March 1, 2021

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The Chronicle

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Louisville takes down Duke Page 11

The independent news organization at Duke University

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

ONLINE DAILY AT DUKECHRONICLE.COM

ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTEENTH YEAR, ISSUE 23

46 YEARS STRONG The story of Duke’s National Pan-Hellenic Council organizations By Maria Morrison managing Editor

Mona Tong news Editor

Traditionally excluded from Duke’s predominantly white fraternities and sororities, it wasn’t until 11 years after being admitted on campus that Black students could find social outlets in the University’s Greek life scene. Duke’s first class of Black undergraduates—composed of five students—enrolled in September 1963, following the University’s desegregation March 8, 1961. Despite official desegregation, Black students faced innumerable difficulties integrating into the historically white university. Former Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek, who is now associate vice president for student affairs and senior advisor, told The Chronicle that membership and leadership opportunities in Greek organizations were “at best limited” for Black students on campus. Wasiolek, who was an undergraduate student when the first Black Greek organizations were formed on campus, said that the National Panhellenic Conference and the Interfraternity Council were “distinctively white organizations.” Theodore Segal, Trinity ‘77, writes in his book, “Point of Reckoning: The Fight for Racial Justice at Duke University,” that in 1963, 11 fraternities and two sororities on campus had clauses in their national constitutions that barred Black students from joining. Organizations without explicit anti-Black membership policies excluded Black members by requiring pledges to obtain a “hometown” or alumni recommendation to join or requiring the national chapter to approve See NPHC on Page 4

Courtesy of Nurah Koney-Laryea Members of Duke’s NPHC organizations, pictured before the COVID-19 pandemic.

INSIDE NCCU adapts to pandemic........p. 2 Pincho Loco, a Duke staple.......p. 7 A psychedelic rennaisance......p. 14


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NCCU community adapts to life during pandemic By Parker Harris

testing frequency.” Long-Witter said the university offers a mix of in-person, online and hybrid options. Despite the uncertainty of this academic About 16% of the courses are in-person year, students, faculty and staff at North currently, she said. Carolina Central University have worked Most of the university’s facilities are to create the safest in-person learning open, including the dining hall, library and environment possible. Starbucks. Students are required to follow Similar to Duke’s, policies at NCCU, a the “3 W’s” of wearing a mask, watching their historically Black university in Durham, distance and washing hands. include a large NCCU also reduction in the tests students number of in- Like Duke, North Carolina Central regularly, including person classes commuter students, University has implemented and restrictions Long-Witter said. masking and social distancing on capacity at all All testing and campus facilities. tracing requirements, as well as contact contact Students are is conducted tracing and mandatory testing, to on campus in also tested for curb the spread of COVID-19 on partnership with COVID-19 twice upon arrival to Apex Solutions campus. campus and on and the Durham a rolling basis County Health throughout the Department. semester. Temperature checks are conducted “I think that’s really helped us keep our numbers low, being able to identify at entrances of various buildings. As a result of masking and social and quarantine and isolate people here distancing protocols, NCCU’s positive case on campus where we can manage that,” counts are relatively low, with 102 positive Long-Witter said. “We’ve seen much better cases since Jan. 1 and 152 from July 1 to Dec. compliance from the students than what I would have thought. They have come back, 1 of last year. In the fall, NCCU was able to stay they do want to be here.” around a 2% positivity rate for students, For those who don’t follow the rules, NCCU and not a whole lot has changed since has a zero-tolerance policy, she said. then, said Kristin Long-Witter, director of “Like everyone, we’re all tired, we’re all environmental health and safety. “If we’ve fatigued, we all want to go back to normal,” done anything different, we’ve increased our Long-Witter said. “I think we really see that Staff Reporter

Courtesy of North Carolina Central University NCCU has adopted pandemic safety measures including masking, social distancing, contact tracing and mandatory testing. The campus has seen relatively few positive tests.

with our students as well,” as usually “college should be this fantastic experience.” The administration is still evaluating the summer and fall, keeping in mind a balance between going back to normal operations and staying safe. Maurice Thompson, an NCCU senior and resident assistant, said one of his main tasks is enforcing social distancing. “You can only control so much,” Thompson said. He works hard to encourage students to follow social distancing guidelines and keep them

accountable, but at the end of the day, he said he thinks it is up to each individual to make the right choice. NCCU’s residence halls prohibit visitors and guests, with the rule of thumb “if they don’t stay with you, they can’t be in there with you,” Thompson said. “People are sneaky,” Thompson acknowledged. “They’re gonna try to have parties and be college students.” He said he knows that “everyone wants to See NCCU on Page 16

Professor discusses melancholy and hope in Black literature By Anisha Reddy Staff Reporter

Joseph Winters, Alexander F. Hehmeyer associate professor of religious studies and African and African American studies, is the author of “Hope Draped in Black: Race, Melancholy, and the Agony of Progress”. In the book, Winters explores the Black literary and aesthetic tradition of exploring loss and anguish to challenge beliefs of America’s sustained racial progress. The Chronicle spoke to Winters about problematic conceptions of American history, the value of remembrance and how prominent Black writers grappled with these themes in their writing. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Courtesy of Duke Faculty Advancement Professor Joseph Winters is the author of “Hope Draped in Black: Race, Melancholy and the Agony of Progress.”

The Chronicle: Tell us a little bit about your work. How did you come up with the idea for this book, and why did you feel like this idea of Black melancholy was important to document and explore? Joseph Winters: My work is in looking at Black religious thought in conversation with critical theory. So I approach Black religion through literature, philosophy and African American studies. Generally, I got interested in ideas of melancholy and mourning, not only in the sense of remembering loss but also a melancholy of the disposition. So I was reading a lot of authors that people thought of as not optimistic, and I said, “No, I actually think that these authors are not necessarily leading us to despair, but are actually leading us to be more attentive to the suffering and violence of our social world.” I saw these themes in works of philosophers like Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin and authors like W.E.B. Du Bois, Toni Morrison, James Baldwin and Ralph Ellison. I was also looking at the world around 2008-2009, when eformer] President Barack Obama was ascending and I was hearing language about American Exceptionalism and being post-racial. So I was trying to think about if we can imagine a kind of hope that’s not optimism, a hope infused with melancholy, which would allow us to mourn and be attentive to suffering. TC: In the book, you decry the narrative that our history is a mostly linear forward path towards progress. Can you speak to why this narrative is historically inaccurate, and give us some examples of how our history cycles back around to the same themes of racial backlash and retrenchment? JW: We can see that there are certain conditions that reproduce themselves over time—certain conditions that don’t change much. We can acknowledge the fact that certain things have changed—the fact that I’m teaching here proves that. But we also know that there are structural conditions, whether they are modes of exploitation associated with capitalism, anti-Black racism or sexism, that have been inveterate, sedimented conditions. There’s something about the linear notion of progress that allows us to see certain achievements as somehow resolving and eliminating those structural conditions.

Empirically, we can take a look at state violence against Black people or U.S. militarism and see that certain things intensify and perpetuate over time. Events like [the Capitol insurrection on] Jan. 6 show the persistence of the idea that something is being taken away from white Americans and needs to be taken back. You hear Frederick Douglass talking about this idea with some of the white workers in See LITERATURE on Page 16

DSG defeats Chronicle in online challenges By Staff Reports Members of the Duke Student Government bested Chronicle staffers Feb. 19 in a series of online trials. The trials ranged from performing well in the locationguessing game “Geoguessr” to creating the funniest Duke-specific meme. Because of a bet between the two organizations, The Chronicle was obliged to include a story about its defeat in the print newspaper. Adding insult to injury for the student newspaper, DSG President Tommy Hessel defeated Chronicle Editor-in-Chief Matthew Griffin in a one-on-one challenge in the popular video game “Minecraft.” Hessel was the first to find a diamond, one of the rarest and most valuable items in the game. “It was super exciting to bring our DSG vs. Chronicle rivalry online this year,” wrote Hessel, a senior, in a message to The Chronicle. “We were able to have a fun competition and build friendship across campus (and showcase how DSG is better lol.)” “We lost fair and square, and we’ll be back next year,” said Griffin, a junior. “The Chronicle forever.” Student groups interested in holding their own competitions can find a list of the challenges at chron.it/onlinegame. “The format was also new/fun and I encourage groups across campus to try it out!” Hessel wrote.


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MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021 | 3

Photos: Black history in Duke’s campus and architecture

Aaron Zhao | Features Photography Editor The Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture was established in 1983. The center strives to “promote racial understanding, build community, and foster an appreciation for and increase knowledge of Black people, Black history, Black culture, and the vast contributions of people of the African Diaspora,” according to its website.

Aaron Zhao | Features Photography Editor The entrance to the Mary Lou Center for Black Culture. The center hosts events to support the Black community.

Aaron Zhao | Features Photography Editor Abele Quad is named for Julian Abele, a prominent African-American architect who designed the original buildings on West Campus.

Aaron Zhao | Features Photography Editor The Reuben-Cooke Building West Campus, is named after Wilhelmina Reuben-Cooke. She was one of the first five African American undergraduates to attend Duke.

BEST.

Comments sought for regular review of Duke University Chapel Dean The Rev. Dr. Luke A. Powery

A university committee is seeking comments as part of a regular performance review of Dean of Duke Chapel The Rev. Dr. Luke A. Powery. Reviews of senior administrators are typically conducted in the fourth year of a five-year term, and the results compiled in a confidential report. This will be the second such review for Powery, who has served in his current post since 2012.

BURRITO.

Members of the review committee are: • Norman Wirzba (Chair), Gilbert T. Rowe Distinguished Professor of Christian Theology; Senior Fellow at the Kenan Institute for Ethics • Li-Chen Chin, Assistant Vice President for Intercultural Programs • Craig DeAlmeida, President, The Congregation at Duke Chapel • Luciana Fellin, Professor of the Practice of Romance Studies • David Emmanuel Goatley, Research Professor of Theology and Black Church Studies; Director of Office of Black Church Studies; Associate Dean for Vocational Formation and Christian Witness • Leela Prasad, Professor of Religious Studies • Stelfanie Williams, Vice President for Durham and Community Affairs

EVER.

An important part of the review process is the gathering of input from the University’s many constituencies. Comments on performance and suggestions for the future are important to the committee’s work. The committee invites you to share your thoughts by email. Communication should include the nature of your interactions with Dean Powery and his team in order to understand the context of your comments as fully as possible.

OPEN LATE

Your thoughts should be sent to admin-review@duke.edu and will be subsequently communicated to the committee. Information provided to the committee will be held in confidence but may be reported without attribution as part of the committee’s report that will be submitted to President Price.

Favorite menu items chicken burrito $6.86 Veggie Quesadilla $3.50 Steak Nachos $7.52 Chips and Salsa $2.79

Please send comments by March 24, 2021 to admin-review@duke.edu.

Aaron Zhao | Features Photography Editor A display board with 150 influential Black Duke alumni can be found on the first floor of the Flowers building.

1920 1/2 Perry St. @ Ninth Street Just a block from East Campus


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NPHC FROM PAGE 1 each member, he wrote. In 1966, Duke President Douglas Knight ordered all fraternities and sororities to eliminate racial and religious restrictions to membership and to sign a nondiscrimination pledge. Knight’s mandate followed the federal government’s 1965 declaration that fraternities and sororities could not “discriminate on racial grounds.” Despite this policy, Greek Life initially remained predominantly white and change came slowly, according to Wasiolek.

