The Tufts Daily - Tuesday, December 7, 2021

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T HE T UFTS DAILY

VOLUME LXXXI, ISSUE 42

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Tuesday, December 7, 2021

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

Graduate student placed on leave from WMFO for violating COVID-19 policies

COURTESY SOFIA CHON

The WMFO office in Curtis Hall is pictured.

by Chloe Courtney Bohl Deputy News Editor

A Tufts University graduate student was placed on leave from WMFO, the university’s

student-run radio station, by administration, for failing to wear a mask, allowing guests into the studio, covering up a security camera and tampering with studio equipment during a Nov.

8 radio show. During their show, the student shared misinformation about COVID-19 and questioned the efficacy of mask-wearing, vaccines and booster shots.

Patrick Collins, executive director of media relations emphasized that the student was suspended specifically for their COVID-19 policy violations, not because of the content of their show. “[The student] was placed on leave from [their] unpaid, volunteer DJ position at the radio station not because of the content of [their] show but because [the student] violated multiple COVID safety protocols at the station and tampered with equipment in an attempt to evade detection,” Collins said in a statement to the Daily.

Collins explained how the university’s COVID-19 policies apply to WMFO. “WMFO, an undergraduate student-run radio station funded by the undergraduate student activity fee and used by both students and community members, is subject to all of the same COVID policies that are in place for the rest of the University,

TUPIT hosts event with formerly incarcerated members of Tufts Education Reentry Network

by Rohith Raman Contributing Writer

The Tufts University Prison Initiative of Tisch College (TUPIT) recently hosted an event that invited formerly incarcerated members of the Tufts Education Reentry Network (MyTERN) to speak about their experiences in and out of prison. The speakers, who are currently seeking education through MyTERN, discussed questions ranging from the difficulty of reentry to how important education and programs like MyTERN are to facilitate these processes.

They are quoted anonymously to respect and protect their privacy.

Hilary Binda, senior lecturer and founding director for TUPIT, explained that this event is impactful because it not only provides a platform for the formerly incarcerated to speak about their experiences, but it also offers an educational opportunity for those unfamiliar with these experiences.

“The word ‘barrier’ doesn’t even begin to touch the complexity [and] difficulty of living

after prison, not to mention in prison,” Binda said. “[For] those of us who, like myself, haven’t been incarcerated … we learn from educators [and] teachers who are people who do have this experience.”

Financial stability is one of the many aspects of reentry that was touched upon. One speaker discussed the difficulty of finding a stable source of income following incarceration due to the accessibility of criminal records, such as the Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI).

“It is a battle,” they said. “That CORI follows you to work … it’s a major blockade to trying to move forward … it takes one person to find out about my CORI … and I lose that job.”

Many speakers explained how they have turned toward mentorship within their communities, through anything from coaching youth football to helping restorative justice nonprofits.

Speakers also discussed the importance of education as a means to prevent incarceration, and the value of MyTERN.

“[If] you grow up in the suburbs, you go to school [and] you are taught to excel; as opposed to the inner city, you are taught to fail,” another speaker said.

“It is the school-to-prison pipeline. … Education [puts you in a position] to go to Silicon Valley, Wall Street, wherever you want to be … MyTERN is great because it fosters relationships … the MyTERN community gives you the support that you need.”

A speaker further revealed that MyTERN assists formerly incarcerated individuals in adjusting to life after imprisonment by building a community of members with shared experiences.

“When you’re in prison, it has these unspoken rules and etiquette,” a speaker said. “There’s this negative mindset that you learn in prison … how [to] survive and live. And then you leave prison and you come home and you are expected to be … what society thinks is ‘normal.’ … A program like [MyTERN] … where there’s a community … see TUPIT, page 2

including … wearing masks indoors when in communal settings,” Collins said.

Collins further described WMFO’s other precautions in place.

“In addition to these universal campus guidelines, the radio station also requires further safety protocols, including the prohibition of guests in the station due to the inability of the station’s student staff to monitor guests’ compliance with Tufts policies,” Collins said.

According to Collins, all WMFO DJs are briefed on the station’s COVID-19 protocols, including the mask and guest policies. These policies are also communicated to DJs and during WMFO all-staff meetings.

The student DJed their hourlong Nov. 8 radio show, “New Music Exclusives,” under the name HH. It was their second-ever broadcast with WMFO. They did not identify themselves or their two guests by name during the show. After playing one song, the student and their guests spent the next hour sharing misinformation and conspiracy the-

ories about COVID-19, vaccines and booster shots.

The student agreed to speak to the Daily on the condition of anonymity, identifying themself only as a master’s student in the School of Engineering. In an interview with the Daily, they said they believed that they were penalized too harshly for not wearing a mask.

“From what I’ve seen, there’s many people in the buildings that have cafes and the student center that are always not wearing masks,” they said. “So it seems kind of [like] a double standard or selective enforcement scenario.”

The student also justified their decision to cover up the studio’s security camera.

“I did it purely because in my own house and in life, you are not surveilled,” the student said.

“You’re more able to be comfortable and speak your mind when you are not being watched.”

During their Nov. 8 radio show, in an interview with the see WMFO, page 2

Wu administration resumes tent removal at ‘Mass. and Cass’ after previously pausing Janeyera initiative

by Ella Kamm

Assistant News Editor

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration has resumed the clearing of the houseless encampment around the intersection of Melnea Cass Boulevard and Massachusetts Avenue in Boston, also known as “Mass. and Cass,” after previously pausing the initiative begun by then-acting Mayor Kim Janey’s administration. The stoppage came after courts denied a request by the ACLU to halt the tent removal project. Wu has also appointed officials and made statements addressing her administration’s plans for the tent city.

Mass. and Cass, also commonly referred to by names like “Methadone Mile,” is known as the heart of Boston’s opioid crisis. The tent city is also emblematic of the city’s houselessness crisis and poses health and safety risks to its residents.

VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is pictured.

