The Reveille 11-18-21

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KICKED OUT Students and faculty members raise protest after being removed from a faculty senate meeting

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University faculty members across the Southeast U.S. raise alarms about academic freedom threatened.

ENTERTAINMENT

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White Night Light returns as one of the fun and festive holiday events going on in Baton Rouge this weekend.

SPORTS

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Is Garrett Nussmeier ready to answer the QB1 call? Here is a breakdown of how he played against Arkansas.

OPINION

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“We have to stop making excuses for celebrities, especially in situations where peoples’ lives are on the line.”


L SU Re ve i l le.co m @l s u r e ve i l le

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CLOSED DOORS

Faculty Senate enters unlawful executive session during meeting BY PIPER HUTCHINSON @PiperHutchBR LSU Faculty Senate leadership kicked out non-members of a public meeting Monday, including a Reveille reporter, without following proper protocols to go into executive session, which allows public bodies to speak in private under certain circumstances. Following public comments and a short speech from LSU Board of Supervisors Chair Remy Starns, math professor Charles Delzell motioned for the Senate to go into executive session to discuss a resolution that involved “personnel matters.” LSU Faculty Senate is a public body subject to Louisiana’s open meetings law, which states plainly: “A public body may hold executive sessions upon an affirmative vote, taken at an open meeting for which notice has been given pursuant to R.S. 42:19, of two-thirds of its constituent members present. An executive session shall be limited to matters allowed to be exempted from discussion at open meetings by R.S. 42:17; however, no final or binding action shall be taken during an executive session.” Those protocols weren’t followed. After Delzell’s motion, Faculty Senate President Mandi Lopez asked if there was opposition to moving into executive session, not an affirmative public vote, and asked non-members to leave. “Going into executive session without taking a vote is illegal,” said attorney Scott Sternberg. Non-members, including parents and students, waited outside

the meeting room for 25 minutes. Mass communication professor Bob Mann told faculty leadership they were acting illegally and waited outside with non-members in protest. “There’s no question in my mind that we’re breaking the law,” Mann said in an audio recording he took after the session closed. “Because we’re not debating any personnel, there’s no personnel that’s on this resolution. We are debating no confidence in an officer, so there’s no personnel to discuss here. I’m leaving. I’m not staying. I’m not breaking the law. This meeting is illegal.” The resolution in question, which called for the resignation of Faculty Senate President Mandi Lopez, Vice President Joan King and Past President Ken McMillin, was due for its second reading. It was discussed in public during the Faculty Senate meeting Oct. 28. Emails circulated at that meeting showing the three knew about the LSU Board of Supervisors’ plans to abolish one of the faculty’s governing bodies, but did not alert the rest of the faculty. “The LSU Faculty Senate is certainly a public body within the meaning of Louisiana’s Open Meetings Law,” said Denver Nicks, a student attorney at Tulane University’s First Amendment Law Clinic. “In order to go into executive session, they must be in an open meeting, with a quorum, and take a public vote on going into executive session in which the vote of each member is recorded and the reason for going into executive session is publicly stated.”

Lopez only asked if anyone attending the meeting objected. She counted six people’s hands in the room and then asked non-members to leave. Daniel Tirone, a political science professor, was present for the closed-door portion of the meeting. He said that most of the time was spent arguing about whether the decision to expel the public was appropriate. “After everyone left, there was discussion about whether we had executed that appropriately,” Tirone said. “And also whether it was appropriate for us, even if the vote had been conducted in the right manner, about whether this was a sufficient reason to enter into executive session.” Tirone said that the Senate decided to hold off the discussion on the no confidence resolution until they determined the appropriateness of the executive session. Lopez declined to comment on the appropriateness of the executive session, and said that she would be seeking legal counsel on the subject. Ravi Rau, a physics professor, said that the move to go into executive session was inappropriate, and that criticism of officers in an open way should not be so shielded. Charles Delzell, who sponsored the motion, said he did not do a good job of explaining his reasoning at the meeting. “I did a poor job due to lack of preparation of explaining my motion to go into executive session,” he said. Delzell is not an elected member of the Faculty Senate. He was

acting as an alternate for Scott Baldridge, who was not available for the meeting. Delzell said Baldridge will retake his place in the senate at the next meeting on Dec. 7. Inessa Bazayev, a music professor and an at-large member of the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, expressed her disappointment in the decision to go into executive session. “I value academic freedom and transparency, and I don’t think that it was appropriate for us to go into an executive session on a no-confidence resolution,” Bazayev said. “I was also concerned that the vote to go into an executive session wasn’t properly recorded.” LSU journalism faculty condemned the Faculty Senate’s actions in a letter signed by 13 faculty members, including Mann and two former Manships deans, sent Wednesday afternoon. “We the journalism faculty of LSU’s Manship School of Mass Communication condemn the Faculty Senate’s expulsion of a student reporter and members of the public from a crucial Senate meeting Monday,” the letter read. “The reporter, from the Reveille student newspaper, was the only journalist present. The Senate failed its ethical obligation to set a good example for students when it endorsed doing the public’s business secretly.” The letter continued, saying, “Despite the Senate’s blatant move to avoid transparency, we will continue to teach future journalists that they, as representatives of the public, deserve access when statefunded institutions make important decisions.”

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EDITORIAL

Faculty Senate executive session was illegal, disgraceful to Reveille BY THE REVEILLE EDITORIAL BOARD LSU Faculty Senate leadership illegally entered an executive session Monday during a meeting, kicking all non-members out of the public meeting, including a Reveille reporter. The meeting was originally slated to discuss a resolution introduced on Oct. 28 by Professor Bob Mann and other professors, which called for Faculty Senate President Madi Lopez, Vice President Joan King and former president Kenneth McMillan to resign. The decision to remove a reporter, or anyone for that matter, from this meeting for 25 minutes was an obvious affront to Louisiana’s open meeting laws done solely to shield those Faculty Senate members from public scrutiny. Looks like that plan backfired, and now these leaders will have to face the consequences of their illegal actions against the state law ensuring that public bodies must permit members of the public to attend and witness their meetings.

