The Tufts Daily - Monday, May 3, 2021

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VOLUME LXXXI, ISSUE 51

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Monday, May 3, 2021

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

Jane Goodall talks conservation science in last Distinguished Speaker Series event of semester

SOPHIE DOLAN / THE TUFTS DAILY

Jane Goodall speaks to the Tufts community on April 28 in the final Distinguished Speaker Series event of the semester.

by Zoe Kava

Assistant News Editor

Jane Goodall, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and a United Nations messenger of peace, spoke to the Tufts community about her research on chimpanzee behavior and her experience in conservation science at a live virtual event on Wednesday.

The event was hosted by the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life and was the last event in this semester’s Tisch College Distinguished Speaker Series, which has been renamed

the Alan and Susan Solomont Distinguished Speaker Series, a change that was announced at the Goodall event. The event was co-sponsored by the Environmental Studies Program, the Fletcher School’s Center for International Environment and Resource Policy, the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, the Tufts Institute of the Environment and The Fletcher School.

University President Anthony Monaco delivered opening remarks and outlined Goodall’s experience studying chimpanzee behavior in the

1960s as well as her research at Gombe Stream National Park that paved the way for future primatological research.

“Dr. Goodall is a renowned conservationist, whose work has redefined the relationship between humans and animals,” Monaco said.

Monaco then introduced Felicia Nutter, director of international veterinary medicine at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, and Chris Whittier, director of the Master’s’ in Conservation Medicine Program at the Cummings School, who led the discussion.

Outdoor mask mandates lifted in Medford and Somerville, guidelines remain on Tufts campus

by Liza Harris News Editor

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced that as of April 30, masks would no longer be required in outdoor public spaces where social distancing is possible.

Face coverings are still required in indoor and outdoor spaces where people cannot be less than six feet apart. Tufts is not changing any

university policies in response to the announcement.

The Tufts administration announced in an email to students on Friday morning that mask-wearing requirements indoors and outdoors will remain the same until more of the student population is fully vaccinated.

“Vaccines prevent serious illness and death but do not prevent infection,” the email said.

ANN MARIE BURKE / THE TUFTS DAILY

The President’s Lawn is pictured on Sept. 6, 2020.

“Currently, too few of our students have been fully vaccinated, and we cannot adopt an inequitable policy that would allow some students to forego masks while requiring others to wear them.”

University Infection Control Health Director Michael Jordan said that the university will examine and potentially change its policies over the summer.

“We will review all of our current public health safety protocols over the summer to make sure they are aligned with updated local, state and federal guidance, and in keeping with our approach throughout the pandemic, any revisions we make to our protocols will be data-based,” Jordan wrote in an email to the Daily.

“As I have said before, the light at the end of the tunnel is brighter than ever before, but compliance with the university’s public health see MANDATE, page 2

Before passing the event to them, however, Solomont (A’70) briefly spoke about his retirement and the future of the Speaker Series.

“As I approach my retirement from the dean’s job, and I thought about what I might leave behind, what made the most sense was to help ensure that the Speaker Series would continue to enhance the civic life of the entire university,” Solomont said.

The event then turned to Goodall. Nutter asked her about Roots and Shoots, a Jane Goodall Institute program that

empowers youth to take action to enact change in their communities.

“We’ve messed up the world, and the reason that Roots and Shoots began is because so many students told me they’d lost hope,” Goodall said. “We have compromised the future, but it’s not too late to start healing some of the harm, the terrible harm that we’ve inflicted on this planet, and at least try to slow down climate change and loss of biodiversity.” see GOODALL, page 2

Tufts secures $250 million in bonds, will use to build new housing, dining infrastructure

by Madeleine Aitken Executive News Editor

Tufts announced on April 29 that it had issued $250 million in bonds that will be used to fund on-campus development projects, including the construction of a high-density, on-campus residence hall for undergraduates on the Medford/Somerville campus and the expansion of dining capacity and infrastructure, among other capital projects.

