The Harvard Crimson - Volume CL, No. 6 by The Harvard Crimson

THE HARVARD CRIMSON THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873

| VOLUME CL, NO. 6 | CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS

DENAMING

CLUB CONFLICT

OBITUARY

SQUARE BIZ

Former College Dean Roust Deli Takes John B. Fox ’59 Over From Darwin’s Remembered Ltd. PAGE 5

PAGE 11

| FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 2023

Winthrop Denaming Efforts Continue DHALL PROTEST. Organizers read out statements detailing the house namesakes’ ties to slavery ahead of submitting an official denaming request to the Faculty of Arts and Sciences on March 1. SEE PAGE 5

SAYED FAISAL

Protestors Gather at Cambridge City Hall CALLS REITERATED. Protesters condemned the Cambridger City Manager and the city government as they continued to press for the release of the names of officers involved with Sayed Faisal’s killing. SEE PAGE 11

HUFPI’s $30,000 Dispute ‘STILL UNRESOLVED’. The Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative has been embroiled in a dispute with its former president, Sama E.N. Kubba ’24, over club funds. Following the leadership transition, Kubba transferred roughly $30,000 to a personal account. In the two months since, HUFPI has tried and failed to recuperate the full amount. SEE PAGE 6 JOEY HUANG — CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER, SAMI E. TURNER — CRIMSON DESIGNER

UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT

Harvard President Bacow to Visit Middle East in Spring Break Trip BY MILES J. HERSZENHORN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

FULBRIGHT

Harvard Among Top Fulbright Producers STATE DEPT LIST. The State Department recognized Harvard for producing 29 awardees of the prestigious Fulbright Scholarship, of whom 17 accepted. Eighteen other schools were on the list. SEE PAGE 8

arvard University President Lawrence S. Bacow will travel to Jordan, Israel, and Palestine later this month in one of his last international trips before leaving office later this year. Bacow is scheduled to meet with Harvard alumni throughout the trip. `He will speak to affiliates at the fivestar Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Amman, Jordan, on March 11. Two days later, Bacow will attend a similar event at the Carlton Hotel in Tel Aviv, Israel, before meeting with Palestinian alumni on March 16 at a restaurant in Ramallah, a city in the West Bank. A Harvard spokesperson confirmed Bacow’s travel plans in a statement on

SEE PAGE 4

Simmons Appointed Adviser on HBCUs

Quarter of HUHS Visits Virtual in FY 2022

CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

LAW SCHOOL

SEE PAGE 8

and students — and to all of your loved ones,” Bacow wrote. Bacow’s trip to the Middle East comes two months after Harvard Kennedy School Dean Douglas W. Elmendorf faced backlash for allegedly denying former Human Rights Watch head Kenneth Roth a fellowship at the school over his criticism of Israel. Elmendorf later reversed his decision and apologized, a move Bacow praised. Undergraduates had mixed reactions to Bacow’s Middle East trip. Shraddha Joshi ’24, a spokesperson for the Harvard College Palestine Solidarity Committee, wrote in a statement that the group expects Bacow to “performatively mention the importance of peace and dignity while denying the crime of apartheid

HUHS

AND CLAIRE YUAN

HLS TALK. Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio expressed his “fundamental” support for Israel Tuesday, also expressing his faith in a two-state solution to the conflict.

cover from several recent earthquakes, according to the spokesperson. Bacow drew criticism from Harvard affiliates last month because, at the time, he had not issued a public statement about the earthquakes, which left more than 50,000 people dead in Turkey and Syria. More than 650 Harvard affiliates signed an open letter addressed to Bacow that called on the University to raise awareness about the crisis. On Feb. 15, one day after The Crimson reported on the open letter, Bacow sent a note to Cemal Kafadar — the director of Harvard’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies — to express his “utter disbelief” at the devastation caused by the earthquakes. “Though words fall short at a moment such as this, I want to offer my deepest condolences to you and your colleagues

RUTH SIMMONS

BY MILES J. HERSZENHORN

De Blasio Backs Israel, Two-State Solution

Thursday. In addition to meeting with Harvard alumni, Bacow will visit a number of universities and meet with higher education leaders at each stop, according to the spokesperson. In particular, Bacow will visit the University of Haifa and tour its new downtown campus during his time in Israel, according to the spokesperson. The University of Haifa awarded Bacow an honorary degree two years ago in a ceremony that took place virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In Haifa, Bacow will meet with university affiliates in-person, the spokesperson confirmed. Bacow’s trip initially included a stop in Istanbul, Turkey, to meet with Harvard alumni and higher education leaders, but Bacow canceled the trip in consideration of the country’s continued efforts to re-

Harvard University President Lawrence S. Bacow will appoint outgoing Prairie View A&M University President Ruth J. Simmons as a senior adviser to the president of Harvard on engagement with historically Black colleges and universities, the school announced Monday morning. Simmons will officially assume her role as senior advisor to the president on June 1, just one month before Bacow departs office. Bacow will announce the appointment — a part-time role — at an event with Simmons on Monday during his visit to Prairie View A&M University. Simmons, who is also president emerita of Smith College and Brown University, announced in March 2022 that she would step down from her role as president of Prairie View A&M University. Simmons initially planned to remain in office until

June 1, but she unexpectedly announced on Feb. 10 that she would resign at the end of the month. Simmons’s sudden resignation from Prairie View stemmed from a dispute with university leadership over her limited presidential authority to appoint senior staffers and deans as outgoing president. Bacow said in a press release that Harvard is “indebted” to Simmons for the work she has done to reckon with the complicated history of slavery in American higher education, referencing Simmons’s creation of Brown’s Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice in 2003. The committee published a groundbreaking report detailing the connections between Brown and the transatlantic slave trade. “Her leadership in that moment created new a path toward understanding and reckoning, and she has been walking that path ever since, urging all of us in higher education to follow her so that we might

SEE PAGE 5

BY ALEXANDER I. FUNG AND TARAH D. GILLES CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Harvard University Health Services received more than 25,000 virtual visits in its 2022 fiscal year, following students’ full return to campus in fall 2021, according to the healthcare provider’s annual report. Of the roughly 116,000 patient visits to HUHS throughout the fiscal year, 23 percent were conducted virtually, the report said. Since 2020, HUHS has offered telemedicine services across 10 departments to increase accessibility during the Covid-19 pandemic. Last October, HUHS added TimelyCare — a telehealth counseling platform — to its digital offerings. The report, which highlights HUHS’ activities from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022, covers initiatives that span Harvard’s Cambridge and Longwood campuses, as well as satellite clinics at the Law School and Dillon Field House for Sports Med-

icine. The report, released last month, is the first in several years to be published and the first to be released digitally, according to HUHS spokesperson Tiffanie A. Green. The report also reviewed public health measures implemented during the return to on-campus learning in fall 2021. During that time, Harvard required all affiliates to be vaccinated and boosted for Covid-19, participate in regular testing, and follow self-isolation procedures if positive. In total, Harvard administered 1.4 million Covid-19 tests and 3,900 Covid-19 vaccines in the fiscal year. Covid-19 vaccination rates among students reached 97 percent, while 93 percent of employees were vaccinated, according to the report. In spring 2022, HUHS retired mandatory Covid-19 testing, dissolved its contact tracing programs, and adopted a mask-optional policy. Over the report’s period, HUHS saw

SEE PAGE 8

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

LAST WEEK

MARCH 3, 2023

MEMORIAL CHURCH

SUSTAINABILITY

LAW SCHOOL

MLK Jr. and Coretta Scott King Vigil

Six New Salata Institute Initiatives

HLS Panel Discusses Syria Eartquake

MARKING BLACK HISTORY MONTH. Members of the Harvard Chaplains and other religious leaders hosted a vigil in Memorial Church on Tuesday evening to mark the end of Black History Month and honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King. The vigil celebrated the Kings’ contributions to civil rights and economic justice movements within the United States. BY TYLER J. H. ORY—CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

‘COLLABORATION.’ Harvard’s Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability announced that it is sponsoring six new student-led climate projects across campus through its Student Organization Funding Pilot Program in a Feb. 13 press release. The sponsored initiatives range from sustainability field trips and a new climate magazine to a plant-based food festival and a clean energy policy project. BY SABRINA R. HU AND JEFFREY Q.

SYRIA EARTHQUAKE. Harvard Law School hosted a hybrid panel Tuesday afternoon on the emergency response and aftermath of the Feb. 6 earthquake for refugees of northwestern Syria. The talk featured four panelists: Syrian earthquake survivor Mohammed Assi, Syria Civil Defence member Ammar Al-Selmo, Syrian British Medical Society General Secretary Abdulkarim Ekzayez, and Alexandra Tarzikhan, founder of Meet a Refugee — a social media page dedicated to sharing refugees’ stories. BY ALEX CHOU AND JENNIFER Y. SONG—CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

YANG—CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

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The Week in Photos

AROUND THE IVIES ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AT YALE THEODORE KIM WINS TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT ACADEMY AWARD

DENAMING LEGACY OF SLAVERY. More than 200 Harvard affiliates have signed a petition demanding the denaming of Winthrop, stating the two John Winthrops for whom the house was named were “instrumental in creating, maintaining, and defending” slavery. BY JULIAN

Theodore Kim, associate professor of computer science at Yale, won a Technical Achievement Academy Award for developing the Fizt2 elastic simulation system at Pixar Animation Studios. Fitz2 simulates soft materials and allows animators to replicate the movement of materials like skin and cloth. With colleagues David Eberle, Fernando de Goes, and Audrey Wong, Kim developed Fitz2 based on Pixar’s original simulator used in 2001 for “Monster’s Inc.” The Technical Achievement Awards are given for innovations and developments that contribute significantly to motion pictures.

J. GIORDANO—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

THC Read more at THECRIMSON.COM

THE YALE DAILY NEWS

PRINCETON RAISES GRAD STUDENT STIPENDS AFTER GRADUATE STUDENTS LAUNCH UNIONIZATION CAMPAIGN The university will increase the graduate student stipend by $5,000 in the 2023-2024 academic year. The move comes two weeks after Princeton Graduate Students United began a union card campaign for official recognition. More than 1,600 graduate students - a majority - have already signed union cards. The university also expressed concerns over the card drive. Despite calling the raise a win, PGSU speculated that the raise is not indicative of future raises and stressed that graduate students did not have input in the decisions. THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT GOVERNMENT PASSES RESOLUTIONS SUPPORTING STUDENT REPRESENTATION ON THE UNIVERSITY’S BOARD OF TRUSTEES.

A NEW ARRIVAL. Roust Deli, a “relaxed” cafe serving coffee and sandwiches, quietly opened on Feb. 5. BY JULIAN J. GIORDANO—CRIMSON PHOTOG-

SCIENCE & S’MORES. WinterFest brings fire pits, seasonal games, hot drinks, and snacks to the Science Center Plaza on select dates through March 9.

GRAND REOPENING. Harvard Library hosted an event celebrating the reopening of West Stacks Reading Room as a space with new artwork. BY

JUSTICE FOR FAISAL. On Monday, more than 100 Boston-area residents, including local teachers and students, gathered on the steps of the Cambridge City Hall to protest the police killing of Sayed Faisal. BY RYAN H. DOAN-NGUYEN—CRIM-

RAPHER

BY JOEY HUANG—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

CHRIS L. LI—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

SON PHOTOGRAPHER

SUSTAINABILITY. The Harvard Salata Institute announced that it is sponsoring six new student-led climate projects across campus. BY

RIVER STROLL. Unlike the undergrads, the Harvard geese are not discouraged by the cold weather and can be seen all around the Charles river. BY JOEY

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION. Legal experts at an event hosted at HLS on Wednesday said SCOTUS should rule in favor of Harvard in the lawsuit by SFFA.

UKRAINE CONCERT. More than 100 supporters of Ukraine packed Memorial Church Friday to attend a concert dedicated to the victims of the war in Ukraine on the anniversary of Russia’s invasion. BY ADDISON Y. LIU—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

FRANK S. ZHOU—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

HUANG—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

BY SANTIAGO A. SALDIVAR—CRIMSON

The Graduate and Professional Student Assembly and the Undergraduate Assembly at the University of Pennsylvania passed resolutions calling for student representation on the university’s Board of Trustees. The GAPSA had previously passed a similar resolution, but the UA had not gained majority support. The resolutions will be sent to the Board of Trustees. Trustees select the University president and make financial decisions, including deciding tuition. There are currently 54 members on the board, 14 spots of which are allocated for alumni. Some of the Trustee Committees grant students ‘observer status’, but don’t allow full student participation.

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN

PHOTOGRAPHER

NEXT WEEK

THE HARVARD CRIMSON MARCH 3, 2023

What’s Next

IN THE REAL WORLD FINLAND ON CUSP OF JOINING NATO, BUT MAYBE NOT WITH SWEDEN Finland’s Parliament overwhelmingly approved legislation to join NATO on Wednesday, but it may not be able to join the alliance at the same time as Sweden. The two Nordic countries applied to join NATO together after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, but Sweden’s bid has been held up by the government of Turkey because Ankara wants Sweden to take a tougher stance against Kurdish separatists. Finland and Sweden are both still waiting on approval from Turkey and Hungary to join NATO.

BIDEN TO TAP JULIE SU AS NEXT LABOR SECRETARY President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday that he will nominate Julie Su, the current deputy Labor secretary, to replace Secretary Marty Walsh. Walsh announced he would step down from the position to return to Boston and run the professional hockey players’ union. Su, who is a graduate of Harvard Law School, would be the Biden administration’s first AAPI Cabinet secretary.

Start every week with a preview of what’s on the agenda around Harvard University

Friday 3/3

Monday 3/6

Wednesday 3/8

STORIES OF HISTORIC STRUGGLE, NEW IDEAS, AND INSPIRATION IN IMMIGRANT EDUCATION

LIVE VIEWING: JUST TELL NO ONE

AN ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF GEORGIA SALOME ZOURABICHVILI

Graduate School of Education, 12 p.m.-1 p.m. Hear from Jessica Lander on her book on immigrant experiences in the U.S. education system.

Barker Center, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Join the Department of Slavic Languages & Literature for a screening of a staged reading including stories from Ukrainian playwrights. The event is free and open to the public.

Saturday 3/4

Tuesday 3/7

Thursday 3/9

WOMEN’S WEEK 2023 WOMEN IN FOREIGN POLICY CONFERENCE

A HACKER’S MIND: HOW THE POWERFUL BEND SOCIETY’S RULES, AND HOW TO BEND THEM BACK

MARGARET ATWOOD AT SANDERS THEATRE

Emerson Hall and Virtual, 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Join leading experts, including the former president of Croatia, for a discussion about female empowerment in foreign policy. The event is part of Harvard’s Women’s Week programming.

Harvard Kennedy School, 12p.m-1:15pm. Hear from Bruce Schneier, a Harvard Kennedy School lecturer and security technologist, on his new book about how to navigate against digital threats.

Harvard Kennedy School , 6p.m.-7p.m. Celebrate international women’s day by hearing the remarks from Salome Zourabichvili, the President of Georgia. RSVP required.

Memorial Church, 6 p.m.-7 p.m. The author of The Handmaid’s Tale will discuss her new short story collection Old Babes in the Wood. The event will be moderated by Scott Tong, co-host of Here & Now on WBUR, Boston’s NPR News Station.

Sunday 3/5 SCREENING: EL PEJESAPO

Harvard Film Archive, 3–4:40 p.m. Join the Harvard Film Archive, locatedin Harvard’s Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, for a screening of a Chilean film directed by José Luís Sepúlveda. The event is free for Harvard students.

Sunday 11/6

FORMER GOP LAWMAKER LIZ CHENEY TO TEACH AT UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA Former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney will serve as a professor of practice at the University of Virginia Center for Politics. Cheney, who was once the No. 3 Republican in the House GOP, lost her Republican primary last year after defying most of her party’s leadership in taking a hardline stance against former President Donald Trump. Cheney also served on the House Jan. 6 select committeethe insurrection against the U.S. Capitol.

UK AND EU STRIKE DEAL ON NORTHERN IRELAND PROTOCOL

HOUSE REFLECTIONS

The United Kingdom and the European Union struck a deal on the Northern Ireland protocol following months of negotiations. The deal is set to end the lengthy dispute between the EU and the U.K. over post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland. Both European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hailed the agreement as a major development in the relations between the two sides.

