The Tufts Daily - Thursday, April 27, 2023

T HE T UFTS D AILY

TCu s enate presidential candidates participate in forum

by Aaron Gruen Executive News Editor

Tufts Community Union Senate presidential candidates

Arielle Galinsky and Wanci Nana participated in a forum hosted by the TCU Elections Commission on April 25. During the forum, Galinsky and Nana, both juniors, fielded questions from ECOM and attendees of the forum.

In her opening statement, Galinsky, the current TCU Senate vice president, talked about her experience and her goals if elected.

“As a senator, I’ve been able to work through a lot of obstacles that have faced senators in the past and collectively, with the support that I’ve received from the amazing senate body, worked towards change,” she said. “It’s my goal and my objective to actively work towards reducing barriers for students with the understanding that these barriers are not equitably distributed across the school.”

Nana’s opening statement focused on his experiences as a former TCU senator, president of the Tufts Black Men’s Group, an interfaith ambassador and a

varsity soccer player, as well as an outline of his plans if elected.

“Through those different positions, I’ve had the opportunity to engage with the Tufts community,” Nana said. “My focus is more so on creating spaces for the different people on this campus to share conversations and talk about things that matter to them … and [seeing] if there are opportunities for potential overlap that can be used to create programming, initiatives and conversations that serve everybody.”

Candidates were then asked how they would promote diversity and culture classes offered at Tufts. Nana, answering first, offered conversation as a solution.

“It comes down to … speaking with students, hearing what they’re interested in and … working with the different cultural centers, administration and staff that work with culture and seeing what knowledge gaps are there in our curriculum,” he said.

Galinsky pointed to a “lack of diversity among all Tufts hires, in all Tufts classes.”

“Diversifying classes stems [from] and relies on a diversification of staff, and the lack of

diverse staff and professors at Tufts is an issue across every single department — from engineering to humanities — and therefore it trickles down and affects every single student’s Tufts experience,” she said.

Galinsky also said she would work with student leaders to put pressure on the administration and ensure that “the professors in each of these departments at Tufts is reflective of the diversity of the student body.”

Galinsky and Nana were then asked how their personal experiences shaped their ability to advocate for marginalized students.

Galinsky pointed to her work as vice president, ranging from advocating for two new identity centers to her work organizing a February DEIJ town hall, to her pilot program to put free menstrual products in bathrooms around campus.

Nana explained that, as a Black man at a predominantly white institution, he had to learn whom to “build relationships with in order to succeed within this system.”

“I would like to take what I have learned, alongside things

that people in my community and outside of my community have learned … and amplify that so that other people who are not in the same position as myself, or students like us at Tufts, can still move forward and make the most out of whatever situation it is that they’re in.”

The final question from ECOM focused on the candidates’ experiences uplifting the campus community from outside the Senate.

Nana referred to his experience with BMG and his community advocacy.

“I’ve created spaces for conversations for the Black men on our campus to discuss things that are relevant for them,” he said. “Within interfaith ambassadors, I have worked in spaces to create programming that brings together people from different backgrounds, different cultures and different perspectives … so that we can work together to make this community inclusive for everybody.”

Galinsky pointed to her work as president of Tufts Best Buddies, curator of TEDxTufts

rapper dee-1 discusses rap as a teaching tool in s olomont speaker s eries

by Aditya Acharya News Editor

Rapper, activist and educator Dee-1 spoke about hip-hop as a force for social justice, education and community engagement on April 19 as part of the Tisch College Solomont Speaker Series.

Dee-1 currently serves as the Nasir Jones Hip-Hop Fellow at Harvard University and is the recipient of the 2020 NAACP “Power of Influence Award,” highlighting his activism and commitment to inspiring youth. His recent album, “Finding Balance,” debuted at No. 4 in the world on the Apple Music/iTunes Hip-Hop Charts.

Dayna Cunningham, dean of the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, opened the event by acknowledging that fellow rapper, record producer, entrepre-

neur and MIT Visiting Professor Lupe Fiasco could not attend as scheduled.

She situated the event in the context of hardships currently facing Black Americans, noting the recent shooting of Ralph Yarl, a Black teen who was shot by a white homeowner after he rang the wrong doorbell when picking up his younger siblings.

“What really hurts is that after being shot … this 16-year-old, doe-eyed boy goes from house to house seeking help, and nobody would help him,” Cunningham said. “He finally knocks on the third door, and somebody says, ‘I won’t let you in, but I’ll call EMS.’ And it makes me wonder sometimes what kind of country we live in. That is the context for this conversation tonight.”

Dee-1 began his lecture in artistic form, giving the audience

a synopsis of the music he produces and its deeper significance.

“I need another title / I’m no longer a rapper / I’m a rhyming revolutionary / authoring chapters / In this book we call life / here to give you instructions / on fighting self-destruction / over beautiful production,” Dee-1 rapped.

As Dee-1 began describing the function of rap as a teaching tool, an audience member informed him and event administrators that racist messages from the livestream’s chat function were appearing on the screen. Dee-1 decided to proceed with the conversation without the prepared slideshow, an act praised by both Cunningham and University President Anthony Monaco in an email sent to the Tufts community the next morning.

“That teaches us about the kind of stuff we just spoke about, called grit,” Dee-1 said. “Grit is the ability to keep going, even when things may not be convenient, may not even be in your favor, so if it’s okay with y’all, we’re gonna keep going.”

To exemplify the impact that rap music can have on students’ learning, Dee-1 recounted his experience as a middle school math teacher after graduating from college.

“While I’m teaching, I’m realizing that my students are learn-

Tufts reacts to Dobbs, 10 months after

AARON GRUEN / THE TUFTS DAILY

Wanci Nana and Arielle Galinsky speak at the TCU Senate Presidential forum at Anderson Hall on April 25.

Rapper Dee-1 speaks at the ASEAN Auditorium on

THE

Galinsky, Nana present presidential platforms

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and co-founder and leader of the Legacy Project at Tufts.

“I have experienced what it’s like to start a club at Tufts, and the amount of obstacles that students have had to face while doing that, and that is definitely translated into my platform,”

Galinsky said. “It’s been such a privilege to get to work with so many incredible individuals across the Tufts University plat-

form and hear from them as to what matters most.”

After fielding questions from attendees of the forum, both candidates gave closing remarks. Nana said his experience building relationships and engaging with the Tufts community would help him as president.

“If I were to win the presidency, [I would] be stepping into a great system and structure full of great people that are very ambitious, very driven and very pas-

sionate about the work that they do,” Nana said. “I would like to work alongside them while also bringing in other stakeholders to the table to help amplify the greater effect of [the] Senate on our campus.” Galinsky said she would draw from her three years of experience and continue to pursue more projects if elected as president.

“Experience in this role is extraordinarily important;

you, as the president, have to serve and be the guide for the rest of the senate body, to let them know how to pursue projects and to show them how to actually make change,” she said. “The amount of obstacles I faced over these past three years have been immense, but because I’ve been able to work through them over the past years, I know how to overcome them and how to advise other senators.”

