SINCE 1891
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
VOLUME CLII, ISSUE 68
WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM
Black alumni connect, celebrate at reunion Isgar ’20.5, Powell ’21 qualify for amateur championship Golfers finish five under par after two-day competition at Kirkbrae Country Club course By TESS DEMEYER SENIOR REPORTER
ANDREW BAKER / HERALD
President Emeritus Ruth Simmons was presented with the inaugural Black Legacy Award. Throughout Saturday afternoon, alums attended panels and workshops focused on ameliorating racial and economic inequalities.
Panel commemorates 50th anniversary of black student walkout, J. Walter Wilson renamed By KATHERINE BENNETT AND MELANIE PINCUS SENIOR STAFF WRITERS
This weekend, the University hosted the fourth Black Alumni Reunion,
which brought over 600 graduates back to College Hill. Organized by the Inman Page Black Alumni Council with support from the Brown Alumni Association, the gathering offered an opportunity for alums to connect and reflect on the legacy of black students at Brown — particularly those who participated in the 1968 black student walkout. The reunion culminated Saturday with the University presenting
President Emeritus Ruth Simmons with the inaugural Black Legacy Award and announcing the renaming of the J. Walter Wilson building to Page-Robinson Hall in honor of Inman Page, class of 1877, and Ethel Robinson, class of 1905, who were among the first black students to graduate from the University. The weekend began Friday evening with a panel commemorating » See REUNION, page 3
An eerie silence hung over the eighth hole of the Kirkbrae Country Club golf course. There wasn’t much to talk about as Chuck Isgar ’20.5 studied the contours and tilts of the green before lining up a 30-foot putt, but his partner, Drew Powell ’21, did offer up one piece of advice: “Go do it.” So in front of a small audience consisting of three golfers and a couple of officials, Isgar attempted a shot for birdie that would send the two to the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. Thirty-three and a half hours earlier, Powell and Isgar teed off at the qualifying tournament with a goal of punching their tickets to the United States Golf Association event. The Four-Ball Championship has a unique format in which two golfers team up, play the entire course simultaneously
and count the lowest score on each hole. Each team is only allowed one opportunity to qualify, and if they do not succeed in that attempt, they must wait until the next year to try again. At the qualifier hosted in Lincoln, Rhode Island, only the top two pairs earned berths to the national championship, out of 40 teams vying for the coveted spots. Though they didn’t enter the tournament with a set strategy, the duo knew they could rely on their complementary playing styles to piece together a solid score. Powell has an edge in driving the ball while Isgar comes up clutch in must-make putts. When one made par, the other could be a bit more aggressive and go for trickier shots. That collaboration proved successful through 15 holes. The Bears had momentum and a five-under-par score of 66 after Powell started the day with a birdie on the second hole and shaved off another stroke by sinking a 40-foot putt on the sixth. But dark clouds and sirens halted Powell and Isgar’s play with only three holes left, and the pair was carted off the course to watch the rain. They wouldn’t have » See GOLF, page 2
Hayes ’01 talks mass incarceration, policing Raimondo prioritizes free tuition in campaign Governor plans to expand college affordability program Rhode Island Promise to URI, RIC By ALEX REICE SENIOR STAFF WRITER
In the 2018 Rhode Island gubernatorial race, Gov. Gina Raimondo has spearheaded college affordability with the proposed expansion of her key initiative, Rhode Island Promise. Her toughest opponent in the race, Republican Cranston Mayor Allan Fung, does not make a mention of the issue on his platform. Rhode Island Promise currently provides two years of free tuition to students entering the Community College of Rhode Island who meet certain requirements. The plan requires students to be recent high school graduates, take full-time classes and maintain at least a 2.5 GPA. The governor’s original proposal from 2017 intended to guarantee two years of free college for in-state students attending the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College, as
INSIDE
well as CCRI, The Herald previously reported. While the full extent of this proposal was rejected by the legislature, in her re-election campaign Raimondo has reiterated her commitment to expanding the free tuition plan. Her full campaign promise includes making the last two years of school at RIC and URI free for recent high school graduates who sustain a good academic record and can graduate in four years. She has also promised to offer free tuition to all adults studying at CCRI, according to her campaign website. The proposal is estimated to cost around $35 million, according to the Providence Journal. On Sept. 18, Nick Mattiello, speaker of the House, questioned the program’s impact thus far and Raimondo’s plans for its expansion, according to Go Local Prov. The state is currently grappling with a $200 million deficit, he said, adding that the initiative could exacerbate its fiscal woes. While some may remain skeptical of her ability to expand Rhode Island Promise, “in terms of funding for » See GOVERNOR, page 2
ANITA SHEIH / HERALD
Chris Hayes ’01 encouraged his audience and readers of his book, “A Colony in a Nation,” to vote in elections for officials of the criminal justice system, as these elections often have low turnout.
