Tuesday, April 1, 2014

THE

BROWN DAILY HERALD vol. cxlix, no. 42

ACLU finds racial gap in R.I. student suspensions Report highlights higher rate of minority outof-school suspension, recommends reforms

By EMILY DOGLIO STAFF WRITER

Black and Hispanic students made up only about 30 percent of students in Rhode Island school districts during the 2012-13 school year but received over 50 percent of the state’s out-ofschool suspensions, according to a report by the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island released March 10.

The report criticizes the overuse of suspensions, as well as their disproportionate effect on minority students.

The overuse and inequitable use of suspensions are tied together, said Stephanie Geller, a policy analyst from the advocacy organization Rhode Island Kids Count. The discrepancy in rates of suspension between white and minority students is misleading because, unlike their white peers, minority students are more likely to be suspended for more subjective issues, such as “excessive noise” and “disorderly conduct,” she said.

Other schooling conditions, such as students’ inability to meet gradelevel requirements, insufficient support for students and the criteria for » See SUSPENSION, page 4

since 1891

TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

Students stand up against sexual assault Student groups band together to raise awareness of sexual assault throughout April

By KHIN SU STAFF WRITER

About 30 students from a variety of campus groups gathered in the back of Flatbread Company Monday evening in the name of a cause they plan to support with great energy this month — prevention and awareness of sexual assault.

The event was organized to kick off Sexual Assault Awareness Month with a video created by Health Services featuring students who shared their experiences with and strategies for preventing sexual assault on campus.

The seven-minute-long video shown at the event — produced by Bita Shooshani, Health Services’ coordinator » See STAND UP, page 2

COURTESY OF STAND UP!

Brown Athletics is co-sponsoring Move for Respect, an event on Friday to raise awareness about consent while encouraging students to make healthful decisions about exercise.

Prof. declares emergence of second Cold War Recent events have set new Cold War in motion between Russia and United States, professor claims

By MEGHAN FRIEDMANN STAFF WRITER

The United States and Russia have “entered a new Cold War,” announced Robert Legvold, professor emeritus in the department of political science at Columbia, in a lecture Monday to an audience of approximately 50 students, faculty members and community members in the Watson Institute’s Joukowsky Forum.

The lecture, entitled “A New

Russia-West Cold War: What it Will Mean for Us All” covered the implications of recent events involving Russia’s acquisition of Crimea in Ukraine.

Richard Locke, director of the Watson Institute, introduced Legvold as “one of the country’s leading experts on the Soviet states and on the Ukraine.”

“Knowing something about a place — having deep knowledge — is really important,” Locke said, commending Legvold’s area studies.

Legvold began his discussion by referring to the recent geopolitical events in Eastern Europe as a “historic shift in international politics.” But rather than the politically driven Cold War of the 20th century, Legvold said, the new Cold War will instead be fueled by the dispute over “basic civilizational values.”

And the new Cold War will not be waged under the fear of “nuclear armageddon,” he added.

But similarities can be drawn between the two Cold Wars. The “overarching framework is … adversarial,” he said, explaining that each side undisputedly sees the other as an enemy.

While over the last 20 years, each side saw the other as “neither friend nor foe,” and the relationship was unclear, “now the ambiguity is gone.”

Like the first Cold War, each country maintains an “essentialist” view of the conflict — each side believes the problem lies in the “nature and behavior in the other side” and not the “interactions” between the two sides.

The United States and Russia have already returned to policies similar to those followed during the last Cold War, Legvold said, citing several examples including the United States’ recent decision to stop negotiations » See COLD WAR, page 2

Sex Week promotes empowerment, discourse

By DREW WILLIAMS SENIOR STAFF WRITER

ASHLEY SO / HERALD

inside

Sex Week, sponsored by the Sexual Health Education and Empowerment Council, seeks to address stigmas, stereotypes and social concerns.

Featuring a pornography screening, a BDSM workshop and a march against sexual assault, the sixth annual Sex Week at Brown kicked off last night and will run through Sunday.

The event, which has been held on 12 different college campuses since its inception at Yale in 2002, is sponsored by the student group Sexual Health Education and Empowerment Council, an umbrella organization for sexual health groups on campus.

“Our main goal is just to have a week getting the campus to talk about sex positivity … in a comfortable environment,” said Anna Hendrickson ’16, co-chair of SHEEC.

Metro

Sex Week 2014 brings a new slate of activities along with the perennial favorites “Sex and Chocolate in the Dark” and “Sex Trivia.” The former, which will be held by Students for Choice on Thursday, creates an open forum for anonymous discussion of sex by shutting off the lights in Peterutti Lounge while participants enjoy the titular sweets. The Sexual Health and Awareness Group hosts the trivia night, teasing questions on the event page such as “What’s the most common fetish?”

SHEEC reached out to students in the Brown community who were interested in leading discussions, eventually coming up with a list of events based on available expertise, Hendrickson said. Noting a trend of sexuality groups on campus focusing more on women’s issues, coordinators decided to have an event specifically targeted toward men. “Aggressive, Vanilla and Horny: Discussing and Deconstructing Male Sexuality” took

Commentary

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Rhode Island’s state health insurance exchange sees roughly 20,000 individuals enroll

Isman ’15: Students complain, but Brown’s housing is better than most

Souza ’14 and Zacks ’15: Sgt. Benjamin Anthony is too offensive to invite to campus

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SHEEC spreads sex positivity with sexual assault march, chocolate and porn screening

place last night as an exploration of social influence on constructs of masculinity.

“The porn screening is going to be cool,” Hendrickson added, referring to Tuesday night’s event centering on pornography as a medium and whether it empowers or oppresses.

“We reserved Smitty-B’s big theater, and we might have popcorn,” she said.

SHEEC was founded to connect the various sex groups on campus in order to create a more cohesive conversation, Hendrickson said. Through Sex Week, the coordinators will work with SFC, SHAG and the Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Relationship Abuse. But SHEEC retains its own goals as an organization — one that happens to be at a crossroads.

“Right now we just plan Sex Week,” Hendrickson said. But the future direction of the group is being discussed. “SHEEC in the past has been more fun — just talking » See SEX WEEK, page 4 t o d ay

tomorrow

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2 university news » COLD WAR, from page 1 about missile defense and the NATORussia Council’s decision not to give a maritime escort to a ship bound for Syria on a mission to neutralize chemical weapons.

Legvold then explained why identifying this next stage in international politics is important.

The new Cold War will “seriously warp” both U.S. and Russian foreign policy, he said. As the conflict progresses, the United States will find it necessary to prioritize the new Cold War over other major foreign policy issues, such as the war on terrorism, global warming and the threat of weapons of mass destruction. And Russia, having just lost its “Western option,” will be “increasingly dependent on its relationship with China,” he added.

The new Cold War will also “contaminate” dynamics in the international system, leaving “no chance of dispensing with tactical nuclear weapons,” and may even result in a blow to recently achieved progress on nuclear weapon inspections, he said.

