SGA Constitutional Violations

Emerson College’s student newspaper since 1947 • berkeleybeacon.com

Thursday, February 20, 2020 • Volume 73, Issue 19

Treasurer refrains from hiring team, cements her power Tomas Gonzalez, Beacon Staff SGA Executive Treasurer Abigail Semple, who has voiced complaints throughout the 2019-20 academic year regarding the workload associated with her position, will not hire a treasury team during her second semester on the job—effectively consolidating her power around a million dollars in student organization funding.

The treasury team, an asset commonly used by past executive treasurers, leaves Semple in charge of processing paperwork for nearly 100 organizations on campus. The move protects her from any challenges regarding her eligibility, either via impeachment or clauses surrounding ineligibility, as there is no person immediately available to assume the role of treasurer.

While Semple did not deny that the move is an effort to solidify power to protect herself from a removal process, she told The Beacon in an interview Wednesday that she has said it to SGA members in the past as a joke.

“I joke a lot, I feel like that’s really been the theme of the semester,” she said. “I say a lot of things that are jokes but consolidating power so I can’t get impeached. Yeah, it’s not funny at all.”

SGA Advisor Jason Meier said he has heard about Semple’s intentions behind not hiring a treasury team and would not deny the validity of the claim.

See Power, page 2

SGA KNOWINGLY IGNORED RULES DURING ELECTIONS Andrew Brinker, Beacon Staff An examination of the recent execution of SGA’s election policies revealed a systemic, and at times purposeful, failure to adhere to elections protocols—exposing much of its executive membership as illegitimately elected and the oftentimes vague framing of the constitution.

The string of oversights effectively delegitimize the results of the spring and fall 2019 general elections, which determined the entirety of SGA’s current membership, including the executive board and Executive President Will Palauskas.

While it is unclear whether or not members of SGA were aware of the constitutional oversights during the time of the fall 2019 general election, former Chief Justice Brilee Carey claimed SGA was fully aware of an oversight previously reported by The Beacon.

In an article published Feb. 6, The Beacon reported that Executive Treasurer Abigail Semple is illegitimately holding her position as she did not meet the constitutionally outlined qualifications for the treasurership.

Article VII Section II Point E of the constitution states that in order for a student to run and hold the position of executive treasurer, they must be enrolled in at least 12 credits at the

college for the duration of their term.

Semple is currently only enrolled in eight credits, rendering her ineligible to serve as the executive treasurer.

Carey said she brought a concern regarding Semple’s eligibility to the organization’s former advisor Sharon Duffy when she was the chief justice at the time of the Spring 2019 election— when Semple was elected. The issue caused a rift within SGA, Carey said, but the organization chose to move forward with Semple still in the election, despite her violation of the constitutional requirements for her position.

See Protocols, page 2

Alumni create the Pictures Up! film festival Casey Bernhard, Beacon Correspondent

Women’s basketball leads Division III in GPA

By Emily Cardona, pg. 8

ucation requirement work with classes of 30 or 40 students, teaching introductory code.”

At 60 years old, with no plans of moving out of his house, he accepted an offer to join the Fall 2020 faculty at Bennington College. Bennington is an hour away versus the nearly two hour drive to Emerson, plus Mahoney said the Vermont college is expanding their computer science program.

Aside from the difference in commute and his field of study not being offered as a major at Emerson, he said there were stark institutional differences between the two merging schools for him and other professors to consider.

Griffin and Alyssa Devine ‘10 were directing a play in late 2017 at the Marilyn Monroe Theatre in West Hollywood when the theatre’s staff expressed interest in hosting a film festival— the opportunity was too good to pass up for the Emerson alumni.

Less than three years later, the duo is set to launch Picture’s Up!, a film festival that will give people the chance to showcase their work to industry professionals in the hopes of furthering their careers. The festival is set to take place from April 3-5 at the Marilyn Monroe Theater in the Lee Strasberg Creative Center in West Hollywood.

“A lot of festivals tout networking opportunities, and there are a lot of [them], but it’s [with] other filmmakers,” Alyssa said in a skype interview from LA. “You know, it’s great to meet [them] and be inspired, but you want to gain some traction, some upward mobility.”

After graduating, the pair made their rounds at festivals by writing, directing, and producing shorts, but they often left disappointed. Poor attendance at screenings and a lack of recognition beyond awards ceremonies often meant nothing more ever came of the experience.

See Mahoney, page 2

See Submission, page 6

Professors consider job choices Maxwell Carter, The Marlboro Monitor Marlboro Professor Jim Mahoney watched his world fall apart as the proposed Emerson-Marlboro merger progressed over the past few months, forcing him to count his blessings and prepare for life after the potential closure of the Vermont campus.

“For many of us it’s not just a school closing,” Mahoney said in a phone interview with The Beacon. “It’s our community, our center for a very long time… so it’s very hard.”

Emerson guaranteed positions for all tenured and tenure-track professors, according to the presidents of both schools, and faculty are now deciding what their next steps will be. Mahoney

is one of two Marlboro professors who have made their decision. The rest have until the May merger deadline to decide whether they’ll take Emerson’s offer.

After 32 years, Mahoney decided not to join his Marlboro colleagues in attempting to redesign the school in Boston. As painful as this process has been for him, he told The Beacon his decision was pretty straightforward.

“I did talk to some of the Emerson people and explored what it would be like to go there, but teaching at Emerson would have been very different, for me anyways, than teaching at [Marlboro]” Mahoney said. “Emerson’s not offering any science majors, so it would have been mostly supporting introductory and general ed-

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Marlboro professors face decisions as merger looms

Continued from page 1 Mahoney explained that the larger class sizes, less interdisciplinary work, more general education requirements, and Emerson’s downtown urban campus versus Marlboro’s rural one, all seem to counter what the Vermont institution was known for.

“People are working hard to take as much as they can of some of the Marlboro ideals with them, but we all know it’s going to be a very different place with a very different set of constraints,” Mahoney said.

Mahoney joined the faculty at the small college as a physics professor when his wife found an ad in the newspaper in 1988—the year after he completed his PhD at MIT. He and his wife found exactly what they were looking for in the rural school and the tight-knit community. Fifteen years later, he migrated to the computer science department and cultivated an interdisciplinary experience exemplary of Marlboro’s ethos by working with students and professors in every disci-

pline, from dance to physics, on graduate-level projects. His daughters, now 30 and 34, grew up on Potash Hill and are alumnae of the school.

Mahoney is the only professor who has committed elsewhere for now and said he does so without any hard feelings toward the administration or his colleagues carrying out the merger.

Nearly 23 other professors, tenured or tenure-track, are still working with the school on creating a smooth transition, according to Marlboro President Kevin Quigley.

He spoke optimistically in an interview with The Beacon about the rest of his colleagues’ ability to take on the school’s reopening in Boston.

“There are currently 23 Marlboro tenure and tenure-track faculty who are developing courses for the Fall at Emerson, in coordination with the department chairs and deans,” Quigley said.

Quigley did admit, however, that there is difficulty in bridging the gap between Marl-

boro and Emerson’s ideals.

Aside from class sizes, professors will also have less autonomy over their curriculums and students will have less control over their course of study. Nevertheless, Quigley believes reemerging as part of a larger school is the best way forward for Marlboro, and an opportunity for Emerson as well.

“There is an effort to bring some of our ethos and our pedagogic and cultural practices to what will be renamed The Marlboro Institute,” Quigley said. “I think that’s a really exciting process as you bring these two cultures and ethoses together, and are ready to create something new.”