MSNBC show host emphasizes history, present-day effects of racial inequity By ALEX REICE SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Chris Hayes ’01, author and host of the MSNBC show “All In with Chris Hayes,” came back to his old stomping ground this weekend to talk about his new book and the current state of American politics. Hayes’s second book, “A Colony in a Nation,” attempts to tackle the U.S. criminal justice system and its unequal
treatment of citizens across racial and socioeconomic lines. On Saturday morning, he spoke with Tricia Rose MA’87 PhD ’93 P’14, director of the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America and professor of Africana studies, about his book. » See HAYES, page 4
WEATHER
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
NEWS U. works to develop B-Lab, an eight-week student entrepreneurship accelerator
SPORTS Shumate ’19: Le’Veon Bell’s refusal of $14.5 million contract is thorn in side of Steelers
SPORTS Football team falls in nationally televised home opener against Harvard 31-17
COMMENTARY Simshauser ’20: Former Gov. Phil Bredesen exemplifies get-it-done attitude Dems need in red states
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TODAY
TOMORROW
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NEWS
PAGE 2 • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
» GOLF, from page 1 a shot at completing the course until the following afternoon. Perhaps it was Isgar’s decision to re-wear the (now lucky) neon green golf shirt he had sported the day before that kept them in contention on the second day as the team had a slow start. A par on 16 left both a touch disappointed, and recording a bogey on 17 — the only hole of the tournament where both went over par — nearly took them out of the running altogether. A chance at staying near the top of the field came down to Isgar making a six-foot putt for birdie on the last hole of the course. Holding true to the team’s plan of playing off each other’s strengths, Isgar tapped the ball exactly where it needed to go and sealed their score at five under par. With signed score sheets and a small sense of relief, the two headed to the clubhouse to await their fate. As hours ticked away and team after team came in, Powell and Isgar’s 66 kept them in second place. Their coaches and teammates flooded their phones with congratulatory messages while their competitors told them how much fun they would have in Oregon during the Four-Ball
» GOVERNOR, from page 1 the expansion of RI Promise to RIC and URI as well as adults at CCRI, the Governor will find room in the budget, just like she did for the current Rhode Island Promise program, and present a balanced budget to the legislature,” wrote Emily Samsel, the communications director for the Rhode Island Democratic Party, in an email to The Herald. The expansion of Rhode Island Promise has been met with support from the education community in Rhode Island. “We need to do more to make college accessible and affordable to all students, especially those who feel like it’s out of reach because of circumstances beyond their control,” wrote Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education in Rhode Island Ken Wagner in an email to The Herald. “By extending Promise to RIC and URI, … we could keep more students on track
Championship. But the Bears knew it wasn’t over until the last golfers left the green. Three hours later, another pair posted a 66. Powell and Isgar would have to face off against another team for a chance at the championships. “When we realized we were in a playoff, we were in total shock because we thought we were in at that point,” Powell said. “We had to get our wits together.” The teams went back to the start of the course for the sudden-death style round, but pars from both pairs meant they had to keep playing. The pressure-packed playoff continued on the eighth hole where things seemed to lean in the Bears’ favor from the fairway. Isgar yelled at his shot to “be good” as he hit the ball, but he couldn’t see where it landed. It turned up 30 feet from the pin, and the perfect putting opportunity was born. Powell made par. Both golfers on the opposing team made par. Isgar had the last shot, the one final chance at solidifying a place in the Four-Ball Championship, and he wasn’t going to play it safe. “Everyone wants to be the hero,” he said. “I love being over the ball when it counts and when it means something. This was certainly no exception.” to graduate college and keep those students here in Rhode Island,” he added. Dean Libutti, vice provost for enrollment management at URI, also highlighted the motivation the program could provide to students. “It provides an incentive for students to work hard; it would certainly help more students stay on track” to graduate from college, he said, especially as “students and families (are) concerned about loan debt and that increasing cost of college.” CCRI reported an increase of 47 percent in the number of full-time students enrolled just after graduating high school since the start of Rhode Island Promise. Supporters of Rhode Island Promise cite the increase in enrollment as a key sign of the program’s success. “We’ve seen already a positive enrollment increase at CCRI, and I think extending Promise would have a similar effect on RIC and URI,” Wagner said.
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD he watched it roll. “About halfway there, I knew that ball had a good chance of going in. About three-quarters of the way there, it looked really good,” he recalled. “And then it dropped in.” As far as Isgar remembers, the ten seconds after the ball plunked into the cup are a blur, but Powell was able to fill in the details, calling his teammate’s celebration “dramatic.” “Probably everyone throughout the golf course, maybe the whole city of Lincoln could hear me scream when it went in,” Isgar said. “It was a good moment.”
