The University of Maryland’s Independent Student Newspaper
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New Target to bring groceries to Route 1 City will see first store within walking distance in Landmark complex By Joe Atmonavage @Fus_DBK Staff writer Students will be able to buy groceries across from the campus with the opening of a TargetExpress along Route 1 in July, city officials said.
The 14,617-square-foot store will be located underneath Landmark, an off-campus apartment building under construction in the previous location of the Maryland Book Exchange, said Michael Stiefvater, city economic development coordinator. The store is expected to bring more people into downtown College Park and will create more buzz in the area, Stiefvater said. TargetExpress is a new, more flexible format of the Target brand
that caters to g uests in rapidly growing, dense urban areas, according to Target’s guest relations sta ff. It w i l l offer ma ny of the same services as a regular Target, but condensed in a smaller venue. Anticipated sales volume, site constraints and the specific needs of a community factor into bringing an express store to the area, according to guest relations staff. Allie Peck, a sophomore education major, said she will continue to shop
at the Target in Greenbelt because she lives in The Courtyards. But the location of this store would be convenient if she ever needed something while downtown, she said. Stiefvater said the deal was made with Landmark’s developer, CA Ventures, and sees it as another step in the ongoing development of College Park. “As we try to make College Park See target, Page 2
ALEXANDER GRILLO, vice president of Kappa Alpha Psi, speaks at a town hall meeting held in the Nyumburu Cultural Center yesterday. james levin/the diamondback
100 show up for NAACP town hall on racist email By Josh Magness @josh_mag Staff writer
while participating in service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega’s national conference during winter break, is something she hopes to expand beyond her sorority, Greek life and this university. “We can do a couple as a chapter, but we’re hoping as a chapter to run a larger campuswide project,” the sophomore environmental science and policy major said. Sigma Kappa is collecting bags on a small scale at the house, but Kramer said expansion will help move along the project, considering each mat requires about 500 to 700 bags. Kramer has teamed up with this university’s
Tears welled up in sophomore Kayla Tarrant’s eyes as she explained why the email from a member of this university’s chapter of Kappa Sigma affirmed her decision to quit the job she had held for three semesters as a university tour guide. “When I was visiting schools, I had 30 tour guides and none of them were black, so I decided to become one,” the communication major said. “This semester, I decided to not be one because people tell me I’m the reason they want to come to UMD, and I would feel horrible if they were called something on campus, raped or not let into a fraternity.” About 100 students gathered in Nyumburu Cultural Center yesterday for a town hall meeting sponsored by this university’s chapter of the NAACP to discuss an email sent by a former Kappa Sigma fraternity member to six other members in January 2014. The message, which leaked online two weeks ago, used racial slurs, sexist comments and the phrase “f--- consent.” The viral email prompted condemnation from university officials, including Chief Diversity Officer Kumea Shorter-Gooden and university President Wallace Loh, who called for greater dialogue in a Twitter chat and through public statements.
See bags, Page 2
See email, Page 2
DREAM WEAVERS SIGMA KAPPA MEMBERS Leanne Rohrbach, Nicole Gutierrez, Jaaziel Cano, Sam Mutai and Alexandra Kramer (left to right) hold grocery bags, which will be weaved together. stephanie natoli/the diamondback
Sigma Kappa sorority members to weave plastic bags into mats for homeless By Grace Toohey @grace_2e Senior staff writer About four women sit together at the house of this university’s Sigma Kappa chapter each week for at least an hour talking, laughing, oc-
Legislators to decide fate of ride-sharing in Maryland Proposal would create regulation framework By Jon Banister @J_Banister Senior staff writer
ANNAPOLIS — With Uber’s future in this state hanging in the balance, state senators considered a bill yesterday that would create a regulatory framework for ride-sharing companies to operate locally. Uber, a ride-sharing app that allows users to hail a ride with a click of their touch screen, currently does not fit into existing state regulations, and lawmakers and agencies have been debating how to classify the new business model. O n e p rop o s a l b y t h e P u bl i c S e r v i c e C o m m i s s i o n c l a s s ifies U ber as a common carrier,
casionally watching television — and cutting plastic grocery bags into strips. Since the beginning of this semester, the sorority members have been slowly piecing together the plastic strips to create material that they will use to crochet sleeping mats for the homeless population. “One of our service initiatives is Inherit the Earth,” said Alexandra Kramer, the university Sigma Kappa chapter’s vice president of philanthropic services. “It’s a national service initiative to be more environmentally aware and see how we can serve the community. … This project really incorporates that.” This project, which Kramer learned about
meaning the company must follow the existing regulations for taxi and driver-for-hire services. Uber drivers would have to obtain licenses with the state and input their fingerprints into the system, and their vehicles would have to meet regular state inspections. “ W h i le we u nd ers t a nd t h at [Transportation Network Companies] have a business model that relies on self-regulation, we believe the commission’s regulations will provide the best public safety protections while allowing TNCs to operate successfully,” said Kevin Hughes, chairman of the public service commission. Del. Jeff Waldstreicher (D-Montgomery), the sponsor of the House version of the bill, said the commission’s regulations do not recognize the unique innovations of Uber and other ride-sharing companies. “We want to create a level playing field between taxi and ride-sharing but the Public Service Commission recommendations treat them as the same. They’re not the same,” Waldstreicher said. “They both need to be regulated, they both need to be See UBER, Page 3
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‘When a story has a face, it’s always different’ Half the Sky screening, discussion draws 60 By Morgan Eichensehr @MEichensehr Staff writer Freshman Maria-Emilia Newlands said she was shocked by the story depicted in episode three of the documentary A Path Appears, in which a young girl from Kibera, Kenya, had been raped by her grandfather. “To see someone who should be protecting her and caring for her hurt her and take advantage of her like that was just awful and really emotional,” Newlands said. Newla nds, a hea ri ng a nd speech sciences major, was one of about 60 students who attended a screening of a segment on domestic violence from the documentary, based on a book of the same name by Nicholas K ristof and Sheryl WuDunn, which addresses issues facing women around the world, including education, economic
MOLLY CROTHERS, president of this university’s Half the Sky Movement group, facilitates a discussion after the screening of a domestic violence documentary in Hoff Theater yesterday. james levin/the diamondback empowerment and sex trafficking. The Half the Sky Movement group at this university, which promotes women’s empowerment and community outreach, presented the screening yesterday evening in Hoff Theater at Stamp Student Union. Molly Crothers, the president of the Half the Sky Movement group at this university, said the goal of the event was to provide a safe place to learn about and discuss
issues that are usually difficult to dea l w ith, such as domestic violence. “We just want to spread awareness and get people talking,” said Crothers, a sophomore pre-nursing student. “And we want to help show people how they can get involved, because I think that’s the best thing you can do after learning.”
SPORTS
OPINION
MEN’S BASKETBALL SEASON IN REVIEW
STAFF EDITORIAL: FBI relocation
The Terps men’s basketball team hopes to build off of a 28-win season that included its first NCAA tournament berth since 2010 P. 8
See SCREENING, Page 3
The many positive implications of having the FBI nearby P. 4 DIVERSIONS
THE JESSIE J DOMINO EFFECT Students react to Art Attack headliner announcement P. 6