Jaime Tanner, a science professor at Marlboro for over a decade, has long been active in Marlboro’s unique self-governance structure and is on the task force coordinating the Marlboro Institute’s curriculum. She said the Vermont campus closing is especially difficult for her because it was integral to her teaching.

“For me personally, it was pretty devastating because this place is really special and I

love it, but I also teach biology and environmental studies,” Tanner said in a phone interview. “I use the forest around our buildings as an extended classroom.”

She is committed to coming to Boston, however, if the merger is indeed finalized by the expected May deadline. The emotions are bittersweet, but Tanner told The Beacon she’s excited to continue working with her colleagues and seeing students who started at Marlboro finish their degrees.

“I have a family, and at least for the first year, it’s going to involve some lifestyle changes, but… this whole endeavor only works if Marlboro faculty commit to going and bringing what we can,” Tanner said. “I was hoping to retire here, and it’s really sad that I won’t be able to, but I’m going to try as hard as I can to bring as much as I can with me to Emerson.”

maxwell_carter@emerson.edu

SGA violates election protocols during two elections Continued from page 1 “SGA knowingly decided to allow her to run,” Carey said in an interview with The Beacon. “That was known the entire time that she was running, and it was known the entire time that election decisions were sent out, and it was known at the time she elected that position.

They knowingly violated their own constitution.”

When asked if Semple’s failure to meet the appropriate qualifications of the executive treasurer position were grounds for impeachment, Carey declined to give a definitive answer, but said the violation was serious.

“I’m not chief justice anymore,” she said.

“It’s not my place to move forward with impeachments. But it was something that I can say I was keeping a very close eye on as chief justice and something that I had not let out of my attention before I resigned my position. It was something that I was fully aware of and keeping tabs on how to address.”

Former Advisor Sharon Duffy, who played a key role in overseeing the spring 2019 election, could not be reached for an interview over several weeks, but said in an emailed statement that the elections were carried out in the best interest of the student body.

“Since their constitution has been updated so many times over the years—which is totally normal—and there are so many versions of it floating around, with some articles being conflicting, running an election can be challenging, but I believe SGA does it best to operate in the best interests of the student body,” the statement read.

The fall semester’s general election results, provided to The Beacon by SGA advisor Jason Meier, show that none of the members elected last semester, including Palauskas, met the 50 percent threshold for eligibility laid out in the constitution.

Article VII Section III Point A of SGA’s constitution establishes the need for each candidate to receive a simple majority of total votes cast in the election in order to assume office.

“To be elected, all candidates must receive a majority (>50%) of all votes cast in a general

election of the entire Emerson College undergraduate population,” it reads. “In the case that there is no majority, another election must take place within five (5) school days between the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes in the first election.”

Palauskas, who organized a last-minute write-in campaign for the presidency after the two originally slated candidates suddenly dropped out, received 129 of the total 517 votes cast in the election—just 25 percent.

Ariane Ivanier and Lily Fitzherbet, who were declared winners of the race for president and vice president of the class of 2023, received 161 and 163 votes respectively— around 30 percent of the total vote.

Connor McNinch and Thomas Coughlin, who were elected to the positions of class of 2020 vice president and Visual and Media Arts senator, are also implicated in the mishandled election, both receiving less than 20 percent of the total vote.

As all members elected in the fall 2019 election were deemed legitimate by SGA’s leadership despite the oversight of Article VII Section III Point A, no secondary elections were held within five days of the first, another violation of SGA’s constitution.

Meier, who is new to the role of advisor as of this semester and played a key role in administering the December election, contested The Beacon’s interpretation of SGA’s constitution in an interview last week, saying that Article VII Section III Point A refers to total votes cast in each individual positional election.

“The way I interpret the votes, knowing the system, I’m really confident that [Palauskas] got 52 percent of the votes of the people who

voted for president,” he said. “That’s the best I can do.”

However, the constitution does not specify that a candidate must receive more than 50 percent of the votes cast in the election for their position. If that were the case, Meier’s assertion that Palauskas received the necessary votes to be elected would be correct. Instead, it dictates that a candidate must receive more than 50 percent of all votes cast in the election, which Palauskas did not.

The Beacon also identified an elections by-law that SGA violated during the fall 2019 elections related to the dissemination of election results.

Constitutional by-law 304, Section 6 dictates that all elections results must be released to the public within two days of any SGA election.

Fall 2019 results were not posted until the beginning of the spring semester, nearly a month after they were required to be released.

Meier, who eventually acknowledged the constitutional oversights, said the election was still executed with fairness.

“I honestly believe in the nine years that I’ve been here that every election I’ve witnessed has been done with ethics and integrity,” he said. “I truly believe that these elections have been run with integrity and fairness.”

In an interview with The Beacon, Meier and Palauskas made clear that the oversights should go unpunished, and act as lessons for future elections.

“I think it was a prior constitutional flaw that moving forward isn’t going to happen anymore,” Palauskas said. “I don’t think there was any intentional malice behind any of this.

I don’t think anybody ever said ‘Oh, let’s just go and break the constitution right now.’ People

“I think it was a prior constitutional flaw that moving forward isn’t going to happen anymore.”

- Will Palauskas

just probably weren’t really reading the lines close enough.”

While it is clear SGA knowingly violated its own constitution, the fallout remains unclear..

There is no section of the SGA constitution or by-laws that specifies what should happen in the case of mishandled election practices after it has already been ratified.

Chief Justice Joseph Johnson, also acknowledging the constitutional oversights, told The Beacon in an interview late Wednesday night that the oversights are symptomatic of larger problems with the constitution, which he said is outdated and full of vague language.

“The constitution is flawed,” he said. “There are some very vague moments inside the Constitution—sometimes it’s not really as cut and dry. It’s honestly outdated; it was written in 1999.”

SGA began the process of overhauling their constitution and by-laws in their Joint Session meeting Tuesday, a process that will likely continue throughout the semester.

“We’re examining how the constitution works currently,” Palauskas said. “It’s really important that we just hold ourselves to a certain standard—that we do the best we can now knowing what’s happened in the past.”

But Carey, who spent much of the Spring 2019 semester workshopping SGA’s constitution, cautioned against large-scale changes to the document.

“I worry about what [overhauling the constitution] might look like,” she said. “Rewriting the constitution and reviewing the constitution by-laws are such an important part of every year’s process. It’s something that needs to be done regularly. But it needs to be done with an understanding of nuance of language and an understanding of how to write in a constitutional language, which is a hard thing to learn.”

andrew_brinker@emerson.edu

SGA executive treasurer cements power without treasury team Continued from page 1 Semple gave several justifications as to her decision, telling The Beacon that students approached her in the past with interest in forming a treasury team, but they ultimately pulled out of joining after understanding the large amount of work. Semple would not provide specific names of people who approached her to The Beacon.

“Part of it is also like a philosophical perspective of, I don’t get paid to do a lot of work,” she said. “I don’t feel comfortable expecting other students to also not get paid to do a whole lot of work.”

Previous Beacon reporting found that

Semple is in violation of two grounds of the what the process would look like if there is noSGA constitution. Article VIII, Section II, Point body in the position of vice-treasurer. If the exB, dictates that if imecutive treasurer were peachment proceedings to be removed without were to take place, the “I don’t feel comfortable expecting a successor then all vice-treasurer would SGA treasury work assume the role. other students to also not get paid would be frozen.

