TUFTS SOCCER
Small screen takes the big stage: 2016 Emmys recap see ARTS AND LIVING / PAGE 5
Soccer kicks competition to the curb
Perks for engineers, liberal arts students’ fears: Op-Ed see OP-ED / PAGE 8
SEE SPORTS / BACK PAGE
THE
INDEPENDENT
STUDENT
N E W S PA P E R
OF
TUFTS
UNIVERSITY
E S T. 1 9 8 0
T HE T UFTS DAILY
VOLUME LXXII, NUMBER 9
tuftsdaily.com
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.
Queer Chinese filmmaker Popo Fan discusses work, life by Jei-Jei Tan News Editor
Popo Fan, a queer filmmaker and activist in China, held a film screening and discussion Tuesday, Sept. 20 at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. The event was jointly hosted by Fletcher LGBTQA and the Tufts China Club. Patrick Schena, adjunct assistant professor at The Fletcher School and an associate-in-research at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard University, introduced Fan as “the most prolific queer independent filmmaker from China.” He noted that Fan’s works were important not only from a filmmaking perspective but also with regards to social politics, and added that this screening was an interesting collaboration between the two student organizations. From the start, Fan engaged the audience with humor and jokes. He talked about his background in the Beijing Film Academy, saying that unlike his classmates, he did not come in with any experience in filmmaking or even any dreams about being a filmmaker. Instead, he had chosen the program because he did not want to study mathematics but had no other artistic talents. During his first year, Fan said, he was doubtful if he had made the right choice. However, in his second year, he had a homophobic classmate with whom he shared a television. According to Fan, after the two of them spent time watching films with LGBTQ KEVIN HO / THE TUFTS DAILY
see POPO, page 2
Tufts China Club hosts LGBT speaker Popo Fan in Cabot Auditorium on Sept. 20.
Waka Flocka Flame sells out in 80 minutes by Kathleen Schmidt Executive News Editor
Tickets to see Waka Flocka Flame and DJ Whoo Kid at Fall Fest on Oct. 1 sold out one hour and 20 minutes after going on sale at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 19, according to Concert Board Co-Chair Alex Mitchell. Of the 1,500 available tickets, 900 sold in the first 10 minutes, according to Mitchell, a junior. Concert Board Co-Chair sophomore Gracie Kanigher was pleased with the high demand for tickets. “We were really excited about Waka,” she said. “The concert was getting really positive reception, and it was our goal to sell out, so to have that happen in under two hours was amazing.” Mitchell stressed that tickets to Fall Fest are non-transferable, and that students must present an ID that matches the name on the ticket.
Please recycle this newspaper
Partly Cloudy 83 / 60
/thetuftsdaily
“If you buy a ticket from somebody it’s at your own peril,” Mitchell said. “Of course, we always say that and then we see a bunch of posts go up [that say] ‘looking to buy a ticket’… if you spend a bunch of money on a ticket and don’t get in, it’s not our fault.” Referencing comments from disappointed students without tickets, Mitchell explained that it was impossible to make the show bigger because of budgetary restrictions. “The show is no different [than previous Cage Rages],” he said. “We don’t have the production budget to put on another Spring Fling. If we put on two big shows, than we wouldn’t be able to have one big show. So the show’s no different. It’s always been 1,500 tickets in the Cage in the fall. We spent the same amount of money, if not less than years past.” According to Assistant Director for
For breaking news, our content archive and exclusive content, visit tuftsdaily.com @tuftsdaily
tuftsdaily
tuftsdaily
Campus Life and Programming Ashley Austin, Concert Board worked with a budget of approximately $60,000 to $70,000 to produce this year’s Fall Fest and previous years’ Cage Rages. The cost of the production for Fall Fest is less than half the cost of Spring Fling, Mitchell said. Austin reiterated that creating an event like Spring Fling that would accommodate more students was not possible. “We couldn’t have another outdoor show. That increases the costs by thousands and thousands [of dollars],” she said. According to Austin, rumors have been circulating that the discontinuation of Senior Pub Night as an event was due to its budget being diverted to fund Fall Fest. She stressed that the rumors were false. “Something I saw on Facebook was… ‘I heard money from Senior [Pub] Nights went to Fall Fest’, and I just want peo-
Contact Us P.O. Box 53018, Medford, MA 02155 617 627 3090 FAX 617 627 3910 daily@tuftsdaily.com
ple to know that Tufts Concert [Board’s] budget is completely separate from any other Tufts budget,” Austin said. “So we would never use budget money from the senior class for the junior class, or for the Concert Board or for whatever.” Mitchell noted that 40 to 50 Fall Fest tickets would be raffled off at VoteFest on Friday, Sept. 23 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on the Academic Quad. “So VoteFest, if you didn’t get a ticket, that’s your next step,” he said. Mitchell emphasized that students should make sure to arrive at the venue well before the doors close at 8:30 p.m., explaining that there would be a metal detector that could slow down the line. “If you go at a normal time and not at the rush at 8:30, you’re going to be fine,” he said. “You’ll get right in. There’s no use in being fashionably late this year.”