Janey issued an executive order to clear out the Mass. and Cass tent city on Oct. 19, prior to Wu’s taking office. The order said that no one would be required to vacate the tent city without first being offered alternative shelter, but those who

ARTS / page 4

OPINION / page 7

SPORTS / back

Gotta (Van) Go(gh): The immersive exhibit doesn’t deliver

Kyle Rittenhouse’s trial sheds light on larger American issues

Poindexter McHan, Russell, Ryan lead women’s basketball to resounding victory

see MASS. AND CASS, page 2 NEWS

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FEATURES

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ARTS & POP CULTURE

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FUN & GAMES

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OPINION

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SPORTS

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THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Tuesday, December 7, 2021

THE TUFTS DAILY Madeleine Aitken Editor in Chief

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Student shares COVID-19 misinformation during WMFO show WMFO

continued from page 1 Daily and in emails to the Daily, the student compared the people who reported them to WMFO for their COVID-19 policy infractions to Nazis and criticized Tufts’ continuation of its mask policy.

“The people who report on others who are not wearing masks ‘correctly’ are not exactly the same as Nazis, but they do share the same characteristics, namely of insecurity in their personality and the willingness to blindly follow amorphous authority in order to appease that insecurity by ‘fitting in’ somewhere,” they wrote in an email to the Daily.

The student shared their belief on mask effectiveness against COVID-19 in a subsequent email to the Daily.

“Everyone knows masks don’t matter when it comes to virus spread,” the student wrote.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention con-

clude that facial coverings substantially reduce the coronavirus’ infection rate.

University Infection Control Health Director Michael Jordan offered scientific evidence for why mask-wearing remains important in a written statement to the Daily. Jordan wrote the statement in response to questions from the Daily, not in response to the student’s WMFO broadcast specifically, which he had not listened to.

“A recently published systematic review and meta-analysis published in the British Medical Journal confirms that the wearing of a mask when indoors or near others significantly decreases transmission and acquisition of COVID-19,” Jordan said in the statement to the Daily.

“In addition, mask wearing blocks transmission of influenza and viruses that cause seasonal colds … With the increasing prevalence of COVID-19 cases across the United States and the

Commonwealth, the wearing of masks as a preventative measure remains absolutely critical.”

During the Nov. 8 radio show, one of the student’s guests advocated against vaccination, particularly for children.

“No one should get [the COVID-19 vaccine] but children definitely should not,” the unidentified guest said, going on to suggest that vaccinating infants makes them more susceptible to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

However, the CDC has found no link between vaccination and SIDS and is also not currently recommending that infants be vaccinated against COVID-19. Jordan shared the CDC’s most recent guidance on vaccinating children against COVID-19 with the Daily.

“The CDC has recommended vaccination for children ages 5-11 as well as adolescents to protect them from getting COVID-19 and reducing their risk of severe disease, hospitalizations, and long-

term COVID-19 complications,” Jordan said. “Vaccination of children will also protect adult members of the household and will help, in the long run, to lead to a sustained reduction in incident cases and critical COVID-19 related illness in the community.”

John Wescott, associate director for campus life and WMFO staff advisor emailed the student on Nov. 12, informing them that their access to WMFO’s station in Curtis Hall had been revoked for the remainder of the semester.

“I would have certainly worn a mask the next time if I knew how severe and strict they were about it,” the student said during an interview with the Daily.

Later, in an email to the Daily, the student said that their placement on leave was an act of censorship and violated their right to free speech.

Collins confirmed to the Daily that the student has been placed on leave from WMFO for the remainder of the fall semester.

TUPIT hosts event to encourage dialogue on incarceration TUPIT

continued from page 1 can almost guarantee lowering the recidivism rates because you are around people who were in prison with you, but you are also around people like the Medford students.”

Many of the speakers acknowledged that their problems take time to deal with and that seeking out the help of MyTERN, therapists, sponsors and support systems around them is the first step toward progress.

“What gives me hope is the increased visibility … to restorative justice programs that are going on,” a speaker

COURTESY HILARY BINDA

Hilary Binda, founding director of TUPIT, and Tufts students from the weekly Inside-Out course, are pictured. said. “It is not like this stuff wasn’t happening, but now people are hearing about it, so that is huge.”

With a strong sense of civil responsibility, engaged members of TUPIT asked a number of questions throughout the event

to spark conversations about the prison and legal system. One speaker mentioned raising the juvenile age as a way to limit young offenders.

“How can we raise the juvenile age?” a speaker said. “How can we get it up to maybe 21, and then gradually get it up to 24 … because a lot of people commit crimes between that age [and] they are not fully developed. …

Let us give them a chance because usually people age out of crime …

[Between 17 and 18] it is one year.

Where does it stop? I cannot buy liquor but I can get a natural life sentence … I think a lot of people would love to get into that.”

ACLU alleges Mass. and Cass residents were not provided alternate housing before tent removal MASS. AND CASS

continued from page 1 repeatedly refused to leave their tents may be charged with disorderly conduct and warrant the involvement of the Boston Police.

“As nighttime temperatures dip below freezing last week, City outreach workers have helped over 60 unsheltered people get off the street and into in-patient treatment beds, shelter beds, transitional housing beds and other areas of support,” Janey said in a statement.

“As we transition vulnerable people from encampments that have been a source of violence, fires, disease and other dangers, we will continue to treat every individual with dignity. This work is urgent, but should not be confused with ‘sweeps’ conducted in years past.

No person is required to remove or store their tent before shelter, housing, or treatment is available.”

Many of the tents at Mass. and Cass were cleared by the city under Janey’s executive order, but some have been set up a few blocks away at Newmarket Square.

The ACLU of Massachusetts filed a lawsuit against the city in early November, alleging that their

plaintiffs, along with other residents of Mass. and Cass, were not provided the alternative housing options that the city promised.

