Volume 13 Issue 9
“To acquire wisdom, one must observe.” www.brandeishoot.com
Brandeis University’s Community Newspaper • Waltham, Mass.
April 1, 2016
Julieanna Richardson ‘76 , oral historian named commencement speaker By Emily Sorkin Smith editor
photo courtesty brandeis climate justice
DIVESTMENT: Students held a rally in the Shapiro Campus Center on Wednesday to show student suppport for divestment while members of Brandeis Climate Justice met with members of the Board of Trustees upstairs. Students held signs to express why Louis Brandeis might support divestment.
Climate Justice students meet with trustees, call for further action By Elianna Spitzer editor
Parts of the iconic Usen Castle, a sophomore residence hall, will be torn down in the summer of 2017, according to an email from Interim President Lisa Lynch. Only Towers A and B, which include Chum’s Coffee House, are to remain standing. Brandeis will build a new residence hall in place of the demolished towers to be completed by August, 2018. It will house 160 students, a 60 percent increase in occupancy. The construction will
cost an estimated $37 million, not including work to preserve Towers A and B. The structure of the Castle has been in decline for years. Scaffolding covers portions of the structure, and residents have complained of inconsistent heating and water damage over the years. The university’s plan aims to preserve the most iconic portions: the tallest towers and Chum’s. Towers A and B are in the best condition, according to the email from Lynch, although they will still require significant renovation. The goal is for them
to remain viable, although their long term purpose has yet to be determined, said Jim Gray, the vice president for campus operations and co-chair of the Castle Advisory Group. The group will continue to plan for the future of the structure, becoming more active now as they work with an architect to design the new building, said Gray. He did not yet know where the money to fund preservation of Towers A and B would come from. Students will be able live in the Castle through the Fall 2016 seSee BCJ, page 5
Delegation from Al-Quds Univ. vists Brandeis By Hannah Schuster editor
A delegation from Al-Quds University spent last week at Brandeis as part of a trip organized by students working to reinstate the partnership between the two schools that Brandeis suspended in 2013. Five students, one professor and the Director of Student Ac-
Inside this issue:
tivities from Al-Quds arrived in Waltham on Tuesday, March 22 and spent six days participating in dialogue and experiencing life at Brandeis. Leah Susman ’18 and Risa Dunbar ’17 coordinated the delegation from the Brandeis University/Al-Quds University Student Dialogue Initiative. They began planning the trip over the summer when they visited Al-Quds. In January, they released an ap-
News: Heller School ranked top Grad. school Opinion: Beware of illegal employement Arts: Vagina Monologues empowers women Features: Prof. Jillian powers lambastes univ. Editorial: Hoot discusses TBTN coverage
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg commented last night on her appreciation for Louis Brandeis’ pioneering legal practice that used facts and the social conditions of the day to ensure that laws helped the people, addressing students, faculty, alumni and guests in the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center. Her remarks and the panel discussion which followed kicked off a semester-long celebration of the 100-year anniversary of Brandeis’ appointment to the Supreme Court. Justice Brandeis is known as “the people’s lawyer” who took on many social justice issues throughout his career as a lawyer, judge and Justice. In what has become know as the “Brandeis Brief ” of 1908, he
pioneered the use of facts to support legal arguments, as opposed to legal philosophy. The brief argued in favor of an Oregon law that restricted women’s work hours in factories. “Let me explain why I applaud Brandeis’ methods but not the decision he sought and gained,” said Ginsburg. “It was to be loaded with facts and spare on legal argument,” said Ginsburg, describing the research Brandeis’ team produced to argue that long work days were detrimental to women. Brandeis used medical studies to argue his case, some of which would not hold up today, said Ginsburg, including a study which said women have more water in their blood and muscles than men. “Women, Brandeis urged, were more susceptible than men to the maladies of industrialization and See COMMENCEMENT, page 2
Students clash over Israeli Apartheid Week By Emily Sorkin Smith editor
A banner hung by the Rabb steps for The Israeli Apartheid Week was taken down multiple times after being put up by Brandeis Students for Justice in Palestine (BSJP). A sign in support of Israel and rejecting the use of the word “apartheid” hung opposite BSJP’s banner. This sign was hung by students including Yuval Derry ’16 and Doron Shapir ’18. BSJP hung their banner for the first time Saturday, March 19 around noon, with permission from the university. According to club leaders, it had been tak-
en down by 7 p.m. that evening and was found on the Boston/ Cambridge shuttle. The banner was again taken down on March 24, as the group’s Facebook page explained. “If there is one thing that reminds us why Palestine solidarity activism is so necessary at Brandeis University, it is this level of intolerant active opposition to the cause of Palestinian freedom and equality that we have seen for the past couple of days,” said a post on BSJP’s Facebook page. The banner opposite BSJP’s, which read, “No matter how many people believe in a lie, it See APARTHEID, page 4
plication for Brandeis hosts and selected nine. “I decided to join this delegation because I personally wanted to expose myself to Palestinian narratives,” said Ari Kiegan ’18, who participated in the Initiative’s actions her first year. “I believe that Palestinian perspectives would greatly benefit campus See AL-QUDS, page 5
‘the wiz’ Page 3 Debut reimagines the cult Page 16 classic on stage Page 14 ARTS: Page 10 Page 6 Page 10
photo by matt kowalyk/the hoot
david herbstritt
Vice President and President-elect david herbstritt outlines plans for presidency
NEWS: Page 2
NEWS
2 The Brandeis Hoot
April 1, 2016
Class of ‘76 alumna will speak at 2016 commencement COMMENCEMENT, from page 1
Historian and founder of HistoryMakers Julieanna Richardson ’76 will give the commencement speech at this year’s graduation ceremony. Richardson, along with four other people, will be given an honorary degree at commencement. Richardson founded the nonprofit HistoryMakers, which preserves the accounts of African Americans through oral histories. HistoryMakers is, according to their website, America’s largest collection of African American oral histories. They have in their archives oral histories from Barack Obama, Quincy Jones and several members of the Tuskegee Airman. Past honorary degree recipients have sparked controversy within the Brandeis community. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Dutch politician very critical of Islam, was invited to Brandeis to receive an honor-
ary degree in 2014. After faculty members and students protested her selection, the university retracted their invitation. The process for selecting honorary degree recipients requires that individuals be nominated and approved by the full Board of Trustees. The university president then selects the awardees from the list of approved nominees. Past awardees include Harry Belafonte, David Ben Gurion and Jamaica Kincaid. Richardson graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Theater Arts and American Studies before attending Harvard Law School. While at Brandeis, she completed an independent research project on the Harlem Renaissance, her first exposure to the power oral histories in relaying important narratives. Richardson worked as a corporate lawyer and cable news executive before starting HistoryMakers.
Also receiving awards are MIT physicist Mildred Dresselhaus, grandson of Louis Brandeis Frank Brandeis Gilbert, Academy Award Nominee Agnieszka Holland, and abstract artist Jack Whitten. Dresselhaus, who has worked to encourage women to study science and engineering, has also won the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom. Her research focuses on nanotechnology and carbon nanostructures. Brandeis Gilbert has worked with cities to preserve historic spaces and strengthen the laws that protect them. He is a member of the Supreme Court Bar, which requires that lawyers be qualified to practice in the highest court of their state. As the first woman chair of the European Film Academy, Holland’s influence in the world of filmmaking has spread beyond Europe. She was involved in the production of “The Wire,” “Rosemary’s Baby” and “House of Cards.”
Jack Whitten, an African American artist whose abstract pieces have been featured in the Whitney Museum of American Art, will also be receiving an award. Whitten attended Tuskegee University and after hearing Martin Luther King, Jr. speak at the Montgomery Bus Boycott, became heavily involved in the Civil Rights Movement. Whitten spent two years of his career creating a work in commemoration of the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center, which he was only blocks away from. Seniors graduating this spring are currently in the process of voting for the student commencement speaker, which requires that students submit speeches to the rest of the class. President Nyah Macklin ’16 is one of 10 finalists, from which seniors may select three. Richardson will receive her honorary degree at the Commencement Ceremony in March,
photo from newseum.org
where she will also deliver the commencement speech. “Julieanna Richardson is a distinguished alum of Brandeis University, a leader in her field and much honored for her life’s work,” wrote Interim Vice President of Communication Judy Glasser in an email to The Brandeis Hoot.
Univ. responds to B.SASV progress report By Hannah Schuster editor
Brandeis responded Monday to the second progress report from Brandeis Students Against Sexual Violence (B.SASV) which graded the university in 12 categories on their handling of sexual assault and rape culture on campus and informed students that some of their requests were already completed. Brandeis also outlined plans to clarify existing services and launch a campus-wide awareness campaign on sexual violence. B.SASV called for this campaign in their initial April 2014 petition and gave Brandeis an “F” in this category of their subsequent two progress reports for failing to launch anything. The Task Force for Sexual Assault Response, Services and Prevention will work on this project. “We’ll need to solicit campus input before we launch a campaign. We may choose to join a national campaign that already [exists], or to develop our own,” said Sheryl Sousa, co-chair of the Task Force, in an email to The Brandeis Hoot. Successful national campaigns include the White House led It’s On Us campaign and the One Love Foundation, said Sousa. [BMen (Brandeis Men’s Group)
and One Love will co-host a presentation for student athletes this week. -this sentence could maybe be deleted] After B.SASV released its first progress report in November, 2014, Brandeis responded category-by-category. This year, a campus-wide email listed 13 “clarifications” of items in the report and a five-point list of future steps. A separate message to B.SASV described specific plans in a 17-row table. Regarding the Psychological Counseling Center, B.SASV had said the PCC was in the process of replacing their departed trauma specialist and stressed the importance of having someone in this position. However, the PCC hired two part-time counselors to ensure “[t]he number of available hours for survivors seeking counseling has been maintained” while conducting the search, according to Brandeis’ response. B.SASV also stressed the importance of hiring additional PCC counselors who speak world languages (noting one counselor is fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese). Brandeis clarified “treatment is available in French, German, Hebrew, Mandarin and Spanish.” B.SASV had also cited Korean and Hindi as essential.
The report criticized a PCC proposal to restrict students from receiving 12 free sessions which was never put in place. Michael La Farr, executive director of health and wellness confirmed there had been no changes in a September interview with The Hoot. B.SASV inserted a clarification of this prior to Brandeis’ official response. The progress report demanded Public Safety create an anonymous feedback form, which already exists. B.SASV also requested Brandeis translate the sexual assault Survivor’s Guide be translated into other languages. The administration’s response links to Chinese and Arabic translations, as well as the anonymous feedback form on Public Safety’s website. For the safety of survivors, administration found clarifications necessary. “One of our greatest concerns is that misinformation will inhibit survivors from seeking resources,” said the response. B.SASV took issue with the “tone” of the message. In response to the quote above B.SASV said, “What inhibits survivors from seeking resources is not having the resources exist in a fully-funded and accessible manner, which is what the Progress Report detailed,” in a statement
to The Brandeis Hoot. B.SASV, again, called on Brandeis to enact change. “It is the job of the university to properly disseminate information so that all students understand,” said the statement. Administrators pledged to address campus-wide confusion by improving information online and launching campaigns. They will update websites to “clarify important information for survivors such as knowing the RCC 24/7 phone line provides access to a licensed therapists at all times and that there is no limit for survivors seeking resources at the PCC,” wrote Sousa. B.SASV had criticized confusion regarding where after-hours calls are transferred. Administrators also told B.SASV said they will launch awareness campaigns for PCC, OPS and RCC resources. Brandeis acknowledged that lack of transparency regarding Task Force activity has made it difficult to find up-to-date information. Sousa and co-chair Kim Godsoe will “improve website postings for the [Task Force] to include current topics of discussion and action items” by April, according to the document sent to B.SASV. B.SASV also called for changes to party registration poli-
cies—mandating that hosts are bystander trained and updating signs posted outside parties with information on campus resources. Brandies promised to revise party policies in the campus-wide email, and Sousa said “seeking community input and looking at best practices” will inform any changes. Administrators promised to improve signage for the RCC, which is inadequate, according to B.SASV, as the building’s door lists only OPS. B.SASV also demanded Community Advisors and Orientation Leaders participate in bystander training. Brandeis’ response notes CAs and OLs did participate in a “sexual misconduct prevention” training with True to Life this year. This is not bystander training, but does teach CAs about their role as mandatory reporters. B.SASV also proposed the “Get Help” posters inside bathroom stalls be translated into “at least Spanish, Mandarin and Korean,” which Brandeis said it will do. Sousa, Godsoe, Provost Irv Epstein and Senior Vice President of Students and Enrollment Andrew Flagel signed the responses.
David Herbstritt ‘17 outlines plan for Union presidency By Ryan Spencer staff
After a two-vote victory over Christian Nuñez ’18, current Student Union Vice President David Herbstritt ’17 is preparing to take over as president next semester. “We all agree there are things that do need to get done and getting them done is my first priority,” said Herbstritt in an interview with The Brandeis Hoot. Some of Herbstritt’s main areas of focus are inclusion and diversity, bystander training, sexual assault prevention and environmental sustainability. “Something I’m really passionate about getting done next year [is] making
sure we can create a safer campus environment,” said Herbstritt explaining his hopes to increase bystander training. This year, Herbstritt has been involved in discussions with Jim Gray, the vice president of operations, about implementing solar panels and other forms of green energy across campus. In addition to his three main areas of interest, Herbstritt plans to continue to make the Student Union more visible and accessible to students. “The executive branch of the Student Union … is a direct tie to administration, it’s a direct back and forth, a conversation, with administration that is usually quite open and regular,” said Herbstritt. “It’s important that that not be forgotten.” Herbstritt
feels that the Student Union is important and can have an influence on Brandeis administration. While in office, Herbstritt plans to be publicly accessible by email and to hold office hours for five to eight hours each week. Transparency has been a major goal of Student Union President Nyah Macklin ’16, whose administration created the website and Student Union Facebook group. The Union president must appoint students to fill various executive roles, including Chief of Staff, but Herbstritt has ideas for several new positions. He plans to appoint a Director of Community Engagement, to help “figure out ways to increase [voter] turnout and increase visibility of the Union so that more people so that
more people realize that the work we do is actually meaningful and affects people on the day-to-day.” Approximately 30 percent of undergraduates voted in the most recent round of elections which included voting on presidential and vice-presidential candidates, compared to less than 25 percent in the midterm elections for class senators occurring in January. Herbstritt also plans to appoint a Director of Digital Media and a Director of Academic Affairs. According to Herbstritt, the director of digital media would work with Facebook and other social media to keep students up to date on Union activity. This director would also help to make the Student Union website better. Certain parts of the Student
Union website fail to be updated on a regular basis. The “Initiatives” section of the website, for example, still includes the Student Union Initiatives from last semester. Herbstritt hopes that a Director of Academic Affairs will allow the Student Union to work with academics “more directly than just through our Curriculum Committee.” “This is a big year for academics, the [Undergraduate Curriculum Committee] is currently reviewing gen-ed requirements” explains Herbstritt.Herbstritt said that after the upcoming senate and judiciary elections on April 4 he plans on releasing applications for executive roles. “I’m excited to get to work,” he said.