“We are very rapidly rolling the world back to where we were in the 1970s,” Legvold said.

Given changing international dynamics, Legvold said Russia and the United States are likely to respond “competitively” to China, another major geopolitical power.

Legvold also spoke about the consequence of lost opportunity, especially in terms of decreased international cooperation. He said that this new Cold War signals a lack of cooperation between the United States and Russia about important issues, such as climate change, cyber-warfare and the Iranian nuclear problem.

Legvold’s conclusion focused on possible approaches to the new Cold War. Both sides should endeavor to “make this new Cold War as short and shallow as possible,” he said. The focus should be on “management rather than victory,” and each side should try to manage the conflict instead of setting out to win it, he added.

“Mistrust is as large as the malevolence that we see in the other side in terms of the problem,” Legvold said.

The “pathology in interaction” is

more important than the “pathology in the behavior of the other side” in this conflict, Legvold said, suggesting that the United States should “assume that Russia’s behavior is more determined by events than pre-determined plans or the genetic code.”

Brown students expressed mixed feelings about Legvold’s lecture, arguing with his assessment of the conflict qualifying as a new Cold War. “To me, the Cold War entails the threat of violence,” said Emily Petrie ’17, acknowledging that though there are tensions, she does not believe there is yet a conflict on the scale of the Cold War. Michael Lin ’14 said he would not call the situation a new Cold War “simply because there are not as many major players involved” as during the 20th century, adding that the involvement of much of the world was a “prominent feature” of the last Cold War. Lin said he found the lecture “informative,” but felt the opinions expressed were skewed toward liberal and Western perspectives. “I just want to hear what the other side’s perspective is.”

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

» STAND UP, from page 1 of sexual assault prevention and advocacy, directed by Michael Rose ’13 and edited by Pom Bunsermvicha ’16 — aims to “inspire hope” by showing how simple it can be to prevent sexual assault through student stories, Shooshani said.

One student in the video explained a signal she uses with her friends at parties — a thumbs up or thumbs down. This lets peers know whether interactions are consensual. Another student recalled witnessing a potentially unsafe situation between two strangers at a party. Feeling uncomfortable, she informed the host of the party, asking for help intervening. “It’s really much more accessible” when the examples come from peers that people can connect with and familiar faces they may see around campus, Hannah Gribetz ’15, a sexual assault peer educator, told The Herald.

Many students featured in the video are part of the Sexual Assault Peer Education program, which trains students to give presentations about sexual assault to Greek houses, athletic teams and student groups. Though the planning and filming of the video took place a year ago, it launched yesterday to reflect and add to the energy surrounding this month’s events, Shooshani said. With the hours of extra footage from filming, Health Services and SAPE hope to create a second video next semester focusing on victims of sexual assault, Shooshani said. The video is intended to show how to support friends that are victims, make it safer for survivors to share their experiences, help victims access resources and “break the silence around sexual assault,” Shooshani said.

The video is just one of many efforts and events planned for April. Sex Week 2014, organized by the Sexual Health Education and Empowerment Council, is hosting a number of discussions, panels and workshops surrounding the topic of safe sex and sexuality.

On Friday, SAPE and Brown Athletics are co-sponsoring Move For Respect, inviting people to do yoga, lunges and crunches to promote awareness about consent.

The Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Relationship Abuse and the Sarah Doyle Women’s Center are sponsoring lectures, including one by David Lisak, a professor at the University of Massachusetts at Boston, to speak about male survivors of sexual abuse and victims of false reports of rape. A workshop at the end of the month featuring Aida Manduley ’11, the sexual health and relationships advocate at Sojourner House, will focus on intimate partner violence in LGBTQ relationships.

Stand Up!, a student group that discusses issues of sexual assault, will host the March Against Sexual Assault Saturday and a discussion on rape culture Sunday. Stand Up! aims to build a diverse coalition of student groups on campus to “bring out voices that aren’t normally included” in conversations about sexual assault, such as the LGBTQ community and students of color, said Emily Schell ’16, co-founder of Stand Up!. “It’s not that people don’t think (sexual assault) is an issue, but that there’s a pluralistic ignorance and people feel alone in acknowledging how important it is,” Schell said.

Many members of Stand Up! also belong to the Sexual Assault Policy Task Force, a group that aims to influence changes in the review of the Code of Student Conduct next semester. “There’s a lot of (issues) with the protocol” for dealing with cases of sexual assault, said Schell, a member of the task force. The lack of a pre-trial and transparency before a hearing, as well as a lack of clarity in the process of reporting sexual assault, discourages people from reporting, Schell said.

There is a need “not just for institutional change, but also a cultural change surrounding sexual assault,” said Kevin Carty ’15, a member of the task force and Stand Up! and former Herald opinions columnist, adding that additional support for victims’ advocacy and better methods of fact-finding are necessary to break down the barriers that lead to underreporting. “If I thought that just making the recommendations was what we needed to actually make a difference, I wouldn’t be a part of Stand Up!.”

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

A streetcar named development: City vies for grant to build line

STAFF WRITER

Providence will reapply for a federal grant by the end of this month to partially fund a streetcar starter line running between Upper South Providence and College Hill.

The city applied for the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery discretionary grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation last year, but the process is “extremely competitive,” said Amy Pettine, planning director for the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority. RIPTA is helping facilitate the TIGER grant application and would receive the funds from the U.S. Department of Transportation if granted, she said.

The streetcar project is estimated to cost $114.37 million, according to a project document provided by Bonnie Nickerson, director of the long-range planning division for the Providence Department of Planning and Development.

For this round of TIGER grant applications, the city will request $29 million to fund about 25 percent of the project, as opposed to the $39 million it asked for last year to finance 34 percent, Nickerson said. The change was made to better align with the size of the federal grants that have been awarded recently, she added. Tax Increment Financing bonds would cover about 56 percent of costs — up from the 47 percent suggested in the

District Commission “voted unanimously to endorse the proposed submittal,” said Colin Kane, chairman of the commission. The streetcar line would run through the 195 district and would be “a good investment” and “a terrific addition to the transportation options downtown,” he said.

“We picked the route specifically because it touches on the most property that could be enhanced by this investment,” Nickerson said.

Providence’s interest in developing a modern streetcar system falls in line with other cities across the country, Pettine said. Cincinnati, Kansas City, Mo., and Portland, Ore., have already installed or plan to install lines, but Providence could have the first modern streetcar system in New England, she said.

Providence had a streetcar line that ran through the Thayer Street bus tunnel in the past, Pettine said.

“Being a historic tunnel that previously had streetcars, it’s a great historic reuse.”

Underground utilities are a significant challenge and may need to be relocated for the line to be built, Pettine said. A streetcar is “not like a bus, which can deter or drive around the hole” when work is being done on utilities, she said. The city needs to consider whether the utilities should be relocated away from where the tracks would run or whether an agreement should be drawn up to shut down the streetcar service when work needs to be done below the line, she added.

