The Rice Thresher | Wednesday, September 9, 2020

VOLUME 105, ISSUE NO. 3 | STUDENT-RUN SINCE 1916 | RICETHRESHER.ORG | WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

RICE FOOTBALL

STANDS UP

Players lead Black Lives Matter march across campus

DANIEL SCHRAGER ASST SPORTS EDITOR

More than 100 players from the Rice football team marched silently from Rice Stadium to the Aacademic Quad to protest racial injustice on Friday afternoon. While roll was not taken, head coach Mike Bloomgren said he believes that every member of the team and the coaching staff was present. Players spoke in the quad about the importance of effecting positive change, before the march concluded with a moment of silence to honor those killed as a result of racial discrimination.

“When I got out there and we were marching in silence, it did something to me,” redshirt sophomore running back Juma Otoviano said. “[We’re] not in this fight alone. We’re fighting for change, and we’re doing it together.”

What the public saw on Friday was the result of months of work done by members of the team, both to organize the march, and to address issues of racial injustice as a whole.

According to Bloomgren, this process began when the team’s leadership council — a group of 12 players representing each position group and class — met to discuss the death of George Floyd, and the protests and dialogue that it had sparked.

“Back in late May and early June, we got together and talked to the leadership council about how we wanted to implement some of the changes [we wanted to see made],” Bloomgren said.

This meeting turned into an ongoing dialogue.

Eventually, another leadership council meeting was called in late August, after the shooting of Jacob Blake had led to further discussion and protests.

SEE FOOTBALL PAGE 7

PHOTO COURTESY OF RICE ATHLETICS PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY TINA LIU

Welch Foundation gives Rice $100M to establish Welch Institute RYND MORGAN NEWS EDITOR

The Welch Foundation announced that it will donate $100 million to establish the Welch Institute for Advanced Materials at Rice University, the largest single gift that Rice University has ever received and the largest in the Welch Foundation’s 65-year history.

The Welch Foundation was founded in 1954 after the death of Houston oil, gas and minerals investor Robert A. Welch and funds chemical research at institutions in Texas.

The Welch Institute for Advanced Materials will support the foundational research responsible for discoveries in material science, according to Adam Kuspa, president of the Welch Foundation.

“There’s lots of companies that want to turn discoveries into useful products,” Kuspa said. “That’s sort of the tail end of research. The whole point of the Welch Institute is the level of investment in the other end of that pipeline, if you will, the very beginning, the discovery aspect.”

Vice Provost for Research Yousif Shamoo said that undergraduate and graduate students will have the opportunity to

perform research at the Welch Institute.

“The closest campus example might be The Baker Institute,” Shamoo said in an email. “Other examples of elite collaborative research institutes are the Salk Institute in San Diego and Broad Institute in Boston.”

The establishment of the Welch Institute was announced on Sept. 2, and featured speakers including President David Leebron and Materials Science and Nanoengineering Department Chair P.M. Ajayan. Peter Dervan, chair of the Welch Foundation scientific advisory board and Mayor Sylvester Turner also gave

comments remotely at the announcement.

The Welch Institute has a board of directors and scientific advisory board with members from both Rice and the Welch Foundation, according to Shamoo.

The board of directors includes Shamoo, Kuspa, Leebron and Provost Reginald DesRoches, according to the Welch Institute’s website.

The Welch Foundation has made gifts to Rice University in the past, including endowed chairs of the chemistry department and research grants given to individual researchers at Rice.

SEE WELCH PAGE 3

THE RICE THRESHER

2 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

NEWS

Reckling Park to be polling location for 2020 election

1

Voting Centers Near Rice

2

1 Reckling Park 2 John P. Mc Govern Texas Medical Center Commons

Next Election: Nov. 3, 2020 General And Special Elections Early Voting: Oct. 13, 2020 - Oct. 30, 2020

INFOGRAPHIC BY TINA LIU

BONNIE ZHAO FOR THE THRESHER

Rice’s Reckling Park will be the oncampus polling location for both early voting and election day this year, according to Lila Greiner, the media relations director of Rice Young Democrats. Harris County officials moved Rice’s polling location offcampus in February due to accessibility concerns for non-Rice voters.

Greiner said that the Rice Young Democrats had been pushing for early voting locations on campus for years.

Additionally, it also helped push Rice to have its first student election judge, Mason Reece, in conjunction with Civic Duty Rice.

Out-of-state students were erroneously asked to provide bank statements and other documents during last year’s mayoral election at Rice’s former polling location in the Rice Memorial Center.

Greiner said that RYD is also trying to create an all-student poll-working staff.

According to the Texas Tribune, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a decision that would have allowed voters to indicate “fear of COVID-19” as a reason to be able to vote by mail in Texas, which is one of seven states that require a reason beyond the virus for absentee voting.

Brandon Gan, the president of the Rice University College Republicans, said inperson voting can be conducted safely by requiring masks, enforcing distancing and providing hand sanitizer.

If one must vote in person, I think implementation of reasonable precautions… can ensure a fully safe inperson voting experience.

Brandon Gan PRESIDENT OF RICE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE REPUBLICANS “It is unfortunate that some aspects of the pandemic have been politicized so much by both sides,” Gan, a Wiess College senior, said in an email. “If one must vote in person, I think implementation of reasonable precautions… can ensure a fully safe in-person voting experience.”

Greiner said only some voters will qualify for absentee voting in this election: those over 65 years old, those who have

specific health conditions, those who are non-felons and those who are temporarily living outside of their county.

“It’s a blatant disregard for the health and safety of the people of Texas, and it’s clearly an attempt to limit voter turnout, which has been Texas’s playbook,” Greiner said. “[Texas’s] non-accommodating stance on voting by mail during COVID-19 still adds risks for people who have health conditions that do not qualify for absentee voting.”