THE HARVARD CRIMSON Cara J. Chang ’24 President

STAFF FOR THIS ISSUE Brandon L. Kingdollar ’24

Cynthia V. Lu ’24

Managing Editor

Business Manager

Magazine Chairs Io Y. Gilman ’25 Amber H. Levis ’25

Design Chairs Sophia Salamanca ’25 Sami E. Turner ’25

Eleanor V. Wikstrom ’24 Christina M. Xiao ’24

Blog Chairs Tina Chen ’24 Hana Rehman ’25

Multimedia Chairs Joey Huang ’24 Julian J. Giordano ’25

Arts Chairs Anya L. Henry ’24 Alisa S. Regassa ’24

Sports Chairs Mairead B. Baker ’24 Aaron B. Schuchman ’25

Technology Chairs Kevin Luo ’24 Justin Y. Ye ’24

Associate Managing Editors Leah J. Teichholtz ’24 Meimei Xu ’24 Editorial Chairs

Night Editors Isabella B. Cho ’24 James R. Jolin ’24 Assistant Night Editors Zachary J. Lech ’24 Miles J. Herszenhorn ’25 Ayumi Nagatomi ’26 Erika K. Chung ’26 Cam E. Kettles ’26 Joyce E. Kim ’26 Jack R. Trapanick ’26 Story Editors Andy Z. Wang ’23-’24 Isabella B. Cho ’24

Associate Business Manager Derek S. Chang ’24 Copyright 2023, 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

James R. Jolin ’24 Ariel H. Kim ’24 Brandon L. Kingdollar ’24 Vivi E. Lu ’24 Leah J. Teichholtz ’24 Meimei Xu ’24

Christopher L. Li ’25 Addison Y. Liu ’25 Nathaniel Tjandra ’26

Design Editors Toby R. Ma ’24 Nayeli Cardozo ’25 Sami E. Turner ’25 Laurinne P. Eugenio ’26

Sports Editors

Editorial Editor

Jacob M. Miller ’25

Mairead B. Baker ’24 Aaron B. Schuchman ’25 Arts Editors

Zachary J. Lech ’24

Photo Editors Cory K. Gorczycki ’24 Julian J. Giordano ’25 Joey Huang ’24

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

NEWS

MARCH 3, 2023

DENAMING

Students Demonstrate for Winthrop Denaming HISTORY OF THE WINTHROPS. Both Winthrops enslaved people and helped institutionalize slavery in Massachusetts. BY JASMINE PALMA CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

arvard students led a demonstration in Winthrop House’s dining hall to push for the house’s denaming during dinner on Sunday, citing both John Winthrops’ ties to slavery. The demonstration comes amid efforts by activists — including those from the Generational African American Students Association and Natives at Harvard College — to collect signatures on a petition for use in an official denaming request through the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Students are amplifying calls to dename Winthrop almost a year after the release of a long-awaited University report detailing how slavery “powerfully shaped Harvard.” The report identified dozens of Harvard leaders and donors — including the Winthrops — who enslaved people and are memorialized on buildings today. During the dining hall demonstration, Clyve Lawrence ’25 — who is spearheading the push to dename the house — recounted the histories of the two Winthrops. Both Winthrops, Lawrence said, enslaved people and contributed to institutionalizing race-based slavery in Massachusetts. “They were not just slaveown-

PRESIDENT FROM PAGE 1

ers,” said Lawrence, a Crimson Editorial editor. “No, they were instrumental in creating and maintaining and defending the institution of slavery in America.” “They did this while engaging in a war of extermination against the Native Americans who lived in this area,” Lawrence added. Organizers Kiersten B. Hash ’25 and Jordan Young ’25 also gave speeches, offering historical context to the Winthrop name’s associations with slavery and urging students to support their cause. “Join us in advocating for change, sign the petition, and for the wonderful students here, fill out the testimonial no matter what your opinion is on denaming, so that we can learn about your opinion,” Hash said in her speech.

I feel like the Winthrop name actually burdens the students who are affected by those actions, and so they’re in a way being harmed by the name. Clyve Lawrence ‘25 Leader of Denaming Project

Harvard spokesperson Rachael Dane previously declined to comment on Winthrop denaming efforts by students. Megan C. Coram ’23 — who witnessed the demonstration — pointed to house name changes that have previously occurred for “more lighthearted purpos-

Clyve Lawrence ‘25, Kiersten B. Hash ‘25, and Jordan Young ‘25 lead a demonstration in Winthrop House. JULIAN J. GIORDANO—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

es,” citing Harvard’s decision to rename North House to Pforzheimer House in 1994 due to the Pforzheimer family’s long-standing funding contributions. Coram said she hopes that Winthrop is denamed because of the severity of its namesakes’ ties to slavery. “I had a vague idea that Winthrop was problematic, but I didn’t know to what extent,” Coram said. “A lot of their speeches I thought were really powerful in terms of stating the very clear numbers. This wasn’t like, ‘Oh, they had one household servant.’ It was, ‘These people had multiple slaves, and also did a huge amount of work to promote the institution of slavery,’ which is just incredibly unacceptable.” After the demonstration in Winthrop dining hall, roughly a dozen students gathered in Boylston Hall’s Ticknor Lounge later on Sunday for a teach-in on denaming, including more in-depth historical information, an outline of the team’s research into

the Winthrops, and an overview of the denaming request. More than 30 involved students are working toward submitting an official denaming request under the FAS’ Process for Denaming Spaces, Programs, or other Entities. The deadline for denaming requests is March 1, 2023, for the 2022-2023 academic year. “By having a large team, we’re able to pull as many diverse voices in as possible,” GAASA Vice President Ricardo R. Razón IV ’25 said in an interview. Razon said he feels proud that the petition has engendered discourse about the Winthrops’ ties to slavery, but he asked for more active student involvement to help progress the denaming movement. “It’s tiring enough to have to be the ones educating others about our history and our culture, so I want the school to step up and give us proposals,” he said. In an interview following the teach-in, Lawrence said he does

not believe a name change would affect Winthrop House’s underlying culture. “The community can and hopefully will exist without the Winthrop name being involved,” Lawrence said. “I feel like the Winthrop name actually burdens the students who are affected by those actions, and so they’re in a way being harmed by the name.” Madison R. Webb ’25, the GAASA inclusivity chair, said she hopes others see the project as “one pixel in a mosaic of change” in reckoning with Harvard’s ties to slavery. “We know that we cannot go back and rewrite the history of our ancestors. But again, we can write a new history,” Webb said. “So what does that look like? Well, it looks like these things that are within our control, that help build a more inclusive community at Harvard, and help call attention to this dark history that Harvard has.”

STORY AT A GLANCE LAST WEEK Harvard affiliates signed a petition to dename Winthrop House. The petition was organized by members of GAASA and NAHC, following the release of Harvard’s report on its ties to slavery.

500 THE APPROXIMATE NUMBER of Harvard affiliates who signed the petition, which was submitted as part of an FAS denaming request on March 1.

jasmine.palma@thecrimson.com

GSAS Student Council Talks Constitutional Changes

Bacow to “People were a bit more polit- proposed voting changes limit Slack — Lim said the Council is treasurer; allowing the president Visit Middle to appoint the Council’s adviser; ically conscious, or at least, there broader participation in student actively trying to drive further engagement. making traveling scholars man- was more fervor, more enthusi- government. East in Spring “I don’t think it would be a fair “On one hand, we’re expanddatory members who must pay asm than maybe what we are exing fiscal responsibility to in- assessment, based on the work Harvard’s Graduate School of the GSC student fee of $25; au- periencing now,” Benavidez said. Break Trip He also argued that allowing clude all students including trav- that we’ve done, that we’ve been Arts and Sciences Student Coun- thorizing the parliamentarian to BY ANDREW PARK

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

on the ground.” “After repeatedly calling on President Bacow and Harvard to disclose Harvard’s financial ties to companies that violate international law by operating within illegal settlements, and acknowledge the university’s complicity in violence against Palestinians, this trip only serves to exacerbate PSC and Palestinian students’ disillusionment with Harvard’s administration,” Joshi wrote. The Harvard spokesperson declined to comment on the statement. Harvard College Israel Trek — an annual subsidized spring break trip to Israel and the West Bank — coincides with Bacow’s trip this year. Nonetheless, students participating in the spring break program should not expect to see him. The PSC has led campaigns to boycott the trip for several years, alleging that it promotes an unbalanced perspective on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The itineraries of the student trips to Israel and Palestine do not align with Bacow’s schedule, according to the Harvard spokesperson. Harvard Hillel President Jacob M. Miller ’25, a Crimson Editorial editor, wrote in an email Thursday that the group is “heartened to see” Bacow travel to Israel. “We hope that Bacow’s visit to the country reveals the on-theground reality in Israel and inspires Bacow to counter students’ efforts to single out Israel as the only nation worthy of boycott,” Miller wrote. miles.herszenhorn@thecrimson.com

cil discussed potential constitutional changes during monthly open meeting on Wednesday, spurring debate over potential issues of power consolidation and alleged lack of voting rights. During a preliminary vote on the tentative language of the amendments at Wednesday’s meeting, attendees voted unanimously in favor of the proposed changes. The Council will vote upon and ratify the final changes in the April open meeting, according to GSC Vice President Jessica Chen. The revisions include changing the chair of support, who is “responsible for allocating funds in both the conference grants as well as January@GSAS,” to a cochair position overseen by the

lead the Constitutional Revision Committee; and allowing committee chairs to appoint representatives as required. During the meeting, participants also discussed the current lack of attendance of multiple program representatives. “In the past, we’ve had a requirement for students to show up, which is why we had a lot more attendance,” GSC President Zachary Lim said. “One of the reasons why we removed the requirements was because we wanted people to come because they had something to share.” In response to Lim, Aaron R. Benavidez, program representative for Sociology, said attendance was more “robust” before the Covid-19 pandemic.

the president to appoint the adviser of the Council could consolidate power in the presidency. “We can imagine a world where there’s a president this year, and then the president next year decides to appoint that person, even though that person might be unfavorable to GSC members,” Benavidez said. “We’re actually truncating political power even for people in the room. Meeting participants considered constitutional changes to the election process, which is moving to an online platform this year. The proposed change would also add that only elected members of the Council — excluding officers — will have a vote. Benavidez said he believes the

eling scholars, while at the same time really not taking seriously this idea of universal enfranchisement and the right to vote for every student,” he said. Sarah Y. Hoback, program representative for Physics and a first-year graduate student, said she prefers a system where all present participants can vote if the process to become an eligible voting member is highly competitive. Benavidez said this method may present fairness issues due to “some barriers to attendance” in person, such as the distance between the Longwood campus and the main campus, as well as some members’ responsibility to care for young children. Citing emails, posters, and social media — such as the GSAS

trying to curtail any kind of participation,” he said. Still, he said that many students possibly “don’t see enough things being done” to justify engagement with the Council. “For many years, I think the GSC has failed to address certain needs that are very important,” Lim said. Closing out the discussion on election policies, Lim further said that the current system has continued because “it’s just the easier thing to do.” “We are already completely underwater, on a day to day basis,” he said. “And I don’t know if we have the capacity to revisit creating a whole new system.” andrew.park@thecrimson.com

Symposium Addresses Technological Growth in China BY CAM E. KETTLES CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Panelists discussed Chinese energy policy, surveillance, artificial intelligence, and leader priorities at the fourth Dean’s Symposium on Social Science Innovations on Thursday. Titled “China in Focus: New Social Science Approaches,” the event was hosted by Harvard Dean of Social Science Lawrence D. Bobo as part of the running Dean’s Symposium series that began in 2021. Vice Provost for International Affairs and History professor Mark C. Elliott moderated the discussion.

Panelists included Sociology professor Ya-Wen Lei, History of Science professor Victor K.G. Seow, Government professor Yuhua Wang, and Economics professor David Y. Yang. “The world’s attention seems focused on China in a way that just is relentless,” Elliott said. “I can tell you that was not always the case.” Lei and Yang both expressed concern about what they described as China’s growing use of technology to constrain personal freedoms. Lei said China has employed “surveillance capitalism” to maintain power, adding that China has a “mixed ideology of techno-nationalism, technological

fetishism, and meritocracy that tend to justify social exclusion and inequality.” Though Lei said she believes China approaches policy making with science and objectivity, she said many times “the real outcome diverges from what they want.” Yang, who discussed the mutually beneficial relationship between AI and autocratic states like China, said technology has the potential to shift the world’s political equilibrium in favor of authoritarian governments. He added weak democracies and other governments tend to buy AI technology from China when experiencing public unrest.

“In the year when there is local political unrest, there is a substantial increase in the likelihood that that country is purchasing facial recognition AI services from China,” Yang said. “It could generate a spreading of similar autocratic regimes to the rest of the world,” he added. Wang argued that Chinese rulers cannot prioritize both staying in power and creating a powerful state because a strong state requires empowering elites, who can then cohere and overthrow the leader. “If you want to stay in power as long as possible, you have to have an incoherent elite — you need to fragment the elites,” Wang said. “If the elites are too coherent, if

they trust each other, they can take actions; then the ruler is in danger.” Wang added that a fourth of all Chinese emperors were assassinated by elites around them. Seow said China, along with many other countries, embraced what he called a “carbon technocracy” in development by using mass energy extraction. Historically, energy extraction has carried “staggering human and environmental costs,” he added. “Some scholars say that China has been experiencing a gilded age, but there is a dark side behind the gilded facade,” Lei said. cam.kettles@thecrimson.com

NEWS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON MARCH 3, 2023

OBITUARY

John Bayley Fox Jr. ’59, 1936–2022

Harvard Sophomore Returns to ‘Jeopardy!’ BY J. SELLERS HILL AND NIA L. ORAKWUE CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Harvard sophomore Shriya S. Yarlagadda ’25 returned to “Jeopardy!” Thursday evening for the show’s High School Reunion Tournament, scoring $21,601 and falling just $1,622 short of advancing to the next round. Yarlagadda previously competed in the show’s 2019 Teen Tournament as a high school sophomore, where she reached the semifinal round. Yarlagadda said the reunion tournament lived up to its name. “I had made some of the most wonderful friends when I competed in high school,” Yarlagadda said in a Monday interview. “To have the opportunity to go back and meet everyone again, have another shot at the stage was just really incredible.” A life-long Jeopardy! fan, Yarlagadda first found herself on the show after scoring highly on an online qualifying test. “I think that the thing that helped me the most was doing Quiz Bowl in middle school and high school,” Yarlagadda said. “Before that, I had done geography bees, and so I think I had that pretty solid geography knowledge base that would be very connected to so many other subjects as well.” Yarlagadda studied extensively for the competition over winter break, especially literature, a weak category for her. But when it came time to compete, she said her time on stage was “very much a blur.”

“I was just rolling with the punches and focusing on trying to answer everything as best as I could.” Though Yarlagadda actually competed in late January, she was forbidden from disclosing any results until her episode aired on Feb. 23. This policy extended to close family and friends, who she said largely refrained from prying. “I was just able to tell my friends ‘Hey, this is a stressful experience already. I would really appreciate it if you guys understand the fact that I’m under NDA,’” she said. Similarly, Yarlagadda knew that she would be competing for multiple weeks before she was able to tell her roommates at Harvard. When she finally broke the news, Yarlagadda said her friends were “incredibly sweet.” “Their immediate reaction was to start looking up flight prices, so they could try to go out to LA,” she said. Though they didn’t make it out to see the live taping, Yarlagadda and her friends held a watch party in the Lowell House junior common room. After a nerve-wracking first “Jeopardy!” appearance, Yarlagadda said she found it much easier to enjoy the experience the second time around. “I don’t think there was a single moment that day where I felt any sense of nerves and it was just overall really enjoyable and there was no negativity at all,” she said. sellers.hill@thecrimson.com nia.orakwue@thecrimson.com

John B. Fox Jr. ’59, who served as the dean of Harvard College for nine years, died on Nov. 27 at the age of 86. COURTESY OF JUSTIN IDE— HARVARD UNIVERSITY

REMEMBERING FOX. John Bayley Fox Jr. ’59 strived to make Harvard a more inclusive environment that could respond to every student’s needs. BY ANDREW PARK CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

homas B. Fox ’95, son of John B. Fox Jr. ’59, recalled how his freshman roommates in Greenough Hall would often turn to his father “for advice, not about the school, but about their lives.” “When my freshman roommates learned that my father was an administrator at the school, I can only imagine their first reaction was, ‘Oh, okay, well, this person Tom must know a lot about the University or be influenced by the University,’” Fox said. But when they met his father in person, they realized quickly that “the advice and counsel that they would get from him had nothing to do with the University and only had to do with themselves,” Fox said. Laura G. Fisher, associate dean for faculty development in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences under Fox, remembered how she felt when she first saw him: a towering man standing at 6 feet, 8 inches. “On first impression, you can’t not notice his height. And he certainly towered over me,” she said. “I suppose he could appear intimidating, but he wasn’t.” According to many, John Fox strived to make Harvard a more inclusive environment that could respond to every student’s needs. He died three months ago on Nov. 27 at the age of 86.He began his career at the University as director of the Office of Career Services in 1967, then called the Office of Graduate and Career Services. He then served stints as assistant dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences from 1971 to 1976; Harvard College dean until 1985; administrative dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences to 1993; and secretary of the Faculty Council, retiring in 2007. ‘Opening Harvard’s Gates to a Broader World’ Fox spearheaded the “Fox Plan,” which moved all freshmen to the Yard and oversaw major renovations to the three houses in the Radcliffe Quadrangle in the 1970s. The Fox Plan formed the basis of the current undergraduate

House system, which Fox hoped would solve a multitude of problems of the old system: unequal facilities and “inequities” in “class composition” among different houses, differential housing and advising arrangements for freshmen, declining popularity of houses in the Quad, and a lottery system that many thought was not “sufficiently ‘open’ and comprehensible.” “Most of these problems are the result of built-in inequities (or differences) in the system; that is, they spring from the fact that our current system renders it impossible for any incoming class of students to experience the House system in closely comparable terms,” Fox wrote in his details of the plan, published in The Crimson. One of Fox’s overarching philosophies as dean of the College was to open “Harvard’s gates to a broader world,” according to Marlyn E. McGrath ’70, who first served Fox as senior tutor of North House — a position known today as Pforzheimer House resident dean. McGrath later worked under Fox as assistant dean of Harvard College.

women, and he hired a lot of women. I was actually the first woman senior tutor in a Harvard house,” said Fisher, who resided in Eliot House at the time. Classical Music, Skiing, and Tractors Julia G. “Judy” Fox, John Fox’s wife of 55 years and who worked as the director of the Transfer and Visiting Student Programs at Harvard, said her first impression of him was of a very wellread and artistic man. “He was very cultured. I remember he introduced me — I was pretty young — he introduced me to a variety of classical music that I was not familiar with. I always liked classical music, but he would give me — this was the era of LPs — so he would give me records,” she said. “And even now, if I hear something on the radio that we used to listen to years ago, I get great pleasure from that.” John Fox would often go to his family home in Andover, Maine, away from his work as dean, according to Dingman. “He would quickly get rid of his office jacket and tie and put

