VOL. CLXXIV NO.24
CLOUDY HIGH 27 LOW 20
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Harry Enten ’11 Community marches to reflects on election protest travel ban predictions By VIGNESH CHOCKALINGAM The Dartmouth
OPINION
CHIN: LADY LIBERTY WEEPS PAGE 4
MALBREAUX: OBAMA’S UNFINISHED SENTENCE PAGE 4
ARTS
HANOVER EXPOSITION: HANOVER STRINGS PAGE 8
Q&A: GENEVIEVE ADAMS ’11 PAGE 8
On Friday in Filene Auditorium, senior political writer for FiveThirtyEight Harry Enten ’11 returned to campus to discuss the successes and downfalls of polling and prediction. The talk, titled “Aftermath: What the 2016 Election Taught Us About Polls, Predictions and American Politics,” and subsequent question and answer session were led by government professor Dean Lacy. Over 200 people, including students and professors, attended. At the talk, Enten discussed his career path and work at FiveThirtyEight, a data journalism website, focusing mainly on his statistical prediction of the 2016 presidential election. Enten then fielded various questions about his experiences at Dartmouth, political trends and the many causes of flawed polling and prediction in the recent election. The event was sponsored by the government department, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, the program in Quantitative Social Science, the Politics and Law program and the Rockefeller Center for Public Policy. The talk was followed by a dinner in which Enten discussed topics ranging from a viral song about his love life to his experiences at FiveThirtyEight. Over thirty students were in attendance. Reflecting on the talk, Sam Ching ’19 said it “helped [him] better understand the process behind the whole art of polling and science of forecasting.” SEE ENTEN PAGE 2
DARTBEAT DARTMOUTH REALITY TV SHOWS FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER @thedartmouth COPYRIGHT © 2017 THE DARTMOUTH, INC.
By MIKA JEHOON LEE The Dartmouth Staff
Over 200 Dartmouth students, faculty and Upper Valley community members participated in the “Main Street March for Human Rights” on Feb. 4. The march began at 12:45 p.m. on the Green. Participants in the march carried signs with messages such as “Inclusive Not Exclusive,” “The Problem is
Ignorance, Not Immigrants” and “Impeach Bannon.” They walked down South Main Street, continued on South Street to Ramunto’s B r i c k a n d B re w b e fo re returning to the Green at 1:30 p.m. The marchers then formed a circle on the Green and sang Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” together. R o n n i e L e s s e r, a psychologist based in the Upper Valley and a co-
host of the march, said she helped organize the event because she wanted to protest President Donald Trump’s recently enacted travel ban, which restricts immigration into the United States from seven Muslimmajority countries. The ban is currently suspended following the issuance of a temporary restraining order by U.S. District Judge James Robart, SEE MARCH PAGE 3
Lecture examines travel ban Flu season consistent with previous years
By JULIAN NATHAN
The Dartmouth Staff READ US ON
MIKA JEHOON LEE/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Marchers gathered on the Green to sing Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land.”
Monday night, the Roth Center for Jewish Life hosted a lecture called “Security and Freedom in the 21st Century: The Trump Executive Order on Immigration and Refugees.” The lecture featured four guest s p e a k e r s a n d g av e audience members the opportunity to
ask various questions about President Donald Trump’s recent executive order, which calls for a temporary ban on most immigration to the United States from seven Muslim-majority countries. The first of the four speaker s to address the audience was the College’s Of fice of Visa and Immigration Services director Susan Ellison. The other
speakers present were associate director and advisor to international undergraduate students M a r c i a C a l l o w a y, director of the Dickey Center for International Understanding Daniel Benjamin and Iman Hammad ’17. In her opening remarks, Ellison first explained some nuances of the executive order SEE PANEL PAGE 5
By ANTHONY ROBLES The Dartmouth Staff
With flu season coming around, general trends of the illness are in line with previous years of reporting without any noticeable change in the number of cases in the greater Hanover area, said Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center professor of immunology Richard Enelow. The last major outbreak was
during the 2009-2010 school year, which correlated with the swine flu pandemic. “It looks like most of the country has pretty widespread flu activity, which is not that unusual for the time of year,” Enelow said. “It doesn’t appear to be a bad year for highly virulent strains.” Enelow discussed at length the challenges that the flu presents as SEE FLU PAGE 3
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
PAGE 2
DAILY DEBRIEFING Airline Ambassadors held a training workshop in Houston, Texas for about 100 air attendants on identifying human trafficking as people arrived for Super Bowl LI, according to NBC News. Airline Ambassadors is a U.S.-based group dedicated to training flight attendants in identifying human trafficking victims. The recent training session took place at William P. Hobby Airport, where Airline Ambassadors worked with crew members. The workshop highlighted the story of Alaska Airlines stewardess Sheila Fedrick, who rescued a teenage girl during a flight in 2011. Fedrick grew suspicious when she noticed the girl’s disheveled appearance and the unusual behaviors of her travel companion, a well-dressed man who was defensive when Fedrick tried to start a conversation with them. Fedrick left a note on the lavatory mirror and convinced the girl to go to the lavatory. The girl wrote back on the note that she needed help. Fedrick and the pilot alerted the police, who apprehended the man after the plane had landed. The College is enacting the Rennie Farm Value Assurance Program, which aims at protecting properties within the Rennie Farm neighborhood in Etna, New Hampshire, according to a College press release. The College used a half-acre plot on Rennie Farm in the 1960s and 1970s for the disposal of animal remains used in state- and federally-licensed medical research. The implementation of the VAP could result in property owners receiving payment from the College and possibly the College purchasing properties in the neighborhood, depending on whether 1,4-dioxane from Rennie Farm has been detected on the property, among other conditions. The VAP aims at protecting the value of properties that could have been affected by the groundwater from the College-owned Rennie Farm. The College is currently cooperating with the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services and the New Hampshire Radiological Health Section, investigating and remedying 1,4-dioxane according to the state regulatory requirements. 1,4-dioxane is a synthetic substance mainly used as additive in solvents. Up until today, 1,4-dioxane has only been found in one private water well amongst more than 120 wells sampled.