“In spite of City officials’ suggestions that housing would be provided, the plaintiffs and others were driven out—under threat of arrest— with no viable housing options,” the ACLU said in a press release on its website. “Much of their personal property was summarily destroyed, leaving them without access to clothing and even vital papers such as their identification.”

The lawsuit was sent to the Suffolk County Superior Court on Nov. 10 for expedited review.

Fast response time to the issue of the encampment has generally been motivated by impending cold temperatures.

“Particularly as winter approaches, already unsafe living conditions on the streets will only become more dangerous,” a spokesperson from Mayor Wu’s office said in an email to the Daily.

On Wu’s first full day in office on Nov. 17, she told the press that any action on Mass. and Cass was paused as they awaited the court’s decision. The administra-

tion has since decided to resume plans to clear the area of tents.

However, on the same day, the Suffolk County Superior Court denied the ACLU’s request to issue a restraining order that would stop the clearing of Mass. and Cass, a decision that would allow the new administration to continue the project.

Wu’s administration has chosen officials to head up the response to the crisis.

“Mayor Wu’s team, led by Dr. Monica Bharel, will be urgently working with regional and state partners to take a holistic approach to the public health and housing crisis near the intersection of Mass. Ave and Melnea Cass Blvd, with a focus on expanding low-threshold and permanent housing, treatment and support services,” a spokesperson for the mayor said in an email to the Daily.

Bharel is the former commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, and helped coordinate the state’s pandemic response. Wu has also reappointed Sheila Dillon, ​​ the city’s chief of housing and director of neighborhood development.

The ACLU has stated that it will continue to monitor the city’s actions in regards to Mass. and Cass.

“Our new mayor said just this morning that she is contemplating a new approach to this,” Ruth Bourquin, senior and managing attorney at the ACLU of Massachusetts, said in a statement on Nov. 17. “And yet here in court today, representations were made that the City does not have housing options that are appropriate for many of our clients who cannot use congregate shelters.

Steps are underway to create those housing options, and we call upon the City to continue the pause and not force people under threat of arrest to leave where they are unless and until they have a housing option that takes into account their disabilities and other barriers.”

On Dec. 3, the Boston Globe reported that Wu’s administration would resume the tent removal process, and that those living in the encampment would be relocated to as many as 200 transitional housing units across Boston. Wu hopes to clear the area entirely by the end of the month.

tuftsdaily.com

Features

3 Tuesday, December 7, 2021

SAD: Wintertime brings seasonal affective disorder, winter blues

by Kendall Roberts Staff Writer

Content warning: This article discusses various depressive disorders and suicidal thoughts.

As the temperature drops and snow begins to stick to the ground, the changing season indicates that winter is coming and it is time to adjust the clocks from daylight saving time. While winter brings the holiday season and an abundance of outdoor activities, it also means shorter days, less sunlight and, for some individuals, seasonal depression.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of major depression that has a seasonal pattern, most commonly recurrent during the winter months.

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), SAD includes a variety of symptoms, such as loss of pleasure in once enjoyed hobbies, fatigue and mood shifts. For winter-pattern SAD, common symptoms can also include oversleeping and overeating.

“The symptoms are not different than other forms of depression,” Julie Jampel, director of training at Tufts Counseling and Mental Health Services, said. “What is different is the onset when it occurs and when it remits. So what distinguishes seasonal affective disorder is that it usually starts in the fall around the same time the leaves are changing. It usually remits on its own in the spring.”

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, millions of adults experience SAD in the United States. While it is common for individuals to feel the “winter blues” or negative mood shifts during the colder months, SAD is a serious clinical disorder that can lead to a decline in one’s functioning, as well as suicidal thoughts.

Senior Lily McIntyre, one of the faces for Ears for Peers, adds that SAD can create feelings of

Kevin Zhang Tales from the T

I

A silver lining

n my last column, I talked about the Silver Line, the black sheep of the T. To recap: The Silver Line was designed as Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) — buses providing subway-like service using several key design features, including high-capacity stations and dedicated lanes. What we got instead was a haphazard cocktail of overpriced construction, slow speeds and broken promises, an embarrassment of a BRT system.

But that would change in 2018, when the SL3 line opened.

The SL3 runs from South Station to the Seaport, before div-

BY KAYLA DRAZAN loneliness, which can be detrimental to college students.

“College is a social time,” McIntyre said. “We rely on people.”

Senior Sarah Beatty, co-president of Tufts Active Minds, agrees that SAD can make it hard to maintain connections with others.

“I think the sense of loneliness can be really crippling, and people … have a harder time reaching out to friends and might isolate themselves a little more,” Beatty said. “So it’s easy to become a little numb and you’re just really going through the motions around this time.”

Women are more likely to develop SAD than men, according to the NIMH, and the disorder is more common for those living farther north of the equator, where there is less sunlight during the daytime, especially during the winter months.

McIntyre agrees that adjusting to daylight saving time can be challenging, especially for Tufts underclassmen who may not be used to the long winters and

drastic seasonal changes in the Northeast region.

According to Jampel, SAD typically emerges around young adulthood, but she does not see it as extremely prevalent among students.

“I don’t think college students stand out as a population where it would be particularly prominent,” Jampel said. “Given the usual age of onset, it’s possible that someone could first notice [SAD] in college.”

The DSM-5 criteria require a minimum of two years of seasonal depressive episodes to distinguish SAD from other subtypes of major depressive disorder. As a result, Jampel explains, it can be difficult to differentiate SAD from major depressive disorder in college students without these frequent seasonal patterns.

While Jampel stated that there tends to be a slight increase in demand for CMHS services during mid-fall, this uptick could be attributed to a variety of factors.

“We’re busy all year round,” Jampel said. “It’s very hard to separate from the flow of the school year. I actually think it’s more related to midterms.”

Jampel also mentions that there is an important distinction between SAD and the more frequent “winter blues.”

“A lot of people feel worse in the winter,” Jampel said. “It’s cold. The days are short. There’s not much daylight. It’s just a little depressing for many people unless you love winter … Seasonal affective disorder has to be distinguished from the winter blues [colloquially] — it’s a major depression.”

