The Davidsonian 10/29/25

Volume 125, Issue 7 • For a Better Davidson • The Independent Student Newspaper of Davidson College since 1914 • October 29, 2025

Mecklenburg voters confront transit tax referendum CASEY SCHEINER ’28 (HE/HIM)

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ecklenburg County will vote on a referendum on Nov. 4 that would raise the sales tax rate from 7.25% to 8.25% to fund public transportation projects, including a commuter rail line connecting Davidson and Charlotte. If approved,

the tax increase would generate an estimated $19.4 billion for transportation investments over the next 30 years. Railway and road developments would each receive 40% of the money raised, with buses receiving 20%.

The most publicized component of the spending plan is the Red Line, a proposed commuter rail line connecting North Mecklenburg suburbs, including Davidson,

to Charlotte. The City of Charlotte bought the tracks in September 2024 from Norfolk Southern. The referendum would partially fund the Red Line construction. If it passes, the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) projects an eight to ten year period before the Red Line becomes operational.

Rusty Knox, Mayor of Davidson, is a member of the Metropolitan Transit Commission, the policy

board for CATS. Speaking as a private citizen, however, he said he supports the sales tax increase and concurrent Red Line project.

“I can’t endorse it as the mayor, but as Rusty Knox the voter, I’m voting for it,” Knox said. “I believe in it. I believe in public transit. I believe it works. I believe it takes cars off the road. I believe it provides

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The proposed Red Line runs parallel to Main Street. Photo by Casey Scheiner ’28.

Davidson dedicates ‘With These Hands’ memorial AIDAN MARKS ’27 (HE/HIM)

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avidson formally opened a memorial to the enslaved and exploited individuals who built and sustained the College since its founding in 1837. Over 120 of their descendants attended Thursday’s dedication ceremony to witness Davidson’s first physical recognition of its history with slavery.

Hundreds of additional community members including students, trustees and residents gathered on Davidson’s Historic Quad in front of the Cunningham Theatre Center to hear remarks by President Doug Hicks ’90, Hon. Anthony Foxx ’93, Hon. Virgil Fludd ’80, artist Hank Willis Thomas, Prof. Hilary Green, retired employee Castella Conner, poet Clint Smith ’10 and Rev. Julia Watkins ’14.

The memorial is entitled “With These Hands: A Memorial to the Enslaved and Exploited.” The patinated bronze sculpture situated along Main Street depicts two outstretched hands. Its size and weathered look remind passersby of the magnitude of Davidson’s debt to the individuals who for decades worked at the College without pay or recognition.

In his opening remarks, Hicks said the memorial is a powerful step in an ongoing process of acknowledgment.

“We will never know the complete story, and yet, we are determined to continue our archival and arche-

The memorial rests in front of the Cunningham Theatre Center on Davidson’s Historic Quad. Photo by Brian Quinby.

ological research to properly acknowledge the lives of the enslaved and exploited individuals who are fundamental to [the College’s] history, and to realize the dream of a campus where all can learn together,” Hicks said.

Foxx is Chair of the Board of Trustees. Previously, he chaired the Commission on Race and Slavery, served as the mayor of Charlotte and was United States Secretary of Transportation from 2013-2017. He expressed hope that this moment

will be a catalyst for change.

“We memorialize those who endured dehumanizing laws and practices while creating the world in which many students could thrive, and as we acknowledge with gratitude and respect their contributions and resilience, I hope to see that translated into even more action,” Foxx said.

The memorial is over seven years in the making and almost 190 years overdue: the Commission on Race and Slavery was established in fall

Clint Smith ’10 returns to Davidson speaking on race and memory CLAIRE IRELAND ’28 (SHE/HER)

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uthor and poet Clint Smith ’10 delivered the 2025 Reynolds Lecture entitled “Just Beneath the Soil” in conversation with President Doug Hicks ’90.

Smith, a writer and poet, used his best selling book “How The Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America” as a framework to discuss the complex practice of reconciling with histories of enslavement. This discussion extended to the dedication of “With These Hands: A Memorial to the Enslaved and Exploited,” for which Smith was commissioned to write and recite a poem.

The discussion began with Smith’s motivations for writing “How The Word Is Passed,” which was the common read for the Class of 2026.

He started thinking about the book in 2017 when Confederate statues in his hometown of New Orleans were taken down. “As I was watching these statues come down, I was thinking about what it meant that I grew up in the majority Black city in which there were more homages to enslavers than there were to enslaved people,” Smith said.

This rumination left him with the framework for his symbol-centric book. “We know that symbols, names and iconography aren’t just symbols, but are reflective of the stories that people tell. Those stories shape the narratives that communities carry, and those narratives shape public policy, and public policy ultimately shapes the material conditions of people’s lives,” Smith said.

“How The Word Is Passed” was a process of exploration for Smith. “I don’t begin my books as an expert.

I begin my books, in fact, as someone who doesn’t know a lot about the subject matter; who wants to use the book as a mechanism by which to sort of fill in those gaps and chase my curiosities,” Smith said.

Filling in those gaps includes navigating difficult conversations with people of substantially different worldviews. In a conversation with a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, Smith chose to hold back on critiquing his lopsided and factually incorrect views of the Civil War. He recognized doing so would threaten the very core of the man’s identity.

The conversation shifted to Davidson’s “With These Hands” memorial and ongoing education and reconciliation efforts. The sculpture, Smith said, should serve as a reminder of the work that remains. “You don’t run across the finish line, get your medal and say, ‘Now we’re not rac-

2017; Davidson was founded in 1837.

The Commission’s 2020 report included a timeline of the the presence and contributions of Black people at Davidson College since its founding, and offered recommendations for future action including a permanent marker acknowledging the ways in which Davidson benefitted from the “stolen labor of enslaved persons.”

The dedication was an emotional moment for alumni and community members. Fludd, chair of the Special ist anymore.’ [...] It’s a practice, it’s a way of life,” Smith continued.

He described this practice of change as a long process of contributing to a larger goal, one that you may never see realized. “We all have our little hammers and we’re all chipping away at this wall, and you don’t know if the wall is six inches thick

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Clint Smith ’10 recites a poem.

Photo by Ada Long ’29.

Committee on Commemoration, is one of them.

“I could never have imagined standing here on this sacred ground before this extraordinary memorial, remembering what it felt like to be one of just a few Black students on this campus, one of seven in the class of 1976,” Fludd said.

In the closing benediction, College Chaplain Julia Watkins called on the audience to sit in “hopeful anticipation” as she described her hope that the memorial will “point towards a future” of “human flourishing” and “complete belonging.”

To Foxx, the memorial furthers that mission. “When I was a student, I saw a lot of behaviors around campus that I thought were not welcoming,” Foxx said following the ceremony. “To have a physical acknowledgement of that contribution [of enslaved peoples] is a way of the College saying that the invisible will no longer be invisible, and that those who may have felt unwelcome in the past are no longer unwelcome, and that there’s a potential for a new day here.”

Known descendants of enslaved people who built and served Davidson sat in the audience. They were asked to stand during a recognition of families delivered by Green, a historian and James B. Duke Professor of Africana Studies who has worked closely alongside the Com-

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INSIDE

Davidson residents on the ticket for Board of Commissioners Auden White ’26 on what’s on the ballot Men’s Basketball season preview Saiya Mehta ’27 and Eleanor Nangle ’28 on art in commemoration Q&A with SGA President Connor Hines ’26

Check out our website!

News

Memorial acknowledges Davidson’s history of exploitation

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 mission on Race and Slavery.

Green acknowledged that the work of identifying and documenting family stories is incomplete. Following the ceremony, she said she intends to continue that work.

