11-2-22

BASKETBALL PREVIEW

PITT MEN’S BASKETBALL POISED TO RELY ON VETERANS, RETURNING PLAYERS FOR 2022-23 SEASON

Zack Gibney Senior Staff Writer

Entering preseason workouts, a palpable buzz followed the program for the first time in years. After Pitt head coach Jeff Capel lured top-shelf prospect Dior Johnson, a feeling of hope began to fill a program that for years lacked any sense of optimism.

However, Johnson is now facing charges of assault and strangulation. The program sus pended the previously promising guard indef initely, once again leaving Capel and company with more questions than answers.

Now more than ever, Pitt needs its veterans to take the reins and reestablish the program — both on and off the court. This season, the Panthers’ success is contingent on their ability to push through the adversity that’s plagued them over the past few seasons.

Entering his third year at Pitt, junior for ward John Hugley is one of few returning pieces. Last season, he earned ACC Honor able Mention honors after averaging 13 points and just more than seven rebounds per game. Hugley is a difference-maker down low and can match up with just about anyone in the ACC.

Hugley also knows what it’s like to face adversity. In 2021, he was charged with two counts of felony criminal conspiracy and one count of receiving stolen property after an incident at an off-campus party. Despite hav ing his charges dropped, the forward was sus

pended for the final 15 games of the 2020-21 season before returning for his sophomore year in 2021-22.

Since his incident, Hugley has seemingly shown both growth as a player and a leader, reportedly serving as a mentor for some of the younger players within the program.

Hugley has a chance to prove his charac ter development by helping reestablish a cul ture of accountability and success. In his third year, the newcomers look to “Big John” as a leader.

So far this offseason, Hugley has shown signs of leadership. Hug ley said he communicated with the team's new arrivals prior to their coming on campus.

“We were talking a lot,” Hugley said. “I was helping them under stand the system here and helping them understand Coach Capel and how he operates.”

One of those newcomers, graduate student guard Nelly Cummings, could step up into a leadership role. The Colgate transfer returns to his hometown with ample postseason ex perience after bursting onto the scene at last year’s NCAA Tournament.

Cummings said he connected well with the Pitt coaching staff during his recruiting win dow. The guard said Capel wanted to know him on a personal level — looking beyond just his on-court abilities.

“Other coaches were just getting to know me quickly,” Cummings said. “But Coach Ca pel was more deep.”

Cummings was expected to rotate with Johnson at the two guard positions, but is now expected to lead the backcourt as the presumed starting point guard. The two-time All-Patriot League player averaged nearly 15 points per game last season, proving himself as a critical on-court contributor. Entering his fifth year of college hoops at his third dif ferent program, Cummings can help show a young Pitt team what success looks like at the Division I level.

Graduate student guard Jamar ius Burton enters his second sea son with the Panthers as one of the more experienced players on the team. After previous stops at Wich ita State and Texas Tech, Burton started 26 games for the Panthers last year, av eraging just over 12 points per game.

Entering his fifth year of college hoops, Burton can provide stability for a young Pitt team — both on and off the court. He has em braced the many newcomers, and said they have spurred the program in early practice sessions.

“Everybody’s coming in each and every day just looking forward to not just being there, but looking to win every drill,” Burton said. “With all the new faces, everyone has a chip on their shoulder and we all want to make a

difference this year.”

Despite his efforts, stability continues to elude Capel’s program. Since his hiring in 2019, players have steadily departed every sea son and a constant flow of drama has contrib uted to minimal on-court success. Between Hugley, Burton and Cummings, there is hope that the Panthers finally have a core group that can help propel the program in the right direction.

In an offseason during which the program was desperate for change, Capel believes the coaching staff’s hard work has paid off.

“I thought my staff did an unbelievable job navigating and recruiting the transfer portal and high school recruiting and we were able to land six guys,” Capel said. “It was a lot of work … just trying to make sure we have the right guys who can help us going forward.”

So far, Capel is confident in the team that he has built, but recognizes there is room for growth. He believes that the process may take some time.

“We have to see. We are getting to know our guys,” Capel said. “Seeing us collectively together is still something we are learning.”

The 2022-23 season is a tipping point for the Pitt program. New faces will fill the Pan thers’ bench when they open their campaign on Nov. 11 against rival West Virginia. Only time will tell if these experienced players can help propel Pitt out of the doldrums of college basketball.

Guard Jamarius Burton (11) dribbles the ball during the Pitt vs. Minnesota men’s bas ketball game at the Petersen Events Center on Nov. 30. Hannah Wilson | Senior Staff Photographer

Pamela Smith | Visual Editor

PITT WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH LANCE WHITE MUST WIN NOW

Alexander Ganias Staff Writer

Every year, it seems as though Pitt fans see what head coach Jeff Capel does with the men’s basketball team, and they want him gone. Time and time again, the Panthers fail to make any sort of postseason tournament, and without fail people start to question what the coach did wrong and why he’s still on the sidelines.

