the davidsonian
February 15, 2017 Vol. 112 Issue 13
The Independent Student Newspaper of Davidson College since 1914
Inside NEWS Changes in the self-selection day schedule break tradition 2 Students protest at NAACP-organized HKonJ rally in Raleigh 3 LIVING DAVIDSON Mary Porter interviews artists behind multi-layered Rainclamation exhibition 4 PERSPECTIVES Madi Driscoll '17 discusses her relationship with Warner and Self Selection 3 Sexual assualt survivors organized a silent sit-in at during a varisty baseball practice. Photo by Abby Miller
Ward Coleman was accused by a fellow Davidson student. Photo courtesy of Mecklenburg County
Student Charged with Sexual Battery
T
LAURA DUNNAGAN Senior Staff Writer
he Davidson Police Department arrested George “Ward” Coleman '19, a member of the varsity baseball team, on February 2 on a charge of sexual battery against a fellow Davidson student that occurred earlier this semester. According to Cristina Shaul, the Town of Davidson Public Information Officer, the victim came directly to the town’s police force and reviewed facts and procedures with an officer. When asked for comment, Coleman, via email, maintained his innocence against the accusation from a fellow Davidson student. On Tuesday, February 7, President Quillen met with a group of sexual assault survivors and sent a community-wide email urging students to join the groups and individuals on campus addressing and tackling the issues pervading sexual assault culture. She urged students to take action, writing, “Participate in bystander intervention training. Talk with each other. Ask questions. Learn what consent means. Hold friends ac-
countable. Look out for each other, even when it’s awkward or hard.” The following Thursday, more than one hundred students participated in a silent protest during baseball practice. The purpose of the “Sit in for Survivors” was to show support for sexual assault survivors while adding pressure to athletic staff to suspend Coleman from the team throughout the duration of his criminal proceedings. Coleman was also suspended from Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Phi Delta Theta President Colin Brown '18 commented, "When we heard of the charge, Ward was suspended from the fraternity for an indefinite amount of time. Prior to this cause, our administration took the initiative to create a bylaw that mandates the immediate suspension of any and all brothers under investigation for any sexual offense. As a chapter, we take all accusations of sexual assault seriously." The most circulated student response has been an online petition, created by members of Rape Awareness Committee and sexual assault survivors, asking for Coleman’s suspension from the baseball team. As of Tuesday, February 14, 892 members of the Davidson community had signed
the petition. Coleman’s arrest follows a high number of reported rapes at Davidson. There were 15 reported rapes in 2015, 12 reported on-campus rapes in 2016, and 64 reported sexual misconduct cases in the past three years. (1) Because of Davidson’s small student population, these numbers place the school at the top of several statistics as reported by the U.S. Department of Education. The Charlotte Observer reports that “from 2012-14, Davidson reported 33 on-campus forcible sexual offenses, ranking it first in the Carolinas and 31st nationally among private, nonprofit four-year universities.” Additionally, Davidson’s three-year total of sexual offenses ranked ninth among all colleges with fewer than 2,000 students. (2) Though the reported numbers are comparatively high, Dolores Stafford, a national expert in issues surrounding campus assaults and former police chief at George Washington University, reported to the Charlotte Observer that this in-
See SURVIVORS Page 2
Nicholar Trevino '17 argues that tampons and pads should be provided by Davidson for free 5 YOWL Landini has a Sperry-squeaking problem 6 Professor mortified when Youtube continues on autoplay 6 Giggling freshman too loud in the library 6 SPORTS Amid protests, baseball team prepares for the upcoming season 7 Mens' and womens' tennis teams optimistic for spring semester 7
Three SGA Presidential Candidates Debate: Two Remain
F
EMMA PETTIT Staff Writer
rom the balcony to the floor, students filled the 900 Room on Sunday, February 12th, to watch the SGA presidential debate between Alex Soltany '18, Houston Downes '18, and Connor Murphy ‘18. Each candidate gave a three-minute opening statement before answering questions, both officially moderated by Davidsonian Co-Editor-in-Chief Matt Landini '17 and from the audience. Alex Soltany introduced himself as a premed Middle Eastern Studies major and started the debate by giving two reasons he was running for SGA president with his running mate Malia Dickson ‘18. He spoke first about his grandfather’s legacy as an Iranian immigrant who came to the United States in the 1960s. His grandfather inspired Soltany to believe that everyone can express themselves how they chose. Second, he said that after 3 years of participation in SGA with Dickson, “We are not finished at all.” Houston Downes emphasized his commitment to his platform by running without a vice presidential candidate. He told the audience, “my ideas are why I’m here” and focused on three platform points: mental health reform, revitalization of career development, and integration of
ITS on campus. Connor Murphy is a Political Science major from New Jersey and the current SGA vice president, running with Shassata Fahim ‘18. His introduction focused on the limited resources at Davidson and unequal access to them. Murphy mentioned his work with the meal plan exchange and hopes to improve student health care on campus. He voiced his faith in all the candidates when he said, “We all want to improve Davidson, we just have different plans to get there.” Many of the moderator’s questions focused on communication and branching the gap between different viewpoints. The first question centered around the Milo Yiannopoulos debate and whether the SGA should have taken a stance. Murphy believed the SGA should have taken a stance and promoted understanding between marginalized identities and those less affected by prejudice. Downes responded, “I fought against Milo coming” as a Republican representative in the Center for Political Engagement. Soltany said, “The SGA needs to ensure the well-being of all students to say what they want to say and feel safe
See RUN-OFF Page 2
The debate was moderated by Matt Landini (second from left). The SGA candidates are (left to right) Alex Soltany, Houston Downes, and Connor Murphy. Photo by Erin Davenport
