The Maneater: Vol. 87 Issue 2

M The Maneater The student voice of MU since 1955 | www.themaneater.com | Vol. 87 Issue 2 | Oct. 7, 2020

Students protest on Lowry Mall during a walkout to support graduate student Jonathan Butler’s hunger strike on Nov. 5, 2015.

Protesters exit Jesse Hall on Oct. 2 in Columbia, Mo. Three hours were spent inside the building protesting.

PHOTO BY EMILY NEVILS

PHOTO BY OLIVIA ANDERSON

2015

2020

Deja vu ACTIVISM SYDNEY LEWIS Reporter

MU students have persistently protested injustice since the university’s founding in 1839, but three parallel movements stand out in particular.

The first movement of documented racial activism at MU began in 1958 when several Black students protested discrimination in local restaurants. The Congress of Racial Equality chapter created at that time staged several sit-ins at restaurants who refused to serve Black customers. This direct action

resulted in the integration of many restaurants in downtown Columbia.

The 1960s brought another wave of racial activism at MU. The Legion of Black Collegians was founded in 1968 by members of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. The group was formed after “confrontations between white and black students at a football game when, as part of Mizzou tradition, a Confederate flag was waved while the marching band played,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The LBC is still active at MU today and is the only Black student government in the nation.

Michael Middleton, one of MU’s first Black law graduates and the

ELECTION

Lack of clarity leads to confusion about mail-in voting

BY SOPHIE CARITE Reporter

& EVELYN LEWIS Reporter

This year has seen an unprecedented amount of attention on mailin voting due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but that attention comes with many misunderstandings and a lack of clarity. In general, MU students

seem to be in favor of mail-in voting and the measures recently enacted to increase its accessibility during the current crisis, but don’t understand exactly how it works.

“I think it makes it more comfortable for people who don’t know how to go out during COVID,” freshman Adria Boudouris said.

“I’d prefer it, but I’m

A history of racial justice activism at MU

not sure how to do it. I might just drive home, it’s not that far.”

Boudouris isn’t alone. Several students admitted that while they were in favor of the expansion of mail-in voting, they were personally still planning to vote in person due to either a lack of knowledge See Voting on 3

first Black law professor at MU, personally delivered 15 demands to MU on behalf of LBC in 1969 while he was still a student.

The 15 demands included an increase in numbers of Black faculty, allocation of funding for a new Black Culture House and the removal of the Confederate Rock from any university or public property. The rock sat at the corner of South Ninth Street and Conley Avenue, also known as Speaker’s Circle, in 1935. It was donated to the City of Columbia by the United Daughters of the Confederacy with a plaque that reads, “to honor the valor and patriotism of confederate See Protest on 4

COVID-19

MU students experience delays in contact tracing

BY SAMANTHA DIETEL

University News Reporter

After reporting a positive COVID-19 test result Sept. 5, MU freshman Maya Kitchens has yet to be reached by a contact tracer.

Kitchens is one of many students who have experienced delayed responses

from MU contact tracers. Since campus reopened in August, over a thousand students have reported COVID-19 cases for contact tracers.

When asked if contact tracing is behind at the university, MU spokesperson Christian Basi said that contact tracers are connecting with students within one to

two days.

“We certainly would like for it to be less and we’re continuing to work hard at reducing it, but it also depends on the number of new cases that come in each day,” Basi said in an email.

As of Thursday, contact tracing is five or six days behind See COVID on 5

2

THE MANEATER | NEWS | O ctober 2, 2020

in this

Issue

5 COVID-19

7 TIKTOK

The Maneater is the official student publication of the University of Missouri and operates independently of the university, student government, the School of Journalism and any other campus entity.

All text, photos, graphics and other content are property of The Maneater and may not be reproduced without permission. The views and opinions expressed herein are not necessarily the views of the University of Missouri or the MU Student Publications Board.

Reporters for The Maneater are required to offer verification of all quotes for each source. If you notice an inaccuracy in one of our stories, please contact us via phone or email.

G210 Student Center, Columbia, MO 65211 Phone: 573.882.5500 Fax: 573.882.5550 Email: editors@themaneater.com Website: www.themaneater.com Twitter: @themaneater Instagram: @themaneater Facebook: themaneaterMU “With a beard, you could bump that up to an 8.”

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News

MU expands COVID-19 dashboard, some say changes are inadequate

BY EMMET JAMIESON ‘It brings warmth to my soul’: MU freshman finds his voice with the Veritas music team

BY SAMANTHA DIETEL

Mizzou for Joe pushes blue as 2020 election nears Mizzou for Joe team leader Dalton Crawford explains the goals of the group and how students can get involved.

BY TEAGAN KING Reporter

Student group Mizzou for Joe, is reaching out to MU students to try to motivate them to vote for Joe Biden as they head to the polls on Nov. 3.

Dalton Crawford, a sophomore, was initially part

of the Mizzou for Warren organization on campus, but turned to Mizzou Democrats for help once she dropped out of the race. When they told him there was not yet a Mizzou for Joe group on campus, he decided to take matters into his own hands and establish it himself, blaming it on “a mixture of quarantine boredom and just wanting to do my part for the election.”

Crawford said he “very begrudgingly” supported Biden at first, but he now believes in Biden’s mission and that he is the candidate that, once elected, can “move on to the progress we want.”

“If you have any questions,

even if you’re not sure you want to join, I’m free to talk … if you’re just not sure about who you’re voting for yet, or voting at all,” Crawford said.

Mizzou for Joe works in coordination with both the state and national Students for Biden organization. Crawford is also chair of the Students for Biden chapter in Missouri.

The Mizzou for Joe Twitter account posted on June 30, “Electing Joe Biden isn’t as simple as just advocating for Joe. It’s going to take Democrats getting elected up and down the ballot in MO to secure a victory.” Crawford explained that Missouri is “not that big of a priority for

the campaign, so we kind of do whatever we can to help out of state.”

The group used activities such as phone banks to contribute to Biden’s goal to “restore the soul of the nation.” He has referenced this idea often since the beginning of his campaign, and all across his website, complete with a header that features the slogan.

In a May 17 tweet, the Mizzou for Joe Twitter said, “We beat Donald Trump when we unite behind Joe Biden.

Conservatives, Moderates, progressives, or even Democratic Socialists, Joe is working to be the candidate to

unite us all and save the soul of the nation.”

Crawford explained that the goal of Mizzou for Joe is to boost Biden’s image among students at MU, and to encourage them to vote in the approaching November election, now less than a months away.

This election season, he hopes that Mizzou for Joe can “push amongst young people that he may not be everything we want, but he’s a good candidate, and he’s who we need right now to beat Donald Trump.”

Edited by Joy Mazur jmazur@themaneater.com

From Voting on 1 about how to vote by mail or anxiety about the reliability of the process.

This is despite the fact that they would have to return home to other towns or states, often hours away, to do so.

A number of students expressed uncertainty about mail-in voting due to the amount of conflicting information circulating about it.

“I’ve seen a lot of news about the things in Wisconsin where they were literally taking out the mailboxes,” MU junior Shannon Keller said.

Keller was referring to a viral tweet from Aug. 14 of a photo of a pile of defunct mailboxes, captioned, “Photo taken in Wisconsin. This is happening right before our eyes. They are sabotaging USPS to sabotage vote by mail.” The claim of the photo being evidence of voter suppression has been investigated and proven false by both Vox and USA Today, but the damage done by this and other misleading claims and stories is not so easily undone.

“A lot of the news going around is about ‘Oh, they’ll lose your vote,’” MU sophomore Marc Loftus said. “I don’t know if that’s true or not, but I don’t want to risk it — I’d rather have the certainty of in-person.”

Absentee voting in America can be traced as far back as the Civil War, when Abraham Lincoln wanted to ensure the votes of soldiers serving away from home would be counted, Paul Gronke, a professor of political science at Reed College, told Time Magazine. Since then, this form of mail-in voting has been used nationwide to ensure Americans under extenuating circumstances would be able to participate in elections, and 2020 will be no different.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson recently signed into law legislation

that both expanded the options for absentee voting and created a system for requesting a no-excuse-necessary mailin ballot for the 2020 election, following concern over the spread of COVID-19 in polling places around the state.

In past years, absentee voting has been available to Missouri residents who would be unable to vote in the polling place on Election Day either due to a disability, absence from the state or a host of other reasons. For the Nov. 3 2020 election, anyone who has either contractred or who is considered “at risk” for COVID19 will also be able to request an absentee ballot. In order to be eligible, voters must either currently have COVID-19 or fall under a certain list of seven preexisting conditions ranging from having diabetes to being older than 65.

As of June 4, all registered Missouri voters will be able to request a mail-in ballot, regardless of their health or risk condition. Mail-in ballots must be requested either in-person or by mail from a local election authority by the second Wednesday prior to Nov. 3, no later than 5 p.m.

Local election authorities will then mail out a ballot, which must be received by the election authority in the provided envelope, signed by a notary, by 7 p.m. the night of the election.

“I think that, especially for collegeaged voters and people voting for the first time, it’s really confusing to request an absentee ballot or a mailin ballot since we have no experience with big elections,” Ashley Webb, an MU freshman and first-time voter, said. “Personally, I didn’t even know

GRAPHIC BY JACOB LAGESSE

Conflicting information on how the mail-in ballot process works has led students to be more hesitant about it when choosing how to vote.

there was a difference in Missouri.”

All mail-in ballots must be signed by a licensed notary. And while it is required by Missouri state law that all absentee ballots be notarized for free, this does not apply to the new mailin ballots being offered. However, a group of notaries across the state have already begun to offer their services at no charge to anyone who makes an appointment. In Boone County alone, 12 have made themselves available at no charge.

“It feels like there’s a real lack of clarity from the state or at least not a

big information push,” Webb said. “It seems like my friends and a lot of other people assume with mail-in voting that you just get a ballot and send it back but it’s a little more complicated than that.”

Despite varying opinions and concerns about voting by mail, all students interviewed did definitively say they were intending on voting in the upcoming election, a promising sign for voter turnout.

