GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com
Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 98, No. 27, © 2017
FRIday, january 27, 2017
GOING FOR GOLD
With awards season well under way, catch up on the best of Hollywood from the past year.
EDITORIAL Age limits on club membership hinder efforts to achieve diversity.
INVESTMENTS UNDISCLOSED The university declined GU F.R.E.E.’s endowment expenses request.
OPINION, A2
NEWS, A5
GUIDE, B2
Former White Nationalist Reflects On Defection, Racial Climate Jesus Rodriguez and Tara Subramaniam Hoya Staff Writers
Bowser a letter Thursday warning her that the plan could violate federal law. In the letter, House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), head of the subcommittee for District affairs, warned Bowser that the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 prohibits government officials from using taxpayer funds to assist individuals without documentation from legally challenging deportation orders. Trump’s executive order, issued Wednesday, mandates cutting off federal funds for cities that refuse to inform federal immigration officials about individuals without documentation in police custody. The order, titled “Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States,” states that local law enforcement officials who do not ask about citizenship status are
Former white nationalist Derek Black, in his first public event since denouncing his formative community in 2013, argued against the belief that civil discourse alone can combat racism at Copley Formal Lounge last night. Black, whose father is the founder of the white nationalist website Stormfront, and whose godfather is former Ku Klux Klan Imperial Wizard David Duke, was poised to be the heir to his father’s white nationalist organization before renouncing the movement in the summer of 2013 with a letter posted on the Southern Press Law Center website. In an exclusive interview with The Hoya following the event, Black said that it is imperative to examine both sides of foundational white nationalist claims. “Context — I’m more and more convinced — is the largest thing. If you are willing to look at it, all this stuff falls apart,” Black said. “I’d confess, ‘That doesn’t work,’ so I’ll take that block out. And eventually, I didn’t have any blocks left.” According to Black, the white nationalist community serves as an echo chamber for its own ideology. “You have everything figured out and you just have to be sure that other people figure it out, too. They’re going to reject it, but you’re right,” Black said. “That makes it easier to go into the world. I mean, I knew everything.” As a child, Black was a public face of the movement, giving interviews to various media outlets including USA TODAY. Black said that although he grew up engaging with the media, he now perceives overexposure as a distraction from critical thinking. “As a white nationalist, you can play the news really well,” Black said. “Just do something controversial, and you can get national news.”
See BOWSER, A6
See BLACK, A6
JESUS RODRIGUEZ/THE HOYA
Demonstrators at Saturday’s Women’s March on Washington brought signs in support of the immigrant community.
Bowser Reaffirms DC As Sanctuary City Marina Pitofsky Hoya Staff Writer
Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) reiterated Washington, D.C.’s status as a sanctuary city at a press conference Wednesday after President Donald Trump’s administration threat to strip sanctuary cities of federal grant money the same day. Sanctuary cities and states refuse to hand over individuals who entered the country illegally to deportation forces when they are arrested for unrelated charges. Bowser’s statement is the latest from local government officials pushing back against the new administration’s conservative policies. As a federal and majority Democrat territory, the District’s lawmakers cannot spend local tax dollars in ways that conflict with the federal government’s spending rules. Her announcement took place before House Republicans who have oversight over District affairs sent
JESUS RODRIGUEZ/THE HOYA
Derek Black spoke with professor Marcia Chatelain to discuss how he defected from white nationalism in an event Thursday.
GU Scores Low in Socioeconomic Diversity, Mobility Tara Subramaniam Hoya Staff Writer
In a recent study by The New York Times, Georgetown University ranked 12th out of a list of 38 schools with more students in the top 1 percent of the income scale than in the bottom 60 percent. While Georgetown ranks poorly for socioeconomic inclusivity, the report also showed that at Georgetown a poor student has a better chance of ending up in a higher income quintile than at other schools. In a series of interviews with The Hoya, university administrators discussed how the country’s education system is skewed toward the upper classes, as well as the administration’s efforts to improve socioeconomic diversity at Georgetown.
ELEANOR STORK/THE HOYA
A recent study by The New York Times published Jan. 18 demonstrated a lack of socio-economic diversity at Georgetown, with the average student belonging in the 85th income percentile.
featured
One of Many According to the Jan. 18 study, which was based on anonymous tax records, the median income for a parent of Georgetown’s class of 2013 was $229,100, the eighth-highest of the 2,395 colleges surveyed. Twenty-one percent of Georgetown’s approximately 6,700 undergraduates are from the top 1 percent, which is among the highest for the 10 member schools in the Big East Conference.
Students whose families make $630,000 or more per year are considered part of the 1 percent, according to the Times’ methodology. Students whose families make less than $65,000 annually are classified as part of the bottom 60 percent, which accounts for 13.5 percent of undergraduate students at Georgetown. While the data in The New York Times study spans students born between 1980 and 1991, the number of students from the bottom 60 percent and top 1 percent remained consistent for every year. Seventy-four percent of Georgetown’s undergraduate student body come from the top 20 percent, with the average Georgetown student in the 85th income percentile. This situation is not unique to Georgetown, however. Across the country, approximately 25 percent of students from the top 1 percent enroll in an Ivy League or some other elite university, whereas less than 0.5 percent of students from the bottom 20 percent attend a similarly elite college. Furthermore, fewer than half of students from the bottom 20 percent even attend college. The New York Times broke down See STUDY, A6
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
No Rest for Protests Seven protesters from Greenpeace hung a sign on a crane blocks away from the White House on Wednesday. A4
Foot by Foot Obama’s revocation of the “wet foot, dry foot” policy signals progress for Cubans. A3
Hoyas Seek Fourth Straight The women’s basketball team aims to extend its three gamewinning streak against Villanova. B10
NEWS A Push Toward Diversity
opinion Marching On
SPORTS A Future, Uncertain
Students of Georgetown, Inc. and GUASFCU are restructing their hiring practices. A7
The March for Life reflects the Catholic values of the university on the sanctity of human life. A3
Published Tuesdays and Fridays
With three players set to graduate after this season, the future of the men’s basketball team reamins blurry. B10
Send story ideas and tips to news@thehoya.com
A2
OPINION
THE HOYA
Friday, JANUARY 27, 2017
THE VERDICT
C EDITORIAL C Inclusivity Without Age Limits Founded January 14, 1920
Fast Car(s) — A Virginian auto dealer plead guilty to stealing 15 federal vehicles from the State Department and Secret Service — his sentencing begins in May.
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Inching Towards Progress — Florida high schools are set to be the first to adopt the metric system to measure field events this spring.
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Presidential Perks — Trump’s private Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, has doubled its initiation fee to $200,000 following the inauguration.
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Circle of Life — A baby gray seal pup was born at the Smithsonian National Zoo on Jan. 21. Gray seals used to be considered endangered, but now are now off the endangered species list.
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der-represented and minority students, we believe student clubs must address another, often overlooked form of bias in the application process: the marked preference for new freshman and sophomore members. Currently, the Lecture Fund bars nontransfer juniors and seniors from applying to the organization, and Blue and Gray did not extend its invitation to apply to the Class of 2017. GUASFCU is the most exclusive of all, hiring only freshmen in the spring semester. This restriction prevents many segments of the student body from fully experiencing the opportunities at Georgetown. Consider a student-athlete who stops playing their sport as an upperclassman, either through their own volition or because of injury and wants to pursue new interests with their free time, or a student who enrolls in a class or goes on a trip that fundamentally alters their worldview. Undergraduates — from freshmen to seniors — have interests that they develop, grow and shed at all points of their academic careers. It is unfair to bar students from integrating themselves into organizations they care about because they, for whatever reason, did not have the opportunity to apply to clubs earlier in their Georgetown career. We recognize the benefit to most clubs in admitting younger students, who are better able to rise through the leadership ranks in the organization. But just as students are able to switch their majors well into their junior or senior year, they should be permitted to pursue new interests through clubs. The rigidity of the current club environment at Georgetown closes itself off to potentially qualified applicants and restricts the ability of students to explore their interests. While including voices from different backgrounds should take precedent in clubs’ diversity reforms, these organizations should also recognize that diversity includes age and experience.
Chip and Drive — Tostitos introduces a new limited edition chip bag for the Super Bowl with a material that functions as a breathalyzer to combat drunk driving.
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As students navigated through the flyers, banners and sign-up sheets at the biannual Council of Advisory Boards Fair last Sunday, they were invited to sample the diverse range of student organizations at Georgetown. Yet for many the enthusiasm of CAB Fair fades to disappointment as they discover the acceptance rates at certain clubs rival, or are lower than, those of the university itself. Last semester saw record-breaking hiring seasons for Students of Georgetown, Inc. and the Georgetown University Alumni and Student Federal Credit Union, which together received over 750 applications for the fall semester. In 2015, The Corp accepted just 18 percent of its 460 applicants in the fall semester. In the fall, GUASFCU and the Blue and Gray Tour Guide Society admitted 7.6 and 10 percent respectively from roughly 300 applicants each. By comparison, in December, Georgetown University admitted 11.9 percent of its Class of 2021 early action applicants, the lowest acceptance rate in the university’s history. The exclusivity of clubs has prompted student organizations to evaluate their commitment to diversity and launch initiatives to expand their membership. In a letter to the Georgetown community posted on the front page of its website this semester, The Corp acknowledged an internal climate survey revealed a lack of diversity within the organization and affirmed its intent of “hitting reset, and recommitting to building and fostering a multicultural community that truly reflects both Georgetown and our generation more accurately.” To meet this goal, The Corp pledged three major changes in its hiring process: revising its application and interview questions, creating a more inclusive interview environment and collecting anonymous demographic information from applicants at each stage of the application process. GUASFCU similarly created a new diversity and inclusion auxiliary committee last semester in an effort to increase the variety in its applicant pool. While we commend these organizations for broadening their access to un-
Big Brother — George Orwell’s novel “1984” tops Amazon’s best-selling books list, suggesting that Americans think that Orwell’s dystopian vision was only about 30 years off.
Ticking Time Bomb — The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved the hands of the Doomsday Clock forward 30 seconds. The clock is now closer to midnight than it has been since 1953.
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Taking Out the Trash — New Delhi, the capital of India, has banned all disposable plastics following concerns over ocean pollution. Shore Thing — Researchers at Cardiff University’s School of Mathematics published a paper outlining how acoustic-gravity waves could be fired at tsunamis to stop them before they get to shore. We’re No. 1 — For the first time ever, the U.S. team won the Bocuse d’Or culinary competition, the most prestigious cooking contest in the world.
EDITORIAL CARTOON by Elinor Walker
Encourage Creative Careers As students scramble to secure internships before the summer, they may find their options falling into one of three categories: the lucrative but demanding financial and consulting services, the generally unpaid government and nonprofit work and the creative industries that lie between the other two. Financial and consulting services are the most highly represented by the Cawley Career Education Center, the campus career counseling service, which almost exclusively focuses on banking and consultancy firms like Deloitte, Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse. But students who harbor aspirations outside of financial services, particularly in the creative industries, may feel adrift when searching for a career or internship that better aligns with their interests. Financial services and consulting already comprise the two largest sectors of employment for Georgetown graduates, with 42 percent of the entire class of 2015 entering these fields. No doubt, the strength of the career center’s programming helped last year’s graduating class snag jobs at top employers including Deloitte and Goldman Sachs. Yet while the career center devotes separate pages to consulting, accounting and entrepreneurship in the “Industry Resources” section of its website, it categorically lumps “Marketing and the Creative Fields” into one, even though the creative fields encompass industries as distinct as public relations, entertainment, journalism and the visual arts. Similarly, students can schedule sameday appointments for career counseling in business, finance and consulting, government and pre-law, but those seeking advice on how to pursue a career as a reporter or designer are funneled through the same general interest appointments. The lack of differentiation between creative careers precludes the ability of students to receive the targeted, industry-specific guidance they need to flourish in these competitive fields.
