SOUNDS OF TRADITION
Students coming to Appalachian State University can find a rich heritage including traditions of bluegrass and old-time music. Students Ben Banick and A.J. Bennett have grown to love the genres, and Banick has even started his own band called Skillet Gap.
The Appalachian 11.13.14
Appalachian State University’s student news source since 1934
Vol. 89, No. 22
Voting issues surface in 2014 general election by Nicole Caporaso Senior News Reporter
Malik Rahili
Nina Rhoades, a member of End ASU’s Rape Culture, is wearing a shirt with hashtags created for use during Rape Culture Awareness Week, which runs from Nov. 17-20.
FIGHTING RAPE CULTURE Rape Culture Awareness Week will be held Nov. 17-20 to address sexual violence
by Laney Ruckstuhl News Editor
R
ape Culture Awareness Week will be held on Appalachian State University’s campus Nov. 17-20 to raise awareness about societal attitudes toward gender and sexuality. The week’s events were organized by student groups Appalachian Educators for Social Justice and End ASU’s Rape Culture. Planning was headed by End ASU’s Rape Culture founders Julia Grainger and Rachel Clay and ASJ president Mary Lyons. The groups will protest and observe a day of solidarity Nov. 17 on Sanford Mall, where they will write “1 in 4” on their faces and bodies to represent the statistics that have found one in four women are sexually assaulted during their college career. Clay, a senior women’s studies major said she received a grant in order to fund the participation of other University of North Carolina system schools. UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC Greensboro, UNC Charlotte and North Carolina State University will host their own days of solidarity in sync with Appalachian, while
UNCG also plans to hold events during the week on its campus. The Red Flag Educators, a group that teaches Appalachian students to be “upstanders” by intervening and speaking out about interpersonal, domestic and sexual violence will also be hosting a training at 7 p.m. Monday in Belk Library Room 421. A #rapecultureiswhen photo booth will be set up in Plemmons Student Union on Nov. 18-19, as well. Students will be able to pose with signs explaining their personal definitions of rape culture. The hashtag will also be used throughout the week on social media to spread awareness. Grainger, a junior global studies major said the week’s biggest event will be Wednesday, titled Take Back the Night. A candlelit walk in honor of survivors will begin at B.B. Dougherty at 7 p.m. and will finish in the solarium in Plemmons Student Union. Entertainment from on-campus groups will be provided, followed by a poetry slam session on rape culture and an open mic. The open mic will be a chance for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence to share their stories, Clay said.
SEE RAPE CULTURE PAGE 3
Campus gathers gifts for Operation Christmas Child by Nicole Caporaso Senior News Reporter
Various campus organizations are getting in the holiday spirit by partnering with Samaritan’s Purse for Operation Christmas Child. Operation Christmas Child sends shoeboxes filled with items such as school supplies, small toys, accessories and non-liquid hygiene items to children throughout various countries, said Sharon Catlin, receptionist for Operation Christmas Child at Samaritan’s Purse. “We ask people to donate gifts in shoeboxes and send them to countries with famine, wars and those kind of things,” Catlin said. Catlin said the organization accepts shoeboxes and items all year long, however, the main collection time is running through Nov. 24. Kendrick Dawson, President of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, said this year the fraternity is not only collecting and putting together shoeboxes, but has been reaching out to the rest of the “Appalachian family” for assistance. Dawson said the Appalachian African Community, Chi Omega and Phi Gamma Delta have been in on the operation. Additionally, Phi Beta Sigma has a contact table for the cause in Plemmons Student Union Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
“Our graduate adviser is the adviser for Operation Christmas Child at Samaritan’s Purse in Boone,” he said. “We started it in 2011 and we started off with fraternity members doing the shoeboxes, but this year we’re doing much better, and we’re reaching out to the campus.” Michael Barton, president of the Appalachian African Community, a club open to people who are interested in or passionate about Africa, said about two weeks ago a former shoebox receiver shared his story at a Phi Beta Sigma event. “Through hearing his personal anecdote and sharing the excitement and anticipation as he was told not to open his box until every child had received one, and then the joy of seeing the few simple gifts that filled his box, it was clear to all in attendance it wasn’t so much the gifts that make the shoe box important, but rather, the expression and sharing of love,” Barton said. Dawson said the speaker was originally from Rwanda. “He got a shoebox when he was a little kid and it changed his life completely, he came here and has a future,” Dawson said. “He told his story about what happened to him as a child and how he ended up in the shoebox situation.
SEE CHRISTMAS PAGE 3
Dallas Linger
Assistant men’s track coach David Ward and his wife Dawn Ward volunteer for Samaritan's Purse's Operation Christmas Child on Saturday afternoon. They held a free raffle of Appalachian gear to promote the cause.
Voting problems have been reported throughout the country regarding the 2014 general election, including the state of North Carolina. Ian O’Keefe, coordinated campaign manager of the Watauga Democratic Party, said he knew of a lot of people who had trouble voting and he also noticed a lot of confusion. “On Election Day, everyone had to go [to] their assigned precinct and a lot of people thought you could go to any precinct you like,” he said. “With the election law changes that the Republicans put in place the beginning of this year put into effect, no voter can vote out of precinct.” Votes that are submitted in the wrong precinct are essentially thrown out. “There’s a lot of confusion about that process, and I think that it hurt students in this election and voters in general in this election, there was no need for it,” O’Keefe said. “I think it confused voters and made it more difficult for them to vote.” O’Keefe, along with other members of the Watauga County Democratic Party, shuttled Appalachian State University students and community members to their designated polling places if they did not have other available transportation. He estimates the party transported roughly 80 voters. “A lot of people thought that there was still voting at the student union, which I think was unfortunate that they were still confused that early voting wasn’t going on through the election,” he said. “A lot of students live in a lot of different precincts.” O’Keefe also noticed a problem with “transfer voting,” which he said happens when people move and change addresses. Craig Stewart, a senior geology major, said when he went to vote, he, along with five to seven others, experienced difficulty. “Every single person in the room was turned down,” he said. “Overall, I spent over an hour trying to vote and was denied. The system was working against me.” Stewart said because of the Raleigh address on his license, he was turned down, although he registered earlier this year in Watauga County. “A common misconception was that I had to show my I.D – that was not the issue,” he said. “The issue was having two addresses under my name, something a lot of students have.” Stewart said he was previously aware of the voting laws, but did not realize how constricting they can be. According to a report from www.msnbc.com on the voting troubles people encountered across the country, it was reported that voters faced trouble with voting laws that aren’t even in place yet. “In Boone, near Appalachian State University, poll monitors reported that some people were yelling at voters that they needed ID to vote,” according to the site. “In fact, the state’s voter ID provision doesn’t take effect until 2016. And according to local news reports, two precincts in Cumberland County received the wrong thumb drives for the voting machines that were sent.”
SEE VOTING PAGE 3