The Phoenix
The Official Campus Newspaper of Swarthmore College Since 1881 VOL. 137, ISSUE 13
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
SPJP Wall Breaks Down Barriers
RHYTHM N MOTION RAISES BAR, ROOF
TODAY: Sunny. Chance of rain: 10%. High 64, Low 43. TOMORROW: More sun, with a mild wind and little chance of rain. High 63, Low 44.
SWARTHMOREPHOENIX.COM
7 Survivors Join Clery Complaint
By ALLI SHULTES Living & Arts Editor
By AMANDA EPSTEIN News Editor
In the next two days, members of Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine (SPJP) are hoping to break down barriers in thinking about Israeli occupation in the West Bank by erecting — and manning — their own. The wall at the top of Magill Walk is modeled after the Israeli West Bank Wall, a separation barrier conceived by the Israeli government to reduce threats of Palestinian attacks. Also referred to as the “Apartheid Wall,” the West Bank Wall effectively hinders the movement of Palestinians in nearby towns and villages, forcing travelers to take detours or suffer delays at checkpoints. SPJP traditionally completes an annual large-scale project in the springtime to raise awareness or support for a set of issues in the region. While last year’s “Fruit of Occupation” served as a capstone to the group’s year-long campaign to boycott Sabra Hummus, this year’s simulation comes without an explicit rallying cry for a specific organization or initiative. For SPJP member Maddy Booth ’13, the 2011 release of the documentary “Five Broken Cameras” illustrated the need for a more education-centered campus project. The documentary highlights the West Bank village of Bil’in as its residents engage in peaceful protests against the wall. While the checkpoint simulation doesn’t ask students to take direct action, it creates a more tangible appreciation for the ways in which Palestinian movement is hindered in occupied territories in the West Bank. “People really don’t understand what’s actually going on,” she said. “I feel like it’s [SPJP’s] responsibility, that students get that side of the story.” Passerby who wish to participate in the simulation are handed identification cards as they descend the steps of Parrish. The IDs differ in their travel permit designation. While ID-holders with international or Israeli travel permits pass through the checkpoint with relatively little harassment, those who carry Palestinian travel permits — or worse, Palestinian IDs with no permit — are subject to longer questioning. Backpack searches are conducted while “travelers” are asked to keep their hands against the wall or behind their heads; multiple guards coalesce and repeatedly ask the same
A week after the original complaint to the Department of Education was filed following violations of the Clery Act by Swarthmore’s administration, 7 new complainants have now added testimony, according to Mia Ferguson ’15 and Hope Brinn ’15. Complainants now include both current students and alumni from the college dating back to 1992, when the Clery Act was first passed. The act, a statute that requires colleges and universities that receive federal financial aid to release reports accurately disclosing “campus crime statistics and security information,” protects victims whose assaults have been inaccurately reported, both within the administration and to the campus community. The complaint would require the Department of Education to review the college’s compliance with Clery. A Program Review Report would provide the college with a chance to respond. If the information based on the findings is not appropriate, a fine may be imposed. A complaint will also soon be filed to the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) for violations of Title IX which have more to do with “individual student rights,” according to Ferguson, and will therefore seek to handle mismanagement of specific sexual assault cases. “In sexual assault cases, Title IX mandates, for example, that there’s no mediation between parties. It also mandates that as a victim you are provided with information around what your perpetrator’s punishment is,” said Ferguson. “That’s where the administration has been faltering.” Although President Rebecca Chopp announced the administration’s intent to hire an independent external review to evaluate the college’s policies and procedures surrounding sexual misconduct, Ferguson and Brinn are not satisfied. Ferguson met with Chopp on Monday, and presented her with a letter that asked the administration to implement a set of four policies immediately. If these policies were implemented, the group of complainants would feel safe possibly retracting Department of Education complaint. The first of the changes asked that four administrators be promptly suspended until investigations by the Department of Education are completed. RnM dancers from across the Tri-Co performed on Saturday at a crowded LPAC.
Continued on Page 4
HOLLY SMITH/ THE PHOENIX
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
NEWS
LIVING
OPINIONS
Faculty, administrators and students discuss the difficulties of diversifying STEM departments and the challenges that can face minority students in the sciences.
Following the Phoenix’s mental health survey, this week’s Wellness column looks into what happens after students go to CAPS.
Craig looks at the lessons to be learned in the aftermath of Boston, with reagrds to security and preparation for municipal areas.
Minorities in Sciences Underrepresented
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Wellness: Dealing with Depression
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The Lesson of Boston: Be Prepared
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Continued on Page 6
SPORTS
Women’s Lacrosse Rolls Over Rivals Women’s Lacrosse overcame a three game win streak by defeating Muhlenberg and Dickinson, giving Coach Borbee her 200th carreer victory. PAGE 16
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THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The Phoenix STEVEN HAZEL Editor-in-Chief KOBY LEVIN Managing Editor PARKER MURRAY Managing Editor The News Section AMANDA EPSTEIN Editor DANIEL BLOCK Assistant Editor ANNA GONZALES Assistant Editor SARAH COE-ODESS Writer COLE GRAHAM Writer AIDAN PANTOJA Writer TIFFANY KIM Writer TOBY LEVY Writer The Living & Arts Section ALLI SHULTES Editor TAYLOR HODGES Assistant Editor COURTNEY DICKENS Writer MIREILLE GUY Writer AXEL KODAT Writer JEANETTE LEOPOLD Writer MAYRA TENORIO Writer VIANCA MASUCCI Writer SERA JEONG Writer IZZY KORNBLATT Columnist DEBORAH KRIEGER Columnist CATHY PARK Columnist
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WEEKEND EVENTS: Burn This was performed in LPAC, Molinga! dancers in Upper Tarbles, RnM danced in LPAC, and Genderfuck in Sharples.
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SADIE RITTMAN, HOLLY SMITH, AND ZHENGLONG ZHOU/ THE PHOENIX
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
News
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The Phoenix
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE PHILADELPHIA ENQUIRER
Diversity Continues to Elude Science Departments By DANIEL BLOCK Assistant News Editor
It is no secret that some racial and ethnic minorities are underrepresented in the math, engineering, and the sciences. According to data from the most recent census, 31 percent of the American population is either black, Latino, or Native American. But only 17.8 percent of bachelor’s degrees and 6.9 percent of doctoral degrees awarded in the sciences went to those groups, and those minorities held only 5.9 percent of full-time professorships. Swarthmore is no exception. According to faculty, the school is lacking when it comes to diversity in science departments. “I do not think the natural science and engineering departments, in general, have diverse students or faculty,” said Lynne Molter, chair of the engineering department. Tom Stephenson, the college provost and a chemistry professor, agreed. According to Stephenson, the school could do a better job of recruiting minority faculty. “I think Swarthmore’s not doing nearly well enough,” he said. “I think we could be more deliberate about how we recruit faculty.” Twenty percent of Swarthmore’s current tenure-track faculty identify as members of racial and ethnic minority groups. While there is no recent data that gives a breakdown of minority students and faculty by department, past studies have showed disparities. Stephenson, for example, said a prior report indicated that the attrition rate in the sciences was higher among groups that are historically underrepresented. For many students of color, this makes studying in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields more complicated. “There can be some difficulties just because you feel like they’re not a lot of students of color,” said Alana Burns ’13, a
biology major who identifies as black. “It’s a little hard because you feel like you’re the only one.” Charles Armstrong ’13, who graduated early with a minor in biology and also identifies as black, goes further, arguing that the lack of racial diversity in the sciences leads not just to a sense of isolation, but also to unfair treatment. “There’s this kind of social divide. If you feel like you can’t culturally relate to different students, you might not want to have them work with you in the lab,” he said. This can create difficulties. “In the group study sessions, I’ve felt especially excluded and watched other students feel excluded,” he said. As a result, his study groups are usually quite small and consist of him and other racial minorities. The small size, he says, leads to less assistance. “We’re kind of triaged at the bottom in getting the proctors’ help for problems.” Chanelle Simmons ’14, a chemistry major, expressed similar sentiments, saying she has to assert herself more than white students. “They are very scrutinizing towards me,” she said. “You always have to prove something to them.” “I can’t make a statement and say, ‘Oh, we’re not being treated equally,’ because I don’t have concrete evidence,” Simmons continued. “But I definitely perceive a difference.” Armstrong agreed. “I think that with any type of school or institution where you get minority students of a certain kind, there is this underlying assumption that they come from a different background,” he said. This misconception is not, he says, the whole problem. Indeed, he feels that students of color often do have different backgrounds. “Minorities aren’t always equally prepared as their counterparts,” he said. But he argues that the prognosis can keep students further behind. “Even if that assumption pans out, I don’t think the solution is remedial chemistry.”
Being a minority, according to Burns, also leads to pressures and judgments from other students. “I was talking to one of my friends, and I was worried about what I need to be doing to prepare for medical school,” she said said. “And she was like, ‘Oh, you’re a black woman, there aren’t a lot of black women doctors out there. It should be easy for you.’” Not everyone, however, feels minorities face unequal treatment. “In my experience, I haven’t really seen that,” said Akida Lebby ’16, a prospective neuroscience major who identifies as black. “I haven’t really experienced any type of discrimination towards me.” While Lebby has noticed that professors treat students differently, he does not attribute that to racial prejudice. “Some professors will cater towards one group a little bit more because people are different and people have their own biases,” he said. PJ Trainor ’16, a prospective math major and computer science minor with Latino heritage, agreed. “I don’t see anything that would be unfair,” he said, adding that from what he has seen, at least in the math department, the school seemed to be accommodating of everyone. “Everyone has a lot of opportunities to work with other people,” he said. While Burns said she has not had any incidents of being treated unfairly, she sees why some students feel that way. “It’s just difficult when you feel like you’re the only person there,” she said. “Any time something happens, it can make you feel like it’s because of race.” According to Stephenson, this itself is a problem. “It almost doesn’t matter if it’s true or not,” he said. “If [students] walk away from an interaction with a faculty member and think that, in some ways, impression becomes reality. If that’s a widespread impression, then that’s an issue we need to work on.” Michael Brown, the chair of the physics and astronomy department, had similar opinions. “We have to be more open and
more supportive, particularly of first-generation students,” he said. Burns thought that further diversifying the science department faculty could, at least partially, solve problems of perception and fairness. “I feel like if they had some more diversity, it would definitely help,” she said, adding that having minority professors can give students of color more role models. “It sort of helps to see that someone else has made it and maybe you can too.” She also believes that creating networks of support for students of color could be helpful. “It’d be good if there was a student group of minorities in the sciences so you can get together and say, ‘Oh, there’s other people doing this.’” According to faculty, concerns about diversity are issues that the school is working on. “We’re trying to work on making faculty aware of unintended actions,” said Stephenson, adding that the school has hosted workshops about issues of race and diversity. Indeed, the college has received grants to try and diversify the composition of students in the sciences. Last year, the college received a four-year grant for $1 million from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, in part to help increase diversity among students who study science. Molter emphasized steps that engineering was taking. “I can only speak for our department, but we advertise [for positions] through ... the National Society for Black Engineers and the Society of Women Engineers, in addition to the sub-disciplinary publications within Engineering,” she said. But according to Armstrong, this is a problem that minorities will need to address themselves. “We can demand an external solution, but I think it’s hubris to expect one,” he said. Minorities who are interested in the sciences, he said, need to take on the challenge themselves. “I think the solution has to come from within.”
