STUDENT MEDIA AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
TUESDAY, October 17, 2017 · VOL 49 Issue 6 · BADGERHERALD.COM
“Me Too”
UW survivors speak out about their experiences, paths to recovery. page 14
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FORWARD
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From the desk of the editor: Behind ‘one in four,’there are stories to be heard To combat a culture of sexual assault, dialogue about sexual violence must be recentered around survivors rather than alleged assailants by Alice Vagun Editor in Chief
A year ago, an incident report popped up on the police blotter of my computer, as it had countless times during my tenure as city news editor. “Sexual Assault.” It was the first time I saw the name Alec Cook. For the remainder of the school year, it would be one I followed closely. His name would go on to dominate headlines across the world. His mugshot would loom over opinion pieces and social media posts. His criminal complaint would lay next to my
school notes, and his CCAP record would be bookmarked next to Learn@UW on my browser. Posting updates, calling his lawyer and squeezing into the media room at the courthouse — I spent a lot of time on this case. I have been met with generous and undeserved praise for my reporting and handling of the matter. But, I take great offense when commended for my work simply because it was a matter of sexual assault, and I am a woman. As a journalist, it doesn’t take bravery or courage to write up an incident report. It takes great bravery and strength to be the one to step
forward and report the incident itself. Eleven women mustered up the strength to do exactly that in the past year. Unfortunately, their stories and subsequent paths to recovery remain largely forgotten. Like those brave women, the voices of those impacted by sexual violence are often drowned out, as the names of assailants become the ones to dominate headlines. This issue of the Badger Herald is dedicated to amplifying some of those voices. We are dedicating our cover story and expanding our opinion section to feature these voices in an effort to better understand the pathway to recovery for
sexual assault survivors. We all know what “one in four” stands for. We must refuse to desensitize ourselves to statistics, and understand the humanity and pain overshadowing this data. It’s time to truly listen to the one behind the number. Any students that would like to share their thoughts and experiences, anonymously or not, are welcome and encouraged to send a submission to oped@badgerherald.com.
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Tuesday 10/7 Alex Lemon at A Room of One’s Own, 6-7:45 p.m., FREE Madtown refuses to slow down. Here are some upcoming events The Badger Herald recommends to keep you up to speed.
Thursday 10/19 Learn to Swing Dance at the Chazen, 6-8:30 p.m., FREE
Wednesday 10/18 “Endless Poetry” screening at MMoCA, 7-9 p.m., $7/FREE for members
Thursday 10/19 Homecoming RED Talk at Gordon Avenue Market, 7-8 p.m., FREE
Friday 10/20 Amoramora at Der Rathskeller, 8-11 p.m., FREE
Saturday 10/21
Friday 10/20
International Feminist Film Festival at the International Cooperative House, 6:30-9:30 p.m., FREE
Sunday 10/22 PigPen Theatre Co. at the Frequency, 8 p.m., $12 (18+)
Monday 10/23 Homecoming Parade on State Street, 6-8 p.m., FREE
Saturday 10/21 Disney on Ice: Reach for the Stars at the Alliant Energy Center, 7 p.m., from $36
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Fall Tasting at the Wise Restaurant, 4-6 p.m., FREE
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Student protesters could face expulsion under Board of Regents policy New resolution attempts to protect free speech on campus by requiring chancellors to take action on those who disrupt visiting speakers by Matt O’Connor Campus Editor
The University of Wisconsin Board of Regents voted earlier this month to approve a resolution which would ramp up punishment for students whose protest is seen as disruptive to the free expression of others on UW campuses. In the resolution passed by the Board of Regents, a UW student who is considered disruptive to the free expression of others on two separate occasions will face suspension. That same student will face expulsion if he or she is found to have disrupted free expression a third time. In December 2015, the Board of Regents passed resolution 10600, which affirmed the UW system’s commitment to the protection of free expression on its campuses. In July, the regents reaffirmed their commitment to this resolution. The regents’ most recent free speech resolution comes in light of the Wisconsin State Assembly’s passage of the Campus Free Speech Act, in which the Legislature called on the Board of Regents to instate a policy protecting free speech on campus. Most notable about this resolution is the addition of punishment guidelines for those who are believed to have disrupted or prevented free expression. Many of the regents supported the resolution due to the protection which they viewed it would provide speech deemed controversial, disagreeable or even offensive to students on campus. Regent Ryan Ring called free expression “vitally important” in academia. “I believe this proposed policy does a great job at making it clear the university strives and promotes academic freedom and freedom of expression on all of our campuses,” Ring said. Opponents to the resolution criticized its vagueness and said clearer guidelines are needed to ensure fair and consistent implementation. At the conclusion of the Oct. 6 meeting, the resolution passed the Board of Regents with a nearly unanimous vote. Only Tony Evers, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, voted to reject the resolution. Evers said nothing has happened on any of the UW campuses to warrant the passage of this resolution, especially given the recentness of the free speech resolution passed in December 2015 and reaffirmed in July of this year. “There has been no extraordinary disruptions on campus that we need to further constrain free speech,” Evers said. “This appears to be a solution seeking a problem.” On campus, student leaders have expressed both support and concern for the resolution, as well as the impact it may have on the ability for students to protest. Katherine Kerwin, Chair of the Associated Students of Madison Legislative Affairs Committee, said the resolution is an “attack” on student power and targets liberal students.
Photo · Top left: Emily Hamer, Top right: Reily Steinbrenner, Bottom left: Katie Cooney, Bottom right: Peyton David Additionally, Kerwin expressed concern the resolution will be used to protect hate speech, which she said is often the case when controversial speakers come to campus. “I do value other forms of speech and the right to free speech, but we need to take into account that certain speakers have come not to promote a different ideology, but to promote hatred and to divide campus,” Kerwin said. Kerwin said one of these speakers was conservative pundit Ben Shapiro, who came to campus last year amid intense protest. Kerwin rejected claims that Shapiro was unable to express his views as a result of this protest. In a recent event which sparked controversy, UW’s chapter of Young Americans for Freedom hosted conservative journalist Katie Pavlich. Pavlich, a supporter of expanding gun rights, was met with student protesters wielding dildos as part of the “Cocks
Not Glocks” movement, a campaign which aims to highlight the “absurdity” of expanding gun rights on college campuses. In light of these protests, YAF Chair Abby Streu expressed her support for the policy put forth by the Board of Regents. “Diversity of thought and intellect is imperative to have on a university campus, and that should be respected by all members of the student body, faculty and administration,” Streu said. “The free speech policy protects people from being silenced because free speech needs to work for both sides. Each side has the right to be heard — they have the right to protest and the right to bring speakers. Neither has the right to silence the other.” While the effect this resolution will have on the ability for students to protest remains to be seen, UW plans on issuing pamphlets to make clear the distinctions between acceptable and unacceptable protest. October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 5
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UW reaffirms commitment to campus safety amidst Title IX repeals
UW sexual assault experts say new U.S. Department of Education changes leave more gray areas, shift away from a ‘survivor-centered process’ by Madeline Boulanger Reporter
In light of the U.S. Department of Education’s decision to rescind several Title IX federal guidelines on investigating and prosecuting sexual assault, the University of Wisconsin reaffirmed its commitment to its current policies regarding sexual assault. Two key documents rescinded under the DoE’s decision include the 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter and the 2014 “Questions and Answers on Title IX and Sexual Violence” document, both of which provide federally mandated “preponderance of evidence” guidelines for investigating sexual assault on college campuses. Samantha Johnson, the violence protection manager at University Health Services, said the guidelines included in these documents are intended to make the process of sexual assault investigation easier for everyone involved, but the retractions by the DoE have made that process more complicated. “It’s a little more complicated for everyone involved, but particularly it’s a shift away from a survivor-centered process,” Johnson said.
The retraction of the 2014 “Questions and Answers on Title IX and Sexual Violence” document makes unclear the distinctions between what are acceptable practices in a disciplinary case such as sexual assault, Johnson said. Without this document, Johnson said universities are left with no guidance as to how to proceed in disciplinary cases involving sexual assault. “This was a really long document that provided specific answers to specific questions of how to proceed in a disciplinary case,” Johnson said. “All of the things that were in there, we don’t have guidance on anymore.” Acording to the announcement released by the DoE, changes to Title IX include revoking the 60 day timeline that universities are given to mediate the situation and abolishing the minimum preponderance of evidence standard, which outlines evidence necessary for a conviction in a sexual assault case. Other changes outlined in the announcement include different mediation options for students found guilty of sexual assault, and the removal of the equitable
Marissa Haegele The Badger Herald right to appeal, which means both parties are now no longer allowed the same amount of appeals.
Before they had the same “number of opportunities, but now the Department of Education is saying the respondent —the accused — can have an unlimited number of opportunities to appeal the decision.This turns into a cycle of going to different people to see if there’s a different answer to the same evidence, so that’s pretty concerning.
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Samantha Johnson Violence protection manager at University Health Services
In response to the DoE’s Title IX revocations, Chancellor Rebecca M. Blank released a statement reaffirming the university’s commitment to making the campus a safe place. “No student on our campus should have to deal with sexual assault,” Blank said. “We have worked hard to develop a set of policies and practices that serve our students well and we do not plan to change them.” The university’s policies are determined
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by the UW system, Blank’s statement said, and their practices are not likely to change. Student organizations specializing in sexual assault on campus supported Blank’s statement. Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment Chair Janie Felton said the organization supports the university in their commitment to the Title IX procedures. PAVE is a student organization which works to prevent sexual violence and build a healthy campus community. “PAVE believes that rescinding the federal guidance on Title IX will negatively impact student survivors across the nation,” Felton said. “We commend UW for choosing not to sink to minimum guidance at this time, and urge them to continue using the preponderance of the evidence standard in the future.” At the national level, universities and colleges are now free to lower their standards of evidence when investigating instances of sexual assault cases. In the statement, Blank said UW recognizes previous preponderance of evidence standards by Title IX only required the minimum, however, the university will continue to make additional resources available to students who are victims of sexual assault. “I am really thrilled with UW’s response that, in spite of new guidance, we recognize that these policies are a floor not a ceiling,” Johnson said. “We’re always here to serve survivors. UHS has an entire unit called the survivor services unit and their whole job is to support students emotionally who have experienced sexual assault, dating violence, sexual harassment — and those services aren’t going away.”
