Issue 8, Volume 100

The Fordham Ram Volume 100, Issue 8

Spring Weekend Talent Announced

By THERESA SCHLIEP AND AISLINN KEELY Have you chosen T-Pain as the ideal Spring Weekend performer on Campus Activities Board’s (CAB) annual survey, year after year? Well, your wishes have been granted: CAB has announced TPain will perform at Spring Weekend 2018.

Seventy-four percent of students who took this year’s survey indicated they wanted T-Pain to perform, according to Mary Munshower, FCRH ’18, concert committee co-chair. She said she hopes T-Pain will bring a high-energy performance.

“There is nothing better than looking out into the crowd and seeing all of the students singing and dancing along to the performer we have booked,” said Munshower.

The co-chairs said T-Pain was their first choice for the headlining slot. He’s known for hit songs like “Buy U A Drank,” “Kiss Kiss” and “Blame It.” The Florida native is also a Grammy-Award winner.

CAB also announced Audien, a DJ and producer, will open for T-Pain.

He’s known for his remixes of popular songs like “Colors” by Halsey.

Ellie Roberts, FCRH ’19, concert committee co-chair, said she wanted to bring a rap performer to Spring Weekend, highlighting his name recognition both amongst Fordham students and in popular culture as a whole.

Munshower said they worked well in advance to ensure university approval on T-Pain’s music. Recent Spring Weekend performances have included many alternative music acts, like Twenty One Pilots and Matt and Kim. CAB made a foray into pop music last year with Timeflies, a duo known for their freestyle raps.

“All of us worked together with the administration since May 2017 to figure out who would be the best artist that students have expressed interest in on the survey year after year, as well as that would put on an appropriate performance for our Jesuit university,” said Munshower.

In addition to T-Pain, CAB is giving Fordham students the opportunity to look back on childhood classic show “Drake and Josh” with Josh Peck booked to speak at Spring Weekend.

The famed show has been over for more than a decade, but Peck remains relevant to the generation that grew up watching the mismatched step-brothers on screen.

He has cultivated a large following on YouTube and the now defunct platform Vine, as well as having starred in films like Red Dawn.

CAB Speaker Committee Co-

SEE CAB, PAGE 3

Serving The Fordham University Community Since 1918 FordhamRam.com

See centennial spread, pages 12-13.

April 11, 2018

GSE Expands Digitally

By JOE ESPOSITO FEATURES EDITOR

The University’s Graduate School of Education (GSE) recently unveiled that its new online Master of Science in Teaching (M.S.T.) program will offer specialized degrees in Childhood Education and Childhood Special Education beginning this May. Anthony Cavanna, associate dean for Academic Affairs, said the university has worked to develop this online curriculum by keeping the best practices of adult learning and online course delivery at the forefront of the program.

“The planning for these programs started over a year ago and has continued,” said Cavanna.

“Professors from the Graduate School of Education have worked to determine the best ways to deliver high quality and rigorous content from face to face courses in an online format.”

The M.S.T. program includes weekly live online classes taught by GSE faculty and in-person field experiences in which students can ap-

SEE GSE, PAGE 5

KEVIN STOLTENBORG/THE FORDHAM RAM

Candidates and moderators stand together preparing for debate at the USG Meet the Candidates and Debate.

USG Hosts Meet the Candidates Night

By ERICA SCALISE

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

United Student Government (USG) hosted its annual Meet the Candidates Night where candidates briefly outlined their platforms for the upcoming USG election.

Six of the eight vice presidential candidates are running uncontested. The two contested positions are for Vice President of Sustainability and Vice President of Student Life.

Hayley Coughlin, FCRH ‘19 and Gabrielle Perez FCRH ‘21, both running for VP of Sustainability, shared similar ideas despite their

grade differences.

Both Coughlin and Perez want to increase vegetarian and recycling options on campus. Perez’ platform is rooted in her long term goal of making the Fordham FleaMarket a permanent and lasting program to promote sustainability

SEE USG, PAGE 7

$6 Million Donation Made

By JAKE SHORE STAFF WRITER

KEVIN STOLTENBORG/THE FORDHAM RAM

Speakers addressed topics about breaking boundaries, ranging from divorce to blockchain in this year’s TedX.

Divorce to Blockchain: USG Hosts Second TedX

By HANNAH GONZALEZ ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

On Wednesday, April 4, the United Student Government (USG) GSB Dean’s Council sponsored the second annual TEDxFordham event, where speakers gave their individual takes on the theme of “breaking down barriers.”

The lineup of speakers included

marketing consultant Jennifer Gardella, LiveLike CEO Andre Lorenceau, JPMorgan Chase Senior Diversity Advisor Patricia David, Impact Chain Lab CEO Aishwarya Balaji and author and PurposeBlue CEO Laurie J. Cameron. The presenters spoke on topics ranging from blockchain as a new technology to expanding the current model of diversity in business.

The GSB Dean’s Council settled

on breaking down barriers as a theme after reflection on what topics would be of most interest to the student body.

“The overwhelming thoughts came back to talking about how divided the world is today, whether from a political, religious, or social perspective,” said Amanda D’Antone, GSB ’19, chair of the SEE TEDX, PAGE 6

A Fordham alumni on the Board of Trustees donated $6 million to the university last week, with most of the funds going towards a scholarship fund for students from the Boston area.

Darlene Jordan, FCRH ‘89 and a former assistant attorney general of Massachusetts, donated the money along with her husband, Gerald R. Jordan. Five million is slated for the Boston student fund, $500,000 is allotted for renovating the basketball gym at Rose SEE DONATION, PAGE 5

in this issue

Opinion

Page 8 Being Gay is Normal, Not a Headline

Sports

Page 24

Baseball Breaks Runs Record, Wins Three of Four

Culture Page 19 Bronx Art Space Exhibit Represents Intersectionality

NEWS

Page 2

PUBLIC SAFETY BRIEFS April 7 Hoffman Ave. 1:21 p.m.

A fire alarm went off at an apartment at Terra Nova House. The FDNY responded. The apartment was ventilated and the residents returned. There were no injuries.

April 9 Arthur Ave. 5:50 p.m.

Students cooking food on the stove set off the smoke alarm.

FDNY responded and ventilated the apartment. There were no injuries.

April 5 O'Hare Hall 5:50 p.m.

A student reported that his laundry was taken from the laundry room at O’Hare Hall. The matter is under investigation.

April 9 McGinley Center 7:20 a.m.

A custodial supervisor notified Public Safety that he found a woman’s dress in a first-floor bathroom in McGinley. Further investigation revealed that the dress came from a box that had been placed in the UPS dropbox at that location. The incident is under investigation.

April 11, 2018

Fordham Signs Contract with SASB Becomes Permanent Meeting Venue

By AISLINN KEELY NEWS EDITOR

Fordham recently solidified its connections with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) by executing a formal collaboration with the organization. With this contract, the university is now the permanent venue for SASB’s meetings and annual symposium, as well as a research collaborator.

SASB’s mission is to set industry-specific standards for corporate sustainability disclosure, according to its website.

These standards help public corporations report financial material information or information on factors that affect a firm’s bottom line. This information helps investors make informed decisions, according to Matt Garrison, director of communications for SASB. “In a nutshell, it’s a way we create a framework for companies to be able to report on these issues and also help allow them to make better decisions around risk and return from the investor perspective,” he said.

These issues include environmental concerns, but sustainability accounting reaches further than that, according to Garrison.

“When we talk about sustainability, a lot of people think about the environmental piece of sustainability," he said.

"But really sustainability is about how economic systems and environmental systems and our society work together in a mutually beneficial way."

Barbara Porco, Ph.D., director of the MS accounting program and Center for Professional Accounting Practices, has been at the forefront of the collaboration between Fordham and SASB. Much of the collaboration will work through her Center for Professional Accounting Practices.

“You can think of it as the agent to all the activities,” she said.

Among these activities is an upcoming speaker series that will begin this coming fall. Jean Rodgers, Ph.D., founder and chair of the SASB Standards Board, is slated to be the first guest, speaking in September. The series will run through the 2018-2019 academic year.

Porco said the speaker series will serve as an opportunity to hear from high profile figures in the business and finance industries.

“Students will be exposed to distinguished members of the accounting, finance and legal world through the speaker series and other events,” she said.

Rodgers herself established an important voice in the world of sustainability accounting in her founding of the SASB, according to Porco.

“The founder, Jean Rodgers, has always been a very important figure in this

space of conscientious investing and reporting transparency,” she said.

Others have taken notice of SASB’s work. Since 2011, Michael Bloomberg has become the chair of its board of directors, which includes two former chairpersons of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission among other high profile people in the business and finance world.

Prior to the partnership, Porco said she had always valued the organization’s work.

“When she [Rodgers] founded this organization at its very early stages, I was very interested in their mission,” she said.

Porco attended SASB’s yearly symposiums and certain meetings and followed the organization’s growth.

“In this very short period, this organization, which was in its infantile stages, really shifted its prominence in terms of its impact in policy setting and awareness of importance of making investors and employees and regulatory agencies and communities aware of what companies are doing,” she said.

After one of SASB’s meetings, Porco and Rodgers spoke about the possibility of holding its yearly symposium at Fordham. Fordham later held the symposium, which Porco said was a success.

This opened the door for continued collaboration, according to Porco.

“After the symposium was over, Jean

April 7 Walsh Library 10:15 p.m.

The security officer assigned to the Walsh library reported that there were two students running around the locked library.

Patrol officers responded and opened the library. The students said they were playing hide and seek and did not realize that the library had closed. The incident has been referred to student affairs.

- Compiled by Joergen Ostensen

Suggest story ideas: fordhamram. com

@TheFordhamRam

FORDHAM RAM ARCHIVES

and I advanced discussions about potentially hosting other events,” she said.

During those discussions, Porco said she and Rodgers realized Fordham’s future goals and SASB’s future goals were similar.

“In that conversation, we then recognized so much of our aligned goals and mission complemented both Fordham’s mission and the SASB’s mission in so many ways that we started to see this as a bigger kind of relationship,” she said.

After further discussion between both institutions, Fordham created the SASB Fordham Initiative Committee and the SASB Fordham Governance Board.

From there, the agreement was drafted, vetted and executed, creating a collaboration between the two bodies.

Fordham’s location and reputation for research made it a well-fitted partner for SASB, according to Garrison.

“I think Fordham has a great reputation for research. Being in New York City and being centrally located around one of the largest capital markets in the world is important in terms of having perspective and connection,” he said.

However, Garrison said the shared goals of the organizations are most important.

“I think the most important thing is that there is a shared set of goals in terms of the field of sustainability accounting...I think both organizations are sort of future-focused,” he said.

Garrison also said a university partnership will aid the work that SASB does, particularly its research.

“A university has a natural deep pool of research and talent that could aid in that process,” he said.

There are already plans to aid in that research. Porco said there have been discussions on ways students can get involved with research.

“We’ve identified three topics that are timely and relevant and potentially very rewarding for the students to be involved in,” she said.

Garrison said this effort will help keep SASB’s standards on the cutting edge.

“We always need more help, and to be able to explore a lot of these new and emerging topics as they come along to make sure the standards are always up to date, it’s great to have that additional research,” he said.

In addition to research opportunities, Garrison said SASB looks forward to having a hand in cultivating the next generation through its work at Fordham.

“It’s a way to help educate the next generation of sustainability leaders,” he said.

Business students, who primarily take their classes in Hughes Hall, will have the opportunity to do research with SASB.

This Week at Fordham Thursday April 12

Thursday April 12

Friday April 13

Friday April 13

Saturday April 14

Latin Family Feud

FET Presents “Rhinoceros”

Backgammon with ASAF

Fashion for Philanthropy Fashion Show 2018

TOP One Acts Festival

McGinley Center 1 p.m. - 2 p.m.

Blackbox Theatre 8p.m. - 10 p.m.

McGinley Lawn 12p.m. - 2 p.m.

Rose Hill Gym 8p.m. - 9 p.m.

Keating 3rd 7 p.m. - 10 p.m.

El Grito is hosting an afternoon game show event to welcome students back from spring break. Come for competitive fun with questions based off Family Feud (Cien Mexicanos Dijeron).

Come to Blackbox for FET’s Slot 4 show "Rhinoceros," written by Eugène Ionesco and directed by Rita Padden. Thursday through Saturday shows are at 8 p.m. The Sunday show is at 2 p.m.

Come to the McGinley lawn on Friday afternoon to enjoy the spring weather and learn how to play backgammon, one of the oldest board games in the world. The event is free and hosted by the Armenian Society.

Student performers, models and designers have collaborated to put together their biggest event of the year.

All of the proceeds from the show go to the Make-A-Wish foundation of Metro New York.

TOP is putting on its annual One Acts Festival, featuring four one-act plays. The event will also include Bronx middle school students who will engage with the actors during the shows.

NEWS

April 11, 2018

Page 3

Catch up or get ahead this summer!

• Complete core requirements.

• Begin a second major.

• Set yourself up to graduate early.

Choose from more than 200 available courses!

Register now via my.fordham.edu.

Session I: May 29–June 28 Session II: July 5–August 6

SUMMER SESSION 2018

Spring Weekend: T-Pain to Perform, Josh Peck to Speak FROM CAB, PAGE 1

Chairs Sean Rilley, FCRH ’20, and Sophia Woody, FCRH ’19, said Peck was the committee’s first choice.

“We thought Josh would be perfect because it is likely that almost every student at Fordham knows who he is, has seen ‘Drake and Josh’ or some of Josh’s work at some point in their life, and for those who grew up watching ‘Drake and Josh,’ he brings a feeling of nostalgia and fun,” they said.

Rilley and Woody believe their age group has been Peck’s main demographic since the start of his career, and that his career has grown to stay relevant to the age bracket.

“Obviously, he was one of the stars of ‘Drake and Josh,’ which was incredibly popular when we were younger and still brings back nostalgic sentiments today for many college students,” they said.

“But beyond that, he has starred in movies like Red Dawn and had a prominent presence on Vine, and he continues to stay relevant in popular culture with his successful and continuously growing YouTube channel.”

The co-chairs said they expect a large crowd for Peck’s speech and have booked the Lombardi Field House to accommodate growing numbers. Last year, Ice-T’s speaking location was moved from McGinley Ballroom to the Lombardi Field House when numbers were higher than anticipated.

Rilley and Woody said they anticipate an even larger crowd for Peck.

“The biggest difference in the process this year is that we specifi-

cally planned for the event to be in the Lombardi Fieldhouse. We are hoping that this year’s speaker brings in an even larger audience than Ice-T did last year, and we have taken steps to be prepared for this reality,” they said.

In addition to this change, the format of the speech will differ from previous years, according to Woody and Rilley. This year’s speaker event will be moderated as a conversation-style talk, rather than the traditional podium speech. Rilley and Woody said this will create something different from previous speaker events.

“This will allow for a fun, natural flow and something different from what students have seen in the past,” they said.

The process of booking Peck began in early January, according to the co-chairs. At that time, the co-chairs began conversations with agents before narrowing down their final three candidates and submitting one page proposals for each candidate to the Office of Student Involvement (OSI).

“Once those candidates were approved by OSI, we considered which would really be the best fit for Spring Weekend,” they said.

“We wanted to pick the speaker with the best message and overall appeal to Fordham students, and we believe that our decision accomplishes that goal.”

After OSI’s approval, CAB made offers to the candidates and ultimately negotiated contracts with Peck after his acceptance. Woody and Rilley said this is the standard process for booking the Spring Weekend speaker.

“For both of us, this is our first year in positions that plan one of the major Spring Weekend events, but the process is very standard, and we followed the guide that has been passed down to us by our pre-

decessors,” they said.

Woody and Rilley said they hope Peck brings a motivational and a positive message for students as the year comes to a close.

“Josh has had an ability to stay

popular with our age group, and we believe that right now would be the perfect time to have him as a guest at Fordham, and we are excited to listen to what he has to say,” they said.

COURTESY OF FLICKR

T-Pain, pictured above, will perform hits like “Best Love Song” and “Buy You a Drank” at this year’s Spring Weekend.

NEWS

Page 4

April 11, 2018

Research Spotlight

USG Column

Sigma Xi Inducts 103 New Members Fordham Recognized for High Number

USG Approves Adding FVA Delegate

By SARAH HUFFMAN

ANDREA GARCIA/THE FORDHAM RAM

Students attending the induction dinner for Sigma Xi, Fordham’s chapter of the national scientific honor society.

By JULIA RIST STAFF WRITER

Fordham’s chapter of the scientific research honor society Sigma Xi inducted 103 new members to its ranks this Monday. The ceremony in Bepler Commons saw new members meet and hear lectures from those in the science research community.

Sigma Xi draws student researchers from a number of scientific disciplines including biology, chemistry, computer science, economics, mathematics, physics, psychology and sociology. Sigma Xi is the world’s largest multidisciplinary honor society for scientists and engineers, according to its website.

In November of 2017, the national society recognized the Fordham chapter for its high number of initiations. The chapter received a ‘most initiations’ nod on the society’s site page for awards. The organization’s Committee on Qualifications and Membership based the awards on the 2018 fiscal year reports and evaluations from the society’s regional and constituency directors, according to its website.

Fordham’s chapter held its induction ceremony on April 9.

The newest members of Sigma Xi enjoyed a dinner and listened to a lecture by Dr. Christopher Koenigsmann, a Fordham chemistry professor. Koenigsman gave his lecture on his most recent research project titled “Bigger Isn’t Always Better: Tuning the Size, Composition and Structure of Nanostructured, Precious Metal Electrocatalysts for Enhanced Performance in Fuel Cells and Glucose Sensors.”

In order to gain admission to Sigma Xi, one has to be nominated by a Fordham faculty member that has overseen one’s research.

From there, Fordham students gain what’s known as an associate membership into the Honor Society. Then, the Sigma Xi board of directors have to choose which associate members will be inducted as full members of the club in May. Carla Romney, associate dean for STEM and pre-health education, said that gaining admission to Sigma Xi is something to be proud of. “[Sigma Xi] spans a broad ar-

Photo of the Week:

ray of disciplines, and it really is the single highest honor in this field,” Romney said.

Daniel Arroyo, FCRH ’18, conducted genetic studies into Domitian syndromes. He looked at how specific Domitian symptoms like facial and cardiovascular malformations affect newborn infants.

Arroyo said he was excited when he found out he was being inducted into Sigma Xi. “It’s pretty cool to be able to get recognized for what you did,” Ar-

royo said.

Eryk Kropiwnicki, FCRH ’18, agreed with Arroyo. Kropiwnicki worked in an ecology lab to study compensatory flowering in specific plants. Kropiwnicki said that his study involved going to the Calder Center to look at the flowers periodically to see if the environment was changing their reproductive behavior.

“Essentially what we did is we plucked off flowers at specific intervals, and they varied per group,” Kropiwnicki said. “What we wanted to see was how the flowers would compensate for other parameters of growth and if that would affect their reproduction.”

Joeseph Gross, FCRH ’18, also worked at the Fordham’s Calder Center in New York. His research was centered on ticks. While conducting his research, he helped the New York State Tick Surveillance Program further its study. His main research focused on checking the effectiveness of tick repellants.

Carla Romney said that Sigma Xi’s success can be directly attributed to the high level of research Fordham undergraduates are conducting each and every day.

“We’re honestly great across the board,” Romney said. “There are students here in psychology, biology, sociology. You name it and they’re here.”

Many of the recent inductees will present their research at Fordham’s Undergraduate Research Symposium on April 11.

KEVIN STOLTENBORG/THE FORDHAM RAM

Street graffiti on the streets of New York City, depicting a futuristic sketch of a boxed robot figure.