Edited by Lucy Caile lcaile@themaneater.com

4

THE MANEATER | NEWS | O ctober 7, 2020

MU students throughout history have advocated for the rights of the Black community on campus. who have purposefully, removal of Tim Wolfe as UM the protests of the 1960s and The hashtag drew the From Protest on 1 strategically and consistently System’s president, and also ‘70s to 2015, “It is all part of the attention of administrators. soldiers of Boone County.” these concerns in support of Jonathan Butler same movement … So it is not Vice Chancellor Bill Stackman The rock was moved to the brought “Other campus Boone County Courthouse in to the attention of your and his endeavors to generate dramatically different. These tweeted, administration …

To not change,” one attendee told the students were doing exactly leaders and I are listening 1975; Black students said it the same things that we were to and learning from these was “a symbol of continuing acknowledge the protestors, Columbia Missourian.

On Nov. 7, Black football doing. It is almost from the students’ experiences. We racism on campus.” It rested organizers, students, faculty playbook.” want to help the healing outside the courthouse until and staff that have taken of p l a y e r s their time and energy to hold a n n o u n c e d process and make a better September of 2015 when Middleton was future for our Tigers.” a petition with hundreds you and your administration they would not September 2015 is very participate in of signatures called for its accountable Protests began when interim President Choi responded to the series football until 2016 when of tweets in a statement: “I removal. It is now at the disrespectful and paints a “any then-MSA President false image of the work that related activities the Board of call upon each one of us to Centralia Battlefield historic Curators hired take the stand to confront site, the site of the Centralia your administration has been until President Payton Head publicly Wolfe Mun Choi for discrimination when it massacre where 23 unarmed doing on this campus,” Butler Tim posted about his wrote. resigns or is the permanent happens and to provide care Union soldiers On Oct. 10, 2015, removed due to experiences with position.

In and compassion to those who were murdered in 1958 protestors blocked his negligence racism on campus.

2020, the Board have suffered from it.”

1864. consolidated In early August, a student The n e x t The first movement Wolfe’s car during t o w a r d the Homecoming m a r g i n a l i z e d Choi’s power by group #StillConcerned movement against of documented parade.

They students’ experiences.”

When combining the UM System released a series of demands, racial injustice at racial activism at stopped his car, the athletes began their President and MU Chancellor some paralleling the demands MU came in the but received boycott, they were about one positions. He now presides from 2015. Among the seven wake of Michael MU began when no immediate week away from a football over the four system campuses demands is an apology and Brown’s murder in several Black response. Wolfe’s game against Brigham Young as well as being the Chancellor resignation from Choi, the Ferguson, Mo. on students protested car tapped one University. of the Columbia campus. creation of a student-led Aug. 9, 2014, when of the protesters Other players and members Five years after the 2015 board of racial inclusion, the protests erupted discrimination in in an attempt of the coaching staff stood protests, and in the wake of reversal of the combination of t h r o u g h o u t local restaurants. to continue in behind the boycott, supporting George Floyd’s death, Black the UM System President and Missouri.

In the parade. The the demands of Concerned Lives Matter protests sprang MU Chancellor positions and response, three up around the country. the removal of the Thomas Black students founded MU incident created outrage Student 1950.

Following the boycott, MSA Throughout the summer, Jefferson statue. for Mike Brown and organized that ended 15 minutes after confrontation began released a statement calling several groups The Maneater several protests on campus. the published an These protests set the stage when police dispersed the on the UM System Board of organized protests Nov. 9, 2015 Curators to remove Wolfe, on campus and editorial in for the wave of activism that protesters.

Wolfe resigned Concerned saying h e in the city of late August swept across MU just over one as UM System Student 1950, 1969 has “enabled Columbia. standing with year later. g r ou p a culture of Since t h e President, one the members of Then-Vice President of the the Michael Middleton, racism” at MU. summer, students #StillConcerned, Missouri Students Association responsible for one of the first Black the protest, Deans from have been calling week after the and pushing for Brenda Smith Lezama said, start of Butler’s issued a list nine colleges for the removal their demands “there has not been a time law graduates and demands wrote a letter to of the statue of hunger strike. to be met. This since Ferguson that activism of the first Black law Wolfe and the UM Thomas Jefferson includes calling hasn’t been at the forefront to MU on Oct. 20.

The list of Board of Curators o n F r a n c i s Wolfe’s resignation for the removal professor at MU, of our university. It never eight demands e x p r e s s i n g Quadrangle.

A of Choi, whom avoided over $1 stopped after Ferguson.” personally delivered an their “deep petition with over the editorial “The death of Michael included million in costs for and 15 demands to MU on concern about 3,000 signatures board called Brown, along with reaction apology the multitude calls for the MU. a “dictatorial to it at Mizzou, occurred not r e s i g n a t i o n behalf of LBC while Wolfe, crises on statue’s removal leader.” in a vacuum but instead in a from he was still a student. of our flagship and in response, a Activism has also time of growing attention to an increase in campus,” and counter-petition was created spread to student-athletes police brutality, policing of the percentage minority communities and of Black faculty, a plan ultimately calling for Loftin’s in favor of keeping the statue much like it did in 2015. On white supremacism more for increased retention of removal. This letter came on campus. The MU Black Sept. 2, a newly formed student generally,” wrote MU Law marginalized students and one week after the English Faculty and Staff Organization group, the Mizzou Black Professor Ben Trachtenberg in increased funding for social Department held a 26-0-2 issued a statement to Choi Student-Athlete Association, justice centers and mental vote of no confidence in Loftin. supporting the removal of the organized a march to 2018. health counseling.

The Department of Romance statue. “promote unity against the In the fall of 2015, protests Some students also called Languages and Literature also Despite the call from faculty, injustices that continue in the in response to a series of staff and students, Choi nation.” Hundreds of students racist incidents on campus for the removal of the Thomas held a vote of no confidence.

Wolfe resigned decided not attended the event. garnered national attention. Jefferson statue and tombstone which sit on the east side as UM System to remove the In a letter published on The protests ultimately led to Oct. 20, 2015 on statue. “We learn Sept. 14, 15 journalism the resignation of then-UM of Francis Quadrangle. The President statue was not removed.

Nov. 9, one week Concerned Student from history. We professors expressed their System President Tim Wolfe.

Concerned Student 1950 after the start of 1950, the group c o n t e x t u a l i z e “disappointment” in a The protests began in met with Wolfe on Oct. 26, at Butler’s hunger historical figures series of Choi’s actions.

This September of 2015 when then responsible for the with complex includes his discouragement MSA President Payton Head which time he refused to meet strike.

Had Wolfe not protest, issued a list legacies.

We of dissent and singling out of publicly posted about his their demands.

Wolfe was “dismissive” of resigned, the of demands to MU. don’t remove two journalism professors in experiences with racism on history,” he said. an interview, according to the campus. The post went viral, Black students’ concerns, football team’s C h o i letter. attracting attention around prompting Butler to launch a strike would have In addition to racial activism, the country and at MU. Then- hunger strike on Nov. 2. He continued, and the university “recommended that university Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin was to continue the strike would have lost over $1 faculty and students explore the COVID-19 pandemic has issued a statement calling until “either Tim Wolfe is million for forfeiting the game how MU can contextualize added to the stream of dissent the “recent incidents of bias removed from office or until against BYU and breaking this historical figure,” in a against the MU administration. press release from MU. The A recently formed coalition of and discrimination … totally [his] internal organs fail and their contract. [his] life is lost.”

Loftin resigned from university has since installed groups called the MO Coalition unacceptable.”

During the hunger strike, his position as chancellor lights, security cameras and for COVID Safety issued a In late September and early Student 1950 hours after Wolfe but did a $20,000 acrylic case around series of demands to President October of 2015, graduate Concerned and undergraduate students created a petition for Wolfe’s not leave the university. He his marker in response to Choi and the UM System Board of Curators on organized a series of “Racism removal. The petition received instead moved to a research v a n d a l i s m over 7,000 signatures from coordination role that, two concerns.

Sept. 14. Among Lives Here” protests.

Sept. 17, 2020 years later, became the subject Over the the demands In response to continuing students and faculty.

Five days into the strike, of an audit report alleging s u m m e r , 15 journalism is moving to racist incidents and the used professors fully online ensuing protests, Loftin Wolfe issued a statement that he earned 32% more than students apologizing for his conduct at other administrative research social media as a i n s t r u c tion, released a plan for diversity platform to share published a letter removal of training for incoming the Homecoming parade, the faculty. He has since retired.

Within days, the UM System their experiences expressing their the Jefferson freshmen. This plan received first acknowledgment he made statue, removal mixed feedback from students. of the incident. The statement Board of Curators named at MU. Using “disappointment” was met with skepticism from Middleton, co-founder of LBC, #BlackatMizzou of Choi from In response, Jonathan Butler, a Twitter, in a series of Choi’s all leadership then-graduate student, wrote Butler and other members of interim UM System President. on He was stepping into the role students and actions. p o s i t i o n s , an open letter to Loftin in The Concerned Student 1950.

Students began a camp out to which he delivered demands alumni have i n c r e a s e d Maneater. in support of Butler’s protest. on racial equality 46 years shared incidents of racism COVID-19 testing and “You have students, they have experienced on transparency and the especially those doing They set up tents by Traditions prior.

Middleton said in comparing campus. unmerging of UM System grassroots organizing … Plaza “to push for the

THE MANEATER | NEWS | O ctobe r 7, 2020

President and MU Chancellor positions.

“If you are a leader, a senior leader at the university, and you don’t agree with the philosophy of the university or you don’t trust the motivations of the senior leaders, then I think you should leave,” Choi said in the Columbia Tribune.

Choi’s statement, faculty said, is “furthering a culture where faculty and staff were specifically targeted for disagreeing with Choi’s decisions,” according to the Missourian.

Choi has also had his fair share of dissent from students who have criticized his handling of COVID-19 and racism on campus. Choi blocked several students on Twitter, including student journalists.

After the threat of a lawsuit, Choi unblocked those students. MU Spokesperson Christian Basi said, “he decided to reverse his actions because the university does not need the distraction caused by this matter.”

Stackman is aware of the eerily similar circumstances of 2015

and 2020 surrounding racial tension. The addition of COVID19 concerns has made the MU administration wary of dissent on both counts. In a meeting with faculty in June, Stackman said, “widespread protests could impact enrollment, financially impacting our division … 2015 was devastating. And so the last thing that our president and our curators want to risk is something so damaging like 2015.”

