Issue 20 - Volume 136 by Vermont Cynic

THEVERMONTCYNIC THE Issue 20 - Volume 136 | February 18, 2019 | vtcynic.com

Illustration by KATE VANNI

NEWS

ichoi@uvm.edu

Nearly six months after the announcement of a digital version of UVM student IDs, there are still UVM-affiliated locations where students cannot use their iPhone to gain access. Last year, CATcards, the all-purpose student ID card at UVM, was digitally implemented into Apple Wallet, an app that keeps cards and passes in the iPhone and Apple Watch. The product was announced on Aug. 13, 2019 by Apple and released for use at UVM, Oct. 15. Today, the digital CATcard is available for use in most places on UVM campus, but Green Mountain Transit, the city bus service, still does not support digital CATcards. Because the busses still use swipe readers, students are not able to use their digital CATcards, which require chip readers. Both options are available for use at UVM, but the University has been moving towards chip readers and away from swipe readers for a while, Mark McKenna, director of CATcard Services, said. Though most on-campus scanners are compatible with the digital CATcard, the GMT buses still only have swipe readers. But since GMT is a separate entity from UVM, CATcard Services can’t replace the readers, McKenna said. “We’re working with the city buses to see if there’s anything we could do for them,” he said. “But the reality is the bus company would have to make an investment in their buses, so it probably won’t happen.” Some off-campus locations in Burlington, such as Dunkin’

lpage@uvm.edu

The campaign finance reports for the Ward 1 and 8 city council races are in and show who’s up financially. According to the campaign finance reports candidates have to file with the Vermont Secretary of State, Zoraya Hightower is leading Ward 1, with the most money raised and the highest amount of donors. Her campaign has raked in $2,855 from 57 contributors. Hightower’s competitor, senior Jillian Scannell, a Democrat, has raised $1,813 from 28 donors. For the Ward 8 race, incumbent Adam Roof, a Democrat, is surpassing Jane Stromberg, a Progressive, in the amount raised for his campaign, gaining $2,714 from 36 contributors. Stromberg raised $2,199 from 28 donors. Hightower spent $2,224.77 as of Feb. 2, the most for a Ward 1 candidate. Ward 1 candidate Sharon

WHAT ’S

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Zoe Stern zstern@uvm.edu

NEW SGA SENATORS ELECTED

MAC MANSFIELD-PARISI/The Vermont Cynic

Two CATcard readers lay next to each other on a table, Feb. 5. The reader on the left reads a magnetic strip on the card’s exterior; the one on the right works with your phone. Donuts and City Market, are working with UVM to get their own tap scanners for digital CATcards. However, many stores in Burlington use iPad readers, which do not support digital CATcards, McKenna said. “It’s been difficult, but we’re doing our best to make things more convenient for students,” he said. CATcard Services works with CBORD, a company that works with colleges on student ID services, and Apple to bring UVM students digital CATcard services, McKenna said. Because the University was already working towards chip readers, working with Apple was relatively inexpensive, McKenna said. “We didn’t have to pay Ap-

ple anything to collaborate,” he said. “We only have to pay a small licensing fee per user.” For each person that uses a digitized CATcard, UVM has to pay Apple around $6, McKenna said. With around 3,000 users so far, the total sum given to Apple has come to about $18,000. One tap scanner costs about $200, while replacing hardware in an existing tap scanner is virtually free, McKenna said. One CATcard with print costs about $12, and the license fee to Apple is about half of that, he said. “Going digital reduces the cost of card production,” he said. “Especially because the chances of you losing your phone is a lot less than you losing your card.” In total, UVM spends

KeyKey

Ward 1 1 Ward

$105,000 per year on the CATcard system, including card fees, scanner replacements and general maintenance, McKenna said. First-year Grace Jack said for students, the digital CATcard is convenient to use in dayto-day campus life. “I can just tap my phone to get into my building, to go do my laundry or to even use points at the Davis Center,” she said. “It’s also nice because the real cards just start to wear down and the black stripe does, too.” The only place that she can’t use her digital CATcard is GMT, Jack said. “I take the bus all the time, but I can’t use my phone on the bus,” she said. “It’s frustrating because I can’t just use my phone like for everything else.”

Ward Ward 8 Hightower leads Ward 1 8donors and funds Lilly Page

SGA

Irene Choi

THIS WEEK IN SGA

Digital ID not always available

PPENIN HA est. 2019 G

Bushor’s campaign finance report was not in the State’s database. Election day for Burlington City Council is March 3. Polling places: Ward 1: Mater Christi School, 100 Mansfield Ave. Ward 2: H.O. Wheeler School, 6 Archibald St. Ward 3: Lawrence Barnes Elementary School, 123 North St. Ward 4: Saint Mark’s Youth Center, 1271 North Ave. Ward 5: Burlington Electric Department, 585 Pine St. Ward 6: Edmunds Middle School, 275 Main St. Ward 7: Robert Miller Recreation Center, 130 Gosse Ct. Ward 8: Fletcher Free Library, 235 College St.

Number of contributors per candidate Number of contributors per candidate

Total Total fundsfunds raisedraised per candidate per candidate

Key Ward 1 Ward 8 Number of contributors per candidate

SGA swore in nine new senators during their weekly senate meeting, Feb. 11. Recently sworn-in senators were divided on the number of signatures required for the elections process. SGA changed the required amount of signatures candidates need to be on the ballot from 150 to 50 for midterm elections at their Jan. 14 meeting. Sophomore Franklin Cody said he felt as though getting 50 signatures was relatively easy but understood why it was lower. “There hasn’t been a midterm election since 2015 so I think it was kind of justified to lower the count,” Cody said. “But also I think SGA senators are supposed to go out and meet people and talk to people about things.” First-year Marissa Ledbetter was conflicted about the petition number change. “I had to get 100 in high school and my high school had 500 people,” Ledbetter said. “I think since you have to get creative of where you can get them, I think that 50 might be enough.” However, if 50 are the only connections you’re making then it isn’t enough, Ledbetter said. It is all about how willing you are to put yourself out there. The newly elected senators have until the end of the semester to put their plans in action. Sophomore Maggie Friel is excited to use SGA to make it different from her high school experience. “I was pretty reserved,” Friel said. “I wanted the chance to branch out and meet people and have new experiences, which UVM is really good at giving opportunities for.” Ledbetter decided to run the day before the packet was due and used the Davis Center dinner rush to her advantage. “I went to New World [Tortilla] during the dinner rush and just talked to people, made connections and asked them to sign my form,” Ledbetter said. “They did.” Some senators chose to campaign, while others used word of mouth. “I made a couple of flyers on Canva and posted them on my Instagram, had my friends post on their Instagram and in the UVM Facebook pages,” Friel said. “I spent $2 on the campaign.”

