Fall 2015 Issue 2 by Tufts Observer

TUFTS OBSERVER

OCTOBER 12, 2015

VOLUME CXXVXIII, ISSUE 2

WHO GAINS FROM GREEK LIFE? (PAGE 3)

LISTENING WITH RADICAL PATIENCE (PAGE 10)

FEMINIST ART RECLAIMS KNITTING (PAGE 24)

order|disorder

Staff editor-in-chief Katharine Pong managing editor Moira Lavelle creative director Chelsea Newman news Claire Selvin Will Freeman opinion Ben Kesslen Jamie Moore

October 12, 2015 Tufts Observer, since 1895

Volume CXXVXIII, Issue 2 Tuftsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Student Magazine

TABLE OF CONTENTS

arts & culture Xander Landen Carly Olson campus Julia Doyle Gabby Bonfiglio tech & innovation Dana Guth Tess Ross-Callahan poetry & prose Aishvarya Arora photography director Alison Graham photography editor Menglan Chen art director Eva Strauss assistant art director Rachel Cunningham lead artists Tess Dennison Nina Hofkosh-Hulbert

NEWS FEATURE Contested Spaces and the Rise Stampede from the Starting Gate of Greek Life by Moira Lavelle. with reporting by Claire Selvin

NEWS European Disunion by Gabby Roncone

lead copy editor Liza Leonard

copy editors Will Hodge Emily Ng Maya Pace Emma Pinsky Lauren Samuel

OPINION Right and Wrong by Lauren Samuel

publicity director Yumi Casagrande publicity assistants Ashley Miller Kyle Scott

by Misha Linnehan

MINYI TAN

CAMPUS The Administration of Silence by Gracie Kanigher

ARTS & CULTURE Pumpkin Spice: Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Vice

by Carly Olson and Xander Landen

ARTS & CULTURE Fiber: How Artists are Reframing Feminism EVA STRAUSS

PHOTO INSET Dis/Order

TECH & INNOVATION Net Growth

Theme

Explicitly or implicitly, our society continually seeks to impose order and reject disorder within the disparate elements of our world. This can be seen in out political and technological systems, artistic expressions, and patterns of consumption. In this issue, we explore how individuals unintentionally participate in disorder, consciously challenge order, or operate somewhere in between these lines.

PATRICK MCVEE

POETRY Early, Still Magnificently Dark

OPINION Why Iowa? by Tyler Green

Contributors

by Liza Leonard

design assistants Kayden Mimmack Chase Conley Lynette Bian Zoe Baghdoyan Franny Kamio Zhujing Wang Astrid Weng Conrad Young Alexandra Benjamin

Sofia Adams Danny Garfield Eve Feldberg Sarah Kotis Patrick McVee Cecelia Nealon-Shapiro Minyi Tan

by Katie Saviano

by Liza Leonard

web editors Greta Jochem Lily Hartzell

LYNETTE BIAN

POETRY 1:04 AM

by Jaanvi Sant

The Tufts Observer has been Tuftsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; student publication of record since 1895. Our dedication to in-depth reporting, journalistic innovation, and honest dialogue has remained intact for over a century. Today, we offer insightful news analysis, cogent and diverse opinion pieces, creative writing, and lively reviews of current arts, entertainment, and culture. Through poignant writing and artistic elegance, we aim to entertain, inform, and above all challenge the Tufts community to effect positive change.

@tuftsobserver

www.tuftsobserver.org COVER BY NINA HOFKOSH-HULBERT

FEATURE

CONTESTED SPACES

AND THE RISE OF GREEK LIFE By Moira Lavelle, with reporting by Claire Selvin

lpha Gamma Delta is currently colonizing at Tufts. When a sorority or fraternity establishes a new chapter the process is officially called “colonization.” Representatives from the national organization establish a “colony” at the chosen school and try to entice new members. When the new members are initiated the colony becomes a chapter. “[Colonizing] is a word that is generally used in the industry of fraternity and sorority expansion, and is one that definitely needs to change,” said Su Mc2

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Glone, Director of the Tufts Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life. After her interview with the Tufts Observer, McGlone was inspired to bring the term up in meetings with Alpha Gamma, and they now, reportedly, intend to raise the issue at the National Panhellenic Conference. (We scheduled several interviews with Alpha Gamma but were unable to get any comment.) But Alpha Gamma is not the first sorority to colonize at Tufts—Kappa Alpha Theta did the same two years ago. And Greek life may be colonizing at Tufts in more than just name.

According to the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life, approximately 24 percent of Tufts’ undergraduate student population are currently members of a Greek life organization. Though there are conflicting numbers depending on the source, these numbers have swollen significantly over the past few years. In the fall of 2013, the official Tufts University website stated that 13 percent of the student body were members of Greek life. Su McGlone boasted on her Twitter that over the past two years Greek life at Tufts has increased in size by 6 percent. This is following a trend of increased Greek life involvement nationwide.

FEATURE

The increase in Greek life participation is perhaps an indicator that Tufts students are seeking supportive social spaces. “[Naked Quad Run] is gone, Fall Ball is changed, a lot of things that people have found sacred have been pulled back by the administration because of rowdy behavior,” explained Shawn Patterson, a member of Arts Haus, former resident of German House, and president of Sigma Epsilon. “As these traditions have disappeared, and because Greek life is clear [and] because there is funding, people are seeing it as a social way to connect to campus and to other people, just as I did. Some people are inclined to do that, some are not.” But Greek life’s growth means more than just higher statistics. There are stigmas, stereotypes, and trends that come along with Greek life. Some people think Greek life is inherently flawed; some feel it is the answer. An increase in numbers has broader implications for the social fabric of Tufts. Greek life has been making headlines across the country—lately for sexual assault scandals, excessive drinking practices, deaths due to hazing, and marginalizing initiation practices. CNN spent weeks circulating stories about horrifically racist practices at Sigma Alpha Epsilon that are handed down from national Greek conferences. The Atlantic launched a year-long investigation into the dozens of lawsuits that

based financial aid. Students not on financial aid have more time and more money, both requirements of Greek life participation. Only 28 percent of the current freshman class are US citizens who are students of color. White students are often more comfortable and more welcome in these historically white organizations. “When it came to race they weren’t the best at handling things,” said a senior who was previously part of a Greek life organization. “When I joined [I] was the only Asian person in the entire chapter. I think I could count the number of people of color on one hand. I think I did do that. I got uncomfortable at times. I think ultimately that led to [how] being a part of it was just not worth my time or money. Why put that into something that makes me uncomfortable?” “I didn’t feel like binge drinking was the way for me to get close to people, so it just wasn’t the right fit for me,” explained another senior who dropped her Greek affiliation. “But I think…my biggest concern is addressing the rape culture of the frats because there is this thing of protecting the brothers first, not questioning the institutions, [and] not calling out your brothers no matter what they’re doing to girls in your house.” But the stated mission of Greek life is to create spaces of brotherhood and sister-

It is perhaps just more financially effective for Tufts to support Greek life than other sorts of communities such as special interest housing. are filed against fraternities every year. And students at schools like Emory have been coming out against sorority recruitment and rules that heavily focus on women’s appearances during the pledging process. The Tufts Observer spoke to several students who had negative experiences with Greek life at Tufts, and their complaints were largely in line with these concerns. Several people called into question the history of Greek life as inherently classist, racist, misogynistic, and violent. According to the admissions office, only 38 percent of the current freshman class is receiving need-

hood, to create supportive social spaces with a focus on philanthropy. We spoke to several Greek-affiliated Tufts students who thought that Greek life could still aspire to these goals, and could be different at Tufts from the reputation nationwide. “I think it is necessary for a dialogue to happen between Greek life and the Tufts community,” explained Shawn Patterson. “We need members of Greek life to be aware of what they’re doing wrong, the problematic nature of Greek life, and to give respect to the wonderful diverse community of Tufts. In my organization, at least we

are always trying to be cognizant of what we can do to make our space safer, while being aware that just stepping in the door of a fraternity can be unsafe for certain people.” “Tufts Greek life is interesting in that it embodies a lot of the stereotypical aspects of Greek life, but at the same time, it’s entirely different from southern Greek systems,” explained a junior member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. “The recruitment process is much more low key and there is less cutthroat competition. Overall, the individuals I’ve met in the Greek community are amazing people and some of my closest friends. They are incredibly intelligent, dedicated to their respective philanthropies, and very hardworking students… Just because Greek life exists doesn’t mean it matches the stereotypes associated with Greek dominated schools.” Patterson described the intensive sexual assault prevention training that is mandatory for every fraternity, the push towards diversity involvement and sensitivity, and the ways in which he is trying to make Sig Ep a more welcoming place: “I’ve tried to create social change in Greek life to make it a support network. All I want to do is see the members of my organization succeed in whatever their goals are. I hope we can give emotional support to the community, which is the best and most basic functioning nature of Greek life.” There is also a Multicultural Greek Council with historically Black and Latino fraternity and sorority chapters to create spaces for students excluded from traditional Greek life. These chapters are made up of students from schools all over Boston and participation in these chapters is also growing. But even those that are involved with and supportive of Greek life are unsure about the decision to bring more chapters to campus. Several affiliated students expressed concerns about Greek life taking over the social scene. One Alpha Phi member explained, “I am nervous about the expansion of sorority life on Tufts campus because it won’t decrease the amount of girls in each sorority…I liked Tufts specifically because Greek life wasn’t a huge part of [campus] life, and joining a sorority felt like a choice I made independently. I discovered like-minded women in APhi. The kinds of people who come to Tufts, regardOctober 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

