18 February 2019

News

The Collegian: 2

Campus Climate Survey inspires change on campus The researchers behind the CCS credit it for the university’s new Title IX Coordinator as well as other preventative measures on campus.

Brennen Gray Sports Editor Hannah Robbins Student Writer As the Campus Climate Survey circulates around TU, those who want to promote safety on campus hope that the survey proves an effective way to protect all students on campus.

TITAN (the University of Tulsa Institute of Trauma, Adversity and Injustice) puts out the survey as a joint venture with Advocacy Alliance, an interdepartmental committee at TU that works to end violence on campus.

Representatives from TITAN and the Advocacy Alliance, Head of the Office of Violence Prevention Kelsey Hancock, director of the Trauma Research, Advocacy, Prevention and Treatment Center (TRAPT) Lab Dr. Joanne Davis and TRAPT Lab Manager Matt Crowley released a statement on the purpose of the survey.

“The CCS allows us to see changes that result from prevention and education efforts on campus year to year.”

The Office of Violence Prevention, for example, puts on programs with Greek Life on campus, and the survey aims to collect data that would better inform programming for the future. These programs have increased in recent years.

According to TITAN, “TU has increased its programming by 375 percent since we received a grant from the Office on Violence Against Women and hired a program coordinator.”

Hancock provided some background on the CCS and the departments that design it.

“The CCS started in 2014.” She said that the CCS was focused on “attitudes, prevalence rates and knowledge of interpersonal violence” and that as the survey has gone on, it has become shorter, from “two hours the

Hemp truckers jailed in Osage County

Two commercial truckers are facing trial after unwittingly transporting first year to half an hour” this year, making industrial hemp with THC content it easier to get the valuable information it above the legal limit. collects.

As far as what is first done with the compiled results, “an executive summary is written each year detailing the results of the CCS and recommendations are made based on the responses. These summaries (from the past four years) can be found on the UTulsa website on the Sexual Violence Prevention webpage.”

These summaries are then used “to inform the content and nature of prevention programming on campus, as well as campus policies and processes related to interpersonal violence.”

The survey has played a direct part in making changes to the campus based off the results. One example was when “the first two executive summary reports recommended creating a position for a sole Title IX Coordinator,” which was “accomplished in 2017 in the hiring of Matt Warren.” According to Hancock, this change has helped students significantly. “Matt knows the law well… he can contact people… and make [survivors’] lives easier without changing anything else.”

As for changes that may occur in the future as a direct result of the Campus Climate Survey, the TITAN and Advocacy Alliance says, “Recommendations in recent executive summary reports suggest that we could enhance and expand our efforts to create culture change on campus by instituting an Office of Violence Prevention (OVP).” And the survey will expand its horizons soon.

According to Hancock, “We developed and will be administering a CCS for faculty and staff this spring.” For her, this has been a long time coming. It had been something the administration had wanted to do, but at a panel last year, “someone inquire[d] on why we aren’t doing [a survey for faculty and staff].” After a while, they “finally got to a place where they can roll out [the faculty and staff CCS] next month.”

The new survey will expand TITAN and the Advocacy Alliance’s efforts to make the University of Tulsa a safer campus for everyone.

18 February 2019

Thomas von Borstel Student Writer Commercial truckers Tadesse Deneke and Farah Warsame have had an extended introduction to the American prison system for the last month. Not long before their imprisonment, the two men were hired to haul a trailer from Kentucky to Colorado. To their bewilderment, the men were accompanied by a security dispatch.

The drivers were pulled over on Wednesday morning, January 9, in Osage County for a routine traffic violation. They were then arrested on charges of trafficking over 1,000 pounds of marijuana. The shipment contained 17,258 pounds of legal hemp, almost nine tons.

In December, the U.S. Congress passed the 2018 Farm Bill, which federally legalized the transportation of hemp, prohibiting prosecution of hemp growers. Oklahoma also recently passed legislation on a pilot industrial hemp program, allowing the state to impose fines only for hemp that tests over 1 percent THC. The federal threshold for illegal THC content in hemp is 0.3 percent.

Samples of the marijuana transported

by Deneke and Warsame registered at 0.4 percent and 0.5 percent. The Pawhuska Police Department, leading the investigation, seized the shipment and imprisoned the truckers, setting the bail at $40,000.

The security team which accompanied Deneke and Warsame on their job posted

bail shortly after the arrest. The two truckers are American transplants, moving from Africa to find work and education, according to the Tulsa World. Both men have dependents, in the United States and in Africa, that are put in jeopardy by their imprisonment.

The two men, who were simply told to perform a job, had little idea of the risk.

The truckers were caught in the crossfire of federal and local bureaucracy that is struggling with the growing pains of a nation still caught in the grip of the “war on drugs.”

This is not an isolated incident. Truck driver Denis Palamarchuck was arrested while going through a routine inspection at an East Boise weigh station. He faces a minimum of five years in prison. The THC concentration found in his 4.5 ton load was .043 percent. This registers significantly lower than the federal limit of 0.3 percent, but Idaho law enforcement has stated they will continue to impose a strict marijuana policy.

Denis Palamarchuk was able to post a $100,000 bail after four days. Unfortunately for Deneke and Warsame, they were forced to wait a month until they were released on their own recognizance. The Osage County District Attorney published this statement: “Through the of course of our investigation, we have begun to question the involvement of the drivers of the truck. We asked for their cooperation in the investigation.

They have now given that cooperation to us. Charges are still pending against all four individuals. But the investigation will continue and we will continue to look at the culpability of each individual.”

The two drivers will return for their hearing on March 22.

“[T]he survey aims to collect data that would better inform programming for the future.”

Oklahoma law enforcement confiscated nearly nine tons of industrial hemp.

courtesy Fox25 News

US narrowly avoids shutdown with partial border wall funding After a tense week of negotiation and arguing, a second shutdown was avoided in lieu of President Trump’s national emergency.

Chris Lierly Student Writer Hannah Robbins Student Writer Monday, Feb. 11: four days until shutdown Both President Trump and Beto O’Rourke speak at the border this week. This marks Trump’s first rally of 2019. (119 hours until shutdown) On Monday night, lawmakers on Capitol Hill announce that they have reached an agreement “on principle” to fund the government and avoid another shutdown.

The proposed deal provides $1.375 billion for fencing and other measures to create a 55-mile barrier between Mexico and

the United States. However, the deal does not involve the funding of a 200-mile border wall along the southern border that the president has been demanding. The White House has yet to comment on the agreement reached by Congressional leaders. (96 hours) Tuesday, Feb. 12: three days until shutdown When asked before a cabinet meeting, Trump comments on the proposed bill, stating, “I can’t say I’m happy” with the current agreement. He plans to study the bill more before determining if he wants to sign it. (87 hours) Wednesday, Feb. 13: two days until shutdown As lawmakers work to try to come up with a tangible deal, Trump says, “We haven’t gotten it yet. We’ll be getting it and we’ll be looking for land mines” in the bill. The theoretical deal that lawmakers had reached the night before is seen by the White House

President Trump’s latest action continued his campaign promise to build a U.S.-Mexico border wall.

as a way to avoid another government shutdown. (60 hours) Late Wednesday night, Congressional leaders complete the agreement they had proposed on Monday, with the $1.375 billion for the border fence. (49 hours) Thursday, Feb. 14: one day until shutdown Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announces that President Trump will sign the proposed funding bill that allots $1.375 billion to border wall funding. However, he also says that the president will simultaneously declare a national emergency over the “emergency at the southern border.” (32 hours) Not long after that announcement, the White House confirms that the president intends to declare a national emergency. (32 hours) The Senate passes the border-security bill 83-16. The bill is sent to the House. (31 hours)

The House of Representatives approves the Senate’s bill 300-128, sending the bill to the president’s desk where he is expected to sign it. (31 hours) Friday, Feb. 15: proposed day of shutdown President Trump signs the funding bill into law, avoiding a second government shutdown for the year. At the same time, he declares a national emergency to allocate $8 billion to the construction of a wall along the southern border. Following immediate legal challenges, the president announces, “We will have a national emergency, and we will then be sued,” but he assures listeners that, “we’ll end up at the Supreme Court, and hopefully we’ll get a fair shake.” He also claims that the declaration was simply to get the wall built “faster.” The funds will be re-appropriated from the Departments of the Treasury and Defense. (13 hrs) After signing the funding bill and the declaration of a national emergency, the president departs for his resort at Mar-a-Lago.

courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Control/Flickr

18 February 2019

News

The Collegian: 3

Feb. 10 2:45 a.m.

University of Tulsa campus Security Officers were dispatched to investigate a possible noise compliant in Lorton Village Apartments. Upon arrival Officers could hear crying coming form an apartment. Officers made contact with the resident and kept the student calm until outreach specialist arrived on scene. Officers along with the outreach specialist escorted the student to Laureate.