“My students and I are continuing to research the names [of people enslaved by the College], some of the names that are being shared today that we did not know before, writing the biographies of every person and building upon this trust to do other things, whether it’s classrooms, collaborations, descendants [or] outreach,” Green said.

The sculpture sits between Oak Row and Elm Row. They are two of the College’s original buildings, and they bear thumbprints of the enslaved

individuals who made the 250,000 bricks used in Davidson’s original buildings. Davidson renovated Oak Row during the memorial’s construction. Originally a 16-student dormitory in 1837, the building is now a permanent exhibition space documenting the College’s history intertwined with the legacy of slavery on Davidson’s campus.

Though an important step towards atonement, the College still has work to do. Retired College employee and community leader Castella Conner delivered the community response.

“I pray this is an opportunity to commit ourselves as a community and as an institution of higher education to raise to the needs of our community and not merely focus on performative measures, but execute in real time the faith and commitment of our ances-

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tors who were enslaved and exploited for many decades on this very campus,” Conner said.

Foxx ended his remarks with a call to action. “I challenge our current students and our fellow alumni to remember their obligation. To those who have been given so much, much is expected,” Foxx said.

“I hope you will continue to carry your humane instincts and discipline and creative minds into a world that badly needs you, and that one of these days, you’ll remember today, in the midst of all that’s going on in the world around us, as a day in which hope and joy mixed with the pain and suffering of the past can combine to create a new world order that we build here from the liberal arts at Davidson College.”

Former College employee and community leader Castella Conner delivered the community response at Thursday’s dedication. Photo by Natalia Dascombe ’26.

Sales tax referendum sparks discussion across Davidson CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 better opportunities for people to get to and from health care and jobs and entertainment which is great.”

Knox highlighted the Red Line’s potential to not only provide students fun excursions, but also enrich their educational experience.

“I know that lots of students are like, ‘we can go to Charlotte.’ And that’s true, but there’s so many more things; you look at the links to education, how you potentially can link Davidson College to Johnson C. Smith, Johnson & Wales, Central Piedmont [Community College], UNC Charlotte and even the Wake Forest School of Medicine.

Those things are far more important than being able to take the train to see the Panthers.”

As Executive Director of the Davidson Housing Coalition (DHC), and a Town of Davidson resident, Connie Wessner said she thinks about the referendum tax in relation to the residents the DHC serves. Wessner said she sees the importance in establishing public transportation, but said that it will dramatically impact lower-income residents.

“I’m gonna vote for that increase,”

Wessner said. “Our state, especially this area of the state, has struggled for so long to sensibly fund transportation infrastructure. We need it desperately.

I’m not in favor of building public goods with regressive taxes because the people who most need the service end up paying the most for it.”

Wessner believes that the local government needs to prepare to work closely with nonprofits should the referendum pass.

“It’s going to be incumbent on local leaders to acknowledge that if the referendum passes, we are going to have to have a heightened awareness and a heightened sense of cooperation and collaboration with the nonprofits who serve this area and serve people who are on limited incomes, to try to find a way to compensate [them],” Wessner said.

Patrick Plaehn ’28 concurred with Wessner’s assessment of the sales tax as a regressive measure. “I will definitely be voting yes on [the referendum], because I believe in public transportation, and I think we need more public transportation in this country. I’m just a little bit frustrated that they decided to use a sales tax instead of any other form of tax, be-

cause sales taxes have been proven to disproportionately affect people of lower incomes,” Plaehn said.

“If your gallon of milk costs an extra ten cents, that’s not going to affect anyone in the upper echelons, but for working class people that can start to add up [and] make their groceries cost more and more.”

Andrew Golden is the Town of Davidson transportation planner. He said the sales tax as a funding mechanism is less burdensome on Davidson residents than other alternatives.

“First, a sales tax itself mitigates impacts from a more direct tax, such as an increase in property taxes,” Golden said. “Second, it is estimated that approximately 30% of the revenue generated from this sales tax will be paid by visitors and businesses outside of Mecklenburg County. Third, there are exceptions to the sales tax, such as prescription medicines, vehicles and qualifying food items.”

Knox agreed that the sales tax will have a minimal impact on voters’ wallets.

“The naysayers talk about this one cent being a regressive tax. The average household will spend about $240 more a year. It’s not a lot of money.

Smith delivers Reynolds lecture

Doug Hicks ‘90 and Clint Smith ‘10 at the Reynolds lecture. Photo by Ada Long ’29.

If you look at going out to the Soda Shop, you’re going to spend $10 on an orangeade and an egg salad. It’s going to cost you ten cents extra,” he said.

While a sales tax may not be the most appealing solution to students and low income residents who will face higher prices at local businesses, state lawmakers saw it as a politically crucial step. Efforts to raise money through taxation internally in Mecklenburg County were necessary given opposition in Raleigh to appropriate state funding towards the Red Line.

“The state can’t continue to fund everywhere. So this is a great opportunity to give the citizens of Mecklenburg an opportunity to have a say in funding their transportation needs,” State House Majority Leader Brenden Jones (R–Columbus) said in a Transportation Committee meeting.

A semantic dispute is ongoing over the Red Line name. According to Knox, the name was supposed to be a tribute to the College’s colors, but it sparked controversy due to its association with the discriminatory practice of redlining, where banks and insurers systematically denied housing to people of color.

“Red was chosen because of the

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 or 6000 miles thick. What you know is that the more you chip away, the less the people who come after you will have to chip away. I think that that’s part of our collective responsibility,” Smith said.

Smith applied that same metaphor to the memorial. “There have been generations of Black students on this campus who have fought and fought and fought and talked and talked and talked and pushed and pushed and pushed to make it and descendants in the community who pushed and pushed and pushed for recognition,” Smith said. “Just imagine all of the descendants who pushed for this sort of recognition, who won’t be there tomorrow, but that memorial only exists because of the work that they did.”

Attendee Michaela Bryant ’28 appreciated how Smith highlighted the aggregate process of change.

“I thought that it was truly inspiring, his mention of picking away at the wall not to see change maybe in our own lifetimes, but to know that that change will be experienced by future generations. [That really] clar-

school colors of Davidson. That’s the only reason red was chosen was the red line. It had nothing to do with redlining and segregation and things like that,” Knox said. “We’re not gonna change it now. There are too many place markers that say Red Line to change it in mid stride.”

Some current students embrace the opportunity to support a public transit project despite knowing it will not come to fruition during their time at Davidson.

“This is my chance to tell my government that I believe in the expansion of public transportation. I think that I have a responsibility to say yes, even though I won’t get to use the railway at all,” Plaehn said.

Tracy Mattison Brandon, who sits on the Town Board of Commissioners, said that the referendum represents an investment for students in the future of the College.

“The transportation referendum is going to affect this campus,” Brandon said. “I’m saying come out and vote for the transportation tax because although you may not see the rail while you’re here, you’re investing in the experience of future students to come.”

ified some of the fears I had in my own mind about how much I want to bring about change, but worrying that nothing is actually coming out of the efforts that are going on right now,” Bryant said.

Nas Jean-Paul ’24 attended the lecture with his Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity brothers. Smith was the vice president of Alpha Phi Alpha when he was at Davidson. Jean-Paul said that the conversation should have more directly addressed Davidson’s history with slavery and exploitation, and how the memorial will inform further communal action.

“I feel like there were probably opportunities to frame the discussion to be more focused on a dedication and actual impact that it will leave on the Davidson College community and also the [wider] Davidson community,” Jean-Paul said.