OPINION

Floor vandalism needs to stop

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EXECUTIVE Editor-in-Chief Bridget Higdon editorinchief@vtcynic.com Managing Editor Alek Fleury newsroom@vtcynic.com

OPERATIONS Operations Manager Tim Mealey operations@vtcynic.com Distribution Manager Dariel Echanis Distribution Assistants Cyrus Oswald, Irene Choi, Elaina Sepede

EDITORS Copy Chief Liv Marshall copy@vtcynic.com Culture Sarah Robinson cynicculture@gmail.com Features Greta Rohrer cynicfeatures@gmail.com

Staff Editorial

n Thursday night Feb 13, the Cynic sent a photographer to walk around various UVM dorms to get as many photos as possible of the aftermath of vandalism. To be honest, we thought this was going to be a shot in the dark. We were doubtful that he would see anything. But when he came back, we sat at his computer and scrolled through his photos of over 30 missing signs for bathrooms, room numbers and floor numbers, RA boards rearranged to say sexually explicit things like “c**t slop,” penises drawn on various things and ceiling tiles destroyed on the floor. This level of vandalism was unprecedented. We are not sure what college fantasy some students in various dorms think they are living, but it’s definitely the wrong one and one that may soon have costs that fall on innocent students. We need to respect each other’s space and property, and remember that our actions do have consequences. In college, you have

Podcasts David Cabrera vtcynicpodcasts@gmail.com Layout / Illustrations Kate Vanni layout@vtcynic.com Photo Stephan Toljan photo@vtcynic.com Assistant Editors Henry Mitchell (Opinion), Meilena Sanchez (Layout), Dalton Doyle (Copy), Allie O’Connor (Culture), Zoe Stern, Maryann Makosiej (News), Bailey Samber (Photo), Cole Fekert (Illustrations) Copy Editors Lee Hughes, Kyra Chevalier, Will Keeton Page Designers Stephanie Hodel, George Weed, Mac Mansﬁeld-Parisi

ADVISING Faculty Adviser Chris Evans crevans@uvm.edu

To state the obvious: it’s not cool to destroy someone else’s things. In addition, all of our actions have consequences, large and small. Even if you don’t feel them directly, someone will be responsible for fixing your mistake. In the wake of these vandalism incidents, ResLife has considered reviving an old policy for damage control in residential halls: if vandalism occurs on a floor, they would require everyone on that floor

to pay a ﬁne. Don’t be responsible for your entire ﬂoor hating you.

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.

K-pop artists deserve more than they get

News / Sports Sawyer Loftus news@vtcynic.com sports@vtcynic.com Opinion Mills Sparkman opinion@vtcynic.com

KATE VANNI

independence that you might not have held before, and an RA is no substitute for a parent. It’s easy to think that you can do whatever you want. However, if we all did what we wanted without regard to others’ safety, no one would be happy. And no one is happy now. RAs have to replace the posters that were ripped down, students have to change rooms due to ﬁre damage, and the rest of us are wondering how we can prevent incidents like these from occurring again.

Gabby Felitto gfelitto@uvm.edu

’ve loved BTS, a Korean boy band, since their song “Dope” came out in 2015, my ﬁrst year of high school. Since then, I’ve watched them grow to become one of the biggest musical acts in the world. While I’m ecstatic that the group I love is gaining attention, American award shows need to recognize their talents in award categories rather than just using them for ratings and views. Like other fans, I’m annoyed they weren’t nominated for anything at the 2020 Grammys, even though their 2019 album “Map of the Soul: Persona” topped the Billboard 200 album chart, according to a November 2019 Korean Herald article. BTS became the ﬁrst musicians to top the chart three times in the span of a year since the Beatles, according to the article. This proves that the Grammys still aren’t recognizing foreign artists and aren’t paying attention to music trends. Halsey, an American singer who was featured on BTS’s chart-topping hit, “Boy with Luv,” tweeted Nov. 20, 2019, “I am, however, unsurprised that they weren’t acknowledged.

artists, in their main music catThe U.S. is so far behind on the egories like Song of the Year. whole movement.” BTS won the Billboard To add salt to the wound, award for Top Social Artist, a BTS was announced to perform fan-voted category for artists “Old Town Road,” with rapper who interact most with fans on Lil Nas X at the Grammys. social media, three years in a Only one member of BTS was row, according to the Billboard actually featured on this song. website. I was frustrated, just like While BTS was only nommany other fans, as we saw the inated for smaller categories, industry taking advantage of they performed at the their popularity but 2018 and 2019 not wanting to Billboard take a group awards. I’m of Korean glad they boys segot to riously. show They what knew they fans can would do, tune but into like the see Gramtheir mys, perfortheir talent mance wasn’t getting anyway. T R E praised by the While this FEK COLE industry. performance was a Like many other K-pop huge stepping stone for the artists, BTS gets nominated in band as the ﬁrst Korean artists separate categories like Best to perform on the Grammys’ K-pop, by the VMAs as well as stage, it’s hard to not be disapfor ones like Best Collaborapointed. tion. The performance didn’t Because they are nominated allow BTS to showcase their for these awards but not more talents on the “biggest night prestigious ones like Song of in music,” as they couldn’t the Year, fans start to question perform their own songs that why the group is being alienatinclude all members. ed from main awards, accordOther American award ing to a July 2019 Washington shows such as the Billboard Post article. Music Awards have snubbed Just like BTS and K-pop, BTS, along with other foreign

many other foreign artists are given separate categories in award shows, while they still use the artists to gain more viewers. These award shows need to stop using BTS for views. If an award show is going to invite them to perform, at least nominate them for a legitimate award. K-pop is very popular. It’s obvious for shows to invite the most known K-pop group to perform, knowing that fans like me will tune in, even if it’s only a glimpse. BTS is more than a group of pretty faces, and should be recognized for it. Award shows should take note from other programs like “Late Night with James Corden” and “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” where the group was able to perform their own music and be fully respected as artists. I hope that one day, BTS, as well as other big foreign groups, will be recognized and nominated for a main award that they deserve and asked to perform their own songs. While I feel proud of BTS’s accomplishments this year, I am disappointed, but not surprised, at these award shows.