But what about the women’s coach? Lance White has led the women’s bas ketball team since 2018 with very little to show for it. In four seasons as the head coach, his team won just eight conference games in 67 tries, and hasn’t finished higher than sec ond-to-last in the ACC.

If you see the 12th-place finish in the 2020-21 season and think things were differ ent then, don’t worry. Only 13 teams played that year because Duke and Virginia canceled their seasons due to the COVID-19 pan demic. Pitt lost to Boston College in that year’s ACC tournament, and that’s when reporters started to notice a trend of losing sea sons.

Mike Wilson of the Cardi ac Hill blog wrote that after the tournament loss, White coached Pitt through three straight seasons under .500.

“At this point, even backto-back 20-win seasons would not earn the coach an overall winning record,” Wison wrote.

Although to that point, White did have a signature moment un der his belt. Right be

Panthers started off very strong in their nonconference schedule and looked like a team that finally took the next step as a program.

The Panthers collected big wins against Northwestern and Rutgers and went down to the wire against tournament teams like Texas A&M and South Dakota. They went 9-2 in their out-of-conference schedule and had some semblance of hope going into their home match against No. 2 NC State.

That hope was short-lived, as NC State thoroughly handled Pitt 89-54. The Panthers scored no more than 13 points in each of the four quarters. After the game, White de scribed the match as a litmus test for Pitt in ACC play.

“It’s a hard challenge for us,” he said. “We have a lot to work on to be able

tournament.

After another season in the bottom of the ACC barrel, the Panthers went out and got a pretty impressive recruiting class, including

to compete against those top-5 teams and we’re just not there yet.”

But think back to the last time Pitt and NC State played in Pitts burgh, when the eighth-ranked Wolfpack eviscerated the Panthers 88-44 on Jan 23, 2020. This included a second half where the Pack outscored Pitt 50-14. White took the po dium and addressed the media after the loss.

“We’re not mentally tough enough yet to battle teams like NC State,” he said. “We’re moving for ward, but we’re just not good enough yet.”

White has put together the same press conferences for the last few seasons, which means he doesn’t have a plan to change. Or he does, and it just hasn’t worked. Pitt fin ished the season dead-last in the conference last season and blew a 16-point lead in a loss against Duke in the opening round of the ACC

transfers from Maryland and Ohio State, the West Virginia and Tennessee 2021 high school players of the year as well as a top-100 pros pect from nearby Carnegie, Pennsylvania. White said he was anxious to get all of them out on the floor in the upcoming year.

Despite the incoming talent, they are com ing off a season where two stalwarts trans ferred out of the program. Jayla Everett — last year’s leading scorer at 13.6 ppg — now plays for St. John’s. Rita Igbokwe — last year’s lead ing blocker and rebounder with 68 and 223 respectively — now plays for Ole Miss. The Panthers will have to match or exceed that production to even have a chance at improv ing.

Lance White has not been good in his first four seasons at Pitt — that much is clear. But he can make us all forget about that with a good showing in 2022-23. He doesn’t have to win the ACC to keep his job — he just has to prove that he can win games. If he doesn’t, athletic director Heather Lyke should let him walk.

Pitt starts its season on the road against Coppin State on Nov. 7 at 7 p.m.

CLUBS EXPRESS POLITICAL BELIEFS, TALK MIDTERM ELECTIONS

Allison Radziwon Assistant News Editor

For Matthew Dorrycott, president of the Young Democratic Socialists of America at Pitt, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman’s stance opposing fracking in his debate against Dr. Mehmet Oz was “disappointing.”

“While I realize that he has to appeal to a certain voter base given that PA is a very big energy-driven state, it felt like he was very unprepared for the question and had to shill out a little, which is the unfortunate reality for a lot of Democrat politicians,” Dorrycott, a senior computer engineering major, said. “It does not change my stance on him as a Senate candidate, and I still fully endorse him over Dr. Oz.”

With the upcoming midterm election on Nov. 8, students who do not identify with either the Democratic or Republican parties shared their political beliefs and thoughts on midterm candidates. Along with the Young Democratic Socialists of America, members of the Student Marxists of Pittsburgh also ex pressed their thoughts.

Dorrycott said he will vote for Fetterman because of workers rights, and Attorney Gen eral Josh Shapiro, who is the Democratic can didate for governor, because of his pro-choice policies.

“Fetterman has been really good on work ers’ rights and utilization of efforts. I heard he came out to UPMC during the summer to the workers that were unionizing, and that’s great,” Dorrycott said. “And with Shapiro, we could be facing a major setback on women’s reproductive rights … because Doug Mas triano would want to completely criminalize abortion.”

