The Sandspur Volume 124 Issue 4

Issue 4 • Volume 124 Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017 www.thesandspur.org

@thesandspur facebook.com/ thesandspur

? m a e r d o t Dare

By Christina Fuleihan

T

cfuleihan@rollins.edu

he Deferred Action for Childhood (DACA) legislation currently covers 800,000 young undocumented immigrants who came to the United States with their parents. Ana Ortiz Castaño ‘18 is a Rollins CLA senior pursuing a degree in Sociology.

Someone walking past Castaño in the library may notice a faint accent in her voice, but they probably would not give this a second thought. After all, she seems like everyone else on campus. Furthermore, our country has always prided itself on its diversity.

However, until a few years ago, Ana Ortiz Castaño had no prospects she could look forward to and no path towards citizenship, because she was an undocumented immigrant.

For the past month, President Trump’s intent to rescind the DACA and the Dreamer’s program has been consistently in the news. To be eligible for DACA, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services require that immigrants must have arrived in the United States when they were younger than 16 years old; , but not have been older than 30 in 2012.

In 2001, at 6 years of age, Castaño came to America with her mother. The two of them never returned to Columbia after their tourist visa expired, and they have been living in Florida ever since. Even though Castaño was only a Dreamer for a few months before her mother got married, she remembers how she felt when she first heard about the program.

‣ See DACA on Page 3

Graphic by Mallory Griffith

Inside Arrest made in sexual assualt case

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A sexual assault case allegedly occurred in Ward Hall on Sept. 26.

Summer faculty trip to South Africa

5

The Sandspur is running a series highlighting Rollins’ faculty excursions to South Africa.

Are peaceful protests unpatriotic?

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NFL protests during the National Anthem spark controversy across the United States.

2 • OCTOBER 5, 2017

FEATURES

Established in 1894 with the following editorial:

EXECUTIVE STAFF Ellie Rushing Editor-in-Chief Christina Fuleihan Managing Editor

CONTENT STAFF Alex Candage Head Copy Editor

Morgan McConnell Lauren Bishop Cameron Osche Maura Leaden Copy Editor Nilly Kohzad Kira Bernhard Keila Makowski Heather Borochaner Joseph Klens Diego Medrano Zack Fitch Writers Kalli Joslin Section Editor Web Editor

DESIGN DEPARTMENT Zoe Kim Head Designer Grace Street Illustrator

Dana Wagenhauser Page Designer

BUSINESS & FACULTY Greg Golden

General Manager of Student Media

Dr. Leslie Poole Faculty Advisor David Neitzel Business Manager Taylor McCormack Business Intern Jose Araneta Student Media Graduate Assistant

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Student charged with sexual battery, false imprisonment On Sept. 26, a Rollins student was arrested from Ward Hall on charges of sexual battery and false imprisonment.

By Ellie Rushing

erushing@rollins.edu

A

Rollins student was arrested last week and charged with sexual battery and false imprisonment of another student in an incident that police said occurred at Ward Hall. It was the third sexual assault reported on campus this year, according to college officials.

Daniel Khair ’21 of Ward Hall was arrested Sept. 26 on one count of sexual battery of a person 18 years or older, and one count of false imprisonment. He was booked through the Winter Park Police Department at 12:38 a.m. on Sept. 27. As of this publication, he remained in the Orange County Jail, held on $150,000 bond.

Khair is charged with assaulting a student in a room in Ward Hall, a first-year residence hall, the evening of Sept. 25.

The alleged assault was reported to Rollins Campus Safety on September 26 and to the Winter Park Police Department. The police report states Khair allegedly told the victim he was under the influence of alcohol, cocaine, and marijuana earlier in the day.

The police report also says Khair and the victim were friends and knew each other for at least one year.

Florida legislation regards sexual battery as “oral, anal, or vaginal penetration” of a nonconsenting individual. False imprisonment is committed when a person “forcibly, by threat, confines, abducts, imprisons, or restrains another person without lawful authority against their will” or “secretly confines,

abducts, imprisons, or restrains another person without lawful authority against their will,” according to Florida law.

Oriana Jimenez, Rollins’ Title IX coordinator since 2015, stated that two other sexual assault cases have been reported to her office this year. Jimenez only recalled two instances, including this one, where the survivor had involved Winter Park Police; however, this is the first instance in her experience where police forcibly removed and arrested the student from an on-campus dorm room.

This case was reported to the office of Campus Safety, which is required to send the report to the office of Title IX. A student reporting a sexual assault is given many resources and three options to proceed.

Ken Miller, Assistant Vice President of Campus Safety at Rollins, said, “When a person is in that situation, they have had all their power, all their decision making, stripped away from them. So, what we try to do is provide them with as many options and choices as we can, so they can make whatever decision they feel most comfortable with.”

The first option is that the reporting party does not want to file an on-campus investigation or involve the police. They simply want resources, such as mental health counseling, testing, or class and living accommodations to feel more comfortable.