Louisiana’s open meetings laws state plainly that a twothirds affirmative vote is required to enter executive session. Lopez took the vote to enter the executive session with recklessness and expedition: “Can we make it more quick?” she asked the Senate as she made a sweeping motion with her hands. She took a grand total of 10 seconds to count the votes in the room before answering one question and declaring the motion as passed. From accounts of the vote itself, some professors couldn’t even tell that the vote had started before she finished it at seven votes in opposition: six in person and one on Zoom. It’s quite possible those seven voters were the only ones who knew what was happening in the moment. How could the Faculty Senate so willfully violate the law? Did they just not know it existed? An audio recording capturing the few minutes of the meeting after our reporter was ejected from the room shows that some faculty in attendance, including Mann, made it very clear that if

Senate leadership wasn’t previously aware of the law violation, then they would be soon made aware of the risks associated with their decision. And yet leadership continued for at least another 15 minutes after Mann left the executive session in protest, telling the president and other members that he would not participate because it “was not legal.” Our reporter attended that meeting with the intention of providing coverage to the campus community about the dealings of the Faculty Senate, be it positive or negative. What she got instead was a willful violation of her right to be at that meeting. Faculty Senate leadership egregiously denied this campus community its right to be informed on its proceedings. Even worse, Lopez told our reporter after the meeting that leadership plans on seeking legal counsel to defend iteself, showing this Editorial Board little remorse for the illegal actions. We can check with lawyers, too. And we did – with more

than one. Their conclusions? The Faculty Senate is a public body under Louisiana open meetings laws. The Faculty Senate failed to meet the two-thirds vote requirement to retire into executive session. The Faculty Senate’s secret meeting was illegal. We have grown all too used to a lack of transparency from higher administration like the Board of Supervisors in the last year, but the trickle-down of such patterns into Faculty Senate leadership is worrying to say the least. Will Attorney General Jeff Landry hold the Faculty Senate accountable for its unlawful action? Will President William Tate IV or the Board condemn Lopez’s decision? Unlikely, based on track record. It is the duty of media institutions such as The Reveille to hold these inept cowards accountable when governing agencies fail to step in, and Faculty Senate leadership tried to take away our ability to do just that. We will stay diligent in coverage and not bow to such mediocre attempts at censorship.

CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS The Reveille holds accuracy and objectivity at the highest priority and wants to reassure its readers the reporting and content of the paper meets these standards. This space is reserved to recognize and correct any mistakes that may have been printed in The Daily Reveille. If you would like something corrected or clarified, please contact the editor at (225) 578-4811 or email editor@lsu.edu.

ABOUT THE REVEILLE The Reveille is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. A single issue of The Reveille is free from multiple sites on campus and about 25 sites off campus. To obtain additional copies, please visit the Office of Student Media in B-39 Hodges Hall or email studentmedia@ lsu.edu. The Reveille is published biweekly during the fall, spring and summer semesters, except during holidays and final exams. The Reveille is funded through LSU students’ payments of the Student Media fee.


NEWS Student ACADEMIC FREEDOM Gov passes page 3

STUDENT GOVERNMENT

Faculty across Southeast U.S. say academic freedom being threatened

BY BELLA DARDANO & PIPER HUTCHINSON @BellaDardano & @PiperHutchBR LSU and other SEC schools have become battlegrounds between university faculties, administrations and state governments. Professors across the region have raised alarms about actions from upper administrations or state governments that threaten faculty free speech and autonomy. Louisiana In May, over 600 members of the LSU Faculty Council, which includes all LSU faculty members, met and passed a resolution urging the university to implement a COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The Council, which had not met since 2005, voted nearly 90% in favor of the resolution. LSU declined the Faculty Council’s request, choosing to wait until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted final approval of the Pfizer vaccine in August. Faculty members then pleaded with the LSU Board of Supervisors to allow professors to teach remotely as COVID-19 cases soared in the fall, but their complaints were largely ignored as most classes returned to the classroom. A month later, the Board pro-

FRANCIS DINH / The Reveille

Memorial Tower stands tall behind Coates Hall on LSU’s Campus, Aug. 24, 2021. posed a motion to abolish one of the faculty’s two governing bodies — the Faculty Council or Faculty Senate — to be chosen by the faculty. The Faculty Council, which does not meet regularly, was most likely to get axed. Some faculty members considered the move an attempt to silence faculty after months of going head to head with upper administration.

The motion was eventually set aside, however. LSU mass communication professor Bob Mann made public comments condemning the Board’s actions at a September Board of Supervisor’s meeting. “This will cause national embarrassment for a university whose reputation is already at a low because of the way this Board responded to last year’s

ASL legislation

Title IX scandal,” Mann said. “If you vote to abolish the Faculty Council, you will not silence the faculty.” Despite the motion’s failure, tensions remain high between the faculty and administration. At the Faculty Senate meeting Oct. 28, several faculty members, including Mann, introduced a resolution calling for Faculty Senate President Mandi Lopez, Vice President Joan King and past President Kenneth McMillan, to resign. Emails circulated at the meeting showing that the three knew about the Board’s plans to abolish one of the faculty governing bodies but did not alert the rest of the faculty. Mann said the reason he and other faculty members are fighting back against Faculty Senate leadership is because “we don’t believe that the faculty is really well positioned to defend itself right now,” he said. Mann added that he’s concerned that the Board’s actions have had a chilling effect on younger, untenured faculty members. “They’re not confident that they have academic freedom,” he said. “The Faculty Senate, it’s not defending us. Faculty senate leadership isn’t defending us. The Board’s not defending us, even