Solomont Speaker Series explores rap as a teaching tool

DEE-1

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ing the lyrics to their favorite rap songs way quicker than they are learning the long division and the multiplying of decimals and fractions that I’m trying to teach them,” Dee-1 said.

Dee-1 noted that rappers carry a lot of responsibility: if they spread falsehoods in their music, their fans might perceive their words as the truth.

“If you’re a teacher, and you got a class full of impressionable students, and you tell them that six times six is 43 … if they don’t know any better, they’re gonna be like, I just learned something …” he said. “If you make it sound good, it’s not only just something that’s being taught, but it’s something that has a rhythm to it. … Six times six is

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43. Six times six is 43 … Now, it’s really stuck in your head.”

Given how impressionable their audiences can be — especially younger ones — Dee-1 said that rappers must always reflect on the potential impact of their lyrics.

“What if inherently, underneath the rhythm … underneath the catchiness, what if … what you’re teaching is cap — it’s not a fact?” Dee-1 continued. “Even if it is something that you might say, ‘Well, this is my truth,’ you have to ask yourself, ‘Is it healthy that you’re teaching this?’”

Dee-1 emphasized that everyone involved in hip-hop — whether they be a commissioner, creator or consumer — has a responsibility to ensure that hip-hop makes a positive influence.

“People who play the role of commissioners … have to ask themselves, ‘What am I incentivizing creators to want to create?’” he said. “Many artists who are creators, they will simply go where the money is.”

Dee-1, whose real name is David Augustine, then talked about his infatuation with the biblical story of David and Goliath, the namesake for one of his first albums. He encouraged the audience to find and utilize their own gifts — or “slingshots” against their own metaphorical Goliaths, the same way Dee-1 did through rap.

“I said, ‘Oh, I’m David,’ the difference is my Goliath doesn’t look like a big nine-foot giant,” he said. “My Goliath might look like poverty growing up in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans … My Goliath

looks like discrimination, being a Black man in America.”

Dee-1 expressed pride in his academic and career achievements, sharing that accomplishments like his own are often not publicized by others in the hiphop industry because they deviate from public perceptions of rappers.

“Y’all know how many rappers have [4.0 GPAs] in school, but they don’t tell you that?” Dee-1 said. “I had to learn that being my most authentic self is embracing all of the things that don’t typically fit into being a rapper that make me special. So, yes, I brag on being a college graduate … on being at Harvard … on being a middle school teacher … I learned to embrace those things, because that’s what makes me authentic.”

as armed conflicts erupt in sudan, Fletcher expert and students offer insight

by Sidney Tokwe Staff Writer

Originally published April 25

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Armed conflict broke out in Khartoum, Sudan on April 15 as the national army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces battle each other for control of the country. Fletcher School students Eliab Taye and Chepkorir Sambu offer perspective on the humanitarian crisis in Sudan along with Professor Chidi Odinkalu.

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“[The situation] is quite fragile … in Khartoum,” Chidi Odinkalu, a legal professional and professor of practice in international human tights law at The Fletcher School, said. “Movement is quite difficult. Most public services are not functioning, from the reports that we get. And indeed, if you’re speaking with anyone in Khartoum … you quite literally hear the sound of gunfire. You hear the sound of fighting; that’s how bad things are.”

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Eliab Taye, a Fletcher student specializing in international security, with areas of interests in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East, has Sudanese friends unable to escape the crisis.

“Some of my friends are stuck,” Taye said. “I still talk to them, and they were still asking me for help.”

As of April 20, The World Health Organization has reported over 300 civilian deaths and more than 3,000 injuries.

Chepkorir Sambu, a Fletcher student studying negotiation and conflict resolution as well as international legal studies, sees the collapse of Sudan’s capital as part of a broader geopolitical crisis in the Horn of Africa.

“The countries that neighbor Sudan are already in bad condition and Sudan had a stake in those conflicts,” she said. “So it makes the whole conflict situation in Africa much, much worse.”

According to Taye, the outbreak of violence has ties to Sudan’s complicated past.

“So, talking about the conflict is actually to understand the conflict dynamics,” Taye said. “We have to understand the history of Sudan, its history of colonialism, its geopolitical location, the ethnic dynamics within Sudan and the regional political situation that is unfolding at the moment.”

Taye went on to talk about the country’s political organization, explaining how militia forces are involved.

“Within the Sudanese political dynamics … there’s an autocratic system,” Taye explained.

“The president wanted to ‘coupproof’ the system because there are competing security apparatuses in Sudan. So, you have an armored wing of the national security intelligence services, which has its own armor elements. And then you have the standing Sudanese armed forces, and then you have other paramilitary militias, which are all used in

… conducting counterinsurgency movements in various parts of the country.”

The Rapid Support Forces led by Mohamed “Hemedti” Hamdan Dagalo, was formed in 2013 as an aiding paramilitary force by Sudan’s longtime ruler, Omar Al-Bashir, to combat growing civil rebellion in the Darfur region. Ever since then the RSF has continued to grow in power and wealth, eventually toppling Bashir from power in 2019, in collaboration with Sudanese army leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

“So, the conflict [began] on Saturday, [April 15],” Taye said. “It’s not clear who started the conflict, who shot the first bullet, but it ended up being a fullblown conflict, an urban conflict in which fighter jets, artillery and heavy weapons were used. And the people, the civilians are under a lot of distress.”

Humanitarian aid channels are closing as the battle continues, leaving civilians stranded. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called for a ceasefire marking Eid al-Fitr and to allow citizens to seek essential supplies. Odinkalu spoke to the difficulty of the conflict due to the fact that the RSF is an unruled and irregular military force.

“They are using irregular fighting mechanisms, fighting tactics or strategies for urban warfare,” Odinkalu said. “This is urban warfare with conventional

ordinance and, that, the consequences no one can really say.”

In 2004, Odinkalu co-founded the Sudan Consortium, formerly the Darfur Consortium, a group of over 50 NGOs, legal think tanks and academics that sought to address the extensive violence and genocide occuring in Darfur, a region in western Sudan. Drawing from his experience in African politics, he warned that damage could be extensive if the war is not contained quickly.

Citing ongoing cross-border crises in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, a regional bloc in the Horn of Africa chaired by Sudan, Odinkalu said that the war could spill over into many countries.

“All of these regional dimensions mean that the crisis in Sudan is not just an internal crisis for Sudan and the people of Sudan,” Odinkalu explained. “It’’s also a legit regional crisis affecting that entire region and affecting essentially the Nile Basin countries.”

Odinkalu condemned the conflict, stressing the need for responsible governance.

“We cannot continue to have situations where mad people are running countries,” he said. “We treat them as if they are sensible human beings, and accord them the niceties that attend to sovereignty and to holding power. It’s a special form of insanity, what is happening in Sudan, quite clearly.”

