The Brandeis Hoot 12/7/2018

Volume 15 Issue 24

“To acquire wisdom, one must observe” www.brandeishoot.com

December 7, 2018

Brandeis University’s Community Newspaper · Waltham, Mass.

Special elections to fill Vice President, Treasurer seats

By Celia Young and Sabrina Chow editors

A special election will be held to fill the vice president and treasurer seats on the Student Union after the resignation of current Vice President, Benedikt Reynolds ’19, and Treasurer, Jerry Miller ’18.

Nine students declared that they would run for the position of vice president, and one student declared that he would run for treasurer.

Guillermo Caballero ’20, Alex Chang ’22, Vidit Dhawan ’19, Aaron Finkel ’20, Richard Kisack, Jr. ’19, Steven Luo ’21, Lucy Pugh-Sellers ’20, Nakul Srinivas ’21 and Linfei Yang ’20 announced their candidacy for the vice presidency while Adrian Ashley ’20 is running unopposed for the treasurer seat.

Candidates were required to declare their candidacy by Monday, Dec. 3 at 11:59 p.m., according to an email sent out to the student body by the Chief of Elections Qingtian Mei ’21.

Since declaring their candidacies, Pugh-Sellers has dropped out of the race and Luo is “temporarily suspending” his campaign, he announced in a Facebook post.

Reynolds and President of the Student Union Hannah Brown ’19 are not endorsing candidates for either open position.

Candidates gathered to meet constitutes at a “Meet the Candidates” event over cookies made by Brown Wednesday night.

The special election will begin at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 9 and runs through the 10th, for 24 hours. The Brandeis Hoot interSee VICE PRESIDENT, page 4

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

VICE PRESIDENTIAL AND TREASURER CANDIDATES Candidates

for Vice President and Treasurer of the Student Union gather for a Meet the Candidates event. (Not pictured: Alex Chang ’22)

Librarians rally for fair contract

By Sabrina Chow editor

Brandeis librarians called for a fair contract in a rally in front of the administrative building, Bernstein-Marcus, on Tuesday. The librarians were joined by members of Brandeis Labor Coalition (BLC) and representatives from the Service Employees International Union Local 888 (SEIU 888).

Surella Seelig, M.A. ’05, the Outreach and Special Projects Archivist in University Archives and Special Collections, started the

OUTSIDE BERNSTEIN-MARCUS

rally saying, “We are here from the Brandeis library union, and we are here because we believe in what we do, and we believe that it is only right for the university to live up to their social justice ideals and to honor what we do as we do everyday.”

The librarians have been in negotiations with the university for over eight months, a process that BLC member Phoebe Dolan ’20 said should only have taken one month.

“If Brandeis is going to say that it is a social justice institution and it is part of making the world a better place, it needs to be supporting all members of its

community, and it’s not,” Dolan told The Brandeis Hoot in an interview. She said she joined and participated in the rally because she realized the power that the student body has.

“The only reason the university is here is because of the students,” explained Dolan. “We are the customers, we collectively have the most power.”

While at the rally, interspersed between speeches, the crowd chanted different phrases at Bernstein-Marcus. The chants included, “A fair contract is a right, that

Supporters gather to advocate for a fair contract for librarians.

Inside This Issue:

News: Liebowitz speaks on second report Features: LARPing for credit Arts: BK show brings in Boston comedy groups Sports: BUSDT break records Editorial: Brandeis year in review

MELA

See CONTRACT, page 4

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

Page 3 Page 11 MELA wows with cultural showcase Page 18 Page 16 ARTS: PAGE 18 Page 14

With new investment policies, Board adopts ‘wait and see attitude’

By Ryan Spencer editor

After adopting new policies on investments in fossil fuels late last month, the Board of Trustees will take a “wait and see attitude” to assess how these policies have affected Brandeis’ endowment at the end of three years, according to President Ron Liebowitz.

The policy changes come after students and faculty have pressed the board for years to remove investments of endowment money from the fossil fuel industry, arguing Brandeis should take a lead in the fight against climate change.

These new policies will suspend further investments in fossil fuel private limited partnerships, which focus on “deriving profit from the exploration and production of fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas,” according to an email from Liebowitz announcing the policy changes.

Existing investments in these kinds of partnerships—which amount to approximately six percent of endowment investments

or about $63 million—will be allowed to run the course of their typical life cycles. These partnerships have an average of a 10-year life cycle, according to Chief Investment Officer Nicholas Warren, who described the “overall portfolio” as “mature, with many funds reaching the later stages of their life cycle.”

“Therefore, we expect it to slowly wind down over the next five to seven years,” he said in the statement shared with The Hoot in an email from Julie Jette, director of Media Relations.

A penalty of at least 20 percent would incur to get out of fossil fuel private limited funds early since they must be sold at a discount, according to an email from Warren.

Commingled funds, a type of fund in which stocks in fossil fuels are lumped with stocks in other industries, will not be affected by new policies. According to Warren, 2.6 percent of endowment funds are invested in fossil fuel holdings entangled in these commingled funds.

Cafe Undergrounds Student initiatives should be supported OPS: PAGE 6

See DIVEST, page 3

NEWS

2 The Brandeis Hoot

Student team launches new Branda app

By Sarah Terrazano editor

This week marked the launch of the new app Branda, designed and managed by a team of students to make campus life easier.

The app has eight features: Brandeis news, hours, calendar, shuttle tracker, laundry tracker, work order requests, a Brandeis map and a tech support contact page.

The app opens onto the news page, with a thread of BrandeisNOW articles.

Under the hours tab, students can check the operating hours of dining locations across campus.

The hours of the Gosman gym and the library are also listed.

The calendar portion groups events by category: food, career, art, athletic and academic. Students can click on a category and see all the events that match. Students can also click on any day in the calendar and scroll through all the events listed for that day.

Through the shuttle tracker, students can track the campus, Waltham and Boston BranVans or check their operating hours. A map shows a little bus icon that tracks the vans. There is a tab to reserve a BranVan but, as of press time, it says that this feature is coming soon.

Students can now submit virtual work orders to Facilities Services for things that are broken

around campus. Students can take a picture through Branda and then describe the problem.

If a student’s location services are on, the app will also detect which building you’re in. The work order will be sent to Facilities.

Google Maps is equipped in Branda, with a search function for Brandeis buildings. If a student is trying to find an academic building or residence hall, they can start typing in the name, and the app will autofill the rest and then drop a pin on the map.

With the new laundry feature, students can track washers and dryers in their residence hall.

Once you select a building, the app shows which washers and dryers are open, and if a machine is in use, which cycle it is on.

The final “Contact Us” tab allows users to give feedback to four services: Branda tech support, the mailroom, Academic Services and the library.

At the bottom of the menu is a Campus Emergency button, which will call the campus emergency number, 781-736-3333.

The app is one of the 2018-19 Community Enhancement and Emergency Fund (CEEF) projects.

CEEF, managed by the Student Union, puts $100,000 towards student projects and $150,000 for on-campus emergency funding.

According to their website, the requirements for projects to receive a CEEF grant are “to have campus wide benefit” and have “long term

effect on the campus and/or the student body.”

Benjamin Segal ’20 came up with the idea for Branda last year.

“After finding many challenges at Brandeis and hearing many complaints, we decided to take action and be proactive,” said Segal in an email to The Brandeis Hoot. “We thought about how we can impact the school the most and realized that a solution such as a phone app will solve the issues.”

Segal said that he and the student team sent out a survey over the summer to find the most prevalent and pressing issues for students on campus. They identified three things that would be the most useful for students: a calendar with all school and club events, laundry tracker and BranVan shuttle tracker.

“This is information that we rely on on a day-to-day basis and are getting from disparate, unreliable sources,” Segal said. “We think it [Branda] will be successful precisely because everyone at the school needs this information and finally has it at their fingertips.”

Looking ahead, the student Branda team plans to continue implementing their own ideas and release future improvements based on student feedback, Segal said. Segal also noted the team’s appreciation for the help from CEEF and professors Jordan Pollack (COSI) and Antonella DiLillo (COSI).

December 7, 2018

IN THE SENATE: Dec 2, 2018 • Student Union Vice President, Benedikt Reynolds ’19, reminded the Senate that the last meeting will be on Dec. 9, where the Senate will also be electing a new executive senator.

He also reminded that elections for the position of vice president and treasurer of the Student Union will occur on Dec. 10.

Results will be announced on Dec. 11 during the State of the Union address.

• The Brandeis Quiz Bowl Team presented to the Senate regarding a change to their constitution. The Team wanted to dissolve the position of the events coordinator, since the team does not have events. The remaining tasks will be passed on to the recruitment and media chair. The Senate passed the motion to change the team’s constitution.

• The Dining Committee informed the Senate that they are having an important meeting the following week, where they will be deciding on the menu for the next semester. The meeting is open to the public. The dining committee meets on Wednesdays from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. in Sherman and with students on Mondays and Tuesdays from 1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the union office.

• The Health and Safety Committee reported that the Condom Initiative is going to come into effect at the beginning of next calendar year. They also reported concerns of students finding dead birds outside of Skyline. The Department of Community Living (DCL) and facilities will be contacted in regard to the birds.

• The Services and Outreach Committee reminded the Senate that the Midnight Buffet is coming up on Dec. 11 and that there will be a shuttle going from airport to Brandeis on Jan. 14.

• The Community Emergency and Enhancement Fund (CEEF) reported that they started advertising Branda, the new app which combines all the existing Brandeis apps into one.

• North Quad Senator David Hui ’22 reported that he has been getting complaints about heaters making noise.

- Sasha Skarboviychuk

CEEF proposals selected to receive funding

By Abigail Gardener editor

The CEEF Board has announced the four projects they have selected to receive funding for the 2018-2019 academic year.

The Community Enhancement and Emergency Fund (CEEF) is managed by the Student Union.

It consists of $250,000 total, $150,000 of which is put towards campus emergencies, while the other $100,000 is allocated towards student projects that aim to improve Brandeis. According to the CEEF website, these projects “must have a campus-wide benefit and long-term impact on our campus and our community.”

Interested students must submit their proposals in the fall, in order to be considered and selected for implementation in the spring.

The proposals selected include the Branda app, installation of a new television in the SCC, implementation of treadmills in the library and revitalization of Berlin Chapel.

According to the CEEF decisions email sent out to the Brandeis community, the Branda app was designed and will be managed by a team of students and will give students access to multiple on-campus resources in one place. For example, on the app’s home page, students can see the most recent Brandeis news, but they also have access to

the BranVan and Boston shuttle tracker, can submit a work order and find out the hours of specific dining locations and the library.

The proposal for an installation of a new television in the SCC was made by Aaron Finkel ’20. Its main purpose will be to market on-campus events, and “will be a fantastic way to broadcast your event to the entire student body and will be a great resource for all students to learn about and participate in events on campus,” the CEEF email said.

The library treadmill project is similar to the bike-desks located in Farber, which was also a CEEF funded proposal. The treadmills will also be in Farber and only have a walk function, in order to

maintain quietness, according to the email.

Finally, Alex Friedman ’19 proposed a revitalization of the Berlin Chapel, “a space that is enjoyed by many groups on campus,” the email said. The CEEF funding will allow for the renovation of two rooms in the Chapel: the Rabbi Study and the Cohen Study. After refurbishment, these rooms will contain board games, whiteboards and more comfortable seating.

Student Union Chief of Staff Emma Russell ’19, one of the members of the 2018-2019 CEEF Board, thinks all of the projects will be really helpful to students.

“I think overall they each in some way make campus more acces-

sible and friendly to students, whether it be utilizing space that hadn’t yet been made the most of or by uniting resources that were once disjoined,” she said. “[I’m] definitely excited to see them all unfold over the next semester.”

The 2018-2019 CEEF Board consists of five members of the Student Union: Class of 2022 Senator David Hui ’22, Brandeis Representatives to CEEF Mike Bender ’22 and Tal Richtman ’19, Student Union Director of Programming Adrian Ashley ’20 and Student Union Chief of Staff Emma Russell ‘19. The CEEF 2019-2020 Board will be elected in Spring 2019, according to the CEEF website.

Brandeis professor wins early career award

By Celia Young editor

Brandeis Professor Aparna Baskaran (PHYS) received the 2019 Early Career Award for Soft Matter Research from the American Physical Society (APS), a nonprofit organization that works to advance knowledge on physics, according to the APS website.

The award recognizes “outstanding and sustained contributions by a young researcher to the field of Soft Matter during his or her initial period of full-time em-

ployment.”

The award, which is sponsored by the Belgian chemical company Solvay, includes a $5,000 prize and the cost of travel to the APS March meeting, according to the APS award website.

Baskaran received the award “for pathbreaking advances in our understanding of the physics of soft materials out of equilibrium, especially active and granular matter,” according to the APS award website. She is a member of the APS and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, according to her CV. The APS award webpage de-

scribes Baskaran as “a beloved teacher and passionate exponent of her science.”

Baskaran’s research at Brandeis includes the understanding of out-of-equilibrium properties of soft materials. She also studies the physics of biological systems, according to her Brandeis University webpage.

Baskaran uses computer simulators to model and understand individual systems, where she can then create theories that apply to groups of nonequilibrium systems, according to the APS award website.

Baskaran is an associate pro-

fessor of physics at the Martin A. Fisher School of Physics. She got her Ph.D. from the University of Florida in 2006 and her Masters of Science in Physics at the Raman School of Physics Pondicherry University. She has received 13 different fellowships and awards, according to her CV. Baskaran has published over 30 scientific articles from topics ranging from soft matter to self-propelled particles. She has also spoken at a variety of seminars in and outside of the United States on her research and topics related to the study of physics.

News India Times first reported

that APS was awarding the prize to Baskaran.

Her Brandeis web page describes her as “a theorist interested in understanding the dynamics of soft materials far from equilibrium.

She is presently focused on understanding active materials such as self-propelled colloids and in vitro cytoskeletal filament systems, field and shear driven colloids and granular materials.”

The award is open to any researchers contributing to soft matter research. Baskaran was selected as the winner from a committee of seven.

December 7, 2018

NEWS 3

The Brandeis Hoot

Liebowitz speaks on changes to address Brandeis climate, reporting process

By Celia Young editor

President Ron Liebowitz released the second independent investigation report on Nov. 29, describing the climate of Brandeis as built on personal relationships that can confuse the chain of command, unclear about complaint processes and host to a “widespread anxiety” about coming forward with complaints.

The report itself did not focus on recommending reforms, but listed reforms already in progress to clarify the complaint process at Brandeis. In an interview with The Brandeis Hoot, Liebowitz described how Brandeis would address the complaint process and the culture of Brandeis, including releasing a campus climate survey in Fall 2019 to the student body.

Liebowitz spoke about the problems listed in the report, saying, “I don’t think it’s unique to Brandeis, but I also think the line in that report that was important for us to think about is ‘but we’re Brandeis,’ and we aspire to be something different only because of who we

are, how we were founded and what we stand for.”

In response to the difficulty some students, faculty and staff have in coming forward with complaints either out of fear of retaliation or a confusion of who to speak to, Liebowitz emphasized that he wanted to make sure members of the community had multiple opportunities to report complaints.

He spoke about the new Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO), which will report to the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

The OEO will become the central office for complaint and reporting processes, focusing on discrimination or harassment based on “race, color, ancestry, religious creed, gender identity and expression, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, age, genetic information, disability, military or veteran status, or any other category protected by law,” according to an email to the student body.

He also emphasized that, in their November meeting, the Board of Trustees discussed this report for over five hours, and had

a separate discussion on improving the Title IX complaint process for three hours.

Liebowitz also described the new reporting website, www. brandeis.edu/report, which lists different resources on how to report for students, faculty and staff both within Brandeis and outside of campus.

To address “a stunning lack of diversity” the investigators found in their first report in the athletics department, which they said reflected a similar lack of diversity in the larger community, Liebowitz plans to change the search process for new hires. In using search firms, he emphasized that they would be told to seek a diverse and experienced candidate pool.

Liebowitz also emphasized that his senior team as well as the President’s Management Council (PMC), which the report specifically cited as an example of “the homogeneity of the senior administrative ranks,” would be undergoing diversity, equity and inclusion training.

The PMC and the senior team will participate in six three-hour group and six three-hour individ-

ual training sessions in the spring, Liebowitz announced in an email to the student body.

“The goal for us is once we go through it is to then determine the best way cascade that down to each of the organizations,” he said.

The report also described a lack of diversity in the Board of Trustees. Liebowitz emphasized that a subcommittee of the board’s Nominating and Governance Committee is seeking to increase diversity on the Board of Trustees.

The board discussed the report with the independent investigators.

Liebowitz said that the conversation was helpful to describe the climate, as many of the trustees are not in an academic environment. “The rest of the trustees I think got a lot out of the conversation about the campus environment, about the dynamics among students [and] the change in the student body over time, which has become more diverse,” he said.

“I think the outside investigators did an excellent job of contextualizing their findings at Brandeis,” he said. He continued,

“A lot of the questions surrounded the historic founding of Brandeis and what it means for the institution to have been founded as it was with a certain set of values, [and] as it goes forward how does it, you know, recast those values, and live those values and be true to those values.”

