April 13 2018

The

PROMETHEAN Vol. 31 Issue IX

The Student Voice of Siena College Since 1938

April 13, 2018 newspaper@siena.edu

A Meditation on Borders with Luis Alberto Urrea

By Emily Rhoades, Academic & Social News Editor

On March 15, 2018, Siena College proudly hosted Luis Alberto Urrea, a bestselling novelist and poet, as the 31st Martin Luther King Jr. speaker on Race and Nonviolent Social Change. Siena began the lecture series in 1988 “to preserve the legacy of the nonviolent human rights movement as it was expressed in the life of teachings of Martin Luther King Jr.,” according to the series’ mission statement. A self-described “border writer” with an American mother and Mexican father, Urrea writes and speaks on a number of topics, including borders and bridges, cultural differences and the importance of art.

Dr. Lisa Nevarez, chair of the MLK Lecture Series, explained why Urrea was chosen to speak. “The MLK Advisory Board selected Luis Alberto Urrea due to his strong commitment to social justice,” she said. “We were happy that several classes at Siena read one of his novels, his nonfiction work “The Devil’s Highway,” or a short story in preparation for his visit. Mr. Urrea spoke on issues surrounding the U.S.-Mexico border, and this is a new angle for the lecture series and one that is keeping with the mission of the lecture series.”

The 31st Annual Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King lecture took place in the Sarazen Student Union the same evening.

In a room overflowing with students, faculty and local community members, Urrea took the stage to deliver his lecture titled “Universal Borders: From Tijuana to the World,” during which he discussed his Mexican-American identity, racial divide and the power of art. Born in Tijuana in severe poverty to an American mother and a Mexican father, he moved to the United States at age four when his neighborhood was overrun with tuberculosis.

Urrea acknowledged experiencing a “border identity” early in his childhood because he was ordered not to tell people he was from Tijuana, had tuberculosis or had been poor out of shame. “So now I tell everybody that, on purpose, to silence that shame and guilt,” Urrea said.

During his lecture, Urrea spoke about confused current political narratives and anti-immigrant sentiments. “People don’t understand the folks who seek solace and shelter here in this country,” Urrea explained.

He connected his observations back to the concept of the border. “The issue of the border is a strange one for an author. All authors are border authors because it’s about liminal space, it’s about barriers between us as human beings,” he said. “I happen to come from that place, but I am telling you, if you’re at all honest, any time you see an audience,

Schick removed the old text, put in Urrea’s writing, and brought in a ballet troupe from Tijuana to dance. The solo flutist, Urrea added, was an undocumented flute player who crossed the border every day for flute lessons. The same composer, Schick, had also recently staged a border concert on the fence between San Diego, California and Tijuana, Mexico using thirty American and thirty Mexican musicians. On opposite sides of the border, the musicians played the hourlong piece “Inuksuit” by John Luther Adams.

“He conducted by a video and they raised a symphonic piece together that could be heard regardless of guns, walls or fear,” Urrea said.

Though he discussed political tension and racial divide throughout the lecture, Urrea ultimately focused on the power of art in the face of division. “There’s got to be a better way. On either side of the line, there’s got to a better way. So I thought maybe we could do it in story,” he said. “Perhaps there’s a chance that everything else is failing us. Force doesn’t work, politics doesn’t work, co-optive religion’s not working. What’s going to work?”

Urrea asked the audience. “Maybe only, right now, art and song and hope and each other.

Maybe we can understand there’s no ‘them’ out there. There’s only ‘us’ out there. Maybe we can help each other.”

If students are interested in learning more about Luis Alberto Urrea, his website Photo by Larry D. Moore CC BY-SA 4.0 is www.luisurrea.com. His most recent novel, there are border fences running all the way “The House of Broken Angels,” and other through.” bestselling works can be purchased online

He also talked about his personal and in bookstores. experiences with racial divide and discrimination growing up as a young Mexican-American. When he moved into a white, working-class suburb in California, his family was the first mixed family in the neighborhood. Urrea shared an anecdote of the first time he felt ashamed for his Mexican On March 21 and 22 – Siena’s Giving Day American identity. In fifth grade, one of his – the Siena community showed their love for friends called him a racial slur that shattered Siena Saints and made history. Siena’s Giving his sense of self. “All of my friends suddenly Day is an online 24-hour fundraising challenge became a jackal pack, you know, a hyena pack. that rallies together anyone who is connected ‘Greaser, greaser, wetback, wetback,’” Urrea to Siena to raise money for current and future said. “You know what it’s like when you’re a students. Ours was extended from 24 hours to child. You absorb those things, as our children 37 hours in honor of Siena’s founding in 1937 are absorbing things right now. And I was which gave us additional time and challenges ashamed, maybe for the first time in my life, for to encourage more donors to participate. We just being me. I thought it meant that we were surpassed the original goal of 321 donors and covered in grease that we couldn’t see, that set a new record for the highest number of only those people could see,” he explained.

Giving Day donors in the six-year history. Over “I actually took off my shirt and looked at 650 alumni, parents and friends of the College my undershirt to find the grease, and I could made a gift to the Siena College Annual Fund not find it. I spend my life talking in front of during the 37-hour event. strangers and many of them are young Latino/

The day consisted of exciting Latina kids. And they are ashamed, they are challenges and goals from John T. Leonard embarrassed, they are threatened. I know ’64, Jason Gottlieb ’92, Dr. Derek ’98 and how they feel. They hear it every time they Trustee Dr. Nimmi Trapasso ’98, Bill Bordak turn on the television,” Urrea said. ’03 and Michelle Annese ’85, Student Life

Urrea emphasized the importance Administration (Karen Keis, John Benn, of art bringing people together when he John Felio, Maryellen Gilroy and Jeanne described his recent participation in a classical Obermayer), Bill ’90 and Miranda Lia P’19, music experiment in San Diego. Celebrating Russ and Jill Irving ’85 and an anonymous the 100th anniversary of a piece called “The Cont. on page 2 Soldier’s Story” by Igor Stravinsky, Steven

Siena Giving Day Success!

April 13, 2018

Editorial Board Emily Radigan Editor-in-Chief

The Promethean

Academic & Social News | 2

Academic & Social News

Alexander Colby Assistant Editor Emily Rhoades Academic & Social News Editor Jaymie Hoelldobler Arts & Entertainment Editor Mahima Dhanekula World News Editor Julianna Sebastian Sports Editor Karin Lin-Greenberg Faculty Advisor

Editorial Policy The opinions and views expressed in editorial and opinion columns are solely those of their author and do not represent the views of The Promethean staff or of Siena College. Any response to an editorial without intent to publish should be submitted directly to the author of the article. If you wish to send your reaction to The Promethean or its Editor-in-Chief, it falls under the guidelines of Letters to the Editor. Letters must be no longer than 700 words. Submission to the paper does not guarantee publication.

Opinion and editorial articles submitted are edited strictly for basic spelling and grammar only.

The editorial board reserves the right to make any and all decisions and editorial changes on newspaper content, with the final decisions belonging to the Editor-inChief. Any changes besides spelling and grammar will be run by the author before publication.

Article Submission Guidelines The Promethean reserves the right to deny publication of any article that is deemed by the Editor-in-Chief to be • Slanderous or libelous • Advocating violence or harm to any person or group of people • Advocating discrimination of any sort • Advocating performance of illegal actions • Improperly researched and cited • Lacking sufficient journalistic integrity References must be formatted in AP style and will not be accepted in any other form.

Statements made as fact in letters to the editor and editorials/opinions are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Promethean, its staff, or Siena College.

Next Issue: April 27 Article/Advertisement Deadline: April 18, 2018

Siena Students (left to right) Bea Cruz, Kayla Campaña, Amber O’Reagan, Chris Offerman and Julia Berger with Father Michael, a friar at the St. Francis Inn Photo courtesy of Sophia Henneman

“Siena Giving Day Success!” cont. from page 1 donor. We saw an unprecedented response from young alumni, especially the most recently graduated class of 2017 who tied for the highest number of donors from a specific year. Also, the first 100 donors making a gift of $100+ on Giving Day received a limited edition, original brick from the front steps of Siena Hall which sold out within the first hour. It was a very exciting day and a success in raising money for Siena.

The Annual Fund team would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to all supporters of Giving Day and the Annual Fund throughout the year. Feel free to check out siena.edu/ givingday to see donor names and also more information on results and challenges. Also, there is still time to make a difference – all gifts until May 31 will go directly to work for this academic year. For more information on the Annual Fund or to make a gift, please visit siena.edu/makeagift.

