Issue 9 Fall 2015

NEWS

05 2015

Groups aim for increased voting

Three ideas proposed for investment ethics framework

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2

by SARA PLATNICK Staff Reporter

T

he Associated Students of Whitman College (ASWC) and Walla Walla for Bernie Sanders (WWfBS) have implemented multiple measures and initiatives recently to encourage voting on all levels.

ASWC has amended the voting procedure in a new act that would extend the voting time to 44 hours.

Currently, all ASWC elections are open for a 20-hour period, and the next act will more than double the

ings with administrators and governing board members,” said senior and ASWC president Jack Percival.

Through the voting for ASWC senators and on ASWC resolutions, students are able to have more of a say in the issues that matter to them on campus.

“So in many ways, the political capital and the ability that students have to influence events at the college in terms of policy, and in terms of funding priorities, hinges on the students who have been elected to represent the students, so I think because of that,

natures, a lot of students tell me, ‘I’d love to sign it, but I’m not registered to vote,’ and so I tell them ‘well this is a good incentive, because if you register to vote today, not only will you be able to vote in the general election, but you can vote on ballot measures this year, and primaries,’” Wills said.

A large part of their effort is getting students to register to vote strategically, which means registering to vote where their vote can have the most impact, especially if the voter is from the swing state. Another part of their work is talking to stu-

NOV

from ETHICS FRAMEWORK, page 1

Mitchell Cutter, ASWC Ombudsman and member of Divest Whitman, proposed a more binding alternative, which could draw on ESG or similar triple bottom line standards, but would still allow the college to design its own framework. This model would require that all non-blind funds, that

“The idea isn’t so much to follow the triplebottom line [or] the ESG approach, more to design our own framework, to have considerations for social responsibility.”

Phil Chircu ‘16

Whitman Investment Co. rep

Harrison Wills ‘16 (above), a member of Walla Walla for Bernie Sanders, speaks with a community member in Reid Campus Center. WWfBS and ASWC are hoping to increase voter turnout in local and campus elections. Photo by Mutter

time that students can vote. The act will be implemented in elections beginning in the spring of 2016.

Currently, voter turnouts for ASWC elections hovers around 50 percent, and most expect the change to increase the voter participation for these elections. However, as there is the chance that the act is not successful in increasing election turnout, it will only be implemented for a two-year trial run and later reviewed to decide if the voting period should remain extended.

“The idea [behind the act] is that [it] will increase voter turnout. However, because that’s not guaranteed it’s a two-year trial-period in case it doesn’t work. The idea is that more students...could still be able to vote. [But] it’s possible it may backfire, but that’s why they put [it] on the trial run,” said ASWC director of communications, senior Abby Seethoff.

The move to allow more students to vote is rooted in ASWC’s goal to get more students to participate in elections and to gain better student representation.

“I think ASWC elections are incredibly important because ultimately you are choosing the people who you want to represent students to the highest levels of the college. You’re choosing the people who you want to be the face of students in meetings with faculty, in meetings with staff, and in meet-

it’s super important that people care about these elections and vote in these elections,” Percival said.

Another group working to encourage voting in elections on a local scale is the group Walla Walla for Bernie Sanders, led in part by senior Harrison Wills. The group has many focuses, including raising awareness about the Vermont senator’s campaign, but also raising awareness about ballot issues related to the causes that Sanders fights for.

“I am circulating some petitions that are state-level ballot measures...and as I am getting sig-

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HINDSIGHT Thursday 10/29 China to end one child policy

dents of various political leanings to get them passionate about participating in all levels of elections, including local, state, and national.

“A lot of people say, well, what can one person do? And you hear these arguments. But...at the end of the day, someone is going to get elected, and we can pretend that it doesn’t matter, but it does matter, and we should think about whether it’s supporting Bernie or someone else, that’s up to you to do your research, but...I think there’s a lot of incentive for people to get involved and registered to vote right now,” Wills said.

is all funds in the hands of managers that disclose their investing practices to Whitman, be evaluated by a committee whose job it would be to determine whether or not to divest from companies who violate the framework.

Three of Whitman’s peer institutions, Macalester, Rhodes, and Dickinson, have subcommittees or task forces whose job it is to evaluate. However, neither of these two more radical approaches seem likely at this point.

“The idea isn’t so much to follow the triple-bottom line [or] the ESG approach, more to design our own framework, to have considerations for social responsibility,” Chircu said.

Since the plan is still in the early stages, there is no definite idea of what the framework might look like. Hupper’s pitch, which was the least restrictive, met with the most support from administrators. She suggested a definition of social responsibility be crafted in-house by a committee, which would likely be chaired by Peter Harvey and contain students representing a variety of environmental and social justice issues, and Board of Trustees. The new restrictions would only apply to new investments, and a process would be put in place to judge options. Students would need to prove that divesting from a company would have a “meaningful impact.” All final decisions will still need to be approved by the Board of Trustees.

If Hupper’s suggestions are adopted, the framework could set up future conflict over what “meaningful impact” looks like.

Chircu maintains that divestment, from fossil fuels or other industrial players whose operations are incompatible with Whitman’s ethics, is not always about making economic waves.

“Now is any one particular investment on the part of Whit-

man and its endowment going to change the operations of a huge multi-million, multi-billion dollar company?” Chircu asks, “No. But, I think that was never the point.”

Meaningful impact could be ethically incompatibile with Whitman’s professed commitment to citizenship and social responsibility, or it could mean having a literal financial impact on a company. If financial impact is the standard, it may prove impossible for any investments to meet the framework’s requirements, as individual institutions’ divestments are rarely enough to influence large corporations’ overall holdings. The fossil fuel divestment movement is built on the idea of divestment damaging fossil fuel companies’ public image so that politicians are more likely to take political action to curb emissions.

Seven of Whitman’s 13 peer institutions have socially responsible investment frameworks.

Most of them resemble the flexible model proposed by Hupper. This is largely due to practical considerations. Whitman’s investment committee chooses managers to invest and reinvest their funds. Peter Harvey explains that Whitman administrators have very little control over the process.

“We cannot tell [managers] what companies to invest in, or not,” Harvey said, “and we are a small piece of any manager’s funds. Many of these are billion dollar plus managers and we maybe have 15 or 20 million dollars so we don’t have that control.”

Moving forward, the students are awaiting the outcome of the November Board of Trustees meeting, where President Kathy Murray will present this iteration of a socially responsible investment framework to the Trustees.

The administration is certainly entertaining the idea, partially because it does not require completely reallocating the College’s investments.

“It...meets administrative needs if it gives a framework so that we all know how decisions are made, and that provides transparency and while people may not like the decisions that are made, for example a number of colleges that have such a framework have considered divestment and haven’t done it,” Peter Harvey said, “but at least there’s a process [students] can understand and participate in.”

Corrections to Issue 6 A Sports article on new coaches was written by Alec Rainsford, not Grant Laco.

The first sentence of the last paragraph of a contributed Op-Ed by Assistant Professor Lisa Uddin was incorrectly edited. “The ‘other’” should have read “your other.”

by LANE BARTON News Editor

Saturday 10/31 Storms b

t atter Texas

Monday 11/2

Tuesday 11/3

Wednesday 11/4

Portland rideshare deregulation

Volkswagen emission scandal grows

France to end blood donation ban

The Chinese Communist Party announced its decision to allow married couples to have two children, ending the “onechild policy” that had been in place since 1980. Originally implemented as a way to reduce population growth and resource demands, the policy has led to a drastically high maleto-female ratio, a much older average population age, and a smaller workforce with less young workers available.

5 people were reported deceased over the weekend after multiple tornadoes and flooding in east Texas. Weather reporters note that an “upper-level disturbance from Mexico” is the cause of the storms, which follow the remanants of Hurricane Patricia. Parts of Houston and Austin saw 8 and 16 inches of rain, respectively, and over 40 flights out of Austin were cancelled on Saturday.

A proposal by Portland City Commissioner Steve Novick is looking to change current taxi regulations in order to accommodate ridesharing businesses Uber and Lyft. The proposal comes after a four month pilot period from May to August that introduced Uber and Lyft into the taxi market. The test saw an increase in city taxi use but also resulted in Uber and Lyft controlling “ 60 percent of the taxi market at the end of...August”.

The Environmental Protection Agency has stated that Volkswagen is in violation of the Clean Air Act after cheating on emission tests. The finding mirrors a similar finding in September in which Volkswagen admitted to using devices to mask the emissions rates of some car models from 2009 to 2015. The recent violations were found for 2014 to 2016 car models and raises concerns about Volkswagen’s willingness to admit the full extent of its violations.