Beatty also acknowledges this distinction and validates the challenges of college life, especially during the winter months.

“It’s obviously a spectrum,” Beatty said. “It really affects some people more than others … Even if it’s not seasonal affective disorder, this time is hard.

It’s hard having to stay inside more, and it’s hard when things are darker and it’s hard when you can see your friends less.”

ing underneath Boston Harbor via Interstate Highway 90 to the Blue Line’s Airport station, where shuttle buses connect to Logan Airport terminals. It crosses the Chelsea Creek into Chelsea — a dense, predominantly-POC community historically underserved by public transit — before terminating at the Chelsea station of the Newburyport/Rockport commuter rail line adjoining Mystic Mall.

What distinguishes the SL3 from the rest of the Silver Line is its use of a 1.3-mile-long exclusive busway between Chelsea Creek and Chelsea Station. Built on a former railway, this bus-only road is wide and straight with few intersections, a far cry from the congested streets on the rest of the Silver Line. Of course, the SL3 still runs through mixed traffic between the busway and

the Seaport. But it’s fast, reliable and the closest thing we have to proper BRT. Now imagine a network of these fast, high-capacity busways encircling downtown Boston. Such is the vision of the MBTA’s Urban Ring project. Ever since its construction, the T has been plagued with a key design problem: All its subway lines feed into downtown, with no crosstown lines between the surrounding communities. This wasn’t an issue when most jobs, industries and attractions were downtown, but that’s no longer the case.

Today, crosstown riders must transfer at packed downtown stations, or take slow, equally packed crosstown buses.

Unsurprisingly, many use cars — maybe faster, but certainly unsustainable.

The Urban Ring project seeks to fix this with a circumferential BRT line downtown. Starting from Seaport and going counterclockwise, the route would serve Logan Airport and Chelsea, before crossing the Mystic to serve Assembly, Lechmere and Kendall. Crossing the Charles over the Boston University bridge, the route would serve Kenmore, the Longwood Medical Area, Ruggles, Nubian and finally, Seaport. The route would host frequent service on several overlapping bus lines, some of which would diverge to serve Harvard and JFK/UMass. And half of the route would be on exclusive lanes or busways.

Transfers would be available to every subway and commuter rail line, at existing or new stations, dramatically simplifying crosstown journeys. The line was

McIntyre mentioned that the COVID-19 pandemic could have exacerbated the effects of SAD, considering the numerous guidelines that were put into place, including social distancing and limits on people at gatherings.

Jampel agrees that COVID-19 contributed to feelings of isolation and increasing depression rates but she does not think it had a direct impact on SAD. “I think COVID has a blues of its own,” Jampel said. “Now, it’s not quite as isolated as it was in 2020 and it doesn’t feel quite as endless.”

Despite the negative consequences of SAD, McIntyre wants Tufts students to recognize that SAD is real, and their feelings are valid during the winter months.

Beatty agrees with this sentiment and extends this validation to those who may be experiencing the winter blues.

“Even to people that don’t have diagnosed seasonal affective disorder, just because it’s not pathologized doesn’t mean that what you’re dealing with is not valid,” Beatty said. “Just because you aren’t diagnosed with something doesn’t mean you don’t deserve help.”

For Beatty, she would like to see the establishment of a more universal mental health policy among professors.

“I think what’s more important than even just mental health services is really educating professors about what students are going through,” Beatty said.

In addition to seeking help or guidance from the CMHS department, Jampel recommends to students that they schedule activities that bring them pleasure and joy in their lives.

Beatty wants to work with Active Minds to offer a safe and comfortable space on campus for students to relieve pressure and stress.

“My biggest tip is … don’t isolate yourself,” Beatty said. “There are people that are here to care about you and that will listen.” expected to carry over 170,000 daily riders — more than the Green or Blue lines — many of which would be diverted from congested downtown stations.

And in the future, the line could even be upgraded to a subway line.

The BRT route would cost 2.4 billion dollars — and therein laid the problem. In 2010, the perennially penniless MBTA suspended the Urban Ring project for a lack of funds. But that wasn’t the end of the bus line: The Seaport to Chelsea section would still be built as the SL3, a taste of what could have been.

And who knows — if the MBTA gets the funding and support it needs, the Urban Ring could one day become a reality.

Kevin Zhang is a junior studying civil engineering. Kevin can be reached at kevin.zhang7@tufts.edu.

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Arts & POP ARTS Pop CULTURE Culture

tuftsdaily.com

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

‘Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience’ fails to paint a compelling picture

by Siavash Raissi Contributing Writer

After multiple delays, complaints and a lengthy legal battle involving its organization’s deceptive name, on Oct. 6, event company Fever finally opened the doors to its newest exhibition. “Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience” is currently on show at Boston’s Strand Theater.

Despite its reportedly misleading marketing and poor organization, as someone deeply involved and interested in impressionist art history, I was excited to visit the exhibition regardless and learn more about Van Gogh from a historical and artistic perspective. But as I left the exhibition’s main presentation, I could safely say that it did not live up to my own, nor probably any other art lover’s, expectations. Overall, “Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience” has very little depth, only scratching at the bare surface of who Vincent Van Gogh was as a person and as an artist.

Upon entering, visitors first travel through a series of rooms providing context about Van Gogh’s life and inspirations.

Among the various attractions in these opening halls, by far the most impressive are the small projections of Van Gogh’s works on 3D structures. An example of these involves various self-portraits of the artist being mapped and projected onto a large 3D model of his face. In this instance, Fever provides an interesting visual interpretation of Van Gogh’s unique approach to texture and movement in real space. Unfortunately, the opening rooms’ impressive sights end there. Scattered throughout the gallery, the exhibition features several real-world recreations of his paintings, such as a full-size bedroom organized and painted to mimic his famous “Bedroom in Arles” (1888). But while these rooms may be fun for a quick selfie, their poor quality makes them appear as handmade backdrops in an elementary school play rather than a professional multimillion-dollar production. These visual attractions are

COURTESY SIAVASH RAISSI

“Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience” is pictured. accompanied by cheap prints of Van Gogh’s paintings with shallow descriptions of his life. Often restating the same points using different words and even including a few noticeable typos, these information panels failed to explore the artist’s life and struggles much beyond simply stating that he suffered from depression.

