VOL. CLXXVI NO. 46
RAINY HIGH 54 LOW 46
OPINION
TRUONG: IN THE AFFIRMATIVE PAGE 4
ZAMAN: ON GILLIBRAND PAGE 4
ARTS
REVIEW: ‘BOSTON CALLING’ MUSIC FESTIVAL LIVES UP TO THE HYPE PAGE 7
SPORTS
WOMEN’S RUGBY TAKES SECOND PLACE IN 7S NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP PAGE 8
FOLLOW US ON
@thedartmouth
COPYRIGHT © 2019 THE DARTMOUTH, INC.
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Dartmouth students Dartmouth, nine plaintiffs seek mediation in class action lawsuit recently awarded national scholarships B y DEBORA COBON The Dartmouth
Three undergraduates were recently recognized by national scholar ship organizations for contributions within their fields of interest, adding to a list of over a dozen Dartmouth students who have been awarded national fellowships and scholarships this year. The Dartmouth sat down with three of these students — Gabrial Canfield ’21, Emma Esterman ’20 and
Jason Wei ’20 — to discuss their achievements. Canfield was named a recipient of the Udall Undergraduate Scholarship by the Udall Foundation. According to the program’s website, the scholarship honors college sophomores and juniors for “leadership, public service, and commitment to issues related to Native American nations or to the environment.” The SEE SCHOLARSHIPS PAGE 5
Long journey brings bear back to Hanover B y ANTHONY ROBLES
The Dartmouth Senior Staff
After a long and arduous jour ney that covered thousands of miles, Mink the bear has once again returned to Hanover. Mink was spotted by a local resident for the first time in almost a year a few days before Green Key weekend, according to Hanover deputy fire chief Michael Hinsley. Hanover town manager Julia Griffin said that Mink was spotted in the Carter
Street neighborhood, which is near the Hanover Co-op on South Park Street. Griffin added that it was in this neighborhood that Mink became habituated to food attractants, as there were a few residents in the area who would repeatedly feed her. “Up until a couple of years ago, there was an elderly woman and her son who lived on Carter Street who regularly fed the bears, in addition to SEE BEAR PAGE 3
PETER CHARALAMBOUS/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
Moore Hall houses the psychological and brain sciences department.
B y THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF Dartmouth and nine women who are suing the College in federal court for failing to act on allegations of sexual misconduct against three former professors in the psychological and brain sciences department are now seeking a delay in the litigation to pursue mediation. In a motion filed on Friday in the U.S. District Court of New Hampshire, the two parties in the $70-million class action lawsuit, Rapuano et. al. v. Trustees of Dartmouth College, requested that all further litigation be delayed until either July 31 or three days after the mediation
agreed upon by the parties, whichever comes sooner, so that the parties can enter talks to “resolve this matter without further litigation.” To conduct the mediation, the parties have selected r e t i r e d j u d g e Ro b e r t Morrill, a 21-year veteran of the New Hampshire Superior Court and now a professional mediator based in Portsmouth, NH. Mediation is an out-of-court attempt to settle a legal dispute using a agreed upon third-party mediator, who attempts to find common ground between the parties. Parties entering into mediation are not bound to agree to a decision. The motion calling for the delay in litigation comes
weeks after two additional former students joined on as anonymous plaintiffs to the lawsuit. These women, using the pseudonyms “Jane Doe 2” and “Jane Doe 3,” added more allegations of sexual misconduct against the former professors, with one claiming that a former PBS department chair was made aware of allegations as early as 2004. In response, the College filed a motion in opposition to granting the new plaintiffs anonymity in the case, arguing that having three of nine plaintiffs using pseudonyms would “prejudice” its ability to defend itself in the case, SEE MEDIATION PAGE 2
PAGE 2
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
Former Superior Court judge named mediator FROM MEDIATION PAGE 1
increase the burden of litigation and create challenges for both parties in assessing whether to admit the anonymous individuals as class representatives. College spokesperson Diana Lawrence wrote to The Dartmouth at the time that the College was “exploring mediation.” In the case, first brought in November 2018, the plaintiffs, all former Dartmouth students, allege that the three former professors
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
A DREAM OF SPRING
turned the PBS department into a “21st century Animal House.” The professors, Todd Heatherton, William Kelley and Paul Whalen, all left the College last summer after a internal College review led to recommendations of their terminations. Lawrence and attorneys for the plaintiffs and the College did not respond to requests for comment as of press time. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
DARREN GU/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
With summer around the corner, Dartmouth’s foliage has once again returned to life.