April 1, 2016
In The Senate: Mar.20
-Senior Representative to the Board of Trustees Grady Ward ’16 gave an executive officer report: -He spoke about how his job involves meeting with students who don’t always have an opportunity to talk to trustees, but otherwise may need to. - Ward gets involved with discussions such as divestment, communicates between students and trustees on where the university sits on certain questions, and works with trustees to explore solutions to campus issues. -Vice President David Herbstritt ’17 delivered his executive officer report: - The Judiciary is proposing changes that will involve having one justice sit in on Senate meetings so that Judiciary members wouldn’t have to rely on hearsay in the future. - The Judiciary is also looking into finding ways to become more active in the Union, including possibly reviewing the Union Constitution. -Executive Senator Paul Sindberg ’18 delivered his executive officer report: - Sindberg explained what the Union E-board is and how it functions. - He also expressed that he believes it to be a “big problem that [they’re] operating as an E-board without all members being confirmed.” -Senator At Large Lorenzo Finamore ’18 stated that the Club Support Committee has been working with the Volunteers Around the World club to make changes in their proposal so as to attain recognition status with the Union and not be denied due to duality of purpose. -Services and Outreach Committee Chair Paul Sindberg announced that the committee had come up with a theme, to be announced, for the upcoming Midnight Buffet. -The Senate voted unanimously to pass a resolution supporting to change Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day. -Finamore stated an interest in writing clearer rules of how duality of purpose should be determined for clubs seeking recognition versus chartering. -Class of 2017 Senator Matt Smetana stated that he had met with Ward about holding a climate change related art exposition which will be a part of the Festival of the Arts later in April. There was no Senate meeting on Sunday, March 27 due to inability to attain a quorum. By Jacob Edelman
The Brandeis Hoot
NEWS
3
Unconfirmed E-board members raise concerns
By Samantha Lauring Staff
Senators on the Student Union have raised concerns unconfirmed members of the E-Board and decreasing transparency between the Board and the Senate. According to the Constitution, E-Board should consist only of members elected by the student body and members who have been appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Several people who attend the closed E-Board meetings have been appointed by President Nyah Macklin ’16 but have not been confirmed by the Senate. Therefore, Union Senators are questioning the legitimacy of the E-Board and concerned that unconfirmed members are sitting in on closed meetings, when senators cannot. The Senate intends on holding confirmation votes at their meeting on Sunday, according to their agenda. The unconfirmed members, Secretary Shuying Liu ’16 explained, “ensure that Student Union work with transparency and information flow smoothly between branches.” “The irony of Liu’s claim is striking,” says Class of 2019 Senator, Nathan Greess. “To claim including these members is simply an effort to increase transparency is laughable when you consider all records from E-Board meetings are secret even to elected members of the Senate.” According to Greess, the President and members of E-Board were notified of the senators’ concerns on March 6. Since then, the Board has continued their weekly closed-door meetings, apparently retaining unconfirmed members. Nowhere in the Constitution does it state that E-Board meetings are to be closed; yet the meet-
ings are almost always closed, with confidential information never released to other Union members. Class of 2017 Senator, Matt Smetana says that the E-Board has, “collected bodies without approval from all of the venues of the Union: A-Board, Treasury, Judiciary, and others, and hold closed-door meetings only accessible to a few individuals.” In an email to members of the Senate, Executive Senator Paul Sindberg stated that “E-board meetings have an agenda…[W]e discuss issues until we come to a general consensus on next steps, and then we assign each other to these next steps.” However, according to members of the Senate, unlike the Senate agenda, the E-Board agenda is not public. Executive Senator Sindberg serves as the Senate’s liaison to the E-Board, but according to his email, he is barred from disclosing some information to the Senate. “We’re also handling one or two specific initiatives that E-Board has currently decided to keep secret. I personally believe this information should be made available to the Senate for discussion,” Sindberg writes. Greess notes that in the Senate’s March 20 meeting, President-elect and current Vice President, David Herbstritt alluded to a system of E-Board record censorship: public information is highlighted in orange; secret information is denoted in red. At the past Senate meeting, Jacob Edelman (Features Editor at the Brandeis Hoot), asked the E-Board if accurate records of executive session, including relevant documents or emails, were kept as part of any records that may exist. Vice President David Herbstritt answered that no notes are kept
and during executive session. E-board members shut their laptops and talk face to face. “The Executive Board holds closed meetings yet I can find no clause within our Constitution to justify entirely excluding members of the Senate and the community from Executive Board discussions. No other branch maintains such a high level of secrecy. No other branch operates with such little oversight,” Greess said to the Brandeis Hoot. Smetana said that the Student Union is based on the American political system and like the United States government, “the Executive Branch is under a system of checks and balances that limit the branch from gaining too much power.” Smetana continued to state that, “Claiming that the information is kept secret at the request from administrative bodies doesn’t make it any less unconstitutional and truthfully goes a long way in proving the unnecessary hierarchy found in leadership on campus.” “It is of the utmost importance to follow the rules of a governing body to maintain a just and transparent presence on campus. By falling into incorrect or misguided procedures, one can create a false and even dangerous precedent that can go unnoticed for a long time,” said North Quad Senator, Hannah Brown. Many members of the Union were unaware that unconfirmed members of the Union have been sitting in on E-board members, essentially acting as E-board members. “Our Executive Board has made great progress over the past year, but it still must work to improve transparency while remaining in its jurisdiction,” said Senator Brown.
Heller School ranked a top grad school for public affairs and social policy By Max Gould staff
U.S. News & World Report ranked the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis among the top graduate programs in the country for public affairs and social policy. The masters of public affairs program is now ranked at number 45 (tied with 10 other schools) and the social policy program is ranked at number 10. “We have a stellar reputation in this field and it is gratifying to see that reflected in this year’s ratings,” said Marty Krauss, Interim Dean of The Heller School. As of fall 2015, Heller has 533 students from about 65 different countries, “Our global student body is a treasure and a distinction for us. It is a magnet for both students and faculty,” said Krauss. “There are a majority of people here who actually come from an international background so there’s always a very colorful conversation in class,” said Tyler Miller, a student at Heller pursuing his MBA in nonprofit management and social policy and an MA in coexistence and conflict. Heller has an alumni network that expands to over 3,700 graduates. On their faculty and research
staff,, there are 29 scientists, 28 visiting scholars, 11 professors emeriti, 37 senior or distinguished scientists, and 21 visiting scholars. “We have made some significant faculty hires in the last several years that brought new attention to our strengths,” said Krauss, and “Our faculty publishes extensively in a wide variety of fields and our research has public policy impact.” The Masters of Public Affairs program tied for the number 10 ranking with Cleveland State University, CUNY- Baruch College, the Georgia Institute of Technology, North Carolina State University and North Illinois University. U.S. News & World Report creates rankings on the best colleges, graduate schools and hospitals in the world. The rankings are based on educational data from schools, as well as the use of the magazine’s own methodology. For Miller, what makes Heller and its programs special are his colleagues. “It brings in a diverse student body on the masters level where I think that I learn the most from my colleagues and the comments that they make in class,” he said. Another student appreciates the social policy focus of the
photo by nathan taber/the hoot
programs in Heller. “One of the things that I think is unique about The Heller School is that everything that’s in the school, since it’s a school of social policy, not public policy, has that social bend,” said Calla Mattox, an MPP and non-profit management student at Heller. The Heller School offers its students research opportunities, with over $18 million of sponsored research at the school, and the many different research insti-
tutes at Heller that offer courses in students’ areas of expertise. “We have some of the most prestigious and influential research and policy centers in the country,” said Krauss. The Master in Public Policy is a two-year interdisciplinary program that focuses on social policy. Each concentration in the program is matched with one of nine research institutions at Heller. For students seeking their Ph.D in Social policy, there is a sim-
ilar interdisciplinary approach. Between the research institutes, the fields of poverty alleviation, health, behavioral health, children, youth, and families, disabilities, philanthropy, aging, and global health and development are all addressed. No matter the program, the sentiment of the school remains the same. “At our core, we are a school dedicated to the power of knowledge advancing social justice,” said Krauss.
4 NEWS
The Brandeis Hoot
April 1, 2016
Student Union passes resolution on ‘Indigenous People’s Day’ ByAbigail Gardener editor
On March 21, the Student Union passed a proposal to change the name of the holiday currently known as “Columbus Day” to “Indigenous People’s Day.” This proposal was first introduced three weeks ago by Sophie Warren ’18, who brought it to the attention of Senator at Large Lorenzo Finamore ’18. Brandeis’ proposal came on the heels of Tufts University’s motion to adopt the name change. Tufts’ Undergraduate Arts, Sciences & Engineering (AS&E) faculty voted for Indigenous People’s Day to be recognized in place of Columbus Day on all official Undergraduate AS&E calendars, according to a press release from Benya Kraus, Chair of the Student Outreach Committee on the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate.
According to the press release, Tufts has joined many other states, cities, and universities, including Cornell University and Brown University, in changing the name of the holiday. The movement to make the change first began in 1977 at a United Nations conference in Geneva, Switzerland. No action was taken, however, until fourteen years later in 1992, when the city council of Berkeley, California, declared October 12 a “Day of Solidarity with Indigenous People.” Since then, states, cities, and universities across the country have taken up the movement to change the name of Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day. The movement revolves around the idea that Columbus Day celebrates colonialism and oppression of Native Americans, while Indigenous People’s Day is a way for us to learn about the history of Native Americans and respect and support their struggles.
Warren said of the day, “The intention of this choice lies in recognition of the legacy of Columbus’ imperialist violence, torture, enslavement, and genocide, and the remaining systemic markers of this violence. The purpose of the day itself lies in celebration of Indigenous people’s culture and to commemorate the history of Indigenous peoples.” The Tufts press release stated similar reasons, saying, “Student leaders of the Indigenous Peoples’ Day at Tufts movement emphasize that this name change is not merely a matter of political correctness, but rather, ‘an active decision to shift the institutional and academic consciousness of Tufts University to one that acknowledges the connections between the oppressed histories and present day oppression of Indigenous Peoples.’” The change at Tufts took a year of student campaigning, the press release stated. A petition for
the change received over 1,200 signatures, and 50 student organizations pledged their support. The change seems to be incredibly beneficial for all involved. “Tufts student leaders are looking forward to see this calendar change be a catalyst for bringing greater attention and awareness to Indigenous history, culture, and ongoing resistance.” Furthermore, the press release said, “Students are now developing Indigenous-centered programming to take place on campus during this holiday, as well as pursuing the creation of an Indigenous Studies minor at Tufts University.” At Brandeis, the movement is just getting started. Warren feels it is a necessary change for the university to make considering the values of social justice we uphold. Warren said, “In our Brandeis Academic Calendar, we currently designate ‘Columbus Day’ on the second Monday each October. It is critical and in line with the core
values of our institution that we remove this language and make a conscious choice to honor ‘Indigenous People’s Day’ on the same day, in its place.” Although the resolution passed through the Student Union easily, in order for the change to officially take effect the faculty and administration would have to vote on the proposal, and the language on the official Academic Calendar would have to be changed, Warren said. Warren is happy with how quickly it passed through the Union and is looking forward to receiving continued support. She said, “Work is ongoing, but support is needed. That this shift comes from the community and for the community, is essential. I hope to build awareness, understanding, and support around this resolution.”
Apartheid Week sparks conflict APARTHEID, from page 1
The banner opposite BSJP’s, which read, “No matter how many people believe in a lie, it doesn’t make it true,” listed the names of Palestinians with prominent positions in Israeli society. Under many of these pictures was written “Apartheid?” The students who created the banner question the use of the word apartheid to describe the relationship between Jews and Palestinians in Israel and Palestine. “The banner that our opponents have placed to the left of the Rabb Steps implies that there is no apartheid under Israeli rule because of anecdotal personal achievements by individual Pal-
estinian citizens of Israel,” Iona Feldman ’16 wrote. “We reject this premise.” Israeli Apartheid Week seeks to call attention to “the multitude of systemic oppressions that the Palestinian people live under due to the actions of the Israeli state,” explained Feldman in an email to The Brandeis Hoot. “From the very beginning, Israel’s existence as a ‘Jewish and democratic state’ was only possible at the expense of Palestinian freedom,” he wrote. To some students, the use of the word “Apartheid” prevents dialogue between opposing parties. “I am trying to outreach and work with Palestinians towards reaching understandings regarding stopping the violence and getting closer to peace,” Shapir told
The Hoot. He is an Israeli citizen and former member of the Israeli Defense Force and feels that Israeli Apartheid Week prevents important dialogue. When Shapir and his friends saw BSJP’s sign, he said, “We felt urged to respond, say our truth. We chose a way that presents the people the ability to ask the question—Is there a real apartheid in Israel?” “I am not saying that everybody should be FOR ISRAEL, not at all—but if you are FOR PEACE, there are certain actions that you can do that would improve peace—dialogues, meetings, learning, traveling, learning languages—alienating people is just not one of them,” Shapir wrote. Shapir condemned the removal
of BSJP’s banner and other posters, reiterating his focus on dialogue. BSJP has held an Israeli Apartheid Week before, but has never had their campaign directly challenged in the same was as it was this year. This year, however, many their posters listing Palestinian villages destroyed have been taken down. Brandeis, BSJP believes, is hostile to criticism of Israel and zionism. “The speed at which they were taken down is particularly telling of this university,” they explained of their posters. Brandeis has held strong ties to Israel since its establishment in 1948. In 2011, former President Fred Lawrence visited Israel to “develop opportunities for
collaboration in science, connect with Israeli alumni and friends,” according to the university’s website. There are multiple academic forums for the study of Israel, including the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies and the Brandeis-Israel Research Initiative. Israeli Apartheid Week coincided with the visit of students from Al-Quds University in Jerusalem. Brandeis suspended their partnership with the university in November of 2013, ending a 10year partnership, after students there held a demonstration involving Nazi symbols and anti-semitic rhetoric. Students at both Brandeis and Al-Quds have been working to reinstate the partnership since its suspension.
Herbstritt beats Nuñez in presidential election by two votes By Ryan Spencer Editor
Student Union Vice President David Herbstritt ’17 won the Student Union Presidency by two votes on Thursday, March 17. Herbstritt has served on the Union for the past two years, but the election became contested when Ford Hall 2015 activist Christian Nuñez ’18 entered the race. Herbstritt received 479 votes and Nuñez received 477. “I’m thrilled to be able to serve the Brandeis community again next year. I want to thank all of my supporters and everybody who took the time to vote on Thursday,” said Herbstritt in a statement to The Brandeis Hoot. “There are a lot of issues that we need to deal with, and I am going to have a plan from day one. This weekend, I’m going to hopefully manage to relax a little bit, but then it’s straight to work!” Approximately 30 percent of students voted in the elections: 1053 out of a total 3610 undergraduates voted for president. By comparison, 890 students voted in the first round of last year’s spring elections. Last year, current Student Union President Nyah Macklin ’16 received 70 percent of a total 890 votes. She ran unopposed, as did students in every race besides
the vice presidential race, which had five candidates. Nuñez, who ran against Herbstritt, told The Brandeis Hoot, “I will take this loss as a victory because it has been such an amazing learning experience. I will continue advocating for the issues that the students have raised so far.” He congratulated Herbstritt on his victory and thanked his supporters for voting. This year, Herbstritt was involved with reforming the Allocations Board to address student frustration with the club funding process. He worked to institute mandatory bystander training for club leaders and investigating adding solar panels to buildings across campus. Herbstritt started this year as Class of 2017 Senator, but was elected Executive Senator by the other senators, joining the Union’s E-board for the first time. Herbstritt became Vice President after Dennis Hermida-Gonzalez ’17 stepped down. Throughout the campaign, Herbstritt has addressed his white privilege and issues of diversity and inclusion on campus. “Because of my privilege, I know that I cannot speak on behalf of marginalized groups. What I can do, however, is make sure that they are heard. Starting day one of my term, I am going to push for open and public discussions about what the administration
plans to do to achieve the goals set forth by groups like Ford Hall and the Brandeis Asian American Task Force,” said Herbstritt in a statement on the Facebook page for his candidacy. Paul Sindberg ’18 was elected Vice President with 45 percent of the vote. His competitor, Antoine Malfroy-Camine ’17, began his campaign as a write in, but was later added to the ballot and received 36 percent of the 1008 votes cast for vice president, with the remaining votes going to abstain and write-in candidates. Sindberg has served as Class of 2018 Senator this year, and he took over as Executive Senator this spring after David Herbstritt ’17 became Vice President. As chair of the Services and Outreach Committee he organized last semester’s Turkey Shuttles for a total cost of $200 and the Midnight Buffet for $1,000 less than in past years. Students could also buy “shoutouts” to be shared at the event, with proceeds going to the local Charles River Watershed Organization. This semester, the services and outreach committee organized “Brain Break” in Sherman Dining hall where senators set up crafts for students. Gabriella Gonzales Anavisca ’19 ran unopposed for Secretary and was elected with 80 percent of the vote, the remaining 20 percent going to “Abstain” and write-in candidates. Isaac Altman
’19 was running against Anavisca but dropped out of the race before Wednesday’s debate took place. Anavisca is the Myra Kraft Transitional Year Senator and sees the secretary as a “liaison” between the Union and the student body. The secretary sends out weekly emails to students with information on campus events, campus-wide votes and other announcements. Ziyang Chen ’18 also ran unopposed and was elected Student Union Treasurer with 80 percent of student votes. Chen served on the Allocations Board this year and will continue to be involved with club finances in her new role next year. The Union treasurers assist student leaders with making purchases or filing payments for their clubs. The position of Junior Representative to the Board of Trustees went to Wil Jones ’18 who ran unopposed and received 84 percent of the votes (860 total). This is a two-year position and he will become the senior representative the following year. At the Union debate on Wednesday night, Jones said it is unacceptable that students do not know who the board members are or what they do, even though the board has the power to influence students’ experiences. Jones, who was involved with Ford Hall 2015, said the students were told their demands would need to be ap-
proved by the board. Class of 2018 Senator Cassie Cain ’18 will leave the Senate next year and join the Brandeis Sustainability Fund as a student representative. The BSF can award students money to finance sustainability initiatives across campus. Cain earned 41 percent of the vote. Her opponent, Mingyue (Daisy) Chen ’18 earned 33 percent. Jacob Edelman (an editor at The Brandeis Hoot) ’18 was elected as the Junior Representative to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. He will serve on the committee for two years, until Spring 2018. Edelman earned 46 percent of the vote, and his opponent Brooke Granovsky ’18 earned 35 percent. Edelman wants to create a designated week for midterms and find a way to expand the role of the Afro and African American Studies Department, Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Department and Environmental Studies Department in the core curriculum. Across all the elections, there were 130 votes for “other” candidates, including 39 for “luis,” five for “modcat,” one for Bernie Sanders and one for Lincoln Davenport Chafee.