News
Page 2 February 15, 2017
Self-Selection Day Undergoes Major Changes to Promote Comfort and Inclusivity for New PCC Members hind the changes. In previous years, fraternities had the pledges dressed up in costumes for the event. For example, Sig Ep pledges formally wore diapers for the run-around. Patterson Court Council (PCC) felt these practices clearly violated Davidson’s hazing policy, and removed them for this year. Davidson has also faced some bad press recently, and did not need a major newspaper story about one of its students falling in syrup and breaking a leg while wearing a diaper. PCC President Patrick O’Connor ‘17 explained, “We wanted to make some subtle changes in the timing of things so that it was a little less risk be-
ETHAN EHRENHAFT Staff Writer
S
elf Selection Day, a Davidson tradition, underwent several major changes this year. Seen as one of the highlights of the second semester, Davidson tour guides are keen to mention the event to prospective students, which involves the infamous “run-around” in the evening. Self Selection Day is when new members join their respective social organizations. This means that fraternities receive new pledges and
Connor Houses's new Jesters posed excited on the back porch. Photo courtesy of Langely Hoyt
Turner House excitedly celebrated the new Tadpoles in a day filled with dancing and icebreakers. Photo courtesy of Olivia Daniels freshmen women are sorted into eating houses. The women begin the day by being woken up at 7 a.m. by current members of the houses that they were selected into by the computer program. They then move to their houses, get to know other members, and dance for the remainder of the hour, after which they go to Commons. The run-around is the day’s main event, during which upperclassmen in eating houses shower freshman in condiments and toppings while dancing. Each house has their own unique topping of choice, including paint, chocolate sauce, and condiments. Traditionally, the run-around consists of pledges dancing in each eating house for several songs after all the condiments had been sprayed. The boys would simultaneously try
to get as many of the toppings on them as possible. This last part could understandably result in some uncomfortable situations. Changes that had been in the works for several years to remedy this feature of the evening were finally put into place this year. The primary change behind Self-Selection Day 2017 was the order of the run-around. This year, boys visited the eating houses before the toppings began. The new schedule prevented boys from interacting with topping-covered girls, a change which caused some pushback amongst fraternities. “There was some animosity when we first introduced the changes,” says Beth Wright ‘17, last
year’s President of Warner Hall. Some fraternities viewed the move as taking away what had been a Davidson tradition for many years. According to Wright, “There was definitely a weird tension in the room when the changes were first introduced because some fraternity presidents were like ‘it’s a badge of honor to get all the toppings on you.’” Regardless of tradition, the dancing while slathered in chocolate syrup and barbeque sauce was uncomfortable to many on a night that is supposed to welcome students into the fraternity and eating house system. The fact that the boys did not get as dirty this year was also a major relief for the cleaning staff. Public relations were also a major factor be-
Rusk House hosted a successful day led by self-selection chairs Reyna Segovia '19 and Chris Diaz '19. Photo courtesy of Reyna Segovia
Warner Hall's entire house posed together following the toppings tradition. Photo courtesy of Emilee Lord havior while still capturing the feel and enjoyable parts of the event.” Speaking to damage control, Eating House Ambassador Tara O’Herlihy ‘18 also stated, “If we don’t make a change, something is probably gonna happen.” Ultimately, Self Selection Day 2017 proved successful. Few incidents occurred on a day that has traditionally been linked with injuries and an increase in sexual assault and alcohol abuse. Says Wright: “I think overall all of our events went really well. I think we made it exciting enough and gave people enough options.” While several fraternities voted against the resolution for change, public opinion was largely positive at an open PCC meeting held last week. With the new changes set in stone, several more are on the horizon. The run-around may be pushed back earlier in future years, again to minimize risk and drinking.
Survivors Protest Team's Decision to Not Suspend Coleman Continued from Page 1 dicates a campus culture that “invites and supports students who come forward” and a school system that has “more programs and watchdogs in place.” According to Stafford, Davidson’s high comparative numbers show the school is “trying to be proactive.” (3) According to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff 's Office website, Coleman was charged with
sexual battery, an A1 misdemeanor. This is the highest class of misdemeanor offense in North Carolina and has a punishment of 1-60 days of community, intermediate, or active punishment. Wilmington criminal defense attorney Patrick Mincey '03, who has much experience representing college students charged with sexual assault crimes, says the minimum of community punishment usually entails a suspended jail sentence and probation. A conviction for the offense has a maximum punishment of up to 150 days in
jail. Additionally, a conviction of sexual battery in North Carolina requires the assailant to register as a sex offender and be placed on the North Carolina registry for a minimum of ten years. Davidson College released a full statement on February 8. The statement expresses the College’s concern about sexual assault, support for survivors, and active efforts toward education about and prevention of sexual assault. That statement is available on the Davidsonian website. Charlotte attorney Chris Fialko is represent-
ing Coleman. Fialko claims that Coleman is innocent of the charge. Coleman’s next court date is March 2. (1) http://www.wbtv.com/story/34470239/davidson-college-responds-to-report-of-sexual-assault-oncampus; https://www.davidson.edu/offices/public-safety/campus-crime-stats (2) https://ope.ed.gov/campussafety/#/institution/ details; http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/ crime/article131771859.html (3) http://www.nccourts.org/Courts/CRS/Councils/spac/Documents/misdemeanorpunishmentchart.