Black Greek organizations form on campus

Eight years after Knight’s order, the first historically Black fraternity was chartered on Duke’s campus in 1974. The next year, the first two historically Black sororities were chartered at Duke. Maureen Cullins, director of the Multicultural Resource Center at the School of Medicine and one of the founding members of the Iota Mu chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Duke’s second chartered Black sorority, told an undergraduate researcher there was a need for more Black leadership opportunities and organizations that met the needs of the Black women on campus. Wasiolek noted that until the National Pan-Hellenic Council was formed on campus in 1995, all Greek organizations, regardless of whether they were historically white or Black, were members of the NPC and IFC. This arrangement, she said, was “not as productive” and “not as supportive” as it could have been for Black Greek organizations. “It was an awkward, and I would say, significantly non-beneficial affiliation for Black Greek organizations in the IFC and NPC, because number one, it didn’t align to how they were structured and how their membership was structured nationally, nor did the rules, regulations and the traditions of the IFC and NPC groups really apply to the NPHC groups,” Wasiolek said. Most notably, Wasiolek added, Black Greek organizations were considered “associate members” of the NPC and IFC and thus didn’t have full voting privileges. Wasiolek, who joined Duke Student Affairs staff nearly 40 years ago, said that at the time, without the NPHC as an umbrella organization, the best way that she and the administration knew to support the Black Greek organizations was to “meet with them, to be there for them, to try to get to know them, answer questions and support them through any challenges that they might have.” The National Pan-Hellenic Council, the national coordinating body of the nine

Lydia Sellers | Associate Photography Editor Members of the Nu Omicron chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., pictured before the COVID-19 pandemic.

historically Black sororities and fraternities, was formed on Duke’s campus in spring 1995. Its formation allowed Black Greek organizations at Duke to benefit from national guidance and develop further credibility on campus. Duke’s NPHC chapters were founded between April 1974 and October 1993. Their national chapters were founded in the early 1900s, several at Howard University, a historically Black university. “Black people as a whole didn’t really have access to higher education in general and especially not upper echelon things like Greek life, so the people who founded these organizations and continue to be in them are much more focused on redistributing that privilege, that knowledge, that information, wealth, resources, facts, to communities who don’t have it,” said senior Gia Cummings, a member of the Iota Mu chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, Inc. Wasiolek added that when she was part of Student Affairs in the 1980s, 1990s and even into the 2000s, there were “quite a few challenges that presented to the Black Greek organizations.” One of those challenges, she said, was that the groups have always been relatively small. As a result, whenever groups hosted social functions, fundraisers, step shows or strolls, it was important for them to invite chapters from neighboring universities, which was “not something we encouraged groups to do,” due to

potential security issues, Wasiolek said. Although the regulation was applied to all student organizations on campus, Wasiolek said that it “had a different impact on the Black Greek organizations than it did on the predominantly white ones.” “There was a lot of work over the years in trying to figure out how to support the Black Greek organizations so that they could have successful, fun and safe events while at the same time, inviting folks who were not necessarily members of the Duke community who may not understand all of the expectations of being on the campus,” she said.

Kappa Omicron chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., said that his involvement in the chapter has been eye-opening for him. “NPHC is at the forefront of initiatives to change the perception of people against the Black community and to build excellence and support people who are struggling. It does so much for our community,” Akinyelu said. Junior Debora Cordero Martinez, public relations chair of the Nu Omicron chapter of the Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. said that culturally, NPHC organizations are “very, very important to the Black community.” “There’s just so much history behind it. It goes deep, so that’s why you will see a lot of Duke’s NPHC today love, people showing up for it and a lot of pride. The NPHC is currently in a transition period, Membership for our organizations is lifelong,” said NPHC President Nurah Koney-Laryea, a she said. senior and member of Duke’s Lambda Omega chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She Building a community, giving back and others recognized that this year was a time to All of the D9 organizations have similar core “fix and mend the community” by looking at past principles of scholarship, service, brotherhood or issues and working to fix them. sisterhood, said Cordero Martinez. However, each “This year with NPHC there has been a organization has unique initiatives, particularly lot of internal discussion about ways we can when it comes to community service. bring together the Black community at Duke,” Zeta Phi Beta, for example, runs the AdoptKoney-Laryea said. A-School initiative, where members supply So far, these changes have included more resources or volunteer hours to support students inclusivity training and increasing awareness about and faculty at local schools. Even with the the Black LGBTQIA+ community that exists at restrictions imposed by COVID-19, Cordero Duke. “There is more programming focused on Martinez said that her chapter is still finding ways uplifting LGBT voices,” Koney-Laryea said. “Being to give back to the Durham community. part of the queer and trans community is not Cordero Martinez specifically appreciates her separate from being a Black person.” chapter’s dedication to activism, being present Now, all NPHC members must attend at and “showing up” for causes that members care least one training from the Center for Sexual about. This summer, the chapter did a fundraiser and Gender Diversity, and each meeting for the GoFundMes for Ahmaud Arbery and of the NPHC general body includes direct Breonna Taylor, she said. questioning of chapters about how they are She also noted that her chapter doesn’t shy making an effort to be more inclusive. away from discussing difficult issues. NPHC has roughly 50 members at Duke, “Even just making safe spaces, or hosting Koney-Laryea said, and nine different chapters events to talk about important subjects. We nationally. Those chapters are commonly usually do a sex, love, dating event, which is referred to as the “Divine Nine,” or D9. Eight talking about some of the more taboo topics,” chapters are chartered at the University. Cordero Martinez said. “We’re not scared to After assuming the NPHC presidency in April, talk about issues. We’re present, we’re there. I Koney-Laryea had to adapt the organization to just love our chapter for that.” virtual activities. She said that through activities Cordero Martinez, an only child, said that like a virtual scavenger hunt earlier in the the bonds she has formed with her chapter semester, the group has been making the most of have been deep and sisterly. “Those are my Zoom by organizing meaningful interaction that sisters. And with the members of our brother builds community. fraternity, [Phi Beta Sigma], those are my After this summer’s nationwide racial brothers,” she said. reckoning, NPHC chapters had a meeting Akinyelu echoed Cordero Martinez’s to discuss racism on Duke’s campus and thoughts. As the oldest of three children, Akinyelu how everyone could work to improve the never had a big brother figure or mentor to help community, Koney-Laryea said. guide him through life’s challenges. “It’s draining to talk about all the time,” “That’s what Alpha was for me,” he said. “A Koney-Laryea said. “Race has always played a group of guys focused on making you the most Courtesy of John Modarres component in how we carry out our events, successful you can be. It’s iron sharpening iron.” how we do our community service.” Members of the Alpha Alpha Chi chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, pictured before the COSenior Tobi Akinyelu, a member of the See NPHC on Page 5 VID-19 pandemic.


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fraternities or sororities the social aspect is the first thing that comes to mind,” said senior Miles FROM PAGE 4 Underwood, a member of the Iota Xi Chapter As a first-generation college student, of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.. “When Akinyelu didn’t know what to expect when NPHC was born and the first organizations he arrived on Duke’s campus. In Alpha Phi were brought into existence, it was with the Alpha, he found a group of young men focused purpose of serving communities.” on helping each other succeed and positively impacting society. Setting Black students up for success “I wouldn’t be where I am today without this Senior Tyler Johnson, social action co-chair brotherhood,” Akinyelu said. “Alpha embodies of the Lambda Omega chapter of the Delta excellence in a very crucial way.” Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., said she has always As an example of his organization’s been drawn to the sorority’s core values and commitment to bettering society, Akinyelu dedication to providing opportunities for its noted that Alpha Phi Alpha established the Go- members to build connections that will be to-High-School, Go-to-College program. The beneficial throughout their lives. organization is focused on encouraging high “I knew coming into Duke that I was interested school and middle school students to complete in becoming a Delta,” Johnson said. “It was their high school educations and attend college. hearing people talk about signature events that “It’s an organization that teaches you how to we’ve had … just seeing the love that individuals pay it forward,” Akinyelu said. have for the chapter itself—it really is a life-lasting Gia Cummings has been a member of bond—seeing how alumnae would come back the Iota Mu chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, and how they always had somewhere to go when Inc. since her sophomore spring. She said they were on Duke’s campus.” that through the organization, she has found One of these signature events is the Black opportunities for meaningful community faculty mixer, in which undergraduates bond with service and personal growth. faculty, graduate students and administrators of “It’s been really transformative in helping me color at Duke to build connections, seek advice find my place at Duke. Before I came to college I and find mentorship. The goal is to set Black think I was a lot more uncomfortable with being students up for success. a Black woman and owning that proudly and I “Since we are in a minority at Duke, it can think being a member of [Iota Mu] has helped be tough when you go in classrooms, and you me embrace that and proudly be bold about my never see someone that looks like you. And that identity and my opinions, and restructure my life is often the case for us,” Johnson said. in a way that is not trying to hide my identity but Johnson added that doing service initiatives celebrate it,” Cummings said. with her chapter has also given her a chance As this year’s community service chair, to broaden her interaction with the Durham Cummings said that she has worked to find community. This year, they have transferred all ways to engage in meaningful service without programming online, holding the Black faculty sacrificing health or safety. Iota Mu’s service is mixer and a breast cancer awareness event particularly focused on women and girls in the online last semester, for example. Black community, she said. Junior John Modarres, president of the Alpha Community service is a central theme for all Alpha Chi chapter of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, NPHC chapters. Inc., said that when he first joined, there were “Traditionally when people think about only five members in the chapter but he was

find housing at The Chronicle’s online guide to living near Duke.

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021 | 5

ON DUKECHRONICLE.COM Duke cost of attendance to increase 3.5% for next academic year BY MATTHEW GRIFFIN | 02/28/2021 The Board of Trustees approved a 3.5% increase to Duke’s undergraduate cost of attendance and a 3.9% increase in tuition in its quarterly meeting, which concluded Saturday.

DSG Senate calls on DUPD to limit cases where it deploys officers, supporting BCAP activism BY MILLA SURJADI | 02/25/2021 The Senate passed a resolution seconding BCAP’s demand that the Duke University Police Department issue a written commitment to “not deploy police officers when responding to mental health crises, noise complaints or student disputes.” impressed by how “just five people could make such a big impact. They’re always doing service, they’re always having events.” He recalled that the first event he attended was AAExcellence, where alumni from the Alpha Alpha Chi chapter came to campus from all across the country to talk about their careers and life paths. He said that he was struck by how strongly the chapter’s members and alumni embodied the organization’s guiding principles of success and excellence. Moddares said that he also was impressed by the dedication of alumni to the chapter. “Some of them weren’t even staying in the area, and they flew from wherever they’re living just to give this talk.” AAExcellence is part of Bigger and Better Business, a national campaign by Phi Beta Sigma that aims to promote success in Black business and good business practice in personal life. Underwood said that being part of the Iota Xi chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi since his first year at Duke has been instrumental to his college experience. “I’ve been a Kappa longer than I haven’t been a Kappa,” he said. The Iota Xi chapter is now celebrating

its 42nd year on campus. While fairly small, the organization is committed to its mission of “achievement in every field of human endeavor,” Underwood said. “Having access to such an immense and successful alumni network along with having access to men you can call your brothers who are always going to be there to push you,” Underwood said. Underwood, a public policy major going into private equity after graduation, credits his fraternity with helping him to figure out his career path and secure many of the opportunities he has found throughout college. “We’ve been given this opportunity to go to an institution like Duke, and that in itself is a very powerful opportunity,” Underwood said.“If you’re going into finance, how are you going to create a new economic base for Black communities? If you’re going into tech, how are you going to teach little Black kids how to code? Regardless of what career you go into, always remember you didn’t get there on your own. Always reach back to the community and support them.” For additional information on the founding and values of each Duke NPHC chapter, check out the online version of this story at chron.it/NPHC.