Feb. 8 11:00 a.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers investigated a report of a student who received an inappropriate comment from an unidentified individual. The individual was driving a and yelled while the student was walking. There are no known suspects at this time. This investigation is on-going.

3:30 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to Chapman Hall to retrieve found property. Officers retrieved a mug, a scarf, a balaclava, a set of mittens and a student ID. Officers attempted to contact the owner of the ID and left a message. The owners of the other property were unable to be determined or contacted so the property was placed into the property locker for safekeeping.

Feb. 9 11:15 a.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were flagged down at the Reynolds Center parking lot by a parking attendant who wanted to file a complaint on an individual who drove into the parking lot without permission. Officers spoke with both individuals who gave conflicting statements. Officers discovered that the individual had permission from another parking attendant to drive into the parking lot.

1:30 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to investigate a possible non injury motor vehicle accident in the Mabee East parking lot. upon arrival Officers spoke with a student who reported their personal vehicle, parked in the Mabee East Parking Lot, was struck by another vehicle. The owner of the perpetrating vehicle was not present but was contacted.

7:00 p.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers discovered damage to university property in the west atrium of Kendall Hall. Officers were able to determine that the damage was not malicious. Officers took pictures of the damage and notified the Kendall Hall building manager and WFF of the damage.

8:19 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to the John Mabee Hall courtyard to take a report of a stolen bicycle. Upon arrival, the officer met with the owner of the bike who said it was stolen from the bike rack at John Mabee hall. Officers informed the individual they could file a Tulsa Police Department report if they wished.

Feb. 11 1:10 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched and given information that equipment was missing from the Case Athletic Building. Officers reviewed camera footage. Officers recovered and returned all items that belonged to the Case Athletic Equipment Room. Officers were provided information about what was taken and the investigation is ongoing.

2:35 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to the Mabee Gym east parking to investigate a possible non-injury vehicle collision. Upon arrival, Officers met with a student who reported that another student backed into their vehicle. The student stated the earlier that they had exchanged vehicle and insurance information directly after the incident and then left the scene. Officers searched the Maybe Gym east parking lot for the suspect vehicle but were not able to locate it.

Chris Lierly and Lindsey Prather Student Writers

Journalist arrested in the Philippines Last Thursday, Feb. 14, Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, who runs the newsite Rappler, was released on bail after being jailed on Wednesday on charges of cyber-libel.

Ressa co-founded Rappler in 2012 after spending much of her career at CNN. In 2018, she was named one of Time Magazine’s People of the Year for her work investigating the Philippines government. Rappler has attained a reputation as one of the few news outlets in the Philippines willing to criticize President Rodrigo Duterte, who has invoked international ire for his dictator-like approach in tackling issues facing the country. His drug policies, deemed by many to be inhumane, were the subject of the articles that led to Ressa’s charges.

Her arrest marks the most recent event in an ongoing saga between the press and Duterte. The statute that Ressa was accused of breaking is six years old and only became law four months after the article in question was published. The Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation threw out the case in 2017, only to pick it back up again last year. Duterte has denied any political connection to the temporary jailing of Ressa but branded Rappler a “fake news outlet.”

US charges former Air Force intel specialist for conspiring with Iran A former United States counterintelligence specialist who defected to Iran has now been charged with revealing classified U.S. intel. The Justice Department claims that Monica Elfriede Witt, formerly of the Air Force, divulged info about a secret Pentagon program as well as the personal and professional details of her colleagues’ lives, which have been used to target them since. Though she had been on the FBI’s radar for some time, Witt assured officials that if she returned to Iran, she would not hand over any intelligence. Though the Justice Department gave few details about the information Witt gave to Iran, they did say that “she provided information that could cause serious damage to national security.” Officials in the U.S. believe the hackers that Witt aided are working on behalf of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, which the United States has labeled a terrorist supporter.

WHO recommends rescheduling cannabis for the first time in history In a historic move, the World Health Organization has recommended that cannabis and other related products be reevaluated in their schedule designation, a system that categorizes substances based on addiction potential in collaboration with medicinal uses. The current schedule of cannabis as a heavily regulated “Schedule I” substance is being reconsidered given the growing evidence showing that the drug could have legitimate merits in treating a number of health problems.

This marks a significant change in the WHO’s position, as the group has been the subject of oversight from nations that have been historically insistent against the medicinal qualities of the plant. Additionally, the committee also recommended that two psychoactive compounds in cannabis (dronabinol and tetrahydrocannabinol) should be removed from the 1971 U.N. Convention on Psychotropic Substances and placed in Schedule I of the 1961 Convention instead. The purpose of this proposal is to simplify the classification of THC and cannabis products. The proposed evaluations and potential rescheduling will go before the U.N.’s Commission on Narcotic Drugs as soon as March, where the member nations will have the opportunity to vote to either approve or reject them.

4:30 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to investigate a possible burglary from a vehicle in Lorton Village Apartment Parking lot. Upon arrival Officers spoke with a Tu employee who’s vehicle had been burglarized in Lorton Village parking lot. The vehicle had no visible damage on the doors or windows. The employee did not file a report with Tulsa Police Department.

5:15 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus security Officers were dispatched to investigate a possible fire alarm at Sigma Nu fraternity. Upon arrival Officers did not see any smoke or fire in the residence. Tulsa Fire Department was canceled.

Feb. 12 2:35 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to University Square Apartments West to escort a student to Student Affairs. Officers made contact with the student at their residence and escorted them to Holmes Student Center. Officers left without further incident.

10:30 p.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers observed a vehicle speeding on 8th street, also running the stop sign at 8th and Gary Avenue. Officers conducted a traffic stop in the Lorton Performance Center parking lot. The student was given a student misconduct for reckless driving.

Feb. 13 1:00 a.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers conducted a pedestrian check on the East side of Keplinger Hall. Officers checked the individual for active warrants and previous contact information. The individual had 1 misdemeanor warrant in Latimer County and had previous contact with the University of Tulsa. Officers contacted the Tulsa Police Department. Due to the unavailability of the Tulsa Police Department , officers trespass warned the individual, escorted them off of property, and filled out a contact card.

The Collegian does not produce or edit the Campus Crime Watch except for content and brevity.

Monday, February 18 at 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Allan Chapman Student Union, Great Hall C (A+B) Lets Talk about it… Medical Marijuana The Early Careers in Community Medicine program is sponsoring an educational event covering State Question 788, which legalized medical marijuana. Speakers will provide information regarding the health and legal aspects of medical marijuana. President Gerard Clancy, M.D., will address what we know to-date about marijuana, risks/ benefits, biochemical properties and what to do if you or someone you know experiences negative side effects. TU Law Professor Warigia Bowman will discuss the legal aspects of SQ 788, how it affects individuals and what the law says can and cannot be done. After the presentations, there will be a Q&A session. Refreshments will be provided.

Monday, February 18 at 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Lorton Performance Center, Meinig Recital Hall TU-Chamber Music Tulsa Heckman Award Competition The Fifth Annual TU-Chamber Music Tulsa Heckman Award Competition features students who are studying chamber music in the TU School of Music. This year we have only one ensemble performing for the judges who will determine whether the group qualifies for the award.

Program: String Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 27 by Edvard Grieg (1843 – 1907) I. Un poco andante – Allegro molto ed agitato II. Romanze: Andantino Each musician in the winning ensemble will be awarded $1,500, an internship at the TU Summer Chamber Music Camp in June 2019 and outreach performances sponsored

by Chamber Music Tulsa’s Education and Outreach Committee in the spring 2019.

Free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Diane Bucchianeri at diane-bucchianeri@utulsa.edu or 918-631-3478.

Thursday, February 21 at 7:30 p.m.

Lorton Performance Center Bela Rozsa Memorial Concert The University of Tulsa Symphony Orchestra and the TOC Chamber Choir, conducted by Zach Malavolti, will present the premiere of “Every Man’s Land,” commissioned by Kathryn LaFortune, based on a poem found in her grandfather’s World War I diary, with music composed by TU Professor Joseph Rivers. The concert will include compositions by the TU student winners of the 2019 Bela Rozsa Composition Competition and performances by TU faculty members Maureen O’Boyle, Diane Bucchianeri, Roger Price, Danny Arthurs and Paulo Eskitch as well as TU alumnus Matthew Magerkurth. The concert will also feature TU alumnua Noam Faingold’s Etiquette for solo cello and Rivers’ Elegy for Babi Yar, commissioned by the Jewish Federation of Tulsa for Yom HaShoah: An Interfaith Holocaust Commemoration. The concert is free and open to the public.

Friday, February 22 at 12:00 p.m. to 12:50 p.m.

Allen Chapman Student Union, Great Hall B Pay It Forward Free Informative Lunch Pay It Forward is an organization led and run by students that took root on campus in the Fall of 2018. Its ultimate goal is to help students develop a passion for serving others. The goal of this free informative lunch is to share with students how, when, and where they can serve with Pay It Forward. There will be a guest speaker that will talk about the importance of serving those around us who are less fortunate that we are and there will be a video that documents what we have already done in the community around us. The lunch that will be provided will be Chick-Fil-A and will be served on a first come first serve basis. Come find out how you can represent The University of Tulsa in the community around us by helping our friends on the street!