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THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The Phoenix
SPJP Simulates Israeli West Bank Wall
Continued from Page 1 The SPJP “guards” adjust their treatment according to participants’ reactions; however, they attempt to maintain an authentic demeanor throughout the simulation. SPJP member Ben-Bernard Herman ’14 noted that in regards to the questions asked and style of questioning, some of the guards have actual experience — a compelling component of the decision to execute this project is club members’ memories of their encounters with the West Bank Wall. Booth hopes the experience will encourage members of the campus community to participate in the campus-wide discussion at the end of the week. She anticipates that the difficult middle ground between Israeli security and Palestinian rights will be one of the topics on the table. “[The discussion] requires participation... and thinking about what’s going on in Israel and Palestine, and what it’s like to live in Palestinian territories,” Booth said. She also hopes the project will encourage students to think about the ways in which American aid is used in the region — specifically, its contribution to Israeli settlement building in occupied territory and checkpoints in the region. Some students, however, heavily criticized the project, arguing that it presented a onesided view of the issue. Just over the past two months, Palestinians in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip have fired more than 30 rockets into Israel. The construction of the fence has significantly reduced the number of terrorist attacks in adjacent areas in Israel, according to the Israel Security Agency. The campus discussion will be held on Friday at 4:00 in Kohlberg 116; it will be facilitated by Dean Alina Wong and Professor Elliot Ratzman. The “5 Broken Cameras” documentary screening will take place at 8:00 on Friday in Science Center 104.
JULIA CARLETON / THE PHOENIX
Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine constructed a recreation of the Israeli West Bank Wall in front of Parrish. Above: Passerby who wish to participate are handed identification cards. which differ in their travel permit designation.
Student Spearheads Bone Marrow Drive At Swat By TOBY LEVY News Writer
According to the National Marrow Donor Program, each year, over 12,000 patients in the U.S. are diagnosed with life-threatening diseases, like leukemia and lymphoma. For many, a marrow transplant is the best or only option. Of these patients, approximately 70% cannot find a donor within their own family. Kanishka Patel ’14 is helping to spearhead a bone marrow drive at the college this spring. She explained that she is personally affected the difficulties of marrow transplants, as the process has affected her family. “This issue is very near and dear to my heart as one of my own family members is currently struggling to find a match,” said Kanishka Patel ’14. “[The family member] is a father of two girls, and his family and friends have been searching all across California for a potential donor without any luck.” Patel said that the drive would take place in the main dining hall in Sharples on Friday April 26th and Saturday April 27th. According to her, the drive, which she describes as being more of a “registry,” entails a cheek swab and 5 minutes of filling out forms. Once participants
are in the registry, doctors around the world can potentially contact them if they are found to be a match. In order to carry out the drive, Patel and other organizers are working in conjunction with Gift of Life, a non-profit organization that provides the necessary tools, including cheek swab kits. They also collect the kits and add it to the registry. Gift of Life is part of a world-wide registry, which means donating a swab on the east coast of the United States could eventually help someone on the other side of the world. “Once you are found to be a match for a patient, you are contacted by the patient’s physicians and you are not financially responsible for the donating procedure—they take care of everything,” she said. Like any surgery involving fluid or tissue donations, however, marrow transplants require specific matches, creating difficulties when searching for donors. Patel further discussed this. “It is through my uncle’s experience that I discovered the huge racial disparities in finding a match, given the hereditary nature of tissue types,” she said. “While the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) and other registries are more diverse than they were a few years
ago, patients, including my uncle, are still facing obstacles.” As of January 2013, NMDP’s donor registry was 67% white, meaning minorities in the United States are often at a disadvantage when it comes marrow transplants. The rest was 10% Hispanic, 7% African American, 7% Asian, 4% Multiracial 1% American Indian/Alaska Native and 0.2% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. Certainly diversified donor contribution is a problem, but Patel believes that misconceived fears surrounding the donating process have lead people to shy away from helping the cause. “I think some of the problems we face when trying to engage others and encourage them to donate are the negative misconceptions surrounding the process of registering and even donating,” she said. “Talking to my own peers and even Swarthmore students, I see how scared people are, thinking it is a painful process. Many people don’t know that you can get on the registry with just a cheek swab and that about 70-80% of the time, the donation is done through something akin to a five-hour blood donation.” This type of donation is called a “peripheral blood stem cell donation,” and involves an in-
jection that moves blood-forming cells out of the marrow and into the bloodstream. The donor’s blood is removed, and passed through a machine that separates out the blood-forming cells. The remaining blood is returned to the donor through the other arm. The procedure most often associated with marrow transplants, though, is the surgical process in which liquid marrow is withdrawn from the back of the pelvic bone. Patel said that surgery of that nature only happens 20-30% of the time. “Even this isn’t too terrible of a procedure,” she said. “You’re in the hospital in the morning - and out later that afternoon. During the procedure you are given either local or general anesthesia so you feel no pain. Of course side effects vary but a majority of people both describe the post-surgical pain as being no more painful than having a sore back.” Patel further emphasized the importance of the drive, citing the realization that those who donate could literally save others’ lives. “The important thing to note is that while even after registering, you can decline to donate but I really think you should only join the registry if you are sure that this is the right decision for you, as someone’s life is on the line.”
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
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The Phoenix
New App ‘Lulu’ Rates Men And Angers Some By ANNA GONZALES Assistant News Editor
John* was sitting in class one day when a fellow student told him that he should look at his profile on Lulu. John, who had heard about the app a few weeks before but hadn’t made too much of it, tapped his profile-pulled from Facebook automatically by the app--and was stunned to see every facet of his personality, physical attractiveness, and sexual prowess rated on a 1 to 10 scale, accompanied by a host of hashtags describing everything from John’s financial status to his cuddling abilities. Lulu, a rapidly growing new app that allows women to anonymously review men, says that its vision is to become the social destination for women around the world, and markets itself as “the first database of men, built by women, for women.” Through the app, users can read and write reviews of men, created through a variety of tools and questionnaires. The reviews show numerical scores across a number of categories, “putting the emphasis on collective wisdom,” according to the app. Lulu has received substantial coverage from major tech and news publications, including Wired, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Glamour, and Cosmo. “Lulu takes its cues from the real world: we meet a guy and think he’s cute, but want to know if he’s the charmer he appears or really a wolf in sheep’s clothing. So we ask our girlfriends, and look him up on Facebook and Google. It’s a private, fun ritual we all indulge in, often complicated by the fact that we don’t
want the guy to know we’re checking out his creds,” reads the app’s “About” section. Paige Willey ‘16, who heard about the app from one of her friends, logs on to Lulu strictly in a joking fashion. “I use the app exclusively to amuse myself and my friends in the vicinity,” Willey said. The only reviews Willey provides have been for her close male friends, either to jokingly make them seem undesirable by selecting unflattering descriptions (a few of Lulu’s many options include #HygenicallyChallenged, #ForgotHisWallet, or #FuckedAndChuckedMe) or to give her friends an ego boost by selecting the more kind hashtags (#NotADick, #RespectsWomen, and #NerdyButILikeIt are some of the nicer ones). Willey says she doesn’t view Lulu as the vital database it claims to be, and doesn’t think that the app has much worth beyond trivial amusement. This could be due to the fact that many users are like Willey, who tends not to make personal decisions about whether or not to hook up with or date someone based on anonymous reviews. “Honestly, I’m glad that people I know at Swat have mostly been using it as a joke, because the types of interactions you’re asked to share information about are pretty personal,” Willey said. She added that she likes her privacy to be respected, and thus usually does not discuss details about someone with whom she had been more than friends, let alone upload these details to a public database. “I see it as a little disrespectful and pointless,” Willey said. “I think people have a right to keep their personal lives personal.” The app’s website claims that the vast majority of its rules are positive, and that Lulu
is not a place to trash-talk. “At the end of the day, Lulu is all about encouraging good, gentlemanly behavior, and providing a platform that makes girls’ research easier and more fun,” the site says. For John, this slogan is the antithesis of what Lulu actually does. “It provides an opportunity for people to anonymously comment, often cruel, insensitive things about people without repercussions, because their name is not attached to it,” John said. Anonymity has its place, and Lulu, for John, is not it. “The majority of the comments, positive or negative, are not things the people posting would be willing to say directly, or possibly even to their own friends,” John added. Nothing on John’s profile hurt him deeply, he said, but he still finds the anonymity of the app harmful, because it encourages and permits assumptions. One of John’s hashtags is related to his family’s financial status and attempts to make it clear that John comes from extreme wealth. “I’m actually a financial aid student, so not only is the comment somewhat offensive, it’s blatantly wrong, and makes assumptions about me as a person based on whatever reasons that are inherently untrue,” John explained. He added that he knew of other students who had received much more hurtful and offensive reviews on the app, and believes that a medium for anonymous cruelty is exactly what Swarthmore doesn’t need in the wake of a politically and personally tense semester. “Positive discussion and dialogue is difficult when people feel the need, or have the tools, to backstab like this,” John said. The app’s “About” section concludes: “Ul-
timately, we see Lulu as a private network dedicated to women and relationships, providing an online extension and enhancement of the kind of information and support that women provide each other in real life.” Joan Huang ‘15 believes that claims such as these about Lulu, or suggestions that Lulu helps to invert the male gaze by digitizing a type of rating system men have used on women for decades, are invalid. “That’s the opposite of how you subvert systems,” Huang said. Additionally, Huang thinks that the app, limited to female reviews of men, privileges heterosexual interaction over any other type of relationship. Huang also believes that Lulu makes enormous assumptions about the desires of women through creating descriptions made only out of numbers and stereotypical hashtags. “You can’t quantify humans like data. You can’t rate people on a 1-10 scale… it doesn’t get at the complexity of people,” she said. This rating system, claiming to give women power, actually hands the agency to men, perpetuating the outdated and harmful idea that women are only interested in the potential mate-ness of their sexual or romantic partners, Huang added. In terms of hashtags, Huang thinks that these archetypical descriptions also enforce existing societal structures, rather than subverting or changing anything. “It places the gender difference at the center of structures of power and doesn’t account for how different gender stereotypes are raced or classed,” Huang said. “If I tell you that someone’s a trust funder, you think of a white guy wearing pink shorts and a polo shirt.”