NEWS............................................1 ARTS & LIVING.......................5 COMICS....................................... 7
OPINION.....................................8 SPORTS............................ BACK
2
THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Wednesday, September 21, 2016
T HE T UFTS D AILY Arin Kerstein Editor-in-Chief
EDITORIAL Sophie Lehrenbaum Jake Taber Managing Editors
Evan Sayles Associate Editor Kathleen Schmidt Executive News Editor Gil Jacobson News Editors Melissa Kain Robert Katz Liam Knox Catherine Perloff Jei-Jei Tan Hannah Uebele Joe Walsh Kyle Blacklock Assistant News Editors Juliana Furgala Jesse Najarro Danny Nelson Miranda Willson Executive Features Editor Constantinos Angelakis Features Editors Nina Joung Becca Leibowitz
Justin Krakoff Executive Arts Editor John Gallagher Arts Editors Merilla Michael Eran Sabaner Isaac Brown Assistant Arts Editors Jocelyn Contreras Alison Epstein Elliot Storey Emma Henderson Executive Op-Ed Editor Shannon Geary Cartoonists Stephen Dennison Allie Merola Miranda Chavez Editorialists Aneurin Canham-Clyne Frances DeFreitas Anita Ramaswamy Noah Weinflash Phillip Goldberg Executive Sports Editor Yuan Jun Chee Sports Editors Alison Kuah Maddie Payne Eddie Samuels Maclyn Senear Max Lalanne Mia Lambert Caroline Ambros Ray Bernoff Maria Eduarda Ferraz Henry Hintermeister Kevin Ho Thaw Htet Leila Li Julia Press Evan Sayles Alexis Serino Angelie Xiong
Executive Photo Editor Photo Administrator Picture Tufts Editor Staff Photographers
PRODUCTION David Westby
Production Director Allie Merola Executive Layout Editors Sebastian Torrente Jewel Castle Layout Editors Leila Li Brianna Mignano Mandip Pokharel Emily Sharp Astrid Weng Petrina Chan Creative Director Allie Merola Executive Graphics Editor Petrina Chan Graphics Editors Juliana Furgata Dana Pek Ashton Stephens Rena Tang Sebastian Torrente Belinda Xian Zach Hertz Executive Copy Editors Jei-Jei Tan Norrie Beach Copy Editors Arthur Beckel Caroline Bollinger Alison Epstein Gil Jacobson Melissa Kain Sharon Kelmar Bibi Lichauco Kathleen Martensen Netai Schwartz Nihaal Shah Arielle Sigel Liora Silkes Dan Strauss Maxwell Bernstein Executive Tech Manager Nitesh Gupta Online Editor Mia Lambert Social Media Editor
BUSINESS Josh Morris Executive Business Director
tuftsdaily.com
Filmmaker explores Chinese LGBTQ families POPO
continued from page 1 themes, this classmate changed his mind and became more tolerant. “This is something I discovered about film: it won’t change your sexual orientation, but it will give you a wider view of the world,” Fan said. Fan then introduced his first documentary film of the evening, “New Beijing, New Marriage” (2009), which he had directed with David Zheng. According to Fan, in 2009, a group of activists organized a campaign to promote same-sex marriage in China, which he recorded. The short film opens with two same-sex couples, one female and one male, preparing for a wedding. In between putting on make-up and posing for photos, the actors, who were volunteers, talk about how they hope to raise awareness about the LGBTQ community in China. They then travel to Qianmen Street, a famous pedestrian street in Beijing, where they hold a public photo shoot. Passersby are initially mostly disbelieving, with some expressing disapproval while others are supportive. A few people talk about homosexuality as foreign influence that goes against Chinese traditions. The activists then give out flowers and try to engage people in conversation, asking if they would support the two actors getting married. Some say they would, but when asked if they would accept their own children if they came out as homosexual, the answers are far less positive. At the end of the film, Fan highlights this discrepancy: many people are neutral or accepting of LGBTQ issues, until it concerns their own children. Thus, he decided to make films that focused on the families of LGBTQ people. The second screening was an excerpt from “Mama Rainbow” (2012). Fan explained that he had originally wanted to feature both fathers and mothers of LGBTQ children in the film, but he could not find fathers who were willing to speak in front of a camera. Thus, “Mama Rainbow” is a
collection of six stories about mothers and their gay and lesbian children. Two of these stories were screened. Each centers on an adult gay man and his mother. The documentary intersperses scenes from daily life – shopping for clothes, cooking meals, riding the train – with conversations between mother and son. Common topics included the boy’s childhood and coming-out process. Both mothers were involved in PFLAG China, an organization which supports LGBTQ individuals and their families, and which connected Fan with many of his sources. According to Fan, progress has been made since “Mama Rainbow.” In fact, he is heading to the DC Chinese Film Festival in Washington, D.C., where he will be showing his new film, “Papa Rainbow” (2016). As a complement to his earlier film, “Papa Rainbow” features the fathers of six LGBTQ individuals. The film screenings were followed by a question and answer session, during which Fan took questions from the audience. Fan mentioned that in “Mama Rainbow,” five of the six mothers had been divorced, one was in an open marriage and one had remarried. However, he had left that information out of the documentary because of the myth that being raised by single parents causes people to become gay. “But then I look back and I have a reflection that this was related, in a way,” Fan said. “Those women were brave enough to get divorced [despite the stigma]...and now they are the people who are accepting their children and support[ing] them.” In response to a question about his own family’s reaction, Fan said that he was lucky he had been collecting stories and doing interviews, as these made it easier to come out to his family. Nevertheless, he initially did not tell them about the political nature of his films. “They grew up in [the] generation of the Cultural Revolution and Tiananmen Square, so they don’t want me to get involved in anything dangerous,” he said. Fan said his parents found out about his work after his father learned to use a comput-
er and they were supportive of him. Fan also discussed the difficulties he faced with authorities and censorship in China. In 2014, he discovered that “Mama Rainbow” had been taken down from all the websites it had been posted on. This made him angry, Fan said, because he was already unable to show his documentary in theaters and now it was being removed from the Internet. However, the controversy led to more people hearing about the film – “so I really appreciate the government,” he joked. Fan talked about the frustrations of repeatedly calling websites to find out why “Mama Rainbow” was taken down, only to be told that he was violating a rule, but that he could not know what that rule was. “Now all the websites know my name,” he said, laughing. On a more serious note, Fan added that Chinese citizens do not have access to good systems to communicate with authorities. Fan talked at length about LGBTQ experiences and activism in China. He mentioned that attitudes varied a lot across different regions, and although there are increasing numbers of LGBTQ characters in mainstream movies, they still portray stereotypes. “I’m a very weird person but I don’t put that into my film, because I want mainstream audiences to see it and I want to have a conversation with them,” he said. Finally, Fan discussed how he funds his filmmaking. According to Fan, he started out by using his own money, and had borrowed money from his boyfriend that he took two years to return. “But I’m very good at saving money and [working] on a budget,” he said. “Mama Rainbow” and “Papa Rainbow” both received funding from international organizations. Fan has also turned to crowdfunding, and he joked that he has a “sugar daddy in Beijing who pays [his] rent.” Fan said that his niece, whose mother – his eldest sister – was against homosexuality, also gave him a small personal donation. “It’s a tiny story, but it’s very beautiful,” he said.