I think he would like to be remembered for his personal qualities and his character and his integrity, which was really quite inspirational. Marlyn E. McGrath ’70 Senior Tutor and Assistant Dean under Fox

“I think he knew that when students came to Harvard, one of the important things that the College should do was challenge them to think about what they really wanted to do and who they really were,” McGrath said. Fox also sought to bring in students from diverse backgrounds, according to Thomas A. Dingman ’67, who worked as Fox’s assistant during his tenure as dean of the College. “He, in particular, went out early in his deanship to make sure that underrepresented minorities and women were well supported in the College,” Dingman said. Fisher, whom Fox brought on as the first woman on the College’s Administrative Board, said Fox opened many doors for women and minorities. “He was very supportive of

out a flannel shirt and hop on a tractor,” Dingman said. “My wife and I visited John and his family there, and it was great to see the affection he had for the land.” Fox was also interested in tracing back his familial roots and digging through records, Dingman said, which spurred his love for archival research. “He never set out to do something without exploring in the archives a lot more about the topic,” Dingman said. Julia Fox said John Fox had a love for art and handling physical objects, among his other pastimes and intellectual hobbies. “He was the son and grandson of artists. His mother was a sculptor; her father was a landscape painter. Both his mother and his grandfather won awards for their work,” she said. “We have a lot of their stuff in the house: won-

derful, wonderful paintings and sculptures.” This artistic touch passed onto John Fox, she said, who had a workshop in his basement and “loved to tinker with his hands, fixing things, building things.” Fox also enjoyed skiing and trekking through the surrounding forests, McGrath said. “In fact, he tried to teach me to ski, which was not a great success, but he loved the northern woods,” McGrath said. “He loved traveling, but I think what he really loved was he liked the rural areas that were forested.” ‘A Friend As Well As a Boss’ Fox and his wife frequently hosted dinners at their house for staff members at the College, which Fisher said demonstrated his caring nature toward his colleagues. “I recall one dinner where he stopped everyone and he said, ‘Do you see what’s happening here?’ And there were six of us. We were sitting next to each other, and we were all left-handed. It was just part of the fabric that is emblematic of his attention to individuals,” Fisher said. Dingman described Fox as “a friend as well as a boss.” “He showed a lot of interest in his staff, so when we had our first child in 1979, John was always asking questions about her well-being and how we were doing as new parents,” he said. “Sometimes bosses are too tied up in their day-to-day responsibilities to add that personal touch, but it was a more than welcome gesture.” According to McGrath, Fox was pragmatic and modest, and other administrators and staff looked up to him as a hard worker and a “unifying presence.” “I think he would like to be remembered for his personal qualities and his character and his integrity, which was really quite inspirational. He had a great sense of humor. Very dry, but very, very real, smart sense,” McGrath said. Throughout his career, Dingman said Fox upheld the core values of the University while adapting the College to an ever-transforming student body. “I think he would want to be remembered as a defender of the best qualities of Harvard,” Dingman said. “So I would say that he cared a lot about veritas, but he cared also about individuals and proceeded with caution. andrew.park@thecrimson.com

Sophomore Shriya S. Yarlagadda ’25 made her second ‘Jeopardy!’ appreance last Thursday. J. SELLERS HILL—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

RUTH SIMMONS FROM PAGE 1

New Harvard Adviser to Work with HBCUs do more good in the world,” he said. In a press release, Simmons praised Bacow for his commitment to an “inclusive future,” calling the effort to establish relationships with HBCUs a “welcome and timely message.” “I am proud to work alongside Harvard to shape a new vision for higher education, one which acknowledges the need for institutions with different histories and missions to share expertise and productively collaborate in the interests of a more equitable society,” she said. Simmons’s work as senior adviser to the president will move forward with the larger effort overseen by Vice Provost of Special Projects Sara N. Bleich following the University’s publica-

tion of the landmark Legacy of Slavery report last year. The work Simmons will do with HBCUs falls under the report’s third recommendation, which calls on the University to develop lasting partnerships with Black colleges and universities. Bleich said in an interview with The Crimson last week that she was “thrilled” by Simmons’s appointment. “I think there’s probably no other leader in higher education who Harvard can learn more from when it comes to thinking about meaningful engagement with HBCUs than President Simmons,” she said. miles.herszenhorn@thecrimson.com claire.yuan@thecrimson.com

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

COVER STORY

MARCH 3, 2023

‘Still Unresolved’: HUFPI Seeks Return of Funds JOEY HUANG—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

TWO MONTHS after the Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative’s leadership transition, the club remains in a dispute with its former president. BY J. SELLERS HILL AND SAGE S. LATTMAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

he former president of the Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, just weeks after the conclusion of her term, transferred approximately $30,000 from the organization’s bank account to her own. In the months since the Jan. 1 transfer, HUFPI has tried — and failed — to recover all the funds from its former president, Sama E.N. Kubba ’24. Communications obtained by The Crimson show that Kubba froze the club’s bank account, withheld access to social media accounts and the group’s website, and canceled travel arrangements without HUFPI’s approval. Kubba has not responded to requests for comment on the current status of the funds. In a Jan. 9 email to HUFPI leaders obtained by The Crimson, she offered to return the money and social media accounts in exchange for more than $10,000 for “emotional distress and wrongdoing” and the club trips she was removed from following the dispute. Over the past two months, The Crimson spoke with 10 current and former HUFPI members and reviewed more than 100 organization documents and emails, uncovering a pattern of internal conflict and financial misconduct around Kubba’s presidency. As president, Kubba allegedly leveraged her control over HUFPI and its finances with little oversight, according to current and former club members. These sources allege Kubba took improper actions, including spending club funds for unauthorized personal use, threatening to freeze HUFPI funding during a summit, and refusing to aid in the transition of the club’s next leaders. Kubba, who spoke to The Crimson regarding some of the allegations, said in a January interview that she transferred the funds to protect the HUFPI account from fraud. She also denied accusations of improper personal spending with a HUFPI credit card and said unauthorized transactions may be fraudulent. In an email to current HUFPI leadership on Jan. 7, Kubba claimed she canceled the travel arrangements accidentally. Due to the sensitive nature of the dispute and sources’ concerns over possible disciplinary action, The Crimson has granted anonymity to several current and former members of HUFPI to discuss Kubba’s tenure and the fallout from her departure. HUFPI declined to comment on specific allegations against the club or its former president.

“While the organization is unable to comment on any current investigations relating to the conduct of former members, HUFPI and its Board have taken the appropriate steps to strengthen financial security and promote a positive extracurricular culture,” HUFPI Co-Presidents Cosette T. Wu ’25 and Joyce Chen ’25 wrote in an email on behalf of the organization. “The situation is still unresolved,” they added. Since speaking to The Crimson on Jan. 11, Kubba subsequently sought to retract all on-therecord statements. She did not respond to later requests for comment regarding freezing HUFPI funding or refusing to cooperate with the club’s transition process. “I’m gonna welcome anything that is needed to clear my name,” Kubba said in January. “I believe in what I did, and I believe that the intentions that I had for what I did were good.” “I’ve spent too much on this organization to not act in its interests,” she added. “At the end of the day, I’m going to try to be an open book.” ‘Willing to Negotiate’ Soon after Wu and Chen, Kubba’s successors, began their tenure, they found themselves locked out of HUFPI’s bank account and unable to control the group’s website or several of its social media accounts. At the end of December, shortly after Kubba exited HUFPI’s presidency, she froze the club’s Bank of America account, according to internal documents obtained by The Crimson. HUFPI leaders were able to regain access to the account, and subsequently changed the password. But on Jan. 1, HUFPI received an email that there had been a modification to the club’s Bank of America user ID. Bank of America also sent emails to HUFPI indicating its bank account’s password had been reset and the senior director of finance’s debit card had been locked. That day, approximately $30,000 was transferred from the HUFPI bank account into an account under Kubba’s name, multiple financial records obtained by The Crimson show. On Jan. 2, a report of “stolen U.S. currency valued at $29,996.00” was filed with the Harvard University Police Department. The address for the report is listed as the Student Organization Center at Hilles, a Dean of Students Office building that acts as a physical space for undergraduate clubs. The report was later reclassified as “Assist Citizen,” before the case was later closed on Feb. 1. Following the discovery of the missing funds, the club contacted Kubba and requested that she “renounce access to all HUFPI financial assets.” “It has come to our attention that you have breached your duties to this organization, interfered with the activity of this or-

ganization, violated its rules and policies, and have apparently engaged in financial self-dealing,” reads a Jan. 4 email to Kubba, signed unanimously by the club’s executive committee. HUFPI executives also allege they saw their access to the club’s LinkedIn and Instagram accounts revoked during the transition, according to internal communications obtained by The Crimson. The club received notification on Jan. 1 that its Wix premium account — which hosted HUFPI’s public-facing website — had been canceled. As of this article’s publishing, HUFPI’s website is offline and the club’s most recent Instagram post is dated Jan. 1. In response to the executive committee’s email, Kubba wrote on Jan. 4 that she believed the account had been compromised and that changing the login information and transferring the funds was done in an effort to protect club funds.

PI’s bank account cannot be owned by any individual; it is a business account owned by the organization itself. As such, the account had no impact on her, her credit score, etc. Furthermore, Sama neither is nor ever was a guarantor on the BOA credit accounts,” Chen and Wu wrote on behalf of HUFPI. “These facts were confirmed many times by Bank of America’s representative to HUFPI and relayed directly to Sama (by the Bank representative) at the time of account opening,” they added. Kubba did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the statement. In a Jan. 7 email to the executive committee, Kubba defended her actions. “I was not going to sit by and wait for a disaster to happen, especially knowing the problems with past financial management,” Kubba wrote. “With no communication, and the bank account still under my name, I took the steps I thought were neces-

“

I took the steps I thought were necessary to protect myself, without in any way preventing the organization from continuing to work as normal.

Sama E.N. Kubba ’24 Former President of HUFPI

“When the login information was changed without my knowledge, Bank of America notified me because I am the primary account holder and informed me they believed it was fraud,” Kubba wrote in a Jan. 4 reply to HUFPI leadership. “The money remains untouched and safe, and it will be deposited in-person at our BoA appointment after Jan 20th once our account is secured from further fraud,” she added. In a separate email on Jan. 4, HUFPI leadership notified Kubba that she would not be joining the club on upcoming trips to France, Costa Rica, and South Korea. Three days later, Kubba said she planned to take a “new approach,” and froze the account again. “I froze the funds of the HUFPI account until the handover of the BoA account officially happens,” wrote Kubba in a Jan. 7 email to HUFPI executives. “Until the account is unlinked to my social security number, I locked our account,” Kubba wrote. “That way, no more purchases or transfers are happening until there is a handover, and my name is thereby protected.” HUFPI leadership disputed this line of reasoning in an emailed statement to The Crimson Thursday. “Sama has never ‘owned’ the Bank of America account. HUF-

sary to protect myself, without in any way preventing the organization from continuing to work as normal.” Kubba told The Crimson in January that she was advised by a “lawyer friend” to promptly return the money to HUFPI. On Jan. 8, Kubba attempted to transfer $26,496 to a HUFPI account through PayPal. She also transferred $3,500 to the club via Zelle. However, the PayPal transfer was later reversed. Around this same time, Kubba discovered that roughly $15,000 was frozen in her personal bank account, leaving it in the negative. On Jan. 9, Kubba emailed HUFPI leadership to request roughly $5,600 in compensation for the three HUFPI-funded international trips that she had been barred from. She also requested $5,000 for “distress caused by the false police report and dramatic cut from the trips without a fair trial.” In emails obtained by The Crimson, HUFPI leadership responded by suggesting mediation through the Harvard Ombuds Office. In addition, the two parties emailed to understand the $15,000 hold against Kubba’s account. HUFPI claimed it was not responsible for the freeze. On Jan. 21, Kubba appeared to attempt to negotiate a resolution with HUFPI. “This is my proposal to move

us forward to a resolution: compensation for the trips I was removed from in exchange for the social media accounts and the money that Paypal returned to me,” Kubba wrote. “The requested compensation amount is $10,613.36, but I am willing to negotiate.” As of Thursday, the situation is still “unresolved” according to a statement by Wu and Chen on behalf of HUFPI. Internal communications obtained by The Crimson show that Kubba canceled the club’s flights to Costa Rica, incurring a large cancellation fee. Kubba claimed she had intended only to cancel her own ticket but canceled the group order by mistake. “That was an accident, and I didn’t realize until I saw the email confirmation,” Kubba wrote in a Jan. 9 email to HUFPI executives. “I will not be paying up the difference, nor am I ‘liable’ to do so.” $188,000 and a Corgi HUFPI got its start like any Harvard club — with a niche. Sahil S. Lauji ’21 said he noticed a dearth of foreign policy opportunities at Harvard and decided to start an organization where undergraduates could research policy projects with professionals. In spring 2020 — HUFPI’s first semester — the organization consisted of several dozen members working on six policy projects. By its second semester, HUFPI had ballooned in size to surpass 100 members working across as many as 20 policy projects, according to Lauji. Lauji left the group with the idea to host a conference to expand the club’s work to high school students — a program that became the Harvard Undergraduate International Relations Scholars Program. Kubba, whom HUFPI’s website credited as the conference’s founder, said the impetus to create the Scholars Program was also based on the club’s bottom line. In spring 2021, according to Kubba, HUFPI had “barely enough to pay for the website.” The 615 students who were accepted to the inaugural conference, which took place virtually in summer 2021, heard keynote presentations from foreign policy titans including former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger ’50, Blackstone CEO Stephen A. Schwarzman, and former U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. Attendees interviewed by The Crimson said the conference delivered on its mission of teaching high school students about foreign policy. Scholars Program alumni Kaushik Pardeshi said the conference was “totally worth it” and lauded its “informative, novel, and interesting” programming. The conference also delivered on its fundraising mission. Though the program distributed scholarships, partici-

pants paid as much as $450 to attend the inaugural conference, with fees jumping to $750 the following year. According to a May 2022 email Kubba sent to club leadership obtained by The Crimson, the first high school conference earned the club roughly $188,000. Still, budgets of this size — or larger — are not unheard of among Harvard student organizations. According to public tax filings, undergraduate-run groups such as the Harvard College Association for U.S.-China Relations, Harvard Debate Council, and Harvard Student Agencies have boasted annual revenue figures in excess of $100,000. Unlike HUFPI, these clubs have alumni advisory boards, composed of graduates who provide advice and oversight to the groups. HUFPI’s newfound revenue from conferences enabled the club to expand, providing members with the opportunity to travel domestically and internationally to advise some of the world’s most powerful foreign policy players. The organization also invested some of its funding into internal club perks. Documents obtained by The Crimson show the club purchased a corgi in 2021. HUFPI’s website referred to the dog, named Smoky, as the club’s “Ambassador of Love” until fall 2022. Internal budgets from 2021 and 2022 obtained by The Crimson list more than $4,000 in spending on the dog, including $50 for travel costs and “damages to a personal item” as well as four payments of approximately $300 each spent on “pet-sitting” and dog care supplies. Kubba said College administrators cautioned HUFPI against continuing to spend funds on the dog, and the club subsequently placed Smoky in the care of a HUFPI alumnus. College spokesperson Aaron M. Goldman declined to comment on HUFPI spending on Smoky. ‘Contingent on Sama’ Kubba joined HUFPI as a policy researcher during her freshman year in fall 2020. By the end of the academic year, she had ascended t0 the club’s vice presidency, playing significant roles in club operations and policy research. In December 2021, Kubba became HUFPI’s president. As president, Kubba initiated HUFPI’s first Women in Foreign Policy Conference, which featured remarks from Secretary of State Antony Blinken ’84, a former Crimson editor. In an internal email sent Dec. 10, 2022, Kubba described her work to launch new diversity initiatives and organize a board retreat. Kubba also discussed launching a new stipend program for board members, which she described as “compensation for their time” in the email.

COVER STORY

THE HARVARD CRIMSON MARCH 3, 2023

Three sources familiar with the program said the club paid stipends to deputy and senior directors in the organization for the fall 2022 semester. The stipends, which included a base amount and a bonus, totaled as much as $250 dollars for senior members — including Kubba. The amount of the bonus depended on criteria that included board meeting attendance, according to three sources familiar with the program and internal emails obtained by The Crimson. “Members must attend at least 50% of board meetings in the summer and fall or the President going to have a commitment meeting with them and their compensation is at stake,” an October 2022 email from a senior director reads. Another email conveys members’ compensation was based on their use of ClickUp, a project management site. “Use clickup if you want a stipend bonus this semester,” Kubba wrote in an August 2022 email to the HUFPI board. A 2022-2023 budget document obtained by The Crimson suggests Kubba originally advocated for performance-based bonuses, but the idea was opposed by the club’s finance team, who cited the difficulty of objectively measuring performance. “i only want outstanding people earning--its not a [bonus] if everyone gets it,” Kubba wrote in the sheet. “not everyone deserves it.” This practice was likely in violation of the guidelines set forth by the Dean of Students Office, a Harvard College body which oversees undergraduate social life and activities. A 2022-2023 resource guide published by the DSO states that “no earnings of an undergraduate organization may accrue to individual members” without approval — which Associate Dean for Student Engagement Jason R. Meier said was more of a formality. “Harvard College treats our student organizations as independent entities and organizations are therefore free to conduct business as it best behooves them,” Meier said. “We would not intervene in that.” In a January interview, Kubba said the payments were meant to compensate low-income members for their work, and members were forbidden from using the stipends for certain purchases, such as alcohol. “We were basically just trying to compensate people fairly for a lot of the work they put in,” Kubba said. “We basically categorize those as financial hardship scholarships.” Other clubs — including the Harvard College Consulting Group and The Harvard Crimson — pay some members through need-based financial aid programs, but these stipends are typically monitored by alumni boards and not subject to discretionary withholding by student leaders.

