The Daily Texan 2018-07-24

‘YOU MESSED WITH THE WRONG GIRL THAT NIGHT.’ Meechaiel Criner found guilty in on-campus murder case.

DT VOLUME 119, ISSUE 7 | TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018 juan figueroa

| the daily texan staff

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Jury declares Meechaiel Criner guilty of capital murder in the death of dance freshman Haruka Weiser.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

PAGE 6

News Hogg Foundation donates more than $4 million to rural Texas communities to promote well-being.

PAGE 3

Opinion Departments, student organizations should use ethically made T-shirts.

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(512) 471-4591

Liza Anderson (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com

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Catherine Marfin (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com

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The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com.

Life&Arts

AUSTIN WEATHER

Spike Lee’s latest film “BlacKkKlansman” tells the true story of undercover cops who infiltrated the KKK.

TODAY July 24

TOMORROW July 25

PAGE 8

Sports Head coach Tom Herman offered linebacker Breckyn Hager one low-five, and the rest is history.

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100º 77º

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who is “rich hipster named kukai bored with modern buddhism”?

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LISA NHAN NEWS EDITOR @THEDAILY TEXAN

TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018

STATE

3

CITY

Hogg Foundation supports local health organizations

Local businesses reconsider providing plastic straws

Six rural communities awarded grants to promote overall health

By Eilish O’Sullivan @ EVOSULLIVAN

Many Austin-area businesses are moving away from using single-use plastic straws in an effort to promote more environmentally friendly practices.

Anthony Rivera, co-director of UT’s Campus Environmental Center, was initially really happy when he heard businesses were moving away from using single-use plastic straws.

“From there, we could work

By Savana Dunning

@SAVANAISH

T

he Hogg Foundation for Mental Health awarded $4.5 million in grants July 1 to organizations in five rural Texas counties to address health inequity between rural and urban communities.

The Hogg Foundation is a grant-making institution housed in UT’s Division of Diversity and Community Engagement that has historically funded advancements in wellness and recovery in communities.

Although traditionally focused on mental health, the recent grant seeks to address overall health in rural communities as a part of mental health.

Each recipient received $410,000 to help their communities identify and tackle the conditions that create health issues within their counties.

The foundation also gave grant money to a sixth organization, Alliance for Greater Works, to lead the program.

Sherrye Willis, founder and president of Alliance for Greater Works, said her organization will go to meetings in the awarded counties on a monthly basis to guide and train grant recipients on how to effectively address these issues within their counties.

“What we are advising them on is not how to use their grant money but how to engage their community,” Willis said. “(The Alliance for Greater Works is) making sure we’re providing the training and development to help them.”

Rick Ybarra, program officer for the Hogg Foundation, said

copyright imani evans, and reproduced with permission Ima Hogg, pictured, started the Hogg Foundation for Mental Hygiene, its original name, with Mike, her brother. The Hogg Foundation granted $4.5 million to six Texas organizations to address well-being in rural communities.

part of the foundation’s new approach to grant-making is being more community driven, such that the foundation takes more of a backseat, supportive role to the organizations involved.

“This is about their communities’ health and well-being, and we’re just going to be there to support them, to help be a sounding board for their ideas, but really we just want to provide the opportunity to take ownership and make those decisions,” Ybarra said. “They’re the experts of their communities, not the foundation folks.”

The organizations, Bastrop County Cares (Bastrop County), Community Action Corporation of South Texas (Brooks County), Northeast Texas Community College (Morris County),

Stephen F. Austin State University (Nacogdoches County) and the Victoria County Public Health Department (Victoria County), each said they have different needs and approaches for engaging with their communities and tackling these problems.

Bastrop County has had seven federally declared disasters in the past three years, including floods, fires and damage from Hurricane Harvey. As a rural community, transportation and communication during these times has been especially difficult.