In spring 2016, France will reduce restrictions on gay and bisexual men donating blood, allowing men not sexually active with other men for the past 12 months to donate. The restrictions trace back to concerns in the 1980s during the AIDS crisis. Some critics, although pleased with the elimination of an outright ban, consider the 12 month celibacy period a de facto ban and inconsistent with duration of time it takes to confirm whether a donee has HIV.

Source: The New York Times

Source: Al Jazeera

Source: The Portland Tribune

Source: Vice News

Source: The New York Times

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PIONEER

ISSUE 9 | November 5, 2015 | Whitman news since 1896 | Vol. CXXXVII

Administration considers ethics framework

by ELLEN IVENS-DURAN Staff Reporter

W

here does your money go? To Google or Monsanto? Whitman students have never had a firm grasp on where the college’s money is invested, much less any say in the College’s financial practices. That may be about to change.

A group of students, composed of members of Divest Whitman, the Whitman Investment

Company (WIC), and the Associated Students of Whitman College (ASWC), met with President Kathy Murray and CFO and Treasurer Peter Harvey on Oct. 22 to discuss Whitman’s adoption of a socially responsible investment framework. If Whitman had one of these frameworks, managers of the college’s investments would have to meet some basic ethical standards, or risk losing their business with the college.

The proposal process came

out of conversations between students and administrators regarding divesting from fossil fuels.

Junior Dani Hupper, ASWC Sustainability Director and an active member of Divest Whitman, has been one of the major drivers behind this proposed change.

“In reference to divestment, most administrators have said, ‘We’re not in support, not ready to divest from fossil fuels in the way that you propose at this time, but we are willing to create a so-

cially responsible [investment] framework.’ And we saw that momentum, and we saw that ability or potential of collaborating with the administrators and decided to run with it,” Hupper said.

Socially responsible divestment frameworks can take a variety of forms. At the meeting with Murray and Harvey, the students proposed three different options.

The Whitman Investment Company representatives, senior Phil Chircu, and junior Kincaid Hoff-

Whitman swim makes splash in first conference competition

by ALDEN GLASS Staff Reporter

L

ast weekend, Whitman Swimming got off the blocks with the curtain raising NWC Sprint Pentathlon and Relay meets. With co-ed relays and non-traditional sprint events, these meets have a different competitive environment to the average Northwest Conference meet. These events had five of the eight teams from the Northwest Conference in attendance, making them the first competition of the year for many of these schools. Whitman placed third overall in the meet, fifteen points behind co-leaders Whitworth and Pacific Lutheran.

Sophomore Maddy Gyongy-

“People take it seriously but it’s a light-hearted way to start off the season. ” Maddy Gyongyosi ‘18

osi is a fan of this opening meet and discussed its fairly laid back atmosphere.

“People take it seriously but it’s a light-hearted way to start off the season. I personally am not a sprinter, so it’s just a meet to ease into the season for me where not everything is on the line,” Gyongyosi said. “It’s [the] beginning of the season and you get to swim within the men’s and women’s teams with the co-ed relays. It really brings everyone together in a healthy competition.”

One of Whitman’s top performers in the meet was sophomore Clark Sun, who swam the anchor legs in both relays Whitman placed first in. Sun discussed how this meet serves as a marker for Coach Jennifer Blomme and how he felt about the team’s and his own performance this weekend.

“Coach [Blomme] put people in certain events and relays just to see how people are doing.

As far as the team’s performance yesterday, the team got third.

Which is fine because it’s a ‘see where you are’ type of meet.”

On Saturday, both swim teams competed in sprint events, and on Sunday, the teams combined for the co-ed relay meet. The men’s team took 2nd in sprints, and the women placed 3rd. In the co-ed meet, Whitman took 3rd. Photos

by Mutter

see SWIMMING, page 5

man, pitched a framework based on Environment, Social, Governance (ESG) criteria, a metric used by Goldman Sachs to determine a company’s level of ethics. This framework could be implemented by outside managers, or by using the ratings generated by Goldman Sachs based on a holistic appraisal of a company’s ethical practices. The model proposed would set aside a percentage of the College’s endowment to be managed by ESG investors. see ETHICS FRAMEWORK, page 2

International students share stories SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL. Sophomore Ludmila Cardoso de Brito took pride in contributing to her family’s income. She would step out of the door at 5:00 a.m., heading off to technical school. In the afternoon, she went to work and in the evening, she attended high school. At 11:00 p.m., she would arrive home with 6 hours left before the routine began again.

When she had extra time, Cardoso de Brito read articles her father sent her. One article piqued her interest in the United World Colleges (UWC), a group of schools and colleges that, regardless of a student’s financial situation or English fluency, brings together students from around the world to study.

It was the first in a series of events that would bring Cardoso de Brito to the U.S., and ultimately to the couches in the Reid Campus Center where she shared her story with me.

Cardoso de Brito explained the UWC like this: if a war were to break between any of the various collaborating countries, those countries “would become more than just a country, but a place where your friends come from.”

The UWC encouraged its students to care about one another and respect cultural differences.

After completing various interviews, forms, and essays, Cardoso de Brito was selected to attend a UWC in Singapore. She took her first plane trip and left home at the age of 16 to study with hundreds of students from all around the globe.

When Cardoso de Brito arrived, she knew only ten words of English. Many other students were in the same boat, and with supportive staff and faculty the transition was a relatively smooth one.

“All of us were far from home ... [Singapore] became our home and those people became our family. When you are in a situation where you are living far from home with a close community, things seem so much more intense ... so [when] things are good [they] seem awesome, [and when] things are bad it’s like the end of the world.

When you look back at it you’re just glad you’ve been though all that.”

Cardoso de Brito studied in the IB program, and during her second year at UWC, a recruiter came to school and exposed her to Whitman.

It was then that something clicked. see INTERNATIONAL, page 6

Global Studies draws student support evaluation of course releases after the external review period.

The first method of student engagement on this issue came in the form of an open letter in support of Global Studies that was circulated to a variety of student listservs on Oct. 25. The letter was spearheaded by senior Lorah Steichen and junior Mona Law, who, after consulting with fellow members of student group Divest Whitman, produced a brief letter with space for students to type signatures or personal testimonials in support of Global Studies. “[W]e came to the conclusion that creating some sort of space where students could stand in solidarity with faculty is important, because we heard a lot of discussions among students... but neither of us knew if there was some sort of organized effort besides an ASWC response.

So I think we really wanted to create space for student voices in the discussion,” Steichen said.

The letter has gathered over 300 signatures and includes over a dozen individual statements on the importance of the Global Studies Initiative. Students express concerns about the fact that administrators use students as justification for taking away a program that benefits students.

“It’s problematic for me when the argument from the administration is that [Global Studies is] taking away from students because it brings faculty out of the classroom, but I think that it really does provide a lot for students in direct and indirect ways,” said junior Drew Edmonds, a signee of the open letter. “I think having...interdisciplinary interactions facilitates a lot of learning for faculty and brings a unique perspective to the classroom that students really benefit from.”

Students also believe that aspects of the Initiative that support faculty develop-

ment consequently bolsters student learning in the long run.

“Students...benefit so much from a faculty body that is intellectually engaged with each other and excited to create new innovative classes, innovative programs, and [to bring] all this material into conversation with each other,” said senior Josh Rubenstein, a signee of the open letter.

Moreover, some students signed the letter to express their belief in the importance of global perspectives, something that the Initiative emphasizes and the college expresses as a value in their mission statement.

“I know that in Whitman’s mission statement today they outwardly...talk about how they present things from a multicultural angle and they seem to be quite proud of advertising that and I want to make sure that [multiculturalism] actually stays in as a value rather than just a professed val-

ue,” said senior Tommy Breeze, a signee of the open letter.

The variety of opinions and large volume of public support that has come with this letter is a factor that Steichen and Law hope will influence the administration to change their stance. They presented the letter and additional testimonies to Provost Pat Spencer on Oct. 30 to demonstrate the level of student backing behind the Global Studies Initiative.

While the letter was one forum for students to express their opinions on Global Studies, they were also provided an opportunity to speak their minds at an ASWC hearing on Oct. 29. Attendees expressed concern at the lack of transparency with which the decision was made and the detrimental effects to faculty and students of color that benefited from aspects of the programs were cited by multiple students.

