September 29, 2017 by The Oberlin Review

The Oberlin Review September 29, 2017

established 1874

Volume 146, Number 5

NEXUS Pipeline Faces Continued Opposition Xander Kott

Professor of Geology Steven Wojtal guiding students in an Earth’s Environments lab. The Geology department is one of the many departments facing staffing concerns after the College announced a hiring freeze this semester. Photo by Bryan Rubin, Photo Editor

College Implements Hiring Freezes Sydney Allen News Editor

Each fall, the College begins its faculty hiring process with departments submitting requests to the Education Policies and Procedures Committee, a subcommittee of the General Faculty Committee, asking for new tenure-track faculty positions. This year, however, some departments face unclear prospects following a temporary hiring freeze implemented by the administration. The Dean of Studies office recently informed all College department chairs that there would be a temporary freeze on permanent hires as the College tries to recover from the year’s short-term financial deficit. The College is grappling with a $5 million deficit this year due to a drop in enrollment and compounding financial problems. This, along with the larger structural deficiencies at the College, has created a temporary financial pinch leading to the freeze. “For some departments it’s difficult because of real enrollment pressures,” Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Tim Elgren said. “They have coverage capacity issues. And so, we can fill a lot of those positions with visitors, but when it comes to continuity, you want tenuretrack people in those lines. What’s going to happen this year is that the position requests cycle will happen as usual. We’re not freezing the processes.” Each department’s faculty members — whether in visiting, tenure track, or

tenured positions — represent a line on their departmental budget. Given the College’s financial concerns, the College is looking at phasing out some nonessential budgetary lines within several departments, which will become clear after the Board of Trustees convenes Oct. 5. In the meantime, the College has implemented the freeze to build a pool of possible empty positions to phase out. In order to have as many options as possible once the conversation turns to specific departments, the College is choosing to fill as few positions as possible at this time. “The idea is that we want to keep many of those options open so that when we do that review, we have the greatest number of options possible, and so that creates a momentary lack of continuity because these vacant lines are filled with visiting faculty members,” Elgren said. While the issue could be resolved as early as January, the short-term squeeze increases pressure on some departments. “The policy is for now that many of these positions are not being approved — they’re not being denied, but they’re not being approved for financial reasons at this time,” said Caroline Jackson Smith, chair of the Theater department. The Theater department is one of many departments facing mounting pressures with the temporary hiring hold. Though the department has visiting professors filling in some of its essential courses, its long-term faculty makeup won’t be clearly solidified until after

the hiring freeze ends. “It’s a decision not to fill faculty positions College-wide, which is particularly disadvantaging us right now, because these are important positions that we will probably not get back as tenuretrack positions now,” Smith said. “That’s not to say never. But not now.” The Geology department is facing similar challenges as they look to a spring 2019 semester in which three tenured faculty members will not be on campus, leaving two tenured professors to teach the core curriculum. This comes after the retirement of Geology Professor Bruce Simonson in 2016, following his 30 years of service to the department. Last semester, the department applied for a replacement tenured position with the EPPC, which reviews tenure proposals and ranks them based on College-wide need. Although the proposal was approved over the summer, the position has since been withheld following the freeze. College senior Elena Hartley, one of the Geology department’s student representatives, said this personnel deficit has generated much concern within the department. “We’re more upset because we were promised a tenure-track position and they’re freezing it for some reason,” Hartley said. “And if we miss out on this hiring cycle, then it will be another year before we can get another tenure track. So we’re all a bit pissed. What the Geo reps are doing is we’re planning on writing some letters to the Dean of the College.”

A duo of environmental organizations — Appalachian Mountain Advocates and the Sierra Club — filed a rehearing request last week on the decision made by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to give the NEXUS pipeline project the green light to continue. The pipeline will stretch over 255 miles across Ohio, Michigan, and Ontario, Canada. The pipeline is projected to pass through Oberlin — a move Oberlin City Council and many activist groups have actively fought for years. City Council argues that the pipeline violates the Community Bill of Rights. “The city has chosen to hire a lawyer to fight the pipeline [from] going through,” Vice President Linda Slocum said. “[The pipeline] is really undersubscribed. We don’t need it. The more attention that can be drawn to [the situation] the better.” Oberlin voters amended the City Bill of Rights in November 2013, banning the transportation of fracked or natural gas through the city. Earlier this year, City Council joined a lawsuit against the backers of the NEXUS pipeline. Appalachian Mountain Advocates is a nonprofit organization based out of Lewisburg, WV, that fights natural gas pipelines and specializes in law and policy. Appalachian Mountain Advocates argued in a statement that proper measures were not taken when evaluating the environmental and health consequences of greenhouse gases that will be produced by the pipeline. The organization asked FERC to reconsider whether the pipe is necessary. “NEXUS pipeline is duplicative of other existing and proposed energy sources, meaning there is little need for it, and it will have higher transport costs than those alternative sources,” Appalachian Mountain Advocates said in its statement. In its attempt to fight the project, Appalachian Mountain Advocates has teamed up with the Sierra Club, the largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the country with over three million members. Appalachian Mountain Advocates — acting on behalf of the Sierra Club — released a 35-page filing against the NEXUS pipeline Sept. 21. “FERC must conduct a thorough examination of NEXUS so they can see what Ohioans, Michiganders, and See Organizations, page 3

CONTENTS NEWS

OPINIONS

First-Year Program Encour- 05 Congress Must Repeal Jones Act, Aid Puerto Rico ages Community, Confidence 02

THIS WEEK

How to Dress for the Midwest 08

State Honors Famous Base- 07 Veganism Offers Sustainable ARTS & CULTURE Choice ball Alum 10 Bransah Performs Black 03

The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

Lives Matter-Inspired Choreography Punch Brothers Infuse Bluegrass with Classical, Jazz Influences 11

SPORTS

In the Locker Room: Delta Lodge Athletics Director 14

16 Yeowomen Struggle for

Wins

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Ne w s

First-Year Program Encourages Community, Confidence Jenna Gymnesi, Staff Writer Sophie Grosskopf

The Office of the Dean of Students initiated a new advising and orientation model this semester. The program, the Peer Advising Leader initiative, pairs student advisors with first-years in a semester-long program to help them adjust to college life. Unlike the ambassador program — the orientation model from previous years that paired first-years with older students — the PAL program extends far beyond orientation to include an optional semester-long course called Introduction to Oberlin Life and Learning. Students who chose to participate in this course are required to attend six PAL-led sessions covering topics such as study strategies, time management, academic integrity, and Winter Term planning. Those who signed up for the program were separated into cohorts of around 15 peers, often comprised of students from the same first-year-seminar class. Each cohort is led by a student who has experienced first-year orientation and gone through PAL training. This student, or Peer Advising Leader, uses their knowledge of college life to engage first-years about the Oberlin experience, theoretically easing the first-year transition and making it less intimidating. The goal of the program is to help students “acclimate to college learning, use institutional resources for holistic support, navigate college life, and create an educational pathway that connects past and present curricular and co-curricular experiences to goals for their future,” according to PAL’s website. Another goal of the program is to create a sense of community among students, according to Associate Dean of Students Dana Hamdan, who is the director of the PAL program. “We all pride ourselves on Oberlin’s abundant educational resources,” Hamdan said. “If the new advising system can help first-year students get a fast start in learning to access those resources, that will have a significant long-term compounding effect on the richness of their entire college experience. The PAL initiative is focused [on]supporting that fast start.” The students in each cohort are generally split among three

academic advisors, who attend numerous PAL sessions to build a better relationship with the students and encourage them to make use of the academic advising resources that Oberlin has to offer. This way, students can get to know their advisors and feel more comfortable setting up appointments when they need them. “It was nice to meet [the advisors] in a PAL setting before meeting them one-on-one,” College first-year Jacqueline Steel said. Many of the students enrolled in the PAL program said that it has been crucial in helping them navigate the new environment. “I like that there is a space for first-years to get together with someone who is not a first-year and talk about our problems and talk about solutions, because as a first-year, I feel lost,” College first-year Julia Crewe-Kluge said. However, some students believe the time commitment isn’t worth it. “I feel like I’ll learn everything about Oberlin just by experience,” said College first-year Ellie Loane, who decided not to take Introduction to Oberlin Life and Learning this semester. “I found it a bit redundant to add extra space in my schedule.” College junior and PAL Marcus Hill said the program could act as an additional resource for first-years, particularly through stressful or difficult times. “I feel like there’s never an easy way to throw students in and have good advisors,” Hill said. “But I feel like working with the PAL group, it’s probably beneficial in the long-term in that if anyone has a negative experience, they would probably be more likely to explain it to someone in their cohort.” In addition to the new peercentered support system, administrators have also remodeled the first-year advising experience and orientation process. Orientation saw the introduction of semester “learning goals” that first-years presented to their academic advisors. These are intended to help advisors understand the short- and long-term goals of their students so that they can better assist them. The College has also purchased new advising software that is being tested out with first-

The Oberlin R eview September 29, 2017 Volume 146, Number 5 (ISSN 297–256) Published by the students of Oberlin College every Friday during the fall and spring semesters, except holidays and examination periods. Advertising rates: $18 per column inch. Second-class postage paid at Oberlin, Ohio. Entered as secondclass matter at the Oberlin, Ohio post office April 2, 1911. POSTMASTER SEND CHANGES TO: Wilder Box 90, Oberlin, Ohio 44074-1081. Office of Publication: Burton Basement, Oberlin, Ohio 44074. Phone: (440) 775-8123

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College sophomore Kara Nepomuceno leading a PAL meeting. PAL was created this year to help first-years acclimate to college life under the leadership of student advisors. Photo by Devin Cowan

years’ advisors. This is intended to assist with the lack of any central communication platform within departments. The new software, AdviseStream, costs $25,000 a year and acts as a hub for advisors, academic deans, and other departments. The software will offer aid in tracking students’ coursework and co-curricular activities to provide a more comprehensive plan for each student. The software will be introduced to the rest of the College in stages. “It is powerful but also complicated software that needs to communicate with many of Oberlin’s databases and other software,” Hamden said. “When fully in place, it will offer advisors and students [the] tools to manage their entire advisingrelated activities in one place. It also has an awesome digital communication system that encourages collaboration and streamlines administrative processes.” The changes in the advising system and the addition of AdviseStream software will allow faculty to approach academic mentorship in a whole new way. Faculty advisors currently take on an average of five incoming students. In years past, the average advising load has been six or seven students per advisor each semester. Workshops were offered in August for advisors to discuss successful approaches and get advice on handling new struggles. Those who attended received a $100 stipend. “The advising program will continuously strive to provide

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a better, more supportive advising environment,” Hamden said. “Currently, we are focused on getting input from PALs, firstyear students, and academic advisors who have been generous in providing constructive feedback. As with any pilot program, there is room for improvement, and we are already learning a tremendous amount in just this first month of operation. We are focused on supporting the best learning outcomes for students and will make any and all changes that serve that end.” These changes were spearheaded by the Advising Task Force, a subgroup of the Strategic Plan Implementation Committee. The Strategic Plan, first adopted by the General Faculty Committee in Feb. 2016, includes 28 strategic recommendations and goals, including one aiming to improve the advising and overall support structures for students. The plan stated that its goal was to “create individually tailored, equitable systems of guidance and support that help students build personally meaningful pathways through the curriculum — from first-year seminars to culminating experiences — along with mentoring, advising, and coaching that help students connect their academic, artistic, personal, social, and professional development at Oberlin and beyond.” Last year, the task force sent out a survey seeking information regarding student advising experiences and found wide-

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spread dissatisfaction with the previous first-year model. They found that 94 percent of sophomores and juniors who responded wished that they had had additional advising resources during their first year. 73 percent of these students also reported that Oberlin does not convey clear expectations about academic advising. Senior Associate Dean of the College David Kamitsuka said the survey results are what sparked the new advising model. “Providing additional advising support throughout the semester and educating new students about the important learning goals for first-year academic advising became a priority for the task force,” Kamitsuka said. Based on preliminary data collected from first-years, the PAL program and new advising model could mend this deficit. 88 percent of students reported having a positive educational experience with their PAL, and 70 percent of respondees said their PAL advising sessions were helpful in supporting their transition to Oberlin. Over a five-year time period, the Task Force plans to readdress the second year experience, Winter Term advising, and major advising. It also plans to develop and invest in “Oberlin 4+4,” which is a new model that would aid advisors in better mentoring and in promoting student success even after they leave Oberlin.