Nicholas J. Brennan ’24, who served as senior finance director during the program, claimed the newly formed finance team was given “little influence” over the stipend program. “At no point did the finance team either disburse stipends or have the power to formally amend the program,” Brennan wrote in a statement Thursday. “The stipend program was abolished shortly after the turn of the year.” Kubba did not respond to a request for comment on this characterization. Separate from stipends, some club executives also received credit cards linked to HUFPI accounts for paying club-related expenses. HUFPI accused Kubba in its Jan. 4 email of having improperly used her credit card during her tenure as president. A list of the transactions on Kubba’s HUFPI credit card obtained by The Crimson includes $275 in expenses accrued at hair and nail salons, with one transaction taking place in Virginia Beach — Kubba’s hometown. The transactions list also shows more than $1,200 spent in a single day in May at an upscale French department store, while HUFPI was in Paris for a foreign policy trip. Kubba did not comment on the specific transactions, but she denied improper use of her HUFPI credit card and suggested there may have been fraudulent purchases made on the card in a January interview. “If I get more clarification, I’m happy to either explain what the charge is and how it related to HUFPI, or probably label it as fraud — something that needs to be reported to the bank and not to me,” Kubba said. In June 2022, HUFPI ratified a new constitution authored by then-president Kubba, which gave expansive power to the club’s president. Though it was previously ambiguous, the new document explicitly tasked the president of the organization with unilaterally appointing all senior directors — the highest ranking officers in the club after the president and vice presidents. The new constitution also granted the president veto power over all board votes, which could only be overridden by a subsequent unanimous board vote. Another provision of the constitution held that the club’s board is unable to hold votes in the absence of the president. Another change gave the president the choice of whether or not to elect vice presidents. According to two sources with knowledge of the situation, Kubba originally served with two vice presidents before they both resigned simultaneously in March 2022. Though several current and former HUFPI members described Kubba’s work ethic as impressive, Irati Egorho Diez ’25 — the club’s current senior director

MAP KEY City where HUFPI team traveled Location where HUFPI team worked on a policy project with a local group Foreign city where American organization that HUFPI collaborated with is based. HUFPI is based in Cambridge, Mass.

THC View the full interactive map at THECRIMSON.COM

RAHEM D. HAMID—CRIMSON DESIGNER

of speakers — said Kubba’s position as president gave her power over advancement within the organization. “I think it became very clear to me early on upon joining HUFPI that a lot of positions and vertical movement within the organization was contingent on Sama and Sama’s opinion of you,” Diez said, though she added she felt delegations were chosen based on merit. “Particularly I felt this when it came to going out, positions, and travel opportunities.” Kubba did not respond to a request for comment on her perceived power in the organization. As her presidency came to a close, Kubba wrote a farewell email to the organization. “This is an org that gave me the freedom to be me and chase my wildest dreams,” her email reads. “I never thought I would have this much autonomy to

ing that she would be departing from her presidency early. “There is no reason for me to stick around longer,” she wrote shortly before leaving the group chat. “No one cares what I have to say and I have repeated felt disrespected and like my work has meant nothing.” Internal communications obtained by The Crimson show that Kubba denied attempts by the new co-presidents to facilitate an official transition, including leaving a group chat in which Chen and Wu requested access to club bank accounts. Still, Kubba was set to attend policy and summit trips with HUFPI that she had helped plan, such as a January summit co-hosted with the Sciences Po Policy Project — or SP3 — a student-run policy organization based at the Paris Institute of Political Studies.

“

Since you guys are making calls without me and have zero respect for what I have to say, you can transition yourselves.

Sama E.N. Kubba ’24 Former President of HUFPI

have a platform to government leaders and make so much money.” ‘bye.’ On Dec. 10, 2022, Kubba appeared to prematurely leave her presidency, which was set to conclude at the end of the month. “I’ll spend the next couple weeks getting our new Co-Presidents-elect set up, help as I can and transition them over, but I’m on my way out as the official head of the organization,” she wrote in the farewell address, with the subject line “bye.” But as Kubba’s successors — Chen and Wu — began to take up leadership, Kubba abandoned an official transition amid a dispute over how to pay for a sudden change to travel plans. Chen and Wu wrote in a statement on behalf of HUFPI that they had offered to purchase tickets for members whose flights had been canceled with surplus club funds. In response, Kubba texted the pair on Dec. 18 that she would not aid in their transition. “Since you guys are making calls without me and have zero respect for what I have to say, you can transition yourselves,” Kubba wrote in a text, according to records obtained by The Crimson. Kubba declined to comment on Chen and Wu’s statement on the trip planning conflict. Ten minutes later, Kubba also sent a message to the HUFPI directors group chat communicat-

In text messages obtained by The Crimson, Kubba created a group chat on Dec. 29 with Chen, Wu, and SP3 organizers to sort out what she called “a misunderstanding on the schedule,” appearing to take issue with the fact that she was set to speak after Chen. “And this conference is funded by Harvard,” Kubba wrote. “We should be speaking first and I should be the one as I was the president who even CAME UP with the idea of fucking doing this shit.” Kubba later created a separate group chat with Chen and Wu, where she told them she would not turn over HUFPI financial accounts and passwords until the schedule was changed. “The bank account transfer nor any logins are happening until you fix the speech situation,” she wrote on Dec. 29. “I was promised and told one thing, deliver on it.” Kubba wrote to the group chat with SP3 a few hours later, threatening to freeze funding to the summit over the speaking order. In texts, Kubba specifically questioned why she was slated to speak after SP3 President Louai Allani. “Why do you get to speak twice Louai and why do you speak before me?” Kubba wrote in a string of texts obtained by The Crimson. “You bid to OUR program. Scratch that you bid to MY program.” “The money in HUFPI is still under my name and I have no issue resolving this by freezing

funding if you can’t honor me as your equal Louai,” she added. Allani and other members of SP3 leadership did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The next day, Kubba wrote to the conference planning group chat that she should also be able to moderate discussions with former U.S. Secretary of Defense John Kerry, a keynote speaker at the summit. “I’ll remind you all that freezing funds is within my capacity,” Kubba added. “Takes me 2 mins.”

BY THE NUMBERS

Current and former HUFPI members spoke to The Crimson for this investigation. The Crimson granted anonymity to several HUFPI members.

‘Trying to Help Our Students’ Emails between Kubba and HUFPI executives suggest Harvard administrators hesitated to directly involve themselves in the dispute over the nearly $30,000 transfer, instead proposing the two parties resolve their conflicts through the Harvard Ombuds Office. The approach aligns with the College’s historically handsoff policy toward club finances, which it has maintained even following significant financial misdeeds. In 1994, two Harvard undergrads were indicted after they stole more than $130,000 from a school-sponsored fundraiser to benefit cancer patients. One year later, a student was charged with pocketing more than $7,500 from the Currier House Committee. “We’re not planning to change our policy if we can possibly avoid it,” then-Harvard College Dean Harry R. Lewis ’68 said after the cancer charity scandal. “The autonomy of the student organizations can be maintained.” Administrators took a similar stance following the embezzlement of roughly $100,000 from the Hasty Pudding Theatricals in 2002, under the rationale that stringent monitoring would not prevent similar misconduct. DSO administrator Meier said in a January interview that the body’s policies are intended to protect students from legal and reputational harm. They are not necessarily meant to be enforced by the DSO, which describes its staff as mediators or guides for student organizations rather than enforcers, Meier added. “We’re really trying to help our students not to get into something that they can’t handle,” Meier said. “You can find yourself and your name in some significant challenges, and we really are doing this to protect the individuals and to help make it an easier process for them.” Kubba described a “mental health crisis” following the initial accusation of financial misconduct she received from the HUFPI executive committee. “My heart is broken after this,” Kubba wrote in a Jan. 7 email to HUFPI leadership. “I am broken after this.” sellers.hill@thecrimson.com sage.lattman@thecrimson.com

>100 HUFPI documents and emails were reviewed by The Crimson, uncovering a pattern of internal conflict and financial misconduct around Kubba’s presidency.

$30,000 Aproximate amount that was transferred from the HUFPI bank account into an account under Kubba’s name on Jan. 1, multiple financial records obtained by The Crimson show.

3 Accounts that current HUFPI leadership claim they were locked out of during the transition from Kubba’s presidency to Chen and Wu’s. Club executives allege that HUFPI’s Wix premium account — which hosts the organization’s website — was canceled and their access to HUFPI’s LinkedIn and Instagram accounts were revoked.

$188,000 The amount of money HUFPI earned through its first high school conference, according to an email Kubba sent to club leadership.

$4,167 The amount of money HUFPI spent on Smoky, a corgi the organization purchased in 2021. The club’s website referred to the dog as HUFPI’s “Ambassador of Love” until fall 2022.

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

NEWS

MARCH 3, 2023

UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT

HUHS FROM PAGE 1

President Bacow Awarded Medal By PVAMU

HUHS Highlights D&I Efforts

TWO PRESIDENTS. Outgoing Prairie View A&M University President Simmons praised Bacow for upholding truth and transparency at Harvard. BY MILES J. HERSZENHORN AND CLAIRE YUAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

arvard President Lawrence S. Bacow was awarded the Prairie View A&M University President’s Medal by the university’s outgoing president Ruth J. Simmons at a Monday afternoon ceremony. Harvard announced hours before the Prairie View event that Simmons will be appointed senior adviser to the president of Harvard on engagement with historically Black colleges and universities. Simmons will step down from her role as president at the end of the month. Sara N. Bleich — who was recently appointed Harvard’s vice provost for special projects —

opened the event with an overview of the University’s work on implementing recommendations from its April 2022 Legacy of Slavery report. Bleich announced that Harvard intends to assemble HBCU presidents at a conference this fall, a next step in implementing the report’s third recommendation — establishing stronger relationships with HBCUs. “We hope to convene a group of HBCU presidents to explore how we can deepen and expand our connections and partnerships and how we can assist those leaders in addressing their goals and challenges,” Bleich said. Bleich called Harvard’s landmark Legacy of Slavery initiative both “sobering” and “exciting.” “We very much look forward to working and learning from others and advancing this initiative in a way that is worthy of those lives that were so constrained by slavery and its legacies,” she said. The event, held on Simmons’ penultimate day in office as president, offered an opportunity for

by saying she looks forward to working with President-elect Claudine Gay to foster stronger connections with HBCUs in her advisory role. “This is the moment for HBCUs to receive their fair share,” Simmons said. “And I’m so happy that Harvard is going to be leading that process of thinking through what can be done.” “We don’t need to worry about what we haven’t gotten in the past,” she added. “We just need to worry about what we get now — and we have to be more insistent about how deserving HBCUs are of additional support.”

22,981 student visits to its Counseling and Mental Health Services arm, accounting for nearly one in five HUHS visits. In addition, the CAHMS Cares 24/7 mental health hotline, launched at the beginning of the reporting period, answered 2,421 calls over the year, according to the report. The report sets out diversity and inclusion as a focus area for the service, with initiatives including the recent hire of Director of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Laurie Nicholas. According to the report, 45 percent of HUHS’ 67 new full-time employees identify as ethnic minorities. “Through campaigns, HUHS celebrates and highlights opportunities to educate the community about a diversity of backgrounds, cultures, identities and experiences,” the report reads. In a preface introducing the report, HUHS Executive Director Giang T. Nguyen said that HUHS was “emerging from the pandemic with a renewed sense of purpose.” “While we work toward our goals, HUHS will continue to provide outstanding service, invest in equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging, be accountable in our work, and act as responsible stewards of our resources,” he wrote. “I am proud to be part of the HUHS team and look forward to the future with hope and determination,” Nguyen concluded.

miles.herszenhorn@thecrimson.com claire.yuan@thecrimson.com

alexander.fung@thecrimson.com tarah.gilles@thecrimson.com

The event featured a conversation between Harvard President Lawrence S. Bacow and Prairie View A&M University President Ruth J. Simmons. COURTESY OF NICHOLAS HUNT—PRAIRIE VIEW A&M UNIVERSITY

the two outgoing university presidents to reflect on their careers in higher education and to shower praise on each other. Simmons commended Bacow for leading Harvard with a “warm heart and a generous mind,” citing his leadership as the University defended affirmative action and supported students in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. “As 29th president of Harvard University, you have led that remarkable institution with enviable distinction,” Simmons said to Bacow. “You have led with the conviction that truth and transparency must be essential elements of university leadership.” In his remarks, Bacow told the

audience that “there is no one — and I mean no one — who has accomplished more or is respected more greatly than your Ruth Simmons.” Bacow also discussed the challenges currently facing universities, emphasizing a decrease in public support for higher education, taxes on endowments, and concerns over the ability to teach freely in the classroom. “People are asking whether or not institutions like ours are actually good for society,” Bacow said. “I don’t think we can take any of these things for granted. I think we have to fight to retain them,” he added. “In some cases, we have to go down fighting.” Simmons concluded the event

Former Mayor de Blasio Expresses Support for Two-State Solution BY JO B. LEMANN AND NEIL H. SHAH CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio underscored his belief in the importance of the State of Israel and expressed support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a Harvard Law School discussion Tuesday. Held in a packed Wasserstein Hall classroom, the event — titled “The Progressive Case for Israel” — featured remarks by de Blasio, followed by a question-and-answer session with audience members. In his talk, de Blasio emphasized his belief in the continued need for Israel as a homeland for the Jewish people. During the event, de Blasio recounted a Shabbat dinner his family shared with a Brooklyn official’s family, during which the official’s mother spoke about her experience living through the Holocaust. He also reflected on times when his own Italian relatives described Mussolini and fascism in a positive light. De Blasio said that through moments like these, he realized that “that history was far from over in so many ways” and that “so many families are feeling the effects still and deeply right now.” He also discussed why he supports Israel despite “fundamentally” disagreeing with elements of Israel’s current government. Israel, de Blasio said, is necessary

Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio expressed support for a two-state solution at a HLS event Tuesday. JO B. LEMANN—CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

because “the Jewish people are not sufficiently safe any place on this earth.” In reference to geopolitical tensions in the region, de Blasio said he believes a two-state solution — which would create independent states of Israel and Palestine — is the only way to achieve peace in the region. “Everyone needs a homeland, deserves a homeland. Everyone

needs safety. I believe in a twostate solution as a way to achieve that,” he said. “I think anything short of that won’t achieve it, honestly.” Concluding his remarks, de Blasio described his viewpoint as “progressive,” explaining that he believes in protecting those who are oppressed and that those enduring oppression should “have a homeland.”

In response to questions posed by the audience about the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, de Blasio said he does not believe economic pressure on Israel’s government would help achieve peace. “I don’t buy the notion that forcing the government to change through economic boycott, for example, is productive to the long-term outcome,” he said.

Still, de Blasio said he believes an economic solution is crucial to implementing a two-state solution. “We cannot treat economic issues and political issues as two ships passing in the night,” he said in an interview following the event. “We have to rebond these two points and create an economic framework that will be, to me, the underpinning of a lasting

peace.” Some audience members said they were left unsatisfied by de Blasio’s talk. Tala A. Alfoqaha, a second-year law student at the Law School, said she believes the talk lacked substance and de Blasio used “the same political playbook that every politician goes by.” “I presented a vision that needs to be revived that is pertinent today,” de Blasio said when asked for comment. “If people think a two-state solution is not advancing, then the job should be to advance it and work on it, not just decry its lack of progress.” Charles S. Comiter, a Ph.D. student at MIT who attended the event, said he doubts the viability of the two-state solution promoted by de Blasio during the discussion. “I think there’s a whole multitude of reasons that we’re not going to see a two-state solution ever,” he said. “I think that’s a pretty widely accepted viewpoint.” In a response, de Blasio defended the two-state solution, saying that while it would be difficult to implement, he believes it would also be the best way forward. “I was very interested in the dialogue today. I thought students were very thoughtful — wide-ranging views obviously,” he said. “But I did not hear anyone present a more available coherent option.” jo.lemann@thecrimson.com neil.shah@thecrimson.com

Harvard Named Fulbright ‘Top Producing’ Institution for 2022-2023 BY TYLER J. H. ORY CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Harvard was named a Fulbright top producing institution by the U.S. State Department for having among the highest number of accepted applications for the 20222023 U.S. student and scholar programs. Twenty-nine students and recent graduates from the College were selected for the student scholarship, a prestigious program allowing students to “expand perspectives through academic and professional ad-

vancement and cross cultural dialogue,” according to the Fulbright website. Seventeen of these students ultimately accepted their award. Seven Harvard faculty, researchers, and administrators were also selected for the scholars program. Eighteen other universities and colleges were also recognized as Fulbright dual top producing institutions alongside Harvard, making lists for both the most Fulbright students and scholars. Among the recipients of the

student scholarship was Brandon T. Chen ’22 — a recent College graduate who studied Government and is now teaching English at elementary and middle schools in Hualien County, Taiwan. Chen, an English teaching assistant grantee, was paired with a local English instructor and teaches English to students ranging from first to ninth grade. “It’s not like a scholarship or anything, but more like a cultural and education grant,” Chen said. Chen wrote his government thesis on U.S.-Taiwan relations,

and he characterized the Fulbright Taiwan program as a “cultural exchange” and a form of “public diplomacy between the U.S. and Taiwan.” Chen added he was motivated to accept the teaching grant because of “increasingly aggressive and irredentist Chinese rhetoric.” “I think striking U.S.-Taiwan relationships are more important now than ever,” Chen said. Chen added his Taiwanese background also informed his decision to become a teaching assistant. “I never spent much time in

this country, so I wanted to experience it firsthand a little bit more,” Chen said in reference to Taiwan. In another corner of the world, Harvard Medical School professor Anita K. Wagner is conducting global pharmaceutical policy research as the 2022-2023 U.S. Fulbright-Tampere University Scholar in Finland. Wagner said part of what drew her to Finland was how different their pharmaceutical system is from the systems she is familiar with in the U.S. and other nations. “I wanted to see how pharma-

ceuticals are talked about and handled in a country like Finland that has a much different definition of population welfare and population health,” she added. Wagner said she was drawn to the Fulbright program because it comported with “the big theme” of her life — “building bridges.” “Fulbright is really an enormous opportunity for me to come back to where I started — bridge building across systems, countries, languages, cultures, disciplines, organizations,” she added. tyler.ory@thecrimson.com

EDITORIAL

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

MARCH 3, 2023

STAFF EDITORIAL

DISSENT

Build, Cambridge, Build

Harvard Square is Not the Center of the Universe

TO SOLVE the unaffordability crisis in Harvard Square, we must reckon with Cambridge’s restrictive zoning laws. Another expensive tea shop reminds us the city’s policies must change.

vious: Allow more houses and restaurants to be built, thereby lowering property prices. The city of Cambridge and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts need to loosen their overly restrictive zoning regulations. And they need to do this now.