“If the accused ofLast academic year, ficer is the Treasurer, former Executive to do a whole lot of work.” the Vice-Treasurer shall Treasurer Ian Mandt assume all duties of the employed a treasury - Abigail Semple Treasurer until such team of four people: time as the proceedincluding himself, Raings have concluded,” chel Levin as vice-treait reads. surer, then-freshman Amogh Matthews, and However, the constitution does not dictate then-sophomore Joseph Davidi. In the case

SGA members removed Mandt, Levin would have taken on the duties of the executive treasurer with the aid of the treasury team, according to the SGA constitution.

Semple rose to her current position during the highly contentious spring general 2019 elections, which saw the top two vote-getters, then-sophomore Davidi and then-freshman Brady Baca drop out—leaving Semple with the position after a short write-in campaign Although Semple rose to the position, she only managed to garner 86 votes.

tomas_gonzalez@emerson.edu

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February 20, 2020

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3

SJC reports five year increase in on-campus identity-based harm

In the Fall 2019 semester, there was an astounding 30 incident reports filed, compared to 53 filed during the 2018-19 academic year.

Dana Gerber / Beacon Staff Carlee Bronkema, Beacon Staff identity-based harm can include microaggres- Sylvia Spears said in an interview with The The 2019–20 academic year is on track to sions, bias, and structural oppression. The num- Beacon. “And I don’t think the number of incibreak the record for the most bias reports sub- ber of reports have increased almost every year dents that get reported to us represents all of the mitted at Emerson College with nearly 30 re- since the department’s creation at the college bias incidents that happen at Emerson.” Spears five years ago: There were eight reports in the said many students don’t report incidents beports sent in the first semester.

This summer, the Social Justice Center 2015–16 year, 51 in 2016–17, 37 in 2017–18, cause of their cultural background. She said if they did, they would be reporting incidents evchanged the language of their site and process and 53 in 2018–19.

“I don’t think it’s an increase in incidents,” ery day. to replace “bias reports” with “identity-based “That’s part of their everyday existence,” she harm reports.” According to SJC’s website, Vice President for Equity and Social Justice

said. “So they choose not to report.”

According to Spears, reports are most commonly made by students about occurrences in classrooms, whether that be interactions between students that are unchecked by faculty or interactions between students and faculty. These reports are most often about gender expression, intentional and repeated misgendering, racism, and sexism. However, there has also been an increase in identity-based harm towards international and, more specifically, Asian students.

Spears attributed the increase in reports to more awareness of the reporting process and also to the attitude surrounding reporting on campus.

Students, faculty, and staff at Emerson also frequently deal with bias incidents on their own by addressing the offender directly, Spears said.

When the SJC receives a bias report about an in-class incident, however, Spears said the faculty member often has no idea what they said or did to harm somebody.

“What I have found is that students extend a lot of grace,” Spears said. “They are willing to give faculty the benefit of the doubt.”

Members of the Emerson community have multiple options when reporting identity-based harm. They can use an online form, send an email to the SJC, or call their office. Once a report is filed, SJC will take action based on what the reporter would prefer.

Spears explained that the most common misconception about bias reports and the SJC is that they have the ability to discipline or punish people.

“There is nothing illegal about being biased,” Spears said. “What they don’t have the right to do is engage in behavior that’s discriminatory.” carlee_bronkema@emerson.edu

Incoming businesses plan to compete for student customers Karina Sanchez, Beacon Correspondent The competition for college students’ taste buds is well on its way, as Garbanzo and El Jefe’s Taqueria are set to open this spring.

In response to the new businesses’ openings, current restaurants are concerned over the impact they will bring to the downtown area.

“This year, we thought we were going to have a good year, but now we have another competitor [El Jefe’s Taqueria] coming in,” Cristian Mancia, owner of Maria’s Taqueria, said in an interview. “Which is fine, we are way too small for [Emerson retails spaces], we would never be able to afford that kind of rent.” El Jefe’s Taqueria Founder John Schall said they tend to open places near universities, making Emerson’s Little Building space an exciting offer. Shall said El Jefe’s signed a 10-year lease with 5-year renewal options.

“What makes [El Jefe’s] different than other independent taquerias is that we are authentic Mexican food from scratch,” Schall said in an phone interview. “We have family recipes passed down from our Mexican-American chefs that have been in their families for generations, and we use high quality New England produce that we pick up a few times a week for freshness.”

Like Schall, Derek St. George, Garbanzo’s director of operations and one of Emerson’s newest renters, said Garbanzo is also looking to cater to college students.

“We want a partnership with Emerson students and are always looking for ways to accommodate, so we are [taking] EC Cash,” St. George told The Beacon. “We are hoping to do meal deals between certain hours where students can get a combo meal that will include a base protein, a drink, and a side for a flat price, and that will be cheaper than the competition.”

The Halal Guys, located on 137 Stuart Street, is one of Garbanzo’s main competitors. Hiring Manager Rizwan Ali said he had never heard about Garbanzo, nor did he know about their spring opening.

“Maybe in the future we will look to do more promotions,” Ali said. “But right now, we aren’t.”

Both The Halal Guys and Maria’s Taqueria currently rely on the college student markets.

Mancia said up to 80 percent of his customers are students, and Ali estimates that about 40 percent of their regulars are also students.

Senior Grayson Pitt said he noticed that Maria’s Taqueria recently increased their prices, which might be to combat financial struggles.

“You don’t think that a small place like Maria’s is going to impact a whole college, and in

“This year, we thought we were going to have a good year.”

- Cristian Mancia

the whole scheme of things, maybe it doesn’t,” Pitt said. “But, there are a lot of people like me who have had a lot of good nights at Maria’s, and to think that they could struggle because of new places sucks.”

With local businesses relying on students to make a profit, summer vacation becomes a difficult time for vendors around the Emerson campus. Mancia warned this may prove to be an early complication for the new restaurants.

“The summer is very slow here...they’ll see all this money coming in during the school year, and then see their business going from 300 customers to 70 in the summer,” Mancia said.

Construction and slow summers are a weak point in business, Mancia said, but Schall has a different take.

“We see the construction as a really strong positive thing, and there is tons of construction everywhere,” Schall said. “It doesn’t hurt us— construction workers love our place—so we aren’t worried about that.”

Mancia said although Maria’s Taqueria is not located in an Emerson-owned building, and the college never asked them to move into a retail space, they are still involved in the community.

“I’m not sure if it was last year, or the year before, but we donated $3,800 [in food] towards the EVVY’s,” Mancia said. “We tell the students to go get what they can from other people and whatever they don’t get we can help.”

Because El Jefe’s already has a location in Harvard Square and close ties with Harvard University, Schall said he looks forward to being a part of and contributing to the Emerson community when he can.

“I’m not sure about all that goes into the business side of picking the places that are going in LB, but those places are going to be in the heart of campus,” Pitt said. “I think that listening to student voices and considering places that students have been more receptive towards, like Maria’s, would be nice.”

St. George said they have hope for the future of Garbanzo. He and business partner Kevin Brown are striving to make Garbanzo stand out from the other local eateries with their good service and food that caters to all.

“Competition is healthy; you don’t want to be the only food in the shopping center,” St. George said. “Competition brings more people to the area and gives people the chance to see if they like us better than those around.”

Editor-in-Chief Chris Van Buskirk did not edit this article due to a conflict of interest.

A staff worker at Maria’s Taqueria assembling a torta for a hungry customer.