Spring Break Trip to the St. Francis Inn

By Sophia Henneman, Staff Writer

Work clothes? Check. Sneakers? Check.

Rain jacket? Check. After going through a final rundown of everything I needed for my service trip to Philadelphia, I knew I was ready for a fun and rewarding week. In Philadelphia, nearly 30 percent of the population is living in poverty. The Franciscan Center for Service and Advocacy plans several service immersion trips throughout the academic year, one being to the St. Francis Inn in Philadelphia. I’ve had the privilege of going to the St. Francis Inn twice, the second being our recent spring break.

The inn has several services that people in need can utilize. The most well known is the soup kitchen, but they also have a thrift store, a women’s center and a clinic that volunteers are able to spend time in. During the week, I was able to spend a day in both the women’s center and the thrift store. The women’s center is a place that women can come and do laundry, take a shower, talk and just hang out in a safe space away from the stresses they are having in life. Another resource for the guests is the thrift store, which is not like a typical

thrift store. Guests get a voucher every two weeks for a shirt, pants, underwear and socks and they can come in and pick out what they want at no cost to them. They can also pick up items like coats, towels, purses and shoes less frequently.

After we arrived in Philly, we went on a short tour of the Inn and got an overview of the services they provide. The neighborhood where the inn is in is definitely underprivileged, which is shocking to see at first so close to home. You hear about poverty in the United States and we encounter a lot of it in the Albany area, but working so closely with that level of poverty is a whole new experience.

As we made our way up the sidewalk past the century-old buildings that line the streets, we make it to the building that was once a corner bar and is now a place of peace for residents, the St. Francis Inn.

I spoke with one participant on the trip, Kristina Dettori ’19 about her experience at the inn, since it was her first time there.

When describing her first impressions, Kristina said, “When I first got to the inn, I saw some used needles on the ground as I got out of the car and immediately knew this was an area that had drugs. I questioned myself and said what did I get myself into?” However, Dettori described that after working at the inn for only one day, her doubt about coming to volunteer was erased. She explained, “It wasn’t until the next day when we actually got to go inside the inn and do work that I felt like this place was special and that there was nothing but love to be offered. As the Sunday meal went on, I couldn’t help but understand that the guests were for the most part happy to have food and had so much gratitude and respect for all the volunteers at the inn.”

It shows that walking into the St. Francis Inn during a meal demolishes all preconceptions to what a soup kitchen is.

The tables are set up restaurant-style, and the volunteers, like us, wait on the guests, which is a big part of the identity of the Inn. They want every guest to feel valued and that we are equal brothers and sisters. Thanks to this, we get to interact with the guests on a personal level during the meals. When describing her favorite interaction with a guest, Kristina said, Cont. on page 3

3| Academic & Social News “Spring Break Trip” cont. from page 2 “I had many memorable interactions with guests more than I thought I would. My most memorable interaction had to have been with Richard, a guest that has been coming to the inn daily for years now. Every day he would come for the evening meal and I would always say hi to him and every day he had the biggest smile and would say, ‘Hey! How are you?’ and I would say, ‘I am good, how are you?’ and he would respond ‘I’m good, you know why?....

Because you’re here!’ Those daily interactions with Richard would make me so happy and make me excited for the next day... To see him so happy each and every day even when he is in a position where he needs to be coming to the inn for food, he finds a way to be positive.”

While we were at the inn, the lead friar Father Michael came and had a talk with us about the history of the inn and stories of guests. He started the talk by telling us that, “You all are a part of an intense minority in the U.S. Less than half of 1 percent of people in the US have actually had a conversation with a homeless person.” At first I was shocked, but then I realized that this statistic isn’t really that surprising. Without seeking out the service opportunities I’ve gotten, I would be a part of the 99.5 percent. He then told us stories about guests at the inn that gave many of us a whole new perspective on poverty and homelessness. Regarding the issue of homelessness and poverty, Kristina said, “People need to remember that the same way ourselves and our friends have their own story, so do people who are poor or homeless.

The guests at the inn all have stories of how they ended up where they are and many times it wasn’t their choice. We are all born into our families not by choice, it just happens, the guest didn’t choose to be born into a life that would have them ending up eating at the inn… and it doesn’t mean they lose their humanity.”

If this article makes you want to visit and volunteer at the inn, there is still a chance.

There is another service immersion trip from May 26 to June 2, so stop by the Franciscan Center in Hines Hall for more information or to sign up.

Study Abroad: Williamsburg, Virginia

By Courtland Ingraham

Many of us Saints have enjoyed time studying abroad, but last semester I enjoyed “studying back in time” to Colonial America in Williamsburg, Virginia! Last semester I participated in the Semester-in-Residency program offered by the National Institute of American History and Democracy (NIAHD) at the College of William and Mary. I was one of only four history students across the country to participate in the program this semester and I am the fifth student from Siena to have completed the program. As a part of the program, my courses were all about Colonial American history. I learned about topics ranging from the story of Virginians and how they prepared and participated in the American Revolution to looking at Virginia’s plantations and how they have told the stories of enslaved people then and now.

My favorite class I took was a weekly travel course where we would get in a van and travel through time as we went to historic

The Promethean sites across the state of Virginia. With this class, I got to see many things I had only before encountered in the history books. We explored places such as Jamestown, Yorktown and the Great Dismal Swamp and visited the homes of many founding fathers including George Mason, Harry “Lightfoot” Lee and Patrick Henry. We even ended our semester at Mount Vernon, home of George Washington, which fulfilled a dream of mine as I continue my studies in presidential history. The friends I made in my program and through my classes and experiences are ones I will carry with me lifelong.

A major component of my experience during the semester was an internship at Colonial Williamsburg. My internship was working as an interpreter (it’s a technical term because they’re “interpreting history,” while many outside the field may use the term “reenactor” to describe my role.) As a costumed interpreter, I would dress each day of my internship in appropriate period attire.

I was amazed by the amount of research that goes into creating each piece, from the breeches and buckled shoes to my cravat and three-cornered hat. It was a lot of fun being able to bring myself into the period this way, allowing me to interact with visitors in a unique way.

I took on the role of an 18th-century apprentice as I learned the role of a printer’s apprentice. I learned many of the skills germane to the needs of the tradesman and even the everyday person. Some everyday tasks I learned ranged from starting a fire with flint and steel. Some were more tradespecific, including operating an authenticstyle printing press in front of guests each week and typesetting using authentic methods to reproduce pages five and six of the Virginia Gazette from October 13, 1775. My typesetting project from the semester is now on sale at Colonial Williamsburg, beginning on my last day of interning. Other things I learned included assembling ink balls, paper dampening, teasing wool, maintenance of the shop and the proofing and corrections process appropriate for the time. While at the printing office, I also gave tours to some William and Mary student groups, including ones from their German program and friends I made living on campus last semester. It was a lot of fun being able to bring other students into my world and the world of our colonial ancestors. Through research and experience, I had a great time stepping into the role of somebody from the 18th century and I learned a lot about what it means to be a historian in a public history environment.

Along the way, I also participated in the community at William and Mary. I met so many great friends in my residence hall from many different places who will be lifelong friends. I got involved with the campus radio station, WCWM 90.9, and even got on the air with a radio show, similar to my time at WVCR at Siena. I participated in some of the campus traditions from their convocation to the Yule Log celebration at the end of the semester.

Getting to know the campus and community of William and Mary and Virginia was an eyeopening experience and I feel changed forever from it as a student and as a person. The old saying is “the past is a foreign country,” and that was very true as I immersed myself in the 18th century over the last semester.

April 13, 2018

“I Am Not My Father”: A Story of Peace

By Alyssa Guzman, Staff Writer

Zak Ebrahim spoke to Siena students and community members about his life as a son of a major terrorist who spent most of his life in maximum security prisons and why he was now promoting peace on April 9 in Roger Bacon’s lecture hall. Throughout the course of his life, he has moved 31 times and has been hunted 20 times for his father’s linkage to the bombing of the World Trade Center. Ebrahim started out his speech talking about radical religions, especially radical Islam, and how all followers do not follow what his father did. He continued with a story about a radical imam, an Islamic religious leader like a Catholic priest, who believed and preached that America was trying to expand her territories by using Muslim nations. He preached about materialism and sexual distraction and Ebrahim, as a young child, had no idea that this was not what Islam really was. He distinctly remembers asking his father, “When did you become such a good Muslim?” because of his father’s deep devotions to the imam’s words.

He would not figure out how wrong he was until years later.

