October 28, 2022

SHARE INSTALLS EMERGENCY

MACHINE IN MARINO

By Kristina DaPonte | News Correspondent

There’s a new vending machine on campus, but you can’t purchase a soda or candy bar from it.

On Oct. 25, NU Sexual Health Advocacy, Resources and Education, or NU SHARE, in collaboration with the Office of Prevention and Education at Northeastern and the University Health and Counseling Services, unveiled the wellness vending machine in the Marino Center Atrium. The vending machine contains emergency contraception, sexual health supplies, menstrual products and other wellness supplies.

The campaign to install the vend ing machine has been in the works since last semester, said Alexandra Nieto, a fourth-year biology major and the vice president of SHARE.

“It was a long process of trying to find the correct machine and trying to find certain manufacturers that were able to stock the machines,” she said. “The emergency contraceptive pills were really hard to come by due to both interest and supply chain issues, so there was a delay in getting the machine going on campus.”

Support of the vending machine was garnered through petitions and

protests. Members of the Northeast ern University Roe Coalition held a protest in early May demanding both the installation of an emergency contraception vending machine and a statement from the university in support of these endeavors.

“It’s been a very scary and fright ening political climate and we were really looking for them to be there in support,” Nieto said.

The vending machine is open for use by any student, faculty or com munity member. It contains a generic Plan B pill for $7; Tylenol, Advil and Tums for $2; free condoms, dental dams and lubricant and free men strual products.

The addition of the vending ma chine to the campus health sphere is an important one, as having the Plan B pill “physically close and financially accessible” will help many students and community members obtain it safely and on a budget, Nieto said.

Accessibility of emergency con traception is just one of the topics that SHARE, a club devoted to sexual and reproductive education, delves into with students seeking knowledge and answers.

True to its name, Northeastern students are encouraged to share their experiences in a safe space while also becoming more educated on topics pertaining to reproductive health and justice.

Nieto said she was drawn to the organization by the club’s message of openness and ability to be a “safe space for sensitive topics” — as well as the club’s suggestive selling points.

“Honestly, what brought me in is that they were tabling and had stick ers that looked like mushrooms and also a penis,” she said with a laugh.

The stickers may be a catalyst for funny conversations with students, but for the organization, they rep resent a sign of acceptance and an embracing environment.

“I really joined because of how open they were talking about sex and how welcoming the space was,” Nieto said.

Finn Seifert, a third-year human services major and the treasurer of SHARE, said he was inspired to be come a member of the organization after hearing that the club is aligned with Planned Parenthood.

Students share experiences as first class enters Mills College at Northeastern

By Grace Comer Campus Editor

Following a contentious and liti gious merger, the first class of N.U.in and NU Bound students have joined the returning Mills College students in Oakland, California in Mills Col lege at Northeastern University.

Although the merger was finalized in July, tensions are still running high on campus. Many of the concerns raised when the merger was first announced, including the introduc tion of cisgender male students to the historically women’s college and the fit with Northeastern’s predominant ly white student body, have proven to be accurate for some Mills students.

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“East Oakland is my community, this is where I grew up. So [North eastern students] talking about the communities like, ‘Oh, it’s scary here’ and so forth, it’s just like, why is it scary? Is it scary because it’s pre dominantly Black and Brown people and it’s a low-income community? Or why?” said Naydelin Sanchez, a senior at Mills majoring in history, culture and law. “Little talks like that, you can really see the deep ingrained racism that a lot of students do have that I feel like Northeastern needs to do a better job at addressing.”

Sanchez said another barrier to forming relationships between the two groups of students is their ages — all of the Northeastern

students currently enrolled in Mills at Northeastern are first-years “fresh out of high school” in the N.U.in or NU Bound programs, while returning Mills students are third or fourth-years, leaving little room for interaction in classes.

In the few shared classes the groups do have, some Northeastern students said they have not felt any tension, instead sharing positive interactions with the returning Mills students.

“Everyone’s really nice here,” said Carlie Chin, a first-year business administration major currently participating in the N.U.in Oakland program. “In one of my classes, there are some returning Mills students and they’re really really nice. … I’ve

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heard that there was tension going into this, knowing about the conflict between Mills and they didn’t really like us and I was really scared, but after interacting with them, it’s just like, oh, they’re really, really friendly.”

Others, however, said the residual frustration from the merger was noticeable. Olivia Oestreicher, a second-year political science and communication studies combined major who was enrolled in the Leading Social Change program at the Oakland campus last spring as the first cohort of Northeastern students at Mills, said she felt like the returning Mills students were upset about Northeastern’s presence on campus.

“As a student on that campus last semester, there were many times where I just felt like the merger business and negative decisions were being taken out on me as a student,” Oestreicher said. “Northeastern probably shouldn’t have hosted that program last spring. They just put me and the other couple dozen students in such a negative environment. I seriously left there very concerned for how this fall semester would work with hundreds of Northeastern students there.”

To help prevent future North eastern students at Mills College from having the same experience she did, Oestreicher reached out to

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Photo by Quillan Anderson

Students weigh in on the governor’s race

By Eli Curwin News Staff

With the Nov. 8 Massachu setts governor’s race in full swing, fundraisers, events and speeches are scheduled daily, and Northeastern students are feeling everything from excited to uninformed about the election of the state’s next governor.

As Northeastern is ranked one of the most liberal colleges, in one of the most liberal states, it is likely most students agree that Democratic candidate Maura Healey is the clear choice and likely winner over Repub lican candidate Geoff Diehl.

“I am very excited to have a pro gressive candidate absolutely crosscheck a Republican out of the way,” said Amalya Labell, a second-year psychology major and registered Massachusetts voter. “It is such an exciting time.”

Healey, a progressive attorney gener al and member of the LGBTQ+ com munity, has galvanized the Democratic base around her. Diehl, a right-wing

former state legislator, has the bulk of his support coming from the more conservative side of the GOP.

The state-wide elections in Massa chusetts currently stand with Healey as the 23.2-point favorite over her Republican counterpart. The Demo cratic candidates for attorney general and secretary of state, Andrea Camp bell and Bill Galvin respectively, also hold substantial leads over their op ponents. For Republicans across the state, a blue wave seems imminent.

On Northeastern’s campus, some Republicans have all but given up on the upcoming elections. Despite sup porting Diehl’s campaign, Northeast ern College Republicans understand and acknowledge the difficulty that comes with electing far-right Repub licans in a progressive state.

Ronan Connolly, a second-year political science student and trea surer of the Northeastern University College Republicans, has worked on several past elections throughout the New England area to help elect Republican candidates. However,

efforts to elect far-right candidates to statewide office, such as Diehl and his running mate Leah Allen, seem futile, Connolly said.

“In Massachusetts, it’s really tough if you want to work for a Republican because you pretty much know they are going to lose,” Connolly said. “It looks really bleak for Republicans in Massachusetts right now. I think we are going to have a lot of Democrats getting elected.”

However, many Republicans believe that it did not have to be this way. Out of the last 10 gover nors of Massachusetts, seven have been Republicans, but all have been significantly more moderate than the far-right Diehl. Diehl’s easily won victory at the Massachusetts GOP convention — claiming over 70% of the delegate votes — accelerated his campaign into a primary victory over moderate Chris Doughty, energizing some Republicans, but alienating and disappointing others.

“You got to know your crowd, you gotta know your constituency, and I don’t know how the [Massachusetts] GOP thought it was a good idea to pump up Geoff Diehl, knowing that a right-wing Republican has a terrible shot of winning in Massachusetts,” Connolly said.

Even with a significant lead, some Democrats at Northeastern have continued to canvas and campaign for Healey.

For Democratic students like Jeremy Thompson, a third-year finance major and political director of Northeastern College Democrats, elections are both a means to elect representatives who will push voters’ beliefs, but also an important way to mobilize a base to become acutely civically engaged.

“Seeing as Maura Healey is going to be the first openly gay [female] governor that this country has ever seen, is pretty groundbreaking

for us,” Thompson said. “There’s that representation that she can show to different LGBT communities on top of her track record of supporting progressive policies.”

For the Northeastern University College Democrats and other politi cally active groups on campus, figur ing out ways to reach students who may be uninformed or uninterested in politics can be difficult, but there are ways to get around it, Thomp son said. Using voter drives and presentations for clubs and classes, College Democrats have continuous ly worked to register more students.

“I think it is all about hitting those students where they are at, and what they are already engaged in, to really drive home the point that this thing is important,” Thompson said on reg istering students to vote. “It doesn’t hurt you in any way and it doesn’t inconvenience you all that much, but it can mean the world to you and your community.”

For students who are not involved with political organizations on cam pus, considerations of who to vote for and how to vote will likely begin closer to election day.

“Right now, I don’t know a lot about [the governor’s race] at all,” said Abby Noreck, a second-year environmental and sustainability sci ence major. “But I am going to look into it before I vote, I am not just going to blindly vote for a candidate.”

With students from Northeastern coming from all states and countries, many will be filling out absentee ballots for their local elections. In Noreck’s case, her friends are likely to vote by mail for their home state.

“Most of my friends are not from Massachusetts,” Noreck said. “They’ll vote in their midterms, not in Massa chusetts, by mail-in.”

According to a national poll conducted by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, students

that are able to vote in elections are likely to vote blue, if they vote at all. Massachusetts voters ages 18 to 35 support Healey by a 27-point mar gin, but for young voters, election ambiguity lies not in support, but rather in turnout.

Whether it be because younger voters haven’t formed the habit of voting, a pessimistic view of polar ized politics or simply because they don’t have the time, voters ages 18 to 29 are notorious for avoiding the ballot box on election day. Increasing young and college-age voter turnout has been an issue tackled by many groups at Northeastern.

In recent elections, Northeastern organizations have come together, pushing students to register to vote. Coalitions like Northeastern Votes and organizations like Huskies for Bernie have held several events and voter registration drives in the past to increase voter turnout on Northeast ern’s campus.

According to a Tufts University study on voter registration and turnout, in 2018 Northeastern saw a 42.6% voting rate and a 74.9% regis tration rate, an increase of 23.8% and 6.9% respectively from 2014.

Despite their ideological differenc es, both Northeastern Republicans and Democrats said they understand the importance of informing their fellow students about the value of politics and voting.

Members said their respective club meetings are often fun and educa tional in the hopes to engage a wide variety of Northeastern students in the political process.

“I think that a lot of people on campus actually are disengaged from politics,” Thompson said. “The reality is that if they could see themselves in the policies, if they could see their hopes, their interests, their wants, their dreams in these policies, then of course they would be more engaged.”

Pics in the Parks inspires residents to explore Boston’s parks through photography

By Jessica Xing News Staff

As the leaves change colors and cover the city in warm shades of red, orange and yellow, the Boston Parks and Recreation Department has relaunched its Pics in the Parks pro gram to encourage residents to get outside and explore Boston’s parks by taking photos.