Gabby Felitto is a sophomore public communication major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2018.

OPINION

Brands shouldn’t be driven by memes Henry Mitchell hdmitche@uvm.edu

or years, I’ve tried ignoring brands’ attempts at keeping their image up to date. But with “Baby Nut,” I think brands have to stop ﬁxating on social media. Baby Nut is the new image of Planters peanuts. After the tragic “death” of their previous mascot, Mr. Peanut, the company brought back the character as a baby, much in the style of baby Yoda from “The Mandalorian” or Marvel’s baby Groot. The point of brands is to build a reputation, which companies can use to advertise their product and hopefully keep customers for the long term. In the past, this meant creating recognizable characters and slogans so people could know at a glance which company or product was being promoted. However, as time goes by, brands have to think of new ideas to stay relevant or to keep up with their aging demographics. This is where Baby Nut comes in. Over the past two decades, people have become critical of consumerism and false advertising. In response, brands had to get more and more edgy to appear genuine to their

audiences. On Twitter, this went from somewhat outdated memes, to roasts of other brands, to brands like Sunny D, who tweeted “I can’t do this anymore,” Feb. 3, 2019. Eventually, we got to a Super Bowl ad campaign where old mascots are literally killed off and replaced with new ones based on current TV shows. Even without the cringy memes, this trend is bad. Although the person in charge of Sunny D’s social media account may actually have depression, coming from the Twitter proﬁle of a company, it comes off as shallow and demeaning. The reason tweets about personal problems often go viral is because they can be humanizing and relatable. Whether to make a joke or simply to share our problems, we can use Twitter to form a digital, although genuine, connection with other users. Brands don’t have this luxury. Most of us have grown up with McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Planters, and might be very fond of them, but they’re still brands. They are corporations run by rich people who probably care more about our money than about us. Trying to imitate Twitter users by tweeting “I can’t do this anymore” on behalf of Sunny D or how much corporate rivals suck has

NA BLAC

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nothing to do with connection and everything to do with shock value, which gets old quick. Every iteration is the same: some Twitter brand proﬁle tweets something like “@McDonaldsCorp when the tweets are as broken as the ice cream machines,” everyone loses their mind, then continues on with their day. Shock value relies on doing new things each time to amuse observers, so brands have to get crazier each year to capture the same surprise. Eventually, it gets out of control. This is how we got to

Planters creating a baby peanut as their new mascot, who chose to tweet on Feb. 6, “Gotta be in bed by 6 so I can wake up at 3am to scream (: .” To their credit, killing off an old mascot by having him crash off of a cliff in an act of heroism is quite novel. But eventually the novelty will wear off and Planters will have to go back to standard brand behavior. However, I fear what will be more likely is that the death of Mr. Peanut will spark a wave of brands constantly killing off their mascots every time a new sensation appears on social

media. One can imagine the problem getting so out of hand that people can’t even remember which mascot belongs to which brand. Acting like normal people or copying the trends of current memes to sell a brand are both demeaning and probably not that effective in the long term, so stop.

Henry Mitchell is a junior economics and political science major. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2017.

“Impossible Burgers” were made only for meat eaters Erin Powell ecpowell@uvm.edu

ecently, plant-based meat substitutes that mimic the taste and texture of meat have popped up in grocery stores, nice restaurants and fast food chains. As a vegetarian, I am thrilled that plant-based foods are becoming more accessible. But I wish the veggie options didn’t taste like real meat. Plant-based meat substitutes are not for vegetarians and vegans, they are for meat eaters. The founder of Impossible Foods, one of the biggest producers of fake meat, said he has zero interest in vegetarian customers according to an October 2017 Vox article. Yet their products are being marketed towards us. I don’t want to eat meat, real or imitation. I’m often disappointed when I go to a restaurant and the menu is meat heavy. Not because I can’t eat meat, but that there isn’t a meatless option. There are two main brands

that make this type of meat substitute, Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods. Beyond Meat started selling imitation chicken in 2013 and imitation beef in 2014. Impossible Foods launched their signature burger in 2016. In the following years, these brands became very successful, according to a December 2019 New York Times article. In 2018 they reached mainstream success when Beyond Meat made their ﬁrst major restaurant partnership with fast food restaurant company A&W. Since their introduction, there have been multiple instances where I’ve gone to restaurants that replaced their homemade veggie burgers with commercially produced imitation meat. I don’t know why they made the switch. But if it was for vegetarians, I don’t think they consulted any. I live with two other vegetarians and both would rather have a vegetable-based dish than one centered around imitation meat. My vegetarian mom and I were at dinner together the ﬁrst

time we encountered Beyond Meat. When we asked the waitress if it tasted like real meat, she told us it tastes just like normal meat and we shouldn’t let the fact that it’s plant based stop us from ordering it. Neither of us remember what meat tastes like. My mom hasn’t eaten meat since before she had kids, and I haven’t had meat since fourth grade. Something tasting just like meat will make us less likely to order it. I’m sure that for new vegetarians and vegans or people trying to cut back on their meat consumption for environmental reasons, these foods are great. But just because they might be better for the environment than traditional meat doesn’t make them perfect. Randall’s Beans, a bean company, compared their burgers with Impossible burgers. Their bean based burgers are less than half the calories, a fraction of the fat and double the ﬁber of an Impossible Burger, according to a November 2019 post on their website. Additionally, the ingredients in veggie burgers tend to

SAVANAH TEBEAU-SHERY

be vegetables, lentils and beans according to a July 2013 Food Network article. Imitation meat isn’t made of vegetables but wheat or soy protein with a genetically engineered yeast. I don’t see anything morally wrong with meat consumption. I actually am in favor of local ethically and humanely raised and slaughtered meat. Not everyone is capable of a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, and even if a person is capable of giving up animal products,

they shouldn’t be required to. My problem lies in the fact that meat consumption is presumed to the point of having meatless options resemble real meat as closely as possible. Vegetables taste good. If I wanted to eat meat, I wouldn’t be vegetarian. Erin Powell is a junior anthropology and zoology major. She has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2017.

