pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
46
Gentry, pg. 35 they are angry, and they have a right to be.” Analysts expect a similarly devastating rise in Pittsburgh. According to PublicSource, rent prices are falling by roughly 1 percent per year, but the arrival of Amazon would cause rents to spike by 2 percent. And real estate companies are already speculating — the New York-based Swift Creek SFR Lemieux, LLC purchased 18 homes in Hazelwood earlier this year, all adjacent to a proposed Amazon HQ2 site in the neighborhood. And Pittsburgh’s past relationships with tech giants have largely failed local communities as well. Uber’s autonomous vehicle program is based in Pittsburgh, and the company promised to hire people from the neighborhood that hosts its self-driving car testing site, Hazelwood. “We are committed to our community and will continue to work with local schools, community engagement groups, and non-profit organizations to make a positive impact in the Steel City,” an Uber spokesperson said in an email. But Uber didn’t deliver on its promise. Tim Smith, a community leader and pastor in Hazelwood, told The New York Times that he even provided the company with a list of prospective job candidates. Smith said not one of his proposed candidates received a job. With the addition of Amazon, Pittsburgh could experience growth. In addition to the jump in tax revenue the region would experience, the presence of Amazon’s HQ2 in the City could directly create 50,000 jobs, according to estimates from Good Jobs First, a national policy resource center, and the Institute for Local SelfReliance. And while some of these jobs would go to transplants to the City, anywhere from 15 percent to 20 percent of the jobs would go directly to Pittsburgh residents. In addition, it could indirectly create another 50,000 jobs due to increased need for services. With the arrival of transplants, more people would shop for groceries, eat at restaurants and purchase items for home improvement, creating the need for more workers here. Not only that, but the City could also experience a boost in the public transit sector. Recently, Amazon dedicated $1.5 million to increasing bus service in King County, Washington. And back in 2012, Amazon invested more than $5 million into the development of Seattle’s streetcars. Since Pittsburgh is trying to expand its bus infrastructure with a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system connecting downtown Pittsburgh and several other communities, it could benefit from similar investments. The only way Pittsburgh can hope to coun-
pittnews.com
teract these negative impacts while still benefiting from the positives is through strong policy proposals. This primarily means commitment to building affordable housing — ideally with direct contributions from Amazon. In every city the company visited, company representatives asked city officials what they would do to support affordable housing projects and public transportation infrastructure. And while Pittsburgh promises Amazon appears willing to listen to proposals to mitigate the negative impacts it could have on a region, a recent UPMC incident demonstrates that just listening isn’t sufficient to cause any meaningful change.
The UPMC expansion project in Uptown was met with pushback from community activists who wanted the health giant to commit to a community benefits plan. Instead, City Councilor Daniel Lavelle — whose wife sits on the board of UPMC Mercy — brokered a deal directly with UPMC. The resulting plan did not address many community demands, like improved access for communities in Uptown and better wages for employees. This shows that it isn’t enough for companies to promise to effect change in a community. Pittsburgh already has some of the most affordable housing in the country. While
August 20, 2018
Amazon would spike these housing prices, the city is well-poised to enact countermeasures that will keep prices low. It can start with a moratorium on tearing down affordable housing complexes, and providing incentives to build more of these complexes. If Amazon decides on Pittsburgh as the location for its HQ2, its arrival has the potential to be both an economic boom and a catalyst for the displacement of low-income communities. If the Steel City is the final location, then the City and its residents need to do everything in their power to ensure they capitalize on the former and prevent the latter.
47
Bourque, pg. 41 enzyme deficiency diseases. Menten’s contributions to the University as a professor and to the field of public health make her a great candidate, along with her female status. She would be only the second woman to have a campus building named after her at Pitt — the first being Amos Hall, named after Thyrsa Amos, the University’s dean of women from 1919-41. The University needs to consider factors such as diversity, impact and ethicality when determining whose name should replace Parran’s. But the administration should not make the decision on its own. Community feedback is an important part of choosing a new name for the building, especially because the petition to rename the building was signed by nearly 1,000 members of the Pitt community. Another tribute to a problematic historical figure was removed from Pitt’s campus recently — the City removed a statue that community members deemed racist and offensive. The statue featured Stephen Foster, a songwriter specializing in minstrel music, with an elderly black man sitting at his feet. Following public outcry, Mayor Bill Peduto commissioned the Task Force on Women in Public Art to decide upon a new statue to replace the one of Foster. But the Board’s ultimate decision does not mean Parran’s name should be erased completely from the history of the Pitt School of Public Health. Instead of honoring Parran with a Pitt building, his history could be included in a display in the School of Public Health. The display could educate public health students on the importance of making ethical decisions while pursuing new knowledge in their field. A timeline describing the progression of the Tuskegee and Guatemala experiments, Parran’s connection it and to the University, and his contributions to public health would be appropriate. The display would highlight Parran’s checkered past and warn against allowing people to be harmed for the sake of medical advancement. The Board of Trustees’ decision to listen to community concerns and change the 50-year-old name of the Public Health Building is a huge step forward. The next step in the journey is to rename the building appropriately — and to ensure that those who study inside it have a say in the matter.