The new residence hall is part of a push to increase the percentage of students living on campus. Though the details have not been finalized, the university will be conducting a study to help it determine the optimal location and number of residents.

The university has chosen this moment to invest because

ARTS / page 4

FEATURES / page 3

EDITORIAL / back

7 years since his last album, Robinson displays musical genius, pours emotion into ‘Nuture’

Dina Deitsch discusses anti-racism efforts of Public Art workstream

The Daily stands in solidarity with Asian, Jewish communities in the wake of incidents of hate

of interest rates that are near historic lows; the 30-year taxable bonds were issued at a fixed rate of 3.099%.

Patrick Collins, executive director of media relations at Tufts, shared what this means for the university.

“We are very pleased with the outcome of the bond issue,” Collins wrote in an email to the Daily. “We are looking forward to the critical investments planned for our academic and research facilities and are excited about additions being planned for student housing and dining, which will help bring more of our students onto campus, a strategic priority for the university.”

The announcement explained that universities see BONDS, 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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THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Monday, May 3, 2021

THE TUFTS DAILY Megan Szostak Editor in Chief

— EDITORIAL — ETHAN STEINBERG Managing Editor

LIZ SHELBRED COLTON WOLK Associate Editors Madeleine Aitken Executive News Editor Sarah Crawford Executive Features Editor Tuna Margalit Executive Arts Editor Priya Padhye Executive Opinion Editor Julian Perry Editorial Editor Juanita Asapokhai Amulya Mutnuri Caroline Wolinsky Editorialists Alex Sharp Executive Sports Editor Jessica Blough Investigative Editor Hannah Harris Executive Audio Producer Sophie Dolan Executive Photo Editor Austen Money Executive Video Editor

— PRODUCTION — YANQING HUANG Production Director Campbell Devlin Elizabeth Foster Kendall Roberts Executive Layout Editors Annabel Nied Calisa Sana Executive Graphics Editors Mariel Priven Kate Seklir Executive Copy Editors Michelle Li Tiffany Namkoong Executive Social Media Editors

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Goodall rejoices in ‘collecting anecdotes’ from different chimpanzees GOODALL

continued from page 1 Whittier then asked Goodall about her research at Gombe Stream National Park. Goodall responded by explaining the importance of training local people to carry on the research that she had introduced.

“Conservation will never work long term, unless the local people are involved — all of these villages are now our partners in conservation,” she said.

“We’ve given them the tools to

monitor the health of their forests, and they understand that protecting the environment is for their own future, not just the wildlife.”

Nutter asked Goodall about her experience and relationships with the chimpanzees that she has worked with.

“For me, collecting anecdotes about all of these different chimpanzees is absolutely fascinating, and it’s led to some amazing insights,” Goodall said.

She followed up by explaining that today, observers often use technology to record statistics, but she believes recording stories and anecdotes allows observers to get a feel for the animal’s personality.

“There’s a big risk in today’s world, that all observers start using just little clicks on some kind of gadget to make everything statistical,” she said.

Whittier asked about Goodall’s path and challenges as a woman in conservation science and

asked her to give advice to young women interested in careers in conservation science.

“You’ve got to be really passionate, and then simply say what my mother said to me: You’re going to have to work really hard, take advantage of every opportunity and if you don’t give up you will surely find a way,” Goodall said.

The discussion then opened to a question and answer session involving Tufts community members.

Tufts says too few students have been fully vaccinated to lift restrictions MANDATE

continued from page 1 safety protocols continues to be vitally important, including wearing masks.”

Tufts is alone in its continued mask restrictions, as the Medford and Somerville city governments indicated that they would follow the state’s updated guidance.

MaryAnn O’Connor, director of the Medford Board of Health, still urged continued social distancing and noted that masks are required for some outdoor and all indoor gatherings.

“While we are cautiously optimistic, we want to reiterate that masks are still required as

outlined in all MA sector specific guidance including schools, sports, businesses, retail and all indoor activities,” O’Connor wrote in an email to the Daily.

“Social distancing is where the emphasis should be if outdoors, and if attending events or gatherings at any outdoor public venue, masks are required even for those fully vaccinated.”