Despite the rough edges in the opening rooms of “The Immersive Experience,” its main attraction, a 360-degree projected presentation of Van Gogh’s work in a 35-foot-tall room, is, for the most part, quite enjoyable. Visitors have the option to sit in various reclining chairs and pillows laid across the floor, allowing them to simply sink into their seats and enjoy the show. The 35-minute presentation cycles through Van Gogh’s most famous paintings with edited, animated details, which are accompanied by equally immersive sound and music. In the portion featuring “Starry Night” (1889), the originally static painting transforms into a visual spec-

tacle. Fluid animations cover the painting’s sky, accompanied by a soothing orchestral soundtrack that evokes a sense of wonder. In outdoor works like “Wheatfield with Crows” (1890), the sound of crows’ cries and rustling trees truly makes you feel as though you are standing in the field with Van Gogh himself.

While these first few moments are unforgettable, as time passes, flaws in the presentation slowly become more apparent.

Cheap powerpoint-like transitions are used to fade and dissolve between different works and themes. To introduce his Japonisme period and his self-portraits, the exhibition chooses to frame these paintings within distracting, animated 3D graphics of Japanese architecture and gothic churches respectively, ultimately eliminating the viewer’s immersion.

Finally, the last portion of the exhibition chooses to explore Van Gogh’s depression through his paintings. But rather than paint a genuine narrative of Van

Gogh’s emotional journey as an artist, the exhibition does nothing more than simply flash his self-portraits in synchronization with darker music, ultimately eliminating all semblance of the ‘immersive experience’ in favor of a pseudo-intellectual message about mental health.

But it was not until after the presentation ended that the experience’s immediate purpose as a quick cash grab became clear. Using the exhibition’s VR room, which utilizes virtual reality headsets to put viewers directly into Van Gogh’s paintings, costs visitors an extra $5. Anyone with a simple virtual reality headset could easily recreate this experience using free Youtube videos. To put insult to injury, the gift shop was full of simple, yet incredibly expensive, products with Van Gogh’s designs robotically slapped onto them, as though they were hastily designed on Redbubble. A book of all of his works, which costs $18 on Amazon, costs more than $60

at “The Immersive Experience” gift shop.

Overall, while the exhibition admittedly does manage to immerse art lovers into Van Gogh’s works with its 360-degree presentation, if only for a moment, it ironically fails to comprehend or deliver any larger message about Van Gogh beyond surface-level biographical information. Despite being about a man who only ever sold one painting during his entire life and struggled with mental health issues throughout, the exhibition can’t help but come off as a cheaply tossed-together cash grab attempting to make money off of Van Gogh’s publicly available works. If anyone truly wants to explore Van Gogh’s paintings, I recommend going to the MFA (free with a Tufts ID) or visiting “Imagine Van Gogh,” which opens in Boston on Dec. 21 and seems to have even larger rooms, for a more professionally crafted presentation, and a less problematic message.

A r t s & P o p C u lt u r e

Tuesday, December 7, 2021 | Arts & Pop Culture | THE TUFTS DAILY

5

Gayle and Winnetka Bowling League capture crowd at intimate venue

by Sadie Leite and Ellie Lester

Arts Editor and Assistant Arts Editor

On Nov. 29, rising alternative indie band Winnetka Bowling League performed at Boston’s Brighton Music Hall in an intimate but lively combination of bouncy melodies, cardboard cutouts and deadbeat dad jokes.

The evening started with an engaging performance by Gayle. She wore leather pants, fishnet sleeves and a Reese’s Pieces T-shirt. Her chunky Doc Martens commanded a power that matched the infectious energy of her performance.

From angsty anthems to poignant ballads, Gayle demonstrated her talent’s breadth.

Balancing Gayle’s edgy persona was an obvious appreciation and care for her fans. She infused her electric set with interactive comments and jokes to the crowd. Her performance ended with “abcdefu” –– an entertaining song that recently found fame on TikTok. The lyrics berate her ex and all the critical things in her life. She only reserves sympathy for their dog.

To further her obvious connection with the crowd, she called on listeners to chant the compelling lyrics back. It created a thrilling competition between two sides of the venue over who could be louder; the resulting noise and excitement marked her set as a success.

As she exited the stage, she professed her gratitude towards both Winnetka Bowling League and her fans; at 17, the opportunity to sing and join the band on tour was remarkable. Her music marries the tumultuous adventures of her life as a 21st-century teen with compelling melodies and an enticing stage presence.

After Gayle’s unforgettable performance, Winnetka Bowling League maintained her incredible energy. Their three members — singer and lead guitarist Matthew Koma, drummer Kris Mazzarisi and Sam Beresford on the keys — took the stage

Raga Chilakamarri On Demand

Talking about talking about television

O

ver the past eight columns, I’ve pondered many memorable shows, exploring what works and what doesn’t, which characters are interesting and which aren’t and why I — or you — should even care.

Reflecting back, I’ve identified key criteria for evaluating what makes a show both subjectively and objectively ‘good,’ in no particular order: World building and aesthetic Television relies on attention to stylistic details, like cin-

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Winnetka Bowling League performed at Boston’s Brighton Music Hall on Nov. 19. and began with a boppy rendition of their most recent single, “Pulp.” Behind them on stage, two backward-facing cardboard cutouts drummed up mystery and intrigue among the crowd.

