Spring 2020 Issue 4

Vestal Museum focuses on local African American history, See page 6 Monday, February 3, 2020 | Vol. XCVII, Issue 4 | Binghamton University | bupipedream.com

The Free Word on Campus Since 1946

‘Empower our communities’: PLOT hosts bystander training session Speakers teach attendees about abusive situations Kimberly Gonzalez digital editor

In the past few years, the city of Binghamton has witnessed public uproar regarding allegations of the local police department abusing its power. In response, Progressive Leaders Of Tomorrow (PLOT) created bystander intervention programs with an aim to teach the community how to best respond in abusive situations.

Approximately 50 people attended one of their bystander intervention programs at the United Presbyterian Church of Binghamton on Thursday. A bystander, according to the session, is defined as someone who witnesses harmful behavior. The program was led by two people who went through various scenarios of harassment or abuse and explained how one could step in to help the victim.

Participants of the session shared their personal stories of witnessing events and how they interacted with the victims and aggressors of the situations. For the privacy and safety of those who participated and led the event, the attendees and presenters wished to remain anonymous.

Presenters noted that people often do not intervene during instances of harm because they are unsure of what to do.

They encouraged participants to keep three things in mind while intervening:

see bystander page 3

Students protest Cuomo’s bill veto SWEAT law sought to address New York employer wage theft Melanie Gulbas

jo myers pipe dream illustrator

BU halts all student, faculty travel to China University freezes travel funds following coronavirus outbreak Valerie Puma

assistant news editor

On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued

updated travel guidance, recommending avoidance of all nonessential travel to the entire country of China. Following the update, Donald Nieman, Binghamton University’s provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, released a Dateline announcement on Friday stating that all University-funded travel to China has been put on hold.

The hold includes “Universitysanctioned education-abroad travel to China” for faculty, students and staff, according to the Dateline announcement. Additionally, the University recommends that anyone planning to travel to China outside of University business or programs consider the CDC and U.S. Department of State’s

advisories.

“The travel hold is simply a response to warnings issued by the U.S. Department of State and the [CDC] and applies to any University-sponsored travel,” Nieman wrote in an email.

“This would be travel by faculty, staff or

see virus page 3

University Union basement to open soon Student study, hangout space renovations to finish Feb. 10

pipe dream news

Binghamton University students took a stand on Thursday in an effort to curb wage theft after Gov. Andrew Cuomo vetoed the Securing Wages Earned Against Theft (SWEAT) Bill on Jan. 1.

Students arranged a protest in Downtown Binghamton through Students Organizing Against Reynolds (SOAR), a multi-university student group that aims to fight for better living and working conditions, according to their Facebook page. The SWEAT Bill would let workers put a financial charge on their employers for any debt they owed the workers through withheld wages.

According to supporters, the SWEAT Bill would provide workers and the U.S. Department of Labor with the necessary tools to prevent bosses from transferring or hiding their assets. A financial charge would enable workers to put a hold on employers’ property until their owed wages are paid.

Some BU students said they felt threatened when the bill was vetoed because the legislation would help them in life after graduation. Protesters held posters that read, “CUOMO: WAGE THEFT COMMANDER IN CHIEF,” and “SIGN OR RESIGN.”

Jackson Galati news intern

After undergoing significant renovations in layout and appearance, the University Union’s basement will be open for business next week.

Starting Feb. 10, Binghamton University will reopen the University Union’s basement as the University Undergrounds. Students may notice a drastic change from the old basement, but there will still be familiar amenities to enjoy. The billiards room has been opened up into a large pathway and the table tennis room is now a multipurpose room. Billiards and table tennis will now be located in an area called The Den, which will also have foosball and shuffleboard tables.

The bowling alley has been upgraded with an electronic scoring system. The Undergrounds Lounge now matches BU’s colors and the Food Co-op’s space has a new countertop with built-in soup wells to serve customers. While students will be able to access most of the new Undergrounds on Feb. 10, the bowling alley, Food Co-op and offices in Under-

see protest page 3

see renovation page 3

ARTS & CULTURE

annabeth sloan fun editor

OPINIONS

SPORTS

“Mutant Space” opens at the Elsie B. Rosefsky Memorial Art Gallery,

Binghamton Zoo at Ross Park raises money with Penguin Bowl,

Contributing columnist Sophie Miller discusses TikTok’s impact on the music industry,

Women’s basketball’s Kai Moon joins Pipe Dream’s Bearcast,

Wrestling falls to American over the weekend,

SEE PAGE 5

SEE PAGE 6

SEE PAGE 4

SEE PAGE 8

SEE PAGE 8

PAGE II February 3, 2020 Thursday, Thursday, Monday, Monday, September October October April 3,2, 5, 2017 28, 2017 2017 2017

ADDress: University Union WB03 4400 Vestal Parkway E. Binghamton, N.Y. 13902 phone: 607-777-2515 fAx: 607-777-2600

It’s only a dollar

Pipe Line

weB: bupipedream.com

SPRING 2020 LOCAL NEWS eDitor-in-Chief* Sasha Hupka editor@bupipedream.com

MAnAging eDitor* Katy Wong manager@bupipedream.com

news eDitor* Jacob Kerr news@bupipedream.com Asst. news eDitors Valerie Puma Leora Schwadron Jeremy Rubino opinions eDitor* Evan Moravansky opinions@bupipedream.com Asst. opinions eDitor Elizabeth Short Arts & Culture eDitor* Gabriela Iacovano arts@bupipedream.com Asst. Arts & Culture eDitors Calendra Scahill Patrick Earns sports eDitor* Justin Zion sports@bupipedream.com

Hemp Geek opens second store Hemp Geek, a local cannabidiol (CBD) store, opened the doors to its newest store on Sunday, according to WICZ. The new store is located along Vestal Parkway.

In honor of its grand opening, Hemp Geek offered customers discounts and samples of CBD edibles and prerolled hemp. The store sells New York state brands of CBD products that are geared toward treating a variety of ailments, including anxiety and pain. Hemp Geek opened its first store in April 2019 in Chenango.

STATE NEWS

New York state continues to investigate potential coronavirus cases As of Saturday, 12 New York state residents have been tested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in connection to the coronavirus. Eleven tests have come back negative. The 12th

case is still pending. In response to the statewide concern about the virus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the establishment of a new hotline dedicated to answering questions and dispersing information about the illness.

There are currently eight confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States.

NATIONAL NEWS

Punxsutawney Phil predicts early spring An early spring may be on its way based on Punxsutawney Phil’s most recent prediction, according to WBNG. The groundhog’s forecast occurs annually on Feb. 2, and is based on a German myth indicating that there will be a longer winter if the furry rodent sees its shadow. On Sunday, the Pennsylvania groundhog did not see his shadow, indicating there would likely be an early spring.

Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl LIV

alex ritsatos contributing photographer A cappella group No Strings Attached perform at the spring 2020 Dollar Show on Saturday night.

The Kansas City victorious in the on Sunday night, CBS Sports. The

Chiefs were Super Bowl according to team, which

faced the San Francisco 49ers, won the game with a score of 20-31. The win marks the team’s second Super Bowl victory.

It last won the event in 1970, when it defeated the Minnesota Vikings with a score of 23-7 in New Orleans.

