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MONDAY
nov. 8, 2021 high 62°, low 45°
t h e i n de p e n de n t s t u de n t n e w s pa p e r of s y r a c u s e , n e w yor k |
N • SWSSU protest
dailyorange.com
C • Sedona’s ‘FISHBOWL’
About 20 students gathered outside of Phi Kappa Psi Saturday, alleging multiple members of the fraternity committed sexual assault. Page 3
Student musician Sedona Regan explained the catalyst of her music career and how her LP “FISHBOWL” grew from three songs to 13 during the pandemic. Page 7
S • Short king
At 5-foot-8, Michael Ippoliti positioned himself to become the shortest goalie to appear in a game for Syracuse since 5-foot-7 Andrew Starr did against Hobart in 2002. Page 12
on campus
SU community members debate rescinding Giuliani’s honorary degree
How SU decides honorary degrees By Karoline Leonard asst. news editor
Rudy Giuliani’s degree drew protests from SU community members in 2002 and in the past year following his attempts to undermine the 2020 presidential election. photo illustration by anya wijeweera photo editor
work as mayor of New York Student leaders CityHisin the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks — an event that elevatne year after he began ed Giuliani to international stardom want to see campaigning to overturn — earned Giuliani a controversial a presidential election, invitation back to SU as a commenceRudy Giuliani’s Rudy Giuliani still has his ment speaker in 2002. honorary doctorate from Syracuse Giuliani’s visit was greeted by stuhonorary University’s College of Law. dent protests denouncing his policing Now, the leaders of Syracuse including the instances of doctorate from policies, University’s Student Association police brutality that took place during and Student Bar Association — the his tenure. Giuliani dismissed those organizations representing SU underprotests in his commencement speech. SU’s College of graduates and College of Law students In the last year, Giuliani has — want to see that degree rescinded. faced backlash and lawsuits for his Law rescinded “When he received his honorary role in campaigning to overturn degree back in 1989, he might have results of the 2020 presidential following his fall the portrayed the values or initiatives of election, a campaign that saw him the school then,” said Mazzy Kaila, push widely debunked voter fraud executive president of SBA. “I don’t from public grace conspiracy theories. By Chris Hippensteel senior staff writer
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think there’s any room for that now.” Kaila, along with SBA Vice President Scott Ceurvels and SA President David Bruen, have called for SU to take action to revoke Giuliani’s honorary doctorate. What exactly such a process would look like remains unclear. Giuliani received his honorary degree from SU in 1989 following his term as an attorney for the Southern District of New York that saw him spearhead a crackdown on organized crime and insider training.
So far, at least two other universities — Drexel University and Middlebury College — have revoked honorary degrees given to Giuliani in light of his actions during the election. The New York state appellate court has also suspended his law license. An SU spokesperson declined to comment on whether the university had begun looking into whether it would rescind Giuliani’s degree, or if such a process to do so exists at the university.
see giuliani page 4
In order to receive an honorary degree from Syracuse University, one must meet a number of criteria not explicitly stated by the university or its Committee on Honorary Degrees. The Committee on Honorary Degrees listed on its website several considerations for nominees: outstanding achievement in their specific academic, artistic or business field; innovative or creative achievements; humanitarian work; achievements in a field that show prolonged dedication to that field; being a good model for SU graduates; or the honor that the candidate would bring to SU by accepting. In past years, people from varying fields have received honorary degrees from the university. At the 2020 commencement, SU granted Daniel D’Aniello, most known for being co-founder of The Carlyle Group, an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. SU also gave Kevin Richardson, a member of the Exonerated Five who dreamed of attending SU, an honorary bachelor of fine arts degree. In order to receive a degree, the committee must recommend nominees to the University Senate. Anyone in the SU community can submit nominations. Individual schools or colleges may also award honorary degrees, but they are only permitted to award one per year. If a nominated person remains on the nomination list for four years but has not been given the degree, they will be dropped from the list but can potentially be renominated. Honorary degrees cannot be given if the recipient is not present for the event. There have been recipients who received the honor posthumously, such as Wangari Muta Maathai, who received an honorary Doctor of Science degree in 2013. Maathai was the first African woman to receive a Nobel Peace Prize, and she started the Green Belt Movement in Africa, which had women across the continent plant over 30 million trees. The committee discusses the nomination packets completed by SU community members before making a final nominee list to present to the University Senate. In previous years, SU granted honorary degrees to numerous people, see degree page 4