Run-Off Election Will Determine SGA President Continued from Page 1 on campus.” When asked if the candidates would work with a Trump supporter in SGA, or someone with fundamentally different beliefs, all answered yes, echoing the same effort to promote understanding in an environment where everyone feels safe to share their views. The candidates were asked about their most important accomplishment as well as the SGA action they disagreed with most. Soltany was proudest of his work on the 75 block meal plan
that gave students a more affordable option, yet he was frustrated with the lack of communication between students and senators. Downes acclaimed the free EMT certification program that prepares pre-med students and allows for a safer environment down the hill. He was less impressed with the new Justice, Equality, and Community requirement that he felt diluted the requirements rather than strengthening the curriculum. Murphy spoke about the passing of Ben Callinder ‘17 as a tragedy that the SGA responded to with compassion and support, while he was disappointed with an SGA encounter with a student articulating discomfort with police presence
in PCC houses. He exposed unprofessionalism in this instance that goes against the SGA’s effort to take everyone’s opinion seriously. Tai Tran ‘18 asked the candidates’ opinion on gender neutral housing, and all three agreed that it was part of a campus trend that student opinion was evolving faster than the administration, and whoever the SGA president is will need to lead that change. Ben Corson ’17 asked what the SGA would do to address the contradictions of the financial aid policy at Davidson: while we claim to be a loan free institution, 20% of students take out over $16,000 in federal loans, and even more in
private loans. Downes responded, “If we are going to keep raising tuition we need to redefine ‘need’… we can’t keep pinching the middle class.” Soltany wanted to make sure that students’ expectations going in to Davidson were the reality. The candidates closed by encouraging students to vote on Monday and share their ideas with the SGA to reach the great potential for progress in the coming year. The elections results were released on Monday evening. Due to none of the candidates crossing the majority threshold (50.1%), a run-off election between the two top candidates, Soltany and Downes, will occur today.
news
Page 3
Students Travel to Raleigh to Join crime log Annual HKonJ March Time Reported
B
WILSON PAVA Staff Writer
etween 20 and 80 thousand people marched in the North Carolina NAACP’s HKonJ march, short for Historic Thousand on J Street, last Saturday in Raleigh. The march is the state NAACP’s biggest event of the year. Part of the Moral Mondays movement, the march sought bring together various political goals under the umbrella of morality. The five main goals of the march were those usually associated with the Democratic Party. Rev. Dr. William Barber II, President of the NC
rally that preceded it. Marching side by side with professors provided students with an opportunity to see the realworld application of the life lessons many professors teach in their classes. Students are used to reading about how student movements have brought about real change all over the world, as well as the important role that professors and teachers have in these movements. However, few have really had the experience of actually marching with their professors. Protesting alongside professors also validates the feeling that by going out students are making a tangible difference. On the street at HKonJ, it
Davidson students traveled to the HKonJ rally via transportation provided by College Democrats and Planned Parenthood Generation Action. Photo by Andrés Ramos NAACP, was the last person to address the crowd. During his address, he outlined the importance of combining goals like the protection of voting rights, the fight for a $15 minimum wage, public education funding, LGBTQ rights, and refugee acceptance, among others. For a religiously backed and morally focused march, the crowd was vastly different from what might be expected. The march brought together people of all different backgrounds. Many issues were well represented, chants of “Black Lives Matter” were frequently heard after “refugees are welcome here” and other chants representative of
Though the march was nonpartisan, many attended to protest President Trump's policies, including his travel ban and stance on women's reproductive rights. Photo by Andrés Ramos the issue movements that have become even more active since the election of President Trump. The march was ideologically varied, including people that proudly carried flags of Marxist icon Che Guevara and signs for the Democratic Socialists of America alongside military veterans from wars from both this century and the one preceding it. College Democrats and Planned Parenthood Generation Action teamed up to provide transportation for almost 40 students to attend the march. Davidson was also represented by various professors that also attended the march and the
felt as if a crowd that large could could, if channeled in the right directions, make lasting and positive change. “It was invigorating to be part of a mass united in resistance to divisive rhetoric and oppressive policies,” said Andres Ramos ’17, President of the College Democrats. This is a feeling that many protesters have felt, and a feeling that many of the people in Raleigh this weekend expect to feel frequently during the Trump administration.
Davidsonian.com
Description / Location
02/07/17 at 1100 hrs
Fraud at Davidson College. Further Investigation.
02/08/17 at 0533 hrs
Larceny of Property (sign)/Injury to Real Property at Tomlinson. Prosecution Declined.
02/08/17 at 1940 hrs
Simple Assault at Watts. Further Investigation.
02/10/17 at 2208 hrs
Miscellaneous Suspicious Vehicle at Lake Campus. Further Investigation.
02/10/17 at 2312 hrs
Underage Consumption at SPE Dean Referral/Medic Transport.
02/11/17 at 0130 hrs
Underage Consumption at Armfield. Dean Referral/Medic Transport.
02/11/17 at 1324 hrs
Miscellaneous Suspicious Activity on Chambers Lawn. Inactive.
02/11/17 at 1930 hrs
Unsafe Traffic Movement at On Campus. Warning.
02/11/17 at 2316 hrs
Underage Consumption at Connor Dean Referral/Medic Transport.
02/11/17 at 0236 hrs
Underage Consumption at Richardson. Dean Referral/Medic Transport.
02/12/17 at 2356 hrs
Larceny Misdemeanor (Sign) at Greenhouse PVA. Sign Recovered.