The Collegian does not produce all event descriptions in the Community Calendar.

Contact us at news@tucollegian.org with events.

Commentary

The Collegian: 4

18 February 2019

The Legislative Digest is your weekly look at the happenings of Oklahoma’s state legislature and the bills and politics you need to know.

Raven Fawcett Managing Editor We are in the middle of the semester and the legislative session! There’s progress on both fronts, but this week we’ll look at a couple bills that have good ideas but aren’t too far in the process of being accepted or rejected yet. If you relate to that in any way, I’m so sorry.

SB702: Truly, this is a simple bill. It requires that, “In the event the Department of Environmental Quality, Oklahoma Water Resources Board and Department of Mines are involved in the same objective or project,” they share their findings with each other in a reasonable timeframe. That’s reasonable enough. And while we might hope for more rigorous requirements, it’s a good start. The bill has been introduced, although not yet read and assigned to a committee.

HB2641: This bill would create a task force to “study graduation credit requirements” for high schools until 2020. The task force would recommend changes to curriculum requirements that would create more personalized and responsive course loads for students, including internships, apprenticeships and other kinds of general rejiggering of class requirements.

Members would include “a school curriculum director,” “a parent of a recent high school graduate from an Oklahoma public school” and others who would have insights into the school system as it currently stands.

In theory, it’s a phenomenal idea. Education is in dire need of restructuring, most specifically high schools. There is the fear that this would create undue pressure on high school students to plan their future at a young age in order to optimize their experience in high school — but honestly, if the system isn’t working now, then any change won’t be the end of the world. Maybe the task force will recommend bad changes that get implemented and then revoked. Or maybe they’ll recommend changes that don’t get implemented. But maybe real, helpful changes get made. It’s a chance worth taking. The bill has been introduced but not yet read or referred to a committee.

Okla. lawsuit against Purdue Pharma essential for setting precedent

Oklahoma is responding to state revenue lost to citizens addicted to opioids by filing a lawsuit against Purdue Pharma.

Nathan Hinkle Student Writer

courtesy University of Tulsa Dr. Stevens, an English professor at TU, shows genuine care for the wellbeing of her students.

Professors like Dr. Stevens make small campus shine

Student writer Lizzy Young shouts out Professor Laura Stevens as the TU Outstanding Teacher nominations wrap up.

One of the most important parts of the college experience, other than the friends you make, is the professors. A good professor can make a class, and I purposefully choose courses based on whether I like the professor.

As I student, I often get so bogged down with and stressed about homework that I don’t focus on the positive aspects of college. Because I so often complain about school, I am going to take this time to shout out one of my favorite professors at TU. Dr. Laura Stevens, who teaches English and literature courses, has demonstrated that she truly cares about her students. I experienced how much she wants them to succeed when I transferred to TU. My academic advisor placed me in her liberal arts prep class my first semester here.

Transferring to TU, especially mid-year, is hard. It is difficult to meet people and find out about events happening on campus.

Even though she was only my professor for a pass/fail course, she wanted to make sure I had a good experience at TU and that I did not feel like I had to discover all that the school offered on my own. Because of her kindness and willingness to show me what was out there, I was able to find friends and get connected to organizations like The Collegian and other campus activities.

I took another course with Dr. Stevens the next semester because she had been so wonderful in the first class I had her. The course with her was a perfect balance of being incredibly fun and informative. We covered a niche period of history, so by the end, we knew almost all there is to know about early 17th century England. Throughout the semester, she had several individual meetings with everyone in the class to help us with our research papers. I appreciated that she always made herself available for her students.

In everything Dr. Stevens does, I can tell she really cares about the success of her students, which makes me want to take her courses. I am sad that taking a course with her didn’t fit in my schedule this semester.

Dr. Stevens is just one example of how I have been positively affected by many professors at TU. The advantage of going to a small school with a tight-knit campus is that you can get to know your professors on a one-on-one basis. I have the had the opportunity to take multiple classes with the same professors, and they have always remembered me. This makes me more willing to interact in class and want to know more about the material they are discussing.

It makes the coursework a little less tiresome when I remember my professors

A new lawsuit has been brought by the State of Oklahoma against pharmaceutical giant Purdue Pharma. A trial date has been set intended to be served May 28 and is the first of its kind in the country, though other states are preparing similar suits. Filed by State Attorney General Mike Hunter, the lawsuit argues that companies responsible for producing opioids lied about the risk of addiction and their potential benefits.

The opioid epidemic first escalated in 1996 when Purdue Pharma created its new drug, known as OxyContin, which was touted to alleviate the symptom of persistent pain. Over the past two decades, the prescription and use of OxyContin has grown massively throughout the United States. According to the Center for Disease Control, treatment for opioid addiction has risen from around 1 in 10,000 to around 4 in 10,000. In the years since its inception, it has been found that opioids like OxyContin are the cause of mass addiction and have killed thousands through overdosing.

According to a similar upcoming lawsuit in Massachusetts, the head of Purdue Pharma, Dr. Richard Sackler, is accused of purposely shifting the blame away from the company and onto the people who are now addicted.

An email in 2001 by Sackler stated, “We have to hammer on the abusers in every way possible. They are the culprits and the problem. They are reckless criminals.”

Purdue Pharma and its leaders’ main goals are not based on helping those who are in pain but are rather solely focused on money.

In this rush for profit, they are creating the problem without taking responsibility for the consequences. Sackler has continued to not only shift blame but to also forcefully push his drugs to market, even at the detriment of his own employees. According to the lawsuit in Massachusetts, “Sales managers were badgered on nights, weekends and holidays. In 2011, he decided to shadow sales reps for a week to make sure his orders were followed.” The upcoming lawsuits in Oklahoma and across the United States will hopefully require the company to take responsibility and fiscal action for their harmful actions toward individuals.

Additionally, Purdue Pharma is responsible for seeking to control medical institutions in an attempt to boost its revenue stream and to protect the company from any negative statement about the powers of the drugs. The company has donated massive amounts to different institutions in Massachusetts, such as Massachusetts General Hospital and Tufts University, as a way to attach themselves to medical practices and seize control of the narrative regarding their drugs. Purdue Pharma is attempting to not only to spread the sale and production of its drugs but is also causing conflicts of interest for many health care officials. While Oklahoma may not face the same issues as other

“... around 2,700 Oklahomans have died from overdosing in the last three years alone.”

According to Attorney General Hunter, this is especially true in Oklahoma: around 2,700 Oklahomans have died from overdosing in the last three years alone. Additionally, Oklahoma had the highest milligrams of OxyContin prescribed per adult resident in the entire United States in 2016. The lawsuit argues that Purdue Pharma should be required to answer for both the lives lost and the price that the Oklahoma government has had to pay in combating the issue.

This lawsuit is a good step forward in providing justice for those who were misled into taking the medication and will hopefully provide financial and emotional restitution for those who have struggled with opioid addiction in the state.

states, Purdue Pharma has been involved in potentially dangerous activities in an attempt to protect their bottom line.

Through this first lawsuit, Oklahoma can take the first step in fixing the wrongs that Purdue Pharma has inflicted locally and across the United States. Victory will promote the spread of similar cases that will force Purdue Pharma and other corporations like it to explain and take responsibility for their negative actions. This lawsuit and many others will not fix the current problem of addiction, but it may slow the further spread of opioids and provide justice to those who are now caught in addiction due to the actions perpetuated by Purdue Pharma and its subsidiaries.

“Dr. Laura Stevens... has demonstrated that she really cares about her students.”

When I told Dr. Stevens I was a transfer student, she made sure to connect me to other English and creative writing majors. She also told me about all the clubs and activities on campus that might interest me.

genuinely care about my success. I have had the opportunity to experience that with many different professors at TU, and I am extremely grateful to them for how much effort they put in.

Oklahoma is the first state to file a lawsuit against the OxyContin producer.

graphic by Conner Maggio

Commentary

18 February 2019

The Collegian: 5

No obvious solutions to Virginia political scandals

The consequences for Virginian politicians should equal the impact of their transgressions.

Chris Lierly Student Writer By now, the events that have roiled the entire government of Virginia in a scandal, complete with everything from sexual assault to racism, has become national news. On Feb. 1, members of the media pointed out that Governor Ralph Northam’s medical school yearbook featured people dressed in blackface as well as Klan regalia, with a strong impli-

As if that were not enough for one week, Tommy Norment, the Virginia Senate majority leader and highest ranking Republican, also got caught up in the larger outrage when it was revealed that he edited a yearbook in 1986 that featured racist language and depictions of students in blackface.

This most recent scandal complicates the situation because if every Democrat implicated in their respective wrongdoings had resigned, then Norment would have been governor, effectively giving control of a fully Democratic state at the executive level to a party that a majority of Virginians voted against in 2017.

