Vol. 114, Iss. 9 | Wednesday, September 25, 2024
The Flat Hat The Weekly Student Newspaper
of The College of William and Mary
POLITICS
College administration changes rules for protests
Students prepare for November elections College political advocacy groups describe mobilization efforts, hopes
SHANNON RAYMOND AND ABBY FURCY THE FLAT HAT
SJP also felt these guidelines were in direct response to the club’s demonstration efforts last year, particularly the events that led to the group’s probation by Student Accountability and Restorative Practices through spring 2024 on the basis of traffic obstruction. “The updated version states that RSOs and affiliated individuals are ‘prohibited from… blocking pedestrian or vehicular traffic,’ whereas the former version (as of July 2024) provided this prohibition only for ‘unaffiliated speakers.’ This is in response to a small, peaceful demonstration SJP held last November outside an academic building in which the Board of Visitors were meeting, during which a small minority of individuals took their time in utilizing a crosswalk, resulting in BOV members having to wait a few extra minutes to drive out of the parking lot. Admin used this to place our organization on probation for the remainder of the academic year,” they explained. SJP connected the College’s change in policy to similar guideline revisions that administrations announced in other schools, despite some of these policies not necessarily being as relevant to the College’s climate. “W&M admin added an entirely new clause to define and prohibit ‘camping’ on university property in response to student-led Palestinian advocacy groups establishing encampments and Popular Universities on their campuses across the nation in the spring. It is worth noting that we as an organization made the decision to not engage in a similar event at William & Mary; our campus had no encampments or ‘camping,’ but admin proactively instated this policy in an attempt to curb future acts of solidarity of this magnitude,” they wrote. Universities nationwide have recently implemented measures impeding upon students’ rights to demonstrate after the encampments last spring.
Election season is upon the College of William and Mary, and efforts to increase voter engagement among the College and larger Williamsburg community are on the rise. These efforts come from a variety of on-campus organizations, including Young Democrats, the Voter Engagement Committee and College Republicans. Young Democrats, the College’s branch of the Democratic Party, is heavily engaged in this issue. “We are tabling every Tuesday at Sadler, registering students to vote,” Young Democrats Vice President Sam Houghton ’25 said. “We are promoting voter engagement and voter registration, specifically, at every meeting we have. Every event, regardless of what it’s about, we have the necessary forms, and we’re ready to register people.” The organization also has ambitious future plans to continue their advocacy efforts. “We actually were recently reached out to by the Africana Studies Department as well, and we plan to reach out to more departments throughout the university to go into classes and give a lecture on voter registration,” Young Democrats President Brenna Gelormine ’25 said. The College Republicans have a similar mindset when it comes to enthusiastically encouraging students to vote, and they have plans to partner with their Democratic counterpart during tabling efforts. Along with tabling to register students to vote, they are working with the Trump/Vance presidential campaign and intend on going door to door around the area. They put an emphasis on voting responsibly. Aside from the General Election, local elections are of the utmost importance and hold a special weight for the College Republicans. “There’s been this unhealthy trend in American society when we focus more and more and more on just the top of the government. But that’s not really where a lot of the change and the effect of government happens. We want people who, number one, are responsible to their local constituents. It’s a lot harder to hold your president accountable than your congressman or your state senator responsible. So you have a lot more personal influence,” College Republicans Vice President Philip Vayntrub ’27 said. For those who may believe that their singular vote does not matter, Vayntrub counters that argument by explaining that if votes did not matter, politicians wouldn’t funnel millions of dollars into campaign efforts to win the favor of their constituents. “Clearly they care about you and it means you have a lot more effect than you may think. The 2020 election was settled by around 10,000 votes and in three big swing states. So clearly, 10,000 is not a very big number. I mean, you have a lot more agency than you may think in your politics and just as a human being,” he said.