Originally, the program involved meeting in person in a park with a photography instructor, but currently Pics in the Parks is virtual, allowing people to learn and improve their photography on their own.

Joan Doucette, an 84-year-old retired administrative assistant at Massachusetts Institute of Technol ogy, expressed how she finds the prompts helpful.

“I like the idea that he gives you tips on what to look for. … He makes you very much aware of your sur roundings,” Doucette said, referring to program manager Steve Kruskowski.

This fall’s relaunch included four prompts posted each week throughout the month, with the last prompt released Tuesday, Oct. 26.

Individuals are encouraged to submit photos by emailing parks@boston. gov or by posting photos on social media using the hashtag #Picsinthep arks. Some images are chosen to be featured in an online gallery and on the Instagram account for Boston Parks and Recreation Department.

The program was revamped to be virtual during the pandemic to allow people to enjoy the parks in a safe, socially-distant manner and has remained the same since.

“It was really a nice thing to do during the pandemic because you re ally couldn’t meet people,” Doucette said. “I lived near the Boston Com mon and the Public Garden so it was very easy for me to take photographs and submit them.”

Since the pandemic, the program has been relaunched sporadically. The Boston Parks and Recreation Department decided to relaunch Sept. 30 because it was a good time to appreciate the parks, especially during peak foliage, Kruskowski said.

Kruskowski said he crafts the prompts based on videos, tips and tricks he finds online, photography books he borrows from the library

and what he personally thinks helps him improve his photography skills.

The four prompts have asked par ticipants to focus on color, texture, leading lines and filters, respectively.

“It makes you very aware of what you’re looking at and doing,” Dou cette said.

Sharryn Ross, a 75-year-old retired immigration lawyer who only recent ly heard about the program, said she believes the prompts will help her to broaden her range of photography.

“I think it will be fun to have a specific subject, because it’ll make me think about taking different kinds of pictures,” Ross said.

The prompts are also meant to help participants explore more features on their phones, Krusk woski said. For example, the most recent prompt asked participants to experiment with the preset filters on their phones.

“I have the iPhone 13 and it takes such incredible pictures,” Ross said. “I don’t even use my camera.”

Similarly, Doucette, who has been photographing for around 60 years, transitioned from using her Lumix camera to her iPhone this past year

because she realized her phone can take beautiful pictures.

When looking for photos to add to the gallery and feature online, Kru skowski said he works with one or two other employees to go through all of the submissions.

They first confirm the photo was taken in a Boston park and that it follows the prompt, and then they look for photos that highlight the beauty of the parks.

While there are currently no plans for a winter program, prompts from previous years will still be listed online for anyone looking for extra photogra phy challenges. The Boston Parks and Recreation Department is also working with the Boston Park Rangers and Urban Wilds staff to host Hike Boston, a program that involves open hikes and informational sessions in parks that aren’t as well known for those looking to explore local parks even more.

Sharryn Ross’ photo submissions for this season’s first Pics in the Parks prompt, which asked participants to focus on one color. The photos were taken at the Arnold Arboretum.

Photo courtesy Sharryn Ross

Several political organizations on campus hosted a voter registration drive in Centennial Common Oct. 12. Northeastern students had mixed feelings regarding the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Photo by Kate Armanini

Post-Roe world highlighted in presentation from Harvard professor

By Grace Comer Campus editor

Elizabeth Janiak, assistant profes sor at Harvard Medical School and director of the T.H. Chan School of Public Health, gave a presentation Oct. 20 on the broad questions of how the overturning of Roe v. Wade will affect certain geographic groups.

Held both physically in Renais sance Park and virtually via Zoom, the presentation was a collaboration between the Institute for Health Equity and Social Justice, or IHESJR, and the Program in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, or WGSS. Titled “Ge ographies of Inequality: How Increasing Abortion Restrictions Affect Population Health in the U.S.,” Suzanna Walters, professor and director of WGSS, and Alisa Lincoln, associate dean of research for IHESJR, kicked off the event by introducing Janiak.

Janiak commenced the presentation with an acknowledgement that as a white, cisgender woman in a state with abortion access, she has certain privileg es compared to others who do not fall into those categories.

“I’m a very privileged person to have been able to live that reality, at a time when so many other people can not,” Janiak said. “Particularly those who are most affected by intersecting dynamics of power and oppression around racism, sexism, classism, het erosexism and, of course, very wide geographic disparities.”

Janiak delineated the difference between elective and indicated abor tions, which distinguish the reason for which an abortion is performed.

An elective abortion is requested for non-health-related reasons, which she said disrupts gender norms surround ing women and mothers. An indicated abortion is performed for health anomalies in the mother or fetus, which supports gender roles.

“This is all about gender norms … Norms around how cisgender women are supposed to desire motherhood and are supposed to desire pregnancy at all times in Western culture, and in the United States in particular,” Janiak said.

Abortions often go underreported because of the stigma surrounding them, particularly elective abortions.

Only 47% of abortions were reported in 2002, Janiak said, which was discovered by comparing self-reporting from wom en to the number of abortions reported by abortion clinics. This underrepresen tation is partially due to a reluctance to report on behalf of women of color.

This stems from what is known as the “prevalence paradox,” in which an un willingness to report abortions further stigmatizes receiving an abortion and categorizes it as abnormal. The cycle feeds into itself as abortions remain unrecognized out of fear of discrimina tion or shame.

“People under report and misclassify abortion behavior, which allows people to think abortion is nonnormative and perpetuates a social norm that it’s devi

ance,” Janiak said. “So then people who have abortions face discrimination, and then they become a fear stigmatization, and so they continue to under report.”

Due to the recent overturning of Roe, there is limited data available to fully illustrate the impact that the decision has had on those who seek to receive abortions, Janiak said.

“The data doesn’t exist yet. This is all rapidly evolving, changing every day,” Janiak said. “But even when we do have that updated census, we’re only going to be capturing legally pro vided abortions by licensed providers, which is not going to be everyone in the United States in a post-Dobbs landscape. So, this is where our mea surement challenges begin.”

There are currently 14 states with total or six-week abortion bans in place. Based on data from before the establishment of Roe, this will lead to an increased number of people traveling across state lines or out of the country to receive care. However, this will be available only to those who can afford it, leaving others to struggle with issues that otherwise would have been addressed by performing an abortion.

Some of the Northeastern stu dents in attendance at the talk were health-related majors who said they learned a lot from Janiak;s talk. Pop ulation health PhD student Sima Bou Jawde said she appreciated the focus on health disparities in the presentation, which she thought would benefit her in her future career path.

“We need to fill a gap in the health disparities that will for sure, as Professor [Janiak] mentioned, ensue after the Dobbs decision,” Bou Jawde said. “So we thought it was a very enlightening talk and it just showed that we need to keep the conversa tion going [for] those who do not have a voice when it comes to this dire topic.”

With the fall of Roe, Janiak said she believes many people who were formerly conflicted or uninformed on the issue are now paying more atten tion. This made it difficult for Janiak to decide what to present due to the breadth of information available.

For graduate public health student Sinead Hassan, the topics Janiak decided to present offered valuable in formation for action that can be taken by students and the general public.

“I was really interested in learning about medications for self termination, and then also all the resources that she listed … I think a lot of people would definitely benefit, especially from hear ing more about [pro-choice] organi zations,” Hassan said. “I just hope that more people listen to these kinds of conversations and take more action.”

Walters said she hopes WGSS and IHESJR will be able to host more pre sentations surrounding abortion care, and that Janiak was able to answer the wide-reaching questions immediately following the overruling.

“The richness of her data and the richness of her background and the interdisciplinarity of it is crucial for us,” Walters said. “So we really wanted someone who could speak to the broad questions of reproductive rights and access and justice.”

Student club organizes reproductive rights events, rallies, supply distribution

“I was looking for a space that was sex-positive and also focused on advo cacy work,” he said. “We’re a Planned Parenthood Generation Action group, and I found that really interesting because I’m passionate about the work that they do.”

Generation Action is a nexus of young activists who are fighting for re productive freedom, raising awareness about reproductive rights and educat ing people about sexual health. All of the work that SHARE does “aligns with the services and political statements of Planned Parenthood,” Nieto said.

At its Oct. 17 meeting, SHARE collaborated with the Northeastern In terdisciplinary Women’s Collaborative,

or IWC, for a letter-writing campaign in support of reproductive justice. Members of both organizations wrote to their elected state representatives to pass the Right to Contraception Act, or H.R. 8373.

“We’re writing about passions we care about … that can be anything from abortion access, to accessible [sexually transmitted infections] testing, to access to contraceptives such as birth control pills and condoms,” Nieto said.

These organizations are doing a lot of work in order to protect the right to contraceptive access because of “recent legislative attacks” on these rights, Seifert said.

At the forefront of these attacks is the recent overruling of Roe v. Wade, but

SHARE has been working to ensure that Northeastern students have the resources they need and deserve despite this ruling. This goal includes the recent opening of the emergency contracep tion vending machine in Marino.

The letter-writing campaign was just one of many events held by SHARE that served to educate Northeastern students on matters of reproductive and sexual health.

Nan Venderbush, a second-year psychology major and the member ship coordinator of SHARE, said she is ardent about ensuring stu dents have a proper and all-inclu sive education about these matters.

“We have a ‘Not Your High School Sex Ed’ meeting … where

we ask our members to tell us about their high school sexual education experiences,” she said. “It is abso lutely shocking to hear how little information people have regarding sex and reproduction prior to com ing to college. Here, we emphasize that if you’re having sex, you should be able to talk about it.”

One of SHARE’s most high ly-attended events is its annual Pleasure Party. For one night, a corner of the Curry Student Cen ter becomes a hub for “all things pleasure,” such as trivia, raffles and free safe sex supplies.

“We’re celebrating self-love and the pleasure aspect of sex,” Nieto said. “All the time, people talk about

the scary aspects, like STIs and rever sal of pregnancies, but our Pleasure Party is to celebrate all the good things we like about sex.”

On Sept. 8, over 200 students attended the Pleasure Party, engaging in a celebration of themselves and the importance of sexual health and pleasure in a fun, welcoming atmo sphere. At the event, SHARE raised $155 for ARC Southeast, an orga nization that provides support and funding for reproductive services in the South.

“This is such an amazing commu nity of people with such passion for reproductive justice and for having an equal and comprehensive sex education,” Venderbush said.

NU, Mills cohort share Oakland campus

the Northeastern Interdisciplinary Women’s Collaborative, or IWC, and the Student Government Association to work with Mills students and their frustrations around the merger.