The lecture focused on larger scale efforts of reconciliation than those taking place at Davidson. “We’re looking specifically at how Davidson College reconciled with [their history of slavery]. The context of Dr. Clint Smith’s work with “How the Word Is Passed” [...] was important, but it just took time away from that conversation.”

Features

New Sadler Square tenants open shop

CLAIRE IRELAND ’28 (SHE/HER)

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atawba River Outfitters and Ella Blu Boutique recently opened in the newly renovated Sadler Square Shopping Center. Store fronts continue to be filled, and a range of restaurants, medical care facilities and clothing stores are expected to open at the 201 Griffith Street building. Former tenants like OurTown Cinema, The Egg and BK Custom Cleaners are not among the businesses slated to fill the center.

Once Piedmont Capital Real Estate LLC, the owners of the Sadler Square Building, finalize two more leases, all business locations will be occupied.

Karsen Osborne owns Ella Blu Boutique, part of a larger franchise.

She described the store’s inventory as a “little bit of everything.”

“We have great accessories. We have really good bags, and we sell pre-owned designer bags, which [is] obviously a splurge item, but I think that’s something that kind of makes us unique and sets us apart from other boutiques. We do sunglasses, we have belts, jewelry, hats, all the accessories, along with, you know, all the clothing items that you could imagine,” Osborne said.

Jerome Simeon, who is a General Manager for both the Davidson and Belmont locations of Catawba River Outfitters, said that the inventory in this store is primarily a mix between outdoor lifestyle and athleisure.

“We carry brands like Vuori, which is a really comfortable athletic kind of lifestyle wear, to brands like Peter Millar, which is kind of a higher

end men’s brand, to Barbour jackets, which are kind of like timeless wax jackets from England, along with a great selection of footwear,” Simeon said.

These stores are situated within the newly updated facade and interior of the Sadler Square Shopping Center.

Gone is the red brick, replaced by a coat of white paint, just as the green roof has been replaced with black roofing. Jonathan Stewart, a partner at Piedmont Capital, said that renovations to the building were completed around two months before the store’s openings.

“The new facades along with other base building improvements such as new roofs, building sprinkler system, new storefronts along with the new parking lot and new pylon signage were completed around August of this year,” Stewart wrote in an email to The Davidsonian.

Catawba River Outfitters opened on Oct. 6 to a fair amount of foot traffic. “We’re pleasantly surprised with the walking traffic. We’ve noticed a lot of people that have come in since we’ve opened are walking distance [...] passing by the Sadler Square Shopping Center, and they’re seeing our open sign, which is great, it is visible from the road,” Simeon said.

Ella Blu Boutique has had similar beneficial experiences with pedestrian traffic since the store’s opening on Oct. 10. Obsorne said that despite hosting a soft opening with little advertising, people have still found the store.

“We have the ‘now open’ banner, and most people that have come in say that it’s because of the banner, but for how well we’ve done without any ad-

Politics

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Catawba River Outfitters and Ella Blu Boutique are the first businesses to open in the newly renovated Sadler Square. Photo by David Anderson Montes Lara ’28.

vertisement, I’m really pleased. As we continue to advertise, it should hopefully only get better,” Osborne said.

The stores hosted a grand opening on Saturday.

As these businesses celebrate their openings, more openings of other shops in the center can be expected down the line. Renjoa Wellness, owned by Davidson locals, is currently under construction and is expected to open this fall.

“Renoja is a wellness, longevity and athletic recovery studio providing holistic health services such as redlight therapy, cryotherapy, hyperbar-

ic oxygen, infrared sauna, dry float, halotherapy, PEMF and compression therapy in one location,” Stewart wrote.

Rise Modern Dentistry is also under construction and expected to open this fall as well.

Further down the line, construction is expected to begin on Rooster’s Wood Fired Kitchen as well as Copain Bakery. Both of these restaurants are part of The Noble Food and Pursuits family, a southeast based restaurant and hospitality group.

Rooster’s serves up southern food through the European tradition while

Copain Bakery is a Boulangerie and Patisserie concept. These two restaurants are slated to open in the Ssring or summer of 2026.

Leases are still being finalized on other tenants. In a site plan Piedmont Capital provided to The Davidsonian, F&B Local Burger Place is listed as an incoming tenant. Though not paired with specific business names, a frozen dessert shop, Greek restaurant and medical primary care are also all listed as future tenants. “Once we finalize the two remaining leases, we will be 100% occupied,” Stewart wrote.

Davidson residents on the ticket for Board of Commissioners

CASEY SCHEINER ’28 (HE/HIM)

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ix candidates are vying for five seats on the Davidson Board of Commissioners this election day, Nov. 4. Four incumbents are seeking re-election and two challengers are looking to join the board. The slate of incumbents, backed by the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party, include Autumn Rierson-Michael, Steve Justus ’78, Tracy Mattison Brandon and Ryan Fay. They face longtime community advocate Connie Wessner and public affairs consultant David Lusk.

The four incumbents—Michael, Justus, Brandon and Fay—tout different political and professional experiences, but are all involved in the community outside of their work on the Town Board. Rierson Michael, the current Mayor Pro Tempore, was the executive director of the Davidson Lands Conservancy before she became a civics teacher at Community School of Davidson.

Justus, a Davidson alum and physician, has served on the Board for 25 years. Mattison Brandon is involved with the College as the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship Campus Min-

ister and works with various community organizations like Davidson Housing Coalition and Davidson LifeLine. Fay, the Director of Business Operations at Scott Clark Auto Group, touts experience with Lake Norman Economic Development and CMS Bonds Committee.

While the incumbents’ campaigns are different, each platform emphasizes expanding affordable housing.

In the Charlotte Observer’s candidate questionnaire, all four addressed affordable housing projects as a central issue facing Davidson.

“We’ve created and y’all have created and the folks who came before us have created a truly amazing place to live. Because of that, there’s really high demand to be here,” Rierson Michael said at a Sept. 29 candidates forum. “We as a Board have tried to mitigate some of those potential negative impacts through our affordable housing work.”

Wessner may be a challenger in this race, but she is no newcomer to Davidson civic life. She previously served on the Board of Commissioners from 2009-2013. In her 27 years in Davidson, she has also served on the Planning Board, Davidson Housing Coalition, Community School of Davidson, County’s Future of the

Library Task Force and the Pedestrian Safety Task Force. She was motivated to rejoin the Board out of concern over low participation in local politics.

“In the last couple of cycles, we’ve had barely enough people running to fill the seats. The vitality of our town really turns on the willingness of people to step up and step in and participate,” Wessner said. “So when I saw that it looked like we were going that direction again for this election, I decided I had the experience and the interest that rather than complain about it, I would step up and run.”

Wessner also put affordability at the center of her platform, informed by her time as executive director of the Davidson Housing Coalition.

“The primary focus of people living in Davidson should be to maintain a wide mix of residents with different skills, experiences, perspectives and backgrounds, keeping the doors open to them as members of our community,” Wessner said.

“That’s really what makes Davidson what Davidson is.”

While Lusk is the lone candidate with no previous experience on the Town Board, he has significant experience in politics. He has worked

for decades in state and legislative affairs, and in 2015 founded Key Advocacy, a national consulting firm that trains organizations in grassroots strategy and public affairs. Lusk drew extensively from that experience in the Sept. 29 candidates forum.

“I’ve spent over 20 years looking at ways that I can give people a voice.

Since 2010, I’ve trained over 15,000 people on how to have a voice in front of policymakers,” he said. “A Commissioner needs to be able to listen to the community and understand what their concerns are and then convey that.”

Despite only having moved to the area in 2023, Lusk maintains that his engagement with the town in those two years have left a lasting impression.