After taking American Sign Language at his Texas high school and becoming fascinated with the language and culture of the deaf community, Miles McLendon was told his credits did not transfer over as a foreign language at LSU, unlike at public universities in his home state. “I had to start over with Spanish and I was so surprised LSU didn’t have an ASL program,” McLendon said. By his junior year, the political science and economics student had an idea: to use his position as a Student Government senator, specifically as the vice chairman of Academic Affairs, to introduce legislation that would urge the university to create an ASL program to teach the language and deaf culture to LSU students as part of the Department of World Languages. The legislation passed on Nov. 3 with unanimous support. The proposal is now being sent

see FREEDOM, page 4

see ASL, page 4

BY DOMENIC PURDY @tigerdom16

CONSTRUCTION

LSU to establish wellness center in Huey P. Long Field House

BY CORBIN ROSS @CorbinRoss5 Ochsner Medical Center provided LSU with $4 million to create a wellness center inside the Huey P. Long Field House as part of the roughly $30 million restoration of the building that began last year. The wellness center will provide new learning opportunities for students in the College of Human Sciences and Education by offering access to exercise equipment, physical and mental health services. “The gift from Ochsner, not only did it enable us to bring the whole wellness center into fruition, but it also sort of serves as a cornerstone for a bigger partnership with Ochsner,” said CHSE Assistant Dean Chad Gothreaux. LSU’s kinesiology department will have a dedicated space to teach classes involving weight training and exercise once the wellness center is established, a replacement to the UREC for completing those classes. Ochsner is partnered with LSU Shreveport, where the public-

private partnership offers medical care to northern Louisiana residents. The wellness center expansion represents a larger effort by Ochsner to get Louisiana into the top 40 states for health, titled the Healthy State by 2030 Initiative. Louisiana has long ranked toward the bottom of state rankings regarding the health of its residents. The United Health Foundation ranked Louisiana No. 49 last year, and U.S. News and World Report’s annual state rankings have consistently placed the state in the bottom five in health care access and affordability, health care quality and health outcomes for citizens. Louisiana’s adult obesity rate is 38%, the fourth highest in the country, and the state has one of the highest cancer mortality rates. Healthcare professionals hope the wellness center will be a step forward in improving health in the state. “I think health’s the center of all of it,” said Tre Nelson, director of economic development and community initiatives for Och-

sner. “How could you be expected to go do 60 hours at your job a week, manage your family, help your kids, fix your car window because a rock hit it on the interstate, and do all of these things that happen in day-to-day life when you can hardly get out of bed in the morning because your bones are aching so bad.” CHSE plans to host events and networking opportunities at the wellness center for students interested in internships in the healthcare industry. “What’s unique about the wellness center is that it provides an opportunity for LSU to bring forward its faculty, staff and students; research and education, and to partner with a really significant industry...to try to improve quality of life for everybody,” said LSU Foundation Assistant Vice President Sara Whittaker. Renovations to the Field House started in January 2021 and the partnership with Ochsner has been ongoing for some time. When the renovations are complete the CHSE will move from its current location in Peabody Hall into the Field House.

FRANCIS DINH / The Reveille

A arcade sits Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021, within the under renovation Huey P. Long Field House on LSU’s campus.


Thursday, November 18, 2021

page 4 FREEDOM, from page 3 Tate was fine with that resolution,” Mann said. Georgia In October, the University System of Georgia, which oversees 26 colleges and universities in the state, including the University of Georgia, approved controversial changes to the tenure system, which some professors described as the “death of tenure.” The new tenure policy eliminates a peer review process that must be followed before dismissing a tenured faculty member, instead allowing faculty to be dismissed if they fail two consecutive annual reviews. Matthew Boedy, president of the American Association of University Professors’ Georgia conference, said the new policy will make it “tenure in name only,” and negatively affect recruiting talent to the university. “You lose great judgment, you lose great deciders, and you lose

ASL, from page 3 to the Department of World Languages, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Faculty Senate’s Courses and Curricula committee. Before the legislation was introduced and eventually passed, McLendon drafted a petition to gauge interest in creating such a program at LSU. The petition received 690 signatures in favor of allowing ASL to fulfill world language requirements. “In Louisiana, ASL is recognized by the state Legislature as a language, and ASL classes can be implemented into any public school to meet foreign language requirements,” McLendon explained in the petition. When McLendon’s fellow student senator, mechanical engineering sophomore Julius Pallotta, introduced similar legislation last semester, it didn’t gain much traction. Unlike last semester, however, McLendon’s new legislation is supported by Baton Rouge Community College, who just launched its own ASL program and hopes its credits can transfer over to LSU’s once established, and the Chair of the Department of World Languages, Rafael Orozco. Orozco, a professor of Linguistics and Spanish, supports McLendon’s efforts to introduce the language to LSU’s campus, saying that “all languages deserve the same importance.” “There is no language that is more powerful than any other,” Orozco said. “All languages, scientifically, are the same because there is no way to accurately determine whether a language is better or more beautiful.” Orozco is working with McLendon to develop the ASL program. Orozco’s role will be to put together a curriculum to teach ASL under the Department of World Languages, including scheduling the courses, putting together a course proposal

people that could help other professors get better. You lose the best teachers and the best researchers,” Boedy said. The situation in Georgia was also brought up by professors at the LSU Faculty Senate meeting on Oct. 28, who feared that similar changes could be coming to the LSU system. Daniel Tirone, a political science professor at LSU, said that these situations have a “tendency to diffuse.” “I can see, particularly depending upon future orientations of Louisiana politics, that at some point in time, someone may suggest to the Louisiana Board of Regents that it might be time to review tenure and maybe implement some of these changes as they were implemented in Georgia,” Tirone said. Florida On Nov. 5, three University of Florida professors filed a lawsuit against the university claiming the university was violating their

