The Blue & Gray Press

THE

BLUE &GRAY

THE UNIVERSITY OF MARY WASHINGTON STUDENT NEWSPAPER

NOVEMBER 12, 2015

VOLUME 89 | ISSUE 9

PRESS

SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE

Divest UMW takes it’s protest to Washington DC for peaceful demonstration

Students fight for classes as registration comes to a close KELLY EMMRICH Staff Writer

LYNSY SPROUSE Staff Writer

Race, climate justice and immigration are more connected than people may think, particularly for members of DivestUMW, who took their latest action in spreading awareness about climate change on Monday.

The group participated in the “Our Generation, Our Choice” march in Washington, D.C., where participants marched along Franklin Square and blocked the entrance to the White House in order to make their voices heard.

University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, George Mason University, James Madison University and Eastern Mennonite University also participated in the event.

The purpose of the march was to get the “Our Generation, Our Choice” message across to the political leaders in D.C. “We need political leaders with plans that are in line with the imperatives of justice on race, climate change and immigration,” the organization’s website said. “Keep fossil fuels in the ground.

Protect the lives of black, brown, poor and immigrant communities. Reinvest in healthy jobs, renewable energy and an economy that works for all of us.

Let’s get it done.”

DivestUMW’s role in this event was to take a stand with other activists and fight for climate justice.

According to one of the group’s members, Sarah Kinzer, a sophomore English major, bringing this issue to the public eye is more important now than ever, especially with the upcoming 2016 election.

“This is a particularly crucial time for us to organize around important justice issues, given the proximity of the upcoming Paris Climate Talks, as well as the upcoming presidential election,” Kinzer said.

Group member Rabib Hasan, a senior sociology major, said this push to spread awareness is caused by discontent among students and others passionate about this issue. They do not feel like leaders in the country, particularly politicians, are taking adequate action to address climate change.

“Youths, students and other members of all sorts of movements are tired of the state of the country,” Hasan said.

For this event, organizations like Black Lives Matter and activists fighting for immigration and climate justice stood together in solidarity with one •DIVEST | 10

IN THIS

ISSUE

1922

Neeta Jain

Bhangra Babes Eagle Bhangra holds 11th annual competition | 2

Daniel Arango

Every semester the sound of heartbreak can be heard campus-wide as students watch their coveted classes fill up.

Most juniors, seniors, honor students and students with disabilities have an advantage over underclassmen because they are permitted to register earlier.

Rarely can sophomores and freshmen get into all of the classes that they want or need for general education requirements, majors and electives.

One problem is that there are not enough sections of each class offered per semester to keep up with the growing student body. Classes that are introductory level courses should be easy to get into, but, instead, underclassmen are in battle over the limited number of seats.

Even though a lot of students do not get to sign up for some of their top choices, registration is one of the most exciting times of the semester for a lot of students. Signing up for classes is both stressful and exciting because new classes hold the promise of new friends, new professors and an opportunity to challenge yourself academically.

For the past two weeks, registration for the spring semester has been on every student’s mind. However, classes that sophomores and freshman need to take for their majors are filling up faster than usual. And, it is not just one department that students are having this trouble with, it is every department.

“I had problems getting into Introduction to Computer Science,” says Abby Brock, a freshman prospective computer science and classics double major. “I emailed the professor and she said that I am at the top of her list.”

Intro to Computer Science seats 25 for each class, and six sections are offered next semester. Even so, four of those six are completely full, and the sections that are open are night classes that run from 6 p.m. to 8:45 p.m.

According to Mary Grace Cooney, a sophomore business administration major with a concentration in marketing, she also struggled with getting into classes.

“I had difficulty getting into my marketing class,” Cooney said. “I needed permission for it because I did not have a junior status. I also wanted to take a communications class, but they were either all filled up or reserved for nursing students.”

Many other classes had various holds and restrictions on them, preventing students from adding them. Public speaking is a class that fills up incredi•REGISTRATION | 11

AVENUE Q

BAN BOX

CAC HEARTBREAK

A complete look at Klein Theatre’s newest show

Movement pushes to remove question from job application

Women’s Soccer and Field Hockey fall in championship

LIFE | 6

VIEWPOINTS | 5

SPORTS | 12

NEWS Bhangra Beat puts on statewide show for its 11th year

THE

BLUE & GRAY PRESS

MISSION

The Blue & Gray Press is published every Thursday in the University Apartments Clubhouse for our university community. The goal of The Blue & Gray Press is to produce high quality and accurate news in a manner compliant with the Society of Professional Journalists ethics code. In its coverage, The Blue & Gray Press strives to highlight the community of the University of Mary Washington, as well as deliver fair and accurate coverage on the issues important to our students.

EDITORS-AT-LARGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Chris Markham

MANAGING EDITOR Tess Osmer

SECTION EDITORS NEWS Max Hellmuth

ESTER SALGUERO Assistant News Editor

The International Living Community hosted the University of Mary Washington’s anticipated 2015 Bhangra Beat on Friday Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. in the Anderson Center. Ten minutes before the show and the crowd was already pumped with Punjabi music mixes. One particular song even included some of N.W.A’s unique songs.

Continuing the 11-year-long tradition alongside UMW was James Madison University and the College of William and Mary.

Altogether, there were six performances between the three universities.

Representing each university accordingly was UMW’s Eagle Bhangra, UMW Breakers, UMW Performing Arts Club, W&M’s Dhamaal Bhangra, W&M Afsana Bollywood and JMU Bhangra.

A German exchange student majoring in psychology, Maximillian Hellmuth, along with Zaïre Sprowal, a junior majoring in physics and Reed Kingsmen, an anthropology major, introduced the show with a humorously scripted commentary.

“It was a tough one trying to get them out of the library,” noted Kingsmen when introducing W&M’s Bhangra team.

There were also three judges present to decide who would be the winner of the competition. The judges were Avi Jaggi, who graduated from George Mason University, Jilian Carrigan and Bilal Ali who both graduated from the University of Virginia. As well-known dancers they decided the fate of the Bhangra dancers.

Bhangra dancing originated from the Punjab region of India and traditionally only men would dance, however, as it has become more modern women became part of the dance. As the music style became more progressive those who preform Punjabi started to mix in hip-hop and rap.

The two Eagle Bhangra dancers who

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are actually from India are Aashna Jain and Shoba Negi. Jain is also co-president of the International Living Community. The International Living Community was formed in 1998 and is now a student-driven residence hall group located in the Framar House. Anyone can join the community after filling out an application and going through an interview as long as the members agree. It is also important to have an interest in understanding different cultures to take part in this lively group.

The first group to perform was Eagle Bhangra with the women wearing the traditional chunnis, salwaars, and chughis. Half were in beautifully extravagant colors of bright royal blue paired with a vibrant pink and the other half were wearing lively green paired with a stark red. The two men in the group had their traditional chadar bottoms with the chughi top in a solid sky blue color. One woman wore the traditional men’s garb for symmetry.

As Eagle Bhangra began their performance, the crowd zoned in on the dance floor. Students hooted and shouted out of spirit for UMW. Shibani Gautam, president of Eagle Bhangra and co-president of the International Living Community, was in synch with all the other members of Eagle Bhangra.

The traditional saap dance accessory brought the whole performance together as its wooden slap sound synchronized with the beat of the music.

“Bhangra Beat is an event that promotes culture and diversity at Mary Washington,” Gautam said, referencing the friendly competition that many people look forward to during the fall semester.

Second to perform was JMU Bhangra who sparked excitement in the crowd by shouting out in unison as a part of their performance. UMW Breakers came next with their freestyle break dance performance to 70s style hip-hop music. A lot of the members were able to hold freezes with their faces fixed to the ground as if they were kissing the floor. Fourth to perform was W&M

Dhamaal Bhangra, and it must be said that they were quite the competition with their sneaky tactics of surprisingly bringing out the saap instrument when moments before their hands were empty. This innovative technique ultimately won them the competition They also gave a short description of the traditional garb that is worn during the dance that was originally performed during the harvest season in India by men only. The music came alive with W&M’s performance.

“The energy of the dancers was riveting and a really enjoyable performance that truly represented a portion of India’s culture,” said Alyssa Zanzucchi, a sophomore environmental science major who attended the event.

The Performing Arts Club was fifth in line performing “Squad Goals” choreographed by Shobha Negi. Last was W&M’s classy Bollywood dance performance which ended the night off romantically as their heartwarming choreography won the crowd over with its flirtatious dance moves between the dancers. In between the performances prizes were raffled off. Some of the prizes included were a $15 gift card to Starbucks, movie packages, limited edition Eagle Bhangra water bottles, a Chipotle gift card and an iPod shuffle.

Eagle Bhangra has performed at many other locations, such as UVA, and they are also planning to perform for the Alter Egos step team and at a Downtown Fredericksburg event this year.

