyllenhaal initially came to mind. Bullying Swift’s ex-boyfriend — especially after “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” — is a favorite hobby of fans. Unfortunately, his name was two letters too long. I decided on simplicity and started entering album titles. "Evermore" and "Folklore" are a pair, and after discovering the word began with “F”, "Fearless" was a natural successor. Score! This album introduced me to the artist at ten years old, so I closed the tab feeling nostalgic. Next up was Absurdle. Players have unlimited
CULTURE
Selinna Tran / Old Gold & Black
O N R E P E AT
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
On Sunday, Tyler, The Creator took home the grammy for Best Rap Album with his 2021 project, "CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST". With this victory, Tyler has now been awarded a Grammy for two consecutive projects — he won Best Rap Album in 2020 for his experimental breakthrough, "IGOR". In honor of this victory, the song of the week is "MASSA" off of "CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST". While it is not as popular as hit tracks "CORSO" or "WUSYANAME", the song displays Tyler when he is at his best lyrically. Introspective and honest, "MASSA" is all about being unapologetically yourself and the growing pains that coincide with selfdiscovery. Tyler's sound and style have evolved constantly over the years, but he has always remained himself — a characteristic that fans never take for granted. I think that this song is a great reminder of the importance of being yourself while navigating life in your own way.
attempts to discover the non-predetermined secret word, but the software is, well, absurd. Enter a guess and Absurdle will spit back the combination of greens and yellows which correlates to the most likely answers, effectively narrowing down your options as little as possible. Check out the site for a full rundown of the programming. I pulled out good old "adieu" first, hoping to eliminate vowels. Then, I input random words to cover the consonants and brainstormed doubleletter words with the remaining letters. The winner ended up being "magma". This is a game of forcing the computer to reveal as much information as possible when it is wired to do the opposite. It can be played over and over so long as a player selects different starting words. It feels like a battle of wits. Heardle moves away from the letter-guessing game format by playing clips from songs for players to guess instead. Unless you listen to a variety of music, identifying a track from its opening notes is challenging. I ended up skipping through seven seconds of ambiguous hip hop chords before realizing it was Cardi B singing "Up". Less popular solutions allow you to discover new songs and broaden your musical horizons. Geography and math enthusiasts will enjoy
TELEVISION Donald Glover recently returned to television when he released the third season of “Atlanta”, for which he is a writer, executive producer and actor. Episodes are released once a week, but just from taking a look at the three episodes that are out thus far, season three has a lot of promise. "Atlanta" has always been deeply concerned with diving into contemporary social issues, but with the characters moving out of the locational norm of Atlanta, Glover’s critiques have changed aims. The main targets that "Atlanta" seems to be pointed at are ignorant, white liberals, or what I believe conservatives might describe as “the ‘woke’ left”. The first episode follows the story of a white couple that routinely adopts black children. What originally appears to be simple, tone-deafness and microaggression from them quickly manifests into something sinister. I found myself gawking at the TV when I finally realized what was actually taking place before me. It is difficult to say what exactly makes Glover such an effective social critic. He has a unique knack for defamiliarizing everything we see. It is subtle, but through the masterful acting and meticulously paced shots, something uncanny begins to form, which almost always consummates in a dramatic plot shift further down the road. You get the sense that something is off from the very beginning, but you have to stick around to find out exactly what that is. The show is also tremendous at concealing insightful remarks through humor. Lakeith Stanfield, who plays Darius Epps, is tremendous as the comedic relief. His character is typically laid back and ultra-chill, but that only makes his piercing remarks all the more impactful. "Atlanta" is unparalleled when it comes to using brilliant critiques to shock its audience out of a lolled state of aesthetic enjoyment.
TIK TOK Someone who has caught my attention on Tik Tok and never let it go is Baron Ryan, who goes by the username “americanbaron”. A one-man show, Baron plays all of the parts in his skits.