Edited by Joy Mazur jmazur@themaneater.com

5

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MU says COVID-19 contact tracing occurs within two days, but students indicate otherwise.

From COVID on 1 at the county level, according to Ashton Day, a health educator at the Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services. Day also explained that MU’s contact tracing is separate from the county. This partnership, she said, was created in anticipation of the students returning to campus. “[MU conducting its own contact tracing] helps share the load then, and it makes it a little easier in terms of contact tracing and case investigation because as a university, they have access to everyone’s contact information through email,” Day said.

Some students believe that MU contact tracing

GRAPHIC BY HEERAL PATEL

is severely delayed.

For example, a contact tracer did not reach out to Kitchens after one of her friends reported a COVID-19 infection Sept. 2, five days after Kitchens had been in close proximity to her friend.

Kitchens, who believed she had been exposed to the virus, called the MU Student Health Center to ask about receiving a coronavirus test Sept. 3.

She was denied a test, despite the fact that she was also experiencing a cough.

“I didn’t know I was positive,” Kitchens said.

“Not getting tested … and not knowing if you’re positive for five days, that’s five days worth of people that you’ve been exposing, and that’s just not good.”

Her cough quickly disappeared and she had

already booked a plane flight for Sept. 4 to spend Labor Day weekend at home in Birmingham, Ala., so she continued with her holiday plans.

She boarded the plane and flew home.

“I got home and my mom made me get tested, and I tested positive,” Kitchens said.

Kitchens received her positive test result Sept. 5 and reported it to the university immediately. She also made sure to notify her friends and others with whom she had been in contact, in case they were not notified by the university.

“It’s up to the students to report to their friends if they’ve been in contact,” Kitchens said. “The university isn’t going to tell you.

We’re the ones who are responsible for letting

people know that we have coronavirus.”

Though a contact tracer did not reach her, she received phone calls from both the Department of Residential Life and the Student Health Center.

Residential Life called to make sure that she had living accommodations outside of her residence hall. The Student Health Center told Kitchens that she would be connected with a contact tracer by Sept. 8 — which never happened.

Kitchens believes the lack of communication with MU contact tracers is concerning since infected students might unknowingly spread the virus. She also thinks that MU should test exposed students.

“You could just go out into the world and just spread it, and you have no idea,” Kitchens said.

“Like you’re going into elevators and touching buttons, and you’re walking around. For me, I was positive and I got on a plane and I didn’t know. My cough kind of went away before I got on the plane, otherwise, I would have canceled my trip.”

Kitchens is currently quarantining at home in Alabama, with plans to return to campus Thursday. She had to contact MU to find out for how long she was required to quarantine since she says that no one had given her instructions.

Once she called, the Student Health Center told Kitchens to quarantine for 10 days instead of 14. She still plans to quarantine for two full weeks, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends.

“I think 10 days is substantial,” said

MU freshman Chloe Lewis, who also had to quarantine after contracting COVID19. “I know that [the university] would not allow this unless it was an effective time period.”

Lewis does not recall being contacted by an MU contact tracer. Her quarantine period ended Sept. 5.

Kitchens’ friend Emma McCormick, another MU freshman, also experienced a delay with contact tracing.

McCormick tested positive for COVID-19 Aug. 31 and reported the result to MU the same day. The next morning, Residential Life and the Student Health Center called. However, it took several days for contact tracers to reach her.

“I was answering every random number on my phone, which was so annoying, and then it wasn’t until Friday night [Sept. 4] that a contact tracer called me,” McCormick said. “And it was for my friend that had tested positive [on Aug. 30].”

McCormick explained to the contact tracer that she had already been aware of her exposure from her friend and that she had already tested positive for COVID-19.

She also told the contact tracer that it had already been almost a week since she received her test result, yet she still had not heard from her own contact tracer.

“They were like, ‘Well, we don’t really know, but it should be soon,’” McCormick said.

McCormick’s contact tracer called her the next morning.

McCormick provided the names of the people she may have exposed, which were a few friends who were

already quarantining due to positive coronavirus test results. “[The contact tracer] didn’t ask for their phone numbers or anything, which I thought was weird,” McCormick said.

McCormick added that the friends she named had not been contacted about their possible exposure.

“The contact tracing was super delayed,” she said. “I kept getting told that I was going to get a case investigator, but never did.”

McCormick also said that her friend Kate Taylor, an MU freshman, had not been reached by a contact tracer or case investigator after testing positive for COVID-19.

This prompted Taylor to call several different offices and she learned that MU had no record of her positive test result. By this time, Taylor had completed her quarantine period and needed a release form in order to return to campus.

“After the whole ‘we lost your test,’ kind of thing, [Kate] just got a release form in her email, so it was kind of sketchy,” McCormick said.

Concerned about obtaining her own release form, McCormick, who lives in Columbia, reached out to the Boone County health department.

“For me, I really had a smooth experience except for no one contacting me,” McCormick said. “I feel like if I wouldn’t have reached out to Boone County, I would never have been released either.”

Edited by Lucy Caile lcaile@themaneater.com

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BY ANNA WATSON

SOCIAL DISTANCE

Online students explore personality expression during a pandemic Without the interaction of in-person school, students can still find outlets of expression.

CHLOE KONRAD

MOVE Angles Assistant Editor

If you’ve ever seen a tour group around campus before, you might have spotted a few of them looking more at the surrounding students than listening to their tour guide.

There are a lot of big questions asked of college students by their younger peers as they search for a school. But sometimes simple queries can make all the difference, like: “What do people wear to class?”

In any average school year, fashion is one of many outlets of expression. You can wear sweatpants and a t-shirt to class or a dress and full makeup and no one will judge you either way.

For some, fashion is wholly unimportant. For others, it’s a way to show who they are when they can’t find another way.

Now that we find ourselves in the year of COVID-19. How do we express ourselves?

We see each other almost exclusively through a screen: there is no one to see your outfit in Speaker’s Circle and, quite honestly, it’s hard to even get dressed in the morning.

The most fashion-driven and self-confident will argue that they dress for themselves, so why not still do it? And they have a point. If what you’re wearing brings you joy in this time of darkness, don’t let the lack of exposure stop you. I know I feel better when I’m wearing one of my favorite outfits. But for those who are struggling to express themselves with a mostly online schedule, there might be a few new things for you to try out.

Our classmates might not see our outfits anymore, but they do see one aspect of our life, and a quite personal one at that: our room. Now, if you’re looking to demonstrate who you are to your peers, I see this as a perfect opportunity to go crazy with it. Are you a blank wall Zoomer? Fairy lights? Posters and photos?

Or wait ... an outside Zoomer?

Self-expression through your

GRAPHIC BY MICHELLE GUTIERREZ Zoom background just might have the potential to replace the campus fashion show for the time being.

Creativity has been on the rise since COVID-19 shut everything down. I have seen more small artists in my feeds in the last few months than I probably ever have

and a whole lot of DIYs from some unexpected crafters. If decoration and dressing up are not for you, you might find solace in a new art form.

Stay-at-home orders had everyone feeling a little lost.

Now, online school means students are experiencing some of the same emotions.

We’re all struggling to find ways to express ourselves when we’re locked up in our rooms, but inspiration can be found in places as simple as your closet, your wall or your Instagram feed.

Edited by George Frey gfrey@themaneater.com

ROOTS N BLUES

Postponement of Roots N Blues Festival causes difficulties for local businesses This time last year, Rebecca Miller, owner of Peggy Jean’s Pies, was helping her employees prepare over 3,000 pie shells and over 200 dozen cookies for Columbia’s Roots N Blues Festival.

This year, Miller said the kitchen at Peggy Jean’s Pies feels much emptier.

“It feels off, like what am I forgetting?” Miller said. “Then I’m like, oh, it’s because I don’t need somebody to come in here and get 3,000 pie shells ready.”

Miller is one of many business owners in the Columbia area who is feeling the effects of the postponement of the Roots N Blues Festival. The festival, held every fall in Columbia, involves a slew of performances from local musicians and nationally known artists, as well as local businesses

that sell food and retail goods.

In June, festival co-owners Shay SE ES G Jasper, Tracy LA Lane and Jamie V a r v a r o announced that Roots N Blues would be postponed u n t i l September 2021.

“In alliance with our fellow festival promoters, we are choosing to postpone our event until a time when it is safe for the return of the communal experience of live music,” the co-owners said in a statement on the festival’s website.

BY J AC OB

Culture Reporter

GRAPHIC

BY ANGELINA EDWARDS

The festival’s website states that 95% of the lineup for 2020 has been successfully retained for the 2021 date.

Headliners Brandi Carlile, B r i t t a n y H o w a r d , Sheryl Crow and Mavis Staples are still slated to play next year.

For local b u s i n e s s e s , the festival’s postponement has caused missed financial opportunities and trouble reaching new customers.

Roots N Blues has a multitude of local vendors who gain exposure as well as

extra revenue from setting up booths at the festival. With businesses already struggling due to the pandemic, the festival’s postponement has proved even tougher for businesses like Miller’s.

Miller said that Peggy Jean’s Pies normally doesn’t participate in many out-of-store opportunities because of the difficulties of baking and transporting pies in large numbers.

Roots N Blues is one of the only events her business attends. Not having the festival this year, she said, causes her business to miss out on thousands of dollars in sales.

Tailgates are also a popular source of revenue for Peggy Jean’s Pies, and with the tailgating ban at Missouri football games, Miller said the store is losing more opportunities to sell.

Vickie McFarland, co-owner of The See Music on 8

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THE MANEATER | MOVE | O ctober 7, 2020 TIK TOK

FITNESS

Students and staff stay active on campus

Whether holding a yoga pose in front of their computer or swiping into the now pandemicfriendly MizzouRec, students and staff continue to pursue fitness on campus.

ANNASOFIA SCHEVE MOVE Reporter

GRAPHIC BY JACOB LAGESSE

The many sides of TikTok Even if it has been restricted, the videos of your “For You Page” can tell you a lot more than you think.

PETRA RIVERA

MOVE Angles Columnist

Since 2019, TikTok has been in the top 20 most downloaded apps in the world.