April 1, 2016
NEWS 5
The Brandeis Hoot
BCJ urges divestment to Board of Trustees By Elianna Spitzer editor
Members of Brandeis Climate Justice (BCJ) gave a presentation to the Board of Trustees urging them to divest from fossil fuels, one year after the Exploratory Committee on Fossil Fuel Divestment recommended full divestment in their 2015 report. BCJ students also held a rally in the atrium of the Shapiro Campus Center while the trustees met upstairs. The push began in April of 2013 when a referendum revealed that 79 percent of students were in support of divestment. Then-President Frederick Lawrence formed the Exploratory Committee on Fossil Fuel Divestment. The committee released a report of its findings 2015. The 173-page report includes facts and data that exemplify the growing environmental threat that fossil fuels pose. “Choosing not to act on this global issue
would represent a failure of the University to live up to its social justice principles,” the report said. The report considered the difficulties involved with divesting endowment shares in fossil fuels. The main point of contention is whether divestment will diminish the endowment. The report states, “The Brandeis Investment Office estimates that full divestment of fossil fuels could reduce annual returns up to 2 percent, or $18 million.” Neither group denies that divestment may have a negative effect on the endowment. The problem is determining how much of an effect it will have. The exploratory committee cites findings that differ from those of the Brandeis Investment Office. They found, “A 2013 report by the Aperio Group revealed that by excluding the 15 most harmful fossil fuel companies a portfolio only increased risk by a negligible 0.0006 percent. Furthermore, entirely excluding the fossil fuel industry from a portfolio increases
risk by only 0.0101 percent.” Michael Abrams ’15 was part of the exploratory committee which published its findings in 2015. He attended the meeting with fellow BCJ members. He is optimistic about working through economic disagreements. “It’s just a question of doing the research to show that this doesn’t pose a risk to any student and in fact it will strengthen the endowment and ultimately make us more money,” said Abrams. The Board of Trustees did not respond to the report when it was released. The March 31 meeting is the first time that BCJ has met with board members. The goal of the meeting was to present the reports’ findings to the board members in the hope that it would open up a dialogue. Cassie Cain ’18 is a member BCJ and spoke with board members at the meeting. She feels that the conversation is one that has to be had. “[I] t’s not a question of if we’re going to divest—but when, because in 50 years we might be forced to,”
said Cain. BCJ hopes to meet with the board again and have their decision by the end of the semester. Between five and ten board members attended the meeting. Members from the Office of Investment Management also attended. “We want them to present our ideas to the rest of the trustees,” said Cain. There are x members of the board. The meeting began as a presentation, but attendees eventually broke into smaller discussion groups. It was in these groups that members of BCJ were able to speak one on one with administrators and trustees. “There was room for more engagement. We could have delved a bit more deeply into the details of divestment,” said Abrams. Cain reiterated this sentiment, stating that the meeting, “could have gone worse and it could have gone better.” During the meeting, members of the BCJ and supporters held a rally. The purpose of the rally was to demonstrate student belief in divestment. “We wanted to show
that [BCJ] is not a fringe group at Brandeis, that there is student support,” said Cain. Between 15 and 20 students attended the rally. The dialogue escalated at times. There were arguments between BCJ members involved in the rally and Board of Trustees members. However, according to BCJ members, the overall sentiment of the meeting was positive. Abrams emphasized the importance of opening a dialogue with board members. “There are lots of issues on campus. A lot of student groups don’t feel listened to by the board and I feel very lucky that we were able to have this meeting,” said Abrams. As of now there is no set date for a follow up meeting or decision from the Board of Trustees. BCJ is optimistic that a date will be set in the near future. “One of our main goals was to set the stage for further conversations about divestment and about Brandeis’ response to climate change” said Abrams.
photos courtesy brandeis climate justice
Dialogue Initiative hopes new pres. will reinstate Al-Quds partnership AL-QUDS, from page 1
conversations on Israel and Palestine.” The Al-Quds students attended classes with their hosts, like they would have through a formal partnership and were able to observe differences in styles of education, explained Marwa, an Al-Quds student who will be identified by her first name. Aseel, another Al-Quds student, attended Black Feminist Theory with Professor Jasmine Johnson (AAAS), who encourages the class to develop their own opinions on material, said Aseel. “It’s not just...a class about giving or transferring information from one side to the other. It’s about interaction and participation from both sides,” she said. Since the Dialogue Initiative was founded in November 2013, Brandeis students have taken three trips to Al-Quds, but this trip marks the first time Al-Quds students have come to Brandeis since the partnership was suspended The trip cost approximately $11,000, which the students paid for with grants from the Peace Conflict and Coexistence program, the Brandeis Pluralism Alliance and the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies. Al-Quds Uni-
versity also donated funds, and Brandeis students raised $4,082 through a GoFundMe campaign. During their summer trip to AlQuds, students wrote letters to Interim President Lisa Lynch asking that she help fund the spring delegation. Unable to do this, Lynch pointed the students towards various grants. Due to the high cost, it is “unlikely that the Initiative could do this again,” said Susman, but students are hopeful the partnership will be reinstated to allow for future exchanges. Lynch has said decisions regarding reinstatement of the partnership must be left to the new president. “We’re looking forward to transferring our positive relationship with President Lynch to incoming President Leibowitz,” said Susman in an email. Ron Liebowitz takes office July 1. Then-President Fred Lawrence suspended the Al-Quds partnership after a student demonstration on their campus with fake weapons and anti-semitic slurs. Lawrence asked the president to condemn the demonstration, but Lawrence found his statement inflammatory and suspended the partnership. Catie Stewart ’15 and Eli Philip ’15 founded the Initiative to maintain a relationship with Al-Quds and promote reinstatement of the partnership as
well as cross-cultural dialogue. “If the Brandeis administration claims to be a liberal-minded institution that firmly believes in embracing plurality and respecting all perspectives, then why is dialogue with Palestinian students now unacceptable?” said Susman at an event last March. The delegation participated in a range of events. “Every night we have a text study that is supposed to prompt dialogue,” said Susman, on topics ranging from religion to revolution to feminism, she said. Students discussed the history of the Al-Quds partnership with Professor Sue Lanser (ENG/ COML/ROMS), who has been involved with the partnership since its inception. “The intense learning on both sides, and the deep bonds forged between Al-Quds and Brandeis students, have been a hallmark of every encounter between members of the AQU and Brandeis communities,” said Lanser in an email. She said the trip “underscores the unique value” between an American university founded by the Jewish community and Palestinian university. Daniel Langenthal, director of Experiential Learning and a member of BPA was a liaison to the Al-Quds project. Before the
Al-Quds cohort arrived, Langenthal led workshops with Brandeis students to help them figure out how they would introduce newcomers to their school. He then led sessions with the delegation on “community building” to help the students develop trust and communication skills as they approached difficult conversations. “I have a very strong background in this exact type of program where college students are coming together having difficult conversations, engaging with each other, learning to built trust,” he said. Marwa said her first day at Brandeis was exhausting but successful. Their first night, they discussed the true meaning of zionism. “It was an amazing discussion, because everyone was interacting in a respectful way...Even though it was a sensitive topic … everyone was calm and just talking and listening to the other person,” said Marwa. On Wednesday, the students attended the lecture with artist and activist Theaster Gates, the new Richman Fellow.The Ethics Center, which awards the fellowship, hosted a breakfast with Gates and the delegation as well as a dinner, which President Lynch was able to attend.
“I was struck by how much [the Al-Quds students, faculty and staff] enjoyed the pedagogical approach of our faculty in the classes they attended, the beauty of our campus and most importantly the dialogue that they engaged in with members of our community,” said Lynch in an email to The Brandeis Hoot. “As has been true for Brandeis students and faculty who have visited Al-Quds, it was apparent that all involved in the visit found meaningful points of commonality despite cultural and experiential differences,” she said. The Initiative hosted a coffee house at Chum’s open to all students which featured a performance by the a cappella group Starving Artists. Members of the delegation explored downtown Boston, touring Faneuil Hall and attending a lecture at Harvard, said Dunbar. Members of the delegation will create oral history projects to be posted online to record their personal experiences with the delegation in a tangible way that is accessible to Americans, Palestinians and everyone. They will use video and writing to convey the “evolution of [their] experience” from their “assumptions” about what the trip would be to what they have felt and experienced this week, said Dunbar.
FEATURES
6 The Brandeis Hoot
April 1, 2016
Prof. Powers claims, rejects univ. exploitation By Theresa Gaffney editor
“I’m in an abusive relationship with my employer.” When Professor Jillian Powers (AMST) says something like this, it’s hard to believe that she enjoys teaching at Brandeis. Yet it’s true, and it’s why she is so disappointed to have to leave. Powers came to Brandeis in 2013 as a postdoctoral fellow. After spending two years as a postdoc at University of Washington in St. Louis, the move to Brandeis seemed like the best decision at the time, says Powers. She even turned down a tenure track position at a different school, coming to Brandeis so that she could finish her manuscript as well as continue her interdisciplinary work in cultural studies and sociology, rather than have to choose one. After her two years as a postdoc ended, Powers took a position for the 2015-2016 academic year as a lecturer and taught classes in the American Studies and Sociology departments.
prof. jillian powers
photo from brandeis.edu
Powers has truly loved the time she spent here, “because I felt things mattered,” she said in an email to her current students. “My work was in service to social justice projects, and I believed that my disciplinary focus … offered [students] the tools to innovate and envision new and more equitable futures.” Her one-year contract was not renewed. Instead, the American Studies program will hire three adjunct professors, who will each teach one course per semester for roughly $6,700 each, according to Powers. “Instead of giving one scholar a decent living wage, ben-
efits, career support, etc. Brandeis has decided to offer piecemeal employment and career instability to three people,” said Powers in her email. Powers uses that word—piecemeal—frequently when talking about adjunct and lecturer positions. “Living in Boston … I could pull together some sort of salary running from BC to Brandeis to Emerson, etc. and I still would not be making enough money to pay my rent, and I still would not be able to have access to the things that I would need to advance my career.” For Powers, this is just another in a long line of systemic exploitative mistreatment by the university. In the transition from working as a postdoc to a lecturer, Powers says there were clear differences in the way she and her scholarship were valued. Her research was no longer funded and she was excluded from from sociology department events such as panels and speaking opportunities. “It’s a very isolating experience,”
“ ” Instead of giving one scholar a decent living wage,
benefits, career support, etc. Brandeis has decided to
offer piecemeal employment and career instability to three people.
Prof. Jillian Powers
says Powers. “They are not there to support you.” While as a postdoc the university invested in her research, with a lectureship Powers is paid solely for the classes she teaches. Additionally, this semester she was asked to act as the Undergraduate Advising Head (UAH) for the sociology department, despite the lack of inclusion in other aspects of the department. Powers was offered $1,000, which she knew was not on par with what tenure track professors receive. She also believes it is simply not
enough for the amount of work the position requires, or the fact that as UAH she is trusted with sensitive information about students. Appalled that her time was being so undervalued, Powers decided that she would track how much time she spent working as UAH. She started carrying a stopwatch around her neck everywhere she went. Every time she sent an email, met with a student or did any of the myriad responSee POWERS, page 7
Ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff ‘81 discusses Brandeis, career and government scandal By Jacob Edelman editor
Jack Abramoff ’81 is no stranger to controversy, having worked as one of the biggest lobbyists in Washington, D.C. for years before being brought down in a wide-ranging corruption scandal that shook the American political system in the late 1990s and early 2000s. As a result of this scandal, Abramoff pleaded guilty to mail fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion, and went to federal prison for 43 months. Numerous other lobbyists, government officials, members of the Bush Administration and more were found to be associating in these dealings and also were sentenced to prison sentences. Two 2010 films were made about Abramoff ’s lobbying: a documentary called ‘Casino Jack and the United States of Money,’ and a thriller/comedy called ‘Casino Jack’ starring Kevin Spacey. Before headlines were made and movies put into production, Abramoff was a Brandeis alum, having attended college in the 1970s and graduating in 1981 with a B.A. in English. In an interview with The Brandeis Hoot, Abramoff spoke about his time at Brandeis and his career since. Originally raised in Beverly Hills, CA, Abramoff made the decision to attend Brandeis after learning that it was one of the few schools that worked in a way that could serve and support observant Jews. He pointed specifically to the presence of a kosher kitchen as one of his primary motivators for attending. Abramoff remembered that his time here was charged with political energy, commenting, “During the late 1970s, it was a difficult national time. There were the Ira-
photos from abramoff.com
jack abramoff
nian hostages, and it was the presidency of Jimmy Carter.” In his days at Brandeis, Abramoff was the chair of the College Republicans, and later on he became the head of the College Republican National Committee. Studying English literature, Abramoff wrote his thesis on Shakespeare and some of the operas that have emerged based on Shakespeare’s works. “Brandeis was a less practical school back then, and it was less geared towards earning a living,” Abramoff
commented about the offerings that used to be available. Remembering some of the most defining aspects of what made Brandeis impactful in his life, Abramoff noted the academic demands and the rigor that was involved with developing his writing skills. His professors demanded perfection in the writing that was handed to them, and with a strong drive for success, he was unwilling to settle for less. Originally aiming to be an attorney, Abramoff went on to George-
town University Law Center and earned a J.D. before entering into business. Politics continued to grow on him through his time in the College Republicans, and after several career moves he was hired as a lobbyist at Preston Gates Ellis & Rouvelas Meeds LLP. Abramoff was quick to note that the greatest professional criticism he gives himself pertains to the lobbying and political scandals that have been indelibly associated with his life. Following prison, his path transformed. “It was a life
changing, horrific experience that I went through. But I had to endure, and keep my family together and get through it,” he described. Abramoff ceased his work as a lobbyist and said in his interview that he turned his attention to the greater goal of raising awareness of and fixing the lobbying and greater political world by undoing many of the loopholes and dilemmas that he himself had taken adSee ABRAMOFF, page 7
April 1, 2016
The Brandeis Hoot
FEATURES 7
Prof. Powers dissatisfied, saddened by non-renewal of contract POWERS, from page 6
sibilities of the UAH, she started the stopwatch. Due to forgetting to stop the watch once, she has lost the exact time, but Powers estimates that she’s worked around 10-15 hours so far. “It’s just another example of being asked to do too much for too little,” she says. “That’s the sign of an abusive relationship.” Powers completed her undergraduate education at Dartmouth College and earned her M.A.
and Ph.D. in Sociology at Duke University. Her current research focuses on ancestry and identity. Her upcoming book, “Traveling to Belong: Boundary Making and the Experience of Homeland Tourism,” is under contract with New York University Press, set to be released sometime next year. In her research for the book, she tracks Jewish Americans, African Americans and adopted Chinese children with their American families as they travel to Israel, Ghana and China respectively.