Sharples Food Bought From Local Sources By COLE GRAHAM News Writer Have you ever wondered where the food in Sharples comes from? If that food is seafood, chances are it originated somewhere in the United States. Sharples has begun purchasing seafood from Sea to Table, a food distributor that works exclusively with American fishermen that utilize sustainable fishing practices. “Our hope is that buying fish direct[ly] from small-scale sustainable wild fisheries will not just be a trend on the menus of hipster chefs, but a lifestyle choice for anyone who cares about the future of our traditional working waterfronts,” wrote the company on its Huffington Post blog. “We do our best to purchase from them,” said Linda McDougall, Director of Dining Services, even though not all of the fish in Sharples comes from the distributor. Dining Services does look to purchase from local, sustainable sources whenever possible, said McDougall. However, finding local produce is not always easy. “It’s very difficult for [small farmers] to be the farmer and the distributor,” said McDougall. Nevertheless, dining services will often go to the local Swarthmore and Media farmers’ markets looking for new sources, or buy from the Common Market of Philadelphia, a distributor that provides a centralized location for sustainable farmers from the Delaware Valley and southern New Jersey to sell their produce. The Common Market buys from approximately 80 farmers throughout the region and sells to other colleges, hospitals, retailers, and even specific workplaces. According to their website, their food is 1200 miles fresher than non local food on average. Much of the food in Sharples also comes from Feeser’s Food
Distributors, a Harrisburg-based company that provides the college with food exclusively from Pennsylvania-based businesses. Among these are Kreider Farms which won the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association’s “Family Farm Environmental Excellence Award” in 2008 for their waste management program. However, the list also includes ASK Foods, Inc, which supplies pre-prepared foods, and the Bachmann Company, which produces an assortment of pretzelbased snacks, both of which do not have the same obvious commitment to environmental stewardship as the former. Students especially appreciate these organic products on nights such as Local Foods Night at Sharples, when dining services makes an extra effort to provide the best the Delaware Valley has to offer. “There isn’t much of a difference,” said McDougall in reference to Local Foods Night compared to any other dinner at Sharples, “one of the things that can be frustrating is that every chicken we buy cannot be organic.” Doing so would be too costly. According to Janet Kassab, Director of Purchasing for Dining Services, the chicken used on Local Foods Night is a little more than twice as expensive than chicken on other nights. Furthermore, Local Foods Night requires about 25% more produce in general, a fact that further increases cost. Sharples has worked with the Good Food Project, a campus group that focuses on food sustainability issues and also runs a vegetable garden, but the project’s summer growing season does not overlap with the height of Dining Services’ need and the garden does not produce at the scale necessary to feed hundreds of students every day. Nevertheless, local food will continue to be a prevalent factor in Dining Services’ buying. “We are always looking for opportunities to grow the program,” said McDougall.
JULIANA GUTIERREZ / THE PHOENIX
According to Linda McDougall, director of dining services, Sharples makes an effort to purchase local foods.
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The Phoenix
‘Clery Complaint,’ continued from page 1 “Students’ rights are being violated consistently by these administrators,” said Ferguson. “There are administrators who have done wrong that we didn’t include on this list. These are people who have been consistent and even today are violating students’ rights and hurting them — emotionally traumatizing them.” The second demanded more education — making Acquaintance Sexual Assault Prevention (ASAP) workshops mandatory for every student, not excusing athletes from the workshop, and including Title IX and Clery Act education so that every student will know victims’ rights, the procedure for reporting sexual assault and the resources that are available to them. The third request was to look at sexual assault management, which includes creating a sexual assault management office, for which one individual would be hired for the express purpose of representing and supporting victims through the reporting process, and another would be hired parttime to represent and protect the rights of the perpetrator. This would allow the very specific legal issues regarding both victims and perpetrators to be accurately addressed and simultaneously prevent the burden of caring for both parties properly from falling on administrators who have other jobs to attend to. “[Having a person protect the perpetrator] is important because it is hard to decipher these cases. There isn’t a preponderance of evidence,” said Ferguson. “It’s really important to make sure that everyone’s rights are preserved.”
The office would also provide free legal assistance for victims, which according to Brinn, several colleges’ offices already do, the University of New Hampshire among them. “This is not revolutionary,” Brinn said. “There are other colleges that are already doing it.” Part of reforming sexual assault management also includes creating an anonymous student group that has funding to provide legal counsel, psychological counsel outside of the college and medical care. The group would also be responsible for autonomously administering a few “emergency singles” for victims. These would provide a safe living space for them after the assault and until new housing is found, if necessary. The fourth request was that the college publicly admit wrongdoing and reveal steps being taken as it moves forward with the changes. The letter with these requests was presented at the meeting with Chopp, where Nancy Nicely, secretary of the college and vice president for communications, was also present. According to Ferguson, the letter has already reached a number of the college’s Board of Managers. However, Chopp did not consent to its demands. In an e-mail after the meeting, Chopp told Ferguson that the administration would carefully consider their suggestions and share the concerns with the independent reviewer. She also said that “to further strengthen our efforts,” the college would be “pursuing an independent, external review of all of our sexual misconduct policies and
procedures,” which was not news to the complainant. Chopp did mention, though, that the suggestions regarding ASAP training and attendance were already in the process of being implemented. In an e-mail interview Chopp also said that the college would “[cooperate with] a possible review by the Department of Education.” This review will take place if the department accepts the complaint filed by Ferguson, Brinn and the other 17 survivors. “These are important opportunities for us to improve our processes in pursuit of a safer, stronger community that will not tolerate sexual misconduct,” she said. The OCR, which will respond to the complaint under Title IX, is the office with the power to withdraw Swarthmore’s federal aid, often awarded in the form of Pell Grants. According to the U.S. Department of Education’s Title IX Revised Sexual Harassment Guidance, if a college being accused of violations under the act has or agrees to disseminate “policy prohibiting sex discrimination under Title IX and effective grievance procedures,” effectively respond to “allegations of sexual harassment,” and take “immediate and effective corrective action responsive to the harassment, including effective actions to end the harassment, prevent its recurrence, and, as appropriate, remedy its effects,” the OCR will consider the complaint to be resolved. Essentially, the external review, combined with a few small steps to remedy the situation in violation of Title IX, will prevent Swarthmore’s funding from being taken away. The external review, in fact, would
be deemed like an appropriate solution by the Department of Education. The OCR will, however, monitor compliance with the agreement about proper courses of action between the office and the college. “If the college works with the external review board alone, Swarthmore then can choose to implement the policies it wants without the same pressure from the government to strictly adhere to the law,” said Brinn. According to the Huffington Post, Occidental College, which is facing similar accusations for Title IX and Clery Act violations, has hired Gina M. Smith and Leslie Gomez of the Philadelphia-based law firm Pepper Hamilton to review the college’s sexual violence policies. Smith worked with Amherst College and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (UNC) for similar reasons. At Amherst, policies are already going into effect based on the reports that surged from the review. Ferguson doesn’t think that a review is necessary to identify some basic and very obvious violations of both Title IX and the Clery Act. “What is the motivation? What is stopping them from taking action now?” she asked. “There’s no denying that [Swarthmore] broke the law ... I don’t understand why the administration won’t act now to protect our safety because I thought that was their priority.” If there’s a legal reason for waiting to act, Brinn and Ferguson would like to hear it. Unless they do though, the students stand by their proposal.
Today’s Events
The Many Centers of Gravity in Immigration Reform
A Poetry Reading by Eamon Grennan
When: Today, 4:30-6 p.m. Where: Scheuer Room What: Attorney Rick Swartz is a political strategist with 35 years of intense experience shaping immigration policy and other issues in Washington by opening conversations among unlikely partners. He will be speaking about the nature of comprehensive immigration reform and its importance. Why: “This lecture is important because President Obama campaigned on the basis of promising immigration reform; 11 million people are suffering fear of deportation, discrimination in many communities, and without legal status they may be subject to labor violations; immigration touches on many issues that define “American” identity and the relationship between this country and the rest of the world, but especially Latin America, and within Latin America, especially Mexico.” — Aurora Camacho de Schmidt, Professor of Spanish
When: Today, 7:30-9 p.m. Where: Scheuer Room What: Eamon Grennan has authored more than ten collections of poems, most recently “Out of Sight: New and Selected Poems” in 2010. Grennan has also written a book of essays, “Facing the Music: Irish Poetry in the 20th Century” (1999). He won the PEN Award for poetry in translation for “Selected Poems of Giacomo Leopardi” (1997), and the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize from the Academy of American Poets for “Still Life with Waterfall” (2002). He has also won several Pushcart Prizes. Why: On awarding Grennan the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize, Judge Robert Wrigley noted that “Grennan would have us know — no, would have us see, feel, hear, taste and smell — that the world, moment by ordinary or agonizing moment, lies chock-full with its own clarifications and rewards.” EVENT DESCRIPTIONS COURTESY OF SWARTHMORE’S EVENT CALENDAR
Now Hiring THE PHOENIX, THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
NEW POSITIONS BLOGGERS Interested in blogging about politics, study abroad, campus life, music or something else entirely? We expect that blogs will be actively maintained, with approximately one post per week. Blogs hosted on The Phoenix’s Web site will have multimedia capabilities with the ability to embed videos or other content directly in the blog. The Phoenix will consider both group or individual blogs, so feel free to apply in a group. We will also be hiring summer bloggers, so consider applying to write about your summer experience if you’ll be doing something exciting. GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Responsibilities include working with the editors and staff artist(s) to conceptualize and create cover art and graphics within page designs. The graphic designer should coordinate art and is responsible for ensuring completion of graphics or photo-intensive pages. The graphic designer will also attend editorial board meetings. Previous work with Photoshop recommended. SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR The Social Media Coordinator is responsible for the upkeep of The Phoenix’s Facebook and Twitter pages. The Coordinator should also be willing to teach other staff members, such as writers and photographers, about how to use social media to find sources for articles or how to integrate amateur photos into the paper. This is a great position for anyone who is looking to get into Public Relations. STAFF POSITIONS NEWS REPORTERS A reporter writes at least one story a week for the News section. Writers must attend weekly meetings. LIVING & ARTS WRITERS A Living & Arts staff writer is responsible for one story each week. Topics range from student performances to Philly events. A variety of writing styles is encouraged and in-person reporting is expected. SPORTS WRITERS Sports writers are responsible for writing weekly stories or features for the Sports section, and must attend weekly meetings. SPORTS EDITOR The Sports editor should maintain a comprehensive knowledge of all varsity and club teams on campus. Duties include reading and editing all sports copy and assigning sports photos. Applicants must be competent sportswriters who are willing to write and take photos as needed. COLUMNISTS A columnist receives a biweekly column. The columnists work closely with their respective section editors in developing topics and improving their writing styles.
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COPY EDITORS Responsibilities include checking facts, style and grammar and proofing pages. PHOTOGRAPHERS Photographers are expected to fulfill weekly assignments. This includes taking photos at the assigned time and uploading the photos onto The Phoenix server in a timely fashion. STAFF ARTISTS Staff artists are required to submit at least one illustration per issue, for various sections of the paper. Staff artists may also be asked to submit smaller illustrations as well. CROSSWORD WRITERS Crossword writers will produce one crossword puzzle every other week, for publication in the Living & Arts section. BUSINESS POSITIONS DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT The director of business development will work as The Phoenix’s business manager and will also be responsible for both short and long term development and improvement of the paper’s business operations. Responsibilities include maintaining records of the paper’s finances; keeping up-to-date business records, including current figures on advertising income; aiding in the annual budgeting process; holding weekly business staff meetings; and communicating regularly with the Swarthmore College Business Office as well as the editor in chief, the advertising managers and the circulation manager. ADVERTISING MANAGERS Advertising manager works to recruit local and national ads. Responsibilities include soliciting advertisements from local businesses; keeping up-to-date advertising records; sending out invoices and tearsheets to the advertisers; documenting paid invoices; providing up-to-date advertising income figures; and attending weekly business staff meetings. CIRCULATION MANAGER The circulation manager must distribute copies of The Phoenix to areas across campus early Thursday mornings; stuff faculty and administration mailboxes; maintain subscriber lists and ensure that subscriptions are mailed out each Thursday on a weekly basis; deliver extra copies to The Phoenix office; and answer subscription requests as they are received.