Corbin Canterbury, president of Student Marxists of Pittsburgh, said capitalism ex ploits the working class. According to Britan nica, Marxism is an economic philosophy, developed by Karl Marx, that discusses the effects of capitalism on labor and argues for a worker revolution to overturn capitalism in favor of communism.

“We think living under capitalism is some thing that doesn't serve everyone in society. We think capitalism has inherent and basical ly irremovable contradictions that hold back society. And I think across the board, make your life much harder than it should be,” Can terbury, a senior history major, said. “We live in a system that exists to exploit us and to ex ploit our labor and our lives essentially. And, instead of just rolling over and accepting that

we want to organize and fight back to make something better.”

Michael Bracken, vice president of Student Marxists of Pittsburgh, said the club's goals include promoting Marxism on campus. He also said they welcome anyone with “leftist ideas.”

“Our main objectives are to discuss and promote not only Marxist ideas and theory on campus, but also to create links with the labor movement in Pittsburgh more broadly, which has been a major objective of ours,” Bracken, a senior history and political science major, said.

Dorrycott said socialism is the act of using economics for social reform, and that the cap italist system isn’t fair for the working class.

“There’s a myth that you can work to get success, but in reality, it’s all just luck. There’s no such thing as a meritocracy, but that’s what most people believe,” Dorrycott said. “But if the working class is able to come together and produce change and create the proper organi zation … the working class can create oppor tunities for themselves and provide a better organization of society for social issues.”

Bracken and Canterbury said they don’t support any specific candidates in the mid term election because the country does not have a “proper” political party that supports the working class.

Bracken added that he wants workers to utilize their right to vote, but it’s hard to find a candidate to support in the current election.

“It’s not that as Marxists that we don’t want people to vote, but we want to give people something worth voting for, which in the cur rent political landscape is difficult to find,” Bracken said. “If a candidate were to break from the Democratic or Republican party as an advocate for a socialist program … that would represent a really radical opportunity in American politics. But I think in order to accomplish something like that … you first need to build the foundations of an indepen dent working class party.”

Canterbury also said he believes in the possibility of a proper working class political party in the future.

“We have the largest working class mobi lization of people, you know, in our modern generation, so to say that there's no basis for a new party to come would be ridiculous, I'd say, because the energy is right there,” Canter bury said. “It's just a matter of directing it into the right place and not letting it fizzle out or be co-opted.”

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THEMANOR

FRI, nov. 4-THURS, nov. 10

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (PG-13)

No passes through 11/27/22

Thu: 3:25, 6:35, 9:45

Dear Zoe (R)

Based on novel by Pittsburgh author, P. Beard!

Screenplay written/produced by Pittsburghers!

Filmed entirely in Pittsburgh!

*Indicates Q&A after the show

Fri: 2:50, *4:50, *7:10, 9:30

Sat: 12:50, 2:50, *4:50, *7:10, 9:30

Sun: 12:35, *2:35, *4:55, 7:15, 9:20

Mon & Tue: 3:00, 5:05, 7:10, 9:15

Wed: 3:00, 5:05, 7:10, 9:15

Thu: 3:00, 5:05, 7:10, 9:15

The Banshees of Inisherin (R)

No passes through 11/20/22

Fri: 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:20

Sat & Sun: 12:00, 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:20

Mon & Tue: 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:20

Wed: 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:20

Thu: 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:20

Ticket to Paradise (PG-13)

Fri: 3:00, 5:10, 7:20, 9:35

Sat & Sun: 12:50, 3:00, 5:10, 7:20, 9:35

Mon & Tue: 3:00, 5:10, 7:20, 9:35

Wed: 3:00, 5:10, 7:20, 9:35

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INFLATION TRUMPS ABORTION FOR COLLEGE REPUBLICANS WHEN CHOOSING CANDIDATES IN MIDTERM ELECTION

Alexandra Ross Senior Staff Writer

Election Day isn’t until Nov. 8, but Dylan Mitchell is already predicting the outcomes for Pennsylvania’s biggest races.

“I think there’s gonna be a lot of ticket-splitting in this state this election,” Mitchell said. “I think there’s going to be a lot of voters that are voting for Mehmet Oz and Josh Shapiro.”

November’s midterm elections will decide whether Republican Oz or Democrat John Fetterman becomes Pennsylvania’s newest senator and whether Democrat Shapiro or Republican Doug Mastriano becomes the state’s governor, in addition to other local, state and national representatives. Members of the Pitt College Republicans club are saying what many national polls confirm — this year, the economy is one of the top is sues on the ballot, especially for conservative voters.

Mitchell, the current vice president and presidentelect of College Republicans, said he will not vote for any candidate whose policies will increase inflation — especially after what he has seen as franchise owner of Vocelli Pizza in Hampton Township.