Dan Kleiner, Bastrop County Cares’ finance and development director, said that after talking with members of their

HOGG page 2

on reducing other kinds of single-use plastic … that end up polluting our oceans and harming wildlife,” Rivera said.

“Not many people considered how a straw ban would impact individuals with disabilities, myself included. … Now that a light has been shined on the impact it could have on people with disabilities, we must change our mindset.”

Many people with disabilities rely on plastic straws, which provide both flexibility and strength, to drink, according to NPR. “We must find a way to both reduce the harm that

single-use plastic causes our environment and provide for those who need a certain quality of product to live,” Rivera said. “I think the solution lies with listening to people with disabilities and taking their needs into account when planning straw bans and reductions.”

Straws are not the biggest problem when it comes to marine plastic pollution, but activists look at straws as a “gateway plastic,” which could lead to a reduction in other more serious plastics,

STRAWS page 2

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LIZA ANDERSON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF @TEXANOPINION

TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018

O

opinion

COLUMN

UT needs to bee careful There is a beemergency at UT. If administrators don’t act now, we could be stung by the repercussions.

A particularly aggressive bee population this summer has experts warning Austinites to exercise extreme caution. The University of Texas should improve its monitoring of the campus bee population.

Since May, Austin has seen at least three bee attacks, and last August, an aggressive swarm outside Sid Richardson Hall sent a UT student to the hospital. For both students’ and the bees’ sake, the University should take action during these months of peak bee activity before students come back for the fall semester.

“I saw someone running and screaming, and I couldn’t figure out what it was. I thought she’d been assaulted,” said Paloma Diaz-Lobos, scholarly programs director and faculty liaison for the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. “I went down the stairs, and I saw more people running under the trees. Then we realized there were swarming bees.”

What Diaz-Lobos saw outside Sid Richardson Hall looked like a scene from an apocalyptic thriller film.

“It was quite frightening to see people running and scared, not understanding what was happening. … We were all locked inside the building,” Diaz-Lobos said.

Students screamed and left their backpacks, and others hid in neighboring buildings, she said.

Many UT students have experienced a bee encounter. Bees zip in and out of trash cans on Dean Keeton, flit around the flowers on West Mall and pester pedestrians outside Littlefield Cafe.

Live-bee removal expert Keith Huddle says the summer months are the riskiest times for bee attacks. He says there are about five to 10 bee attacks per year. That doesn’t mean you need to worry about a bee attack, but it does mean people should be careful. Yes, biologists say we can thank the bee pollination for a third of our food, but a bee sting still hurts.

If you get attacked, don’t swat. Do run. It saves the bees, and most importantly, it saves you.

“Protect your face as best you can, and get out of there. The bees are going to chase you only so far,” Huddle said. “The numbers and the aggression can overwhelm you and leave you helpless.”

The face is a prime target for angry, twitching stingers. Bees are actually attracted to the carbon dioxide in our breath.

“Most victims are found with (bees) inside their nose and throat, all the way down into their lungs,” Huddle said.

“You could end up with a thousandplus stings. It can be pretty bad.”

Huddle, owner of Keith’s Bee Removal, jackie tovar | the daily texan staff relocates hives from places such as homes, sheds, trees, buildings and manholes to safer locations. He says that an influx of Africanized bee genes in local honeybees is to blame for the recent aggression and bad bee behavior.

Here at UT, administrators should monitor the bee population to keep track of hives. Huddle says that even if you don’t see a hive, a concentration of bees flying near trees or holes can be an indicator of a hidden hive, containing thousands of bees. If there are swarms or stung students, then live bee removal is the proper step.

Be bee aware. If you see a bee concentration or a hive, report it.

If you just walk by and don’t report it, then the next person might not be as lucky as you.

Having been stung myself, this writer says bee careful.

Laughead is a journalism junior from Houston.

LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.

SUBMIT A FIRING LINE | Email your Firing Lines to editor@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be more than 100 and fewer than 300 words. The Texan reserves the right to edit all submissions for brevity, clarity and liability.