pittnews.com
The plaque outside of Parran Hall was removed after the University announced its decision to rename the building for the Graduate School of Public Health. Anna Bongardino | visual editor
August 20, 2018
48
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
49
Faust, pg. 43 Decade in Higher Education Funding,” points to budget cuts in state funding for public higher education and shrinking government subsidies for private schools following the 2008 crisis as the main reason why students need to shoulder so much of the cost on their own. Despite the global impact of the 2008 crisis, the United States was one of only five members of the worldwide Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to cut public spending on education. Sara Hebel and Jeffrey J. Selingo, editors at
pittnews.com
The Chronicle of Higher Education, also cite a shift following the 2008 crisis in how politicians and lawmakers view higher education. In recent years, more have come to see it as a private privilege paid for by individuals rather than a public good that needs state support. “Politicians who are generally sympathetic to higher education haven’t been much help,” Hebel said in her 2014 piece, “From Public Good to Private Good.” “When budgets have been tight, they have first protected other priorities — prisons, roads, elementary and secondary schools.” The wounds the crisis left may be healing,
yet tuition keeps going up and state funding is not rising fast enough. Combining these factors with stagnant wages and the increasing necessity of a college degree means that Pennsylvania graduates will face decades of putting a significant part of their paycheck toward student loans. Pennsylvania’s government cannot sit idly by while students are financially drained by the cost of being students — this is only going to hurt the state later. Today’s graduates are tomorrow’s workforce and consumer base. Impoverishing them will ultimately impoverish the state and likely lead to Pennsylvania natives seeking opportunities elsewhere.
August 20, 2018
States with a robust education system through government assistance tend to have thriving economies with opportunities for advancement, according to a US News report. If college costs keep going up, fewer people will be able to afford to attend, hindering their advancement to better-paying jobs or careers that require extensive training. This forces graduates to put their cash toward their loans instead of pouring it into other markets. Fewer people are buying homes, cars and starting small businesses, Barbara O’Neill, a specialist in financial resource management for Rutgers University, told Business Insider. “A lot of things are being postponed. You got what you call a crowding-out effect — people only have so much money,” she said. “There’s a lot of business activity that isn’t taking place ... It’s a drag on everything.” But the state isn’t helping the Pennsylvania college system much. State-related campuses as such as Pitt were initially flat-funded in Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed budget for 2018 before being bumped up to 3 percent. And arguing about this and other moves by the government lasted up until the budget was finally passed 10 days before the fiscal year ended. Now Pitt’s graduate and out-of-state undergraduate students are facing a tuition hike for next year and decisions about the 2019-20 fiscal year are looming. If a college is becoming more of a necessity for the economic wellbeing of its citizens, then the state must make investing in college funding a priority. Instead of introducing more initiatives like the Keystone State Program that put the responsibility of paying for college on students and their families, the commonwealth could ease their burden by raising revenue to put toward higher education. It could achieve this by repealing ineffective tax deductions, exemptions and credits or by rolling back shortsighted tax cuts. In addition to helping shoulder the cost of tuition, the commonwealth also should make the process of paying off student debt easier by supporting payment plans that do not immediately put stress on a person’s earnings. Pushing for an income-contingent repayment system like the U.K.’s, where the state requires that repayment doesn’t start until income exceeds $25,977 and that payments rise and fall with income, would be a good start. Tuition in Pennsylvania is rising more and more each year. Unless the state steps in with an impactful plan to help cover the cost tuition and ensure its future workforce doesn’t drown under a mountain of debt, students like me may end up fleeing elsewhere for their education and careers.
50
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
51
53
CULTURE 2018 pitt band
55 best off-campus neighborhoods
57 “dandy andy�
59 Anjali Sachdeva
64 pittsburgh concert preview pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
52
PITT BAND PREPS FOR 2018 PERFORMANCES
Sarah Connor Culture Editor
Fall means many different things for students — buying new books, moving into new dorms or apartments, going to football games and buying pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks are all autumnal rites of passage. But for more than 300 student performers, endless rehearsals on campus signify the beginning of fall. The Pitt Band first-year students moved in early Aug. 14, and after a few rehearsals in Oakland, the full band headed to Pitt’s Bradford campus for band camp Aug. 16. Dr. Bradley Townsend, director of Pitt’s marching, concert and pep bands, shared his plans to train the band for the upcoming season with TPN Aug. 11. Despite starting the practices so early, Townsend is excited to see his musicians, dancers and color guard perform the shows he has planned for the season.
