The Harvard Crimson THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873
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VOLUME CXLIX, NO. 13 |
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2022
LETTER PAGE 6
SPORTS PAGE 8
SPORTS PAGE 8
A response from 73 faculty members to the Comaroff letter
Women’s hockey claim 2022 Beanpot title with victory over Boston College
Midfielder Fred Asare-Konadu gives back to youth in Florida
Suit: Harvard Ignored Harassment Claims HUPD Advisory Board Meets By ISABELLA B. CHO and ARIEL H. KIM CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
Three graduate students filed a lawsuit against Harvard on Tuesday alleging the school ignored years of sexual harassment and retaliation by professor John L. Comaroff, who was placed on unpaid leave last month. The suit, filed by three graduate students in the Anthropology Department, alleges that Harvard mishandled Title IX complaints and allowed Comaroff to intimidate students who threatened to report him, including the plaintiffs. The suit — filed by Margaret G. Czerwienski, Lilia M. Kilburn, and Amulya Mandava — charges that Comaroff committed physical and verbal sexual harassment, including unwanted kissing and groping. In the 65-page filing, the students took sharp aim at Harvard, which they allege “watched” as Comaroff retaliated against accusers and “allowed its investigatory process to be used in service of Professor Comaroff’s campaign of professional blacklisting.” The lawsuit alleges that Comaroff subjected Kilburn “to a pattern of gender-based ha
rassment and assault continuing from 2017 until at least April 2019 using threats, intimidation, and coercion.” He also allegedly “threatened, intimidated, and coerced” Mandava and Czerwienski for warning others about his sexual misconduct “with the goal of inducing them to stop their speech and opposition to his sexual harassment and gender discrimination.” The suit, filed in federal court, charges that Harvard knew of Comaroff’s alleged misconduct when it hired him in 2012 and failed to act after repeated reports of verbal and physical harassment. It also accuses the University of refusing to take action against Comaroff until the press reported on the harassment allegations. Comaroff, who is not named in the suit, denies the allegations of misconduct. In a statement Tuesday, Comaroff’s lawyers — Norman S. Zalkin, Ruth K. O’Meara-Costello ’02, and Janet E. Halley — wrote that he “categorically denies ever harassing or retaliating against any student.” Harvard spokesperson Rachael Dane declined to comment.
“This is a case about Harvard’s decade-long failure to protect students from sexual abuse and career-ending retaliation.”
At its first meeting of 2022, the board discussed campus safety and police transparency. By SARAH M. GIRMA and BRANDON L. KINGDOLLAR CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
The Lieber trial resulted in the highest-profile conviction to date by the Department of Justice’s China Initiative, a controversial program launched under the Trump administration targeting those suspected of “trade secret theft” and “economic espionage.” The initiative has faced criticism for alleged prosecutorial misconduct and a disproportionate focus on individuals of Chinese heritage. Prosecutors dropped a similarly high-profile case under the China Initiative against Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Gang Chen on Jan. 20, less than a month after Lieber’s conviction. Chen faced some of the same felony charges as Lieber. Lieber’s attorneys identified the charges against Chen as one example of “a string of hollow prosecutions” brought forward under the China Initiative, a program they criticized as “flawed.”
The Harvard University Police Department Advisory Board discussed redefining campus safety and working toward greater department transparency at its first meeting of the semester last Wednesday. The board, which first convened last March, was established after an external review concluded the University’s private police force required major departmental reforms to bring transparency and campus engagement. The external review also prompted the creation of a Reimagining Community Safety working group, which includes two HUPD Advisory Board members as well as faculty, staff, and administrators from across the University. “The University should engage in a community-driven, stakeholder-informed process of defining what ‘public safety’ is at Harvard and re-imagining how it can best be achieved,” the review suggested. At its meeting Wednesday, the HUPD Advisory Board provided feedback on an early draft of the working group’s plan to hold a series of forums focusing on three core features of campus safety. These areas include physical safety; belonging and ideological safety; and mental, social, and emotional safety, according to Annabella Morabito, the newest member of the board. Currently, the board consists of thirteen members, including professors, students, and administrators. Noah A. Harris ’22 – who was previously president of the Harvard Undergraduate Council – is the only undergraduate serving on the board.
SEE LIEBER PAGE 4
SEE HUPD PAGE 4
“The results have been devastating: Professor Comaroff and his enablers have destroyed the educational opportunities and careers of countless students.”
SEE COMAROFF PAGE 3
CAMILLE G. CALDERA—CRIMSON DESIGNER
Lieber Files Motion for New Trial By ISABELLA B. CHO and BRANDON L. KINGDOLLAR CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
Harvard professor Charles M. Lieber — pictured here in December 2021 — has requested a retrial after being found guilty of lying about his ties to a Chinese recruitment program. MAYESHA R. SOSHI—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
Attorneys for Harvard professor Charles M. Lieber filed a motion Monday for an acquittal or new trial, over a month after he was convicted in federal court on six felony counts. Lieber was found guilty in a December trial of two counts of lying to federal officials about his involvement with the China-sponsored Thousand Talents Program. The renowned nanoscientist was also convicted of four tax-related offenses. Calling their client’s conviction a “manifest injustice,” Lieber’s lawyers wrote in a memorandum that Lieber’s statements to investigators were “warped by the government.” They also reiterated a previous call to suppress statements the chemist made in a post-arrest FBI interview. The government has until March 7 to register opposition to the defense’s request.
