The Daily Free Press
Year xliii. Volume lxxxiv. Issue XLVII
MY PLACE OR YOURS? BU prof. researches the truth behind hookups, page 3.
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Thursday, April 18, 2013 The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University
THE REAL RATATOUILLE:
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GOT GOALIES?:
Freshmen goalies work well on and off the ice, page 8.
MUSE profiles Chef Barry Maiden, page 5.
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THE INVESTIGATION CONTINUES: For students abroad, Two days after bombings, reports misrepresent FBI progress marathon explosions
still painful tragedy By Chris Lisinski and Amy Gorel Daily Free Press Staff
AMY GOREL/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
MICHELLE JAY/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Participants in the Boston University Sydney, Australia program hold a A military official asks onlookers and media gathered at the John Joseph Moakley moment of silence Wednesday in honor of the Boston Marathon tragedy. United States Courthouse on Wednesday to move away from the building after a bomb threat. By Kyle Plantz been an arrest in the marathon attack,” stated the house remained closed for the rest of the day. Daily Free Press Staff Several bystanders who were at the Court-
Despite speculation that a suspect had been arrested for the Boston Marathon bombings, no one is in custody, federal authorities said Wednesday. According to a press release issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday, “contrary to widespread reporting, no arrest has been made in connection with the Boston Marathon attack. Over the past day and a half, there have been a number of press reports based on information from unofficial sources that have been inaccurate.” CNN and The Boston Globe were among the first news outlets to report the arrest. The Associated Press reported someone was in custody and the suspect would be brought to the John Joseph Moakley Federal Courthouse in South Boston. A crowd of reporters and on-lookers flooded the streets outside the courthouse, awaiting the suspect. CNN and the AP later rescinded the claim after federal officials said the reports were premature and untrue. “Despite reports to the contrary there has not
Boston Police Department on its Twitter page. Although no arrests were made, officials said they have made significant progress in tracking down suspects. Officials said surveillance video from a Lord & Taylor outlet near the explosions has been especially helpful in piecing together who might be responsible for the bombings. An image of a suspect carrying and allegedly dropping a black bag at the site of the second explosion has also been recovered. As several hundred people waited outside the U.S. District Court for the arrested suspect — who never came — law enforcement officials evacuated the building following a bomb threat. A bomb squad and firefighters arrived to the scene as police officers asked everyone to move away from the courthouse and into the adjacent parking lot due to a reported a possible bomb threat in the building. After about an hour, officials said the building was bomb-free. However, due to the bomb threat at the courthouse, among other unnamed circumstances, officials also canceled a news conference at Westin Copley Hotel, which was scheduled to take place at 5 p.m. on Wednesday. The court-
house said they came to the scene to see what was going on and are disturbed by the several reports of other bomb threats in Boston. “We were getting conflicting reports online and I work nearby, so I came down to see what was going on,” said Nikki Chenard, 25, a resident of Boston. Chenard said the recent explosions in the city are upsetting and have made her more vigilant and aware of her surroundings. Tony Gilbert, 44, a pilot from Seaport, said he saw the helicopters and people at the courthouse, so he came to see what was happening. “It’s typical [the bomb threats] sometimes for people to make a statement or to be on TV,” he said. Gilbert said he hopes these are isolated incidents and praised the police department and federal officials for doing a great job patrolling the city. Jackie Tierney, 24, a sales representative in Quincy, said she wanted to get a glimpse of the suspect.