“I may not be a son of Davidson by fate, but I am one by choice,” Lusk wrote in the News of Davidson. “I’ve become a staple at town meetings, organized a Commissioner’s Chat in my Davidson Pointe neighborhood, hosted former Police Chief Kim Davidson and his department for a community meet-andgreet during Davidson Pointe’s 2024 fall festival, attended the Board of Commissioners 2025 Strategic Mid-

Year Retreat, and now serve on the Town’s Planning Advisory Board.”

For the candidates, the stakes of the race are not only a spot on the Board but also the length of their terms.

The top two vote-getters will enjoy a four-year term, while the next three victors will have to run for re-election again in 2027. This change occurs to account for a ballot measure approved by Davidson in 2023 to shift the Board from two-year terms to staggered four-year terms.

The incumbent candidates visited the College’s Union Atrium in collaboration with the Center for Political Engagement on Oct. 28 for a meet and greet to speak with students and answer their questions about local politics.

“Davidson students make up a huge part of our population,” Mattison Brandon said. “I’m a firm believer that we need to engage with students because there’s interests that you all have that connect well with our values and our standards. As a campus minister and a Town Commissioner, I’m engaged at a different level with students in terms of their needs and their interests: things like environmental sustainability, community, affordability and equity.”

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Perspectives What’s on the ballot in Davidson’s upcoming election AUDEN WHITE ’26 (HE/HIM)

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ext Tuesday, an off-year election will take place in the Town of Davidson.

None of the candidates have Wikipedia pages, no winners will receive protective details, and votes will be counted in the thousands, not millions. Yet this 2025 municipal election is unbecoming of the term ‘off-year’; it is shaping up to be one of the most transformative elections for the Town of Davidson in decades.

Municipal elections have the most direct and tangible impact on your everyday life. Mayors and town commissioners regulate everything from infrastructure and emergency services to parks and more. While presidential and congressional races dominate headlines, it is local governments who decide impactful policies such as whether your street gets repaved, how long the library stays open, and whether that new apartment complex gets built down the road. This year’s ballot includes races for school board, mayor, and town commissioners.

Additionally, voters will decide on a referendum for a new sales tax to fund expanded public transportation options.

As public education has become more politicized, school boards have gained new prominence. In the election for District 1 of the Charlotte Mecklenburg School District, the incumbent faces a strong challenger. Will current school board member Melissa Easley defeat

the better-funded and Mecklenburg Democratic Party-endorsed Charlitta Hatch? Or will the more conservative Bill Fountain pull off a surprise win? With powers over educational policy and funding for the nation’s eighteenth-largest school district at stake, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board elections are increasingly important amid a weakened federal Department of Education.

In the town of Davidson elections, Rusty Knox runs unopposed for mayor yet again, but the commissioners face competition. With only five spots and six candidates, one will inevitably be on the outside looking in. Davidson’s commissioners determine zoning, budget allocations, and environmental planning; decisions that set the tone for the town’s growth and its preservation of small-town character. With Davidson facing increasing development and rising cost of living, the town government will decide where and when to prioritize the conservation of historic neighborhoods and natural spaces. As regional development accelerates, the question is not whether Davidson will change, but who will guide that change, and at what pace.

The tax referendum has the potential to be the most impactful. The proposed Mecklenburg County Public Transportation System Local Sales and Use Tax is a one-cent, county-wide sales tax with the potential to transform transit and transportation. If adopted, the provision would raise the sales tax rate from 7.25% to 8.25%. 40% of the funds are earmarked for road improvements. The Town of Davidson has

expressed a desire to improve pedestrian safety and reduce traffic, including the ever-congested campus intersections of Main Street and Griffin Street and Main Street and Concord Road.

Another 40% is set aside for buses, improving their reliability, availability, and safety. A novel part of the funding expands Microtransit, an affordable (current price is $2.25), direct, ride-sharing service to bridge the public transportation network gaps. The most exciting proposal for Davidson is the fabled Red Line, a light-rail line connecting college students to downtown Charlotte, the airport, and Mecklenburg County. Davidson’s proposed station, which would be next to Brickhouse, opposite the admissions office, at the corner of Jackson and Griffith Street, would be a quick jaunt for Davidson students.

However, the provision faces sharp criticism.

A sales tax increase disproportionately burdens low-income residents and the proposed rail lines (especially the West Mecklenburg Silver Line) necessitate displacement and gentrification, especially in historically African-American communities. Charlotte currently lacks strong protections against these outcomes , and no planned land banking near future transit stops to mitigate impacts. Community leaders including former Mayor of Charlotte, Jennifer Roberts, and Bishop William J. Barber II opposed the measure. Do the benefits outweigh the harms? That is for you to decide.

Despite the importance of this election, municipal elections typically suffer from extremely low turnout; Davidson’s 2023 election had just

2,472 votes. One provision passed by a margin of 334 votes. With this level of turnout, your individual vote gains significant power. The County Transportation Tax has especially tough headwinds, and may come down to just a few votes.

Early voting is ongoing at the Davidson Town Hall & Community Center located at 251 South St, Davidson, NC 28036. Hours are 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m until Friday, October 31st, and Saturday, November 1st from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. On Election day, Tuesday, November 4, polls will be open 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. The Center for Political Engagement will transport Davidson students to their polling place, from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m and will depart from Richardson Circle. Go vote!

The Center for Political Engagement (CPE) is a nonpartisan student organization that prioritizes student political involvement. CPE President Auden White ’26, is an Economics and Sociology double major from Raleigh, NC. He can be reached for comment at auwhite@davidson.edu.

Only socialists can defeat the far right ETHAN BARNETT ’27 (HE/HIM)

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emocrats on campus have been eerily idle as the Trump administration guts what little social safety net American workers had won and undermines the foundations of our democracy. One might expect mass mobilizations to Democratic groups at such a time, and yet students seem more disinterested than ever. Many race to blame messaging as the root of this issue, but this masks a far deeper problem both on campus and at the national level: the Democratic platform is fundamentally unsuited to modern-day politics.

In 2024, Donald Trump won convincingly with strong working-class support. Among white working-class voters Trump won 66% of the vote, but Trump’s working-class Black and Latino support also rose substantially. Initially this seems surprising; Trump advocates tax cuts for the super-rich and seems hell-bent on cutting key social services. This apparent contradiction in working-class voting has led many Democrats to lay the blame for their electoral defeat on some sort of inherent stupidity or bigotry of Trump’s working-class base—the “basket of deplorables” as Hillary Clinton infamously called them in her 2016 campaign.

Democrats are correct that Donald Trump’s policies cannot resolve the challenges facing the American working class. However, what establishment Democrats ignore is that Trump places these challenges at the center of his political rhetoric; Democrats do not. Trump frequently decries the dissolution of manufacturing jobs, the unmanageable cost-of-living crisis and the decay of the American Dream. Trump holds that we can alleviate working-class hard-

ship through deportations, tariffs, and funding cuts. These are radical proposals purportedly aimed at helping working Americans, though it is highly doubtful they will be able to do so. Because Trump’s platform on these problems has been met with no real counterproposals from the Left, Trump has been able to monopolize the narrative on improving working-class conditions. Working-class people unsurprisingly flocked en masse to the polls for Trump.

American workers are not stupid or delusional. The far-right has capitalized on class anger effectively, while the Democrats have focused on identity politics and economic moderatism.

Because American workers are generally not trained policy analysts or economists, Trump’s false promises seem convincing in the absence of any other class-based narrative. Meanwhile, Democrats continue to misattribute their losses to overly radical policy and repeatedly moderate their platform, hemorrhaging working-class voters.