Shelters Hold Steady Students Protest Despite Omicron By JULIA J. HYNEK and KALEIGH M. KUDDAR CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
A lmost two years after the pandemic’s start, Cambridge homeless shelters have held steady operations amid the spread of the Omicron variant. Local shelters, including Harvard Square Homeless Shelter and Y2Y Harvard Square, have successfully implemented Covid-19 protocols in accordance with public health guidelines, limiting transmission among staff and guests through the spike in Omicron cases this winter. Harvard Square Homeless Shelter and Y2Y Harvard Square practice social distancing, mask-wearing, and regular disinfection, which are measures the institutions have maintained since the early days of the pandemic. Both shelters are staffed by student volunteers through the Phillips
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Harvard Today 2
Brooks House Association. Jim Stewart, the director of First Church Shelter — a Cambridge shelter that serves men experiencing homelessness — said handwashing, masking, and rapid testing have largely limited infections. “We’ve tried to be consistent all the way through, we went, at the beginning of the pandemic, 10 months without any infections,” Stewart said. At HSHS, volunteers are required to be vaccinated against Covid-19, according to HSHS administrative director Henry N. Lear ’23-’24. “We ask everyone to be masked at all times. All our volunteers need to be vaccinated,” Lear, a Crimson magazine editor, said. “We don’t require our guests to be vaccinated. Certainly, we encourage it and do what we can to connect people to vaccine resources, but it’s not
SEE SHELTERS PAGE 5
News 3
Editorial 6
Hummus Company By ELLA L. JONES and MONIQUE L. VOBECKY CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine held a rally in Harvard Yard Tuesday to call on the University to stop serving Sabra hummus in its dining halls due to the company’s ties to the Israeli Defense Forces. Protesters gathered around the John Harvard Statue and chanted phrases like “Don’t buy products laced with hate, Sabra funds a racist state.” HOOP organizers delivered speeches to a crowd of roughly 20 protesters and spectators. HOOP is a campaign, spearheaded by the Harvard College Palestine Solidarity Committee,
SEE HUMMUS PAGE 3
Sports 8
Students gathered in front of Massachusetts Hall on Tuesday to protest Harvard’s use of Sabra products in their dining halls. J. SELLERS HILL—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
TODAY’S FORECAST
SUNNY High: 41 Low: 24
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happy meal
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
FEBRUARY 9, 2022
PAGE 2
HARVARD TODAY
For Lunch Spicy Chicken Stir-Fry Turkey Burger Quinoa and Tofu
For Dinner Just-Caught Atlantic Roast Beef Roasted Vegetable Vegan Ravioli
TODAY’S EVENTS A Conversation with Poet Roger Reeves Virtual, 12 p.m.-1 p.m.
IN THE REAL WORLD
Come listen to Poet Roger Reeves discuss his latest project “One From Another” which addresses the usage of ecstasy in protests against racial terror.
Hyundai and Kia Tell Owners to Park Cars Outside Due to Fire Risk
Hyundai and Kia are telling owners of almost 500,000 cars to park their vehicles outside due to a possible manufacturing defect that could cause the vehicles to spontaneously combust. Hyundai issued a recall for 357,840 vehicles while Kia recalled 126,747.
Education Now | Navigating Tensions Over Teaching Race and Racism Virtual, 3 p.m.-4 p.m. Speakers from various universities will gather to discuss how institutions of education and families can navigate teaching topics such as racism, diversity, and equity.
Josh Neuman, American Skateboarder and Filmmaker, and Four Others Killed in Iceland Plane Crash
Pedestrians walk down Massachusetts Avenue on a rainy Tuesday.
JOEY HUANG—CRIMSON PHOTOG-
RAPHER
AROUND THE IVIES YALE: Chen ’24 shatters world record in men’s short program, prepares for free skate
Harvard University Men’s Basketball Vs. Yale, Lavietes Pavilion Lavietes Pavillion, 7 p.m.-9 p.m.
—THE YALE DAILY NEWS
COLUMBIA: East Campus laundry room fire causes minimal damage —THE COLUMBIA SPECTATOR
Come show your Crimson pride by supporting Harvard Men’s Basketball against Yale on Wednesday February 9th from 7 to 9 p.m.
BROWN: Five Brown professors elected as 2021 AAAS Fellows —THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Neuman and four others were killed in a plane crash in Iceland. Neuman produced skateboarding videos for almost 1.2 million Youtube subscribers and was sightseeing in Iceland when his plane disappeared on February 3rd. On Sunday, authorities found four bodies in Lake Thingvallavatn.
Woman Rescued After Floating On Air Mattress For Two Days on Lake Texoma
A woman spent two days floating alone on an air mattress atop a lake and was rescued by freight train workers on Tuesday. The woman was stranded and calling for help when a southbound train’s conductor noticed her. She had been separated from her fiance and was reportedly in the early stages of hypothermia.
PENN: U.S. Senate confirms Penn President Amy Gutmann as U.S. ambassador to Germany —THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN
COVID UPDATES
LAST 7 DAYS CURRENTLY
CAMPUS
65
In Isolation
143 0.42% Total New Cases
Positivity Rate
LAST 7 DAYS
CAMBRIDGE
307 3.2% 75%
Total New Cases
Positivity Rate
Fully Vaccinated
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY Sinkhole Forms in Street, Nearly Swallows Rabbit
A sinkhole formed near Quincy House, nearly swallowing a Volkswagen Rabbit and delaying traffic for hours. The car was driving down Mt. Auburn St. when the road ahead of it caved, leaving a hole about five feet deep. February 9, 1987
Four Leading Poets to Reunite for Reading
Poets Arthur Freeman ‘59, Maxine Kumin, Anne Sexton, and George Starbuck assembled at Boston University for a public reading whose proceeds were sent to the Biafran Relief Fund. The reading came 11 years after the four poets gave their first public readings together at the Poets’ Theater in 1959. February 9, 1970
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.
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CORRECTIONS The Harvard Crimson is committed to accuracy in its reporting. Factual errors are corrected promptly on this page. Readers with information about errors are asked to e-mail the managing editor at managingeditor@thecrimson.com.