FEATURE

less of whether they rush or not, are not looking for an overly Greek school. This will literally change who applies to Tufts.” Those who are in Greek life also complain that bringing more organizations to campus is sending a conflicting message. One member of Kappa Alpha Theta stated, “I think the Tufts administration is confused about how they want to market us. They are unbelievably harsh on Greek life because it is the easiest organization to pick on. I have been at other parties thrown by non-Greek organizations, and the things I witnessed there were far worse than Greek life parties. Not to say that frats at Tufts don’t have some problematic behavior, but it is hypocritical for the university to shun frat life and simultaneously expand it.” The decision to bring new Greek life to campus was made by a committee of 11 students in 2012. Members of the Panhellenic Council—11 sorority-affiliated women— voted unanimously for the introduction of more sororities in order to address the influx of interested women. Su McGlone approved the decision, and the new sororities were then chosen through a process overseen by members of the Panhellenic Council and an extension committee composed of current members of Greek life. “It’s a need-based thing,” explained McGlone. “The [existing sororities] were maybe a little bit larger than they wanted to be, physical space is hard to find, the interest in numbers had increased over the years, and they wanted to be able to provide more

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options and maybe make the organizations a little smaller.” McGlone communicated with the Dean of Students during the extension process but no administrative stamp of approval is needed. This process is similar to the one used when any other national group or club is brought to campus. But there are many ways in which a Greek organization is not like any other group on campus—namely housing. Greek organizations seem to have unparalleled access to housing—they have more of it and are able to acquire it faster than other organizations on campus. Every Greek organization on campus, including the recentlyintroduced Kappa Alpha Theta, has a house. Some houses are owned by the university; some are owned by private developers. McGlone listed this access to housing as one of the reasons new sororities were added. Each chapter is only able to have one house, so to get more Greek housing, there need to be more chapters. “Of course a fraternity or sorority can be really successful without a house. But the hope would be eventually to have a house,” McGlone explained. It is hard to ignore the line of big brick houses and their Greek letters that line Professors Row and wind down Packard Ave right in the center of campus. On most given weekend nights you can hang out on the corner and watch students hop from one house to another. Or you can join in. “I would say that Greek life has a bigger net influence on campus [than other organizations],” said Conor Ward,

a senior who lived in Crafts House for a year and is a member of Sig Ep. “I think it has a lot to do with freshman year and the disproportionate influence Greek life has on freshmen. It takes a lot longer for the typical freshman to be aware of Crafts House or German House…[whereas] Pro Row—if you are wandering around as a freshman you can’t miss it...Freshmen are much more likely to hear about a party at Theta Chi than at the Rainbow House.” This is not surprising, given the relative invisibility of special interest housing. The Rainbow House, a special interest house that focuses on queer issues, is

“This will literally change who applies to Tufts.” currently located in a Hillsides suite. Rainbow House was founded in 1998, and has sought independent housing since then. “The Rainbow House is currently in the basement of Hillsides…[It’s] really small compared to other houses. It’s really hard to hold events that people are aware of,” said one member of Rainbow House. “Crafts House has a big space and a yard to do all these events. We have a very tiny Hillsides living room [so] we can only invite so many people. We’re kind of tucked down there and ignored. It feels a lot more like be-

FEATURE

ing in another dorm setting, it doesn’t have that same unifying factor that separates you out.” Sam Kitchens, the house manager of Rainbow House also spoke to this: “As to why I think we don’t have [a house]?… The only reason I see is a financial barrier: without the money to advocate giving us a house, it has always been more financially feasible to give the house to a fraternity or sorority. Other language houses have been formed later than R-House and have gotten houses already, but I can’t say why.” The Chinese Language House had been in dorms since 2004, continually seeking an independent space where they could host events such as dumpling nights. This fall they were finally given housing when Sigma Nu’s charter was suspended and the frat lost their Curtis Street house. But they share the space with Kappa Alpha Theta. Green House, the environmentally focused housing group, is also in a dorm suite. There is no Su McGlone equivalent to advocate for special interest housing. Many groups have advisors but they work elsewhere at Tufts and have several other priorities. There is also nothing similar to a Panhellenic Council for special interest housing groups. Last year, several students worked to create a special interest housing committee with representatives from all the respective groups. Oona Taper is a senior who lives in Crafts House and was a part of these meetings: “I think the biggest issue people were talking

about was how to create cohesive culture, which involves getting a house, and having students stay for more than one year. Not having a house limits the amount of culture you can create. There’s a history of people trying to start this community, losing their space, and having to start over.” Another difference between Greek life and other campus clubs is the national component. When a new special interest housing group is created, it is brought to Tufts by Tufts students. New Greek life organizations are brought in by their colony, with traditions and lingo from the national chapters that are getting such bad press. Several frats on campus have even looked into disassociating from their national chapters because they feel their values don’t align. Pi Delta (formerly Alpha Epsilon Pi) and ATO (formerly Alpha Tau Omega) have already done so. The Alpha Gamma Delta colony visited every single frat and sorority on campus as part of their recruiting. A Chi Omega member felt positively about this visit: “It was good. I think it’s hard when people from off-campus come to start a new chapter [at Tufts] because Greek life at Tufts is really different from [Greek life] anywhere else. Greek life at Tufts is, like, taken down 8,000 notches.…I think that they are coming to understand that as they’ve been here for longer. My impression is that sometimes the people sent from that national headquarters don’t always understand the specific instance that they’re coming to.”

Furthermore, there is perhaps financial incentive for Tufts to support Greek life in coming to campus and gaining housing. Greek life often does not only support those in privileged positions, but also it helps create them. 69 percent of US presidents since 1877 have been fraternity members. Greek life members litter the Forbes 500 list and elite positions across American society. This is perhaps partially because Greek life encourages leadership skills, and because of friendships and connections made. Additionally, studies show that members of Greek life are more likely to be generous in donations to their alma mater. It is perhaps just more financially effective for Tufts to support Greek life than other sorts of communities such as special interest housing. So what does all of this mean for the future of Tufts? Perhaps Greek life will continue to grow. If so, Tufts will have to confront what Greek life means here—if it will be in line with national stereotypes, prioritized above other campus organizations, or a new kind of organization all together. “I think ideally there would be a lot of different types of community options,” commented Taper, “but if we have Greek life as the predominant one, people who don’t fit in [would] feel worse about the overall Tufts community. Or there are people who were not interested but join because everyone is, and then are not totally happy.…If any type of community takes over, then inherently people are left out.”O

October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

NEWS

STAMPEDE FROM THE STARTING GATE From Trump to Fiorina, mapping the GOP’s collision course By Misha Linnehan

n February, when statistics blogger Harry Enten declared, “Chaos, not Scott Walker leads the Republican field in Iowa,” he could not possibly have known how squarely he hit the nail on the head. At the time, Walker was leading in Iowa, polling at 16 percent, and attracting heavy media coverage as a result. In many circles, he was spun as the favorite—an exciting Washington-outsider with proven appeal in purple states. On September 21st, just eight months later, Walker—down to 4.5 percent in Iowa, and less than 1 percent nationally—suspended his campaign. Those who wonder how a possible frontrunner could so quickly fall into oblivion need not look far for a reason. The most common metaphor used to describe a presidential primary is a horse race. Candidates spend a long time jockeying for a position, often without making much of an impact until close to the end. The 2016 Republican primary has asserted itself as one of the most chaotic in history by adding a wrinkle to this comparison: there are now too many horses to fit on one racetrack. At its peak, 17 candidates were active at once, creating an electoral scene more hectic than any other in recent memory. According to Tufts Political Science Professor Deborah Schildkraut, however, this election is unique not only for its field