Ebrahim recounted how he didn’t know loss until the Afghan War when his best friend was forced to leave his New Jersey home to go back in the war. His friend had no military experience and his only job was to throw grenades at the enemy. He also remembered another friend of his grabbing a knife and pointing it at him, saying, “I would be doing this country a favor if I killed you.”

This is where Ebrahim learned to be cautious about who he told his story to. However, the most problematic experience for Ebrahim was going to the shooting range with his father and his father’s friends. They were practicing hitting targets and at one point, young Ebrahim hit the yellow-orange light on time of the target. His father’s friends remarked, “Like father, like son,” in Arabic and he would not realize until years after that they meant he had the same sense of destruction in him as his father did. The men who said this, who he looked up to greatly, would later be caught putting explosives in the North Tower of the United Nations.

The Jewish Defense League is the largest terrorist group according to the United States government. Ebrahim would not know his own father’s power of destruction until the moment his father assassinated the leader of the Jewish Defense League. Later, his father would participate in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, where his father would be arrested for his involvement. His father was angry at what was happening to his own people and could not contain that anger, which led his crimes.

It was years later that Ebrahim received an email from the Bureau of Prisons, stating that his father wanted to communicate with him. He accepted, finally ready to receive the answers he’s always wanted. He learned that his father supported his endeavors to support peace and that he too was on his path to peace. Inside those prison walls, he promoted peace toward the Arab-Israeli Conflict, a Cont. on page 4

April 13, 2018 “I Am Not My Father” cont. from page 3 conflict that continues to rock the Middle East today. Ebrahim reported that his father expressed regret for his crimes after years of preaching his innocence inside the prison.

However, his father’s ideology was still too narrow for Ebrahim, who said, “I no longer needed his answers and that set me free.”

At the end, Ebrahim stated, “I am not my father. The son does not have to follow the ways of his father. Sharing my story has given me a sense of purpose.”

Women’s Panel on Law and Government

By Madison Lemke, Staff Writer

The Pre-Law Society kindly hosted a Women’s Panel on Law and Government, a panel of successful women in law that shared their experiences as well as educated others about the profession. The panel spoke on March 19 in The Norm where many gathered to learn their stories. The voices heard were Dr. Mary Lynch, Barbara King Esq., Elizabeth Marcuccio J.D., Jennifer Kavney Esq., law student Delaney Rives, and Alita Giuda, Esq. The once male-dominated profession has been seeing a revamp in gender equality.

Though the women expressed that there are many obstacles in being a woman in law, it has been a remarkably rewarding job. Students, faculty and others in the profession attended as a way to show support and understanding.

The women optimistically explained how the profession has seen many changes over the years. New outlooks and perspectives are interested in making law a more diverse atmosphere.

Throughout history, women in law have not been taken seriously because they have been seen as weak and uneducated.

Professor Elizabeth Marcuccio knows this fairly well due to past experiences. While she shared her story, she explained how a client once asked for a male attorney to be on the case rather than Professor Marcuccio. Her experience was not shocking at the time since comments like these, sadly, often occurred.

This client was not the only person skeptical of her career; her father was as well. He believed that she should get married rather than work, she replied by going to graduate school. Marcuccio has seen that as time went by, society has been more open-minded with the idea of change and diversity within law.

The change has made Professor Marcuccio and many other women in law hopeful for their future and others as well.

Siena alumna, Delaney Rives ‘15, who has a different perspective since she has just begun her journey in law, told the audience that her peers have not treated her in an inappropriate manner. Rives explains how although she has not been aware of such behavior within her peers, she has noticed that male coworkers who are close to retirement fall victim to making sexist remarks. That generation has yet to adapt to appropriate workplace behavior. Rives has not personally experienced this, but she makes a point to inform the audience of women of color and the experiences that they have encountered.

Although she did not go into detail, she remarks how her coworkers that are women of color face harsh treatment due to their

The Promethean profession.

While on the topic of adversity in the field of law regarding gender, Dr. Mary Lynch, a professor at Albany Law for 30 years, noticed that a local judge has helped tremendously with sexual assault. With the help of judges, the gender discrimination has been able to improve greatly. Dr. Lynch has seen the change as well as Professor Marcuccio and feels encouraged by it. Another panelist, Jennifer Kauney, voiced another narrative when she spoke about the advantage of being a woman within law. Kauney had a late start in law when beginning her career in construction law at 40. She was open about the fact that it has been easier for her given the fact that times have been changing for the best when it comes to women in law. She felt as though firms want diversity within law. She has also noticed that firms have encouraged women to be more involved in such a male-dominated field.

The informative panel is held annually and is open to anyone who is interested. The Pre-Law Society also holds other events for those who would like to explore the field of law. They hold information sessions on the pre-law program and Mock Trial team, as well as a pre-law mentoring event. They also will be hosting several discussions related to the topic of free speech.

The Electoral College: “The Appendix of the United States”

By Alexis Oldfield, Staff Writer

Two out of the past three United States presidents have lost the popular vote in the presidential election, including our current president. The United States Constitution’s Electoral College system has allowed for such a phenomenon to occur. Since 1804 when the 12th Amendment was ratified, America has used the Electoral College to dictate the presidency. However, the three most recent elections force many to pose this question: why are we still using the Electoral College?

On Tuesday, April 3, Dr. François Furstenberg delivered a presentation on campus that compelled the audience to question the essentialness of the Electoral College and why it is still in use today. Dr. Furstenberg is a specialist in early American intellectual and social history and is a professor at John Hopkins University. He is also the author of two books, “In the Name of the Father: Washington’s Legacy, Slavery, and the Making of a Nation” and “When the United States Spoke French: Refugees Who Shaped a Nation.” His current project is working on the study of the notion of the American dream from the colonial period to Donald Trump.

Dr. Furstenberg began his discussion Tuesday night with the origins of the Electoral College as a basis into the effects it has on today’s America.

Furstenberg first explained that in the beginning, all states carried the same amount of votes. This is contrary to today where the amount of electoral votes differs from state to state, depending on the population of each state. He made the point that since its roots, the Electoral College has been a “mess.” He did acknowledge that while the founding

Academic & Social News | 4 fathers may have been geniuses, they misjudged the outcome that would result from the implementation of the Electoral College.

During this time in U.S. history, the president would be chosen by the person who received the most votes and the vice president was the person who received the second most votes.

As with the Electoral College, this was an outof-date system that needed to be adjusted for the changing times. Furstenberg noted that by the year 1800, everyone realized that this system was a mess.

A main point in Furstenberg’s presentation was how arbitrary United States’ state borders and admissions into the nation truly are. He told the audience that the Constitution says extremely little about the adding of new states to the country.

Furstenberg made the claim that the addition of a new state was only done so to correct an immediate problem that was occurring at that time in the nation’s history. This led him to pose the questions: why did we stop adding states once we reached 50? He brought up the fact that parts of Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, have been without power for six months and that this most likely would not be the case if it was the 51st state of the nation.

“The Electoral College has been an obsolete institution for over 200 years,” stated Furstenberg. He asked the audience why as a country we still use this system and gave the answer that it could not be for states’ rights.

His reasoning for this was that only thirteen states pre-exist the constitution and the other 37 exist because of it. The constitution was created for an entirely foreign country: the United States of the 18th century. “If I had a sore throat, today, would I treat myself with 18th-century medicine? Would I go get some leeches?” Furstenberg joked to get his point across. Before opening up the discussion for questions, he concluded his presentation with reminding all that because of the Electoral College, two out of three of our last elected presidents lost the popular vote, and that perhaps we don’t deserve any better.

Siena Students Make Masterpieces of the Mundane in Annual Juried Art Show

By Kiera Mitru, Staff Writer

From April 9 through April 12 in the Foy Hall lobby, students put their artistic visions to the test in the Annual Juried Art Show.

Students, regardless of major, were invited to submit pieces of art for a panel of judges to score, critique and rank. The reception and awards ceremony was conducted the evening of April 12, surrounded by the pieces students submitted.

The students whose work is included in the show, in no particular order, are Logan Hall, Gabrielle VanDeWater, Kaitlin Ventarola, Sierra Curtsinger, Erica Foley, Harim Minhas, Emily Jewell, Griffin Lawson, Leo Dohmann, Kaiti Ryan, Mackenzie Cox, Kristin Ludwicki, Kaitlin Gallaugher, Naomi Esteves, Kelvin Zheng, Patrick Cornell, Mary Ellen Nicolay, Neele Steegmann, Isabel Martinez, Brandon Bienvenue, Colin Stein, Karissa Massicott, Tia Cont. on page 5

5| Arts & Entertainment

The Promethean

Arts & Entertainment

“Annual Juried Art Show” cont. from page 4 Brown, Daria Czapacki and Mackenzie Franck.