02/13/17 at 1800 hrs
Sexual Battery at North Side of Campus. Criminal Prosecution Declined.
living davidson
Page 4
February 15, 2017
Rainclamation: Reclaiming Space and Challenging Stigma MARY PORTER LIVING DAVIDSON EDITOR
O
n February 9th, Erin Davenport '18 and Sarah Gompper '18 presented Rainclamation: A Disability Art Project in the Duke Dorm Lobby to over one hundred students, friends, and staff members. Supported by the Spike Grant of Davidson Arts and Creative Engagement, Erin and Sarah embarked on this project beginning in September. Since revealing their artwork, they have been invited to participate in Emory University’s Critical Junctures Conference—an intersectional forum for students, professors, artists, and activists to present their work and to advocate for social justice. I spoke with Erin regarding the meaning and inspiration for her and Sarah’s artwork. What follows is a lightly edited transcript of my interview with her: MP: What was your motivation to start this project? ED: Sarah and I were inspired to make disability related art because as a topic and an identity, it is under-served and under-covered on campus. We wanted to bring attention to disability-related issues. The project also has a personal connection and came out of a conversation that I had with Sarah
several months ago. We were discussing freshman year and how, when we would enter Belk together—the dorm that we were living in—I would take the stairs if other people were around, despite my disability. It resulted in a lot of pain, however, I would make this choice in order to avoid the stigma of using the elevator. Sarah, in reflection of these moments, asked me if this was something we could change. MP: What is Rainclamation and what does it stand for? ED: The name is a combination of rain and reclamation, and reclamation is the overall theme of this project. In the project, there are three levels of reclamation happening. The first is where to put the art. We wanted to take fraught stigma filled space of the elevator and try to produce art that takes that space back in a powerful and artistic way. Elevators can typically be utilitarian in their utility. The second level is in the abstract wax painting, hence rainclamation. We were inspired by rain because it can make moving through the world more difficult. It coats floors and surfaces in a way that can be dangerous and threatening, especially if you have mobility issues and struggle to balance or walk. Again, we wanted to reclaim rain, and take something that causes pain into
the inspiration for something beautiful. The third level involves the poetry we painted on the boards. The poetry is done in erasure style; meaning, we took existing documents and blacked out words, only choosing words that we wanted to form the poem with. MP: What are these existing documents? ED: We found through the college archives, physical education manuals from the 1950s that showcased concern and preoccupation of perfection of the body as a goal of Davidson at the time. The type of language found in these documents erases disabled people from the equation, so we erased words and reformed them to make poetry to be pained on our boards. By doing so, we are reclaiming the ugly history of disability at Davidson. MP: How long did this project take to create? ED: It has definitely been a lot of work, and because it must be done outside of class, it has been a challenge. We originally conceived the idea in September, and the painting began over fall break. We both stayed on campus to work on it. MP: How did you collaborate with Sarah? ED: Sarah was responsible for the execution of the artwork—she is a talented painter. I mostly work on organizing the documents, marketing the project, and planning the
event. We worked together to black out the documents. MP: When and where will the boards be showcased? ED: Hopefully within the next few weeks the artwork will be installed in the Duke and Belk dorms. There will be a total of seven floors featuring these paintings. MP: Why Duke and Belk dorms? ED: Those dorms have the most number of disabled students living in them. And since our primary target is disabled students… Duke and Belk [made the most sense]. MP: How do you want this artwork to impact the Davidson community? ED: I hope that for disabled students who moving through those dorms and waiting for the elevator that the artwork will bring them a sense of calm. I want them to be reminded that they are entering a space that is there to help them. Although people may be judging their use of the elevator based on misconceptions, in reality, their use of the elevator is valid and their experience is valid. …I hope it causes able bodied people to question their assumptions about the space and to engage more with the topic of disability.
Rainclamation Reception
Photos Courtesy of Erin Davenport '18 and Abby Miller '20
THE CHEW 2.21 Sour Cream and Blueberry Coffee Cake
Adapted from foodnetwork.com Want your favorite recipe featured? Email editor Mary Porter at maporter@davidson.edu to get involved!
Ingredients
Directions
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries, stems re- 1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch-by-9-inch baking pan. moved 2. Toss berries in 1/2 cup of the flour. 2 cups all-purpose flour Pour the berries in a sieve and shake the 2 tsp. baking powder excess flour off into a bowl. 1/2 tsp. baking soda 3. Add remaining flour to the bowl, with 1/2 tsp. kosher salt baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 4. In a separate bowl, beat together the 2 large eggs, beaten eggs, sour cream, vanilla and sugar until 1 cup sour cream well combined. Gradually add the flour 1 tsp. vanilla extract mixture and beat until smooth. 1 cup granulated sugar 5. Pour half the batter in the pan and scatter most of the berries over. Pour in For the brown sugar topping: the rest of the batter and berries. 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 6. For the brown sugar topping: In a small bowl, mix together the brown sug2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened ar, butter and cinnamon. Spread over the 1 tsp. ground cinnamon top of the batter. Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool before serving. For the sour cream topping: 7. For the sour cream topping: Whisk to1 cup sour cream gether the sour cream and sugar. 3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
perspectives
page 5
February 15, 2017
Welcome to Warner: in Defense of Consumption
M
MADELINE NEWTON DRISCOLL
