Issue 11 - Volume 137

THE CYNIC Est. 1883 | Issue 11 - Volume 137 | November 10, 2020 | vtcynic.com

Inside Quarantine

Spontaneous Joy

After an uptick in COVID-19, UVM quarantine facilities streched thin.

Burlington erupts in celebration following the election of Joe Biden as President.

PAGES 6-7

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DEMOCRACY TRIUMPHS.

KATE VANNI/ The Cynic UVM students celebrate Biden winning the 2020 election on Main St Nov. 7 by popping a bottle of champagne. Students and Burlington residents ooded the streets in celebration.

NEWS & SPORTS

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Breaking down Vermont’s Election night Staff Report With 13 races on the ballot, over 370,000 Vermonters came out to vote in the historic 2020 election that chose national, state and local leaders last Tuesday.

The election results marked the highest voter turnout in Vermont history, surpassing the previous record in the 2008 general election when just under 327,000 Vermonters cast their ballots, according to a Nov. 4 Burlington Free Press

Presidential votes in Vt.

article.

While Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won the state of Vermont by a landslide, incumbent Republican Governor Phil Scott declared victory over his challenger Democratic/

Gubernatorial votes in Vt.

Governor votes by electoral district in Burlington

Governor votes in Vermont

MAC MANSFIELD-PARISI

Progressive candidate David Zuckerman, the current Lieutenant Governor.

Democratic Candidate Molly Gray secured her spot to take Zuckerman’s place as the next Lieutenant Governor, beating her Republican opponent, Scott

Milne.

The election made history Tuesday evening when Vermonters elected Taylor Small, the first openly transgender member of the Vermont Legislature, to represent Winooski.

Lieutenant Gubernatorial votes in Vt.

Lieutenant Governor votes by electoral district in Burlington

Lieutenant Governor votes in Vermont

Presidential votes in Vermont

NEWS & SPORTS

A look inside UVM’s quarantine building

Ella Ruehsen Cynic News Reporter Sawyer Loftus Editor-in-Chief Driving down Colchester Avenue, as it turns into Pearl Street, it’s not hard to skip over UVM’s last residence hall— Jeanne Mance—before the landscape changes to the commercial center of downtown Burlington.

Walking by, it looks like any other UVM dorm, students in the back soaking in the sun and familiar UVM signage telling students to wear masks and steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Moving closer to the door that sits facing Pearl Street, a blue piece of paper, taped to the window says “Drop food here please.”

Inside Jeanne Mance, somewhere between 37 and 57 students were living in quarantine and isolation dorms, some for just a few days, while others longer.

All were housed there waiting to hear whether or not they were infected with COVID-19, after an uptick in positive cases following Halloween Weekend.

In the consequential days following Halloween weekend, students living in quarantine spoke of little to no supervision in quarantine dorms, the near-capacity limit in Jeanne Mance and the party on the fourth floor of Wilks, that brought many of them there.

Since the start of the semester, the hall has been used as the quarantine and isolation dorms.

Though students have filtered in and out of the building since school started, never has there been so many students in UVM quarantine as there are now.

Editor’s note: Several students throughout this story appear with first name pseudonyms as many feared they would face adverse action from the University.

One case, 30 close contacts First-year Joe Porriello, who lives in Wing Hall, said he was walking back from the track Tuesday afternoon when he saw students with packed bags.

“I walked in the door and I see more people, dragging bags out and someone is sitting on the chair in the lobby who has a bag and so I’m like ‘are people go home this early?’” Porriello said.

“But then, this girl was dragging a bag out of Wilks and her friend was like, ‘Watch out everybody, the trail of corona is coming through.”

Porriello said he then went upstairs to his room and looked out the window to see a yellow van.

“I was looking out my window, and people were loading stuff into a van,” he said. “And then they started to walk as a group and I counted about 17 people.”

Annie Stevens, vice provost of student affairs, said of the initial quarantine of 30 students, the “majority” were from one residence hall.

Porriello said he wouldn’t be surprised if that was Wilks Hall.

Two anonymous students, John and Michael, who were in quarantine confirmed Poriello’s suspicion. Many individuals among the group of 30 who were deemed close contacts of the first positive case this week were at a dorm party on Wilks 4, according to the students.

John and Michael were fined, they said, but disciplinary action was handled separately from the health side of things.

Contact tracing was a separate process.

“We were busted, but there were other parties going on right around us,” John said.

John and Michael expressed that they think there was no way of preventing this uptick in cases.

“People were gonna go out and have a good time no matter what,” Michael said. “I don’t think there’s anything that could have stopped halloweekend from causing a giant amount of cases.”

James, an anonymous student not in quarantine, said he was invited to a fraternity party over the weekend and chose not to attend. He mentioned at least two fraternities and at least two club sports houses that allegedly threw parties during Halloween weekend.

“It’s just so dumb, it’s so dumb,” James said. “It takes one person to be infected to go to one party and then the entire school gets shut down like it’s just that simple. I am very concerned but I’m just trying to be as positive as possible and hoping for the best.”

Anxieties regarding Halloween weekend came to fruition in the form of increased policy violations.

“The number of policy violations skyrocketed,” said Hannah, an anonymous RA. “For obvious reasons.”

From Oct. 26 through Nov. 1, UVM reported 48 COVID-19 related conduct violations, according to UVM spokesperson Enrique Corederra.

On Tuesday, John and Michael said things moved quickly and so many students were being moved to quarantine housing that there wasn’t enough room in the Student Health Services Van. “We packed up quickly and then we threw what we could into a bus,” John said. “And then we walked over to Jeanne Mance and we had to wait out for a good amount of time.”

Inside quarantine

When John and Michael arrived at Jeanne Mance to begin their quarantine after walking with a group of students deemed close contacts across campus from Wilks, they were met with a building that seemed to them to be overflowing.

“There were so many people coming in on the day that we were moving in, we got assigned our room on the third floor -and it’s crazy like as soon as one room opens up there’s another one being filled up in an hour,” John said.