Inside News

A&E

Feature

Opinion

Pio Hour

Whitman is one of four campuses to pilot the use of virtual reality technology in sexual assault prevention.

Whitman students raise over 1,000 dollars and 150 pounds of food at Haunted Hospital on Oct. 31.

Three International Whitman students share their experiences with the decision to study far from home.

The Pioneer’s board editorial discusses the effect of language on Whitman College’s mission.

Hosts Andrew Schwartz and Anna Middleton chat about both on campus and world issues.

PAGE 3

PAGE 4

by LANE BARTON News Editor

O

ver 300 students have signed an open letter calling for the reconsideration of the suspension of the Global Studies Initiative. ASWC also held a hearing on Global Studies, passed a resolution in favor of the Initiative, and called on the college to address concerns about transparency, student involvement, and commitment to students and faculty of color.

As it stands, there will be a director for Global Studies with one course release per semester to assist with an external review of the program, but all other course releases and the fall faculty development seminar will not be provided in the 201617 academic year. This compromise is an adjustment from the initial position that all course releases were off the table in 201617 and also leaves room for re-

see GLOBAL STUDIES, page 3

WHAT’S INSIDE THIS ISSUE?

PAGE 6

PAGE 7

MONDAYS, 10-11 A.M.

NEWS

NOV

05 2015 Open letter, ASWC advocate for Global Studies

PAGE

3

Virtual reality film demonstrates future of sexual assault prevention

from GLOBAL STUDIES, page 1

“The point of the hearing was to solicit student feedback in a really concrete way. We’d seen the open letter but we also wanted to have a space for students to come and express different opinions that the open letter might not have reflected or nuances that were not necessarily in the open letter, although that was clearly a significant gauge of student opinion on the Global Studies Initiative,” said Percival. “But we wanted to provide the additional space for student voices before we went ahead and wrote a resolution that was speaking on behalf of students.”

After listening to student input and reviewing a variety of other factors, ASWC wrote and unanimously approved a resolution in support of Global Studies during the ASWC Senate meeting on Nov. 1.

“Ultimately I think there’s a few major things that [the resolution] asks for. It kind of generally expresses support for the Global Studies Initiative and urg-

“I think having ... interdisciplinary interactions ... brings a unique perspective to the classroom that students really benefit from.”

Participants wore a virtual reality headset to be placed in the perspective of perpetrator and survivor in a film showing sexual assault at an off-campus party..

Photo by Rose

Drew Edmonds ‘17

es the college to come to a redesigned program that can continue the [faculty development] seminar. So we ended up taking a stance that was very much proseminar in addition to being proprogram in general,” said ASWC Vice President Arthur Shemitz.

The resolution also includes some other important points beyond their thoughts on the Global Studies Initiative and fall faculty seminar. The resolution “calls upon the College to reaffirm its commitment to students and faculty of color” and asks the administration “to pursue a policy of transparent and inclusive decision-making, involving all stakeholders and interested parties, especially in this pivotal moment in the College’s history.” The college will be undergoing a strategic planning process in the coming year to shape its vision for the future.

The issue of student involvement comes in two key forms, as not only does decisions around campus programs like Global Studies involve students, but students’ ability to speak out and influence decisions is an important value espoused by many students. “I think this issue in particular is really important to students ... but even greater than that students have a lot at stake with decisions that are made and want to be included and involved in those processes and should have every right to be,” said Steichen.

by LACHLAN JOHNSON Investigative Director

T

he future of sexual assault prevention was on display this week. Senior Ian Andreen brought the film The Party to campus, which used virtual reality technology to show viewers a sexual assault first through the eyes of the perpetrator and survivor.

After showing the film to members of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, Andreen organized a series of viewings open to the entire campus. According to Andreen, viewers have overwhelming found the film powerful and said that while it is difficult to watch its message is important. The film is being shown at Whitman and three other colleges this fall as part of a pilot project by IndieFlix, who own the right to the film. IndieFlix hopes the pilot project will convince the It’s On Us organization to expand viewings to 50 to 100 schools next year.

“This is a really unique opportunity for our campus to pi-

lot this and see it before the rest of the nation gets it. I think it’s important as many people as possible see it, if only for the experience to see where sexual violence prevention could go,” said senior Brendan Paris, who is President of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity and helped organize this week’s screenings.

The Party premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this year, where it attracted a large amount of attention. Ian Andreen’s mother, Scilla Andreen, is the CEO and co-founder of IndieFlix.

She saw the film and secured the rights for distribution. Other than Whitman, pilot screenings are taking place at the University of Oregon, University of Illinois, and U.S. Naval Academy.

Ian Andreen is part of the college’s Sexual Violence Prevention (SVP) committee and the head of Phi Delta Theta’s internal SVP committee. While Whitman is far smaller than the other piloting schools, it is not immune to instances of sexual violence such as those shown in the film.

“My first reaction [after

watching] was ‘I can’t believe that happened,’ but in reality [sexual violence] absolutely occurs, and it’s tragic and it’s awful. While I think Whitman does a good job of showing awareness and trying to prevent sexual violence ... it’s still a major issue on campus,” said Andreen.

The virtual reality headset used for the screenings make it so viewers see and hear the experiences as if they were actually the person whose perspective they are following. Participants first watch from the perspective of a male student as he approaches an intoxicated woman.

The film shows his interactions with her leading up to and immediately following the sexual assault. It then returns to the beginning of the scene and shows the interactions again, this time from the woman’s perspective.

“Those two male characters, you want to do some physical harm to them ... I reached out to grab one of them by that back of the hair and I was going to pull him off, and then I realized that was not real-

ly me,” said Associate Dean of Students Barbara Maxwell.

Paris cited the immersive nature of the Oculus Rift virtual reality technology used to show the film for being far more intense than traditional methods used in sexual violence education.

“You can’t escape it. You’re thrown right into the situation.

It’s a heavy scenario for anybody to watch, not just people who may have been in that situation once. But I think it’s good because it elicits a really visceral reaction. You experience what’s going on to a certain extent. You take the helmet off and you’re just stunned for a little bit. That physical reaction to it is really [something] important [that’s] been missing from a lot of talks and discussions.”

Showtime Screening in Reid 207.

Thursday: 4 to 6 p.m.

E-mail unsworml@whitman.edu to RSVP

Pio Past: Vintage advertisements sell the ‘70s

by LACHLAN JOHNSON Investigative Director

For almost 120 years, The Pioneer has reported on news from the Whitman campus and surrounding community. Pio Past pulls old articles from past decades from the Penrose Library archives to give modern readers a glimpse of campus history.

The Pioneer has had a wide variety of advertisements throughout the years. Photos courtesy of the Whitman Archives

A&E 4 North Hall continues tradition of Halloween frights for charity

NOV

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05 2015

by EMMA COOPER Staff Reporter

O

n Halloween night in North Hall from 7:0010:00 p.m., Haunted Hospital raised money and collected canned foods for charity as well as terrified its participants through the haunted maze.

North Hall was formerly the Walla Walla General Hospital before Whitman acquired it. Resident Director of North Hall and Tamarac House Melanie Medina explained how Haunted Hospital incorporates the historic aspects of the building.

“We still do the classic scenes, like the Maternity Ward scene in what actually was the maternity ward when the building was the Walla Walla Valley General Hospital,” Medina said.

This year, all of the food goes to Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC), a nonprofit food bank in Walla Walla, and all of the funds that were raised will go to a charity of the students’ choosing.

Senior Alexander Hulse attested to the fundraiser’s success and commented on how it definitely has room for growth.

“Last year, as a tour guide, I got to see just how many people we unfortunately had to turn away at the door due to time constraints.

All of the proceeds go to charity, so obviously it is not desirable to turn donors away. I would love to see the event maybe expand to two nights in order to allow for even greater fundraising and more guests.”

Over the years, Haunted Hospital has been an extremely successful fundraiser, but due to

The annual Haunted Hospital raises money for the Blue Mountain Action Council. After years of sucess, the event hopes to expand in the future to run multiple nights a year. Photos by Mutter

time and work limitations, Haunted Hospital has had to turn away as many as 100 people in previous years. Because Haunted Hospital only happens on one night and there are a limited number of volunteer actors, tour guides, and scene managers, there is a limit to the event’s capacity.

By expanding the event over several nights, Haunted Hospital could not only scare hundreds of more people, but also collect significantly more money to donate to charity or more food to donate to BMAC. Hulse mentioned that despite the shortage of people involved, Haunted Hospital is an ex-

citing event with potential to grow.