The Phoenix
Living & Arts
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THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The Phoenix
Wellness: Dealing with Depression By ANNA GONZALES Assistant News Editor
By the Numbers
Results based on The Phoenix Wellness Survey with 189 respondents. The survey was conducted online using Facebook and Google Forms. Infographics courtesy of infogr.am
Earlier this semester, an informal online poll conducted by The Phoenix revealed startling levels of depression and anxiety among the 12 percent of the student body which chose to respond. The previous article in a Phoenix series about the data focused on mental health services available at Swarthmore, in the form of Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS). Now, the series will examinewhat happens after CAPS, detailing the experiences of students who attempted to receive help from teachers and administrators in dealing with psychological issues. While the survey numbers may not apply to the entire student body, more than half of respondents reported suffering from anxiety or depression while at Swarthmore, while almost 40 percent of respondents had considered transferring schools (despite Swarthmore’s retention rate of 96 percent, placing the school at the top of The Daily Beast’s “Colleges with the Happiest Students”). Of the thirty questions included in the survey, a handful were repeated to prevent response bias. Only students with college accounts were able to take the survey. While it is impossible to produce statistical inferences from the results, responses are still representative of respondents’ experience. The survey speaks for what amounts to a large interview pool, not all Swarthmore students. Any percentages quoted correspond only to the segment of campus that responded to the survey. In addition to filling out the survey, a handful of students chose to share detailed stories of struggling to stay mentally healthy at Swarthmore. They told of good and bad experiences with CAPS and the administration, and of a battle to maintain their self-esteem in a competitive academic and athletic environment. What follows is one of those stories. Emily*, a freshman, was diagnosed with depression over winter break this year. While Emily had experienced depression previously, during her junior year of high school, she had chalked up her feelings to having mono at the time and to stress. She did not go on medication, and saw a therapist for a short while. Before winter break this year, Emily felt slightly unhappy, mostly due to feelings of inadequacy
caused by her classes. “During the whole first semester, I just kept thinking to myself that I was the stupidest person at Swarthmore,” she said. Emily believes this feeling is not uncommon in Swarthmore’s highly pressurized environment, filled with talented students. Emily believes that her sports team ultimately set off her depression, combined with the stress of transitioning to college. Surrounded by fellow athletes hyper-focused on their weight and dealing with body image issues of their own, Emily started what she described as “an obsessive way of thinking,” which quickly transitioned into depression and negative self-talk (though she
well enough to know that I wasn’t doing well.” Over winter break, Emily focused on doing yoga and working through her body image issues. She also chose to stop drinking, which she felt added another aspect to her mental health problems which she did not want to address. Second semester began well, as Emily’s newly prescribed medication was functioning properly. “I went and saw a counselor once, but I was feeling really good and I didn’t go back,” Emily said.
ILL CA USTR SEY AT SC ION HR EIN BY ER
added that she felt being on a team had provided her with a vital support system at Swarthmore). Combined with struggling with her classes, Emily explained that everything became negative in her mind. Back at home, Emily, typically extroverted, stayed at home and chose not to see any of her friends. “I just had a total lack of energy and didn’t want to do anything, and was pretty miserable,” she recounted. Eventually, Emily’s mother sat her down and told her that her essential Emily-ness was no longer there. Until that point, Emily said, she had not realized that she was depressed, and neither had her friends at Swarthmore. “It’s hard to recognize that you’re depressed until someone close to you is like, ‘Hey, where are you?’” Emily said. “That may be part of the reason I didn’t recognize it until fall semester — people didn’t know me Continued on Page 12
Emily only had one bad experience in the first few months of the second semester, during an instance in which she combined alcohol with her medication. “I drank the normal amount that I usually would have, but alcohol can make you more depressed when you’re already on antidepressants,” Emily explained. The next morning, Emily felt horrible. “I didn’t want to be alone and I was really freaking out,” Emily recounted. “I was crying and didn’t want to be alone. I just remember lying in my bed for a while … I felt like I was moving a ton and I was probably hallucinating,” she remembered. After the first few months back at school from winter break, “things started going down again,” Emily said. “Slowly at first, I just started feeling a little bit down, and I didn’t totally recognize it at first.” Then Emily noticed she was having difficulty focusing
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
Living & Arts The Phoenix
SELECTIONS
Travels
Photography by MARTIN FROGER-SILVA
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Living & Arts
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The Phoenix
Genderfuck Evolution By MIREILLE GUY Living & Arts Writer
SADIE RITTMAN / THE PHOENIX
“The Many Styles of Genderfuck” Illustration by RENU NADKARNI
Genderfuck is not only the most attended party on campus, it’s also the most notorious. Students anxiously wait for this single, usually cold, weekend to run down to Sharples in their silliest, most gender-bending outfits. A Swarthmore tradition many students look forward to, the event—previously “Sager,” now “Genderfuck”—has been around for 25 years despite a couple of bumps along the way. Former Phoenix Opinions writer Adam Dalva ’08 explains the allure: “It is the only party of the year that cannot fail because it operates only on self-fulfilling prophecy. In other words, because the past suggests that Sager is always a fantastically drunken and debaucherous night of hook-ups that never have to be spoken of again, that is indeed what Sager becomes ... Like Snakes on a Plane, it is so overhyped it cannot fail.” Genderfuck’s origins can be traced back to the founding of the Sager Fund in 1988. An article in the November 11, 1988 edition of The Phoenix stated that Richard Sager ’74 created the Sager fund for the promotion of, “among other things, programs of interest to the gay and lesbian community which will help overcome homophobia and related discrimination.” The fund, which was originally set up as a series of five checks for $5,000 that were to be donated over the five years following 1988, successfully hosted a symposium on LBGTQ issues for 20 years, until it was replaced by the Queer and Trans Conference. Campus community members can still apply for money from the Sager Fund to sponsor guest speakers, such as this past February’s lecture by Dr. Patrick Cheng, a professor at the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, who spoke on “rainbow theology.” Originally, Genderfuck was simply an after-party for the Sager Symposium and did not carry the weight that it does today. The party quickly gained popularity though, and by 1995 became an event featuring gender-bending themes much looked forward to by students, as it is today. Although it’s unclear exactly when the term was coined, “Genderfuck” refers to the Sager fund’s aim to “raise questions about the concept of gender and its constraints,” according to a March 27, 2008 Phoenix article. Until the last few years, Genderfuck was held in a variety of venues, including the Women’s Resource Center, Olde Club, DU and Upper Tarble. There have been themes associated with the event: in 1995, it was “Sager Party: Genderfuck 3: Future Stars” and featured DJ Schlo-Mo. In 1996, though its theme is unclear, Genderfuck featured the New York queercore band God Is My Co-Pilot. More recently, the 2004 theme was “My Big Fat Fabulous Gay Wedding,” chosen to bring attention to the fight for gay marriage. In 2005, it was “Good and Evil,” with “Good” being held in Paces while “Evil” occurred in Olde Club. Even in ’90s, the party’s unofficial slogan, “guys wear a dress and girls wear less,” was already established. In a 2004 edition of The Phoenix, Dana Seay ’07 discussed her costume: “I wore fishnets, a pair of tap shorts, a tiny tank top, and devil horns.” Although hardly genderbending, costumes like Seay’s have usually been considered appropriate for
Genderfuck—which is one reason some students worried that the party’s message does not line up with the goal of the Sager fund, to foster a stronger gay community on campus. Genderfuck’s “girls wear less” concept had some students wondering. At the beginning of the new millennium, concerns about the role of Genderfuck’s association with the Sager Symposium rose greatly, students arguing that many people who partied at Genderfuck had not attended the Symposium’s events from the days before: “For much of the non-queer Swarthmore community, the word Sager evokes images of a Saturday night gender-bending dance,” a Phoenix staffer wrote in the April 6, 2000 edition of the paper, “but in fact the dance is only the wild offspring of the sober symposium.” In a letter to the editor, Christine Lattin ’01 argued that Genderfuck does not live up to its name but actually perpetuates heteronormative stereotypes of women. She asked, “So men wear skimpy dresses and women ... wear skimpy dresses?” It had become unclear who was behind the organization of the party: was it The Sager Planning Committee? The Sager Party Planning Committee? SQU? SAC? A different group seemed to host the party every year and funding came from various places. Finally, worries about sexual misconduct at the party arose, and SMART entered the conversation in 2006. Although never officially a part of the Sager Symposium, Genderfuck had always been associated with it, often advertised as the “culminating event of Sager.” Yet because of the concerns raised by SMART and students like Lattin, a move to officially disassociate Genderfuck from the Sager Fund was made in the Spring of 2009. In a move dubbed “The Sager Schism” by The Phoenix, the Sager Committee officially ended its affiliation with Genderfuck, arguing that it did not line up with the “safe space” the Symposium aimed to promote. “After last year, with the occurrence of homophobic events, even from people within the campus, we were getting so disheartened about the party” Sager Committee Co-Chair Maria Kelly ’10 said in a 2009 Phoenix article. “The goals of the Symposium and the party have become separate. We talked about it and concluded that it wouldn’t be associated with us.” Once that formal announcement was made, the Symposium and Genderfuck were, as now, held on separate weekends and no longer formally or informally associated. Where does Richard Sager, the founder of the Sager Fund and therefore the incidental force behind Genderfuck, stand in this? According to a 2008 interview, he’s totally fine with it. “The Genderfuck party doesn’t have anything to do with the Sager Symposium, but I think it’s great that this other great institution has my name.” Sager said. “I told them I’m not offended, I’m honored!” Sager apparently attends the party every year (at least that’s what he said in 2008) and is usually accosted by at least one drunk student who is “so thankful, man.” Sager even went on to jokingly complain that one year, the PAs would not let him in because they thought he lived in the Ville and had come to watch the party. And so, with Sager’s blessing, Genderfuck continues to be one of Swarthmore’s strangest, most exciting traditions.