The report also identified a feeling amongst faculty members at Brandeis that Brandeis’ Jewish roots would be diluted by an increasingly diverse population. Liebowitz emphasized that a diverse student body creates a “far better quality of education.” He further said, “I don’t think that’s necessarily of watering down what Brandeis stands for, percentage of the population doesn’t necessarily reflect who exactly you are.”

The report cited faculty concerns on metrics, and the perception that they are too like “the very ‘quotas’ Brandeis was founded to oppose.” Liebowitz emphasized that metrics can take a variety of forms, saying, “Numbers don’t do it.” He spoke about how the metrics the Board will receive will depend on the goals of the university with regards to diversity.

Board announces new divestment policies INVESTMENT, from page 1

Liebowitz stated in his email announcing the policy changes that divesting from commingled funds “would be imprudent and place the financial well-being of our endowment in jeopardy, and in particular funding that provides a significant amount of support to student financial aid and endowed professorships.”

Changes to investment policies will be reviewed by the Board of Trustees in three years, according to Liebowitz.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen in three years. I think the board’s going to look at all the intended and unintended consequences of making this decision,” Liebowitz said.

Liebowitz stated that the Board of Trustees understands climate change and its link to fossil fuels. “Where the range of opinions was,” he said, “was about how to best address the issues.”

Some members on the board expressed concerns about how investments made in lieu of investing in fossil fuel private limited partnerships would perform, according to Liebowitz. There were also concerns that new policies

might limit “the flexibility and the amount of tools at the disposal of our investment office,” he said.

Following the board’s vote to implement new policies, student and faculty advocates for divestment from fossil fuels have continued to call for full divestment of university funds from fossil fuels, including from commingled funds. In interviews with The Hoot, many advocates said the new policies are a good first step but do not do enough to address the threat posed by climate change.

Liebowitz questioned whether full divestment would have an impact on climate change.

“Let’s just say we divested tomorrow of one hundred percent, would we then have an impact on climate change?” Liebowitz said in an interview, “Those stocks that we sell are most likely to be bought up in a second and have literally no impact.”

Liebowitz stated that focusing on Brandeis’ own carbon footprint was more important than fully divesting from fossil fuels, saying “it’s most important to address immediately our own carbon footprint, that’s like the first priority.”

Since 2015, Brandeis has re-

duced its carbon footprint by 12.6 percent and remains committed to a 15 percent reduction by 2020, according to Liebowitz.

These reductions have included many efforts such as measures to increase energy efficiency in campus buildings and reduce natural gas usage in the university’s central heating plant, according to a BrandeisNow article on the subject.

In his email announcing the new investment policies, Liebowitz also stated that Brandeis will make no direct investments in companies “whose principal business is the mining of coal for use in energy generation.”

In a document posted to Facebook directly responding to Liebowitz’s email, Brandeis Climate Justice (BCJ), a student group which has led calls for divestment for nearly six years, stated that this particular policy is neither new nor impactful.

Liebowitz confirmed that it is true that Brandeis has not directly invested in coal for several years but stated that the policy “does promise not to do it.”

He pointed to the Trump administration’s favorable stance on the coal industry as reason why promising not to invest in coal

was significant.

Prior to the vote by the board to institute new investment policies, students from BCJ gathered the signatures of 215 students and 39 campus organizations on an open letter addressed to Liebowitz and the Board of Trustees. The letter urged the board to vote “yes” on divestment from fossil fuels. BCJ students have since said that the new policies by the board do not amount to a “yes” on divestment.

The vote on issues of divestment has been anticipated since last spring, when it was originally promised to occur within 60 days.

After delays, which pushed the vote to November, the board adopted the new investment policies with a vote during their November meeting with Liebowitz.

“I think that the compromise the board reached represents a really significant step toward full divestment which is, you know, our ultimate goal,” Claudia Davis ’19, a member of BCJ told The Hoot after the board’s decision. “I would say that the board failed to meet that sense of urgency and that sense of care for the issue,” she added.

Earlier this week, a banner that read “Baby steps are nice… We demand divestment” was hung

from the third floor of the Shapiro Campus Center. The banner accredited itself to the Brandeis Mountain Club.

More than 40 educational institutions in the U.S. have divested from fossil fuels in some manner, according to a database on gofossilfree.org, which contains divestment actions happening worldwide. The site labels organizations which have taken action with a “divestment type” depending on the commitments they have pledged.

Twenty-eight U.S. educational institutions have pledged “full” divestment, which means committing “to divest (direct ownership, shares, commingled mutual funds containing shares, corporate bonds or any assets classes) from any fossil fuel company (coal, oil, natural gas),” according to the site.

Other divestment types include “partial” and those classified by divestment from specific types of fossil fuels such as “coal only.”

Brandeis is not in the database which gofossilfree.org claims is based on public information. It is unclear which category Brandeis would fit, if any, with the new investment policies.

White supremacist posters found on campus

By Celia Young editor

Posters with the logo or name of a white supremacist group were found on campus Wednesday night around 10 p.m. The posters were reported to Director of Public Safety Edward Callahan, who related the incident to the Brandeis community in an email Thursday afternoon.

An image of one of the posters was obtained by The Brandeis Hoot. It read, “Keep America

American.” It continued, “Report any and all illegal aliens. They are criminals.” It contained the image of a red and blue eagle holding arrows in both of its talons, under a semi-circle of stars.

The posters violated posting policies and was removed, according to Callahan’s email, which did not list the white supremacist organization or the content of the posters. The email stated that the Office of Public safety would be on higher alert.

“Given the nature of the group associated with the posters, my

officers will be on heightened alert,” it read. “Anyone with concerns should call Public Safety at 781-736-3333.”

The email also stated that “such postering by outside groups looking to provoke is not uncommon on college campuses.”

White supremacists’ use of campus propaganda is increasing, according to a New York Times report in June. The article cited a similar poster from the Patriot Front, a Texas-based white supremacist, neo-Nazi, neo-fascist group. The poster read, “Keep

America American,” “Report any and all illegal aliens” and “They are not immigrants they are criminals.”

The Times article cited the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish non-government organization combating anti-semitism in the United States, which recorded 478 instances of white supremacist propaganda at universities and colleges in the U.S. The image obtained by The Hoot was similar to posters from other white supremacist organizations, including Vanguard Ameri-

ca, a white supremacist, neo-Nazi, neo-fascist organization, which was once a part of the Patriot Front.

Brandeis has encountered white supremacy in the past. Swastikas were drawn on two whiteboards outside students’ rooms in September 2017, according to an earlier Hoot article. In 2015, a swastika was drawn in condensation on a window of the Brandeis Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house. In November 2016, a driver shouted anti-semitic slurs at Brandeis students on South Street.

4 NEWS

The Brandeis Hoot

December 7, 2018

Eight candidates run for Vice President ELECTIONS, from page 1

viewed those running about their experience, platform and feelings about the Union and Senate as a whole. The vice presidential candidates are listed alphabetically below.

the Senate where people can respectfully disagree. He also spoke about his project to install pianos in freshman dormitory lounges, which revealed a controversy over how Union funds are allocated and growing tensions in the Senate that preceded the resignation of Reynolds.

He said that the piano project “wasn’t necessarily a direct causation” of Reynolds resignation, though it may have played into his thought process. Chang concluded by saying, “If I can accomplish that [the pianos] as a freshman, as a senator, then just imagine what I can accomplish as vice president.”

make that stop.” He went on to say he wanted to build trust within the Union and between the Union and the student body.

Finkel also described his drafts of amendments that would increase supervision of the Allocations Board of the Union. Finkel informally met with some of the Allocations Board members and spoke on how he wants to work together on the draft amendments with A-Board. He emphasized that “We’re all students…

We’re all doing this for the benefit of Brandeis and I think we just need to take a step back and realize that.”

Guillermo Caballero

Caballero cited his experience creating the Student Union in his high school in Paraguay and serving as its president. Caballero believes that not being in the Student Union previously at Brandeis will give a “fresh perspective” to the Student Union, he said.

Caballero’s main campaign is focused on not only unifying members of the Student Union in one place but also working to include more student resources including the Prevention, Advocacy & Resource Center (PARC).

“PARC is such an important part of campus and I don’t think that many people are aware of what it does, that it even exists.

But it’s a very important institution and part of campus and resource that we have,” said Caballero.

If he gets elected, Caballero hopes to engage in more conversation with PARC and publicize what they do to both the student government and the student body and act as a “liaison.”

He will also work to increase diversity within the Senate and the rest of the Student Union.

“I would be more willing and more proactively looking to hear voices because I don’t see a lot of visibility on campus. I think there’s room for improvement,” he said.

Pugh-Sellers, who dropped out of the race after reading Caballero’s platform, endorsed Caballero, saying, “He and I have a lot of similar goals, and I felt great hope that someone other than me could do what needed to be done.”

Alex Chang

Chang, who has served as Senator to the class of 2022 since he was elected this year, emphasized that the union needs to “do more.” If elected, he would focus on increasing transparency in the Union and reducing costs to students including washing, drying and printing, he said in an interview with The Brandeis Hoot.

He also spoke about wanting to educate and involve the student body with the Union. He also spoke about creating a culture in

Vidit Dhawan

Vidit Dhawan is currently the class senator for the class of 2019 and the senator representative to the Allocations Board. Dhawan’s campaign is focused on increasing the transparency of the different branches of the Union. Through his knowledge of all the branches, he believes that he would be able to accomplish this.

Dhawan believes that the way to increase transparency is to not just include the perspective of one branch of the Union.

Aaron Finkel

Aaron Finkel, who has served on the Senate for three years as a quad senator, senator at large and now class senator for the class of 2020, has experience with some of the vice presidential duties, such as running senate meetings, which he did last year after he was elected by the Senate as executive senator. He spoke about his platform which he also posted on Facebook.

If elected, Finkel would continue open forums where students can voice concerns to the Union and other administrators, reduce fees and the tradition of “nickel and diming” students and would work to increase communication with clubs and student organizations. He hopes to help the Senate roll out a new student life online platform he has been involved in creating, that is expected to be introduced next year, that would centralize the club process including communication between clubs and club renewal forms.

Finkel described his frustration with the Union this year, saying that the “behavior of some members has been unacceptable.”

He continued, “We’ve been sidetracked by useless drama and nonsense, and I want that to stop, and I’ll do everything I can to

of efficiency and effectiveness.

Luo was planning to run so that the Student Union would “accurately represent our views [of the student body],” he said. Luo has previously not been a part of the Student Union at Brandeis.

His main goal was to increase the diversity of the campus, Luo told The Hoot in an interview. “I would host programs and events such that people would be exposed to new cultures, new languages, new people. People that are not within their typical friend group,” he said.

He also wanted to make the Union more “present” in the daily lives of students, Luo said. He would do this through going out and hosting dinners that provided free food to the students, stating that having them at night would be more accommodating to students because classes often do not fall during that time.

Richard Kisack, Jr.

Kisack served on the senate last year as Village Quad senator and has served on Senate committees including Services and Outreach Committee, the Bylaws Committee and the Campus Working Group (COW-G) committee. This year he has served as a senator at large and as chair of COW-G. If elected, Kisack would focus on streamlining communication to the community and focus on mentoring new senators who might not know how to start initiatives and projects. He emphasized that he is running on behalf of the student body, and as the vice president, which is a non-voting member of the senate, he would focus on effectively mentoring and leading the Union to encourage new ideas from members.

Kisack spoke about the climate of the Senate, saying he wanted to encourage healthy, productive criticism. “I personally think it’s a good idea to always show respect and when you have a concern with someone to talk to them directly,” he said. “I also would like to make sure that we’re having feedback from the student body themselves.” Kisack emphasized that he wanted to personally reach out to constituents and senators about issues that come up in the Union.

Nakul Srinivas

Srinivas focused his campaign on his knowledge of the Union and his ability to lead. He is currently a member of the Social Justice and Diversity Committee within the Student Union. As a reporter for The Justice, he recently composed a piece that required over four hours of interviews with current senators, attendance at multiple Senate meetings and reading the Constitution and Bylaws thoroughly to gain information.

If elected, he would make sure that more members of the Student Union, outside of committee chairs, are included in conversations within the Union. “I would focus on making sure the student body’s ideas and the committee’s ideas are represented as well as possible in the Senate and the Executive Board,” explained Srinivas. “I want every student to feel like they are a part of the Student Union even if they are not actually engaging in it.”

This would be done through constant emails informing the student body on what is happening within the Union. He will also hold events that bring together all parts of the Union and making sure that committee members feel as though they are running the event alongside the Union members, “so that they feel they are playing as important a role as people who have been elected to a position,” he said.

Steven Luo

Luo suspended his campaign in a Facebook post, saying, “I am very sad to announce that I will be temporarily suspending my campaign for Vice President of the Student Union. This would mean that I would be unable to answer questions in person at the Meet the Candidates Night. There will be another announcement for when I decide to resume the campaign on this forum.”

He was running on a platform

Linfei Yang

Yang is currently the international student senator and served

in that position on the Union last year. He has served on the Club Support Committee, Social Justice Committee, the Bylaws Committee and the Services and Outreach Committee. Yang, however, said that, “I don’t really think that experience in this case necessarily matters.”

Yang emphasized that he wanted to bring the Union back to the Brandeis value of social justice, clarify how spaces are used on campus, continue with reforms to the Bylaws and Constitution and address mental health issues on campus.

He spoke about the Senate, which has been marked by a recent controversy over how the Union funds are allocated, saying, “There is nothing wrong with the climate of the senate.” He continued, “Saying that somehow people respectfully disagreeing with each other means there is something wrong with the Senate is just not true.”

When asked if he considered the piano project he worked on with Chang a contributing factor to Reynolds’ resignation, Yang responded, “It’s unfortunate that that connection seems to be the impression that many people have.” He continued, “Our piano project is the victim of, you know, the recent string of controversies regarding transparency and budgetary issues rather than the driving force behind it.”

PHOTOS BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

Adrian Ashley

Ashley has served as assistant treasurer for a semester and is also the director of programming on the Student Union this year and is running unopposed for the treasurer position.

Ashley highlighted his experience on both sides of the treasury. Being the treasurer for Mock Trial and Brandeis Football Club, he understands the struggles of learning the mechanics and getting the necessary assistance to solve issues.

If he gets elected, Ashley will largely focus on making the process of treasurer easier for people and making it more accessible for treasurers of clubs.

“I would meet with Stephen Costa, the budget analyst, and the other treasurers to figure out a way to put the club members first and not the financial aspect of it, so they can worry about how their club is growing as a community, rather than how their club is going to be prevented from growing from financial difficulty,” Ashley told The Hoot.

He will also work to make more accessible training processes and provide students with resources like a handbook or a website that helps to lead them to the right answer. “I think that voting for me is voting for a process that is easier,” explained Ashley.

“It is voting for someone who knows the frustrations of it and who can relate to the students, specifically club leaders on how the process works.”

December 7, 2018

NEWS 5

The Brandeis Hoot

Panel celebrates ‘International Day of Persons with Disabilities’

By Sabrina Chow editor

Students and faculty gathered at the Heller School for Social Policy to celebrate the “International Day of Persons with Disabilities,” on Monday, Dec. 3 where a panel of advocates for disability discussed their personal experiences.

The presentation, titled “Beyond Inclusion: Disability, Empowerment & Intersectionality at Heller,” not only looked at the methods in which Heller is being more inclusive, but also in the context of the backgrounds of each of the panelists. The day “aims to promote the rights and well being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and development,” according to Scott Lapinski, the moderator of

the event.

Lapinski, the accessibility specialist at Brandeis, explained how the panel talked about “disability in social justice, disability in culture, disability in intersectionality and also personal experiences on campus and how those experiences play out on an individual level.”

The three panelists at the event each came from significantly different backgrounds. The first panelist, Baye Eyasu MA ’20, appreciated the recognition by both the government and the university for celebrating this “disability day.” Eyasu was born deaf and uses sign language to communicate. An American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter was present at the event to interpret.

“This disability day is very special, very unique. And the reason why is that the government as

well as the school is recognizing this [holiday],” he signed, as said by his ASL interpreter. He also highlighted his own disability and the struggles with it. “As a deaf person, I’m limited in my communication with hearing individuals to just using gestures. That cannot be called communication,” Eyasu signed.

Nikita Trafimovich MA ’20, another panelist, spoke about the European aspect of being disabled and Daniella Fernandes MA ’19, the last panelist, spoke about being an ally to disabled individuals. “I speak within the context of an ally. What it’s like to not just work professionally, but what it means to be a friend, a loved one of someone with a disability,” Fernandes said.

The panelists answered questions relating to disability justice

in the context of social justice, the intersectionality of disability with human rights and accessibility on campus.

Trafimovich spoke to the disability justice aspect that should be included in social justice, but often isn’t. “We should try to see disability as a social conflict,” said Trafimovich. “For me, a disability is patient zero for oppression...We should remember that everyone is more or less involved in this conflict.” He continued to speak about the realization that disability is always equated with words such as “marginalization” and “exclusion.”

Trafimovich also spoke to the intersectionality with human rights.

“Disabilities is marginalized one way or another and I think it’s another lesson of coexistence.