PAGE 3
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
FEBRUARY 9, 2022
COMAROFF FROM PAGE 1
Suit Says Harvard Ignored Sexual Harassment Claims The suit is the most detailed public account yet of harassment complaints against Comaroff, who has served as a professor of African and African American Studies and Anthropology at Harvard since 2012. Comaroff was placed on paid administrative leave in August 2020 after The Crimson reported that at least three female students were in contact with the University’s Title IX Office regarding allegations of sexual harassment and professional retaliation by Comaroff. Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Claudine Gay sanctioned Comaroff last month after University investigations found that he violated sexual harassment and professional conduct policies. Now on unpaid administrative leave, he is barred from teaching required courses and taking on additional advisees through the next academic year. Gay’s sanctions were based on the results of two investigations — one conducted by Harvard’s Office of Dispute Resolution and another by the FAS. According to the suit, the ODR investigation found just one incident from Kilburn’s allegations of “repeated sexual harassment and assaults” to constitute “severe” sexual harassment. It did not recommend any sanctions against Comaroff. But after ODR concluded its investigation, the suit said, the FAS appointed an external factfinder to review the re
port. The investigator found that an exchange Comaroff had with Mandava in October 2017 in which he threatened her to stop her from speaking about his misconduct violated the FAS Professional Conduct Policy. Just shy of 40 Harvard faculty signed onto an open letter sent to Gay last week questioning the results of the misconduct investigations into Comaroff, who the letter described as “an excellent colleague, advisor and committed university citizen.” In response, 73 faculty signed onto a separate open letter published in The Crimson on Tuesday in “strong opposition” to the first letter. The suit charges that the University failed to take action against Comaroff, despite receiving repeated complaints about his behavior. The lawsuit alleges Comaroff sexually harassed Kilburn and “graphically described” the ways in which she would be raped or murdered in areas of South Africa due to her BGLTQ identity. Comaroff’s legal team denied the allegations, writing in the Tuesday statement that “attacks on his career based on gossip and fantasy rather than actual evidence are shameful.” “Professor Comaroff did not kiss or touch her inappropriately at any time,” the lawyers wrote. “Harvard’s Title IX investigation, which lasted over a year and was extraordinarily thorough, concluded that the
evidence did not support claims that he had kissed or touched Ms. Kilburn.” The complaint also alleges that Comaroff retaliated against students who warned of his misbehavior by threatening their careers. After Comaroff allegedly made unwanted sexual advances on an unnamed second-year graduate student in spring 2017, two of the plaintiffs — Czerwienski and Mandava — warned others about his behavior, the suit said. Comaroff then told them they would have “trouble getting jobs” if they continued warning students of his behavior, the suit alleges. According to the complaint, Harvard knew about “a decades-long pattern of harassment and retaliation” by Comaroff when it hired him. Faculty at the University of Chicago, where Comaroff previously taught, had warned the Chair of Harvard’s African and African American Studies Department about Comaroff’s misconduct, according to the filing — but Harvard decided to hire him anyway. “The results of Harvard’s inaction were predictable,” the suit said. The suit raises broader issues about Harvard’s handling of misconduct complaints, saying that its practices “protect powerful faculty, even at the expense of students.” The suit said some Harvard faculty were aware of Comaroff’s alleged misconduct but did not take ac-
HUMMUS FROM PAGE 1
Student Group Calls for Sabra Hummus Boycott that calls on Harvard to disclose and divest its investments in companies tied to Israel’s presence in Palestine. Israel-based food company Strauss Group — which co-owns Sabra with PepsiCo — has drawn criticism for providing financial support to the Israel Defense Forces’ Golani Brigade. Joshua D. “Josh” Willcox ’23, a member of HOOP, said the protest’s aim was to spread awareness to students and encourage them to boycott the company. “We don’t want this company to be in our dining halls,” Willcox said. “This is a general move to not support and not allow any money to go towards companies that involve themselves in an apartheid state.” Willcox said the protest was inspired by previous human rights movements. “We’re borrowing from the same kind of movement that people tried to do when they wanted to end South African Apartheid,” he explained. University spokesperson Jason A. Newton did not respond to a request for comment regard
ing the protest. Nadine S. Bahour ’22, a HOOP organizer, called on students to rethink the consequences of their day-to-day choices. “What we can do on an individual basis as students is just making those decisions in our daily lives,” Bahour said. “When students come here for only five, four years, the most basic act that they can take is when they go to Brain Break not to choose an option that funds the Israeli military.” The Harvard Israel Initiative — a student group that supports “the Jewish nation’s right to exist as a sovereign power in its historic homeland” — posted a statement to its Facebook page Tuesday in response to HOOP’s protest. “We stand against any attempt to single out the State of Israel and uphold the right of the Golani Brigade — a unit dedicated to combatting terror groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah — to defend Israel from those who wish to annihilate it,” the statement reads. “Choosing to accuse a New York-based hum-
mus company of “murder” is a bad-faith attempt to delegitimize Israel’s right to exist.” Strauss Group did not respond to a request for comment regarding the protesters’ criticisms. Willcox said HOOP hopes to expand its outreach on campus through a new initiative called Keffiyeh Thursday, a day in which students don traditional Palestinian scarves. “I’m really excited about the next couple of weeks because on Thursdays we’re starting a campaign called Keffiyeh Thursdays,” Willcox said. “We’re trying to bring visibility to Palestinians on campus and increase the awareness that people have.” Willcox said he hopes that HOOP’s efforts will continue to build momentum through regular events. “We need to make sure that there are events like this every week in the Yard recognizing that this is an active movement and this is something which isn’t going to be quiet,” he said. ella.jones@thecrimson.com monique.vobecky@thecrimson.com
Pictures worth a thousand words.
The Crimson thecrimson.com
Graduate students Amulya Mandava, Lilia Kilburn, and Margaret Czerwienski (pictured left to right) file a lawsuit against Harvard University alleging willful ignorance of sexual harassment and retaliation by professor of African and African American Studies and Anthropology John L. Comaroff. COURTESY OF LENA WARNKE PHOTOGRAPHY
tion. Ajantha Subramanian, the chair of Harvard’s Anthropology Department, allegedly “expressed distress” to Mandava after she reported Comaroff’s misbehavior, but “took no action.” Instead, the suit said, Subramanian urged all three plaintiffs to talk to the press. The complaint alleges that Harvard violated state laws by mishandling its investigations into Comaroff. The ODR obtained Kilburn’s psychotherapy
notes without her consent, according to the suit, and provided them to Comaroff as part of its draft report. Comaroff then used the notes to claim Kilburn must have imagined he sexually harassed her because she was experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder — “a condition that she developed as a direct result of his conduct,” according to the complaint. Russell L. Kornblith, a defense attorney representing the three plaintiffs, said Harvard
must improve its structures of accountability surrounding Title IX policies. “There need to be safeguards in place to ensure that anybody who does believe they’re experiencing what our clients have experienced feels like they can come forward and get an honest investigation without sacrificing their academic career in the process,” he said. isabella.cho@thecrimson.com ariel.kim@thecrimson.com