In a red beanie, tan slacks and worn white Converse, Koma bounced around the stage in jumps, expressing his energy in sporadic dance moves. Between guitar strokes, he danced to his music with comical yet groovy T-Rex arms. It was the exact stage presence expected from an alternative indie band, fantastically complementing his insane guitar skills.

Besides an obvious ear for catchy melodies, the group demonstrated talent with

well-written, spritely and thoughtful lyrics. The songs delved into the tiny joys and treasures of everyday life. For example, Koma described his songwriting process with a silly story that took place at a coffee shop.

Koma shared the lyric “I’m outside your window the romantic way” with a friend, expressing his excitement at putting it in an upcoming song. He was met with a stiff response and given the advice that the lyric, instead, came off as creepy. Still, Koma incorporated it into the hit “The Romantic Way” (2020) and it fits.

Though the band certainly delivered with every song, the highlight of their set was “CVS”

(2020) with a cardboard cutout of Edward Cullen on bass. Koma prefaced the song with a comical jab at the intense politics within “The Twilight Saga” (2008–12) fandom. The band sadly had to leave behind its base guitarist, he reported, after she declared herself ‘Team Jacob.’ With that silly interlude, the band turned the cardboard cutout to reveal Edward Cullen with a hot pink inflatable guitar taped to his chest. Earlier in the set, a cardboard cutout of Vin Diesel made an appearance during the song “Barcelona.”

As for the performance itself, hearing “CVS” live was an enthralling experience. The song tells a sweet romance with lyrics

promising gifts like “chocolate hearts from CVS.” Winnetka Bowling League ended the night with its song “On the 5” (2018), which referenced a lost California summer romance, echoing its frequent refrains to the beauty and simplicity of life on the West coast.

It was the end to a set with songs that all resonated with the crowd. Often, bands struggle to hold the attention of fans for the whole set, yet Winnetka Bowling League did so effortlessly and with charm.

Though Winnetka Bowling League is still a young group with plenty of room to grow, it is certainly a hidden gem capable of producing iconic music.

ematography, set design and soundtrack, to be transportive. These elements create the show’s world, sensory vibe and residual imprint in your mind.

HBO’s “Betty” (2020–21) follows a group of young women spreading female empowerment in the NYC skateboarding scene despite its largely male demographic. It is based on and features the cast of a 2018 film “Skate Kitchen.” There’s a documentary realism feel to it, conveyed with handheld shots, naturally flowing dialogue and pandemic-era elements like masks. It adeptly taps into a niche subculture while developing unique characters.

“The Queen’s Gambit” (2020) also successfully develops its own look and feel. It’s a beautiful period piece that blends a contemporary take on 1950s/60s costume design with the visual imagination of protagonist

chess prodigy Beth Harmon’s (Anya Taylor-Joy) recurring hallucinations of chess board plays on her ceiling.

Pacing, premise, plot My biggest TV pet peeve is when shows run past their course, and my ‘pet pleasure,’ so to speak, is concise, clean storytelling. Netflix’s “Russian Doll” (2019–) scores high for me, reusing the “Groundhog Day” (1993) device for Emmynominated Natasha Lyonne’s character, a cigarette-smoking software engineer whose 36th birthday party repeats everyday. Packed into eight 20–30-minute episodes is an inventive balance of humor and melancholy that delves into meaningful themes of human compassion with a pace that never bores.

“The Good Place” (2016–20) presents another well-crafted, clever concept: A selfish Eleanor

Shellstrop, played by the lovely Kristen Bell, undeservingly ends up in a heaven-adjacent afterlife. The show skillfully surprised me by subverting the rules and preliminary assumptions of the world, and it concludes neatly after four seasons, ending precisely where creator Michael Schur intended.

The strength of secondary characters A complex, dynamic character arc is the heart and soul of a show, the mechanism for inciting our own emotional response and granting the story a real presence.

“Glee” (2009–15) and “Sex Education” (2019–) experiment with different character combinations in scenes among their high school ensemble casts, exploring the dynamics that emerge and interweaving relationships within the world. A series should be weighed, not

simply on the strength of its protagonists — both as characters and actors — but especially on the secondary characters, who bring that vital life and authenticity to fill out a show.

You! Last but not least, you, and the expectations, contexts, mindsets and environments that you bring strongly influence your reception of a show.

Right person, wrong time is to romance as right show, wrong mood is to television — which explains why it takes hour-long deliberations to pick a film for a movie night, but also, conversely, how my house watched the entirety (about 7.5 hours) of “Cruel Summer” (2021–) in one day.

Raga Chilakamarri is a junior studying English and economics.

Raga can be reached at raga. chilakamarri@tufts.edu.

6

THE TUFTS DAILY | FUN & GAMES | Tuesday, December 7, 2021

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Opinion

7 Tuesday, December 7, 2021

VIEWPOINT

Kyle Rittenhouse did not commit a crime — and that’s the problem

by Reya Kumar Opinion Editor

Content warning: This article discusses gun violence, death and mass shootings.

During the 2020 protests in Kenosha, Wis. that followed the shooting of Jacob Blake by a police officer, then-17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse fatally shot two men, Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, and shot and injured another, Gaige Grosskreutz. On Nov. 19, Rittenhouse was acquitted on all charges, which included intentional homicide, reckless homicide, attempted homicide and reckless endangerment. This verdict is fully supported by the law — and that’s the issue. The shooting, trial and verdict has revived the national conversation on gun control and racial justice.

Self-defense claims, which were central to the verdict, only examine the immediate situation preceding the deadly incident and don’t take into account the broader situation. The first person Rittenhouse killed had chased him into a parking lot, attempting to take his gun from him. The second individual that Rittenhouse shot attacked him with a skateboard, thinking he was an active shooter. His third victim pulled a gun on him.

When police officers broke into Breonna Taylor’s home in March 2020, this is the same defense that prevented Taylor’s killers from being charged. It was argued that

the killing was an act of self-defense because Taylor’s boyfriend shot at the police officers. This obviously ignores the fact that they broke down the door in the middle of the night, and that Taylor’s boyfriend thought they were home intruders.