According to Gan, the RUCR are currently encouraging their members to vote and plan to collaborate with other political and civic clubs on campus.

“One of our main goals as a club is and will always be making Rice Owl voices heard,” Gan said. “It is always a great time to both vote on issues that matter and find ways to add value to society through political action. If voting in person, be safe and smart so you can continue to keep your Rice community safe.”

Shawn Reagan, an assistant director at the Center for Civic Leadership, said that students can sign up to vote on TurboVote, an online platform that lets users manage their voting information, and get help from on-campus volunteer deputy voter registrars. Students can also consult ricevotes.rice.edu for additional voting information.

“TurboVote can mail to students a pre-stamped registration form, so that all they have to do is fill it out and send it back,” Reagan said. “Fondren Library is the most consistent place to find VDVRs. Everyone is working together across campus to help folks register on campus, off campus or at home.”

Maddy Scannell, president of Rice Young Democrats, said that Rice students should vote early this year. Students can also check online to see wait times for nearby polling locations, according to Scannell.

“Texas has made it so that most students will have to vote in-person rather than by mail, so voting early will likely mean shorter lines and better social distancing,” Scannell, a Martel College senior, said. “Voting is a privilege that some people do not have, including individuals with felony convictions or without citizenship. We should not discard that privilege callously.”

According to Reagan, Monday, Oct. 5 is the last day for registering to vote by both mail and in person. Early voting will take place from Oct. 13 to Oct. 30, and general voting will take place on Nov. 3. Mail-in ballots need to be sent in

by Election Day in most states, and the hours will vary by state.

NEWS

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 • 3

CARES Act Phase 2 payments yet to be completed TALHA ARIF ASST NEWS EDITOR

Rice received $3.4 million in funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act this past summer and completed the first phase of payments in June, while the second phase of payments has not occurred yet.

There is not a set date for the Phase 2 funds to be distributed yet, but the money is expected to be spent some time this semester, according to Vice President of Finance Kathy Collins.

The federal government required two stages for distribution of the CARES Act funds, according to Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman. The first phase was to award at least 50 percent of the funds to students and the second was to apply for the portion available for institutional use. Although not required by the CARES Act, Rice has chosen to allocate the entire Phase 2 money to students.

“We are working through now how Phase 2 funds will be applied,” Gorman said. “We will announce that information later this semester.”

During Phase 1 of the distribution plan in June, Rice received $1,716,580 of the CARES Act money and allocated $1,858,600 to 2,775 undergraduate and graduate students, according to Collins.

Collins said Rice also distributed $540,900 of institutional funds to international students, Deferred

Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients and undocumented degree-seeking graduate students in June. Collins said that Rice used its own funds to support these students. Federal regulations of the CARES Act deemed international, DACA and undocumented students ineligible to receive any funds.

The available balance for Phase 2 is $1,574,560, and will be distributed based on different criteria than the Phase 1 criteria, said Collins.

“We have not yet decided on the use of funds, but I can say that we are viewing ‘benefiting students’ broadly, and it will include for example, COVID-19-related financial aid appeals and helping students who need internet connectivity and other IT supports for online courses,” Collins said.

To qualify for the Phase 1 CARES Act money, students must have been enrolled in the 2020 spring semester, had their on-campus enrollment disrupted and met all federal guidelines in the CARES Act, according to an email sent out

by Gorman and Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies Seiichi Matsuda on June 15.

Edesiri Mushale, a senior at McMurtry College, said that he understands there is likely a lot of administration paperwork that needs to be done before information on the second round of payments is made available, but would still like an update.

“I would still like a clarification so that we’re not left in the dark on the promise that Rice made us,” Mushale said.

Channing Wang / THRESHER

Rice received $3.4 million in funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act this past summer and completed the first phase of payments in June, while the second phase of payments has not occurred yet.

SA external vice president resigns BRIAN LIN ASST NEWS EDITOR

Isabel Wiatt resigned from the role of external vice president of the Student Association, setting the stage for a special election for SA EVP to happen sometime near the end of September, according to SA President Anna Margaret Clyburn.

Wiatt said that she resigned from being the SA EVP because of personal challenges and time constraints.

“Along with the pandemic, a lot of things happened in my family that made it really difficult for me to give 100 percent of my attention to the [SA] EVP role,” Wiatt, a junior at Sid Richardson College, said. “Over the summer [I] was going through a lot and [I felt] like I couldn’t be my best self.”

The SA EVP leads the college senators and oversees the University Standing Committees, such as the Athletics and Admissions committees, according to Wiatt.

“I felt guilty not being able to give 100% of my time and commit myself entirely to the EVP role,” Wiatt said. “As EVP, I’m in charge of the senators, and I felt it was wrong to rob them of having someone who could guide them and be a good leader for them.”

Clyburn, a Martel College senior, said she will appoint someone to fill in as interim SA EVP during the next scheduled SA Senate meeting on Sept. 14. The interim SA EVP will occupy the role until the replacement SA EVP is elected by a schoolwide special election, according to Clyburn.

“Something that I really want to emphasize is that whenever we choose who acts as [the] interim [SA EVP], it is ultimately up to students who they want their external vice president to be,” Clyburn said.

After the meeting, the SA will begin circulating petitions for the special election and an information session for those interested in running on Sept. 18, according to Clyburn. Voting for the election will last from Sept. 28 to Oct. 2, and the results will be announced on Oct. 3, Clyburn said.

“We’re hoping to circulate petitions that week of the 14th and then have the election take place near the very end of the month,” Clyburn said. “And then have results announced within the first one or two weeks, of October.”

