1-8-24 Emerald Media Group - Week of Welcome

Week of Welcome Edition

JANUARY 8, 2024

Emerald Media

SALMON STILL VITAL

TO TRIBAL LIFE Understanding the relationship between salmon and Indigenous communities NEWS: Longtime educator joins Eugene mayoral race PG 5 • A&C: What UO students are wearing in winter PG 14 • SPORTS: Volleyball’s incredible season PG 20

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NEWS

HOW THE STUDENTS OF UO FORMED A GOVERNMENT ASUO was formed on June 14, 1900 Daily Emerald VOL. 125, ISSUE NO. 19

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Following the wave of democratization

BY IAN PROCTOR • DESIGNED BY RYAN EHRHART during the early 1900s, countless student not ensure that student groups would be financially councils formed across the United States. While stable; for example, UO’s football team had to the first student councils date back to the earliest receive supplemental funding from the university.

American colleges, the University of Oregon was In 1900, a group of students led by McArthur among the earliest schools in the United States to petitioned the Board of Regents — the precursor specifically form a student government. to the Board of Trustees — to advocate for the student fee to become mandatory for all Library records, obtained by the Daily students.

Emerald, show that ASUO was officially formed “We believe that such student enterprises on June 14, 1900. The creation of ASUO followed as the publishing of university papers a petition led by a group of students to create [newspapers] and the support of intera student fee which, the students felt, would collegiate contests in foot-ball, track athletics, help financially stabilize student-run clubs and debate and oratory are essential to the life of groups. the modern university, and that they assist Prior to ASUO, students primarily organized in drawing students to an institution and in themselves into two debate societies — the girls’ stimulating university life,” the petition said.

Eutaxian society and the boys’ Laurean society, University President Prince Lucien Campbell the latter of which was led by Clifton “Pat” approved of the creation of ASUO and a McArthur in 1900. mandatory $2.50 student fee, stating: “The The societies were like a cross between suggestion seems to me a good one and I student government, Greek Life and a student therefore recommend it to your favorable newspaper. Through their publications, consideration.” the societies printed their debates over The new mandatory fee required a body to contemporary issues at the time. control it. So, ASUO was officially created on June But as students began forming their own clubs 14, 1900, though it would be named the “Associated and teams, it became a question as to how these Students Executive Committee.” McArthur was clubs could gain money other than through chosen as the first student body president. fundraising.

In 1912, the Associated Students Executive In 1899, a student fee to fund student services was Committee was renamed to the Associated introduced. The fee provided funding for football, Students of the University of Oregon. track, student publications and the glee club.

However, the fee was optional. The optional fee did

Eric Henry X317 ehenry@dailyemerald.com

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

VP OPERATIONS

EDITORIAL: HELP SAVE EUGENE WEEKLY

Kathy Carbone X302 kcarbone@dailyemerald.com DIRECTOR OF SALES & DIGITAL MARKETING

Shelly Rondestvedt X303 srondestvedt@dailyemerald.com CREATIVE & TECHNICAL DIRECTOR

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creative@dailyemerald.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Lola Tagwerker Cori Caplinger Cooper Gast Taylor Baumgardner

ON THE COVER

Keyen Singer, a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and Miss Indigenous UO 2023-24. (Lulu Devoulin/ Emerald)

THE DAILY EMERALD

The Daily Emerald is published

by Emerald Media Group, Inc., the independent nonprofit media company at the University of Oregon. Formerly the Oregon Daily Emerald, the news organization was founded in 1900.

Our community needs the Eugene Weekly.

For those unaware, on Dec. 28, the Weekly — Eugene’s alternative weekly newspaper — announced that it would not send an issue to print, for the first time in over 20 years, after discovering years of embezzlement from a former employee that forced the paper to lay off its entire staff just before Christmas.

Under any circumstances, the news would be shocking and devastating. For Eugene, the end of the Weekly would be a death blow to high-quality local news.

In the wake of the announcement, the community’s response has been substantial. Its GoFundMe page has raised well over $70,000 as of this writing. Yet it may not be enough.

That’s why we are urging the UO community to donate to the Weekly — either via their website or their GoFundMe — because we need all hands on deck to save a beloved local institution.

The troubles at other Eugene-area publications, like the Register-Guard, have been well-documented in recent years. But high-quality local reporting has

survived, in large part thanks to the Weekly.

There has been no greater supporter of Emerald student journalists than the Weekly.

Numerous staff members — including several writing this letter — have published their first professional articles in the paper; countless former alumni can recall the Weekly being their first job out of college, or a Weekly staff member taking a chance on an inexperienced student.