Globle and Mathle. The former prompts players to guess countries and uses shades of red to indicate proximity to the selected territory. Russia was my first pick and I got lucky selecting the solution, China, for my second guess. The latter presents a number that must be the answer to an input equation, and despite my aversion to Manchester Hall and its math classrooms, it was surprisingly fun. Who Are Ya is for you sporty readers. It provides the blurry headshot of a soccer player in one of the Big Five European leagues and returns nationality, league, club, position and age. I occasionally follow the Premier League, so I was overconfident before realizing that I needed a player in the Italian Serie A and had already guessed the only one I knew, Zlatan Ibrahimović. At that point, I admitted defeat and called in the big guns — my fifteen-year-old brother — who figured out it was Leonardo Bonucci, laughed at me and hung up. Finally, we have arrived at my archnemesis: Semantle. This game is the Moriarty to my Sherlock, the Perry the Platypus to my Dr. Doofenshmirtz. Each guess receives a rating based on its semantic similarity to the target word, which is deterHe has amassed over two million followers on the app by making clever short films with near-professional quality. His videos are typically concerned with philosophy, love, paradoxes and the millennial experience. One Tik Tok that I keep coming back to is called “hotel could-have-been”. It is surprisingly complex given the means at Baron’s disposal to upload these videos. One of my favorite lines of his comes from this video when he says, “that’s a good idea. More people should write love letters to themselves.” This line only gets better the more you think about it in the context of the entire video. It is sad, introspective and even a little bit funny, but it is plagued by the same issue that many of his videos suffer from, which is a rushed, almost cliche ending. While the temporal limitations of americanbaron’s Tik Toks do, in many ways, hinder the impact of his videos objectively, I find that they make his content more charming altogether. There is something about those endings that come seemingly out of nowhere that make me want to watch them over and over again, and it makes me wonder what he could do if he was given a deal with a major studio to make his own feature-length film.
FROM ADAM Over the weekend, I stumbled upon a book titled, “Politically Correct Bedtime Stories” by James Finn Garner, which annoyed me as soon as I read it. However, when I saw that the book was published in 1994, my irritation slightly gave way to curiosity. Typically, when I think of people talking about political correctness, I think about conservatives trying desperately to dunk on naïve progressives for being “soft”. Or, on the other end of the spectrum, I think about liberals whose only critical thinking skills are put towards whether or not something they read or watch could possibly be deemed as problematic. The term political correctness goes back centuries, though it really has only gained a... View the rest of this article on wfuogb.com
mined by analyzing a database of news articles. Thus, rankings are determined by which words journalists use in proximity. Alternative parts of speech and homonyms can throw you off, while antonyms can score surprisingly close. I drove myself to madness over Semantle. I played all day — during class, with friends, while procrastinating homework — and diligently pulled out my phone whenever a new possibility occurred to me. I hit well over three hundred guesses and the closest I came was education, pedagogy and tutelage. Once I started hallucinating thesauruses, I decided I had to quit, and the next day I discovered that the secret word was "curriculum". Frustration aside, the people of the internet are delightfully creative. Mindless entertainment is always at our fingertips, but instead of shunning new technologies, creators have harnessed their many possibilities. If busy college students spend their precious free time voluntarily expanding their critical thinking skills through these games, our generation may reignite its love of learning yet.
Contact Melina Traiforos at traimg21@wfu.edu
THE HOT LIST THE SEVEN WONDERS OF WAKE FOREST BY ABBY KOMISKE
1.
The doors to Manchester Hall
2.
The single bathrooms by the Pit
3.
The fake/very real speed bumps around campus
4.
The raccoons in the sewer by the practice football field
5.
The pink "Hello Kitty" bandaid on the steps leading to the Pit
6.
The Wake Line
7.
The fire pits when it's a relatively nice day
Old Gold & Black | Life
Page 16 | Thursday, April 7, 2022
LIFE THROUGH THE LENS:
FOOD, BEAUTY & CULTURE Exploring the beauty of Vietnamese food and its cultural significance to identity and memory SELINNA TRAN Print Managing Editor
“If you knew what I knew about giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way.” These are wise words that were said by an even wiser individual, Siddartha Guatama — the venerable Buddha. Food is more than a means of survival, more than something that our bodies necessitate. Food crosses cultures, generations, lives and stories that all intersect over a meal. From a young age, I was taught the incomparable beauty of food and preparing a meal with love and intention. I was never one to eat just because I needed to — I desire meaning in the food that I am eating or preparing. Beyond the delicious meals that my parents prepared for me growing up, learning about food shaped a part of my identity and was an integral part of my culture. Being a Southeast Asian American, I always struggled with maintaining my Vietnamese identity in a society and culture that made me feel wrong for the way I looked or the food I ate. While I am not here to discuss the racial implications of my history with food, it is an important prerequisite to address before diving into some anecdotal stories of my favorite Vietnamese dishes.