“It is quite incredible what we have been able to do already, and expanding it in these ways would make for something people would be talking about all year.”

Medina was in charge of making the Haunted Hospital incredible this year.

“Now, as the RD, I get to be the organizational force that makes sure the students have what they need to get that same joy and satisfaction for one night of the year.

There’s a great cohort of residents who have lived in North for multiple years, or who keep coming back for this event every year, and are super into mak-

ing the night the best it can be.”

One such Alumna is Kaitlin Seiberlich (‘15), who has been involved in Haunted Hospital for every year that it has been hosted at North Hall.

“When I lived [at Whitman], I lived in North for a few years, so I did Haunted Hospital every year that North hosted it. The three years that I could, I was a part of it. I helped organize it last year and since sticking around, Melanie reached out to me and asked to help her organize it this year and I said that I’d be willing to.” Seiberlich said.

Haunted Hospital takes its participants on a tour through

all four floors of the building, and the actors dramatize hospital scenes gone wrong. Incorporating not only the interior of North, but also the exterior, the tour goes through creepy fire escapes, haunted elevators, and eerie mazes.

Haunted Hospital is not only a place to be scared witless, but also an event that brings together a community of alumni, current Whitman students, and Walla Walla residents together for a night of terrifying fun. å“[Haunted Hospital] is where I discovered that there is a simple and very satisfying joy in scaring the pants off of your friends and neighbors,” Medina said.

KWCW Show of the week: Movie Review: Bangers and M.A.S.H. ‘Sicario’ an unusual, haunting success

by MEGAN HEARST Staff Reporter

“N First-year Nathan Krebs [middle) hosts “Bangers and M.A.S.H.” on Tuesdays from 3:00 p.m. -5:00 p.m. Photo by Mendoza

by ERIC ANDERSON Staff Reporter

F

or first-year Nathan Krebs, host of the KWCW show “Bangers and M.A.S.H.,” radio broadcasting is a new forte. Despite this, his show, a combined music and talk show, has been going smoothly since the first installment, and it looks to continue that way for a while to come.

“Bangers and M.A.S.H. is sort of a hybrid type of show,” says Krebs.

In large part, the show consists of music of various genres; however, mixed in are community events discussions, in which Krebs discusses the various happenings both on campus and in the Walla Walla area.

On the music front, Krebs stresses the variety of his weekly selections. He’s willing to play “whatever music anyone sends over” (as

long as it meets broadcast guidelines, of course), and, during his tenure, has played “jazz, funk, rock and roll, [and] the occasional hip-hop.” Despite his openness to receive, however, he hasn’t received very many suggestions over the phone, something he’d like very much to change.

“Please, send me your requests!” says Krebs.

Meanwhile, on the discussion side, Krebs has been looking closely at the activities of various groups on campus who have made community contributions. His process lately has been to find clubs that strike his curiosity, research and contact them and interview their leaders, asking as to their typical activities and the work they’ve done around the area. A good start, to be sure. However, Krebs says that “the eventual goal is to reach furADVERTISEMENT

ther out,” whether that be “professors here doing research projects” or “individuals in ... Walla Walla.”

Interestingly, Krebs noted that the format of the show was inspired by its name, not the other way around. “The M.A.S.H. part of it actually stands for ‘More Awesome Stuff Happening,’” he says, “and I’m like ‘Oh, I can do community events and whatnot.’” Despite the unusual origin, the show’s name seems to have worked in its favor.

Krebs has geared his show to be appealing to anyone willing to give it a listen. “It can be whatever you want to make it, which is part of the appeal.” Asked about what audience he would recommend the show to, Krebs claims “it really is for anyone.”

“Bangers and M.A.S.H.” airs from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00p.m. each Tuesday.

othing will make sense to your American ears, and you will doubt everything that we do, but in the end you will understand,” says Alejandro Gillik (Benicio del Toro) to Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) at the beginning of their mission. In “Sicario,” the viewer follows Kate Macer across the border and into the new and morally corrupt arena of border politics.

“Sicario” represents a new sort of film for a new sort of world, one with no distinct right or wrong, one which leaves the viewer with more questions answers. But Sicario does fulfill Alejandro’s promise.

“Sicario” starts with an FBI investigation into a kidnapping case. As idealist agent Kate Macer searches for hostages held by cartel boss, Manuel Diaz and instead finds something far more horrifying; dozens of bodies, bagged and brutalized, hidden in the walls of an Arizona home and explosives stored in a nearby van.

This triggers a series of events which leads her to El Paso and CIA agent Matt Graver, and his mysterious partner Alejandro. As Kate crosses into Mexico, she encounters horrifying sights and corrupted people which will lead her to question everything she’s been trained to do.

“Sicario” is unusual for a myriad reasons, one of the most prominent is its female protagonist, Kate Macer. “It’s almost unheard of,” says film professor Robert Sickels, who taught this film as part of his class, “and when you do see it, they’re rarely different from standard male action heroes.” Kate is one of the most well rounded female characters on screen this year; strong, but vulnerable and capable, yet deeply troubled. She stands in stark contrast to Alejandro, the invulnerable hitman, often crumbling in the face of the terrifying situations she encounters.

The viewer can sympathize with her, and she brings some much needed humanity to the film, firmly grounding it in reality.

Notably, Macer is the only female character in the film.

This casting choice offers an advantage, rather than a deficit, to the film. “The fact that there’s only one female character in this movie is not so much the problem as it is the point,” Sickels says. The fact Kate is the only female character highlights the real life prob-

lem which faces female law enforcement, and the vulnerability which stems from it. “I would argue that in that context,” Sickels continues, “she probably wouldn’t have that much agency.” “Sicario” does not idealize the world of cartel control and chooses instead to highlight the corruption which pervades this dark underworld.

This unusual formula has served “Sicario” well. “It’s actually been very successful financially and has had an unusually long run”, says Sickels, “it is the unusual film which appeals to adults, it doesn’t appeal to that standard 12 to 18 market window.” The film has already generated Oscar buzz for Del Toro and Blunt’s masterful performances and Denis Villenueve’s directing.

The stands out as something special among the bigbudget action films which dominated theaters this year. Chris Ryan of “Grantland” has even gone as far as calling this film the “Apocalypse Now” of the Drug War, a defining film of a generation. But this comparison isn’t entirely apt. “More people were more interested on a regular basis in what was going on [in Vietnam], whereas as concerns this film a lot of people are capable of completely disregarding the Drug War,” Sickels said.

In many ways “Sicario” is introducing audiences to something Americans are desperate to forget, and in that way it is like “Apocalypse Now,” a powerful antiwar film which is impossible to forget. “I think that there’s an idea that it doesn’t affect you,” says Sickels, “that it happens over there to someone else, but so much of the Cartel’s profit comes from marijuana, and so many people buy illegal marijuana in the U.S.” This film brings the Drug War to America’s front door and into the very walls of its homes.

There’s something about “Sicario” which lingers around long after you’ve seen it and it’s this haunting quality which makes it so special. As we follow Kate and Alejandro’s journey into the heart of Cartel country, an overwhelming sense of anxiety percolates until the film’s powerful and heart stopping conclusion. The film ultimately leaves the viewer with more questions than answers, completely blurring the lines of right and wrong.

In the audience is reminded of Nietzsche’s words of warning “whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster.”

SPORTS

NOV

05 2015

PAGE

5

Unconventional swim meet kicks of Northwest Conference season

In the sprint portion of the conference, junior Sean Terada competed in the butterfly races. Photo by Mutter

from SWIMMING, page 1

“People were in events they might not normally do,” Sun said.

“I was ... put in the butterfly, which I haven’t swam since early high school. I was very unsure of how I was going to do, but I went out there and put up some really good splits that I’m really happy about. I helped facilitate two relay wins. I wasn’t fully responsible for them, but I did do my part to help the team win those relays.”

Both the men’s and women’s teams are coming off of a historic year in Whitman Swimming history. With the men’s confer-

ence championship and the women’s impressive second place finish, it will take a special effort to better the accomplishments of last year. Blomme talked about how the team’s makeup has changed since last spring.

“On the women’s side, we only graduated one senior so we’ve got a lot of strong leadership and some great new swimmers. On the men’s side, we graduated three seniors who were pretty significant. Karl Mering was an all-American and three time conference MVP, and that certainly changes the dynamic a

little bit,” Blomme said. “We’re certainly excited to see some people rise to new positions because of that absence. We’ve got a really nice group of first year men. We’re still feeling confident about our role in the conference and our team’s position there.”