-COMPILED BY HEYI JIANG
CORRECTIONS
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
Enten talks FiveThirtyEight story for people,” Lacy said. “You know what you want to do. You Paolo Takagi-Atilano ’19, a just do it. You don’t take a job that reader of FiveThirtyEight since somebody else defines for you. You the 2012 senatorial elections, also define your own job. I think that’s said he found Enten’s experiences what [Enten] did. That’s a lesson illuminating. for a lot of students,” “I think the [political] right Second, Lacy said he hoped has adopted a kind of ‘reject that students would gain “an the experts’ mentality recently, understanding of contemporary and FiveThirtyEight has been American politics through the eyes lumped in with those pundits and of, in [his] opinion, the premier experts, and I thought it was really political analyst of his generation.” interesting how [Enten] said he tries Lacy said he could tell that to combat that,” Enten would Takagi-Atilano “What I tend to be a prominent said. p o l i t i c a l Enten said work with is data mind after h e w a s f i r s t sets and trying to Enten visited approached Dartmouth a b o u t v i s i t i n g relay that data in a during his Dartmouth by way that people will senior year of TDI professor high school understand it.” Steve Woloshin, and asked to who invited him meet with Lacy. to speak in one -HARRY ENTEN ’11, Hearing Enten of his classes on discuss politics survey research. SENIOR POLITICAL and elections, Lacy said that he WRITER AT Lacy said he and Rockefeller could already see FIVETHIRTYEIGHT program officer Enten’s passion. Joanne Needham During his time then invited at Dartmouth, Enten to take part in a public talk Enten said he served as treasurer of on Friday. the Dartmouth National Assocation Prior to the event, Lacy, who for the Advancement of Colored taught Enten in several classes and People and coordinated the general independent studies, said he had campus-wide student elections two hopes for what students might through the Election Planning and get out of the event. The first, he Advisory Committee. He also wrote said, was a look into Enten’s unique popular weekly emails to campus career path, as he in essence created that included his forecast of the his own job. weather and personal thoughts. “I think it’s an inspirational In 2011, Enten graduated with a FROM ENTEN PAGE 1
bachelor of arts in government. For six months after, Enten encountered an unreceptive job market. “I didn’t do anything. I was on my parents’ couch,” Enten said. Nevertheless, Enten continued to write for his independent blog, “Margin of Error,” as he had done throughout his time at Dartmouth. Eventually, his blog caught the eye of the U.S. branch of The Guardian, a British newspaper, whose editors asked him to write a guest piece on the start of the 2012 presidential primary season. He found success at The Guardian and became a part-time, and then full-time, employee for two years. In 2013, editor-in-chief of FiveThirtyEight Nate Silver reached out to him via email, and thus began Enten’s career at FiveThirtyEight, where he still works. At his current job, Enten said he “is essentially a numbers guy.” “What I tend to work with is data sets and trying to relay that data in a way that people will understand it,” he said. During the presidential election, Enten played a large role in F i ve T h i r t y E i g h t ’s s t at i s t i c a l predictions. Needham said that Enten’s role in the relatively successful predictions of FiveThirtyEight was part of the reason for the Rockefeller Center’s interest in arranging Enten’s talk. “The polls were wrong in a lot of cases, and this campaign was unlike any other. FiveThirtyEight wasn’t as off as most of the other analysts,” she said.
SMALL TOWN ACTIVISM
We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth.com.
PAULA MENDOZA/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
Demonstrators stand on the corner of Main Street and Wheelock Street holding Black Lives Matter signs.
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
PAGE 3
More than 200 community members march down Main Street FROM MARCH PAGE 1
which was put into place in order to prevent those affected by the ban from suffering “irreparable harm” before its legality is determined, according to Robart’s ruling. “I want to get people to be more aware of how unfair we are being to refugees and that we have to welcome people here,” Lesser said. She added that she wishes to organize and partake in similar events in the future. For some participants, the march was also a means to raise public awareness of individuals and groups at Dartmouth that have been affected by the travel ban. “We have students who are having to choose between whether or not they want to continue to pursue their education and whether or not they want to be able to go home and see their family,” Michael Brown ’20 said. “That’s not a choice that anybody should have to make.” Brown added that he was also frustrated with the College’s response to the executive order. “Some of the other schools have taken [a] stance of ‘This goes against our values,’ ‘This goes against everything we stand for as an institution,’ and then
Dartmouth is just, ‘Hey, don’t travel,’” Brown said. “I would appreciate a little bit more of a firmer stance.” Ruth Hunter, a member of Quaker faith community Hanover Friends Meeting, said that the group has been supportive of the Muslim community on campus by attending their potlucks and their services on Friday evenings. The march, according to Hunter, was also a way for her to show her support for Muslims at Dartmouth. Thayer School of Engineering student Saaid Arshad ’14 Th’18, who held up a sign that said, “Build Bridges, Not Walls” during the march, said that as a Muslim American, the travel ban and the new administration directly affected his community negatively. He added that it felt great to see so many people at the march showing solidarity with people that feel threatened by the new administration. Arshad said that he wishes to see both short-term and long-term actions in the future. “Solutions like the federal judge putting a temporary halt on the executive order are at least the short term gains I would like to see,” he said. “Long term, it’s just making
MIKA JEHOON LEE/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Participants carried signs with messages such as “Inclusive Not Exclusive” and “Impeach Bannon.”
sure that these kinds of very, very harmful policies aren’t able to pass as easily and [that] eventually they can be overturned.” English professor William Craig said that he decided to march because he was concerned about the direction that the United States
was going in. According to Craig, he believes there will be more protests both within the Upper Valley community and nationwide during Trump’s presidency. “This community, for instance, protested the 2003 invasion of Iraq, but there was not as much
sustained protest as I already have seen in the Trump presidency,” Craig said. “So I suspect that this is just the beginning of something that is happening all around the country as people share their fear that our governmental system is in peril.”
