The independent newspaper of Washington University in St. Louis since 1878 THURSDAY, DEC 8, 2022
VOLUME 144, NO. 12
WWW.STUDLIFE.COM
LAB HARASSMENT
AMALA EKPUNOBI
CHARLIE JACOB
WU graduate student drops PhD program after harassment by mentor. (Scene, pg 3)
Opposing views on whether a divisive conservative speaker should come to campus. (Forum, pg 6)
5th year Charlie Jacob comes back for one more season, leading the Bears in scoring. (Sports, pg 8)
Underpass spray-painted with protrans, anti-SU speech
TOP PHOTO: AARON TRAN | STUDENT LIFE BOTTOM PHOTOS: JULIA ROBBINS | STUDENT LIFE
TOP: University maintenance worker power washing “TRANS LIVES” spray paint on the South 40 Underpass. BOTTOM: Photos of the pro-trans lives and anti-SU graffiti near the Underpass.
JAMES ELLINGHAUS AND ANNIE POWELL SENIOR NEWS EDITOR AND CONTRIBUTING WRITER Spray-painted graffiti near the South 40 criticized Student Union (SU) for SU Treasury’s vote to bring in a conservative speaker, who many view as anti-trans, to speak on campus, Dec. 5. Additional trans-affirming graffiti and a wall of flyers recognizing deceased trans people of color were put up around the South 40 underpass. The graffiti included the comments: “All of SU is guilty,” “Speak up against SU,” and “Protect Black trans lives.” The University removed the graffiti by Tuesday afternoon. This demonstration followed Treasury’s approval of over 11 thousand dollars in funds for PragerU influencer Amala Ekpunobi to speak on campus at an event hosted by the WU College Republicans. “I am not aware that anyone has been identified as the individual or individuals responsible for this,” Rob Wild, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, wrote in statement to Student Life, Dec. 6. “If we were to determine that a
student or students were responsible for not following University policy in painting the underpass, there would likely be consequences for those students for not following our underpass guidelines.” Many students were angered by SUs decision to fund Ekpunobi’s visit. In an Instagram post from the WU College Democrats, Ekpunobi was labeled as “transphobic, racist, and misogynistic.” Freshman Oliver Tramel, who identifies as trans, was in support of the anti-SU rhetoric of the demonstration, but had difficulty supporting the way the dissent was carried out. He said that viewing posters of people who were killed or hurt for being trans was difficult for him to see. “That’s a scary thought because that’s me.” However, Tramel added that the spray paint did allow him to feel seen. He said that a better idea would have been to reserve a space on the underpass so that the message would not be taken down by the University. Tramel also stated his support for the graffiti comments that called out the entirety of SU in a negative light.
“The best thing to do to [bring attention to the Ekpunobi controversy] is to say that everyone in Student Union is guilty,” he said. SU members did not respond to questions from Student Life regarding the graffiti and the protests against Ekpunobi. The Solidarity Showcase, an event protesting Ekpunobi’s visit, was held on Saturday, Dec. 3, in Hillman Hall, featuring student speakers and performers from over 20 campus organizations. However, Ekpunobi’s visit was postponed that day, because she told the College Republicans she was sick. “The idea behind the showcase was to essentially gain the support of a wide variety of student groups on campus to show our support for marginalized communities, especially the trans community in light of the transphobic speaker that SU funded,” Sophomore and SU Treasurer Saish Satyal, who performed at the event as a part of the Stand Up Comedy Club and voted against funding the speaker, said. Sophomore Leah Karush, who attended the showcase, was “mortified” that the SU Treasury voted to use student funds to give Ekpunobi
a platform. “I like to think of WashU as an accepting, progressive student body, and seeing that belief be directly contradicted was disappointing,” she said. A sophomore, who chose to remain anonymous, performed slam poetry about their personal experiences with the University guidelines in regards to sexual assault. “I spoke directly from my experience with [the Title IX process] and talked a lot about the dehumanization, and the way that the university, in this case, treats its students more as a part of a business than they do as people,” they said. The slam-poet also expressed how the event created a community in which people of marginalized identities could freely share their experiences. “The intent of the event was to be a separate space for people to go and protest and show how they’re really not okay with [Ekpunobi],” they said. Ekpunobi’s talk has been rescheduled to Friday, Dec. 9 at 7:00 p.m.