display at Heinz Field. “[Our disco show] is for parent’s weekend, which means the crowd will see Pitt Band dads dancing to some sweet disco tunes,” Shannon said. “It’s really shaping up to be a great season full of shows that I think will be fun to be perform and also really entertain the crowd.” Shannon, who played the sousaphone in Pitt Band before earning a drum major position, detailed some of the adventures that Pitt Band has planned for this season. “Obviously, we are very excited to be hosting Penn State at Heinz Field in SepDr. Brad Townsend directs Pitt’s marching band last year at band camp in Bradford. tember,” she said. “We are also thrilled photo courtesy of harry bloomberg that the entire band will be traveling to “We have a lot of good music coming Everyone is looking forward to the disco.” Notre Dame together to support the PanPitt Band’s assistant drum major, ju- thers on the road.” up that we’re gonna play in our halftime With the entire student body and shows,” Townsend said. “We’re going nior history major Chrissy Shannon, also to be playing songs from ‘The Greatest shared her enthusiasm for the upcoming many alumni looking forward to the riShowman,’ ‘The Incredibles,’ we have a disco performance — which will feature valry at the Pitt versus Penn State football Prince show planned and a disco show. some very special guest performers on See Pitt Band 2018 on page 61
The Pitt News
Editor-in-Chief
Editorial Policies
CHRISTIAN SNYDER editor@pittnews.com
News Editor
Opinions Editor
GRANT BURGMAN
JANINE FAUST
news@pittnews.com
opinions@pittnews.com
Sports Editor
Culture Editor
HANNAH SCHNEIDER
SARAH CONNOR
sports@pittnews.com
culture@pittnews.com
Visual Editor
Layout Editor
ANNA BONGARDINO
SHAHUM AJMAL
visuals@pittnews.com
layout@pittnews.com
Online Editor
Copy Chief
MATT CHOI
KIM ROONEY
tpnonline@gmail.com
copy@pittnews.com
Single copies of The Pitt News are free and available at newsstands around campus. Additional copies can be purchased with permission of the editor-in-chief for $.50 each. Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the students, faculty or University administration. Opinions expressed in columns, cartoons and letters are not necessarily those of The Pitt News. Any letter intended for publication must be addressed to the editor, be no more than 250 words and include the writer’s name, phone number and University affiliation, if any. Letters may be sent via e-mail to editor@
advertising@pittnews.com
Sales Manager MATTHEW HOUCK
Marketing Manager KATIE BOZZO
Production Manager JORDAN FALK
Account Executives
Maggie Koontz Pooja Krishnan
Max Durigon Chris Stutchel Forrest Blondell Ryan Walsh
Andrea Michael
pittnews.com
editors, may be referred to the Community Relations Committee, Pitt News Advisory Board, c/o student media adviser, 435 William Pitt Union, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15260. The editor-in-chief has the final authority on editorial matters and cannot be censored, according to state and federal law. The editor-in-chief is selected by the Pitt News Advisory Board, which includes University staff, faculty and students, as well as journalism professionals. The business and editorial offices of The Pitt News are located at 434 William Pitt Union, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15260.
Business Manager RACHEL BUCK
Copy Staff Alexa Marzina Mia DiFelice
pittnews.com. The Pitt News reserves the right to edit any and all letters. In the event of multiple replies to an issue, The Pitt News may print one letter that represents the majority of responses. Unsigned editorials are a majority opinion of the Editorial Board, listed to the left. The Pitt News is an independent, studentwritten and student-managed newspaper for the Oakland campus of the University of Pittsburgh. It is published Monday through Friday during the regular school year and Wednesdays during the summer. Complaints concerning coverage by The Pitt News, after first being brought to the
August 20, 2018
53
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
54
BEST NEIGHBORHOODS FOR OFF-CAMPUS ADVENTURES
Sarah Connor Culture Editor
For many new Pitt students, the busy, exciting atmosphere of city life is one of the reasons they chose to attend an urban university. With Oakland’s many hospitals, restaurants, drugstores and parks surrounding our campus, students have a good idea of what life is like in an urban area. But what many students do not know is that Oakland’s surrounding neighborhoods give city life more culture and style — and that they can bus to them for free with their student ID. Shadyside This neighborhood is one of the closest to Oakland, and one many Pitt upperclass students and graduate students call home. Among the main attractions of Shadyside is the shopping and dining offered on Walnut Street, which is about a 20-minute bus ride from campus on the 71B. The dynamic street offers many different entertainment options like bars, cafes and retail shops. Coffee lovers have plenty of opportunities to feed their caffeine addictions at shops like The Coffee Tree Roasters and Jitters Cafe. Both offer a cozy coffee shop setting with an abundance of natural light, great for some silent