Study Analyzes Gendered Covid-19 Mortality, Case Rates By JEREMIAH C. CURRAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
A January study from the Harvard GenderSci Lab found sex disparities for Covid-19 cases and mortalities vary widely across states and are likely driven by a variety of gender-related social factors. The GenderSci Lab is an interdisciplinary team of scientists and gender studies scholars led by Sarah S. Richardson, professor of Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality. The paper represents “the first longitudinal study to quantify variation in COVID-19 gender/sex disparities across U.S. states,” according to the lab. Lead author Ann Caroline Danielsen and other members of the GenderSci Lab utilized 55 weeks of data from their U.S. Gender/Sex Covid-19 Data Tracker to assess sex disparities in Covid-19 cases and deaths between April 2020 and November 2021. The lab’s data tracker reported information manually extracted from publicly available health department data. The study revealed that cases have mostly been higher
among women, possibly due to the fact that healthcare workers and pregnant people — both “overwhelmingly” women — are more likely to receive regular testing. Aggregate data from the lab’s tracker showed a “modestly” higher Covid-19 mortality rate for men, meanwhile. But significant variations across states — and time — led researchers to conclude the difference in mortality rates across sexes was not based on biological factors alone. “The heterogeneity in sex disparities documented by our research is consistent with the interpretation that gender-related social factors, which can vary across states, contexts, and social groups, drive COVID-19 sex disparities,” Danielson wrote in a blog post, co-authored by Amelia F. “Mimi” Tarrant ’22, on the GenderSci Lab site. The post cited influential factors such as “gendered health behaviors,” “gendered occupational stratification,” and “gendered pre-existing conditions.” “Biological sex-related factors are not adequate to explain
the variation in sex disparities we observed,” Danielson and Tarrant continued. “When differences in COVID-19 outcomes between women and men are observed, as they are in our paper, interpreters should beware of rushing to conclude that the sex disparity is primarily caused by sex-related biological factors. The study also pointed to policy decisions, such as the implementation of mask mandates and restrictions on businesses and schools, as an example of additional contextual factors made at the local and state levels. Other details to consider included the income levels, jobs, and races of those who died from Covid-19 during the timeframe of the study. The paper concluded by encouraging future research to utilize the lab’s publicly available dataset in tandem with additional data to further explore “the effects of policy, investment, vaccine uptake, and other underlying structural inequities on sex disparities in COVID-19 outcomes.” jeremiah.curran@thecrimson.com
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
FEBRUARY 9, 2022
PAGE 4
HUPD FROM PAGE 1
LIEBER FROM PAGE 1
HUPD Advisory Holds First Meeting of 2022
Lieber Files Retrial Motion Following Conviction
During Wednesday’s meeting, HUPD Chief Victor A. “Vic” Clay provided updates on departmental reform. The board members also helped plan further improvements to the HUPD crime and workload dashboard, which was recommended by the 2020 review. They also discussed the role of the University’s new vice president of human resources, Manuel Cuevas-Trisán, in advancing accountability within the department. Harris said building a working relationship with Clay has been one of the highlights of his time on the board and was an important priority for ensuring productive collaboration with HUPD. “I feel like this is someone we can trust. As an African American, I’ve never seen a Black police chief before,” Harris said. “He’s doing work that I never probably could have imagined Harvard University Police Department doing.”
Robert A. Fisher, the lead defense attorney for Chen, said that though both Lieber and Chen were indicted for allegedly lying about ties to the Chinese government, the two professors’ cases have important differences. “The cases really weren’t that similar other than they both received government grants,” Fisher said. “In Lieber’s case, there was evidence of money that wasn’t declared. We didn’t have anything similar to that.” Derek Adams, a partner with the Potomac Law Group, said he believed it was unlikely that the dismissal of charges against Chen would affect the outcome of a new trial for Lieber. “I think what was damning in this case was the specific videotaped evidence that came in on Lieber,” Adams said of Lieber’s interview with the FBI. “The fact that Gang Chen’s case was dismissed — I don’t think that’s gonna move the needle on how a jury is going to view this
Board member Robert A. Dickson, director of campus services at Harvard Medical School, said the board hopes to get as much campus input on the Redefining Community Safety working group’s agenda as possible. “Everyone wants it to be a community-wide engagement process,” Dickson said. “We’re advising on how to roll that out and who to engage and trying to get as many people as possible.” Tim Bowman – the executive dean for administration and finance at Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and a member of the board – said that the board has not yet given any formal recommendations to HUPD. “From my perspective, it’s early for us to try to be issuing recommendations,” Bowman said. “We’re bringing ourselves up to speed and also getting up to speed with Chief Clay.” The board met infrequently in the fall, which Harris at-
tributed to the holidays and Clay’s onboarding. The advisory board has met four times since its creation last March, according to Swain. Bowman said the board now hopes to meet every other month. Several board members stated that they have had a positive experience with Clay so far, describing him as focused and practical. “My impression has been extremely good,” Bowman said. “Harvard is lucky to have him and has made a very good choice in bringing him to our community.” Dickson said he takes pride in the work the board has done so far. “The thoughtfulness of the conversations we’ve had so far and of the committee members for the overall safety of the community has been really impressive and something I’m proud to be a part of,” he said. sarah.girma@thecrimson.com brandon.kingdollar@thecrimson.com
specific case.” In the 2020 FBI interview, parts of which jurors saw on the fourth day of the trial, Lieber admitted to the agents conducting the interrogation that he did not declare payments he received in $100 bills during trips to Wuhan. He also told the agents he “wasn’t completely transparent by any stretch of the imagination” when speaking to Department of Defense investigators two years earlier in 2018. Within their memorandum, Lieber’s lawyers reiterated their previous argument that the FBI agent who interviewed Lieber failed to properly inform him of his Miranda rights. His defense team called for a new trial in which the video of the interview would be excluded from evidence. Prior to the December trial, Judge Rya W. Zobel ’53, who presided over the case, denied the defense’s motion to suppress the interview.
“There’s definitely an argument for excluding it based on his asking for an attorney early on,” Adams said. “That seems to me like you’ve got a strong ground for appeal if you can convince an appellate court that that should have stayed out of evidence.” Following his conviction, many of Lieber’s colleagues said they were “shocked” and “saddened” by the verdict and raised concerns about broader consequences for academic freedom. In a March 2021 letter, 41 professors, including some of Lieber’s Harvard colleagues, objected to the charges brought against him. University spokesperson Jason A. Newton, Lieber attorney Marc L. Mukasey, and a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Massachusetts all declined to comment on Lieber’s motion. isabella.cho@thecrimson.com brandon.kingdollar@thecrimson.com
From Weeks to Weld.