Cho Yin Rachel Lo / Beacon Staff

karina_sanchez@emerson.edu

Editorial We support staff members joining the union This is an important year for the Emerson College Staff Union.

The group plans to start renegotiating their contract with the school next spring.

They held a meet-and-greet event on Feb. 14 at Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery to talk to prospective members about joining the union because surprisingly, only three departments are in the Staff Union—Information Technology, Academic Affairs, and Institutional Advancement.

The Staff Union has a long history of fighting and suing the school administration, including two years of protest, unfair labor charges, and petitioning before they received their contract. In a Beacon article from March 2018, the staff union accused the college with unfair labor practice charges. They complained of “college representatives failing to bargain in good faith and violating employees’ rights to engage in collective bargaining.”

Shortly after, in October, the school started distributing the demands and benefits listed in the collective bargaining agreement by removing merit pay, providing a monthly commuter benefit, launching a shared sick program for union members, and agreeing to elevate union member’s wages to the 40th percentile.

But the school administration also hired a known union-busting law firm, Jackson Lewis, without communicating with staff members that same month. A report from The Chicago-based nonprofit magazine In These Times called Jackson Lewis “the number one union-buster in America.”

The school does not promote a welcoming environment for unions.

Before the first staff contract ratification, the wages of staff members were less than 75 percent that of similar employee wages in peer schools like Brandeis University and Skidmore College, according to a staff compensation survey. We believe this is an unfair practice. Even though the previous contract was an improvement, with only around 100 people from the three departments actively participating in the union, there are more concerns not being raised to the Staff Union to make a real difference.

We support staff members at Emerson College to join the Staff Union, we support the important work that the Union does to support people across campus, and we encourage those who have not yet joined to be part of the Union. At

the same time, the school administration should not create a hostile environment for unions and avoid preventing union organizing efforts.

We have many people working hard on this campus to bring the “Emerson experience” to students and employees.

The dining center workers bring us three meals a day and cater for different events. The facilities department fixes our property and makes sure our campus is running smoothly. In addition to countless efforts we are probably unaware of, staff members help students with their finances, jobs, and internships, help athletes with their training, make sure academic departments operate on a daily basis, and help the school with enrollment and admission.

It’s sad to see that just two years ago, these staff members were still fighting for simple things, like higher wages, commuter benefits, equal treatment, and the ability to donate sick-time when a fellow staff member needs an extended sick-leave. What about other departments that are not being represented, and those staff members who are too afraid to speak up and join the union? They make up an even bigger part of this school, and without them telling the union what they need, how can the school improve their treatment and their “Emerson experience?”

The number of attendees at the Feb. 14 meet-and-greet is unclear, but according to Christopher Wilson—one of the event’s organizers and a journalism department union member—there was a “decent turnout.” Members of nonunionized departments also attended, which is promising for next year’s contract ratification.

We can’t change the fact that the school already hired a union-busting law firm. But by encouraging staff to join the Union so that they can list their demands and work toward creating an improved working environment, we can change how the school treats an indispensable part of our community.

This editorial was written by The Berkeley Beacon editorial board, which consists of the Editor-in-Chief, the Managing Editors and the Opinion Section.

Editor-in-Chief Chris Van Buskirk © 2020 The Berkeley Beacon. All rights reserved.

The Beacon is published weekly. The Beacon receives funding from the Student Government Association of Emerson College. Anything submitted to the Beacon becomes the sole property of the newspaper. No part of the publication may be reproduced by any means without the express written permission of the editor.

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February 20, 2020

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Editorial Cartoon Illustration by Christine Park

Hamfin is now swimming in the big bowl in the sky.

Crossword

by Ethan Spitalney

Down

Across 1. C++ file extension 4. 1988 movie starring Tom Hanks 7. Popular 3D Printing software 8. Creator of “Star Wars” George 10. King of the “Hail Mary” Rogers 11. Investment gains 13. Exam testing preexisting knowledge 15. “Where ___ begin?” (2 words) 16. Totally unaware 17. Diploma or license, for short 18. Nutritional regimen 19. Match pitch (for instruments) 20. Necessity for services 22. Grocery shopping tool 23. Red-brown color

24. Likewise 25. How far it is 29. “You ___ my Sunshine” 30. Aware (of) 31. Casual greeting at 7am, perhaps 33. Forced bets (in poker) 34. Coffee drink served hot or cold 35. Attends, as a movie 36. Reserved 37. Op-___ (columns in newspapers)

1. Custard-like maize dessert from Brazil 2. Method or process 3. Member of a public discussion 4. “___ your ___ down” [2] 5. “I’m looking at you” shorthand 6. Place to grow (as a flower) 7. Phone up 8. Integral part of 20 down 9. Sleep loudly, say 10. Military transport vehicle, abbr.

11. Bringing back to former state 12. “___ your ___ down” [1] 14. ___-cute 17. Furnished with drapes 19. Source of a legal precedent 20. Things you can shoot with 21. Mess up (as in hair) 22. Song sung at one’s doorstep, maybe 24. America’s uncle 25. Finished 26. Things students take?

27. Musical indications, say 28. Useful scrabble tile 30. Boston, for example 32. Indefinite math degree

Answers available on https://berkeleybeacon.com/ crossword-answers/

The Berkeley Beacon

February 20, 2020

Thoughts

5

In-person conversations are essential for conflict resolution understand what emotions you’re attempting to convey.

While we’re at college, communicating with people far away can be difficult. However, even a phone call or FaceTime chat allows for better communication than text messaging.

There’s no opportunity for twisting words or misinterpreting punctuation. Countless times, I have mistaken messages worded in certain ways to mean something entirely different. No, they didn’t mean that they hated me when they said “It’s okay,” they literally just meant it was fine.

Aside from miscommunication, there is also a sense of anxiety in awaiting their responses.

When will they answer?

Did they read it, or has it just been delivered? Are they screen-shotting my messages and sending them to someone else?

Are they with other people? In-person and overthe-phone conversations ensure privacy and timely communication that texts do not allow for.

Part of the reason I think I prefer text communication in difficult situations is because I have the opportunity to think about what I want to say, word everything correctly, and not have to experience the awkward conversation in person. But relationships are not easy, and we should not automatically resolve conflict through the most convenient means possible, especially when it’s possible to talk in person.

Confrontation is supposed to be vulnerable, emotional, awkward, and uncomfortable. But it doesn’t have to end in an argument. Keeping this in mind will help make in-person conversations less intimidating.

Psychology Today writes some tips for overcoming the fear of confrontation. One of these tips includes using “I” statements, which focus on your feelings and how you interpret the situation, rather than being accusatory or assuming something is true. Another tip is to list the positive outcomes of speaking up, which will help push you to do it. When arguing over text has become a normal approach in your life, suddenly making a shift can be hard. But it’s worth it.

H a v i n g i n - p e r s o n conversations not only allows you to resolve conflict more effectively but also helps improve communication skills.

Being comfortable addressing issues with others will help you become more confident and a better communicator, which can help in the future.

If you want to salvage your relationship with the person you’re arguing with, then it is essential to take the proper steps to resolve the conflict. They should be worth a car ride or phone call, even if it may not be the most convenient.

I often instinctively rely on texts as a means of avoiding conflict; however, in reality, doing so usually has the opposite effect. When I’m upset, confused, or angry, I would rather resolve the conflict quickly and sincerely through a phone call or in-person conversation, even if it may be difficult or awkward. Get out from behind the screen and talk things out.

“Confrontation is supposed to be vulnerable, emotional, awkward, and uncomfortable.”

