The Harvard Crimson - Volume CXLV, No. 137

The Harvard Crimson The University Daily, Est. 1873 | Volume CXLV, No. 137 | Cambridge, Massachusetts | december 7, 2018

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The University should be cooperative when treating mental illness.

The Crimson sits down with swimmer Charles Vaughan ’21.

Harvard square mainstay Crema Cafe will close later this month.

Bacow Post-Menorah Toppling, Locals Come Together Sends Title IX Report By shera s. avi-yonah Crimson Staff Writer

New Report Outlines 10 Recommendations By jamie d. halper Crimson Staff Writer

University President Lawrence S. Bacow released a long-awaited report reviewing the University’s Title IX policies and addressed concerns over how Harvard will adapt its policies to new proposed government rules in an email to students Thursday.

Last month, United States Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos released proposed revisions to rules for enforcing Title IX, an anti-sex discrimination law that guides universities’ approach to handling sexual assault. If codified in their current form at the end of a public comment period, DeVos’s guidelines would necessitate changes to Harvard’s current policies and procedures.

Bacow wrote in his email that the University is “carefully reviewing” the proposal.

He said administrators would share Harvard’s concerns with higher education associations planning to submit comment, indicating that the University will not offer its own comment.

He also acknowledged student concern over the proposed changes.

“I write today to assure you that I will not rest until Harvard has done all that it can to prevent sexual and gender-based harassment and assault, and to encourage people to share their concerns with confidence in the institution’s ability to act on them,” Bacow wrote.

Students from anti-sexual harassment group Our Harvard Can Do Better joined a rally in Boston’s City Hall Plaza Thursday to deliver a letter to DeVos opposing the proposed rules.

The group previously called on Harvard to submit comment regarding the rules.

In his email Thursday, Bacow also included a report from the University’s Title IX Policy Review Committee, which formed under former University President Drew G. Faust in 2015. The group — chaired by

See policy Page 4

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ron S. Suskind helped right the menorah after its toppling. allison g. lee—Crimson photographer

Cambridge mayor Marc C. McGovern spoke to a reporter at the menorah lighting. allison g. lee—Crimson photographer

Merkel to Speak at 2019 Ceremony By iris m. lewis Crimson Staff Writer

­ hancellor of Germany Angela C D. Merkel will cross the Atlantic next May to speak at Harvard’s 368th Commencement ceremony, the University announced Friday.

Merkel will be the principal speaker in the ceremony’s Afternoon Program, which will take place in Tercentenary Theater on May 30, 2019.

Merkel, who is often referred to as the de facto leader of the European Union, has served as the Chancellor of Germany since 2005. During her tenure, Merkel — a member of Germany’s Christian Democratic Union party — has sought to protect the environment, offered a strong defense of the EU, and worked to address issues of migration.

Merkel has earned significant recognition for her achievements; she won the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011 and was named TIME’s Person of the Year in 2015. She also topped Forbes’ 2018 list of the world’s most powerful women — a nod to her deep, decades-long involvement in European leadership.

After almost 30 years of political commitment, Merkel announced in October that she will not seek re-election when her term expires in 2021.

University President Lawrence S. Bacow said in a statement that he is looking forward to welcoming Merkel to Cambridge next spring.

“Over her four terms as Germany’s chancellor, her

See speaker Page 3

Harvard students and Cantabrigians gathered at Cambridge Commons to hold “a show of unity.” allison g. lee—Crimson photographer

On the fifth night of Hanukkah, dozens of Harvard affiliates and locals gathered in Cambridge Common to light candles on a large silver menorah — four days after an unidentified man deliberately knocked down the same menorah.

Cambridge police termed the Sunday incident a “possible hate crime” after witnesses reported seeing a man dismount a bicycle and push the menorah to the ground.

Thursday’s gathering marked one of two events held after the toppling of the menorah, placed there every winter for the past 19 years by Harvard Chabad. Chabad students also held a candle lighting earlier this week on the Widener Library steps.

The crowd gathered in the Common participated in typical Hanukkah festivities, singing “Ma’oz Tzur” — a traditional song — and eating latkes and frosted jelly doughnuts.

But they also spoke about the toppled menorah and what one speaker termed “a time in which the fundamental principles of this country have been challenged.”

Sunday’s incident comes

See cambridge Page 5

SEE PAGE 3

Nobel Peace Prize laureate and 2018 Gleitsman Award recipient Malala Yousafzai speaks with former UN Ambassador Samantha Power Thursday evening at the JFK Institute of Politics. amy y. li—Crimson photographer

Protesters, Political Stars Visit University Univ., Clerical Union Agree On Contract By alexandra a. chaidez Crimson Staff Writer

Newly elected members of the 116th Congress descended upon Cambridge this week to attend a bipartisan orientation geared toward preparing them for legislative life.

Speeches from Harvard administrators and protests from student organizers met the members-elect at the orientation, which was hosted by the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics. The congresspeople-elect took part in three days of off-the-record panels, discussions, and meals with students and faculty from the College and the Kennedy School. Per the IOP’s website, the event intended to “ensure thoughtful bipartisan discussions on a variety of public policy issues.”

The newly elected politicians heard from business leaders and government officials, including U.S. Secretary of

By molly c. mccafferty

­

See politics Page 4 Inside this issue

Harvard Today 2

Crimson Staff Writer

After months of waiting, members of Harvard’s largest union overwhelmingly voted to ratify a new three-year contract with the University Wednesday.

In doing so, the union — the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers — ushered in several major changes for Harvard’s workers both inside and outside of the bargaining unit, including increased wages for members and a significant shakeup of the policies that have guided the University’s use of part-time workers for decades.

HUCTW first faced the University at the bargaining table last spring. They worked through the summer and several weeks past their previous contract’s late September expiration date before reaching a tentative agreement in late October. ­

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joins a protest during Harvard’s Bipartisan Program for Newly Elected Members of Congress to call attention to climate change and environmental justice. amy y. li—Crimson photographer

News 3

Editorial 6

Sports 8

Today’s Forecast

rainy High: 37 Low: 17

Ultimately, 94 percent of voters opted to accept the agreement in Wednesday’s election.

Around 51 percent of the union’s 5,100-member bargaining unit participated in the vote — a turnout number that HUCTW President Carrie Barbash said she felt was strong, citing long lines at polling locations in Longwood and at Fenway Park.

“There was just a really great energy, a nice turnout, a lot of people excited to have the contract go through,” Barbash said.

“That was really fun to see and makes you feel good that everybody — the majority of people — are supportive of this.”

Union members will start to see raises as early as Dec. 21, Barbash said. Members who have been employed by the union for one year will receive a 3.8 percent raise initially; in the second and third years of the

See contract Page 3

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |

december 7, 2018

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Harvard Today

For Lunch “Local Fresh Catch” Fried Chicken Vindaloo Roasted Vegetable Panini with Eggplant

For Dinner Mather Turkey Burger St. Louis Style Pork Baby Back Ribs Vegetable Pot Pie with Biscuits

Today’s Events

in The Real World

Christmas in Cambridge First Church in Cambridge, Congregational, U.C.C., 8-9:30 p.m.

New Jeep Factory in Detroit, Jobs to Follow Fiat Chrysler is remodeling a defunct Detroit facility for the production of a new seven-seat Jeep, adding much-needed jobs to the struggling area as other auto manufacturers continue to leave the area. The remodeling is scheduled to occur over the next one to two years, with an estimated minimum of 1,800 employees once the facility is fully operational.

What’s a better way to spend the first Friday of Reading Period than getting into the holiday spirit with some sweet carols? Kick off the Christmas season with some festive tunes from the Harvard Glee Club and Radcliffe Choral Society at the First Church in Cambridge.

The Sellout Show hosted by the Immediate Gratification Players Science Center E, 8 p.m.

Head over to Science Center E to catch some improv and econ major roasts for a last dose of humor before you transform into a full-time Lamonster next week. Hey, everyone needs a little light in their lives before the impending doom of finals gets too real.

Yellow Vest Protests Continue in France

Crema Cafe in Harvard Square will close before the end of the year. anya x. zhang

Daily Briefing President Bacow released a long-awaited report reviewing the University’s Title IX policies and addressed concerns over how Harvard will adapt its guidelines to proposed government rules in an email to students Thursday.

In other news, Cantabrigians and Harvard affiliates gathered to light candles on a large menorah four days after an unidentified man knocked it down — and a Chinese researcher who reportedly went missing after claiming he had successfully generated gene-edited babies appears to have broken his silence in an email to The Crimson.