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Chimera program teaches self-defense to women by Avery Aurand City Editor
Chimera is a self-defense class teaching effective safety and self-defense skills designed for women, emphasizing selfempowerment and assertiveness. Developed in the 1970s, Chimera first began in Chicago and later opened up chapters throughout the United States, Chimera instructor Natalie DeMaioribus said. Now, the Chimera program at the Rape Crisis Center in Madison is the last existing chapter in the country . The classes are dispersed sporadically throughout the year and average 15 people per class, but the cap is 25, DeMaioribus said. Annually about 200 people take public Chimera classes. To build trust, Chimera groups begin and end with the same participants, DeMaioribus said. There are no drop-ins or observers, and the classes are strictly women only. The classes teach a variety of self-defense techniques, DeMaioribus said. Chimera does not focus on giving students a “script” to follow based on specific situations, but rather provides a variety of tools so that people have options to buildup their own defenses. Chimera teaches physical techniques, like strikes and ground-fighting, which can be utilized in a violent or physical confrontation, DeMaioribus said. It also teaches hold-breaking, moves designed to break free from an attacker. These moves range from hugs to chokeholds and everything in-between. “It’s useful because it makes students feel much more confident,” DeMaioribus. DeMaioribus emphasized Chimera spends a lot of time on learning assertiveness. How to stand, structure language and eye-contact are all components of assertiveness, she said. “Setting boundaries sounds ordinary,” DeMaioribus said, “It doesn’t sound like self-defense, but it’s something most women don’t know how to do effectively.” A red flag of when to act further or seek help is when you assert yourself and say what you want, DeMaioribus said, and the person continues to disregard your wishes. Chimera not only teaches assertiveness and physical defense mechanisms, but also focuses on the psychology of violence
Often it’s a very intense, emotional “place for people who take the clas. It’s really important this is a safe place for them to express their fears and deal with their emotions with the larger group.
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Natalia Demaioribus Chimera instructor at the Rape Crisis Center
and attackers, DeMaioribus said. DeMaioribus referenced a move called “the five-point stance,” which is effective if someone is following you. Point your hips, shoulders and face directing the person who is
Photo · Chimera teaches both physical, verbal techniques to avoid escalation of situations or to use as self-defense. Riley Steinbrenner The Badger Herald following you, and ask, “Are you following me?” She said people are shocked by this confidence and will usually leave you alone. “If you can get an attacker to leave you alone before they start the attack, that’s really the ultimate self-defense,” DeMaioribus said. DeMaioribus noted there has been a spike in class attendance in late summer and early fall. Parents are enrolling their daughters who are college freshman in preparation for the school year, she said. Most of the public classes Chimera hosts are near Meriter Hospital, DeMaioribus said. A fair number of University of Wisconsin students attend those classes. “I wish the NAT or the SERF would consider having Chimera classes for students,” DeMaioribus said. “People need to know you have a right to draw a line, and it’s not ok to push past that line.” Chimera will host workshops on campus Nov. 11 at Gordon’s Commons, and has more public classes available near Meriter Hospital Nov. 5 and Nov. 12. Pre-registration is required for the classes near Meriter. October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 7
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Lawmakers request audit of 6,000 plus sexual assault kits
UW employees now required to partake in sexual violence training
Testing untested kits ‘vital’ closure for victims, legislators say
Training program aims to educate faculty, reinforce UW responsbility
by Izabela Zaluska State Editor
Two Democratic state representatives requested a state audit, or official examination, of Wisconsin’s sexual assault kit testing backlog. State Rep. Melissa Sargent, D-Madison, and State Rep. Chris Taylor, D-Madison, requested the audit Oct. 2. The audit requests the Department of Justice’s sexual assault kit backlog status, kit testing processes and procedures and how the DOJ has utilized grant funding to address Wisconsin’s kit backlog. Wisconsin has more than 6,000 untested kits, Sargent said. This is the second time Sargent and Taylor have requested an audit — the first time was in February. The two representatives have also reached out to Attorney General Brad Schimel in May, June, September and October, asking him to answer questions about the untested kits in Wisconsin. In the most recent letter, Sargent and Taylor requested Schimel answer how many untested kits there are in Wisconsin, how many have been tested by the DOJ since they received grant money, the number of kits that have been designated for testing and to not be tested and how many kits will be tested in state and private labs, Sargent said. “It’s very hard for [sexual assault survivors] to continue to heal and move on when they know this is hanging over them,” Sargent said. “They absolutely deserve the dignity and respect of a government that has their back and that is not happening under this administration.” When these kits are tested, Sargent said, there is a much higher chance of being able to bring perpetrators before the courts and provide justice to survivors. It allows everyone in the state to feel more secure. Testing kits also allows survivors to move on with their lives, Sargent said. She added it is “vital” closure is provided to survivors in Wisconsin. Rape Crisis Center executive director Erin Thornley-Parisi said there is probably a sense among survivors whose kit hasn’t been tested yet of justice not being served. Thornley-Parisi added, however, that there are a number of valid reasons why a kit hasn’t been tested, such as the case being closed, the perpetrator being caught or the
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victim changing their mind. Though the center cannot provide information about whether or not a kit has been tested, the center can provide resources, support and information on who to contact, Thornley-Parisi said. “Most importantly, to both the
Sexual “deserve
assault survivors justice, and in Wisconsin, they have a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and that’s not even close to what they’ve received under this administration. As legislators, we have a duty to the people of Wisconsin to act when the system fails, and that’s why we’re requesting this audit.
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Chris Taylor
Department of Justice and to the Rape Crisis Center, is that people receive the support they need around both making this decision and on pursuing the case once the kit has been tested,” Thornley-Parisi said. The Rape Crisis Center will also be putting up billboards encouraging people to contact the center if they want to talk or if they are unsure of what their resources are regarding the kits, Thornley-Parisi said. To further support sexual assault survivors, Sargent has introduced various pieces of legislation, and will introduce more legislation later this session. One of the current bills would require law enforcement agencies to annually report the number of kits collected, submitted for testing and not submitted for testing. This data would then be reported to the DOJ and compiled into an annual statewide report. “Sexual assault should not be a partisan issue,” Sargent said. “Every single one of those kits represents a sexual assault survivor, and they deserve justice.”
by Abby Doeden Reporter
For the first time ever, all University of Wisconsin System employees will now be required to take an online training program informing them about sexual harassment and violence. At UW, the program is called “Promoting Equity at UW-Madison by Preventing Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence,” and was released in July. Employees were required to complete this program by Sept. 30. Office of Compliance director Cathleen Trueba said the campus-wide training communicates the importance of the topic and UW’s zero-tolerance policy for sexual assault. “This training ensures that all members of UW-Madison are made aware that acts of sexual harassment and violence will not be tolerated and that UW-Madison takes the issue of sexual harassment and violence seriously,” Trueba said in an email to The Badger Herald. One of the goals of the program is to teach
It is important for all “employees to know what it means to be part of the UW-Madison community and what responsibilities we have to ourselves and each other to ensure a safe learning environment.
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Catherine Trueba Office of Compliance director
definitions of sexual harassment, assault, dating and domestic violence and stalking to employees on campus. In addition, employees learned about available resources, bystander intervention strategies and options for reporting sexual harassment and sexual violence. This new program comes in light of the prevalence of sexual assault on campus and UW’s commitment to ensure the safety of students. In 2015, a campus-wide survey found 27.6 percent of female undergraduates at
UW reported experiencing sexual assault, and 76.1 percent of the incidents involved alcohol. In the same survey, however, UW undergraduates reported greater knowledge about sexual assault and awareness of campus resources than the national average. The employee training system reinforces the responsibility of faculty and UW to ensure students safety and take the needed measures to support them, Trueba said. The program follows a number of initiatives over the past year requiring students and staff part of the University of Wisconsin System to participate in trainings on preventing sexual assault. This training will provide employees with the information to identify sexual assault and violence, and know how to support a colleague who has experienced it. “We need to know how to recognize sexual harassment and violence, how to support a colleague who has experienced sexual harassment and violence, what all reporting options are and the resources for members of our community,” Trueba said. Before this training was put into place, the Office for Equity and Diversity and the Title IX Coordinator provided regular training on sexual harassment and sexual violence to graduate assistants, employees holding certain appointments and to departments upon request, Title IX Coordinator Lauren Hasselbacher, said. The university has required training of all students since 2013. Hasselbacher added that training is offered in ways beyond the online training. All teaching and project assistants receive training on Title IX and bystander intervention as part of the Graduate Assistants Equity Workshop, Trueba said. In addition, University Health Services, Office of Compliance and Office for Equity and Diversity conduct in-person trainings across campus on how to identify sexual harassment and sexual violence, how to respond and where to report or seek support, Trueba said. “We will continue to work to prevent such [sexual harassment and violence], support anyone who has experienced such behaviors, provide a fair and thorough investigation of allegations of sexual harassment and violence, and hold individuals responsible for their behavior,” Trueba said. “[The new training] is a very positive step forward in setting the clearest of expectations for all members of the campus community.”
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UW continues initiatives to confront sexual assault climate
Survey unveiled one in four women on campus report experience sexual harrassment, UW launches educational programs to combat issue
by Gretchen Gerlach Reporter
A 2015 survey from the Association of American University’s Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Assault Climate Survey, unveiled the realities of sexual violence on the University of Wisconsin campus. Since then, the university has taken part in multiple initiatives in an attempt to combat the climate of sexual assault on campus as well as provide resources to victims, such as the first-year violence prevention workshops.
These programs reinforce the information “students have learned and build upon the
foundation they may have in knowledge regarding sexual assault. We want to shift students’ attitudes to decrease adherence to rape supportive myths, such as rape only happens by strangers and alcohol causes assault
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Samantha Johnson Violence prevention manager at UHS
Most students arriving at UW know sexual assault is a burgeoning issue on college campuses, Samantha Johnson, violence protection manager at University Health Services, said. But, she believes the first-year violence prevention workshops are of utmost importance for educating students further. Johnson said she is “confident” in the resources and programs offered currently at UW. “There are a lot of resources on and off campus that are available to victims seeking healing and guidance,” Johnson said.
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Currently, UW requires first-year — and for the first time this year, graduate and professional students — to participate in online workshops such as the U Got This! Program, and further in-person workshops like the GetWise seminars. “These programs reinforce the information students have learned and build upon the foundation they may have in knowledge regarding sexual assault,” Johnson said. “We want to shift students’ attitudes to decrease adherence to rape supportive myths, such as rape only happens by strangers and alcohol causes assault.” Along with resources and education for students, the university provides there a number of confidential resources and services for students who have been directly affected, Johnson said. The Survivor Services unit at UHS includes a team of victim advocate counselors who are specifically trained to provide support to victims, Johnson said. Victims can meet individually with counselors or in support groups. Jamie Temple, the interim coordinator for UHS Survivor Services team, said survivors are the only ones who truly know their own experiences. Because of this, she hopes programs like the Survivor Services team will empower
survivors to make their own choices for their healing and future. “We believe that healing is possible and that by supporting a student’s autonomy and recognizing that their survivorship is part of one of their intersecting identities, they will gain a sense of hope and agency,” Temple said. While UW has been trying to improve the infamous “one in four” statistic, there is still room to improve, Johnson said. UW has recently begun requiring graduate and professional students to also take part in training, including key prevention activities while using the same online program as first-year students. The UW System has also convened a task force that trains its employees similarly to how first-year students receive training, and parents of first-year students also receive a brief training when their child attends SOAR. The overall goal of these resources are different for each victim, Johnson said. “Each resource helps victims with a different part of their healing process,” Johnson said. “For some, the goal is that they stay in university, for others it finding ways to cope and manage the trauma they are experiencing. Doing so while trying to remain a good student is quite a challenge.” October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 9
ARTSETC.