By Laura Laughead columnist

COLUMN

Orgs should use ethically made T-shirts

By Jacob Palmer columnist

As a student, you’ve probably received about 100 free T-shirts since freshman year. Getting a free shirt is fun, and it feels good to represent something you’re a part of, but how often do we stop to think about where these shirts are coming from? UT departments, organizations and students should take time to look into the labor practices of their T-shirt manufacturers. We need to purchase from T-shirt brands that align with our ethics.

None of us intentionally advocate for sweatshops or workers’ abuse, but there’s often a disconnect between what we say and what we purchase. If we’re not careful about the T-shirt brands we choose, we might be funding companies’ harmful production practices.

Mehlam Bhuriwala recognizes this problem. The Middle Eastern studies junior serves as an organizer for United Students Against Sweatshops and is a secretary of the board for the Worker Rights Consortium.

The WRC reports a variety of prevalent abuses against factory workers, from poor facility conditions and compensation to physical and sexual abuse.

But Mehlam is quick to highlight the bright side, saying, “There are real, existing, working alternatives that oftentimes get ignored due to this unfair assumption that we have that affordable clothing is contingent on the exploitation of others.”

On our campus, there are more than 1,300 student organizations, 13 colleges and 170 major programs. You don’t have to own a math department shirt to recognize that an incredible number of Tshirts are being produced every year for our 51,000-plus students.

We are in a prime position to purchase T-shirts from ethical manufacturers and should take advantage of this opportunity.

Mehlam suggests Alta Gracia Apparel, a company which ensures ethical practices at every stage of production. For custom T-shirts, TS Design produces locally made, environmentally conscious clothing.

So if you’re a leader or member of an organization, spend some time researching the T-shirt brand you purchase from. If you have contact with your department or program administration, talk to them about it. Are the T-shirt brands transparent about their production process?

What do independent monitoring organizations say about them?

“Students often misunderstand the role and the power they have in order to affect these decisions, and I think that its very easy for us to fall for this idea that there’s nothing that we can do to change where our clothing comes from,” says Melham.

As students, we do have this power. We can decide to align our purchases with our beliefs.

If we choose to use T-shirt brands that uphold ethical values with their workers and their materials, we can have a positive impact on the world, not tomorrow but today. Let’s not just talk about our ethics and beliefs; let’s wear them.

Palmer is an English senior from Coppell.

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Place the paper in one of the recycling bins on campus or back in the burnt-orange newsstand where you found it.

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TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018

STRAWS

CAMPUS

continues from page 1

| the daily texan staff West Mall’s landscape is being rennovated to include a new fountain structure. The construction is expected to finish this December. carlos garcia

Students drive initiative to replace West Mall fountain

By Savana Dunning @SAVANAISH

With the help of UT students, the fountain on the West Mall is being replaced after years of being out of operation to make way for a sign that will serve as a formal gateway to campus.

Tony Guzman, the project manager for the West Mall project, said the completed sign will look similar to the stone sign at the end of University Avenue.

“We’ve been saying we want to replace it and make it a more friendly place for pedestrians, our students, staff and visitors to campus,” Guzman said. “We’re going to do that by taking out the existing fountain and putting paving and oak trees and a signage element.”

Austin Gleeson, a physics professor who was chairman of the Campus Master Planning Committee, said the fountain was originally going to be redone in the ’90s as part of the campus master plan at the time.

Gleeson said the redesign of the fountain was going to be designed by the architects of the fountain outside the Bellagio

hotel in Las Vegas. The project was well underway until it lost its main financial support.

“Almost every campus in this country of some significance has what we call a ‘major gateway,’” Gleeson said. “It should be something spectacular, and it was universally agreed upon that that fountain was not spectacular.”

The initial push for the current replacement project came in 2015. Vaishali Jayaraman, computer science senior, thought of replacing the fountain as a project for UT’s Design for America chapter, a student organization that uses design-oriented thinking to solve social problems.