CORRECTIONS Correction appended (May 24, 2019): In the May 24 column, “To Destroy or Rebuild,” the article stated that Swarthmore College removed Phi Psi fraternity from its house, while in fact Swarthmore did not remove the fraternity from its house — student protesters had resolved to remain in the house until the college did so. The online version of the column has been updated to clarify this. Correction appended (May 21, 2019): In the May 8 article, “The More Things Change: Examining the Parkhurst Takeover,” the article stated that the campuswide strike occurred during the spring of 1971, when it actually occurred in the spring of 1970. The online version of the article has been updated to reflect this. We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth.com.
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
PAGE 3
Petition from local resident helped save bear from euthanasia FROM BEARS PAGE 1
this gentleman who fed her over in the School Street neighborhood, and [Mink] learned that she could be fed in that neighborhood as well,” Griffin said. “She knew that that was a neighborhood where she could probably find some black oil sunflower seeds.” Data accrued from her tracking collar shows that since last July, Mink traveled “upwards of 30 miles a day” across New Hampshire and Vermont, crossing the border between the states multiple times, according to Griffin. Mink hibernated in a den near Killington, VT over the winter before emerging sometime in March, she added. Mink, who was nicknamed by local citizens after the nearby Mink Brook, was dropped off by New Hampshire Fish and Game officials in a remote area of New Hampshire near the Canadian border last June. Last April, Mink was outfitted with a
tracking collar by a team consisting of U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services nuisance black bear specialist Nancy Comeau, Hinsley, local bear expert Ben Kilham, Fish and Game wildlife biologist Will Staats and Fish and Game wildlife biologist and bear project leader Andrew Timmins. At the time of Mink’s capture last April, Timmins said that compared to her yearlings, which had been relocated a year prior, Mink had the highest likelihood of returning to the area. Timmins’ prediction has been proven correct, and Hinsley called her return “not unexpected.” Hinsley, who has been labeled Hanover’s chief “bear wrangler” by some news outlets, said that he does not consider the title an accurate description of his work and that he has been primarily focused on trying to reduce the amount of food attractants in the town that are available for Mink and other bears. Griffin said that while she does
not think Mink currently poses a danger to the town, it is important for residents to be mindful of attractants, including garbage dumpsters and bird feeders. Hinsley agreed, calling birdseed a “powerful attractant” and adding that there is no reason for town residents to have bird feeders up “at this point.” This year, Hanover town officials asked residents to remove bird feeders by April 1. “When we look at a map, we see her and the distance that she can travel in almost a perfectly straight line to a location in downtown Hanover where there are bird feeders,” Hinsley said. “It’s just amazing how this bear can smell birdseed and make a beeline right to it.” Hinsley also said that town residents not only need to remove their bird feeders, but also dispose of any loose birdseed and be mindful of dog food left on porches, chicken coops and beehives. For Dartmouth students living off-campus, however,
COURTESY OF GEORGE MORRIS
Mink the bear, pictured here last April, has returned to Hanover after a journey that spanned thousands of miles and two states.
