09.27.2017

September 27, 2017 34st.com

post

task force

september 27 2017

LOL

It’s been a particularly interesting week to be a student journalist. Not for a lack of news, of course. Anyone even vaguely paying attention to what’s happening on campus knows the students and administration have engaged in a tense, completely fascinating battle over autonomy, student protection, and social boundaries.

However, this conflict with policies, stemming from task force recommendations last April, provokes a far more interesting conversation: what does it mean to protect students? What is the school’s jurisdiction and responsibility, and have they overstepped their bounds?

I’m not mad because it's hard for fraternities to throw parties. I can’t blame Penn for wanting to combat underage drinking—who could possibly blame them for that? I appreciate the school’s efforts in protecting students, and I firmly believe there are important strides to be made when it comes to drinking and socializing safely.

However, I do have major concerns about the new policies, and I worry that rushed action will end in unforeseen consequences.

What happens when social events are pushed off campus, out of MERT's reach? What happens when going out becomes depen-

3 HIGHBROW

overheards, little penn victories

4 WORD ON THE STREET

Penn's Enforcement of the New Task Force Policies Are an Insult to Assault Survivors

5 MUSIC

Getting to know Kayvon

7 EGO

eotw, Inside One Whartonite's Double Life as a Chinese Popstar

9 VICE & VIRTUE

apple cider vinegar, bi visibility

LOL

LOL

LOL

10 FEATURE task force

14 FILM & TV

mother!, broad city

16 ARTS

“Speech/Acts” wants you to listen, street does shit: succulent

18 LOWBROW LOL

senior w goldman sachs offer, fall break

Orly Greenberg, Editor–in–Chief Dani Blum, Managing Editor Chloe Shakin, Audience Engagement Director Teagan Aguirre, Design Director Carissa Zou, Design Director Corey Fader, Photo Director Nick Joyner, Features Editor Julia Bell, Features Editor Angela Huang, Word on the Street Editor Dalton DeStefano, Film & TV Editor Annabelle Williams, Highbrow Editor Haley Weiss, Ego Editor Andreas Pavlou, Vice & Virtue Editor Talia Sterman, Music Editor Colin Lodewick, Arts Editor Claire Schmidt, Lowbrow Editor Catalina Dragoi, Film & TV Beat Michaela Reitano, Film & TV Beat Sabrina Qiao, Ego Beat Maria Riillo, Ego Beat Natalia Sanchez-Nigolian, Ego Beat Lucia Kim, Highbrow Beat Daniel Bulpitt, Highbrow Beat Angela Lin, Highrow Beat 2

LETTERFROMTHEEDITOR

Nick Castoria, Highrow Beat Paul Litwin, Music Beat Amy Marcus, Music Beat Aliya Chaudhry, Music Beat Noah Kest, Music Beat Michelle Pereira, Music Beat Jess Sandoval, Music Beat Shoshana Sternstein, Lowbrow Beat Dano Major, Lowbrow Beat Lily Zirlin, Lowbrow Beat Cami Potter, Lowbrow Beat Noa Baker, Vice & Virtue Beat Lily Snider, Vice & Virtue Beat Morgan Potts, Vice & Virtue Beat Julia Messick, Vice & Virtue Beat Jillian Karande, Vice & Virtue Beat Molly Hessel, Vice & Virtue Beat Gina Alm, Arts Beat Sherry Tseng, Arts Beat Linda Lin, Arts Beat Michaela Tinkey, Arts Beat Staff Writers: EIsabelle Fertel, Caroline Curran, Kiana Cruz, Clare Kearns, McKay Norton, Chen Chen Zhang, Brookie McIlvaine, Steph Barron, Lauren

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dent on your financial status? I can't help but admire the enormous impact the new regulations have already had—they've initiated hugely exciting and overdue conversations about the status of finances, social life, and safety on campus.

I am, ultimately, frustrated by the difficulty Street encountered when trying to write our feature. Katie Bonner, the executive director of the Office of Student Affairs, stood in front of group leaders to clarify new policies and read from a slide, “Not sure if you should register? Just ask!” Well, we’ve spent the last week trying to ask questions. And we've ended up with almost no answers.

Street had difficulty arranging an in–person meeting with any administrators, and ultimately was met by a written statement from the Vice Provost for University Life, which Street was encouraged to print in its entirety. However, the statement left us with more questions than answers. It boasted that out of the “49 applications for registered events…16 were approved.” But what happened to the other 33 events? The statement asked for suggestions from students, but only through September 30. Why the time limit? And, of course, why wasn’t a clarifying

Donato, Frankie Reitmeyer, Jamie Gobreski, Brittany Levy, Jessica Li, Maria Formoso Zack Greenstein, Design Editor Christina Piasecki, Design Editor Katherine Waltman, Design Editor Gloria Yuen, Illustrator Anne Marie Grudem, Illustrator Avalon Morell, Photo Editor Autumn Powell, Photo Editor Megan Kyne, Photo Editor Christina Piasecki, Photo Editor Emily Hason, Video Director Daniel Rubin, Video Editor Megan Kyne, Video Editor Lea Eisenstein, Copy Director Sophia Griffith-Gorgati, Copy Editor Nancy Liu, Copy Editor Kimberly Batista, Copy Editor Colleen Campbell, Copy Editor Kolade Lawal, Copy Editor Cole Bauer, Social Media Editor

statement sent after immediate student backlash emailed out to the undergraduate population? For the record, you can read the statement here. I hope you can find more answers in it than I did.

I respect my university, and I respect how difficult it is to make large institutional change. I’m proud of Penn for taking steps to make campus safer for students.

This week’s feature isn’t meant to criticize—it’s meant to disseminate information. What’s frustrating, however, is how difficult it was to gather this information.

I worry about the misinformation flying around campus. I want to keep students informed, up to date, and safe. Really, the administration and Street are on the same team. The Daily Pennsylvanian and 34th Street Magazine are the most accessible and balanced ways to receive campus news, and we want to keep providing that coverage, as cohesively and thoroughly as possible.

And if you want some more campus news? Check out this week’s feature.

Paige Fishman, Social Media Editor Hanniel Dizon, Social Media Editor Carly Shoulberg, Social Media Editor Julia Klayman, Social Media Editor Merry Gu, Social Media Editor Chae Hahn, Social Media Editor Sarah Poss, Social Media Editor Lily Haber, Social Media Editor Unless otherwise noted, all photos are by Corey Fader, Autumn Powell, Megan Kyne, Christina Piasecki, and Brinda Ramesh.

Contacting 34th Street Magazine: If you have questions, comments, complaints or letters to the editor, email Orly Greenberg, Editor–in–Chief, at greenberg@dailypennsylvanian.com. You can also call us at (215) 422-4640. www.34st.com "He's like a politician who will probably kill a hooker one day." ©2017 34th Street Magazine, The Daily Pennsylvanian, Inc. No part may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express, written consent of the editors (but I bet we will give you the a-okay.) All rights reserved. 34th Street Magazine is published by The Daily Pennsylvanian, Inc., 4015 Walnut St., Philadelphia, Pa., 19104, every Wednesday.