Asst. sports eDitors Edward Aaron Samantha Marsh photogrAphy eDitor* Ariel Kachuro photo@bupipedream.com Asst. photogrAphy eDitor Sidney Slon fun eDitor* Annabeth Sloan fun@bupipedream.com Asst. fun eDitor

Daniel Eisenhower

Design MAnAger* Kade Estelle design@bupipedream.com Design Assts.

Mikayel Harutyunyan Yingying Chen Copy Desk Chief* Lia Berger copy@bupipedream.com

Asst. Copy Desk Chief Cherie Litvin

DigitAl eDitor* Kimberly Gonzalez digital@bupipedream.com ViDeo eDitor* Nate Platzner video@bupipedream.com newsrooM teChnology MAnAger* Michelle Tan tech@bupipedream.com Art DireCtor* Max Samson

Business MAnAger* Maryam Soomro business@bupipedream.com Business AssistAnt Samantha Agnoli businessassistant@bupipedream.

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Pipe Dream is published by the Pipe Dream Executive Board, which has sole and final discretion over the newspaper’s content and personnel.

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All letters submitted for publication must include the author's name, year and major. Please limit letters to the editor to 400 words and guest columns to 750 words. Pipe Dream reserves the right to edit submissions, and does not guarantee publication. All submissions become property of Pipe Dream. Guest column submissions may be emailed to the opinions editor at opinions@ bupipedream.com, and all letters to the editor may be sent to editor@bupipedream.com. © Pipe Dream 2019

stabilizing:cake

tired:destabilizing

Police Watch The following accounts were provided by Investigator Mark Silverio of Binghamton’s New York State University Police.

Can I have it back, though?

MONDAY, Jan. 27, 3:50 p.m. — Officers received a fraudulent Rhode Island driver’s license as lost property. The officers reached out to the student who owned the license, a 20-year-old female, to tell her that her property was turned in. The student responded and said she would like to come to the UPD station and retrieve the ID. When she arrived, the officers informed her that she could not have her fraudulent driver’s license back. They also informed the student that she could potentially be charged with a misdemeanor or a felony for her possession of the fraudulent driver’s license. The student was given a warning, and the driver’s license was shredded.

“Ballsy” heist TUESDAY, Jan. 28, 4:30 p.m. — Officers responded to the East Gym for a larceny report. Upon arrival, the officers spoke to the victim, a 21-year-old male, who said that around 1:50 p.m. he placed his jacket in an unlocked locker in the locker room. When the student returned to the locker room around 4:20 p.m., he noticed a total of $350 missing from his wallet, which was in the inside pocket of his coat.

The student said he did not lock the locker as he did not think anyone would be “ballsy enough to rifle through his clothes.”

After reviewing footage around the East Gym, the officers were not able to identify a suspect. The case remains under investigation.

The worst place to run a stop sign THURSDAY, Jan. 30, 12:15 a.m.

— As officers were preparing to leave the parking lot of the UPD station, they observed a vehicle fail to stop at the stop sign at the intersection of Glenn G. Bartle Drive and East Drive. The vehicle continued down Glenn G. Bartle Drive heading off campus, and was clocked by the officers as traveling 38 mph in a 25 mph zone. Officers initiated a traffic stop as the car approached Vestal Parkway East. While speaking with the driver, officers noticed a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. The driver and passenger of the vehicle, both 20-year-old males, were removed and the vehicle was searched.

The officers recovered a total of 5.7 grams of marijuana from both the vehicle and a backpack belonging to the passenger.

Both the driver and passenger were charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. The driver received a speeding ticket and a traffic citation for failure to stop at a stop sign. Both are due to appear in Vestal Town Court.

Sportsmanship is key THURSDAY, Jan. 30, 6:50 p.m. — Officers responded to the East Gym after receiving a report that a fight had occurred. After speaking with the reporting East Gym staff member, officers were directed to the two people involved in the fight. The victim, a 19-year-old male, claimed he was playing an increasingly physical game of pickup basketball. At one point during the game, a member of

Hamza Khan Pipe Dream News

the opposing team, a 22-year-old male, hung onto the basketball rim, showboating. As the victim walked away, he pushed the legs of the player on the rim away, thinking he would get kicked in the face. The player hanging on

the rim hopped down, walked over to the victim and punched him in the face, at which point East Gym staff called the police.

When officers spoke to the 22-year-old suspect, he said he was going for a rebound when

he was pushed by the victim, at which point he walked over and punched the victim in the face.

The victim chose not to press charges, but the suspect was ejected from the East Gym by staff members.

bupipedream.com | February 3, 2020

NEWS

3

Student protesters say veto poses threat to their future protest from page 1 Ryan Muller, a member of SOAR and a senior majoring in linguistics, said as a student, he felt especially betrayed when the bill was not passed.

“It’s important we care about fighting wage theft as students who often work jobs during school and are studying to get jobs in the future,” Muller said.

“With the student loan crisis, rising costs of living and other growing challenges, we want a present and future where we and working people around us can protect ourselves from exploitation.”

In a Jan. 1 memo on the bill, Cuomo wrote that he did support the concept of the policy, but vetoed it because he believed it would be found unconstitutional, since the law would allow financial charges to be applied prior to judicial decisions.

The protest demonstration was held at the State Office Building in Binghamton and targeted toward Cuomo through the U.S. Department of Labor.

Students, community members and organizations, including the BU Progressives and DIVEST BING, came together to protest.

Muller said although they were a fairly small group, they had plenty of energy and loud voices.

“I think we made more than

enough noise,” Muller said.

BU students were not the only ones protesting the bill, and demonstrations occurred throughout New York state.

“After he vetoed the SWEAT Bill, us and other protesters at demonstrations in New York City and Buffalo are demanding that he stands with workers by signing the bill,” Muller said.

“Otherwise, we know he stands with bosses who have stolen literally billions in wages.”

Allison Byrne, a protester and a senior majoring in geography, said she wanted to fight for better conditions for workers.

“I and many others were there to show Cuomo that as workers we will not allow him to steamroll our rights and we will not allow him to stand by as bosses steal wages,” Byrne said. “Students know that we are workers too and most of us have had wages stolen in some form or another.”

Byrne said she, along with other student protesters, are not giving up until workers’ protection is promised and the bill is signed.

“We will come back again and again to make our voices heard,” Byrne said. “Passing the SWEAT Bill will hold bosses responsible and see that as workers, we receive what we have earned.”

BU students arranged a protest in Downtown Binghamton against Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s veto of the SWEAT Bill.

alex gross staff photographer

University Union basement to feature open floor plan renovation from page 1 grounds will be opening slightly later.

According to Orrin Kenyon, assistant director of University Union operations, the main focus of the renovation was to turn underutilized space into areas for students to study and collaborate on work.

“A couple years ago, when I first started, there was a big emphasis on ‘Students feel like we don’t have enough studying space,’’’ Kenyon said. “So what are some underutilized spaces?

And that’s what this became.”

Renovations began in summer 2018 and were originally supposed to be completed by Dec. 1, 2019. However, delays pushed the opening to the spring semester.

“A lot of the decisions that were made were once we really got into the details we wanted to do it right,” Kenyon said. “So instead of rushing a project to be done Jan. 1 and cutting corners, let’s make sure things get done.”

Along with the more open concept in the Undergrounds, Kenyon said glass walls and

doors have been installed in rooms such as the bowling alley and the Food Co-op to fulfill the central vision of the renovation.