he added that there needs to be to a zoo or feeding Mink at an greater awareness of dumpster undisclosed location for the rest of security. Griffin said that it is her life, she said that the suggestions important for Dartmouth students to ran counter to how Fish and Game keep their garbage and recyclables approaches their handling of wildlife inside their in the state of New properties Hampshire. until the day “If she becomes a real “If she becomes of collection. a real nuisance nuisance bear again, “I would say bear again, I think I think she’ll have to that I don’t see she’ll have to be that she really be euthanized and of euthanized and of does pose a course, then we get all course, then we get danger to the all the Facebook c o m m u n i t y the Facebook pages, pages, and the nasty any more or and the nasty letters letters and phone any different which is why and phone calls, which calls, than any we just need all of o t h e r w i l d is why we just need our residents to a n i m a l t h at all of our residents to behave themselves we have in the and manage state of New behave themselves their properties Hampshire,” and manage their so that there’s no Hinsley said. attraction for her properties so that “T here’s no in town,” Griffin i n c r e a s e d there’s no attraction said. risk. There’s for her in town.” Although there no decreased are around 5,000 risk.” bl a c k b e a r s i n T h i s w i l l -JULIA GRIFFIN, HANOVER the state of New be the fir st Hampshire, Mink TOWN MANAGER summer in has attracted an three years in unusual level of which Mink will be without cubs or publicity for several years now. After yearlings. Because of this, Griffin Mink and her cubs began to make said that she expects Mink to be less repeated incursions into Hanover active than in previous summers, as two springs ago, Fish and Game she believes Mink will be looking for a planned to euthanize the sleuth of potential mating partner. She added bears. that Mink was not in a condition to Following a petition started by deliver cubs this year because of Enfield, NH resident Nicole Cantlin her travels and “poor conditions for to save the sow and her three cubs bears last summer and fall,” adding after it was revealed that they were that Mink was “very thin” and had going to be euthanized, Sununu lost around 60 pounds since her intervened and her three young cubs relocation. were instead relocated to northern Griffin said that while Mink is New Hampshire over Memorial less of a nuisance than she was a Day weekend in 2017. To date, the few years ago, a new litter of cubs petition has received over 13,000 would probably mean “that [the signatures. town] would be right back with this One of the cubs was lawfully shot problem next spring.” and killed by a hunter in Quebec a As evidenced by Mink’s return to few weeks after the relocation. Mink’s Hanover, Griffin called the idea of latest set of cubs, born in the winter relocating Mink once more “futile,” of 2017, are still at the Kilham Bear adding that the sow had proved that Center, according to Griffin. she was “relocation-proof.” She “The bear has really caught the added that while she had heard attention of the populace,” Hinsley suggestions such as moving Mink said.
PAGE 4
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
STAFF COLUMNIST VALERIE TRUONG ’21
STAFF COLUMNIST RANIYAN ZAMAN ’22
In the Affirmative
On Gillibrand