STAFF WRITER

New Delegate United Student Government (USG) approved the addition of a Fordham Veterans Association (FVA) delegate at their meeting this past Thursday. Senator Justin Bujalski, FCRH ’18, presented an amendment for the USG constitution that would add an FVA delegate position. The amendment describes the position as a non-voting delegate in which the representative would offer the perspective of student veterans and give updates about FVA. “I believe that adding an FVA delegate to the USG senate would raise awareness about the student veteran population here at Fordham, and ultimately grow their presence on campus as well.” said Bujalski. He said FVA reached out to him with an interest in getting involved with student government and he reciprocated.

Currently, organizations such as the Residence Hall Association (RHA), Campus Activities Board (CAB) and Commuter Student Association (CSA) all have nonvoting delegates that attend the weekly senate meetings and give updates about their respective groups. The Senate decided that an FVA position would follow the same guidelines as other delegates.

Club of the Month The Senate chose Fordham University EMS (FUEMS) as club of the month. They were nominated by USG’s e-board because they were recognized as EMS organization of the year at the National Collegiate EMS Foundation Conference. The e-board also said that they recently completed the process of switching from paper documentation to electronic documentation.

Executive Update In his executive update, Executive President Brian Reardon, FCRH ’18, said there will be a proposed vote to see if CAB will gain departmental status at Wednesday’s Student Life Council (SLC) meeting. Reardon said this would change the way CAB receives its budget. While it currently receives its money through the USG Budget Committee, the proposal would have CAB receive its budget directly from the Office of Student Involvement (OSI). Reardon said that depending on the outcome of the vote, USG’s documentation will have to change to reflect the decision.

New Seal The Senate approved a new design for the USG seal. Senator Scott Saffran, FCRH ’18, designed and presented the new seal. Saffran said the old version contained various design flaws, so he wanted to refresh it. The new seal includes a shield with Keating and “USG” in the center. The shield has olive branches around it, “United Student Government” above it and a banner at the bottom that says “Vox Discipilorum,” USG’s motto, which translates to “voice of the students.”

NEWS

April 11, 2018

GSE Unveils Online Masters FROM GSE, PAGE 1

ply classroom learning to their local communities. Upon graduation from the program, students will be eligible to sit for licensure exams in New York as well as other states.

The program also falls in line with the university’s Jesuit mission by aiming to help combat the shortage of teachers in New York City public schools, according to Cavana.

“Teachers trained through both programs will allow us to increase our positive impact on children and communities through focusing on four core principles: dedication to holistic care of each student, devotion to social justice, pursuit of excellence and commitment to serving the community,” said Cavanna.

There is a shortage of special education teachers in 46 states across the U.S., including New York, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

Cavanna said that the program will help alleviate reported teacher shortages in many areas of the

country beyond New York City.

“Offering our high quality, nationally recognized and accredited initial teacher preparation program online for students who may not be able to attend our face to face programs, is one way of helping to alleviate the shortage,” said Cavanna.

Beyond the opportunities M.S.T. will provide for NYC public schools, the online programs are designed for students unable to commute and partake in everyday, classroom-based learning. According to Cavanna, the programs are similar to face-to-face programs.

“Student will be able to attend online lectures, view simulations, participate in whole class and small group discussions and be part of in-class assignments by accessing the most up-to-date online instructional delivery methods,” said Cavanna.

He also said students will have the opportunity to speak separately to their professors in whole group, small group and individual

sessions, as well as have the chance to get to know other students in the program.

“Students will [also] participate in a capstone event, during which they will travel to the Fordham campus or another destination for a workshop session and the opportunity to meet their cohort members face to face,” said Cavanna.

The program’s current cohort, which is expected to begin during the summer session, is comprised of approximately 15 students and is currently accepting applications for Fall 2018.

According to Cavana, the school is currently receiving a large number of applications and has many quality candidates to expand both the face-to-face and online degree programs.

“We hope this program expands our mission to support underserved communities and provide all children with high quality educators who are able to address the academic, social [and] emotional needs of the students they serve.”

Board Member Donates $6 mil

FROM DONATION, PAGE 1

Hill and the other half is split for the board’s fundraising efforts and a general undergraduate scholarship.

“This is exactly the kind of generous gift I’d expect from Darlene and Jerry. It is designed to have maximum impact on the lives of Fordham students,” said Robert Daleo, Chairman of the Board of Trustees.

“From our day-to-day work on the Board of Trustees, I can tell you that Darlene has a deep connection to the University and its mission.”

Jordan has given to Fordham in large amounts over the past years, including a $750,000 donation in 2016 and an $18,000 gift in the year prior, according to public documents on her husband’s foundation.

Darlene Jordan is the executive director of the Gerald R. Jordan Foundation.

Jordan did not respond to a request for comment on her donation.

Most of the Gerald R. Jordan Foundation’s donations go to a number of organizations around

Page 5

Massachusetts, such as the state’s general hospital, local museums and Catholic education groups. The foundation’s most sizeable donation in 2016, though, went to Jordan’s alma mater, Fordham University.

After attending Fordham and working as a prosecutor in Massachusetts, Jordan has most recently worked on the inaugural committee for the Donald Trump campaign.

She was also the national finance chairwoman for Mitt Romney’s 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns.

Jordan was appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2012. “[The donation] creates opportunities for talented students of all socioeconomic backgrounds, including immigrants and new Americans,” said Roger A. Milici Jr., Fordham’s vice president for development and university relations.

“We are deeply grateful to Darlene and Jerry for their generosity and commitment to Fordham and its students.”

Pulitzer Winner Speaks on Years of Reporting

By JOE ESPOSITO FEATURES EDITOR

With 27 years of experience, Loretta Tofani, FCRH ’75, spoke to Fordham students on Monday evening about her path in the field of journalism. Tofani addressed her love of journalism as well as the scope of her career, from formative times as the first female editor-in-chief of The Fordham Ram, to her Pulitzer prize winning reporting at The Washington Post.

Tofani said she wanted to be a journalist since she was a child, as it seemed like a way to see the scope of the world.

“To me, journalism was a way to see the world, to see events, to interpret the world on my own, to really be out there,” she said.

She began her life as a journalist as an editor on her high school paper and continued on that path at Fordham. Turning down a full scholarship from another school, she said she chose Fordham because of its communications program and reputable campus newspaper. She said the Jesuit tradition was also important to her.

“I really admired the Jesuits,” she said. “I knew that there was rigor in their teaching and in their thinking.”

When Tofani came to Fordham, she immediately joined The Ram and wrote articles and took on different jobs there. She was a reporter, then an editor and finally the editor in-chief, the first woman to ever hold that position. She said her time at The Ram honed her journalistic skills.

“During all the countless hours of interviewing, writing, planning Ram issues with my colleagues and spending all-nighters at the printers, I practiced the skills and dedication involved in a career in journalism,” she said.

Tofani spent her summers doing reporting through various internships and jobs. These experiences helped her decide that

reporting and being out in the world was what she wanted to do.

After Fordham, she attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she got her Masters degree in journalism.

After that, she worked as an intern at The Washington Post, where she spent her summer filling in for reporters on the national staff covering hearings in Congress. This eventually led to her full-time job at The Post, where she worked for nine years. It was there that she covered many areas of the news, one such being courthouse proceedings. It was during her time on the courthouse beat that she found inspiration for her series, which won a Pulitzer Prize.

Working in the court house brought to her attention a problem in the prison system. Many men who were in jail, awaiting trial and unable to pay bond, were sexually assaulted in county jails.

Most of these men had not been

convicted of any crime, and most were later acquitted. Talking to many judges about this, Tofani was surprised to learn that this was a common problem.

“I was struck by the fact that this was being accepted as so normal,” she said.

After some hesitation by editors on The Washington Post to pursue the story herself, she finally found the opportunity to do so.

In nine months of work, she gathered information. She documented the sexual assaults, speaking to victims as well as perpetrators.

She obtained medical records.

Through her interviewing, she compiled all the details she needed to put together a series made up of 24 case studies which went on to win the Pulitzer Prize.

“As a result of the series, the jail cleaned up its act,” said Tofani.

The story also resulted in prison reform: prisons hired more guards, made cells more visible

and separated violent offenders from potential innocent inmates, according to Tofani.

However, after the Pulitzer, Tofani said she still had a desire to be a foreign correspondent as opposed to an investigative reporter.

“I became known as an investigative reporter, but really in my heart I wanted to do something else,” she said.

She was able to make these dreams a reality when she accepted an offer from The Philadelphia Inquirer to become the Beijing bureau chief. It was through this position that she traveled throughout Asia covering various stories.

“This was the highlight of my career,” she said.

Tofani said the transition to being a journalist in China was challenging since limits are placed on foreign journalists working there.

She recounted times in which Chinese authorities gave her trouble for not conducting interviews

KEVIN STOLTENBORG/THE FORDHAM RAM

Two editor-in-chief emeriti stand side by side: Erin Shanahan, FCRH ’18, and Loreta Tofani, FCRH ’75.

through the designated governmental office.

“China made me appreciate the freedom we journalists have in America,” she said.

She returned to China often after leaving The Inquirer in 2001, creating another award-winning series called “American Imports, Chinese Deaths.” This documented the fatal occupational diseases and limb amputations that the Chinese suffered making products for Americans.

“Throughout my best work, I’ve been able to raise implicit moral and ethical questions,” she said.

Tofani said her time at Fordham helped her raise these moral questions.

“My time at Fordham helped me be able to frame these questions and help me in some way actually be able to see these as stories,” she said.

Tofani offered her career advice to other Fordham students interested in the field of journalism, saying that getting initial experience at a publication is crucial.

“If you can get an internship, or better yet, a real job, take it,” she said.

Tofani said her time at The Ram was important to her, so she wanted to come back for its centennial speaker series.

“It was a very big part of my life being a part of The Ram, and I wanted to come back to Fordham to celebrate The Ram’s 100th anniversary,” she said.

Tereza Shkurtaj, FCRH ’21, said she found Tofani’s talk inspiring.

“I feel like it is very important that Fordham showcases more alumni like her [Tofani],” she said.

Erin Shanahan, editor in-chief emeritus, organized the event.

Bringing in a person of her caliber was a no-brainer, according to Shanahan.

“I hope students see how the Fordham Jesuit education helped her in the workforce,” she said.

NEWS

Page 6

April 11, 2018

A2J Program Connects Students with a Cause

By JOERGEN OSTENSEN ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Jeanine Botwe, LAW ’20, said she thought she knew what Rikers Island would be like. However, she said media depictions of prison did not prepare her for her visit to Rikers.

“Everyone thinks that they know what it feels to be behind bars, as we all tune into so many TV shows which depict life on the inside the ‘pen,’” Botwe said.

Botwe attended Rikers with Advocates for the Incarcerated (AFTI), which is a part of the law school’s Access to Justice initiative (A2J).

They were there to hold a “Know Your Rights” training program for the benefit of the inmates.

Botwe said her experience was nothing like what she had seen on television. She said some of the in-

mates reminded her of her friends growing up on the South Side of Chicago. Among them was a man who had been detained for two years awaiting trial. He said he was still hoping to attend his senior prom.

“It broke my heart to hear his fellow peers comment on how his dream of attending prom was unlikely,” Botwe said.

A2J, an initiative launched in the fall of 2016, aims to integrate access to legal help and the creation of a more just legal system further into the Fordham Law community through events, forums and academic research.

Matthew Diller, the dean of Fordham Law School, said access to justice had already been a theme within the law school, but A2J has helped to bring people together.

“It really brings those strands that are so important to the law school together, to help make a bigger impact

COURTESY OF FLICKR

Rikers Island, pictured above, sits between Queens and the Bronx.

and a more coordinated effort,” Diller said.

Megan Keating, LAW ’20, was one of the other students to visit the prison. Keating said she had visited other jails and prisons, but Rikers was a surreal and gut-wrenching experience for her.

“It is isolated from the city, literally built on top of an old landfill, and feels almost like a different planet,” Keating said.

Keating said A2J is part of the reason she decided to attend law school. Visiting Rikers made her more focused on her goal of becoming a lawyer.

“Sometimes I forget that being a student now means being a lawyer in a couple of years, and the visit to Rikers reminded me of that,” she said. “Experiential learning is essential to legal education, because being in a classroom can only teach you so much about being a lawyer.”

This semester, both Botwe and Keating helped A2J put on a forum on the controversial prison.

Jonathan Lippman, the former chief judge of the state of New York and now one of the leaders of A2J at Fordham Law, said Rikers is a problematic symbol within the justice system.

“Rikers Island is a symbol of everything that is wrong with criminal justice in New York City and around the country,” Lippman said.

The forum, which was planned with the help of students, brought together the leading actors in the debate surrounding the prison and was based around Bill Moyers’ recent documentary “Rikers: An American Jail,” according to Diller.

The forum was moderated by Scott Pelley of CBS News.

Events like the Rikers forum are not directly advocacy work, according to Diller. The goal is to foster a productive conversation.

“A lot of what we do is supporting

[and] convening advocates, pulling together information and resources for them. So a lot of it is supporting advocacy efforts,” Diller said.

Lippman said he decided to be a part of the initiative because he thought that Fordham Law has the potential to inspire change.

“Fordham as a law school, is perfectly positioned to provide a lot of scholarship, research [and] policy driven efforts,” Lippman said.

The amount of student involvement reflects the concern Fordham Law students have for the issue of criminal justice reform, according to Diller.

“Criminal justice reform is an issue of great concern to our students as it is a broader issue in our society,” Diller said.

Botwe said that participation in the forum has benefited her education.

“Advocating and educating others gives you a sense of purpose as a law student,” she said.

Lippman said the forums serve to bring important people on the issue of justice reform together from around the country, including the chief justices of Texas and Florida.

“We need to compare notes and see what the best practices are and then publicize those practices,” he said.

There is a real chance that positive change can come out of the movement for greater access to justice, according to Lippman.

“I think that access to justice has a great deal of momentum around the country. There is so much activism in the country today. This is a moment to have…justice in every sense of that word,” he said.

Students have been involved in the development of potential alternatives to the current system as well.

Currently, three second-year law students who are part of the Stein Scholars program are spending the

entire semester working on a paper to re-evaluate the methods of legal service providers so that they can better serve people of lower socioeconomic status.

Milan Sova, who is one of those students, said the goal is to create a way for legal providers to serve multiple needs for each clients. Sova said the reason for this is because one legal problem can set off a domino effect that can lead to other issues.

“We’re trying to think of ways where legal service providers can not only tackle the one issue, such as housing, but can also work with clients to make them have more stability in their lives,” said Sova.

Vickram Paul, another student, said the goal is to show that the traditional model of direct service where a client receives help on a singular legal issue needs to be re-evaluated.

He said that the same people who need help with housing disputes may also require assistance with immigration or access to the public benefits they are entitled to. Beyond that, they may require help from a social worker because of something like domestic violence.

Their paper is a part of the work National Center for Access to Justice, which is housed at Fordham.

Paul is hopeful that it will help lead to policy reform.

“Our paper is the first step in what will hopefully become policy reform on a citywide level in New York affecting the way legal and non-legal services are provided,” he said.

These programs are connected to the Jesuit value of serving others, according to Diller. He said that they are integral to Fordham as a Jesuit institution.

“Our commitment to service, which is at the core of Fordham Law School really flows from the core Jesuit values of the university and those values inform everything that we do,” he said.

Speakers Break Barriers at USG TedX FROM TEDX, PAGE 1

GSB Dean’s Council. “We wanted to have a talk that addressed these barriers that we have in our lives and wanted the basis of the talk to be about how we overcome the different barriers in society.”

According to D’Antone, the process of developing last year’s TEDxFordham helped lay the groundwork for this year’s event.

“Having handled the logistics of registering through TED before and having run a large event, we were able to have a better perspective of what truly goes into planning a TED talk,” said D’Antone. “We were thankful to be able to work with USG and the FCRH Dean’s Council again this year.”

In order to identify speakers for the event, GSB Dean’s Council began a running list of alumni and other professionals. Once word of the event spread, presenters reached out to the council for the opportunity to speak to the student body.

Jennifer Gardella, a Fordham alumnus, was one such presenter.

She said that after she realized she had a message to share, she reached out to Fordham for a venue to share it. Her talk centered on breaking down barriers in the context of a divorce.

“We broke down that barrier of what a divorce should look like, and instead were very peaceful co-parents for our children,” said Gardella in an interview before her presentation.

Her ex-husband later passed away after an 82-day battle with cancer. This further impressed on Gardella the significance of maintaining a friendly relationship, particularly for the sake of their family.

“My talk is about building peace and the friendship that we had, and how important that is for our kids,” said Gardella.

She said she hoped to communicate to students the importance of breaking down the barriers in their own relationships.

“Living with all that conflict is exhausting,” said Gardella. “If you lay down the sword and stop fighting, if you get your heart right, you can have a lot of peace and probably inspire others to have a lot of peace as well.”

Likewise, D’Antone said the GSB Dean’s Council hoped students attending the talk would be able to relate to the presentations and be educated by the speakers.

“Although the theme is different this year, we entered with the same goal: to have an educational talk where students can listen to thoughtful presentations and discuss relevant

topics in the present world,” said D’Antone.

Other speakers took different angles toward the topic of breaking down barriers. Patricia David spoke on the expansion of the model of diversity in the business world, so that the term encompasses both “inherent and acquired” diversity.

“To maximize the model, we need to redefine diversity,” David said in her talk, the third of the evening.

Mary Kohl, FCRH ’20, said she appreciated the balance between a business and a personal narrative that David achieved.

“I really enjoyed the third speaker and how she talked about the differences between diversity and integration in the workplace, and the importance of bringing everyone’s strengths and networks together to achieve a common, greater goal,” said Kohl.

Other students, such as Inès Pagop, GSB ’20, were attracted to the talk by the theme itself.

“I went because I like to watch TED talks online, so I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to go to one,” said Pagop. “And the theme was intriguing to me. It made me want to hear about the speakers’ experiences.”

Ultimately, D’Antone said she

wanted the talk to encourage Fordham students to break down barriers in their own lives.

“Fordham enables us to grow as well-rounded individuals,” said

D’Antone. “I hope that this talk highlights how hard we work as Fordham students to not let the different barriers of today’s society get in the way of fostering our development.”

KEVIN STOLTENBORG/THE FORHDAM RAM

USG hosted TEDx, where speakers addressed the theme of breaking barriers.

NEWS

April 11, 2018

Page 7

USG Candidates Take the Stage to Debate FROM USG, PAGE 1

at Fordham.

Coughlin rooted her focus in better recycling practices. “We are really lacking compared to other schools. Over half of our waste goes to the landfill,” said Coughlin, a reducetarian and vegan. “We throw too much away.”

Ashley Qamar, GSB ’20, candidate for Vice President of Student Life and Class Senator is running against Selin Berberoglu, FCRH ’19 for Vice President of Student Life.

Qamar, GSB ’20, is focused on promoting diversity and hopes to strengthen the connection between local high schools to form a larger community and support system. She also proposed that Fordham have some of its masses in Spanish in order to encourage community relations within the Bronx.

“Fordham University is to the Bronx what the Forbidden City is to China,” said Qamar.

Berberoglu is a commuter with a focus on increasing commuterfriendly events on campus.

“We feel like we just go to class and then go home,” said Berberog-

lu who wants to provide greater commuter accessibility to campus clubs and events.

Beyond this, a range of topics were covered. Bridging the gap between the university and the Bronx community was at the forefront of issues discussed.