The second option is that the reporting party wants to have a formal investigation done by the offices of Title IX. The third option is the choice to involve the police. The student has

the freedom to choose one, two, or all three of these options.

Procedures used to handle sexual assault cases on college campuses have been called into question recently after U. S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced changes will be made to the government mandates on cases. However, Rollins personnel in Campus Safety and the offices of Title IX state that no changes will be made within this academic year.

Under DeVos’ changes, academic institutions will have the freedom to choose which evidentiary procedure they choose to follow when conducting investigations. They can use ‘Preponderance of the Evidence,’ which requires 51 percent certainty that a person violated the policy, or the ‘Clear and Convincing Standard,’ which requires 75 percent certainty. However, the procedure must be used across the board for all formal investigations on campus, whether that be for robbery, arson, or sexual assault.

However, the government has not officially declared when or exactly how the mandates will change. Rollins is currently on interim direction, which allows investigative offices to continue using current procedures, specifically ‘Preponderance of Evidence.’

Miller said, “Within the next 90 days, we will get a better idea as to what direction this is ultimately going in. From the college’s perspective, we are going to let the interim direction playout, if things need to be changed we will initiate them into the spring/summer.”

Although Rollins is a pri-

vate institution, the college is treated the same as public institutions because Title IX is federally mandated. This means the laws apply to all schools that receive funding from the federal government, and Rollins falls under this category.

Jimenez is thankful the interim guidance does not require her office to make any immediate changes to their protocol. “I felt relieved when I read through and realized, okay this isn’t going to make us change anything.

This gives us the option to look at the new guidance and say ok, we can do: ‘A,’ what we are doing now, or ‘B,’ choose a new protocol. ‘A’ already works, so why change it.”

She expressed concern for what changing to ‘Clear and Convincing Standard’ may mean for sexual assault survivors going through with investigations and those who are considering coming forward. “[Schools who choose the new standard] are going to make it harder for perpetrators to be found responsible under the policy violation. So, some survivors may not see the justice they deserve. This creates a chilling effect to reporting.”

However, regardless of the resources a sexual assault survivor chooses, Jimenez, as well as the rest of the staff in the Title IX offices and campus safety, want to make it clear they are here for students. “I want students to know that they do not have to tell me the name in order to get help,” said Jimenez. “If they just want to come in and say, “this is what happened.” That’s fine. We can’t make them do anything they do not want to do.”

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FEATURES

DACA ‣ Continued from Page 1 “I actually qualify for this— there is actually something being done that I can apply for to not be considered illegal anymore.

I was going to have some documentation and get my license. I wasn’t going to be stuck.”

In high school, Castaño never let anyone know about her status as an undocumented immigrant or a Dreamer. “I made it seem like it was normal. I wasn’t comfortable sharing,” she remembered. “All my friends were touring schools, and I was going through the process with them.

But, [before DACA], I wasn’t able to see how that was going to happen.”

The American dream revolves around a single fundamental idea: opportunity for all.

But DACA was never meant to

be a long-term solution. This two-year renewable program does not provide an opportunity for Dreamers to become citizens of the U.S., nor does it provide an opportunity to become permanent, legal residents.

Recipients like Castaño recognized this as an issue very early on: “DACA is a very good start. It’s good, but it’s not perfect. I didn’t feel safe travelling out of the country under DACA. You have to renew it every two years and have to pay money when [you] renew it. Plus, it doesn’t apply to a lot of people.”

There is also no current future or “path to citizenship” for DACA recipients, other than to stay as members of the program.

DACA does, however, provide prospects such as allowing recipients to acquire a social security number, obtain a driver’s license, enroll in college, secure legal

work, and pay income tax.

In its current state, if Congress does not pass legislation maintaining or revising DACA, come 2018, 300,000 Dreamers would be eligible for deportation. However, some DACA recipients have a difficult time identifying themselves as either Americans or as foreigners.

Castaño, for instance, shared her position on the issue.

“I wasn’t really American, so I thought Columbia was my home.

But when I went to Columbia, that didn’t feel like home. So it was a weird in-between zone.”

“How could [other Dreamers] be [sent] back to their ‘home country,’ even if they don’t have their home country?”

Even if deportation was not an issue, if the program is not legalized or sustained by Congress in the next few months, DACA recipients will lose their prospects. Castaño is one of the very

rare cases who no longer needs DACA’s protection; she is currently a resident who hopes to attain her own citizenship in a few years. However, she understands the problems she would be facing if DACA ended and she was still a part of the program. “I would be able to graduate. I would have a diploma, but no one would be able to hire me.”

When Castaño first heard the program would end, her heart broke. “I was a Dreamer; I understand that... not everyone’s Dreamer story is the same. We all meet the same requirements, but everyone is different.”

To hear Castaño tell her story, is moving to say the least. She has a positive outlook on the issue and is not consumed with anger at politics or insecure about her status. Immigration is simply her passion, and she wants more people to be aware of the issues surrounding it.