To earn back the support of the American worker, Democrats must offer a genuinely leftwing economic alternative to Trumpism and the neoliberal status quo. This is not just a moral prerogative; it is electorally essential for Democratic recovery. A recent study by the Center for Working Class Politics and Jacobin found strong support among working-class Americans – including many Trump voters – for leftwing, “economic populist” policy.

Young people today are expected to enjoy a lower standard of living than their parents. Entry-level paid jobs are disappearing, housing is unaffordable, and a college degree no longer guarantees a comfortable life. Young people are less likely to be drawn by their economic despair to the far-right, but they do make up a growing share of disillusioned non-voters. Yet,

Crime Log No crimes reported from 10/22/25-10/28/25

young people still show excitement at promises of real economic change from the Left. According to a 2025 Cato Institute study, 62% of Americans under 30 view socialism favorably.

With this in mind, one should not be surprised at the political apathy of many left-leaning Davidson students. Students on the Left have little expression beyond the Davidson Democrats, while the Right is well-organized and funded (with what seems like new organizations weekly) despite being decisively in the minority. As on the national scale, an inspiring alternative with concrete, principled aims is needed.

The potential for a powerful coalition of workers and youth behind socialist candidates is colossal. Consider the NYC mayoral primary.

Zohran Mamdani mobilized young voters and campaigned on working-class issues. Mamdani won the most votes in NYC primary history in a massive upset against Andrew Cuomo, who enjoyed name recognition, support of Super-PACs, and backing from the Democratic establishment. Note that NYC moved towards Trump from 2020-2024, and yet simultaneously went from electing moderate Eric Adams in 2021 to nominating socialist Zohran Mamdani

in 2025. The American people are not rejecting the Left; they are rejecting the status quo.

This phenomenon can be seen across the world: where left-wing alternatives exist, they are rising alongside the right. In the UK, the Greens are skyrocketing under new socialist leadership, recently exceeding the Conservatives in membership. In Germany, Die Linke doubled its vote share in 2025. In France, the NFP alliance won a plurality of seats in 2024, when most analysts were predicting a far-right victory. In Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum’s government has made historic gains for Mexican workers and enjoys 78% approval. The bottom line is this: socialist strategies win elections. If the Democrats are serious about combatting the far-right, socialism is the only way forward.

Ethan Barnett ’27 is a Political Science and Computer Science double major from London, England. He can be reached for comment at etbarnett@davidson.edu.

Sports

Men’s Basketball season preview

5

‘Cats eye a return to the top of the A-10

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ASA MCCALEB ’28 (HE/HIM)

or decades, Davidson’s men’s basketball has prided itself on the program’s unique culture and community.

The motto Trust, Commitment, Care (TCC) has defined the program throughout much of its winning history, even extending off the court and often driving former players to come to summer practices. But as Davidson moves into its fourth season with Coach Matt McKillop at the helm, the Wildcats’ challenge is not identity; it is execution.

Following a year rife with close losses, key injuries and the loss of the five most active players from the 2024-25 season, it was a busy offseason. Now, a revamped team with seven newcomers, strong depth and experience up and down the roster eyes a return to the top of the Atlantic 10 (A-10).

Thriving at a top liberal arts school while competing in Division I athletics presents a challenge, and Davidson has not been immune to the year-to-year roster fluctuations.

Reed Bailey, last season’s First Team All-A-10 performer, transferred to Indiana University; starters Bobby Durkin and Mike Loughnane shipped off to the University of Minnesota and Northeastern University, respectively; stalwarts Connor Kochera ’25 and Zach Laput ’25 graduated last spring.

Purely by minutes played, 75% of last year’s team is gone. But a look under the hood reveals the roster situation is not as dire as it seems.

Vice President and Director of Athletics Chris Clunie understands transfers have changed how teams construct rosters these days. “The transfer portal is a two-way street.

We’ve lost kids, but we’ve also gained kids,” Clunie said.

University of Pennsylvania transfer guard Sam Brown ’27 averaged

double-digit points per game (PPG) in two seasons with the Quakers, punctuated by a 42-point outburst at Columbia University. As a Second Team All-Ivy League player, he is a threat from the field as a shooter and distributor and is expected to be one of the biggest producers on a Wildcat team in need of an outside threat.

Davidson expects Army West Point transfer guard Josh Scovens ’27 to be a go-to scoring option. Scoven’s

At 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, Roberts will have a noticeable presence inside and brings the size this team needs on the glass.

Friedrichson in particular was hotly recruited by Davidson out of high school as a top-100 recruit per 247Sports, and the staff hopes that familiarity will revitalize his talent.

Friedrichson can be another dynamic scoring option who thrives in space and morphs into a star.

Sam Brown ’27 (left) contests a shot by Brock Matheny ’26 (right) during a practice scrimmage. Photo courtesy of @davidsonbasketball on Instagram.

6-foot-6 frame powered him to 15.2 PPG and finished second in the Patriot League in blocks per game.

Despite being at Davidson for just a few months, McKillop is impressed

by Scoven’s early impact. “[Scoven’s] presence and his attitude off the court and his play on the court are where he’s led by example and gained the trust of his teammates,” McKillop said.

Two more transfers, forward JQ Roberts ’27 and guard Parker Friedrichson ’27, were rotation players for Vanderbilt and Wake Forest before joining Davidson. McKillop hopes their power conference experience will help the younger ‘Cats.

As for the incoming freshmen, time will tell whether they can make a sizable impact, but early returns from camp are promising. 7-foot center Ian Platteeuw ’29 from Barcelona, Spain was named the 2025 U18 Eurobasket MVP this past summer as he led Spain to a championship.

Finding players who fit the Davidson mold and embody the program’s TCC mantra remains important. In terms of character, McKillop believes the newcomers have fit seamlessly. “[Our players] are all kids with great work ethic: very coachable, but also interested in playing the way that we play here at Davidson.

Everyone’s willing to sacrifice and play a selfless brand of basketball,” McKillop said.

With the four transfers bringing a wealth of experience from mid-major and power conferences, McKillop thinks the team’s age differentiates this year’s team from that of years past.

“We’re not going to step on the court every night and have [nineteen-year-olds] going up against [twenty-four-year-olds] like we’ve felt at times over the years,” McKillop said.

Along with the transfers, the ‘Cats may be returning one of the best defenders in the conference in Sean Logan ’28. Despite tearing his ACL last December in the midst of a dominant defensive campaign in which he threatened to break his own program blocks record, Logan looks to return to his prior form.

Hunter Adam ’27, Manie Joses ’28 and Roberts Blums ’28 will all be strong rotation pieces with the potential to become starters. After averaging 14, 13 and 15 minutes per game last season respectively, improvements from these three are paramount if the ‘Cats want to take a step forward.

The most encouraging sign that this year’s team could be special is the tantalizing depth and versatility on the roster––at least nine players can be serious difference-makers.

Coach McKillop thinks that depth is something that really stands out about this year’s group.

“You could step into practice on Saturday and say, ‘Man, those five guys are the best players on the team.’ And then you walk into the gym yesterday and say, ‘Those are the five best players on the team,’ and they could be completely different than the day before,” McKillop said.

“There’s a lot of versatility at every position,” Clunie said. “There’s ball-handling, shooting and I think that we can be a very versatile team which we’ve lacked in the past.”

Scovens and Brown are two playmakers who can fill the scoring void left by Bailey. Logan and Joses should be hounds on defense.

The primary area for concern is defensive rebounding. The Wildcats have performed below average for three consecutive years, and in a conference with such a small margin for error, rebounding is often the difference. A full season from Logan and the continued emergence of Adam would certainly help, but an improvement in rebounding is necessary, and there is not much to suggest that improvement is imminent.