“What we can do to meet this mo ment is have a woman and nonbina ry-centered organization like the IWC come and see and literally just talk to students,” she said. “Basically scope out, with the number one priority being the returning Mills students, what do they need to feel safe on that campus and feel like the history of that school is being respected? And number two, how can we help facilitate

female and nonbinary-centered activ ities and programming to make sure that the rich and vast history of this college does not go away?”

Both Northeastern and Mills students who spoke with The News said they feel poor communication and planning from the administration has contributed to the problems students are currently experiencing.

Valeria Araujo, a third-year sociol ogy major at Mills, said the campus is physically divided, with the traditional dorms for Northeastern students on one hill and the independent housing for non-commuting Mills students on the other side of campus. She also said the

dining halls and classrooms are closer to the Northeastern side of campus, which some Mills students have expressed frustration about.

“I feel like I’m an outsider,” Sanchez said. “I feel like I was coming into their school because they literally outnum bered us by so much. I feel like now Northeastern only cares about their stu dents in regards to giving them needs, housing and other necessities, taking them on trips and so forth.”

But Araujo said she feels having Northeastern on campus hasn’t been all bad.

“It definitely feels way more busy, but now I feel like I actually go to a

college,” she said. “Before it would be way too empty. Mills is a commuter school, so we wouldn’t have too many people staying on campus. Now it’s nice seeing more people at events. … I think having a full classroom, getting people’s ideas, feeding off people, when before it was really small classes, it’d be as little as nine people. So sometimes it’s nice going from the person that would have to participate the most to kind of sitting back and hearing other people out.”

Many of the tensions that students have mentioned will be resolved on their own within the next few years, as the returning Mills students graduate,

leaving only Northeastern at Mills College students on campus. But Araujo said in the meantime, she thinks the Mills students are gearing their anger in the wrong direction.

“From the few [Northeastern] stu dents I have met, I think they’re almost relieved when a Mills student is open to getting to know them, which I think is really upsetting,” she said. “They’re still trying to adjust to college and I don’t think the Mills student body has been the most welcoming to the NU student body. Of course there’s resentment against the institution, but I don’t think it has anything to do with the students that decided to come here.”

Harvard professor Elizabeth Janiak came to Northeastern Oct. 20 to give a presentation on the public health implications of overturning Roe v.Wade. Some of the research she shared came from her work at the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts.

Photo by Quillan Anderson

‘Hocus Pocus 2’ doesn’t quite capture the magic of its 1993 predecessor

By Julianne Panaro News Correspondent

Almost 30 years after the Black Flame Candle was last lit in “Hocus Pocus,” the Sanderson sisters have returned to the big screen — and yet, this sequel fails to hold a candle to the original film.

Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy reprise their roles as the iconic Sanderson sisters (Winifred, Sarah and Mary, respectively) seam lessly in the 2022 sequel “Hocus Pocus

2.” Actresses Whitney Peak, Belissa Escobedo and Lilia Buckingham join the classic Salem story as Becca, Izzy and Cassie, high school students with a penchant for the paranormal. The trio’s harmless fascination with witches — they live in Salem, after all — grows dangerous when they find themselves thrust into the world of the Sanderson sisters after accidentally releasing them from captivity.

The Sanderson sisters’ campy charm is as ageless as they are, and it provides the bulk of the film’s appeal. Scenes of the trio clumsily navigating modern-day cosmetics or witnessing the wonders of drag offer a delightful reminder of what made the original movie into a cult classic. Running jokes about the current adoration for the oc cult and “good for her” culture make it applicable to 2022 trends. Frankly, Dis ney could have released a feature-length film of Winifred Sanderson exploring the endless aisles of Walgreens, and it would’ve broken the box office.

“Hocus Pocus 2” gives audiences free range to indulge in their nostalgia. The Sandersons’ original spellbook returns, complete with the signature human eye darting back and forth on its cover. The costumes recreate the Sanderson sisters’ original outfits, while adding in new details to make their fashion fresh. The ‘90s-style mesh sleeves have become crocheted spiderwebs, and Wiccan symbols have been carved into Mary’s corset rings. “Hocus Pocus 2” also in corporates several Easter eggs for more attentive moviegoers — for example, while the sisters fly over Salem to search for the mayor, viewers can see a couple on the couch watching a scene from the original film.

As a standalone movie, however, “Hocus Pocus 2” leaves much to be de sired. It is clear that far more energy was devoted to drawing on the forces of nos talgia than developing new characters. The teenage protagonists lack depth, and had they not been essential to the plot, they could have vanished from the screen without disrupting much of the viewing experience.

The introductory scenes offer an new insight into the origins of the Sanderson sisters and their witchcraft with a tale that emphasizes female independence and feminist ideals. Sisterhood takes on a greater significance at the film’s con clusion, as Winifred, Sarah and Mary remind viewers that even the wickedest of witches need someone whom they can depend upon. However, the entire second act of the film does little to ex

plore these ideas. The concept of a ful ly-female teenage trio — especially one with a social reputation for having an odd love for the occult — offered much promise and opportunity for interesting parallels to be drawn between Becca, Izzy and Cassie and Winifred, Sarah and Mary. Yet these concepts were considered in a rushed, careless manner, examined only at the surface level. Nevertheless, there is one newcomer who truly seems at home in the town of Salem. Sam Richardson brings

both heart and humor as Gilbert, the shopkeeper of a magic shop who is instrumental in the summoning of the Sanderson sisters. Richardson, a longtime fan of the franchise, described the experience as “another one of those surreal moments,” and his love of the project truly shines through in his adaptation of the character. Richardson’s personal devotion to the story perfectly complements Gilbert’s adoration of the Sanderson sisters. According to director Anne Fletcher, the actor accepted the

role immediately upon its offer, no meeting requested. When asked why, he simply responded “because I love Hocus Pocus.”

Viewers on the hunt for a new Halloween favorite or a potential cult classic may not find that here. However, if they find themselves inside on a crisp fall evening, enveloped in soft blankets, donning flannel pajamas and craving the sense of wonder that Halloween held for them in days of old, “Hocus Pocus 2” may be just what they need.

Column: Visit the ghosts of Halloween past with these haunting classics

By Aja Binder News Correspondent

Now that the jack-o’-lanterns have taken up posts on Back Bay front stoops, Halloween movie marathon season is upon us.

Of course this means a list of Halloween’s most frightening favorites is in order. To brew up a collection of all-time classics takes years of genre-de fining filmmaking. From John Car penter’s frightening 1970s “Halloween” to Disney’s charmingly spooky “The Haunted Mansion” in the early 2000s, Halloween just wouldn’t be Halloween without these films.

“Halloween” (1978)

This well-matured 1978 film has since inspired numerous consecutive films, readapted from the original so often that the newest addition to the franchise reaches into theaters this month with the — hopefully — final film “Halloween Ends.”.

The simple two-key piano music that lurks throughout the movie is enough to get audiences’ hearts racing. Paired with chilling looks at the killer at certain times, this signature score is sure to make anyone second guess their decision to babysit on Halloween.

Friday the 13th (1980)

“Friday the 13th’’ is a summer camper’s nightmare come to life. In this film, a cabin in the middle of the woods is the perfect stage for a killing spree.

For viewers who don’t bat an eye at oldschool special effects — or even are fans of them — “Friday the 13th” surely tops “Halloween” on that note.

“Ghostbusters” (1984)

In the 1980s, the ghost flick genre arrived at the forever amusing “Ghostbusters.” From renowned comedians like Bill Murrary, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, this film takes viewers into the childlike world of the super natural when a team of scientists lose their positions at a New York college and find themselves stum bling upon a gateway to another dimension. Time and time again, this film will undoubtedly yield some serious laughs.

“The Addams Family” (1991)

Another film that diverts from the prototypical horror haunt is the peculiar “Addams Family.” Next of kin to Dracula, the Addams family’s then-unconventional dynamic is enough to make viewers second guess the family before them, just as star Angelica Huston does as Morticia Addams when she suspects her broth er-in-law may not be who he claims to be. This family mystery is a must-see for the season — after all, what screams “holiday” more than a family brawl?

“Casper” (1995)

A more traditional family film, “Casper” follows a friendly ghost by the

same name who peacefully haunts a mansion in Maine. The film leaves the horror and gore of “Halloween” and “Friday the 13th” in the rearview.

believes, spends no time with their kids. However, throughout the course of an overdue family vacation, they find themselves stuck in a mansion that is riddled with a curse. This film is for those ready for a road trip, the stalkers of many a million-

Camryn, who reunite on their 21st birthday and realize they possess magical powers, which they must use to save an alternate dimension kingdom from dark forces.

Two sidekicks join the newly minted witches and bring a enjoy the thrilling features that

Kathy Najimy as Mary Sanderson, Bette Midler as Winifred Sanderson and Sarah Jessica Parker as Sarah Sanderson (left to right) in “Hocus Pocus 2”, exclusively on Disney+.

Photo by Matt Kennedy © 2022 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

“Scream” (1996) Director Wes Craven reinvented

Graphic by Ananya Kulkarni

Abortion bans trigger double lives for some Northeastern students

By Trisha Fernando News Correspondent

With a university lining every other block, Boston is a familiar, well-worn stomping ground for over 150,000 students. But this summer, after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the city’s college-age population re turned to their dorms with a new sense of uncertainty looming over their lives and rights.

Massachusetts sits at a unique position as a sanctuary for abor tion rights. In the hours after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organ ization decision, Gov. Charlie Baker signed an executive order to protect access to reproductive health care services across the state. A month later, Baker signed legislation that codified several measures of the order to protect access to reproductive health services in Massachusetts.

Northeastern’s Boston campus serves thousands of students who are affected by the overturning of Roe v. Wade. However, for those students who come from communities that continue to re sist abortion rights — like the 13 states that have their own “trig ger bans” following the Supreme Court’s ruling — returning to Boston has come with an espe cially swollen sense of conflict, separation and powerlessness.

Eshani Talwar, a second-year mathematics and business admin istration combined major, was home in the suburbs of Dallas when the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.

“People were happy, almost numb to it. There was a lack of backlash because we had gone

through this before. We knew what was coming,” she said, reflecting on her community’s reaction to the news. “Because the ‘Heartbeat Bill’ passed in 2021, I felt less of an effect this time around. Yes, we protested and wanted our voices to be heard, but at that point, protesting could only do so much. How many more of our rights can be taken away after what already has been?”

First-year pharmaceutical science major Elizabeth Scholl said she felt this same feeling of powerlessness. Growing up in northern Alabama, Scholl said she has experienced division between the liberal tendencies of her urban neighborhood and the conservative viewpoints that dominate the state’s rural areas. In the South, she said the Supreme Court’s decision wasn’t quite the bombshell to her community that it was to many Boston residents.