A look at the benefits of affirmative action. Affirmative action as we know it may be on the chopping block. Depending on the outcome of the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard case, a lawsuit in which Asian American students are suing the university for alleged discrimination, diversity as a consideration in admissions will end. This means minority enrollment in universities may drop as a result. Take the case of the University of California Berkeley: After California passed Proposition 209, a law which prohibited the use of race in admissions, outreach and financial aid considerations at California state schools, the number of African Americans enrolled dropped . African Americans today make up only three percent of the student body at UC Berkeley. Tellingly, after the state of California ended affirmative action, graduation rates of African Americans also dropped. From 2013-2016, there was a 16 percent difference between the overall graduation rate and the graduation rate of African Americans. This indicates the possibility of a causal link between Proposition 209 and the disproportionately sparse numbers of black students graduating from Berkeley. But even though less African Americans are enrolling, why are so few not graduating as well? A nearly 25-year-old study points to an answer. In their seminal 1995 study, Claude Steele and Joshua Aronson found that stereotype threat — the feeling of conforming to negative stereotypes about one’s racial group — caused African Americans to perform worse than they otherwise would on a test.
To conduct the study, Steele and Aronson selected black and white students with similar SAT scores and gave them a difficult verbal test. When the test-takers were told that that the exam would measure their intellectual ability, the black students performed worse than the white students. Steele and Aronson surmised that black students’ performance on the second exam was affected by their fear of conforming to the stereotype that African Americans are intellectually inferior to their white counterparts. Therefore, this fear of conforming to racial stereotypes contributes to the underperformance of minority students whose intellectual abilities are fettered by looming stigmas. Affirmative action policies can help to reduce this effect. One way to reduce the effects of stereotype threat is by having a critical mass of minority groups on a college campus. While minority groups struggle with stereotype threat, there’s a certain degree of comfort that is afforded to the majority. Speaking from personal experience, I attended a high school that was two-thirds Asian and a quarter Hispanic, so it was startling, and perhaps a bit intimidating, to suddenly be in a place like Dartmouth where most people are a different race than I am. I found myself hyper-aware of my own race and the spaces I occupied as I bustled about, which I had never really thought much about before Dartmouth because I didn’t have to. Here, there are usually a few other Asian students in my classes, so I am fortunate to not SEE TRUONG PAGE 6
6175 ROBINSON HALL, HANOVER N.H. 03755 • (603) 646-2600
DEBORA HYEMIN HAN, Editor-in-Chief ALEX FREDMAN, Executive Editor PETER CHARALAMBOUS, Managing Editor PRODUCTION EDITORS TYLER MALBREAUX & MATTHEW MAGANN, Opinion Editors NIKHITA HINGORANI & KYLEE SIBILIA, Mirror Editors LUKE GITTER, JUSTIN KRAMER & LILI STERN, Sports Editors LEX KANG & JORDAN MCDONALD, Arts Editors LILY JOHNSON, Dartbeat Editor DIVYA KOPALLE & MICHAEL LIN, Photo Editors
AIDAN SHEINBERG, Publisher JULIAN NATHAN, Executive Editor ANTHONY ROBLES, Managing Editor BUSINESS DIRECTORS JONNY FRIED & RAIDEN MEYER, Advertising Directors VINAY REDDY, Marketing & Communications Director HIMADRI NARASIMHAMURTHY & KAI SHERWIN, Product Development Directors ALBERT CHEN & ELEANOR NIEDERMAYER, Strategy Directors ERIC ZHANG, Technology Director
SAMANTHA BURACK & BELLA JACOBY, Design Editors HATTIE NEWTON, Templating Editor JESS CAMPANILE, Multimedia Editor
ISSUE Anthony Robles 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.