reading or simply catching up with friends. In addition to coffee, the restaurants on Walnut Street make for excellent date nights, birthday dinners or friends nights out. From Mercurio’s authentic Italian restaurant to The Yard — a Pittsburgh favorite for gourmet grilled cheese — it is hard to leave Shadyside hungry. Even with the superb dining and cafe options, most visitors to Shadyside are there for the shopping. Popular retailers like J. Crew, Patagonia, Sephora and Apple line the sidewalks of Walnut Street and are rarely empty. Squirrel Hill Another neighborhood that lies close to Pitt’s campus, Squirrel Hill is home to Chatham University, which sits in the green hills of the town’s northern edge. But a trip nearly two miles south of Chatham will bring Squirrel Hill guests to a thriving area of businesses and parks. Murray Avenue is the one of the main attractions of Squirrel Hill, featuring an eclectic mix of businesses including chains like Giant Eagle, Crazy Mocha and Starbucks, and many
pittnews.com
independent businesses like 61C Cafe, Dobra Tea, Gluuteny Bakery, Jerry’s Records and The Manor. 61C — a coffee shop inspired by the Port Authority bus students can take from Oakland to reach Murray Avenue — is a popular spot for hard-studying coffee drinkers and pastry eaters, while Dobra Tea offers a very different atmosphere less than 500 feet down the street. Dobra takes relaxation very seriously. The teahouse — decorated with beads, comfortable chairs, pillows and cushions — allows guests to enjoy their cup of tea and the atmosphere with their shoes off. The tea sits on shelves in a grid that stretches to the ceiling, and the tea comes with a lesson — Dobra serves loose leaf tea and teaches its guests how over- or under-steeping tea can ruin its delicate flavor. Next door to Dobra Tea, gluten-free and vegan guests can indulge in treats from Gluuteny Bakery. This single street offers more than just coffee, tea and pastries. Cultural entertainment and shopping can be found on Murray Avenue with the historic Manor Theatre — a 90-year-old movie theater newly renovated with a bar— and Jerry’s Records, home to more than half a million records, according to the store’s website. Pizza lovers can also get some satisfaction on Murray Avenue thanks to some of Pittsburgh’s classic pizzerias. Mineo’s Pizza House and Aiello’s Pizza are both favorite spots for Squirrel Hill visitors and offer guests delicious pizza, Italian cuisine and late-night hours. Mount Washington If you attended high school in the Pittsburgh area and went to prom, odds are you and your friends took photos at one of the overlooks atop Mount Washington. A quick ride up one of the inclines near Station Square — the Duquesne Incline or the Monongahela Incline — is free for Pitt students with a student ID and offers an iconic view of the Pittsburgh skyline. Students can take a 67 bus to Monroeville and get off at the Station Square stop, or a 61 or 71 to Downtown and cross the Smithfield Street bridge on foot to reach the base of the inclines at Station Square. The popular roadto-river tours known as Just Ducky Tours also start at Station Square. See Neighborhoods on page 61
August 20, 2018
55
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
56
ANDY WARHOL’S QUEERNESS CELEBRATED WITH ‘DANDY ANDY’ TOUR Jon Kunitsky Staff Writer Most people have heard about or seen Andy Warhol’s work at some point in their lives, from his renditions of the “Campbell’s Soup Cans” to his famous pop art portraits. And Warhol himself is just as recognizable today to American audiences as his popular art. But while literature is constantly updated on Warhol’s professional career as an artist, there are still chapters of his life that go unmentioned. The Dandy Andy tour, which the Andy Warhol Museum on Pittsburgh’s North Shore began in 2014, looks to bring to light the hidden history of Warhol’s often-unnoticed romantic relationships and queer art. The tour differs from regular museum tours by allowing visitors to learn more about Warhol’s boyfriends, his life as a gay man in New York City and how his art was
pittnews.com
subsequently influenced by the men in his life and the queer community. Grace Marston works as a gallery educator at the Andy Warhol Museum and came up with the idea of the monthly tour focusing on the artist’s personal life. She said her journey into uncovering the truth to Warhol’s queerness began by looking at his romantic relationships. “I began doing research into Warhol’s boyfriends and saw that these relationships spanned his entire life,” Marston said. “And they had all contributed to his artwork in some way.” Edward Wallowitch was a Pittsburghborn photographer who met Warhol in New York and would later have a relationship with him in the late ‘50s. Many of Warhol’s early drawings were based off of street photographs produced by Wallowitch, including his early work with the See Andy Warhol on page 63
The Andy Warhol Museum’s “Dandy Andy” tour focuses on Warhol’s identity as a gay man in relation to the gay rights movement in the United States. photo courtesy of andy warhol, Small Acetate (self-portrait in drag), 1980, © the andy warhol foundation for the visual arts, inc.