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State Honors Famous Baseball Alum Alex Davies

A bill honoring the late Moses Fleetwood Walker, the first African-American man to play under contract in the major leagues and a member of Oberlin’s first baseball team, was signed by Governor John Kasich Tuesday after its first two failed passage attampts. Walker’s birthday, Oct. 7, will be recognized annually as “Moses Fleetwood Walker Day” in Ohio beginning in 2018. House Bill 59 was sponsored by Democratic Representatives David Leland and Thomas West and was approved unanimously by the Senate during its third attempt at passing. The first time the bill was introduced, it failed to clear the House; on its second go, the bill passed the House but was rejected by the Senate. Walker was born in Mount Pleasant, Ohio on Oct. 7, 1856. He enrolled at Oberlin College in 1878 at the age of 20. He studied philosophy and the arts, which would help him become a businessman, inventor, newspaper editor, and author later on in life. Walker joined Oberlin’s first-ever varsity baseball team in 1881. According to the GoYeo, Oberlin’s official athletics website, in 1922 Walker was asked via a questionnaire about the influence of his time at Oberlin on his post-grad life; he merely wrote the word “excellent” and underlined it. Early in his baseball career, Walker was a leadoff hitter and barehanded catcher for the College’s preparatory baseball team. In 1881, Oberlin lifted its ban on off-campus competition, giving rise to Oberlin’s first varsity baseball club. Walker’s younger brother Weldy, a firstyear when Moses was a senior, played for the Yeomen as well. The pair were recruited to play at the University of Michigan after an exhibition game in which Oberlin beat Michigan 9–2. Walker and his brother continued as the first and second people, respectively, to break the color barrier in the major leagues. Walker caught for the Toledo Blue Stockings of the American Association in 1884, playing 42 games for the club before being cut due to injury. Although baseball fans glob-

Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017

Moses Fleetwood Walker, 6, was a member of Oberlin’s first varsity baseball team in 1881. His brother Weldy, 10, was also on the team. They went on to become the first and second African Americans to play in the major leagues, respectively. Photo Courtesy of Oberlin Archives

ally recognize Jackie Robinson as the one to have broken the color barrier in Major League Baseball, historians at the National Baseball Hall of Fame claim Walker was actually the pioneer. Robinson stepped onto the scene on April 15, 1947, six decades after Walker played. A picture of Walker and his Toledo teammates is on display in the Cooperstown museum. “Though [Walker’s] name is relatively unknown compared to Jackie Robinson’s, he was the first to break the barrier which prevented Black men from playing organized baseball,” Senator Edna Brown said at the hearing of the bill. Rep. Leland said that Walker’s baseball career is an important part of American history that needs to be recognized. “The Moses Fleetwood Walker story is an American story about a constant need to fight for justice, equality and freedom,” he told The Undefeated. Although Walker’s legacy extends to every level of baseball, the place that saw him grow into adulthood also feels his impact to this day. Fleetwood’s experiences continue to inspire the College baseball team, among others, a century and a half later. African American outfielder Lawrence Hamilton, a first-year on the team said that the College’s commitment to diversity in sports stemmed from leaders like Walker. “It’s good to see that there’s more diversity on the team and in sports [now],” Hamilton said. “It makes me feel comfortable

when I’m playing. I have a group of friends. It’s good to get that [inclusivity] back into baseball.” For Head Baseball Coach Adrian Abrahamowicz, it’s important to keep Walker’s legacy in mind while leading his team. “Obviously your history is a big piece in what you are,” Abrahamowicz said. “The school’s reputation as the first school to admit African Americans and women kind of ties in perfectly with the athletics’ reputation. Having somebody like Moses Fleetwood Walker as part of your history just kind of brings something special — things are inclusive, how they are supposed to be.” According to Abrahamowicz, the Yeomen baseball team has a record number of AfricanAmerican players this year. “Since [Walker], there have been bits and pieces of African-American baseball players at Oberlin,” he said. “But this year we have a total of six or seven, which is unheard of. For example, in the major leagues right now, there are only about 60 African-American players. Starting at the college level, getting more African Americans involved in baseball, recruiting them to come in plus the academics — it’s good to be back on the right track.” Walker, who died in 1924, was inducted into the Oberlin Hall of Fame in 1990. 26 years after he passed, the Oberlin Heisman Club financed the erection of a headstone on his previously unmarked grave at the Steubenville’s Union Cemetery.

Organizations Combat Pipeline Construction Continued from page 1

millions of Americans already do,” wrote Organizing Representative of the Sierra Club Cheryl Johncox. “The NEXUS pipeline is unhealthy and unnecessary for its customers and a big-time boondoggle for its owners.” The NEXUS Gas Transmission argued in a statement of its own that the pipeline has “secured significant market interest in new natural gas supplies in Ohio, Michigan, Chicago, and Ontario to provide increased energy diversity, security, and reliability across The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

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these regions.” However, the Appalachian Mountain Advocates said that the way NEXUS went about gaining support was corrupt and inappropriate. “NEXUS has manufactured demand for the pipeline by steering its affiliate utilities companies, DTE Electric and DTE Gas, to agree to buy gas from NEXUS at above-market rates and then pass those excess costs onto their captive ratepayers,” Appalachian Mountain Advocates’ statement read.

The question of how the demand for the pipeline formulated will be crucial in legal battles that could potentially pause the construction of the pipeline. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency granted NEXUS Gas Transmission a water-quality certificate but is requiring NEXUS to prepare very detailed contingency plans should the pipeline have negative effects on the environment.

2:42 a.m. A staff member reported graffiti in the women’s and single-use restrooms in the Wilder Hall basement. A work order was filed for cleanup. 10:53 a.m. A bicycle and motor vehicle accident at the intersection of South Professor and West College Streets was reported. Safety and Security officers, members of the Oberlin Police and Fire Departments, and an ambulance responded. The bicyclist, a student, was transported to Mercy Allen Hospital for treatment. 11:38 a.m. A resident of Dascomb Hall reported nonoffensive graffiti in a third-floor restroom stall, a wheelchair-accessible stall, and in the hallway. A work order was filed for cleanup. 12:20 p.m. A staff member requested assistance outside of Rice Hall for an ill student. Safety and Security officers responded and the student was transported to the Student Health Center. 6:00 p.m. Staff members at Mudd library reported two juveniles urinating on the outside of the building. An officer checked the site but was not able to locate the juveniles. 7:10 p.m. Officers and members of the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at a Goldsmith Village Housing Unit. Smoke from overheated cooking oil caused the alarm, which was reset.

Friday, Sept. 22, 2017 9:40 a.m. Grounds staff members reported that a grounds specialist became stuck in an emergency phone tower while avoiding hitting a bicyclist. The emergency box was knocked off the tower, and the passenger window of a car was shattered, but there were no injuries. 9:55 a.m. Grounds staff members reported that an unidentified individual dug up a recently planted seedling tree in Tappan Square. The incident is under investigation.

Saturday, Sept. 23, 2017 2:18 a.m. Officers assisted a student ill from alcohol consumption in Kahn Hall. The student made it back to their room safely, and a work order was filed for cleanup. 11:57 a.m. Officers and members of the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm on the third floor of Burton Hall. Smoke from overheated oil caused the alarm, which was reset. 3:23 p.m. Officers and members of the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm in the third floor kitchen of Baldwin Cottage. Smoke from overheated food activated the alarm, which was reset. 11:57 p.m. A student reported an altercation between two individuals on West Lorain Street in front of Carnegie Building. Officers and members of the Oberlin Police Department responded. Both individuals, unassociated with the College, were taken to the Oberlin Police Department.

Sunday, Sept. 24, 2017 1:13 a.m. Officers and members of the Oberlin Police Department responded to a loud noise/unauthorized party complaint at a Village Housing Unit on Elmwood Street. The party was shut down. 1:13 a.m. Officers responded to a loud noise complaint at a Union Street Housing Unit. Upon arrival, an unauthorized party was shut down. A bong was confiscated and turned over to the Oberlin Police Department. 2:21 a.m. Officers assisted a student who injured their knee on the east side of Kohl Building. The student was transported to Mercy Allen Hospital for treatment.

Monday, Sept. 25, 2017 9:00 a.m. Custodial staff members reported non-offensive graffiti in the all-gender restroom at Warner Center. The graffiti was removed. 12:37 p.m. Officers assisted a student who passed out in Stevenson Dining Hall. The student was given water and a seat and didn’t need further treatment.

Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017 5:02 p.m. Officers and members of the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm on the second floor of the Service Building. Smoke from toasted bread caused the alarm, which was reset.

Ne w s OFF THE CUFF

Jim Barnhart, Executive Chef at The Hotel at Oberlin Jim Barnhart, a native of Grafton, Ohio, took culinary classes at Lorain County Joint Vocational School during his high school career after finding himself disinterested in typical classroom settings. He worked for The Wyndham Cleveland at Playhouse Square and The Ritz Carlton Cleveland before landing a position at The Hotel at Oberlin last year. He currently resides in Elyria with his wife and two daughters. In an attempt to generate revenue, the Hotel has made several renovations in the past few years, including the construction of a small bar and restaurant in the lobby, which is run by Barnhart. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Alexis Dill News Editor

What is your background in the industry, and how did you end up here? I guess you could say I was born in Cleveland, and I lived there for the first couple years of my life. Then my mom and dad bought a small piece of property out here in [Lorain County]. That’s kind of where I grew up. I still own a little seven-acre farm right over there. We operate it [and] grow stuff. I have 10 beehives there and apple trees, fruit trees, [and] all kinds of perennial stuff. I went to Lorain County JVS, and I took the culinary program out there. I graduated top of my class with honors. I did a lot of culinary competitions, and I did have some scholarships to the Culinary Institute of America, but I ended up raising my child instead of going to college. But I was well connected after high school, so I started working for The Ritz Carlton. While I was there for six years, I went around [to various Ritz Carlton locations across the country] and did task force, not only to help out in kitchens, but to also see what other kitchens had to offer and to work for other chefs. All chefs have their own style, and before you can become a chef and develop your own style, you need to see what other people are doing to find inspiration. What sparked your interest in cooking? It was just kind of a part of my youth, making jams and jellies and grilling out with my dad, because he’d always invite the family over — nothing special, just hot dogs and hamburgers. But that’s really what inspired me to become a chef. It was in high school. I was really bored, and I don’t know if I was smart or not, but I was really uninspired. I went to the JVS and started to get my hands dirty and was like, “Wow, this

is great.” I kind of took culinary on a whim, just because I liked watching cooking shows and helping my mom and dad cook. I realized I loved what I did. When did you begin working in Oberlin? I started here on January 10 of 2016, when the [Oberlin] Inn was still open, but I wasn’t a part of the Inn. I was more or less planning the menus for banquets and getting together the silverware and doing some of the logistical planning. The College had a lot to do with the [renovations] and a lot of the layout [of the restaurant in the new hotel], so I won’t take responsibility for the layout of this. It was just the pre-planning of opening something like this. I met some of the local farmers that are in Oberlin, just so that we could be as sustainable as possible. How do you believe the renovations made to the Hotel have helped the community and the College financially? Do you think they have brought more people to Oberlin? Yeah. So this [hotel] is the first of its kind, right? Platinum LEED certification, geothermal wells — it’s very forward-thinking. I think that being the model for the direction in which hospitality and hotels should build — that is what’s going to draw people here. We are doing food and service that is on a slightly more elevated level, from scratch, which is something that wasn’t done by the Oberlin Inn. [We’re] being a little more modern, I suppose. What are some changes you would like to see to the Hotel, especially in the dining room? Get rid of the white tables, get rid of the mismatched furniture, and put some color on the walls. Maybe some artwork, you know? I’m all about colorful and vibrant. Instead of white

tabletops, let’s warm it up with some wood. Sometimes when it gets really hot, it gets really humid inside here, so again, we’re the first people to have this technology, and it’s not working just yet. I guess they’re honing and refining that. Finding that refinement in the technology is key and then just continuous growth of the staff that’s here. We’re trying to progress into a more modern fine-casual experience, but it’s training that and getting people all on board and getting some of the College students that we employ to really get on board with that and grasp that. What I really want is intuitive service. But it’s a college town, and all of [the] students have a ton on [their] plates. It takes a little bit more time and patience, but to continue to grow and progress in my community [is] the most amazing gift that I could truly have. Do you have a say in what goes on the menu? I have the say; I write all the menus. Our cocktail and beverage program all comes through me. It’s really just plugging in people and getting continuous growth. I can [help people grow] who continue to achieve excellence and strive for excellence. For me, the thought of a corn soup is, “How can I use the total amount of the corn, not just the kernels? Can we sweeten the soup with the juice from the corn stalk, like you would juice sugarcane? Can you thicken the soup with the natural starch that’s in the cob of the corn? And can you char the husk and make a beautiful, robust charred husk oil to go on that?” Total product utilization is something that a lot of younger people who work in kitchens don’t think about out here. But I want to hire people in the community. I don’t want to sit here and ship people from New York City out here, though it’s great and would be easier. Why not grow the community here, grow

Jim Barnhart, executive chef.

Photo by Hugh Newcomb, Photo editor

the economy, and keep the money local? What kind of feedback have you received? Some people think that it’s supposed to be fine dining, and it’s not supposed to be. And then, my food is very eclectic: based on classics, but modernized — just a modern take on, like, eggplant parmesan. Some people are like, “I thought this was eggplant parmesan.” But it’s really my interpretation of that, which is slightly different but still really delicious. Slowly, people are starting to realize that I’m not just some cookiecutter individual. I don’t just want to cook chicken parmesan. I want to cook chicken how I want to make it, as a chef interprets what he wants to cook and season. We’re still working on the soul. It takes time to develop a soul. Just getting that warm feeling, I guess. What is your favorite part about working here and having a place in the Oberlin community?

Giving back to my community. My favorite part of working here is the fact that I went to the Lorain County JVS, which is right down the road, and before I was here, there weren’t restaurants that [would] get a whole pig in and break it down and use all of its parts. There wasn’t a restaurant where you could come and learn that you could fry garlic roots and make them crispy, and they taste nice and garlicky, and you’re using the total amount of that plant. Being able to share this with people under me and kind of grow their thought pattern is a sustainable, 21st-century forward-thinking food movement. That’s how Oberlin thinks. How do we eat more sustainable, get farmers to produce things more sustainably and be transparent about their growing? That’s one of the biggest things that I’m grateful for, in regards to the opportunity to be sustainable and teach the youth of my profession to be sustainable. It’s very important to me to give back. I even substitute [teach] at JVS, too.

Oberlin Community News Bulletin

Mercy Health Renames Buildings, Plans to Expand

First Church Gets Approval to Install Solar Panels

Office of Communications Issues Title IX Statement

In honor of its 125th anniversary, which was Sept. 20, Mercy Health announced that Mercy Allen Hospital in Oberlin will be renamed Mercy Health-Allen Hospital, and the Mercy Regional Medical Center in Lorain will be called Mercy Health-Lorain Hospital. Senior Vice President of Mercy-Health Edwin Oley said, “It’s important [to] unite under one name.” Additionally, Mercy-Health plans on constructing a 30,000-squarefoot office on the Amherst-Lorain border and will reveal plans for Oberlin and Wellington soon.

The Historic Preservation Commission has given First Church permission to install solar panels. The decision was made after the commission considered how the panels will be viewed from the streets and unanimously voted to approve the plan. 36 panels will be put on the fellowship hall next week.