Both freshman candidates Carsyn Fisher, FCRH ’21 and Carlos Rico, FCRH ‘21 advocated for better community relations between the Fordham community and the Bronx.

“I want to work to repair the power dynamic that lies in separation between us and the surrounding community,” said Fisher.

Rico emphasized his appreciation for the Urban Plunge program which he credited his happiness at Fordham to moving in early for the program.

“Every time people ask me, ‘Why come to Fordham?’ I bring up the Urban Plunge.” Rico said this aided him in exploring what it means to be a white-passing Latino male.

Roderick Perez, GSB ’20 discussed “Bridging the Gap”, the popular slogan that has circulated around USG this past year. Perez

addressed that the notion of a gap exists between Fordham students and administration, Fordham students and USG and Fordham College of Rose Hill and the Gabelli School of Business, as well as Fordham as an institution and the Bronx community as a whole.

Olivia Quartell, FCRH ‘21, VP of Operations, also called for bridging the gap, specifically between the university and the Bronx community.

“I think a lot of the time we look to Manhattan when really there’s a lot of this going on in the Bronx.

I know that we do a lot with Special Olympics in Manhattan but we do not involve the Bronx and I’m working to change that,” said Quartell.

Quartell mentioned various coalitions and initiatives she hopes to work with in the Bronx such as the Bronx Volunteer Coalition, Sustainable South Bronx, and Bronx Hot Sauce, a local and sustainable hot sauce company run by Bronx residents.

Students also voiced concerns for greater amenities and facilities on campus. Alexander He, FCRH ’21, said he hopes to be a part of

an initiative that will help to install water bottle filling stations in dorms.

“Some initiatives will take several years so a younger candidate would be beneficial,” said Perez, speaking on behalf of freshmen candidates.

Some of the candidates also advocated for improvements within the Fordham curriculum including a mentorship program for Gabelli proposed by Amanda D’Antone, GSB ’19, Vice President of GSB. Debra Chieco, candidate for senator, FCRH ’21, called for a “mentorship program between under and upperclassmen for people who are undecided.”

Patrick Fox, FCRH ’20, senator, advocated for increased opportunities for humanities majors.

“I want to increase opportunities for research especially for non science majors,” said Fox. “I’ve noticed that Gabelli students have an easier time finding internships at career fairs and I want to change that.”

Some of the candidates also addressed problems within USG itself.

Mae Symmonds, FCRH ’20,

voiced concerns that only two people are running unopposed while Kaylee Wong, FCRH ’20, executive vice president and Connor Sullivan, FCRH ’20, executive president discussed their concern, as the executive ticket, that USG is not inclusive.

“Once you are on USG you have the tendency to think that everyone knows what you’re doing,” said Wang.

Brian Reardon, FCRH ’18, president of USG asked Sullivan and Wong how they plan to creatively discuss issues with the administration while accurately communicating to the student body.

“I think it’s important to have a certain level of empathy to understand both sides because it’s never good to go into a situation being so over something or closed off to hearing what the other person has to say,” said Sullivan. “I don’t think that qualifies as good leadership.”

The vote for Vice President of Sustainability and Vice President of Student Life opens at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, April 10 and closes at 5 p.m. on Friday, April 13.

Axelrod Speaks on His Career in Politics

By ANDREW SEGER

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

David Axelrod is known in the streets of Washington D.C. and across the country for his lightheartedness, his sense of humor and his decades of public service.

Axelrod has committed himself to working alongside politicians who he believes share his vision of steering America in the right direction.

Perhaps most notable of those is former President Barack Obama.

“The first ad I ever did for Barack Obama,” Axelrod recalled to a packed Keating classroom Monday evening, “finished with him saying ‘They say we can’t change Washington? I’m Barack Obama, and I approve this message to say yes we can.’”

But Obama, then running to represent Illinois in the United States Senate, was not keen on the campaign ad Axelrod had drafted.

“He finished the script,” Axelrod continued, “and he said ‘Gee, yes we can? Is that too corny?’”

Axelrod’s anecdote was met with laughter from the room packed with politics junkies. His talk, hosted by the Fordham College Democrats, focused on not only the broader successes and struggles of his journey alongside Obama, but also the sometimes-intimate and often-funny moments they shared.

He explained that Obama wanted to ensure that every aspect of his campaign was authentic and built from the ground up, and one corny line could have cost him the race.

In the end, he stuck with the ad. He won the race.

“This line summed up everything we wanted to say about our campaign,” Axelrod said. “It was about us and not him. It talked about what was possible.”

Obama went on to greater successes in his 2008 and 2012 presidential elections. Axelrod was there for all of it.

He is a husband and the father of three children, the first of whom

was diagnosed with epilepsy in 1982. His daughter Lauren was seven months old when she had her first seizure.

“My wife found her blue and limp in her crib,” Axelrod said. “She thought she had died.”

After rushing to the hospital, Lauren recovered but still suffered 10 seizures a day after being released a month later.

“Subsequent to that, I found out that my insurance wouldn’t cover her medications,” said Axelrod.

“And her medications, because we were trying so many different things, were so expensive to the point that, at one point, I was paying $1000 a month out of pocket while making $38,000 a year.”

Ensuring access to affordable healthcare became an issue Axelrod said he kept close to his heart throughout his career. He first met Obama in 1992, when the future first black president was a civil rights attorney and professor straight out of law school. By then, Axelrod said he had filled his résumé with years of experience in political consulting, campaign management and news reporting.

The two hit it off as friends, and Axelrod played a key role in Obama’s successful campaigns for state and federal offices. He was the Senior Strategist behind both of Obama’s presidential campaigns, and he was appointed Senior Advisor to the president, an office he held from 2009-2011. He counseled the president on issues in all fields for those years in office, but he says the two saw their greatest success in the passing of the Affordable Care Act in 2009 after a grueling 10-month battle through Congress.

“I’m reminded of that particular day all the time,” Axelrod said.

He told students about the many Americans who approach him to thank him for their lives. Axelrod explained how deeply important it was to him to help other families struggling like he and his wife, Su-

san, did decades before.

“The opportunity to be a part of something like that— it’s pretty big,” he said.

It was March 21, 2010 when the final votes were cast in the United States House of Representatives that would send the Affordable Care Act to the President’s desk.

“We were all in the Roosevelt Room,” Axelrod said, “right across from the Oval Office. And everybody who worked on the issue was there. It was a joyous occasion.”

In spite of the atmosphere, Axelrod said he got up and left the room to head to his own office. He heard the cheers next-door as the gavel fell to finalize the vote, but he found himself instead in tears.

“I knew that because of what he had done, and because of what we had done to help him and because of what so many people had done to help elect him,” Axelrod said, “that there are families that wouldn’t have to go through what my family had gone through. They wouldn’t know that terror, that uncertainty we felt trying to keep our little girl alive.”

Axelrod told students that to him, to President Obama and to the act’s many supporters, it was always about the people.

“That was about grabbing the wheel and steering it in a better direction,” he said.

He said he shared the story to remind students to look beyond the skepticism many have towards politicians in D.C. He said that party politics aside, Republicans and Democrats must find some common ground to do their jobs.

“We ought to agree that we should do what we can to try and deal with some of these problems that we can’t, as individuals, deal with alone,” he said. “That’s what this process is all about.”

Axelrod was well received by members of the Fordham Democrats. President Eleanor Werner, FCRH ’18, said it has been a goal of hers since freshman year to get him to Fordham.

“I am very interested in politics and want to eventually run for political office, so I have always admired the work that David Axelrod did to help elect President Obama,”

she said. “He has had such a diverse career, fighting for progressive issues and candidates and I think he has a lot to share about his journey and what he has learned.”

Vice President Sophia Macaster, FCRH ’19, said Axelrod’s talk resonated with a lot of today’s politics.

“We need to focus on the issues that matter — the ones that will improve the lives of Americans,” she said.

Looking forward, Axelrod left Fordham’s students with a call to action.

“There’s a jaundice about government and whether politics can actually produce answers,” he said.

“But Congress is going to meet with or without you.”

He said students need not switch to political science and pursue a career in public office to see their concerns addressed. Rather, he said voting, campaigning and working on a local level are crucial to American democracy.

Since his time in office, Axelrod launched The Axe Files podcast and appears on CNN as a senior political commentator.

KEVIN STOLTENBORG/THE FORHDAM RAM

David Axelrod, pictured above, spoke to Fordham about his time in office and work in politics.

OPINION

Page 8

April 11, 2018

The Fordham Ram

Being Gay Is Normal, Not A Headline

COURTESY OF FLICKR

Members of the LGBTQ+ community should be celebrated not merely for coming out, but mainly for their achiements.

By ISIAH MAGSINO STAFF WRITER

My involvement in fashion often eclipses my involvement with athletics. Everyday I trade in a pinstriped Ralph Lauren double blazer and slim cat-eye sunglasses for a maroon training Speedo and goggles (not that I wear the pinstriped blazer everyday). But I’ve been a competitive swimmer since I was twelve and I have continued the sport to the collegiate Division 1 level. My prolonged interest in athletics has ultimately been translated into my interest in the Olympic Games.

The Olympic Games create historical moments. In the recent Winter Olympic Games that took place in PyeongChang, South Korea, Team USA’s freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy made history with a moment that received plenty of media coverage This moment did not entail a won medal or groundbreaking performance, but a televised kiss of Gus and his boyfriend. Kenworthy’s

claim to fame and the media attention on a shared kiss by two gay men does not normalize homosexuality and is rather another example of how being a white, decent-looking, heteronormative man equals privilege.

The Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea were incredibly unique. The United States’ athletes did not only medal, but made history. Mirai Nagasu was crowned as the first American female figure skater to land a triple axel in the Olympic Games. Alex Shibutani and Maia Shibutani were noticed as being the first American sibling duo to share an Olympic medal, according to CBS. I am not at all discrediting Kenworthy’s hard work as an athlete and shaming him only because he came up short from getting a medal.

Again, I understand the time and effort that goes into being an athlete.

But it makes me uncomfortable to see how much more attention Kenworthy is getting over medaling

Olympians because of his sexuality and looks.

For many years, the LGBTQ+ community has fought aggressively for social acceptance. I remember watching the news as gay marriage was legalized and feeling incredibly emotional.

I remember moving to New York City for college and going to my first pride parade and feeling incredibly welcomed. I’ve had my share, just like any other LGBTQ+ member, of torment and insecurity, and I understand the community’s struggle with acceptance thoroughly.

However, the media constantly highlighting when someone is, or comes out, as gay, lesbian, etc. is more detrimental than helpful. Kenworthy won no medals at the games and it’s hard to argue against the fact that his media attention is solely based off of his sexual orientation.

Take a step back: being a heteronormative, straight, white male is easily the most privileged demographic in society. But if you think about it,

there were plenty of white, straight, heteronormative males that took part in the 2018 Winter Olympics that have attained a far less amount of media attention than Kenworthy has. Kenworthy was only able to capitalize on the media coverage because of his openly gay status, and without this label, Kenworthy would sit at the same lower media level of his other teammates.

Focusing on one’s sexuality does not “normalize” anything, but contributes to distinguishing gays from everyone else. It forces another label onto a group of people which separates them from a “normal” society.

There are complaints of why people within the LGBTQ+ community still have to “come out” to the world, but the media highlighting one’s sexuality only continues the act of “coming out.” Being gay should not be news and would not be news if it was authentically seen as normal.

Some may argue that Kenworthy’s sexuality is groundbreaking because he’s also an Olympic athlete, taking away from the societal assumption that one cannot be gay and athletic.

However, the glamourous medalearning figure skater, Adam Rippon, does the job adequately. Also, what about Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe? Thorpe won the most medals by any Australian in an Olympic game and later came out as gay (Hart) and has yet to receive his Out Magazine cover spread.

Not only does the attention on Gus Kenworthy represent the detrimental implications of the media highlighting one’s sexuality, but also exemplifies how being white and heteronormative has its advantages in the gay community. The gay

community, because of its long history of oppression in society, is still obsessed with this standard of being “attractive.” People became Kenworthy die hard fans only because of his looks, creating a superficial following. To people outside of the LGBTQ+ community, Kenworthy is deemed “valuable” because he abides by a heteronormative standard. Kenworthy has the advantage in both worlds which adds on to how easily he was able to capitalize on his sexuality without having to win a medal at the Olympic Games.

Athletes train extremely hard to attend the Olympic Games and to compete well. Kenworthy becoming famous without winning a medal at the Olympic Games but instead by being gay arguably dismisses the work of other athletes, as they may not have received the same amount of media attention.

As a gay man, it is important to me that my sexuality never defines who I am as a person. Growing up and hearing, “Oh, yeah, Isiah, the gay guy,” was never something that I wanted to follow me through the rest of my life because it made me feel limited. If the LGBTQ+ community truly wants to move in the direction of equality within society, then it must stop feeding into the media’s narrative that coming out as “gay” is groundbreaking news.

Until then, the dry headlines reading “50 celebrities that came out as gay this year” will continue on and the LGBTQ+ community will remain stagnant in efforts to be normalized within society.

Isiah Magsino, FCRH ’19, is a communications and culture major from Las Vegas, Nevada.

In Defense of the Necessity Defense

By ROBIN HAPPEL STAFF WRITER

When many of us read Thoreau in high school, it was hard to imagine that his warbling over songbirds and squirrels would someday center in heated legal battles. Nevertheless, Thoreau’s “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience” forms part of the argument behind the “necessity defense,” a landmark precedent in environmental law. In keeping with his principles of passive resistance, those who follow in its footsteps claim that it is better to be jailed than live an unjust life. (In the words of one pipeline protester, “I’m just more afraid of climate change than I am of prison.”)

Thoreau’s view of what we owe to each other was centered on the abolition of slavery, but since his famous night in jail, this philosophy has expanded to include everything from CIA actions overseas to sabotaging oil and gas rigs. In common law today, the “necessity defense” describes an individual’s sense that following the law causes more harm than breaking it. Although commonly used in more straightforward cases of self-defense, the necessity defense may also be ap-

COURTESY OF OWEN CORRIGAN

Though the necessity defense is not a common legal argument, it is employed by many young protesters.

plied to more amorphous societal harm. Almost unique within the American court system, this defense allows the accused to flip the script and interrogate their accusers.

Perhaps most famously, in 1987 students at U Mass successfully “put the CIA on trial,” much as activists today seek to put Big Oil on trial. By the late 1980’s, student resistance to Reagan’s foreign policy had reached a fever pitch, and students staged an illegal sit-in to protest CIA recruitment on campus.

Amy Carter, daughter of the former president, and 13 other pro-

testors were acquitted after arguing that they were morally required to oppose the CIA’s alleged abuses abroad. Although the Reagan administration’s reign of interventionism would continue, their victory was still a powerful blow to the status quo. In pushing the necessity defense, activists bravely battled the CIA in an age when such a legal strategy was almost unheard of.

In an almost eerie parallel to the U Mass case, 13 activists, including Karenna Gore, daughter of the former vice president, were recently acquitted following an antifracking protest. Arguing under the

same Massachusetts standard, they claimed that climate change created a moral imperative to oppose oil and gas expansion. Although it is unclear, as in Amy Carter’s case, if this was really the argument the judge found most persuasive, it still sets a powerful precedent. In the words of environmentalist Bill McKibben, such a victory “may be a first in America.” Although judges have previously allowed necessity defenses to be heard, such decisive victories are rare and not without risk, as defendants in similar cases have been threatened with up to a decade in prison. Notably, Leonard

Higgins, the almost 70-year-old grandfather who managed to temporarily sabotage over 10 percent of U.S. oil imports, was recently given a suspended sentence. Although his gamble in attempting a necessity defense largely paid off, some of his associates were not so lucky, with at least one sentenced to several years in jail. Judges across the country also vary widely in their willingness to hear a necessity defense, with more conservative courtrooms telling a jury to disregard such claims, or even banning such arguments entirely.

While the necessity defense is still a relatively rare legal argument, this latest decision signals perhaps something of a sea change in the courts.

Much as the U Mass case marked student activists as a force to be reckoned with, perhaps this latest precedent will prove that climate change truly can be fought through the courts. It is up to all of to define for ourselves what is necessary and how far we would go to peacefully protest.

Robin Happel, FCRH ’19, is an environmental studies major from Jonesborough, Tennessee.

OPINION

April 11, 2018

Page 9

Tarriff Tensions Must Subside for Both Parties

By ANTONIA VANZINI STAFF WRITER

The risks of a trade war between China and the U.S. are increasing, especially after President Trump’s decision to introduce a new tariff on steel and aluminium imports in early March.

China’s response came soon afterward. A tweet from the People’s Daily, an English-language news organization controlled by the Chinese government, reported that: “China imposes tariffs on 128 items of imports from the U.S. including pork and fruit products starting Monday as a countermeasure in response to a previous U.S. move to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.”

This action is what economists call retaliation: a nation’s direct reaction to a trading partner’s restrictive measure that results in the economic world being worse off after this decision than it was before.

What should President Trump do to prevent U.S. producers from losing their profits at the expense of the Chinese counterpart?

First of all, a formal meeting between U.S. representatives and Xi Jinping, the Chinese leader, could be an initial solution.

Instead of continuously introducing new direct restrictions and barriers to international trade, diplomatic confrontations could lead to multilateral agreements.

These agreements would avoid

all the negative consequences of retaliation-that, in most cases, result from this lack of direct political confrontations.

Moreover, the president should ask his advisers to create a dispute resolution mechanism: a process that would address large-scale conflicts and hopefully offer a revolution in the form of a mutual trade agreement.

After this new tariff on imported steel and aluminium products, China would preferentially purchase those goods from South America, Europe or elsewhere, rather than from our national exporters. An approach totally in favor of protectionism as Trump’s decision seems like would not be successful. Protectionist measures can effectively reduce levels of national unemployment and cure deficits in a nation’s balance of payments.

However, this course of action is only successful if the trading partner does not retaliate, As evident by the country’s imposition of the tariff on pork and fruit.

This course of action is not what we should expect from the Chinese government and the Chinese Minister of Finance.

The president should adopt a more consistent and clear plan: as we all know, he changed his mind several times on the matter of trade policy.

During the 2016 political campaign, he used a populist trade rhetoric and called for the im-

COURTESY OF TWITTER

In order for the U.S. to come out victorious in this tarriff/trade war, President Trump must consider the U.S. labor force.

plementation of U.S. trade laws that could enhance international growth and economic interdependence among trading countries.

From what we can see now, he is adopting a completely different strategy with China by supporting protectionism and the creation of tighter trade barriers.

He should find a way to protect domestic economy from worldwide competition while also engaging in international free trade.

Finally, we should consider the consequences that ending trade with China would surely have.

Although data confirm, as President Trump says that the U.S. would undoubtedly win a trade war with China financially, the decision of applying further bar-

riers to trade would negatively impact U.S. producers and consumers.

According to The Washington Post Exports to the Chinese market represent 0.6 PERCENT of the U.S. GDP, so export restraints to the Middle Eastern partner would not largely impact the total value of the American gross domestic product.

Ending this economic partnership would not hurt our economy if we don’t analyze past figures and values; if we go deeper, we understand that economics is not just a matter of numbers. In fact, when we start analyzing the national market, we immediately see how a reduction in the total amount of exports would cause job losses and higher prices for

consumers.

Any political measure in the economic sector should take into account the impact on the subjects that make economic transactions possible: people. Chinese trade policies have led to the closure of 60,000 factories and the loss of six million jobs in the United States alone, according to The Washington Post.

If the president gave more importance to the human side of the matter, he would not believe protectionism to be the only possible way to solve it.

Antonia Vanzini, from Catholic University of Sacred Heart, is an International Relations and Languages major from Milan, Italy.