Seriously, there is not a day that goes by where I don’t watch TikTok or at least talk about it with someone else. Getting off the topic of my TikTok addiction, throughout 2019 there have been many iconic trends on TikTok, whether it’s a new dance or a super weird “point of view.”

While these trends evolved, they were categorized by TikTok users. This began with just “Straight TikTok’’ and “Alt TikTok,’’ and with time, these categories became even more specific. For those who are confused, let me explain these in more detail. “Straight TikTok,” to start off, is the more mainstream side of TikTok. This is where you find Charli D’Amelio dancing or different challenges and trends. Alt TikTok is the complete opposite. This side of TikTok contains the type of humor that you find on Vine. It is meant to be more creative and out of the box.

After a while of identifying with Straight TikTok and Alt TikTok, people moved on to categorizing their TikToks more specifically to their interests. Just to name a few, there is “Cooking TikTok,” “Dog TikTok” and “Painting Tiktok.”

They could be specific to the place you live, like “Missouri TikTok,” or a place you want to visit, such as “Greece TikTok” or

“New York TikTok.” If you have a really distinct aesthetic, you are probably on that aesthetic’s TikTok, such as “Softgirl TikTok” or “Cottagecore TikTok.” If you have a specific interest, such as taking photos or playing a sport, you can find its side of TikTok. If you like a specific movie or show, you are probably on their TikTok, like “Friends TikTok” or “Twilight TikTok.” I am a huge Harry Potter fan, so I am on “Harry Potter TikTok,” more specifically “Draco Malfoy TikTok.” One of my friends grew up listening to NPR with her family and this led her to being on “NPR TikTok.” No matter what your interests are, you will be able to find it on the app or it will pop up on your “For You Page.” Each side of TikTok has their own trends and inside jokes. On “Christmas TikTok,” people love to make videos of baking Christmas treats to beloved Christmas hits. “Draco Malfoy TikTok” ties into the fanfiction side of the app, where people fantasize about their romantic relationships with Draco Malfoy. On Photography TikTok, you can see others’ work and get inspiration for your photos. You will always know when you have reached your side of TikTok just by the audio or the context of the video.

You can tell a lot about a person from looking at their “For You Page” and what sides of TikTok they’re on. You can tell what their interests are, what their humor is and what they value. It’s also not that deep, and it can just be a funny TikTok. Think about what side of TikTok you are on. It says a lot more about you than you would think.

Edited by George Frey gfrey@themaneater.com

Fitness on campus is looking a little different. COVID19 shut down gyms across the country for months, leaving both casual gym-goers and serious fitness fanatics to get creative with working out. Now that the academic year at MU is in full swing with one foot in the virtual world and one in the classroom, students are returning to traditional ways of fitness while also embracing technology to work out from home.

As gyms opened up across the country, concerns grew about the possible spread of COVID-19 in fitness facilities. With these concerns in mind, MizzouRec updated its policies on Aug. 19 ahead of the school year in anticipation for students and staff to return. These measures included requiring masks when entering and moving through the facility, increased cleaning procedures and six-feet spacing of equipment.

MU sophomore Kermit Kreder works out five days a week at MizzouRec and said they have implemented many changes, such as maximum capacities for workout rooms and moving equipment to accommodate for social distancing.

“They added a bunch of different equipment to one of the basketball courts in the back and made that another little weight room kind of area,” Kreder said.

Kreder believes MizzouRec is living up to the policies it set forth in August.

“I think the Rec’s a good place to go,” Kreder said. “The workers have been diligent about enforcing the mask rules, ” According to MizzouRec’s Twitter page, it is also offering virtual personal training services.

Virtual classes and resources have become a forefront of fitness for those who aren’t comfortable in the gym setting just yet. Columbia-based personal trainer Khalil Roth-Folly of Cali Fit is in the process of creating an app that will include a complete workout guide.

Many of his clients are college-aged students and he said he was inspired to start creating the app in order to meet changing needs during a time when people were staying at home.

“That’s when I kind of dug deep and tried to figure out how I could help even more people since it seemed like a lot of people were in need of that,” Roth-Folly said. “A lot of people were at home binge eating or really falling off their exercise regimes.”

Virtual fitness is also finding its way to more relaxing forms of exercise. Through the MU Wellness Resource Center, Health Educator Andrea Kimura teaches the free Energizing Yoga class, which students and staff can sign up for on Engage.

The Hatha practice of yoga that is taught in these classes is especially conducive to stress relief,” Kimura said.

“The style I teach is helping the individual de-stress, relax and stretch,” Kimura said.

Kimura said holding these classes online has made yoga much more accessible for students.

“I have seen people who maybe would not have come to a yoga class face-to-face for many reasons,” Kimura said.

“They have this preconceived notion of who yoga is for. Yoga is for everybody. And I mean everybody as a person and I mean every body, every size body, every range of motion body.”

Whether it’s an intense workout or a more calming yoga flow, students are adapting to the challenges that COVID-19 has presented. In these stressful times, finding ways to keep the body active and relaxed is important to taking care of the mind as well, Kimura said.

“We know that the mind and the body are linked,” Kimura said.

Edited by Sophie Stephens sstephens@themaneater.com

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THE MANEATER | MOVE | O ctober 7, 2020

The festival’s postponement has caused financial issues as well as missed outreach opportunities for local businesses who had planned to be vendors.

From Music on 6

Big Cheeze Mizzou food truck, said in an email that the postponement will also cause financial hardships for her business.

The Big Cheeze Mizzou has been a vendor at the festival for two years under McFarland and her partner Mario Wright’s ownership.

“This event, along with other festivals in the fall help carry us through the winter months when sales are slow,” McFarland wrote in an email. “This event alone could pay our bills

for a couple months.”

Roots N Blues, McFarland wrote, introduces The Big Cheeze Mizzou to new customers who aren’t from the area.

The festival attracts many fans from outside of Columbia, bringing local businesses customers who would have never before found their store. Last year, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported about 10,000-15,000 attendees per each day of the three-day-long celebration.

For Mark Haim,

director of Mid-Missouri Peaceworks, the losses are less of a financial burden and rather a missed opportunity to promote a message of social change. MidMissouri Peaceworks is a grassroots, nonprofit organization that works on sustainability, climate change and peace and justice issues.

M i d - M i s s o u r i Peaceworks owns and operates the Peace Nook, a non-profit store selling fair trade imports, books and other items.

This year would be

Peace Nook’s second time participating in Roots N Blues Festival.

Haim said being a vendor last year was a great opportunity to reach different people in the community and promote the nonprofit’s work.

“We’re as much interested in promoting Peaceworks’ educational and organizing agenda as we are in promoting sales for the Peace Nook,” Haim said.

Being in a college town, Haim said, can also make retaining volunteers and people interested

in Mid-Missouri Peaceworks difficult.

The organization has been around for almost 40 years, but Haim said it’s important that they continue to reach out to new community members at events like Roots N Blues.

Some business owners are looking hopefully towards 2021 as a safer time to hold the festival.

The Big Cheeze Mizzou, Peggy Jean’s Pies and Peace Nook all hope to return to Roots N Blues next year.

Miller said that even though preparing for

Roots N Blues is hard work, she is eager to participate again next year with her team at Peggy Jean’s Pies and her daughter, who she enjoys the festival with every year.

“I never knew, before I did it, how much work goes into it,” Miller said.

“Despite all that, just the opportunity to hang out in a different way and see different shows and meet new people … you can’t put a financial number on it, but it’s worth something.”

Edited by Sophie Stephens sstephens@themaneater.com

FOOD GRAPHIC BY JACOB LAGESSE

Petition to add Beyond Burgers to campus dining locations hopes to encourage sustainable practices at MU A student activist has created a petition for Campus Dining Services to add sustainable food options across campus.

BY ELIZABETH PRUITT Staff Writer

Plaza 900 Dining employee Zachary Cook, a vegan activist also known as Zman the Vegan, has recently started a petition to get sustainable meat alternative Beyond Burgers placed on Campus Dining Services menus across campus.

“The petition isn’t necessarily about just completely switching them out and mandating that we go to Beyond Burgers, but even just having that option could save a lot of resources and make us go in the right direction of sustainability,” Cook said.

Beyond Meat has put in a lot of research for its products to make them healthy and sustainable for consumers.

According to a report by the University of Michigan’s Center for Sustainable Services, Beyond Meat is an environmentally-friendly option.

“The Beyond Burger generates 90% less greenhouse gas emissions, requires 46% less energy, has >99% less impact on water scarcity and 93% less impact on land use than a ¼ pound of U.S. beef,” the report said.

Eric Cartwright, Campus Dining Service’s executive chef, said in an email that campus dining has tested various meat substitutes and listens to student input and feedback to shape dining options.

“Students approach CDS regularly with interest in specific items,” Cartwright said in an email. “We do our

best to provide it, oftentimes featuring it as a limited time offer and gathering feedback.”

However, Cartwright said that price significantly impacts decisions CDS makes when deciding what food options are put in dining locations.

With concern for the planet and climate change, new options and resources are being presented to help.

Cartwright said CDS already provides two vegan burgers and vegan chicken fingers as plant-based options across campus.

However, Cook believes having the Beyond Burgers on campus could be beneficial to

students that follow plantbased diets or just want to have more environmentallyfriendly food options.

Cartwright said CDS is always looking for new products that help the sustainability of the campus. Students like Cook are helping by presenting new options to CDS and raising awareness to issues they are passionate about.

“I see that we could do a lot more and there’s a lot of people that do care,” Cook said. “I think they just need that fire, that inspiration, to get the ball rolling.”

Edited by Sophie Stephens sstephens@themaneater.com

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CE-LA VIE

Column: Reduce consumption of goods to reduce waste

Column: Abolish MUPD

BY NOAH WRIGHT Columnist

BY CELA MIGAN

clothes altogether, as even buying thrifted clothes uses resources.

Thrifting and buying second-hand has recently become trendy, but it is a necessity for some. While choosing from the same 10 items of clothing for a capsule wardrobe may be a trendy way to take the stress out of choosing an outfit, many individuals work with 10 items of clothing not because they choose to, but because it is their only option.

However, in the age of the coronavirus, single-use is the name of the game. To ensure safety and cleanliness, companies use more packaging and disposable protective equipment, which generates more waste.