College President Carmen Ambar and Dean of Students Meredith Raimondo issued a statement in response to the Office for Civil Rights’ announcement to rescind prior guidance from their office in the 2011 Dear Colleague Letter. The statement, emailed to students yesterday, assured that there will not be any changes to current Oberlin policies, concerning sexual violence, intimate partner violence, discrimination, and harassment. The Office of Title IX will now review the Sexual Misconduct Policy annually.

OPINIONS September 29, 2017

established 1874

Letters to the editors Oberlin Citizens Should Look to Rimbert, Jindra for Council To the Editors: It’s difficult to imagine two stronger candidates for Oberlin City Council than Ron Rimbert and Bill Jindra. Ron is one of the finest councilmembers I have had the privilege of working with. Ron’s greatest strength is his dedication to serving all of Oberlin, while bringing a personal perspective from our southeast neighborhoods. Ron was involved in Oberlin’s earliest conversations about sustainability. He suggested and established a “super rebate” program, doubling the city’s financial incentives for the replacement of outdated, energy-wasting appliances. Ron has served on the council for 16 years, including as vice chair and most recently as chair. As chair, Ron has guided discussions firmly but fairly. He has strongly supported many council initiatives, including a proclamation condemning President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Peace Accords, a vote raising the minimum wage for city workers, a proclamation reaffirming Oberlin’s status as a sanctuary city, a vote establishing Indigenous Peoples’ Day, a proclamation asserting council’s support for DACA and the rights of “Dreamers,” and a vote amending city ordinances to strengthen protections for the LGBTQ community in the College and town. Ron has said that Oberlin must always take stands that put us on “the right side of history.” Bill Jindra is a former councilmember and a longtime resident of Oberlin. He and his family have been dedicated to making Oberlin a quality community. Bill’s wife, Robin, is also a former councilmember who headed the Oberlin Senior Center. His daughter, Emily, has been an Oberlin firefighter and currently works as a counselor at Langston Middle School. Bill served on the selection committee for our new police chief. After retiring as a detective on the Avon Lake Police Department, he became the bailiff in Oberlin’s Municipal Court.

As a former councilmember, Bill is most proud of working to save Mercy Allen Memorial Hospital. If elected, Bill would be committed to continuing Oberlin’s path to sustainability, improving strained relations with Oberlin College, and exploring incentives to encourage police officers to live in town. I encourage you to support these two strong candidates for Oberlin City Council. – Sharon Fairchild Soucy Member of Oberlin City Council

Citizens Must Engage in All Levels of Elections To the Editors: Are you happy with how things are going in our country? If not, what are you doing to change things? The strength of our democracy rests on the engagement of its citizens. One of the most important things we do as citizens is vote. We need active citizen participation on ballot issues at every level of government. We need strong, ethical candidates at every level of government. We need to vote in every election for which we are eligible. This November, Oberlin residents will vote on important local and state issues and they will elect a new city council. Oberlin students are eligible to vote here. If you love this community, cast your vote here. You can register to vote until Oct. 10 at www.myohiovote. com. Feel more attachment to the community you grew up in? Vote there absentee! Register anywhere at www.vote. org. Wherever you call home, find out what the issues are and participate in our democracy. To paraphrase Edmund Burke, tyranny may yet prevail if good people do nothing. – Cindy Frantz Professor of Psychology

Submissions Policy

The Oberlin Review appreciates and welcomes letters to the editors and op-ed submissions. All submissions are printed at the discretion of the Editorial Board. All submissions must be received by Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. at opinions@oberlinreview.org or Wilder Box 90 for inclusion in that week’s issue. Letters may not exceed 600 words and op-eds may not exceed 800 words, except with consent of the Editorial Board. All submissions must include contact information, with full names and any relevant titles, for all signers. All writers must individually confirm authorship on electronic submissions. Op-eds may not have more than two authors. The Review reserves the right to edit all submissions for clarity, length, grammar, accuracy, strength of argument and in consultation with Review style. Editors will work with contributors to edit pieces and will clear major edits with the authors prior to publication. Editors will contact authors of letters to the editors in the event of edits for anything other than style and grammar. Headlines are printed at the discretion of the Editorial Board. Opinions expressed in editorials, letters, op-eds, columns, cartoons or other Opinions pieces do not necessarily reflect those of the staff of the Review. The Review will not print advertisements on its Opinions pages. The Review defines an advertisement as any submission that has the main intent of bringing direct monetary gain to a contributor.

The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

Volume 146, Number 5

Editorial Board Editors-in-Chief Melissa Harris

Christian Bolles

Managing Editor Daniel Markus

Opinions Editors

Nathan Carpenter

Jackie Brant

Congress Must Repeal Jones Act, Aid Puerto Rico Hurricane Maria wrought destruction on Puerto Rico last week in the most disastrous storm the island has encountered in more than 80 years, leaving 3.5 million people without power. Large swathes of the country continue to lack sufficient drinking water and food in what is becoming an increasingly severe humanitarian crisis. At a time when the world should have been coming to Puerto Rico’s aid, the Jones Act, a nearly century-old shipping law in the United States, prevented Puerto Ricans from receiving additional foreign assistance to tackle the post-Maria destruction. The act was passed in 1920, ostensibly to ensure that the U.S. could maintain a robust shipbuilding and shipping industry following the end of World War I. A significant section of the law — which Puerto Rico, among other territories, is subject to — decrees that only ships built, operated, and owned by U.S. citizens can travel from one U.S. port to another to trade within American territories. The Jones Act also severely limits other countries from trading with Puerto Rico. According to The New York Times, any non-American ships that enter Puerto Rico must pay tariffs and fees on cargo, which inflate costs for Puerto Rican consumers. Consequently, the price of foreign goods in Puerto Rico is at least double that of surrounding Caribbean islands, including the Virgin Islands — also a U.S. territory, but one exempt from the Jones Act. The long-term consequences of the act have economically disadvantaged Puerto Rico for the past century. Economists at the Government Accountability Office conducted a study which found that the Jones Act cost the Puerto Rican economy $17 billion from 1900 to 2010. In short, the act has entrenched Puerto Rico in public debt, which Trump was quick to point out, tweeting that the island owes billions “to Wall Street and the banks which, sadly, must be dealt with.” The Trump administration issued a 10-day waiver of the Jones Act as it pertains to Puerto Rico Thursday, following significant bipartisan pressure from several members of Congress, as well as from multiple media outlets. This suspension will technically allow Puerto Ricans to receive some of the aid that they need, but with such a short time frame, it won’t be nearly enough. Given the Jones Act’s imperialistic impact, anything short of a permanent repeal will effectively inhibit Puerto Ricans from recovering, let alone thriving, in any near future. Now that Maria has struck, recovery will doubtlessly be made more difficult by Puerto Rico’s long-standing debt crisis — created by American enactment of the economically exploitative Jones Act. It certainly won’t be any easier if the Jones Act is reinstated once the current suspension expires. Maria wiped out 80 percent of the island’s crops, which is estimated to create a $780 million loss in agricultural yield. How can Puerto Ricans feel assured of their ability to recover in the long term if their economic infrastructure has not been able to fully support itself? Since the Jones Act has driven Puerto Rico’s economy to the point that former Governor Alejandro García Padilla declared the debt unpayable and had to default on debt payments, Congress passed a law last year, known as PROMESA, in an attempt to resolve the crisis. However, PROMESA is a neocolonial piece of legislation that further limits Puerto Rico’s future prospects with forced austerity and little tangible financial assistance. Politicians in Washington continuously argue that we should be aiding Puerto Ricans because they are American, which is problematic in itself; we should be helping them because it’s the ethical thing to do. However, Puerto Ricans have never been treated like Americans. If anything, they are treated like colonial subjects, and the 10-day waiver of the law has only clarified that we still find them less than human. Acting DHS Secretary Elaine Duke said, “I promise to do everything in my power to bring relief.” If the administration wants to maintain this promise and if we want to prove to Puerto Ricans that they are our equals, the Jones Act must be permanently rescinded. Otherwise, the U.S. is just as responsible for the humanitarian crisis as Hurricane Maria itself. Editorials are the responsibility of the Review Editorial Board — the Editors-in-Chief, Managing Editor, and Opinions Editors — and do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff of the Review.

Opi n ions

Anthem Supports False Narrative of Freedom Kennedy Kline and Ua Hayes Contributing Writers

When our field hockey team stood for the national anthem Saturday, it didn’t feel right. We didn’t feel proud to be standing for America because we didn’t feel that America offers anything worth being proud of. We’d felt this before: feelings of discomfort, confusion, and anger over being pressured to stand tall and strong in a display of unrelenting patriotism. At a certain point, we just couldn’t ignore the feeling anymore. In August and September 2016, Colin Kaepernick, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, received an enormous amount of media attention after kneeling during the anthem before one of the 49ers’ football games. Immediately after, people demanded to know: Why did he kneel? Since that moment, which

captured so much of the nation’s attention, countless athletes across the country — at the professional, collegiate, and even high school level — have followed Kaepernick’s example and knelt during the anthem. Last fall, our field hockey team joined those ranks. This weekend, some of us chose to kneel once again. Simply put, we kneel for justice. When the national anthem first reached American ears, Black people were still enslaved. It is not a song written for us, about us, or in support of us. This “land of the free” was a land of slavery and oppression, and what the American flag symbolizes is no different. The anthem and flag that represented an America in which Black people walked in chains still represents the America of today. Though much has changed since then, the United States has done little to prove that it values

Black lives, work, or experience. The anthem, the flag, and most importantly, this country still fail to stand for all Americans. Until the United States stands for us, we won’t stand for it. When you get to Oberlin, you’re told to choose a category: athlete or activist, not both. In many ways, there is a divide between athletics and activism and a perception that you cannot be involved in both communities. However, as Black athletes, we cannot decide to switch our Blackness on or off. Athletics are an important part of who we are and what we do at Oberlin. Field hockey is one of the most important parts of our lives, and we care deeply about our team. But we are always Black first and athletes second. As Black athletes, we carry our Blackness with us every time we walk into the locker room, the weight room, or onto the field. We use

Communication, Coalition-Building Among Student Senate’s Priorities Hanne Williams-Baron Contributing Writer

This article is part of the Review’s Student Senate column. In an effort to increase communication and transparency, Student Senators will provide personal perspectives on recent events on campus and in the community. This weekend, while many Obies frolicked at the Arb, listened to sweet croonings at the J-House Garden show, and ventured out to Lake Erie, your loyal senators logged more than 18 hours working tirelessly for the benefit of the student body. Besides drinking frenetically from small juice boxes to fuel our brainstorming, what did we do? Well, the answer is as thrilling as it is tedious: We developed exciting plans, including drastically overhauling Senate’s systems of communication and coalition-building with other universities in our mutual fight for justice under the Trump administration. The weekend, as they all are, was split into two days. On Saturday, we focused mainly on improving interpersonal communication among senators, team-building, and setting our goals for the semester. The following day was spent plotting out timelines and accountability measures for meeting those goals. Crafted by Vice Chair Kameron Dunbar and facilitated by Associate Dean Dana Hamdan, the retreat was well-balanced between Saturday’s vulnerability and honesty and Sunday’s hardline goal-setting. By the end of the weekend, I felt a new energy rising, one of a powerful generation of senators

who work as hard as they talk. It was enough to keep me from resenting being trapped indoors while it was so beautiful outside, and left Senator Kirsten Mojziszek shouting, “I love Senate.” As one of the two new Senate communications directors, along with Meg Parker, I found formulating our new plans for better communication to be especially exciting. By the end of November, Student Senate will have increased its web presence with the addition of a fresh, easily-navigable website, a well-attended-to Facebook page, and a Senate Instagram for students to connect more personally with all of our senators. It’s easy to scoff at social media as merely a millennial dream for connecting with different constituencies, but the majority of other progressive student governments in our country speak to the students they serve through the internet. It’s only apt that Oberlin’s Senate rises to that challenge. On our website, you will be able to find archives of our weekly emails, updates from our working groups, plenary minutes, our column in The Oberlin Review, and more. Our Facebook will aim to not only signal-boost important student announcements and petitions, but also center student activism and voices fighting for institutional change. Our Instagram presence also has real potential to introduce students to the senators bestaligned with their politics and causes. Another one of Senate’s goals for the semester is to build stronger connections with other colleges and universities in our area. Two years ago, Senate attended

the Ohio 5 Student Leadership Summit, a symposium on student government with Denison University, Kenyon College, Ohio Wesleyan University, and The College of Wooster. The initiative arose to form stronger bonds between small liberal arts colleges in Ohio and to streamline communications between their student leaders. This fall, we’re working on creating a conference of our own and will invite student governments from other small liberal arts colleges in Ohio to Oberlin’s campus. There, we will discuss different governance structures, common and uncommon roadblocks, and what we’re all doing to unite students in the fight for civil rights under the current presidential administration. But that’s not all. Our coalition-building will reach further than just the Midwest — expect to hear back soon about our conference calls with student leaders at Princeton, Brown, the University of California, Berkeley, and other progressive institutions with values similar to those of Oberlin’s. We’re harnessing Oberlin’s national political capital to form tangible relationships with other leaders, and we know that we’ll be stronger than ever in maintaining these alliances. By the end of plenary Sunday night, our faces were streaked with chocolate residue from the tiny Snickers bars we’d consumed, and our fingers were raw from frantically scribbling notes of direct response, as we have a new no-laptop policy. This is the Senate I love to see: a body sore from good work and limber enough to continue it.

our sport as a platform to stand up — or kneel down — for the issues we care about because there is no way for us to ignore who we are when we walk onto the field, and we shouldn’t have to. There has always been controversy about using sports as a platform to make statements about social and political movements. Activism has caused tension on many teams — even our own field hockey team in previous years. Yet, few people question the legitimacy of sports as a platform when it comes to raising awareness about breast cancer, autism, or domestic violence. It’s hard to understand how using sports to stand up for some issues can be widely accepted and supported in some contexts, but receive so much backlash in others. Instead of asking us why we kneel, ask yourself what you stand for. Do you stand for Amer-

ica? Do you stand for our troops? Do you stand for police brutality? Mass incarceration? Institutional racism? Trump? Simply standing for the flag because it’s what we’ve been conditioned to do isn’t enough for us anymore. We don’t have the privilege to pick and choose what parts of America we want to stand for. Because we can’t stand for all of America, we kneel. The first game in which we knelt for the national anthem felt right. Instead of mindlessly honoring the flag, we honored ourselves and our beliefs. Not everyone felt as passionately about this gesture as we did, but they still knelt in solidarity with us. For every game played — and every game to come — we kneel for ourselves. We kneel for our people. We kneel for justice. We kneel for change. We kneel for a land of the free — a land that does not yet exist.

