The Brandeis Hoot 2/8/2019

Volume 16 Issue 4

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

February 8, 2019

Brandeis University’s Community Newspaper · Waltham, Mass.

‘DEIS Impact kicks off with law

Board of Trustees reports on Univ.

By Ryan Spencer

By Celia Young

editor

editor

Four alumni described how their life experiences and time at Brandeis guided them to careers in law and criminal justice in a panel discussion on Monday night.

A criminal defense attorney for the Roxbury Defenders, Aaron Bray ’13, said that his life experience was the main force leading him to a career in criminal justice, but that Brandeis helped him clarify his role.

“I’m from a pretty tough neighborhood in Boston, I grew up being exposed to guns, drugs,

President Ron Liebowitz released a report on Monday of the most recent Board of Trustees meeting, where the Board discussed university task forces to address maintenance and accessibility on campus, the new Springboard Funding Plan, the new General Education requirements, university response to U.S. Department of Education proposed changes to Title IX and the promotion of three faculty members.

The email, sent out to the Brandeis community Monday, detailed an overview of the topics

See ‘DEIS IMPACT, page 7

‘DEIS IMPACT KICK-OFF ‘DEIS Impact week kicks off in the SCC Atrium.

Class of 2022 Senator resigns

By Celia Young editor

Class of 2022 Senator Alex Chang ’22 resigned after delivering a speech to 12 senators at the weekly Senate meeting on Sunday. In his remarks, he blamed the atmosphere of the Student Union for his departure. Chang emphasized that his decision was a result of the recall of former International Student Senator Linfei Yang ’20, which Chang called a “political hit job.”

After arriving halfway through the Senate meeting, Chang read prepared remarks from his computer to the Senate, which he later shared with his constituents and The Brandeis Hoot in an email. After Vice President Aaron Finkel ’20 clarified that Chang would have to provide written notice of his resignation, Chang wrote on a piece of notebook paper, “Dear Mr. Vice President, I hearby [sic] resign from my position as Senator to

Alumna joins Mass. Senate

By Sabrina Chow editor

the Class of 2022 -Alex Chang.”

Chang’s statements referenced his piano project, a Senate Money Resolution (SMR) that faced difficulty being passed in the senate. He publicly complained over the project’s delay on Facebook, sparking tensions between Chang and the then-Vice President of the Student Union, Benedikt Reynolds ’19, who later resigned.

In his speech, Chang said, “The removal of Linfei Yang from office was a clandestinely coordinated, carefully calculated, political hit job, which was manufactured, orchestrated and spearheaded by the opponents of the piano project.”

Yang was removed after Senators Kent Dinlenc ’19 and Leigh Salomon ’19 circulated a petition through the international student body. The university registrar verified 110 signatures out of the total 128, and with See RESIGNATION, page 2

Inside This Issue:

News: Judiciary case rescheduled again Ops: Divest Deis now Arts: Pindell opens at Rose Art Museum Features: ’DEIS Impact: Ferguson remembered EDITORIAL: Ford Hall still not resolved

See BOARD, page 3

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

Democrat Becca Rausch ’01 was elected to the Massachusetts State Senate in the 2018 midterm election, the only Massachusetts State Senate candidate to flip a seat in the election cycle. Rausch is now the second Brandeis alum to be a part of the Massachusetts State Senate, alongside Republi-

BECCA RAUSCH ‘01 Becca

Swimming and diving

Page 3 Page 10 Page 13 Senior day was a success.

Page 7 SPORTS: PAGE 11 Page 9

can Dean Tran ’97.

According to a BrandeisNOW article, Rausch defeated a fourterm incumbent Republican who had also served an additional three terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives. She won by 2000 votes, or two percentage points. Rausch was officially sworn into office on Jan. 2, 2019.

“I ran for office because I knew I had more to give, and I knew my

district needed my leadership and meaningful engagement,” Rausch told The Brandeis Hoot in an email. “I ran to make a difference, to give voice to people previously unheard and to change the conversation.”

The BrandeisNOW article also stated that a “pinnacle moment in her commitment to intersectional social justice” happened when See STATE SENATE, page 3

Rausch joins the Mass. State Senate.

Ansel Adams Ansel Adams at the Museum of Fine Arts.

ARTS: PAGE 15

PHOTO FROM BRANDEIS.EDU

NEWS

2 The Brandeis Hoot

Class of 2022 senator resigns, cites recall election, piano project RESIGNS, from page 1

15.2 percent of the international student body signing, the recall was set in motion. Yang contests the verification process, saying it might have only consisted of verifying that the emails listed on the petition were correct rather than verifying that each student actually signed the petition.

Yang contests the recall results, saying he is still the International Student Senator. Over two-thirds of the voting international student body voted for Yang’s recall.

Yang, however, claims that twothirds of the entire international student body, or 484 students, had to vote for his recall.

Earlier this week, the Judiciary interpreted the Constitution as requiring only two-thirds of the voting body for a recall vote, after reconsidering their initial interpretation of two-thirds of the international student body.

In an interview with The Hoot, Yang said, “I will remain as the International Student Senator in my full capacity until the end of this term. However,” Yang continued, “Because of the toxic environment that has currently permeated the Senate completely, as Alex has also said, I’m going to be temporarily staying away from Union meetings in general.”

Yang said he would continue to go about his other duties as senator. He would not clarify when he would return to the Union. Both Chang and Yang say the vote to recall Yang was illegitimate, but a special election will be held to replace Yang and fill other Union positions, as was discussed in the Sunday Senate meeting.

Chang’s speech continued, “Throughout the long and complex saga of our piano project, Linfei helped me every step of the way, providing me with in-

valuable advice, assistance and support. As a freshman who had just joined this organization, and as someone with little experience in navigating the very complicated and oftentimes confusing environment of this Student Union, I found in Linfei not just an ally, not just a mentor, but a friend.”

He continued, “And when I saw this friend of mine have his reputation dragged through the mud and subsequently forced out of office, in what can only be described as a gross display of petty political vengeance, I was not only disgusted but disappointed.”

Chang then apologized to the student body, his constituents and to Finkel. He also criticized Finkel for not defending Yang.

After his speech, Senator for Massell Quad Kendal Chapman ’22 responded to Chang. “I extend my sympathies to you because I think you did face a lot of unfair treatment,” she said. “But there’s a difference between rising above it and wallowing in it and listening to other people telling you what went wrong.”

“Please do not think that you are completely unexcused in this,” she continued. “And you do admit it, and I appreciate that, but there’s a difference from admitting it and growing from it. I hope in the fu-

ture we can work together, and I’d love to hear your ideas so we can still get them implemented but recognize the fact that you were not completely removed from this, and there was a reason that Linfei was recalled and it was not pettiness.”

Chang spoke to The Brandeis Hoot about the moment he realized he wanted to resign, saying winter break gave him time to reflect on the Senate and that when he returned and felt that nothing had changed in the Senate, he decided to resign.

Chang spoke about his announcement to his constituents.

“My constituents have been very supportive,” he said. “After the piano thing they knew how much I had gone through.”

Chang and Yang also spoke about their future projects outside the Union. Chang mentioned the Hackathon and Branchan, an image board site Chang moderates, and went on to talk about a “surprise.”

“I have something that I’m working on … but it’s going to be a surprise,” Chang said. He continued, “Brandeis is going to love it, trust me.” Linfei Yang also said he had a surprise. When pressed, the two would not say what their respective surprises entailed.

PHOTO FROM HOOT ARCHIVES

February 8, 2019

IN THE SENATE: Feb. 3, 2019 •

Student Union Vice President Aaron Finkel ’20 swore in the new members of the Senate. One of the senators for the class of 2022, Alex Chang, announced his resignation.

In light of this, there will be another round of special elections held. The positions that need to be filled include Senator of the Class of 2022, Senator of the Class of 2021, International Student Senator and Myra Kraft Transitional Year Program Senator.

•

The Senate also unanimously voted for the enactment of a Student Union Code of Conduct. It was created by Finkel as well as members of the Executive board and the Senate, to prevent the repetition of issues that arose in the previous semester. The Code of Conduct includes repercussions for violations, including suspension for up to two meetings. It will apply to all members of the Union.

•

Senator Jake Rong ’21 proposed an amendment to change the voting procedure in the Senate. There were issues with members changing their vote after the first round, which was inefficient and took up more time than necessary.

The new amendment states that Senators can only cast a vote once, without the possibility of changing it, which would prevent Senators from being influenced by someone else’s vote. The Senate will vote on this change at the next meeting.

•

The Senate also passed a name change request from Project Plus One (PP1) at Brandeis to “Partners in Health Engage Brandeis.” The original purpose of the club was to aid with a sustainable development project with Bairo Pite Clinic, a grassroots community health organization that provides medical services for poverty-stricken families in East Timor. The club partnered with a non-governmental organization that recently disbanded. However, the club decided that they still want to continue doing the work they do but under a different name.

•

The Health and Safety Committee is continuing its work on placing condoms in bathrooms in residence halls on campus. At the moment, they are not sure whether to put them in North and Massel Quads or in East Quad. The committee will also be addressing the issues of BranVan Safety and working with BCC to make sure it provides services that students actually need.

•

The Services and Outreach Committee reported that it is working on organizing the Midnight Buffet and Meet the Union. The Social Justice and Diversity Committee is working on a Black History Month showcase.

•

The Club Support is continuing its work on getting every club an advisor and the creation of a new club guide. The Rules Committee is working to introducing one amendment to the Bylaws per week as part of a larger project of improving and clarifying the Union Bylaws.

-Sasha Skarboviychuk

Office of Equal Opportunity director named

By Sabrina Chow editor

Sonia Jurado will become the inaugural Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) on March 18, 2019, according to an email sent out to the Brandeis community by Mark Brimhall-Vargas, the Chief Diversity Officer for the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

As the director, Jurado will also be “the Title IX and ADA/504 Coordinator for Brandeis and ensure that the university is compliant with Title VI, Title VII, Title IX, ADA, Rehabilitation Act Section 504 and other state and federal laws relating to bias, discrimination, harassment, sexual misconduct, dating/domestic violence and stalking,” according to the email.

The Office of Equal Opportunity will be found in Swig Hall.

Jurado has worked various different Title IX and ADA/504 Coordinator positions at previous

universities, including Wellesley College, Mount Ida College and Tufts University. According to the email, Jurado conducted a multitude of investigations and not only revised but also developed policies and conducted different trainings for faculty, staff and students at the above schools regarding issues of discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct.

Similar to her position at other universities, Jurado will conduct different investigations about all “allegations of discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct brought forward by faculty, staff, and students and will be responsible for reviewing and developing University policy regarding these issues,” stated the email. She will also lead different trainings for all faculty, staff and students in regards to discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct.

Brimhall-Vargas told The Brandeis Hoot in an email, “I am delighted that Sonia has agreed to assume the Director position in OEO...She emerged as having all

the requisite skills to lead OEO and provide the entire Brandeis community a safe place to bring complaints of bias, harassment and discrimination,” he said.

“She also has extensive training experience that will enhance our community’s understanding of their rights and responsibilities as we create a more inclusive campus environment. We’re very lucky to have her join our campus.”

Jurado told The Hoot in an email that she is excited to be part of this important step at Brandeis.

“The fact that Brandeis is opening an Office of Equal Opportunity is an important and significant step that the University is taking towards its commitment to create an equitable and inclusive environment within its community.

The opportunity to be part of this noteworthy development for the institution was something I really wanted to be a part of,” she said.

Jurado said it would take time for her to get to know the campus and what is and is not. She said t would also take her time to figure

out how best to work within the community, what initiatives have been implemented and what still needs to be implemented.

“With that perspective, I anticipate that I will be looking at everything with fresh eyes to see what next steps make sense to help make the Office of Equal Opportunity effective in addressing all issues of discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct within our community,” Jurado

said in her email.

Before coming to higher education, Jurado was a practicing employment attorney working as a Corporate Employment Counsel for Liberty Mutual in Boston as well as private practice at a law firm in Chicago, I.L. She finished her undergraduate degree at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and completed her law degree at Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

February 8, 2019

NEWS 3

The Brandeis Hoot

President Liebowitz reports on January Board of Trustees meeting BOARD, from page 1

the Board discussed on Jan. 2729 as well as the reports from the various Board committees.

The Board of Trustees discussed making Brandeis more accessible and the feedback from the campus climate report. This report, by two independent investigators, was initiated after the firing of and drawn-out Human Resources investigation into former basketball coach Brian Meehan, who was fired for abusive and racist behavior in April of 2018, according to an article from The Brandeis Hoot.

The Board discussed the accessibility forum, a discussion with administrators about how accessible the Brandeis campus is to students with disabilities. The forum met some criticism from students, according to an earlier Hoot editorial. “The trustees agreed that we must pursue, as a high priority, specific recommendations on services for students, faculty and staff with disabilities, both physical and nonphysical,” the email read. Provost Lisa Lynch also spoke on the “dramatic increase in the use of mental health services by students,” read the email.

The board reviewed feedback received after the release of the second report on Brandeis’ climate, said the email. “We continued our conversation about ways

trustees and university administrators can work together to advance our progress on issues of diversity, equity and inclusion,” it continued.

Liebowitz briefed the board on proposed Title IX changes, which were proposed by the U.S. Department of Education in early January.

“I expressed our concerns that the proposals present an overly prescriptive approach that would inhibit our ability to craft procedures, unique to our particular circumstances, that ensure equity, fairness and respect for all community members,” wrote Liebowitz in the email.

The email also touched on university funding, especially the “Springboard Funding Plan,” which includes increased endowment spending and bond refinancing to fund university maintenance projects, and new faculty and administrative hires, according to an earlier article from The Hoot. The email detailed several different sources of funds for the university, coming not only from fundraising but also from the new financial framework.

The Institutional Advancement Committee discussed fundraising for the upcoming fiscal year (FY2019).