However, the implication of a Republican having done the same thing that has Northam and Herring in hot water has almost caused the GOP’s pundits to turn a blind eye to the state’s scandals as a whole. Despite the fact that little has happened on this front in the past week, there still exist three different ways that the situation could be resolved which would give the people of Virginia governance they can trust.

If all four of the high-ranking Virginian politicians currently involved in scandals were to resign, the cutthroat nature of the situation would only get worse.

Though Northam already held a press conference where he stated that he would not be resigning, such a statement has not stopped politicians before — just ask Richard Nixon. What makes this instance dicey is that if Northam follows through on the calls for his resignation, then an alleged sexual predator will take over residence of the governor’s mansion. Additionally, if his constituents then persuade Fairfax to resign, the original problem remains. So in theory, the only resignation plan that could work would be one that had Northam, Fairfax, Herring and Norment resign. But there is a problem there too. Norment is a Republican, and if he follows the modern-day GOP’s moral code of win at any cost, then his resignation could be the least likely of all.

These two plans hold significant flaws, which is why I suggest a third possible solution. Fairfax has to go. The other three com-

“... the expansive and interconnected nature of their offenses makes this situation a daunting one...” cation that one of the people was the governor. Northam denied being in the photo but did say that he had darkened his face to portray Michael Jackson once.

After Northam held a press conference claiming that he would not resign, two women came forward with sexual assault allegations against Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, the next in line for the governorship if Northam were to resign or be removed. The next official in line after Fairfax is Attorney General Mark Herring, who admitted to having used “brown makeup” to dress up like a popular rapper while in college.

This means that the entire Democratic ticket that Virginia elected in 2017 is now implicated in scandals of a magnitude worthy of their removal from office.

The first and most ill-informed of the possible choices would be for all four of the officials to stay in power and continue business as usual. At the start of these events, that might have seemed impossible. However, the expansive and interconnected nature of their offenses makes this situation a daunting one, and these men obviously could not be trusted to abstain from making light of racial terror, or in the case of Fairfax, to respect women’s consent. Our faith should not rest on these pitiful excuses for leaders. Not only would this plan of action ruin the images of all those involved, it would likely weaken both parties’ establishments in a state whose increasingly progressive ideologies are beginning to show.

mitted their racist acts decades ago, whereas Fairfax’s alleged sexual assault occurred at the 2004 Democratic National Convention.

All four men deserve to be banned from public service, but only

courtesy Wikimedia Commons Lt. Gov. Fairfax may resign due to sexual assualt allegations.

sembly, it would actually then be possible to hold an election for lieutenant governor. At that point, the other three men could resign and make the newly elected official governor. These scandals are horrendous and difficult to navigate, but this plan would give the people of Virginia another chance at electing their leaders without destabilizing their government or

past decade or so. They turned what was almost a Republican supermajority in their state legislature into a mostly balanced divide, as well as elected the first trans state legislator in the country in Danica Roem. The people of Virginia are changing the way they see the world, but the leaders of both parties there are from an older era where the kinds of behavior that

“Virginia... is going through a complete cleaning out of its own closet.”

Fairfax’s borders on criminal behavior. Dressing in blackface harkens back to an era when instead of inciting a cringe it brought out the laughter of white people, but it pales in comparison to Fairfax’s alleged sexual assault.

If he is forced into resignation or removed by the General As-

putting someone into power who is grossly unfit for the job.

Virginia, a state that boasted four of the first five US presidents, is going through a complete cleaning out of its own closet. This is likely due to how far the state has progressed on social issues in the

they are having to own up to were less frowned upon. This trend will continue across the country as politicians like Northam and Fairfax get put under a microscope, and if done properly, it could install elected officials who live up to their progressive political stances instead of just spouting them.

Teacher walkout stymied by lack of respect for educators as professionals

Walkouts give teachers agency in the face of the legislature, but they don’t always result in funding.

Thomas von Borstel Student Writer The once-earnest appeal toward better public schooling has turned into a classic bipartisan discussion, wherein the damn progressives beg for more taxes and the damn conservatives are a bunch of stingy fools who are morally wrong. It’s becoming ever more apparent that no one has any clue what’s really going on, except for maybe the superintendents raking in the chips alongside the national unions.

In Tulsa Public Schools, there is some clear discontent. Teachers bemoan giant class sizes and lack of resources. It’s everything everyone else is sore about. Los Angeles teachers recently began a walkout, alongside their Rocky Mountain compatriots who laid siege on their capitol. An astute comment made by a Tulsa World reporter, Kyle Hinchey, was that “some days felt more like crowd-control than teaching.” Public schools are a failing American institution; that, everyone is sure of.

Reporting on the topic has taken two angles: the empathetic personal appeal of a hard knock teacher who works five jobs or the rigid “teachers are abandoning their duties” ethic. Everyone has a take: I was sitting in downtown Tulsa, enjoying a fine Saturday night, and had an acquaintance shout,

“You are student teaching, right?!

Isn’t public school awful?” It’s a social justice mission now, meaning the general public must step in and champion one side or the other. Rightly so, for education is the great equalizer. Unfortunately, what has come to fruition is a long list of demands and little ideological transformation.

There is no clear cut solution to this expansive issue. Instead, the “walkout” and strike has become the ultimate symbol of teacher agency in the face of the antischool pigs in the capitol, even when the wailing teachers got what they wanted! The 2018 Oklahoma walkout resulted in none of the requests of the Oklahoma Education Association and teachers. What instead happened was the legislature passed a bill approving more funding prior to the walkout, and teachers walked anyway. It’s true: it wasn’t enough money, nor will there probably be enough money.

Now, legislators are fighting back: they’ve created House Bill 2214. If disregarded, the bill would prohibit teachers from walking out with a stiff penalty: permanent loss of certification in the state. The funny thing about all of this is that it ignores both problems. Everyone proclaims that “everything is for the kids! We need more money for the kids. Teachers have to stay in school for the kids.” Teachers are already understaffed enough, even without every teacher who protests being fired permanently — not to mention the obvious authoritarian vein to this piece of legislation.

Regardless, no one has the money, even if every administrator and legislator got massive pay cuts.

The problem lies somewhere else: teachers are not respected. They are empathized with, praised and loved by many, but they are not re-

Lake Washington School District in Washington state held their walkout for funding in 2015.

spected as professionals. The people who have an education double major are always asked, “Oh, so you’re going to teach as your backup plan?” My favorite question is, “So you want to coach?”

No, I want to teach.

Teaching is not a career with any of the scholastic or cultural appeals of doctors, lawyers or politicians. What first must change before we have any sort of ideo-

logical or political shift towards better education is our idea of educators. Education holds many of the same values, philosophies and scholarship as the other social sciences. The teacher is a cultural anthropologist, acting upon years of research to perform responsibly and appropriately to aid the learning of students. They guide and learn with students across cultural boundaries. No, this isn’t speaking

“... no one has the money, even if every administrator and legislator got massive pay cuts.”

courtesy Flickr

for all teachers — just the good ones.

It has never been more apparent to me that teachers are not viewed as professionals because they are not treated so. Our best and our brightest do not head for the double doors of the high school.

Without there being any respect for the career, teachers will always be undervalued by the majority of professional Americans, and the money will follow the corporate Godhead.

The Collegian: 6

Sports

18 February 2019

Why so many figure skaters compete injured

Figure skating expert Hannah Robbins argues that the long-term consequences of top skaters performing injured are not worth the short-term rewards.

Yuzuru Hanyu. Shoma Uno. Evgenia Medvedeva. Three world champion figure skaters who have skated injured in the past year. Instead of taking the time to rest their bodies and heal, they continued to compete, citing the importance of the competition and not letting fans down as reasons. Their risk has not led to punishment — but that time

Hanyu falls on the ice, suffering another injury.

might soon come. Both Hanyu and Medvedeva have had to withdraw from competitions to recuperate from injuries they’ve skated on, and this doesn’t even consider the long-term implications of their choice to skate injured.

For Hanyu, skating injured isn’t a onetime occurrence. After a scary fall before

courtesy The Japan Times

the 2017 NHK Trophy where he ended up landing in the splits after a quadruple jump, Hanyu tried to compete before ultimately opting against it.

He sat out the NHK Trophy, then the Grand Prix Final and finally Japanese Nationals before winning a second gold in the Olympics. If this were the end of the story, it wouldn’t mean much. But then it happened again.

In 2018, a nearly identical story played out. Instead of sitting out the NHK after reinjuring his ankle, he decided to pop a few painkillers and continue on, with the same results: a missed Grand Prix Final and a missed Japanese Nationals.

Would this have been avoided if he hadn’t skated on his injured ankle in 2018 or hadn’t started prepping for the Olympics before he was fully healed? We can only speculate, but it could not have harmed him.

Medvedeva had a similar situation. At the Rostelecom Cup in 2017, she fell on a simple jump: a double axel. Before that, her first fall in competition in a season, she had cracked a bone in her foot but continued to compete because the Olympics were that year.

