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Volume 52, Issue 88 | friday, february 23, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com
Election nears end, reaches boiling point Candidates publicly debate for last time By KELLI SMITH News Writer
The remaining student body presidential candidates and their running mates made their final campaign pitches Thursday in a Judicial Council runoff debate in the Duncan Student Center. The debate was held a day before Friday’s runoff election, which will determine the 20182019 student body president and vice president. The contenders, juniors Alex Kruszewski, with running mate Julia Dunbar, and juniors Gates McGavick, with running mate Corey Gayheart, discussed topics such as mental health, sexual assault, dorm inequality, campus unity and the
feasibility of their ideas. Dunbar said student life is only one of the pillars of the Kruszewski-Dunbar platform and that the ticket was shifting away from “surface-level stuff.” “We got to sit back to re-brand ourselves a little bit [this past week],” Kruszewski added. “The ideas are the same and they have been there all along in the plans that we have had on our website, but we decided that we wanted to restructure [our platform].” According to the KruszewskiDunbar website, the ticket re-focused itself around “five passions” — well-being, sexual assault prevention and student safety, student see DEBATE PAGE 4
McGavick-Gayheart ticket to forfeit 12 percent of vote Observer Staff Report
The McGavick-Gayheart ticket will be required to forfeit 12 percent of the votes cast for it during Friday’s student government presidential runoff election, Judicial Council announced in a press release Friday morning. According to the release, McGavick and Gayheart were “found to have supporters releasing confidential information from previous Judicial Council allegation hearings, as well as engaging in a continued pattern of unethical behavior,” which violated Judicial Council’s Election Regulations and Sections 13.4(e), 17.1(g) and 17.1(h) of the Student Union Constitution.
Welsh Family Hall resident crowned Miss ND By THOMAS MURPHY News Writer
Sophomore Christina Murray of Welsh Family Hall was crowned Miss ND in O’Neill Hall’s signature event Thursday night. The annual pageant supports South Bend’s Center for the Homeless. The organization, founded in 1988 by two Notre Dame faculty members, seeks to meet the immediate needs of the
homeless while preparing them for future success. According to the pageant’s program, the Center assists “its 200 or more homeless men, women, mothers with children and military veterans [to] break the cycle of homelessness and poverty in which they find themselves.” “The shelter does not only shelter the homeless temporarily … they also set them up for success so that they’re no longer in that
position,” junior Nick Martinez, the event’s organizer, said. Last year’s pageant raised $1,400 for the shelter, and Martinez hoped this year would raise even more. The pageant was hosted by sophomores and O’Neill residents Brendan Kopf and Andrew Looney and included volunteer contestants from each female see MISS ND PAGE 3
Student Union Board hosts annual music festival By KARA MIECZNIKOWSKI News Writer
This weekend, collegiate bands from across the nation will travel to South Bend to perform in Notre Dame’s 60th annual Collegiate Jazz Festival (CJF). The festival — which is the oldest in the nation — also features a panel of world-renowned jazz musicians, who serve as performance adjudicators throughout the event and
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participate in a “Judges’ Jam” on the first night of performances. This year’s CJF will feature jazz bands and ensembles from Western Michigan, the University of Illinois at Chicago, Roosevelt University, Lee University, Columbia College and Alma College, as well as Notre Dame’s own Jazz Band 1 and New Orleans Brass Band, junior Kyle Miller, the event’s lead programmer, said. “This has been in the works
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since last June,” he said. The CJF committee, a program of SUB, has 10 members who all help with planning and running the event. The committee also collaborates with Notre Dame’s music department to pick judges for the performances. “We actually have musicians reach out to us, asking to judge at the festival,” Miller said. “[Assistant director of bands] see FESTIVAL PAGE 3
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The aspect of the Election Regulations the ticket violated, the release said, mandates that candidates are “responsible for [their] actions as well as the actions of [their] supporters.” Section 13.4(e) of the Student Union Constitution states that, aside from information included in Judicial Council press releases, “all other information pertaining to hearings and appeals shall be considered confidential.” Section 17.1(g), another section the ticket was found to have violated, reads, “Candidates may not be involved in or instruct others to engage in any unethical behavior as detailed in 17.1(h).” Section 17.1(h), the final section Judicial Council found the
ticket to have violated, states that “Candidates are expected to behave ethically at all times.” According to the press release, “Judicial Council will not release the election results while there are pending allegations and appeals,” in accordance with Section 17.1(m) of the Student Union Constitution. The McGavick-Gayheart ticket did not immediately respond to The Observer’s request for comment. This is the fifth instance of sanctions issued by Judicial Council in year’s election, including one that requires the Kruszewski-Dunbar ticket to forfeit 10 percent of votes it receives in Friday’s runoff election.
Professor speaks on religion, peacekeeping By SYDNEY DOYLE News Writer
Kwok Pui Lan, professor of theology at Emory University, addressed the role of religion in peacekeeping processes across the world in as part of the Saint Mary’s Endowed Spring Lectures Series on Thursday. Pui Lan began her lecture by talking about when she met the Dalai Lama 25 years ago, who said everyone has a role to play in creating a climate of genuine peace. She there is a continuation of conflict and hostility between religions, as highlighted by the media. “Recent attacks in New York, London, Brussels and Berlin highlighted our awareness of the role of religion in conflict,” she said. “Although the spotlight has been on Muslim extremists, it is important for all of us to remember that religious extremist of other religious traditions have also caused oppression and threatened peaceful coexistence.” Pui Lan said Christianity also has its humanitarian failings, such as the colonization of the
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Americas. When referring to modern day Muslim culture, she said terrorism and peace come from the same place. “A tiny minority of Muslim extremists should not be taken as representative of the whole tradition of Islam,” she said. Although it is sometimes very challenging, gaining an understanding of other cultures is crucial to creating peace, Pui Lan said. Pui Lan said Christians in America are privileged because of their large numbers in the U.S. This is detrimental to the practice of peacekeeping because it allows for ignorance and fear of other beliefs and cultures, Pui Lan said. “Because of Christian privilege, many have insufficient knowledge of the beliefs, values and practices of non-Christian religions,” she said. “Many Christians still harbor elements of Christian or religious superiority and look at other religions with suspicion and discontent.” It is important to keep in perspective the many historical faults see RELIGION PAGE 4
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