Assembling the “financing pieces” from local, state and federal levels is likely to be difficult, Nickerson said.

Though it will require significant effort from the Department of Planning

Providence streetcar proposal Providence officials intend to apply for a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to build a streetcar line that would connect College Hill to other areas of Providence.

Source: Providence Department of Planning and Development 3 1 THAYER

By MARINA RENTON

previous TIGER application — and state dollars would cover the remainder of the cost, including funding from the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program, the I-195 land transfer and the Rhode Island Capital Plan Fund, Nickerson added.

Implementation of a streetcar line would create jobs, spur economic expansion, increase property values in the area and provide environmental benefits, such as a decrease in the city’s overall carbon footprint, according to the streetcar project summary.

The streetcar project has two primary goals: “improving mobility and transportation choices for people downtown” and supporting “economic development and growth,” Pettine said.

“It extends the walkability of the city by bringing people in a reliable, user-friendly way to more places,” she said, adding that a line would help create a “multimodal, cool city that people want to be in.”

“Rail has been proven to incentivize development because of its permanence, because of its attractiveness as a transit mode,” Pettine said, referencing the recent RIPTA-led Providence Core Connector Study.

Unlike bus routes that can move locations over time, a fixed rail line “shows a permanent investment,” Nickerson said.

A rail increases property values in nearby areas because of its utility, Nickerson said, adding that property values would likely increase within a quarter-mile radius of the proposed line.

While city officials and RIPTA will put forward the TIGER grant application, the I-195 Redevelopment

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Streetcar route could enhance quality of life by reducing pollution and bolstering property values

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and Development, Nickerson said she is confident the pieces will eventually come together.

Even if Providence does not receive federal grant money through the upcoming round of TIGER applications, the city will remain committed to implementing a streetcar line and will look to other sources of federal

funding, as well as consider applying for a TIGER grant for a third time next year, Nickerson said. If the city does receive funding, it will enter an “engineering and final design stage” before beginning construction, she said. If Providence is selected for the grant this year, the streetcar line would begin running in 2018.

R.I. exceeds health insurance sign-up target Well-designed website contributed to success of HealthSource R.I., state’s health insurance market

By KERRI COLFER STAFF WRITER

Rhode Island enrolled roughly 20,000 individuals through its state insurance exchange, HealthSource R.I., as of midday Monday, the Providence Journal reported.

Monday was the final day of the open enrollment period in Rhode Island, which did not extend its deadline as the federal government has done.

Rhode Island has seen significant success in its health care exchange relative to other states: As of a March 11 New York Times article, the state was ranked second in the nation for its rate of health insurance enrollments.

The high number of sign-ups in Rhode Island can be attributed to the technology behind HealthSource R.I., which was not plagued with the glitches seen in other states and at the federal level.

HealthSource R.I. has been continually operating since it opened Oct. 1, with only minor glitches, said Dara Chadwick, chief of strategic communications and media relations at HealthSource R.I. Rhode Island stands out as one of the 13 states that have already exceeded the federal enrollment benchmark.

Even states with small populations like Rhode Island have been challenged in setting up a user-friendly system for having people select plans, said Ira Wilson, professor and chair of the Department of Health Services, Policy and Practice.

Rhode Island had to balance the aesthetics and logistics of designing a website attempting to present easily accessible information and sustain a high volume of Internet traffic, which were causes of complaints with the federal government’s website, Wilson added.

The website could be anonymously accessed and did not require an application to view plan options, which may have contributed to higher-thanaverage enrollment rates, said Angela Sherwin ’07 MPH’09, director of the Executive Master of Healthcare Leadership program.

Community outreach also contributed to the high number of sign-ups.

“From the beginning they had some interesting campaigns, like visiting all 39 cities and towns (in Rhode Island) in the course of three months leading up to open enrollment,” Sherwin said.

Wilson attributed Rhode Island’s success to Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts and Christopher Koller, the former health insurance commissioner. “The reason they did well is they made some smart decisions, had enough money and had good political alignment,” he added.

Rhode Island chose to expand its Medicaid program to include lowincome adults who make up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level.

With Medicaid enrollment occurring at a faster pace than predicted by Gov. Lincoln Chafee’s ’75 P’14 P’17 administration, many people are questioning if it will cost the state more than anticipated to maintain the insurance exchange and to cover enrollees, Wilson said.

“The majority of costs for the new Medicaid eligibles are reimbursed with 100 percent federal funding,” wrote Elena Nicolella, director of Medicaid for the Office of Health and Human Services, in an email to The Herald.

“States will begin to contribute to costs in 2017. The receipt of 100 percent in federal funds for the first three years will allow us to better understand this population and their health care needs.”

Now that the enrollment deadline has passed, HealthSource R.I. will focus largely on providing coverage for small businesses as well as improving the state system before the next window of enrollment opens in November, Chadwick said.

“It’s something new so there’s definitely a learning curve, and it’s complex,” Chadwick said. “There’s some education that needs to be done to get people comfortable with the choices they need to make and be educated enough to make that choice.”

www.browndailyherald.com

4 arts & culture Ratio of suspensions to student body, by race

Bars represent ratio of percentage of suspensions to percentage of student body for each academic year between 2004-05 and 2012-13. Data was not collected for multiracial students until the 2010-11 academic year.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

AR TS IN BRIEF Distinguished visiting professor receives Langston Hughes Society Award

2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0

White

Hispanic

Black

Asian

Source: American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island

Native American

Multiracial

JILLIAN LANNEY / HERALD

» SUSPENSION, from page 1 disciplinary action, affect suspension rates, said Professor of Education Kenneth Wong.

Over-aged and under-credited students who accumulate uncompleted courses often exhibit frustration, which tempts teachers to suspend them, he said. “A lot of these older students may also have other emotional-behavioral challenges both inside and outside of school,” Wong added.

There is concern about suspending students who are already not achieving in school, Geller said, adding that there has been a recent push in urban schools for more restorative justice practices, such as talking through conflicts.

About 75 percent of Providence students come from low-income families, Wong said. The district needs a more coherent policy and better utilization of resources to target systemwide challenges, such as low reading levels and lack of communication between teachers, he said.

Suspensions affect students regardless of their race, said Hillary Davis, policy associate at the RIACLU. Students who are suspended once are more likely to be held back and eventually drop out. They also have lower life expectancies and financial achievement and are more likely to have future encounters with the criminal justice system in a “schoolto-prison pipeline,” she said.

“The reliance on suspensions has made the other options appear less viable,” Davis said.

In its report, the RIACLU recommends that school districts end the practice of doling out out-of-school suspensions for low-risk behaviors, assess racial disparities in disciplinary methods and generate a plan for how to diminish these disparities, she said.

“We can come up with a lot of excuses,” Davis said. “But this has a serious disproportionate effect on minority students.”