“I look at fundamental ideas of belonging,” Powers says. She enjoys the work immensely, but notes that “[her] scholarship requires a mastery now in three different areas.” It’s a lot of work, and Powers says that she’s struggled to write this semester due to how emotionally draining her employment situation has been. Despite her dissatisfaction with the university, Powers is not giving up on her students any time soon, nor is she letting them give up on themselves. Powers
is teaching just one class this semester, and in her email to the students explaining her situation, she said flat out that they should expect “no easy As.” Powers thought it imperative that her students knew how the administration was treating her and other educators. And while the administration hasn’t been a resource for her, she is determined to remain a resource for her students. “Moving forward, I’ll always be there for you, I’ll always be your
advocate and I’ll always push you to be the very best you can be,” she wrote. For the near future, Powers plans to take a step away from academia. She has taken a summer job at a consulting firm, and after that she plans to start doing more work “getting her hands dirty,” as well as writing more popular articles. “I have this idea that if I get away from this gilded golden cage, then maybe my voice will come up.”
Jack Abramoff reflects on life, pre- and post-scandal ABRAMOFF, from page 6
vantage of. Today, he talks about how he seeks to remove tainted money from the political system, and says that because he’s been through the dirty political cycle, he now has the knowledge and expertise to find ways to make improvements. Speaking about how outsiders have gained such tremendous support in this year’s election cycle, Abramoff commented that it is a reflection on how today’s society is concerned about the activities and reach of the federal
government into the lives of everyday Americans. “The problem is that so many of these activities are generated by special interests,” said Abramoff, as he sees those interests as being some of the biggest problems in today’s politics. Reflecting on the movies that were made about his experiences, Abramoff offers mixed criticism. “The documentary was poorly done,” he said, noting that while the director had offered his intention as wanting to change the system, it ended up fixating too much on his youth. “The [Kevin] Spacey film could
have been better, but Spacey did make it better than it would have been,” critiqued Abramoff, continuing “It just didn’t flow well as a film.” Spacey had visited Abramoff in prison to talk about the role, and Abramoff noted his great admiration for Spacey’s work as an actor. In terms of what he sees as his greatest professional accomplishments, he spoke about his writing (he has written a memoir about his lobbying,) the work he did to develop his career and the work he is now doing in the television industry.
Abramoff is currently working on four television shows, one of which is unscripted. One of the shows is titled “Our Nation,” and is a Daily Show-style show taking on corruption. “Our Nation” is currently filming, and will be distributed through Amazon. The other three aren’t in a stage of production in which they can yet be spoken about. Offering advice to current undergraduates, Abramoff said that students need to enter the job market with requisite skills inhand. He stresses that being able to write and speak “superbly” is
one of the keys to have an advantage over others. He continued, “outwork anyone and everyone, because there aren’t sufficient jobs for everyone. Be tireless and utilize every tool. Be creative, and don’t be safe or scared, because no one will invest in timidity.” Abramoff stated that it is important to learn every rule and follow them to the letter, and not to do anything that you wouldn’t want ending up on YouTube. He concluded by noting, “this generation feels entitled. Everyone needs to earn what you can righteously, and to be brave.”
SPORTS
8 SPORTS
April 1, 2016
Softball sends two to UAA All-tournament team By Lily Wageman staff
The Brandeis women’s softball team is well into their season with 10 wins and seven losses. The team is lead by new Head Coach Danielle DelPonte and assistant coaches Kelley Fluet and Emily Kraytenberg. The captains include Jordan Buscetto ’16 and classmates Madison Gagnon ’16, Danielle Novotny ’16 and Madison Sullivan ’16. Recently, catcher Novotny and third baseman Sullivan were named to the 2016 University Athletic Association Softball All-Tournament team. The Brandeis softball team finished second in the UAA tournament while in Florida from March 8-13. Novotny is a major in Psychology with minors in English and Legal Studies and would like to get a job in Human Resources after graduation. Outside of softball she enjoys reading, playing video games and cooking. Her introduction to softball was first through t-ball and before playing for Brandeis, Novotny was a pitcher on her city’s softball team which was her first real experience with softball. Her original softball hero was Vicky Galindo, a famous left-handed slap-hitter: “It was a huge inspiration to see her play successfully and I really wanted to be her.” Novotny describes her recent recognition as “a really great honor to be named to the University Athletic Association All-Tourna-
Maddie Sullivan ‘16 (left) and Danielle Novotny ‘16 (right) earned spots on the UAA All-tournament team after the UAA tournament in Florida in March. uaa standouts
ment team because I have been playing softball my whole life, and it makes me really happy to be recognized for my efforts.” When asked about the work that she has put in until this point Novotny says, “I have always taken hitting strategies seriously. As a left-handed hitter I know that I have quite a few tools to surprise any defense, and I try to use them all when the situation is right. I wouldn’t be the hitter I am today without my hitting coach, Debbie Nelson, and my parents all of whom supported me and gave me advice throughout my career.” In looking back on her collegiate career she highlighted some of her favorite moments. During Novotny’s sophomore year she
hit her first collegiate home run which was a grand-slam against Case Western in UAAs and in the same tournament she hit the double which scored Leah Shapiro ’17 to win against Emory. She also includes getting to catch in games this season as a highlight since it’s her favorite position on the field. Novotny would love to continue her softball career after college and her dream would be to join Team USA. Sullivan is a double major in Psychology and Health: Science, Society and Policy. After graduation she plans on entering the public health field and possibly working for a non-profit or in health care administration. She considers being from New Hamp-
photo from brandeisjudges.com
shire a contributing factor to her enjoyment of outdoor hobbies like swimming and kayaking. Besides softball, Sullivan also enjoys playing soccer, basketball and hockey recreationally. Her interest in softball stemmed from baseball always being a part of her life since both her dad and brother played and says, “So as soon as I was old enough to sign up I couldn’t wait to start playing.” Initially Sullivan played baseball until the age of 13, and then decided to switch over to softball. With her recent achievement Sullivan also feels honored and says, “There is a lot of talent in our conference and to be able to represent Brandeis on this team feels like a great accomplishment.”
Leading up to this point Sullivan believes that when she was a firstyear and first coming into the program that she didn’t realize the time and hard work it takes to succeed at this level. She says it takes consistent work to build on skills and get the body to its peak athleticism. “For the rest of my career, I dedicated myself to being the best player I could be for the team, which involved a lot of outside work.” Sullivan says there have been so many great moments while playing for Brandeis, which includes beating Emory for the first time as a program at the top of the list and the 12-game winning streak that took place her junior year where they went on to win the ECAC tournament. More recently her favorite moment was the team’s UAA tournament in Florida which took place earlier this month. At the conference the Judges placed second with the best conference record since 2010. “We played hard each and every game and I was so proud of everything our team accomplished at the tournament.” Sullivan also shared that the team loves to dance before games to keep them loose and the energy up. For personal rituals she always wears a gold headband and is constantly switching between chewing gum and spitting seeds, depending on how the game is going. The softball team’s next game will take place this Friday, April 1 at Worcester State.
Baseball wins home opener By Shea Decker-Jacoby staff
The Brandeis University baseball team made their home debut with their new head coach Derek Carlson ’91 this past Tuesday. The Judges came into the game with a 7-9 record after coming back from their 19-9 win against UMass Boston. On March 30 the Judges took on Bridgewater. Throughout the entire game, the Judges and the Bridgewater State Bears were neck and neck until the Judges pulled away in the sixth to take the game 9-7. All nine Brandeis starters had hits, and seven of them scored runs. Second baseman Benjamin Bavly ’19 delivered the game-winning hit, an RBI triple in the bottom of the eighth driving in shortstop Jay Schaff ’16. Bavly’s triple was his fifth of the season, tying a school single-season record of triples, which was set in 1979 by George Banks. Rob Trenk ’15 had three RBI’s with his first home run of the season, which tied the game in the second inning. Center fielder Liam O’Connor ’16 added two RBIs in the sixth inning with a single creating a 6-5 lead for the Judges against the Bears. Trenk also helped give the Judges a 7-6 lead in the seventh inning with an RBI double, bringing in Ryan
home field advantage
against Salem State.
Ryan Healy ‘16 hit a double to bring in teammate Connor Doyle and scored himself for run seven and eight in the Judges tie
Healy ’16 for the run. Sam Miller ’16 started pitching for the Judges in the Bridgewater game and gave up six hits and four runs in the first four innings with one strikeout. Ryan Pocock ’18 earned his first collegiate win with four innings at the plate. He only allowed three earned runs, along with striking out four batters and walking one. Healy finished the
game with a 1-2-3 inning. The Brandeis Judges then took on Salem State on March 30. The game started off slow with no runs scored in the first four innings. The Judges took control over the game in the next two innings by scoring six runs with the help of Doyle, Max Hart ’16, Trenk and Ryan Tettemer ’17 to take a 6-1 led by the end of the sixth inning.
That was the last of the runs for the Judges, while Salem State scored five more runs to tie up the game. It was not until the 11th inning when Healy hit a double to bring in O’Connor. Healy had the last run, brought in by a double from Doyle. The game ended with an 8-8 score after 12 innings of play, the first tie in a decade. The Judges now have an 8-9-1
photo from brandeisjudges.com
overall record with a 1-0 record at home. The team has a .286 batting average with seven home runs with just half the season played. The Judges will take on Rhode Island College on March 31 to close their completion for the March. They are back at home April 3 against Johnson and Wales and will face off in the UAA again April 16 at NYU.
April 1, 2016
SPORTS 9
The Brandeis Hoot
Softball drops games to Wellesley
Men’s tennis takes two By Sarah Jousset editor
By Sarah Jousset editor
The Brandeis softball team took on Wellesley College on March 30 at home. The Judges dropped both games to Wellesley, moving the Judges closer to a .500 record of 10-9. The Judges couldn’t pull through with the bats in the first game, losing 7-1. Wellesley opened the game with five runs in the first seven at-bats of the game against Brandeis pitcher Melissa Soleimani ’17. Wellesley scattered their seven runs in the first six innings. It was not until the bottom of the seventh inning that the Judges would answer at all, when rookie Keri Lehtonen ’19 hit a solo home run to put the Judges on the board. Lehtonen finished the first game 2-4 while teammate Amanda Shore ’18 went 2-4 at the plate with a double for Brandeis. Maddie Sullivan ’16, Madi Gagnon ’16 and Jordan Buscetto ’16 all added a hit for the Judges in the first game. Soleimani fell to 5-6 this season, but earned three strikeouts and two walks in the complete game. The Judges managed to keep the second game closer, with pitcher Sadie-Rose Apfel ’18 battling for the Judges at the mound. The game was scoreless until the fourth inning when the Judges struck first. Marissa DeLaurentis ’19 drove in Madi Gagnon ’16 who reached on a hit by pitch, for the first run of the game. Wellesley answered in the fifth inning with three runs off just one hit. Carly Bresee of Wellesley hit a ball back at Apfel which ricocheted off her leg and got Bresee on base. The Wellesley runner then moved to second on a pass ball. The next batter laid down a
photo from brandeisjudges.com
The Brandeis softball had quiet bats in their loses to the Wellesley Wednesday. tough loss
sacrifice bunt, but reached when the Judges tried to get Bresee at third. With two runners in scoring position the next batter hit to the shortstop who threw home, sticking Bresee in a pickle. However, Bresee scored when the throw to third was dropped. Apfel pitched the next two batters into groundouts, but both hits allowed the two runners in scoring position to get home. Wellesley finished the fifth inning with a 3-1 lead. The Judges tried to answer in the sixth and seventh innings, putting runners on base in both innings, but they couldn’t advance runners past second with tight defense by the Wellesley Blue. All three of the runs in the second game were unearned for Apfel, who finished with two strikeouts and two walks. The Judges 3-1 loss drops Apfel’s record to 3-2 this season. The Judges play Worcester State this Friday and Framingham State Tuesday in doubleheaders. They return home for a game against Babson on April 11 at 4 p.m.
This past Saturday, March 26, 28th-ranked Brandeis University men’s tennis team took on the United States Coast Guard Academy, winning 8-1. The win improved the Judges’ record to 4-3 this season. The Judges swept their opponent in doubles action. Eric Goldberg ’18 and Zach Cihlar ’19 opened play with an 8-2 win at number three, while Michael Arguello ’17 and Jeff Cherkin ’17 won in the top spot, 8-3. Danny Lubarsky ’16 and Brian Granoff ’17 closed doubles for the Judges in the number two spot with a 8-5 victory over the U.S. Coast Guard. The Judges dominated in singles action as well, taking wins in the top five spots. Rookie Tyler Ng ’19 battled for his victory in the number five spot going 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. Lubarsky secured a quick win for the Judges at the number four spot with 6-0, 6-0 victories. Arguello secured another quick win for the Judges at the number three spot, winning 6-0, 6-1. Granoff won 6-7, 6-1, 6-2 in the number two spot, while Ryan Bunis ’17 earned his first win of his career in the number one spot with scores of 6-4, 6-2. The Judges continued play Wednesday against Babson, beating Babson 6-3 away. The Judges took two out of three games from Babson, snatching wins in the number two and three spots. In the number two spot Lubarsky and Granoff beat their opponents 8-3, while Goldberg and Cihlar won in the number three spot 8-1. In singles action, the men’s team took four out of six matches. Granoff battled in the number two spot for the win with scores of
The Men’s Tennis team has dominated in their last two games on the road. winning on the road
6-3, 1-6, 10-8. Ng secured a win for the judges in just two matches, winning 6-3, 6-1 in the number four spot. The Judges also took the number five and six spots, with Lubarsky beating his opponent 6-0, 6-2 and Cherkin winning 6-1, 6-2. The Judges dropped matches in the number one and three spot against Babson as Bunis lost in a close game in the number one spot. Arguello went all three matches with his opponent in the number three spot, beating his opponent in the first game 6-4 be-
photo from brandeisjudges.com
fore losing the next two. The Judges are back in action this Sunday, April 3 against Bates at 11 a.m. at home, but the game will be delayed to 12 p.m. if moved indoors due to weather. The women’s tennis team has two home meets this weekend as they will participate in the Nor’Easter Bowl. On Friday, April 1 the women’s team will face Christopher Newport University at 3 p.m., and Saturday they face Amherst College at 11 a.m. The Judges will finish the tournament Sunday, facing St. Lawrence at 9 a.m.
ARTS, ETC.
10 ARTS
April 1, 2016
‘Liquid Latex’ wows with Batman, Spice Girls and Mario Kart By Santiago Montoya staff
Beware! The lights are out and not only one, but four villains plagued Gotham. The only way to overthrow the city once again? Batman, a battle of latex and dancing—all of it took place at “The 16th Annual Liquid Latex Show: Peace, Love and Latex” on March 21. The event, which had two acts, first started with the group named “Batman.” Needless to say, the performance involved the comic book and was littered with all its colorful characters. Batman and his sidekick Robin fought against four villains who threatened to take over the city. The highlight of the show was nearly at the end, when the Joker held a sign that said: “This is a bomb.” He then proceeded to throw it at the other players, who were at the back of the stage. They all reacted as if the bomb had exploded, collapsing onto the stage. The designs, made by Sam Laney ’17 and Mary Millage ’16, were very similar to what an actual Batman, Robin or Joker costume would look like, except these were pulled off well.
