Apr. 14, 2021 | The Reflector

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CDC, FDA recommend pause for J&J vaccine

By Noah Crenshaw EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The U.S.government is recommending a pause in the administration of the singledose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine out of an abundance of caution, and in order to investigate reports of a rare and severe blood clot, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration announced in a joint statement on April 13. More than 6.8 million doses of the J&J vaccine have been administered in the U.S. as of April 12, according to the CDC and FDA. The CDC and FDA said there are six cases of the rare clot, occurring in women between the ages of 18 and 48, with symptoms occurring 6 to 13 days after they were vaccinated. The clots occurred in veins that drain blood from the brain and occurred along with low platelets, according to The Associated Press.

Shortly after the joint statement, the Indiana State Department of Health announced it would be temporarily removing the J&J vaccine from its clinics. Indiana planned to start a sixday vaccine clinic at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on April 13. Instead, the clinic will be using the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, according to The Indianapolis Star.

The University of Indianapolis had planned to use the J&J vaccine as part of a vaccination clinic in partnership with ISDH from April 20-22.The clinic, which was announced on April 7, would have offered 500 doses of the vaccine to students, faculty and staff on a first-come, first-served basis.

In an email to students, faculty and staff on April 13, Vice President for Student and Campus Affairs and Dean of Students Kory Vitangeli said that based on the recommendations of the CDC and the FDA, the university will know more about the clinics next week, and this information will be sent out as soon as possible.

The J&J vaccine had received an Emergency Use Authorization from the Food and Drug Administration on Feb. 27. The vaccine is allowed to be given to individuals who are 18 years old and older, according to the FDA. The CDC announced it will convene a meeting of its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices on April 14 to further review the case and assess their potential significance, according to the joint statement. The FDA will be reviewing the CDC analysis as it also investigates these cases, according to Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the CDC and Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

“Until that process is complete, we are recommending a pause in the use of this vaccine out of an abundance of caution,” Schuchat and Marks said in the joint statement. “This is important, in part, to ensure that the health care provider community is aware of the potential for these adverse events and can plan for proper recognition and management due to the unique treatment required with this type of blood clot.”

Both the CDC and FDA said that COVID-19 vaccine safety is a top priority for the federal government, and that they take all reports of health problems > See J&J on page 3

reflector.uindy.edu

APRIL 14, 2021

Suicide prevention virtual walk Healing Hounds, Social Work Association host walk for suicide awareness

By Nathan Herbst

and president of Healing Hounds David Carpenter.

OPINION EDITOR Healing Hounds is an RSO that provides a peer support network Editor’s Note: This article includes to students struggling with mental references to suicide. If you or someone health and/or addiction issues, you know is experiencing depression according to its description on or suicidal thoughts, there are resources UIndy’s RSO page. The Social Work available to help. The University of Association aims to bring together social Indianapolis’ Student Counseling Center work majors to maintain a presence has help and resources for anyone who in the university and surrounding needs it. To set up an communit y, according appointment, call 317-788to its description.

5015.

Anyone can register for In an emergency, you the walk free of charge by can contact the Crisis visiting the AFSP campus Text Line 24/7 by texting walk webpage for UIndy HOME to 741741. You can and following the onscreen also contact the National directions. Participants can Suicide Prevention Lifeline then walk or perform some at 1-800-273-8255, 24/7. other form of physical T h e U n i ve r s i t y o f activity for 100 minutes Indianapolis registered that can be uploaded to student organiz ations the page and count for CARPENTER the event, Carpenter said.

Healing Hounds and Social Work Association will host Activities can be logged as an “Out of the Darkness” walk and soon as the participant is registered and fundraiser on May 1 to raise awareness for can be recorded all the way up to the suicide prevention. The event is part May 1 event date. Carpenter also said the of the American Foundation for activity does not have to be performed Suicide Prevention’s campus walk all at once and can be broken up into series and will be held virtually, smaller amounts of time. However, according to senior social work major donations will be accepted

until June 30. media, so they're sharing more about The walk will be put on by the the walk and getting their families Healing Hounds and Social Work and friends to register and donate,” A s s o c i a t i on RS O ’s , C a r p e n t e r Carpenter said. said. Many communities and universities, Madeline Abramson, a junior social such as Indiana University-Purdue work major and president of the SWA, Universit y Indianapolis, Butler said the walk is a great opportunity and UIndy, host walks like these for people who have been personally throughout the year to spread suicide affected by suicide to come together awareness, Carpenter said. as a community. She said she also will "The whole idea behind the walk is be speaking about how suicide has to raise awareness about affected her family in the suicide prevention and to opening ceremony video. educate the community "I truly just want to get about how suicide affects the word out that there's especially college-aged always someone who can students," Carpenter help you, even though you said. don’t see it ... there's always UIndy has put on these someone there for you," walks for several years now, Abramson said. according to Carpenter. He According to said they are normally held Abramson, despite the in a traditional format but difficulties COVID-19 COVID-19 protocols forced has posed, the walk has ABRAMSON already surpassed their them to creatively plan out this year's event. To create more goal of $5,000. The y of a community feel, Carpenter said he subsequently increased their goal and others involved in planning the walk to $8,000, which according to prerecorded an opening ceremony to greet their fundraising page, they all registered walkers. have already met. Anyone interested "[Another] great thing about this in donating or participating in the whole online aspect is people are walk can find more information at becoming more acquainted with social www.afsp.org/uindy.

Group researches mask reception

By Jacob Walton SPORTS EDITOR & PHOTO EDITOR

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, masks have been an everlasting feature in students’, and many others’, lives. Eta Sigma Gamma, a health education honorary at the University of Indianapolis, has started conducting research about the UIndy student population's perception and feelings regarding masks, their effectiveness and the activity of mask caring, which is the cleaning and sanitizing of masks, according to senior public health education major and ESG President Samantha Mundt. She said that this type of research is one of the core pillars of what it means to be in ESG. “Part of ESG is we have four core goals, and one of those four is research.

And so it's important that each year we're engaging in some type of research, whether it's with other ESG,” Mundt said. “ … but we're partnered with two other ESG chapters from other schools on this project.”

The project is partnered with two other universities’ ESG programs across the country, Central Michigan University and The State University of New York at Cortland, according to Mundt. ESG has a connections network that they will use for projects like these that connect schools' ESGs programs from all around the country, Mundt said. However, she said for this project that was not used and the connections were found through UIndy’s ESG Sponsor, Associate Professor and Director of the Health Sciences Program Heidi Hancher-Rauch.

Hancher-Rauch works within the professional organization linked to ESG called the society for public health education; she said had a relationship already built with the ESG sponsors for CMU and SUNY Cortland and that they had approached her with the idea of the project collaboration.

“My areas of expertise are advocacy

INSIDE: NEWS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3, 8 OPINION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 SPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 5 FEATURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 ENTERTAINMENT . . . . . . . . . .7

Photo by Tony Reeves

In this file photo, two University of Indianapolis students are seen in a health science class while wearing face masks and shields. Eta Sigma Gamma, a health science honorary, has begun research into UIndy students' perception and feelings about masks.

and policy .... In that work, I have become rules that needed to be followed; one of really good friends with the ESG sponsor the rules was based on the way they could at SUNY Cortland ... Dr. Alexis Blavos, word the dissemination of the survey. and then the sponsor at CMU … Dr. “So, even that little blurb that you see Jody Brookns-Fisher,” Hancher-Rauch on Kory's [Vitangeli’s] email is word-forsaid. “ In one of our many calls related word, what we're allowed to say, and we to other activities, they were like, ‘Hey, can't deviate that from that,”Mundt said. with our ESG chapters, our students The message could only be sent are saying, they're really interested in out five times to the population and studying this whole Mundt said that it face mask issue and has made getting what we're seeing enough responses to Part of ESG is we have four the survey one of the on our campuses.

Are you interested more challenging core goals, and one of in participating … aspects. She said to find out at our their only method those four is research." various campuses of dissemination what we're seeing has been through similarly and differently among our Vitangeli’s weekly emails and that students?’And so that's how it originated.” they would love to use things such as Mundt said that there was a large the UIndy App or social media, but amount of research and planning ESG the ESG rules do not allow for that. had to do prior to sending out any According to Hancher-Rauch, one of surveys to the campus, such as, finding the largest aspects of the process that the methodology of the research, piloting was a challenge was communication the research with professionals within across the universities with all of the the field and submitting an request to an different leaders. She said that allowing institutional review board for approval the students to take the lead at times for the research. She said that once that was difficult. process was completed there were a lot of “The other piece is when you're a

faculty member and you've done quite a bit of research, you often have very specific ideas about how things should be done,”Hancher-Ranch said.“So stepping back and letting the students really take the lead and just helping to guide them can be a challenge sometimes.”