HIGHBROW

Photo: Janet Wilson // CC.0

LITTLE PENN VICTORIES Highbrow can be wholesome, too.

September is the season of rejection, so it seems.

Turn that frown upside–down with Highbrow’s list of little Penn victories.

1. A NORMAL, POSITIVE INTERACTION ON LO- 8. PEACE AND (RELATIVE) QUIET ON COLLEGE CUST WALK. GREEN.

None of that “wondering whether they’ll say hi or pretend they There’s a man standing on the curb with a large sign and he’s never saw you” nonsense. You both spotted each other; you know shouting. Something about free watermelon? He wants you to it, they know it, we all know it. take a slice and “have a nice day?” Wait, so you’re not going to hell?

2. A GOOD WORKOUT AT POTTRUCK.

9. INSOMNIA COOKIES.

For the first time in a long time, your sheer willpower came Your on–again off–again hookup buddy has let you down countless times, but double chocolate mint would never. through.

3. REVISED CLUB APPLICATIONS.

There’s a Google form, but it’s only one page. God is real.

4. SUCCESSFULLY BS–ING IN CLASS.

10. COFFEE CHATS AT STOMMONS.

But instead of feigning interest in what appears to be the fourth consulting club you’ve applied to this week, you’re actually drinking coffee and chatting with a friend who meant it when she said “let’s get coffee.” Follow through, my dudes. Follow through.

You may not have exactly “read” the reading, but your professor 11. DATE NIGHT WITH THAT CUTIE IN YOUR looks impressed, or at least appeased, by your contribution. Aren’t CHEM LAB. you an intellectual!

Romance at Penn is as dead as your 8 a.m. math recitation, but one can only assume this feels like a victory.

5. GRADE SALVATION VIA CURVE. A victory for you, an L for someone else. Your GPA lives to see 12. THE THREE MOST BEAUTIFUL WORDS EVER another day.

WRITTEN IN A CANVAS NOTIFICATION. “Class is cancelled.”

6. FRAT PARTY DONE RIGHT. “Mr. Brightside” just came on and no drunk chick has hit you in 13. PEOPLE WHO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PENN AND PENN STATE. the head with her elbow (yet).

One small step for man, one giant leap for everyone who has ever 7. GETTING THE RIGHT ANSWER ON MYMATHLAB been wronged by the question “Which campus?”

FIRST TRY. 14. ADMITTING YOU’VE HAD A BAD DAY. Whoever decided that "1295π/144+(πln36)/2" would make an Penn Face is a big fucking deal, and we all have problems. appropriate problem set answer is the actual spawn of Satan.

over heard PENN at

30–year–old woman: A little molly never hurt anybody.

Huntsman purist: I'm NOT going to Van Pelt. That place is for peasants.

Freshman at the Amazon locker: This is mankind's greatest invention.

THIS is why I chose Penn.

Huntsman realist: Why would I be a socialist? I'm from a socialist country.

Voice of reason(s): If you're bored, drink.

If you're not bored, don't drink.

Washed–up frat star: That "Wild Thoughts" song is my mantra. I am a wild thot.

Super washed–up frat star: I'd rather have strawberry milk right now than a hand job.

Girl outside Raxx Vintage: Tie dye just looks bad. Like, I'm gay and I STILL think it's tacky.

ANGELA LIN S E P T E M B E R 27 , 2 017 3 4 T H S T R E E T M A G A Z I N E

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WORD ON THE STREET

word on the STREET

THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE TASK FORCE'S RECOMMENDATIONS IS AN INSULT TO ASSAULT SURVIVORS

P

enn promises to keep us safe. Penn is failing: roughly one in four undergraduate women have experienced some form of sexual assault, and even more can speak to the tangible, pervasive elements of rape culture embedded in this campus. And yes, it exists in off– campus Greek life. But the campus rape epidemic extends to so much more than that tiny portion of our student body.

To exist as an assault survivor on this campus is to constantly find your experiences devalued, your trauma swept aside. CAPS takes weeks to schedule appointments; administrators ask for “proof ” of what happened to excuse you from coursework in the immediate months after assault.

The process of reporting and prosecuting assault at Penn is notoriously heinous. The University, as an institution and as a community, demands that you push aside your grief. But I’m constantly reminded of what it means to be a survivor.

I’m not allowed to forget.

There’s the paradox of surviving rape at Penn: you know you’re not alone, but you feel abandoned. You see reminders of assault all the time, but nobody calls them out for what they are. That’s why the OZ email scandal was such a poignant opportunity—because it was concrete, unequivocal evidence of the rhetoric that leads to rape. Penn promised not to ignore it. And then, with this mangled enforcement of task force recommendations, the University did exactly that.

We’ve missed an opportunity to have a conversation, to actually examine why a group of men on this campus felt comfortable and secure enough to send that email to freshman women. We missed the chance to hold Penn accountable for supporting survivors. After the OZ email leaked, President Amy Gutmann said she was “aghast” and that the language of the email had “no place” at Penn. But assault does have a place here, one carved into the fabric of campus life. Maybe if 4

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I’m furious and I’m not sorry.

DANI BLUM Amy G listened to the survivor speakout at Take Back the Night instead of sending along a printed–out statement like she’s done for in past years, or walked down Locust and heard girls whisper about which frat spikes drinks while its members sprawl on couches and blatantly stare at them, or stepped into the Street office where I edit—on an almost weekly basis—narratives of sexual violence and trauma, maybe then she would under-

stand why OZ wrote what it did. But it's not an OZ issue, or a Greek life issue, or an off–campus group issue: assault is everywhere. The University's bastardized response to recommendations that were meant, in part, to prevent sexual violence is an insult to survivors.

The feigned connection between the University and its students isn’t cute—we joke about Admissions Dean Eric Furda showing up at Pool Party, but what clearer proof do we need that the administration knows our social events will be shifted, at enormous cost, off campus? The aftermath of the task force has ripped the narrative away

from assault survivors; it’s Penn, as an institution, showing me once again that I don’t have a voice.

If the adminstration really believes that banning students from taking shots is going to eliminate sexual assault, then we have a massive, destructive logical fallacy that takes blame away from rapists and puts it on alcohol and those who consume it. To state the obvious: it's bullshit. But I don’t think Penn is that stupid. I think the administration is just shoving assault, and assault survivors, over to the side, where they can ignore us until the next round of statistics comes out.

This right here, this absurd moment in Penn’s history, is what rape culture looks like. When the administration goes after all of us who drink off campus, or who just show up at an unregistered social event, they de facto exonerate rape culture. We’re all attacked now; we all feel under fire.

The collective narrative is about "us versus event monitors," not about why the guys who sit beside me in class or date my friends or wave to me at Smokes’ might call me a “tease" and tell me to “fuck off.”

OZ will be fine—because it’s OZ, because its primary identifiers on campus are its wealth and status, and because fraternities, even off campus, are more systemically entrenched at Penn than support for rape survivors.