Bhangra Beat has grown since it first started 11 years ago as a small group showcasing South Asian and Middle Eastern Culture using the Underground for performances.

Eagle Bhangra’s fall semester performances include “Small Show” hosted by the Performing Arts Club and “Taste of Asia” hosted by the Asian Student Association, both of which have already passed.

Their most important performance of the fall semester however, was a competition with lots of ‘oomph’, Bhangra Beat.

Sarah Grammer Emily Hollingsworth

VIEWPOINTS Alex Spence

LIFE Della Hethcox

SPORTS Mikey Barnes

ONLINE Ethan Tobin

PHOTO Alex Sakes

ASSISTANT EDITORS Ester Salguero Hannah Galeone Jacob Atkinson

ADVERTISING TEAM BUSINESS MANAGER David Concepcion

ADVERTISING MANAGER Natalie Furman

FACULTY ADIVSOR Sushma Subramanian

Thursday, November 12, 2015

SPORTS

Winners and losers of the NFL up to Week 10 MATHIEU WETMORE Staff Writer

The new head of D.C baseball

Cam Newton

Heading into Week 10 of the NFL season, the league and its fans have seen its share of highs as well as it shares of lows. With that being the case, the league has showcased some winners and losers thus far.

NYMfan9/flickr

WINNERS:

the World Series. He then went on to manage the Chicago Cubs for four seasons; only making the postseason once.

That one postseason experience will be remembered by every Cubs fan till the day that they die because it involved the infamous Steve Bartman play. After having little success in Chicago he went off to Cincinnati to help them win a championship. He only managed to lead them to three postseason experiences but every time they lost in the very first round. He was no longer a manager after the 2013 season until now.

When the Nationals fired Williams, they also dismissed the entire coaching staff.

Now Baker has to put together a coaching staff that will put the nationals in position to get to the postseason and hopefully the World Series. So far the Nationals have announced just two coaches; Mike Maddux as pitching coach and first base coach Davey Lopes. There are many experienced candidates for this Nationals coaching staff; they just need to find out the right fits so that they can go somewhere in the regular and postseason.

Though last season finished poorly for the Nationals, a great deal of talent is present for the experienced ball club. This experience includes MVP candidate and baseball phenom Bryce Harper and a star studded pitching rotation including former Cy-Young winner Max Scherzer and All-Star pitchers Jordan Zimmermann and Stephen Strasburg. With his past success, owner Ted Lerner and the rest of the Nationals organization is excited for what Baker can bring to the table.

Most of D.C. is tired of losing, but can next year be the year for the Nationals?

CJ CUMMINGS Staff Writer

Cam Newton, QB, Panthers: For the first time in NFL history, three teams remain undefeated. After beating Aaron Rodgers in Week 9, Newton has led his team to an impressive 8-0 start, the first time this feat has been achieved in franchise history.

MikeMorbeck/flickr

Jim Tonsula, Head Coach, 49ers: The 49ers are 3-6. Tonsula can consider himself a winner for now because he is not Colin Kaepernick. Now that the Kaepernick is benched, it will be interesting to see how his team finishes out their season.

Andy Dalton

Andrew Dalton, QB, Bengals: Dalton completed 77% of his passes for 234 yards and three touchdowns to best the Browns in Week 9 and stay undefeated heading into week 10. Dalton is simply on fire these days.

Jordan Matthews, WR, Eagles: Matthews caught a decisive game winning touchdown in overtime to defeat the Dallas Cowboys in a nail-biting NFC East match up. Matthews single-handedly crushed any remaining playoff hopes the Cowboys had going into Week 9.

emeybee/flickr

LOSERS:

Tom Brady

Tom Brady, QB, Patriots: No matter how hard Brady tries, celebration fist pumps will never inflate a football.

Marshawn Lynch, RB, Seahawks: Lynch has only been able to taste the rainbow this season, not victory. The Seahawks are off to a lack-luster 4-4 start this season after their Super Bowl defeat to the Patriots last February.

Eli Manning, QB, Giants: Eli lands in this category because Peyton is his brother and will always overshadow him, even when he throws six TDs in one game and Peyton throws zero. Although Eli has led his team to the top of the NFC East he will never be as good as his older brother, who is currently 3 yards away from Brett Favre’s passing record.

KeithAllison/flickr

Josh Gordon

HONORABLE MENTION: Josh Gordon, WR, Browns: Although Gordon is suspended from playing games this season, he deserves recognition for his outstanding commitment to the off season that can be derived from the paychecks he is still receiving.

With many different players and coaches to choose for the Nationals’ manager job, the organization went in the direction of Dusty Baker.

Although Cal Ripken Jr., Jim Leyland, Tony La Russa, Bobby Cox, Dave Martinez and more were all possible candidates for the managerial position. Leyland, Russa and Cox all at least 70 years old but all have the experience for the position.

While all of them have reached and won at least one World Series, they know what it takes to make it all the way. Ripken was a possible candidate because of his experience as a player otherwise he has no managerial experience.

Martinez has built up his resume with the Chicago Cubs since the last time he was interviewed for the Nationals’ manager job. He lost that spot to Matthew Williams, the now former Nationals manager.

But this year’s final decision was to hire the two-time Silver Slugger award winner and three-time Coach of the Year award winner Baker.

Baker will take over a program that went 83-79 in 2015, a season full of disappointment to say the least. Baker played 19 years in the major leagues with multiple teams. After 6 years in retirement he came out to start coaching. His days as a manger started with the San Francisco Giants, there he took the team to three postseason appearances.

With his last year with the San Francisco Giants, he took them all the way to the World Series. But they lost the last two games in a best-of-seven matchup to lose

UMW volleyball advances to NCAA tournament

After a heartbreaking defeat in the semifinals of the Capital Athletic Conference tournament to Salisbury, the UMW volleyball team had feared that its season was possibly over since they had not recieved an at-large bid. On the morning of Nov. 9, the UMW volleyball team heard the great news that they recieved a bid to compete in the Division III NCAA Tournament. The Eagles were placed in the Mid Atlantic region bracket, which is led by the top-ranked Juniata College, who UMW had faced earlier in the season, falling to them 3-1. The first round matchup for the Eagles will come against Case Western Reserve University who is 24-7 on the season. Case Western is a school located in Cleveland, Ohio and competes in the UAA, in which they finished in third place during the conference tournament.

The NCAA berth is the first for UMW head coach Matt Troy in his three seasons at Mary Washington and the first berth for the program since 1991. In the Mid Atlantic bracket can also be found UMW rival and conference foe, Christopher Newport University, who with a string of victories UMW could face in the Final Four. This is the programs third appearence in history, following the consecutive appearences in ‘91 and ‘92.

The 23 wins UMW currently has is the best season the volleyball team has had record wise since 1995. The game will be played Nov. 13 at 5:30 p.m.

ErikDrost/flickr

Weekly Scoreboard Volleyball:

Equesterian:

Nov. 5 @ Salisbury (L) UMW: 1 Salisbury.: 3

Second place @ William & Mary Riding Show

Nov. 7 vs. York (Pa.) (L) UMW: 0 CNU: 1

Nov. 5 vs. Salisbury

WOMEN'S soccer:

field hockey:

(L) UMW: 1 Salisbury: 2

Upcoming:

Volleyball Nov. 13 @ Juniata vs. Case Western 5:30 p.m.

NCAA Tournament first round

Cross Country: Nov. 14 @ Winchester, Va. NCAA South/Southeast Regional Championships 11:00 a.m.

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VIEWPOINTS

Ex-felons fight to enter job market

HANNAH PARKER Staff Writer

In current American society incarceration rates continue to climb the population ladder, and while they do so job opportunities for these incarcerated persons are sharply decreasing, and as some would say, for lack of good reason.

According to the United States Census Bureau, as of Nov. 9 there are about 320 million people in America, while the adult correctional population stands slightly below seven million people according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, which was last updated in 2013. But when looking at the grand scheme of adult correctional rates worldwide America stands with the largest percentage of incarceration rates at more than 20 percent, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

While diving into the data behind adult correctional population we can see that only 18 percent of felonies are violent offenses, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. That leaves the other 82 percent of nonviolent felonies at a cross roads when it comes to job opportunities.

In today’s job market a majority of job applications are turned in online with simple boxes that you check describing certain life experiences or characteristics. Are you male or female? Check a box. Do you have children? Check a box. Have you been convicted of a felony? Check a box.

These seem like simple questions, and would be no doubt asked in a face-to-face interview as well. However, there is a difference when sorting through online applications. Some computers are set up to automatically toss out applications where yes was checked to convicting a felony, whereas in a face-to-face interview the ex-convict at least has the opportunity to further explain themselves.