BY THE CRIMSON EDITORIAL BOARD

öge Tee, the fourth bubble tea shop in Harvard Square, is now open for business. With this new store joining the ranks of other post-pandemic players like Blue Bottle and Tiger Sugar, the Square has never been more welcoming and alluring to budding beverage connoisseurs — the kind willing to drop upwards of $6 on a tea or latte, that is. To be clear, we have nothing against bubble tea. We believe food can serve as a practical, delectable entrance point to a variety of cultures and we reject the potential conflation of diverse food options with inaccessibility as both misguided and demonstrably false. But even as we maintain the value of cultural food options in the Square, the new bubble tea shop’s opening reminds us of a problem that has long plagued Harvard Square: the affordability crisis. With a cost of living 75 percent higher than the national average, students and residents in Cambridge suffer from a lack of cheap food options — and only exceedingly wealthy student groups can readily afford to own off-campus social spaces, atrophying social life. It often feels like Harvard Square is built for wealthy tourists, with storefronts featuring a saturation of luxury brands and restaurants that many Harvard students would likely never consider stepping foot into (or risk draining their wallets by doing so). Amidst a national reckoning on land use, we, too, must reckon with the larger, structural forces that shape the shops we pass, but hardly enter, on our way to class. We’re talking about zoning codes. Cambridge zoning regulations have a distinct set of rules governing fast food. Regulating everything from the restaurant exterior’s sensitivity to the “visual and physical characteristics of other buildings” to effects on double parking and neighborhood safety, Cambridge has effectively constructed a massive roadblock to new quick-service and affordable food establishments. Some of the results: $1.6 million for the average Cambridge family home. $14 salad at Sweetgreen, but no McDonalds in the Square. Packed bars without empty tables as early as 10 p.m. An abundance of beverage shops with menu items priced at or higher than half the hourly minimum wage. In one of the most liberal cities in America, low-income residents and low-price businesses have found themselves victims of a wealthy gatekeeping policy — one with disproportionate negative effects on unhoused residents, whose housing insecurity is overwhelmingly due to rising rent prices in the city. We don’t claim to know the full solution to our pricing woes. But one step is dizzyingly ob-

In one of the most liberal cities in America, lowincome residents and low-price businesses have found themselves victims of a wealthy gatekeeping policy. It’s equally obvious that zoning codes are not the only upward pressure on urban prices, and that cheaper commercial properties do not necessarily translate to cheaper options for consumers. But, by definition, zoning laws constrain what can be built and who can afford commercial and residential space. This isn’t just a Cambridge problem; it’s happening all across the U.S. At a time when affordable housing supply trails demand by nearly four million units, restrictions like large minimum lot sizes, single-family occupancy requirements for residential units, and arbitrary height ceilings have the effect of preventing our cities from meeting the demand they face — causing housing prices to balloon as a result. Liberalizing these draconian regulations — which were initially enacted to keep out residents of a lower socioeconomic status — would go a long way towards creating a more equitable Cambridge, from cheaper housing to more affordable food options. Until then, Harvard should subsidize food options in the Square, particularly for low-income students who are left with nothing but overpriced salad bowls and burgers that figure somewhere in the double digits. Extending dining hall hours, too, would help prevent students from being forced out into an increasingly unaffordable food scene once the servery doors close for the evening. It isn’t any lack of want by students that prevents us from having more options for nightlife, affordable food, and other amenities in Harvard Square. We want more bars, a bite that doesn’t drain our wallets, and a college town environment that feels like a community and treats people as such, buoyed by relationships that exist past a credit card transaction. We love Grendel’s Den. But we wouldn’t say no to a Toad’s Place by its side — nor any amendment to zoning regulations that would result in a more lively, accessible, and inclusive Square for all.

–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.

INSTEAD OF blasting Cambridge for its zoning laws, this Board should criticize Harvard for its predatory relationship with the Square. BY JOSEPH W. HERNANDEZ, CLYVE LAWRENCE, AND PRINCE A. WILLIAMS

or all the talk about bubble tea, we’re surprised our colleagues on the Editorial Board are unable to recognize the more ebullient bubble that surrounds us. We want to see Harvard Square improve as much as the next person, but there are some serious issues with how we’ve been thinking about it. Firstly, Cambridge and Somerville are vibrant and bustling communities, forming one of the most densely populated regions in the United States. Perhaps their liveliness stems from their impressive connectivity and accessibility — at least relative to the rest of our car-dependent country. So why doesn’t the Board venture a little outside of Harvard Square instead of focusing exclusively on the store availability here? Sure, when it comes to more accessible restaurants and food options, Harvard Square isn’t the best, especially for low-income students like us. But we’re having the wrong conversation here. It’s true that there are few grocery stores in the Square itself, but let’s not forget the other neighborhoods nearby with plenty of food options. If you want a convenient and cheap grocery store, Market Basket is only a 15-minute bus ride away (10 minutes if you want to cycle). And, of course, there’s always the option to take the Red Line just one stop in either direction. Have our colleagues considered the Star Market in Porter Square or the Whole Foods in Central? The Targets near both? Even if grocery stores abounded in Harvard Square, we doubt many of us are cooking every day in the limited kitchen space we have, given that we have a dining hall system that we can use. Then again, didn’t this Board reject hot breakfast, claiming “there’s no such thing as a free lunch?” The call to “let them eat toast” was dismissive and counterproductive to the conversation of expanding access to food options for Harvard students. The Board discusses the amusing idea of subsidizing food in the Square, which reinforces the idea that Harvard students should never stray more than 5,000 feet from their dorms. How about the University subsidizes MBTA passes for its undergraduate students, following the leads of its neighbors like Boston University, Tufts, MIT — heck, even its own graduate schools? No, the real issue with this Board’s reasoning isn’t just about food access. Instead, we should call out Harvard’s predatory relationship with the Square; the Board has already recognized how the University’s investment in the city is inadequate, and we should continue doing so.

Cambridge’s rising land and rent costs — which likely play a role in the Square’s makeup of mostly expensive shops — are largely a result of Harvard’s expansion and influence, and we need to be conscious of the University’s effects on both the unhoused community and the working-class people who live here. We can’t just expect Harvard Square to transform into a prototypical college town in the middle of Cambridge. As much as we may want student-focused businesses in The Square, there’s no denying that they’re fighting an uphill battle against the tourism industry in a neighborhood with skyrocketing prices. It’s time we asked ourselves, who’s really to blame for Harvard Square being so inaccessible: individual tourists or the multibillion-dollar university that created a local economy with 16 dessert shops, more than 10 banks, and an overpriced CVS in an effort to appeal to them? So, as members of the Cambridge community new and old, what does resisting the physical dominance of the University mean for us all? It means we need to be more engaged with the community around us by supporting local businesses, not just familiar chains. It means getting to know our working-class neighbors and being conscious of our impact on the community. It means fighting modern investment models that usually result in generic, mind-numbing architecture and corporate sameness. We need to see our cities as “a container for human life,” as urban studies journalist Jane Jacobs put it. And yes, there are still access barriers that we need to address, and it would certainly be nice to have affordable food options nearby. But let’s not act like a 15-minute walk or a bike ride is some insurmountable obstacle. It’s actually the goal. We can be grateful for the resources we have — including the stores we live near — while also being aware of the broader issues creating mobility injustice. We don’t actually disagree with the Board’s conversation about zoning, and we think it’s good to reevaluate how we regulate business and housing development. But we can’t just focus on our own needs and wants; we need to be mindful of the needs and wants of the entire community. So let’s pop the Harvard bubble, step outside a bit, and engage with them. Harvard Square is not the center of the universe.

– Joseph W. Hernandez ’25, a Crimson Editorial editor, is a Government concentrator in Adams House. Clyve Lawrence ’25, a Crimson Editorial editor, is a Government concentrator in Adams House. Prince A. Williams ’25, a Crimson Editorial editor, is a History concentrator in Adams House. Dissenting Opinions: Occasionally, The Crimson Editorial Board is divided about the opinion we express in a staff editorial. In these cases, dissenting board members have the opportunity to express their opposition to staff opinion.

OP-ED

Clubs for the Rich, Jobs for Everyone Else BY JOSEPH W. HERNANDEZ

“W

ho cares about all these student government elections?” This apathetic sentiment has seemingly become commonplace in recent years. It makes sense: The Harvard Undergraduate Association is a student government so chaotic it found itself the center of student criticism only a week into this academic year. There’s just one problem with the otherwise blissful ignorance of pretending the HUA doesn’t exist: club funding.

There’s just one problem with the otherwise blissful ignorance of pretending the HUA doesn’t exist: club funding. I’m not here to talk about clubs’ contentious food budgets or private events. It’s hard to see these disputes as anything but a sideshow when the clubs themselves are not accessible to low-income students. As a part of Harvard’s frustratingly small low-income student body, my tuition and room and board are completely covered by need-based financial aid. But I still found that I needed to work a parttime job on the side. The truth is, no matter what low-income students do, a full ride will never be quite enough to meet all of our needs; even if I manage to make it to the dining hall on time for every meal, never get injured or sick, avoid traveling anywhere I can’t walk, and cut every last hobby out of my life, I’d still have to pay for textbooks. In fact, the College appears well

aware of these expenses: They already estimate an individual student will need $3,500 for “Personal Expenses” on financial aid documents, which they elaborate should be met with the “Student TermTime Work Expectation.” So I secured a part-time job in Cambridge before I ever stepped foot on Harvard’s campus. I even took pride in my newfound financial independence. But one recurring question in the neverending cycle of the Harvard intro kept haunting me: “What clubs are you in?” The answer was simple: “None.” Being a full-time Harvard student and working 15 hours a week just didn’t leave time for anything but a handful of Fuerza Latina events. I was well aware that countless opportunities were passing me by, but I didn’t have a second to spare. I felt like I was hardly making the most of my time at Harvard, like all my classmates seemed to be doing. So what changed? How am I even writing this op-ed? Well, eventually, I found out that The Crimson has a need-based financial aid program for its low-income writers that pays them for their work, essentially serving as a job replacement. But The Crimson is financially independent from the College. As it stands, the College’s funding is wholly inadequate for most student groups to compensate club members for their work. The Crimson pays individual low-income members up to $1,500 per semester, while the average student group received a total of $650 from the University annually as of 2018 — a figure that would have grown to just over $1,730 today, assuming club funding increased proportionally to the student activities fee. In other words, even assuming students were no less willing to pay the increased student activities fee, it would take almost the entire budget of the average student organization to pay a single member for a semester’s work, making such a proposal a non-starter under the current club funding structure — and leaving low-income students on the outside, looking in.

Unsurprisingly, this has helped foster a campus culture defined by inequity: While low-income students often find themselves stuck working lowwage jobs to meet their needs, wealthy students gain professional experience and connections in student organizations from the Institute of Politics to Harvard Undergraduate Consulting on Business and the Environment.

While low-income students often find themselves stuck working low-wage jobs to meet their needs, wealthy students gain professional experience and connections in student organizations. Worse yet, this seems to create a cycle of exclusion. When low-income students are left on the outside looking in, student organizations are less likely to cater to the needs of the low-income members they do have. So, how do we fix it? On one hand, Harvard could offer further direct financial support to low-income students, providing them the same degree of autonomy wealthy students already have. But this seems highly unlikely, especially given the College’s expectation that “personal expenses” be met through term-time work. On the other hand, the College’s leadership could move to overhaul the club funding structure, ensuring that clubs — particularly those with pre-professional implications — offer pay to highly involved members. This approach is likely more palatable for an administration that seems unwilling to award fi-

nancial assistance for all but the most basic living expenses. While it’s understandably easy to lose sight of the importance of club funding when it so often is devoted to nothing but merchandise, an El Jefe’s or Kung Fu Tea budget, and an occasional off-campus event, the HUA’s club funding responsibility is crucial for the accessibility of student organizations to low-income students. It can be entertaining to laugh as we watch the frenzy that ensues when we trust a group of unqualified wannabe politicians to manage hundreds of thousands of dollars, but we cannot lose sight of the serious work they are neglecting. When the stakes are as high as they are, we can’t afford to ignore the fact that an organization whose only meaningful responsibility is club funding devoted 19 percent of their $550,000 budget to expenses other than student organizations this year. Frighteningly, our student government’s lack of credibility may actively discourage students from paying the optional student activities fee. And can we really expect the College to offer the HUA truly adequate funding beyond the student activities fee when students themselves do not trust the student government with their money? As much as I hate to say it, the HUA’s work matters. But let me be clear. When I vote in an HUA election, I’m not voting because I buy into our broken system. I’m voting because I care about the work that broken system is supposed to do. If the HUA cares about its only job, then it’s time to prove it by making a meaningful push for financial aid within student organizations. Club funding affects real people. When we pretend it doesn’t, we wind up with the completely inadequate and exclusive system we see today: Clubs for the rich, and jobs for everyone else.

–Joseph W. Hernandez ’25, a Crimson Editorial editor, is a Government concentrator in Adams House.

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

EDITORIAL

MARCH 3, 2023

OP-ED

Harvard’s Dental Policies Need a Check-Up cern. I expected that a prestigious institution such as Harvard would prioritize student access to medical care whenever needed, or so I thought. In Massachusetts (and at Harvard), every student is required by law to have health insurance, whether it is provided by the university or they are covered by a “health plan of comparable coverage.” Based on my understanding, a significant proportion of affluent students already covered by excellent private insurance plans decide to waive their automatic enrollment in the Student Health Insurance Plan to de facto lower their cost of attendance. Conversely, students on significant financial aid, who may lack private health insurance, qualify for need-based grants to offset these expenses.

BY STEVEN GIRALDO

his midterm season, you’ll be hard pressed to find a tranquil, unstressed Harvard student. March is saturated with overlapping deadlines, extracurricular comp meetings, and of course, heavily graded exams. For the majority of students solely focused on being students, the workload is manageable; but for those of us dealing with the excruciating pain of impacted wisdom teeth (without Massachusetts dental insurance), completing assigned work and taking care of personal health feels nearly impossible to balance. Wisdom teeth are the third set of human molars that typically emerge during the college years, between the ages of 17 to 25. For the fortunate ones, wisdom teeth erupt upright, perfectly aligning with their existing teeth. However, for the unlucky ones like me, our mouths are too cramped for our wisdom teeth to develop correctly. The third molars become entrapped behind the crowded gum or jawbone, resulting in an unbearable pulsating pain from tension and bacterial infections. As a first-generation low-income student (and immigrant), I never learned the inner workings of the United States healthcare system. Deductibles, copayments, PPO plans, and all other terminologies are — after six years in America — still strange to me. Despite the growing inflammation and pain in my gums, my initial reaction was not marked by con-

Despite their inherent necessity, there are no financial aid grants designed to cover “nonessential” medical insurances, regardless of current coverage of financial need. However, there is a separation between essential health insurance and other medical costs such

as dentistry, and the SHIP only provides dental coverage to students until age 19. Despite their inherent necessity, there are no financial aid grants designed to cover “non-essential” medical insurances, regardless of current coverage or financial need. After a few back-and-forth calls with Harvard University Health Services, unreturned calls to local dental schools, a series of painkillers, and advice to travel back home for wisdom tooth removal surgery, I learned my first hard-to-swallow Harvard reality: While wealthy students have the economic resources to afford private care, and in the worst case scenario, travel to see a doctor over the weekend, I am stuck in Massachusetts, unable to afford neither medical attention nor a plane ticket back home. As my midterms approach, academics slowly fall on my priority list. The throbbing, pulsating pain in my teeth, gum inflammation, and low appetite remind me that even at an institution like Harvard, my socioeconomic status defines my capacity to succeed. While my peers can study for their exams, all I can do is ponder if my teeth will get any worse. The Harvard Diversity and Inclusion mission aims to eliminate socioeconomic barriers to Harvard’s transformative experience, ensuring that “where one begins does not determine where one ends. ” Yet the College has failed to address the large number of disparate issues a diverse student body faces. For the first-generation, low-income community, access and understanding of all-encompassing health insurance is not granted, yet personal health

is indispensable to reach the famous intellectual transformation Harvard preaches. Not covering dental insurance for students with financial need is a policy failure that hurts only the lower socioeconomic end of Harvard and cultivates inequalities in student potential for academic well-being. This dental insurance policy is only the tip of the iceberg of Harvard policies that continuously alienate first-generation, low-income students. FGLI individuals come into Harvard unprepared, without reliable and accessible sources of information to navigate complex bureaucratic systems and academic adversity. These differences on the playing field most likely account for the 42 percent of low-income students that, despite attending Harvard, never become wealthy adults. Teaching students healthcare literacy, especially those whose financial constrictions severely limit their experience within the complex Harvard world, is essential to level the playing field and close the achievement gap between low-income and wealthy Harvard students. This includes ensuring that financial aid covers all forms of medical care — including dental care — that are necessary to fully focus on academics and reach the full potential that Harvard facilitates. In other words, provide students with the wisdom necessary to succeed, without forcing them to worry about their painful (wisdom) teeth.