“They Might Be Science” was a little idiosyncratic, but in a good way. This section of the show is for those people who are unable to choose between science and arts. Their name alludes to the American alternative rock band They Might Be Giants (TMBG). The highlight was the crew’s latex created by both Julia Doucett ’16 and Ayelet Schrek ’17. It was the only group of the night whose models’ bodies glowed when the room went completely dark. The liquid latex designs were also funky and had science-related colors with a lot of dots and DNA models: It was creative, indeed. The third group was a highlight from beginning to end. The group “In My Head” dedicated their piece to the people who have mental illnesses, such as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), anorexia nervosa, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), anxiety disorders and depressive disorders. The liquid latex had more of a supporting role in this piece, but it was all for a good reason. Julie Joseph ’18, who choreographed and starred in this segment, shined with her sublime and
smooth ballet movements, grace and simplicity. Every aspect captivated the audience’s attention; this was heightened with a song that perfectly set the mood by the Welsh singer Marina and the Diamonds, “Fear and Loathing.” Through Joseph’s eyes there was a real, intimate story of struggle and survival that impacted the audience. “Bad Bitches Get Money” celebrated the strong and unique women in the music industry, such as Florence Welch, St. Vincent, Lady Gaga, Kesha, Ana Tijoux, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna and Beyoncé. They beguiled their audience with their strong feminist message, which had a striking conclusion, like a cherry on top of an ice cream. The moment the eight models turned their back, they formed the word “Feminism.” Not only was the group’s message relevant and straightforward, but the audience’s reaction was positive; both men and women went wild. The second act commenced with the “Spice Girls Reunion 2.0,” which was a piece that did not have enough elements to
highlight. The theme, on the other hand, was interesting: pop hits from the 90s. Another theme that was nuanced and compelling was “Artistas, Feministas.” Each of the models had a different stylish design, created by Kiara Tringali ’17 and Rachel Dillon ’17, that represented either a famous female artist, such as Frida Kahlo, or female paintings, such as Da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa,” Picasso’s “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon” and Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring.” Their designs were mind-blowing and groundbreaking because of their originality. Their performance was frisky, colorful and engaging and it was a nice way to pay homage to the “individual masterpieces and the beauty of collective feminine expression.” The penultimate piece was “Mario Kart.” The models started the performance offstage and in a haste they all sprinted towards it. They all had colorful designs that were very well made, especially Gwen Mowell ’16 and Thomas Hearne’s ’16 portrayal of the character Toad, which was simply outstanding. “Mario Kart”
had original choreography, emulating a video game’s technical movements that reenergized the audience and set the mood for the ending. The last piece was “Carnival.” When the word “Carnival” is uttered, one can only think of the carnival that occurs annually in Rio de Janeiro; nonetheless, this piece also tried to bring the party of other carnivals from around the globe, such as those in Venice and Trinidad and Tobago. Not only did they bring dance moves from these exotic places, but also masks, jewels and feathers. The designs were not that outstanding; however, the colors were very representative, such as purple, yellow and green—these are very much the colors that are utilized during Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival. Their performance was not as flamboyant as one would expect from a carnival theme, but they did a swell job closing the show. Overall, the performers showed creativity and courage. It is not easy in the first place to step on the stage and portray somebody else, let alone when the person is almost completely nude.
‘The Wiz’ inspires critics to click their heels three times
By Alana Hodson staff
Premiering last Thursday night, March 31, in the SCC Theater was Brandeis Ensemble Theater’s production of “The Wiz.” “The Wiz” is an all-black musical based on the book of the same name by William F. Brown, and it is a version of the original “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” with the story deeply rooted in African American culture. Co-directed by Naya Stevens ’16 and D’Andre Young ’16, co-produced by Kristin Taylor ’17 and Solomon McBride ’18 and stage managed by Aja Antoine ’17, the show drew in a large and enthusiastic crowd on its opening night. The story of “The Wiz” is very similar to the original “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” though there are a few difference, such as different songs, changes in a few names and the addition of a character, Addaperle, the Witch of the North, played by Minnie Norgaisse ’19. In this production of “The Wiz” many dance scenes were also included, much to the audience’s pleasure, as it displayed an amazing array of talent from the dancers at Brandeis. The four lead characters of the show, Dorothy (Xaviera Sargeant ’16), Scarecrow (Kristen Ward-Chalk ‘16), Tin Man (Makalani Na’im Mack ’16), and the Lion (Tawanna Johnson ’16) each sang a song upon the introduction of their character, and one can certainly appreciate the hard work that went into the preparation for their roles as the vocals were astounding, especially since nearly every song included long and powerful notes. In my opinion, one of the best aspects of the production was definitely the set, designed by Chinyere Brown ’17 and assisted by Justus Davis ’19. Having been to several Brandeis productions, I have rarely seen the level of artistry and cohesiveness that has gone into the set of “The Wiz.”
photos by alana hodson/the hoot
Large backdrops were painted for the Land of Oz, the “scarecrow’s field” and the Emerald City, as well as two general flats that were present throughout most of the show. The background for the Land of Oz was bright and cheerful, reflecting the mood of the scenes that transpired there, with colorful houses and paths painted across several flats. In the first scene after Dorothy lands in Oz, paper lanterns were lowered onto the set, and the inhabitants of Oz wore flamboyant and pastel-colored costumes, creating a wonderfully unified color scheme for the show. The Emerald City also had a well-designed set, the dominating color being green,
of course, but the crew did well matching the costumes (Amanda Anderson ’17, Carmen Lopez-Landaverde ’19, Consuelo Pereira-Lazo ’19, Deborah Fataki ’19, Justus Davis ’19 and Queen White ’16) and lighting (Micaela Kiley ’16 and Zak Kolar ’18) to the scene. While its opening night was undoubtedly a success, and the massive audience that filled the SCC Theater commended the performance with a standing ovation, there were a few technical difficulties that could not be overlooked. Most notably, as it persisted with several of the actors throughout the show, was the
issue of head mics falling out of place. The durability of the tape holding the mics to the sides of the actor’s faces was not quite strong enough to match the rigorous movement of the play, causing the actors to have to adjust the falling devices almost constantly. Another quite conspicuous mishap of the production was set pieces being removed by techies during the scene, either because the curtain raised before their job could be completed, or because set pieces were (apparently) forgotten. However, since there was probably much anxiety and excitement surrounding the show’s premiere, I’m sure these blips will be quickly resolved in time for the next performances. The most exciting and refreshing differences between “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” and “The Wiz” is the music, which has been tailored to the rich, powerful voices that black vocalists often wield with awe-inspiring grace. While the cast of this production of “The Wiz” were all splendidly talented, one voice stood out in its sheer mastery of the long, bold notes of the song—that of Nyah Macklin ’16, as she played Glinda. After receiving much applause upon her entry on stage she continued to blow the audience away with her breath-taking vocals, receiving even more applause after each powerful note. As the first African-American woman Student Union President at Brandeis, Macklin proves that she is a force to be reckoned with both on and off the stage. “The Wiz” has received much acclaim since its first opening in Maryland in 1974. It quickly moved to Broadway in 1975, where it was awarded seven Tony awards that same year. In addition to serving as an early example of Broadway’s acceptance of all-black casts, the play was then made into a film in 1978, featuring big names like Diana Ross and Michael Jackson. The Brandeis production of “The Wiz” will continue through April 3, so be sure to check it out.
April 1, 2016
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The Brandeis Hoot
BAASA’s SKIN fashion show applauds every shade of melanin By Conor Amrien staff
On Saturday, March 19 the Brandeis Asian American Student Association (BAASA) put on their annual SKIN fashion show in Sherman Function Hall. The purpose of SKIN is to showcase the success of Asian Americans in the fashion industry, and the show features a diverse group of models from a variety of backgrounds. This year featured collections by designers Jenny Baquing, Yang Qu, Frank Huynh, Crystal Jiang, Rima Tahini, as well as fashion by major retailers Forever 21 and Uniqlo. The show itself was hosted by SKIN 2016 Coordinator Julie Kim ’18 and Vice President of BAASA Tony Tran ’17. According to Kim, the fashion industry does not always represent all people equally despite a growing number of Asian and African American models “They always include people of color, but I think this is really cool where the entire cast is just people of color,” she said. “It’s a thing you don’t really get to see. The first line was called “Moving Castle” and featured a collection of vintage dresses by designer Jenny Baquing. The dresses themselves were bright, filled with pastel shades and frilly sleeves and collars. While some of the models ap-
peared nervous walking down the runway, other walked with confidence and posed for the crowd and camera. Model Jay Kim ’14, who had no previous modelling experience, said he was very nervous, but excited as he walked the runway. He said there is usually a professional modeller who comes to train the models on how to walk and pose, but they did not have one this year. He claimed that there were not many options for the male models as well. “I think the girls had a lot more unique clothes. Guys had Uniqlo and Forever 21, but it was all student run. Students picked it out. There weren’t any modeling professionals to pick out clothes
for us, but despite that I think they really picked out some nice clothes.” The outfits worn by the male models from Forever 21 and Uniqlo mostly consisted of casual wear rather than specialty clothing, consisting of items like cardigans and jeans. The outfits were usually well-constructed and the models were expressive, giving off plenty of attitude as they walked. “APEC Blue” by Yang Qu, inspired by the creator’s Chinese-American heritage, was impressive; the prints were beautiful and the clothes focused on capturing the eye of every audience member. There was an opportunity for
audience nominees as well as regular audience members to walk the runway after Yang Qu’s line in order to win a Polaroid camera. Frank Huynh’s “Lê Tâm” collection featured womenswear inspired by the board game chess and Japanese street fashion. The clothes consisted of elegant gowns and dresses. The gowns were beautifully constructed and not over the top, emphasizing a balance between form and function. The last line of the night, “Xoco Couture” was the highlight of the night. The clothing and patterns were spectacular, with a rich mix of colors. The models appeared to be excited to be wearing it and were far less nervous than they
were on the first walk. The womenswear was a combination of modern and traditional costume. Rima Tahini ’16, the line’s designer, is a current Brandeis student, and an international student from Sierra Leone. The clothes themselves were made in Sierra Leone with handpicked and unique fabric patterns. Elyse Jackson, one of the female models, said walking in the fashion show was an educational and fun experience. “It’s really great to have this group of girls come together from all different backgrounds and just show what beauty can look like from all different backgrounds and cultures,” Jackson said. “I really had fun with Rima’s line, especially the African traditional line. It was really pretty and having a background in Nigeria, it really was like ‘this is part of my background,’ ‘this is who I am,’ and it’s really nice to actually wear it.” The theme for this year’s SKIN was “Walk With Me,” focused on creating “an opportunity to touch and be touched by people of different backgrounds and perspectives,” according to statement by Julie Kim. “Girls shouldn’t be afraid to do it,” Jackson said. “Everyone’s beautiful in their own way and this really helps you accentuate what you’ve got going on.”
photos courtesy jonathan kim
Artist, activist Theaster Gates accepts Richman Fellowship By Hannah Stewart editor
Theaster Gates, an artist, social activist and community builder, is Brandeis’ 2015-2016 Richman Distinguished Fellow in Public Life. He was welcomed to Brandeis this week and received the award from Interim President Lisa Lynch. Gates combines art and activism to create community spaces in under-resourced neighborhoods through his organization the Rebuild Foundation, which he discussed in a lecture celebrating his fellowship. Born and raised in Chicago, Gates is one of the most influential people in the art world, according to The Wall Street Journal. He began his career as a potter and has expanded his skillset to become a musician, a visual
artist and a video artist. He is the founder of the Rebuild Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to aiding under-resourced communities in empowering artists to use their craft to help their homes. They provide spaces for community members to come together to brainstorm collaboratively about meaningful action, work with banks to establish low-income housing and community land trusts and save old buildings from demolition by giving them a new purpose within the revitalized community. Lynch described his work as using “his imagination, beauty and love to change the world in relation to the community.” One of the Rebuild Foundation’s most celebrated projects is its restoration of the Stony Island Savings Bank in Chicago’s South Side. Originally built in 1923, the bank had closed down in the 80s
and remained empty for decades. After two years and $6.5 million, the bank has since been renamed the “Stony Island Arts Bank” and serves as a space for members of the community to preserve and access their local history. It currently holds 14,000 books on architecture, 8,000 records rescued when Dr. Wax Records closed down, the book collection of John H. Johnson, the founder of Ebony and Jet Magazine, the record collection of Frankie Knuckles, the “godfather of house music” and slides from the University of Chicago’s and the Art Institute’s collections. Gates is passionate about protecting older styles of architecture because, according to him, “architecture used to hint at the majesty of God.” However, lately, “the architecture of buildings have changed, along with the hearts of men.”
By nature, Gates is an artist, both visually and as an orator. He began his lecture with song, his singing voice rich and sonorous, leaving the room echoing with the lyrics, “None but the wealthy shall see the face of God … none but the wealthy shall see the king.” Throughout his presentation, his tone and voice would jump from that of an operatic singer to a gospel vocalist to a mockery of overly serious white professors, incorporating tasteful humor and passionate discourse that belied the levity of his impressions. As he discussed the imperative necessity of creating spaces for art and for community, Gates commanded the stage, drawing the audience in with his message of social justice and equality through art. As a Richman Fellow, Gates has been recognized by Brandeis
as someone who has had a significant impact on American society, has strengthened democratic institutions, advanced social justice and increased opportunities for all citizens. The award was founded by Dr. Carol Richman Saivetz ’69 and her children, Michael Saivetz ’97 and Aliza Saivetz Glasser ’01, in 2013, in honor of her parents, Fred and Rita Richman. Recipients of the award receive an honorarium of $25,000 and are required to speak with Brandeis students on campus on at least two or three dates. Before his speech, Gates’ three students—Brontë Velez ’16, Priya DeBerry ’17 and Student Union President Nyah Macklin ’16—performed a short dance and musical piece. The event concluded with an opportunity for the audience to ask Gates about his life and his work.
12 ARTS
The Brandeis Hoot
April 1, 2016
Poetry and computer science collide at BITMAP event By Emma Kahn staff
BITMAP (Brandeis Initiative for Technology, Machines, Apps and Programming), Deis3D and the MakerLab have converted the month of March into MakeMonth, a full 31-day schedule of events which celebrate and promote innovation in the sciences at Brandeis and around the world. Tuesday, March 22 marked the event Code Poetry, an event cosponsored by BITMAP and the English Department where computer programming and poetry converged in a new, inventive manner. Students heard from both Computer Science professor Harry Mairson and English professor Elizabeth Bradfield on the ways that coding and poetry can intertwine and benefit one another.
Following the two brief lectures, students were able to work together and put their new skills to the test with a writing workshop. In a rare and refreshing interdepartmental intersection, the audience of students represented Computer Science, English, Chemistry, Creative Writing, Physics and a multiplicity of other majors. Professor Mairson of the Computer Science department began the event with a light and personal talk about his own experience in joining art and science, left brain and right brain. His tonguein-cheek humor came out in his poetry, a hobby which began as a yearly tribute to his wife and to the poems recited at his wedding. From there, alternate forms emerged, such as a satirical ode to his new, custom-made bicycle. Mairson promoted the notion
photos by Talie
Massachi/the hoot
that coding, like poetry and like many other practices, is a stylized form of writing. Computational thinking, to contrary belief, is not only instructing a machine to perform a function, but also serves as an instructive stylized form. Fundamental to writing any of these styles is an understanding of the idiomatic expressions used; you would not go to great lengths of humor in a grant proposal, nor would you write a cover letter in iambic pentameter. Code poetry, therefore, requires an understanding of both poetic form and computational thinking. Concluding his mini-lecture, Professor Mairson went on to recite two of his own poems that toy with the “rules” of form. The first poem, titled “P and NP” after a famous unsolved problem in computer science, is one poem in a series, “New proofs of old theorems.” The second poem, unrelated to computer science, is titled “Poetic Justice,” an epitaph to Louis Brandeis in poetic form. His poetry is clear, cutting and full to the brim with wit. Both poems can be found on the “silly part” of Mairson’s website. Professor Bradfield, a professor in the English Department and poet resident at Brandeis, gave a second small lecture on the convergence of computer programming and poetry. “In programming, A plus B equals B plus A. This is not true in poetry. If you get one thing wrong, the whole thing’s wrong,” Bradfield noted. Like Mairson, however, Bradfield sees significant overlap between the two and gave students a writ-
ing exercise in which common coding terms were incorporated into a love poem. Bradfield introduced several other ways in which coding and poetry can overlap; a poem can be created by manipulating coding from a database, by writing poetry that expresses the act of coding or even by using code to create a collaborative sample of poetry. Students watched a video of a poem on YouTube titled “The Christmas When You Were Nine” by BJ Best, an unconventional piece which intends to draw the viewer into the development of the poem. Bradfield also shared personal experiences of coding and writing poetry, both of which require an appreciation for tending to the details. “The intense focus of trying to get code to work is just like the process of revising a poem,” said Bradfield. Finally, students broke off to begin writing code poetry, forming groups with healthy combinations of computer scientists and writers. The room filled with eager chatter, students putting together their varying skill sets to test their newfound knowledge. The event was co-run by two BITMAP leaders, secretary Halley Saul ’17 and treasurer Talie Massachi ‘18. Saul is an English and Anthropology double-major who sought to bring her interests in the humanities to BITMAP in some manner. Massachi, a Computer Science and Mathematics double-major, is an advocate for making computer programming and computer science more ac-
cessible to the student population at Brandeis and beyond. Massachi pushed for Saul’s goal with the idea of a “Code Poetry” event. This was possible with the help of Theresa Gaffney ’16, an English UDR and an editor-in-chief of The Brandeis Hoot. “Today, they both matter. You need to be able to read, write and express yourself, and you need to have a basic understanding of computers,” said Saul. Saul and Massachi estimate that roughly 70 percent of BITMAP consists of Computer Science majors or those who have experience programming. The remaining 30 percent come from various majors and from various backgrounds in computer science. BITMAP welcomes people of all backgrounds and levels of experience to come to events or meetings to learn more about technology. As advertised throughout MakeMonth, there is no experience required for any of the events; many of the workshops are devoted to teaching new skills and honing more developed skills. The Maker Lab strongly encourages newcomers and has access to an impressive amount of resources, including at least 40 3D printers. Completion of a training session grants students swipe access to the lab, an invaluable space for learning. MakeMonth continues until March 31, featuring various events Monday through Thursday. In addition, BITMAP continues to meet each Thursday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the SSIS suite of the SCC.