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march 1, 2021

recess

sweet spot

Pincho Loco’s ice cream is a favorite among Duke students, page 7

gasoline HAIM and Taylor Swift collaborate on remix, page 8

save the date What the marriage pact says about our dating culture, page 9


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recess Who was your marriage pact match?

Sarah Derris .................. my cat

Stephen Atkinson ..my records

Sydny Long ............ cheer bear

Skyler Graham .......... feminism

Kerry Rork ...... my dorm ghost

Jonathan Pertile ....taylor swift

Tessa Delgo ........jalen johnson

Eva Hong ............ vincent price

on the cover:

“Front Porch (Lightning Bugs and Visible Time)” by Felix Arnold

staff note I have listened to western classical music as far as I can remember. My mother loves to recount the story of how I always fell asleep to Debussy’s “Clair de Lune” when I was a baby. I have played guitar for 16 years and cello for 9, performing in orchestras and taking theory classes. Hell, I’m even a music minor at Duke. Yet, why am I so hesitant to express my unwavering appreciation for the genre? Is it the antiquated and “stuffy”

connotations? Or is there something deeper still that leaves me doubtful? Look at a list of the most well-known classical music composers. Other than the fact that you probably only know a half dozen or so, what do you notice? First, they’re dead. Second, they’re white. Finally, they’re men. Almost the entire canon of pieces performed by symphony orchestras and opera houses was written by male-identifying people from Europe and America.

Of course, the issue of underrepresented minority groups is not only applicable to classical music, as one need only look at pictures of White House interns or your high school English class’s syllabus to see deeply-rooted inequities in representation. But I find classical music’s inequities particularly jarring. It is hard to write a symphony in the style of 18th-century Europeans. Doing so requires years of harmonic training, theory instruction and instrumental and compositional practice. Access to this training and instruction has, of course, been severely limited throughout the last several centuries in Europe. When Fanny Mendelssohn, the older of the canonized and famous 19th-century composer Felix Mendelssohn, demonstrated that she was a child prodigy and had perfect pitch, she was not encouraged to publicly compose. She secretly composed smaller pieces, some of which were published by Felix after her death, but it was not until the late 20th century that most of her 467 compositions were revealed. Yet, I did not learn about her music until taking a course with one of the leading experts in Felix (and therefore Fanny) Mendelssohn’s work last fall. The Mendelssohns were also a rich family of German bankers. They had the resources to educate their children in western classical music. Access to music education continues to stratify and promote the classist tendencies of what music is performed. In a 2017 study by the Education Committee of the States, it was found that 4th graders who qualify for free and reduced lunch are “significantly less likely than their wealthier peers” to play an instrument outside of school. In my own upbringing, I saw the funding for our music classes decrease. Clearly, there is a lot wrong with Western classical music. The figures it represents are almost always European or American men of means. While it is difficult to retroactively apply conventional standards to historical figures,

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021 | 7

when diving into who some of those composers were, it is difficult to justify some of their actions. Wagner, of course, is the prime example of a problematic figure, with his anti-semitic and dangerously nationalistic writings. Today, access is predominantly limited to wealthier people, which correlates with the deep racial inequities across the U.S. and beyond. Yet, I do not think Western classical music is “bad” or “reprehensible.” Not at its core. For me, music has always been an escape. An escape from stress, from mumble rap, you name it. At Duke, I played in the symphony orchestra before the pandemic moved it to a virtual space. In an orchestral setting, there are opportunities for personal expression, teamwork, education and genuine fun. I enjoy nailing a difficult passage in a Brahms symphony, but I miss playing music with my friends. There is an immediacy to the way that musicians can communicate that I have never experienced outside of rehearsals or jam sessions. As I have become more aware of the systemic inequities woven in the fabric that is Western classical music, I have struggled to reconcile my own enjoyment and positive experiences from the larger issues at play. I certainly do not have a solution for establishing female, LGBTQ+ and BIPOC composers into the “canon.” I do not know how best to expand the benefits of music education, including Western classical and jazz, to more people. What I do know, however, is that I miss playing music for people. I miss live concerts, the ridiculous tuxedos — all of it. Western classical music has ingrained issues, and all we musicians can do is work to promote and advocate for reparations and improvements. I hope more people have the opportunity to fall in love with this art form that has given me so much. All I can do is hope. —Ben Smith, staff writer

local arts

Pincho Loco ice cream is a Durham staple for Duke first-years By Meredith Cohen Staff Writer

Downtown Durham has been on the radar as a major foodie town for a few years now. As a Durham Native, it seems that there are always new, delicious Italian restaurants to try, burger spots for more casual fare and authentic tapas places to sample cropping up on every corner. After dining out, it is common to crave a sweet treat. The Parlour is one of Durham’s most popular ice cream shops, and I can attest that their ice cream is in fact yummy. However, I’ve found that sticking to what I know has caused me to miss out on other wonderful experiences in Durham. After trying Pincho Loco ice cream for the first time during my first semester at Duke, it immediately became one of my favorites. I don’t think this experience is unique; Pincho Loco has become a staple for many first-years who love going across the street from East Campus for a quick scoop of ice cream, an ice cream cupcake or even a popsicle study break. Martha Morales, owner of Pincho Loco expressed that the shop reciprocates the love the shop receives from Duke students. Pincho Loco also has especially strong ties to the Class of 2024, as their daughter is a first-year at Duke. “We have a daughter at Duke who is a freshman. Lots of students come here who know her.” Even before their daughter became a Duke student, Pincho Loco has always tried to help Duke students in whatever ways they can. Morales mentioned that one of the shop’s main goals is to help out the community beyond serving yummy frozen treats. “We offer everybody a lot of help; it doesn’t

have to be business related… The first year is the roughest for everybody. [People] let us know if they need anything.” On a larger community scale beyond the first-year student body, Morales said “We try to bring the community together; we just try to help people.” Not only can you depend on Pincho Loco if you’ve forgotten your laptop charger at home or you find yourself suddenly out of school supplies, you can also count on them for delicious flavors of ice cream, cakes and popsicles that you might have never experienced before. Pincho Loco’s flavors are heavily inspired by traditional Mexican flavors, like horchata. Morales recalls a time when customers were not accustomed to the flavors offered. “People are kind of used to it now, at the beginning a lot of people were asking us about stuff that was normal for us. We were very surprised that people didn’t know.” Their ice creams are not only influenced by Mexican flavors, but also by traditionally southern flavors, such as butter pecan. Pincho Loco is a “fusion between our culture and the culture over here as well.” If you’re skeptical of this fusion, don’t be. Their array of flavors is exceptionally diverse to ensure that there is a flavor for every person who comes in the door. Morales said, “We always try to have flavors for everybody. If you’re a chocolate person, a fruity person, a creamy person, we’ll have something for you.” They have a permanent menu of flavors, with classics such as chocolate and vanilla, but they try to frequently rotate out flavors to keep their selection interesting. They also keep their selection interesting and different from other shops by

creating unique combinations of sweets. For example, the first treat I ever tried from Pincho Loco was one of their ice cream cupcakes, which I had never heard of before. Morales mentioned that “we try to do things that are normal but can surprise you at the same time.” In my opinion, Pincho Loco offers the best of both worlds. Or rather, the best of multiple worlds. In one shop and one family, you can find unwavering support for almost anything you might need, scrumptious ice cream and desserts

and a unique fusion of Mexican culture with southern flavors to create an exciting experience. Personally, I highly recommend their Tigertail ice cream, which is a blend of vanilla, mexican vanilla and chocolate. Next time you’ve got a hankering for some dessert, don’t miss out on the opportunity to try some new flavors and treats you probably cannot find at many other places. Also, there is Duke paraphernalia all over the walls of the shop. Go support your fellow Blue Devils in the community.

Courtesy of Pincho Loco

Pincho Loco has become a staple for first-years who love going across from East Campus for a quick scoop.


8 | MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

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HAIM and Taylor Swift collaborate on “Gasoline” remix

By Jonathan Pertile

without any warning. But Easter egg hunts aren’t any fun when The easter eggs started slowly. First, a there’s nothing good at the end of the trail photo hit twitter of HAIM posing in front (looking at you, “ME!”). Thankfully, the of a gas pump labelled 13. Then came a “Gasoline” remix took an already great track TikTok video conspicuously zooming in on – some might say the best on its album – and the one and three of a car’s gear shift. Soon found a way to somehow make it even better. after, a final photo, this one a group shot in An ostentatious song about being sad and front of a 76 gas station, contained the code horny, “Gasoline” explores a relationship “T76S0218” in the background. It wasn’t long where neither partner really feels like before HAIM fans pieced together the clues: resisting temptation. Danielle, the lead vocalist on February 18, for the extended edition of for HAIM, opens the song with a sudden line, their 2020 summer album “Women In Music “You took me back / but you shouldn’t have,” Pt. III,” the fan-favorite “Gasoline” was overlaid on a sliding guitar and a piano run. By getting a remix with the queen of thirteen the time she arrives at “I wanna get off / but herself, Taylor Swift. you’re such a tease” in the chorus, the song The Haim sisters – Danielle, Este and Alana has become a verifiably slow jam. – are no strangers to Swift. The four have been Swift immediately takes over in the second friends since at least 2014, with the band even verse, her raspy vocals bursting into an “I get opening for the North American leg of the sad!” — convincing enough you might start “1989” tour. They collaborated for the first to believe it. (Yay! Relatable superstars!) Her time last December on “No Body, No Crime,” best moment comes a few lines later, though, a country murder ballad off of Swift’s ninth when she plainly asks, “You needed ass, well album, “Evermore.” Swift, who calls herself the what’s / wrong with that?” A testimate to “fourth Haim sister,” celebrated the remix with Swift’s growth and maturity as an artist, the a throwback photo of the four, clad head-to- verse is a far cry from her squeaky clean girltoe in animal onesies, crouched on the floor next-door image she spent years cultivating of a hotel room with two huge pizzas. (See, in the first half of her career. superstars can be relatable after all!) “Gasoline” elegantly comes together for a The Easter egg hunt preceding the final chorus and bridge as Danielle and Swift “Gasoline” remix makes a lot of sense trade lines and pull off one harmony after considering they’re the favored promotional another. It’s a smooth finish for a smooth song, tactic of Swift, who notoriously flooded 2019 and an extremely gratifying conclusion. Overall, with a deluge of clues and secret messages the song is a big step up from “No Body, No in preparation for the release of her ninth Crime,” a song that, despite its excellent true studio album, “Lover.” While the clues in crime-inspired storyline, feels clunky and anticipation of the “Gasoline” remix may not unnatural compared to “Gasoline.” Making have been quite as extensive as that album’s, matters worse for the first collab, the Haim it was somewhat of a return to form for its sisters are relegated to background vocals, featured artist, whose last two sister albums – but at least bassist Este gets to be the main “Folklore” and “Evermore” – were announced character. (Who gets murdered in the song? Social Media Editor

Courtesy of HAIM on Twitter Taylor Swift and the HAIM sisters, who have been friends since at least 2014, recently collaborated on “Gasoline”.