John and Michael say they were informed by University officials that there might have to be an overflow building opened up. However, Corederra said that UVM is not experiencing any such issues.

Another student in quarantine, first-year Alana Berman, said that the nurse and hall monitor, Dana, told her that if Jeanne Mance reaches capacity the University will have to close.

There are 70 rooms in the building, according to another student living in quarantine.

Most rooms are currently

being used as singles as the only students in quarantine who are allowed to have a roommate are those who were roommates before being admitted.

The state-mandated that all colleges allocate enough rooms to hold at least 5% of their on-campus populations for students who need to be put in quarantine and self-isolation.

An additional concern that students expressed is that some of those who are in quarantine at Jeanne Mance have not been quarantining in the traditional sense of the term.

“We had a floor meeting today because people have been going into each other’s rooms and stuff. People are not holding up their end of the bargain about being here so they’re kind of tightening up restrictions,” Michael said. “People aren’t following the rules.”

Other quarantined students also expressed that rules have not been closely followed inside Jeanne Mance.

“Last night, we could hear [students] running up and down the hallways, whoever’s above me moving around their furniture or something, music playing, I don’t really know,” said another anonymous quarantined student, Sarah. “I’m glad that they’re tightening rules to make sure that it doesn’t spread more. So it’s disappointing, but I understand why.”

First-year Flynn Opatz is a friend of the students from Wilks Hall who were associated with a positive test and had to quarantine.

He said he has heard similar things about the lack of supervision and lack of rule enforcement in Jeanne Mance.

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“Apparently people are hanging out in there,” he said.

“So I think there’s a lot of a lot of criticisms to be made about Jeanne Mance.”

Additionally, at least one student told the Cynic that students quarantining freely walked away from the building and around the block.

“I’ve gone on a couple of walks around the block,” Sarah said. “I’ve also just kind of sat out in the grass and spent time outside, and we can also get food delivered to the outside of the building.”

John and Michael said that there isn’t much-preventing someone from leaving the building entirely if they wanted.

“That’s what makes it difficult is there is no real surveillance of this place,” Michael said. “It’s just this nurse and her husband that lives in the lobby of this building, so it’s really easy for people to take advantage of that.”

“I mean if someone wanted to, you could just leave,” John said. “If you had no concept of how detrimental that could be to the people around you, you could totally just go.”

As of Nov. 9, the University has reached 8 new positive cases of COVID-19, according to Corederra.

In a statement to the Cynic, Corederra reiterated that all protocols and procedures are being followed by UVM. Several students from Wilks, who were only in quarantine for five days returned to their dorms Nov. 9.

According to UVM, it had been seven since many had been in contact with a positive case.

SAWYER LOFTUS/ The Cynic

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NEWS & SPORTS

Democrat Molly Gray wins Lt. Gov. race Tulley Hescock Assisant Feature Editor Democrat Molly Gray announced victory in a closely contested Lieutenant Governor’s race at a restaurant in Burlington, celebrating her win over Republican Scott Milne Nov. 3.

Gray won the Lieutenant Governor’s with 50.48% of the votes while Scott Milne received 41.38% of the votes.

Standing next to her campaign team, Gray spoke to a group of reporters about her plans for the future at the event at the Great Northern just after 11 p.m.

“I got into this race because of my deep commitment to keeping a generation here, bringing a generation back and bringing a new generation to Vermont,” Gray said.

“I ran because I believe the Office of Lieutenant Governor can be a force for good, a platform to address these challenges, and to elevate the voices of our communities.”

Gray is the fourth woman in Vermont’s history to hold the Lieutenant Governor’s office, and the first since 1997.

Gray and Milne ran head to head for the open Lieutenant Governor’s seat, after David Zuckerman declined to run for reelection to instead run for State Governor.

Milne, a business owner from Central Vermont, conced-

KATE VANNIThe Cynic Molly Gray delivers a victory speech from a podium inside the Great Northern, a Burlington restaurant, Nov. 3. Gray smiles as she delivers the speech to the press and assembled supporters. ed to Gray Tuesday night.

“I am honored by the tens of thousands of Vermonters who supported my candidacy,” Milne said in a statement.

“I send my sincere congratulations to Molly Gray on her victory this evening. I wish her success moving forward.”

Gray, previously the assistant attorney general, ran on a platform focused on rural de-

velopment.

The district where UVM’s campus is located voted overwhelmingly for Gray with 70.25% of the votes.

Gray said she plans to work on investing in Vermont education, including at UVM. “We have to invest in a classroom to community pipeline and invest in our state colleges right here in Vermont,” Gray

said in a speech to reporters at the restaurant.

Beyond this, Gray said she plans to have an interactive relationship with the UVM community and hopes to engage the activism on campus moving forward.

“I look forward to coming to campus and meeting students.

I think UVM is producing climate activists and racial justice

experts and so many leaders,” Gray said in an interview with the Cynic. “This is the moment where we truly need UVM graduates to stay in the state, they are the heart of our future.”

Gray said her goal for her new position as Lieutenant Governor is to “put people before politics every single day.”

Following election, students wait anxiously for results Sabine Foerg Cynic News Reporter Paige Fisher Cynic News Reporter As vote counts for the Presidential Election continued to trickle in following Election Day, UVM students anxiously waited, reflecting on the tumultuous weeks leading up to it, and what’s next to come.

Although Joe Biden was not announced the winner until Saturday morning, UVM’s Office of Civic Engagement held affinity spaces for students of various identities to process the election in the days that followed Nov. 3.

Stepping out of the Mosaic Center for Students of Color following the Nov. 4 affinity space for BIPOC community members, Senior Crystal Zhou said she’s hardly had time or energy to focus on the election.

“To be honest, I know that no matter who wins, there’s nothing I can do about it,” said Zhou. “I already voted and it’s out of my control now.”

Zhou said she’s been mostly focused on applying to graduate school, but that the current political climate has exhausted her emotional energy.

“I’m a person of color on this campus and it’s been hard for me,” Zhou said. “Also, because of this pandemic there

have been a lot of racist attacks against my community.”