The Emerald now finds itself in a strange position. In coming weeks, we will be considering our responsibility to the Eugene community — and how events like this might influence our coverage of the city moving forward.

Make no mistake, though — any increased city coverage by the Emerald will not fill the void the Weekly would leave behind. That’s why we urge the community to support the Weekly however they can, in ways big or small. The city needs it. The Emerald needs it. And UO students need it, too.

- The Daily Emerald Editorial Staff M O N D AY, J A N UA R Y 8 , 2 0 2 4

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LOOK ONLINE IN OTHER NEWS

(Alex Hernandez/Emerald)

GTFF declared their intent to strike if a deal is not reached with the university on wage increases by Jan. 17.

(Alicia Santiago/Emerald)

Superpedestrian e-scooters will no longer be located in Eugene following the end of the company’s U.S. operations.

We want to hear from you: Email editor@ dailyemerald.com to submit a tip or a letter to the editor. The ideal length for a letter is 200-500 words, but we publish letters of various lengths online.

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In recovery?

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Is your substance use affecting school or relationships?

The Collegiate Recovery Center: • Supports students pursuing recovery • Provides individual consultations • Hosts recovery support groups • Offers a cannabis-specific group

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Follow the QR code to view our schedule or book an appointment.

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OUR DOORS ARE OPEN. Make an appointment online, or walk in to our Health Center on Franklin today!

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NEWS

LONGTIME EDUCATOR JOINS EUGENE MAYORAL RACE

BY TAREK ANTHONY • DESIGNED BY GABRIELA MARTINEZ

On Nov. 14, 2023, Eugene resident Shanaè Joyce-Stringer announced her candidacy for mayor of Eugene, giving Kaarin Knudson — who is endorsed by current Mayor Lucy Vinis — an opponent to run against in the May 2024 mayoral primary election.

Vinis announced in the fall that she would not be seeking re-election in 2024, leaving the race thus far between Knudson, Joyce-Stringer and another Eugene resident, Douglas Barr. Barr filed for candidacy on Dec. 5, 2023. The filing deadline is March 6th.

Joyce-Stringer, a Miami native, moved to Eugene three years ago in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. She began working in the Eugene 4J school district before transitioning to become a program coordinator with the Lane County Education Service District in November 2021.

Since moving to Eugene in 2020, Joyce-Stringer said that she has become an active member of the Eugene community, working to inspire change throughout her educational work. Joyce-Stringer said she wants to expand this work to a broader level as mayor.

“I know that as a millennial, as a woman of color and as a budding entrepreneur, that I offer a unique perspective to the city and I know that Eugene can thrive under leadership that actually reflects the diversity and aspiration of all of its residents,” Joyce-Stringer said.

“I’m definitely deeply rooted in the community and [have] ties to the community. And it’s been my participation in local events and Program Council boards that really gave me great insight into the needs of the community.”

If elected, Joyce-Stringer said she wants to focus on making Eugene a city of “sustainable growth” by preserving resident’s access to Eugene’s extensive green space, promoting a healthy and active lifestyle for Eugene residents and making safe spaces for public gathering and community building.

Joyce-Stringer says that she plans to ensure housing equity and equitable government representation for all Eugene residents.

“We need to look at inclusive leadership.

Meet Eugene mayoral candidate Shanaè Joyce-Stringer

Evangelist and life coach, and began another entrepreneurial endeavor, “Shanaè JoyceStringer Enterprise.’’ Her new business encompassed her ministry and life coaching work, as well as her book publications, which include the children’s book “Princess N’s First Day of School” and the faith-based relationship book, “Cover Your Covering.”

In recent weeks, many UO students and Eugene residents have held protests regarding Eugene’s elected officials’ positions on the Israel-Hamas war, something that JoyceStringer believes could be improved upon if she were elected mayor.

“I think it’s important to acknowledge the multiple faith communities that are here in Eugene and to also acknowledge the multiple viewpoints and perspectives that folks will have on these very important issues such as what’s taking place in Gaza,” Joyce-Stringer said.

Knudson, one of JoyceStringer’s two opponents, holds the endorsement of Eugene Mayor Vinis, former Mayor Kitty Piercy and five of eight Eugene city council members. JoyceStringer is not worried about her opponent having the endorsements of these local politicians.

“We are looking to build a race and campaign that is spreading a message that we are here for the community, we are here to listen,” JoyceStringer said. “We may not have right now the backing of many city elected officials, including the mayor. But I know that we do have growing support from everyday (Photo courtesy of Shanaè Joyce-Stringer) Eugene residents, and that is who a mayor is supposed to represent: the everyday folks here in Eugene.” as an educator for school systems in Florida.