Balanced Gender Representation Promotes Better Government Ezra Andres-Tysch Contributing Writer

Oberlin continued its dedication to civic participation, political activism, and social justice Tuesday as college students, faculty, and Oberlin residents lined up outside of Wilder 101 to hear executive director of Emerge Vermont Ruth Hardy, OC ’92, speak. The enthusiastic and sweaty audience packed the lecture hall, listening to Hardy discuss why women should run for office and why voters should support them. Emerge Vermont works “to increase the number of Democratic women in public office.” Hardy is an elected official herself, serving as the chair of the local school board in Middlebury, VT. She got started in local politics because she wanted to introduce foreign language classes to Middlebury elementary schools and fought to implement her vision. Emerge Vermont finds, recruits, and trains Democratic women to run as candidates for office, providing them with assistance and encouragement throughout their campaigns. As Hardy explained using a plethora of illustrative statistics, graphs, and diagrams, the United States is 101st in the global ranking of representation of women in national legislatures with only 19 percent of relevant positions being held by women — an astounding gender imbalance. Breaking that number down further, one finds that women comprise 20 percent of the Senate, 19 percent of the House of Representatives, 12 percent of governors, 25 percent of state representatives, and 10 percent of mayors of cities with popu-

lations greater than 30,000. By state, Ohio is 33rd in gender parity, and women comprise only 22 percent of the state legislature. These numbers show the widespread underrepresentation of women in every level of American politics — where men have around four times greater representation than women. Hardy explained that the significant gender disparity among elected officials is a problem. She said that women, as a result of gendered socialization, are generally better listeners than men and therefore tend to be more collaborative and bipartisan. These qualities are essential in today’s political climate of extreme partisan gridlock. Furthermore, women in legislatures sponsor on average more legislation and bring home more money to their districts through the earmarking process. Electing women also lends a stronger voice to women’s issues in the political arena. As shown repeatedly in American politics, if women aren’t at the table, exclusively-male groups will make destructive decisions on issues that affect women. Another benefit of electing more women to office is that, according to Hardy, more equal representation in government increases the overall quality of elected officials. When more people are running for office, voters are able to be more selective. As Hardy said, “You can’t vote for the best candidate if she’s not on the ballot.” Hardy also noted that having more women in office creates greater aspirations for young women, which can only help build a See Gender, page 7

Veganism Offers Sustainable Choice Sheridan Blitz Contributing Writer

I haven’t always been a vegan, but I have always loved animals. Even before I was aware that veganism existed, consuming animals for my own pleasure never made ethical sense to me. It wasn’t until around fifth grade that I was introduced to the concept of veganism and realized that there are no good reasons to not be vegan. The only thing holding me back from following through was myself. Thus began my journey of self-education about the impacts we have as consumers of animal products. According to the documentary Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret, for every minute you spend reading this article, seven million pounds of excrement are produced by animals raised for human consumption in the United States alone. For every second in that minute, 116,000 pounds of waste are created by all the livestock in the U.S. That’s a little over half a million pounds in the time it took you to read that last fact. Within that wasteful second, one to two acres of rainforest have also been cleared to create more space for mass animal agriculture. According to Dr. Richard Oppenlander, environmental researcher and author of Comfortably Aware, Earth’s projected limit of 565 gigatons of carbon dioxide will be surpassed by 2030 just from the carbon dioxide emitted by livestock if we continue on this path of destruction. I don’t know about you, but that does not sit well with me. Since I was a child, one of my life goals has been to live past 100. With the way our environment is collapsing right now, it’s hard to imagine that dream ever coming true — perhaps because of the cloud of cow farts that is blocking my view. Not only are those who mass-consume animals and their byproducts hurting themselves —

and obviously the animals they’re gorging on — but they also negatively affect the environment and people they care about. I have yet to hear a solid argument against veganism that is completely defensible. As previously mentioned, there’s cause to go vegan to help the environment — a vegan requires about onesixth of an acre to be fed for a year while a meat-eater uses 18 times as much land. Another common argument is that vegans cannot consume a sufficient amount of protein. The recommended daily protein intake for men over 15 years of age is around 56 grams of protein; as an 18-year-old woman, I have personally eaten at least 75 grams of plant-based protein in just two meals. If you don’t go vegan for your own health, then do it for the wellbeing of your loved ones or for the innocent lives of the animals you are consuming. Do it for clean water and oceans and for the starving families in developing nations that we have enough food to feed — if only it didn’t go to feeding livestock instead. Do it for the animals that aren’t even being killed for human consumption but become endangered as a result of deforestation for animal agriculture. Make a change because you care. So go, be selfish. But be selfish in a way that helps build a healthier future for everyone. Be selfish by educating yourself — by practicing mindfulness for the sake of the animals we say we love one minute but eat the next. Be selfish in these ways so that, as the world faces serious challenges in the coming years, we can say that we did not contribute to that mess, but rather tried to prevent it. Break the pattern of boring, destructive, conventional mass consumption of animals. Because, according to Dr. Richard Oppenlander, for every hour we crawl closer to self-extinction, another six million animals are killed for the pleasure of our taste buds.

CARTOON OF THE WEEK

Brian Tom

Gender Inclusion Vital to Political Success Continued from page 6

stronger, more representative democracy. Despite the benefits of having more women in office, women can still be less inclined to run for office than men. Hardy outlined several prominent barriers that tend to discourage women from running. Structural barriers such as the winner-takeall electoral system, the gender pay gap, gerrymandering, campaign finance rules, and partisan polarization are all factors that bar women from breaking into politics. These issues create incumbency advantages, which make changing the gender discrepancies in government much more difficult. There are also situational barriers, including lingering social expectations for domestic responsibility, inflexible careers, and a lack of active recruitment of women by party leadership. Another barrier, ac-

cording to Hardy, is that women are less likely to view themselves as qualified to run for office and are faced with unfair double standards in elections. Women often must be both likable and qualified in order to win, whereas it is often acceptable for men to be just one of the two. Sometimes, as Hardy mentioned with respect to the 2016 presidential election, men can be neither likable nor qualified and still be elected. Hardy and Emerge Vermont’s solution to fix the problem of unequal representation centers around helping and encouraging women to run for office. They do this by guiding women in determining which elected position is the right fit for them, then teach them publicspeaking and communication skills, fundraising and networking strategies, and self-care skills. While most of us focus

more on national and state politics, local politics are incredibly impactful on our lives. Local politics decide whether our cities are sustainable, whether those in need in our communities have access to assistance, and whether our cities protect undocumented immigrants, women, members of the LGBTQ community, people of color, and other vulnerable communities. Electing more women to office is an important step in making our societies more safe and equitable for everybody. Ask yourself which women in your life would be good representatives for Oberlin or your hometown. Are they your friends, your mentors, your mom, your professors? Is it you? Ask these questions because, as Hardy illustrated in typical Obie fashion, one person can change the world.

Respect, Personal Choice Vital in Decision to Study Abroad Maddi Kimball Ads Manager

“It’s a life-changing experience.” Whether those five words prompt or end the conversation, they are likely embedded in any type of discussion about studying abroad. For me, the possibility of studying abroad during the spring semester my junior year of college definitely factored into my decision to attend Oberlin, and yet, guess what I’m not doing in the spring semester of my junior year? That’s right — I am not studying abroad. Yes, you read correctly — I decided not to study abroad. When I was a first-year, I imagined how amazing it would be to walk the streets of Florence and take in the Renaissance-era architecture, hold koalas in the Australian brush, or laugh over tapas with new friends in Barcelona. I dreamed of immersing myself in the vibrant cultures of each country. Sounds like The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

the experience of a lifetime, right? So, you may be wondering, why give that dream up? First off, I haven’t given up on my dream, but it has transformed in many ways. My dream is not to “study” abroad; it is to travel abroad. There’s a difference. Many students can study abroad and travel while doing so, but when you have no interest in “studying” abroad, what’s the point of joining a program just so that you have the opportunity to travel? We all might ignore this part, but students generally end up spending a lot of extra money to travel elsewhere while studying abroad, regardless of how cheap it might seem in comparison to traveling in the United States. Furthermore, I didn’t want my time abroad to be defined within the context of being a student. That may sound like a subpar excuse, but a student’s experience is truly shaped by their identity as a student while they

study in a different country. Secondly, there is a common assumption that studying abroad is something that everyone desires to do; after all, why wouldn’t they? When some don’t, others try to rationalize why on earth they wouldn’t take advantage of this opportunity. Maybe, some might think, it was because of their significant other, financial stability, or academic standing. To be honest, I’ve heard it all. I’ve heard about the reasons why I’m not going abroad from other people who seem to know me better than I know myself. I’m not trying to say that the reasons above aren’t valid reasons as to why someone should decide not to go, but I am saying that they are not the only reasons. One’s choice to not go abroad could be deeply personal; with the kinds of assumptions above being thrown around, people essentially are trivializing others’ decisions to not study abroad. In fact, my

own decision was deeply personal as it was based on financial security and my own safety. I fought hard battles with my parents on the decision to study abroad before I realized that there were some things that were more important to me than studying abroad. Lately, I have thought a lot about the phrase I hear too often: “It’s a life-changing experience.” I always respond in a rather circular nature, “Well, so was going to college.” I have started to realize that life changes whether you decide to go abroad or whether you stay in the comfort of a womb chair on the fourth floor of Mudd library. In no way am I saying there is a right or wrong way to live your life — that’s for you to decide, not me. I am encouraging everyone to think deeply about what they want and to listen to others’ desires before we begin to assume how and why they make “life-changing” decisions.

SHORTS? Translating Science Symposium: Career Panel Craig Lecture Hall, 7 p.m. A panel featuring four Oberlin alumni working in science communication and outreach wlll discuss career opportunities and networking in the sciences. Conference: “Exploring Beauty and Truth in Worlds of Color” AJLC. Friday and Saturday, 8:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. The interdisciplinary conference will explore the role of race and culture in 21st-century artistic and aesthetic theory.

YES

Friday, Sept. 29

ATHLETICS?

LAB? NO

YES PANTS?

Saturday, Sept. 30

Women’s Tennis vs. University of Findlay Oberlin, OH 1 p.m.

YES

Tuesday, Oct. 3 Siberian Surf Rock Band The ’Sco, 10 p.m.

Wednesday, Oct. 4

Tree Dedication Ceremony: Green Legacy Hiroshima Tappan Memorial Arch. 4:30 p.m. This ceremony will celebrate the transplanting of Green Legacy gingko trees, which are descended from trees that survived Hiroshima.

Thursday, Oct. 5

Creative Writing Faculty Readings AJLC. 4:30 p.m. Professors Chanda Feldman and Derek Gromadski, both acclaimed poets, and Professor Abbey Chung, a short-fiction writer, will read from a collection of their published works.

YES

YES Stretchy cotton pants with a baggy t-shirt satisfies lab safety and provides warmth and comfort both in the lab and in the Science Library. Harem pants are light and airy, and paired with canvas shoes and a t-shirt, you’re ready for lounging and titrating.

For those who like to hit the gym right after class: basketball shorts, a tank top, and a flannel offer a quick change.

SKIRTS?

Sunday, Oct. 1

Deej Documentary Film Screening Dye Lecture Hall, 7 p.m. DJ Savarese, OC ’17, a writer and advocate for nonspeaking autistics, is the focus of a documentary film that investigates the challenges of representing autism and making goals of inclusion a reality.

A sporty bandeau paired with a low-hanging tank top and 3/4 leggings is perfect for brisk mornings and the sweaty afternoon practices!

Get yourself a maxi skirt and canvas shoes so you can look cute and follow lab safety rules! Add a tank top or t-shirt that you can tuck in to complete the look. A bell skirt and sheer peasant blouse with socks and ankle boots protects from that early morning chill, but is breathable enough for the warm afternoon.

Throw a jean jacket over a romper in the morning and pair it with ankle boots and socks to combat the inconsistency of Ohio’s weather.

T-shirts with flannels look great and are an easy layer to take on and off. Wear them with a pair of cargo shorts and footwear of your choice.

DRESS? YES Chunky heeled sandals make high-low dresses easy, and if you wear a jean jacket over a sleeveless dress, it provides just the right amount of warmth. For those mornings where pants seem like too much of a struggle, a highnecked bell dress with combat boots and a flannel is a great compromise.

HOW TO DRESS FOR THE MIDWEST Layout, design, and art by this week editor lucy martin Calendar text by production manager victoria albacete

YES

Friday, Sept. 29

ATHLETICS?

LAB? NO

YES PANTS?

Saturday, Sept. 30

Women’s Tennis vs. University of Findlay Oberlin, OH 1 p.m.

YES

Tuesday, Oct. 3 Siberian Surf Rock Band The ’Sco, 10 p.m.

Wednesday, Oct. 4

Thursday, Oct. 5

YES

For those who like to hit the gym right after class: basketball shorts, a tank top, and a flannel offer a quick change.

SKIRTS?

Sunday, Oct. 1

A sporty bandeau paired with a low-hanging tank top and 3/4 leggings is perfect for brisk mornings and the sweaty afternoon practices!

