The Fordham Ram Serving The Fordham dh University Community Since 1918 Volume 97, Issue 15
September 30, 2015
FordhamRam.com
Huge Crowds for Pope in Central Park By ROB PALAZZOLLO STAFF WRITER
lucky that I could have that opportunity and see firsthand, for myself, someone so influential and [in my opinion] progressive in the Catholic Church.” Pope Francis began his second day in New York with an address at the UN, the first of his tenure as Pope. In this address, he urged both
“Pontifex Maximus” is one of the many titles used for the pope, and it was once the title for the High Priest of the old gods of Ancient Rome. But as centuries wore on and Rome became predominantly Christian, the honorific titlewas handed over to the Bishop of Rome, also known as the Pope, as the leader of the new faith of the Romans. In Central Park last Friday, Sept. 25, current Pontifex Maximus Pope Francis was thrown a celebration not unlike the Triumphs (parades) given to prominent Romans thousands of years ago. There were, of course, differences. This triumph was not in honor of some kind of military victory — the only conquest this man has is of people’s hearts. In addition, this Pontifex Maximus rode in a white Jeep instead of a chariot through a crowd that was tens of thousands strong. Chris Moore, FCRH ’17, was one of the Fordham students who secured a ticket to the event. He said he was lucky enough to be
SEE FRANCIS, PAGE 6
SEE POPE, PAGE 7
CASEY CHUN/ THE FORDHAM RAM
Thousands of New York residents, Fordham students among them, greeted Pope Francis in Central Park on Friday, Sept. 25, during a motorcade procession.
During Visit, Francis Speaks and a City Listens By SIMEK SHROPSHIRE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
This past week in New York City was especially hectic with the arrival of Pope Francis, who was on a ten-day tour of North America. Francis, 78, drew tens of thousands of people over the course of his much awaited three-day visit throughout Manhattan. This visit came as a pit-stop for the Pope, who also visited the cities of Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia. Pope Francis’ papal duties in New York began with the Vespers Service at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Fifth Avenue on Thursday evening,
Sept. 23. He opened his homily with a prayer for the Muslim pilgrims who had died earlier in the week in Mecca, Saudi Arabia during the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Yet, the most noteworthy and applauded aspect of his homily came with his praise of the women who had built the American Church, in which he directed much of said praise to and about nuns. Following the conclusion of the Vespers Service, the Pope made a point to visit children, women, and the disabled as he made his way out of the cathedral. Waiting outside of St. Patrick’s Cathedral to welcome the papal proces-
sion was Shay Haile, FCRH ’17. “There was definitely an air of excitement, and everyone was so thrilled and grateful,” said Haile. “The crowd around me was cheering for everything it saw, such as when people passed by and when police officers passed by. “That’s just how excited everyone was. She said that though the atmosphere on Fifth Avenue was charged prior to the Pope’s arrival, Pope Francis was initially met with little applause as his procession neared the Cathedral,” Haile said. “There was definitely a state of awe felt by everyone when his car approached. I just felt really
University Revokes Cosby’s Degree By LAURA SANICOLA NEWS EDITOR
On Tuesday, Sept. 22, the Fordham Board of Trustees sent an unprecedented message to the Fordham community, condemning Bill Cosby’s alleged willingness to “drug and rape women for his own sexual gratification,” according to an email sent by the unviersity, and stripping the comedian of his 2001 honorary degree of the Fine Arts. The decision comes in light of “now-public court depositions that confirm many of the allegations made against [Cosby] by numerous women,” the email stated. According to the office of the president, in order for the university to revoke an honorary degree, “a recipient’s actions would have to be both unambiguously dishonorable and have a deep impact.” “By his own admission, Mr. Cosby’s sexual exploitation of women was premeditated and ongoing. Equally appalling is his longtime strategy of denigrating the reputations of women who accused him of such actions.”
W.A. HAREWOOD/ AP
Cosby’s now-revoked honorary degree was bestowed in 2001.
In his public court testimony, Cosby admits to having used Quaaludes in his sexual encounters with women. The university’s message reverberated across national media sources, with the response reaching journalists from Fox News to Vulture. But Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of the university, could not keep himself immune
from retaliation – coming from Cosby’s own lawyer. Cosby’s attorney John P. Schmitt wrote to McShane, the letter later being made public by Cosby’s publicist, David Brokaw, according to the Associated Press. It stated that, while the Board of Trustees was within its rights to revoke the degree, Fordham’s SEE COSBY, PAGE 5
Assault Close to Campus Attracts Media Coverage By LAURA SANICOLA NEWS EDITOR
The recent sexual assault of a Fordham student has made local news. Students on campus awoke Sunday morning to a Public Safety email reporting that a student was sexually assaulted around 10:05 p.m. on Saturday in the alley adjacent to the Dunkin Donuts on Fordham Road. Two males loitering in the alleyway accosted the female student, according to the email alert. “One male grabbed her and forcibly held her arms behind her back while the other forcibly groped her body,” the email stated. The incident appeared on Bronx News 12, as well as CBS local news, NBC and WABC-TV. According to the email alert, as one of the males was unzipping his pants, unidentified individuals approached the rear parking lot of the Dunkin Donuts, possibly alarming the attackers. The two fled down East Fordham Road and the student, reportedly uninjured, continued to her off-campus apartment. Fordham Public Safety and NYPD officers responded to the student’s apartment and notified detectives from the Special Victims Unit, who also responded. Fordham also assigned an Administrative Support
Person to the student. An Administrative Support Person is assigned in sexual assault cases to assist a complaintant in receiving assistance and understanding the process and available resources, according to Campus Assault and Relationship Education (CARE). “Fordham's Department of Public Safety is working closely with the NYPD's Special Victims Unit detectives on the investigation,” said Senior Director of Communications Bob Howe. “The university has offered the student all the resources at its disposal.” The email reports that NYPD personnel canvassed the area with no SEE ASSAULT, PAGE 2
in this issue
Opinion
Page 9
The Importance of Different Viewpoints
Culture
Page 15
Preview of the Fordham Theater Season
Sports Page 24 Fordham Football Defeats Monmouth