The career center’s myopic concentration on finance and business careers also has significant repercussions in the long-term, as Georgetown’s reputation as a purveyor of young, business-minded professionals becomes more deeply embedded into its brand. While this will no doubt attract prominent recruiters from the finance and business sectors, potential employers from creative industries may feel alienated by the school’s pre-professional focus and search for prospective hires elsewhere. On campus, the subordination of creative career options manifests itself into a culture where students swap genuine enthusiasm and talent for a field in favor of a career track in finance or consulting, which receives more of the center’s attention. Worse still, this trend may culminate in a sense that Georgetown is no longer a premier destination for students seeking entry into creative industries, potentially deterring this cohort from attending or even applying to the university. The resulting void of an artistic, creative community at Georgetown would deprive every student at Georgetown of an essential component of the holistic liberal arts education the university claims to provide. This editorial board calls for the career center to outfit its counseling services with options for students who find their calling in a creative industry. As the system currently stands, students who wish to pursue these careers or internships essentially have two resources at their disposal: Hoya Career Connection and iNet, both of which are large databases with thousands of generalized job postings to sift through. By investing the same attention in differentiated fields such as media, fine arts and marketing, as is already the case with business, finance and consulting careers, Georgetown can ensure an entire spectrum of student interests are represented in students’ career options.
Toby Hung, Editor-in-Chief Cirillo Paolo Santamaria, Executive Editor Jeffrey Tara Subramaniam Jesus Rodriguez, Managing Editor Christian Paz
Ian Scoville, Campus News Editor Aly Pachter, City News Editor Sean Hoffman, Sports Editor Marina Tian, Guide Editor Lisa Burgoa, Opinion Editor Lauren Seibel, Photography Editor Alyssa Volivar, Design Editor Sarah Wright, Copy Chief Kelly Park, Social Media Editor Alessandra Puccio, Blog Editor Jack Martin, Multimedia Editor
Editorial Board
Lisa Burgoa, Chair CC Borzilleri, Laila Brothers, Daria Etezadi, Ellie Goonetillake, Jack Lynch, Jack Segelstein, Bennett Stehr, Annabelle Timsit
William Zhu Alfredo Carrillo Emily Dalton Dean Hampers Cynthia Karnezis Viviana De Santis Dani Guerrero Meena Raman Maya Gandhi Grace Laria Jacob Witt Elinor Walker Stephanie Yuan Michelle Kelly Esther Kim Peter Shamamian Eleanor Stork Anna Dezenzo Janine Karo Sterling Lykes Catherine Schluth Charlie Fritz
Deputy Campus News Editor Deputy Campus News Editor Deputy City News Editor Business Editor Deputy Business & News Editor Deputy Sports Editor Deputy Sports Editor Deputy Sports Editor Deputy Guide Editor Deputy Guide Editor Deputy Guide Editor Deputy Opinion Editor Deputy Opinion Editor Deputy Opinion Editor Cartoonist Deputy Photography Editor Deputy Design Editor Deputy Design Editor Deputy Design Editor Deputy Design Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Copy Editor Deputy Blog Editor
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The Rostrum
here cannot be two American experiments, one for the fortunate and another for the rest. All of us must share the same future – like it or not. For the republic to long endure, there must be a real American collective and all of us must have some stake in that collective. For you, emerging now from this university, the question is what you will stand for, what you will assert for. Your America, as viable and verdant as this beautiful campus? Or the other America, the one that got left behind ... To a certain extent, we all must begin by being for ourselves. But if we are only for ourselves, or only for our families, or our friends, or our own class or interests – if empathy never reaches beyond our own backyard – then who the hell are we, really?
David simon, creator of “The wire” 2012 Commencement SPEECH, Georgetown university
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Contributing Editors & Consultants
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Board of Directors
Kristen Fedor, Chair Daniel Almeida, Jinwoo Chong, Toby Hung, Arnosh Keswani, Selena Parra, Matthew Trunko Letter to the Editor & Viewpoint Policies The Hoya welcomes letters and viewpoints from our readers and will print as many as possible. To be eligible for publication, letters should specifically address a recent campus issue or Hoya story. Letters should not exceed 300 words. Viewpoints are always welcome from all members of the Georgetown community on any topic, but priority will be given to relevant campus issues. Viewpoint submissions should be between 600-700 words. The Hoya retains all rights to all published submissions. Send all submissions to: opinion@thehoya.com. Letters and viewpoints are due Sunday at 5 p.m. for Tuesday’s issue and Wednesday at 5 p.m. for Friday’s issue. The Hoya reserves the right to reject letters or viewpoints and edit for length, style, clarity and accuracy. The Hoya further reserves the right to write headlines and select illustrations to accompany letters and viewpoints. Corrections & Clarifications If you have a comment or question about the fairness or accuracy of a story, contact Executive Editor Paolo Santamaria at (703) 409-7276 or email executive@thehoya.com. News Tips Campus News Editor Ian Scoville: Call (202) 602-7650 or email campus@thehoya. com. City News Editor Aly Pachter: Call (916) 995-0412 or email city@thehoya.com. Sports Editor Sean Hoffman: Call (703) 300-0267 or email sports@thehoya.com. General Information The Hoya is published twice each week
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OPINION
Friday, january 27, 2017
THE HOYA
A3
VIEWPOINT • MAS
UNMASKED
Caitlin Karna
Undergoing Identity Intervention
I
t is time for an intervention for college students everywhere, myself included. After two years at Georgetown, I have a taste of what it is like to be a millennial trying to become someone. Being immersed in the politically and intellectually charged population of hormonal young adults on campus has definitely shed light on the way we have adapted to our peculiar environment. We try on different personalities, posture various positions and strive to be different. On the cusp of maturity, we are itching to figure out who we are, what boxes we can check off and how we can fit into our worlds. We are stuck in this awkward in-between, puzzling over our identities: we’re no longer dependent kids, but we are not quite the worldly adults we’re pretending to be either. Identity develops through many different contexts. Consider gender, sexuality, religion, place of origin, race, political stance, career, desires and opinions; these are all avenues in the generic design of a person’s makeup. We love to be activists for them. Thus, we classify ourselves and check those boxes as best we can. Caitlin Karna: junior, School of Foreign Service, from Dallas, Texas. Caitlin Karna: half-Indian, quarterItalian, quarter-Irish. Caitlin Karna: heterosexual, Catholic, liberal. These facts make up the taxonomy that can be bubbled in on a job application’s questionnaire. But these selections fail to reveal what my career path may be, that I live in Dallas but am not from Dallas, that my heritage is mixed but I am about as American as it gets, and how my religion, sexuality and political view play a part in my life. Many of these classifications of identity are masks we wear. We focus on the parts of our identity that we can bubble in. But the identities we create and believe to be true are just characters that
society has told us to embody. A driver’s license hands us attributes we think central on our identity, but upon closer inspection, it is clear all of these — sex, eye color, height, even our names — are identities given to us at birth that we accepted as our own. This reality presents an unintentional side effect. We grow up in an environment that forces us to distinguish ourselves, to figure out what sets us aside from the rest of the crowd, to show off our best assets. Employers and graduate school admission officers ask for beefed-up resumes, but also proof that we are wellrounded people involved in the campus community. As a result, our identities form with rigidity and a singular purpose of presenting ourselves definitively. With these framework identities, we lack open-mindedness and the willingness to understand the unaligned views of others. Because we are so determined to check off all the right boxes, we lose room for new perspectives, growth in ideas and interest in fields we never would expect. We take our carefully crafted interview identities and use them as masks, or even shields to protect ourselves from those who have the power to crack our shells. In reality, we have little clue as to what we want to do or who we want to be. But it is okay not to know, and it is not important to seem like we have it all together. The exercise of being different is not at all unusual; everyone is trying to do the same exact thing. Besides crafting a tailormade persona to project in a professional world, we should also set aside time to cultivate the aspects of us that construct our personalities and ourselves — the elements of our identity that people remember.
Caitlin Karna is a junior in the School of Foreign Service. Unmasked appears every other Friday.
While some are adapting to an unexpected change of plans, many Cubans on the island are welcoming the policy as an opportunity to reclaim their rights and those of past generations.
A Step Toward Progress for Cuba
F
ormer President Barack Obama’s announcement Jan. 12 removing the longstanding “wet foot, dry foot” policy has stirred mixed emotions for thousands of Cubans and CubanAmericans in my hometown of Miami, Fla., where the streets have only recently been swept clean following parades in light of Fidel Castro’s death. Just as the tyrant’s death symbolized the end of a dark era in Cuba’s history, the end of the “wet foot, dry foot” policy means the winds have once again shifted for the Cuban people on and off the island. Previously, the policy allowed Cuban migrants to pursue a U.S. residency if they arrived in the U.S., but would send back any migrants caught in the water between the two countries. Although critics argue that the removal of this policy will limit Cubans and tighten the government’s control on them, the cold, hard truth is that this necessary change will force Cuba to finally confront its oppressive regime. Changes in “wet foot, dry foot” reaffirm this conviction, inspiring all Cubans to look inward — to question the truth of their unfavorable reality and challenge the system in pursuit of change. The Clinton administration
established the “wet foot, dry foot” policy in 1995, allowing any Cuban who touched foot on U.S. soil to seek permanent residence without risk of deportation. The order was founded on the premise that those who arrived sought political refuge, crossing 90 miles of ocean on makeshift rafts to flee toward welcoming American shores. Sadly, little has changed in Cuba since the ’90s. Acts of repression and human rights violations have reached record numbers with 2016 witnessing the highest average number of short-term arrests for political reasons since 2010, according to the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation. With the surge in political prisoners, freedom of expression, association and basic opportunities are virtually nonexistent on the island. The United States’ unwavering support of the Cuban people, as evidenced by the more than 2 million Cubans who have been warmly welcomed since the start of the Castro dictatorship in 1959, is reflective of the American tradition of providing refuge to the oppressed. Notwithstanding the change in policy, Cuban nationals who are persecuted solely for their beliefs or are
suffering from human rights violations can still apply for political asylum or humanitarian relief from the United States. Moreover, the United States grants about 25,000 visas per year for travel from the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, according to the embassy’s website. For those Cubans who can no longer flee the regime, the implications are that they must assume a proactive role in demanding the quality of life that, until now, they have searched for elsewhere. At stake is nothing more than the future of their country and the well-being of their families, friends and neighbors. While some are adapting to an unexpected change of plans, many Cubans on the island are welcoming the policy as an opportunity to reclaim their rights and those of past generations. Human rights activists and nonviolent opposition groups have called for unity, claiming that the fight for freedom is no longer a personal struggle to be taken up risking lives at sea or in the jungles of Central America en route to the United States. Now, this struggle must be confronted on the island itself and for the good of all Cubans. Due to my extensive work
with the Cuban American National Foundation, a Cuban exile organization, I have interacted with these on-island civil society members and have supported them to raise awareness about the oppression and lack of human rights on the island through training sessions and communitybased programs. Now more than ever, the Cuban exile community is committed to supporting the efforts of our brothers and sisters on the island. Efforts include calling for democratic change for the people of Cuba, denouncing the beatings and jailing of dissidents by the Castro regime, sending material aid and humanitarian assistance and spreading the message of Cuban civilians to a global audience since the government restricts a free press and internet. As my good friend, Cuban independent journalist and activist Henry Constantín, said best, our people are at an unprecedented crossroad: “Now that we no longer have wet feet or dry feet, we Cubans will have to choose between firm and dignified feet, or feet of subservience and poverty.” I have no doubt that these feet are marching toward freedom. Gabriella mas is a junior in
the College.