The Daily Emerald reached out to Knudson She also taught students of the Seminole Native for an interview, who did not respond in time for American Tribe in Clewiston, Fla., where she comment stayed for almost two years.

Eugene’s primary mayoral election will be held In 2017, Joyce-Stringer stepped away from on Tuesday, May 21, to determine the ballot for teaching to focus on her company, B.L.A.Q. the general election on Nov. 5.

Events, a full service event planning and consultation firm she founded in 2011. In 2018, Joyce-Stringer became an ordained I believe in a city where every voice is heard regardless of background or circumstances in life,” Joyce-Stringer said. “I am deeply committed to addressing our housing challenges by continuing to support creative and diverse options and ensuring greater housing stability for those in need.”

Joyce-Stinger did not offer any concrete plans of how she would address the housing crisis.

Between 2006 and 2015 Joyce-Stringer worked

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OPINION

GAMLEN: THE COST OF VAPES OPINION: Vaping is a prevalent habit. But in recent months, the ugly side of vape production has been unearthed, and that may have detrimental effects on the vape industry.

If you’ve been on social media in the past few months, the chances of you hearing about the Congo are very high. Maybe you’ve heard about the “modern-day slavery” of the lithium mines in the Congo, the child labor and the abuses of power, all for the sake of harvesting lithium, an element used in so many things.

One usage of lithium is found within vapes. Both disposable and reusable vapes contain lithium within the batteries.

Over the last few years, different companies have made it their mission to antiquate the practice of Gen Z vaping. Programs like the Truth campaign tried and failed to eradicate vaping. It seemed as though Gen Z would never quit. Trying to make vaping “uncool” was seemingly never going to work.

Our generation doesn’t appear to care about the harm vapes do, at least not to ourselves.

But one thing that Gen Z does seem to care about is others. So, when people began to notice that children were being forced to risk their lives for the sake of lithium –– and for the sake of vapes –– a debate began.

The debate was questioning how humane it is for people to be continuing a practice that is killing children. Especially when it’s such a bad habit. For the first time, Gen Z has begun to stop vaping. But will it last?

In recent months geologists have found between 20 and 40 million metric tons of lithium on the Nevada-Oregon border. This is the largest amount of lithium recorded ever.

So what does this mean?

For starters, it means that the Congo may not be the place we are getting all of our lithium in the near future. But more than that, this means that lithium being used in batteries may not be a result of child labor and could potentially be a humane harvesting process.

With that in mind, will Gen Z stick to the trend of giving up vapes? Or will the lack of abuse while harvesting lithium lead to a mass return? Or will other implications and stigmas about vapes lead so a permanent withdrawal?

There have been efforts by three different Indigenous tribes to halt production of the lithium mines on the border, but those pleas have been denied by a judge, and production has already begun despite the harvesting being next to the sacred site of a massacre that occurred in 1865 in Thacker Pass or Peehee Mu’huh in the Paiute language.

Now that we know the mine is not only under construction but will be finished as soon as possible, will this be the event that stops teen vaping? Or will the implication that vapes are a direct result of slavery and historic indigenous massacres be

BY MILLY GAMLEN DESIGNED BY EVA ANDREWS

enough to dissuade the masses?

The other thing Gen Z seems to be very conscious of is the way their image is perceived, and now that the connection has been drawn between child slavery and vapes there may be a stigma surrounding casual vaping. Another one may be drawn now that a sacred site has been destroyed for the sake of a mine.

It seems that only time will tell whether or not the implication of vapes being a direct result of slavery is enough to subdue the addictions of so many. But this realization about the harm they cause to other people is one of the first big steps in the right direction.

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OPINION

ELLERBRUCH: PORTLAND DESERVES A WNBA TEAM

BY OLIVIA ELLERBRUCH • DESIGNED BY GABRIELA MARTINEZ

OPINION: With women’s basketball finally getting the recognition it deserves, a team in the Pacific Northwest is needed

Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink, Paige Bueckers and Hailey Van Lith. These names are arguably the most recognized college women’s basketball players in the country right now.

Last year’s women’s March Madness tournament had the excitement and enchantment that reeled in viewers and proved women are just as badass and deserving as their male counterparts. Combined with the incredible Las Vegas Aces championship win in the WNBA Finals earlier this year, women’s basketball feels like it is finally getting the recognition I have been praying for ever since I joined my first youth team.

The WNBA announced on Oct. 5, 2023, that a team will be added to the program in the Bay Area, sharing the same Chase Center arena as the Golden State Warriors; the team will start competing in the league in the 2025 playing year.

While I have lived in the Portland suburbs since 2010, my family is originally from the Bay, so a team being there naturally made me very happy.

However, since it isn’t local to me, I’m dismayed that I still won’t be able to watch a WNBA game in person for a while.