“I try to keep a very hopeful attitude that all things work for the good and try to see what God’s going to do. Being at Rollins, I do not feel there are a lot of people who have even met an illegal immigrant before, so if I can inform people about my experience, maybe that will help. I kind of stay away of politics, because I am not able to vote. But, immigration is something that I really want to be involved in, because I do not want to be someone who forgets where they came from.”

Castaño primarily wanted people to be aware of the resources that are available to them, even if they are undocumented immigrants. There are charities like the Hope Community Center (located in Apopka, Florida) that helped her family fill out paperwork to seek legal status. These charities continue to help undocumented immigrants every day.

Rollins athletes share opinions on recent NFL protests Instead of fading away, Colin Kaepernick’s iconic stance against racial inequality spread throughout America. Now, Rollins students offer their perspective.

By Nilly Kohzad nkohzad@rollins.edu

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early every media platform has featured NFL players taking a knee during the National Anthem in protest. Given the political and social controversy of the events, it is clear that the American people are divided in their views. So, what does the Rollins community think? Student athletes from various teams give interesting opinions regarding the topic.

For the fourth Sunday in a row, football players around the country have taken a knee, risen a fist, or locked arms during the National Anthem. Many consider the platform inappropriate, while others see it as the most effective option. Some say they are disrespecting American soldiers, while others clarify they are not protesting the flag or the anthem specifically.

“I think it is amazing what they’re doing,” shared Talia Kentoffio ‘21, a member of the Rollins softball team. “My aunt fought in Afghanistan, and I know for a fact she would be so pissed if she knew my stance on this, but she is also not an African American girl living in this society.”

The protests began last year,

when a solitary Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers refused to stand during “The Star Spangled Banner.” This season, however, more and more athletes have knelt with Kaepernick to protest police brutality and the oppression of people of color in America.

“The players are not protesting America and white people, they are just trying to show that they will not support what America is doing and who is running it.” Kentoffio continued.

Sam Philpot ‘18, captain of the men’s basketball team, sees the protests differently, though.

“If there is one common denominator we share, regardless of creed or color, it is respect and appreciation for the troops who risk their lives to protect our country. I believe there are much more appropriate venues to voice against injustices than during an anthem commemorating their lives.”

Albert Del Sol ‘19 added to this, believing that it is, “outrageous, anti-American and disrespectful for the people that serve for our country.” At the same time, Albert can see the other perspective. He stated, “Yes, I understand there is social inequality in the world but I personally think it should not

be displayed during the national anthem; I find it disrespectful.”

Philpot and Del Sol’s stance is one that millions of Americans take regarding the issue, including President Donald Trump.

Trump made a statement at a rally in Alabama, saying, “Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, out, he’s fired.

He’s fired.’” Players have made formal statements against Trump, but many others have simply tried to clarify their overarching message.

A a r o n Rodgers, quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, said, “It’s never been about the national anthem. It’s never been about the military. We’re all patriotic

“

in the locker room. We love our troops. This is about something bigger than that—an invitation to show unity in the face of some divisiveness from the top in this country.”

Andre Nansen ‘19, member of the men’s soccer team, said, “I feel like they are simply exercising their first amendment right and also, they’re sending a good message. They are protesting the institutionalized racism in this country, implicitly accepted by the President himself, as he rarely makes a stance against white supremacists.”

Entering the first week of NFL play, Kaepernick was unsigned, proving his political stance heavily impacted his football career. When Rollins athletes were asked how they would react to

Players are not protesting America and white people, they are just trying to show that they will not support what America is doing and who is running it.

a teammate taking a knee, some were supportive while others did not see it as being an effective outlet.

Philpot said, “If a Rollins athlete decided to kneel, that is his or her own prerogative, but I am not sure how the message would resonate at this level.”

Nansen agreed and noted his respect towards anyone who chooses to kneel, but added, “I think the reach of that protest would be quite limited compared to the professional players that have thousands of people watching.”

Kentoffio, on the other hand, said, “Honestly, if any teammate were to take a knee, it would probably be me and I would want my coach to support me.

She does not have to agree, but she should let me feel how I feel without any judgement, because honestly, she put me on the team for my softball skills, not my political views.”

Whether individuals agree with the protests or not, nobody can deny the fact that everyone is talking about it. When discussion occurs, progress is made on both sides of the argument.

Ellie Rushing contributed to this report.

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FEATURES

Restoring voting rights to Florida’s felons The Florida Rights Restoration Coalition fights to give Florida’s felons the right to vote.

By Heather Borochaner

hborochaner@rollins.edu

F

lorida is one of only three states that does not restore the right to vote to felons after the completion of their sentence and probation.

The Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC) is looking to change that. According to the FRRC, in withholding this right from felons, Florida takes away the voting rights of 14 percent of Floridian adults.