How to speak about everything really without creating minorities inside of the group,” said Trafimovich.

The final topic of discussion was accessibility at Brandeis, and more specifically at Heller. Fernandes recalled a story about her first interaction with Eyasu, and the importance of having more ASL on campus.

“Baye and I started likewise texting and emailing each other,” explained Fernandes. “He was very sweet; he didn’t have to be, he could have hated me.” After interacting with Eyasu, Fernandes reached out to Monika Mitra, the director of the Lurie Institute for Disability Policy, to get ASL on campus so individuals would be able to communicate with the deaf population in a manner that they are more comfortable with.

Brandeis University Press book wins award

By Sasha Skarboviychuk staff

Noam Zadoff ’s “Gershom Scholem: From Berlin to Jerusalem and Back,” published by Brandeis University Press (BUP), won the 2018 Concordia University Azrieli Institute Award for the Best Book in Israel Studies, according to a article from BrandeisNOW. Zadoff is an Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and History at Indiana University Bloomington.

The book is a part of the BUP’s

Tauber Institute Series, a series that publishes books that take an innovative approach to the study of modern European Jewish history, thought, culture and society, according to BrandeisNOW. The book describes the life of Scholem, including his immigration to Palestine, “where he became a central figure in the German Jewish immigrant community that dominated the nation’s intellectual landscape in Mandatory Palestine,” according to the book’s inside cover summary.

It continues, “Zadoff explores how the life and work of Scholem

reflect ambivalence toward Zionism and his German origins.”

The book is the fourth published by Brandeis University Press in the past eight years to have won the Best Book in Israel Studies Award.

Other winners are Boaz Neumann’s “Land and Desire,” Anita Shapira’s “Israel: A History” and Hillel Cohen’s “Year Zero of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1929.” All winners were published in the Schusterman Series for Israel Studies.

The Schusterman Series is a series that covers multiple academic disciplines, including anthropolo-

gy, sociology, political science and international relations, the arts, history and literature. The goal of the series is to further understand Israel within the context of the modern Middle East and the modern Jewish experience.

In 2015, Sven Erik Rose’s “Jewish Philosophical Politics in Germany, 1789–1848,” which was published by the BUP, was awarded the Jordan Schnitzer Book Award for Philosophy and Jewish Thought.

The awards are given by the Association for Jewish Studies and are meant to promote and recognize works of outstanding schol-

arship in the field of Jewish Studies, as well as to honor scholars who excel in the field. The book was also published for the Schusterman Series in Israel Studies as well as the Brandeis Series in gender, culture, religion and law.

Orit Rozin’s “A Home for All Jews: Citizenship, Rights and National Identity in the New Israeli State” is a finalist for the 2018 Jordan Schnitzer Book Awards, in the category of Modern Jewish History and Culture: Europe and Israel.

Rozin is an Israeli scholar and a professor of Jewish History at the University of Tel Aviv.

Brandeis professor and student publish research

By Celia Young editor

Brandeis Associate Professor Angela Gutchess (PSYCH) published research in the online journal Brain and Cognition along with two graduate co-authors, demonstrating that older adults were more likely than younger adults to believe a lie they had told 45 minutes earlier, according to an article from BrandeisNOW. The study found that older adults had less accurate memories for items that they lied about compared to younger adults, ac-

cording to the study’s abstract.

The study’s electroencephalography (EEG) data also showed that lying engaged the brain process responsible for working memory, according to BrandeisNOW. The abstract of the study described the main findings, saying, “These findings demonstrate that lying is another source of misinformation and influences memory differently across the lifespan.”

Laura Paige (Ph.D.’18), the paper’s first author said that, for older adults, “once they’ve committed to a lie, it’s going to alter whether they remember doing something,” to BrandeisNOW. The findings suggested that tell-

ing a lie confused older people’s memory, causing them to have a harder time recalling what actually happened, according to BrandeisNOW. Paige also described the finding that lying engaged the same brain process responsible for memory to BrandeisNOW, saying, “Lying alters memory.”

She continued, “It creates a new memory for something that didn’t happen.”

The study of 42 young adults (between ages 18 and 24) and older adults (between ages 60 and 92) took a questionnaire that asked the participants whether they had done certain actions the day be-

fore, including having a conversation with someone they hadn’t met before or pressing snooze on their alarm clock, among other things, according to the study.

The participants were instructed to tell the truth or to lie on a randomly selected half of the 122 total questions.

After 45 minutes they completed the same questionnaire again. The researchers found that the older adults had less accurate memories for the questions they lied about than the younger adults, according to the study.

The study adds to existing research on the malleability of memory and on false memories,

or memories of events that never happened or happened differently from how they actually occurred.

It investigates a less researched side of this topic, focusing on deliberately inconsistent information that is immediately present, rather than false information presented after an event.

The study was authored by Paige, Eric Fields (a postdoctoral fellow) and Gutchess.

The study was sent to the online journal in April and, after being revised, was published online on Oct. 22.

The study is associated with Brandeis University and Boston College.

Supporters rally for a fair librarians contract LIBRARIANS, from page 1

is why we have to fight.”

The next speaker, Aimee Slater, a research librarian and the stewardess to SEIU 888, spoke to the importance of giving all members of the community a voice. “There are people in the library you will never see who are doing amazing work,” said Slater during her speech.

“Their work is largely unsung and they are not being paid what they should be, they are not valued in the way that they should be and it is important that we as a group lift each other up and say that this work is valuable,” she

continued. “That it is valuable to our communities, ourselves, the university.”

She also went on to state that the librarians have been a union at the university for over 40 years, but this is the first time in a long time that the university had not met the demands of the librarians in their contract.

Joanna Fuchs ’11, another librarian, spoke about being a member of the university and the power of the people. “Today is about positivity and promoting a positive change. This can only be accomplished in numbers, together we are much stronger than standing alone,” explained Fuchs.

“This university was founded on

the principles of social justice, diversity and inclusion and equity.

They’re not practicing what they preach.”

Fuchs also said she had the opportunity to met with Jules Bernstein, one of Brandeis’ proudest alumni, a respected lawyer and a donor to the university, who gave her some great advice. “Don’t be scared,” he said. “Do not be intimidated. Fight for what you deserve in this life,” said Fuchs, quoting Bernstein.

Drew Flanagan, an adjunct professor in the University Writing Program and History, recalled his experiences as a library user, both as a student and faculty member.

He was also present as a represen-

tative from the part-time faculty union and sits on the board of the higher education chapter of SEIU 509. He explained how SEIU 509 delivers letters of support from various stewards to both President Ron Liebowitz and Provost Lisa Lynch.

The final speaker was Alina Sipp-Alpers ’21, one of the main organizers of the rally. Sipp-Alpers spoke about the support to the librarians’ cause, listing 70 testimonials from students, four different union letters of support and 20 different librarian testimonials as evidence for broad support of the librarians’ call for a fair contract.

Sipp-Alpers went on to explain

how having a union contract is a basic right because it helps the librarians support not only themselves but their families. “To President Liebowitz and Provost Lynch, I want to say that this rally, these testimonials, none of this should be the reason that they give the librarians a fair union contract because the librarians should have a fair union contract because that is their basic human right.”

Following the completion of the rally, a delegation went into the office of Provost Lynch to deliver all the letters and testimonials.

The next negotiation session with the university and the union took place on Thursday, Dec. 6.

OPINIONS

6 The Brandeis Hoot

December 7, 2018

Brandeis should be more supportive of student initiatives

By Sabrina Chow and Ben LoCascio editor and special to the hoot

In President Ron Liebowitz’s speech earlier in the semester, “A Framework for Our Future,” he highlighted the importance of supporting different student and faculty initiatives. This type of bottom-up improvement is what makes Brandeis so special. While discussing the steps the university is taking towards supporting this student enterprise, Liebowitz stated, “If students wish to establish a startup on campus, how do they avoid what they have called ‘Brandeis’ bureaucratic black box?’”

It is clear in theory that Liebowitz wants to help ease the process of sanctioning and assisting “student initiatives,” but how clear is it in practice?

What good does the promise do if it isn’t executed to assist in current student initiatives? Students make up the heart of the school, and without students, the university would cease to exist. And since so much of the university is dedicated to student life, it seems absurd that the university would not assist more student initiatives.

As a university that is committed to social justice and helping student initiatives, the administration should be doing more to hold onto their promises and assist students in making their dreams a reality. But I, Sabrina, can’t justify this because I personally haven’t taken any initiative to pursue my dreams at the university. Thus I met up with Ben LoCascio ’20 to hear his perspective about his own coffee cafe, Cafe Undergrounds, and, in turn, justify my reasoning.

Sabrina: So Ben, can you tell me a little bit about Cafe Undergrounds?

STUDENT BARISTA

Ben: Cafe Undergrounds is a pop-up coffee cart that operates in Upper Usdan. At this cafe, you can expect third wave speciality coffee (with latte art) and heavenly nutella paninis. Third-wave speciality coffee is all about the experience with the coffee. According to an article by Perfect Daily Grind, “The third wave is all about making the consumer feel special. Part of that is customer service, but another part is sharing the story behind the cup. This story is one created by producers, importers, roasters and baristas.

It explains why a coffee is distinctive, why a consumer can taste certain notes and why high-quality coffee takes so much work.”

The coffee cart is surrounded by poetry books and a speaker playing incredible music, which creates an artsy experience for all the coffee drinkers and panini consumers. It brings that exciting coffee shop feel to the campus.

Sabrina: Because Ben’s business is not under Sodexo, the general food provider of the university, he was initially asked to stop operating by the university because if a student got sick while consuming his food, the university could theoretically be liable.

But take Ben’s business out of the picture, and what about every other food fundraiser and bake sale that occurs on campus, in Upper Usdan, where he was often camped out? Wouldn’t they also be technically liable and therefore not allowed to sell things in Upper Usdan? Why single out a student initiative that is ongoing?

Ben is no different from various student organizations and clubs that are always taking over the tables in Upper Usdan, trying to coax people into buying their products to fundraise money and support their causes. So, Ben, what is Cafe Undergrounds’

Ben LoCascio ‘20 makes a latte in Upper Usdan.

cause? What does it stand for?

Ben: The mission of Cafe Undergrounds is to spread the power of prayer in a format which is non-threatening. How the cafe accomplishes this is through the $1 discount. You get a $1 discount on your latte or panini if you submit a prayer request to the cafe’s prayer box. This way Cafe Undergrounds can spread prayer around, without tying the concept of prayer to an exclusive space. You do not have to be ‘holy,’ perfect, or in a religious setting to pray. You don’t even have to be a specific religion (or any religion).

There is then a prayer team (comprised of anyone who would like to) that prays over Brandeis and all the requests. Cafe Undergrounds then will share via social media when and how the requests get answered. Essentially Cafe Undergrounds focuses on four things: quality lattes, prayer, inclusivity and, of course, following your coffee dreams!

Sabrina: Tell us more about your belief in prayer. Why does Cafe Undergrounds so heavily support the mission of prayer?

Ben: I am glad you asked!

Prayer is what makes me who I am. Prayer is my lifeline. It connects me with God, who I love.

In prayer, God loves me and gives me the love and passion with which I live my life. Prayer connects me with how God sees me and, therefore, prayer shows me the best version of who I am.

I also am such a big proponent of prayer requests because of the ways I have seen prayers answered.

My good friend from high school was healed from cancer (with verified doctor reports) after a group of people prayed for her. A lady at my church had her thyroid removed for medical reason, but after prayers and to the doctor’s

PHOTO BY CANDACE NG/THE HOOT

LOGO OF CAFE UNDERGROUNDS

shock and amazement, she had a perfectly new and healthy thyroid. Jesus gave her a new thyroid!

I have prayed for many people and seen their physical pain leave.

It is impossible for nothing to happen when we pray. Prayer works.

It works even better than coffee!

Sabrina: Wow! That sounds pretty inspirational. So I know that you’ve met with a lot of different administrators about finding the best pathway for you to keep Cafe Undergrounds afloat. How have those been going for you? I saw that you met with President Liebowitz and he loved your coffee!

Ben: The biggest problem I have had is that I receive practically no follow-through from the university. Initially, when Brandeis asked that I stop operating, they also stressed their desire to help the Cafe Undergrounds initiative to become sanctioned

by Brandeis. They asked I stop the cafe at the time, but they also wanted to see it continue as a Brandeis-approved venture.

At first this was extremely exciting. With a ‘Brandeis-approved’ status, I would be able to market to a larger audience and perhaps even receive assistance from the university. The move would be mutually beneficial granting me a stamp of ‘officiality’ and would be a great selling point for the university. Having a ‘Brandeis Cafe Undergrounds’ would allow them to show their commitment to student enterprise and would even be something exciting to show off to incoming students.

However, Brandeis has vetoed practically all attempts I have brought to the table for becoming sanctioned. I offered that Cafe Undergrounds become a fundraiser, that I form a club, that I pursue obtaining insurance, that all of the proceeds go to a fundraiser. However, all the administrators I met with shot down these ideas. What is perhaps most frustrating is how they will not respond to emails unless I re-send them. I took action to bring my ideas to life, but the university did not live up to their expectations.

Equally as irritating is that after in-person meetings, the administrators always respond with the same, “I’ll get back to you” phrase, which has hardly happened.

Sabrina: All in all, it is seems clear that Brandeis does not value their promise to help stu-

PHOTO FROM FACEBOOK.COM

dent initiative. In fact, their actions show that they are opposed to it. Why do you feel they are targeting Cafe Undergrounds with so much push back?

Ben: I don’t know. It is clear Brandeis is in support of organizations that explore spirituality.

The administration gives support to Jewish prayer groups and gatherings on campus. This is great and needs to be applauded.

However, I wish that Brandeis would be more supportive of other religious groups on campus.

Sabrina: So we know the administrator aspect of the entire situation with Cafe Undergrounds, how has the student body reacted to it? Personally, I love the coffee that you make and always have prayers to put in the prayer box.

It is always great to have a group on campus that prays for others.

It is extremely heartwarming, and I am extremely thankful.

Ben: Thank you, Sabrina! Your support is so appreciated. I am extremely fortunate that Cafe Undergrounds has so much support from my fellow classmates.

When the news about shutting down Cafe Undergrounds initially came out, I called to my friends and fans of Cafe Undergrounds to support me through this time to sign a petition to demonstrate the support of the student body with Cafe Undergrounds. Within less than 24 hours of notifying students of the petition, over 100 students came from around campus to sign this document that said “they supported Cafe Undergrounds and wanted to see it grow.” This really shows both the student support of Cafe Undergrounds and the power of the student body. If there’s something that the students are passionate about, they act on it and will undeniably support the cause until actions are resolved.

Sabrina: The theme of social justice is something that the university pushes so heavily on the student population. To fight for what you believe in and keep fighting until some change has been enacted.

Student initiatives are at the heart of the university, created and executed by people that make up the university. And they deserve the backing and support of both the university and the student body to help their initiatives take off.

December 7, 2018

The Brandeis Hoot

OPINIONS 7

Saudi Arabia: the lesser of two evils

By Joseph Silber staff

Churchill and Roosevelt are revered. Stalin is loathed. Yet it was the latter’s army that liberated Auschwitz, Chelmno and Majdanek.

Stalin remains one of history’s most brutal dictators, but for the United States, the decision to support him in the fight against the Nazis was a necessary one. Roosevelt’s Lend-Lease policy, which provided military assistance to the Soviet Union, helped bring an end to the horrors of World War II. Fast-forward to 1979, when the Iranian Revolution ended the reign of Shah Reza Pahlavi, replacing him with a brutal Islamist dictatorship. The Shah was no saint—he was a corrupt authoritarian who tortured and murdered political dissidents. But the United States supported him for decades, knowing that his downfall would only bring about something far more hostile to American interests.

And that’s exactly what happened.

Today, the Iranian regime is the largest state sponsor of terrorism, providing assistance to groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis in Yemen. They continue to conduct ballistic missile tests, promising to use them in their quest to obliterate the United States’ closest ally in the region, Israel. And finally, they have ignored the wishes of the Iranian people to invest in economic development and opportunity, sparking a wave of anti-regime protests in the streets of Tehran earlier this year.

In the effort to combat Iranian aggression in the Middle East, the United States has found a viable partner in Saudi Arabia. Yes, this is the same Saudi Arabia that brutally oppresses women and political dissidents. But, as was the case with Stalin, the Shah, Batista in Cuba, Mubarak in Egypt and so many others, American foreign policy is built on the principle of

PHOTO FROM DAILYSABAH.COM

supporting the lesser of two evils.

Unfortunately, many in Congress and the mainstream media have decided to abandon that principle. In the wake of the brutal murder of Washington Post journalist and frequent Saudi-critic Jamal Khashoggi on Oct. 2, which the CIA concluded was orchestrated by Saudi Crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman, there has been a revived effort to cut off all U.S. military assistance to Saudi Arabia. This past week, the U.S. Senate took the dramatic step of passing a resolution calling for an end to U.S. support of the Saudis in Yemen.

The argument against aiding Saudi Arabia is that it legitimates the regime’s brutal treatment of dissidents like Khashoggi. But in cutting off the Saudis, the United States would be sending a sig-

nal to Iran that their support of terrorist groups in neighboring countries will go unchecked.