“I’m a small business owner, so inflation has defi nitely hurt us,” Mitchell, a sophomore law, criminal justice and society and politics and philosophy double major said. “I’ve watched our food costs double over the last year. People can’t keep up. I’ve seen other small businesses close … So anyone who is going to support more spending proposals that are going to keep driv ing inflation is just going to be out for me right off the bat.”

Joshua Minsky, a sophomore neuroscience major and vice president-elect of College Republicans, also said the economy is his top issue this year, though he spoke more about the impact of foreign policy on the economy than inflation. Minsky believes the domi nance of the U.S. dollar is at stake because of difficult relationships with foreign countries such as Saudi Arabia. He said if the dollar is no longer the dominant world currency, it could seriously weaken the Ameri can economy.

“It’s critical,” Minsky said. “The American econo my funds our military. It funds our foreign policy. It allows us to have social safety nets to the extent that we

do and it’ll get much worse if all that goes away.”

Minsky and Mitchell also expressed support for in creased fracking in the U.S., including reactivating the Keystone Pipeline System. Mitchell believes increased energy independence from fracking would make America a better ally to Europe and drive down gas prices to reduce overall inflation. While he recognized that the global climate is an important issue, he said eliminating fracking in the U.S. makes American energy consumption worse for the environment.

“Getting our energy from overseas isn’t cleaner than making it here,” Mitchell said. “It’d be cleaner to just make it here. It just makes us feel better to get it from overseas, but we’re still using the same amount whether we make it here or get it from a higher price from global tyrannical dictators like Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia or Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.”

Another issue important to College Republicans members this year is protecting Second Amendment rights. Salvatore Zuber, a senior advanced mathematics and mechanical engineering major and current presi dent of College Republicans, said he has a permit to car ry a gun in Pennsylvania and often does so to feel safer.

“Over the summer I was working here, actually, in North Oakland, and I was running deliveries for work and twice I heard gunshots,” Zuber said. “Obviously I can’t carry on campus, so I don’t, but I carry just about everywhere else … It’s just important for me to be able to defend myself.”

Abortion access became a national issue for Demo cratic voters this year after the Supreme Court over turned Roe v. Wade, which established a constitutional right to abortion. However, none of the College Repub licans who spoke to The Pitt News — all of whom iden tified as pro-life — said they considered abortion a cru cial part of their vote this November.

Mitchell said he would not support a candidate who would ban abortion without exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. However, he said he will vote for Mastriano, who said in April 2022 that he would ban abortions with no exceptions, in part because Mitchell does not believe Mastriano would be able to enact such a policy.

“No matter his beliefs personally, it’s unrealistic,” Mitchell said. “He would never get that passed, and I’m

glad that he won’t get that passed with no exceptions. I’d like to see it with the exceptions, but anything that I know is unrealistic to actually get passed isn’t going to be a major deciding vote for me.”

Pennsylvania senatorial candidates Oz and Fetter man recently faced off in their first and only debate, where Fetterman struggled with speaking and au ditory processing as a result of his stroke earlier this year. Minsky said he sympathized with Fetterman, but considered it “critical” for a senator to speak and understand English without captions, and called the Democratic Party “cruel” for continuing to push Fet terman as a candidate.

“He’s being dragged around essentially for politi cal gain by the Democrat Party, and I think it’s gross,” Minsky said. “He’s embarrassing himself in front of millions of people on the debate stage so again, some bureaucrats in D.C. can continue to hold power. I think it’s very sad and this person is clearly suffering and you’re dragging him around when he can’t speak.”

When it comes to voting, Zuber said, sometimes it comes down to who you agree with more instead of who you agree with on everything. While he said he considers himself more moderate than Oz and Mas triano, he will still vote for them over their Democratic opponents.

“Oz is going to represent me better than Fetterman is, Mastriano is going to represent me better than Sha piro is,” Zuber said. “While I may not agree with Oz or Mastriano on everything, because I certainly don’t … with the current choices, you know, I’ve made up my mind, at least in those two races.”

In all, despite believing Shapiro could take the Pennsylvania governor’s seat, Mitchell said he feels op timistic about Republicans’ chances across the board this November — in Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.

“I think there’s a strong fighting chance for Repub licans in the Senate,” Mitchell said. “They’ve got a good shot. I think they’re almost shoo-ins for the House of Representatives. And I think they’re running really strong gubernatorial campaigns. I think they’re gonna come away with a surprising amount of governor’s mansions on the morning of Nov. 9.”

Students listen to Democrat ic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro speak in the William Pitt Union on Oct. 27, an event co-organized by the Pitt College Democrats and Pitt Students for Shapiro.

Ethan Shulman | Staff Photographer

The logo of Pitt College Republicans. Image courtesy of Pitt College Republicans

PITT’S COLLEGE DEMOCRATS FEEL ‘CONFIDENT’ AS MIDTERMS APPROACH, FLOCK TO PRO-CHOICE CANDIDATES

Trevor Weinstock Staff Writer

Jake Lorenz, the secretary of Pitt College Dem ocrats, believes Josh Shapiro is more equipped than his Republican challenger Doug Mastriano to serve as governor. He believes Shapiro would better address issues Pennsylvanians are currently facing — rising food and gas prices, underfunded schools and “attacks on our freedom.”