– Steven Giraldo ’26, a Crimson Editorial editor, lives in Elm Yard.

COLUMN

OP-ED

SCIENCE N’ TRADITION

Why is Harvard Still Siding with Sackler?

Why I Call Home(Sickness)

BY HANNAH FINNIE

HOMESICKNESS cuts two ways: We miss home and it misses us. Calling home makes everyone happier.

BY SANDHYA KUMAR

FaceTime my entire family every day. I often get surprised looks when I tell my peers this fact; they frequently claim that’s too much communication. The thing is, I may suffer from the disease of homesickness. We don’t typically think of homesickness as a disease, but perhaps we should. Early on, the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates attributed homesickness to excessive black bile in the blood. Johannes Hofer later provided a neurological explanation, suggesting that new environments stimulated nerves into a frenzy known as homesickness. Homesickness was documented as a major issue in 17th and 18th-century Swiss soldiers. When they were outsourced to French armies that required long and rigorous training, they lost their sense of individuality and longed for home. Similarly, some historical sailors were so plagued by homesickness that they would even jump off ships. We clearly cannot compare the severity of preparing for war four centuries ago with that of attending college in the 21st century. Still, pursuing new social groups, exploring interests, and finding a place to fit in can all exacerbate homesickness at Harvard. Taken together, these college-specific difficulties can lead to academic troubles, anxiety, depression, and other ailments. Homesickness could be more prevalent than the freshman flu — despite its visibly milder symptoms. Biologically, homesickness could be characterized as an extension of post-traumatic stress disorder. Some researchers have even posited that homesickness could be an evolutionary relic of early survival mechanisms, vitally helping proto-humans return and revisit social groups, allowing for better protection. I was very homesick at Harvard. I checked the box for many risk factors of the disease: I had little experience living alone, have a rather reserved personality, and am very close to my family. It was definitely a difficult transition. I very much sought a cure. There were many early theories to cure homesickness, including through fear. Famous American psychologist Benjamin Rush even reported of a general who buried alive some soldiers afflicted with homesickness, instilling such a fear of the disease that it was eliminated from the army.

Luckily, there are less severe ways to cure the disease today. Recent research suggests that some of the best ways to overcome homesickness are to immerse yourself in your surroundings and to reflect positively on your new situation. For the homesick underclassman, choosing interesting classes, interacting with your new community, and getting accustomed to Harvard culture are all ways to combat homesickness and start thinking of Harvard as home. I did just this to fix my affliction: I filled my calendar with classes, office hours, and activities for organizations (like writing for The Crimson). I learned to savor my independence and to structure my time more efficiently. And of course, I called home daily. But, by immersing ourselves in our school, it can be easy to forget about the people who helped bring us here: our family. Homesickness goes both ways: We long for home, and it longs for us. On the flip side of college students’ homesickness is their parents’ empty nest syndrome — the equivalent grief brought about by children growing up and moving out of a family home. While my siblings and I have moved into schools filled with vibrant student life and peers, we have left our parents alone, in a startlingly quiet house. One way to combat empty nest syndrome is to simply keep in contact. Technology has made this extremely easy; even a five-minute phone call can be productive for both homesickness and empty nest syndrome sufferers. College is undoubtedly a time of finding independence and learning to deal with problems on your own. Calling your parents every time an issue comes up can prevent you from experiencing college fully and actually exacerbate feelings of homesickness, as you become more aware of the separation between you and loved ones. But communicating with a simple text or call every few days can make everyone happier. Communication is one of the most efficient cures for homesickness — and you can do it while walking from class, grabbing a quick bite to eat, or taking a study break. So, if you haven’t already, make it a point to call home today!

–Sandhya Kumar ’26 lives in Greenough Hall. Her column, “Science ‘n Tradition,” runs on alternate Tuesdays.

spent some of the summer after my first year at Harvard Law School working on the case against Purdue Pharma, the company that infamously produced and marketed opioids to horrific ends. That case, which has now been settled, opened my eyes to the awful truth of how the Sackler-owned Purdue Pharma manufactured not just opioids, but the opioid overdose crisis we now find ourselves in. A staggering 107,600 Americans died in 2021 because of the crisis, 15 percent more than the year prior. And so, when I came to campus that fall to begin my first in-person year at Harvard Law, I was shocked to see the Sackler name again — this time, prominently displayed on one of the three buildings that compose the Harvard Art Museums. A sea change in public opinion, practical application, and even entertainment surrounding the opioid overdose crisis has begun to sweep through the country. Harvard has not just ignored that change, but steadfastly resisted it, choosing instead to defend the naming of the Arthur M. Sackler Building. Harvard has upheld its ties to the Sackler family even as experts (including at this University) widely acknowledge them, via Purdue, to be responsible for organizing, fomenting, and ultimately profiting off the opioid overdose crisis and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. It’s unclear whether the University has officially responded to the latest proposal by students, earlier this academic year, to remove the Sackler name from the Harvard Art Museums. The fact that the Sacklers have, through their immense wealth and influence, essentially purchased their immunity from prosecution tied to opioid-related lawsuits makes it so much more damning that Harvard, in maintaining the Arthur M. Sackler Building, continues to offer a prestigious platform for their toxic philanthropy. Outside of the Harvard administration, the tide is shifting in how we as a society choose to respond to the opioid crisis. Two weeks ago, the Food and Drug Administration approved overthe-counter sales of the overdose reversal drug Narcan, and we’ve seen renewed investigative reporting on elite institutions like Oxford University continuing to court the Sacklers. Just last month, President Joe Biden acknowledged the crisis in his State of the Union speech, and the month before that he signed a bill into law which will make it easier for people suffering from addiction to get the care they need. All told, we’re arriving at a tipping point for the opioid overdose crisis.

Harvard seems willfully immune to the growing awareness slowly capturing the rest of the country that we must take action.

EMILY N. DIAL — CRIMSON DESIGNER

And yet, Harvard seems willfully immune to the growing awareness slowly capturing the rest of the country that we must take action. The new documentary “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed,” director Laura Poitras’ film about the life, art, and anti-overdose activism of artist Nan Goldin, put Harvard’s inaction into relief for me. It is a real-life David and Goliath tale that artfully illustrates how the Sackler family has leveraged

the worlds of art and elite philanthropy to evade accountability, openly laundering their public image. In 2018, Goldin organized a rally at Harvard to remove the Sackler name from our buildings. In other words: Harvard has had notice. This call to action is not new — Harvard has simply failed to respond. “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed” also shows just how many other elite institutions have taken the opportunity to simply do better. Since that rally took place, institutions including The Louvre, The Guggenheim, London’s National Portrait Gallery, the Tate Modern, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art have all either scrapped the Sackler name or refused to take their money in future in the face of ongoing pressure from Goldin and her activist group, Prescription Addiction Intervention Now, as well as increasing public awareness and outrage. These institutions’ actions have shown that, despite any nominal internal constraints pulling them elsewhere, stopping the glorification of the profiteers behind today’s opioid overdose crisis is a goal that is not only worthy, but possible. So why has Harvard held out? The University contends that Arthur Sackler died several years before the proliferation of OxyContin from the company his family controlled, and is therefore irrelevant in discussions about his family’s ties to the crisis. Nevermind that it was Arthur Sackler’s aggressive advertising and supercharged sales schemes that provided the playbook and fertile ground for an explosion of OxyContin sales just years after his death. It’s therefore easy to understand how a person like Arthur Sackler could possess both the ability to create an advertising scheme that skyrocketed use of opioids and a similar scheme to elevate his own family’s name via art institutions. Harvard is complicit in that calculated self-advertisement: Just as the Sackler family was able to deceive doctors and the public about the effects of opioids, Harvard and the Sacklers are deceiving the public about whether or not the Sackler fam-

As Claudine Gay begins her tenure as president this summer, there has never been a better time to cut ties with the Sackler family once and for all. ily name is one worthy of our respect. Outgoing university president Lawrence S. Bacow has referred to calls to remove the Sackler name from our buildings as “inappropriate,” citing “legal and contractual obligations” as an insurmountable challenge. And yet other institutions who have moved to reject Sackler money or remove their name from buildings have been able to rise to this challenge. As Claudine Gay begins her tenure as president this summer, there has never been a better time to cut ties with the Sackler family once and for all. It is not a sign of weakness for Harvard to admit it has made the wrong call and join the side of progress, especially as the Harvard community pushes for change, year after year. It’s a shame it will have taken as long as it has, but the bigger shame would be continuing to prop up a family that has caused so much harm to so many. Harvard, it’s past time: Sack the Sacklers.

–Hannah Finnie is a third-year student at Harvard Law School.

METRO

THE HARVARD CRIMSON MARCH 3, 2023

SAYED FAISAL

Protesters Decry Response to Faisal Killing AS PROTESTS PERSIST, Cambridge officials maintain they will only release the names of officers involved after an inquest. BY RYAN H. DOAN-NGUYEN AND YUSUF S. MIAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

More than 100 people marched into Cambridge City Hall in the latest protest in a nearly two-month campaign to get accountability for the police killing of Sayed Faisal. RYAN H. DOAN-NGUYEN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Monday’s demonstration for accountability for the police killing of Sayed Faisal brought out many Boston-area residents, including local teachers and students. RYAN H. DOAN-NGUYEN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

ore than 100 protesters condemned Cambridge City Manager Yi-An Huang ’05 and other city officials during a Monday rally and teach-in at City Hall for not releasing the names of officers involved in the January police killing of Sayed Faisal. Organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the protest at City Hall attracted Boston-area residents, including local teachers and students, as the latest demonstration in a nearly two-month campaign by activists to demand accountability from Cambridge officials. Faisal, a 20-year-old Cambridge resident and Bangladeshi American college student, was fatally shot by a Cambridge Police Department officer on Jan. 4 after officers responded to a 911 report of a man harming himself, according to a Cambridge Police press release. After a five-block chase through Cambridgeport, officers confronted Faisal, who allegedly approached them wielding a knife. When a non-lethal sponge round did not stop Faisal, a CPD officer shot and killed him. Faisal’s death has sparked protests against police brutality and racism throughout Cambridge, with residents demanding answers and transparency from city leadership. Crowding the first floor and main staircase of City Hall, protesters reiterated their demands to city officials, including releas-

ing the names of officers involved in Faisal’s shooting and prosecuting them. The city has “been ignoring the community’s calls for transparency and justice,” said Rafeya V. Raquib, an organizer with the PSL. “The police who are paid with our tax dollars and are allowed to shoot people dead in the streets without facing any immediate consequences apparently deserve the right to privacy during the investigation,” Raquib said. Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui wrote in a Thursday statement that “our charter grants the City Manager power over the Police Department as well as oversight of personnel matters,” but added she supports the release of the officer’s names. “I personally believe this is an important step for the sake of transparency, but a statement released last week made clear the City will not do so,” Siddiqui wrote. Statements from Huang and CPD Commissioner Christine A. Elow released last week reiterated city officials’ plans to release the names after the conclusion of the Middlesex District Attorney’s inquest into the shooting. PSL organizer Suhail P. Purkar called Cambridge’s government “an undemocratic mess.” Purkar, along with other demonstrators, took aim at Huang, criticizing him and other city officials for their handling of Cambridge’s response to Faisal’s death. Under Cambridge’s Plan E Charter, the city is run under a council-manager form of government, giving Huang control over the city’s daily operations and preparation of the budget. In an emailed statement following Monday’s council meeting, Huang wrote that he remains “committed to being accessible and accountable” to Cambridge residents.

“Since the tragic death of Sayed Faisal, I have been in regular conversation with the Mayor, Vice Mayor, and Councilors as we have worked to chart a path forward together, including implementing body cameras, alternate response, and a third-party review,” Huang wrote. In a city press release last week, Huang wrote the city is moving forward with a plan to implement body cameras, as well as other accountability measures. Purkar said the city’s current charter deprives Cambridge residents of accountability in city government. “We’ve seen that the city manager has the freedom to pick and choose what policies get enforced with no accountability,” Raquib said. During the teach-in at City Hall, organizers led attendees through songs and chants about activist leaders and spoke on the history of student organizing, the civil rights movement, and the origins of policing. Raquib said organizers would need to continue pushing to hold Cambridge officials accountable. “We cannot let city officials continue to try to deflect blame and appease the public with empty words of condolences and blanket commitments,” she added. On March 13, Boston-area college students will seek to occupy City Hall to continue protesting the police shooting of Faisal, after two weeks of outreach and preparation at local universities. “If we don’t fight, it’s going to be stopped, and it’s going to be going under the rug,” said Bangladesh Association of New England President Pervin A. Chowdhury during the teach-in. ryan.doannguyen@thecrimson.com yusuf.mian@thecrimson.com

New Cafe Roust Deli Delights Former Darwin’s Customers BY CAROLINE K. HSU CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Roust Deli, a “relaxed” cafe serving coffee and sandwiches, quietly opened its doors earlier this month in the space formerly occupied by Darwin’s Ltd. in Harvard Square. Located at 148 Mt. Auburn St., the cafe served its first customers on Feb. 5 with just a few menu offerings, including coffee, latte, espresso, hot chocolate, and a few pastries. While the business model between Roust and Darwin’s is similar, Mike Spires — the manager of both Roust and the former Darwin’s location — said that he has been focused on

creating a “bit more of a modern menu.” “I think the food will be a little better,” Spires said. In contrast to Darwin’s “busy” atmosphere, Spires also hopes to “make things more efficient” at Roust Deli. “We want to make enough recipes to make more to-go options — things that people can come in and buy from a fridge and run away with immediately to keep things flowing a little faster,” Spires said. Valentin Terteliu Hefco, the owner of Roust Deli and Tokava Coffee in Jamaica Plain, had not heard about the closing of Darwin’s prior to buying the location. He said he was looking for a place

to open up a deli shop when he found the property listing online. “It’s in line with my interest. So that’s it. I didn’t know any stories,” Hefco said. Of the six staff members at Roust, two employees — including Spires — worked for Darwin’s Ltd. Spires said that Steven Darwin, the co-owner of Darwin’s Ltd., connected him to Hefco after it was announced that the longstanding chain would be shuttering its doors late last year. A small group of former Darwin’s employees, Circus Coop, had sought to open worker-owned cafe at a former Darwin’s location on Cambridge Street until the building was bought in early February. The

Council Extends Traffic Closure BY JINA H. CHOE AND SAMUEL P. GOLDSTON CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Cambridge city councilors approved new amendments to local flood resilience standards and continued to debate on the weekend traffic closings on Memorial Drive at a City Council meeting Monday. Councilors voted to adopt the flood resilience amendments proposed by the Community Development Department and Councilor Patricia M. Nolan ’80, establishing a final effective date of Sept. 1, 2023, for the new standards. The Council also passed an amended “Policy Order 5,” which allows for the extension of the Riverbend Park traffic closure located by Harvard’s river houses. Many Cambridge residents once again voiced conflicted opinions over the traffic closures on Memorial Drive during the public comment hearing at Monday’s meeting, two weeks after a passionate debate arose at the last council meeting over the same issue.

The closure of Memorial Drive is “incredibly important for our neighborhood and for others,” said President of the Harvard Square Neighborhood Association Suzanne P. Blier, who is also a professor of Fine Arts and of African and African American Studies at Harvard. In a public comment on the road closure, Kenneth E. Reeves ’72, former Cambridge mayor and city councilor, said how the Council gathers public input is “off-putting” and “not democratic.” “We need to find a democracy where everybody is heard and that the interests of those who don’t have the majority be accommodated in some ways,” he said. “We want the mayor and the councilors to help these neighbors out to a win-win solution.” The Memorial Drive policy order was adopted by a 7-2 vote, with Councilor E. Denise Simmons and Councilor Paul F. Toner voting against the order. “I personally feel that I really don’t care that we’ve gotten hundreds of emails from people who live in the Greater Boston area and the Greater Cambridge area

when many of the people that live right there at the site of the closure are saying that they’re having difficulties getting in and out,” Toner said. The Council also considered environmental policy changes, progressing through agenda items that included several communications from Cambridge City Manager Yi-An Huang ’05 — including the granting of appropriations for the purchase of an all-electric “rubbish packer,” updates to an initiative transitioning city vehicles to an all-electric fleet, and a new lease on electric vehicles for the fleet. Councilor Nolan exercised her “charter right” — a councilor’s option to postpone discussion of and decisions on a topic to a later meeting — on the subject of Cambridge’s energy transition because she said she wanted to review the policy order’s wording further. The Council will consider this and other orders of business at its next meeting this coming Monday. jina.choe@thecrimson.com samuel.goldston@thecrimson.com

group is now looking at the two remaining former Darwin’s locations and other locations in the area. Spires said that starting this business from “right off the ground” has been challenging. Outside the store, remnants of the recently-closed chain still remain, including the classic “Darwin’s Ltd.” sign with blue lettering — to which Spires said they have to work on getting permits to remove. Roust is also waiting on the two-month transfer period for Darwin’s wine and malt store license. Spires said the cafe plans on having “an identical lineup of wines and beers.” On a quiet Monday morning,

customers at the cafe worked on their laptops and sipped on their coffees. Compared to other cafes in the area, Paul Dingus, a master’s student at Harvard Kennedy School, said this cafe “feels more homey.” “It’s a place where I don’t feel rushed, like in or out the door,” he said. As a past customer of Darwin’s, Dingus said he was “thrilled when this place opened back up.” Alicia D. Rolsma, a Cambridge resident, said the cafe feels “cozy” and “very locally embedded.” “I had been to Darwin’s in the past, but I kind of like this vibe better,” she said as she relaxed with a book in one of the cafe’s cushioned chairs.