Mzembers of the organization wanted to look into new uses for the unused fountains on campus and chose the West Mall fountain as a starting point.

“It was a prime location, and we wanted it to have a long-lasting good first impression to people who come there,” Jayaraman said. “Students come every single day from West Campus, they cross that area to go to class. …

You always see it, it’s inevitable.”

Two years of brainstorming and tabling went by and some members in Design for

America turned to other projects, but Jayaraman continued working on West Mall. In January, Jayaraman got in contact with Grace Gilker, a member of the President’s Student Advisory Committee at the time, who was working on a project for the same area.

Plan II alumna Gilker said she thought of the project as a way to be productive within the committee.

“We were more sounding boards than leaders of change,” Gilker said. “So I figured I should probably just, like, go get my own little project to just ask about every month, and then I passed that crater outside the Union. ” Gilker and Jayaraman began a student group that met monthly with a project manager and the architecture firm Ten Eyck Landscape Architects to complete the design.

“It’s kind of incredible,” Gilker said. “There are so many points in which it could have died that I kind of thought it might die. And the fact that it managed to hang around is really amazing.”

Construction is currently underway and is expected to be finished this December.

according to Vox. In April, government sophomore Maggie Okhuysen testified in front of the Austin’s Zero Waste Advisory Commission asking them to recommend the city pass an ordinance requiring restaurants, fast food chains and bars to have “request only” straw policies.

“Single-use plastic straws are not recyclable, and they do not decompose. … They are ending up in landfills, storm drains, oceans or in our water and food systems,” Environment Texas intern Okhuysen said to the committee. “Nothing we use for 10 minutes should pollute our environment for hundreds of years.”

The Vortex, a theater and bar, along with Patrizi’s, an Italian food truck located outside of the Vortex, are both apart of one of the pilot programs for the City of Austin’s Zero Waste Initiative. Plastic straws and stirrers are too small to recycle, according to Austin’s recycling guide. The

mel westfall| the daily texan staff

initiative hopes to reduce the amount of trash sent to landfills by 90 percent by 2040.

“We still use straws, but they are all compostable straws,” Patrizi’s owner Nic Patrizi said in an email. “We use only compostable plates and forks, and the bar only uses compostable straws as well.”

Compostable straws, which

mel westfall

HOGG

continues from page 1 community, Bastrop County Cares began to notice the need for resilience and mental health support in Bastrop.

“We came to find that a lot of our community members don’t feel like they have

| the daily texan staff

control over transforming the environments where they live,” Kleiner said. “It brings with it a feeling of helplessness — there’s really nothing that any human being can do when a wildfire is bearing down on them, when 50 inches of rain are falling on them.”

Kleiner said Bastrop County Cares, with help from the

can be made from plant matter, are being used as an alternative to plastic straws.

“We encourage no straw use, however some people like straws,” Patrizi said.

“We take on the burden of the extra cost to the business by purchasing non plastic biodegradable straws.”

Juiceland on Guadalupe Street is still using single-use plastic straws but gives a 10 percent discount to customers who bring their own reusable ones. Juiceland also sells stainless steel straws for $7.55 to discourage usage of single-use plastic straws.

Rivera said he thinks a good a solution to this issue could be plant-based straws that still provide flexibility and strength, or an “only upon request” policy for the single-use plastic straws.

“Whatever it may be, I look forward to seeing how companies and advocacy groups can work together to both reduce environmental impact and provide for their customers with disabilities,” Rivera said.

Hogg Foundation, can begin to address the healthbased aftereffects of those natural disasters.

“To some degree, we’re like the Hogg Foundation’s research partner,” Kleiner said. “We’re going to be hosting bold and courageous conversations within communities that have never really been engaged in this way.”

JULY 24, 2018

JURY SENTENCES CRINER TO LIFE N PRISON

After more than 10 hours of deliberation, a jury onvicted Meechaiel Criner of capital murder in he April 2016 death of Haruka Weiser.