August 20, 2018
57
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
58
AUTHOR, YALE ALUM, PITT PROFESSOR: EXCLUSIVE Q&A WITH ANJALI SACHDEVA
Victoria Pfefferle-Gillot Staff Writer
Strange. Wonderful. Delightfully unexpected. These are just some of the words The New York Times book review included in its account of Anjali Sachdeva’s work “All the Names They Used for God.” The Pitt English professor’s short story collection was published in February 2018 and quickly gained acclaim, receiving praise from figures such as Roxane Gay and outlets like Harper’s Bazaar and Entertainment Weekly. Sachdeva grew up in Pittsburgh and is a graduate of Shadyside’s Winchester Thurston School, Yale University and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. She teaches writing and composition classes at Pitt and is working on creating new classes for the Public and Professional Writing major. Her debut collection contains nine short stories ranging from historical realism to hard science fiction and fantasy. To learn more about “All the Names They Used for God” and the author behind it, The Pitt News spoke with Sachdeva about her history and the book’s creation. TPN: What was your initial inspiration for the book? Sachdeva: I wrote these stories over a long period of time, some of them I wrote when I was in grad school and the most recent story I finished
Pitt English professor Anjali Sachdeva published a collection of nine short stories titled “All the Names They Used for God” in February 2018. Jon Kunitsky | staff photographer surreal or supernatural element to them. I love ram. I also read a fair amount about Nigeria bereading science fiction and fantasy, and my writing tends to be not quite science fiction or fan- cause I’ve never been there. And then after I had tasy but more like realistic settings with magical finished the story, I gave it to a young woman from Nigeria and her family — she was born in or supernatural elements to them. TPN: So, you said you had many years of America, but her family’s all from Nigeria and writing; what did you do to prepare in terms of the older generation was born there. She and her family were kind enough to read it, just to see if research for certain stories? Sachdeva: Some of them the research was I got anything wrong or if there was anything to just actual experiences that I had. The first sto- be included. TPN: Were there any stories you wanted to ry in the book there’s a young woman who’s exploring this big stay in longer, to write a longer-form piece? Sachdeva: It’s interesting, I think one of the cave system, and I had taken trips to Mammoth Cave Na- things I like about short stories is that I can extional Park in Kentucky and did plore one particular idea really intensely. Usually a 4-hour cave tour. I was there by the time I reach the end of the story, I’m actufor a few days and did other ally ready to move on to something else. I think sorts of cave exploration and I that if had to pick one I would go back to “Mareally love caves, so a lot of that nus” — the one with aliens cutting off people’s is based on my own experience hands — just because I could probably say more of what it was like to explore about what would happen in that world. But really I like the short story form for that caves and some reading that I reason and that’s why I liked this book. I got to did about them. Anjali Sachdeva Other stories I specifically explore so many realities and so many sets of Pitt professor, author of “All the Names They set out to do research. There’s characters. Used for God” TPN: There were plenty of times I was caught one story that’s set in Nigeria, the two main characters are young off guard by the deep-cut themes and emotions about a month before the manuscript was sold. women who were kidnapped by Boko Haram. of each story; two standouts were “Glass-Lung” To be honest, I didn’t have one particular inspira- That story surprised me, honestly, I think the and “All the Names For God.” Were there any tion because they were [written] over such a long some other stories in the book have political ele- moments writing them when you really felt overperiod of time, but a lot of them have some kind ments, but they’re not directly political or directly whelmed by what you were drawing out? of nature element to them because I do like being tied to current events — but for that one, I read Sachdeva: Yeah, “All the Names for outdoors. just a lot of articles and interviews with and about God” was definitely one of the harder ones All of them also have some element of magic, women who have been kidnapped by Boko Ha- to write just because the experiences of
“
It’s interesting, I think one of the things I like about short stories is that I can explore one particular idea really intensely.
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
those characters are so terrible. On behalf of the characters, they have some difficult experiences, so that was difficult to write. There’s a scene where the girls have been kidnapped and they’re in a camp, and government soldiers come looking for them to try and rescue them, and there’s this big shootout between the kidnappers and the government. It’s a really violent scene. That scene wasn’t initially in there, but my agent had read the story and said there’s so much implied violence in this story, so much of it is about how these girls have been changed by the violence they lived through, but we never see that violence. She thought this didn’t have to be gruesome or a violent story overall, but that it didn’t make sense to avoid talking about it in a story that implicitly is about violence. TPN: This is your first book, and it’s become very successful. Are you working on another? Or are you just taking a break right now? Sachdeva: I’m working on a novel, but it’s in the very early stages, so I’m not discussing too much in terms of what it’s about just because it’s just hard to focus on the writing and not overthink things. I finished writing [“All the Names They Used for God”] and sent it to my agent about ten days before my younger daughter was born, so I did not get much writing done in this year after that. This summer is the first time I’ve really gotten back to writing as much as I usually would. TPN: What other kinds of tips or words of wisdom can you give to the young student writers here at Pitt? Sachdeva: I think the most important thing I would tell to the student writers is that it is important to finish your pieces. I think when I was starting out, I wrote a lot of half-stories because I would get bored of something partway through. You definitely learn things by completing whatever you’re working on. You learn things about structure and narrative every time you finish something that you wouldn’t otherwise learn. I also think it’s important for younger writers to not fixate on trying to fit a particular genre, style or some particular mold. Just write about the things that are interesting and exciting to you. It’s much more important to focus on what you want to write.