Tino’s Takes | Faustino Galante

Trump v. Daniels: A Storm Worth Chasing In July of 2006, adult film star, Stormy Daniels allegedly met President Donald J. Trump at a charity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe.

According to Daniels, Trump, who was married at the time and expecting his fifth child invited the actress to dinner and took her back to his hotel room after. Though Trump and his lawyers have “vehemently” denied it, Daniels has publically claimed that she and Trump had sex in the room.

Lately, the Trump-Daniels affair has received a great deal of media attention. This past January, The Washington Post published an expose which detailed allegations that, prior to the 2016 election, Trump’s legal team supposedly paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 to sign a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) regarding the alleged affair. Following the report, Trump and his team completely denied its credibility. More recently, amid threats from Daniels and her lawyers, Trump’s attorney, Michael Cohen, revealed that he, from his own pocket, funded the agreement prior to the election and without Mr. Trump’s knowledge.

In the midst of growing coverage concerning the affair, many people have argued that the media attention is not necessary. Columnists such as Dahleen Glanton of The Chicago Tribune have noted that focusing on the topic simply distracts Americans from focusing on more important issues. Media outlets such as Fox News have report-

edly “shelved” the story and tried their best to not utter the words “Trump” and “porn star” in the same sentence while on air. The recent stories regarding the suspected affair, however, are important. The alleged actions of Trump and his legal team are reminiscent of a coverup, one which may have potentially breached our country’s legal code.

Trump’s supposed activities are both hypocritical and lack a high degree of moral character.

As mentioned above, following The Washington Post’s initial report on the incident, the president and his legal team denied any connection between Trump and Daniels.

The White House condemned the media for using “old, recycled reports” and refuted the validity of this story. Trump’s lawyers also made sure to disavow any notion of a nondisclosure agreement existing between the two parties.

While Trump’s people may have been under the impression that this new approach would serve as a way to resolve the situation, it has actually made it worse. Because Trump and his team have constantly flipflopped in the ways in which they respond to reports, it is evident that an immoral encounter between our president and Stormy Daniels did indeed occur.

Furthermore, by mentioning that the NDA did exist, it becomes apparent that Trump tried to cover up the issue. The argument that Cohen constructed and funded

the agreement without Trump’s knowledge or money is ludicrous.

Trump by nature, is a micromanager. It is highly unlikely that he never paid his attorney back such a large sum of money. If Cohen is being genuine and signed the NDA without the president’s approval and signature, the document would be invalid and Daniels would have no reason to want to abolish it. The stories simply do not add up.

If the president was aware of this NDA and funded it, he could have committed a crime. In the words of Trevor Potter, president of the Campaign Legal Center, if an NDA such as this one has been signed on Trump’s behalf, it would be “a coordinated, illegal, in-kind contribution by Cohen for the purpose of influencing an election.” Trump may have covered this embarrassing and decadent scandal. And it is without a doubt that Americans should hold him accountable. Furthermore, the actions taken by Trump and his legal team may have been borderline illegal. We should recognize this potential and speak up against the president.

The ways in which the president and his lawyers have tried to cover up this scandal is alarming.

It is, however, also important to recognize the stipulations involved if Trump and Daniels did indeed fornicate. If the accusations are true, Trump is a hypocrite who has consistently demonstrated a lack of moral character. During his elec-

COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

Trump’s affair with Stormy Daniels reflects poorly on his reputation.

tion campaign, Trump condemned the husband of his opponent Hillary Clinton, former President Bill Clinton, for having been involved in extramarital affairs. If the president did indeed sleep with Stormy Daniels in 2006, he would be going against his own publicly stated moral code.

The president should be held accountable for his treatment of women. A president serves as a role model for Americans. An individual who degrades women and cheats on his pregnant wife has no business being in the Oval Office.

If the above allegations are true, Trump’s reputation would be absolutely tarnished. For this reason,

it is vital that we take these accusations against our president seriously. Our country must thoroughly investigate and take the allegations into consideration.

Objectively, most would agree that an individual who partakes in questionable cover-ups, pretends to respect women and has allegedly cheated on their wife is a corrupt person.

If Trump did indeed engage in sinful activities with Stormy Daniels and worked to hide it, America should hold him accountable. For this reason, citizens of the United States must recognize the importance of the accusations at hand.

OPINION

Page 10

R

Serving the Fordham University campus and community since 1918 The Fordham Ram is the university journal of record. The mission of The Fordham Ram is to provide a forum for the free and open exchange of ideas in service to the community and to act as a student advocate. The Fordham Ram is published and distributed free of charge every Wednesday during the academic year to the Rose Hill, Lincoln Center and Westchester campuses with a readership of over 12,000 and a web readership of over 300,000. The Fordham Ram office is located in the basement of the McGinley Center, room B-52.

Website FordhamRam.com Email Address theram@fordham.edu

Editor-in-Chief Theresa Schliep Managing Editor Taylor Shaw Business Director James Haranzo Operations Director Jack McLoone Editorial and Multimedia Director Bailey Hosfelt Copy Chief Lindsay Grippo Assistant Copy Chief Colette Nolan Assistant Business Director Daniel Coleman News Editor Aislinn Keely Assistant News Editors Erica Scalise Hannah Gonzalez Joergen Ostensen Features Editors Helen Stevenson Joseph Esposito Opinion Editors Briana Scalia Christopher Canadeo Culture Editors Isha Khawaja Ryan Di Corpo Sports Editor Jack McLoone Assistant Sports Editors Emmanuel Berbari Jimmy Sullivan Multimedia Producers Charlie Maisano Tom Terzulli Digital Producers Kristen Egan Erin Clewell Photo Editors Julia Comerford Kevin Stoltenborg Faculty Advisor Beth Knobel Editorial Page Policy The Fordham Ram’s editorial is selected on a weekly basis and reflects the editorial board’s view on a campus issue.

Opinions Policy The Fordham Ram appreciates submissions to fordhamramopinions@ gmail.com. Commentaries are printed on a space available basis. The Fordham Ram reserves the right to reject any submission for any reason, without notice. Submissions become the exclusive property of The Fordham Ram .

The Fordham Ram reserves the right to edit any submissions. The opinions in The Fordham Ram ’s editorials are those of the editorial board; those expressed in articles, letters, commentaries, cartoons or graphics are those of the individual author. No part of The Fordham Ram may be reproduced without written consent.

April 11, 2018

From the Desk | Jimmy Sullivan

The Toxicity of Our Politics On Monday, the President of the United States described an FBI raid as “an attack on our country.” Sadly, no one batted an eyelash.

Those words are appropriate for terrorist attacks, mass shootings and acts of war that take place on American soil. On Monday afternoon, the FBI raided the office of Michael Cohen, the president’s lead attorney, in relation to his business records related to porn star Stormy Daniels.

Daniels is suing the president over a non-disclosure agreement that he didn’t sign after the two supposedly had an “intimate” relationship after Trump married his current wife, Melania.

The FBI also wanted documents relating to Russia’s potential meddling in the 2016 presidential election. And, most importantly, the agency obtained a warrant when it did all of these things Monday.

That’s not an attack on our country.

That’s the FBI doing its job.

Sadly, our president’s comments (which also included another public rebuke of his own attorney general) are emblematic of a larger problem in America. Our politics — and more specifically, our discussions of them — are toxic. Actually, they can more accurately be described as a cesspool.

We disavow friends and even family members if they have different beliefs than we do. We don’t listen to each other. We yell at each other without even understanding what the other person’s position is.

And, worst of all, we listen to re-

spond and offer a rebuttal to our interlocutors instead of listening to understand where they come from and why they think the way they do.

This problem is not a Democrat or Republican one. It’s an American problem.

Unfortunately, our elections have also become about who can yell the loudest and who can lob the best insults at the other side. No longer do we elect leaders based on their intelligence and fitness for their jobs.

There is human proof of this trend in the White House, and chances are he’s in the residence watching cable television right now.

If you really think that Trump was elected because he was the best person out of 320 million Americans to be our president, then I offer you these words he actually tweeted after his unprecedented 2016 election victory: “China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act.”

This tweet shows that we do not value intelligence, contemplation and nuance in American society any longer.

Here’s a fun exercise: watch CNN for 10 minutes on any weeknight.

There will likely be a panel discussion the size of the last supper, and many of the panelists will scream at each other at the same time. But, most importantly, there will likely be one conservative voice on that panel, and that individual will likely be struck down very quickly. This per-

son will not have a chance to further extrapolate his or her points beyond an initial statement, and if said analyst is a Trump supporter, then he or she is really in deep trouble.

Of course, if you turn on Fox News and you see a liberal, chances are that person is engaged in a shouting match with Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity or the woman who told LeBron James to “shut up and dribble.”

Here’s another problem with what is going on today: in addition to choosing their own sides, people now choose their own facts, as well.

If you decide to watch Fox News as a respite from the garbage being thrown around on other networks, you will find multiple segments devoted to a “deep state” within our government that is somehow serving to undermine President Trump.

This, of course, is not true; there is an entirely legitimate FBI investigation going on right now as to whether a foreign country compromised our elections, to say nothing of a porn star suing the president.

The left is not innocent here, either; many on that side have a predetermined outcome in mind for that investigation, which does not appear close to a conclusion.

I say all of this not as an elitist snob, but as an independent, concerned citizen living in the greatest country in the world. We, as a nation, have gone to the zoo of believing what we want to believe and pointing blind vitriol at the other side, regardless of what they

are actually saying. We need to put our own opinions aside and listen to others, regardless of whether or not they share our beliefs. This is a legitimate problem for obvious reasons, and it also opens the door for unqualified people to reach positions of power like Donald Trump did in the 2016 presidential election.

Of course, social media has exacerbated this problem as well. We can call people we don’t even know every insult in the book without having to face any real-world consequences from doing so.

This problem is something we need to figure out, not just for the 2018 Midterm elections, but alsomoving forward. As a famous TV president once said, “Decisions are made by those who show up.” Let’s show up in seven months. Let’s be smart. And let’s not blindly cast a vote for an inexperienced, unqualified individual because he or she happens to be on our side of the issues.

Editorial | USG Elections

Fordham Administration Must Value Student Leaders

This year, only one pair of candidates is running on the executive ticket for United Student Government (USG) President and Vice President. Across the board, most candidates are running uncontested. Six out of eight of the Vice President positions are without any competition.

The executive board of The Fordham Ram is simultaneously surprised by and sympathetic of the low yield for this year’s USG election candidates.

On one hand, a USG representative must balance the roles of leader and student. This line can sometimes become blurred, leaving representatives in the difficult but common position of trying to prioritize both identities.

Student representatives must sometimes fill shoes larger than they initially signed up for.

Many undergraduates may not be willing to take on some of the more difficult roles in student government, especially considering they are not compensated and include very busy schedules.

On the other hand, Fordham has a large wealth of students pursuing majors under the interdisciplinary umbrella of political science, economics or business who have aspirations to pursue careers in government, advocacy or development following graduation.

Similar to how we at The Ford-

ham Ram encourage students in the communications and media studies department to write for our newspaper, we feel that USG presents an invaluable opportunity for students to get hands-on experience in their area of academic and professional interest.

In these positions, students can serve as advocates within their own collegiate community.

Representatives have access to members of the university administration in a manner that normal students simply do not.

This access gives them a tremendous opportunity to engage in important conversations with class deans and administrators in order to positively influence their peers’ academic and extracurricular environment.

Bearing these points in mind, the executive board of The Fordham Ram encourages the administration to acknowledge and empower the work that USG does on our campus.

We are optimistic that support and exposure will encourage more students to run for leadership positions in the future.

It is only through increased exposure and support that students will see that elected representatives are not stagnant individuals in positions of power, but instead motivated people actively seeking to bring out real change on our campus.

The university needs to value members of student government and equip elected representatives with the necessary resources to govern their peers.

We strongly believe that Fordham should bolster the size of OSI’s staff. This would improve resources for students and make some leader positions more palatable.

At the end of the day, USG is the voice of Fordham students, for Fordham students. We must view our elected representatives as the advocates that they are and continue to be.

USG holds office hours and its door remains very open. But until students are made aware of this resource and actually take advantage of it, the relationship between student representatives and the collegiate body they govern will not improve.

Although the executive board at The Fordham Ram did not have to endorse a specific executive ticket this year due to Connor Sullivan, FCRH ’19, and Kaylee Wong, GSB ’20, unopposed campaign, we have full confidence that this pair will spearhead instrumental initiatives on our campus.

Proactivity and empathy are at the forefront of Sullivan and Wong’s platform. As president and vice president, they want to ensure that there is a clear and constant direction within USG, as well as a

continuous level of awareness and respect for others at Fordham.

They plan to emphasize transparency in order to make USG more visible and encourage students to take advantage of their elected representatives who can advocate for various causes on their behalf.

Sullivan and Wong are also dedicated to forming better relationships between club leaders and USG representatives. They would like to assign a certain amount of clubs to individual senators in an effort to streamline the process and increase communication.

Whether it is ensuring that every recycling can has a clear plastic bag so its contents can actually be reused or creating a new committee to successfully communicate USG’s availability to students, Sullivan and Wong have emphasized that they will work together to improve Fordham in a tangible and long-term way.

The executive board of The Fordham Ram endorses Sullivan and Wong’s executive ticket. We also look forward to the leadership of many of the future senators and vice presidents.

We are hopeful that with the student body and administration’s increased support for Fordham’s primary governing body, United Student Government will operate with increased effectiveness.

OPINION

April 11, 2018

Page 11

Red Line in the Sand: How the U.S. Must Respond to Latest Syria Attack

By MICHAEL MYLLEK STAFF WRITER

Over the weekend, yet another chemical attack was carried out in Syria over the southern part of Douma. This is the second chemical attack in Syria in as many years, both suspected to have been carried out by the Assad regime. The estimated death toll for the attack is anywhere from 40-80 people including children, according to the White Helmets, a humanitarian group in Syria.

The U.S. and its allies responded immediately, with President Trump, British Prime Minister Theresa May condemn the attacks and their “barbaric” nature, as May so appropriately phrased it. U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis was careful in not ruling any course of action out when it came to a response to the attack.

According to PBS, shortly after the attacks, Israel bombed a base in Syria known as T-4. The attack reportedly that killed 14 people, including three Iranians. As attacks such as these grow more frequent and deadly, the best option for the U.S. in both the short and long term is to slightly increase its military presence in dangerous areas without overreacting.

Some call for diplomacy, en-

COURTESY OF FLICKR

In order to mitigate terrorist attacks against Syria, the U.S. must show strength without extensive intervention.

couraging Trump to sit down with Assad in an effort to compromise and prevent further attacks and the government to place further sanctions on Syria.

Although this diplomacy is a desirable option for many Americans and the tactic that President Obama utilized during his own Syrian crisis, Trump would be making a grave mistake in repeating this method. Obama drew “a red line” on chemical attacks by Syria. Yet, after Syria once again

used chemical weapons a year later, he walked away from his statements of a “red line.”

Later that year, the U.S. and Russia worked together to remove all chemical weapons from Syria; this move was repeatedly toted by Obama as a rousing success achiecve it through diplomacy.

However, less than a year later, the UN Security Council conducted an investigation on Syria, confirming Syria’s use of chlo-

rine gas on its own people. Even the man who negotiated the deal with Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry, admitted in his exit memo that undocumented chemical weapons were used by Syria on its own people. This example, as well as others occuring in the Middle East, shows us that President Trump would be truly foolish to follow suit with similar diplomatic relations for this issue.

A diplomatic approach to solving conflict is always the preferred option because ithe method does not jeopardize American assets or lives nearly as much as physical intervention. However, a general rule of diplomacy is that there must be a certain level of trust and faith in the opposing party, and both sides must be willing to actually carry out what is agreed upon.

The Assad regime has shown a blatant unwillingness to do just that, and it is not fit to earn America’s trust based on its despicable history. Furthermore, several reports are now claiming that Russia has vetoed the U.S. Resolution at the U.N. Security Council that called for an investigation into Syrian chemical weapons. This instance further shows that not only is the U.N. useless in their attempts to quarantine Syria’s tyrannical behavior, but also that a diplomatic stance is unrealistic due to Russia’s unwavering alliance with Syria.

It is in the best interest of the U.S. and the world to suppress all violent groups from harming others before they grow to be too powerful to overtake and become even more problematic in future encounters.

Something that Mattis may propose (likely with little success in the approval stages) is a full military assault by the U.S. with boots on the ground against Syria. The point of this approach would be to overthrow Assad and eliminate Russian and Iranian influence in the nation, allowing for a new Syria to rebuild and Russian-American talks to no longer center on Syria.

This option will be attractive for many “neo-cons” who are fans of nation-building and want to see Assad gone. This option seems appealing at first glance,

but less so after further consideration of the possible consequences. One possible consequence is losing more American lives. Once we commit to Syria, we may be looking at Iraq 2.0, in which U.S. troops are there for years on end in an apparent stalemate because of the support Assad will have from Russia and Iran.

Also, this idea can be an expensive one, potentially increasing an already huge deficit that is currently ballooning from the recent tax reform. Executing this option is also a lot more difficult than it seems.

Very often there are multiple groups in a war and it is hard to discern who is who, and who we’re fighting against. There is also no guarantee that the rebels will be more skilled and better trained than the Assad members. Last time the U.S. trained a group of rebels, they eventually branched off and became ISIS, so there is always a risk when training rebel groups. President Trump has also made clear that he doesn’t approve of nation-building, so a full-fledged military operation is highly unlikely.

The best option is continued limited military involvement in the region. While this sounds vague, ideally it wouldn’t look too different from Syria as it is right now. We already have a limited presence there, but the troops are just focused on ISIS instead of Syria as a government. A decent model for this involvement would be what President Trump carried out after the last Syrian chemical attack, only more frequent.

Constant and precise bombings would do a few things.

One, this approach would send a strong message that the U.S. does not accept the use of chemical weapons. Second, the bombings would deplete Syrian military forces and limit their ability to continue to harm their own people.

There are, of course, possible issues with this. For one, if the response is too small, the US will look weak and show Syria that the use of chemical weapons isn’t that serious.

This option is the best because it allows the U.S. to keep the majority of our soldiers out of danger while also showing the world that we will not stand for such atrocities.

A final addition would be to conduct an investigation into Syria’s chemical weapons despite Russia’s U.N. veto. Let the organization try and stop us, if their recent track record is any indication, they’ll vote on it and do nothing anyway.

President Trump, do not listen to the U.N., do not listen to former-President Obama and do not listen to Rand Paul. This decision will hold huge implications for the Middle East going forward.

Do not make this decision lightly.

Michael Myllek, FCRH ’19, is an economics and political science major from White Plains, New York.

Page 12

CENTENNIAL

In the midst of the Korean War, conversation about the draft dominated Fordham’s campus, as men continued to pursue higher education endeavors (Vol. 30, Issue 13).

April 11, 2018

April 11, 2018

CENTENNIAL

Page 13

(Vol. 29, Issue 20)

The Fordham Ram in the Early 1950s

By THE FORDHAM RAM STAFF In an effort to commemorate 100 years of student journalism on campus, The Fordham Ram will be including moments in history through its archives each week. This week’s collection highlights the early 1950s on Fordham’s campus.

The Fordham Ram covered a variety of global topics in the ’50s—many directly affected the lives of the men attending the university—from the growing tensions between the United States and Russia, to the draft for the Korean War, to the continuing conversations about the introduction of the atomic bomb.

In the wake of World War II and the consequent loss of university attendees—the university mourned the lives of 236 Fordham men—and accepted a new freshman class. With this acceptance came the origination of a brand new residence hall. Current Fordham students will recognize the familiar architectural design.