“I am very confident in the two Pennsylvania democratic races both for the governorship and for the Senate. I think nationwide, you’ll see simi lar trends that happen every midterm year during the presidential four-year term,” Lorenz said. “So regardless of national trends happening in Con gress, I am confident that our Pennsylvania team will be successful, as it’s showing in virtually every poll.”

Many members of the Pitt College Democrats are working with other clubs, such as Pitt For Sha piro and Pitt Law Democrats, to spread the word about this year’s elections. In the past month, Democratic candidates Arvind Venkat, Summer Lee and Shapiro, who are running for a state House seat, federal House seat and governor, respec tively, have spoken at events for the organization. Through these events, members say they’ve gotten a better understanding of the politicians.

After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade earlier this year, abortion rights have be come a more prominent issue for many Pennsyl vanians. Mary Boyd, a first-year political science major, said she feels abortion access is one of her top priorities when selecting who to vote for.

“The main thing, at least on my mind, is defi nitely abortion rights,” Boyd said. “And I think that goes for a lot of Pennsylvanians, especially the Pennsylvania Democrats. So that’s mainly what I’m most concerned about. Oz and Mastriano are very against abortion. So I’m really hoping to get pro-choice candidates elected.”

Lorenz said he is concerned about Mastriano’s incorrect claims of massive voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Lorenz said he is also concerned about Mastriano’s anti-abortion beliefs and that he’s not supportive of the LGBTQ+ com munity. Mastriano has said that same-sex marriage should not be legal.

“The stakes of this election have never been higher,” Lorenz said. “These are two very different candidates, Shapiro, who will defend LGBT rights, defend workers’ rights to address the climate crisis, versus a conspiracy theorist and an election denier. So the stakes are very high.”

Boyd also supports Lee due to her focus on vot ing rights and her determination to make voting

more accessible by ending voter ID laws and giving formerly incarcerated people the right to vote.

“Lee’s main goal is to expand the electorate,” Boyd said. “And so that kind of goes back to like making sure everyone can vote making sure ev eryone has a say, and she’s definitely advocating for minority groups and I think that’s very important.”

Amanda Thornton, a junior political science major and the president of Pitt College Demo crats, said she supports John Fetterman for Senate because of his determination to protect reproduc tive rights.

“I agree with him on a lot of issues,” Thornton said. “One big thing for me is his stance on abor tion. I appreciate his stance, especially coming from a male legislator. I appreciate anyone who sympathizes with that issue and he is pro-choice.”

Although Thornton is from Mechanicsburg and will not be able to vote for Lee, she believes she is the future of the Democratic Party.

“Summer Lee’s always been someone I’ve ad mired,” Thornton said. “I heard her speak a cou ple weeks ago on campus, and she’s such an amaz ing person and she believes that the Democratic Party needs a lot of work done to it, but she is working to help implement that change and help implement change that is better for everyone.”

Although Alyssa Dosch, a first-year elemen tary education major, is from Virginia, she is heavily focused on Pennsylvania’s gubernatorial race. She is concerned the results of this election will be similar to Virginia’s last gubernatorial race. Last year, Virginia voters elected Repub lican Glenn Youngkin, even though Biden won the commonwealth in the presidential election by more than 10 points.

“That’s one of my biggest fears. That’s why I’m so passionate about this election, because I’ve al ready seen how it’s beginning to affect Virginia,” Dosch said. “Glenn Youngkin is already trying to enact a trans ban. It’s really bad over there right now. And I think it’s a very real possibility that it is, but I also have a lot of hope that we can win this thing. That’s why getting out the vote is so, so important.”

Thornton believes that it is essential that every young person goes out and votes in this election cycle.

“It is your civic right as an American citizen — most young people don’t think that voting affects them, but it really does,’’ Thornton said. “It’s be cause if you don’t go out and vote, then you’re not going to see legislators who reflect what you be lieve in and reflect who you are. So it’s extremely important that we go out and vote.”

NEVER A

Keynote: Social Entrepreneurism Addresses Food Insecurity, Leah Lizarondo, 412 Food Rescue

Join us for dinner and learn the possibilities for social change that public service and social entrepreneurism creates. You will hear from internationally recognized social entrepreneur and CEO and Co-Founder of 412 Food Rescue, Leah Lizarondo. You will also have an opportunity to meet and network with 25 prominent leaders from the Pittsburgh region. This will be an evening of inspiring action for social transformation.

During the event, students learn about the incredible legacy of Elsie Hillman and engage in small group discussions with mentors from the nonprofit, business, and government sectors to learn how they can jumpstart their own community involvement and make a positive impact.