However, if the Wildcats can come out and dominate the glass in early tests against Washington State and Charlotte, the ceiling for Davidson rises.

In this age of college athletics, the transfer portal gives any team reason to believe in a quick turnaround, and Davidson is no different. Impressive transfers, superb depth, increased experience and perhaps some luck in close games can all allow the Wildcats to eclipse their projected 11th place conference finish. The upside is certainly there.

Devin Brown ’29 dunking during a scrimmage. Photo courtesy of @ davidsonbasketball on Instagram.

Men’s Club Soccer finishes season undefeated, prepares for regionals HARRY SMITH ’29 (HE/HIM)

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ith time dwindling and an undefeated season on the line, Jake Malinzak ’27 stepped up and scored an incredible goal to put Davidson men’s club soccer up 2-1 over High Point University on Friday, Oct. 25. The self-coached ‘Cats (5-0-1) punched their ticket to the regional tournament in Greensboro for the second consecutive year.

Davidson finished the regular season ranked seventh in the southeast, right behind powerhouse teams like the University of Kentucky, Georgia Tech, the University of Virginia, the University of Florida and Emory University—and just ahead of in-state rival UNC Chapel Hill, who Davidson beat to open the season on Sept. 6.

The ‘Cats averaged 3.5 goals per game, the highest in the region. They combined for 21 goals scored and five goals allowed across the season.

With no head coach and less than $5,000 in funding this year, the ‘Cats

are led by captains Zack Davis ’26, Eli Naughton ’26 and Dominick Schraeder ’26.

Quick to share credit, the captains said the team’s raw talent and strong sense of community is key to the team’s success. Davis said the last minute goal scored by Fin Spitaleri ’28 against High Point was arguably the highlight of the year.

“It was super exciting for the team and a fantastic moment to be a part of.

All season we have been keeping our focus forward, taking the season one game at a time. But when Fin scored that last-minute goal, it felt like a moment where we could finally appreciate the amazing season we’ve worked so hard for,” Davis said.

With every week comes another big win. Three of Davidson’s last four games have resulted in lopsided victories against big schools such as Wake Forest University, UNC Greensboro and High Point. The team has beat opponents by an average of 2.7 goals per game.

No one has contributed more on the

statsheet for the ‘Cats than Spitaleri.

Through seven games he has found the back of the net twelve times, scoring four goals in a 7-2 victory over UNC Greensboro and three in a 6-0 win against High Point University’s White Team.

Spitaleri pinpointed the team’s strong identity as the reason for their success.

“We know how to come back from a deficit, we have immense individual talent, and we have full trust in each individual player that makes the roster each week. This understanding has made us pretty much impossible to break down,” Spitaleri wrote in an email to The Davidsonian.

Ben Flowerdew ’28 expressed a similar sentiment heading into the postseason. “I believe our team has a bunch of talented players who can make some special plays and we play so well together as a unit. We have a really great chance at going far and I think we are all pretty excited for the opportunity to do so,” Flowerdew said.

Davidson competes in NISRA Re-

gion 2 with other teams across the Southeast. The ‘Cats have bounced around the regional rankings, beginning the season unranked before jumping all the way up to the number one spot after the week of Sept. 20th.

They stayed in first place for multiple weeks before finishing the season in seventh place.

Davidson has a target on their back heading into the regional tournament, according to Naughton. “As I’m sure most of the Davidson community feels, we are often overlooked or not discussed when it comes to anything, given our size as a school and our historical performance in the league,” Naughton said. “We went in with the mindset that we had to prove ourselves again and put Davidson Club Soccer on the map. I think we have earned the privilege of having a target on our back and of people knowing we are high up in the rankings because we continually prove ourselves worthy every week.”

Last week’s game against High Point was certainly the highlight of the sea-

son so far, not only because it capped off an undefeated season, but also because of the atmosphere. “[It was] just a blast to play in front of a bunch of our friends and it was a great environment,” Flowerdew said.

The team will make the trip out to Greensboro this weekend for the regional tournament. Nine teams from each of the eight regions make it to the Men’s Championship Division and will play for the Club Soccer National Championship in late November. In order to qualify for the tournament, the ‘Cats will either need to win the regional title, be the runner-up, or receive one of the seven at-large bids given out to the region.

The tournament will be a big test for the ‘Cats but Schraeder thinks the team can handle it.

“We have managed to stay healthy this season, with relatively few drawbacks. The buy-in and commitment from everyone has been extraordinary.

Although we will probably be the smallest school in regionals, I think we have the talent to go far.”

Arts & Entertainment

6

Senior Studio spotlight: Belle Staley ’26

WYATT GESSNER ’28 (HE/HIM)

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Paintings by Belle Staley ’26 hang on the walls of her studio. Photos by Wyatt Gessner ’28.

elle Staley ’26 has a lot on her mind. The art major’s senior studio is something of a brain dump; the cozy, paint-splattered walls are covered in pieces inspired by everything from animals to family to mythology. They are also a medium for her to think about her other major, biology.

“I think one of the cool things about painting is you get to capture things that science kind of explains to an excessiveness,” Staley said.

That is not to say Staley has all the answers. Her work blends fact and ambiguity, the latter of which she is more than willing to permit.

“Why I love painting and art so much is because there has to be a balance. I think the mysteries that we allow ourselves to keep are oftentimes the only things that make it exciting to know more,” Staley said.

“Because if you don’t let the mystery grow within you, then you’re just toast.”

This commitment to the uncertain starts at the very beginning of Staley’s artistic process, in accepting that the paint can never match what’s in her head.

“I feel like my technique has improved a lot since freshman year [...] but it’s still to the point where if I have an image in my head, I cannot execute it to the level I want. And honestly, I’d say that’s the most fun I’ve had with painting, because it’s not about forcing an idea anymore.

It’s about recognizing [that] materials have their own voice.”

Questions of nature and consumption, and what it means to exist in that cycle, is a common theme in Staley’s work. “I’m working with this idea of animal skins [...] who has the right to hunt, and what is the ethics behind being super distanced from the killings of animals,” she said.

One painting depicts a nursing mother surrounded by vultures and hyenas, combining nature with another common theme of Staley’s: motherhood. “I just liked the idea of motherhood as being like a molding aspect; this creature is latched on to you, and it’s slowly taking your nutrients,” she said.

In true biology major fashion, many of Staley’s works recognize the disturbing and sometimes downright gory aspects of the natural world, but also their necessity to sustaining life.

“I’m really interested in the idea of being tied to nature and what it means to respect the world around us and recognize that there are bad things, but also everything in the world [...] has mechanisms to fix itself, but the things that people do don’t necessarily have mechanisms to [fix themselves],” Staley said.

Currently, all of Staley’s works are paintings, but it is not a decision she makes unconsciously. “To be loyal to art versus to be loyal to a material is an interesting conflict,” she said.

“Because I might have an idea that might be better executed as a sculpture, but if I’m like ‘I need to paint this,’ it’s going to start to take a different form.”

Staley is also acutely aware—despite her wealth of ideas—of the limitations not just in her medium but in

artistic practice as a whole.

“You have to constantly be observing how your painting is working and recognizing it’s just about letting go,” Staley said. “Instead of art making being a process of adding, adding, adding, usually it’s letting go until you find something that speaks remotely to what you went out for.

That’s my experience, at least.”

Oftentimes this process spans weeks and means combining ideas that come to Staley at different times.

“Art making as a form of communicating with yourself, as in ‘I will do something,’ and I’m like ‘what was that?’ And then I have to figure out how to respond to it,” she said.

Fortunately for Staley, the process is made easier by having a dedicated studio space. “It’s super special we have these because there is something about making art [in] a space [where] you’re excited,” she said.