There are more frameworks in place for protecting frats than for protecting assault victims. Meanwhile, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos is gutting Title IX, a construction worker on Pine just shouted at me to smile, and I constantly see ads taped to bathroom stalls about new studies on rape survivors.

The administration will, most likely, continue to fuck up spectacularly and give us new ammunition to gossip about. But the consequences, both tangible and symbolic, of instituting a committee on rape culture to shut down some Natty Light keg stands and games of pong won’t get the attention they deserve. Penn promised to protect us. It’s time we take the University to task.

MUSIC

Photos Courtesy of Kayvon

DKE BENEFIT CONCERT: GETTING TO KNOW KAYVON Kayvon on Waka Flocka Flame, Business Models, and Community At 8:30 p.m., 30 minutes after the DKE Benefit concert was scheduled to start on September 13, Coda was empty.

Students hovered around the corners of the venue, clutching drinks and talking quietly over the music that buzzed through the house speakers. A girl towards the back flicked her wristwatch, checking the time. So far, this was just like any other Wednesday night at Penn, moved downtown.

And then Kayvon came on.

The lights went down, and Kayvon’s voice called, "Are you ready for me? I don't think you're loud enough, are you ready for me?!" Spines straightened, hands jammed phones in back pockets, eyes focused on the figure at the front of the stage. Kayvon commanded attention.

Bouncing up and down the stage, the young rapper tore his way through his set list, playing some old favorites like "Giving Up On Me," but also some new songs, most notably "Vibes," which featured Karis Stephen. Technically, Kayvon is a solid rapper: his rhymes are sharp, his lyrics clever, and his sense of rhythm consistent.

On SoundCloud, his music is good—reliable, thoughtful, definitely someone worth listening to. But at first listen, Kayvon seems to still be maturing, growing from relative inexperience.

Put Kayvon on the stage, though, and all that changes.

He shines in person. He’s engaged. He’s charismatic. He’s a true performer. People will come to see Kayvon. And they did—after the performance, Kayvon was lifted off the stage by his fans, and crowd–surfed the length of the concert hall.

During his interview, he was engulfed by a sea of friends and admirers. A fan in the crowd shouted, “Kayvon! We literally just came for you!”

Though Waka Flocka Flame was advertised as the headliner for the concert, it was really Kayvon who pushed ticket sales. Moved by his fans’ dedication, Kayvon admits, “People at Penn don’t necessarily listen to Wacka Flocka Flame...you know [DKE] definitely needed help insofar as getting a Penn audience here…I’m the guy at Penn right now…I’m going to bring out a lot of these people to see Waka Flocka, I’m honored.

Not only do I get to work with Waka, but I’m like ‘Yo Waka, here’s a crowd, please give them the time of their life.’”

Getting to perform alongside Waka Flocka Flame was a surreal experience for rising star Kayvon. Kayvon admits that he’s an avid Waka Flocka Flame fan and has been listening to his music from the start. On

stage, Kayvon ad–libbed and referenced the J. Cole song, “Cost Me a Lot.” Playfully, he rapped J. Cole’s lyrics of “Remember when I did a show with Waka Flocka Flame?” After the concert, Kayvon smiles, reminiscing, “I remember being in tenth grade and listening to that song from J. Cole, and being like ah that’s cool…that

could be cool if I could do that some day. And now here I am literally doing the same show— on the same ticket.”

But despite his success, Kayvon remains focused. For him, Penn is just the beginning. He explains, “For me it’s like, you know, in business you gotta properly scale. I could be the hottest guy at Penn, and that’s

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MUSIC

PENN POLICE ASSOCIATION UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA President Eric J. Rohrback

Recording Secretary Thomas Waters

PENN POLICE ASSOCIATION FIGHTING FOR A CONTRACT! University of Pennsylvania Police Officers are currently working without a contract.

Please let the University know that they should compensate their police department fairly.

The University of Pennsylvania police department is far below the standard salaries with the other Ivy League Police Departments.

"As we have welcomed back our students and are ushering in a new school term, the proud members of the Penn Police Association continue to work tirelessly toward providing a safe and comfortable environment for our University of Pennsylvania community. We will continue to provide exceptional service as we seek to obtain the equitable settlement of a new collective bargaining agreement for our dedicated members."

P. P. A. President Eric J Rohrback

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it. I don’t want to be just the guy at Penn. I want to be everybody’s rapper.”

Furthermore, as a savvy Wharton student, Kayvon understands that in order for the music to succeed, there must be some sort of business infrastructure behind it. Kayvon understands how to see the bigger picture—he says, “There’s a lot of really talented artists who don’t do anything with their talent because they don’t understand the business…At the same time, there’s a lot of not so good artists who do really well because they understand the business….And I wanted to understand the business and have really good music.”

For Kayvon, making music is a way to pursue his passions, and apply what he learns in the classroom as a business student.

A keen businessman, Kayvon explains what he’s actually selling (hint: it’s not the music)— “I’m selling a product that’s free in a profitable way….The music—you’re not paying for the music—the music’s more like the marketing. But everything that comes as a result of the music, the shows, the t–shirts, whatever, it’s like people want to get involved in the experience. That’s the guy I want to be: the Kayvon experience.”

But despite all of the talk about money, bookings, ticket sales, and so on, Kayvon remains grounded, and above all, humble. For him, making rap music has always been about bringing people together. He confesses, “Growing up where I grew up, it wasn’t easy. I always wanted those of us who didn’t have anything to be able to hang out with the kids who did. And I was like, what brings us together? It was always hip hop…Yes, for me, a lot of hip hop has emerged out of the struggle…I want to create a space where people who come from less can be in the

same place with people who come from more, and all those people feel like they can channel all their inner stresses and pressures into something positive and beautiful that builds community.”

Street: Spice Girls or Beyoncé?

Kayvon: Beyoncé.

Street: Boxers or briefs?

Kayvon: Briefs…the briefs, they allow you to preform better, you know?

Street: Hot Cheetos or regular Cheetos?

Kayvon: Hot Cheetos!

Street: McDonald’s or Allegro?

Kayvon: McDonald’s…

Gotta get your McFlurry!

Street: There are two types of people: Kayvon: People who listen to Kayvon and people who don’t!

Street: What is one habit you get shit for doing?

Kayvon: Walking around the house with just my towel!

Street: Favorite '90s trend?

Kayvon: My birth!

Street: Who do you compare yourself to musically?

Kayvon: From the business standpoint, Jay Z….He’s the OG….Not only does he perform, he gets the contracts together for the endorsement deals, he’s got a streaming service, he’s in the video game [business], he’s on the festivals, he’s got his label: everything.

From a creative standpoint, I think I’m Kanye West, that dude knows how to pull influences from everywhere and knows how to make a really unique experience.

As far as my vibes, I think my vibes are like Drake. Drake knows how to sing and do some soft stuff, and he knows how to get really hyped up, too.

If I had to pick one [artist] to listen to for the rest of my life, it would be Drake.