She said she’s frequently had to privately message people who have posted controversial or offensive things on social media, and it’s been a large stressor in her already busy life.

Throughout the day Wednesday, other students on campus including first-year Wyatt Knowlton anxiously awaited the results to come in, hoping for news that Biden would be the next president.

Knowlton said he’s been watching the election closely and meticulously trying to calculate the many factors that could contribute to a win for Biden, including mail-in ballots that have yet to be counted.

“It’s stressful waiting and I think the most important thing for me has just been trying to keep myself occupied with other things,” Knowlton said.

Knowlton said the stakes are high in this election, and that a Trump re-election would be an unfathomable loss to him.

“I would be lying if I said that I hadn’t taken a look at Canadian immigration laws and such things. But who knows.” said Knowlton. “I think I’ll just have to jump off that bridge when I get to it.”

Like many other students, Knowlton said the one positive effect of this election was the

voter turnout, and said that this was likely due to the fact that many people received mail-in ballots.

Other students on campus including UVM sophomores Viv Billman and Amanda Roche were also on edge about the results coming in.

“I’m scared,” Roche said. “I am one red county away from a Brittany 2007 level breakdown.”

Both students said the emotions around campus were filled with similar anxiety, and that students seemed rather dejected following Election Day. “I think it’s been a lot of nerves and nervousness,” Roche said.

Billman hopes to see results in the next week for the election, and was impressed with voter turnout in the UVM community.

“There’s been a lot of push to vote, so that’s good,” Billman said.

At the Davis Center, juniors Eliana Pansegrouw and Wendy Schiller also said they were struck by the sober atmosphere on campus after arriving from their off campus residences.

“We just got here,” Schiller said. “But it feels very somber.”

Schiller said her emotions over the past 24 hours have fluctuated, but says her confidence in her preferred candi-

MAC MANSFIELD-PARISI/ The Cynic

Signs indicate where the entrance to the polling place is to potential voters Nov. 3. date Biden is growing as results come in.

“In the 2016 election, nobody was really that worried about it,” said Pansegrouw.

“Everyone thought there’s no way [Donald Trump] could win.”

Schiller agreed, and said that the 2016 election felt like a joke.

“Now there are record numbers of people coming out,” said Pansegrouw. “I think people are now cluing in.”

First-year student Andrew Banno said he is anticipating a democratic win, and was similarly impressed by the voter turnout and the energy around voting among students.

“The energy [at UVM] is huge,” Banno said. “People are just promoting vote, vote, vote.”

Banno said he has felt great support and encouragement for voting on campus.

“Everyone is talking about going out and voting there,” said Banno. “The energy is really strong.”

Banno said he has remained optimistic throughout the election, despite the race being closer than he had hoped.

“There’s a good chance Biden can win, and that would be huge,” said Banno. “I’m hoping Biden takes it.”

OPINION

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Biden, a solution not an answer

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EXECUTIVE Editor-in-Chief Sawyer Loftus editorinchief@vtcynic.com Managing Editor Alek Fleury newsroom@vtcynic.com

OPERATIONS Operations Manager Katherine Izadi operations@vtcynic.com Distribution Manager Inquries email cynic@uvm.edu

EDITORS Copy Chief Will Keeton copy@vtcynic.com Culture Sarah Robinson cynicculture@gmail.com Features Greta Rohrer cynicfeatures@gmail.com News & Sports Emma Pinezich news@vtcynic.com sports@vtcynic.com Opinion Gabby Felitto opinion@vtcynic.com Podcasts David Cabrera vtcynicpodcasts@gmail.com Layout & Illustrations Kate Vanni layout@vtcynic.com Photo Bailey Samber photo@vtcynic.com Digital Media Mills Sparksman cynic@uvm.edu Assistant Editors Ellie Scott & Mac Mansfield-Parisi (Layout), Cole Fekert & Izzy Pipa (Illustrations), Irene Choi (News), Hayley Rosen (Sports), Emily Johnston (Opinion), Sophia Venturo (Culture), Jacob Goodwin (Podcasts), Kyle Elms (Photo), Tulley Hescock (Feature) Page Designers Will Guisbond Copy Editors Catie Segaloff, Eryn Heiken

Staff Editorial

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hat comes next?

After four days of painful anticipation, former Vice President Joe Biden has won the presidency, ousting an unapologetically profane and mean-spirited Donald Trump. But where do we go from here?

The election of Biden marks a turning point and was a moment worthy of celebration.

When the results were broadcast across TV screens in Burlington, the city almost immediately erupted in noise, a collective sigh of relief.

Although understandable, and moving, the natural coming together that took place downtown was perhaps a much needed moment to exhale together, but the energy to improve this country can’t end there.

As liberal college students, it’s so easy for us to look out our windows, look around us and see other progressive people exactly like us. It’s so easy for us to get lost in ourselves and our own ideas and the people around us.

But we can’t lose sight of the fact that this election was extremely close and much closer than any poll had expected.

The fact remains: over 70 million people voted for Donald Trump. We’ve got work to do.

That’s a little less than half of the country voting for a president who told an alt-right terrorist group to “stand back and stand by.”

That’s 71 million people who don’t care about minorities. Almost half the country is completely willing to go head over heels to justify their vote with the mental gymnastics that it takes to cast a vote for Trump.

That’s 71 million people who were not celebrating, but seething.

It’s no secret that this election was not the dream election. Neither candidates were really what people wanted as evident by the “Settle for Biden” movement. And, it’s not like another four years of Trump was really a great choice either.

Politics aside, look objectively at the man and ask, did he really make America better?

The worst thing we as a country can do right now is wiping our slate clean and say a job well done.

“America is fixed! There’s nothing else for us to do. Joe Biden will save us. Thank god for the next four years.”

Biden’s campaign is a campaign of firsts, and that should be celebrated. No other candidate has received as many votes as he has. Further, Kamala Harris is making history in her own right as the first woman, and a woman of

color at that, to be named Vice President-Elect.