HOUSE AD

Ward 1 & 8 Debate

NEW

Maryann Makosiej mmakosie@uvm.edu

On Thursday, Feb. 13 members of the Cynic staff observed more than 40 ceiling tiles missing from several dorms, trash left in n halls ha s and graffi graffitti on the walls. wa s Walking Wa k ng into nto Harr Harriss Ha Hall, Cynic Cyn c staff were greeted by a penis painted on a “welcome to Harris sign.” For the month of January and first half of February, nearly 20 vandalism incidents were reported around UVM’s campus. January, 13 separate vanIn January dalism da sm incidents nc dents were reported, reported three times t mes more than in n January 2019. In police reports obtained by the Cynic, incidents of vandalism on campus ranged from a sticker promoting a white nationalist hate group, a broken window and a possible attempted break-in of a UVM Dining kitchen. call that a “I responded to a ca Patriot Patr ot Front sticker st cker had been secured to one of the light ght poles po es in n the area between Dana Medical Library and Howe Library,” UVM police cer Kevin po ce offi officer Kev n Digiorgic D g org c stated in n a Jan. Jan 27 police po ce report. report “I know that the FBI tracks the Patriot Front, and I reached out to my FBI contact.” contact ” According Jan. 22 po police Accord ng to a Jan ce report, report damages to a Marsh-Austin-Tupper common area kitchen totaled tota ed $1,500. $1 500 “The left eft upper door [of the refrigerator] refr gerator] had been ripped r pped from its ts hinges h nges for no apparent reason,” cer Sue reason ” UVM police po ce offi officer Roberts stated in the Jan. 22 police po ce report. report Of the 13 incidents, nc dents three occurred in n the bathrooms and hallways of Given Building next to the UVM Medical Med ca Center. Center arrived...I did notice “When I arr ved I d d not ce a hole rst stall,” ho e in n the fi first sta ” Digiorgic D g org c stated in a Jan. 28 police report. “The hole was made by an individual v dua kicking k ck ng the wall.” wa ” break-in An attempted breakn was reported at a UVM Dining D n ng KitchK tchen Jan. 22. “Kitchen advised “K tchen staff had adv sed that the door was closed c osed and secure when they arrived but the handle hand e was bent down severely,” severe y ” the Jan. Jan 22 report stated. stated estimate The est mate of the cost to replace the lock was $350. The far majority of the reported vandalism vanda sm incidents nc dents for the month of January have occurred in n Harris Harr s Hall, Ha Interim Inter m Police Po ce Chief Tim Bilodeau said. Reported incidents nc dents include nc ude broken ceiling ce ng tiles, t es arson, arson puddles pudd es of urine ur ne and torn-down exit ex t signs, s gns according accord ng to the UVM Crime Log and obtained UVM Police crime reports. “I don’t know all the factors involved as to why there’s a particular part cu ar spike,” sp ke ” Bilodeau B odeau said. sa d “It looks ooks like ke there iss a group of folks who are going an extended period of time without being

he d accountable. accountab e The spike sp ke isn’t sn t held go ng to continue.” cont nue ” going

A TROUBL TROUBLING NG MONTH INN HARR HARRISS

Three of the reported vandal-

ism incidents in January, from broken ceiling ce ng tiles t es to arson, arson have occurred at Harris Harr s Hall. Ha The incidents nc dents have caused disruption d srupt on for students and staff alike. a ke

Vandalism at Harris Hall was ﬁrst addressed by UVM Department of Residential Life after three incidents were reported to

UVM Police Services. An email was sent Oct. 11 from Tahn Lemish, area coordinator, concerning the spike.

The email stated instances of apples and other fruits left in the halls to rot or smashed over the walls, broken ceiling tiles and exit signs, and male genitalia drawn on walls, bathroom signs and bulletin boards. It also cited bulletin boards with parts torn down, bathroom and other University signs torn down and condoms left in front of residents’ rooms. “I am sorry that residents and the guests of residents are destructive and immature,” the email stated. A list of resources for students to “explore” was included in the email, such as UVM Counseling and Psychiatry Services, Intramurals and Recreation and the Interfaith Center. Since October 2019, vandalism incidents have increased, according to the 2019 and 2020 UVM Crime Logs. Interim Police Chief Tim Bilodeau said per request of the Department of Residential Life, police officers have begun to patrol Harris-Millis Residence Hall. “We don’t necessarily patrol within a residence hall without it being a directed thing,” he said. “It looks like there is a group of folks who are going an extended period of time without being held accountable.” A Jan. 19 police report found further incidents of vandalism after police officers patrolled the halls. “As we walked the halls, we observed several more damaged ceiling tiles in Harris that were not there the previous night, several broken exit signs and several puddles of urine. Many paper signs were torn off doors,” the report stated. The estimated cost of damages from the night of Jan. 19 alone was $190, according to the report. Director of Residential Life Rafael Rodriquiez declined to share the total amount in damages that have been calculated so far. First-year Harris resident Liam Duvally has seen the aftermath of some of the vandalism incidents. “Definitely the most prevalent were the ceiling tiles,” Duvally said. “That was like becoming a weekly thing where people go around punching ceiling tiles and leaving them all over the floor.” Duvally said around winter break there was an incident involving a sex doll on his floor. “Someone put like a sex doll on the ceiling,” he said. “I guess it kind of looked like a real person that was kind of hanging, so it kind of scared a lot of people.” At 1:37 a.m. Feb. 9, UVM Police and the Burlington Fire Department responded to a fire in Harris Hall. Officers found paper decorations on the first and second floor had been lit on fire, according to a Feb. 9 email from

STEPHAN TOLJAN/The Vermont Cynic

(TOP LEFT) Screws that once held a sign stick out of the wall in Harris, Feb. 13. The quoted text was said by UVM Interim Police Chief Tim Bilodeau. (MIDDLE LEFT) A broken chair sits in a common room in Wing. (BOTTOM LEFT) A hole marks the ceiling in front of the entrance to Davis. (CENTER) A broken ceiling tile lies on the ﬂoor from being hit out of the ceiling in Harris Feb. 13. (TOP RIGHT) A half-eaten apple sits, left to rot, in the staircase in Davis Feb. 13. (BOTTOM RIGHT) A cup containing old ice cream and a spoon is abandoned in a hallway in Harris Feb. 13.