By Megan Menchaca

A

@MEGANMENCHACA13

Travis County jury found Meechaiel Criner guilty of capital murder in the April 2016 death of dance freshman Haruka Weiser, sentencing him to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 40 years.

After seven days of testimony in the 167th Criminal District Court in Austin, the seven women and five men on the jury spent more than 10 hours deliberating before returning the guilty verdict at 2:13 p.m. Friday.

The gallery was completely silent as members of the jury cried while confirming their decision. Haruka Weiser’s father, Thomas Weiser, then spoke directly from the stand to Criner and told him Haruka’s spirit and bright face had prevailed.

“What can a father say to the one who killed his daughter?” Weiser said. “What could possibly make a difference to you? You killed my daughter. You brutally raped her and then you mercilessly killed her. May God have mercy on your soul.”

Weiser said the parole board for Criner will need to build a new room to hold all of the letters he plans on sending to discourage them from letting Criner out on parole.

“For the rest of my life, I’ll be reminding the Texas state board of paroles and pardons that (Criner) should never be released,” Weiser said. “It’s my duty as Haruka’s father and my responsibility to the citizens of this state.”

With tears in her eyes, Joell McNew, vice president

of SafeHorns, said she was incredib jury’s guilty verdict. SafeHorns, a ents and community members pro security on campus, was founde Weiser’s death.

“I believe that he definitely had a so grateful for the jurors,” McNew her father, that I believe 100 percen a predator … living on our campus. extremely difficult decision.”

The jury foreman, or chairman of took more than 10 hours to deliver they wanted to make sure the state case beyond a reasonable doubt.

“There was just way too many th to be coincidences,” the jury fore you combine all of the elements to incidence at that point, it just becom it’s unbelievable.”

Because of faulty analysis tech Department of Public Safety analys David Wahlberg ruled in June that so from the crime scene would not be the jury ruled largely on circumstanti Prosecutors Guillermo Gonzalez, Victoria Winkeler said the circumsta strong enough to prove Criner inten Weiser while also committing agg sault, kidnapping or robbery.

“You should now know, (Crine horrific and brutal murder,” Winkele statements. “You don’t get a ligature a

bly grateful for the a coalition of paromoting increased ed in response to

fair trial … and I’m said. “I agree with nt that they stopped . I’m sure it was an

f the jury, said they r a verdict because e had proved their

hings that lined up eman said. “When ogether, to be a comes so implausible

hniques by Texas sts, presiding judge ome DNA evidence admitted, meaning ial evidence. , Rickey Jones and antial evidence was ntionally strangled gravated sexual as-

er) committed this er said in her closing and pull it so tight as

TUESDAY, JULY 2

to murder (a person) without intending to do so.”

The jury foreman said the most convincing piece of evidence presented by the prosecution was surveillance video of the suspect wearing an orange bandana walking toward Waller Creek in the same direction as a person prosecutors said was Weiser. The prosecution also presented a selfie of Criner wearing an orange bandana that was taken less than a week before Weiser’s death.

Defense attorneys Ariel Payan, Darla Davis and Jeremy Slaughter said Criner being found at an abandoned building with items connected to Weiser’s death only proved that Criner, a homeless 17-year-old at the time, had scavenged the items from a dumpster. When he took the stand, Criner denied all charges and said he was confused as to why he was arrested.

“This is a circumstantial evidence case,” Payan said in his closing statement. “(The prosecution wants) you to fill in the blanks. Don’t leap to those conclusions.

Mick did not commit this crime.”

During the press conference after the verdict, Winkeler said the verdict was about getting justice for Weiser’s family and friends and showing everybody how special Weiser was. Weiser’s friends declined to be interviewed.

In an email sent minutes after the verdict was announced, UT President Gregory Fenves said Weiser’s memory will continue to be a source of strength for everyone at UT. “A verdict provides some closure, but it doesn’t heal the pain or ease the sense of loss felt by Haruka’s family and all of the students, faculty members and staff members to whom she meant so much,” Fenves wrote.