Living & Arts
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
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The Phoenix
Diamond’s Senior Exhibition Launches Series As a monitor in the List Gallery, I have the privilege of spending about three hours each week surrounded by a varying landscape of paintings, drawings, and sculpturesw. This year, I’ve feasted my eyes on colorful seascapes, mysterious forest scenes, intricately m a d e DEBORAH f a m KRIEGER ily quilt I On The Arts paintings, sculpt u r e s both colorful and monotone, and many more. All the while, I’ve gobbled up every visual treat. This week’s shift was no exception. Thursday’s reception kicked off the 2013 Senior Thesis Exhibition Series, a set of five exhibitions held weekly in the gallery. From Thursday to Tuesday each week, an exhibit will display the talents of one or two senior studio art students and expose the Swarthmore community to the skills of their own classmates in a variety of media. Sarah Diamond’s oil painting show starts the series off with a bang. Spanning two years of work, the paintings in this show demonstrate her incredible talent and sure, confident handling of paint. Sarah has created lovingly vivid portraits of important people in her life, breathing life into images of people she cares about. It’s quite the journey to walk throughout the gallery and ob-
COURTESY OF SARAH DIAMOND
serve the variations from Sarah’s core style that characterize some of the pieces on display. “Cariad in the Mangrove Swamp” is immediately notable. The first work in the show, it bathes its subject in dappled light, reminiscent of looking through shadows cast by leaves, creating patterns on the surface of the canvas that delight the eye with their complexity. While all of the works on display are colorful, expressive, and have a clear likeness to their subjects, some, such as “Carolyn at Chautauqua”, “Grandma Sleeping”, and “Grandma with Blue
Eyes”, have a playful degree of abstraction in their execution that provides even more of a visual punch. “Carolyn at Chautauqua” reminded me of a Matisse portrait in the strange, unexpected coloration of the subject’s face. Sarah approaches her depictions of her family and friends with tenderness and sensitivity, refusing to sacrifice characterization for surface impression, or vice versa. As the viewer enters the gallery, they see “Mom”, a large canvas dedicated to Sarah’s mother, staring back at them from the back wall of the second
room with a caring, maternal air. Smaller works such as “Sophie” and “Richard”, denoted as studies, capture the liveliness and spontaneity of both subject and artist. The self-portraits are also highlights of the show perhaps because they reveal different aspects of Sarah’s personality as an artist. The earlier portrait, “SelfPortrait in Blue Kimono”, depicts the artist as if thrust into a bright spotlight. Her face is turned in profile as her body is frontal, with arms held at about a 30 degree angle from her body. This
work conveys a sense of defiance and strength masking vulnerability. Sarah has painted herself as looking away from the light and from the viewer. The colors are bright, shiny and glossy, the textures of flesh and silk defined and distinguished from one another. Her later self-portrait, however, takes a different approach. Sarah, clad in a more abstract, dark piece of clothing, gazes out of the work, interacting more with the viewer as she pensively, almost bemusedly runs her hand through her hair. Her face is contorted in deep thought. The portrait is titled “Self-Portrait, Senior Year”— perhaps she is ruminating on the path she has carved at Swarthmore, and wondering where her talent will take her next. Where the brushwork of the earlier painting was tightly controlled, here it is looser, more relaxed. Where the focus on the earlier painting was on the conglomeration of surfaces, here it is on Sarah’s own psyche. How appropriate that this engaging work closes out the artist’s solo show, as the viewer learns about the artist through her depiction of her family and friends and then through an intimate selfreflection. The exhibit closes Tuesday, April 23. It is not to be missed. A reception will be held Thursday, April 25, from 4-6 p.m., to celebrate the next exhibit, “Alex Anderson: Elegant Emptiness”.
Personal Tidbits: Sex Advice for the Road As I sit on my windowsill listening to the animated chatter from Parrish Beach echo throughout campus, I realize that this Swattie behavior signifies the beginning of the end. For most of you, it’s just the end of the semester. You’ll be back in the fall to endure another round of Swat roulette — the only version of roulette played with a fully loaded chamber. But for me, it’s THE end. The end of long, unnecessary readings that don’t get discussed in class. The end of mulVIANCA tiple consecutive allnighters. The end of MASUCCI soul-crushing exams Missing Parts that force you to reevaluate your worth as a person. And, of course, the end of my column. I’ve really enjoyed writing this column — mostly because I’ve really enjoyed talking to other Swatties about sex. The way Swatties can articulate those specifics is truly sexy — I’d take a big vocabulary over a big dick any day. I’ve never had the opportunity to speak with so many people about their so many different sexual proclivities. And, let me just say, Swatties like it freaky. Being able to share with you all has been one of the most meaningful experiences in the development of my sexual self. It’s given me a lot of confidence and comfort in my own sexuality. So, in my parting column, I want to recapture that personal element of one-on-one conversation by sharing with you my random tidbits of personal sex “wisdom”: Don’t overthink it: I know that we’re all trained critical thinkers. But, unless Geertz’s essays on cocks (instead of cockfighting) are published posthumously, keep that analytical bullshit in your soc/ anth class. Never forget that sex is natu-
ral and that it will come naturally to you. Practice, of course, helps, but once you’re engaged in intimacy, you just need to trust your body to react. That’s not to say that absentminded sex is tops. In fact, it’s bottoms — bad bottoms, not to be confused with the luscious Greek passive crowd. You should always be aware of your partner’s needs/their reception of the sex and be willing to change what you’re doing. Just don’t let thoughts overwhelm the experience.
lutely no indication of what someone is like in bed. You know that painfully awkward, seemingly asexual kid that smells like soup in your math class? The only thing he likes more than polynomial functions is polyamorous sex and he’s the biggest freak in bed. Trust me; he’s told me all about it. Non-penetrative sex is really amazing: “Sex” is not synonymous with “penetration” or “oral sex,” though many people believe this. The problem is that, in American culture, any reference to ‘sex’ is usually a (heteronormative) reference to penetration or oral sex. In this way, intercourse takes the title of ‘sex’ and subordinates all forms of outercourse. However, there are tons of ways to be sexually satisfied without the exchange of bodily fluids. Rubbing fuzzies, manual manipulation, mutual fantasizing, and good-ol’ fashioned-groping are perfectly satisfying ways to get your jollies.
I’ve never had the opportunity to speak to so many people about their so many different proclivities. And, let me just say, Swatties like it freaky.
No one has it figured out: People our age, especially Swatties, are very good at preserving a façade of total confidence. In reality, everyone is a bit insecure about how they are in bed. Never feel intimidated by anyone sexually — at this age, we’re all basically amateurs anyways. On that note…
Don’t be afraid to ask questions: Asking questions in bed is not a demonstration of your sexual naiveté. It is a demonstration of personal preservation and concern for your partner’s needs. One uncomfortable question in bed is much less awkward than a lifetime of furtive public groin scratching or post-bad-sex pillow talk. Never judge a book by its cover: Lots of people have a tendency to assume an individual will have certain sexual habits, interests, or morals based on very superficial knowledge of that person. Hobbies, religious backgrounds, personalities, physical appearance, senses of style, etc. give abso-
Nothing is wrong with you: No matter what you’re into sexually, it’s not dirty or wrong or bad. I can’t help but roll my eyes whenever someone talks about what is ‘normal’. So, it’s ‘normal’ for people to eroticize lacy panties, but not leather panties? It’s ‘normal’ for people to be turned on by a pair of nice legs, but not a nice pair of feet? It’s ‘normal’ to play sexy doctor, but not sexy hobbit? Guh, the distinction just seems so arbitrary … sometimes. Everyone eroticizes something. Just because
your fantasy or fetish may be different than what most people are into doesn’t mean it’s bad. It just means that your erotic wiring is a bit different. And different can be very sexy. Use protection: Use it. Five minutes of pleasure is not worth an infestation of microscopic creepy-crawlers. Just imagine them swarming inside of you. Gross, right? Find that condom. Treat your lovers with respect: Whether you’re interested in spending a night with someone or a lifetime, you should respect them. Sex is a very emotional and intimate experience. Responsible lovers have the maturity to understand this and treat their partners with civility and grace, regardless of the experience. As I’ve said a million times (and will probably say a million more times), if you know what someone’s junk tastes like, you know them too well to disrespect them. Expect things: The most important advice I can give you is that you should expect things from your lover — respect, satisfying sex, emotional support, or whatever else you feel like you need in a relationship. There is something interesting about you. I don’t know what that is, but I’m sure there are someones (not someone but someones) in the world who will fucking love that thing about you. They’ll think it’s so great that they’ll give you all the things you need to keep you and that special thing about you in their life. So, don’t entertain the losers who don’t treat you the way you’d like to be treated. Anyway, guys, it’s been real. I hope that your life will be full of sexclamations! I’m already looking forward to that variety of post-Swat excitement.
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Living & Arts
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The Phoenix
It’s Time For a Change David Toland is an EVS Technician whose new column, Can You Dig It?, details his experiences at Swarthmore, in the US Army, and with his three children: a daughter, Hunter, 11; and two sons, Noah, 13, and David, 12. Driven by an enjoyment of poetry and digital story-telling fostered in Learning for Life, David is writing to share his life experiences with the Swarthmore community. Please Lord, help us to find you once again, and heal this Great Nation. People, we need to wake the fuck up. The violence is out of control. I always tell my kids, “I wish you could have grown up during the time when I grew up.” Problems between people were solved with words, sometimes fists; not with guns, bullying, and potential “death” through the use of social networking. In today’s society, people tend to seek “instant gratification” to solve their DAVID problems, a pattern that often ends with TOLAND deadly force. Can You Dig it? This column is going to touch on a lot of things I have written about this year for the Phoenix. I wrote about many controversial topics and also had many comments about my viewpoint, negative and positive. Every time you turn on the television and watch the news all you hear about is people getting murdered. The article I wrote, “You Can’t Stop the Violence,” was all about how human beings will always be in the midst of violence. There were thousands of athletes running in the Boston Marathon and thousands of bystanders watching when the bombs went off. This is my question — how can ever we stop this violence?
We need to teach the younger generation good morals and values, and that starts at home. These changes should start with us. We need to teach the younger generation good morals and values, and that starts at home. In one of my articles, I mentioned that I coach my kids in various sports. I do this for several reasons. I wanted to give the kids a place to learn about team building and to stay away from all the negative elements that exist in our communities. I also wanted to help them understand that our words and our actions are what make us individuals. During my coaching career, I’ve had to break up numerous fights between parents. It is unfortunate that kids have to witness these events and try to make sense of it all. I also wrote an article about the American flag and how I had found one in a trash can in one of the buildings on campus. Many readers had strong opinions about this article. I have very strong feelings about this as well. I was proud to serve in the U.S. Army for 10 years and lost many friends during that time. The American soldier does not fight because he hates who is in front of him; he fights because he loves who is behind him. To see the symbol of our nation being disrespected really struck a nerve in me. It truly pisses me off that it takes a tragedy like the Boston Marathon or 9/11 for people to become patriotic. One person with a commitment is worth more than 100 people who have only an interest. I would like to end this article with a quote from the late President Ronald Reagan, “If we lose freedom here, there is no place to escape to. This is the last stand on Earth.”