ost days I avoid Warner around mealtimes. For my first three years, I just didn't have the capacity to hear about the ways in which women's self-policing spilled over into our eating habits. Of course, not every woman at Davidson is as primed to read into situations like these as I am and of course not every woman at Davidson, nor in Warner, engages in the same attentive march towards self-containment. For three years I've been recovering from an eating disorder based largely around self-denial and while my brain chemistry helped push me that to a diagnosable extreme, I am deeply convinced it's just an extreme manifestation of some unrealistic expectations society has of women. And I'm not just talking about the whole looks thing. Many restrictive eating disorders are entirely based in some combination of the following: the denial of sustenance for the self, a belief of the self's unworthiness, an obsessive need to take up as little space as possible and to follow the rules. This has made some social events really difficult as I worried more about my caloric intake or how I looked in comparison to other women than I did about socializing and having fun. Somehow in the last year I've started to work past that and I can now revel with the best of them. Those nights (and mornings) of revelry, as Catherine Cartier pointed out, involve various layers of consumption. From alcohol to food to t-shirts to energy eaten up by booming speakers, the women of the eating houses can go what seems a little overboard. But I argue it's necessary. And more than necessary, it's a release and a big “f*ck you” to the rules the type A women of Davidson tend to live by religiously. To begin with drinking: it's hard for me to go out and have one glass of
Andre and call that worth it. Why would those calories be worthwhile if I wasn't gonna feel the buzz? (If you also think like this please get help). Further, I only feel comfortable getting truly drunk among women (s/o to fraternities who made it clear no matter how much work you put into encouraging a safe environment, you aren't ever safe) and dancing loosely and crazily can, for me, only happen beyond the omnipresent male gaze (hey fellas, consider women might also dance certain ways for themselves not just your benefit). Beyond that, however, I've learned at Davidson that when women get very drunk they are either a) taken advantage of or b) supposed to feel some sort of shame for getting that "out of control." Yeah, it's dangerous to reach certain levels of drunkenness and consistently doing that can be an indicator of reaching dangerous levels of mental health. But the threshold for women's "out of control" is a lot lower than for men. Even when I'm out having fun at any level of inebriation, if I'm around a lot of men I feel pressure not only to jealously guard my body and those of my friends but to aggressively police my behavior so as not to be "that girl that ______," which far from making for a funny story at house meeting can undermine my work up the hill, my credibility at Davidson, and general perception of my competency and ability to be a woman in the staid, polite, always-in-control ways expected of me at this place. Now to food. Oh, food. If humans are more likely to indulge in their deepest inhibitions, we expect to see drunken hookups especially in a culture that celebrates sexual freedoms but still condemns sexual availability. What perhaps flies more under the radar is the eating. Ya girls on campus can eat. And the nights we are given the excuse to eat as we please tend to coincide with celebrations, which in turn, coincide with drinking. Which for many makes eating easier and encourages them to eat to the point of being full or hell, past that! When for every other meal you're more likely to hear rationales for eating (oh, I didn't eat lunch so I can have
this burger) than you are comments about how bomb Nancy's food is, it should be no surprise there are nights where we take "Evil Carbs" to the face and noms on Cookout milkshakes until our stomachs ache. When you deny yourself for the majority of meals, over consumption when given permission and in a community makes total sense. Plus, take heart knowing all that chocolate sauce we pour just makes up for all the nights I (and others) didn't have dessert because we somehow managed to convince ourselves we weren't worth it. And now for the shirts. Some might say it’s democratizing to have the same shirt on all these bodies. Certainly it’s mind blowingly affirming for me to see the lovely ladies of Warner bopping around in whatever other accoutrement makes them unique. I wore my Tims, others wore Sperrys. I wore leggings with my t-shirt, some wore jeans with tall boots. Yet there we all were sporting the shirt I'll wear for years to come. For the shirts given out to the first years to wear to toppings, they were meant to democratize the whole "don't wear something you value too highly" thing but somehow that message got wrapped up in the notions of consumption. Of course not everyone has the ability to go buy disposable clothes. I certainly didn't my freshman year, digging out old shoes I had worn to F for the entire first semester (gross) and using some shorts I borrowed from a friend. We bought t-shirts at Walmart for a few bucks and I felt grateful to be able to do that. Could eating houses do a better job of acknowledging the cost barriers to entry and participation? Of course. But our inability to do much with that largely has to do with the eating house system in the first place. Alumni don't donate to our coffers like sorority or fraternity alumni. We have no national scholarships to help support members through temporary or ongoing financial hardship. We were shut down in efforts to get the school to waive meal plan requirements if one also wanted to join an eating house. And any changes we make one year have no guaranteed stability the next year. Are cost-barriers
an issue? Yes. Are they seen primarily or even largely in self-Selection night? I would argue no, especially after being involved in the conversations around PCC access for three years. Warner is the only all female space I've had on campus-- social or otherwise. And it's been a rocky relationship as I struggled to eschew so many of the problematic compulsive behaviors that I saw many of my house mates engaging in, to similar or lesser extents. But working with women to raise money for Mwandi Christian Hospital and R.A.I.N, hearing about the badass jobs the senior class has, and watching us work hella hard on and beyond campus, in and beyond Warner, reminds me and affirms to me that despite nights of revelry and consumption, we're going on to do some big things. Those relationships were built and struggled for over years, not made in one night. Had I dropped immediately after self selection I wouldn't have my apartment mates, my best friends, experience working with an all female executive board, memories of crying and laughing in Warner, vomming in and cleaning up the bathrooms, losing myself dancing on tables and finding myself making announcements to 100+ women. I wouldn't have learned how claim a space, let alone space for myself. I wouldn't know about the battles raging to maintain the integrity and increase accessibility of PCC. I wouldn't have any social space that was *mine* and I wouldn't have had the opportunity to wrestle with the worst parts or celebrate the more joyous parts of being a woman. It was largely in that space, whether I realized it or not during the process of trial and (many) errors, that I made the most progress in transitioning from girl to woman without entirely losing myself in the expectations of society at large. Madeline Newton Driscoll, '17, is an Education Studies major from Saint Paul, Minnesota. Contact her at madriscoll@davidson.edu.
Davidson Bathrooms Have Toilet Paper, Why Not Tampons Too?