Flu vaccine projected to be effective for the season FROM FLU PAGE 1
a virulent disease. As a virus, the flu constantly mutates its surface protein, known as hemagglutinin, rendering vaccinations from years prior nearly useless, as the antibodies that the immune system had already produced in response to prior vaccines are no longer effective. One different subtype of
hemagglutinin is H1N1, most commonly referred to as “swine flu,” with the “H” standing for hemagglutinin class 1 and the “N” standing for an additional surface protein found in influenza viruses known as viral neuraminidase. The typical process for creating a vaccine against the flu involves determining which of the four current strains of influenza are circulating in Asia during the
spring, and then deciding which of these strains will be included in the vaccine, Enelow said. This usually gives pharmaceutical companies four to six months to produce the one hundred million doses needed for the American public during the fall. Presently, the most prevalent strain in both the nation and New Hampshire is the H3N2 strain, which originated in Hong Kong.
PAULA MENDOZA/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
College campuses can make students more susceptible to viral infections due to their close proximity.
While the American public receives constant reminders about receiving a flu shot before the onset of flu season, the general effectiveness of these vaccinations remains in question. “About 50 percent of the time, by the time the flu’s come around, the strains have changed from what the vaccine was designed to protect against to what’s circulating,” Enelow said. “That doesn’t mean you don’t get any protection from it, but you usually only get partial protection.” DHMC immunologist Michael Calderwood said that this would mean that on a typical college campus, 50 out of 100 vaccinated students would not get the flu if the effectiveness of the vaccine was at 50 percent. The highest effectiveness level recorded for the vaccine is 75 percent, he said. T h i s ye a r, h o w e ve r, t h e vaccinations that were produced managed to include the same strains of influenza that are currently circulating, with 96 to 97 percent of the strains being H3N2, which present a direct match to the vaccine, Calderwood said. The other three percent has been identified as the H1H1 strain, which was also included in the vaccine. Despite this, there remains an inherent variability in the
vaccine’s ability to respond to infection, thereby allowing people to contract the virus even after they have received protection from it. Enelow attributes this to the general effectiveness of the vaccine at generating a potent immune response, which can vary highly from year to year. The most efficient way to generate neutralizing antibodies remains unclear. Nicholas Gutierrez ’20 said that he was admitted to Dick’s House after contracting the flu on a Saturday morning and was not discharged until Tuesday. Because of Gutierrez’s asthma, the doctors at Dick’s House kept him for a longer period to ensure that he did not contract pneumonia. “It was really sudden,” Gutierrez said. “I had a fever of 103 degrees and I was coughing. My chest felt like it was on fire when I would cough.” Calderwood noted that the nature of college campuses made them more susceptible to viral infections, due to the students’ close proximity. Students with underlying conditions that compromise their immune systems, such as asthma, are more susceptible to being further compromised by influenza. “Any illnesses spread by droplets or respiratory illnesses are more likely to have an outbreak,” Calderwood said.
STAFF COLUMNIST CLARA CHIN ’19
CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST TYLER MALBREAUX ’20
Lady Liberty Weeps
Obama’s Unfinished Sentence
We must disrupt the harmful narrative of the United States as a patron. On Jan. 27, President Donald Trump issued an executive order banning the admission of refugees from seven predominantly Muslim countries and announced that Syrian refugees be indefinitely blocked from entry into the United States. “We want to ensure that we are not admitting into our country the very threats our soldiers are fighting overseas,” Trump said during the signing. “We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country and love deeply our people.” The statement draws on a false narrative persistent through history that portrays the U.S. as a patron and refugees and immigrants as freeloaders or threats. Rather than believe this reductive narrative, we should remember the struggles of refugees relocated to the U.S. Trump suggests that the banned refugees would not “support our country,” drawing upon racial dialogue used to disenfranchise immigrants as well as people of color. These assumptions are often paradoxical. Anti-immigration politicians frequently say that immigrants take away jobs from American people while also positing that they do not contribute to American society. This, of course, is contradictory. We should not have to outline ways in which refugees support the United States, since this pro-immigration argument perpetuates classism and takes away the simple argument of empathy. Still, we can make the economic argument. Between 2006 and 2012, more than two-fifths of start-up tech companies in Silicon Valley had at least one foreign-born founder. Immigrants and refugees have contributed to a rich body of literature, art and culture — Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story collection “Interpreter of Maladies” and most recently, Viet Thanh Nguyen’s “The Sympathizer,” both works featuring refugee and immigrant stories, won Pulitzer Prizes. Aside from economics and academia, refugees relocating to cities like Concord and Manchester in New Hampshire and Lewiston, Maine have contributed to their communities in real, noticeable ways. But the relationship between the United States and refugees is not so simple as giver and receiver. The United States was politically involved with many of the countries which refugees flee. In some cases, the U.S. partly played a role in creating the plight of the displaced. The U.S. became involved in the Vietnam War before it accepted refugees from Vietnam, creating complicated racial relations in Vietnam and even violating human
rights, such as the killing of innocent civilians in the My Lai massacre. Refugees, as the saying goes, are “here because [Americans] were there.” We often speak of immigrants and refugees as though they simply appeared, forgetting the important context of colonial and hegemonic power and the scars of such power in former colonies. Refugees are often criticized for exploiting the “riches” of the U.S. but recall that colonial history serves as a reminder that the exploitation often works the other way around. Focusing on the act of immigration limits our viewpoint on the refugees, undermining their struggles once they come to the United States. The existence of culturally-centered districts like Little Saigon, Koreatown and Chinatown in many American cities — in addition to the invocation of ethnic food trends in the mainstream — create the impression that immigrants are fully integrated into American society. They are sometimes left jobless or with insufficient housing, landing only seasonal jobs and being placed in bedbug-infested apartments. And then there are the moral, emotional and personal struggles that displacement can cause. Nguyen called refugees “zombies of the world,” reminding us that immigrants and refugees have been separated, sometimes forcibly, from their homeland. They face cultural alienation in the United States, notably from Trump himself. Trump equated refugees to terrorists, calling for a need to ban refugees because they represent the “threats” that United States soldiers fight. This is forgetting the very reason refugees flee: to escape terror, which to them poses an immediate threat; the Islamic State’s most frequent victims are not Americans or Europeans but their fellows in the Middle East. Religious paranoia and Islamophobia, while issues in their own right, are also part of the broader issue about how we permanently alienate displaced people in the United States. Perhaps refugees should “love our people deeply.” But should we not return the favor? Trump’s comments encode Islamophobia and a lack of empathy for refugees, highlighting the erasure and invisibility of immigrants. Instead of demonizing potential refugees by equating them with terrorist threats, we should strive for an attitude of empathy. Reducing the admission of refugees into the United States to a patronbeneficiary relationship skirts the real issues faced by refugees and immigrants.