‘Wellness: Dealing with Depression,’ continued from page 8 on her schoolwork, staring at her computer for hours attempting to focus and accomplishing nothing. She would build up anxiety about assignments in her head until they were impossible to complete. Things came to head with a paper for one of Emily’s classes a few weeks ago. Emily had been thinking of upping her medication dosage but had not done so yet, and had a complete breakdown about her paper. “I just freaked out and couldn’t do it, couldn’t go to class, couldn’t do anything,” Emily. In the morning after the breakdown, she visited CAPS and asked for her dosage to be increased. Emily had a positive experience at CAPS, where she received an emergency counseling session. “Mostly at that point, I needed some validation that what I was feeling was connected to my depression, a chemical imbalance and not me procrastinating or not trying to work hard. It’s something that’s out of my control,” Emily explained. “That was helpful that [the counselor] validated that.” Emily emailed her professors, explaining that she had not attended class that morning or turned in her paper due to struggling with depression and having to go to Worth, and found that they were mostly accommodating. One teacher responded that he hoped she felt better, but expected her to continue participating in and attending class, which Emily thought was an odd response. Two of her other professors, on the other hand, were enormously helpful. Both teachers responded saying that they had struggled with depression and anxiety in the past, gave her
an extension on her paper, and invited her to speak with them during office hours and to get coffee with them. “Both wanted to talk to me about how I was doing outside of being a student,” Emily said. “It was really nice for someone to understand, to hear that a teacher had been there.” Emily isn’t sure to what extent Swarthmore has affected her mental health. “I think I would be having these problems no matter where I was--that’s sort of the essence of the transition to college and my own issues and my own chemical makeup at this point in my life,” she explained. At the same time, Emily questions how things could be different if she didn’t attend Swarthmore. “I also wonder sometimes if I would be doing a little bit better at an institution that wasn’t so competitive and where I didn’t feel so insecure, but I don’t really think that would necessarily change anything,” she said. Overall, Emily has felt supported by the people at Swarthmore. “The teachers that I’ve had encounters with are great. There are maybe some smaller problems, but that’s also just the nature of going to a competitive school. This community is all really high-achieving, and it’s hard being in a competitive
place when you’re feeling insecure, where everyone else around you is succeeding at such a high level, but I don’t think that’s something I would change, it’s just the circumstances,” Emily said. Nearly half of the respondents to the Phoenix survey agreed with Emily, saying that stress, anxiety, and/or depression are necessary byproducts of receiving a rigorous education. While Emily felt supported by the counselors and teachers to whom she reached out at Swarthmore, Laura Fitzgerald ‘14, who suffers from depression and has attempted suicide, had an entirely different experience. Several of Fitzgerald’s interactions with deans and mental health professionals at the college exacerbated her shame and guilt over her illness, and, she felt, served to perpetuate the stigmatization of those who suffer from mental illness. Next week, this series will detail Fitzgerald’s interactions, and examine the process by which administrators deal with students who suffer from mental illness.
“I also wonder sometimes if I would be doing a little bit better at an institution that wasn’t so competitive and where I didn’t feel so insecure.”
If you have a story you’d like to share about your experience with mental health issues at Swarthmore, contact agonzal4@swarthmore.edu.
“Ride the Tide,” Illustration by CASEY SCHREINER
Opinions
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
PAGE 13
The Phoenix
History Students for Fossil Fuel Divestment Dear Swarthmore Board of Managers,
As history students at Swarthmore College, we support the campaign to divest our school from the fossil fuel industry. Our classes in the Swarthmore History Department have taught us about the appalling long-term impacts of resource extraction. From the coalfields of Appalachia that prompted the second largest armed rebellion in United States history to the oil reserves of eastern Europe that caused some of the bloodiest battles of both World Wars, to the overseas fueling stations of imperial Britain, fossil fuel extraction has been inextricably linked to histories of colonization, racism, social marginalization and ecological degradation. Stephen Bensch’s classes on medieval Europe and the Mediterranean have demonstrated that resource competition has fueled expansionist warfare and slavery for millennia, and Allison Dorsey’s work on the American West has exposed the links between environmental managerialism and the oppression of minorities in the modern era. Our history professors have taught us how to unpack the myths of the fossil fuel industry. The discussions they lead and the texts they assign have shown us through example after example that resource extraction is not just about turning on the lights or about running our cars. Robert Weinberg’s courses on Russian and Soviet history have shown how fossil fuel elites employed common rhetorical strategies — evoking images of national renewal, scientific progress and social fulfillment — across multiple regimes with vastly different political ideologies. These themes remain as potent for the propaganda purposes of contemporary extraction companies in the United States as they ever were in Tsarist or Soviet Russia. Pieter Judson’s courses on nations and nationalism have shown us that fossil fuel extraction, whether in interwar Galicia, Nazi Germany, or fascist Romania, is always about dispossessing communities of their basic rights. It’s about calculating
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the financial gains but leaving out the hu- tors routinely label local populations as man and environmental costs. It’s about inferior and dispensable, causing them buying off policymakers and monopoliz- to disproportionately suffer from famine, ing even the most democratic of political disease and forced migration. Our classes may have demonstrated systems. It’s about money, influence, and the enormity of the problems inherent to the destruction of our planet. While we may have learned about re- fossil fuel extraction, but they have also source extraction in our history classes, equipped us with the tools necessary to we know that it is anything but an issue of approach a viable solution. If history has the past. Shane Minkin’s work on postco- taught us anything, it is that major social lonial North Africa and the Middle East change comes about not from above, but has shown how old power struggles over from broad based movements. Marjofossil fuel holdings continue to dominate rie Murphy’s courses on union struggles the region today. Farid Azfar’s courses and contemporary social movements on early modern Europe and the rise of have made clear the ability of mass mocapitalism have taught us about the in- bilization to disrupt business as usual. creasingly global nature of resource ex- The hard-won fights for the eight-hour ploitation, and we know from Lillian Li’s day, civil rights and the right to collecclass on modern China that fossil fuel tive bargaining demonstrate the power development and the massive pollution of many to challenge industry standards. it engenders affect developing countries Bruce Dorsey’s courses on United States history and Diego just as much as the Armus’s classes on industrialized West. Latin America have The fossil fuel identified grassroots industry of today is If history has taught us organizing and lomore powerful and destructive than anything, it is that major cal activism as sites crucial resistance ever. Extreme pracsocial change comes about of among those martices like mountainnot from above, but from ginalized or distop removal and fracking threaten broad based movements. placed by imperialist ideologies. lives, communiSwarthmore Colties, and ecosystems lege, with its Quaker in our own state of heritage and strong Pennsylvania. The greenhouse gas emissions that are the tradition of social activism, should know lifeblood of the fossil fuel industry are re- the value of collective action better than sponsible for massive climate change that most. Student-led campaigns for a living has already unleashed droughts, floods, wage, the establishment of the Interculand superstorms across the globe. And tural Center and Black Cultural Center, as as has always been the case with the en- well as earlier generations of students’ rovironmental effects of resource extrac- bust involvement in the civil rights movetion, it is those least responsible and least ment are all intimately connected with the able to adapt who will confront the worst college’s foundational mission. They draw impacts of changing weather patterns. on the passion for innovative learning, William Turpin’s courses on Greece and peace, and social justice that guided the Rome have shown that this was true in committed abolitionists, women’s rights the ancient world. And as we have learned activists and pacifists who established our from Tim Burke’s courses on Central Af- institution one hundred and fifty years rica and Robert DuPlessis’s class on the ago. Just as many Swarthmore students, Caribbean, in the pursuit of natural re- faculty and staff have taken meaningful source wealth, bureaucratic elites, mili- action against injustice, we too refuse to tary personnel and international inves- support a status quo that exploits people
History Faculty for Divestment To the Board of Managers: On behalf of the members of the Department of History, I am writing in support of Mountain Justice’s campaign to have Swarthmore College divest its endowment from the fossil fuel industry. I hope you will agree with my colleagues and myself that our students represent the best of the liberal arts tradition. They draw upon their diverse academic and intellectual pursuits to work toward a society rooted in social, economic, and political justice and equality. In particular, we are impressed that they have been inspired by their History
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courses to develop the critical and analytical skills required for effective civic and political engagement. While we might expect students who work under the auspices of the Lang Center or in Community-Based learning courses to engage in social and political activism, we are pleased that our program of study in the Department of History informs Mountain Justice’s engagement with pressing problems of contemporary American society. There is no greater testament to the value of a liberal arts education than Mountain Justice’s campaign for divestment. Bob Weinberg Professor of History and Acting Chair
CORRECTION Last week’s iteration of Harshil Sahai’s column Conservatively Liberal Economics, entitled “The Role of the Ph.D.” did not cite the sources of its information and the other articles on the issue that were used as a basis for the column. Mr. Sahai drew inspiration from an ar-
ticle appearing in the December 18, 2010 issue of The Economist, entitled “The Disposable Academic,” and used some of the statistics presented in that article. The material drawn from the Economist was not meant to be represented as the original work of Mr. Sahai.
and land for profits and that threatens the viability of our collective future. Business as usual — in terms both of the fossil fuel industry and of Swarthmore’s current investment practices — cannot be allowed to continue. Through fossil fuel divestment, Swarthmore should affirm its core values as well as its position as a leader in higher education. Such bold public action would add critical weight to the divestment campaign spanning more than 300 campuses across the country. By inciting us to rethink how we relate to energy, the economy and one another, divestment has the potential to change today’s national conversations about resource extraction while building the political pressure key to enacting substantive climate legislation. As history students, we draw on a rich history of struggle in those communities historically and currently affected by resource extraction, and we act in solidarity with their resistance. Frontline communities have challenged the fossil fuel industry for centuries, making change on the picket line, in the union hall and in the jail cell. Divestment is just one, crucial piece of a broader movement for climate justice, and it is our chance to stand on the right side of history. Just as divestment helped bring down South African Apartheid, we believe that today, it can help save our planet. We look forward to attending the Board of Managers meeting on May 4, where we hope you will commit to a concrete plan for divesting Swarthmore’s endowment from the fossil fuel industry. Kate Arnoff ’14 and Ben Goossen ’13 Further signed by Alison RoseberryPolier ’14, Aaron Freedman ’14, James Ivy ’14, McWelling Todman ’14, Alexandra Willingham ’15, Maria Mejia ’15, Sarah Diamond ’13, Charles Hepper ’13, Zachary Nacev ’13, Thomas Powers ’13, Emily McAfee ’13, Emily Rosen ’13, Emma Thomas ’13, Marjani Nairne ’13, and Julia Finkelstein ’13.