Somerville’s government has also modified its guidelines in accordance with the state.

“The City of Somerville will be joining the State in relaxing outdoor face covering guidelines,” the city wrote in a press release shared with the Daily

by Meghann Ackerman, deputy director of communications for the City of Somerville. “Starting Friday, April 30, residents will not have to wear a face covering when outdoors if they can socially distance. Masks will still be required in public indoor spaces, outdoor spaces where social distancing is not possible, at large events, and at any City-permitted activities, including outdoor fitness and yoga classes. At smaller gatherings in private homes face coverings are recommended but not required.”

At the same time, Somerville officials urged residents to continue following public health

guidelines and remain as safe as possible. Director of Health and Human Services Doug Kress in particular noted that the relaxed guidance does not mean the virus has disappeared.

“Throughout the pandemic we have followed the science and monitored local and state data so we are able to adjust our policies accordingly,” Kress wrote in an email to the Daily. “We now know that outdoor transmission, especially when people can socially distance, is very low. But we do still need to be vigilant and remember to mask up when we can’t distance from others or when we’re indoors.”

Collins, Howard express excitement over bonds, explain their importance

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Students wait in line outside Dewick-MacPhie Dining Center — one of two buffet-style dining locations on campus — on Sept. 14, 2020.

BONDS

continued from page 1 commonly use bond financing as a form of borrowing that funds long-term investments for infrastructure development. Investors, who may be

individuals, insurance companies, investment managers or others, buy the bonds, and in return they receive periodic interest payments and, ultimately, the repayment of the original principal.

Executive Vice President Michael Howard echoed Collins’ statement, underscoring that now is the moment to invest in the future.

“We are in a strong financial position and the current

low rates make it an ideal time to secure financing for our 10-year capital plan that will advance our mission and further enhance the experience of all community members,” Howard said.

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Features

3 Monday, May 3, 2021

Q&A: Deitsch describes anti-racism work of Public Art Committee, workstream

by Kayla Butera Features Editor

As Director and Chief Curator of the Tufts University Art Galleries, Dina Deitsch has been committed to shifting the art on campus to better reflect diversity and inclusion in the community.

Part of her plans under the Public Arts Committee are showcasing more artists and subjects who are Black, Indigenous and people of color. Her insights and plans seek to creatively pursue the question: How does our art influence the culture we create on campus?

Tufts Daily (TD): What does your job entail?

Dina Deitsch (DD): My title is director and chief curator of the Tufts University Art Galleries … I was brought in during the summer of 2017, and with my appointment, the gallery structure changed from being just the galleries that are in the Aidekman Arts Center on the Medford/Somerville campus to also include the art gallery and exhibition spaces at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at 230 Fenway in Boston. I oversee both physical locations of the program.

As the gallery director, I’m also chair of the Public Art Committee .. .which we formed in fall of 2019 after two specific issues that came up. One was a physical maintenance issue with the Jumbo sculpture in front of Barnum Hall, and that was commissioned five years ago…the condition was suffering because it hadn’t been properly maintained, cleaned and waxed. The group was developed to make sure that the art we do have is properly maintained and cared for. The more urgent issue was the murals in the Alumnae Lounge that were taken down and put into storage summer of 2019 after a year and a half of public conversation and committee work that decided they would come down because of their lack of inclusion in depicting university history.

That launched a lot of concerns about what does representation on campus look like?’

And so the committee’s big task is to think about not only how do we care for what we have, but as we bring in new things, are we thinking holistically, are we thinking equitably about artwork on campus? How does that artwork express our values?

Art at its very basic level is an expression of values informed.

And the question is, as a univer-

sity, what is our responsibility?

What is the role that we play within developing the culture of our spaces, having spaces socialize us, as well as what stories are we telling? So it became a larger question that the Public Art Committee thinks about.

TD: Can you tell us more about the Public Art Committee’s anti-racist public art efforts?