Clyburn said that she has reached out to several former senators to gauge their interest in becoming the interim SA EVP. “As former senators, they would have the most information about how to support a new group of senators,” Clyburn said.

I felt guilty not being able to give 100% of my time and commit myself entirely to the EVP role.

Isabel Wiatt FORMER SA EXTERNAL VICE PRESIDENT The SA is also in the midst of replacing the current director of elections and has recently sent out applications for the position on Facebook, according to Clyburn. She said the SA will decide who to appoint next week, likely in time to coordinate the special election.

“The really interesting thing is that this director of elections will then be the director of elections for our next campuswide election,” Clyburn said.

“Hopefully that person, after having done it once, will be really equipped to do it again.”

Wiatt said that some of her goals as SA EVP before she decided to resign were improving student-athlete engagement and partnering with Lime scooters to make Houston accessible.

“A lot of those things just required me to be back on campus,” Wiatt said. “If the pandemic goes away and the time is concurrent with what’s going on in my life …

I would consider rejoining the SA [Senate].”

FROM PAGE 1

WELCH

Kuspa said that in the previous sixty years, the Welch Foundation has given almost exactly $100 million to individual chemistry researchers at Rice, almost matching the single $100 million gift given last week.

Leebron said that the establishment of the Welch Institute also marks an advancement in Rice’s engagement with the city of Houston, following other recent Rice projects involved with the city of Houston, including the Ion and the Innovation District, the Kinder Institute for Urban Research and the Houston Education Research Consortium.

“It will also be the foundation for economic growth and the establishment of new technologies, new industries and new companies,” Leebron said at the announcement last Wednesday. “Our aspiration is for Houston to be a leader in bringing new materials to all of these fields.”

The current level of investment in foundational research in advanced materials does not measure up to the opportunities to be found in the field, according to Kuspa.

“The opportunity ... seems infinite now because it’s a brand new landscape,” Kuspa said. “We already know they impact everyone’s life. Almost every minute of the day, we don’t think about it.”

The Welch Institute does not have projects at the outset because the faculty who will head the Welch Institute have not been appointed yet, according to Shamoo.

Peter Dervan, chair of the scientific advisory board of the Welch Foundation, said that the Welch Institute will add to the research being done by universities and petrochemical industries in the city of Houston.

“My hope is that major private philanthropy and industry will join TWI to create a world destination research laboratory, not unlike past great engines of innovation for America, like Bell labs, DuPont Central Research, and most recently, the Broad Institute at MIT-Harvard,” Dervan said at the announcement on Wednesday.

Kuspa said that Rice is ideally suited to the Welch Foundation’s original goal of the institute, which was to exploit computational science in discovering new advanced materials.

“You can’t dictate discovery,” Kuspa said. “It just happens.

So what you have to do, in supporting foundational science, in basic science, is just give money to smart people, and let them follow their imagination.”

THE RICE THRESHER

4 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

OPINION OPINION

EDITORIAL

Voting is essential this year Want to vote this November? Register and make your voting plan today Political engagement is now both more important and more difficult than ever. The stakes always seem higher in a presidential election year but now — with the pandemic, the protests and everything in between — the stakes feel like they were tied to a rocketship and are currently somewhere orbiting Jupiter. It must be pointed out that 2020, while certainly a uniquely disastrous year for America, is really the result of years of built up ideology. The Trump administration has refused to listen to science for years, so how could we be surprised when they failed miserably in the face of a disaster only scientists could solve? And the all-too-frequent incidents of racism and deadly police brutality are unacceptable, but unfortunately, nothing new. The president has been regularly stoking the fires of racial tension for years, with many Americans simply basking in the glow of the flames. America has certainly been tested this year, but we’ve tried to cheat our way out of it with a page ripped from a 1930s German textbook. It’s no wonder we’ve failed.

If this makes you angry, do something.

I know it is easy to be down on political engagement right now. It feels like the government has done nothing but fail our generation and honestly, it’s kind of true. This administration’s response to the pandemic has lost thousands of American lives, the environment is being destroyed without a qualm, and we live in a country where we aren’t granted the basic rights like a livable wage or healthcare. However, we cannot give up. Now it is finally our chance to do something about it. Please keep going to protests, sharing information online and having those tough conversations. But also contact your representatives, find a campaign that you identify with and vote!

If we want to improve the system, we must elect people who will listen. That will only happen if we politically engage.

You can easily communicate with your representatives in a healthy and socially

distant manner. I can’t count the number of emails I’ve sent to city council members, representatives and senators this summer.

Politicians are motivated by the desire to be reelected, so make it clear that you are willing to fight with them if they will champion your causes and that you will fight against them if necessary. And don’t forget about your local representatives.

Harris County alone has over 50 nonfederal elections this year. These officials have a huge impact on your daily life and they almost always need help on their campaigns. You can easily get involved by phone banking, which can be done from your room, or emailing the campaign to see what they might need. Most importantly, vote. Vote early if you can, vote by mail, do whatever it takes to make sure your vote is counted. Make a solid plan and stick to it.

For too long the people in power have relied on the apathy of the masses to continue serving the needs of only a few. We must not let this continue.

I get it. 2020 sucks and it feels like there is nothing we can do. But this year isn’t an accident. The previous generations built a system that actively fostered the disasters we are facing today, from building racial tensions to refusing to invest in our health or safety. That doesn’t mean we should sit back and watch America collapse around us. The voice of the people can be the most powerful tool in a democracy if used correctly. We need to take all of the energy and pain from this summer and use it to reshape our government to work for us.