TREE OF LIFE DOCUMENTARY PAINTS A SOULSTIRRING PORTRAIT OF A HEALING PITTSBURGH

Patrick Swain Senior Staff Writer

After watching the documentary “A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting” last Thursday, I hopped on a bus to Squirrel Hill and walked down Wilkins Avenue to the Tree of Life synagogue. The neighborhood was serene — fall foliage rustled in the breeze and boys in yarmulkes rode by the building on bicycles. I could hardly believe that on Oct. 27, 2018, an antisemitic massacre claimed the lives of 11 Jewish worshippers on the ground where I stood.

Four years after the deadliest antisemitic attack in our nation’s history, Pittsburgh is still a city in heal ing. The massacre at the Tree of Life sparked crucial conversations on antisemitism in America. “A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting,” which premiered on HBO on the eve of the attack’s fourthyear commemoration, serves to reignite those con versations and create a powerful portrait of a grieving community on the road to recovery.

The documentary opens with an aerial shot of the synagogue. The sound of a shofar and sirens ring through the air. Firsthand accounts of survivors and the families of victims interwoven with footage of the

crime scene and the static of police scanners paint a horrifying picture of the massacre and its aftermath.

The documentary delves into the personal lives of the survivors and community members through a series of intimate interviews. Dan Leger, a nurse who was wounded in the shooting, said he came to terms with death in the moments after getting shot.

“I knew that it was very likely that I was going to be dead in a few minutes. I was on the stairs, and I didn’t feel afraid at that point. I had no sense of being afraid about the end of my life coming,” Leger said, in the documentary. “I thought about my life, and I thought, ‘Gee, I’ve had a wonderful life — my life has been so good. I’m so grateful for it.’”

Officials believe the shooter espoused a multitude of racist conspiracy theories and promoted xenopho bia and antisemitism online. In the documentary, Ellen Surloff, former president of the Dor Hadash congregation that shares the synagogue with Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha and lost members in the massacre, said the shooter targeted the synagogue because of its efforts to aid refugee resettlement.

“The days that synagogues just leave their doors open and hope that no one comes through the doors

with a gun — I think those days are gone,” Surloff said. “[The shooter] knew that we had something to do with immigrants.”

Brad Orsini, a national security advisor for the Secure Community Network, called for gun con trol in the wake of the massacre. In the documentary, he showed an antisemitic flyer distributed by the Klu Klux Klan around Squirrel Hill after the shooting, saying it underscored the need for gun regulation.

“These groups are emboldened, they’re empow ered, and they’re vocal,” Orsini said. “If we didn’t change gun regulation and gun laws after Sandy Hook, I don’t know that we ever will. I hope and pray there’s a day when we do do that.”

The documentary also provides audiences a win dow into the everyday lives of those affected by the massacre. Poignant anecdotes and conversations shed light on their individual personalities, demon strating that the survivors are more than just victims. It captures a charming candid moment of Joe Char ny, an elderly survivor, celebrating a football win.

“I didn’t feel like watching the Steelers today be cause I was afraid they would lose, but I have to get the score,” Charny said, checking his phone. “Pitts burgh Steelers won 17 to 10! Mazel tov indeed.”

“A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shoot ing” arrives at a precarious moment in the conver sation surrounding antisemitism in the U.S. Antise mitic rhetoric now commands the national spotlight as many public figures including the rapper Ye, for merly Kanye West, have publicly spewed unabash edly antisemitic hate speech on social media in recent weeks. Critics have also accused Doug Mastriano, the Republican nominee for governor of Pennsylvania, of promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories and

Christian nationalism throughout his campaign. These come as experts report an alarming rise in hate crimes and mass shootings across the country over the past several years.

It’s times like these when we need storytelling like “A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting” the most. Americans are becoming dangerously de sensitized to violence and mass terror, with seem ingly endless shootings perpetually consuming our national psyche. The documentary highlights the humanity of the victims of the Tree of Life massacre, emphasizing grief and healing at a personal, individ ual level. It’s a sobering reminder that the names on the news bear stories, not statistics.

“A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shoot ing” is also a cautionary tale. Hateful rhetoric is not harmless — words matter. The act of indulging in antisemitic epithets and stereotypes spawns the fes tering potential for violence. As false conspiracy theories spread like wildfire on social media, the documentary shows the devastating real-life reper cussions of hate-fueled ideologies’ proliferation.

In the hours after viewing the documentary, I attended a vigil in Schenley Park and heard from several members of the Tree of Life community. To many of them, the congregation means home and the worshippers killed that day were a part of their family. Tree of Life’s grief sent shockwaves through Pittsburgh and beyond, and that pain will linger for generations.

“A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shoot ing” plays an instrumental part in documenting that horrific day and immortalizing the memories of the 11 lives lost.