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size but also for its field depth: “Usually a lot of the candidates are terrible, but this year there are a lot of quality options.” From Walker to Jeb Bush to Marco Rubio to John Kasich and many more, Schildkraut sees several candidates who could be viable nominees and probably hold a much larger percentage of the vote than in any other primary. Schildkraut said that the large number of both total and quality candidates gives the race several interesting and confusing complications. First, there is only so much support to go around—both in terms of polling numbers and campaign donations—and the sheer number of contenders means some candidates will not garner enough. Walker seems to be an example of this: though a potentially perfect nominee, he did not do enough to distinguish himself in the crowded field and quickly fell out of the race. In an era when Super-PAC money is so important to political success—en route to the 2012 nomination, Mitt Romney’s Super-PAC spent nearly twice as much as the next biggest PAC—appealing to donors is priority number one for most candidates, and differentiating oneself from the pack is key to accomplishing that goal. Scott Walker’s failure to accomplish this is most likely what led to his downfall. A candidate who has had no trouble in differentiating himself from the pack

is current frontrunner Donald Trump. As of September 28th, Trump held 26 percent of the vote, leading the field by a 10 point margin. In a theoretical sense, an unexpected candidate leading the field early in the primary doesn’t seem all that strange—after all, 2012 saw a meteoric rise in the polls for four separate candidates (Santorum, Perry, Cain, and Gingrich), none of whom came all that close to being the real nominee. However, there is a lot about the Trump campaign that is drastically different from any other candidates’ poll surges. One difference is that Trump is already famous. Three of those four men, as well as Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina in this election cycle, were relative unknowns at the beginnings of their primaries. As a result, they benefitted from an effect Professor Schildkraut says is very common in electoral politics: “Political science tells us that the shiny new object will get a lot of attention.” Unfortunately for these novel candidates, once the shine fades, so too will their campaigns. All three of the “outsider” candidates who took the helm in 2012 saw their leads crash and burn, and Schildkraut feels there is reason to suspect this may happen with both Carson and Fiorina. Trump, on the other hand, may be a different story, because while he is new to politics, he is not new to the

NEWS

general public. So if his freshness in the political scene isn’t the cause of his prolonged surge in popularity, what is? Part of it is how differently the media treats Trump. Perhaps due to his fame prior to politics, the news media is covering Trump in completely unprecedented ways for a candidate this early in the race. In comments to the Tufts Observer, ABC News’ Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl said that the frequency with which Trump appears in televised interviews on the phone is unheard of among primary candidates and shows how intent media organizations are on interviewing him. It seems that the way Trump has interacted with the media has been a boon for him in the polls—Karl described Trump’s use of free media as “brilliant.” Another defining part of Trump’s campaign is his boisterous and unconventional rhetoric. In particular, he seems to be appealing not to the advocates of limited government or Christian values who traditionally have made up the fringe of Republican races, but instead to those who

ART BY RACHEL CUNNINGHAM

favor a platform of white identity politics. Conservative columnist Ben Domenech describes this platform as promising “protectionism, tariffs, infrastructure, subsidies, entitlements, and always [blaming] the presence of immigrants for the creative destruction of the global marketplace.” These Republicans, including Trump, are different in that they do not want government to shrink; they merely want it to serve their interests. Many Republicans closer to the establishment have found this new, caustic rhetoric threatening. In an interview with the Tufts Observer, Massachusetts State Representative Sheila Harrington, a Republican who supports Fiorina, said,

Unfortunately for these novel candidates, once the shine fades, so too will their campaigns.

“Most of what [Trump] says is rhetoric and not particularly substantive. A lot of the things are unrealistic to the point of being ridiculous, and it’s very dangerous to have a crowd get all riled up on a crazy notion.” This sentiment has clearly been shared by several of Trump’s competitors. In his concession speech, Walker said that the Republican field was too centered on “how bad things are” rather than on “how we can make them better for everyone,” and that the party needs to unite around a candidate with a more “optimistic” vision. While Trump’s, Carson’s, and Fiorina’s poll numbers might suggest the opposite, it still seems likely that the Republican field will be restored to order and, in the end, spit out an establishment candidate, like Bush or Rubio. According to Schildkraut, the support of party elites tends to be a better predictor of primary success than early polling. This would suggest that neither Trump, Carson, or Fiorina have any chance of winning, since they have a combined two endorsements from current Republicans in Washington, compared to Bush’s 23. Harrington, too, believes that the party will eventually coalesce around a moderate. ABC’s Karl thinks differently, citing the high numbers of not only the Washingtonoutsiders, but also another candidate cemented on the fringe of the Republican field: Ted Cruz. He asked, “How could you not think a non-establishment [candidate] has a chance?” Regardless of whether the nomination of such a radical candidate is truly possible, the fact that it’s even being discussed has certainly shattered the sense of inevitability that had surrounded this race ever since it was rumored that Bush was throwing his hat into the ring. Maybe this hectic election cycle will eventually revert to the mean and end up with a third Bush Republican nominee, or maybe something absolutely unprecedented will happen and an outsider will usurp power. All we can be sure of is that this crowded presidential horse race is nowhere close to over, and it’s fair to expect some turbulence, confusion, and maybe even some collisions before we reach the finish line. O

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Tufts Observer

NEWS

EUROPEAN DISUNION The brewing controversy over Europe’s plan to manage the influx of migrants By Gabby Roncone

ast year, the United Nations reported that the total number of displaced people in the world had skyrocketed to 51.2 million, a higher count than any time since World War II. The steady upward climb of worldwide displacement has been matched by increasingly large waves of migrants and refugees—many fleeing wars and endemic economic strife in North Africa and the Middle East—seeking refuge in Europe. Often, they are forced to cross the Mediterranean Sea, a dangerous endeavor that has already cost more than 2,600 lives, in order to reach points of entry into the European Union like Italy, Greece, and Spain. Migrants then continue their journey north to more wealthy countries such as Germany in hopes of finding refuge. In the midst of the crisis, the European Union has been hard pressed to come up with a regulatory system capable of handling the surge in migration and taking into account the concerns of its member states. On September 22, the European Union voted, against the protests of four of its eastern countries, to impose quotas requiring all member states to take in newcomers. Yet the EU’s decision to require more states to accept a share of refugees is not as noble and humanitarian as it might appear on face value. The EU does not have much of a choice but to let people in as they appear on the shores. Further, this plan tests the power of the EU over its member states. It has created controversy

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over the ideology of the balance of justice and security, as well as the of state solidarity within the supranational organization. From afar, this plan seems like a logical move for the EU. Instead of relying on larger states to accept those that they can and leaving the remaining refugees displaced, the plan requires smaller states to also take in people. Yet it has been controversial within the EU, partly because of their ideological balance between justice and security. Security fears arise from the lack of screening these refugees receive before their entrance into the EU territory and sometimes stem fears of terrorism. As former British foreign minister David Miliband remarked, “People want to see both compassion and competence from the EU, and those two things should not be at odds.” Although security fears are justified, they might be misplaced; many of the refugees are fleeing from terrorist groups, as a refugee named Homom lamented to The New York Times: “Here is a big problem. If I work with ISIS, the Iraqi Army will kill me. If I work with the Army, ISIS will kill me. What can I do?” These refugees are clearly not terrorists if they are in fact fleeing the terrorists at home. Technical issues also plague the current plan. While the new regulatory system imposes quotas for how many refugees each country must accept, it does not provide any plan for keeping the refugees in their assigned country. Given the option, many refugees would prefer to go travel to

Germany rather than stay in a smaller and less affluent country to which they were assigned. Most importantly, though, this plan was accepted without full consensus of all the countries in the EU; the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia all voted against it. As a result, the repercussions of this plan will be seen not only in individual states struggling to take in refugees, but also in the EU as a whole, as member states contend about the balance of justice and power as well as their own solidarity. In the summer of 2014, Angela Merkel was confronted by neo-Nazi marches rising in Dresden, Germany. These non-violent marches voiced anti-refugee sentiment and criticized Germany’s relatively welcoming policy towards migrants. Although the marches died off months later, the sentiment still festers, and not just in Germany. Fears of terrorism have driven countries like France to attempt formal assimilation procedures, including the banning of the burqa, instead of more widely accepted integration procedures. Turkey, which borders Syria, has taken in two million refugees, of which 260,000 are actually in refugee camps. To add to the disorder, Turkey has recently attempted to control the movements of Syrians within the country, a reflection of the anti-refugee sentiments of an overwhelmed state. It can be assumed that individual state sentiments towards refugees may not be entirely positive as they take in more and more migrants following the statement of the EU plan.