Tufts community members react 10 months after roe v. wade is overturned

by Becca Pinto Staff Writer

Originally published April 25

On June 24, 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark decision that granted American women the right to abortion. As a consequence, pregnant people, especially those living in red states, may no longer be able to access medical abortions. In the 10 months since the ruling, various legal actions have followed in response to the tightening restrictions. Community members at Tufts shared their views on the ruling’s implications for young women.

Sarah Lee Day is a visiting lecturer currently teaching an Experimental College class on the subject of abortion in the United States. She voiced concerns about abortion laws that seek to further criminalize abortions, such as an ‘abortion trafficking’ bill passed in Idaho on April 5.

“The way that the law is written is that it’s specifically aimed at minors, so adults that help minors travel out of state for abortion without their parents’ permission would be guilty of, or could be found guilty of, human trafficking,” Day said.

According to Day, most pregnant youth get a parent or guardian involved in conversations on how to handle the situation. Young people who are most at risk or who have suffered abuse are more likely to keep it to themselves and thus be forced to seek help from other sources.

“So in the cases where … the youth are not willing to talk with their parents, it’s usually not that they’re not willing, it’s that there is an actual barrier stopping them,” Day said. “It may be that the parent is the one who is responsible for impregnating them. It may be that there are other types of abuse. It may be that the impregnation was at the hands of a family friend, and they’re afraid that the family won’t believe them.”

In such situations, Day explains that the Idaho bill will only compound the inequities that pregnant youth already face.

“Youth who already have good relationships with their parents will still be able to get out of state for abortion,” Day said. “For people who already have troubled relationships with their parents, to people who already have certain barriers or oppressions that they face, this is just going to compound that. And there’s obviously going to be racial components to that; there’s going to be socioeconomic components to that.”

Day also spoke about the recent legal battle surrounding mifepristone, the first pill in a two-step procedure for a medical abortion that was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000. At the time of Day’s interview with the Daily, the validity of that approval was under question following a case brought to court in Texas. Following the interview, on April 21, the Supreme Court blocked a ruling issued by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in the U.S. District Court in Texas that had invalidated the FDA’s approval of the drug.

“If [a reversal of the FDA approval of mifepristone] occurred, that would be

Abby Stern What I Wish I Knew

It’s nice not to know things

Istarted this study abroad journey as a slightly uptight, gently neurotic individual obsessed with learning all the important things I needed to make the most of this semester. Four months later, I am still a slightly uptight, gently neurotic individual who now understands that in order to make the most of studying abroad, it’s actually incredibly nice not to know exactly what comes next.

What I Wish I Knew: Over the course of study abroad, I will grow so much more from the things I didn’t know than from the things for which I was prepared.

It’s stressful to realize that study abroad is like returning to freshman year, but it’s thrilling to make your first real friend and go out to a London pub for the first time.

catastrophic, because at least people who can’t get surgical abortions in red states right now can still potentially get a medication abortion mailed in,” Day said. “If they can’t even [get that], it’s going to cause even more problems beyond just the travel aspect.”

Day also mentioned a failed South Carolina bill that proposed the death penalty for those who get an abortion. Though the bill was considered dead on arrival, Day said its mere existence demonstrates the grave consequences that women seeking abortions in red states may face in a world without Roe v. Wade.

Senior Aleksia Kleine is conducting her capstone research on abortion travel. According to Kleine, women face countless issues when traveling for abortions, the most glaring one being financial barriers.

“Financially, it’s just really difficult, especially for people [who] don’t have a lot of disposable income. It’s really difficult to, first of all, just pay for a plane ticket or pay for gas, or rent a car, if you don’t have a car,” Kleine said. “It’s also difficult to pay for childcare if you’re leaving a state for a day or a few days. Also, the actual cost of the procedure is usually difficult.”

According to Kleine, the obstacles that might come with traveling to obtain an abortion will likely lead to an increase in unwanted pregnancies.

“Some people can’t leave work, or, … to leave work, they have to disclose [the abortion] to someone that they don’t want to tell,” Kleine said. “There are also a bunch of emotional problems with [abortion travel], like people not being able to go with family members, or being separated from their kids for a long period of time, or having a sense of shame, … or a sense of fear of legal [prosecution].”

Blythe Elderd is a first-year student from Baton Rouge, La. She recalled seeing friends from her home state react to the news on social media the day that Roe v. Wade was overturned. In the aftermath of the ruling, Louisiana residents need to drive 10 hours on average to reach the nearest abortion clinic, according to CNN.

“I think people have kind of just learned to live with it and learned to

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accept it,” Elderd said. “[There was] a trigger law that was already written and then it was put into effect as soon as Roe v. Wade got abolished, so literally that day people that were scheduled to get abortions couldn’t get their abortions. And so that was really scary.”

ShaSha Kingston is a junior from Boise, Idaho — the same state that passed the abortion trafficking bill earlier this month. She described how there is a mix of opinions across the state, and the capital of Boise tends to have a more progressive tilt.

“Young people are really frustrated, [but] some of them don’t really care,” Kingston said. “I definitely think in Boise, there’s a really big surge of anger that’s coming from this, but I don’t think a lot of people know how it’s going to individually impact them.”

Kingston expressed concern about the emotional distress that many women in states that have banned or severely restricted abortions now face.

“I think there’s a lot of fear,” Kingston said. “A lot of people [are] planning themselves and being like, ‘Okay, I need to protect myself. I need to make sure I don’t get into this situation,’ and a lot of the blame is being pushed on an individual instead of the system.”

Kingston mentioned how anti-abortion measures in Idaho have been causing some medical professionals to leave the state, which can have impacts on other sectors of health care provision. On a personal level, Kingston has observed how the overturn of Roe v. Wade has deterred some of her own friends living out of the state from the prospect of returning home long term.

“A lot of us were like, ‘Maybe we’ll come back to Idaho after we graduate or something. It’s a beautiful place,’” Kingston said. “[Now,] a lot of my friends, especially my female friends, are also like, ‘No, I’m never coming back. I could never be here and also raise kids here.’”

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned nearly a year ago, the United States has been grappling with the ramifications and will continue to do so for years to come. The upcoming 2024 presidential elections will again put abortion at the forefront of the American conscience.

It’s hard to let go of a stable routine, but it’s fun to realize that you can’t write your Tufts Daily column this weekend because, instead, your friends are going to hang out in Soho.

It stinks to realize that your classes are actually difficult, but it makes it all the better when you get your first good grade on a midterm at a U.K. university.

It’s hard to realize that you can’t meticulously plan out every trip so that you can visit everywhere in Europe, but it makes it so much more special when you do get to travel.

It’s a bummer to miss your family, but it’s incredible to realize that you can, in fact, survive more than 3,000 miles away from them.

It’s scary to realize that school in London ends in March, but it’s so much fun to realize that you can plan a trip to Monaco or Budapest with just a few days’ notice.

For every difficult part of studying abroad and for every single aspect of this experience that I wish I had known about before, there was something truly special to be gained from the spontaneity of my life, and from the anticipation that something incredible could be just around the corner that I don’t even know about yet.