R.I.P. Este Haim, 1986 - 2020.) Regardless, it’s gratifying to see talented musicians come together to make terrific music, especially considering how hard it is to collaborate virtually in the midst of a pandemic. A little bonus is that both HAIM and Swift are nominated for Album Of The

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Year at this year’s Grammys, so it’s nice that the longtime friends haven’t succumbed to the pressure of being pitted against each other just yet. If the “Gasoline” remix is representative of their friendship, then the four must have a pretty strong (and productive!) bond.

A look back at Dolly Parton’s philanthropic legacy By Ellie Selden Contributing Writer

What do most people think of when they hear Dolly Parton? If you are anything like me, you remember Aunt Dolly bickering with Mamaw on Disney Channel’s “Hannah Montana” over Elvis Presley. Maybe it is her induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame or her beloved song “Jolene,” but her philanthropic efforts are perhaps least likely to top the list. Her philanthropic efforts go on and on, both spanning the duration of her career and well deserving of recognition. The country legend grew up in one of the poorest counties in the country — Sevier County, Tennessee. Rising to fame and wealth, her past economic struggles kept her humbled, leading her on a philanthropic journey that has persisted throughout her career. The Dollywood Foundation launched in 1988 in Parton’s hometown in order to begin local improvements. The Buddy Program, an initial launch from the foundation, offered $500 to high school graduates resulting in a decrease in the dropout rate from 35% to 6%. Parton’s philanthropic journey was off to a successful beginning. One of the most impactful projects, the Imagination Library, began in 1995. The library project promised to send a free book to each child until the age of 5 every month, again beginning in the artist’s hometown. The program really took off in 2000 with North Carolina adopting the program statewide and DC city-wide. The Imagination Library is now successfully responsible for gifting books to 1.45 million children and rising. More recently, she launched My People in 2016 in order to support victims of Tennessee wildfires. Since then, the fund has transformed to continue to aid firefighters with a focus on rebuilding efforts. In 2017, Parton began cultivating her relationship with the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, donating $1 million in honor of her niece who

received leukemia treatment at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital, a part of the medical center. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, she made another hefty donation of $1 million to Vanderbilt to fund vaccine research. This money went towards the development of the Moderna vaccine which is key in the United States’ vaccine distribution. Her connection to Vanderbilt has continued the trend of her philanthropic goal to help locally, keeping a close connection to her hometown and not letting fame remove her from her roots. Earlier this month, Tennessee officials made a bipartisan agreement to erect a statue of Dolly Parton in front of the State Capitol in Nashville, replacing a controversial confederate statue. Taking to Twitter, the native Tennessean respectfully asked officials to cease with the statue’s plans in light of current situations, deeming it insensitive. Her statement reads “Given all that is going on in the world, I don’t think putting me on a pedestal is appropriate at this time.” She remains open to the honor of a statue in the future, either a few years down the road or after her passing if it is still deemed fit. Fans praised her response, finding it the correct thing to do and adding it to the long list of reasons to adore Dolly. The Dollywood Foundation has been responsible for improving the lives of so many from scholarships to benefit concerts that have spanned Parton’s entire career. From the local to the national level, she puts her money where her heart and passions are, understanding the importance of helping those less fortunate as a result of her modest upbringing. Her philanthropic work provides an additional layer to how people more commonly view the artist: from making tacky look classy to a country music icon. All of this charitable work deserves honor and recognition, and the possibility of a statue further down the line during a more appropriate period of time would be one way to show it. A statue is not enough to repay the legend herself, but it is a darn good way to start.

Courtesy of Vanity Fair

Earlier this month, Tennessee officials agreed to erect a statue of Dolly Parton in front of the State Capitol.


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‘Judas and the Black Messiah’ is a narrative of black power By Ben Smith Staff Writer

“I am a revolutionary.” Those were Fred Hampton’s words when he was released from prison in August of 1969. Hampton, who was Vice Chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party, had been held on charges of stealing $71 of ice cream. On Dec. 4, 1969, he was assassinated by the FBI and local law enforcement, aided by their informant within the Panthers, William O’Neal. “Judas and the Black Messiah,” directed by Shaka King and co-produced by “Fruitvale Station” and “Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler, tells the story of Hampton’s movement and the racially-motivated plots of FBI director J. Edgar Hoover to prevent Hampton from ascending as a “Black Messiah.” Hampton, portrayed by Daniel Kaluuya, oozes charisma throughout the film. He inspires people to come together and challenge the “pigs” (the bourgeoisie) that are hoarding resources while poor people suffer under unjust laws and unequal treatment. Hampton was not a Black Nationalist: rather, he was a revolutionary socialist. In 1960s America, he managed to unite the Young Lords (a group of radical Puerto Ricans), the Crowns (a local Chicago gang) and the Young Patriots (poor and militant white people) into a Rainbow Coalition aimed at defeating “this racist, fascist and nefarious U.S. government.” Under Hampton’s leadership, the Panthers created education centers and fed “3000 kids a week” in Chicago. Hampton was serving the poor and challenging the status quo of the time. O’Neal, portrayed by LaKeith Stanfield, was 18 in 1968 when FBI agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons) instructed him to infiltrate the Black Panther Party. O’Neal gradually implanted himself in the party, eventually becoming Chief of Security, all the while having fancy dinners with and pocketing cash payments from Mitchell. In late 1969, Mitchell approached O’Neal, who drew blueprints of Hampton’s apartment which were instrumental in

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his assassination. Kaluuya and Stanfield shine in their roles, with Kaluuya delivering passionate speeches that grab the viewer and motivate them to “fight the pigs,” while Stanfield’s nervous energy and internal conflicts are palpable throughout the film. However, perhaps due to the limitations of film and acting in general, it is difficult to convey how young each character truly was. At his death, Hampton was 21 while O’Neal was still a teenager at the time; Kaluuya and Stanfield are both around 30. King’s direction is tense and arresting, with real excerpts of O’Neal’s interviews for “Eyes on the Prize.” The viewer knows how the story will end, despite a few creative liberties taken (especially with the characterization of O’Neal). As the film neared its dramatic conclusion, I could not shake my unmistakable dread for the coming assassination of Hampton, as the film accelerated to the climatic moment. King succeeds in portraying the nuances of Hampton and the Panthers at large. On occasion, Hampton called for violence towards “the pigs,” yet he also was quick to back down when some of his more zealous comrades plotted to attack the Chicago City Hall. Also gripping is King’s depiction of COINTELPRO, the FBI program with intent “to ‘disrupt, misdirect, discredit or otherwise neutralize’ militant groups” according to Jeffrey Haas, an attorney with the Panthers. In the film, we see Hoover’s paranoia that his segregated and hateful worldview may come crashing down should Hampton have his way. In one particular scene, he coerces Agent Mitchell into moving to set up Hampton’s assassination through fear tactics of “what might happen to your family should the Panthers have their way.” There are stark similarities between COINTELPRO of the film and the present-day government programs that target civil rights groups as terrorists, while refusing to admit the wrongdoings of radical white nationalists. When

Courtesy of USA Today The gripping drama “Judas and the Black Messiah” tells a story of oppressors and the oppressed.

the Black Lives Matter movement rose to national prominence in 2014, the FBI immediately moved to place informants within the organization. In 2017, just weeks before white supremacists marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, the FBI labelled certain Black activists as “national security threats.” Even more recently, the treatment of the white extremists that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 further proves the grave threat they pose towards America, even though policing is still disproportionately aimed

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at curtailing BIPOC activists who seek to uplift marginalized communities. Ultimately, the messages of “Judas and the Black Messiah” are just as important to contemporary America as Hampton’s messages to Chicago in 1969. The war on inequality and white supremacy still rages on over 50 years later, and through cultural pieces like “Judas,” I hope that more people will come to realize that if we want change, we must all be revolutionaries.

What the Duke Marriage Pact says about the state of dating culture By Yumi Tsuyuki Contributing Writer

Virtual love is nothing new. Technology is all about trying to evolve the human experience, and dating is part of that experience. Tinder, Bumble, Grindr and Hinge dates are nearly as common as traditional dates. These apps are all centered around making dating more convenient. Quantity over quality. Sometimes it works. Usually, it doesn’t (but hopefully there’s at least a free dinner). But what if we could employ technology to find our one perfect, pinnacle-of-romance soulmate? No more guesswork. No more stilted conversations or ghosting games. No kissing frogs, only princes. If the thousands of “meet your soulmate” TikToks are anything to go by, it is a popular dream. Is such a utopia even possible? While that isn’t exactly what the Marriage Pact claims, it is transforming dating. Since launching at Stanford, the concept has spread quickly among elite universities. The creators have discussed widening the scope and introducing it to different communities. It’s easy to see why – the Marriage Pact essentially streamlines the process of finding that potential soulmate. Unlimited mediocre matches (which were an unfortunate reality even before the advent of dating apps) encountered along the course of life are narrowed to just one possible forever partner. It seems like a natural progression in the evolution of dating. They’ve already created apps for customizable and deliverable skincare, shampoo and dog food; someday, finding that elusive “one true love” could come as easily as placing an order for delivery pizza. It’s fascinating to imagine what that future might look like. Would dating become outdated? In a weird, roundabout way, we might return to an era where arranged marriages are general practice everywhere. Yet unlike current arranged marriages, where parents with their own agendas and emotional investments are responsible for the

matchmaking, an impartial algorithm would take charge. Arranged marriages, though they oppose American norms, do have significantly lower divorce rates, so it’s not outrageous to envision success for these data-driven partnerships. They would certainly save humanity from an immeasurable amount of heartache. “Love at first sight” might become an indisputable fact, and unrequited feelings an ancient relic. The algorithm as it stands now, though, is unlikely to create successful matches. Some students have pointed out that the Pact completely discounts the desire to connect with people different than you — a 99.99% match will likely be just a little too similar. Now that the (disappointing) results of the Marriage Pact have rolled out, it seems certain that these pairings can’t account for personality quirks and that ineffable spark of chemistry. However, that indomitable human drive to evolve has already appeared once again, spawning the Anti-Marriage Pact Instagram page and Fluke Marriage Pact, which mimics the model of the Marriage Pact but incorporates a human touch. Though it has yet to prove itself against the original Marriage Pact, the Fluke Pact might provide not only a new and improved successor, but also evidence of the importance of human intellect in a world increasingly supplanted by artificial intelligence. Striking the balance between human emotion and technological efficiency is an issue present in more than online dating; it’s an emerging fact of our new tech-driven, datacentered reality. This new reality and the implications of computergenerated interactions have become especially relevant since the toils of 2020 hit us. Between a global pandemic, panic-buying toilet paper and revolts against the government, it often feels as if we are already living in a dystopia. Computer algorithms dictating your future spouse is just part of the genre, another sign of the times (see Matched by

Ally Condie or the “Hang the DJ” Black Mirror episode). The dismal state of modern events has thus far supported Murphy’s Law (what can go wrong, will go wrong) and a software-engineered soulmate is no exception. Getting paired with an impossibly awful match – say, your best friend’s boyfriend, a future serial killer or even your own sibling – would undoubtedly constitute a bleak future. But it’s probably too early to say whether these

possible matches signal optimism or pessimism for the future of dating. For the Duke community, the Pact has largely been an entertaining social experiment to meet more people in a year where socialization is painfully restricted. Most matches — among my friends, at least — are platonic, if they meet up at all. But who knows? Maybe in 20 years, we’ll all reunite in front of the Duke Chapel for a spontaneous surge of machine-generated marriages.