“It comes as no surprise, then, that so many prefer to air grievances over text.”

Illustration by Christine Park / Beacon Staff

Jess Ferguson Ferguson is a freshman journalism major and The Beacon’s deputy opinion editor.

Texts are an ineffective means of resolving conflict.

I was frustrated by one of my friends’ actions.

She said mean things about me behind my back, and I needed to confront her about it. I spent 15 minutes crafting the perfect text message to her before finally mustering up the courage to hit send. I anxiously awaited her response.

This process is often how I, and many other young adults, choose to resolve conflicts between friends and loved ones. A 2019 Pew Research Center poll found that 28 percent of American adults are “almost constantly” online, and 48 percent of them are between the ages of 18-29. It comes as no surprise, then, that

so many prefer to air grievances over text.

Instead of going to someone’s house, asking to talk on the phone, or planning some other face-to-face communication, I find myself using texts as almost the only way of resolving conflict—which often results in more conflict.

Psychology Today writes that complaints, insults, apologies, and explanations are all topics that should not be discussed over text because they have the potential to hurt relationships. I know this, and yet I still do it.

One problem with messaging is that people often misinterpret texts, since deciphering tone, sarcasm, and other emotions can be difficult through the phone. There is no sense of nonverbals, Psychology Today reports, which allow us to get a sense of others’ feelings. No amount of emojis, words in all-caps, or exclamation points can guarantee that the other person will

jessica_ferguson@emerson.edu

Accepting the single life as a hopeless romantic Reilley Djou Djou is a senior journalism major.

As a college student studying in a new city, finding relationships isn’t as easy as it seems.

There are nightclubs, parties, and dating apps, but in my experience, none of those ever lead to anything serious. From what I realized, the “lucky ones” were the ones who met their significant other in person through work or class. Unfortunately, I have not been one of those “lucky ones.”

I moved from California to Boston for college in 2016. It was an opportunity to grow and learn, but it also made me a little bit anxious and eager to find a relationship.

I always wondered, “How do people even get into relationships and meet people in a new city?” I was pretty clueless since I never dated in high school. When college started, however, I saw that people were already dating only a month into the school year. It made me think, “Am I the only person living the single life here?”

It felt like I was the only person single because everyone was either in a relationship, not my type, or didn’t really “see me in that way.” And the more I tried to search for my special someone, the harder it became.

I started my journey to find love by going to nightclubs and parties during my freshman year.

During that time, I would often find interest in some young man, however most of the time they were too plastered to even remember my name or they ended up liking some other woman. I

struggled to stick out in a sea of beautiful young women who were also trying to find “the one.”

Despite my nightclub and party fails, my clueless, hopeless romantic self never lost hope, and I resorted to seeking love through Tinder.

The conversations over the app were more intimate than the ones in real life, but this phase didn’t last long after I realized a lot of guys just wanted a dinner date with a casual hookup.

I noticed all these traits that couples seemed to have: the warm butterflies, smiles and dates.

I really wanted to experience that sort of feeling too, but in a long term relationship and not just a hookup. I wanted to find my special someone, but I have to face the fact that searching for a special someone is harder than it seems, and love does not always work out the way it’s supposed to.

Date after date, I started to question myself and began wondering if I was the problem, but later I found out I wasn’t the only one feeling that way. My friend told me that she was going through the same experience.

It took her three years in college to find her boyfriend. However, those three years were also filled with date after date and hookup after hookup, in hopes of finding “the one.” She finally got to be one of the “lucky ones” when she found her current significant other, one of her coworkers.

For some reason, I tend to wonder about the other “lucky ones” who found their significant others from classes. For those types of people, falling in love in the time frame of a semester

“Date after date, I started to question myself and began wondering if I was the problem.”

“I really wanted to experience that sort of feeling too, but in a long term relationship and not just a hookup.” • Illustration by Christine Park / Beacon Staff seemed easy and quick and that always surprised me because I felt that there was never enough time to mingle with anyone in such a short time span. And even if I did end up liking a person, the likelihood of seeing them next semester would be slim to none.

I was still a little skeptical about being able to find love in the city, despite how these couples made finding a relationship seemingly easy. I came to the realization that maybe all I need is to calm myself down and take my time.

Even though I wanted a serious relationship so badly, there was nothing wrong with just going on coffee dates or becoming only friends.

People usually envy dating the boy from next door or their high school sweethearts, but it’s not something to stress about because most of them end in break ups anyways. It’s clear to admit that finding a partner is difficult, but

it’s also hard to have a peaceful mindset about being alone sometimes.

With all the hurdles that come with finding a significant other in a new city, I realized that finding that special someone is honestly just a waiting game. I came to a conclusion that not being in a relationship was okay and to enjoy the single life, since eventually, when I do get married I’ll have my whole life to spend in a relationship. I am now more realistic now about how love works compared to when I first started out seeking relationships during my freshman year. I still do believe in the possibility of finding love in a new city, but it can definitely be a challenge.

reilley_djou@emerson.edu

Living Arts

The Berkeley Beacon

February 20, 2020

6

It’s hard to watch The Bachelor when you’re not straight Melissa Rosales is a senior journalism major, The Beacon’s podcast producer, and this edition’s LGBTQ+ columnist.

‘Tis the season—The Bachelor season.

While I’m excited about The Bachelor, Peter Weber’s fantasy suite dates, and glad the drama of stolen champagne bottles are behind us, I’m worried about watching next Monday night’s episode.

I’m especially worried for Victoria Fuller.

Not because Weber didn’t meet her family but because I can’t ignore the fact that I absolutely wish she was with me instead.

The goal of the show is for The Bachelor to find his future wife. Twenty-five women compete for time and affection from him and go on extravagant dates around the world to places like Chile and Peru. I’m not fully sold that you can find your forever partner in about nine weeks, but last season’s finale had over 8 million views. Just like those viewers, I can’t stop watching.

When I first started watching The Bachelor franchise, I was a young girl who wanted true love like DeAnna Pappas did in her season of The Bachelorette. In a study published in Communication Quarterly that explores college students’ consumption patterns to reality television, authors Lisa Lundy, Amanda Ruth, and

Travis Park explain that viewers watch reality came out of the limo and told Weber she had a dating shows to satisfy romance motives. Like dry sense of humor. I was immediately enticed DeAnna, I wanted 25 men to fall in love with by her. She’s shy but constantly tries to come me, but back then I didn’t know I was bisexual. out of her shell to impress Weber. And I can’t That changed in my freshman year during stop staring at her eyes.

Nick Viall’s season of The Bachelor.

According to the same study, reality dating I didn’t watch every season of The Bach- shows let viewers live vicariously through the elor because I was the only person I knew in show. As a viewer, you can see yourself in the the Philippines who watched the show. Howev- show and wonder what you would do. In every er, once I moved to Boston, I was surprised to one-on-one date Weber has with Fuller, I can’t hear my friends talking excitedly about the next help but imagine that instead, it’s me on a date season. Like the participants in the Communi- with her, even if I’m currently in a relationship. cation Quarterly study, It’s difficult to watch I watched The Bachelor the show because, on “It’s difficult to watch again during my freshone hand, I need to see man year for the social more of Fuller, but on the show because, on one the other hand, I don’t value. Every Monday night my friends and I want her to end up with hand, I need to see more Weber. would scream at Viall on the 10th floor Little In a promotional Building common room. of Fuller, but on the other video for MTV reality None of us liked Vidating series Are You hand, I don’t want her to the One?, Season 8 conall, but we kept watching because his season had testant Amber Martinez end up with Weber.” the best cast of women. said, “It sucked growFrom his season, Rachel ing up watching a lot of Lindsay became the first black bachelorette, and straight shows because it kind of made me feel I was constantly starstruck by contestant Kris- like ‘Okay it’s not right.’” tina Schulman, who was adopted from Russia.