That fall led to her withdrawing from the Grand Prix Final and ending up in a boot, which sidelined her from Russian Nationals.

During the Olympics, Medvedeva was still skating in pain.

After her silver medal, she had to take a few months off jumping, finding herself incapable of competing in the 2018 Worlds and performing exhibitions without any jumps, as doctors disclosed that Medvedeva

would need to have surgery if she didn’t take it easy.

Medvedeva tried to ease up, but continued to perform in ice shows during the offseason, and this might explain her struggle this year to recover; she earned her first offpodium finish in her senior career.

Uno is an interesting case. Over the past three months, he has injured his right ankle several times.

Before Japanese Nationals this season, he injured his ankle and won the competition despite it. After Nationals, he took 10 days off before resuming training, but he injured his ankle again before the Four Continents Championship this month. Uno won, but once again, he was skating injured.

Will Uno have the same end result as Medvedeva and Hanyu — taking time off skating because they continued to skate on injuries? Yes, in the short term, this seems to be beneficial since they won competitions.

Is it conducive to their long term success in the sport or taking care of their body in general?

In most sports, athletes grin and bear it through the pain, but with the immense pressure that skaters put on their bodies normally, injuries can make it even more dangerous.

Putting seven to 10 times the weight of their body on an injured leg during a jump can only further harm the skater and lead to a longer time recovering, if skaters do at all. This begs the question: is it worth it to skate injured? With Hanyu and Medvedeva in mind, the short term rewards don’t seem to outweigh the long term harms.

Season review: 2018 NFL rules favor offense Football expert Lindsey Prather discusses how last season’s new rules instigated a record-breaking offensive show in professional football.

The 2018 NFL season was one for the record books; there was a resurgence of mind-numbingly potent offenses and notable breakout performances, such as MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs. Unfortunately, despite all of the fanfare and excitement, the Patriots won the Super Bowl just like they have six times in the past 18 seasons.

It was yet another affirmation of a dynasty that has continuously put up results in a league that has been relatively successful at producing some semblance of parity. Nonetheless, the overall development of various young talents throughout the season sparked a little hope.

A combination of factors have led to a complete revamping of teams around the league, something that could realistically threaten dynasties.

It became obvious this season that the NFL’s coaching philosophy is shifting, and when combined with new rules and a surge of young talent, many large-scale changes dominated the headlines surrounding the league. All of this points to a potential passing-of-the-baton, in one way or another.

Offenses in the NFL broke a number of records this season. These were enabled by a number of elements; however, the first and most obvious explanation for this incredible spike in production is the combination of rule tweaks and points of emphasis placed by the NFL in 2018.

The new Helmet Rule is an example of this. Although it technically applies to everyone on the field, it most strongly benefits

Joe Haden tackles Rob Gronkowski.

pass catchers and runners, who are now protected from hits defenders initiate with the helmet.

Additionally, the Catch Rule was also reworked; players no longer have to control the ball through contact with the ground, and slight movement of it throughout the process of a catch is no longer automatically deemed a loss of control.

Another example is the change regarding illegal contact, a rule that was most obviously seen in the multiple controversial “roughing the passer” penalties that derailed defenses and puzzled fans.

matically increased passing yards and overall offensive production. NFL quarterbacks, and the philosophies on how to use them, are getting better.

Offensive minds such as Sean McVay have tested the ability of traditional defenses to keep up, and teams like the Kansas City Chiefs have proven that a potent offense can mask the shortcomings of a mediocre defense in most settings.

This season, the NFL’s quarterback situation seems to have transformed from a major weakness across the league to a great strength. Aaron Rodgers and Andrew Luck

“Offensive minds such as Sean McVay have tested the ability of traditional defenses to keep up...”

Notably, all of these changes favor offense, despite their intended purpose to simply improve the safety of the game. Quarterbacks can now stay in the pocket more confidently than ever, knowing they’re allowed more protection from hits by a defender.

Receivers can bobble a catch with little concern, while enjoying protection from helmet hits from incoming defenders. With these circumstances considered, it’s unsurprising that there has been a historic rate of penalty-induced first downs in 2018.

These rule changes are just some of a large combination of factors that have dra-

are two big names that returned from injury, to varying degrees of success.

However, most notably, the QBs of the last three draft classes have begun to create a showing all their own. Jared Goff, Carson Wentz, Dak Prescott, Patrick Mahomes, Mitch Trubisky, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield were able to create a new brand of hype this season, differing from the old names that are still flaunted at the position.

This is aside from the QB free-agent market that ran wild this season, placing Kirk Cousins and Case Keenum on teams in need.

Although there are varying degrees of skill, talent and name recognition, most teams at

least have some semblance of potential at that spot — something that became apparent this season. In conjunction with this, the systems surrounding young quarterbacks have been transformed to more closely resemble systems utilized in college schemes.

The integration of college concepts into the NFL this season has directly benefited teams that have implemented them. Passers are more efficient as coaches move personnel — tight ends, wide receivers and running backs — into space to utilize the field and force defenses to be faster and stronger to stop them.

These tactics have required defenses to completely reevaluate their strategies as offensive coordinators design their game plans entirely around confusing coverage.

Nonetheless, as proven by the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, a machinelike offense can be disrupted with a little creativity.

By flipping the script to confuse McVay, the Patriots managed to confuse a team that relied on tricky play design to score.

Although fantastic coaches will continue to thwart predictions, I am cautiously optimistic that the playoff picture next year could include some teams that haven’t sniffed a wildcard spot in years.

A main storyline from this season illustrates that it’s merely a matter of time before youth overtakes tradition through the dominance of new coaching minds and younger players.

courtesy Sporting News

Sports

18 February 2019

The Collegian: 7

Golden Hurricane rides Green Wave Basketball journalist Hannah Robbins covers the men’s decisive 80-57 win over Tulane on Thursday, Feb. 14.

The Golden Hurricane didn’t let Tulane take advantage of their home court advantage on Thursday. Led by Jeriah Horne’s 20 points, Tulsa won its second game in a row in dominant fashion. Horne was not the only high-scorer of the game; Martins Igbanu and DaQuan Jeffries each had 16 points while Chris Barnes added 12 off the bench.

Tulsa started strong, winning the opening tip and striking first with a layup from Jeffries. Tulane responded with Jordan Cornish’s three-pointer keeping the two teams close. Horne put two up two-pointers, but Tulane’s Caleb Daniels knocked down a three-pointer to give Tulane a one-point advantage.

The teams continued to trade the lead, with Tulane going shot for shot with Tulsa.

Connor Crabtree’s layup gave the Green Wave a 12-11 lead, but Horne took it back with a tough and-one jumper. Jeffries’s driving layup and another Horne jumper finally put Tulsa up by more than one possession.

After a foul by Chris Barnes, Moses Wood put Tulane back ahead by making both free throws. Lawson Korita answered a minute later with a three-pointer for his first points of the game. Curran Scott’s seven points in the last three minutes left Tulsa up by 10 as the momentum started to lean in the Golden Hurricane’s favor for good.

Right out the gate, Daniels tried to make something happen to turn the tide in Tulane’s favor, but Igbanu, Taplin and Scott responded in kind, increasing TU’s lead to 13. Tulsa’s lead would have been higher if not for the fouls they kept committing; Tu-

courtesy Tulsa Hurricane

Jeriah Horne goes up for a shot.

lane took 13 free throws in the second half, making 11.

Another five points from Igbanu early into the second half helped widen Tulsa’s lead to 18, putting pressure on the Green Wave. Cornish did his best to respond, but his four points in three minutes amounted to nothing as Tulsa scored six in the same timeframe.

An additional three-pointer by Jeffries and layups by Igbanu kept Tulsa ahead, but their lead shrunk slightly as Crabtree hit a

three-pointer and a layup. Jeffries made sure to stamp out any hope for Tulane with a three-pointer, two free throws and a twopointer in quick succession toward the end of the half.

By the time Darien Jackson dunked with 30 seconds left in the game, it was obvious that Tulane would not be able to recover from their 23-point deficit.

Fouls prolonged the contest slightly, but with another dunk by Peter Hewitt, it was all over.

Tulsa simply outplayed Tulane from start to finish. In the 80-57 win, the Golden Hurricane held Tulane to just 27 percent from the field, including an abysmal 21 percent in the second half.

Tulane’s one saving grace was effectiveness at getting to the line, hitting 81 percent on 22 attempts. But this wasn’t nearly enough to overcome Tulsa’s superior shooting efficiency, rebounding and hustle as they were able to grab a key conference win leading up to the season’s home stretch.

Debut of Alliance of American Football Football expert Thomas von Borstel details the history and people behind the opening weekend of the AAF. The brand spankin’ new Alliance of American Football looks to be a complement to fall football.

Spring is no longer a time of desperate depression and melancholy. Over three million raving lunatics got their fix this last

ends. MGM Resorts International is one of the AAF’s largest investors.