Mundt said that once the research is finished she and the rest of the ESG research team are going to perform an analysis on the numbers not only with UIndy, but with the numbers they get from the other universities. The end goal being to compile the data into a report that they will then look to publish in the ESG journal for others within the national ESG organization to read. Mundt said they really hope to have a better understanding about the perception of masks from college students.

“Ultimately, the main goal is just to have more of an understanding of student mask perception because the reality is that masks are probably going to be around for a while,” Mundt said. “So by gauging students' perceptions of these, we can eliminate barriers and add more, not incentives, but add more factors, which make it easier for mask wearing.”

SPRING COMMENCEMENT

ATHLETICS EXCELLENCE

DRAG SHOW

UIndy announced that spring commencement will take a car parade format. Will this provide seniors with a meaningful graduation ceremony?

With two teams at No. 1 in the nation, 6 national championships and several other teams in the top 25, UIndy Athletics is seeing a period of unrivaled success.

Due to the pandemic, the Drag Show could not be held in 2020. However, the show was able to come back in full force. In addition, hear an editor’s experience participating in the event. > See ENTERTAINMENT

> See OPINION

> See SPORTS

2

OPINION

THE REFLECTOR

APRIL 14, 2021

Zoom fatigue is real Celebrating commencement with a car parade

By Hallie Gallinat

ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

UIndy adopts new graduation setup

By Taylor Strnad

MANAGING EDITOR For the past couple of months, I, like many graduating seniors at the University of Indianapolis, have been awaiting the school’s decision regarding the 2021 commencement ceremony format. I had so many questions about this. Would there be a traditional commencement ceremony? Would it be virtual? Would it be in-person, but with limited guests?

Considering the many uncertainties out there, I was curious about what UIndy would do for its seniors, if anything.

Some of those questions were answered when the Commencement Planning Committee sent out an email on March 3 saying that there would be a commencement ceremony. However, this will not be a typical three-hour ceremony with everyone sitting in the hot sun.

Instead, there will be a commencement parade, and the class of 2020 is invited to celebrate, too, the email said.

As a graduating senior, I think this is a fun alternative to the traditional commencement ceremony. According to the email, the parade will include a drive-through experience that allows graduates to have friends and/or family in the car, with many ways to celebrate along the parade route.To me, this sounds a lot better than sitting in black gowns and baking in the sun for hours, or inside a hot gym as everyone's name is slowly called, one by one. I do not want to sit through a three-hour long ceremony with a ton of people I don’t even know.

My high school had 500 students in my graduating class, and that ceremony was more than two hours long and incredibly boring. I would much rather parade around in a car with my closest family and friends, with the nice addition of air

conditioning.

At a traditional ceremony, you sit until your name is called. However, at this commencement parade, there will be live music performances, a DJ and a virtual photo booth, according to the email. Each of these things makes this event seem more and more appealing to me because it allows us to interact with our closest family and friends and have a relaxing, no-stress event.

To give us the hint of a traditional ceremony, at the end of the parade route, we still get to walk across the stage and receive our diplomas, according to the email. This little gesture gives us the feeling of a traditional commencement ceremony while still adhering to COVID-19 guidelines. A celebratory parade is an easy way to stay socially distant and keep ourselves, friends and family as safe as possible. This significantly lowers the number of people I will come in contact with since I will only be around the people in my car.

In addition to the parade, the email said that many academic departments are planning smaller events to celebrate the accomplishments of their graduates.

I think this is also a great addition to the parade. The university and its departments are doing the best that they can under the circumstances we are in.

And honestly, that sounds a lot more fun than a normal ceremony.

The class of 2021 should be grateful for this opportunity to celebrate our graduation. Unlike the class of 2020, we won’t have to wait until a year after we’ve graduated to celebrate. I am thankful to have any sort of celebration at all, and I think a celebratory parade is a great way to do this. The class of 2020 at UIndy was only given a virtual slideshow presentation, so I think this is a step up.

Zoom — you either love it or hate it. Personally, I like staying in my room and not going to an in-person class. I get to lounge in the comfort of my own environment while doing schoolwork.

However, the worst part of attending virtual classes is the Zoom fatigue.

Zoom fatigue,according to Psychiatric Times, is the feeling of burnout and tiredness linked to using video calls.

Symptoms of Zoom fatigue include difficulty concentrating, fatigue and muscle tension, according to Healthline.

One reason Zoom can cause fatigue is because being on a video call requires more focus than in-person interactions, according to the BBC. Our mind needs to work harder to read non-verbal cues, according to Stanford News. For example, if a professor asks the class if we understand something, it isn’t as obvious that we’re saying yes with non-verbal cues, which causes us to work harder to receive these signals.

As someone who has long night classes that are often on Zoom, staying on camera for long periods of time is exhausting, too. Having many pairs of eyes staring at the screen makes me feel like I’m being constantly watched. I hesitate to do anything, such as sneeze or adjust my seating position, out of fear that everyone is looking at me.

Another issue with Zoom fatigue is eye strain. As previously mentioned, I have long night classes, and after class my eyes sometimes hurt. According to STLToday, staring at a screen can cause dry eyes, blurred vision and headaches, among other symptoms. While these effects are irritating, STLToday says they are not permanent.

One difference I have noticed between the classroom and Zoom is that in a normal setting, everyone is looking at the speaker or elsewhere. But on Zoom, everyone is looking at each other, leading to increased eye-contact.

Everyone also is looking at themselves, all of the time. In an in-person class, students obviously aren’t looking at themselves— they’re looking at the professor or their notebook or something else. But looking at themselves all the time in Zoom can make students feel

Graphic by Jazlyn Gomez

self-conscious. I constantly fiddle with my hair or appearance and worry about what people may be looking at in my background.

While there is a way to hide one's own video feed on Zoom so students don’t have to look at themselves, doing this may make some more self-conscious.

Since they cannot see themselves, they may forget that their cameras are on.

Furthermore, in Zoom calls, we are expected to be in the same mindset as if we were in a classroom or workplace, according to Healthline. That means being focused and free of distractions.

Usually in a classroom, these would be removed for us. But on Zoom, we’re in our own home or dorm.We’re surrounded by distractions and in an environment where we usually relax or unwind.

This can make paying attention on Zoom difficult. According to a survey covered by IBL News, many students interviewed found it hard to pay attention while in a Zoom class because they are not in an environment designed for working or because of distractions on the computer. I find it very easy to lose focus in Zoom because I am on a computer, where I also browse the Internet. Opening a browser and distracting yourself while the teacher is talking is way too tempting.

Zoom fatigue is not something professors can simply ignore. If video conferencing becomes the new educational norm, professors need to be aware of the effects Zoom can have on our focus. I do not think Zoom is going to go away after this pandemic is over, so teachers need to understand potential side effects of attending virtual classes.

Professors can be more mindful of Zoom fatigue by understanding why students may need to turn off their cameras part of the time, such as for five to ten minutes to take breaks from staring at their screen. If students need to take a break from looking at themselves, professors should allow that. Just as we would take breaks from learning when in the classroom, we also should take breaks on Zoom.

I understand that professors may think we are leaving the discussion or not paying attention, but students do need time away from looking at themselves and a bright screen. Staring at ourselves and 20 other faces for up to three hours is exhausting. While one student may turn off his or her camera to goof off, another may be taking a necessary break.

If we are going to be online for another semester, or continue using Zoom after the pandemic, we need to be mindful of Zoom fatigue and its effects.

Blatant inequality in women's basketball

By Kiara Conley NEWS EDITOR

Gender inequality in the world of sports is nothing new and has been talked about quite a lot in recent years.

With the 2021 NCAA March Madness Tournaments, this topic seemed to gain more attention and generate more conversation than before.

On March 18, Sedona Prince, a redshirt sophomore forward from the University of Oregon’s women’s basketball team, posted a TikTok on Twitter showing a stark difference between the men’s and women’s weight rooms that the NCAA had provided for use during the tournaments. The men’s teams were provided a well-equipped workout room, while the women’s team were provided a single set of dumbbells and several yoga mats, purportedly because of a claimed lack of space, according to Prince’s post.