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Practice enthusiastic consent in all sexual encounters
Wholehearted consent leads to better communication between everyone involved for duration of sexual activity by Erica Uyenbat Hump Day Columnist
On college campuses everywhere, the pervasive nature of hookup culture makes enthusiastic consent seem lame. For fear of “ruining the mood,” a lack of communication prevails in sexual encounters across the board. Yet, consent is essential to healthy, enjoyable sexual activity and it should be practiced whether you’re in a relationship or if it’s just a hookup. All too often, the dialogue on consent focuses on a verbal “no” and while that is a vital element, the shift to enthusiastic consent promotes active communication in the collective experience of sexual activity. The idea of affirmative or enthusiastic consent is all about confirming that your partner’s “yes” is a genuine and eager expression of their interest in the act. Here are some surefire tips to establish and maintain enthusiastic consent throughout the entire act. Recognize vulnerability The first step in approaching any sexual
encounter is making sure all interested parties are in a place mentally and physically to make their own informed sexual decisions. If this is compromised in any way due to intoxication, consent cannot be freely given. And just to be perfectly clear: “No” means no. “Maybe” means no. Saying nothing means no. Even “yes” can sometimes mean “no.” This is where the idea of enthusiastic consent emphasizes that a “yes” needs to be freely given, meaning if there’s emotional manipulation, coercion or pressure in any form, that “yes” counts as a “no.” Only a “yes” that is expressed with sincerity means yes. While physical intimacy depends on respect between partners, it also demands a great deal of trust. By engaging in sex, you open up your body and mind to another person. So before moving onto anything else, recognize that any sexual activity comes with vulnerability and enthusiastic consent lies at the threshold of a positive or negative sexual experience. Talk it out! Communication is key to any sexual activity. Before you start making moves,
establish mutual interest. Be attentive to your partner ’s body language and of any verbal cues of interest. But, understand communicating intent is not the same thing as consent. Ensuring your partner has the same expectations keeps everyone on the same page until the point of sexual activity. Communication prior to sexual activity can even be a form of foreplay. Saying things like “I can’t wait to X!” and “Would you like it if I X?” can be a huge turn on — and there’s no such thing as too much foreplay. Obtain and maintain enthusiastic consent Now that you and your partner are all riled up, verbally obtain consent. Ask your partner at the start of sexual activity and at every stage of sexual activity. For example, if your partner has consented to one act and you want to include or move onto another, say something along the lines of, “Would you like it if I X?” Although verbal consent is vital, be observant of any body language. If your partner is pulling away, frozen or not responding in any way at all, stop and just ask
if they’re okay with the situation at hand. Do not continue until they give expressed consent again. That being said, if you are unsure of their body language at all, it’s always best to ask. And as for yourself, providing continuous feedback — whether positive or negative — is the best approach to maintaining enthusiastic consent. While most of the conversations surrounding consent focus on obtaining it, it’s important to note there should be just as much responsibility in providing enthusiastic consent. Saying things like, “that feels good” or “keep doing that,” or even reciprocating similar body language assures your partner that your consent is freely given and it’s an enjoyable time. By vocalizing pleasure through verbal and nonverbal cues, it eliminates any uncertainty that your partner might be feeling. Remember, consent can be withdrawn at any time. Respecting your own and others’ boundaries facilitates a pleasurable and healthy environment for everyone involved.
ODESZA set to showcase recently released album at Alliant Energy Center Electronic music duo encourage aspiring musicians to create music with passion instead of conforming to industry trends by Jill Kazlow ArtsEtc. Writer
ODESZA has been pushing the limits by exploring deeper into their genre of electronic music to create a unique, escapist listening experience. The group consists of two artists, Clay Knight and Harrison Mills, who came together in college and bonded over their mutual interest in electronic music. The duo has integrated new qualities of sound on their latest album, A Moment Apart. When it comes to performing, Knight said that they mostly look forward to their interactions with audience members. “There are a couple sessions in our set that are really fun to play and just seeing the crowd’s reaction,” Knight said. “Once you get everyone moving and you see the crowd react in the way you want them to, to stuff you’ve spent so long working on and making — there’s really no more rewarding feeling than that. Having everyone sing the lyrics to 10 • badgerherald.com • October 17, 2017
the song that you wrote with your friends — it’s a pretty surreal experience.” On their latest project, ODESZA has collaborated with artists of different ranges including WYNNE, Mansionair, Naomi Wild, Regina Spektor and more. “They’ve been really fun to work with,” Knight said. “Most of the collaborations, if not all of them, have been a unique experience and a really fun time to sit in the studio with people and bounce ideas back and forth, try new things and see how they work and kind of compare notes and what not. It’s been a really cool experience and I’ve learned so much.” Knight especially gushed over his collaboration with Leon Bridges. Working with Bridges in the studio and seeing the song come together was an exceptionally rewarding experience, Knight said. Bridges was featured on the track titled “Across the Room.”
“I’ve always wanted to work with him. We both have always wanted to work with him. To make the song that we did, I think has been a dream of ours for a long time,” Knight said. “It has such a good vibe, really strong energy to it and Leon has done such a great job. I think that would probably be my favorite off of the top of my head.” A constant grind and sense of perfectionism is what it takes Knight and Mills to produce their tracks. They start out with many different overlapping sounds and then “trim the fat” by cutting it down to a more selective set of sounds that compliment each other best. For those that do not appreciate ODESZA’s specific genre and easily blow it off as music anybody can make, Knight challenges them to try to do it. The process is long, and it takes a long time to get good at it, Knight said. As programs advance, it becomes harder to familiarize oneself with the process.
Production has become an instrument, Knight said. For young fans who are interested in getting involved in electronic music themselves, it’s necessary to pursue what you want to make and take the time to practice, Knight said. Instead of conforming to the trends of the music industry, people should be making the type of music that makes them happy, Knight said. Even though Odesza has continuously produced amazing track after track, they are still looking to grow and expand their skills and knowledge. Recently, and throughout the writing process for “A Moment Apart,” film scores and other cinematic music have encapsulated the duo. These songs, if listened to closely, show specific notes from movie-music. The duo will showcase their new album and more in Madison Nov. 10 at the Alliant Energy Center.
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Art En Route creates citywide project to build community, curate understanding Mobile exhibit transforms Madison buses into canvases, hopes to share art with larger audience than museum-goers by Morgan Grunow ArtsEtc. Writer
The new exhibition, “Art En Route,” brings together aspects of visual and literary art to create a community throughout Madison and surrounding areas. Put on by WUD Art, co-curators Yusi Liu and Alex Polach have brought a new dimension to Madison art. Liu, former WUD art director, and Polach, former WUD art associate director of development, have been working on this project since September 2016. The exhibit will be displayed in Gallery 1308 of Union South until Nov. 17. In addition to the gallery, the art will also be displayed on Madison Metro Transit buses until Jan. 20, 2018. Polach served as a great contributor to the inspiration of the exhibition. Over the summer, she was in Athens, Georgia when she discovered the exhibit, “You, Me and the Art,” where local architects and artists used bus shelters to display music-related art pieces. From this, Polach believed WUD Art needed a “facelift,” and decided to dream big. Reaching out to Liu to co-curate the project, the two worked diligently to pull off an incredible and talented composition. One of the most surprising aspects of the development of the project was the interest from aspirational artists. Receiving a total of 80 applications, 60 visual and 20 literary artists, Liu and Polach narrowed it down to a total of 16 contributors — 8 pairs of both a
visual and literary artist. “This combination [of literary and visual artists] is not just for the viewers, but for the artists themselves to enhance their practices,” Liu said. All the artists have different levels of experience, even within the pairs, ranging from college students to adults with years under their belts. While this varying levels of experience is something often seen in music, Polach said it is rarely seen in art. Liu and Polach both agreed it was very interesting to watch everyone challenge themselves, whether it was using new software, different tools or different techniques. Bringing the art to an ever-changing environment is also something not seen every day. The buses act as a “running gallery,” Liu said, who wanted to emphasize that seeing art on public transportation was aimed to take people “by surprise [and] experience art in a more casual and welcoming way.” With the daily change of bus routes, Polach also highlighted the opportunity of total exposure being very wide, with an overall goal of reaching further than perhaps the typical Madison art population. With a total of 16 buses circulating throughout the city and surrounding areas, each pair was given two buses to display their art on. With one “wrap” fitting on each
bus, there is a great amount and variety of art traveling through the area. The project also encourages the use of public transportation. Through showcasing art on the buses, Polach said they hope to encourage more public transportation improve community communication to further the understanding of people and the city. Polach also brought up the fact that many of the individuals using public transportation are college students or those of a lower socioeconomic status. Thus, the curators hope this exhibition will bring citizens of the area together through art. Alongside that, encouraging the use of public transportation over personal vehicles will also showcase an environmental aspect. There is no overall theme of the exhibition, Liu said, as there was were no specific theme or criteria given to the pairs. “We never gave a theme to provide [artistic] freedom,” Liu said. As a result, this project has created a “playfulness” for the collaborating artists as each pair could collectively craft a personal and meaningful message. One overall theme, however, naturally emerged within their creative processes. “The identity of Dane County really does influence what [the artist’s] work has come to. A lot of it deals with personal identity and roles within the [Madison] community,” Polach said.
Depictions of the Women’s March and other sociopolitical issues were showcased throughout this exhibition as pairs represented their role within the community and issues they perceived to be most relevant. Furthermore, the curators hope to create a “scavenger hunt experience” for all viewers. Using the social media hashtag, “#ArtEnRoute,” Liu and Polach are encouraging viewers to take photos of the art on buses that is seen in the area for promotional and communal tactics. The campaign will be occurring on the platforms of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This is also a good way to obtain content for the exhibition’s final catalog. Liu and Polach are planning to create a catalog at the end of the transportation aspect, combining both their own photos and those within the community. A production video is also being created with a videographer traveling around to capture the art. This will eventually be available on social media and the exhibit’s website. Liu and Polach have learned a lot more than what it takes to put on an art exhibition, as the project encompassed so much more. “Student-driven projects are very important and more people should dream big. There are so many opportunities for artistic projects in Madison,” Liu said.