Wednesday, September 21, 2016 | ADVERTISEMENT | THE TUFTS DAILY
tuftsdaily.com
1/4 AD
VOLUNTEER & PAID POSITIONS \
Tufts Community Day is an annual fall event to welcome Medford and Somerville residents to Tufts to learn more about the university and enjoy free food, entertainment and other activities… and we need your help!
VOLUNTEER
1/8 AD FULL AD
Inquire about shift times, or come for the whole day!
Greeters Information Desk Quad Helpers Decorations/Balloons Face Painting
PAID
11am-1pm; 1-3pm
Stage Managers Jumbo Mascot Jumbo Assistant
1/2 AD
Enjoy the amazing line-up of Tufts student group performances! FREE t-shirt, lunch, and a gift card to a local café.
Get your friends, sign up today! Email Marie Schick: marie.schick@tufts.edu.
3
4
THE TUFTS DAILY | ADVERTISEMENT | Wednesday, September 21, 2016
TISCH COLLEGE DISTINGUISHED SPE AKER SERIES 2016
1/4
1/8 FULL AD
Doing Time in Education: The School to Prison Pipeline
Actor, Playwright, and Professor
Anna Deavere Smith TODAY 7:00 p.m. Distler Auditorium | Granoff Music Center Medford/Somerville Campus
1/2
We have received an extraordinary amount of interest in this event. Seating will be on a first-come basis. We strongly reccomend that you arrive early! activecitizen.tufts.edu
Co-sponsored by the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy, the Department of Drama and Dance, the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, the Office of the Chief Diversity Officer, Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences, and generously supported by the Toupin-Bolwell Fund.
tuftsdaily.com
ARTS&LIVING
5 tuftsdaily.com
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
AWARDS SHOW RECAP
What you missed from the 2016 Emmys by Alison Epstein Staff Writer
In the land of Hollywood, where all the women are under 40 and all the men under 5’9”″, movies have always had a more prestigious and glamorous reputation than television. This year’s Emmys, which aired on Sunday, showed that “the rat-faced people of television” (to quote Amy Poehler at the 2013 Golden Globes) could bring it as much as those involved with movies in terms of acting, writing and directing. Television certainly trounced the movie industry this year in terms of diversity, although, looking at the 2016 Oscars, that clearly was not a difficult feat. Host Jimmy Kimmel led this year’s fun, fastpaced — if not terribly surprising — distribution of Emmy statues. Kimmel opened the show with a video of him trying to get to the Emmys, finding himself in a white Bronco during a car chase, a minivan with the Dunphys of “Modern Family” (2009 – present), a carpool with James Corden complete with karaoke, a limo with President Meyer of “Veep” (2012 – present) that was driven by Jeb Bush (who asked Kimmel what it was like to actually be nominated for something) and ending on a dragon with Daenerys Targaryen of “Game of Thrones” (2011 – present). Kimmel then arrived on stage to deliver a solid monologue, commenting on Hollywood’s lack of diversity, wondering whether Marcia Clark is rooting for “O.J. to win this time” and pointing out that television is responsible for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. The best line of the mono-
logue: Kimmel asks Mark Burnett, the person behind “The Apprentice” (2004 – present) who Kimmel specifically blames for Trump’s rise, “Who do you have lined up for the Supreme Court, Miley Cyrus or Cee Lo?” Kimmel had some other memorable moments throughout the show. He had his mom make PB&Js, which were handed out to the audience by the kids of “Stranger Things” (2016 – present). For one of his more controversal bits, he announced Bill Cosby to the stage, only to walk out alone and say he just “wanted to see what [everyone] would do.” But the main purpose of the Emmys is to hand out awards, and the big winners of the night were “Veep” for Outstanding Comedy Series, “The People v. O.J. Simpson: An American Crime Story” (2016) for Outstanding Limited Series and “Game of Thrones” for Outstanding Drama Series. Rami Malek, Tatiana Maslany, Jeffrey Tambor, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Courtney B. Vance and Sarah Paulson all picked up wins in the Outstanding Lead Actor or Actress category. Other notable wins included “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” (2014-present) for Outstanding Variety Series, Kate McKinnon of “Saturday Night Live” (1975 – present) for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and Sterling K. Brown of “The People v. O.J.” for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series. Also, to the outrage of everyone on Twitter, the directors of “Grease: Live” (2016) took home the statue for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special over that of Beyoncé’s
“Lemonade” (2016). There were several moving speeches throughout the night. McKinnon tearfully accepted her award, thanking Ellen Degeneres and Hillary Clinton — both of whom she impersonates on SNL — along with her late father. During Louis-Dreyfus’ speech, she quipped that while “Veep” had begun as political satire, it now appears to be a sobering documentary, then welled up as she dedicated her award to her father, who passed away on the Friday before the Emmys. Jill Soloway and Tambor both spoke powerfully about transgender rights in their acceptance speeches for outstanding directing and acting in “Transparent” (2014 – present), respectively. Soloway called for the end of violence against transgender women, and Tambor urged Hollywood to give more parts to transgender people and let them tell their stories. When Paulson got up to accept her award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series for her role as Marcia Clark in “The People v. O.J.,” she acknowledged Clark herself, whom Paulson brought as her date to the event. She publicly apologized on behalf of everyone who had been “superficial and careless” in their judgment of Clark throughout Simpson’s trial. Despite its lowest ratings ever, this year’s Emmys proved to be a successful night of recognition for the people who create, work on and act in the programs we see on our TV screens — or more realistically, our computer screens — almost every day.