VIEWPOINT • GREGORY
THE ROUND TABLE
Stability Through Dialogue
Marching in Defense of Life
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he inauguration of Donald J. Trump as the 45th president of the United States elicited a gamut of emotions in Americans, ranging from elation to apprehension. However, there was one sentiment common to both those who adore and detest our nation’s next leader — uncertainty. The enormity of Trump’s campaign promises were exceeded only by their vagueness, and as a result, few, if any, can accurately predict which of his propositions will come to fruition. And nowhere is this unpredictability more potentially destabilizing than the ever-volatile tinderbox of Israel and the Palestinian territories. Just as the Obama presidency struggled to simultaneously balance strengthening Israeli security capabilities and pressure Tel Aviv to cease settlement building, the fate of this tightrope act remains unclear under the new administration. While Trump drew praise for strongly denouncing the Obama administration’s refusal in December to veto a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning settlement construction in the West Bank, his other proposed policies for the region have been met with puzzlement. Questions abounded when he announced his intent to task his son-in-law Jared Kushner with brokering Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and relocating the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. His ambassadorial appointee Thomas Friedman opposes the creation of a Palestinian state and has used the derogatory slur “kapos” in reference to liberal American Jews. These developments further complicate an already
contentious issue. Because of the complex implications of familial, religious and cultural allegiances, discussion of the region’s troubled history cuts deeper than abstract questions of borders and governance, and produces a profound personal impact. Many cannot help but view political realities in the region through strictly human terms: the anguish of the displaced to return to their homeland, the humiliation of life under a repressive authority, the relentless fear that death could lurk on every bus or under every overcoat. From this standpoint, support for any one party appears to entail condoning its transgressions, and criticism of an opposing side is tantamount to denying the validity of its existence. Even contemplating a contrasting viewpoint is seen as discrediting the experiences of those who have suffered and legitimizing the perpetuation of institutionalized violence. All too often, we feels as if the subject is beyond deliberation. Nonetheless, the open exchange of ideas is a requisite to catalyze the innovation of solutions in the region. This process is not only vital to the development and implementation of effective policy, but also intrinsic to the character of our university. Indeed, founder John Carroll envisioned a learning institution emphasizing “general and equal toleration, . . . giving a free circulation to fair argument,” and as Rev. James Walsh wrote, rather than stifling uninhibited intellectual debate, Georgetown’s Jesuit heritage “requires that we live up to that ideal.” It is with this purpose in
mind that I am pleased to announce the inception of a new student-led initiative aiming to promote thoughtful, informed engagement on the subject of Israel’s relations with the United States and its regional neighbors. Called the Georgetown Bipartisan Pro-Israel Dialogue, the program will include speaker events, roundtable discussions and a forum for the submission of editorial articles. While fundamentally supportive of Israel’s right to exist as a sovereign, democratic Jewish state, we nevertheless welcome criticism of American and Israeli policy, a vision reflected in our motto to advance peace through dialogue. As GBPID expects not to revolutionize campus discourse on the divisive matter, our objectives are resultantly humble: to improve the quality of existing dialogue and incorporate new voices into the conversation. And while GBPID seeks to develop a lasting framework for organizational cooperation and student participation, our ultimate goal remains flexible enough to respond to the rapidly changing circumstances of an uncertain world. During times of unpredictability, when even the most seasoned experts can claim no authority on what will occur, only through ponderous reflection can we hope to comprehend the evolving threats and opportunities of the contemporary world. While the future of Israel and the Palestinian territories is a question that at the moment seems bereft of answers, a potential solution can only materialize through dialogue. MATTHEW GREGORY is a senior in the School of Foreign Service.
T
oday, the 44th annual March for Life winds its way through Washington, D.C., starting at the Washington Monument and heading toward the steps of the Supreme Court. We, the Georgetown University Knights of Columbus, attend the March every year in accordance with our desire to promote a culture of life on campus and around the nation. We oppose euthanasia, the death penalty and particularly abortion because of our belief in the supreme innocence of its victims. We march because we believe each individual human being is created uniquely and lovingly by God. The act of creation does not occur at birth, but rather at conception, when the process of life begins. This belief is not only the official position of the Knights, but that of the Catholic Church and, ostensibly, the university as well. Although we champion Georgetown’s values by marching, we will go this year, as we have in the past, without the university’s support. While many of our peers attending institutions such as University of Notre Dame and Catholic University of America receive a day off from class to attend, Georgetown University has refused the petitions of its attendees for a similar allowance. The inaugural March for Life was held Jan. 22, 1974 and attracted 20,000 marchers. That day marked the first anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that reasoned a woman’s right to privacy allowed her to decide whether to have an abortion. We continue to hold that abortion is the most press-
ing issue of our time even 45 years after Roe, as nearly 60 million abortions have been legally sanctioned in the United States, roughly the same number of people who died in World War II. Although Nellie Gray, the founder of the march, had originally intended it to be a one-time event, she instead pushed to have an annual march to keep issues the opposition of abortion, the death penalty and euthanasia on the national radar.
Richard Howell Since then, the March has attracted hundreds of thousands of protesters, including more than 600,000 in 2013. Featured speakers have included sitting presidents such as Ronald Reagan in 1987 and George W. Bush in 2003, as well as numerous members of Congress. This year, Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway and Cardinal Timothy Dolan are set to deliver addresses. Together, we reject the arbitrary distinction between born and unborn because we believe life persists fundamentally unchanged from womb to world. A child is no more alive one minute after birth than one minute, or even six months, before. Accordingly, no utilitarian argument could dissuade us from our stance against abortion. Further, we reject the claim that a society, family
or single parent would be so disadvantaged by the birth of a child so as to justify the destruction of the child’s life. No one has a right to determine for another when life is worth living. Of course, we hope that all those sympathetic to the cause attend despite the university’s lack of accommodation, but more importantly we hope this occasion might instigate a respectful dialogue on campus centered on life, which we and the Catholic Church hold to be the single most essential value of human existence. Many on campus disagree with us, often in the name of principles such as liberty and privacy. However, there is no scale on which to measure the value of a human life, which is qualitatively superior to privacy, liberty or any other right. The only choice, then, is whether or not to recognize the worth of every human being. Those of us who identify as pro-life stand on the side of human dignity and will not allow life to be cheapened. Although the fetus starts as a clump of cells, it rapidly and ineluctably changes. I, too, am a clump of cells, but I am not the same clump as when I was conceived, nor will I be the same in 10 years. Life, then, is fundamentally a process of growth and change, which has its decisive, fragile and miraculous beginning in the womb.
Richard Howell is a sophomore in the School of Foreign Service. The Round Table appears every other Friday as a rotating column by members of the Knights of Columbus.
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE GUASFCU and The Corp plan to welcome new leadership teams in March. Story on A8.
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This is crucial to moving our company forward beyond saying ‘Diversity is good’ to saying it needs to be ingrained into who we are. It’s so crucial.” Taylor Tobin (COL ’17), The Corp’s CEO, on the organization’s new hiring practices. Story on A7.
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Four protesters with signs proclaiming religious messages, including Bible passages, demonstrated outside the university’s front gates Thursday afternoon with megaphones. Some protesters interacted with passersby.
OVERHEARD AT PRESIDENT TRUMP’S INAUGURATION Did you miss last Friday’s inauguration? No worries, 4E has created a list of some of the biggest takeaways from the day’s events. blog.thehoya.com
Activists Arrested After White House Crane Protest JEFF CIRILLO Hoya Staff Writer
Seven Greenpeace activists have been charged with unlawful assembly, unlawful entry and destruction of property by the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department after climbing the top of a crane on a downtown D.C. construction site early yesterday morning to protest President Donald Trump’s approval of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, among other executive actions since he took office Jan. 20. The protesters hung a 70foot by 30-foot banner reading “Resist” from the crane, which was visible from the White House, a few blocks away. The demonstration began at about 4:30 a.m., when the seven activists climbed up the crane. According to the MPD’s Twitter account, police were on the scene by about 6:30 a.m., closing sections of 15th St. and L St. NW for several hours out of safety concerns. 15th St. was reopened at about 8:45 a.m., but the 1500 block of L St. NW, which is directly adjacent to the construction site, remained closed. The demonstration effectively ended at around 2:00 p.m., when protesters began rolling up and removing the banner as planned. However, protesters were forced to remain atop the crane for over 16 hours, the task of coming down a series of ladders waiting for them. The climbers finally reached the ground around 10 p.m. and were immediately arrested. They were released Thursday afternoon with an initial status hearin set for Feb. 1. The activists named a number of Trump’s policies as motivation for the highprofile protest, including environmental issues. In a Greenpeace press release provided to THE HOYA, Pearl Robinson, a 26-year old national organizer for Rainforest Action Network, said issues ranging from clean energy to women’s rights prompted the protest. “We won’t stand rollbacks on all the progress the people have made on women’s reproductive
rights, LGBTQIA rights, the heightened awareness of state-sanctioned violence on black and brown folks and the progress we have made on access to clean and renewable energy — an issue I have personally worked on my entire adult life,” Robinson said. The demonstration came just one day after Trump signed two executive orders to advance the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines.
“It is plain that communities and cities across this country are alive with the spirit of resistance.” KAREN TOPAKAIN Board Chair, Greenpeace
Both projects had previously been halted under the Obama administration after Standing Rock Indian Reservation members began a series of protests over concerns that the pipeline could impact their reservation. Activist and Greenpeace Inc. Board Chair Karen Topakain said in the press release that the demonstration was intended as a public display of opposition to the Trump administration. “It is plain that communities and cities across this country are alive with the spirit of resistance, the spirit of speaking out and the spirit of taking action,” Topakain said. “Our goal here today was to display a beacon of that spirit. Now that we’ve done that, it’s time to get to work.” A statement posted to the MPD’s Twitter account called the protesters’ actions “dangerous and unlawful.” “A small group of protesters have engaged in dangerous behavior in downtown Washington, D.C. this morning,” the statement reads. “While we respect everyone’s right to protest, today’s actions are
extremely dangerous and unlawful. Multiple government resources are being tied up, and unfortunately streets are blocked while first responders try to safely address this matter.” The protest was featured on social media, including a Facebook live video taken by one of the climbers. The video was posted on the Greenpeace Facebook page, and several activists also tweeted photos of themselves atop the crane with the hashtag #ResistOften. Spectators and supporters watched and occasionally cheered on the activists throughout the day. One such supporter was Denise Woods, who cheered for part of the day despite not being directly associated with the protest. “It’s absolutely heroic,” Woods said. “They have courage as vast as the mountains and deep as the seas to be up there right now. And it’s because of their love of the mountains and their love of the seas that they’re risking their lives on behalf of the planet.”
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Seven activists were arrested after climbing a crane a few blocks from the White House and hanging a banner to protest President Donald Trump’s executive orders on the Keystone XL and Dakota Access piplines, among other issues.
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MPD, WMATA Prepare For Annual March for Life Christian Paz Hoya Staff Writer
CLARA MEJIA orta/THE HOYA
The Georgetown Scholarship Program is halfway toward raising its endowment goal of $25 milllion, which it expects to reach within two years.