LILA GREINER

WILL RICE COLLEGE JUNIOR

Voting may be a constitutionally guaranteed right for most American citizens over the age of 18, but that right is infringed upon year after year by voter suppression tactics employed by legislators across the country. This November, that infringement is poised to be only more severe due to the ongoing pandemic and President Donald Trump’s consistent undermining of the United States Postal Service. Although the grim reality is that most voter suppression tactics are out of an individual voter’s control, there are some steps you can take to protect your vote.

Local elections are vital to the allocation of funding and policy creation and often have a greater impact on our everyday lives.

Thresher Editorial Board The first step? Make sure you’re registered to vote, and don’t wait to make your voting plan. Nov. 3 may seem far away, but it’s time to make a plan to vote now.

Telling people to go vote can sometimes ring hollow when neither candidate fully represents your views. However, those who are able to can exercise their right to vote for those who can’t or won’t be heard by their representatives. Felony disenfranchisement has forbidden about 6 million people from voting. Because of the disproportionate incarceration of people of color, Black voters are disenfranchised at a higher rate.

Additionally, even if some communities can vote, their interests are not represented by their elected officials due to gerrymandering or the disproportionate influence of those with money and power in their community.

If you’re registered to vote in Harris County, specifically at Rice, you may have the privilege of being represented and heard by your representatives.

Although this year’s presidential election has dominated much of the media’s attention, it isn’t the only election you should research and vote in. Local elections are vital to the allocation of funding and policy creation and often have a greater impact on our everyday lives. The importance of voting in local elections stands out even more in the wake of the events of the past year; within the devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic, it often came down to local leaders, such as Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, to implement common sense public health safety measures even against federal and gubernatorial stances.

The deadline to register to vote in Texas is Oct. 5. If you are located in the Houston community and plan on voting in person, Reckling Park is the polling station closest to Rice.

If you’re planning on voting by mail, you’ll need to request an absentee ballot, and the process depends on what state you’re registered to vote in. In Texas, you must have an excuse to obtain one, such as being out of town on election day or being 65 or older. Election officials must receive your application by Oct. 23. You can find more details on how to vote by mail for your state from the National Association of Secretaries of State as well as FiveThirtyEight. The USPS recommends that you mail your ballot at least one week prior to your state’s deadline for voting by mail in order for it to be received and counted properly.

Editor’s Note: Thresher editorials are collectively written by the members of the Thresher’s editorial board. Current members include Rishab Ramapriyan, Ivanka Perez, Amy Qin, Elizabeth Hergert, Ella Feldman, Katelyn Landry, Rynd Morgan, Savannah Kuchar, Simona Matovic and Tina Liu.

ASK THE STAFF “What is something unexpected that you miss from Rice?”

“Info desk Torchy’s”

“North servery”

- Rynd Morgan, News Editor

- Channing Wang, Photo Editor

“Missed encounters”

“Vending machine Skittles”

- Ivanka Perez, Editor-in-Chief

“Off campus Montrose coffeeshops” - Ella Feldman, Features Editor

- Amy Qin, Managing Editor

“Eating in the commons”

- Rishab Ramapriyan, Editor-in-Chief

STAFF Ivanka Perez* Editor-in-Chief Rishab Ramapriyan*Editor-in-Chief Amy Qin* Managing Editor

SPORTS Ben Baker-Katz Editor Daniel Schrager Asst. Editor

ONLINE Mateo D’Agaro Web Editor Audrey Yao Video Editor

NEWS Savannah Kuchar* Editor Rynd Morgan* Editor Talha Arif Asst. Editor Brian Lin Asst. Editor

OPINIONS Elizabeth Hergert* Editor

FEATURES Ella Feldman* Editor Kavya Sahni Asst. Editor

PHOTO Channing Wang Editor

DESIGN Tina Liu* Director Dalia Gulca A&E Designer Katherine Hui Sports Designer Anna Chung News Designer Yifei Zhang Illustrator Chloe Xu Illustrator

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Katelyn Landry* Editor Sanvitti Sahdev Asst. Editor

BACKPAGE Simona Matovic* Editor & Designer

COPY Vi Burgess Editor Bhavya Gopinath Editor

BUSINESS OPERATIONS Karoline Sun Business Manager Lindsay Josephs Advertising Manager Lily Wieland Distribution Manager *Editorial Board member

The Rice Thresher, the official student newspaper at Rice University since 1916, is published each Wednesday during the school year, except during examination periods and holidays, by the students of Rice University.

Letters to the Editor must be received by 5 p.m. the Friday prior to publication and must be signed, including college and year if the writer is a Rice student. The Thresher reserves the rights to edit letters for content and length and to place letters on its website.

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Editorial and business offices are located on the second floor of the Ley Student Center: 6100 Main St., MS-524 Houston, TX 77005-1892 Phone (713) 348-4801 Email: thresher@rice.edu Website: www.ricethresher.org The Thresher is a member of the ACP, TIPA, CMA and CMBAM. © Copyright 2020

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 • 5

THE RICE THRESHER

FEATURES

Aparna Shewakramani, “Indian Matchmaking” star, talks lasting friendships with costars and former Rice peers

IVANKA PEREZ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Aparna Shewakramani was a freshman at Lovett College when she signed up for an introduction to Hindi class at Rice. She couldn’t have predicted what the class would lead to — that she’d meet one of her two closest friends in the class, and that eighteen years later, the two would briefly appear on Netflix’s reality TV show “Indian Matchmaking” to support her. Or that, during the show, Shewakramani would use her Hindi to communicate with a matchmaker.

“I had never thought about that,” Shewakramani (Lovett College ’07) told the Thresher over the phone. “Man, [my friends and I] have been together half our lives.”