For its eighth season, the reality dating show Schulman was feisty, sexy, and honest. During changed the dynamics by including sexually every rose ceremony, I hoped Nick would keep fluid cast members. The latest season of Bachher on just so I could keep seeing her, but I elor in Paradise showed cast member Demi knew Schulman deserved better than Viall.

Burnett’s coming out story and her journey to I found myself in the same exact situation in accept her love for girlfriend Kristian Haggerty. the current season of The Bachelor when Fuller “Tens of millions of people around the world

watch The Bachelor and its spin-off shows. This move to include a same-sex relationship in an honest fashion has the power to upend preconceived notions of LGBTQ+ people like Burnett who are attracted to more than one gender,” Anthony Ramos, head of talent at the LGBTQ+ media advocacy group GLAAD said in an NBC News article.

I cried in the Bachelor in Paradise finale when Burnett proposed to Haggerty. It was the first time I felt like it was okay to fall in love with a woman. Seeing Burnett’s journey of accepting her queer identity helped me fully accept myself as a bisexual woman now. But I know I won’t stop watching The Bachelor franchise, because I like watching real people fall in love.

I just hope more popular reality dating shows allow people of queer identities to fall in love too, so little girls like me can stop growing up wondering why they hated The Bachelor but kept watching anyway.

melissa_rosales@emerson.edu

Alumni couple creates new film festival rio, known for his roles in Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Men in Black, will serve as the honorary judge alongside Michael Imperioli of The Sopranos.

Other judges include Amanda Richards ‘11, director of talent and casting at Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Jordan VanDina ‘10, a TV and film writer whose comedy The Binge is set to release on Hulu later this year.

Richards, who met Mr. and Mrs. Devine during college, said she jumped at the opportunity to get involved once she heard that the couple wanted to help younger talent.

“They [said], ‘We want to help people by making sure that they have a way to be seen

“We want to help people by making sure that they have a way to be seen by top-tier talent in Hollywood.”

– Amanda Richards

Alyssa Devine ‘10 (left) and Griffin Devine ‘10 (right) have been writing, directing, and producing shorts since they graduated.

Courtesy of Alyssa Devine Continued from page 1 Over the next year, the couple worked out The winners in each of these five categories The last-minute submission deadline is an agreement with the Marilyn Monroe Theatre will compete for the “Best of Festival” award, March 1 via a submission portal. The submis- to co-sponsor the event. The theatre agreed to which comes with a $500 prize. sion fee is $35 for the public and $30 for stu- provide a space for the screenings, and the pair Other awards available are for best director, dents, but Emerson students can use the code set to work on organizing the kind of film festi- screenplay, actor, actress, and cinematography.

EMERSON30 for an additional 30 percent off. val that their younger selves dreamed of. Now, Each winner in these categories will receive a By the time staff at the Marilyn Monroe The- almost three years later, they’re accomplishing one-on-one consultation with an industry proatre came to them with the idea, the pair had what they strived for. fessional in their field. nearly a decade of experience in the entertainThe free event will include screenings, mix“A director’s going to get to talk to a direcment industry—developing a network of man- ers, Q&A sessions, parties, and an awards cer- tor, a writer’s going to get to talk to a writer, an agers, producers, and studio executives. emony. actor’s going to get to talk to a casting director,” “We had gotten to a place where we knew a The categories for short films under 35 min- Griffin said. “They’re going to get to find out lot of people in the industry,” Griffin said in a utes are comedy, drama, sci-fi/horror, and ani- how this process works, and basically it’s all skype interview from Los Angeles. “We [want- mation. In addition, a competition for TV pilots about giving [those] who do well at this festival ed] to put work in front of people that could under one hour will take place. Student submis- the opportunity to meet people who can actually move someone’s career forward in some kind sions are judged in a separate category and not help them.” of tangible way.” considered for the grand prize.

On the judge’s panel, actor Vincent D’Onof-

by top-tier talent in Hollywood,’” Richards said in a phone interview from L.A., “I thought that was such a genuine reason to want to [start a film festival], and I found that to be really inspiring.”

VanDina met the couple during his time at Emerson. He said he would also like to use his past experience to support the careers of industry newcomers.

“It’s fun to see stuff from people that are trying to make it because I remember [what it’s like],” VanDina said in a phone interview from Los Angeles. “It’s so hard when you’re young to get anyone to look at anything you’re doing.”

Mr. and Mrs. Devine hope that Picture’s Up! will help create brighter futures for young filmmakers.

“We definitely want to be a film festival for newer filmmakers because I think that’s where festivals are the most helpful,” Alyssa said. “We want to be able to provide a service by shining a light on them.

casey_bernhard@emerson.edu

The Berkeley Beacon

February 20, 2020

Living Arts

7

Alum draws inspiration from mother for feature film Erin Renzi, Beacon Correspondent Orson Oblowitz ‘09 finds inspiration for all his creative projects in his mother.

His first award-winning feature film, The Queen of Hollywood Blvd, features a lead centered around his mom’s personality and a role which Oblowitz knew she could embody.

The film focuses on Queen Mary’s journey, the owner of a Los Angeles strip club who finds herself in trouble with the mob after owing them a 25-year debt. The film, released in October 2018, won Best First Feature at the Boston Underground Film Festival in 2018. It earned screenings at multiple theaters, including The Brattle, Oblowitz’s favorite theater, in March 2018, and most recently on Feb. 9 at the Film Noir Cinema in Brooklyn, New York.

Oblowitz said the lead role, played by his mother Rosemary Hochschild, is directly inspired by and written for his mother.

“She’s always kind of been my muse,” Oblowitz said in a phone interview from Los Angeles. “She’s a great actress. She’s got an amazing look.”

Oblowitz began writing the script in October 2014 and finished the first draft three months later.

“I lost someone very close to me in my life, they had died, so I didn’t really know what to do,” Oblowitz said. “So I just kind of devoted myself to this project, this idea.”

He gave his mother the script on Christmas in 2014 and said she loved it, accepting the role in the film. Part of the reason she enjoyed the script was because it falls under the “grindhouse” genre, which refers to exploitation films that can be horror, action, or thriller.

“To collaborate with [Oblowitz] was amazing,” Hochschild said in a phone interview from California. “He gave me the script and I was blown away by it because I love grindhouse. I was really excited to tackle this role.”

Oblowitz said he needed money in order to start filming, so he returned to the first commercial company he worked for—Concrete Images.

He said they agreed to help with initial financing, even though they were at risk of losing money.

“I went back to Concrete Images, and they basically gave me a credit card and allowed me to put most of the film on their credit card and pay them back over time,” Oblowitz said.

To produce The Queen of Hollywood Blvd, Oblowitz worked with various Emerson alumni, including Luke Hanlein ‘09, who shot the film, and Daniel Domingo De Lara ‘09, who created the soundtrack.

Orson Oblowitz and his mother, Rosemary, both had interest in “grindhouse” films before working on The Queen of Hollywood Blvd.

Courtesy of Ryan Postas “It’s nice to work with someone who you know, [Oblowitz] had these specific visions but was open to collaboration, and then brought a lot of references in and was very specific about the way he wanted to craft his story,” Hanlein said in a phone interview from Los Angeles, California.