This got me thinking: the Pacific Northwest has always been vocal about its support for female athletes and the NWSL team, the Portland Thorns, has garnered successful support in PDX, so what about here for the next expansion?

The Thorns most notable proof of support was their record-setting attendance game in August 2019. The crowd totaled 25,218 fans, and while this was considered incredible at the time, the records all around for women’s sports spectators have improved considerably post COVID-19 and the arenas being . The home opener for the second-place winners of the Women’s NCAA tournament last year, the University of Iowa Hawkeyes, had a record of 55,646 fans. To garner even more attention, the game was played outside in their football stadium rather than on a traditional indoor court. The proof is in the pudding — women are equally badass athletes and people actually want to watch them.

Some further reasoning for the City of Roses as a WNBA expansion site is that Nike was founded here. This provides a solid support system and marketability in the city for inclusivity and great athletes, no matter their gender. Nike is like God in the Portland area, and if they were to be a main sponsor of a new WNBA team there, it would surely spark

the interest of hundreds of Portlanders whose lives revolve around the company.

Additionally, there is a myriad of women’s basketball talent already coming out of the Pacific Northwest. Two of the names in the first sentence call the PNW home. Brink, who plays for Stanford, is from a suburb of Portland, and Van Lith, who transferred from Louisville to LSU this season, is from a small town in Washington called Cashmere.

Brink especially has changed the course of women’s basketball in Oregon, offering camps to

little girls who want to be just like her. Van Lith was a student under the late Kobe Bryant, who was also a huge advocate for women’s basketball.

If these two had the chance to play close to home once they get to the WNBA, they would surely continue to spread their love of the game and their talent within the community.

While the Pacific Northwest may seem like a small corner of the country, it’s home to passionate fans. Enthusiasm for sports is not shy here, and another professional team would boost morale.

Hopeless Portlanders have been begging for more teams for years, and they will come out guns a-blazin’ for a WNBA team.

The Oregon women’s basketball team beat the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions, 86-60, at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore., on Nov. 8, 2023. (Eliott Coda/Emerald) M O N D AY, J A N UA R Y 8 , 2 0 2 4

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COVER

TRIBAL SALMON MANAGEMENT SEES ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS Keyen Singer, a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and Miss Indigenous UO 2023-24.

(Devoulin/ Daily Emerald)

The relationship between salmon and Indigenous communities is essential to understanding salmon’s importance in the Pacific Northwest

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COVER Indigenous communities have suffered for centuries at the hands of settler colonialism. So many aspects of Indigenous life — as well as Indigenous practices — have been thrown to the curb by colonial settlers, leaving little to no resources for Indigenous communities around the country.

Salmon, a vital part of tribal life in the Pacific Northwest and Northern California, have been put at risk for generations by this dynamic. Yet despite its dismal history, some tribal members see positive developments occurring in salmon habitat restoration, not the least of which is a new respect for tribal salmon management practices.

SALMON RESTORATION WITH INDIGENOUS PRACTICES The Klamath River has been home to four massive dams since the early 1900s, but in June 2023, the process of dam removal finally began after a long period of activism and debate.

Dams pose a massive threat to salmon. Not only are they built to control water, but they block sections of rivers off, preventing wildlife from migrating through.

This leads to widespread death of a litany of marine wildlife, including salmon, which critically harms Indigenous communities’ ability to maintain a functioning system.

Ron Reed, a ceremonial leader, dipnet fisherman and cultural biologist of the Karuk tribe on the Klamath River, has been working at the forefront of salmon restoration and restoring Indigenous practices for quite some time.

“The salmon is the ultimate monitoring tool,” Reed said. “How well the system is functioning is how well your salmon run is doing.”

Another crucial element of Indigenous practices is Indigenous fire. While fire and salmon might not appear to have any correlation, they are mutually important to each other –– not just in Indigenous communities, but as a model for resource management nationwide.

Indigenous fire practices have also proven to be effective wildfire

management. These practices entail low intensity fires that minimize debris buildup on the ground, all while giving nutrients to the soil and protecting the canopies. High intensity wildfires occur when the landscape is not prepared for wildfire season, and Indigenous fire practices do just that. Not only do these fire practices prepare the environment around them for a healthier and safer wildfire season, but they do wonders for the health of salmon in the warmest times of the year.

Kari Norgaard, UO professor of sociology and environmental studies, has conducted research on these very issues, noting the importance of Indigenous fire to the health of salmon.

“When there’s smoke in the air, the river temperatures drop, which is critical for salmon in the summer,” Norgaard said. “There’s a direct shading of the sun, but also because the plants reduce the amount of evapo-transporation.