“The idea was really to make the space more open, accessible, visible, ‘see and be seen,’” Kenyon said. “We’ve been going to some conferences about unions and activities and that’s the big thing is showing glass so you can see through what’s going on or having nice lighting and a place to relax and do that stuff.”

Anna Levenberg, a junior double-majoring in mathematics and computer science, said she is

looking forward to spending her free time in the Undergrounds after the reopening.

“I’m very happy — I miss them — it’s a really good place to hang out, eat lunch,” Levenberg said. “I live off campus so it’s really nice to go there between classes.”

Others, like Samori Emmanuel, a senior majoring in computer engineering, are looking for a place to relax on campus.

“In the Underground where the couches were, I used to take naps down there,” Emmanuel said. “That was the prime spot to

nap on campus.”

The Undergrounds can also be utilized by clubs and other organizations to host their events.

Ryan Gonzalez, a senior majoring in economics, is looking forward to using the space for the Video Game Association.

“I’m glad it’s finally coming to completion,” Gonzalez said. “It’s a little empty in here without the big sprawling Undergrounds.

I was with the [Video Game Association], mainly the fighting game club, that big place was usually the norm because we had so many people. With that out of

the way we had to switch to some of these regular classrooms.”

Some students are preparing to experience the Undergrounds for the first time, such as Zikiyah Francis, a freshman majoring in business administration.

“I’m excited because I remember when I came here [for a tour] — because I’ve been to [BU] like twice on two different trips, or three times in high school — when I saw it the first time I was like, ‘Oh this is so cool,’” Francis said. “And when I came [as a student], I was like, ‘It’s closed, ahh.’

So I’m excited for it to open up.”

Student, faculty travel impacted by coronavirus outbreak virus from page 1 students funded by or in pursuit of University business. It also applies to any students and faculty on study abroad trips to China.”

According to The New York Times, the overall death toll of the virus in China has passed 360 and there are more than 17,000 infections confirmed as of Sunday evening. Wuhan, the Chinese city where the corona-

virus began, has an expanding quarantine put in place. Infectious disease experts around the world say the outbreak could become a pandemic, meaning it would be an ongoing epidemic on two or more continents.

“We don’t currently have any requests for travel to China at this time, but should we receive any they would most likely be delayed until conditions change,

or perhaps canceled, depending on the timing of the travel or the duration of the hold,” Nieman wrote.

The CDC is closely monitoring the outbreak in the United States, stating that as of Jan. 31, there have been six positive cases and 121 cases still under investigation nationwide. The confirmed cases were in Arizona, California, Illinois and Washing-

ton state. While Broome County has tested two patients for infection, with a current total of 12 patients tested in New York state, none have tested positive.

On Sunday, Feb. 2, the United States began implementing travel restrictions, including temporarily prohibiting entry to foreign nationals who have visited China at any point two weeks prior to their return to

the United States, according to CNN. This restriction will also apply to U.S. citizens who visited China’s Hubei province, where the outbreak began. Those who have will be quarantined for up to two weeks upon their arrival.

The CDC will continue to conduct health screenings at major international airports.

Any students, faculty or staff who have recently traveled

abroad, especially through China, and are feeling any respiratory infection symptoms should call BU’s Decker Student Health Services Center to make an appointment with a doctor, according to the Dateline statement.

According to respiratory disease experts, the best preventative measures include covering coughs and sneezes and washing hands consistently.

Training encourages filming of police, citizen interactions bystander from page 1 taking a second look at the situation to understand the factors at play, checking in with the victim and asking if they are okay and asking themselves, “What if this were me or someone I love?”

The interactive program was split into two parts; one showcased abusive situations with civilians and the other with police.

Aviva Friedman, ‘14, a member of the Binghamton City Council and PLOT, said the event is necessary to alleviate the injustices the police impose. She framed the event as a way to “put power back in the hands of the people.”

“There are some people and properties that are protected by the police, but poor people, people of color — these things are criminalized consistently and so it can be disheartening and dangerous to rely on institutions that are built which do not serve the communities which they purport to protect,” Friedman said.

According to presenters, barriers to intervening can include personal situations such as being on probation, immigration status and privilege. They also explained the emergence of the Emergency

First Responders Protection Act, a law that was recently proposed in the Broome County Legislature. The bill, which aims to prevent conduct intended to “annoy, alarm, or threaten the personal safety of the Emergency First Responder,” was postponed after protesters packed the Broome County Legislature’s chambers in November, but the policy is still under consideration, and similar measures have been passed in other areas across the country.

Protesters argued the bill would place limits on First Amendment rights, and PLOT nicknamed it “The Police Annoyance Act,” arguing the measure intends to protect police officers that attempt to inflict harm.

Presenters at the bystander training aimed to teach attendees to lawfully intervene in harmful police interactions.

They especially stressed filming the police, an approach they said is lawful and allows bystanders to collect evidence of any possible injustices occurring. They also encouraged bystanders to narrate while filming. Doing so allows the bystander to describe what is happening in the video and strengthens their witness

account.

The training also educated participants on New York’s newly implemented bail reform law, which mandates that those who commit misdemeanors or nonviolent felonies should be released with no cash bail. Presenters encouraged bystanders to consider the bail reforms and the Emergency First Responders Protection Act when interacting with police.

A participant at the training noted that the event is crucial in increasing awareness of the harm occurring in communities.

“A general awareness that this stuff is happening next door to you, across the street, next to you, is important … to maintain a good level of communication between marginalized groups and those in power,” the participant said. “Organizing ideas like this that are open to the public

SA Chartered

Circus Arts Association Juggling Magic

Student Perfomances

and students is important, and gauging your own safety is important.”

Friedman suggested that empowering communities with tools such as bystander intervention will better reduce violence than putting trust in police departments.

“There is a misconception that not relying on the police equates to pro-crime, pro-violence, pro-chaos and that’s not

true,” Friedman said. “We’ve been conditioned to think that the police are necessary to keep order, and when we empower our communities, strengthen our neighborhoods, know our neighbors, when we alleviate poverty, when we create communities that people are proud of and feel like they can protect — that is what leads to safety.

More cops does not equate less violence.”

Looking to stay fit this semester and be a part of a great team sport?

Join Binghamton Rowing Club!

No experience necessary!

Men’s and women’s teams

Join Circus Arts Association on B-Engaged for more information!

bynn lee if you have questions!

General interest meetings on 2/5 in LH 012 and 2/6 in LH 013 at 7pm Email: publicrelations@binghamtoncrew.org Instagram: binghamton_rowing

club sports

OPINIONS February 3, 2020 Thursday, Thursday, Monday, Monday, September October October April 3,2, 5, 2017 28, 2017 2017 2017

Trump’s new ‘deal of the century’ is anything but The proposed plan eliminates U.S. neutrality in the Middle East Michael Levinstein Contributing Columnist

President Donald Trump released his Middle East peace plan last Tuesday, a move that enraged many Palestinians. While he calls it the “deal of the century,” Palestinians weren’t a part of the planning process. Followed quickly on Friday by several additions to the controversial travel ban, the United States has lost its ability to be a neutral arbiter in the Middle East, if we ever were one.

Looking at the Middle East peace plan and the updated travel ban, it is clear that the Trump administration, and America in general, has proven that we have no business trying to broker peace in the region.

The original travel ban applied to seven majority-Muslim countries. Trump’s updated ban includes Nigeria, Myanmar, Eritrea and Kyrgyzstan. All but Myanmar have large Muslim populations.