Each student that entered into the art show brought forth a different perspective, which made for a diverse and unique collection of art. The assortment of art ranged from mediums such as black-and-white portraiture to sculpture made from recycled maps to edited video clips spliced into loops. Some students took a merely artistic spin on the work they submitted, others included hints of social or religious commentary.

The works fit right into the airy and wide space of Foy Hall’s lobby. Colin Stein’s rotation of video clips, in particular, gives the space a familiar contemporary art museum feeling, as the voices projecting from the computer monitor float around the lobby area, almost giving the viewer the feeling that they are not alone when visiting the display. The Siena students involved in this art show bring forward the creative lens with which they see what others may perceive to be mundane. For example, students capture in varying ways the beauty that can be found in the intricacies of the way shadows or silhouettes of a building may fall, or the keys of a saxophone. Some of the featured artists even find the beauty in the faces of their fellow students and present them in black-and-white photographed portraits.

Opening up creative showcases such as these to the entire student body allows students to express artistic creativity that they may not otherwise be able to share.

This exchange of ideas is important to Siena’s campus culture, as it opens up a discussion to the positions of other students coming from different backgrounds. Siena’s campus is one that is accepting and willing to discuss and appreciate the differences that appear between individuals and the Annual Juried Art Show provides the community another chance to do so.

Who is A Boogie wit da Hoodie?

By Maria Gigliello, Staff Writer

On March 9, it was announced that this year’s Sienafest performer would be rapper A Boogie wit da Hoodie. It seems like Siena has a habit of bringing in small-name rap artists for Sienafest, and A Boogie is no exception. From personal interactions, I realized that the Siena community did not seem overly thrilled after the announcement of this year’s performer, so I’d like to give some insight into who A Boogie really is and what we might expect from him in a week.

It could be said that A Boogie is basking in success after an absolute breakout year in 2017, and on April 3, 2018, he was awarded five plaques from the Recording Industry of America. His hit single “My Shit,” went platinum this past August, followed by “Drowning” going platinum in December and “Jungle” and “Timeless” going platinum in March 2018. His debut album “The Bigger Artist,” also became certified on March 5, 2018.

For being only 22 years old, this is quite the impressive feat. Life hasn’t always consisted of champagne and celebrations for A Boogie though. Born Artist Julius Dubose, he claims

that he was just a regular kid in high school who was never really noticed. According to Newsweek, Dubose often got into legal trouble as a teenager selling marijuana and narcotics. Because of this, his parents sent him to Florida as punishment, and he eventually graduated a performance-based preparatory academy. After graduation, Dubose began working odd jobs including construction and pizza delivery in order to make ends meet while still working on his lyrics and rap music.

Where does the name come from? Dubose chalks it up to watching the 2002 American crime drama “Paid in Full” every day when he was a young teenager. He recalls earning the nickname “A Boogie” due to his raps and always wore hoodies so the two names came together and stuck. However, one day he hopes that everyone will know him as his real name: Artist.

His career really started in 2016 with his first single “Temporary.” Only 19 at the time, he received some criticism for his lack of rap flow, but after hiring a singing coach, the single was produced and met with mediocre success. In February 2016, he realized a mixtape titled “Artist” and was soon after included on Forbes’ list of up-and-coming rappers. In May 2016, Dubose released a collaborative project with rapper Don Q and went on to have three opening sets on Drake and Future’s Summer Sixteen Tour. By July 2016, Dubose was signing a deal with Atlantic Records. In June of 2017, he was named as one of the ten of XXL’s “2017 Freshman Class” and by September, his debut album “The Bigger Artist” dropped. The album included a slew of hip-hop heavyweights— Chris Brown, Trey Songz, Kodak Black and 21 Savage. “Drowning” featuring Kodak Black could be easily argued as A Boogie’s biggest hit so far and peaked at 38 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

A Boogie wit da Hoodie will be performing on Friday, April 20, in the MAC, and doors will open at 7 p.m. To purchase your tickets, head to tickets.siena.edu.

Why You Should See “Unsane”

By Miguel Porter, Staff Writer

Even with its late March release date, “Unsane” may end up being one of the most unnerving and uncomfortable movies of this year. It’s a low budget thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh about a woman who is dealing with the lasting effects of having a stalker. The film takes a lot of risks artistically, rumored to be shot entirely on an iPhone 7 Plus. The camera angles within the film put the viewer in a place where they are encroaching on the personal space of the characters onscreen. Either the shot is distinctly focused on a character’s face or from a somewhat obstructed view. One of the opening shots has the viewer watching the main character through bushes.

The story begins with the main character, Sawyer, settling in her new job in Pennsylvania after moving from Boston. Though she has moved to an entirely different state, one can see that she is still greatly impacted by her experience with her stalker. She still sees him everywhere she turns, even though she

April 13, 2018 knows that he isn’t there. Realizing that this isn’t a healthy way to live, she seeks counsel, someone to voice her issues to. A quick Google search sends her to an organization that seems to be exactly what she is looking for. After talking to a psychologist, she feels good, until she ends up signing herself up for a 24-hour observation period in their mental hospital. After lashing out when she once again believes that she sees her stalker, she is admitted for a longer period of time and the viewer is left questioning the reliability of their narrator.

The movie also has a couple of compelling underlying storylines as well. The first is the critique of the healthcare system in America.

Sawyer is baited into talking about suicidal thoughts by the psychologist she speaks to, and once that happens, the hospital then has grounds to keep her for a 24-hour observation period. And they most certainly will, as long as her insurance pays for it. Nothing can be done about it, as long as an examiner checks a few boxes, it is completely legal. Even when Sawyer’s mother calls in lawyers, there is nothing that can be done. It’s not right, but the hospital is working within the system to bring in as many patients as possible to fill their beds and make them as much money as possible. Outbursts and anger are treated with pills that cause side-effects that change the mood and energy levels of patients, which are then treated with…you guessed it, more pills.

“Unsane” also has important things to say about what women go through, not just in extreme cases, such as having a stalker, but just in everyday life. For example, inappropriate jokes made in the workplace or a boss making very suggestive talk about a work trip to New Orleans as the camera zooms in on his wedding ring. In a flashback, we see Sawyer speaking to an expert about the “practical” steps that she must take now that she is living with a stalker. From deleting all social media to him suggesting that she get out of the way of all pictures being taken by friends and family. The film succeeds in not just creating an uncomfortable narrative, but making the viewer uncomfortable about the things that we just accept as regular in real life.

“Infinity War” to Make Cinematic History

By Maxwell Arieda, Staff Writer

This summer is going to go down in cinematic history. Maybe the most anticipated film for this year is “Avengers: Infinity War.” The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been building up for this film since 2017 – and it will stretch over two films. Even with two previews, a lot of mysteries are unexplained.

This article will simply fill in everything we know so far.

There have been two official trailers released. The first video had 230 million views in its first 24 hours online (and at least half of them came from rewatching it in slow-mo to look for clues). Not much is revealed. Marvel relies on secrecy in their marketing to hype up audiences without risking spoilers. However, Loki is seen with the Tesseract and at the very end, we’re treated to Thor meeting the Cont. on page 6

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World News

“Infinity War” cont. from page 5 Guardians of the Galaxy gang.

Our second look at the film came during Super Bowl 2018, including a look at Captain America’s new shield. The second trailer also gave us more insight into Thanos’ plans. It focused on his relationship with Gamora (Zoe Saldana), even showing her as a little girl hanging out with her adopted father. As for the superhero count, no one is exactly sure.

Marvel has kept quiet on the complete cast of “Infinity War.” It was originally estimated to have 67 characters showing up over the course of the movie and its follow-up – with 40 superheroes reportedly on screen in one scene. That accounts for pretty much all the MCU’s existing stars, and presumably some we have yet to meet.

Playing the main villain in the piece, we have Josh Brolin’s Thanos, who will hopefully be subverting Marvel’s villain problem by serving as the “main character” in the film.

With all that, it comes as no surprise that “Infinity War” is on track to be the longest MCU movie yet. First billed as a two-part movie, with “Avengers: Infinity War – Part 1” being followed a year later by “Avengers: Infinity War – Part 2,” the latest seems to be that Marvel is drawing a more rigid line between them. The first movie will be simply “Avengers: Infinity War,” and will be released worldwide on in the UK on April 26 and in the US on April 27. The second film is currently known only as “Untitled Avengers” and will be released a year after.