When a felon is released from prison back into society it is because they paid their time for the felony they committed and the justice system saw them fit to weave back into society. But when the job market makes it close to impossible to reenter because of the stigma against the word felon, these persons have little to no way of weaving back in.

The stigma associated with the word felon stems from the stereotype of a felon.

We imagine a felon as dangerous and scary and not able to function as a normal citizen, but when looking at the percentage of actual dangerous or violent offense we can see that the majority of felons do not fit into the stereotype but are being penalized nonetheless for it.

Looking even more closely at the amount of adult incarcerated persons in America, we must remember that they are in fact adults, which means they are 18 years or older. “Adults” just recently graduated from high school who have barely even begun their lives and now never will be able to fully live due to the stigma associated with the word felon.

According to the Washington Post, Congress is currently considering a directive proposed by President Obama that would “formalize a practice of delaying questions about an applicant’s criminal history until later in the hiring process.”

This directive would help increase ex-felons chances of being hired for a job and not weed them out based off of a stereotype.

While Americans await Congress’s official decision on the directive, The Fair Chance Act is being introduced that would disallow federal government branches from questioning applicants on criminal background until the “conditional job hiring offer stage.”

Known as ‘Ban the Box,’ people are pushing a change, which would make it no longer necessary to check the box on applications concerning criminal history.

“The federal government, I believe, should not use criminal history to screen out applicants before even looking at their qualifications,” Obama said in the article.

“We can’t dismiss people out of hand simply because of a mistake that they made in the past.”

Many Americans are pushing for changes in the job market concerning felons and pushing for the ‘Ban the Box’ movement to really take off.

If the justice system truly wants these felons to eventually come back into society, then stereotypes need to be broken down by nondiscriminatory legislation such as Obama’s directive.

“MANY AMERICANS ARE PUSHING FOR CHANGES IN THE JOB MARKET CONCERNING FELONS.”

Scrambled eggs with a side of cancer?

Kaz/Pixabay JACOB ATKINSON Staff Writer

The International Agency for Research on Cancer, IARC, announced last month that red meats are a likely carcinogenic for humans and that processed meats can have a noticeably greater risk of cancer.

The IARC further stated that certain meats such as bacon and pork could be compared to smoking a cigarette in their recent report. People have responded in either outrage or fear that their favorite part of breakfast may have been slowly giving them cancer for years.

Quickly after headlines broke out across the internet about processed meats causing cancer, rebuttals and expert criticisms rained down on the IARC’s report.

Robert Pickard, Emeritus Professor of Neurobiology at the University of Cardiff highlighted a study in an interview with the Telegraph, “60,000 Britons last year which found similar levels of bowel cancer in vegetarians and meat-eaters.”

In addition to this, the Wall Street Journal spoke of the IARC, saying, “The working group even admits in the same paper that ‘there is limited evidence for the carcinogenicity of the consumption of red meat’ and ‘no clear association was seen in several of the high quality studies.’” The organization clearly did not have a realistic amount of conclusive evidence to warrant such a specific cancer warning.

After reading about the IARC announcement and subsequent embargo of red-meat that certain people are taking, I had a thought: I legitimately cannot remember a time in my life where there was not a brand new “this everyday product can cause cancer!” tirade going on.

Aside from the medically proven cancer perpetuators such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and radiation, we are left to watch the news make bizarre cancer claims. Cell-phones, microwaves, antiperspirants and most types of food have all been the center of their own large and

slightly ridiculous cancer-scare at some point, and it causes me to question, what does not cause cancer?

According to the National Cancer Institute, “When cells grow old or become damaged, they die, and new cells take their place. When cancer develops however, this orderly process breaks down.”

If we consider that cancer is merely a form of cell mutation, the reality of cancer is that it can occur anywhere in the human body. How cancer is caused is the main point of why these scares are so wide spread; other than specific examples such as smoking, exposure to radiation and certain viruses, we are not entirely sure what causes cancer.

Whenever scientists find a correlation between those with cancer and a commonality between them, they will tie that similarity to causing cancer. Cancer is a genetic mutation, and quite possibly the scariest notion of it all is that almost anything could cause that one gene to mutate and develop into a cancerous cell.

When these cancer scares inevitably pop up, society tends to respond in a frantic effort to change their lifestyle or habits in accordance to whatever happens to be causing cancer at that time. We change our diets, spend less time in the sun and use certain natural products to avoid the possibility of being exposed to something, anything that could cause cancer.

We do this without a concrete understanding of what is really going on, and simply trust in the “scientific research” that backs it, only to find out a week later that it was a hoax. Seeing as practically anything we are exposed to on a daily basis could trigger one of our cells to mutate and become a cancerous cell, the all-out effort to adjust to these possibilities seems illogical.

We are better off just trying to live a healthy lifestyle in the long run; eating healthy, exercising, eliminating excessive smoking and drinking can all benefit us greatly.

Editorial: The Blue & Gray Press introduces mobile app, The Buzz Last week, The Blue & Gray Press launched the new free mobile app, The Buzz. This was done in partnership with the Student Government Association and the University of Mary Washington Readership Program.

The app is free, not only to UMW students, but to all readers. It is available through Google Play Store and iTunes.

The Buzz, which is managed by USA Today, compiles their own articles with different universities’ into one convenient app. For instance, The Buzz for UMW has recent USA Today articles compiled with articles from The Blue & Gray Press. Users can filter articles by section by publication, or look at both intermixed.

In addition to being quickly in-theknow on matters concerning UMW, users of the app may also easily stay updated on events going on across the country, cov-

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ered by USA Today. Users can receive a notification to their phone when a new article is posted or if a breaking news story is unfolding.

In an increasingly mobile society, the need for such an app for us to offer our audience was growing exponentially. As we continue to grow our online presence and social media platforms, the addition of The Buzz is the next step in what we hope to be a more modern version of The Blue & Gray Press while we are trying to ensure that we can use to reach our audience.

It is hard to deny that the print platform of news is dwindling. As much as we at The Blue & Gray Press would like to keep print alive on campus, we must admit that somewhere down the road in the near future, the newspaper may be a strictly on-

line. It may not be while any current students are attending UMW, but the change will happen nonetheless, and when it does, we would like to be as integrated into the online platform as possible to ease the changeover.

As the voice of the student body, we at The Blue & Gray Press want to reach the UMW and Fredericksburg community in the best ways possible. The Buzz may be temporary, however. In a perfect world, we would have our own app which we had full control over and did not have to share with another publication. This is prevented due to lack of funds and resources. However, we are grateful for this opportunity to experiment with the idea of a mobile platform for the paper and having a mutually beneficial relationship with USA Today.

By THE BLUE & GRAY PRESS EDITORIAL BOARD

As mentioned earlier, The Blue & Gray Press’ social media presence is one we would like to extend further. You can follow us on Twitter @theblueandgray, like us on Facebook at “The Blue & Gray Press,” or follow us on Instagram @theblueandgraypress.

Our community is constantly evolving and its newspaper should reflect that. We at The Blue & Gray Press are always looking for ways to improve the way we do our job to satisfy you, our readers. Last year’s name change was the beginning of a still on-going rebranding process and this addition of The Buzz is the most recent of these changes in hopes of rebranding ourselves into the paper that the UMW community deserves.

We would like to thank the UMW SGA and those that work on The Buzz at USA Today for making this possible.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

VIEWPOINTS

Editor: Alex Spence | blueandgray.views@gmail.com

New Starbucks holiday cup spreads more than joy

Now that Halloween has passed, the Christmas frenzy has begun.

Starting on Nov. 1, stores broke out candy canes and stockings and every other TV commercial reminds us that the “25 Days of Christmas” special is quickly approaching.

Everywhere we turn from now until Dec. 26 all we will see is Frosty, Rudolph and loads of holiday spirit. But a new controversy has arisen this year that has allowed some individuals to lose theirs.

Each year Starbucks spreads the holiday joy by decorating their coffee cups with seasonal decorations. In the past, the cups have displayed scenes such as snowflakes, Christmas tree or-naments or characters such as snowmen and reindeer.

However, this year Starbucks shook things up and chose a simple red cup to celebrate. “In the past, we have told stories with our holiday cups’ design,” said Starbucks vice president of design and content Jeffery Fields on the company’s website.

“This year we wanted to usher in the

I think it holidays with a ALEX SPENCE would be fair to purity of design that Viewpoints Editor say that individwelcomes all of our uals who have stories.” religious beliefs outside of Chris-tianiThis change has caused uproar on ty might also enjoy building snowmen social media sites. Joshua Feurstein, an evangelist from Arizona recently or watching “Rudolph the Red Nosed posted a video calling out the coffee Reindeer.” franchise for allegedly removing As a Christian myself, I do not Christ-mas from their seasonal cups. quite understand why it is so detri“Do you realize that Starbucks wanted mental to Christmas that Frosty is missing from my coffee cup. Can we to take Christ and Christmas off of not just as easily say Merry Christmas their brand new cups? That’s why to one an-other rather than let our they’re just plain red,” Feurstein said. coffee cups do the talking?