MICHELLE PEREIRA

EGO

INSIDE ONE WHARTONITE'S DOUBLE LIFE AS A CHINESE POPSTAR

Photo courtesy of Simona Shao

Fall Away for Simona Shao You might know Simona Shao (W ’19) as an avid music festival attendee, a barista at Wilcaf, Director of Events of the Wharton China Business Society, or a member of the Wharton Undergraduate Media and Entertainment club.

You might even know that she was a selected as a Rose Princess for the Tournament of the Roses Royal Court in 2014.

What isn’t common knowledge is her secret life as a Chinese pop star. Simona has songwriting talent and a melodic voice that has amassed a following in China since she performed at an international singing competition at the Beijing Water Cube back in 2012. Competitors were of Chinese heritage, but hailed from all over the world. Simona represented the Los Angeles/Southern California area.

At 14, Simona was the youngest participant at the competition—but she placed third overall among singers under 26 years of age. She pinpoints the competition as the major impetus for her musical pursuits. The Beijing competition required that all performances be in Chinese, forcing Simona to polish her language skills. “At that point my Chinese was intermediate at best. I had to learn to sing in Chinese, and it helped me connect to my Chinese roots

as well as work on my voice,” she said. “I was still in the awkward phase then. I was the nerdy girl with glasses, braces, and bangs,” Simona laughs.

“The competition was where I first found confidence in my abilities. I won a bronze trophy—it was really exciting.”

Throughout high school, Simona participated in a number of other singing competitions, including the TV show American Stars. “After that, I started writing music.

It was something I did really organically. I sat down at the piano and started playing chords that I thought sounded good. From there I would come up with the melody and then just freestyle lyrics,” said Simona. Her first song, “All for You,” set the tone for her future romantic tracks. “My sister jokes that each song can be titled for a boy that I’ve had something with.”

Simona’s lyrical style has evolved to cover a wider scope of emotional journeys. “If I am angry or upset about something, I try to channel it into a lyric.”

Simona loves trap music and hip hop, and she hopes to evolve her personal sound into the electronic realm. As a Music minor, she can vouch for the complexity of EDM and dubstep. Despite taking on the minor, Simona prioritizes academics in typical

Wharton style. “I don’t have as much time these days, and on top of it, I don’t have instruments in my apartment.

So I often start songs during school breaks and finish them at a different break, which creates an interesting arc and variety of emotions in my music.”

Some of Simona’s music has been created from afar. A couple of her friends in LA work as DJs. “I worked with these two guys whose DJ names are Keylo and Oksami. They would send me a beat, and I would just be sitting at home recording, listening to the

music and writing the lyrics.”

Simona’s taking a bit of a break from music now as she breaks into the financial services sector, but hopes that one day her business interests will merge with love of music. “Ideally, I’ll work for a company that invests in media and entertainment,” says Simona, “but maybe one day

I’ll work for a recording company. You never know.”

With the raspy voice of Colbie Caillat and the sharp mind of Sheryl Sandberg, Simona will make you “Fall Away” at the sound of her latest tracks.

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EGO

EGOOF THE WEEK: BEVAN PEARSON

The Student Sustainability Association at Penn co–chair is one lean, green, earth–loving machine.

HOMETOWN: Philadelphia, PA MAJOR: Earth Science (Environmental Science concentration), French minor ACTIVITIES: SSAP co–chair, SAGE Climate Action Plan advisory committee, Epsilon Eta, Urban Nutrition Initiative Freshman Dorm Room: 1210 Harrison

This week’s Ego comes to you in the form of Mother Nature herself (the cool kind, not the terrifying Jennifer Lawrence kind). Bevan Pearson, Epsilon Eta sibling and co–chair of the Student Sustainability Association at Penn (SSAP), has spent all of her time at Penn fighting for a greener, more sustainable campus. And while Bevan will be the first to tell you that Penn still has a long way to go, she’s proud of everything she’s seen the student community do in recent years.

34th Street: You’ve been interested in sustainability and environmental activism since middle school. When did you

first start to think about all of the issues environmental activism encompasses?

Bevan Pearson: I feel like everyone says this, but it was when I was 11 or 12 and I saw An Inconvenient Truth for the first time. I actually watched it on a school trip, in Huntsman Hall, which I think is pretty ironic. But after I watched it I was like, “Oh my gosh! How did I not know this! I need to do something!” The Quaker school I went to was also really into stewardship, so they talked about sustainability in middle school. Later, in high school, I took an elective environmental science class, and the whole course was just amazing, so I

was like, “OK, I guess I’ll be doing this with my life!”

Street: How does SSAP work with the administration?

BP: SSAP meets fairly often with the Penn sustainability manager, Julian Goresko, so that we can relay information from the administration to our constituents. He’s also the director for Eco–Reps, so he works with students a lot. He helps us make sure that SSAP is going in the right direction—sometimes we’ll have him come into SSAP meetings so that he can explain to our reps what we do and how the administration can help.

Street: What is the actual green involvement of the administration?

BP: I think a lot of the time us students don’t know how much Penn is doing for sustainability, how much research and thought goes into it.

And that’s something we want to improve. That’s the goal of the SAGE committee we’re do-

ing for the next Climate Action Plan, which is going to come out in 2019. I’m helping them get student input for that. Because students come to SSAP, or me personally, all the time, saying, like, “We should compost!” And turns out they’re not the first ones to think about i t — Penn is trying to compost, b u t there a r e all of

HALEY WEISS these logistical issues with waste management and things like that that make it tricky for them.

I also think that Penn needs to divest from fossil fuels. And I’m angry about it.

Read the full interview online: 34st.com

Photo by Autumn Powell

LIGHTNING ROUND MY COMMON APP ESSAY WAS ABOUT...

Quakerism! I spent so many years at a Quaker school and loved all the values, so I kind of tied that in with my life and interests

THE SONG I CAN'T STOP LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW IS... "Duel, Pt. 2” by Weekend Affair.

MY FAVORITE OUTDOOR SPOT ON CAMPUS IS...The small orchard down by Penn Park! But I hate it when people get greedy and take a million things off of the trees at once.

WHEN I GO TO THE FARMER'S MARKET OUTSIDE OF THE BOOKSTORE, I'M BUYING...lots of peaches.

THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF PEOPLE AT PENN...Those who are afraid to go past 45th Street, and those who interact with the rest of West Philadelphia.

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VICE & VIRTUE

WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH APPLE CIDER VINEGAR?

It might be the cure to all your woes.

enzymes and good–for–you bacteria makes the ACV look all murky and cobwebby (mmm!). Let’s dive right in: Teeth Whitening: After some research, I I’m the kind of person who’s Apple cider vinegar can do a discovered what should have lot, apparently. Here’s a quick skeptical about 2–in–1 shambeen obvious: don’t put apple poo/conditioner, so the idea laundry list of all the things cider vinegar on your teeth. It’s apple cider vinegar is supposed that one product could do all literally acid.

Just don’t do it. to do, according to the totally that and more left me dubious.