This movie is also making history in the economy. “Infinity War” has already broken ticket pre-sale records. “Avengers: Infinity War” could also end up being the most expensive movie made so far! With a budget of $400 million, topping the current frontrunner “Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” which tallied in at $378.5 million in 2011.

Whatever happens in the movie, you can bet that this will not be the end of the Marvel Universe. Not that anyone would ever want to take that bet. We’ve got a superhero future growing in front of us. With the rivalry between DC Comics and Marvel, more heroes and villains will spawn.

Quoll Species Returns!

By Nadia Kasianczuk, Staff Writer

After 50 years of being considered extinct on Australia’s mainland, the Eastern Quoll has made a return. Foxes and larger animals, as well as a mysterious cause, had taken a toll on the population this species, starting in the 1900s. A project called Rewilding Australia worked with Australian National University (ANU) and Booderee National Park staff.

Quolls are about the size of a pet cat, with white dots. They are carnivorous marsupials, and while they have been considered extinct in Australia’s mainland since the 1960s, they have still been populous in Tasmania. Twenty of the quolls were flown from Tasmania to the Booderee National Park in New South Wales, Australia, during the week of March 14, 2018.

The quolls sent to Australia were

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specifically bred to withstand the climate there, hoping to be able to adapt to this environment to successfully breed and repopulate there. They eat insects, mice and rats. They are good climbers and very shy.

Hopefully, their climbing abilities will allow them to escape predator threats. It is hoped that the population will increase to 120 within the next couple of years. The Booderee National Park has attempted to control the fox population there for the last decade, which is why the park was chosen to place the quolls in.

Quolls are considered to be good for the ecosystem, as they regulate the mice, insects and rats that they feed upon.

Reintroducing these quolls to Australia will be a determining factor of whether or not native, extinct animals can still survive there even with a low predator population.

Australia has suffered one of the greatest loss of mammals than any other continent.

The quolls had GPS collars placed on them so that they could be monitored, according to ANU researcher Dr. Natasha Robinson. She also stated that foxes inside and outside the park will be monitored in order to limit the danger foxes present to the quolls.

Australia has slowly been making attempts to reintroduce a number of extinct mammals back to their mainland, beginning in 2014 with the Long-Nosed Potoroo and the Southern-Brown Bandicoots in 2016. Both of these animals were successfully reintroduced to the Booderee, again due to their successful ways of controlling predator populations.

Booderee National Park Manager Dr. Nick Dexter says the quolls have stayed close to the place of which they were freed, according to their GPS collars and motion detectors in the park. They can remain in close proximity to that point, which may be concerning. Darren Grover, World Wide Fund for Nature officer in Australia, said “Most of the carnivores lost from the mainland are gone forever, it’s not possible to bring them back, so this is a rare opportunity,” according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

We will see what happens as the Eastern Quolls continue settling in the Booderee National Park. Let’s hope for the best in seeing Australia succeed in bringing a carnivorous mammal back to their mainland!

Stephen Hawking Dies

By Erin Morrell, Staff Writer

On March 14, theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking died at age 76. Having been diagnosed with a degenerative muscle disease at the age of 21, Hawking proved that living is more than the body itself. Hawking enjoyed studying cosmology most and is most famous for his theory called “Hawking radiation” explaining that black holes expel radiation.

He was as famous as any culture star and was an icon in the scientific community. His life was full of things to praise and things to be thankful for.

He was the son of Frank Hawking, who was a prominent research biologist, and the

Wo r l d N e w s |6 oldest of four siblings. He began at University College Oxford when he was 17 wanting to pursue mathematics, but settled for physics.

He enjoyed and intuitively understood theories in mathematics and physics leading him to graduate with a degree in physics at age 20. He then entered the University of Cambridge when a momentous change occurred. Hawking was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease, formally called ALS. This disease slowly paralyzed him causing his daily function to be limited: he used a wheelchair and a voice synthesizer after a short time with the disease.

Against the estimates that he would only live for a couple more years, he was able to study and participate in his life to the full extent. He did most large calculations in his head and went on explaining his concepts and equations for others to write down. His famous calculation, published in 1974 in the journal “Nature” entitled “Black Hole Explosions?” is marveled by scientists as the first great feat in a uniting theory to explain the natural world.

His career took off after this and he achieved fame for his work throughout the scientific community. In 1988, he published his most famous book, “A Brief History of Time,” which has now sold more than 10 million copies. At Cambridge, he held the position of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, the very same place previously held by Sir Isaac Newton.

He had at least 12 honorary degrees and was awarded the CBE in 1982. His fame has been acknowledged by the public too and his roles in famous TV shows also announced his success to those who were unaware.

Living to the impressive age of 76, he had plenty additional prides besides his work.

He was married twice, left three children behind, as well as three grandchildren. He got to do things that many people with ALS would never be able to do. He traveled often and got to visit every continent, including Antarctica, during his lifetime. He traveled in hot air balloons and participated in zerogravity simulations. His life inspired a movie called “The Theory of Everything,” in which he was portrayed by Eddie Redmayne. According to his children, he said, “It would not be much of a universe if it wasn’t home to the people you love.”

Women are a Majority in Tasmanian Parliament

By Mahima Dhanekula, World News Editor

Tasmania, Australia’s smallest state, has elected a majority of female Members of Parliament. The state held its elections on March 3, and the results were released on March 16, 2018. It has become the first state in Australia’s history to do so. Thirteen women and twelve men were elected to the lower House of Assembly. In contrast, Australia’s federal parliament is comprised of 70 percent men. Only nine women were elected to the Tasmanian parliament in the previous election, which took place in 2014. The island state is known for its rugged landscape and many national parks. It has a population of just over a half a million people. The upper house holds separate elections, and still has a male Cont. on page 7

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Politics & Opinion “Tasmanian Parliament” cont. from page 6

majority, although this result is encouraging for women in politics.

Tasmania has seen many female leaders in the past few years. Lara Giddings became the first woman to hold the position of the Premier of Tasmania from 2011-14.

When asked to comment about the results, Giddings said to ABC News, “That just shows what a turnaround from when I was first elected back in 1996, when it was still a novelty to be electing women to parliament.”

Giddings has since retired as the leader of the Labor Party in Tasmania, and this position is currently held by a woman as well, Rebecca White. The current governor of the state position, which is the second most important position in the Tasmanian government is also held by a woman. Jenny Morris, a member of the group Women for Election, called the result “absolutely thrilling,” and said that the result would encourage more women to enter politics in the future.

The World Economic Forum’s 2017 Global Gender Gap Index ranks Australia 35th in the world in terms of female representation.

Just over a quarter of the world’s members of parliament are women, and 47 percent of countries have had a woman as their head of state. The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) also elected a majority female parliament in 2016, although it is not a state.

This election favored the conservative Liberal Party government, under the leadership of Premier Will Hodgman. Michelle O’Byrne, who is the deputy leader of the opposition Labor Party, said that affirmative action policies had played a role in helping

the women to obtain the seats. Seven of the ten Labor Party seats are occupied by women after this recent election. O’Byrne said, “It does show that if you want to change the make-up of parliament, then putting in the rules also helps change the culture that encourages women to be involved in politics.”

The Australian Labor Party has a 40:40:20 gender quota in its constitution, which means that a minimum of 40 percent of the seats need to be held by each gender. 30 percent of the Tasmanian Members of Parliament currently from the Liberal Party are women, as are both of the MPs elected last month from the Tasmanian Greens.

NYS Tipping Laws

By David Le Blang, Staff Writer

Like most services in the hospitality industry, restaurant waiters and waitresses, for the most part, make tips on their performance on top of the wages which their employer pays them. In these cases, the employer elects to pay their waiters and waitresses a lower fixed wage, under the belief that their tips will cover the difference between what they are paying them, and the actual minimum wage. However, depending on the situation, at times what a waiter or waitress earns in tips barely covers, or doesn’t even cover the difference between the wages paid and the minimum wage. In a potential resolution of this, there is always controversy whenever a restaurant opts to pay minimum wage (or a livable wage) and drop the tipping system for their employees. Is this the right approach, or does tipping represent something more?

In my opinion, this is a very tricky

April 13, 2018 argument to attempt to tackle. For starters, the tipped wage (which federally is set to a minimum of $2.13/hr) is obviously not enough to live off of. In order to cover this, the tip credit law comes into play. The tip credit law says that any tipped employees must, at the end of the day, make their respective state’s minimum wage. For the most part, the tips an employee makes would cover this. If they do not, the employer must cover the difference and pay up to the minimum wage to the employees that do not make the cut through tips. This is where the problem sets in: most states’ minimum wages aren’t enough to live off of either.