6175 ROBINSON HALL, HANOVER N.H. 03755 • (603) 646-2600
RAY LU, Editor-in-Chief KOURTNEY KAWANO, Executive Editor
RACHEL DECHIARA, Publisher ERIN LEE, Executive Editor
ZACHARY BENJAMIN, Managing Editor
NOAH GOLDSTEIN, Managing Editor
PRODUCTION EDITORS PARKER RICHARDS, Opinion Editor ALI PATTILLO, MIKEY LEDOUX & LUCY TANTUM, Mirror Editors MARK CUI & EVAN MORGAN, Sports Editors MADELINE KILLEN & NALINI RAMANATHAN, Arts Editors EMMA CHIU & MARGARET JONES, Dartbeat Editors
BUSINESS DIRECTORS HANNAH CARLINO, Finance & Strategy Director HAYDEN KARP-HECKER, Advertising Director ELYSE KUO, Product Development Director BRIANNA AGER, Marketing & Communications Director HENRY WILSON, Technology Director
JESSICA CAMPANILE, Multimedia Editor SAPHFIRE BROWN & PAULA MENDOZA, Photography Editors GAYNE KALUSTIAN, TANYA SHAH & ERIC WANG, Design Editors JACLYN EAGLE, Templating Editor ALEXANDER AGADJANIAN, Survey Editor
ISSUE
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
PAGE 4
NEWS EDITOR: Heyi Jiang, NEWS LAYOUT: Joyce Lee, TEMPLATING EDITOR: Jaclyn Eagle
SUBMISSIONS: We welcome letters and guest columns. All submissions must include the author’s name and affiliation with Dartmouth College, and should not exceed 250 words for letters or 700 words for columns. The Dartmouth reserves the right to edit all material before publication. All material submitted becomes property of The Dartmouth. Please email submissions to editor@thedartmouth.com.
A call to black prosecutors in the age of Donald Trump.
All presidents — no matter their background and experience — are infinitely unprepared for the world’s highest office. That maxim of presidential fitness was still true when the junior senator from Illinois took office eight years ago. But former President Barack Obama inherited a Congress with a Democratic majority and a willingness to push through a progressive agenda, a willingness not fully realized since the Great Society of the 1970s. But Obama did not just refocus debate around affordable healthcare, wealth inequality and other progressive causes. For African-Americans, Obama’s “blackness” alone symbolized a departure from old liberal politics of decades prior. Saying “my president is black” meant a connectedness to a political system that, for decades, had low levels of black participation. It meant that black issues were finally at the top of a progressive agenda. It meant ending the 100-to-one sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powdered cocaine, a Nixonian law that targeted communities of color. It meant ending subsidization of the prison-industrial complex, an industry that received $3.8 billion from the federal government annually. It meant commuting the sentences of over 1,000 nonviolent offenders and giving them opportunity for employment through “ban the box” initiatives. And the young, inexperienced, junior senator from Illinois delivered on those promises — mostly. Despite the progress, the impact of Obama’s prison reform efforts is contentious amongst the black intelligentsia. Philosopher Cornel West admonished Obama as a “counterfeit” progressive who is intimidated to talk about black issues. It is no secret that the White House positioned itself to remain moderate on racial rhetoric and instead projected an image of an America not divided on racial lines. Indeed, it was an image constructed for public acceptance, predicated on Obama’s successful 2004 Democratic convention address: a country not divided into “black America and white America … but a United States of America.” Yet, if the last presidential election has revealed anything, it is that the American people are as divided as ever. Liberals must not give up the hope that Obama so aptly inspired in all of us. They must remember the good faith steps that Obama took to reduce overcrowding in the largest prison population in the world. But politicians will not sound the call for action. This is what leads me to ask change not of Congress but of black prosecutors who can bear the burden of advancing the nation toward a more just justice system. The problem of mass incarceration does not start at the prison gates but during pretrial motions, on behalf of prosecutors who are out of touch with the communities in which they work. Those communities that are represented in trial cases are mostly of color, but they often face white prosecutors. Out of the 2,437 elected prosecutors across the country, only 61 are black with 14 states
having districts with only white prosecutors. That alarming figure puts the increase of sentencing rates from 1991 to 2010 into context in several ways. First, having only white prosecutors inevitably leads to systemic racial bias. District attorneys set the tone of a trial, choosing whether or not to pursue a felony charge rather than a lighter one or a plea bargain. If the prosecutor is white and prosecuting mostly African-Americans, the result can be a disparity in sentencing rates. Prosecutors are given a great deal of discretion in deciding the racial makeup of a jury. In capital punishment cases, for instance, the selection of jury participants can increase bias by allowing the prosecutor to use allegedly implicit racial appeals during opening and closing statements. Lastly, district attorneys, especially in large cities like Chicago, Illinois and New York City, New York are often placed in high-profile political spotlights, thus making a robust political reputation a requirement. To pursue the natural career path to higher positions in state government, district attorneys are mandated to seem “tough on crime” — or, in other words, produce higher conviction rates. While research on the political calculations of prosecutors is not precise enough to draw a clear conclusion, the effect of a “law and order” candidate’s appeal is undoubtedly tangible. Trump’s denunciation of felon voter rights, his promise to expand use of the death penalty and his stance against nonviolent offender’s commutations should warn criminal justice reformers to find no solace in the new administration. Thus, I call black lawyers across the country to complete Obama’s work toward ending mass incarceration. First, to black law students, civil rights lawyers and defense attorneys: reframe your perspective of what “law and order” means for your fellow brothers and sisters. While you are, at all times, an upholder and interpreter