NEWS

Some states, like Greece, initially welcomed refugees. Because of its location on the Mediterranean coastline, Greece is point of entry into the EU for many refugees. NGO outposts staffed by volunteers receive these refugees and provide access to basic humanitarian services like bathrooms and food. In recent months, though, the general European attitude towards refugees has turned negative. Already dealing with the stress of political and economic rupture, Greece has especially felt the weight of the refugees. In The New Yorker article “An Island of Refugees,” a volunteer named Jenni working at a parking lot with nearly 500 people recalled a vague threat from a policeman: “If this situation [in the parking lot] continues, there will be a big problem in Molyvos.” The sentiments towards migrants and refugees have turned increasingly hostile, and given fresh security fears

in many European states and economic unrest with the Euro, it is unlikely that these sentiments will improve with the new EU plan. Members of the EU are already feeling the weight of the refugees and are unsure of how they will be able to take more people without provoking domestic unrest. These internal sentiments are likely to influence relations between individual European states and the European Union. Although the European Union was founded to deal with situations like this, it has lost much legitimacy because of the Euro crisis. Now, according to former Italian ambassador Stefano Stefanini speaking to The New York Times, this refugee crisis “risks bursting the EU at its weak seams…[and with Tuesday’s vote] the cleavages only get deeper.” Issues regarding the Euro and high unemployment combined with the Greek bailout have already shown fractures within the European Union. Furthermore,

fractures can be seen in the recent restitution of border controls by some countries because of security fears brought up by the influx of refugees. The reinstitution of border controls contradicts the passport-free zone that exists within the EU’s borders. States are likely acting counter to this because the outer borders are not secure, and thus they feel they must move independently to secure their own. On top of this, the four states that voted to oppose the plan see it as infringing on state solidarity. Although joining the EU was an agreement to give up a degree of sovereignty for the common good of Europe, the backlash from these four states represents fractures in the ideology of the EU. While the current plan improves on the previous lack of coordination, it also raises concerns about the competency of a union undermined by growing tensions. O

Members of the EU are already feeling the weight of the refugees and are unsure of how they will be able to take more people without provoking domestic unrest.

ART BY LYNETTE BIAN

October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

OPINION

HOW DISAGREEMENT HAS LED TO DISREGARD By Lauren Samuel

“T

hat’s just your leftist, liberal arts language talking.” My father said this to me neither maliciously nor pointedly, but with the absolute intention of challenging me. These words, uttered on a cozy summer evening, floated above the coffee table separating the two of us and entered my brain. His comment had affected me much differently than those of my peers’ during political conversations. The topic: second-generation immigrants from Western countries forsaking their nations to join ISIS. As a Tufts student, you may already know the question I posed—inspired, in fact, by one of my best friend’s papers: Could it be that anti-Arab immigration policies and environments in nations such as France ostracize the younger, in-between generation so strongly that they see acceptance and opportunity in the idea of an Islamic caliphate? I was caught off guard by my father’s reaction. But upon reflection, I understand that I was naïve to assume he would understand my viewpoint. After all, our realities are not remotely similar—he is an immigrant who left Egypt for the United States when he was 26 years old, an ArabChristian who has seen persecution and discrimination in his home country all

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his life, and a man who was not politically educated from schooling, but from experience and personal enrichment. I, on the other hand, am a first-generation Egyptian-American, am much more connected to the culture of the United States, and am a Peace & Justice Studies major at a liberal arts institution. Rather passionately, my father criticized my removed, apologist tone. He reminded me of ISIS cruelty, (rightfully) criticized my lack of actual knowledge on the issue, and insinuated that much of social justice thought takes a one-size-fits-all, “right” perspective on issues without much deep investigation into the realities of specific situations. Three months later, I am fairly sure I do not agree with my father’s stance on ISIS, but I also know that I no longer agree with the unsubstantiated rationale that I threw out so confidently. I acted as if only I, and people who agree with me, knew the true facts about a situation that I had no real stake in and about which I did not know much. Honestly, my main justification for posing such a pointed question was not due to a real attachment to the issue, but rather due to the pompous belief that because the argument seemed to align with my perspective of how the world works, my assumption was more

valid than a nuanced understanding. My father, with his personal convictions, awareness, and commitment to following Arab news challenged not my opinion, but that presumptuous perspective. And in the end, I learned more deeply. Normally, I would not find myself conversing with so-called moderates, defensive Christians, or, to be frank, men above the age of 22. Honestly, three months ago, I probably would have written these people off, already categorizing their beliefs to be wrong. Right and wrong. Right and wrong. The entitled assumption that I could see others—whole people—as either right or wrong was a mentality I never even acknowledged to be present in myself. To clarify, it is not a problem to disagree with someone’s perspective, or to believe that there are right opinions and wrong opinions, but I am starting to realize that rejecting perspectives different from my point of view dangerously limits my awareness of the infinite realities present around me. So long as I continue to disregard rather than to disagree, I will find myself dangerously reducing my learning. This is not a hypothetical situation. In fact, boxing myself into conversations that are only accessible to people like

OPINION

me, with people who may not agree with me, but certainly relate to my perspective, has been the norm since coming to university. There is this pernicious perception that those who do not align themselves with a certain checklist of viewpoints are literally—and I have both witnessed and participated in this blatant exclusion—not worth talking to. Often, this refusal to engage with those unlike us comes from valid places of discomfort and fear. However, I am beginning to find this wariness to be a very poisonous justification, resulting in the creation of communities that are, ironically, so homogenous that they can never make the progress they so desperately believe in. When I was 12, my history teacher engaged our class in a debate about taxation. It was undoubtedly the most simplified debate that could have existed on the topic: should a flat tax rate exist? Confidently, I stood up in front of my class and advocated in the positive. Of course a flat tax rate should exist; 5 percent for Tommy should be 5 percent for Timmy because percentages are inherently fair! After class, a fellow student came up to me and told me, “Lauren… 5 percent for Tommy who makes hundreds of thousands of dollars a year may be a higher quantity than 5 percent for Timmy who makes minimum wage, but when that 5 percent is taken away, Tommy can still live lavishly, and Timmy has more difficulty to even make ends meet.” A pretty convincing argument, but stubborn 12-year-old me with the Republican mother and conservative upbringing honestly could not see the point my peer was trying to make. The conversation, however, remains with me to this day. Eventually, I learned so much more. I learned about the institutional systems that reinforce poverty. I learned about racism, classism, and unequal education systems depending on these very real societal hierarchies. I learned about corporate interest, fundamental principles of capitalism, war, and greed. It may have taken a few years but I began to understand injustice. And in doing so, I began to understand why all my previous convictions were so incredibly basic, so superficial in

every way. But I’ll be damned if I do not acknowledge that I began to understand mainly from the patience, from the love, and from the grace of others. Patience. Love. Grace. These were not the words I typically thought about when it came to political conversations, particularly with those of differing viewpoints. Often, my mind was clouded with other words: privilege, ignorance, offensiveness. My attitude towards certain people’s entire character was, quite simply, hopeless. The communities I found myself in perpetuated this lack of faith in others. We were always on the defensive, always angry, always believing that we were the en-

lightened folk, with nothing left to learn but everything to preach. I cannot stress enough that I acknowledge and comprehend the validity in these attitudes of outrage. Sensitivity is not a problem. Anger is not a problem. Space is not a problem. But when sensitivity becomes dismissive, when anger becomes judgment, and when space becomes exile, I do, honestly, see a problem. I know this may be controversial. Of course this should be controversial! I cannot whisper about this any longer. I am worried that political consciousness is more an exclusive beacon of achievement rather than a perspective that is not only just open to, but also passionately believes in deeply interacting with others. I am worried that political consciousness is a personal victory. I am worried that po-