Prince’s post went viral, and many athletes rightfully began calling out the NCAA for blatant disrespect toward the women’s teams. Granted, the COVID-19 pandemic created challenges for sports and holding tournaments, but the NCAA was able to provide a quality workout room for the men’s team.What happened when it came to providing the same amenities for the women’s teams? What was so difficult about filling that space to create a quality workout room for the women’s teams? This is another example of institutions treating women’s sports as lesser than men’s. In the words of Georgia Tech’s Head Women’s Basketball Coach Nell Fortner, the NCAA treated the

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women’s teams as an afterthought.

By providing a better workout room a couple days later, after being called out by several professional athletes and members of the public, the NCAA thought that it had fixed the problem.

Unfortunately, it had not. The NCAA planned to hold the tournament during the pandemic, so it should have expected to provide comparable facilities. It is inexcusable to provide such lackluster equipment and show such lack of respect for the women’s teams playing in an event that has been held for years now.

The NCAA is expected to care for its student-athletes. However, the women’s teams not only were promised amenities and then disappointed, but had to take it

The NCAA puts more resources toward the men's tournament ... upon themselves to show the public the treatment they received. Even the types of COVID-19 tests used for the men’s and women’s teams were different, according to The New York Times. The men’s teams were provided with a polymerase chain reaction test, referred to as the “gold standard of virus testing,”according to The New York Times. However, the women’s teams were provided the rapid antigen test, which The New York Times reported is not as sensitive, exhibits more false negatives and is cheaper. The men’s and women’s teams should have been given the same COVID-19 tests. Doesn't number, which will be verified. Letters are subject to condensation and editing to remove profanity.

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providing a better test for the men's teams and a cheaper alternative for the women demonstrate that the NCAA values one group over the other?

To me, the NCAA seems to offer excuse after excuse for why it does not treat women's sports the same as men's. There is a $13.5 million budget gap between the men’s and women’s tournaments, which the NCAA claims is due to differences between the tournaments’ formats and popularity and subsequent budgeting decisions, according to The New York Times. Herein lies the problem. The women’s teams are not treated fairly and given less resources than the men, according to The New York Times. This continues to suggest that the NCAA as an organization holds one gender’s sports in higher esteem than the other’s. The NCAA’s mission statement says that it is “dedicated to the well-being and lifelong success of college athletes,” yet the unequal treatment between the men’s and women’s programs does not reflect this.

As a woman who has played sports for years and gone to college basketball games for both men and women, I have seen these differences myself. When I played, we did not draw the biggest crowds compared to the boys’ team. Our girls’ basketball team had a better record, progressed through more tournaments and played in the hall of fame game, but more spectators would come toward the end of our games to see the boys’ games that would follow.This was disheartening to see because I knew both teams worked hard, but there was an obvious favorite no matter the teams’performance. Going to see a women’s college basketball game

Andy Nelson/The Register-Guard/TNS

The University of Oregon's Kelly Graves, Minyon Moore, Ruthy Hebard and Sedona Prince celebrate their Jan. 16, 2020 win over Stanford University in Eugene, Oregon.

has always been viewed as “easier” than going to see a men’s basketball game.

Ticket prices for women’s Division I basketball games have long been more affordable than men’s.That there are more empty seats at the women’s games than the men’s has always bothered me— and it still does.

Finding opportunities to watch women’s sports on major sports networks is also more difficult. If I wanted to watch women’s sports on television more regularly, I would have to have the league’s network, like the SEC or ACC Network, to watch them. While women’s sports do play on networks such as ESPN, compared to men’s sports, women’s sports

are not broadcast as often and not as well advertised.

How the NCAA has conducted itself during this tournament, and in all honesty for years now, illustrates that women’s sports are not as highly regarded as men's and may be seen as a throwaway in some cases. This is infuriating because it shows future female athletes that they are not a priority in the world of sports. The NCAA is showing an entire generation of athletes that they will not be given the same treatment as their male counterparts.The NCAA and other sports organizations need to address this problem immediately. An apology will not cut it anymore.

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STAFF

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.................................NOAH CRENSHAW • crenshawn@uindy.edu MANAGING EDITOR......................................TAYLOR STRNAD • strnadt@uindy.edu NEWS EDITOR.................................................KIARA CONLEY • conleykf@uindy.edu SPORTS EDITOR...........................................JACOB WALTON • waltonja@uindy.edu FEATURE EDITOR................................................NOAH FIELDS • fieldsn@uindy.edu ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR.......................HALLIE GALLINAT • gallinath@uindy.edu OPINION EDITOR........................................NATHAN HERBST • herbstn@uindy.edu ONLINE EDITOR.........................................MADISON GOMEZ • gomezm@uindy.edu PHOTO EDITOR............................................JACOB WALTON • waltonja@uindy.edu ART DIRECTOR...........................................ETHAN GERLING • gerlinge@uindy.edu BUSINESS MANAGER............................OLIVIA CAMERON • camerono@uindy.edu DISTRIBUTION MANAGER....................GISELLE VALENTIN • valenting@uindy.edu ADVISER.................................................JEANNE CRISWELL • jcriswell@uindy.edu

KASSANDRA DARNELL......................... darnellk@uindy.edu JAZLYN GOMEZ....................................... gomezj@uindy.edu

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NEWS THE REFLECTOR

NEWS BRIEFS CAMPUS

UIndy partners with Maynooth University, Ireland for Study Abroad opportunities for School of Education Students in the University of Indianapolis’ School of Education will have a new opportunity to receive hands-on experience to become globally-competent teachers through a new study abroad partnership with Maynooth University in Ireland. The program, which is called the UIndyMU Embedded Study Abroad Program (ESAP) in Elementary Education, will allow UIndy students to attend classes at MU, according to a press release.

UIndy students who are participating in the UIndy-MU ESAP will be placed at a local elementary school in Ireland.

They also will be paired with a mentor and assigned to courses individually.

The Center for Global Engagement and the SoE worked with Maynooth University to align the course curriculum so that students can continue working towards their degree with no delay. The UIndy-MU ESAP is designed to be financially affordable for students.

The program will launch in Fall 2021 with a group of six students and will take place during their junior year.

- UIndy 360

UIndy to lead coordination of $9.8 million Lilly Endowment grant In March, the University of Indianapolis received a $9.8 million grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc. to coordinate a collaborative effort to improve student retention through the use of data analytics at UIndy, Anderson University, Indiana Institute of Technology, Martin University, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and the University of Southern Indiana. The colleges and universities will work together to create models that increase graduation rates and year to year retention rates at each institution.

The grant comes from Phase 3 of the Lilly Endowment's initiative, Charting the Future of Indiana’s Colleges and Universities.

- UIndy 360

FACULTY Garst uses printing press to help universities during pandemic University of Indianapolis Associate Adjunct Professor of Art & Design Steve Garst designed, manufactured, and released 134 printing presses to help more than 25 printmaking and letterpress university programs across the U.S, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Garst's help has allowed programs to teach printing with presses despite social distancing measures not allowing them to access their traditional equipment.

According to Intercom, a group of educators approached Garst in May 2020 said that they no longer had access to their laser cutters. Garst had been working on designing a press that would allow students to have more affordable access to a printing press.

Garst asked his friend Scott Moore for help and adjusted the plans for his affordable press to be able to produce them in the quantity needed for the educators.

- Intercom

UPCOMING The next issue of The Reflector comes out on Wednesday, April 28.

J&J from page 1 following COVID-19 vaccination very seriously. Anyone who has received the J&J vaccine and has developed severe headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination should contact their health care provider, according to the joint statement.

Health care providers are being asked to report adverse events to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System.

3 APRIL 14, 2021

Advocates want provisions in bill

By Caitlin Reilly CQ-ROLL CALL

( TCA ) — W i t n e s s e s u r ge d senators to bake provisions to ensure equity into President Joe Biden’s proposed infrastructure package or they would risk repeating a history of public investments that locked African Americans and minorities out of buying homes and building wealth.

Federal policies, including provisions of the New Deal and a 1950s law to expand and build highways, worsened segregation and drove divestment from Black and minority communities, witnesses said April 13 during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on racial discrimination in housing.

Senate Banking Chairman Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, asked witnesses how to fairly implement future infrastructure packages, such as the one Biden introduced last month. Biden’s proposal includes $213 billion to build and rehabilitate affordable housing units.

Past infrastructure investments, including the creation of the Federal Housing Administration and construction of the federal highway system, created jobs and drove economic growth, but only for some communities, Brown said.

“They explicitly, as we know, excluded or directly harmed lower-wealth communities and communities of color,” Brown said. “How do we ensure that new investments in infrastructure help promote broad-based economic growth

while addressing economic and racial inequalities and equities?”