GSP Raises Endowment Ben Goodman Hoya Staff Writer
The Georgetown Scholarship Program is working toward operating independently of university funding within the next two years, and it is already nearly halfway to its endowment goal of $25 million. The endowment would be allocated not to providing scholarships for GSP students, but instead to maintaining the operations of GSP. GSP Director Missy Foy (COL ’03) said the separate endowment will allow GSP to operate independently of the university. “Everything that we do out of GSP, aside from the actual scholarships, will be done by the endowment, so we won’t cost the university anything anymore,” Foy said. The program raised approximately half the endowment goal in two years, according to Foy. “Every day we find out about a new gift. Our board is extremely aggressive and effective with it,” Foy said. GSP was founded in 2004 by Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Charles Deacon (CAS ’64, GRD ’69) and Dean of Student Financial Services Patricia McWade to facilitate low-income and first-generation college students’ successful transition into life at Georgetown. One hundred eighty-seven students from the Class of 2020 joined the program, which currently serves 650 undergraduate students. GSP offers its students a range of services, including in-house Counseling and Psychiatric Services office hours for students and partnerships with Jos. A. Bank and Ann Taylor LOFT to provide students with professional attire for internship and job interviews. GSP Advisory Board Chair Michelle Mauboussin (MSB ’86) said the endowment’s completion would bring much-needed relief for the
program. “We’re always kind of, ‘Oh my gosh, are we going to have enough money to do this? Are we going to have enough money to do that?’ We’re always worried,” Mauboussin said. “The biggest thing is there are not enough staff members. They’re working so hard, and they love what they do, but they could use more support.”
“Every day we find out about a new gift. Our board is extremely aggressive and effective with it.” MISSy FOY (COL ‘03) Director, Georgetown Scholarship Program
The $25 million endowment would provide the program with about $1.25 million a year. The funds would help the program expand current opportunities for students, including professional development events, alongside an increase in the GSP Necessity Fund, a $200,000 fund that helps students cover unexpected expenses such as dental expenses or unexpected flights home. While GSP’s office is currently located in the basement of Healy Hall, Mauboussin said she hopes the program can move into new offices once the endowment goal is met. “If one of the staff is having a meeting with one of the students, they are basically in a cubicle with everyone walking by — there’s no privacy,” Mauboussin said. “One of the goals of the endowment is to move out of Healy
basement and move into two townhouses side-byside, have a nice living and learning space and have more privacy for meetings with students and staff.” Mauboussin said socioeconomic and academic factors play a large role in selecting incoming freshmen to the program during the admissions process. GSP students receive the 1789 Scholarship of about $2,000 to $3,000 per year, which seeks to reduce the cost of the loans many Georgetown students need to pay back after graduation. Mauboussin said the 1789 Scholarship aims to bridge the gap between Georgetown’s financial aid packages and those of other peer institutions. “Our financial aid packages aren’t that great, so GSP is a way to attract these top-notch, amazing students to Georgetown’s campus,” Mauboussin said. GSP Assistant Director Corey Stewart (SFS ’15) said the fact that many universities, such as the University of Pennsylvania, now offer debt-free, loan-free financial aid in the form of grants, creates a huge competitive disadvantage for Georgetown. “If Penn is offering you a no-loans package, obviously you’re going to choose Penn,” Stewart said. Mauboussin said GSP’s programming and support for students beyond scholarships is what makes it unique. “They might not have the support system at home where people are familiar with the whole system,” Mauboussin said. “If you’re only given a scholarship, you’re just kind of thrown in there, and it becomes a little sink-or-swim — a lot of people sink. With this support system, you have a much higher graduation rate, and you also have a much better experience.”
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As Washington, D.C., prepares for today’s March for Life, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority announced an increase in its midday service throughout the city. The D.C. Metropolitan Police Department announced the closure of a number of streets between the White House and the U.S. Capitol Building. The annual anti-abortion rights march is scheduled to begin with a rally at noon near the corner of 15th St. and Constitution Ave., north of the Washington Monument. Protesters plan to march east along Constitution Ave. toward First St. NE and plan to end in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building. The gathering, which is motivated by the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision on abortion, is expected to draw tens of thousands of demonstrators to the city where an estimated 500,000 protesters gathered to attend the Women’s March last Saturday. WMATA General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said that Metro will boost service between the morning and evening rush hours, meaning trains on each line will run about every eight minutes, resulting in service every two to four minutes at downtown stations. Metro will run more eight-car trains — the longest train length possible — in addition to cancelling all midday track work and staffing stations with additional employees to assist visitors. The march’s main impact on D.C. commuters is predicted to be during the afternoon rush hour, with most street closures taking effect after 8 a.m. Police will close streets along Constitution Avenue from 17th St. to First St. from around 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. as the march proceeds. Multiple Georgetown groups are planning or participating in the march and counter-protests around the Mall. Georgetown Right to Life President Amelia Irvine (COL ’19) said that though she was
disappointed by the lack of university support, the group is attending the march. “We at Georgetown Right to Life are proud to attend the March for Life every year despite lack of support from the Georgetown administration. We petitioned the university for an excused absence for students who wish to attend the March, but our request was denied,” Irvine wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Still, dedicated, pro-life students will join the march tomorrow.” H*yas For Choice Co-President Emily Stephens (SFS ’17) said that the group’s members will participate in counter-protests especially given several executive actions of President Donald Trump, including banning U.S. aid to support abortion services overseas. “We view this as an opportunity to register our dissent with the anti-choice values the march promotes, and to show our continued support for abortion access nationwide,” Stephens wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Just in the last few days, several violent and virulently anti-choice policies have been introduced by Donald Trump and anti-choice politicians in the U.S. Congress and state legislatures.” Stephens said her group’s presence is important to demonstrate opposition to Trump’s actions. “These policies will unequivocally place the lives and quality of life of millions of people in jeopardy, particularly people of color, low-income people and people living in rural communities,” Stephens wrote. “We feel that now, more than ever, showing up in person at this type of event helps to demonstrate that, in fact, the majority of Americans, like H*yas for Choice, recognize the danger of overturning or lessening the protections afforded by Roe v. Wade.” Georgetown University College Republicans President Alexandra Williams (SFS ’19) said that she encourages students to demonstrate with Right to Life. “We are expecting many members of GUCR to partici-
pate and are in full support of their right to do so. We have coordinated with Right to Life and are proud of our members who will be marching in the pursuit of protecting unborn lives,” Williams said. Georgetown University College Democrats Chair Meredith Forsyth (SFS ’19) said she encourages students to demonstrate against the March for Life. “GUCD encourages members to attend the counterprotest at the Supreme Court, along with H*yas for Choice, in support of Planned Parenthood and other organizations fighting for reproductive freedom, in celebration of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and with the view that the rights the decision enshrines may be under threat in the near future,” Forsyth wrote in an email to The Hoya. Georgetown Right to Life Vice President MyLan Metzger (COL ’19) said that although she is a registered Democrat and supports much of the Democratic Party’s platform, her religious beliefs prompt her to attend the March for Life. “I’m attending the March for Life because I think that it is an important human rights issue. I first and foremost consider myself a supporter of Catholic Social Thought, which upholds the dignity of all human life from conception to natural death,” Metzger said. “For this reason, I have always considered myself pro-life and will be attending my third March for Life.” Metzger added that the discussion around abortion does not have to be a polarizing issue. “There is a shrinking number of pro-life Democrats in America due to increased polarization,” Metzger said. “By attending the March for Life, I hope to convey that I support many of these more ‘progressive Democratic’ principles not despite being pro-life, but because I am pro-life. However, the Democrat’s care for the poor, sick or displaced should start at conception.”
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
Lonnie G. Bunch III, founding director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, received an honorary degree in Gaston Hall on Jan. 25.
Museum Director Honored Yasmine Salam Hoya Staff Writer
Lonnie G. Bunch III, founding director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, received an honorary degree from Georgetown University in a ceremony in Gaston Hall on Jan. 25. Since its opening on Sept. 24, 2016, the museum adjacent to the Washington Monument has welcomed about 1 million visitors, according to the university’s website. The degree ceremony included musical performances by the Georgetown University Concert Choir and a composition by Nolan Williams Jr., “We Choose to Remember,” which was first performed at the Let Freedom Ring! celebration in the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 16. Associate professor of history Marcia Chatelain stressed the need to confront the legacy of slavery as well as the violence African Americans still face today in the ceremony’s opening prayer. “We pray that we continue to honor the legacy of the slave, the sharecropper, the marcher, the marginal-
ized, the incarcerated and the ignored,” Chatelain said. “Let us pray for the peaceful rest for those we lost to violence and comfort the families who weep. We pray for the souls of Tanisha, of Sandra, of Freddie, of Trayvon, of Michael, of Renisha, of LaQuan, and of Natasha.” Maurice Jackson, associate professor in the history department and AfricanAmerican studies program, delivered Bunch’s honorary degree citation. Jackson emphasized how Bunch’s grandfather and father, Lionel Bunch Sr. and Jr., sparked a passion for history in Bunch from a young age. “It is Georgetown University’s honor to recognize an extraordinary historian and human being who shares with us a complete understanding of our nation’s history,” Jackson said. “As a young man, Mr. Bunch developed a passion for history inspired by his family.” University President John J. DeGioia praised Bunch’s efforts at delivering the truth and showcasing the relevance of history. “It is a privilege to have this opportunity to celebrate this extraordinary individual and his life-long
commitment to helping us more fully understand that basic truth,” DeGioia said in reference to the importance of history. Bunch said his honorary degree was not just honoring him, but rather the many people who had supported his efforts in creating the museum. “This honor means so much to me because it is an affirmation of the efforts of so many,” Bunch said. “While you hear stories about me, it’s really because of the work of so many people. The fact that thousands of people supported this museum, gave money, gave collections, gave their stories, gave their trust, because of that we were able to birth this museum.” Bunch said the museum seeks to remember all aspects of the history of African Americans. “It is crucially important at this museum to tell the unvarnished truth. It must be a place where you are going to cry when you ponder the pain of slavery and segregation,” Bunch said. “It has to be a place that says America must confront itself. For us, this museum had to be a place where people actually found the truth.”
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Black Denounces Racism Sanctuary Status Asserted BLACK, from A1
BOWSER, from A1
Georgetown history professor Marcia Chatelain moderated the question-and-answer session hosted by the Georgetown University Lecture Fund. Citing the national attention garnered by the annual D.C. conference of the self-described “alt-right” movement, Black said the impact of the white nationalist movement can be easily sensationalized. A video of an “alt-right” conference in Washington, D.C., went viral last November after some attendees were recorded performing Nazi salutes. “If you weren’t paying attention, you could think this was something that was happening. It was irresponsible,” Black said during the event. “They were trying to be scandalous. They need to give context, rather than doing an ‘Ebola freak-out.’” Despite the historic role violent action has played in the white nationalist movement and specifically in the KKK, Black said the movement he knew as a child centered on discourse. “It made it easier for me when I was younger because there was never any violence around me. What I grew up with was going to conferences and hearing people talk about IQ differences between African countries and European countries,” Black said. “It was this pseudo-intellectual thing. I was aware that the news presented it as violent. I viewed it as really civil discourse, and I didn’t know why people reacted so strongly to it.” Black said that throughout his childhood he engaged in civil discourse, not because he was open to changing his beliefs, but because he had to explain his different ideas to others. “It’s not that civil discourse wins,” Black said. “That’s not the lesson here. It’s important to talk to people, but the only reason that happened was because it was the biggest uproar of my life. I had to engage with it.” Black said the political climate during the recent presidential election influenced
willfully violating federal law. According to the American Immigrant Council, one in seven D.C. residents is an immigrant. In response to the executive order, Bowser said Wednesday that maintaining D.C.’s status as a sanctuary city is especially important because of the fear she has observed among immigrant communities in the District in recent weeks. Bowser said D.C.’s status becomes a matter of public safety in the event that immigrants without documentation are facing domestic abuse, illness or addiction issues, but are afraid to seek municipal resources out of fear of deportation. “The values, laws, and policies of Washington, D.C., did not change on Election Day,” Bowser wrote in a press release. “We are a sanctuary city because we know that our neighborhoods are safer and stronger when no one is afraid to call on our government for help, and when our police can focus on protecting and serving.” Bowser also faces opposition in Congress from Rep. Lou Barletta (R-Penn.), who introduced the Mobilizing Against Sanctuary Cities Act on Jan. 3 to implement Trump’s plan to ban all federal funds from being used in sanctuary cities. Barletta’s spokesperson Tim Murtaugh said the bill was important in establishing the federal government’s central role in enforcing border security. “No mayor of any city or town in the United States can pick and choose which federal laws to obey,” Murtaugh said in an interview with The Hoya. “It is a federal responsibility to police the borders of the United States, and to openly defy federal immigration laws is irresponsible. And there should be repercussions.” At the press conference, Bowser emphasized she is opposed to any federal policy that prohibits D.C.’s local government from providing services to its residents.