Reconsidering a Dartmouth alumna’s political values. I hardly need to introduce U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand ’88. The famous Dartmouth alumna, a senator from New York who is also running for president, has stood out among Democrats as one of the fiercest critics of President Donald Trump. She boasts the most votes against Trump’s cabinet nominations of any Democratic senator running for president. Her progressive record should position her to be a competitive contender in the upcoming election. She was, after all, the first senator to insist Al Franken resign after evidence of inappropriate sexual behavior surfaced. And she has voiced firm support for the Green New Deal and some version of Medicare for All. She’s denounced the Trump administration’s “outrageous and unacceptable” treatment of immigrants and has also expressed urgency in ending America’s gun violence epidemic. Although her record makes her seem like the perfect resistance figure to take down Trump, this sentiment isn’t just misplaced — it’s dangerously false. In fact, Gillibrand’s political progressivism is a façade. An inconsistent voting record says it all. Take her stance on immigration, for instance. The same senator who stood in Dartmouth’s Alumni Hall in February and told the audience that America was founded by immigrants was also the U.S. Representative who in 2008 wanted funding for local police to enforce federal immigration laws, opposed any sort of amnesty for undocumented immigrants — “illegal immigrants,” as she referred to them — and voted against then-New York governor Eliot Spitzer’s plan to allow undocumented immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses. Before Gillibrand was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act in 2010, she was a co-sponsor the SAVE Act, which aimed to increase immigration enforcement. As a representative, Gillibrand also voted in favor of the Bush tax cuts on the wealthy and for maintaining intrusive parts of the Patriot Act. In 2008, she held an “A” rating with the National Rifle Association. And just two years ago, Gillibrand co-sponsored the Israel AntiBoycott Act, which made it punishable by up to 20 years in imprisonment and $1 million in fines for Americans to encourage or participate boycotts of Israel. She withdrew sponsorship of in a matter of months, but the incident is a textbook example of how quickly Gillibrand, even now, flip-flops on important issues. Of course, a certain amount of shifting on positions is to be expected and sometimes
even embraced from politicians. Some might argue that sometimes it turns out for the best. Abraham Lincoln, who didn’t start off an abolitionist, initially favored limiting slavery to areas where it was already present; later, he signed the Emancipation Proclamation and is commonly (if somewhat mistakenly) credited with “freeing the slaves.” In 2008, Barack Obama told CNN he thought marriage should be limited to heterosexual couples. His position changed in 2012. This could be credited to an evolution of beliefs and growth — a nice way of saying that a politician has changed his or her mind as to what was more politically favorable. To be sure, a willingness to seek out new perspectives and grow as a leader is commendable. But constituents also have the right to expect and demand a degree of personal and political consistency from their elected officials. Despite Gillibrand’s many accomplishments, she lacks that consistency. Perhaps at any other college in the country, Gillibrand could be dismissed as just another flaky politician. But she is in many ways a uniquely Dartmouth problem. The College, perhaps overzealous in its enthusiasm for such a nationally-known alumna, has assisted with the construction of a false narrative of Gillibrand as a Trump resistance figure. Before I even arrived at Dartmouth for orientation, my inbox held a link to an issue of Dartmouth’s Alumni Magazine, which somewhat bizarrely lauded Gillibrand as a “crusader. ” The office of communications ran an article on Gillibrand’s campus event in February at Alumni Hall parroting the highlights of her platform and ostensible progressivism, ignoring the many contradictions within her career. One of Dartmouth’s most potent appeals is its incredibly loyal alumni network, and it’s clear that this loyalty has been extended to Gillibrand as well. But as campaigning for the 2020 election begins, Dartmouth students and graduates should remember that alumni loyalty must not cross into political loyalty without good reason and should not be doled out blindly to anyone with a Dartmouth degree. This extends far beyond Gillibrand. Plenty of Dartmouth alumni occupy powerful, prestigious positions — but we should resist celebrating these alumni because of the positions they hold. Dartmouth is an institution that values its powerful alumni network. This shouldn’t mean sticking by people. It should mean sticking by values.