Gyongyosi has been very pleased so far this season with the boost that the first years have provided.

“I think being a first year is a very intimidating place to be.

You don’t really know what to expect. They’ve come into this season with such energy, which

has been useful to the rest of the swimmers as well,” Gyongyosi said. “It is nice to see these fresh faces that come to practice every day eager and ready to be with the team. It infects everyone in a positive way.”

Success this season will not be as simple as just reproducing what was done last year. Whitman is no longer an underdog team trying to fight its way to the top. Now it is on other programs’ radars and has to be on the defense. Blomme talked about how the team is dealing with their new status and what steps they

have been taking to replicate it.

“We discussed what we learned as an underdog sort of chipping away year after year at the top and what we learned from finally getting there. We’ve had a lot of opportunities and are continuing to reflect on that process,” Blomme said. “Our main intent is to take those lessons about what it means to rise to the top and what to expect from ourselves every day and to expect things out of each other in a way that is both supportive yet also sets high expectations. If we can do that things will fall into place.”

HS football deaths: This XC succeeds at Conference can’t be the status quo

by MARIO SANTOS-DAVIDSON Staff Reporter

T

High School Football Deaths

this year so far

annually since 1985

Infographic by Baker

by COLE ANDERSON & ALEC RAINSFORD Sports Editor & Staff Reporter

O

n Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015, Andre Smith, a seventeenyear-old football player from Chicago, was hit during the last play of his football game. Smith proceeded to collapse while making his way to the sidelines, and the next day passed away in the hospital due to “blunt force head injuries due to a football accident,” according to the Cook County Coroner’s office. Smith is now the seventh high school football player to die this year as a direct result of play, a tragically high number which only continues to grow.

The causes of death for these players ranges from a broken neck to a lacerated spleen to a seizure.

While the seven deaths this season have drawn headlines and national attention, this year is simply following the trend established by the last thirty. On average, 12 athletes die every year in high school football (five from direct causes: head, neck, and spine injuries; seven indirect: heat stroke, underlying illness, or cardiac arrest, for example). Those figures have remained rather consistent since the 1980s. While these are relatively low given the amount of high school football programs in the United States, it is still unacceptable. Too much time has passed for there not to have been an advancement in player safety.

The last major change to high school football was made during the 1970s, with adjustments

to protect players who were dying from neck and head injuries.

As a response, rules were changed to prohibit leading with the headon tackles, and helmets were designed with to increase safety.

These adjustments dropped the number of deaths by over 50%.

Since those adjustments, however, there has been little to no progress. With so much recent outcry from the deaths of high school athletes, it is hard to understand why this is the case. Certainly if an NFL player died on the field, there would be a flurry of lawsuits, hearings, and rule changes.

The difference could lie in the fact that severe injury or death is assumed to be an unfortunate but normal byproduct of NFL football, but few assume the same of high school competition. So when deaths do occur at the high school level, maybe they are seen as accidents, rather than something to be expected. Maybe that is why change has been so dormant. It is easy to write something off as an accident rather than a product of imperfect, unchanged practices.

It is hard though to call these “accidents” when there is so much precaution still lacking in high school football. A study done by the National Athletic Trainers Association showed that only 37% of high schools employed a full time athletic trainer, just over half had part time trainers, and about three-quarters had access to a trainer at games. In a majority of these injuries, the loss of a life could have been prevented with trained medical help at the scene of the incident, rath-

er than an untrained coach doing his best. The lack of trained help on hand is one very tangible change that can be made. But that change still remains absent.

In recent years, evidence of long term brain damage in some college and most NFL football players has been widely publicized. It is increasingly becoming evident that an NFL contract is an agreement to shorten one’s life significantly.

Perhaps this is why there is the sudden outcry in sports media this year. Certainly we live in a generation where social change needs to be trendy for anything to come of it, and the increased press coverage of detrimental health effects to college and NFL athletes is a perfect diving board to add high school football to the conversation. Maybe popular sports media outlets have realized that nothing will change unless this issue is made to be something new and unheard of. But this high school football season is nothing new. By the numbers, it is right on track. That is the problem. Not that seven have already died, but that on average, we can expect five more kids to die before the season comes to a close. Not that there have been seven unfortunate accidents, but precisely the opposite; that these weren’t accidents at all.

The commentary on this issue needs to change from that of a new problem to an urgent need for change to an issue that has been consistent for 30-35 years.

No 16-year-old should have to assume a risk of death substantially higher than that of most other activities just to play a sport.

his Halloween weekend, the men’s and women’s Cross Country teams ended their Northwest Conference season at the Conference Championships in Tacoma.

Heading into the meet, Coach Scott Shields expressed his pleasure with the whole season, especially the amount of progress that has been made during the year.

“Overall the season’s gone really well. Myself and the [other] coaches are really pleased with not just watching them and seeing their times progress, but [also] what we’re hearing from them. The confidence they’ve gained this season has been tremendous,” Coach Shields said.

“We have two incredibly strong teams within our Conference. [I’m] extremely proud of both of them.”

He also expected the two teams to do well and hoped to improve upon their 3rd place rankings.

“On the men’s side, we have a very good chance, if we have a good day, of getting second or potentially first,” Shields said. “[On] the women’s side, if our top three have a good day, you just never know how much farther up the ladder you can climb.”

Junior Alex Waheed shared Shields’ optimism about the end of the season.

“Things are looking good for us.

Our record against Conference teams is 11-2 at the three invites,” Waheed said. “The thing about cross country is that if you’re beating a team throughout the whole season, there’s no way they can beat you at the end”.

Having not won a Conference Championship since 1964, the men’s team felt they had an outside chance this year. A big reason for this is the team’s depth and closeness, as Waheed commented on.

“We have by far the deepest team in the Conference. Usually we’ll have our seven guys ahead of other teams’ #4 or #5,” he said.

“For myself, I’ve finished anywhere from 4th to 7th [among our team], so there’s lots of changing around. We work together a lot which is great”.

In the cross country season there were three invites before the Conference Championship, a chance for teams to get competitive runs in without actually affecting final season results. The Conference meet and Regional meet are the first chances to compete against all the teams around Whitman in the rankings at the same time. While the men’s team is ranked behind UPS, they beat them at the previous invite, so there was hope for the men to improve upon their last two 3rd place finishes in 2013 and 2014.

The women were also optimistic, improving on their 4th place finish from a season ago by being ranked 3rd heading into the NWC Champi-

onship. Senior Emily Williams was particularly excited about seeing how junior Lara Ruegg and senior Allie Donahue would do at the final Conference meet after their solid seasons. “[Allie Donahue] has had a stellar season. She’s improved a lot the last two years on the cross country team,” said Williams. “[Another] person I’m excited to see is Lara Ruegg. She’s generally been our #3 and she’s been doing really exciting things this season.”

Coach Shields was also excited about the meet, particularly the beginning of head-to-head competition with the rest of the Conference.

“We run for times and trying to get personal bests, but when it comes to really extreme conditions you have to put that on the shelf and say okay, how am I going to compete,” said Shields. “It’s more of a head to head competition now instead of worrying about your time, which is cool too”.

The wet, muddy conditions in Tacoma made for a slower race, but both teams performed well over the weekend, each placing 3rd and earning trips to the West Region Championship in Claremont on November 14. The men finished behind Conference champion Willamette and Puget Sound, while the women were behind first-place Whitworth and runner-up Willamette.

Three Whitman runners made the All-Conference Team: Senior T.C. Heydon and Junior Matt Wotipka for the men’s team, and Senior Julia Hart for the women’s team. Both teams will continue their 2015 seasons for at least two more weeks, hoping to finish well in the region and make it to Nationals.

SCOR EBOA R D SOCCER Men’s

v. Walla Walla University Oct. 28: W 1-0 v. Willamette University Oct. 31: L 0-2 v. Linfield College Nov. 1: W 1-0 Women’s

v. Pacific Lutheran University Oct. 31: L 1-2 v. University of Puget Sound Nov. 1: L 0-2

VOLLEYBALL

v. Linfield College Oct. 30: W 3-0 v. Pacific University Oct. 31: W 3-2

SWIMMING

NWC Sprint Meet Oct. 30: W: 3rd, M: 2nd NWC Relays Oct. 31: Combined: 3rd

UPCOMING

HOME CONTESTS ONLY

SOCCER

Men’s v. Whitworth University Nov. 7 @ 7 P.M Women’s v. Lewis & Clark College Nov. 8 @ 12 P.M.