Moving on. legit and definitely true world But in the name of science, I tried out this supposed miracle of Google: elixir throughout a single week. Pimples: • Treat dandruff Before I went to sleep, I First things first, you've • Help you lose weight Q-tipped a little ACV onto the got to get the good stuff.

• Get rid of pimples annoying zit above my eyebrow We’re talking Bragg Organic • Improve heart health that is still hanging out on my Raw Apple Cider Vinegar, • Cure nail infections face after a week and a half. which you can get online or • Fight mold In the morning, the zit wasn’t at FroGro, as I did. Whatever • Home pickling • Teeth whitening kind of ACV (what the cool • Treat an upset stomach kids are calling it nowadays) you use, make sure it has “the • Clear a stuffy nose • Boost energy mother.” What’s “the mother,” you ask? It’s the proteins and • Control blood sugar Photo by Mike Mozart // CC 2.0

gone, but it was definitely dried out a bit and a little smaller. Maybe these crunchy mommy bloggers are onto something?

Hair Mask: Shampooed my hair. Rinsed.

Doused my locks in a mixture of 1 cup of water and 2 tablespoons of ACV and let it dry for a few minutes. After rinsing the vinegar out of my hair and skipping conditioner, I’ll be honest: my hair felt good. It was soft and silky and my scalp felt tingly and clean. BUT: this stuff smells. It smells really funky. If you had nowhere to go immediately after showering I would recommend doing

this, but be warned you’re going to be leaving a vinegar scent trail for an hour or so after. A couple of drops of essential oil would have probably been a smart idea.

Shots, shots, shots, shots, shots: This is where ACV lost me.

I tried drinking a shot of the stuff straight and ended up gagging in my kitchen. I will say that before the vinegary aftertaste hit my throat I momentarily felt ALIVE from downing something so viscerally upsetting to my tastebuds.

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sidewalk, who were backed up by a surveillance van with two more officers in it. Some were dressed in bulletproof vests. Elyse wore pajamas and fuzzy socks.

The police said they were responding to a noise complaint, but wouldn’t clarify whether a neighbor had filed a report or if they heard noise themselves. After asking them to turn down the music playing from the first floor, where a few of Elyse’s housemates were congregated, they took down her name. She explained that it wasn’t her music, and in the end refused to provide her PennCard number.

"I just didn't really know how to react to the situation," Elyse explained. "It's frustrating and excessive that a squad of cops showed up to a house where there were maybe four, five, or six girls inside who were not doing anything wrong."

making administrators available for interviews, VPUL sent a three–page statement. It didn’t address nearly any of the points of concern Street raised.

Although Greek groups are still saddled with a large financial burden, groups with lower or no dues aren’t just burdened by the new, mandatory costs—they are prohibitive to them.

The majority of fraternities collect hefty semesterly dues and have large member bases from which to collect a party fund. The IFC (Interfraternity Council) also uses money from a pool of collected fraternity fines. This fund is used to subsidize 50% of the costs associated with hiring bartenders and security guards for on–campus fraternities, according to IFC President Bradley Freeman (C ’18), effectively giving financial aid to the groups that can afford to shoulder these costs best of all.

Smaller campus groups, like performing arts clubs and multicultural fraternities, will be hurt most. Most lack the finances to fund a single five–hour party, much less the several social events per semester that some of these groups aim for. And at the most individual level, new regulations force students who want to throw birthday parties or other occasional celebrations in their own homes to shell out unprecedented sums of money.

Students like Susanna Jaramillo (C ’19) were immediately stricken by how harshly these regulations would

"WE OBJECTIVELY DON'T HAVE THE FINANCIAL MEANS TO REGISTER THINGS LIKE THAT.” affect her organization.

Susanna, a former video producer for the DP, is the vice president of Penn Glee Club. She is in charge of organizing off–campus social events for the organiza-

tion. These gatherings are usually after–show celebrations, internal parties, or parties with other performing arts groups.

For the past few NSOs (New Student Orientation), Glee Club has thrown a joint party with the Bloomers band in an off–campus performing arts house. This live music party is mainly for freshmen, to acquaint them with the performing arts community and expose them to a very different facet of Penn’s social scene during the flurry of NSO frat parties.

At the time, Susanna was unaware of the exact requirements for registering events. Glee decided to have the event anyway and organized it internally by designating members as sober monitors and bartenders and stationing students at the door and on the stairs. The event was eventually shut down, with Event Observers and police officers citing a noise complaint.

"They said, 'You just have to register your party next time,' but nobody really knows what that means because they don't go into what that entails and the cost behind it,” noted Susanna.

On August 17, Cade and Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush emailed the student body with an update on policy changes stemming from the Task Force’s recommendations. “Going forward, Penn expects all student groups...to register any event with alcohol,” the email stated.

Students like Susanna remained confused about which events needed to be registered. The email was nebulous about what counts as a party, Susanna explained, so they weren’t exactly sure how to go about the registration process or aware of the associated costs.

They’ve hosted more events this semester and taken extra steps to not get them shut down, such as turning down the bass on the music and reducing capacity.

All of this comes from a conscious recognition of the cost of event registration. Groups that sponsor events with alcohol are required to pay $90 per hour to hire a university–sponsored bartender and two university security guards. Even though Glee collects dues, these are mainly funneled into travel costs for shows and their tour, along with uniforms and other operating costs.

They don’t have a large social fund.

"We objectively don't have the financial means to register things like that,” Susanna said.

Beyond Glee club events themselves, the off–campus house is a hub for other performing art group social events, such as the smaller theater groups that often have no more than ten people.

Susanna ultimately sees the new policies as having a disastrous effect on the future of the performing arts social scene, effectively killing off these events or forc-

ing them into secrecy. Their events are often geared towards students who may not feel comfortable attending fraternity parties, and it’s their hope that they can still provide these people with a social outlet they feel welcome in.

"It's meant to be a safer space,” Susanna continued.

"HE FEARS A FUTURE WHEN THE ONLY EVENT HAPPENING ON A FRIDAY NIGHT IS A $20 UBER AWAY AND REQUIRES A $20 COVER FEE." “A lot of my friends who come to Glee parties or just to theater parties feel safe in those spaces because they know that there are people there who will take care of them. I feel like it's taking away this space for those people."

Rio Dennis (W ’19) recognized the same catastrophic effect that these new regulations would have on Intercultural Greek Council and LGBTQ organizations.

Rio is one of six members of Penn’s chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., a historically black on–campus sorority. They hold service and social events a few times a month.

"I feel like a lot of times Penn doesn't acknowledge the fact that the Intercultural Greek Council (IGC) exists," Rio says.

Greek organizations under the IGC umbrella sometimes host events in off–campus houses, which Rio and her sisters often help run.

Though IGC chapters collect dues from members, they are much smaller than IFC and PHC dues. Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. uses these dues to help provide food and supplies for their bi–monthly events, such as its scholarship formal for high school honorees.