UVM Police. UVM Police announced it had cited five UVM first-year students into court for arson. But one day later, the Chittenden County State’s Attorney dropped the charges. Rodriguez said he does not think the incidents are related. “I don’t know that that is all necessarily connected,” Rodriguez stated. “It’s a culture that I think is consistent with apathy and I think that other students who are in the halls are not stepping up to hold each other accountable.” Duvally said he doesn’t think the vandalism is a part of a specific plot or intentional. “I don’t know, I think they drink a little bit and are like, ‘let’s go do stupid stuff,’” he said. “I don’t think there’s any real malicious intent behind it.”

NEW CONSEQUENCES

After Harris Hall’s spike in vandalism incidents, the Department of Residential Life is weighing a ﬁnancial consequence for the entire hall. Director of Residential Life Rafael Rodriquiez said there is a growing cost of the vandalism incidents.

“We did away a couple of years ago with unassigned damage costs, which basically looks at the entire damage to anything in the community and splits it among residents,” Rodriguez said. “Given the trend, we are absolutely exploring whether or not we will bring back unassigned damages.” Rodriguez further spoke of the process for students who are caught participating in the vandalism incidents. “If individuals are found responsible with any kind of signage that has been torn down they will be put through the conduct process because it is considered theft of property. There’s a $500 ﬁne attached,” Rodriguez said. If the vandalism continues, there may be a further escalation, Rodriquez said. “If there are enough violations and vandalism in the halls that it is causing damage to the community and putting human safety at risk, that may result in removal from the residence halls,” Rodriguez said. Interim Police Chief Tim Bilodeau said the spike in vandalism at Harris Hall may be a symptom of something larger. “It sounds like there may be some issues around a group of students really getting away

with something,” Bilodeau said. “If you don’t identify the people directly responsible then it continues.”

HOW UVM INVESTIGATES

Vandalism incidents on campus, classified as general or bias-related, are investigated differently based on intent. Interim Police Chief Tim Bilodeau outlined how UVM police investigate general vandalism incidents. “Get a complaint, send a police officer, assesses, gets complaint information, develops context,” Bilodeau said. “If it’s like a ceiling tile and there’s no cameras or anything then you can talk to someone who might be near. You try to ID a witness--camera, that kind of thing.” The way hate crimes are investigated is slightly different. “When we have hate crimes, we notify the FBI because they monitor hate groups,” he said. “It’s not a common investigation but it’s part of what we do.” The other classification of vandalism at UVM is bias-related vandalism. A bias incident is any action that targets a certain identity in some way. Racism, sexism, homophobia and other biased or targeted expressions fall under this heading. Bias-related incidents at UVM are referred to the Bias Response Program.

Annie Stevens, vice provost for student affairs, is part of the team that reviews the incidents. Unlike Student Conduct, the program cannot give consequences for incidents. Instead, it is in place to facilitate educational conversations with students who have been reported for causing a bias incident, Stevens said. “It’s free speech if it’s not a policy violation or a criminal violation,” she said. “But we’ve had some really good moments with some students.” The UVM Crime Log catalogs all incidents that are reported to UVM Police. The yearly logs, which are public record, track everything from reports of drug use, vandalism incidents, intoxication, stalking, sexual assault, etc. The crime log is available on UVM’s website. Yearly logs that date back past 2019 are not available for the public to view. Director of Residential Life Rafael Rodriquiez said he has seen an increase in vandalism in the last few years. “I would say broadly as a department we’ve been seeing a gradual increase in vandalism over the past three years,” Rodriguez said. “I do say gradual because that’s what we’ve been able to track.” Additional reporting by Ella Ruehsen

Illustrations by KATE VANNI AND COLE FEKERT

CULTURE

UVM professor helps create living bots Anna Kolosky annakolosky@uvm.edu

The computer screen showed a livestream of a green, stick-like animation flailing around. That flailing stick is actually a virtual robot that served as a model for xenobots, or the first computer-designed living organisms. The xenobots were cocreated by a robotics team from UVM and a biology team from Tufts University. Josh Bongard, UVM professor of computer science, contributed his robotics expertise to the project. “This was one of those dream collaborations,” Bongard said. Two years ago, the team was awarded a grant from DARPA, or the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The grant was used to understand how organisms learn throughout their lifetime, Bongard said. Originally an artificial intelligence project, it changed when the team realized they could combine biology and AI. “[The team] had a weekly Skype call where we would show our work,” Bongard said. The xenobots were constructed by Doug Blackiston, an Allen Discovery Center scientist at Tufts. The xenobots merged robotics and biology, Blackiston said. “I combined tools in ways they had never been used

LUKAS DRAUGELIS/The Vermont Cynic

Josh Bongard, UVM professor of computer science leads a discussion with two students, Feb. 13. Bongard collaborated with Doug Blackiston, an Allen Discovery Center scientist at Tufts University to make the Xenobots. before,” Blackiston said. “I went in with the frog cells and used biology to build what the computer created.” Blackiston said that this project focused on bridging the reality gap, an issue in computer science and robotics that deals with bringing the theoretical into the physical world. The xenobots were tested on their ability to move and manipulate objects, but also evolved the ability to push objects into piles, Bongard said. “Collective behavior was compelling because we hadn’t actually taught them to do

that,” Bongard said. The team is still trying to understand the various behaviors and uses of the xenobots, Blackiston said. “We won’t be releasing them into water systems anytime soon to clean up plastic,” Blackiston said. “We can predict them individually, but we’re still trying to understand their group interplay.” Although the xenobots may not be ready to be used right away, Sam Kriegman, an evolutionary robotics PhD candidate, said the xenobots are valuable tools to understand

scientific concepts. “There are a lot of potential applications, but that’s a long way off,” Kriegman said. “They’re a new model that lets us understand how cells communicate and build complex bodies.” Kriegman compared the xenobots to wind-up toys that were also organisms. “People have been making robots out of living things for awhile,” Kriegman said. “Programming all of these cells to move together, that’s something I think is new here.” The xenobots offer

opportunities to those interested in getting involved. Bongard said that the team had undergraduates working on their project, and encourages students to find out what their professors are working on. “I know that AI and the xenobots can seem like this fantastical technology that only super smart people can contribute to,” Bongard said. “What’s important is that you need to be curious, if you’re curious about how the world works, there’s a place for people in this.”