The Crimson thecrimson.com
PAGE 5
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
FEBRUARY 9, 2022
SHELTERS FROM PAGE 1
Shelters Hold Steady Amid Omicron Surge actually a requirement to stay with us.” Due to their close contact with potentially unvaccinated individuals, volunteers may be more likely to be exposed to Covid-19. But Matias Ramos, director of programs at PBHA, said that volunteers are aware of the risks in their role. “Students that really dive into the human services work of certain PBHA programs are trained to understand some of the risks that come with it,” Romas said. The wide availability of vaccines in Cambridge has also contributed to keeping the number of cases under control in shelters. Stewart cited vaccine clinics run by the city out of First Church and other local centers, arguing that “[Cambridge has]
done everything possible to make it easy for poor and homeless people to get access to vaccination.” He added that all current guests at First Church Shelter are fully vaccinated and have received boosters, noting the shelter has only had one verified infection during the rise of the Omicron variant. The City has also begun distributing rapid tests. Stewart said the shelter has 500 on hand in case any staff or shelter guests feel unwell and would like to test. But Covid-19 restrictions still pose a challenge to certain shelter services. Social distancing, for example, leads shelters to limit the number of beds the shelter can offer. Particularly with the recent nor’easter, shelters find themselves struggling to
provide space to everyone that needs it to stay warm. “There just weren’t enough places for people to go to get out of the weather,” Stewart said. “Shelter providers have tried to do the best they can to provide safe space, but it doesn’t make much sense to pack people in and then increase or amplify people’s risk of getting infected.” Lear also spoke on this issue, describing the dilemma between housing as many as possible while preventing Covid-19 spread. “It’s a balance we’re trying to maintain, of keeping people safe from the cold, and also making sure that people are kept safe from the virus,” Lear said. julia.hynek@thecrimson.com kaleigh.kuddar@thecrimson.com
Homeless shelters in Cambridge have been trying to provide services for those in need while also attempting to minimize transmission of Covid-19. TRUONG L. NGUYEN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
Harvard-Allston Fund Campus Faith Groups Adapt Awards Local Non-Profits to Pandemic-Era Semester By MICHAL GOLDSTEIN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
Harvard announced the grant recipients of the 14th Annual Harvard-Allston Partnership Fund, which awards a total of $100,000 to local nonprofits, on Monday. Created by Harvard and the City of Boston in 2008, the HAPF supports “neighborhood improvement projects, cultural enrichment, and educational programming in North Allston-Brighton,” according to the Harvard Ed Portal website. Some of the organizations awarded for the 2021-2022 application cycle include the West End House Boys Summer Camp, Big Sister Association of Greater Boston, and the Kithara Project. In a press release, University President Lawrence S. Bacow commented on the importance of this fund in the wake of the pandemic. “These organizations haven’t missed a beat in their service to the community’s most vulnerable residents,” he said. “Harvard is honored to further our longstanding commitment
to providing financial support that nurtures great ideas and improve the lives of our neighbors.” Bill Margolin, executive director of West End House Camp — an overnight summer camp for boys — expressed his gratitude for the grant. The $5,000 sum will support scholarships to the camp for local youth in North Allston and North Brighton. “We don’t deny anybody access to the camp based on financial need,” Margolin said. The Big Sister Association of Greater Boston, another 2022 grant recipient, has a “longstanding” relationship with the Harvard-Allston Partnership and has benefited from HAPF funding for many years, according to creative director Maren Juliano. Juliano said this funding allows Big Sister Boston to recruit and train women to become mentors and to match them with girls in the Allston area. Juliano said that Big Sister Boston aims to empower local women. “You support a girl in her journey and you build her con-
fidence to achieve her individual goals, and that has a ripple effect out into that community, to her family, and to her neighbors and friends,” Juliano said. The Kithara Project — an organization that offers tuition-free, “community-based classical guitar” education in Boston, New Mexico, and Mexico City — received their second grant from the Harvard-Allston Partnership this year, according to project co-founder Matt Rohde. According to Operations and Program Director Erin Young, the organization will use the funding to expand their group classes, individual instruction opportunities, curriculum development, and instrument purchases. Adam Levin, who also co-founded the Kithara Project, said that the grant symbolized the continuing “friendship” between the Kithara Project and HAPF. “It in many ways validates our work, and we look forward to continuing that relationship,” said Levin. michal.goldstein@thecrimson.com
By ROHAN RAJEEV CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
Student leaders of campus faith groups said they have faced difficulty adapting to the whims of a pandemic over the past two years, but expressed hope for the prospects of a return to normalcy. With undergraduates back on campus amid continued public health regulations, student leaders said the pandemic has made socializing, a traditional component of their programming, a challenge. Juhee Goyal ’22 — social chair of Harvard Dharma, the College’s Hindu group — said the pandemic prevented her organization from holding a retreat at the start of the semester. The group postponed the retreat until April, according to Goyal. “The sense of belonging that we usually start the semester with is something that we’re going to have to build up gradually instead of being able to head on into that,” Goyal said. Still, faith groups have found ways to adapt.
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Malika Umar ’23, co-president of the Harvard Islamic Society, said Covid-19 has forced her organization to find new and safe ways to gather and foster friendship. “We’ve done this thing called ‘Fajr and Flapjacks,’ which is basically just our morning prayer, where we gather in the Musalla, which is the Muslim prayer space on campus,” she said. “We worship together and then we take some to-go and then we eat in our own respective places.” “This past Friday was the first time that we were able to do [congregational prayers] this whole semester,” Umar added. “We’ve been adjusting.” Chinaza Asiegbu ’22, co-president of Harvard College Faith and Action, said that her organization has largely been able to maintain normal programming, such as weekly Bible studies. “We’ve been really blessed to actually see even more people wanting to learn more about God and learn more about what it means to be in a Christian community, and seeing that growth has been
exciting,” Asiegbu said. Despite facing challenges over the past two years, faith group leaders were optimistic about the future of their programming as restrictions relax and cases decline. Umar said the Harvard Islamic Society hopes to engage members through study breaks and movie nights in the future if public health guidance allows. Dharma plans to host study breaks and game nights to further engage its members, according to Goyal. Zehan Zhou ’22, co-president of Buddhist student association Harvard Maarga, said the group plans to organize outdoor field trips to help members destress and practice the Buddhist faith. “There’s a lot of work, there’s a lot of classes. We just want to take that stress element off people,” he said. “We just want a lot of people to learn some new things about themselves, learn some new things about other people at Harvard, get an opportunity to meet some new friends.” rohan.rajeev@thecrimson.com
THE HARVARD CRIMSON |
FEBRUARY 9, 2022
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EDITORIAL LETTER TO THE EDITOR
COLUMN
A Response Letter from 73 Faculty Members By VINCENT A. BROWN, ALISON F. JOHNSON, and KIRSTEN A. WELD
W
e, the undersigned, write in strong opposition to the open letter signed by 38 Harvard faculty calling into question the sanctions against Professor John Comaroff. We are dismayed that these faculty members would openly align themselves against students who have lodged complaints about a tenured professor. Without full knowledge of the facts of the Title IX and Professional Conduct investigations, the signatories have endorsed details provided by Professor Comaroff’s legal team, which has taken advantage of the confidentiality of these processes to publicize its view of the case. As is evident from the letters written in his support, Professor Comaroff is a scholar with a powerful network of friends and colleagues. This raises the
question of why three graduate students would go public with their complaints against him and willingly subject themselves to protracted, grueling, and potentially career-ending investigations. In lauding Professor Comaroff’s reputation while failing to consider the complainants’ perspectives, the signatories imply that the students have fabricated their accounts of harassment and retaliation. The letter also accepts the notion advanced by Professor Comaroff and his legal team that Dean Gay put together a “kangaroo court” to manufacture charges against him. It suggests that the minimal protections that now exist at the university to allow redress for harm have gone too far in undermining the rights of faculty. But there is ample evidence that the available institutional procedures for investigating complaints of sexual and gender-based harassment and professional misconduct are, con-
versely, far from adequate for the effective adjudication of such abuses of power. As faculty, we should be demanding better protections and more expedient, transparent, equitable, and independent investigative procedures. We must do so without presuming to know the full findings of confidential investigations or acting in ways that intimidate students and inhibit them from divulging experiences of harm.