Courtesy of Duke Chapel

Maybe in 20 years, we’ll all reunite in front of the Duke Chapel for a surge of machine-generated marriages.


10 | MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

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BUBBLE TROUBLE

COURTESY OF NAT LEDONNE/DUKE ATHLETICS

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MEN’S BASKETBALL: TOURNEY CHANCES IN DOUBT • WOMEN’S LACROSSE: FALLS AT NO. 1 UNC


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MEN’S BASKETBALL

Duke drops overtime thriller against Louisville By Derek Saul Sports Features Editor

The best game of Matthew Hurt’s career wasn’t enough. Somehow, Hurt’s career-high 37 points didn’t end in a Duke victory in Saturday night’s overtime thriller. A 80 Louisville team led by UL DUKE 73 superior perimeter play and relentless offensive rebounding escaped Cameron Indoor Stadium with an 80-73 win in a game that carried serious implications for a coveted atlarge bid in the NCAA tournament. “Matt had a sensational game. Matt was unbelievable,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “[Louisville’s] perimeter just knocked our young guards back. [Duke’s guards] did not have the games that they’ve had over the last couple weeks tonight.... So hopefully we get better and learn from it.” A pair of DJ Steward free throws with 2:06 remaining in regulation cut Louisville’s lead to 62-61, setting up a thrilling finish to the game that quickly became the Carlik Jones, Hurt and Wendell Moore Jr. show. On the ensuing Cardinal possession, Jones got to the basket and made it a 64-61 game, but Moore quickly responded with two more free throws to again cut Duke’s deficit to one. After a Jones miss, Moore again got to the line off a pump-fake, putting the Blue Devils ahead 65-64. Jones responded with a free throw of his own to tie the game, but missed a jumper as time expired, sending it to overtime. In overtime, Louisville jumped out to

Courtesy of Nat LeDonne/Duke Athletics

Matthew Hurt scored a career-high 37 points on 15-of-21 shooting, carrying the Blue Devil offense throughout the night. a quick five-point lead thanks to a Quinn Slazinski 3-pointer and a Jones lay-in. Hurt responded with a basket of his own, but Jones and the Cardinals built a six-point lead with 1:13 remaining. Moore’s resilience inside continued, as he finished strong for an and-one layup to bring the score to 7471. Jones scored yet again with 36 seconds remaining, however, which proved to be the fatal blow. Hurt’s Blue Devils trailed for nearly the entire game, and many of Hurt’s teammates struggled

against Louisville’s suffocating defense, but the ACC Player of the Year candidate would simply not relent, single-handedly keeping Duke (119, 9-7 in the ACC) competitive. After trailing by as much as 12 early in the second half, Hurt willed his team back into the game, as the Cardinals simply had no answer for the sharpshooting forward. With 8:26 left remaining and Louisville (13-5, 8-4) leading 52-47, Hurt hauled in an offensive rebound, finishing through contact and hitting a free throw to make

it 52-50. On the other end of the floor, he blocked Jones’ layup attempt, then knocked down a 3-pointer to give Duke its first lead since early in the first half. The opening period was marked by a slow pace, with the Cardinals ending the period with a 36-26 lead—Duke’s 26-point output was its lowest total in any half this season. Remarkably, Hurt scored 16 of Duke’s 26 firsthalf points. The Minnesota native’s offensive excellence was the primary reason the Blue Devils stuck around, and the sophomore forward has now scored 15 or more points in five straight games. No matter how lethal Hurt is, it’s nearly impossible to stay competitive when one player is responsible for over 60% of your offensive production. The Cardinal guards simply outclassed the Blue Devil backcourt on both ends of the floor. In the first half, Duke’s guard trio of Jordan Goldwire, Jeremy Roach and DJ Steward combined for one point on a dreadful 0-for-8 from the floor. Meanwhile, Louisville’s starting backcourt of Jones and David Johnson picked up nine points apiece in the opening 20 minutes. “I thought [Louisville] dominated the first half,” Krzyzewski said. “Their athleticism and maturity knocked us back.” But the Blue Devils came out of the locker room looking like a new team. With 16 minutes remaining, the previously hibernating Steward shook out of his slumber. The Chicago native leapt to make See THRILLER on Page 13

COLUMN

What do the Blue Devils have to do to make the NCAA tournament? I am writing this Feb. 28, the last day of the shortest month of the year. Ordinarily, Duke fans would be thrilled about the short wait until March. Not this year. For the first time in a long time, Duke Glen Morgenstern is not in line for the NCAA tournament. After the Blue Devils’ crushing overtime loss to Louisville Saturday, most experts think Duke as it currently stands does not deserve a ticket to the Big Dance. “[With] very good teams, you have to do more than just put yourself in a position to win,” sophomore forward Wendell Moore Jr. said. “You have to come out with a win.” With just two games left in the regular season, the Blue Devils’ postseason outlook is not ideal and Duke’s lack of success begs the question: What will it take to make the tournament? Here are the options:

to the NCAA tournament. But if that can’t save the Blue Devils, what will? Make a statement in the ACC tournament The best way for Duke to secure its spot in the Big Dance is to show out in the ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C. The Blue Devils don’t necessarily have to win the ACC tournament to punch their ticket, but if they don’t impress over their final two games of the regular season then they may need to reach the semifinals. For that to happen, Duke will have to learn how to finish games, something it’s struggled to do all season, including Saturday against Louisville. “Our game boils down to that one possession,”

Dominate the end of the regular season In a utopia where everyone ranked above Duke in the ACC lost all their remaining games and the Blue Devils won all of theirs, Duke could shoot up to fourth in the conference standings. This would place the Blue Devils above North Carolina and Louisville and almost certainly guarantee them a spot in the tournament. However, utopias do not exist, by definition. Even if Duke won its remaining matchups against Georgia Tech and North Carolina, its resume Courtesy of Nat LeDonne/Duke Athletics would likely still lack the oomph to earn admission Duke couldn’t keep Louisville out of the paint.

head coach Mike Krzyzewski said after the loss to the Cardinals. “We were able to win that possession against Virginia. We did not win that possession tonight.” One silver lining for the Blue Devils is the growth of 6-foot-10 forward Matthew Hurt into a top-tier player in the country. Hurt played the best game of his life against Louisville, scoring a career-high 37 points on 15-of-21 shooting. Yet, Hurt hardly touched the ball in the final moments of regulation and in the overtime period. “This is a team game, not an individual game,” Hurt said of his lack of involvement late in the contest. “It doesn’t matter that I didn’t get a lot of touches.” It might as well have been an individual game for Duke Saturday. While Hurt had an electric performance, the rest of the team shot below 30% from the field combined. If the Blue Devils really want a shot at an ACC tournament run—and a spot in the national tournament—someone other than Hurt will have to step up to the plate. Right now, there’s no frontrunner.

Courtesy of Nat LeDonne/Duke Athletics

DJ Steward shot 2-of-13 from the floor Saturday.

month. For instance, the third month of the year started May 20. Duke fans, true to their “Cameron Crazies” moniker, may be tempted to adopt a similar tactic. Changing the calendar would both push back the tournament by months and render the term “March Madness” useless, as anyone who Delay the month of March used the term would be deemed an enemy of the If none of the aforementioned paths turn people (see Law of 22 Prairal). out in Duke’s favor, Blue Devil fans might be This is, of course, a ridiculous idea. Toppling left wondering what other alternatives might be a government for the sake of a local sports available, however drastic. team would be petty at best and bloodthirsty In Oct. 1793, French revolutionaries switched at worst. It goes against everything we hold out the bourgeois Gregorian calendar for one of dear about this country, this institution and their own creation. The names of the months changed to reflect their newfound freedom and See TOURNAMENT on Page 13 equality, as well as the days assigned to each


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WOMEN’S LACROSSE

Duke falls in top-10 battle at UNC, but spirit shines By Jonathan Browning Associate Sports Editor

There may not have been any sun shining Friday night for the Blue Devils as they battled the Tar Heels through the pouring rain and biting cold. However, it was the essence of the team itself that provided a spot of light, even with the loss. No. 8 Duke fell to 6 No. 1 North Carolina DUKE 13 13-6 in Chapel Hill, UNC weathering some of the worst conditions either team has had to face so far this year. Duke-UNC may be the premier rivalry in all of sports, but Mother Nature doesn’t play favorites, and this match got the short end of the stick after days of great weather in the Triangle Area. And for much of the second half of this match, the Blue Devils looked as flat as the day was dreary. However, when the final buzzer sounded, that wasn’t the taste that was left in anyone’s mouth. With five minutes remaining, the outcome and story of the contest seemed to be set in stone. Duke (3-1, 1-1 in the ACC) hadn’t scored in 37 minutes of game time, with North Carolina (4-0, 1-0 in the ACC) rattling off nine straight goals of its own during that stretch en route to a 13-3 lead. The Tar Heels were on their way to their 11th straight win against the Blue Devils, and Duke would have to wait until the end of the season to get another chance to beat its archrivals for the first time since 2014. Ultimately, all those tangibles were true. But sometimes it’s the intangibles that make all the difference. The Blue Devils could’ve given up, or put

in less effort, and few fans would have noticed or been able to blame them—playing the top team in the country at their stadium amidst a downpour during a pandemic is a rare occurrence. But that’s not the type of team Duke is. So, the Blue Devils went back to work. “We felt like it was a game we could win,” Duke head coach Kerstin Kimel said. “And that was the attitude and mindset that we went into it with. Our crew competed really hard. I was really proud of the actual physical effort competition that we made. Again, it was a tough night to play. And that will never be an excuse. And I know our kids were cold, and I know our kids were wet. And they just didn’t care. In any timeout situation we had in that second half, it was always like, ‘We’ve got this’. And I feel like we played that way until the last whistle.” It was senior Katie Cronin that made the first dent. After a foul on North Carolina, she lined up on the eight-meter arc for a free position shot, putting it past Tar Heel goalie Taylor Moreno for Duke’s first goal of the second half to make it 13-4. Thirty-four seconds later, Pennsylvania transfer Gabby Rosenzweig added on an unassisted goal of her own. And 34 seconds later, after yet another draw control by junior Maddie Jenner, Rosenzweig put another ball past Moreno and into the cage, cutting North Carolina’s lead to 13-6. It was at this moment that the limited fans at Dorrance Field and everyone else watching on TV knew that this Duke team isn’t one to just give in. “I think there’s a lot to be learned from the game,” Kimel said. “We [had] an opportunity to play a great team and learn something about ourselves and make ourselves better. I thought we competed really hard. I thought we played hard. I think we could have played better. And certainly

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Courtesy of Mike Johnston Duke and North Carolina braved heavy rain and bitter cold in their first meeting of the season.