Emily Friedlander and Ana Antolin Runway Roundup
Revving Up for Season 15
F
or the uninitiated, “Project Runway” (2004-present) is “on Lifetime, I guess?” The show is in its 15th season and has stacked up an impressive 50 Emmy nominations despite using phrases like “magically muppety” to describe its designers’ work. Some say the task of quantifying such a layered cinematic masterpiece is too great for just two people, but we — Ana, with her sewing experience, and Emily, with her mother’s hand-medowns — are going to try. To kickstart the season, the new designers gather together in a room where they compare hip tattoos and become acquainted with #DesignerJenni’s abhorrent laugh. None too soon, the new guinea pigs/designers run around with only five minutes to collect as many party items from the room as possible. Host/ German supermodel Heidi Klum and mentor/ our patron saint Tim Gunn then each drink bottles of Moët (hello, product placement) to celebrate new beginnings. The collected goodies, which must become the heart of each designers’ “look,” including treasures like paper lanterns and lots and lots of glitter (which, we hypothesize, will be featured on the workroom floor for the rest of the season). Throughout the chaos of the treasure hunt, we meet Dexter, who originally planned to be a herpetologist; Erin, who ran away from her Mormon upbringing; and Tasha, who designs for girls who don’t like to shave their legs (we like her). In the workroom, with only 10 hours to create a runway-ready look, Brik (yes, that is his name) is in the corner throwing tons of glitter onto ABBA-approved bell-bottoms. Erin is cutting gumballs in half and dissecting yellow wigs and Ian, a fashion school dropout, is putting Polaroids onto what looks like a pillowcase. Ian declares he is not nervous to meet mentor Tim because “part of being an artist is getting ‘crit.'” But when Tim encourages Ian to push himself to be more creative, Ian retorts that his potato sack took a lot of effort and represents his “sleek” aesthetic. The second part of the episode is the runway show. Judges Klum, Creative Director of Marie Claire Nina Garcia, fashion designer Zac Posen and the guest judge, “The Today Show” (1952-present) anchor Savannah Guthrie critique what the designers created. We followed “suit” by bringing in our own guest judge: Ana’s roommate, comp-sci and drama major and resident dad-jeans-fanatic, Ben. While originally telling us “I don’t know what you want,” and “Am I doing ok?,” he eventually got into the Runway swing. Like us, Ben was eventually won over by Brik’s glittery pants and also favored 24-year-old Cornelius’s neon green dress, saying, “It looks like a salad.” The winner of the episode is Erin. She describes her style as “two [parts] crazy, one chill,” which is the ratio of neuroses to calm we live by, but we didn’t love her look. Maybe it’s because we are two insanely pale white girls who don’t look good in yellow. But also, who wants to wear fake hair around their chest and arms? As expected, Ian is kicked out of the competition, but only after Brik is unfairly critiqued and provoked to tears despite his awesome glitter pants. Tim says that the group will miss Ian’s “spunk,” which is generous because he was kind of the worst. Until next week! Emily Friedlander is a senior majoring in international relations. She can be reached at Emily.Friedlander@tufts.edu. Ana Antolin is a junior majoring in international relations. She can be reached at Ana. Antolin@tufts.edu
6
THE TUFTS DAILY | ADVERTISEMENT | Wednesday, September 21, 2016
tuftsdaily.com
ETGAR KERET TALKS ON
THE SEVEN GOOD YEARS 1/4 1/8 FULL AD “The Seven Good Years” is a talk about Etgar Keret’s experience raising a son in Tel Aviv amidst an increasingly turbulent political climate including navigating terrorism and racism on all sides of the conflict
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21
1/2
Granoff Family Hillel Center | Lecture at 8:00 p.m. | Q&A to follow Featuring Speaker and Author
Etgar Keret
with support from:
Center for the Humanities (CHAT) Department of International Literary and Cultural Studies (ILCS) - Charles Smith Endowment Fund International Relations Program Judaic Studies Program
THE
HEBREW PROGRAM
tuf t s hil l el .or g
TUFTS STUDENTS FOR TWO S TAT E S
Films and Media Studies (FMS) Middle Eastern Studies (MESA) English Department of English Office of the Deans of Arts & Sciences
Wednesday, September 21, 2016 | Comics | THE TUFTS DAILY
tuftsdaily.com
Comics
LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Jake: “The government is gone. The government is gone for 15 minutes”
Comics
SUDOKU
WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD? —
Because the GPS told her to. Difficulty Level: Hoping there’s a bad Spring Fling line up while you’re abroad.
Tuesday’s Solution
Find your way over to our new restaurant in Medford Square ...use a GPS as needed. cnrguys.com 617-903-8538
64 Salem St, Medford
CONNECTED Student Value Checking Receive a $ 25* bonus
when you open and use a Student Value Checking account.