T
NICHOLAS TREVINO
o confirm our community’s commitment to every student’s dignity, Davidson should provide tampons and pads in student bathroom. Since accepting women in 1972, later than many of our peer institutions, our campus has slowly accommodated to the student body’s changing needs. Toilet paper, soap, and tampons are all basic necessities that keep our community healthy, but Davidson fails to provide tampons, which ignores over half of the campus’s sanitation needs. Silent sexist assumptions governing women’s bodies have enforced an unfair status quo that makes individuals pay for tampons, despite no person ever choosing to have a period. We need to challenge these stale assumptions if we want to continue to become a more inclusive, respectful, empathetic, and fair community. Davidson has recruited talented financially disadvantaged students that spend a relatively higher percentage of their income buying ex-
pensive menstrual necessities. While procrastinating on an essay at CVS, I walked through the “menstrual hygiene” aisle, and realized that I wasn’t sure if I could afford to have a period. While estimates vary, the most commonly cited statistic suggests that people with periods spend on average $70 per year on tampons alone[1]. Over a lifetime this adds up to roughly $2660. Menstruation's financial burden comprises only a portion of the higher economic costs of being a woman or having a vagina. Higher prices for “female versions” of the same product[2], higher insurance costs, necessary medical procedures, and other expenses create higher financial costs for women.[3] Tampons and pads within bathrooms would help make our campus a fairer place for students by reducing the menstruation stigma that polices people with period’s actions. Men’s often embarrassingly juvenile, irrational, and hysterical reactions to periods, a natural healthy bodily function, stifle public health conversations and shame people into silence and euphemisms. This both creates consistent gaps for people with period’s health needs and makes
the davidsonian staff editors-in-chief news editors
living davidson editor perspectives editor
Emma Johnson Matt Landini Olivia Daniels AJ Naddaff Mary Porter Erin Davenport
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Paul Henderson Sophie McHugh
sports editor
Ian Robertson
photo editor
Abby Miller
web editor business manager copy editors
Emma Johnson Austin Newsome Yashi Gunawardena Lucas Weals
our campus a less open and honest community. Menstrual supplies in bathrooms would help change our community’s culture and conversations and might reduce humiliating periods stigma. Let’s do a thought experiment to show the current system’s unfairness. Suppose regardless of a person’s biological sex, they had an equal chance of menstruating. Right before starting college, a lottery would randomly make half of the class menstruate, and half wouldn’t. As that hypothetical prospective student, you’d want fair rules that shared menstruation’s financial burden with the entire campus, rather than making half the campus pay the entire share. You would want Davidson to provide tampons, so that regardless of whether the lottery made you menstruate, you’d be protected. You’d want some protection against you or your classmate unexpectedly getting their period on their way to class, and not having a tampon to address it. Davidson should start a pilot program to determine student interest, costs, and other implementation issues. Currently, the paucity of existing research on college provided tampons
makes it difficult to determine what percentage of the Davidson community would prefer school provided tampons over their own supply. Davidson should place menstrual products within set bathrooms in residential halls, academic buildings, or in the Union, and then record the demand. Then complement this with campus surveys identifying the population that preferred school provided tampons, and why. Davidson has an opportunity to actually lead its peer institutions for a change, and help guarantee that everyone, regardless of income or gender, has the right to dignity, fairness, and equality. Nicholas Trevino,‘17, is a Political Science major from Jacksonville, Florida. Contact him at nitrevino@davidson.edu. [1]http://www.marketwatch.com/story/this-is-how-muchthe-tampon-tax-costs-women-2016-03-24 [2]https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dca/partners/gender-pricing-study.page [3]https://www.thenation.com/article/high-cost-beingwoman/
The LovesTruck Issue Giggling Freshmen In Library Infuriatingly Joyus
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Study: No Manly Way to Apply Chapstick
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Yowl Editors Talk About “Running” Articles As If They Work For the F*cking New York Times
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Professor Sheds Single Tear During Yet Another Lonesome Office Hour
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Davidson Considers Hiring Steph Curry Full Time to Keep Up Basketball Attendance
Students Look on Helplessly as Professor Forgets About Youtube Autoplay According to sources, students present for last Friday’s meeting of United States History Since 1877 could only look on helplessly as their professor failed to remember YouTube’s autoplay feature following the conclusion of a brief video screening in class. Despite the fact that the exact situation had befallen the classroom several times before, Associate Professor of History Michael Swanson reportedly turned his back on the projector screen and resumed his lecture mere moments after the video’s completion, totally unaware that the countdown timer behind him was blatantly displaying the number of seconds left before the class was to be loudly subjected to a wildly unrelated video. “It was like some sort of doomsday clock,” said Danielle Green '20, a student who witnessed the professor disregard the existence of the autoplay feature even though it has been around for years now. “We all just sat there in silence. I couldn’t even hear the lecture. All I could think about was how in the world the video ‘Top
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If You Think That Guy Eating the Quesadilla By Himself Looks Sad, You’re Right
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Senior With 2.2 GPA Takes Solace in Freshman Flickerball Championship
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Local Citizenry Excited to Learn That Flatiron Restaurant Only Building In that Shape
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“All I could think about was how in the world the video ‘Top Ten Celebrity Wardrobe Malfunctions’ was in any way related to a documentary clip on the Kent State shootings. I mean, f*ck. Talk about a change of pace. Ten Celebrity Wardrobe Malfunctions’ was in any way related to a documentary clip on the Kent State shootings. I mean, f*ck. Talk about a change of pace.” Sources from within the classroom also reported that the incident occurred after Professor Swanson had played the first half of the original video on mute before starting it over from the beginning. “I was a little disappointed by the whole experience, to be honest,” commented student Greg Williams '18. “A Charmin Ultra commercial ended up coming on before we got into wardrobe malfunction video, which was a pretty huge letdown. Luckily, I was able to pull it up muted on my laptop so I could see who had snagged that number one spot. I had my money on Janet Jackson but clearly I have a lot left to learn.” After realizing that simply minimizing the window did not pause the blaring, autoplaying advertisement, Professor Swanson resorted to muting the whole system, while simultaneously leaving his personal e-mail account projected on screen for the remainder of the session.