So now, after seven columns telling you What I Wish I Knew, I guess I’m saying … who cares about knowing absolutely everything. Some things are better left to the unknown until you get the thrill of discovering them for yourself.

Abby Stern is a Staff Writer at The Tufts Daily. She is a junior studying political science and women, gender, and sexuality studies. Abby can be reached at abigail. stern@tufts.edu.

Protests at the U.S. Supreme Court are pictured on the day Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Saba S. and Jack Clohisy Queeries

That’sa (queer) wrap

We were raised believing that the “gay agenda” was an attack on the white picket fence American dream. While the traumas that accompany queerness range from constant victimization to harassment to rejection, there is something purely evil that comes with internalized homophobia.

Being only 22 years old, we both have seen how much the gay liberation movement has grown in the past decade. This ranges from the mere shift in the mindset of our parents’ generation to the queer representation in the media.

The one thing that never seems to fade away, unfortunately, is the personal denial, alteration, and over achievement that comes as a consequence of a bid for attention. Even now there continues to be a constant fluctuation in who queer people choose to have relationships with and what they want.

As hard as it is to admit, immediate gratification has led to the tendency to discount longer-term rewards. For the generation we grew up in, it is hard to know the line between healthy space and abandonment, and oftentimes, we are all in a constant state of emotional pain.

We were raised in a society that rapidly changed, but that doesn’t mean that the homophobia of the 2000s had no effect on us. We are hurting, growing and flourishing every day trying to move past our own experiences with oppression.

None of us need to be fixed or to have our problems solved for us; we just need to be validated. But again, when we are so stuck on that instant gratification that we lacked for so long, how can we move past the one thing holding us back: ourselves.

That’s where Queeries came in. A space for us to celebrate and unabashedly relish the joy of being a queer student at Tufts. We could discuss topics we usually shared with one another, knowing that for the other queer readers of our column, maybe some of the discourse they wished they could see somewhere was present in our weekly musings. If there’s one thing we want anyone who has ever read any of the iterations of Queeries to know, it’s that there is space for YOU! Keep talking, keep dreaming and keep changing the conversation. We love to see underrepresented voices and narratives spotlighted, and we are so blessed to have had a space to share and discuss queer stories, and we owe that to the queer community at Tufts. We have nothing but love and appreciation left to share.

Signing off from Queeries, Saba and Jack

Saba S. is a columnist at the Tufts Daily. Jack Clohisy is a senior studying Computer Science and Cognitive & Brain Science. Jack can be reached at jack.clohisy@tufts. edu.

‘succession’ leaves nothing unsaid in its final season

by Nate Hall Arts Editor

Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers for season 4 of “Succession.”

At first it sounds like a happy scene: Kendall, Shiv and Roman Roy walk out of media mogul Nan Pierce’s estate after making a bold $10 billion offer to purchase Pierce’s media company, PGM. But as they celebrate their successful bid, they receive a call from the rival bidder — none other than their father, Logan.

“Congratulations on saying the biggest number, you f---ing morons,” he states, before hanging up the phone.

This scene caps off the first episode of the final season of “Succession” (2018–2023). Yet what may seem like a climactic moment in the story is just another week in the life of the Roys, the fictional billionaire family whose lives are chronicled in the hit HBO drama. In this season, Logan Roy (Brian Cox), the cold-hearted founder and CEO of the mega-media conglomerate Waystar RoyCo, squares off against his three children — Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin) and Shiv (Sarah Snook) — who have finally teamed up to seize control of the company after their ousting in last season’s finale. Meanwhile, Logan prepares to meet with billionaire Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård) to negotiate Waystar’s acquisition by the streaming giant GoJo.

Since its premiere in 2018, “Succession” has captivated audiences with its complex characters, sharp writing and timely subject matter. The series, created by British screenwriter Jesse Armstrong, explores the ins and

outs of Waystar RoyCo, a powerful family-owned conservative media corporation (a la the Murdochs of Fox News) with the same level of familial scheming, backstabbing and plot twists as a Shakespearean drama.

The most shocking twist yet (you’ve been warned) comes in episode three of this new season, when the three siblings, gathered at the wedding of their older brother Connor (Alan Ruck), receive word from Logan’s inner circle that Logan has died en route to his meeting with Matsson. Many viewers speculated that the aging CEO would die by the end of the final season, but few expected it to happen so early (or so suddenly). Beyond the immediate shock value of his death, Logan’s early demise was a shrewd writing decision that sets up the ultimate power struggle in the coming episodes as his children and colleagues vie for control of the company.

“Succession” is the pinnacle of modern-day television writing, with cleverly plotted story arcs, incredible comic moments of snappy, swear-laden dialogue and heartbreaking scenes of tragedy. The show is at its absolute peak during episode three, the bulk of which is a stunning 30-minute sequence where the siblings learn about their father’s death in real time. The result is a devastating mix of confusion and grief as each of the siblings processes the news in their own way. While Kendall’s stoicism and Roman’s denial to accept the reality of the situation add intensity to the episode, it’s Shiv’s outpouring of shock and devastation that makes the moment feel so incredibly real (Sarah Snook’s Emmy campaign starts now).

The series’ remarkable ensemble cast seems to just keep getting better. Although

he only lasted a few episodes this season, Brian Cox’s Logan was a force to be reckoned with. Cox gives a triumphant performance in episode two as he attempts to convince his children to allow the GoJo sale to go through, only to be reminded of the lifetimes of trauma and neglect he inflicted on each of them. Kieran Culkin’s Roman, who has always been the most cynical and childish of the siblings, has grown into a more nuanced, empathetic character in season four. (The fact that audiences are able to sympathize with all of these characters despite the terrible decisions they make is a testament to both the writing and the cast.) The standout performer is the brilliant Matthew Macfadyen, who plays Waystar executive Tom Wambsgans — his crumbling marriage to Shiv makes for some heartbreaking emotional moments, while his relationship with Cousin Greg (Nicholas Braun), his best friend/assistant/punching bag, is consistently the funniest part of the show.

Even in the wake of Logan’s death, “Succession” is genuinely funny as the race to the top of Waystar’s corporate ladder continues. These moments of levity are perfectly tied together with moments of drama thanks to the show’s beautiful classical-inspired score composed by Nicholas Britell. But it’s ultimately the writing that makes the show so thrilling to watch. “Succession” has mastered the art of long-form storytelling — relationships develop gradually and characters evolve over time, but everything pays off in the end. Although it feels like we know the characters so well at this point, there’s no telling what will happen in the coming weeks as the series races towards its conclusion.

how Cindy sherman plays pretend

by Erin Zhu Assistant Arts Editor

Despite spending just under 50 years taking photographs of herself, Cindy Sherman can be found in none of them. Utilizing the format of photography portraiture, Sherman creates a theater with her own image, disguising herself with layers of costume and makeup to explore the constructed nature of identity and reality. She plays pretend, and in the process, implicates us for doing the same.