we’re walking away from the game feeling like we can hang [with UNC], on a day that we execute better that we can play with the top team in the country. And we’ll have an opportunity to see them again in April, which I think we will be even more prepared for. Moving further into our ACC season, that game last night is going to help us get better quicker.” There are other things this team will take from this match going forward, the bad with the good. In the first half, after giving up two early goals to North Carolina, Duke had seemed to find a groove, going back and forth and finding itself down just a goal at 4-3. But the Blue Devils simply couldn’t muster that tying score to gain momentum. In the second half, during the Tar Heels’ streak

of nine unanswered goals, the Blue Devil defense that had been so dominant against Virginia Tech the previous weekend now seemed unable to find a stop. Time and time again, North Carolina found the player cutting down the center of the arc, putting all of the defensive pressure on Duke goalkeeper Sophia LeRose. She may be coming off a great performance against the Hokies, but even she could use a little help. However, recognizing where you can improve and then working toward it is part of who this team is. Not every game is sunshine and roses— this one was neither of those things, marked by a slippery, soggy field and six penalty cards between the two teams, including five yellows. “Our mindset for tomorrow is that we See W. LACROSSE on Page 13

MEN’S LACROSSE

Robertson’s career day leads Blue Devils past Air Force By Sasha Richie Staff Writer

Joe Robertson scored his 100th career goal to complete a hat trick in the first 20 minutes of play Saturday afternoon. Then he decided that wasn’t enough, and scored 7 four more. AF The senior DUKE 17 attackman posted a career day in No. 1 Duke’s 17-7 win against Air Force, matching the entire Falcons team with seven goals while adding three assists to bring his point total to 10, marking the highest single-game point and goal totals of his career. His 10 points were only one behind the Duke record of 11, and mark the most by any Blue Devil since Justin Guterding notched 10 in 2018.

Robertson’s third goal of the day made him the 21st Duke player to score 100 career goals, but it wasn’t an easy road getting there. The Virginia native missed the entirety of the shortened 2020 season to injury after leading the team in scoring in 2019. Then, he missed the first two games of this season due to the school’s health protocols. “I’m just grateful for every time I get out on the field, and the practice field as well,” Robertson said after Saturday’s game. “I just think, being on the sideline and being injured, you take so many things for granted...and you can’t take everything for granted.” Now that he’s back, though, the team will take every opportunity to utilize his unique skill set— head coach John Danowski called him an “allaround, old-school attackman”—especially with

Courtesy of Duke Athletics

Joe Robertson finished with 10 points against Air Force, a career high.

so many new pieces at attack. Robertson started at attack Saturday alongside graduate transfer Michael Sowers and freshman Brennan O’Neill, with the offensive triumvirate combining for 21 of the Blue Devils’ 30 total points. Sowers totaled three goals and five assists, while O’Neill added two goals and one assist. In Robertson’s first game back Feb. 13, he started alongside Sowers and sophomore Dyson Williams at attack. But with Williams out the last two games due to health protocols, O’Neill has stepped into that role. The current attack unit has demonstrated exceptional chemistry over Duke’s past two games, making the coaching staff hesitant to break it up once Williams returns. Danowski said that they Courtesy of Duke Athletics may look to start Williams at midfield when he Duke’s defense, led by JT Giles-Harris, has impressed in recent contests. comes back, but in any case, having those four

offensive talents on the roster and healthy can only boon the team. In addition to the Blue Devils’ offensive firepower, their defense continues to show that they’re a force to be reckoned with in their own right. While the Falcons got five man-up opportunities, Duke (5-0) held them to just one conversion that came in the final five minutes of play. Additionally, Air Force (1-2) was held scoreless for nearly 20 minutes between the first and third periods. Many other Blue Devils also chipped in impressive performances, including ones that don’t necessarily manifest in the box score. Preseason Defenseman of the Year JT Giles-Harris was solid See M. LACROSSE on Page 13


The Chronicle

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THRILLER FROM PAGE 11 an acrobatic steal off of a Johnson pass and took it the length of the floor, converting on a heavily contested layup and cutting Duke’s deficit to 40-35. Steward hit his first 3-pointer of the contest a minute later, and a Jaemyn Brakefield and-one brought the Blue Devils to within one, the closest margin since it was tied at 17 with 11 minutes remaining in the first half. And after Hurt’s sequence three minutes later finally gave Duke the lead, it went back and forth the rest of the way. Though many arenas across North Carolina welcomed back fans for the first time this weekend due to loosening COVID-19 restrictions, Cameron Indoor Stadium remained limited to essential personnel Saturday evening. That meant an eerily quiet Senior Night—seniors Mike Buckmire and Goldwire were not greeted with hugs from their families and raucous cheering from the Cameron Crazies, but played in front of the same tapestry that has covered the student section for the last three months. Hurt’s father, Richard Hurt, tweeted Saturday night that Krzyzewski talked with Duke administration about allowing families to attend the Louisville game given the new state guidelines. “We support what [University President Vincent Price] and our administration does,” Krzyzewski said postgame. “That doesn’t

mean we didn’t talk to [Director of Athletics] Kevin White, and push that up just to check to see if there was something that we’re going to do different... I’m going to do what our administration says and they’ve done a great job of handling things so kids can get an education here. A minimal amount of people have contracted the virus compared to other places. So, I applaud them for that. And obviously, we’d like to have fans, would like to have parents, but I do not fault our administration in that regard.” The Blue Devils will face a pair of tough road tests to conclude the regular season next week, as they will head to Atlanta Tuesday to take on Georgia Tech and take a short bus ride to Chapel Hill for a matchup against North Carolina next Saturday.

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021 | 13

W. LACROSSE

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FROM PAGE 12

want to go in and play the best game that we can possibly play no matter who it is,” Kimel said. “If you went in our locker room, you would see that we have a game day countdown clock, and it doesn’t have an opponent’s name on it. It just has a number. So [Sunday], team number five, just happens to be against East Carolina, and our goal is a business trip. We want to go down, we want to take care of business, play the kind of game that we’re capable of playing, get back on track, so that we can head into next week with another win under our belts, and ready to play a top Syracuse team at the end of next week.”

throughout, and sophomore Tyler Carpenter, a long stick middie, picked up six ground balls. Meanwhile, freshman Jake Naso continued his exemplary play at the X, winning 16-of-26 faceoffs and picking up 11 ground balls. On special teams, Duke went 4-for-4 on man-up opportunities, including two goals on an unreleasable three-minute Air Force penalty to start the second period for an illegal stick. Both of those goals were scored by Robertson. The first of those goals was assisted by senior midfielder Nakeie Montgomery, with he and Robertson following up the score with an air guitar handshake celebration. When Robertson assisted on one of Montgomery’s two goals late in the third, the celly made another appearance. “We’ve had something going every single year trying to do a new handshake...I think just playing with the guys is so much fun, just being able to let go and live in the moment with him,” Robertson said. “Me and him are super close on and off the field, and so I think that chemistry just kind of makes it really fun to celebrate moments like this.” It’s that kind of chemistry and fun approach to the game that the team will have to build upon with tougher conference play on the horizon. But for now, the Blue Devils have some time to celebrate an undefeated opening month. Duke returns to action next Sunday at Richmond.

sports

TOURNAMENT FROM PAGE 11

this sport. But simply put, I don’t trust the Cameron Crazies. Any fan base that sleeps in tents in freezing temperatures for two months to watch their peers play basketball for two hours (every year!) must be incredibly tough, dedicated and off its rocker. These are unfortunately excellent qualities in a revolution. For my sake, Duke had better pull it together before the ACC tournament. Because I don’t Courtesy of Mike Johnston think I can learn the names of 12 new months, Sophia LeRose impressed again for Duke. especially not in French.

The Chronicle What we have to do to make it deep into March: Give the ball to Matthew Hurt: ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ emulator Water aerobics: ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������thepizzaman Sell my soul to the Blue Devil: ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� mattyg

Student Advertising Manager: �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Rebecca Ross Account Representatives: ������������������ Juliana Arbelaez, Emma Olivo, Spencer Perkins, Sam Richey, Alex Russell, Paula Sakuma, Jake Schulman, Simon Shore, Maddy Torres, Stef Watchi, Montana Williams Marketing Manager: ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Jared McCloskey Student Business Manager ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Dylan Riley, Alex Rose

The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation Courtesy Nat LeDonne/Duke Athletics 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y.of 10018 For overtime, Informationbut Call: 1-800-972-3550 The Blue Devils fought hard to force didn’t make enough plays down the stretch to win. For Release Monday, May 4, 2020

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The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018 For Information Call: 1-800-972-3550 For Release Tuesday, May 5, 2020

61 Geese’s flying formation 62 Make a boo-boo 63 Keep pestering

Online subscriptions: Today’s puzzle and more than 7,000 past puzzles, nytimes.com/crosswords ($39.95 a year). Read about and comment on each puzzle: nytimes.com/wordplay.

Crossword ACROSS 1 Group consisting of Agnetha, Benny, Björn and Anni-Frid 5 Four-year degs. 8 Muddle through 14 Dreary 15 Home of the statue Christ the Redeemer, familiarly 16 Left 17 Frisbee sport 19 Earned in the end 20 Swing wildly back and forth 21 Sounds in a dentist’s office 23 Tune also known as “Butterfield’s Lullaby” 24 Card game akin to crazy eights 26 Word after head, heart or belly 28 Name of a celebrated 1970s concert tour with Bob Dylan 35 Foretell

36 French fashion magazine since 1945 37 Animal whose full name means “nose horn” 38 Where the four most widely practiced religions all originated 39 “Me too” 41 Means justifiers, perhaps 42 Has trouble with S’s 44 Algerian port 45 Problems that a group project might face 46 “We shouldn’t rush this” 49 Relieve 50 Rapper ___ Uzi Vert 51 Common chip dip, slangily 54 $$$ for old age 56 Tiki bar cocktail 61 The “A” of SAG

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opinion dukechronicle.com

The Chronicle

The psychedelic renaissance S

hit. It’s nine o’clock in the morning and you’re an hour late for work. You curse your malfunctioning alarm clock and scramble to buckle your

You wipe the dust of your business suit and pick up the newspaper—rallies across the country protesting the Vietnam War—ah, it’s 1967.