NO MONTHLY FEE** • NO MINIMUM BALANCE • NO FEE FOR INCOMING WIRES
Start here to make it happen:
SANTANDERBANK.COM/STUDENT
Student Value Checking is available to students 16 through 25 years of age (legal guardian co-owner required for those between 16-18 years). Once you reach 26, we may convert your Student Value Checking to another checking product. Proof of enrollment may be required. *Get $25 when you open a new Student Value Checking account with a $10 minimum opening deposit between June 15, 2016 and September 30, 2016 and complete 8 debit card transactions that post to your account within 60 days of account opening. Your new account needs to remain open for 90 days in an eligible product type and payment of the bonus will occur within 30 days thereafter. One bonus per customer. Students who currently have a personal checking account or who have had a personal checking account with Santander Bank in the last year are not eligible for this offer. Cannot combine with other personal checking account cash offers. Offer only available to U.S. residents. Santander team members are not eligible. Bonus is considered interest and will be reported to the IRS on Form 1099-INT. **Other fees may apply, including a Paper Statement fee if you elect to receive paper statements. Refer to your fee schedule for details. Santander Bank N.A. is a Member FDIC and a wholly owned subsidiary of Banco Santander, S.A. © 2016 Santander Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Santander, Santander Bank and the Flame Logo are trademarks of Banco Santander, S.A. or its subsidiaries in the United States or other countries. MasterCard is a registered trademark of MasterCard International Incorporated. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
7
8 tuftsdaily.com
Opinion
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
OP-ED
Op-Ed: What happened to Eaton? by Paris Sanders
It was the first day of class and everything was going according to schedule. Picking up books, running into about a hundred people at the Rez and sweating more than I’d like to admit while walking up the hill. I made my usual rounds and headed to my art history class, one I took in part to complete my fine arts requirement and in part because, well, I really enjoy studying art. My class of about forty is located in the basement of Jackson Gym. There is one small, rectangular window illuminating the room. There is a projector and a pull-down screen. There are no whiteboard erasers, and only one marker. There are not enough desks for the students enrolled, so some sit on chairs by the door. I’m confused, but it’s the first day, so I assure myself that most people are just shopping for classes and that we’ll have enough room by next time. After class is finished, I head to my next class, a 100-level political science course. It was originally supposed to be in one of Tisch Library’s auditorium spaces, but was mysteriously moved to another basement classroom just down the hall. Same story: not enough seats, no erasers, one whiteboard pen, no windows. Since we are in Aidekman, rehearsal spaces are audible. I am trying to listen to my professor explain structural theories of revolution while music is blasting in a classroom nearby. Class ends, and pissed-off by this point, I go Eaton to print out the syllabus (I missed a few details due to the music next door). I crack. My once-beloved Eaton is now a “collaborative space for engineers.” Engineering students have free printing in the air-conditioned computer labs in Halligan, but no students have free printing in Tisch, or even in Ginn. Call me ignorant, but from my own experience and from observing friends in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), liberal arts students use printers a lot more often. But, the privileges do not stop there: STEM students have 574 Boston Ave., which is basically Google’s incarnation on campus, and soon will possess an expansive, glass complex behind Anderson. And now, I guess STEM has Eaton too. Although not as liberal arts oriented as some of its sister NESCAC colleges, Tufts has long embraced the humanities — our comparably extensive language and arts requirements are just two examples of this. Of course, in recent years, engineering and computer science have become more popular among incoming students due to increasing external demands for these disciplines and because of admission’s recruitment
of these students. Tufts isn’t exactly covert about its retreat from the liberal arts. Take a look at our website’s front page and see that the two top headlines involve new developments in STEM programs: “A Boost for Engineering Students,” and “Coding for Kids Goes International.” Yet, despite this, a majority of Tufts undergraduates — about 90 percent — are still in the School of Arts and Sciences. Additionally, data taken from the graduating class of 2015 showed that 48 percent of the class earned bachelor’s degrees in the humanities (language, philosophy, social sciences, history and the arts), while only six percent graduated with computer science degrees and nine percent with engineering degrees. So, in many ways, Tufts’ neglect of the humanities is the neglect of the majority of its academic program for the needs of a newly powerful few. Of course, Tufts is hardly the only university pushing away from its roots in the arts or social sciences. Cooper Union in New York City recently diverted a large portion of its funding from its historic visual arts program and rescinded its previous policy of full financial aid, instead establishing a large engineering complex under the guidance of Jamshed Bharucha. Interestingly, prior to working at Cooper Union, Bharucha served on Tufts’ board of trustees. Recently, a Washington Post article by professor Steven Pearlstein criticized parents and institutions discouraging students from pursuing a liberal arts education, stating, “it’s worth remembering that at American universities, the original rationale for majors was not to train students for careers. Rather, the idea was that after a period of broad intellectual exploration, a major was supposed to give students the experience of mastering one subject, in the process developing skills such as discipline, persistence, and how to research, analyze, communicate clearly and think logically. As it happens, those are precisely the skills business executives still say they want from college graduates.” Accordingly, a study for the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that 93 percent of employers agreed that “demonstrated capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than [a job candidate’s] undergraduate major.” I could go on about the error in judgment that institutions and leaders have made when embracing STEM at the expense of other areas of study, but for the sake of time (and maybe my sanity), let’s get back to Tufts. Tufts’ mission statement reads: “We are committed to providing transformative experiences for students and faculty in an inclusive
and collaborative environment where creative scholars generate bold ideas, innovate in the face of complex challenges and distinguish themselves as active citizens of the world.” While of course, the administration could argue that changes to Eaton’s lab facilities as well as the creation of new spaces on campus like 574 Boston Ave. promote collaboration, this is only for one segment of the student population, and is not cross-cutting. Troublingly, as Pearlstein suggests, those who discourage students from pursuing a broader, liberal arts education are doing a deep disservice even in economic terms, reminding us that employers are “seeking employees who are nimble, curious and innovative … The good jobs of the future will go to those who can collaborate widely, think broadly and challenge conventional wisdom — precisely the capacities that a liberal arts education is meant to develop.” With this in mind, Tufts’ choice to distance itself from the humanities limits the extent of “innovation” and “active citizenship” its students and alumni can truly engage in. What “active citizen” is not versed in ethics, in political science, in the psychology of themselves and others? What kind of innovative society is detached from the cultural, anthropological and social history of its ancestors? Innovation is not solely about mechanical improvements to technology; it also necessitates the understanding of a nexus of other topics — art, literature, sociology, history and language to name a few. Neglecting structural needs in the humanities, while donating an outrageous sum of money, attention and prestige to STEM isn’t just “unfair”— it is deeply hypocritical given Tufts’ aims as an institution. The day I will be able to take an upper-level political science class in an air-conditioned building, or a quiet classroom conducive to learning — one with windows or even enough desks and supplies — isn’t here yet. Given the direction the university is heading, I probably shouldn’t hold my breath. Paris Sanders is a junior majoring in philosophy and political science. Paris can be reached at paris.sanders@tufts.edu
CORRECTIONS In a Sept. 19 Features column titled, “On Queer: On Pulse,” the shooter in the Orlando nightclub Pulse shooting incident was listed in the count of victims. However, the columnists intended for the number of victims to be listed as 49, not 50, as was printed. The columnists did not intend to note the shooter as a victim of the shooting or as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. The Daily deeply regrets this error.
The Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free to the Tufts community. The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board. EDITORIALS Editorials represent the position of The Tufts Daily. Individual editors are not necessarily responsible for, or in agreement with, the policies and editorials of The Tufts Daily. OP-EDS The Op-Ed section of The Tufts Daily, an open forum for campus editorial commentary, is printed Monday through Thursday. The Daily welcomes submissions from all members of the Tufts community; the opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Daily itself. Opinion articles on campus, national and international issues should be 600 to 1,200 words in length and submitted to oped@tuftsdaily.com. The editors reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, space and length. All material is subject to editorial discretion and is not guaranteed to appear in the Daily. Authors must submit their telephone numbers and day-of availability for editing questions. ADVERTISING All advertising copy is subject to the approval of the Editor-in-Chief, Executive Board and Executive Business Director.
Daniel Lewis The Echo Chamber
Inside Affordable Care
O
ne of Obama’s defining pieces of legislation, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), is five years in the running and the jury is still out on its success. Many of us see the ACA as a great step forward toward universal healthcare in the United States. It has brought the number of uninsured Americans to the lowest level in history, with 85 percent of those newly insured considered low-income earners. But those outside of our echo chamber see things a bit differently. Currently, the majority of Americans have a negative outlook on the ACA, even though most agree with its premise: healthcare for all. It’s easy to blame this disparity in opinion on unnecessary politicization, but there is a reason why three of the top five health insurance providers in the United States have begun to scale back their participation in the ACA, and it is by no means just political. But what are the problems with the ACA? The ACA has three core tenets: first, the expansion of Medicaid (government subsidized healthcare for lower-income Americans); second, federally-regulated insurance marketplaces; and third, an anti-discrimination policy for those with a history of illness. The expanded Medicaid coverage is a staple of the ACA’s effectiveness, with 31 states continuing the expansion of their Medicaid coverage to adults who earn up to 138 percent of the poverty line. But this aspect has been made optional due to a 2015 Supreme Court ruling. The second facet, the marketplaces, was designed to establish central trading locations for insurers in a given area—like a farmers’ market for health insurers. In 2013, Obama rather optimistically predicted that because of these new exchanges, we would see an increase in competition lowering prices in the process. This has yet to pan out, with most research pointing to a drastic increase in prices and many districts left with only a handful of providers monopolizing exchanges. The third and final facet — restricting insurers’ ability to discriminate based on health history — is great in principle. In practice, it’s much more difficult. Health insurers need healthy people to cover the costs of the old and sickly who require more care. Because of this, it is not in an insurer’s interest to have someone who needs health insurance sign up. The ACA attempted to fix this paradox by restricting insurers’ ability to discriminate based on health history. In college terms, the ACA forced “needblind admissions” for health problems onto participating health insurers. In ACA terms, this is called “risk adjustment,” where insurers within the federally-run exchanges who have more healthy clients partially subsidize those who take on the burden of the old and sick. But with 15 percent fewer young people signing on than the government had hoped, it has been very difficult for the healthy to fully offset the cost of the sickly, and risk adjustment has ended up creating serious headaches for providers and consumers alike. The effectiveness of the ACA can be interpreted as you see it: a sign of hope for the future, or a floundering overreach of the federal government. I just hope that now you can bring a little more discussion to The Echo Chamber. Daniel Lewis is a first-year who has not yet declared his major. He can be reached at Daniel.Lewis@tufts.edu
Wednesday, September 21, 2016 | Opinion | THE TUFTS DAILY
Opinion
CARTOON
BY STEPHEN DENNISON
Download the app
FALL
Career Fair Friday, September 30
11:30 AM - 2:30 PM Gantcher Center
TUFTS CAREER FAIR + Prepare for the Fair Tuesday, September 27, 5:30 pm, Dowling Hall 745 A recruiter from Everquote will discuss how to make the most of the Career Fair with tips & advice
Resume Critique Days
Campus Center Friday, September 23 (12 pm - 3 pm) Dowling Hall Career Center Monday, September 26 (4 pm - 7 pm) Wednesday, September 28 (12 pm - 3 pm) Have your resume reviewed before the fair! Bring print copy of your resume.
Who Should Attend? All class years and all majors.
Sponsored by
Ab Initio Amazon Robotics CB&I Charles River Analytics
Flow Traders Pegasystems Sensata Technologies Tufts Alumni
Meet 180+ organizations to learn about full-time jobs and internships in art, marketing, communications, media, engineering, government, non-profits, law, education, computer science, business, finance, consulting, environmental, social services, health care, and more.
More information go.tufts.edu/careercenter
9
10
THE TUFTS DAILY | ADVERTISEMENT | Wednesday, September 21, 2016
Non-Credit Chinese Classes through the
Confucius Institute at Tufts University
1/4
Beginning Chinese for Young Adults
●10 sessions ●Dates & Time: Tuesdays, 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM September 27–December 6, 2016 (no class Nov. 22) ●Location: Confucius Institute ●Registration & Fee: $200.00
Beginning Chinese for Adults
●10 session ●Dates & Time: Wednesdays, 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM September 28 –December 7, 2016 (no class Nov. 23) ●Location: Confucius Institute ●Registration & Fee: $200.00; Free for Tufts faculty & staff
One‐on‐One Tutoring
1/8 FULL AD ●Date & Time: Register & make appointment at
http://as.tufts.edu/confuciusinstitute/ ●Location: Confucius Institute ●Cost per session: $50; $25 for Tufts faculty & staff
Contact us for more information:
Website: h�p://as.tu�s.edu/confuciusins�tute/
Address: 112 Packard Avenue, Medford, MA 02155 Phone: 617‐627‐8888
E‐mail: CI@tu�s.edu
Classes offered through the Confucius Ins�tute at Tu�s University are non‐credit courses. They cannot be used to fulll any Tu�s course requirements.