Born in 1954 in Glen Ridge, N.J., Sherman exhibited an interest in drawing and painting from a young age, leaving her hometown to pursue an arts degree at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Despite her eventual accomplishments in photography, she had actually failed her first photography course, and it was not until she independently experimented with the medium at the end of her sophomore year that she pursued it earnestly, paving the path for her rise to artistic acclaim.

Sherman is considered one of the most influential members of the Pictures Generation, a group of young artists who rose to prominence during the 1970s. Like most artistic and cultural movements, the philosophy of the Pictures Generation was largely influenced by the social and political forces of the time. The 1970s witnessed America’s humiliation in the Vietnam War and the fruitless results of the previous decade’s countercultural movement. The Pictures Generation was brought into an America that was left traumatized by political upheaval and disillusioned by rapidly increasing commercialism. Indeed, it was this rapid commercialization that eventually contributed to the increased circulation of media that would play a major role in Sherman’s work. Advertisement, television, photography and news saturated the attention of the American public, creating a

novel body of mass media. This visual rhetoric of mass media and pop culture created an environment of visual repetition and derivativeness. In the world of fine arts, it seemed that everything had been done; perspective, photography and conceptualism had all been discovered (or rediscovered), and thus, for the Pictures Generation, it appeared that all that was left to do was to do it all over again.

Cindy Sherman’s photography explores the context of archetypes, denying the viewer access to the ‘true Cindy’ by borrowing certain visual social codes. In one of her most lauded collections, “Untitled Film Stills” (1977–80) Sherman utilizes the rhetoric of classic cinema to explore this idea. In “Untitled Film Still #21,” Sherman dons a vintage cap and collared dress, gazing off into the distance with the city skyline behind her. Here, she assumes the identity of the determined yet anxious heroine. In “Untitled Film Still #52,” she lies on her side on a bed, a seductive but helpless woman, clutching a pillow beneath her. In her collection of photographs, none can be definitively attributed to a particular film or character and none can be considered self-portraits. While Sherman

is present in her work, any remnant of ‘true’ identity that the audience seeks to access is absent. One interpretation is that Sherman utilizes “Untitled Film Stills” to consider the triteness of female film characters. At the same time, through the act of impersonation and mimicry, Sherman confronts us with the possibility that our lives, like her images, are constructions. For the Pictures Generation, reality is something intangible. We may consume the images that mediate it, but at the end of the day, our identities are nothing more than a collage of symbols and signs. Perhaps this is what has kept Sherman’s work alluring. In the information age, the Pictures Generation feels more relevant than ever. Movies, television and social media are filled with people who we want to be or think we are and our personalities and beliefs become shaped through our consumption. Sherman creates something novel through the act of borrowing, re-presenting what we have already seen. She recreates the images that conduct our lived reality and have us consider that perhaps our lives are things we receive secondhand. She plays pretend, and so do we.

VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Cindy Sherman’s “Untitled Film Still 23” is pictured.

by Natalie Rossinow and Krystal Mutebi

As the ballots open for Tufts Community Union Senate President, it is time to consider who will best support you and the Tufts community during the 2023–2024 school year. One candidate in particular stands out: Arielle Galinsky, who has the experience, dedication and passion needed to be an excellent leader for Tufts.

Arielle has been an active member of our school community, both in and outside of TCU Senate, since her very first semester. She joined the Senate as a first-year in the fall of 2020: a time where Tufts needed a true leader and advocate. During her first year on the Senate, she gained a deep understanding of the issues facing our school and showed her commitment to making our community stronger. Within her first few months of serving, Arielle made a tangible impact by advocating for every undergraduate student to receive a reusable dining bag to reduce paper and plastic waste on campus.

Rejoining the Senate as a sophomore was no question for Arielle, and she was elected Services Committee Chair in her second term. In this position, she worked on tangible projects that had immediate impacts on our student body as we started to gain a glimpse of what Tufts would look like post-COVID-19. Most notably, Arielle curated, from start to finish, “Prom Reinvisioned,” which was a prom developed for those who missed this quintessential high school experience. Prom Reinvisioned was an event that brought over 1,000 members of our community together for a night of celebration. After spear-

by

Arielle Galinsky for TCU President

heading countless other projects in her sophomore year, including the Fall Break shuttle, Textbook Exchange and Gender Affirming Clothing drive, Arielle was prepared to take on the role of TCU Vice President as a junior.

This past year, Arielle has led numerous efforts all with a common thread: reinvigorating and bringing back Tufts. However, she did far more than that. She helped empower and support the Tufts community with new pilot programs and initiatives consistently rolling out. These include implementing a Community Food Pantry, putting free menstrual products in buildings across campus, spearheading a grocery store shuttle program, advocating for the implementation of mental wellness days, revitalizing Tufts Table, planning the Student Leadership Gala and serving on numerous faculty and administration committees to bring student concerns to light.

Arielle’s full list of accomplishments while on Senate, while lengthy, can be found on her website. Whether you knew it or not, Arielle Galinsky has impacted your Tufts experience. She has created a project or helped fix an issue you may never have known existed and she will only continue to do so as TCU President.

Current TCU President Jaden

Pena expressed his admiration for Arielle’s exceptional leadership skills when he told us in a written message, “It has been an honor working alongside Arielle this year. Tackling some of the most pressing issues that our student body faces is easy when you have someone like Arielle in your corner.” Over the past year, Jaden and Arielle have been a dynamic duo, working together to not only lead the Senate body, but to also advocate for change. “Arielle and

I took a collaborative approach, working on just about everything together,” Pena continued, “I can assure you that she is truly a great teammate. If Arielle wants to make something happen, she does it; no questions asked.”

Arielle’s dedication to the Tufts community extends far beyond her vital role on the TCU Senate. From promoting inclusivity by leading the Tufts Best Buddies chapter, to bringing together students passionate about neuroscience through Tufts NeuroNetwork, Arielle’s positive impact is felt everywhere on campus. Most notably, Arielle has demonstrated exceptional leadership through her role in TedxTufts. As Curator, Arielle oversees and supports various teams as they work to orchestrate their annual TedxTufts conference, drawing audiences both from Tufts and the greater Boston community. The words from TedxTufts Executive Organizer Jordan Meek exemplify Arielle’s positive influence on this organization. He told us in a written message, “Arielle consistently went above and beyond, expand-

ing the scope of responsibilities for her position while also supporting others (including myself) along the way. Above all else, I thoroughly enjoyed my time working with Arielle and regard her as a wonderful friend and even better person.”

While Arielle’s accolades and accomplishments are impressive, what is even more compelling about this candidate is her compassion, empathy and overall personality. Even after a five hour Senate meeting, she will stay another couple of hours into the early morning to talk with first-year senators who need help brainstorming a project. No matter how busy she gets, she will never miss an opportunity to talk with a student about issues they face and how she can best help and support them. As a person, Arielle upholds the values of the Senate and the TCU with the utmost integrity and dedication.

It is not just Arielle’s experience that makes her an excellent candidate. She has a clear vision for our school’s future. Arielle is passionate about combating food insecurity, uplifting marginal-

ized voices, strengthening mental health resources and fighting against menstrual inequity at Tufts. While she has spearheaded various projects in these categories, her vision for the future is unmatched, and we all know she will actively work towards whatever goal she sets. She has concrete plans for how to make our school a more welcoming and supportive environment for all students. This vision is exactly what our school needs right now.