Lisa Rice, president of the National Fair Housing Alliance, said lawmakers must acknowledge that housing is part of infrastructure.

“When you think of all of the infrastructure bills that the nation has passed in the past, those infrastructure bills had a great impact on people’s ability to sustain their housing,” she said. “It disrupted homeownership opportunities for many communities of color and it created, actually helped create, residential segregation.”

Lawmakers should apply a “patina of equity” to the entire infrastructure package, Rice said, adding that a fair housing mandate should be applied to the package to ensure programs and investments are doled out equitably.

“The infrastructure bill has to include both supply-side and demandside provisions,” she said. “You can’t just build up housing opportunities without ensuring that people are going to be able to adequately access them.”

“If we exclude the reality that families of color are not in the same position because of historical and discriminatory practices to access affordable housing options, then we’re going to be exacerbating inequality,” she said.

Richard Rothstein, author of “The Color of Law”and senior fellow emeritus at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, said a “disparate impact standard” should be applied to the infrastructure package to ensure there aren’t unintended negative

consequences for African Americans and other minority racial and ethnic groups.

Rothstein cited the 2015 decision to abandon a $2.9 billion plan to establish another light rail line in Baltimore, Md., and funnel the state funds allocated to the project into roads in the predominantly white communities surrounding the city as a policy decision that had a disparate racial impact.

The project would have brought good jobs, retail and housing opportunities to low-income, predominantly Black neighborhoods in Baltimore and instead built two highways to speed white commuters in and out of the city center, Rothstein said.

“That had a disparate impact on African Americans. That policy choice wasn’t intended as a racially explicit policy, but we need to impose a disparate impact standard on it and on all the policies that we enact,” he said. “We should legislate that disparate impact standard into the Fair Housing Act because leaving it to rulemaking, as we’ve seen over the last decade, is subject to politicization and to repeal.”

The Obama administration investigated whether Mar yland Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s decision to scuttle the light rail project violated the 1964 civil rights law, but President Donald Trump closed the review without releasing findings.

Ranking member Patrick J. Toomey of Pennsylvania and other Republicans likewise blamed federal policies for entrenching segregation and exacerbating the racial gap in homeownership, though they proposed different

solutions.

“This history shows us that when it comes to housing in America, including housing discrimination, government has been the problem, not the solution,” Toomey said. “Unfortunately, the Biden administration does not seem to have learned this lesson. Its multitrillion dollar welfare plan, with a bit of infrastructure sprinkled in, seems designed to repeat many of the mistakes of the New Deal and Great Society.”

Toomey in particular criticized the proposed $40 billion for repairs to public housing.

“Housing projects are notorious concentrations of poverty, crime and other social ills,” he said. “More public housing will only commit more Americans to a substandard living arrangement and increase government dependency.”

Howard Husock, adjunct fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said in his testimony that public housing prevented Black families from building wealth through homeownership.

Rather than repairing housing projects, the government should sell off the valuable land they sit on and share profits with long-time residents, he said.

“Rather than giving people a housing voucher and saying, try to use it somewhere, let’s pay them for exactly the kind of wealth accumulation they missed out on for 40 years,” he said. ___ (c)2021 CQ Roll Call Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

Will Derek Chauvin testify?

Attorneys consider a number of factors when determining client's testimony

By Chao Xiong STAR TRIBUNE

MINNEAPOLIS (TCA) — As former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin's defense presents its case this week against charges that he murdered George Floyd, a question looms over his trial: Will Chauvin testify in his own defense?

Under the U.S. Constitution, defendants have a right to refrain from testifying without penalty, but some local attorneys said there are compelling reasons for Chauvin to get on the witness stand.

"You've got to remember that this is a case that really centers on Chauvin's state of mind, and the best person to tell us about that would be Chauvin, so you might really be forced to put him on in this case," said veteran defense attorney Joe Friedberg.

The issue is likely to arise soon as prosecutors cap off two weeks of testimony in their case early in the week. Chauvin's attorney, Eric Nelson, is expected to begin calling witnesses for a few days of testimony before jurors begin deliberations. Nelson has not said whether his client will testify.

Chauvin faces charges of seconddegree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Three other former officers who were at the scene of Floyd's May 25 arrest — J. Alexander Kueng,Thomas Lane and Tou Thao — are scheduled to be tried Aug. 23 on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter.

All four defendants, who were fired, are out on bond.

Other attorneys and legal scholars said there's little Chauvin can say to overcome a bystander's graphic video showing him kneeling on Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes as he pleaded for his life and repeatedly said he couldn't breathe.

Pleas for mercy from several horrified bystanders, including children and an off-duty Minneapolis firefighter, were also captured in the video.

"Chauvin doesn't come across as a character that you want to root for because of the video," said Joseph Daly, emeritus professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law. "[Prosecutors will] take him through every single second of that video and have him testify. In cross-examination he'll just get beat up. It'll be horrible for him. The risk is so immense for him to testify."

In a recent interview, Floyd's brother, Philonise Floyd, and sister-in-law, Keeta Floyd, said they want to hear from Chauvin. " … He won't be able to handle

what's thrown at him, because how can you explain that you had your knee on a man's neck for nine minutes? How can you explain that? There's no way to explain. You can't," Philonise Floyd said.

"So it will be a good thing [if he testifies], but I know that's not going to happen."

Prosecutors have argued that Chauvin used excessive force and an unsanctioned maneuver when he knelt on Floyd.

Testimony from several Minneapolis police leaders, including Chief Medaria Arradondo and Lt. Richard Zimmerman, the department's head of homicide, supported the state's claims.

Nelson has argued that Floyd likely died of a drug overdose complicated by preexisting health issues, including heart disease. Nelson told jurors Floyd was resisting arrest so forcibly that it rocked a parked police squad back and forth, and that Chauvin followed his training amid a threatening crowd.

Defense attorney Mike Padden said Chauvin needs to testify to explain the reasoning behind his actions and to apologize, which could help negate the "depraved mind" element needed to convict him on third-degree murder.

"I don't think he has any choice but to testify," said Padden, who believes a conviction is more likely on third-degree murder than second-degree murder. "It'll be a mistake if he doesn't. The jury needs to hear from him, that's the bottom line."

Friedberg said Chauvin's testimony could also further the defense's argument that he placed his knee on Floyd's shoulder. Nelson has introduced the concept of "camera perspective bias" and played clips of police bodycam videos that showed Chauvin's knee on Floyd's shoulder. The state has countered that with images of the knee on the neck.

"When the defendant takes the stand and denies the things that make up the crime, that's got to make the jury pause …," Friedberg said. "If the jury gets into an argument about where the knee is, that's a good thing for the defense."

All three officers who have been previously tried in Minnesota for killing a civilian on the job — Jeronimo Yanez, Mohamed Noor and Brian Krook — testified at their trials. But unlike in Chauvin's case, all three officers said they acted because of a perceived threat to their life or the lives of others. Two of the civilians in the previous cases also possessed guns.

While Nelson has previously said in court filings that Floyd posed a potential threat, the issue has played a minimal role so far at trial.

The amount of time Chauvin knelt on Floyd is also a key difference. Through their attorneys or in direct testimony,

Mark Vancleave/Minneapolis Star Tribune/TNS

Rodney Floyd leads family members, including Philonise and Keeta Floyd, to the Hennepin County Government Center on Wednesday, April 7, 2021, in Minneapolis.

Yanez and Noor said they were forced to make a "split-second" decision to use deadly force, a phrase and defense that resonates with jurors, who often give police the benefit of the doubt, attorneys said.

Yanez and Krook were acquitted. Noor was convicted.

Chauvin can't help his case by testifying, said defense attorneys A.L. Brown and Andrew Gordon. Testifying would also open the door for prosecutors to probe his background and past policing depending on his answers.

"He's not incredibly sympathetic, so he doesn't offer much by way of story line," Brown said. "It's even worse for Chauvin because he's got the chief of police saying: This guy's not with us. We didn't teach him to do that."

Gordon predicted that Chauvin would not testify given how infrequently he appeared as a character in Nelson's opening statement two weeks ago.

Nelson first mentioned Chauvin about halfway through his 24-minute opening statement, and kept references to him brief and specific to his actions at the scene. There was no deeper dive into Chauvin's 19-year career with Minneapolis police or his role as a trainer for new officers. There was no mention of details about Chauvin's background and life.