When a fire happens, plants don’t grow the same. Plants are reducing the amount of water they take up, so when fire happens, it’s causing more water to go into the stream.”

INDIGENOUS, SALMONBASED STRUGGLES WITH NON-NATIVE AGENCIES A primary aspect of settler colonialism and its repression of Indigenous communities is its stranglehold on day-to-day tribal practices. Tribal nations are not granted remotely close to the same amount of resources as non-Native groups, which hampers tribal nations’ flexibility in continuing their ways of life. As mentioned earlier, Indigenous fire is paramount in keeping up an Indigenous way of life. When Indigenous communities want to do work on any given issue, including salmon restoration, intervention from federal agencies is constant.

“The tribal government is only an off-shoot of the federal government, so it’s colonial in nature,” Reed said. “The funding that we receive disallows us to follow the Indigenous strategy of life. So people like me fall out of the picture, because of our strong, inherent belief system that we gotta do things a certain way. It kinda

creates an unhealthy product.”

Keyen Singer, UO’s Native American Student Union community relations director, has first-hand experiences with the ways in which non-Native groups and agencies colonize her land and her salmon. When asked how nonNative people can urge their local politicians to implement policies that benefit both tribal salmon and their Indigenous communities, Singer noted a key difference between tribal salmon runs and commercial salmon.

“The salmon are sometimes being overfished by commercial fishermen,” Singer said. “There’s a difference between us going out because we only fish for what we need for the community.

Commercial fishermen come in and take a lot of fish to go sell to the general public. The government could implement Indigenous curriculum, giving non-Native people a chance to learn why the land is important.

We could have a lot more people become allies within tribal communities.”

With that being said, there is light at the end of the tunnel. While most non-Native agencies enact policies that are detrimental to Indigenous lives, President Joe Biden has recently agreed to a 10-year partnership called the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative, which aims to restore wild salmon populations in the Columbia River and increase tribally sponsored clean energy production.

of dam removal projects has begun to restore hope for Indigenous communities who have been suffering for centuries. In Oregon, the Klamath River dam removals are creating that same impact.

“The most prolific spawning habitat in North America is gonna be reactivated,” Reed said. “That is gonna create a steep learning curve.

We don’t know what’s gonna happen, but we know good’s gonna happen.”

While these dam removals are obviously crucial to the longterm survival of salmon habitats, they are striking a particularly meaningful chord with ceremonial leaders nationwide, including Reed.

“Indigenous people do not believe in miracles, we depend on them,” Reed said. “The dams coming out on the Klamath River is nothing short of a miracle. And now it gives ceremonial people like myself hope that I can restore the continuity between the Indigenous societies of this world to the Indigenous societies of yester-world. It’s not just fire, not just dam removal. It is the entire Indigenous knowledge concept.”

Salmon hold a unique place in the cultural foundations of tribal nations. In many tribal creation stories, salmon are credited as the first species to step forward and provide their body as food for the humans to survive. For that reason, lots of Native people feel obligated to provide the salmon with a healthy, plentiful habitat for them to live in exchange for their sacrifice as food. The bond between Native people and salmon can never be broken.

AN ESSENTIAL CULTURAL PRESENCE Free-flowing rivers defined Indigenous life for their entire existence in North America.

Salmon aplenty, economic freedom from colonial powers and an uninterrupted way of life. However, upon the arrival of colonial settlers, Indigenous people’s freedoms and resources were slowly getting stripped from them. Dams were built in a plethora of rivers nationwide and colonial agencies took over tribal governments, leading to the brutal silencing of tribal nations.

“We’re silent victims of this American Holocaust,” Reed said.

In recent decades, the introduction M O N D AY, J A N UA R Y 8 , 2 0 2 4

WE’RE SILENT VICTIMS OF THIS AMERICAN HOLOCAUST,” RON REED a ceremonial leader, dipnet fisherman and cultural biologist of the Karuk tribe on the Klamath River.

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A&C

WHAT UO STUDENTS WEAR IN WINTER

UO students discuss their favorite brands and winter wardrobe items

BY HARPER MAHOOD • DESIGNED BY EVA ANDREWS

As the days get shorter and temperatures drop, UO students are transitioning into their winter wear. T-shirts are being swapped out for waterproof jackets and Birkenstocks are retired for more water-resistant alternatives such as Dr. Martens.

With 48.7% of the student body being either outof-state or international students, the plummet in temperature and excess of rain can be cause to invest in an “Oregonian” wardrobe. Freshman Aaron Ryan had to buy new clothes when they came to UO. “I wasn’t expecting it to be this cold,” Ryan said.

Ryan’s winter look in Eugene consists of long sleeve shirts and a raincoat or leather jacket overtop.