After this video was posted, many I for one find it perfectly dignified more joined in voicing their dislike for that they wish to respect all religions. the new design, or lack thereof. Twitter got especially heated with hashtags So Starbucks stopped portraying designs associated with Christmas, so such as #MerryChristmasStarbucks what? If, as a Christian, that detracts and #BoycottStarbucks beginning to from your holiday spirit, perhaps you trend. should reevaluate what the holiday First of all, I do not believe the Starbucks cups have ever promoted really means to you. any specific religious holidays. By While many people were busy placing a snowman or reindeer on skewering Starbucks for their lack of a coffee cup they are not exactly Christmas associa-tion, they seem to promoting Christianity, but simply have missed one little detail, the 2015 holiday spirit. release of the Christmas coffee blend.

And hold onto your hats everyone, if the red coffee cups offended you just wait until you see the color of the Christmas blend. That’s right, it is also red.

But never mind that Starbucks printed the word Christmas in bold on the front of their coffee blends, it is still the lack luster cups that turned many into Scrooge.

Musician Michael Castro recently went to twitter about the controversy, saying, “As a Christian I can tell you that the color of Starbucks cups have nothing to do with Jesus, the gospel or Christianity. They are cups.”

While I commend Feurstein for his passion and dedication to God, perhaps attacking the color red was not the best way to promote Christmas.

As both a Christian and an avid coffee drinker I am not planning on dropping my Caramel Lattes just yet.

You never know, even Jesus might have enjoyed a Peppermint Mocha or two.

Swatmp0.tripod.com

Recent scrutiny of police officers discourages the upholding of law and order BRANDON QUINTIN Staff Writer

A worrying trend is developing in American cities as The New York Times recently reported that the murder rates in a number of urban areas have risen dramatically compared to studies conducted over the same period last year.

Milwaukee, St. Louis and Baltimore have all seen their murder rates rise well over 50 percent, while traditionally highcrime cities such as Chicago, Washington and New Orleans follow not far behind.

Even New York City, which since the mid1990s has been universally praised for its handling of violence, has seen an uptick.

However, from 1990 to 2011, the violent crime rate was nearly cut in half. It was a welcome development given that the rate had quintupled from 1960 to 1990.

Although, most of the increase had to do with the epidemic drug violence in the 1970s and 1980s. While drug use is very much an issue of concern in this country, especially concerning heroin and prescription pill abuse, experts do not seem to believe that it is the cause of this year’s developments.

FBI director James Comey recently said, “some part of the explanation is a chill wind blowing through American law enforcement over the last year. And that wind is surely changing behavior.”

What Comey referenced is the so-called Ferguson effect, in which police become reluctant to actively enforce the law due to

the fear of being videotaped or accidentally igniting public outrage.

In a recent Time Magazine article for instance, a young cop in Philadelphia said that, “What it’s like to be a cop in America a year ago, police did not face the scrutiny that accompanies every call for service— and not just the usual watchfulness cast in the direction of the uniform. People are recording every move you make, or at least every arrest.”

Although President Obama strongly disagrees with the existence of the Ferguson effect, and says that the recent murder rate increases are exceptions to the rule.

Two cities with the sharpest rise are Baltimore and St. Louis, and it is hard to see this as a coincidence.

In the past year and a half, these two cities have seen massive racially motivated riots in response to presumed police brutality. In Baltimore, a chronic criminal died while in the custody of three white and three black officers. In Ferguson, a black man was killed after robbing a convenience store and resisting the officer who later confronted him.

These incidents triggered a large outpouring of hostility toward police depart-

ments across the nation and encouraged the criminals who oppose them.

A number of other very serious encounters were captured on camera that showed obvious police misconduct by overzealous and abusive officers. Law enforcement officials believe that video can be a productive tool in police accountability, which is why a record number of departments are now using body cameras.

However, they also caution people when viewing videos of perceived police abuse posted on the internet. It is only after something serious has occurred that cameras and phones come out.

And it is usually during this second phase of the encounter that the officer has the upper hand, and therefore appears the most abusive.

Yet this phenomenon is not the only variable that has led to increased crime and murder. The example of New York City is remarkably representative of the whole nation. According to Atlantic Monthly, from 1960 to 1990, the crime rate surged dramatically. Excellent leadership under mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioners Ray Kelly and Bill Bratton was

“MILWAUKEE, ST. LOUIS AND BALTIMORE HAVE ALL SEEN THEIR MURDER RATES RISE WELL OVER 50 PERCENT.”

responsible for stopping that trend, and ultimately completely reversing it. New York City, at the end of Bloomberg’s term in 2013, was the most peaceful and stable it had been in decades. Yet many seemed to think that law enforcement had gone too far, and the new mayor, Bill de Blasio, ran largely on that message.

The city’s “stop-and-frisk” policy, where a police officer could question and search suspicious pedestrians when thought necessary, was the primary issue of concern. Since his election, the policy has been all but eliminated and measures have been proposed to deal with what many people see as a racial bias inherent in the system. This reaction against a presumed overcorrection is more or less the same narrative that is playing out across the country.

After two decades of unprecedented gains in the fight against crime, it appears that the era is coming to an end. Increased scrutiny and allegations of racism will undoubtedly lead toward police enforcement policies with a much lighter footprint. But is that wise? Guns and drugs are proliferating across our cities at a very high rate.

A strong and trusted police force is necessary to effectively deal with those issues.

Yes, we have questioned race and police abuse when it comes to crime in America, but nothing ever makes murder acceptable. Above all, this is simply a question of law and order.

5

LIFE

Editor: Della Hethcox blueandgray.life@gmail.com

Avenue Q enthralls campus with taboo topics sung by puppets

University Relations

University of Mary Washington students tackled a new subject in the second Klein Theatre production of the semester, “Avenue Q,” a show revolving around puppets.

Inside scoop: how the puppets came to life

ASHLEY CHUNG Staff Writer

While “Avenue Q” has proven itself a formidable task, professors and students alike have put in hundreds of hours in order to make it exceptional. Their hard work has definitely made the show a worthwhile evening out full of laughs and perhaps a few lessons too.

Known as the Sesame Street for grownups, “Avenue Q” combines puppets with the dark humor of an uncertain life after college and sunny musical numbers like “What Do You Do With a B.A. in English?” and “It Sucks to Be Me.” For those that have already seen the show, the amount of work that went into production is clearly evident.

The show has nine puppet characters representing monsters and people alike and uses 24 distinct puppets. The main character, a puppet named Princeton, has five separate puppets alone for varying scenes and costumes.

This show has been in planning for much longer than usual due to the unique demands it requires.

Kevin McCluskey, associate professor of theatre, has been in charge of the production of the puppets used in the show for the past three semesters.

While concept and design started in the fall 2014 semester last year, McCluskey and students alike began working together at the beginning of the spring 2015 semester.

Students in McCluskey’s costume lab course and theatre seminar course have been working together and learning exactly what goes into the puppet making process.

The dye lab, located on campus in duPont Hall, has been temporarily transformed into a puppet workshop, where all the puppets are created from scratch.

Actors that play the roles of these puppets immediately went into an intensive weeklong puppet boot camp where they learned how to operate the puppets, which require dexterity and grace from the student manipulator. Following that they completed vocal rehearsals, and from there they started blocking the show.

Interestingly, puppets are operated one of three ways. Two puppeteers operate livearm puppets, like characters Trekkie Monster and Nicky. The main puppeteer that voices the character operates the mouth and left arm, while a second puppeteer operates the right arm.

One-rod puppets are puppets that have their right arm sewn to the body, while their left arm is animated through a con-

6

nected rod to emote. The last type of puppet is a two-rod puppet which has both arms connected to separate rods, like characters Lucy, the Bad Idea Bears, and Rod. The puppets themselves were not the only part of puppet production. Much like character costumes, the puppets needed to have costumes designed too, because as Marilyn Wojdak, who was in charge of creating costumes for the show, said, “You can’t buy patterns for puppets.”

Wojdak, led both student employees and theatre practicum students in bringing her patterns to life and designed the puppets’ costumes.

Aside from the 24 costumes needed for puppets, Wojdak also created some of the actors’ costumes, such as a wedding dress for one of the actors.

Visiting associate professor Niffer Pflager, who took on the position with zeal, designed the two-level set. She was also in charge of the set design for last year’s shows “Doubt” and “Lady Windermere’s Fan.” The whole set was built in-house with the direction of UMW’s professors Pflager, Julie Hodge, and scene shop foreman, Kenny Horning. Other than these professionals, students from the technical production class, theatre practicum students, or student employees created the intricate sets.