“When I’m here, I feel like I’m entering my own mind.”

The studios, which are given to each studio art major, were a big reason why Staley chose the program over other degree paths. “I am applying to MFA programs, but I mean, this is kind of, this is the goal,” she said.

But ultimately, what keeps Staley turning back to painting is her passion for the medium and expressing her ideas.

“I think if you like something, you paint it better. And if you don’t like it, you don’t paint it very good, unless you’re really good. My mom always says that about food, too. [...] So my mom makes terrible mashed potatoes, and I can’t paint buildings.”

Memorial highlights role of art in commemorative practice SAIYA MEHTA ’27 (SHE/HER) ELEANOR NANGLE ’28 (SHE/HER)

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rt has long served as a form of commemoration. Davidson engaged deeply with this form of remembrance during last week’s dedication of “With These Hands: A Memorial to the Enslaved and Exploited.” Art, in the form of the two work-worn hands of cast bronze, was used as a medium to interrogate and reckon with themes of oppression, erasure and belonging, both on and off Davidson’s campus.

The final form that this commemoration would take was years in the making.

Lia Newman, director and curator of Davidson’s art galleries, was a staff liaison to the Commemoration Committee that convened in December 2020. Newman guided the Committee’s early stage of determining the key characteristics for a memorial at Davidson, alongside professors Hilary Green and Cort Savage. “[We went] through a series of questions to think about [...] what were the characteristics of those memorials that made you feel changed when you left [...] and in particular, what was it that helped you feel connected to an experience that was not your own, when the memorial was not about your family’s history,” Newman said.

The potential design teams hosted community engagement sessions to

gather input from alumni, faculty, staff and residents. These sessions clarified Newman’s own understanding of how the memorial would function in the broader community.

“One of the community members asked one of the architects on a different team, ‘Tell me how I explain that to my eight-year old granddaughter.’

It was a [reminder that] This is not a project for us. This is a project for the community,’” Newman said.

Initially, Newman felt more drawn to conceptual designs than those with figurative elements. The community’s interest in a memorial with direct symbolism, however, led to the jury’s selection of Hank Willis Thomas with Perkins&Will to design the memorial.

“This piece was a really direct way for people to say: ‘Black people built the campus. They labored here, they physically made the bricks, they built the buildings, they did the laundry, they took care of people, they worked in chemistry labs. [...] They worked and were not credited,’” Newman said.

The memorial navigates a tension between symbolism and specificity.

The sculpture embodies “generations of people in one figurative gesture,” Newman said, in a way that might appear to contradict the College’s efforts to name and document the stories of specific individuals. On the other hand, the sculpture’s androgynous hands can also be understood as an acknowledgment that it may be impossible to identify every individ-

ual deserving of recognition. “[In one of our early meetings] someone said, ‘Doesn’t that feel really masculine?

A lot of the labor here was done by women.’ And someone else in the room said, ‘My grandmother was a laborer and her hands looked exactly like that. I never thought that those [hands] were masculine. [...] I never viewed his sculpture as being [...] gendered in that way,’” Newman said.

Moments like this reminded Newman that every viewing experience is uniquely informed by each individual’s specific background. “It’s sort of about your experience and [...] hopefully you see what you see in it, you understand it as you understand it,” Newman said.

The physical experience of taking in the hands can also affect the sculpture’s impact. Newman pointed to the difference in distance between the hands at the two entry/exit points.

“Your experience coming in and out is a little bit different. [...] If you’re entering from the wrists, you might walk in with people; but when you exit—if you exit by the pinkies— it’s a tighter space so you might exit alone,” Newman said.

The memorial’s location was intentional: it sits adjacent to Main Street, the western edge of Davidson’s campus that separates it from predominantly Black West Davidson. Bowles said she hopes that the memorial can serve as a bridge between campus and the broader Davidson commu-

Hank Willis Thomas at Thursday’s dedication. Photo by Natalia Dascombe ’26.

nity.

The location is also significant when considering how different community members move through ‘communal’ space. “It was made so that people who did not feel welcome previously did not feel like they had to go deep into campus to get to this memorial that is supposed to be about their family,” Newman said.

Vann Professor of Racial Justice Laurian Bowles was a member of the Commission on Race and Slavery that recommended the College create a visible acknowledgement to the enslaved and exploited on campus. She emphasized that completing the me-

morial does not mean the College’s work is done.

“We started this work seven years ago. It just is really incredible to be a part of this and I really appreciate that even between administrations—different presidents, different deans— that at least the sentiment and the ethos of the conversation is: this is the beginning.”

“The idea of art as a provocation for a conversation, can be described as foo foo, but really I think this memorial will hopefully raise people’s consciousness about the naming conventions, art conventions, and what the power of art is,” Bowles said.

Living Davidson ACROSS 1. Apple computer 4. Former West German chancellor Willy 10. Abbreviated antidepressant 14. Evita’s real name 15. Place to plug-in 16. Some craft brews, for short 17. Genealogical* 19. Pinch (of salt) 20. Lake ____ Vista, FL 21. Extraterrestrials* 23. Trims 25. Emoji Movie medium 27. Fence steps 29. Orson Welles’ citizen 30. This Friday* 32. CIA workers 35. “Singin’ in the Rain”’s Debbie 36. High school punishment 38. What comes before com 39. Amalgamate 44. Possible Yoghurt brag 49. Treacherous* 51. Rock ages 52. Upper Egyptian protective goddess 53. Grecian Keats subject 54. Meat, in Michoacán 55. Eviction order* 57. Subside, as rain 59. “____, There, and Everywhere” 60. Genre of 17A, 21A, 30A, 49A and 55A 64. Who the Goo Goo Dolls would give up forever to touch 65. Waco university 66. To do this is human, to forgive is divine 67. AKA NMSQT 68. Friend of Stills and Nash 69. “Insecure” Issa

Spotlight: Connor Hines ’26

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Come Play

DOWN 1. Shrug sound effect 2. Hail to Caesar 3. Repeating rifle 4. Indicates 5. Machu Picchu, now 6. Include, like a PDF 7. Discontinued product abbreviation 8. Went off course 9. “Toodleoo!” over text 10. B on an LP 11. Droopy-eared dog 12. Grappled 13. “Black-,” “Mixed-,” “Grown-” 18. Belgian city 22. Sees through 23. Jamaican genre 24. Bother, as the wife would 26. Needle-nosed fish 28. In the middle of tennis?

31. Mount Holyoke founder Mary 33. Joined with 34. Specific conservation designation (abbr.)

37. Military vehicle 39. Same prefix 40. Asian equines 41. Star sapphire 42. Polygraph 43. Second smallest cont.

45. “Nifty!”

46. Infinite amount of time 47. Raggedy Andy’s sister 48. “The Waste Land” author initials 50. Growls 54. Best-seller Toyota 56. iPhone charger type 58. Invitation inits.

59. Trendy with the kids 61. Emmy-winner Edebiri 62. Savings plan 63. “Able was I ____ I saw Elba”

ANNA MORROW ’28 (SHE/HER)

onnor Hines ’26 is in the middle of his second year as president of Davidson’s Student Government Association (SGA). In an interview with The Davidsonian’s Anna Morrow ’28, Hines shared some of his proudest achievements and challenges facing SGA. Anna Morrow: How did you get into campus leadership?

Connor Hines: I first ran for student government when I was a first year student. [...] My mom graduated from Davidson, I spent many of my very formative years here, core memories were made on campus, my 16th birthday, I was playing pool in the college union with my friends who lived in the town of Davidson. [...] And a lot of my life was spent on this campus. [...] I knew from a very early age what it meant to be a member of this community, which then translated to when I became a student. [...] In any community that I’m a part of, I’m going to be someone that wants to try to make a difference and make it better than when I first arrived and I saw student government as a way to do just then.