"Most defense attorneys will tell you that you have to spend some time in your opening statement humanizing your client," Gordon said. "You need them to be a person for the jurors. … Ultimately, though, they likely made a strategic move to not dwell on it, since they have a baked-in advantage: Chauvin is a cop, and the uniform and badge does a lot of the humanizing for them."

While the topic of testifying was surely discussed between Chauvin and Nelson long before trial began five weeks ago with jury selection, the final call often occurs at the end of the defense's case, attorneys said. Defendants can testify at any point once their attorneys begin calling witnesses; they typically take the stand at the end of their case.

Attorneys consider a number of factors in determining whether a defendant should testify: what they add to the evidence, how well they handle difficult questions and how believable they are.

"So much of this is a gut check for us," said defense attorney Michael Brandt. "We will have someone come in and do a whole mock examination and mock cross-examination so the client, should they choose to testify, will be prepared."

Nelson has represented clients in high-profile cases who testified at trial: A tearful Amy Senser testified in 2012 about the night she fatally struck Anousone Phanthavong with her car and left the scene. Senser, the wife of former Minnesota Viking Joe Senser, was convicted of criminal vehicular homicide.

All else aside, a defendant's likability plays a major role in putting them on the stand, said Brandt and Friedberg.

"Remember now," Friedberg said, "[Chauvin would be] taking the stand as the most hated man in America." ___ (c) 2021 The S tar Tr ibune (Minneapolis) Visit The Star Tribune (Minneapolis) at www.startribune.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

SPORTS

4 THE REFLECTOR

APRIL 14, 2021

Photo by Jacob Walton

Photo by Jacob Walton

Women’s Lacrosse No. 1

Junior midfielder Jess Soenen dodges a Lewis University defender. In that game Soenen had scored two goals. The Hounds so far this year have given up 26 goals in their first seven games while putting up an astounding 138 with 18 different players scoring a goal.

By Madison Gomez ONLINE EDITOR

Traveling to Charlotte, North Carolina to face off against the No. 5 Queens University Royals has been the highlight of the University of Indianapolis Women’s Lacrosse season so far, senior attacker Abigail Lagos said. She was one of the driving forces in that 15-5 win over Queens, with her having seven goals in the top 10 match-up. The team has never beaten someone that highly ranked, so the win felt great, Lagos said.That victory will not be stopping the Hounds from pushing during practice; Lagos said they will not be complacent with success.

“One thing that Coach [ James

Delaney] reminds us is ‘How bad do you want it on just a random Tuesday, because you’re gonna want it really bad in May,” Lagos said. “So I think, especially with this whole year, you never know when it’s going to be taken from you. I think that little piece is always in the back of all of our minds when we’re going out to practice, or maybe it’s bad weather out or we have some hard drills. When we went home on March 13 last year, that’s all we wanted to do was to go out and do hard drills.

We wanted to be doing sprints with each other.”

Keeping that same motivation up throughout the season can be hard, but with the big win against Queens and having good practices back to back the

team are finding themselves in a groove, according to Lagos. Lagos was not alone in the goals column with senior attacker Grace Gunneson having three goals and senior attacker Lauryn Hardoy scoring

I think that this year is the year to have a championship team.” three goals as well. Since that early-season win over Queens, the Hounds have come up with big win after big win with a victory over No. 10 Grand Valley State University 9-7 and then that next week a win over

Golf ranked top 5

Senior attacker Abigail Lagos pushes the ball upfield in another dominant win this year as they took down Lewis University 25-1, where Lagos recorded 5 goals and 3 assists.

No. 25 Colorado Mesa University 18-7.

Now the Hounds are sitting at No. 1 in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association poll, according to UIndy Athletics, and midfielder/draw specialist Peyton Romig, Lagos and King have all won awards for their performances so far. Lagos said she can see the team as a whole and many individuals winning awards by the end of the season. Even the freshmen are continuing to give their all, according to Lagos, for a spot in a starting position and playing time.

The team does not have worries so far in the season. Lagos said the dynamic around the team is solid. She said it is because of the solid recruiting on Head Coach James Delaney’s part, and that all they have to do now is work on perfecting

their game at this point in the season.

With five games left in the season, there is only one top 25 team in the forecast for the Hounds, a match-up with former No. 1 and currently No. 2 Lindenwood.

King said that every day Delaney is pushing the team to be as good as they possibly can be and that at times when the team is not playing for each other, they are playing for him. The upper and underclassmen are getting along great, King said, and there are girls stepping up to help others, which also improves their game at the same time.

“I think that this year is the year to have a championship team,” King said. “We have a good, experienced team and girls who would do anything to win.”

Women’s Golf’s streak of program excellence continues

By Jacob Walton SPORTS EDITOR & PHOTO EDITOR

For the past ten years, the University of Indianapolis Women’s Golf Team has been one of the best programs in all of NCAA Division II women’s golf with seven regional championships in the last eight years, 14 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances and two national championships, one in 2015 and the other just three years ago in 2018, according to UIndy Athletics. This level of success is continuing this year as the team sits at No. 5 in the nation and is coming off their first ever team win at the Barry Invitational in Miami Shores, Florida.

At the Barry Invitational, senior Anna Kramer took the lead for the Hounds with a second place finish to help propel the Hounds to a victory in the stacked field which included seven of the top 25 teams in D2, according to UIndy Athletics. Kramer said that the team was coming off a disappointing performance

in their first spring meet at the Emerald Coast Classic but they were able to find themselves at the Barry Invitational. She said she shifted her mindset going into that tournament.

“I really try and just enjoy myself out there and have fun. I feel like when I start getting like worked up or just mad over shots, it just makes me play worse,” Kramer said.“So there’s really nothing you can do about a bad shot after you hit it.

So I just have to move on and I think I’ve gotten a lot better mentally as well. Just try and enjoy it as much as I can because it won’t last forever.”

According to Head Golf Coach Brent Nicoson, the team has an incredible work ethic and they have done a great job handling adversity, especially amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that this team is building upon the foundations set by previous squads.

“We have five girls that we know can win tournaments, and that’s what it takes to try to get the ultimate goal of what we want: conference, regional, and then trying to make it back to the national

championship and be relevant,” Nicoson said.“But this team has a great work ethic.

Not that our teams in the past haven’t, they have and they’ve set the bar and they’ve shown these girls what it takes. But the work ethic and the desire and drive of this team is really, really high right now.

I don’t have to tell them to go work. We know that they’re going to go work and do extra stuff.”

Nicoson said that during the Emerald Coast Classic the team got complacent but that has changed. Now, the focus is to improve every single day. He said that this team is where they are for a reason. They are a very talented and skilled team and that the focus is going to be on coming together as a group as they head toward the postseason.

“The biggest thing is they need to come together as a group, as a unit with having each other’s back, and that’s very hard right now,” Nicoson said. “... we’re preaching, ‘Hey, we want you guys to stay together as a team and get close, bond. But at the same time, stay apart, be safe.’”

Photo Contributed by UIndy Athletics

Senior Anna Kramer eyes a driver shot at the UIndy Fall Invitational. In that tournament the team finished first and since then have only not won one tournament out of the six they have participated in. At that first meet Kramer finished 3rd behind only her teammates.

Photo by Jacob Walton

Senior back Dana Youssef rears back to launch a ball upfield. Youssef has dished out four assists for the Greyhounds which leads the team. She also has two goals on 15 shots.

Soccer at No. 24

By Jazlyn Gomez

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT As the season progresses,the University of Indianapolis women’s soccer team has been ranked as No. 24 in the country for NCAA Division II. In their 11 games so far, the women’s team has held a record of 9-1-1. They are approaching the GLVC tournament with only two games left in the season, one against Lindenwood University and one versus the University of Missouri St. Louis.

According to senior back Dana Youssef, this ranking has made the team excited as the recognition shows that their hard work and dedication to the game have paid off. Altogether, the team has scored 14 goals this season with Youssef ’s help of four assists. Youssef also scored a goal in their latest game against the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

“It’s pretty exciting, honestly. I think we got some recognition for hard work last year and then the games that we have had so far, and I think it’s just nice to be considered to be that good. And that our hard work gets recognized,” Youssef said.

However, it has not always been so easy for the team, according to Head Women’s Soccer Coach Holly Cox. Starting off the season with a loss against McKendree University, Cox said she worried about how the team could bounce back from it. Despite her worries, the team responded well to these challenges and continues to overcome, Cox said.

“The hard work starts from practice,”

Cox said. “The preparation that we put into each training session, the effort that the ladies put in to accomplish what we need to do during practice, to me [that is what] sets us up for success on the weekend.”