What does the AAF have that none of its off-brand predecessors did? An infrastructure created by veterans of the great American institution of football. Eight mostly-

“The AAF makes it easy to bet on everything: there’s an app for that...” weekend. Football is the opiate of the masses, and the Alliance of American Football is another new spring league.

Does anyone remember NFL Europe or the XFL? No one but old-timers and fanatics. The purpose of the league was a developmental setting for those players who fell just short of the 52-man roster but were too good to be confined to a practice squad.

The majority of these gentlemen would fall through the cracks and slowly age along with their college girlfriends until they developed crippling CTE. As of Feb. 8, 2019, these athletes have a new opportunity!

Big money and whole lot of name recognition is riding on this. Gambling is a must: Michael Vick knows a thing or two. He’s the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Leg-

small market cities got AAF teams who will play a myriad of games until April 27. The NFL Network will televise 19 of those, on top of a pretty deal with CBS. The whole thought process of the founder, Charles Ebersol, was to create a complementary league, backed by the will of Daddy NFL. Players are released to play in the league in the fall and the AAF in the spring.

There won’t be kick-offs, but there will be tons of gambling.

The AAF makes it easy to bet on everything: there’s an app for that. Their application allows individuals to bet live on the next play: that’s the modern era, baby. I bet you in 20 years, we’ll have legal, professional gambling minute-by-minute on political races.

Here’s the schtick with the AAF: all the players have played in the league or been picked up at one point.

Scouts have been frequenting the practices, and it’s clear the stars will be scavenged by the NFL. It’s still damn good football.

The Head Ball Coach himself, Steve Spurrier, runs the Orlando Apollos.

There are eight teams: the Atlanta Legends, Orlando Apollos, Birmingham Iron, Memphis Express, Arizona Hotshots, Salt Lake Stallions, San Antonio Commandos and the San Diego Fleet. There is a new referee position that can overrule calls like the one that destroyed the Saints’ season. There

is no extra point. But it’s a lot of free-towatch football played by good players with decent name recognition.

Trent Richardson lit up the Stallions on the opening weekend. Christian Hackenburg leads the Memphis Express. If you watch any college football, you’ll be sure to see some big names you’d almost forgotten about.

The game play is heavy on big plays, drone shots and “Good Night, Sweet Dreams” hits. It’s pure fun and a delight to my weary senses. Football season isn’t over.

Give the AAF a shot.

courtesy Sporting News

There are eight teams in the new AAF.

15

Feb. 18 - Feb. 24

Monday

Tuesday 18

Wednesday 19

No Events No Events

20

W Basketball @ Cincinnati 6:00 p.m.

M Basketball vs. WSU 8:00 p.m.

Thursday

Saturday

Friday

21

22 Track and Field American Indoor Championships

No Events

Softball @ Ole Miss 11:00 a.m.

Softball @ Texas 7:00 p.m.

23

W Tennis @ Montana 10:00 a.m.

M Basketball @ Temple 11:00 a.m.

Sunday 24

No Events

Variety

The Collegian: 8

18 February 2019

TU students produce and perform “The Vagina Monologues” The classic feminist show is a beloved TU tradition, and this year was no exception.

Piper Prolago Student Writer Students and faculty directed and acted in a production of “The Vagina Monologues” on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 15–16 in Tyrrell Hall. Director Jessica LaPlant greeted the audience by telling them to put their phones on silent or vibrate — with a wink.

These performances were organized by TU’s Student Alliance for Violence Prevention (SAVE) and in conjunction with the Women’s and Gender Studies Department. Each performer delivered powerful interpretations of the original text, bringing humor and depth in their dedication to the personas they assumed.

Showing “The Vagina Monologues” has been an annual tradition at TU for several years, using theatre to breach discussions of female sexuality, rape culture and everything in between. SAVE also raised money by selling multi-colored vagina cookies and chocolate bars, offering free condoms and pictures with a large cardboard vagina with a “glitoris” outlined in gold sparkles.

“The Vagina Monologues” is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler in 1994. Ensler first produced this groundbreaking play in New York, where it ran Off-Broadway for five years but has since been performed in over 140 countries. The play was based on 200 interviews Ensler conducted and is performed as a series of monologues by women of diverse races and ages. These monologues explore a myriad of issues facing women today, using both comedic and intimate deliveries to create a powerful experience for viewers.

Several monologues focused on promoting self-love and appreciation of the vagina.

In “Hair,” Kirsten Robertson argued that “you cannot love a vagina if you don’t love hair” through a story about a husband’s infidelity because his wife wouldn’t shave.

“The Vagina Workshop” monologue, performed by Tori Burris, recounts a woman learning to love her vagina and become one with herself by “be[ing] my clitoris.”

Some episodes of the play took on a more serious tone. Five performers read “They Beat the Girl out of My Boy — Or So They Tried,” narrating the lives of transgender women and the fight to be able to externally show the woman inside of them. “Not So Happy Fact,” performed by Farah Giovannelli, taught the audience how prevalent female genital mutilation is, with about three million young girls falling under the “knife, or razor blade, or glass shard” each year. “My Vagina was my Village,” performed by Layla Mortada, is told from the point of view of a Bosnian woman who was raped during the Bosnian War. She relates her individual rape to the destruction of her hometown, telling the audience, “My vagina a live wet water village. They invaded it. Butchered it and burned it down. I do not touch now.”

Other monologues were more humorous, performed with complete dedication from the speakers. “My Angry Vagina,” performed by Lauren Beatty, started with the unforgettable line, “My vagina’s furious and it needs to talk,” proceeding to complain about uncomfortable tampons and douche sprays that try to change the smell when it “smells good already.” Another, “The Woman who Loved to Make Vaginas

The poster for “The Vagina Monologues.”

own showings of “The Vagina Monologues” and contribute profits to organizations that work to prevent violence against women.

Tickets for “The Vagina Monologues” production at TU were $5, and proceeds were donated to Domestic Violence Intervention

“Proceeds were donated to Domestic Violence Intervention Services and V-Day’s sponsored charity.”

Happy,” was performed by Kelsey Hancock and shared the perspective of a female dominatrix for women. She spoke about loving to moan and make women moan, ending in a list of different kinds of moans and featuring their corresponding sounds by LaPlant.

On Valentine’s Day in 1998, Ensler organized the first V-Day. Ensler allows performing groups across the world to produce their

Services and V-Day’s sponsored charity.

According to the V-Day website, this movement has raised over $100 million since its conception.

Performances of “The Vagina Monologues” not only contribute to V-Day’s mission of raising money for violence prevention but also raises awareness about several problems. By directly addressing issues like

courtesty University of Tulsa

genital mutilation and rape, Ensler forces viewers to confront the way that these experiences and stigmas shape women’s lives.

She challenges us to be better individuals in order to imagine a future in which, according to the V-Day website, “Women and girls will be free to thrive rather than merely survive.”

In TU’s adaptation, producers included an extra monologue: a reading of a student’s story about sexual assault on campus that was published in The Collegian in 2016.

The anonymous author recounted her own sexual assault, hoping to confront the issue on our own campus. The performers ended the event by asking sexual assault survivors and anyone who knows someone who survived sexual assault to raise their hands.

With this, LaPlant encouraged everyone to “stand together in unity” to support survivors of sexual assault.

courtesy The Washington Post

“The Vagina Monologues” has become increasingly relevant during the #MeToo era.

Jazz lives on at the University of Tulsa TU Jazz Ensemble gave a rousing Valentine’s Day performance.

Thomas von Borstel Student Writer “I’m regretting taking this article already,” I’m whispering over my right shoulder. It’s 6:50 p.m. and there are about 10 people waiting in the lobby of the LPC. I don’t know why, but we are sitting on a bench taking a couple’s quiz.

I love jazz in the ultimate amateurish fashion. I’ve left every live performance, though, feeling unsatisfied in some way.

The power, the zeal, the frantic, manic outbursts of the Bebop era are my craving. I’m a nostalgia freak. I’ll dig this and that and quote Ralph Ellison every once in a while.

I look up at the billing for the show: Valentine’s Day big band jazz concert, 7:30 p.m. The attendees begin walking in with assured, timely steps to the auditorium as my girlfriend berates me for dragging her there 50 minutes early.

We follow a zesty older couple whose peppered hair speaks little to their energy: the gentleman has quite a lot to say on jazz and the skill of TU’s performances. I’m overwhelmed by his enthusiasm.

A crew nimbly finds their way into seats on the right-hand side of the stage, tuning and picking at their guitars as old hands always do. With no introduction, they begin with that hollow, low-gain jazz sound: clean and rhythmic. Three guitarists sit front and center, with an older gentleman on the drums in the rear. The mellow tonations ripple and roll with the ecstatic touch of the ensemble.