TOP LEFT: Meechaiel Criner sits silently as his defense attorneys make a motion to dismiss the DNA tests taken at the time of his Criner was found guilty of capital murder in the April 2016 death of dance freshman Haruka Weiser on Friday, July 20. mikE mcgraw | ThE daiLy TE BOTTOm LEFT: More than 2,000 members of the UT community gather in the East Mall to remember dance freshman Haruka W April 2016. carLOs garcia, | ThE daiLy TE TOP righT: The bridge behind the Alumni Center on campus is directly above Waller Creek, which runs down the eastern portion pus. Dance freshman Haruka Weiser’s body was found in Waller Creek on April 4, 2016. marshaLL Tidrick | ThE daiLy TE BOTTOm righT: Thomas Weiser speaks to Meechaiel Criner after Criner was found guilty of the murder of his daughter. Thomas flew in from Oregon to support the prosecution as they built a case against Criner for Haruka’s murder. angEL uLLOa | ThE daiLy TE

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RUBEN PAQUIAN LIFE&ARTS EDITOR @THEDAILY TEXAN

TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018

L&A

life&arts

MOVIE REVIEW | ‘BLACKKKLANSMAN’

Film on race in 1970s echoes current issues ‘BlacKkKlansman’ tells story of black cop going undercover.

By James Preston Poole @JAMESPPOOLE

S

pike Lee is nothing if not a provocative filmmaker, making movies that are often charged with racial issues. His latest, “BlacKkKlansman,” embodies this reputation more than any other.

Despite early success with “Do the Right Thing” and “Malcolm

X,” he’d hit a rough patch lately, following a series of commercially and critically underwhelming films. Nevertheless, “BlacKkKlansman,” a collaboration with producer Jordan Peele, marks a fine return to form for director Lee, telling a devilishly entertaining tale with a few missteps.

“BlacKkKlansman” tells the true story of Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), an African-American cop in 1970s Colorado Springs, Colorado.

His ambition leads him to infiltrate the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan by pretending to be a white man over the phone, while

fellow detective Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) acts as his in-person counterpart.

It’s easy to empathize with Stallworth on quite a few levels.

The mission he undertakes is incredibly dangerous for a black man in 1970s America, and Washington’s performance carries a certain sensitivity. Washington’s Stallworth is a gentle man with a rigid moral center, which makes him a hero the audience can easily root for. This also makes his conflicts with prejudiced fellow officers and civil rights activist

RACE page 9

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copyright legendary entertainment, and reproduced with permission Actors John David Washington and Adam Driver play two 1970s cops who go undercover to infiltrate the KKK in Spike Lee’s latest film.

MUSIC FESTIVAL

Float Fest features some of summer’s hottest artists

By Ruben Paquian @ RUBENPAQ

With one of the biggest lineups in the festival’s history happening on one of the hottest weekends in history, this year’s Float Fest made for one hot hell of a time.

Just one of many Texas music festivals, Float Fest sets itself apart by featuring onsite camping and tubing, all while offering a diverse lineup of big names. Taking place just off the San Marcos River, this year’s festival followed the trend with the chance to see headliners such as Snoop Dogg, Tame Impala and The Toadies all without any overlap in performances. Despite the weekend’s record heat, the small close-knit environment and impressive lineup made

for a unique experience worth the sunburn.

In part because of the concert ground’s modest size, it’s easy to run into familiar faces, making it easy to make new friends. This year was communication and leadership senior Tyler Pugh’s first time at Float Fest. He said the festival’s close-knit atmosphere reminds him of a less-saturated Austin City Limits.

“It’s an interesting vibe, it’s very open, it’s kind of a simplified summer version of ACL,” Pugh said. “There is this Zilker vibe, it’s very open, everyone is outside just chillin’.”