International relations were covered by The Fordham Ram in the context of academic discourse and dialogue (Vol. 30, Issues 5, 6 & 13).

Rams were facing the draft, but, on a local scale, they were confronted with exciting new construction. Notice anything familiar? (Left - Vol. 31, Issue 10; Right - Vol. 29, Issue 16; Above - Vol. 30, Issue 3)

ADVERTISEMENTS

Page 14

April 11, 2018

Ready to pursue a career in education?

Earn your graduate degree at Fordham.

Fordham’s Graduate School of Education offers more than 30 specialized and accelerated full-time, part-time, and online programs.

Master’s and Advanced Certificate Programs • Adolescence Education • Bilingual Education • Childhood Special Education • Teaching • TESOL

TWO CAMPUSES: LINCOLN CENTER CAMPUS

in Midtown Manhattan WESTCHESTER CAMPUS

in West Harrison, New York

Learn more:

fordham.edu/gse

eeo

A A progressive progressive theological theological education education in in a a global global city city A progressive theological education in a global city A progressive theological education in a global city Master of Arts in Catholic Theology Ph.D. in Theology Master of Arts in Catholic Theology A broad-based degree program drawing Master of in Theology Master of Arts Arts master’s in Catholic Catholic Theology A broad-based master’s degree program drawing on biblical, historical, and systematic theological A broad-based master’s degree program drawing A broad-based master’s degree program drawing on biblical, historical, and systematic theological study.

Prepare for a career in education, campus on biblical, historical, and systematic theological on biblical, historical, and systematic theological study.

Prepare for a career in education, campus ministry, counseling, nonprofit work, law,campus and study.

Prepare for aa career in education, study.

Prepare for career in education, ministry, counseling, nonprofit work, law,campus and many other fields, as well as future doctoral ministry, counseling, nonprofit work, law, ministry, counseling, work, law, and andwork. many other fields, as nonprofit well as future doctoral work. many many other other fields, fields, as as well well as as future future doctoral doctoral work. work.

Ph.D. in Theology An internationally doctoral degree Ph.D. in Ph.D. in Theology Theology recognized An internationally recognized doctoral degree program offering five fields of study: the Bible, An internationally recognized doctoral degree An internationally recognized degree program offering five fields of doctoral study: the Bible, Christianity in antiquity, systematic program five of the program offering offering five fields fields of study: study:theology, the Bible, Bible, Christianity in antiquity, systematic theology, history of Christianity, and theological and Christianity in antiquity, systematic theology, Christianity in antiquity, systematic theology, history of Christianity, and theological and social history of historyethics. of Christianity, Christianity, and and theological theological and and social ethics. social ethics. social ethics.

fordham.edu/theologygrad fordham.edu/theologygrad fordham.edu/theologygrad

Classes are held at Classes are held at the Roseare Hillheld campus.

Classes at Classes at the Roseare Hillheld campus.

For information about the Rose Hill campus. the information Rose Hill campus.

For about admissions, contact us For information about For information about admissions, contact us at fuga@fordham.edu. admissions, contact admissions, contact us us at fuga@fordham.edu. at at fuga@fordham.edu. fuga@fordham.edu.

CULTURE

April 11, 2018

Page 15

Who’s That Kid? | Mary Kohl, FCRH ’20

Mary Kohl Shoots for Career in Film

By ERICA SCALISE

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

For many students, settling in to watch a movie after a long day is their ideal form of decompression; for Mary Kohl, FCRH ‘20, making movies is hers.

A self-taught filmmaker and Adobe Photoshop aficionado, Kohl is humble about her designs. Her movie posters resemble those of influential indie filmmaker, Wes Anderson, yet her style, both whimsical and quirky, is very much her own.

Kohl, who grew up with an early interest in digital media, has been making films since her childhood.

“From the family iPad to my first camera, I feel like I’ve always been filming something. I grew up making home videos with my brothers and quickly advanced from that,” said Kohl.

Since coming to Fordham, she has shot several films, using her close friends as subjects both on and off of Fordham’s campus.

Her films, which are often comedic, dramatically ironic and deliberately nonsensical, are shot using a Nikon and edited using iMovie and Adobe Photoshop.

The films contain various characters who often try to solve catastrophic or difficult events comedically. She also attempts to tackle topics revolving around self-love and what it means to fully open oneself up to another person.

“My latest film, ‘Who is She?’ features my friend Brendan who is roaming the streets of Harlem, try-

ing to find the love of his life after experiencing detrimental heartbreak.”

Kohl premiered her film “Don’t Mess with Another Man’s Cookies” last spring at Rodrigue’s before a weekly movie night.

“This film also follows Brendan around Fordham’s community as he tries to solve the murder of his best friend,” said Kohl. “It opened up a lot of new discourse between the people in the coffee shop. It was also really funny to watch everyone respond to my friends being on the big screen.”

For Kohl, this kind of discourse and connection is what filmmaking is about. She looks to prominent filmmakers such as Josh Fox who she said she admires for his work on documentaries such as “Gasland” and “Awake.”

“I like Josh’s work because he pursues social justice by practicing solidarity and sharing stories that don’t always get a platform due to skewed media,” said Kohl. “It is a reminder to me that film and media can bring us all together to achieve something greater for us. For me right now, my films are about garnering this sense of community.”

Beyond this, Kohl is a math and information systems major with a passion for environmentalism.

Though she is not pursuing a career in film, she takes on a jack-of-alltrades approach in utilizing her film skills to spearhead campaigns on campus.

“I recently finished a mockumentary called ‘Sheriff Sully’ for Sustainability Committee,” said Kohl. “This

was especially fun to make because it connected members of the committee together where we got to use our own respective talents to create something informative for Earth Day, yet entertaining to watch.”

Similar to ‘Sheriff Sully’, Kohl plans to continue making films that aim to capitalize on social issues. Her outlet serves as both a form of escapism and a way of bringing people together.

“Making films has allowed me to form new connections and deepen my relationships with others, espe-

cially at Fordham. Photography and cinematography has given me so many opportunities to do things I never would have done,” said Kohl.

“It’s also a great way to release stress and take time for myself.”

In the future, Kohl plans to shoot a documentary on the World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF), an organization that facilitates homestays on farms.

“I have been considering shooting this documentary for a while,” said Kohl. “I also would love to film

more of Fordham and other students’ involvement to create a larger sense of community within our university.”

Though Kohl does not plan to pursue a career in media, she never plans to stop making films.

“Sharing your own art is not always easy but it’s really rewarding to bring a lot of people together who normally wouldn’t be in the same space,” said Kohl. “I hope I’m always using the camera to connect with people and the world around me.”

COURTESY OF MARY KOHL

Mary Kohl, a sophomore at Fordham College at Rose Hill, is a math and information systems major.

The Fordham Ram Crossword: No Pain, No Gain Across 1. Department of ICE 4. Walked nervously 9. Bell’s “brother” and upcoming Thursday act 10. 12-hour period of lawlessness in film 11. e.g. Blue’s or the ones listed here 13. Love, to love a lot 14. Upcoming Friday act 16. Surprised by Smirnoff 17. Fine print of an update (abrev.)

18. Cardiac or citizen’s 20. Notable drank buyer 21. e.g. Cuban Missile

23. Network where Stormy Daniels told all 26. Fe 27. Upcoming Sunday act 29. Dutch wheel cheese 31. San Francisco Player 32. “OK” over a radio 33. Castle defense 34. Inactive, noble 35. Arguably the best piece of furniture Down 1. “Oh, _____” on Broadway 2. Becomes covered with a layer of dirt

ANSWERS IN ISSUE 10 CREATED BY: CLAIRE POLACHECK & JACK MCLOONE

ANSWERS IN ISSUE 8

3. Swedish furniture company 4. Hockey stat for power play goals against 5. Upcoming Saturday act before 20-Across 6. Holey, foam clogs 7. Majestic type of heron 8. Typically preceded by “good or in”

9. Test to get in to pharmacy school, briefly 12. Applause at a Black Sheep performance 15. What POTUS wants to do to “The Swamp” 19. All-Pro receiver Andre 20. Kindling for romance 21. Sinatra’s style

22. Blush 23. Boat historically made from one log 24. The chips and salsa of Arthur Ave restaurants 25. Divide by category 26. Game (Slovenian) 28. New York boot (singular) 30. Garfunkel

CULTURE

Page 16

Albüm Klüb | Adam Payne-Reichert

Review | Movie

Ready Player One

By GREGORY MYSOGLAND CONTRIBUTING WRITER

After several years of directing mostly political thrillers of varying quality, Steven Spielberg returns to the science fiction blockbuster filmmaking that started his storied career with Ready Player One. The subject matter of this film returns to the childlike wonder and pure adventure that characterizes such classics as Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. This film is an exciting mix of an oldfashioned narrative and the height of modern filmmaking technology.

Based on the novel of the same name by Ernest Cline, Ready Player One tells the story of Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan), a native of 2045’s version of Columbus, Ohio who is the first to discover a new key to success within the OASIS. The OASIS is a virtual world created by James Halliday (Mark Rylance) in which consumers escape the confines of their dystopic world by participating in everything from gravity-defying parties to hi-tech combat campaigns.

The animated world of the OASIS is filled with references to and appearances by concepts, items and characters from across the popular culture spectrum.

This allows Spielberg to assemble some of the most visually exciting sequences in recent memory as car chases are interrupted by attacks from King Kong and heroes from DC Comics engage in battle against an enemy army that counts Godzilla amongst its ranks, and

that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Wade’s yearning for adventure is not a particularly original motivation for a science fiction hero, but Sheridan gives a charismatic enough performance to lead the viewer through the unraveling of the OASIS and Halliday’s secrets.

His character’s growth is fairly well executed. A balanced sense of humor and subtle commentary on the ways in which corporate interference and an over-abundance of nostalgia can stifle artistic progress keep the story from becoming too routine.

All this is not to say the film is without its flaws. Neither Rylance nor Ben Mendelsohn bring anything particularly creative to their roles, and it would not be hard to argue that they may both have been typecast as the eccentric creative and corporate villain, respectively. Additionally, the film’s pacing isn’t always perfect. The third act in particular is a bit too busy for its own good. While it features a truly delightful battle in the OASIS, the choice to continue to employ a ticking clock even as Wade comes to his final realizations robs some of the film’s most important scenes of their potential impact.

Despite these and some other issues, Ready Player One is an exceedingly fun ride that matches modern blockbuster thrills with the lighthearted vibe of older adventure films. Spielberg’s return to science fiction is a welcome one that hopefully signals a move back towards less conventional works for the legendary director.

April 11, 2018

Astral Weeks and Live Melodies There’s something uniquely enjoyable about seeing live music. People might argue as to where this special quality originates, be it from superior sound quality or highly stimulating visual effects, but what really makes live music so experientially unique is its human quality. The music becomes more analogous to human existence, vulnerable to mistakes but equally capable of taking on an evolved form.

Moreover, the perceptible effort which any decent artist puts into a show reminds us of the highly intricate process which led to what we’re currently hearing.

Music recorded in the studio and then consumed in various digital formats have trouble retaining this sense of humanity. However, in his 1968 album Astral Weeks, Van Morrison uses nearly every trick at his disposal to artfully overcome this obstacle.

Morrison and his studio band recorded this album over the course of only three sessions, with Morrison refusing to hand out lead sheets to the musicians and instead encouraging them to play what they felt fit the melodies he brought them. The effect that these recording procedures had upon the final output is immense. The instrumentation is clearly thoughtful and complex, but it also feels very spontaneous and lively. The production, similarly, could be said to suffer from lacking instrument separation, but unusually, this actually contributes to the intimate feeling of the music and thus helps to accentuate its human qualities.

Consider the second song in the track list. The melody of this song is rooted in the guitar and bass parts, but

the low volume of these parts suggests that they may be included more for the musicians’ benefit than for the listeners’. What instead stands out is the vibraphone, flute and lead guitar riffs, which accentuate Morrison’s vocal flourishes.

Despite the creative pressures that such a recording process puts on individual musicians, Morrison and his studio band were able to push themselves creatively and ensure that a variety of sounds still exists throughout the album. “The Way Young Lovers Do” has a much more intentionally orchestrated sound, with horns and strings working in sync to complement Morrison’s vocal swells and retreats. “Slim Slow Slider,” at the other end of the spectrum, employs spacious, minimalistic arrangements to a hauntingly beautiful effect. The sonic distance between the flute and the bass on this song, developed both through the stark difference in registers and in tempo, potently attests to the sense of distance this song’s narrator feels from his former lover and the contrasting emotions that come along with this longing.

The lyrics work in tandem with the instrumentation to highlight the human qualities and messages of the music. Morrison’s lyrics describe a variety of different, but usually pastoral, scenes and different, but usually lovelorn, characters. His writing is impressionistic and based in stream-of-consciousness techniques, and as such, the lyrics are highly interpretable.

Although his writing might frustrate some listeners, it speaks to the human experience: meaning is rarely inherent in something, and we’re left to inter-

pret and find meaning in whatever way we choose.

This isn’t to say that the lyrics are nonsensical. The title track clearly discusses the narrator’s regretful remembrance of a past love and desire to occupy a different plane of existence, one where he can visit this former lover and “be born again.” “Beside You” beautifully reflects on how, when you are with your true love, the connection is such that you never question why this pairing came to be, for it is immediately clear that it had to be. Likewise Morrison’s singing, employs a variety of different tactics to underscore the album’s passionately improvisational feel. In “Beside You,” Morrison accelerates past the tempo of the band to repeat the line, “You breathe in, you breathe out,” reflecting the nervous energy present when you have to remind yourself just to breathe.

In recording this album, Morrison was driven by many of the same radically innovative tendencies that produced The Velvet Underground and Nico. Yet a stark difference exists between the two records. The VU’s first album has since influenced a huge array of musical genres, and the record consequently sounds far less revolutionary to contemporary ears. Astral Weeks, on the other hand, continues to stand in stark contrast to a contemporary music scene that all too frequently abstracts from human qualities, taking sex for making love and consumerism for the fulfillment of life’s pleasures. And if past behavior is the strongest indicator of future behavior, the need to reaffirm the fundamentally human aspects of our experience won’t be lessened anytime soon.

Review | Play

'Lobby Hero': A Play for Every New Yorker

By SHELBY DANIELS STAFF WRITER

There have been plenty of shows about unique characters in New York trying to find themselves, which is why the basic idea of "Lobby Hero" made me slightly hesitant to venture to see the talked-about show at the Helen Hayes Theater.

"Lobby Hero" boasts a small four-

-person company. Michael Cera, Chris Evans, Brian Tyree Henry and Bel Powley play distinctly different New Yorkers caught in a war of words with one another while they constantly self-sabotage for the duration of the show.

The show takes place entirely in one setting: the lobby of a residential building in New York City in 1999.

The set itself, despite remaining the

same throughout the show, rotates on a moving platform, offering the audience a different perspective of the lobby from scene to scene.

The pivotal character, onstage the entire time, is Jeff (Cera), a nightshift security guard in the building.

Jeff is an endearingly awkward blabbermouth who is never able to find a filter for his thoughts. He spends a majority of time in the show explain-

COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

Broadway show 'Lobby Hero' plays distinctive New Yorkers caught in a war of words.

ing to other characters why he has not quite “made it” yet. After being kicked out of the Navy, he was left hopeless and in debt in the city; the security guard position was his saving grace. Jeff’s boss William (Henry) is a man of integrity whom Jeff admires for his honesty and his ability to provide for others. This is all called into question when William’s brother is arrested for a murder, forcing William to evaluate his sense of duty for himself and his family.

Two police officers, Bill (Evans) and Dawn (Powley) adhere to the push and pull of the idea of justice in the show’s narrative. Evans makes a phenomenal transition from his role on-screen as Captain America to his role off-screen as Bill for his Broadway debut. A seasoned cop, Bill has all the swagger and big-headedness of the typical “man-in-charge.” He is well -liked by everyone in the force and prides himself on the importance of brotherhood. Evans' portrayal could easily come off as unsympathetic, but he still manages to convince the audience that maybe there is good reason behind his actions.

Dawn offers a great character foil to Bill. A rookie cop and one of few females in the division, she looks up to Bill with doe-eyed optimism.

However, she comes to realize that his loyalty to other officers can sometimes supercede what Dawn defines as justice. These tensions are only heightened by Bill’s flirtatious rela-

tionship with her and his time spent on duty seeing a married woman in the same building that Jeff works.

The four characters are all wrapped up in their own worlds, and they spend the show attempting to reconcile their own issues and perspectives with the actions of those around them. No one character shines more than another. "Lobby Hero" showcases the individual talents of each of the actors while simultaneously boasting an incredible ensemble performance.

The strength of the show can be found in its well-executed script.

Despite being written in 2001, Kenneth Lonergan (best known for the screenplay for and direction of Manchester By The Sea) explores important issues that remind the audience a lot of the #MeToo, Time’s Up and Black Lives Matter movements. The show is never preachy, making the discussions surrounding topics of the marginalized even more potent with the subtlety through which the script presents them.

"Lobby Hero" captures the aching reality of the truth and of admitting this truth to yourself. It encapsulates the raw emotions of people making choices they know may not be the right ones in a large city that at times seems so small, making it relatable to every New Yorker in the audience. Go for the well-rounded performance, and stay for Chris Evans’ mustache.

April 11, 2018

ADVERTISEMENTS

Page 17

CULTURE

Page 18

April 11, 2018

Editor’s Pick | Film

Thriller A Quiet Place Speaks Great Volume

By BRIANA SCALIA OPINION EDITOR

A Quiet Place is one of the latest films in the recent horror renaissance. A family of four is forced to live their lives in complete silence in order to avoid the antagonists of the film. Though the family can be seen as flat characters, the film actually portrays them as such purposefully.

In A Quiet Place, John Krasinski plays the father of the family, while Emily Blunt plays his pregnant wife.

The children, while superb in their acting, experience an issue of being what some may call blank slates.

But, by using characters that are easily interchangeable, the film is able to further involve the audience in its plot. Viewers feel as though they are the ones trapped in a world of silence, and I myself was constantly left wondering how I would react to the dilemmas the characters faced.

This aspect of audience involvement is where A Quiet Place truly shines. True to its name, the movie has little to no sound, including the softest score. This leaves the audience in dead silence, the only au-

dible noises the crunching of snacks.

However, this silence is anything but tedious; rather, it contributes greatly to the tense nature of the movie.

Early in the film, as seen in the trailer for the movie, the young boy disrupts the silence by knocking over a lantern. While this might prompt internal worry in most other instances, audience members visibly cringed at the sound. In less than two hours, A Quiet Place is able to condition its audience to fear any loud noise.

Other than a minor jumpscare here or there, the film’s horror relies heavily on the thrill of the silence.

Blunt and Krasinski also play vital roles in the film’s horror, frequently acting with just their gestures and facial expressions. One look at a character provides more insight for the audience than a full monologue.

There is also the ever-growing question of the exact origins of the antagonists of the film, a species of lethal, alien-like monsters with exceptionally keen hearing.

One minor complaint many other reviewers have of the film is the writing of the characters, or specifically the lack thereof. Between the lack of

dialogue and the cold open of the film, the audience does not receive much background information regarding the family. However, I believe that these characters were written this way to further immerse the audience in the film.

These character archetypes: a father of two, a pregnant mother, a young son and daughter-are common not just in film but in life. Similar to the silent protagonists of video games, audiences can place themselves into the roles of the characters with more ease when said characters are not given strong personalities.