Sudan and Tanzania were also initially targeted for the ban, but instead have lost access to a program that gives green cards to immigrants. Both Sudan and Tanzania are also made up by large Muslim groups. Most of the countries are part of the Middle East, and most are predominantly Muslim. While pretending to ne-

gotiate a peaceful two-state solution neutrally, the Trump administration sends a clear message that they perceive Muslim populations to be dangerous and that they are to be controlled. This only hurts our credibility when it comes to negotiating with Palestine.

For better or for worse, America is currently the dominant power on Earth, both militarily and economically. So, what do Middle Eastern countries get from American hegemony? A plan that only serves to further strip them of their rights. Two major concessions were given to the Israelis right off the bat: Israel will now control a unified Jerusalem and will maintain their settlements in the West Bank.

America condoning this land grab by Israel means abandoning any pretense of neutrality we had in these negotiations. Under this deal, Palestine will not have a standing military. How can they trust us? Why should they? Think in practical terms — how does this help? Whatever your opinion is on the Middle East conflict, Trump has further alienated half of the people that he needs for the solution to work. Is that any way to go about this?

One thing that Palestinians did get out of this deal was a fouryear “land freeze,” in which Israel promised to stop settlement construction. But because Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netan-

yahu can’t keep a promise for more than five minutes, we won’t see it happen. He told reporters that his cabinet would vote on Sunday, Feb. 2, on a “unilateral annexation of the strategically important Jordan River Valley and all Jewish settlements in the West Bank.” Israel would then be allowed to violate the terms of the deal without so much as an objection by the United States, as history has shown.

According to the United Nations, there have been 5,558 Palestinian fatalities from 2008 to 2020 due to Israeli occupation.

During the same time, there have been 248 Israeli fatalities. That should really tell you all you need to know. Who’s the victim here, and who’s the oppressor? Almost a quarter of the Palestinian deaths were children. That statistic is less than 10 percent for Israelis. It is not Israel who should be gaining from this deal, and if America showed any kind of impartiality about this, we would see that, too.

So what, concretely, would Palestine get if they signed on to this deal? According to The New York Times, “Trump promised to provide $50 billion in international investment to build the new Palestinian entity.” There are two problems with this. One, we just saw an example where Netanyahu immediately backed away from a promise made, so why would Trump be any differ-

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ent? Second, the money is mainly coming from Arab nations. The United States isn’t giving up much of anything here, and neither is Israel. I’m not against the idea of giving financial aid to Palestine, but due to Western bias against them, there is no reason for Palestinians to rely on this money.

This horrible plan was foreshadowed when Trump moved the Israeli embassy to Jerusalem. While I wouldn’t argue that America has ever been a neutral party in the Middle East, this plan is the final nail in the coffin for the United States ever being placed in that position. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas

rightfully rejected the plan and all other diplomatic ties to the United States and Israel. Our actions have consequences around the world, and if we are serious about long-term peace in the region, we should just get out.

Michael Levinstein is a senior double-majoring in political science and economics.

Letter to the Editor: In response to ‘Congressman Tom Reed, BU President Harvey Stenger discuss free speech on campus’ Guest Author

Editor’s note: This letter to the editor was written by multiple members of the Frances Beal Society.

There is simply no other way to put this: Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is a white supremacist harassment engine.

The behavior of Binghamton University’s chapter matches the usual strategy employed by TPUSA groups across the country.

First, sexist, white supremacist or similarly inflammatory and violent rhetoric is openly flaunted. Then, when people inevitably gather to make their justified anger known, the incident is recorded by TPUSA and distributed online to attract attention and donations. Specific protesters —

often women, or people of color or both, as in the recent case on campus — are also singled out and recorded for targeted harassment online. The police are often all too willing to side with TPUSA, coordinating with them to threaten anti-racist protesters with a regime of radicalized state surveillance and violence, as was done here. A quick Google search will exhibit the racist and violent rhetoric TPUSA pushes and why they have been pushed off of other college campuses.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the group has drawn attention for its associations with hate group leaders and alt-right figures.

When called out for their bigotry, TPUSA will then attempt to reframe the issue as one of “free speech” and claim that their rights are being infringed upon. This is a purely cynical move, a smoke screen intended

to redirect attention away from the content of the organization’s words and deeds. After all, where were these self-styled champions of liberty when police targeted students for posting flyers in Downtown Binghamton? Politicians such as Rep. Tom Reed latch onto these gestures toward an empty conceptualization of free speech.

It is imperative to note that leftist organizers and radical students committed to fighting for liberation are more commonly harassed, attacked and targeted, as we have seen repeatedly with DIVEST BING, an anti-war manufacturing and anti-fossil fuel campaign. Or consider last December, when the Broome County Legislative Chamber attempted to pass its authoritarian “annoy the police” law.

The reality is that a white supremacist organization, which continuously places marginal-

ized people in the crosshairs of online harassers, is seeking funding and an exclusive soapbox so it may continue to do so, all while protected by a racist and militarized police force.

Its members willingly carry out this agenda, either in hopes of acquiring some cushy think tank job or just for sick kicks.

The founding of BU’s TPUSA chapter is certainly an intensification of white supremacist activity on campus; here, a group of white supremacists have now publicly gathered and no longer feel a need to hide their white supremacy. They are attempting to weaponize social media and their partnership with the police against students, faculty and community members of color. Getting large names such as President Donald Trump and the founder of TPUSA to distort the truth only fuels the fire for this.

Still, the appearance of this

organization on campus is not simply an isolated outpour of bigotry. The white supremacists that founded this chapter did not simply materialize out of thin air. They, and others like them, continue to live and work among us, protected by institutions that are indifferent at best to the violence inflicted on marginalized people. TPUSA is hardly a deviation from this trend.

Let us also be clear — people who fight for change and to make this world a better place are their biggest enemy. TPUSA is not our biggest enemy; they are merely a nuisance, a distraction at best.

They are nothing compared to the oppressive institutions we fight against. Every night they scheme of ways to annoy the marginalized of this community while we dream of changing it for the better.

It is for this reason that we, the Frances Beal Society, continue

to organize against the systemic causes of our oppression. It is for this reason we continue to push for Binghamton University’s divestment from prison labor and war profiteers, which make their billions off of violence done to people of color over the world. It is for this reason we aim to hold the University accountable for its acts of violence against students and communities of color. It is for this reason that we lock arms with the greater Binghamton community to fight the violent police state foisted on us. And it is for this reason that we call on all marginalized people and those who stand against white supremacy to organize with us, to uproot the vile and destructive institution of white supremacy at its source.

The Frances Beal Society is a grassroots organization dedicated to fighting oppression and liberating marginalized groups.

TikTok has a massive influence on the music industry The app wields a unique power in facilitating fame for many artists Sophie Miller Contributing Columnist

You may pretend to dislike TikTok, but the app is probably on your phone. I know that because it’s on mine. Additionally, TikTok already had 500 million monthly users when it merged with musical.ly, another popular app, successfully garnering an even larger audience — so there is a good chance you are one of those millions of users too.

TikTok is filled with underage girls dancing and ridiculous skits. It also just happens to be a potential national security threat. TikTok is owned by a Chinese company called ByteDance and was investigated because United States politicians worried

that user information could be shared with the Chinese Communist Party. The United States Army was using TikTok for recruitment purposes but decided to reevaluate their use when faced with the possible security threat posed by the app. While these aspects make the app even more interesting, the incredible thing about TikTok is what it has done for the music industry and smaller artists.