A 2012 law sponsored by Rep. Grace Diaz, D-Providence, prohibited schools from suspending students for attendance infractions and was partially responsible for a recent fall in the state’s suspension rates, according to the report.

“I think we need to revisit how we define the criteria to suspend children,” Wong said, recommending that Rhode Island look at how states with lower rates define suspendable acts.

Minority and immigrant parents are not always welcome in Rhode Island’s urban schools, Wong said.

School policy needs to better accommodate families that are not used to interacting with teachers or a school system, including through family engagement strategies that focus on high-need and underrepresented families, he added.

“We need to continue to be creative in how we address problems in education while stamping out racial bias,” Diaz said, according to a March 14 General Assembly press release.

“Many of these behavior issues are also cries for help, and with the right support, I’m sure we can find a better way to discipline and teach these students.”

When Brenda Marie Osbey, distinguished visiting professor of Africana Studies, received the Langston Hughes Society Award last Thursday, “it was one of the few times I can think of in my life that I was actually speechless,” she said.

LHS is a national association commemorating Hughes as the first African-American to devote his career to writing, according to its website. Osbey received the award last Thursday at the Society’s annual luncheon, for which she was the featured speaker.

Though Osbey said she had difficulty finding information on the criteria and selection process for the award, her plaque stated that the award is given “in recognition for a distinguished career in support of black arts.”

Osbey is a critically acclaimed poet and essayist whose work has been published in numerous journals and anthologies. She served as Louisiana poet laureate from 2005 to 2007.

After receiving the award, Osbey read a selection of her poems and shared a brief anecdote about her mother, whose voracious poetry reading contributed to Osbey’s appreciation for Hughes, she said in her remarks.

“When (my mother) came home from shopping and downtown errands one day in the spring of 1967 and announced quite simply — packages still in arms — ‘Langston Hughes is dead,’ it became a still, quiet day,” Osbey said in the speech.

The award comes as an “affirmation of (my) life’s work,” Osbey said, adding that writers often receive little outside encouragement to continue their craft.

It was also “humbling,” she said — both because of the award’s prestigious namesake and because she feels “flattered to be associated” with its past recipients, among whom she cited Michael Harper, professor of English and former Rhode Island poet laureate.

Osbey said the award “comes at an important juncture in my career as a writer and teacher of poetry,” adding that she aims to help her students “read poetry across the boundaries of language, culture and geography.”

“Perhaps no one embodies and typifies this more than Hughes himself,” she said.

-EmmaJean Holley, Senior Staff Writer

» SEX WEEK, from page 1 about sex in general from a pleasure standpoint,” she said.

While popcorn-and-a-movie events still embody this playful side, Sex Week 2014 is also heavily concerned with the theme of empowerment. Events such as the discussion on male sexuality will be followed by weekend demonstrations and workshops organized by sexual assault awareness and prevention group Stand Up! The “Stand Up! March Against Sexual Assault” will take place Saturday, followed by a speech on the Main Green from feminist leader Jaclyn Friedman. Stand Up! will host eight related workshops on Sunday.

The programs aim to provide “more support for survivors and more empowerment for bystanders,” said Emily Schell ’16, founder of Stand Up! “We’re so campus-conscious about (other) issues, but it’s a shame we’re so quiet about sexual assault.”

Originally, the organization’s events were not planned as part of Sex Week. Stand Up! was founded with the knowledge that next year the administration will review the Code of Student Conduct, which is lacking in the area of sexual assault prevention, Schell said. The group scheduled the march for April 5 because it is the weekend before Spring Weekend — a time of higher sexual assault rates on campus, Schell said. Once SHEEC also expressed interest in conducting Sex Week in the same time range, Schell saw a valuable opportunity to combine the two objectives.

“I think it’s a natural progression,” going from healthy conversations on porn and kink to the idea of consent, Schell said. Sex Week is also a way for Stand Up! to “wean the campus into those conversations,” bringing an uncomfortable topic to light in the context of sex positivity, she said.

The diverse array of workshops is a platform for Stand Up! to seek input from different perspectives before approaching the administration with recommendations for the new code of conduct. “I can’t speak for a person of color, an LGBTQ person, a guy, so we’ll be having town forums to open up about this issue,” she said.

The march itself is a demonstration to both the administration and the student community.

“If the University sees people marching en masse on campus, they will no longer be able to ignore the issue,” Schell said. For students, sexual assault should not be “out of sight, out of mind,” she added.

When dealing with such sensitive issues, the need for a safe space is paramount, something that occasionally presents problems for SHEEC, Hendrickson said. “We have discussed checking IDs at the door because in the past Sex Week hasn’t been super popular with some outside the Brown community,” she said. But the group trusts the speakers to maintain a calm environment and attend to the concerns and ideas of everyone present. In these spaces, “people can relax and stay open-minded,” Hendrickson said.

Thanks for reading!

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

menu SHARPE REFECTORY

roots and shoots VERNEY-WOOLLEY

LUNCH Pasta E Fagioli, Hot Pastrami Sandwich, Belgian Carrots, Southern Fried Chicken, Vegan Nuggets

Gnocchi with Chunky Marinara Sauce, Macaroni and Cheese, Lentil Chili, Shaved Steak Sandwich, Fudge Bars

DINNER Artichoke and Red Pepper Frittata, Cavatini, Sugar Snap Peas and Tarragon, Vegetable Herb Medley

Tuscan Pork Roast, Moo Shu Chicken, Au Gratin Potatoes with Fresh Herbs, Blueberry Peach Crumble

JOSIAH’S

THREE BURNERS

QUESADILLA OR GRILLED CHEESE

Gnocchi

Make-Your-Own Quesadilla

BLUE ROOM

SOUPS

DINNER ENTREES

Spinach and Feta, Sausage and Lentil

Chicken Curry with Potatoes

sudoku

EMILY GILBERT / HERALD

Spring Weekend may be two weeks away, but small signs of spring’s arrival emerge on campus despite unseasonal weather fluctuations.

comics Bacterial Culture | Dana Schwartz ’15

crossword Male-themed:

Sex change

By Ian Everbach ’17

ACROSS 1 Solipsist’s certainty 5 Warlike humanoids, in fantasy 9 Entertaining host, informally 14 Ill-gotten gains 15 Indication of a stroke?

16 Nothing, in Latin *17 Land between England and 12Down 19 Heavenly bodies 20 A sound like k or g, for example 21 Chip in a chip 23 Flat-tipped blade 24 Notices on the TV 25 Eurasian eagle reintroduced to Scotland 27 Density x volume 29 Drift without flapping 30 Unnamed man 31 Enzyme sol.