This is a problem that the people behind the Say Yes to Second Chances project want to rectify. If it gains enough support, voting rights may be restored to felons who have completed their sentences and probation, except for those guilty of murder or crimes of a sexual nature. According to the Say Yes to Second Chances website, the movement needs nearly 700,000 total signed petitions to make it onto the midterm ballot in 2018.

Neil Volz, the project manager of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, has been working on voting rights since the early 2000s. To him, the issue is personal. In 2006, Volz pled guilty to one count of conspiracy as part of the The Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal. This incident ocurred in 2005, when political lobbyists fraudulently charged Native American tribes millions of dollars. Volz was the sidekick to ringleader Jack Abramoff, earning him two years of probation, a fine of $2000, and 100 hours of community service.

Even though he faced no jail time, he is not allowed to vote in Florida. But, this is not just about him. In a phone interview with Volz, he stated, “This is in every community. This is a great opportunity to make our state a better place.”

Data from the Florida Parole Commission shows that felons are three times less likely to commit a crime again when they have the right to vote and actively participate in their com-

munities. With less people going to prison, the state does not have to spend as much money on the court procedures or prison conditions, which would result in more money going back to the taxpayers.

Florida has always been an outlier when it came to felon voting rights. When Charlie Crist was governor of Florida from 2007 to 2011, he restored the right to vote for felons who completed their sentences, but after Florida’s current governor, Rick Scott, was elected, that right was taken away again. Unlike Florida, other southern states like Georgia and Texas have made commitments to making changes in their felon voting policies.

In those states, once individuals convicted of felony complete their sentences, they are eligible to vote again.

Although, major changes like this do come with concerns.

Should someone who was convicted of treason really have the right to vote, even after they have done their time? “When a debt is paid, it’s paid,” Volz said in response to this question. He wanted to make clear that the punishment given by the judge is final, and anything past that is not the proper punishment for the felon.

He believed that it is their time to become an American citizen again with all the rights that come with being one. His goal, and the goal of the FRRC, is to improve people’s lives.

“This is the biggest voting rights issue of our time with national implications and it’s happening right here in Florida,” said Barbara Markley, member of the Florida League of Women Voters, in an email. “Rollins students who participate in this statewide project are helping to make history, thereby proving that our democracy is still vibrant and strong.” The petition to support the Voting Restoration Amendment can be printed and signed at this web address: https://www.floridiansforafairdemocracy.com/sign-the-petition.

Photo by Joseph Klens, The Sandspur

“Cloud Cities—Nebulous Thresholds,” a gift from Barbara and Thoedore Alfond, hangs in the Alfond Inn’s Contemporary Art Collection courtesy of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum.

Understanding the universe through art The latest art exhibition at the Cornell Fine Arts Museum seeks to breakdown the concept of time.

By Joseph Klens

T

jklens@rolins.edu

he Cornell Fine Arts Museum is hosting the exhibit “Time as Landscape” until December 31, 2017. When you gaze into the depths of space, you gaze across eons of time. When looking across time, it is easy to become lost and distracted, realizing the smallness of humanity—and even the whole Earth—within the greater universe around us.

The universe is immense in scope spatially and temporally, but it is also true that we ascribed all those qualities by ourselves.

Therefore, it is and must be ourjob to appreciate the beauty and fractal order of the universe from our experiences here in our cozy little observable corner. We matter, and it is our privilege to be able to witness and understand through science the universe as an experience rather than an object. That is the goal and purpose of “Time as Landscape.”

Time can be understood as both a quality of physics itself or as a personal experience, such as it “being time for class.”

It can even be understood as something we either do or do not possess, like lacking time to complete deadlines. It is for this personal and impersonal nature of time that the exhibit is named for. Time is its own landscape, and in that landscape we live and create our experiences. The value

of our time in existence, what we create, and the act of witnessing the nature of our existence are the themes upon which this exhibit is built.

The scale of the universe against incomparably smaller human experience is the key concept spectators of the exhibit should keep in mind. Rather than attempt to reconcile geologic or cosmologic time with human biological time, the exhibit uses these scales as a means of focusing our perspective.

The featured artists use the intersection of science and creativity as a means of generating their work. The exhibit showcases many debut pieces created specifically for the exhibit and its themes. Some art attempts to pull an outside location into the museum. A piece that does this particularly well is “Eos” by Spencer Finch. Finch transports the “rosy-fingered Dawn” light of Troy from myth to the museum, constructing a scientific path to the poetic. Another piece

by Camille Henrot called Grosse Fatigue seeks to demonstrate the futile attempt of humanity to categorize the universe as well as draw a metaphor for the pursuit of information in the blackholelike “Information Age.” One of the most curious pieces, however, is by Tomás Saraceno. Sarceno set up a cubed space in which he set loose spiders who create their webs within the cube. The webs evoke an

image of the spread of galaxies across the greater universe, owning to the fractal order that can be observed at both the macroscopic and microscopic scales.