Corbin Heinchon, a radio-television-film senior, also appreciates the size of the festival. He said it contributes to a more intimate experience, bringing you as close as

possible to some once-in-alifetime performances.

“It’s a lot smaller, which is cool, like, they only have one band going at a time. The bands are so cool but there is not (too many) people,” Heinchon said. “The lineup is still ACL quality: they don’t have Paul McCartney, but they have Snoop Dogg, which is huge.”

Heinchon said it’s not just the big names that makes Float Fest the experience that it is. Smaller acts such as Main Man, featuring Christopher Mintz-Plasse aka McLovin from the movie Superbad, on guitar, and Austin-based rap group Blackillac, among others, surprised crowds with engaging performances.

“All the bands are super

MUSIC page 9

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L&A RACE

continues from page 8 Patrice Dumas (Laura Harrier) that much more tough to watch, because we know his heart is in the right place.

This tension embodies the remarkable power that “BlacKkKlansman” can have. The script, which Lee co-wrote, takes its time to ruminate on Stallworth coming to grips with racial identity. His relationship with Zimmerman, played to snarky perfection by Driver, makes way for a notable scene in which Zimmerman discusses how, before he started infiltrating the KKK and hearing their

TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018

hate speech, he never thought of himself as a Jewish man but as a white man. Moments such as this do, unfortunately, slow the pacing of the film, but it’s worth it because they hover long after you’ve left the theater.

In a time when tension over race and class is high in the United States, these kinds of scenes are important. If the film is organically relevant in these moments, there are a few very on-the-nose scenes where characters use terms such as “America First” and “Make America Great Again.” This is about as subtle as being hit over the head and doesn’t add much to the proceedings, going for an

“ah-hah” from the audience who most likely already gets it.

Also lackluster is the portrayal of the Klansmen themselves.

By no means should they have been sympathetic characters, but these are really underdeveloped villains. In a film that shows considerable realism in its struggles, it’s a bit disappointing that Lee doesn’t get into the heads of those with so much hate in their hearts, but because it’s the KKK that’s being discussed, it’s easy to fill in the blanks.

The film does earn some points with Topher Grace’s hilariously pathetic David Duke, its score by Terrence Blanchard

‘BLACKKKLANSMAN’ RUNTIME: 135 minutes MPAA RATING: R SCORE: and its cinematography by Chayse Irvin, which imbue the film with a fitting retro style that makes sure the film is never boring. Beyond that, Lee is telling a story that he’s clearly passionate about and that rubs off distinctly. “BlacKkKlansman” may be messy in a couple spots, but it’s still a well-made film that achieves its goal of getting the audience to think about racial politics.

angela wang | the daily texan staff Fans react to a drop in the bass by dubstep artist Bassnectar on Saturday night at Float Fest. This weekend marked the fifth iteration of the Martindale, Texas-based music festival.

MUSIC

continues from page 8 cool, even if you don’t know them,” Heinchon said Despite its pros, the festival isn’t without its shortcomings.

Austin musician Cody Mason has been to every Float Fest since the first one in 2014.

He said an impressive lineup is something the festival has

had down since the beginning, and over the years, it has improved its concert ground to river transportation, but said the water access could be much better.

“The first one was really interesting because they had a really solid budget, and so their booking was really solid, and then I’ve seen as time goes on, they’ve definitely put more

money into the logistics,” Mason said. “It still has its up and downs, the big ones are hydration, which every festival can definitely can use some creative hydration programs.

Here, I’ve only seen one water station. (The water is) cold, but it’s 108 degrees outside.”

Being a summer music festival, high temperatures are inescapable. Mason said that

as long the festival continues to deliver by bringing the huge names to smaller crowds, the heat is just a necessary gauntlet for the good time.

“It’s kind of a niche festival in that you can see so many high-caliber acts for a really low ticket price and no overlap,” Mason said. “It’s kind of a unique set up because most festivals are oversaturated.”