With an abundance of rain comes an abundance of puddles, which on UO’s lush campus means that students prioritize warmer footwear in the winter months. Kara Steinberg, a sophomore at UO, opts for boots in the winter months.

“My favorite shoes are my Blundstone boots, which are waterproof and perfect for the rain,” Steinberg said.

Steinberg also wears her Columbia puffer jacket on most cold days with a sweater underneath. Puffers are a staple on the UO campus, an easy and versatile piece that many students already have in their closets. The North Face is one of the most popular brands for puffers with students at UO. Their eye-catching colors and reputation for warmth make them a great option in the winter months.

“I feel like my style is pretty boring, I end up wearing the same North Face jacket everyday, my puffer,” Jacob Brown, a sophomore at UO, said.

“And then I switch between my two shoes, either my boots or my Blazers.”

Nike is a popular footwear option at UO, the alma mater of Nike co-founder Phil Knight. Due to the walkability of UO’s campus, comfortable shoes are the way to go.

“I definitely go with sneakers,” Julia Wu, a freshman at UO, said. “I have boots but I don’t really wear them that often.”

Wu is from Taiwan but spent the last 10 years living in Singapore.

“It’s all summer there,” Wu said of Singapore.

“So in the beginning of being in the cold I was like, ‘Wow I haven’t been in a cold place in a while,’ so it took me a while to adjust.”

Rather than invest in separate winter clothing items, Wu opts for layering.

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(Oscar Zurita/Emerald)

layers,” Wu said. “So I can still wear my summer pants and I don’t need to buy new pants.”

Freshman Lydia Struble is from Indiana and explained that the winters in Eugene are warmer than back home, though definitely more rainy. Because of this, Struble had already amassed a collection of winter clothes prior to moving to Eugene.

“I feel like I mostly wear jeans and sweaters and a different puffer or rain jacket most of the time,” Struble said.

Agreeing with the general consensus of UO

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students, Struble opts for sneakers or Dr. Martens on most days.

Overall, students at UO have similar ideas when it comes to dressing for cold weather. Take a walk through campus this winter and you are bound to spot at least a handful of puffer jacket clad students. It might be harder to express individuality through fashion in the winter months – however, it does make it a little easier to get dressed in the mornings.

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A&C

“II GAVE HER MY HEART, SHE GAVE ME A PEN” PEN The Dobler-Dahmer theory: How romantic gestures can be perceived depending on the person

BY SAMANTHA LOZANO • DESIGNED BY GABRIELA MARTINEZ An intriguing theory that has captured my attention over the years is derived from the popular television show “How I Met Your Mother” — the Dobler-Dahmer theory. This concept, coined by main character Ted Mosby, suggests that, “If both people are into each other, then a big romantic gesture works: Dobler. But if one person isn’t into the other, the same gesture comes off serial-killer crazy: Dahmer.”

The terms Dobler and Dahmer originate from Lloyd Dobler in the 1980s film “Say Anything” and the notorious serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.

Drawing parallels from classic ‘80s films such as “The Breakfast Club,” “Sixteen Candles” and “Pretty in Pink,” these films consist of the underdog constantly trying to pursue the protagonist romantically. The message being: the more I persist, the better the results will be. At a certain point, what defines the line between creepy and genuinely romantic? Does it hinge solely on the mutual level of attractiveness felt by each party involved? This theory prompts reflection on the nuanced dynamics of romantic pursuit and the subjective nature of its interpretation.

In “Say Anything,” a scene that many people reference is Dobler holding up a boombox outside of Diane Court’s house, while playing the Peter Gabriel song “In Your Eyes.” This gesture could easily be interpreted as forward and borderline scary depending on the person.

But in the film, it was appreciated. The more grand of a gesture, the blurrier the line can be.

University of Oregon senior David Muhich explained his experience with people pursuing him.

“It all depends on the intention behind it,” he said. “Is someone being authentic with their words or are they trying too hard?”

Muhich provided examples from his own experience of how acts of kindness could be interpreted in multiple ways.

“I had someone that called me before we were dating — she was stranded somewhere.

She called me to come pick her up but was very grateful in a way that was very sincere and personal,” Muhich said. “If someone else did that and seemed like they were lying or it was an excuse to see me, it would be a red flag.”

Understanding people’s intentions can be challenging in itself. Moreover, establishing boundaries poses its own set of difficulties, particularly since we cannot predict how others will respond to these limits. Putting one’s heart on the line is a risky game that can resort to any type of response. “I gave her my heart, she gave me a pen,” Lloyd Dobler said after being broken up with. Was it mutual or was their dynamic a facade?