First Amendment rights. UF denied professors Daniel Smith, Sharon Austin and Michael McDonald’s request to act as expert witnesses in a voting rights case on the grounds that doing so was “adverse to UF’s interests.” The lawsuit in question is against Florida Gov. Ron Desantis’ administration. While UF has reversed its original decision and is creating a task force made up of professors that will review the process of making requests to the university’s conflict of interest office, the trio of professors is continuing with its lawsuit against the university. Brian Cahill, a psychology professor at UF and a representative of the university’s union, said that he was concerned about the political nature of the situation. Cahill also acts as an expert witness, usually in criminal cases. “The ability of the state or a political ideology to come in and say, ‘Because I don’t like what you’re saying, you can’t do that,’ that is absurd,” he said.

As the three professors involved in the voting rights suit grabbed the nation’s attention, more UF professors came forward alleging that they had similarly been denied permission to participate in legal cases that were against the state’s interests. Last year, four UF law professors were denied permission to participate in a case challenging a new felons voting law. In August, a UF medical school professor was denied permission to participate in a case challenging the state’s ban on mask mandates. Kenneth Nunn, one of the law professors, said he was denied permission to sign an amicus or “friend of the court” brief. The case dealt with Florida amendment four, which gave formerly disenfranchised persons who were convicted of felonies the opportunity to vote. The amendment passed in referendum but was challenged by the state. Nunn said that in this situation, the court is seeking experts who have an opinion about the

law, the facts or some aspect of the case that the judges of the court think will be useful to the court to consider. He was ultimately allowed to file the brief as long as he did not indicate he had any affiliation with the University of Florida. Nunn said situations like this pose serious threats to academic speech. “One of the things that we should have the ability to do is share knowledge with the world,” Nunn said. “That’s why we do the research, that’s why we study as in a way that we do so we can develop knowledge and information and then hopefully share that with people who are a broader audience than just the people who happen to be in our class on a given day.” Cahill pointed out that faculty members at the law school and the medical school at UF are not union members. “The fact that our academic freedom is being threatened, having a union to fight for us is crucially important,” he said.

and hiring the faculty needed to teach the courses. In developing the ASL program, Orozco has been in contact with the Dean of the College of Humanities and Social

increase awareness and understanding of the often misunderstood language. “People think that people are just signing randomly and that’s not what they’re doing,”

members, according to Toal, a nutritional science senior who also acts as the club’s president. Toal takes pride in Hands That Hear’s work within the deaf community of Baton

“We give 110% of our support to the initiative,” she said. “Getting to know not only the deaf community at LSU but the local community in Baton Rouge and Louisiana makes it clear there is a huge demand to have ASL classes.” After coming up with the idea of learning ASL on a whim during her freshman year after seeing people signing, Toal said her perspective of the deaf community changed entirely once she began learning ASL. “It wasn’t a disability,” she said. “It was just a different way of living life.” Like most any culture, the deaf community is vibrant, McLendon said. Part of the proposal he put together with Orozco is to create a course on deaf culture and the importance of representing it properly. There is deaf cinema and even a subgenre of deaf music, McLendon said. “There’s more than enough substance within the deaf community to create a course,” McLendon said. “Deaf cinema is very special. There’s even a whole range of music within the deaf community that surprises some people because they like to feel the vibrations. Often times, deaf people like to go to concerts because, even if they can’t hear the music the same as we do, they enjoy feeling the vibrations.” Both McLendon and Toal stressed the importance of strong representation of the deaf community. “Whenever you open those doors and have representation of a deaf person that is successful and doing what they love, it starts that conversation,” Toal said. “And that’s always going to be a great first step to acceptance.” “Being deaf isn’t a disability in life that’s going to hold you back in life; it will help you do amazing things,” McLendon said.

COURTESY OF SARA TOAL

Deaf student and Hands That Hear officer, Rebekah Dupart, teaches an ASL lesson to club members at a meeting in 2021. Sciences, Tony Blanchard. Orozco said that Blanchard has worked with him to develop proposals for an entry-level course in ASL teaching basic communication including the alphabet, grammar and vocabulary taught by a certified ASL professor. “This foundational class would be followed up by other classes building on the foundation the students learned in the basic class,” Orozco said. “Depending on student enrollment and demand, then we could do more advanced conversational courses in ASL.” Orozco hopes that ASL becomes a permanent fixture to the World Languages Department’s curriculum that will help

Orozco said. “They’re actually following a systematic communication pattern that involves signs that are connected in ways that sense the same way as sentences when we speak English or any other language.” Organizations like Hands That Hear have been advocating for and teaching ASL since spring last year. “We strive to bring together deaf, hard of hearing and hearing students on campus,” Sara Toal, Hands That Hear’s founder, said. “We have our deaf officers and leaders that teach ASL to our members so that we are better able to communicate and understand the deaf community.” The club has about 120

Rouge, including the Louisiana School for the Deaf. “We have a service team that goes to local elementary schools twice a week and teach elementary students basic ASL,” Toal said. Hands That Hear supports McLendon’s legislation to create an ASL program, with Toal calling it “a great first step” to an inclusive campus. “We have been advocating for an addition of ASL courses to LSU ever since we started a year and a half ago,” Toal said. Hands That Hear has been in close contact with those in student government creating the proposal, with Pallotta presenting at a recent meeting, Toal said.