You have most likely had “Lottery” by K CAMP, better known as “the renegade song,” stuck in your head. TikTok users often find songs and choreograph dances to them or perform skits with the songs playing in the background. These videos become viral, with millions of people attempting recreations and contributing their own twists. That means these songs get played and distributed mil-

lions of times over. TikTok has the ability to skyrocket an artist from obscurity into the spotlight overnight.

When you google the phrase “TikTok music” a list of songs come up, just like how a definition would appear when you Google a word. When you say “TikTok music,” everyone knows exactly what you are referring to. Scrolling down Google, you’ll find a Spotify playlist titled “TikTok Music 2020.” The next link under that is a BuzzFeed article titled “Here Are The Songs That Went Totally Viral On TikTok In 2019.” Once a song becomes part of a TikTok trend, it is everywhere. While some of these songs are radio hits, such as “bad guy” by Billie Eilish or “Blow Your Mind (Mwah)” by Dua Lipa, others are lesser known. Forbes writes of Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” explaining, “The track,

which holds the title as the longest-reigning Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 in the chart’s history, first went viral on the popular social media video app, TikTok.” Because of his success on the app, Lil Nas X earned an estimated pretax income of $14 million in 2019. Additionally, he signed to Columbia Records only four months after releasing the song on the app. It is incredible to think that Lil Nas X, a 20-yearold who just won two Grammys, was propelled to fame by TikTok. Lil Nas X isn’t the only artist who has utilized TikTok in this way. Doja Cat, a rapper who performed at Binghamton University’s Fall Concert, has risen in popularity because of the app.

While she first garnered attention for her viral song “Mooo!,” TikTok has furthered her career.

Nylon explains that Doja Cat’s “incredibly catchy pop song ‘Say

So’ has just entered Billboard’s Hot 100 at No. 96, after having spent the last few months as TikTok’s newest dance trend.”

TikTok has also been a catalyst for the quickly increasing popularity of artists like Lizzo, bbno$ and Joji. While TikTok has the power to expose the world to new music, it can even dig up blasts from the past, such as Matthew Wilder’s ’80s hit, “Break My Stride,” which made a comeback because of the app.

So on those days when every song feels boring, get on TikTok to find new music. The app has become a huge platform for artists — one that can bring fame, money and recognition to its users. It is incredible to see teenagers with essentially unprecedented power in deciding what music is good, and then making it popular in an instant.

To live in an era in which we get

to directly decide what music is worthy of fame is exciting, but will it last? One could argue that Vine was once in the same position as TikTok, but the app has died, as has the legacy of many of its stars. I believe TikTok is a different story because it utilizes music in a way that Vine never did. Even if TikTok were to die down, it has already made a major, long-lasting difference in the lives and reputations of its many artists.

All this being said, TikTok can be utilized by us in more ways than we can imagine. We can use it to popularize our favorite songs, find new cooking recipes, learn ASL and so much more. I definitely have a new respect for the app after watching it propel some of my favorite artists from anonymity to stardom.

Sophie Miller is a junior majoring in English.

Vestal Museum celebrates black history with local art ‘African Road’ showcases Broome County history Makoto Toyoda

arts & culture intern

In celebration of the start of Black History Month, the Vestal Museum displayed Broome County’s black history through a showcase of local artists at their exhibition, “African Road,” from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.

The event featured the work of local black artists Andrea Kelleher, ‘95, Marsha Coulton, ‘94 and Helen D’Eletto, as well as a talk from researcher Brenda Cave-James. Artists presented their research and shared their narratives through various mediums such as collage, paint and pencil techniques. Art pieces were incorporated into a visual timeline of African American history, which wrapped around the walls of the museum, woven among various artifacts of black individual and family life such as census records, newspaper clippings, photographs, essays and even Bibles from the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church.

As detailed in Vestal Museum Director Cherese Wiesner-Rosales’ essay, which is featured as part of the timeline, much of African American history in Broome County cannot be found

in physical historical data or online. Instead, the information featured in the exhibition, “African Road,” largely relies on researchers who reside and base their work in the local area.

“In school, history class basically is an outline at best,” Kelleher said. “Anything in school related to African history is very basic — it’s a very at-aglance look of what events have taken place. Unless things like this happen, people won’t know about their connection to an area — African American history is American history.”

Cave-James, who grew up right outside of Binghamton, discussed her own family roots in addition to the biographies of many forgotten figures who were crucial to black history in upstate New York. Despite the lack of records, Cave-James discussed the various towns and areas that were part of the Underground Railroad, from Scranton to Montrose to Broome County. In her talk, Cave-James shared her findings, bringing her research to life with vivid accounts of the black families who owned farmland on African Road, the lives of members of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church who broke off to form their own branch and serve black families in the area and the “secret rooms” used by those trying to escape slavery via the Underground Railroad. She focused

specifically on the life of the Rev. J.W. Loguen, who dedicated his life to freeing slaves and promoting the education of African Americans through his church.

The exhibition was a result of the collective efforts of WiesnerRosales and Jessica Petrylak, gallery director of the Vestal Museum, who brainstormed with Coulton.

“A lot of our archives and what we have to work with is whitewashed, so we wanted to reach out to black artists and get their perspective because that’s who it should be coming from,” Petrylak said. “Those accounts and stories matter. We have been working with Coulton for a while, and we bounced some ideas off of her. Amplifying the voices of black artists is really important, and letting them tell their own history, because it should be coming from them.”

Coulton, a longtime partner of the Vestal Museum, said the artwork featured in the exhibition encapsulates the rich yet untold history of the black community in Broome County.

“Once [Wiesner-Rosales] told me what the idea was about, I was all over it,” Coulton said.

“Being a person who went to Binghamton [University] back in the day, you have these illusions, like, ‘There’s no black people here.’ You don’t expect there’s much of a history, so it was very

zachary canaperi photo intern The Vestal Museum’s new exhibition features Broome County’s African American history.

interesting for me to see that, yeah, indeed there is — it’s just not really shown.”

“African Road” served as a platform and learning experience for both local artists who conducted their own research as inspiration for their artwork, and for the audience who were presented with various forms of

media, artifacts and work on local black history. Coulton emphasized the importance of black visibility for future generations.

“Because it’s underrepresented,” she said. “Because I myself didn’t know, and you’d think I should. So it’s nice to bring attention to something that’s been so underrepresented … I have a

child — it’s good for him to start seeing that. We are up here, have been up here, to be represented … It’s good for him to help him form his identity.”

“African Road” will be open to the public for the next three months until the end of April.

Admission is free for all members of the community.

Exhibition explores virtual reality, nuclear radiation ‘Mutant Space’ opens in Rosefsky Gallery Netali Zaff

contributing writer

The Elsie B. Rosefsky Memorial Art Gallery’s newest exhibition is much more than an opportunity to use a virtual reality headset and take pictures for Instagram.

Now open to the public, “Mutant Space” is a large-scale, longterm project created by Atif Akin.

It has been featured in various galleries since its genesis around 10 years ago. At first glance, the exhibition may seem like any other minimalistic modern art installation, but the concept behind the design is laden with complexity and meaning. Akin creates works of digital art inspired by technology and research that explores the issues of nuclear radiation through geology and archaeology.

Currently an associate professor of art and design at Rutgers University, Akin grew up in Ankara, Turkey, where he first took an interest in the subject matter at hand in “Mutant Space.”