By summer 2015, Oblowtiz and his crew began filming, which took a total of 13 days. Due to a lack of funds, he said the editing process took longer. Oblowitz said he set up a Kickstarter, which allowed creators to share their ideas with communities that would help fund his project.

Oblowitz said he received backlash about his decision to let his mom play the lead while making the film. He said he saw the reticence people have against older women leading films that are normally reserved for a man.

Despite the film’s award, Oblowitz said he’s put $125,000 into the film and hasn’t come

close to breaking even.

“It hasn’t made that much money,” Oblowitz said. “It wasn’t necessarily a financial success, but the film has a really good pedigree. It’s gotten amazing reviews in the Hollywood Reporter.”

After filming The Queen of Hollywood Blvd, Oblowitz made a horror film called Trespassers, which premiered in London at Fright Fest. It also played in 40 theaters in America, as well as in Australia, England, Germany, and South America.

Currently, Oblowitz is finishing a movie called The Five Rules of Success, where he serves as the cinematographer while also helping to write, produce, direct, and edit. The film is a crime thriller about a man who gets out of prison with no financial support or anyone to rely on.

“It’s really a meditative film on what is the cost of success, and what is really success in

a country that only deems you successful in its own way, you know?” Oblowitz said. “In America, you’re only successful when you’re in the one percent.”

Oblowitz said he is happy with how The Five Rules of Success turned out and is trying to find a film festival to release it at.

“I think it’s a really interesting, individual film like I don’t think there’s anything quite like it, and I’m really happy about that,” Oblowitz said. “It’s its own piece of art. I am very interested to see how the film industry reacts to it if they accept it into their fold.”

Despite new projects in the works, The Queen of Hollywood Blvd continues to have a life since release.

“We’re all still working on it for free, five years later, because we love it,” Oblowitz said. erin_renzi@emerson.edu

My roots were only seen when worn by a white person Shruti Rajkumar is a sophomore journalism major, Beacon staff writer, and this edition’s POC columnist.

In my sophomore year of high school, I was excited to find out about a course called Asian Studies. The popular course focused on the significance of Indian religion, traditions, holidays, food, traditional clothing, and music, and incorporated field trips to temples and mosques.

At the time, I was grateful that the course provided my peers with a better understanding and appreciation of my culture. In retrospect, I have only one criticism: a white woman taught the course.

Why was my culture not only seen, but glorified, when a white person brought attention to it, yet when I tried to embrace it, it was received poorly?

For centuries, the appeal of Southeast Asian culture drew the attention of white people, dating back to when Europeans traveled to India in search of spices and textiles. Today, Indian food, clothing, music, and holiday traditions are celebrated. However, there is a lack of Indian people at the forefront of this cultural awareness in the United States. In turn, the appreciation and significance of the culture and its background gets lost, bordering on appropriation.

Aspects of Indian culture are often stripped of their significance and used solely for aesthetic purposes by non-Indians. In 2013, Selena Gomez released her hit single “Come and Get It,” which incorporated traditional Indian music

in the introduction and background of the song. the public’s attention and benefiting from the Her music video, as well as live performances incorporation of Southeast Asian culture. Ironof the song, also included Bollywood dancing ically, whenever I tried to embrace that same where she wore a bindi. The incorporation of culture back then, it was received poorly and reBollywood styles and Indian accessories add- sulted in my assimilation into American culture.

According to a 2017 study by Nairuti Shased nothing to the meaning of the song or performance. It was used solely to add color and try, Southeast Asians described their experiencuniqueness, but in doing so the cultural signifi- es in America as “Adopting various strategies that exist on a spectrum of accommodation to cance was overlooked.

Similarly, the 2016 song “Hymn for the white, American culture—in the form of whiteWeekend” by Beyonce and Coldplay included washing—to a form of resistance, specifically Holi colors, a popular ancient Hindu festival the rejection of the devaluation of their Indian custom, being tossed around in the music vid- heritage and culture.” In turn, this repression eo. According to Society for the Confluence of has resulted in a split Indian-American identity in which American Festivals of India, Holi is the served as an adoldest Indian festival and orig“Why was my culture not opted identity—a inates from the story of Radha representation of and Krishan. The throwing of colors symbolizes the arriv- only seen, but glorified, when their socialization and future in this al of spring, as well as good a white person brought atcountry—and Inover evil and the spreading of dian was defined love and happiness. But in this music video, Holi colors were tention to it, yet when I tried as something desirable to “hold on used to create an aesthetic appeal. to embrace it, it was received to.”I embraced my Another aspect of Indian culture when I culture that has been appropoorly?” was younger. My priated by non-Indians is a mom used to pack form of body art called Mehndi, commonly known as Henna. Traditionally, homemade Indian food in my lunchbox every Henna is applied to the hands and feet of a bride day for school. One day at school, I opened up on her wedding day. It is used to wish good luck a container of one of my favorite dishes—basand prosperity for the bride and her journey into mati rice, baingan bhartha, and dal. The smile I marriage. Today, American carnivals and fairs had on my face quickly vanished as my peers incorporate Henna booths where visitors can looked at me and covered their noses with disget designs on their hands, yet very few people gust from the strong smell of spices that was know of its significance or even it’s country of spreading in the air. From that day forward, I asked my mom to send me to school with peaorigin.

In all of these instances, there is a complete nut butter sandwiches instead.

This was the beginning of being aware of disregard for the history and beauty of cultural significance. These artists succeeded in gaining my own split Indian-American identity. I then

became overly cautious so the line between the two never blurred. Bindis and Indian garments were only worn on holidays, when going to the temple, or for Indian gatherings. Henna was only worn for Diwali or when visiting India.

Indian food was only eaten at home. I began compartmentalizing aspects of my life because I believed that my Indian culture would never be accepted or understood by my white friends and peers.

I spent years of my life assimilating to American culture due to the ignorance around me, and all it took was a white teacher and white celebrities to embrace Indian culture for my peers to become enlightened. When I was younger, I was grateful that my culture was gaining any recognition. However, looking back it frustrates me to realize how my voice and agency to share my culture was overpowered by the voices of the white people around me.

Following that class, I took steps towards embracing my culture on my own terms, including wearing traditional Indian clothing to my senior prom. I’ve since allowed the lines separating my Indian and American identities to blur together, but it shouldn’t have taken the attention of white people to bring awareness to my culture in the first place.

shruti_rajkumar@emerson.edu

Sports

The Berkeley Beacon

February 20, 2020

8

UPCOMING ACTION MEN’S VOLLEYBALL: Emerson vs. Wentworth, 7 p.m., Thu. MEN’S VOLLEYBALL: Emerson vs. St. Joseph’s , 7 p.m., Fri. BASEBALL: Emerson vs. UMass Dartmouth, 12 p.m., Sat. WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Emerson vs. Dean College, 1 p.m., Sat.

Lions motivated by NEWMAC preseason coaches poll I think that is very doable,” Koffman said in an interview. “We play in a really tough conference, so we scheduled some more winnable The women’s lacrosse team is ranked tenth out-of-conference games, and I think that will out of 10 teams in the conference preseason be helpful in the long run just to get everycoaches poll going into the 2020 season, and one’s confidence going in the right direction.” the team is using it as motivation.