DD: We developed the Public Art Committee, we have the gallery committee and we have faculty that advises us on the art that we bring into the collection … In the summer of 2020, there was a global awakening after George Floyd’s death and the reckoning of racial injustice in this country.

President Monaco very wisely set out active plans about how we are going to change things here.

We all have to internalize change.

What are we doing that’s enforcing a white supremacist culture?

Where do we need to change?

[University President Anthony Monaco] developed five key themes, three of them — as you know from the workstream reports — were more an analysis and looking at the university holistically … and two were more immediate. Policing had become an incredibly urgent issue for years, in recent years especially, so that was one committee that was developed out of incredible need. Then public art became a committee as well because of the work we had done with the murals [in the Alumnae Lounge].

We knew that after the lounge, that’s not the only space that needs to be re-thought, and President Monaco was very clear about his lack of interest in having the Coolidge Room — where the trustees and faculty usually meet — be surrounded by these portraits of older white men. The messaging of that is completely noninclusive and reminds people of where they may or may not fit in … so the Standing Committee shifted our work and intensity to join the workstreams and to really focus very specifically on public art on campus. Our task was to address the Coolidge Room right away … but then the question is, what happens next and what is our overarching plan?

The [Public Art] committee took the tack, and I co-chair the committee with Marty Ray, who is the chief of staff in the Office of the President … We expanded the committee to really capture more of the whole of the university, so [we have] representatives from Tufts Medical School and the Cummings School of Veterinary

Medicine joined as well … and more graduate students and students, and different representatives from all over, including a lot of our working artists who are at the SMFA. The committee started off and decided we first needed to know where we were … so we were able to do a very robust audit of the Medford/Somerville campus just to see what we had on view.

[We began to] analyze it based on demographics about the artists and sitters.

So we have little under 200 pieces of artwork on view on the Medford/Somerville campus. A little under 40 of those depicted people, and … all of those people were white, and all of them except for one were men.

That really laid the stage very clearly for us. I can’t say it was a surprise. Every time a president retires, it’s just tradition, a portrait is commissioned, and then all the other images that we found were deans. It was not overly surprising, but it did clarify the necessity of our work …

The audit is only partially done even though our workstream report came in. Our thinking is that this audit work is something that will continue with the Public Art Committee. Our next steps are to do a more robust audit of our other campuses.

More importantly, though: Art is not just the thing you see.

There’s always a story behind it.

There’s a story behind all the sitters. There’s a story behind the artists … If you look at all the 200 artworks on view, our breakdown in terms of gender, race and ethnicity, we’re not that much better.

It was maybe 85% white male overall, and then 15% women or [artists of color] — again not representative of our community.

The next level, which we’ve been working on with a number of classes, is to analyze and research artists and subjects depicted — who were they?

What was their story? What was their narrative?… It’s been a wonderful, ongoing project.

We have research, conversation [and] reaching out to people about spaces they’re in. Different schools and spaces have different functions and the art has to function accordingly.

So after all this, you know, what’s next? It’s very easy to take [portraits] down, so the Alumnae Lounge is just an empty room.

We don’t really need anything, but we want to think about what we’re adding. Now the committee is really working on develop-

COURTESY DINA DEITSCH

Dina Deitsch, director and chief curator of the Tufts Art Galleries, is pictured. ing processes and proposals on two fronts. One is repairing our historical visual records. Even if you take everything down, in our storage and in our collection, you still have a lot of portraits that are a completely homogeneous set of people being depicted. The question is, how to add? The straightforward answer is to commission new work. So who do we commission? Who’s being featured? …

My goal is to bring five new figurative images that depict key members of the university from our history — [Black, Indigenous and people of color] are important of course.

It’ll be a multi-year process, because it takes time to make a good painting. So that’s on one side, but then on the other side we want to think of what we will look like. [We want to show] who we are now. Strategies on that include bringing in artists in residence; we have a lot of capacity to do temporary murals to give energy to places on campus. The overarching thing is to look back on our history more correctly and to reflect a lot of the work that’s being done on campus already … The proposal we had for the [Coolidge Room], for instance, is that our next phase there is that the room is being renovated and [we’re] thinking about creating a series of exhibitions that look at our historical [Black, Indigenous and people of color] communities on campus.