“That day in June, I felt like everyone around me took the peaceful approach: being am biguous and subtle during these ‘trying times,’ as seen on social media over and over again,” Scholl said. “No one spoke outright about it because no one was surprised.”

For some students, like sec ond-year mathematics and busi ness administration combined major Jordan Kreisler, Boston was a distinct change of pace from their historically conserva tive hometowns.

“The strictness of a Catholic county made every conversation about abortion, even contracep tives, so hush-hush,” Kreisler said of Waukesha, Wisconsin. “There were always undertones of ‘the

dying children’ and a regression away from feminism.”

The conversation around abor tion rights in Boston, however, took the opposite stance from Waukesha for Kreisler.

“It’s interesting, now, being able to meet people and not have to shield your thoughts or hide from a pro-life reaction,” Kreisler said.

Talwar noticed a similar change when first coming to campus.

“Coming to Northeastern reaf firmed that I can value different beliefs and have educational discussions. Having an opinion in Dallas was based on generational thinking — not backed by research — and defended with strong-arm ing,” she said. “It wasn’t anything worth arguing with.”

While successive pledges to anti-abortion legislation became a knee-jerk reaction for many of

Where is abortion illegal or soon to be?

Graphic by Ali Caudle

Saturday, Oct. 29

Boston Book Festival

Visit the festival for panels, book vendors and writing activities.

10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Copley Square, Free.

Graphic by Ali Caudle

the states these students call home, thousands of Boston residents gathered around the State House to protest the Supreme Court’s deci sion in the hours after it passed in June. Yet, while massive in size, this showcase of support for abortion rights took place in a state that had already declared its commitment to protecting those rights.

Following the decision, many students also took to social me dia, which has become a standard platform for activist mobilization and commentary, or at least the performance of it.

“Sometimes you just have to ask yourself: ‘Do you know where we are? Who are you actually reaching?’ At what point is your voice just an echo to the people in this state that already agree with you?” Talwar said.

The ubiquitous pro-choice sentiment in Massachusetts stood out to students who spoke to The News who are from towns that couldn’t expect thousands of abortion rights protestors to file through their city centers. Now well into the school year on campus in Boston, many of these students are living a very different post-Roe reality than that of their family and peers who still reside in their hometowns.

“People like me and my friends will be okay,” Scholl said. “It is incredibly disheartening to know that this will only compound problems in Alabama — keep women under the poverty level and ban strictly safe abortions, not all abortions. This is going to hurt a lot of people.”

For students like Talwar, Scholl and Kreisler, navigating a post-Roe society isn’t as sim ple as posting or protesting. As states committed to anti-abor tion legislature overturn rights once protected by Roe v. Wade and criminalize abortion, some Northeastern students find them selves at the center of a compli cated, national tug-of-war

“Even if the state doesn’t have protection, I know my family and I have the means to access resources if needed,” Kreisler said. “It breaks my heart that others cannot say the same.”

Saturday, Oct. 29

Doggone Halloween Dog Parade Cheer on local Boston pups as they compete for prizes in their costumes.

12:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m., 9 Summer Street, Free.

Sunday, Oct. 30

Halloween Flea Venture to Somerville for a vintage flea market with candy, live music and a farm stand.

10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Davis Square, Free.

Sunday, Oct. 30

Halloween Drag Bingo

Come in costume to a night of bingo fun, hosted by Plane Jane at Time Out Market.

6 p.m. - 8 p.m., 401 Park Drive Building, Free.

Nov. 4 - 6

Tufts University SMFA Art Sale

Check out modern art created by students, faculty and alumni of the Tufts School of the Museum of Fine Arts.

10 a.m. - 5 p.m., 230 Fenway, Free.

Calendar compiled by Cathy Ching & Juliana George Graphics by Liza Sheehy

Northeastern alumni reflect on abortion rights, reporting 50 years later

Fifty years ago, Northeastern University was a very different place. Women weren’t allowed to wear pants, the school was majority commuter students and it was one of the more politically conservative schools in Bos ton, to name a few glaring differences.

About 50 years ago is also when the women’s reproductive health and women’s liberation movements started to come to a head. The birth control pill was made more widely available in 1965 and eight years later, landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade protected the right to an abortion.

That right was overturned last sum mer when the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organiza tion, shaking advocates, enabling trig ger bans and sparking protests across the country. Though the right to an abortion is protected in Massachu setts, Northeastern students are still feeling the effects of the decision.

In a lot of ways, though so much has changed at Northeastern and in the world as a whole, a lot is still the same. Abortion rights are back at the forefront of the country’s consious ness, politics are still divisive and people are still taking to the streets to organize around causes they believe in.

The News has teamed up with a group of editors who led the North eastern News, the Huntington News’ old name, from 1967 to 1973 to explore the climate surrounding birth control and abortion 50 years ago and where student media fits into the picture.

What did Northeastern stu dents think about birth con trol and abortion 50 years ago?

By Marta Hill | Editor-in-Chief

and Drug Administration. It wasn’t until 1965 that a Supreme Court case made the distribution of birth control and birth control information legal in all 50 states.

For some, like Margie Peters who graduated in 1970, their friend groups talked about the pill because it offered them a sense of control they had been lacking. Peters was headed into her first year at Northeastern when the distribution of birth control was made legal across the country.

“When I heard about birth control I was thrilled because I was still in school and I was not going to get pregnant because I still had a year and a half or more of school. Birth control was a great thing. It was liberating,” Peters said. “It removed a threat to my plan. And I had a plan — I wanted to finish college and I did not want that to be an issue.”

While the pill was legal, that didn’t mean it was always accessi ble to Northeastern students in the late 1960s.

“To get on the pill was not always easy,” said Nedda Barth, who gradu ated with a degree in English in 1970. “At times, the physicians were very demeaning in their approach to you. Many required that you came with your boyfriend, fiance, husband to get on the pill. Some refused to give it to you. So even though it was legal, it wasn’t as accessible as it is now.”

For those in college right when the pill was approved, the topic was sort of hush-hush in some circles, but as time went on, Barth said it became more acceptable to talk about.

“What I can remember is that it wasn’t as talk

lege experience, but as we matured, and as we started to become more participatory in this process there was more discussion among women, not so much with the males on cam pus, but mostly discussions of which physicians would be more amenable to prescribe the pill,” Barth said.

One of the biggest birth control stories The News staff covered in the late ‘60s was reproductive rights activ ist Bill Baird coming to speak to firstyears. Baird spoke to a packed hall of first-year students Sept. 9, 1969, according to a Northeastern News article. He was arrested and jailed after he handed a Boston University college student a condom and a pack age of over-the-counter contraceptive foam in 1967. Three years after he spoke at Northeastern, the appeal of his conviction culminated in the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court decision that established the right of unmarried people to possess contraception.

For Maxine MacPherson, a 1974 graduate with a political science degree, Baird’s appearance at North eastern was the first time she had wit nessed a discussion of birth control.

“We were in the auditorium and it was packed with freshmen and he did not speak about abortion, but he did speak about availability of birth control,” MacPherson said. “At that time, it was pretty much the pill and that was it. He was not allowed, as I remember it, to tell us where to get it. … And we were not allowed to get it on campus. They could tell you that birth control was available at the health center, but they couldn’t tell you where or dispense it.”

MacPherson, who held a number of

the student council her first year. The university was against Baird coming to speak, MacPherson said, and the administration banned abortion ads in the Northeastern News.

“The head of the student council thought we should address that. Eventually what the student council did is they put out a book about birth control,” MacPherson said. “The fac ulty, of course, were not happy with it because it was really against the rules.”

While birth control was becoming socially acceptable and available, many still considered abortion taboo. Of course, there were a handful of years where the birth control pill was legal while abortion still wasn’t, but that didn’t mean abortions didn’t happen.

Barth said she recalled a woman she met while volunteering who had come to the United States to go to school. The woman got pregnant and attempt ed a coat-hanger abortion, a danger ous method of attempting to terminate a pregnancy. The woman’s roommate called Barth hysterically as the woman hemorrhaged in their dorm. The woman was taken to the hospital and survived a hysterectomy, Barth said, but she never saw her again.

Roe’s overturning earlier this year was virtually impossible to miss, making headlines for days and spurring national protests. The same wasn’t true of the original case’s decision, MacPherson said.

“I had my own experience with abortion and that’s why I remem ber, but I don’t remember it being discussed quite as much in the early times,” MacPherson said. “When Roe v.Wade, when the Supreme Court

wasn’t the number one topic.”

While abortion and birth control were big issues in society at the time, they were far from the only ones. The late ‘60s and early ‘70s also saw the Vietnam War, the Black Panther move ment and the Civil Rights Movement.

Such turbulent times pushed a change on Northeastern’s campus, alumni told The News.

“Northeastern was at the beginning, when I came in ‘65, pretty conser vative,” Barth said. “And then, as the years went by, it became more political and Northeastern became one of the most political campuses in Boston. I mean, we took on the role that really no other college, as far as I know, really undertook. We had rallies and we had speakers and we had so many different opportunities to conduct dialogue that I don’t think many other colleges did. And it was interesting how in the five years it totally changed.”

Northeastern was no exception to the radical changes facing the nation. For Mary Gelinas, an English literature major who graduated in 1971, the turbulence created an exciting and illuminating time to be in college.

“The whole country was just kind of in a turmoil about a lot of social is sues. I would say for me at first it was quite shocking, because I came from, in hindsight, a very sheltered environ ment,” Gelinas said. “There I was, in the midst of all this — it was a period of drugs, sex and rock and roll, so it was both exciting and terrifying on some level. … I would say it opened my eyes in a very important way.”

Woodstock happened the sum mer before MacPherson started at Northeastern, creating an interesting societal backdrop for her to start

college. MacPherson is from a small town in New Jersey and her father was a government employee.

“He said to me as he dropped me off at … Speare Hall … ‘please don’t demonstrate against the govern ment,’” MacPherson said. “And I said, ‘Well, I have no intention of doing that.’ My first demonstration was Oct. 15. I think I got to campus around the 17th of September.”

The area surrounding campus was ripe with protests, many of which reporters for The News covered.

“I would think that it was one of the most turbulent times on campus es ever,” MacPherson said. “But at the same time, the best time to be there.”

For many of the previous editors who spoke with The News, their Northeastern experience was an eye-opening one, forcing them to interact with people from different backgrounds and to confront the topics of the day.

“I credit my time at Northeastern, and at The News, with me growing up as a woman and a woman with opinions and a woman who cared about politics and this thing called ‘women’s lib,’” Peters said.

What was the Northeastern News’ role 50 years ago?

The Northeastern News, as it was known then, was radically different from today’s Huntington News. It was still school supported, published in print every week and worked out of the student center.