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Derek Black, a former white supremacist, spoke in a Lecture Fund-sponsored event Thursday. him to pen an op-ed in The New York Times published last December. In the piece, Black explained the reasons that led to his “flight from white nationalism.” “Through many talks with devoted and diverse people there — people who chose to invite me into their dorms and conversations rather than ostracize me — I began to realize the damage I had done,” Black wrote in reference to his time at New College of Florida. “No checks and balances can redeem what we’ve unleashed.” Black added that the political climate during the recent presidential election was the impetus for him to pen the op-ed. “Maybe America is changing for the worse and they’re not saying racist things, but that’s the difference between white nationalism and political discourse — that they don’t say ‘white.’ You have these little tiny communities having their little tiny conferences, and they don’t have power yet, but their ideas are certainly center stage,” Black said. Though Black has been removed from the movement in recent years and immersed in academia, he said his familial ties inevitably bind him to the community. “I can definitely relate to people who went to college and learned some stuff and
went back home and suddenly the things they hear make them cringe,” Black said. “I have to wonder whether what my loved ones are doing is damaging the nation more so than the fact that Thanksgiving is uncomfortable.” Lecture Fund Chief of Staff Aiden Johnson (COL ’19), who organized the event, said that Black struck the appropriate balance between addressing the current political atmosphere and sharing a personal narrative. “I always kind of religiously keep my personal eyes out saying, ‘what is a story that catches my eye that has a relevant conversation,’ and when I first saw this it hit both of those check marks,” Johnson said. “It was an opportune moment.” According to Director for Jewish Life Rabbi Rachel Gartner, who offered introductory remarks, Black’s story highlights the danger of echo chambers in the today’s political and cultural climate. “As a Jew, I know the danger of speaking in echo chambers to people who only think the way we do,” Gartner said. “For someone from one side to break through those walls in a way that honors the others is such a powerful story that I believe is the hope for our future.”
“Anything that would suggest that the government not work with an American city is worrisome,” Bowser said at the press conference. “Obviously, there are a lot of things that we do in cities in partnership with our government, and we would object, and we do object, to anything that the federal government wants to do to a local jurisdiction that would make it less safe.” United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which oversees deportation programs across the country, has yet to implement any new policies regarding illegal immigration under the Trump administration. ICE Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Rodriguez said ICE is not anticipating major policy changes. According to Rodriguez, the organization will continue their administration of the Priority Enforcement Program, which identifies potential illegal aliens among those who are under attest or sentenced to a crime, in addition to maintaining their support for local law enforcement.
“D.C. has a significant immigrant community and these people are part of the broader community and they should be protected. LUIS GONZALEZ (COL ’19)
“PEP is a balanced, commonsense approach that places the focus where it should be: on criminals and individuals who threaten the public safety,” Rodriguez said in an interview with The Hoya. “ICE is committed to working with its law enforcement partners nationwide to achieve that mission.” D.C. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Peter Newsham also reaffirmed that MPD
is not anticipating any major policy changes and will continue acting under the directives of the Bowser administration. “One of the messages that we wanted to send to folks was that in Washington, D.C., things are not going to change,” Newsham said in a press conference Jan. 20. However, some immigration activists feel Bowser’s statements fail to fully protect immigrant communities in the District. Sapna Pandya, executive director of Many Languages One Voice, an immigration advocacy group, said she would like Bowser to commit to providing more tangible resources to area immigrant groups. “I didn’t like that she didn’t add any stronger policy pieces. It was merely a statement that we’re a welcoming city, and we’re a diverse city, but that’s about it. My reaction, as well as the reaction of the people I work with, was that that’s just not enough,” Pandya said. Pandya added that she hopes the local government will put aside funds for housing, healthcare, education and the implementation of labor laws. Luis Gonzalez (COL ’19), a student without documentation, said he was pleased to see Bowser committing to the District’s status as a sanctuary city, because of the large immigrant population in the District. “D.C. has a significant immigrant community and these people are part of the broader community and they should be protected,” Gonzalez said. “I really like that Mayor Bowser reaffirmed her commitment to a key constituency, a key part of the city. This makes me think that Mayor Bowser really knows where D.C. stands and what we value.” On Thursday, Georgetown’s Senior Director of Communications Rachel Pugh confirmed the university is committed to supporting students without documentation following the hiring of an advisor for undocumented students on campus last year.
Study Highlights Inequality at America’s Colleges STUDY, from A1 the colleges into several groups, with Georgetown in the “elite schools” category along with universities such as Tufts University and the University of Notre Dame. The selectivity tiers used in the report are based on a 2009 index created by college ranking guide Barron’s, and the report’s rankings are based on incomes calculated using records of 30 million students who graduated between 2002 and 2013 from more than 2,000 American colleges. Georgetown’s socioeconomic demographics are far from representative of national trends. In 2013, 4.8 percent of the U.S. population had a household income over $200,000, and 48 percent of the population had a household income below $50,000. At Georgetown, 74 percent of students come from households with an income above $110,000, while 3.1 percent come from families with an annual income of $20,000 or less. Moving Across Income Boundaries In addition to shedding light on the socioeconomic backgrounds of Georgetown students, the study also showed signs of mobility: After graduation, 1.9 percent of Georgetown graduates between 2002 and 2013 moved from the bottom to top income quintile, and 11 percent of students moved up at least two income quintiles. While 3.1 percent of Georgetown students are from the bottom 20 percent, a student from the bottom fifth of incomes has a 61 percent chance of moving up to the top 20 percent of incomes after graduation, according to the study. In fact, 69 percent of Georgetown alumni end up in the top 20 percent after graduation. By the time they are 34 years old, the median individual income for Georgetown alumni is $84,400. Compared to other universities, however, Georgetown still lacks socioeconomic mobility. Georgetown has the lowest number of students who end up in bottom 20 percent after graduation among all universities in Washington, D.C., with only 8 percent of its undergrad-
uates falling in that income bracket. In the Times’ mobility index, which incorporates both access and outcomes to illustrate the likelihood of a student moving up two or more income quintiles, Georgetown is ranked 1985th out of 2,137 colleges. This puts Georgetown on par with or better than other elite schools, with Princeton ranked 2,096th and Duke at 2,014th. Attempts to Diversify Although Georgetown’s class size is similar to schools like Notre Dame, Dean of Admissions Charles Deacon said the university competes for admissions with schools in most selective category, dubbed “Ivy Plus.” Among these schools are institutions such as Princeton University, Stanford University, the University of Chicago and Duke University. Deacon said this fact makes Georgetown less socioeconomically diverse. “Georgetown’s status as essentially an Ivy Plus school attracts people from the highest end, who can pay,” Deacon said. Senior Director of Communications Rachel Pugh said the university is committed to fostering a student body that is as diverse as possible through a series of programs intended to increase socioeconomic diversity at the university. Georgetown has a series of programs intended to increase socioeconomic diversity at the university, including the Community Scholars Program, which seeks to create a more diverse student body, the Georgetown Scholarship Program, which targets firstgeneration and low-income college students, and the American Talent Initiative, a nationwide effort to increase access for low-income students. “Georgetown is committed to recruiting and supporting a diverse student body through a range of programs and initiatives, including the Community Scholars Program, the Georgetown Scholarship Program, and American Talent Initiative among others,” Pugh wrote in an email to The Hoya. Pugh said Georgetown’s need-blind, full-need admission and financial aid policies allow the university to meet
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Median family income at Georgetown University, Notre Dame University, Duke University and Princeton University differs greatly between the top 1 percent and bottom 25 percent. the financial needs of its students. “The university’s commitment to financial aid remains strong for the next fiscal year, with funding budgeted at more than $180 million,” Pugh wrote. “Nearly 40 percent of the undergraduate student body received need-based scholarship aid in the last fiscal year.” Georgetown is one of only a few dozen colleges that provides need-blind, full-need admission and financial aid policies. The Georgetown Scholarship Program, beyond seeking to increase the number of firstgeneration and low-income students at Georgetown, also helps those students transition to the university. Ninety-six percent of GSP students graduate within four years, while nationally, 64 percent of first generation students graduate within four years, according to a 2011 study by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA. GSP Director Missy Foy (COL ’03) said that the university’s efforts are commendable given the size of its endowment compared with other schools it competes with for applicants. “You have a lot of students coming in from that top 1 percent, perhaps more so than peer institutions, but other
than that we are not out of line from our peer schools, and we have a fraction of the endowment,” Foy said. “Even schools that have a huge endowment are struggling to get students from the bottom fifth to apply and enroll.” A Limiting Endowment Georgetown’s socioeconomic situation is complicated by the university’s endowment, which amounts to about $1.5 billion as of the 2015 fiscal year. According to a 2015 Study of Endowments by the National Association of College and University Business Officers, Duke has an endowment of about $7.3 billion and Notre Dame’s endowment is about $8.6 billion. At the highest end end of the spectrum, Stanford University and Harvard University have endowments around $22.2 billion and $36.5 billion. While Notre Dame’s endowment is approximately six times that of Georgetown, 75 percent of its 8,448 undergraduates come from the top 20th percentile, 1 percent more than at Georgetown, but only 1.6 percent come from the bottom 20 percent. At Duke, 69 percent of its 6,471 undergraduates come from the top 20 percent. About 1.6 percent of students at Duke who are from the bottom 20 percent end up in the top 20 percent after graduation, 0.3
percent less than the Georgetown students who make the same socioeconomic jump. Deacon said top universities must make a concerted effort to attract students from across the income spectrum. “For the elite schools in particular, there are not as many students who have the same kind of credentials, so you have to essentially put a thumb on the scale to look past lower scores and see the whole story,” Deacon said. Toward a Less Disparate Future Some Georgetown administrators believe the school’s endowment puts a limit on socioeconomic diversity, and have identified steps to make improvements. Foy said she believes the main issue causing Georgetown’s lack of socioeconomic diversity is a lack of sufficient scholarship funds. For the 2016 fiscal year, 23.2 percent of Georgetown’s endowment contributed to undergraduate student scholarships, which includes the funds for GSP. “Where we are truly struggling is in terms of money,” Foy said. “I would like to see more donations to current use or the endowment so we can enhance our scholarship packages and bring in a more diverse population.” According to Foy, the per-
centage of students on financial aid is a more detailed indication of a school’s socioeconomic landscape than the income percentiles and quintiles used by The New York Times. “From what we’re seeing, 10 percent of students can identify with a low-income experience. Forty-five percent of Georgetown students are receiving some form of financial aid,” Foy said. “Financial aid is a bit more nuanced than income quintile.” Georgetown University Student Association Vice President Chris Fisk (COL ’17) said as Georgetown expands its endowment, he expects the university to become more socioeconomically diverse. “As our capacity to offer financial assistance to prospective students expands, I’m sure Georgetown will be able to shift the scales a bit more with regard to the socioeconomic diversity of its student population,” Fisk said. Looking ahead, Foy said The New York Times report should not be perceived as an attack on wealthy students, but instead spark a conversation about socioeconomic diversity at Georgetown. “This isn’t to vilify wealthy students,” Foy said. “We want them here. But I think the question is: What should the distribution be?”
news
friday, january 27, 2017
THE HOYA
A7
Student Groups Aim to Increase Diversity darius iraj
Hoya Staff Writer
Students of Georgetown, Inc., the Georgetown University Alumni Student Federal Credit Union and Georgetown Blue and Gray Tour Guides have made changes to their application processes for the spring application season to cultivate a more diverse pool of students. These changes include developing new interview questions and increasing the number of people involved in hiring decisions. The Corp plans to involve 19 of its members in the recruitment process, compared to its previous two members, to include different perspectives when making hiring decisions, according to The Corp’s CEO Taylor Tobin (COL ’17). “Now, the store director — as well as the whole director’s team — has taken this on,” Tobin said. “This is crucial to moving our company forward beyond saying ‘Diversity is good’ to saying it needs to be ingrained into who we are. It’s so crucial.” Tobin said The Corp will also change the types of questions it asks during interviews. “We’re changing our questions to be more professionally focused and more straightforward and away from the stereotype of the ‘Corp-y Corpie,’” Tobin said. “Then, we hope that helps to level the playing field.” Corp Director of Human Resources Isabella Todaro (SFS ’16) said the changes were prompted by a belief within
club leadership that it could do a better job of having fairer applications, geared toward students of varied backgrounds.