They open with the old Frank Sinatra classic “Witchcraft.” One guitarist, Derek Kastelic, plays cross-legged with a dazed euphoria: his fingers are creatures of their own, tapping madly every frantic note in “This Masquerade,” an old Tulsa Sound classic. He’s

Nelson Riddle (left) and Frank Sinatra; jazz has always been a collaborative art.

courtesy Matt Micucci

“With all the applause around me, I’m still sitting thinking about how I’d write about the event.” an impressive cool cat practically made for my image of jazz.

The guitarists are ushered off the stage

by Sean Al-Jibouri, the director. In a simple

swoop, the big band is out blasting “Fly Me to the Moon.” As any true jazz performance should, the song breaks out with multitudinous solos in winding saxophone and trum-

pet intercourse. Nathan Hairston blares and bellows, his trumpet leaping from his hand.

An impressive and extensive solo ensued.

Then Sarah Maud Richardson steps out on to the stage. A slight transportation happens in the sound: what was once a trumpetheavy big band begins to revolve around the riveting sounds of Sarah Maud’s fluctuating tones. Goosebumps rise along my shoulders and the bouncy, rolling locutions travel along my spine.

Her performance is not extensive but is marked by her classic and impeccable sound — outside of her scatting, which left me feeling a bit queasy.

And with one stern step, Walter White had to blow my damn eardrums out. He rips and shatters the veil of easy listening in the room and decides to ravish our beings with pure, unadulterated trumpet. The apparent modern jazz star beats me into submission with sound and the pick-me-up, whispering sweet nothings in muted intonations. His brutal, shrill, zealous play had me in ecstasies, I think. My significant other would roll her eyes at me every song or so.

Out of nowhere, the brass quiets and a bouncy, sweet piano tinkles out of the lefthanded darkness. Sam Parker frantically beats the piano, but releases a smooth, rolling sound so adhesive and solidified I taste it. He’s a high schooler, says Director Vernon Howard, following the song.

The concert ends with a final coalition of singer, trumpeter and band: My Funny Valentine rips and roars and swings all of us onto our feet in quite the finale. With all of the applause around me, I’m still sitting thinking about how I’ll write about the event.

It is an impressive display by our very own, and in simple terms, I couldn’t recommend it enough. The colloquial appeal of jazz is not what it once was, but the art has not lost its swagger at TU. It’s all that is American: frantic, zealous and exasperating.

18 February 2019

Variety

The Collegian: 9

Former Tulsa Artist Fellow visits the University of Tulsa

The burgeoning poet returned to Tulsa to read samples of his work.

Piper Prolago Student Writer In partnership with the University of Tulsa creative writing department, Eric Ekstrand presented selections from his newest project, a manuscript of compiled poems, at McFarlin Library on Tuesday, Feb. 12. Ekstrand was selected as a 2018 Tulsa Artist Fellow and published his first book of poetry “Laodicea” in 2015.

Ekstrand currently lives in North Carolina with his husband, Danny, where he is an associate teaching professor of creative writing and composition at Wake Forest University. He graduated with an MFA from the University of Houston and has received several fellowships and awards to pursue his poetry since. He earned a fellowship through the National Poetry Foundation in 2009 and has been published in the Indiana Review and jubilat.

“Laodicea” deals with issues like contradictions in the self. The Amazon page for “Laodicea” quotes a line from the book, “‘The mind and the world / together are a Co-Cathedral’—the impulse for love and play.” Ekstrand was met with several commendations for this collection. Donald Revell selected “Laodicea” for the Omnidawn

After being selected as a Tulsa Artist Fellow in 2018, Ekstrand lived in Tulsa, his husband’s hometown, for a year as part of the program. Ekstrand’s experiences living in the area are the foundation for several of the poems that he read during his visit to TU. Throughout the duration of his fellowship, he was given the space and time to write much of the work he plans to publish in his second book. These poems breached a wide variety of topics such as current events and his interpretations of atmosphere.

Ekstrand began by reading a poem entitled “Two Love Poems” that centered on homosexuality and experiences of same-sex couples. He introduces two couples — two lesbians and two gay men — who negotiate their public images and the presentation of their romance. The male couple has to justify their love when applying for a visa, and “self aware, they began to act in love even though they were.”

Another piece, “Veil,” dealt with the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016. Ekstrand painted an image for the viewers of a pillowcase slipping over his eyes, evocative of “blind justice” and the line between life and death. He told the audience, “I’m really just trying to piss off his ghost,” when asked about his motivation in writing this poem.

Ekstrand ended his reading with a piece dealing very directly with Ekstrand’s time

“Ekstrand began by reading a poem entitled ‘Two Love Poems’ that centered on homosexuality...”

1st/2nd Book Prize, which helped Ekstrand publish the book. It was a also named finalist in the National Poetry Series following its release.

in Tulsa, titled “Pokémon Hunters.” He recounts an experience watching Pokémon Go hunters on Guthrie Green and described

courtesy Eric Ekstrand

it as “kind of a beautiful sight,” watching these people interacting with an alternate reality. Building this concept, Ekstrand further explores the idea of a limited view and perception of reality.

Ultimately, Ekstrand’s time in Tulsa allowed him the space to explore the concepts that are illuminated in his poems. He described having more trouble writing his most recent works than he had in the past, but the Tulsa Artist Fellowship allowed him

to work through this. Being surrounded by other artists helped Ekstrand “absorb by osmosis” the creative energy that inspired and encouraged his writing. Readers can purchase copies of “Laodicea” for $17.85 from Amazon and indiebound.org or for $7.95 at powells.com. Information about his upcoming publications and readings is on Ekstrand’s website, ericekstrand.com.

courtesy David Bazan

Pedro the Lion’s lead man, David Bazan.

New Pedro the Lion a welcome return to the old

While not an instant classic, Pedro the Lion’s new album, “Phoenix,” is still worth the listen.

Emma Palmer Variety Editor

After more than 15 years, David Bazan has returned to making music under the name Pedro the Lion with the new album “Phoenix.” I wish I liked it more. Bazan, who has put out music under several different monikers over the years, broke into the scene as Pedro the Lion in the mid ‘90s.

While Pedro had others in the band, Bazan wrote and arranged a majority of the music. Pedro enjoyed some moderate success, particularly in Christian music circles. After four albums, Bazan ditched the name and

are driving on a treadmill. There are a few songs on the album that musically match the quality of the lyrics. But at the same time, Pedro the Lion has never been the type of music you sing along to.

“Phoenix” is classic Pedro the Lion, but the problem with a return to a classic style is that a large part of the charm is rooted in the familiarity of the work. I’m sure that with each relisten I’ll grow fonder of the album, but for now, it’s thorny. An immediate sense of connection is missing, and I wonder if Bazan could have pushed a little more for something new rather than falling back to the old norm.

Of course, that return to the old also brings with it the return of what Pedro the Lion has always done well, which is portraits of the intimately personal inner work-

“The problem with a return to a classic style is that a large part of the charm is rooted in the familiarity...” opted to go solo. “Phoenix” is a return to the old — a rebirth of the band, and a meditation on Bazan’s childhood.

While the “Phoenix” name has a symbolic meaning of rebirth for the band, it’s also the name of Bazan’s childhood hometown of Phoenix, Arizona, from where the subject material for the album is dug up. Pedro the Lion has always been a little nostalgic, and “Phoenix” amps this factor up to 10.

Lyrically, “Phoenix” is rich; Bazan deftly weaves a tapestry of an unhappy childhood, tracing his early memories up to somewhere in teenagedom. It’s a nice progression for the album, which, in a sense, grows up a little more with each song. However, “Phoenix” is lacking a bit sonically.

“Phoenix” sounds like a long car ride through Arizona. It’s dry and red, only occasionally lush; oftentimes, it feels like you

ings of Bazan. One of the things I love about Bazan is that while his music, particularly under Pedro, is billed as Evangelical Christian — my dad used to sell Pedro the Lion at Mardel, for crying out loud — it isn’t a glossed-over sort of faith. Most of Pedro the Lion’s songs wrestle Christianity more than they espouse it. “Phoenix” is no different. In “My Phoenix,” Bazan refutes the ideals of Christianity that his family holds while still trying to hold on to his own sense of faith, singing, “But if the vision of the Christ / My family sees / Is my blurry vision’s greatest enemy.”

“Phoenix” is an album that requires time and attention to be appreciated. It’s a hard listen, but it’s ultimately a rewarding one. It doesn’t cover new ground sonically, but it is a welcome return to the old nonetheless.

@TUCollegian

tucollegian@tucollegian.org editor-in-chief

Justin Guglielmetti managing editor

Raven Fawcett news editor

Ethan Veenker sports editor

Brennen Gray variety editor

Emma Palmer commentary editor

Emily Every satire editor

Madison Connell photo & graphics editor

Conner Maggio

business & advertising manager

Brian Kwiecinski

social media & web manager

Sara Serrano

distribution managers

Jacob Lee Jesica Santino and Katelyn Baker copy editor

Bryant Loney

The Collegian is the student newspaper of the University of Tulsa. It is distributed Mondays during the fall and spring semesters, except during holidays and final exam weeks. The University of Tulsa does not discriminate on the basis of personal status or group characteristics including but not limited to the classes protected under federal and state law. Inquiries regarding implementation of this policy may be addressed to the Office of Human Resources, 800 South Tucker Drive, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104-9700, (918)631-2616. Requests for accomodation of disabilities may be addressed to the university’s 504 Coordinator, Dr. Tawny Rigsby, (918)631-3814. To ensure availability of an interpeter, five to seven days notice is needed; 48 hours is recommended for all other accomodations.