While Northeastern as a whole was largely conservative, the staff of the newspaper was much more lib eral, Barth said. They covered issues important to them, and the one-time features editor said the staff felt a sort

of calling to do so.

“A lot of people took really bold steps. It was important to have The News go forward,” Barth said. “It was not, it was not easy. It was a difficult time, but we were empowered. We felt we were the vanguard, we were the youth.”

The News had no shortage of top ics to cover. From the usual Mayor of Huntington Avenue to stories about riots and protests on Hemenway Street, they ran the gamut.

The paper was usually published weekly, but at times the frequency increased to respond to the import ant stories of the day.

“We went daily at one point during the moratorium right after Kent State, when all these universities were gonna shut down. … We had a 14-to 16-page paper that went out daily and included photography and everything. I didn’t even go to class,” MacPherson said.

Among all the other issues The News was covering, birth control and abortion made at least an occasional appearance. At one point, at an edito rial meeting, the staff decided not to run an ad related to abortion.

“I was not the editor, but I remem ber it being brought up at an editorial meeting and people decided it wasn’t worth it because it wasn’t an issue on campus,” MacPherson said. “People were too involved in other things. The ad that was finally run was prob ably one column inch by two column inches. I think it was a little tiny ad.”

As far as she remembers, the ad was for a clinic in Brookline that had opened previously to give out birth control and information. Since the passage of Roe, abortions were legal and the ad had a small mention to

abortion, MacPherson said.

After the paper ran it, MacPherson said she remembers getting a call from the president’s office.

“They said that ‘did I know there was a rule against running the ads,’ and I said, ‘I believe the rule had to do with the fact that it was illegal to have an abortion but since Roe v. Wade passed, wasn’t it now legal.’ … And they said, ‘Well, the university is really opposed to this, and has been, we could take your papers back,’” MacPherson said.

“We all kind of looked at each other, it was just an idle threat. We had heard the threat before. That was always what the university held over The News.”

Gelinas said that the staff of The News felt the work they were doing was important.

“At that point, because I believed I wanted to be a journalist, it just felt really like an important job,” Gelinas said. “I think there was a sense we are all part of something bigger than our selves. Which I think is an important part of what the Northeastern News then did, that we were a part of some thing bigger that was important.”

Across all the editors who spoke with The News, one thing remained consistent: Northeastern News was the center of their lives and the staff was like a family.

“The News became our lives. The News truly did become the central part of my college experience,” Barth said. “It became a real family. There was not a time that we were not at The News. Weekends we would maybe go some place to get together to discuss because there was so much to discuss — where to go, what to do with, how to handle, and to whom we should speak. … It really was probably the most pivotal point in my college career.”

Local, national reproductive rights organizations continue fight after Roe v. Wade reversal

By Emma Klekotka News Correspondent

On June 24, the Supreme Court overturned the longstanding right to abortion secured by Roe v. Wade with Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In the landmark deci sion, the Supreme Court determined the United States Constitution did not guarantee the right to an abortion, in citing nationwide outrage. Individuals across the country have since taken to the streets and social media in protest of the decision.

While abortion remains legal in Massachsetts, for some reproductive justice agencies in the state, the deci sion is a reminder of why their work is important.

“What the Dobbs decision really did was re-emphasize the need for access to information and education and health care about contraceptives and abortion,” said Saniya Ghanoui, the program director of Our Bodies Ourselves Today.

Our Bodies Ourselves Today is a digital platform based in Boston devoted to spreading information about the health, sexuality and wellbeing of women, girls and gender-expansive people, including information about reproductive justice. Launched in Sep tember, the platform was released as

a collaboration between Suffolk Uni versity’s Center for Women’s Health and Human Rights and the founders of Our Bodies Ourselves, a non-profit organization.

“Our Bodies, Ourselves,” is also a book first published by the New England Free Press in collaboration with the Doctors Group in 1970. The Doctors Group formed after a group of women from the Boston area were frustrated by their lack of knowledge of their own bodies and reproductive health. They first published a book ti tled “Women and Their Bodies,” and later renamed it to “Our Bodies Our selves.” There have been nine editions released since its founding, with the most recent released in 2011. The book has also been translated to over 30 languages.

“In response to Dobbs, we con sciously added resources [people] would need immediately to assist in reproductive health,” Ghanoui said.

Such resources include a links page to information about abortion and contraceptives in the area, like how to find an abortion provider or recent changes to abortion laws. Our Bodies Ourselves Today holds a strict privacy policy and does not collect any identifying information from users, which guarantees anonymity in receiving any information they may need about accessing abortion or other contraceptives.

Along with existing efforts by pro-choice groups, the Dobbs case

sparked the founding of new organi zations. Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights, a national organization, formed in January 2022 amid uncertainties sur rounding reproductive rights when the Dobbs case was initially brought up to the Supreme Court. With the mission of “abortion on demand and without apology,” the organi zation initially formed in an effort to prevent the Supreme Court from deciding to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Kathy Lawrence, a Boston organiz er for Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights, said the organization takes inspi ration from similar movements in Latin America, where protesters raise green bandanas in opposition to the criminalization of abortion.

While many are simply encourag ing voters to “join the blue wave” and vote Democrat, Lawrence said this is not enough.

“We feel like we really need to bring people out into the streets. That’s how the right to abortion was won in the first place, and that’s how any sort of key human right in this country has been won. Not just by voting, but by taking to the streets,” Lawrence said.

As a national organization, the operations of Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights in blue states such as Massa chusetts are similar to those in more conservative areas.

“Even though abortion is available in Massachusetts right now, it’s not like it’s absolute. ... If one state is

under attack, then we’re all under attack,” Lawrence said.

For this reason, the organization has continued to fight for reproduc tive justice, despite being unsuccess ful in its initial goal of preventing Roe v. Wade from being overturned. Organizers across the country have also planned a nationwide day of action Dec. 1. The day will entail a series of protests outside of court houses in support of nationwide legalization of abortion.

Meanwhile, at Northeastern, stu dent organizations have responded with increased action and conver sations surrounding reproductive justice. Northeastern Sexual Health Advocacy, Resources and Educa tion, or NU SHARE, is a club that promotes reproductive justice and healthcare on campus and works to destigmatize conversations around sex by providing comprehensive sex education. Following the Dobbs deci sion, the organization has engaged in more conversations about abortion and the stigmas that surround it, especially in more conservative states and countries.

“We know Massachusetts people have more access to healthcare, espe cially abortions, but our student body is from all over the world and all over the country, so it’s really important to have these conversations,” said Finn Seifert, a second-year human services major and treasurer of SHARE.

In addition to conversations

surrounding abortion, SHARE also unveiled a new emergency contra ceptive vending machine located in Marino Recreation Center Oct. 25. The machine, which is located below the first floor staircase, is a collabora tion between SHARE and University Health and Counseling Services. It contains free sexual health products and generic Plan B pills for a fraction of their typical cost, as well as men strual products and pain relievers.

“We wanted to create something that was at a reduced cost to access emergency contraceptives that every one in the community could access,” Seifert said.

The emergency contraceptive pill in the machine costs $7, which can cost upwards of $40 at drugstores. In addition to supporting reproductive healthcare and reproductive rights, SHARE provides a community for students interested in sex education and advocacy.

“A big part of SHARE is our week ly meetings where we come together to talk about any topic relating to sexual health, and that builds a com munity,” Seifert said.

These organizations share a com mon sentiment about the fight for re productive justice; it is far from over. Whether it manifests in deeper con versations, protests or calls for action, the organizations have all continued their advocacy for reproductive jus tice in the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

Taze Thompson: Harvard transfer finds home at NU

By Kyle Smith News Correspondent

Hockey has always been an import ant part of Taze Thompson’s life.

“I was in skates before I could even walk,” Thompson told The News.

A sophomore forward on the wom en’s ice hockey team and Harvard University transfer, Thompson has been an instrumental part of the Hus kies’ 7-1 start to the season, already contributing a goal and three assists.

Some of Thompson’s earliest memories are watching her father, Rocky Thompson, play for the Peoria Rivermen, a professional team in the American Hockey League. Whatever games she couldn’t catch at the stadi um she would watch on TV, which was almost always tuned to a hockey game.

Thompson’s father spent two years with the Rivermen as part of a 12-year professional career span ning across four different leagues. It was the nature of his career that he moved teams, and thus cities, so Thompson spent much of her child hood moving around. Her family eventually settled in New England, where Thompson captained New Haven’s hockey team, being named the 2019-2020 New England Prepa ratory School Athletic Council Small School Player of the Year.

The passion she discovered off the ice was perhaps more important than her performance on it, Thompson said. She was a project leader for Kurn Hattin Homes for Children, a nonprof it that works with children who come from underprivileged backgrounds.

Thompson said it was a “humbling experience” and one she especially cherished. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck and the program temporarily shut down, she said she was devastated, but her passion for serving underprivileged communities never wavered.

This passion heavily influenced her decision to transfer from Harvard, despite having led the Harvard freshmen with 20 points in the 20212022 season. Northeastern’s Human Services program, one not available at Harvard, would allow Thompson to pursue her interests in this field as part of a psychology and human services double major.

She said she has found another way to give back, partnering with an organization in Boston that works with immigrant parents. She works with some of the members a few days a week, teaching them English and helping them acclimate to life in the United States.

Thompson said she had some accli mating of her own to do while settling into life as a Husky. This alone is no easy task, as Thompson had to navigate a new school while also balancing homework and a social life with a sport that has significant responsibilities of its own. Thompson says her organiza tional skills allow her to juggle all these responsibilities.

The key, she says, is “100% focus on whatever is in front of me at the moment.”

Thompson also credits the hospitality of everyone at NU with easing some of the pressure. One thing she said immediately struck her when she arrived on campus was how accommodating and

friendly everyone was.

“I never felt like a stranger,” Thompson said. “Everyone made me feel welcome.”

She said she found her team to be a tight-knit community, one that accepted her into the fold almost instantly.

“We gelled right away,” Thompson said.

Hanging out with teammates off the ice, Thompson said, has gone a long way to building chemistry with them on it.

Getting minutes and experi ence in games and practices is crucial too, and this is something the coaching staff values tremen dously, associate head coach Nick Carpenito said. He said the team aims for practices to be as close in intensity to real games as possible.

“You get the best chemistry when you go to battle,” Carpenito said. “That’s where you truly hone your skills.”

“Intensity” is a word Carpenito used often when talking about Thompson, describing her as “a real hard worker.” This work ethic is something that comes through in her style of play on the ice, he said.

Thompson does her best work in the “dirty areas,” as Carpenito described them, where things can get very physi cal. Carpenito said this part of her game complements those of her linemates especially well, and it’s her willingness to do this dirty work that makes her such a valuable asset to any team.