LETTER, OP-ED & COMMENT POLICY Letters, opinion pieces and online comments represent the views of their writers and not those of The Phoenix staff or Editorial Board. The Phoenix reserves the right to edit all pieces submitted for print publication for content, length and clarity. The Phoenix also reserves the right to withhold any letters, op-eds or comments from publication. All comments posted online and all opeds and letters must be signed and should include the writer’s full name. Letters are a minimum of 250 words and may not exceed 500 words. Op-eds are a minimum of 500 words and may not exceed 750. Letters and op-eds must be submitted by 10 p.m. on Monday, and The Phoenix reserves the right to withhold letters and op-eds received after that time from publication. Letters may be signed by a maximum of five individuals. Op-eds may be signed by a maximum of two individuals. The Phoenix will not accept pieces exclusively attributed to groups, although individual
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PAGE 14
Opinions
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The Phoenix
Boston Shows Importance of Being Prepared Americans generally accept a role for government in meeting a number of important national needs. Defense, schools, roads, bridges, public health and safety, and courts are all CRAIG services that we as a society support EARLEY with tax dollars The Pragmatic as components of Progressive government policy. Emergency management is another. The immediate response to last week’s Boston Marathon bombing is a case study in how valuable that service is when it succeeds. The events of that day have broad lessons for the country in how to prepare for and respond to future crises. After disasters like September 11th and Hurricane Katrina, it was apparent to officials and experts concerned with emergency services that local, state, and national governments needed to collaborate more effectively. The great variations between different places in the country, the distribution of power across different tiers of government, and the large number of agencies involved in relief was stacking logistical disaster on top of natural disaster. The move to fix that represents one of the most overlooked but most important components of America’s improved capacity to respond to national crises. Boston has long been a major priority for national security officials. From 2002 to now, the Department of Homeland Security has given the city $370 million in grants to prepare their response network. One program on which the city spent this money was Urban Shield, which consisted of two 24-hour drills to test responsive-
ness to everything from hostage crises would have been much worse in the to theater shootings. Police, SWAT absence of effective response mechateams, the Coast Guard, local hospi- nisms. tals, and other critical emergency reImportant events since the bombspondents took part in both drills to ings have overtaken a careful evalufind and eliminate deficiencies. In the ation of the immediate response. past three years, the Federal Emer- However, it is clear that this meticugency Management Agency (FEMA) lous preparation greatly reduced the has conducted eight disaster response impact of the attack. This must be exercises of its own and trained 5,500 remembered as we consider the posrespondents. Hospitals and emergency sible implications of this bombing for medical responders have adopted sys- public action. It is prudent to have a tems to share information and mobi- conversation about the policy lessons lize resources during crises. we can learn from the incident. BeThis effort has taken a long time and cause disaster relief is still an area on cost a lot of money, but it has now paid which there is broad (though far from off. Thanks to its preparation, Boston complete) bipartisan cooperation, it is responded swiftly an important and to the bombing. productive conIt shut down the versation to have. public trains in First, we the area while the should shun any In the future, cities and effort to exploit Federal Aviation Administration this event to slow towns across America grounded flights. down other acshould aim to be as Emergency medition or to curtail cal personnel liberties. Conserprepared as Boston sprang to action, vative politicians was for a crisis. spread the worst like Sens. Chuck injuries across Grassley (R-IA) several hospitals and Rand Paul to avoid overload, (R-KY) have aland kept the ratio ready attempted of deaths to into use it to slow juries low. Police secured the vicinity down immigration reform; to their and moved people out. This coordina- credit, Senator Marco Rubio (Rtion was done without blocking action FL) and Speaker of the House John by spectators trying to help, enabling Boehner (R-OH) have pushed back on the kind of civilian support that has these efforts. Others have attempted to been widely praised in the past week. use the attack to target American MusIn the end, 282 people were saved and lims. Fox News spread fear of a “Saudi only three died. That is no consolation national” who was quickly found to to the families of those who died or to have nothing to do with the bombings. people who lost limbs, but the incident Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) advocated
increased surveillance of American Muslims in response. None of this should have a place in a reasonable conversation about what to do going forward. The smarter and more humane approach is to continue improving our collective emergency response capacity. In the future, cities and towns across America should aim to be as prepared as Boston was for a crisis. The largest of them should conduct their own city-wide disaster drills, and even the smallest should create contingency plans in the event of crisis. Many of them will not be able to afford those programs on their own, so state and federal resources should be available to help them. To that end, we must protect programs like FEMA and federal grants to states. Resources for both are being cut and should be restored. Furthermore, those funds should be simpler to pursue. The federal government should heed Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano’s advice to consolidate her department’s state grant programs. The process of acquiring those funds should be as straightforward and efficient as possible, from the submission of requests to the final dispersal of the money. Such streamlining would save money and make it easier for cities to prepare. Total prevention of incidents like this is impossible. Even Boston’s preparation did not stop the bombing from happening. All the same, that preparation was a worthy investment that saved lives and made a terrible situation somewhat less so. Protecting public safety is one of the most important functions of government. The people
A Letter from the Director of Student Health Services Dear Campus Community, This letter is in response to the discussions regarding rape and sexual assault, so please know reading on might be triggering. Many students have approached me in the past week, sharing their stories and wanting to continue the discussion that began on Wednesday night in Eldridge Commons. They were sad and pained and yes, let’s say it — ANGRY. When I was younger, ANGER was something I learned good girls shouldn’t show. Too messy. But as I got older, I learned that messy had its place. And though anger for anger’s sake is okay by me, anger for action’s sake, is, in my opinion, even better. So first, I’d like to thank and acknowledge the many brave students who have told their deeply private and painful stories. I say Swarthmore owes you its gratitude, and more importantly, its support. I also want to personally apologize. When President Chopp and Dean Braun entrusted me with advising SMART in fall 2011, I thought I knew (arrogantly) what was best. I developed our resource
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“wheel” and thought, okay, now all the systems of support are in place, so now it’s perfect. Wrong. Resources on a page mean nothing if they don’t offer the real support that students need and deserve. What I can promise after listening to you the other night is that I will work tirelessly with President Chopp, Dean Braun and many others to scrutinize every aspect of the resources we provide to you. We very much want to create, along with SMART, a lasting, fluid support system around students who are raped and sexually assaulted on campus. I believe the independent external review, coupled with the internal Task Force on Sexual Misconduct, will also help us assess what is working well, and what is not. Every community member has a role to play here, and I will redouble my own efforts in support of those who are suffering and to improve our preventative measures, as well. To that end, I will work with others at the college to make certain that no first year athlete has to choose between a truncated or different version of ASAP because they have a schedule conflict. If the first discussions of sexual assault happen during this important time for students, our community must, from the very start, show all
students how important this issue is to us. I join President Chopp and Dean Braun in desperately wanting survivors (alumni and current students) to feel they have voice without having the burden of explaining how being victimized feels. I hope you’ll trust me when I say I know how exhausting that can be. How can we ask students to trust us if we do not do a better job of providing unquestioning and unflinching support? Now is the moment to crush the barriers to a safer campus in general, and to victim support specifically. I am hoping students will feel more comfortable about generating ideas without worrying about the undue burden of explaining why these ideas are so important. Finally, I want to offer this. Hope. If that comes across as naïve or glib, I do not mean it like that. Above all else — above the pain and the anger the other night, I felt hope. Looking at you, listening to each and every argument, there was an energy — a messy energy — that felt both hopeful and like progress to me. This is our community. The word implies union that we might not always feel. But I honestly don’t think this discussion could have happened a few years ago, so yes, I am more hopeful now than when I
came to Swarthmore that our community is still very much a community. Some of you know how much my dad informed the way I think about justice. He thought about attending Swarthmore in 1945, but ended up at Penn instead. Don’t hold that against him. He was a great guy. He was also a fierce protector of all those who had no voice. He passed away in October, and I find myself wishing I could tell him what is happening here. One of his favorite quotes was, “Those who ask faint-heartedly teach how to refuse.” –Seneca. In a way, this quote speaks to getting messy. I think my dad would have been so impressed by all of you for not letting those of us who are tasked with caring for you forget what that means. You decided asking faint-heartedly wasn’t getting the job done! I hope that those of us who care so deeply — and there are so many staff, faculty, and students that do--can prove that we are listening, and that we will continue to advocate on your behalf and also create a smarter, more supportive, and more responsive culture in which all Swarthmore students feel safe. Beth Kotarski Director, Student Health Service
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
Opinions
PAGE 15
The Phoenix
Reflecting on Terrorism
The Minds of Others
“What difference does it make tacks of 9/11, they nevertheless put why they did it?” Chris Matthews Americans on edge. Perhaps, we said on his eponymously named MS- have just gone from one tragedy to NBC show Monday night. Matthews the next over the past year. First, the was referring, of course, to Boston mass shooting in a movie theater in Marathon bombers Tamerlan and Aurora, Colorado last July. Then, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Attempting the December massacre at Sandy to avoid injecting religion into the Hook Elementary. This latest event discussion, Matthews showed ex- is yet another tragedy. Forces of evil actly why the motivation behind the have wreaked havoc on the Ameribombings is so important for us to can psyche, whether manifested in understand. troubled college-age students or terWe now know that the older rorists. Preventing these attacks in brother, Tamerlan, was influenced the future is more difficult than, say, by radical Islamic clerics espousing a increasing airport security, as the loreligion far differ- cation and nature of the attacks are ent from that of the different in each case. TYLER majority of MusAnd, the perpetrators can be hardlims. Over the last er to identify. While the FBI missed BECKER year, he had mul- important details about Tamerlan The Swarthmore tiple outbursts at Tsarnaev’s trip to Russia despite beConservative a mosque in Cam- ing on a terrorist watch list, Tamerbridge, Massachu- lan’s younger brother Dzhokhar was setts over what he saw as the church a typical FIFA-playing college sophodiscarding Islamic doctrine: allow- more who no one suspected would ing Muslims to celebrate American commit such horror. In this day and holidays, such as Thanksgiving, and age of constant communication via praising Martin Luther King, Jr. in a the internet and cell phones with sermon. Last year, Tamerlan traveled people far away, there is so much to Russia where he attended a “noto- that one individual can hide from the rious radical mosque” according to public eye. Time magazine, but returned to the The Boston Marathon bombings United States after about six months. hit home for me in multiple ways. Matthews wanted to discard this Being from New Hampshire, I am in religious influence the city frequently. because he sought I’ve gone to the to avoid the public Starbucks off Copblaming Islam as ley Square that had You have to ask, where its windows shata whole for the attacks. I sympathize tered by one of the did these individuals with Matthews bombs. The invesget the idea to commit tigation into the and others who want to avoid the bombings really hit the act? Who pulled broader narrative home when Tamerthe trigger, and why? that equates Islam lan and Dzhokhar and Muslims with Tsarnaev took to terrorism. But, the the streets of Wareligion followed tertown, Massaby Tamerlan Tsarnaev is almost an chusetts, leaving residents in a state entirely different one from that prac- of panic. One of my best friends lives ticed by most Muslims. in the neighborhood right up the hill When terrorism happens, you have from where Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was to look at the motivation, whether it eventually found. I waited for the bus happens in Newtown, Connecticut every morning on the corner of the or Boston, Massachusetts. You have street he was found every day last to ask, where did these individuals summer to commute into the city. get the idea to commit the act? Who I watched the developments far too pulled the trigger, and why? We can late into the morning last Friday in identify Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s ties to utter disbelief. radical Islam. But, we also know that This is exactly what attacks like the the brothers were not acting in direct Marathon bombings are supposed to concert with other individuals, mak- do: touch the places we know with tering the situation much more com- ror. Asking “why” these attacks have plex. occurred does make a difference not Matthews’ suggestion that the only for understanding how we can “why” is irrelevant makes little sense prevent them, but also to somehow in this context. Without understand- rationalize to ourselves the threat we ing the reasons the brothers carried are up against. out this attack, we are left with no We must stop putting political comprehension of how others may correctness first and reality second. acquire the ideas and means to launch Pointing out the connection between future attacks. a radical version of Islam and this terEver since 9/11, there has been a rorist attack is not inaccurate. As we worry that with all the new security have seen in the past year, evil manimeasures in airports and government fests in numerous ways and for varibuildings that terrorists would turn ous reasons. Sometimes we can see to more localized attacks in the tra- a larger trend from the attacks, and ditionally “safe” areas of our society: other times that’s impossible. Matat sporting events, in shopping malls, thews’ comments on MSNBC Monand other places we frequent in our day night represent the worst kind daily lives. My concern is that the of political correctness, one that preBoston Marathon bombings could be vents us from having the necessary a turning point toward more attacks to discussions to understand where in these much less secure locations. these attacks came from. We are too Though the Marathon bombings strong to engage in political correctwere less destructive than the at- ness at this moment.