Valerie Peck, a Cambridge resident, said she liked Darwin’s but also enjoyed the “new atmosphere.” She said there is always ample seating for her to get work done at Roust, unlike at other “much smaller” coffee shops nearby. “I love the lighting. Staff is very courteous, and it’s a good place to work for now, just to get out of the house,” Peck said. On attracting former patrons of Darwin’s and new customers, Spires said he hopes to let Roust’s food speak for itself. The plan, Spires said, is “to make good food, tell them to come in, try it, and want to come back.” caroline.hsu@thecrimson.com

CPS Mental Health Cases Increase BY SALLY E. EDWARDS AND AYUMI NAGATOMI CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

The Cambridge School Climate Subcommittee in a Wednesday meeting reviewed a survey of the upper-school student populations, revealing a dramatic increase in mental health concerns and cases of discrimination experienced by students. Fielded in May 2022, the anonymous and voluntary Teen and Middle Grades Health Survey saw responses from 1,282 high school students and 918 middle schoolers in the Cambridge Public School District. The survey revealed that schools saw roughly triple the number of sixth to eighth grade students experiencing discrimination compared to the previous year. Students reported discrimination increased across multiple categories, including race, sexual orientation, faith, and gender identity. Gender non-conforming students comprised the group facing the highest reported discrimination in both high schools and

middle schools. Kimberly Huffer, director of social emotional learning — a new position established in CPS this year — said it is crucial to recognize this trend to promote inclusivity in the district. The report also revealed sustained high rates of mental health issues within the student population. According to the survey, 27 percent of respondents said they struggle with their mental health “most of the time/always.” Huffer said this trend is a manifestation of continued impact from the “isolation of the pandemic” on students. “Our students are still carrying a lot of worries and anxiety,” she said. Alongside anxieties related to school and academic life, the district identified depression and suicidal ideations as two major mental health concerns faced by the CPS student body. In order to address these concerns, the district is offering mental health support programs and providing suicide prevention training to its educators. Along with professional training, the district said it is taking a “multi-tiered approach” to address the data, per the report.

According to Huffer, initiatives placed in the first tier — which targets all students — focus on developing students’ “social emotional learning.” The district added it conducts biannual universal social emotional learning screening and includes curriculum focused on SEL in classes. Second-tier initiatives focus on providing early intervention to students in need, including individual and small group support in addition to timely mental health services in partnership with outside teletherapy counseling services, per the district. Michelle Madera, assistant superintendent for Cambridge public elementary schools, said while the results from the survey can be “pretty depressing,” it’s important for the district to recognize the problems presented and focus on improvement. “We want to make sure that we use the data to inform our practices, our resources, and our supports to students,” she said. “I don’t want to lose sight of the purpose of this data and how we use it.” sally.edwards@thecrimson.com ayumi.nagatomi@thecrimson.com

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

ARTS

MARCH 3, 2023

NAYELI CARDOZO—CRIMSON DESIGNER

BOOKS

Dahl Republishing Misses the Point SANITIZING Dahl’s language is a failure to engage with bigotry. BY MILLIE MAE HEALY CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

n Feb. 18, Puffin Books announced they would be republishing new editions of Roald Dahl’s books. This is not a surprise: His books have long been famous and influential, with many children growing up reading him, and their relevance continues today — in fact, a new film adaptation of the musical based on his beloved children’s novel “Matilda” was released in cinemas last December. However, these new editions come with a surprising change: The content of Dahl’s books has been edited for inclusion and sensitivity. In some ways, this could be considered a welcome change. Dahl frequently mocked the physical characteristics of his

characters, particularly women, in his novels. Some of the new edits shift away from this reductive language, instead criticizing the behavior and actions of these characters. This included changing the description of Augustus Gloop in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” from “fat” to “enormous” and replacing the word “female” in “Matilda” to “woman.” Although there is merit to the idea of phasing out reductive language in books being published today, many have opposed this choice, including British PM Rishi Sunak and author Salman Rushdie, who called it “absurd censorship.” Puffin has defended this decision, saying that they have a responsibility towards young readers, especially when these novels could be some of the first they ever read. Although approximately 100 changes spread across at least a dozen books may not appear to be that concerning, they raise the question of why these edits were even necessary. This debate is reminiscent of the backlash a 2011

republishing of Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” received, in which two racist pejoratives, including the n-word, were removed. Though this sparked discourse about the anti-racist work Twain was attempting to do despite using that slur, and the modern value of this choice, the changes made to Dahl’s work seem incidental in comparison. However, these edits could be in response to deeper issues in Dahl’s novels as they implicitly reference other problematic elements about Dahl’s writing. Dahl was famously antisemitic during his life, saying that he had “become antisemitic” in a 1990 interview and making comments such as, “There is a trait in the Jewish character that does provoke animosity.” His antisemitism is perhaps most obvious in “The Witches,” a novel about a group of witches who prey on children and try to control the world’s economy through a global conspiracy, all of whom wear wigs and have large noses,

and whose physical differences from humans can be spotted if watched closely. His estate made an apology for the hurt caused by his attitudes and comments in 2020; however, the content of this apology was pretty lukewarm. The apology read: “Those prejudiced remarks are incomprehensible to us and stand in marked contrast to the man we knew and to the values at the heart of Roald Dahl’s stories, which have positively impacted young people for generations.” Several Jewish groups responded saying this was not good enough, with Marie van der Zyl, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, saying, “This apology should have happened long ago [...] His abhorrent antisemitic prejudices were no secret and have tarnished his legacy.” Roland Barthes’s concept of the “death of the author,” or the idea that the intention of an author should be irrelevant when considering their work, particularly applies to this discussion. When creators of art hold harm-

ful and offensive attitudes, people are forced to wonder if they can ethically consume their media. Considering Dahl’s reprehensible views, and the platform these continued republishings bring to his work, this idea is very relevant. But unlike in many other contemporary examples, Dahl died in 1990 and is no longer alive to profit from his works, though his estate itself is alive and well. It is therefore clear that remnants of some of his more harmful attitudes will still remain in his work, regardless of some inline edits. Though it is certainly a positive to present children with wonderful literature that is also empowering and uplifting to all readers, it seems misguided to warp Roald Dahl’s novels in pursuit of that aim. There is definitely still value in reading Dahl — his children’s novels are notable for having darker and wackier themes than his contemporaries, and often provide uplifting if unconventional messages — but there would be more value in

reading him critically, considering his biases, and helping young readers to think about the perspective of the stories they are being told, instead of haphazardly painting over potentially harmful comments about a character’s appearance. In response to this backlash, Penguin has decided to also republish the original, unaltered versions of Dahl’s text alongside the updated versions. Though this is a reasonable compromise, it doesn’t make any clearer what the updated versions intended to achieve. It would be much more fruitful to put this kind of time and energy into publishing and republishing living authors, whose original incarnations of their novels are supportive and inclusive and uplifting to children. Trying to rewrite Dahl only has the potential to provide monetary benefits to a select few, and it fails to critically engage with his novels and his bigotry.

in “Thor: Love and Thunder” and “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” are slipping in quality. Phase Four Marvel stars like Angelina Jolie, Owen Wilson, and Oscar Isaac fail to uphold the same custodianship, reverence for, and embodiment of the Marvel canon as their antecedents. Until Marvel can find a way to consistently establish new characters that rival Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron-Man and Chris Evans’ Captain America, new visuals that rival “Doctor Strange” and “Guardians of the Galaxy,” new plotlines that rival “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Endgame,” the fandom will continue to wane

and shift toward newer, better things. Nostalgia-dominant, multiversal movies, like gimmick-ridden comic books, can only last so long. Marvel movies “seem to me to be closer to theme parks than they are to movies as I’ve known and loved them,” asserted director Martin Scorsese in an opinion piece for The New York Times. The new rides in a theme park, as he famously put it, will always be compared to the old ones. And without experimentation and innovation, the MCU is doomed to fail as its source material did so many years ago.

milliemae.healy@thecrimson.com

The Marvel Movie Crash of 2023 BY JOSEPH A. JOHNSON CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

In the 1980s and 1990s, the comic book market surged. Major events like Superman’s “death” and the X-Men relaunch became cultural touchstones as publishers — notably the “Big Two” (DC and Marvel) — endorsed bombastic, interconnected narratives and marketing campaigns to match. With foil, die-cut, and embossed covers flooding newsstands, publishers printed millions of comic books per month. Superheroes were a commodity — a darling of prospective investors and pop culture gurus alike. In search of a greater share of a booming industry, many companies glutted the market with premiere issues and (often disappointing) “cataclysmic” events. But these gimmicks, which had once worked exceedingly well, no longer compelled the jaded masses. Soon enough, everything came toppling down. This crazed trajectory, culminating in the Comic Book Crash of 1993, closely mirrors a current takeover of the cultural zeitgeist: the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Marvel movies have taken unprecedented control of the box office, accounting for eight of the 25 highest grossing films of all time (seven of which came out in the last decade). This chokehold, however, has shown signs of loosening. Pre-pandemic, five of the last six Marvel movies grossed over one billion dollars, while only one of seven have achieved

the same feat since the re-opening of theaters. Though this figure is partially attributable to a diminishing cinema-going public, it is likely that superhero fatigue and oversaturation are largely to blame. Like comic book companies of the early 1990s, the MCU has fallen back on fan service and superfluous gimmicks to get audiences into theaters. In particular, “Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness” introduced Mr. Fantastic (John Krasinski), Professor X (Sir Patrick Stewart), and an array of fan-favorite characters as the short-lived Illuminati. Upcoming films, including “Deadpool 3” are being made in the same vein. Disney Plus content, notably “WandaVision,” “Werewolf by Night,” and “The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special,” are firmly rooted in pastiches of pre-established film and TV genres. In each of these cases, the MCU bastardizes its legacy characters and exacerbates an ongoing superhero fatigue. Is this to say that nostalgia shouldn’t play a role in superhero movies? Not at all. Superhero movies, after all, are based on their staple-bound, 32-page forebears. They’re silly, fun, serialized nostalgia goodness — comfort food, if you will. Marvel movies are meant to be exhilarating cinematic romps with friends old and new — be it Peter Parker, Stephen Strange, or Kamala Khan. Nostalgia puts people in the seats. But narrative — not nostalgia — keeps people in the seats. Recently, Marvel has forgotten how to experiment. Marvel seems un-

able to imagine and produce a movie of the caliber of the original “Iron-Man.” While occasional glimpses of the old Marvel are present in the new, those glimpses are becoming few and far between. “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” for example, crafted a heartfelt (though at times shaky) narrative about personal growth and hardship. Each of the three Spider-Man iterations earned their place in the story, contributing to complex character development in themselves and one another. Narrative, in this case, dictated nostalgia and the movie largely succeeded. To say Marvel movies are

dead would be an overstatement. To say, at their current rate, that Marvel movies are dying, would not. When it first arrived on the scene, the MCU delivered something that had never been done before: an interconnected grouping of quality-driven movies with quality-driven characters played by quality-driven actors. The premise was simple and the execution was complex, engaging, and unilaterally successful. Marvel’s Phase Four content, which mostly serves as a reaction to “Avengers: Endgame,” has lost sight of these standards. Current visual effects, such as those

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NAYELI CARDOZO—CRIMSON DESIGNER

ARTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON MARCH 3, 2023

THEATER

EDITOR’S PICK

‘COSMIC RELIEF!’ IT’S GENUINE THEATER MIXED WITH SATIRE

COURTESY OF HASTY PUDDING THEATRICALS

COURTESY OF ANGELINA X. NG

Preview: ‘You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown’ BY ANGELINA X. NG CONTRIBUTING WRITER

erhaps “playground” isn’t the first word that comes to mind when thinking of the Loeb Experimental Theater, but that is what the cast and crew of the musical “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” aim for the audience to experience when they see their performance in the space. Featuring the characters from the comic strip “Peanuts,” with music and lyrics by Clark Gesner, book by John Gordon, and a revision by Andrew Lippa in 1999, the musical follows the antics of the familiar gang as they navigate the treacherous world of growing up. The Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club production, directed by Nikhil O. Kamat ’25, runs from March 2 to March 4 at the Loeb Ex. For Kamat, the musical isn’t just about a snippet of childhood, but also about connecting to themes that the college audience would still relate to. “It evokes a lot of joy and hap-

piness, and also kind of makes you reflect on times you were put in similar situations to these characters,” he said. “It’s really playing into that enjoyment and excitement that children have.” The cast and crew are mindful of their college audience, and have accordingly taken a creative direction to help the musical connect to students venturing to the theater in search of a respite from schoolwork. “We thought a lot about how to fit the show for a college audience and with college actors,” said Carolyn Y. Hao ’26, the choreographer. “And I think a lot of what we thought about was connecting to childhood and to just being young and being free.” The musical is staged in an intimate black box theater with the audience seated on three sides of the performance space. The farther audience row is positioned mere feet away from the stage, which makes the production feel much more cozy than traditional musical productions. Matthew J. Given ’25 (“Snoopy”) relishes the opportunities that such a performance space brings. “It’s a good acting challenge,

being able to utilize the fact that everyone is crammed in so tight and watching your every move,” he said. “In some ways, you don’t have to be as big and gestural as you are on the mainstage. “We’ve definitely thought a lot about how to move the actors in a way and choreograph their movements, and figure out how to project to all sides of the theater,” Hao added. This intimacy with the audience is something that the cast

“

It’s a reminder to be more free, or to be more childish, once in a while. Inseo Yeo ‘26

and crew of “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” want to take advantage of to the fullest degree. Kamat finds the relationships between characters to be the driving force of the musical, which is rendered more powerful by the smaller performance space. “What makes the show interesting for the audience is the connections and feelings they have

towards the characters,” he said. “You get to feel like what’s happening is really and truly right in front of you.” When talking to cast and crew, the buoyancy and creativity is palpable. The cast and crew have embraced the sense of play that their musical evokes, channeling that sense of joy and curiosity on and off stage. “It’s a couple of kids that we can all relate to, in some way or another, going through life, enjoying its stresses and trials and tribulations, but coming out on the other side with a smile,” Given said. Ultimately, though, “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” is a production that just wants its audience to have fun. “It’s a reminder to be more free, or to be more childish, once in a while,” Inseo Yeo ’26 said. “What I’m really loving about this show is that it doesn’t pretend to be anything more than it is,” Given said. For college students exhausted from the onslaught of midterms and non-stop campus life, “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” may be a crucially needed, relatable, and enjoyable escape.

“Cosmic Relief!” takes its audience to another planet — well, eventually — but initially only gets as far as Hollywood in the 1960s, writes Margo A. Silliman. Lauren Order (Emma Rogers ’25), an FBI agent, is tasked with outing the communist C-list director Worse N. Welles (Taylor Kruse ’23). Instead, she uses this as an opportunity to fake the moon landing and get back into the good graces of J. Edgar Hoover. In the process, Lauren actually becomes connected with the film and its cast and crew, leading her to question her steadfast commitment to anti-communism, which she uncritically embraced all the way back in childhood, when she turned in her communist mother. The show is chaotic in the most fun way, with confusing plots, interpretive dances, inept characters, and meta humor, checking off all the boxes theater lovers look for.

APOLLONIA POILÂNE ’07 AND THE CULTURE OF BREAD

COURTESY OF APOLLONIA POILÂNE

“This is my family’s bakery, and we’ve been around since 1932,” said Poilâne in an interview with The Harvard Crimson’s Thomas Farro. Legacy. History. Institution. All come to mind when thinking of the famous bakery, an almost century-old Parisian institution of which Poilâne serves as the careful custodian. Three generations of family bakers labored to make the bakery what it is today.