“It’s easy to fit in on a team when she has the work ethic and personality,” Carpenito said.

Sophomore forward Skylar

Irving, a linemate and close friend of Thompson, also stressed Thompson’s team-first mentality.

Irving said she and Thompson often stay after practice to get more shots off and fine tune their mechanics.

“She’s always pushing everyone to be better,” Irving said.

Thompson and Irving played against each other in high school and stayed friends due to their close proximity within the hockey community. They talked over the summer before the season, and their play styles meshed well when they got together on the ice, Carpenito said.

Irving shared the same sentiment, calling Thompson a “really, really good skater” and a player who “sees the ice really well.”

This willingness to put in effort for the benefit of the team makes Thomp son an important part of a Husky squad looking to build momentum off its 7-1 start. It was in one of these early season games, a 4-1 win against the University of Connecticut Oct. 8, where Thomp son scored her first goal as a Husky. She added two assists in the win, totaling an impressive three-point performance.

Though Thompson said there was “a little pressure” to score her first goal, she emphasized her team’s support in her first few games.

“Everyone just wanted me to play my game,” Thompson said.

And “play her game” she will. If anyone happens to make the trip to Matthews Arena to watch a game, they’ll probably see Thompson battling it out in front of the net or on the boards. She might score, she might not, but she’ll give it her full effort every second she’s on the ice, no matter the score.

Northeastern falls to UMass Lowell in tight battle at Matthews Arena

By Ariana Ottrando News Staff

The Northeastern University men’s hockey team (3-2-1, 2-2-0 HE) lost a close 3-2 conference game to the Uni versity of Massachusetts Lowell River Hawks (4-2-0, 1-0-0 HE) Saturday, Oct. 22. After tying with rivals Boston College on Oct. 18, the team bumped its winless streak to three games.

With starting junior goaltender Devon Levi scratched for illness, the Huskies debuted true freshman goalie Grant Riley (BCHL, 25-10-2) for his first collegiate start in the crease.

Five minutes into regulation, Riley was beat on UMass Lowell’s first shot on goal — putting Northeastern on the chase to tie up. The play was initiated by UML sophomore forward Owen Cole passing to sophomore defenseman Isac Jonsson in the high slot. Jonsson then set up junior defenseman Ben Meehan for the one-timer that he propelled past NU’s line of defense and into the gap behind Riley for the 1-0 advance.

Following a few scoring opportuni ties in the next quarter of the period, Northeastern responded with an even-strength goal at 12:25 to get on the board.

After receiving the puck from freshman forward Cam Lund on entry into UML’s defensive zone, senior

defenseman Jeremie Bucheler broke through three linesmen for the wraparound. Sophomore forward Justin Hryckowian was waiting in the low slot for Bucheler’s feed, ripping it to the right pocket past UML junior goalie Henry Welsch to tie the game at one for his third goal of the season.

With momentum now on their side for the closing minutes of the first, the Huskies took more pucks to the net and displayed strong defense in front of Riley to finish the period with a 9-4 shot count.

“I know [Riley] was excited to play, our guys were excited to play for [Riley],” said head coach Jerry Keefe. “Probably not an easy game to play in either because I didn’t think he got tested a lot early.”

Two minutes into the second period, UML sophomore forward Matt Crasa took a minor penalty for tripping freshman defenseman Hunter McDonald on an offensive zone entry. However, Northeastern’s power play didn’t go as planned.

With pressure building around him in the River Hawks’ defensive zone, junior forward Sam Colangelo sent the puck to an empty space where it was snatched up by Cole at Lowell’s blue line. Cole then found UML freshman forward Owen Fowler in the neutral zone for a partial breakaway, who

stick-handled the puck through Riley for a five-hole shorthanded goal — his first in the NCAA — giving UMass Lowell a 2-1 lead.

“I was happy for [Fowler] tonight,” said UML head coach Norm Bazin. “For him to get a goal short-handed, that’s a great thing for him.”

Now trailing behind again, North eastern amped up its offense in an effort to tie the game before second intermission. Junior forward Gunnar wolfe Fontaine nearly did so at 9:40, as did senior forward and captain Aidan McDonough at 17:40, but Welsch smothered both attempts to hold onto the one-goal advantage.

The third period saw 4-on-4 play at 4:25 due to a hooking penalty called on senior forward and assistant captain Riley Hughes, along with unsportsman like conduct on UML senior defense man Marek Korencik. Thirty seconds into the penalties, Bucheler caused a turnover in the neutral zone and UML senior forward and captain Carl Ber glund gained possession to send Lowell on a 2-on-0 rush. UML senior forward and assistant captain Zach Kaiser sent the puck in the top left corner to give the River Hawks the two-goal lead.

Northeastern answered immediate ly. Fourteen seconds later, the Huskies cut UML’s lead to one. Fontaine won the puck on the wall and slid it to se

nior defenseman and assistant captain Jayden Struble in the left faceoff circle, where he finished bar-down, making it a 2-3 game. Struble’s first goal of the season was assisted by Fontaine and McDonough.

The Huskies continued to test Welsch until the final buzzer, pulling Riley at 18:37 to give them the extra attacker.

With 17 seconds left in regulation, Welsch robbed McDonough’s rebound attempt to send the game into overtime on a tumbling glove-side save.

“Anytime you win in [Matthews Are na], they’re valuable points come the

end of the year,” Bazin said regarding his team’s conference win. “You need goaltending, and [Welsch] was there for us.”

Although the shot count finished 2817 Northeastern, Welsch outperformed Riley and the Huskies played inconsis tently, leading to the 2-3 result.

“It’s a frustrating loss,” Keefe said. “It’s an important game for us tonight. [We] did some good things, but not enough good things, and we need to get back to the drawing board. We gotta be better. We gotta find a way to win those games.”

Junior forward Gunnarwolfe Fontaine battles for the puck against the River Hawks. Fontaine earned an assist in Saturday’s game.

Photo by Kayla Shiao

Sophomore forward Taze Thompson seizes the puck from LIU. Thompson, a transfer from Harvard, has tallied one goal and three assists in her first eight games as a Husky.

Photo by Valerie O’Neill

Men’s soccer embraces 7-year-old hype man

By Ali Caudle News Staff

As the Northeastern men’s soccer team warmed up for its Oct. 8 game against Monmouth University at Par sons Field, one special team member, Lincoln Mosca, snacked on crackers as his mother helped put his spine brace on.

When the team spotted Lincoln, they ran over to the sideline, crouching down to fist bump the 3’11” 7-year-old. A chorus of, “What’s up Lincoln? How are you man?” echoed as the players took turns greeting him.

Mosca was born with Prader-Wil li syndrome, or PWS, a genetic disorder resulting from a deletion of chromosome 15. After birth, he spent a month in the neonatal intensive care unit, going back and forth from doctors at South Shore

Hospital to specialists at Boston Children’s Hospital.

His parents, Kristine and Rick Mosca, said his disabilities impact many facets of his life, as PWS is a “spec trum disorder” that affects individuals differently. For Lincoln, it resulted in speech delays and appetite changes. For the first two years of his life, he needed a gastronomy tube, a surgically placed tube that brings nutrition right to the stomach. Recently, he’s begun experi encing constant hunger. He also wears a brace for scoliosis and goes to physical and occupational therapy every week.

Last year, Mosca’s family reached out to Team Impact, a national nonprofit launched in Boston that “matches chil dren facing serious illness and disability with college sports teams.” Lincoln was matched with the Northeastern’s men’s soccer team for the Fall 2021 season and has been part of the team since.

The Mosca family lives in Marshfield, over an hour away.

“[The drive] is so worth it because they make him feel special,” Kristine Mosca said. “He’s eager to come. He wants to see all the players, and he sits there and you can see him cheering for them.”

The team puts a lot of effort into bonding with him. Graduate student and defenseman/midfielder Ahriá Simons said that the whole team wants to make sure Lincoln feels included.

“When we see him, everything else drops and everything else is second,” Simons said. “He may be nervous too, right? ... So if we can kind of break that barrier, I want to do everything to do so. And obviously the coaches do a lot to foster that connection.”

In addition to having his name on the roster, Lincoln gets to sit on the bench with the team at home games. He loves to cheer on the players and talk about soccer with them.

“There was one instance where I was off the field and Lincoln was on the sidelines, and he actually talks more than you would imagine,” Simons said. “That was kind of cool, to see that he’s actually comfortable around us.”

Since the team doesn’t get to see him much in the off season, they or ganized ways to keep in touch. Many players sent postcards to Lincoln over the summer, taking turns sending notes and pictures.

“He just loves coming here. Loves getting the postcards over the summer. Loves sitting on the bench

with the guys, … being part of it all,” Kristine Mosca said.

The players are also great about ensuring his 9-year-old sister Paige is included.

“She’s a very supportive sister, [but] it can be a lot on the siblings,” she said.

Paige’s and Lincoln’s parents said they are very appreciative that the team makes sure she’s a part of the fun too.

The team goes above and beyond saying hello at the games.

“They bring him in the locker room, they call him by his first name, it’s pretty awesome,” Rick Mosca said.

“[He’s a] really sweet kid, really awe some family,” said junior defenseman/ midfielder Zach Sauer. “Coach [brings] him into the locker room … every time he’s at one of our games, he’s the one who does our pre-game chant for us. He says ‘Stronger’ and then we all go ‘Together!’ He does it a little quiet, but it’s pretty good.”

When asked, Lincoln said “Zach!” was his favorite player. Sauer explained that they exchange a lot of fist bumps.

“That’s what we do. He’s always giving us high fives before we run on the field, come off the field and everything,” Sauer said. “I just talk to him when I can about soccer, he’s just a really good kid.”

Simons’ and Sauer’s favorite mem ory with Lincoln took place before the 2022 season started, when the whole team gathered on Zoom to get to know one another.

“Lincoln had told us how he really liked animals. So everyone went around and said their favorite

animal. And then our coach made us act out what sound that animal makes. He was laughing a lot, I know all of us were laughing a lot,” Sauer said. “It was a really good time together, just being able to put yourself out there, get a little uncomfortable because it was ob viously weird to make some weird animal noises. I know someone had to make a dolphin noise. Lincoln’s favorite animal was a lion, he did a pretty big roar.”

According to his parents, this experience has helped build Lin coln’s confidence.

“It’s D1 sports — who gets to be a part of that unless you’re playing? It’s pretty awesome, it’s a great op portunity,” Rick Mosca said.

It’s a valuable experience for the players as well.

“It’s really neat that Northeastern … with Team Impact can impact these kids’ lives in tremendous ways,” said Simons. “I would do anything to interact with these kids, because I couldn’t imagine what they’re going through, what their families are going through, what they’ve been through.”