59
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
60
Pitt Band 2018, pg. 53 game at Heinz Field this fall, the band is saving one of their best shows for that game. Shannon and Townsend both confirmed that the music of “The Greatest Showman” will be the show for the big game day Sept. 8. Aside from the excitement of the new shows, football games and trips, many members of Pitt Band are just as excited to be back with their band family doing the activity they love. Junior neuroscience and psychology major Katie Clouse, a trumpet squad leader in the band, shared her desire to get back on the field to experience the pre-game commotion she has grown attached to. “No matter how many times I do it, I will always be the most excited to run out of the tunnel for pre-game,” Clouse said. “It literally never gets old and just talking or thinking about it makes me excited.” Throughout her years in band, Clouse has had many experiences that create the same feeling of excitement and pride. One that sticks out for her is the reaction from the Pitt football audiences
Pitt Band’s drum major leads the band across Heinz Field during the halftime show of Pitt’s October 2017 game against the Virginia Cavaliers. Thomas Yang | senior staff photographer The former tuba player acknowlBoth Clouse and Shannon spoke in when the band achieves intricate formations on the field. She also remembers a extraordinarily positive terms about edged the talent of his students as he Batman logo formation from her fresh- their past, present and future experi- shared his thoughts on the significance ences with Pitt Band — something that of the upcoming season. man season was a big hit. “We’ve got a terrific bunch of kids “I think something else that always their director seemed to pass on to them. “I’m most excited to see the improve- that are so hardworking,” he said. “I remakes me happy is when we get videos of a show and it looks awesome and we ments that happen this year — we have ally appreciate what they do and we’re get to all watch it and be so happy with the biggest band we’ve had in a while and lucky that we have a lot of people at footourselves because we pulled something each year we keep improving,” Townsend ball games and shows who also really appreciate what we do.” said. cool off,” Clouse said.
Neighborhoods, pg. 55 Fine dining is a staple on Mount Washington due to the stunning view of the City. Upscale weddings and parties are held at some of the mountain’s most popular restaurants like Le Mont and Monterey Bay Fish Grotto. But for the college student on a budget, Mount Washington can still deliver. A quick walk down Shiloh Street in front of the Duquesne Incline will take guests to DiFiore’s Ice Cream Delite. Soft serve, ice cream bars, waffle cones and brownies are all delights Mount Washington guests can indulge in while sitting on a picnic table overlooking one of the most famous views Pittsburgh has to offer. Who needs dinner with a view when you can have ice cream with a view? Lawrenceville Located northeast of Downtown, Lawrenceville is one of the largest and most eclectic neighborhoods of Pittsburgh. Pitt students can visit the neighborhood with a ride on the Port Authority 93 or 54 buses. Lawrenceville is also home to The Clemente Museum, which honors legendary baseball
pittnews.com
Sephora and Coffee Tree Roasters sit side by side on Walnut Street in Shadyside. Janine Faust | contributing editor player Roberto Clemente and is located on Penn music. Earlier this summer, the basement-like Avenue. It sits near many creative businesses hall hosted performers for Pittsburgh’s Ladyfest that Lawrenceville has become known for. From and will host another festival later this month tattoo shops to fine dining to hidden music ven- called Skull Fest. Live music is also popular at ues to coffeehouses, the neighborhood can be clubs in Lawrenceville like Spirit on 51st Street and Cattivo on 44th. unpredictable. For Lawrenceville guests looking for a One such music venue, The Shop, is nestled in the more residential part of Lawrenceville, in more mellow form of entertainment, the coffee a seemingly ordinary block of Charlotte Street. shops cannot be overlooked. Espresso a Mano Don’t walk too quickly past 3520 or you’ll miss — located on Butler Street — offers classic, the door to the small but thriving hub for local handmade coffee beverages and outdoor seat-
August 20, 2018
ing. After coffee, visitors get a gourmet hotdog just a few feet down Butler Street at Franktuary or visit the popular NatuRoll Creamery for some fruit-filled, all-natural ice cream. East Liberty Pitt students can visit one of Pittsburgh’s most historic neighborhoods by taking a ride on the Port Authority 71B bus any time they would like — and each day, something is changing. The neighborhood began a radical transformation when major companies like Google and Duolingo moved Pittsburgh’s East End beginning in the late 2000s. But many of the locally owned businesses in East Liberty like the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, Villa and Motor Square Garden have been around for decades and are considered historical landmarks in Pittsburgh. In recent years, East Liberty has welcomed new chain businesses like Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Target — all of which are popular grocery and household shopping sites for Pitt students. Despite this development of national and international business, local restaurants like The Twisted Frenchman, Spoon and Pizza Taglio succeed in the area.