"With the fact that we're smaller chapters and we don't pay as much in dues, we actually have to charge for our parties," Rio remarks. Entrance fees usually start around $5. This tactic is technically illegal, since money cannot exchanged for alcohol without a liquor

license in Pennsylvania. But this has gone unchecked until now. With more scrutiny, they will no longer be able to fund events in this manner.

"We barely have enough money to throw the actual party itself.”

To Rio, it seems as if the University is trying to rob them of their social role on campus, which helps them to attract and meet potential new members.

Rio also serves as chair of the Penn Queer Straight Alliance, where she plays a part in organizing LGBTQ social events in off–campus houses. Like IGC parties, queer parties charge entrance fees in order to supply alcohol, and therefore are functionally prohibited under the new Task Force recommendations.

"I just don't think that the people who made up the Task Force thought through completely what these implications are,” Rio continued. "It's the queer group, it's the Intercultural Greek Council, and those other small groups that are really just trying to hang out with people and feel like they can't fit into other spaces who are being the most affected by it."

The Task Force was formed as a result of widespread student protests in response to a sexist party invitation sent by off–campus organization OZ. In her student– wide email announcing the Task Force in November 2016, Penn President Amy Gutmann said one of the group’s goals would be “to foster a campus climate and culture that is free of sexual harassment and sexual violence.”

The Task Force on a Safe and Responsible Campus Community was created in February 2017 by President Amy Gutmann and former Provost Vincent Price.

In April, at the conclusion of the Task Force’s work, the University announced these recommendations and posted them on the Office of the Provost’s website.

Read more on 34st.com. *Reflects name has been changed.

NICK JOYNER IS A JUNIOR IN THE COLLEGE STUDYING CINEMA STUDIES AND COMMUNICATIONS FROM SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. HE IS A FEATURES EDITOR FOR STREET. 11

10

O n the evening of September 14, Elyse (C ’20) was studying with several friends on the third floor of her house near 40th and Pine Streets. The sound of a buzzer cut through the house. Elyse assumed that someone had invited a friend over, but the bell continued to ring on and off for ten minutes.

On her stoop, she found three police officers. They were flanked by a cluster of six or seven more cops on the

Since returning to school, students have found themselves increasingly at odds with the administration’s new policies regarding social gatherings and alcohol consumption.

What started as a means to regulate parties has quickly evolved into an ongoing public relations disaster, with students continuing to push back against policies they believe to be unfair. However, the resulting actions stemming from recommendations made by the Task Force on a Safe and Responsible Campus Community in April have had unforeseen consequences concerning the social climate at Penn, igniting a conversation that probes into the depths of the socioeconomic divide, Greek and non–Greek social life, and safety concerns.

New policies target all student groups, but given the prohibitive cost for the school’s exhaustive list of required resources, social spheres composed of low–income students and groups with lower or no financial dues are the ones that take the hardest hit.

As students and administration alike settle into new regulations, questions concerning the school’s role in student lives are inevitable. How far can the administration reach into the private lives and homes of students? How transparent has the administration been with the undergraduate population? And, finally: do the new policies hurt students more than they help?

A spokesperson for Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain–Cade McCoullum—who oversees the Office of Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD), the Office of Students Affairs (OSA), and the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life (OFSL)—exchanged multiple emails with Street, but was unable to make the directors of those departments available for comment. Instead of

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VICE & VIRTUE

VISI(BI)LITY Personal accounts of bi visibility.

Bisexual Day of Visibility has been celebrating bisexual representation since 1999 and is officially on September 23.

Street reached out to members of Penn's bisexual community to see what bi visibility and bi pride meant to them. Here are some of their personal and powerful experiences.

RIO DENNIS (W'19) “Oh, you’re bisexual? Does that mean you’d be interested in a threesome?” “So, which do you prefer?” “Are you sure you’re not just experimenting?”

I’ve heard it all before.

Straight, cis males who be-

come increasingly attracted to me once I explain that I am bisexual. Or lesbians who don’t believe I can really be attracted to more than one gender and must just be experimenting or afraid to “fully come out.”

Since becoming openly bisexual, I've been subjected to so many questions about my personal life by people who have no business asking me.

So many people don’t understand the concept of sexuality

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as a spectrum, and the idea that someone can be attracted to more than one gender confuses them (and yes, there are more than two genders, but that is another discussion for another day).

So, first, I would like to say: my sexuality is NOT your fetish! I did not struggle with coming to terms with my orientation, with coming out to my family, and with having to come out on a constant basis just to tell you stories about my personal life to turn you on. So, no, you cannot hear stories about what we’re doing.

And no, you cannot join us.

Second, there are people within the LGBT community with a sense of “bi phobia” thatcseparates the queer community instead of uniting us.

Sexuality isn’t black and white; it’s all the beautiful shades of the rainbow in between. We should be respecting each others’ choices and continuing to keep LGBT spaces open and non–judgmental.

Identifying openly as bisexual empowers me, and I strive every day to empower others to be their true selves. It’s not for you to fetishize or doubt or belittle. Bisexual visibility day is about showing people we exist, we are not ashamed, and we are here to stay.

BRENNAN BURNS (C'20) SHE/HER I feel like it should be easy to write something about bi visibility, about how it’s important, and how I feel that it affected my life. But instead, I just spent the past week or so questioning my sexual orientation once again. It’s actually kind of fascinating; I seem to have an amazing ability to spend years thinking about something that I feel should be rather obvious without coming to any lasting conclusion about my sexual orientation. I mean, I’ll give myself some credit here, I definitely have a better understanding of my sexual orientation (and gender identity) now than I did when I was 14 and still thought that I was a straight man, but after five odd years of repeatedly questioning my sexual orientation, it’s almost starting to feel like I’ll never really figure it out.

Yet, as I write this, I still definitely know that I’m attracted to all genders—I’ve just been having a hard time figuring out which term I prefer for myself.

Either of the terms “pansexual” or “bisexual” would technically describe me, but I can’t decide whether I prefer one term over the other, and for some reason I feel as though I have to choose between them.

VICE & VIRTUE

that have simply made it harder to form conclusions about who I am.

At the end of the day, what I’m really trying to say is that bi pride and visibility is important. It’s helpful for bi people who seek a friendly community in an all too unfriendly world. I think it’s helpful for society in the sense that it helps promote acceptance. And it's helpful for those who are questioning because it’s nice to be around people who are confident in their identities when you can’t make heads or tails of your own.

ANGELA HUANG (W'20)

ANONYMOUS It is NOT just a phase. Until college, I didn’t know that I could also be interested in men.

I had—after all—grown up in a Protestant bubble, at once non–inclusive and demeaning of sexual ‘deviations.’ But when a random boy kissed me at a college party, I realized that it hadn’t felt any different from a girl. Fast forward to senior year

Photo by Peter Salanki // CC 2.0 (after a quick and shitty relationship with a boy and copious encounters with women), and I still haven’t figured out what truly, sexually appeals to me. And the social alienation particular to the bisexual community plays a role in that.