AM: What are some of your proudest policy implementations?

CH: Community access [...] was the first big one for me, because I was only a firstyear senator. [...] The power and balance can be striking a lot of times in these meetings, where there is a meeting between five or six administrators on campus, deans, police officers, people who have spent their professional careers in the roles that they’re doing, and then there’s me as a Davidson College student who’s been here for six months. And so to be able to see that through to a successful end felt really good, and it gave me a lot of confidence moving forward into other things. [...]

A lot of the work that I’ve been really focused on in SGA has been supporting the work of our Honor Council, supporting those institutional values of trust and integrity, and honesty. [...] We are stressing to students that there is an importance in the values that we

take on as being Davidson students, and that also doesn’t end when you walk across the stage at graduation. In fact, I think getting our degrees should be thought of as kind of like a commission that now we’re going to go out into the world and continue to bring these values with us to wherever we end up.

Working that message into the work that SGA is already doing has been a key focus in mind.

AM: What is SGA’s biggest challenge?

CH: I would say the biggest challenge the SGA faces is effectively sharing the work we’re doing with the student body. Right now, our primary way of communicating is through Instagram, but that relies on students already following our page. We’ve considered sending out a newsletter by email, but we also want to be mindful not to overload student inboxes. Across our six standing committees and executive cabinet, we’re constantly working on initiatives that impact student life.

It’s important for us to communicate what we’re doing so that if students have unique perspectives or want to get involved, they know how to reach out and engage with our work.

AM: What is your biggest challenge as the leader of SGA? CH: For me, the biggest challenge in my role has been finding the right balance between being hands-on and giving our senators the space to lead their own projects.

I’m very detail-oriented, and when I first became SGA President as a sophomore, it was a big shift from a position focused on the finer details to one where I now oversee a team of nearly 40 students. The role of SGA President requires both attention to detail and the ability to see the bigger picture to help guide the direction of the SGA. The former Director of the Union, Mike Goode, once described my position as being similar to that of a traffic cop, someone who helps direct energy and connect students with the right stakeholders.

Two years into the job, I’ve found that to be a pretty fair description! I certainly still have my own initiatives and projects, but I also have to help guide and manage the various other projects coming out of the Senate.

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Crossword by Katie Davis ‘29

DACE’s Mending Mondays

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ANNA MORROW ’28 (SHE/HER)

n the final Monday of each month, the Davidson Arts and Creative Engagement (DACE) studio in the North corner of the Chambers basement hosts “mending monday” offering alterations, mending, cropping, thrift flips and patching services. Students and faculty come in with tattered jeans and buttons that need to be replaced and are led through the process of repair by a few Arts Fellows.

While these students act as expert seamstresses for one day a month, the fellows program allows students to work in arts administration, create and share a passion for the arts and advocate for the arts.

DACE strives “to integrate the arts into the daily lives of students, faculty and staff.”

DACE operates under the direction of Sherry Nelson, a long-time Davidson employee.

Nelson began in 1993 and has supported Davidson students’ engagement with campus life and the arts since then. Mending Monday is one of her more recent projects.

I came into the DACE on a dreary Mending Monday morning with two items of clothing I needed repaired. The studio offered a bright and calming environment for a project I had put off in favor of studying. This is exactly the vision Nelson had for the space when the studio opened in 2023. Nelson has seen the beneficial impact on student stress because of the reprieve from academics engagement in a creative project DACE provides.

Mending is a larger action than just stressrelief. Sabrina Mowery ’28 is a DACE special events manager and art fellow. “Mending in particular is important because of the role it plays in environmental sustainability and the preservation of historic, tactile skills.”

Mowery finds herself in a role as a leader of this event because she is manager of events at DACE and an experienced seamstress who has spent many hours in the DACE studio working on her own mending, alterations and quilting.

Nelson and Mowery are passionate about the process and result of mending and hope

that through these monthly events, students will learn the valuable skill of sewing to reduce their individual and environmental sustainability. “It is crucial to wear the clothes you have for as long as possible, since the material already exists and it would require additional energy to recycle it,” Mowery said.

“As a skill, mending is becoming a lost art.

So much of our lives are now digital, so we have to actively work to learn and preserve tactile skills like sewing, weaving, and other arts and handicrafts. So mending is a winwin. You help preserve the environment, gain historically significant skills and make unique clothes in the process,” Mowery continued.

I left the studio with freshly sewed items ready for wear. In the time I spent in DACE between classes, I chatted with Nelson about why she believes in student engagement in the arts, learned how to pin tears and run them through the sewing machine and enjoyed the bright environment of the DACE studio that is open to any and all students to create in community.

DACE poster. Photo by Anna Morrow ’28.

The

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Irreverent student journalism since Yesterday. Castigat Ridendo Mores.

insides

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Is it just me, or are anyone else’s nipples pointier? This week’s forecast predicts a cold front

Page: Public Indecency

The Scary Issue

October 29, 2025

Commons set to be paved over by Spring 2026, New residence hall set to be built in Stowe Parking lot.

Page: Parking Problem SOLVED!

Perspectives: Is it safe Techniques to cope with If it webtree and spider make web and it halto trick-or-treat at the approaching fog loween then spider tree SAE apartment? web up tree scaryyyyy Page: spider scary Page: Freaky Friday Page: Don’t Walk Into The Fog

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O BO

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Davidson Aesop Fables

Where Art Thou?

The Deer and The Coyote

O

nce on the cross-country trails, a coyote sat next to Erwin lodge, loudly groaning with vying angst. A deer strolled by and approached with a morbid curiosity. The coyote began to decry his troubles. The coyote felt that everywhere he turned, the forest had enemies out for him, and even the deer made him fretful. The deer, thoroughly confused, asked how this could have happened. The coyote began to explain that he still held instances of deer aggression against the creatures, such as when he was stalking their children, one had yelled at him, subsequently alerting the herd to his presence. Another example included an instance when the coyote had overheard remarks made by several deer that they did not particularly like the coyote.

The coyote claimed that the whole of coyote-dum was under attack and was in grave danger from all deer. The deer attempted to tell the coyote how he had hunted and killed many of the deer’s friends, sometimes just for fun. The coyote called the deer a mad fanatic, trying to silence him and all coyotes.

The deer decided to move along and let the coyote yell his throat dry, but not before suggesting that the coyote consider why the forest actually dislikes him.

(Sometimes it’s not your ideology, your personality just sucks)

The

Yowl

EDITORS The Ghosts of Ben & Clair All of The Muppets Alex G Dana-Watts Nuclear Fallout Shelter

Incident of The Week (see quote of the week)

D

ear Campus Unicorn,

It’s me. Do you remember? Do you remember when we locked eyes in Union? Or when I sat next to your table at Commons? Or how about when you kicked me out of the KSig apartment at F? Do you remember all the great times we had? Probably not.

I haven’t seen you around. I miss you. Campus hasn’t been the same without you. Where’d you go? I scan the landscape of faces in Commons, but never do I see your eyes looking back at mine. Did you trade your all-access meal plan for dining dollars? Did you get a scooter and start lifting in Doe instead of Chidsey?

I miss you. I’ve tried to replace you, but I just can’t quit you.

Baby, look, I know our history is complex, but we need you. I need you.

Daddy needs his little wildcat back. Come home, kitten.

Quote of the Week (see incident of the week)

Note: The Yowl is a satirical supplement to The Davidsonian.

Hence, nothing in it should be taken as truth.