61
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
62
Andy Warhol, pg. 57 Campbell’s soup can. Similarly, in the ’60s, Warhol filmed poet and boyfriend John Giorno for a number of film projects, including his 1963 film titled “Sleep.” Warhol’s creative muse in the ’70s and partner of 12 years collaborated with and edited two of Warhol’s films, even directing “Andy Warhol’s Bad.” But one of the only mentions of Jed Johnson within the Warhol Museum is a small placard in a glass case on the second floor next to a few pages of his handwritten letters. The placard explains how Johnson started off as a telegraph delivery boy for Warhol, then worked as his assistant and would later visit Warhol every day while he was in the hospital after being shot by author Valerie Solanas in 1968. What the text does not mention is that Johnson lived with Warhol for almost a decade before their breakup in 1980. The men in Warhol’s life were often subjects of his photographs and films, as seen in his depictions of the nude male form. These men were friends, creative partners and actors in his films. Programs Coordinator Paul O’Brien said when observing Warhol’s behavior, it is apparent he had a method for getting the attention of handsome men and forming partnerships — often asking to film, photograph or draw them in order to start a dialogue. “You can really see the template for how he would produce relationships,” O’Brien said. “He was really self-concious and really shy, but he was confident in his art. And he would use that as a sort of flirting.” When speaking about these relationships on the daily tours, museum educators encountered an unusual challenge when considering the authenticity and presentation of Warhol’s work. For O’Brien, it was all about showing Warhol’s art the way he would have wanted. That is, letting the work speak for itself. “Andy answered most interview questions with, ‘I don’t know. What do you think?’ He didn’t want to tell people how to take the artwork,” O’Brien said. “So we thought, without coloring how people are looking at the artwork, how can we make sure this information is put out there?” The Dandy Andy tour offered a perfect alternative educational opportunity for those looking to “color” in the spaces of
pittnews.com
Warhol’s life and safely engage in conversations about the LGBTQ+ experience. “Rather than queering the artwork and doing a particular read of the artworks, what we could do is have a chronological order of the contemporary gay rights movement,” O’Brien said. “So we can put a cultural context to the work he is producing.” And not only does the tour allow for Andy’s queerness to be more than just a footnote to his story — it also presents the gay rights movement to guests as they descend through the chronologically curated works.
“For the queer community, it was amazing to be able to see drag queens and gay men on screen,” Marston said. “So even though he wasn’t explicitly political, he was being himself and gave others the opportunity to be themselves.” If there’s one thing Andy is most famous for doing, it’s unapologetically expressing himself and his art. He captured the world’s imagination while he was alive, and he continues to do so today. Christopher Harding, a customer care specialist at Panther Central, went on the tour last February. For him, the tour made
August 20, 2018
him consider how Warhol’s sexuality factored into his art and shed some much needed light on the artist himself, making him seem like any other person who fell in love and had romantic relationships throughout life. “I began to see more of Andy, the person, and all the vulnerabilities he had,” Harding said. The Dandy Andy Tour runs at 3 p.m. on the last Saturday of every month at the Andy Warhol Museum, 117 Sandusky St. in Pittsburgh’s North Side.
63
GET FUNKY THIS FALL WITH CONCERTS IN PITTSBURGH
Sarah Connor Culture Editor
Although the summer concert season is winding down, Pittsburgh’s live music future isn’t bleak. For fans of all types of music with varying budgets, there is an opportunity for everyone to take in a live music experience. G-Eazy at Wild Things Park — Aug. 29 Rising rap phenomenon G-Eazy — once
Rap artist G-Eazy will play at Wild Things Park in Washington County Aug. 29 as a stop on his Endless Summer tour. photo via flickr by san francisco foghorn
known as Gerald Gillum — will be gracing the stage at Wild Things Park, which is about 30 minutes outside of the City in Washington County. The show is a part of G-Eazy’s Endless Summer tour, which extends through early fall — ending in September with shows in Florida. G-Eazy will be accompanied by fellow rappers Ty-Dolla $ign and P-Lo. Fall Out Boy with Machine Gun Kelly at PPG Paints Arena — Sept. 5 This might seem like an interesting pairing for an arena tour, but longtime fans of pop punk band Fall Out Boy know this is not their first time touring with a rapper. Their 2015 summer Boys of Zummer tour with Pittsburgh-bred rapper Wiz Khalifa was so successful they decided to take the same approach for their 2018 tour promoting their new album “Mania.” Justin Timberlake at PPG Paints Arena — Sept. 25 The man who brought “SexyBack” is now a “Man of the Woods,” and is on tour promoting the new album of that name. The highly successful singer and actor is bringing his pop sounds to the stage for the first time since 2015 when he toured his album “The 20/20 Experience — 2 of 2.” Timberlake has yet to announce the opening act for his Pittsburgh show, but previous opening acts for this tour include The Shadowboxers and Francesco Yates. Hippo Campus at Stage AE — Oct. 22 Native to St. Paul, Minnesota, Hippo Campus seems to have a special place in its heart for Pittsburgh. In 2017, the group headlined the Three Rivers Arts Festival Dollar Bank Mainstage at Point State Park and sold out Mr. Smalls Theatre. The four young rockers — aged 22-24 — will play the North Shore’s Stage AE this fall with The Districts amidst rumors of a new album after the release of a single in June titled “Passenger.” Violent Femmes at Mr. Smalls Theatre — Oct. 26 Old school folk-punk band Violent Femmes has been together on-and-off since 1980, and thankfully found some time in this “on” period to visit Pittsburgh. The band will be playing at Millvale’s Mr. Smalls Theatre — and the show is already sold out. It seems fans are eager to see the “Blister in the Sun” hitmakers who last released an album in 2016.