Throw a jean jacket over a romper in the morning and pair it with ankle boots and socks to combat the inconsistency of Ohio’s weather.

T-shirts with flannels look great and are an easy layer to take on and off. Wear them with a pair of cargo shorts and footwear of your choice.

HOW TO DRESS FOR THE MIDWEST Layout, design, and art by this week editor lucy martin Calendar text by production manager victoria albacete

A r t s & C u lt u r e

ARTS & CULTURE established 1874

September 29, 2017

Volume 146, Number 5

Bransah Performs Black Lives Matter-Inspired Choreography Kate Fishman

Editor’s note: This article contains mentions of anti-Black violence. In Warner Main Space, dancer Kweku Bransah took the stage with a noose around his neck, wearing a suit and one clown shoe, to perform Robin Prichard’s “The Art of Making Dances {Not About Ferguson},” a dance interpretation of his narrative as an African American man in today’s political climate. While the piece was performed for Oberlin students and faculty on Tuesday, it has existed for some time. The dance was choreographed by Prichard, an Associate Professor of Dance at the University of Akron, as a response to the deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling and the police violence in Houston during the summer of 2016. Obies were lucky to witness a final performance of it on Friday, before Bransah, who has now graduated from the University of Akron, heads off to begin his career. The piece opened with an exaggerated performance of minstrelsy and common southern dances of the early 20th century to the tune of “Keep On the Sunny Side,” with Bransah eventually escaping the noose around his neck through a series of acrobatics ending with an exaggerated sequence of bowing. From there, he removed his jacket and the clown shoe, and began a line of questioning he would build on throughout the piece: “I can’t help but wonder … how can dance be meaningful when people are being shot in the streets?” The next section was performed to audio from a press conference held by Alton Sterling’s family—a stark contrast of brutal reality with onstage artistry. The following segments played with this performative relationship, using Nat King Cole’s “Smile” and Louis

Kweku Bransah performs “The Art of Making Dances {Not About Ferguson}”, a dance choreographed by Robin Prichard. The performance engages with U.S. history and the present climate of anti-Black violence through dance. Photo by Claire Nave

Armstrong’s “They Can’t Take That Away From Me” as well as audio from the video recordings of the murders of Philando Castile and Eric Garner. Bransah’s incredible technique and theatricality as a performer translated fluidly through a variety of styles, from modern to ballet to breakdancing to improvisation. In the middle of the piece, while coming toward the audience, Bransah spoke of the smiling, head-bowing, non-threatening performance he must put on just to walk down the street — as he did so, his movements and facial expressions became uncomfortably clown-like and distorted, reminiscent of the piece’s opening. This small sequence was a jarring part of the dance as a whole — highlighting the performative nature of being a Black man, a Black university student, and a Black dancer in today’s America. “I knew that it had to be Kweku and that if Kweku decided to be part of it, this piece would happen,” said Prichard in a question and answer

session following the performance. Bransah added that Prichard had wanted to make the piece “an autobiography of what I’ve been going through. So that was the start of it … before we could even think of moves, before she could even think of beginning to end, middle, all that stuff, the conversation needed to happen.” While Prichard wrote the monologues performed in the piece, Bransah was given full jurisdiction over the tonality and inflection of his speech. He explained, “I like to kind of use the picture that she is the skeleton — so all the structure — and then I’m the muscles and ligaments and everything that makes the body really move.” “The only thing that I came in with, with this process was that first two minutes,” Prichard said, speaking to the work’s collaborative nature. “The music very much creates irony in this piece, this idea of ‘always look on the sunny side’ and he’s giving us this happy, non-threatening persona … and

I wanted the Louis Armstrong because of this idea that he’s singing, ‘You can’t take that away from me,’ and for me the thought is that anybody can take anything away in a moment.” For African American men in America, even the most innocent runin with the police could mean a life-ordeath situation. Grappling with how a medium like dance can respond to this (and how being a lawyer or a social worker would be a much more direct way to help), Prichard said, “I have a lot of questions about ‘When is art at its fullest? Is it about bringing happiness, is it about something else?’” For Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance Holly Handman-Lopez, who brought “The Art of Making Dances” to Oberlin after seeing it at the Lose Your Marbles fringe festival in Akron this summer, the vitality of the piece hinged on its ability to confront the question of dance’s role in the political and human sphere. “When I saw that piece, I just felt really moved and inspired. It immediately struck me, I think because of both its dance theater combination and its political nature, that our students would really respond to it and get a lot from seeing it,” she said. “I love that [it] was a bit of a call to action: What are you going to do? How are you going to do it?” The piece concluded with an improvisation by Bransah, ending with these words: “How do you take actions that matter?” To Prichard, this is the crux of the dance. “I feel like the dance is a response to the Black Lives Matter movement and the shootings … it’s Kweku’s biography inside of that larger thing, and then another thing is the questions about art and where its value is in a situation like this…I hope at the end that the audience feels like we have now passed it to the audience, and now it’s your job to do something with it.”

Fantasy Coffin Maker Paa Joe Celebrates Dead With Style Ananya Gupta Arts & Culture Editor

In Ghana, death is not just about grief, pain, and suffering. Paa Joe — or Joseph Ashong — and his son and apprentice Jacob Ashong, are fantasy coffin makers. They bring style, celebration, and positivity into some of the darkest times for a family. On Monday, they visited Oberlin to give a talk, “Paa Joe and the Fantasy Coffins of Ghana.” Since 1950, abebuu adekai, or proverbial coffins, have been deeply ingrained in Ghana’s cultural traditions, and are a great spiritual and economic asset to the community. Fantasy coffins are often personalized according to the occupation, position, or interests of the deceased person. The price Ashong quoted for Paa Joe coffins starts at $4,000, and they can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months to make. Many families in Ghana believe in the afterlife, so they invest in elaborate coffins to ensure the comfort of their loved ones as they transition to their future lives. “People in Ghana have a strong relationship with the deceased,” said Ashong, who gave the talk on behalf of his father. When someone dies, they are thought to cross a river to the afterlife. This is sometimes literally enacted in burial rituals, wherein “ancestors” dressed in white will wait on the opposite side of a river as relatives float the coffin across. “People who are deceased need some money to cross the river. … It’s like a toll booth. We like to give money to the deceased to cross the river into the afterlife.” 10

Paa Joe and Jacob Ashong decided to travel the world in order to garner recognition for their artform. “Any time we travel abroad, people in the western world have a huge respect for our work, but in Ghana they don’t recognise this as art,” Jacob told The Guardian in 2016. Assistant Professor of Art History Matthew Rarey organized Paa Joe’s Monday visit to Oberlin. “I think I learned about Paa Joe in the first course on African Art I took as an undergraduate at the University of Illinois,” Rarey said. “It was only this year when I had the opportunity to travel to Ghana [that I] stopped [by] at Paa Joe’s workshop [Paa Joe Coffin Works].” Paa Joe and Ashong have displayed their beautiful coffin art across the world in places like the British Museum, London; the Centre Pompidou, Paris; the Brooklyn Museum, and the Jack Shainman Gallery, New York City. These display coffins — unlike funerary ones — are made to survive periods of time with more durable wood and vibrant interiors, whereas those bound for burials are inlaid with white satin as a sign of farewell. Many of the lecture attendees were students of art history. “I’m taking an art history class with [Visiting Assistant Professor] James Hansen and he just emailed us about this,” said College sophomore Nora Vaughan. “My grandfather was a mortician and my mom grew up in a funeral home, so I’ve always been interested in mortuary studies.” While many Americans are interested in the

concept of fantasy coffins for their artistic merit — such as former President Jimmy Carter, who allegedly commissioned two — the uptake of fantasy coffins for deaths and funerals in the United States is minimal. “This art form is really popular in terms of exhibitions across the United States — held in different venues, museums — but I don’t think it’s taken off in terms of a burial practice,” Rarey said. “[People in the U.S.] are particularly interested in the coffins, but only for the purpose of exhibition. I think there might be something about collecting an important work of art that people want to hold onto and continue to see rather than burying it.” Lion, eagle, and fish designs are the most symbolic for coffins in Ghana, the lion and eagle in particular representing prestigious leaders and families. However, Paa Joe’s workshop is not limited to creating coffins in these traditional forms. He and Ashong often use photographs and real objects such as chili peppers, Coca Cola bottles, cell phones, and trees as inspiration for unique, intricate coffins. However, the traditional motifs remain an important part of their work. “My favorite coffin would be the lion or the eagle,” Ashong said. The unique balance of celebration and bereavement offers a very optimistic outlook on death and loss. Finding peace in the memory of lost loved ones is not an easy feat, but it is certainly a powerful message to spread across the globe through the vibrant, welcoming art of Paa Joe’s coffins.

Dead South Brings Dark Punk Folk Music to Cat Kirsten Heuring Staff Writer

When I saw, “Honk if you love rhubarb” written in dirt on the back of The Dead South’s trailer, I knew that Wednesday night’s concert was going to be interesting. Though I arrived half an hour early, the Cat in the Cream was already more than half full with people from not just Oberlin, but as far afield as Houston and Columbus; the band had performed in Columbus Tuesday night, and some audience members had followed them to Oberlin to see them perform a second time. By the time the concert started, there was standing room only. The Dead South came out looking like a group of punk Amish, dressed in distinctive dark clothes. The lead singer, Nate Hilts, was sporting the largest hat I had ever seen. The band, rounded out by Scott Pringle, Eliza Mary Doyle, and Danny Kenyon,

immediately launched into their first song. The music was fast and wild, a whirlwind of guitars, mandolins, and banjos, reminiscent of Mumford and Sons or The Lumineers. According to The Dead South’s website, they have been described as “Mumford and Sons’ evil twins.” The music had a distinct Texan or otherwise Southern flair, even though the band is from Saskatchewan, Canada. The combination of extremely fast strumming with a thumping beat was almost overwhelming, and pushed the instruments to their limits. One of the band’s assistants even had to keep changing out broken strings from the guitars, banjos, and mandolins. Although their strings broke, the musicians kept on playing with the same vigor. They stomped out and danced to the beat, and encouraged the audience to dance and clap along. The band members, especially

Hilts, interacted with the audience throughout the performance and showcased an excellent sense of humor. After the band explained that they were unable to bring their merchandise over the U.S.-Canada border, an audience member called out “Thanks, Trump!” and the band made a couple of well-received jokes at the President’s expense. They also took requests from the audience for some of the songs they played. The songs themselves were mostly Southern, bluegrass, or classic folk songs with a punk aesthetic. Most of the music had a driving beat and a lively tune with a dark twist. For example, “Miss Mary” — according to Hilts, his mother’s least favorite song — was a nervous little song about a woman abusing prescription pills and murdering her romantic partner. Another piece, “In Hell I’ll Be in Good Company” had a quick beat that was good for dancing but,

as the title suggests, the lyrics were more forbidding than the music. The Dead South even tried out a new song during their set: “Black Lung.” The song itself stood out from the rest of their performance because it had a more sinister tone; it was slower, more haunting, and deeply memorable. The performance was captivating and genuinely fun. The audience could barely tear their eyes away from the band and, if I were the dancing type, I would have gotten up and danced along. They are a great choice for fans of bands like Mumford and Sons, The Lumineers, and Lord Huron, and folk and country aficionados alike. If the artists had actually been able to bring their merchandise, many would have bought an album, or at least a button. I hope that The Dead South comes back to Oberlin while I’m still here. I would definitely go see them again.

to name a few. They also provided individual coaching sessions for many music students. The events had a wide appeal — people came from the Conservatory, College, town, and as far away as Cleveland to attend. According to Professor of Ethnomusicology Kathryn Metz, who moderated Monday’s talk on “Storytelling through Song,” there are many reasons why such a wide variety of people would be drawn to these events. “[The Punch Brothers] have been here before — they’re a known entity,” Metz said. “I think they’re also … very accessible musicians and humans, and that’s ... exciting. They will talk to anybody about all different kinds of things, and their music — while they will certainly challenge a listener with different kinds of melodic or harmonic structures that are a bit unpredictable, or some lyrics that might be more opaque than we might be accustomed to — still often resolve in a way that is accessible.” Andrea Kalyn, dean of the Conservatory, agreed that this wide appeal was a natural product of the Punch Brothers’ extraordinary musicianship, which has earned them extensive nationwide tours and glowing profiles in many publications, including The New York Times. She added that another dimension to their appeal was how the group plays with genre. “They’re great artists, first and

foremost, and people are compelled by great artistry,” Kalyn said. “[And] they work outside of genre. They play bluegrass music and they play new music with bluegrass instrumentation, but they approach their music as musicians first and genre second, at a very high level. I think that has a tremendous appeal across a wide range of audiences.” The Punch Brothers’ musical styles and academic interests have certainly appealed to Oberlin, as recognized when they were made affiliate scholars in 2014, after they had already been returning to Oberlin for regular artist residencies for a number of years. Their visits to Oberlin are sponsored by the Oberlin American Roots residency program, which was established in 2013 by actor and College trustee Ed Helms, OC ’96. One aspect of the Punch Brothers’ style that sets them apart from other groups is that they blend influences and instrumentation with both slight irreverence for and a deep knowledge of the traditions that they are working within and beyond. One prime example of this balance came during Thile’s talk and performance Tuesday, “Thile and Bach.” Though Thile played multiple highly technical Bach and Bach-influenced pieces, he also created moments of comedy with the lyrics and his performance, and emphasized that taking canonical

Punch Brothers Infuse Bluegrass with Classical, Jazz Influences

The Punch Brothers perform in Finney Chapel last night. The sold-out concert was the culmination of their fall residency. Photo by Justin Bank Julia Peterson Arts & Culture Editor

The Punch Brothers — a bluegrass band consisting of mandolinist Chris Thile; fiddler and violinist Gabe Witcher; banjo player Noam Pikelny; guitarist Chris Eldridge, OC ’04; and bassist Paul Kowert — returned to Oberlin this week for their fall residency, which culminated with a sold-out concert in Finney Chapel last night.