On the opposite side, most restaurants operate under tight conditions, where they’re only able to stay afloat if they save money through paying their tipped employees lower wages. An increase in wages paid could lead to higher prices, and even a decrease in the amount of jobs available in the waiting industry. Certain studies have shown that as the fixed wage increases, the number of hours tipped employees get decreases, and one study has shown that if the tip credit were to be eliminated, jobs in the restaurant industry would decline nationwide. For restaurants, this would be detrimental to their ability to continue operating.

There are, however, select cases where abuse of the current system exists.

Certain employers force their employees to over-report tips, then under-pay employees in order to save money in this system. While this may be rampant or seclusive, and while there may not be enough evidence to justify this point, the fact that it happens is enough to be able to claim that it is a legitimate concern to those who are relying on what they make in this service to live.

Cont. on page 8

April 13, 2018 “NYS Tipping Laws” cont. from page 7

For employees who work in the restaurant industry, tips mean everything.

Tips are meant as a gesture of gratitude from the customer to the server for an exemplary job in doing their service. While it may be their job to do this, there is definitely a wide variety of levels of performance in doing this job, and a server deserves to be rewarded for their performance. However, in this lies another problem: everybody knows about the tipping laws. We all know waiters and waitresses are being grossly underpaid to do their jobs, and due to this, tipping has completely lost its meaning. No longer is a tip handed over with a commendation in service, it is handed over out of pure obligation because we know they rely on what we are giving them in order to make a living, and because it has become customary in our society to leave a tip with each meal. Instead of being able to tip waiters or waitresses when they impress us, you are now ostracized if you don’t tip at all (unless you’re Mr. Pink.) A tip isn’t a tip anymore; it’s their wage.

So where does this leave us in the grand scheme of things? Should tipping laws be revised, or should they be nixed completely? Does the problem lie in the tip itself, or does it lie in how high the bar called ‘minimum wage’ is in every state? This is a problem I cannot answer. What I can answer, however, is what a tip is meant to be, and why they matter. A tip is meant to be a tip for good performance and service, not our contribution to the wages which the employee should be making, regardless. Although this is ideal, we all know it will never be this way. Tipping is completely arbitrary, and there are too many factors which go into it for me to elaborate on here. Things such as age, gender, weight, height, personality, performance, etc. are only a small amount of the large list of things which go through a customer’s head when they decide how much money they are going to leave on the table. I will leave with this: the fact our society has established a corporate restaurant chain dedicated to only hiring women with large breasts shows how far we have to come before we can ever re-establish the true meaning of a tip ever again.

Tenured Siena Professor Gets Away with Discriminating Against Conservatives

By Nicole Commisso, Staff Writer

On March 20 at Siena College, a tenured philosophy professor, Jennifer McErlean, used her Siena College email account to send a disgusting and discriminating email to an alumnus of Siena College. In this email that McErlean directed towards a student, she openly discriminates against conservative students at Siena, targeting two in particular – one of them being myself, Nicole Commisso. In her own words, McErlean states that conservatives on campus “are a small band” and the “description of them feeling threatened borders on the ridiculous.”

Judging by the massive amount of feedback from conservative students after this matter, we are certainly not a “small band” as McErlean ignorantly believes. McErlean also dares to say that threats to conservatives on campus are “ridiculous.” How easy it must be

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Responses?

Comments?

Letters to the Editor?

Email newspaper@siena.edu for a tenured, biased, leftist professor to say in her Siena bubble that is fiercely protected by the Siena Administration.

Personally, as the sole conservative writer on The Promethean, I have received countless verbal and physical threats on campus just because of my unpopular, outspoken right-wing views. The largest controversy over one of my op-ed pieces, “White Privilege: Injustice Does Not Fix Injustice,” was the so-called “insulting, false, provocative letter” that McErlean is referring to in her email. She claims that when someone like Nicole (myself) writes a piece like this “[conservatives] really cannot complain when there are strong responses.” Now, I definitely expect strong reactions from the pieces I write and I know that the majority of this campus will disagree with what I say. However, threats towards a student are unacceptable and should not be considered “ridiculous” by a professor. If you do not believe me, take current student Kylie Mason’s word for it as she was an RA during the publication of my article, “As an RA and as a politically neutral individual, I have personally seen and reported harassment that Nicole has faced due to her opinion pieces in The Promethean. I do not think anyone should be threatened based on their views.” Whether individuals want to believe it or not, there were reports and threats towards me just for not agreeing with the leftist agenda on this campus.

Professor McErlean, you should be ashamed of yourself for condoning this sort of behavior at Siena College and claiming it should be expected when someone has a differing opinion other than yours. You have clearly shown that there is a widespread liberal/leftist bias on Siena’s campus because you are still teaching to this day. Instead of the administration protecting the students, they are protecting your slip-up and your job.

You have exemplified everything that is wrong with educational bias and discrimination with your email. You have insulted what you call the “small band” of conservatives at Siena, condone threatening tactics being used towards conservatives on campus, and admit to being miserable to the very thought of working with a student who has conservative views.

I never said and never will say that McErlean does not have the right to say any of these things. She has the right to her own opinion, as do I, and as does everyone on this campus. In our great country, McErlean has the right to say these disgusting, arrogant things.

However, just because she has this right, does not mean there should be no consequences to

P o l i t i c s & O p i n i o n |8 her actions in the position of power she holds.

Consequences to bad actions like these are how you filter out bad people at institutions and in society. An institution like Siena, that strongly values things like diversity, social justice, etc., needs to hold this professor accountable for her actions. No professor should ever be allowed to trash students based on their beliefs and get away with it by continuing their career without having any sort of disciplinary action taken against them. The fact that there has been no statement issued to the Siena Community in regard to this matter, no sort of punishment, or any justice being served is absolutely absurd and disgraceful of Siena’s administration and President of Siena College, Brother Ed Coughlin.

Brother Ed has taken the political climate at Siena into his own hands on many different occasions by emailing the entire Siena Community and spewing his leftist opinions on certain political topics. Whether it is an email against President Trump’s policies, or claiming the weeks after the outcome of the 2016 election were “challenging times,” he clearly has not been shy when it comes to emailing to community about political matters – when he sees fit. Has Brother Ed sent out an email in regard to the McErlean email where she discriminates against students at his college?

Nope, nothing. Not one word on this matter stating that Siena does not condone this biased behavior from a professor. There needs to be a precedent set, to show that discrimination towards any student on campus will not be tolerated, including political beliefs and values. Although, by the Siena administration not making a peep about this and hoping it will “wash away,” I suppose the precedent was set in this situation. They have made it clear that the leftist agenda will persevere, regardless of professors getting caught openly discriminating against conservatives for just that – being conservative.

Us unapologetic conservatives on this campus, and even those not on the right who believe this is wrong, will not stop until justice is served — not for Antonio and I, in terms of being targeted in the email from McErlean on her Siena email account — but for every conservative student who has been discriminated against at Siena for being conservative.

Email Starts Controversy on Campus

By Emily Radigan, Editor-in-Chief

On Tuesday, March 20, a screenshot of an email posted to Facebook started a campus controversy. The email, written by Dr. Jenny McErlean, philosophy professor, was addressed to alumnus Daniel Sleasman ’68 and had a current student, Antonio Bianchi ’19, cc’d. In the content of the email, Dr. McErlean referred to the latest issue of The Promethean and stated to Mr. Sleasman that he now had “a strong blast” of what school personnel was dealing with, referring to students such as Bianchi.

McErlean went on to state her belief that Bianchi overemphasizes the number of conservative students who share his political positions. She also expressed that she finds Bianchi’s description of conservative students Cont. on page 9

9 | Po l i t i c s & O p i n i o n “Email controversy” cont. from page 8 feeling threatened implausible. Referring to an unspecified article by Nicole Commisso ’19, Promethean Staff Writer, McErlean states that one cannot complain about strong responses when writing a letter which she described as “insulting, false, provocative.”

McErlean’s email then goes on to state that she withdrew from a committee, presumably the School of Liberal Arts Civil Discourse Working Group, stating that she was unhappy on it, having to think about ways to work with students such as Bianchi.