Giving the incarcerated voice through Brandeis Starving Artists artistic expression excel during recent tour By Sabrina Pond editor
One of America’s ugliest truths and an issue that continues to be swept under the rug is its sheer number of incarcerated people— the largest population behind bars in the entire world. This is one instance where our leadership is most unwelcome. Since 1970, the prison population has increased over 700%, and a 2011 report showed that there were approximately two million people incarcerated and seven million people under correctional supervision in the U.S. alone. These are some statistics we cannot run away from and are hard to ignore. An audience was forced to come to terms with these facts at “Looking In/Looking Out: Prison Portraits and the Visual Archive of Mass Incarceration,” which took place Wednesday, March 30 at 3:30 p.m. in the Alumni Lounge. The basic premise of the event, moderated by Associate Professor Nicole R. Fleetwood of American Studies at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, was to shed light on mass incarceration in the states. In an attempt to humanize the subjects, Fleetwood went through various artists’ work from around the country, some of which was made by prisoners themselves, others of which are artists’ renditions of prison life, oftentimes incorporating prison subjects. As recounted by Fleetwood, the origin story of her interest in Prison Portraiture is a tragic one. As a senior finishing up her undergraduate education at Miami
University, her world completely changed when she found out that a beloved cousin, who was only 18 years old at the time, was sentenced for life in prison. Fleetwood attempted to remain in close contact with her cousin, and took photos with him to try to retain a state of normalcy—even so, her relationship with those images were at first largely negative. It wasn’t until 2010 that she felt she had a story to tell and began sharing the photos both formally and informally. Much to her surprise, other people’s stories resonated very well with her own. She went on to describe how art has functioned to encourage greater understanding of the penitentiary system, as well as the experience of daily life in a prison. Of particular interest was the “Boneshaker” piece, a sculpture made to look like the artist’s dream motorcycle. An inmate created the piece entirely out of rodent remains collected over the course of two years. Another piece of art was composed of materials that were stolen from the prison, which the artist felt was a small measure of justice in a legitimately unfair system. This particular prisoner was found innocent after serving 20 years— the least he could do was steal from the institution that stole his years away. A project titled “Prisoners of Age” is more traditional in terms of documentation of the incarcerated. The series is concerned with representing elderly inmates, a scarcely thought about demographic, though they comprise approximately 35 percent of the prisoner population. One of the
images Fleetwood talked about in particular showed an aging man sitting on the bottom bunk, commanding a strong grip on a staff, the sunlight shining in through a nearby window. Dread Scott’s work, on the other hand, is incredibly diverse, including audio interviews as well as mixed media projects, among a multitude of other artistic media. Of interest to this presentation was his “Lockdown Project,” made between the years 2000 and 2004 in order to individuate and rename his subjects. Both a photography and interview based project, the images are a series of 20” x 24” black and white photos that tell the story of the incarcerated from their own lips. Deborah Luster’s work deviates from the norm, working similarly to humanize the subjects, but with an altogether different approach. She is successful in this regard, especially with her “Prisoners of Louisiana” (1998-2002) series, as she incorporates short bios about the individuals and veers away from standard photo documentation (which typically includes the subject’s face and torso). In one photograph, she focuses on an imprisoned person’s hand holding a picture of the subject’s son. Fleetwood’s knowledge of prison portraiture was vast and far ranging, but even more importantly her honesty and compassion for the inmates drove home the seriousness and imminence of the issue. Incarcerated people are, in fact, collectors of art, which speaks volumes for a group of people who are otherwise silenced in our society.
By Chila Haber
special to the hoot
As the semester comes to a close, Brandeis’ Starving Artists are finishing up with newfound fame. This past weekend, the a capella group toured the Northeast, singing with the Trinity Pipes and under Princeton’s echoic arch with their Jewish a capella group, Koleinu. In New York, the group spontaneously decided to sing on the streets, attracting attention from many onlookers including
Joanna Brady, star of “Quantico,” “Paranormal Activity” and “Easy A.” She caught the group on film and posted to her Instagram, soon attracting over 20,000 views for the group. Later in the tour, the group performed an hour-long set at Atria Rye Brook, an assisted living center, and at Zoe Grossman’s ’16 house. Don’t miss out on their Spring Show, April 17 at 3:30 p.m., where they will be performing energy packed numbers by artists like John Mayer, P!nk, Walk the Moon and Christina Aguilera.
photos courtesy brandeis starving artists
April 1, 2016
ARTS 13
The Brandeis Hoot
Chase’s senior thesis truly plays
By Ayelet Schrek special to the hoot
The text of “Rivkala’s Ring,” Spalding Gray’s monologue adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s short story “The Witch,” reads more like a narrative than a piece of theatre. Indeed, in her director’s note, Caley Chase ’16 acknowledges that part of the rehearsal process was “explor[ing] what makes this story a play.” The production I saw last Saturday night as part of the 2016 Senior Thesis Festival was not only deeply theatrical, but delightfully so. Chase made two simple yet wildly inventive choices that transformed a strange and intriguing story into a riveting and satisfying exploration. Upon entering the Laurie Theater, I am met with a most unexpected sight: a ball pit. The rectangular corral contained numerous multicolored balls and three turquoise chairs. The visual appeal is coupled with a tactile
senior festival lights up the night
one; I want to see someone interact with that pit. The person sitting next to me and I hypothesize about the uses and extensions of the pit, inventing and laughing, and filled with a certain wonder. Already, in this choice of a setting, Chase has engaged and excited me. I am invested in the play before it begins. The house lights dim and three men enter, similar yet distinct in appearance. They wear no shoes. They enter the pit and begin to interact with it, throwing balls in the air and at each other. Just as I begin to wonder what’s next, there is a sudden blackout, and when the lights come up a beat later, all three are sitting squarely in their chairs, facing the audience. The effect is both humorous and startling. This sets the tone for the rest of the piece as moments of hilarity mingle with the grotesque and the melancholy. The ball pit becomes the home of the action of the play; it acts as the source of location and props.
The chairs are rearranged continually, minute set changes that maintain a fast-paced flow, and add dynamic to a seemingly stagnant stage. This vibrancy is realized further as balls escape their pit through the sometimes intentional, sometimes random action of the actors. Props are unearthed from the pit, toy versions of the images in the script. While the actors clearly had a sense of where each item hid, they had to search to extract their prop, affirming the sense of the play, and of life, as an educated randomness. This choice capitalized on the thrill of live theatre: a dual enjoyment of the story and of living bodies acting in real-time. Watching an actor struggle to find his prop in time for his line, or else reach down and pluck it up as if it had been delivered it to his hand, evokes a deep excitement. The pit also had thematic tie-ins to the text: boundaries, separations, “ins” and “outs,” the afore-
Past years have shown a wide array of talent among the student populace.
mentioned randomness, as well as an abstracted image of life and death. Yet although I can elicit much thematic and symbolic meaning from it, its great effectiveness is not in the abstract, but in its usage. It works. It creates great visual and physical opportunity for the second of Chase’s vital directorial choices: her cast. The choice to share this monologue text among three bodies and voices heightens it and I believe is the source of my emotional attachment to the piece. The interplay between Dan Souza ’19, Raphael Stigliano ’18 and Zach Marlin ’16 is beautiful to witness. Each forms a distinct character, a specific delivery, and while they react to each other, it is not reactionary. That is, rather than setting it up as three different aspects of the same person—which tends to be a tired theatrical device—we see the same narrative embodied by three different actors. Each character is full within himself,
because each actor is full within himself. Their difference lies not in a conceptual construct, but in the humanity, the voice and body, of these remarkable actors. Souza is bold and fearful, apologetic and hoping. Stigliano is smooth and intent, playful and powerful. Marlin is off-beat and sweet, nebbishy and excitable. Each is alone and in relation. Therefore, we bear witness to the connection and the disconnect simultaneously, hold both together in a way that is complex but feels true. This short, odd, fascinating, nihilistic, goofy, beautiful production offered a deeply complex simplicity, a sense of wonder and dread, a love and hatred of the human condition, a chance to connect and feel distant. I thank the cast and crew for a piece of theatre that has become part of my experience of the world—not a large part, not central or pivotal, just another thread in the fabric. And isn’t that the point?
photos from brandeis.edu
This Week in the Arts: ‘The Vagina Monologues’
photos by sophia he/the hoot
14 ARTS
The Brandeis Hoot
April 1, 2016
‘The Vagina Monologues’ embraces female pleasure and feminism By Santiago Montoya staff
“Vagina, vagina, vagina.” One of the most frequently mentioned words in the play, it is the topic of Eve Ensler’s 1996 play “The Vagina Monologues.” It is all “The Vagina Monologues” is about, yet this is fine because it is not dull nor has it gotten old. The episodic play was performed March 24-26 at the SCC Theater. The play started with a monologue about hair—titled “Hair”—and how marriage usually requires a wife to compromise her complete happiness and comfort, such as shaving her vagina, leaving no “protection” or “fluff.” The director, Zari Havercome ’16, did a good job using the players and the available space. Not only was the direction well done, but also the cast was able to build the hope for “trust, empathy and genuine love and appreciation for one another” that Havercome was wishing for. Throughout the entire show there were scenes in which the play required the whole cast to step on stage, usually starting the scenes with “All of the women were asked the following questions.” One of those questions was: “If your vagina got dressed, what would it wear?” The responses were random and com-
photo by sophia he/the hoot
ical, such as “glasses,” “a male tuxedo,” “Armani only,” “something machine washable,” etc. What remains still so refreshing about “The Vagina Monologues” is its desire to empower women across the world, regardless of where they come from or where they are going to. Perhaps it is why the play is so utterly universal, because the roles are not physically specific at all. It made it easier for this year’s production, and many others across the globe, to be splendidly diverse. One stand-out was Abby Levi ’19, performing “Because He Liked to Look at It.” She delivered her lines in a relaxed and comfortable way. Her monologue
was about a woman who had a good experience with a man referred to as Bob. He demanded to turn on the light while he was “studying a map, observing the moon, staring into my eyes, but it was my vagina.” Levi drew laughs; she demonstrated an exceptional ability to do stand-up comedy with her charming characterization and engaging storytelling. Another instant highlight was Alex Shapiro ’18 performing “Woman Who Liked to Make Vaginas Happy” about a sex worker who only did sex work with women. The sex worker had so much experience making women happy and met women from dis-
tinct walks of life. She proved her unprecedented abilities through her demonstration of the different “power moan[s].” There was the clit moan, the almost moan, the Grace Slick moan, the doggy moan, the college moan, which was something like “I should be studying,” among others, all very well moaned by Shapiro. She mentioned not having any acting experience prior to “The Vagina Monologues,” however, she rocked the stage with her black leather attire and confidence, which was visible in her gestures, posture and, of course, moans. The truth is that the night was littered with great talent—Gabriela Astaiza ’19 was another revelation. She performed the “My Short Skirt” monologue that made more than one audience member snap in agreement to the feminist statements that the monologue contained. One of her lines said, “My short skirt is not a legal reason for raping me, although it has been before it will not hold up in the new court.” Astaiza’s seriousness and conviction were enough to make a blunt, important statement. In addition, “My Vagina was My Village” was a significant piece because it talked about rape and how 20,000 to 70,000 women were raped in the middle of Europe as a systematic tactic of war and no one did anything to stop it.
Then, before the monologue commenced, it was mentioned that in the United States about 200,000 women are raped annually. The monologue had beautifully worded metaphors: “My vagina, a live wet water village. They invaded it. Butchered it and burned it down. I do not touch now. Do not visit. I live someplace else now.” The production was impeccable and encouraging. The director, Havercome, envisioned this play as if she was directing “the beginning of movements like the Brandeis Students Against Sexual Violence rallies” or when students occupied the administrative space for 12 days during Ford Hall 2015. “The Vagina Monologues” is a show that recognizes the importance of the play’s themes, such as social justice and equality. Every member of the production had women to recognize in honor of all the women who have “lost their lives to the violent acts of the ignorant and the evil.” The hashtag #SayTheirName(s) is gender inclusive. Hence the use of the singular they/them/their pronoun includes people of nonbinary identities, which leads to the conclusion that this year’s production could not have been more universal.
photos courtesy gabriella potter
By Jess Linde
Cobalt’s ‘Slow Forever’ is worth your time
editor
Black metal has never been a genre I’ve been able to really mesh with. Despite my love of extreme music and metal in particular, black metal—especially the church-burning Norwegian kind—has never been my thing. For me, traditional vocals of the genre sound like someone trying to sound scary in a haunted house, and that does not mesh well with the often low-fi production used by bands like Mayhem on their “classic” albums. I like epic vocals and big sounds on the instruments, the louder the better. Trying to sound as guttural and gross as possible (plus the extreme elitism around the scene and what is “true” black metal) has just never attracted me. And yet, I find myself writing the following: “Slow Forever,” the new album by Greeley, Colorado’s premiere progressive black metal band Cobalt, is already a top choice for my album of the year. With the hundreds of metal releases I listen to per year, underground and well-known alike, it takes a lot to blow me away. Deafheaven did it with their album “Sunbather” way back in 2013, and just last year, Horren-
photo from npr.org
photo from profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com
black metal that haunts
Featured above is an image of Cobalt’s new album cover.
dous’ classic tech-death album “Anareta” was a mainstay in my ears. But those were both albums I discovered well after their respective releases, after they had garnered considerable acclaim. “Slow Forever” is an album I have listened to all the way through several times already, less than a week after it came out. Despite, and perhaps because of its epic 86-minute length, “Slow Forever” is a musical challenge. The vocals from new member and ex-Lord Mantis singer Char-
lie Fell never wane in pitch or intensity, at least not lower than “hear my shrieks and despair.” The guitar parts on songs like album opener “Hunt the Buffalo” and “Ruiner” have some of the trappings of black metal— very fast single notes and power chords—but add a level of melody that sounds almost bluesy at times. The album is also heavily influenced by punk, with songs like “Cold Breaker” opening on a heavy bass riff that the guitars imitate with power chords.
The record is also relentlessly complex: many of the 12 songs are over seven minutes in length and consist of multiple layers and signature changes. A couple of the songs never repeat a riff or a breakdown for more than a minute, and sound like they are made of multiple suites. Even when there are repetitions in songs, they are split up by a whole lot of cool stuff, and none of it is boring, even though the album is so long. I may not have had any idea
what the vocals were saying while I was listening to “Slow Forever,” but I really enjoyed the journey. As sonically challenging as it is, “Slow Forever” is always fun to listen to and never unpleasant. The production is just how I like my 86-minute black metal double albums: big, loud and scary. The influence of hardcore and punk is welcome, and Charlie Fell’s vocals fit very well with the entire sound. If this is your kind of music, check it out: it’s quite something.