Akin was just 7 years old when the Chernobyl disaster occurred in Ukraine, about 1,000 miles away from his home in Turkey.

As an adult, Akin went back to visit Chernobyl and found himself struck by how the site connects to a larger nuclear history. The pieces in the gallery are from various sites with historical significance to nuclear energy, a common thread within Akin’s work.

“Everything is somewhat connected to each other by the nuclear substance itself,” Akin said. “It always has a different power and a different ability to change the environment, so that’s why the show is called ‘Mutant Space’ — it kind of mutates the space, as much as it mutates the cells biologically, and the environment.”

Akin’s work plays with technology to explore the unknown, as well as the research that has already been collected about radioactivity. His pieces vary from photographs with scientific and technology-based design layered over or around images to interactive virtual reality creations. The virtual reality headset in the center of the gallery features a digital version of the gallery space itself, showing the initial concept and layout and how the design came about. Though the piece allows viewers to enter an imagined reality, the issues and concepts be-

hind it are very much real and immediate. Because of the somewhat controversial nature of his works, which deal with the conflict between Turkey and Armenia, Akin said he believes art is the best way to communicate his thoughts free of politics or bias from the press.

“I think contemporary art is the only venue that can really host freedom of speech and critical thinking,” Akin said.

Akin’s art is also rooted in his own personal interests and culture, related to a time in his life focused around archaeology in Turkey and a time when the issue of nuclear weapons was at the forefront of politics.

“It’s been more than 10 years, and I sometimes still get emotional about how this whole nuclear history is so prevalent in many places in the world and still not spoken about,” Akin said. “Of course art is something to enjoy, but the content is not always enjoyable. But we have to talk about these tragedies and traumas and catastrophes — they are important subjects of art.”

Though Akin loves every aspect of creating art and technical design, he said the subject matter he deals with can be emotionally tasking at times, especially when it hits so close to home.

“Sometimes I feel a little overwhelmed,” he said. “Why don’t I go into nature and make pictures of the clouds? That would be art too, right? Sometimes you have to deal with the dark stuff.

And sometimes you can just enjoy life and make a beautiful landscape painting.”

Akin also uses his scientific background and degree from Middle East Technical University

in Turkey in his work, as he sees science and art as one.

“They require the same passion and curiosity,” Akin said. “I think this is more powerful than any political discourse. This dynamic between art and science should be the defining thinking and reasoning platform for decision-makers, and I think this university is a great place for that.”

Akin worked with Hans Gindlesberger, an associate professor of art and design at Binghamton University, and a few student interns to bring the exhibition to life in the gallery by physically installing the pieces.

Akin had already created a 3D model of what the space might look like, featured in the virtual reality headset, and this vision was physically realized in the Rosefsky Gallery.

Gindlesberger said an important part of the gallery lies in its ability to foster connections between young art students and the artists whose pieces are brought in.

“There’s not that much separation between the students and these established, yet still emerging artists that they see in these shows,” Gindlesberger said.

Lucky Wei, a student intern at the Rosefsky Gallery and a senior majoring in art and design, said the work she did with Akin helped her gain valuable experience and a new perspective about art.

“As art students, the exhibition is really important for us to get some inspiration, and each exhibition is always different,” she said. “Like before this one, I never saw how science and art could be brought together.”

The gallery allows students to

see and experience the process of bringing artwork into the public eye. Akin’s exhibition deals with political conflict and ecological issues, which Gindlesberger feels is important to bring attention to.

“It deals with these grand ecological issues and with trying to conceive of what the world will look like and what humanity will look like 250,000 years from now,” Gindlesberger said. “That kind of

duration and outlook of his work is really important. You don’t often hear an artist talk where the artist is thinking in that kind of time frame, so that was a startling thing to think about.”

GIMs Feb. 5 & 6 at 7 p.m. in UUWB03

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Flightless birds soar at third-annual Penguin Bowl Event aims to spotlight endangered species Patrick Earns

assistant arts & culture editor

While Super Bowl Sunday fills the apartments and dorm rooms of countless Binghamton University students with chicken wings and nacho platters, the day’s real festivities could be found early Sunday morning at the Binghamton Zoo at Ross Park, as four African penguins went flipper to flipper in the zoo’s annual Penguin Bowl.

The Penguin Bowl, now in its third year, serves as a fundraiser for the zoo’s conser-

vation efforts. The game was livestreamed on both Facebook and Instagram, featuring commentary by zoo employees about the diet and lifestyle of the African penguins featured. The event drew between 250 and 300 continuous viewers between both platforms, a new record for the game.

According to Rachel Peppard, public relations coordinator for the zoo, the event aims to highlight the zoo’s role in the African Penguin Species Survival Plan, a global effort to protect the genetic diversity of the endangered species.

“We just want to be able to highlight their species because they are endangered, so it’s very

important that we do our part in helping the species in the future,” Peppard said.

Inspired by events such as the Puppy Bowl and Kitten Bowl that also air on the day of the Super Bowl, the game provides an opportunity to raise money during the zoo’s offseason, all of which goes toward the care and enrichment of the animals.

“We thought that by being able to be a part of the big game’s weekend, it would just help out our efforts in conservation,” Peppard said.

The fundraisers have been successful, with Penguin Bowl III raising $421 through Facebook donations. Peppard stressed how important dona-

sidney slon assistant photo editor Ronde won his second Most Valuable Penguin award in three years in Sunday’s third-annual Penguin Bowl.

tion drives like these can be for the zoo, which is a nonprofit and relies on fundraising to make ends meet.

“Any money that we can raise really goes toward a good cause,” Peppard said. “We really rely on our community to back us and be able to support us and our efforts.”

While the actual Super Bowl is a fierce fight between two storied franchises attempting to bring the ultimate trophy back to their devoted fans, the Penguin Bowl is light on the rivalry side. The game is not scored and no penguins understand the logistics of a touchdown, let alone attempt to complete one. While one might be swept away imag-

ining a flightless bird finally soaring through the air to catch a pass between its flippers, Peppard made it clear that the event is less about football and more about giving the penguins a unique experience.

“It’s not super competitive,” Peppard said. “The gist of it all is just to allow the penguins to spend time in a new area and to play with their enrichment items. While we call it the Penguin Bowl, it’s more of an enrichment opportunity for the penguins.”

But no game would be complete without a little competition, and viewers could find it in the fight for MVP, standing for “Most Valuable Penguin.” The

African penguins are an endangered species.

vote is decided by the comments on the Facebook livestream, where viewers have a chance to vote on their favorite penguin.

While 11-year-old Ronde is the charismatic superstar of the bunch, adored by zoo-goers and already equipped with the 2018 MVP award, he was upstaged last year by 24-year-old Gnat, a grizzled veteran with the wisdom that age brings.

When the hour came to an end and the dust settled, Ronde had regained his rightful place on top, taking home his second MVP award in three years. Quite like the Super Bowl itself, the game gave each of the contenders a chance to etch their name in the history of their species.

ariel kachuro photo editor

Winter Happiness Festival enchants Bundy Museum Event features fairythemed activities Krishna Patel arts & culture

Winters in Binghamton can seem long, dreary and gloomy.

While the cold weather and inhospitable wind may keep people cooped up inside, the Bundy Museum of History and Art opened its doors for its first-annual Winter Happiness Festival on Saturday.