Although she instantly became friends with Smita Kumar (Sid Richardson College ’06) following their Hindi class together, Shewakramani said she didn’t become close to Divya Pande (Hanszen College ’06), who also appears on the show to help Shewakramani find a match, until after they had graduated. Over the years of knowing the two, Shewakramani says their friendship continues to grow stronger.

“It’s just been a good friendship — and it’s grown, and it’s changed, and it’s evolved and it’s much deeper now, obviously, than it was even when we were at school, because it’s like, you’ve gone through life together,” Shewakramani said.

Kumar and Pande weren’t Shewakramani’s only support system when she joined Netflix’s hit reality TV show.

Shewakramani says that her family, who agreed to join her on the show, also provided her with a lot of support.

When Shewakramani first became involved in “Indian Matchmaking,” she didn’t know what it would turn out to be. She knew that the creator of the Netflix project had previously done a documentary called “A Suitable Girl,” which followed three Indian women navigating the difficulties of Indian marriage culture. Having seen the documentary, Shewakramani was under the impression that “Indian Matchmaking” would be a docuseries, similar to “A Suitable Girl” but split up into multiple parts. Instead, it turned out to be a reality show.

“It’s not what I signed up for,” Shewakramani said. “A docuseries is one that actually portrays full, more rounded characters and it doesn’t really focus so much on the archetypes. What we have in ‘Indian Matchmaking’ is very heavily edited archetypes used in a way to elicit feelings for the viewer, and then also to show many people, in a simplified way, what arranged marriage could look like with these extreme archetypes.”

Once she began filming, Shewakramani realized that using a matchmaker to try to find a life partner may be more complicated than she’d originally realized. Although Sima Taparia, the show’s matchmaker, understood some English, and Shewakramani understood some Hindi, neither understood enough of the other’s language to communicate clearly.

This barrier, combined with their differing views on what kind of man Shewakramani should end up with, resulted in one of the more memorable moments of the show.

On the show, Shewakramani is depicted

PHOTO COURTESY NETFLIX

Aparna Shewakramani (Lovett College ‘07) pictured with Shekar Jayaraman, who was only shown on one date with Shewakramani before being paired with Nadia Jagessar later on. The two have kept in contact often since they stopped shooting the show, according to Shewakramani.

saying she doesn’t like comedy, and her surprise that people look for a sense of humor in their partner has been turned into a gif. In real life, however, Shewakramani says the moment was taken out of context.

“My only criteria that I gave Sima was not shown to the viewer, but all I said to her was I want someone who’s laid back and introverted, and she said no,” Shewakramani said. “She was like ‘No, I want you with someone jolly’ ... I don’t want a jolly man, I want the wallflower. I want a quiet guy. I don’t like funny guys.”

Although she originally viewed their exchange as a miscommunication due to language, she realized later on that Sima had different plans for her than she had for herself.

“You see sound bites of me trying to explain to her, because I’m thinking ... ‘This must be a communication breakdown,’ but it wasn’t,” Shewakramani said. “It was that she believed I needed to be with someone that I don’t believe I want to be with.”

When the show first came out, viewers took to social media to express strong responses, both negative and positive, to Shewakramani as she was portrayed on the show. Many of these responses had to do with Shewakramani verbalizing what she wanted in a husband — some labeled her picky, while others praised her for being confident in her standards. Although there have been negative comments, Shewakramani said countless women have reached out to her through social media saying they were inspired by her willingness to stand her ground.

“Why is there a constant vilification of strong women in reality TV? I’ve gotten thousands of messages where women aren’t there for that narrative anymore,” Shewakramani said. “A lot of women say that just seeing me has helped them make their decisions not only in their matchmaking process, but in their workplaces and their friend groups ... they’ve been more willing to say, ‘This is what I want.’”

One of the reasons why Shewakramani joined the show was to shed light on how arranged marriages work, and to help

illustrate how an arranged marriage can be one of many options for people looking to find a life partner.

“I wanted people to see that arranged marriage could be a very unique experience that actually works for very progressive people like me,” Shewakramani said. “I was

Why is there a constant vilification of strong women in reality TV? I’ve gotten thousands of messages where women aren’t there for that narrative anymore.

Aparna Shewakramani LOVETT COLLEGE ‘07 always gonna have a voice in the process and so for me it was just another option.

I could meet someone at a party, I could meet someone on a dating app, I could meet someone at the singles table at a wedding or I could meet someone with a matchmaker.”

Shewakramani said she’s encountered many people whose understanding of arranged marriage, before watching the show, differed drastically from her own.

“A lot of people in Europe, and even in America, thought that arranged marriage meant forced marriage. So they were just confused, they were like, ‘Wait, what do you mean you have a choice?’” Shewakramani said. “Arranged marriage does not mean a forced marriage — it can in very extreme circumstances ... but that is not actually the definition.”

The show has faced criticism for displaying sexism, colorism and other negative aspects of Indian culture.

Although this wasn’t the portrayal of Indian culture that Shewakramani had signed up for, she said she feels honored to move important conversations surrounding these topics forward.

“I’ve been a part of such wonderful conversations about classism and colorism and heightism and sexism and misogyny and all of these parts of our culture that are really real,” Shewakramani said. “And the show didn’t sanitize that — it really put it out there on the global screen and let people talk about it.”

Shewakramani went into the show with a support group of close friends — and came out with one as well. One of her closest friends from the show is one of her former dates: Shekar Jayaraman, who was only shown on one date with Shewakramani before being paired with Nadia Jagessar later on. On a work trip to Chicago this past weekend, Shewakramani says they met up on multiple occasions, and have kept in contact often since they stopped shooting the show.

Although she and many of her “Indian Matchmaking” castmates never actually met on the show, Shewakramani says the group has bonded in the aftermath of the show’s popularity.

“We all say the same thing — how silly and naive were we, that we all went on the show just to find love,” Shewakramani said.