Photo · Art travels throughout Madison via the city’s numerous bus routes and will continue to do so until Jan. 20 Courtesy of Margaret Roethle October 17, 2017• badgerherald.com • 11
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University Theatre began production of ‘Our Town,’ a play relatable to all Madison native Thortnon Wilder’s world-renowned production shows life’s highs and lows, creating a juxtaposition of simultaneity by Aidan McClain ArtsEtc. Editor
The University Theatre began the production of “Our Town” Oct. 13, the deceptively simple, world-renowned play that was created by Madison native Thornton Wilder. Many describe the play as having no main plot or dramatic climax, but the play’s simplicity allows the audience to relate to the material. The show covers the highs and lows of life, and the themes of death and enlightenment are weaved throughout the performance, though never explicitly explained. The relatable material draws the audience into the performance and they become involved with the theatrical experience, Roseann Sheridan, the director of “Our Town,” said. “There’s a deliberate attempt to include the audience in the experience throughout,” Sheridan said. “It’s a relatable piece … and it’s also very universal in its themes and ideas. It has a lot to do with being present and letting go of our attachments.” When people realize life involves euphoric and dreadful moments, and come to accept life’s inevitable truths, they connect with each other, Sheridan said. The themes in the play juxtapose to create a simultaneity of the two qualities of life. There is a production of “Our Town” in Manchester, England right now in response to the 2017 bombing incident. The play was specifically chosen because of how the community reacted, and they needed to process what had happened, Sheridan said. Like all theatrical performances, “Our Town” is a way to tell a story. People understand the world and its truths from story telling. With “Our Town,” the audience is constantly reminded that they are watching a play with actors, Sheridan said. The relatable content, however, still allows the audience to immerse themselves in the show and find themselves reflective in it. The play was created in 1938, and has since been turned into a movie and radio play, and has been performed on stage both regionally and on Broadway. Directors tend to differentiate their work from the other shows, but Sheridan didn’t make her creative decisions just for the sake of being different. “The first and foremost thing is how does this play speak to me and what do I really want to say about it,” Sheridan said. “I don’t really try to make it different for
the sake of being different from other productions.” To produce the show, Sheridan had to consider the cast, layout of the theatre and budget. These factors were major considerations for how to approach the show. Usually this show involves a cast of all ages, ranging from children to seniors. For this production, the entire cast — with one or two exceptions — is comprised of all undergraduate students. Sheridan had to consider how the show can work properly when students were playing different ages and different roles. This factor perhaps makes the show even more relatable. The entire community is encouraged to attend the show, but the target audience is college students, Sheridan said. It is representative of the college-aged student, and was designed to engage with that particular audience. Sheridan then had to consider the environment and resources available. She was told the production budget would be small and it should be turned into a contemporary performance. In the end, Sheridan’s 25 years of directing experience allowed her to create the play as she envisioned it — regardless of the factors present. Her expertise is also evident by her selection to direct this play. Plays held at the University Theatre are usually directed by staff in the Theatre Department — but Sheridan does not work for the university, she is the artistic director at the Children’s Theater of Madison. When she heard that “Our Town” was coming to the University Theatre, she reached out to the head of the theatre production and landed the job. Even with her great experience, there were inherent challenges with directing the play. The casting, environment and budget were
Photo · The cast consits of almost all undergraduate students — a deviation from other productions of the play. Beau Meyer The Badger Herald factors to consider, but not entirely difficult to overcome. The main challenge was with interpreting the play itself, Sheridan said. Even after years of reading and studying the script, Sheridan ran into difficulties when deciding how to present the material. The deceptively simple content led to challenges with interpretation. The play is not as simple as it looks, and yet it’s simpler than it looks, Sheridan said. When a playwright creates a good piece of material, there’s a lot of room for interpretations. At the same time, there’s hardly any room for interpretations, Sheridan said. It’s both simple and complex at the same time, just like how the opposite themes and emotions of euphoria and dread are simultaneously contrasted throughout the show.
Over the summer, Sheridan constantly thought about the play and tried to answer the question, ‘What does the playwright give us?’ It’s hard to break this piece apart and present it in a way that keeps the original language authentic while still keeping things simple. It was difficult to crack the nut of this play, Sheridan said. Performances run through Oct. 29, and Sheridan hopes people come to see the play that is quintessential to both the American experience and the universal human existence. “I hope that some place in every person in the world, there’s an interest in [theatre],” Sheridan said. “Come without expectations. Be curious about the world of the play.”
October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 13
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UW Survivors Speak Out
Those affected and advocates face uphill battles in fights against sexual assault by Vidushi Saxena Senior Contributor
Editor’s note: This piece contains accounts of sexual assault. Each survivor of sexual assault is different, and each has felt the impact of their assault in different ways. For recent University of Wisconsin graduate Anna*, coming to campus for the first time marked the start of her independence. On the fringe of being an adult, she wanted to make memories, sing and have more sexual experiences. It took only one party and one person for her to lose touch with herself. “I had this residual feeling of not feeling like a person,” Anna said. “I felt like an object.” After the incident, Anna felt she was far too young to be able to fully comprehend what had happened to her. Describing the experience as “traumatic” and “difficult to rationalize,” she said she took nearly a year to acknowledge everything. Anna is one of four women who have been assaulted during their time at UW, according to a 2015 survey conducted by the Association of American Universities. Despite representing a significant population of sexual assault survivors, this statistic doesn’t convey the nuances nor the individuality of each experience. Beth* was 17 when she was assaulted. Now a senior, she had been drinking at a party in her freshman year but said she may have had “too much.” One second she was with her friends, the next she was naked with a stranger on top of her.
“I had this residual feeling of not feeling like a person,” Anna said. “I felt like an object.” Unable to make much sense of the situation, she started crying and did not say anything to stop the perpetrator. She woke up the next day, feeling ashamed and sad. “I didn’t want anyone to find out because of the stigma that might make people treat me differently,” Beth said. “I blamed myself for getting drunk.” Alcohol forms a key part of the narrative in many stories of sexual assault. Familiarity with the perpetrator also looms as a large factor.
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An ex-boyfriend sexually assaulted UW junior Nancy* after she went to his home in search of a place to stay late at night. She had been with him for three months, during which he had been physically and verbally abusive. After she decided to put a stop to it, they remained friends. Nancy tried to stop the perpetrator, but he did not listen to her until five minutes after he began assaulting her. Despite knowing about sexual assault, she said she “blanked out” when he started assaulting her. After the incident, she said he pretended like “nothing had happened.” “We hear a lot of stories, but perpetrators are usually people we know,” Nancy said. Following the incident, Nancy said she went into depression, had dreams involving sexual assault and rape and began attending therapy. She did not categorize the incident as sexual assault until her therapist helped her come to that realization. These narratives are only the tip of the iceberg in a survivor ’s process of recovery and reclamation. While survivors have described this ongoing journey as difficult and hard to forget, many have shared their stories to become stronger and to empower those who are or have been in their shoes.
Recovery is far from linear Beth said she could not tell anyone except one friend about her assault. She found that she was neglecting herself, went into depression and skipped school. The incident took away her self-confidence and made it difficult for her to trust anyone till at least three years later. “A guy I barely knew took advantage of me, how do I know someone else won’t,” Beth said. UW senior Frankie Hermanek was 17 years old when she went out with some friends and two others who she only met that night. They were all drinking and she eventually ended up laying on the ground with one of her acquaintances next to her. Her friends had left, much to Hermanek’s confusion. The two acquaintances then proceeded to sexually assault Hermanek. She said she “never said no,” but kept repeatedly telling them she was unsure of what was happening. Eventually, she completely blacked out. “It was very traumatic and surreal for me and it took a long time to process,” Hermanek said. “In my heart and in my mind, I knew something very wrong happened.” Each survivor takes a different path to recovery. UW junior Elizabeth Drayna said she felt “completely fine” after her assault, which worried her because she felt as if she was betraying other survivors. Drayna, whose perpetrator was a friend, said she was able to forgive him and move past it. But her reaction
made her feel like she was portraying sexual assault as something enjoyable and “not that bad.” Drayna said she eventually realized there is no correct way to respond to these situations and feelings can change in the future. “Every situation is different and me being okay isn’t validation for people to assume everyone should be okay,” Drayna said, “And just because you feel okay at first doesn’t mean you have to feel okay later on.” Drayna said it is also important for survivors to remember that just because they agreed to do something first does not mean they have to agree with it every time. Consent is not the same as harassing someone until they give in or do something till they stop fighting back, she said.
“Every situation is different and me being okay isn’t validation for people to assume everyone should be okay,” Drayna said, “And just because you feel okay at first doesn’t mean you have to feel okay later on.” Institutions supporting sexual assault survivors Because of the differences between each sexual assault survivor ’s experiences, institutions have to be able to respond to all kinds of situations. But not everyone chooses to report their assault and many find reporting unsatisfactory, as in Mary’s* case. Mary, a UW junior, took some time before she decided to report her assault to authorities. When she did, however, she said she regretted it because her privacy was not protected, she was not treated as expected and was misled. University Health Services violence prevention manager Samantha Johnson said this can be explained through the relatively common phenomenon of “institutional betrayal.” When a student is assaulted at campus, which is a place most consider home, and the response is slow or biased, they feel “betrayed,” Johnson said.
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“We strongly speak out against victim blaming but also want to center survivors experiences and make sure we’re really professional and clear in our messaging,” Felton said. “There’s no one way to deal and support people and however they choose to feel.” Johnson said UHS provides free and confidential advocacy counseling service for students, which has been well received. Not everyone may choose to seek support, but it is always there for them, she said. “We cannot eliminate the harm done, but we can help support you,” Johnson said. UW also works with the Dane County Rape Crisis Center and Domestic Abuse Intervention Services to provide legal advocacy and external support services. Johnson said some students find it more comforting to seek help outside of UW through such organizations because it lessens the feeling of institutional betrayal. Janie Felton, chair of UW Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment, said peers and others who support survivors help bridge the gap between survivors and their healing. Only 20 percent of survivors seek formal services while most simply tell their friends. Survivors and those who support them are encouraged to attend PAVE’s workshops and self-care events, she said. Felton, who started working with PAVE three years ago and ‘fell in love with its mission,” said the organization tries to reach survivors through survivorcentered messaging in emails and promotional materials. “We strongly speak out against victim blaming but also want to center survivors experiences and make sure we’re really professional and clear in our messaging,” Felton said. “There’s no one way to deal and support people and however they choose to feel.”
“At first I thought it was fine, then it got a little weird and then more weird,” Tim said. “It really was just creepy and after he did it multiple times, I felt I had to get out.” Felton also said men, LGBTQ+ people and people of color face additional limitations and stigma to seeking emotional support after sexual assault. She said PAVE has been working with organizations like Women of Color Network and the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault to ensure that its programs are geared to help these groups break barriers.