Festivalgoers were welcomed in the Bundy Museum Annex with ambient lighting, vintage decorations, felt art, wands and pixie dust for sale. Visitors were offered complimentary tea at an old-timey bar and four free scones in a variety of flavors, such as organic lemon lavender poppy seed and lemon berry with gold sprinkles. Visitors voted on their favorite flavors and had the option of purchasing more.

Janna Rudler, director of development at the Bundy Museum, emphasized the variety of scones available.

“We did a call for scone bakers and ended up with 16 dozen scones donated for today with 11 different flavors,” Rudler said.

Admission cost $5 per person, giving guests access to every event and activity at the festival as well as the entire Bundy Museum. The festival included a mini garden contest, tea tasting, a scone throwdown, goods available from vendors, a photo booth, a gratitude wall, fairyinspired hairstyles, laughtercise led by Traci Pena and numerous other options. All the proceeds from the festival went to benefit the Bundy Museum. According to Rudler, the Winter Happiness Festival is the biggest fundraising event the Bundy Museum has hosted.

The event originated with Pena, a local community member and fairy enthusiast who organized the first Fairy Scavenger Hunt in Binghamton last summer. This year’s Winter Happiness Festival grew out of that event.

“We wanted something in the wintertime to get people’s spirits up and introduce a little bit of fun during a dark time of year,”

Pena said.

In addition to having a multitude of events and activities for guests within the Bundy Museum, the Winter Happiness Festival also included offsite events such as free magical arts and crafts for children at several local libraries and The Grapevine Cafe’s fairy-themed happy hour. The cafe served fairy-themed drinks, displayed fairy decor and played fairy-inspired music.

The Winter Happiness Festival also welcomed families with a scavenger hunt set up throughout the museum. While the festival was effective at raising money for the Bundy Museum, Rudler emphasized the visibility it brought to a local organization preserving and

celebrating the past and present of the surrounding area.

“It allows people to come see a place that they maybe haven’t seen before,” she said. “The vast majority of the people that have been here today have never been to the Bundy Museum. It brings in a whole new crowd of people and gives them something new to do.”

Pena said she hoped the event raised attendee’s spirits and encouraged happiness and laughter among community members during the winter months.

“In the dull months of winter when you can’t get outside and do a lot of fun things, I love adding laughter, joy and magic to things,” Pena said.

“That’s something that I think

everyone should take part in. It should be a part of everybody’s

life. I’ve seen the way laughter transforms people and I love

bringing people together and connecting them.”

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Sudoku

By The Mepham Group

Level: 1 2 3 4 Solution to last issue's puzzle

© 2020 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.

Release Date: Monday, February 3, 2020

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis Hinman, Union, Hinman again...

Spencer Lubell

ACROSS 1 Actor Beatty 4 Spirited horse 8 Cold-weather omen on Groundhog Day 14 Prefix with Pen 15 Leisurely pace 16 Dwell 17 Getaway car driver 19 Flowery van Gogh painting 20 Superficially highbrow 21 Play segments 23 Cheese go-with 24 Injured in the bullring 26 Golfer’s dream 30 Put inside 32 German “east” 33 Dead __ Scrolls 34 Bank acct. addition 35 Little trickster 36 One of 50 on the U.S. flag 37 You can’t go back after passing it 42 Went up 43 35-Down relative 44 Land in the Seine 45 Lennon’s love Yoko 46 Chinese chairman 47 Everlasting 51 Kit and caboodle 54 Hundred Acre Wood creator 55 Help 56 Lab safety org.?

58 Clinton and Obama, astrologically 59 Escape 62 Tops of sewing fasteners ... and what the starts of 17-, 26-, 37- and 51-Across can have 64 In a fair way 65 Ivan or Nicholas 66 Observe 67 Common people, with “the” 68 “Family Guy” creator MacFarlane 69 “Cats” monogram

DOWN 1 Genre for Enya 2 Screenwriter Nora 3 Low-calorie cola, familiarly 4 100 percent 5 Most populous città in Italia 6 Geronimo’s tribe 7 Japanese box lunch 8 __ Lanka 9 Hardly a social butterfly 10 From China, say 11 “The Simpsons” character named for a dance era 12 Keats’ “__ on a Grecian Urn” 13 Director Craven 18 Face sketcher’s horizontal reference 22 NFL replay review aid 25 “Please stop!”

27 __ de corps: camaraderie 28 Not at all far 29 Pull down, as a salary 31 Minn. college named for a Norwegian king

35 Business name abbr.

36 Squeaky clean, as an operating room 37 “No __!”: “Easy!”

38 Charlie Chaplin’s actress granddaughter 39 Quarantines 40 Runs smoothly 41 K thru 6 46 The “M” in LEM 47 Type of tax

48 Phillies’ div.

49 Voltaic cell terminals 50 Tenant 52 Detroit NFL team 53 Dr. visits 57 Med. school subject 59 Diamond, for one 60 Sister of Zsa Zsa 61 TV’s Burrell and Pennington 63 Princely title: Abbr.

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

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02/03/20

02/03/20

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Kai Moon aspires to win America East Championship Senior guard talks 201920 success on Bearcast Edward Aaron

assistant sports editor

Sitting alone at the top of the America East (AE) in scoring, senior guard Kai Moon is considered by many to be the frontrunner to be named America East Player of the Year. With the team in its bye week and the conference season at its midpoint, Moon discussed her senior year success on Pipe Dream’s Bearcast. “[Being named AE Player of the Year] would be incredible,” Moon said. “I don’t know if I’d have the words to actually express that.”

Averaging 20.2 points per game overall and 18.4 in conference play, Moon leads the league in both categories. Should she be named AE Player of the Year, she will be the second player in her time at Binghamton University to win the award, after former guard Imani Watkins, ’18.

“I didn’t necessarily expect for that to be the case, but I’m incredibly blessed that all of my work in the offseason paid off and I’m able to knock down shots when my team needs me to,” Moon said.

alex gross contributing photographer Senior guard Kai Moon leads the America East in points scored, averaging 20.2 points per game.

Moon broke out in the Bearcats’ season opener, scoring 29 points. This led to a ninegame winning streak to open the season, during which Moon was consistently near the top of the country in scoring, at one point

ranking first.

“I think there were games where we definitely outplayed our opponents by far, and that was obvious,” Moon said. “I think there were games that we gutted out wins, and I think those meant a

lot more. Whether you win games or lose games, your confidence level has to stay the same.”

As conference play hit, the Bearcats (15-6, 4-4 AE) were tested with stronger competition early on, but have since won three of

their last four games to sit at 4-4 in conference play during their off week. With parity across the league, Moon believes this team has what it takes to win the program’s first AE Tournament and reach the NCAA Tournament.

“When we are honed in what the scouting report is, our game plan and sticking to our roles and executing what coach puts in front of us, we can be a very, very scary team,” Moon said. “It’s just a matter of doing that for 40 minutes.”

This season, the senior leadership hasn’t fallen solely on Moon.

Fellow senior guards Carly Boland and Karlee Krchnavi have stepped up throughout the season, on and off the court.

“This season … for me and the two other seniors, [Boland] and [Krchnavi], just to see how far we’ve come in knowing that this is the last time we’ll play together,” Moon said. “All of the memories we’ve had together I think have just been really special. I consider them to be my sisters now, and we were strangers just three-and-ahalf years ago.”