“Through December 31, 2018, fundraising results have achieved 58 percent of the FY19 goal,” the email read. The new fiscal year

will begin after June, and fundraising is projected to meet expectations, said the email. This committee also received a report on the office of Institutional Advancement’s goals to grow as an office, engage alumni friends and parents about the “Framework for Our Future” and to encourage future funding opportunities.

The “Framework for Our Future” is Liebowitz’s three-point plan to strengthen Brandeis, by improving the student learning and living experience, supporting research, creativity and collaborative innovation, and honoring

Brandeis’ Jewish roots. Liebowitz announced this plan on Oct. 29, 2018.

Alumni giving increased from FY18, from 29 percent to 55 percent in FY19, due in part to the $10 million gift from Toshizo “Tom” Watanabe ’73 for international students. Without his contribution, alumni giving is still larger than FY18, at 35 percent.

The Resources Committee reported on the new financial framework, which was developed over the past two years, according to an earlier Hoot article. The board found that the original

FY19 budget had a slight operating surplus and expects a similar surplus for the second quarter.

The Investment Committee reported on a positive return of 1.2 percent, as compared to the policy benchmark return of -4.7 percent, a greater return than expected for the calendar year of 2018.

The email also announced the promotion of two faculty members to full professors. Professor Pengyu Hong (COMP) and Professor Susan Lichtman (FAS) were promoted, and Amy Singer (HIST) was awarded tenure and full professor status.

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

Becca Rausch ’01 joins Mass. State Senate MASS., from page 1

she was 15 and found a swastika drawn on her desk in high school.

Rausch’s classmate, Jaclyn Tetenbaum-Novatt ’01, joined her for the campaigning. Over the course of campaigning, Rausch and her team held a number of events and knocked on the doors of thousands of homes in the Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex Senate Districts, spanning 12 different communities, some even as far as the southern border of Rhode Island.

Even though the Democratic

field was crowded for the seat, Rausch received over 50 percent of the votes because of her campaigning positions—improving transparency and accountability, mandatory paid parental leave and intersectional justice reform, according to BrandeisNOW. Rausch told The Hoot in an email that her biggest goal in office is “to represent my district to the best of my ability. To me, this means working with my colleagues to create bold change, being as transparent and accessible as possible with my constituents, and investing energy and innovation in the areas in which my dis-

trict needs the most assistance.”

Rausch listed some of these areas as health care, education and transportation.

According to an article published by BrandeisNOW, Rausch studied American studies and completed a program in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies.

“At Brandeis, I came to understand the issues of systemic challenges and injustices in a completely new way,” Rausch said in the article. “I had conversations with people with different perspectives and life experiences than mine … The relationships I built at Brandeis played a sig-

nificant role in my becoming the person, parent and legislator I am now.”

Rausch also told The Hoot, “I learned about and critically analyzed the social and legal systems of this country, including the various points of injustice and inequity. I’ve spent my career working on and through these issues in a variety of different ways.”

Rausch encourages students interested in pursuing politics to talk to as many people as they can. “Every politician’s path to office is different. Every politician does the job differently. Every politician will have advice

for you,” Rausch told The Hoot.

“Your job is to figure out which advice to take.”

She also says to partake in internships relating to politics.

“There is no substitute for seeing the political system in action, up close and personal, just as there is no substitute for conversations with current or former electeds.”

Rausch was also a community advisor (CA), director and choreographer of B’yachad Israeli dance group and an executive board member on Brandeis Hillel.

Rausch also was involved in the first Culture X show at Brandeis.

Judiciary case rescheduled again, expected to be heard after February break

By Celia Young editor

The Judiciary hearing has been rescheduled for a second time due to cancellations from the Executive Board (E-Board) Party, according to Chief Justice Morris Nadjar ’19. The new date for the hearing has not been set but will be after the Brandeis February break.

The hearing was originally set for Sunday, Jan. 27 but had to be rescheduled after Chief Justice Gabriella (Gaby) Gonzalez Anavisca ’19 resigned for personal reasons. The Judiciary then elected Morris Nadjar ’19 as the new Chief Justice on Jan. 28. After the

election, the hearing was set for Sunday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. but was rescheduled again.

The E-Board party members had some “last minute conflicts” but didn’t specify why they could not attend, according to an email to The Brandeis Hoot from Nadjar.

The Judiciary case will decide on four claims: If the Student Union is a club as defined by the Constitution, or a governing body for clubs and organizations; if the Allocations Board (A-Board) can fund the Union; if the Union is guaranteed all of its benchmark funding goal of $50,000; and if the term “benchmark” as it appears in the Constitution refers to a minimum funding amount or a funding goal.

Initially, Nadjar hoped that the case would move quickly and transparently to resolve the growing contention between the A-Board and the E-Board of the Union. “Animosity is growing between the Union,” Morris said in an earlier interview with The Brandeis Hoot.

“We want to be as transparent as possible,” Morris said of the judicial hearing process in an earlier article. “We want to make sure also that the university has precedent and that we understand the Student Union’s place now and for future generations to avoid these kinds of conflict.”

The case would resolve the question of A-Board powers in the union and define what, if not the A-Board, would provide

a funding mechanism for the Union government. The Judiciary is expected to interpret the Constitution to decide the four claims.

The Constitution as it stands refers to the word “benchmark” in Section 2 Article 1-1 when describing the Union Government Fund, saying, “[The] Union Government Fund… shall fund the affairs and operations of the Union and shall be distributed to the Union Government. A benchmark for this fund shall be $50,000.”

The A-Board is defined by the Student Union Constitution Article 5 Section 1 as, “The Allocations Board shall establish the budgets from the Student Activities Fund for Chartered and Secured Clubs in accordance with

this Constitution and its Bylaws, and shall publish their allocations each funding period, henceforth referred to as a marathon, to the Student Union and to the student body.”

The case, when it is heard by the Judiciary, will involve presentations from members of the E-Board, specifically three petitioners, Student Union President Hannah Brown ’19, Chief of Staff Emma Russell ’19 and Vice President Aaron Finkel ’20 and presentations from the A-Board.

When it is decided, the case will establish precedent for future cases involving constitutional interpretations of the A-Board and E-Board’s powers in the Union.

4 NEWS

The Brandeis Hoot

February 8, 2019

New open access resource promotes peace at a low cost

By Sarah Terrazano editor

An open textbook for the course PAX 120b: Inner Peace and Outer Peace was launched on Jan. 23 in a growing university effort to help combat the high costs of textbooks and educational resources.

The textbook, titled “The Inner Peace Outer Peace Reader,” is written by Peter Gould and John Ungerleider, lecturers in the Peace, Conflict and Coexistence Studies Program (PAX).

The textbook is an Open Educational Resource (OER), or an educational resource that anyone “is licensed to retain, reuse, revise, remix and redistribute,” according to the library’s website.

An OER can be an article, book, audio recording, image, video, software tool or other academic resource.

“The Inner Peace Outer Peace Reader” was supported by an Open Educational Resources Grant through the Library and the Center for Teaching and Learning. Grants are awarded between $500 to $1000 to faculty interested in creating or adapting open and affordable educational resources into their classes, according to the grant website.

“Consider that learning materials often exceed over $1000 a year

for students. As a result, students may not buy the learning materials, pirate them or use other cost mitigating strategies that have a negative impact on their education,” says the grant website.

OER grant recipients join forces with a librarian and an instructional designer from the Rabb School to bring their projects to fruition. For “The Inner Peace Outer Peace Reader,” Gould and Ungerleider were assisted by social sciences librarian Maric Kramer and instructional designer Lance Eaton.

OERs and other open access learning materials show a shift from traditional, copyrighted or restrictive publishing to a model where educational resources can be freely accessed online. They are made possible through Creative Commons licensing, which––unlike traditional copyright––allows people to use, edit and redistribute work with minimal restrictions.

“The Inner Peace Outer Peace Reader” is provided under a Non-Commercial Creative Commons licence, which allows users to share the material as long as attribution is given. It is not used for commercial purposes and modified versions are not distributed.

PAX 120b has been offered by Gould and Ungerleider every

spring at Brandeis since 2010. The mission of the class, according to the book’s introductory note, “is to encourage a personal interior practice for people who want to do Outer Peace work.” The class used to be held in Castle Commons before the majority of the Castle’s towers were torn down.

The castle, write Gould and Ungerleider, was a relic “whose function as a dorm and classroom didn’t stand up to the scrutiny of students and administrators in the high-tech world.” Is PAX 120b also a relic, they wonder? While they call it “old fashioned” in the

sense that students must attend each class and fully participate, they describe how the course shifts over time and both the students and instructors alike “discover new connections between Inner and Outer Peace.”

The OER textbook is a way to keep adapting and moving the class forward. It isn’t a coincidence that a textbook on Inner and Outer Peace is available open access, Gould and Ungerleider note in the Acknowledgements.

“The practice of Inner Peace (IP) as described in this book and class is open to all, present and afford-

able with no gatekeeper.”

The OER grants have supported several other projects since its inception in 2016, such as an ecology course by Assistant Professor Colleen Hitchcock (BIOL/ENVS) and low-cost materials for David Engerman’s history course “U.S. Responses to Global Inequality: Recent Histories.”

“The Inner Peace Outer Peace Reader” can be found at https:// innerouterpeace.pressbooks. com/. The library website maintains a database of other open access resources available to students and educators.

PHOTO FROM BRANDEIS.EDU

February 8, 2019

NEWS 5

The Brandeis Hoot

Neuroscience professor honored with National Academy of Sciences Award

By Sabrina Chow editor

Eve Marder ’69, the Victor and Gwendolyn Beinfield Professor of Neuroscience, was awarded the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Award in the Neurosciences earlier this year. Known as one of the most influential neuroscientists of her generation according to the NAS website, Marder’s research during the past 40 years has given insights into the “fundamental processes of animal and human brains.”

The award was established by the Fidia Research Foundation and comes with a $25,000 prize.

Marder is just the second woman to ever win this award since its inception in 1988.

Marder’s research focuses on the ganglia, small groups of neurons, in lobsters and crabs. The ganglia has 30 neurons, which allows them to be more easily analyzed and recorded. According to the NAS website, the early years of Marder’s research showed that neuronal circuits are not “hardwired,” but have the ability to be reconfigured to produce various outputs.

Her research is the subject of the book, “Lessons from the Lobster: Eve Marder’s Work in Neuroscience,” written by Charlotte Nassim. Published by MIT Press,

the book describes “how forty years of research on thirty neurons in the stomach of a lobster has yielded valuable insights from the study of the human brain,” according to the MIT Press website.

Lily He ’19 has been working in Marder’s lab since she was a firstyear and has seen the environment of the lab shift throughout her years at Brandeis. “I really enjoy getting to know everyone and Eve over science, snacks and puzzles,” she told The Brandeis Hoot in an interview.

Some of her fondest memories were during lab meetings, where the Principal Investigator (PI) of the lab meets with all the members of their labs to go over everything that has been happening.

“We sometimes have lab meetings where we just have people throwing puns left and right and Eve is giving everyone sass and we can’t even fight it because she’s always right,” said He. She also commented on how they go over to Marder’s house for parties and work on very large jigsaw puzzles.

When looking for labs to join, He was initially drawn to Marder because of the accessibility of her work and her value as a PI. “As a PI, she really cares about everyone in the lab and the work we do.

She’s very invested in our growth and development and our learning, from undergraduates to postdoctoral students,” she told The

Hoot. “She always has a sharp eye for areas of growth that we might have and frequently gives us very helpful advice because of how much she knows from personal experience and from working in this area for such a long time.”

He, speaking on behalf of not only her other lab members but also the scientific community, is “very happy to see recognition for her [Marder’s] groundbreaking work, perseverance in this small field, extraordinary efforts in mentoring and teaching and genius in her research over the years.”

This NAS Award in the Neurosciences is awarded every three years to “recognize extraordinary contributions to the progress of the neuroscience fields, including neurochemistry, neurophysiology, neuropharmacology, developmental neuroscience, neuroanatomy, and behavioral and clinical neuroscience,” according to the NAS website.

NAS is a private, non-profit society of distinguished scholars, according to their website. Started by an Act of Congress, signed

by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, “the NAS is charged with providing independent, objective advice to the national on matters related to science and technology … [and is] committed to furthering science in America, and its members are active contributors

to the international scientific community,” states their website.

The National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Medicine are also under NAS. Membership into NAS is seen as a “mark of excellence in science and is considered one of the highest honors that a scientists can receive.” There are currently around 2400 members and almost 500 foreign associates.

In order to become a member of NAS, current Academy

members have to submit formal nominations, which is followed by an extensive vetting process.

Members of the Academy vote in the annual meeting each year for new members, with a maximum of 100 new members each year.

All members must be U.S. citizens with a maximum of 25 years as non-citizens, who can be elected as foreign associates.

Marder got elected into NAS in 2007 and will receive the award on Apr. 28 at the 156th NAS Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

PHOTO COURTESY BRANDEISNOW

Speaker shares story of Standing Rock protest movement

By Matt Rothenberg special to the hoot

Jennifer Weston, a professor at UMass Boston and a member of the Lakota Native American community, shared the story of the Standing Rock protest movement in a lecture on Wednesday.

Weston, who is a researcher, writer and producer focusing on issues concerning the Native American community, has worked for the past 20 years on various language restoration projects, which includes his time as the Director of the Wôpanâak Language Reclamation Project.

Weston came to speak on Wednesday as a part of the Native American and Indigenous Studies Colloquia Series to shed

light on the history of the Standing Rock protest movement, how youth organized different Native American communities to help delay the Dakota Access Pipeline’s construction and how the protests unfolded on the ground and in the media.

Weston recounted that with the consent of the state government, the developers of the Dakota access pipeline chose to redirect it from North Dakota’s capital, Bismarck, through Standing Rock, N.D. This decision initiated protests from the Native American communities living on Standing Rock lands.