Simons and Sauer are just two of many players who have bonded with Lincoln Mosca, changing his life in invaluable ways.

“I think it really helps him out every time Lincoln’s with us. He might be a little bit shy, but it’s definitely a boost in his day and also for his family,” Sauer said. “I mean, it’s called Team Impact. It’s a really positive impact on the family itself.”

Huskies defeat Stony Brook in five-set contest

By Amelia Ballingall News Staff

After racking up a pair of losses at University of Charleston Oct. 15 and 16, the Northeastern University volleyball team (7-10, 4-4 CAA) came back swinging against CAA rival Stony Brook University (9-10, 4-6 CAA) in Cabot Center this weekend. The Huskies swept the two-game series, clawing their way up to fourth in the conference standings.

Northeastern began its rebound with a high-energy contest Saturday, Oct. 22. After five rounds of intense back-and-forth play, the Huskies claimed victory 3-2.

Stony Brook started out the first set on top, but the Huskies were quick to overtake the Seawolves, keeping the lead for the better half of the set. Northeast ern started to break away after tying the Seawolves 3-3, tallying kills from senior middle blocker Anya Korbut and graduate student outside hitter Laura Seeger, leading Stony Brook into its first timeout of the match at 11-6.

With Seeger and senior outside hitter Erica Staunton racking up kills on the front line, Northeastern kept its oppo nent at bay for a while. However, when the Seawolves gained traction with blocking efforts, the team narrowed the gap to a slim one-point margin and the Huskies called a timeout when the score read 18-17.

After the timeout, the Seawolves matched the Huskies’ efforts, tying the game at 20-20.

The even matchup lasted to 24-24, but after a long rally at set point, the Seawolves came out victorious 26-24 in the first set.

With both teams aiming to the edges of the court, the second set was a test of precision.

Korbut hit the ball on the line to take the first point for the Huskies, but the score stayed tight throughout the set.

The advantage switched back and forth numerous times, with each team taking multiple turns out in front.

With Stony Brook repeatedly hitting the ball out of bounds and senior mid dle blocker Nailah Jenkins and Staunton angling kills across the court, the Hus kies were able to break away momen tarily at 14-10. However, the Seawolves quickly pushed ahead once again.

An ace from Northeastern junior outside hitter Defne Arliel knotted up the score at 19-19. Staunton then smashed the ball over the net to vault the Huskies ahead.

Two more aces from Arliel led the Huskies to set point, and while the Sea wolves snuck one more point under the wire, Northeastern took the set 25-21.

The Huskies came full force in the third set, starting with a 5-0 lead and forcing the Seawolves into an early timeout.

With Staunton slamming the ball across the court and Korbut taking the short shot, Northeastern blasted through the set, barely giving Stony Brook time to breathe.

The Huskies took the third set 25-9, before the Seawolves could even break double digits.

The fourth set began with an even wider lead, the Huskies tallying 6-0 before Stony Brook scored.

The Seawolves were able to turn it around after the crushing third set defeat, but still hit ball after ball out of bounds.

After a strong block from Korbut and junior middle blocker Marika Virthe, the Huskies were locked at 15 points.

The Seawolves hit a hot streak, climbing up from an eight-point deficit to close in on the Huskies 15-14.

The Seawolves kept pace with the Huskies, the two teams scoring back and forth, tying up the match right to the end of the set.

Northeastern got two opportunities at set point, but the Seawolves surpassed the Huskies to take the fourth set 27-25.

The tiebreaking set started with yet

another kill from Korbut.

While Stony Brook had the advan tage at 5-4, the moment was fleeting and the Huskies surged ahead 8-5 before the teams switched courts.

Northeastern maintained a generous lead through the latter half of the set.

A kill from graduate student middle blocker Nikiya Mitchell took the team to game point 14-8, and although the Seawolves made one last fleeting effort, Seeger closed out the set for the Huskies 15-9.

During her career-high 58-assist

game — and in only her second year of collegiate competition — sophomore setter Jessica Frannea made her 1,000th assist. Staunton, Jenkins and senior libero Kayla Martin also led the team during Saturday’s game with 20 kills, five aces and 20 digs, respectively.

In Sunday’s matchup, Northeastern only needed four sets to take down the Seawolves, finishing the day 3-1.

The Huskies are back on the road this weekend to face North Carolina A&T Saturday, Oct. 29 and Sunday, Oct. 30, both at 12 p.m.

Lincoln Mosca, the youngest member of the Northeastern men’s soccer team, participates in the team’s pre-game pep talk. Mosca partnered with the team through the nonprofit Team Impact.

Photo courtesy Jim Pierce

DESIGN

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Op-ed: NU’s protest policy needs to go

the people peaceably to assemble.”

Similarly, articles 19 and 20 of the Uni versal Declaration of Human Rights, a foundational human rights document drafted and adopted by the United Nations, establishes “everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression” and “the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.”

Northeastern’s academic plan targets becoming an “inclusive university” by 2025. To meet this goal, it claims that it must ensure the “engaged participation” of its community. So why does the university restrict the right of its faculty, staff and students to peacefully protest?

Northeastern currently prohibits all members of the community from holding a peaceful demonstration on the university’s property without the permission of the Center for Stu dent Involvement, or CSI. To receive permission, CSI requires student or ganizations to submit a demonstration permit application form “at least 7 days before [the] organization intends to demonstrate on campus property.”

Northeastern is a private university, meaning that it isn’t bound by the First Amendment like public schools, and therefore, has greater legal freedom to regulate student expression. Neverthe less, Northeastern’s student handbook claims that “students enjoy the same basic privileges . . . as all citizens.”

Northeastern’s statements are out of line with its current policies. To encourage engaged community partici pation and protect students’ basic priv ileges, Northeastern must guarantee the right of its community members to peacefully protest on campus.

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits Congress from making any laws abridging “the freedom of speech” or “the right of

Protests are protected by the freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly. Freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by the free speech clause of the First Amendment in the United States, protects people’s ability to share information and ideas, whether through speech, writing or other media.

Freedom of peaceful assembly extends the freedom of expression by allowing people to express and advocate for their ideas in groups as they do in demon strations and protests. In my opinion, by forcing students to apply for permission to protest, Northeastern is limiting the exercise of these human rights.

If Northeastern were a public uni versity, its demonstration policy would be unconstitutional. Tinker v. Des Moines, a 1969 Supreme Court case about a planned protest of the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War, ruled that students retain their First Amendment rights on public school campuses when those rights do not “[intrude] upon the work of the schools or the rights of other students.” Further, the students’ freedom of expression “may not be confined to the expression of those sentiments that are officially approved.” Contrary to this ruling, Northeastern’s policy currently gives CSI the right to disapprove any planned demonstration.

Even if Northeastern is exempt from First Amendment regulations as a private university, why should it infringe upon student rights unnec essarily? Northeastern’s demonstra tion policy is restrictive and openly hinders activism and expression.

Applying for a demonstration permit requires a sponsoring student organization, meaning that students

Death of

young people. While it used to be easier to assure ourselves we were too busy, too exhausted or too pre disposed to screen time to return to the laundry list of activities we once loved, the productivity sphere has now invaded our last sanctuary, our free time. Although it feels like our own burnout or laziness is to blame for the death of hobbies, the larger driving forces are unsur prisingly the internet and, more surprisingly, capitalism.

not associated with a student organiza tion are unable to complete the form. This is a burdensome requirement because starting a student organization is time-consuming and requires 12 students, a faculty or staff advisor and CSI approval. Someone’s lack of in volvement with student organizations shouldn’t prevent them from peaceful ly protesting important current events.

Despite Northeastern’s demonstra tion policy applying to “all univer sity faculty, staff, students, vendors, volunteers and visitors,” only students are able to create and be members of student organizations. This policy forces non-student members of the university’s community to depend on the students in charge of student organizations in order to exercise their right to protest.

Student groups have been able to organize successful protests with this policy in place. In April 2022, Huskies Organizing with Labor organized a demonstration on Centennial Common calling for better benefits and conditions for Northeastern’s dining staff. This demonstration was organized by a student group, but it included dining hall workers, student activists and other members of the university community. In September, Northeastern dining hall workers approved a new contract that more than doubled their pay and improved numerous other benefits.

Successful demonstrations of this sort, however, are somewhat rare. Peaceful protests are an important method of drawing attention to pressing current events. Well-timed protests in prominent locations are liable to attract media atten tion, which can multiply a protest’s impact. Because of this, prestigious universities like Northeastern have a special responsibility to protect their community’s right to protest. Unfortunately, Northeastern’s current demonstration policy prevents many members of its community from speaking out and advocating for themselves and others.

These long-standing problems with Northeastern’s demonstration policy are widely known. In 2013, after Northeastern’s Students for Justice in Palestine, or SJP, group was sanctioned for peacefully protesting an event, Bos ton Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham wrote a column opposing the policy. Following the university’s sanctioning of SJP, Northeastern’s National Lawyers Guild chapter protested the demon stration policy. Despite these negative responses, Northeastern upheld the offensive policy.

In 2018, the Foundation for Individ ual Rights and Expression, or FIRE, a nonprofit group focused on protecting free speech, called Northeastern’s demonstration policy “unreasonable” and hypocritical in its “Speech Code of the Month” series. In the 2022 College Free Speech Rankings released by FIRE and College Pulse, Northeastern was ranked 155 out of 203 colleges, receiving a “below average” rank ing. Northeastern was below nearby colleges Boston University and Boston College and above Harvard University and Tufts University.

FIRE’s executive vice president, Nico Perrino, will be speaking at Northeastern Nov. 15 about the im portance of free speech as a part of the Ortelian Society’s fall lecture series on speech and discourse.

To acknowledge the fundamental human rights of the university’s faculty, staff and students, Northeastern must change its demonstration policy. All members of the university community should be able to exercise their rights to expression and peaceful assembly without CSI approval and a sponsoring student organization.

Students are organizing a petition encouraging Northeastern to change its demonstration policy.

Arien Wagen is a third-year studying business administration. Wagen is a fall 2022 FIRE Campus Scholar and is lead ing the Nov. 15 event. He can be reached at wagen.a@northeastern.edu.

During a recent trip to Farmer’s Horse Coffee, I sat at the infamous com munal table across from two North eastern students exchanging updates about their mutual friends. I learned their friend had begun fermenting his own kombucha and was experiment ing with new flavorings. My urge to amuse myself with the thought of a twenty-something hunched over a bowl of Symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, or SCOBY, was quickly replaced by another thought that had been increasingly consuming me: why don’t I have a hobby?