To combat COVID-19, 129 billion disposable face masks and 65 billion gloves are used every month globally.

The decline of oil prices has also made plastic cheaper than ever. This

COVID-19 has brought the nature of community safety to national attention. Likewise, the Black Lives Matter movement has called to attention the role of police in our society, questioning if they truly exist to protect and serve as conventionally thought. As we bring these national conversations to a local level, we must also examine the role of MUPD, a police department with primary jurisdiction over MU. If our goal is campus safety, we must ensure that university funds are going to the right places.

According to publicly available information obtained from the MUPD website, there are currently 50 commissioned officers, eight security officers and between 15-50 seasonal part-time campus safety officers employed through MUPD. This police department, according to their website, is equipped with rifles, door-breaching materials, “less-lethal” shotguns, tasers, body cameras and a fleet of vehicles equipped with cameras.

If we take the number posted on the MUPD website, there are around 45,000 people on MU campus on a typical day, although this number is sure to be lower due to COVID19 restrictions. Using the lowest number of part-time officers in a typical year, this means there are approximately 16 officers for every 10,000 people, and the maximum number of seasonal officers leaves us with a figure of about 24 officers per 10,000 people. According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program, the national average of sworn officers per 10,000 residents is 24.

At first glance, the numbers appear to indicate that on a typical day the MU campus is less policed than the national average. However, if we factor in the 174 sworn officers of the Columbia police department, the second department with jurisdiction over MU, the number is closer to an astounding 54 officers per 10,000 people. It must be noted that these officers serve the rest of Columbia, Mo., not just the MU campus. Using the sum of the officers with jurisdiction over MU’s campus and thereby MU students, the ratio indicates that the MU campus is more heavily policed than the cities of Chicago, Kansas City and St. Louis, to name a few (44.2 sworn officers per 10k residents, 29.1 and 38.4, respectively).

Considering the crimes

See ZERO WASTE on 10

See MUPD on 10

Columnist

The world produces at least 3.5 million tons of plastic and other solid waste per day, according to the World Bank. In this age where individual packaging is king and disposable cleaning items are a necessity more than ever, the world needs movements for sustainability and environmental activism. One such movement is called “zero waste.”

Zero waste builds on the principles of preventing waste and reusing resources. It seeks to preserve value, minimize environmental impacts and conserve natural resources. People should go zero waste to become more conscious of the waste they produce and find ways they can change their behavior to be more sustainable. In order to lead a zero-waste life, people should: refuse to buy items with lots of packaging, reduce consumption of goods to only essentials, compost as much waste as possible and recycle.

Members of the zero-waste community are often millennial women who are “embracing a modern minimalist lifestyle,” according to National Geographic.

To go zero waste, environmental journalist Steven Leahy says many zero-waste practitioners purchase fresh food in bulk, make their own cleaning products and come up with innovative ways to supplement their needs to reduce waste. For instance, zero-waste blogger Kathryn Kellog hated making tortillas but didn’t want to buy packaged ones from the grocery store. Her solution was to buy directly from a local Mexican restaurant that was able to use the containers she supplied.

While the average American produces 1,500 pounds of trash a year, Kellog’s waste from the past two years fits inside a 16 ounce mason jar.

Given the quantity of disposable packaged products it uses on a daily basis, MU has produced more trash compared to past years. In 2017, 112 tons of containers were recycled on campus, which is less than half of the ordered containers for five campus dining locations, according to the Columbia Missourian.

This means only a portion of the waste created at MU can be recycled, and a fraction of that is actually recycled. MU students could reduce their waste substantially by employing zero-waste tactics and being mindful about the waste they produce. However, to achieve monumental change would require MU as an institution to go zero waste and provide opportunities for students to compost and recycle.

NOAH NOTICES

GRAPHIC BY NICOLE GUTIERREZ Additionally, only around 10% of all waste gets recycled; the rest goes to landfills. While the U.S. has around 9,000 recycling facilities, many of them have suffered from a lack of funding directed instead toward COVID-19 efforts. Municipalities like Peoria, Ill., Omaha, Neb., New Orleans and Lexington, Va. are considering cutting their curbside recycling programs.

Without recycling facilities, trash that could be recycled end up in landfills instead. Recycling ensures that materials are repurposed and reused. To practice zero waste is to recycle, reuse and reduce consumption of packaged goods as much as possible so that nothing goes to waste.

The mantra of “reduce, reuse, recycle” repeated in elementary school reminds students of how they can help the environment, but they must remember the first R, reduce. Even though thrifting is a great alternative to buying brand-new clothes, the best thing to do is reduce consumption of

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THE MANEATER | OPINIONS | O cto b e r 7, 2020

The concept of zero waste revolves around preventing waste and reusing resources to conserve natural resources and minimize environmental impacts.

From ZERO WASTE on 9 makes it advantageous to use plastic packaging rather than alternative materials such as cellulose and seaweed.

Disposable masks have a lifespan of 450 years, and latex gloves take anywhere from several months to decades to decompose depending on the type of latex used. Not only does disposable personal protective equipment result in more waste, it will exist on Earth for generations to come.

UC Berkeley’s webpage “Staying Environmentally Sustainable COVID-19 Pandemic Recovery” has several strategies for adjusting consumption while dealing with COVID-19. They suggest to make or buy a reusable face mask, use reusable items when possible and, when purchasing single-use items, look for plastics #1, 2, & 7, glass, aluminum and tin to minimize waste going to the landfill.

According to a Scientific American article, although air quality improved when individuals stayed at home, COVID-19’s effect on the oceans is detrimental.

The save the turtles movement, which focused on stopping the use of plastic straws, shook the world and caused several cities, such as Seattle, Los Angeles, San

Francisco and Santa Monica, Calif., to ban plastic straws and single-use plastics. In addition, Starbucks promised to using plastic straws and replaced them with a plastic lid for drinks, and McDonalds banned the use of plastic straws in its UK restaurants.

These straws were instead replaced with biodegradable alternatives.

Conservationists have already seen what they have dubbed “COVID-19 waste” in the oceans and on beaches. The French non-profit Opération Mer Propre found dozens of gloves, masks and bottles of hand sanitizer when picking up litter along the Côte d’Azur.

This problem is not isolated to France either, as hundreds of disposable masks were found on the uninhabited Soko Island beaches in Hong Kong by the investigative environmental group OceansAsia.

Given the economic struggles prompted by COVID19, many companies and restaurants alike turned to using plastic products to save money: Nosediving oil prices made plastic even cheaper. It was only logical for companies to turn to packaging grocery items in cheap single-use plastic rather than more expensive but sustainable and environmentally-friendly options. Restaurants are also guilty of turning to single-use

plastic to suit their growing takeout needs in the absence of in-person dining.

If companies are able to change that quickly in response to the pandemic, why can’t they make the effort to be more sustainable and reduce waste on all fronts?

All of the pressure is put on the consumer to change, when in fact it is producers who have the power and must make the change to make their products more sustainable and be transparent about their processes.

The Carbon Disclosure Project database says 100 companies in the world are responsible for 71% of the world’s carbon emission. In addition, the world’s 3,000 largest companies cause $2.2 trillion worth of environmental damage each year, according to The Guardian. Corporations consume mass amounts of resources and generate mass amounts of waste every year. However, they are not held accountable for these damages and do not have to pay reparations, allowing them to continue to pollute and damage the Earth.

As a consumer, it is understandable to feel helpless in the face of big corporations, but individual action matters. If there is one thing corporations will always listen to, it’s their wallets.

Consumers have the power to change their own behavior to help the earth and also call for corporations to stop polluting and become more sustainable.

Choosing whether or not to support a company depending on their environmental practices motivates companies to be more sustainable in order to keep their customers.

However, it is also important to recognize the privilege associated with choosing to go zero-waste and participate in sustainable practices. There are many individuals who cannot afford to buy bulk produce or may live in a food desert. Items like reusable bags, utensils and containers are an investment, and it is a luxury to be able to choose to change lifestyles.

The MU Sustainability website has a guide to recycling for numerous materials and features a cardboard and paper recycling bin map. The biggest mistake people make when recycling is not rinsing or removing all of the food contents from their container.

Even a small amount of food left in a container will disqualify it from being recycled.

Overall, buy less in general.

If it is essential to buy something, try to buy local and support small businesses.

Also, look at the packaging to see if it is recyclable, and use

reusable bags to eliminate the need for plastic bags.

Small things can make a big difference: use a reusable bag and utensils, only take one napkin at restaurants and make the conscious effort to recycle. If possible, make homemade disinfecting wipes with a cleaning solution and rags. Instead of buying several small containers of hand sanitizer, consider filling up the same small container from a larger container. This eliminates the need for small, single-use plastic bottles.

While a zero-waste lifestyle may not be for everyone, its practices benefit the individual and the Earth. It is imperative that individuals make conscious decisions regarding their consumption of goods and be mindful of the waste they produce and its impact on the earth.

To truly be sustainable and eco-conscious, keep environmental justice in mind and continue to engage and interact with educational resources to form longstanding habits. While it is trendy to have reusable items and claim to be sustainable, this movement cannot lose momentum. Sustainability is and will always be important to better conditions for the Earth and its people.

Edited by Sofi Zeman szeman@themaneater.com

The MU campus is overpoliced, and to make our campus safer, we need to rethink where we allocate funds.

From MUPD on 9 committed on the MU campus are overwhelmingly traffic violations and drug/alcohol related incidents, this figure is absurd. Not only is this rate of policing a waste of money in Columbia’s alreadystruggling economy, it fails to make the community safer.

A more effective strategy to combat drug and alcohol abuse, specifically in the MU student population, would be addressing where the problem actually lies. In national publications, such as Humans of University, the MU student body consistently ranks as having one of the highest rates of depression among U.S. colleges. Perhaps if the university invested more into campus mental health services, instead of a private, wasteful and unnecessarily militarized police force, the community would be safer for all students.

In discussing the role of mental health in community safety, we must not ignore

who is made to feel “safe” by the police. For example, when officers respond to an incident at a predominantly white Greek life party, those in attendance likely don’t fear for their life. This is not the case for Black students, who must stomach walking through an overpoliced campus on a daily basis.