Known for their genre-bending music that incorporates elements of classical and jazz in a bluegrass aesthetic, the Punch Brothers gave a variety of talks and performances throughout the week. These included a panel on “Storytelling through Song,” a combined talk and performance on Bach and bluegrass, a talk on the history of bluegrass, a jam session with Conservatory student musicians, and a talk on the business aspects of the music world,

See Oberlin, page 13

Discovery Takes Star Trek Franchise to New Frontiers Indrani Kharbanda

Sunday marked the premiere of Star Trek: Discovery, the first Star Trek television program since 2005 and one of the most anticipated shows of 2017. Speculation has abounded as to whether it would live up to the standards set by past series and high fan expectations; fortunately, Discovery delivers. Though the pilot episode eschews the earnest idealism of previous Trek installments in favor of the darker fare that’s more in line with the rebooted films and the sociopolitical situation America finds itself in today, the new series is enjoyable to watch for newcomers and returning fans alike. The series was slated to debut in January 2017, but was delayed due The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

to conflict between CBS and thenshowrunner, co-creator Bryan Fuller (Pushing Daisies, Hannibal, American Gods). Fuller initially wanted to make an anthology series, not a serial, and was spending about six million dollars per episode. Eventually, he was replaced with his writing partners, Gretchen J. Berg and Aaron Harberts (Wonderfalls, Pushing Daisies). Fuller is known for his emphasis on lush visuals and a diverse cast, and the question remains as to whether these qualities will remain as the series moves forward without him. The pilot episode begins with a clear and all-too-familiar message: a demagogue (Chris Obi) speaks to a group of fellow Klingons aboard an intricately decorated ship, preaching populism and anti-Starfleet rhetoric.

His slogan is “Remain Klingon,” and he rages about the mingling of various “filthy” alien races. It’s fitting, then, that in true Star Trek form, the very next shot is of two women of color. These are our protagonists: Captain Philippa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) and First Officer Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green). They’re officers on the USS Shenzhou, and both deliver excellent performances throughout the episode. The Shenzhou’s bridge crew is rounded out by Commander Saru (Doug Jones), Science Officer Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp), and Cadet Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman). Neither the USS Discovery nor its captain Gabriel Lorca (Jason Isaacs) appear in the pilot, to the episode’s detriment. Though the episode has a strong sense

of place, the ship and crew that we come to know are not the ones that we will be spending the rest of the season with. Die-hard Trekkies have taken issue with some aspects of the show: redesigned Starfleet uniforms, phasers, and new looks for the Klingons. But it is likely for the best that Discovery’s creators have not entirely bowed to the will of nostalgic fans in their conception of the series. Starfleet uniforms have undergone multiple redesigns throughout Star Trek’s long television history, and character and species designs have also evolved; as Harberts noted in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, “the Klingons have never been completely consistent.” See Discovery, page 12 11

A r t s & C u lt u r e ON THE RECORD

On the Record with Douglas McKenna Douglas McKenna is a mathematician, computer scientist, and software engineer. On Tuesday afternoon, he gave a talk titled, “The Art of Hamiltonian Motifs: Generalized Hilbert Curves with Linear, Self-Similar, Fractal, or Space-Filling Boundaries.” McKenna received degrees from Yale University, and has been creating mathematical and fractal art both with a computer and by hand since the 1970s. He contributed illustrations to Benoit Mandelbrot’s book The Fractal Geometry of Nature, and his drawings have been featured in Smithsonian Magazine. He regularly contributes to the Bridges Conference on Connections Between Art and Mathematics, and is writing a book on space-filling curves, one of the subjects of his art. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Artist and computer scientist Douglas McKenna.

Photo courtesy of Douglas McKenna

Interview by Ivan Aidun Staff Writer

How do art and computer science fit together for you? Computer science teaches you about precision. And it teaches you the habit of making sure you’ve covered all possibilities, because when you don’t cover all the possibilities, your program crashes or has bugs. It’s a fundamentally mathematical skill; you have to do the same thing in mathematics. I’m interested in these patterns, which can be very complicated visually. I learned most of my computer science from a professor named Alan Perlis — who was the first Turing Award recipient, which is sort of the computer science Nobel Prize — and he worked on the first Fortran compiler in the ’50s, and he was one of the main fathers or progenitors of the ALGOL language, which was in the ’60s. [The language] C was sort of an offshoot of ALGOL, and Pascal too. So when I used all that computer science, I wanted to draw all these pictures, and I wanted them to be accurate. Otherwise it was just too tedious, because they have zillions of little motifs in them in different orientations. I actually bought a little HewlettPackard pen plotter in the ’70s, and for a lot of money back then. I wrote all of the drivers for it, and got an account, and wrote my own language that was kind of like C. The only way you could operate this thing was through Fortran, and Fortran was a language that at that time could not do what’s called recursive subroutines. Recursion is a very fundamental aspect of everything in computer science — you just learn it. [Stack-based recursion is] so useful in lots of ways. And so, I wrote this language that allowed me to program Fortran recursively, because recursive algorithms are great for doing fractals,

and especially space-filling curves. They’re all basically a recursive structure. Drivers are all about bits and bytes, and you have to know everything down to the hardware level to do it, and that’s how I got this plotter working. So, I would do the outlines of a spacefilling curve, or create a tile and draw that. I created a system that I brought with me eventually to IBM. And then I would take these, and I would sit at my kitchen table with India ink and a nib pen, and I’d color them in by hand. There were no algorithms for coloring the insides of polygons, especially complex, convoluted polygons. I just did it by hand. On your website Mathemaesthetics, you write about tension between symmetry and asymmetry, Platonic beauty, and aesthetic. Could you talk about what these concepts mean to you and how they impact your art? I’m interested in asymmetry in math. I think in a good piece of art — even a mathematical piece of art — there’s got to be a tension between symmetry and asymmetry, because if you’re just celebrating symmetry, it’s not really good art. You could celebrate asymmetry and it might not be good art either. I’m interested in some constrained combinatorial space where you can play and choose, and sometimes you can discover things — and this is where I’m most satisfied — that to the average person [are] indistinguishable from a piece of art. I’ve found some patterns like that that I’m really happy with, and one of them’s on [Oberlin Professor of Mathematics] Bob [Bosch’s] door there. That’s actually a mathematical discovery, it’s a tile, but then I colored it in interesting ways, and played with it, and it can be parametrized. Yeah, it’s a very pristine object, but if you look at that you don’t understand that. You look at it and you say, “Oh, it’s somebody having a good time and playing with color and structure, and it’s certainly not anything that I’ve ever seen before.” And bingo, that’s kind of satisfying. There’s another issue, which is the issue between texture and structure. The interesting thing about spacefilling curves, and a lot of fractals, is that the texture and the structure have the same form, especially if they’re self-similar. There’s an

interesting tension there as well. Are you celebrating texture or are you celebrating structure? That’s a big argument that happens in the mathematical art world a lot. You also sell scarves with some of your designs on them. How did you get started making these? Well, these designs that I am interested in, people have always been saying, “Hey, that’d be great on a fabric.” [Some] of these scarves are generalized Peano curves, and this one is based on a curve I discovered in 2004. So, I jumped in and decided to see what I could do about making some scarves. I have this dictionary of patterns with millions of patterns in [it], where I’ve enumerated them using backtracking search techniques. You can only choose a few, so I chose one that was low resolution, and then some that are a little higher resolution, and one is based on this pattern that I’ve created a piece of art out of and exhibited. This is actually a mathematical discovery as well as a great pattern. It’s a wonderful pattern because it’s a space-filling curve that’s related to another fractal called a Sierpinski Gasket. It’s as fundamental as the original Peano curve in some sense. So, I did it all in PostScript, and I smoothed the curves out. I studied up on the fashion industry and figured out what the colors were ... a couple years ago. I had a person I knew in China who knew a good silk factory to work with, so I manufactured a bunch. My daughter is a website designer, so she set up a website. I’ve sold them at various places, you know, the [National] Museum of Math in New York City, some conferences, and we sell them off the website. One of the designs ... my sister made into a quilt, so I actually sleep under a space-filling curve. And I have a space-filling curve in my shower, so I shower next to a space-filling curve. So, yeah, when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. What do you see as some future directions for your art? More fabric probably; I have a lot of other things that I’m working on. I like print art because you put it on the wall and everybody sees it, kind of enjoys it or is curious about it. There’s still an area of space-filling curves that I haven’t explored very well, and

there may be patterns there that are really cool. Maybe there’s a discovery to be made there. And this is just in two dimensions — I’m not very good at three dimensional stuff, I just don’t visualize it as well as some people. Space-filling curves are fundamentally related to tiling designs in two dimensions. I can create really cool tiling designs that are based on off-the-shelf square 2-inch tiles in two colors. You can lay them out in really incredible large designs, and I’d love to do that at some point. I’ve only done that in a couple bathrooms, mostly [for] my family. I have more to publish on my discoveries, which I haven’t done yet. What I’m going to show today is sort of a monograph on trying to classify this one corner of the world of spacefilling curves that are related to the Hilbert curve. What advice would you have for younger people interested in making math art? Don’t be afraid to make a mistake, don’t be afraid to demonstrate your ignorance. Have fun, play. You can make mathematical art with a pencil and a ruler on a white sheet of paper; I was doing that when I was a kid. You know, there are lots of little simple patterns that will teach you mathematical principles that you never really would have thought about, they’re just all what we sort of intuit. You can take a pen and just do a loop-da-loop scribble all over a paper, and then start coloring, just color. Or put a different cross-hatch pattern in each contiguous area. And then you learn that there’s a sort of evenness to it, where each intersection has a diagonally opposite area that has got the same polarity. It’s got an inside and an outside. You’re basically teaching yourself the even-odd fill rule for PostScript, or the Jordan Curve Theorem. So, have fun that way. If you have the time, teach yourself how to computer program. Teach yourself geometry, and how to graph things in x-y coordinates, and how to draw, and go at it. Have fun. Learn about symmetry, and enjoy it. Don’t get mixed up between it and art. Learn a lot about color; color is very important for all kinds of art. Art is ultimately about playing and exploring in a relaxed way — it doesn’t matter what medium it is.

Discovery Provides Darker, Modern Vision of Trek Continued from page 11

A show like Discovery can go a long way by appealing to nostalgia, but at a certain point, fans who only tune in to see the show that they once knew and loved can limit the show’s present form. By freeing themselves from the restrictions of previous Star Trek shows, the creative team has given Discovery room to grow beyond its history. Hopefully, fans will soon make peace with Discovery going where no Trek show has gone before, and remember that change has always been at the heart of Star Trek. More concerning than these aesthetic changes is a lack of character development over the course of the pilot episode and the cliffhanger plot twist at the end, 12

which many fans felt strained credulity. However, this episode’s main issue was that it felt incomplete. This is partly because of the cliffhanger, as well as the generous helping of exposition but mostly because the premiere is a two-parter, and the second half of the story only aired on CBS All Access, CBS’ streaming service. Future episodes of Discovery will also exclusively air on All Access, which is unfortunate because All Access is expensive for a single-channel streaming service, and many would have liked to watch the show live. It’s unfortunate for CBS as well, because Discovery’s premiere had 9.6 million viewers. Discovery is also currently in the top 20 pirated

shows on the website The Pirate Bay. Given CBS’ bland lineup for fall 2017 — which includes a military drama; a crowdsourcing cop show, Wisdom of the Crown; and a Big Bang Theory spinoff — Discovery would have been a welcome addition to Sunday night programming. Despite these drawbacks, whether you’re a hardcore Trekkie or this is your first exposure to the Star Trek universe, Star Trek: Discovery is well worth your time. The pilot episode signals a good start for a new chapter in the franchise, and Martin-Green’s perfect casting and stellar performance promises a solid first season. There is every reason to believe that this show will live long and prosper.

Oberlin Conservatory, College, Community Benefit from Punch Brothers Residency

Organ Pump in Finney

Continued from page 11

Students rush the stage at the first Organ Pump of the school year to feel the vibrations of the organ during the night’s final piece. Organ Pump traditionally involves a mix of great organ pieces and comedy performed in Finney Chapel at midnight once a month, and last Friday was no exception. Organ majors performed works by composers such as Jean Langlais, Camille Saint-Saëns, and Louis Vierne, and — along with some of their friends — sang the Review security report as an Anglican chant and read silly original poetry. Text by Julia Peterson, Arts & Culture Editor Photo by Bryan Rubin, Photo Editor

CROSSWORD ANSWERS: SEQUENCES AND SERIES

elements of the musical tradition too seriously can be detrimental to both audiences and musicians. “What I wanted to do today … is show you guys the way that my relationship with Bach works, and to encourage you all to have an individual relationship with Bach,” Thile said to the audience. “One of my [goals] is getting people to listen to Bach with their normal ears, not their ‘Bach ears’ — to just listen to it [without] sitting up straighter in your chair because you know it’s Bach.” According to Metz, a great deal of the group’s success comes from their ability to share and build upon their own musical backgrounds, as well as the history of all the various musical traditions that they work in. “Some [of the Punch Brothers] come from bluegrass, some from jazz, some from classical,” she said. “I think it’s neat to see who influences who, and to also see that music can cross a lot of different boundaries; [that] it’s not counter-intuitive to have classical music in bluegrass, or bluegrass in jazz, or jazz, bluegrass, and classical together, interwoven.” Double-degree senior Linnea Scott, who attended many of the events this week, spoke about how learning from the Punch Brothers over her years at Oberlin has influenced her as a musician. “They came [to Oberlin] my freshman year, and it was one of those musical life-changing experiences for me,” Scott said. “The way that they make music, the intention behind their music, and the quality of their music — they checked every box for me. … Their music was so good. It hit all the right places. And I thought, ‘This is the kind of music that I want to make.’ Not necessarily in that style, but I want to make music that makes me feel this way about music.” One advantage of having a group of artists like the Punch Brothers return to Oberlin year after year is that their relationship with the institution will continue to evolve in ways that are beneficial for all. Kalyn, in particular, noticed how the jam sessions have changed over the years. “When we first did the jam sessions, it was kind of a free-for-all in the [Conservatory] lounge,” she said. “It was much more about the sheer joy of music. As [the Punch Brothers] have come back more frequently, that’s one of the areas where we’ve really been able to build increased rigor. Over the last couple visits, they’ve started teaching the etiquette of jam, and really teaching people how to jam — people learn the tunes ahead of time, they’re given a playlist and they come to a pre-session … and then they come together and perform.” Scott, who played cello during Tuesday night’s jam session at the Birenbaum Innovation and Performance space, has noticed this evolution over the time that she has been engaging with the Punch Brothers’ residencies. “I enjoyed this year’s [ jam session] better than previous years ... because I really liked that there was a prep session,” she said. “People had time to get the tunes under their hands. … I think it’s good for us who don’t get to do that very often … to get out of our comfort zones.” For Kalyn, one of the most important aspects of the Punch Brothers’ residency is how their music fosters community among musicians on multiple levels, especially because their music is so different from what the Conservatory usually offers. “Seeing a group [of musicians] working together when it’s not your genre enables you to look at the communication, and the way the group works together, without getting caught up on the technique of the individual instrument in a way that you otherwise might,” she said. “You [can] see past the technique into the artistry in a different way. I think the notion of community … is a tremendous impact as well, and it’s something we don’t want our students to forget. [This residency] provides musical opportunities for students across the Conservatory and the College, provides a model of great artistry, and creates moments of community.”