litical consciousness has no desire to be shared, to be seen as forever incomplete, to be handled with patience, love, and grace, in a symbiotic relationship of education and transformation. It was not until this summer that I began to really wonder, why do I speak out? For what purpose do I use my words? And, most of all, what is the cost of speaking out against others, rather than speaking with others? I am not quite sure how to do this. But I think it begins with ending the mentality that people are right or wrong. I do believe there are opinions that are toxic and unjust. But so long as we categorize entire humans, hell, entire populations, to being wrong as entities, then we end up committing an act that is toxic and unjust. I want to be clear that I am speaking for myself, but I also want to question the authenticity of people who shut down others in vehement, dismissive ways. When we refuse to engage with those we deem wrong, do we not stifle our own cause, and our own perspective? When we say someone, especially someone who is seeking for an answer, is wrong, I cannot help but believe that we do not teach him anything. If Joe, who does not yet understand addition as a concept, tells you 2+2 = 3 and you say he is wrong, how can you just assume that he will realize the answer is 4? I think, when it comes to social justice, many activist-oriented, liberal arts students assume everyone knows “addition,” but we forget that we too had to learn these things and have our own minds changed. We say we are spreading awareness by sharing Facebook articles but I find that these are often just validating for ourselves, limited to our like-minded community, and often linked to a moral affirmation. I, too, am trying to handle this topic with patience, love, and grace. I very much hope that I am not coming off as harsh or demeaning, because I understand that there is something radical and powerful about sharing perspectives that speak to us, that are wise, that build us up, that challenge us in subtle ways, and that we think deserve to be spread. But I am also starting to realize this may be more for ourselves than we really want to acknowledge. And that’s okay, but can we just acknowledge October 12, 2015

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OPINION

it? Can we even go further, and admit that these kinds of actions, particularly when they violently criticize other points of view or use certain rhetoric, sometimes result in alienation? Can we criticize our own hierarchal spaces, ones founded on a specific, limited idea of moral righteousness rather than radical patience? Radical patience is more than just listening. It is listening with the genuine willingness to allow another perspective the ability to influence our own. It is important to have convictions, but I

I am starting to realize that rejecting perspectives different from own limits my awareness of the infinite realities present around me. am suspect of unwavering convictions. How can we address issues of humanity in creative, transformative ways if we refuse to be influenced by others? How can we achieve unification if we reject entire people on the basis of their thoughts? How can we claim a desire for systematic change if we refuse to even interact with the majority of the people within the systems? It is hard to feel passionate and enraged about injustice and not fall into preaching when we talk about it. It is hard to understand where someone is coming from when they do not feel the same ways as us. It is hard to think outside ourselves and our reality when that is all we know. It is hard to realize that we know nothing at all. It is hard to admit that we can learn from ideas that do not correspond with our liberal arts collegeeducated understanding of the world, or with our rhetoric. It is hard to remember that that is the point. Unification is the point. It is hard to not corner myself in the comfort of belonging to a clique of 12

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supportive, like-minded folk. But when I reflect on how I have been afforded so many instances of patient, loving, graceful education in my life, I know that these are hardships worth undergoing. Perspective is a privilege and it is one we ought to see as forever blooming, and worth discussing. We are being judgmental ourselves when we fail to take the time to understand a perspective vastly different than ours often because we assume we know the logic, and we are not open to transforming our own limited perspectives—for no one has total omniscience. Self-love is important. Anger is important. Space can be important. My comfort, however, is not important. The comfort of avoiding confronting issues with those who differ from me, will never yield understanding. The comfort of creating spaces that do not challenge my perspective—especially as a privileged, liberal arts educated, American woman—will never allow me to grow or understand the boundless differing realities of those who live in the world I so passionately wish to see changed. It may not be fair to ask everyone to practice this radical patience, especially at the beginning of their own education, and it is not fair that this task of listening often falls on the oppressed, with little reciprocal understanding from the other side. That is an injustice. But it is also not fair that privileged voices—elitist college voices, voices that have had many opportunities help develop their perspective—do not do their part in sharing, listening, and learning together. Authentic welcoming, which can still be critical and passionate and full of disagreement, is hard. But when we lean into our discomfort, when we allow ourselves the beautiful possibility of being influenced by one another’s vastly different truths, I believe we will find ourselves in positive, creative spaces founded on understanding and trust. Perhaps I speak for myself when I say I need to break from closed-off communities, I need to break from moral authority, I need to break from my assumptive, exclusive perspective. Instead, I need to start practicing what has been given to me so openly: patience, love, and grace. Hopefully, if you disagree, we can at least find the time to talk about it. ART BY EVA STRAUSS

DIS / ORDER TOP TO BOTTOM: SOFIA ADAMS, DANNY GARFIELD, SOFIA ADAMS, DANNY GARFIELD

October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: CECELIA NEALON-SHAPIRO, MINYI TAN, MINYI TAN, EVE FELDBERG, EVE FELDBERG, CECELIA NEALON-SHAPIRO

Tufts Observer

October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

PHOTOS BY SOFIA ADAMS

Tufts Observer

October 12, 2015

POETRY

EARLY, STILL

MAGNIFICENTLY DARK

dark and rough and unbreathing atop my chest remains bone thin neck untouching away from my hair, cough crackled on hot blood. here unalone on the mountain, crouching unattentive ears remaining without the light. everything stays. not even a crow uncoils out of the hills, not even morning sounds. when I left home, feeling the grassy plains in my hands, I smelled the unrest, heard the feet, I am sure, close rain, and clear skies tethering nearer

but as I half dream here, sunlessly, stillness tells me that the black stars upon my cheeks have been transfixed, multiplying into patterns undecipherable and unfinished dew catching in my eyes

By Liza Leonard

ART BY PATRICK MCVEE

October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

OPINION

WHY IOWA? By Tyler Green

n February 1, 2016, Democrat and Republican voters from the state of Iowa will assemble in church basements and high school gymnasiums to voice their support for a United States presidential candidate. This process—known as a caucus—has been the first major electoral event in the presidential campaign cycle since 1972. Winners of the Iowa caucus gain significant momentum in their campaigns. Bob Dole, Al Gore, George W. Bush, John Kerry, and Barack Obama all won the Iowa caucus in the year that they were selected as their party’s presidential nominee. Conversely, no candidate who has finished below third place in their party’s caucus has ever gone on to secure their party’s nomination. While some champion the Iowa caucus as an exemplary demonstration of grassroots

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democracy, an electoral event with enough significance to make or break a presidential candidate should not take place in the same state every year. The influence currently endowed to the Iowa caucus is arbitrary, disproportionate, and should be corrected. Although the Iowa caucus does not take place until midwinter 2016, candidates spend months of their campaign and hundreds of millions of dollars in Iowa attempting to kickstart their candidacy during the primary season. Rick Santorum, former Republican senator from Pennsylvania, raced to become the first 2016 candidate from either party to visit all 99 counties of Iowa. In the second week of August, 18 presidential candidates gorged on an array of fried food-on-a-stick and braved the sweltering summer temperatures to interact with voters at the Iowa State Fair. Fair attendees could even display

their support for candidates in attendance by dropping corn kernels in mason jars labeled with the candidates’ names—Donald Trump won overwhelmingly. The Hawkeye State’s critical position in the primary process is completely arbitrary. In 1972, the Democratic National Committee was forced to reform the primary process after violent confrontations between thousands of anti-war protestors and National Guard troops marred the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The chaos of the convention—and general discord in the Democratic Party—contributed heavily to Hubert Humphrey’s defeat by Richard Nixon in the November election—a defeat that Democrats did not want repeated. A rule within the 1972 reforms stipulated that Democratic caucuses and primaries must

ART BY RACHEL CUNNINGHAM

OPINION

be announced with at least 30 days’ notice prior to the event. Since the Iowa caucus is a complex, multi-step process taking multiple months, the first caucus date had to be scheduled early in the primary season. When the time spent in Iowa by George McGovern in 1972 electrified his campaign, and the efforts of Jimmy Carter in 1976 helped win him the presidential election, the Republican Party also moved the date of its Iowa caucus to the beginning of the primary season. Democratic pollster Peter Hart argued to the Wall Street Journal in August 2014 that “the single most effective bellwether of a candidate is how they do in the Midwest—it’s not only in the middle of the country, it contains all the central elements and attributes of the country.” While this may be true in 2015, current demographic trends in the United States are changing what constitute “central elements and attributes.” Hispanic and Latino voters make up 17 percent of the US population, and are the fastest growing demographics in the nation, but only 5.6 percent of Iowans reflect this changing ethnic composition of the American electorate. By 2044, at least 15 US states are predicted to be majorityminority in ethnic composition, and by 2060, only 44 percent of the United States is expected to be white. Allowing Iowa to continue to occupy such an important position in the election season creates a strong bias in the types and identities of the candidates that are benefitting from the results of the caucus. If the primary process intends to clarify the most popular candidate in the eyes of the voters, the primary system must become more equitable and provide a better representation of America’s changing electorate. In 2007, representatives from 40 states met in Washington, D.C. to discuss the prospects of primary reform and possible alternatives to the current “Iowa First” sys-

tem. Since then, a variety of politicians, political theorists, and political advocacy groups have proposed laudable solutions to the current United States primary system. The RNC has proposed a “pod” system by which the least populous states conduct their primaries first, and the more populous and influential states are backloaded in the primary schedule. This strategy would ensure that the most populous states have the most influence over presidential campaigns, but the order of the primaries is fixed, and lacks a dynamic aspect that engages voters. The Democratic representative from

The influence currently endowed to the Iowa Cacus is arbitrary, disproportionate, and should be corrected. Michigan, Sandy Levin, has proposed an Interregional Primary Plan wherein the 50 states are divided into six regions. On six national primary days, at least one state from each regional group holds its primary. This approach would spread media and campaign attention around the country leading up to primary days, but would make it difficult for less funded candidates to spent ample time in each state. The most interesting alternative primary idea in circulation is the Modified Rotating Regional Lottery Plan, conceived in 2001 by political scientist Larry Sabato.