But we also have to remember that Biden will be the oldest sitting President of the United States in history.

Biden is an old, white “traditional” Democrat. He has been a fixture in Washington D.C. for nearly 50 years and has a questionable record on commonly held liberal beliefs.

Case and point: the completely overt racial

manipulation when he told Charlamagne tha God in an interview that if a black person doesn’t vote for him, then they “ain’t black.”

Although he’s seen a lot, part of his platform is being a unifier, that is needed to some extent, but we can’t let his desire to reach across the aisle let true liberal issues with true liberal solutions fall by the wayside.

Almost half the country IZZY PIPA

opted for four more years of Donald Trump. Republicans realize that this is their base and will do anything to please them. We can’t act as if Joe Biden will bring civility back to American politics when Republicans realize that they have to cater to their Trumpian voters.

Systemic racism will continue to exist, the climate will continue to decline; simply put, Joe Biden will not fix America. But, we the people can.

We’ve just voted in a President-Elect, that seems, on his face to be a man of the people. Biden promises to be different than Trump and we need to hold him accountable.

We cannot afford to sit and wait, watch and see what this presidency does. The hard work of advocating what is right, lawful and human needs to begin now.

Saturday’s palpable wave of energy that radiated throughout Burlington and much of the United States needs to be ridden further. It’s important to recharge and take a moment to breathe.

But, if we the people let up on our demands for a more perfect union, we cannot expect things to magically get better.

We need to continue to invest effort into the grassroots movements that have created tangible change. The Black Lives Matter protests, the climate rallies and the Migrant Justice movement.

It’s time to dig our heels in on the issues that we care about now that we have an executive arm to help us get them done.

We need to praise Joe Biden when he does things right and we need to criticize Joe Biden when he does things wrong.

We need to pay as much attention to Joe Biden as we would to Donald Trump. We need to watch him with the same scrutiny we would with any politician.

We can celebrate the unprecedented turnout to beat a Republican incumbent President with a ticket that included a female person of color as Vice President, while also recognizing the bumpy road ahead.

The next four years will hopefully be marked with fewer headlines about inflammatory tweets.

Now, let’s use our collective voice to project the change we wish to see, no matter who the president is.

Staff editorials officially reflect the views of the editorial board, which includes the Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor and Opinion Editor. Signed opinion pieces and columns do not necessarily do so.

The Cynic accepts letters in response to anything you see printed as well as any issues of interest in the community. Please limit letters to 350 words. The Cynic reserves the right to edit letters for length and grammar.

Please send letters to opinion@ vtcynic.com.

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NEWS & SPORTS

‘Joy and relief’: Hundreds gather on Church Street to celebrate Biden victory KYLE ELMS/The Cynic

A city errupts in celebration as election comes to a close Nicole Hardy Cynic News Reporter Moments after the news broke that Joe Biden would be the next president of the United States, a quiet morning in downtown Burlington transformed as community members marched downtown to celebrate the changing political tide.

All day and night Saturday, Nov. 7, hundreds of community members took to their cars, some sitting out the window waving Biden-Harris and Black Lives Matter signs, others popping champagne out of sunroofs and cheering, while a sea of supporters flanking Main Street cheered them on.

Standing on the outskirts of the crowd, Megan Steintrager cried as she watched community members celebrate Biden on Church Street.

“I’m thrilled by the outcome

today, and I hope we can have a peaceful transition and we can start bringing this country back together. It’s been definitely the craziest election I’ve ever seen,” Steintrager said. “The celebration reminds me of when Obama was elected.”

Raising a Biden-Harris sign above her head with pride, Maya Cornelius said she cried of joy when she found out Biden had won.

“I was so happy, I cried in the middle of a Christmas tree shop when I found out the news,” Cornelieus said. “Then I went to Walmart and some guy was really angry that Biden won, and I got in an argument with him while holding a giant candy cane and I felt very powerful.”

As the parade of honking cars descended down Main Street, Cornelius said she was euphoric at the sight of so many people gathered together in support of the new

president elect.

“I really love it. It’s great to see everyone and it’s just like one big family,” Cornelius exclaimed. “I know that’s so cheesy but it really does feel like that, I love it.”

Standing on the steps of City Hall, Mary Weith found herself overcome with happiness as she reflected on the Biden-Harris win.

“I’m deliriously happy and excited for a change,” Weith said. “I’m feeling so positive.”

Although the sense of community was exciting to many that crowded the streets of Burlington waving pride flags and playing music out of portable speakers, others, like Calder Felty, were concerned to see so many people packed tightly in the middle of the pandemic.

“I mean, it’s kind of nice to see everyone gather in a community about this election, but it’s dangerous during these COVID times,” Felty said.

Others were skeptical about the next four years to come.

For an avid Bernie supporter like Megan Mathews, although Biden’s election was a victory because it ended Trump’s presidency, she said it doesn’t mean real progressive change is going to happen.

Matthews said she still has concerns about how progressive his political agenda really is given his policies in the past.

“I think if the Democrats don’t push progressive legislation, we’re gonna fall back in the same hole and someone in 2024 could very well be worse than Trump,” Mathews said. “Or Trump again.”

Matthews along with other protesters were optimistic about Kamala Harris’s election as the first woman of color, let alone woman, to become Vice President.

“I think the door has been opened,” Matthews said. “It’s just so easily closed for women, espe-

cially women of color, but I think it’s rapidly changing.”

Steintrager said she sees Harris’s election as a step in the right direction, but knows there are people in other parts of the country that don’t share that perspective.

“You know, in the last congressional election a lot of new women of color were in office, so I think we’ve had some steps back, but [Harris’ election] shows a sign of us generally going in the right direction.” Steintrager said.

As the sun set over Burlington Saturday evening, honking cars continued to pass by church street and community members played music and danced on Church Street in celebration of a new political era.

Standing in the crowd, Patrick Smith said he was feeling “joy and relief, mostly relief, but admitted that “there’s a long way to go.”