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
PAGE 5
Awards honor students’ work on Native American studies, STEM narrow down her interests. In addition to Reo, she also said that program awards scholarships of up environmental studies professor Ross to $7,000 for 55 recipients. Virginia has played a vital mentoring Canfield is an environmental role. studies major and a Native American “Ross Virginia was my freshman studies minor. On campus, she is year advisor,” Canfield said. “Since involved in Native Americans at he is involved with The Arctic Dartmouth, the American Indian Institute, it was really helpful to talk Science and Engineering Society and to someone who knows a lot about works in the sustainability office. Alaskan issues. The combination of She said her work focuses on having them both as mentors has environmental issues impacting tribal been really great.” land in Southeast Alaska. Canfield said she was most “There are mining companies that excited for the alumni networking want to create mines where there opportunities offered through the are mineral-rich rivers, but those Udall Scholars program and the are on tribal lands,” Canfield said. ability to meet other students who “If mines were to be built on these are interested in the same issues. rivers in Southeast Alaska, it would Esterman and Wei were among be a major problem for the fishermen, several undergraduates nationwide the economy, the tribal land and awarded a Goldwater Scholarship, the tribal peoples. It’s both a major which honors “scientific talent” environmental and encourages and tribal land “outstanding “There are mining issue.” students to pursue Canfield said companies that want careers in the fields she first became to create mines where of mathematics, the interested in the natural sciences, intersection of there are mineraland engineering,” environmental rich rivers, but those according to the studies and program’s website. are on tribal lands. tribal issues The program as a first-year, If mines were to awards scholarships when she took be built on these of up to $7,500 for the indigenous 496 recipients. environmental rivers in Southeast Ester man is a studies class NAS Alaska, it would be biology major and 18/ENVS 18, environmental a major problem for “Native Peoples studies minor and in a Changing the fishermen, the was honored as a G l o b a l economy, the tribal Goldwater Scholar Environment,” for her research taught b y land and the tribal in genomics. She environmental peoples.” credits her interest studies and in genomics and Native American evolution to biology studies professor -GABRIAL CANFIELD ’21 professor and Nicholas Reo. research mentor “Ever since Olga Zhaxybayeva. then, I’ve been taking classes on both While Esterman was searching sides almost every term and really for research and job opportunities enjoyed it,” Canfield said. “This her sophomore fall, Zhaxybayeva term, I’m taking an environmental reached out to her and offered governance course that’s also been her an opportunity to work in really helpful.” her evolutionary computational In terms of mentorship, she said genomics lab. In her research, that having professors who specialize Esterman used a combination of in the two fields have helped her computer code and bioinformatic FROM SCHOLARSHIPS PAGE 1
programs to reconstruct the evolution of what she called “unusual” viral particles produced by certain bacteria. Since then, Esterman said Zhaxybayeva has played a vital role in her academic and research interests. “That’s how it all started,” Esterman said. “I’ve been working with her for almost two years now. She has just been an amazing mentor. People always talk about how Dartmouth has excellent opportunities to get engaged with your professors and do research. My experience has far exceeded my expectations — it really is true.” Esterman said receiving the Goldwater Scholarship has helped a lot in terms of building her confidence in her own ability to pursue graduate school and a career in research. “It’s helped me affirm that if this is a path I want to take — that I can do it,” Esterman said. “It means a lot to me because when other people believe in you, it’s a lot easier to believe in yourself.” Wei, a computer science major,
received a Goldwater Scholarship took a class with biomedical data for his research in machine learning. science professor Saeed Hassanpour, On campus, he said he spends most which Wei said helped him solidify of his free time doing research that his foundation in machine-learning. focuses on artificial intelligence in Hassanpour now serves as his advisor, healthcare. and the two now work together. Wei described his research as using “He really inspired me to look at artificial intelligence to diagnose lung all the ways that artificial intelligence cancer based on can be used pathology slides. to improve “It’s an honor to “ I t ’s a l o t healthcare,” Wei of coding and have received the said. “I really data collection,” award. I hope that do hope that Wei said. “The more people more undergrads at main project I’ve would know b e e n w o rk i n g Dartmouth pursue that Dartmouth o n i n v o l v e s research in artificial is actually the using artificial place where the intelligence to be intelligence.” term ‘artificial able to classify intelligence’ was l u n g c a n c e r. coined.” -JASON WEI ’20 We’ve actually Wei said he found that the would like to see computer we built can classify lung more students complete research in cancer at the same rate as three that field. pathologists at the Dartmouth“It’s an honor to have received the Hitchcock Medical Center.” award,” Wei said. “I hope that more Wei said that machine learning undergrads at Dartmouth pursue first piqued his interest when he research in artificial intelligence.”
PAGE 6
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
THE DARTMOUTH EVENTS
DARTMOUTHEVENTS TODAY
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Thesis Presentation: “Mechanisms Controlling Germ Plasm Enrichment During Asymmetric Cell Division in the C. elegans Embryo,” by Timothy Gauvin, sponsored by MCB Graduate Program, Chilcott Auditorium.
5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Performance: “The Last Vigil,” sponsored by the Middle Eastern Studies Program, Paganucci Lounge, Class of 1953 Commons.
6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Reading: “Nicotine - A reading by Gregor Hens,” sponsored by the Department of German, Max Kade German Center.
TOMORROW
8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Exhibit: “Rauner Special Collections Library Exhibit: ‘Let’s Do Lunch’” sponsored by the College Library, Class of 1965 Galleries, Rauner Library, Webster Hall.
3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m
Dog: “Visit from Winston, VT Therapy Dog,” sponsored by the Student Wellness Center, House Center B.
FROM TRUONG PAGE 4
feel as out of place. It is critical that this same sense of belonging and inclusion is felt by underrepresented minorities. Having a critical mass of minority students matters outside of the classroom, too. While there are racially diverse affinity groups and extracurriculars on campus, there are still spaces that lack racial diversity. One example from my personal experience is my involvement with Rockefeller Center programs such as D-LAB and First-Year Fellows. There were a few other Asians in these spaces, so I didn’t feel tokenized, but this was not the case for other minority groups.
As an Asian American woman, seeing others like me who are also doing similar work in these spaces has made me feel a greater sense of belonging and dispels fears of being otherized. Having people who look like me helps me to feel more comfortable articulating my own opinions and perspectives. I am not saying that minorities need each other in order to succeed; rather, accepted students are capable of achievement on their own, and feeling more comfortable supports the success of both the individual and the group. This comfort needs to be extended to all minorities, both inside and outside the classroom.