Senior curates art event to showcase black creatives Willow Scherwinski wscherwi@uvm.edu

Booming notes of energetic hip-hop mixed with R&B rhythm echoes from Nectar’s each week. Every Thursday night, Burlington bar and music venue, Nectar’s, hosts an event called First Taste. It is an artist curated event that showcases live performance, visual art and $2 PBRs. For the month of February, senior Ivana Djiya was asked by Nectar’s to put together the event. She decided to pursue the opportunity and use it as a way to deliver a greater message. “I wanted to give black artists and performers a platform to showcase their art and display their talent,” Djiya said. Djiya said she chose February specifically because it is Black History Month. The event showcases only black artists and performers in honor of this, she said. A musician herself, Djiya took the stage and performed music she wrote. She describes her style as alternative blues. Miyel Brown, 2019

Champlain College graduate, displayed her deconstructed clothing collection. Pursuing her passion for fashion and creativity, she recycles old teddy bears into festival wear style tops. Brown said she thought it was important that so many alternative black artists share their work in one shared space. “Our art may not be accepted in a lot of shows,” Brown said. “It’s not typically what people think about when they think of art but it is cool to express your own creative capacity in a different way.” Burlington resident Charlie Mayne, who goes by the stage name Chyse, was a recurring performer for this month’s events. Growing up in Los Angeles surrounded by musical influences, Chyse said he recognizes the power of music. He incorporates a fusion of styles ranging from R&B, acapella and hip-hop. After the release of his new album Feb. 17, Chyse has one overarching goal: to save the world. “You have to have people’s attention and the only way to get people’s attention is to be in a position to grab people’s

MAC MANSFIELD-PARISI/The Vermont Cynic

Senior Ivana Djiya performs onstage Feb. 13 at Nectar’s. Djiya also showcases her work on SoundCloud. attention,” Chyse said. “Once I start getting out there I want to use that in a way to make change, a lot of things are backwards nowadays.” Contemporary hip-hop artist and Champlain junior Ben Martin, whose stage name is Cyrus performed at the event as well. He saw this event as a way to usher in change at a local level. He said the Burlington community is vocal about

supporting cultural diversity, but Martin sees a gap in the support when it comes to being supported as artists. “I hope that this event inspires more people in Burlington and beyond Burlington to feel more power in expressing themselves authentically,” Martin said. “Having this platform to be heard without conforming to the expectations of other people will help.”

The turnout and feedback from the community was overwhelmingly positive. For Djiya, this caused a realization that she wanted to pursue similar work and use it to benefit others. “I want to help artists who may be feeling a little nervous about showcasing their work,” Djiya said. “Every artist is unique and that is important to share.”

CULTURE

Weightlifting team snatches victories

Cyrus Oswald coswald@uvm.edu

The weekend of Feb. 6, the UVM olympic weightlifting team competed at the National Junior Championships and National University & Under 25 Championships in Pleasanton, California. Sophomore Noah OliffLieberman and seniors John Bickers and Nicho Ader were the three UVM athletes in attendance. Oliff-Lieberman competed in the National Junior Championship. Olympic weightlifting is a different sport than powerlifting or CrossFit. In weightlifting competitions, athletes perform two lifts: the clean and jerk, and the snatch. Oliff-Lieberman has spent two years taking weightlifting seriously,0 and it is now his second year on the team. He beat his previous personal record by 5 kilograms in the snatch exercise at the national competition. The club structure is different than some other club sports. Athletes compete as individuals instead of in teams. The club is mostly a selfcoached team. Morgan Gosselin ‘19 is the self described “semi-formal coach” of the team. She runs a training gym called Feed the Wolf Weightlifting. Many of the members of the UVM weightlifting team are personally trained by Gosselin when she is in town. Gosselin is pursuing a master’s degree in exercise science at

ELAINA SEPEDE/The Vermont Cynic

Morgan Gosselin ‘19, the informal coach of the UVM olympic weightlifting team, watches senior Nicho Ader execute a “snatch,” Feb. 15. Merrimack College in Andover, Massachusetts, and is rarely at UVM to help train her athletes. Oliff-Lieberman had rave reviews for Gosselin and her programing. “She is one of the most passionate and intense people when it comes to this sport,” he said. “She loves weightlifting and loves coaching weightlifting more than anyone I’ve ever met.” Growing up, Gosselin played hockey and soccer and used the gym as a tool to train for sports.

Her focus shifted when she came to UVM. “When I attended UVM and realized they had a weightlifting team, that’s when I started really getting competitive with it,” Gosselin said. Gosselin graduated with a degree in dietetics and nutrition. She also was the treasurer of the weightlifting club, a level 2 certiﬁed advanced sport performance coach for USA Weightlifting and has developed training programs for multiple athletes.

Gosselin said she wishes she could be with her athletes more when they train. Most of the coaching she does is over the phone and through videos. Still, Oliff-Lieberman said her programing is getting them results quickly. “I’ve never been on a program that has accepted me as fast as her, and I’ve never met anyone that cares as much for the sport,” Oliff-Lieberman said. “It’s very cool to be coached by her.” Gosselin is also a help at

competitions. “She’s a tiny girl but she’s an absolute beast of a weightlifter,” Oliff-Lieberman said. However small she is, OliffLieberman sees Gosselin being around in the sport for a long time. He said when people see photos from competition they assume Gosselin is simply a supporter. “I’ll be like, ‘that’s my coach,’” Oliff-Lieberman said. “She’ll be around for a while, her name will be well-recognized for sure.”