The Tufts University Alumni Association cordially invites members of the
Class of 2017 to the
1/2
WELCOME BACK SENIORS RECEPTION Wednesday, September 21, 2016 (TONIGHT!) 5:00-7:00pm President’s Lawn Join President Monaco to kick off your Senior year. Collect your Class of 2017 Senior t-shirt! Hors d’oeuvres will be served. **Please remember to bring your Tufts ID**
tuftsdaily.com
Wednesday, September 21, 2016 | Sports | THE TUFTS DAILY
Sports
Jumbos scoring more in new formation
Bradley Schussel The Coin Toss
WOMEN'S SOCCER
continued from back lead pass from senior forward Jess Capone seven minutes before halftime. Lesley, however, started the second half aggressively and equalized on sophomore forward Samantha Bessey’s penalty conversion. The Lynxes almost scored a go-ahead, but sophomore Jordan Mitchell’s 83rd minute effort was ruled out for being offside. Through two periods of overtime, both sides were unable to capitalize on game-winning chances and the match ended all square. Discussing the last two games, Capone was pleased with the overall offensive effort of the team. “We were pretty proud of the way we played against Lesley, even though we didn’t get the result,” Capone said. “Our team showed our grit especially in overtime. [The game against Bates] was really nice because we got to finish our opportunities. I thought we did a really good job moving the ball around, definitely finishing those chances off, especially with this formation, which is more attacking-style, and it really showed.” Tufts plays its next five games at home starting with Wesleyan today at 4 p.m., and Brandeis on Saturday at 1 p.m. Brandeis in particular will prove to be a formidable opponent for Tufts as the team attempts to avenge last year’s 1-0 loss. The Judges are 8-0, scoring 24 goals along the way and conceding just one. The Jumbos must continue to build on their impressive attacking form to match the Judges on offense. “Wesleyan’s going be an interesting one, because they got us in the last minute of the game last year,” Bowers said. “I think we’re going to come out flying, hopefully, to get some revenge, as well [as] Brandeis. They’ve been having a great season so far, [so] there’s going to be tough competition there too.”
11
Week Three
T
wo weeks of NFL football have come and gone. We have seen everything from national anthem protests to a couple of Patriots wins (sans Brady), and another RGIII injury. Did you expect anything else? Those might have been predictable, but not every outcome is a certainty. There are surprise upsets, breakout performances and unexpected disappointments every week. I’m going to make some bold predictions for the next week. Call me crazy, but here is what is happening in week three, according to the first edition of The Coin Toss.
EVAN SAYLES / THE TUFTS DAILY
Then-junior Jess Capone runs the ball down the field in the homecoming game on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015.
AA Alcoholics Anonymous
MEETINGS on Campus Tuesday & Thursday Campus Center 218 12 pm to 1 pm Tuesday Interfaith Center (58 Winthrop St) 7 pm to 8 pm For more information contact Ian Wong, Health Promotion Ian.wong@tufts.edu 617 627 5495
The Redskins Hold the Giants to 10 Points or Fewer The Redskins (0-2) have had a tough first two games. They took a pounding from the Steelers in week one, losing 38-16, and then fell to the Cowboys 27-23. Their opponents this week are the Giants (2-0), who may not be a dominant team but pose a challenge within the division. The problem for the Redskins has been their defense. Cornerback Josh Norman has not been doing his job and the opposition has lit up the scoreboard. This week that will change. My prediction is that the Redskins, who rank in the bottom five in total defense, will hold the Giants to ten points or fewer. The Giants offense is not the best in the NFL, but it ranks in the top half in the league — 14th — in total offense and it has a talented young receiving corps, including Odell Beckham Jr., for Eli Manning to throw to. It’s up to Josh Norman and the Redskins’ D to shut the Giants down, and I predict that they will. The Vikings Edge Out the Panthers The defending NFC champions, the Carolina Panthers, were impressive last week, decisively beating the 49ers and scoring 46 points in the process. The Minnesota Vikings won as well, but it was close, as they beat Green Bay 17-14. The Panthers are 1-1 while the Vikings are 2-0, but the Panthers still look like one of the best teams in the league. The Vikings have Sam Bradford under center, which makes them a bit of a wild card, but their defense could propel them to an upset despite Adrian Peterson’s torn meniscus. Bradford and Stefon Diggs will have another good week, and the defense will contain Cam Newton enough for the win. They are definitely the underdog against the Panthers, but I am predicting that they take this matchup. Todd Gurley Rushes for 100+ Yards, At Least One TD To the dismay of fantasy owners across the nation, the Todd Gurley that we saw last season was nowhere to be found in the first two weeks. He rushed for 47 yards in his first game and 51 in his second. On his 36 attempts, he has 98 rushing yards, giving him 2.7 yards per carry. To add onto that, he has yet to find the end zone. You heard it first from The Coin Toss — week three is when Gurley turns it around. The Rams will face off against the Buccaneers, and I predict that Gurley will rush for at least 100 yards and will cross the goal line at least once. Bradley Schussel is a sophomore majoring in biomedical engineering. Bradley can be reached at Bradley.Schussel@ tufts.edu.