EDITORIALS
April 1, 2016
The Hoot will treat TBTN with respect
“To acquire wisdom, one must observe.” Editors-in-Chief Theresa Gaffney Julie Landy Senior Managing Editor Jess Linde Senior Copy Editor Allison Plotnik News Editors Hannah Schuster Emily Sorkin Smith Deputy News Editors Abigail Gardener Elianna Spitzer Arts Editor Sabrina Pond Opinions Editor Zach Phil Schwartz Features Editor Jacob Edelman Sports Editor Sarah Jousset
The Brandeis Hoot 15
T
he Brandeis Hoot Editorial Board would like to address student concerns about campus media coverage of Take Back the Night (TBTN) next Monday. TBTN is a critical event on campus for survivors of sexual assault, and we would like to be absolutely clear about our intentions in covering the event and how we came to these decisions, so that survivors in the community can feel safe. After a discussion by the board, The Hoot has decided it will not record or take photos at TBTN, nor will we include quotes in our articles without explicit consent from the speaker. In its most recent editorial, our fellow student journalists at The Justice made clear their intentions to record and take quotes from the event. They also detailed
their experiences being brought in front of a conduct board by the university. While we have decided not to record or quote without consent, we do respect their right to make their decision without the threat of censorship. The actions taken by the university to reprimand The Justice’s methods fall under that category, and we do not support these actions. It is a dangerous precedent when the university thinks they can reprimand journalists just because they disagree with their approach. To be clear, it is the punitive action that we find unjust; we encourage and appreciate public criticism of media coverage decisions. Once again, we at The Hoot came to our decision to not take photos or record on our own, after thorough consideration
of our responsibilities as students and as journalists. Our board’s stance comes from our unanimous belief that sensitivity must be inexorable from coverage of TBTN and the issue of sexual violence on campus. However, we also believe journalism must aim to facilitate discussion and debate. While we disagree with their choice, it is nevertheless The Justice’s journalistic and legal right to pursue this discussion however they wish, as it is ours to pursue our own without duress. We write this editorial because we want to make a clear statement on our process in thinking over our rights as journalists and our duties as classmates. We hope the community can come together to stand in solidarity against sexual violence and make steps toward personal healing.
Copy Editor Sarah Terrazano Photo Editor Karen Caldwell Video Editor Matt Kowalyk
Last Week’s Solution
Editors-at-Large Charlotte Aaron Mia Edelstein Lisa Petrie
Volume 13 • Issue 9 the brandeis hoot • brandeis university 415 south street • waltham, ma
Founded By Leslie Pazan, Igor Pedan and Daniel Silverman
STAFF
Rachel Bossuk, Sharon Cai, José Castellanos, Zach Cihlar, Amanda Ehrmann, Talia Franks, Zachary Gordon, Emma Gutman, Curtis Zunyu He, Sophia He, Alana Hodson, Daniel Kang, Emma Kahn, Naomi Klickstein, Adam Lamper, Nabi Menai, Monique J Menezes, Santiago Montoya, Joon Park, Nicole Porter, Albert Reiss, Emily Scharf, Marian Siljeholm, Eliana Sinoff, Ryan Spencer, Hannah Stewart, Michael Wang, Katarina Weessies MISSION As the weekly community student newspaper of Brandeis University, The Brandeis Hoot aims to provide our readers with a reliable, accurate and unbiased source of news and information. Produced entirely by students, The Hoot serves a readership of 6,000 with in-depth news, relevant commentary, sports and coverage of cultural events. Recognizing that better journalism leads to better policy, The Brandeis Hoot is dedicated to the principles of investigative reporting and news analysis. Our mission is to give every community member a voice.
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The Brandeis Hoot welcomes letters to the editor on subjects that are of interest to the community. Preference is given to current or former community members and The Hoot reserves the right to edit or reject submissions. The deadline for submitting letters is Wednesday at noon. Please submit letters to letters@thebrandeishoot.com along with your contact information. Letters should not exceed 500 words. The opinions, columns, cartoons and advertisements printed in The Hoot do not necessarily represent the opinions of the editorial board.
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We welcome unsolicited submissions from members of the community sent by e-mail to eic@thebrandeishoot.com. Please limit submissions to 800 words. All submissions are subject to editing.
Mad Libs Contest:______ disturbs our ______ needs What do you think this article is about? Fill in the blanks and YOU could be published in The Brandeis Hoot! Send your submission to eic@thebrandeishoot.com by next Wednesday to be considered! With the change in _____ comes students and groups looking to take advantage of it and _____. Even somewhat moderate conditions, such as those over the past week, bring folks to turn their frowns upside down and actually show some signs of life. One of these signs, however, can get to be irritating when different clubs and groups _____, blasting loud music and creating traffic along the footpath. This past Monday featured _____, a fes-
tival put on by Student Events that celebrates nothing in particular. Other times throughout the year, there are tables for _____ going on, with t-shirts and free food typically being handed out to those who pass by. While it is nice to receive free gifts just for _____, and these _____ do liven up the campus aura a bit, their location is not the best for what is taking place. The path that these _____ are placed along is one of the narrowest ones on campus, in terms of space between buildings, and one of the most frequented as hundreds of students _____. With the lure of _____, a lot of students do stop hoping to get their hands on _____. The ensuing _____ leads to students who are _____.
Besides the difficulties of _____, an even more pressing issue is the noise pollution they cause. Whenever _____, they’re usually accompanied by a few _____. Simply walking past it for two seconds creates a literal headache. Free t-shirts and food are exciting; everyone likes getting something for free. And there are some positive vibes from the_____, but just as many negative vibes are produced to negate it. By moving _____, a lot less agitation will hit students that pass by. Besides, with more open space to use, perhaps these _____ can actually turn into something you want to _____ at instead of trying to find a way to walk past them as quickly as possible.
OPINIONS
16 The Brandeis Hoot
Know your rights: employee vs. independent contractor By Emily Goldenberg special to the hoot
You are excited about getting a job—someone actually wants to hire you for something! You now have to fill out forms and return them to your new employer. So you do that. Your employer must give you the correct one for the position, right? Don’t be so sure. Those pages of paperwork should tell you exactly what your role in the company is going to be. But one important distinction is the difference between an employee and a contract worker (sometimes referred to as an independent contractor). These two job classifications may be unfamiliar to you. What is the difference and why should you care? As an employee, you are working for someone or for a company, and you are entitled to certain benefits including but not limited to your employer paying a percentage of your Social Security and Medicare taxes (FICA) and paying for workman’s compensation in case you suffer an employment-related injury. As a contract worker, you work for yourself, and are therefore responsible for all of your own employment taxes. When it comes time to pay taxes, you will owe more to the government as an independent contractor than you would have as an employee.
In this circumstance, your ultimate take-home-pay for the same hourly wage would be less than if you were an employee. Businesses are motivated to offer you a position as a contract worker rather than an employee because it saves them money. Being a contract worker is not necessarily bad, though; some people prefer to take on work clients independently, using their expertise and choosing their own hours and work location. That is fine, as long as the position’s role is that of a contractor. Neither employers nor employees can simply decide to make someone a contract worker just because it suits them. In order to be a legitimate contract worker, you have to satisfy specific conditions and guidelines. Not all businesses know the difference—or care. In December, I secured a part-time job at Lynx, a tech-staffing firm in Waltham. I found the position through B.hired. Its job description was for an “entry-level researcher” for which training would be provided. After an interview and a test that showcased my resume analysis skills, I was offered a job. Lynx’s representative and I had both signed the Offer Letter of Employment. Salary, schedule and even some anticipated time off was all agreed to. I thought that I was all set to commence
work on Jan. 13 of this year. Over winter break, I received the paperwork. Lynx wanted me to fill out a W-9, which is used for individuals working as freelancers or independent contractors, rather than the more commonly used W-2 for employees. Lynx had previously told me that they wanted to train me to work in their office and that I would be working set times at their Moody Street location during their hours of operation. I asked my contact at Lynx about my classification as an independent contractor, because those factors tend to apply to employees, not independent contractors. I wrote to her in an email: “Independent contractors are self-employed, which means they choose where and how they work. In contrast, employees are expected to go to a place of work and do their work at a time and place determined by their employer. I was just wondering if you could help me understand my position as an independent contractor, because I know that you and [your boss] want me to come in to work (as opposed to working from home and choosing my own hours).” My contact responded with a phone call. I did not argue one way or another; I just wanted to be sure that my job classification actually reflected the true nature See EMPLOYMENT, page 18
April 1, 2016
Republican presidential candidates make a stand against life By Alex Mitchell
special to the hoot
The list of Republican nominees has shrunk, at the time of writing, to only three serious contenders. Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and John Kasich have all run very different campaigns, but there are two significant similarities between all candidates. Firstly, all three claim to be “pro-life.” Secondly, none of them actually are. Pro-life optics are unquestionably en vogue in the Republican primary, particularly around abortion. To this end, all three aggressively portray themselves as opponents of abortion at every opportunity. They have repeatedly called for the defunding of Planned Parenthood, increased regulations on abortion clinics and other legal limitations on abortion. But one issue does not constitute a platform, let alone an ethos as wide-reaching as “prolife.” A pro-life individual respects the dignity of life in all humans, not just fetuses, and on nearly every other issue, the Republican candidates have displayed contempt and disrespect for human life, in direct contrast to their “pro-life” messaging. For example, all three support the death penalty. Support for the death penalty, as one could surmise from the name, is hardly a pro-life position. Nevertheless, according to The New York Times’
election blog, Donald Trump says he is a “big believer” in the death penalty. Kasich believes “families want closure when they see justice done,” and apparently will kill for that closure. Cruz, the worst of the lot, perversely tries to make his pro-death stance seem virtuous: “I believe the death penalty is a recognition of the preciousness of human life that for the most egregious crimes, the ultimate punishment should apply.” In reality, though, there is nothing pro-life about being pro-death penalty. The doctrine of the death penalty is that some people’s lives are so meaningless that it is morally acceptable to forcibly end them, even when the person is already under the power of the state and held in prison. Such a view is grossly incompatible with the pro-life ethos. The Republican candidates have also ignored many pro-life issues. None have mentioned euthanasia on the campaign trail. Nor have any addressed America’s mental health problems, especially its overdose and suicide epidemics, except when using mental health as a scapegoat for gun control. None have discussed the health care problems the country faces. These issues simply do not matter to the Republican candidates. This avoidance in and of itself is no crime, and while I find these See CANDIDATES, page 17
Brandeis should reinstate the Riverside shuttle By José Castellanos columnist
It’s no secret that Brandeis students will often go to great lengths for a chance to get off campus. Though there are chances to escape the often vigorous and tiring pace of Brandeis academics, it’s also important for the student body to practice self-care, which for many students includes getting off campus and going to Boston for a relaxing day. However, opportunities to get off campus are often limited. Though there is the option of the Joseph’s shuttle on the weekends and there is the convenience of the Brandeis/ Roberts commuter rail station being right off campus, for many students this isn’t always enough. The Joseph’s shuttle often starts too late in the day on the days that it does run, and the $6.25 fare for taking the Commuter Rail can begin to add up significantly, especially for graduate students who have to commute from various surrounding regions on a daily basis. Though the Commuter Rail is often enough for some students, the times at which it runs often prove to be more of an inconvenience than a benefit, heavily limiting the involvement of students who commute simply because they cannot wait for the later train. Simply put, there aren’t enough options for students to get off campus for their various needs. However, there used to be another alternative for students who wished to get on or off the Brandeis campus. In 2013, the
Student Union and Finance Board worked with the Brandeis Department of Public Safety to institute a shuttle to Riverside Station in nearby Newton, MA. The service was relatively limited, only running on Wednesdays and Thursdays between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m., departing every 20 minutes from the Rabb steps; however it was well received by the student body, according to a September 2013 article from The Brandeis Hoot. However, the Riverside shuttle appears to have been stopped indefinitely, as there have been no indications since the 2015 Spring semester of the shut-
a brandeis campus shuttle
tle running at all. Presumably, this is due to a lack of usage from the student body. However, in my time at Brandeis I had never heard of any mention of there being a Riverside shuttle, and most students who have been asked about the service have clearly stated that they had never even known that a shuttle to Riverside was ever offered. “I didn’t know there was a Riverside shuttle,” stated Katarina Weessies ’18, “but that definitely sounds like a service that a lot of people would use if they only knew about it.” Indeed, the convenience of having a Riverside shuttle is not lost
on the student body. Not only is the Green Line a significantly more affordable option than an Uber or the Commuter Rail for those travelling, but it’s also a more convenient option for those who commute to internships during the week, given that the green line has more frequent stops that are more easily accessed from locations such as the financial district and the Massachusetts State House than the Commuter Rail. However, to ensure that the Riverside shuttle remains a constant and reliable service, students have to be made readily aware of its existence.
photo from brandeis.edu
If the university does not inform students of a service that it offers for their own convenience, then it cannot blame those same students for not properly taking advantage of the services that they provide. By depriving its students of the convenience that a Riverside shuttle would provide, the university is only making it more difficult for the student body to fulfill the demanding work and internship requirements that are required for many of its degrees, thus making it more difficult for the student body to do what is asked of them by the university. Graduate student Doug Yetman stated that, “a number of students who commute don’t live near Waltham. They live in the Back Bay, Allston and Brighton, which can be a significant trip. A Riverside shuttle would be reliable on a daily basis, especially during a rush hour, and can significantly cut the commuting time of these students.” The convenience of adding the shuttle would be warmly received by the student body as a whole, as it represents a medium through which students can further pursue opportunities that are so often lacking in Waltham. The best way to implement this and ensure that it is properly utilized by the student body as a whole is for the university to reasonably inform the student body of its existence. Otherwise, the university cannot hold the student body accountable for not using a Riverside shuttle.
April 1, 2016
OPINIONS17
The Brandeis Hoot
Current loose midterm scheduling unhelpful, stressful By Zach Phil Schwartz editor
Brandeis sports an impressive academic reputation, with several renowned undergraduate and graduate programs alike. The university boasts an experienced faculty of high quality to educate its students, putting together a good formula for success. That formula, however, quickly becomes muddled with classes running on their own exam schedules. Nowadays, it is is common to see midterms scheduled from a few weeks after a semester starts until a few days before finals begin. In order to minimize stress and workloads and maximize that which is derived from classes, the range of midterms must be reined in. Exams serve as ways for an instructor to gauge how instructed material is retained among students. At their best, they can accomplish this goal with relative ease, but only if they are given in moderation. Midterms are meant to be benchmarks within a semester to accomplish this very goal, but when they are left unregulated by a scheduling authority, the system goes haywire. Even if midterms are given in moderation by the class, if classes schedule them without regard for others, students can end up with multiple exams on the same day or with an endless succession of exams by the week for what seems like the entire semester. This midterm dilemma came
up in discussion recently, when a friend of mine explained how she had several exams, presentations and quizzes during one week and midterms every week following that until finals. This was, of course, on top of the other assignments she already had and the classes she had to attend. In a nutshell, loose scheduling is backlogging many students in work with no end in sight. The complications of such developments include the consequences of unsatisfactory results and unneeded stress. It is not easy to do assignments for one class when two others have midterms on the very next day. An atmosphere of endless work with no relaxation in sight can emerge, especially if faced with an endless schedule of exams from a few weeks into the semester until finals. The stress is almost certain to pile up as much as the work does. As the work piles up, it becomes all the more likely that due to the sheer lack of time, cramming and other similar quick study methods will occur. These methods completely defeat the purpose of exams; cramming does not adequately allow for the full understanding of class material in a way that proper studying does. The lack of time at the root of cramming is only exacerbated when instructors add on more work and wear students down with an endless bombardment of exams. Jacob Edelman ’18, an editor at The Brandeis Hoot and repre-
sentative-elect to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, explained that the current system of midterms is simply not functioning, as there is in reality no system at all. He cited a structural lack of communication between professors, which results in nobody knowing when their fellows are scheduling midterms. If any progress is to be made in this situation, structural change is required. Change goes down to the definition of the word midterm itself; according to Edelman, there is no
the library
delineation between a midterm and any other assignment a faculty member may give. Look no further for a new definition than to the structure of finals. There needs to be a more rigid regulation on how midterms and significant coursework is assigned, like with that of finals. The Office of the Registrar schedules finals and deals with conflicts that may arise so that students are able to deal with the period more easily. Midterms, on the other hand, despite the fact that they stand
as a significant portion of a class grade, are subject to very little scheduling regulation. In order to reduce the backlog, the seemingly endless stream of exams and the stress, there needs to be an authority that defines and controls midterms like the registrar does finals. Maybe then students will be able to drop the bad habits that defeat the purposes of exams and can find themselves in a much more relaxed environment where the word midterm does not bring on cries of agony.
photo by matt kowalyk/the hoot
The capital of midterm pan.