Vincent A. Brown is a professor of History and African and African American Studies. Alison F. Johnson is a professor of History and Germanic Languages and Literatures. Kirsten A. Weld is a professor of History. A full list of faculty signatories to this letter can be found on The Crimson’s website.
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OP-ED
How Professors Should Figure Out How to Say My Non-Anglicized Name By SUNGHEA KHIL
A
t the beginning of every school year, I repeat the pronunciation of my name about 100 times, correcting my colleagues and professors: “It’s Sung-hay.” (Even this is a scaffolded version of my name; it’s actually supposed to sound more like “Seong-heh.”) So when the Registrar at the Graduate School of Design introduced the name recording function during orientation, I eagerly recorded my name on my.harvard’s personal information page, optimistically believing that my laborious beginning-of-year routine of teaching professors how to say my name would soon be needless. However, I quickly realized that the Name Pronunciation feature was just another “inclusivity” tool that is performative and appealing without truly contributing towards anti-discrimination efforts. On Canvas, professors have the option to enable the “Name Pronunciation” tab, though just a few have chosen to activate this function. In one of my few courses with the Name Pronunciation feature, only nine students and three teaching team members out of 51 have recorded their names. Unsurprisingly, nearly all of them have non-anglicized names and are people of color. Students who use the Name Pronunciation feature expect instructors to learn the pronunciation of their names, and for this practice to happen outside of the classroom — not inside the classroom in front of 44 other students. Professors frequently express a desire to correctly pronounce students’ names, so it also makes sense for them to follow through on their intentions by going through the recordings before the first day of class. Some may say that it is too much work for a professor to rehearse name pronunciations for their students, as international students — who often have non-anglicized names — account for 77 percent of those pursuing a degree in
Master in Public Administration in International Development. Now, let’s consider the reverse: You’re telling me that all this time, 77 percent of MPA/ID students may have been referred to by an incorrect rendition of their name? On Oct. 13, 2021, Harvard Kennedy School Dean Douglas W. Elmendorf announced the latest updates on Diversity, Equity, and Anti-Racism initiatives, stating that, “Our core values call on us as well to oppose racism and other systemic injustices, using our skills and energies to help build a world with respect and dignity for all.” While this statement and its associated pragmatic efforts are valuable in demonstrating the institution’s commitment to inclusion, it seems reasonable to request that faculty and the administration act upon this higher-level aspiration towards anti-racism by first doing the bare minimum: using the tool that they created in order to say students’ names — specifically, non-anglicized names — correctly. When it comes to practical interactions, microaggressions in the classroom continue to harm students with non-anglicized names, who often belong to under-represented racial and ethnic identities. For example, following the introduction of the Teachly platform — which enables professors to get to know students through self-provided learning profiles, including information about backgrounds, interests, and first languages — within HKS in 2017, even the professors who proudly announce their use of this platform cannot help their own bias against certain students with non-anglicized names. Despite the fact that my first language on Teachly is documented as English, I still receive comments on my policy papers such as, “I’m very impressed at how effective your exposition is, given that you’re not writing in your first language.” Further, even though my Teachly profile includes little to no information — other than my name — that would insinuate my foreignness to Americans, I receive feedback such
as, “Really good! Impressed with your grasp of US politics.” Comments like these lead me to wonder: who belongs in the Harvard community as an “American?” Even if you can write and speak proficient English, and understand U.S. politics, others perceive a non-anglicized name as a sign that you are a “foreigner.” If the professor in this case had used the Teachly platform to check their biased assumptions, I might have received constructive academic feedback, like my fellow American peers with “American-sounding” names. We students with non-anglicized names do not pay the Harvard tuition to get complimented for our effective exposition in English or to impress our professors with our grasp of U.S. politics. Naysayers are often quick to diminish the progressive significance of name pronunciation, but the effects of name mispronunciation go beyond a negative personal experience. Within the Harvard community, learners with non-anglicized names may be overlooked for academic opportunities and regularly feel diminished by people in power, all while Harvard insists on its desire to include diverse perspectives. Harvard’s pedagogical commitment to learn from diverse perspectives holds performative weight, especially when the most user-friendly and pragmatic of steps are brushed aside by nearly all professors. Practicing a willingness to listen — literally, to listen to recordings of name pronunciation — brings the Harvard community closer to providing equitable opportunities for learners of all backgrounds, and into the mindset that every earnest step taken towards anti-racism is one worth taking. —Sunghea Khil is a third-year joint Master in Public Policy and Urban Planning student at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
An Intimate Portrait of an Insect in Love Mireya Sánchez-Maes INSECT INSIGHTS
Y
ou are a young and talented short-horned grasshopper. Your real name is “Syrbula admirabilis” but everyone calls you Chad. You’re hungry. And although Harvard University Dining Services more than accommodates your aggressively vegan diet of grasses and seeds, this hunger is different. It’s deeper, more intimate, and makes you think of that one slow song from the movie with the animated lions. You, Chad, are hungry for love. But alas! What do you know of the art of romance?! Like all members of your species, your sexual emergence occurred relatively late in life. To be fair – it’s not that you’ve never thought about it before. After all, you once rubbed mandibles with a gifted leaf beetle on the last week of science camp! But that was nymph stuff. You’re mature now, so your sole purpose is to get it on with a suitable mate. You’re not alone in this quest. You start to notice couples all around you. On your way to class, you see a pair of love bugs. You know they’re love bugs because after mating once, it becomes physically impossible for them to separate. They do everything together. This is cute at first, but after a while, it becomes increasingly difficult for you to remember who is who. They have the same problem. You feel very superior to these bugs. Passing the library, you see a group of fruit flies. Those poor creatures haven’t left the building in the past 48 hours. They look tired. You remember reading that “sex-starved fruit flies live shorter, more stressful lives.” You feel superior to these bugs, too. It is time. You begin your courtship by aggressively stridulating in the vicinity of any female who crosses your path. The shrill mating call emulating from your torso sounds suspiciously like the “about me” section of a LinkedIn page. A very pretty cicada walks up to you. She’s like, “why are you shouting about finance interviews” and you’re like, “because I’m a freak in the google sheets.” She rolls her eyes and walks away.