ALLISON Ouellette/The Cynic

ALLISON Ouellette/The Cynic

ALLISON Ouellette/The Cynic

ALLISON Ouellette/The Cynic

TOP: A crowd gathers along Main St in downtown Burlington to celebrate Biden’s victory over Trump Nov. 7.

TOP RIGHT: A Burlington resident stands on Main St clenching an American flag between their fingers as they hold up a peace sign Nov. 7.

BOTTOM RIGHT: UVM students hang out the side of a car holding up Biden signs as they drive down Main St Nov. 7.

BOTTOM LEFT: A woman stands on Main St holding up a sign that reads “fight for black lives” Nov. 7.

ALLISON Ouellette/The Cynic

ALLISON Ouellette/The Cynic

KYLE ELMS/The Cynic

MARY MCLELLAN/The Cynic

TOP LEFT: A girl rides in the car with her friends down Main St while waiving the pride flag Nov. 7.

TOP RIGHT: A man holds two peace signs up as he drives down Main St with no hands on the wheel Nov. 7.

BOTTOM LEFT: A crowd gathers on the corner of Church St and Main St to celebrate Biden winning the presidency Nov. 7.

BOTTOM MIDDLE: Smoke from a car doing a burnout fills the air around Biden supporters gathered on Main St Nov. 7.

BOTTOM RIGHT: A man bangs two pots together on the corner of Church St and Main St to celebrate Biden winning the Presidency Nov. 3.

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OPINION

High school seniors need COVID support Sam Jefferson Cynic Columnist

March 12th, 2020, my last day of regular school. An email was shot out by my high school that evening announcing a two week cancelation due to COVID-19, expecting a return on March 30th.

It’s been more than 7 months since that email, my high school is still fully online as are many others across the country.

Come this summer, it seems increasingly likely current seniors will have lost their last 3 semesters to Zoom classes.

And yet, despite losing out on more class time, I’ve seen much less support from the schools, teachers and even celebrities throughout America when it comes to this year’s seniors.

The last one I mention with a grain of salt.

Seniors everywhere this year deserve the same support the class of 2020 received. Navigating through your final year with the challenge of a worldwide pandemic is no easy task.

Two seniors at Burlington High School, Anessa Conner and Ayden Flanigan echoed this, life as a senior is tough.

On September 16th, BHS decided to close school, not actually because of COVID, but because of an alarmingly high level of PCBs, a chemical dangerous to consume in large amounts.

“Doing work at home is such a different atmosphere, I feel like when we’re just sitting inside our house all day our brains have less capacity to do work,” said Flanigan.

This is something many students can relate too, long Zoom days are grueling.

BHS senior Anessa Conner has also felt the effects of remote learning.

“I don’t really feel like a high school senior because my senior year isn’t happening, because I feel like so much of what makes you a senior is the school’s traditions that you do,” she said.

And the issues of being a senior right now go deeper than missing out on the fun traditions and events.

Alistair Grant, a college counselor located in North California, says the pandemic is the single most disruptive thing to happen to college admissions in his 20+ year career.

“If you think of the college process it’s already asking a lot of people. I think what’s proving difficult right now is some students who weren’t able to visit college, don’t really know what they’re working towards,” Grant said.

Sara Fargo, another college counselor from Northern California said that schools going test optional has been tough for her students.

“Some schools have gone test-optional, which has been hard for some kids who studied hard for the test. I really feel for

them on that,” she said.

Things like tests disappearing can be measured, what can’t be measured is the effect this has on these kids mental health.

“It’s much more stressful, and harder emotionally. And with no end in sight during the school year it’s really hard, I start off each of my sessions with students asking ‘how are you’ and commemorating about these times,” said Fargo.

This is why I feel for the class of 2021.

I was lucky enough to have all the tools needed to get through the college application process, but these seniors don’t.

If I didn’t have in person school at the time I know those stress induced months of essay writing would’ve been that much

harder.

I remember waking up each day without being able to get past brushing my teeth before I thought “common app common app commonappcommonappcommanapp.”

I had a college counselor at my school to meet with, and a writing coach my parents provided me. I could ask teachers at school for advice.

Having people around to guide you through such a tumultuous time helps a student succeed but more importantly is an essential destressor.

“I haven’t seen my teachers in 7 months and yet I’m asking them for rec letters and stuff like that. I’m just trying to figure this stuff out without really knowing what I’m doing,” said Flanigan.

Flanigan isn’t alone in his uncertainty.

“I feel like adults understand the feelings of not knowing what I’m doing, but don’t understand how impactful it is to have those feelings during a pandemic when nobody is connected and everything’s up in the air,” said Conner.

All of this makes me wonder why high schools aren’t putting in the same effort to support seniors again.

Maybe they’ll offer more emotional support in the second semester, but why wait?

And I think more than anything these kids deserve to feel the emotional support I felt last year as a senior. Especially because I was lucky enough to have a home computer, my friends to waste away on Xbox

with, and confidence my parents would keep their jobs.

Not everybody has those luxuries during remote school, and I think it’d mean a lot for us, and colleges to let high school seniors know they’re being thought and empathized with.

So, if you’re a friend, mom, dad, counselor, sibling, or teacher to a senior in high school, make a little extra effort if you haven’t already to let them know you want to help them through the year.

I think it’d mean a lot.

Sam Jefferson is a firstyear with an undeclared major. He has been a Cynic since fall 2020.

SAVANAH TEBEAU-SHERRY

OPINION

Neutral Milk Hotel is not a personality Gabby Felitto Opinion Editor

I

n a time of social media, quality music and movies, we all want people to know that we like artistic, smart and cool things.

We all love bragging about how the media we consume is so smart and different because we want to feel superior. But, as someone who was always told the things they liked weren’t good, I’m here to let you know that it’s ok to like crappy or basic music and movies.

I go on Twitter often and I see two of my friends from high school liking posts of all these A24 movies, HBO series and music like Mitski while putting down people liking the more “basic” and “less thoughtful” media like Taylor Swift and “Riverdale.”