France’s proposed hike in fuel taxes have been met with a considerable resistance from its citizens across the country. Demonstrations and protests in Paris have prompted the cancellation of four French league soccer matches and temporary closure of the Eiffel Tower, as well as looting and property damage in neighborhoods and stores.

Body Discovered Near Lynn Playground A local dog-walker was out for a stroll in Lynn Park when he discovered what he believed was a fake burned body. After calling a neighbor to investigate, the two determined the corpse was real and contacted the authorities. The body is still in the process of being identified, and an investigation is underway.

Around the Ivies Yale Yale College Dean Marvin Chun wrote in an email to students that shopping week in New Haven will become “more structured” beginning next semester, per the Yale Daily News. Among the changes are rules mandating professors post syllabi earlier and an expedited system for notifying students about course lottery results. Chun added that he hopes to eventually phase out Yale’s shopping system in favor of preregistration.

UPENN Graduate students at the University of Pennsylvania said they do not expect University administrators to change their position on student unionization, per the Daily Pennsylvanian. UPenn administrators’ stance comes amid progress made by graduate unions at other universities, including Brown and Columbia. Get Employees TogetherUniversity of Pennsylvania decided to halt their effort to unionize in February, fearing Trumpappointed labor officials would rule against them in a potential legal proceeding.

columbia The Columbia Spectator reported new details of a closed door University Senate process that eventually resulted in a rule banning all relationships between undergraduates and faculty.

The rule was first made public last spring, but administrators made changes over the summer not announced to Senate members. Some Columbia faculty said the lack of consultation is part of a larger pattern of secrecy. Attendance at Senate meetings has also fallen in 2018, according to the same report.

The University Daily, Est. 1873

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Associate Managing Editors Mia C. Karr ’19 Claire E. Parker ’19 Associate Business Managers Dahlia S. Huh ’19 Max W. Sosland ’19 Digital Strategists Jamie D. Halper ’20 Caroline S. Engelmayer ’20 Editorial Chairs Cristian D. Pleters ’19 Emmanuel R. R. D’Agostino ’19

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Copyright 2018, The Harvard Crimson (USPS 236-560). No articles, editorials, cartoons or any part thereof appearing in The Crimson may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the President. The Associated Press holds the right to reprint any materials published in The Crimson. The Crimson is a non-profit, independent corporation, founded in 1873 and incorporated in 1967. Second-class postage paid in Boston, Massachusetts. Published Monday through Friday except holidays and during vacations, three times weekly during reading and exam periods by The Harvard Crimson Inc., 14 Plympton St., Cambridge, Mass. 02138 Weather icons made by Freepik, Yannick, Situ Herrera, OCHA, SimpleIcon, Catalin Fertu from flaticon.com is licensed by CC BY 3.0.

Story Editors Jamie D. Halper ’20 Mia C. Karr ’19 Claire E. Parker ’19 Alison W. Steinbach ’19 Michael E. Xie ’20

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Corrections The Harvard Crimson is committed to accuracy in its reporting. Factual errors are corrected promptly on this page. Readers with information about errors are asked to e-mail the managing editor at managingeditor@thecrimson.com.

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | December 7, 2018

Clerical Union Votes to Ratify New Contract contract, the average member will see their pay rise by 3.5 percent annually.

Another major change that the new contract will bring is an overhaul of policies dictating the University’s use of parttime workers. A union analysis of University employment data showed that, through loopholes and misclassifications on their payrolls, the University eked out extra work from around 300 of these workers last year without pay.

The new contract contains several provisions that attempt to curb this issue, including limits on the hours and durations of employment of some types of part-time workers.

These policies will force departments to choose whether to convert part-time positions into full-time union jobs, or double down and continue to hire a series of part-time employees, sending them packing once the workers reach the limits of the new policy.

The contract’s new parttime work policies will take effect in March, after a 90-day adjustment period elapses. Until then, the union plans to meet with managers and members across Harvard’s schools to “encourage” management to create

unionized positions and to ease the transition to the new system, Barbash said.

“We want to work with members, with managers, with HR, to make sure that it’s done in a way that doesn’t put ex-

There was just a really great energy, a nice turnout, a lot of people excited to have the contract go through.

Carrie Barbash HUCTW President

tra work on our members,” she said. “That’s one thing we’re very concerned about, because it is going to be reducing how you can use temporary and LHT workers, and that’s something that some departments have been relying on very heavily.”

The agreement, which replaces a contract that expired in September 2018, will be binding for the next three years. molly.mccafferty@thecrimson.com

Chinese Researcher Responds to Criticism By luke w. vrotsos Crimson Staff Writer

A Chinese researcher who claims to have successfully generated the world’s first gene-edited babies vowed to defend his work Wednesday after scientists worldwide — including Harvard professors and administrators — strongly condemned his actions.

In an email to The Crimson, He Jiankui wrote he is working on a paper that will respond to criticism that his gene-editing of human embryos violates ethical standards. He’s email appeared to mark his first public communication in at least a week — and came after multiple news outlets reported the scientist had seemingly gone missing.

“I will publish my paper and this question will be answered ­

I will publish my paper and this question will be answered in my paper.

He Jiankui Chinese Researcher

in my paper,” He wrote in an email sent Dec. 5 at 6:05 a.m.

Eastern Standard Time. He was responding to a question asking whether he wished to comment on critiques of his research.

Prior to his email to The Crimson, He had not been seen or heard from in over a week, according to outlets including the Huffington Post, the Cut, Gizmodo, and Newsweek. Local newspapers had reported that Chinese authorities had placed He under house arrest, but a spokesperson for the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen — where He had served as an associate professor — told the South China Morning Post on Monday that that was not true.

“Right now nobody’s information is accurate, only the official channels are,” the spokesperson told the South China Morning Post. “We cannot answer any questions regarding the matter right now, but if we have any information, we will update it through out official channels.”

He sent his email to The Crimson from what appeared to be his official Southern University of Science and Technology email address.

He signed the message “JK” — fitting with previous media reports that he sometimes goes by his initials.

The global controversy over He’s work began last Monday at an international conference — the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing — held at the University of Hong Kong.

At the conference, He said he had successfully altered a

gene in human embryos using CRISPR-Cas9, a revolutionary gene-editing technology for which Harvard- and MIT-affiliated researcher Feng Zhang ‘04 holds the patent.

He said he then implanted the embryos in the womb of a woman who later gave birth to twin sisters.

Gene-editing of humans is illegal in countries around the world including the United States; China has now paused He’s work and is probing whether the researcher violated any of its laws, according to the New York Times.

He said he used CRISPR to disable a gene called CCR5 in an effort to make the twin sisters resistant to H.I.V. He has not revealed the identity of the girls or their parents, instead dubbing the sisters “Lulu” and “Nana.”

Some have raised concerns that couples involved in He’s research did not know about the risks of embryo editing before they agreed to participate in his study.

One of the major risks of CRISPR gene-editing is the technology’s “off-target” effects — meaning the way CRISPR can sometimes lead to the alteration of genes not intended for editing. He previously said in a video that Lulu and Nana were “born normally and healthy,” though no one has verified his claims.

He also said he has submitted his work to a scientific journal, but none of his research

I find both the ethical side and the scientific side of it to be pretty appalling.

David R. Liu Harvard Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology

Musicians Join Dunster Messiah Sing By joshua a. archibald and liana e. chow contributing Writers

The floors of the Dunster House dining hall trembled Wednesday evening as more than 140 musicians from within and beyond Harvard participated in the 47th annual Dunster House Messiah Sing under the direction of conductor Edward E. Jones.

Rows of seats arranged in an arc supplanted the dining hall tables for the evening, during which participants consumed holiday treats and sang along to Handel’s “Messiah.”

The Bach Society Orchestra and vocal soloist performers from the College accompanied the chorus of audience members, which comprised both amateur and professional musicians.

Jones, the Memorial Church choirmaster, paused the mu­

sic several times to correct the singers on their diction and dynamics, but eventually also praised the diction of one particularly satisfactory consonant.

“That was such a good ‘T,’” he said. “It absolves us of everything that happened before.”

Jones has conducted the Dunster Messiah Sing for nearly a decade and said more people participated in this year’s event than usual.

“They did well,” Jones said.

“They responded to a bit of direction, and a bit of bullying from me. People love this piece.”

Jones said the audience participation format energizes the event.