Male survivors, voices against sexual assault. While the majority of sexual assault survivors are women, men can be victims as well. According to the 2015 AAU survey, approximately 5 percent of undergraduate male students across the nation were victims of sexual assault. One 20-year-old Asian UW student, Tim*, said he had been assaulted by an older man when he was 18. At the time, he did not categorize it as sexual assault because he was “not raped.” Years later, however, Tim’s definition of assault changed. The older man invited Tim to his home one night and brought out alcohol. Tim said he had never had alcohol before, but wanted to try some. The perpetrator kept pouring drinks for Tim, but did not drink any himself. Not knowing his own limits, Tim said he was largely unaware of what was going on. After a while, the older man started getting physical with the survivor and tried to rub his thighs, hug and cuddle him. “At first I thought it was fine, then it got a little weird and then more weird,” Tim said. “It really was just creepy and after he did it multiple times, I felt I had to get out.” Many survivors reported they did not think they were assaulted or thought their assault was justified. Beth felt her being drunk justified her assault. Tim said his perpetrator was at least “nice” because he dropped him home. Despite realizing that the older man sexually assaulted him, Tim was afraid to tell others what happened because they would not consider him “man enough.” He said his Asian parents would “strongly disapprove” of this encounter. He kept the incident a secret for over two years. Tim is not the only one who finds talking about sexual assault difficult. Colleen Whitley, president of Men Against Sexual Assault, said many men do not know where to start when it comes to talking about sexual assault. They are afraid to speak out in fear of saying something wrong, she said. “It can be a somewhat awkward topic,” Whitley said. “Elements of the issue keep men quiet and make them stay away from it.” Men are disproportionately sexual assault perpetrators, so some also feel guilty and do not know how to move past it, Whitley said. One of their workshops, “We’re Better Than That” contains peerto-peer discussion which aims to facilitates honest conversation without as much hesitation. “We’re Better Than That” focuses on having an open environment for discussing everything from gender norms to making sexual assault everyone’s issue, Whitley said. While elevating women’s voices and the work of other organizations against sexual assault,
“We’re Better Than That” hopes to get as many men involved as possible. As a female president, Whitley said this can be challenging, but she is up for it. “I think it’s interesting I have to recruit a lot of my male friends to get males involved so that it isn’t just a male-neutral issue,” Whitley said. “It’s equally their issue and everyone’s issue.”
No one should heal alone Hermanek said seeking support and talking to professionals can be immensely helpful for victims to understand that it was not their fault. She said talking about her own experiences has helped her become stronger and be there for her friends when they need her. “The best thing anyone’s told me was that you can call it whatever you want if something happened to you,” Hermanek said. “But you don’t have to label it for it to be traumatic because if something was traumatic for you, nobody gets to tell you it wasn’t.”
“Healing is not a linear process,” Mary said. “You’ll never forget, but if you choose to let go of the wrong people, recognize you need help, seek it and have the right people around, it’ll get better.” Fellow students can also be a valuable asset in helping survivors recover from their sexual assault. UW senior Bri Bulski organized “Take Back the Night,” a run that raised $4,700 for efforts empowering sexual assault survivors regardless of gender. After an acquaintance drugged and sexually assaulted Bulski when she was 17-years-old, she said she wanted to ensure that this did not happen to anyone else. Bulski said survivor advocacy gives her a discrete way to heal and helps her do good for the community. “The healing process is fluid and it’s not always forward moving and it’s normal to be stagnant,” Bulski said. “It’s okay to not be okay.” Bulski said advocacy is difficult but it makes sexual assault seem less “icky.” She said she wants people to feel comfortable listening to her stories so that they might share theirs one day. Mary turned to her friends for support as she underwent the formal reporting process. While some friends took the perpetrator ’s side, she found she did have a lot of people behind her. It was not easy, but she said she let go of the “toxic” people in her life. “Healing is not a linear process,” Mary said. “You’ll never forget, but if you choose to let go of the wrong people, recognize you need help, seek it and have the right people around, it’ll get better.”
October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com •15
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Voices of UW
In the tumult that follows any incident involving sexual assault or harassment, there is rarely much consideration allotted for the survivors themselves, their stories, their strategies for coping nor their recoveries. To combat this, the editorial staff of The Badger Herald is dedicating some of this issue’s opinion pages to serve as a space where survivors can talk freely about themselves and their experiences.
Former UW student When you are touched without consent, it feels as though your body is no longer your own, but theirs. Zora Neale Hurston once wrote,
“He may have denied my autonomy, my sense of self, and my rights, but there are things inside me he could never steal.” UW Junior I was in depression because I had just broken up with someone after a four-year-long relationship. My second relationship lasted for three months and was abusive. It took that long for me to decide this has to stop. We remained friends with benefits after our breakup. It was Freakfest and it was late. I needed a place to crash and the closest place was his. We slept in the same bed, but apart that night.
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“She stood there until something fell off the shelf inside her.” What if this something did not fall, but was taken by an intruder, stolen from its sacred place and smuggled away? And then no one cared or believed the victim of this burglary, and in fact the culprit’s right to steal was defended — and applauded — by others? There is a popular saying that the human body is “brand new” after seven years due to the demise and regeneration of cells. But the microscopic carcasses of my skin cells may still remain on the floor where it happened, and certainly lingered on his hands for several hours afterward, and still covered my clothes once I returned home, and remained there until I finally wandered to the dorm laundry room. I was then on a journey that all my fellow “1 in 4’s” have in common: the path to recovery. This journey is not a choice; you were placed at the starting line by a despicable force. But you are there to stay, likely for a lifetime, and while complex and
When it happened, I didn’t know how to deal with it. When you’re in the situation, you blank out even though I knew about sexual assault. I told him to please stop repeatedly, but he didn’t stop until five minutes later. He pretended like nothing happened. Following that night, I had a lot of sexual assault and rape dreams. I don’t usually dream but when I do, this is what happens. I don’t know how it impacted me. I don’t think about it much. We hear a lot of stories, but
“What’s the greatest woman should learn?
lesson
a
That since day one. She’s already had everything She needs within herself. It’s the world that Convinced her she did not.” — Rupi Kaur demanding, it can reap wonderful rewards. What I have discovered over the last several years is that perhaps nothing was taken from myself. I was a whole human being when I arrived at the party and I am whole now. He may have denied my autonomy, my
perpetrators are usually people we know. You have to be aware of your surrounding, regardless of who you know. I got depressed after and went to therapy. I didn’t categorize it as sexual assault until my therapist told me. I no longer have contact with that person anymore. I didn’t report it. I let it slide because he was someone close to me. Don’t put all your trust in someone regardless of them being your friend. If someone did that to you, report it. You never know what they’ll do to other people.
sense of self, and my rights, but there are things inside me he could never steal.
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UW Junior I was sexually assaulted as a freshman at UW Madison. I can’t talk about the specifics, partly because I have been pressured to relive them too many times and partially because I am scared that my rapist will read this. I will say this: I don’t remember a single moment of my assault. The event which has traumatized me and altered the course of my life is not stored in my conscious memory. I will never remember a single detail of what happened to me that night, and I consider that both a blessing and a curse. Although I hate to use that phrasing, I consider nothing about this ordeal to be a blessing. I didn’t want to believe what had happened to me at first. I didn’t want to believe that a guy I met at my “dream school” and seemed to share so many interests with would do this to me. The day after I was assaulted, I didn’t leave my dorm room. I spent the day in a constant rotation between crying and vomiting, often simultaneously. I could barely speak for the entire day. There are still days once in awhile where the flashbacks flood my memory and I can’t find the energy to get words out. The trauma hit me hard in the first few months after my assault. I tortured myself imagining how it must have gone down, desperately trying to fill in the gaping blank in my mind. I tried so hard but I couldn’t let it go. I started skipping classes and forgetting to complete basic assignments. I stopped participating in the classes I did make it to. I had to tell my professors and TA’s what was happening, because they started to notice my sharp decline. I had to tell my supervisor because I wasn’t able to perform well at work. Suddenly my trauma wasn’t my own anymore. I simultaneously felt that everyone knew and no one knew. My trauma was everyone’s business and no one’s prerogative. I was terrified of the thought of reporting him to the university. I didn’t even consider that as an option in the first few weeks afterwards. I faced intense pressure on both sides. On one hand, I had school officials emailing me and asking if I would like to set up a meeting. On the other, I had his friend telling me that reporting him would ruin his life. I believed him, and I kept my mouth shut for months. I told myself that
I couldn’t ruin someone’s life as a result of one night. I focused so hard on not letting the events of that night ruin his life, that I let them ruin mine. I took his feelings and wellbeing into the highest level of consideration, even prioritizing them above my own. I reported my assault more than
“I will never remember a single detail of what happened to me that night, and I consider that both a blessing and a curse. Although I hate to use that phrasing, I consider nothing about this ordeal to be a blessing.”
six months after it took place. The day that I reported, I felt that I was taking back my voice and reclaiming my story. I felt empowered right up to the moment where I actually started talking. That meeting was extremely uncomfortable, and it only got worse from there. To be quite honest, I am not sure if I regret reporting him or not. The subsequent investigation turned my life upside down and shattered my faith in humanity. My entire life was put on display and scrutinized. I lost any sense of privacy I had ever known. I was constantly on edge and once again felt my grades slipping beyond my control. I decided about halfway through that if he were to win, I would transfer from UW. I later decided that no matter the outcome I would stay, thanks to the friends who stuck by me during the investigation. I lost my case. When I lost, I didn’t even cry. I was entirely numb. I didn’t even read the entire letter, which wasn’t even written to me. I was CC’d on a letter written to the person who assaulted me. I texted my friends who had supported me during the trial and I went back to my apartment and fell asleep. I took a test that night and I got a 94 percent. I switched my major as a result of that test. The only reason that I would say that I don’t regret reporting, is
that today I feel like the strongest version of myself. This ordeal forced me to fight for myself. I removed toxic influences from my life and I gave the process everything I had. I refused to be silenced and I refused to let him get away with what he did without putting up a fight. Despite the fact that I lost, I demonstrated the extent of my capabilities in that investigation. I even shocked myself with who I had become at the end of the investigation. Whether I like it or not, this experience is now a major part of my life. It doesn’t define me, but it did change me.
“The only reason that I would say that I don’t regret reporting, is that today I feel like the strongest version of myself. This ordeal forced me to fight for myself. I removed toxic influences from my life and I gave the process everything I had. I refused to be silenced and I refused to let him get away with what he did without putting up a fight.”