“And we were all laughing because we’re all still single today except for Rupam. Rupam got engaged and is about to get married to that guy that she met on Bumble [while] on the show.”

Although Shewakramani is currently single, she said she now knows what she’s looking for in a partner moving forward— not because of the show, but rather because of her friends Kumar and Pande, whom she met at Rice. Both are married, and Shewakramani said that their examples of what marriage can look like have given her high hopes.

“They married really wonderful men and they’ve grown with them and they’ve shown me what compatibility looks like,” Shewakramani said. “I’ve watched my friends go through really good times with their husbands and really hard times in life, and [I’ve seen] that person step up to the plate for them … I didn’t go on [the show] to find a husband, I went on there to find a partner — and my friends all have partners.”

SEE IT ONLINE

ZOOMING INTO FALL

IF YOU TAKE A MOUSE TO THE MOVIES...

CROPPED

Wondering how students and professors are adjusting to socially distant classes? Read this feature by Kavya Sahni at ricethresher.org.

Solve the crossword “If you take a mouse to the movies...” by regular crossword writers Jayaker Kolli and Nikhaz Omar, at ricethresher.org.

Surprise! We have a second crossword for you to solve this week. View “Cropped” by Amy Mu at ricethresher.org.

THE RICE THRESHER

6 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT Black Art at Rice: A Conversation with Chabrielle Allen INTERVIEWED BY KATELYN LANDRY A&E EDITOR

“SELF PORTRAIT #1” BY CHABRIELLE ALLEN.

This week, the Thresher sat down with Chabrielle Allen (Hanszen College ’20), an alumna who earned her Bachelor of Arts in religion with a focus on culture and society in August. Currently living in her hometown of Roswell, New Mexico, Allen spoke about her artistic journey during her time at Rice, the intersection of technology and art and the importance of diverse representation in the art world.

The Rice Thresher: When did you start doing art?

Chabrielle Allen: I’ve kind of always been making art — ever since I was a kid I liked to draw. I always thought about pursuing art more seriously, but as a lowincome student I didn’t really feel like that was an option for me. So I chose to start out as computer science, and then changed my major to religion and took an art class at Rice [and someone] told me I should go to art school, so now I’m kind of thinking about doing that. I’ve just always been interested in art and always trying out different techniques and mediums.

RT: Was it a professor who told you that you should go to art school?

CA: It was actually the beginning painting professor, Natasha Bowdoin, who told me I should try art school. It was the first art class I’d taken at Rice, and she said that I had just had a lot of really good potential considering that I hadn’t really taken a lot of art classes before. And then, aside from her, the new magisters at Hanszen also looked at some of my work and said that I should consider pursuing art school as well because they basically said the same thing, that I had a lot of potential.

RT: That’s so exciting, what kind of art schools are you thinking about?

CA: I’ve looked at the Rhode Island School of Design, Harvard [University]’s art school, a couple of different art schools in Houston like the Art Institute. I’ve been thinking about how my experience with computer science and technology could maybe fuse into a more art focused career. So

Visit Houston’s Hidden Secrets: Oddities in the Bayou City

JACOB TATE

SENIOR WRITER

I’m just looking at digital art and animation and those kinds of programs as well as fine arts programs.

RT: Yeah, I noticed your studies have been very interdisciplinary. What would you say the value is of being engaged in several different disciplines at once?

CT: For me personally, as a woman in tech and as somebody who is still attempting to work in the tech industry post-graduation, it’s really important to come from an interdisciplinary background, especially in today’s world where we’re so focused around data. Thinking about how we can actually use data to help people and understanding the different kinds of hidden biases that [exist] in data. So I feel like my major with religious studies helps me really expand my vocabulary in terms of understanding how people work, how people see the world and understand our place within it. And kind of seeing how we can apply that into technology and how we can see how to actually make human-focused technology rather than profit from this technology.

RT: Are there any particular artists who have been particularly influential to you?

CA: I am a huge fan of Charline von Heyl’s work. I did my final painting in the beginning painting class kind of based around her work and was inspired by her work. I’m also a really big fan of Jackson Pollock. I try to expose myself to new artists, I’ve been looking up a lot of Black creatives specifically because as a Black student I feel like I haven’t been super exposed to a lot of work outside of the Renaissance era and other very overly famous artists from the past. I feel like I haven’t gotten as much exposure as I could to other forms and other periods of art, but I’m trying to expand.

RT: Could you speak to the value of being more exposed to Black artists and Black creators, especially in academic settings?

CA: Yeah I think that exposure to Black artists is really important, just because it helps to kind of see how Black people kind of think about things and how we reflect on our experiences [...] how we lost a huge part of our own cultures through slavery and things like that and how we’ve had to build anew.

RT: Do you have any advice for artists in the Rice community, specifically students of color?

CA: I would say definitely try taking an art class if you get the chance. It’s just a really good way to expand on your own creativity and it helps you reflect on what it is to create.

Nothing has to be perfect. I know a lot of minority students, we often feel that we have to constantly overachieve and overperform to just kind of be on par with everybody else, but art doesn’t have to be perfect to be art. If you make something, it’s art.

This article has been condensed for print.

To read the full Q&A, visit ricethresher.org.

In high school, I explored the nooks and crannies of my city that embodied the state of limbo I felt in my soul. As I find myself facing a similar sense of instability this semester, I return to the curiosities of Houston and share them with those bursting with wanderlust.

Heaven On Earth 1802 Travis Street Bold teens sometimes find various entrances — “doors” as they are colloquially called — and sneak inside to climb the thirty flights of stairs for a rooftop view of Houston.