In response, these groups came together to organize and curtail the project. Weston recounted how the tribes and community at first tried to rely on past Native American treaty agreements with

the Federal Government in lawsuits and other legal proceedings but were met with their efforts being ignored.

So, in response, youth members throughout the different Standing Rock communities sought to organize a larger protest movement rooted in tribal rituals, which included group prayer, the building of teepees and other native practices.

It was important that this protest movement was rooted in these traditions because the land of Standing Rock is particularly sacred to the different tribes that inhabit it and key to their survival. The land contains sacred burial grounds and worship sites.

Weston said that the youth oriented their protest tactics around tribal practices to emphasize the importance of Standing Rock as a

piece of earth that they are connected to. One youth group ran together all the way from North Dakota to Washington, D.C. with their tribal eagle staff and worked to receive over 100,000 signatures against the pipeline’s creation.

West recounted that over the course of the protest over 10,000 people attended and that 800 arrests were made.

She said that the Native American protesters received “an egregious misrepresentation” in the media for being violent and dangerous despite them sticking to their tribal practices.

Though the pipeline was halted by the Obama administration just days after his election, President Trump gave the go-ahead to the company in charge of creating the pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners.

“I firmly believe that I’ll live to see the day when this pipeline permit expires, and our community will participate in its removal from our community territory,” West said.

“I think this is a temporary victory for the fossil fuels and the extraction industries in this country. In our communities, we have to take the long view because we are educated and grounded in ceremonies that our families have been practicing for thousands of years, and the events that happened this century and in the previous one are very much temporary circumstances.”

The event was co-sponsored by the Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences, Religious Studies Program, America Studies Program and the Department of Anthropology at Brandeis University.

Lurie Institute names eight members for fellowship

By Ryan Spencer editor

The Lurie Institute for Disability Policy at Brandeis named eight members to the inaugural class of the Nathan and Toby Starr Fellowship on Thursday.

The program aims to cultivate research expertise to increase undergraduate students’ understanding of disability policy, according to a press release.

The eight students named to the fellowship—Julia Brown ’19, Monica Chen ’19, Shoshi Finkel ’20, Shira Levie ’20, Alanna Levy ’19, Rachel Steinberg ’20, Norma Stobbe ’20 and Max Tang ’19— will train under the institute’s researchers and engage in community events on disability to develop knowledge in disability research and policy. Fellows named to the program will also have the opportunity to contribute to a

peer-reviewed publication.

“We are delighted to welcome these talented students to the Lurie Institute,” stated Monika Mitra, PhD, and Nancy Lurie Marks, a professor of Disability Policy at the Heller School, in the press release.

“It is critical to educate young researchers about the many societal changes spurred by the disability rights movement, and the vital role that cross-disciplinary

research has played in informing disability policy,” they said.

Throughout the semester-long program, the Star Fellows will pursue research in areas such as health policy, disability support systems, education, disability law and civic engagement of people with disabilities, according to the release.The fellows will attend the University of Alabama’s Symposium on Disability Rights with Lurie Researchers and will meet

disability activists such as Judy Heumann, who became famous for her successful civil disobedience supporting Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

Part of the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, the Lurie Institute advances programs and policies that improve the well being of people with disabilities and their families through research and training initiatives, according to the release.

6 The Brandeis Hoot

FEATURES

February 8, 2019

‘DEIS Impact 2019 Inclusivity at Brandeis talks back

By Shruthi Manjunath editor

As part of ’Deis Impact, on Wednesday, Feb. 6, the Caribbean Cultural Club hosted an event called “The Talk Back Session: Inclusion in Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs).”

The event consisted of a panel of students, alumni and faculty answering questions posed by the Carribean Cultural Club E-board. The panel included Julivic Marquez ’18; Dr. Chad Williams, the chair of the department of African and African American Studies (AAAS); Akim Sanni ’21; Elias Rosenfeld ’20, a previous recipient of DACA; Faith Smith, an Associate Professor in the AAAS department; Makayla Richards ’20 and R Matthews ’19.

The event centered around the theme of inclusion and what it means to work towards inclusivity when brown and black people are invisible in certain environments, such as predominantly white institutions. The panel discussed instances in the past in which they felt excluded and how they worked towards promoting inclusivity for future generations at predominantly white institutions.

The first of several questions that were posed to the panel asked them to describe how being in a predominantly white space affected their academic or professional career.

Each panel member shared their experience of pursuing education and feeling trapped based on the way other people treated them. However, many of these individuals discussed how they

got over this feeling of seclusion and fought metaphorical battles so that future generations would have representation in predominantly white institutions.

Of the seven people who spoke, the responses of three speakers struck me as unique and important to bring to light. Specifically, Sanni described how he immigrated to Massachusetts at the age of sixteen without the knowledge of how to speak English. While learning English, Sanni also discovered many of the social norms of American society, specifically the differences in the way white people treat him and other people they perceive as immigrants, versus the way they treat other white people.

He explained that “[w]hite people try to annihilate your roots” and often use one’s incomprehension of the culture or language as ammunition to get what they want. He attempts to educate people by bringing them to spaces he is comfortable in, educating them and asking them to understand where he is coming from.

While Sanni focused on the process of learning how to navigate his interactions with others, Rosenfeld described how he learned how to fight for representation, not only for himself but for others around him who are in a similar situation. Elias came to the United States from Venezuela; however, while his mom was applying for citizenship, she passed away. As a result, Rosenfeld was undocumented and did not realize this until he tried to apply for a learner’s permit but could not fill out his social security number. He felt isolated and many questions floated around in his head, such

as why he did not have a status as a documented immigrant, if he should tell his friends about his situation and if they would support him. Finally, he found inclusivity in advocacy, by traveling to Washington, D.C. with other dreamers and lobbying members of Congress. He explained that “I am working to make life easier for those who are younger than me.”

Associate Professor Faith Smith highlighted her feelings of exclusivity as a result of certain stereotypes that have been created about black or brown people. Smith emigrated from Jamaica to Madison, Wisconsin. She stopped in New York to visit family, and she remembered getting on the plane to Wisconsin and seeing no other brown or black faces. She recalled the first few times in which, when she walked by, parents would pull their children close to them, or people would clutch their bags.

She highlighted that through these encounters, it is almost as if you are “re-experiencing yourself as a dangerous person.” Yet she not only talked about her exclusivity but also how when she speaks, white people relax because they realize she is educated and does not display the characteristics of what white people think is a stereotypical African-American. She illustrated the fact that different black identities are often pitted against each other based on stereotypes that white people create.

The panel then continued on to discuss what inclusion entails, why people seek inclusion and how much labor people must expend in order to create inclusion.

Richards highlighted how the inclusion people seek is not simply being given a space to do work or

PHOTO BY SHRUTHI MANJUNATH/THE HOOT

a voice that can be used to create change, but rather, inclusion in the founding principles of educational institutions.

Inclusion is providing resources for black and brown students and all minority groups. Similarly, Marquez described how being included involves the ability to access information and resources, which provides opportunities and allows people to grow and succeed.

Rosenfeld, similarly, illustrated how inclusion for undocumented immigrants means becoming citizens of the United States. Rosenfeld works towards providing aid for undocumented students on campus. Brandeis, along with other predominantly white institutions, needs to find institutional ways of providing inclusion through resources and aid.

Overall, faculty and students of color must unite and work together to create new paths for future students, whether that be creating new classes or providing more opportunities through aid.

A lot has been done over time to

provide inclusion and representation for minority groups here on campus. Specifically, the AAAS department celebrating 50 years is a major accomplishment. However, much more needs to be done in order to create more representation for current and incoming minority students at Brandeis, along with students all over the country who may face a lack of inclusion at predominantly white institutions.

We may not all feel this way, but, firstly, being a citizen of this country is a privilege that many people take for granted, as without citizenship, individuals do not have representation or the ability to exercise their rights.

Secondly, having the ability to pursue an education is also a privilege, because, without it, progress cannot be created in society.

Without education, we are nothing. We have ways to go and the only way to continue is by pushing forward and creating a path for others along with working together hand in hand and standing tall.

Faith leader and advocate discusses intersection between environmental and social justice

By Rachel Saal editor

Environmental justice and social justice are inherently linked and interdependent, according to an ecological justice advocate who spoke on Monday in Rapaporte Treasure Hall as part of ’Deis IMPACT. Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, a faith leader and climate justice activist, said that she saw a connection between caring for communities like the one she had grown up in and caring about environmental justice.

“There is a deep connection between what happens if our planetary resources can no longer sustain us, and the lives of the most marginalized people who struggle to sustain themselves in the economy as it is now,” she said.

After Hurricane Katrina, White-Hammond expressed that she was devastated to see how minorities were largely affected. “I watched the ferocity of the natural disaster, and then, I was probably even more disappointed by the unnatural disaster of racism and classism,” said White-Hammond.

“People were calling folks refugees

who grew up here. People were calling black people looking for food looters while white people looking for food were survivors.”

White-Hammond said that there were many other examples of the storm disproportionately affecting some groups following Hurricane Katrina, such as prisoners being abandoned in a flooded jail in New Orleans, Louisiana.

White-Hammond said that anyone who cares about social justice should also care about environmental justice. After a natural disaster occurs, someone who cares about criminal justice, gender equality or affordable housing should care about the amount of prisons that don’t have plans, the amount of women that end up bearing the burden of reviving communities or the amount of people in affordable housing that are forced to relocate.

“There’s not a justice issue that I care about or one that you care about that will not be deeply impacted by climate change,” said White-Hammond.

A graduate of Stanford University ’01 and Boston University’s School of Divinity, White-Hammond is currently the pastor of New Work AME Church in Boston, a faith fellow for the Green Justice Coalition and Minister for

Ecological Justice at Bethel AME Church. She said she relates her work as a faith leader with her work reaching out to marginalized members of society.

White-Hammond grew up in Roxbury, MA, during the height of the War on Drugs, which led to an increase in violence in her neighborhood during her upbringing. The disconnect that White-Hammond saw between the issues that were within her community and the priorities of the environmental movement initially made her move away from the movement. She said that she associated environmental advocacy with movements that the upper-middle class cared about like “saving the dolphins.” However, once White-Hammond began to see how environmental issues directly impacted her community, she began to take more of an interest.

“I started saying to myself, if I leave the work on this issue to people [who] have not demonstrated care for my community before, and if many of the people on the front line of this issue are people that look like me and live in neighborhoods like mine, how can I not be at the table, talking about moving this issue, because this is life or death,” said

White-Hammond. “If we don’t get these relationships right, then quite frankly, I’m not sure we deserve to survive.”

White-Hammond spent 20 minutes of the event leading a game called “Four Corners” in which she would say a controversial statement and the audience would organize themselves into categories of strong agreement, agreement, disagreement, and strong disagreement.

White-Hammond said that the purpose of the activity was to show that every conversation is nuanced and complicated, and that no one has all of the answers.

“The idea that everyone is broken in their own way really resonated with me and [White-Hammond] really embodied what ’deis IMPACT is meant for: to show and expose every different angle,” said Sabrina Chow ’21, the main student organizer for the event. “I really enjoyed that she provided an interactive aspect because she was able to formulate ways on the spot of getting people more involved and knowledgeable about environmental justice.”

White-Hammond said that it is important to explore different methods of approaching environmental issues because the obstacle is not convincing people that we

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

have to change.

“Mother Earth” is going to eventually convince everyone of climate change, according to White-Hammond. She said that there’s “no question” that at some point, every member of society is going to understand the importance of environmental protection, but the more important question is whether or not it will be too late.

Sabrina Chow is Opinions Editor of The Hoot, and was not involved in the writing of this article.

February 8, 2019

FEATURES 7

The Brandeis Hoot

Activist remembers Ferguson five years later

By Thalia Plata staff

Pastor Cori Bush visited Brandeis on Tuesday to recount her journey in the struggle to end police violence and resource deprivation in the St. Louis and Ferguson area during an event called From Protest to Politics: The Ferguson Uprising; Challenging Long Standing Injustices.

Bush was on the frontlines of the Ferguson movement as a protester, as clergy, as a medic and as a victim of police violence.

Bush never saw herself becoming a politician, primarily because she was the daughter of a politician.

“I knew every piece of what it takes to run a campaign—and that’s why I said I would never do one.” She decided to become a preacher and a registered nurse and take care of people that way.

However, the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown thrusted her into the world of activism.

On August 9, 2014, Michael Brown Jr., an 18-year-old African American man, was fatally shot by a white police officer, 28-yearold Darren Wilson, in the city of Ferguson, M.O. She was sent to Ferguson with her job, and while there, she was

shocked by what the people of Ferguson were going through.

The people of Ferguson were being “held hostage.”

Transportation in the city was shut down, and many did not have access to food. “There was a lot of anger, and a lot of hurt, and I thought I could help someone as a nurse.”

Bush went to protests in Ferguson to support the physical and mental well-being of activists but began to join to protests in the evening because she “wanted to see justice.” Bush kept going to protest every day “we could not not see justice, I thought. It didn’t make sense to me at the time.”

Bush recounted growing up

with cops coming to visit her politician father. At Ferguson, however, she saw a different side to the cops.

“Cops were beating people with batons—simply for stepping off a curb.” Bush said. “We were scared to stop marching and get beaten.”

She talked about how many of the protesters did not know their

PHOTO FROM NPR.ORG

rights and what the police could or couldn’t do.

“They would tear gas us,” said Bush. “What you didn’t see on the news is that they would shoot the tear gas directly at people.”

“Nobody knows what we went through,” said Bush. “We had no desire to be violent—we just wanted justice.”

Her experience with Ferguson pushed her to run for U.S. Senate in 2016.

She lost, but Bush said she learned how to connect with voters and find a message that resonated with them.