TENNIS

Men’s v. Pacific University Feb. 18: W 54-32 Women’s v. Pacific University Feb. 18: L 32-54

FEATURE

PAGE

6

NOV

05 2015

Whitman on the Map: Three international students trace their journeys to a new home from INTERNATIONAL, page 1

“I fell in love with the idea of being at a small liberal arts college in the Pacific Northwest where I would be known by my name and not a number,” Cardoso de Brito said. She also loved the thought of being surrounded by sweet onion fields and mountains in a small locale like Walla Walla, an environment so different from the large, sprawling city of São Paulo.

Coming to Whitman, Cardoso de Brito knew that she would be a minority. At the UWC school, people came from all over the world so there were no “minorities” the way we think of them in the U.S. She recognized the number of international students at Whitman is small, but she also felt that there was a lot to gain from the experience. She described her school in Singapore as a place where people were open and worked to overcome cultural barriers in a diverse space. Whitman would offer a different vantage point.

“I wanted to challenge myself to get to know people that did not see things the same way … when [you] are surrounded [by] people who think the same way as you do, you do learn. But when you are faced with contrasting ideas you can talk about that and in that process you grow a lot,” she said.

With the assistance and support of advisers at UWC, Cardoso de Brito was able to apply to Whitman as well as other schools. She was accepted at Whitman, and decided to take a gap year which she spent in India before coming to Whitman in the fall of 2014.

She doesn’t know when she will have the ability to go back home during her time at Whitman. Regardless, Cardoso de Brito believes that the time away from home – both at UWC and Whitman – has had a meaningful impact.

“I left home when I was 16, so my mom saw the 16-year-old Lud go abroad to study and then [I went as] the 20-year-old Lud and somehow I feel she expected her baby back. I’m still the same person, but we change. And that is something that is also beautiful to get to know your parents again as this new person that you are and your parents getting to know you as the person you’ve become,” she said. *

*

*

KIGALI, RWANDA. Sophomore Bonnette Ishimwe’s interest in politics and economics was what sparked her choice to study abroad. She had the chance to get into a good finance school in Rwanda, but Ishimwe says she wanted a broader view of the world.

It was a program called ‘She Can’ that focused on supporting

Illustration by Mease Illustration by Mease

promising young women from postconflict countries that steered Ishimwe into a rigorous regimen that would prepare her to apply for school in the U.S. After finishing high school, Ishimwe applied to the program, and went through an application process filled with essays and interviews.

Once selected, she had to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language, an internationally recognized test, and then began training for the SAT. She prepared six days a week, from nine in the morning until five in the evening, for six months.

She applied to nine schools and ultimately chose to come to Whitman.

“I saw the whole Global Studies Initiative, like how classrooms weren’t just about U.S. and Americans but [had] more of a broader sense to [them]. You don’t only talk about some specific regions, but you tap into different regions from around the world.”

When Ishimwe finally started taking classes at Whitman, she saw a global perspective where people didn’t always agree.

“When I came here, everything that I believe in was just questioned. I came here with a very strong understanding of who I [was] as a person ... [but] Whitman just challenges everything you believe in and who you are. At first I didn’t really like it that much.”

Ishimwe did come to terms with the changes, and she realized that accepting it was part of growing up.

Along with having her beliefs challenged, Ishimwe also found she had to deal with the salience of race in the U.S.

“I see myself as Rwandese and whoever walks across or passes by, if they see me they’ll consider me as black. If someone knows I am an international student, [they think] I am an African. Rwanda is something nebulous to them but for me it’s my identity, it’s who I am. It was very tricky to get adjusted to that.”

Ishimwe has reached out to friends and other students who have had to deal with similar issues. It helps her get a better sense of how to deal with race and identity while she is here.

Still, Ishimwe says she is happy with the opportunities she has been given to expand and learn.

“My best thing about being here is that I know I’m not wasting my time. I know I’m actually learning something and growing.”

POKHARA, NEPAL. When junior Gambhir Kunwar was in high school, his dream was to study abroad in the United States. It was a long process, but that dream eventually came true.

An organization called the United States Educational Foundations (USEF) came to Kunwar’s school. They told him about a program called Opportunity Funding, which would cover all the upfront costs of applying to U.S. colleges, including SAT registration costs, application costs and much more.

Kunwar applied for the program. Out of 80 applicants, 16 were chosen and Kunwar was the only student chosen from outside the Kathmandu valley, where the organization was located. Kathmandu was a six hour public bus ride from Pokha-

ra, so commuting for the program would be cumbersome. He found a way to stay in Kathmandu for the program, which guided him through SAT training, how to get teachers to write recommendation letters and how to reach out to admission’s officers – all seminars that prepped applicants for a strong application.

One of the most challenging parts of the application process was getting his teachers to write recommendation letters.

“When I went to my teachers, they were reluctant because most of them were ‘chalkboard’ [not tech-savvy enough to use the common app]. They thought I was also one of those students [who could] go ... make money, [so] they wanted me to go to med school or engineering. They weren’t informed that there was [a] really good college education here [in the States].”

Many of Kunwar’s friends and classmates either went to Medical or Engineering schools in Nepal or came to the United States with the specific intent to make money.

Kunwar wanted to come to a small liberal arts school solely to study.

For Kunwar, going to Kathmandu to prep for the college application process and finally coming to Whitman was like “bursting a bubble.”

While he had used English through reading and writing at school, the skills he needed to write personal essays were beyond what he was used to.

“When I was writing my college personal essays and I used to struggle with writing for sure but I felt that I am going to this col-

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lege so that I can improve,” he said.

He landed an interview with an admissions officer at Whitman, which he believed helped him hone in on Whitman as his top choice.

“I wanted to get close to faculty. I [was] really scared of big universities and also it [made me] really nervous because you are going to some new place and you want it to be as safe as you want and also you know you want to get most help as possible. I saw people are really happy here,” he said.

It took Kunwar a flight from Kathmandu to Dubai, a layover, a direct 16-hour flight from Dubai to Seattle, and then another flight to Walla Walla to finally set foot on the Whitman campus. Even though it was his first time flying, Kunwar said he was excited and enthusiastic.

As soon as he arrived on campus, the heat of eastern Washington was overwhelming. He was immediately swept into the swing of things with a SCORE trip, followed by orientation and the start of classes.

“When I got here, I felt like I’d accomplished something really important,” he said.

Kunwar says his college experience has been rewarding overall, and he credits his parents as being a major driving force in his education.

“I knew that their blessings would be always with me. That was [my motivation]. I always used to think once I…graduate from College [people] will see [my] parents who never went to school having a kid graduating from college. Actually, it was them showing me the path to higher education – they were always there when I needed [them].”

OPINION

NOV

05 2015

Board Editorial: Corporate language betrays Whitman’s purpose

C

orporate jargon has infiltrated the speech of Whitman’s administrators. Both the recent suspension of key Global Studies Initiative elements and a Pioneer investigation on Whitman’s financial inaccessibility reveals that this institution is being run like a business, not a college.

With Global Studies, professors involved in meetings with administrators said that the decision to eliminate course releases for professors to participate in a faculty seminar was framed repeatedly as a matter of ‘opportunity cost.’ This term obscures the true benefits and value of the seminar, the centerpiece of the program. The Global Studies Initiative provides essential diversity in the perspectives presented in Whitman’s classes. As Professor Jennifer Cohen described in an Op-Ed last week, the value of diversity cannot be reduced to a cost-benefit analysis.

Global Studies is a project led by women of color among the faculty and meets the urgent need to make Whitman’s education more inclusive. It is disappointing that administrators decided this program was the least valuable and the first to be cut.

If there are different perspectives on what the Global Studies Initiative should be, the argument should be taken up as a discussion among the faculty, not decided behind closed doors and handed down by the administration. As much as administrators may wish to present their actions

as the inevitable result of rational economics, what they did was a choice.

During interviews about Whitman’s financial aid policies, administrators repeatedly referred to Whitman as a ‘product’ which must compete on a ‘marketplace.’ Using this language, they suggested the vast majority of their actions have been nothing but reactions to market forces which cannot be debated or, to an extent, even discussed.

This is another attempt to shut down political discussion on campus.

Over the last two decades, Whitman administrators have made a series of choices which privileged wealthy students. The college could have chosen to take risks to fight for college accessibility in a time of growing inequality. But instead, it cut its low-income Pell Grant students in half and hiked tuition for students from the middle class. Even within the elitist trends in higher education, Whitman has chosen policies which benefit the rich and its own finances far more than other schools.

