MUSIC ISSUE 2019 SEE INSERT
Thursday, May 2, 2019 | Vol. XCV, Issue 24 | Binghamton University | bupipedream.com
The Free Word on Campus Since 1946
OCCT, Decol A provide rides during Ramadan Campus organizations add service options after murder of Halal Bites owner Shakeel Khan Kimberly Gonzalez contributing writer
anastasia figuera staff photographer The service change will add an OCCT bus stop at the intersection of Willow Street and Grand Avenue, near the Islamic Organization of the Southern Tier (IOST).
As the month of Ramadan approaches, Muslim students at Binghamton University will have several options to commute to a local mosque, with a stop added to Off Campus College Transport (OCCT) routes and a student-run transport service being offered by Decol A. OCCT’s additional stop will run from May 5, the beginning of Ramadan, to the last day of finals, May 17. The additional stop, located at the corner of Willow Street and Grand Avenue, will affect the West Side Outbound and Inbound routes, depositing riders near the Islamic Organization of the Southern Tier (IOST) at 161 Grand Ave. Following the murder of Shakeel Khan, a Johnson City resident and the Muslim owner of Halal Bites, a restaurant frequented by Muslim
and Desi students at BU, various multicultural organizations signed a letter to University administrators calling for transportation to be provided to Muslim students during Ramadan. “We demand that secure transportation is provided to religious buildings across these areas, especially during the holy month of Ramadan,” the letter read. “We need the addition of one stop to the IOST mosque on Grand Avenue by taking the detour off Floral Avenue, in Johnson City.” Although the additional stop will provide transportation for Muslim students during Ramadan, the stop was not specifically designated as such in OCCT’s service update on Monday night. OCCT declined to comment on what prompted the change in route. Before the release of the update, Decol A, a student activist group focused on Pan-Asian and Pacific Islander communities, had set up a carpool program for students during Ramadan. “Due to the lack of urgent action from the University, we’ve had to
see ramadan page 4
ResLife London program Event explores cultural adds new canceled for 2020 identity, family tradition streaming service English department hopes to revive program for spring Gitl-Yevgeniya Driker pipe dream news
SpectrumU to replace Time Warner Cable in dorm halls Nicole Kaufman
contributing writer
Students living in residential halls on campus can now access more than 200 cable channels through Spectrum University Live TV Streaming (SpectrumU). The new streaming service gives students access to channels ranging from news networks to entertainment television, which can be streamed wirelessly on various devices, such as laptops and smartphones, or on wired devices in the campus dorm rooms. The service replaces the Time Warner Cable wired cable service previously offered in Binghamton University dorms. Christopher Cullinane, associate director of Residential Life, wrote in an email that the University decided to switch to a streaming service to adapt to trends toward streaming platforms. “With the contract with the current campus cable provider ending, [Information Technology Services (ITS)] and Residential Life partnered to review all of the options available to campus, including traditional cable providers, streaming-only providers and hybrid services to provide the best possible service for the price,” Cullinane wrote. “ITS and Residential Life wanted to offer streaming as an option to students for consuming on-campus cable TV services.” Cullinane said students expressed interest in an on-campus cable television service that was financially practical. “As such, ITS worked diligently with Spectrum to ensure that these services could be attained at a cost that would not result in a fee increase to students,” Cullinane wrote. “So, the cost for campus
Administrative troubles have brought an end to Binghamton University’s Semester in London program, but coordinators in the English department have hopes of reviving it by spring 2020. The program, which was offered every spring, had been going on for almost 40 years. But according to
Joseph Keith, chair of the English department and an associate professor of English, tensions between the University’s Office of International Education and Global Initiatives (IEGI) and Academic Solutions, the organization that ran the program from London, led to its cancellation. While the English department hoped to find a new provider and continue the program, the IEGI informed them that the department would have to reapply the program. Keith wrote in an email that the
see london page 4
Class partners with national initiative to share stories Gillian Mathews
contributing writer
Students, faculty and community members gathered to explore stories about American migration and cultural identity at the Your Story, Our Story event on Monday, organized by students in Asian and Asian American Studies 480S: Community Engagement. The event was part of Your Story, Our Story, a national initiative of the
Tenement Museum in New York City that works with colleges, schools, libraries, museums and community groups to share stories of an object or tradition that has special meaning in relation to cultural identity, migration or immigration and aims to examine the evolution of the American identity through the expression of culture and tradition. Lisa Yun, an associate professor of Asian and Asian American studies and English who teaches Community Engagement, said the class enables
see identity page 3
Students to bike for Alzheimer’s awareness John Conner, Raven LoPresto to journey 1,800 miles to Colorado Melanie Gulbas pipe dream news
Two Binghamton University students will be biking 1,800 miles to raise money for the Rocky Mountain Alzheimer’s Disease Center (RMADC). Raven LoPresto, a senior majoring in psychology, and John Conner, a senior majoring in psychology, will be biking from Binghamton to the RMADC in Aurora, Colorado, leaving on June 3 and hoping to arrive by the week of July 9. In addition to raising awareness about Alzheimer’s, the two will be raising funds for their charity, A Ride 2 Remember, via GoFundMe. The RMADC is a division of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and supports dementia and head trauma research. Conner wrote in an email that he wants to raise $5,000 to fight Alzheimer’s disease in honor of his grandmother, Arlene, who passed away from it. “Experiencing the effects of Alzheimer’s [firsthand], both on the
see streaming page 4
see bike page 3
ARTS & CULTURE
sidney slon pipe dream photographer Raven LoPresto and John Conner, both seniors majoring in psychology, will be biking 1,800 miles from Binghamton to the Rocky Mountain Alzheimer’s Disease Center in Aurora, Colorado.
OPINIONS
SPORTS
Spot sparrows and other local species with Pipe Dream’s bird guide,
Rain or shine, we have outfit suggestions for all your Spring Fling needs,
The Editorial Board questions Spring Fling’s lack of female headliners,
Golf places sixth at the Big Sky Championships,
Track and field compete at Penn Relays, Big Red Invitational,
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