In this primary system, states would be grouped in four regional divisions of the United States, and a lottery would determine in what order those four regions hold their state primaries. Additionally, a lottery consisting only of small states would select two less-influential states to kick off the primary season, similar to the role of Iowa and New Hampshire today. This system would keep candidates on their toes, not knowing in what order the four regions will be selected. As a result, candidates would have to allocate their time more evenly across the country, engaging with more voters that typically do not receive significant campaign attention. Dark horse candidates would still have time to concentrate on a region after the order has been chosen. Additionally, the small states lottery feature would still provide an exciting opportunity for two states that have not featured prominently in the primary process to take a turn at the national spotlight. Iowa is very unlikely to relinquish its hold on the first spot in the primary season unless state party structures decide to change their primary process. While this is very unlikely, it does not diminish the merit of seriously considering alternative primary systems. When the first nomination event of the primary season has the ability to launch or destroy a presidential campaign, it is crucial that such influence is shared in an equitable manner. Thus, it is imperative that the United States adopts an alternative national primary system that is more representative of the national voting population and more inclusive for states commonly overlooked in the primary season. Moreover, a new system featuring concentrated regions would empower lesser-known and underfunded candidates. The American electorate is changing, and the Midwest should no longer be allowed to speak for this new United States. O

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Tufts Observer

CAMPUS

THE ADMINISTRATION OF SILENCE

By Gracie Kanigher

hen I visited Tufts for Jumbo Days, I remember an overwhelming feeling of excitement, intensified by the fact that I would be able to witness a historic campus event: the Jumbo statue unveiling. What I did not expect was dozens of students silently protesting this seemingly superfluous donation. It is up for debate whether or not the donated money could have been used to save the jobs of the janitors targeted for cuts by the administration. Nonetheless, it was somewhat sobering to see a million dollar statue unveiled with janitors and members of the community pleading to save their five-figure jobs in the background. I was less shocked by the protests than I was by the administration’s reaction, which was, by and large, nothing. The big day went on as planned. There was not a mention of the protest unfolding in front of the statute by any of the speakers or the administration—not a 20

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word. While I wasn’t sure what I expected— maybe campus security hauling away the protesters in handcuffs like the dramatic climax of a movie—the lack of a response was certainly not it. The administration’s reaction at the unveiling was not an anomaly in their treatment of this disruption, but the norm. In the winter of last year, Tufts University threatened the jobs of 35 janitors, a 17 percent cut to staff. The cuts set off a passionate reaction in some students, especially Tufts Labor Coalition (TLC), a group with a history of responding to labor crises on campus. Utilizing hunger strikes, protests, sit-ins, and negotiations, TLC worked for months to demand change, or at the very least, an open dialogue. Yet, throughout the year, no matter how much TLC and others mobilized, the administration responded largely by not acknowledging the group and remaining silent. This silence, when examined more closely, seems to be the administration’s

tactic of choice in maintaining order on campus, no matter how illusory this order is. The original plan was to fire the janitors quietly and without public announcement. While TLC’s actions did temporarily disrupt the fabricated calm, it is important to acknowledge the administration’s desire to quietly resettle campus this semester and project its control. This desire was fulfilled—students have stopped talking about the movement, TLC is relatively quiet (as they reorganize), and the administration seems satisfied. An eerie silence on the subject has fallen over campus. However, the struggle between students and administration for agency is ongoing, as is the threat of more restructuring or staff cuts. To keep this movement alive,Tufts needs to keep talking about it. Most Tufts students feel afraid to talk about the cuts for fear of speaking out against the administration or sheer lack of knowledge. There are, however, a ART BY TESS DENNISON

CAMPUS

growing number of informative resources pertaining to the conflict. The movement remains a taboo subject on campus, preventing voices from being heard and important conversations from continuing. “I don’t know enough about the movement, but I always thought it was really important,” said Suze Kaufman, a junior who is not a part of TLC. “I think the movement revealed that a bridge does exist, but often goes unacknowledged, between the students and the support staff (janitors, food service employees, etc).” To some students, TLC is a fringe organization, causing many to steer away from looking deeper into the janitorial issue. While I was at Jumbo Days in April, a student offered me a paper explaining the protest. I remember the upperclassman I was with shooting me a look, indicating that she thought the action was misplaced. The hesitancy of some students to invest time in a group perceived as radical, coupled with the fact that the administration’s conversations happened behind closed doors, contributed to hostile sentiments from parts of the student body. While the administration maintained an illusion of control and order, they complied with at least some of TLC’s demands. Only six janitorial positions were terminated, leaving almost 30 jobs saved. “I don’t think that the administration was responsive in terms of listening to people’s voices, janitors’ voices, and the large community support, but I also know that they wanted to cut 35 janitors and that hasn’t happened. So, in some ways, I know all of the organizing that happened was powerful,” said Nicole Joseph, a sophomore and member of TLC. Although TLC’s goal to lessen or eradicate the janitorial cuts was morally founded, one does have to wonder what motivated the administration’s decision. It is likely the decision was more pragmatic—read: financial. With an expanded campus, but fewer workers and fewer hours, a 20 percent cut to staff simply doesn’t make sense. Nonetheless, the motivation for the reduction of layoffs, whether practical or moral, does not devalue the success of the protests. However, this is not to say that the administration was in any way responsive

to the demands of TLC. As many members of the group would be quick to point out, the lack of cuts solves a short-term problem but definitely does not eradicate the power dynamic that exists between Tufts and DTZ, the outsourced company that recruits and employs the university janitors. Since the decision to outsource the jobs in 1994, a complex relationship has formed between the staff and the administration, as the janitors are no longer technically Tufts employees and are not treated as such (janitors do not receive the same benefits as other staff members). In many ways, DTZ had to assume the role of scapegoat, appearing responsible for the employment of these janitors when it was Tufts making the cuts. Moreover, communication with the administration was difficult. “They said that we misunderstood things [like the budget] and couldn’t understand because we were students,” says Joseph. “And we say [okay, then] can you explain it to us... [But] they never followed through. Clearly we don’t understand the entire budget because it is hidden somewhere, but we did present them with facts that they published. [T]hey still didn’t do anything about it. It is a lot of talking in circles around them.” The Tufts administration often evaded facts and open exchanges, which seems to be a large part of their attempt to diffuse the backlash. “[The administration] has

The original plan was to fire the janitors quietly and without public announcement. been talking about this study that claims that Tufts cleans less efficiently than other campuses but they have never published the study; you can’t find it. They can basically just make up evidence like that and push through whatever plans they want,” said Joseph. All of this seems to simply be coded language for what the administration is really prioritizing with this transition—the bottom line. “[The administra-

tion] says that their priority is the cleaning services being rendered most efficiently and effectively on this campus. But, at times they would admit that that meant money and not how people did the work, not how it affected janitors,” said Joseph. But none of this was verbalized publically. In some sense, the Tufts administration is the backbone of the university, and it makes sense that one of its priorities is to maintain a sense of decorum on campus. It cannot be seen as giving into any demands, no matter how convincing the moral argument. It must be a foundation of order, which can be ruffled occasionally, but not dismantled. As a result, feelings of powerlessness fuel most students’ disillusionment about protests and other organizations. If students knew that they could get the administration to change their stance, how much would petitions and protests increase? In the end, the administration gets to keep their sense of order, or at the very least, the illusion of it. Due to their secrecy about the whole process, many people do not know of the successes TLC achieved. As for what happens next? TLC seeks to challenge the uneven power dynamic between administration and janitorial staff. They were happy to have some of their demands met, but the overlying problem of the administration’s power over the community and janitors’ jobs still remains. “The biggest takeaway is that the Tufts administration didn’t listen to the needs of the Tufts community. There were layoffs and hour changes that are very detrimental to the workers and to our campus,” said Lior AppelKraut, the president of TLC. And the administration continues to dodge the bullet. In their first released statement of the new year, on September 29th, the administration detailed their plan to continue with the janitorial “restructuring.” However, as if in an attempt to maintain consistency, they coated the email with favorable language and half-truths, saying, “the number of needed layoffs was reduced in the end to four,” while ignoring the two fired at the end of lastyear. The email is the perfect display of order—no mention of the protests or hunger strikes—only neat and tidy statements that look good in print. O October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