of the law, consider the sociopolitical environment in which those laws are birthed, adopted and enforced. Do not blind yourself to the reality that there is a prison-industrial complex, police brutality, unfair sentencing laws, inadequate legal representation and lack of political agency. Secondly, to the 61 elected black prosecutors and every other black man or woman who represents the government in court: remain steadfast in facing the challenges inherent to being black in the legal world. Whether you face a dilemma that resembles that of Christopher Darden, who was labeled an “Uncle Tom” for prosecuting O.J. Simpson, or Anita Hill’s, whose legal career was imperiled after accusing thenSupreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment, please remember the importance of your work. Finally, to all attorneys, remember that you may be the last line of defense for someone who falls victim to a justice system that is imperfect. History will look kindly upon Obama’s initial efforts to stymie mass incarceration. And it will look with judging eyes toward you to fix it.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
PAGE 5
Lecture discusses consequences and implications of travel ban FROM PANEL PAGE 1
to the audience. She said that government officials have clarified that the executive order should not affect U.S. green card holders, those holding certain diplomatic visas and dual-citizens who hold a passport issued by a country not impacted by the order. She noted that her office has reached out to students who might be affected by the order and has directed these students to exercise caution while traveling. Ellison also voiced concerns that the list of countries affected by the ban might be expanded beyond the original seven. Benjamin began his address to the audience by criticizing the order’s stated intent to improve national security. “This order has nothing to do with counterterrorism,” he said. Benjamin, who served as ambassador-at-large and coordinator for counterterrorism at the U.S. State Department
prior to joining the Dickey Center, In regards to the executive said that most counterterrorism order’s call to suspend the entry experts agree with his assessment. of Syrian refugees to the United He explained that since the States until “sufficient changes” 9/11 attacks, non-citizens and have been made to screening non-green card holders from the procedures, Benjamin expressed seven affected countries have not his view that Syrian refugees were already subject to been implicated in enough scrutiny any acts of terror u n d e r c u r re n t on U.S. soil. He “This order has procedures. characterized the nothing to do with noted that executive order counterterrorism." He re f u g e e s o f t e n as “profoundly spend years h a r m f u l ” waiting for to n a t i o n a l -DANIEL BENJAMIN, U.S. officials to counterterrorism approve their visa m i s s i o n s , a s DIRECTOR OF THE enemies of the DICKEY CENTER FOR requests. After an state might INTERNATIONAL audience member view restricting asked about legal immigration to the UNDERSTANDING objections to the United States as a executive order hostile act. t h at m i g h t b e Benjamin explained that, in his view, the addressed by the courts, Ellison executive order fuses people’s fears explained that Trump’s executive of terrorism with their xenophobic order relies on a provision of the concerns of “the browning of Constitution that allows presidents to restrict immigration for certain America.”
individuals. She said that, to the best of her knowledge, most constitutional objections to the order allege that it infringes upon due process rights or that it amounts t o re l i g i o u s d i s c r i m i n at i o n . Benjamin noted that of the approximately 220 million people currently affected by the order, approximately 97 percent are Muslim. Benjamin said that the provision of the Constitution that gives presidents the right to restrict immigration has never before been applied so broadly as to give the President the right to restrict immigration from an entire group on the basis of national origin. Calloway said that in order to effectively justify the ban, the Trump administration might have to show that previous vetting procedures were inefficient. When asked about the possibility that Trump might issue future executive orders further restricting immigration, Ellison said that unofficial drafts of potential executive orders are circulating
among immigration experts. She explained that she would not be surprised if Trump targeted other visa categories that facilitate travel for international professionals, students enrolled in certain training programs and participants in certain exchange programs. Hanmad said though she was not directly affected by the executive order, she has been the target of discrimination because she is a Muslim. She explained her belief that the executive order victimizes two groups of people: potential immigrants to the United States and the American people. She said that the American people are victims of the executive order because they are being lied to. She added that the order contradicts American ideals of freedom and diversity. Though she proposed that the order might embolden some Americans to openly discriminate against Muslims more, she said she felt strong support from empathetic friends and from the Dartmouth campus community.
America’s Oldest College Newspaper
Bring The Dartmouth into your home.
THE DARTMOUTH EVENTS
PAGE 6
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
DARTMOUTHEVENTS TODAY
3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
“Effects of Solar Wind Positive and Negative Dynamic Impulses on Magnetospheric PC5 ULF Wave Characteristics” with Shandong University professor Xiaochen Shen, Wilder Hall 202
4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
“Detecting and Characterizing Events” with Princeton University postdoctoral associate Allison Chaney, Kemeny Hall 007
7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
“Regulatory Failure: The Case of Dodd-Frank” with visiting professor John Welborn ’02, Rockefeller Center 001
TOMORROW
12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Gallery Talk: “Gardens, Spies and History” with professor of history emeritus Gene R. Garthwaite, Hood Downtown, 53 Main Street
2:15 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.