I’ve also begun to see many tweets and TikToks making fun of people who like the show “The Office” and “Friends.” I remember like five years ago when everyone was losing their minds over these shows.

You can be into media that have a lot of depth, but it’s fine to like things that have no depth at all. Liking music like Britney Spears or shows like

“Gossip Girl” doesn’t mean that your thought processes or tastes are less than others who orgasm over “The Social Network” or Vampire Weekend.

People need to realize they’re not superior for listening or watching “indie” media compared to those listening or watching media society deemed to be crap.

Sometimes you just want to have fun listening to Pitbull or watching “Love Island,” instead of having your emotions stepped on while listening to Neutral Milk Hotel or watching “Lady Bird.” Not everything needs to be serious or make you feel major emotions.

It feels awful for someone to yuck your yum because they don’t see the worth in something you love. I’ve experienced this one too many times as I’ve excitingly shown my friends or family my favorite Black Veiled Brides songs or raved about my favorite Naruto characters, for them to say, “I’m so happy for you” with sour faces.

Also, just because something is perceived as crappy, doesn’t mean that it’s not meaningful.

When I first listened to Pierce the Veil’s “Collide with the Sky” album, I thought it was the most beautiful album I’ve ever heard. You can’t tell

me that you didn’t cry when you first listened to “I’m low on gas and you need a jacket” when Vic Fuentes sang the line “but I will soon forget the color of your eyes And you’ll forget mine”.

All of the crappy music, shows and movies that I love have really shaped me and have given me my happiest memories. So, hearing people talk smack about it hurts. Like yes, the band Asking Alexandria isn’t Grammy-worthy but they pumped me up.

People need to get off their high horses, thinking “The Lighthouse” is the highest form of entertainment. Yes, we get it, those tv shows, movies and artists are very good and deserve to be credited with how great they are, but damn.

Stop making people feel stupid for gushing over what they love because its not “good”.

And I know that behind the “holier than thou” persona,

9

IZZY PIPA

they love the same crappy movies and tv shows that I do, but because it isn’t cool to talk about liking it, they will continue to publicly denounce it.

Remember, liking things shouldn’t be so serious. It’s great that you like what you like, but that doesn’t give you the right to think you are better than others.

Just because you don’t like it doesnt mean others are going to not see its worth.

Somebody’s trash is another’s treasure.

Gabby Felitto is a Juniorpublic communications major. She has been a Cynic since fall 2018.

Pass/fail deserves a comeback...please....I’m begging you Sophie Oehler Cynic Columnist

I

’m throwing a farewell party this weekend to say goodbye to my academic scholarship.

There’ll be cake, champagne flutes full of my tears, and fun party games, such as “Guess How Old Sophie Will Be When She Finishes Paying Off Her Student Loans.”

I’m not thriving with online school. Everyday I sit myself down in front of the computer and say “You’re going to pay attention today. You’re not going to get distracted. You’re

going to learn something.” And then ten minutes later that goes out the window.

As a result, my grades are suffering. I’ve done poorly on the past few tests in my classes and it’s hard to feel inspired to participate in a class when, to the professor, I’m just a circle and a pair of initials.

What does it matter if I show up to my 100 person lecture on Teams, it’s not like they’ll notice me anyway.

Other students are feeling the same, like Victoria Scala, a junior in the Grossman School of Business.

“I’m finding that focusing in online lectures is very challenging,” Scala said. “This

lack of focus means that I’m not retaining as much material which then affects my overall performance in the class.”

Last semester, UVM sent out a notice that all students could opt for pass/fail on their transcript, as opposed to a letter grade.

Any GPA that fell below a 3.0 during the course of our semester in quarantine, would be frozen until the fall.

It helped alleviate the stress from online school during a pandemic, so I could better focus on the material being taught.

But I don’t understand why that exception can’t carry over into this semester, and the

COLE FEKERT

following.

We’re still in a pandemic.

The majority of us still have most of our classes online.

We’re all burnt out, unmotivated, and still reeling from a global pandemic and the end of the political world to boot.

“Everyday I try my best and it would be nice to not have the pressure of maintaining a specific GPA when there’s so many additional obstacles to tackle as a student,” said junior Josh Huffman.

Another discussion that students keep hoping will be had by administration, is the topic of decreasing tuition due to the pandemic.

This isn’t college anymore.

I sit in my apartment staring at a computer screen for the majority of my day.

I am on campus one day out of the week. I see maybe three people consistently.

I’m not complaining about the situation, obviously we’re still in a pandemic and obviously I understand the ramifications that come with that.

But it’s near impossible to maintain strong academics while being confined to a computer screen, and a job and stable relationships without wanting to drop everything and walk into the ocean.

This semester, and probably

the semesters to come, are not worth the $60,000 we’re being charged, especially if we start losing our scholarships.

Plus, due to the pandemic, a lot of families have lost their jobs, putting them deeper in the hole than they were before.

The added shock of a lost scholarship would be irrecoverable.

It could be my proficiency based high school education talking, but higher education shouldn’t be about grades. At least not in the middle of a global pandemic.

We deserve to attend a university that has not only our physical health, but mental health and academic stability set as the first priority.

My dad suggested that if online school continues, I should take a gap semester to reset my brain.

He also mentioned that if enough students had that same mentality, universities might cut tuitions in attempts to coax kids back to campus.

Some food for thought, perhaps.

Sophie Oehler is a Juniorpolitical science and French major. She has been a Cynic since fall 2019.

CULTURE

10

Activist looks to fill BTV soul food gap Mae Nagusky Culture Staff Writer Nigerian-American UVM student Harmony Edosomwan learned to cook from her mom.

She said that in Nigerian culture, a lot of pressure is placed on women to do the cooking so that’s what she grew up doing.

“I grew up in a household where my mom was constantly cooking,” she said. “That’s where my love for food definitely grew.”

Edosomwan created her own restaurant: Harmony’s Kitchen after she noticed she could fill a culinary need for the community.

“Originally when I started, I recognized that there isn’t really someone here specifically making soul food and selling it so I wanted to be that person,” she said.