“This music is meant to be immediately engaging and engaged with. I love doing Messiah with a tiny group, and with a small professional chorus, but I also love doing masses of people and a big read-through,” he

said. “It doesn’t get old.”

The event was open to the public, giving Harvard musicians the opportunity to sing with Messiah enthusiasts not otherwise associated with Harvard.

“It’s a very beloved tradition both for Harvard and in the wider community as well,” Jones said.

Benjamin P. Wenzelberg ’21, who performed a countertenor solo, said he was “really grateful” to have been involved.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for a bunch of singers to come together and enjoy some great music,” he said.

Paula J. Waters, a self-described “Messiah junkie” who has been performing the piece for 40 years, travelled from Stafford, Conn. to attend.

She struck up a conversation with Tova Leigh-Choate, who travelled all the way from Utah to support her daughter’s per-

formance in the orchestra, as they sang next to each other.

“I love the community of a Messiah sing,” Choate said.

“We’ve never met until now, and I feel this immediate bond with her.”

Waters said the Messiah Sing often includes reunions with people that they met at previous events.

“If you come here long enough, every year you see the same people,” Waters said. “You meet people and we see each other every year.”

After the singing concluded, Jones said he hoped the tradition would continue on for many more decades.

“Probably some of them have been singing for the whole 47 years this has been in existence,” Jones said. “I hope we keep doing it for another 47 years at least.”

Malala Yousafzai Accepts Award By jonah s. berger and sydnie m. cobb and amanda y. su Crimson Staff Writers

Malala Yousafzai, winner of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize and a crusader for female education around the world, urged Harvard students on Thursday evening to passionately use their voices to enact change.

At the beginning of the event, Yousafzai accepted Harvard Kennedy School’s 2018 Gleitsman International Activist Award, which comes with a $125,000 prize. Yousafzai gave a short speech followed by a discussion with the audience, moderated by Samantha J. Power, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

“Right now, there are 130 million girls who do not have access to a quality education,” Yousafzai said in her speech.

“We should all make it our challenge to challenge those critical views, all those religious beliefs, and all those cultures that deny us an education.”

Yousafzai, a Pakistani native, gained global recognition for her outspoken support of

girls’ education in the wake of the Taliban’s occupation of her home village. She was shot by a Taliban gunman in 2012 in retaliation for her activism.

Power, who served under President Barack Obama from 2013 to 2017, alluded to the ongoing debate in the United States over the acceptance of refugees, asking Yousafzai about her message for the bipartisan delegation of newly elected members of Congress visiting Harvard for the Kennedy School’s annual “Bipartisan Program.”

Yousafzai urged politicians to be more “welcoming” and sympathetic to the plight of refugees.

“I think, firstly, don’t greet refugees with tear gas,” she said.

“We should not assume that it is these people’s fault that they are refugees.”

Multiple times over the course of her speech, Yousafzai said the threat of climate change should remind people of the shared humanity of refugees and other at-risk groups.

“We need to look at it from the human eye and be more

welcoming and consider themselves as our brothers and sisters,” she added. “And let’s understand that we are living on this one Planet Earth, which is already in danger, which is already at a great risk because of climate change.”

New York Representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — in attendance with other participants in the Bipartisan Program — asked Yousafzai what role men play in the “liberation” of women.

“A very large amount of successful women, whether they’re female CEOs of Fortune 500s, or female heads of state, one of the most … common things that they talk about is that they all report a strong relationship with their fathers,” Ocasio-Cortez noted.

Yousafzai cited her own father’s evolution growing up in an environment in which women had almost no rights to becoming a wholehearted supporter of his daughter’s work.

“He knew that it was unfair,” she said. “He knew that he had to change, so he challenged himself first and said, ‘I’m not going to treat my daughter

this way. I’m going to send her to school. I’m going to let her speak out.’”

The Gleitzman Award, whose previous recipients include South African President Nelson Mandela and U.S. Representative John R. Lewis, is awarded biennially to an individual who has “sparked positive social change and inspired others to do the same,” according to the Kennedy School’s website.

In an interview prior to the event, Yousafzai called it a “great honor” to be back at Harvard, five years after first visiting the University to receive the Harvard Foundation’s Peter J. Gomes Humanitarian Award.

She urged students to devote more time and effort toward promoting girls’ education.

“The world needs this generation, especially who are receiving quality education in such incredible institutions, to actually go back and invest in their communities,” she said.

“To go back and invest the skills they are learning here, the talent they are developing here.”

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Merkel to Speak to Grads

leadership has done much to shape the course not only of her nation, but also of Europe and the larger world,” Bacow said.

Merkel is the fourth German chancellor to speak at Harvard’s Commencement. Prior to Merkel, seven Commencement speakers in a row — including the civil rights activist John R. Lewis in 2018 and Facebook founder Mark E. Zuckerberg — hailed from the United States.

The last international Harvard Commencement speaker was President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who spoke

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Angela Merkel is one of our era’s most globally respected leaders.

has been published to date. It is unclear whether the paper He referenced in his email to The Crimson is the same paper He claims to have submitted for publication.

Over the last week, He’s claims of embryo gene-editing have drawn sharp criticism from the international scientific community.

In an email, Harvard Medical School Dean George Q. Daley ’82 joined the disapproving chorus.

“Standards were clearly violated by the Chinese scientist,” he wrote.

In an interview, David R. Liu, a Harvard professor of chemistry and chemical biology, questioned both the scientific and ethical integrity of He’s work.

“I find both the ethical side and the scientific side of it to be pretty appalling,” Liu said.

He earned a doctorate in biophysics from Rice University and completed postdoctoral research at Stanford University.

at the 2011 iteration of the ceremony.

In addition to giving a speech, Merkel will receive an honorary Harvard degree next May. Margaret M. Wang ’09, president of the Harvard Alumni Association, said in a statement that she is “thrilled” Merkel will be Harvard’s Commencement speaker this spring.

“Angela Merkel is one of our era’s most globally respected leaders, a statesperson of formidable intellect, commitment, empathy, and principle,” Wang said. “I am thrilled she will join us at this year’s Commencement and look forward to her address during this time when we seek inspiration from our global leaders.”

luke.vrotsos@thecrimson.com

iris.lewis@thecrimson.com

Margaret M. Wang ’09 Harvard Alumni Association President

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december 7, 2018

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Political Stars, Protesting at HKS

Bacow Pubs Title IX Policy Report

Transportation Elaine L. Chao and Goldman Sachs President Gary D. Cohn. The members also attended a speech from Harvard’s own “freshman” leader — recently inaugurated University President Lawrence S. Bacow.

Congresswoman-elect Lori Trahan (D-MA) said Bacow gave attendees “life advice” as well as counsel on how to navigate public life.

“He was terrific in terms of giving us an inspiring opening comment in terms of the enormity of the task on us and the expectation that with the size of this incoming class, with the diversity of this incoming class, we can achieve great things,” Trahan said.

Cong resswoma n-elect Ayanna S. Pressley (D-MA) wrote in an email that she was “excited” by her colleagues at the orientation.

“I am excited by the energy of this freshman class, and in these early weeks we have already built momentum on key issues, critical gun control legislation and raising awareness of the Green New Deal,” Pressley wrote.

“This is a group that is not afraid to be bold and is ready to get to work on aspirational, progressive legislation.”

This year’s midterm elections saw Democrats win control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Republicans maintain their majority in the Senate. Voters in the 2018 election also elected a historically diverse group of candidates that included an unprecedented number of Native Americans, Muslim and African American women, and BGLTQ candidates.

More than 100 women will serve in the House for the first time in history.

The Kennedy School event wraps up a series of activities

for the newly elected members of Congress, who have attended several orientations in Washington, D.C. after winning office in November.

Several newly elected members of Congress said the threeday orientation served not only as a chance to listen to experts but also as an opportunity to get to know other freshmen members of Congress. Sessions were closed to the press, and the schedule of the events was not publicly released.

“The purpose was for us to spend time with our colleagues before going into Congress so that we can build the proper relationships and try to get things done for the American people,” Congresswoman-elect Deb Haaland (D-NM) said.

“We find a common ground for most things, so it’s been good,” Haalend added.

The orientation — which has occurred after every congressional election since its inception in 1972 — was hosted in collaboration with the conservative think tank American Enterprise Institute, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and the Congressional Institute.