SEE PROTESTS PAGE 3
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GRAPHIC BY MONA GARIMELLA / THE FLAT HAT
PHOTOS BY SEDRA OLABI / THE FLAT HAT
SJP shares reactions, hosts first demonstration of academic year MONA GARIMELLA // FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR
Monday, Aug. 26, the College of William and Mary’s website updated policies related to use of campus facilities and freedom of expression. College administrators did not announce these changes to the student body. Similar to changes implemented at other Virginia schools, the new policies prohibit encampments for student groups. “Camping on university property is prohibited. Camping shall include: (a) the use of any item to create a temporary structure without an appropriate reservation; (b) the outdoor use of heating devices, generators, or the use of portable toilets; (c) sleeping outdoors with or without a tent, making preparations for sleeping outdoors including the laying down of bedding, or sleeping in any structure or vehicle not designed for human occupancy between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m,” the College’s policy states. The College also obligates individuals wearing masks to show an identification document to authorized university personnel. According to its website, “Any individual who is using a university facility or present on university property and is wearing a mask, hood, or other device or garment whereby a substantial portion of the face is hidden or covered so as to conceal the identity of the wearer, must present an identification document when requested by a person lawfully in charge to establish their identity to the satisfaction of such authorized university law enforcement or other university personnel.” Additionally, the College outlined its no-tolerance policy for demonstrations at speaker events. “No individual may disrupt an invited or permitted speaker or hinder the ability of other attendees to see or hear a speaker,” the updated policy statement reads. Thursday, Sept. 19, Senior Vice President for Student Affairs and Public Safety Ginger Ambler and Associate Vice President for Community Values
and Connection Greg Henderson sent a student body-wide email linking proposed changes to the Student Code of Conduct and their rationales for the 2024-25 academic year. Some of these changes are related to demonstrating on campus. “Disruptive Behavior: Engaging in disorderly or disruptive action that interferes with the normal living and work environments of other members of the university community or the University’s activities, including teaching, research, studying, and University-sponsored events and business operations. Disruptive behavior includes acts that interfere with the living/learning environment in the classroom and residence halls spaces,” the document reads. The document also outlines sanctions for participating in such disruptive behaviors, including probation for moderate disruptions and suspension for major disruptions. The College website explains the reasons for these new changes in their website. “The proposed changes add clarity about what constitutes disruptive behavior and offers transparency around the rubric employed by those imposing sanctions for violations,” the website reads. While the College administration announced changes to their definitions of disruptive behavior in their Sept. 19 email, there was no indication or communication of the changes they indicated in their revisions on the website Aug. 26. In a statement given to the Flat Hat, Students for Justice in Palestine’s collective board described their reactions to the guidelines change and lack of communication from administration since. “We actually caught W&M’s silent update to its Use of Campus Facilities policies earlier this semester. Some of the most notable changes are in clear and direct response to the rise of advocacy for and demonstrative means of education of the Palestinian struggle, not just on our campus, but across the country,” they wrote in the statement.
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CAMPUS
Three candidates announce campaigns for Class of 2028 president Carsten Chow, MeSharlia Fountain, Devaughn Henry explain platforms, plans if elected, qualifications EMMA BEELNER, SOPHIA BURGESS AND SHILOH MARKWITH THE FLAT HAT
Thursday, Sept. 26, the College of William and Mary Student Assembly will hold elections for the Class of 2028 president and four Class of 2028 senators. SA will also hold an additional special election to fill a vacant Class of 2025 senate seat. Currently, three candidates are running for Class of 2028 president: Carsten Chow ’28, MeSharlia Fountain ’28 and Devaughn Henry ’28. Carsten Chow believes in responsibility and transparency in a president, something he pledges to uphold if elected. “I believe voters have the right to know what’s going on in Student Assembly, and I want to demystify that process and provide more accessibility for them to understand what exactly is happening. I’d send out Google Forms, polls and questionnaires for students to fill out and make sure I’m being held accountable as president,”
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Chow said. He plans to use his current position as the only freshman President’s Aide to amplify the Class of 2028’s voice. The President’s Aides are a group of students who meet in-person with College President Katherine Rowe once a semester in order to offer additional perspectives and ideas on how to best improve the community. “This role is really important to me because I’m able to have a direct channel with the president in order to bring up your problems, your issues and your ideas to her, in an effort to reflect what the wider student population is thinking,” Chow said. Chow also plans to prioritize mental health as a topic of importance, an area he has deep experience in with his volunteer work answering calls for the 988 Suicide Lifeline. “For three years I took calls, four to five hours a week every week,” Chow said. “It really
Inside Opinions 2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10
Further blow against reproductive justice
Mollie Shiflett '26 writes about the importance of abortion rights in the upcoming election. page 5
helped to show me how much of an issue mental health is, especially one that many students face. I want to increase accessibility for the Wellness Center and make it as easy as possible for them to get the help they need, when they need it.” Chow has worked with two Class of 2028 senate candidates, Mackenna Wyckoff ’28 and Nina Argel ’28, to come up with a shared campaign platform and run as a team. They’ve nicknamed themselves “WAC,” an acronym for their respective last names, and their main platform points have been shortened to another acronym, “CARES.” “C is for ‘community,’ which we want to improve through class events like Super Bowl parties, mixers, balls and other events. A is for ‘advancement,’ specifically career advancement. We’d work with the Cohen Career Center to hold LinkedIn workshops and alumni networking events for all students,” Chow said.
Chow further explained the rest of his platform. “R is for ‘responsibility,’ which is our duty to make sure you’re all informed on what’s going on in SA. E is for ‘empowerment,’ especially for students that might have less resources. This would include mixers for first generation students, minority mixers and other cultural celebrations. S is for ‘sustainability.’ We want to improve recycling and compost signage as well as work with environmental organizations to improve the College’s sustainability as a whole,” Chow said. These ideas deeply resonate with Chow and his running mates, and he believes that freshman students will have the best representation possible if they vote for all three. MeSharlia explained how her experience in high school as student council vice president and as president during her senior year led her to gravitate towards the role. SEE CAMPUS PAGE 4
Inside Variety
Inside Sports
Alma Mater Productions hosts country-themed Homebrew on the Range event on Sunken Garden. page 7
Graduate student goalkeeper ranks No. 2 nationally in saves per game (10.57). page 10
Country Tune Triumph
Maddie George reflects on self-growth entering final year