Marathon, see page 2
Carrying candles and wearing any Boston clothing they had with them, students on the Boston University Sydney, Australia program gathered at a vigil on Wednesday to mourn the victims of the Boston Marathon. At the event, organized by program staff, more than 40 students wrote messages of love and support to victims and students and then walked together to a nearby park for a moment of silence. “Hardly anyone at my internship site talked about the events,” said Cara Polom, a College of Communication junior enrolled in the Sydney program. “I wish I had been home with my family and friends so that we could comfort each other since this event has such an impact on us.” Polom, who lived most of her life in Massachusetts before attending BU, said Boston holds an important place in her heart. “I’ve always viewed it as a safe place, my home,” she said. “Going to work for the next nine hours was the hardest part because reality began to sink in and I was surrounded by people so far removed from the situation.” Students abroad in Sydney were not the only ones to partake in the mourning of marathon victims. Despite the distance, several students currently abroad said they continue to feel a personal connection to Boston and the community in wake of the tragedy. COM senior Noah Eberhart, who is a member of the BU Los Angeles program, said it was a surreal experience to view the news of Monday’s explosions at the Boston Marathon from across the country. “It’s an international event and it’s a big event, but it’s also an intimate, very Bosto-
Abroad, see page 2
Boston part-time college professors seek to unionize for more benefits By Nora Philbin Daily Free Press Staff
Non-tenure and adjunct faculty from Boston-area colleges are looking to form a union to attain better wages and benefits, and job security that is afforded to other professors based on status. At a meeting hosted by The Service Employee International Union on Saturday at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Dorchester, faculty members gathered to discuss the formation of a union and what it would mean for professors in the area. There were over 100 adjunct faculty at the meeting from over 20 Boston-area campuses, according to Adjunct Action, a campaign
that unites adjunct professors from around Boston. Avril Smith, assistant director of communications for SEIU, said a union would help give professors a platform. “Nationally over 70 percent of classes are now taught off the tenure track and adjunct faculty often face low pay, no benefits or job security and many don’t have access to office space or basic facilities they need to do their jobs,” Smith said. “Adjunct faculty are forming unions to win a strong voice in their profession and in the future of higher education.” Though the support exists across campuses, each school would have its separate
union, Smith said. “The National Labor Relations Act governs the process for how adjuncts form unions, so they would have to form their union at each university separately, but the vision is to work together across schools to raise standards throughout the Boston metro area,” she said. SEIU represents 15,000 adjunct faculty nationally, according to the organization’s website. Deborah Schwartz, an adjunct professor of English at Boston College, said she sees a disconnect with the amount that education costs and how much faculty are paid. “When schools ask for upwards of
$50,000 from their students, we have to ask why more of that money is not going to the majority of professors,” said Schwartz. “Both students and professors deserve more.” Professors are not the only ones looking for change. Students from Tufts, Northeastern, and Emerson attended the event on Saturday to show support for their hardworking professors. The idea of unionizing non-tenured and adjunct professors is not new in the Bostonarea. Emerson College adjunct faculty unionized in 2001. University of Massachusetts Boston, and Suffolk University non-tenuretrack faculty also unionized.
Unions, see page 2
Boston radio hosts ignite debate over term limits for mayor By Sophia Goldberg Daily Free Press Staff
INFORMATION FROM CITY OF BOSTON
GRAPHIC BY MICHELLE JAY/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Boston Public Radio asked on Facebook if their listeners think there should be a term limit for mayors. Shown here is the length of terms the last six mayors have held.
In light of Boston Mayor Thomas Menino’s pending retirement, Boston Public Radio initiated a dialogue regarding whether Bostonians thought that a term limit for the position of mayor of Boston should be instated. The radio hosts, Jim Braude and Margery Eagan, debated the matter between themselves about a week ago, taking either side of the argument. “The problem is, being a governing person, you’re a legislator, a member of congress, an executive like a governor or president. It takes time to figure out how to do what you do well.” Braude said. Eagan said the reason many salient bills, such as those dealing with gun legislation, fail to pass or get significant support from politicians is because they are worried about reelection. “If they were not worried about reelection and wor-
ried about their pensions and worried about their salary, and worried about their healthcare, they might vote their conscience every once in a while,” Eagan said. “I would argue one of the reasons we can’t get anything done in the USA anymore is because being elected to Congress — being elected to the United States Senate — has become a lifelong career.” Boston community members who weighed in on the term limit debate had mixed thoughts on the topic. David Palmer, a professor of international relations and political science at Boston University, said in an email interview that he still does not support having term limits. “Term limits in practice are a bad idea,” he said. “They institutionalize a lame-duck office holder, reduce incentives to pursue longer-term programs and may force out dynamic and successful leaders at the peak of
Mayor, see page 2