October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 17
OPINION
Frankie Hermanek I was 17 years old when it first happened to me — and I wish I was lying when I said it wasn’t the first encounter of that nature. Nearly five years later, I’ve come to understand what it means to be traumatized. The most important takeaway from that lesson is this — no one can tell you how to feel. I don’t like putting a label or a name to what happened to me, and maybe that’s because it’s just too painful. But whether you want to identify what happened to you, or you wish not to, know this: If you find yourself in
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a situation where your body and your brain are screaming, “this is wrong. I don’t want this,” yet, you can’t open your mouth to speak, there is a good chance you have been
place. They should listen to victims. They should believe them. And if you’re a survivor yourself, use your strength to help others — it could be lifesaving.
“But whether you want to identify what happened to you, or you wish not to, know this: If you find yourself in a situation where your body and your brain is screaming, “this is wrong. I don’t want this,” yet, you can’t open your mouth to speak, there is a good chance you have been violated.”
Liz Drayna He wasn’t a close friend, but still a friend. He was drunk out of his mind, so I went to walk him back to his own house. Along the way, he kept trying to kiss me and touch me. I told him no — he kept trying to do it anyway. Eventually I stopped trying to say no. I thought, “fine, I guess if this is going to happen, either way I’m going to stop fighting you about it.” I was just trying to get him to his house, but first we went to my apartment. His house was far and I didn’t want to walk all the way, but I didn’t want to send him on his own. We decided to take an Uber to his home around 3 a.m. I thought I’d just stay there since it was late. I didn’t know my way around the apartment so I tried to fall asleep next to him in the bed. He kind of kept grabbing me and touching me in sexual ways. I
18 • badgerherald.com • October 17, 2017
violated. You have been traumatized. For someone else to tell you otherwise is like telling someone else who just lost a limb to swallow their pain. It’s not their
kept saying no but he kept doing it anyway. Eventually, I was like fine. And then he tried to take my clothes off and that’s when I really said “no, don’t.” I tried to push him away, but he kept coming back. He didn’t succeed entirely but it was enough that it counted to me and I felt threatened enough to shove him away. Then he took his pants off and I felt his penis on my legs. That was when I had a moment of real fear. Luckily, that’s when he passed out. I could go home, but it was the middle of night. I’d had some drinks and I was alone. I decided to stay and barricaded him with pillows and blankets. As soon as the sun came up, I went home. He texted me the next day and said “I’m so sorry you had to deal with my drunken nonsense haha.” I told him I’m never doing that again. He asked “was it that bad?”
or something like that. I said yes and he asked me how he got home. I had to tell him what happened. He apologized and said “I’m such an asshole” and blah blah blah. I forgave him and haven’t seen him since. Afterwards, I felt completely fine. That stressed me out because I almost felt like being okay made me a traitor to the cause of the prevention of sexual assault. I felt like by being okay, I was giving every man the feeling that I enjoyed it or that it’s not that bad. But just because I’m okay, doesn’t mean everyone else feels the same. I thought to myself, how would this look in the public eye to people who think sexual assault doesn’t matter? I was justifying their beliefs. Every situation is different and me being okay isn’t validation for people to assume everyone should be okay. And just because you feel okay at first doesn’t mean you have
to feel okay later on. There’s no correct way to respond to situation. Another big takeaway for me was the issue of consent. I asked myself whether if he does something five times and I say no four times, and then I say yes on the fifth time, does that make it okay all the other times? No. The first four times are still not acceptable, not consensual. Consent is not the same as harassing someone until they give in or do something till they stop fighting back Later, I felt like autonomy had been taken away from me no matter how low key or ambiguous it may have been at the time. At the end, I felt fine because I felt I couldn’t be angry with him and I had a hard time processing that because it wasn’t traumatizing for me personally. But this doesn’t make it any less of a crime or okay way to treat another person.
OPINION
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Bri Bulski I was raped during my first month of college, and now, as a senior, I find myself writing graduate school admissions essays about how that trauma first lead me to advocacy and then later to a job in intervention and prevention work. What I am involved in and where I hope to go in the future has been so shaped by my assault that sometimes it’s difficult to not feel as though it has framed my college career — even though I know that so any wonderful, completely unrelated things havehappened in the last three years as well. But being both college-aged and a victim is a strange intersection. The healing process doesn’t fit neatly into a 50-minute block on your course schedule. As a freshman, in the
immediate aftermath, I felt like I was just too busy to be broken and at that time, I thought of myself as too focused and driven to take time to really engage in self-care. I didn’t ask to be raped, so why should I give any time to fixing it when I could be giving time to school? In retrospect, I think that a lot of that sentiment came from my frustration about what had happened. As a victim, and especially as an activist, it’s easy to feel conflicted about how you identify after your assault. For a long time, I was really angry that suddenly, my most salient identity was one that was chosen for me. Three years later, I have learned not to feel guilty or angry about taking time to take care of myself. And as the healing process has progressed, I’ve come to believe
that if my rape is going to be a part of me, then it is going to be the part of me that proves that I’m unstoppable. If you’re a victim struggling to deal with your assault, please know that however you are dealing with it is valid. The way that you feel is valid. Some days will be better than others. Healing is not always a forward moving process. And most importantly, you have so many resources and individuals willing to help you through this. You truly are never alone.
“Three years later, I have learned not to feel guilty or angry about taking time to take care of myself.”
“But being both collegeaged and a victim is a strange intersection. The healing process doesn’t fit neatly into a 50-minute block on your course schedule.”
UW Senior When I first began working as a demo girl at a grocery store, my department was inconveniently located at the back of the meat department. At 18-years old, I would learn the stench of dead fish and red meat would pale in comparison to the heat and sweat of my male coworkers as they found it necessary to come up behind me and tell me how good I made the otherwise drabby uniform look. I remember their breaths on the back of my neck and their snake-like
hands slithering down my arms as they attempted to instruct me on how to “properly” use a knife. Even while holding a butcher knife half my size, I was defenseless. When a customer asked me if they could have chicken thighs, and I asked my coworker to point out them out for me in the back, I did not expect another snake to come back slithering between my legs and bite me at my thighs. A demo girl’s job is supposed to take out products and sample them out to customers. I didn’t sign up for my body to be sampled by my male coworkers.
“When a customer asked me if they could have chicken thighs, and I asked my coworker to point out them out for me in the back, I did not expect another snake to come back slithering between my legs and bite me at my thighs.”
October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 19
Recent developments from UW Board of Regents and State Legislature raise questions on the values of free speech College Republicans: Protecting all voices is solely productive
College Democrats: Protest is free speech, too
With more than 40,000 students on the University of Wisconsin campus, it is inevitable that every single student here is likely to come across a variety of different viewpoints. Students may encounter these through academia, student organizations, speakers and their peers. Hopefully during their time on this campus, these experiences will help them grow as individuals and citizens. The inherent beauty of higher education is that college campuses become a place where the free exchange of ideas flourish. These ideas are often complex, require thought and provoke different reactions. Today, higher education faces an entirely different challenge — free speech is at risk now more than ever. College campuses across the nation have seen countless speakers silenced due to the opinions they have held. To do this, protestors have resorted to shouting down speakers, violence and intimidation. This not only prevents the speaker from speaking in that particular instance, but it also sends a message to all others on campus that may have viewpoints that differ from the mainstream. These dangerous acts threaten the very foundation of American democracy, where the free exchange of ideas is not only cherished, but expected. If free speech cannot exist on college campuses, where can it? The University of Wisconsin has not been immune to disruption of speech. When Ben Shapiro came to campus, he was disrupted by protesters who organized a protest with the event title “F*** White Supremacy: Interrupting Ben Shapiro.” At the event, they blocked the stage, shouted different chants and interrupted the Jewish speaker. Later, Shapiro spoke at University of California-Berkeley where an estimated $600,000 was spent on safety precautions for the event. These resources could be much better allocated to the many other needed functions of such a highly ranked university and is quite an unfortunate waste of university dollars. Even if someone considers the speaker’s opinions to be appalling enough to warrant protest, even the strongest of protestors cannot eradicate an ideology. Temporarily silencing speakers does not debate their claims, it just robs others of
University of Wisconsin students value our First Amendment rights, as they have been a fundamental foundation of our university’s history. In 1960, 500 UW students protested stores that refused to allow African-Americans to sit at lunch counters. In 1972, crowds of 10,000 marched from Library Mall to the Capitol to protest the Vietnam War. In 1973, 1,500 marched to the Capitol on the eve of President Nixon’s second inauguration, and in 2016, thousands participated in the “Not My President” protest against Donald Trump. We have a long history of standing up for what we believe in and not being afraid to do so. Now, the Wisconsin State Legislature wants to change that. The Wisconsin Assembly passed the ironically named Campus Free Speech Act last June and it will go to the Senate this fall. Even more recently, the UW System Board of Regents approved a similar policy last week. The bill masquerades as a savior for free speech for all, yet it will act as a gag rule and instill fears in students so they feel unwelcome to express their opinions. It’s not a free speech bill at all, it is free speech for some. Under the bill, two complaints about a UW student’s conduct during a speech or presentation would trigger a hearing. Students found to have twice engaged in disrupting a speech would be suspended for a semester and a third offense would mean expulsion. These are huge consequences for students who simply wish to freely express their opinions and respectfully disagree. Madison has always been a city and campus where open discussion and dissent have been welcomed, encouraged even. If students are peacefully protesting with the only intention of being heard, then they are simply expressing their right to free speech. The bill stops them from doing so, and therefore it is not a free speech liberator at all. The bill was passed by the Assembly solely by Republican support. Respect for the First Amendment should be bipartisan, everyone should agree how important it is to preserve these rights, yet this act seems to exclusively target liberal voices. This is just one more example of how out of touch legislators are from what university campuses actually need. Not to mention, the university already has its own protest policies for students. This is a matter that should stay within the university, not the state government.
an opportunity to be exposed to contrasting opinions. In recent months, there have been many efforts to prevent voices from being silenced on college campuses. The Wisconsin State Assembly passed a bill intended to protect free speech on UW campuses by punishing students who disrupt events. The UW System Board of Regents also approved a policy to punish students who infringe on the rights of others. Those on the left worry legislation like this will cause a chilling of speech, but neither policy silences students who are expressing their free speech rights in a manner that does not silence anyone else. Under these policies, students still have the right to exercise their own First Amendment rights, as long as they don’t impede the ability of others to do the same. We should not be afraid of bringing ideas to this campus that differ from the mainstream, even if some find these ideas “offensive.” Policies like these ensure UW System schools remain a marketplace of ideas where each student gets to sift and winnow in the search for truth, rather than a place where free speech is stifled. If there was ever a time when free speech could not be more important, it would be now. We live in an increasingly polarized society where many blatantly refuse to listen to opposing viewpoints. The thought that free speech could be suppressed because some consider it to be dangerous to their own ideology is incredibly dangerous to the education UW students expect to receive in their time here. Instead of silencing these “unacceptable” opinions, allowing the speaker to voice their opinion opens up the opportunity for dialogue about the subject, creating a learning experience for all involved. As college students, we should be raising our voices with the intention of informing or persuading others, not with the intention of silencing opinions that differ from our own. Alesha Guenther (aguenther2@wisc.edu) is a sophomore majoring in journalism and political science. She is also the Deputy Communications Director of UW’s College Republicans.