Societally, there is a prevalent misconception that we unequivocally support the underdog, often without taking into account the emotions and perspectives PA G E 1 6

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of the individual being pursued. Similar to 80s films, that doesn’t allow the protagonist to feel comfortable enough to say no to their advances. While one can also argue we put a majority of the responsibility on the pursuer to evaluate the situation. “Well, they should have known.” Whose responsibility is it to assess the situation?

UO student Ajewelina Daniels shared her experience with dating. “One thing is someone giving you attention and you’re not feeling it,” she said. “It may not have to do with that person personally but how strong they may be coming off.”

I often pass up opportunities not based on the person involved, but rather on the level of chemistry we share. While any gestures can be appreciated, the presence of genuine chemistry significantly influences my appreciation for them. In the context of dating, establishing clear boundaries on both sides proves beneficial in navigating the dynamics. It’s a delicate balancing act.

(Lynette Slape/Emerald)

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SPORTS

THE 2023 OREGON VOLLEYBALL TEAM WILL BE HARD TO FOLLOW UP The 2024 Ducks will hope to carry the torch passed by the tremendous athletes before them

BY JACK LAZARUS DESIGNED BY RYAN EHRHART

Oregon finished its 2023 season as the No. 7 ranked team in AVCA’s rankings, and they are the third best ranked team in the 2024 Big Ten. The past two seasons, the Ducks have had their best stretch since over a decade ago when they reached the National Championship game in 2012. They reached the Elite Eight for the second consecutive year, and again had three players earn AVCA All-America Honors. Hannah Pukis was named to the first team, Kara McGhee to the second and Morgan Lewis to the third, while Gabby Gonzales, Mimi Colyer and Georgia Murphy earned honorable mentions.

The 2023 season demonstrated that the Ulmer era at Oregon is just getting started and the pieces have been put in place for the Ducks to have one of the country’s most successful programs in just a few years. The success of this program was built by the departing seniors, who set the precedent for the younger Ducks that they have to now carry on.

This was the Ducks’ year to prove that they weren’t just a flash in the pan and that they were building something that all volleyball fans should keep an eye on.

The biggest hole to fill next year will be the role of the team’s main setter. Pukis ended her Oregon career with a first team All-American nod in her best season yet as a college player. Pukis posted careerhighs in assists, digs and blocks, while also leading the Ducks to a season hitting percentage of .282.

An all-around star, Pukis’ underrated defense and PA G E 2 0

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leadership might be what the Ducks will miss most, especially with other team leaders graduating.

Along with Pukis, Oregon is losing its starting libero in Murphy, setter Elise Ferreira, a versatile outside hitter and tremendous server in Gonzales and almost all of its starting net line of Lewis, McGhee and Karson Bacon.

In her sophomore season, Oregon’s former national freshman of the year Colyer had another stellar season, finishing fourth in the Pac-12 in kills and total aces while also being named to the all-conference team. Colyer will almost certainly be the most important member of the 2024 squad, especially since Oregon is losing some of its most potent scorers.

The Ducks also have a strong group of freshmen — led by elite serving talent Kate Thibault — who will all be competing this offseason for the open slots in the lineup. Thibault should expect to see a lot more game time, especially behind the endline.

Ulmer also hopes to get more production out of highly-touted high school prospect Alex Acevedo, who didn’t see much playing time this season.

Acevedo was originally supposed to graduate high school this year, but reclassified in order to gain an extra year of experience in Eugene.

Along with the strong group of 2023 freshmen, the 2024 freshman class will also have a lot to prove.

In the class of 2024, the Ducks managed to get two of the most highly recruited prospects in their respective areas.

Mia Tvrdy, a middle blocker from La Vista, Nev., will be playing in the Under Armour All-American

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Daley McClellan (4) yells in excitement after winning a point. The Oregon Ducks volleyball team took on the University of Hawaii at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore. on Dec. 1, 2023. (Eddie Bruning/Emerald)

game in Orlando this week. She is an excellent and athletic player who has a great defensive sense and a tremendous vertical leap as well.

Tvrdy will be joined by one of California’s best in Anaya Thrower from Vacaville. Thrower is a tall middle blocker, who has a lot of power on her attacks while also reserving energy to make athletic defensive plays.

The task that these athletes will undertake is going to be a very difficult one, made even more difficult by the move to a brand new, very dominant conference. The Big Ten currently includes two of the top three ranked teams in the final AVCA rankings of 2023 in Wisconsin and Nebraska, both teams that Oregon has played in the last two seasons (the Ducks beat Nebraska in last year’s Sweet Sixteen and lost in the Elite Eight to Wisconsin this season).