ENTERTAINMENT

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THIS WEEKEND IN BR Want to see your event in The Reveille? Email information to editor@lsu.edu.

FRIDAY AT 6

BY AVA BORSKEY @iamavab

NOVEMBER

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White Light Night | Mid City Mid City’s biggest art festival is here. Peruse the vendors under the white lights lining Government Street. Meet local artists, dance to live music, eat good food and get a head start on your holiday shopping. The festival is free and open to the public from 6 p.m.-10 p.m.

COURTESY OF THELOUISIANAWEEKEND.COM

Every Saturday morning from 8 a.m.–noon, local farmers, fishers, food crafters and artisans line the corner of Fifth and Main streets in downtown Baton Rouge. Find fresh fruits and vegetables, baked goods and all sorts of local Louisiana products at the Red Stick Farmer’s Market.

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SATURDAY AT 8

Red Stick Farmer’s Market | 501 Main St.

SUNDAY AT 7

COURTESY FOF VISITBATONROUGE.COM

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Peabo Bryson | Manship Theatre Soul balladeer Peabo Bryson will be bringing his legendary voice of R&B and love to the Manship Theatre at 100 Lafayette St. The Grammy and Oscar winning artist is known for hits “If Ever You’re in My Arms Again” and “Tonight I Celebrate My Love.” The show starts at 7 p.m., and tickets range from $60-$75.

COURTESY OF MANSHIP THEATRE


Thursday, November 18, 2021

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Thursday, November 18, 2021

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Players desperately pull on a rope during a game of tug-of-war based on the Netflix show “Squid Game.”

The marker for the tug-of-war game hangs on a rope during a night of games based on the show “Squid Game.”

Players compete in the game “Marbles.”

TIGER GAME

A player counts her marbles during the “Marbles” game.

LSU english sophomore Amber Williams (right) celebrates with childhood and family studies sophomore Ethan Nguyen (left) after successfully winning all of the games.

Players run to the finish line during a game of “Red Light, Green Light.”

A player checks to see if she has chosen the correct rectangle during a game of “Glass Bridge.”

Asian American Ambassadors hosted their own version of “Squid Game” Thursday, Nov. 11, for LSU students in the Student Union. Photos by Francis Dinh

Players aggressively pull on a rope during a game of tug-of-war.

LSU computer science freshman Robert Arrington (left) and philosophy sophomore Kevin Fontenot (right) celebrate after completing a game.

LSU mechanical engineer freshman Andrew Tran checks with a judge to see if he successfully separated his Oreo cookie from the cream.

LSU childhood and family studies sophomore Ethan Nguyen passes out Oreo cookies to players prior to the “Ppopgi” also known as the “Honeycomb Candy” game based on the Netflix show “Squid Game.”


SPORTS ‘LET THE KID PLAY’ BY MORGAN ROGERS @__morganrogers

Pressure was the last thing on Garrett Nussmeier’s mind when he stepped onto the field during the first quarter of the game at Tiger Stadium. It was a crisp 45 degrees in Death Valley, but that didn’t stop thousands of fans from showing up, to eagerly watch LSU’s second-string quarterback. The Tigers were trailing early, and the freshman knew that this would be his best chance to prove what he’s capable of. The son of a former Saints quarterback, now the quarterback coach of the Dallas Cowboys, the kid has been surrounded by college football for years and didn’t want to view it any different from the game he’s played his entire life. “It was awesome. I’ve dreamt of that moment my whole life,” Nussmeier said. “It did not go the way I wanted it to, but all it is going to do is make me hungrier.” Ed Orgeron has called Nussmeier a “gunslinger” before, a guy who’s willing to take risks and make a play even when the offense isn’t really present. His playing style proved to have both its pros and cons — It gave the Tigers their sole touchdown of the game, while also spelling their defeat at the end. Nussmeier has been itching to say goodbye to his redshirt for weeks now. And according to Orgeron, he and his father will decide if the young quarterback will burn the redshirt. Orgeron said Monday that Nussmeier did not earn the starting job. Johnson will start against UL-Monroe. “I don’t think Garrett beat him out,” Orgeron said. “I don’t think Max deserves to be benched. Max is still our starter. It’s going to be up to Garrett and his father if he wants to redshirt or play in a backup role.” Johnson was still chosen to be the starting quarterback, but it’s safe to say Orgeron was happy with his decision to bring the 19-year-old in, who played from the first quarter to the end of overtime. Nussmeier struggled a bit when entering during the third drive. A few of his first passes fell incomplete, but the boost of energy from the entire team couldn’t go unnoticed. It was like seeing the offense get a breath of fresh air. In just a few minutes, the team had switched up their tempo, and now had the Razorbacks on their heels. The defining moment of LSU’s offense came at the start of the second quarter. Nussmeier spun around multiple defenders before throwing a 29-yard pass to Jack Bech in the

Nussmeier plays majority of snaps against Arkansas, but fails to win starting job. PETER NGUYEN / The Reveille