34 Almost completely *37 1968 heavyweight titleholder 40 Customary April Fool’s Day Puzzle, 04/01/14 42 Without further __ *44 Spiked medieval 43 Narrow lawn bowling 35 ___ the opinion that *11 Large poultry chain *36 English conspirator coffin *44 Wizards 12 Habitual repetition remembered annually 47 Walk through water 47 Green light 13 Made a hole-in-one 38 Industrial Dutch city 48 Grassland 48 Bad letter grade 18 Scandinavian 39 Animal-viewing sites 49 Cremation container 49 Numbers: abbr. mythology book 41 Solo 50 Careful 50 Zig ___ 22 Often-abused item 45 Snoopy 52 Outdated do 52 Group of cardinals 26 Trouble the mind 46 Down 54 Sea eagle 54 Wished 28 On pins and needles 55 Church 34-across 55 Unit for some bridges 51 Bumpy wheel 29 Hammer end 30 Keyboard predecessor 53 55-Down design 58 Muslim after 58 Potential queen?

32 Metamorphoses poet 54 Pig pilgrimage 60 Tall tale 33 Uttered (goodbye) 55 Loose shirt 60 Indian dress 62 Cruel treatment 34 Rage against 56 Academy figure 62 Like currents 64 Poser, of sorts 35 Man-eating giant 57 India’s first prime 64 Circular windows *66 Western resort *36 Leaping event minister *66 Parisian cathedral 68 Sibling’s daughter 38 Didn’t not 58 Huff and puff 68 Supplied 69 It has a nucleus 39 Fresh 59 Largest continent 69 Image 70 One who can’t be trusted 61 First name?

70 Largest dwarf planet 41 Ostrich relatives 71 To-do list items 45 Creative expressions 63 Bundle 71 Informal copy 72 Military meal hall 46 Indian flatbread 65 In medias ___ 72 Feudal worker 73 Beige 67 El followers 73 The 7 comprise 70% 51 Capillary DOWN 53 Offshore rig of earth’s surface DOWN 1 Parvati’s spouse Female-themed: 54 Wear away ACROSS 2 Edged 55 e.g. ‘Where’s there’s 1 Signal 1 Flap wings 3 Breaks in activity smoke, there’s fire’ 2 Red flag 5 Competent 4 Blood-sucking 56 Mythological snake3 Cultivates creature 9 Lower backbones woman 4 Core 5 On the contrary?

14 “’Tis a pity” 57 Make sacred 5 Boring device 6 Ancient passages 15 West Side Story 58 Light gray 6 “Beyond the Sea” 7 Common origami actress Natalie 59 4,840 square yards singer 8 Email folder 16 One-purpose 61 Dark cuckoos 7 Lessens: var.

9 They follow 67-Down *17 Slender, long-legged 8 Cube part 63 Mid-months 10 Tick relatives insect 65 Marriage words 9 Cong. triangle proof *11 Lip balm tube 19 Celestial strike 67 British mil. branch 10 Gov. 12 Spain : España :: 20 Selfishness Solution to last Monday’s puzzle: Ireland : _____ 21 ____-in-the-bone 13 Besides 23 Like some tea 18 Dessert sandwich 24 Un-overdosing grp.

22 28-Down commander 25 Week sevenths 26 Target of Gandhi’s 27 Chess row protests 29 Dealt with 28 Inhabitant of consequences southwest 59-Down 30 Jerk 29 Playwright George 31 Watch chain Bernard 34 Cover-up 30 Emphasis markers, in *37 Noblewoman who music rode nude through 32 Prefix on meter or Coventry pod 40 Match up 33 Quarry 42 Churchyard abbr.

34 Newcomer, informally 43 Bitter

Cat Ears | Najatee’ McNeil ’17

calendar TODAY

APRIL 1

4 P.M. THE WITCH-HUNT NARRATIVE: POLITICS, PSYCHOLOGY AND SEXUAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN

A panel discussion, based on Professor of Political Science Ross Cheit’s book “The Witch-Hunt Narrative,” will examine high-profile sex abuse cases in the 1980s. Stephen Robert ’62 Campus Center, Petteruti Lounge 6 P.M. RAP AND POLITICS IN SENEGAL

A lecture by Patricia Tang, associate professor of music at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will explore the political involvement of rap musicians during the recent presidential elections in Senegal. Ashamu Dance Studio

TOMORROW

APRIL 2

3:30 P.M. MY FRIEND IS MINE: THE PHOTOGRAPHY OF JOHN DUGDALE

John Dugdale will discuss how his photography addresses questions about sexuality, morality and politics. Pembroke Hall 305 4 P.M. LGBTQ CENTER OPEN HOUSE — ­ CELEBRATING 10 YEARS

The LGBTQ Center invites the Brown and Providence community to celebrate its 10th anniversary with cake and a viewing of its new renovated space. LGBTQ Resource Center

6 commentary

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

EDITORIAL

A call for student research The University recently reported its decision to increase the number of Undergraduate Teaching and Research Award recipients and expand the monetary award from $3,000 to $3,500. This action was made in part as an element of President Christina Paxson’s drive to get more undergraduates involved in research with faculty.

Brown’s unique educational structure and size make it the perfect environment for students to work closely with professors. We are a national research university with more of a liberal arts feel; a student population of around 6,100 undergraduates keeps class sizes relatively small. At the same time, our status as a university with many full graduate programs grants us research capacities not often seen at liberal arts schools. This environment is one that Paxson should use to promote undergraduate involvement in research, as she is indeed doing.

But what makes getting involved with research a difficult task for many undergraduates is not accessibility. At Brown, there is usually room for a research assistant — if not in your field of interest, then in a related field. For many academics, research is their life, without a start or an end date. This contrasts heavily with the deadline-driven world of an undergraduate. Additionally, there exist coordination problems with matching students and faculty members for research. It can be difficult for students to know which faculty members are working on what projects and what type of assistance they might require.

For these reasons, there needs to be a better infrastructure for students looking for research opportunities to connect with professors. A virtual “research classifieds” board where professors provide listings and opportunities for research assistance would be useful. This should extend to unpaid research opportunities. Even if not obtaining financial compensation from a professor, students should seek to more thoroughly investigate the subjects they study. These types of research opportunities can be the most difficult to find, which is precisely why they should be more heavily advertised.

Ultimately, Brown is a perfect place for undergraduate research, and Paxson’s plan to promote it by increasing the number of UTRAs is a wonderful strategy. Greater infrastructure might make accomplishing this task simpler and would certainly make it easier for students to connect with faculty members with whom they want to work. Brown’s structure, that of the university-college, is one that allows for this kind of direct involvement. Students should not waste this prospect.

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board: its editors, Matt Brundage ’15 and Rachel Occhiogrosso ’14, and its members, Hannah Loewentheil ’14 and Thomas Nath ’16. Send comments to editorials@ browndailyherald.com.

K I M B E R LY S A LT Z

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

In defense of the Sgt. Anthony invitation To the Editor: We stand behind our decision to create a space for Sgt. Benjamin Anthony to share his experience as an Israeli soldier with students at Brown. Hillel could not be the big tent it strives to be without responding to students interested in hearing voices on the right as well as those on the left. By inviting student leaders from across the political spectrum (including those we knew would want to challenge Anthony), we sought to create an intimate and safe atmosphere for dialogue and debate over dinner that a large lecture format does not allow. We believe engagement with tough issues is an academic imperative as well as a Jewish one.