After the tragic Boston Marathon of these many factors supplement one bombings last week, the Internet was another — creating an even greater abuzz with tweeters, bloggers, and effect on internet users. One such posters filling cyberspace with in- factor is dissociative anonymity, the formation. Like many recent world ability of Internet users to not fully events, the social media response identify with their actions online. to the bombings Individuals may be able to convince became a part of themselves that they are not as rePATRICK their story. Links to sponsible for their actions, and disasAMMERMAN news articles, char- sociate themselves from them. This ity websites, and effect is compounded by the effect of Popular up-to-date infor- the physical invisibility of the actor to Science mational websites those reading her or his posts. This spread like wildfire effect has long been exploited by psythrough all sorts of avenues of the In- choanalysts, who will sit behind the ternet. When the FBI released their patients in order to make them more photos of the two bombing suspects, open to share details from their lives. Some have claimed that the openthose were spread by internet users as well. So was an image of a 22-year old ness fostered by online communistudent from Brown University who ties allow individuals to be more like had gone missing a month ago and their “real selves” than they can be in appeared to bear a likeness to the man face to face situations. However, this in one of the released FBI photos. As claim has been psychoanalytically the unsubstantiated rumor that this and philosophically argued against. student was in fact related with the For one thing, the content of online incident in Boston spread across the posting may reveal less of our personweb, his family began receiving hate al and cultural values. These values calls. Hate speech also began appear- are generally seen to be positive sides ing on a Facebook page set up by the of one’s self, and there is little reason family to try to find their missing son. to believe they are less important to Overnight, what began as a rumor an individual than their more deviant had created a massive and unjustified side is to them. Furthermore, while some people feel more able to access call of anger. Here at Swarthmore, the Inter- deep feelings or may take on differnet has also been a forum for vehe- ent personalities online, these sides ment conversations this semester. of them are not necessarily more From angry Facebook statuses, to ex- genuine than the more awkward and changes among students on Twitter, spontaneous interactions that people to the anonymous posts on the Daily have in face-to-face situations. Online interactions may allow Gazette website, many Swatties have witnessed other students lashing out people to interact in more disinhibagainst one another over the Inter- ited ways online, but many of the ramifications net. While many of online interpeople have good actions follow conversations, Internet users facilitating real offline. Studdialogue about Individuals may ies have shown campus politics, be able to convince use of certain the use of online communicamediums for lessthemselves that they tion sites such than-constructive are not as responsible as social media conversation has to be correlatbeen hard to miss. for their actions. ed with greater Research has levels of depresshown that peosion, ADHD, ple communicatand narcissism. ing within online communities tend to be more deviant Large amounts of Facebook use are than they otherwise would be in real thought to lead to feelings of social life. Other research has pointed to the isolation, and of envy of the social potentially detrimental effects of the life of others. A team of German resocial media and other forms of on- searchers found that, of frequent line communication to mental health. Facebook users who felt dissatisfied Psychology has begun asking ques- with their own lives when using sotions about how people act in these cial media, the most common cause novel situations, but has a long way of dissatisfaction was “envy” of the to go in exploring how people partici- lives of others. Cyberpsychology is a budding pate in online communities. One perhaps obvious observation field, but one that is in high demand is that the things people say or do on- in our society. With the rapid growth line may not be things they would say in users of Facebook and other social or do in real life. This is known as the media sites, and the power of those online disinhibition effect. This dis- sites in today’s popular culture, there inhibition can have effects that are is much work to be done to underbenign, such as allowing people to stand what drives the users of these better open up and reveal more about popular social media sites. Such an their feelings or identity than they are understanding is important not just comfortable talking about in person. for our health, but for how we think Such comfort in sharing the details about what goes on the web and reof our lives has driven most personal spond to the deviant comments of blogs and social media pages. How- others. No understanding will excuse ever, this disinhibition can also lead those who post hurtful and vehement to more rash decision making when comments and rumors on the interspeaking because of anger or disap- net, but a better knowledge of what motivates this behavior can help us pointment. The factors leading to online disin- as individuals to respond to and curb hibition are many, and the existence these rash, emotional comments.
Sports
PAGE 16
The Phoenix
THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2013
The End of Barça’s Reign?
To all the Barcelona lovers out there: it may be time to give up your claim to being the best team in Europe. Barcelona was just shown how to play football by the new best team in the world, Bayern Munich. Some people may say that it’s a little soon to make such claims and that maybe placing Bayern above Barcelona should only happen once the second leg has been played, but I don’t think its too soon to say. Bayern Munich beat Barcelona all over the pitch and if any Barcelona supporter brings up the possession stat then all I need to do is point to the scoreline: 4-0 is not a scoreline of two closely matched teams (and need I remind anyone who watched the game that it could have been so much worse). Tuesday night proved something very important about this Barcelona team: they can’t defend. I think I may have mentioned this before — it’s one of my favourite topics — but defensively Out of Left Field Barcelona are very poor. Barcelona defenders are so used to winning or controlling games that nobody taught them how to defend. This problem is exacerbated when you play two very excitable wing backs in Dani Alves and Jordi Alba who spend much of their time in the opposition’s half looking for the overlap. This works when you have possession for 66% of the game and this is why Barcelona doesn’t concede more often; they make up for their defensive frailties by never having to defend. Xavi, Iniesta, Sanchez and Pedro are not midfielders who can tackle or cover back effectively; the Barcelona midfield is designed to have possession not track after players in order to get possession back, especially when the other team breaks as quickly as Bayern Munich does. This lack of ability to cover back quickly or to make a cynical foul to postpone play was ruthlessly exploited in the wing play of Robben and Ribery, possibly the most frightening combination at the moment, and the constant threat of Mario Gomez really made the combination of Pique and Bartra uncertain about whether to step up or cover the run. It is worth noting that Gomez was quite terrible apart from scoring. He had five complete passes by the time he was substituted as he kept of making runs at goal, rather than playing any sort of support role and helping Bayern keep the ball. They might as well have played without him for most of the game given how little he did up until he was substituted. Barça fans have some right to feel aggrieved but not a huge amount. Two of the goals were iffy: Gomez was offside for the second goal and Mueller did body check Jordi Alba during the third goal. But decisions often go the way of the more aggressive team. Bayern were showing a lot of attacking prowess and were rampaging towards the Barcelona goal at every opportunity and when you show that sort of desire you often get decisions in your favor. It begs the question of what the point of the extra officials are when one of them was three yards from Mueller’s body check and again really close to Gomez after the initial header by Dante. However, decisions could not change the scoreline of this match that much. Bayern scored two dubious goals but should have scored on other opportunities throughout the match so a 4-0 scoreline seems about fair. What this match did show was the importance of the defensive midfielder. Probably the two best players on the pitch were Bastian Schweinsteiger and Javi Martinez with the Spaniard probably just stealing the man of the match award. Against a team that holds on to the ball consistently for long periods of time both of these players had excellent games covering all areas of the pitch and Martinez had a couple of quality interceptions, especially in the first half. While Bayern’s attacking players showed their ability to counter effectively, it was the tireless work of the midfield pairing that continually gave the offense opportunities to break. What happened in Munich was probably a one off for Barcelona because they were the second best team all evening. Against AC Milan earlier in the season there were signs of problems but Barcelona were still the best team. Here it was completely different and Bayern simply showed Barcelona how to combine physicality with technique and played a game that showed organised defending alongside freeform attack. And how about that Robert Lewandowski? Pretty good player isn’t he? Apparently we’ll be looking at a front three next season in red for Manchester of Van Persie, Falcao and Lewandowski if rumors are to be believed.
JAMES IVEY
Annalise Penikis ’13, pictured above, received the honor of Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week.
COURTESY OF SWARTHMOREATHLETICS.COM
Women’s Lacrosse Rolls Over Muhlenberg, Dickinson By SCOOP RUXIN Sports Writer
The women’s lacrosse team put an abrupt halt to their three game Centennial Conference losing streak by picking up two key victories last week on their home turf at Clothier Field. Swarthmore’s victories give the team a 4-3 Centennial Conference record, putting the squad in the thick of the playoff hunt. The team sits in sixth place after falling 17-14 to Washington College on Wednesday, with a remaining game against rival Haverford on Saturday. In addition to its importance for the team’s playoff hopes, Swarthmore’s 13-10 victory over Dickinson on Saturday gave Head Coach Karen Borbee her 200th Career victory in her 20th season as head coach. The reigning Centennial Conference Coach of the Year recognized the gravity of the moment, saying that “it’s an honor to have coached here long enough to have the opportunity to reach this milestone. I am hoping to continue to add to the total.” Borbee’s players were happy to share in the joy of helping their coach reach such an impressive landmark. Defender Caroline Murphy ’14 called the win “incredible”, adding that, “Karen has been such an amazing coach and our team has really improved over the last few years. I’m really happy that we could be the team to reach this milestone with her.” Goalkeeper Michelle Ammerman ’14 echoed Murphy, saying that, “[Borbee] has given so much of her time and energy to the program that it feels nice to give something back.” For forward Annalise Penikis ’13, a Swarthmore native, the game had added significance, as the star forward explained: “I’ve known Karen since I was little and she taught me how to play lacrosse at all of the team’s lacrosse camps and clinics, so it was extra meaningful that I got to be a part of it.” Penikis dominated against Dickinson, picking up points on nine of the Garnet’s 13 goals in a matchup of two teams on the periphery of the playoff picture. Penikis overcame consistent double-teams to tally four goals and five assists. Corinne Sommi ’14 added a hat trick of her own, as well as one assist, while Lizzie Kolln ’16 and Nicole Vanchieri ’13 had two points apiece. Swarthmore led comfortably for most of the game, stopping a late Dickinson rally with a goal from Lucy
Whitacre ’14 with just over two minutes remaining. Penikis credited an improved defense with the team’s recent wins, saying that, “I think our defense has really stepped up. All over the field, everyone has been working really hard and I think everyone has the confidence and motivation to win.” Ammerman, with eight saves, and Emma Sipperly ’14, with four ground balls, led the Garnet defense against the Red Devils. Murphy added that the team has executed better and reduced its turnovers: “In the last two games, I think things have started to come together for us and we are making less of those [unforced] errors.” The victory over Dickinson followed up a 16-10 victory over Muhlenberg. Swarthmore won the game with a balanced offensive attack that featured six players scoring multiple goals. Penikis led Swarthmore with three goals, while Sommi, Sipperly, Kolln, Whitacre and Julia Denney ’15 added two goals apiece. Murphy led Swarthmore’s defense, causing four turnovers and picking up two ground balls, while Ammerman made seven saves in a strong encore performance after being named Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week. Borbee credited the team’s recent success in part to their strong performance in a 14-9 loss to 6th-ranked Franklin and Marshall the week before, saying, “We played with a great deal of poise against F&M and that gave us a lot of confidence going into the Muhlenberg and Dickinson games.” Penikis’ impressive week earned her the honor of Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Her 15-point week gave her a Conference-leading 79 points on the season. Penikis, along with fellow seniors Vanchieri, Catie Meador and Beth Martin, will be honored on Senior Day on Saturday, in a game scheduled for 1 p.m. at Clothier Field. Borbee lauded her senior class. “I’m really proud of the leadership of our senior class as well as their play on the field. Our team was ranked in the 80s [in the LaxPower.com computer rankings] when they first joined the program and now we are ranked #30,” Borbee said. “If the Garnet can win its final two games, they figure to crack the national top 25. More importantly, they will punch their ticket to the Centennial Conference playoffs for a second consecutive year.” Despite Wednesday’s loss, the team looks ahead to its final game against Haverford.
Illustration by YENNY CHEUNG