The seemingly innocuous topic of hobbies has become a point of borderline-existentialism for many

The monetization of the internet, a space which is inherently so personal, has subtly transitioned us into thinking about ourselves in monetizable ways, even past the scope of the digital world. Through this lens, the attention of others has become the most valuable currency, and we must successfully compete for it in both impressive and authentic ways. If you’re good at art, why don’t you sell it? If you’re good at music, why don’t you hop in the studio? If you’re good at cooking, why don’t you post it on TikTok? These compulsions to commodify the activ ities we take pleasure in have stripped hobbies of their fundamental purpose of self-fulfillment.

The hobbies and communities we choose to be a part of are also an integral part of our identity and how we

understand ourselves. However, when this is paired with the awareness of what our hobbies say about us, the results can be harmful. Was it truly that man’s passion to make homemade kombucha or did he simply enjoy being the care free, earthy guy to those around him? The answer may seem inconsequential, but this line of thinking evolves into identity turmoil. When the distinctions between what we truly gravitate towards and what we adopt for the sake of being perceived in desirable ways blurs, we exchange our identity for a performed persona. Sociologist Erving Goffman’s dramaturgical theory gave this concept a framework, saying “social life is a ‘performance’ carried out by ‘teams’ of participants in three places: ‘front stage,’ ‘back stage,’ and ‘off stage.’” When we are front stage, we are in a perpetual state of making and maintaining impressions and while backstage, we rehearse how we would like these interactions to go and are our most uninhibited selves.

Social media has created a front stage we can never exit. In the digital realm, we will always exist to others and we will always have a third-per son perspective on ourselves — both of which give rise to immense fixa tion on every detail about ourselves. When this need to appear effortlessly incredible on social media converg

es with capitalism’s expectations of making your interests a point of productivity and even income, the easiest option is to give into our fatigue and do nothing at all.

In the professional environment that college students are about to en ter, work-life boundaries continue to erode, global economic and political systems are outdated and generation al burnout is omnipresent. It is now more valuable than ever that students pursue their interests, unhindered by fears of being “bad.”

When we think about the best mo ments of our lives, they almost never have any monetary return. But as we submit more and more of ourselves to being good, productive workers, we lose sight of why we work in the first place: to support ourselves and the activities that bring us joy. This desire to be productive coupled with a collective obsession with being wholly perfect must encroaching on free time — a time where we are entitled to make horrendous draw ings and experiment with SCOBY without guilt.

Ananya Chaudhari is a second-year economics and business administration combined major. She can be reached at chaudhari.ana@northeastern.edu.

Aubrey Burgess, Liza Sheehy, Matthew Chu, Kayla Shiao. Ananya Bhaskara

Bill Mitchell, Carlene Hempel, Gal Tziperman Lotan, Laurel Leff, Lincoln McKie, Mark Gooley, Meredith O’Brien, Rachel Zarrell, Zolan Kanno-Youngs

Photo courtesy Arien Wagen

Photo courtesy Ananya Chaudhari

Op-ed: Why books should never be banned within the education system

is expected to continue through this year, feels uncomfortably familiar.

The practice of banning books has existed for centuries, with the first book ever banned in the United States dating back to the 17th century. As long as people write about contro versial subjects, others will be there to contest their ideas and vehemently advocate for the banning of the books.

seemingly will continue, however, goes far beyond that.

Growing up as a shy, somewhat sheltered kid, I fell in love with reading the first time I picked up a novel. Books were my sanctuary, my way of escaping the real world, my way to learn about different experiences than my own.

This fact still rings true to this day — reading is one of my favorite pastimes, as well as the most effec tive way to learn. Books like “1984” by George Orwell and “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury served as a type of entertainment, as well as education in the form of a warning about the horrors of censorship.

After reading and learning from books like these, the mass banning of books during the 2021-2022 school year, a phenomenon which

Nowadays, banning books tends to look like concerned parents reading what they deem to be an inappropri ate text and challenging the necessity and appropriateness of having that book in curriculum or in school libraries. Of course, as an avid reader myself, I’m against banning books in schools. It’s important to remember that books which are available in schools, whether through curricu lum or the school library, have been selected by librarians and educators in order to educate the students who will be reading them. These books aren’t just picked arbitrarily — they have an educational purpose.

I can understand the notion of a parent bringing up concerns about a controversial book with their child’s school. I can understand the desire for a parent to want their opinions heard and for the education their children get to be up to par with their expectations. What has happened in the past school year and

From July 2021 to June 2022, there have been 2,532 instances of books being banned (1,648 unique titles), as opposed to 273 in 2020, 377 in 2019 and 483 in 2018, according to PEN America. These bans span more than 138 school districts in 32 states, with over 4 million impacted students. This is not the work of reactive parents — rather, this unimaginably high number reflects the rise in ad vocacy groups trying to ban certain ideas in schools.

LGBTQ+ themes or a prominent LGBTQ+ character (41%), or con tain a prominent character of color (40%). This is extremely damaging because without representation, minorities may feel they and their experiences are unimportant, invalid and unvalued. Additionally, for those not part of the LGBTQ+ community or a specific race or eth nicity, good representation provides critical education about issues such as racism and homophobia.

It is my belief that organizations that rally to ban certain books do so with the insidious intention of push ing a conservative, heteronormative and racist agenda under the guise of looking out for the innocence of children. When there are upwards of 50 organizations like this, one of which has been classified as an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group, operating at a local, state or national level, composed of individuals who don’t even have children in the schools they are targeting, the motivations of those involved in this movement seem less like a personal concern and more like a political agenda.

Nevertheless, with the amount of books being banned so far this year — with at least 139 additional bans since July 2022 — it’s safe to say that the issue is still prevalent and will be for the foreseeable future. Banning books, and censorship of any kind, puts education at risk. It is suppres sion of speech and progressive ideas.

The belief that LGBTQ+ themes are inherently obscene and inappro priate and books with prominent characters of color or themes about racism are “critical race theory,” a bastardized term which essentially encapsulates any work involving race — particularly one which makes white people uncomfortable — is harmful towards these minorities.

The ideas such groups wish to censor become clear when look ing at which books are targeted. A substantial number of banned books over the last school year either have

Book bans mostly impact stu dents in elementary, middle and high school, so at Northeastern we don’t necessarily have to worry about book bans the way those in lower education need to.

It’s important to have diverse ideas represented in curriculums and school libraries so children are able to develop their own perspectives, as well as under stand different experiences and be exposed to different cultures. Personally, without reading the books I did growing up, I would be a different person than who I am today. Just remember, you become the books you read.

Allana Knowles is a fourth-year politics, philosophy and econom ics major. She can be reached at knowles.al@northeastern.edu.

Op-ed: Ye’s music cannot be separated from his offensive actions

inspires so many others positively? Should we continue to enjoy and play their music even though they profit from it?

Personally, I am one to use music as a means of expression to connect with and so, when an art ist reveals more about themselves it could change how I may view their work. Society raises the ques tion of whether we should separate the artist from their art when those artists make uninformed and harmful statements which “cancels” them. Ye’s (formerly known as Kanye West) access to various social media platforms has recently been restricted as a result of this.

Not long ago, Ye attended Paris Fashion Week wearing a white lives matter shirt and has been making antisemitic statements online. Due to his latest tweets he was dropped by Adidas and other major companies. Although we should hold artists accountable for their actions, should we impose restric tions on an artist’s other work that

Separating the artist from their work can only happen on a caseby-case basis. Ye and his music are tied so closely together that it is hard to separate the two, but taking into account the severity of the things Ye has said, it has be come impossible. “Saint Pablo,” for instance, used stereotypes about Jews in his lyrics. If a musician’s hate speech enters their music, it is challenging to distinguish the artist from their work if the work itself is also harmful. It may not seem as significant in compar ison to his most recent tweets, but it demonstrates a pattern of comments he has made on Jewish stereotypes as well as other hate speech in his music starting as ear ly as 2016. This is one example of how it can be difficult to separate the art from the artist.

I personally used to be a fan of Ye when I was younger, but as time went on, his continued affiliation with antisemitic remarks and general disregard for many other minority groups has made it impossible for me to continue doing so. His constant hate speech has gotten to a point that Instagram and Twitter suspended him.

In reference to his recent unsuccessful business endeav ors, Ye claimed his most recent tweet was directed at the Jewish

businessmen he was collaborating with. Many platforms restricted him because by stating “death con 3,” he was about to reveal all of the Jewish peoples names he was working with. While talking to Piers Morgan about this, Ye said he was “absolutely not” sorry but apologized for the “confusion that [he] caused.” He had no remorse for what he was and is currently doing, but did recognize by the end that he did hurt people with his comments.

During an Oct. 18 interview with Chris Cuomo, he once again blamed Jewish people as a whole for his business misfortunes and referred to them as a mafia. When Cuomo was trying to explain the repercussions of Ye’s actions he re fused to “understand and accept” them. As someone who identifies as Jewish, I was shocked by his comments. I’ve struggled with the moral dilemma of whether I could continue to listen to his music for the past few years, and after lis tening to Cuomo’s interview, it has made the answer to that question very simple. As long as he refuses to take responsibility for his behavior, I will no longer support his music.

Throughout the segment where Cuomo was challenging all of his antisemitic remarks, Ye would con sistently use race as a cover by as serting his disbelief in the concept of antisemitism and the impossi bility of it existing because, in his

opinion, all Black people are Jews. Although it is obvious that his comments are absurd, we should not ignore them because they are a feature of him that we have come to accept. His bipolar disorder cannot be used as an ongoing justification for his hate speech.

to the point that he ended the call saying he did not feel free in the interview. He defended every comment he said by speaking the “truth” that no one else will.

Since this most recent incident, Ye has continually displayed no regret for his behavior in every interview. Ye has had a lot of similar issues in the past, and they have only gotten worse over time. Additionally, it is crucial to recognize that the impact of his past work can never be erased, but how we view his past work should absolutely be qualified. After this incident, although I will no longer be supporting, we should not shame anyone that is continuing to stream his music.

As members of the North eastern community, we should hold artists responsible for their actions. By handling situations like this improperly, celebrities have been obtaining a larger platform than what they had from the start. While there are several ways to approach the issue properly, ignoring it is the only incorrect path to take. Others might hear more good than bad in his music, but I don’t feel we should support him or his music until he can truly accept responsibility for his past and present actions.

Unlike Morgan, Cuomo held Ye accountable throughout the entire conversation, which made Ye incredibly defensive and upset

Arlette Lomeli-Azoubel is a firstyear political science and sociology combined major. She can be reached at lomeli-azoubel.a@northeastern.edu.

Photo courtesy Allana Knowles

Photo courtesy Arlette LomeliAzoubel

“If a musician’s hate speech enters their music, it is challenging to distinguish the artist from their work if the work itself is also harmful.”

— Arlette LomeliAzoubel Northeastern student

“Banning books, and censorship of any kind, puts education at risk.”

— Allana Knowles Northeastern student