In order to achieve these accomplishments, Youssef said that the team has formed a bond together. She said the team is aware that they can strive for better together.

“It’s the point of the season where we kind of get tired, but we just need to keep up our heads and know that we can push for more,” Youssef said.

“And I think this can be the point that distinguishes us from other teams — that we don’t make excuses and that we just fight through it, although our bodies might be hurting.”

With strong and established goals created at the beginning of the year, Cox says that overall the team aspires for the No. 1 spot. According to both Cox and Youssef, the team knows each other’s weaknesses and strengths in order to achieve their goals.

The team does not settle for mediocrity, Cox said.

“We had a tough start when COVID started because we weren’t able to do like any team bonding activities, but now, especially with the road trips, we became so much closer and we can integrate the new people pretty well,” Youssef said. “We know each other very well, and that is reflected on the field because we can support each other.

We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses and how we can make up for each other’s mistakes.”

SPORTS THE REFLECTOR

Four national champs

Swimming and Diving finish 3rd at NCAA National meet

By Anika Yoder STAFF WRITER

University of Indianapolis Swimming & Diving teams made history with the first woman in program history to hold a national championship trophy over her head on March 27. But it would not be just one championship for the Hounds, as the women’s team would leave with four individual national champions. Both the men’s and the women’s teams finished the NCAA Championship meet in third place, the highest placing in program history for both programs, according to UIndy Athletics.

S e n i o r M a r i z e l v a n J a a r s ve l d , would win the 200 IM with a time of 4:52.75.

“It was very unreal, it didn’t sink in that fast but I’ve been working towards that for four years,”van Jarrsveld said.“So, this was definitely the best year of my

swimming so far and I am really happy all my hard work paid off.”

On the second day of the NCAA DII Championships, van Jarrsveld was not the only event winner among the Hounds. 200 free relay juniors Johanna Buys and Letica Vaselli, senior Krystal Caylor and freshman Isabela Revstedt combined their efforts for the Hounds’ second national championship.

The team did not stop, there as on the final day of nationals, junior Kaitlyn McCoy went on to win her own national championship in the 200M backstroke with a time of 1:56.39.

The relay team of Buys, Vaselli, Caylor and Revstedt continued to make history as on the final day they claimed the 400 free relay championship.

According to Associate Head Coach Brent Noble, the swimming & diving team is working toward moving ahead as a program and making strides to improve upon their placement.

“We can’t let up,” Noble said. “We

have to make sure that we continue to improve upon the things that we’ve done to get us to this point and continue to do them and do them well. And I think we will,” Noble said.

Van Jaarsveld said that the butterfly, backstroke, freestyle and breaststroke events won by women shows they are capable of making histor y.

It shows other women coming in that they’re joining a program where the team works hard and wants to achieve great things.”

“It’s one of those things where it needs to happen many times every year, and so it’s good to get that started,” Noble said. “And for us to do what we want to do, we need to have multiple relay champions. And so getting that going, I think is an important step.”

The UIndy Swimming & Diving teams have had a record breaking end to their season, and according to Noble, are looking forward to getting better next year.

Photo contributed by UIndy Athletics

Senior swimmer Marizel van Jaarsveld hugs her teammate after winning the first ever national championship won by female athlete in UIndy school history. She would be followed in that NCAA meet by three other championships by the UIndy Swim and Dive team.

5 APRIL 14, 2021

Women’s Tennis sweeps competition

By Kassandra Darnell EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

The University of Indianapolis Women’s Tennis Team has swept the competition so far this season, sitting at 11-0 with eight of those wins coming against top 25 teams. The women won the ITA DII Indoor Team National Champions in February, and since have gone undefeated and recently were unanimously voted the No. 1 team in the nation, according to UIndy Athletics.

Alongside that No. 1 ranking, the Hounds lit up the singles and doubles rankings with junior Nikol Alekseeva sitting at No. 1 in the country for singles.

That would not be her only No. 1 ranking as she sits at No. 1 in doubles with her partner junior Anna Novikova. Head Coach Malik Tabet said that one of the main reasons for the team’s success has been a slight change in the main focus of the tennis program.

“We have changed the culture in this program [to] where our tennis players are becoming the true value of a student-athlete. They work hard. The true value of an athlete pretty much right now, because we’re talking only tennis, but when it comes down to academics, they also are doing incredible things,” Tabet said. “And I could not be more proud to have a group of young ladies where they give everything on the court, in class, with the strength and conditioning coach. And so that’s what is making this culture so strong, to be able to actually create the results we’re creating right now.”

Alekseeva is not the only Hound to grace the top 50 for singles as Novikova would come in at No. 8 in the nation.

Continuing through, senior Alina Kislitskaya came in at No. 18, and then fellow senior Kristina Lagoda would fall in at No. 42. The pair of seniors would also land high in the doubles rankings as they are No. 3 in the nation.

According to Tabet, the time over winter break was key in helping the team prepare for this season. He said that while the women had the option to go home after the university closed in November, most of them stayed and continued to train. Novikova, who was named a GLVC Player of the Week for the week of March 1st said they worked hard as a team prior to the start of the season, but they are still

continuing to work hard every practice and motivate each other.

“Overall, we’re just family right now; all of us are so united. We help each other just so everyone can help to be undefeated during [the] whole season and be number one,” Novikova said. “I think everyone did a really good job, like at the beginning of [the] season when we were preparing for all the matches and we’re still trying to keep up the good work.”

Tabet said he helps the women remain focused after their many victories by giving them time off when it is needed and giving their training a purpose.

However, Tabet said there is still room for improvement, which has meant integrating more discipline into practices.

“I think this is where we’re in a phase in the season where we [are] actually restructuring our practices, where we’re making our practices a lot more physical, with a lot more discipline,” Tabet said.

“Now I have a good understanding of what we need to improve before we tackle the conference championship and hopefully the regionals and nationals.”

Novikova said that after all their prep this season, the team is mentally ready to show the results of their hard work. Some of this work is seen when Novikova plays with her doubles partner, junior Nikol Alekseeva.

Alekseeva was also named a GLVC Player of the Week in February and March. Novikova said she and her teammate have a great relationship with no conflicts as they head toward the NCAA tournament.

“Me and Nikol [Alekseeva] have really known each other since [the] first day because we came on the same day, and we used to live together my freshman year and sophomore year,”Novikova said.

“So I think after three years of playing together, we can understand each other even when we just look at each other.”

According to Tabet, the women on the team have been very involved in team meetings, making game plans and helping to create a purpose in their training going forward. Tabet said that while several of their upcoming GLVC opponents are not ranked in the Top 25, these matches are just as important.

“We follow certain directives on what we want to accomplish during those matches. And, and our goal is to play the way we want to play, regardless of the results,” Tabet said.

Softball dominates 16 games in

By William Riddell

there, we’re swinging, we’re taking our hacks, we’re swinging at pitches that STAFF WRITER we want, and [we’re] just putting the ball in play and making the defense On March 11, 2020, the University work.” of Indianapolis Softball Team was under UIndy’s pitching rotation, which the sun in Winter Haven, Florida. is led by senior ace Hallie Waters, They defeated Urbana University has an average ERA that is currently 4-0 before cruising past Upper Iowa below 1.25 for the season. Freshman University 11-1 to improve their win Kenzee Smith is a perfect 9-0 on the streak to five games. Life was good, year and has an ERA of 1.07. She and according to senior second baseman Waters have combined for 158 of the Haylie Foster. After arriving back in team’s 161 strikeouts. On March 20, Indy, they found out their season was Waters tossed her second career nocanceled. hitter in a 10-0 win over Tiffin. “...We were just in Florida, everything After posting a 3.73 ERA as a freshman, was perfectly fine. We were playing Waters’s ERA has not risen above 2.00 games, we were traveling on an since. airplane, no one was wearing masks “I think the biggest thing is she’s just or anything, and then we got so commanding and does such a great back [to Indiana] and the whole job preparing and preparing for game world just shut down,” Foster said. day, that she goes out and just executes “It was just hard to pitches,” Frost said. believe and [hard] “It’s awesome to see.” to wrap my mind Aside from We just are already around, and then it her command kind of just sucked and placement, mentally prepared to go because we couldn’t Foster said they really do much believe there is one to go into the box...” because facilities other thing that were closed down. m a k e s Wa t e r s Softball was taken out of our hands.” so good when she steps inside the A little over one year later and circle: her velocity.