TD: With campus opening up a little bit more this fall, do you expect more installments of art around campus?

DD: We’re working on it.

Capacity for [COVID-19] is still limited. At the galleries we’ll be doing a group exhibition called “Staying with the Trouble,” which is based on Donna Haraway’s book and essay, which features female-identifying artists that look at worldmaking and ecofeminism … Both the galleries and university are focused on land acknowledgment of the indigenous history of our landscapes, so we have a project coming to the Aidekman Center that uses our archives as well. We’re thinking about a possible temporary public project around that. Public art is slower than gallery art because for things to be outside, they have to be able to weather [being] outside. So hopefully we’ll get something up at the Medford/ Somerville campus.

At 230 Fenway, we’ve been doing a billboard project for the last two or three years, and so we do these billboards about 20 feet high at the entry above Bessie the Rhino at the SMFA … There are still some limitations in how much we can produce for the fall, but we’re working on it.

Editor’s note: This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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Arts & POP ARTS Pop CULTURE Culture

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Monday, May 3, 2021

Porter Robinson’s ‘Nurture’ showers world with musical splendor

into this album lyrically are just as impactful as the musical genius that each song displays.

Since Robinson released “Worlds” seven years ago, many fans have connected with his music. Countless comments on his videos, Reddit posts and the sea of Porter Robinson tribute artwork have shown how Robinson has changed lives for the better. So, the pressure to provide more work at the same level as “Worlds” was high.

“A good deal of this album is how there was a point in those seven years where I felt really convinced that I wouldn’t be

able to make music ever again, and that was always my greatest fear,” Robinson explained in an interview with NME’s Ben Jolley. “I was so obsessed, especially the first two years, I wanted to prove I could still do it, that I was too anxious to make anything anxious at all. A lot of the album is about how I clawed my way out of that.”

The album is the product of seven years of hard work, overcoming creative block and many life obstacles, such as family illness and struggles with mental health. It kicks off with “Lifelike,” a song led by a stun-

ning piano melody with some soft synths and drum samples.

A violin, a harp, some claps and vocals join this introduction song to lay down the atmosphere for this record.

“As an artist, my vantage point into the beauty of the real world is so often, like, sitting in a recording studio, staring out my window, and feeling like I’m in a forest,” Robinson describes in an interview with Apple Music. “That’s what informed the creative direction of this album. To me, establishing a specific worldview was essential.”

Robinson also wants his listeners to realize that the beauty of the world is a good enough reason to stay motivated and focus on your life goals, as he sings about in “Look At The Sky.” The chorus includes the lines: “Look at the sky, I’m still here/ I’ll be alive next year/ I can make something good, oh/ Something good” — a message to himself to continue making the art that has helped him and his fans get through tough moments in life. Telling himself and the world that there’s always hope is a message that Robinson has preached throughout his career, and it has become representative of the impact he has had on electronic music fans.

“Get Your Wish,” which was the lead single for “Nurture,” is a progressive EDM showstopper that starting with lighter synths and some piano chords, Robinson’s pitchedup vocals deliver an absolutely heart-melting melody.

Robinson claims the song was influenced by the release of Bon Iver’s “22, A Million” (2016) and a trip to Japan that he and his girlfriend took that same year.

Robinson tweeted about this song specifically to show how much its release meant to him.

karaoke in iridescent cowboy hats. A world pre-pandemic or, maybe, if we’re kind and patient and very, very lucky, a world post-pandemic.

For this last column, I asked my friends to share a bit of what they’re looking forward to as a post-pandemic world starts to come into focus.

They sent me songs of rumination, rest and, most of all, celebration. Here are a few of them; the rest will be in the Commencement issue later this week.