COURTESY @CARRCORMIER ON INSTAGRAM

The Orange Show 2402 Munger Street You can visit The Orange Show during non-pandemic times for just five dollars and experience the wondrous joy in the mundane.

COURTESY MAGIC ISLAND

COURTESY MABRY CAMPBELL

Palace of the Golden Orbs 3695 Overture Drive One of the eeriest places in Houston, the Palace of the Golden Orbs stands slowly deteriorating, beautiful and dead silent.

COURTESY ORANGE SHOW CENTER FOR VISIONARY ART

Magic Island 2215 SW Freeway The ’80s era relic with its Vegas aspirations stands in stark contrast to the utilitarian ethos of Houston.

READ THE FULL STORY ONLINE AT ricethresher.org

WEEKLY SCENES AND SCREENS CREATIVE CONVERSATIONS African curator and organizer Azu Nwagbogu will be in conversation with Steven Evans, director of Houston-based art collective FotoFest, about contemporary African photography this Saturday, Sept. 12 from 2 - 3:30 p.m.

Watch the conversation live on FotoFest’s YouTube channel.

HOUSTON RESTAURANT WEEKS

STAGES STUDIO SESSIONS

KEEPER OF THE HEARTH

Join the Houston Center of Photography The largest annual fundraiser for the Tune in this weekend for Stages’ fourth on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 6:30 p.m. for Houston Food Bank and has been extended installment of its virtual Studio Sessions the virtual opening reception of “Keeper through Sept. 30! Help boost the local featuring a musical performance by local acof the Hearth: Picturing Roland Barthes’ restaurant industry and fight food insetress and Rice alumna Tamara Siler (Brown Unseen Photograph,” an exhibition curity by taking advantage of thse special College ’87). The performance will be availcelebrating the 40th anniversary of menus and discounts. able to view starting Friday, Sept. 11 at 7:30 Roland Barthes’ renowned work, “Camera Visit houstonrestaurantweeks.com to see p.m. and through Sept. 13 on demand.

Lucida.” the list of participating restaurants.

To stream the performance, register online To register for the reception, visit bit. at bit.ly/3i7R3lh ly/2F8nstp.

THE RICE THRESHER

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 • 7

SPORTS START OF FOOTBALL PRACTICES DELAYED BEN BAKER-KATZ SPORTS EDITOR

Photo courtsey: Rice Athletics

More than 100 players from the Rice football team marched silently from Rice Stadium to the academic quad to protest racial injustice on Friday afternoon.

According to head coach Mike Bloomgren, the march was the result of months of work done by team members.

FROM PAGE 1

FOOTBALL

First, they held a town hall with the entire team to give every member of the team a chance to share their thoughts and feelings regarding these recent events, and racial justice as a whole. Afterward, the team invited Chief Clemente Rodriguez of the Rice University Police Department to talk to the team about what to do when interacting with police officers. Bloomgren said the idea to talk RUPD came from senior safety Naeem Smith.

“They were unbelievable,” Bloomgren said. “[RUPD] talked with our guys about the relationship they want to have with them on campus. And they also said, ‘If you’re in a different community, and you get pulled over, [here] are the steps you should take.’”

Additionally, the team decided to wear Black Lives Matter decals on their helmets for the upcoming season, and to attempt to register each member of the team to vote.

As part of that plan, they also set up Friday’s march through campus in order to raise awareness for issues of racial justice.

According to Bloomgren, Otoviano led the effort to organize the march.

“Juma took the lead,” Bloomgren said. “He put in a lot of tireless work for his teammates to make sure this would happen.”

According to Otoviano, before they marched the team held a number of sessions geared towards promoting constructive conversations on race, injustice and other issues that he described as “uncomfortable” but ultimately necessary.

In order to follow COVID-19 protocols, and ensure proper distancing between members of the team, players marched in three separate groups.

Once each group had marched through campus, they met in the Academic Quad, where Otoviano addressed the team, beginning by thanking his teammates, the coaching staff, compliance staff, RUPD and Rice event coordinators. He then opened up the floor to anyone else who wanted to speak.

Redshirt sophomore linebacker Kebreyun Page was the next to speak, and shared a message focused on unity.

“The world needs unity right now, we need to come together as a human race,” Page said. “[My teammates] all know that we’re brothers, and that we always [have] each others’ backs. Some guys may not know the experiences of what some of the

other guys are going through, but they took the time out of their day to figure it out.”

Page said that he was inspired by Otoviano’s remarks.

“Seeing Juma up there, it sparked a fire in me,” Page said. “It was this overwhelming feeling, and I had to go follow Juma’s footsteps.”

The next player to speak was redshirt freshman quarterback JoVoni Johnson.

According to Johnson, while he did not plan to speak initially, his remarks reflected thoughts that he had been thinking for a long time.

“It wasn’t really planned,” Johnson said of his speech, “but I couldn’t really call it spur of the moment [either], when I got up there and said things that have been on my heart for a long time.”

As for why he decided to speak, Johnson said that the recent incidents of Black people being killed by members of the police have felt personal to him.

“As a person of color, that could be my uncle, that could be my grandpa,” Johnson said. “Hell, that could be me.”

Once Johnson finished giving his remarks, Otoviano addressed the team again to end the march. According to Otoviano, this moment gave him a chance to reflect on how momentous the march had been.

The way we looked at it is that if one of your brothers on the team is in pain, if one of your brothers is hurting, what would you do to make him feel better?

JoVoni Johnson RICE FOOTBALL QUARTERBACK “I hope that everyone that marched today felt something,” Otoviano recalls saying as he opened his second set of remarks.

Otoviano said that his message centered on hope and encouragement.

“I wanted to acknowledge that there will be a change,” he said. “And as long as we continue to do our part, we’ll be able to live in the world we seek to live in.”