The world of bisexuality— that is, the ability to be ro-

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mantically or sexually attracted to more than one gender—is entrenched in invisibility. Despite making up the largest self–identified portion of the LGBT community, bisexuals lack recognition from both the straight and (in a gravely ironic twist) from the gay and lesbian communities—a true

“lose–lose” situation. My close friends often resort to “you’re just confused” or “just come out already.” The charge in the quasi–liberal narrative is that bisexuality is just “a phase,” a gay man’s first step to coming out of the closet or perhaps a short stint at experimentation, all of which are assumptions

If there were more bi visibility when I was growing up, I would have understood my sexuality instead of, like, inwardly hating myself for years.

I wasn’t straight and I wasn’t gay and I had no idea there was a blob of middle ground between those binaries. I was always like “boys are hot and so are girls (and hell, everyone in between, so what am I?)".

But sexuality is not as black and white (insert rainbow flag emoji!) as homo/hetero. Bi Visibility Day is so important because we queers have to stick together to combat bi phobia and bi erasure. Also, being bi is dope: we’ve got Frank Ocean and Angelina Jolie.

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mother!

FILM & TV

DESERVES OUR ATTENTION

This film just might just give you an anxiety attack, but it's worth it.

Only twice have I left a movie theater feeling intensely altered by the experience. The first film was Room. I walked out of the 2015 Brie Larson drama in a haze; warmth radiated from the red theater carpets, and the soft glow of light reflecting off of hung movie posters pirouetted across my vision. Walking with the herd towards our cars, I was comforted and awed by humanity.

The second film to do so was mother!, and for the polar opposite reason. I left Darren Aronofsky’s two–hour psychological horror (?) film overcome with skittish paranoia. The sound of the two boys chattering next to me at the traf-

fic light was anxiety–inducing.

I darted my eyes towards the bark of a dog across the street, then back towards the beep of a car horn coming from the other direction. A middle–aged woman walking towards me on Walnut Street suddenly felt sinister. Something was off; it felt like I had entered an unkind parallel world. That world I experienced in the fleeting minutes after the credits rolled is the same world our protagonist, mother (Jennifer Lawrence), inhabits throughout this film.

A couple, named Him (Javier Bardem) and mother (these names hold significance, and the capitalization isn’t a typo), live in a creaky mansion in the

middle of nowhere; their placid lives are turned upside down with the arrival of a mysterious stranger (Ed Harris) and his wife (Michelle Pfeiffer). Bardem’s character is oddly hospitable, and mother can’t help but shake the feeling that something is off. It’s nearly impossible to go deeper into this movie without spoiling, and to spoil this movie would be to rob you of a harrowing, nerve–racking theater–going experience.

On a technical level, very few films use sound design as well as mother! does. The cacophonous frenzy of creaks, footsteps, conversation, and clatters are blended together, creating an The tight cinematography and atmosphere of all–out chaos. set pieces are magnificent, and the score uses staccato beats to masterfully ratchet up the tension. The camera orbits mother’s expressive, often–horrified face as her world crumbles right in front of her, and it feels like ours is crumbling, too. Lawrence delivers an all–encompassing apocalyptic performance—she has certainly never been better. (Ed. note: Can we pretend her questionable Silver Linings Playbook Oscar actually went to this performance?) mother! is a two–hour panic attack communicated through visual language. Every element of the production is working to make the viewer feel as uneasy as possible. This makes it clear that Aronofsky is not trying to make the populist hit of the decade here. After a particularly disturbing scene, I could almost feel the viewers consider walking out. It’s impossible to be anything less than stunned when the credits begin to roll.

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Public Domain // CC0 has come out and said exactly what mother! means, but few critics are talking about the glaring male–female relationship at the film’s center. Aronofsky may not have intended it, but he has crafted a very clear (perhaps meta–critical) story about gender, the male ego, and the role of the “artist.”

If this review seems a bit scattered, it’s because this movie absolutely scrambles your brain.

To put mother! into words is to completely bastardize the process of viewing the film. You simply have to experience it firsthand to understand. Unfortunately, this movie is tanking.

The esoteric pretensions of the marketing combined with the public’s sudden 180 on Jennifer Lawrence’s persona have prompted a massive box office failure. It is a singular creation that will yank you deep into its insane world—and it does not let go.

DALTON DESTEFANO

FILM & TV

Photo by Mistaknows // CC 3.0

BEYOND THE BUDDY COMEDY: AN ODE TO BROAD CITY

YAAAAAAAAS KWEEN

After a four–month hiatus, Broad City is (finally!) back for its highly anticipated fourth season.

In a sea of stoner comedies and millennial dramas set in New York (cough cough, Girls), your girls Abbi and Ilana have managed to set themselves apart with a quick wit and social consciousness that has elevated their show beyond what is expected of a late–night comedic program.

One of the most "controversial" things about Broad City is exactly what makes it so great: the unapologetic and anti–heteronormative approach to sexuality. Ilana Glazer’s character’s sexuality is as undefined and unrestricted as she is, allowing the show to portray all kinds of relationship intimacies, sexual or otherwise, that don't usually get the attention or representation they deserve.

As both actresses and writers on the show, Ilana and Abbi have incorporated a subtle satire and staunch political awareness into their namesake characters in a way that propels Broad City beyond humor–for–the–sake– of–humor, although that definitely does have its place and time in the show. Whenever any political statement is made (be it on sexism, the patriarchy, cultural appropriation, the elec-

tion, etc.) it is done so with deliberate intent and a careful eye.

Not every declaration is a middle finger to “the man”— like when Abbi and Ilana are told by male passersby that “you’re pretty, you should smile more” and they use their middle fingers to contort their faces into a smile. Rather, the most powerful moments are in the small details. The show decided to use brown pixels to censor Ilana’s vagina in a scene with partial nudity to show that she, like most women, has pubic hair, and that body hair is not something for a woman to be ashamed of.

At the heart of Broad City’s charm lies its undeniable relatability for anyone who has ever felt anything less than peachy keen (so yeah, everyone). On the one hand, you have Abbi, who started out as a struggling artist who was the voice of reason in contrast with Ilana’s balls–to­–the–wall craziness.

Throughout the past three seasons, her character has taken on a nuance and maturity that have made her so much more than just another neurotic stereotype. Abbi is a living embodiment of how to deal with your anxieties and idiosyncrasies while still being a (albeit semi–) functional adult.

Then, you have Ilana. Yes,

she’s the prototypical stoner free–spirit stereotype who has a problem with any and all authority figures. She so badly wants to live an adventurous life unhindered by the constructs of society, yet she struggles to truly be happy, unable to balance wanting to be indepen-

dent and unpredictable with wanting to have an emotionally complex and potentially romantic connection. No matter how extreme the scenario or how ridiculous the antics, there always remains something in Abbi and Ilana that is so identifiable, no matter how much

you have your life together.

And it’s that kernel of truth— that it’s okay to not always be okay— that makes this show one of the most important on TV right now.