This is an exhibit of big ideas that cannot be contained within the confines of the this article.

The art in the exhibit seems to ask rhetorical questions, many of which are answered by the asker or other pieces. It is hard to over-emphasize geologic time, let alone cosmologic time, when so many of us think of time through the context of our own lives, our biological time. This exhibit challenges the viewers to pause for a moment and look across many thousands of epochs. In a way, this exhibit asks viewers to become surveyors of the landscape of time.

However, this exhibit will only be here for the briefest of moments. While three months may seem like a long time right now, what is three months to your whole life? And for that matter, what is your whole life to human history? The history of the Earth? The expansive time of the cosmos? These questions are complex and may not have simple answers, but that is why the exhibit was formed, to help answer those questions using interdisciplinary techniques, reflective of Rollins College’s liberal arts philosophy. If you seek to know beyond your being, this is the exhibit for you.

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FEATURES

South Africa’s after-school garden programs teach healthy lifestyles During the summer of 2017, 13 Rollins faculty members led by Dr. Jim Johnson traveled to Cape Town, South Africa on a trip called ‘South Africa Today.’ The trip aimed to extend and reinforce the recent campus-wide conversations on racial justice, diversity, and inclusion.

Professors from a wide range of majors, including the music department, Environmental Studies, and Communication Studies focused their time and energy on specific projects of interest to them. However, they all were able to connect with South Africa’s transition to a multiracial, multiethnic, multilingual, multireligious democracy and its potential as a political and economic leader in Africa. The Sandspur has committed to showcasing the experiences of different faculty members throughout the fall semester. This week, Dr. Leslie Poole, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies, provided an in-depth analysis on her experience and personal focus in Cape Town.

Photos by Dr. Leslie Poole

Vukukhanye Primary School children learning in one of the gardens created by the Amy Foundation.

By Dr. Leslie Poole

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lpoole@rollins.edu

ape Town, South Africa, often is rated as one of the most beautiful cities on the planet. Its curving waterfront on the Atlantic Ocean wraps around a large mountain, folding into a national park that provides spectacular views from above and below.

On the edge of this bustling metropolitan area, however, lie vast areas of urban poverty known as townships—vestiges of the now-defunct apartheid system that once forced minorities into segregated areas where basic services such as clean water and bathrooms were scarce. Most homes are cobbled together with “found” materials—construction lumber, corrugated metal, and stone. Treeless open areas

are strewn with garbage and perused by stray, hungry dogs.

As one of my colleagues wondered during a May Rollins College faculty/staff trip to Cape Town: “How can a place so beautiful be so terrible to its people?”

That is the question we tried to understand while looking for signs of hope and progress.

I focused on environmental issues in the townships, which brought me to the Amy Foundation, a non-profit group founded in honor of a young U.S. student, Amy Biehl, who was senselessly murdered in 1993 the Gugulethu Township. In a heroic act of reconciliation, her parents forgave Amy’s four attackers. They were released after serving five years in jail and today two work for the foundation, helping with programs that empower and educate youth.

In 2000 the foundation started a Greening & Environmental Program in Gugulethu. The program now operates in different capacities at 10 schools with 100 enrollees at an annual cost of about $16,000. Its adult-led afterschool programs teach children about the environment with a curriculum that includes water use, recycling, and pollution.

Participants also visit area botanical gardens and environmental centers.

I visited the Vukukhanye Primary School (its name means Wake Up and Shine) in Gugulethu to observe the program.

The school is an oasis in the grim neighborhood of cluttered homes and trash-lined streets. It is surrounded, of necessity, by a high fence topped by curling barbed wire.

But inside the grounds are

sprouts of optimism. A plant overflowing with blossoms.

Joyful teachers in bright African-patterned clothes. Energetic children dressed in chartreuse bibs that denote their participation.

This day the children learned the parts of a plant, cheering their correct answers.

Then it was off to the school’s community garden, where, although it was between growing seasons, a few onions, beans and lettuces remained. Two girls pulled up small carrots to proudly display their crop and argued about which plant is their favorite to eat.

The Amy Foundation currently operates four school community gardens—a project it hopes to increase to six in the coming year in its goal of teaching sustainability, healthy eat-

ing, and useful life skills.

“Basically we would love to see healthy, flourishing veggie gardens at each of the schools where we run afterschool centres and even expand to schools where we are not actively running afterschool sites,” writes Amanda Mac of the foundation, adding that the work brings much joy. “Growing children and growing plants are pretty similar and to see both happening is truly beautiful. Certainly harvest times are always happy occasions and seeing the children’s growing interest in the programme is always heartening.”

Here the roots of environmentalism take hold in a tough, gritty world. But it’s a start that can help these children “grow” a different future.

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OPINION

Is it disrespectful to protest during the national anthem?

By Keila Makowski

kmmakowski@rollins.edu

T

here has been a lot of controversy concerning the current protest of NFL athletes, in which many players are choosing to kneel during the National Anthem to bring attention to racial inequality in the United States.