Ultimately, the Trump administration decided to continue its current level of support for the Saudis in spite of the Khashoggi killing. It took the necessary step of sanctioning the 17 Saudis involved in the murder, but to many critics of the President, the administration has fallen short in denouncing the killing and holding the Crown Prince accountable. To those critics I ask: what’s your solution?

Do you ignore the wishes of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Adbel Fatah Al-Sisi, who, according to The Washington Post, personally lobbied President Trump to maintain his current level of support for Saudi Arabia?

Do you ignore the ramifications of enabling a genocidal dictatorship in Tehran by withdrawing support for the Saudi-led operation against the Houthis in Yemen?

Ultimately, U.S. foreign policy is not a zero-sum game. One can abhor human rights violations and oppressive dictatorships while at the same time maintaining steadfast support for Saudi Arabia in their efforts combat Iranian aggression.

Yes, the Trump administration should have been more forceful in condemning the Crown Prince for the Khashoggi killing. But those who demand unequivocal support for human rights among all U.S. allies have a naïve view of the world. The fact is that only a handful of countries, among the likes of Canada, the United

Kingdom, France, Germany and Australia, share America’s level of commitment to freedom and democracy. American allies situated in the Middle East, whether it be Egypt, Jordan or Saudi Arabia, do not, yet they have skin in the game in terms of fighting terrorist groups like ISIS and standing up to Iranian proxies.

Now is not the time for the United States to abandon its commitment to its allies. Perhaps a long-term reassessment of our relationship with Saudi Arabia is warranted in light of the Khashoggi killing, but the type of blatant end to U.S. involvement in the region that many on the left are calling for would do nothing but embolden the power-hungry mullahs in Iran As the ancient saying goes, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

How to be an artist in today’s political climate

By Sarah Terrazano editor

It seems that every time I look at the news, there is another tragedy, political scandal, natural disaster––the list goes on. In today’s political climate, it is hard to remain positive and feel that I can have faith in the government.

And while we live in a much more accepting society than the previous generation, it is no secret that we still have a long way to go in terms of eradicating oppressions like racism, misogyny, homophobia and xenophobia.

For me and many others, once we get past the near-paralyzing state of the world, it is hard to know how to move forward––and this is especially true for artists.

In addition to just grappling with these issues, artists have to somehow keep creating work either with an awareness, or in spite, of this environment.

Do artists have an obligation to make politically charged work?

Art that makes a statement, responds to injustice, calls for change? If it is politically and socially engaged––how can the artist make something that matters and remain sane while doing it?

Or can art just be art, for art’s sake?

There is no easy answer; art will never have one right way to be. I don’t think artists are required to respond to a political or social atmosphere, but this is oftentimes unavoidable: We naturally respond to our environment. But at such a politically charged time, when so many groups of people are marginalized and disenfranchised, it is impossible––and potentially a disservice––to not think about these themes and where they fit into your work.

There is protest art, which obviously has a clear message, and which has extensive subject matter in the Trump presidency. In our current political climate, with so many identities under attack, how can visual art combat white supremacy? Patriarchy? Trans-

phobia? But with this in mind, how does art not just devolve into a form of emotional labor, where the artist has to explain and validate themselves in their work?

Some artists see their work as an escape—they want to leave the problems of the world outside the studio. But for other artists, their identities don’t have this privilege of choice; for a politicized identity, the personal is political. And it gets tiring to validate yourself time and time again. This is one of the greatest obstacles I see in moving art forward: how to balance creative process with social responsibility but still make quality work.

I’ve been talking about art in general, in all its myriad forms— from visual and written forms, to music and dance. I’m a writer and poet, so my relationship to art is literary. I think that writers in particular face the dilemma of responding to political moments and societal injustices, that the scars of a community or generation are written on their own

backs. And I do think that writers have the unique opportunity to welcome language when others around them may be too stunned, fearful or disheartened to speak.

The writer may be grappling with the political climate but can also pinpoint emotions and convey them skillfully, whether they write in protest or not.

For instance, in literature, authors have the potential to uplift voices that are often otherwise silenced. Especially in children’s and young adult literature, books with diverse characters and plots let kids see themselves in art, giving them role models and representation in a society that may treat them as the “other.”

Art can change attitudes and perceptions, which can change day-to-day life and maybe one day influence a policy. Change begins on a micro level, and I would argue that there are few ways more effective than connecting with someone else––making them understand a new perspective, get rid of a bias, unlearn a stereotype.

Artists have power that other constituents and respondents do not––we are spurred to create. Oftentimes, we don’t have a choice whether or not to create something––it is who we are. And we are, at the core of many of our projects, focused on feeling. Art moves people for reasons hard to explain, but whether for the artist or the viewer (or reader, listener), it is therapeutic in a way that other responses are not.

Often, it seems there are more questions than answers. But I think this questioning is important to the artmaking process.

When artists consider some of the questions I’ve posed, about how to create, and create well, we are opening the possibilities of our work and beginning to discover our place. We are figuring out how to bring our art forward.

In a world that often seems full of hate, art offers solace. Community. Empathy. Strength. And if the walls are crumbling, art should not topple too––it should thrive.

8 OPINIONS

The Brandeis Hoot

December 7, 2018

We need more AAPI education

By Candace Ng editor

This semester, I am taking a class taught by Dr. Leanne Day, AAPI 140B: Introduction to Asian American and Pacific Islander Studies.

On most days, I have found myself letting out squeaks a couple times a day while doing readings for class. Asian American history, as I have learned, is not always pretty.

“What are you reading?” my friends ask every time they see me reading. I am a psychology major with minors in economics and German Studies, so it is fairly easy to distinguish my economics and neuroscience textbooks from my paperback memoirs for AAPI class.

“Just reading for my AAPI class,” I respond casually. “Someone just got shot in the book I am reading.”

There are an alarming number of deaths, interspersed between pages after pages of injustices in the material I read for this class.

I am an international student from Hong Kong. This is my sixth year going to school in America, and this class is my first exposure to Asian American history.

For 15 weeks, I learned about the history of Asian Americans— the various ways they migrated to the U.S., the racism they faced and the ways they responded.

From the early years of working on labor plantations in Hawaii to immigration restrictions, Asian Americans have always been considered “foreign” and “other.”

Otherness is an interesting phenomenon to study because Asian Americans are a diverse, growing and constantly evolving population. According to the U.S. Census conducted in 2010, Asian Americans make up 5.8 percent of the American population. In certain states and cities, Asian Americans proportionally make up a much larger part of the local population. For example, over 50 percent of Hawaii’s population identifies as Asian American; most of the laborers who worked on Hawaiian historical sugar plantations were Asian migrants.

For our final paper, we were instructed to interview someone we knew well and interpret their lives based on what we have learned in class lectures and readings. While talking to my interviewee off the record, they told me that as someone who is not a U.S. citizen, they do not know a lot about Asian American histo-

HIDDEN HISTORIES: ASIAN AMERICA AND THE PACIFIC ISLANDS

been confronted with.

ry, though they knew enough to know that many Asian Americans found their “American Dream” in working hard and staying silent.

We began to talk about the anti-blackness associated with the model minority myth, and our conversation shifted shortly after when they brought up the point that Asians and Asian Americans had it a little easier because, unlike their African American counterparts, Asian Americans were not lynched. At the time of the interview, I agreed. I thought that was the case. One of my recently-assigned readings says otherwise; in the mid-1990s, Asians suffered the highest per capita rate of hate crimes in major metropolitans such as Boston.

It is fitting that my assignment for that weekend, besides reading about Hmong refugees in Thailand and the U.S., was to watch a 50-minute long documentary called “Vincent Who?” Prior to this assignment, I had no clue who Vincent Chin was.

Vincent Chin was a Chinese-American man who was murdered in 1982. While drinking at a bar in Detroit, M.I., Chin was dragged outside and beaten to death with a baseball bat by two white auto workers who were disgruntled about be-

ing laid off due to the successes of the Japanese auto industry.

The two lashed out on Chin because they mistakenly thought that he was a Japanese man.

Chin fell into a coma and passed away after the baseball bat broke his skull. The two white men were fined $3,000 and given three years of probation; the $3,000 is often referred to as a “license to kill” Chinese. What is even worse is that the men were ultimately let go without charges. Asian American communities across the country united to publicize the case and seek justice and equality.

The murder of Vincent Chin is just one of the many things I wish I knew before taking this class. I grew up believing that it was easy being Asian in the United States and that the “model minority” mindset—to work hard, to stay quiet and passive—would lead to success.

In reality, the “model minority” ideology was used to pit various ethnic groups against each other, and different groups’ values were determined by their proximity to whiteness. Everything I have learned in this past semester has shown me that all of that is false.

Generations of Asian American activists have fought to survive, to stay and naturalize, to acculturate.

BAATF posted a timeline that illustrates the many difficulties that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have

Yet Asians and Asian Americans continue to face the same problems today, only more implicit.

Racism comes up in questions like “No, where are you really from?” and comments such as “Wow, your English is really good.”

There is no denying that race is an incredibly intricate, delicate topic. Race has created numerous divisions throughout history, and the same gaps remain today; Vincent Chin’s case reveals deeply rooted, intrinsic racism and perpetual fear of foreigners that contradicts America’s myth of the melting pot.

As this semester comes to a close, I encourage everyone to take an Asian American history class, or to join clubs like the Brandeis Asian American Task Force (BAATF) and Brandeis Asian American Student Association (BAASA) to learn more about various groups’ histories and cultures.

Even though I am not a U.S. citizen myself, I have gained a lot of insight into how various groups came to and made America their home, and much of this knowledge can be applied into understanding my place in the U.S. I promise you, regardless of where you are coming from, it relates to you more than you think.

PHOTOS BY SHRUTHI MANJUNATH/THE HOOT

December 7, 2018

The Brandeis Hoot

OPINIONS 9

The power of conceding

By Alex Kougasian staff

The political world has felt much more chaotic to me now than it has in any other point in my lifetime. Many political debates in the news or online are arguments that are going over other party members’ heads, leading to anger on both sides.

Additionally, social media is now a cacophony of outrage and vexation, much of it political. Part of the reason for this is likely because I am now of an age where I’m able to fully develop my political opinions.

Outside of me, the mainstream political chaos also has clear roots in the polarized nature of the views being expressed. But I would argue that it is not the views themselves which are the main reason for the developing

of the chaos I describe, rather it is the ways in which those views are expressed which give rise to most of the discordant discourse we have experienced.

Admittedly, this is not a new phenomenon.

Political discourse has always been littered with blatant logical fallacies and disingenuous argumentative tactics on all sides. This is why political fact-checkers are of such importance to the public.

Yet, I believe there is an argument to be made that the worries about how political perspectives are expressed have heightened in recent years.

There is a way that we should be looking at discourse in order to maximize our collaborative efforts, and that way lies in the power of conceding. It is a difficult exercise, but one that I believe is important to the establishment of constructive debate. In addition to looking for ways to logically

convince those of other perspectives to subscribe to our reasoning, we should be looking for concessions that we can make and compromises that we can reach.

My method of discussing socio-political issues is very much an academic one. Discussions in philosophy, art and other theoretical disciplines often use this form of synthesis through concession. How are we supposed to reach any theoretical conclusions without using our different perspectives to our advantage?

I believe that socio-political issues are similarly theoretical and therefore require a more understanding-based approach rather than an advocacy-based one.

Truth in the Trump era seems to be a subjective term. This is an extremely worrisome notion for all Americans as it prevents the major sides of an issue from being able to find common ground. It is more important

than ever that we work together to find ideas in the opposing sides to which we can concede.

It is significant to note that there is issue with the idea that one must concede in order to carry out truly constructive discourse. Concession can often be a bad thing if one undermines one’s own values by doing so. Rather, what I am calling for is that we look for fallacies in our own arguments with as much scrutiny as we look for fallacies in opposition. Regardless of what views or ideals one has, conceding should be seen as just as much of a victory as convincing the opposing perspective.

In recent years, we have seen the prevalence of some academically minded voices such as Professor Jordan Peterson on contemporary mainstream issues for the exact reason that an academic approach is often necessary for getting to the root of the issue. To take Professor Peterson as an example,

he often states in his interviews that he finds himself changing his mind on various issues often.

In an interview with Jim Jeffries, he clearly and openly concedes on the issue of whether or not a business should be obligated by law to serve a gay couple. The power in the way Professor Peterson’s debating ability comes mainly from how thought out and experienced his perspective is. While I personally disagree with most of the conclusions Professor Peterson reaches, I certainly endorse the introspective and academic way in which he approaches mainstream socio-political discussion.

As humans, it can be hard to confront the perspectives of those with whom we disagree, especially in a climate centered on outrage.

However, negotiating so many issues with so many passionate, listening ears becomes a little more manageable when one recognizes the power of conceding.

Student Sexuality Information Services: advice column

By SSIS special to the hoot

Welcome back to the SSIS column, where we answer any and all of Brandeis students’ questions about sex, sexuality, identity and relationships. This will be

our last column of the semester, but if you have a question you’d like answered in our next column, email ssis@brandeis.edu or leave a question in the Google

Form link on our Facebook page.

(Note: These answers are good-faith attempts by SSIS to be helpful to the Brandeis community and are by no means

exhaustive or to be taken as universal. If these answers don’t resonate with you, either pay them no mind or reach out to us with suggestions for improvement!)

gradually so long as both of you feel comfortable and safe with it.

Ultimately, sexual interactions should always be motivated by feelings of enthusiasm and desire, not by a sense of obligation. If your partner is not willing to respect your comfort level, they don’t deserve to engage sexually with you.

and the physical setting you and your partner are in while you talk about this will influence the success of this conversation. It might help to bring it up when you and your partner are on good terms and not stressed. Do it in a place that will make both of you feel empowered and not on the spot.

In terms of approach: Being direct and honest can be a very effective method. If you do this, state point blank that you’re interested in opening up the relationship. If you’re a bit more shy, you could bring it up indirectly: Perhaps pull out a copy of “The Ethical Slut” (which we offer in our library!) and mention your interest in exploring some things that the book covers.

It might also help to explain your motivations for opening the

relationship up: Some associate non-monogamy with infidelity and fear that you might not be committed to the relationship.

If it is the case that your partner has this fear, it might be a good idea to reassure them of your commitment to them/the relationship. Non-monogamy works best when the relationship is on solid emotional ground and when both parties are informed and enthusiastic about what’s going on.

If your partner is not interested, it is important to respect their boundaries and not pressure them. However, you can try gently offering to explore their specific hesitations and see if through conversation and compromises, you can ease their reservations. If it is important to you that you are in a relationship that is non-mo-

nogamous and your partner is not comfortable with this, it would be understandable to revisit your priorities and whether or not your partner is compatible with them.

If your partner is interested, this will open up a new set of conversations and negotiations. One of the keys to successful non-monogamy is open, often and honest communication. This first conversation will be a good start to that! Make sure that at every point through this new stage in your relationship that you and your partner are on the same page and each feel that you have a solid understanding of each other’s boundaries. Non-monogamous relationships can look very different to different people and partner relationships, so find what will work for both of you.

“What do I do if my partner wants to move forward sexually and I’m not ready?”

Thank you for reaching out with this question! It’s totally reasonable to have feelings of uncertainty and discomfort when your sexual readiness doesn’t match your partner’s. The most important thing to recognize in this situation is that your comfort comes first and foremost. No matter how long you’ve been seeing your partner or what you have done in the past, you are never obligated to move forward sexually with them.

It is important to take a moment to ask yourself why you think you are not feeling comfortable moving forward. Whether or not your end goal is to move forward sexually, it is good to know where your hesitations are coming from so that you can address them if you choose to.

What have you communicated to your partner about this situation?

SSIS encourages communication that is open, often and honest.

Being on the same page with your partner is important and being able to feel comfortable communicating your feelings and boundaries is fundamental for a healthy relationship. You and your partner could try exploring what you do feel comfortable doing sexually and create a “Want, Will, Won’t” list. These are lists of things you definitely want to do, things you would be open to trying and things you absolutely do not feel comfortable doing. Having this list will make it much easier to figure out what you can do together!

Next, perhaps you can start a conversation with them about alternative forms of sexual intimacy. The possibilities are limited only to the imagination: cuddling, “outercourse” (which can include kissing, massages, dry humping/grinding, talking about your fantasies, etc.), mutual masturbation and more. You and your partner can escalate things

PHOTO COURTESY SSIS

“I want to make my relationship an open one but I don’t know how to bring it up with my partner.”

This could be an exciting new time for you and your partner, but we understand that it can be hard to bring up the concept of opening the relationship with a partner at first. With a big conversation like this, the mindset

10 OPINIONS

The Brandeis Hoot

December 7, 2018

How U.S. military involvement created a border crisis—and what students are doing about it

By Ellie Kleiman, Alejandra Bonilla and Emilia Feldman special to the hoot

There is a humanitarian crisis occurring at the U.S.-Mexico border as thousands of asylum seekers arrive at border cities with no support from either the U.S. or Mexican governments and with dwindling resources to support their families. The migrant caravan consists largely of refugees fleeing crises driven by the force of U.S. political, economic and military interests across countries in South and Central America.