LSU football freshman quarterback Garrett Nussmeier (5) scans down the field, Nov. 13, looking for an open receiver during LSU’s 16-13 loss against Arkansas at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. corner of the endzone. Bech, a true-freshman wide receiver out of Lafayette, proves time and time again that the freshmen class has a lot more potential than Nussmeier alone. “This confidence that [Bech] competes with now was earned by always preparing harder than anyone else,” James Hightower, Bech’s former high school coach, told The Reveille earlier this month. “He was always the last guy to leave the practice field.” The freshmen duo’s hunger for opportunity and desire to prove what they’re made of finally came into fruition during Saturday night’s big play. As the Tigers took the lead, fans were struck with a new sense of hope for the future of LSU football in the form of Nussmeier and Bech. Nussmeier went 18-31 for 179 yards by the end of the game, while Bech finished with 66 yards on four receptions. Along with the shared touchdown, the duo has proven that LSU has a vast amount of young talent on their team. Dating back to the Ole Miss game, LSU’s last four touchdowns have actually been scored by true freshmen: Bech scored two himself, while Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. each scored one, respectively. Although their names weren’t mentioned much this game, the likes of freshmen Corey Kiner, Deion Smith and Armoni Goodwin add to the potential strength of LSU in the coming years. The wide receiver Smith had five catches for 135 yards in a game earlier this season and has scored two touchdowns despite his lim-

ited play in five games. The running back Kiner has rushed for a total of 239 yards this season along with two touchdowns. “They’re very capable of playing against the best guys on our team already, they’ve shown that,” Orgeron said of the freshman earlier this season. “They’ve won some one on ones against some pretty good players. They’re very humble and hungry and want to

were down on the eight-yard line against Alabama, had the No. 2 team in the country on the ropes.” The previous week, LSU gave one of their most valiant efforts in the past decade against Alabama despite it being one of their arguably roughest seasons. The defense held the second-ranked powerhouse to 20 points, but the offense struggled to capitalize on key opportunities throughout the

PETER NGUYEN / The Reveille

LSU fans sing along to “Callin Baton Rouge” Nov. 13, during LSU’s 16-13 loss against Arkansas at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. learn, they catch the ball well.” After the game, Orgeron still wanted to remind everyone that the team has a lot to learn and must take away a lesson from their mistakes. “We have to call better plays. We have to be smarter with the football and that’s obvious. It was obvious last week,” he said. “We

game. “There’s a lot of chances that we had to make plays to win this football game, but again we have to find a way to do it.” Orgeron said. “If you want to be at LSU, you have to do that.” Orgeron knew mistakes were inevitable, but urged that it’s important to limit how often they’re

page 8

made or they can cost the game. That truth came to light in overtime when Nussmeier threw an interception to Arkansas defensive back Montaric Brown. The turnover resulted in a field goal, which gave the Razorbacks the win. Of course, all the blame can’t be put on the young quarterback alone. With guards Ed Ingram and Chasen Hines injured, the team’s offensive line power was spread thin. The explosive force of LSU’s defense, who held their opponent to 57 yards on 27 plays in the first half, could not defeat the Razorbacks alone. “It obviously hurts. We had more than enough chances to win the game, this week and last week,” center Liam Shanahan spoke after the game. “I feel bad for everybody, especially the defense. They laid everything on the line. It sucks to be the ones holding us back from getting a couple wins that could’ve been really big for us.” As for Nussmeier, the secondstring quarterback finished with more passing yards than Arkansas’s KJ Jefferson, who’s been a starting quarterback for three years now. Despite his costly mistakes, the freshman made some impressive plays for just his fourth collegiate appearance. The guy has a lot of growing to do, but his level of talent shouldn’t be overlooked. If he can restrict his number of errors and step up to the challenge that veteran Johnson and five-star LSU commit Walker Howard will pose, Nussmeier could be the key to giving the LSU offense the spark they desperately need. For the rest of the season, he’ll now have the chance to compete head-on with Johnson for playing time and make invaluable improvements. Bech’s impact on the team will be crucial as well. The tight end has seen early success on the field not just for his talent, but for his immense drive. A freshman with offensive and defensive skill, his dedication to the game and his team will prove to make him a definite asset in LSU’s future. By utilizing the youthful talent on the team and continuously developing its players with a well-rounded coaching staff, the Tigers could climb back up to the top of the SEC in seasons to come. As for now, fans are still looking forward to what LSU can bring to the table during the last few weeks of Orgeron’s time here. “Well, first of all we said we’re going to fight,” Orgeron said. “They know I got two weeks left, and we’re giving it everything we got.”


Thursday, November 18, 2021

page 9

BASKETBALL

Late-game rally over Liberty keeps LSU hoops undefeated BY HENRY HUBER @HenryHuber_ It’s hard to say a team survived a scare when they won by double digits, but that’s just how amazing LSU played down the stretch against liberty. With seven minutes left in the game, LSU was called for a technical foul and went down by five points. That’s when the tone of the game completely changed.

The Tigers would go on a 27-6 run to finish the game, looking completely dominant in the process. Even though this team has only played three games, there’s one thing a lot of fans can agree on: this team is different. Ferocious on defense. Efficient on offense. In the last five minutes of the game, Liberty could do nothing to douse LSU’s momentum. In the last five minutes of the game, we saw LSU’s true potential.

CYNNA MCCLINTON / The Reveille

LSU men’s basketball sophomore forward Mwani Wilkinson (5) helps up senior forward Darius Days (4) and freshman guard Brandon Murray (0) after they fall to the ground, Nov. 15, during LSU’s 74-58 win against Liberty in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on North Stadium Drive in Baton Rouge, La.