These characters also make several mistakes throughout the film. Without spoilers, think along the lines of knocking over a lantern. While this trend is a bit tired, I argue that it is impossible to craft a horror movie without having what some might call problematic characters. If the characters of the film do not make the mistakes necessary to draw the antagonist’s attention, then the plot of the movie would grind to a halt, or never even

COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

A Quiet Place's little to no sound contributes to the thrill of the film.

start.

A Quiet Place is another addition to the recent collection of stellar horror films. With both an interesting setup and plot, audiences cannot help but be drawn into the world the characters reside in. Viewers tense at the slightest sound, in fear for the safety of both the characters’ lives and their own.

Though there are a few jumpscares, they are not cheap, instead, the film

relies on the atmosphere it sets up.

The only flaw some may perceive is the lack of character development, but as formerly stated, many argue that this was chosen to let the audience imagine how they would react if in a similar situation.

Any horror fan would be thrilled to see this movie. However, any avid movie fan should see this film, simply for the innovative plot and world building.

Study Abroad Column | Catherine Swindal

Adventure in Avila: All is Grace and Animo

By CAT SWINDAL STAFF WRITER

I got my first tattoo in the summer of 2015, a pentagon under my ribs on my right side. It was a matching tattoo I got with my sister, Teresa, who in a few months I would join at Fordham. The five sides, equaling a whole, were to honor my siblings, especially my sister Margaret who passed away in 2001. I clearly remember the whole process: Teresa and I telling our parents (who were cooler about it than I expected), picking a pentagon, printing it out at Walsh Library and finally going across the street from the University to Tuff City to get inked. While Teresa was fine without my help, I needed to hold her hand the whole time as I braced myself for what I thought would be my first and last tattoo.

Since then, I’ve gotten three more tattoos. In this column, I will tell the story of my most recent tattoo that I got just last week in Avila, Spain, on my solo trip during Holy Week.

It all starts, really, with the coolest person I know: my great uncle, Fr. Tom Royer, who lives in Canton, Illinois. At 84 years old, Fr. Tom is one of the most radical people I have ever come across. As a retired diocesan priest, he continually fights for and with marginalized communities within the U.S., especially those affected by the Trump administration’s immigration bans.

Fr. Tom’s fight with communities is not solely domestic. For the past 25 years, he has made 28 trips to El Salvador, where he has built relationships with communities in the mountainous northern region.

Bringing along delegations from his parish, he not only has helped to restore community buildings and celebrated baptisms for the children in the community, but, more importantly, he has also created

special friendships with the men and women of the communities.

When I was invited to go to El Salvador with him and two others last summer, I hadn’t seen Fr. Tom in seven years. But as soon as I met him again at the airport in Houston before going to El Salvador, he started talking about his passion for women’s ordination in the Catholic church five minutes into our conversation. I knew that we were going to get along just fine. It then turned out that not only is Fr. Tom radical, but also hilarious, and we had a great time exchanging jokes and stories about my dad’s side of the family. We grew very close over that week, and he now calls me a Jesuit, by which I am so honored. It’s probably the closest thing to being a Jesuit I will ever get, so I’ll take it.

Fr. Tom has a lot of stories and I heard several of them during that week we spent together in El Salvador. He came to El Salvador with a leg infection and couldn’t walk very well. Back then, he and his delegation would walk between the communities up north in the mountains, which would take several hours. During this trip, he could not walk very well down the mountain, and so his two Salvadoran friends picked him up from the shoulders and walked him down. He remembers it being dark during this time going down a large hill, and although anyone in their right mind would be scared, all he heard behind him was his other friend yelling, “¡Ánimo!” as they braced the hill. He now regards that as one of his favorite Spanish words, and though I’ve been learning Spanish for several years, that was the first time I had learned that word myself. Ánimo.

That night, I had my journal out for the first time since being there, and sitting with him, I asked him what to write down. And he said to write down two powerful statements: All

is grace, and ánimo. I have kept those thoughts in my mind since he uttered them last summer. I knew somewhere deep down that either one of those sentences was going to be my next tattoo. It was only a matter of time.

Flash forward to months later, when I came to Spain. I began contemplating about who I was and what person I wanted to be; how to live to my fullest potential. I started looking in a mirror and seeing someone different, someone who I started to embrace just recently. But with this new identity came a lot of inner doubt. It also has come with, unfortunately, poor judgment of other people over the past several months that has only added to my inner fear.

One example was someone I met in a hostel in Salamanca, Spain, traveling for Holy Week.

The guy seemed nice enough and we figured out that we both wanted to take a solo trip to Avila, the patron city of Saint Teresa, one of my heroes. During the trip, I disclosed to him my identity, and he ended up asking inappropriate questions breaching on sexist and homophobic. I confronted him about it as soon as I could; he told me that while he hadn’t meant to make me uncomfortable, he had always been curious about sexuality since taking one sexuality class in college. Needless to say, I was not having it. I escaped from him as soon as I could and went off by myself in Avila.

After realizing how the guy I met was definitely well-intentioned in his ignorance, I realized that I was always going to encounter people like him: people who live in their own bubble and never pop it, hurting myself and others in the process. To some, I will always be

COURTESY OF SWINDAL

FCRH '19 Cat Swindal gets 'Animo' tattooed on their arm in Avila, Spain.

a specimen to inspect. But for me, personally, the only way to go is onward, despite these people who continually bring me down. That’s when the word “ánimo” reappeared in my mind, and I couldn’t let it go.

I knew what I had to do just then: get the tattoo for which I had pined for months.

Getting this tattoo was different from my past experiences with tattoos. For my three others, I went somewhere I was comfortable, just across the street from Fordham, with a friend each time. For this tattoo, not only was I in a completely new city, but I had to speak the whole time in Spanish. I was also alone, which is significant for me, as I usually need someone there so I can squeeze his or her hand during the painful parts. But this time, I knew that I had to go at this alone.

And—this is important—this tattoo is the most visible one I have so far. This was a part of the animo I needed to show myself and the world.

It’s important to note that while getting my tattoo, "Bohemian Rhapsody" played, and I sang along. Thanks for that one, Freddie.

While I came to this conclusion on my own and went alone to get it, my new ink serves as a reminder, especially for the gratitude I hold for those who have given me the ánimo I needed, and to continue to present myself as I like and as I am.

There are so many people in my life who support me, just as Fr. Tom’s Salvadoran friends supported him going down a mountain. And so while I came into the tattoo parlor alone, in a city alone, after being isolated by a stranger, I knew that everyone who had ever lifted me up was with me in that tattoo parlor holding my hand. To those who give me ánimo: thank you for fighting with me, knowing that you are behind the word forever engraved

CULTURE

April 11, 2018

Page 19

BronxArtSpace Exhibit Represents Intersectionality

By SHELBY DANIELS STAFF WRITER

BronxArtSpace, a hidden gem in the Mott Haven neighborhood, showcases personal representations of diversity in its newest exhibit titled “For Us.” The exhibit fills the one-room gallery on the first floor of an apartment complex and features pieces in a variety of mediums by eight young women of color.

Kiara Ventura curated the exhibit, which opened on March 31.

The carefully selected pieces make a collective impact on the viewer, displaying a variety of means of representation.

“For Us” is dedicated by the artists and the curator to other women of color with the overall goal of expressing feelings of healing and empowerment.

The aim of the exhibit is to bring forth questions of images in media in the modern world and look at how marginalized groups can reclaim personal freedom by creating unapologetic images of themselves.

The artists provoke discussions of intersectionality within their works. The largest, and perhaps the most powerful, piece in the exhibit is “scene 6” by Monica Hernandez.

The painting, an oil on canvas,

displays women of color performing actions that are essential parts to everyday life, but are never openly discussed and portrayed without disgust. One woman eats pasta, another watches television and the last cuts her hair while laying in bed.

The piece subverts expectations of representation by depicting moments that explore the concepts of sexuality, femininity, domesticity, religion and indulgence.

Hernandez provides some of her thought process when creating art in a commemorative booklet on the collection, saying that her goal is to “bend and break the rules of that which we know, and find truths we are all scared to speak.”

The mixture of mediums used by the artists adds another dimension of enjoyment to “For Us.” Caseena Karim expresses her Muslim and queer identity through a series of videos that play on a continuous loop on a mounted television in the gallery.

The videos explore what it means to exist at the intersection of being a queer, Muslim and multiracial first-generation immigrant in a white-centric western society.

She dedicates her work to queer trans people of color.

One of my personal favorites of the exhibit is the ceramic sculp-

SHELBY DANIELS/THE FORDHAM RAM

BronxArtSpace, a nonprofit art gallery, was opened in 2008 by Linda Cunningham and Mitsu Hadeishi at 305 E. 140 St.

ture entitled “Cry Baby” by Rocio Marie. The piece utilizes bright unabashed colors and a pair of devil horns to encapsulate the villainization of many women of color.

Despite it standing at only a foot tall, its powerful presence at the center of the gallery feels like an anchor to the rest of the works.

Other notable pieces in the exhibit are the interactive mixed

media installations “Playwright”

by Solaris Sapiente and “Box Braid Curtain” by Dana Davenport.

BronxArtSpace highlights issues of representation and solidarity that have long affected the borough in the “For Us” exhibit. However, this is not the first time the space has been used for expression of the experiences of marginalized communities.

The gallery was founded in 2009, and continues to present issues of relevance through its collections.

Located at 305 E 140th St. #1A, BronxArtSpace is open to the public from 12 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday through Friday and from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

The “For Us” exhibit will remain open until May 12.

Review | Television

“Wild Wild Country” Questions Your Reality

By AUDREY ANNISON CONTRIBUTING WRITER

In the past couple of weeks, there is a good chance that you have heard of the Way Brothers’ new six-part documentary series on Netflix, “Wild Wild Country.”

With a “100% Certified Fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, this cult mystery has taken the country by storm, sucking in each viewer as tactfully as a well-run cult would itself, and no doubt leaving them with almost as many questions on the other side.

It’s a story of sex, drugs, biological warfare, religious freedom and blended beavers (yes, blended beavers), as well as strong female characters with questionable and somewhat irregular tendencies.

All stories are recounted firsthand by the people who were right there in the middle of it. If you’re hooked already, stop here and go watch it. It’s better if you go in blind.

The story begins in the town of Antelope, Oregon, which one resident refers to as a “quiet little spot in the middle of nowhere.” Quiet little spots like this tend to bring forth the most human stories, and “Wild Wild Country” proves to be no exception.

At its heart, the story takes the shape of, as suggested by its title, the classic Western: a new man with new ideas enters a small, peaceful town and shakes things up.

Except, this time that man plans to bring with him 10,000 more

who worship his every word, have public sex and wear nothing but the color red.

When the people of Antelope are less than accepting of their new neighbors, the Rajneeshes, they begin to take steps to have them removed.

The Rajneeshes, confident in their right to religious freedom, enter the situation with a fearless attitude.

Rather than sitting tight and waiting for America to protect them, they fully realize their power as a large community and take over Antelope’s population of 40-something flushing out all but one of its representatives on the City Council, renaming it and making it their own.

They enter every dispute with this same ferocity, willing to take whatever measures necessary to protect their commune, all of which are planned and executed by their tireless leader, Ma-Anand Sheela, who proclaims that she does “not believe in turning the other cheek.”

Throughout its six, hour-long pieces, the story continues to intensify, with each turn of events wilder than the last. And, coming to the end, I was left with feelings and questions as intricate and deep-cutting as the story which had just been presented.

“Wild Wild Country” presents multiple sides of the same story but will leave you not wanting to choose, or searching for a lesser of the evils.

It will show you what happens

to peace when it is threatened, and lead you to question whether or not more than one separate idea of peace can exist in a world where they are forced to interact.

It may have you questioning the reality of religious freedom in the United States and the reality of truly manipulative people and groups in this world that retain power and preach peace.

It may have you wondering what other communities may look like if shrunken down, put under a spot-

light and forced to fight for what it believes to be sacred.

It may leave you in a 3 a.m. crisis, crawling back to your fourth time through “The Office” to distract you from the real cruel world so that you can get some sleep.

There is so much to be gained through reflection on this series, and I would recommend it based on that alone.

But even if it does not resonate with you that way, what precedes the questions raised is a story

which is consistently strangerthan-fiction (just wait for the beavers): a cult mystery full of complicated characters and plot twists too good to be contrived.

It is the kind of story that can only be real life, and the kind that can only have sprouted from a “quiet little spot in the middle of nowhere.”

This is what escalates it from a documentary you should watch to one you need to watch. I wholeheartedly recommend.

COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

Netflix documentary “Wild Wild Country” focuses on guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and his followers in Northern Oregon.

Page 20

Max Green, Men’s Tennis Beat St. Joe’s

By JACK McLOONE SPORTS EDITOR

During the collegiate men’s tennis season, teams only play conference foes a handful of times. Fordham Men’s Tennis has not wasted these opportunities, with their 4-2 victory over St. Joe’s on Saturday bringing them to 2-1 in Atlantic 10 play. They are now 12-6.

Freshman Max Green played a huge role in the Rams’ victory, notching wins in both second singles and third doubles.

The match started with doubles play, where the Rams won two of three. Green was matched up with sophomore Allen Thornes, and they topped the Hawks’ Dan Tan and Peter DeWitt 6-3. This win by the third team proved critical, as the first team of freshman Lutwin de Macar and sophomore Fabian Mauritzson dropped their game, 6-3. The second team of sophomore Finn Kemper and Jeremy Chung pulled out the 6-4 win to give the Rams the doubles point.

“Doubles is huge for us to win; we have not lost a team match this season when we have won the doubles point,” said Green.

Green set the tone for the singles matches, shutting out opponent Beekman Schaeffer 6-0, 6-0. He finished his match first, which he thinks gave the rest of the team momentum.

“I think overall I played very well,” said Green. “Going into singles I felt very comfortable and my serve and forehand were really working well.”

Despite Green’s early win, the Hawks did not go away quietly. De Macar’s tough day continued with a loss to Tim Stierle in first singles, 6-4, 6-1. Freshman Alex Maktasaria dropped his match to Dan Tan 6-1, 6-3, tying the total points at 2.

However, the last two games to finish both went the Rams’ way to give them the victory. Maurtiszon took down DeWitt to the tune of

6-4, 6-1, which also happened to be the score of Kemper’s victory over Andre Fick.

“The win against St. Joseph’s was huge for our team,” said Green. “We only have a few conference matches each year, so these are the biggest matches for our team during the season. This also helps our seeding in the upcoming conference tournament in Florida.”

The Rams would have liked to roll with that momentum into a match on Sunday against Navy, but it was scheduled to be outdoors and hence canceled due to the cold. Under the rules of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, outdoor matches must have a predicted temperature of over 50 degrees. The temperature on Sunday topped out at 46.

“It’s definitely been different playing a large majority of our matches indoors. Coming from California, I played exclusively outdoors all year around because the weather was so good,” said Green. “It’s just been a bit of a waiting game with the weather at this point, because we’ve had to move so many of our outdoor matches inside.”

However, despite the constant moves indoors, the Rams are in great position with just two more scheduled matches before the A-10 Championships. Their 12-6 record is impressive when you realize just how young the team is; while there are upperclassmen on the team, only freshmen and sophomores played on Saturday.

“Honestly, I think our team chemistry and our hard work on and off the court has been the key to our team’s success,” said Green. “I think our coaching staff has also helped all of our players this season. For that I have to thank our head coach Mike Sowter.”

The Rams will finally look to play outdoors at home on Sunday, April 15, when they host the St. Francis College-Brooklyn Terriers. The match is scheduled to start at noon.

SPORTS

April 11, 2018

Women’s Tennis Splits Weekend Matches Against A-10 Foes

By CHARLIE MAISANO MULTIMEDIA EDITOR

It was an A-10 filled weekend for the Fordham Women’s Tennis team, as it welcomed two of its conference foes to the Bronx for back-to-back games. Entering into the weekend, the Rams were 4-7 (1-1 A-10) and in the midst of a season long four game losing streak. This past weekend also marked their first games of April, so it was a good time to put March in the past.

Their first game of the weekend came on Friday against the lowly Saint Joseph’s Hawks. Saint Joseph’s entered the contest with a 3-10 record and was defeated by their fellow Philadelphia rival, the Villanova Wildcats, 4-1. When the Rams faced off against the Hawks last season, they dismantled them in a dominating 7-0 victory.

The year was the only main difference in this year’s matchup, as the Rams won 4-0 after another commanding performance. They won the doubles point to start the game by winning two of the three matches.

Junior Tatiana Grigoryan and senior Carolina Sa won the first doubles match of the evening by beating Hawks sister team of senior Maureen Devlin and sophomore Katherine Devlin, 7-5. Following that victory, the Hawks came back and took the second doubles match. Freshman Amanda Nava and junior Isis GillReed defeated senior Estelle Wong and junior Whitney Weisburg, 7-5. In order to win the doubles point, it was up to the team of sophomore Maia Balce and junior Gianna Insogna.

In what was an intense game against junior Laura Gomez and freshman Lourdes Sprinckmoller, Balce and Insogna came out victorious and secured the point for the Rams by winning the match, 7-5.

The Rams followed the doubles games by sweeping their way through the Hawks in singles. Three of the

EMILY SAYEGH/THE FORDHAM RAM

Fordham Women’s Tennis improved to a 5-8 record over the weekend.

women, Balce, Weisburg and Wong won their matches in two sets. The other three women, Grigoryan, Insogna and Sa were leading before their matches were stopped.

After the game, Head Coach BetteAnn Liguori was glad to see her team step up in a must-win situation.

“St. Joes was a huge turnaround for us as a team since we needed to win that match. It was good to see everyone lift their game in order to win. We needed to win and it was great to see them come out and perform at the highest level, even though some of the team had to switch partners.”

Now at 5-7 on the season, the Rams hosted the UMass Minutewomen on Saturday afternoon.

The last time Fordham and UMass met, the Minutewomen defeated the Rams in the third round of the A-10 Tournament down in Florida.

UMass went on to win the tournament, but fall in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to the #1 ranked Florida Gators.

The Minutewomen would get the upper hand once again, as they defeated the Rams 6-1. Don’t let the score fool you because the Rams hung in tight against the defending A-10 champs. In doubles, Grigoryan and Sa were tied with senior Ana Yrazusta and freshman Anna Napadiy at five apiece before the game was stopped. After that, both the teams of Wong and Weisburg and Balce and Insogna fell to their opponents, 6-3.

The lone win for the Rams in singles came from Insogna, who outlasted freshman Jovana Bogicevic, 2-6, 6-1, 6-3. The rest of the team fell in their singles matches, but each of the Minutewomen needed two sets to finally shake off the Rams.

Although it wasn’t the result she wanted, Coach Liguori was proud of her team.

“We played very hard against the defending champions. I feel that we tested them better than a school like Army. UMASS beat Army badly, but Army beat us [5-2]. They are that good of a team. I think we will build on this performance. We had some tight losses this season, only by the matter of a few points, and this loss wasn’t as bad as it looked.”

With a record of 5-8, the Rams will once again play back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday this weekend.

The Queens College Knights will cross the bridge and play the Rams in the Bronx on Friday at 1 p.m. Then on Saturday, the Rams travel to Long Island to face the Stony Brook Seawolves at noon. The season for the Rams is coming down to the wire, as they will only have two games remaining before the A-10 Tournament after this weekend. Fordham will be looking for all the wins they can in order to continue to build their confidence for the big weekend in Florida at the end of the month.

Track and Field Finishes Colonial Relays in 17th

By EMMANUEL BERBARI ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

After escaping the frigid Northeast April temperatures, the 2018 Colonial Relays brought impressive results for the Fordham Men’s and Women’s Track and Field teams.