The issue with posthumously released albums Connor Adams cadams21@uvm.edu

Posthumously-released albums may seem like a noble idea to continue an artist’s spirit, but more often than not, they disrespect what the artist would want. Once an artist dies their name becomes a commodity. An infamous example of this is Frank Zappa, the virtuosic multi-instrumentalist famous in the ‘60s and ‘70s. During his career, Zappa fought for the ability to have complete control of creative property. In death his name has been abused by the Zappa Estate. The Zappa Estate signed his music away on deals with Universal Studios to make money from posthumous albums, of which there have been over 40, according to an August 2016 Rolling Stone article. What would have continued Zappa’s legacy more than anything is his son’s ability to

spread his music through live shows. Dweezil Zappa refused to sell Zappa merchandise, so the estate shut down his concerts. A more modern example of this issue is that of Lil Peep and XXXTentacion. More than in any case of posthumous albums I believe that X is like the new Marilyn Monroe. In death X has become more famous than ever before. His music sales have risen by 1,603% since his death in 2018, according to Billboard. His name is synonymous with the commodiﬁcation of dead rappers. His newest posthumous albums are ﬁlled with features that his label uses to boost sales. Originally iLoveMakkonen was supposed to be on X’s “Falling Down” featuring Lil Peep, but after both artists passed, their families decided the song would honor them both. Both of their record labels saw the opportunity to make a track with two famous rappers that had passed and made a

song that could be milked of all its cash. The song has 446 million listens on Spotify. These types of releases put into question whether this is what an artist would actually want. Although there are many terrible cases of posthumous albums, there are those that prove otherwise. For example, Prince sought complete creative control over his music. His posthumous albums added new dimensions to an already legendary musician. One of Prince’s posthumous albums that continues to amaze is his 2019 album “Originals” which exposes sides of Prince that his listeners never knew. This album did his intellectual property and musical prowess justice. More recently, “Circles” by Mac Miller is an album that satisﬁed the paradox of posthumous albums. Reaching critical acclaim, it gave what fans wanted while also respecting Miller’s intellectual integrity. Most of the album was ﬁnished before Miller’s death.

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Even though Mac didn’t have a choice of its release after his passing, it is regarded as one of the few respectable posthumous albums. The bottom line for any posthumous project should be to protect an artist’s intellectual property over any sense of commodity.

This goes for both fans and record labels with both beneﬁting from a lack of respect to an artist’s music. Connor Adams is a ﬁrstyear English major. He has been writing for the Cynic since fall 2019.

CULTURE

Dance faculty presents work at Flynn Jean MacBride jmacbrid@uvm.edu

The dance faculty at UVM spend their days teaching students about and how to dance. This time, the faculty had a chance to show off their own work. The UVM Dance Faculty Showcase was held at 7 p.m. Feb. 13 at the Flynn Space, a performance space next to Flynn Center for the Performing Arts. This is the ﬁrst time UVM dance faculty have been asked to show their work at the Flynn. The performance featured UVM faculty and local dancers and was free to the public, but donations were accepted for the UVM dance department. Lecturer Paula Higa performed “Here and Now,” an improvised duet she developed with ﬂutist Patricia Julien. Although the dancing and music was improvised for the showcase, Higa said they practiced rigorously before the event. It was a learning experience for them both, she said. “In improvisation it is important to listen to each other,” Higa said. “But it’s not just about showing up and moving. It’s work, so you have to practice.” Lecturer Julie PeoplesClark performed a dance that

KYLE ELMS/The Vermont Cynic

Lecturer Julie Peoples-Clark performs during the UVM faculty dance showcase, Feb. 13. Peoples-Clark also holds over 1,000 hours of yoga certiﬁcations. expressed her experience as a mother. Her dance during the showcase explored the difﬁculty she had while breastfeeding. “I had a really extreme experience with my daughter,” Peoples-Clark said. “She was born with cerebral palsy, so I’ve really drawn most of my

inspiration from her.” She said she remembered her dance moves by repetition and that this is what she told her students. Peoples-Clark teaches mostly beginners dance classes and loves to introduce people to the art form, she said. She gave advice to those who

wanted to pursue dancing as a career. “Just keep dancing, and don’t take no for an answer,” she said. Junior Annabel Diestel appreciated watching the performance. As a dance major, she said it contributed to her understanding of the craft.

“When I get to see them perform I get to see those methods in practice,” she said. Diestel said working with dance faculty informs her dance studies greatly. “It gives me inspiration for different structures of movement and different ways to perform,” she said.