THE UNFORTUNATE OWL: EATEN PADDY MCCABE

The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

Sp ort s IN THE LOCKER ROOM

In The Locker Room with Delta Lodge Athletics Director Natalie Winkelfoos This week, the Review sat down with Delta Lodge Athletics Director Natalie Winkelfoos. A former Division III basketball player at Baldwin Wallace University, the Ohio native is entering her sixth year as Oberlin’s Athletic Director. She discussed her journey to Oberlin, her views on the Oberlin Athletics Department, and the role sports plays in social justice and reform. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Julie Schreiber and Alex McNicoll

How did you end up working here at Oberlin? I was a college athlete. I got to know that you could have a job on a college campus as a student. I worked in the admissions office, I worked in the vice president’s office, so I got to see you can come to work every day on a college campus, and [I thought] that was pretty cool. Upon my graduation, I immediately went to grad school and got my master’s in higher administration. I thought I’d go more of a student affairs or student health route, but then I realized that so much of my identity was as an athlete, and I missed [that part of my life]. When talking to my college coach, she asked me what I wanted to do, and I said I wanted to be an athletic director, so she told me to start by coaching. [She said] to be a strong administrator, you should coach first. There was an opening at Oberlin as the assistant women’s basketball coach, and at that time the program was not good, to put it nicely. … I did a little bit of research, and I came out for an interview, and I just think that [Oberlin] is a hidden gem of Ohio. I am from Ohio, but this is not my world and I didn’t know this existed here. Once I got here, I figured out

that this was a place I could help, but then could also continue to help me grow. It’s a really cool vibe, something really different from the small town I was from. I got hired and basically just began to explore here, coaching basketball for a few years and [taking] on some administrative jobs, and ended up climbing the ladder that way. I never thought I’d be here this long, I didn’t think it was my home, but I certainly found a home here. What do you like about working with Oberlin athletes? What do you think makes them different from athletes at other colleges and universities? They’re intelligent. I consider my challenges, [and] I’d much rather have Oberlin challenges than any other institution’s problems. I think our kids are smart — they’re wickedly talented. There’s a passion that exists here that’s bigger than a game. Don’t get me wrong, I love games; I love the scoreboard; I love winning and losing — winning more — but I think that there’s a thought process with our Oberlin athletes that’s different from other places. I learn so much from our student-athletes, and I love watching them compete. With the climb that we’ve been on, I’ve been able to witness the culture change,

and to see the self-confidence with student-athletes increase is incredible. To see the comfort level in the weight room, and [when our student-athletes learn] how physical health parlays into mental health is incredible. I’m a witness to greatness everyday. We’ve seen leaders in the Oberlin athletics community attempt to “close the divide” between athletics and other aspects of campus life. Do you think this “divide” is present and problematic? Are there any remedies for this gap? I do think it exists on every college campus to some extent. My colleagues in the [North Coast Athletic Conference] are talking about this, so it’s not just an Oberlin issue, but nonetheless, there is a divide on our campus. I think that it’s getting better, but I think there needs to be a concerted effort, and lots of conversations. I think Monday’s “Athletics 101” conversation was a good start, but we need to hear from some of the people [from outside of the Athleticsw Department]. [Someone who] perhaps doesn’t always understand the value of competition, or the drive to be physically fit and healthy. I certainly see the importance of that, but it’s taken some time to find the right partners on campus that can help us

Natalie Winkelfoos, Delta Lodge Athletics Director Photo by Bryan Rubin, Photo Editor

tell our story on why we’re important to campus. Athletics is a valuable component on any college campus, but I think it also has to be managed appropriately. The divide can be bigger and nastier if you have student athletes that aren’t exuding the ethics of admission into Oberlin College. We don’t have those kind of student-athletes. I’m really proud of having the student-athletes that I have the privilege of working with. They go about things the right way, and, as I was saying earlier, there’s a certain thought process there that’s different than a lot of other campuses. We have a very strong community; we can pretty much do anything. We just need to seen as valuable partners. In light of recent political unrest emerging from the NFL and the NBA, what do you think is the role of sports in social justice movements? I think that [sports and social justice] go hand-in-hand, and

they have for 50-plus years. There was a little bit of a lag. First there were the Muhammad Ali days, but [athletes in the ’90s like] Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods refused to make any sort of political statement. Michael Jordan was asked to throw his weight behind a Democratic candidate from his home state of North Carolina, and he [reportedly] said, “Republicans buy shoes too.” Now, you see [guys like] Colin Kaepernick and LeBron [James] who are very vocal. Having LeBron stand on the same stage with Hillary Clinton was amazing. It’s awesome. I think that athletics play a huge role in our world — that’s why there’s a sports’ section in a newspaper. Whatever gets the attention and gets people talking, I’m all for it. I see nothing wrong with taking the knee. I know that our field hockey team has done that, and I believe our volleyball team has plans of doing it. That’s their right, and I support them.

As More Players Kneel, NFL Protest Loses Sight of Original Purpose Alex McNicoll Sports Editor

Before the start of the San Francisco 49ers’ first preseason game of 2016 against the Houston Texans, second-string quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to stay on the bench. Most people did not notice, as he was far enough down in the depthchart that he did not even suit up for the game. However, it was the start of his nowinfamous national anthem protest that has the whole league kneeling, and somehow, the more people that partake, the further away the protest gets from its original goal. It was not until his third preseason game last year, on Aug. 26, that people began to notice that he was sitting for the anthem. When asked about it after the game, he said he sat because of police brutality and the oppression of people of color. His actions were faced with outrage — many claiming that he was disrespecting the U.S. flag, so two days later he expanded on his point. “I’m going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed,” Kaepernick said in an interview with USA Today. “To me, this is something that has to change. When there’s significant change and I feel like that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent, this country is representing people the way that it’s supposed to, I’ll stand.” At this point in Kaepernick’s career, he had little to lose. After many key members

of the 49ers’ 2013 NFC Championship Team retired, Kaepernick, whose electric play was credited to his team making the Super Bowl, started to decline. In fact, going into the season, he knew he was no longer the starter, and, considering the size of his massive $126 million contract through the year 2020, he also knew he would likely be cut soon. However, he continued to use his platform as a one-time elite NFL quarterback to send his message, and on Sep. 1, 2016, Kaepernick, along with teammate Eric Reid, decided to kneel during the national anthem. Reid, a Pro Bowl strong safety, had harbored fear and anger over recent incidents of police brutality and wanted to do something to voice his opinions. After a conversation between the two of them and retired Green Beret and NFL player Nate Boyer, they decided that kneeling was the best, and most respectful, way to get their message across. Just like that, without starting a game, Colin Kaepernick became the most polarizing athlete in the U.S. Some claimed he was disrespecting the flag, some said he was trying to regain popularity to prove his place on the team, and some agreed with his stance, even joining in with his protest. Seattle Seahawks player Jeremy Lane, then-Denver Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall, and FIFA World Cup Champion soccer player Megan Rapinoe followed suit within just a week of Kaepernick’s first kneel.

Now, over a year removed from the start of Kaepernick’s protest, the protest has blown up more than the quarterback ever could have imagined. President Donald Trump chimed in last Saturday, condemning players who kneel and claiming that the protest is not about race, but about disrespecting the flag. “If a player wants the privilege of making millions of dollars in the NFL, or other leagues, he or she should not be allowed to disrespect … our Great American Flag (or Country) and should stand for the National Anthem,” Trump tweeted. “If not, YOU’RE FIRED. Find something else to do!” His comments prompted the response of almost the entire league, as many NFL owners decided to release statements of support or even lock arms and kneel with their players, as was the case with outspoken Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. The Cowboys, dubbed “America’s Team” because of their huge fan base and influence, all knelt in a line Monday night. The protests have driven the NFL fanbase into a frenzy, as some respect players firing back at our president, while others are appalled by what they believe to be blatant disrespect of the flag and the military. This divide has been so stark that it is even evident on the field. The Pittsburgh Steelers decided to protest by staying in the tunnel during the national anthem. While this move made a statement, it was highlighted by Alejandro Villanueva, a four-year veteran, who stood

on the corner of the field with his hand on his heart during the anthem. As an officer in the U.S. Army and a member of the Army Rangers, he did not want to disrespect himself and the people he served with, even if it isolated him from his team. Kaepernick’s original goal — to provide a voice for the oppressed — has been lost in all of the debate over who is disrespecting the flag and the military, as well as what role athletes have in politics. If anything, the voice that Kaepernick was trying to stand up for has been completely removed from the conversation. Many NFL owners actually endorsed Trump during the election, including eight who publicly donated to his campaign. Woody Johnson, the owner of the New York Jets, played such a large role in the campaign that he is now the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom. So as athletes such as Tom Brady, who tried to shy away from his public relationship with Trump during the election, locked arms with his teammates, the motive of Sunday’s protests became unclear. However, whether it be to show Trump that the NFL doesn’t take orders from anyone, or just to increase long-declining ratings from concerns of the long-term affects of head trauma, it has nothing to do with Colin Kaepernick. Maybe if some owners did believe in what he knelt for, they would actually sign him.

How to Crush the Fantasy Competition: Week 4 Alex McNicoll Sports Editor

Just three weeks into the Fantasy Football regular season, nearly all expert predraft predictions are absolutely meaningless and most teams look like a dumpster fire. David Johnson, the consensus number-one overall pick this August, injured his wrist in week two, rendering him useless for half the season, and the supposed Chicago Bears stud starting running back Jordan Howard has all but lost his starting job to fourth round rookie Tarik Cohen. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg in all of the mayhem that is Fantasy Football. Now may seem like a good time to just mail it in for the rest of the season — I’m considering doing it in one of my three leagues — but don’t give up yet. If there’s two certainties in Fantasy Football, it’s that no one really knows what they’re doing and that the only real thing that’s important is the inevitable bragging rights that come with winning. So without further adieu, here are my three strategies for moving forward. Buy Low, Sell High Everyone knows that the first few weeks of the season are the most dangerous for Fantasy Football. A guy has one big week, and everyone thinks he’s a certified star for the rest of the year. Don’t fall for the hype! Here are the top “Buy Low, Sell High” candidates. Buy Low Amari Cooper: Considered a second or early third-round pick in nearly all Fantasy leagues, the wide receiver has been nothing but frustrating to his fantasy owners, getting just 39 yards combined over these last two weeks. Don’t forget that he’s on one of the most electrifying offenses in the NFL, and his otherworldly skills are soon to result in points. Michael Crabtree is good, but when the Raiders play, Cooper is the best receiver on the field. Joe Mixon: After a shockingly bad first two weeks for the Cincinnati offense, they finally seemed to find their rhythm against their rival Packers. While their outlook as a team may not look great as they’re 0–3 on the year, this does bode well for rookie Joe Mixon, who racked up 101 total yards

on the night. In what has been the year of the rookie running back so far, it might not be a bad idea to offer up a trade for Mixon, whose jaw-dropping athleticism and raw talent had scouts wondering if he would be the first running back taken in the NFL draft, if not for his off-the-field concerns. Sell High Todd Gurley: Coming off a monster 149-total yard, 3-TD performance, it’s easy to think that Gurley is back to being one of the top fantasy running backs in the league after a disappointing season last year, in which he finished as the 20th Fantasy RB. Don’t be fooled. Showtime is not back in Los Angeles, and all of the reasons for Gurley to fail again are there. Gurley is an elite running back talent, and while his supporting cast of second-year dud Jared Goff has been efficient against the Colts and the 49ers — two of the worst teams in the league — the Rams will finish a disappointing 6–10, and Gurley will stand to lose the most when their offense inevitably falters. Ezekiel Elliott: After posting a dominant 94 total yards and a touchdown on Monday night, Zeke got back at the NFL the only way he knows how: feasting on a mediocre defense. However, in all of the banter about Elliott’s overturned suspension, it’s easy to forget that the NFL is still actively trying to get him suspended, and that if he is, he’ll likely miss valuable endof-the-year or postseason Fantasy games. He’s a top-three running back in the league, and it’s best to trade him while he’s still playing. Stefon Diggs: Not even Stefon Diggs thought he would have been the highestscoring receiver in all Fantasy Football scoring formats through three weeks. While there’s no denying his talent, betting on the Vikings’ passing attack is like betting on the Chargers not to blow a fourthquarter lead. If you have him, sell while you still can. Free Agent Finds The biggest myth in Fantasy Football is that the most important day of the season is draft day. Between swindling your enemies in trades and working the waiverwire, every day is as, if not more, important than the last. And the only day that really matters is when you parade your cham-

pionship trophy around and concoct the worst “sacko-punishment” you can think of when you win the league. Here are this week’s sneaky steals that will catapult your team to first place, whether by giving you a viable flex or strengthening your bench. Wendell Smallwood: With Darren Sproles out for the year after suffering an ACL tear and broken forearm on the same play, Smallwood is set to absorb all of the yards the explosive 34-year-old veteran was going to get. Last season, Smallwood proved he can be successful, and despite his small sample-size, he is certainly worth the risk. Jamaal Charles. CJ Anderson has had the lion’s share of carries in Denver many times and has squandered that opportunity at every turn. Jamaal Charles could never turn his inhuman speed, quickness, and talents into the career he deserved because of countless ACL tears and surgeries, but in Denver’s modest offense, he should be able to carve out enough of a role to make owners proud. David Njoku: The Browns have few options on offense, and rookie tight end David Njoku proved last week that he has all the physical tools promised when the Browns took him with the 29th overall pick this summer. Consider him a high-floor, lowceiling tight end in a season where nearly all players at his position have been underperforming. Defenses If you haven’t figured it out by now, a defense’s production is almost impossible to predict, and very dependent on their matchups. It’s too late to warn you not to be the person that drafts a defense in the eighth round, but still, here are the defenses that should be available, and you should try to get based on matchups. Jaguars: They’re going against the Jets. Bengals: If I could pick up the defense of the team that plays the Browns each week, I would, so this week offers a rare opportunity. The Bengals aren’t doing too well so far, but they should take care of business against the Browns’ abysmal offense. Start and Sit There’s so much to say about all of the players you should want and you should be allergic to, but the toughest decisions in