“It’s important for Georgetown because for Georgetown to be their very best, it means embracing everyone’s whole selves.” TAYLOR TOBIN (COL ‘17) CEO, Students of Georgetown, Inc.
“We know that historically Georgetown has problems with this, so it’s idealistic, but I would like to see a Corp that’s even more diverse and inclusive than Georgetown,” Todaro said. “As an institution, we have a history of being an advocating body that pushes Georgetown towards good, that’s why we were founded.” Tobin said expanded diversity was needed not only for the new hire pool but within the existing club culture as well. “It’s important for Georgetown because for Georgetown to be their very best, it means embracing everyone’s whole selves. That’s what this is all about,” Tobin said. “We want every single employee to be
able to bring their whole selves to The Corp and to really thrive in this community, and we also want this community to represent all of Georgetown.” In a letter published on its Facebook page, The Corp said an internal climate survey drew attention to the lack of diversity. “The Corp was founded to make sure that the many voices of the student body are heard and to serve our community’s diverse needs. Our hiring has not reflected these values,” the letter reads. “Though we didn’t need numbers to tell us this, after an internal climate survey, our lack of diversity became strikingly clear.” The Corp also created a diversity working group to create plans on post-hiring policies. The group came out of a diversity town hall, during which students of different backgrounds shared their experiences of inclusion or exclusion, according to Penn Conrad (MSB ’20), an employee at Vital Vittles. According to Blue and Gray Outreach Coordinator Matt Treacy (COL ’19), Blue and Gray edited the spring application questions to be more in line with the roles and responsibilities of being a tour guide. “When we first started doing summer hiring for summer guides, we completely scrapped all of the interview questions that we used in the past. We felt like they were kind of frustrating because nobody really cares what
CLARA MEIJA/THE HOYA
Students of Georgetown, Inc., the Georgetown University Alumni Student Federal Credit Union and Blue and Gray have changed their application processes to increase diversity. kind of character would play you in a movie,” Treacy said. “We only selected questions that are more situational, as well as incorporating a tour portion.” Treacy said he hopes the new questions will not only cultivate a more diverse pool of applicants, but help the tour guides more accurately reflect the student body as a whole, to best represent Georgetown. “Blue and Gray, more than other groups, certainly has a responsibility to be more diverse and more representative of Georgetown because we are a lot of prospective students’ first contact with Georgetown,” Treacy said.
“When we stand up on a stage and prospective students see us as a group of ambassadors for the university, they want to see someone that they can connect with.” GUASFCU has also worked to reach out to clubs on campus that are not well represented within its organization, according to Graham Ritter (MSB ’19), a member of GUASFCU’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee. “We’re also reaching out to different resource centers and cultural groups on campus to make sure that they know about us and that they know about the new hiring processes,” Ritter said. “For example, I reached out to
the LGBTQ Resource Center and got ourselves on their listserv.” Although these changes are being implemented this semester, leaders said it may take time for the changes to become noticeable in the cultures and demographics of their organizations. For the time being, Todaro said it is important to take steps toward integrating students of different backgrounds into Georgetown’s biggest organizations. “We hope that by taking such a public stance on this, other clubs see it and try to make the same effort. We’re certainly not perfect, but we take this very seriously,” To-
GU Declines to Release Investments Matt Larson and Tara Subramaniam Hoya Staff Writers
FILE PHOTO: ROBERT CORTES/THE HOYA
WMATA General Manager Paul Wiedefeld announced the termination of 21 workers for falsifying inspection records.
WMATA Fires 21 Inspection Workers Marina Pitofsky Hoya Staff Writer
Five supervisors and 16 other employees of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s inspection department have been fired for falsifying inspection records, WMATA General Manager Paul Wiedefeld confirmed Thursday. After a track derailment in Falls Church, Va., in July, WMATA announced an investigation into inspection records. The investigation uncovered falsified records on the Silver Line. Wiedefeld said falsified records were not found on other lines, and that WMATA inspected over 60 tracks throughout the network. Wiedefeld told The Washington Post on Thursday that he is still confident in the capacity of the WMATA inspection team. “We have a good track department,” Wiedefeld said. “In terms of our management folks and line people and our contractors we have out there, we’re very confident of what we’re seeing out there in terms of the inspections.” Wiedefeld said the records are still under inspection, and that he will comment on the investigation at a WMATA board meeting later this month. Track inspector Lawrence Simmons said that in an interview with WMATA during the initial Silver Line investigation, he and his colleagues were repeatedly asked to ignore track conditions and to report that tracks were up to the standards set by the Federal Transit Administration. “I’m not going to say they knew about a wide gauge,
but they knew something is going on there, because they put a Band-Aid on it,” Simmons said. “And in this company, they do a lot of that. You know, they put on Band-Aids.” Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689, which represents WMATA employees, said Thursday they will contest the firings, stating that WMATA has yet to provide sufficient evidence of the falsified records. Union Vice President Raymond Jackson told The Washington Post that workers were given unfair assignments, possibly putting pressure on workers to falsify records. “If you give me an assignment to do 37 switches, and you know that it’s an un-completable task,” Jackson said. “If you’re my manager, then why are you giving me this assignment?” WMATA Chief Safety Officer Patrick Lavin also announced a series of recent safety incidents. On Jan. 4, a worker sustained an electric shock after accidentally placing a metal gauge on the tracks. On Tuesday, the door on a Yellow Line train opened while the the train was stopped on a raised platform at Reagan National Airport. Grady Willard (SFS ’18) said although he was surprised to hear about the falsified documents, he is glad WMATA is treating the issue with transparency. “It’s much better to have a safe system rather than a system that might be ready on paper but run into derailments like the one we saw last summer,” Willard said. “Wiedefeld has done a good job of prioritizing that.”
The Georgetown administration declined to disclose a list of companies the university invests in, following advocacy group Georgetown University Forming a Radically Ethical Endowment Coalition’s request last month to create a more transparent endowment. GU F.R.E.E, which has been endorsed by 17 student groups, submitted a letter Dec. 7 to University President John J. DeGioia demanding that the university divest from investments in private prisons and companies that contribute to the “occupation of Palestine.” The group set a deadline for a response by Jan. 13, which university officials missed. Members of GU F.R.E.E. want more transparency from university officials about how Georgetown uses its endowment. The coalition is endorsed by groups advocating for underrepresented populations and groups that support Palestinian independence from Israel, including the Georgetown chapter of the NAACP as well as GU Students for
Justice in Palestine. The Jewish Student Alliance, J Street U Georgetown and the Georgetown Israel Alliance are not members of the coalition. Chief of Staff Joseph Ferrara said in an email to GU F.R.E.E. provided to The Hoya that the university’s standard practice is to not disclose its investments. GU F.R.E.E. said the campaign will continue to press for a list of investments. “The administration’s refusal to sign our letter indicates to us that we have some sort of relationship with the named companies and as such, we will move forward with our campaign,” GU F.R.E.E. wrote in an email to The Hoya. Senior Director for Strategic Communications Rachel Pugh said the university’s Committee on Investments and Social Responsibility, which advises the university on its investments, is considering the demands listed in the group’s December letter. J Street U Georgetown said in a statement that “Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions” movements like GU F.R.E.E’s are ineffective in achieving a two-state solution, its preferred solution to the
conflict between Palestine and Israel. J Street instead called for constructive criticism of Israeli policy rather than calls for taking away funding for Israeli companies.
“The administration’s refusal to sign our letter indicates to us that we have some sort of relationship with the named companies.” GU forming a radically ethical endowment coalition
“We do not believe that B.D.S. movements are an effective or helpful way to to end the conflict and reach a peaceful resolution,” the statement reads. “We encourage positive reinvestment into the Palestinian economy and civil society and diplomatic negotiation as a means to achieve a lasting peace agreement.” GU F.R.E.E. has said it
did not plan on inviting J Street U Georgetown. J Street U’s statement, however, noted that those involved with GU F.R.E.E. have been willing to discuss their position with student groups opposed to their message. The group affirmed their support for Palestinian rights. “We have met with individuals involved in the GU FREE campaign and appreciate their willingness to explain their position and support the safety of all students on campus,” the statement read. GU F.R.E.E. launched an official website and campaign Wednesday. The group plans to raise awareness of the issues affecting underrepresented populations as it pushes the university to pursue a more transparent endowment, according to the group. “We intend to raise awareness and constructive conversation surrounding both issues to problematize the normalization of these human rights violations,” the statement reads. “We plan to put pressure on the University until it recognizes the glaring contradictions of our Jesuit values and subsidization of state violence via our investment practices.”
JEANINE SANTUCCI/THE HOYA
Georgetown University declined to release a list of companies it invests in after a request from Georgetown University Forming a Radically Ethical Endowment, which expressed a desire for increased transparency.
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News
THE HOYA
FRIday, january 27, 2017
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General Delegation of the Palestinian Liberation Organization Chief Representative Maen Rashid Areikat said Israeli actions are putting a two-state solution at risk.
PLO Delegate Rebukes Israeli Settlement Action ben goodman Hoya Staff Writer
Israeli actions, including the development of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, are putting the pursuit of a two-state solution to resolve the IsraeliPalestinian conflict at risk, according to Maen Rashid Areikat, chief representative of the General Delegation of the Palestinian Liberation Organization to the United States, in the ICC Auditorium on Thursday. “The best approach to resolve this conflict is going back to the basics. The basics of freedom, human rights, dignity, security, peace for all,” Areikat said. “If we all can agree that every nation, every people are entitled to the same rights, to the same privileges, to the same freedoms that other nations are entitled to, I believe we can always find a solution to the most difficult issues.” School of Foreign Service professor Tamara Sonn, the Hamad Bin Khalifa AlThani Professor in the History of Islam, introduced Areikat, who addressed a crowd of about 150. Areikat said the United States, under President Donald Trump’s administration, must work with Israel to pursue a two-state solution. Areikat criticized the Trump administration’s reported efforts to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which both Palestine and Israel claim as their capital. “They will only embolden Israel to be more aggressive and to rely on the logic of power, instead of the power of logic, in dealing
with its neighbors and resolving conflicts,” Areikat said. While promoting a peaceful resolution to the conflict, Areikat blamed the strife’s perpetuity on Israeli intransigence, suggesting that a continuation of Israel’s settlement policy in the West Bank could lead to a failure of the twostate solution.