Black athletes using their platforms to protest inequality is not a new phenomenon; as far back as 1968, American Olympic athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised the black power salute during their medal ceremony. Then, like now, the general populace was in a frenzy. In fact, both athletes were banned from the Olympic village due to their overtly political gesture, which the International Olympic Committee leader Avery Brundage saw as a violent attack on the apolitical atmosphere of the Olympic games. Brundage, however, had no problem with the Nazi salute being raised at the Olympics twelve years prior.

For this reason, it seems that just as the Black Power protest was rooted in defending against racism, the response was rooted in racism itself.

Presently, many football players have taken up the mantle.

The controversy began last football season with Colin Kaepernick refusing to stand during

the National Anthem in order to support the Black Lives Matter movement in its fight against police brutality. Other players, such as fellow 49ers teammate Eric Reid, joined his protest. Kaepernick responded to the controversy by kneeling rather than sitting, in order to seem less disrespectful. In the current season, no team has picked Kaepernick, despite his demostrating his skills. This is likely a direct result of many Americans’ claim that he and all those who kneel are disrespecting our troops and our country. Even President Donald Trump has chimed in with one of his infamous Twitter rants, standing behind people booing the players who kneeled. In his opinion, “The issue of kneeling has nothing to do with race. It is about respect for our Country, Flag, and National Anthem. NFL must respect this!” However, as a white man, President Trump does not get to determine what is and is not a racial issue.

Protest is something ingrained in the nature of our country. We were born from a revolution against an oppressive government. The civil rights movement, which most people would praise as a beneficial historical event, was a series of protests for the rights of black people, which white society frowned upon at the time. Like MLK, these modern protesters are not

hurting anyone. Personally, I cannot blame black athletes or their allies for not wanting to stand in support of a country that mistreats them now and always has.

As football season has kicked back up into full swing, the protest has evolved a bit from where it began. It is still a demonstration against police brutality, but as more and more athletes have knelt since Trump’s objection, it seems to have also become something of a display of the country’s dissatisfaction with our current president and his government.

Whereas before it was maybe a few players engaging in civil disobedience, entire teams have now taken a knee on national television or linked arms to show their solidarity.

Some people think that, even if their cause is good, the players themselves are not helping; they are just kneeling. I would like to argue that they are starting a conversation. They know that, as wealthy men, they are privileged and that, as athletes, they have a national platform. By kneeling or linking arms, they have gotten the people of the United States talking about what it means to be black in America, and maybe some people who had not thought about it before can consider it now. Perhaps we can begin to work toward a better future.

Consent Week needs more publicity

By Lauren Bishop

lbishop@rollins.edu

W

hile Rollins puts forth their best effort in teaching and discussing consent, more could be done to ensure that consent is defined more clearly and a target audience is reached.

Last week during common hour, staff and students tabled outside the campus center and distributed flyers on the definition of consent as well as brochures containing the laws regarding Title IX. In addition, a discussion was held on the evening of Sept. 27 to address the meaning of consent. I attended the discussion and I was disappointed with the attendance, not because the group was small but because there was only one man in a sea of other students in attendance.

Of all juvenile victims, 82 percent are female and 90 percent of adult rape victims in general are female reports the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network, which is the largest anti-sexual violence organization in the U.S. With that being said, “Nearly 99 percent of sex offenders in single-victim incidents were male and 6 in 10 were white,” according to University of Michigan’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center. It is clear that male atten-

dance should have been higher in order for this event to effectively get the point across to the general student population.

On top of that, this event was poorly advertised. I recall only receiving two emails about the event, and we all know how Rollins students treat their emails.

This event could have and should have been publicized by various professors or even sent in a campus-wide email from the President, because it is that important of an issue and deserves that much attention.

Lastly, this should have been a required event for sports teams and RCC classes. It is especially important for first-year students to attend these events because they are still exploring their newfound freedoms as college students. The first semester, specifically the first six to eight weeks, of a college student’s life is when they are most vulnerable to crimes such as sexual assault because of peer pressure and a lack of guidance from parents and school staff.

Overall, Rollins puts forth a strong effort to make students aware of sexual assault and the dangers associated with it, but the real problem lies in the population of students who it is marketed to. A first-year student will not attend an event like this if it is not mandatory, therefore losing the most important targeted audience.

Staff shakeups at Accessibility Services

By Maura Leaden

G

mleaden@rollins.edu

race Moskola, the much-loved Director of Accessibility Services, is leaving Rollins after three years to pursue a new position in Massachusetts, where she will be the Director of the Accessible Education Office at Harvard University. While students and staff are excited for Grace and her new opportunities, they are sad to see her go.