She continued on to say that this withdrawal would allow her to protest at a conference, presumably the upcoming “Let Freedom Ring” campus conference. She stated that she feared a lack of physical protest at the conference would indicate that Siena was generally happy with the slate of speakers at the conference and there would be “no acknowledgment of how evil these organizations are.” It is not clear whether McErlean is referring to the organizations the conference speakers represent or the organizations hosting the conference. McErlean declined to comment for this story.

Bianchi, who was referenced in the email and cc’d on the email, posted a screenshot of the email (with emails of those included blocked out) on Facebook in a public Facebook post that Tuesday night. He cited it as an example of bias and discrimination against conservative students and stated, “In the email, she condones threatening tactics being used on conservatives on campus, insults myself, my members and our organization.”

He called for Siena students who do not identify as liberal to email McErlean that they exist and they matter also. At the time of writing, Bianchi had not responded to The Promethean’s request for comment.

Commisso, the other student referenced in the email, responding to a request for comment on these events, stated, “Professor McErlean used her Siena email to type up a discriminatory email against conservative students and the administration at this school has still yet to condemn this bias[ed] behavior from a professor. The conservatives on campus, which McErlean claims ‘are a small band,’ as well as many others in the Siena Community will not stop until justice is served — not just for Antonio and me, in terms of being targeted in her disgusting email — but for every conservative student who has been discriminated against on this campus just for being conservative.”

Commisso participated in the WBEN 930 radio show, “The Financial Guys,” to discuss the email and surrounding events.

The screenshotted email and post were re-shared on Facebook and disseminated to other social media platforms, where it caught the attention of many Siena students, as well as those outside of the Siena community. Several outside media outlets have since covered the story, including Breitbart, Campus Reform, the Washington Examiner and the Libertarian Republican, among others. Student leaders and members of various conservative clubs on campus have participated in interviews on the topic on shows such as NRAtv.

On March 22, copies of the screenshotted email were placed under doors in several of the dorms, which violates the Siena College posting policy. On April 5, Zachary Butler ’19, shared an open letter to the Siena community

The Promethean via email and Facebook posts to Siena College class groups, as well as his personal timeline.

In the letter, Butler references the email by McErlean and takes responsibility, along with another student, for posting copies of the email in the dorm. He states, “We did not do this for attention or to offend anyone, our goal was simple - to keep the dialogue going.

We feel as though these issues brought to the table by this incident go far beyond the limits of the political spectrum.” He attached a form where community members could share their concerns, which Butler stated he would like to present to the Dean of Students.

Editorial Policy The opinions and views expressed in editorial and opinion columns are solely those of their author and do not represent the views of The Promethean staff or of Siena College. Any response to an editorial without intent to publish should be submitted directly to the author of the article. If you wish to send your reaction to The Promethean or its Editor-in-Chief, it falls under the guidelines of Letters to the Editor. Letters must be no longer than 700 words. Submission to the paper does not guarantee publication.

Opinion and editorial articles submitted are edited strictly for basic spelling and grammar only.

The editorial board reserves the right to make any and all decisions and editorial changes on newspaper content, with the final decisions belonging to the Editor-inChief. Any changes besides spelling and grammar will be run by the author before publication.

Statements made as fact in Letters to the Editor and editorials/opinions are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Promethean, its staff, or Siena College.

On March 25, the President of the College, Brother Edward Coughlin, sent out an email to the community that seemingly addressed some of these events. The email stated, “The open exchange of ideas and opinions ought to be highly valued in all academic communities. However, academic freedom and free speech are not absolute rights. They do not give license to be disrespectful or demeaning. It does not give permission to isolate or discriminate. At the same time, the College’s support for open dialogue does not imply endorsement of ideas and perspectives that are at odds with the core values of this community.”

In the email, Br. Ed also encouraged the community to reflect, especially when in the midst of disagreement. He stated, “In those moments, we might ask ourselves three questions posed by the Franciscan Master Bonaventure: is my behavior respectful of the other? Am I searching for truth and open to truth when it may be found? Even in the face of disagreement and discord, do I strive to care for the other as a brother or sister?”

As a Franciscan institution, in such times as these, it is important to remember and value the human dignity of each individual person.

April 13, 2018 The email also informed the community about the creation of a campus forum series, titled “No Easy Answers.” The stated purpose of the series is “to promote considerate and civil discourse.”

On April 10, the first forum in “No Easy Answers” was held, with a focus on the topic of free speech on college campuses. The forum featured a panel of three professors: Dr. Leonard Cutler, Professor of Political Science, Dr. John Cummings, Dean of the School of the Science, and Dr. Donna McIntosh, Chair of the Social Work Department and Professor of Social Work. Dean of Liberal Arts, Dr. Lara Whelan, moderated the panel, which was open to audience questions and commentary.

Definitions of hate speech, restriction of free speech, the place of free speech and civil discourse within a learning environment and guidelines for campus speakers were some of the many topics discussed.

Over the next academic year, there will continue to be forums in the “No Easy Answers” series where similar topics will be discussed. Hopefully, the series will succeed in its mission and produce productive and civil discourse among both students and faculty members of all political ideologies.

Response to “March for Our Lives: More Like ‘March for a Political Agenda’”

By Jennifer Gbur Hello, Nicole.

Thanks for your interesting views on a difficult topic, but I just want to make sure that I understand your argument correctly.

You’re saying that an organization made up of the survivors of a recent mass shooting is wrong in politicizing the massacre in order to argue for safer gun regulations. Furthermore, the real victims in this situation are supporters of the 2nd Amendment and the NRA, because the safety measures proposed by the survivors could infringe upon what is largely considered a Constitutional right for citizens to own guns.

And finally, to ensure that no respectable gun owner is unjustly discriminated against, more should be done to take guns out of the hands of the mentally ill.

Let me start with your claim that it’s “disgusting and wrong” to politicize a tragic event like this. What about President Bush and his cabinet using the events of September 11, 2001, to their political advantage? They got the entire US and many of our allies to support a global war perpetrated on false evidence and conjecture. By the way, have you ever been to war? Because I have. Have you ever seen the damage a firearm can do to the human body?

Because I have. It challenges your views on things… like the 2nd Amendment.

Do you know what the 2nd Amendment was for? Article 1 section 8 of the US Constitution gives Congress the authority to “raise and support armies,” and militias were formed to supplement the armies when needed. Because the militias consisted of able-bodied men age 16-60 (and these men were expected to own their own weapons, since they could be called to help defend the young nation at any time), the militias were not equipped by the government. If a unit did not have the requisite number of guns to Cont. on page 10

April 13, 2018 “Response” cont. from page 9 arm everyone, they were confiscated from the rightful owners for militia use. So, the 2nd Amendment was a way for The People to guarantee that they would be able to “provide for the common defense.”

At one point, you bring up Fox News.

They’re probably not the best source on which to base an argument, since there is a lot of controversy surrounding how they present information. The Columbia Journalism Review states there are two inherent problems with Fox News’ reports: blatant misrepresentation, and bias of story selection. And according to a 2003 study by the University of Maryland, Fox News viewers are more likely than consumers of any other news source to believe demonstrably false statements. Then there’s this: a ‘political analyst’ for Fox News, Frank Luntz, admitted his primary objective is to “exploit the emotional content of language, and to get people to react based on emotion [not fact].” He even admitted: “I am much more interested in how you feel than how you think.”

About the often-cited, erroneous claim that the mentally ill pose a threat to others: the National Alliance on Mental Illness found that only 4% of all violent crimes (not just gun violence) is attributed to mental illness.

(According to the Mayo Clinic, a mental illness refers to a wide range of disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior, including eating disorders and addictive behaviors.)

Contrast that with the shocking statistic that approximately 90 percent of those who commit suicide suffer from some form of mental illness. Therefore, in reality, those with mental illness are more likely to harm themselves than others.

So, what’s the answer to this situation?

I honestly don’t know, but the animosity and fear-mongering is not helping. Everyone is so angry lately. Displaying anger is easy, but what’s beneath it? What’s causing all this hatred? We need to identify and confront the source of the anger before moving on to anything else. We need to start a dialog, and maybe that’s what the Marjory Stoneman Douglas students are trying to do.

Respectfully, A very concerned citizen

Men’s Basketball Coach Patsos Being Investigated

By Emily Radigan, Editor-in-Chief

Recently, news surfaced that Siena Men’s Basketball team head coach, Jimmy Patsos, was being investigated for Title IX violations against a student with a mental disorder. First reported by the Times Union on April 4, the complaint, filed in February, alleges Patsos verbally abused the student, who was a team manager for the Men’s Basketball team. This complaint launched an investigation, which is currently underway and being conducted by an outside law firm Siena has retained. Since then, other issues which may be cause for investigation have since surfaced, as part of the end-of-season review, including coaches’ and managers’ potential forging of student signatures on per diem vouchers and improperly withholding payments from student athletes.