Advanced Research Skills Series: “Creating Effective Posters & Proposals,” Kresge Library Conference Room
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
“Israel and its Neighbors: After the Arab Spring and at the Dawn of the Trump Era” with former Israeli ambassador to Germany Yoram Ben-Zeev, Haldeman 41 (Kriendler Conference Hall) RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS 1 Gownlike Roman garment 6 Like teary eyes 11 Sculpted physique, briefly 14 Sky blue 15 Asteroids game company 16 Actor Vigoda 17 Zero or one 19 Japanese carp 20 Trunk of the body 21 Orchard rows 23 Internet destination 27 Good Housekeeping publisher since 1911 28 Pilot Earhart 29 Leaning-on-thehorn sounds 31 Hawk’s claw 32 Wintry temps 33 NYG rival in the NFC East 36 Pinball excess 37 Mountain bleaters 38 Ball-and-mallet game 39 Foxy 40 Business convention handouts 41 Clods 42 __ Wilson, who played Sam in “Casablanca” 44 Peaceful 45 Sports venues 47 Original star of “Star Trek” 48 Bedding 49 Promised 51 __ de Triomphe 52 July 14, in France 58 Golf ball holder 59 Hodgepodges 60 Eat away at 61 Lith. or Est., once 62 Graphs’ horizontal reference lines 63 “Billions & Billions” author Carl DOWN 1 Indent key 2 Submachine gun named for its designer 3 Religious school teacher, perhaps 4 Lyricist Gershwin
5 Free from doubt 6 Madrid mother 7 Bluesman Redding 8 “Othello” schemer 9 __ Lanka 10 Giggles 11 Thirteen 12 Thin woodwinds 13 Jefferson, religiously 18 Lotus position discipline 22 “The Facts of Life” actress Charlotte 23 Light bulb units 24 Online letters 25 Performer who shimmies and uses finger cymbals 26 “The __ thickens!” 27 Brinker on skates 29 Like little, glittering eyes ... and a phonetic hint to this puzzle’s four longest answers 30 “I’m game” 32 Ripped 34 Without assistance
35 Hard luck case 37 Big party 38 Shipping route terminus 40 Vending machine feature 41 Subordinate church officials 43 Poem of praise 44 “Where the Sidewalk Ends” poet Silverstein 45 Blind strips
46 Goodyear products 47 Ham go-with 49 Powerful engine 50 Oklahoma native 53 In the style of 54 Historical period 55 Pooch 56 Oral health org. 57 Japanese currency
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
ADVERTISING
xwordeditor@aol.com
02/07/17
For advertising information, please call (603) 646-2600 or email info@thedartmouth. com. The advertising deadline is noon, two days before publication. We reserve the right to refuse any advertisement. Opinions expressed in advertisements do not necessarily reflect those of The Dartmouth, Inc. or its officers, employees and agents. The Dartmouth, Inc. is a nonprofit corporation chartered in the state of New Hampshire. USPS 148-540 ISSN 0199-9931
By Gerry Wildenberg ©2017 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
02/07/17
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
PAGE 7
STAFF COLUMNIST MATTHEW GOLDSTEIN ’18
STAFF COLUMNIST DOROTHY QU ’19
Safety: Not Trump’s Concern
Stand Up, Speak Out
The president’s reforms do not address the dangers that face America. Many contemporary Republicans — and the Republican nominee, can Republicans in particular the proto-fascists in President legitimately qualify their stances on gun Donald Trump’s administration who label reform with the language of American themselves “Republicans” for no reason safety? other than to ingratiate themselves with the The immense hypocrisy of those who current American political system — seem to welcome an immigration shutdown is chart a single-minded course pursuing what yet again on display in the treatment of they call “national security,” or the safety those diseases and maladies that cause of America and her citizens, and are now more Americans death each year than implementing measures ostensibly to that anything else. In 2014, heart diseases and effect. But the safety of Americans, insofar malignant neoplasms combined to kill over as it means avoiding maiming or death, one million Americans, rounding out the extends far beyond issues of immigration top two causes of death in CDC charts. and terrorism. The administration’s singular Yet Republicans and Trump both decry focus on this issue belies its rhetoric on and pledge to annihilate the Obamacare national security, because if it were indeed protections that make drugs treating these committed to the safety of American people, diseases more accessible to those suffering it would pursue other policies that it has not from them. Trump has similarly reneged broached and has even actively suppressed. on a pledge to make drugs more affordable Trump’s recent executive order titled, to those who need them, emerging from a “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist meeting with pharmaceutical executives Entry into the United States,” does little if spewing that industry’s empty platitudes as anything to “protect [..] one who had never held the nation,” the by-word “It is not to be that strong a conviction Trump’s team has used to to the contrary might believed for one defend it, while unjustly be apt to do. Neither categorizing thousands moment that those Republicans nor Trump of students, tourists amoral, unprincipled have said anything about and others as potential the uniquely American “foreign terrorists.” A excuses for leaders practice of allowing Cato Institute study care about ‘protecting drug manufacturers to found that from 1975 advertise on television the nation.’” through the end of 2015, and in other media, thus 3,024 Americans were increasing spending past killed by foreign-born what is necessary for terrorists. The attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 research and development and transferring caused almost all — 2,983 — of the deaths those costs to sick Americans in need of in this figure, yet under the tenets of this medication. But what else, after all, can executive order, not one of the perpetrators be expected from an administration whose — nationals of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the incredibly suggestible leader has called the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon — National Institutes of Health “terrible?” would have been kept out of the country. There is unfortunately too little space Nor would this order have “protect[ed] the in this column to broach the numerous nation” from the 2016 Orlando shooting, other threats, including climate change, whose perpetrator was born in New York. that present a far more immediate and Nor the Oklahoma City bombing, whose likely danger to Americans. The dangerous planners and executors were born and raised reality is that the party and administration in New York and Michigan, nor from the in power have no regard for the actual safety white supremacist killings in Charleston, and security of the citizens they serve. Had South Carolina, whose perpetrator came they any such basic decency, partisanship from that same state. and loyalty to dollar-sign contributions, they As another matter — entirely separate would not rule their decisions as they do now. from the executive order’s utter idiocy and We are led by a pack of ravenous hypocrites inefficacy — are the more dire threats facing whose appetite for power far surpasses any American citizens, threats whose proper ethical compass which would dictate that mitigation would actually “protect [...] the they actually do the job Americans elected nation.” According to the Centers for Disease them to do. We are handed down edicts Control and Prevention, 33,599 people were from on high by a self-styled autocracy killed by firearms in the United States in whose adherents have come to include 2014. However, the Trump administration elected Republicans who can no longer has expressed that typical Republican lay legitimate claim to valuing liberty and position, couched in Second Amendment the pursuit of happiness, let alone life. The rhetoric, which aims to do nothing about behavior from our president and Congress the proliferation of guns in the United States is a sham founded on lies, perpetuated by and in fact encourages it. And mental health greed and sold to us on the backs of scare treatment has undergone no renaissance tactics and purposeful obfuscation. It is not nor substantive bolstering by those craven to be believed for one moment that those politicians who use it as a gun-violence amoral, unprincipled excuses for leaders scapegoat. The question must be asked: when care about “protecting the nation.” Perhaps the National Rifle Association spends at least if they did, they would do even one ounce $3 million to run ad campaigns in favor of of work to further that goal.