Asylum seekers are under attack at our border by Customs and Border Protection agents as well as the additional 5,000 troops Trump has deployed. Just last week in Tijuana, CBP agents fired tear gas at families with young children and shot rubber bullets at crowds of protestors. Aside from living in constant fear, thousands of individuals waiting for their asylum cases to be heard sleep on the cold dirt or in makeshift tents, without food, clothes or access to clean water. There is a massive lack of resources and people willing to provide aid, and this community of asylum seekers desperately needs support.

To understand the situation at the border, one must understand the long history of U.S. involvement in primarily Central America. Throughout the 1930s-50s, the U.S. backed many violent local allies in wars in Central America, intervening in countries such as Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. According to Leisy J. Abrego, associate professor of Chicano/a Studies at UCLA, the U.S. trained soldiers in torture and “scorched-earth” tactics, fostering the violence that led many Central Americans to flee in mass numbers.

U.S. forces occupied Nicaragua from 1912 to 1933, a total of 21 years. This occupation came to an end due to the rebellion led by Augusto Nicolas Calderon Sandino.

Sandino founded the Sandinista National Liberation Front in 1961 in opposition to the ruling Somoza government. The group overthrew the Somoza dictatorship in 1979 and two years later consolidated power with other leftist groups. Prior to the fall of the Somoza government, then-President Jimmy Carter started a covert policy of supporting a more “modern opposition” to the government as an alternative to the far leftist group. The U.S. government helped transport Honduran troops into Nicaragua and even deployed its own soldiers in order to fight the Sandinistas.

From 1960 to 1996, Guatemala underwent a long civil war fought between a U.S.-installed military dictatorship and leftist groups. The CIA provided intelligence, training and arms support to the Guatemalan government throughout the war.

The U.S.-backed government killed many, primarily indigenous people who were accused of being communist supporters.

These examples are only pieces of the U.S. escalation of many connected wars that devastat-

ELLIE KLEIMAN ‘21 AND EMILIA FELDMAN ‘19

PHOTOS COURTESY ELLIE KLEIMAN

EMILIA FELDMAN ‘19

ALEJANDRA BONILLA ‘19

ed Central America and created mass human displacement. Many fled, and continue to flee, to the U.S. to escape political repression and economic hardship that largely resulted from U.S. occupation. Once in the U.S., they are often denied asylum and refugee status, which leads to a great number of traumatized communities. One way that these traumatized communities have dealt with the struggle to survive in the U.S. is by way of gangs, which provide a support network that helps individuals navigate and survive their oppressive situations.

According to Special Correspondent John Carlos Frey on PBS NewsHour, the gang MS-13 was created in the U.S., then sent back to Mexico and has actually grown stronger there. Thus, many Central Americans flee the gang violence within their own countries and seek refuge in the place where the gangs were born and rejected. Modern U.S. immigration policy fails to accommodate many who flee gang violence. Bill Clinton’s 1996 Immigration Reform Act expanded the criteria of who was deportable in the U.S. to include immigrants who had committed a crime, thus many former gang members. Clinton’s presidency deported 5,000 criminals to El Salvador, which currently has much internal strife and

violence as a local government is fighting to rule the country.

In 2009, a military coup approved by the Honduran Supreme Court ousted democratically elected President Manuel Zelaya. President Barack Obama condemned the coup; however, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton advised that the U.S. not make such statements because doing so would force the U.S. to cease all aid to Honduras. This led to an increase to instability and violence in Honduras.

The current Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernandez, who changed the constitution to re-elect himself in 2017 as president, is running the country under a corrupt dictatorship.

President Trump’s administration recognized and congratulated his re-election despite protests.

Meanwhile, Central America has become the focus of Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy, introduced and implemented last June, which prosecutes all individuals who illegally cross the border into the United States. This, along with former Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s announcement that asylum will no longer be granted on the basis of domestic or gang violence, and a record-high number of asylum cases being denied this year, has created a hostile environment for undocumented im-

migrants in 2018, to say the least.

It is undeniable that U.S. military intervention has led to to the humanitarian crisis in South and Central America that requires people to flee in search of better lives, and that U.S. immigration policy is unwelcoming and inhumane to these individuals. Grassroots organizations have taken on the responsibility of resisting U.S. immigration policy and protecting the rights of immigrants and refugees. One such organization, Movimiento Cosecha, has led the national movement fighting for permanent protection, dignity, and respect for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. The chapter that resides in Boston campaigns against institutions that have contracts with Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), such as Northeastern University, Amazon and Microsoft. There have been a number of marches to the Suffolk County Detention Center in Boston and Bristol County Detention Center in Dartmouth, each of which house and profit off of the detention of undocumented immigrants. The organization also recently installed a hotline for immigrant workers that experience wage theft, and has succeeded in getting justice and proper payment for several workers.

We, Brandeis students, advo-

cates and Movimiento Cosecha activists, are taking action on the crisis at the border. Emilia Feldman (’19) will travel to the San Diego-Tijuana border for three weeks this winter break where she will be joined by Alejandra Bonilla (’21). Ellie Kleiman (’21) is organizing the project’s logistics and communications and coordinating fundraising with the rest of our Movimiento Cosecha team.

On the ground, Emilia and Alejandra will join the Movimiento Cosecha team in distributing donations, documenting stories through interviews and photographs and standing by the sides of asylum seekers as they cross the border and wait for their cases to be processed. The three of us currently serve as advocates at The Right to Immigration Institute (TRII), a student-run, pro-bono legal clinic that helps individuals in the Waltham area seek asylum and navigate the immigration system. We are also activists and volunteer organizers with Movimiento Cosecha in Massachusetts. We cannot get to the border alone. We are asking the community to help us travel to the border and purchase much-needed resources so that we can aid the individuals crossing, hear and document their stories, and connect with grassroots activists from across the country.

December 7, 2018

FEATURES

The Brandeis Hoot 11

New English course explores medieval play and LARPing

By Sabrina Chow editor

Full cosplay, foam swords and a bear, oh my! Professor Dorothy Kim (ENG) offered the course “Medieval Play: Drama, LARP, and Video Games” for the first time this semester. Any cosplay and video game lover should jump at the opportunity to take such a unique course.

Kim had previously taught different courses surrounding medieval drama, but they were more focused on a specific outcome, rather than the theory of play itself. “I wanted to consider what else I might do with medieval drama in relation to performance and issues of race, sexuality, gender, disability, etc.,” said Kim in an email to The Brandeis Hoot.

She took her definition of play from Brian Upton’s book “The Aesthetics of Play,” citing that “Play is free movement within a system of constraints… play can also explain particular aspects of narrative; a play-based interpretive stance, he proposes, can help us understand the structure of books, of music, of theater, of art and even of the process of critical engagement itself,” Kim said. This drew Kim away from a drama class to a play class. “I thought it would be interesting to also address areas like medieval LARP and medieval video games,” explained Kim. Scott Grote ’19, an English major, took the class because “I wanted to explore video games as a form of text. Although plot-wise video games can be pretty dull, their notion of interacting with a text or playing with it seems pretty interesting,” explained Grote.

The course is split up into three different categories: Medieval Drama, Medieval Live Action Role Play (LARP) and Medieval

Video Games. Kim chose to work with the “York Medieval Mystery Cycle” because “English medieval drama is often organized in relation to urban space and as a long set of plays based on the biblical past,” said Kim. She went on to explain how Medieval York is the site of one of the most violent and anti-semitic events in English medieval history. “This drama cycle was the organized production of urban middle and working-class businessmen, and so I also wanted to address the issue of toxic masculinity,” explained Kim. “Can we shape these plays and the performance in order to address these issues and also consider the issues of justice in relation to race, anti-semitism, gender, sexuality, disability, etc.?”

Kim also knew she wanted to highlight the issues of toxic masculinity, white supremacy, racialized and religious hatred, gender, LGBTQ and disability issues in the course.

The third part of her course, video games, was mainly based on the interests of the students.

Games that are currently being analyzed in their class are Dungeons and Dragons, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Undertale and Skyrim. The class looks at different aspects of the games and analyzes them to view their contribution to the overall game.

Probably the most intriguing part of the class, though, is the LARPing unit. Live Action Role Play, or LARP, is a type of role-playing game in which individuals dress up as characters and act out different scenes depending on the inspiration of the game. “We have talked about the visual rhetoric of the Charlottesville white supremacists which deliberately used medieval images and medieval and classical LARP shields,” Kim said. “We’ve discussed the possibilities of

EVERYTHING THE LIGHT TOUCHES IS YOUR KINGDOM

games and play in relation to social justice. We’ve looked at the work of Brenda Romero’s ‘The Mechanism is the Message’ as well as Mattie Brice’s discussions of everyday play as activism.”

After initially seeing the layout for the class, Grote expected the class to feel extremely forced. “I asked myself, how can LARPing really fit into an English class?” said Grote.

“But when you LARP, you play out a story, and when you play this story, you have to think about medieval tropes and iconic imagery and why we are so nostalgic for them, despite their often fictional nature.”

For the class, all the students dressed up in full cosplay and did a few LARPing scenes. Kim ex-

After hours, Grote chooses to stay in character.

plained that a lot of her students were adamant about playing in an extremely public place, so they have been LARPing in the Humanities Quad.

“I think it was probably the first time we all went out there to follow our adventure (there were some tasks) and seeing a number of the classes who have windows facing us watching us in amazement since my students were in full cosplay (with foam weapons, etc. and yes, there was at least one bear),” said Kim. Grote’s favorite memory from the entire semester was participating in the LARP. “I really did not expect to enjoy it, but I really got into it. It was fun role playing a character in a fantasy environment. I played as this man who

PHOTO BY NOAH HARPER/THE HOOT

wore a bear pelt. There was this one time I was running away and hiding from everyone. That was pretty fun,” said Grote in an interview.

This course fulfills both the Pre1800 requirement for English majors as well as an oral communication requirement for the general university requirements.

“I would surely recommend this class for any of the adventure gamers out there. Also, if you’re looking for an English class to mix up the text you’re reading, I would definitely recommend this course,” explained Grote. “It certainly employs a unique set of texts.”

Pre-health advising offers guidance to students on the pre-health track

By Jackie Kostenko staff

Although Brandeis offers great academic advising services for students, there is also a subset of advising for students on the prehealth track.

Located within the Office of Ac-

KATE STUTZ

Advising.

Director of Pre-Health

ademic Advising, the Pre-Health Advising office is determined to help students on their path towards the health career they wish to pursue.

Scheduling is simple, as students can go online and find a time that works for them. There are also drop-in hours from 3 to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays. Students can make appointments with Jean Deo or Kate Stutz.

A 30-minute meeting with the hard-working advisors can help students plan their health track and also see if they are moving in the right direction.

There is a newsletter that informs students which events are coming up relating to different health paths.

Not only can the advisors assist with course scheduling, they can also help students apply to health profession schools such as medical or dental school.

They also offer an interview help service and assistance with applications.

PHOTOS FROM BRANDEIS.EDU

12 OPINIONS

The Brandeis Hoot

December 7, 2018

New course to explore white ‘Middle America’

By Shruthi Manjunath staff

The newest addition to the English department in the courses dated post-1800 is ENG 88b, titled “Rednecks, Hillbillies, and White Trash: Literature and Culture of the ‘Deplorables.’” This class aims to explore sources written by or about poor whites and consequently discuss difficult topics such as racism, classism and privilege and how these topics affect modern-day America.

Instructor Courtney Miller (PhD-ABD, ENG) hopes that people bring their own experiences and emotional reactions into the classroom in order to create a more profound and beneficial discussion in which individuals can uncover the deep-rooted reasons behind why and how racism, classism and privilege affect American culture.

Although these topics are dif-

ficult and may lead to heated discussions, it is important to articulate that the problems have been present throughout American history and will continue to plague us unless we create changes in society. Therefore, it is vital that we bring light to these topics through discussions in college classrooms or through discourse with our friends and family.

Miller highlighted the originality of this course, as it is the first time a class that explores works regarding white “rednecks” and “hillbillies” is being taught at Brandeis. Furthermore, this topic is particularly relevant in the current political climate, which allows individuals to apply their thoughts and ideas to our currently divided country.

Miller also explains that “I grew up in a small, rural town in the Midwest, and I come from a working-class background, so I’m very familiar with the tendency to judge and misunderstand “Mid-

dle America.” Engaging in scholarly conversations about individuals who seem to be the antithesis of scholarliness is, on the surface, paradoxical. But I think we have the responsibility to figure out why that is—why is it so easy for us to write off a whole category of people as stupid or not worth examining?” An insightful professor who has personally experienced judgment along with students who are passionate about this subject should create an engaging environment in which individuals are able to uncover how and why racial and social constructs affect our current society.

A combination of sources from all types of media will be used to analyze racism, classism and privilege in modern and historical America in this class. Specifically, what struck me personally as extremely creative was Miller’s plan to have students analyze the @queerapalachia account on Instagram and the #ruralresistance

movement to understand how individuals are attempting to reappropriate the terms “redneck,” “hillbilly” and “white trash.” Miller also plans to include theories of class and race such as Pierre Bourdieu and his theories describing the way in which power is reassigned to different individuals, along with theories of performativity, using communication to create social change and disidentification and understanding how minority groups claim their identity in a world that is dominated by the majority, using work

by Judith Butler, Michel Pecheux and Jose Esteban Munoz. These theories will be used as lenses to analyze previous forms of racism and classism that were more overt, along with discussing how prejudice and privilege, although not as overt, are still present in modern America. The balance between important theoretical content along with new media that is relevant in the current age will

create an interesting discussion of racism and classism.

Miller hopes that students are able to educate others on the importance of these topics. She specifically explains that her “goal is that when they tell their friends or family they’re taking a class called “Rednecks, Hillbillies, and White Trash,” that when they are met with laughter and/or skepticism (which they undoubtedly will be), they can confidently and persuasively explain its seriousness. Unpacking how race, class and privilege are deeply entangled is an important conversation to have, and I want to encourage my students to question, to disagree, and to come out on the other side with a new perspective.”

Overall, this class aims to create discourse and allow for a discussion on racism, classism and prejudice in the modern world and possible ways of decreasing these problems that plague modern America.

Science Communication Lab supports Brandeis community

By Sabrina Chow and Jackie Kostenko editor and staff

For students on the science track, it is possible to overlook the importance of communication skills when handling so many rigorous classes. With a writing intensive credit coming from Biology Lab, a lot of science students struggle to succeed in writing, something that most science students despise. Luckily, there is a resource on campus that can benefit science students, both undergraduate and graduate.

The Brandeis Science Communication Lab (CommLab) was created last year by Dr. Anique Olivier-Mason and physics graduate student Joia Miller after attending a summer institute from the Communication Lab at MIT. After MIT, Brandeis is the second school to have a CommLab, and many other universities around the country have followed suit.

The CommLab is located in the biology building, Bassine 122, and was made as a resource for students in the Division of Science for science communication support. Since Brandeis doesn’t have an engineering school, Olivier-Mason expanded the scope of the lab beyond the single department to encompass the entire Brandeis Division of Science, which includes biochemistry, biological physics, biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, neuroscience, physics and psychology, according to their website.

Besides being the program director of CommLab, Olivier-Mason is also the Director of Education, Outreach and Diversity of the Brandeis Material Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC). “She believes in the power of peer-coaching as a method of improving an entire community’s ability to communicate effectively,” according to the website. All students, staff and faculty, regardless of their

placement at the university, are able to utilize this resource. Olivier-Mason and her team also created a fellow-training resource that help their sessions to be more goal-specific.

Communication Fellows are trained to help coach students on projects like resumes, applying for fellowships, research posters and scientific talks. Similar to the Writing Center in the library, the CommLab helps students with writing that is specifically science-focused. There are currently 11 different fellows who are all either Ph.D candidates or postdoctoral fellows and part of different sectors of the Division of Science.

The CommLab meshes many resources into one that acts as a strong tool for science students.

The web page for the CommLab offers students initial tips to get them started on their projects as well. To make an appointment, there are multiple options. Students can go online and access the online scheduling system, contact the director or contact a fellow di-

rectly to find a time that works for them.

The sessions are completely confidential to protect the privacy of the clients and cannot be longer than 60 minutes. They also must take place in public locations and if a client misses more than three appointments, they will not be able to utilize the CommLab for four months. Since the sessions are limited to 60 minutes, the fellows are limited in the amount of work that they are able to assist in.

A tip from the website is to “think in advance about which specific sections or elements would be most helpful for you to focus on during your session.”

The website also contains testimonies of different students who have utilized the CommLab and found them extremely helpful.

“The fellow helped me organize my thoughts, to come up with strategies to write it better and to have a plan on how to structure every essay,” according to an anonymous graduate student. “I just submitted my fellowship, and

I have never been so proud of my scientific writing. Now as I am applying for something else, I am using similar tools I learned, and I am more confident in my scientific writing skills.”

An undergraduate also found the CommLab to be extremely helpful for essays for internships.

“The reason that I like the CommLab is because the post-doctoral fellows and graduate students structure each session so that the most can be done in a span of 30 minutes or an hour,” said the student. “Each session is a collaborative effort. The fellows are supportive of my ideas and help me think differently about how to approach my research program personal statements and upcoming interviews.”