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

12-2am

AWOL

6-9am

AWOL

DJ-P Morning Breath

AWOL

Corey Buck Dancer’s Choice

AWOL

DJ Saz Sidewalk Chalk

DJ Natalie

DJ EMCON The Ghoul Kids Club

Sister Avery Champlain Supernova

DJ Milly The Wave

Beans Sound for Thought

Addie Shoegaze Dayz

Bascomb Turner

Blues Guz

DJ They Sessions

Mami’s Mix

LaDJ Flower Hour

Momo The Electric Listening Room

Dog Dad Mind Dump

SublteCharles Reimagining the Neighborhood

DJ CC Fruity Smoothie

Emily Kendall Night Walking

9-10am Uli Schygulla

10-11am

How Living is Round

11am-noon noon-1pm 1-2pm 2-3pm 3-4pm

Brad Barratt Dissection Theater

RQDQ Eastern Hemlock Tree

Dan Our Intent is All for Your Delight

Doc Rob Artiﬁcially Flavored DJ Doggie P Kiwi Time

DJ K Notes with Moats DJ Ravioli Retro Headspace DJ Master K Manic Monday

Laima The Floating Head of Zsa Zsa

Juno Unorthodox Fusion

Two Sev The 27 Club

This Just In DJ Ray & Sam Graham

DJ Kook My Car, My tunes

DJ Pluto New Horizons

Richard Haggerty Not4Prophet Radio

DJ Caro

4-6pm

The Purple Shaman Everyday Sunshine

Jah Red Boricua Van

The Notorious G.I.G. Gigler’s Gig

DJ Sour Cream Cream’s Dreams

DJ Scorch The Flame

Ginger & DJ Dubs Sippy Cup

Noodleboy The Friend Zone

6-8pm

DJ Llu Get Fresh with DJ Llu

The Captain Sailor’s Delight

The Radical Sloth In the Mix

EXPOSURE

The Trill Detective Streets Ahead

Melo Grant Cultural Bunker/DJ Sexﬂy

Dylan

8-10pm

Lumpy and Bumpy Cryfest

DJ Kimby A Life of Artic Sounds

DJ Snacks; Party Pack/DJ Armadillo Surround(ing) Sounds

DJ Kish Fresh Squeezed

Free Range Chicken Sunnyside Up

DJ Ben Alternative Elevator Music

Big Dog We Love Radio

10-mignight

DJ KARLASUTRA

DJ Slacey Sam’s Jams

DJ EDB The Motherload

Bill Nyehilism B.A.D. Music

Otisphere Evolutions in the Otisphere

DJ Leetz & DJ AC Staying In

AWOL

SPORTS

Men’s b-ball continues winning streak Hayley Rosen hrosen@uvm.edu

The energy was high in UVM’s Patrick Gym, Feb. 15, during the Catamounts’ home game versus Binghamton University. The 2 p.m. game was sold out and was largely attended by local Vermonters while UVM students took up less than one section. Many players stepped up and had big games, with spread-out scoring, assist and rebound statistics. This victory furthers Vermont’s win streak to 11 games. Junior forward Bailey Patella had the crowd on their feet several times throughout the contest. His seven points consisted of two dunks and a buzzerbeater 3-pointer to end the ﬁrst half. He also had a personal record with 10 rebounds. Patella was also deemed the Morgan Stanley Player of the Game according to UVM broadcaster Jake Marsh’s Twitter account. Senior forward Anthony Lamb led the team in scoring with 19 points. He also recorded a steal, an assist, a block and eight rebounds. Junior guard Stef Smith also played a crucial role offensively as he scored 18 points, including three from behind the arc.

Stairing Contest COLE FEKERT

MICHAELA REARDON/The Vermont Cynic

Senior guard Everett Duncan shoots after moving past a Binghamton University defender during a game, Feb. 15. UVM won the game 76-48. While the Catamounts went on to win by 28, the game was very back and forth in the first half. At halftime, Vermont only had a 13 point lead. UVM head coach John Becker said he was not particularly impressed by the Catamount’s first-half game play. “In the first half we controlled the game, but I do

not think we played particularly sharp,” Becker said. “I think in the second half we did a much better job.” While the game was close in the ﬁrst half, the Catamounts were able to more easily slide past their rival Bearcats in the second half. By the end of the second half, a whopping 14 different players checked in for the Catamounts.

Throughout the game the Cats protected the ball well, allowing only four turnovers as opposed to the Bearcats nine turnovers. With this victory, Vermont has secured at least one home playoff game in the America East tournament, which is scheduled to begin on March 7 with the quarterﬁnals. The Cats will travel to Long

Island, New York, Feb. 20 to battle Stony Brook University. The Seawolves are seeded second in the America East Conference, directly below the Catamounts. Vermont will play at home again at 7 p.m. Feb. 22 versus the University of Maryland.

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FEATURE

y n a p m o c t e g d g u b n ’ i s h e i s r a P u bli r ib l s m o n o p oli z e

Sabrina Fiore sfiore@uvm.edu

During the UVM SGA meeting Jan. 21, Dean of Libraries Bryn Geffert stood before the room and explained his dilemma. UVM libraries’ contract with Elsevier, a scientific literature publishing company, grants UVM affiliates access to their ScienceDirect journals. Due to this contract, Geffert said the libraries had to cut over 700 of Elsevier’s competitor journals, and cut book purchasing in half. “We pay Elsevier $1.8 million a year for the single product that consumes 25% of our budget,” Geffert said. “We can’t afford to pay that, yet at the same time, this is a package of materials that is absolutely essential for faculty and students to do their work. That’s the rock in the hard place where we sit right now.” Geffert said the contract hurts social science and humanities departments due to book purchasing cutbacks. ScienceDirect exclusively owns 2,500 journals in the science and medical fields, which allows Elsevier to increase their prices above the rate of inflation. “If you want literature in the field, you can only find

some of that literature in these journals,” Geffert said. “Many people have observed that Elsevier holds something like monopolistic power in some disciplines.” For many UVM students and faculty, the resources Elsevier owns are essential for information and research. Sophomore Juliet Malkowski benefits greatly from Elsevier’s services. “I have used Elsevier, specifically for ScienceDirect,” Malkowski said. “I get excited when I see a ScienceDirect article because it is a reputable source and has an easy to read format.” Elsevier Director of Communications Andrew Davis stated Elsevier strives to use individual approaches with customers to specifically meet their needs, according to a Feb. 13 email. He also stated Elsevier provides access to the highestquality research while enabling open access publishing at an affordable cost. Though Elsevier provides an easy access system of reaching articles online, UVM libraries cannot share materials from ScienceDirect with parties who are not UVM affiliates. “Students are shocked when they discover the minute you

graduate from UVM, you lose access to ScienceDirect because Elsevier requires us to restrict access to currently enrolled students and faculty members,” Geffert said. When the Vermont Department of Health asked UVM libraries for access to databases for doctors and practitioners in the state to use, UVM had to deny their request, Geffert said. While UVM faculty maintain access as long as they work for the University, Elsevier’s lending restrictions can impact their work as well. “Scholarship is a networked endeavour,” Geffert said. “Professors at UVM are working with professors in India, Siberia and South America, and much of the world lacks [Elsevier’s] literature.” Instead of publishing with Elsevier, chemistry professor Giuseppe Petrucci publishes his research in a number of independent publishing journals. “These journals are not affiliated with either Elsevier or the American Chemical Association, or any other more established publishing companies,” Petrucci said. “For a lot of them, I know the folks that started them up, so I know

STEPHAN TOLJAN/The Vermont Cynic

Dean of Libraries Bryn Geffert gives a presentation on Elsevier at an SGA meeting, Jan. 21. The publishing company reported $3.31 billion of revenue in 2018. the philosophy behind them.” Student tuition, federal agencies and philanthropic organizations fund UVM faculty’s scientific research, Geffert said. However, UVM faculty feel pressured to publish through Elsevier due to its prestige and reputation. Professors then publish through Elsevier without compensation, while also serving on editorial boards and providing extra labor for Elsevier. While the University of California libraries system recently ended their

subscription to Elsevier, legal restrictions prevent UVM libraries from teaming with other libraries to negotiate with Elsevier, Geffert said. A number of UVM professors have signed a pledge on the website Cost of Knowledge, in which signers agree not to publish in journals owned by Elsevier or work with Elsevier on editorial boards. Though the contract between Elsevier and UVM’s Libraries continues on, Geffert introduced the possibility of this changing in the future.

Illustrations by MEILENA SANCHEZ AND MAC MANSFIELD-PARISI