The shrill mating call emulating from your torso sounds suspiciously like the “about me” section of a LinkedIn page. This deeply troubles you. You begin to question yourself. “Does this Patagonia make my thorax look big? Why am I still solo? Could it be possible that… I’m not irresistibly charming and attractive?” This thought makes you shudder. You’ve never been rejected before, and you decide you don’t like it. To assuage your insecurity, you join a swarm – a hoard of self-entitled bugs who collectively bemoan females who won’t date them. Secretly, you hope this new swarm will help you find a mate, but you quickly realize that the Porcellian is predatorial and off-putting. You’re more alone than ever, and this makes you desperate. You start skipping class. You become increasingly more aggressive in your courtship rituals. You join the Harvard College Consulting Group. Oh Chad, how lost you have become! But your destructive behavior does not go unnoticed. You receive a text message from your suitemate, a self-actualized stick bug named Mia. She says she’s noticed a change and is worried about you. She invites you to grab some pizza and chat. You almost accept the invitation, but then remember you’re vegan. Frustrated, you rebuke Mia. What does she know? Mia says, “I know a lot actually.” She proudly tells you that stick bugs hold the record for the longest hookup in the insect world. You say, “Wow, really?” She says, “Yes. It is 79 days long.” You are impressed and ask her how to do this. She tells you to stop being a bro and respect other insects. Then she tells you to chill. She says that stick bugs mate if they want, but if a suitable partner isn’t available, they copulate individually. You say, “Ew gross.” She says, “No. It’s about being comfortable with yourself, even if you’re not in a relationship.” You decide that Mia is too preachy and never talk to her again. You hit da club. A group of prey mantises dances at the opposite end of the room. You crawl in their direction, employing every courting ritual you know. You twitch your palps, kick your legs, and wave your antennae to the tune of Bad Bunny’s “Yo Perreo Sola.” They scowl at you. You shake your antennae even harder. After much gesticulating, a sexy prey mantis moves in your direction. You can see the hunger in her eyes. Oh yeah, you think. Finally, a female who deserves me! With the snap of her foreleg, she pulls you close. Well done, Chad! You feel pretty good about yourself. Hell, you might even go to lecture tomorrow! She leans towards you, her antenna pulsing. Woah there. You’re suddenly nervous. After all, you’ve never done this before! But just as you open your mandibles to explain this complex flood of fear and insecurity, she wraps her spiky appendages around your body and bites your head off. This Valentine’s day, be a Mia. Not a Chad. —Mireya Sánchez-Maes ’24 is a joint concentrator in English and Theater, Dance, and Media in Currier House. Her column “Insect Insights” appears on alternate Wednesdays.
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FEBRUARY 9, 2022
SPORTS
WOMEN’S HOCKEY WEEKLY RECAP
ABOUT SCORES THE TEAM
2021-22 Overall Record 18-6 Saves UPCOMING GAMES 558 ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ MEN’S BASKETBALL VS. BU W, 18-17 ___________________________________________________________ WOMEN’S SWIMMING IVY LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHP 2ND ___________________________________________________________ Conference Record 13-4 Men’s Basketball vs. Yale Shots Per Game 35.3 ______________________________________ ______________________________________ WOMEN’S HEAVYWEIGHT CREW VS. YALE L ___________________________________________________________ GOLF VS. PRINCETON W ___________________________________________________________ 7:00pm, Lavietes Pavillion Games 24 Goals Allowed 54 ______________________________________ ______________________________________ FOOTBALL VS. UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT L, 42, 36 ___________________________________________________________ MEN’S WRESTLING VS. PENN STATE L, 42, 36 ___________________________________________________________ Goals 94 Faceoffs Win Percentage 0.592 Wrestling vs. Columbia ______________________________________ ______________________________________ FENCING NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIP 15TH ___________________________________________________________ Goals Per Game 3.9 Power Play Conversion Rate 0.253 5:30pm, at Columbia ______________________________________ ______________________________________
WOMEN’S ICE HOCKEY
Harvard Defeats Boston College to Claim Beanpot Title By CHRISTOPHER D. WRIGHT CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
In 2021, for the first time since its inception, the Beanpot championship was not held due to the pandemic. The three years before that, there had been three different champions out of its four teams, none of them being Harvard, whose last time lifting the trophy came in 2015. This year, however, the recently crowned Ivy League champions had come to win. After defeating Boston University 4-1 in the opener last Tuesday to reach the championship match, the No. 6/6 Crimson (18-6-0, 13-4-0 ECAC) came out guns blazing, and after a high octane, dramatic 60 minutes of play, inched past an inspired Boston College to win the game, and hence the championship. Coach Katey Stone perhaps put it best. “Everyone got their money’s worth tonight - with an incredible hockey game!” she said. With 3:21 left on the clock in the third and final period, and the crowd going berserk at every interception, pass or play, the championship hung in the balance at 4-4, both teams pushing to the very limits to get over the line in what had been an intensely contested battle so far. It finally took a sneaky, calculated play by the championship’s MVP, senior forward Becca Gilmore, slipping the puck under the Eagles’ goaltender to break the tie and send the Crimson into the lead for a fifth and final time in the game, ultimately winning 5-4. “[Stone] had been getting on
me to take it to the net, so I decided to try it on that one and it worked,” the Wayland, Mass. native said. “The whole game we focused on speed, and we had so much fun playing today. We are really fired up to bring it home,” added Gilmore, who also contributed two assists in addition to the deciding goal. The fast-paced game’s scoreboard swung to and fro, with the Crimson scoring and the Eagles equalizing 4 times, with goals from as far back as the half line, and as close as the goaltender’s circle. When asked whether the team changed its strategy near the end to break this continuous tiebreak, junior forward Kristin Della Rovere, who was the leading scorer of the game for Harvard with two goals, said, “We just tried to stick to our game and do more of the same.” Rovere’s offensive partnership with Gilmore was clear from the initial puck drop, as the duo peppered Boston College goaltender Abigail Levy with 22 shots on target, scoring three goals in the process. “Our chemistry is just unstoppable right now,” said Della Rovere about the dynamic duo. Boston College’s coach Katie Crowley also had high praise for the Crimson’s offense: “Their big guns showed up and were able to put the pucks in.” Stone was extremely proud of her team’s narrow victory. “Good teams win one-goal games under a lot of pressure, and that’s what they did,” said the 27th year head coach. “They got the job done start to finish.” “We are going to enjoy this and be proud of our win and celebrate as a team, but we have