The men’s team fought its way into the top 20, collectively earning a 17th-place finish out of 63 teams, while the women’s squad placed 13th for the three-day weekend event.

Sophomore Ryan Kutch started the Rams off in style on Thursday, foreshadowing the successful weekend to come with a victory in the 3,000-meter championship run (8:26.94).

In the same event on the women’s side, sophomore Katarzyna Krzyzanowski placed third in an Eastern College Athletic Conference-qualifying 9:54.48.

Both individuals ensured that Fordham would strike fear into its opponents heading into the final two days of competition.

On Friday, that fear wreaked its havoc in the men’s field events, as senior Ryan Riviere finished tied for the sixth in the pole vault championship (14’ 7 ¼”); fresh-

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

The men’s and women’s track and field teams were impressive at the Colonial Relays this past weekend.

man Nikolas Reardon stacked up third and eighth in the high (6’ 2 ¾”) and long (21’ 11 ¾”) jump, respectively; sophomore Andrew Byrne scored comparatively in the high jump (6’ ¾”) and Riviere surfaced once again with a third-place finish in the javelin throw (141’ 10”).

The women excelled on the track, as junior Mary Kate Kenny set another school record with a 12.12-second sixth-place finish in the 100-meter dash, besting teammate Kathryn Kelly’s week-old record, Kelly crossed herself 13th in 12.30 seconds and senior Laura

Jaeger registered a 44th-place time of 12.75 seconds. That same unit continued to shine in the 200-meter dash, with the results featuring Kenny at 24.75 seconds (14th), Kelly at 25.08 (21st), and Jaeger in 25.16 (25th).

In the 800-meter run, senior Merrisa Wright made noise, grabbing 11th-place in a stellar 2:13.05, while junior Aidan Moroz finished in a 28th-place time of 2:16.60.

The following day, the Rams were extremely effective in the relays, with both sides competing and flourishing in five relay events.

For the men, the top result

came in the distance medley relay and the 1600-meter sprint medley relay. Contributors included Heinrich, Gooden, senior Michael Campbell and Kutch (10:18.24) in distance medley relay, and Benn, Gooden, Keegan and freshman Christopher Strzelinski (3:33.12) in the sprint medley relay.

With that said, the impressive times did not stop there. Junior Patrick Dineen, sophomores Sean Sullivan and Jordan Milite and Cronin finished eighth in the 4x800 in 8:03.59, the same ranking as the 4x100 relay team of Dabney, sophomore Radny Porter

Arcia, Mack and Reardon, who managed a time of 44.69 seconds.

The final men’s relay score was in the 4x200 relay, as Dabney, Porter Arcia, Reardon and Riviere’s 1:35.64 placed just outside of the top-10.

The women scored in four of the events, as the top Ram finish was a second-place 4:05.20 mark in the 1600-meter sprint medley relay, produced by Kelly, Kenny, Boerke and Wright. Fordham also earned a third-place time of 49.40 seconds in the 4x100 relay, with Kelly, sophomore Mary Kate Caucci, Kenny and Jaeger taking center stage.

In the 4x800 relay, Moroz, junior Kate McCormack, Harum and Krzyzanowski placed fifth in 9:22.21, while the 4x1500 relay group of Fisher, Grebe, junior Abigail Taylor, and sophomore Sydney Snow crossing eighth in 20:13.29. Finally, the 4x200 relay unit of Silfies, Caucci, Jaeger and Jagoe-Seidl capped off the weekend of achievement, finishing 13th in 1:54.28.

The Rams will be back in action this weekend, going to work at the Metropolitan Championships on Friday and Saturday in Piscataway, New Jersey.

SPORTS

Page 21

Anthony Cardone

April 11, 2018

Golf Finishes Ninth at Wildcat Invitational

Evan Biancardi

Replacing Tom Brady

Small Sample Size Shockers

The G.O.A.T. When you hear that term in football, there’s only one man everyone thinks of: Tom Brady.

Brady has accomplished things in this sport no one imagined could be done. Breaking in at the turn of the century, Brady has been like a god in New England. Even though Brady has shown no signs of stopping or slowing down, everyone has to retire at some point, and last week the Patriots made a step that could be going in that direction.

The Patriots made a surprising move the other day by trading their top receiver Brandin Cooks to the Los Angeles Rams for their first round pick. That gives the Pats the 23rd overall pick.

On the other side of the trade, the Rams get a top-flight receiver to top off an amazing offseason. After acquiring Cooks, cornerbacks Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, the Rams are stacked and in the thick of the Super Bowl hunt.

Now, it’s not certain the Patriots are taking a quarterback with this pick. However, they have had some workouts with a few of the quarterbacks in this draft. While every team does their due dilligence, the Patriots are understandably under a microscope when it comes to the quarterback position.

If they don’t trade up, then New England isn’t going to get a topflight quarterback like Josh Rosen, Josh Allen or Sam Darnold. However, there could be value in guys that should be avaialbe in the mid20s, like Mason Rudolph, Lamar Jackson or Luke Falk.

There are always quarterbacks that could be potentially great, just like that guy who was drafted in the sixth round at 199th overall. Bill Belichick always has something up his sleeve, and so the general paranoia that he is up to something with these trades is well-founded. He knows how to scout players, and since his team always does well, he never gets a high pick in the draft. By trading up in the draft, there is definitely someone Belichick and the Patriots have their eyes on.

Who knows, they could trade even higher up if they really want someone.

Alternatively, they may be searching for someone to replace top guard Nate Solder or receiver Danny Amendola, who both left in free agency. They may be especially in the hunt for a wide receiver, considering the aforementioned Cooks trade. Either way, there is a lot of talent in this draft at those positions as well.

That is why this trade is so shocking. Not only because Cooks is such a big name and one of the top receivers in the league, but also because the Patriots have so many spots that they can choose to fill with this pick. The world is just waiting to find out who they’re looking at.

With the draft only a little over two weeks away, every day we will get a little closer and see what the Patriots are thinking. Do they take someone that can help them win now? Or do they look into the future and beyond the Greatest of All Time?

The season is still young, but it’s not too early to dissect players’ small sample sizes. For some, their unusual start to 2018 may only be a streak, but for others, it could be an indicator for what to expect in the months ahead.

Joey Votto The 34-year-old is hitting a mere .259 with no extra base hits to start the season, but perhaps more puzzling has been his discipline at the plate. Last season, Votto led the league with 134 walks and had just 83 strikeouts, but through seven games in 2018, the former MVP has worked just one walk and struck out six times.

This isn’t the slugger’s only slow start to a campaign, though. In April of last year, Votto posted a .256 average and struck out more often than he walked, and in 2016, he struck out 23 times and hit just .229 through his first 98 plate appearances. Needless to say, Votto’s early-season struggles shouldn’t be all that concerning. He’ll likely be in the MVP conversation by the summer.

Freddie Freeman Unlike Votto, Freeman has seen a ton of success through his first eight games. He leads the league with a .564 on-base percentage and has 11 RBI and 10 runs scored. While this may not seem sustainable, his batting average on balls in play, which is often a clear indicator of a streak’s sustainability, is only 40 points higher than his career average. Freeman’s hot start can likely be attributed to his more selective approach at the plate and his ability to make solid contact on fastballs. He has been a relatively consistent hitter throughout his career, and if he can stay healthy, there’s no reason why he couldn’t be an all-star in 2018.

Francisco Lindor Lindor has been fairly streaky throughout his career, but his slow start to 2018 is still somewhat concerning. Considering his strikeout and walk rates were identical in 2016 and 2017, it’s safe to assume that his inflated numbers will regress to the mean at some point. However, it’s tough to predict which Lindor the Indians will get this season. Last season, what he lost in contact he made up for in power, raising his slugging percentage 70 points and his ISO 98 points. This had much to do with a 14 percent increase in his fly ball rate, but so far this year, the shortstop has posted figures more in line with his 2016 rates. His high chase rate and low contact rate are also noteworthy, but it appears to be part of an even bigger identity issue for the 24-yearold.

Xander Bogaerts While Didi Gregorius’ strong start is more in line with what he did last year, Bogaerts appears to be having more of a resurgence at the plate. The former top prospect certainly took a step back last year, but he still managed to post numbers in line with his career averages. However, the man is capable of much more, and he has proven that so far this season. Is it sustainable, though? His .371 ISO far exceeds his .130 career mark, and his .423 batting average on balls in play is a tad unrealistic. Bogaerts may be the newest player to reap the benefits of an upper cut swing, as he’s been able to lower his ground ball rate by 17 points, but for now, it’s likely just a hot start.

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

Joseph Trim shot a 74 in the first round and then a 73 in the second to lead the way for the Rams.

By JIMMY SULLIVAN

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

The Fordham men’s golf team competed in its second event of the spring season and finished in 9th place out of 19 teams at the Wildcat Invitational, which was hosted by Villanova University in Malvern, Pa. on Monday and Tuesday.

The Rams were in fourth place after the first round of the tournament on Monday. Senior Matt Schiller fired a first-round 70 to lead all Fordham players. Senior Joseph Trim, sophomore Tomas Nieves and junior Josh Madarang all shot a 74 in their first rounds of play, and they were accompanied by a first-round 75 from senior James Mongey. Things looked good for Fordham after 18 holes; they were in fourth places and ten strokes behind Drexel for first.

However, they were unable to sustain their hot start during play on Tuesday.

Trim, consistent as ever, led all Rams players with a 73 on Tuesday.

Mongey shot another 75 on Tuesday, and both players either matched or bettered their first-round scores. No

other Rams could say the same of their day two performances.

Schiller followed up a first-round 70 with a 78 in his final 18 holes.

Nieves shot a 76 in round two after doing two strokes better on Monday, and Madarang finished his tournament with a 78.

“We did not play our best these last two days. I can speak for myself in that I was a little off in all facets of my game,” Mongey said. The Rams ultimately finished ninth at the tournament behind Binghamton University, Lehigh University, Delaware University, St. Peter’s University, Iona College, St. John’s University, Rhode Island University and the eventual tournament winner, Drexel University. This is the second event of the spring for Fordham; they finished in 6th at the Albarta Coca-Cola Lehigh Valley Collegiate Invite on Easter Sunday last week.

Also competing at the Wildcat Invitational were Siena College, Rider University, Wagner College, Bucknell University, Monmouth University, Villanova University (the host school), Le Moyne College, Lafayette College, La Salle University and

Colgate University.

Freshman Mithran Denbow competed for the Rams as an individual and shot rounds of 76 and 83. The highest individual finisher for Fordham was Trim, who tied for 23rd place with a 147 over both days.

Schiller finished tied for 29th, Mongey and Nieves both tied for 43rd and Madarang finished in 58th.

Next up for Fordham is the Yale Spring Invitational on Saturday, which will be a one-day, 36-hole tournament. After that, the team has the 54-hole Rhode Island Invitational next Monday and Tuesday before the Atlantic 10 Tournament April 27-29.

“I think because the spring season is so quick and after a long winter, we are all trying to find our game leading into the A-10 Tournament,” Mongey said. “Hopefully, we will all peak then.”

The Rams need to get things going in the last two tournaments of the season as they head into the Atlantic 10 Tournament. If they do, they will be peaking at the right time, just like Mongey and the rest of the Rams hope to.

Rowing Notches One First Place Finish at Cooper Cup

ANDREA GARCIA/THE FORDHAM RAM

The Varsity 4+ finished sixth in their grand final appearance with a time of 9:08.04.

By JACK McLOONE SPORTS EDITOR

The Fordham rowing team came into the Cooper Cup with high expectations after garnering the inaugural Atlantic 10 Boat of the Week for its performance in the Murphy Cup. The Rams battled tough conditions en route to a mix of strong finishes on the Cooper River, including a first place spot.

That first place finish came courtesy of the Varsity 8+ boat.

Its 7:34.12 finish in the qualifying heats was slow but got the boat into the petite final. It let loose in the final, improving by almost 12 seconds with a 7:23.47. That time topped Atlantic 10 foe Dayton by two seconds.

That boat consisted of sophomore Danae Ohresser-Joumard, junior Erin Parker, junior Cynthia Luz, freshman Aleksa Bjornson, freshman Anna Peterson, junior Carly Roncinske, sophomore Erin McGreevey and senior Kat Napoli.

They were coxswained by freshman

Olivia Herman.

The Varsity 4+ team won its qualifying heat in a time of 8:57.47, just ahead of the Fairfield A boat.

That boat consisted of freshmen Samantha Santiago, Anna Grace Cole, Emma Lipinski and junior Danielle Kosman. Their coxswain was freshman Claudia Keech.

By winning its qualifying heat, the Varsity 4+ team was entered into the grand final. The team finished in 9:08.04, putting it in sixth.

The Second Varsity 4+ boat also made the grand final, finishing fourth with a time of 9:14.66. That boat was staffed by sophomore Grace Little, junior Noelle Chaney, sophomore Lindsey Register and sophomore Catie Perlick. Their coxswain was junior Andrea Garcia.

The Junior Varsity 8+ team also finished in sixth in the grand final, which it reached by recording the fast time of all the JV 8+ boats in the heats at 7:44.89. That boat consisted of seniors Kristen Shuman, Ariene Merkle, Maddy Locher and Katie Dillon, junior Sarah White,

sophomores Erika Selakowski and Brikena Prendaj and freshman Sophie Singh. Their coxswain was sophomore Julia Comerford.

The JV 8+ finished the grand final in a time of 8:05.26.

The final boat of the day was the Novice 8+, who struggled the most with the weather. There was no qualifying heat for this meet, but the Rams did not get to compete in the straight final.

The windy conditions kept them from lining up properly for the start, which disqualified them. However, the team was still allowed to race.

The Novice 8+ boat was made up of freshman Debra Chieco, junior Emma Spoldi, freshman Kylie Elwood, freshman Gabriella Guglielmi, freshman Danielle Moynihan, freshman Lidya Ozcelik, freshman Estephanie Peralta and freshman Elizabeth Berejka. Their coxswain was sophomore Olivia Cirualo.

The Rams will next be on the water in Kerr Cup. That race is on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

SPORTS

Page 22

April 11, 2018

Ronaldo’s Bicycle Kick Heard ‘Round the World

By ANDREW POSADAS STAFF WRITER

Real Madrid went into Italy for the first leg of its quarterfinal matchup against Juventus, and the team absolutely dominated the Italian squad on their way to a 3-0 victory. You would think a win against one of the best teams in the world would be the headline. It wasn’t. Nobody cared about the box score.

The only part of the game we really cared about was the 64th minute.

Up to that point, Madrid was in complete control. Ronaldo had already made his presence known; scoring within the first four minutes of the game. That goal gave him a new record as the first player to score in ten consecutive Champions League games.

As if that wasn’t enough, Ronaldo gave us the goal of the tournament in the second half.

After a masterful save by Juventus goalkeeper Gigi Buffon, Madrid defender Dani Carvajal lifted the ball back into the box. What happened next was nothing short of jaw-dropping.

While everyone seemed to allocate themselves accordingly to get a head on the ball, Cristiano Ronaldo decided, “What the heck?” and proceeded to jump into the air for a bicycle kick. The timing was right. The kick was precise.

The ball was placed into the bottom left corner where only Mr. Fantastic would’ve had a chance to keep it from the back of the net.

But, the most incredible part came after the goal: a moment of silence conveying the thoughts of everyone in the stadium: what did we just see?

Buffon and the rest of Juventus looked stunned. What could they do about that? Absolutely nothing. It’s one of the greatest soccer players of all time doing what he

does best: scoring goals in amazing fashion. Even the hostile crowd in Italy couldn’t boo Ronaldo. A majority of the arena gave him a standing ovation, admitting that even though Ronaldo was the enemy, his greatness was and is still appreciated.

Ronaldo has clearly cemented himself as the greatest player to ever play in Champions League.

He’s on pace to break the record for most goals in a single UCL tournament (17) set by… oh yeah, by Cristiano Ronaldo.

I spoke about him scoring in 10 consecutive UCL games; that feat hasn’t been achieved by anyone but him.

His sheer mastery in UCL play only further cements his resume as one of the greatest footballers of all time. Going up against the best teams in the most competitive and prestigious tournament outside of the World Cup. At 33 years of age, the “decline” some observers spoke of while watching Ronaldo’s early struggles in 2017 has disintegrated into nothing more than a moot point.

However, not everyone is in accordance with the notion of Ronaldo being the GOAT. Two factors give people cause to pause: Lionel Messi and a World Cup Championship.

As Messi continues to power Barcelona into success, the debate on Messi vs. Ronaldo will give soccer fans headaches and raspy voices from arguing. A clear-cut answer agreed upon by the entire soccer world is implausible.

Unless.

Unless the second factor comes into play. The ultimate achievement for a soccer player is bringing their country a World Cup trophy. That’s what made Pele and Maradona legends.

Who will it make a legend next?

By JIMMY SULLIVAN

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

While this may come as a surprising development to some people, football is a sport that features a lot of violence.

It is no secret, then, that playing the sport for an extended period of time can lead to serious brain injuries and irreversible brain damage. Just last summer, a study of 111 brains of deceased football players found that 110 of them had at least some traces of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, otherwise known as CTE. CTE is a brain disease that can open the door to a variety of terrifying symptoms, namely depression, memory loss and anxiety. The disease was found in players such as Dave Duerson, Junior Seau, Paul Oliver and Terry Long, just to name a few. The common thread among all of these men is that they ended their lives by committing suicide. Just two weeks ago, Super Bowl-winning quarterback Mark Rypien opened up about his attempt to kill himself by consuming copious amounts of alcohol combined with prescription medicine. As we have seen, football is a sport that is quite literally and frighteningly forcing its former players to lose their minds.

The NFL is trying something radically different to change that.

On March 27, the league announced several new rules aimed at protecting players from concussions.

The main eye-opener was a new rule, entitled “Playing Rule Article 8,” that states the following: “It is a foul if a player lowers his head to initiate and make contact with his helmet against an opponent.

The player may be disqualified. Applies to any player anywhere on the field. The player may be disqualified.”

On the surface, this addition is similar to college football’s “targeting” rule that allows players to be ejected for initiating contact on a defenseless player; however, that rule mainly applies to defenseless players with the ball in their hands and is rarely enforced outside of such players unless the foul is glaringly obvious. The thing that differentiates this new rule from the targeting rule is that it will supposedly apply to players away from the ball as well. This is where a serious question and potential problem comes into the equation

for the NFL: How can you possibly enforce this regulation?

To prove that point, USA Today reviewed the first half of a Monday Night Football game between the Steelers and Bengals in week 13 of last season; in fairness to the NFL, that game featured 20 combined penalties and more shots to the head than any of Martin Scorsese’s movies ever could. In its review of that game, though, USA Today found that the referees could have called, and you may want to be sitting down for this, 39 penalties in the first half alone. The game, which is oftentimes a difficult product to consume in the present moment, would become unwatchable with that amount of penalties in that short of a time. While the onus will be on players to adjust to the new rules, fans may need to suffer through years of abhorrent football until those adjustments are made.

Competition Committee Chairman and Falcons CEO Rich McKay has said that referees will be instructed to enforce the new rules in the trenches as well. If they do that, the league has just slid down one of the most slippery slopes in the history of the world, as helmet-to-helmet contact takes place all the time and referees could call a penalty on literally every single play. That would be a problem for obvious reasons, and even though the league is making a noble effort to take the helmet out of the game, it will be very hard to actually see this happening without seriously affecting the way football is played.