Still, why was Rittenhouse, who is from Antioch, Ill., in Kenosha in the first place? He and other armed civilians stationed themselves outside a car dealership, allegedly to protect businesses during the protests.

He also falsely claimed to be a certified EMT. Though the largely peaceful protests that day did see some property damage, it is the job of law enforcement officers rather than civilians to arrest — and not kill — those individuals.

While Rittenhouse’s presence in Kenosha was ostensibly to protect other civilians from violence, he was ultimately responsible for the two deaths which occurred that night.

Misdemeanor charges for carrying a gun were, in fact, dropped before the trial. Wisconsin has open carry laws, but self-defense lawyers have claimed that the specific type of firearm used by Rittenhouse was not a violation, stating that the type of gun he possessed was intended to allow younger owners to hunt.

Seventeen-year-old Rittenhouse avoided this charge on account of ambiguities and exceptions in the law. In the state of Illinois, gun ownership requires a Firearm Owners Identification

card or a sponsor over the age of 21. However, Rittenhouse’s firearm was owned by a friend who was of age in Wisconsin — who bought it with Rittenhouse’s money on his behalf. This prevented Rittenhouse from being charged for carrying a firearm over state lines, even though he lives in Illinois.

At first glance, given that all three of the men shot by Rittenhouse were white, this case does not appear to connect to the deep racial inequities in America. However, it is impossible to extricate this incident from its backdrop — the protests following the shooting of Blake, a Black man, by a white police officer. The shooting that left Blake paralyzed came just months after the killing of George Floyd by police officers, which sparked a national reckoning and greatly increased the reach of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Social media posts have revealed Rittenhouse to be a supporter of Blue Lives Matter, a movement in support of police officers which rose in opposition to the Black Lives Matter movement. When Rittenhouse showed up at the protests with an AR-15 to protect businesses, he was classifying supporters of justice for Blake as rioters and was ready to kill them if necessary, as implied by the fact that he brought an AR-15, a military-style weapon designed for war.

Additionally, it is clear that Rittenhouse’s status as a white

male teenager affected the behavior of the police officers he dealt with the night of the shooting and afterwards. Footage before the shootings shows officers giving Rittenhouse a bottle of water, not at all phased by the fact that he was carrying an AR-15. Witnesses tried to tell police that he was the shooter immediately after the shooting, and when he went to turn himself in at a police station in Wisconsin, he was told to go home. Eventually, Rittenhouse turned himself in at his hometown’s police station in Illinois.

A police interview was even stopped when it became clear that Rittenhouse didn’t understand his Miranda rights. As many have pointed out, a Black teenager would not have been afforded these same courtesies.

Many Republican lawmakers and conservative media programs have lauded Rittenhouse as a vigilante hero. Republican Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz has even offered him an internship — an alarming decision. Regardless of the technical legality of his actions, it is clear that a dangerous precedent has been set.

Citizens can walk the streets play-acting the roles of trained officers, resulting in people’s deaths and no consequences for the killer. It is possible that this case has emboldened other misguided people who want to see themselves as heroes.

Rosenbaum and Huber, as well as countless others throughout

our history, have died because of the United States’ obsession with gun ownership and the flaws in our legal system. As I reported in the Daily last year, deaths by gun violence correlate with gun ownership in a country; the United States’ gun homicide rate is 25 times those of other high-income countries. Research has shown that the United States is not more prone to violence but rather the prevalence of guns in our society makes our crimes more deadly.

In fact, despite many arguing that the Second Amendment protects Americans by allowing them to defend themselves, research shows that countries like the U.K. and New Zealand who have instituted strict gun control laws have far lower homicide rates. Countless tragic cases, from the death of Ahmaud Arbery — whose killers were convicted two weeks ago — to the recent shooting of four students by a classmate in Michigan, make it clear that American lives are taken, not saved, by access to firearms, regardless of whether justice is served in the aftermath.

Ultimately, Kyle Rittenhouse has been rightfully acquitted of all charges according to the law. But this doesn’t mean that what he did was acceptable.

We must fight for greater racial justice and equity in this country, reject the narratives of the right-wing media that support vigilantism like that displayed by Rittenhouse and enact tougher gun control laws to protect all Americans.

8 Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Sports

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Women’s basketball takes down UMass Dartmouth, continues strong start to season

by Matt Chen

Assistant Sports Editor

As the final buzzer sounded in Tufts women’s basketball’s matchup against the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Corsairs on Dec. 4, the Jumbos came out on top with a resounding 76–59 win over the hosts to improve to 5–1 on the season. In a game defined by lots of backand-forth action, the Jumbos used a huge fourth quarter to pull away and come out with the win.

The game started with both teams trading baskets for much of the first quarter, with the Jumbos holding a 1-point lead heading into the second quarter. However, the second quarter was a different story as the Jumbos scored 18 points and held the Corsairs to just seven points, taking a 12-point lead into halftime. Senior guard and co-captain Molly Ryan was instrumental in the Jumbos’ second-quarter surge, scoring six points including a huge 3-pointer that kickstarted a 9–0 Jumbos run. Ryan led all scorers with 23 points, while also chipping in three rebounds, three assists and four steals.

COURTESY JARED MARSHALL

The Tufts women’s basketball team defeated UMass Dartmouth 76–59 on Dec. 4.

The second half began in a similar fashion to the first, with both teams trading baskets and UMass Dartmouth taking advantage of a 16–7 run to keep things close. Yet another 3-pointer from Ryan late in the third seemed to be sufficient to keep the lead just big enough for the Jumbos. In what seemed to be a pattern, the fourth quarter overwhelmingly favored the Jumbos, allowing them to pull away from the Corsairs and take the win in a comfortable fashion. Graduate guard and co-captain Erin

Poindexter McHan spearheaded the Jumbos’ fourth-quarter attack, splashing three 3-pointers, including two toward the end of the game, to steal the game for the Jumbos.