ARTS & CULTURE

PUMPKIN SPICE: AMERICA’S VICE By Carly Olson & Xander Landen

n 2003, Starbucks product developers gathered on the seventh floor of their headquarters in Seattle, in a room known as the “Liquid Lab.” It was a spring day, but the team was thinking ahead to September. The company had been having trouble concocting a seasonal drink that could achieve the same popularity as winter’s peppermint mocha and eggnog latte, and now wanted to focus on crafting something for the fall. For inspiration, they decorated the lab with assorted fall paraphernalia and brought in food items including pumpkin pie. Together, they decided to try a bite of pie and wash it down with hot espresso. They finally had it. “Nobody knew back then what it would grow to be,” Peter Dukes, a Starbucks product manager said in a press release. “It’s taken on a life of its own.” Since Starbucks created the pumpkin spice latte 12 years ago, it has sold over 200 million of them, making the infamous beverage one of the most popular seasonal products of all time. After Starbucks put pumpkin spice in the national spotlight, other businesses in the food industry realized the flavor’s potential for profit—particularly in recent years. According to a study by Nielsen, a group that analyzes consumer behavior, 37 percent of people in the U.S. purchased at least one pumpkin spice product in 2014. Last year’s pumpkin spice sales represent a growth of 79 percent since 2011 and are a reflection of the staggering increase in pumpkin spice products that have hit the market in the last few years. When Chobani released pumpkin spice yogurt for the first time in September of 2014, it was their most successful product launch of all time. Trader Joe’s has also embraced the fall flavor in the last few years, and now dozens of pumpkin spice products in orange packaging line their shelves every 22

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ART BY EVA STRAUSS

ARTS & CULTURE

fall. Products like pumpkin Mini Wheats, M&Ms, and Twinkies can now be found in most grocery stores. But, in spite of the hundreds of these products now on the market, the story of Starbucks’ latte best illustrates how pumpkin spice became an American obsession and how the flavor continues to carve out a space for itself on shelves and behind coffee shop counters every fall. The success behind the pumpkin spice latte lies in Starbucks’ marketing strategy. Though there are thousands of Starbucks storefronts in the US, at the time of the launch, the chain executed a form of advertising that felt personal to the consumer. Dr. Mark Lang, a marketing professor at Saint Joseph’s University, said the secret to the publicity campaign was that it didn’t feel like it was coming from a massive coffee company. “They tried to make it a very small scale, local kind of promotion. It wasn’t a big corporate campaign with high gloss printed signs and slick marketing, it was much more like chalkboards at your local store with a small homey feel to it, which really aligned with the feeling of fall,” he said. Dr. Lang believes that this type of campaign was, and still is, especially appealing to consumers who are growing wary of America’s highly commercialized food industry. “People want an alternative,” he said. “Food has become too processed, too corporate, too big, and it’s lacking authenticity and a genuine feeling.” Though Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, it successfully cultivated the image of a small, local, artisan business through its pumpkin spice campaign. Another factor that led to the success of Starbucks’ latte, as well as the hundreds of other pumpkin spice products on the market, is the flavor’s seasonality. Dr. Lang said products that are only available for a short period time are especially appealing to consumers. “By having fruits and vegetables available year round, the whole concept of seasonality has disappeared. People are finding that it is more authentic and interesting for products to be seasonal,

have limited availability, and they find that it makes their experience more interesting,” he said. Seasonality itself is a built-in marketing strategy, and creates an urgency to consume a product while it’s still around. There’s also pressure for food manufacturers and supermarkets to produce and carry seasonal goods. Bill Drake, director of executive education at the Cornell Food Industry Management program, said, “as manufacturers fight for shelf space and sales in what is a pretty stagnant overall market... going into seasonal items is a bigger deal.” As a seasonal flavor, pumpkin spice has a particular appeal to manufacturers. With a proven high rate of popularity, it’s enticing for producers to jump on the bandwagon and make more and more pumpkin spice products. Dr. Lang said that “marketers want to use the most obvious flavor, one that they don’t have to explain or translate, that the consumer automatically gets.”

Marketers want to use the most obvious flavor, one that the consumer automatically gets. Aside from the buzz pumpkin spice creates every fall, the Starbucks latte in particular has also developed a reputation for stirring up drama. In 2012, when Starbucks faced a national shortage of pumpkin spice flavor sauce, customers were left latte-less and disgruntled. Hundreds took to Twitter to vent their frustration. “My world almost ended this morning when the local Starbucks told me they were out,” Jason Sizemore, a 38 year-old from Kentucky, tweeted during the shortage. Two weeks ago, Hillary Clinton was asked on Facebook whether or not she in-

dulges in the beverage. “The true answer is I used to until I saw how many calories are in them,” she responded. Though clearly unrelated to the campaign, Clinton’s response went viral. Among other sources, TIME, Reuters, and The New York Daily News picked up the story that same day. Many publicly expressed anger at Hillary, including Washington Post blogger Chris Cillizza who wrote an op-ed titled “Hillary is dead, dead wrong—about pumpkin spice lattes.” Some sources hypothesize that this question was planted with the intent to go viral—the pumpkin spice latte has become a cultural icon and its fans have a strong presence on social media. According to mediaite.com, the question was written by one of Clinton’s former staffers, a public relations specialist who supports the campaign. Mediaite speculates that, as a PR expert, the woman who posed the question knew that Clinton’s response would garner mass attention. Whether this question was planted or not, a small mention of the pumpkin spice latte successfully put Clinton in the national spotlight. Though its original marketing campaign appealed to America’s discontent with the impersonal and industrialized food industry, pumpkin spice has been institutionalized like the system itself. The flavor is now universally recognized, widely consumed, and something companies know will sell in stores. But some think that the craze over the flavor has gone too far. In an interview with the Associated Press, Cindy Ott, a scholar and author of Pumpkin: The Curious History of an American Icon said that the pumpkin’s reputation as a symbol of “natural abundance” and “goodness” has been smashed by the advent of pumpkin spice. “It feels like it goes against these values that aren’t supposed to be commercialized,” she said. But it doesn’t look like the flavor will be less profitable any time soon, and for now, Americans will have to take their pumpkins with a shot of espresso. O October 12, 2015

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ARTS & CULTURE

FIBER

How Artists Are Reframing Feminism By Liza Leonard

kaleidoscope of colored rope and weaving drips off the wall at Industry Lab in Inman Square. The art piece, resembling a wall blanket, sags and bunches in places, showing the heaviness of the material. An intentional mess of wool, acrylic, and cotton, the art begs you to get closer. Cerulean surrounds lime that knits into fuchsia with rings and bursts of black. The installment is jarring and loud. It arrests you with its exploding combinations of color, ushers you into a space that is filled with the voices of feminist fiber artists. Industry Lab is a community space— a space where artists, engineers, and creatives gather. Since the beginning of September, the whitewashed gallery has been inhabited by new colors and textures. The show, entitled Feminist Fiber Art, displays pieces created with yarn, synthetic fibers, and cloth that express feminist ideas. The art itself is tactile, oozing with color, and transforms upon closer inspection. At the gallery, the curators encourage you to touch the art. But even more than being something viewers are meant to physically interact with, this art is meant to push boundaries and start conversations. 24