Read the rest online at Pittnews.com. pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
64
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
65
68
SPORTS Team Preview: Football
69
Team Preview: basketball
71
Pitt Parkour
73
Pitt Archery
75 pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
Pitt Equestrian
66
pittnews.com
August 20, 2018
67
EXPERIENCED ROSTER BODES WELL FOR PITT FOOTBALL Trent Leonard
Senior Staff Writer The 2017 Pitt football season was one marred by inconsistency and underachievement, with the team getting blown out in three of its first four games en route to a 5-7 finish and ultimately failing to reach a bowl game for the first time since 2007. But despite the unsuccessful season, the Panthers flashed signs of potential and improvement, winning three of their last five games — including a signature upset over No. 2 Miami in the season finale. Redshirt senior offensive lineman Alex Bookser — a two-time All-ACC Academic Team and two-time Honorable Mention All-ACC selection — spoke to the team’s high expectations at the ACC Kickoff Media Day July 18 in Charlotte, North Carolina. “Once we’re all together, there shouldn’t be anyone we can lose to,” Bookser said. “As we’ve proven over the last few years, when we really want to succeed and we’re 100 percent bought into each other and to the game plan, we can beat just about anyone in the country.” Head coach Pat Narduzzi, now entering his fourth year at Pitt, also spoke about improving from occasional ACC disruptor to consistent contender within the conference. In his three years leading the Panthers, Narduzzi’s record stands at 21-17 overall and 1410 in the ACC. “Any time you can beat two of the best teams in the conference in backto-back years, it lets our kids know that if you pay attention to details, you can do it every week,” Narduzzi said at media day. “They’re buying in, believing in what we’re talking about, and that’s how you win football games.” And with the toughest non-conference schedule in the nation according to ESPN, the Panthers won’t have any breaks in the season. Road trips to
pittnews.com
in 2017 — Jester Weah and Quadree Henderson — off to the NFL. Redshirt senior Rafael Araujo-Lopes, who led the team in receptions last season, will slot in as Pickett’s go-to option, while 6-foot-4 junior Aaron Matthews and true freshman Shocky Jacques-Louis should be next in line for targets. It’s no secret that Pitt struggled on defense last year — the Panthers allowed 396.6 yards per game, good for fourth-worst in the ACC. But with nine starters returning for 2018, the unit often considered to be Pitt’s weak point is shaping up to be its strong suit. “There’s a lot of depth [and] not a Panther Pitt fans cheer for the team at a home game against UNC last November. lot of drop-off, which is a great thing tpn file photo to see for that defense,” said redshirt Notre Dame and Central Florida — as throwing for 193 yards and one touch- senior linebacker Oluwaseun Idowu. well as a home matchup against Penn down while rushing for 90 yards and “I’m really looking forward to what the State — constitute the team’s daunt- two touchdowns in the season finale See Football on page 76 ing slate of non-ACC competition. Pitt victory over Miami. “You would think that Kenny’s been figures to be the underdog versus all in Oakland for four years, the way he three of those oft-ranked teams. But if experience is any indicator walks around campus, the way he acts, of success, the Panthers should be in the way he presents himself, the way good hands — they bring back a large he goes about his work … the guy is a group of 18 seniors, seven more than pro,” Bookser said. “He knows that he’s taken the reins and this is his offense.” last year’s team. Pickett will not have to be the sole Despite the bevy of returning talent, all eyes will be on sophomore offensive leader, however — Pitt’s experienced backfield quarterback Kennyy will help shoulder Pickett to keep the that burden. The team’s underdog Panthers bring back magic alive as Pitt their two leading looks to get back in rushers in seniors bowl contention. Darrin Hall and Pickett, whom Qadree Ollison, the team intended who combined to to redshirt his first rush for 1,026 yards year, was thrust and 14 touchdowns into the starting last season, as well quarterback job as senior fullback late last season after injuries and underachievement by George Aston, who scored 10 touchthe two quarterbacks ahead of him on downs in 2016 before missing most of the depth chart, senior Max Browne last season due to a foot injury. The receiving corps remains one of and sophomore Ben DiNucci. When his opportunity to lead the team fi- the Panthers’ biggest question marks, nally came Pickett made the most of it, with two of the team’s top receivers
August 20, 2018
68