While many former Bearcats, including Watkins, have gone on to pursue professional careers abroad, Moon is planning a different course for her life. She hopes

to pursue a graduate assistant position to stay involved in the game of basketball.

“I’m incredibly grateful and blessed to have played college basketball for the last four years and I’ve done a lot of things that I don’t think typical students would be able to do, but I’ve also sacrificed a lot to make sure that I’m completely dedicated to this program and that takes a lot of time away from being with your family,” Moon said.

With the team’s week off nearing its end, the Bearcats have to prepare for a challenging matchup on Wednesday against Albany.

The Great Danes (8-14, 4-5 AE), a team Binghamton hasn’t beaten since 2011, defeated BU 56-53 in the team’s conference opener earlier this season.

“I think for the most part, everyone is trying to get as much rest as possible,” Moon said.

“Now we’re entering the second round, and Albany’s a team that I’ve never beaten since I’ve been here … Right now is a time, even though we’re not going as hard in practice, to make sure our minds are sharp.”

Tipoff against Albany is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 5 from the Events Center in Vestal, New York.

Wrestling drops close dual match to American University Trampe returns from injury, earns win by fall Daniel Metz & Edward Aaron pipe dream sports

After being absent since Nov. 23 due to injury, redshirt sophomore Zack Trampe returned to the Binghamton wrestling team’s lineup Saturday night against American University. In the second period of the bout, he earned a win by fall over his opponent. Ultimately, the Bearcats (3-9) couldn’t win the dual meet, but the team returned to full health in the loss.

“Trampe is a shot in the arm that we’re going to need going forward,” said Binghamton head coach Kyle Borshoff. “I’m excited to have him there for the next few weeks leading up to the conference tournament.”

The match started at 149 pounds, and American (3-6) earned decisions in the first four bouts in the 18-15 loss for BU. “They had more effort than we did, and they won because of it,” Borshoff said. “When you lose every close match in a dual meet, you usually lose the dual meet, and that’s all about effort … These guys work really hard every

day in practice, and if they wrestle in these matches like they do in practice, then we have a way different result.”

At 184, No. 5 redshirt sophomore Lou DePrez earned Binghamton’s first win of the day over No. 23 redshirt junior Tanner Harvey. Freshman Sam DePrez earned his second-consecutive dual win immediately following, and redshirt sophomore Joe Doyle earned a 7-1 decision in the heavyweight class.

With the final three bouts of the match starting at 125, freshman Tomasso Frezza was defeated, followed

by Trampe’s pin that tied the match at 15. Senior Anthony Sparacio came out for the final bout of the day, but was defeated in a 3-2 decision, giving American the three points needed to win the match 18-15.

Injuries have been a major issue for the team this season, with all three returning NCAA qualifiers, Lou DePrez, Trampe and Sparacio, missing meets due to injury. However, the three are now all back in the lineup, in addition to redshirt sophomore Aidan Monteverdi.

“It’s frustrating because we never got to a point where we can have momentum with a healthy team — today was the first day that we’ve had every-

one healthy,” Borshoff said. “There’s a few weight classes right now that we still have to figure out who our starter is because no one has given us a clearcut indication that they want to be the starter, and I think a lot of that is because we haven’t been healthy.”

Binghamton has just three duals remaining before the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) Championships in March, but the team has time to regroup entering the most pivotal stretch of the season.

“Our dual meet season has not been good, so that’s unfortunate, but at the end of the day, every single guy in the lineup gets to wrestle at the EIWA Championships — every single guy gets a shot at going to the national tournament,” Borshoff said. “At this point, I’m really totally unconcerned with our dual meet season. I need to make sure we’re ready to go when we step on the mats at Lehigh at the EIWA Championships because it would be disappointing if [we] don’t send a handful of guys to the NCAA [Championships] this season.”

Next up for the Bearcats is a dual against Bucknell on Saturday, Feb. 8. The match is set to begin at 1 p.m. at the Davis Gym in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.

sidney slon assistant photo editor Redshirt sophomore Zack Trampe returned from injury to win his matchup against American University freshman Joshua Vega.

Track and field compete at Penn State, Cornell events Mackay finishes second in 800-meter race Joe Tonetti

sports intern

Building up momentum to take on the America East Championships later this month, the Binghamton men’s and women’s track and field teams competed at the Kane Invitational in Ithaca,

New York and the Penn State National Open in University Park, Pennsylvania on Saturday.

“This time of year in the middle of the season we’re backing off of our training and letting them re-

provided by bu athletics Senior Emily Mackay ran 2:11.51 in the Penn State National Open 800-meter event last Saturday, finishing within milliseconds of the BU school record.

cover a little bit better,” said Binghamton head coach Mike Thompson. “I think for the middle of the season we’re in excellent shape.”

Both meets focused on developing better individual performances for the men’s and women’s teams, with Penn State the more competitive of the two. Senior Greg Matzelle was one of the competing athletes on the men’s side at Penn State, running a solid 22.04 against a competitive roster in the 200-meter. Sophomore Jake Restivo achieved a personal best in the long jump, smashing his old record of 22-3 ½ feet by almost a whole foot. He jumped 23-3 ¼ feet to take sixth place at University Park.

On the women’s side, senior Emily Mackay took second in the women’s 800-meter, clocking in at 2:11.51 to finish less than a second off of the Binghamton school record. Junior Brittany Korsah and sophomore Stephanie Cassens both took on the 400-meter and finished with times of 56.86 and 57.70, respectively.

“Korsah is starting to look like herself again in the [400-meter],” Thompson said. “ It was nice to

see her back to her old self.”

Although the meet at Cornell was less competitive, the Bearcats performed well. Sophomore Madison Krochina threw a personal best of 16.56 in the women’s weight throw. In the 60-meter dash final, senior Janelle Williams and junior Nia Joyner ran their best races of the year, clocking in at 7.99 and 8.02, respectively.

Joyner also competed in the 200-meter, finishing second with a time of 26.04. On the distance side, sophomore Elisabeth Van Tassell led a 5K sweep with a time of 19:06.45, followed by freshmen Carolyn Burnell, Kaitlyn DeYulio and Kyra Guerci.

“I thought as a whole, the sprinters had a good meet at Cornell,” Thomspon said. “Nia Joyner and Janelle Williams ran really well. They ran the best they’ve run this year.”

Freshman Colin Tower was one of the sprinters on the men’s side at Cornell, running a season’s best of 22.93 in the 200-meter. Four Bearcats also ran in the 60-meter hurdles final. Senior Troy Zanger finished third, followed by freshman Adrian Ripp-

stein, sophomore Maximo Olavarria and freshman Nick Malfitano.

Zanger and Malfitano were also part of a winning 4x400 team, finishing with a time of 3:31.27.

Sophomore Daniel Gahagan had the best performance on the distance team, running 8:47.89 in the 3K for an easy first place over the 15 competing athletes.

Most of the Binghamton track and field team traveled to Penn State; however, junior Evan Tuthill competed at Cornell to set a personal best in the shot put, throwing 47.01 feet and taking third overall.

Senior Dan Schaffer did not compete at either meet, nor did sophomore Aziza Chigatayeva, who picked up an injury earlier in the season.

“We won’t do as well as a team without [Chigatayeva] in there,” Thompson said. “She’s our best distance runner and probably our best athlete overall.”

The Bearcats will return to University Park, Pennsylvania at 10 a.m. next Saturday, Feb. 8 to compete at the Skyes & Sabock Invitational, hosted by Penn State University.