For many, Grace was the first person they connected with at Rollins. Madelyn Wilson, '20 remembers, “I met her before I came to Rollins and she was one of my first impressions of

Rollins.” Nicole Lindenberg, '20 shares the same sentiment, “I met her before I came to Rollins and meeting her and the other people in charge were one of the reasons I came because I was confident [once] I knew her and how the system worked.”

There were some valid concerns regarding the continued appeal and effectiveness of the office. After all, the quality of an accessibility services office can make or break one’s decision to attend a college. At least, that was the case for Wilson and Lindenberg.

For those unfamiliar with receiving accommodations or with Accessibility Services, it is instrumental in ensuring equal

access to all aspects of college life. “I wouldn’t be able to be here if I didn’t have [accommodations]. It was nice coming to college and knowing that I had some sort of support,” shares Lindenberg. As a result, the significance of this office’s role in a student’s admission decision and comfort level upon entering the rigorous college life puts it at an elevated concern level when a change occurs. The office also continues to influence many students' lives during their college experience, ensuring a smooth and safe four or more years.

Luckily, Rollins is confident in their ability to find a new candidate who will be just as welcoming and accommodat-

ing as Grace was for incoming and current students. The Dean of Students, Dr. Meghan Harte Weyant, believes that it is “a truly Rollins experience to find the actual person, not just the office” when students are connecting with resources at Rollins. “I don’t foresee that as something we’ll lose,” assures Harte Weyant. “We’ll be looking for someone who has the same level of care and connection” as Grace, and “someone who really understands [both] removing barriers for student success, and Accessibility technology.”

Harte Weyant hopes to reassure students that Rollins’ Student Affairs and Student Care offices are eager to work with

The opinions on this page do not necessarily reflect those of The Sandspur or Rollins College.

students who have any questions or concerns regarding this time of transition within the Accessibility Services office. Furthermore, “I hope that the community will give us feedback on what they’re looking for [in our next Director]," shared Harte Weyant. Of course, once a new director is on campus, “we’ll do a whole lot of outreach,” promised the Dean.

To conclude, Harte Weyant emphasizes the importance of human connection at Rollins College. “We are so centered on human relationships, so when a staff member moves on to follow their dreams… it’s hard for us… but it’s important that we support them in doing that.”

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

7

Politics fuel new season of 'AHS' *Spoiler Alert!* This article gives the ins and the outs of 'American Horror' Story and the politics that fuel this season’s madness.

By Diego Medrano

T

jmedrano@rollins.edu

he seventh season of American Horror Story, "Cult," explored recent political events. I ask you, dear readers, to hold the following image in your mind: Imagine actor Evan Peters, sporting a manbun dyed blue, rhythmically thrusting his pelvis against a flat screen TV while shouting, “U-S-A!” I assure you that this is very much relevant, as the above scene opens for us the highly political seventh season. No previous season has ever been so relevant and so worthwhile. Believe me when I say that there is a lot to discuss, namely the death of patriotism in politics.

The season maintains an admirable balance in its parody of both Democrat and Republican citizens. This is unusual; most TV shows typically swing in one direction or the other, however subtly. We may be tempted to say that this season of American Horror Story does the same at first glance; Kai Anderson (Evan Peters), who appears to be the main antagonist, is a virulently Anti-Latino Trump supporter obsessed with fear. There also exists the small matter of him allegedly running a band of murderous clowns, whom he dispatches to remove potential threats. Further along, we encounter a grocery store clerk willing to literally sever his own hand to cast a vote for Trump;

his greatest terror is his country being run by a woman, especially right after a black man. Yet our two protagonists, progressive married couple Ally and Ivy Mayfair-Richards (Sarah Paulson and Alison Pill, respectively), swing far enough in the opposite direction to be laughable.

With Trump winning the election at the outset of episode one, Ally practically loses her mind. Her crippling coulrophobia returns just as she begins being stalked by clowns everywhere, much to her chagrin. A piece of honeycomb is enough to make her almost faint from trypophobia. Her anxiety worsens to the point where, in a fit of self-defensive hysteria, she murders Pedro, a Latino employee at Ivy’s restaurant whom she had defended. It all culminates in ridicule when Ally’s young son, Oz, receives a guinea pig which he proceeds to name “Mr. Guinea,” and she scolds him with, “Honey, come on, you know we don’t like cis-normative names.”

Entertainment making a mockery of liberals and conservatives is nothing new, even if this particular season of American Horror Story has done so with surprising equality. What is fascinating in "Cult" revolves around the recurring theme of fear. In the first episode, Kai delivers a sweeping monologue to City Hall about Americans valuing fear above all else. He is seen several times performing an exercise in which he will lock pinky fingers with another

person and swear to tell only the brutal truth, by means of which he “keeps” the other’s fear for them. Fear drives more action than anything else. Kai Anderson weaponizes and monefies it; Ally Mayfair-Richards, with her multiple phobias, hoards it.