Recently, a video was shared on a widely followed twitter page, @BarstoolMizzou, that showed a young white citizen of Columbia running from the police and seemingly escaping arrest. While the intent was comedic, it’s hard to justify using this video for entertainment when we have collectively watched police officers choke, shoot, brutalize and murder Black people on these same social media platforms.

The reality is, Black children have been murdered by the police for doing less than what the man in the video attempted, which was documented resistance to

A police officer watches over a protest at Jesse Hall on Oct. 2 in Columbia, Mo.

| PHOTO BY OLIVIA ANDERSON arrest.

Everyone should be able to receive an education without fearing for their life. While MU’s COVID-19 response has revealed that student safety is apparently of no concern to administrators, it’s time to realign our values as a university, community and a nation as a whole. Police fail to reduce crime and are unable to

combat the true crises in our community.

The existence of the MU police department is a complete waste of university funds and we should demand nothing less than complete abolishment. Columbia is “protected” by the Columbia police department.

The existence of an additional group of officers on campus is

a threat to the health and wellbeing of students. We must allocate our funds instead to mental health resources, healthcare, COVID-19 testing and, most importantly, funding the social justice organizations and programs that aid Black students at MU. Edited by Sofi Zeman szeman@themaneater.com

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THE MANEATER | OPINIONS | O cto ber 7, 2020 SYDNEY’S SOAPBOX

GRAPHIC BY NICK PRAINITO

Column: A new administration won’t save us from the COVID-19 pandemic COVID-19 cases in the U.S. continue to rise while other countries seem to have it under control. The discrepancy can be attributed to the individualist versus collectivist approaches to the pandemic.

SYDNEY LEWIS Columnist

Masks have become the new normal ever since the COVID-19 pandemic changed life around the world. While many countries have returned to a pre-pandemic state, the United States has continued to see an increase in cases.

One of the countries that has done the best containing the pandemic is Taiwan. The small island off the east coast of China has only recorded seven COVID-19 related deaths to date, according to research by Johns Hopkins University. Taiwan attacked the virus with aggressive contact tracing after first closing its borders and banning the exportation of surgical masks.

They used mobile tracking software

to ensure those quarantining were actually doing so.

South Korea has also been praised for keeping the COVID-19 outbreak under control. By early May, daily life had “returned to normal,” reporter Aaron Holmes wrote in Business Insider. The country’s use of technology, and the citizens’ willingness to give up privacy, differ greatly from the United States’.

Besides their healthcare system, through which testing and treatment is free, “health authorities will use CCTV footage, credit card transaction data, travel information and location data to keep tabs on patients,” according to Holmes. This allows the South Korean government to trace where a person has been in just ten minutes.

Americans would never support this use of private information, even if it were to save lives. The United States can barely enforce mask ordinances and stay-at-home orders, much less convince the whole population to allow access to their private records. A 2019 report by Pew Research Center found that 64% of Americans are at least “somewhat concerned” about how much data is collected about them by the government.

The United States has been

ineffective in preventing the spread of COVID-19. That is, in part, due to incompetent leadership. But even if Joe Biden were president and implemented every policy in his proposed plan, there is no guarantee cases would decrease.

The Trump administration spews dangerous misinformation but it is not solely to blame for Americans’ refusal to wear masks and obey social distancing.

The United States has a largely individualist culture which has exacerbated the spread of COVID19. Individualism values personal independence; people’s values often come from within instead of being shaped by their role in a group.

Many other countries, largely in Africa and Asia, have collectivist cultures; they value personal interdependence. “A collectivist’s sense of self is defined more by who they are with other people, or by their membership in a group. Maintaining social harmony, getting along with others and meeting social expectations are more important in collectivist cultures,” according to AFS. Professors at the University of California Santa Barbara studied this idea. Professor David Sherman said,

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“We’re seeing that in China’s response and in Korea’s response as well as in Taiwan and in Singapore — the massive social coordination, which may be associated with being in more of a collectivistic culture.”

The difference in approaches to the pandemic is seen in small details like the words we use. While the United States has been calling for “social distancing” since March, Taiwan calls it “physical distancing.” UCSB professor Heejung Kim said “now is the time to remind ourselves that we are merely physically distancing ourselves, and that more than ever, we should get socially closer as a community.” American culture views the distance as a social barrier, while collectivist cultures view it simply as a physical distance used to keep others safe.

If the United States has any hope of decreasing death rates from COVID19, it must look to the countries where citizens put the needs of the group ahead of their own. As long as Americans are more concerned about themselves than the country, infections and deaths will only continue to rise.

Edited by Sofi Zeman szeman@themaneater.com

Maneater

Sports

ONLINE THIS WEEK: No Fly Zone: Duncanville High School’s Ennis Rakestraw Jr. brings confidence, grit to the Tigers’ 2020 roster. BY KYLE PINNELL

Making the leap: Former Rock Bridge hurdler Manuel making an impact on Saturdays.

BY KYLE PINNELL

FOOTBALL

Mizzou defensive lineman Kobie Whiteside kneels as a part of a moment of silence at a march led by the Mizzou Black Student Athlete Association on Sept. 2.

| PHOTO BY ANNA GRIFFIN

Whiteside leads Missouri through social justice initiatives JACK SOBLE Sports Editor

Kobie Whiteside stood on the steps of Jesse Hall, looking at a crowd of hundreds of fellow University of Missouri students and athletes. He would lead each and every one of them on a march across MU’s campus, protesting police murder of Black Americans and encouraging the student body to have a conversation about social justice.

Of the seven organizers and leaders of the March with Mizzou who began their evening on Sept. 2 on those steps, Whiteside, a star defensive tackle, was the only football player.

“When I called him, I reached out to have him and the football team help us with this march or participate in this march, there was no doubt in my mind that he’d be okay with it,” Cason Suggs, president and co-founder of the Mizzou Black Student Athlete Association, said. “That’s the type of person he is.”

The march came just

days after the football team announced in a statement that they would be canceling practice on Aug. 28, in solidarity with the athletes around the world who boycotted their games in protest of the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis. The football team kept the details of how that day came to be in house, but Suggs knows Whiteside played a key role.

“I don’t know enough about who chose what and who decided what, but I know that when they had the cancellation of practice, [Whiteside] was one of the main people speaking. He was one of the main people organizing it,” Suggs said.

Whiteside is involved in the Mizzou BSAA, which Suggs co-founded in the wake of nationwide protests that followed the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police, as an ambassador from the football team.

“That’s why our paths crossed in that way, because they were like, ‘Oh, Kobie Whiteside is

one of the people who’s making this cancellation of practice.’ I said, ‘Kobie, that’s my friend.

I’ll definitely reach out to him.’”

When Whiteside stepped onto the football team at Alief Taylor High School in Houston, it didn’t take long for him to make an impression.

“We used to do [wrestling] mat drills,” Brian Randle, Whiteside’s high school coach, said.

“Well, nobody could beat Kobie one-on-one. It wasn’t even fair. So I was like, ‘Alright, look, give me two o-linemen versus Kobie.’ Two. So, we got two offensive linemen versus Kobie Whiteside.

And when I tell you this is the God honest truth, Kobie grabs these kids, one in one arm and one in the next arm, picks them up and slams them both.”

At that point, Randle gave up.

“I was like ‘Alright boys, I don’t know,” Randle said. “There’s nothing else we can do to make it any fairer.’”

What was also

apparently early, Randle said, was his inclination to do the right thing.

“If Kobie saw you bullying somebody, Kobie would be the first one to check you,” Randle said. “He didn’t like that kind of stuff. If you were taking advantage of somebody who couldn’t stick up for themselves, he’s that guy, he’s a protector. And we always say ‘Make sure you’re on the right side of history.’

He’s always on the right side.”

Randle continued, remembering how Whiteside would take action.

“Kobie is one of those kids that’s gonna stick up for that little skinny kid that everybody’s messing with,” Randle said. “You know, ‘You do it again, you’re gonna have to see me.’

I’ve heard him say that before.’ And I told that kid ‘Hey, you better leave that kid alone. I’m not getting in the way of Kobie.’”

Whiteside wasn’t directly involved in social justice initiatives in high school, at least in his coach’s memory. He

attributes part of that to living in a diverse school district that speaks over 31 spoken languages. He did, however, learn to use his voice to positively influence those around him.

“One of the mamas came to him — the little boy was in the ninth grade, Kobie was in the 12th grade — and the mama said ‘Can you please talk to my son?’”

Dee Dee Whiteside, Whiteside’s mother, said. “I told him ‘She said, can you please talk to her son about not getting in trouble, and focusing on football, and she said she’d pay.’”

Dee Dee was adamant that he wasn’t going to be compensated, and Kobie agreed.

“I told him ‘No, don’t take the money, just talk to the young man,” Dee Dee said. “And he didn’t want the money. He talked to the young kid.”

Kobie moved onto college at Missouri, where during his freshman year he joined a Christian organization through athletics called Athletes in Action. It was there where he met,

and quickly befriended, a track and field athlete named Cason Suggs.

“We both got baptized in Christ together on the same day, and that’s when we really got to know each other,” Suggs said. “Just through the different Bible studies and stuff, I kind of figured out what he’s like as a person and he’s kind of gotten to know me, and I feel like working for Jesus and working for social justice kind of go hand in hand.”

Suggs would go on to co-found the Mizzou BSAA in the summer of 2020, in large part because he felt that too much of the country didn’t see athletes, especially Black athletes, as anything more than entertainment. Messages like “stick to sports” dominate the discussion whenever the topic of athletes participating in movements like Black Lives Matter is mentioned.

The goals of the association, Suggs said, include giving athletes an opportunity to use See Whiteside on 15

THE MANEATER | SPORTS | O ctobe r 7, 2020

13

SOCCER

Julissa Cisneros takes her game to the international stage with Mexico’s U-20 National Team JACOB LUSSIER Sports Reporter

For most athletes, going to a soccer training camp in Mexico would feel like a study abroad opportunity. For Julissa Cisneros, it felt like home.

Cisneros was Missouri soccer’s leading scorer in 2019.

The striker scored 11 goals last season as a sophomore, the most by a Tiger in a decade. Her development and dominant performance over the past two seasons caught the eye of Mexico’s U-20 national team squad.