One of Edosomwan’s biggest inspirations is Anthony Bourdain.

“His love for culture and his love for food inspired me and my sister. When he passed, I thought I definitely want to do something with this passion that he’s given me,” she said.

Senior Ama Sika said that being African and coming from the Bronx, food is everything to her.

Sika said she didn’t want to eat anything. “Coming here, I struggled a lot to find good food,” she said. “I just used to cook my own food. But seeing Harmony, she has made it possible for people that are POC’s to get that away from home food.”

Senior Hannah Arafeh said it feels good to support a black femme business.

“I’m so proud of her. I taste tested some of the food before she put it on the menu. It’s really amazing to watch her thrive and be successful at something she loves to do and is so good at and something that the community really needs,” she said.

Edosomwan started her business in January of this year but had to shut it down due to COVID-19.

“COVID impacted my business to the point where I literally couldn’t sell food since March,” she said. “I waited it out a bit and then we saw that it was actually pretty serious so I wasn’t selling at all during that time.”

COVID-19 isn’t the only challenge Edosomwan has faced. She said social media was brutal when she launched her company.

“I was a fresh, new business owner and I had a bunch of people attacking my brand as soon as I came out,” she said.

However, everyone in her immediate circle supported her. Her older sister made her buy all of the materials for the restaurant so that when she got back to Vermont, she would have to start.

“My sister definitely pushed me a lot,” she said.

She re-opened her business Nov. 2. The pre-orders sold out within the first 15 to 20 minutes.

“These past few months, I wasn’t only working on my brand but I was also working on remaking the entire menu,” Edosomwan said. “I’ve eaten everything on that menu like a thousand times in like three thousand different ways.”

Customer Nipa Wheatley

ELAINA SEPEDE/The Cynic Harmony Edosomwan, creator of Harmony’s Kitchen, sits outside of her apartment where she does the cooking for her business Nov. 7. said Vermont needs to expand its food options to address the deep seated racism. “We need diversity. Food is a great way to bring different types of people together and potentially open up different types of conversations,” she said.

Harmony’s Kitchen also offers two vegan options. Wheatley said vegan food is very hard to come by in Vermont.

“I’m painfully food motivated and the fact that she has vegan fried chicken as an option as well as mac and cheese, oh my god, I cannot tell you how excited I am,” she said.

Edosomwan spoke of the harm she and people of color have experienced due to the bleak ethnic food scene.

“People feel good when they’re eating good food. Vermont can be super brutal, especially for people of color,” Edo-

somwan said.

She continued, “If there was a Jamaican spot here, I know I would be a much happier Vermonter. I just want to do that for people. When people first take a bite of my food and taste how flavorful it is, seeing their reactions brings me great joy.”

Sika said the first time she tried Harmony’s Kitchen, it made her night.

“Her food is really good. It is seasoned right. It tastes so good,” Sika said. “I’m so hungry right now that I’m only thinking about that.”

Personal chef Emily Eden is aiming to raise 500 dollars to support Edosomwan and her goals. Everyone who donates $10 to Edosomwan’s Venmo will be entered into a raffle; the winner gets a personal chef service from her with a $300 value.

“I’m sure that this is go-

ing to be a successful venture but I would also love it to be a smooth path filled with community support and enthusiasm,” Eden said. “I think it’s super important for black cooks to be cooking soul food and making money off it.”

Harmony’s Kitchen is open on Mondays and Fridays 5-8 p.m. and orders are made two to three days prior. Right now, online ordering is available through her website, www.harmonyskitchenvt.com.

“I’ve always dreamed of owning a restaurant,” she said.

“It’s definitely something I’m going after full-fledge because it’s something I’m passionate about; I’m passionate about black cuisine, I’m passionate about having a place here in Vermont.”

11

CULTURE

New tattoo parlor aims to be inclusive Kellyn Doerr Culture Staff Writer Underneath a thrift store in downtown Burlington, there’s a white door to the left, adorned with a padlock and three words in unaligned black lettering. It spells out “LOVE AND DEATH.” Love and Death Tattoo, located on College Street, is a new tattoo shop in Burlington that prioritizes “Black, POC, QUILTBAG, fat, and/or disabled folks” and is a collaborative space that brings together a variety of artists and clients to work together on tattoos.

Love and Death is committed to changing the tattooing game and it’s environment.

Moody Rose Christopher has been traveling and tattooing for the last few years.

She opened Love and Death in the midst of COVID with the intent to give space and time to both artists and clients who are excluded from the mainstream tattoo medium.

“There’s been a lot of discussion about drastic changes needing to happen within tattooing due to rampant sexual harassment, bigotry and racism,” Moody said. “This shop is my response to that in a way.”

Moody said that in her experience, tattooing can be a “lawless industry” where an artist is able to do whatever they want.

Many tattooers abuse that power by prioritizing thin or white bodies, or charging a high fee that makes tattoos inaccessible to low-income people.

“We want to create accessibility and inclusivity to help eradicate exclusive behavior and give a middle finger to those that help perpetuate it,” Moody said.

Additionally, Love and Death seeks to acknowledge the inherent problem of tattooing in Burlington in the first place.

In their Instagram bio, the shop makes a land acknowledgment. It reads “Located in so called “Burlington, VT” on stolen Abenaki land.”

“Indigenous individuals and colonial violence are treated like relics of the past and that couldn’t be farther from the truth,” Moody said. “Even tattooing as it is, is a part of white washing and colonization, so every action we make here and globally needs to be done with this knowledge in mind.”

Unlike other tattoo shops, Love and Death isn’t stuck on prices.

The prices are decided between the client and tattooer with budgets and bartering welcome.

They do this to be more inclusive and to show kindness to those who keep the shop afloat, Moody said.

“Tattoos aren’t cheap because tattooers have a lot of hidden costs that don’t get considered. Our bodies take a serious beating from static po-

sitions and repetitive motions,” Moody said.

Love and Death not only tattoos for their community but is committed to serving it as well.