Show creator Ryan Murphy has a purpose in highlighting these classic caricatures—the ultra-progressive, gender-aware liberal with a host of absolving mental disorders and the racist, misogynist, unreasonable conservative—in a horror story. The scary part is that we no longer vote because we believe, but because we are afraid. In our last election, we voted for one candidate solely to prevent the other winning. We let our fear decide who runs the entire country.

A hand, writhing with flies, a classic symbol of decay.

Red, white, and blue clowns rising from a coffin, showing the dead and ridiculous mockery politics have become. Naked figures donning rubber masks of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. The American flag dripping with blood.

These shocking images shown in the opening titles of American Horror Story's "Cult" serve to convey Murphy’s message: Modern American politics have become a game of fear in which loyalty plays second fiddle to the terror that if the other wins, they will destroy the country.

By Kira Bernhard

S

kbernhard@rollins.edu

eptember 22 was the first official day of fall but the weather in Florida has not changed. However, that should not stop us from getting into the fall spirit by cooking

with all things pumpkin! Handling an actual pumpkin can be laborious, so reach for some canned pumpkin puree (not to be confused with canned pumpkin pie filling) to whip up a delicious stack of pumpkin pancakes.

Ingredients: 1/4 Cup Old Fashioned Oats 2 tbsp Oat Bran 1 Large Egg 1/4 Cup Pumpkin Puree 1/4 Cup Banana, Mashed 1/2 tsp Cinnamon 1/4 tsp Baking Powder Recipe: 1. Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor.

2. Heat a nonstick skillet on high heat until hot.

3. Lower the heat to low-medium and add a quarter of the pancake batter to the pan.

4. When the edges dull and bubbles start to form, flip the pancake over. Cook for another minute or so.

5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until batter is gone.

SPORTS

8

Doris Burke makes history for women in sports Doris Burke’s recent promotion marks the first time the NBA has hired a full-time, female game analyst. Columnist Zach Fitch ‘21 questions why it took so long.

By Zack Fitch

T

zfitch@rollins.edu

his week is set to go down in the holy book of sports history: Doris Burke was named the first female NBA Game analyst.

Burke will be the first woman to be on the full-season rotation of analysts for nationally televised games. Burke previously covered the WNBA and has been ESPN’s go-to expert for sideline reporting during the NBA playoffs. Burke will continue to do the job she has been doing for years; the only difference is that ESPN has decided to recognize her with a promotion that gives her bigtime prominence.

Burke is well-known in the

basketball world. She has been an NBA fan favorite for years. She has covered basketball for ESPN since 1991, so why is it that ESPN has waited until now to announce Burke’s overdue promotion to the full season?

Doris Burke is the epitome of the saying, “Ball is life.” Playing basketball from a young age, Burke started to get attention for her skill at the point guard position in high school. She was recruited to play for the Providence College Friars, where she studied health services and education.

She graduated with two degrees, an all-time record in assists, and was awarded as the college’s Female Athlete of the year in 1987.

She began her career in broadcasting by covering her for-

mer team’s games at Providence.

After falling in love with the booth, Burke continued covering Providence games until The New England Sports Network hired her to cover women’s basketball games for the Atlantic-10 and Big East conferences.

Her career took a big step up after being hired by ESPN. She would go on to cover men and women’s collegiate basketball games, becoming known as the voice of the New York Liberty professional woman’s basketball team, and was the first female color analyst for New York Knicks and Big East men’s games.

In 2009, ESPN began giving her specific NBA regular season games to cover. ESPN also made her the sideline reporter for the

NBA playoffs and the NBA Finals on ABC. This decision led to Burke becoming a nationally- recognized basketball voice. In 2010, 2K Sports hired Burke to create voiceovers for their popular video game, NBA 2K11.

Each year since 2009, Burke has been carving her name into the plaque of all-time NBA voices and analysts. She has become a fan favorite, from kids who hear her while playing Xbox to NBA fans across the country watching games on TV. Celebrities sitting courtside are even showing Doris love. This past season, renowned artist Drake made headlines after wearing a shirt with Burke’s face on it that read “Woman Crush Everyday” while attending a nationally-televised Toronto Rap-

tors game.

While the Doris Burke hype has been growing for years now, ESPN was reluctant to give her the big break she has long deserved. Burke has made monumental accomplishments that illustrate her talent and passion throughout her career.

Her extensive resume shows how hard and long it took for a woman in the sports media industry to make it to the top. ESPN has been acquainted with Burke since 1991, but it took them until the 2018 NBA season to promote her. The truth of the matter is that while many male sports execs may prefer to keep their women counterparts on the sidelines, Burke’s talent forced the hand of ESPN.

INFORMATION Session

Applied Behavior Analysis & Clinical Science

Oct 19 6:00 PM

Bieberbach-Reed Conference Room (Cornell Campus Center)

Learn more about Rollins’ masters degree program through an informal conversation with program faculty. The ABACS program will prepare you for professional practice in applied behavior analysis or a Ph.D. program in clinical psychology or applied behavior analysis.

Refreshments Provided