the
Justice www.thejustice.org
The IndependenT STudenT newSpaper of BrandeIS unIverSITy SInce 1949 Volume LXXIV, Number 11
Tuesday, November 16, 2021
Waltham, Mass.
KINDNESS
NEW CITY COUNCILOR
Students celebrate 12th Kindness Day ■ The week was full
of activities, including kindness card making and food-related events. By GEMMA SAMPAS JUSTICE STAFF WRITER
Brandeis hosted the 12th annual Kindness Day on Thursday, Nov. 11 with events and activities on campus and online. Leading up to that Thursday, the University had a week packed with different kindness related events. The theme for this year’s celebration was “Back Together Again,” which, according to the Brandeis Kindness Day website, encapsulates the excitement for the reunification of the University community in-person after two semesters of virtual learning. The day’s festivities included kindness cards, which could be completed virtually or in-person at tent stations at the Fellows Garden, COVID-19 testing centers and in Upper Usdan. Brandeis invited students and staff to write or take Photo Courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS
WALTHAM: Ward 7 spans from the south of Brandeis' campus to the Market Basket grocery store, including the City Council.
The Justice interviews City Councilor for Ward 7 ■ University alumnus discussed
his personal and academic background as well as plans for the future of Ward 7. By JACKLYN GOLOBORODSKY JUSTICE EDITOR
On Nov. 2 2021, Paul Katz won the seat for Ward 7 City Council against David Russo with 566 votes total, according to the City of Waltham website. Katz is originally from Milton, Massachusetts and graduated from the University with a bachelor's degree in Economics. In a Nov. 9 interview with the Justice, Katz described his journey into local politics and his new role as city councilor for Ward 7. When he moved to Waltham, Katz was “fascinated by the local cable access channel.” He watched the school committee, city council and licensing and franchise committee. This sparked his passion in local politics; he began to see things that did not look right and question why local politicians were making certain decisions. Katz told a story about the moment
that inspired him to take an active role in the community. Around four years ago, the community was dealing with the issue of where to place the new high school. According to Katz, eight elementary schools and two middle schools had recently been rebuilt but the high school was lagging behind. After some time, the school committee decided on a very contested location for the new high school and the Waltham Citizens for Education, a group he became involved with, decided to fight to place the school in a more appropriate location. With this experience, his passion continued to grow. During summer 2021, Katz’s interest and involvement in local politics allowed him to see the many challenges that the community faced and he came to the decision to run for City Council. His motivation was that the Waltham community “can do better and be more transparent,” and that the local policies have to be right for the general community rather than a small minority of people. Katz then described the challenges facing Ward 7 and his plans for the future. He identified the first responsibility as the Ward’s residents. This includes dealing with any challenges
that people have like public safety issues, fixing sidewalks and making streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Katz emphasized that residents are not just homeowners, but also include renters, tenants and students. The second responsibility is to keep, and improve, the relationship between the University’s campus and community. Katz explained that the University gives, and can continue to give, a lot to the community, and he wants to explore ways that the community can also support the University. His third responsibility targets the fact that while he is in charge of Ward 7, the surrounding wards are essential to implementing local policies. “Everything that other wards and the city does impacts us … Everything is interrelated and interconnected,” Katz said. He plans to create and uphold relationships with other ward councilors, some of whom he has good and engaging relationships with. During the interview, Katz also gave some insight into his personal and academic background. Katz retold the story of his decision to come to Brandeis. He had attended a precollege program at the New England
See POLITICS, 5 ☛
See KINDNESS, 5 ☛
University exhibits ‘REDress Project’
■ Indigenous artist Jaime
Black and students in the CAST program curate a “REDress” installation for the Brandeis campus. By HANNAH TAYLOR JUSTICE EDITOR
Red dresses hang from the trees on campus. Empty, they move with the wind like flags that draw attention to the missing and murdered Indigenous women and children who have been lost to violence. The “REDress Project” is an art installation created by artist Jaime Black. Black, who is of mixed Anishinaabe and Finnish descent, creates art that is representative of Indigenous experiences. She describes her art as being “engaged with memory, identity, place and resistance, and grounded in an understanding of the body and the land as sources of cultural and spiritual knowledge,” according to her bio on the Women’s Studies Research Center webpage. Black spoke about her project at an artist lecture on Tuesday, Nov. 9 hosted by WSRC and the Creativity, the Arts and Social Transformation program. The project is currently on exhibit at the University, curated by students in the CAST program in collaboration with Black herself.
Before the lecture, CAST director Prof. Toni Shapiro-Phim introduced Black, describing her creative work as “immediate, urgent, stunning and heart rending, while also contemplative.” She continued, “It’s a call for attention to the horrific and unconscionable violence committed against Indigenous women and girls in North America, and a call to action. It has a profound impact on many students.” Across North America, over a thousand Indigenous women have gone missing over the years and nothing is being done to stop the violence. “Families are crying out and no one is listening,” she said. This social issue is what gave Black the idea for the “REDress Project,” named for the red dresses at the center of the art piece, as well as for the word “redress,” which means to remedy or set right. Not only do the empty red dresses serve as a reminder of the lost women, acknowledging both their “absence and presence,” but they also serve to raise awareness of violence against Indigenous women and allow for a “reclaiming of presence and power,” Black explained. The “REDress Project” works to combat the violence and erasure against Indigenous peoples that dates back to colonialism and continues to persist today, she explained, adding, “We are also speaking out against the violence. We are not
COVID-19 Choir
Taylor Swift
Anita Hill speaks about new book
Alyssa Knudsen '24 reflects on being a member of the Brandeis Chamber Singers over the past year.
Taylor Swift re-releases hits from the past.
By ISABEL ROSETH
By JASON FRANK
See ART, 5 ☛
NEWS 3
Infrastructure and bipartisan polarization By GABRIEL FRANK
By ISABEL ROSETH Photo Courtesy of BRANDEIS DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC
physical cards with affirming sentiments. For students who wished to give a card to someone studying abroad or beyond the Brandeis community, they could fill out an online card and send it via email to any address of their choice. Students were also welcome to create kindness cards and socialize at Cholmondeley's Coffee House in Usen Castle from Monday, Nov. 8 to Wednesday, Nov. 10. The events included free coffee, tea and hot chocolate, as well as craft supplies for cardmaking. To prepare for the Nov. 11 festivities, the Usdan game room offered post-it notes in the days leading up to the main event, on which students could write heartfelt messages to friends while picking up free sweets and snacks. Kindness Day at Brandeis takes inspiration from World Kindness Day, a celebration traditionally observed on Nov. 13. The holiday began in 1998, through the World Kindness Movement, a not-for-profit organization whose mission is “to inspire individuals towards greater
FORUM 11
Women's soccer passed first round of UAA Division lll
FEATURES 8
Photo Courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS
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ARTS AND CULTURE 17
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SPORTS 16