The student went on to highly recommend the CommLab to students that want to take advantage of a program where students are advised by “senior scientists and graduate students” in a space that “provides an informed perspective,” according to the website.

Rebelle brings Afro-Caribbean dance to campus

By Polina Potochevska editor

Brandeis is home to many different types of dance groups of various genres and cultures. One such group is Rebelle, an Afro-Caribbean dance team that uses the universal languages of music and dance to share the flavors of the many cultures that make up the diaspora.

A crowd favorite, Rebelle dances vibrantly and with exuberant energy, giving their all into every performance.

According to Fatoumata Diaboula ’20, the captain of the team since 2017, “Rebelle is not just a dance team, it’s a community that builds friendship and trust through fun and creativity.

Together as one, we are family.”

Having such a close bond between their members allows them to give such compelling performances and grow as a team.

Diaboula is majoring in Health, Science, Society and Policy on the nursing track. She joined Rebelle in 2016 and is now both captain and choreographer. A relatively new dance group, Rebelle formed in 2012 and now is made up of 14 proud members, including Diaboula.

During this fall semester, Rebelle has performed at many different venues and events. Some of them include the Toxic Majorette Dance Line Showcase and Night for Africa, organized by Brandeis African Students Organization (BASO).

The group also went off-campus to perform at an African wedding in Rhode Island.

“We’re getting ready for Culture X,” Diaboula explained. This spring, it will be the 20th anniversary of Culture X, a major Brandeis production that “seeks to celebrate the diversity that exists within the Brandeis community… as part of the Intercultural

Center, Culture X also seeks ways to unify the student body and effectively display the best the Brandeis community has to offer,” according to the Culture X website.

As for the goals that Diaboula has for the team next semester and throughout the next year as a captain, she hopes to further involve the team in on-campus and off-campus performances, not just around Brandeis and close-by universities but also to perform at more weddings and other events.

She also wants to “get us a Rebelle official outfit set and [to] take the choreography to a next step.”

“My favorite part about being in Rebelle is witnessing and learning about everyone’s culture and bringing our different taste of dance and music into one,” said Diaboula.

Not only does Rebelle help its members learn about new music and culture, but it also spreads

PHOTO FROM INSTAGRAM.COM

that message to the rest of campus.

“It is very important to have Rebelle on campus because of our diversity, bond, talent, knowl-

edge; we can help bring more cultural understanding and positive energy,” said Diaboula. “Rebelle stands out because it represents the whole African diaspora.”

December 7, 2018

The Brandeis Hoot

FEATURES 13

Featured Events Calendar Zen Zone Sponsored by the Department of Spiritual and Religious Life, this event helps students to destress and “find physical, mental and emotional calm in these busy, often overwhelming times.” Friday, Dec. 7 at 3 p.m. in the Usdan Peace Room.

Family Dinner Night Aiming to change stereotypes of Vietnamese food, Family Dinner Night is an opportunity to eat common, everyday Vietnamese food, and “experience a true Vietnamese dining experience, sitting in a large circle with food beautifully displayed in the middle.” Friday, Dec. 7 at 6 p.m. in the Intercultural Center.

Yoga at the Library A 30-minute yoga session in the Library Meditation Room, located on the Goldfarb Mezzanine. Monday, Dec. 10 at 5 p.m.

Cloud9: Destress Before Finals Sponsored by CAB, this event features free massage chairs, aromatherapy stations, oxygen bars and more. Tuesday, Dec. 11 in the SCC Atrium from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Art Therapy in the Library Tuesday, Dec. 11 at 6:30 p.m. Limited to 40 spots, reserve your place online now.

Men’s Basketball vs. Wesleyan Saturday, Dec. 8 at 1 p.m. in Auerbach Arena (Gosman).

Women’s Basketball vs. Roger Williams Tuesday, Dec. 11 at 6 p.m. in Auerbach Arena.

Saturday Night Lights Brandeis Hillel celebrates Hanukkah with dancing, donuts and fun. Saturday, Dec. 8 starting at 7:30 p.m.

Midnight Buffet 2018 The Student Union’s primary activity is back for its fall incarnation, and this year it’s Harry Potter-themed. Free catered food from restaurants around Waltham starting at 11:55 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 11 in Usdan’s Levin Ballroom.

Kosher + Soul Food Night Brandeis Bridges invites you to enjoy both kosher and soul food in Skyline Commons.

An excellent opportunity to learn more about the Bridges program. Sunday, Dec. 9 at 5 p.m. in Skyline Commons.

Nap-in Take a break from finals preparation and enjoy a 30-minute power nap in a darkened room in the SCC. Sponsored by Health and Wellness Promotion. Monday, Dec. 10 at 3 p.m.

From Atonement to Tolerance: The Paradox of Citizenship and Religious Difference in Post-Holocaust Germany A lecture on German political discourse tolerance by University of California, Berkeley Ph.D. candidate Sultan Doughan. Wednesday, Dec. 12 at 12 p.m. in the Mandel Center for the Humanities Room 228.

Study Break and Spiritual Tune-up!

“Join the Chaplains and the Department of Spiritual and Religious Life for a brain break, a snack, some rest, and a spiritual tune-up with special guest Janet Kessenich!”

Wednesday, Dec. 12 at 1 p.m. in the SCC MPR.

- Compiled by Noah Harper

EDITORIALS

14 The Brandeis Hoot

“To acquire wisdom, one must observe.”

Editors-in-Chief Abigail Gardener Sarah Terrazano Senior Managing Editor Elianna Spitzer Senior Editor Ryan Spencer Copy Editor Natalie Fritzson Deputy Copy Editor Jennifer Cook News Editor Celia Young Arts Editors Ben Beriss Noah Harper Opinions Editor Sabrina Chow Features Editor Polina Potochevska Sports Editors Zach Cihlar Shea Decker-Jacoby Layout Editor Candace Ng Editor-at-Large Emily Botto

Volume 15 • Issue 24 the brandeis hoot • brandeis university 415 south street • waltham, ma

STAFF

David Aizenberg, Caleigh Bartash, Lucy Braverman, Emma Belkin, Camila Casanueva, Kevin Costa, Katie Decker-Jacoby, Chris DeMena, Olivia Ellson, Daniel Freedman, Jonah Koslofsky, Jackie Kostenko, Alex Kougasian, Emma Lichtenstein, Jenna Lifschitz, Shruthi Manjunath, Gillian O'Malley, Thalia Plata, Sasha Skarboviychuk, Zachary Sosland, Sophie Trachtenberg, Rachel Wang, Hannah Wilson, Helen Wong

MISSION As the weekly community student newspaper of Brandeis University, The Brandeis Hoot aims to provide our readers with a reliable, accurate and unbiased source of news and information. Produced entirely by students, The Hoot serves a readership of 6,000 with in-depth news, relevant commentary, sports and coverage of cultural events.

Recognizing that better journalism leads to better policy, The Brandeis Hoot is dedicated to the principles of investigative reporting and news analysis. Our mission is to give every community member a voice.

SUBMISSION POLICIES The Brandeis Hoot welcomes letters to the editor on subjects that are of interest to the community. Preference is given to current or former community members and The Hoot reserves the right to edit or reject submissions. The deadline for submitting letters is Wednesday at noon.

Please submit letters to letters@thebrandeishoot.com along with your contact information. Letters should not exceed 500 words. The opinions, columns, cartoons and advertisements printed in The Hoot do not necessarily represent the opinions of the editorial board.

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UNSOLICITED SUBMISSIONS We welcome unsolicited submissions from members of the community sent by e-mail to eic@thebrandeishoot.com. Please limit submissions to 800 words. All submissions are subject to editing.

B

December 7, 2018

Brandeis: year in review

randeis remained a busy and vibrant community in 2018.

Amid the busyness that engrosses us throughout holiday and finals seasons, as we near the end of the year, let’s not forget to take a moment to look back at the events that shaped our community in 2018.

The events discussed in this editorial are by no means exhaustive; Brandeis is far too dynamic an institution. The events of 2018 included here are simply those which stood out to us among the many important events happening every day on this campus. The list includes the good, the bad and the ugly. So let’s start with the ugly.

Last spring, Brandeis’ basketball coach Brian Meehan was fired after a Deadspin article made his racist behavior public. After acknowledging the shortcomings of a university investigation into the matter, President Ron Liebowitz appointed independent investigators who produced two reports. The first, published in September, explored the issues surrounding Meehan, and the second, published in November, explored the campus climate.

Another major controversy in the spring surrounded the cancellation of several performances of a campus theater production. Four out of five performances of “And Then There Were None” were cancelled after faculty members emailed a complaint to producers over the play’s racist history. The play was based on an Agatha Christie novel originally titled “Ten Little N*s.”

The ugly aside, 2018 saw changes to campus life which should be applauded. The mailroom increased efficiency and ease when Swiss Post Solutions became the new mailroom partner, one of the most productive improvements this year.

Brandeis’ first food pantry opened

in Kutz Hall to help address campus food insecurity. The pantry functions alongside a new program at the library which allows students to donate food to the pantry to cover outstanding library fines.

One event students will likely remember was a public safety concern in the Foster Mods residence hall.

On Oct. 12, emergency response teams surrounded the Mods residence after uncovering sodium cyanide, a lethal chemical. A hazmat team promptly removed the substance while police officers, BEMCo and DCL staff evacuated students and kept them at a safe distance.

After first breaking ground in spring 2017, Skyline opened its doors to its first round of residents this fall. Neighboring the remaining iconic wing of the castle that contains Chums, the new residence hall will house future generations of Brandeis students.

Sustainability played a major role in campus life this past year. Overall, Brandeis made strides in reducing its carbon footprint and is on track to meet its goal of 15 percent reduction by 2020. Students can now take advantage of LimeBikes on campus and the new lighting in the Shapiro Campus Center (SCC) that got a much-needed LED upgrade.

2018 also saw Liebowitz—who has now served as university president for two years—lay out his framework for Brandeis’ future. The framework, which aims to bring university programs in line with Brandeis’ mission and the institution’s financial capabilities, will facilitate the appointment of several task forces and creates the prospect of change in 2019 and beyond.

As always, Brandeis students upheld the university’s commitment to social justice with protests across campus that responded to the polit-

ical climate and social movements in the larger world. In the spring semester, hundreds of students walked out in solidarity with the victims of the school shooting in Parkland, FL. Later that semester, the newly established Brandeis Never Again held a rally to support gun control reform, coinciding with a national walkout day to mark the anniversary of the Columbine shooting.

This semester, students in #BrandeisBelieveSurvivors held several demonstrations against sexual assault and to stand in solidarity with survivors. They interrupted various classrooms and held a sit-in in the SCC atrium to raise awareness. Students also rallied in November for trans rights, and this month many librarians were joined by supportive students and faculty in a march to Bernstein-Marcus to fight for a fair contract.

Petitions and open letters to the administration were abundant. In addition to those associated with previously mentioned campus demonstrations, a letter called on the administration to host an open forum on the topic of accessibility and a petition requesting Liebowitz to endorse the idea of a Massachusetts Carbon Tax. An open forum on accessibility is expected to take place in 2019. The carbon tax petition has yet to receive a response.

2018 saw productive engagement between advocates of divestment and the Board of Trustees. Though students continue to call for all investments to be removed from fossil fuels, changes in investment policies announced in November saw some progress on this front.

And lastly, as of this week, two first-year residence halls now house electric keyboards, after a lengthy dispute in the Student Union.

Here’s to a new year!

SPORTS

December 7, 2018

The Brandeis Hoot 15

Men’s basketball wins Big Four

By Shea Decker-Jacoby editor

The Brandeis men’s basketball team had a successful weekend in the opening round of the New England Big Four Challenge.

The Judges faced off against Salem State University in the first round. After the first half of the game there were seven ties and six lead changes and they ended the half trailing 32-29, but the Judges took control of the second half right away. Brandeis scored the first eight points of the second half and never trailed to Salem again. This lead was secured by Lawrence Sabir ’21 making a three-pointer, earning a two-point lead for the Judges, and then high scorer of the game Corey Sherman ’19 also hit three pointers with the next possession.

Salem State managed to tie the game at 41-41 with only 12 and a half minutes of the game and Brandeis answered with an eight point run with no response from Salem State, featuring a trifecta from Colin Sawyer ’20 and Eric D’Aguanno ’20 to secure the win for the Judges.

Sherman led the Judges with 24

points, with 14 coming in the second half of the game and successfully hitting 8-of-11 from the field and 7-of-8 from the line. Sawyer had 18 points with 16 earned in the second half. He connected 6-of-10 overall and 4-of-4 from the line. D’Aguanno also hit double digits with 12 points with four 3-pointers. Chandler Jones ’21 earned double digits with 11 points and a game high with 10 rebounds. Brandeis’ bench came off strong, earning 31-17 with D’Aguanno and Jones outscoring Salem States reserves. Brandeis outshot Salem State 48.1 percent to 36.9 percent from the field and hit 84.2 percent of their free throws.

The Judges faced Babson in the second round the following day.

The Judges came off strong with the hopes of earning their first Big Four title since 2012.

Sherman earned a game high of 25 points with seven of them early on to open the game with an 11-2 run in the first four and a half minutes of the game. Babson responded with back-to-back three-pointers, but that did not sway the Judges’ confidence. The Judges went on a 16-3 run spanning over six minutes to get the

TEAM PHOTO AFTER WINNING TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

advantage 27-11. Sherman scored 14 points with 6-of-8 shooting to get Brandeis 34-19 at the end of the first half. In the second half, D’Aguanno, Jones and Sherman all added triples as a part of the 11-2 run that secured the win for Brandeis at 70-48 lead with only three and half minutes left.

First Big Four win since 2012

Brandeis shot 47.3 percent for the game and limited Babson to 30.8 percent shooting to earn victory in the New England Big Four Challenge championship game.

This improved the Judges to a 5-1 record this season. Brandeis improved to 23-21 all-time against Babson.

PHOTO BY BRANDEISJUDGES.COM

Sherman was selected as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player with 8-of-13 from the floor and six rebounds, three assists and three steals. Sherman also earned University Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Player of the Week. Jones was named to the All-Tournament Team.

Indoor track and field opens the season at UMass

By Camila Casanueva staff

The Brandeis University indoor track and field team opened its 2018-19 campaign this weekend at the UMass Boston Invitational.

The Judges saw one school record broken and had one event winner and five other top three finishes.

It did not take long for rookie Sonali Anderson ’22 to make her presence felt early on in her career. She was able to take over the school record in the 60-meter hurdles, running 9.70 seconds in the prelims and 9.62 in the finals

to finish in sixth place. In the process, Anderson broke a record that had stood since the 2012-13 season.

The Judges’ lone winner from the weekend came from the men’s side, where Erez Needleman ’20 crossed the finish line first in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:02.68. It was his third-fastest indoor time and was about a third of a second ahead of the runner-up.

Sophomore standout twin sisters Lisbeth and Leinni Valdez ’21 provided second and third place finishes in the 500-meter dash with times of 1:19.64 and 1:20.22, respectively. Lisbeth missed winning the race by three seconds.

Another second place finish came from Andrea Bolduc ’21 who finished runner up in the mile run with a personal best time of 5:20.74, the top collegian in the race. Doyin Ogundiran ’19 ran her first collegiate mile and came in fifth in 5:25.54.

The Judges’ final second place finisher was Willa Moen ’20 who was the runner-up in the pole vault on tiebreakers with a height of 2.90 meters (9 feet, 6.25 inches).

Finishing third for the Judges was the women’s top dual threat, as rookie Devin Hiltunen ’22 was third in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:01.59 and ninth in the

200 with a mark of 27.03 seconds.

She was just about a second off the winning pace in the 400.

The Judges had one other finisher place in the top 10 in two events, men’s senior sprinter and captain Regan Charie ’19 came in sixth in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.17 seconds and seventh in the 200 with a time of 23.02 seconds.

The other top ten performances on the women’s side came from Mahala Davis ’21 in the 1,000-meters, she came in sixth place with a time of 3:23.97. Christine Minor ’19 ran 3,000-meters, she came in eighth place with a time of 11:17.53. Lastly, rookie Erin

Magill ’22 also ran 3,000-meters, finishing in 10th with a time of 11:23.43.

On the men’s side, Breylen Ammen ’21 finished in sixth place in the pole vault, 4.00 meters (13 feet and 1.5 inches). In the 400 meter Patrick Quinlan came in ninth with a time of 52.01.

Eric Rosenheim ’21 ran the 1,000 meters, coming in ninth with a time of 2:50.21. Scott Grote ’19 finished sixth in the 35-pound throw, 15.65 meters (51 feet and 4.25 inches).

Lastly, rookie Dionysus Morris Evans ’22 finished 10th in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 9.04.

Ian Quin leads Brandeis men’s fencing to two wins

By Sophie Trachtenberg staff

Both the men’s and women’s fencing teams hosted a plethora of opposing teams this past weekend during the annual Brandeis Invitational. The Judges faced some challenging competition, only finding two wins over ten matches.

Both of these wins came on the men’s side, as they finished 2-3 by the end of the tournament, while the women went 0-5. This gives the men a 7-3 record through this point in the season, while the women meet the .500 mark as they fall to 6-6 overall.