ALEX BRISEÑO

10

SPORTS EDITOR @TEXANSPORTS

TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2018

S

sports

FOOTBALL

Herman’s ‘low-five’ that changed Hager Hager hasn’t always loved Herman. That changed on Oct. 21.

By Ross Burkhart @ROSS_BURKHART

T

exas senior linebacker Breckyn Hager has made headlines more than once throughout his Longhorn career — they just haven’t always been for what he does on the field.

Two years ago, Hager received national attention after saying the team’s plan was to “injure” former Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes ahead of the Longhorns’ matchup with the Red Raiders. Hager later apologized, but the reputation lingered.

Two years later, Hager

is still one the most fiery athletes in the conference, but there is a noticeable difference in the outspoken leader.

Once fueled by rage during games, the preseason All-Big 12 member has shifted his intensity to a very different type of energy — love.

“Freshman or sophomore year Breckyn would tell you (his intensity comes from) anger and darkness,” Hager said at Big 12 Media Days. “Mid-junior to senior year (Breckyn) would tell you love, happiness, excitement, passion. It’s just how I’ve matured as a person.

There’s different ways to tap into different types of energy. It’s all about channeling through love and not letting the man that I love down.”

Hager spent the majority

of his time at Big 12 Media Days spewing positivity, but head coach Tom Herman took a moment to explain where a turning point in Hager’s attitude occurred.

Early on last season, tension between Hager and Herman was well-known around the locker room.

But all it took was one moment for things to change between the two.

“It came at a really awkward time in the third quarter of the Oklahoma State game,” Herman said “We’re in the middle of the game … obviously it’s really close, top-10 team. He and I had some knock-down drag-outs earlier in the year and in the offseason.

We hadn’t spoken much to each other.”

After a play in which Hager sacked

quarterback Mason Rudolph on third down to halt the Cowboys’ drive, the linebacker headed toward the sideline. What happened next was an interaction nobody expected.

“It’s like out of a movie, it’s the craziest thing,” Herman said. “I give him a little, low-five, like ‘Hey, good job.’ He stopped in his tracks, takes his helmet off, looks at me and goes, ‘Coach, I’m sorry!’”

“I said, ‘For what?’ I started looking out on the field. Is there a flag? Did he facemask somebody? I said ‘Breckyn, what? Sorry for what?’”

“He said ‘For being such an a-hole. I love you, coach!’”

“He gives me a big hug right there. I said ‘All right, Breck. I’ve got a game to coach here.’”

Since then, Hager has looked at things on the field through a completely different lens. The changes Hager has gone through weren’t just noticed by the coaching staff, though. Many of his teammates on both sides of the ball testify to his character development.

“My relationship with Breckyn will always be a brotherly love thing,” senior offensive lineman Patrick Vahe said. “I got his back regardless of anything. But when it comes to seeing him as a player and how much he’s evolved, I give mad respect for that.”

Hager’s establishment as one of this season’s key players further serves as an example of the level of respect that Herman has received around the locker room since last season’s Texas Bowl.

Receiving

Hager’s endorsement as “the best coach in college football” is a huge victory for the second-year head coach.

Last season was tumultuous, at best, for the Longhorns. However, now that the cliques have melted away, as Hager says, the runway is cleared for the team to fully buy in to Herman’s teachings.

“I think we all, as a team, have got to win some ball games,” Hager said.

“I think winning answers every question that everyone has and the same with love.”

It’s safe to say that Hager has the “love” aspect more than covered. Now, all that’s left is winning.

Starting Sept. 1 against Maryland, the Longhorns will have the chance to do just that.

THE Q

core group 2906 medical arts st angela wang | the daily texan file Senior linebacker Breckyn Hager fields questions at Big 12 Media Days at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas. Hager discussed the moment his relationship with head coach Tom Herman completely changed during Texas’ game against Oklahoma State.

C

comics

MEL WESTFALL COMICS EDITOR @TEXANCOMICS

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