Play hands students insightful perspective

JOSEPH GARAY Staff Writer

“Avenue Q” blasted its way onto the University of Mary Washington stage with an array of brightly colored Sesame Street style characters.

Don’t let the puppets and the set fool you – this is not your child’s Sesame Street.

This is the “adults only” X-rated version.

Starting Nov. 5 the musical “Avenue Q” can be seen in DuPont Hall on Thursdays and Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m.

According to the University of Mary Washington website, “Avenue Q follows Princeton, a recent college graduate, as he discovers what real life when he wakes up as a college grad.”

With help from his friends and neighbors, “Princeton learns about the importance of having friends while navigating the sometimes disappointing waters of being a grown – up.”

As it was in the previous production “Noises Off,” it is evident that there was an extensive amount of work that went into the creation of this musical.

Though this production lacks the breakneck speed of “Noises Off,” it too presents its own challenges for the cast members:

acting through puppets.

For the most part it is as if the human actor is not even present as the dialogue and the actions coming from the puppets were extremely well practiced and entertaining.

It is, however, hard to focus on the puppet instead of the actor, who wore the same expression as the puppet. This shows the level of devotion they bring to the musical.

In particular, Josh Bartosch, who portrayed Princeton and Megan Khaziran, or Kate Monster, both did a great job bringing their respective characters to life.

The musical brought many laughs from the audience. “[“Avenue Q”] is witty and modern enough for audience members to really connect with what’s going on, and it’s hilarious,” said Oceana Peemoeller, a senior English major.

Though for some in the audience it may have been difficult to connect to the depiction of Christmas Eve through the mouth of a Japanese therapist. This same theme of social commentary was upheld in a couple other songs throughout the musical, particularly the song “Everyone is a Little Bit Racist.”

Despite all this, however, Peemoeller found “Avenue Q” to be “an extremely enjoyable musical that its audience can [in some way] relate to,” also adding that her favorite characters were the Bad Idea Bears, who were portrayed by Lydia Hundley and Neal Gallini-Burdick.

“I liked their use of the TV screens to [bring in] a childlike quality to the musical, despite it not being child appropriate,” said senior psychology major Berringer Flood.

From the disillusionment of what adult life is like to the anxiety brought on by unemployment and mounting bills, this play has many moments with which the audiences, particularly students, are able to connect to.

With great performances from all the cast members, this musical has audience members laughing, and searching for an answer to a question that many English majors can relate to: “What Do You Do With a B.A. in English?”

“Avenue Q” began its three-week run on Nov. 5 and goes through Nov. 22.

Tickets are $10 for students and can be purchased an hour before the show begins.

Katherine Bartles/The Blue & Gray Press

Thursday, November 12, 2015

LIFE

Star Wars franchise continues to dominate Hollywood and retail industry

HEATHER JACKLING Staff Writer

The holiday season is underway and many people may notice that stores are beginning to adorn themselves with the usual decorations of glittery trees, snowy wreaths and festive ornaments.

However, another celebration is also taking over retail stores as they prepare for the Dec. 18 release of the latest Star Wars film, “The Force Awakens.”

Stores such as Target, Toys “R” Us and even Wal-Mart have recently shelved insane amounts of Star Wars merchandise.

From clothes and toys, furniture and even household appliances, Star Wars is everywhere. Even Kohl’s has designed children clothing collections, ranging from a storm trooper dress to graphic tees for boys and girls.

For hardcore fans, this is the best time of the year. Their favorite characters are splashed across merchandise in busy malls all over the U.S., yet some may also see it as an annoying marketing ploy designed to manipulate fans.

From a marketing standpoint, although somewhat annoying, it is incredibly ingenious.

According to data journalists Nicholas Wells and Mark Fahey of CNBC, a news division of NBCUniversal found that,

”since the first movie came out in 1977, toy licensing alone has brought in about $12 billion in revenue, compared with only $4 billion in box office revenue from the first seven movies. Of course, hit movies are a crucial driver of toy sales, and license deals can make or break a toymaker.”

The movie alone, in this case, will not be the main source of profit for the Star Wars franchise. In fact, the real moneymaker comes from sales of franchise-themed merchandise, found in nearly every retail store around the country.

Although, articles have not ventured to state how much money the franchise will earn through the film or the multitude of merchandise, it is unlikely that franchise will be disappointed with its earnings.

Since the movie is being released around the holiday season, the franchise takes advantage of the holiday shopping mindset, even

though stores have been carrying Star Wars themed items since earlier this autumn.

This is all good news for Disney of course, who bought Star Wars in 2012.

If the stores full of official and trademarked Star Wars merchandise were not enough, however, local businesses are also trying their hands at making money off of the movie, and getting rather innovative in the process.

Online shops like Etsy and Amazon have a significant amount of users who are selling everything from crocheted Yodas to handmade Star Wars t h e m e d apparel and knickknacks.

Artists are able to ride the trend wave and exercise their creativity at the same time in anticipaAmy/Wikipedia tion of the latest film installation.

For Etsy sellers, this gives their stores a popularity boost thanks to fans. Fans, cre-

Terra S12/Wikipedia

ators and marketers will always be looking for the next marketing trend, which of course, with a franchise like Star Wars is always bound to produce yet another film every few years.

According to Starwars.com, in March of 2015, Bob Iger, Disney chairman and CEO, held a shareholder meeting where he announced the news regarding the first Star Wars stand-alone movie which is supposed to be called “Rogue One” and it will have an in-depth look at some of the characters and their back stories.

According to IMDB, the supposed release for this film is sometime in 2016. If you could not have guessed by now, if the hype for the movie in December is not enough, the anthology piece in 2016 will be highly anticipated by fans. For marketers, they are guaranteed to profit from these films as they create more and more innovative and gimmicky merchandise.

For years, this story of a galaxy far away has brought joy and excitement into many lives, both for the young and the old. Fans have dedicated weekend long conventions and have even created practicing religions modeled after themes in the series. In general, Star Wars has profited very well from the many films over the past several years, but with the addition of themed merchandise this series stands to dominate the holiday shopping season.

Terminally ill Star Wars fan granted last wish before death Daniel Fleetwood, 32, only wanted one “To all our wonderful supporters, friends, family and awesome strangers: Danthing before he died, to see “Star Wars: iels final dream was just granted!!! Today the wonderful Disney and Lucasfilms The Force Awakens,” the latest addition made his final dream come true, in the amazing typical Disney way, they really to the popular franchise. do make dreams come true! Daniel just finished watching an unedited version of Fleetwood was diagnosed with connective tissue cancer in Star Wars: The Force Awakens!!! We would like to thank the July of 2015, during which time doctors informed him he only awesomely talented J.J. Abrams for calling us yesterday to tell had two more months to live. us Daniel was getting his wish granted! We also would like to Fleetwood’s dying wish, however, became viral thanks to sothank Lynne, Ben and Anahuac for coming to our home and cial media and his wife, Ashley. On Oct. 29, Ashley shared his screening the movie for Daniel. Lastly I want to thank ALL wish on Twitter using the hashtag “#forcefordaniel.” the amazing people who helped make this happen, thank you Fleetwood has been a fan of Star Wars since he was a young beyond words!!! May the force be with you all #forcefordaniel !!!!” Ashley wrote of her experience. boy, and social media users were determined to help him fulfill his last wish.

Now that Fleetwood’s wish has been granted, however, AshEven actors from the original films such as Mark Hamill and ley has requested privacy from the media and fans.

Peter Mayhew, as well as newcomers John Boyega and Daisy She turned to social media again to thank everyone for their Ridley, retweeted the hashtag along with their words of supsupport but wrote on Facebook, “After I posted the news, our port. phones began ringing off the hook. We were and still are very In 2013, the director, J.J. Abrams, granted another dying fan, exhausted so we silenced our phones for the evening/night. We Daniel Craft, a similar wish. Craft was a devoted Star Trek fan are very grateful for all the support. Now I want and need to and craved a personal screening of “Star Trek: Into the Darkfocus 10000% of the little time I have left with Daniel.” ness,” before his death.

The film premiers Dec. 18, but Fleetwood’s condition was Abrams delivered, and just two days later Craft died. quickly deteriorating, which prompted his wife to try and fulfill Fleetwood’s case was similar. Once Fleetwood’s wish behis wish before his passing. came viral Abrams got a hold of his wife, Ashley. The next day Between her efforts and the viral nature of social media, Ashley Fleetwood/Facebook Fleetwood was able to fulfill his dying wish. the film was brought to the Fleetwood residence in Houston, Fleetwood and wife at their Texas home.

Texas, according to Ashley’s Facebook page.

DELLA HETHCOX Life Editor

7

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LIFE

VA Vibes: Flight of Salt to play show at Colonial Tavern

Flight of Salt

Local Richmond rock band, Flight of Salt, plans to perform at a local venue in Fredericksburg to promote their forthcoming album.