The Judges edged Cornell 17-10 and Incarnate Word 16-11 on the men’s side, with these being their two victories during the invitational. They fell to St. John’s in a 19-8 fashion, to Yale with a score of 24-3 and to North Carolina on a 15-12 mark.

On the women’s side, Brandeis could not overcome the competition staged by their opponents,

being defeated by St. John’s with a score of 20-7, by Cornell and Yale both in an 18-9 fashion, by Incarnate Word with a score of 12-11 and finally swept by North Carolina in a 23-4 outcome.

In the foil classification, the men found some success, only losing

one match out of their five overall.

They therefore garnered the highest winning percentage for the Judges during the meet, winning 7-2 over both North Carolina and Incarnate Word, beating Cornell 6-3 and winning a close match against St. John’s by a slim margin

IAN QUIN ‘20 AGAINST ST. JOHN’S AT THE BRANDEIS INVITATIONAL

of 5-4. Both the men and women’s saber squads also performed well, with the former getting wins over Cornell and Incarnate Word both in an 8-1 fashion, and the latter defeating both Yale and Incarnate Word with scores of 6-3.

From an individual standpoint,

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

it was Ian Quin ’20 of the men’s foil team who shined. He ended the meet with a 9-3 record over four matches, sweeping St. John’s, Incarnate Word and Cornell with scores of 3-0, but losing to Yale by the same margins. Rookie Lucas Lin ’22 also had an impressive performance to lead the saber squad, finishing with a record of 5-2 as he swept Cornell and beat North Carolina 2-1.

On the epee side, Chris Armstrong ’20 reigned in the majority of the wins, accounting for four out of the squad’s six. Captain Joanne Carminucci ’19 had the best day for the women, ending with a record of 8-7. For saber, it was rookie Jada Harrison ’22 that lead the way, scoring five points. Lastly, in women’s epee, Madeleine Vibert ’21 totaled four points for the team.

When the Judges return from winter break in 2019, they will fly out to Colorado Springs for their next matches, taking on the United States Air Force Academy and others in the Western Invitational.

December 7, 2018

The Brandeis Hoot

SPORTS 16

Women’s basketball picks up another win against Johnson&Wales

By Zach Cihlar editor

Brandeis women’s basketball picked up another win on Saturday, Dec. 1, playing on their home court against Johnson and Wales, but couldn’t hold on to the win streak Monday, Dec. 3 against rival Babson.

After the week, the Judges hold a 3-4 record heading into the last couple games of 2018.

In the Saturday game against Johnson and Wales, Sarah Jaromin ’19 led the team to the win.

The senior put up career bests in points scored (25) and rebounds (12). Her points were scored evenly between the first and second half, with 13 points in the first and 12 in the second.

After going up 43-26 in the first half, Jaromin entered the second half riding the momentum of the first. Right from the blow of the whistle, the senior scored a three-pointer to extend the Judges lead to 46-26.

Jaromin’s teammate Camila Casanueva ’21 had heavy contributions to the win as well, scoring 17 points, earning nine rebounds and passing off five assists. The sophomore has been a young star

KAT PRUDA ‘21 UP FOR THE JUMP SHOT

Women’s basketball adds another win to their record.

for the women’s basketball team in recent games.

The win against Johnson and Wales earned the Judges a tied record at 3-3 for a brief time until they returned to the court again two days later on Monday.

In the Babson game, the Judges held the lead through the first two

periods of the game going into the second half. In the first quarter, the Judges held on to a threepoint lead, and expanded that gap to five after the second quarter.

The Judges slipped in the second half, facing a six-point deficit in third quarter points so that going into the fourth quarter they

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

were down by one point. In the final quarter of the game, the Judges couldn’t get the momentum back as they dropped the quarter 9-15. The games ended with a Judges loss of 59-66.

Kat Puda ’21 proved indispensable in the close game, leading the Judges in point scoring and

rebounds. The neuroscience major from Whitinsville, MA, put up a total of 17 points and earned seven rebounds throughout the game.

Jaromin offered another stellar performance, adding 14 points to the team’s score, while Casanueva again played an impressive game contributing 12 points and passing off five assists.

Over the last few weeks, sophomore Casanueva has led the Judges in multiple different categories in game play. Her consistently strong performances earned her the title of UAA Athlete of the Week for leading the Judges to a 2-0 week between their games against Salem State and Johnson and Wales.

In the game against Salem State, Casanueva scored 30 total points, a feat that hasn’t been reached by a Brandeis women’s basketball player since 2010. Between those two games last week, she averaged 67 percent shooting from the field, 64 percent shooting from threepoint range and 93 percent from the free throw line.

The Judges have just two more games until they break until 2019.

Their next game is away against Gordon. They’re set to play at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 8.

Swimming competes in Gompei Invitational

By Shea Decker-Jacoby editor

The Brandeis swimming and diving team hit the pool last weekend for the three-day Gompei Invitational in Worcester, hosted by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI).

In the first day of competition the Judges were in eighth place overall and fifth among Division III teams at the event.

Rookie Olivia Stebbins ’22 reached an A final and finished 10th place in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:32.69 in the finals. Emily McGovern ’21 placed 20th in the 200yard breaststroke with a time of 2:35.76. In the B final of the 200yard individual medley Claire Xu ’22 won with a time of 2:12.07, also earning the third fastest time in school history. Junior Natalya Wozab reached the B final with a time of 2:19.81 to place 20th.

Rookie Lauren Howard ’22 swam in the 50-yard freestyle and came in 19th with a time of 25.13 seconds, ranking her third on the all time top 10 list. Rookie Abbie Etzweiler earned a top score for the women in the 1650-yard free with a time of 18:49.33, earning her 19th place and a fourth sport on the career list. Finally, for the women, Audrey Kim ’21 finished 18th in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:00.29, while her prelims time was 1:00.12 which earned her third on the school’s record.

For the men, on the first day Richard Selznick ’21 led the men’s team with his victory in the 1650yard freestyle. He finished with a time of 16:21.74 and won the race with six seconds to spare. This time was only two seconds off from Selznick’s personal best in the event and five seconds short of an NCAA’s ‘B’ cut while being his first time in this race in his career at Brandeis. Brandeis had three other swimmers making the A-fi-

TAMIR ZITELNY ‘20 FLYS IN THE POOL

nals, including Top 10 finishes.

Tamir Zitelny ’20 placed fourth in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 50.25 seconds, which also placed him fourth on Brandeis’ All-Time Top 10. Rookie Brendon Lu ’22 came in sixth in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:09.97 placing him fourth on the Brandeis All-Time Top 10 finishes. Alex Wang ’22 scored in two events, placed 16th in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:13.65, which earned him eighth in the All-Time Top 10 finishes.

Finally, Daniel Wohl ’21 earned seventh place in the 50 free with a time of 21.53 seconds, which also gives him third in the Top 10 AllTime finishes.

The women’s relay team placed 11th in the meet opening in the 200 medley with an all first-year squad. The men’s relay team placed fifth in the 800 free and the 200 medley squad placed 12th.

On the second day of competition, four women’s Brandeis swimming and diving records broke, including the 200-yard freestyle relay, which the men also broke.

For the women, Howard, Uajda Musaku ’21, Annie Huang ’21 and Kylie Herman ’19 beat the 200

KYLIE HERMAN ‘19 FINISHES HER RACE STRONG

freestyle relay set in 2017 with a time of 1:25.10, which also earned them ninth place in competition.

The women closed out the day with a ninth place finish in the 400 medley relay with a time of 4:02.06, only 0.19 off the fastest time for Brandeis set in 2009. For the men in the 200-yard freestyle relay, they earned sixth place, but broke a record that had stood since 2005, which was among the oldest swimming records in the Judge’s books.

On the final day of competition, the Judges finished eighth with 2016.5 points earned between the men and women. Seven Judges finished in the top 20. Huang finished 13th in the 100 IM with fourth all-time. Rookie Olivia Stebbins ’22 finished 13th in the 50th breaststroke and 4th all time. Matthew Arcemont ’20 finished 13th in the 100 IM and 3rd all-time. Herman finished 14th in the 200 butterfly. Howard finished 15th in the 100 freestyle and 6th all-time. Joe Beletti-Naccarato ’21 finished 19th in the 200 backstroke and Chase Chen ’21 finished 20th in the 50 breaststroke.

The Judges are back in the pool on Dec. 8 at Colby for their final meet of the year.

TEAMMATES CHEER EACH OTHER ON

PHOTOS BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

ARTS

17 The Brandeis Hoot

December 7, 2018

Fashion Design Club sews up semester

By Katie Decker-Jacoby staff

Of all of Brandeis’ 260 student-run clubs and organizations, Fashion Design Club is certainly a hidden gem on campus.

The goal of Fashion Design Club lies within the club’s name: to design fashion. From the beginning stages of tracing and cutting out patterns, to sewing the pieces together and finally to the fun part, embellishing, Fashion Design Club does it all. The club enables members to pick up or improve basic sewing skills and garment construction, both of which are not very present on Brandeis’ campus. Besides Costume Design, taught in the Department of Theater Arts, and a couple of fashion history courses, Fashion Design Club is the only creative space on campus for students to discuss current trends and get hands-on practice with clothing design.

For that reason, Tyffany English ’19, president of Fashion Design Club, set herself a goal of reinventing the club when she took over as president at the start of the current semester. English joined Fashion Design Club in her first year of college, but the club died down in her sophomore and junior years. The club’s small and infrequent presence on campus also motivated English to revive the club and show its commitment to helping others, beginners and experienced, as well as engage with the Brandeis community in creative, collaborative ways.

Fashion Design Club meets every week for two full hours, yet with big, time-consuming projects this semester, English believes the club could even benefit from more meeting time. The Fashion Design Club E-Board quickly figured out that teaching people how to create garments from scratch and learning about the fabrics takes a lot more time than expected. English pointed to, as an example, a diagram depicting how to make a circle skirt,

which featured pi symbols and fractions that the ordinary eye might not understand upon first glance.

So far this semester, the club has completed its biggest project by designing skirts and accessories for A Night for Africa, which is an annual cultural show hosted by Brandeis African Students Organization (BASO). Members of Brandeis dance troupe Toxic sported high-low skirts that had a red, blue, orange and yellow geometric pattern on them. What made the skirts unique was the missing front panels. Instead of continuing the front of the skirt with the normal patterned fabric, club members removed the front panel and attached a layer of black fringe instead. The texture and movement of the fringe added a playful and sophisticated touch to the outfits.

This collaboration has been Fashion Design Club’s most extensive project this semester, and a very rewarding one at that.

Club treasurer Andrea Murillo ’20 outlined the planning and designing process of the skirts: after Toxic president Sabrina Howard ’19 reached out to Murillo about working together, the two met up and searched the Internet for inspiration. They sifted through photos of African dance costumes and finally found a photo of a skirt that had the front fringe panel detail, and then Fashion Design Club replicated it.

Murillo’s favorite part of Fashion Design Club this semester was the last week of putting together Toxic’s skirts for A Night for Africa. “We actually saw the skirts come together… Sabrina was there and tried hers on, and another member of Toxic came in for her measurements and she tried it on… it was just really cool and the first thing we did as a club.

It was amazing,” said Murillo. “We were also able to realize what we could really do in just two weeks,” English added.

Meanwhile, English’s favorite part of the semester was getting the fabrics in October. “We really got to be super creative, and

just become really excited about the interesting things we could do with the fabrics. I remember Andrea telling us that she already knew what she wanted to make,” said English. Murillo created a short-sleeved top made of sheer black lace, while English worked on a circle skirt made of rich green velvet. Fashion Design Club also works with various trims and embellishments. Club members hand sew and operate the sewing machine to create garments.

An off-campus event that all three E-Board members thoroughly enjoyed was Her Campus’ College Fashion Week. Her Campus hosted a night filled with DIY stations, brand tables, photo-ops, snacks and a runway show. English liked the experiential aspect of the event, while Murillo liked the bonding part.

On campus, Fashion Design Club tabled on Kindness Day in the Shapiro Campus Center (SCC) Atrium with origami fashion. The club welcomed students and community members to join them in folding and creasing origami paper into three-dimensional dresses, shoes, shirts and more.

As for the club’s weekly meetings, one that stood out was when a Hiatt Career Center student advisor informed members on how to best present themselves and their resumes to professionals in the fashion industry. During a different meeting, Vice President Qiang Hu ’21 gave a presentation and opened a discussion about New York Fashion Week trends.

The club also created tote bags from scratch and practiced fashion sketching at the beginning of the semester.

This semester has been an action-packed, hands-on semester for Fashion Design Club, and the club’s E-Board cannot wait to launch into the spring semester with plans of fashion shows at other colleges, collaborations with more clubs and potentially Brandeis professors as guest speakers. Also in the pipeline for the spring semester is the club’s own fashion show. Fashion Design Club is eager to exhibit stu-

PHOTO COURTESY FASHION DESIGN CLUB

PHOTO BY KATIE DECKER-JACOBY/THE HOOT

dent-made clothing and accessories to the Brandeis community in the format of a real runway show.

As the semester comes to a close, Fashion Design Club’s last hurrah will take place at the Fall Fusion of the Arts event this Saturday, Dec. 8 from 8 p.m. to

10:30 p.m. in the Shapiro Campus Center (SCC) Multipurpose Room. Fashion Design Club will showcase student-made garments alongside other work from clubs such as Laurel Moon, Creative Writing Club, Pottery Club, Photography Club and Drawing Club.

Arts Calendar “Twelfth Night”

On Friday, Dec 7, Shakespeare theatrical troupe will premiere their rendition of “Twelfth Night,” a comedy of errors following shipwrecked twins. To be performed at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 7, and at 2 p.m and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec 8.

“JOOK-SING”

On Friday, Dec. 7, Club Cantonese presents their second annual culture show, “JOOK-SING,” which will include performances, especially with featured guest Jeffrey Chang, a Montreal-based singer. Catered food will be provided, with proceeds from the event benefiting Quincy Asian Resources Inc.

“Pulp Fiction” Screening

The Brandeis Film Collective will be hosting a screening of Quentin Tarantino’s postmodern classic “Pulp Fiction” in Mandel G03 on Friday, Dec 7 at 7 p.m.

The Nutcracker

Brandeis Ballet Club puts on their third-annual performance of The Nutcracker on Saturday, Dec 8 at 7 p.m. in the SCC Theater.

Up The Octave Semester Show: Enchanted Forest

Featuring songs by Eurythmics, Rihanna, Jon Bellion and more, UTO’s a cappella semester show will be performed in the Pollack Auditorium on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 5 p.m.

Tickets are $3 on pre-sale, and $5 at the door.

Closing Celebration: Musical Contemporaries in Passage

Celebrating the closing of “Passage” at the Rose Art Museum, classical vocal works composed in the same era as paintings on view will be performed by Mezzo-soprano Katherine Growdon in the galleries, beginning at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 8 in the Rose Art Museum.

Fall Fusion of the Arts

Campus art groups, including Laurel Moon, Creative Writing Club, Pottery Club, Photography Club, Drawing Club and Fashion Design will showcase student art abilities in SCC Multi-Purpose Room 236 on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. Free food will be provided.

Brandeis Improv Collective

Brandeis musicians showcase their improvisatory skills in this show on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. in the Slosberg Recital Hall.

Chamber Music Recital

Classical chamber music performed by students in MUS116, “Chamber Music: from Page to Stage.” Monday, Dec. 10 at 7 p.m. in Slosberg.

Messiah Sing

A Brandeis tradition, members of the community are invited to join this sing-along concert of works from Handel’s “Messiah” on Wednesday, Dec. 12 at 4 p.m. in the SCC Atrium. The tree lighting will commence at 5 p.m., with kosher cookies to follow.

Proscenium’s Fall Semester Show: “Shake- “On the Basis of Sex” Screening An advance screening of a new film about “the inspirscenium” Co-ed a cappella group presents their fall semester show, promising “a ton of musical theater and Disney melodies” in the Pollack Auditorium on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 2 p.m.

Brandeis Early Music Ensemble

Featuring the music of 15th, 16th and 17th-century Europe, the Ensemble explores early foundational works that inspired later classical composers. They will perform on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 3 p.m. in the Slosberg Recital Hall.

ing and spirited true story of young lawyer Ruth Bader Ginsburg as she teams with her husband Marty to bring a groundbreaking case before the US Court of Appeals and overturn a century of gender discrimination.” Wednesday, Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. in the Wasserman Cinemathèque.

Free tickets required—contact Lisa Brown (lisaebrown@ brandeis.edu) for more information.

New Music Brandeis: Lydian String Quartet

The Lydian String Quartet will perform new works on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 8 p.m. in the Slosberg Recital Hall.

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December 7, 2018

Boris’ Kitchen’s Fall Fest is a laugh riot

By Joshua Lannon staff

Boris’ Kitchen’s Fall Fest was a hilarious two-night spectacle of sketch comedy. From Santa Claus to a Scissor Goblin, this event had something for everyone to laugh at. The sketches themselves varied from topical humor to utterly ridiculous concepts like the aforementioned Scissor Goblin. The show was well-directed by Perry Letourneau ’20 and Anderson Stinson III ‘21 and their assistant director Jess Cocomazzi ‘21. The members of Boris’ Kitchen were joined on stage by two different sketch comedy groups from other colleges each night. These guests included Boston University’s “Callbacks,” Emerson’s “Jimmy’s Traveling All-Stars,” Skidmore’s “Sketchies” and Tuft’s “The Institute.”