“We still believe that a twostate solution is the most ideal outcome for any political negotiations with Israel.” MAEN RASHID AREIKAT Chief Representative, General Delegation of the PLO
Both Israel and Palestine have said a two-state solution, with an independent State of Israel and State of Palestine, is their preferred solution to the conflict. The two sides, however, have been unable to agree on border placement, among other issues, in attempts to strike a deal. “We still believe that a two-state solution is the most ideal outcome for any political negotiations with Israel,” Areikat said. “Israelis and Palestinians must be separated in order for them — especially Palestinians — to develop their own national identity away from occupation and oppression, and for Israelis to reap the fruits of the peace and security that they have long desired.”
The PLO officially recognized the right of Israel to exist in the 1993 Oslo Peace Accords. According to Areikat, Palestine does not pose a danger to Israel. However, Areikat said the only path to stability for Israel in the region is a settlement with Palestine. “Israel’s security will be guaranteed if they make peace with the Palestinians who are going to share the land with them. They cannot make peace with any other Arab countries if they cannot make peace with us. They will never enjoy security,” Areikat said. “It’s not because we are threatening them; it’s because there will be no stability if we Palestinians do not feel that we are getting our rights back.” Delta Phi Epsilon, Georgetown’s professional foreign service fraternity, arranged the event, but as an unrecognized student group without access to benefits, needed Sonn to reserve the auditorium. Areikat said Arabs and Palestinians prioritize resolving this conflict, even if some Israel advocates say surrounding Arab nations do not care about it as much as other conflicts in the region. “No matter what Israel tries to portray that Arab countries are busy and the Palestinian issue is on the backburner — maybe that applies to some Arab governments, but it does not apply to the Arab masses who continue to believe that the Palestinian people are an oppressed people who need to win their freedom,” Areikat said. “We continue to extend our hands for peace, but it takes two to tango.”
CLARA MEJIA ORTA/THE HOYA, FILE PHOTO: DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA
New leadership teams for the Georgetown University Alumni and Student Association and the Students of Georgetown, Inc. will be formally welcomed in March.
Corp, GUASFCU Plan New Leadership Welcome Jeff Cirillo
Hoya Staff Writer
Both the Georgetown University Alumni and Student Federal Credit Union and Students of Georgetown, Inc. are planning to formally welcome their new senior leadership teams in March. New Corp CEO Melanie Hsiao (COL ’18), who formerly worked at The Hilltoss, said she is looking to improve The Corp’s relationship with students. “I’m really excited for the opportunity to improve The Corp’s relationship with campus,” Hsiao said. “I don’t mean this so much in the sense of the reputation, but of how we can be a positive entity in the lives of students.”
“I’m also hoping to make The Corp a more transparent institution for both employees and the Georgetown community.” MELANIE HSIAO (col ’18) Incoming CEO, Students of Georgetown, Inc.
Hsiao is joined by incoming Vice President and COO Chris Caminiti (MSB ’19), who formerly worked at MUG, and Treasurer and CFO Jared D’Sa (COL ’19), a former member of the accounting division. Hsiao said she is also looking to make The
Corp more inclusive. The Corp, along with other student groups including GUASFCU and Blue & Gray Tour Guide Society, is seeking to make hiring more inclusive this spring by changing interview questions and expanding the number of people involved in hiring. “I hope I can leave my term having seen a great deal of change in that direction and have confidence that the work will continue going forward,” Hsiao said. “I’m also hoping to make The Corp a more transparent institution for both employees and the Georgetown community.” Incoming GUASFCU CEO Rupert Kingshott (MSB ’18) said he is excited to take the reins of the university’s credit union. “It’s an organization that has meant a lot to me, and it’s helped me mature myself. And so the fact that I’m now giving back to it and really in control is very exciting,” Kingshott said. “It’s been quite surreal, to be honest.” Kingshott is joined by Chief Financial Officer Max Hartley (MSB ’18), Chief Operating Officer and Chairman Michael Mumma (COL ’18), Chief Development Officer Shannon Hou (SFS ’18), Chief Technology Officer Nick Matz (COL ’18), Treasurer Ben Brothers (MSB ’18) and Chief Lending Officer Isabel Singal (MSB ’18). Kingshott is set to take control of the credit union two years after starting out as a teller. Kingshott said the credit union is gearing up for an active semester, including planning for 35th anniversary
celebrations. The credit union is also rolling out a new online banking platform called NARMI, which was created by former GUASFCU interns.
“We’re currently rolling out a very, very modern online banking platform that was actually created by two old GUASFCU interns.” rupert kingshott (MSB ’18) CEO, GUASFCU
“We’re currently rolling out a very, very modern online banking platform that was actually created by two old GUASFCU interns, and it’s something they learned from their experience at the credit union,” Kingshott said. “And now they’ve started this company called NARMI, and they’re using us to really just roll it out.” The full rollout of the platform is not yet complete. However, Mumma said it will be a boon to the credit union’s members. “We’ll be releasing more detail hopefully in the next few weeks,” Mumma said. “The whole point is to provide more convenient banking for our members from anywhere.” The new leaders have said they hope the new platform will forge stronger ties between the credit union and students.
business & tech
Friday, January 27, 2017
THE HOYA
A9
Event Advocates for More Women in Technology CODING, from A10
TAIT RYSSDAL/THE HOYA
The Coding Party in the HSFC provided programmers of all skill levels to compete in various challenges for prizes ranging from gift cards to speakers.
Georgetown community. “At guWeCode, we really stress completion; we stress projects that allow you to actually, tangibly do something. We want you to walk out knowing ‘I did something. I coded. I made the computer do what I told it to,’ which is the feeling that keeps us going,” Hockett said. Singh said the goal of guWeCode is to allow women to familiarize themselves with basic computer science concepts. “The mission of guWeCode is to introduce people, in particular women, to some of the concepts of coding,” Singh said. “I don’t necessarily want every girl to become a [computer science] major, but I do want to see a broader understanding of the basics of code.” Maya McCoy (COL ’17), another board member, said that she sees programming skills as a necessity for almost any career. “Practically speaking, there are so many jobs that will require even just a ba-
sic level of computer science understanding, so just being able to look at a piece of code and having some idea of what it might do could be really valuable,” McCoy said. The official mission of guWeCode is to build digital literacy for today’s job market, and raise the odds of more women considering careers in the technology field, according the group’s website. So far, the organization has seen significant success in achieving its goal. According to Singh, the percentage of women in the Georgetown undergraduate computer science program at the time of the club’s founding hovered right around the national average of 17 percent. Three years later, the female participation at Georgetown rose to 40 percent. Singh said the interest in coding shown by female students has been impressive. At its first meeting, 75 women were in attendance. Today, over 500 students are subscribed to the group’s mailing list. Despite the progress,
Singh said she still wants to see more women in higher academic positions in the computer science field, since graduate and Ph.D. positions remain predominantly male even with the increasing number of female undergraduates studying computer science. Singh said, in addition to seeing more women take part in computer science, there also needs to be more racial and socioeconomic diversity within the field as well. “Coding quite literally creates our technology, so, in the future, I think it would be great to see more diversity in computer science, Singh said. “The umbrella of ‘women’ is a great place to start, but there is also more diversity than just gender.” Hockett and McCoy both said they felt coding is becoming increasingly significant in society and encouraging minorities to join the field is crucial going forward, as they are often heavily underrepresented in the field of computer science.
Gas Taxes Stay Constant Digital Cash is the Future FUELS, from A10
to measure these kinds of actions,” Mahdavi said. The researchers also wrote in the study that self-reporting by government authorities can be unreliable and incomplete. Mahdavi said that they focused on analyzing gasoline prices, taxes and subsidies, because they could obtain data across various countries. “We were looking at measuring challenges in particular, and we really couldn’t figure out whether governments were actually taking meaningful action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” Mahdavi said, “So, we zoomed in on one thing: gasoline prices, taxes and subsidies, which we could measure and could do so across as many countries as possible.” The study found that almost all of the G-20 countries, which comprise an economic forum of major economies, and the United States have not increased gasoline taxes despite announcing their intentions to do so in 2009. The United States in particular has not changed its federal gasoline tax since 1993. Mahdavi said that governments refuse to modify gasoline prices because of the political costs of doing so. “It often leads to protests, and politicians just don’t want to take that risk,” Mahdavi said. “Especially in developing
countries and especially in places that export oil, these reforms are very difficult.” Taxing gasoline would not only be a cheap way to tackle climate change but also one that could bring added revenue due to declining prices, according to Mahdavi. “We’re hoping to put a spotlight on this policy as a first step for many governments to try to get back to their commitments on climate change and to actually take meaningful actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” Mahvadi said. Edward Montgomery, dean of the McCourt School of Public Policy, said the study demonstrated that governments have failed to use appropriate tools to address the matter. “This study provides evidence that global governments are certainly not systematically using one of the most powerful tools at their disposal — taxation — to discourage fossil fuel consumption,” Montgomery wrote in an email to The Hoya. Mahdavi stated that he and his colleagues hope their findings will make people question the commitment of governments to the 2016 Paris Climate Agreement. “We push that our findings run against conventional wisdom and will raise serious questions about whether governments in particular are prepared to follow through on their Paris pledges,” Mahdavi
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said. Montgomery said he found the results very significant and that he is sure that they will impact the on-going global climate policy debate. “This study is important, because it provides evidence, not anecdotes, about what is really going on in terms of governmental actions globally,” Montgomery said. “Since climate change is a global problem, global action is needed.” According to Montgomery, the new knowledge gained from the study can inform the public on whether countries across the world are keeping their promises to reduce carbon emissions. “Knowing what different countries have actually done and how their actions are changing over time enables the public to see if their words and their deeds match up. This work would suggest that clearly there is room for improvement” GU Fossil Free member Grady Willard (SFS ’18) said the study’s findings further prove that more action is needed on climate change. “It is concerning that the United States has not increased its gas tax in 25 years,” Willard said. “All institutions ranging from the U.S. government to universities to businesses and nonprofits need to take active steps to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.”