Arielle is the ideal candidate for TCU President. She has the experience, vision, integrity and dedication needed to be a strong and effective leader for Tufts. We implore our fellow students to ask the question of who has been there for our community time and time again and who has demonstrated time and time again that they have what it takes to lead our student body. As her slogan implies, during her time in office, Arielle seeks to break down barriers to allow students to have the Tufts experience they deserve. On election day, make the right choice for Tufts and vote for Arielle Galinsky as the next TCU President.

Op-ed: Tufts graduate workers need a just contract

On Apr. 10, over 100 graduate workers filed into the Alumnae Lounge to meet with Tufts administrators and lawyers. As members of the SEIU 509 Tufts University Graduate Workers Union, it is our right to negotiate with Tufts Management over a new collective bargaining agreement — the contract that sets the terms of our working conditions. Our proposal is grounded in essential principles: we deserve fair compensation and deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. We need a just contract with wages, benefits and workplace protections that meet our basic needs.

Graduate workers perform essential labor that keeps the academic and economic wheels turning across Tufts’ campus. Many of

the required first-year writing courses in English are taught by graduate workers. In introductory labs, teaching assistants do the work of implementing cutting-edge, thoughtful and innovative pedagogy. Across the university, from designing syllabi to leading discussion sections to grading assignments, we are essential to the rigorous and acclaimed education Tufts is known for.

All the while, we help produce world-class research: we help design studies; we do specialized, technical, and intensive work to produce data; we train and mentor undergraduate researchers; and we publish valuable scholarship. Our research labor is integral to Tufts’ status as an R1 university — the highest classification for a university’s commitment to research. Tufts’ top-tier reputation across academic fields and industries across the globe is largely made possible by our labor.

Despite all that we do for the university, however, the current situation is not sustainable for graduate workers. On average, our stipend is not even 70% of the estimated cost of living for Medford/Somerville. Compared to other top-50 universities, our cost-of-living adjusted wages are one of the worst, and among Tufts’ peer institutions, our pay is the lowest. Moreover, the burdens of low wages and poor benefits fall disproportionately on members of marginalized communities. Tufts claims to be a progressive, anti-racist institution, but their treatment of graduate workers is exploitative. These work conditions often produce additional heightened anxiety and stress, deteriorating our mental and physical health, making it increasingly difficult and unsustainable to work at Tufts.

As Tufts continues to grow its near $2.5 billion endowment, it has both the resources and the

moral obligation to invest in its workers. Many graduate workers have to take on additional parttime or even full-time employment, working at coffee shops, restaurants and adjunct teaching in order to survive. We are often expected to work over weekends, university recesses and even holidays without any extra compensation. International students do not even have the option of working off-campus, unless they are granted permission, which comes with stringent restrictions. Many graduate workers on nine-month appointments are forced to move out of the Boston area every summer because they cannot afford to stay without financial support. Tufts undergraduates pay the fifth highest tuition in the nation, and yet the workers who teach their courses, labs, discussion and practicum sections are paid some of the lowest wages. Meanwhile,

Tufts paid $2 million just to name the new MBTA station.

From the Tufts dining workers to the SMFA part-time lecturers fighting for fair wage increases, we are at a pivotal moment for labor at Tufts. The administration can either compensate its workers fairly or seek to maintain the oppressive status quo. Graduate workers cannot teach well if we are not sure how to afford groceries. We cannot do quality research if we are worried about eviction. In our proposal to the administration, we are asking for a more equitable 12-month contract with a living wage and sufficient benefits because these are what we need to survive and for Tufts to prosper. We call upon the Tufts community — undergraduate and fellow graduate students, faculty, staff and alumni — to support our struggle. Please sign our petition to endorse our contract proposal and stand in solidarity with graduate workers.

COURTESY ARIELLE GALINKSY

Arielle Galinsky’s campaign graphic is featured.

Tufts University Graduate Workers Union Bargaining Committee

Editorial: Bring gender diversity back to Spring Fling

by The Editorial Board

When the Spring Fling lineup featuring Flo Rida, Cheat Codes and Charlie Curtis-Beard was announced earlier this month, one thing was notably lacking: women.

The underrepresentation of women and nonbinary artists is not atypical in the music industry. Across the globe, music festivals feature unequal gender representation. A 2017 report from the Women’s Media Center found women were systemically underrepresented in U.S. music festivals.

The organization

#BookMoreWomen has documented gender representation at music festivals and advocated for increased representation of women and nonbinary performers in lineups since its founding in 2018.

According to #BookMoreWomen’s 2022 report, women and nonbinary individuals made up only 39.8% of performers in the nation’s eight largest multi-genre music festivals. This is a 46% increase from the same festivals’ 2018 lineups.

But women and nonbinary individuals — who make up roughly 50% of the nation’s population and festival attendees — were only featured in 25% of headlining acts in 2022.

Women and gender minorities face additional difficulties within the broader music industry: ranging from the underrepresentation

Katherine Brown misCOnceptions

of women and nonbinary people in music production roles, the lack of nonbinary performers in the Billboard charts, and gendered award categories.

Tufts can play a role in the broader effort to reduce gender inequality in the music industry by booking

endorsing the petition and calling on TUSC’s Concert Board to book a female headliner and encourage gender diversity moving forward. The Concert Board listened, seeking out an all-female lineup landing on Kesha, Lion Babe and MisterWives. According to that

These include Kim Schifino of Matt and Kim in 2016; Tinashe in 2017, who headlined when T-Pain canceled his appearance due to personal obligations; Dutch ReBelle and Princess Nokia in 2018; Rico Nasty and Marcelo Cruz in 2019; and, of course, Bia and Ella Jane last year.

for this year, booking women and gender minorities can be done.

The majority of performances at Brown’s Spring Weekend this year are women, with Remi Wolf, Alice Longyu Gao, Ethel Cain, 070 Shake and Doechii joined by rapper JID. Hayden Anhedönia, whose stage name is Ethel Cain, is a transgender woman whose debut album “Preacher’s Daughter” (2022) explores queer and trans identity in a deeply religious, Southern, evangelical family through the story of the fictional character of Ethel Cain. In this form, Cain brings her gender identity to Brown’s center stage through her performance of one of the most innovative concept albums of 2022.

As Tufts has shown in the past, and as Brown has done this year, it is possible to have a Spring Fling lineup that features gender diversity, but doing so requires prioritizing booking women and nonbinary performers.

women and nonbinary performers for Spring Fling. In fact, it has done so in the past.

In 2015, students circulated a petition calling on the Tufts University Social Collective’s Concert Board to book a female headliner after 20 years without a woman gracing the stage. The Daily wrote an editorial

country are declining. I felt the need to pitch why you should consider marriage now.

year’s Concert Board Co-Chair Matt Marber, this was intentional. The Board “set out from the beginning, not just to have a female headliner, but … [a] powerhouse female lineup,” Marber said. Since the “powerhouse female lineup” of 2015, Tufts has continued to bring women to center stage.

