SINCE 1891
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD VOLUME CLVIII, ISSUE 12
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2023
UNIVERSITY NEWS
METRO
Symposium honors Lani Guinier, bell hooks Panelists cover feminism, diversity, inclusion in higher education
Participatory budgeting aims to include local voices Residents age 13 and up to vote on use of $1.5 million for health equity initiatives
BY RYAN DOHERTY & ANIYAH NELSON STAFF WRITER & SENIOR STAFF WRITER To open the second half of a twoday symposium honoring the lives and legacies of Lani Guinier and bell hooks Feb. 18 and Feb. 19, moderator Beverly Guy-Sheftall, director of the Women’s Research and Resource Center at Spelman College, used three words: “Friendship, feminism and institution-building.” The symposium, co-sponsored by Brown’s Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity and the Department of Africana Studies, brought together panelists from around the country to celebrate the two scholars and the relationship between their work and social justice. “I started thinking about these two giant women, one impacting law and
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The symposium brought together panelists from around the country to celebrate the works of the two influential scholars. education, and another scholar and author whose works — particularly in terms of intersectionality — are just phenomenal,” said Sylvia Carey-Butler, vice president for institutional equity and diversity and inclusion. “I kept thinking, we have to do something to celebrate them.” Day one of the symposium focused on Lani Guinier, a legal theorist and civil rights activist who was the first woman of color to receive tenure at Harvard Law School. Day two highlighted bell hooks, an author and activist who wrote
about the intersection of race, capitalism and gender. The symposium came just over a year after hooks passed away in December 2021 and Guinier passed away in January 2022. Day 1: ‘Intellectual giants who challenged the status quo’ Day one of the symposium began with a performance from Shades of Brown, a campus multicultural a cappella group, before President Christina
SEE SYMPOSIUM PAGE 7
With current distrust of elected officials, intense political debates around the dinner table and a swarm of misinformation on social media, some may feel isolated from decision-making in the democratic process. Amid these challenges, participatory budgeting offers a “beacon of hope that we can find opportunities for governments to uplift this idea of ‘people power’ in a time when I think you really need it most,” said Jonathan Collins, assistant professor of political science, public policy and education. Participatory budgeting is a bottom-up investment in public infrastructure where citizens get a direct say in how to fund public projects,
Collins explained. Approximately $1.5 million total has been allocated to the central Providence and Pawtucket and Central Falls Health Equity Zones — areas that have been impacted by environmental and health burdens — for participatory budgeting. Community members will be able to determine how the funding is spent through participatory budgeting. The participatory budgeting process begins with representatives from various community organizations connecting with residents to understand the problems they are facing, which can take the form of conversations or field surveys, Collins explained. Then, these representatives turn public preferences into policy proposals that are then voted on by the public. Dominique Resendes, assistant director of place-based initiatives at One Neighborhood Builders, explained that the steering committee felt it was important to include young
SEE BUDGETING PAGE 8
UNIVERSITY NEWS
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Jabberwocks win award at Northeast Quarterfinal
Justin Bolsen ’26 competes on ‘Jeopardy!’
A cappella group competes for first time since start of COVID-19 pandemic BY SOFIA BARNETT & DANA RICHIE UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR & STAFF WRITER On Saturday, Feb. 18, the Jabberwocks — the University’s oldest a cappella group — took the stage by storm in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella Northeast Quarterfinal. On Boston University’s Tsai Performance Center stage, Alden Forbes ’23 was recognized for her work in planning the set’s dance performances with the “Outstanding Choreography Award” and was immediately wrapped into a group embrace. At the start of their set, the group danced about the stage in slow, sweeping motions and formed a pyramid around first soloist Forbes as she sang the opening song, “Give You Blue” by Allen Stone. The Jabberwocks guided the audience’s attention to Forbes, creating a dynamic image by
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extending their arms down and away from the pyramid. Dorrit Corwin ’24, former president and current member of the Jabberwocks, told The Herald that she was “surprised” by this recognition. “We’re singers,” Corwin said. “Most of us don’t dance at all.” Corwin left the stage thinking that her team “killed it vocally” and that their choreography “did the job.” “It’s minimalist,” she added. It “brings the competition back to the roots of singing.” Forbes, a former ballerina with extensive experience creating choreography, told The Herald that preparing the group’s routine was initially challenging because she is “used to choreographing specifically for dancers.” “A huge part of this was gauging the group’s skill level and (comfort),” Forbes said. Another challenge was “balancing the necessity for dance moves in the ICCA assignment with showcasing the individual talents and personalities of the group within the set in general,” she added. Forbes said that she ultimately
SEE JABBERWOCKS PAGE 3
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Bolsen first appeared on quiz show in 2019, returns for reunion tournament BY SOFIA BARNETT UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR Justin Bolsen ’26 was hitting a “pretty heavy leg day” in the Nelson Fitness Center last October when he got an email from the executive producer of “Jeopardy!” Bolsen, who reached the semifinals of the quiz show’s teen tournament in 2019 at age 14, immediately knew: “This was my redemption arc.” “I read through the email on my phone and I (was) hyperventilating,” Bolsen said. “This has been a huge dream of mine, something that has kept me awake at night. Like, ‘What if I got to go back? What would happen?’ ” In the email, Bolsen found out he would compete with the other contestants from the high school tournament the season he competed — as well as contestants from a separate tournament the same season, for a total of 27 competitors. “They brought us back and doubled the numbers and made it crazy,” he
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COURTESY OF JUSTIN BOLSEN
Bolsen was 11 years old when he first started quiz bowl training, which required him to attend practice at 6 a.m. five days a week. added. “It’s literally like the Hunger Games.” Bolsen will appear on Thursday’s episode of “Jeopardy!” in this season’s high school reunion tournament, which will air locally at 7:30 p.m. on WPRI 12 and stream on YouTube TV and Paramount+. Bolsen’s “Jeopardy!” debut took place in 2019 after his grandmother texted him suggesting he audition for the show. “I’d been in quiz bowl all through-
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out middle school and was a pretty big trivia fan at the time,” he said. Through middle school, Bolsen woke up for quiz bowl practice at 6 a.m. five mornings a week, practicing for hours. For Thursday’s episode — for which filming took place at the end of January — Bolsen described running back and forth between the “Jeopardy!” stage and the “Wheel of Fortune” stage during downtime.
SEE JEOPARDY PAGE 7
DESIGNED BY TOM LI '26 DESIGNER
MENASHA LEPORT '25 DESIGNER
NATHANIEL SCOTT '24 DESIGNER
GRAY MARTENS '25 DESIGN EDITOR