WU re-evaluates its aquisition of human remains VIA POOLOS MANAGING SCENE EDITOR Junior Ben Norin was holding a fragment of a human skull in his anatomy lab on Nov 9 when Dr. David Strait, professor of biological anthropology, walked in and told the class that the lab was canceled. “I walked out with a friend, and we just looked at each other like ‘what just happened?’” Norin said. “Like okay, we’ll leave, but this is really strange.” The following Monday, Strait told all 600 of his Anatomy and Human Evolution students that they would not be learning the prescribed material. Instead, he had something very serious to share with them. Norin said that during class, Strait was overcome by emotion and teared up while talking to them. When he recounted the tale to me a few days later, he spoke softly, as if he was reading a bedtime story. But instead of sheep jumping over fences, the story was about the ethical quandary presented by human remains. In the week prior, Strait had made two discoveries. First, was that WashU’s osteology collection, which the anthropology department used to teach with, contained specimens from the Terry collection, a group which consisted of nearly 1800 individuals from Missouri. Second, and much more dire, was that the Terry collection came from people who probably never consented to be collected. Strait said that originally, he was under the impression that the bones the anthropology and anatomy departments used to teach classes with were from WashU Medical School donations, where a patient explicitly asks that their body be donated to research after death. Yet some skeletons — Strait says a maximum of 20 — were part of the Terry collection. “[Even] if I had known, actually I don’t know if it even would have registered as an issue of concern,” Strait said. The alarm bell began to ring when he read an article in Science published on November 2, titled “Medical, scientific racism revealed in century-old plaque in Black man’s teeth.” The article reported that Robert J. Terry, former head of WashU’s anatomy department, amassed his collection by “taking advantage of the lack of legal protections for marginalized people in the 19th and early 20th century.” It went on to explain that in the early 20th century, people whose family members died in state institutions were
SEE BONES, PAGE 3
Vigil and Protest: Dissent against Chinese dictatorship on campus NEWS STAFF This past week, two commemorations took place on campus to memorialize those who lost their lives due to China’s Zero -COVID policy, and to demand greater civil liberties and an end to one party rule in the country. The events were attended by both domestic and international students on, Nov. 29 and Dec. 1. The two demonstrations took place as part of a global protest movement sparked by a fire in the city of Ürümqi, China that killed ten people because of a heavily enforced quarantine policy. Many protesters said that the deaths could have been
prevented if it were not for the Zero– COVID policy. The first event was a vigil that took place under the overpass to the South 40 on Nov. 29. More than 50 students came together in silence to pay respect for those who passed away in the fire. Almost all wore masks to protect their identities, out of fear that the Chinese government might retaliate against dissent. Organizers of the event lit candles, and participants left bundles of flowers in honor of those who passed away. Some put up posters with political demands and slogans similar to the ones being made by protestors in China — an end to unrelenting quarantine, political persecution, and
suppression of freedom of speech. An international student from Beijing described what he has witnessed back home since the start of COVID. This student, and others quoted in the piece, will remain anonymous to protect against potential retaliation from the Chinese government. “These [Zero -COVID] policies have been in place for three years,” the student said. “They have caused so many businesses and people to die, and more people [have committed] suicides because of [these policies] rather than dying from the virus.” He said he was proud to see the protest movement take off following
prolonged periods of hesitation and acquiescence to the status quo in China. A Taiwanese Ph.D. candidate similarly said that she was touched seeing Chinese citizens finally take action, and she expressed hope that China would eventually become democratic. “Even though the politics across the Taiwan Strait has been very antagonistic, it is my wish that China can give up its [Zero COVID] policy and give some normality back to the people,” she said. Other non-Chinese, international students felt a sense of camaraderie at the event. A student from Turkey
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SEE VIGIL, PAGE 2
PHOTO BY STUDENT LIFE
Students hold candle-lit vigil in honor of those who died in the Ürümqi fire.