Cisneros, who has dual citizenship because of her grandparent’s heritage, has been called up to the training camp twice since July 2019.

Missouri women’s soccer head coach Bryan Blitz saw Cisneros’ potential even before her first season. He asked scouts from professional and international clubs to keep an eye on the newfound young talent.

“Coach Blitz has definitely been one to reach out for me, even before stepping on campus,” Cisneros said.

Cisneros wanted an opportunity like this since her early days of playing the game. She grew up in Moreno Valley, Calif. and played club soccer for Inland Empire Surf SC in San Bernardino. Coached

by Ted Small, she helped her team win the 2016 Disney Showcase championship and the 2017 SoCal Summer Showcase title. In 2018, Small had high praise for Cisneros.

“Julissa is a superstar,” Small said after Cisneros had committed to Missouri.

“Her goal-scoring rate is unbelievable ... I have no doubt I will see her on TV one day playing this sport.”

She also played for Rancho Verde High School. Cisneros tallied an impressive 35 goals in her high school career. She also holds her high school’s single-season goals record.

“I knew I wanted to play internationally and professionally,” Cisneros said. “I just knew I wanted to play soccer.”

Sophomore midfielder Julissa Cisneros takes a corner kick during 2019’s home opener. Cisneros scored the lone goal of the game, propelling Missouri to a win over Southern Mississippi.

| PHOTO BY ANDREW MOORE A couple teams made offers to attend their camps, but nothing that really excited Cisneros. She hoped that, after her first college season, more opportunities would present themselves.

Cineros proved her worth after her first season with five goals and one assist. She was also named to the SEC’s AllFreshman team.

She was very hopeful that someone had taken notice of her, and, thankfully, someone had: the U-20 Mexican National Team. “[My family and I] were very excited,” Cisneros said. “We were over the moon.”

It was an exciting moment for Cisneros’ parents, Maribel and Alfonso, to see her dreams becoming reality.

“We felt very blessed,” Maribel said. “It’s a big blessing, and it came from all of the hard work that she has put in. What more can a parent ask for than to see our child achieving her goals and making her dreams come true?”

After all the anticipation and waiting, she had been noticed. In such a high-stakes situation, it would be normal to be intimidated by the tough competition that was to await her in Mexico. Cisneros,

however, felt at ease.

“When I first got [to the camp], it was like I was meant to be there,” Cisneros said.

Cisneros’ talents and abilities as a player made her feel confident on the pitch, but, more importantly, her shared background and culture made her feel comfortable.

Cisneros has a strong connection to her Mexican heritage. She emphasized that her family participates in many cultural traditions and festivities.

Cisneros is a first generation Mexican American, so most of her family in the United States are immigrants who primarily speak Spanish in the household and gained their citizenship later in life.

She has been surrounded by a tight-knit extended family that loves and cares for each other.

“On game days, everybody comes over to cheer her on; to cheer the team on,” Maribel said.

Cisneros’ parents also taught her to embrace and express her culture proudly.

“Do not be afraid to show who you are,” Alfonso told Cisneros.

The training camps turned out to be a different experience for her. Her teammates

in Moreno Valley and in Columbia didn’t all share her heritage, but when she got to Mexico, they spoke the same language, listened to the same music and even used the same phrases she did. It was easy for her to fit in and connect with the other athletes.

Her favorite part of the camps — held in July 2019 and January 2020 in Mexico City — was her coach’s passion for the game. Mónica Vergara, the U-20 head coach, gave new life to the game that Cisneros already loved.

During “charlas,” or little talks, Vergara would show how much she wanted success for not just the team, but each individual. Cisneros specifically remembered one of these talks after a “chaotic” training session. The squad was a bit off and not playing to the potential Vergara knew they were capable of.

“Instead of punishing us, what [Vergara] did was she went one by one to each staff member and asked them, ‘What does it mean for you to be here with the national team?’”

Later that day, Vergara asked the same question to the players that had been there for several years. She probed even deeper and asked what it felt

like to be a part of the team the first time they got there.

After hearing each of the staff and player’s stories, the squad realized that it had been the same for everyone. No matter how old they were when they first attended the camp, their emotions were high and their families were excited.

Vergara fueled the team by helping them realize that they were involved in something incredible.

Cisneros had gained passion and pride that couldn’t be matched in the U.S. There was great pride in representing their country, especially in a sport that is idolized by the Mexican people.

“Even women’s soccer, they have fans, they have people drawing things for them,” Cisneros said. “It’s just so cool. These kids are 18 or 19 years old and they have all these fans because there is so much support.”

Soccer is the most popular sport in Mexico, something Cisneros saw while training.

She got to experience not only the team’s passion, but Mexico’s love of the game.

“A lot of people love the sport,” Cisneros said. “It doesn’t matter if you have See Cisneros on 15

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | O ctobe r 7, 2020

CROSS COUNTRY

Karissa Schweizer practices during her senior season. Her illustrious collegiate career at Missouri includes five national championships, six school records and eight All-American honors.

| PHOTO BY ANDY KIMBALL

On Missouri women’s cross country team, success runs in the family GRACE CHICOINE Reporter

For junior and Illinois native Reilly Revord, the journey to Missouri started with a random connection. Her high school coach, whose wife knew head cross country coach Marc Burns, encouraged her to reach out to Missouri.

“I was like ‘alright, I’ve never heard of Mizzou before, but I’ll reach out to them and send them a letter,’” Reilly Revord said. “It’s funny.

I never knew Mizzou was a thing, but I’m very glad I wrote that letter. Then Coach Burns called me right away and continually kept talking to me, and when I took my visit. it felt like home. I loved the people, loved the campus, and that’s pretty much how I came to love Mizzou.”

Her younger sister, McKenna Revord, didn’t initially look at Missouri either, but it only took one visit to change her mind.

“In the beginning, I was like, ‘I’m not going to go there,’ even though I’d never been there. I was just like, ‘I’m my own independent person, I’ll do my own thing,’” McKenna Revord said. “But as soon as I visited Reilly, just for fun on one weekend to hang out with her, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is amazing, I’ve never seen anything like this

place.’ Everyone here is so nice, and I was like, ‘how is that possible?’”

The Revord sisters make up one of the two sister pairs currently listed on the roster.

In recent years, three women have followed their sisters to Missouri.

Now a freshman at Missouri, McKenna is on the same team as Reilly for the second time in her life. Four years ago, the sisters spent two years competing at Hinsdale Central High School together.

“It was pretty awesome.”

McKenna said. “I’ve been looking up to Reilly since I was a little kid, watching her to see how I could do the same.

It was really nice having her around because she was an upperclassman when I was a freshman, so she helped show me the ropes and taught me how to be dedicated to the team. If I wanted to do good and be better for myself and for my team, I just had to do what she did.”

One memory from high school stands out for both of them.

“My freshman year, we were both on the same 4 x 8oo m relay for track, and I got to hand off the baton to Reilly, which was pretty cool,” McKenna said. “That was a really fun experience, to be able to, as a family, make up half the relay.”

“I think we ended up second in state, so that was really fun,” Reilly Revord adds.

Sophomore Kelsey Schweizer from Urbandale, Iowa, is the younger sister of sixtime national champion and Missouri record holder Karissa Schweizer, who graduated in 2018. The coaches at Missouri influenced Kelsey’s decision to pick up where her older sister left off.

“I felt like the coaches here actually believed in me, versus other places where it seemed more like they were choosing me because of Karissa,” Kelsey said. “I feel like here they had actually seen me race and knew a little more about me, so it felt more like home at Mizzou.”

The younger Schweizer has noticed the attention that comes with being related to one of Missouri’s most highly acclaimed athletes, but it serves as a source of motivation rather than pressure.

“She didn’t come to Mizzou as a six-time national champion, she came here similar to me,” Kelsey said of her sister. “She was good in high school, but not the best in the country or anything, and I feel like knowing that made me want to come here because I knew how successful Mizzou made her.”

Kelsey has been quick to

make a name for herself. In her first indoor track season as a Tiger, she competed in the Southeastern Conference Championship as one leg of the distance medley relay, which earned all-SEC honors with a second-place finish.

The Schweizer family began their history of collegiate running long before the two sisters set foot on Missouri’s campus. Their grandfather, Frank Schweizer, became a Division Two All-American in the 1,500-meter race at Mankato State College (now Minnesota State University) in 1960, and their parents later met while running there.

Karissa is the first in the family to take running beyond the college level, currently running for Bowerman Track Club in Portland, Ore. Last summer, she traveled to Doha, Qatar to compete in the 5,000-meter race at the World Athletics Championships, where she finished ninth. One of her most recent accolades is a U.S record in the indoor 3,000-meter race.

Karissa started running at Missouri with the same goals that Kelsey now has for herself.

“I’d say my goal for cross country season is to stay on the traveling team and to keep taking time off of my PR,” Kelsey said. “Overall, I’d say

my long-term goal would be to make nationals in either cross country, indoor track or outdoor track and see what I can do from there.”

Kelsey used this summer’s training to position herself for a strong cross country season, which she kicked off with a 33rd place performance at the Commodore Classic. Her time of 23:27.8 — a personal best by almost three minutes — was enough to secure her spot as seventh out of Missouri’s finishers.

“I’m definitely excited to see how I’ll do in cross country,” Kelsey said in an interview prior to the race. “I know that I can do a lot better than I did last year just because I had such few races and I can tell I’m in a lot better shape.”

Runners say that running is only 20% physical and 80% mental. A rough race or a workout that doesn’t go as planned can take a toll on the mind and affect performance, so runners often look to each other for comfort and advice.

For Kelsey, her two older siblings — both former D1 runners — are some of the first people she turns to.

“They’re definitely my second or third coaches, and it’s nice having them because they know what I’m going through,” Kelsey said.

See Sisters on 15

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | O ctobe r 7, 2020

The unique opportunity improved much more than Cisneros’s game — it improved her connection to her culture From Cisneros on 13 cleats or not; if you live on the street or not: We all love the sport.”

Cisneros believes her experience with Mexican soccer will only help her game for the Missouri Tigers. She plays with a newfound passion born from the love and dedication Mexico’s people have for the sport. With a large

proportion of freshmen on the team, Blitz will be looking for leadership from the veterans. Cisneros’ national team experience will be highly valued.