They have a community care section where people can grab different resources like condoms, water and instant foods, Moody said.

“Our community matters to us,” Moody said. “Those who are housing insecure and poor deserve access to resources and this is our way of offering that without making people asking for it.”

Moody said that despite Love and Death’s doors being open to everyone, college-aged and mid thirties people tend to be their typical client base.

She also said that once people come, they usually come back pretty quickly.

One reason for the recurring client base is Max. Known on Instagram as @ must_be_max, he is the other main artist at Love and Death.

Max mainly does stick-npokes and has done small art to full fledged portraits using this method.

Moody described Max’s style as “like sculpting to him.”

Moody says both of their styles are “folk art tats for acid heads and freaks” and says she wants to create real experiences and real tattoos, all handmade with love.

Although Moody and Max are the main two tattooers, Love and Death aims to be collaborative with a revolving door of artists.

“We like to have fun,” Moody said. “Both Max and I are super into tattooing and having a variety of artists come through the doors gives us exposure to new styles and approaches as well as an opportunity to build community in the industry.”

Love and Death prides itself in being a community oriented shop and believes if you have the privilege and resources to be community oriented and caring, you should do it and do it quietly.

When Moody was first establishing the shop she made it very clear that they were like unlike any other you’ve seen before, introducing it as, “Love and Death seeks to eradicate the unwelcome environment of traditional tattoo shops.”

Moody said even as a tattoo shop, they have a responsibility to foster a better environment for all people that not only come into the shop itself but that walk the earth.

“Enough is enough,” Moody said. “We have to do better each and everyday to make the world more welcome and kind. That said we also aren’t a delicate shop.

“When my needles hit your skin you’re gonna see God but at least you know I’m there for you.”

ELAINA SEPEDE/The Cynic TOP: Moody Rose Christopher, owner of Love and Death Tattoo, poses with a free hand, no reference back piece for a customer Nov. 6. Moody opened Love and Death Tattoo on College Street in the midst of COVID. MIDDLE: Moody prepares the equipment for a tattoo Nov. 6.

BOTTOM: Customers recieve and get prepped for their new ink Nov. 6.

12

FEATURE

Business majors’ voting rates remain low

Liz Chadwick Feature Staff Writer Despite Vermont’s record-breaking voting turnout in 2020, UVM’s voting rate historically falls short of average, and certain majors appear to contribute to its low participation more than others.

According to the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement, business, marketing and management majors at UVM displayed the lowest student voting rate at the University for recent presidential elections, with 26.6% turnout in 2012 and 28.7% turnout in 2016.

Jared Weiss, a junior business administration major, did not expect his classmates to have the lowest turnout, despite not voting himself.

“I did not get the chance to vote in this election, I was lazy this year,” he said. “I’m surprised it’s the lowest.”

Other UVM majors at the bottom of the list for participation in the 2016 election include computer and information sciences with 29.7%, engineering and engineering technologies with 38.2%, and physical sciences with 34.8%.

Meanwhile, UVM’s family and consumer/human sciences fell within the top three majors for voter turnout consecutively, with 52.2% of students voting in both 2012 and 2016.

According to the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement, engineering majors nationwide, as well as mathematics and statistics, had the lowest voting rate in the 2012 election, while education and health professions had the highest.

Nationwide, 60% of STEM

students, among the lowest voting majors, are men, while 82% of health profession students, among the highest voting majors, are women.

At UVM, the lowest voting major demographic, business and engineering students, are disproportionately male.

According to the UVM Office of Institutional Research, 62.9% of Grossman School of Business and 74% of College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences students are male. In contrast, in the university as a whole, only 39.3% of students are male.

In reference to voting demographics, Lana Al Namee, President of the Student Government Association, believes that policy can have different impacts on voters’ lives because of their race and gender. She said this might result in the differences in turnout.

“Folks who are more affected by their experience, and the systems of the U.S., would be more apt to go and vote because they want to see a difference, and a lot of the times their voices aren’t heard,” she said.

Al Namee said that if people weren’t affected by political elections, and did not feel that they had anything to gain or lose, then people would not vote.

But senior Shan Shan Zheng, a business administration major, said that she had intentions to vote and was disappointed at the limitations she faced.

“I didn’t register in time,” she said. “In New Hampshire you have to vote in person, so I would have to go back home for it. I feel a little bit sad because I wanted to vote.”

She thinks that the business school has a lot of internation-

SAWYER LOFTUS/The Cynic TOP: Inside Kalkin Hall, part of the Grossman School of Business, stocks rotate on a screen above a trophy case Nov. 8.

BOTTOM: The Grossman School of Business is made up of Ifshin and Kalkin Halls, pictured Nov. 8 al students, and since they are unable to vote in the U.S., this might explain the lack of turnout among business students.

In 2016, international students made up 5% of UVM’s undergraduate population, while making up 16% of GSB and 11% of CEMS, according to the UVM Office of Institutional Research.

Fifty-two percent of international students enrolled in GSB and CEMS, while 28% enrolled in CAS, UVM’s largest college, leaving 19% enrolling in the remaining four colleges. The representation of students from outside of the U.S. within each college varies, and this may describe the discrepancies in vot-

ing rates between majors.

According to UVM Votes, a newly formed voter outreach organization on campus, the UVM voter turnout rate among all students was only 46.2% in 2016, falling behind the national average of 50.4% for all college students.

With regard to this low student engagement, Al Namee expressed disappointment in her classmates who failed to vote in this election.

“It drives me insane, when so many people have worked so hard for us to have that right,” she said. “They’re probably turning in their graves right now knowing that some peo-

ple aren’t voting, especially for women, and how long it took for women to have voting privileges.”

Al Namee also noted that for her, it is “extra special” to have that right because she was born in Iraq and became a US citizen upon moving to the US. She finds it particularly hard to understand people she talks with who express support for political issues, but fail to vote.

But despite her disagreement with non-voters, she said, “I can’t cast that judgment on other people, but if you have the right, you might as well take advantage of it.”