Stop Dismissing Boston’s Culture Scene BY HANNAH E. GADWAY CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

“There’s nothing to do here.” “I hate this city.” “Boston is so boring.” These are all statements that I’ve heard shared between friends or thrown over dining hall meals at Harvard College; it is shockingly common to hear general disdain for the Boston area here at Harvard. Many students are convinced that Boston is lackluster and offers no cultural scene outside a handful of big-name attractions like the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Faneuil Hall, or the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Where does this misunderstanding of Boston and its cultural scene come from, and, more importantly, how can we address it? Unpacking this question first

requires reflecting on why I personally love Boston. I am from a small town in rural Maine. My family is full of avid Red Sox fans, so we made the six-hour trek to Boston at least once a year to watch the game. When I was little, I called it “the city,” since Boston was the closest place with over 100,000 residents and felt like the most crowded an area could get. When I came to Boston, I found it overflowing with things that were unavailable in my hometown: stunning museums, never-ending lists of restaurants, and weekly musical performances. My love for the city existed long before I knew about college acceptances, but now that I live in Cambridge, I am especially appreciative to have a rich cultural scene next door. Perhaps negative attitudes come down to a difference in rural versus urban perspectives. Often, it is people hailing from major cities that I hear complaining

about Boston the most. Boston is unique in its layout; its twists and turns are hard to navigate, half of its good restaurants are literally underground, and it never was advertised to be a loud and overstimulating city — except when Yankees fans clash with Bostonians at Fenway, or when the Montreal Canadiens play the Bruins. It is markedly different compared to other American cities. Most importantly, it doesn’t throw all of its gems at your feet; it requires curiosity and time. Yet most Harvard students won’t give Boston the energy it deserves — a disconnect that demonstrates students’ active attempts to stay within the “Harvard Bubble.” Harvard students often believe that the entire world centers around their little pocket of East Cambridge. Time is a precious commodity on campus, and people are often unwilling to look into what isn’t easily accessible. This results in a lack of time in-

vested in getting to know Boston, because people are only scratching the surface of what the city has to offer. Boston deserves so much more than this casual dismissal. The city has been a cultural center of the United States since it was founded. Here, the American Revolution brewed, the first art collections grew in size, and some of the greatest minds gathered. However, people have stopped believing in Boston’s present capability as a cultural hub. Yet take a moment to look around you: New England’s greatest museums surround us, historical sights abound, and concerts, festivals, and events occur nearly every week. Before you complain about Boston, I urge you to take time to actually acquaint yourself with the city. It isn’t as sprawling as L.A., or as bustling as New York City, but it never promised that it would be these things. Stop looking for the

familiar in the city, and find what is unique. As a native of Maine, not Massachusetts, I’m nowhere near an expert when it comes to knowing Boston’s ins and outs. However, I carry an immense love for the city and its cultural scene, and exploring it has brought me so much joy. Here are a few of my favorite things to do in the city that I hope at least one more Harvard student looks into and appreciates: Tours at the Nichols House Museum Grabbing pizzelle at Parziale’s in the North End Browsing shoes at Bodega Following the historical Native American Trail, in lieu of the Paul Revere Trail Hitting Boston’s surprising large number of speakeasies

Catching a film at Coolidge Corner Theater Dancing at Mariel Underground Getting historical at the Gibson House Free weekday student coffee at Cafe Landwer (not very underground, but underappreciated) Walking through the ruins of Schoolmaster Hill Getting radical at The Lucy Parsons Center Studying at the Boston Athenaeum …And much, much more. Before passing judgment on Boston’s culture scene, take a second to explore the city that surrounds you — its wonders may surprise you. hannah.gadway@thecrimson.com

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

FIFTEEN QUESTIONS

oseph D. Harris ’72 is a mathematician in the field of algebraic geometry and Harvard’s Math 55 professor.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. FM: You’ve been studying math for the majority of your life. What do you think initially drew you to the subject? JDH: I don’t know. I’ve wondered about that myself. I think it might have been that my father wanted to be a mathematician, but he was growing up during the Depression and that wasn’t an option. Among other things, he was Jewish, and at that time, universities, by and large, still had quotas on the number of Jews that they would hire. In any case, he wound up going into medicine, but I suspect he always maintained that interest in math and somehow communicated it to me before I knew any better.

MARCH 3, 2023

Q&A:

FM: Less than 7 percent, in those five years.

FIFTEEN QUESTIONS: JOE HARRIS ’72 ON MATH 55, THE DUDLEY CO-OP, AND FAILURE THE MATHEMATICIAN sat down with Fifteen Minutes to discuss Math 55’s notorious reputation and his own experience at Harvard. “In math, it’s rare that you would decide to fix on a specific concrete goal, and then either achieve it or not,” he says. “Usually, it’s a matter of exploration.” BY MICHAL GOLDSTEIN CRIMSON MAGAZINE ASSOCIATE EDITOR

FM: What part of your research into algebraic geometry is most exciting to you? And can you explain it in a way that would make sense to a high school math student?

FM: What house were you in? JDH: I was in Adams House for a year and then I moved off campus so I was officially Dudley. And I wound up my last semester at the Co-op house. FM: Did you like it? JDH: Oh, I loved it. That was where I felt I belonged, somehow. FM: So you’ve been here for a long time. Do you have a favorite hidden gem location at Harvard or in the Square?

FM: In the past, you’ve said that nothing you think about could not have been imagined by the Italian geometers who were foundational to the field of algebraic geometry, and that if you enjoy greater success than them, it’s because you have access to better tools. Could you elaborate on this and how technological development has been helpful?

JDH: There is, certainly, applications of mathematics to adjacent fields — computer science, physics, even economics — and I can get out of the question by citing those. But in fact, I think there’s also a framework of mind that mathematics teaches that I think is valuable, no matter what you go into. FM: And what do you mean by that — “the framework that it teaches?”

JDH: I think the idea is that — and this is something we really encourage the students to do — if the students will talk to each other about basically the material and specifically about the problem sets that are due every week. The course is based on weekly problem sets, and students can talk about them in section and office hours and with each other. It really doesn’t take long in my experience for the students to get to know each other, or at least a subset of the rest of the class that they can talk to and work with. That’s, in fact, I think that’s the great thing about the course is exactly building that community.

JDH: I did, but it was a completely different course back then. It didn’t serve the same purpose either. One thing that’s changed since back then is that students coming out of high school have a much more solid foundation in abstract mathematics than they did back then. So we can do very different things in 55 now than we did back then.

JDH: Algebraic geometry, it’s something that you’ve encountered already, I suspect. When you describe a geometric object like a circle as a locus of points in the plane xy, whose coordinates satisfy a polynomial equation. So in this case, x squared plus y squared equals 1. And the question of algebraic geometry in general is what’s the relationship between the algebra of the polynomials and the geometry of the figure that they describe. The subject has undergone a lot of revisions, but that’s fundamentally the question.

FM: More so than ever before, today many students opt for what they consider “practical” concentrations that can easily be applied to careers. Why do you believe that pure math should still hold a place in higher education, despite its abstractness?

FM: Despite the difficulty of Math 55, many students laud the wonderful community they are able to build through the class. How have you built, or seen students build, that community in your own class?

FM: You went to Harvard as an undergraduate. Did you take Math 55 when you were here?

In fact, I think there’s also a framework of mind that mathematics teaches that I think is valuable, no matter what you go into.

JDH: I think in very rough terms, in the 19th century, when the subject really got underway, people still had a relatively informal style. And ultimately, that reached its limits, and a large part of the 20th century was devoted to putting the subject on a more rigorous foundation. And the result of that was the introduction of a lot of new ideas and techniques that made it possible to revisit some of the problems that they had talked about or thought about in the 19th century, but were unable to resolve then. In some sense, that’s how I make my living.

JDH: That’s fairly upsetting. But I have to say that it’s not like that. We’re not up to 50 percent, but we’re getting there. I think we’ve just basically tried to make the course as accessible to everyone as we possibly can. And I don’t know. I think we’re succeeding. But I’m not the one to judge.

MARINA QU—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

JDH: I used to like to hang out in the stacks in Widener, but I haven’t been there for decades now. You just wander around and pick up random books and see what they’re about. FM: Often, our 15 Questions series focuses on the successes of the people that we profile. Can you share one of your failures?

JDH: It’s a very, very strict logical structure, that things are either true or not true, and they’re either provable or not provable. And occasionally, by dint of effort, we can move something from the first column to the second column, or rather from the second column to the first. But, the basic idea that there is a logical structure that is determinative — is fundamental — to the subject, and I think it’s a useful framework to have in other respects. FM: Math 55 is known as one of the hardest undergraduate classes at Harvard — and in the country. Do you think that Math 55’s notorious reputation is accurate? JDH: No. I became aware last year that Math 55 was having a moment on social media, and I looked at some of the videos and things, and they’re wildly inaccurate. The fact is, it is a very hard, challenging course. We cover a lot of material, and we do so in what I think is pretty rigorous fashion. But we have the students. The students who show up in 55, they can handle it. They can do it. So I don’t think it’s that much of a killer course as it’s made out to be.

FM: How would you describe the students that are drawn to the course — aside from their passion for math? Do you worry that capable students who don’t think they fit that mold turn themselves away from the course?

The fact is, it is a very hard, challenging course. We cover a lot of material, and we do so in what I think is pretty rigorous fashion. But we have the students. The students who show up in 55, they can handle it. JDH: Well, we try to make it accessible to everybody. Especially if you haven’t seen a lot of the material already in one form or another, I suspect it probably would be pretty time consuming. But I think basi-

cally, we’ve encouraged everybody to just give it a try, come to a few lectures. The math department — I don’t know how it is in other departments — but we were all unanimously very upset at the end of shopping period. Because that was what we would tell students — if you’re not sure if you want to take 55, come to the first week of lectures and then decide. But I think the students who do take it and succeed, they’re mostly kids who were sort of outliers in their high school. And I think for them, what’s really a wonderful experience is being in a community of peers, for the first time for most of them. FM: In 2017, The Crimson published an article about the Math Department at Harvard and the gender divide within it, and it stated that less than 7 percent of Math 55 students were women between the years of 2012 and 2017. How does that statistic compare to today, as far as you know? And how do you think the math department should or is expanding its reach to female students? JDH: Wow, 7 percent, you said?

JDH: Well, it’s funny because in math, it’s rare that you would decide to fix on a specific concrete goal, and then either achieve it or not. Usually, it’s a matter of exploration. And if you think of it in those terms, you know, you’re trying to explore new territory. There really isn’t a notion of success or failure. If you’re trying to climb a mountain then you either get to the top or you don’t, right. But here it’s more a matter of just wandering around and seeing what you can find. FM: If you weren’t a mathematician, what do you think you would be doing instead? JDH: I’ve fantasized about being a cook. But that’s, you know, that’s a fantasy.

FM Fifteen Minutes is the magazine of The Harvard Crimson. To read the full interview and other longform pieces, visit THECRIMSON.COM/ MAGAZINE

SPORTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON

MARCH 3, 2023

MEN’S LACROSSE

Men’s Lacrosse Starts at 1-1 STARTING STRONG. The Harvard men’s lacrosse team began its 2023 season with a tough-fought 25-21 loss to No. 1 Virginia before defeating the Bucknell Bison 13-8 at home. BY KATHARINE FORST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

he Harvard men’s lacrosse team took the field two weekends ago for its first game of the 2023 season in Charlottesville, Va., battling the Cavaliers of the University of Virginia. The first contest of the season did not prove to be fruitful for the Crimson in a 25-21 loss to the No. 1 ranked team in the country, coming out to a slow start that saw UVA jump out to a 9-0 lead in the first ten minutes of action. UVA’s offense proved to be too dynamic for the Harvard defensive unit, taking advantage of small gaps given up by the defense both down on low attack and in transition. The UVA attackers and offensive-middies came out gunning for the ball. This started out with the team’s face off group that did a solid job of winning the ball outright and completely shutting down Harvard offensive attempts when sophomore FOGO Andrew DeGennaro or first-year Matt Barraco were able to win the initial clamp. With this unequal possession time, UVA capitalized on their sets and took advantage of the Crimson’s defense, which came out a step slow. Virginia’s attackmen were especially successful shooting on the outside, using Harvard defenders as screens and preventing junior goalie Christian Barnard from reading the shots in the first quarter. “Speaking defensively, we need to do a better job guarding guys straight up, and we have been working on that a lot this week. We have some of the best athletes in the country on our team and I can say with full confidence that we can keep up athletically with UVA and any other team,” first-year defender Charlie Muller noted. “With that being said, we have to master some offball things, and work on smaller things, but it all starts with onball guarding.” Working on the small things and focusing on each and every play seemed to be the message head coach Gerry Byrne instilled in his players during halftime. Muller commented on this message and Byrne’s ability to rally his players to come out and play what looked like a completely different game in the second half. “We had a really big improvement in the second half. Coach Byrne took us to the locker room and talked to us about how we were going to respond, and how we were going to react, and I think our second half proves that we are a team that won’t quit, and that we have what it takes,” Muller stated. “We were caught off guard, and we made some mistakes that we have been working on throughout the week that should not have been made.” First-year offensive-middie Teddy Malone commented on what the team needed to work on before its second game facing off against the Bucknell Bison, citing chemistry as the key to the Crimson’s future success. Before taking on UVA, the squad had only battled together

At last Friday’s 13-8 takedown of Bucknell University, a Harvard men’s lacrosse player takes a shot at the net on Jordan Field. DYLAN J. GOODMAN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

for about three weeks. “Something we’ve been working on is just our overall chemistry I’d say. Although we still have a majority of our team back, there are some new additions,” Malone said. “We’ve been concentrating on making sure everyone is on the same page, whether that be offense, defense, or the riding and clearing. Dissecting different schemes on film really helps us as a team.” Film was definitely crucial in helping the team shape up for its second game against Bucknell, which proved to be a smoother fight for the team. The second regular-season battle took place on Saturday and marked the team’s home opener at Jordan Field, as both the men’s and women’s teams competed on the turf in honor of the One Love Foundation. This foundation is built on teaching young people about healthy relationships. It was founded in the memory of Yeardley Love, a former UVA lacrosse star who was tragically killed by her boyfriend. The teams dedicated their games to One Love. On the field, the Crimson looked much more cohesive than in its first game. The first quarter saw Harvard jump to a 5-1 lead, ending the first quarter with the momentum of a four goal unanswered stretch. A theme throughout the game was manup and man-down play: the Crimson saw six extra man opportunities and the Bison were man-up five times. One extra-man opportunity defined the entirety of the game, however. A high-hit to the head saw Bucknell go man-down locked in for three minutes, and also caused a Bison player to be ejected for dangerous play. This hit halted action, and first-year LSM Sean Jordan was taken off the field in an ambulance. Coach Byrne has since tweeted that Jordan is doing well and is with his family out of the hospital, and gave insight into how he coached his players

through the ordeal. “Having had three children who played lacrosse, it is a parent’s worst nightmare to see their child on the ground and obviously you want to leave room for the experts to go there. Sean was alert and conscious and he was caring about the play and the game more than about himself,” Byrne praised. “So, as far as for the team, you can’t be thinking about revenge or being vengeful. You have to put your thoughts for your teammate in your heart and get on to the next play.” According to senior middie and captain Nick Loring, the incident sparked intensity within the team to win for Jordan. He emphasized that they all agreed they wouldn’t get chippy, but that they would let their skill talk for them, and the team ended the second quarter ahead 9-3. “It was a really tough moment seeing Sean go down and we are all thinking about him and praying for him. The mindset is that we are doing this for Sean now. We have to keep our heads and keep playing the same way we had, we had been playing really well up until that moment,” Loring said. “I was really proud of how the guys responded after that moment.” Sophomore defenseman Martin Nelson spoke about what it was like playing both up and down a man. He noted that safety is the priority of the refs this season, and by calling the games tightly, there is a heightened need for a solid man down and man up unit. “This season they are really focused on the high hits and protecting the players, which is obviously very good, but it’s leading to a lot more man-down situations, and so it is something that we have really focused on in practice,” Nelson said. “We are going to keep focusing on it, we just have to keep flying around out there and making plays.” On the offensive end, play looked solid; the offensive unit had 54 shots, 27 of which were on goal, an indication that the

Members of the Crimson huddle after its first victory of the 2023 season, a 13-8 game against Bucknell. DYLAN J. GOODMAN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

team was creating motion on attack. Sophomore middie Owen Gaffney noted that despite the team’s win, there is always room to improve, especially going into this weekend’s battle against the University of Vermont, a scrappy team that plays Canadian-style crafty lacrosse. “We did things really well as a team, but in terms of doing better, I think we want to work on improving everything,” Gaffney said. “Going into next week, getting one-percent better each day, and just going from there. Riding, clearing, offense, defense, there is always room to improve” On the defensive end Nelson noted that compared to last week, the team looked a lot more solid, but that there are still areas that they hope to improve going forward. “In particular, I think our ro-

tation could continue to improve, but I think that we are getting there; and just clearing the ball once we get those opportunities to kill some possessions,” Nelson said. “We communicated better, and I think that we were picking up inside guys and not freeing up on the slides while they had their hands free on the outside. Overall, I think that we played a lot better as a team defense.” Byrne has high hopes for his squad, and is happy with the improvement his team made in practice between the UVA and Bucknell games. “I think that we were better in nearly every area,” Byrne said. “We had better goaltending, we were better off the ground, we competed in the middle of the field much better than we did against Virginia, so I think it was a great opportunity for us to get

GAMES TO WATCH THIS WEEK

katharine.forst@thecrimson.com

THC

FRIDAY 3/3

SATURDAY 3/4

SUNDAY 3/5

Men’s Lacrosse vs. University of Vermont 4:30 pm, Jordan Field

Women’s Water Polo vs. Brown University 7:00 pm, Blodgett Pool

Women’s Basketball vs. Dartmouth College 4:00 pm, Lavietes Pavillion Women’s Water Polo vs. University of Redlands 4:00 pm, Blodgett Pool

Men’s Volleyball vs. LIU 5:00 pm, Malkin Athletic Center

Women’s Water Polo vs. CSUN 9:20 am, Blodgett Pool

Men’s Volleyball vs. St. Francis College 7:00 pm, Malkin Athletic Center

back to the way that we play” Despite this increased success on the field, Byrne is not resting on his laurels, and he is not underestimating the team’s next opponent. “With Vermont, they have some Candaians on their team, they play a Canadian-style offense, and they are very skilled with stick-handling, and are very unbelievably well-coached too; they won their league the last two years and played in the NCAA tournament the last two years, so I expect them to be a challenge for us,” Byrne said. The men’s lacrosse team returns to Jordan Field on Friday, March 3 at 4:30 p.m. against the University of Vermont. The action will also be streamed live on ESPN+.

Women’s Water Polo vs. La Salle University 4:00 pm, Blodgett Pool