Flowers, candles and chalk drawings placed outside the Tree of Life Synagogue in 2019. TPN File Photo

opinion

DEMOCRACY DEMANDS OUR DUE DILIGENCE BEFORE VOTING

Grant Van Robays Staff Columnist

In case you’ve missed the onslaught of political campaign ads lately, the Nov. 8 midterm elections are upon us. While policies regarding abortion rights, gun reform, immigration and inflation are immensely consequential for the trajectory of both President Joe Biden’s agenda and that of the country, no issue is more important this election than the fate of democracy.

While this may sound alarmist at first, the 2020 election reminds us that democracy is fragile. By spreading election misinformation and refusing to ac cept the results of a free and fair election, former Presi dent Donald Trump set the dangerous precedent that political nominees can simply cry fraud and refuse to concede when they lose an election.

While American democracy withstood Trump’s test, its fight is not complete. This mid term election, a majority of Republican nominees on the ballot denied or questioned the results of the 2020 election. These election deniers are not only running for high offices like Congress or gov ernor but also state legislatures, secretary of state and attorney general. For the U.S. to live up to its democratic ideals and for voters to vote responsi bly, it is imperative that voters know if they have an election denier on their ballot this year.

Before we bemoan democracy’s potential downfall, let’s establish a set of facts. Biden won the 2020 election with 306 electoral votes to Donald Trump’s 232. There was no evidence of widespread voter fraud. Nearly 150 Republican members of Congress latched on to bogus claims of fraud and attempted to decertify Biden’s vic tory. Hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 to prevent the certification process. The Capitol still stands, but claims of fraud still run deep. Misinformation about the election has significantly diminished faith in democracy. Roughly 70% of Republicans don’t believe Biden won the elec tion — and now many of them are running for office.

Media outlets like the Washington Post and watch dog groups like Democracy Docket, Advance Democ racy Inc. and the Insurrection Index provide invalu able information on election deniers. The Insurrection Index enables users to isolate candidates in certain states and includes evidence of their election denial or misinformation, typically via social media posts or campaign videos. Voters should utilize the information from these interactive datasets to inform their votes. If we fail to do our due diligence and vote responsibly, we misuse our right to vote. When we misuse this right, we must accept some culpability when those we elect abuse the power we entrust to them.

According to the Insurrection Index, there are nine candidates who deny the results of the election run

ning in Pennsylvania. Republican Mike Kelly, the cur rent U.S. Representative for district 16 who is running for re-election, has spread disinformation through so cial media and voted against certifying election results

on Jan. 6. Gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano was at the “Stop the Steal” Rally on Jan. 6 and spread disinformation about the election. The Jan. 6 Commit tee subpoenaed Mastriano to hand over documents and information about his attempt to name a slate of alternate electors for Trump.

Mastriano is a right-wing culture warrior who hates pronouns and likes to cosplay as a Confederate soldier, but that’s not the core issue. Rather, it is Mas triano’s willingness to accept blatant lies about an elec tion that was not fraudulent that speaks volumes. It says that he cares more about his party than his people.

to the election system.

Election deniers litter the ballot box this year. Of 36 GOP gubernatorial candidates, 15 have cast doubt on the legitimacy of the 2020 election. At least 10 of the 27 secretary of state candidates have done the same. In Arizona, for example, guberna torial candidate Kari Lake demanded the decertifi cation of Arizona’s votes in 2020. Arizona secretary of state candidate Mark Finchem similarly denied the 2020 results. Lake indicated that she will ac cept the results of the 2022 election if she wins but won’t accept the results if she loses. Herein lies the key to the Republican playbook — accept elections if you win, deny elections if you lose. This is not how a democracy operates, yet it’s becoming the GOP’s modus operandi.

Further concerning is the Republican par ty’s tacit acceptance of political violence in the name of stolen election conspiracies. Election conspiracies will spur violence by extremists, according to U.S. intelligence. The recent at tack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband exhibits this reality, as the alleged perpetrator was an ardent supporter of election fraud con spiracies espoused by the hundreds of Repub lican politicians up for office this year.

Annika Esseku | Senior Staff Illustrator

Why did Mastriano believe the 2020 election was sto len? Because Trump and his GOP allies said so. Elec tion deniers simply do not care about the will of the people, but the will of the party. This abject partisan ship is antidemocratic in every sense of the word.

The threat to the integrity of our elections does not only come from the seats of Congress or the presi dency, but from state offices. Elections for seats in state legislatures, secretary of state and attorney general are also significant. Governors hold veto power over bills that make access to voting less restrictive and secretaries of state certify elections. Attorneys general can challenge election results in a court of law at their discretion. During the 2020 election, 17 Republican attorneys general joined a lawsuit challenging the cer tification of election results in battleground states. If people in these offices are willing to deny the results of a fair election because it didn’t turn out in their favor, it doesn’t bode well when they’re the ones with the keys

As frightening as these attempts at disen franchisement and conspiracy-driven political violence are, hope for democracy is not lost. Voters can deliver the consequences to elec tion deniers by voting them out of office. If a certain candidate lacks the integrity to stand behind the election results and face facts, odds are they’re not subservient to their constitu ents. Rather, their allegiances may lie with the party. Voters should take this into account when casting their ballots come Nov. 8.

