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Serving the Rutgers community since 1869. Independent since 1980.
RUTGERS UNIVERSITY—NEW BRUNSWICK
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9, 2016
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Dance Marathon participant uses portraits to raise money for event JESSICA HERRING STAFF WRITER
Justin Lucero has combined his passion for art and helping people by drawing portraits of students at Rutgers to raise money for the Embrace Kids Foundation. Lucero, a School of Arts and Sciences senior, decided to participate in the Rutgers University Dance Marathon this year, and rose $350 in about one week with no experience in fundraising. He decided last week to create incentives to entice people to donate, as suggested in the fundraising guidelines, he said. Dance Marathon was something all his friends have participated in, so in his senior year he felt inclined to join, he said. He raised money by painting portraits for people who donated $30 and baking for those who gave $10. “The goal was also to generate excitement for my fundraising page and the mission of Dance Marathon itself, which it did on social media,” Lucero said. “Additionally I wanted
to make this fundraising experience fun for me and for donors.” Lucero said raising the money was a humbling experience. “It was truly a humbling experience seeing people come together to donate for a good cause and in supporting me in this campaign,” he said. “In all honesty, I’d consider myself an amateur in terms of the arts, as I have been out of practice for some time.” He became more serious with drawing during his senior year of high school, when he took an art class. He does not draw that often anymore due to other commitments, he said. But when he draws he focuses on portraits, Lucero said. He wanted to use this campaign as an opportunity to engage in drawing again. “I enjoy seeing a drawing come to life right before your eyes,” he said. “I enjoy seeing how lines and different shading comes together and creates something taken rooted in our reality and translating it onto a page.” Participating in Dance Marathon forced him to step outside of his
comfort zone because he actually had to ask people for money, Lucero said. “My favorite part about this campaign is being able to generate excitement for the fundraising experience and thus, generating awareness for Dance Marathon and what it stands for,” he said. Dance Marathon is a great opportunity to engage Rutgers students in service, Lucero said. Hopefully this will help students become more socially aware and inspire them to continue to serve populations in need, he said. On campus, Lucero has been involved in various organizations over the past couple years including New Student Orientation, the Rutgers University Student Assembly, Alternative Breaks and as a Peer Educator with the Health, Outreach, Promotion and Education Office, he said. “I would describe myself as open-minded, willing to see different perspectives and as someone who, because of their blessings, wants to give back to others through empowerment and service,” Lucero said. SEE EVENT ON PAGE 4
Members of the Rutgers and New Brunswick communities can learn or practice their language skills with the Multilingual Conversation Cafés held on campus. SAMANTHA CASIMIR / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Multilingual Café helps guests learn languages CAMILO MONTOYA-GALVEZ CORRESPONDENT
A joint venture by the University and the New Brunswick community seeks to break language barriers through the simple act of having a conversation. On Tuesday night, The Conversation Tree and Rutgers University Global Citizens hosted the “Multilingual Conversation Café.” The event brought Rutgers students and faculty together alongside New Brunswick residents in an environment where participants could practice verbal interactions in nine different languages. The Conversation Tree was organized in 2012 by the Rutgers Graduate
School of Education and the Collaborative Center for Community-Based Research and Service. The program currently hosts various conversation cafés in English, Spanish and Mandarin every week for members of the Rutgers and New Brunswick community. “We really believe in the philosophy of honoring and respecting multilingualism,” said Taylor Rotolo, program director of The Conversation Tree and a coadjunct in the Douglass Residential College. “Language is an incredible thing to celebrate.” This atmosphere of informal conversations differs from the traditional classroom setting and way SEE LANGUAGES ON PAGE 4
Student amuses peers with Facebook posts GABRIELA AMARAL CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Several countries, as well as five states in the U.S., have legalized euthanasia, sometimes known as physician-assisted suicide. Several more countries define “assisted suicide” differently than euthanasia, with only the former being legal. SUSMITA PARUCHURI / DESIGN EDITOR
Professor explains definition, factors, history of human euthansia debate NIKHILESH DE AND JONATHAN XIONG STAFF WRITERS
Increasingly over the last several years, assisted death or euthanasia has been debated throughout the world and the United States.
Euthanasia is also referred to as “assisted suicide (or) physician-assisted suicide,” as well as “mercy killing,” according to Medical News Today. It is a controversial subject, with people arguing for and against it, said Larry Temkin, a distinguished
professor in the Department of Philosophy. “Euthanasia is a term of art. We can use it to mean many different things and other considerations. Normally, when we mean euthanasia, SEE EUTHANASIA ON PAGE 5
Sprawled across a pool table with a rose in hand, Sam Afflu has become a Rutgers meme. The School of Environmental and Biological Sciences senior is known among Rutgers Facebook groups for posting photos of himself on what appears to be a pool table and holding a red rose, among others. Some students are amused — others are exasperated. It all began when Afflu joined several Rutgers Facebook groups while searching of housing. “Some girls made a post that was overtly sexual and clearly a joke, so I said something like ‘did somebody say’ and whatever it was. Then I was like, what pictures do I have that are funny so I just threw one in there,” he said. “I didn’t think it would become anything.” The photo came about when Afflu was handing out flowers to Rutgers students, faculty and staff. Afflu asked one of the recipients to take a photo of him lounging on a pool table.
His expectations were met and exceeded as the post quickly gained popularity. As he posted more jokes and pictures on other groups, Afflu became a phenomenon within the Rutgers community. Afflu also hands out flowers to students, faculty and staff every Valentine’s Day. “Instead of complaining about being single it’d be nice to spread the love a bit.” he said. “More than a dozen times I’ve gotten people to ask me to take pictures (with them) on Snapchat, some of which I’m friends with now.” The influx of friend requests on Facebook prompted Afflu to message requesters he did not personally know, to make sure they aren’t spam bots. When not posting jokes and pictures of himself on Facebook, he practices martial arts, plays piano, saxophone, basketball, quidditch and ballroom dance. His strange habits do not stop with his Facebook posts. Afflu has also
VOLUME 148, ISSUE 28 • UNIVERSITY ... 3 • OPINIONS ... 6 • CLASSIFIEDS ... 7 • FOOD & DRINK ... 8 • DIVERSIONS ... 9 • SPORTS ... BACK
SEE POSTS ON PAGE 4