Vol. 108, Iss. 4 | Tuesday, March 26, 2019
The Flat Hat The Weekly Student Newspaper
of The College of William and Mary
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‘How many more deaths must we endure?’ GRAPHIC BY EMMA FORD / THE FLAT HAT
COLE COCHRAN / THE FLAT HAT
Students protest for improved gun legislation WILLIAM ALLEN FLAT HAT SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Chanting “Not one more!,” community activists, representatives and students marched together through the main dirt thoroughfare of Colonial Williamsburg Saturday, March 23 to express their outrage at gun violence in the United States and abroad. Holding up signs featuring slogans such as “Protest Kids, Not Guns,” “One Tribe, One Family” and “How Many More,” activists demanded gun safety legislation at Williamsburg’s March to End Gun Violence. The March started from the Capitol building of Colonial Williamsburg as marchers walked over half a mile down Duke of Gloucester Street to Merchants Square. The costs of gun violence were fresh on many marchers’ minds after the March 22 fatal shooting of the College of William and Mary student Nathan Evans ’21 in Norfolk, as well as the recent Christchurch mosque shootings. Rep. Elaine Luria, who represents Virginia’s 2nd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives, spoke at the march to convey her dedication to passing gun safety legislation during her time in Congress. “It’s heartbreaking to see that Nathan lost his life at gunpoint,” Luria said. “We continue to have guns proliferating in the community and people who have a propensity to harm themselves or harm others. It’s really important for me that we move forward with legislation on gun safety.” The protest focused on highlighting gun violence’s human costs and encouraging the passage of gun safety legislation to prevent future violence. Numerous speakers from student groups and community organizations gathered to talk about the toll of gun violence on communities and entire generations. “I am 18, and I belong to the massacre generation,” Students Demand Action member Julia Gibson ’22 said. “It was last Saturday when it hit me that my entire life has been framed by violence … I remembered all the violence looming around me and my friends and my entire generation. I remember that for anyone born around the year 2000, this is all we’ve ever known.” Religious Chair for the College’s Muslim Student Organization Mariam Khan ’22 warned students against becoming complacent in the face of
Islamophobic hatred and senseless killing. “How many more deaths must we endure, must we be desensitized to, must we forget before change begins to happen?” Khan said. Board member of the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy Reverend Anthony Fludd spoke out against the omnipresence of gun violence, and condemned gun violence as an avoidable form of devastation. “It amazes me that with all of the mass shootings, violence in our nation, even in our community, churches, and homes that we think innocent people aren’t going to get caught in a crossfire...” Fludd said. “War, violence, oppression and countless other forms of human cruelty are evident in the time we live and on this planet we got to do something.” Several U.S., state and city representatives were present at the march to show their support for ending gun violence. Luria, an advocate for anti-gun violence legislation in Congress, was invited to speak at the pre-march rally. Luria is a co-sponsor of the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019, which despite passing the House is currently stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Other proposed gun control bills, including the Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2019 — commonly referred to as the Charleston Loophole bill — have also succeeded in the House with bipartisan support. The Charleston Loophole bill closes the background check loophole that allowed Dylann Roof, the Mother Emmanuel Church shooter, to purchase a firearm after his background check wasn’t conducted within three days. Virginia Sen. Monty Mason spoke about his frustration with the inability to push gun safety legislation through Virginia’s Republican-controlled state legislature. All gun violence prevention matters brought towards the current assembly have been killed in committee. “There are a lot of thing we do in Richmond that are very bipartisan,” Mason said. “We work together on a lot of matters. This issue is not one of them.” Mason spoke further about the importance of immediate action and the ties of solidarity in the fight against gun violence. “A lot of people care, and I can assure you I have never seen two William and Mary football coaches appear at a rally,” Mason said. “They’re not generally the politically oriented folks, right. But, it’s not about See MARCH page 3
CAMPUS
College community remembers life of athlete Nathan Evans ’21
Student body, faculty, alumni gather together for memorial in Kaplan Arena after death of Tribe football player CHARLES COLEMAN FLAT HAT CHIEF STAFF WRITER
Monday March 25, members of the College of William and Mary’s community gathered in Kaplan Arena to mourn the loss of Nathan Evans ’21. Evans died the night of Thursday, March 21. The memorial and served to honor his life on the football field, on campus and in the world. The event, organized by the College, drew large crowds and featured speeches from his supporters, friends and family. In the entrance hall of the arena, tables were placed with index cards and markers, allowing students to write down their favorite memories of Evans for his family to keep. As people gathered in the stadium, a slide show presented pictures and videos of Evans’ time on the Tribe football team. The event began with a message and prayer from Wesley Campus Minster Max Blalock, dedicating the night to remembering and grieving Evans. The pastor emphasized the importance of togetherness during this time in grieving the life of Evans. “We are gathered here tonight to remember, to celebrate and to grieve Nate Evans,” Blalock said. “Tonight as we come together with his family, with his friends, with his team, with his community.
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…We know that together we can find enough to hope. Courage enough to grieve, together, and compassion enough to uphold each other as we see one another, together.” After the prayer, College President Katherine Rowe delivered a few words on the loss the College community has experienced. Rowe spoke to how the College community will help grieve the passing of Evans together as one tribe. “Nate’s life was vibrant and full of confidence,” Rowe said. “We feel his loss so heavily because we know how much promise lay ahead. I want to say to you, that if you feel that loss, in anyway, know that you are not alone. We will help you; we together will help you to show that we are one tribe and one family, always.” College Athletic Director Samantha Huge went up to the podium to speak on Evans’ legacy and to honor his life. Huge spoke of the love that Evans possessed and how the community will fondly remember him and support each other in grief. “Nate was loved,” Huge said. “Nate was loved as a son, as a brother, as a brother in law, as a grandson, as a nephew, as a teammate, as a friend. Tonight, we will laugh, and we will cry, and both are okay. None of us can tell another how to grieve; grief is deeply personal; what we can do, is sit with each other in our grief, hold each other, and ensure that no one is alone as we
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grieve the loss of Nate.” Head coach of the College’s varsity football team Mike London shared his thoughts on how he believed Evans’ legacy should be remembered. London described Evans as an inspiring young man. “My speeches to the team, to get ready for games, are always full of energy because of the possibilities,” London said. “My speech today is still going to be full of energy and full of life because of [the] possibilities that everyone sitting in this room has the chance to achieve. Nate was competitive; he wanted the best out of everybody. ...” London then had the room help him recite Mother Teresa’s poem entitled “Anyway.” As London read the poem, the audience shouted the word “anyway” as it ended each stanza. The audience, together, created a large message dedicated to Evans and the lessons he shared. Evans’ close friend and roommate Carl Fowler ’21 spoke about his friendship with Nate, and how he wanted Evans to be remembered. “We’re going to remember him for the goofy kid that he was, and nothing less,” Fowler said. “…I know that if the roles were reversed Nate would be up here telling some outrageous lies about things
Lauren Cohen ’21, in light of the recent College admissions scandal, remembers her own experience applying to colleges and the stress she felt throughout the process. page 6
Short film “Solo Orange” premiers
Directed by Isaac Davis ’20, the film tackles the subject of the complexity of mental health, telling the story of Davis’ friend John Van Bergen, who died by suicide in 2018. page 7