Not only does this bill infringe on First Amendment rights and intimidate students from speaking out, it has numerous flaws in the legislation itself. The bill doesn’t clearly define what “substantially disrupts” means, which is very intimidating to students who want to express their opinions, but are threatened by suspension or expulsion. This ambiguity is dangerous. Another problem is that many students are unaware of it. Students shouldn’t have to wonder whether or not they have the right to protest. The problems to the bill don’t stop there. Anyone can report a disruption of speech or expression, which means that anyone — yes anyone — has the power to report an individual and launch an investigation. That is a very scary threat for students who want to freely express their opinions. If the bill is passed, however, students should seek information on how to protest according to the new regulations. To avoid any possibility of trouble, students should protest outside of events or inside before a speaker begins. In addition to this, students have a right to counsel when facing suspension or expulsion, and defendants have a right to legal fees if they are found innocent. The university should encourage open discussion and everyone has a right to express their opinion, no matter their political alignment. We never want someone to feel unwelcome to share their opinion, whether it is conservative or liberal, but this bill is not the solution to open discussion because it shuts down one side of the debate. Progress is only made with open discussion and disagreement, and this bill will stifle students’ ability to engage in their right to disagree. It will stifle the UW tradition of peaceful protesting, noble defiance and making history on the right side of history. What if this bill had stopped students from resisting racism, denouncing war and demanding justice? The Campus Free Speech Act denies individuals the very right it promises to protect and it will abolish our tradition of standing up for what we believe in. Claudia Koechell (ckoechell@wisc.edu) is a sophomore majoring in history and political science. She is the press secretary for UW College Democrats.
SPORTS
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THIS WEEK IN WISCONSIN SPORTS
Photo ·After a challenging previous week, Wisconsin defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 3-0. Daniel Yun The Badger Herald
Photo ·Two teams met on a rainy night, but it would be Maryland who would walk away with a 5-4 win over the Badgers. Quinn Beaupre The Badger Herald
Photo ·Despite rain and cold, the UW football team managed to shut down the Purdue Boilermakers 17-9. Haley Winckler The Badger Herald
October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 21
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Wisconsin on track to be Big Ten West Champion in 2017
After three successful Big Ten games this season, defeating the Badgers is a daunting task few teams are prepared for by Daniel Yun Men’s Hockey Beat Writer
After an outstanding performance in Nebraska and Northwestern, the University of Wisconsin football team has positioned itself to be number one in the Big Ten West division. With a win over Nebraska under their belts, Wisconsin arguably has already passed their toughest road game this season and moved up to number seven in national rankings according to the AP poll. There are a couple of key factors that Wisconsin must capitalize on if they want to win the Big Ten West division.
Offense
The last two Big Ten games proved Wisconsin has no trouble with producing offense. Running back Jonathan Taylor has been a beast for the Badgers. The firstyear freshman has a career-high of 249 rushing yards against Nebraska and is averaging 7.9 yards per game. As a result, Sports Illustrated has placed Taylor on the Heisman watch list. Taylor ’s performance could not have been achieved without the offensive line, who have done a fantastic job opening holes and protecting quarterback Alex Hornibrook. The Wisconsin offensive line is not only helping to keep Taylor healthy for longer, but they also make running routes easier for him. Hornibrook and his wide receiver corps are also doing well in the passing department. Hornibrook has thrown 300 yards passing in three games and continues his trend of having a dominant performance in the second half of the game. The rise of Danny Davis and Quintez Cephus (23 catches, 401 receiving yards) have also stepped up their game in the absence of tight end Troy Fumagalli. While Fumagalli did miss a game against Northwestern, Hornibrook’s number one target came back against Nebraska and has been solidifying the Wisconsin offense in any way he can. Fumagalli is a diverse tight end who is capable of not only blocking, but also running and rushing. This combination of skills is highly sought after in the modern era of football, and has become in high demand in the NFL. If Taylor can maintain his performance, Hornibrook connects his passes,and Fumagalli gets healthy, the Wisconsin offense will be unstoppable against Big Ten opponents.
Defense
When the offense is stalling the Badger defense can always be count on to make big plays. Jim Leonhard, the defensive coordinator has done a fantastic job making the defense top notch. In Northwestern, the defense made key stops including numerous sacks and a safety from D’Cota 22 • badgerherald.com • October 17, 2017
Photo · Wisconsin showed their strenght both offensively and defensivley against Purdue in one of the hardest Big Ten matches of the season Bea Frank The Badger Herald Dixon. In Nebraska, the defense made key stops including a 78-yard touchdown return from outside linebacker Chris Orr. Wisconsin held opponents to 21 points in the second half. In addition, the defensive corps already has three pick-six returns for touchdowns which is a major factor in Badger wins. UW’s defense has also managed to have four games this season in which they have prevented opponents from scoring a single point during the second half. Leonhard and his defense have proved that even without standout linebacker Jack Cichy and other key players the defense can still thrive in Big Ten competition. As with the offense, if the defense can keep up or excel in their performance, then Wisconsin will be prime to win the Big Ten West division.
Favorable Schedule
The Badgers must capitalize on the rest of the schedule after winning tough games
against Northwestern and Nebraska. With two of their harder challenges out of the way, Wisconsin looks to the remainder of their season, which is filled with much easier opponents. Maryland has been doing well for themselves this season, but they have been up against some relatively easy opponents as well. In their last matchup together, Maryland almost upset Wisconsin (Wisconsin – 31, Maryland – 24). But with home advantage and pumped-up homecoming atmosphere, Wisconsin should be able to pummel Maryland. Many thought Maryland football was on the rise this year, but after the Terrapins lost to Northwestern in week seven, it seems as though they are still having the same struggles from previous seasons. Maryland should be a relatively easy game for Wisconsin, and should result in a homecoming celebration unlike any other. Wisconsin’s remaining away games are
against unranked opponents including Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota. The Badgers should be able to win these games based on their past away game performance in BYU and Nebraska. The only potential roadblocks seen in Wisconsin’s schedule are games against Iowa and Michigan. However, both are home games. In addition, Iowa has been struggling in the Big Ten Conference (1-2 record) and Michigan has recently suffered a huge upset against Michigan State. In contrast, the closest Big Ten West opponent that can compete for first place, Nebraska, has a tough schedule ahead of them. They have a home game against No. 9 Ohio State and an away game at No. 3 Penn State. Both games are going to be really hard for Nebraska to win, and they might not win games against Iowa, Northwestern or Minnesota either. Based on the performance so far Wisconsin’s schedule should help the team
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Dani Rhodes will help blaze forward Wisconsin in Big Ten play Sophmore is leading women’s soccer team in goals this year, showing promising signs for remainder of collegiate career by Matthew Ernst Women’s Soccer Beat Writer
The University of Wisconsin women’s soccer team has began their season on a hot 8-3-1 start and this has been largely due to the efforts of emerging sophomore star forward Dani Rhodes. Rhodes has been a massive part of the Badgers offense and has kept the Badgers in almost every game with her goal scoring abilities. She has already racked up an impressive nine goals this season, which makes her tied for 22nd in the entire NCAA and 3rd in the Big Ten. Her eight goals is already double the total that she had last year, and she still has at least six games remaining in Big Ten Conference play. She has completely lived up to her selection as a Preseason All-Big Ten Conference forward. This is not very surprising, considering she was selected as a member of the 2016 Big Ten All-Freshmen team last season and prior to that, she was named the 2015-16 Wisconsin Girls Soccer Gatorade Player of the Year. In addition to her success as as soccer star in high school, Rhodes also had significant success as a basketball player, as she was an honoree for the Wisconsin Girls Gatorade Player of the Year in basketball. This well rounded athleticism is crucial for the success that Rhodes is able to play today. She knows how to play aggressive and smart at the same time, and her multiple sport backgrounds in high school surely have played a major role in her playing abilities today. Not only was she one of the state of Wisconsin’s highest recruits, she was considered one of the top prep soccer players in the entire country. She has done nothing but live up to the hype, as she is already
the top goal scorer on a team that is ranked in the top 25. Rhodes has been completely essential to the Badgers successful start to this season. The Badgers had to replace a lot of offensive firepower this season due to the losses of seniors Micaela Powers and Rose Lavelle to graduation, and Rhodes has done just that. Her efforts have fueled the Badgers by scoring a goal in a 1-0 victory over the No. 3 Virginia Cavaliers, a goal and an assist in a 3-1 victory over William & Mary, a goal in a 1-0 win over the Minnesota Gophers, two assists in a win over the Michigan State Spartans and two goals in a tie in a recent game against the Maryland Terrapins. Although the Badgers’ defensive performances have been incredibly solid thanks to the contributions of Caitlyn Clem and the rest of the Badger defense, Rhodes is still the main reason that Badgers have gotten off to such a strong start. Following their 5-0 loss to then No. 2 overall Stanford Cardinals Aug. 20, the Badgers promptly responded with seven straight victories and Rhodes made many of those happen. It is incredible how she is able to carry an offense despite being only a sophomore. She already has more goals than either of the senior leading scorers from last season. If she keeps this development up, she will not only be the face of the Wisconsin Badgers and the Big Ten Conference, but possibly the entire NCAA Women’s Soccer league. With her talent and work ethic, she has a chance to be an AllAmerican as early as next year. This is huge for an up-and-coming Wisconsin Badger soccer program that has a chance to be a contender in the Big Ten for years to come. Rhodes look to continue her offensive dominance Friday evening against the Purdue Boilermakers in the Badgers return to Madison. With as much success as she has been having this season,
Photo · Dani Rhodes and team celebrate after a goal. Quinn Beaupre The Badger Herald it is clear that Rhodes will be one of the lead scorers in the Big Ten, if not the nation. The Badgers will look to Rhodes to help get their season and win streak back on track in the final three Big Ten regular season games before the Big Ten postseason tournament begins. If Rhodes and the Badgers end the season as hot as they were during their seven game winning streak, they have a chance to win the Big Ten Conference Tournament and possible even make a deep run in the
October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com •23
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Hockey players should use college as tool to better themselves for NHL
With players having to draft between ages of 18 and 21, young players should use time at UW to gain experience by Austin Schiro Men’s Hockey Beat Writer