CREME DELLA CREME Junior forward Kristin Della Rovere battles an RPI player for the puck in December’s 4-3 overtime win. Della Rovere led the Crimson’s offense Tuesday night with two goals in the 5-4 championship win over Boston College. ANGELA DELA CRUZ—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER
bigger goals in mind,” Della Rovere added. “Moving forward, we have to look towards the ECACs and even nationals.” Stone also felt that this game was a great stepping stone for
the Crimson, heading into the final stretch of what has been a very successful 2021-22 season. “It’s exactly what you want, a championship setting under pressure to practice in,” she
said. Currently trailing firstplaced Yale by half a point in the ECAC, Harvard will next welcome Princeton (9-11-4, 7-8-2 ECAC) to Bright-Landry Hock-
ey Center on Feb. 11, followed by four last games of the regular season before the ECAC playoffs begin on March 5. christopher.wright@thecrimson.com
MEN’S LACROSSE
Fred Asare-Konadu Seeks Legislative Change in D.C. By KATHARINE FORST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
purred on by the 2020 police S killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, junior Fred Asare-Konadu decided that in order to counteract the tragedies, he would empower future generations of citizens with the tools and resources necessary to enact social change through the power of the vote. Asare-Konadu, a midfielder for Harvard’s men’s lacrosse team, ultimately partnered with
his high school friend John Bedell, who is now a freshman at the University of Virginia, to found a movement called We Go Vote. Asare-Konadu realized that he could take advantage of Florida’s requirement that each student graduating from high school participate in a government class. By creating a system to deploy in the classroom, he aims to give students the opportunity to pre-register to vote when they turn 16 so that once they are able to participate in lo-
cal and national elections, they won’t be barred by the act of registration. Asare-Konadu emphasized the importance of educating students in a swing state like Florida, which is often hotly contested in presidential elections. The state houses differing political ideologies, with the north being much more conservative than the democratic south. “We fully believe that voter registration should be something that is bipartisan,” Asare-Konadu said. “What
makes a democracy a democracy is the fact that there is freedom of thought. We don’t want to be in a situation where we are only registering people with similar viewpoints.” In particular, he stressed the importance of a diversity of thought, especially since he began his endeavour during a politically polarized time. “I started the voter registration initiative in the midst of the whole George Floyd movement, seeing a lot of my friends who kind of sat on both sides
GOALS ON AND OFF THE FIELD Junior midfielder Fred Asare-Konadu poses with high school friend John Bedell. The pair founded a movement called We Go Vote to help students pre-register to vote for easier access to local and national elections when they come of age. COURTESY OF FRED ASARE-KONADU
of the aisle come together for a common cause …. I saw an opportunity to put more power into the hands of my friends, and let them do the voting,” Asare-Konadu added. The group was conceptualized during the 2020 election, when there was an emphasis on registering as many eligible citizens as possible. Asare-Konadu took advantage of the influx of voters. He saw a niche in the younger population, recognizing that by incentivizing teachers to stress the importance of participation in local elections rather than solely national ones, he could pass on the tools for gradual change to thousands of students. He, as a student himself, was able to identify with his target audience and engage them through accessible resources. The movement has been so successful in Florida that Asare-Konadu is looking to expand this project into other states with similar government requirements, as well as hoping to turn his work into permanent legislation. His aim is to introduce educational tools to teachers, mainly through the slides that he and Bedell developed, and make it mandatory to provide the information to students so that they might be able to register. Asare-Konadu has been in touch with different legislators who are backing his bill both in the House and Senate, and is hopeful that his legislation will eventually pass through both branches, but thinks that it will realistically take multiple legislative cycles. Making large-scale change requires perseverance, which Asare-Konadu attributes to the lessons he has learned on and off the sports field. “Sometimes you have to make the best of the opportunities you have,” he said. “It’s about building yourself back up and doing your best to make things happen.” In between meetings with
politicians and district superintendents, Asare-Konadu is forced to juggle classes and his responsibilities with the lacrosse team. “I think it really comes down to time management… I have meetings with legislatures probably once a week, or once every two weeks at least,” Asare-Konadu said.“And now we are working on endorsements. So scheduling … can be tough when you have practice one day [and have to balance that with] people working nine to five. I have classes, I have practice, I have other things I need to do…. I do my best to make everything happen.” He added that his teammates have not only shown an immense amount of support for him and his work, but have engaged with it so much that they now look to aid him in bringing new aspects and nuance to his work. Balancing outside opinion with the core values of the organization is something that Asare-Konadu is working on now as he looks to recruit people to help him grow the movement. “We think it’s important to find people who are willing to sacrifice time and people that we can trust to do a good job… The bigger you get, the more publicity you get, the more people see you, and actually reach out,” he said. Asare-Konadu is confident that he can continue his work during an already demanding lacrosse season. He feels supported by his coaching staff and teammates, and attributes this camaraderie to values of hard work, self-respect, and dedication established by Coach Gerry Byrne. Additionally, he hopes that he can balance his political impact with helping the Crimson to a strong 2022 season, which will begin Feb. 19 against the New Jersey Institute of Technology. katharine.forst@thecrimson.com