Congressman Harley Rouda (D-CA) said he went to “fabulous” sessions that took “a really deep dive into numerous areas of interest that have been put on by the Institute with some of the best speakers and authoritative individuals on the respective topics that we could have.”

Rouda said he attended a panel on “civility and democracy” that HKS professor David R. Gergen moderated. The panel included Government Professor Danielle S. Allen and President of the AEI Arthur C. Brooks.

The presence of private sector leaders drew criticism from some of the members-elect on social media.

Congresswoman-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who shared her experiences on Twitter throughout the orientation, tweeted Thursday that she heard from four “corporate CEOS” and zero “Labor leaders.”

“Our ‘bipartisan’ Congressional orientation is co hosted by a corporate lobbyist group,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “Other members have quietly expressed to me their concern that this wasn’t told to us in advance.

Lobbyists are here. Goldman Sachs is here. Where‘s labor?

Activists? Frontline community leaders?”

In a press conference Thursday, Director of the IOP Mark D. Gearan ’78 said the IOP is “welcoming feedback” from the Congress members-elect.

“We’re certainly not here to push any agenda. Our interest is creating a space for Republicans and Democrats,” Gearan said.

“This is a university. Any good university reviews its curriculum, reviews it coursework and thinks of ways we might want to go forward. So from my perspective, we would welcome that sort of feedback,” he added.

The orientation also saw a number of protests occur in concurrence with the scheduled events — and some of the soon-to-be members of Congress joined in themselves.

Congressman-elect Rashida H. Tlaib (D-MI) and Ocasio-Cortez both spoke briefly at a rally organized by the College’s immigrant rights group, Act on a Dream, Wednesday night. The demonstration attracted close to 50 people, including Harvard affiliates and community activists.

Laura S. Veira-Ramirez ’20, an organizer from Act on a Dream, said the group wanted to hold a rally to ensure they could keep this freshman class accountable on immigration is-

sues.

“We just want to make sure that they know that we see them, and that we are just watching to make sure that they know that our communities are under attack constantly, but we don’t have the kind of political power that they have to institute change,” said Ramirez, who is also a Crimson Editorial editor.

Ocasio-Cortez, along with Tlaib, Congressman-elect Andrew S. Levin (D-MI), and Congressman-elect Joseph Neguse (D-CO), joined Harvard students and other demonstrators during a rally to promote the Green New Deal — a series of environmental policies several prominent Democratic legislators have proposed — and to call on the IOP to include sessions during the orientation specifically on climate change.

“The biggest way that they try to push back is to make you and trick you into believing that no one is listening,” Ocasio-Cortez said to the crowd of graduate students and organizers.

“They don’t want you to think that your chants that are getting up through that window, that they don’t hear it, but let me tell you, we hear your chants up there.”

Gearan wrote in a statement provided by a spokesperson that the protestors brought “diverse perspectives” that Congress’s freshman class heard at the orientation.

“The goal of this conference is to bring newly elected members from both parties together to build relationships with each other and hear diverse perspectives,” Gearan wrote. “That includes those of students, which many members have said meeting were a highlight of their experiences here.” alexandra.chaidez@thecrimson.com

Crema to Leave Harv. Square in Late Dec. By isabel m. kendall and ema r. schumer Crimson Staff Writers

Crema Cafe, a Harvard Square fixture for the past ten years, will shutter its doors around December 17, its owners have announced.

The Cafe will be replaced by Bluestone Lane — an Australian coffee chain with locations in New York, California, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia — which has acquired the lease on Crema’s current space at 27 Brattle St. Crema co-owner Liza Shirazi will open a new cafe in Davis Square called Revival Cafe, which she said will feature familiar menu options and staff.

Asana Partners, a real estate investment firm that bought property on Brattle Street last year, including Crema’s storefront, decided to not renew Crema’s lease.

“We were notified that they were moving forward with another party,” Shirazi said.Shi-

razi’s business partner Thomas J. Brush, who also owns Felipe’s Taqueria and Flat Patties, said Asana did not renew its lease with Crema due to declining returns at the cafe. “I don’t fault the landlord for not renewing our lease,” he said. “Crema sales dropped 30 to 35 percent in two years.”

Crema’s impending closure comes at a time when property values in the Square are skyrocketing and local businesses have started to feel pressure from increased rents and competition from big business. The rapid change in Harvard Square has sparked concerns among business owners and residents alike. Caroline A. James, a member of the Harvard Square Neighborhood Association, said she is deeply concerned about the rising rents.

“This is just the beginning,” she said. “These rents are just going to keep going up and up.

It’s a ticking time bomb.”

Assessed property values in Harvard Square nearly dou-

bled between fiscal years 2012 and 2017, an explosive growth that has contributed to rising rents and high turnover among Square businesses. Denise A. Jillson, executive director of the Harvard Square Business Association, presented a more positive outlook.

“Change is inevitable,” Jillson said. “While many are sad to see businesses close such as Café Algiers, Rialto and now Crema, folks are raving about Benedetto and looking forward to the opening of Longfellow.”

Students who frequent Crema praised the cafe’s authenticity and connection to the community. “I like that it has more of a Cambridge feel than Tatte or Blue Bottle, which are bigger Boston or New York chains. So it feels very much authentic and [has] a homey vibe,” Mckinley C. Lovett ’20 said. Ajay V. Singh ’21 shared one aspect of Crema that he will miss: “Crema has this large beautiful bulletin board for members of the community to post events, which I

love to peruse as I wait for my drinks.”

Sheridan N. Marsh ’20, who said Crema is her favorite cafe in the Square, lamented the trend of small business closures. “I liked having stuff that was unique to Harvard Square and having local businesses where you would know who the owner is and all that kind of stuff,” she said. OurHarvardSquare, a group of Cambridge residents committed to the preservation of Harvard Square, created a last-ditch petition to save Crema. “It was my favorite cafe, I go there way too much and it would be a shame if we lost Crema, so we started the petition,” said Caroline James, who is also a member of OurHarvardSquare.

Reflecting on her time at Crema and its impending closure, Shirazi said she wanted to thank the community.

“We will definitely miss being a part of this community and miss all of our customers, past and present,” she said.

Professor Donald H. Pfister — began work with an updated charge from Faust in March after decades-old allegations of sexual harassment against Government Professor Jorge I. Dominguez surfaced in February.

Eighteen women publicly accused Dominguez of sexual harassing them between 1979 and 2015. In a subsequent communication to the review committee updating its mission, Faust wrote about needing to earn the trust of community members and to recognize the power dynamics inherent in academic life.

“We need to acknowledge the profound influence members of the faculty have over junior faculty and students,” she wrote.

The resulting report, which the committee sent to Bacow in October, includes 10 primary recommendations. The report suggests increasing communication between Title IX administrators and students, sharing more information about Title IX complaints with students and other University affiliates, increasing transparency around potential consequences for misconduct, addressing “gray zones” of misconduct, creating new avenues for reporting policy violations, and setting clear standards for behavior and relationships.

“We must empower people to educate themselves about the issues and to understand the role that bystanders can play in intervening and preventing harassment,” Bacow wrote in his email. “We must create the conditions where people feel secure in disclosing harassment when it does happen and to seek resolution.”

In his email, Bacow also linked to a separate letter he sent to the committee yesterday outlining steps he has taken since receiving its recommen-

dations. Bacow wrote that he had accepted all of the group’s suggestions. He wrote that he has asked the Title IX Office to develop electronic complaint filing and electronic disclosure systems, instructed the Office of the General Counsel to work with schools to develop policies for “gray area” conduct, and explored expanding confidential peer reporting services to Harvard’s graduate schools.

Bacow wrote that the Title IX Office and the Office for Dispute Resolution — which investigates formal Title IX complaints independently from the Title IX Office — will release their annual joint report on sexual misconduct incident rates next week.

Soon after Bacow sent his email, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science Claudine Gay followed with a separate email focused on similar issues.

Gay wrote that it is important to collect good data about campus climate surrounding sexual misconduct, to recognize power imbalances between senior and junior faculty that can lead to harassment, and to address conduct that does not fall under Title IX policies but is damaging nonetheless.

“We must set about the challenge of preventing sexual and gender-based harassment and discrimination with the urgency, seriousness, and resourcefulness we would bring to bear on any threat to our mission of academic excellence,” she wrote.

The University is scheduled to take part in a sexual misconduct climate survey in the spring, four years after it participated in similar survey that found that thirty-one percent of senior undergraduate women said they had experienced some form of sexual assault while enrolled at the College. jamie.halper@thecrimson.com

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | december 7, 2018

Harv. Affiliates Win Schwarzman Fellowship By ellen m. burstein, laura c. espinoza, and tamar sarig Contributing Writers

Ten University affiliates — including seven Harvard seniors — learned this week they would have the opportunity to study for a Master’s degree in Beijing as part of the Schwarzman Scholars program next year.

Jesper W. Ke ’19 and Kabir K. Gandhi ’19, both inactive Crimson editors, as well as Felipe I. Flores ’19, Isabella S. Colocci ’19, John P. Beadle ’19, Melissa Li ’19, and Theodore S. Breyer ’19 are the seven seniors awarded the fellowship.

They will be joined by Andrew R. Chang ’18, Priscilla W. Guo ’18, and Extension School student Farid Nemri in China as members of the program’s ­

fourth class of scholars.

Beginning in the fall of 2019, the 147 Schwarzman Scholars will study at Beijing’s Tsinghua University for an academic year, graduating with a Master’s degree in Global Affairs.

Scholars choose between concentrations in public policy, international studies, or economics, and they accompany their classroom studies with hands-on experience in their fields of interest.

Students also study Mandarin during their time studying in Beijing.

For several of Harvard’s newly minted scholars, the opportunity to combine their academic interests with an international experience made the Schwarzman Scholars fellowship particularly appealing post-graduation.

Li, who studies Neurobiology with a secondary in Global Health and Health Policy, saw the program as a chance to explore healthcare in China firsthand and learn more about public policy from an international perspective.

“There’s a lot we can learn from how China’s currently growing and grappling with the different issues it’s facing in its rapid growth,” she said.

Colocci, an integrative biology concentrator, saw the fellowship as a means of approaching issues she learned about at Harvard from a “new lens.”

“I’ve been doing a lot of science stuff at Harvard, that I kind of thought that I should take a year to see how people from more social science or other backgrounds approach it,” she said.

“Especially because there kind of seems to be a divide between people who study science and policymakers who might not have.”

Flores, a native Chilean, said the positive and productive relations between Chile and China in recent years motivated him to apply to the program.

He said his interest in the intersection of public policy, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals also made China an attractive place to learn more about interactions between government and society.

“One day, when I go back to Chile and do public service, which I definitely want to do at one point, I will incorporate this knowledge of how China works into Chile-China relations and have them as partners in advancement of re-

search and technology,” Flores said.

Gandhi said he looks forward to his year in China to learn about and implement ideas related to impact investing.

He encouraged other students to look into international experiences to learn about and gain new perspectives on issues they study in Harvard classes.

“You can read countless news articles, you can take classes, but if you really want to understand what’s going on and how to actually make a difference, there’s no better way than to spend some time on the ground,” Gandhi said.

The Schwarzman Scholars program was founded by CEO and co-founder of financial firm Blackstone Stephen A. Schwarzman.

Shopping Week Committee to Deliver Report

By Cecelia r. d’arms Crimson Staff Writer ­A faculty committee tasked with reviewing potential changes to undergraduate course enrollment expects to deliver its recommendation to the Faculty of Arts and Sciences in January, according to the committee’s chair.

The faculty committee, which began its work in September after the Faculty rejected a proposal to end “shopping week,” held three formal “listening sessions” to gather input from undergraduates in the succeeding months. Under the current system, College students register for classes after “shopping week,” a weeklong period at the start of the semes-

ter when students can walk in and out of classes before officially enrolling.

Once the committee delivers its recommendation in January, Committee Chair and Philosophy Professor Bernhard Nickel said he and his colleagues expect a full Faculty vote on the committee’s recommendations in April. If one or more of the recommendations pass, Nickel said he anticipates they will go into effect in the spring semester of 2021 at the earliest. The move to potentially eliminate shopping week has stirred up controversy among the undergraduate population.

Ajay V. Singh ’21, an Undergraduate Council representative who attended all three listening sessions, said shopping

week has been integral to his college experience. Singh said he has never met “a single undergraduate” who didn’t support shopping week.

Singh cited a recent UC survey of 1,883 undergraduates which he said showed “incredible” support for shopping week.

Nickel and Dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda J. Claybaugh said that all the students who spoke in the listening sessions supported shopping week, and Nickel said his committee “take[s] that seriously.”

But Nickel and Claybaugh both said the system also poses problems for undergraduates.

“I’m responsible for making sure that students’ education is the best it can be,” Claybaugh said. Claybaugh cited uncer-

tainty about class size, underprepared graduate teaching fellows, and a “lost” week of instruction time as downsides to shopping week for College students. Nickel also said the UC survey indicated students felt anxious about class lottery results late in the week. Claybaugh said the current system is “not always fair” to graduate students. The Office of Undergraduate Education plans to release a website this week to publicize the various proposed changes to shopping week and allow students to give input as they prepare to make a proposal, according to Nickel.

“We’re putting together a website right now to document and collect all the information that’s relevant to our deliber-

ations that we want to make available to all the members of the University,” Nickel said. “All this information: How many TF’s had to switch courses?

How many courses lost a section or gained a section?”

Nickel added that the website will have a place for students to give input “on the front page”.

Claybaugh said she was surprised at the level of interest this issue has drawn among students and faculty.

“I used to think I understood this issue really fully,” Claybaugh said, “I used to think, yeah, we’ll probably end up voting maybe to get rid of shopping period. And now, I don’t know.” cecelia,d’arms@thecrimson.com.

Former UN Ambassador Power Locals Gather After Talks Human Rights at IOP Menorah Toppling menorah From Page 1

By camille g. caldera and sam e. sharfstein Contributing writers

Samantha J. Power, former United States Ambassador to the United Nations, spoke about the importance of human rights at the Institute of Politics Wednesday evening in commemoration of next week’s 70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

At the event, hosted by the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum, Power emphasized “three of the major cross-cutting issues” that she sees as the most impactful for human rights in the coming years: the global democratic recession, the proliferation of technology, and the rise of China.

Though she discussed the threats and dangers of each, Power also expressed optimism about the future of human rights and issued a call to action to students.

“I would like to make the case — especially to the students out there this evening — as to why now is absolutely the right time to get involved in the fight to ensure that human rights expand, rather than contract, in your respective lifetimes,” she said.

Salil Shetty, the former secretary general of Amnesty International, spoke briefly after Power and shared her optimistic outlook. He said he attributed “the major gains of the last 70 years to the fact that we have had human rights, not just as a concept, but as an enforceable concept.”

Yasmin P. Forbes, a fellow at the Carr Center, said she found the talk engaging because of the speakers’ interesting perspectives and discussion of contemporary human rights issues. ­

“I thought it was extremely effective,” Forbes said. “It is not really easy to get a hall full of people on a Wednesday evening, but obviously, Kennedy School students and Harvard students sort of think it is a really important topic, human rights, and it is still relevant to their lives.”

Sahar Amarir, a graduate student at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, said she came to the event “to see if there would be a little bit more intellectual honesty in the field of human rights.”

During the event, Amarir

We may not end up changing the entire world, but we are changing someone’s world, and I think on the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration, there can be nothing more worthwhile than that.

Samantha J. Power Former Ambassador to the United Nations

asked Power about the hypocrisy of American human rights advocacy, given the human rights violations committed by the United States itself, and specifically referred to U.S. policy in the Middle East.

“Had people given up because we commit human rights abuses, we’re just going to end up with more human rights abuses,” Power replied. Her answer elicited audience applause.

After the event, Amarir said she was frustrated with Power’s response.

“Just admit the fact that the reason why human rights are not upheld and respected the

Now is absolutely the time to get involved in the fight to ensure that human rights expand rather than contract.

Samantha J. Power Former Ambassador to the United Nations

way they should be is also because we give an image of us being the ultimate upholders of human rights, and we are not respecting human rights,” Amarir said.

Throughout her talk, Power emphasized the need for people to become more involved in human rights work, and gave specific examples of Harvard students who are aiding immigrants, tutoring refugees, and serving as activists. She summed up her approach to starting human rights work and addressing local needs with the phrase “shrink the change.”

“The symptoms of human rights challenges are humans, so addressing symptoms is incredibly significant,” Power said. “By shrinking the initial change, we may not end up changing the entire world, but we are changing someone’s world, and I think on the 70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration, there can be nothing more worthwhile than that.”

amid a rising tide of anti-Semitic events in the United States.

On Oct. 27, 11 people died and six were wounded in a mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Penn.

The Anti-Defamation League reported that anti-Semitic events increased by 60 percent last year, marking the largest single-year spike on record.

At Thursday’s lighting, Cambridge Mayor Marc C. McGovern thanked the Cantabrigians who pushed the menorah upright, including Harvard affiliate and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ron Suskind.

After seeing the menorah on the ground Sunday afternoon, Suskind and several others worked to restore the menorah while waiting for the police to arrive.

McGovern presented Suskind and the other menorah-savers with certificates honoring their service to the city of Cambridge.

Several speakers at the event, including Suskind and McGovern, said they saw Thursday’s candle lighting as a show of unity.

“This generation is one in which horrible things have occured, each of them giving us an opportunity to show that thing we share,” Suskind said. “Before we said, ‘In God we trust,’ the motto of this country was ‘E Pluribus Unum’ — from many one — and I see that as the moment of opportunity now, that this diverse group of people got together and did something for the good of all.”

Others pointed to the meaning of Hanukkah, the symbolism of the menorah, and the importance of the candles.

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Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi, the founder and director of Chabad, said his group chooses to place the menorah in Cambridge Common each year because of its visibility to students and residents.

He said he hopes people passing the menorah in cars or by foot can “listen to the message of the flames.”

This generation is one in which horrible things have occured, each of them giving us an opportunity to show that thing we share.

Ron Suskind Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist

“We are focusing on the act of the response — that’s been what was unique about this event,” Zarchi said. “It was very much in the Hanukkah spirit: to restore, to rebuild, to introduce the light and dispel the darkness. That’s the story we tell, of love and light triumphing over darkness that drove this individual.”

Cambridge Police Department spokesperson Jeremy Warnick wrote in an email that the CPD investigation into the incident remains open, but that the Department has “yet to identify a suspect.” shera.avi-yonah@thecrimson.com

Student Push Narcan Access By michelle g. kurilla Contributing writer ­

Two Harvard seniors — inspired after taking a course on the opioid epidemic — are lobbying the University to distribute Narcan, a narcotic blocking nasal spray, in automatic external defibrillator cabinets across campus. The students leading the effort, Eana X. Meng ’19 and Kailash Sundaram ’19, said they hope to raise awareness on campus of the problems of overdosing. This fall, the duo took History of Science Professor Allan M. Brandt’s class History of Science 249: “The Opioid Epidemic in Historical Perspective,” which traced the emergence of the opioid epidemic in the U.S. and considered it in relation to similar epidemics in history.

“We spent a good deal of time talking about how there is a perception sometimes on campus that the opioid epidemic doesn’t really affect Harvard, and I think the students in the course really wanted to find approaches to make people more aware, to understand more clearly, the problems of drug use,” Brandt said in an interview.

Meng said she decided to take the class this fall because of her interest in the crisis as well as her focus on pain management and alternative medicine. Sundaram, a social studies concentrator, said he took the course to support his thesis research on the opioid epidemic.

Meng and Sundaram said they were motivated to put the material they were learning in class into action on campus, with the goal of making Harvard a safer environment.Narcan — a brand of Naxloxone — can be administered intravenously or via nasal spray. Treating someone who has overdosed on opioids immediately with Narcan can reverse the effects of an overdose temporarily, allowing time to get the person to a hospital before symptoms return.

“A harm reduction approach that we talked a lot about was Naloxone access and distribution and just having that available could help save people’s lives,” Sundaram said.

After the students proposed making Naloxone as easily accessible as AED units in dorms, Adams House Faculty Deans John G. “Sean” Palfrey ’67 and Judith S. “Judy” Palfrey ’67 eagerly supported the students’ efforts by encouraging them and helping them contact resources, according to Meng and Sundaram. In an interview, Sean Palfrey said that he and Judith Palfrey, both pediatricians, initiated the effort to make AEDs widespread on campus 15 years ago after a student passed away due to the lack of an accessible AED. Palfrey said he sees the dangers of opioid abuse as equally significant.

“We’re both pediatricians and professors in pediatrics and public health,” he said. “This is something we deal with all day, every day. Unfortunately, more and more so. We have also been Faculty Deans for 20 years.

We’ve been involved in trying to incorporate instruments that might be very useful, helpful, life-saving in various places around the campus and training tutors and staff and faculty deans.”

Despite faculty and administrator support, Meng and Sundaram said there are a few more steps to take. “We have to figure out where the funding comes from,” Meng said. “Obviously yes, Harvard does have a lot of money, but the money is allocated to specific uses so we’ve talked to our House deans and some of them recommended maybe a private donor.”

Meng and Sundaram plan to meet with wellness teams and University Health Services this month. “The sooner Naloxone is available on campus, the better,” Sundaram said.

University President Lawrence S. Bacow has made efforts to address the opioid crisis a highlight of his first few months in office.

In September, Bacow announced a new partnership with the University of Michigan to plan a summit addressing the opioid crisis. Meng and Sundaram said they hope to see change happening on campus by the time of the summit, but said that Naloxone should not be the permanent solution.

“This is really just the beginning,” Meng said.

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | december 7, 2018

Page 6

Editorial The Crimson Editorial board

column

The Administration of Mental Health

shireen younus — other

C

urrent seniors will still remember the death of Luke Z. Tang ’18 by suicide in 2015. It was a tragedy that deeply impacted the Harvard community and one that will be remembered for years to come. As students, this loss resonates with us — and we and our peers continue to offer our condolences to his family.

The University must take a cooperative role in the treatment process, allow students a chance to have a say in any necessary contracts regarding their treatment, and be transparent about its policies surrounding mental health.

Three years later, Tang’s father filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the University. While it is still too early to draw any meaningful conclusions about the merits of the particular lawsuit, this suit broaches important questions about “contracts” and their role in students’ mental health management.

In order to ensure that students with mental illnesses are being treated fairly and with dignity, the University must take a cooperative role in the treatment process, allow students a chance to have a say in any necessary contracts regarding their treatment, and be transparent about its policies surrounding mental health.

Seeking necessary treatment can be difficult. While Harvard has every right to require students with mental health issues to seek treatment, the University must also recognize that these students may not be able to easily accomplish the requirements it sets forth. The University should therefore have the right personnel, efficient communication methods, and support as needed in place to enroll students in treatment and carry it out. By making the process collaborative, the University can avoid exacerbating any mental health issues, making sure the process is a truly healing one.

The lawsuit alleges that Tang took part in a contract that stipulated conditions for the continuation of his time at the College. While the details of this allegation have yet to be debated in the courtroom, the claim itself speaks to the importance of the University listening to student concerns when such a contract may be necessary. By allowing students presented with such a contract to voice their concerns over the treatment plan, administrators and counselors will be better able to understand the hardships that the student will face in keeping with the contract. Not only will the University be able to create a contract that is feasible for students and therefore become more effective, it may also be able to give students an important sense of control over their treatment plan and thus their relationship with the University.

Finally, it is crucial that the University be transparent about its policies regarding mental illness. This includes publicizing deadlines for requesting time off and defining what types of situations require administrative action. Most importantly, it involves mak-

ing sure that students who do take time off are aware of what they need to do to come back and how they can accomplish those tasks, whether they be filing petitions to the Administrative Board or requesting housing.

In promising to treat students with dignity and respect patient rights, the University can create a healthier environment. Recovering from a mental illness is not an easy task, and administrative burdens can make recovery even more difficult.

In promising to treat students with dignity and respect patient rights, the University can create a healthier environment. Recovering from a mental illness is not an easy task, and administrative burdens can make recovery even more difficult. To ensure that students are able to take the necessary steps and truly heal, the University must take an active and empathetic role.

This staff editorial solely represents the majority view of The Crimson Editorial Board. It is the product of discussions at regular Editorial Board meetings. In order to ensure the impartiality of our journalism, Crimson editors who choose to opine and vote at these meetings are not involved in the reporting of articles on similar topics.

Katherine W.K. Smith—Crimson Photographer

Letter to the Editor

Letter to the Editor: Article Misrepresented Dershowitz

T

o the editor, The Crimson story regarding Jeffrey Epstein omitted the central point I made in my interview with the reporter. I welcome an investigation by Harvard or any other institution, including prosecutors, into the wilfully false charges made by Virginia Roberts for financial gain. Omitting this crucial statement is irresponsible and unethical journalism.

Virginia Roberts leveled her false accusations four years ago. At the time, I disproved them categorically. The matter was put to rest, with even her lawyers admitting that it was a mistake and wrong. Then four years later the Miami Herald recycled this false accusation and The Crimson reported on the Herald’s recycled report. I wrote a letter to the editor of the Herald pointing to the incontrovertible evidence that Roberts made up the accusation out of whole cloth in order to obtain millions of dollars from Leslie Wexner.

I was able to disprove Roberts’ false accusation by producing all of my travel, AmEx, and TV appearance records which showed where I was, and, more importantly, where I wasn’t during the entire period Virginia Roberts was in contact with Jeffrey Epstein. These records prove incontrovertibly that I could not have been, and was not, where Roberts’ falsely claimed to have met me — a Caribbean Island, a New Mexico Ranch, a private jet, a Palm Beach mansion — during the relevant time period.

I also called for an independent investigation by the former Director of the F.B.I., a highly respected former federal judge and assistant U.S. attorney. He reviewed all of the records and

other evidence and concluded that “the totality of the evidence … refutes the allegations.”

In addition, the judge before whom the accusation was made struck the accusation from the record and sanctioned her lawyers for filing it. One of her own lawyers then acknowledged that his client was “wrong” “simply wrong,” and her other lawyers formal-

The Crimson story regarding Jeffrey Epstein omitted the central point I made in my interview with the reporter.

I welcome an investigation

by Harvard or any other institution, including prosecutors, into the wilfully false charges made by Virginia Roberts for financial gain. Omitting this crucial statement is irresponsible and unethical journalism. ly withdrew the accusation, admitting it was a “mistake.”

Not only did Virginia Roberts lie about me, she lied about Al and Tipper Gore and President Bill Clinton claiming that she met the three of them on Jeffrey Epstein’s island — a claim refuted by secret service records that established that none of the three were on that island during that period of time.

There is evidence that direct-

ly proves I was framed. These include emails between Roberts and a journalist, a book manuscript by Roberts and a legal brief that are smoking guns showing that I was “deliberately framed for financial reasons.” These exculpatory documents have been sealed by Roberts’ lawyers and I am seeking to make them public.

Roberts’ closest friend told me that Roberts told her she “felt pressure to go after [Dershowitz]” in order to obtain money from Leslie Wexner and that Roberts had never previously included me among the people with whom she claimed to have had sex. I have a tape recording of this conversation.

Not surprisingly, Roberts made her false claims against me only in court documents that immunize her from being sued for defamation. When she was interviewed by the Miami Herald, she refused to repeat her false allegations outside of court. The Crimson did not ask her directly to repeat her false allegations to them. As a matter of journalistic ethics, The Crimson should not have published an accusation without interviewing the accuser on the record. I now challenge Roberts to repeat her false accusations to The Crimson or other media, so that I can sue her for defamation and let a jury decide — after seeing all the evidence including the emails and book manuscript — who is telling the truth and who is lying.

I want an investigation or trial to finally prove that Roberts made up the entire story, so that it can finally be put to rest.

— Alan M. Dershowitz is a Professor of Law emeritus at Harvard Law School.

Rejecting Harvard’s Aristocracy

T

his week, the Internet was set ablaze by a New York Times column, which, among other things, alleged that “Americans miss [George H.W.] Bush because we miss the WASPs — because we feel, at some level, that their more meritocratic and diverse and secular successors rule us neither as wisely nor as well.”

Now, I am no stranger to aggressively worded hot takes. But there is so much wrong with this piece that I don’t even know where to begin.

There’s the assumption that all Americans, as a monolith, are united in eternal grief over the late President Bush. (We aren’t, and I happen to be one of those who isn’t too broken up over his passing). There’s the use of “we,” which (completely wrongly) implies that nostalgia for a white ruling class is shared by all of America. And, of course, there is the latent white supremacy in the statement that the “more … diverse” successors of these white men lack sufficient wisdom.

But these opinions did not come into existence in a vacuum. The author is a product of the same institution I attend, and in fact even wrote for the same newspaper that I am writing for today. And his piece is littered with implicit and explicit references to Harvard — whether it be the administration’s feeble attempt to displace elitism by making the final clubs go co-ed or the acknowledgement of the “self-righteousness and raw ambition” that rules students at this institution.

I did not attend Harvard 50 years ago. I could not have. So while I can’t speak authoritatively as to the apparent graciousness of the ruling class that has passed, I do still believe any nostalgia for it is misplaced. When did piety rule Harvard? Was it when Harvard men were raping Radcliffe women? Was it when the administration was attempting to restrict the number of Jewish students on campus? Was it when the University president owned slaves?

Although I can only speculate as to the nature of the aristocracy that ruled Harvard, the country, and even the world in the time before I stepped foot in Harvard Yard, I can speak about the current one that rules today. Put simply, the fear that fairness or equality are the ideas that define culture at Harvard and have destroyed the holy elite of days long past is simply not true.

One only has to look at male final clubs from centuries past, whose shadows literally dominate the physical space of this campus, from the Porcellian Club logo melded into the gates of Harvard Yard to the Fly and the Owl Clubs built right alongside the upperclassmen Houses. Sexual harassment and assault remain. Legacy admissions, a foolproof way to ensure the aristocracy is self-perpetuating, speaks for itself.

And then there is the fact that the new aristocracy, just like the old, continues to look the other way or even honor those who commit atrocities.

Then there is the culture of this institution, where starting from Opening Days, students are charged with the noble task of saving America — in fact, of saving the world. Today, this activism is often performative, motivated less by knowledge and commitment to helping others and more by the desire to build a resume or a career. This is no secret. But what is important is to know that even when the activism isn’t performative, it is still driven by personal ambition and motivated by personal benefit.

Because often, Harvard students love to say they are the ones who are tasked with saving the world more than actually putting in the work to save it. Instead of criticizing the elitism they see on this campus, students honor it as being what Harvard is and what they, as Harvard students, should aspire to.

They honor it even when it is exclusionary and harmful. Take the unquestioned role that final clubs play on this campus’s social scene. Or the desire to meet, mingle with, and engage in photo-ops with famous politicians or world leaders, with no interest in discussing or even acknowledging the unjust actions of these leaders and the harmful policies they support and further. Or consider the professional ambitions of students here, who, in hot pursuit of the highest-paying jobs, joke about “being snakes,” but never spare a thought to the harm these industries can do.

This is because the ruling class has no trouble recognizing itself for what it is. Forget false humility. Right upon being accepted, before even stepping foot on campus, students quickly feel the power of the “H-bomb.” I cannot count how many times I’ve heard laughing comments that “legacy admissions aren’t that bad,” made by students who, though still teenagers, are already starting to realize the power of being in the elite and the importance of keeping themselves there.

And that makes sense. After all, when you are the elite, it seems only natural to propagate that status and further the importance of it. It might just be natural to say that we should rule, that our SAT scores, private schooling, old (or new) money, make us that much more qualified to make decisions for the rest of the world.

But as someone who has been accepted into this elite class, I don’t want it. I am not interested in being part of the elite, even if it is this less white, less Christian, more “woke” WASP elite that Harvard is building. I am not interested in continuing to propagate the idea that we, the ivory-towered class, literally gated in, are the rightful heirs of this world.

This should not be an unpopular opinion. And I am glad because in many ways it is not. Having condemned Harvard’s propagation of aristocracy, I would be remiss not to acknowledge the many students who do reject this elite mentality and fight for justice, be it in school or in court or in our careers following Harvard. I am not alone.

I, and we, are not interested in becoming aristocrats. And though the aristocracy is still alive and well, we will make sure that it is no longer the only legacy of institutions like Harvard.

Sorry to disappoint.

—Shireen Younus ’20, a Crimson Editorial Comp Director, is a Government concentrator in Pforzheimer House. Her column appears on alternate Fridays.

Page 7

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | december 7, 2018

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Sports

Weekend event

schedule

Friday ______________________________________

saturday ______________________________________

sunday ______________________________________

Women’s Ice Hockey vs. Maine 6:00pm Bright-Landry Hockey Center

Women’s Basketball vs. Rutgers 2:00pm Lavietes Pavilion

Track and Field Penn Duel

Men’s Swimming and diving

A Day in the Life of a Swimmer: Charles Vaughan ’21

By MAHTAB SHIHAB CONTRIBUTING Writer

Charles Vaughan is a sophomore swimmer from Carmel, Ind., who specializes in the breaststroke and the IM. We take a look into his busy life as a student-athlete by going through his routine the day of an away meet at Cornell.

After a busy week with midterms and essays, a typical student would be looking forward to a relaxing, stress-free weekend. Charles Vaughan, on the other hand, was on his way to board an afternoon bus headed towards Ithaca, N.Y., after a day of classes and a morning practice. He had finished a statistics midterm the day before and had a math and economics midterm right after the weekend.

Like most student-athletes at Harvard, Vaughan was exceptional as both a scholar and an athlete before coming to Cambridge. He was the swim captain on a Carmel High School team that won three consecutive state championships. He was the individual state champion in the 200 IM and was a member of the state champion 200 and 400 freestyle relays. On top of these impressive swimming accolades, Vaughan also managed to be Physics Student of the Year at Carmel along with participating in Carmel’s Principal’s Advisory Committee.

Thus, it should come as no surprise that Vaughan’s routine the day of an away meet reflected his phenomenal work ethic and discipline. After getting on the bus, Vaughan tried to have a relaxed mindset.

He found it difficult to get too work done and instead listened to music and had light conversations with his teammates during the six and a half hour voyage to Cornell.

After finally arriving at the hotel, Vaughan had his own unique practices to ensure that he is as prepared as possible for the meet the next day.

“I try not to do too much the night before a meet, especially after such a long bus ride. The goal is to get in bed by 10:30,” Vaughan said. “I try to get a bit of work done so I don’t stress ­

HYDRODYNAMIC Swimmer Charles Vaughan was Physics Student of the Year while at Carmel High School. At Harvard, he continues to take STEM classes and specializes in the breaststroke and the IM. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA —Crimson photographer

about that. I also try to drink as much water as possible, and stretch out a little before bed, so I wake up feeling loose for the meet.”

The following day, Vaughan woke up at seven and grabbed a small snack before heading to the pool. The team did a light morning swim that only lasted about half an hour in order to get accustomed to the pool they will be competing in.

“Harvard’s pool is very different from Cornell’s pool and the morning swim helps me think about the nuances of the pool to make sure I’m not caught off guard while racing,” Vaughan said. “Cornell’s walls are kinda funky, and I don’t want that to prevent me from doing well.”

After the morning swim, the team boarded the bus and headed back to the hotel. During the succeeding hours, Vaughan

tried to get a light nap in and also do some of the academic work he had to complete for the weekend.

The team got lunch around 11:30 before heading to the pool to begin their warm-ups for the meet.

The team had an hour to warm up, during which everyone was in the water going through their own routines to prepare for the their respective events.

Vaughan was competing in two breaststroke events against Cornell and went through a warmup routine very similar to what he does at almost every meet.

“Before the meet, I like to listen to some chill vibes to make sure my head is clear,” Vaughan said. “I’ll listen to some more hype tunes as the meet progresses. Once I’m in the water, I just do what I’ve been doing at

every practice for a month. I’ll do the first general thousand that we do, and then work on some kicks. I’ll do some strokes at the end and keep it as routine as possible. You try not to think too much about it.”

For Vaughan, keeping his routine allowed him to be mentally focused and not overcomplicate his race plan. His mentality was that a set routine allowed you to be the most prepared when it came time for the most important meets of this season.

“When it’s time to compete, you have a very simple plan and you try to execute it as well as you can and have fun with your team at the same time,” says Vaughan. “Really everyone gets nervous, but the main goal is just keeping it as simple as possible.”

Vaughan executed his race plan against Cornell and had

a great performance, securing 10th in the 100 yard breaststroke and fifth in the 200 yard breaststroke. Following a meet in which Harvard had the top performance in 15 of 16 events, the men’s swim team stayed for the men’s and women’s diving meet.

Remaining at the pool late on a Friday night to watch the diving team compete exemplified the camaraderie the members of the swimming and diving teams have with one another.

The team then got on a bus Friday night at 9 p.m. and had another six hour bus ride as it traveled back to Cambridge.

Vaughan used the bus ride as a way to debrief and relax after a competitive meet.

He enjoyed talking to his teammates, and this serves as an opportune time to really bond with his fellow swimmers.

Following the meet at Cor-

nell, Vaughan evaluated his performance and compared it to where he was at this point the previous season. Doing so helped him map his progression and gave him a good sense of what shape he will be in for the competitive meets in the future such as the Ivy League Championships.

“I like to look at my practices and see what I am doing a regular basis because that is a lot more predictable and I have a lot more control over it,” Vaughan said. “However I will look at the results of the meet and compare it to my past performances to see where I was and where I am now.”

After a long trip back, Vaughan finally opened up his dorm room and crashed around 3:30 a.m.

In the life of a college athlete, there are almost never any breaks.

women’s squash

Harvard Routes Dartmouth In Ivy League Opener

By Jackson Delgado CONTRIBUTing WRITER

Both the No. 2 men’s squash team (4-0, 1-0 Ivy) and the No. 1 women’s squash team (1-0, 1-0) ­

handily defeated Dartmouth (No. 7 in men’s, No. 10 in women’s) to begin their Ancient Eight seasons.

“Dartmouth is a strong team this year, so we definitely want-

ed to kick [the Ivy League season] off on the right note and get a decisive win,” men’s sophomore Sam Scherl said. “The rest of the team and I were just really focused today, and ready to

LITTLE GREEN Dartmouth was no challenge for the Harvard men’s and women’s squash teams. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—Crimson photographer

get the job done.”

The Crimson men’s squad won eight matches, conceding just one to the Big Green (3-1, 0-1).

The top six Harvard players — in order, freshman Victor Crouin, freshman Marwan Tarek, junior Timmy Brownell, Scherl, freshman George Crowne, and junior Sean Hughes — each emerged victorious from their respective matches three games to none.

Crouin, the Crimson’s number one player, cited getting off to a strong start as the factor that propelled him to a sweep victory in the inaugural match of his career.

“The first few points of the first game were important,” the Var, France native said. “I showed [my opponent] that I was not going to give him anything. I did well in the first game, which gave me a confidence boost for the rest of the match.”

Crouin added about his debut, “It was my first match for the team, so I was really happy to play and I wanted to do well.

It was great to get a point for the team.”

Scherl, Harvard’s number four player, agreed with the importance of getting off to a hot start, and added that maintaining that performance is what allowed him to pick up his decisive win.

“Coming out strong is always important,” he offered. “[So is] keeping the intensity up through the match, not giv-

ing your opponent anything to work with, and keeping your foot on the gas. [My opponent] was a strong player, but I kept him under control.”

The team will look to use this set of matches as a springboard as it considers the rest of the season that lies ahead.

“The most important part of our season is January through February,” said Scherl, the South Orange, N.J., native.

“Right now, we’re just ramping up and making sure that we’re not leaving anything on the court this year.”

On the women’s side, the Crimson was equally dominant against Dartmouth (1-2, 0-1), if not more so.

The team won all nine of its matches, and all but one were taken three games to none.

Each of the Crimson’s top six players — in order, senior Sabrina Sobhy, juniors Gina Kennedy and Amelia Henley, senior Kayley Leonard, junior Eleonore Evans, and senior Sophie Mehta — won in straight games.

Henley, much like Scherl did on the men’s side, saw unwavering play as the impetus for her victory. “[My opponent] was definitely a solid player — she ran a lot and she received a lot of balls — so I had to be consistent with my game and keep up the pressure,” she commented. “I couldn’t step back at all; I had to be on my game.”

Henley, as did much of the women’s squad, certainly dictated play on the court. Effec-

tive timing of cross-court shots ensured that her opponent was constantly moving around and gave her the upper hand in the match. Even so, she viewed shot placement as something that the team as a whole could further improve upon.

“We’re working on being more creative and attacking,” Henley added. “It’s still being patient and not trying to win too early, but we’re working on our game at the front. I’ve been working on my deception, so a pivotal moment for me was when I hit cross-court from the front and [my opponent] ran in the opposite direction.”

Coming off of a national championship win last season, the women’s team looks to keep up its ability to outlast opponents on the court.

“We’ve been doing well with our fitness and our strength,” said Henley, the Kent, United Kingdom native. “We’re all really fit and ready to have a long, hard match. We want to be able to carry on longer than the other teams, and I think that proved true last season. When it got close, it seemed like our team was the one that could consistently keep up a good level of play even when we were tired.”

After a winter hiatus, both the men’s and women’s teams will pick up the season at home in the Murr Center.

The women have a doubleheader against Stanford and Cornell, while the men are scheduled for a single matchup against Cornell.