We should face the unfortunate reality that many election deniers will win their elections. A majority of election-denying candidates are ex pected to win their races. If election deniers win, the public must not despair. Rather, their victory should invigorate people to hold their leaders ac countable. Holding the powerful accountable is, of course, much easier said than done. Such is the price of admission for a democratic society.

While America isn’t on the doorsteps of a fullblown autocracy yet, it’s imperative that voters heed the alarm bells. Voters have the power to vote for candidates who won’t act like tyrants or con spiracy theorists this year. Use it well.

Grant Van Robays writes primarily about inter national affairs, social issues and basic human rights. Write to him at grv11@pitt.edu.

from the editorial board

Elon Musk’s ideas for Twitter set a negative precedent for the platform

Eccentric billionaire and Tesla found er Elon Musk bought Twitter for a steep $44 billion on Oct. 27. After purchasing the company, Musk turned it from pub lic to private, meaning he has more dis cretion over the platform and it’s subject to less scrutiny. Musk also said he will form a content moderation council with “widely diverse viewpoints” — poten tially including former president Don ald Trump.

Musk’s plans for Twitter will likely make the platform less accessible despite his “free speech” promise, and will create an unsafe environment where bigoted people will have the platform to spread hateful speech. Potentially allowing conspiracy theorists such as Alex Jones and Steve Bannon, who were suspended from the platform for good reason, in the name of free speech is disturbing.

After Musk bought Twitter, bigoted internet users circulated more than 1,200 antisemitic, racist and transpho bic tweets and retweets. Posters ap plauded a potential lack of regulations after Musk took control of the company. Hateful people like these users shouldn’t be able to spread their messages, and it’s extremely dangerous that they feel em

powered by Musk.

Republican lawmakers also applaud ed Musk for purchasing the platform, es pecially because he promised earlier this year to “reverse the permanent ban” on Trump. Twitter banned Trump following the Jan. 6 insurrection to limit the risk that he might incite further violence. Musk also plans to start charging $20 a month for verification, with current verified users set to lose the blue check mark after 90 days if they don’t pay. This plan is extremely dangerous as it could lead to impersonation of celebrities, brands or government officials, further spreading misinformation to the public. Overall, Musk’s plans for Twitter could create problematic precedents for all social media platforms. Bigoted peo ple will feel empowered to abuse Twitter to spread hateful rhetoric with the lack of regulations on Musk’s Twitter. Rein stating Trump and making people pay for verification will take the platform backward instead of forward. Musk be lieves he can be above regulations by buying Twitter — but all of these chang es will come back to haunt him when the platform makes a turn for the worse and advertisers are scared away.

Twitter headquarters is shown in San Francisco, Friday, Oct. 28, 2022.

AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

Classifieds

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

by Patti Varol and Joyce Nichols Lewis

Private stash

serving

Dell products, for short

Weighed down

Flamenco cheer

an aria

I __ learn?”

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cloud,

Noggin

1950s sitcom name

quite apologetic

Nevada city with a railway museum

__ suey

Salon offering

Ore-Ida nuggets

Here, in France

Name better left unsaid, or a description of the answers to the starred clues

Syrup source

Unlikely winners

“Best before” kin

Tune for two

Campus URL ender

with flattery

Frosted, as a cupcake

of history

rider’s strap

“Big Night” actor Shalhoub

the near future

Strainer

Greek letter between zeta and theta

Sports replay type, briefly 7 Pointer or printer lead-in

“__ have a clue”

Cartoon frame

Music producer Brian

Confident stance

Blue-skies forecast word

Far from swanky

Like a busybody 22 YA novel by Carl Hiaasen about a threatened owl habitat

Unreturnable serves

Hide from view 28 Red-ink amounts

Zip 31 __-friendly 32 Unexpected moments of good fortune

“__ Te Ching”: philosophical text 34 Unwelcome picnic guest

NFL six-pointers

Bar bill

James Bond, for one

“__ Be in Love”: Kate Bush song

“No __, no glory”

“I’m good with it”

Poet St. Vincent Millay

Old photo tone

Face-to-face exams

__ Forces Day

“Pet” annoyance

Pillow feathers

Henhouses

“__ Holmes”: Netflix film starring Millie Bobby Brown

Units of force that make up newtons

NNW opposite

Olive __

Orange tuber

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

beast

grandparent, say

buttes

Scoped out with bad intentions

“Heavens __!”

Successfully handles a rough patch

Rushed

Catherine Cetta