After the story broke, Patsos held a press conference on Friday, April 6, where

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Sports

he denied the allegations of abuse and any knowledge of improper handling of per diem payments. At the time of writing, Patsos is still on the Siena College payroll while under investigation. It is yet to be announced whether charges will be filed against Patsos, either by the College or by students.

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Summer Session • Catch up or get ahead • Online and on-campus courses • Three different sessions to choose from • $164* per credit

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Siena College Cuts Field Hockey Program: A Letter from the Sports Editor

By Julianna Sebastian, Sports Editor

In my time as Sports Editor at The Promethean newspaper, I never thought I would have to be reporting about a sport at my school being cut due to budget reasons. As I respect and acknowledge the decision of the Athletic Department, which I assume was not an easy one to make, I cannot imagine what it would be like to have my entire team cut from a college athletic department.

Being an athlete here at Siena on the swimming and diving team, I am aware of what it is like to be considered a “lower-tier” sport on this campus. It is not always easy to get the changes necessary in sports that do not bring in revenue for the school, but I suppose I am lucky to say that my team is still practicing on this campus and I will be able to finish my four seasons here at this school.

For the 17 freshman, sophomores and juniors on this team along with their one senior, Siena cutting the program starts a process of looking for another school to compete at, or making the difficult decision to end their fieldhockey careers this way.

When the team ended their season in early November, the team soon after was without a head coach, going into off-season training without a main leader. However, the assistant coach of the team took over the reigns as head coach during this time. The Siena Athletic Department let the women on this team know that their program was being cut in early March, almost five months later, and an article was published on the sienasaints.com website on March 12, releasing to the public what was decided regarding this program’s fate. The ladies were brought into a meeting where the Athletic Director, John D’Argenio, told them that they would not be able to continue their sport at this school and would have to look elsewhere and transfer if they wanted to continue or finish their athletic career.

The reasoning the women were given on why their team got cut is that Siena College

itself does not have enough money in its budget to build a turf field that is suitable for field hockey to be played on. Siena College’s strategic plan that is referenced by D’Argenio, called Tradition. Transformed., calls for an aggressive analysis of both academic and nonacademic programs throughout the school and decided which ones ensured efficient and effective delivery to the college itself.

This apparently also includes Siena’s current and future student body. So, aligned with this strategic plan, the field hockey program was cut. However, field hockey’s status as an “associate sport” and the inability to fund the program well influenced the decision.

The turf field here at Siena College is suitable for some of the schools’ Division 1 sports to play on, but specifically the field hockey team here at Siena was one of six schools in the country where the team itself did not play on Astroturf, which the sport explicitly calls for. Because of this, Siena Field Hockey played a majority of its games on the road or at an alternative location found by the school that had an Astroturf field.

The Athletic Department acknowledged in its sienasaints.com article that it has put the team itself at a disadvantage. The Athletic Department is, fortunately, honoring the scholarships of those who choose to stay at Siena College as long as they stay within NCAA regulations of being a student-athlete.

The letters of intent that were signed are also being honored and assistance will be provided to anyone on the team who wants to transfer.

Even though this is a truly saddening thing that is happening at Siena, it is important to note that colleges across the country are doing the same thing: cutting well-known programs at schools because of lack of funds.

It is quintessential that students, alumni and faculty of schools support their athletic departments outside of the school’s major sports. “Second-tier sports” or “lower-tier sports” are fun and exciting, and often not as well-known. I urge you, as a lover of sports, the Sports Editor of The Promethean and as a student-athlete myself, that no studentathlete wants their career to be cut short because of this reason. So please, support your college’s (or past college’s) sports as much as you can, because most student-athletes dream of playing their sport in college all their life, so do not be the one to stop that dream.

11| Upcoming Events

Let Freedom Ring 4/15 9am

Massry Commons Pre-registration required. Presented by Turning Point USA, Young Americans for Liberty and College Republicans.

Pendragon Gallery Event 4/15 12-4pm

SSU 243 Artwork, readings of written work and refreshments.

Study Abroad in France Info Session 4/15 7pm

Siena Hall 120 Presented by the French Club and Office of International Programs.

Career Opportunities within Consumer Marketing 4/16 12:35-1:20pm

Key Auditorium (RB 202) Presented as part of the School of Business Lecture Series Program. Presented by Christine Kerwick Wiker ’78.

Let’s Talk About Sikhism 4/16 6:30-7:30pm

The Promethean

Upcoming Events Straight as an Arrow, Straight but Not Narrow

4/18 11am-4pm

The Quad Straight As An Arrow, Straight But Not Narrow is an annual event that PRIDE-GSA puts on to not only teach about what it means to be an ally but to show just how many allies the Siena community has!

Annual Hickey Lecture: Job Quality in New York State 4/18 5-6pm Key Auditorium (RB 202)

Graduate Essay Workshop 4/18 5-6pm

Key Auditorium (RB 202) Join us next Tuesday to hear from four leading UK institutions on their business graduate degrees! Representatives from University of Manchester, Newcastle University, University of Edinburgh, and University of Leeds will each present their own business graduate programs and how YOU can gain experience through a graduate degree abroad!

Master Planning Steering Committee Student Input Sessions 4/17 1pm and 5pm

Maloney Great Room (SSU 240) The Master Planning Steering Committee wants to hear student input on what YOU want Siena to look like in 10 years from now!

All are welcome and encouraged to join in on these conversation sessions.

Fr. Ken Paulli Book Reading 4/19 4-6pm

Maloney Great Room Fr. Ken Paulli, O.F.M., recently published “Outside the Walls: Encountering God in the Unfamiliar.”

Trashion Fashion Show 4/19 8-9:30pm

Foy Hall Theatre Come view the amazing creations of fellow Siena students. All of the creations are made of recycled materials. How far can the designers push the materials and still make it work? Come find out!

SEB Concert 4/20 7pm

The MAC Featuring A Boogie wit da Hoodie. Purchase Want to hear what Admissions Officers tickets at tickets.siena.edu expect in your Graduate Essays? Come to this workshop. Q&A included. Co-Sponsored by CEPD and the Writing Center.

Promethean Networking Event 4/18 5-7pm

The Norm Come network with professionals in the journalism, publishing and writing industries!

Assistant Dean Donna Tytko’s Book Reading 4/18

Key Auditorium (RB 202) This is a student-organized presentation about the basics of Sikhism, and who Sikhs are. It will be an educational presentation Library Room 26 tailored to students who do not have any prior 12:35-1:25 and 7:00-8:00 knowledge of the religion, and the goal of the All proceeds from book sales during the month presentation is for the students to leave with of April will go to Siena College’s H.E.O.P. a deeper insight of individuals who practice department. this religion.

International Masters Degrees in Business 4/17 4:15-5:15pm

April 13, 2018

Accounting & Finance Career Paths 4/18 7-8pm

Sienafest 4/21 All Day

History Club Trivia Night 4/24 9pm

SSU 243 This is your last chance for this semester to show that you’re smarter than your friends!

History Club is hosting a Trivia Night on April 24th in SSU 243. Teams should be no more than 4 people. There will be snacks for all and prizes for the top 2 teams!

Lunafest 4/25 7pm

Key Auditorium (RB 202) A short film festival - films made by women for women. Complimentary candy and luna bars! Presented by the Women’s Center.

Key Auditorium (RB 202) Presented by Beta Alpha Psi. Open to all undeclared business majors of all class years.

Come to hear from Accounting and Finance upperclassmenn on the many possible career opportunities with the major and their own personal experience.

Join us in a celebration of our students’ achievements.

Includes poster/project/ artwork session and honor society inductions.

Envrionmental Club Eco-Market 4/19 12:30-4pm The Quad

Take Back the Night 4/19 5-8pm

Academic Excellence Celebration 4/27 All Day Charity Dodgeball Event 4/28 3-6pm

The MAC Presented by Student Ministry Board Service Committee. Looking for teams of 8-10, $5 per person. Contact Kayla Campana at k20camp@ Located at Washington Park Lake House Buses leave at 4:30 p.m. in front of Siena Hall. siena.edu or Justin Kenyon at j12keny@siena. edu Contact Jazmin Melendez at ja08mele@siena. edu for more information.

April 13, 2018

The Promethean

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JOURNALISM & PUBLISHING NETWORKING EVENT