DELLA HETHCOX Life Editor

What happens when musicians take a break from the exhausting tour life?

They start another band. Or at least, that is what happened to Rob Bullington, the founding member of the Richmond band, Flight of Salt.

It was 2012 and Bullington was on a quest to find like-minded musicians who wanted to rock with him. He found three others: guitarist Ben Pruett, bassist Mike Clark and Brian Ahnmark, a multi-instrumentalist.

Three of the members are Virginia natives, the sole exception being Ahnmark who hails from Ohio. Interestingly, Clark previously fronted the Fredericksburg band, Good Ol’ Fashioned Rodeo, before moving south to Richmond.

Previously, Bullington was a member of the Hackensaw Boys, a central Virginia band, for more than a decade.

Each member of Flight of Salt, however, brings a unique musical history to their latest musical venture, creating an Americana sound that echoes their Richmond identity.

Bullington’s experiences with the Hackensaw Boys gave the band their name due to a tale with a very rock ‘n’ roll nature.

After a show the hungry and tired newly founded band members headed to their hotel restaurant, only to find out that it was more than they could afford.

“We couldn’t afford anything on the menu except a $25 item called ‘Flight of Salt,’” Bullington said.

As it turned out, it was really just five different varieties of exotic salt.

But the waiter took pity on them and supplied the hungry musicians with bread.

“It struck me as really funny that we had just played a big show and were staying at a really nice hotel, but the only thing we could afford to buy was salt. It

that’s not rock n’ roll, I don’t know what is,” Bullington explained.

According to their active Facebook page, they are just “four guys with simple names playing rock music on two guitars, a bass and some drums.” Although that sounds simple, their songs are anything but that.

Their musical tastes are “all over the map, we tend to evoke the sound of artists like Tom Petty, Bob Dylan and Neil Young with healthy doses of groups like The Clash and Nirvana to keep it real,” Bullington said.

For, Flight of Salt attunes to original songs infused with the layered sounds of American alt-country and classic rock ‘n’ roll.

In addition to vocals and playing the guitar, Bullington serves as the band’s main songwriter. Out of the eight songs on their 2014 EP, “Starter,” Bullington wrote six.

Clark and Ahnmark are also experienced songwriters, Clark wrote “Hollywood” on their latest EP. To round out their set list, the band also covers classics during their performances in the Virginia area.

Between their studio space and the brewery, the members are able to practice at all hours of the day, unlike at their former space.

It is only fitting that the band practices in a former warehouse along the James River, aptly situated across the street from a popular Richmond brewery.

“At our old practice shed the cops came a couple times. They were very nice but made it clear that we needed to turn down or find new digs. So, we found new digs,” Bullington said.

Although Richmond is known for its food, it is no surprise that these men prefer cheeseburgers. “[They] are the most rock ‘n’ roll snack there is. Except maybe fried chicken,” Burlington said.

Flight of Salt has toured throughout the Virginia area, as well as Washington

D.C., playing events like the annual RVA Hogtober Fest in Church Hill and smaller venues such as The Camel in Richmond.

As for the band’s favorite location to play a show?

Gypsy Sally’s in D.C. A venue that has all the details necessary for a good show for both the audience and the artists, Bullington said, which is a rare combination.

After the release of their EP, “Starter,” in 2014, the band quickly got to work on their next album.

“Starter” was recorded at the Minimum Wage Studio in Richmond’s Oregon Hill neighborhood by Lance Koehler over seven months.

Their next album is in the works, as long as time and money allows. Flight of Salt is working again with Minimum Wage Studio to produce another inspired album.

For the members of Flight of Salt, Minimum Wage Studio provides inspiration because it is located between the Hollywood Cemetery and a convenience store stocked with microbrews.

“The album is inspired by mortality and good beer,” Bullington joked.

On Nov. 14, along with fellow Richmond band Cagey Watt, Flight of Salt will play a small show at Colonial Tavern, which hosts live bands each weekend and remains a favorite spot for local music lovers in the Fredericksburg area.

The show starts at 9 p.m., and tickets cost $5.

Do not forget to bring money for food, rumor has it that the Tavern’s food is fantastic, just not included in the $5 cover charge.

Clark, the bassist, studied at the University of Mary Washington, so he knows the area well.

“Clark remembers a DeLoreon that was always parked on Washington Avenue. With all the recent hubbub over ‘Back to the Future,’ we’re going to check and see if it’s still there, or if it’s ‘disappeared,’” Bullington said.

Before their show, you might just catch the band taking a stroll down historic Washington Avenue, and if not, be sure to catch their show at the Tavern.

Stay updated with their activities through their Facebook page, Flight of Salt, or their website.

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NEWS

POLICE BEAT

Student Government Association Beat

BY EMILY HOLLINGSWORTH Assistant News Edtor

Attempted Abduction

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2015 The Blue & Gray Press is introducing its new weekly SGA beat!

The Student Government Association gives students a voice to the administration.

Check it out here!

•

On Friday, Nov. 6 at 5 p.m. an attempted abduction of a UMW student was reported. The location was off of College Ave. and Powhatan Street. The driver has been identified in a photo line-up. Attempts to locate the driver have been made.

•

On Tuesday, Nov. 10 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. the UMW Heating Plant was shut down for ‘critical emergency repairs.’ The university was advised to plan accordingly due to the scheduled campus-wide hot water outage. Two reminders were sent out.

Updates on University Center On Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 5 p.m. the UC was re-opened for dinner after a sprinkler went off on the fourth floor due to ventilation issues.

On Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 2 p.m. the UC officially opened the pool table for use located in the corner from Qdoba and Jamba Juice. Reservations can be made for equipment and scheduled games.

The information was compiled with assistance from UMW Police Manager James DeLoatch and Fredericksburg Police Department Public Information Officer Sarah Kirkpatrick.

The Blue & Gray Press will publish the names of students who are formally charged by the University of Mary Washington Campus Police or the Fredeicksburg Police Department to have committed acts of extreme violence against members of the UMW community or pose a large threat to that community, when names are released to the public. The Blue & Gray Press will publish names and write articles about criminal acts on a case-by-case basis according to the aforementioned parameters.

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The second motion requested that the Environmental Sustainability Committee work with the President’s Council on Sustainability to ensure that the report that will be issued by their subcommittee on Divestment include a recommendation on whether or not the university should pursue institutional divestment. The motion was passed unanimously.

•

The third motion requested that students with gluten allergies receive an indication on their meal plans that would allow them to purchase gluten-free options at the dining hall at a reduced price. The motion was passed 7:0:1.

•

The fourth motion proposed that a $15 green fee be an optional choice for students paying for tuition. The fee would go to sustainability groups and programs on campuses. The motion was passed unanimously.

Safety/Maintenance As of Monday, Nov. 2 UMW switched to an improved safety notifications system called “RAVE Safety Mobility.”

All students have been automatically added to the system.

The first motion requested that Blackstone provide flavored cream cheese. Only plain and vegetable flavors are available as of now, according to the motion. The motion was passed unanimously.

REPORTING BY EMILY HOLLINGSWORTH

Mountain View High School faces scrutiny over senior shirts ARIANA BARRETT Staff Writer

In recent years, social media has become a venue to begin discussion on important issues regarding language and race.

In the case of two high school students who live near UMW who used Instagram to capture the controversial message on the back of their shirts, this idea is no exception.

The two senior students took the photo on Friday, Oct. 23 at Mountain View High School, located just 20 minutes north of Fredericksburg in Stafford County during their homecoming spirit week.

Wearing shirts of their orange and maroon school colors, these seniors tagged the back of their shirts with the phrase “N16ga we made it”, replacing the “ig” in the derogatory N word with a ‘16’ to symbolize their graduating class of 2016.

The photo sparked debate on social media and got the attention of national and international media, including New York Daily News, NBC Washington and The Independent in the UK.The principal of the school, James Stemple, released a statement on behalf of the school apologizing for the incident and the students have been reportedly disciplined.

The news articles released since the controversy make the Instagram photo its focus, showing a picture of two Caucasian girls standing with their back to the camera, displaying the shirts and their message.

Hunter Watson, a former Mountain View High School student who now attends UMW feels strongly about the issue and the attention the photograph has received, and is disappointed in the

actions of his prior colleagues.

“The n word is obviously not acceptable and should not have been put on a shirt, but I think it was blown way out of proportion,” Watson, a freshman business administration and environmental science double major, said. Watson does not believe that these girls should get this much attention for their photograph.

Watson also claims that “there has been no prior racial discrimination at my high school before, so this is absurd.”

Having two Caucasian students advertising such a slogan at a school where African-American students comprise less than 10 percent is a large focus in the media’s investigation of the event.