But this year, we have reverted to the ways of the past.

We recognize that multiple factors go into booking talent for Spring Fling — including student demand and the price of talent. But as Tufts has proven in the past, and our peer institutions have confirmed in their lineups

We, as a Board, are excited for this year’s lineup and thank TUSC and the Concert Board for their efforts. But moving forward, we implore TUSC to prioritize crafting lineups that are gender inclusive, doing their part to not only ensure representation for over half of the Tufts community, but also to help combat gender inequality in music festivals and the broader music industry.

On Millie Bobby Brown and Matrimony

Ididn’t think I shared anything in common with Millie Bobby Brown until recently. As someone who also got engaged at 19 and announced the news with a Taylor-Swift-captioned Instagram post, I’ve encountered pushback when people discover I’ll be married this summer. And I get it. The average age of marriage has skyrocketed from our parents’ generation to now by about six years. Although conservatives are more likely to be married, and more likely to be married young, marriage rates around the

Firstly, marriage is better for increasing both economic stability and mental health. Shawn Grover and John Helliwell of the Vancouver School of Economics in Canada analyzed data from just under 350,000 participants in the U.K. and found married individuals were happier than their peers for extended periods of time. “Even after years the married are still more satisfied,” Helliwell said in a release. “This suggests a causal effect at all stages of the marriage, from pre-nuptial bliss to marriages of long-duration.” The benefits are predominantly seen amongst married women with children. Married mothers aged 18-55 have a mean household income of $133,000, compared to $79,000 for childless, single women aged 18-55, according to data from the U.S. Census’ American Community

Survey. Furthermore, 33% of married mothers from ages 18-55 say they are “completely satisfied” with their lives, compared to 15% of childless women aged 18-55, according to the American Family Survey. Additionally, the Brookings Institution indicates married families are significantly more likely than cohabiting families to have increased stability and more positive results in their children’s behavior, social development, educational attainment and cognitive development, among other parameters.

lege means you’ve already achieved one of the largest indicators of success when it comes to marriage.

together in your lives. I believe it’s much easier to build one life together than combine two lives later.

Secondly, if you continue on to graduate college, you’ll already be in the most successful group for strong marriages, according to the Pew Research Center. Men with at least a bachelor’s degree have a 15% higher success rate than non-college educated men and women have a whopping 38% higher success rate. If you’re concerned about your marriage failing, graduating from col-

Finally, much of the dissidence between conservatives and liberals is the issue of when they get married. Conservatives are much more likely to be married before age 26 and thus see marriage as a ‘cornerstone’ whereas liberals are more likely to see it as a ‘capstone.’ Those on the right tend to build their lives around marriage and grow together, hence why they have children at a younger age on average. Conversely, liberals are more likely to see marriage as a final achievement once they’re already established in their careers. The Institute for Family Studies shows ‘cornerstone’ marriages are more beneficial for emotional wellbeing. Building a life around a marriage enables you to be happier, have children at a younger, easier age and allows the two of you to grow

We’re adults capable of taking on tens of thousands of dollars in student debt, serving in the military and even running for office. We’re not ‘college kids’; we’re young adults who are already making serious decisions about the rest of our lives. Dating for marriage is something that is okay to want. That should be a reasonable request at our age and raising our standards should be not only allowed, but expected. I don’t know how well Millie Bobby Brown’s marriage will go, but I know I’m wishing her all the best and I’m glad she’s setting an example of marrying young. The

Daily itself. All material is subject to editorial discretion.

OP-EDS Op-Eds provide an open forum for campus editorial commentary and are printed Monday through Thursday. The Daily welcomes submissions from all members of the Tufts community; the opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Daily itself. Opinion articles on campus, national and international issues should be 600 to 1,200 words in length and submitted to opinion@tuftsdaily.com. The editors reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, space and length. All material is subject to editorial discretion and is not guaranteed to appear in the Daily. Authors must submit their telephone numbers and day-of availability for editing questions.

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Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free of charge to the Tufts community. The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board. EDITORIALS Editorials represent the position of The Tufts Daily Editorial Board. Individual editorialists are not necessarily responsible for, or in agreement with, the policies and editorials of The Editorial Board. Editorials are submitted for review to The Tufts Daily Executive Board before publication.

AND COLUMNS Viewpoints and columns represent the opinions of individual Opinion editors, staff writers, contributing writers and columnists for the Daily’s Opinion section. Positions published in Viewpoints and columns are the opinions of the writers who penned them alone, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the

Katherine Brown is an opinion writer at The Tufts Daily. Katherine can be reached at katherine. brown631461@tufts.edu.

Tufts baseball extends winning streak to 12 games with weekend road sweep of Trinity

by Ethan Grubelich Sports Editor

Tufts Baseball traveled to Hartford, Conn. for the team’s first away NESCAC East Division series of the season on the back of a seven game winning streak dating back to Apr. 8, when it won the second game of a doubleheader against Amherst. Two comeback wins followed by a comfortable series finale victory over Trinity meant that the Jumbos improved to 9–0 in NESCAC East play and extended their winning streak to 10 games while Trinity finished their 2023 NESCAC East regular season campaign with a record of 6–6. This weekend’s results also mean that the Jumbos will host a best-of-three series in the quarterfinals of the 2023 NESCAC Baseball Championship tournament.

In the top of the third inning of their first game on Friday, the Jumbos demonstrated their masterful ability to turn savvy baserunning into runs on the scoreboard, just as they have all season long. With one out, junior shortstop Ozzie Fleischer singled and stole second base to put himself in scoring position. He then scored on an RBI-single by first-year second baseman Jesse McCullough to give the Jumbos a 1–0 lead.

After pitching five scoreless frames to begin the ballgame, senior Connor Kinney suddenly faced a jam with the bases loaded and no outs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Kinney, right-handed starting pitcher, did brilliantly to strike out the next two batters, but gave up a two-out 2-RBI single to give the Bantams a 2–1 lead. In the bottom of the seventh inning, senior right-handed pitcher Aidan Tucker came on in relief of Kinney, who finished with a final line of 6.0 innings pitched, seven hits, three walks, two earned runs and four strikeouts.

Sophomore center fielder

Henry Fleckner began the Jumbos’ rally with one out in the top of the eighth inning, as he drew a walk and stole second. A single by McCullough moved Fleckner to third base and marked the first multi-hit game of McCullough’s young collegiate career at a crucial time. McCollough, in fact, would go on to record multiple hits in each game for the remainder of the series.

“I knew sort of what I was capable of at the plate and just sort of not really changing my approach, just staying consistent with what I do, and I knew that eventually those would start to fall

and I was making good contact,” McCollough said.

In the next at-bat, senior right fielder Jimmy Evans drove in the tying run with an RBI single to right field and advanced to second base on an error by the Bantams’ right fielder. Evans and McCullough scored on a 2-RBI single by sophomore left fielder Ben Leonard to put the Jumbos in front 4–2.