Alex Viveros: ‘Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)’ (2010) by Katy Perry This song is an absolute bop, and anybody who tells you any different is lying. Not only is the music video iconic, but there’s something about the song that hypes you up in that special early-2010s way. With a return to normalcy looking

more and more promising, I’m just excited to play this song while driving to the beach with my friends. Oh, and that saxophone? Absolute banger.

Kristina Ma rc h a n d : ‘Can’t Hold Us’ (2012) by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis The year is 2012. You are in middle school and silly bandz are so last year and duct tape wallets are in. It is a simpler time. And now, in 2021, hearing Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ iconic hip-hop duo brings out some moves you didn’t even know still exist within you. So, for my pick, I’m queuing up “Can’t Hold Us” from “The Heist” to play for Jess and Robert Kaplan at my 21st birthday. The night might end up with some first-degree burns and sprained ankles, but Macklemore will hold us up. It’s the summer of 2021.

Life might be returning to normal (fingers crossed) so let’s listen to music from simpler times and dance it out.

Robert Kaplan: ‘Under the Night’ (2019) by Bedouine I’ve lately been saying that relationships — whether friends, family or otherwise — are like plants in a garden. Some require regular and active care while others thrive with an annual checkin. Some are weeds which take and take and take until you tear them out, while others appear for only one night, like a short-lived grocery-store bouquet. The metaphor is highly extendable and I’m very proud of it, but I only mention it because it’s all I could think of while listening to this underrated folk ballad from Bedouine. I discovered it mere days ago, immediately

VIA MOM + POP MUSIC

Porter Robinson’s album “Nurture” is pictured.

by Geoff Tobia Jr. Arts Editor

Most Porter Robinson fans can’t describe the anticipation of waiting for a new project that they have felt since Robinson dropped his debut album, “Worlds” (2014).

When he announced “Nurture” (2021) last year, it created a indescribable feeling of excitement for all of his fans.

“I put my entire heart into this,” Robinson said in the tweet that announced the release of his sophomore album.

He wasn’t exaggerating — the emotions that Robinson pours

Jessica Blough Soundtrack to the end of the world

A world postpandemic, Part 1

M

y top song of 2020 was “Moon Song”

by Phoebe Bridgers, mainly because of one line: “But now I am dreaming/ And you’re singing at my birthday/ And I’ve never seen you smiling so big.” The person I imagine as “you” changed throughout the year, but what remained was my longing for closeness, hugs that lift your feet off the ground and drunk

Another highlight on the record is “Musician,” a vocal-chopdriven song that Robinson claims is his favorite on the record. The song is structurally akin to pop, but it has musical substance that most pop musicians can’t match.

“Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do” and “Dullscythe” are mostly instrumental tracks that are yet another example of Robinson’s ability to create a potent and bright atmosphere for the listener. They are great tunes that lead up to extremely heavy and emotional songs, like “Mother” and “Sweet Time,” that are guaranteed to tear up listeners.

There’s not a single doubt that this project was created with lots of genuine care and love. “Mirror” makes this clear, with lyrics such as, “And it’s not the voice of all the others/ You’ve only said it to yourself/ I know what you want from me, from me / I know what you’re thinking.” The song holds another message that can apply to both Robinson and his fans: There’s no need to beat yourself up, especially when you’re the only one beating yourself up.

Occasionally, when albums show this many consistently enjoyable songs, there is fear of an underwhelming conclusion.

Thankfully, “Nurture” sticks its landing in its later songs. The ballad, “Blossom,” is one of the most heart-warming songs on the entire record, and “Unfold” with Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs contains synths of unbelievable atmospheric magnitude that we’ve seen in Robinson’s other songs, like “Language” (2012) and “Divinity” (2014).

Robinson leaves us with no doubts that his musical impact is unlike most others. He was a powerhouse of a producer in 2014, and still is today. thinking of those earlier characters of life for whom we are both flowers in each other’s gardens, blooming unnoticed in an untended corner. She sings, “‘Cause when I’m alone/ We’re still looking at the same moon,” and I like to think that we really are. I imagine them listening to this song, thinking the same thing. Happy spring!

Jessica Blough is a senior studying international relations.