These challenges will be crucial for the new group of leaders for the Ducks. However, with the guidance of those that came before them, the 2024 Ducks should be able to continue the success that this program has enjoyed under Coach Ulmer.

While the main contributors of the last two historic seasons have since departed, the foundation they built will be followed for years to come under the savvy tutelage –and surprisingly fine tuned vocal chords – of Ulmer.

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SPORTS

MALIAN CENTERS DIAWARA AND DANTE ARE CRUCIAL TO DUCKS PAC-12 SUCCESS Reunited in Eugene, the Malinese big men are flourishing and so is Oregon Everyone in college basketball is injured.

Everyone.

It might not all be surgeries or sprains but everyone has something — jammed fingers from errant passes, twisted ankles from jumping and general soreness throughout. It’s just a part of the sport.

Oregon men’s basketball is no exception. Just a few days into the season, center N’Faly Dante was already nursing an injury, one that proved to be long term with the UO announcing Dante would undergo surgery, sidelining him for four to six weeks.

Good thing Dante’s friend and fellow Malian center Mahamadou “Mo” Diawara was there to pick up Dante’s slack.

Recruited by Dante to unite in Eugene, Diawara was expected to add a veteran presence to a young team learning to create an identity. Not even he could have expected the role he would soon take on for head coach Dana Altman’s squad.

Following Dante and fellow big man Nate Bittle’s injuries, Diawara was immediately thrown into the fire and instantly was a burgeoning success.

After Bittle’s injury, Diawara immediately saw increased minutes, adding eight points and five rebounds off the bench in Oregon’s 92-67 victory over Tennessee State.

“Mo did a good job, he played hard and physically, he did a really good job, “ Altman said post-game.

“His minutes were a big plus, he had a +/- of +22 and that doesn’t surprise me, he did a nice job.”

The stats don’t tell the whole story. Oregon’s rim protection and interior defense improve significantly with Diawara on the floor. That will become even more important with Pac-12 play just beginning, as teams like Utah and Arizona have multiple seven-footers, and Diawara is Oregon’s lone active player listed at 6 ‘10” or above, making the Pac-12 slate as difficult as ever.

In Oregon’s victory over UCLA, Diawara’s presence and absence were apparent. Oregon surged out to an early lead, but with Diawara forced out of the game with foul trouble, the Bruins and center Adem Bona surged from behind to trail by just a score at the half.

Diawara on the floor proved to turn the tide as the Ducks defense stifled a talented UCLA offense in the halfcourt. Oregon was able to contain Bona and UCLA’s leading scorer Sebastian Mack to just 10 points in the second half.

BY JOE KRASNOWSKI DESIGNED BY EVA ANDREWS

It’s not a secret as to why Diawara is so successful guarding talented players. Just ask Dante. When Oregon’s talented center is fully healthy, the two of them make each other better every practice.

“When I play against him, I want to be physical,” Dante said of his matchups with Diawara.

“Everything I do, I want to make it harder on him, I try to go hard every single day, so he can become a better player, and he does the same to me.”

The two have made each other better and now with Dante soon to return, Altman can only dream of the possibilities.

“It’s a bummer we have some of our guys out,” freshman Jackson Shelstad said after the USC game. “It kinda changes the way our team plays and that kinda thing, but I feel like our guys have done a great job with that … When they come back they’re going to make a huge impact.”

Even in Dante’s absence, Oregon’s strong play has continued. Shelstad and fellow freshman Kwame Evans Jr. have both emerged as two of the team’s strongest players.

“You either have that competitiveness, that confidence, or you don’t,” Altman said of Shelstad, who tallied 22 points in Oregon’s victory over USC. “It’s like the quarterback of the football team, you know. Either you got a little bit of the ‘it factor’ or you don’t. Jackson’s got ‘it.’”

Dante — who averaged 13.4 points per game last year — has “it” too. Look out, Pac-12.

Early Oregon’s conference play has been superb, with the Ducks taking commanding victories over USC and UCLA improving Oregon’s record to 10-3.

Altman’s squad has quickly transitioned from one finding its footing without Dante, to now a legitimate contender for a tournament bid.

Now with Dante soon to return and Diawara’s strong play continuing, men’s basketball has Eugene and the rest of the sports world abuzz.

“We’ve known each other for 11 years, we played on the national team together,” Diawara said of his friend. “Me and him, we’ve been together every way, starting in AAU, we had the same house family, for me the last time playing with him in college, to go to the NCAA tournament, that’s my goal.”

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Center Mahamadou Diawara (24) celebrates a defensive block and the ball being turned over to the Ducks.

The Oregon Ducks men’s basketball team defeated the Tennessee State Tigers 92-67 at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore. on Nov. 17, 2023.

(Kemper Flood/Emerald)

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