Fantasy Football are who to start and who to leave on the bench. There’s no feeling worse than looking at your bench and seeing that your wide receiver racked up 32 points, then going on to lose your game by five. I know that sometimes it seems like Fantasy Football just hates you, and the better scoring player will always be the one you choose not to start, but choosing your starters is the biggest and most stressful decision you will make all week, so you’ve got to try. Some people go by matchups, and some try crystal balls, but the rest of you can just read here. Marshawn Lynch – Sit. He’s been shaky this season, as the Raiders want to keep him fresh for their inevitable post-season run. Against the Denver defense that absolutely silenced Ezekiel Elliott, it’s best to sit Lynch for a week and let their offense regroup after a 27–10 trouncing by Washington. Lamar Miller – Start. Miller has been good, not great. While it’s tough to be mad with his performance, it’s certainly not what owners wanted when they spent a second or third round pick on him. Miller hasn’t found the endzone yet, and that’s bound to change soon. When it does, make sure it doesn’t happen on your bench, for your sanity as well as mine. Larry Fitzgerald – Start. The old faithful of Fantasy Football, Larry Fitzgerald’s immaculate career may never see a Super Bowl championship, but it certainly has seen a few Fantasy championships. As he gets older, he seems to expend all of his best performances for the beginning of the year, so it’s best to cash in now, especially when he’s going against the San Francisco 49ers, whose defense should probably be playing in college football. Cam Newton – Sit. In the season that was supposed to be SuperCam’s return to MVP form, he’s been absolutely awful. With coaches on his own team worrying that all of the hits he’s taken in his career have affected his game, it’s best to leave him on the bench against the New England Patriots. Eli Manning – Start. Maybe it’s because I’m a Giants fan, but you just have to do it. He beat Brady twice.

Men’s Soccer Cools Off, Drops Two Straight Matches

Junior midfielder Trenton Bulucea takes the ball upfield against the Ohio Wesleyan University Battling Bishops in their 4–1 defeat on Satuday. The Yeomen are 4–4–1 this season, and 0–1 in conference play. Photo by Hugh Newcomb, Photo Editor Jane Agler Staff Writer

The Yeomen struggled this week as they opened North Coast Athletic Conference play with a 4–1 loss against the Ohio Wesleyan University Battling Bishops Saturday, then dropped Wednesday’s match against the University of Mount Union Purple Raiders 2–1. The Oberlin Review | September 29, 2017

Head Coach Blake New, whose team’s offense has faltered in finding the net recently despite outscoring opponents 17–5 in their first four games, is confident the Yeomen can rebound to their winning ways as conference play picks up. “We are a good team,” New wrote in an email to the Review. “We just need to be confident and get on a roll starting with our next

match. Our challenge in our next match will be to bounce back.” Against the Purple Raiders, the Yeomen delivered their signature high-pressure attack right at the starting whistle. Sophomore midfielder Jack McMillin broke the ice with a slick cut through the Raiders’ defense and clean finish in the 15th minute. The Yeomen rode the 1–0 lead into the second half, as the Oberlin, Ohio native collected his fifth goal of the year. Prior to facing off against the Purple Raiders, McMillin expressed faith in his team’s system, saying that he wanted to match his own expectations. “I [hope] to work on finishing the chances I get and being effective and dangerous there,” McMillin said. The game became more physical in the second half, with six fouls and even two yellow cards issued within 45 minutes. Mount Union sliced the equalizer past Oberlin’s defense in the 64th minute, and after a blocked shot by junior midfielder Trenton Bulucea, Oberlin attempted two more times to regain the lead, but to no avail. After the two halves, Mount

Union took the lead and the game with an overtime goal in the 99th minute, putting the final score at 2–1. “As a team, it is the small mistakes that let us down in the past. But we will hopefully improve on that,” McMillin said. During their match against the Battling Bishops Saturday, the Yeomen established a strong momentum right off the bat when senior midfielder Jonah BlumeKemkes sniped a shot into the lower left corner of the net off of a wide through-ball from Bulucea. However, the Yeomen’s lead was short-lived, as the Battling Bishops tied the score at one in the 22nd minute, then taking the lead in the 31st. Oberlin saw two more chances in the second half, one from sophomore midfielder Jiadi Cheng, who gunned the ball into the goalpost. The Yeomen fought hard all throughout the match, only letting up at the final whistle in their 4–1 defeat. Despite the four conceded goals, Oberlin took 17 shots — two less than the 19 from the Battling Bishops. Senior goalkeeper Connor English played all

90 minutes and finished with six saves. Despite the margin of defeat, Cheng was happy with his team’s performance, hoping that soon the final score will start to reflect their efforts. “We had more ball possession, passes, and shots but we couldn’t convert those into a win,” Cheng wrote in an email to the Review. “I’m very confident in our team’s offense and we have proved ourselves by having a lot of goals this year. If we can continually work well in offense and learn from the mistakes we have made, we are still a big challenge for the conference title.” “We were great offensively, but we will have to improve our defense and our poise in certain moments of [upcoming] games,” Cheng said. “We still have a lot of season left.” The Yeomen, who are 4–4–1 overall, will have a chance to break their two-game losing streak, as well as earn their first NCAC win, when they face off against the Wittenberg University Tigers in Springfield, Ohio, Sunday.

SPORTS September 29, 2017

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Volume 146, Number 5

Athletics 101 Opens Athlete Divide Conversation Julie Schreiber Sports Editor

Sophomore midfielder Libby Royer carries the ball up the sideline, weaving through the DePauw University Tigers’ defense Saturday. The Yeowomen fell to the Tigers 2–1 in overtime. Photo by Kellianne Doyle, Staff Photographer

Yeowomen Struggle for Wins Alex McNicoll Sports Editor

The Yeowomen could not find the net in a hard-fought battle against the Ohio Wesleyan University Battling Bishops Tuesday, losing the match 3–0. The field hockey team has been unable to get into rhythm recently, as they dropped four games over six days, three of which were against North Coast Athletic Conference opponents. With the losses, the team drops to 0–6 in the conference and 1–10 overall. Despite the early season struggles, Head Coach Tiffany Saunders likes what she’s seen from her team’s communication and drive. “We’ve capitalized a lot on on-field communication,” Saunders said. “The constant support of one another following a play, and the fight to dig deep and always go after it [has been huge].” The Yeowomen fought off the Battling Bishops’ attack for most of the game, entering the half down just 1–0. Junior goalie Kennedy Kline was in command between the pipes, saving six shots against their conference rival. However, the Yeowomen mustered just four shots to the Battling Bishops’ 19, and in the second half, Oberlin let up another two goals without scoring one in the 3–0 defeat. Saunders said that the team needs to maintain focus and fight through both halves in tight games, as their record does not reflect the team’s on-field performance. “I think it’s just finding that last push to seal the deal,” Saunders said. “It just comes down to pushing through one more time. Executing the basic skills. We get excited when we’re in those close games, and one small turnover [can dismantle] the whole fight to get the ball up. Then it’s right back down on [our] end.” The Yeowomen were tested by the NCAC’s Earlham College Quakers’ offense Sunday, as Kline faced 21 shots, 13 of which were on goal. Unfortunately, Kline’s six saves were not enough, as the offense’s eight shots came up

short against the Quakers, who won 7–0. Although the team kept the game close, maintaining a score of 3–0 going into the half, they could not generate the offense to compete. One close attempt came from junior attack Amelia Huang, who nearly scored in the 41st minute as one of her two shots careened off the post. Kline, who has been dominant through her team’s scoring struggles, said that playing five games between Sept. 15 and 24 led to unavoidable exhaustion, but the team’s drive is evident of the good things to come. “This weekend was a big one for us because not only was it a double-header, but it was a double-header at home, and on Saturday we proved how hard we can work,” Kline said. The Yeowomen played their hardest-fought match of the season so far against the 2016 NCAC Tournament runner-up DePauw University Tigers Saturday in a heartbreaking 2–1 overtime loss. The Yeowomen struck first, as sophomore midfielder Libby Royer redirected a shot by Huang to the back of the net in the 21st minute. The team rode their 1–0 lead into the second half when the Tigers responded with an equalizer in the 36th minute. By the end of the second half, the score was tied 1–1, and it took a goal in the 72nd minute to break the tie and give the Tigers the victory. While the Yeowomen were unable to walk away with the win, junior midfielder Meg Parker was proud of her team’s performance against the Tigers, who sit at second place in the NCAC. “Playing against DePauw was so fun,” Parker said. “Everything on the field felt really great and how hockey should feel. I couldn’t be happier with how we played. The overtime was disappointing but I walked away so proud of our team.” The Yeowomen look to break their two-game scoring drought against the Rhodes College Lynx in a non-conference matchup this Sunday in Granville, Ohio.

English Professor Yago Colás led the first installment of a three-part workshop called “Athletics 101” in Wilder Hall Monday, Sept. 25. The workshop was designed to encourage an open conversation about the role of athletics and presence of the athletic community at the College. Colás has spent much of his first month at Oberlin concentrating on the integration of athletics and academics on campus. A former professor of Comparative Literature within multiple disciplines at University of Michigan, Colás teaches a course on sports culture and philosophy. He will also serve as an assistant to the Yeomen basketball team for the upcoming 2017–2018 season. The dialogue that “Athletics 101” attempted to foster is not groundbreaking content among Oberlin students — whether through Facebook discourse or real-life conversations, most Oberlin students have engaged in discussion of the “divide” between athletes and non-athletes. However, Colás brought novel expertise and authenticity to the contentious campus topic, attempting to provide the appropriate launching pad for students and faculty alike to move the conversation from words into actions. The event began with a panel discussion with four guests from the Oberlin Athletics department: Lynda McCandlish, coach of the women’s lacrosse team; Sara Schoenhoft, coach of the softball team; Blake New, coach of the men’s soccer team; and Kerry Jenkins, coach of the women’s basketball team. The four coaches summarized their career histories and experiences at Oberlin, addressing and attempting to debunk various stereotypes that frame the conversation on campus about athletes, including decreased academic standards, disengaged attitudes towards their studies, and increased access to the College’s money and resources. McCandlish in particular was able to relate to the athlete and non-athlete divide. “It was the same when I was in college, and the [disconnect] between athletes and non-athletes probably exists at most top academic schools,” McCandlish said. Once the panel opened to questions from the audience, many faculty members commended the presence of student-athletes, both on and off the field. Associate Professor of Sociology Greggor Mattson expressed his gratitude for the maturity and respect exhibited by the first-year student athletes he advises. “I love advising first-year fall athletes,” Mattson said. “They are incredibly responsive and responsible.” Hispanic Studies Assistant Professor Ana María Díaz Burgos echoed Mattson’s statement, expressing that she has “only had great experiences with student-athletes.” Steve Volk, the director of the Center for Teaching Innovation and Excellence, referenced educational research to substantiate the merits of participating in athletics on campus. “The conversation treats education and athletics as separate entities,” Volk said. “But the valuable traits that students develop in college that lead to success later on are dispositions such as discipline, empathy, and teamwork, which are all fundamental parts of athletics, and the greater world of learning we have at Oberlin.” While a considerable amount of the conversation at “Athletics 101” focused on identifying the values and debunking the myths of college athletics, the event ended with suggestions from the attendees on ways to improve the athletic reputation and bridge the gap between athletes and nonathletes on campus. All heads nodded in agreement when Colás suggested that increased communication between student athletes, non-athletes, and professors could help remedy the hostility and encourage more students to support each other in their campus endeavors. Despite the support expressed towards the athlete community, various other students and faculty members also drew attention to the ways that Oberlin athletics fails to adequately support students and often acts complacently in the path of campus activism. College senior Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Co-Chair James Tanford also suggested using sports as a platform for athletes to engage in social justice movements on campus. “It’s time for the athletes to get more involved in the activism on Oberlin’s campus,” Tanford said. Associate Professor of Rhetoric Jan Cooper also proposed making improvements to the accessibility of varsity athletics on campus. “The school needs to make a better effort to provide resources to non-binary students on campus who want to participate in athletics,” Cooper said. The next installment of “Athletics 101” will take place Monday, Oct. 23, and leaders of the workshop are seeking to draw an even larger audience of students and faculty from all corners of campus in this ongoing attempt to unite Oberlin and bridge a long-standing campus divide.