Greyhound softball is back. They “She also throws pretty hard,” Foster are fueled by dominant play both said. “I think it really has to do with her at the plate and in the circle, movement,and I don’t think a lot of people leading the conference in multiple prepare themselves for faster pitching categories. Head Coach Melissa because a lot of other teams have slower Frost and her team are 23-2 and pitching.” ranked No. 7 in the latest NFCA DII The GLVC Tournament runs from poll. Right now, the Greyhounds are May 6-through-9. Following that leading the GLVC in batting average, event are the Midwest Regionals slugging percentage and on-base that will take place from May percentage. They are also among the 19-through-21. The 2021 NCAA DII GLVC leaders in home runs, runs batted Championship will be held in in and total bases, according to UIndy Denver. Foster and the rest of the Athletics.

Hounds hope to be in the Mile High “ We just are already mentally City in late May. prepared to go into the box and “Obviously a natty championship dominate,” Foster said. “I feel [is the goal],” Foster said. “But like we’re just more aggressive. we’re going to strive for conference And our coaching staff I champs first, well, regular season and know likes to say that they don’t want in the tournament, and then we’ll go us to waste at-bats, so we’re going up from there.”

Photo by Jacob Walton

Senior shortstop Brooke Montgomery celebrates at second base after hitting down the third base line. Montgomery sits at second on the UIndy Softball Team in batting average with a .372 with 86 plate appearances this season. She has had 32 hits so far this season.

Photo by Jacob Walton

Senior pitcher Hallie Waters rifles a ball to home plate during her second career no hitter. Waters is having another quality year with her earned run average sitting at 1.05 with 84 strikeouts and only 20 walks on the season. She sits at 12-1 having faced 276 batters.

FEATURE

6

Speech team ranks nationally

THE REFLECTOR

APRIL 14, 2021

UIndy Forensic Speech and Debate team places 15th, Chigadza places 3rd in interview speaking

By Noah Fields & Keshon Griffin

Chigadza said his interest in speech and debate started back in high school. After gaining public speaking FEATURE EDITOR & opportunities then, Chigadza said he wanted to continue his strides with the STAFF WRITER UIndy Forensics Speech and Debate team. Scholarship opportunities also A t t h e National Speech sparked his interest, he said.

Championship in March, the University “[Speech and Debate] gave me of Indianapolis Forensics Speech and an opportunity to be the voice of the Debate team ranked 15th in the nation voiceless… and just be able to use the overall. Team President and senior gift of speaking that I got to progress and psychology and international relations bring to light certain social issues that are double major Craig Chigadza received occurring in and about our community,” multiple rankings, including placing 3rd Chigadza said. in Interview Speaking.

When preparing for an event like “It was definitely a result we worked the National Speech Championship, hard for, we put in a lot of work to Chigadza said he put in roughly get to that result,” 25 hours per week Chigadza said.“The into his events. numbers themselves In this time, he Our mantra d o n’t really revised his speech, matter. I believe watched videos of is to focus on with or without past speeches and the process.” the numbers, went through a the experience repetition phase to will remain. The best memorize his numbers are just the cherries on top of speech. the cake.”

Chigadza dedicated his achievement Due to the remote setup, he said the to Team Director and Assistant Professor team has had to adapt throughout the of Communication Stephanie Wideman.

COVID-19 pandemic. He said the team’s Having held her position for four years, dedication came into fruition through Wideman said Chigadza is the first several placements at the championships. student she has had on the team all “We’re used to being together, four years. traveling on a Friday afternoon, going “I met [Chigadza] at a student fair. to a hotel, checking in, having that team We were recruiting lots of students and time, going through to a different city then he just seemed like he already had and enjoying a different city and so on,” an affinity. He had some experience. And Chigadza said. “I think the team as a so having him come on, we’ve worked whole showed some great perseverance, closely together,” Wideman said. “It has some great determination and just being been a nice ride for him.” able to pull through.”

Given the impacts of the pandemic,

Photo Contributed by Stephanie Wideman

From left to right, Bhumibol Shakya, Landon Owens, Kathryn Leigh and Craig Chigadza pose with their “congrats” balloons on Smith Mall.

and the team being so young, consisting mostly of sophomores,Wideman said the team ranking 15th in the nation is really special. She said that, while the rankings are important, she does not like the team to focus too much on them.

“Our mantra is to focus on the process,” Wideman said. “Because the product is going to come if you put in the work. So if we spend the whole year consistently worrying about ‘What is our ranking going to be? What is our ranking going to be?’ that is going to do nothing but stress everybody out. So,

really, we just focus on every day, making sure we’re putting in the work and we’re proud of ourselves. And then eventually we get the success that we do.”

As a senior, Chigadza said he will be furthering his education in graduate school. Chigadza would also like to continue his humanitarianism by practicing international humanitarian law in law school and beyond. Some of the things he wants to advocate for are refugee rights, community rights and more. He said he will use the experience he gained from the Speech and Debate

team to guide him through that next step in his life.

“For the team, I think more success is on the horizon,” Chigadza said.

“We’ve g o t a g re a t t e a m t h a t ’s going to stay behind and continue to compete next season. A team that’s going to continue to grow. I think there are definitely many more lessons to be learned, many more topics to be tackled [and] much more advocacy to be done. And I think the team is definitely placed in a good position moving forward.”

Photo Contributed by Chase Williams

Junior theatre major Chase Williams sits down to read his first book, “The Sweetest of Apples,” published in May 2018. All three of Williams’ books are available on Amazon.

Student finds power in poetry

By William Riddell STAFF WRITER

Clad in a pink hoodie and sitting in his dorm room, junior theatre major Chase Williams looks like a typical college student. However, unlike the typical college student, Williams is a published author who has released multiple books of poetry.

“I needed someone to talk to,” Williams said. “I needed an outlet that wasn’t going to judge me because at that time I was pretty far deep in the closet.”

According to Williams, high school was a stressful four years. However, he said he made a goal to come out by the end of his senior year. He also said he has always been intrigued by writing and first tried to write a book in the fourth grade.

Williams used his interest in writing as he said he came out as LGBTQIA+ in his first book, “The Sweetest of Apples,” which was released in May of 2018.

“It wasn’t a very loud or public coming out, but it was the coming out that made me feel the safest,”Williams said.“I think that really was like my initial drive to make the book. Just to tell people, ‘I’m like you. I’m just like you. I’m just like everybody else. And no, you’re not the only person that [is] going through these things at such an early age.’”

Since releasing his first book,Williams said he has published two other books of

poetry titled “Bloom” and “The Sweetest Bite.” According to Williams, “Bloom” is a self-care book, while “The Sweetest Bite” ties back into “The Sweetest of Apples” thematically.

“I think all of the books represent very different, vivid times in my life,” Williams said.

Part of Williams’s creative process involves reaching out to his close friend, Anne Cosner, he said. Williams said he and Cosner first became friends at Beech Grove High School, where they bonded over activities like choir and a shared love of poetry. “[Williams] grew up and realized a lot quicker than everyone else that he had his heart set on something, and that was his books and his poetry,” Cosner said. “He was like, ‘This is what I want to do.’ And I was like, ‘Okay, I think you should do it.’”

Cosner said that when Williams released his first book, she helped spread the word by hanging up posters, providing students with links so that they could find it, and buying her own copy. Now available on Amazon, all three of Williams’s published works have garnered quality ratings.

Williams said everyone has a story worth telling. Different backgrounds do not divide; rather, they bring people closer together, he said.

“I think if we all shared a little bit of what we’ve all been through, we could all come collectively to a better place,” Williams said.

Getting back to birthday parties starts with getting informed.

Get the latest information about COVID-19 vaccines at GetVaccineAnswers.org

7

ENTERTAINMENT

The drag show must go on THE REFLECTOR

APRIL 14, 2021

UIndy Pride hosts annual drag show, continuing tradition, after one-year hiatus from pandemic

Photo by Jacob Walton

Junior communication major Thomas Gismondi, performing as Gen Decadia, carries out a shot on senior supply chain management major Haley Salamie. Salamie, along with senior biology major Hannah Salamie, performed as backup dancers: The Time Skippers.

By Kassandra Darnell EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Freshman theatre major Skyler Clarkson walks in front of the audience in eight-inch heels with the artist Marina playing overhead. Their drag persona is named Lolita Lollipop, and Lola is dancing across the stage and lip-syncing.

Clarkson said that they are making a fool of themself, but look hot while doing it.

According to Clarkson, they consider themself to be a performer in many aspects of their life, but performing in drag is a new challenge.