Jessica can be reached at jessica. blough@tufts.edu. Alex Viveros is a junior studying biology and community health. Alex can be reached at alejandro.viveros@ tufts.edu. Kristina Marchand is a junior studying architectural studies and can be reached at kristina.marchand@tufts.edu.

Robert Kaplan is a junior studying quantitative economics and history. Robert can be reached at robert.kaplan618485@tufts.edu.

Monday, May 3, 2021 | Fun & Games | THE TUFTS DAILY

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Avoid distractions and stick to your budget. Put the data together so it makes sense. Ask others to act responsibly.

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6 Monday, May 3, 2021

OPINION

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EDITORIAL

Hate has no home here Two reprehensible incidents of hate occurred on our campus in the past week. In the first, several Asian students were verbally assaulted with hateful anti-Asian rhetoric by the occupants of a passing vehicle while walking on Professors Row. In the second, a large swastika was painted on the Bello Field shed, and was found by members of a Tufts athletic team.

University President Anthony Monaco broke the news of these hateful acts with an email to the university community on Sunday morning, condemning anti-Asian hate and antisemitism and announcing an investigation of these incidents by the Tufts University Police Department.

The Daily stands in solidarity with the communities impacted by these despicable acts. When confronting this tide of hate, it is imperative that we do not become desensitized to these attacks, and instead that we act with urgency to promptly deliver justice.

Hate has absolutely no place on this campus; students, staff,

faculty and community members must come together to actively fight against hate and make this campus a safe one for Asian, Asian American and Jewish communities.

Such acts of hate against marginalized communities are unfortunately not new to this campus, nor to this country. In November of both 2018 and 2019, posters bearing the phrase “It’s okay to be white,” a disturbing statement of white nationalism, were discovered on campus. In September of 2019, a student found a swastika affixed to their door, a clear act of antisemitism. This trend has persisted despite our campus’ move to online learning; on Feb. 6, someone gained control of the screen during a presentation that was part of the School of Engineering’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Colloquium Series and wrote a racist term across the screen.

Both anti-Asian hate and antisemitism are on the rise in the United States. According to a 2020 American Jewish Committee report, over 80% of

Jewish identifiers believed that antisemitism had increased over the previous five years.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States has seen a significant rise in attacks against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.

Stop AAPI Hate, a center tracking and responding to incidents of hate, violence, harassment and discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States, reported 3,795 incidents from March 2020 to March 2021.

According to Monaco in his May 2 email, the Tufts Office of Equal Opportunity has seen an increase in reports of bias in recent years. Despite increased university efforts and expressed commitment to become an anti-racist institution, these incidents continue to occur. Tufts Admissions took a monumental step this spring in its acceptance of the Class of 2025: the most diverse in Tufts’ history. Among this admitted class of undergraduate students, 56% are people of color. It is the duty of our entire

community to foster a safe, bias-free and actively anti-racist campus both for these students as we welcome them to Tufts, and for those who are already a part of our immediate community.

To support these incoming students as well as current members of our community, it is imperative that we call out these incidents as we see them.

Bystander intervention is an effective way to disrupt acts of hate as they happen, and to prevent future harassment. If you witness an act of discrimination, Tufts offers several avenues for filing complaints and seeking other forms of support, such as contacting the Office of Equal Opportunity directly, or filing an anonymous report through the EthicsPoint hotline.

For students who are themselves victims of these acts, our campus is home to religious and cultural centers that can offer support and a sense of community, such as Tufts Hillel and the six centers within the Division of Student Diversity and Inclusion.

Bias Education and Resource Teams, established earlier this semester, should work to track trends of discrimination against marginalized communities at Tufts and establish more robust structures based on this data to prevent future incidents.

Further, implementing mandatory, campuswide educational trainings is one way to proactively address patterns of hate on our campus. We also call upon these teams to provide spaces for affected groups to heal and engage in dialogue.