Edgy Freshman Abstains From SGA Election, Says His Vote Doesn’t Matter Noting that he didn’t feel comfortable partaking in Davidson College’s corrupt political system, Isaac Guiseppe '20 told reporters on Monday that he planned to abstain from voting in the Student Government Association Category II Elections. “Casting my vote would essentially be an endorsement of the status quo,” Guiseppe explained, adding that a symbolic message was worth more than his literal ballot would be any day. “These days, it’s less about what you do and more about what you say. The bottom line is, at a big school like Davidson, a single vote only counts for about .06% of the total. Meanwhile, my #DefumeTheUnion posts on Twitter get tens of favorites. It’s clear what’s making the real difference here.” Guiseppe, a frequent contributor to the Davidsonian’s perspectives section, has been dedicated to exposing corruption within student-run organizations at Davidson since he arrived in April. SGA, he posits, is second only to the Union Board in terms of electoral misconduct. “SGA has chosen their candi“SGA has chosen their candate long before we see them at the polling booths. Soltany, Mur- didate long before we see them phy, Downes…they’re all from at the polling booths. Soltany, the same cookie-cutter breed of nepotist power-mongers. They’re Murphy, Downes ... they’re all politicians, not people.” from the same cookie-cutter In addition to deeply ingrained problems rooted within breed of nepotist power-monSGA itself, Guiseppe also cited gers. They’re politicians, not harshly drawn party lines as another factor contributing to his people.” aversion to voting. “I’m on second Belk, which almost always goes with the mainstream candidate. If I lived in Richardson, typically a swing dorm, maybe things would be different. But as it stands, there’s no point in even trying.” Guiseppe did mention one major move that could sway his entire stance on local politics. “We all know how it was supposed to go. There’s only one man who was capable of bringing this school together, and SGA tossed him out on some stupid infraction about guerrilla campaigning before it was allowed. Bernie would and should have won this thing.”
In Twist of Fate, Finite Math Skills Come In Handy During Life or Death Situation
Your Davidson Honor Section
Editors: Paul Henderson McHugh, Working Remotely Writers: Craigy Thomas H. Stockwell Will “No Requests” Thurston Greg Wag Michael P. Alexis, Kaylen
Note: The Yowl is a satirical supplement to The Davidsonian. Hence, nothing in it should be taken as truth. Word.
A first year Davidson student became a local hero last week when she ended a hostage situation by applying skills learned in her Finite Mathematics class. Lasting for almost three days, the tense standoff culminated when the deranged kidnapper make contact with police using a megaphone. “I’ll freaking kill every last one of them, unless you have someone tell me the probability of pulling a combination of three green and one red marbles from this urn filled with seven green and five red marbles,” the madman shouted to the authorities on site. “Do you understand me?” Utterly stymied and ready to capitulate, local police chief Danny Smothers was heard crying out in despair while the hostages’ families wept. Luckily, student Jane Griffith ’20 was within earshot. Running toward the police cars and news vans gathered outside the scene, Griffith informed local police of the frustratingly simple probability formula
“‘I’ll freaking kill every last one of them, unless you have someone tell me the probability of pulling a combination of three green and one red marbles from this urn filled with seven green and five red marbles,’ the kidnapper shouted to the authorities on site.”
in the nick of time. “I’m just happy I had an opportunity to apply my extensive marble calculation skills,” Griffith said in an interview following the kidnapper’s arrest and the return of the hostages to their families. “My professor said that the moment would come when I’d be happy I knew how to calculate the probability of pulling marbles out of urns. What I didn’t know is that moment would be the culmination of what was a gruesome struggle between the long arm of the law and a bloodthirsty sociopath.” When reached for comment, local police chief Smothers sighed and muttered, “yeah, I totally got it after she explained it to me, it just didn’t make sense before, really…I’m not sure.” The Jane Griffith later added that her skills can also be applied to groups of jelly beans.
sports
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Optimism Surrounds Start for Tennis Teams JACOB MARGOLIS
“Y
Staff Writer
ou play to win the game.” Those are the famous words of former football coach Herm Edwards. So far the Men’s and Women’s Davidson tennis teams have done just that. Both teams have jumped out to hot starts; the men are 7-2 and the women are 5-1. The men and women are also both undefeated in conference play, the perfect topping to a great season so far. So how do the coaches feel about their teams? Sara Anundsen O’leary, the women’s head coach, thinks “the season has been going well so far,” and “the team worked extremely hard over the fall and prepared well for a very tough and competitive spring season.” Drew Barrett, the men’s head coach, shares a similar sentiment with his team and thinks “[the team has] had a good start to the season.” He is encouraged and excited because “The team has been working real hard and the guys are pretty focused. [The team has made] consistent improvement each day.” What has gotten the teams this far? What have been the keys to such successful seasons and how can the teams sustain their success? Barrett believes that the key to the successful season for his team has been “[the team’s] main focus on improving as individuals and as a team.” When asked what it will take to continue winning he believes that “If [the team is] able to keep focus
and not get caught in the hype of a single event, [the team] should be in good shape at the end of the season.” This is critical because “[the team has] to make some significant gains if [the team is] to reach [the] final goal of winning the A-10 championship.” On the women’s side, Coach Anundsen O’Leary contests that the team’s “chemistry and support of one another has been key and will be important moving forward. Every single person is a valuable member of this team and plays an important role.” She continued to state that in order to stay successful everyone on the team has “to keep pushing each other to get better every day and stay focused on what we can control.” While the coaches have enjoyed the starts their teams have gotten out to they both know there is still a long way to go. Coach Barrett has high yet simple expectations for the remainder of the season. The goal for the men’s team “is to win the Championship.” This won’t be easy to accomplish though, nothing ever is. When asked what it will take to win the championship Coach Barrett said “We won’t be able to achieve this if we don’t focus on our daily rituals and routines. If we continue to improve as a team everything else should take care of itself.” Coach Anundsen O’Leary sets just as high a bar as her counterpart. She expects “the team to keep learning and growing throughout the rest of the season.” Her “goal is for [each student athlete] to strive towards being the best player, person and teammate they can be. I hope that they continue to enjoy and appreciate the opportunity to play Division I tennis for one of the
best schools in the country.” The Davidson men and women tennis teams have been extremely hot to start the season. Combined the two have a record of 12 wins and just 3 losses. There is a lot of optimism around the teams and there is no reason why the success can’t continue. As long as both teams work hard and continue to grind their way through the sea-
son and conference play the early season success will continue. The expectations are high but with the group of student athletes present on both rosters, the coaches rightly have their hopes set high. The Men’s Tennis Team next faces off against Presbyterian on February 18th while the Women’s team squares off against Elon on Saturday as well.