Bush faced countless harassment, some stemming from the KKK; however, this did not stop her from running for office again.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigned with Bush during her 2018 race for Missouri’s First Congressional District. Bush and Ocasio-Cortez were both backed

by Brand New Congress, an organization created by former Bernie Sanders staffers.

Bush ultimately lost, only taking 36.9 percent of the votes. If she had been elected, Bush would have been the first black woman Missouri had ever sent to Congress.

The event was sponsored by the PAX Department, Student Union Social Justice and Diversity Committee.

Brandeis alumni recount experiences leading to careers in law ‘DEIS IMPACT, from page 1

violence, had family and friends that were in and out of prison, and so, growing up as a kid I thought my destiny was to go to prison one day,” Bray said.

It was only after someone Bray knew was murdered that he made the decision to turn his life around, he said. He went from being a high school dropout, to a student who first attended Lasell College before transferring to Brandeis.

At Brandeis, Bray took classes in criminal justice, including one taught by the panel moderator Rosalind Kabrhel, and worked at the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism where he helped investigate wrongful convictions, he said.

“Things started to really crystallize for me that what I wanted to do in the criminal justice system was be a defender,” he said, “to help folks stay out of that life, stay out of the prison system and just stand up for folks who didn’t really have a voice.”

Former director of the of the ACLU’s National Prison Project Panelist Elizabeth Alexander ’67,

who has argued cases before the United States Supreme Court, said that Brandeis led her to a career in social justice but that where she ended up was “really just a matter of chance” which began when she moved to Madison, Wisconsin, with her husband and took a job supervising law students. The job meant spending time working in prisons, according to Alexander, who said the job led her “to become familiar with a number of the conditions of confinement.”

Alexander recalled constant screaming in some parts of the prison, a lack of toilets and sinks in some prisoners’ cells as well as guards at a mental health institution “endlessly playing mind games with the prisoners, deliberately.”

It was only some years later, after leaving her first job in Madison and accepting another, she said, that she was allowed to sue the institutions for their conditions.

Lindsay Markel ’08, a staff attorney with the Orleans Public Defenders in New Orleans, Louisiana, said she came to college thinking that she would be a lawyer. “But I had not a single clue

PHOTO FROM BRANDEIS.EDU

PHOTO FROM FACEBOOK.COM

what a lawyer actually did,” she said.

She said that she first understood what a lawyer could do for someone when she started working at the Schuster Institute on wrongful convictions.

Only then, she said, did she understand “what a horrible lawyer could do to make a case go wrong and what a better lawyer could do to make a case go a little bit better.” By the time she was applying to law school, she said she knew that she wanted to be a public defender.

Howard Scher ’67, a shareholder at Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney, said he began his trajectory towards practicing law in 1953 when he was just eight years old and, just miles from his house, the Army-McCarthy hearings were taking place.

“That was a horrible time in America,” he said. “Senator Joe McCarthy was finding communists where none thought any existed.”

“It was significant to me, that

historic event, because there were people who came through my grandparent’s home who were fixing the toilets and repairing electrical problems who had just months earlier been engineers and scientists,” Scher said, noting that he remembered watching the hearings on television.

“Their whole lives had been destroyed by the accusations, unfounded accusations, of Senator McCarthy.”

Specifically, Scher recalled a quote from Joseph Welch, who was accused of being a communist during the McCarthy hearings. “Have you no sense of decency,” he quoted Welch as saying to McCarthy, “at long last have you left no sense of decency, I will not discuss this further with you.”

“What that said to me was a lawyer can stand up to power and confront power and get away with it and have a positive effect,” Scher said. “That was the lesson I learned when I was eight.”

He also recounted his time at Brandeis as a significant force

leading to his career as a lawyer with a focus in social justice. “I came to Brandeis at the greatest time of Brandeis University,” he said, recounting a slew of historic events which took place during the time he was at Brandeis. He remembered hearing about the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963 as he was walking up the hill past where the library used to be, and noted that events such as the Civil Rights Movement, the Freedom Summer of 1964, the Vietnam War and its coinciding anti-war movement took place during his four years on campus.

“If you don’t have a sense of social justice after living through that four-year period, give it up,” he said.

The two-hour long event, which was hosted as part of ’Deis Impact, also saw the four alumni touch on numerous subjects related to criminal justice including mass incarceration, the large caseloads facing public defenders and prison reform.

8 FEATURES

The Brandeis Hoot

February 8, 2019

Prosthesis club holds interactive workshop in MakerLab

By Ryan Spencer editor

Brandeis Prosthesis Club (BPC), a group which has made 3D printed prosthetics for children and young adults, hosted an interactive workshop on Wednesday inviting interested students to join in constructing flexible hands and other jointed limbs.

The group focuses on creating prosthetics for growing children and have shipped out six prosthetic body parts including hands and fingers since their start in 2015, according to the club’s president, David Bressler ’20.

Based in the Brandeis MakerLab, students were invited to drop by during a four hour period on Wednesday where they were shown examples of the fully constructed prosthetic hands and could practice piecing together the hands themselves.

Bressler explained that normal prosthetics can cost thousands of dollars and since kids grow quickly, it is often impractical to pay for prosthetics that they will quickly outgrow.

That’s where Brandeis Prosthesis Club comes in.

For less than $50 per prosthetic, club members can 3D print plastic prosthetics, attach a few strings and screws, and ship the finished limbs to recipients around the world.

“The idea is when they outgrow it, we make a new one,” Bressler said, noting that the prosthetics are made to recipient’s spe-

HANDY MAN

David Bressler works in the MakerLab on a prosthetic hand.

cific measurements and come at no charge to the recipients.

The colors of the prosthetics can even be customized, according to Bressler who said the most popular design is a hand made to look like the red and gold superhero suit of Iron Man.

The club has provided children in places as far as Kenya and as close as Washington, D.C. with prosthetics capable of limited flexibility.

Hands made by the group are “good for grasping stuff, but you won’t have individual finger

EXAMPLE OF A 3D PRINTED PROSTHETIC HAND

movement,” Bressler explained.

“We want everyone to have access to something,” he said.

The group has constructed and shipped out prosthetic hands, individual fingers and elbows, according to Bressler.

The BPC works with a group called E-nable which provides

PHOTO BY RYAN SPENCER/THE HOOT

models for the prosthetics and helps connect prosthetic makers like BCP with recipients who require prosthetics, according to Bressler and the E-nable website.

BPC meets Wednesday nights from 7 to 8 p.m., according to Bressler.

Premedical post-baccalaureate program help students join healthcare field

By Jennifer Cook editor

It is not unheard of for Brandeis students to change their majors throughout their undergraduate careers. Some students begin their first years intending to pursue a pre-med track, but at some point in their college career, they change their mind and work towards other goals. For any student who pursued an interest other than healthcare in their undergraduate career but who now want to pursue healthcare, Brandeis’ Premedical Post-Baccalaureate Program could be for them.

To better understand this program, The Brandeis Hoot spoke with Jean Deo, the Senior Advisor in Pre-Health Advising in addition to the Program Manager for the Pre-Medical Post Baccalaureate Program, who has been employed at Brandeis since October of 2017. According to her, this program markets itself towards students who studied another topic in undergrad and are now hoping to apply their knowledge of another subject to a career in healthcare.

In the words of Deo, “A major advantage to being a non-traditional pre-health student is having time to pursue interests outside of medicine and then bringing that diversity of thought and experience to the healthcare field. Our

students are critical and innovative thinkers and bring a maturity and wealth of experience to our program.”

This can be done through two different tracks: The Career Changer track or the Finisher track. In both tracks, students complete between 10-12 credits of science and other coursework per semester. Students who have not taken any college level classes in science and need to complete all of their prerequisites before heading into a healthcare career should elect to participate in the Career Changer track, which begins with general chemistry and general biology. On the other hand, the Finisher track is for those who took general chemistry and general biology in college but still need to take other prerequisite courses. These students take organic chemistry in the summer as the first part of the program and then take the rest of their pre-requisite classes in the academic year that follows.

According to Deo, the pre-medical post-bacc program is based on a cohort model. This means that students both take classes and take part in activities together. Using this model, Deo says that “our hope is that students will benefit, socially and academically, from having a tight knit peer group of folks pursuing similar goals.” To help achieve this goal, class sizes are kept small—they consist of about 10 to 15 students

PHOTO COURTESY JEAN DEO

MEDICINE OF THE 1800S

Pre-Medical Post-Baccalaureate students Jacqueline Lewy, Jessica Steindler and Erin Callister touring The Paul S. Russell, MD Museum of Medical History and Innovation

per year.

Two new features have been added to enrich this year’s program: An alumni mentorship program and a first year service project. In the alumni membership program, first-year students are matched with alumni of the program who are either involved in clinical training or have become licensed, practicing clinicians. About the first year service project, Deo remarked that first year students within the program choose a local non-profit organization and work together to make a “meaningful service contribu-

tion” to the organization that they choose.

Deo has had a wonderful experience with the students who participate in this program. In her words, “working with our students is the most rewarding aspect of my job as Program Manager. I love watching these students, who have limited experiences in science, transform into scientists and future clinicians.

Furthermore, they contribute an incredible diversity of experiences and knowledge to our program and the classroom.”

Deo has the following message

for anyone who might be interested in learning more about the program: “My home here on campus is the Pre-Health Advising Office, housed within Academic Services. Interested students can email me (phapostbac@brandeis. edu) or schedule an appointment to meet with me by calling Academic Services (781-736-3470) or booking online. We are reviewing applications for the 2019-2020 academic year now, with April 15 and May 15 deadlines for the Finisher Track and Career Track programs respectively.”

EDITORIALS

February 8, 2019

“To acquire wisdom, one must observe.”

Editors-in-Chief Abigail Gardener Sarah Terrazano Managing Editor Emily Botto Senior Editor Ryan Spencer Copy Editor Natalie Fritzson Deputy Copy Editor Jennifer Cook News Editor Celia Young Deputy News Editor Rachel Saal Arts Editors Ben Beriss Noah Harper Opinions Editor Sabrina Chow Features Editor Polina Potochevska Deputy Features Editor Shruthi Manjunath Sports Editors Zach Cihlar Shea Decker-Jacoby Layout Editor Candace Ng Social Media Editor Emma Lichtenstein Cartoonist Helen Wong

Volume 16 • Issue 4 the brandeis hoot • brandeis university 415 south street • waltham, ma

STAFF

Lucy Braverman, Emma Belkin, Camila Casanueva, Kevin Costa, Katie Decker-Jacoby, Chris DeMena, Olivia Ellson, James Feltner, Daniel Freedman, Jonah Koslofsky, Jackie Kostenko, Alex Kougasian, Jenna Lifschitz, Josh Lannon, Gillian O'Malley, Thalia Plata, Joseph Silber, Sasha Skarboviychuk, Zachary Sosland, Sophie Trachtenberg, Rachel Wang, Hannah Wilson

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The Brandeis Hoot 9

Ford Hall still hasn’t been fully resolved

W

ith the 50th Commemoration Celebration of the African and Afro-American Studies (AAAS) department happening this weekend in conjunction with ’DEIS Impact, it seems appropriate to remember that Jan. 8 marked the 50th anniversary of the original Ford Hall demonstration (1969).

The original Ford Hall was an 11-day sit-in in which Brandeis students demanded reconciliation, social and criminal justice for African American students on the Brandeis campus.

An institution founded on principles of inclusivity and equality, Brandeis has yet to fully implement demands from Ford Hall demonstrations in both 1969 and 2015.

In the original 1969 occupation, the demonstrators sent a list of 10 demands to the administration, which included the formation of an African Studies Department with the power to hire and fire, an increased recruitment of black students to campus and hiring of black professors, the establishment of an Afro-American center and the expulsion of a white student who shot a black student with a BB gun.

On Jan. 18, 1969, then-president Abraham Sachar stated that every legitimate demand would be met in good faith. In 1969 AAAS was founded, the Transitional Year Program (TYP) was re-evaluated and a new director named, and Interim President Charles Schottland signed an agreement with the Afro-American Organization to bring 80 additional minority students to Brandeis. Although a few steps were taken to fulfill the demands of the students in 1969, many were ignored or only partially satisfied.

After a year of investigation, all charges were dropped against the white student who shot the BB gun when police could not find substantial evidence to convict. In addition, no Afro-American, black student-designed student center was established at Brandeis.

Continued neglect of these demands and further requests made

by African American students and students of color in the decades since along with political factors of the time period led to the second Ford Hall in 2015.

In August of 2014, Michael Brown was fatally shot by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.

The resulting rise of the Black Lives Matter movement and national frustration with police brutality led to students at universities across the country demonstrating peacefully, protesting campus discrimination and racism.

At Brandeis, this in part contributed to Ford Hall 2015, a 13-day sit-in at Bernstein-Marcus in November that started with a list of 13 demands sent to then-Interim President Lisa Lynch by a group of concerned students. The students required that their demands be met by the start of the Fall 2016 academic semester. A 2015 demand to “increase the percentage of full-time Black faculty and staff to 10 percent across ALL departments and schools,” has a long way to go; as of Fall 2016, the last reported statistic on Brandeis’ website, full-time instructional black faculty comprised one percent.

Still, there were a few changes. A 2015 call to “Appoint a Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion” was met with the appointment of Chief Diversity Officer Mark Brim-

hall-Vargas in January 2017.

Additionally, a University Ombuds Office was created, allowing a confidential, independent resource to which concerned members of the community could report without fear of repercussion or reprisal.

But there’s still much to be done.

Admittance of black students, according to a 2016 report, is six percent, a far cry from the 15 percent minimum called for in 2015. There is still no “Afro-American center designed by black students,” as demanded in 1969. Yearly diversity and inclusion workshops are not mandated for all faculty and staff by the administration.

On the Heller School’s website about Ford Hall, they note that, “This work continues, and rather than viewing the December 2015 plan as a finite set of checkboxes, new goals and initiatives are being identified all the time.”