We are proud of our commitment to free speech at Brown and support the right of students to protest. Though we

are disappointed that those groups have decided to protest rather than accept our invitation to participate, we honor their right to disagree publicly with Hillel’s choices and are working with the University to ensure they have a safe place to voice their concerns.

We invite this civil discourse and conversation to continue, whether in campus coffee shops, in the classroom, at Hillel’s weekly Shabbat dinners or at an upcoming Passover seder, where questions, dissension and looking ahead to a better future are all long-standing traditions.

Marshall Einhorn Executive Director, Brown/RISD Hillel Ross Lerner ’14 Event Organizer

C L A R I F I C AT I O N An article in Monday’s Herald (“Undergrads petition for student representation on Corporation,” March 31) mischaracterized statements President Christina Paxson made in her State of Brown address about the prospect of a student representative on the Corporation. Paxson never stated any explicit objection to the idea. Rather, she noted some concerns about it, including confidentiality issues and excessive pressure on students, and noted that students are already involved with many search committees.

Q U O T E O F T H E D AY

“The porn screening is going to be cool. … We might have popcorn.”

— Anna Hendrickson ’16

See sex week on page 1.

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commentary 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

Why we should appreciate Brown housing SAMANTHA ISMAN opinions columnist

We all hate the housing lottery. Tension and emotions run high. We all have a dream that once we move off campus — if we are lucky enough to get permission — life will magically get better. But though there are many great things about moving off campus, it’s not as easy as we want to believe.

As someone who can still enjoy the perks of a dorm room but has the next year of living off campus to look forward to, I find myself evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of off-campus life. It’s true that many things will change for the better once I move, but I have also come to appreciate how much easier living on campus can be.

At Brown, we are — supposedly — guaranteed on-campus housing for all four years. About 79 percent of undergraduates live on campus. The selection process for living off campus means that sometimes where we live is out of our control, but it also means that we can take advantage of the comfort of living on campus for longer.

It’s true that on the whole, living off campus is cheaper. On average,

students pay $7,200 for rooming at Brown, while my cost of living off campus next year — with a summer subletter — is about $2,000 less. Additionally, living off campus means students can pick the location and the temperature of their houses.

Students have their own kitchens and are guaranteed a living room.

More than anything, though, moving off campus can be construed as the first step into “the real world.”

going to live off campus can be just as stressful as the housing lottery.

And given that the Office of Residential Life is trying to ameliorate the difficulties of selecting housing on campus, this will likely improve for those who decide to stay in University housing.

While Brown dorms aren’t the newest out there, they are not decrepit. Some of the off-campus houses have been around for years,

After graduation, we will all have enough time to live in houses of our own. As students, we should appreciate the ease and comfort of living in dorm rooms. The biggest stress we face when we choose to stay on campus is finding a housing group and handling the results of the housing lottery. Once that’s over, there is not much else that can go wrong. While we don’t always get to live in the exact location

We all have this dream that once we move off campus — if we are lucky enough to get permission — life will magically get better.

For starters, the process of finding a house can be much more stressful than the housing lottery. It works on a first-come basis, yet depending on the number of people you want to live with, you have to find a house big enough that pleases everyone. The process of picking rooms can also be stressful if not everyone in the group is in accordance with what should be done. This means that choosing where you are

and most haven’t been renovated recently. While Brown Facilities workers ensure that all rooms and buildings are in decent condition, nothing prevents landlords from refusing to repaint the walls, fix the creaky stairs or clean the trashfilled basement. We mostly like to complain — because that’s what college students do best — but in reality, our dorms are more spacious than those at many other schools.

we want to, we often don’t have to worry about cleaning a bathroom or a kitchen. We mostly don’t have to worry about strange people coming into our home — assuming students are being responsible. We don’t have to worry about paying bills or forgetting to pay them.

Living off campus can increase stresses we don’t experience living on campus. In dorms, Facilities is always available to fix the show-

er or the heat — even if they aren’t available on the same day. On the other hand, landlords aren’t always as available or willing to fix problems immediately. What happens if a washing machine breaks on campus? You use one of the other ones available. What happens if your washing machine breaks off campus? You wear dirty laundry for a while or carry your clothes to another location to wash them.

I am excited to move off campus and am not arguing that students should not live off campus.

The experience of living outside of a dorm room can help students grow and prepare them for adulthood.

At the same time, however, Brown students live under a pretense that things become easier when we choose to move off campus. In reality, they don’t.

The most important part of the housing process is keeping things in perspective. We all need to learn how to appreciate the things we have when we have them, and know that everything comes in due time. With a little bit of creativity, a dorm room can feel like as much of a home as a house can.

Sami Isman ’15 can’t wait to move off campus, but she will definitely miss her dorm.

Oppression is the IDF’s ‘proud truth’ JOSETTE SOUZA AND MIKA ZACKS guest columnists

On Wednesday, the Brown/RISD Hillel is scheduled to host an invite-only talk entitled “The IDF Firsthand: A Dinner and Lecture,” featuring Sgt. Benjamin Anthony, a veteran and reservist of the Israeli Defense Forces.

Anthony is the founder of the organization Our Soldiers Speak, which facilitates presentations by members of the IDF at U.S. and U.K. venues and seeks to spread the “proud truth” of what the United Nations has deemed an illegal military occupation.

In an email sent out to invitees last month, Hillel described Anthony’s speech as “a rare opportunity to hear firsthand from a participant in one of the world’s most complex geopolitical conflicts.” But what does it mean to have “participated” in the IDF? And what truths are silenced when we bring members of an illegal occupying force to campus?

Participation in IDF activities means the systematic destruction of Palestinian homes, the bombing of schools and mosques and the continued siege on Gaza. It means participation in the micromanagement of Palestinian access to food, housing, education and social services, which is in direct contravention of human rights and international law. It means being provided with firsthand “experience” in the extrajudicial execution of civilians, the use of live ammunition on peaceful protesters, and the systematic detention and torture of an occupied population. In other words, participation in the IDF means participation in the daily execution of an illegal occupation and

the systematic denial of Palestinian dignity.

The Israeli military has long held intimate connections with repressive regimes worldwide. Beginning in 1972, Israel became involved in training the Salvadoran military, police and death squads that were responsible for the deaths of over 15,000 civilians. Furthermore, IDF technology — developed for and tested on a captive Palestinian population — can be found in the hands of Brazilian police tasked with the proto-occupation of favelas in Rio de Janeiro. IDF profiling tactics are mirrored in the New York Police Department

the IDF from the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem, meanwhile, has been repeatedly rejected by the UNSC, including in Resolutions 252, 267, 471, 476 and 478. In July 2004, the International Court of Justice ruled illegal Israel’s construction of the Separation Wall in the West Bank, while U.N. General Assembly resolutions dating back to 1948 support the right of displaced Palestinians to return to their homes and to receive compensation for any damage to property.