While the Jumbos’ offense exploded in the second and fourth quarters, Ryan highlighted their strong defense as the main reason they were able to pull away.

“I believe what really changed the game was our defense,” Ryan said. “In the second quarter, we communicated more efficiently on the defensive end leading us to get stops,”

The three-headed attack of Ryan, Poindexter McHan, who scored 22 points and shot a scorching six of nine from three and junior forward Maggie Russell, who logged another double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds, was too much for the Corsairs’ defense to handle.

With Russell and senior forward and co-captain Sofia Rosa down low, defense shifted much of its attention to the bigs. This naturally led to open looks from behind the arc that needed to be capitalized on. The Jumbos did just that, shooting 11–28 (39.3%) from deep.

The Jumbos also logged 17 assists as a team. Coupled with a strong shooting night from three, head coach Jill Pace spoke on the importance of finding open players and how the presence of Russell and Rosa opens up more offensive opportunities.

“UMass Dartmouth does a nice job helping in the paint, which inevitably leaves some people open [so] it’s just a matter of finding those players who are open,” Pace said. “You talk about hitting open shots when

you have great post players like [Russell] and [Rosa] down there in the paint, the defense really collapses on them which enables our shooters to get more open.”

The win over the Corsairs was a nice rebound after a narrow loss to Transylvania on Nov. 21, the only loss for the Jumbos in the early portion of this season. Currently ranked as the No. 15 Div. III team in the country, the Jumbos continue to show why they are considered one of Div. III’s top teams year in and year out. With lots of basketball left to play, the Jumbos do not plan to let their foot off the gas pedal any time soon.

With a long season ahead, Pace emphasized the importance of continuous improvement and maintaining consistency.

“We focus on getting better every day,” Pace said. “I think just being consistent through minute to minute and quarter to quarter and, you know, just making those improvements so that we’re peaking at the right time down the line.”

The Jumbos return to Cousens Gym for a Wednesday night tilt against WPI on Dec. 8.

Men’s basketball falls to Brandeis in 5-overtime battle

by Keila McCabe

Assistant Sports Editor

Tufts men’s basketball fell to Brandeis after five overtime periods in the final of the New England Big 4 Challenge this past weekend. Tufts beat Salem State 78–52 on Dec. 3 to advance to the championship game. Yet after a hard-fought battle, the Brandeis Judges ultimately secured the home court championship win with a score of 108–102.

In the Friday game against Salem State, freshman forward Bobby Stewart had a standout game, securing 20 points and eight rebounds. The entire Jumbo roster worked together, with a pretty evenly spread-out offense.

Junior guard and co-captain Tyler Aronson credited the successful performance to the team’s specific preparation for Salem State.

“We played very [well] together,” Aronson said. “We prepared for them all week to play a good zone and our focus for that was at a really high level. And then just being together on offense, moving the ball around well, really built our confidence going into the next game of the Big 4 tournament.”

Heading into the championship game against Brandeis on Saturday, Dec. 4, the team had high energy and positive attitudes. Coming from an 18–1 deficit within the first 10 minutes of the game, players rallied for an impressive comeback and shift-

ed their momentum. A combination of good Jumbo defense and an impressive offensive performance by junior guard Dylan Thoerner put the team within reach, as the Jumbos only trailed by four points at the half.

The Judges and Jumbos went back and forth for the remainder of the game with strong ball movement and offense all around. A clutch jump by graduate student guard Brennan Morris tied up the score 61–61 with three seconds remaining in regular play, sending the game into overtime. The two teams continued the evenly matched contest, as the score only increased by five points for each side, 66–66, in the first overtime.

With 18 seconds left in the second overtime, Thoerner made a 3-point jump shot, sending the game into its third overtime.

Brandeis matched this shot in the third overtime, making a three-point shot with 17 seconds remaining to force a fourth overtime. To send the game into its fifth and final overtime, Morris stepped up again in the final 20 seconds with a three-point shot to tie the score 94–94. The Judge offense ran away with the win in the final overtime to win the game 108–102. Thoerner commented on the games’ energy.

“We never felt like we were out of it, even when we were down five points with 20 seconds left,” Thoerner said. “Those last few minutes in the second half we

COURTESY JARED MARSHALL

Tufts men’s basketball players are pictured in their season opener on Nov. 16. They lost 92–71 to the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. just kept fighting and believing we had a chance to win, playing hard. Each overtime we felt like we had a chance to win. It was a great battle against Brandeis.”

Thoerner finished the game with an impressive 34 points, also 16–16 from the free throw line for the night. Junior guard Carson Cohen and Stewart both secured double-doubles with 10 rebounds and 11 points and 16

rebounds and 13 points, respectively. As the game went to several overtimes, several Jumbo starters fouled out, forcing the rest of the team to work harder for the rest of the game.

Aronson said the team effort was great and informative of its recent focus to fight hard in games.

“A lot of different people throughout the game stepped

up in a major way, a lot of big plays were made,” Aronson said. “Obviously it’s super deflating losing a game that you played 50-plus minutes in, but we’re really trying to find our identity as a tough, hard-working, gritty team and that game encapsulated a lot of that. Trying to find the silver lining in that game, a lot of people got some significant minutes and got to really show that our hard work is starting to pay off in making steps in the right direction.”

The weekend tournament currently leaves the Jumbos with a 2–6 record. Reflecting on the season thus far and looking forward to the remainder, Aronson said the team has work to do but is making great progress internally, despite its record.

“We had a great season two years ago and we were pretty highly ranked in the preseason, and now everybody thinks we’re a vulnerable team,” Aronson said. “When it comes to us preparing and showing up for games, we need to be ready to go right from the tip until the final buzzer. Putting together two halves for us is going to be really important for us. Also, staying locked in and staying positive with our season because I think we are really making some good strides.”

The team plays Nichols College in Cousens Gym on Saturday, Dec. 11 at 3 p.m.