While this is a fair point, action needs to be taken. In addition to celebrating the past achievements of student protesters, Brandeis should also dedicate time and resources to fulfilling all the demands—as the university originally promised.

The theme of ’DEIS Impact this year is “What is Social Justice?: Consciously Exploring Oppression, Power, and Privilege in our Communities,” which looks to understand the aspects of these different communities.

While ’DEIS Impact should be celebrating the anniversary of AAAS, there are larger underlying issues surrounding the formation of the program and the rest of the demands brought up by Ford Hall.

By not taking action as promised, Brandeis undercuts its history and undermines its future.

SPORTS

10 The Brandeis Hoot

February 8, 2019

Morris-Evans and Valdez triumph at Tufts

By Sophie Trachtenberg staff

Both the men’s and women’s track teams competed at Tufts University this past weekend, battling it out in the non-scoring Cupid Invitational. The Judges had top performers on both sides, with the men being led by Dion Morris-Evans ’22 and the women

by Lisbeth Valdez ’21.

Morris-Evans ran his way to third place in the 60-meter hurdles, recording a time of 8.75

seconds. He then competed in the high jump where he also received third place with a distance of 1.80 meters (5-10.75). This performance was his best in his early career. Also in the 60-meter hurdle event, Jack Allan ’20 ran quite well, recording a time of 8.85 seconds to put him comfortably in fifth place. In addition to running, Allan jumped too, landing at 6.13 meters (20-1.5), prompting him with a sixth-place finish.

In the pole vault, Breylen Ammen ’21 competed well, receiving third place with a height of 4.40 me-

ters (14-5.25). Classmate Kevin Truong ’21 finished best for the Judges in the triple jump, achieving ninth place with a stretch of 11.40 meters. Running his personal record, Aaron Portman ’22 placed in the top 10 of the 600-meter event, finishing with a time of 1:26.46. Lastly, Scott Grote ’19 also reached the top 10 of his respective event, throwing the shot put at a distance of 12.82 meters (42-0.75).

On the women’s side, Valdez ran to second place in the 600-meter event, only beating

teammate Maya Bliss ’19 by four tenths of a second. The two finished with times of 1:41.19 and 1:41.59, respectively. Leinni Valdez ’21, Lisbeth’s twin sister, also performed well in this event, coming in fourth place with a time of 1:42.00. Kanya Brown ’19 ran her season bests through three rounds of the 60-meter dash, seeing times of 8.29, 8.21 and 8.26 seconds. These performances landed her in sixth place.

Meaghan Barry ’19 competed in the mile, placing in the top ten amongst her competitors with a

time of 5:29.36. Lastly, rookies Devin Hiltunen ’22 and Sonali Anderson ’22 both received third place in their respective events.

Hiltunen ran the 200-meter dash in a time of 27.04 seconds, while Anderson ran the 60-meter hurdles in a time of 9.32 seconds, tying her own school record.

This upcoming weekend, the Judges have another full schedule, heading to the Valentines Invitational at Boston University as well as the Gordon Kelly Invitational at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Women’s basketball drops two at home

By Emerson White special to the hoot

In their second face-off against Emory University and The University of Rochester, the women’s basketball team went 0-2 this weekend in the Red Auerbach Arena. The Judges faced the Emory Eagles on Friday and lost 7242. Then on Sunday, despite their strong first half, they couldn’t hold off the Rochester Yellowjackets and finished 74-66. W ith these two losses, Brandeis falls to 7-12 overall, 3-6 in the UAA. Emory improves to 14-5, 5-3 UAA, while Rochester improves to 9-11, also 3-6 in the UAA. The Judges struggled against the Eagles in three of the four quarters, being outscored in the first quarter and the whole second half. Emory started the game strong, scoring the first eight

points and kept the lead throughout the game. Not only did Emory outscore Brandeis each quarter, but the Eagles also brought the Judges to a season low of 42 points. They also held Brandeis to a season low in field-goal percentage, shooting just 23.6 percent.

After the first, Brandeis was down 21-10; the Judges tried to fight back in the second and outscored the Eagles 17-14. After the first half, the Eagles came back stronger and beat out the Judges in the third and fourth. In the second half, Brandeis couldn’t connect, shooting a low 3-28 from the floor.

Camila Casanueva ’21 was the top scorer for the Judges, and the only Brandeis player to score in the double digits, finishing with 10 points. She went 3-12 from the field but a perfect 4-4 in free throws. Kerry Tanke ’22 was the second top scorer and the most effective for the Judges; going 3-4

from the field and making three free throws, she finished with nine points. Tanke, Kat Puda ’21 and Maya Burris ’22 all tied for rebounds, each finishing with four.

Emory beat Brandeis in rebounding, scoring, field goals and assists. Three Eagles finished in the double digits: Erin Lindahl and Allison Chernow each finished with 15, and Azzairia Jackson-Sherrod finished with 10.

Ashley Oldshue had a game-high 11 rebounds, and Chernow and Lindsey Tse tied for most assists, finishing with six.

The Judges came back Sunday to face the University of Rochester. After a strong first half, the Women’s Basketball team couldn’t get past The University of Rochester’s defense in the second half and lost to the Yellowjackets 7466 on Sunday. The Judges beat the Yellowjackets on the road last weekend but were unable to do it again on their home court in the

Red Auerbach Arena.

The Judges controlled the first period and were up 18-14. They continued this momentum into the second quarter and finished the half up 41-32. In the third, the Yellowjackets were able to hold the Judges to two field goals in the first nine minutes. Then with 1:53 left in the third quarter the score was tied 46-46.

A player on Rochester lost her headband and someone from the bench ran onto the court to get it. The referee immediately gave Rochester a technical for having six players on the court at once.

Kat Puda ’21 shot free throws for Brandeis to put them back in the lead 47-46. Rochester ended the third up 51-48. Rochester continued to fight back in the fourth, and their defense was able to shut Brandeis down in the second half. In the fourth alone, the Yellowjackets scored 14 points to Brandeis’ zero.

For the Judges, Casanueva was the top scorer finishing with 16, 10 of which were in the first half.

Casanueva also led the team in assists with six. Puda also had 10 in the first half and finished the game with 15 points. Burris and Hannah Nicholson ’20 also finished in the double digits, and Nicholson had her first double-double of the season with 13 points and led the team with 12 rebounds.

Rochester had three starters in the double digits. Their top scorer was Tessa Ludwig, who finished with 21 points and five assists. Julianna Okoniewski finished with 19 points, and Lena Ethington finished with 18 points.

The Judges will finish up their home season this weekend facing two more UAA opponents. They will host Carnegie Mellon on Friday night at 6 p.m., and they will have Senior Day against Case Western Reserve on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Men’s basketball suffers two losses

By Gillian O’Malley staff

Back on the home court this weekend, the men’s basketball team’s efforts were not enough to secure them any wins.

On Friday night, the Judges suited up against the Emory Eagles and lost 64-88 after a tough game. On Sunday, the men fell to the Rochester Yellow Jackets 5278, dropping to 11-9 and 4-5 in the UAA. On Friday night, the Judges came out strong against the 24th

nationally ranked team, outscoring the Eagles 14-5 in the first few minutes of the game. However, they let up their lead and ended the half trailing behind Emory 36-41. When the Eagles opened up the second half with a strong lead, efforts from Chandler Jones ’21 and Eric D’Aguanno ’20 combined to break the lead to only 10 points. This was a big game for D’Aguanno, who totaled a gamehigh 21 points, 14 alone which came from the second half. Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough and the Judges could not stop the runs, which led to the final

24-point loss. D’Aguanno attributed the results to the lack of commitment to the game plan.

“We tried to get into a fast paced game with them rather than slowing the game down, so we let them get in an offensive rhythm.”

He also said they have been focusing on defense this week and are aiming to collect some wins this upcoming weekend. Another key performance came from Lawrence Sabir ‘21 who had a career-tying nine assists in addition to his eight points and four rebounds.

The Judges faced another tough

opponent on Sunday afternoon, where a decent start and close second half could not secure them the win. Yet again, Brandeis started off with a lead, 15-11, just in the first few minutes of the game.

They could not stop the Jackets’ run, however, which resulted in a score of 40-21 at the half. After more runs from Rochester, Brandeis worked to minimize the 34-point lead to a final 26-point margin. Statistically speaking, the Judges held the Jackets to have just one player to score in double digits. Additionally, Brandeis allowed six fewer turnovers than

Rochester did, while capitalizing and securing a 24-19 advantage in points off turnovers scored. An impressive showing came from Nolan Haggerty ‘22 who finished with a career-high of 10 points, three offensive rebounds and one block.

Next weekend, the men’s basketball team will play their last two home games against Carnegie Mellon on Friday Night at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon against Case Western Reserve at 12 p.m.

On Sunday, Corey Sherman ’19 will be recognized during the Senior Day pregame ceremony.

Women’s tennis starts season at Bryant

By Shea Decker-Jacoby editor

The Brandeis women’s tennis team started off their 2019 tennis season ranked No. 19 in the nation and played their first match in Rhode Island against Division I Bryant University.

The match was played under Division I rules, which means there was no ad scoring, so the three doubles matches only counted as one point in the overall team score.

The Judges started off strong

in the doubles matches sweeping Bryant, but because of the Division I rule, it only counted towards one point to the overall team score.

The Judges came short and finished the match with a 5-2 decision, with their second victory coming from the only victory the Judges found in the singles matches.

The Judges shinned in the doubles competition and completely swept Bryant University. In the first spot Olivia Leavitt ’19 and Lauren Bertsch ’21 won their match with a 6-4 decision. Leavitt

and Bertsch finished last season as doubles partners. They went 7-3 as doubles partners finishing last season with a hard loss against Case Western Reserve, but that have come back stronger than ever for this season of competition and we’re excited to see how far they will go this coming season.

In the number two slot, Keren Khromchenko ’19 teamed up with new doubles partner, Diana Dehterevich ’20, and produced a 7-5 victory for the Judges. This was Dehterevich’s dual match debut after transferring and missing

her sophomore season due to an injury. The number three position was won by Sophia He ’19 and Ana Hatfield ’22, earned a 7-6 win and completed the sweep for the Judges.

Michele Lehat ’19 earned the single win for the Judges in the singles matches in the number six spot. She won three straight sets with the final scores being 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. Khromchenko had an exciting singles match, making it all the way to a third set super-tiebreaker, at the number three spot.

With the final scores at 4-6, 7-5 and 10-4, she ultimately fell to

her opponent. Dehterevich was competitive with her opponent in the number one spot, but fell with the final scores at 6-4, 6-4. Leavitt kept her competition close with scores of 6-4, 6-3 in the number two spot, but could not pull away for another W for the Judges.

Brandeis return to the court during February break when they head to California for their annual trip, where they will face off against Caltech, Redlands and top-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.

They will return to their home court against MIT on March 9th.

February 8, 2019

The Brandeis Hoot

SPORTS 11

Fencing splits on the weekend

By Sabrina Chow editor

Both the men’s and women’s teams split this past weekend at the Eric Sollee Invitational at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Schools also in attendance at the tournament were Yeshiva University, Hunter College, Haverford College, Stevens Tech, New York University (NYU) and New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT).

The men and women both defeated Yeshiva, Hunter and Haverford, while falling to Stevens, NYU and NJIT.

The women’s team won easily against Yeshiva and Hunter, winning all the events 27-0 against Yeshiva and dropping only two points to Hunter, winning 25-2.

The men’s team fared equally as well, defeating Yeshiva 25-2 and Hunter 23-4. In their matches against Haverford, the women won 19-8 while the men won 189.

In the match against Stevens, both the men’s and women’s team kept it close. On the men’s side, sabre and foil both won, 7-2 and 5-4, respectively; however, an 8-1 win by the Ducks in epee helped them clinch the win. Women also won two of the events, 6-3 in saber and 5-4 in epee, however, a

clean 9-0 sweep in foil cost The Judges the win.

The women’s team also went close with NJIT. The Judges and Highlanders split decisions, 5-4 in the foil and sabre.

Foil went to Brandeis, while sabre went to NJIT. A 3-6 loss in epee gave the win to the Highlanders.

At their annual UAA showdown with NYU, the Violets passed up the Judges on both the men and women’s side. NYU swept the men in all the events, 7-2, to win 21-6 overall. The women’s side fared slightly better. They won epee 6-3 but were edged out in a 5-4 decision in foil and fell 7-2 in sabre, giving NYU the win 15-12.

Out of all the different subteams, women’s epee did the best during the weekend, winning five out of their six matchups. Led by Madeleine Vibert ’21, who was 13-3 on the weekend, Dakota Levy ’20 added to scores, going 12-5.

Joanne Carminucci ’19 led the Judges in foil, which went 4-2 over the weekend. Carminucci went 16-2 on the weekend, while Jessica Gets ’20 went 15-3. Rookie Jada Harrison ’22 helped sabre to a 3-3 split on the weekend with nine wins.

On the men’s side, sabre did the best, posting a 4-2 record. Leon Rotenstein ’19 went 9-5 over five matches, while three other fencers

tied with seven wins each. Shawn Pyatetsky ’20 was among this group, losing only two matches throughout the entire weekend.

Both foil and epee split 3-3 on the weekend. All six fencers on the foil team were able to contribute between four to six wins throughout the weekend. Chris Armstrong ’20 led the epee fencers with a 11-6 record, the highest winner of all male Judges at the event, according to an article by Brandeis Judges.

The Judges end their regular season dual meet schedule at Brandeis against Boston College, Harvard University and MIT for the Beanpot Tournament at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 13.

Swimming and diving finds success on senior day

By Camila Casanueva staff

The Brandeis University men and women swimming and diving team hit the Linsey Pool for one last time this season to face off against Clark University for their. The Judges won the meet by finishing first in 21 of 32 events to go on and sweep. The men won by a margin of 182-91 while the women took a 153-116 decision.