In defiance of a half-century of interna-

If this is to be a safe campus for all its students, faculty, staff and extended community, we cannot hand the occupier a microphone.

Demographics Unit and its continued surveillance and harassment of Muslims in New York, while Israeli weaponry and pacification tactics continue to be employed by the Indian military in the suppression of Kashmir protests. Former Israeli Defense Minister Benjamin Ben Eliezer is explicit: “People like to buy things that have been tested,” he said in the documentary “The Lab.” “If Israel sells weapons, they have been tested, tried out. We can say we’ve used this 10 years, 15 years.”

IDF activities have received broad and sustained censure from the international community. United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, passed following the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, calls for the withdrawal of

tional outcry, the Israeli military continues to destroy Palestinian villages, repress freedom of movement with an expanding Separation Wall and an extensive, arbitrary permit system, and inflict daily violence on Palestinians in the Occupied Territories and within Israel’s ever-changing borders. At the same time, Israel’s international military contracts and training agreements only expand, and the trade in technologies and tactics of repression has direct and dire consequences for occupied peoples across the globe.

Elevating Anthony’s voice serves only to perpetuate a violent narrative and legitimize the continued repression of human dignity in Palestine and in our own community. To in-

vite an apologist for war crimes to this campus, especially in the context of a closed forum with “student leaders,” is profoundly disrespectful to the members of our community who have direct experience with IDF violence and repression — whether it be in occupied Palestine, Rio de Janeiro or New York City.

If this is to be a safe campus for all its students, faculty, staff and extended community, we cannot hand the occupier a microphone.

If we seek what Anthony terms the “truths” of the IDF, we need only to engage with those around us. Until we recognize and take seriously the struggles of all members of our community, this will be neither a safe nor a “happy” campus.

As a diverse community, we stand with Palestinians and all those affected by Israel’s international military apparatus. In solidarity with those being racially profiled by Israelitrained police forces from New York City to Los Angeles to Rio de Janeiro and beyond, we condemn the violence the IDF perpetrates internationally. We would hope Brown/RISD Hillel could do the same.

Josette Souza ’14 is amazed to find herself having to write two op-eds against two different human rights violators being brought to Brown in one academic year. She can be reached at josette_souza@brown.edu.

Mika Zacks ’15 hopes the organizers recognize the errors of their ways and cancel the event. She was born and raised in ’48 Israel and can be reached at mika_zacks@brown.edu.

TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014

THE

BROWN DAILY HERALD arts & culture ‘Grand Budapest Hotel’ leaves no vacancies In Wes Anderson’s latest whimsical indulgence, viewers check in for a multi-layered narrative

By DREW WILLIAMS SENIOR STAFF WRITER

In 1993, Ralph Fiennes harrowed audiences as Nazi war criminal Amon Goeth, calmly sniping concentration camp workers from his balcony for nothing more than pre-breakfast entertainment. Twenty-one years later, the “Schindler’s List” actor stars in “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” a film currently playing at the Avon Cinema that is just as intent on exploring humanity among those affected by World War II. But this artistic interpretation finds Fiennes not making others run as a Nazi, but running from ZZs. Short for “Zig Zags,” these goofy goose-steppers are hilariously and conveniently inept at aiming firearms. Steven Spielberg, meet Wes Anderson.

A few minutes in, the titular hotel takes the screen. But it is difficult to immediately ascertain how grand the Budapest actually is, because the shot of the hotel is a drawing. Not that the Grand Budapest isn’t a three-dimensional, physical

REVIEW

space. Its structural integrity is clearly established throughout the story within a story — within a story. Anderson repeatedly reminds audiences that they enter the theater completely on his terms.

Within its four-tier narrative, the film’s attention is usually focused on dapper hotel concierge M. Gustave and his devoted lobby boy Zero in the year 1932.

Their plot thread is the furthest removed, followed by Zero’s recounting of events to a writer some years later. Later the writer recounts the narrative for the purposes of a book. Audiences are also treated to the present reading of that same book by an anonymous woman in a park.

Gustave runs a tight ship at the Grand Budapest, a luxurious hotel that allows its patrons to escape the brewing turmoil in the fictional nation of Zubrowka. Gustave’s love of keeping house is bested only by his love for his customers — especially those who are elderly, blonde and single.

His trysts catch up with him when a very old flame is extinguished. Gustave is implicated after he is willed the priceless “Boy with Apple” painting from the Madame’s estate. Irate at the loss of their inheritance, the children of the deceased hire a brass-knuckle-wielding detective to settle the score. Meanwhile, the authoritarian ZZs incarcerate Gustave, leaving Zero to orchestrate an escape plan to save his mentor’s life.

The genre blending is ingenious, and more than a few subtle winks at Hollywood find their way into the script. From prison tropes found in “The Shawshank Redemption” and “The Great Escape” to a Bond-esque skiing chase scene and a nod to the famous cliffhanger in “The Lion King,” nothing is too sacred for irreverence. Think feline defenestration would have improved “The Godfather”?

This is the movie for you.

In typical Wes Anderson fashion, actor after iconic actor joins in on the whimsical amusement, which allows the likes of Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, Harvey Keitel and Edward Norton to float into the plot whenever the capacity to entertain is highest. Adrien Brody shines as the especially foul-mouthed son of Gustave’s departed lover, as does Jeff Goldblum as the will-reader whose expression throughout is reminiscent of a man running for his life at Jurassic Park. But the biggest scene-stealer is undoubtedly Willem Dafoe, whose Don Corleone-inspired detective ends up being much more threatening to Goldblum than genetically engineered dinosaurs.

Even in a film packed with talent, Anderson’s artistry is really what’s at stake here. Visual aesthetics supersede plot, and the result is eye candy in every frame.

To ask oneself why a major chase scene halts for Zero to water a cactus is to miss

COURTESY OF AVON CINEMA

In Wes Anderson’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Ralph Fiennes plays the dapper concierge M. Gustave. the point — it looks cool. With as full a he is a refugee, torn from his country color palette as “Moonrise Kingdom,” after oppressors killed his family. He “Grand Budapest” shifts landscapes often, is foreshadowing Zubrowka’s future as refusing to allow viewers to settle into much as lamenting his own past, putting any pattern of visual expectation. The the story’s context in perspective. The transitions are often jarring — seemingly ZZs follow history to the letter — the random bursts of graphic violence are once-innocent group becomes stronger interspersed with scenes set against the until the police forces seamlessly morph chromatic backdrop of the hotel. Ander- into execution squads. With one wellson renders superfluous the need for a placed line from Zero, what goes down prodigious attention span. like bubble gum pop suddenly reveals Yet the film is more than a must-see itself as a treatise on the power of love variety show. In one of its few serious in devastating circumstances. Spielberg moments, Zero confesses to Gustave that needed three hours.