drum of The Beatles. You contemplate existence for half a second then rip off your tie and follow the sound. You’re never going down that street to your office again, no, that’s not what life’s supposed to be. You’ve arrived. Welcome to Haight-Ashbury, the district of San Francisco, California at the COLUMN epicenter of the counterculture movement of the 1960’s. You munch on something belt and tie your tie and run out onto the You start to panic—what’ll I do if I get someone just gave you and say goodbye to streets of San Francisco, but trip up on fired for being late again? Then you hear the world as you know it. your newspaper that’s laying on the porch. that distant sound, that sweet strum and Psychedelics have already had a dramatic impact on history, being a catalyst for the 60’s counterculture scene. I believe that psychedelics can be our hot take of the week future. With psychedelics, we get a drastic transformation in how individuals and societies function on every single level. We “Facebook’s analytics don’t really make any sense to me?” get unprecedented improvements in how —Jake Satisky, Digital Strategy Editor, on February 28, 2021 we understand and deal with mental health and wellbeing. We learn to live a fulfilled and sustainable life if the US legalizes psychedelics. The US should immediately legalize psychedelics and actively invest in mental health and wellness services. Psilocybin and Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) are two of the most fascinating and revolutionary chemicals that humans can take to affect their state Direct submissions to: of consciousness. Psilocybin, originating The Chronicle welcomes submissions in the form of letters to the editor E-mail: from certain fungi, and LSD, an artificially or guest columns. Submissions must include the author’s name, signature, chronicleletters@duke.edu department or class, and for purposes of identification, phone number and local synthesized compound, have the address. Letters should not exceed 325 words; contact the editorial department remarkable quality of significantly altering Editorial Page Department for information regarding guest columns. The Chronicle your mental functionings for around six The Chronicle will not publish anonymous or form letters or letters that are Box 90858, to twelve hours. The compounds bind promotional in nature. The Chronicle reserves the right to edit letters and guest Durham, NC 27708 to key brain cell receptors, a completely columns for length, clarity and style and the right to withhold letters based on neurological process which results in an Phone: (919) 684-2663 the discretion of the editorial page editor. odyssey through your own consciousness. Fax: (919) 684-4696 Part of the reason psychedelics have been illegal so long are the unpredictable results and widespread misconceptions of its utility. That’s why its pivotal for Est. 1905 Inc. 1993 investment in psychedelic ‘centers’ which provide research, education, and health MATTHEW GRIFFIN, Editor services for the public. With the rise of EVAN KOLIN, Sports Editor clinical trials on psychedelics, we’ll soon MARIA MORRISON, Managing Editor get a far stronger understanding of its use, MONA TONG, News Editor and perhaps even develop entire systems CARTER FORINASH, Editor-at-Large ROSE WONG, Senior Editor or methods designed to help you trip. JAKE SATISKY, Digital Strategy Director Already, we’ve learned of the importance SIMRAN PRAKASH, Photography Editor of being in the right mental and physical MIHIR BELLAMKONDA, Opinion Editor setting before taking psychedelics. I SARAH DERRIS, Recess Editor think every US citizen should have this CHRISSY BECK, General Manager liberty; have the guidance and resources to improve your mental health through SHANE SMITH, Sports Managing Editor REBECCA SCHNEID, Sports Photography Editor psychedelics. MASON BERGER, Video Editor JACKSON MURAIKA, News Photography Editor Misconceptions stem from the fact that MARY HELEN WOOD, Audio Editor AARON ZHAO, Features Photography Editor it’s very hard to describe a psychedelic NADIA BEY, University News Editor BELLA BANN, Photography Social Media Editor experience with words. For starters, the two LEAH BOYD, University News Editor MARGOT ARMBRUSTER, Opinion Managing Editor compounds produce distinctly different PRIYA PARKASH, University News Editor NICHOLAS CHRAPLIWY, Opinion Managing Editor experiences; some say psilocybin gives a PREETHA RAMACHANDRAN, University News Editor VICTORIA PRIESTER, Opinion Managing Editor more earthy, pastel, and soft feel whereas YUEXUAN CHEN, Local and National News Editor SYDNY LONG, Recess Managing Editor LSD is more electric and dynamic. What ANNA ZOLOTOR, Local and National News Editor BEN WALLACE, Community Editorial Board Chair they share are their beneficial insights: ASHWIN KULSHRESTHA, Health and Science News Editor RYAN WILLIAMS, Community Editorial Board Chair I see psilocybin as an introspective tool, MICHAEL LEE, Health and Science News Editor SHANNON FANG, Equity and Outreach Coordinator STEFANIE POUSOULIDES, Investigations Editor a tool for self-discovery and personalNADIA BEY, Recruitment Chair JAKE SHERIDAN, Features Editor JAKE SATISKY, Recruitment Chair development, and LSD as an extrospective CHRIS KUO, Features Managing Editor TREY FOWLER, Advertising Director tool, understanding and appreciating JULIE MOORE, Creative Director the structure of the universe and your relationship with it. The Chronicle is published by the Duke Student Publishing Company, Inc., a non-profit corporation independent of Duke University. The opinions I like to describe my take by comparing expressed in this newspaper are not necessarily those of Duke University, its students, faculty, staff, administration or trustees. Unsigned editorials represent it to playing the piano. When I was younger the majority view of the editorial board. Columns, letters and cartoons represent the views of the authors. To reach the Editorial Office at 301 Flowers Building, call 684-2663 or fax 684-4696. To reach the Business Office at 1517 Hull Avenue call 684-3811. To and less experienced, I would blindly look reach the Advertising Office at 2022 Campus Drive call 684-3811. at the score and try my best not to play a One copy per person; additional copies may be purchased for .25 at The Chronicle Business office at the address above. wrong note. Now I’ve learned to enjoy the @ 2021 Duke Student Publishing Company music. I can play fast or slow or depressing

Arya Krishnan

LETTERS POLICY

or ecstatic or anything I want; music becomes a mythical language with infinite powers of expression. A psychedelic trip is the piano teacher, the one who shows you and helps you discover the ways, but with the entirety of life instead of just music. Psychedelics transform your approach to life. All the systems and structures of society look like dotted lines; you see right through them and look at what’s around you without any judgment or notions. They let you dive into the labyrinth of your psyche and do some soul-searching, allowing you to discover and debate over questions about who you are. More importantly than all, however, is that psychedelics are whatever you want them to be: you can use them to have fun, to learn, to feel different, to answer questions—just like how you can make your life and lifestyle whatever you want it to be. The biggest lesson I’ve learned from psychedelics is to be conscious of your normal day as if it were a trip. Treat every day like it’s a trip; put yourself in settings filled with love and support, be aware of all those thoughts jumping through your mind, and just learn to chill out and enjoy doing nothing sometimes. Psychedelics give you the opportunity to derive insights personal to just you, which is why it’s such a powerful mental tool. These radical benefits of psychedelics are why Psilocybin has already been granted breakthrough status by the Federal Drug Administration to treat depression. Clinical trials on using psychedelics in mental health programs have shown impressive results and with Oregon becoming the first state legalizing psilocybin, we find ourselves in what people call the ‘Psychedelic Renaissance’. With more states likely to follow, I believe that over the next decade, we’re going to experience the biggest cultural revolution of an era. Think of the 60’s as a buggy ‘beta’ launch—we saw the powerful benefits of a community centered around love and free-thinking, but recognized the many flaws (the cult-like view of ‘hippie-life’ along with the general mess of Haight-Ashbury). Now we have knowledge and experience backed up by heavy medical research, including the groundbreaking Johns Hopkins ‘Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research’. I see these psychedelic centers being created by the end of the decade. With clinical trials showing how Psilocybin relieved symptoms of patients with major depression, psychedelics will be key to the new age of mental health services. Psychedelics have already started putting their footprint on popular culture. In the music scene, ‘psychedelic trap’ is becoming the mainstream sound, pioneered by artists such as Travis Scott and ASAP Rocky, in a similar way to what groups like Pink Floyd and The Beatles did in the 60-70s. If you plan on taking psychedelics, do extensive research beforehand, and be aware of your emotional mindset as well as your physical setting.

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The Chronicle

Arya Krishnan is a Trinity sophomore. His column runs on alternate Fridays.


The Chronicle

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MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021 | 15

Don’t sleep on chicken shawarma S

tudents know Farmstead for simple, delicious classics like baked salmon, roasted carrots or mashed potatoes. Farmstead’s offerings usually don’t feature a mélange of vegetables and meats like in the Ginger + Soy’s Chicken Teriyaki bowl, nor a layering of carb to

But what the shawarma does have is authenticity; its most photogenic attributes also reflect its best qualities. Opening the white takeout container to a warm, pillowy pastel-green shawarma is like opening a satin jewelry box to a sparkling emerald. Smoky char marks

Jessica Luan COLUMN meat to cheese to vegetable, like in ABP’s toasted chicken avocado sandwich. Instead, a singular vegetable or meat is the star of the show. On a stage that cherishes its soloists, the chicken shawarma is an unlikely performer, and perhaps this is why few people know about the chicken shawarma. But it deserves to be more than a bit player; with its spectacular looks and unmistakable flavor, the chicken shawarma has the starpower to play the leading role. In a dining hall full of photogenic colleagues, the chicken shawarma is an underdog. It has neither the cheese pull of an Il Forno pizza nor the sliced avocado of a Thrive salmon bowl nor the brightly-colored sauces and garnishes of a Ginger + Soy poke bowl—“aesthetic” features necessary for Insta-fame. That said, some Insta-foods’ beauty distracts from questionable flavor—like those skyblue, spirulina-colored, overripe-bananaflavored smoothie bowls.

hint at a crispy exterior and attest to the shawarma’s freshness—this isn’t your typical limp, refrigerated wrap. Inside, visible flecks of pepper and dry rub dot hearty chunks of aioli-smothered chicken. Thin slivers of tart Greek pickles are interspersed throughout like wildflowers in an open meadow. The shawarma is also a flavor bomb, an anomaly in a culinary landscape where seasoning is usually lacking. The chicken is melt-in-your-mouth tender, and a generous layer of salty garlic aioli married with peppery dry rub packs an umami punch. Tart, crisp Greek pickles brighten this protein-heavy dish. The chicken shawarma has developed a cult following. I talked to Euwan Kim, a shawarma fanatic who hasn’t gone a Tuesday lunch or dinner without shawarma. She runs a shawarma fan page on Instagram called @shawarmastagram with 44 followers and counting. For Kim, eating shawarma is not just a

meal; sinking her teeth in shawarma “can only [be described] as a divine indulgence.” The shawarma provides Kim with physical sustenance, but also social, emotional and spiritual fulfillment. Eating chicken shawarma reminds her of “Tuesday nights in early November on the steps outside WU, slowly eating shawarma and surrounded by friends (some shawarma lovers and some shawarma-hating heathens).” She has rallied a community around the humble shawarma, and full disclosure; I am one of her converts. But before you try the shawarma—and I genuinely hope that you will—a warning. The chicken shawarma is not so much an ABP wrap, and more closely resembles a Chipotle burrito. Stuffed to the brim with fragrant chicken, juicy pickles, and tangy sauce, the shawarma is massive. Yet the spinach wrap shows no cracks. The shawarma is nutritious, flavorful, Instagrammable and delicious all at once. Similarly, Duke students juggle research, socializing, pre-med coursework, workstudy, the gym and weekly facetimes home to Mom. In this sense, the shawarma embodies the quintessence of a Duke student—the one who balances it all. To be sure, effortless perfection is a real problem at Duke. However, I believe what helps students maintain balance is Duke’s uniquely collaborative environment and the communities they have built. The spinach wrap for the shawarma is what our friends, professors and advisors are to us; warm and welcoming, yet supportive and

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substantial. Like Kim, for me there are few greater joys than a delightful dinner of shawarma and mashed potatoes on the steps outside WU with my close circle of shawarmalovers. The weight of a toasty, pillowy shawarma warms my hands, and the fragrance of pepper, spices, garlic and char irradiates this chilly evening. Brilliant coral clouds ripple across an inky sky as I lose myself in the folds of the shawarma. I ride a lime-green surfboard over zesty aioli waves to Flavortown, entering a world that is not of substance, but of texture, of pleasure, of bliss. I forget my sorrows, my joys, the policy brief I haven’t yet written and my belongings, left behind in Rubenstein for this journey to the spiritual realm. Eating shawarma is an otherworldly experience: the crunch, then the chew of the wrap, the juices of a well-marinated chicken and dashes of lemony aioli dancing in my mouth. The happiness of being lost in the sauce lingers even when only crumbs remain. This was at the same dinner in early November with Euwan Kim. We may eat our shawarma differently (I like pickles, she doesn’t), but we can both agree on one thing; Farmstead’s chicken shawarma is “like something out of a movie... and it is beautiful.” Jessica Luan is a Trinity first year. Her column runs on alternate Wednesdays.