It was the men’s fourth straight win, improving their record to 6-5 while the women improved to 6-8.

The queens of the meet were Seniors Sabrina Greer and Kylie Herman who were honored before the meet with a speech from their coach and a team tunnel that ran the length of the pool. Greer

has competed for the team swimming the backstroke, freestyle and IM. Herman has competed in the freestyle, butterfly and IM. Herman is a member of the team that holds the current University record for the 400-freestyle relay, which was earned in 2018, and a member of the record holder team of the 800-freestyle relay, which was earned in 2017.

It was Greer and Herman who led the pack on their special day and brought home the victory for the Judges. Herman took home two wins to finish her career at the Linsey Pool, taking the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 2:04.26 and the 500 with a time of 5:34.69.

She also earned fourth in the 100 individual medley with a final time of 1:07.29. Greer finished second in the 100 backstroke with a season best time of 1:10.20. In

the 50 butterfly, Greer swam a new career best of 31.51 seconds and finished third. Greer was also swam in the winning 200-medley relay that started the meet with a time of 1:58.17.

Both seniors competed in the 200 free relay, the final home race, which they won with a time of 1:48.32.

For the men’s team, rookie Benton Ferebee took first in the 100 backstroke with a final time of 56.47 seconds and earned first place in the 50 with a time of 27.63 seconds, giving a solid all-around performance for the Judges. In addition, he also helped earn the Judges a solid victory in the winning 200-medley team where he sawm a time of 1:39.38. Daniel Wohl ’21 showed up for the Judges when he won the 50 free with a final time of 21.58 seconds, the

SABRNA GREER ‘19 (LEFT) AND KYLIE HERMAN ‘19 (RIGHT)

500 free with a time of 4:46.82 and finally the 50 breaststroke with a time of 27.50 seconds while also leading off the 200 free relay that won with a time of 1:33.27.

PHOTO BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

The Judges hit the pool again next weekend when they travel to the University of Chicago for the University Athletic Association (UAA) championships.

OPINIONS

12 The Brandeis Hoot

February 8, 2019

Full divestment isn’t radical: it’s necessary

By Jessie Kinsley special to the hoot

Last semester, the Board of Trustees voted to enact a threeyear suspension of all fossil fuel investments and promised to revisit the idea of full divestment after reviewing the results of the suspension. This decision represented a crucial win for the student body and Brandeis Climate Justice’s seven-year long fossil fuel divestment campaign, but the aftermath of the vote left many to wonder about the future of the campaign.

Amongst the excitement of the first major response from the Board of Trustees lies a very concerning question for the student body: Do we need to push for full divestment during this three-year

suspension period? The answer is plain and simple—absolutely.

Although many students might be tempted to encourage patience during this intermediate period, it’s important to note that patience is no longer an option when considering our planet’s current state.

The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report released in October 2018 validates this sentiment, warning that we have 12 years to avoid catastrophic climate conditions by introducing unprecedented changes to our society. When considering a 12-year time frame, introducing a three-year suspension period is not only conservative, it is downright dangerous.

It is also important to note that many other universities’ divestment campaigns have capital-

ized off partial divestment wins.

Take UMASS Amherst, which received partial divestment in December 2015 when the university divested $400,000 from the coal industry, only to win full divestment in May 2016, according to Global Nonviolent Action Database run by Swarthmore College.

When Brandeis’ divestment campaign first started, student activists were ridiculed by the student body and the Board of Trustees as being too extreme, and now we have a Board of Trustees with divestment on their minds and 39 student organizations on campus that have backed the campaign.

More fuel to the fire, please.

And just so we’re clear here, divestment works. In fact, Brandeis has done it before. In May 1986, Brandeis divested $1.6 million

from companies operating in South Africa as a part of the global Anti-Apartheid Movement, according to an article by the University Press International. This movement was critical in the success in 1994 when South Africa achieved majority rule through free and fair elections, and non-white citizens were given the right to vote. This only happened, however, because activists demanded their institutions take a stand against South Africa’s unjust regime.

In holding their school accountable, past Brandeis students were able to force our institution to reflect student values.

Current students now have the same opportunity in fighting climate change with divestment.

Look, we won a three-year

suspension from fossil fuels because we demanded it.

If we let our administration off the hook during this time, we will not win divestment. The administration will revert back to what is standard—monopolizing off of climate change and the consequences of it. It is our job as students to realize our power and take down an industry that has historically taken advantage of marginalized communities and continues to prioritize profit over human lives. We do not have any time to waste in solving this climate crisis and, frankly, I’m tired of waiting.

For any students interested in supporting Brandeis’ divestment campaign, Brandeis Climate Justice meets every Thursday at 8 p.m. in Pearlman 113.

Shaving company is alienating core customers

By Stewart Huang special to the hoot

People just love it when profit-motivated, multi-billion-dollar companies preach to them great moral messages. This can be seen in Gillette’s new advertisement: “The Best Men Can Be,” which can only be described as a smash hit, earning 750,000 likes and a whopping 1.35 million dislikes on Youtube.

It showed a whole lot of men engaging in behaviors stereotypically associated with their sex, like bullying, mansplaining, cat-calling and standing in line chanting “Boys will be boys” while the narrator scornfully condemns these actions and claims to “believe in the best in men.” With comments like: “My wife’s boyfriend loves this” and “Did… did Gillette just shame its entire customer base?

HAHAHAHAHAHA,” clearly, people couldn’t be happier with this wonderful new ad. But why?

In his immensely insightful article on Forbes, “Why Gillette’s New Ad is Toxic,” Charles Taylor, a professor of marketing at

the Villanova University of Business and a senior research fellow at the Center for Marketing and Consumer Insights, explains that there are three main reasons why the ad was such a huge success.

First, consumers could be skeptical of the ad’s motives, or they might not want to be told how to behave by a company whose interest clearly is to make profit.

They aren’t oblivious to, as Taylor puts it, “the persuasive intent” of advertising, with the goal being to raise sales, nor do they need a corporation telling them how their sex should behave or to be scolded for not doing enough to address certain issues.

Pankaj Bhalla, Gillette’s North American Brand Director, was quoted by CNN, saying that, “We expected debate. Actually a discussion is necessary. If we don’t discuss and don’t talk about it, I don’t think real change would happen.”

However, any person capable of critical thinking might have doubts about the authority of the company on the subject and the validity of its point of contention.

One might think it is presumptu-

ous for Gillette to sell itself as a forefront of social change about masculinity when nobody realistically believes that a company selling sanitary products really cares about anything other than profit. One might even argue that the actions depicted in the ad are not topics for debate because they are universally condemned and not representative of the majority of men’s behaviors.

The second reason why the ad was a colossal accomplishment (okay, I’ll drop the obnoxious sarcasm) was that the whole “the best men can be” narrative was just done poorly. Taylor cites another Forbes writer, Kim Ellesser, who argues that the ad sends a mixed message to young males according to the consumer behavior theory popularized by Robert Cialdini.

The theory states that there are two norms that motivate people to fit in. First, they seek approval and avoid disapproval. Second, they like to do what is popular.

The ad, while disapproving toxic behaviors, fails to clarify that these behaviors are not perpetrated by most men, which shouldn’t

be an unreasonable assumption.

Instead, it suggests that most men are in fact bullies and harassers.

Thus, following Cialdini’s theory, if a gullible young male wants to fit in with others and learn how to be masculine, then he might perceive that he should be a bully and harasser too after watching this ad, which fails in its mission to (supposedly) persuade men to curb toxic behaviors.

To add to this second point, I believe that principally why people weren’t amused with the ad is that it paints men in such a bad light that it’s just plain insulting.

And the last thing a business wants to do is to insult its customers. Instead of using positive reinforcement like showing men at their best, like being good fathers, sons and husbands, the ad makes sweeping generalizations about men and what it is to be masculine. It’s not difficult to imagine that even men who largely agree with the underlying issues presented in the ad might feel alienated as well.

Third, the use of politically charged language was a big nono for advertising. Using the term

“toxic masculinity,” which, as Taylor eloquently points out, “many men associate with a one-sided critique and stereotype of an entire gender,” in the ad was surely a mistake. Some might think that companies taking political stances should be okay, but the fact of the matter is that alienating a substantial proportion of the customer base is never a good thing.

As a counter example, the statement by Michael Jordan that he did not want to engage in political commentary because “Republicans buy shoes too” remains wise thinking.

Following the overwhelmingly negative responses toward Gillette’s new ad, people are now calling for boycott for its products and those of its parent company, Procter and Gamble. While I doubt that the monolith that is P&G will suffer any substantial financial loss going forward, this new marketing campaign was a total flop and has certainly cost the company loyal customers.

This should teach any company trying to take stances on politics in their advertisements a valuable lesson: Maybe not.

The purpose of public apologies

By Alex Kougasian staff

On Dec. 4, the Academy Awards tweeted out “Welcome to the family, @kevin4real! #Oscars.” Soon after this event, some from the internet started expressing disdain towards the Academy’s decision to have Kevin Hart host the Oscars, given some past tweets of his.

The tweets for which Hart was criticized included statements such as “Yo if my son comes home & try’s 2 play with my daughters doll house I’m going 2 break it over his head & say n my voice ‘stop that’s gay.’” and “Why does @wayne215 have so many pictures of me in his phone!!! What ru some type of FAT FAG that takes pic of small black ment all day?” Needless to say, these tweets are indefensible even from a comedic standpoint.

With many of the tweets that reference homophobic slurs, it seems Hart left no space for irony

when he made these statements, and after they resurfaced, the world was expecting an apology.

Instead, the world got a video of Kevin Hart speaking on how disappointed he was in people who were outraged by his past.

He argued that people should expect that someone would have evolved after the seven or eight years that have passed since those comments. He elaborated more when he was on The Ellen Show, “Everyone took [the] headlines and started to run with it. So now the slander on my name is all homophobia. Now I’m a little upset.

I’m a little upset because I know who I am. I know I don’t have a homophobic bone in my body.

I know that I’ve addressed it; I know that I’ve apologized. I know that within my apologies, I’ve taken ten years to put my apology to work. I’ve yet to go back to that version of the immature comedian that once was. I’ve moved on.”

Soon after Hart said this, the Vulture published an investi-

gation that had attempted to find the apologies that Hart referenced. Much of what was found in interviews and on online forums did not quite sound apologetic, rather it more resembled an acknowledgment that the issues were “sensitive.”

This case is certainly not a solitary one. We have seen many instances of a public person’s past on the internet being used as the basis for accusations in the present.

The views on the matter range between a belief in the obligation of a celebrity to prove that they can act as a representative for what is right in society and a belief that everyone, even celebrities, should be given room to evolve without being shackled by their past.

The difficulty I see with the latter opinion is that the social weight of a celebrity is different than that of the average individual. Celebrities have an immense amount of cultural influence but are also scrutinized to a similar degree in that culture as a result of their prom-

inence. It would make sense that those who act as spokespeople for culture should carry responsibility proportional to their influence.

I do not believe that society shackles celebrities by continually asking them to answer for their past. If celebrities truly care about acting as a moral example, they should want their apologies to be as widespread and as available as possible, even if it means apologizing often. Kevin Hart said that he has moved on.

He says that he knows that he is not remotely homophobic. But by refusing to denounce those past remarks in reaction to the outrage, Hart has not demonstrated to us that he has “evolved” in the way that he says he has.

People often say that it is the labels themselves which act as those metaphorical shackles. They believe that Hart was deemed a homophobe and will therefore always be seen as a homophobe in the eyes of the outraged, despite any apology he gives. But I

argue that most do respond to apologies. An apology signifies that the apologizer does not stand by, or represent, a set of opinions anymore. I feel as if Hart could have just as easily found himself championed as a gifted host of the Oscars if he had only apologized when the outrage was brewing.

With all this being said, Hart conducted himself very well in the wake of this controversy. He tweeted, “I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year's Oscars...this is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists. I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.” By apologizing and by stepping out of the spotlight rather than using it to advocate against outrage culture, I believe Hart has proven that he is finally beginning to learn from and move past the errors of his past.

ARTS

February 8, 2019

The Brandeis Hoot 13

‘Greenbook,’ ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and leaving the Oscars behind

By Jonah Koslofsky staff

On March 4, 2018, “Get Out” won an Oscar. This was an enormous victory. Writer/director Jordan Peele walked away with the golden statue for Best Original Screenplay, awarding his work on a horror movie, a genre oft-ignored by the Academy. Plus, Oscar voters are even less likely to hand out trophies to financially successful, popular works. On the contrary – the Academy usually rewards stuff that’s designed to win Oscars, and “Get Out” was anything but. And yet, the year before, indie darling (and genuinely great movie) “Moonlight” won Best Picture. It looked as though the Academy was evolving.

Then last Tuesday morning, “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Green Book” scored Best Picture nominations. That’s … bad.

First, it’s worth reiterating that awards shows don’t matter all that much. A good movie will be good regardless of its Oscar recognition, and it’s impossible for the Academy to reward everything with merit that came out in 2018.

That said, it still stung when the likes of “Hereditary,” “Widows,” “Burning,” “Eighth Grade” and “You Were Never Really Here” were shut-out. The Oscars do have the power to give smaller movies a spotlight they wouldn’t normally receive. How many more people heard about “Moonlight” thanks to the envelope fiasco twoyears ago?

And credit where credit is due: the Academy made a few quality picks. My favorite of the year, “Roma,” scored a whopping 10 nominations (as did “The Favourite,” another solid choice).

Pawel Pawlikowski snuck into the Best Director field, making it the most interesting race, however, the Academy again failed to nominated any women. Finally, “Black Panther”scored a Best Picture nom, which it absolutely deserves. Things could be worse.