Tufts Observer

October 12, 2015

The show talks about periods, about breasts, about incest, and about abuse. But it also talks about taking a confident stand as a woman faced with pressures and challenges. One stitched piece reads, “I guess I am not good enough for you. But I am good enough for me. Maybe in time you will change your mind. Until then my perfect boobs and I will be elsewhere.” Assistant curator Suzanna Petot says that fiber art is a great way to start these conversations because it’s always been a feminist medium: “Women have been doing embroidery work for hundreds of years; it’s always been a domestic craft.” Fiber art has been a part of the feminist movement since the 70’s. Feminists saw the medium as a way to show that women have always been making art, and wanted to designate a place for it in the world of fine art. “It was a call for action, to go back to the act, to go back to fiber, and to use it to empower women,” Petot explains. Feminist Fiber Art is curated by Somerville-based visual artist Iris Nectar. The exhibit started in Somerville but is now housed in Cambridge and will continue to travel as Nectar discovers new artistic partnerships and spaces. She hopes it will be shown in Philadelphia, New

PHOTOS BY LIZA LEONARD

ARTS & CULTURE

York, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Portland, Toronto, London, and Reykjavík. Before curating the show, Nectar was aware of strong online communities that fostered creation of feminist art, but she wanted to bring the creations to a gallery setting where they could interact with the community in a physical space. In the process of designing her show, Nectar gathered artists from Etsy and Tumblr who shared both feminist points of view and preferred medium. Nectar is proud of the diversity her show represents. “Feminist Fiber Art pulls from this talented online network of artists and features diverse, strong, women artists from around the world,” she says. Etsy and Tumblr have long been fertile grounds for feminist art to grow, but Nectar was dissatisfied with female representation in physical art spaces. Nectar notes that less than 3 percent of the artists in the Modern Art section of the Met are women. She saw an opportunity to push back against sexism in the art world and is passionately doing so with her exhibit.

One piece in the show, “Puts hairs on your chest,” by British artist Sally Hewett, is a 3D pair of breasts emerging from a traditional quilting hoop. It is constructed from nylon Jersey, foam padding, embroidery silk, and long black hairs that are not visible from across the room but adorn the nipples and upper chest area. Hewett’s work is interested in definitions of beautiful and ugly bodies. Her fiber art comments on how conventions affect women. By looking at how expectations of physical appearance demean women, she takes something considered unsightly and turns it into something people want to look at, into art. Other fibers include the works of embroiderer Kjersti Faret, who uses traditional Norse mythology to tell a new story. Her piece “Thor and Gjalp” depicts a river of blood and tells the story of a giant’s daughter, Gjalp, who tries to drown Thor and Loki by letting her menstrual blood flood the river. Whereas in other settings one might be discouraged from talking about periods, at Feminist Fiber Art the conversation is coaxed out of you.

While Hewett and Ferret’s work are now on display in Cambridge, Nectar acknowledges that as the show travels, the art in the exhibit is likely to change. “This is a constantly evolving, collaborative project, and we want to listen to all suggestions to make Feminist Fiber Art as inclusive as possible,” she says. The show is inclusive in that it builds a community space for discussion about the art, but it may not be entirely inclusive of different perspectives on feminism. Feminist Fiber Art depicts feminism as intense, as bold. The art is not shy—it will show you bodies and raw emotion and menstrual blood. Even if not all feminists identify with Feminist Fiber Art’s in-your-face aesthetic, Nectar says the show is meant to affirm women as a whole. “Feminist Fiber Art aims to empower all women by showcasing artwork that explicitly reminds women that their bodies are beautiful and they do not need to be held to a standard of perfection.” She says that if the show effectively communicates this message, then it will have been a success. O October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

TECH & INNOVATION

NET GROWTH

Expanding Our Perception of the Web By Katie Saviano 26

Tufts Observer

October 12, 2015

PHOTO BY NASA/JPL/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA; ICON BY ROB ARMES

TECH & INNOVATION

he Internet is the backbone of the devices that lead our lives. We rely on our smartphones to keep us connected and our laptops to keep us productive. Internet of Things, or IoT, is a proposed development of the Internet in which everyday objects have network connectivity, allowing them to collect and exchange data. IoT allows objects to be sensed and controlled remotely across existing network infrastructure, creating opportunities for more direct integration between the physical world and computer-based systems. IoT is not a new concept. It is a continuation of a process and the catalyst of a dramatic shift that’s happening slowly. There is no confining Internet to our laptops, as the Internet has already moved from our computers to the objects all around us. The purpose of IoT is to make everything fully connected and to pursue efficiency in terms of energy and artificial intelligence. However, the difficulty with enacting this model is that we have a lot of devices, but they are unconnected. For example, wearables, such as a Fitbit or smart watch, are not totally in line with the larger aspirations of the budding IoT movement. A smart watch is just one extra device that connects fitness and health, with many of the same applications that are already built into our smart phones. IoT, by contrast, is trying to truly integrate our lives with our devices, which is much more difficult than simply marketing novel devices. For this reason, it will take a long time for IoT to become a widespread concept. In 2015, the largest platforms for IoT are smart homes, buildings, and businesses. In the home, a fully connected IoT system would have all appliances connect to a central automated system. The biggest example would be a centralized light and heating system. The IoT platform would learn the habits of the people living in the home, turning lights off when not in use, lowering heating when the house is empty, and randomizing lights when inhabitants were gone for extended periods of time in order to prevent theft. This IoT home application would bring about more efficiency in the home. In the same vein, a skyscraper with IoT capability could turn down the heat when the building was full in response to the body heat that would warm the building naturally. This idea isn’t so far-fetched:

Many offices already require employees to use access cards when entering the office building, meaning that a system is already in place to determine building capacity. Industry is currently the largest platform for IoT. For example, factories could use IoT to connect all aspects of production and machinery on a cloud system that runs analysis on how to optimize production and efficiency. British Petroleum is currently partnering with GE’s Predix data gathering platform to connect 650 wells to an IoT system, putting them at the forefront of the field. Each well has up to 30 sensors that measure pressure and temperature, among other data. The information collected will allow BP to plan more efficient extractions, predict well flows, and prevent down time. IoT applications have also emerged within the retail, transport, and health care fields. In retail, an IoT system would allow stores to connect the tracking devices already placed on many articles of clothing. Tracking purchases would enable data collection on what was in stores and what consumers were interested in. In terms of transport, there are already cars on the road that have assisted parking and artificial intelligence systems. Installing IoT in the fleets of trucking companies would simplify monitoring truck location, car temperature, and shipment tracking. It is possible that companies would not want to accept shipments of produce from trucks where the temperature inside the truck was significantly lower than industry and health code standards. Furthermore, IoT could simplify health care and long-term patient care. Wearables given to patients after surgery would allow doctors to monitor biometrics from afar and reduce the number of hospital visits after a patient was discharged. Despite the clear industrial and societal benefits, there are two main issues with IoT: privacy and security. However many privacy settings you have, it’s a fact that the more things that are connected to the Internet, the more data is collected about you. How much do we want companies to know? How much data can or should they have access to? If companies start venturing into the IoT field with no regulations, personal privacy could be compromised. It is true that the purpose of IoT is optimization, efficiency, and ultimately, personalization. However, there must be

some limits. Companies with high levels of captured data could inevitably practice price discrimination. For example, energy companies could charge more for heating when they know that consumers will have larger energy use based on collected data. And while it is one thing for a company to have access to some data for personalization purposes, large amounts of data should not be accessible to anyone. The more data is streamed, the more vulnerable your information becomes. An overarching conversation in the IoT field is cloud security, as data collected will likely move to cloud storage systems hosted online. Another aspect of security is company specialization. With so many companies attempting to gain access to the IoT fields, there are many products with different automated systems. An air sensor could have one automated system, but its security could very likely not align with another

The Internet has already moved from our computers to the objects all around us. company’s security. Companies have to work together to figure out industry-wide standards. However, the more people that have access to these security codes and standards, the more compromised the system becomes, and the more difficult it may be to set up a single, universal system. The issues with IoT are important to consider and are not going anywhere fast. The transition to these fully connected systems is not going to happen as soon as people think. Although IoT is currently receiving a lot of hype, it is unlikely that we will see many of these applications for another few years. If IoT happens right, it could be a great thing. We could see reduced waste, a decrease in use of raw materials and more efficient industry standards. The rise of IoT ultimately depends on which companies enter the industry, the success of their products, and which aspects of IoT hit the main stream first. O October 12, 2015

Tufts Observer

POETRY

i dreamt i was the moon and God colored me saffron and meteors burned holes into my body but i still thought i was beautiful (& you still held my light in your eyes long after closing the blinds)

1:04 AM By Jaanvi Sant

Tufts Observer

October 12, 2015

ART BY SARAH KOTIS

SOFIA ADAMS

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please recycle