“My definition for drag is it’s not cross-dressing. People think that drag is cross-dressing. And that’s not really what I consider it,” Clarkson said. “Drag is an art form where gender is the canvas — usually performance, but it can be art.

It can be spoken word, it can be music.

Drag is what you make of it. As long as you’re challenging gender norms, it’s a form of drag in my opinion.”

According to Clarkson, drag is also something that helps to express gender in

a way that is linked to their LGBTQIA+ identity. Clarkson said they identify as non-binary and that drag is an art form that allows them to explore the bounds of femininity.

“I want to show a femininity that is intrinsically queer and intrinsically genderless — femininity that is removed from the male gaze. I want femininity that disgusts general society,” Clarkson said. “I think that’s what drag is perfect for. Drag is meant to be disgusting. It’s meant to be irreverent. It’s meant to be offensive to the eye, even if it’s beautiful.

But by its nature, it is an art form that is meant to shock. And I feel like that’ll just really be me coming into my identity and embracing that.”

Junior history major and co-chair of UIndy Pride Mackenzie Deppe said that while the annual drag show is a great community event, last year’s cancellation of the event due to COVID-19 made the show feel more important this year.

“We just felt like that this past year, people really needed something like this that was just fun to be a part of and to have something that wasn’t so heavy,” Deppe

said. “So that was really important for us to make sure that was getting done; that people had something to look forward to in a way.”

According to Deppe, while ensuring the event still happens this year, there have been many challenges that have made planning during the COVID-19

the fluidity of gender. And in my selfreflection, I realized I wanted my drag “thing” to be equal parts entertainment and personal statement of defiance.

To accomplish this goal, I knew I needed to modify the act I had planned from last year. All I had intended to do was impersonate Stevie Nicks and sing a Fleetwood Mac medley. Fortunately, further analyzing Nicks’ lyrics helped my new plan fall into place — rather than fall apart.

For the purposes of my act, I came to interpret the speaker of the song “Dreams” as kissing goodbye to my

Photo by Jacob Walton

Senior criminal justice major Sadie Jay performs as Tommy Gunn. Their act consisted of singing “Old Time Rock & Roll” by Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band.

pandemic more difficult. Deppe said the show was done in a hybrid format, with first come, first served seating to see the event in person, as well as the ability to watch it via Zoom. Deppe said one of the main issues when planning the drag show was scheduling virtual meetings.

This required schedules lining up and having to deal with technical issues.

However, Deppe said there’s still been a

lot of enthusiasm surrounding the event.

“I know it’s not going to be the same drag show that would happen every other year. But we have been putting a lot of thought and effort [and] consideration into this,” Deppe said “So we really do want as many people as possible to come, either watch virtually [or] try to get into the in-person audience, and really enjoy it. So because there’s been a lot of people working on this and working very hard on this and are really excited to see it come to fruition.”

Junior pre-art therapy major and cochair of UIndy Pride Emma Warner said that the pandemic has also forced them to reduce the talent that they have in the show. According to Warner, they would usually outsource drag performers from the Indianapolis community to perform alongside university performers. But, Warner said a motivator for putting on the show this year has been making sure everyone on campus would get to see at least one annual drag show.

“It’s definitely something that has been, I think, a worthwhile pursuit, but it’s also doing so many things online

and having to go really around that and around the amount of people that we are having in person has definitely been kind of a new challenge that we haven’t had before,” Warner said. “And as well as not being able to have as many performers from the like community i tself.”

Warner said one major reason for the tradition of the drag show is to showcase the talent of the LGBTQIA+ community and create a safe community on campus for those individuals. Warner said it was important to continue this tradition despite the pandemic.

“I think it’s a good way of bringing together people in the LGBT community as well as showing them in a positive light to people who wouldn’t otherwise see it that way,” Warner said. “And I think it’s important to do that in the state of both the world and the state we’re in and everything, it’s important to see these people as joyous and fun as well as it creates a safe environment and that it’s very fun, but at the same time it’s showcasing people’s talent.”

previous, cisgender-presenting identity and embracing my truest self. When I sang about the “stillness of remembering what I had and what I lost,” that was me reflecting on the feminine childhood and adolescence I had missed. And when the music to “Dreams” fades out and “Rhiannon” fades in, that is my truest self coming out for the world to see.

But I knew I needed more than lyrical analysis to indicate my intentions to the audience. I needed at least one bold, dramatic action to drive the act home, rather than just singing a Fleetwood Mac cover. And I must say, I am pretty

proud of what I ended up doing. On the final phrase of “Dreams,” before the music transitioned into “Rhiannon” — “when the rain washes you clean you’ll know, you’ll know” — I stripped away my black cape to reveal the non-binary pride flag. First, who doesn’t love a stunning wardrobe reveal? Second, the reveal pulled the songs from their original contexts and tied them to my act. I was no longer a Stevie Nicks impersonator but became Crystal Shields. I like to believe the crowd thought that, too.

My singing and wardrobe represented a fraction of the work in comparison

to the tremendous assistance provided by my dear friend, freshman theatre education major and drag performer Skyler Clarkson (known on the drag show stage as Lolita Lollipop). Clarkson sketched the mockup of my makeup design and, leading up to the show, spent hours doing the majority of my makeup application. These efforts truly made my performance, and I could not be more grateful for them.

Being crowned “Most Memorable Act” caught me by surprise. Besides the fact that the crowning ceremony is, in all sincerity, the last thing I think about in connection with the drag show, my heart, mind and soul were focused on the performance itself. But the vivid light shining over me, the burgundy bouquet, the sequined tiara, and posing for photos between several other radiant queens, including Clarkson, who had been crowned “Most Creative Act,” elated me. In fact, I probably uttered the word “elated”a dozen times that night, and that is still the first word that comes to mind, although admittedly with some caveats.

Now that the show is done and gone, I wonder where I go from here. Weeks of preparation and rehearsal on my part and Clarkson’s led to one evening of excellence, then it was over. Of course, there is always next year’s drag show, and drag shows elsewhere, but with the euphoria that drag shows still provide, I cannot help but be upset that it was so impermanent. This experience has confirmed, reconfirmed and set in motion for me the fact that I feel my most authentic self in drag. My only hope going forward is that I can find other outlets to feel that amazing as often as I can, but also to be as content as I can in the present.

I think it’s a good way of bringing together people in the LGBT community...”

Editorial: Noah Fields, an editor in drag

By Noah Fields FEATURE EDITOR

Mic in hand, donning my heel boots, plaid sheer dress and strawberry blonde wig, I waited on stage in anticipation for my music track to start. After I spent a few seconds filling the UIndy Hall’s silence with some witty banter, I soon heard Mick Fleetwood’s familiar drum beat, and I was transported.

When the 15th annual University of Indianapolis Drag Show was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I was admittedly disappointed. Looking back, however, I see the year’s delay as a blessing in disguise, at least in the context of drag and not the other impacts of the pandemic. While performing as Crystal Shields in spring 2019, my freshman year, was one of the most euphoric moments of my life, and I expected sophomore year to be more of the same, I needed the gap to truly find myself and have that self-discovery inform my act.

I am non-binary. That is to say, I was assigned male at birth, but I no longer identify as a man or a woman, although I do lean more toward feminine side. Given what a relatively recent discovery this is, as well as the fact that the drag show was swiftly approaching, I realized that I needed to rethink what drag means to me. I used to believe that drag was the act of putting on clothes associated with the opposite biological sex, cross-dressing if you will. However, I now understand that drag can mean a variety of things to different performers. To some, drag is simply something fun and goofy, but it can be personal and heartfelt to others.

Drag is a mockery of gender norms to some, and to others, a celebration of

Photo by Jacob Walton

Noah Fields, junior theatre major and Reflector editor, performing as Crystal Shields and beginning their act by singing “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac. The song then fades to “Rhiannon” by Fleetwood Mac as Fields pulls away their cape to reveal a non-binary flag.

Join our team!

The Reflector and The Reflector Online are in need of your talents, whatever they may be: writing, editing, business, online publishing, designing, photography! For more information, contact Noah Crenshaw(crenshawn@uindy.edu) or Taylor Strnad(strnadt@uindy.edu).

Sign up for COMM 120: Applied Journalism to be part of the team this Fall!

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

8 THE REFLECTOR

I’M A NEIGHBOR NOT A VIRUS. I was walking to the post office and all of a sudden an older white man spit three times towards my direction.

I felt so violated. I’m a neighbor, not a virus.

Fight the virus. Fight the bias.

Learn more @ lovehasnolabels.com/fightvirusbias

APRIL 14, 2021