The Lions will field 16 players this season, “We have the rankings hung up in our lock- two more than in 2019. With 11 field positions er room, and we have to look at them every and a goalie, the Lions will have more opporday,” sophomore midfielder Julia Burns said in tunities to rotate out players. an interview. “We are using it more as a moti“We are definitely still building,” Koffman vation, trying to prove them wrong.” said. “It’s going to take a few years to rebuild The Lions fished last in the New England this program.”

Women’s and Men’s The Lions lost two key Athletic Conference defensive players from “We have so much potential with a 0-11 record last season when Jen in 2019. They will Litchfield and Chelsea and great people this year... enter the season Swift graduated in 2019. ranked under Clark This year’s team fields six we need to prove ourselves University, who will upperclassmen and two be competing in the seniors midfielders, Caand reestablish our team.”

NEWMAC for the first mille Mumford and Jenna time.

Tomsky.

Camille Mumford The Lions will Mumford will play her start the season last season with the Lions with eight non-conafter joining the team ference games, against teams that include during her freshman year. Mumford started in Emmanuel College and Nichols College. Sec- all 11 games in 2019, totaling 19 points with ond-year head coach Jessie Koffman hopes nine goals and 10 assists. She also received a these games will help the team gain more spot on the NEWMAC Academic All-Conferconfidence before facing challenging NEW- ence Team.

MAC opponents during the second half of the “We have so much potential and great peoseason. ple this year, our team is really talented. We “We definitely want to get some wins, and need to prove ourselves and reestablish our Meghan MacLaren, Beacon Staff

Senior midfielder Camille Mumford received a spot on the All-Conference Team in 2019.

Courtesy of Kate Foultz team,” Mumford said in an interview.

The 10 remaining players include six freshmen who Burns said will have a strong contribution to the team.

“They’re a really good positive addition to the team,” Burns said. “We struggled a bit with numbers last season, so having numbers is good, but having numbers of people who add to the team is good.”

The Lions are determined to not let the pre-season poll define their 2020 season.

“The reality is that it’s going to light a fire for

us,” Koffman said. “Just to see that we really can only improve and hopefully our games will be able to show that.”

The Lions face non-conference opponent John Carroll University in Clearwater, Florida, on March 7. The play their first home game against non-conference opponent Northern Vermont University on March 7 at Rotch Field.

meghan_maclaren@emerson.edu

Athletes crowd Dean’s List, women’s basketball holds highest Division III GPA Emily Cardona, Beacon Staff Emerson student athletes earned 72 spots on the fall 2019 Dean’s List with women’s soccer and volleyball teams fielding the highest number of honorees.

Nine athletes from both teams received spots on the Dean’s List, which indicates a student maintained a 3.7 or higher grade point average.

The women’s basketball team came in a close second with eight student athletes while seven men’s soccer athletes also made the list.

“Being a division three student athlete, the student comes before the athlete part and we try to preach that part as much as we can,” women’s volleyball coach Ben Read said.

Athletic Director Patricia Nicol said this to go pro at something other than sports.”

In the fall 2019 semester, the women’s basachievement displays the Division III philosophy of keeping a balance between academ- ketball team achieved a grade point average of 3.77, the highest grade ics and athletics. Nicol point average of all the credits the coaches and “We raised the bar as to Emerson sports teams. professors with this Nicol said the team’s achievement. what it means to be an grade point average is “I think it says where also the highest one in we have our priorities.

That we try ... to develop Emerson student athlete.” Division III women’s basketball. a culture of excellence both academically and “I would like to be athletically,” Nicol said able to say that it is my in an interview. “We try inspiration and leaderto recruit athletes that depict the term ‘student ship and all of these things that allowed them or athlete’ because our student athletes are going inspired them to do greatness in the classroom,

– Pat Nicol

but I swear to god at the beginning of the year all I say is ‘Do well!’” women’s basketball head coach Bill Gould said in an interview.

Nicol said there are roughly 215 student athletes at the college, so having 72 of them on the Dean’s list creates a standard of what it means to be an athlete at Emerson.

“We raised the standard,” Nicol said. “We raised the bar as to what it means to be an Emerson student athlete and, not only are we competing for the best athlete, but also for the best student.”

emily_cardona@emerson.edu

Men’s lacrosse pursuing first postseason appearance Alberto Gillman, Beacon Staff As the men’s lacrosse season begins, coaches and players are ready to pursue the goal of making the first conference playoff in program history.

“I’m really excited about the opportunity this year,” head coach Matthew Colombini said in an interview. “There’s definitely a lot of potential to do some things that we haven’t been able to do in the past, and hopefully that includes making the NEWMAC playoffs for the first time and continuing to be more competitive in the league as a whole.”

In 2019, the Lions defeated Wheaton College in overtime for their first New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference victory in program history. This season, with six new freshmen and an intensive practicing regimen, the Lions are looking for their first playoff berth. They play their first match of the season against Wentworth Institute of Technology at Rotch Field on Feb. 26.

“I think we have our most talented group that we’ve had since I’ve been here,” Colombini said.

Colombini’s staff consists of assistant coaches Will Jennings and Dave Kraus, who are entering their third and fourth seasons with the team, respectively. The Lions began practicing six days a week last month and will play a 17game schedule over the next two and a half months.

Colombini said the team might struggle with a lack of depth in their roster.

“The biggest challenge is still going to be depth for us,” Colombini said. “We’re not the

Sophomore attacker Hunter Gervais scored 15 goals and recorded 10 assists in 2019.

Courtesy of Kate Foultz deepest team in the conference.” other big challenge is not necessarily a playing Sophomore defenseman Lex Torrington said thing, but just keeping the focus for a full two, the team is focusing on fitness to help win more two and half hours in practice and not letting the games this season. energy drag.”

“We’re depending a lot on individual On Feb. 12, NEWMAC released the 2020 strength and individual conditioning to carry preseason coaches poll, with the Lions sitting us,” Torrington said in an interview. at the bottom of the list. Freshman defenseman Sophomore defenseman Jack Lewis also said Ryan Sphar said the ranking motivates them. a lot of their success will be based on how well “Our goal is to change that ranking and to they prepare in the gym and at practices. prove that ranking wrong,” Sphar said in an in“I think challenges are keeping guys healthy terview. and making sure that you get into the weight Junior defenseman Lucas Sickner said this room, and you keep doing little things like that ranking further motivates the team to make the to prevent bigger injuries and keep your mobil- playoffs and prove doubters wrong. ity up,” Lewis said in an interview. “I think an“We kind of love having that chip on our

shoulder,” Sickner said in an interview.

Despite what the preseason coaches poll suggests, sophomore midfielder Alex Hrisanthopoulos said this year’s team is prepared to reach new levels of success.

“It seems like, as of right now, we feel like this is probably the strongest team we’ve had in Emerson lacrosse history,” Hrisanthopoulos said in an interview. ”Going forward, we’re just building upon that”.

In addition to the four players from last season that graduated, the team will be without sophomore goalie Daniel Hollis, who passed away in Sept. 2019 from fatal injuries sustained in a late-night altercation in Allston.

Senior attacker Austin Franklin said the Lions plan to honor Hollis throughout the season.

“One of the things that we are doing this year to honor Dan is, every week, we’re having a practice player named who gets to wear Dan’s practice pinnie for that week,” Franklin said in an interview. “That person can earn the practice pinnie based off of hard work or just being a good teammate and carrying themselves in Dan’s light.”

Franklin said the team came together following the tragedy.

“Dan’s jersey was hung up in our locker room,” Franklin said. “It’s something we can look at every day.”

alberto_gillman@emerson.edu