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the

State-Run media Welcome to the Racism Renaissance.

Where is all this bigotry coming from?

Prejudice died decades ago, yet here we are, in the midst of a Racism Renaissance.

Brennen Gray Level 20 Acceptance Wizard Since everyone knows that racism totally ended when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched on Washington in 1963, modern Americans are baffled as to where all this current racism is coming from.

Just look at the country. Mexicans are apparently so dangerous that the government needs to shut down to make sure the right decision is made about their fate. Blackface has raised its ugly head on the campus of the University of Oklahoma. Asians get rejected from colleges at an alarming rate compared to white students.

If racism was vanquished in the early ’60s, how could all this be? There are a few

sources. First comes the most recent: the Internet Monster.

At some point in the mid-’90s, a conglomeration of negative chatroom messages started to exponentially grow in the interweb tubes like that giant ball of fat that collected in London sewers in 2017.

At first, it simply corrupted small pieces

of evil that has been quietly gaining power since racism’s 1963 defeat can be found within the fires of Mount Racism.

Here is how it works. One person says something racist to someone else. When the accosted person becomes indignant, everyone and their brother gets on Facebook to defend the two people they have never met.

“Racism has been quietly gathering energy to rise again as a max-difficulty final dungeon boss...” of the internet such as tiny websites made by people who live alone.

But about a decade ago, the Cyber Snake grew so large it gained sentience, going on to aggressively take over areas of the internet such as 4chan and Reddit.

There is no news yet on how big it is or how it will be dealt with. But that is not all.

Going further back in history, a source

Then both sides form protests until the two massive protest armies converge in a cataclysmic impact. The the resulting aftermath is a massive pile of protestors, policemen and flipped cars that has so much teargas smoldering off it that it looks like a volcano.

Once one of these forms, a Mount Racism can stick around for weeks, inciting general

ill-will and bigotry across the city it inhabits.

At least humanity can be happy they properly handled two people’s interaction that happened to be caught on film.

Last, it is necessary to go all the way back to the beginning of time to find the source of racism in the United States. The most source of racism in in this post-racism country is that it never actually died.

Crazy as it sounds, perhaps this one may be true. After racism’s defeat in the ’60s, a piece of the monster clung on to dear life.

Defeated by a young hero, the Dark Ideology attached itself to its most faithful follower and fled to the backwoods to live off of unicorn blood to stay alive.

As the rest of racism’s followers dispersed and were put on trial, racism has been quietly gathering energy to rise again as a max-difficulty final dungeon boss that can only be defeated by level 20 Acceptance Wizards, Justice Paladins and other adventurers willing to take on the monster.

Trailblazing Clancy’s New Green Deal The administration is working toward floating its own New Green Deal, and it’s a bit smokey.

Hannah Robbins Favorite Color is Green

If you aren’t careful, these tombstones found on the New U might be your own.

graphic by Conner Maggio

Ten normal things that mean you are dying Hypochondriacs have the right idea: be wary of these 10 things that mean you’re a goner.

Courtney Spivey Super Dehydrated With the flu season and our first round of midterms coming up, it is important to pay attention to your wellbeing. Hopefully by the time you read this, you’ll recognize these common symptoms that would very well signify your end!

1. If you have been drinking water recently, I have bad news. New scientific studies have shown that with the increased mobility, better metabolism, clearer skin and other health benefits comes a deadly twist: all water drinkers on planet Earth have died or will die.

2. If you have had a cold, I have even worse news. Catching a cold is a sign that your immune system is working, and this rapidly slows down your lifespan. If you’re a college student, you might want to rethink that.

3. If you have laughed at a meme lately, you might be entitled to financial compensation. Your days are numbered.

4. If you have laughed or had fun recently, bad news. You are one of three people on campus that have expressed joy in the past month, and that means you’re on TU’s Super Hit List. I can’t tell you what that means, but just know that no one on campus knows someone else on campus that is on the Super Hit List.

5. If you have written an essay for class and gotten back any sort of editing, I’m sorry. This just means you’re not gonna be here much longer, as each edit takes decades off a writer’s lifespan.

6. If you’ve sniffled or sneezed because of any sort of allergy, consult therapy. Your subconsciousness is trying to tell you there is toxicity in your work and home environment; therefore, your immune system has come to the aid. Trust me on this one — I sneezed last week and then found out my best friend was cheating on me with another, newer best friend.

7. If you’ve recently enjoyed the finer things in life, such as music, books, TV, art or food, stop that right now. While it seems like these are events that would prolong your days, this is not the case. Every time you have some sort of fun, your GPA goes down, which directly correlates with your ability to live. Next time you’re about to do something that isn’t homework, think again!

8. If you have a crush on someone, you only have about four days to live. That’s just how love works.

9. If you drink coffee, you will unfortunately develop a rare type of disease called “I Tried to be Productive but Now I’m Actually Addicted to Bean Juice and my Whole Sleep Schedule is Ruined.” Freshmen through seniors are most prone to this uncommon illness, so be extra careful if you’re one of those!

10. If you have any sort of tests/projects coming up, go ahead and say goodbye to your loved ones. It would be cruel to leave without at least letting them know, and they’ll appreciate your efforts down the road.

Last, if you have researched any sort of potential symptoms on WebMD, you do have whatever it said you had. Quantum computing technology and intelligent agents have become so infinitely wise that they know you better than yourself. Trust them and take the appropriate measures.

Good luck.

There have been whisperings on campus about a new policy. President Clancy and the rest of the Board of Trustees have been slowly preparing everyone. They’ve been gaining support, having backroom dealings with deans and shaking more than a few shady hands. They have held conferences, spoken on the topic and talked with lawyers.

Clancy has even been working on currying favor with the student body. So what exactly has our fearless leader (and his staff) been working on? Their own (Green) New Deal: create a campus where weed is legal.

This idea had a simple start. One day Clancy was reading The Denver Post, and he heard about a new policy that freshmen Democrats have been pushing lately: the Green New Deal. While first proposed by Jill Stein in 2012, it was picked up by the Democratic Party late last year. The Green New Deal, similar to the New Deal before it, is a set of programs focused on protecting the environment, specifically a renewed focus on lowering emissions and reducing fossil fuels while also encouraging companies to be green with tax incentives and subsidies.

Obviously, just like the rest of campus, no one cares about the environment (minus the Committee for Sustainability, of course), but if there is one thing we’ve learned the administration cares about in the past few months, it’s weed. Not only did Clancy host a day-long conference on weed called “Cannabis: What We Have Learned Through Scientific Research,” but he is also speaking on Feb. 18 about medical marijuana!

At his talk later this month, Clancy will discuss the risks and benefits of using medical marijuana. First step to push policy is obviously to educate people (aka tell just enough of the truth to get people on his

side), and the other speaker at his talk is a lawyer who is talking about the legality of medical marijuana (obviously bribed to spin the law in a way only lawyers can).

Some of his remarks were leaked, and a personal favorite would have to be his line, “Honestly, who doesn’t wake and bake?

And for some reason it’s not legal? Come on, look at all the benefits. The government is so behind the times. Not like TU, am I right?”

Right now, the current policy for weed, medical or otherwise, on campus is that it is not allowed, even though the state of Oklahoma just made medical marijuana legal. The administration’s Green New Deal would change that. From the leaked plans I have found, it looks like the administration’s plan has three main facets.

The first is pretty simple: work with the powers that be to allow medical marijuana on campus. If they have the card, they should be allowed to use the thing that their doctor determines is helpful. Leaked memos on the matter seem to show that they are very close on getting this rule adopted.

The next is a little more difficult: legalize recreational marijuana on campus. Clancy hasn’t delved into this topic in public appearances yet, which makes sense because the administration has to slowly work on persuading people, but it is in the works.

The final one is a little more blatant: there have been rumors that SA decided to cancel Ben Rector and instead get some more lit acts for Springfest: Snoop Dogg and Woody Nelson. They tried to get Cheech and Chong as well, but you know how that goes, we only have so much money to spend. In addition, they plan to do some creative renaming once the funding has been allotted and the backroom deals conclude. First on their list are Kush (Kendall) Hall and Marijuana (McFarlin) Library.

As the semester continues, expect to see more conferences and talks from Clancy as he and his administration work to persuade everyone to adopt their New Green Deal.

Soon there will be more green on campus than just the money the bursar took from us.

Woody Nelson playing a benefit concert for the weed cause during Springfest.

graphic by Conner Maggio