The momentum switch started with defense. With under nine minutes left in the game, Eric Gaines would have his first second-half steal, which then translated into an eventual Efton Reid layup on the other end. He would follow that up with another steal, which led to another layup. Then another minute later, which led to a Darius Days threepointer. In four and a half minutes, LSU would have seven steals and a block that ultimately resulted in a total of 14 points and a complete shift in momentum. Gaines, who led the defensive spark with four steals within that span, credited his coach for motivating him and his teammates to be more intense on the defensive side of the ball. “Coach told me to go in there and bring the intensity, and that’s what I did,” Gaines said. “Defense wins games, so once coach said that and told us to turn it up, that’s what we did.” Though this was not the knockout punch, it was the spark the team needed. Each steal came with the ecstatic cheers of the crowd and growth in LSU’s confidence, and when a team’s confidence is elevated that high, the shots are bound to start falling. And fall they did. After Liberty

CYNNA MCCLINTON / The Reveille

LSU men’s basketball senior guard Xavier Pinson (1) shoots a layup Nov. 15, during LSU’s 74-58 win against Liberty in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on North Stadium Drive in Baton Rouge, La. narrowed LSU’s lead to three with a pair of free throws, LSU would put the Flames out with a trio of threes. Darius Days, who was responsible for two of those threes, contributed 20 of LSU’s 49 second-half points. Despite playing such a huge role offensively, this victory was a team effort, and Days made that known when asked about

his performance. He credited his teammates for finding him and gave Gaines, Brandon Murray and Xavier Pinson a lot of credit for the team’s rally late in the second half. “Hats off to the guys up front,” Days said regarding the back court’s performance. “It really wasn’t the bigs this time. It was a collective unit, and we had a pretty good game, but regardless, it was [the back court’s] night tonight.” Days’ last three came with just two minutes left in the game and gave the Tigers a double-digit lead, which was ultimately too large for Liberty to overcome. The Tigers played the final seven minutes to near perfection against a team that could arguably be a strong tournament team this season and Head Coach Will Wade gave them a lot of credit for that. “It was a huge test. There aren’t going to be many teams that beat [Liberty],” Wade said. “On Selection Sunday, this is going to be one of our six or seven best wins, there [isn’t any question] about that. This was a good first step for us.” LSU survived their first true test of the season and looked impressive in the process. This team is different and right now, they have a lot of hype surrounding them. Let’s see if they continue to impress.

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Now twice a week. To place your ad, visit www.lsureveille.com/classifieds and click Submit an Ad Costs: $0.34 per word per day. Minimum $3.75 per day. Deadline: 12 p.m., three school days prior to the print publication date

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Make Some Extra “Dough, Dough, Dough” for the Holidays! Do you have some time and would like to make some additional money for the holiday season? Do you like working in a natural environment and the fastpaced excitement of holiday sales? If so, we have a great job for you at Louisiana Nursery. Each November through December, we turn our stores into a Winter Wonderland where people come from around the city to stock up on everything they need to deck their halls for the holidays. We have openings in positions such as inside cashiers, stockers, Christmas tree lot assistants and more. Louisiana Nursery has two Baton Rouge locations off Perkins Road and Coursey Boulevard, as well as a location on Highway 42 in Prairieville. We offer good pay and a fun working environment. Applicants must be a friendly, “people person” with a good attitude and a willingness to work. Apply in person at your choice location or online at louisiananursery. com/careers

Local legal services company seeks LSU marketing intern for real world resume experience! Paid opportunity. $15/hr., part-time, flexible schedule, etc. Gain valuable insight into the marketing practices of small businesses. Create and run campaigns. Dependable transportation required. Email resume to: intake@ quickliens.com.

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OPINION

page 11

Supporting Travis Scott post-Astroworld unforgivable EMILY ON CAMPUS EMILY DAVISON

@ichigoemily

It feels like fatal tragedies make up the majority of our country’s news. Another of these terrifying— and completely preventable— incidents happened on Friday, Nov. 5, at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival of all places. To give a brief recap, the sold-out concert at Houston’s NRG Park saw an attendance of 50,000 people and, ultimately a crowd surge that led to 10 deaths and more than 300 injuries. Scott took the stage at 9 P.m. Less than an hour later, officials reported a mass casualty incident. The concert continued for another 37 minutes. Scott kept performing for another 37 minutes after traumatic injuries had been reported in the crowd. He likely witnessed lifeless bodies being carried out and crowd goers jumping on top of emergency medical vehicles, yet he stayed on stage as though nothing was happening. He’s met a heaping amount of backlash over his inaction during the concert and his halfbaked patronizing attempts at an apology since. And yet, people—celebrities and fans alike—are actually defending Travis Scott after this all happened right in front of him.

ROBERT BUMSTED / Associated Press

Two people who knew an unidentified victim of a fatal incident at the Houston Astroworld concert embrace at a memorial on Nov. 7. These are actual people who believe he did nothing wrong. Some of his defenders blame the rapper’s destroyed reputation on cancel culture, which is legitimately one of the most ignorant things I’ve ever heard in my life. People aren’t turning on Travis Scott because he was problematic on Twitter as a teenager. He’s not being canceled—he’s being held respon-

sible for actions. The fatalities of Nov. 5 are the result of pure negligence by everyone involved in organizing the event, including Scott. The officials behind the scenes are certainly to blame for many of the mistakes that night, from the lack of security to their unpreparedness with medical resources. However, Travis was the face of this event,

and he had multiple opportunities to intervene. People begged for help while Scott performed, and several individuals actually climbed on stage to shout that people were dying in the crowd. Even as emergency vehicles broke through the crowd, Scott just watched, never stopping the show. This is not the first time Scott has come under fire for in-

citing violence in his crowds. In a video from a previous concert, Scott is shown hitting and spitting on a concert goer who tried to steal his shoe while crowdsurfing. He even calls on people in the audience to attack the culprit. This is just the first time that Scott’s sadism has led to needless deaths. I’m tired of the cult-like compulsion to support celebrities through thick and thin, even when they’re clearly at fault. I understand being a dedicated fan, but you must draw the line when your favorite celebrity shows such utter disregard for human life. If you would condemn a non-celebrity figure for an action, why wouldn’t you hold celebrities to the same standard? You’re not going to get brownie points for sticking up for Travis Scott. He’s made it painfully obvious that no matter how much attention and money you give him, he doesn’t care about your wellbeing. I know I sound harsh, but I’m truly just livid that the deaths at Astroworld were allowed to happen. We have to stop making excuses for celebrities, especially in situations where peoples’ lives are on the line. My thoughts and respects are with the families and friends of those affected by this tragedy. Emily Davison is a 20-year-old anthropology and English junior from Denham Springs.