GOP candidates ‘pro-life’ on surface, but do not have respect for human dignity CANDIDATES, from page 16
issues extremely important, I know some people prioritize other issues. However, it is extremely disingenuous to ignore these issues entirely and to still claim one is “pro-life.” Republicans have also opposed many changes to healthcare and social policy in America that could save millions of lives. Even while opposing abortion, they have gone after health care legislation that protects expecting mothers and newborns, and threatened programs like SNAP (food stamps) and WIC (the Women, Infants and Children feeding program) that provide food to American families. On issues that are less exlicitly pro-life, the Republicans have been more open about their disdain for human life. All three have expressed support for the Iraq War and for future violent military actions in the Middle East that will unquestionably lead to significant and avoidable loss of life. While one might (easily) argue that ending ISIL could save lives, the Republicans have seldom made this argument. Instead, they encourage unrealistically aggressive bombing campaigns and “boots on the ground” to fight ISIL, with little regard for human cost. Even in the language they use, the candidates focus on “revenge” and “righteous wrath” rather than the concern for the lives of the civilians living under the regime of ISIL. Cruz has even called for America to “carpet bomb” ISIL.
The use of overwhelming force, rather than the surgical remote strikes favored by Obama, could
abhorrent to anyone who has any respect for the dignity of human life. Calls for unrestrained
“ ” What they miss is that to be “pro-life” is not definied by opposition to abortion, but by respect for the inherent dignity of human life.
cause thousands of civilian casualties. Carpet-bombing may possess significant military utility, but the practice ought to be
warfare and large-scale bombing campaigns are incompatible with the pro-life ethos, and by espousing such ideas, the candidates
demonstrate a troubling apathy towards human life. For all the “pro-life” rhetoric the Republican candidates offer up, their positions on several major issues clearly demonstrate a disregard for human dignity. They and many other Republicans fail to understand that the pro-life label does not revolve around a single issue. To be pro-life, one has to support the dignity of the human person for their entire life, from conception to tombstone. Cruz, Kasich and Trump may care about people during the first few months of life, but after birth their interest seems to decline precipitously. What they miss is that to be “pro-life” is not defined by opposition to abortion, but by
respect for the inherent dignity of human life. The pro-life platform is founded on the idea that every human life matters because of its inherent dignity. A pro-lifer should oppose government policies that endanger the dignity of the person, whether through oppressive laws or violence, while supporting those that champion life. A true pro-life candidate would stand up and say that this country fights too many bloody wars, loses too many children to violence, too many teenagers to suicide and drug abuse and too many adults to poor health care. Any candidate who promises to stop these tragedies will have my vote in a heartbeat.
photo from wikimedia commons
18 OPINIONS
The Brandeis Hoot
Change unhealthy academic environments at their source
By Katarina Weessies columnist
It’s no secret that school has gotten progressively more stressful. Most media coverage of academic stress has focused on high-achieving, privileged high schoolers, but the increasing stress of students is visible at all ages and across all socioeconomic classes. According to a study from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, the majority of high school students feel “tired,” “stressed” and “bored” at school. If you ask university students how they feel at school, their answers would probably be similar. The effects of high-stress high school environments are apparent at Brandeis. Consistent stress over long periods of time almost always leads to symptoms of men-
tal illness, and Brandeis students are no exception. Consistent academic stress can leave students physically unhealthy and unable to cope effectively with trauma. Mental illness is rampant at Brandeis, with many students suffering from depression and anxiety disorders that are deeply connected to academic stress. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote an article detailing the prevalence of mental illness at Brandeis. What I didn’t mention is that for many Brandeis students, this mental illness began in high school. Most research about mental illness on college campuses problematically treats mental illness among university students as if it suddenly popped up after they entered university. However, most of the time, stress-related mental illnesses begin to build during adolescence. The stressful environment of American high schools
can exacerbate already existent mental illnesses or cause otherwise neurotypical students to form mental illnesses due to the effects of constant stress. The pressure to succeed resonates differently across different socioeconomic, racial and gender groups. For example, students from lower-income neighborhoods might feel intense social pressure to “make it out” of their current socioeconomic situation by being accepted into an upper-tier university, while more privileged students might feel academic pressure based on the success of their family members and peers at school. Across the board, high schools tend to create a make-or-break environment that tells students that their academic performance is the sole factor that determines their future success and their worth as a human being. High school amplifies the harm-
ful effects of this make-or-break attitude by subjecting students to wildly complex and poorly constructed standardized testing, assigning unbearable amounts of homework and pressuring students to take up time-consuming and often unnecessary extracurricular activities. The buildup of stressors in the educational environment leads students to associate education with negative emotions such as exhaustion or stress. Unfortunately, this unhealthy attitude about academics carries over into university. Many students enter schools like Brandeis as emotional wrecks, and this emotional difficulty is only exacerbated by the high-performing, fast-paced Brandeis student body. Of course, it is wonderful that Brandeis students are motivated enough to maintain their academic performance, but the notoriously intense work ethic
April 1, 2016
of Brandeis students can lead to sleep deprivation, exhaustion, stress, malnutrition and all sorts of other emotional and physical issues. The stress, and all its related mental illnesses, suffered by Brandeis students will not subside unless enormous changes are made to the educational system as a whole. The harmful attitude cultivated by American high schools guarantees that many students will enter Brandeis with mental illnesses. The school’s psychological resources are not well equipped to deal with the enormous influx of mentally ill students. Unfortunately for Brandeis students, unless American high schools completely change the attitude with which they approach education, the prevalence of mental illness at Brandeis and other institutions of higher education will continue to increase.
Be wary of questionable, illegal business employment practices EMPLOYMENT, from page 16
of my work for the company. She thanked me for bringing up these questions, and assured me that she would speak to her boss and get back to me in a few days. On New Year’s Eve, I received an email from the company rescinding the offer. I asked for a reason why, and Lynx would not give me one. The reason I am writing this is because I want to alert my fellow students and soon-to-be gradu-
ates of what unscrupulous employers can do to you before you actually start to work: Lynx’s decision to rescind their offer was, in my view, directly related to the totally legitimate questions I raised about my employment status. We are all going to get jobs, be it part-time or full-time, and it is very important that we not let companies take advantage of our inexperience in the professional world. In this modern economy, contract workers have become and will continue to become a more significant part of the workforce.
I contacted both the Massachusetts Attorney General’s office and the Joint Task Force on the Underground Economy and Employee Misclassification funded through the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Both offices told me that because I had not started working, the company had not broken any laws by rescinding the offer (even if they had signed, and I had accepted, an Offer of Employment). When Lynx had responded to me by rescinding their offer, I wondered if something else entirely was going on. Did they
know what they were intending to do was illegal, and they were just hoping that as a naïve college student I wouldn’t know the difference between employee and contract worker? Maybe so. But I hope now they know better. And I also wonder whether, when I asked about my job classification, they then began to realize that I knew that their taking me on as a contract worker would violate Massachusetts’ and the IRS’ employment regulations? And that once I started working I could call them out and they would then be in serious trouble?
Maybe. But, regardless, I hope that now you will know the difference and will work to end these questionable employment practices. A good place to start is by letting your elected representatives and even the Attorney General’s office know that Massachusetts should serve notice on companies engaging in such practices that they will be scrutinized and held accountable. It is in the public’s interest that companies attempting to protect their own bottom lines not even think about violating employment and tax laws.
Invite Waltham to observe the squalor of Usen Castle
By Andrew Elmers columnist
In the movies, historical societies and commissions are always portrayed as the good guy—or at least the underdog—and everyone likes an underdog. Usually, they work to save a beautiful, old building from being demolished by a greedy developer. They work with limited funds and try to convince a community to listen to their heart instead of their mind. Save the theater because it was a part of our childhood, even though a new business park will bring more jobs to the community. And this same argument has come to Brandeis. The Waltham Historical Commission (WHC) does not agree with the university’s plan to demolish sections of the structurally compromised Usen Castle to build a new dormitory, with more beds for students. Brandeis is a private university and should be able to do what it wants with its campus, but Usen Castle is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, so this construction plan has to be scrutinized. If anything, the WHC has created a hurdle for Brandeis to construct a much-needed residence hall. I’m confident that the administration is right to demolish a majority of Usen Castle. The Castle
was poorly constructed to begin with and certainly does not meet the needs of the current student body. The building itself is outdated and not accessible for those with disabilities. But the greater Waltham community doesn’t understand this. That is no fault of the community, as they have no reason to visit the Castle and see the state that it is in. Though that does not mean they, the citizens of Waltham, shouldn’t now see how the Castle stands. The university, in its attempt to gain the WHC’s approval to demolish the Castle, should invite them to an
open house for Usen Castle. Allow community members to walk inside the residence hall and observe how students live there every day. Allow them to witness the ceilings that have collapsed, the staircases that lead nowhere, the fact that the Castle can not be retrofitted with electronic campus card access. Simple things now common in every modern living arrangement, be it a college dorm or a residential apartment, are not possible in the Castle. And if students here at Brandeis can easily understand how the Castle simply doesn’t work anymore as a viable living arrangement, Waltham cit-
izens will be able to do the same. Probably the most important reason there needs to be a new residence hall in place of the Castle is that the university needs more accessible housing options. Most of the quads on campus do not have elevators that allow physically disabled students to live on higher floors. While there are a few options on campus, we need to provide accessibility in all of our buildings, not just the newest ones. Some of the older buildings could maybe be retrofitted with elevators and other amenities for handicapped individuals, though the cost might be a bit ex-
photo by sharon cai/the hoot
cessive. It is impossible, however, to install an elevator in the Castle. The design and structure of the building does not allow it. While the Historical Commission’s idea to preserve the Castle without using it as a residence hall is viable, Brandeis needs more housing options for students regardless. The Commission suggested the University use some of the green space on campus to provide the space for a new building. They are wrong to compromise the environmental sustainability of campus in favor of a building that is a leech on the school’s heating bill (since there is no insulation). Both the physical state of the building and the need for accessible housing need to be communicated to the Waltham community so they can eventually agree with us at Brandeis that the Castle needs to be replaced. Of course that includes saving Towers A and B, the most prominent features of the Castle, and preserving them to stand the test of time. It is a simple case for the Brandeis administration to win, and one of the rare times that the student body agrees with the administration. It’s a shame, however, that we have to squash the underdogs in the process.
April 1, 2016
OPINIONS19
The Brandeis Hoot
By Theresa Gaffney editor
This week, I wrote a feature article on Prof. Jillian Powers (AMST), a lecturer who was not asked to renew her one-year contract. In talking to Powers about her experience, I was horrified to learn about the way that the university exploits her labor and the labor of many other adjunct professors at this school. In light of the adjunct faculty’s recent decision to unionize, Powers’ struggle with the university is all too pertinent. I believe that the university needs to change the way that they approach faculty labor. Powers considers lectureship a type of adjunct labor. A step down from a tenure track position, she has had to watch her colleagues’ careers flourish as she scrambled to cobble together enough money for rent. And now that her contract is not being renewed, she will be replaced by three adjunct professors who will only teach one class each semester, for just $6,700 per class. This is not enough money to live anywhere, never mind in Boston. Brandeis, along with most other universities around the country, is exploiting the labor of young academics, leaving them without the support that they need to live a healthy life or bolster their
Adjunct profs. deserve better
scholarship. It is incredibly hard to become an adjunct professor; most have Ph.Ds and spent years in school, studying and doing research. Most professors are on this career path because they are extremely passionate about their work, and the university profits off of this passion, as student satisfaction and retention depend heavily on professor-student relationships. According to The Boston Globe, more than 40 percent of teachers at American colleges and universities are adjunct. This is unacceptable. As a university founded on social justice, Brandeis needs to find compassion for more of its faculty. In an email to her students, Powers noted that, “A commitment to diverse and inclusive classroom spaces begins with job security for those teaching these foundational subjects and dissenting ideas.” As students pressure administration to bring more diverse voices to the faculty, we must make sure that they are treating these professors with the respect that they deserve. This semester, a Faculty-Student Committee on Asian American Pacific Islander Studies was formed to develop a curriculum around the Asian American experience. This movement has seen some success: Students can now
register for a Fall 2016 course called “The Asian American Experience.” Unfortunately, the person hired to teach that course, according to Powers, will also be adjunct and only have the one course. “So let’s add that total to four ruined Ph.D. lives,” Powers said in an email, referring back to the three adjuncts that will replace her. This may sound dramatic, but Powers’ statement is not an exaggeration. The Asian American Experience will be a “new prep,” meaning a class that has never been taught before. Powers says that this requires at least three times the normal amount of time to prepare for each class period than an “old prep,” a class that someone has already taught. When thinking of all the work that adjunct professors do for students and to continue their scholarship, it seems doubtful that the “piecemeal” money (as Powers calls it) is even legal. The Boston Globe cites the national average pay per class for adjunct professors to be around $2,700 per class. Brandeis professors make more than this, but it is still not enough. Students need to support faculty and pressure administration to find a way to create more tenure track positions. We need a more diverse community. We need an academically
stimulating community. We need a community that fosters growth.
We need better treatment of our adjunct faculty.
prof. jillian powers
photo from brandeis.edu
On growing older and feeling the same By Michael Wang columnist
I’m old: an old man of 21. Or I’m getting there. Today marks the day where I can start drinking alcohol, buying guns, gambling in casinos and adopting children. But overall, I feel much the same as the ungainly 18-year-old who first approached this campus in the fall of 2013—that faintly thinner, easily impressed and slightly crazier simulacrum who’d initially embarked on that perilous journey from the distant reaches of Chelmsford, MA to Waltham, MA in a daring bid to plumb the arcane secrets and Jewish wisdom guarded by Brandeis University at the bargain price of ~$60,000/ year. At the time, I had yet to learn what a garbanzo bean was. The saying is common enough: “College is a transformative experience.” It makes me wonder just how much I’ve changed in the past three years I’ve been here. Again, I
don’t really feel any different than I did before; though I guess a really pensive rock wouldn’t really notice the process by which it gets turned into a pebble either. There are a few American “coming-ofage” rituals I’ve ticked off—working for money, exiting my teenage years and driving a bit, etc—and they’ve been nice, but haven’t really struck me as being particularly significant in my development as a person or a personality. But when I really get to thinking about it, I find that the things that have actually had an influence on me actually do seem to bubble up and say “Hey, that was significant. Don’t forget it.” Too often those “things” happen to be individuals I hold in rather high esteem: a new friend explaining their culture back home, an old friend asking for help, a former friend growing cold, a professor suggesting the future, a chaotically colorful ball of in-
teresting and, more often than not, exceptionally weird: people willing to set aside a moment of their lives to stoke the roiling currents passing through our brains and the obscure ripples lapping at our souls. I certainly hadn’t considered the more delicate underpinnings of a social phenomenon I like to call Justice Rage, that is, exhibiting aggressive behavior in the face of an issue one doesn’t actually understand, until I’d started school here. Back then, I didn’t often come into contact with people whose passions ran high about things I’d scarcely even heard of. As corny as it sounds, I’ve also tried to just be less argumentative in general. This isn’t to say I’ve become less comfortable sharing my opinions or have managed to conjure up the mental fortitude necessary to mold my personality into that of a peanut; but when I find someone who disagrees with me on something and is willing to
share their thoughts, I try to actually consider the possibility that they might actually be right in the end. Aside from my interactions with people, I suppose the only other things that have constituted change in me have been rather mundane. Eat breakfast in the morning. Use dental floss. Do your work. Go exercise. Try to learn a language other than English more aggressively. A lot of it can be boiled down to that rightfully hallowed virtue called discipline. Though I have yet to master it, I like to think I’ve gotten a general idea of how it works. However, it’s beyond my ken to know just how exactly one should go about primping a principle that essentially consists of “Do things you don’t want to do right now until you get used to them.” I suppose that could even serve as a rough metaphor for life in general for the more pessimistic of us.
Ultimately, I consciously know my behavior and philosophies have changed, but I feel the same. It makes me wonder just what exactly college has done to me, other than mold me into a fledgling biochemist and thrown a lot of peculiar young/old men and women spouting odd notions at me and whether I’ll get a better idea of this all at, say, the age of 30. Do you think the chair that gets atoms removed from it one at a time would ultimately feel any different by the time it ceases to be a chair? Maybe it could have a nice lunch-date with the pensive rock for an hour or two and they could share in the subtler movements of each others’ lumpy, gray hearts. I guess this article didn’t really end up being much about Brandeis, so much as a pile of bizarre pseudo-philosophy. April Fools. And happy birthday to me. SUBMISSION POLICIES
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WEEK IN PHOTOS
20 The Brandeis Hoot
spring has sprung again
This time for sure
‘the vagina monologues’ Actors performed in front of packed crowds last week
photo by karen caldwell/the hoot
April 1, 2016
photo by nathan taber/the hoot
photo by sophia he/the hoot
photo by karen caldwell/the hoot