But. The Academy picked “Bohemian Rhapsody” in multiple major categories. They weren’t the first: after taking home a truckload of money at the box office, the Queen biopic won big at the Golden Globes for Best Actor in a Drama and Best Picture (Drama). So what’s the problem? Well, first of all, the movie isn’t that good. It’s a by-the-numbers biopic, packed with every cliché in the book. The film spends more time on Freddie Mercury’s relationship with his microphone than the start of his relationship

with his bandmates—bandmates who come off entirely positively because they helped produce the biopic.

Generally, “Bo Rhap” is more concerned with staging lavish recreations of Queen performances than saying anything about Mercury or his legacy (and don’t forget the bad editing).

Fellow nominees “Vice” and even “A Star is Born” suffer from similar problems. But neither of those movies were directed by a noted pedophile.

Enter Bryan Singer. Singer has had a long and successful career, breaking onto the scene with the “Usual Suspects” (1996), and then directing the first two “X-Men” movies. He went on to direct the movie where Tom Cruise tries to kill Hitler, and then a few more X-Men entries. Singer was hired

by Fox to direct “Bohemian Rhapsody” in 2016, after numerous allegations of sexual assault and misconduct had swirled around the director for years. As far back as April 2014, Singer was charged in a civil lawsuit that alleged he’d flown then-minor Michael F. Egan to Hawaii in 1999 and sexually assaulted him.

The most damning collection of evidence against Singer was published in “The Atlantic” last Wednesday, a long-gestating piece of journalism that cites over fifty sources. The story paints a sickening picture: as the article puts it, “The accusations against Singer cover a spectrum. Some of the alleged victims say they were seduced by the director while underage; others say they were raped. The victims we interviewed told us these experiences left them psychologically damaged, with substance-abuse problems, depression, and PTSD.” Furthermore, “the portrait of Singer that emerges is of a troubled man who surrounded himself with vulnerable teenage boys, many of them estranged from their families.”

Singer is currently being sued by multiple accusers. He’s also attached to direct another comic book adaptation (for a healthy paycheck, of course).

Singer was fired from “Bohemian Rhapsody” a few weeks into production—not due to the allegations around him, but because the guy wasn’t even showing up to set. However, due to directors’ guild regulations, he’s still credited (in other words, when you watch “Bohemian Rhapsody,” you see “Directed by Bryan Singer”).

He’s still taking credit for “Rhapsody’s” box office/awards victories on his social media. Oh, and then news broke that Singer stands to make a whopping 40 million dollars from the film.

PHOTO FROM WOAID.COM

I didn’t expect general audiences to be painfully aware of Singer or to boycott “Bohemian Rhapsody.” But I expect more from the industry itself. Hollywood—in the midst of the same reckoning that finally exorcised Harvey Weinstein—should not be rewarding a work directed by Singer. They know, and to hand him movie trophies is irresponsible and wrong.

The same business that fired James Gunn for old, irrelevant tweets hasn’t cut ties with a serial sexual predator. Hypocrisy, thy name is Hollywood.

Now, I love Rami Malek (“Mr. Robot”) as much as anyone, and his performance as Freddie Mercury is one of the few bright spots in an uninspired work. But “Bohemian Rhapsody” refuses to explore Mercury’s sexuality—it’s pushed to the periphery of the narrative whenever possible. Furthermore, when asked about his knowledge of the Singer situation, Malek told the “L.A. Times,” “I didn’t know much about Bryan.

I think that the allegations and things were, believe it or not, honestly something I was not aware of, and that is what it is.”

There’s no way Malek was entirely ignorant of Singer’s reputation—I knew about the stories around Singer when I was fifteen, and Malek was cast in November 2016. Malek has said in interviews that the first scene shot of “Bohemian Rhapsody” was the climactic recreation of Queen’s Live-Aid performance—meaning Singer created the triumphant moment of the movie. Actors don’t direct themselves. All of this is to say that I’ve never wanted an actor I like to win an award less than I want Rami to take home the Best Actor statue come March.

The subtly racist “Green Book” shares some similar problems behind-the-camera. Let’s start with director Peter Farrelly, who made his name directing nineties comedies. Speaking of sexual misconduct, Farrelly recently apologized

PHOTO FROM WAMU.ORG

for flashing his penis at unsuspecting coworkers, a “prank” he used to pull back when he was making stuff like “Dumb and Dumber” and “There’s Something About Mary.” Farrelly’s actions were reported in a “Newsweek” article back in 1998, and his career continued unaffected.

The same day the Farrelly article resurfaced, an old tweet from co-writer Nick Vallelonga emerged as well—in which Vallelonga expressed his agreement with then-candidate Donald Trump’s assertion that “Muslims in Jersey City [were] cheering when towers went down.” Now, Vallelonga’s perpetuation of this racist and disproven claim is all the more disheartening when you consider actor Mahershala Ali— who plays musician Don Shirley, the co-lead in “Green Book”—is Muslim.

Nick Vallelonga is also the son of Tony Vallelonga, the protagonist of “Green Book.” The film chronicles the friendship between Vallelonga and Shirley, as the former drives the latter on a concert tour throughout the Deep South in the early sixties. The film establishes that Tony (Viggo Mortensen) is pretty racist at the start of the story: he throws away glasses used by plumbers (who are people of color) in the first five minutes.

But we’re led to believe that he’s changed, and learned the error of his ways by the end—thanks to his interactions with Shirley. It is, in effect, the anti-“Get Out,” a film about, written and directed by white people, in order to make them feel better about race.

Had “Green Book” instead centered on Shirley, it could have been an impressive, engaging story of a man juggling personas against the backdrop of a racist society. Instead, we’re forced to endure two hours with Mortenson, who turns in a cartoonish performance. Eighty percent of his time on screen is devoted to shots of Tony eating (including an essential hot dog contest subplot), which isn’t quite as bad as the scenes in which Vallelonga introduces Shirley to “his” culture.

The film never wonders or posits Tony’s prejudices are in any way insidious or part of a broader system of oppression – he’s totally removed from the “real” racists the pair face on their journey south.

That Mortenson shouldn’t have been nominated is obvious, though I can somewhat understand the Academy’s appreciation of Ali here. The only person of color on screen, Ali does the best with what he’s given, and he’s far from bad. But, like “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Green Book” does everything it can to minimize the sexuality of its subject: Shirley’s

queerness is alluded to only once.

Worse, the film presents Shirley’s imperfections as somehow equal to Vallelonga’s flaws—and posits that only though the power of interracial friendship can these issues be addressed. I shouldn’t need to point out that a gifted musician doesn’t need to buddy up with a racist to become a better person.

Then there’s the scene in which Vallelonga and Shirley are stopped by a police officer. The two pause, scared, and assume the cop is going to harass them, only for the officer to be entirely kind and helpful. Vallelonga and Shirley laugh, embarrassed. The message is clear: don’t make assumptions about people! But police brutality isn’t about a couple bad apples—it’s an extension of an oppressive, white supremacist system. Pretending otherwise is dishonest and ignorant. Oh yeah, and that non-racist cop is played

by Brian Hayes Currie, the third writer (after Farrelly and Vallelonga) of “Green Book.”

Finally, it should be noted that the family of Shirley has said that the film is “full of lies,” with Shirley’s niece saying that “there was no due diligence done to afford my family and my deceased uncle the respect of properly representing him, his legacy, his worth and the excellence in which he operated and the excellence in which he lived.” She’s describing a movie nominated for Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Picture.

Freddie Mercury and Dr. Shirley deserve movies about their lives, movies that understand the struggles both endured. Neither of their biopics do anyone justice. But the further failure falls on the Academy. So much better stuff came out in 2018. There’s also a swamp of reasons not to praise or put eyes on “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Green Book.” It’s not that the Academy needs to be right all the time, but these two films represent an obvious error in judgment.

Maybe a large contingent of the voting base just doesn’t care.

What else could explain these baffling nominations? Chances are, if you’ve made it to the end of this long, extensive piece, you have more invested in the Academy’s choices than the Academy itself. That’s kind of depressing. If the voters don’t care, should we?

The Oscars are currently fighting a losing battle to maintain relevance. Perhaps we should hope they lose—there has to be a better way for deserving, small movies to get eyes on them, that doesn’t involve “Green Book” or “Bohemian Rhapsody” becoming award winners.

14 ARTS

The Brandeis Hoot

February 8, 2019

Howardena Pindell visits The Rose for ‘What Remains to Be Seen’ career retrospective

By Noah Harper editor

Last Friday, the Rose Art Museum unveiled its career retrospective of Philadelphia-born artist Howardena Pindell. Pindell’s work spans over 50 years, with the exhibit showing a variety of works from various styles. “Howardena Pindell: What Remains To Be Seen” goes from abstract grids to political collage to more abstract pieces exploring travel and science—revealing a talented, wide-ranging, poignant artist.

As a woman of color working from the 1970s onward, Pindell’s art engages with ideas of racial and gender identity, politics and aesthetic exploration. Working mostly in acrylic and mixed media (the artist revealed in an interview with The Brandeis Hoot that she is allergic to oil paint), Pindell has developed various avenues of art; she paints, collages, overlays TV images and makes video art, among others. Now an esteemed artist with a traveling retrospective show at the Rose, Howardena Pindell has also gotten a chance to look back at a career of making art. “It’s fifty years of work,” she said to The Hoot, “and I’m amazed I produced all that work.

I’m interested to see how I’ve come with what I attempted, kind of full circle.”

PINDELL (RIGHT) CELEBRATES AN EXTENSIVE CAREER

Pindell began painting when she was eight. One of her teachers recognized her artistic abilities and told her parents. After that, she was encouraged to practice her art and began to win prizes.

She graduated from Boston University with a degree in Fine Arts, going on to receive a graduate degree from Yale. In 1972, she co-founded the Artists In Residence (A.I.R.) Gallery in New York, a first-of-its-kind gallery dedicated to exhibiting work sole-

ly from female artists.

The show at the Rose begins chronologically, displaying work from her college and postgraduate years. After a self-portrait of the artist, there’s an untitled piece from 1967 depicting a skeleton splayed on the ground. Colored in orange and red ochre, the body lies in repose. Its head rests near the bottom left corner of the frame as the setting sun’s rays seem to hit it—peaceful instead of macabre.

These early works use color, points and light to experiment with dimensionality. Another untitled painting, from 1970, uses abstract pointillism to create such an effect. An image begins to take shape before your eyes, as if it’s coming out of the painting. But the green space resists coalescing into something concrete, instead remaining a hazy afterimage. The tension, between what your eyes are trying to pull out of the canvas and what’s actually there, is mesmerizing.

“Untitled” (1972-1973) looms nearby. It’s a big, dark maroon canvas—like a galaxy at first glance. This work was the first time Pindell used tiny paper circles in her work, a material that reappears in the exhibit many times. What first appear to be stars are in fact different colored paper holes—“dots,” as the artist calls them.

PHOTOS BY MEDJINE BARIONNETTE/THE HOOT

The works in this phase were often grid-based, working in a field of constraints, for example, when Pindell combines hundreds of different numbers written on tiny pieces of paper. “I like working with the grid structure,” Pindell said. “My father was a mathematician. He liked to write numbers in a journal that had a grid to it.” Inspired by something from her childhood, Pindell was able to make art from droll schemata, like the large, languid sculptural piece that dominates the first downstairs gallery, around eight or ten feet tall, a rigid graph turned plastic.

Opposite, there are photographs of TV screens, with words and arrows scribbled all over, as if the image can be scientifically analyzed and explained in meticulous detail.

Pindell detailed her process for these pieces: “I would photograph on the negative, I liked very much the sports images because you always seem to have an amazing movement, even without the dots and arrows and numbers, but I liked the way they meshed together.” It’s a technique she would use later for more pointed political work.

In 1979, Pindell’s art changed.

Reactionary conservative politics, a traumatic car accident and racism in the art world combined to influence her work. As you step into the rear gallery of the Rose, you’re confronted by a large video projection of Pindell’s, titled “Free, White and 21.”

The 10-minute filmed work from 1980 is a personal and political commentary on Pindell’s experiences as an artist of color, signifying a shift from art concerned with pure aesthetic to political and social issues.

The video alternates between Pindell as a version of herself, and a white character, played by her in heavy makeup. When Pindell recounts times she was discriminated against or harassed because of her race, the white woman is quick to discount her story.

Pindell begins to wrap her head in toilet paper, obfuscating her face, the white becoming a blank space completely blotting out her identity. Her voice and creative expression are pigeonholed by the other character: “I hear your experiences and I think, well, it’s gotta be in her art, that’s the only way we’ll validate you, and it’s gotta be in your art in a way that we consider valid,” Pindell as the

white woman says.

The last, largest gallery at the Rose deals with Pindell’s “issue-related pieces” as she called them. “I feel obligated to deal with subjects that some people would find are too hard to deal with,” Pindell said in the interview.

The work “Autobiography: Water/Ancestors/Middle Passage/ Family” is remarkable. We see Pindell’s face, with a vague outline of her body, surrounded by what appears to be water. “I laid down on the canvas and cut myself out and sewed it back in,” she said. There are pictures pasted all around her, collage-style, some of them faces, many of them eyes.

The artist described a fascination with her ancestry. “I’m standing on a mountain of faces, that represents the legacy of my past, in terms of my DNA and heritage.”

Like the TV images before, this piece takes a similar approach.

“War: A Thousand Points of Light (White Phosphorus)” 1988 is an ironic send-up of President George H. W. Bush’s “thousand points of light campaign,” his call for Americans to individually represent the best of American values abroad. Instead, we see a television image of one of Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons exploding, with “A THOUSAND POINTS OF LIGHT” superimposed. It’s a powerful, memorable image.

Across the room hangs “Separate But Equal Genocide: AIDS” (1991-1992). Two flags, reminiscent of earlier work exploring re-woven fabric, remember the AIDS epidemic—and discrimination in terms of medical care between whites and people of color. “That is an AIDS memorial,” Pindell said. “At that time I knew thirteen people who had died of AIDS.” A cousin of the artist died of AIDS at 35.