Those who encourage silence or sit back are failing their country. My head hurts and the endless stream of ridiculous news on the KAF television screens does not help — there is no escape, as there are two, one on either end of the room. Oh, the struggles of an Ivy League sophomore government major. I spend my days writing hackneyed emails to congressmen that are probably barely skimmed by their aides, attempt to survive my commitments and classes and stay constantly drugged up on Dayquil to combat the most recent bout of flu. I do the bare minimum politically, yet I feel incredibly tired. I know that many of you may feel the same but refuse to admit it because you do very little to advocate for your political views, too. Still, I would like to address the immovable, heavy weight some of you may carry with you. This is not an invitation to drown in self-pity. I’ve seen two major types of responses to the recent political and emotional upheaval and little real action. The first type is total purposeful ignorance: “I’m just so tired of this stuff. I hate it. Don’t mention anything political to me for a few weeks.” The second type is composed of weak attempts to find a “high ground:” “Hey, let’s just remember that we’re all Americans here. See, we have something in common! Don’t be so divisive.” I find the first response to be immature, the second unbearably condescending. It is perfectly acceptable to need a break from politics. However, to remove it from your life completely is the equivalent to turning a blind eye to the atrocities being committed across the country. Similarly, you should not use politics as a means of elevating your own sense of self-importance. We all have the right to react to events that impact us all, our country and our loved ones. Insisting that we all “calm down” is not only detrimental to progress and discussion but patronizing. But condescension is easy to slip into. I find myself bordering on its threshold now. I’m pretending I know how to be less bratty than those who tell us to “calm
down.” But maybe I do know what I’m talking about. So what should you do to achieve the bare minimum requirements of democratic citizenship? You cannot praise America for being a democracy while failing to do your own research and take part in constructive discussions. If you can afford it, take breaks. Last night, I had the privilege to hear many talented individuals perform in the Dartmouth Idol semifinals. You may have seen me jumping up and down and screaming as my friends hit the stage. Yes, there are places where politics don’t particularly belong. However, your scope of compassion should not be limited to delegating awareness and action to politicians and activists. Acknowledging the potential danger Secretary of Education nominee Betsy DeVos poses to our education system is not “divisive.” At some point, we have to take a stand on these issues that affect us. So I say this: grow a backbone. Do not sit on the fence and think yourself better than others and do not pretend that your voice does not matter. This is a very formative time in modern American history, and we need your perspective — one in a myriad pool of diverse, engaged voices — more than ever. Everyone is tired, everyone needs a break and everyone needs time for private life. But trust me: you will feel far less tired if you actually type out an email, pick up a pen or call your congressperson. That weight you feel — and we are privileged that our burden is light compared to those who are more harshly affected by the new order of government — will be lessened very considerably. So whatever you believe — right-wing, left-wing, center — get involved. Even if this article affects just one person, I will have done my job. Maintain your private life, but remember that our democratic institutions and political system impact us all, and it’s your duty to be a part of that, now more than ever.
ORANGE YOU GLAD YOU GET TO LEAVE? Rachel Lincoln ’20
THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
PAGE 8
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2017
Hanover Exposition: instrument store Hanover Strings
By KEVIN HU
The Dartmouth
Setting the stage for folk-meetsbohemian styling, Hanover Strings, an instrument store on Main Street, embodies modest bluegrass roots and an eccentric vintage aesthetic. Merging a time-honored cordial demeanor with a ’60s counter-culture maverick spirit, Hanover Strings emerges as the primary source of stringed instruments for the town and its neighboring communities. It is a musical cathedral for the Upper Valley, providing a receptive community space for the generation of traditional bluegrass and folk alongside a younger generation of evolving expressionist styles. Founded in 1975 by late Hanover local Charley Conquest, Hanover Strings is one of the oldest businesses on Main Street. Noted for his lively panache, Charley Conquest brought a friendly beatnik spirit to the community and was often described as a genius eccentric, guitar enthusiast, master luthier and generous friend. In the ’90s, Conquest even created his own music production library in the store’s back room and performed a self-arranged compilation of traditional Celtic music every Thursday night at the Salt Hill Pub until his passing, filmmaker Wendy Conquest, owner and wife of
Charley Conquest, said. “It’s completely homegrown,” Wendy Conquest said. In rhythm with the calm day-to-day dynamics of the small town, Hanover’s traditional musical scene, offbeat from de jour music styles, really reflects the town’s bluegrass roots. “It’s a weird time right now,” staff member Duncan Carroll said. “Music’s changing so much. It’s not so much about playing instruments well or getting by with skill alone; it’s about appealing to people and matching what they want to hear. Here, live shows incorporate a lot of acoustic guitars and stringed instruments. You won’t see many people here pulling out a synthesizer ... it’s about a songwriter with a guitar.” Although Hanover’s folksy roots suggest a chronological clash with contemporary music styles, Hanover Strings champions this disharmony to cultivate an environment that intermixes both folk and avant-garde styles, re-articulating the oxymoronic description: a modern classic. A Norwich-raised Hanover local, Carroll himself frequented Hanover Strings from a young age, purchasing his first guitar from the store at age nine, as well as several more since. “I feel very comfortable here,” Carroll said. This organic environment invites
a diverse audience of Upper Valley locals, Dartmouth students and alumni. Welcoming both folk and contemporary kitsch styles, Hanover Strings bridges two generations of differing tastes by focusing on quality of craft, skill and artistry. Furnished with a decadent collection of studio grade instruments from a select vintage assortment to the newest Martins, Hanover Strings equips Upper Valley bands and individual performers for street gigs, bar performances and local concerts. In addition to providing for the local conservative music scene, Carroll said that Hanover Strings also specializes in contemporary music setups and is heavily involved with a younger generation of Dartmouth students.