Following Otoviano’s remarks, and a moment of silence, the march ended.

In a display of unity, the entire team

wore identical T-shirts with “Black Lives Matter” printed on the back.

According to Johnson, the unity that the team showed during the march was especially important since issues of racial justice are often politicized.

“Obviously the issue has been politicized, and somewhat over-politicized, but at its core, we viewed it as a human rights issue,” Johnson said. “The way we looked at it is that if one of your brothers on the team is in pain, if one of your brothers is hurting, what would you do to make him feel better? What would you do to let him know that you stood there for him?”

The unity among the coaching staff in support of the players’ message was not lost on members of the team as well. According to Page, the staff’s unanimous support of the players was very meaningful.

“That meant a lot,” Page said. “Our staff is unique as it is, we have two African American coordinators on our staff, and I think we’re the only [team] in the FBS with that.”

According to the Chicago Tribune, Rice is the only FBS program that has African Americans in both coordinator spots. Page also said that he credits the staff with building a culture that supports players.

“They’re not just doing this for show,” Page said. “You can feel it’s genuine when your coach pulls you over to the side and asks you, ‘Are you doing okay today?’”

According to Bloomgren, the coaches’ support of the march is a natural extension of the strong relationships that they have built with the players.

“When we see our players hurting, who we think of as family members, we’re gonna help in any way that we can,” Bloomgren said.

While the march marked a significant step in the team’s activism, players understand that it is not the end of their efforts to create change. For their next step, Otoviano said that the leadership council is currently looking at ways to ensure that the entire team is registered to vote.

Johnson, paraphrasing Otoviano, said that the team understands that each of these steps alone will not bring the change that they are aiming for.

“As Juma said, the change that we seek, we may not see tomorrow, we may not see next week we may not see in our lifetime,” Johnson said. “But it’s those small steps, those small individual efforts that compound over time and ultimately give us hope for what we can do.”

Rice football announced that they would delay the start of their preseason practices in a press release today, due to concerns regarding the infection rate of the coronavirus in Houston.

“Our top priority is the safety of our community,” Athletic Director Joe Karlgaard said in a statement. “The very low rates of infection among our campus community are the result of a communal effort and one that requires continued vigilance and dedication. At the same time, we will continue to explore options to allow a football season to happen in 2020.”

School officials have said that more rapid and reliable testing may become available in the near future, and they will work the Conference USA on any necessary schedule adjustments.

“As much as our team wants to get on the field and start their season, we all understand the larger issues involved,” head coach Mike Bloomgren said.

Bloomgren and his players have all expressed that while they are thankful for the care with which Rice is treating the situation, they are also ready to get back on the field.

“I’m thankful to be a part of a university that prioritizes the health and well-being of the campus as well as its student-athletes, while still giving us the chance to move forward and play the game we love and to compete for a conference title,” senior and team captain Austin Trammell said.

The Owls were scheduled to start their season on Oct. 3 in West Virginia against Marshall University. Whether or not that happens, is now up to C-USA. According to Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations Chuck Pool, there is no definitive answer on when the season will start.

As much as our team wants to get on the field and start their season, we all understand the larger issues involved.

Mitigating the virus on our campus has been and will remain priority one. But there is also a commitment to trying to create a consistent scenario for football to be played this fall.

Mike Bloomgren HEAD FOOTBALL COACH “Conference USA will take a look at the situation, and it will be up to them whether or not the impacted game(s) are rescheduled or canceled,” Pool said.

For now, the school is investigating new rapid testing capabilities, as well as other measures to curtail the spread of the pandemic in a competitive athletic setting. A final decision on the start of practice will be made later in September.

“Mitigating the virus on our campus has been and will remain priority one,” Bloomgren said. “But there is also a commitment to trying to create a consistent scenario for football to be played this fall.”

BACKPAGE

8 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

AtThis PointWho Hasn’t shared an event.

2h ·

Hey, class of 2021/2/3/4 or residential college! I’ve copied and pasted this announcement so many times that I’m not going to bother tailoring it to you. Plus, since your eyes are probably numb from all of the clubs, societies and associations posting, I doubt you’ll care or even notice!

Now that you’ve finally put all of your class schedules in your calendar, it’s time to add a whole bunch of first general body meetings, interest meetings, panels and application deadlines! Afraid you’re biting off more than you can chew? Well, which do you fear more: spreading yourself too thin across activities or the loneliness of the pandemic combined with your underlying impostor syndrome? That’s what I thought!

Back to our club. Do you care about making an impact? Cool, neither do we! Do you enjoy 10 p.m. Zoom meetings in the middle of the week because other club members don’t try to accommodate anyone else when filling out the When2Meet? Well, get used to it. Most importantly, are you a freshman going to the Career Expo next week who really wants a college activity to add to their resume? Perfect!

Join the Rice Weekly Agenda Program! Rice WAP is a club that meets constantly (a certified streak of seven days a week) with the exclusive purpose of creating calendar events that block off your time so you look and feel busy. During Rice WAP Zoom meetings, you can work on things for other classes and clubs, but you have to pretend to pay attention to what’s going on by nodding and occasionally unmuting yourself to say “Hmm… I definitely agree with that!” From the top, a club you won’t drop is Weekly Agenda Program. Any questions? We’re talking WAP, WAP, WAP in our first meeting this week!

Rice

Weekly Agenda Program First General Meeting

Sept. 9, 2020 · 3 p.m.

RMC Grand Hall (Just kidding! It’s on Zoom, just like the rest of your life)

The Backpage is satire, written by Simona Meet-Cute and designed by Stallion thee Matovic. For comments or questions, please email JamesJoyceLovesFarts@rice.edu

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