12 tuftsdaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Women’s soccer remains undefeated through start of sixgame home stand by Yuan Jun Chee Sports Editor
The Jumbos are enjoying a successful start to their 2016 campaign, moving to 3-0-1 overall and 2-0 in the NESCAC for the season after beating division opponent Bates and tying Lesley. Tufts is one of only three remaining undefeated teams in NESCAC play, this year’s record a real improvement over last season’s 2-2 start. Part of the reason for the improved record is that the Jumbos have scored twice as many goals (10) thus far this season as they had at the same stage last year. Five of those goals came on Saturday when the Jumbos recorded a decisive 5-2 victory in their first NESCAC home game of the season against the Bobcats. Despite the comfortable victory, the game’s opening 15 minutes were anything but comfortable. Bates dominated play early, calling sophomore goalkeeper Emily Bowers into action twice. “We were outnumbered in the midfield so it was hard to get going,” senior co-captain Robin Estus said. “But we recognized the formation they were playing and used it to our advantage. ... It took us a minute to figure it out, but once we did, we were very successful.” Coach Martha Whiting’s substitutions ultimately broke the deadlock. The Jumbos took the lead 25 minutes after junior midfielder Chandler Quintin put sophomore forward Alex Aronson on goal with a through pass. Having just come on the field about two minutes earlier, Aronson calmly fired the ball into the back of the net for her first goal of the season. Eight minutes later, sophomore defender Lexie Miller slipped into the eighteen-yard box, catching the Bates defense unawares to double Tufts’ lead. The floodgates opened from there, as junior midfielder Margaret Zahrah broke into the box heading sophomore defender Taylor Koscho’s cross into the net during the 35th minute for a three-
EVAN SAYLES / THE TUFTS DAILY
Then-sophomore Tufts midfielder Chandler Quentin kicks the ball away from a Middlebury player in the homecoming game on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015. goal lead going into halftime. In the second half, the Jumbos continued to press forward. Quintin extended the lead to 4-0 at 51 minutes, but at the 60 minute mark, Bates clawed one back as Bobcats sophomore forward Olivia Amdur poked the ball in from senior defender Hannah Graves’ corner. The Jumbos restored their four-goal lead with a shot from sophomore defender Alessandra Sadler, but sheer grit and neat footwork from Bobcats junior forward Brigid Quinn bought her enough time and space to smash a shot into the top right corner and bring the contest to its final score, 5-2. “Hats off to Tufts. We gave them some great opportunities to finish, and they did,” Bobcats Head Coach Kelsy Ross said. “They
drove well as a unit, they worked to get numbers behind the ball and they finished. At the end of the day, you’ve got to finish opportunities to win, and they did that really well.” This was the first time since a 4-2 victory over Hamilton in 2014 that the Jumbos scored more than three goals in one game. Despite the favorable result, Whiting thought there were a few things that the team could improve on, especially on the defensive side of their game. “I thought the performance was a little inconsistent. Offensively, we really did a great job … Our girls were getting after it…doing everything we asked them to in terms of playing with heart,” Whiting said. “Defensively we did a nice job, I just felt like
we had some mental lapses that created chances for Bates that were pretty dangerous and we weren’t necessarily happy about … We need to be better when players are dribbling at us full speed and keep those players in front of us.” On Wednesday, Tufts battled through double overtime to a tie with Lesley. Tufts was unable to overcome the Lynxes’ high pressing and physical style, as Lesley controlled the pace from early on. The Jumbos eventually recovered their composure and control of the game through one-and-twotouch passes and by matching the Lynxes in physicality. The Jumbos took the lead when Estus broke forward to finish off a see WOMEN'S SOCCER, page 11
WOMEN'S XC
Women’s cross country dominates Bates Invitational for second straight season by Arman Smigielski Contributing Writer
The women’s cross country team kicked off its season with a dominant performance on Saturday, running away with first place at the four-team Bates Invitational. The Jumbos have generally started off strong in recent years, placing first in five of their last six season-opening competitions, including a win at the Bates Invitational to start last season. Tufts cruised to a fairly easy win in the 5,000-meter race, finishing with a team score of 105 to beat out the host, second-place Bates Bobcats, by 65 points. Wellesley was a distant third with 289 points and Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) rounded out the field with 317 points. The place finishes of the top 10 runners from each school were tallied for each school’s total team score.
Although Bates runners claimed the top two spots, 11 Tufts runners finished in the top 20 and under the 20-minute mark to power the team win. Junior Brittany Bowman led the Tufts pack with her third-place finish in 19:03.8, with senior Kelly Fahey (19:06.3) and sophomore Natalie Bettez (19:14.2) right on her heels in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Senior tri-captains Alice Wasserman (19:20.7) and Sam Cox (19:27.0) also turned in top-10 performances, coming in seventh and eighth overall. Their classmate Lindsay Atkeson (19:34.9) took 11th. Sophomore Kelsey Tierney (19:42.2) finished 15th, leading a tight pack that included junior Olivia Nicholson (19:42.5) and first-year Gia Kim (19:45.6), who finished 16th and 17th, respectively. Senior Olivia Dehm (19:55.0) was the tenth and final scoring runner for the Jumbos, coming in 19th, though junior Margot
Rashba (19:56.5) was not far behind. “We are happy about our win at Bates, but we all know that we have a lot of stiff competition ahead,” Wasserman said. “I think we will have a really successful season if we race smart moving forward, keep our communication high and our racing packs tightly knit.” The key to a successful season will be internal development within the team, especially as the Jumbos look to their first-years and sophomores to make big contributions. A promising sign is that the Jumbos’ first-year class had a strong debut showing this weekend. Kim scored points for the team and was the fastest first-year at the meet, while fellow first-year Nicole Kerrigan also finished in the top 25, placing 24th and almost breaking the 20-minute mark with a 20:04.7. The veterans on the team are enthused about their talented rookie runners.
“We have some outstanding new talent and we were all very excited to start the competitive season off well,” Rashba said. Tufts’ next race is this Saturday at the Purple Valley Classic, held at Williams College. The meet will be the Jumbos’ first real test of the season as they compete against a tougher 22-team field that will include some powerhouse Div. III cross country teams and some of the Jumbos’ fierce NESCAC rivals. Tufts will look to upset Williams, last year’s NESCAC and NCAA Div. III champions. The last time Tufts competed at the Purple Valley Classic in 2014, the team finished third out of 24. The Jumbos are hopeful that they can continue their early-season success and produce a strong showing this weekend. “We can’t wait to take on more of the NESCAC schools at Williams next weekend,” said Rashba.