IN CONVERSATION

Robert Coover: ‘Where it takes me, I have to go’ Award-winning author and visiting professor emeritus discusses modified fairy tales, metaphors in writing

By EMMAJEAN HOLLEY SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Robert Coover, visiting professor emeritus of literary arts and author of numerous novels and short stories, will read from his soon-to-be-published “The Brunist Day of Wrath” tonight at 7 p.m. in the McCormack Family Theater. “The Brunist Day of Wrath” is a sequel to his novel “The Origin of the Brunists,” which won the 1966 William Faulkner Award.

During his time at Brown, Coover spearheaded the first-ever hypertext fiction workshop, co-founded the Electronic Literature Organization and created the International Writers Project. He sat down with The Herald to talk about Melville, Pynchon and Pinocchio.

Herald: What were some of the challenges of writing a sequel after such an expansive time gap?

Coover: Well, it was difficult, and it wasn’t what I intended to do initially. When I wanted to do a sequel, it was still in the ’60s, when all of my ideas were fresh. The idea I had was to have it fairly soon after “Origin” simply because I wanted most of the characters to reappear. I didn’t have a clear way to do that, so I set it aside because, basically, I was working on more innovative stuff and that was a fairly conventional book.

Yet still I thought there was something sort of worthwhile about that sequel idea, so through the years I kept adding to the notes, getting ideas, thinking of a character, thinking of what a character might do differently, and slowly evolved a kind of book-length idea, which I took with me on a trip to Europe. I was heading to Venice and I

checked out a bunch of books from the library and sent three or four big sacks of books over.

I arrived in Italy in the winter, just after Christmas, and there was a snowstorm. It was gorgeous. I went out and photographed it and had a great time trekking about in the snow in Venice.

I decided to find out some way to use my walkabouts in Venice. So I invented an art historian, an old fellow, retired, who comes back and reconsiders his earlier years. But I didn’t have a story until I happened to come across in the snow an exhibition called “Pinocchio in Venice.” Pinocchio was a character I always wanted to write about, so I went inside, and it was fascinating. So I rushed back and started writing about Pinocchio in Venice, and those big bagged books just never got opened.

Then a young Bush got elected president. By this time, I was already feeling the surge of evangelical religion, and with him as a candidate, it rose to the surface like creatures rising from the swamp or something. We had some sort of the arrival into the mainstream of this sort of mad, apocalyptic vision. So I thought, ‘If this (sequel) is what I’m going to do, I should do it now.’ “Origin” is about an emotional evangelical type that grows up around old miners, survives a disaster. And his small bedside cult suddenly blows up into international proportions thanks to the local newspaper guy.

His prophecy fails, of course. But that’s how religions get started. That’s how Christianity got started. So what about imagining then what it would be like if this little gathering around a bedside became a major religion? And that’s what the notes were all about through

the years, trying to define this thing and trying to see where it might go.

And I had a kind of inspiration at one point. I found the opportunity to have everybody from the first book back in contact with each other because suddenly, on the fringes of town, those come back who brought disaster while they were there. This brings a great agitation within the community against the newcomers.

So I could see then how all this was coming together, and I decided I’d have to put other work aside and sit down and begin it. I was around 70 then, and to think of starting a book of that size, at an age when I could write five or six books in the time it would take me to do this one, was a hard thing to do.

And it did prove very difficult. For one thing, it’s historical in the sense that it’s specific to an era. This means that my first book was written as something I was experiencing, more or less. And the second book was something like a costume drama. I was putting people back into clothes and ideas and fashions and houses and equipment of the early ’60s. And so that was hard work, because you’ve got to be careful not to write in a cellphone or a laptop, which I would have loved to be able to do from time to time.

How has your growth as a writer and thinker over the years impacted the way you approached these challenges?

Well, I had been through a lot of difficult times writing. Always you hit these snags or humps you’ve got to get over that sometimes are terrific challenges. Because I wanted to be writing the more imaginative work, I was impatient. Several times I wanted to just dump it, or end it quickly somehow. And two kind of interesting experiences of reading I had corrected that impatience.

One was “Moby-Dick,” which I hadn’t

read as a kid. And of course the terrible intransigence of that book — if there’s a metaphor, he sees it through to the last possible idea of it. And it had to be admired. It was very moving to see how the writer behind the text was working.

So I found that helpful in the sense that I stopped being so impatient. I said, ‘Look now, you’re into this now, you have time for everything, just stay with it.’

But then I finally bogged down. I just reached a point in that book when I just got bored. I was bored stiff. And a friend sent me a copy of (Thomas) Pynchon’s “V,” which was his first book.

And so I shoved my book under the bed and I took to reading and studying French, writing stories, and I picked up that book and found myself enjoying it.

It was written and takes place roughly in a period of time when I was in the area Pynchon was describing. And I realized I’d lost my sense of humor. I’d pushed it down with this Melvillian intransigence. I was just hammering out sentence after sentence that lacked life.

So I tore up about two, three hundred pages and started out again right at the second part of the book. And I wrote a chapter that just totally liberated me from all the constraints I’d been under before, and in about 60 or 80 days I had the book done.

But that overcoming of hurdles when your idea just hits this kind of impossible moment — it happens from to time, and it certainly happened in other books.

And as I’ve overcome those, I’ve found them easier to overcome. That is, easier to take the attitude you have to take in order to make it happen.

So, obviously, a book that takes me 10 years is going to have lots of moments like that. And it was helpful that I had all that previous experience. Nevertheless, the book, what it was about, was really stringed out of that first one almost 50

years before. The first book did generate this one. Maybe I found over the years a little bit more what people call experimentation isn’t for me anymore.

But there still are some very imaginative moments, and that alleviated for me the difficulties of going back 50 years.

I’m interested in something you said earlier about developing a “book-length idea,” since you’ve also written prolifically in the short story form. What distinguishes a “book-length” from a “story-length” idea?

Well, I don’t have any definition of them.

But I only know as I write that when I sit down to write, I want everything to be a page long. That’s enough. And then of course you can write that pretty fast and you can have a hundred things in your bibliography after that. But I listen to the metaphor that I’ve invented, and where it takes me I have to go. So if the metaphor is something like “The Frog Prince,” which was in the New Yorker recently, it’s fairly limited. You’re not going to go too far with a one-off joke. But often the more difficult length is when it plays out perfectly, just the right length, (but) it’s not a short story and not a novel.

You can’t get them published easily in the magazines because they have their word limits, and they’re too short to be published as a book, so they have a kind of half-life.

But I don’t try to extend them or try to shorten them to satisfy anyone. I just try to make it totally complete in itself.

So in a way, the stories and novels are sort of the same thing to me. They are an expansion of a metaphor, letting it take me where it must, and then stop. And that’s the same thing for a one-pager as for a thousand-pager.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.