Texting back all the time is an exhausting standard CRADDOCK’S CORNER KATHRYN CRADDOCK

@kcradd4

You are all probably familiar with the phrase “left on read” and the associated memes about someone reading your message and never replying. Being “left on read” is synonymous with rejection and disrespect on behalf of the person who isn’t responding. In an age when our phones stay glued to our hands, it feels intentional when people take hours to respond to a simple text. We are expected to be on-call basically 24/7 for every contact,

and the pressure to be always available can be exhausting. I understand where the expectations for instant replies come from. In a face-to-face conversation, you reply promptly after someone tells you something. Features like read receipts and “typing” ellipses mimic social cues of attention, alerting each person when a message has reached the other’s eyes. But unlike face-to-face conversations, text messages are sent all day at all hours. Between messages from texts, GroupMe, Slack, email and social media, I often feel like I am drowning in notifications. And a lot of the time, we are expected to reply almost instantly to these never-

ending messages. The expectation of a quick response is especially true for work-related messages during business hours on week days. There is an assumption that your phone should always be on and nearby, just in case a colleague, peer or adviser needs something. Yet, paradoxically, these are also the hours during which we are encouraged to stay off our phones and give attention to work, errands, lectures or studying instead. The research released in recent years on excessive cell phone use gives us concerning insight into how the habit affects our brains. Short temper, increased anxiety and depression,

lower sleep quality and impaired emotional and social skills are among the most serious consequences for a world increasingly reliant on constant communication. This quantitative research surely comes as little surprise to anyone, however, as we’ve all seen our moods drop as our daily screen time inches higher. Sending a text back might seem like an easy, painless thing to do, and there is seemingly no excuse for not taking 10 seconds out of your day to reply to people. But, texts are rarely just a one-time thing. The pressure to reply to one text becomes a pressure to be constantly engaged in

Editorial Policies and Procedures EDITORIAL BOARD Lara Nicholson

Editor in Chief

Enjanae’ Taylor

Managing Editor

Josh Archote

News Editor

Cécile Girard

Opinion Editor

The Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, The Reveille or the university. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to editor@lsu.edu or delivered to B-39 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must provide a contact phone number for verification purposes, which will not be printed. The Reveille reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration while preserving the original intent. The Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author. Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Reveille’s editor in chief, hired every semester by the LSU Student Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.

a conversation with someone, which then multiplies into conversations with many people. That pressure can make answering even a benevolent text from a loved one feel like a burden. Our personal time no longer feels like it’s really personal when we live under an omnipresent expectation to be constantly connected, alert and available. Near-instantaneous communication is a radical milestone in human history. What a shame, then, that texting back feels more like a chore than a miracle of connection. Kathryn Craddock is a 21-yearold mass communication junior from Patterson.

Quote of the Week “...I do not want to be called... First Lady. It sounds like a saddle horse.”

Jackie Kennedy Onassis Former first lady July 28, 1929 — May 19, 1994


Thursday, November 18, 2021

page 12

Every student benefits from religious studies courses MATTERS OF MILK AND HONEY CANAAN CHARRIER

@canaanbcharrier It was after enrolling in a course titled “Magic and Religion” my freshman year that I decided to pursue a major in religious studies. Though I didn’t quite understand the scope of the field at the time, I was quickly hooked. Having since taken classes spanning a broad array of subjects, I now realize the importance of studying religion. It may seem to be a niche academic pursuit, yet anyone could glean something meaningful from taking a class in the field, as it holds applications in nearly any career or personal pursuit. As a speech and debate competitor, volunteer and avid reader in high school, I knew I wanted a degree in the humanities. I just couldn’t decide on which one. After taking my first religious studies class and speaking with faculty in the department, I learned that religious studies is a multi-disciplinary field with roots across every humanities and social sciences discipline. In a world totally saturated by religiosity, all aspects of the

THE REVEILLE ARCHIVES

Assistant professor of religious studies Brad Storin speaks at the “Same God” panel discussion on March 27, 2019. human experience must be considered. From Japanese tea tradition to gender politics to UFO abductions, class discussions have plenty to offer those willing to broaden their horizons. Students who wish to learn more about other ways of life— be it in other cultures or even within their own classmates’ ex-

periences—will find no better scholastic field to pursue. As a born and raised Bible Belt evangelical, I’ve found merit, beauty and inspiration in ideas I would likely have never encountered or engaged with otherwise. Religiosity reflects the heart and mind of a person; its study teaches one to examine

others with an air of humility and a heart to understand. This emotive emphasis is a marked contrast to the more objective approaches found elsewhere in academia. An incredible degree program doesn’t come without passionate professors, and the religious studies department is

home to some of my favorite faculty. Each is expert in their field and genuinely interested in your success and well being as a student. Whether online or in person, time is poured into every lesson plan and lecture to make it as engaging and meaningful as possible. They offer a wealth of information and make themselves available via email or office hours to thoroughly answer any questions you may have. If for no other reason but taking a class with a wonderful instructor, I recommend religious studies highly. The study of religiosity must be thorough, as it deals in the socio-historical, psychological, physical and beyond. If you’d like to learn more about the world, but don’t want the debt or time commitment of adding a major or studying abroad, a religious studies elective might be for you. No matter what class you take, or what you have planned for your life, a religious studies class offers perspective useful for the rest of your life. Canaan Charrier is a 19-yearold finance, religious studies and international relations sophomore from Monroe.

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