Administrators use misleading terms to cover up ugly policies, hoping to deflect criticism and prevent discussion. Discriminating against applicants based on their family’s wealth is called being ‘need-sensitive.’ Financial aid which benefits only the wealthy is called ‘merit aid.’

These words are meant to confuse and discourage speech, obscuring the true consequences of these terms.

By presenting everything they

First-Year

F

ailure is a trite topic. It has been trotted out time and time again, raked over by great minds from all eras and walks of life. Yet it remains pertinent. We love to laud the transformative, growth-inducing, character-building results of failure.

We love to say how important failure is to true success, for strengthening resilience, for discovering ourselves outside of our external accomplishments. All these things are true, and yet, failure absolutely sucks. This piece is not about blindly praising failure, but rather seeing its value in a nuanced light: we can’t address failure without a nod to its discomfort, but we also can’t address failure without acknowledging its valuable effect on our lives.

I’ve failed at my fair share of things and, knowing myself, I’ll likely continue in such a manner. College, however, is an Everest of craggy challenges waiting to snag us into the tumult of failure. It is a breeding ground for subtle tripwires, waiting to burst into catastrophe whenever we misstep. Whether in academics, social life, or romantic relationships, there are count-

less faux pas lying in wait during the course of a college career.

In a sense, wrestling with this inevitable failure is exactly what this time in our lives is for. As we climb towards adulthood, we’re tasked with figuring out who we are, what we want to do, and what we envision for our futures–no easy feat. If we journey into the arena and explore, take risks, and challenge ourselves, we will stumble. Our egos will be bruised, our sense of self-worth challenged. There’s a high likelihood it’ll hurt sometimes. But this pain forces us to build our identities around our characters, not just our accomplishments. Just because we’ve failed doesn’t mean we’re failures.

We won’t excel like we did throughout our youths. We’ll make seemingly irreparable mistakes.

We’ll humiliate ourselves beyond salvation. We’ll try something new and crash spectacularly. These things will happen; they are facts of life. But the resiliency of the human spirit is impressive. We can be knocked down time and time again and still rise up every time. In rising, we learn much about ourselves. We learn that worth is not inherently attached to external success.

Humans are like eggs. When we first confront failure, we tend towards resembling a raw egg. When our shells crack open, it is as if our insides are spilling out, falling all over the place.

7

Indigenous Latin Americans continue to face injustice

do as a reaction to the market, administrators pretend that they have no choice in their actions. They use corporate language to shut down conversation. Supposedly there is nothing to discuss, let alone decide through democratic debate. In reality, it’s clear that Whitman administrators could have made very different choices in the end.

This week the Board of Trustees, a group of extremely wealthy donors to the college, will meet behind closed doors to decide policies that seriously impact Whitman’s future. Once decided, these policies will in all likelihood be presented as inevitable economics, beyond the understanding or discussion of Whitman’s students.

Whitman’s mission statement commits the college to promoting “character, and responsibility” and to helping students develop “capacities to analyze, interpret, criticize, communicate, and engage.”

President Kathy Murray and Chair of the Board of Trustees Brad McMurchie need to prove these words have meaning. If students aren’t trusted to even listen as the college’s political decisions are made by the Trustees–if responsibility, communication, and engagement are undermined by corporate language–Whitman is not meeting its own standards. Whitman’s leaders should be fulfilling the college’s most fundamental mission, not obsessing over markets and returns.

Daring to fail ALYA BOHR

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It understandably feels like the ground has been ripped out from under us. But what we must discover is that we are more like hard-boiled eggs. When our shells crack, it’s a good thing. We learn that our core is not only strong, but also more valuable than our outer veneers of success and perfection. My analogy may be odd, but I hope the message is clear: our value lies in our characters, in who we are as people (hopefully “good eggs”) rather than in the laundry lists of success stories or images of infallibility we attempt to project.

The Buddhist teacher Pema Chödrön wisely said, “Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible within us be found.” Here we are, burgeoning young adults, learning how to meet the world. We have a near infinite number of opportunities to fail.

Let’s get to it. Let’s embrace the discomfort and discover paths to our places of indestructibility— indestructibility not in the sense of being immune to failure, but rather in acknowledging that failure cannot break us. We can always find our way through, and we can always try again.

Illustration by Rannestad

JOSE CORONADO Sophomore

VOICE OF LATIN AMERICA

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pon the commencement of European colonization in the Americas, Native American populations immediately began to wane. With the reduction of their numbers, came a loss of their traditions, lifestyles, and languages. Today, although the situation varies within each country, Native Americans are often victims of poverty and lack of opportunity.

In the United States, people that live in reservations are mostly poor, and a great number of them are alcoholics and unemployed. In Latin America, the situation is not much different. Indigenous people often live far from cities in mountains or remote towns, and most exist without basic utilities like water and electricity. Although there are some tribes that willingly live this way (like those in Amazonia), other indigenous communities cannot sustain their ancient lifestyles and have to integrate themselves into the modern era. Their chosen livelihoods vary. Some are farmers, others mine, some sell crafts to tourists.

All share a common problem: their governments have not found a solution for their widespread poverty.

One major issue for indigenous Latin Americans is the language barrier. Most live in communities far from cities, and, as a result, cannot learn languages like Spanish and Portuguese. This reality is a major impediment between these communities and progress.

Since they cannot speak Spanish or Portuguese, they often have trouble finding jobs in cities, and must often find low-paying work that requires minimal skill. If we want to help the indigenous people in Latin America, we must first educate them and provide modern skill sets.

If they do not know the official language of their present nation, they will have very little success in the job market. Although many organizations are concerned with the disappearance of native languages, it is important to teach languages like Spanish to indigenous people so that they can find their places in society.

Conversely, education can also function to preserve native tongues.

Loss of these languages is a common phenomenon in Latin America because indigenous people naturally stop teaching their kids native languages once they’ve left native communities. If the school system is reformed to teach classes both

in the official language of the country and in the region’s native tongue we would see less language extinction. I remember a TV show in which a Mayan kid who could speak three languages: Spanish, English, and French. He had learned these languages to improve his business selling crafts at the ancient Chichen Itza ruins. When asked if he could speak Mayan, his answer was no. Reforming school systems so that popular languages and native tongues are taught together will provide indigenous populations with more job opportunities, while also preserving native tongues and culture.

It is also important to educate not just indigenous children, but also indigenous adults. Adult illiteracy is a major factor preventing native employment. Teaching indigenous adults these basic skills is important because it eases their integration into society and provides the requisites needed to pursue job opportunities. In Latin America, some indigenous reservations receive food and resources from the government. This insulation perpetuates problems like alcoholism and unemployment, and while some members make the big leap to the city, others stay because they do not know what is outside.

Illustration by Hampton

Teaching natives about the world outside the reservation and equipping them with the tools to thrive in it will ease their transition into this capitalist world, if they decide to join it.

Another problem affecting indigenous communities is discrimination. In Latin America, many discriminate against indigenous people because of their origins. People consider them a problem and a threat.

The word indigenous is synonymous with people who are ignorant in Latin America. To solve this problem we also need to educate society about the importance of indigenous people as the roots of Latin America and the everyday problems they face. Numerous anti-discrimination campaigns have taken place in Latin America, and yet the problem persists.

To help the indigenous populations of Latin America we need to understand them and try to integrate them into society. The worn-out technique of isolating them in reservations has proven faulty. In order to help them, we must offer them a place in society. Through education and a push back against discrimination, we can help indigenous people discover a happy compromise between their isolated native reservation and the foreign, intimidating city.

Beats 1 Radio surpresses international voices BEN SHOEMAKE Senior

FAINT

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he first time I saw a commercial for Beats 1, Apple’s new worldwide internet radio station, I was sitting at home, watching television. I wasn’t paying much attention to what was going on, but the tune was catchy, the cinematography was engaging, and I thought, “People uniting around music, that sounds pretty alright.” When I saw it for the second time, I was paying a little closer attention, and I’ll be honest: It kind of scared me.

In case you don’t watch enough music videos on YouTube for it to have come up in the ads beforehand, here is roughly how the commercial goes. Zane Lowe, Beats 1 radio DJ, steps up to the mic. “We’ve got the whole world locked in for this one,” he says. A catchy beat plays in the background, and the camera shows people from around the world, in vastly different contexts, all listening and interacting with the same music in their own way. “Think Different,” reads the faded T-shirt of one man–ironic, as he is tuned into the same channel as everyone else. The vocalist, Pharell, sings out: “Freedom!”