Val Colon, a freshman political science and international relations double major who also attended Mountain View High School, believes that the shirts’ message is disrespectful to African-American students.

“My opinion on the incident at Mountain View is I think that they should not have done that, I think that it is definitely something that they should not have put on their shirt. It is rude, it is very disrespectful towards other people,” Colon said.

According to these former Mountain View students, it is disrespectful to use derogatory language at this day and age, especially in a public school system.

While some argue that the photograph and its message was blown out of proportion and others contend that the shirts send a derogatory message to its African-American students, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook continue to be platforms used to bring these issues to light and continue to create dialogue on race and the school system.

UMW Divest travels to Washington DC for demonstration •DIVEST | 1 the brunt of fossil fuel product,” Hasan said.

Fossil fuels are DivestUMW’s main concern, and it can damage people’s health even at a young age.

“Because of the plants near these [poor] communities,” Hasan said, “black children often get asthma before they are even teenagers. It impairs their lives and makes it harder for them to get better.”

As for immigrants, Hasan brought up the recent hurricane that affected parts of Mexico.

Because of the extreme weather, Hasan noted that many people came to the country to seek refuge.

Hasan stated that, by addressing environmental issues, there will be fewer natural disasters.

To him, this starts at taking care of the earth.

“We need to preserve the land,” Hasan said.

Both Kinzer and Hasan emphasized the importance of speaking out together about issues dealing with race, climate justice and immigration.

“This demonstration is a crucial step in the fights for racial, climate and immigrant justice because it represents a level of solidarity, an understanding that none of these movements can succeed if the others fail,” Kinzer said.

Hasan echoed Kinzer’s sentiment.

“Our fight for climate change is rooted in other people’s fights,” Hasan said.

According to Kinzer, “Collective liberation must occur within all facets of life, and the best way to achieve that is by working together.”

The need for this collaboration can be seen in the harmful effects of fossil fuels on communities of color and on the poor environments of many immigrants.

This event was especially important for the young people of this nation, according to Hasan.

They are the ones who are going to take the places of the older generation who will be retiring in the next several years.

“A lot of people think that maybe politicians are not listening to their votes, so they’ve found other ways to act,” Hasan said.

Hasan emphasized that it is important for anyone to get involved in these campaigns.

“We grew up in a world where we’re taught to go with the status quo,” Hasan said. “To take action as an individual is empowering.”

DivestUMW is one of 400 divestment campaigns on American campuses.

The group’s current goal is to bring energy back to the campus and to fight for climate justice for a better future for everyone.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

NEWS Advising tool reimplemented to focus on academic awareness

•REGISTRATION | 1

bly early, but it is rarely listed as closed. In every single section, there were two seats available after freshman registration began on Nov. 4, but those seats were reserved for other students.

This was a technical glitch that the department has since fixed.

Many also had trouble with holds during the registration process. Academic, advising and health holds were among the few errors that students struggled with.

“Most of the classes I wanted I couldn’t get into because I had a hold from the health center for never turning in my immunization form,” said Matt Sklaw a sophomore undeclared major.

“That took a while to get removed. I wanted to take either abnormal psychology or cognitive neuroscience.”

Maria Schleh, an English major with a concentration in creative writing, had difficulties with a hold on a beginning dance class and found the new registration system initially difficult to navigate.

Schleh also says that she “wanted to take digital storytelling and nonfiction writing. I would try to force add into the nonfiction class, but I’ve heard that there’s already a wait list and those classes tend to be kept small.”

Overall, the registration crisis among students may call for a more expansive class list per semester, particularly for classes that are necessary to students’ majors. Students who have had to take filler classes may argue that having more class sections for important courses would make their academic experience more fulfilling.

Dahlia Somers/The Blue and Gray Press

CORRECTIONS for THE Week PLEASE REPORT ANY MISTAKES SEEN IN THE BLUE AND GRAY PRESS TO Chris Markham, blueandgray.eic@gmail.com Mona Osmer, blueandgray.managing@gmail.com or Sushma Subramanian, ssubrama@umw.edu

In last week’s issue, Faculty Advisor Sushma Subramanian’s last name was incorrectly spelled as Subramarian in the “Corrections for the Week” section.

In last week’s issue, Philip Pierce was misidentified as a student in a photo for the story “UMW Dining adds residence hall competition to this year’s food drive.” Pierce is director of Athletic Development and Promotions. Pierce’s last name was also misspelled as “Pearce” in the story.

11

GIVE Campaign extends project deadline for students

EMILY HOLLINGSWORTH News Editor

What is the University of Mary Washington’s GIVE Campaign? The crowd-funding website, sponsored by the Office of Annual Giving, sends details of student projects to more than 40,000 alumni, parents and other students, who can give directly to the projects on the website.

In many ways, the website is similar to more popular crowd-funding website such as Kickstarter and GoFundMe, except they directly affect UMW students.

Two student groups, “The One Note Stand” and “CCI@UMW” are currently featured on the University of Mary Washington’s GIVE Campaign, handing these groups the opportunity to have their projects funded.

The GIVE Campaign, which stands for the “Gifting to Initiatives of Virtue and Education” and formerly called Mary Wash Focus Initiative, gives students and student groups undertaking projects that bring awareness to a charity or a not-for profit endeavor an opportunity to be featured on the campaign’s website, alumni.umw.edu/GIVEcampaign.

For students and groups who want to get their projects funded, the deadline for the GIVE Campaign has been extended to Sunday, Nov. 15. The original deadline was capped at Nov. 1.

Individual students or student organizations must fill out a form provided on the GIVE Campaign’s website giving the contact information of each student involved in the project, a proposal describing the project and its mission and then detailing how the funds from the campaign will be used in their projects.

According to Melanie Johnson, associate for the Office of Annual Giving and advisor for UMW Student Philanthropy, the name change was meant to reflect that philanthropy is happening among students, alumni and parents involved in the campaign. Johnson believes the campaign can teach students about the importance of philanthropy and fundraising, two practices that can make a huge difference in promoting and enacting good causes.

“My hope is that every student realizes that they can make a difference through their support, regardless of the amount,” Johnson said, “and that their combined contributions have the power to do some amazing things.”

“The One Note Stand’s” project involves raising the remaining $5,000 needed to create a research endowment in honor of Robert Ericson, a senior environmental science major who was involved with “One Note Stand” and passed away in April 2014 before his graduation. The endowment would provide $1,250 to a student studying environmental science and be named the “Robert Ericson Environmental Research Fund.”

The fund currently has $31,257.77 from 140 donations.

According to Ian Spangler, president of “The One Note Stand,” the group’s advisor, Paul Griggs, accounts receivable manager from the administration and finance office, was the one who told them about the UMW GIVE Campaign.

The campaign, in addition to the donations they received from UMW Foundation staff members, other UMW stu-

dent clubs and anonymous donors, has allowed the group to receive the funds they have so far.

According to Spangler, a research endowment needs a minimum of $25,000 to get started. The group has exceeded that goal, but the funds are currently accruing interest in the Mary Washington Foundation and should be ready for disbursement next year.

Spangler hopes that the endowment will allow future students to study what Ericson was passionate about, and to preserve his memory as someone who was genuine and loved his major.

“I think the outpouring of love and support in his memory is reflective of how strongly the community felt he deserved to be eternalized on this campus,” Spangler said, “so, I am very happy to look back on this and know that he won’t be forgotten.”

The project from “CCI@UMW” involves educating the UMW and Fredericksburg community in training service dogs. The puppies the members train will eventually become service dogs to people with disabilities.

“CCI@UMW” are affiliated with the national organization called “Canine Companions for Independence,” a 501 nonprofit organization based in the United States that trains and provides service dogs to people all over the country.

The group was also notified of the campaign through their advisor, Christina Eggenberger who also works for the Center for Honor, Leadership and Service.

The funds will be used to cover expenses for the puppies in training which include food, veterinary care and training classes, according to CCI@UMW president Beth Hardbower. According to Hardbower, each puppy costs approximately $3,000 to raise.

That is a hefty cost, but Hardbower hopes the GIVE Campaign will encourage other students to get involved in the group and make the group’s mission worth the cost.

“More dogs on campus means more opportunities to spread awareness to UMW and the surrounding community about how much of an asset service dogs can be to those with disabilities” Hardbower said, “and it also allows more people learn about how these dogs become service dogs.”

Once the projects are received, they will then be reviewed by the campaign’s committee comprised of recently graduated alumni and student leaders with the Student Philanthropy Council on Saturday, Nov. 21 and ultimately selected.

According to the GIVE Campaign’s website, projects are selected based on how professionally they are presented, their innovation, their social and community impact, their commitment and a strong promotions plan.