“The store was and is always rooted in Dartmouth — students and alumni especially. For students, Hanover Strings rents out sub boxes and mixing boards, helps fraternities with lighting equipment and wires sound systems for events. Occasionally, alumni bands also reunite and come back to rent equipment,” Wendy Conquest said. With two members of garage alternative-rock band The Pilgrims and two former professional musicians who offer lessons at the store, the store’s staff members are recognized for their professionalism and caliber of knowledge. “The staff places a lot of importance of disseminating relevant information to the community — information which supports music performance
KEVIN HU/THE DARTMOUTH
Hanover Strings was founded in 1975 by late Hanover local Charley Conquest.
and music education on both a personal and professional level,” said Tony Mastelar, a jazz and classical music instructor at Hanover Strings. From Kimball Union Academy to Shelburne Craft School, Mastelar boasts a long history of teaching and formerly studied under jazz guitarist Barry Galbraith. With large and small ensembles, Mastelar performed throughout Boston, Massachusetts, New York City, New York, and the greater New England area. The store’s second instructor, Ed Eastridge , who was a veteran recording engineer and professional musician for over 40 years, toured Washington, D.C. in the ’70s and crossed paths with a number of recognizable names, including musicians David Gilmour and Jimmy Page, as noted by Carroll. “All I know is that the people that work here, we really got into it because it’s the stuff we love. We’re all likeminded here,” Carroll said. On-the-road adventures and years devoted to music effortlessly translate into a personal intimacy between artist and instrument — a key parameter that the store’s staff credits its success to. “A lot of people that come in here — they’re real easy to talk to because we all share something,” Carroll said. “It’s an understated cool that brings us all together.”
Alumna Q&A: screenwriter and actress Genevieve Adams ’11
By ZACH CHERIAN
The Dartmouth Staff
Born in New York City, New York, Genevieve Adams ’11 is an actress and screenwriter. She started acting from a young age and continued her passion at Dartmouth as a theater major. During her senior year, Adams wrote an honors thesis, which eventually turned into “IMPROVed,” a twoact comedy that showed in front of a sold-out audience in NYC. This play was later adapted into a movie, “I’m Obsessed With You (But You’ve Got to Leave Me Alone),” which is available on iTunes. Her work has allowed her to work alongside major names such as Kristen Wiig in “The Skeleton Twins” and Katie Holmes in “Touched with Fire.” How did you get into acting? GA: Well, I was in Casual Thursday when I was at Dartmouth, and that
was a significant and really fun experience for me. I’d always loved improvisation; I grew up in New York and had done a few classes, and I had done acting classes as a child, and I had always done the plays for school. I wanted to hone that skill at Dartmouth. Honestly, the fraternity basements were a really great place to hone your skills at thinking on your feet and trying to work with the audience, because you really wanted people to have fun on a Wednesday night. It was an interesting environment and also a really good one to practice in. I met so many funny and smart people there, so they kind of raised my game. I was really involved in the theater department, and I’d always been acting — I was in an opera when I was 9 years old in New York. So I came to Dartmouth knowing that was what I wanted to do. Was there a specific impact that
your honors thesis had on your acting career? GA: That was kind of about my experience in Casual Thursday — loosely interpreted. Kind of based on my experiences at Dartmouth, inspired by that. I worked with English professor Donald Pease to write that.
Did you always mean to turn your thesis into a show after Dartmouth? GA: It took on a life of its own. People really responded to it up at Dartmouth when I had to do readings, and then my boyfriend at the time was working in casting. He worked with Scott Rudin, and he really helped me mold it into a screenplay. We ended up doing a production of it in New York, and that was so well-received and popular and fun that we decided to make it into a film together. It was a really cool experience — I never really expected any of it to happen,
and we just kind of kept rolling with it. There seemed to be enough energy around the story and the characters, and it seemed to have a freshness that people responded to and that really good actors wanted to be a part of, so it was really exciting.
What was working with famous actors and actresses like Kristen Wiig like? GA: It was awesome. Kristen Wiig is my hero, so I was pretty starstruck to be honest, working with her. She was so kind and so talented through the end. She made me feel really at home on the set and was very kind and generous — all the things you’d want her to be and more. So yeah, I’ve had a lot of experience working with very successful people where I have a very small role, and I’ve noticed that a lot of the time the people at the very top are often the most gracious, kind and intelligent people, which is really
encouraging. There are other aspects of this business which can be really hard, but it’s nice when you realize that the people at the top, who reap a lot of rewards, are also very intelligent and thoughtful humans. Can you tell me about what you are working on right now? GA: I’m working on another screenplay that I’m trying to get made. I’m in the final stages of writing — well, it’s a never ending process. I’m auditioning quite a lot in television, film and theater in New York. That stuff is keeping me pretty busy. Those are the projects I’m mainly working on right now. I’ve written a play, but I don’t know what’s happening with that yet. I’m just trying to be in the moment here in New York and soaking it all in. This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.