ISABELLA FERTEL

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ARTS

"SPEECH/ACTS"

WANTS YOU TO

LISTEN

Public Engagement for ICA autumn show calls for Penn students.

Speech/Acts, one of the Institute of Contemporary Art’s fall shows, is borne from this duality. On view now through December 23, the exhibition features the work of six artists and two poets who explore experimental black poetry. They consider how black American experiences have been shaped by social and cultural language constructs.

The exhibition features

collage, drawing, text–based installation, and video—all aiming to dissect the structural elements of texts sourced from poetry, pop culture, and everything in between. The museum has promised an immersive and interactive environment, and the show delivers. Experiencing the work is actually best described according to the phenomenology of the exhibition title.

The term “speech act” char-

Photo by Gina Alm

acterizes an utterance considered as an action—a description of a given reality that, when spoken, alters the social reality it describes. Viewers will absorb how Speech/ Acts so quietly and poignantly exercises that agency.

It’s worth elaborating on the great value of this show.

Fortunately, the ICA’s effort to meaningfully engage the exhibition’s following, particularly Penn students, speaks

for itself. There exists a syllabus outlining a series of six reading group sessions which will take place Saturdays 1–4 p.m. at the ICA (36th and Sansom Streets) beginning September 23. The texts to be discussed are fundamentally related to and/or take the form of subject matter in the work of each featured artist and poet. These sessions will raise questions and perhaps answer them. They

will offer both a preface and a continuation to Speech/ Act’s material exhibition.

Meg Onli, Assistant Curator at the ICA and organizer of Speech/Acts, explains that the reading group concept is a method for the ICA to collaborate with Penn departments. She is working with creative writing professor Julia Bloch and theater professor Brooke O'Harra, as well as PhD students Davy Kittle and Amber Rose Johnson to create a “rigorous and fun way for people to engage with the work”. The first session will include an installation walk–through of artist Jibade–Khalil Huffman’s featured work, which uses some of reading assignment 1 (Claudia Rankine’s Citizen: An American Lyric) as a script.

Artists constantly grapple with the problematic constraints of “the institution.”

Often, they will develop unique methods of operating outside conventional frameworks. As an institution, the ICA is demonstrating an exemplary approach to mediating those constraints on behalf of its artists and on behalf of our community.

GINA ALM

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ARTS

STREET DOES DIY SUCCULENT SHIT: WORKSHOP Make your own plant bae.

MICHAELA TINKEY

Photo by Michaela Tinkey You've seen the random Do– It–Yourself Facebook events that crop up in your news feed from time to time. We, too, have felt the soft pangs of FOMO and wondered how our lives would be different if we only had the time for that Intro to Beekeeping workshop. Street decided to venture into the depths of arts and crafts obscurity (and hopefully will inspire you to do the same).

The DIY Succulent Workshop, a recurring series brought to you by jewelry and event promotion company, Beaucycled, promises 1.5 hours of booze and guided craftwork. For prices ranging from $12—$20, participants receive 1—2 succulents and all the supplies necessary to plant their new friend. The events are 21+ and take place in outdoor beer gardens. They also offer a wide variety of alcoholic beverages and snack foods

like cheese plates and fish tacos.

Street opted to indulge in the PHS (Pennsylvania Horitcultural Society) South Street Beer Garden selection of flavored margaritas and the aforementioned cheese plate.

Picnic tables were covered with colorful and quirky mugs and teacups (one read "World's Best Grandma") to serve as planters for our succulents. Event organizers even went as far as to distribute handouts on the care and maintenance of succulents to event participants. By the end of the evening, Street had hopefully learned enough about basic horticulture to not kill a seven–inch–tall desert plant. While the event partially served to advertise the parent company's jewelry brand, the messaging didn't feel preachy; the evening felt like a genuine way to artistically bond with friends.

Here's a list of Beaucycled's upcoming events—bring your housemates, your recitation group, or anyone with even a vague interest in alcoholic horticulture:

Cactus and Crystals Succulent Workshop—Morgan’s Pier September 18 and later dates 6:30 p.m.

Beer and healing crystals for you new–age needs.

DIY Succulent Workshop—PHS South Street Beer Garden September 25 6:30 p.m.

The exact same event Street crashed—experience the original.

Big Beers & Bigger Planters—Frankford Hall September 26 at 7 p.m.

Enjoy pints of German beer at the Pennstitution, complete with two succulents instead of one.

The Middle East Center at the University of Pennsylvania

is searching for a new logo tshirt design for our

Modern Middle East Studies (MMES) Major & Minor

Ideal designs will be

eye catching and original

TWO Prizes will be offered: $100 prize will be offered to the winning t-shirt design and to winning logo

Photo by Chris Alban Hansen, Flickr // CC 2.0

Submissions can be sent to mec-info@sas.upenn.edu Deadline is Friday, September 29th at 11:59pm For additional information, please visit our website at www.sas.upenn.edu/mec S E P T E M B E R 27 , 2 017 3 4 T H S T R E E T M A G A Z I N E 17

LOWBROW

FALL BREAK OFFERS FRESHMAN FIRST BIG CHANCE TO ASSERT PRIVILEGE OVER EVERYONE CLAIRE SCHMIDT (Philadelphia, PA)—For College freshman Joe Barnhill, the time is finally here. With Fall Break fast approaching, Barnhill is excited to do what he’s been hinting at since the beginning of New Student Orientation (NSO)—to truly make his friends, classmates, and roommates feel socioeconomically inferior.

“It’s just such an exciting time,” said Barnhill from his Fisher Hassenfeld triple last night.

“I’ve been slowly building on my superiority for a while now, mostly through referencing my many high school classmates who also go to Penn, or by posting throwback pictures to my vacation in Turks & Caicos.”

But while those efforts were good places to start—Barnhill commented that his roommate is already sufficiently suspicious of his goodwill and intentions—for him, Fall Break is the true opportunity.

“I mean, think about it. I can name drop where I’m going, that I’m flying on a chartered jet to get there, that I’m paying for three of my best friends to come, AND that I bought a whole new fall wardrobe just for the trip, all in a four–day span. What a rush!” said Barnhill.

He added, “And honestly, it only goes up from here. Thanksgiving vacation bragging, winter break vacation bragging, New Year’s Eve bragging...it’s just…”

At this point, Barnhill was overcome with emotion, taking several minutes to recover.

When he could speak again, he added, “I just feel truly blessed to be able to assert my privilege over everyone else so frequently. This truly is the greatest school in the country!”

Photo Courtesy of _______

FIRST THINGS FIRST, STREET'S THE REALEST. (EXCEPT FOR LOWBROW. LOWBROW IS FAKE. LIKE, REALLY FAKE. WE JUST MADE THIS SHIT UP. BUT ENJOY IT ANYWAY.) 1 8 3 4 T H S T R E E T M A G A Z I N E S E P T E M B E R 27 , 2 017

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Solving Skills" Gets Really, Really

34TH STREET Magazine December 1, 2011 34TH STREET Magazine December 1, 2011 34TH STREET Magazine December 1, 2011

Lost in the Quad

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