To me, Pindell’s political art is the most powerful section of “What Remains to Be Seen.” She combines collage, acrylic and photographs to create works that are worth taking the time to reflect on.

Truly a worthy reason to trek out to the Rose. Identity, heritage, racism, political and cultural oppression, are all broached in inventive, compelling ways. Works like “Separate But Equal” and “Autobiography” in this section are worth seeing for the profound contemplation and emotional responses they motivate.

“The paintings create an inner dialogue with people, whether they think about certain events or subject matter,” Pindell said in her interview.

She also encouraged young artists, saying “not to give up,” and to “try to experiment and have fun with it and let it grow.” For those with artist’s block, she recommended reading the book “The Artist’s Way,” by Julia Cameron.

Currently, Pindell said that she is working on another large canvas piece. “I don’t want to talk about it too much, I don’t want to give it away,” she said. She described her experience at Brandeis as “Very positive,” saying that the Rose was one of her favorite venues to exhibit work.

“Howardena Pindell: What Remains To Be Seen,” is on view at the Rose until May 19. A diverse, thorough exhibit of a renowned American artist that should not be missed. As always, admission is free.

February 8, 2019

ARTS 15

The Brandeis Hoot

Ansel Adams exhibit combines photography and environmentalism

By Sabrina Chow editor

There are few things in life that I love more than pretty pictures and good music. As an aspiring photographer, I always love to look at the works of famous photographers and see how nice their work is. And how I’ll never be that good. Fellow editor Noah Harper, the arts editor, kept telling me about an exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) that I should check out, the Ansel Adams Gallery, “Ansel Adams in Our Time.”

I decided to go and see for myself. And it was 100 percent worth it.

Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist that grew to fame early in his life.

Starting out at The Sierra Club, Adams began his career not only because of his interest in photography but also his love for the environment. As a person who is extremely into sustainability and environmentalism, the depth of his photos really shows the beauty that our world has to offer.

Even though he photographed all across the country, Adams rose to fame with his photographs taken at Yosemite National Park.

These photos provided me with a glimpse of nature from a different time, when fossil fuels weren’t burning so heavily and our Earth had time to recuperate and show us its beauty.

When I initially entered the exhibit, I was extremely overwhelmed by the sheer volume of people looking to see the photos.

I put in my Airpods, looked like a snob, and queued up Amy Beach’s Piano Concerto in C-sharp minor.

The first movement, Allegro moderato, similar to a typical piano sonata, took me through the first two rooms. Surrounded by the story of Adams’ journey towards environmental conservation, I was in my happy place.

Reading each of the small descriptions about the meaning behind all of the photos really made me feel as though I was alongside Adams through his journey, which brought even more intrigue to the exhibit. Coming from such a humble background and overcoming such hardships to land in a profession that he loved really shone through in his work.

One of the things I appreciated most about the exhibit was the incorporation of various mediums, artists and types of photos. Adams gained fame for his photos of Yosemite National Park, but he was so much more than a photographer. Collaborating with different photographers and artists, such as Georgia O’Keeffe and a Native American tribe, Adams celebrates the beauty of nature and people through his personal art medium.

And while most of his photos are in black and white, one of the most impactful photo series in the entire exhibit showcases different sunsets at different points during the year. These photos were taken over the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, CA in a four-photo series.

When I initially saw the photos, I thought they were just pretty sunsets. But upon reading the caption that accompanied the photos and looking closer at them, I saw the Golden Gate Bridge near the bottom of the frame.

What drew me to this series was the deeper meaning behind photographing the Golden Gate Bridge for Adams (not just be-

cause I’m a sucker for sunsets).

Growing up in the Bay area, according to a biography on Adams’ website, Adams would take the streetcar from his home near Baker Beach to the waterfront downtown, catch the ferry across the Golden Gate and spend days walking around Marin hills.

His conservation efforts also went into effect near the Golden Gate. The Sierra Club discovered a proposal for the construction of high-rise apartment buildings on the hills and Adams created a photograph with the apartment buildings on the hills. This protest led to the creation of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area that protects these lands.

As I passed the first portion of the exhibit, I entered the second section, and the second movement of the concerto, Scherzo: Vivace (Perpetuum mobile).

Even though the piece is a piano concerto and features a pianist, there are hints of various interludes of different soloists in the orchestra.

This was also apparent in the exhibit. While a majority of the work in the exhibit was focused

PHOTOS BY SABRINA CHOW/THE HOOT

on Adams’ pieces, there were also works of photographers and artists that drew their inspiration from Adams.

Showing the reach of a single photographer on others in the same profession gives me more inspiration and drive as a photographer. Catherine Opie was one of the artists in the exhibit that struck me.

Unlike all the clean, crisp photos that were in the rest of the exhibit, Opie’s landscape photos were all blurry. Even so, I was able to tell that the photo was of one of the most famous waterfalls in Yosemite National Park.

In a video provided by the exhibit, Opie knew that all the great photographs had already been taken, mostly by Adams, so she needed to find a different angle that would give people a new perspective on a scene that they may have already seen. She was looking to see “how photography serves us and our memory.”

One of the last photos I saw, and the last one I personally photographed, was the best photo in the entire exhibit, in my opinion.

It showed Adams taking a photo of his shadow. In this self-portrait, the viewer can see Adams in his cowboy hat, presumably being beat down by the sun, holding up his light measurer and his large camera. As a developing photographer, I can tell you that we are extremely lucky to live in an area where we don’t have to carry around extremely heavy photography equipment and instruments to measure light exposure.

This photo, to me, represented the real origin of photography.

Going out and photographing the true beauty that this world has to offer.

The Ansel Adams exhibit will be in the MFA until Feb. 24. If you’ve ever wished to see photography at its finest, I urge you to go see the exhibit before it leaves Boston.

Free for all Brandeis students.

16 ARTS

The Brandeis Hoot

February 8, 2019

‘Free Solo’ doc climbs to success as he scales the mountain. In fact, I felt tense even after I left the theater, which is a testament to the directing and cinematography in “Free Solo.”

The climbing scenes are so tense and nerve-racking that an eventual biopic could not replicate the same effect.

As soon as the film started, I knew seeing it in IMAX was the right decision. Although the movie was not initially released in this format, the digital conversion is still phenomenal since the filmmakers mostly shot the climbing scenes with a wide lens, which makes them perfect for a large IMAX screen.

Another aspect of “Free Solo” that I really liked was how it does not present Alex’s goal as easy, which makes the journey even more extraordinary. Several interviewees, including Alex himself, all express their worry, though it’s not enough to prevent him from reaching his goal.

Therefore, watching Alex succeed in climbing El Capitan is cathartic, because directors Chin and Vasarhelyi were able to make us sympathize with him throughout his jour-

By Zachary Sosland staff

“Free Solo” is a 2018 documentary from Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi. The film follows Alex Honnold, who in June 2017 became the first free solo climber to conquer the 3000 foot high El Capitan mountain.

For those who don’t know, free solo climbing involves climbing above safe heights without protective equipment, so any mistake would most likely result in death.

In honor of receiving an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary, the movie’s distributor National Geographic re-released it in select IMAX theaters. One of them was at AMC Boston Commons, so I decided to go in and see what all the fuss was about. While I still think that “Won’t You Be My Neighbor” was snubbed, I can say that “Free Solo” is the best documentary in this year’s Oscar race.

For starters, the filmmaking alone is why this movie deserves an Oscar.

Chin and Vasarhelyi know how to keep us on edge with how they shoot Alex

ney.

Furthermore, I appreciate how the film doesn’t portray Alex as anything other than a normal person. There is one scene where Alex speaks at his high school about his charitable foundation that promotes solar energy in third-world countries, but that doesn’t make him any less relatable and therefore makes his accomplishments even more extraordinary.

While I admire “Free Solo” for showcasing Alex’s personal struggle, I do wish that it would’ve delved deeper into his reasoning for why he loves to put himself in these dangerous situations. Outside of a few hints, none of the more intimate scenes captivated me as much and pad out a documentary that is already under two hours.

Nonetheless, “Free Solo” is still one of the better documentaries I saw last year. It’s an inspiring story about following your dreams even in the face of danger that is capped off with breathtaking cinematography. I cannot stress enough how great of a theatergoing experience this film is.

Hoot Recommends

Jablinski Games

Jack Black’s new YouTube channel “Jablinski Games” is unapologetically dumb fun. By all accounts, the man is the same persona we see in his movies: a loveable, earnest goof. Filmed and edited by his son, the weekly videos take vlog form, with the promise of gaming videos to come, just after he gets the “Elgato figured out,” whatever that means. But, in the meantime, enjoy bite-sized snippets of Jack Black and co. doing whatever they do in their free time: eating hamburgers, rocking out at guitar center, embarrassing his children. Rest assured, I’ll be watching him say “What’s jabling

jabels” for the foreseeable future.

—Noah Harper

“Resident Evil 2” Remaster

I tend to hate horror movies—which is why I’m shocked that I’m really loving Capcom’s horror game throwback. Originally released in 1998 and now available on all major platforms (PS4, XBOX ONE and PC), “Resident Evil 2” has been completely updated and reworked for a new generation. You still play as protagonists Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield as they attempt to survive a zombie outbreak, but the talented team of developers have constructed a tense and frightening experience with a palpable

sense of atmosphere. The gameplay is a mix of zombie-shooting and intricate puzzle-solving, but “Resident Evil” sucks you in with its unique macabre ambiance. It’s worth going outside your comfort zone to check this thing out—I know I’m glad I did. —Jonah Koslofsky

“Human Sadness” by The Voidz

Most people don’t listen to 11 minute songs on a regular basis, but if you’ve ever been a fan of The Strokes or indie rock, Julian Casablancas’ band The Voidz might have something for you. “Human Sadness”—ringing in at 10 minutes and 56 seconds—combines

BEAM Springfest competition opens

By Noah Harper editor

Basement Records and the Campus Activities Board (CAB) are asking for student musicians to submit performance videos for their annual BEAM competition. The Brandeis Premier Digital Talent Search is an opportunity for Brandeis students to perform onstage at Springfest 2019 with the headliner—past musicians have included Kendrick Lamar, fun. and A$AP Ferg.

The competition is open to any student performer or performing group, such as musicians, DJ’s, acapella groups and dancers—performance is key.

Here’s how the process works:

students will submit a video of a live performance, which will then be judged by music professors who will select their favorites. The next round will go to the CAB and Basement Records executive board, who will decide the finalists. After that, the choice of the next Springfest student performer is turned over to the student body. There will be videos promoting the finalists, followed by a vote. Whoever wins will get a month to practice in preparation for going live on stage in April.

“Brandeis is full of artists and music groups that are so incredibly talented but oftentimes don’t have avenues to showcase their talent and show the school and state how talented and ded-

icated they are to their craft,” Bethel Adekogbe ’20, Basement Records president said. “The BEAM competition is the ultimate opportunity to showcase their talent and show they have what it takes to make it big.”

The BEAM competition is a collaboration between Basement and CAB. It’s the second year of the contest, with Late Night Thoughts having won in 2018.

“It’s a huge opportunity, it puts you in front of literally thousands of people,” Adekogbe said.

“It’s an opportunity to put your best foot forward.”

The submissions deadline is Monday, Feb. 18. Students can follow the competition’s progress on the Basement Records and CAB Facebook pages.

an endlessly catching bassline with classic Casablanca vocals while flipping between crunchy, distortion-heavy guitar and softly swelling synths. Just before the three minute mark you’ll be bombarded by a wallowing solo liable to make your heart skip a beat, only to sink into a dreamlike stasis by the four minute mark.

Then, again, a crescendo—a solo here or there—riveting guitar interlaced with echoing and phased effects. At one point Casablanca sings, “I know you won’t get back your time,” but, at the end of 11 minutes, you won’t need it back.

In fact, if you’re at all like me, you’ll probably just hit repeat. — Ryan Spencer

John Wolfe

I know you like horror, especially horror games. And I also know you’re too busy or too much of a pussy to play them yourself. That’s OK. Because I’ve got the perfect youtube channel for you! John Wolfe is your go-to guy when it comes to playing horror games.

Having been on the platform for eight years, he has played pretty much every horror game you can think of, from classic horror game series like “Silent Hill” and “Resident Evil” to obscure indie horror games that are either surprisingly awesome or hilariously bad. In addition to his impressive resume of games, John is a calm and down-to-earth personality that’s just plain likeable. - Stewart Huang

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

When “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” was cancelled for 31 hours, I was completely devastated. How could Fox rid the world of such an amazing television show? But bless NBC for picking up a show

that they had created. At the intersection of “NCIS” and “How I Met Your Mother,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” provides a very loosely based crime television show with all the shenanigans on the main floor of their precinct, the “bullpen.” All fans of the show cannot help but yell “Nine-Nine!” when they are watching the show and laughing along with all the characters. SNL did Andy Samberg well, and Terry Crews discussing Terry loving yogurt in the third person is always a good time. —Sabrina Chow

@WeRateDogs and @IvePetThatDog

Do you like dogs? Do you like positivity? Do you like both of those things together? Then boy, do I have two accounts for you to follow. Found on both Twitter and Instagram, @WeRateDogs and @ IvePetThatDog are two gloriously floofy accounts that aim to bring the purest dog content into your daily life. WeRateDogs, started by then-college student Matt Nelson in 2015, solicits photo and/or video submissions of people’s dogs and then posts them on the account with funny captions, rating them on a 1-10 scale (but inevitably ends up rating them above a 10, because every doggo is a good doggo). I’ve Pet That Dog, started more recently in April 2018, simply chronicles the adventures of 10-year-old Gideon, who pets multiple dogs daily and posts a picture of each dog he’s pet, with some info about him or her in a delightfully straightforward tone.

Both of these accounts are so simple, yet bring so much joy into my daily life; you won’t regret giving them a follow. -Abigail Gardener