NO.1 PHO This dish is number one simply because it has been incredibly integral to my life. It is a dish cooked during celebratory moments like my birthday and one that I have loved since childhood. This is not an easy feat considering that I was an incredibly picky child that despised most of the foods that graced my dinner plate. A sea of noodles is packed together in a delicious, slightly salty,
slightly sweet broth that nests nicely with tender beef and various vegetables (basil is my premier choice as a beautiful component to the overall composition of the soup). As with most Vietnamese people that I have met who have graced their mothers with the testimonial, “my mom makes the best pho,” I must say that my mom makes the best pho. Despite trying this dish at various restaurants across the United States and even in Vietnam, nothing comes close to the piping hot soup my mom makes which I never let cool down before digging in. Perhaps it’s the intention, love and care that goes into assembling each bowl, or maybe the 24-hour prep time that the broth demands — either way, my mom’s pho is a dish that, every time I eat, I will be reminded of the fond memories of celebration and warmth that are associated with it.
NO.2 BUN BO HUE Before this dish, I discussed pho — which is actually widely known and gaining popularity in the United States among non-Vietnamese populations as more Americans fall in love with the soup. However, another noodle soup — bun bo hue —- might be lesser known to those who don’t have a Vietnamese restaurant in their neighborhood — or if you’re not Vietnamese. The components of the dish are fairly similar: noodles, beef broth, beef and an assortment of herbs and vegetables. However, the flavors could not be more different, as bun bo hue offers a spicy and deeply layered soup experience. Another key aspect of the dish is the size of the noodles — as they are noticeably larger in radius than pho noodles. I did not always like bun bo hue growing up — the bright red color had always
thrown me off and I let my childish predications of being a picky eater dominate my palate. Now, however, bun bo hue has grown to be one of my favorite meals ever, and — in terms of taste — I might argue that it beats pho, but it falls short in having that nostalgia quirk that is the reason why pho is so near-and-dear to my heart.
“'If you knew what I knew about giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way.' These are wise words that were said by an even wiser individual, Siddartha Guatama — late prince and the venerable Buddha." NO.3 BANH BOT LOC
Graphics courtesy of Canva
cultures as they become mainstream. Pho and bun bo hue are prime examples of this and I can't wait for banh bot loc to be common enough that I do not have to make a nearly two-hour drive in order to satiate my appetite.
NO.4 GOI CUON Goi cuon, also known as Vietnamese spring rolls, is a versatile dish that has grown to be one of the most refreshing and delicious meals that I have loved to make. A fond memory that I associate with this dish is introducing it to my friends at Wake Forest after bringing back all the components after a visit home. I must admit, I was reluctant at first and a little embarrassed because I was worried that untoward comments would be made regarding the physical appearance and composition of the dish. Luckily, the people that I surround myself with and consider to be close friends, were nothing but accepting and full of gratitude for showing them something delicious. Goi cuon can be made with any filling, but I will describe my personal favorite way to assemble it. One requires rice paper that is soaked and warm-hot water with just a slight wash, and this will act as the wrapping for the roll. The roll is then filled with vermicelli rice noodles and various meats and/ or vegetables. I prefer adding fresh shrimp and pork belly with lettuce and chives to mine before I roll it up. The dish is normally paired with a peanut sauce and/or a fish sauce. I can recall many afternoons coming back from high school to prepare all of the components and make the dish. While I only had space to describe four dishes, there is vast depth and breadth to Vietnamese cuisine that you simply must try for yourself. If there is anything to take away from this, it is to open your mind and heart (and stomach) to foods outside of your comfort and culture. Food brings us together.
As we come to an even lesser-known dish, we have strayed away from the soups (no, I will not be talking about bun rieu, another popular Vietnamese noodle soup that I simply cannot bring myself to like). Banh bot loc is a type of clear dumpling that is steamed and filled. My favorite preparation of the dish and one that I insist is the only proper way to eat banh bot loc, is to have the dish steamed and wrapped in banana leaf. Most commonly, the filling consists of pork and shrimp and is served with the delicious dipping sauce, nuoc mam (fish sauce). Again, this is another dish that I did not dare to try. It was another missed opportunity as a child due to my negative attitude toward trying new foods. It is pertinent to note that a factor in my hesitancy or disfavor towards trying new foods was a result of the stigmatizition of traditional Vietnamese foods that were uncommon in the United States. Banh bot loc, accompanied by fish sauce, was labeled as "stinky" or "alien food" because of the physical characteristics of the dish. At first appearance, the dish is gelatinous and very visibly different from common American foods, leading to the ostracization of such foods that could be labeled as "otherly." Despite preconceived notions, society in the United States has grown to Contact Selinna Tran at be more accepting of foods of different transn19@wfu.edu