“It’s helped me in acquiring my voice on the team and being a bit more analytical in the way we play together,” Cisneros said.

With exciting opportunities presenting themselves, she chooses

The Star DT brings a legacy of doing the right thing to the Mizzou Black Student Athlete Association’s movement.

From Whiteside on 12 their platform in ways that improve society.

“We really hope and pray that through conversation, change will come.

Productive change will come,” Suggs said.

When the Mizzou BSAA was founded, Whiteside joined as an ambassador for the football team. Suggs knows as well as anyone that when the football team speaks, people listen, and he said as much about their role in the organization’s next step, which will be centered around registering athletes to vote.

“When the football team registers, people pay attention,” Suggs said. “I think that having that platform and just being that model citizen speaks volumes.”

That role in leading by example is one in which those who know him best know he thrives.

“He’s not a big rah rah guy, or at least he wasn’t back then,” Randle said. “But he was like a silent assassin, for lack of a better word, because he’s gonna hold you accountable.”

“If you need anything done, he’s gonna be right there for you,” said his mother.

“It was the little things that were big to me. He’s a good leader. And I always say this much. If you got a good leader, you’ve got an awesome team.”

After he reportedly played a key role in canceling practice, Suggs – who had already been planning the march at the time – knew he could count on Whiteside to get the football team involved.

“I just called him and I was like ‘Hey man, it’s crazy that you guys are talking about doing something. We were planning this march,’ Suggs said. “Kobie was very enthusiastic. He wanted to be a part of it.”

This takes us back to Sept. 2, when.

Whiteside knelt alongside six of his fellow Missouri athletes in front of a crowd of hundreds of students at Faurot Field. Suggs, as well as soccer player and BSAA Vice President Keiarra Slack, gave impassioned speeches on the issues at hand.

These speeches were met with applause from the crowd, which included coaches from all sports and football players that had shown up in droves, had marched there while chanting slogans like “We ready for change.”

“We didn’t plan for that many people, which was a beautiful surprise to have,” Suggs said. “We were like, ‘Wow, this is so much bigger than a BSAA thing, it’s a Mizzou thing, it’s a Columbia thing.’”

On Sept. 2, however, Whiteside helped prove that he is more than that.

He doesn’t need to, but he did.

Edited by Maia Bond mbond@themaneater.com

to remain in the moment and focus on the team’s opening game.

“Right now, [I’m] just focusing on the season ahead, but [I’m] obviously very hopeful for the future,” Cisneros said.

Missouri’s opening match was against the University of South Carolina on Sunday, Sept. 27. Cisneros drew a foul outside the 18-yard box

and capitalized, scoring the Tiger’s first goal of the season. Missouri went on to fall to South Carolina 4-1.

Cisneros remains eligible for selection to be called up to the U-20 squad in future international competition for the next 12 months.

Edited by Maia Bond mbond@themaneater.com

Two sister duos are leaving legacies on the program.

From Sisters on 14

Her older brother, Ryan Schweizer, ran for the University of Notre Dame and transferred to Drake University this year.

With bigger and more prolonged setbacks, runners need a strong support base.

Reilly, who has an All-Midwest Regional performance, has had her trajectory interrupted by a stress reaction in her hip that she is overcoming. She finds that having her sister running by her side has helped her navigate the difficulties of getting her stride back.

“That was mentally really challenging for me because I had never been injured before,” Reilly Revord said. “Physically, it took me a really long time, and I’m still working on getting back in shape — getting back to where I want to be — so it’s great to have McKenna here to push me to get better.”

The most challenging

moment of McKenna Revord’s running career was the passing of their dad. Chris Revord was a former University of Kentucky runner who inspired their love of the sport.

“It was really tough to have to come back after that,” McKenna said. “He taught both me and Reilly everything we know about running, and to come back from that and keep moving forward and run in his name has been a little bit tough.”

The sisters connected with their dad through running and shared many memories of the sport with him.

“He was the person who influenced us all to get out there and start running,” Reilly said. “I know my mom would’ve wanted at least one of us to like swimming because she was a swimmer. Once we started running, I feel like we all were pretty solid at the beginning so we all kind of found that we

were good at it and really enjoyed it on our own. But we also enjoyed the aspect that we could bond with it over our dad, too.”

What’s so special about Missouri? What about the program brings families of runners from all over the Midwest to Columbia?

For Kelsey, the team atmosphere makes the difference.

“I feel like the team here is pretty small, but everyone is close to each other,” Kelsey said. “It’s nice being able to make jokes before the race. I would see all these other teams and they seemed so serious, and the distance runners weren’t talking to the sprinters.”

McKenna said her original impression of the team turned out to be correct.

“This was the first place that I saw, and I was like, ‘I don’t think anything can top this,’” McKenna said. “And I was right. No place is better.”

With just over a month of college training completed, McKenna is still adjusting to the D1 stage.

“Training has definitely been a little bit different than high school — mileage-wise and the workout intensity ,definitely — but it’s been so much fun so far,” McKenna said. “The team has been so welcoming ,and they’ve just been giving me the strength to keep moving and keep pushing forward.”

Although Kelsey is the last of the Schweizer clan to head to college, the Revord sisters have two younger brothers, both current high school runners, who could potentially join their sisters at Missouri.

“Three Revords, one program,” McKenna said.

“I don’t know if Mizzou can handle that many kids.”

Edited by Maia Bond mbond@themaneater.com

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | O ctobe r 7, 2020

B r o n o o t k n s hi A :

BASKETBALL

r t e s c i l h a t n ’ r e d s k if r h o i s m w y r o tr o il and s rookshire, details how b nton B aske A , tbal am e t l l st l a ret b t r e a l l y young e che k s a got started, it age to always sf b 1 ar 2 was Brookshire who be valuable to others, th 0 2 er took the reins of the training to be a team-first kind of e h th t program and dragged Yanders to player. f an o the gym every morning because “Teams need a guy that’s going to t i ju u he loved the work so much. to be valuable to the community, st cr RYAN Brookshire’s aspirations to to the university and is going

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Five years ago, Anton Brookshire watched as his AAU basketball team played the final game of their tournament from the bench. Parents of other players on the team would ask his coach and uncle, Robert Yanders, why he wouldn’t start his own nephew. Yanders confidently told them that Brookshire just wasn’t ready.

On the car ride home, a frustrated Brookshire asked Yanders what it would take for him to get back out on that court.

Yanders responded with two words: “365 days.”

“You have to be able to go through sufferance to be successful,” Yanders said. “(Brookshire) wasn’t ready then, so I told him that it would take 365 days of hard work in the gym every day to get to that level.”

Those words rang in Brookshire’s head; compelling him to do better, to be better.

The next morning, he and his uncle began 5 a.m. workouts for ball handling, shooting, passing and every fundamental in the book, and the moment he got back from school he was right back in the gym.

Yanders said that once the two of t h e m

to wear that sweater proudly,” Yanders said.

His loyalty and his dedication to his team was exemplified when Brookshire lost his mother to a battle with lupus. Brookshire was there for his mother every step of the way, getting up every morning and making her hot tea before he went to school, and Brookshire considered her the person he was most closest to.

When she passed, Brookshire took his pain and anguish and still went out onto the court to help push his team through the playoffs because he knew that there were people still relying on him to produce.

“If my mom was here, she would want me to keep playing and play hard every day so I can keep going, and I use that as motivation,” Brookshire said.

For Brookshire, it truly is all about family. After moving to Springfield, Mo. with Yanders, he surrounded himself with his other uncles and family to help him reach that next level.

Brookshire is so thankful to have such a supporting family to count on that he regularly tells them after games just how thankful he is to have them in his life.

“Anton called me and his uncle Sylvester after his game to tell us how much he loves us and how thankful he is to have us, and I was damn near tears I swear,” Yanders said.

With his close family ties, Brookshire and Yanders were most concerned with finding a team that had that strong sense of family unity. Missouri basketball coach Cuonzo Martin would prove that to them in an outlandish way.

“He called my mother; he called Anton’s grandmother,” Yanders said. “He wanted to know (Brookshire’s) roots, his history; he wanted

know w h a t Grandma and Grandpa thought about Anton.”

According to Yanders, Martin already knew that Brookshire could play basketball — his 20.5 points per game said enough — but Martin wanted to know what was in his heart.

Martin reportedly made it clear to Brookshire and Yanders that the University of Missouri is about family, and that he was looking for a recruit to embody that.

“Martin wanted a guy who would run through a brick wall for them,” Brookshire said.

Already, the coaching staff has been making weekly calls to the Brookshire household which have made them feel a part of something much bigger than they could ever imagine.

For now, however, Brookshire’s loyalty has him focused on leading Kickapoo to a championship as he sits in excitement to join the Missouri family, but he’s most excited to join the team that his mother loved so much.

“I know she’s looking down on me and smiling,” Brookshire said. “I know she is.”

t. ur co

Reporter

be great, to push his limits, are what got him out of bed every morning and kept him in the gym till sunset.

“There’s never going to be an end to the training: there is no ceiling,” Brookshire said. “I always want more. I’m like a little kid with a toy; once I get one toy, I got to have another toy.”

In the five years that followed the AAU game, Brookshire earned the starting point guard spot on Kickapoo High School’s varsity team as a freshman, became an all-state athlete and willed his team into the MSHAA final four. Most recently, though, he proudly announced his commitment to play basketball for the Tigers in 2021.

As a player, Brookshire considers himself a leader on the court. In fact, he has already made it a priority to reach out to other recruits in his class to build personal relationships with them because, to him, camaraderie within the team stretches further than the court.

Brookshire mentioned that he has reached out specifically to future teammate Sean Durugordon and current Kickapoo teammate and soonto-be Tiger teammate Trevon Brazile. He has talked to both of them about their family’s health in this pandemic and about future training plans.

His team-first approach has always been a big part of his game, as he feels that, while he won’t be always able to control the offense, he can still prioritize communication with his teammates and make sure everyone is on time to execute the game plan.

That thinking stems from his uncle’s tutelage. Yanders and the rest of Brookshire’s family taught him from a

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Edited by Jack Soble jsoble@ themaneater.com