Systems of oppression are not simple, nor are the ways in which we should respond to them; the process of repairing our community and becoming an anti-racist institution will take time. But the complexity of these systems does not mean we are helpless to dismantle them. We must act now to listen to and support those who have been impacted by incidents of bias and hate, while also pushing ourselves and our institution further to confront systems of oppression that exist within our community.

ARTS & POP CULTURE

Local bookstores celebrate Independent Bookstore Day

by Devina Bhalla Arts Editor

Bookstores across Boston celebrated National Independent Bookstore Day on Saturday, April 24. Leading up to the day, bookstores announced their plans on social media, which included author talks, raffles and exclusive sales. Porter Square Books, Harvard Book Store, Brookline Booksmith, Trident Booksellers & Cafe, Papercuts J.P. and All She Wrote Books all participated in the day.

IndieBound, an initiative by the American Booksellers Association to facilitate collaboration and communication between independent bookstores, publicized the event.

Bookstores registered on their website to participate in the day. Authors were also able to link to independent bookstores on IndieBound, allowing them to earn commissions on sales that they refer to those stores.

IndieBound, as stated on its website, is “dedicated to making the world better one independent bookstore at a time.”

IndieBound played a large role in the day. It hosted virtual events featuring many different authors on a variety of panels. Some events included “Solving Mysteries & Fighting Injustice,” “Beyond Fabio: The Modern Romance” and “It’s Funny ‘Cause It’s True: Women Humor Writers Tell All.” It also hosted an event with Glennon Doyle and Alexandra Elle. Doyle, author of “Untamed” (2020)

and “Love Warrior” (2016), was the 2021 Bookstore Day Author Ambassador.

The Bookstore Day Twitter account posted photos and videos of bookstores across the country throughout the day, chronicling the widespread excitement of bookstores and their communities. There were Independent Bookstore Day merchandise and clothing for sale as well linked on their feed.

Boston-area bookstores specifically had all sorts of special programming, inviting customers into their stores to celebrate.

Brookline Booksmith had a raffle, free pins, patches, keychains and special store merchandise.

It raffled off items from other local, small businesses. Raffle prizes included items from Village Vinyl, Tiny Hanger, Olive Connection and New England Comics.

Trident Booksellers & Cafe had a charity book drive, an origami bookmark station and exclusive merchandise, along with a cover scavenger hunt on social media.

It also offered a free audiobook when a customer spent at least $15 at the store.

Harvard Book Store celebrated the day online, selling exclusive books, art pieces and limited edition clothing and tote bags. The clothing and totes featured their throwback ’80s mascot, a jester holding a book. It also hosted an independent press spotlight that had a panel featuring Enchanted Lion Books, Europa Editions, Graywolf Press, Milkweed Editions and Tin House.

Porter Square Books hosted a virtual event with Polly Barton, who translated “Where the Wild Ladies Are” (2020) — a novel by Aoko Matsuda and Porter Square Books’ staff pick of 2021. Porter Square Books couldn’t hold its annual Independent Bookstore Day bookseller bake-off, but it did post a video of one of its booksellers as she baked and decorated a cake that looked like two books stacked on top of each other.

Celebrities like Michelle and Barack Obama and Oprah vocalized their support of independent bookstores on

social media as well. Former President Obama tweeted a video in which he talked with “some of the folks who help support authors and nourish our communities,” according to his caption. Oprah’s Book Club’s Instagram put up a video of Oprah thanking bookstores for all they do.

Not only did celebrities show their support, but so did bibliophiles and patrons, who took photos and posted little notes about their visits to a bookstore or fond memories in honor of the day. One individual, Paige Terlip, post-

ed a photo in Porter Square Books with the caption, “It’s #IndieBookstoreDay! I might not live in Boston anymore, but @PorterSqBooks will always have a big chunk of my heart.” Dipali Anumol, a current Ph.D. student at The Fletcher School, posted illustrations of Porter Square Books, Brookline Booksmith and Harvard Bookstore.

The excitement by book lovers and booksellers across the country on April 24 illustrated just how important independent bookstores are to their communities.

COURTESY PORTER SQUARE BOOKS

Porter Square Books is pictured.