For more information, Lori Izykowski, assistant director of giving can be reached at lizykowski@umw.edu or (540) 654-1361.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

SPORTS

Editor: Mikey Barnes | blueandgray.sports@gmail.com

Soccer, field hockey lose CAC championships in heartbreaking fashion

Club Team Spotlight: Men’s Soccer MIKEY BARNES Sports Editor

When one walks down to the campus recreational field located behind the Alvey parking deck Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 3:30 and 5, you may stop to question why there are 50 plus guys running around the field.

You may even sit there and question why there is so much yelling and what UMW Athletics UMW Athletics they are yelling about. This group of men MIKEY BARNES Neither team finding the net creating a the Eagles in the championship game as and all their shouting make up the UniSports Editor scoreless tie at the halfway point. the one seed, facing off against the second versity of Mary Washington men’s club In the second half, the Eagles held seeded Salisbury Seagulls. soccer team.

The game began at 1 p.m., as they skies majority possession yet saw a number of The championship game for the two The men’s club soccer team is 4-5-1 on closed up and a rain storm began. With possible scoring chances slip away. After teams included some phenomenal defense the year this far, as they have faced some the poor weather taking place, the Battlethe second half and a number of failed shot on both sides, with minimal offensive serious competition from other universigrounds still managed to have their bleach- attempts both teams ended regulation tied production. ties in the state. ers filled with fans and their assorted 0-0, forcing overtime.

Freshman goalie Jessica Cavolt proved A 3-0 win against nearby Germanna colors of umbrellas.

In the overtime, the Eagles offense shut to be the anchor for the Eagles defense Community College is how the men began Heading into Saturday, Nov. 7, was an down completely, as though they held the as she made numerous saves on attempts their fall season. The guys improved to exciting time for UMW athletics; as two longest possession time, they were unable from Salisbury.

2-0 after a 6-3 defeat of Hampton Univerof their programs were representing the to attempt a shot. This lack of offense, The Eagles struck first on a goalie 26:24 sity. university at home in their competition for accompanied by outstanding defense from into the game by senior Christine Loehr Junior Eric Jennings had a notable the Capital Athletic Conference champiboth teams sent the game into a second to give UMW the 1-0 lead. Less than 10 performance in the victory with two goals onships. overtime. minutes later, at the 34:03 mark, Salisbury and three assists, which were all to junior The first of these programs to compete It was in the second overtime that one tied it up, sneaking one past Cavolt. The Carlos Mendoza, who boasted a hat-trick on the day was the UMW women’s soccer team emerged. With 1:38 remaining in the game went into halftime tied 1-1, as the in the victory. team, as they were facing off against York overtime period a blocked shot for York dominant defense continued.

Jennings, once a member of the varsity College. The matchup was against the five from 18 yards out was sent back through In the second half, the Eagles offense soccer spring team expressed his feelings and six seeds in the conference. Heading the net from a York player, giving them was a lot more dominant, as was their towards the club team atmosphere. “It is into the championship game, the Eagles the lead and the victory. It was then that defense. UMW had three shot attempts a more laid back environment, where we of Mary Washington had a difficult path the season for the Eagles ended and York compared to the Salisbury zero, but uncan play just to play because we love the as they opened up the tournament with a founded themselves with an automatic bid fortunately was still unable to score. With game.” narrow PK victory of the fourth seed Salis- the NCAA tournament. neither team able to score and the game This is exactly the reason for club bury University.

The UMW women’s soccer team finstill tied 1-1 at the end of regulation, the sports, the members of each team are not It was following that game, the Eagles ished the season 10-9-2, giving them their two teams began overtime. collegiate athletes, but play the game beproduced their biggest upset of the season ninth straight winning season and fourth The overtime proved different than the cause of their love for the sport. Jennings with a 1-0 victory coming against the first straight season with at least 10 victories. second half, as the Seagulls proved more also mentioned how playing a club sport seeded Christopher Newport University The second UMW team competing for dominant offensively and defensively as is a less of a “time commitment” offerCaptains. It was that victory that placed a CAC championship home was the field they had four shot attempts to the Eagles’ ing more opportunities for the athletes to the Eagles in the championship game, hockey team, led by CAC Player of the zero. With Cavolt’s phenomenal effort in focus on studies and the other ventures which pinned them against the winner of Year Jenna Steele and CAC Coach of the the goal, not one shot in the first overtime that may have. the second seeded St. Mary’s and the six Year Lindsey Elliott. made it past her. The same could not be Following the debacle of Hampton, the seeded York. York came away with the As the women’s soccer game was finishsaid for the second overtime. After 96:56 men’s team began to slip, as a number narrow victory, which being the lower ing up, the ladies of the UMW field hockof playing, the Seagull’s found a way, as of losses came their way. They tied 2-2 seed, made it a home game for Mary ey team could be found just a few hundred they put a shot past Cavolt to give them against Hampden-Sydney College, then Washington. yards away competing against Salisbury the victory, the upset and the automatic bid lost five of their next six. These defeats The first half of the Eagles was a very University. in the NCAA tournament. came from the hands of rival Christoback and forth matchup between the two The path for the UMW field hockey With the loss, UMW dropped to 14-5 on pher Newport University, Old Dominion teams, as both Mary Washington and York team was a lot easier than that of the the season and did not receive an at-large University, Richmond University and a squandered numerous scoring opportuniwomen’s soccer team. A first round bye, bid to the NCAA tournament, even though tournament loss at home to The University ties, most notably a header off the crossbar granted them an automatic semifinal game, they were ranked 11th in the nation. of Virginia and William & Mary. for UMW. The Eagles led the half with in which they competed against York The defeat to Richmond was especially eight shots compared to the five of York.

College. A 4-1 defeat over York, placed devastating for the team as they had led 3-1 at one point, only to fall 4-3. The sole victory in the losing skid came against Roanoke College. This past weekend, the guys turned things around with a 3-1 Sean Kinslow saving 92% of the shots fired at him. there have been a couple of head scratchvictory over Germanna at home.

Staff Writer Evgeny Kuznetsov, a rookie for the Caps ing losses where the team has struggled This past year, the guys traveled to in 2014, has had a tremendous start to the and lost to teams they should have beaten.

Memphis Tennessee to compete for As in every year, the Washington Capseason. He is second only to Ovechkin in “It is a process, especially when you have Nationals, in which they finished 1-1itals have started the 2015-2016 season points on the team with 15. If Kuznetsov new people, a new culture,” Trotz said in 1. While at nationals, the victory came with a few new faces under their hockey can keep up his hot start to the season, the a recent press conference. “The first 20 against the SUNY Cortland club team. masks, most notably Justin Williams and Capitals will be in good shape. This unex- games is a real learning process. At that The loss came at the hands of UCLA, T.J. Oshie, who bring veteran leadership pected jump in production can provide the point last year, we started to get it a little the large Division I program, with a tie and championship experience to the team. Capitals with a true star on their second bit and went forward. It does take some coming against Division I Washington-St. Despite a 1-0 loss Tuesday night at the line if he can continue at this rate. time. So be patient.”

Louis. hands of the Detroit Red Wings, the Caps The Capitals also made some key Junior English major and avid hockey This year, due to funding, an appearance sit with a record of 10-4 on the season. offseason additions including acquiring fan Tyler Pospisil said that “the Capitals at nationals is up in the area for the guys, This is good enough for third place curAmerican Olympic star T.J. Oshie and are a contender every year. With their which will be located in Phoenix, Arizona. rently in the Eastern Conference.

Stanley Cup winning forward Justin early success and strong lineup, I would Jennings expressed his disappointment in The Capitals have been led by long-time Williams. Oshie has had the stronger start be surprised if they did not make the the possibility of the team not appearing at superstar and team captain Alexander between these two new Caps. He has playoffs. They will be a good team come nationals, but also showed optimism. “Our Ovechkin, who currently leads the team had four goals and four assists so far this playoff time.” goals are to get better as a group, so that with eight goals. year. Williams has scored two goals and The Capitals look to continue their solid hopefully skillfully and financially we are Other long-time Capitals Nicklas Back- recorded nine assists thus far on the young season next on Thursday Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. able to qualify for next year.” strom and John Carlson have also had season, while his real impact will come They will take on the Flyers on the road in Jennings, Mendoza and the rest of the strong starts to the season. Starting goalie once the playoffs start. His experience in Philadelphia. The game will be broadcastmen’s club soccer team will be back in Braden Holtby has had a respectable start the Stanley Cup playoffs will prove to be ed on TV on Comcast Sportsnet, students action on Sunday, Nov. 15 at home against to this young season as well. Holtby has valuable coming up this spring. can watch on Mary Washington channel ODU and Germana in a tournament. The won eight of the 12 games he has started, Although the Capitals have started hot, 59.

University of Mary Washington team will be playing at 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.

New additions to team help Capitals off to hot start

Thursday, November 12, 2015

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