The message of cultural imperialism implicit in the advertisement is so plainly visible that it’s almost as if Apple doesn’t care about hiding it. It is as if they are saying, “We already create the computers you use and the phones you live your life on. Let us create your culture, too.” A new musical landscape with-

out borders may sound appealing, but the idea of everyone in the world not only using the same devices but also listening to the exact same song seems too surreal to ignore.

Of course, perhaps it would be good to look at this in context. The Internet that Apple Music depends upon finds its beginnings as a US Department of Defense sponsored network known as ARPANET, and has carried a distinctly American flair since its inception. As an blatant but easy-to-miss example, the top-level domain names .gov, .mil, and .edu are reserved exclusively for US-affiliated agencies. The Complutense University of Madrid, for instance, is found instead at www.ucm.es.

The technologies that we use online also consistently privilege European languages over all others.

Duolingo, a popular language-learning website, offers courses in Esperanto, an invented language of European origin, but not in Mandarin, which has nearly five hundred times

Voices from the Community

as many speakers. Han characters and the Arabic script make up the second and third most common writing systems in the world, but support for text running vertically or rightto-left online is still very much inprogress. And while the people responsible for standardizing the technologies necessary for these changes are generally very receptive to problems of localization, it is a slow and difficult process that comes after years of improper technical support.

Considering these facts, it might seem as though a service like Beats 1 would be a welcome change–finally, an internet service which sets everyone on equal footing–but the introduction of a new American cultural product to a service which already caters to the whims of the American consumer, whose very standards are created and defined within our borders, is not progress. Instead, we create an online climate in which the only voices we hear are our own, and we

become the only people who matter.

We need to stop forcing American products, the English language, and US culture onto the rest of the world, and start creating new technologies that allow us to better hear what is being said in response. The problems we face as a country may seem steep at times, but it is important to remember that there is a vibrant population of seven billion people outside our borders that we can turn to for help. Some of them will say no, but still others might say yes.

Before we can take that step, however, we need to make sure we are positioned in a place where we can listen. Part of that process requires working to reduce technological barriers for languages other than our own. But another part– and, perhaps, the more important of the two–is to stop broadcasting ourselves so loudly that everything else is drowned out.

In doing that, Apple’s Beats 1 radio represents the opposition.

What would you most like to change about life at Whitman? Poll by MISSY GERLACH

MEREDITH CRANSTON

GRACE DUNBAR

MARK FOSTER

EMILY REYNOLDS

Sophomore

First-Year

Sophomore

Senior

“I think that people are too busy. I feel like people often forget why they’re here.”

“I would like it if Bon App had less salty vegetable options at the salad bar. And more risotto”

“I would like to change the dining hall situation over the weekend.”

“More community involvement. I feel like we’re pretty separate from the rest of Walla Walla.”

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NOV

05 2015

Res Life to offer pigeon cages for additional student housing A

ccording to a report released by Residence Life, Whitman College will start to sublet the pigeon labs in Maxey for affordable upperclassmen housing early next year.

Originally used for psychological experiments, these emotionally disturbed birds will now share their home with some of Whitman’s most economically minded juniors and seniors.

“The aim of this laboratory was to see if we could get the pigeons to attack on command,” said Dr. Gabernunzy, the professor responsible for the lab, in an exclusive interview. “However, we have had no success in the last few years and have since lost our military funding. In order to continue my life’s work, we will have to rent out the empty cages left by the weak.”

The washouts and failures of Dr. Gabernunzy’s pigeon boot camp are already trained to perform a variety of helpful tasks around campus, such as delivering mail to students wherever they are on campus, picking up trash and printing out informational brochures. Hopefully they will find a way to be a valuable addition to the community, since they failed to progress the noble cause of science.

However, there are many birds still left in the labs that students

will get to live with. Their soft cooing and willingness to eat garbage are sure to make them desirable roommates. Additionally, Dr. Gabernunzy recommends that students off the meal plan supplement their diet with the tender flesh of any unruly or recalcitrant pigeons.

“With any luck this potential threat will motivate the little guys to work harder!” said the doctor, already making new intelligent looking calculations on a chalkboard.

Many students have already toured the new residence hall and have shown interest in living there next year.

“Well, the cages aren’t very well furnished, and everything is still engrained with bird poop, but these cages will be a lot nicer to live in than the shoebox I slept in last year,” says senior Whitman student Brett Columbiday gazing happily at his home to be. “Finally, a place I can call home on a student budget. Maybe this year I’ll be able to afford all my textbooks!”

Each 2’x2’ cage comes with a piece of newspaper on the floor, a ball for pecking, and an attached water dispenser. The new residence hall, to be named the Nest, will feature Dr. Gabernunzy as Resident Director. If interested, sign up early; spots are filling up fast.

Illustration by Penner-Ash

What to expect when you’re expecting (to declare your major)

Halloween Testimonials: Tales from the day after

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Illustration by Burch

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irst, post your “I declared” picture to no less than two, but no more than four, forms of social media to ensure maximum likes. Part of the joy of declaring your major is letting all of your friends and followers succumb to a deep sense of academic inferiority and anxiety about their futures by reminding them that they are simply not as on top of their shit as you, a champion, are.

Second, make sure to stress the fact that your parents disapprove of your major, even if they don’t. Part of the liberal arts experience is a false sense of liberation from the capitalist shackles of your privileged upbringing. What better way to stick it

to the (wo)man paying your tuition than with an art history/philosophy double major? It is essential that you try to dispel any and all stereotypes you may carry as a coddled millennial by telling all of your friends that your parents don’t totally approve of the life path you’ve chosen, but, like, it’s what you’re really passionate about, you know?

Third, never, under any circumstances, research entry-level careers and internships that would accidentally boost your resumé and give you professional experience. This would lead you down a dangerous path of actually becoming a valuable member of society, and that

is certainly not why your parents are paying 60,000 dollars every year. Instead, stick to being a camp counselor for all four summers as a college student.

There are plenty of ways to spin your summer of paid cliff jumping and face painting into resumé-ready tidbits that will surely dazzle future employers and grad school admissions officers.

Fourth, in the true Whitman tradition of getting blackout drunk with every obscure group you identify with, make sure to begin planning your major’s legendary rager as early as possible. Exclusivity is the name of the game here, friends.

Make the party entirely word-

Welcome to Wilfrie: Insurance by Noah Porter

of-mouth and hold it at an ironically named off campus house that’s unnecessarily difficult to find, like the Birkenstoke or any of the 85 frisbee houses.

Fifth, never forget – or let any of your friends forget – that your major is the best, the most fulfilling, the most representative of a well-rounded liberal arts education. Now that you have that “I declared” sticker firmly affixed to your water bottle, there is nothing stopping you from making snide remarks about other majors, spouting one-liners from the readings you don’t do to impress your peers and maybe even designing some tasteful tanks for your major.

he morning after Halloween, I awoke in a bathtub.

It was unclear how I actually got there, but given the fact that I smelled like the TKE basement, severe inebriation was probably the answer. Memories swirled in my addled brain. Did I Snapchat my parents last night?

Judging by the three missed calls from my mom, and the text message from my dad that read, “Are you dead? –Dad,” the answer was an unfortunate yes.

God I needed to get out of this porcelain prison. This was way too Ke$ha for me to feel okay about. Ugh Ke$ha you fucking liar. That party most definitely DID stop and I did NOT feel like P Diddy. Staring blearily around at the bone dry bathtub, I was reminded of my sandpapery throat. I heaved myself over the lip of the tub like a hungover seal and flopped my way toward the kitchen, breath rattling through my throat like a dry wind across the Sahara.

After several minutes of intense struggle, I reached the third and final step in the stairwell and entered the kitchen. And there it was. Crouching mischievously upon the table, mocking me for the previous night: the handle of Fireball. No. Cold sweat broke out across my body, as I recalled the countless shots of the night before. I fled the kitchen, unsure if the rising nausea I felt was from alcohol or the 14 Almond Joys, 12 Snickers, four Twix and eight Tostitos that I had rage eaten at 2:15 a.m. Back in the safe, dark, silent cave of my room, I ripped off my clothes to allow for greater airflow. But as I unclasped m bra, I realized I could never escape the night before, because nestled within my breasts was a single, fun-sized Butterfinger.

Sincerely, Traumatized by Halloween