Shamael Chaudry '18 has been the Cats’ top singles player since joining the team as a freshman. Photo by Emma Johnson
Baseball Prepares for Spring Season Amidst Scandal WES KERR Staff Writer
T
he emergence of spring on the horizon means one thing to a group of 40 Davidson students: college baseball season is upon us. The start of their season has been plagued by the recent accusation of sexual battery against Ward Coleman ‘20, a infielder and right-handed pitcher. The Wildcats, as they move forward from this charge, are hoping to build off an outstanding 2016 campaign. Last year the ‘Cats combined a respectable 28-26 record, qualifying for the A-10 tournament on the final day of the regular season. Making the most of their spot, Davidson stunned everybody to reach the championship game, becoming the first ever 6 seed to do so. Dick Cooke, now entering his 27th season as the head coach, has built this program to be a contender every season even in a tough conference, and last year was no exception.“I thought our team last year was very resilient and competed hard and had stretches where we pitched well or swung the bats well. We battled
all year and were able to get into our conference tournament. Clark Beeker, who as drafted by the Twins and Sam Foy provide holes to fill.” The search will be on to fill these vacancies and replace an ace pitcher and reliable second baseman. From first look, this year’s pitching staff seems to be up in the air. “Time will tell how the nature of the staff will unfold. We are still in the process of determining potential roles.” However, there are a few in that group that we could expect to shine on the mound this season. Redshirt senior Durin O’Linger had a fantastic 2016 season, and looks primed to take the number one role this year. A season ago O’Linger posted a 7-5 record with a 3.39 ERA, good for second place on the team. O’Linger’s highlights of last year included a complete game shutout on the road against a tough Saint Louis team, and four strikeouts against St.Joseph’s in an A-10 tournament win. Josh Smutzer should be another Wildcat pitcher in great contention for a starting position. He may have pitched one of his best games of his career when it mattered the most, as he gave up just two earned runs in the A-10 semifinals to
The Cats showed huge improvement from their first to second year in the A-10, nearly claiming the A-10 title this past Spring. Photo by Emma Johnson
catapult the ‘Cats to the championship. Reliever Westin Whitmire looks to be a force from the bullpen yet again. The Dallas product recorded a team high nine saves and only allowed eight earned runs across the season. He is called upon frequently when Dick Cooke is looking to shut down an opponent’s offense late in a game His achievements in the postseason closing out foes earned him A-10 All Championship Team honors. On the offensive side, Cooke is expecting a few veterans to carry the team with their bats. “We hope for leadership at the plate from Jake Sidwell and Brian Fortier but many will need to contribute.” Sidwell, the starting catcher, was the first ever player to come to Davidson after being drafted. The Los Angeles Dodgers selection had an outstanding year at the plate in 2016, batting .309 with 54 hits. He reached base in 10 straight games last year, recorded a four hit game against Winthrop, and went a clutch 3 for 4 in the A-10 semifinal. The team’s top hitter, first baseman Brian Fortier, will be key to generating the offense this season. His remarkable .327 batting average led the team last year, reaching base in the final
20 games. In April, Fortier went off in a game at Richmond, going 4 for 4 with an RBI. A grand slam in the A-10 quarterfinals was big in being named to the A-10 All Championship Team. The Wildcats definitely have the weapons to compete for the Atlantic 10 baseball title in May, but the competition will be even tougher this season. “The A10 is very strong with three teams (URI, VCU and St. Joe’s) receiving pre-season top 25 votes and there are some high profile players who may be high draft picks. That being said, our sole focus is on the first pitch of the first game against Georgetown.” The non conference schedule plays a huge part in the success and momentum of the team going into conference play. Now, just a week away from the first pitch on February 17, Cooke has laid down some expectations for this team starting in game one. “ I expect us to maintain a consistent focus every game and to stay locked in on a pitch by pitch approach. We need to make sure we’re consistent in our process day to day.” In 2017, the ‘Cats have all the key pieces on the mound and at the plate, and there’s no reason that they won’t make another run at the A-10 crown.
TTHE HE D DAVIDSONIAN AVIDSONIAN Women’s Basketball Beats out Rhode Island for the Win
Conference Champ Hopes to Lead Cats’ to A-10 Title
Will Brewster ‘17 Photo by Mike Scott
Photo by Judson Womack
September 14, 2016