After allowing two singles but no runs in his first inning of relief in the bottom of the seventh inning, Tucker was lights-out, retiring all six batters he faced in the eighth and ninth innings to seal the Jumbos’ victory in the series opener.

In the first two innings of the second game of the series on Saturday the Jumbos fell into a quick 5–0 deficit. After a quiet first four frames, the Jumbos’ bats came alive in the fifth inning. Singles in three consecutive bats by junior third baseman Patrick Solomon, Fleischer, and Fleckner put the Jumbos’ first run on the board. Leonard led off the sixth inning with a walk, which was followed by senior designated hitter Connor Davidson and a walk by senior catcher Connor Bowman to load the bases with no outs. Still with no outs, Solomon walked to score a run and Flesicher reached on a

catcher’s interference call to score another run, which made the score 5–3. The first outs of the inning were recorded when Fleckner grounded into a double play which drove in the runner from third base. In the following at-bat, McCullough drove in the tying run with a single to left field.

“Again, I just really don’t change my approach at the plate. Just staying within myself, staying calm, cool and relaxed, loose,” McCullough said. “But yeah, I got late in the count, he hung a curveball, and I took advantage of it. That’s sort of been the story of our team this year different guys stepping up at different times and I think that’s what makes us such a good team.”

In the top of the seventh inning, a double by senior first baseman Connor Flavin to left field, a walk by Davidson, and junior pinch hitter Connor Brala getting hit by a pitch gave the Jumbos’ offense an opportunity with the bases loaded and one out. Solomon drove in what would prove to be the winning run with a sacrifice fly to left field and another run scored on an error during the play to make the score 7–5 in favor of the Jumbos.

In the third game, Fleckner opened the game’s scoring in the

third inning with a solo home run to left field. The Jumbos rallied in the fifth inning, which began with a double to left field by Solomon. Fleischer reached on a catcher’s interference call and Fleckner advanced the two baserunners to second and third base with a sacrifice bunt. McCullough walked with one out to load the bases before Evans hit a bases-clearing double down the left field line to drive in three runs and stretch the Jumbos’ lead to 4–0. Davidson rounded out the Jumbos’ scoring by hitting the Jumbos’ second solo home run of the game in the sixth inning to make the score 5–0. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Connor Podeszwa had a terrific outing as he finished with a line of 6.0 innings pitched, four hits, three walks, no runs and six strikeouts.

The Jumbos extended their winning streak to 11 games with a 6–3 home win over Eastern Nazarene College on Tuesday. They travel to Waterville, ME this weekend for a three-game series with Colby. Colby can only clinch the NESCAC East Division’s top seed by winning all three games in the series over Tufts. Tufts will clinch the top seed if it wins at least one game in the series.

undefeated No. 1 men’s lacrosse beats h amilton on s enior d ay

by Matt Chen Sports Editor

It wasn’t a pretty game, but at the final horn, the No. 1 Tufts men’s lacrosse team continued their undefeated season on Saturday with a 22–12 Senior Day win over Hamilton. With the win, Tufts improved to 14–0 overall and 9–0 in the NESCAC, maintaining their No. 1 ranking nationally. Then, the Jumbos made history on Wednesday when they defeated the No. 7 Bowdoin Polar Bears 19–15, finishing the regular season undefeated.

A very even first quarter saw Hamilton strike first before sophomore midfielder Charlie Tagliaferri responded with his own goal. Both teams continued to trade goals for the remainder of the quarter, as two goals from sophomore attacker Max Ettinghausen and one goal from senior midfielder Jack Boyden were each answered by a Hamilton goal to keep things even. However, Hamilton was the one in front at the end of the quarter thanks to a goal from first-year attacker Thomas Healy.

The beginning of the second quarter was much of the same. In less than a minute, Tagliaferri equalized for the Jumbos and senior attacker Kurt Brunn put Tufts ahead. Hamilton quickly found another goal to tie the score once again.

Tufts began to find some momentum, with goals from first-year midfielder Jack Regnery, sophomore midfielder Sam Frisoli, sophomore midfielder Cam Delcristo and Ettinghausen giving Tufts a 12–8 lead heading into the locker room.

“In the 2nd quarter, our defense made more stops and our offense got more shots off,” senior midfielder Joe Murtha wrote to the Daily. “When we start owning ground balls in the middle of the field, we give our offense more opportunities which they continue to capitalize on like they have done all year.”

Tufts came out of the locker room with a bang, as senior attacker Tommy Swank scored twice in the span of 16 seconds to extend the lead to 14–8. Hamilton matched the rest of Tufts’ goals for the rest of

the quarter but could not find a way to cut into the lead, resulting in a 16–10 advantage after three quarters.

A strong fourth quarter offensively ensured the Jumbos walked off Bello Field with their 14th win of the season, as Hamilton only managed two more goals in the game.

“We always want to focus on doing the little things that allow us to be successful,” Brunn wrote to the Daily. “Things like communication, hustle and toughness were keys at the beginning of the game that we emphasized again at halftime.”

Boyden once again led the team in points with seven, Swank right behind him with five points of his own. The Jumbos dominated the little things, with strong defensive showings all around limiting Hamilton in the second half. Senior defender Kyle Adelmann picked up six ground balls and caused five turnovers.

“He puts a lot of pressure on his matchup, getting multiple caused turnovers and ground balls every game,” Murtha wrote of Adelmann.

Senior face-off specialist Mason Kohn had another efficient day at the “X,” going 14–18 on faceoffs and picking up 12 ground balls.

“Those guys are the best in the country at what they do,” Brunn wrote. “They certainly do all the little things that allow us to be successful.”

Saturday’s win was extra special for the Jumbo seniors as they played their final regular season game on Bello Field. Honoring the 13 seniors on this year’s roster, Brunn saw Saturday’s celebrations as a celebration of those who have been there for the players since day one.

“To earn a good win at home is always fun, but to do it with our families present was super special,” Brunn wrote. “Those are the people who have supported us from the start, so I really think senior day is more about thanking them for all they’ve done as we approach the end of our careers.”

Facing their April 26 match, as this year’s seniors winded down from senior day celebrations, they knew they were one game away from doing something remarkable

for a collegiate lacrosse team: going undefeated in a regular season.

“Our first priority right now is defeating Bowdoin tomorrow night and being the first team in Tufts lacrosse history to have a perfect regular season,” Murtha wrote.

As the regular season winds down and Tufts looks geared for yet another deep run in the NESCAC and NCAA tournaments, both Murtha and Brunn know the team needs to keep doing what they have been doing since preseason to ensure success and to make the most of their last few weeks as Tufts lacrosse players.

While the stakes are rising, Murtha said the team will continue to utilize the strategies they have been training since late September.

“While winning is always fun, getting better each day is our main focus,” Brunn wrote. “We have a great group that loves being around each other, and we know that continuing to win, one game at a time, means more opportunities to be with each other and build on the relationships we have within the team.”