Revere one another T

his semester, I’m teaching a class at the Divinity School called “Deep River: Howard Thurman, Spirituality, and the Prophetic Life.” It’s one of my favorite classes to teach because while it engages my mind, it also nourishes my heart. I believe Howard Thurman’s wisdom will lead anyone to that “inward sea” that overflows into an “outward sanctuary.”

in the Fall, a religious biography called Howard Thurman and the Disinherited came out. Most recently, a biography Against the Hounds of Hell was published. PBS has even broadcast a documentary about Thurman called “Backs Against the Wall.” There are so many ways to learn about Thurman these days—from books, documentaries, or other online archives

Luke A. Powery COLUMN Thurman was a mystic, a prophet, a pastor and a professor. An ordained Baptist minister, he was named one of the twelve most important religious leaders in the United States in 1953 by Life magazine. Ebony magazine called him one of the 50 most important figures in AfricanAmerican history. He advised civil rights leaders from Martin Luther King, Jr. and James Farmer to Pauli Murray and served as dean of the chapels at Howard and Boston Universities. As one on the cutting edge of crossing boundaries, he even cofounded the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco, California, an intentionally interracial congregation in the 1940s. He blazed trails for future generations on so many levels. His trail even led to Duke. In 1979, Thurman came to Duke Chapel to speak; you can find his sermons in the Duke Chapel Recordings Digital Collection. In recent years, there’s been a resurgence of scholarship on his life, work and thought. Last summer, there was an essay collection published, Anchored in the Current, and

such as the one at Boston University. One way that you can learn about Thurman and his relevance for today is through the Chapel’s Duke Chapel Reads initiative. We will be reading Thurman’s Jesus and the Disinherited together as a community during this semester with a culminating conversation with Thurman scholar and Emory professor, Walter Fluker, on April 6. I say all of this to invite you to explore the thought and life of Howard Thurman. Growing up during segregation, the reclamation of his humanity, his Black humanity, was critical. But he never denied anyone of their humanity. This was foundational for him and deeply rooted in Black Christianity. As his grandmother, a former slave, told him, the key message of slave preachers to the enslaved was in short: “You are not slaves. You are God’s children.” This child of God loved the ocean, oak trees and penguins. He was known to have a huge smile and a belly-shaking laugh. He had access to dignitaries and known educators such as Mary McLeod Bethune

whom he eulogized when she died. He traveled the world, even meeting Gandhi, but he always had his feet on the ground as a human being. When Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, in his memoriam for him, he said that we are “not quite human yet” but “becoming human.” That theological message–“becoming human”–was the source for his life’s work as he strove toward the formation of a beloved human community. This is why he centers his attention on the human Jesus and “those whose backs are against a wall” in Jesus and the Disinherited. He believed no one should be denied their humanity and all people are children of God. Every person, even the oppressor, even an enemy, is a human being created in the image of God. Rather than seek revenge, Thurman calls us to revere. Revere one another. Honor the image of God in one another. Being in each other’s presence should bring forth reverence, not repulsion. This approach would reshape our politics and ethics as a human community and revolutionize our values. This humble approach would lead us to honor the presence of the other and the presence of the divine within each and every other. On the second day of my Thurman class this semester, after watching the PBS documentary about him, we discussed the film as well as his autobiography, With Head and Heart. One student made an insightful observation as we reflected on all of the people that spoke in the documentary and the people Thurman names in his autobiography who touched his life and influenced him in some way. This student said that in the film there were the ‘big name’ civil rights leaders talking about

him because he was a pastor to them, but in Thurman’s book, he didn’t just mention the people of notoriety. Thurman talked about ‘regular’ common folks, everyday people in his life, who made an impact on him—his grandmother, his mother, a teacher and more. In fact, Thurman dedicated With Head and Heart “to the stranger in the railroad station in Daytona Beach who restored my broken dream sixty-five years ago.” Thurman dedicates this book about his life to a stranger! This stranger, this unknown individual, impacts his life so much that he testifies that he ‘restored my broken dream.’ This stranger saw a young person, a young Thurman, in need, and did what he believed was right—help a stranger. Little did this stranger know that he would restore Thurman’s broken dream. And by dedicating his autobiography to the stranger who helped him years prior, Thurman reveres him. It’s a reminder to never forget what one little gesture of reverence can do to someone’s life forever. It’s a reminder to never forget those who have revere you and how their reverence for you changed you or gave you some hope to carry on in the weary world. In these times of great loss and death all around due to a pandemic or just due to the normal course of life, I encourage you to revere others as you remember those who carry broken dreams with them everywhere they go, because a small act of reverence may be all that is needed to restore a broken dream. Rev. Dr. Luke A. Powery is the Dean of Duke University Chapel. His column runs on alternate Mondays.


dukechronicle.com

16 | MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

NCCU

LITERATURE

FROM PAGE 2 have fun, but we have to think about health first and try to slow down the numbers.” Brittany Cowan, a current NCCU senior and co-editor-in-chief of the Campus Echo, the university’s student news organization, said that students selected for pool testing can get their test at the student health building or gymnasium. “My dorm has to do mandatory testing this week,” Cowan said. Students have a three-day period to complete their testing, Cowan said, and a failure to do so results in a referral to the university’s Office of Student Conduct. She acknowledged the importance of being safe and following protocols, but also the struggles of this year. “It’s a little disheartening, especially for people like me who [are] seniors graduating in May,” Cowan said. She lamented the loss of both the end of her junior year and all of her senior year, and also expressed sympathy for her classmates who haven’t been around as long. “I understand a lot of the frustration going around right now, especially for firstyear students who haven’t experienced what life at NCCU is really like,” she said. Student life amid the pandemic can be especially difficult in the spring term, when students would be attending normally basketball games and Spring Fling. As for covering this school year as a student reporter and editor, Cowan said that most of the Campus Echo’s coverage has been about the coronavirus pandemic. Sports writers, for instance, have been publishing about cancellations related to COVID-19 cases among players. “We’re working on several pieces about how freshmen feel and about mental health, because that’s very important as well,” Cowan added. The pandemic has also affected the way Cowan and her fellow student-journalists do their work. This year, all interviews are virtual, whereas a typical year would see reporters visiting sources in person, she said. “It’s something we have to adapt to especially as young journalists during these times,” Cowan said.

in a kind of existential wound as a way to heighten our sensitivity, permeability and exposure to the world. Many of our practices shape us to desire autonomy and coherence in our identity, but there’s something about melancholy which forces us to acknowledge that suffering actually affects us. There’s a way to relate through negative aspects like grief or anger, instead of trying to repress or deflect these emotions. We have a tendency to define ourselves as stable subjects in contrast with incoherent “others.” I’m wondering if anguish and melancholy can help us distance ourselves from that and

The Chronicle

better future is a heightened attentiveness to the suffering and violence that gets inflicted FROM PAGE 2 on people. I also think that often, people have really good intentions, but even with his narrative from the mid-19th century as well. In addition, when [President Joe] those intentions, certain forms of violence, Biden and [Vice President Kamala] Harris erasure and ignorance of people’s grievances won, Biden said something along the lines and concerns can repro. of “America’s back.” So this misplaced I’m at a place now where hope is not what optimism about recuperating an ideal [that I’m interested in hope but rather energy or has never existed] has been repeated across even just openness. One of the reasons I’m the aisle and over time. so interested in literature, aesthetics and TC: Relatedly, what do you find music is because we find melancholy beside problematic about popular conceptions other aspects. In music, for example, there’s of America as existing in a post-racial era? melancholy but also joy and beauty and How can the narrative that creation involved. I’m using the term we’ve mostly solved our racial “kinetic anguish” to describe this problems act as a limit to real Many of our practices shape us to desire idea: “anguish” gets at the suffering progress? but “kinetic” gets at the possibility of autonomy and coherence in our identity, but JW: It’s precisely in moments ongoing movement. when we can actually reflect there’s something about melancholy which TC: You use the work of on the fractures, conflicts, forces us to acknowledge that suffering actually prominent writers such as Toni and enduring conditions of Morrison, Ralph Ellison and W.E.B. affects us. There’s a way to relate through violence and suffering in order Du Bois as examples of the Black to change things that rhetoric negative aspects like grief or anger, instead of literary tradition of exploring loss comes in and says that this trying to repress or deflect these emotions. and tragedy. What are some of the is somehow a deviation and most important themes you came something needs to be restored across in this tradition? instead of changed. Ideas of U.S. JW: When I was reading these Joseph Winters authors, I noticed three really exceptionalism and progress, Alexander F. Hehmeyer associate professor of religious studies and African conceptions that [former important things. For one, in the and African American studies President Donald] Trump is just titles of their books, notions of hope an aberration, get reproduced and melancholy don’t have to be subtly through commercials, film, music, and find new ways of being in the world—an opposites. As a matter of fact, these authors political and civic rituals. anguish that’s about acknowledging wounds say that we have to recognize both together. There are certain discourses in popular but also acknowledging possibility at the The second thing is the relationships between culture—such as Kendrick Lamar’s album same time. art and politics. I’m not suggesting that Section.80, which pushes back on the popular TC: You use the specific phrase “the agony there’s an easy relationship between the two, romanticization of the 80’s—that exemplify of progress”. How do you posit that hope, but these authors’ engagement with things the reckoning that we need to have with specifically, can exist in the absence of optimism like racism, sexual violence, patriarchy or our history. There are also ways in which and through this recognition of anguish? capital draws from aesthetics like music or activism, with slogans about remembrance, JW: I’ve actually changed my view on poetry. I’m really interested in how aesthetics help us keep negative events in our memory, hope a little bit since writing the book. But can open up new ways of understanding to prevent us from wilfully forgetting or in the book, I recognized that hope itself problems in the world. And lastly, reading reconciling some of these things. acknowledges a kind of doubt in the same these authors gave me more confidence in TC: Instead of this vision of America, you way that faith does. If we think of hope as Black literary sources. In academics, we’re contend that we must continuously grapple the expectation of some desired outcome for educated to think that certain kinds of with notions of loss and sorrow in order to a better future, there’s always the possibility sources, particularly in the Black literary move forward. Can you further explain this that things can turn out in a way we don’t tradition, are somehow secondary or not idea? What can you say about the productive want them to. In the book, I’m trying to as formative as Eurocentric discourses that value of confronting negative emotions? say that if we want to think of alternative make up Western thought. For me, reading JW: What’s important to me is recognition possibilities to the present, there’s an these authors’ works showed me that they of loss and melancholy as an ethical practice. implied hope that things can be better. This have a lot to contribute in transforming the I’m interested in vulnerability and openness hope is a little amorphous, but I wanted to way we think about the familiar topics of to the “other.” Ultimately, I’m interested suggest that one of the prerequisites to a humanity, time, memory and possibility.

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