MURPHY, from A10
to less than .08 of a penny. At the time, bitcoin lacked the credibility and renown to draw the attention of regulators and financial institutions; however, when bitcoin’s price surged and eventually peaked at over $1,200 per unit in early 2014, these groups took a keen interest in the digital currency. Although the Bitcoin network’s market cap sits at approximately $5 billion, a drop in the proverbial bucket of global commerce, some regulators have taken to sweeping reform or blacklisted the currency entirely. In late 2013, the People’s Bank of China announced that financial institutions operating within China were prohibited from exchanging the currency at all. This announcement coincided with a large drop in the price of bitcoin, as wealthy Chinese citizens had been using the currency to sidestep legal measures that prevented them from expatriating any significant amount of money. This price fluctuation,and the story behind it demonstrate some of the challenges that bitcoin faces as a form of currency. First, bitcoin is not backed by the credit of any government. As a result, bitcoin is far more volatile than most other currencies on the foreign exchange. China’s unilateral decision to ban the exchange of bitcoin
was a major influence that devalued the currency by nearly 20 percent. Therefore, its status as a stable carrier of value is questionable at best. Second, China’s stance on bitcoin is endemic of a larger problem within the sphere of cryptocurrency. Although Bitcoin provides a complete ledger of every transaction that has been performed, domestic and international regulators do not have experience dealing with this type of shared digital ledger. Thus, the adoption of blockchain technology into the mass market could bear high start-up costs for taxpayers. Despite these problems, large financial institutions have looked to blockchain technologies like the Bitcoin network as a path to the future. These institutions hope to capitalize on features of blockchain to help eliminate some of their back-office cost centers. Among these new features are “smart contracts,” which effectively act like legal or financial contracts in code but have the added benefit of automated enforcement, payments and more. For example, if Jack has a lending agreement with Jane that mandates her debt-to-equity ratio remain below a threshold, they can include a conditional penalty that would be paid automatically should that term be violated. These contracts could
slash salary expense for firms across the financial sector. To make this a reality, Wall Street banks and financial technology firms, such as CapitalOne, Visa, Chain, have collaborated to solve the problems of early cryptocurrency like bitcoin. Participants hope to adapt existing blockchain technology to allow for administration and oversight by creating a consortium of reputable institutions that would maintain the blockchain ledger and legitimize the medium of exchange. It looks like these firms are creating the technology that will invalidate their own business models, but, instead, these firms view this investment as critical to their future relevance. Ironically, the Bitcoin network’s first block, a file in which transaction data is stored, contained a set parameter referencing a Times article about an upcoming bank bailout. As a result, the bitcoin has, at times, been viewed as an anti-establishment currency that operates both by the people and for the people. Given the challenges that bitcoin has faced, reputable institutions may be needed to lend credibility in the global market.
Kevin Murphy is a Junior in the McDonough School of Business. BYTE OF WALL ST. appears every other Friday.
University Collaborates with Bank SANTANDER, from A10
Harvard University Professor Shawn Cole said social inclusion involves improving society and increasing public access to money and financial institutions such as banks. “Social inclusion is the responsibility that we have to lead societies to improve — to get better. One of the important dimensions for this society to get better is access to money, access to financial services that is, by no means, trivial for us,” Cole said. Cole, who participated in the partnership’s inaugural event about social inclusion, also appealed to the importance of institutional commitment in which organizations both are able to effect societal change and profit at the same time. “Social enterprise is organizations that are committed to creating social, positive change in the world, but focusing on often-arned revenues or even profits,” Cole said. “Social enterprise means doing good and being good but at the same time, making it sustainable.” Georgetown and Santander plan on hosting a summer workshop for graduate students. According to Georgetown Professor Ricardo Ernst, graduate students will learn the importance of financial inclusion and be able to devise sustainable mechanisms to support
COCA-COLA COMPANY
Executive Chairman of Santander Ana Botín agreed to contribute $2 million to Georgetown to research how organziations can effect positive social change. communities. “In July, we have a workshop where the goal there, in addition to academic purposes, will be to have the students think about how to achieve financial inclusion,” Ernst said. Ernst also said that Georgetown plans to hold two forums throughout the year in which participants will discuss an array of pertinent social issues, including access to health care. “We hold three forums a year. The first was held in October, and we had several very good speakers and a second coming up
in February,” Ernst said. “The next one will tackle the issue of health care and how health care can be paid for.” Also crucial to the cooperation is linking Georgetown with other universities through the network Universia, which hosts the online journal “Globalization, Competitiveness, and Governability.” Ernst said this allows for the accumulation and sharing of useful knowledge on social inclusion amongst several academic institutions. “Santander Bank has been working with Georgetown to link all of
the universities in Latin America with many universities in the U.S.,” Ernst said. “Universia is actually the one for the first and only virtual journal that Georgetown has.” According to Cole, the current generation’s value-driven mindset has the potential to drive the future of social enterprise in new and innovative ways. “Today’s younger generation is insistent that their employment opportunities, their investment decisions, their consumption decisions, align with their values,” Cole said. “So we’re seeing a potential change.”
Business & Tech FRIDAY, january 27, 2017
Tech Tips Apple Releases AirPods Locator on the iPhone Apple developed a way to track its newly released wireless headphone, AirPods, in the iOS 10.3 beta update Jan. 24. The feature, called “Find My AirPods,” allows users to keep track of their $159 dollar AirPods in the event they are lost. The most recent line of iPhones lack a headphone jack, necessitating the need for wireless headsets. Each headphone is an individual headphone without a wire connecting the two, and there is the risk of one or of both of them being lost. The AirPods are tracked via Bluetooth connection and, when they drop out of Bluetooth range, one can still find a general location of where the AirPods were last connected. There is also a “Play Sound” feature to help locate the AirPods when they are hidden in close proximity. According to Apple’s website, the AirPods will feature both high quality sound and a charging case with 24 hours of battery life.
Artificial intelligence enables cheaper and faster skin cancer screenings Computer scientists and physicians at Stanford University have developed artificial intelligence that can tell the difference between images of benign and malignant skin lesions. This development can help diagnose skin cancer, according to a Nature paper published Jan. 25. Currently, one in ten skin lesions on which dermatologists conduct a biopsy is a melanoma, a precursor to skin cancer. In an effort to try and reduce the amount of biopsies, scientists are trained a Google deep-learning algorithm by showing it 130,000 images of 2,000 skin diseases. According to the paper, this artificial intelligence has the potential to expand access to be life-saving technology for doctors across the world, by allowing smartphones to do the image analysis. “Outfitted with deep neural networks, mobile devices can potentially extend the reach of dermatologists outside of the clinic,” the paper said. Early detection is critical when it comes to melanomas and often results in a life or death when it comes to treatment.
Facebook Modifies Trending Stories Box to Stop Fake News In order to combat the spread of fake news, Facebook changed its process of selecting trending stories in an update implemented Jan 25. According to an official Facebook press release the day of the update, instead of having personalized trending topics, Facebook will now have a regionally based list of news stories along with the publication of each story. “The list of which topics are trending on Facebook will no longer be personalized based on someone’s interests. Everyone in the same region will see the same topics,” the press release said. In the past, Facebook defined a topic as trending by the amount of mentions the post has. Another change to the trending box requires multiple publishers to be writing about a story in order for it to appear. In addition, all trending topics are selected by an algorithm and reviewed by a team. Facebook will also be adding options through which users can flag articles as potentially fake news to be inspected by third party reviewers for authenticity. Hoya Staff Writer Sarah Fisher compiled this week’s TECH TIPS.
Georgetown, Santander Sign $2M Partnership
Paula Hong
Hoya Staff Writer
The banking organization Santander Group will support graduate-level research at Georgetown University in the field of social economy as part of a $2 million partnership agreement, according to a Jan. 17 announcement. Georgetown and Santander aim to train students, scholars and citizens who will be mindful of the need to incorporate social justice into business. Social economy is an interdisciplinary field that covers a range of concepts including business, law and public policy and deals with the social and environmental responsibility of the private sector.
“Thriving, stable, welleducated global communities are good for business.” MICHAEL LIPSITZ Santander U.S. Chief Counsel
Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and member of the partnership’s steering committee Norberto Grzywacz said both parties have shown commitment to their respective communities in the past in helping the public.
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
University President John J. DeGioia and Executive Chairman Ana Botín signed a $2 million agreement with Santander Group on the field of social economy in 2015, pictured above. “Georgetown has historically been a university that, in addition to its education and research mission, has had a deep core value on the common good,” Grzywacz said. Santander U.S. Chief Counsel Michael Lipsitz said the group’s social engagement projects and cooperation with other academic institutions are unrivaled amongst banks and other financial institutions.
“We create opportunities for students, we grant scholarships, we partner with the universities on various initiatives and projects like the one we’re doing with Georgetown,” Lipsitz said. “We actually believe that we are the biggest or among the biggest of financial services institutions that have programs like this.” According to Lipsitz, universities play an important role in influencing community-oriented
Countries Fail to Curb Fossil Fuels
endeavors and therefore can produce many potential customers for banks. “Universities create knowledge, they provide services, they teach, they do a number of things,” Lipsitz said. “Thriving, stable, well-educated global communities are good for business, it’s good for commerce, it’s good for the economy. It’s a win-win.” See SANTANDER, A9
BYTE OF WALL ST.
Charlotte Allen Hoya Staff Writer
Governments are not discouraging fossil fuel consumption, according to Georgetown University professor Paasha Mahdavi and University of California, Los Angeles professor Michael L. Ross in their paper “Nature Energy” published Jan. 9. The researchers analyzed global gasoline prices, taxes and subsidies in “Global Progress and Backsliding on Gasoline Taxes and Subsidies.” The researchers studied fossil fuel policies and retail gasoline prices in 157 countries over a span of 12 years. They found that although two-thirds of countries increased their gasoline taxes over this time period, the average tax has actually been declining globally. According to the researchers’ ultimate conclusion, subsidies and lower taxes on gasoline along with a failure of governments to reform gasoline pricing have contributed to increases in greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale. “Global progress was thwarted by a shift in consumption towards states that maintain gasoline subsidies or low taxes,” the paper reads. “Fixity reforms were virtually non-existent for those countries with persistent subsidies, where such reforms are most needed.” According to Mahdavi, the study was motivated by the difficulty of measuring the effectiveness of government environmental policies. “Governments have been claiming that they have taken action on climate change but it’s been hard See FUELS, A9
Kevin Murphy
Bitcoin’s Hidden Potential
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Courtesy PAASHA MAHDAVI
Professor Paasha Mahdavi, along with professors from UCLA, found that low gasoline taxes are hindering climate change progress.
Coding Party Promotes Computer Science Tait Ryssdal Hoya Staff Writer
TAIT RYSSAL/THE HOYA
Georgetown University Women Coders held a programming event to provide women with more exposure to computer science fields.
The Georgetown University Women Coders, also known as guWeCode, launched the second annual Coding Party in the Healey Family Student Center on Jan. 18 to promote more women to engage and participate in the field of computer science. The event, which was attended by about 50 people, was open to both students and faculty, and it divided the participants according to skill level. Each skill level was provided with a series of challenges that could be completed and cashed-in for prizes, such as gift cards and speakers. According to Georgetown associate professor of computer science and Co-Founder of guWeCode Lisa Singh, the event was designed to allow new coders to get experience with
ou have heard the buzz about bitcoin, the global currency that only exists online. What you might not have heard is that bitcoin is just one part of a larger cryptocurrency movement that has the potential to change the financial industry. In 2009, Bitcoin v0.1, the network over which bitcoin currency is traded was released by Satoshi Nakamoto, an online pseudonym for an anonymous individual or group. In the release notes, Nakamoto described the Bitcoin network as a new form of digital currency that uses a peer-to-peer network to prevent duplicate uses of currency and has no central server or authority.
Bitcoin is far more volatile than most other currencies
computer programming, while also catering to the abilities of upper-level coders who want a challenge. Singh said the event additionally aimed to encourage more women to take an interest in programming. “The goal with this event was to bring people of all skill levels, from ‘newbies’ to advanced coding in the same room, but with each still able to do their own thing,” Singh said. “I think it is very valuable for a beginner coder to see some women over at the advanced coding table.” Julie Hockett (COL ’17), a senior guWeCode board member, said the objective of the coding party and of the organization as a whole was to give participants a sense of accomplishment and to inspire interest in computer programming in the
In effect, bitcoin was released as a new form of currency without central regulation, even by Nakamoto. For a change to be made to the central ledger of transactions known as the “blockchain,” a significant number of nodes — participants in the network — must agree on what that change is. Only a small number of transaction reversals, known as “hard forks,” have occurred in the world of cryptocurrency, and none have been exacted for bitcoin. Historically, hard forks have been used to undo the damage done by hackers who have exploited early software vulnerabilities. At its release, bitcoin traded at a rate of 1,309.03 bitcoin to $1. One bitcoin was equivalent
See CODING, A9
See MURPHY, A9