While the main attraction was Boris’ Kitchen, there were several standout sketches from some of the other performers. In particular, the groups from Emerson and Boston University had some clever sketches in their repertoire.

Emerson’s group, “Jimmy’s Traveling All-Stars,” got quite a few laughs from their skit where a man and woman seemingly stuck in the 1940s flirt at a modern-day party. The troupe did a hysterical job capturing the accents and movements of the 1940s and juxtaposing it to a modern-day perspective.

Also of note was Boston University’s “Callbacks,” whose airplane sketch got people laughing before the lights went on. Despite an initial technical glitch with the lights, the troupe managed to get

the audience clapping and laughing before the lights went up.

When they finally got to perform their sketch, the audience laughed even harder. The sketch took place on an airplane, where the captain kept warning his passengers about his ex-wife who was on board. Although the captain and co-pilot are off stage, the true comedic effect of the sketch comes from the passengers’ reactions to the increasingly unstable captain’s accusations. Another of “The Callbacks’” sketches poked fun at the overused movie line “Sir, you better take a look at this,” in which a disgruntled sci-fi general becomes increasingly more enraged by his analyst’s inability to simply show him what’s going. The general’s increasing frustration as he runs back and forth across the stage is what makes this sketch really entertaining.

While the guest comedy groups were very entertaining, the fellows in Boris’ Kitchen had prepared quite the showcase of sketches for act two. With a total of 16 different sketches, the entire show was a tad long to sit through.

However, despite the number of sketches, there were surprisingly few bad ones. In fact, each sketch got a laugh from the audience at one point or another. The element that made these sketches so successful was the variety in writing and writers. In total, Boris’ Kitchen utilized 15 different writers, and this allowed each sketch to feel different and unique, coming from a different point of view.

Each sketch was funny, but more importantly, each sketch was different than the last.

Some stand out sketches include “Demographics” by Eric

Rossblum ’21 and “FUNeral” by Dane Leoniak ’20. Both these sketches make excellent use of comedic timing and awkward pauses. In Blum’s sketch, a girl is applying for a position when she is told by the secretary that she needs to be Jewish in order to fill demographics. Their interactions between the secretary and the girl are what really had the audience laughing, specifically during the long pauses when the secretary would slurp some of his noodle cup. The awkward pauses and the fact that the performer playing the secretary almost choked on his noodles made this sketch exceptionally funny.

In a similar manner, Leoniak’s sketch also made good use of comedic timing. In this sketch, a guy goes to a funeral and tries to cheer up two grieving parents by telling them a joke. While the joke itself and its punchline are funny, what really made this sketch hilarious was the drawn-out way in which the joke was told. The awkward silence as the guy flipped through the pages and the glares from the grieving parents set up the sketch for its punchline: a knock-knock joke. This sketch was a great example of excellent comedic timing and use of awkward silences.

Leoniak also had a hand in writing perhaps the funniest sketch of the Fall Fest: “Enter the Scissor Goblin.” Leoniak, along with Letourneau, are responsible for writing a sketch that features a goblin that would cut the ankles of those who use scissors irresponsibly. While “Enter the Scissor Goblin” is not the funniest sketch on its own, the titular goblin actually appears in several different sketches. A sketch can

PHOTO COURTESY YAEL MATLOW

turn from being a murder mystery in one moment to having a scissor-wielding goblin on a scooter chasing everyone around the stage. The sheer ridiculousness of the Scissor Goblin makes every appearance memorable, especially when it’s unexpected. Although the sketches with the Scissor Goblin have a similar ending, the set up in each to his entrance is always different. Each of these sketches are funny on their own, but as soon as someone says the word scissors, the Scissor Goblin will undoubtedly make an appearance. By having a different set-up for each sketch involving the Scissor Goblin, Leoniak and Letourneau were able to make each of his appearances unique

and avoided the joke becoming stale throughout the show.

Overall, the Fall Fest was a funny show with a variety of different but consistently hilarious sketches. Each sketch had its own unique humor thanks to the many writers involved with the show. The cast was energetic and dynamic and their excellent sense of comedic timing only added to the hilarity of their sketches.

The combined 16 skits as well as the performance from other colleges made the Fall Fest very long.

However, the excellent performances and well written skits kept the audience engaged throughout the performance. Boris’ Kitchen’s Fall Fest was truly a uniquely hilarious experience.

MELA showcases ‘shared connection’

By Noah Harper editor

Last Saturday, the Brandeis South Asian Student Association (SASA) hosted MELA, its annual culture show. This year’s “Raabta, our Shared Connection” had a variety of dance sequences and features celebrating South Asian cultures and displayed a vibrant, talented cultural community at Brandeis.

Countries represented included Pakistan, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Maldives with their flags displayed around Usdan’s Levin Ballroom. As one of the event’s emcees explained, Raabta is an Urdu word that means an “unexplained connection to a stranger.”

The event began with a slam poetry performance by Dean of Students Jamele Adams and Brandeis alum Usmaan Hamee-

di ’12. Hameedi spoke from the perspective of Bhagat Singh, the Indian nationalist revolutionary, with Adams assuming the role of radical African American political activist Malcolm X, trading off verses about fighting systemic political oppression. Both chose revolutionaries that were murdered for their beliefs. The piece ended with their voices in unison, the resounding cry of “This body will fight back!”

The Classical Indian Ensemble was up next, with a dance telling the story of the “Race around the world,” a Hindu myth about the brother gods Ganesha and Kartikeya, who compete for a special fruit from their father, Lord Shiva. Instead of traveling around the world three times like Kartikeya, Ganesha makes three circles around his parents, telling them that they are the whole world. The dancers presented this story with bright, distinct colors of dress ac-

centuated with ghungroos, strings of bells tied to the ankles, that added a live percussion element.

Particular standouts of the show were the Sophomore Dance, with the performers’ remarkable coordination to the fusion of classical and popular music (Drake), enhanced by complex, dynamic lighting and Chak De!, Brandeis’ premiere Bollywood fusion dance team, who were spectacular with the dancers’ exceptionally energetic and well-executed choreography. It was obvious that many hours of practice had gone into the piece, and the team should be proud of their accomplishment.

Another standout was Brandeis Bhangra, who performed a traditional style of dance from the Indian province of Punjab, mixed old and new, South Asian music fused with “Chun-Li” and “Plain Jane” with great synchronicity and sense of rhythm. One movement where dancers jumped over

PHOTOS BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

prop sticks was particularly impressive. There was also a fourpiece outfit from the Berklee Indian Ensemble, who performed admirably in the face of technical difficulties. The total group boasts 52 musicians overall, with videos that have racked up over 98 mil-

lion views, and will be performing a full show on December 15 at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

This year, MELA organizers selected The Citizens Foundation as their charity of choice. TCF is a Pakistani non-profit that provides education to the underprivileged, according to Citizens Foundation Director Abdullah Jafari, who gave a presentation during the show, the NGO has created over 200 schools throughout Pakistan.

A priority of the organization is educating and empowering women, in part by only employing women as teachers.

A thoroughly engaging and exciting show, MELA performers demonstrated great accomplishment and proud cultural tradition throughout, supported by a strong, enthusiastic crowd. There was also free Indian food following the show.

December 7, 2018

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The Brandeis Hoot

‘Vox Lux’ rides on shock value

By Jonah Koslofsky staff

If there’s one thing abundantly clear about “Vox Lux,” it’s that this movie fancies itself as the highest and most relevant art. Why else would the film open with one of the most brutal depictions of gun violence ever shown on screen?

It speaks volumes about writer/ director Brady Corbet’s latest feature that one must issue a content warning in order to even talk about it, let alone broach the subject of recommending it.

“Vox Lux” wastes no time introducing the audience to trauma: the film opens with a horrific school shooting in 1999, a “veiled” distortion of real events in Columbine, Colorado. If that’s not something you want to see, “Vox Lux” isn’t for you, and no one would hold that against you.

The purposefully gratuitous violence may serve as a catalyst for the story that follows, but no one should head into the theater ill-prepared. In the aftermath of this tragedy, we meet recovering thirteen-year-old Celeste Montgomery (Raffey Cassidy, the best part of “Tomorrowland”); at a vigil a few weeks later, Celeste sings for a mourning crowd, and her performance captures a nation.

NATALIE PORTMAN AS POP SINGER ‘CELESTE.’

These beats are connected by narration from Willem Dafoe, who talks the audience through Celeste’s rise through the music industry. About halfway through, the film flashes forward to 2017 “Celeste,” now a global superstar with a teenager of her own (who, not coincidentally, is also played

by Raffey Cassidy). The role of Celeste, meanwhile, is now taken

by Natalie Portman, who delivers

PHOTO FROM ROLLINGSTONE.COM

a high energy, scattershot performance that mostly works. Suffice it to say, Celeste’s lifestyle is far from healthy, with a Kanye-esque career and corrosive relationship with the limelight.

Once “Lux” finally finds her, Portman’s manic energy has a magnetism that should land her once again on the Academy’s shortlist, and Cassidy surely keeps up in her dual roles (though the

same cannot be said for a questionably-accented Jude Law).

Behind the camera, Corbert certainly has a lot to say about society (namely, that we live in one), though a few of his decisions are questionable at best. His camera is often static and stationary, and the reliance on narration doesn’t enhance the narrative.

For all Corbet’s efforts to make “Vox Lux” unique, it feels so ob-

viously in conversation with a few recent releases. The film has a striking resemblance to Alex Ross Perry’s “Her Smell” (though the latter doesn’t release until sometime in 2019, avoiding a “White House Down”/“Olympus Has Fallen” situation). But while Perry’s film oozed atmosphere, “Lux” lacks comparable aesthetic prowess. But the real parallel here is Bradley Cooper’s “A Star is Born,” another portrait of modern pop stardom. Corbet surely has a lot more quality commentary than Cooper – then again, Cooper’s cinematography could never be labeled “static.” If only there was a movie that could do both!

Perhaps Corbet’s boldest move is denying his audience an anthem like “Shallow” – for a movie about a megastar, “Vox Lux” lacks memorable music. Then again, that’s Corbet’s point: trauma does not necessarily produce meaningful art. While this central message is refreshing after the “no pain, no gain” ethos of countless flicks like “First Man,” it’s still worth questioning the necessity of the opening scene. The movie wants to be everything Celeste’s albums are not: meaningful, socially conscious, and provocative.

It’s somewhat successful – add “pretentious” and “well-acted” to that list, and you have a pretty good description of “Vox Lux.”

2018 movies in review: indie film delivers

By Noah Harper editor

This list is extremely subjective.

It’s not hard to see that my taste is for art films about trauma or depression or some combination of both. But if you can forgive me my opinions, I’d like to share the 10 films that meant the most to me in 2018.

“Roma,” a stunning black and white ode to the 1970s Mexico of director Alfonso Cuaron’s youth.

We follow Cleo, a young indigenous maid to a middle class family in Mexico City. “Roma” asks if the unhappiness of the proletariat and the bourgeoisie is comparable and renders the suffering of each with grace. The immaculate surround sound and epic cinematography means you should not watch this on your computer.

With the most powerful beach scene since “The 400 Blows,” this compelling, beautiful film is a clear Oscar contender.

In “First Reformed,” Ethan Hawke plays Reverend Toller, a man of faith possessed by doubt and depression about the apocalyptic realities of climate change, and his flock is dwindling. This film is as taut as it is bleak; its

questions resonant after it ends, such as what Reverend Toller writes on the sign outside the First Reformed Church: “Will God forgive us?”

“The Favourite” is Yorgos Lanthimos’ (“The Lobster,” “Dogtooth”) most heartwarming film yet—that is to say, one will not be plunged into a state of despair after leaving the theater, unlike with his other films. Two women (Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone) vie for the romantic affections of an ailing Queen Anne in seventeenth-century England. An exquisitely-designed aristocratic farce that puts powerful women at the forefront, with the men relegated to powdering of their wigs in the background. A ridiculous dark comedy I’ll definitely be seeing again.

Brandeis alumna Debra Granik’s ’85 “Leave No Trace” asks if we can ever move past our scars.

We follow a father and daughter living off the grid, forced back into society. The father, played by Ben Foster, is a veteran suffering with PTSD. The outside world is too much for him. But his daughter, Tom (Thomasin McKenzie), isn’t like him. Over the course of the film, Tom has to come to terms with her father’s trauma,

‘FIRST REFORMED’ Ethan Hawke and Amanda Seyfried.

PHOTO FROM THEDAILYGAZETTE.COM

and perhaps choose a different life for herself. The result is quiet and powerful and sad; a beautiful film if there ever was one.

In “You Were Never Really Here,” Joaquin Phoenix plays a bulky, deeply-traumatized hitman trying to break free from the cycles of violence and despair. It’s a play on “Taxi Driver” that feels fresh: Phoenix gives an emotive gonzo performance—a rare empathetic antihero. The film is hauntingly bleak, aided by composer (and lead Radiohead guitarist) Jonny Greenwood’s score.

It’s a wholly disturbing movie but not without a glimmer of hope.

“Won’t You Be My Neighbor” is the only movie this year that had me tearing up on multiple occasions. Director Morgan Neville adeptly portrays Fred Rogers’ radical empathy for children— how he considered them people rather than empty eyeballs to be marketed to—in this retrospective documentary. A wholesome antidote to the squalid morass of entertainment today; a film that will make you a better person for watching it.

“Eighth Grade” was more pulse-pounding than “Hereditary.” Bo Burnham’s profoundly-realized portrait of the anxieties of adolescence, the film stars newcomer Elsie Fisher as Kayla, an awkward eighth-grader trying to fit in. Kayla’s an exceedingly empathetic protagonist: her struggles aren’t played for laughs. Though the movie is funny, it’s also poignant, terrifying—a particularly scene alone in a car comes to mind—and we’re rooting for her the whole way through.

A unique blend of documentary and fictional storytelling, “American Animals” tells the story of four college students who attempted to steal a hand-drawn copy of John James Audubon’s “The Birds of America” from the Transylvania University Library.

‘ROMA’ Director Cuarón and Yalitza Aparicio as “Cleo.”

The characters are well-realized, and director Bart Layton connects them with their real-life counterparts, interspersing scenes with talking head interviews of the real people, creating a great deal of emotional heft to consequences of their actions. Suffice it to say, I am definitely not planning on robbing the Brandeis Archives.

“Madeline’s Madeline” is an avant-garde exploration of the creative process: We follow Madeline, played by the ascendant Helena Howard, a teenage theater student who begins working with a theater troupe to generate a performative work based on her relationship with her mother.

Told through jagged editing and a camera with a shallow depth of focus, the film quickly becomes a claustrophobic fever dream, a meditation on the problematic power dynamics of the creative process and the inherent weirdness of theater.

“Shoplifters” is an evolution of a specific tradition in Japanese film—those of Yasujiro Ozu, whose focused on the family, usually in a state of entropy. In “Shoplifters” we see an unconventional, almost entirely unrelated group of people living together, off the

PHOTO FROM TIMEMAGAZINE.COM

pension of an old woman in a house hemmed-in by much taller developments. They survive by stealing, the father figure teaching a young boy and girl how to shoplift from supermarkets and convenience stores. A ramshackle redefinition of family and social mores, “Shoplifters” won the Palme d’Or at Cannes earlier this year.

To me, 2018 was a great year for film. It reminded me that there are still talented directors able to get their movies made and shown—far from the apocalyptic cries that T.V. was going to render film irrelevant.

Some honorable mentions for movies that just barely missed the list: the powerful ending sequence of “BlackKklansman” (dir. Spike Lee), Jonah Hill’s AA mentor in “Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far on Foot” (Gus Van Sant), and the “Volk” dance-mutilation scene in “Suspiria” (Luca Guadagnino) and the wonderfully-absurd helicopter scene in “Deadpool 2” where everyone dies.

I’d love to hear your thoughts about what I missed or how wrong my opinions are—please, email me at eic@thebrandeishoot. com.

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Fall Arts in Photos

NIGHT FOR AFRICA

Zoë Fort ‘21 performs a poem.

ANOTHER SATURDAY NIGHT IN THE BASEMENT

PHOTO BY BEN BERISS/THE HOOT

ABIR @ FALL FLEX

Marz (Maegann Stafford ‘19) performed at Basement

While headliner Kiaara disappointed, Abir performed admirably.

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

PHOTO BY NOAH HARPER/THE HOOT

Records’s show.

IT’S TIME

LOOTED ART SYMPOSIUM

Former US Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat spoke on art restitution.

‘WALTZ OF THE FLOWERS’ Brandeis Ballet Club at Adagio’s Fall 2018 show.

You had to be there.

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

PHOTO BY NOAH HARPER/THE HOOT

‘OUR SHARED CONNECTION’ One of many stellar PHOTO COURTESY BENEDIKT REYNOLDS

performances at MELA 2018.

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT