The Harvard Crimson THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873
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VOLUME CXLIX, NO. 46
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CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
| TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022
EDITORIAL PAGE 8
NEWS PAGE 9
SPORTS PAGE 10
The College must help facilitate interhouse transfers
Affiliates lauded HKS’ Commencement speaker, Moldovan Pres. Maia Sandu
Men’s lacrosse beat Colgate, 7-6, on Saturday for its sixth straight win
Palandjian to Join Corporation By CARA J. CHANG and ISABELLA B. CHO CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
Tracy Pun Palandjian ’93, a nonprofit executive and former member of the Harvard Board of Overseers, will join the Harvard Corporation — the University’s highest governing body — in July, the school announced Monday. Palandjian will replace lawyer William F. Lee ’72, who is being term-limited off the board. Penny S. Pritzker ’81 is set to succeed Lee as the Corporation’s senior fellow. Palandjian serves as CEO of Social Finance, an impact investing nonprofit that she founded in 2011. She also serves as director of the Boston Foundation, which partners with donors to support nonprofit organizations, and a trustee of the Surdna Foundation. Palandjian served on the
Board of Overseers — the University’s second-highest governing body — from 2012 and 2018, becoming vice chair of the board’s executive committee. A magna cum laude graduate of the College, Palandjian worked for the consulting giant McKinsey & Company before returning to study at Harvard Business School. “Harvard changed my life,” Palandjian said in a press release Monday. “It has shaped my ideals, instilled a sense of responsibility that guides my work, and given me lasting roots in this community and country. I am deeply honored by the opportunity to join the Corporation and continue my service to an institution that means so much to me.” Lee, a partner at the law firm WilmerHale, praised Palandjian’s leadership in the Monday announcement.
SEE CORPORATION PAGE 7
Journals Retract Ex-Prof.’s Studies Journals have recently retracted eight studies by a former professor at Harvard Medical School. By FELICIA HE and JAMES R. JOLIN CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
teenth a paid holiday and establish a Labor Management Committee to address work-related issues. Around 74 percent of union members turned out to vote in the election. The results came despite opposition from some members of the union’s eight-person bargaining committee, which is elected to represent general members in negotiations. Some on the committee called on workers to vote “no,” hoping to get a better offer. Bargaining committee member Arun K. Malik denounced the contract offer as a tactic designed to pit union members against one another by stratifying wages within a tiered framework. He said the proposal to pay higher-level guards more money encouraged them to vote in favor of the deal, without regard for some of their colleagues.
Eight published articles — including two full studies and six abstracts — co-authored by a former Harvard Medical School professor, Jorge G. Arroyo, have been retracted in recent months by the medical journals that published them. Three different journals retracted Arroyo’s research, which was conducted over three years at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, an HMS teaching hospital. The retractions came due to noncompliance with an institutional review board. Under federal guidelines, IRBs have the power to approve, modify, or reject study protocols using a group review process. Last month, two journals — Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science and Translational Vision Science & Technology — retracted a total of six abstracts and one full article on which Arroyo was listed as a co-author. Both journals cited “a serious issue related to lack of Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for the research procedures.” A third journal — Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology — retracted an additional full study in February. In its retraction notice, the journal’s editorial board wrote that the “retraction has been agreed following confirmation by the corresponding author that the study procedures deviated from the human research ethics approval received for the research.” Arroyo, who formerly served
SEE CONTRACT PAGE 7
SEE RETRACT PAGE 7
Tracy Pun Palandjian ’93, pictured outside Harvard’s Loeb House. PHOTO COURTESY STEPHANIE MITCHELL/HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Security Guards Vote to Ratify Contract By SOPHIA C. SCOTT and CLAIRE YUAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
A fter months of impasse, Harvard security guards voted last week to ratify a contract offer from Securitas, which employs around 300 contracted security workers who are stationed across the school. Union members voted 122101 to accept Securitas’ latest offer, ending a prolonged labor dispute that at points pitted workers against the leadership of their own union, 32BJ Service Employees International Union. Guards voted down a previous contract offer earlier this year. The contract — which will run through November 2025 — introduces pay raises for all guards, with higher increases for more senior-level guards. Under the new deal, guards will be able to carry over unused personal days from the previous year. It will also make June
Harvard security workers, represented by the union 32BJ SEIU, voted to approve a new contract offer from Securitas. TRUONG L. NGUYEN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
Faculty to Vote Today on Shopping Week By ARIEL H. KIM and MEIMEI XU CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
At Tuesday’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences meeting, Harvard faculty are set to vote on two controversial proposals — one that would allow students to pursue double concentrations and another that would replace shopping week with previous-term registration. In September, the Office of Undergraduate Education created a subcommittee to prepare a proposal for introducing double concentrations. In December, an FAS committee recommended that Harvard College swap out shopping week for previous-term registration, in which students would register for courses one semester in advance. Last month’s FAS meeting was the first time the full faculty discussed these issues.
Double Concentrations Many faculty have expressed their support for the adoption of double concentrations. Currently, students may only purINSIDE THIS Harvard Today 2 ISSUE
sue joint concentrations that culminate in an interdisciplinary thesis. Art, Film, and Visual Studies professor and Director of Unsdergraduate Studies Matthew Saunders ’97 said he believes double concentrations would better allow students to explore diverse academic interests. “So many people are interested in engaging with the sort of courses that we do across film and visual arts, and it’s often hard to figure out how to make it fit,” he said. “There’s a burden on the joint concentration to do a joint thesis.” Computer Science professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies Boaz Barak wrote in an emailed statement that though undergraduates have produced meaningful theses in the department, students should not be required to complete a joint thesis if they are not intellectually interested in combining the two fields. “I expect that most students that wish to combine C.S. with another field would continue to
SEE FAS PAGE 7
Arts 3
News 7
Taeku Lee to Join Faculty as First in Cluster Hire By ARIEL H. KIM and MEIMEI XU CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
Taeku Lee will join Harvard’s faculty as the first ethnic studies scholar to be brought in as part of a cluster hire by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the school announced Monday. Lee, currently a professor of political science and law at University of California, Berkeley, will join Harvard as the inaugural Bae Family Professor of Government on July 1. Lee previously served as an assistant professor of public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School from 1997 to 2002. FAS Dean Claudine Gay said in a February interview that the FAS has identified and is “actively recruiting” four ethnic studies scholars. Lee’s appointment marks a major step in the decades-long lobby for an ethnic studies concentration at Harvard. Gay originally launched a search for faculty specializing in Asian American, Latinx, and Muslim studies in June 2019. Due to logistical issues posed by the pandemic, however, the search was suspended in April 2020, resuming four months later.
Editorial 8
Sports 10
Gay said in a press release that Lee’s hire is a significant contribution to Harvard’s research of “ethnicity, indigeneity, and migration” and will promote the study of racial inequality. “I am thrilled to welcome Taeku who is a true intellectual leader in this rich, dynamic area of inquiry and a scholar I personally admire,” she said. The cluster hire accompanies other moves by Gay to build on the FAS’s curriculum in racial and ethnic inequality. In addition to the cluster hire, Gay welcomed Vivek Bald as Harvard College’s first visiting professor in Ethnicity, Indigeneity, and Migration and expanded the Inequality in America postdoctoral fellowship from two to four scholars. A $45 million donation made by Asian American alumni in September to expand Asian American studies will fund the Bae Family professorship, as well as the postdoctoral fellowship and the ethnic studies visiting professorships. Lee said in the press release that he looks forward to shaping ethnic studies at Harvard in the next few years.
SEE LEE PAGE 9
TODAY’S FORECAST
Taeku Lee is currently professor of political science and law at University of California, Berkeley. PHOTO COURTESY AMY PERL
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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
APRIL 5, 2022
PAGE 2
HARVARD TODAY
For Lunch Chicken a la Plancha Pork Fajita Sandwich Seitan Tinga
For Dinner Chicken Tikka Masala Salmon with Green Curry Alu Chole
TODAY’S EVENTS Health Justice in the Americas Virtual, 12:30-2:00 p.m. Since 2017, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has been addressing issues related to health, including HIV treatment and healthcare access in prisons. Join this moderated panel to discuss the state of health justice and the Court’s role in protecting it. Navigating STEM Fields Beyond the Pandemic Virtual, 5:30-6:30 p.m. The Harvard College Women’s Center and the Office of Career Services are hosting a joint panel discussion for women interested in pursuing a STEM field with a special focus on navigating the STEM world post-pandemic. This event offers a unique opportunity to learn from accomplished women in medicine, technology, and engineering.
Residents of a Ukrainian Town Descibe Life Under Russian Occupation
Russian forces recently retreated from Nova Basan, a Ukrainian town to the east of Kyiv, allowing its residents freedom from occupation for the first time in over a month. Residents described the gruesome torture and detention methods by Russian forces, as well as harsh living conditions including infrequent meals and a strict curfew.
Two Republican Senators Announce Support for Judge Jackson’s Confirmation
Blue skies dominated the day as many enjoyed the sunshine around campus. TRUONG L. NGUYEN— CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
AROUND THE IVIES YALE: Yale Experts Criticize Kremlin for Extending Prison Term of Former Yale World Fellow Alexey Navalny —THE YALE DAILY NEWS
COLUMBIA: Students Honor the Spirit of Bacchanal During Spring Concert Festivities —THE COLUMBIA SPECTATOR BROWN: Brown Economics Professor Oded Galor Releases New Book on the Origins of Inequality—THE BROWN DAILY HERALD PRINCETON: Princeton Professors Speak on Ketanji Brown Jackson Hearing, Future of Supreme Court —THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN
Senators Mitt Romney of Utah and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska join Susan Collins of Maine as the only Republicans to publicly support the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. Their support comes after fiercely partisan confirmation hearings that left the Judiciary Committee deadlocked in their decision.
Grammys Return In Full Musical Force
The 64th annual Grammy Awards were presented Sunday night, featuring performances from Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo, BTS, and a prerecorded video from President Zelensky of Ukraine. Silk Sonic won song of the year and record of the year for “Leave the Door Open,” while Jon Batiste took home 5 awards, including album of the year.
COVID UPDATES
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Bridgerton Screening Straus Common Hall, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Are you obsessed with the new season of “Bridgerton”? Have you been meaning to watch but haven’t found the time? Head to the Straus Hall Common Room for a screening of the first episode of the second season hosted by the CARE specialty proctors. Pizza and snacks will be provided!
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ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY Dining Halls Will Go Online
Harvard Dining Services announced that students would start using a computerized check-in system at dining halls. Administrators were in contact with Undergraduate Council members to come up with a more flexible meal plan through computerization. April 5, 1994
New Black Student Magazine Fosters Creative Expression
Undergraduates launched Diaspora, a new Black student literary magazine highlighting prose, poetry, photography and artwork. The magazine hopes to provide “another avenue of creative expression” to Black students at the College. Harvard’s Office of the Arts provided a $400 grant to fund the newspaper, and other patrons contributed an additional $500. April 5, 1976
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873
The Harvard Crimson Raquel Coronell Uribe ’22-’23 Associate Managing Editors President Kelsey J. Griffin ’23 Taylor C. Peterman ’23-’24 Jasper G. Goodman ’23 Managing Editor Associate Business Managers Amy X. Zhou ’23 Taia M.Y. Cheng ’23-’24 Business Manager Isabelle L. Guillaume ’24
STAFF FOR THIS ISSUE Arts Chairs Sofia Andrade ’23-’24 Jaden S. Thompson ’23
Design Chairs Yuen Ting Chow ’23 Madison A. Shirazi ’23-’24
Magazine Chairs Maliya V. Ellis ’23-’24 Sophia S. Liang ’23
Multimedia Chairs Aiyana G. White ’23 Pei Chao Zhuo ’23
Blog Chairs Ellen S. Deng ’23-’24 Janani Sekar ’23-’24
Technology Chairs Ziyong Cui ’24 Justin Y. Ye ’24
Editorial Chairs Guillermo S. Hava ’23-24 Orlee G.S. Marini-Rapoport ’23-24 Sports Chairs Alexandra N. Wilson ’23-’24 Griffin H. Wong ’24
Copyright 2022, 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.
Night Editor Hannah J. Martinez ’23 Assistant Night Editors Mert Geyiktepe ’25 Leah J. Teichholtz ’24 Story Editors Jasper G. Goodman ’23 Kelsey J. Griffin ’23 Taylor C. Peterman ’23-’24 Kevin A. Simauchi ’23
Design Editors Camille G. Caldera ’22 Toby R. Ma ’24 Photo Editor Cory K. Gorczycki ’24 Editorial Editor Jasmine M. Green ’24 Sports Editor David Manakis ’22
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.
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
APRIL 5, 2022 |
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ARTS CAMPUS
EXHIBIT REVIEW: ‘IMMERSIVE SHEVCHENKO: SOUL OF UKRAINE’
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As soon as the lights dim and the paintings come to life, one feels as if Shevchenko himself is in the room.
CAMPUS
Exhibit Review: ‘Immersive Shevchenko: Soul Of Ukraine’
FROM THE BOSTON UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL: ‘HYPOCHONDRIAC’ REVIEW
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FILM
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LYLENA D. ESTABINE ’24 ON FAITH, COMMUNITY, AND THE PERFORMING ARTS
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HARVARD AUTHORS: ANGELA DUCKWORTH
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‘MOON KNIGHT’ SERIES PREMIERE REVIEW: OSCAR ISAAC’S FACE(S) AND THE THRILL OF CALCULATED CONFUSION
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ARTIST PROFILE: OAKLAND RAPPER MANI DRAPER ON HIS LATEST PROJECT ‘COMMUNION’
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BOSSO RAMEN TAVERN: MUSEE DE MODERN CULINARY ART
THEATER
BOOKS
ALISA S. REGASSA STAFF WRITER
Addison Heiman’s debut feature “Hypochondriac” presents a nuanced, engrossing story that is a welcome departure from the troubling tropes that have defined psychological thrillers until now.
Estabine hopes to open the door to performing arts to as many other students as possible while sharing her love of theater and her dedication to her faith.
Duckworth brings a lightness and a level of creativity to goal setting, ultimately inspiring more dreamers to do.
Its willingness to lean into ambiguity, though, is its best decision; the episode does a masterful job of ensuring that neither Steven nor the viewer knows what’s real.
TV
MUSIC
CULTURE
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has impacted artists in myriad ways. For the Ukraine-based team at Lighthouse Immersive — an innovative multimedia curation company — feelings of helplessness translated into an urgency to help the Ukrainian people through their platform. Only two weeks after the first bombs struck Kiev, they premiered the U.S. production of the Immersive Shevchenko: Soul Of Ukraine exhibit. With shows in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Toronto, the exhibition had raised $150,000 before it even premiered. All of their proceeds will go to the National Bank of Ukraine and the Red Cross foundations. Taras Shevchenko (March 9, 1814 – March 10, 1861) was a pioneer of Ukrainian nationalism in the fine arts. A jack of all trades, Shevchenko introduced his study of folklore to Ukrainian poetry, painting, or spiritual literature. Born into serfdom, Shevchenko remained, in some respects, a slave to the Russian Tsarist oppression throughout his life — although he was freed in 1838, Shevchenko’s artistic career would leave a target on his back for the rest of his life. His creativity reflected this; themes of Ukrainian liberation from Russian socio-political corruption became a Shevchenko trademark. Although he lived as an exiled outcast, Shevchenko was immortalized through his art. His legacy is honored in places like the National Museum of Taras Shevchenko in Kiev, which works to preserve his works through events like the Nazi invasion in 1941, when workers of the museum hid away valuable art from German invadors. Now, almost one hundred years after Hitler’s invasion jeopardized the safety of the art preserved there, the exact same containers are being used to shield Shevchenko’s artwork from the invading Russian military forces. The first Immersive Shevchenko show took place in the Ukrainian city of Odessa in August of 2021. Another modern symbol for Ukrainian spirit, President Volodymyr Zelensky himself, visited the exhibition before the war began. Working closely with develop-
ers Timur Polyansky and Dmytro Stus, Lighthouse Immersive Associate Producer Valeriy Kostyuk recruited Producer Natalia Delieva and Creative Director Tais Poda to share Ukrainian art and culture with audiences abroad. The multi-sensory and all-encompassing Shevchenko exhibit accomplishes what it set out to do: translate the experience of Shevchenko’s vast oeuvre of masterpieces into the here and now in ways people all over the world can relate to and interact with. Between the effective surround-sound system, the dynamic lighting, and the expansive display, each aspect of the room is designed to envelop the gallery-goers and inspire their imagination. Choreographed to the backdrop of Ukrainian choral music, the entire scene resonates with the emotionality of Shevchenko’s artwork. Not only was it the technology that made the art move in realistic ways — clouds whirling with the wind, birds flying among them — even faces came to life with smiles and frowns. In this way, the audience could track the animated eye movements of figures like Bathsheba in Shevchenko’s painting “Bathsheba” or even gaze into the eyes of Shevchenko himself, in works like “Portrait de l’artiste.” As the leaves scatter around, sound effects of wind blowing invite the viewer to pace from corner to corner, engaging in the accessible mobility of the art around themself. The beauty of the immersive exhibit is that the artwork circles the audience, making them the focal point. The result is that for the entirety of the 15-minute show, the exhibit entices all senses and transports the audience directly into the art. As soon as the lights dim and the paintings come to life, one feels as if Shevchenko himself is in the room. Staff writer Alisa S. Regassa can be reached at alisa. regassa@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter at @alisaregassa.
“Communion” speaks to Draper’s limitless passion for the music he makes. It is another piece of hardware in the ever-expanding Grand Nationxl trophy case.
Harvard Square’s latest newcomer, Bosso Ramen Tavern, has cleverly filled its own niche in the Square, providing a culinary experience and atmosphere that compliments the larger restaurant ecosystem.”
Courtesy of Alisa Regassa WA
05 April 2022 | Vol CXLIX, ISSUE 12 Arts Chairs Sofia Andrade ’23-’24 Jaden S. Thompson ’23
Editors-at-Large Clara V. Nguyen ’23-’24 Sara Komatsu ’23 Chibuike K. Uwakwe ’23
Editor Associates Hannah T. Chew ’23 Isabella B. Cho ’24 Daniel S. de Castro ’24 Nina M. Foster ’23 Anya L. Henry ’24 Ryan S. Kim ’23
Zachary J. Lech ’24 Charles W. McCormick ’24 Jamila R. O’Hara ’23 Harper R. Oreck ’23 Alisa S. Regassa ’24
Executive Designer Nayeli Cardozo ’25
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
APRIL 5, 2022 |
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FILM From The Boston Underground Film Festival: ‘Hypochondriac’ Review
HARPER R. ORECK CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
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Courtesy of Boston Underground Film Festival
In the realm of contemporary horror movies and psychological horror thrillers, few topics are as dramatized (and exploited) as mental health crises. Countless popular films from “Black Swan” to “Hereditary” to “Shutter Island” have depicted psychological breakdowns in hallucinatory detail, often mining the surreal realities of certain conditions for jump scares and reinforcing stigmas and misconceptions around mental illness in the process. These films generally end on a bleak note, making a grim conclusion essentially a hallmark of the genre; their protagonists are left in the grips of their illness, and treatment is posed as a futile fantasy better suited for a different type of movie. Addison Heiman’s debut feature “Hypochondriac” flips this script, presenting a nuanced, engrossing story that is a welcome departure from the troubling tropes that have defined psychological thrillers until now. Skillfully directed, “Hypochondriac” is a knockout of an independent film that transcends its contained scope, delivering a beautiful queer love story and a moving portrayal of family trauma within its comedy-horror-thriller format. Zach Villa is charismatic and heartbreaking as Will, a talented ceramicist in Los Angeles whose life is disrupted by the reappearance of his schizophrenic mother (Marlena Forte), who was institutionalized after she tried to kill him when he was 12. Heimann illustrates this experience and its immortalization in Will’s memory in the opening scenes, which depict the violent moment in symmetrical shots saturated with color; as the camera pulls away from the scene and the shot shrinks in the frame, dissolving into a backdrop of black, Hei-
THEATER Lylena D. Estabine ’24 on Faith, Community, and the Performing Arts
SERENA JAMPEL CONTRIBUTING WRITER
mann seems to bring the viewer into a diorama of Will’s past. When we meet him again, 20 years later, the film has a dramatically different tone: Will dances around a pottery studio to the exalting notes of Jessie J’s “Domino,” radiating warmth and energy, and then pauses to coach his coworker Sasha (Yumarie Morales) through a panic attack by convincing her to freestyle rap in an endearing moment of camaraderie and kindness. In these moments, as in the rest of the film, Will comes across as a complex and naturalistic character, with a vivacious presence and empathetic instincts that make him easy to root for. He’s brilliantly drawn and acted, and he immediately appears like a familiar friend onscreen. As the film progresses, Heimann masterfully depicts Will’s growing panic as he experiences a variety of disorienting physical and psychological symptoms, beginning with tension and pain in his hands that disrupt his pottery practice. Tense, kinetic shots of him kneading clay and forming pots on the wheel illustrate the disrupted meditative physicality of his art, drawing audiences into his fixation with diagnosing and addressing the problem. As Will struggles to find doctors who will take his concerns seriously, Heimann hilariously and poignantly critiques the one-size-fits-all platitudes that medical practitioners are all too ready to offer patients with unclear conditions, as multiple people diagnose him with “stress.” His frustrating conversations with the jarringly upbeat, bro-ey “NP Chaz” (Michael Cassidy) and perfunctory Dr. Rosenstein (Adam Busch) embody the kind of hilarious, targeted poignancy and creative body horror themes that characterize the film, making it at once entertaining and salient. As Will’s physical and mental health deteriorates and he becomes more and more concerned that he’s experiencing a schizophrenic episode, the movie morphs into a horror film that effectively brings audiences into his mental state. He starts seeing a figure in a wolf suit (reminiscent of “Donnie Darko”’s Frank, which Heimann says he was paying homage to) beckoning to him, following his movements, and urging him to do increasingly terrifying things. While Heimann harnesses the tension and momentum of a psychological thriller to construct a viscerally affecting portrait of a breakdown, he resists the leering otherization and hysteria that often characterize film portrayals of mental illness. Even his portrayal of the wolf moves beyond showing him as an adversarial supernatural force; Will realizes that he must find a way to coexist with the wolf, like his mental illness itself. In one affecting scene, he sits beside the wolf and they watch home videos from his childhood, in which he dressed up in the same
L
ylena D. Estabine ’24 fell in love with musical theater at age five, when she was cast in a production of “Fiddler on the Roof.” But it was not until Estabine listened to recordings of the “Hamilton” soundtrack in middle school and thought, “If somebody else could read a book and then write a musical about it then why couldn’t I?” that she was inspired to become a dramatist herself. Now, Estabine, a published author with experience writing both plays and music, hopes to open the door to performing arts to as many other students as possible while sharing her love of theater and her dedication to her faith. To that end, she founded a new theater group earlier this year: “The New Songs Theatricals,” whose first production “Painted” will run April 21-23 in the Adams Pool Theater. The musical tells the story of Leonardo DaVinci, a figure that has served as a source of inspiration for Estabine. She hopes DaVinci’s story can be a springboard for discussing social issues. “What [‘Painted’] is going to do is attempt to start conversations and break down paradigms about the ways in which we discuss Christianity and sexuality, particulary with reference to the LGBTQ community,” she said. To someone who knows Estabine, this comes as no surprise; she imbues almost every piece she works on with deeper meaning. Her show “Once When the War Was Won,” which she wrote in high school, tells the story of a fictional civil war and the class struggles embedded in the conflict. The virtual show she put on last year, “Dreamland Diner,” was a modern day retelling of the Biblical story of Jacob and Laban that takes place in a 1980s Kansas City diner. And in her more recent work “Milk Made,” an original operetta written in the style of Gilbert and Sullivan, and performed by Harvard-Radcliffe Gilbert and Sullivan Players, she explores a variety of the most pressing issues of today. “We were able to comment on class struggles once again and specifically what happens when Marxism aligns with environmental justice issues,” she said. Estabine credits her faith as the source of inspiration for “Dreamland Diner” and “Painted.” “God gave me the words needed to kind of completely revamp the show even up to when we started rehearsals,” she said. The show itself grapples with questions of faith and looks at what it means to be fully and completely loved and known by God. “How does God move in our lives in ways that we might not always see
wolf costume. As Heimann told film blog Rue Morgue, he wrote the film based on his own mental health struggles during the pandemic and his experiences with his mother, who has bipolar disorder. The script, distinguished by three-dimensional characters and realistic, sharp dialogue, combines the touching naturalism of a biographical film with the heightened atmosphere and threat of a horror film to captivating effect, speaking to Heimann’s skills as a talented filmmaker worth following in coming years. It also delivers a moving and beautiful love story through its portrayal of Will’s relationship with his boyfriend Luke (Devon Graye), who struggles to understand Will’s growing concerns about his health and to support him when he realizes he may have schizophrenia. Graye gives an exemplary, emotive performance, and the authenticity of their on screen connection emerges in well-written moments of joy and discord, from the sweet moment when Will drags Luke up to dance with him in their vacation cabin to a fraught argument they have in Luke’s kitchen. Heimann cuts away from the latter scene quickly, midway through their confrontation. It’s one of many tactful editing choices that keep the movie sharp and mesmerizing, illustrating Will’s struggles without exploiting them for melodrama. Though the film slows down a bit in the second act and sometimes feels slightly too long, its conclusion is well worth waiting for. The film follows Will past the height of his breakdown and hospitalization, a point at which many horror movies with similar subjects would have ended. He is shown meeting a sympathetic therapist at a hospital who coaches him on the ways he can get help and move forward in his life. In the film’s final moments, viewers glimpse early moments of his recovery, and the film is suffused with hope for the future ahead of him (and Luke.) It’s a refreshingly uplifting and open-ended finale, acknowledging what so many horror films refuse to — that its protagonist can lead a happy and fulfilling life, and has not lost his capacity to love or be loved. “Hypochondriac” is an important film for the horror genre, implicitly questioning how it treats mental illness and discards characters facing serious conditions. It’s also, however, an important film for the current moment, offering a gorgeously complex narrative of queer love and self-realization that transcends genre or audience. —Staff writer Harper R. Oreck can be reached at harper. oreck@thecrimson.com.
or expect?” she asked. Estabine created New Songs Theatricals in order to provide a “community and space” for artists to discuss and explore the intersections of Christianity and the performing arts, a mission that she plans on continuing with support from other student creators. Going forward, Estabine plans on being highly involved with theater and productions on campus, and she encourages anyone interested in the performing arts to do the same. She recommends organizations like Harvard Black C.A.S.T. and Harvard College ¡TEATRO!, along with New Songs Theatricals, as great places for aspiring artists on campus to get started. Estabine is drawn to theater because of its impact. “Art has the power to touch people’s lives in ways that other forms of communication cannot,” she said. In the future, Estabine plans to continue creating community and creating change through the performing arts. For her, it’s ultimately all about connecting with people. “If you sit down and have a conversation with someone about a difficult topic, oftentimes walls go up,” she said. “But when you sit in a theater or when you read a poem or you listen to a song, walls come down. And I think in our world today especially, we need less walls.”
courtesy of LyLena Estabine
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
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hat separates those who dream and those who do — those who merely make a resolution and those who actually achieve their goal? While a large majority deem IQ scores and innate talent as primary predictors of success, one Harvard alumna uncovered the common factor that truly unites the accomplished: grit. Angela Duckworth ‘92 describes grit as a “passion and perseverance for long term goals.” After graduating from Harvard College, Duckworth went on to become the Rosa Lee and Egbert Chang Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and publish her 2016 New York Times best-selling book “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance.” In the midst of a culture that prizes the innately talented, Duckworth persistently questioned how these people achieve so much. In an interview with The Harvard Crimson, the author revealed how to develop grit and perseverance and also how to create a focused goal worth the hard work. Duckworth’s best-selling writing initially explains the ease of assuming natural talent, as it’s more convenient to avoid comparing oneself to a person with seemingly inhuman capabilities. Her empirical research, however, reveals that the highly accomplished do not possess superhuman skills, but rather an incredible work ethic and a goal-oriented mindset. Her book focuses on interviews with countless paragons of grit — from West Point cadets to national spelling bee champions — to understand how perseverance and passion directly correlate to success. When studying West Point cadets, for example, Duckworth measured these high-achievers with standard metrics of intelligence quotients and physical fitness tests. Among the cadets who eventually graduated from the university, Duckworth found that the common factor among them was not intelligence levels or natural athletic abilities, but rather incredible levels of work ethic. She thus determined that grit is a better predictor of success than traditional measures. Sprinkled with personal anecdotes and a relatable voice, Duckworth’s book makes for an authentic, memorable read. After reading the book and learning about the essential link between work ethic and goal achievement, readers are likely to wonder how they, too, can create a focused goal. It seems that in order for a person to practice grit — an active commitment to working towards a higher goal or purpose — one must first clearly define their goal. When asked about goal creation, Duckworth reframed this seemingly monumental practice of finding a higher life purpose or calling with an effortlessly simple metaphor: “The paramecium is a single-celled organism, one of the most primitive on earth… And when it hits an obstacle, it backs up, it changes its angle, and tries again.” Instead of limiting oneself to a life passion immediately, Duckworth reminds readers to take a step back and think of themselves as a paramecium, moving towards natural inter-
APRIL 5, 2022 |
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BOOKS ests with genuine curiosity. Using the metaphor of moving away from the cold, Duckworth also explained that changing one’s plans for the future is “growth, not a lack of grit.” After graduating from Harvard with a Bachelor of Arts in Advanced Neurobiology, Duckworth adjusted her original plan to attend medical school. Instead, she opted to earn a Ph.D. in Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and now takes a more unstructured approach to goal setting. “An ultimate goal, a top-level goal, is like a north star. It is super useful and I’m not backing down from recognizing the usefulness of having a purpose,” she said. Duckworth went on to explain how people feel this intense pressure to define a singular passion or “north star” when in reality, they should explore their many interests and values. Duckworth suggests that everyone ask themselves: “What are your values and where does your attention go spontaneously?” “I love words. I’m really interested in human nature. One of my values is kindness and another value is excellence,” said Duckworth. “I found something that’s at the intersection of those two interests and those two values.” At the end of the interview, Duckworth offered some essential advice for remaining hopeful and goal-oriented in the face of adversity. Much of this advice was rooted in her reflection on the Covid-19 pandemic. “My recommendation isn’t just, ‘Hey, be gritty!’ — I’m convinced that pep talks don’t do very much for anyone,” she said. “But I do think that every time we experience emotions… that hopelessness that every one of us, including myself has felt, the first thing to do is to notice. To notice when you’re feeling exhausted, burnt out, or without hope. The next thing is to ask yourself in a curious, almost third-person way as if you were talking to a close friend, ‘I wonder why that is? What’s going on in life that makes me feel this way?’” While other self-help books may offer the typical “fake it till you make it” advice, Duckworth prescribes a deep, personal reflection when facing failure or external challenges. Even in the face of external challenges, Duckworth explains that following this approach allows for “agentic hope” — the belief that “I can do this if I try.” In a world congested with 1o-year plans, Duckworth reminds readers that finding a purpose and calling is a beautifully messy and often long process that takes immense amounts of patience and trial and error. After reading “Grit,” readers will walk away with a profound sense of agency over their life and ability to achieve. With that power comes great responsibility — the responsibility to treat failure with compassion and find positivity in redirection. While her book remains undeniably inspiring, the real inspiration is Duckworth’s personal success from following a set of her interests and passions to craft and achieve her goals. Duckworth brings a lightness and a level of creativity to goal setting, ultimately inspiring more dreamers to do.
Harvard Authors: Angela Duckworth SARAH M. ROJAS CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
Courtesy of GRuban / Wikimedia Commons
TV
‘Moon Knight’ Series Premiere Review: Oscar Isaac’s Face(s) and the Thrill of Calculated Confusion This review contains spoilers for the first episode of “Moon Knight” on Disney+. KIERAN FARRELL CONTRIBUTING WRITER
E
very morning, Steven Grant (Oscar Isaac) wakes up before work, greets his goldfish with some lighthearted remarks, and heads out into the lively bustle of London, where he is a gift shop employee at an Egyptian museum. Amid Steven’s morning routine, however, it becomes startlingly clear that he sleeps with his ankle chained to a pole in his apartment and that he must undo an unusually large amount of locks on his door before he can go anywhere. There is evidently more than meets the eye when it comes to his role as the main character of Marvel Studios’ “Moon Knight.” The new show had its first episode premiere on March 30, and will have episodes premiering weekly. The unsettling aura surrounding Steven can perhaps be attributed to the fact that he isn’t really Steven at all. In the Marvel Comics, the character of Moon Knight has multiple personalities. His “core” personality belongs to an American mercenary named Marc Spector, while Steven Grant is an alternate personality that he later develops. Nevertheless, we begin the first episode of the television series in the company of Steven, who is characterized on the surface as an eccentric man living in London — he’s a little rough around the edges and maybe knows a bit too much about Egyptian gods. But if there was any stability to this life, it comes apart rather quickly. The episode spends most of its runtime tracking Steven’s ghastly bewilderment with his very malleable reality, creating a commensurate amount of confusion for the viewer as it continues. Its willingness to lean into ambiguity, though, is its best decision; the episode does a masterful job of ensuring that neither Steven nor the viewer knows what’s real in its many hallucinatory sequences, and Oscar Isaac delivers a convincing combination of surprise, craze, and fright in Steven’s expressions. One of the episode’s great strengths is the way that it establishes the fluidity between Steven’s reality and his dreams. During what initially appears to be a dream sequence, Steven finds himself in the Alps and comes upon a crowd gathered
around a character named Arthur (Ethan Hawke). Arthur also happens to be the lone character featured in the first scene of the episode, and his apparent importance is further established by the agency he exercises in Steven’s dream. Arthur and several others begin to pursue Steven for an Ancient Egyptian artifact he possesses, and Arthur’s role, seemingly grounded in reality, begins to beg the question of whether this is really a dream at all. The episode’s camerawork often exhibits a laser focus on Steven’s facial expressions, helping to illuminate his ever-growing hesitancy. As such, there is a certain visual technique prevalent during the aforementioned sequence that creates a sudden haunting effect each time it is used. Whenever Steven is about to be apprehended by those chasing him, the camera zooms in on his panicked face and shutters as he seems to lose consciousness. When he regains consciousness, it zooms back out, as an astonished Steven realizes that he has resolved the situation with extreme violence. It is implied that these instances involve Marc taking over the body, and this notion is supported by the fact that a booming voice speaks to Steven throughout the sequence and calls him by the name Marc. The duality between these personalities craftily complicates Steven’s already-difficult task of deciphering what’s a dream and what isn’t. The episode makes clever use of mirrors as another way of driving home the severity of Steven’s condition. During one scene that takes place in Steven’s apartment, he begins to hear a voice that he traces to his bathroom mirror. Though he doesn’t find anything at first, his bewilderment is soon met with seeming disgust from the man who looks back at him; his reflection is portrayed as its own person, implied to be Marc, who displays his own expressions, free of Steven. The dissonance established by this dynamic, as well as the continued uncertainty surrounding Steven’s hallucinations, communicates just how big a rift exists between these two personalities.
At the end of the episode, Steven finds himself being pursued by a towering creature in the museum where he works, and he is eventually trapped in a bathroom. As Marc peers at Steven through the bathroom mirror, the difference between them becomes apparent; Steven shakes violently and his pale visage exudes a sense of horror, whereas Marc’s gaze is one of eternal resolve. “You’re not gonna die,” Marc assures Steven, “let me save us.” The sequence that ensues is perhaps the most perplexing of the episode, but given the precedent, it feels like the only natural conclusion. Steven allows himself to be consumed by Marc’s will, and the result is the decidedly brutal arrival of Marc and Steven’s superhero alter ego: Moon Knight. Presumably summoned by some supernatural force, Moon Knight powerfully pummels the creature that was chasing Steven, likely staining his own pristine white suit with a fresh coat of blood. Alas, it appears that life for Steven and Marc will become more confusing yet.
Courtesy of Disney+
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
APRIL 5, 2022 |
PAGE 6
MUSIC Artist Profile: Oakland Rapper Mani Draper on His Latest Project ‘Communion’ RYAN S. KIM CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
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he city of Oakland is as essential to Bay Area rapper Mani Draper’s existence as water is to fish. “There’s something magical about the Bay,” Draper said in an interview with The Harvard Crimson. “In the Bay, you can be an entrepreneur, you can be a creative, you can be an owner. There’s all these opportunities and people come here to explore that part of themselves.” For Draper, Oakland is his home and his creative lifeblood, a city with deep musical roots that are often overlooked. After all, Oakland is the town that birthed the world’s first bona fide rap star, MC Hammer. “We have an opportunity to rewrite how our legacy in the Bay is remembered,” Draper said. “With MC Hammer, there’s a disservice done to his legacy for being the first rap star. Like it’s not Run DMC. It’s not Snoop Dogg. It’s not people from other regions. The first rap superstar is MC Hammer, who went Diamond for fuck’s sake. He’s from East Oakland.” As an artist, Draper said that he is a product of those who came before him. He is as much a rapper as he is a producer. Oakland’s rich artistic history pre-dates the invention of hiphop. The likes of Richard Pryor and James Brown would regularly make stops in the city as an opportunity to crowd-test their acts for improvement. Draper is a founding member of Grand Nationxl, an Oakland hip-hop collective created in 2020. Akin to the Wu-Tang Clan or Danny Brown’s Bruiser Brigade, Grand Nationxl is a rap crew focused on delivering high-quality bars on posse and solo projects alike. Founding member Kevin Allen dropped his acclaimed solo album “Nothing Lasts Forever” under the Grand Nationxl banner last October. The Oakland crew has also integrated a creative agency into the Grand Nationxl brand that is designed to identify and uplift local talent from the Bay Area and beyond through teamwork and collaboration — think Griselda Records meets Kendrick Lamar’s pgLang. Draper’s latest solo effort “Communion,” which was released on March 11, is indicative of Grand Nationxl’s collective mindset. The album title and inspiration for the project came from Draper’s examination of communion as a creative concept. “I am exceeding all of my dreams as a creative, just being a part of something bigger,” the rapper said. “And so then one starts thinking about Death Row, Dreamville, Odd Future, TDE. You realize you can benefit from being a part of a system. If you’re the sixth man or the eighth man on the Jordan Chicago Bulls, you’re still part of one of the best teams in history.” “Communion” is as much a Mani Draper album as it is a Grand Nationxl one, according to the rapper. With six songs in length, the project boasts features from Allen and fellow Grand Nationxl members Brookfield Duece and Passwurdz.
The album is fully produced by Allen, who has been a close collaborator of Draper’s for the last several years. The fourth track on the project, “Favor Weighs a Ton” sees Draper and Allen go bar-for-bar, a sonic follow-up to the pair’s “Glass House” collaboration on “Nothing Lasts Forever.” Draper was an executive producer on “Nothing Lasts Forever.” Draper’s latest effort hears the rapper commenting on the rapidly changing world around him: modernities like Oakland, church service, the hip-hop landscape, NFTs, and the Metaverse. “A.T.’s Gospel,” which features Duece and Passwurdz, is Draper’s tribute to the late Memphis legend Adolph Thornton, whose stage name was Young Dolph. “W.L. NFT (D.O.C.’s Gospel),” the final track on “Communion,” is the rapper’s homage to early N.W.A.-affiliate The D.O.C. — an ode to his father’s favorite ’90s rapper, according to Draper. Yet, this was not the album Draper intended to put out. The version of “Communion” released to the public last month was recorded in just three days, a stark contrast to the meticulously crafted approach that Draper took in his executive producing role for “Nothing Lasts Forever.” The reason for the switch was out of Draper’s hands and is tied to the recent rise in car-jackings throughout the Bay Area. “Bipping” is the colloquial term locals have assigned to motor vehicle theft. In December 2021, Draper’s car was bipped, along with all his laptops and drives, which in many cases held one-of-one copies of his intellectual property. “In December, Grand Nationxl was on our way to one of the biggest meetings of the company’s existence,” Draper said. “Part of the meeting was set up for me to do a demo of the music that was made for Kev’s album. As we’re having coffee before the meeting, we hear someone break the glass in my car.” Immediately, Draper and the rest of Grand Nationxl ran outside. A high-speed chase through East Oakland ensued. It was ultimately futile. The work that Draper had planned to incorporate into “Communion” was gone. The thieves had also taken music that Draper had written for other artists including Duece as well as longtime collaborators Rexx Life Raj, P-Lo, and Iamsu!. “I got records for people on my hard drives that they’re waiting to get mixed and mastered and all the shit that they’re trusting me to get done,” Draper said. “I was just sick because they were gone.” Draper credits Allen with lifting him out of a slump after the car-jacking. To create “Communion,” Draper and Allen abandoned the luxury Oakland studio used to produce previous Grand Nationxl projects for a back-to-basics approach, sometimes recording until six or seven in the morning. “Kev pulled up to my girl’s house in Richmond,” Draper said. “We recorded all of ‘Communion’ at my girl’s mother’s hair salon that’s attached to their house. We set up shop there
for a week and ‘Communion’ was recorded in three days.” The car theft was demoralizing for Draper, but he said that the incident gave him the opportunity to reflect upon and reconnect with his creative roots. Giving up was never an option. “There’s a time to mourn and be sad, but there was also some strange celebration in the moment,” the rapper said. “I wanted to make sure to capture a little bit of both.” “Communion” speaks to Draper’s limitless passion for the music he makes. It is another piece of hardware in the ever-expanding Grand Nationxl trophy case. It can be streamed on Spotify.
Courtesy of Kevin Allen / Grand Nationxl LLC
CULTURE
W ‘Bosso Ramen Tavern: Musee de Modern Culinary Art”
arm, chic, and welcoming in its newly-renovated space, Bosso Ramen Tavern is a Harvard Square newcomer. Walking in with the first group of excited restaurant-goers, the tables steadily fill as each party is seated to a chorus of “Welcome to Bosso!” from staff members and the jovial ambiance of a healthy, bustling, organic restaurant grows. The menu boasts a creative and exciting set of dishes, all worth sampling. Edamame Shiromiso Hummus — a successful work of chips, spices, and creativity provides a delicious appetizer. Washed down with a glass of rose, just one choice from an impressive suite of sake and wine options, the first pass is a delightful introduction to Bosso Ramen Taverns simple elegance. On to the sushi: Plate by plate, Harvard Square veterans are guaranteed to find a new take (and taste) on sushi unlike anything else in the Square. Spicy salmon arrives nestled in a sheet of nori, under a bed of rice and spicy mayo; a garnish of radish and cilantro tops off another top-quality cut of fish. The vegetarian options surprisingly do not disappoint: the vegetarian roll is a flavorful mix of noodles and rice, accompanied by a crunchy outer shell. Bosso Ramen Tavern does not shy away from the performance and spectacle of dining. Guests await their meal while watching chefs steadily build mouth-watering bowls of ramen and sushi, while a blowtorch is set off here and there and the
ELIZABETH KOZLOV CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Courtesy of Elizabeth Kozlov
waiters and waitresses bustle throughout the cozy but energetic space. Perhaps the secret star of the show and closing act that will call for another visit to Bosso Ramen Tavern is the dessert:] culinary intelligence shines here, highlighting the masterful execution of a simple but ambitious menu. Black sesame ice cream with sweet potato ended an already impressive meal with equal flair and ambition. Bosso Ramen Tavern has cleverly filled its own niche in Harvard Square, providing a culinary experience and atmosphere that compliments the larger restaurant ecosystem. The Square has recently seen a boom in ramen establishments: Menya Jiro, One Ramen & Sushi, and Hokkaido Ramen Santouka all offer visitors mid-range, fast-casual ramen and sushi experiences. Perhaps this dense population of ramen shops is an attempt to profit off the stereotypical college-students-living-off-ramen trope. Instant ramen has a reputation for being cheap and easy, and these college neighborhood ramen shops emphasize higher quality ingredients while preserving comfort and ease. Bosso Ramen Tavern, while perhaps benefiting from the university association, thoroughly rejects the dorm-food trope. The atmosphere is posh, with an unapologetic air of sophistication and caters towards a crowd much older than the average Harvard student. The prices are well out of the range of a student looking at Tasty Burger or El Jefe’s, ensuring a much yuppier crowd. Bosso Ramen Tavern is catered towards creating an immersive experience as much as it is about serving food. The servers all share a bit of the restaurant’s history and cultural roots, and the story of each ingredient is served along with its tasting notes. This positions Bosso Ramen Tavern as an immersive and intimate experience that goes beyond the menu (and artisan volumed servings) to offer portage to a culturally-charged experience. The food itself, though high quality and rich in flavor, is portioned in modest sizes compared to many of the late-night oriented Harvard square favorites (like El Jefe’s gargantuan burritos…). Bosso Ramen Tavern’s plating — like its experience — is artistry, a well-curated fabric of greetings, staff, lighting, stories, and smells. The long lines queuing up across from the Smith Campus Center are here to stay for the foreseeable future, and Bosso Ramen Tavern will assuredly cement its reputation amongst diners in Harvard Square.
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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
CONTRACT FROM PAGE 1
APRIL 5, 2022
FAS FROM PAGE 1
Security Guards FAS to Vote on Course Registration Ratify Contract “It’s unfortunate that Securitas put forth a union-busting proposal that will guarantee that the union will be divided for the next four years,” Malik said Monday. Securitas did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Crimson on Monday night.
We do believe it’s a strong agreement. Roxana Rivera 32BJ SEIU Executive VP
Union members who voted “yes” on the new contract said they saw the offer from Securitas as a significant improvement from the previous one, which was rejected in January. Union member Aldilcon C. Andrade said that he was “very happy” about the new deal. “Last time I did vote no, but when they gave the new proposal, I voted yes immediately because the raise is really significant,” he said. “I just had a newborn baby, so this contract is really great because my child also gets free health care.”
Kumar S. Dangi, a member of 32BJ’s bargaining committee, said “lingering” without a contract any longer would “jeopardize our members.” “You should not be that greedy,” he added. “You have to get it done.” Roxana Rivera, the executive vice president of 32BJ SEIU, said that the contract offer represents “the best that we could achieve in this bargaining cycle.” “We do believe it’s a strong agreement for our members. It protects their health care, it gives them well-deserved wage increases, and there’s even some new benefits in this agreement,” she said. Malik said guards may still demonstrate around Commencement, when massive crowds are expected to flood Cambridge for ceremonies that will honor the Class of 2022 and the Classes of 2021 and 2020. “I believe the bargaining committee is still not happy,” he said. “But of course, we’re going to have to wait another four years before we can reopen several issues.” sophia.scott@thecrimson.com claire.yuan@thecrimson.com
prefer a joint concentration to a double one,” he wrote. “However, I believe a student should only do a thesis if they are driven to it intellectually, and not to satisfy some administrative requirement.” Kathy A. Richman, the director of undergraduate studies and lecturer in Romance Languages and Literatures, wrote in an emailed statement that the “only disadvantage” she sees in double concentrations is that they would increase the total required credits for students. Fulfilling the requirements for two complete concentrations in addition to General Education courses and distribution requirements would leave a student with less room in their schedule to explore other fields, she wrote. Previous-Term Course Registration
When it comes to the fate of shopping week, faculty opinions are split. During the pandemic, the College established a pre-term registration model with an add-drop period at the start of the semester. Under the new proposal, students would be required to select their courses during the
RETRACT FROM PAGE 1
previous semester. Richman wrote that she believes the add-drop period is a suitable substitute for shopping week. “In effect, I don’t believe that Harvard undergrads are really ‘losing’ shopping week,” she wrote. “The add-drop period at the beginning of term serves the same purpose of being able to explore a reasonable number of courses.” “It would be helpful if the new system allowed students to pre-register for 5 courses,” Richman added. Barak wrote that he sees advantages in both pre-registration and shopping week, but that the school must get “the details right.” Faculty should prepare course materials in time for students to make informed decisions, students should still be able to switch courses without petitions during the first week, and students should have a say in the proposal’s implementation, he wrote. In a statement sent to The Crimson and signed by 35 faculty and alumni, Harvard Kennedy School fellow Richard Yarrow and Ph.D. candidate in Government Max Kuhelj Bugarič ’19 voiced concerns about an early course registration system.
“The liberal arts model’s interweaving of disciplines and ideas functions best when students are encouraged to explore interesting topics freely and make connections between different fields on their own,” the letter states. “We believe that too many of that model’s benefits will be lost under the new system.” The statement claims that shopping period provides students with the opportunity to explore unknown fields with unfamiliar professors and allows them to decide their courses after seeing their instructors “in action” rather than the “rumors and imperfect ratings of the Q.” Acknowledging that Harvard had to adapt during the pandemic, the letter calls the move away from shopping week “bizarre,” arguing that course shopping is “likely the single most Zoom-appropriate of all of Harvard’s traditions.” The letter urges the College to re-adopt shopping period. “We hope that Harvard College will quickly return to and maintain a highly flexible, open, intellectually dynamic course enrollment system, a key and underappreciated foundation that made Harvard’s liberal arts model thrive,” it states.
CORPORATION FROM PAGE 1
Journals Retract Studies by Palandjian to Join Former Medical School Prof. Harvard Corporation as an associate professor of Ophthalmology at HMS, did not respond to requests for comment on Monday. He told the Boston Globe, “It’s a complicated issue, and all I can say is people make mistakes.” He wrote in a later statement to the Globe that the studies were retracted “as part of my cooperation with the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center during their review of this matter.” Arroyo currently works as an eye surgeon at Boston Vision, a Massachusetts-based eye care practice. He has authored and published more than 60 peer-reviewed papers, according to his biography on Boston Vision’s website. He is board certified by the Ameri-
can Academy of Ophthalmology and serves on the finance committee of the New England Ophthalmological Society. Boston Vision did not respond to requests for comment. One of the studies Arroyo co-authored measured retinal blood flow from 20 control subjects and 32 clinically diagnosed patients. Another collected data from 18 patients with “dry age-related macular degeneration,” which is an ocular disorder. Another study — one of the six published by Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science — performed Optical Coherence Technology scans of 46 patients recruited from the BIDMC Eye Clinic. According to the study’s abstract, scans
were taken before and after subjects were administered oxygen for 3 hours. Arroyo left his position at BIDMC in 2021, according to his LinkedIn page. BIDMC declined to comment on the specific retractions. “We are fully committed to upholding the highest research standards and to rigorously maintaining the integrity of our research,” a spokesperson for the hospital, Terri Janos, wrote in a statement. “Any concerns brought to our attention are thoroughly reviewed in accordance with institutional policies and applicable regulations.” felicia.he@thecrimson.com james.jolin@thecrimson.com
“Tracy Palandjian is an outstanding Harvard citizen,” he said in the release. “She has been one of Harvard’s most engaged and thoughtful alumni leaders in recent years, and I know her insights and perspective will contribute a great deal to the Corporation’s work.” The Harvard Corporation is a thirteen-member body formally known as the President and Fellows of Harvard College. The board weighs in on top decisions across Harvard, including the hiring or firing of the University president, who serves as a member of the Corporation. When vacancies arise, the Corporation chooses its new fellows, who are approved by
Harvard, 24/7.
The Crimson thecrimson.com
One of the signatories of the statement, Physics professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies Howard M. Georgi ’68, penned his own letter opposing pre-registration, arguing that shopping week is a “unique and valuable part of Harvard College.” “We don’t have cookie-cutter students and we don’t teach cookie-cutter courses,” he wrote. “It is important for students to get a sense of how the professor teaches and the feel of the class, staff and students, and that simply cannot be done the semester before.” Though Georgi said shopping week “adds to the chaos of the first few weeks,” he wrote that Harvard should try out other solutions before taking the “drastic step” of requiring pre-registration. Harvard spokesperson Rachael Dane declined to comment. At Tuesday’s meeting, the faculty will vote on the broad principles of early registration. If the proposal is adopted, an implementation committee will then decide the specifics, according to Computer Science professor Edward W. “Eddie” Kohler. ariel.kim@thecrimson.com meimei.xu@thecrimson.com
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a majority vote of the Board of Overseers.
She has been one of Harvard’s most engaged and thoughtful alumni.
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William F. Lee ’72 Corporation Senior Fellow
Palandjian will join prominent lawyers, academics, and business leaders on the Corporation when her term begins on July 1. cara.chang@thecrimson.com isabella.cho@thecrimson.com
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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
APRIL 5, 2022
PAGE 8
EDITORIAL THE CRIMSON EDITORIAL BOARD
OP-ED
Every House Should be a Home
S
o, you’ve been Quadded — and remain unimpressed, despite their cute ‘pfishbowls,’ or perhaps because you realized it’s not actually quite as close as Mather House. Luckily, you can simply transfer houses and pray that the river gods look favorably upon you this time — just kidding. The interhouse transfer process is notoriously opaque and temperamental, with the College providing very little specific or quantified information on the number, direction, or cause of transfers. Not to mention, by applying for a transfer, students jeopardize at least a year’s worth of social connections and relationships. Given these difficulties, why do our peers continue apply for transfers — and in even larger numbers than before? The truth, in our view, is that where you live matters. Houses and their immediate surroundings do not simply exist for aesthetic reasons (no, not even Eliot). They overwhelmingly shape our experiences and relationships during our last three years at Harvard — which is why we insist that every student deserves to find a home in their House. On the surface, traditions like Housing Day are meant to foster a sense of community and House pride. Waking up at the crack of dawn to paint our faces, putting on ridiculous House mascot costumes that we’re honestly not sure have ever been washed, and marching into the Yard with homemade posters as tourists in Harvard Square stare on — all to boost House spirit and morale. What rarely makes the front page, though, are the genuine fears and occasional loud sobs that erupt in first-year dorms when freshmen are placed into a House that they can’t envision as their home. These students are essentially left out of something special after receiving news that could dictate a significant portion of their undergraduate experience. For many students who live in the Quad, their Housing Days were plagued with discussions of dreaded stereotypes, their introduction to their house tainted by stress — even if they themselves, like many Quadlings, would eventually grow to love the commuter’s life. Indeed, while the University keeps a tight grip on official transfer statistics, anecdotal
accounts suggest that more Quadlings seeming willing to subject themselves to the emotional turmoil of this opaque process each year. Quad housing, for whatever reason, is not seen as equal by significant fraction of our peers. To be clear, we know well that all 12 Houses are capable of being loved. For many, if not most, Quadded students, their House does become a deeply-cherished home, one they will defend to any and all detractors. But that’s not a reason to ignore the clear need for a morale boost suggested by the growing transfer numbers. They make it imperative that Harvard direct rsources towards making material improvements to the Quad that can help Quadlings learn to love their Houses. These investments should seek to im-
So long as different houses are deemed unequal, the option of transferring remains an important outlet for student dissatisfactions that must therefore be open, accessible, transparent, and fair. prove all of the various aspects of House life that contribute to a student’s sense of House pride. That might entail expediting renovations through the House renewal program in Quad houses, giving greater funding for social events through House Committees, improving service from the Quad shuttle system, and even building on the small, thoughtful gestures like dining-hall ice cream sundae bars that make Houses feel special. So long as different houses are deemed unequal, the option of transferring remains an important outlet for student dissatisfactions that must therefore be open, accessible, transparent, and fair. At the very least, Housing Administrators should be more transparent about the number of openings in each House, so that students can rank their options accordingly and thereby maximize their odds of a successful transfer.
Most importantly, we believe that the interhouse transfer process should not remain “impartial” — that all transfer requests are not created equal and should not be treated as such. For some, an interhouse transfer is a matter of safety — an incredibly high-stakes decision brought on by Title IX issues, accessibility concerns, or interpersonal issues like discriminatory or bigoted behavior. For others, it is about avoiding the inconvenience of waking up extra early to commute to a 9 a.m. lecture, a genuine but assuredly less severe issue. In recognition of this hierarchy of complaints, the College should create an option on the standard transfer application for students to list compelling issues with greater detail and subsequently prioritize them in making decisions on who will be allowed to transfer. This adjustment seems to us particularly important in light of Harvard’s own recognition that many barriers and deterrents discourage students from bringing forward formal complaints against the conduct of other students. Given these issues, it is urgent and necessary for the College to at least protect these students by prioritizing their transfer applications while working to improve the status quo of silence and inaction. After all, how can interhouse transfer effectively resolve student dissatisfaction with their Houses when it has not even begun to address concerns of student safety and well-being? Ultimately, we maintain that all Houses, Quad or river, can be lovely homes. We also know that sometimes, things just don’t work out. That’s okay — but only as long as the College fulfills its obligations to support unsatisfied students through housing improvements and a better transfer system. 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.
COLUMN
The Heroes of Our Own Stories Anuksha S. Wickramasinghe ADHDVENTURES
“Y
ou are the hero of your own story.” It’s a quote that I loved and would requote often enough that my best friend thought I was the one who came up with it. Though Joseph Campbell said it first, my main character charisma characterizes the way I live my life because as I’ve alluded to in a past op-ed, it’s a trait that I believe I owe to my ADHD. It’s a trait that I pride myself on, and one that allowed me to become fast friends with Seo “Ryu” Ryu, Ewha Womans University ’23, through a virtual conference. As our hour-plus-long call deep-diving into ADHD was winding down, I asked her if there were traits or aspects of her ADHD that she appreciated. She was glad I had asked, because if I didn’t, “We would only be talking bad about ADHD,” which, as she says, “is so not true.” Neurodiversity Celebration Week was merely a few weeks ago, and April is Autism Acceptance Month with April
She adds: “The emotion we feel is a lot more exaggerated than how other people feel, and the ADHD people tend to have a very strong creative side.” 2nd marking World Autism Awareness Day. It’s within this context that I want to take the time and space in my column to shed light on positive aspects, traits, and experiences with neurodivergence. As an important disclaimer, this piece is not meant to romanticize neurodivergence nor speak for the multitudes of identities and experiences that neurodivergence, or even more broadly, that neurodiversity encompasses. Rather, I want to provide more holistic insights into neurodivergent experiences, especially because my column has largely focused on challenges and obstacles neurodivergent individuals face. Even within my own experiences, as someone with an ADHD and anxiety comorbidity, while I see my ADHD as a core part of who I am, I most definitely would not say the same for my anxiety, though I understand them both as contributing to my neurodivergence. “I love your analogy, like you said,
we’re the main characters in the TV show,” Ryu tells me. To quote her, we both “always have something to talk about” and hear from our friends regularly that our lives are so dramatic, to which Ryu and I respond, “I know!” I love to joke with my friends that I handle mundane problems in “creative” ways because truly every moment in my life feels so important, that it’s practically cinematic — plenty of material for a sitcom and a stand-up special to boot. After joking about how she once read ADHD described as “being high all of the time,” Ryu describes what she appreciates about ADHD, “We can find beauty in everything.” People with ADHD, she says, “see some – I don’t know, leaf, and then we just appreciate it so much.” She adds: “The emotion we feel is a lot more exaggerated than how other people feel, and the ADHD people tend to have a very strong creative side.” For Ryu, this creativity is channeled into a variety of areas, including her passion for art. “It’s like a coin. [ADHDers] appreciate everything, and they feel the beauty around them too much. And that really helps them with the creative side.” But “whenever the negative emotions come by, they’re blaming themselves or maybe [experiencing] depression. It also hits really strong. But it’s so fun!” Ryu summarizes. The rollercoaster that is ADHD has brought us to countless interests, which as I know for me, are related to my hyperfixations, and, we’ve both found ways to hack traits like ADHD hyperfocus towards our own successes. The constant quest for the next interest, the next challenge is a trait that Arash Oboodi ’22 and current GSAS Ph.D. student can relate to. “When I feel like I’ve accomplished something, my mind immediately wants to try something else because, like I said, I’m hyper-competitive and I’m always looking for a challenge. And when I’m not being challenged, I’m just incredibly bored.” Oboodi, who has Asperger Syndrome and ADHD is extraordinarily talented in a variety of areas including math, pattern recognition, and poker. From a young age, he has been obsessed with math and patterns, which has helped hone his world-class poker skills. To scratch the surface of his poker accomplishments, he’s had a few instances where he was the number one online poker player in the world and has won the Full Tilt Online Poker Series, the Inaugural Event for just under $200,000 when he was 21, launching him to the top at the time. Oboodi’s journey with poker is simply a legendary one. He began playing the game at 16 years old, illegally for money back when ID verification wasn’t around
yet. “When poker became mainstream, my brother started playing as a senior in high school and I, like every other little sibling, tried to emulate everything he did. So I picked up the game as well. And coincidentally and conveniently enough, the game was just all about quick math, pattern recognition, some intuition — and also it gave me an opportunity to have fun and compete.” Moreover, he describes the game as incredibly convenient for him because, at the time, he had panic disorder with agoraphobia, which limited his ability to go outside. Thus, poker gave him “an opportunity to make money without having to get a traditional job at a time where [he] didn’t know whether [his] condition would improve.” “Once you get used to the game, honestly the math becomes second nature,” he tells me. “It’s all about picking up patterns at that point, like what would Person X do in this situation? What would person Y do in this situation?” Accordingly, he believes that “many intangibles” of poker “correlate with the core symptoms of Asperger’s especially,” and would “definitely attribute some of [his] success in poker to the symptoms affiliated with Asperger’s.”
Your understanding and empathy towards everyone is crucial towards fostering both acceptance of neurodiversity and an even better Harvard community. As you may have picked up from my column, Harvard is, in a sense, as Oboodi explains, “a haven for neurodivergence. I say that despite the fact that a lot of the students here are probably undiagnosed and are neurodivergent in their own right, whether they just don’t care to know or whether they’re just unfamiliar with it.” It’s all the more reason why your understanding and empathy towards everyone is crucial towards fostering both acceptance of neurodiversity and an even better Harvard community. After all, we’re all entitled to being the heroes of our own stories. Maybe, in both big and small ways, we can be each other’s heroes too. —Anuksha S. Wickramasinghe ’24 is a Neuroscience concentrator and Crimson Editorial editor in Mather House. Her column “Adhdventures” appears on alternate Wednesdays.
Let Will Smith and All People of Color Be Human
By EMILY N. DIAL
T
he sound of laughter almost never fills me with cold, debilitating anger. But the screeches of overconfident amusement bellowing from my peers as we processed Will Smith confronting Chris Rock’s insensitive joke at the Academy Awards did just that. Instead of yelling, I shook my head, desperately trying to dispel what my voice longed to say: Please stop and have some empathy. I am sorry for writing this piece. I cannot imagine millions of people mischaracterizing and dehumanizing my name — my life — all without my knowledge or permission. For contributing to this toxic culture, I am guilty. But to me this is ultimately about more than Will Smith and Chris Rock. It’s about how people of color are expected to stay dignified, regardless of the personal slights hurled their way; the moment they decide to express the anger that is rightfully theirs, they are vilified, disregarded, and laughed at. And I am so sick of it. This sickness stems from my youth, when I promised myself I would break unjust rules and incite social change. My naive heart broke when my dad followed my declarations with what I now recognize as wise advice. Pick your battles. Yelling at the racist man at the diner who slams a door in your face won’t make a difference. But it can ruin your reputation, and somewhere down the line, you’re going to need it for something that can make a difference. It’s why schools all too often teach us about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. but not Malcolm X. In the vital fight for justice, only ideas reframed as palatable are revered in the mainstream. I can’t and won’t speak for all people of color. I speak only from my experiences as a mixed, brown girl, who took her dad’s words to heart. Since that day, my reputation has been my primary concern, keeping me from breaking even the smallest of norms. When I listened to Smith’s carefully chosen words, I saw a man who was tired. Tired of constantly having to smile and laugh. Someone who has painted himself as a respectable artist, starring in innocent comedies like “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” or “Men in Black.” And who has dedicated himself for over two decades to using his untainted reputation to share the stories of inspiring Black men like Muhammad Ali, Chris Gardner, and most recently, Richard Williams, in a performance that earned him his first Academy Award. But the Academy Awards have historically not been receptive of Black artists, regardless of their talent. For Smith, this was a battle he saw worth fighting. In 2016, Will and Jada-Pinkett Smith both boycotted the Academy Awards in protest of the lack of diversity in the acting nominees. We witnessed powerful stories in film this year. Those of us who watched with an open heart and active ear could not have missed the limited but significant presence of Black artists. As I did my best to drown out the uproar pouring out from my peers as they scrambled to rewatch the clip, I took in Questlove’s acceptance speech for his documentary “Summer of Soul” and gratefully teared up at his words of its cultural importance.
People of color are exhausted for so many reasons. And if Oscars-night showed me anything, it’s that we have reason to be. While the wails of laughter increased when Smith finally got his moment on stage, my respect for him only soared. I saw a Black man who had to fight — possibly by not fighting — in order to get to where he is today. A man who believes so much in his work. A man who values his family. A man who expressed in his speech how disturbing it is to be in the public eye. He does not deserve an audience that will only remember him for picking a battle they deemed inappropriate, refusing to acknowledge the depth of his career and life. People of color are exhausted for so many reasons. And if Oscars-night showed me anything, it’s that we have reason to be. We could live our entire lives with the best of intentions, gain the respect of the entire world, and finally win the award we deserve — not to mention an award symbolizing the impact of the story we truly longed to tell. And in an instant, we may become a laughing stock simply because of a choice to express a perfectly natural human response: anger. We’re not allowed to say we’ve had enough. We’re not permitted a breaking point. I still believe in the words my father told me, and have abandoned all hope of changing the world. I have no harsh feelings towards those I shared Oscars night with. They struck me as perfectly well-intentioned, kind people whom I would never even think to call bigoted, and I am honored to know a few of them. But I hope, if nothing else, that those who chose to laugh at Smith in his most vulnerable moment will recognize that they were unintentionally laughing at every person of color who ever dared to be human. —Emily N. Dial ’25, a Crimson Editorial Editor, lives in Thayer Hall.
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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
APRIL 5, 2022
Affiliates Laud HKS Commencement Speaker Pick By MILES J. HERSZENHORN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
As war rages in Ukraine, Harvard affiliates praised the selection of Moldovan President Maia Sandu to deliver the Harvard Kennedy School’s graduation address in Masy. Moldova, a poor and small Eastern European country bordering Ukraine, has taken in over 100,000 refugees since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February, despite having a population of less than 3 million. Sandu, who rode a pro-European Union and pro-democracy platform to win election in 2020, has led Moldovan efforts to provide said to those affected by the war. Mariana Budjeryn, a Ukrainian researcher at the Kennedy School’s Belfer Center, pointed to U.S. President Joe Biden’s promise to accept 100,000 refugees, calling it “incommensurable” for the U.S. and Moldova — a country one hundred times smaller — to take in the same number of people. “It’s an important story to tell the American people,” Ilinca Mazureac ’23, a Moldovan student. “That a country like Moldova, who’s arguably one of the poorest countries in Eu-
rope, can take in so many refugees, and can find a place for them to live.” “If Moldova can do that, it should be a lot easier for the U.S. to do that,” Mazureac added. Ilya S. Timtchenko, a U.S. citizen of Ukrainian background and chair of the Ukrainian Caucus at HKS, said Sandu’s speech will hold “symbolic significance,” due to the leader’s solidarity with Ukraine. HKS spokesperson James F. Smith wrote in a statement that Sandu was invited before the invasion of Ukraine. “Clearly, her leadership since then makes it all the more appropriate for Kennedy School students to hear from her,” Smith wrote. Mihaela Esanu ’23, a Moldovan student, said both Ukraine and Moldova have struggled with “Russian aggression” since the fall of the Soviet Union. “One of the reasons why there was so much solidarity among Moldovans [was] because we related to Ukrainians,” Esanu said. “It was on a lot of Moldovan people’s minds that ‘Oh, it could have been us, and that it might still be us.’” “That is not to say that Moldovans are going through what Ukrainians are now,” Esanu
added. “But I think our similarities are anchored in a somewhat shared past.” Budjeryn said she hopes Sandu’s graduation speech will remind HKS graduates of their own democratic values. “As a Ukrainian, I hope these public policy leaders will be reinvigorated with some healthy dose of idealism about their own values,” Budjeryn said. “Or the values that their own country upholds, or claims to uphold.” “We have somehow lost sight of the fact that these values are not something that belongs to the West exclusively,” Budjeryn added. “There’s something universal about wanting to have agency and to live with a voice in a political society.” Budjeryn said the solidarity Eastern European countries are showing with Ukraine reminded her of the Kennedy School’s motto: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” “Maybe it’s not just so nationally focused,” she said. “Maybe it’s, ‘What you can do — not just for the country — but what you can do for the world to make it better.’” miles.herszenhorn@thecrimson.com
Moldovan President Maia Sandu, pictured on an official visit with the president of Italy, will speak during the Kennedy School’s graduation in May. OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC
Activists Denounce Fossil Fuel Industry Ties By CHRISTIE K. CHOI and CARRIE HSU CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
Harvard affiliates signed a letter released in March demanding that British and American universities stop accepting funding from fossil fuel corporations for climate change and energy research.Fossil Free Research — a campaign started by Cambridge Climate Justice, Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard, and climate change experts — penned the letter, which argues climate research funded by the fossil fuel industry “creates a conflict of interest that compromises researchers’ academic freedom.” Among the nearly 500 academics who signed the letter, 91 were Harvard affiliates. Ilana A. Cohen ’23, an FFDH organizer who also helped with disseminating the letter, explained that the goal of the campaign was to argue for the university’s responsibility, as “true
climate leaders,” to ban funding from the fossil fuel industry. “It really powerfully argues the case that universities — in order to be true climate leaders — simply have to ban fossil fuel money for climate change, environmental, and energy policy research,” Cohen said. Peter C. Frumhoff, an associate with the Harvard University Center for the Environment and signatory of the letter, accused fossil fuel companies of spreading disinformation while “promoting their continued exploration of venues of oil and gas.” “The problem is that getting support from the fossil fuel industry entirely undermines the goal of supporting a clean energy transition,” Frumhoff said. Harvard Art Museums’ Curator Carmen Àrnold-Biucchi, who also signed the letter, wrote in an email that the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, a top exporter of oil, increased her support for fossil fuel divest-
ment. “Not only is it devastating for the earth and the climate, but with the present war in Ukraine, we see that fossil fuel finances Putin’s war,” she wrote. Similarly, Harvard Graduate School of Education professor Emmerich Davies drew parallels between sports and the fossil fuel industry. “The men’s soccer World Cup in Qatar is a very clear example of the use of sports to whitewash problems with the staging of the tournament and human rights abuses in the country,” he said. “I don’t think we as academics should give the fossil fuel companies the opportunity to do something similar by greenwashing their reputation by funding research on climate change.” Harvard Medical School assistant professor and signatory James M. “Jim” Recht said he thinks the fossil fuel indus-
try has offered funding to researchers to assuage any misgivings about the industry. He said he has seen first-hand how the money has “distorted” the perspectives of colleagues. “If you give someone or some entity enough money, it makes it very difficult for that entity or that individual to continue to behave in a morally right way,” he said. Recht said that the sooner universities “wash their hands” of fossil fuel industry money, the sooner they will be able to build “democratic, equitable energy infrastructures.” Harvard, in a policy reversal, announced last September that it would let its remaining investments in the fossil fuel industry expire, though the University did not provide a timeline for the liquidation. Cohen said the Fossil Free Research campaign has sent Harvard’s administration the letter and hopes that Harvard
LEE FROM PAGE 1
Taeku Lee to Join FAS Faculty
will take action. “I’m really optimistic that this letter will further the momentum around getting the administration to actually be accountable on the issue of fossil fuel money and conflicts of interest because we have yet to see any accountability there,” Cohen said. Recht added that he believes Harvard has been behind in facing the political and economic challenges of the climate crisis. “Harvard’s role so far has been to exemplify frailty and the moral weakness of large, influential institutions,” Recht said. “Harvard has said to people like me for the past 10 years, ‘we are not interested in tampering with the status quo.’ And I hope that changes,” he added. University spokesperson Jonathan L. Swain declined to comment.
“What excites me so much is I’ll be joining one of the preeminent political science faculties anywhere and that I’m getting in on the ground of this genuinely inspired EIM initiative,” Lee said. “It’s a culmination of many things I’ve dedicated my career towards and to be a part of a group of faculty to figure out what form that inspiration takes at Harvard is well worth the next chapter of my career,” he added.
christie.choi@thecrimson.com carrie.hsu@thecrimson.com
ariel.kim@thecrimson.com meimei.xu@thecrimson.com
From Weeks to Weld.
The Crimson thecrimson.com
SPORTS
WEEKLY RECAP
SCORES
WOMEN’S LACROSSE VS. DARTMOUTH W, 11-7 ___________________________________________________________
WOMEN’S HEAVYWEIGHT ROWING VS BROWN L ___________________________________________________________
BASEBALL VS. BROWN W, 7-5 ___________________________________________________________
MEN’S HEAVYWEIGHT ROWING VS. CORNELL W ___________________________________________________________
WOMEN’S RUGBY VS. SACRED HEART W, 32-0 ___________________________________________________________
WOMEN’S LIGHTWEIGHT ROWING VS. GEORGETOWN W ___________________________________________________________
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL VS. NJIT W, 3-0 ___________________________________________________________
MEN’S LACROSSE
Crimson Defeats Colgate to Extend Winning Streak By KATHARINE FORST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
The men’s lacrosse team (7-1, 2-0) remains a member of the top 10 of Division 1 after clinching the no. 10 ranking for the second week in a row after a 7-6 victory over Colgate. This matchup marks the sixth straight win for the Crimson. The contest was low-scoring and competitive from the initial whistle. Colgate drew first blood with a quick goal, to which Harvard responded with a series of six straight goals. The game was not a showing of the team’s usual cohesive play as it was somewhat sloppy on both ends. The team had a combined twenty turnovers and was 0-2 in man-up play. However, the squad had a successful day on clearing, going 22-24 and was able to scoop up 31 ground balls. The face off was an improved showing from previous games, with senior fogos Steven Cuccurullo and Kyle Massimilian going 7-12 and 2-2 respectively. The wings played an integral role in securing possession, with sophomore LSM Greg Campisi, first year LSM Martin Nelson, junior middie Chase Yager, and first-year middie Andrew O’Berry all scooping up ground balls that resulted in possession time for the offense. “It’s focus, taking more live reps in practice We switched from doing drills on our own to more head to head, which definitely contributed to our success,” Massimilian said. “[We need to win more] clean, and if we don’t win it clean outright, then move to a counter immedi
ately. Our wings do an amazing job of getting wins for us. Picking up ground balls ourselves and then generating offense off of that. Looking to push transition when we win the face off.” On the attacking end, the trio of senior Austin Madronic, junior Hayden Cheek and firstyear Sam King facilitated the sets. Cheek tallied two goals and two ground balls, and King notched one goal and three groundbals. The ride, which included the hustle of middies like junior Nick Loring, first-year Owen Gaffney who had three points (1G, 2A) and four ground balls, first-year Andrew Perry and junior Isaiah Dawson slowed down Colgate’s clear and resulted in caused turnovers that awarded Harvard’s offense with more possession time. “We were being patient on offense. We were getting good looks. We were sharing the ball well, ” Gaffney noted. The first three quarters showcased a dominant Crimson attack, but the fourth quarter showed a lapse in concentration that saw Colgate score four straight goals to tighten Harvard’s lead to one. Senior goalie Kyle Mullin came in clutch at the buzzer when he made a save on the doorstep. “We kept giving them loose balls. We weren’t getting ground balls a lot, so we were giving them a lot of chances that were kind of unorganized, so we couldn’t get set up” Campisi said. “And we weren’t helping the slide. We were kind of sliding and leaving the guy wide open every time, which we were doing well on in the first half.” There is a lot that the team
APPLYING PRESSURE Senior Austin Madronic led a dominant attack over Colgate for the first three quarters. DYLAN J. GOODMAN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
needs to work on to improve for difficult future contests against league competitors Cornell, UPenn, Princeton and Yale. Gaffney gave insight into how the team will look to perform more cohesively offensively, while Campisi had notes for his fellow defensemen. “[We need to] keep working
on spacing. A lot of the times when we turned it over, missed catches, stuff like that, we were too condensed. We need to space out more cause we find success in space and we are not utilizing all of it. We played a good game, but every game we are going to have to learn to do something better,” Gaffney stat-
ed. Campisi hopes to continue this trend of gradual improvement on the defensive end with increased communication. “We need to look to communicate better. We started off really well on the same page, so we just have to keep it up for the whole game. We guarded well
and our slide decisions themselves were good, we helped a lot at the right times.” The Crimson will travel to Ithaca, NY to battle against Cornell for a 3pm game that will be available to stream on ESPN+. katharine.forst@thecrimson.com
WOMEN’S WATER POLO
Harvard Splits Doubleheader vs. Ranked Teams By EVER A. MARINELLI CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
his past weekend, Harvard T women’s water polo competed in an exciting double header against a pair of conference opponents on Saturday, with a narrow two-point loss to No. 7 Michigan and an equally hardfought two-point victory over No. 19 Princeton. “[Michigan and Princeton] were definitely our two most anticipated games of the season,” junior goalie Zoe Banks said. “They’re the two teams we’ve been chasing for the longest, so it was really exciting to play two really close games
against them.” The No. 22 Crimson (17-5, 5-2 CWPA) began the day with a 12-10 defeat against the Wolverines (18-8, 6-0 CWPA), which is currently undefeated in conference play. Harvard came out of the gates slowly, conceding two goals in the first two minutes. “We started off a little slow,” Banks said. “Next time, we know what to expect and we know we have to come out with ten times the amount of energy that we did in the first quarter of that game.” Despite the difficult start and eventual defeat, both the players and head coach Ted Minnis saw the game as a suc-
cess. Both emphasized the importance of learning from setbacks while still focusing on the positives and keeping a good attitude. Personally, my favorite moment from the whole day was against Michigan,” said senior center defender Inde Halligan. “It was a six-on-five, so we had a power play going, and my teammate [first-year attacker Erin Kim] threw me the most perfect pass that has ever been thrown in water polo, which ended up setting up a really nice shot for me.” After the Michigan game, the team shifted its focus to its Ivy League rival, Princeton. For
double headers, being able to reset mentally and prepare for the second opponent is critical to maintain a high level of play. However, it can be a daunting task. “I definitely was nervous to have two games in the same day, there’s always the chance of having your mind on the second game and not playing the first game right,” Halligan said. “It’s hard to deal with them separately.” On Saturday, the Crimson succeeded in moving past the Michigan loss in order to focus all its efforts on the Tigers. “We are moving on to the next game, [the first] game is
finished. There’s nothing to be done about it and there’s no point in thinking too hard about any negatives you might feel,” Banks said. “Stick with the positive energy … take the positive things from the first game and bring them into the next one.” That positive energy from the Michigan game carried over to Harvard’s showdown with Princeton (17-6, 6-1 CWPA), where the Crimson put away a 10-8 win. “To play and beat Princeton for the first time with 0-4 [against them] as a program, and do it in their senior game – it was pretty great,” Minnis said. As it did against the Wol-
ATTACKING PRESENCE Junior Borden Wahl scored in both contests of the weekend doubleheader, continuing her strong career for the Crimson dating back to 2019 picture above. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
verines, Harvard allowed the Tigers to score the game’s first two goals, but after changing the lines and doing some substituting, the team was able to tie up the game at 2-2. The first quarter ended with a frustrating two-goal run by Princeton, but Harvard picked up significant momentum in the second quarter, as it headed into halftime with a 7-4 edge. “Our second quarter against Princeton was really great,” Banks said. “It was a 5-0 quarter, so that was really exciting, especially since at the end of the first quarter we were down 4-2.” Though the Princeton game was undoubtedly a success for the Crimson, the team will continue making adjustments before the second round of conference play. The double round robin format means that Harvard plays each conference opponent twice, giving both teams a chance to strategize and hone their play before the second matchup. “Especially against Michigan, I did not like our five-on-six defense,” Minnis said. “We gave up a lot of goals to both Princeton and Michigan in that phase of the game … When we’re playing down a woman, that’s when teams are scoring on us.” Minnis declined to comment on specific strategic changes he’ll be making, but noted that the team is always adjusting and will be spending the coming weeks watching film of its games and preparing to face off against Michigan and Princeton again this coming weekend. The Princeton win left the Crimson with plenty to build off of. It hopes to carry its momentum over to the four conference games this weekend. After its rematch with Princeton on Saturday at 11 a.m., Harvard will face Bucknell (Saturday, 3 p.m.) and Saint Francis (Sunday, 9 a.m.) before attempting to exact revenge on the Wolverines on Sunday at 12 p.m. ever.marinelli@thecrimson.com