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1900
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2018
volume
119,
issue
NEWS
OPINION
LIFE&ARTS
SPORTS
Students attempting to live a zero-waste lifestyle share their experiences. PA G E 2
Students can benefit from being open with each other about their stress. PA G E 4
LBJ animatronics bring new life to former president’s old stories. PA G E 8
Texas stays alive in Big 12 Championship race with home win on senior night. PA G E 6
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UNIVERSITY
Cumberland family requests investigation into deadly crash By Lisa Nhan @lmnhan24
The family of Nicholas Cumberland has asked for an investigation into alleged hazing at this year’s Texas Cowboys initiation retreat, according to a statement provided to The Daily Texan. This follows the death of their son from injuries sustained in a car crash returning from the retreat in the early morning hours of Sept. 30. The crash, which occurred at 5:43 a.m. an hour and a half northwest of Austin, was a result of the driver falling asleep, according to the crash report. The driver, who is a new member of Texas Cowboys, did not respond to requests for comment. “Why was our son and a group of new Cowboy pledges permitted to depart on a two and a half hour drive from a ranch back to Austin around 4 a.m. in the morning with zero sleep after a full day of initiation activities?” the statement said. Nicholas “Nicky” Cumberland spent four weeks on life support following the crash and his funeral was held on Nov. 3. Clio Harralson, Nicky’s girlfriend, said Nicky left for the retreat around 4 p.m. the day before the crash and told her he would return the next morning. The Cumberland family said they heard allegations of hazing following the crash and then shared “information and documents with the proper authorities,” according to the statement. University spokesman J.B. Bird confirmed the University recently
University confirms hazing allegations against Texas Cowboys. received allegations of hazing connected to the accident but didn’t specify where the University received the information. “The University takes all accusations of hazing seriously and investigates them as warranted,” Bird wrote in a statement given to the Texan. “We are evaluating how to proceed with the information we have at this time.” Texas Cowboys, a registered student organization best known for firing “Smokey the Cannon” at football games, did not respond to repeated requests for comment. In addition, The Texan reached out to four current members of the organization, who did not respond to requests for comment. However, the Texas Cowboys Alumni Association said it has launched an investigation into the events of this year’s Cowboys initiation retreat. “The welfare and safety of its students is the first priority of the Texas Cowboys,” the association wrote in a
statement to The Texan. “The Texas Cowboys have zero tolerance for hazing of any kind. After the investigation is complete, the Texas Cowboys will take any necessary actions to ensure a safe environment for current and future Cowboys.” Texas Cowboys were previously suspended for five years in 1995 after the University determined hazing occurred at the Cowboy’s initiation retreat earlier that year. During that year’s initiation retreat, then-pledge Gabe Higgins was found dead in the Colorado River near Bastrop with a blood alcohol content twice the legal limit for driving. The Cumberland family notes in the statement that Texas law and UT policy grant immunity to people who report hazing incidents. “Our family will have no sympathy for anyone who adopts or encourages a code of silence; however, based on the candid discussions and support we’ve had so far, we are confident that this will be an open, transparent and cathartic process,” the statement said. Harralson, Nicky’s girlfriend and a former Texan staffer, echoed the family’s sentiment. “We’re not trying to punish anyone,” said Harralson, a Plan II, management information systems and business honors junior. “We just want to find out what happened to the person we love.” To read the Cumberland’s family statement in full, visit www.dailytexanonline.com. Morgan O’Hanlon and Meghan Nguyen contributed to this reporting.
NATION
UNIVERSITY
FDA restricts flavored tobacco products to combat increase in smoking, appeal
Betsy Devos proposes changes to Title IX rules By Meghan Nguyen @ultravioletmegs
diane sun
By Sami Sparber & Will Kosinski @samisparber @willkosinski
In an effort to curb “astonishing” increases in smoking and vaping among young people, the Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday a series of restrictions on flavored tobacco products. The angency reported a 78 percent increase in e-cigarette use
among high schoolers and a 48 percent increase among middle schoolers in 2017 to 2018. “These increases must stop,” FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in a statement. “Today, we advance our efforts to combat youth access and appeal with a policy framework that firmly and directly addresses the core of the epidemic — flavors.” The restrictions include a ban on menthol cigarettes, which are the only flavored cigarettes on the
| the daily texan staff
market and account for about one third of cigarette sales in the U.S., according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency also banned flavored cigars and is restricting instore sales of flavored e-cigarette products, including Juul pods. Youth smokers are more likely to use menthol cigarettes than any other age group, Gottlieb said. “Young people who initiate
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The U.S. Department of Education released a proposal Friday that would narrow the number of sexual assault cases schools must investigate and give the accused more rights. “The University is reviewing the Department of Education’s newly proposed rules and will communicate further with the UT-Austin community when we have a more complete understanding of the implications for UT,” said Shilpa Bakre, UT’s Title IX communications strategist. Under Education Secretary Betsy Devos’ proposal, schools would investigate sexual assault and harassment only if the alleged misconduct was reported to certain campus officials and only if it occurred on campus or other areas overseen by the school. Accused students would be given the right to review all evidence brought against them and the right to cross-examine their accusers. “This plan will not only discourage survivors … it will also limit the amount that universities are held accountable,” said Tatum Zeko, president of UT’s chapter of Not On My Campus. “Taking away the ability to report to Title IX if an assault happens off campus is entirely detrimental to the campus climate. As someone who has lived off-campus all four years of college … the stories
that are told to me very rarely happen on campus. They happen at parties, on Sixth Street (and) trying to get home from parties.” Once finalized, the new proposal will carry the force of law and will be subject to public comment. The proposal would regulate Title IX, a federal law that bars sex discrimination at schools that receive federal funding. The new proposal redefined sexual harassment as “unwelcome conduct on the basis of sex that is so severe, pervasive and objectively offensive that it denies a person access to the school’s education program or activity.” Previously, Obama-era guidelines defined harassment as “unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature.” The proposal also states the school must have “actual knowledge” of the allegations, meaning incidents must be reported to “an official with authority to take corrective action,” including the school’s Title IX coordinator. Currently at UT, faculty and staff are mandated to report known “incidents of alleged prohibited conduct,” according to UT’s Title IX website. Jess Davidson, executive director of End Rape on Campus, said DeVos’ proposed regulations would significantly diminish protections for sexual assault survivors. “This is going to drastically limit sexual assault survivors’
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