To be clear, I am as much against brain damage as anyone could be and the NFL’s recent rule changes have

good intentions and could be a step in the right direction with proper enforcement. However, these changes will also force players, particularly offensive and defensive linemen, to completely re-learn everything they have previously learned about playing their positions. While these changes are probably necessary and good for the game in the long run, the long term benefits don’t mean that there won’t be serious consequences to the game in the short term that could make many fans turn away.

That assertion goes back to why fans actually watch the game: entertainment and violence. For example, when I watched the Super Bowl, I didn’t think of the potentially life-altering impact of Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins’ hit on Patriots wide receiver Brandin Cooks. My first thought was that it should have been a penalty. That attitude needs to change. While we have gotten better at realizing what happens to players after they retire, we need to come to the realization that every single play features some sort of violence that can create or add to a player’s mental health problems after his football career. But Americans like entertainment, and they also like violence, which is why Conor McGregor was trending on Twitter last week for attacking a group of MMA fighters and their entourages. The mass attraction wasn’t because his act was sophisticated, organized or sportsmanlike.

We watched because McGregor was captivating and abusive, and many were enthralled by his actions.

This is to say that as long as the NFL is a violent sport, people will tune in to watch it.

COURTESY OF TWITTER

Malcom Jenkins’ hit on Brandin Cooks in Super Bowl LII is now illegal.

Varsity Calendar

Follow us on Twitter at @theram_sports

HOME AWAY Baseball

Thursday Apr. 12

Friday Apr. 13

Saturday Apr. 14

Sunday Apr. 15

La Salle 3 p.m.

La Salle 1 p.m.

La Salle 2 p.m.

Men’s Tennis

Rowing Golf Track

Tuesday Apr. 17

Wednesday Apr. 18

Fairfield 6 p.m.

Columbia 3:30 p.m.

St. Bonaventure 2/5 p.m.

Rhode Island Rhode Island 1 p.m.

12/2:30 p.m.

St. FrancisSt. Joseph’s Brooklyn 11 a.m.

12 p.m.

Softball

Women’s Tennis

Monday Apr. 16

Queens College 1 p.m.

Stony Brook 12 p.m Kerr Cup TBD Yale Invitational All-day

Metropolitan Championship 1 p.m./10:30 a.m.

Rhode Island Invitational All Day

SPORTS

April 11, 2018

Alvin Halimwidjaya

Heat Ready for Postseason Run The Eastern Conference isn’t nearly as much of a chaotic mess as the Western Conference is; the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves meet on the final day of the season to fight for the final playoff spot, which is the culmination of the whirlwind the lower five or six seeds have gone through in the West.

Out East, due to LeBron James’ mere presence in the playoffs, many fans have written off the Eastern Conference as another trip to the finals for the otherwise-subpar Cleveland Cavaliers. A few people are placing their hopes in the hands of the first-seeded Toronto Raptors or the upstart Philadelphia 76ers, but with Boston Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving out for the playoffs, Beantown’s finest have seen a major drop in their playoff expectations. However, despite all this assumed certainty in the East, one team that people are sleeping on is the Miami Heat.

Last year, the Heat just missed the playoffs after going 30-11 in the second half of the season. This year, they’re looking to secure the seventh seed and go up against the injuryridden Celtics, which gives them a significant advantage. Without Kyrie Irving and even Marcus Smart, Boston becomes a much more beatable team, giving Miami a chance to get to the second round and stir up some trouble among the Eastern Conference heavyweights.

Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra has the luxury of having numerous young and versatile players to trot out in different combinations. Hassan Whiteside is one of the best twoway centers in the NBA when he’s engaged, and there are few big men in the East that can take him on oneon-one. If Miami wants to change it up, they can bring in the sweetshooting Kelly Olynyk and move to a more modern, five-out offense.

For the LeBrons and DeRozans of the East, forwards like James Johnson and Justise Winslow have the size, speed and athleticism to give vaunted scorers a tough time on the perimeter. Josh Richardson and Goran Dragic make up a talented backcourt that can run the offense and get their own buckets, especially in the postseason slog that slows every team’s pace down.

To top it off, they nabbed Dwyane Wade in a midseason trade; the hometown hero remains the thirdbest shooting guard in NBA history, and though the mayor of Wade County turned 36 this year, the playoffs are when Father Prime shines, and his playoff pedigree is exactly what the Heat need to hang with the more experienced teams in the East.

The Heat are certainly facing a tall task; the Celtics will still have Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, as well as Coach of the Year candidate Brad Stevens, and even if they get past Boston, LeBron looms large in the shadow of the second round. However, Miami has given themselves an identity of hustle and grit in the years after James’ departure, and they’ve developed a reputation of always being a tough out in the playoffs. The Heat have a chance this year to play underdog and knock off some of the giants in the East, and more importantly, don’t we all want to finally see LeBron versus Wade in a playoff series?

Page 23

Liam McKeone

Varsity Scores & Stats Men's Track Colonial Relays (FOR) Kutch: 1st in 3000m (8:26.94) (FOR) Reardon: 3rd in High Jump (6' 2.75") (FOR) Riviere: 3rd in Javelin Throw (141' 10")

Baseball Fordham 29 Saint Peter's 1 (FOR) Godrick: 2-2, 2B, R, 3 SB, 4 RBI

Women's Track Colonial Relays (FOR) Krzyzanowski: 3rd in 3000m (9:54.48) (FOR) Kate Kenny: 6th in 100m (12.12)

Fordham 4 Rhode Island 0 (FOR) Greenberg (W): 7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

2 6

Fordham Rhode Island

Men's Tennis Fordham Saint Joseph's

4 2

Women's Tennis Fordham Saint Joseph's

4 0

Fordham 5 Rhode Island 3 (FOR) DiMeglio (W): 7 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K Golf Wildcat Invitational (FOR) Trim: 74 in Rd 1; 73 in Rd 2

Softball Fordham Binghamton

4 0

Fordham George Mason

4 2

Fordham George Mason FINAL - 5 innings

10 0

Fordham George Mason FINAL - 6 innings

10 2

Iona Fordham Rowing (FOR) Varsity 4+: 6th in Grand Final (9:08.04) (FOR) JV 8+: 6th in Grand Final (8:05.26)

Athletes of the Week Ben Greenberg

Madie Aughinbaugh

Senior

Sophomore

Baseball

Softball

The right-hander improved to 4-1 on his stellar 2018 campaign with a seven-inning, one-hit performance on Saturday against URI. He fanned six and walked only two before giving way to the bullpen, improving his ERA to 1.34 and BAA to .157 on the season. His ERA ranks 21st nationally.

A versatile threat, Aughinbaugh continues to excel for the Rams. She hurled complete games on Thursday and Saturday, a three-hit shutout against Binghamton and a two-run (no-earned) outing against George Mason. The sophomore added a homer and 4 RBIs in Sunday's victory.

Each week, The Fordham Ram’s sports editors honor one male athlete and one female athlete for their on-field performances as their “Athletes of the Week.”

News & Notes • Baseball Recognized with Two Individual Awards Fordham is fresh off a tremendous week on

the diamond, and two of its players were awarded accordingly for their efforts. Junior Brian Goulard was named the A-10's co-Player of the Week, while freshman Jake MacKenzie earned the conference's Rookie of the Week award. This is the first time that both players have been honored by the conference, with MacKenzie becoming the team's fourth different Rookie of the Week this season. Goulard batted .500, drove in six runs and swiped two bags this past week, while MacKenzie hit safely in all four games, batting .444 with four RBI, two doubles and two triples.

• Softball Earns Two Weekly Honors

Sophomore Madie Aughinbaugh and freshman Paige Rauch earned weekly awards for the Rams, as the duo was honored with Pitcher of the Week and Rookie of the Week, respectively, for the second time this season. Aughinbaugh pitched to the tune of a 1.84 ERA over 19 innings this past week, while Rauch reached base in all five games, scored seven runs, blasted three home runs and drove in six.

• Football Hires Two Assistant Coaches

First-year head coach Joe Conlin added two coaches to his staff on Monday as the team continues to gear up for the 2018 season. Steve Thames was brought on as the Assistant Defensive Backs and Safeties Coach, while Vincent DiGaetano earned a spot as Volunteer Special Teams Quality Control Assistant Coach.

Thames worked as an assistant at Dartmouth College the past two years, where the Big Green ranked third in the Ivy League in rushing (180.0 yards/game) under his watch. The New Hampshire alum also assisted in mentoring Ivy League Rookie of the Year Hunter Hagdorn. On the other hand, DiGaetano recently spent two years at Wagner College, serving as a defensive assistant. Prior to that tenure, he was the linebackers coach at Nassau Community College (2015) and spent ten years on the SUNY-Maritime staff beforehand. The Wagner alum was among the finalists for the 2014 AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year award in Division III. DiGaetano became the only college coach to be named to the USA Football Master Trainer program in 2013.

-Compiled by Emmanuel Berbari

1 6

Boston's Playoff Keys It’s been a rollercoaster of a season for the Celtics. There were exceptionally high expectations for the team coming into the season that were promptly dashed by Gordon Hayward’s broken ankle. Only five minutes into the new season, and the Celtics were already dismissed as contenders for the 2018 title. Then, they unexpectedly ripped off a 16-game win streak and have steadily remained at the top of the conference since.

But, with the news breaking that Kyrie Irving will be missing the playoffs due to knee surgery, the Celtics have once again been left for dead in the Eastern Conference. Without two of their three best players, will the Celtics even scrape by the first round?

Anyone outright ignoring Boston as a playoff contender is severely underestimating head coach Brad Stevens, who is a frontline Coach of the Year candidate. Stevens took a team last year that was much less talented and brought them to the No. 1 seed and a trip to the conference finals.

He’s one of the five best coaches in the league already, and it is largely due to him that the season didn’t fall apart following Hayward’s injury back in October. The Celtics’ roster has missed over 200 games due to injury combined, yet still won over fifty games and managed to keep themselves in the mix for the No. 1 seed until the last two weeks of the season.

This is coming off a summer which saw significant roster turnover and only brought back four players from last year’s roster. That lack of roster continuity is extraordinarily difficult for coaches to deal with, but Boston never seemed to miss a step, almost entirely thanks to “President” Brad Stevens. If there’s any coach that can get the most of out of a roster, it’s him.

Of course, a coach can only do so much. The two up-and-coming studs for the Celtics will need to step up bigtime if they want any chance of getting past the first round. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum have both coped well with a gradually increased workload as the season has gone on. Tatum has had a typical rookie season, with an excellent beginning and end with a shaky middle, but in the games since Irving has gone down, he’s looked comfortable as the first scoring option in the offense. His ability to produce points will be huge going forward; even last year’s team, with their overall lack of talent, had an efficient volume scorer in Isaiah Thomas. The Celtics’ offense has ranked in the bottom five of scoring efficiency without Irving. Tatum is the key to turning that around.

Brown will be the key to the other side of the court. The Celtics have been a very solid defensive team all year, despite Irving’s well-documented defensive issues. Al Horford and Aron Baynes have been their anchors in the middle all season long, and their stable of wing defenders has proven to be effective in switching. Stevens has even broken out the 2-3 zone at points this season. But Brown is the team’s best chance to have a defensive stopper. If he can step up his game to Andre Iguodala-level defending—and all of his defensive potential indicates that wouldn’t be as big a jump as we’d think—then the Celtics not only have a chance to get past round one, but potentially beyond. Nobody, in Boston or elsewhere, is expecting much out of this squad. But they may just surprise you.

SPORTS

Page 24

April 11, 2018

The Fordham Ram

Baseball Breaks Runs Record, Wins Three Out of Four

By JACK McLOONE SPORTS EDITOR

Setting a school record is a great way to kick off a week. A new record for runs scored in a game is even better.

Fordham Baseball topped St. Peter’s 29-1 on Wednesday, and followed that up by taking two of three from Atlantic 10 opponent Rhode Island. Fordham is now 18-9-1.

St. Peter’s is, well, not good. The Peacocks have yet to win a game this season. Teams will occasionally play down to competition, but the Rams haven’t done so in either of their games against the Peacocks, winning their matchup 18-0.

“A big focus of ours has been to compete at a high level no matter who we are playing or what their record is,” said head coach Kevin Leighton.

“I thought our guys performed very well and winning that game definitely helped us stay focused and move on to our next opponent.”

That next opponent was the Rhode Island Rams, and the Fordham Rams carried their momentum into their matchup with Rhody. Game one, however, got the series off to a slow start for Fordham with a 6-2 loss.

Through six innings, neither team had scored a run. It certainly wasn’t for lack of trying, as Fordham stranded six runners in scoring position and Rhode Island five.

Junior starting pitcher Reiss Knehr pitched his way into and out of trouble over his six innings of work.

Knehr has struggled with command all season, and walked four batters for the fourth time this season. Knehr relies on a tailing fastball, and his problems seem to arise when it doesn’t have that tailing action; it stays outside of the zone instead of cutting back in.

Knehr had runners on the corners

with two outs three separate times.

In the second innings, both runners were on base courtesy of walks. He got out of all three of those jams, including a beautiful strikeout looking to end the threat in the fifth.

Leighton isn’t too concerned about the junior’s struggles.

“I thought Reiss pitched well, and at times you will have a ‘good’ walk,” he said. “He has competed and battled [through] his starts recently and although he hasn’t been perfect he has still given us a good opportunity to win just about every game he’s pitched this year.”

While he gave the Fordham Rams a good opportunity in this one, they failed to capitalize.

After a controversial base runner interference no-call - a similar call was made against Fordham earlier in the game - Rhode Island loaded the bases with two outs against sophomore reliever Brian Weissert, and a three-RBI double down the line gave Rhody a lead they never relinquished.

The base runner interference nocall (and earlier call) were just a couple of the contested plays throughout the series, with both sides repeatedly disagreeing with calls made on the field by the umpire crew.

“No doubt there were some calls that URI’s coach and I didn’t like throughout the weekend. I find myself at times having to really take a deep breath,” said Leighton. “Sometimes you get the breaks and sometimes you don’t and I think the more we understand that we have no control over certain things the better we will be, and that’s something I have to remind myself often.”

Another break that the Rams didn’t get was an injury to their leader at the plate and their closer, sophomore Alvin Melendez. He left the seventh inning with what Leighton described as a pulled hamstring.

JULIA COMERFORD/THE FORDHAM RAM

Fordham Baseball broke the school’s record for runs scored in a game last Wednesday in a 29-1 win over Saint Peter’s.

There’s no timetable on his return.

Saturday’s game went much better for Fordham, ending in a 4-0 win, as they tend to when senior Ben Greenberg is on the mound. Rhode Island picked up just two hits. Only one came off Greenberg, who also walked two, hit one and struck out six over seven innings. His season ERA is now just 1.34. A discrepancy on the NCAA stats leaderboard has him at 39th in the country, but he should actually be tied for 20th (Davidson erroneously charged him with an extra earned run but has yet to change it).

“Greenberg was tremendous, and when you are down 0-1 in the series it’s huge to get a performance like that,” said Leighton. “Again, I think the biggest thing Ben does well is compete, but his cutter and curveball were both very good and he was able to locate both when he needed to make a big pitch.”

Fordham plated its first run in the third, when freshman Jake MacK-

enzie came home on a wild pitch. A squeeze bunt from Knehr gave them another in the fourth. The Rams scored two more in the fifth, when sophomore Matt Tarabek scored on a passed ball and then junior Brian Goulard scored one more on an RBI single.

Weissert and sophomores Brandon Martin and Kyle Martin finished up the game on the mound, with Kyle giving up Rhode Island’s one other hit.

The rubber match on Sunday was yet another dominant performance on the mound for Fordham, with seven innings of two-run ball from junior Anthony DiMeglio pacing the Rams for a 5-3 victory. He struck out a career-high nine (the seven innings pitched were also a career-high).

As a whole, the Rams now have a 3.18 ERA, which would put them at 25th in the country (if Greenberg’s ghost earned run was eliminated). A lot of that is due to the success of the

starting three.

Fordham went up 2-0 early on a two-RBI single from Nick Labella in the bottom of the second. Rhody tied it back up at two runs apiece in the top of the third. The Rams took back the lead, on a balk of all things, in the top of the seventh, then tacked on two more on a two-RBI single from Goulard in the bottom of the eighth.

The Rams are firing on all cylinders right now, as it seems the weather is finally getting warm. They seem to be performing in the mold of Fordham Women’s Basketball, well out-performing their expectations due to being so young, in large part due to solid performances from their lone senior (Greenberg is G’mrice Davis in this metaphor, which isn’t too bad).

They’ll look to continue their strong season in a doubleheader against Siena on Wednesday, April 11 starting at 3 p.m., followed by a weekend trip to A-10 foe La Salle for a three-game series.

Softball Wins Four of Five, Three More in the Atlantic 10

By BRENDAN O’CONNELL STAFF WRITER

This past week, Fordham Softball swept George Mason and split contests against Lehigh and Binghamton, adding four wins and one loss to its record to improve to 19-17 on the season.

On Wednesday, April 4, the Rams fell to Lehigh 8-6 in eight innings in a barn-burner at Bahoshy Field. Despite trailing 6-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth, the Rams rallied for four runs in two innings to push the game to extras, thanks to an RBI single by junior Chelsea Skrepenak and home runs from sophomores Madie Aughinbaugh and Skylar Johnston. Freshman Anne Marie Prentiss suffered her first loss of the season after Lehigh posted two runs in the eighth inning to put the Rams out of reach.

The following day, Fordham bounced back with a 4-0 shutout over Binghamton. Aughinbaugh earned the victory by pitching all seven frames, striking out six batters and scattering just three hits. The Rams plated runs as a result of Skrepenak’s 3rd-inning two-run triple-turned-homer and 6th-inning one-run single, as well

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

Lauren Quense was one of the main stars for the Rams this week, as they won four out of their five games played.

as freshman Paige Rauch’s 4thinning RBI walk.

On Saturday, the Rams triumphed twice over George Mason, 4-2 and 10-0, with the latter ending in just five innings. In the early game, Fordham got its offense from a Johnston solo homer, a Skrepenak two-run double and a Deanna Burbridge RBI single.

Aughinbaugh twirled a complete game in the circle, allowing only

two unearned runs and earning her tenth win of the season to move to 10-6. In the later blowout, the Rams’ hitting overpowered George Mason. Junior Kylie Michael got the scoring going with an RBI single in the second inning before crossing the plate herself on graduate Lauren Quense’s double to right field in the following at-bat. Rauch blasted a three-run homer in the fifth in-

ning, and Quense ended the game in that same frame by launching a grand slam over the left field fence, giving her five RBIs on the afternoon. Rauch also pitched five scoreless innings, striking out six and allowing just four baserunners in victory. On Sunday, the Rams tallied ten runs once again, winning 10-2 in six innings. Johnston, Aughinbaugh and Rauch (twice) sent hits out of the park,

while Quense and Burbridge also delivered RBIs en route to victory. On the mound, Rauch pitched four scoreless innings in relief of Aughinbaugh and took the W, moving to (8-1) on the year.

After five games at home, the Rams will travel to New Rochelle, NY to take on Iona before heading to Kingston, RI for three matchups with Rhode Island. As the regular season approaches its midpoint, the Rams will rely on their more seasoned players to guide the way.

“My role as a veteran player consists of holding our team to the standards we have created over the past years, helping the newcomers become more accustomed to our level of play, making sure everyone stays focused, and ultimately always being there to support my teammates and coaches,” said Quense, a fifth-year player for the Rams. “Our team has done a good job of helping each other bounce back from deficits. This team is special because not only do our leaders help out their teammates, but people who may not be considered leaders have been able to teach our leaders a thing or two about the game and how to be better leaders.”