ADVERTISING For advertising infor mation, 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
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
PAGE 7
Review: ‘Boston Calling’ music festival lives up to the hype
B y Lex Kang
The Dartmouth Senior Staff
Going to a music festival is always an exciting experience to look forward to, but I have to admit I wasn’t expecting too much from Boston Calling. In the wake of Dartmouth’s Green Key, I felt I had my share of concerts for the term and was preemptively annoyed with the loud and obnoxious drunk people I would inevitably be surrounded or suffocated by at the concert venue. In short, going to Boston Calling felt more like a poorly-timed task that I had to complete rather than an exciting weekend away from campus. Once I got to the Harvard Athletic Complex, a brief 10-minute walk away from Harvard Square, my expectations were quickly challenged. Boston Calling was nowhere near as deafeningly loud and overwhelmingly crowded as one might expect for a music festival located in a city heavily populated by college students. Rather, the music festival feels like an opportunity to relax outdoors with live music, rather than a swarm of aggressive partygoers who are looking to get uncontrollably drunk and dance all night. Think happy, welcoming hipsters of all ages, not unruly teen ravers. One could even call the event family-friendly. Putting on a good show for the festival’s diverse attendees, the performances were an excellent c o n t r i bu t i o n t o t h e e ve n t ’s atmosphere. For example, Betty Who — an artist I was familiar with but wasn’t particularly excited for despite her being one of the headliners — deployed a powerful stage presence and energy, converting me into a fan by the
end of her set. She communicated with the audience throughout her perfor mance, explaining what inspired her to write certain songs and how she would love to see the crowd dance with her, and that genuinely friendly attitude she exuded on stage translated to performances she seemed happy and excited to give. With her talented band, her music — which can seem like bland pop music in their studio versions (part of why I wasn’t a fan until I saw her live) — came to life, particularly in the bass lines. She danced and sung so passionately to bright pop tunes that we couldn’t help tapping our feet and bobbing our heads. Mitski, another headliner, was also a strong performer. She laid on her side on stage as she sang, focusing almost entirely on her vocals. The simplicity of her performance was beautiful, as it isolated the crowd’s focus on just the music, with no other decorations or attractions to divert our attention. Mitski’s voice was the perfect ethereal background to accompany the warm afternoon sun that enveloped the venue. King Princess created a similar atmosphere with her set. She sung each of her songs earnestly, and she sounded exactly like her studio recordings. The only difference was that she accompanied her singing with an electric guitar performance. Her voice seemed delicate, but not fragile — airy and wavering yet dripping with emotion — and paired excellently with the striking resonance of the electric guitar, creating an ambience ideal for the evening chill. In between the musical performances, my friend and I found ourselves wandering the
concert venue to explore some of the other stages and came upon the Arena, an indoor stage. Here, we managed to catch a stand-up comedy piece by Jenny Slate, a comedian and actress I’ve followed since her “Marcelle the Shell” days. She was the headliner out of a stream of stand-up comedians and the last act before some electronic artists, including headliner Snakehips, who were supposed to perform later in the evening. With Slate’s reputation, extensive career and status relative to Boston Calling, we had high hopes for her. We were, unfortunately, quite disappointed. Many of her jokes fell flat, with punchlines being diluted by ill-timed delivery and heavy reliance on exaggerated facial expressions or shouting into the mic as comedic devices. Overall, her comedic style seemed a lot less sophisticated, nuanced and mature than I had expected. We had seen herds of people enter the Arena around the time Slate’s act was about to begin, but midway through, half of the crowd had gotten bored and left. While it was nice that Boston Calling had incorporated other non-musical acts into their program — other than stand-up comedians they also had the Boston Ballet perform — it seemed that these performers almost knew that they weren’t the focus of the festival and weren’t bringing their best to the stage. Off stage, in addition to the many performances, the venue also offered a number of non-music related pastimes — which there were a lot more than one would expect. Boston Calling coordinators seem to thoroughly understand the one downside of music festivals —
it’s almost 100 percent guaranteed that you won’t love or even be a little bit familiar with all of the artists in the lineup, and unless you’re planning to come for only the handful of stages you’re super excited for and waste your festival ticket, you’ll have at least a few hours during which you’re bored or forced to listen to music that isn’t your taste. I had come prepared to be disinterested for a few hours and had backup plans on what to do to stay entertained, but I never needed it. For one, the venue was spacious and resort-like — it had plenty of grass and other seating areas for when you aren’t dancing at the front of the crowd. As artists performed, festival antendees could simply lie on the grass, sunbathing with the music as background noise. Another aspect of the Boston Calling experience that was a pleasant surprise was just how easy
it was to be there. The location — accessible by a brief ride on the T and a quick walk — was already a plus, and the fact that Boston Calling allowed you to leave and re-enter the festival on the same day was another factor that made the experience so much more manageable and stressfree. Compared to other festivals I’ve been to, Boston Calling felt significantly more orderly and safe. There were pleasant and helpful staff everywhere, restrooms, portable chargers, lockers and anything else you might need for a long day outdoors. For this reason, by the end of the festival, I was content — not once was I in an uncomfortable situation, and not once was I bored. Overall, the entire festival operated like a small safe haven, a place where anyone could step in, forget everything and escape the stress of life.
CARLY BOYLE/COURTESY OF BOSTON CALLING
Singer-songwriter Mitski performs at Boston Calling.
TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2019
THE DARTMOUTH SPORTS
PAGE 8
SPORTS SPORTS
Women’s rugby takes second place in 7s national championship
B y elijah Cszyz
The Dartmouth Staff
The Dartmouth women’s rugby team ended its season with a second place finish this Memorial Day weekend in the USA Rugby College 7s National Championship in Tucson, AZ, falling to Lindenwood University in the championship game. It was the team’s best placement to date at the event. The second-place finish came after the team won a national championship title in 15s play in the fall and secured a second-place finish in the Ivy League 7s tournament. “All in all, we’re feeling really great about this weekend … second place isn’t bad. It’s not the result we wanted in the end but [we] went up against the best teams in the nation and we came out pretty close to the top,” said team captain Camille Johnson ’19. The Big Green began the weekend with a sweep of its pool play opponents. The sweep began with a 26-12 victory over Pennsylvania State University, last year’s runner up. The Big Green came back from a 7-0 deficit with two tries from Emily Henrich ’22 and one try from Ariana Ramsey ’22. The two first-years were prolific over the course of the weekend. During pool play alone, Henrich contributed five tries and Ramsey had three. “I was really pumped to be able to put ourselves out there because a lot of these teams we don’t see in regular competition, just because of regional differences and league differences, so it was really exiting to be able to test ourselves,” Henrich said. Henrich’s impressive performance was not uncharacteristic. This year,
she was awarded the MA Sorenson Award, which is awarded by USA Rugby to the top women’s college player in the country. After the victory over Penn State, the Big Green steamed past American International College, 28-7. In the first half alone, the Big Green put up a commanding 21-0 lead. A greater challenge was Lindenwood, the defending national champion since 2017. According to Henrich, Lindenwood’s consistent success was their pitfall coming into a match in pool play against Dartmouth. “I think they came out a little flat and underestimated us,” Henrich said. Dartmouth got ahead with two tries in the first four minutes of play, but 12 consecutive points from Lindenwood put the game at 12-10 until Johnson scored the gamewinning try. Entering semifinals on Sunday, the Big Green first faced Life University. After what Milla Anderson ’19 called a “frantic” first half, Dartmouth pulled out a decisive 26-7 victory. Henrich contributed three tries, and Ramsey one. “During halftime, we talked about calming it down and playing our game… coming into a half tied really shows what teams wants it more in the second half,” Anderson said. In a rematch of pool play, Lindenwood bested the Big Green in the final game 24-7. Despite being exhausted from pool play and the semifinals, both teams brought their best for the finals. “We both came out harder and stronger, and after four games, you’re tired and you’re sore and everything hurts, and so it’s really just who can
COURTESY OF EMILY HENRICH
A talented group of first-years and seniors anchored the dominant women’s rugby team in the 2018-19 season.
come out with the most energy,” Johnson said. “I think we both put up a good fight, but Lindenwood happened to come out on top of a few plays. Sevens is a quick game, where everything can change in a snap of your fingers, and they got the best of a few of those moments.” Even though its season ended with a loss, a second-place finish represents a big step for the women’s rugby program. Last season, it was bested by constant Ivy League rival Harvard University to finish the tournament in eighth place. The Big Green felt some vindication from its loss to Harvard (and its loss to Harvard in this season’s Ivy 7s tournament) when Harvard finished
the weekend behind Dartmouth, in third. Part of what pushed the Dartmouth program toward its recent success is the senior class. Henrich cited Kat Ramage ’19, who Henrich said was the first women’s rugby player recruited by Dartmouth, as a major contributor. “[Ramage] basically helped start this program. She’s part of the reason I’m here as well, because I looked up to her so much in high school,” Henrich said. Henrich also expressed praise for Johnson, who she said “held the team together,” and Anderson, who was “a constant force to be reckoned with.” “I don’t think it’s set in yet … the
four years on this team have been the best four years,” Johnson said. “I’ve learned a lot and I’ve gained a lot. I love this team and I’m really going to miss it.” The Big Green hopes to continue its upward trajectory next fall, when it will strive to defend its 15s national championship and finally break Lindenwood’s 7s championship streak. Johnson is hopeful about her team’s prospects next year. “We have all the skill, the speed the strength,” she said. “This is such a talented team. We really have everything we need to beat any team out there.” Justin Kramer contributed reporting.