The world of college hockey is truly unique in the sense that many freshman begin their collegiate careers knowing whether or not they will have a professional year after their time spent at their chosen institution. This is a tough question to answer because there isn’t another sport like hockey in this sense. When a football or basketball player decide to enter the draft, they have decided they are done playing at the college level and are ready to play in the big leagues. College sports and the NCAA are one of the largest entertainment entities in the United States. As they continue to grow so do the controversies they face, like player compensation, eligibility rules and injury protocol. One controversy that often gets overlooked and swept under the rug plagues our beloved sport of hockey, especially at the University of Wisconsin. Hockey is a different giant — it is a sport that has a 20-man rosters, 83 game regular seasons and is the only sport played on a 2.9 milimeter metal blade. Hockey also operates under a completely different sent of rules and expectations than any other collegiate sport. In hockey, most of the time kids are not being recruited to play right out of high school — they are being recruited from a high caliber list of kids that play in an exclusive “juniors” league, often
the USHL or OHL. The junior hockey process eliminates the daunting task of college recruiters going to hundreds of high schools to find the top talent because ultimately, it reigns in a few different junior leagues. With this being said, it also makes it easy for NHL scouts to have access to the best players in the world as well. This, however, does not answer either of the questions asked, but it does help give a better understanding to the answer I am about to give, which is yes, they should be allowed to be drafted in and or before college. Hockey players around the world are often being drafted into the NHL between their 18th and 19th birthdays, and are no longer draft eligible after their 21st birthday. Canadian, Swiss and Finnish players are often going right from junior hockey leagues into professional hockey, while American born players are typically required to play in the NCAA no matter how early a round they get drafted in. Due to this, I believe restricting them from being drafted at an earlier age would restrict their ability to be drafted as freely as players from other countries. Some of the best talent in hockey today is American born, with one example being Joe Pavelski of the San Jose Sharks, who is also a former Badger. Restricting American college players from being drafted into the NHL until they are ready to leave college prevents them from making the best decision for their career. Not allowing them to be
drafted could scare them into a full four years of college hockey, and we all know that you don’t get younger. The issue with this is that while their Canadian counterparts continue to get better, the first round draft picks stay stagnant and aren’t playing at the same level when they turn 21 or 22 as their colleague from a different county who now has an extra four years of NHL maturity on them. The real question to ask is: Does being drafted to the NHL affect how college kids play? Originally, I thought the answer was yes, without a doubt. I assumed that it would give them comfort to be able to relax knowing they have already been drafted. I found this to be completely backwards. UW sophomore Trent Frederic put it best saying “his approach wouldn’t be much different had he not been drafted.” College hockey was always his plan and being drafted has not changed his work ethic, which makes since. Frederic was a first round draft pick and stood out while on the U.S. National Development Team where it is likely he continued to learn what it takes to be a top player in the game. Being a first round draft pick, it is obvious he has an incredible work ethic and is often times the last guy off the ice after practice. My assumption was that he would be able to relax a little bit now that he had been drafted, but in all reality he is just trying to close the gap between college play and NHL play in the little time he has at UW. This requires he continues to
work as hard and probably even harder than when he was in juniors. Another interesting perspective that debunked my initial thought to the question came from seventh round draft pick UW freshman Linus Weissbach who said “the draft is just a day and college is a way to keep getting better.” It is obvious from Weissbach’s opinion that being drafted isn’t going to change how he approaches college hockey. Weissbach is a level-headed freshman who knows there is an incredible amount of talent in the college hockey world, and has immense appreciation for where he is. That being said, just like all guys at this level, he wants to work as hard as he can to continue his hockey growth and sees college as a way to do that. Like Frederic, Weissbach wants to use college to start to close the gap between college and NHL players. The greatest difference he sees is “the attention to detail NHL players possess,” which is much greater than college players. College hockey allows him to gain a greater ability to pay attention to those fine details. It became obvious to me very quickly that it did not matter if a player was drafted or not they all have the same goals in mind — National Championships and hopefully a shot at an NHL roster spot in the future. While everyone’s approach is different, all approaches have the same starting points: Hard work, dedication, attention to detail and at least two years at UW.
Tennis’ Dodridge breaks into national ranking after four years Wisconsin’s No.1 singles player has finally been noticed for achievements made over impressive collegiate career by Kristen Larson Sports Editor
With so many sports happening during the fall, it can be easy for fans to overlook the University of Wisconsin tennis program, but Josef Dodgridge is trying to make it impossible. Dodridge, who is a senior entering his final season with the UW, has been working toward reaching the top of the collegiate competition ever since stepping onto Wisconsin soil four years ago. Coming from across the pond, the Brit already had been achieving a lot of success during his secondary years of school. Before coming to the UW, Dodridge was one of the top players in England, and was ranked number one for his age category at 16 years old. One of the major reasons why former men’s tennis head coach Greg Van Emburgh recruited this young Brit was due to the wealth of talent and knowledge he could bring to the team due to his experiences playing in a more competitive European setting. “[Dodridge] was the number one British player in the 16’s and has always been one of the top players in England,” Emurgh told UW 24 • badgerherald.com • October 17, 2017
Athletics. “He had tremendous work ethic and is a great competitor with experience in many international tournaments. I am very confident his game will continue to grow and become a difference maker for our program.” During his first season with the Badgers, Dodridge spent much of his time playing in the No.1 singles spot for UW, going 6-6 during his time in that spot. It was during this season that Dodridge was also introduced to his eventual doubles partner Chema Carranza. The two would start the season off well, posting an 8-8 record that season and earning themselves the No.1 position for UW in doubles. By the time their spring season ended, the two would be ranked No.76 nationally, which is really impressive when you consider the fact both people were only in their first season of collegiate hockey. By the time his sophomore season had rolled around, Dodridge was becoming more comfortable with his role on the team and was really starting to make his name known among the American tennis world. During his sophomore year, the unranked Badger would manage to crush the No. 23
Matic Spec of Minnesota, No. 36 Ben Lott of Drake and No. 34 Thomas Colautti from Princeton. Even though he managed to take down some of the best opponents in men’s tennis, it was not enough for Dodridge to earn a ranking himself, and he would end the season with a 10-9 record. He would also spend his first season with a different doubles partner than the one he had before, but he and new partner Lamar Remy would still manage to find a winning grove between the two of them. Dodridge and Remy would spend their first full year together anchoring down the No.1 spot in doubles for Wisconsin and would find relative success with one another. They would end the season with a 14-7 record, which would double the number of wins that Dodridge had earned during his freshman year. Now an upperclassmen and a leader among his team, Dodridge’s junior year would be a crucial one for him as he would not only attempt to replicate the success that he had found during his first two years at Wisconsin, but to also try and go above and beyond that success. It seemed as though Dodridge would find himself in many of the
same positions he found himself in during the first two years of his career, entering the season unranked and facing the challenge of having to take on many ranked opponents. Dodridge managed to defeat Konrad Zieba of Northwestern, who was ranked No. 53 during the time of their match. Throughout the season, Dodridge would garner a career high of 24 wins, ending the season with a record of 24-18 overall and spending much of that time as Wisconsins No.1 singles player. Dodridge’s performance would help the team climb to the No. 28 spot overall that season, which would be the the first time that Wisconsin would end their season ranked this highly since 2010, when the Badgers ended their season ranked No. 23 nationally. Dodridge and his former doubles partner Carranza would also be reunited during their junior seasons, earning the No.1 position for men’s doubles at Wisconsin. The duo would start the season off well, but would really begin to impress people during the post season, when they would begin an impressive run in the Big Ten. Eventually the duo would wind up coming in second place in the
Big Ten tournament, and would end the season with a final record of 18-11 overall and 7-2 in Big Ten play. Now entering his final season, Dodridge has one more chance to shine while here at UW, and he has managed to do something that he has never done in his career up until this point: Become a ranked player. The Oracle ITA preseason poll ranked the young Brit at the No. 93 spot overall, which is a first in his career. Dodridge had been managing to make waves early this season as he has been winning or placing highly at many of the pre-season invitationals that he has attended. During the Harvard Chowder Fest Invitational, Dodridge not only brought home the gold in singles, but he and partner Carranza also brought home the gold in doubles as well. Because of his international ranking, Dodridge has not played a singles match since the Harvard tournament. He has already earned his spot in the Saint Francis Health System ITA Men’s All-American Championships, which means he now has time to focus on hopefully finding the same success for him and his partner Carranza in their doubles game.
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October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 25
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A BASIC GUIDE TO BASIC BITCHES IN MADISON by Molly Liebergall Reporter
It’s 2017 and “Basicness” has finally covered all its bases.
Basic Basic Hobbies include: Rihanna vs. Beyoncé Cyc rides, bingewatching “Friends,” taking BuzzFeed quizzes to see which “Friend” she is, taking BuzzFeed quizzes to see which
“One Tree Hill” character she is, wearing Canada Goose in September. Claims to love: Sunday brunch at Dlux with her bitches. Actually loves: Motherfucking Sunday brunch at Dlux with her bitches. Can be found: Strutting down Bascom on her way to Forage before she literally dies of hunger.
Alternative Indie Basic Hobbies include: Ordering an excessive number of Arctic Monkeys posters, bumming cigs, rejecting religion, checking her horoscope. Claims to love: just talking about life and the universe and shit. Actually loves: “Look What You Made Me Do” by Taylor Swift. Can be found: Camped out in College Library watching makeup tutorials on YouTube for a “winged cat eye.”
Intellectual Basic Hobbies include: Majoring in English for shits, wearing turtlenecks, spontaneously getting bangs, posting a VSCOfiltered Instagram in honor of the new cut. Claims to love: Aristotle, “Hamlet,” black coffee. Actually loves: Her trust fund, the “Percy Jackson” series. Can be found: Just kind of sitting in Paul’s Bookstore on State Street for hours on end.
Crunchy Granola Basic Hobbies include: Being vegan. Claims to love: Being vegan. Actually loves: Telling people she’s vegan. Can be found: Browsing tapestries at Sunshine Daydream.
Social Justice Warrior Basic Hobbies include: Reposting The New York Times articles on Facebook, drafting lengthy posts about women’s rights, listening to podcasts for days. Claims to love: Hillary Clinton, Free the Nip. Actually loves: Carly Fiorina (jk, of course). Can be found: Seven shots deep at any given frat on Langdon Street threatening to throw hands at any given Republican.
26 • badgerherald.com • October 17, 2017
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“This isn’t an assignment you can start the night before it’s due.” First of all, you have no idea what I’m capable of.
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That sort of hangover where you fantasize about drinking water but feel too shit to get out of bed and retrieve it
Ready for today! About to give my all to these 2 exams. Beyonce give me strength!
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Red sheds closing and I just don’t know how to handle my emotions
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October 17, 2017 • badgerherald.com • 27