COURTESY OF CHUCK ISGAR
The duo of Chuck Isgar ’20.5 and Drew Powell ’21 found success earlier this month and will compete in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. Standing 30 feet from a spot in a USGA event and a trip to the The College Crusade of Rhode Island, a college readiness and scholarship program for students in lowincome areas, has a similar take on the governor’s plan. President and CEO of The College Crusade Andrew Bramson said the program is beneficial not only because it has increased community college attendence but because it “communicates the fact that there is a college seat waiting for every student in Rhode Island that wants to work for it.” He added that “the impact of the program availability is just as important as the attendance.” Candidates in the gubernatorial race place different emphasis on the issue of college affordability. Mayor Fung makes no mention of the issue on his campaign website, and did not respond to a request for comment on the issue by press time. Under his plans for Rhode Island’s future, he highlights veterans affairs, economic development and government reform.
Proposed expansion of the Rhode Island Promise program The program currently provides two years of free tuition to students entering the Community College of Rhode Island who meet certain requirements.
renowned Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Isgar gave it his best shot. And then,
In eight months, Powell and Isgar will represent Brown golf on “the biggest stage,” said Head Coach Michael Hughes, adding that this will help the team recruit as the duo brings national exposure to the program. Maybe the storybook ending was a result of the lucky green shirt or the fact that Isgar needed to make that putt to get back to campus in time for a 6 p.m. lab. Regardless of how they claimed the spot, the two teammates, friends and roommates will attend their first USGA event together. And when the moment was over and he had calmed down and stopped celebrating, Isgar still made it back to Providence by 6:02.
Are you a student in recovery or struggling with an addiction? Want to connect with other students in recovery from a substance use disorder? Contact: Dean Shannon O'Neill shannon_oneill1@brown.edu or 401-863-1367
Bruce E. Donovan '59 Dean for Recovery and Substance-Free Initiatives
$35 million
MEAL PLAN
The estimated cost of expanding the Rhode Island Promise program
changes
2 years
STEP ONE:
Choose a Meal Plan.
Gov. Gina Raimondo proposes making the final two years of study at Rhode Island College and the University of Rhode Island free for certain students
REMINDER:
T DAY THE LASEA L PLAN
TO MAKE M EDNESDAY, CHANGES IS W
SEPT. 2 !
VIEW OPTIONS AT BROWN.EDU/FOOD
• You can ADD a new Meal Plan at any time during the year • You can make one CHANGE per semester. Fall deadline is 9/2 • Meal Plan CANCELLATIONS for the whole year are due by 9/2
STEP TWO:
Let us assist you!
EMAIL DINING_SERVICES@BROWN.EDU OR CALL 863-3343 WITH QUESTIONS
Source: The Providence Journal ANDREW FRIBERG / HERALD
• Changes can only be made in person weekdays from 9:00AM to 4:00PM at the Brown Dining office located at 144 Thayer Street (Sharpe Refectory).
brown.edu/food
NEWS
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018 • PAGE 3
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
» REUNION, from page 1 the fiftieth anniversary of the Black Student Walkout that occurred in December 1968. During the panel, nine of the 65 walkout participants discussed their memories of the event and reflected on the personal and institutional effects of their activism, which aimed to increase recruitment of and support for black students at the University. One of the students’ key demands was that “black students must constitute at least 11 percent of the class of 1973, and of all subsequent incoming classes,” according to a position paper published by The Herald at the time. At the time, Gary Harris ’72 P’02 P’09 said walkout participants received criticism from the University that was “largely based upon the assumption that by increasing the number of blacks at the University, … we would weaken the strength of the class.” “We resisted that by saying that we weren’t lowering standards, that what the University needed to do was widen their net” when recruiting black students, he added. While a group of women from Pembroke College came up with the idea to hold a walkout, panel members acknowledged a critical collaboration that existed between the men and women who participated. “We had a real sense of camaraderie among us. … We were in this together, and we were going to stick it out together,” said Gail DeCosta ’69. For Zylpha Pryor-Bell ’72, “the most valuable impact of the black student walkout generally” was that “it brought and continues to bring people of … different races in contact with one another, where they already share the common goal of acquiring an exceptional education.” The walkout marked a significant moment in
Pryor-Bell’s life because she began to see her racial identity as “something I should genuinely feel good about.” Despite the event’s pivotal role in changing admission policies, Donna DeWitt-McGee ’84, who attended Friday night’s event, noted that “some of the people (in) classes behind us … weren’t really aware of all the history and the background of the walkout,” underscoring the importance of the panel. “It was past time that those folks got their due, … so it was nice to see the University pause to recognize them,” said Ed Brockenbrough ’95. On Saturday morning, Provost Richard Locke P’18, Vice President for Institutional Equity and Diversity Shontay Delalue and the Director of the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America and Professor of Africana Studies Tricia Rose MA’87 PhD’93 P’14 spoke about the University’s progress in implementing its Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan. Released in February 2016, the DIAP aims to increase representation of historically underrepresented groups on campus, strengthen research and teaching on diversity and inclusion issues and improve campus life. “If we’re going to be known as a university that attracts the best and brightest from all walks of life, then we have to actually walk the talk,” Locke said. “We have to make sure that we’re recruiting and also supporting people when they’re here.” During the panel, Delalue said she found “helping people to not talk about (diversity) as an add-on” to be deeply important. “If you ask any department or student, ‘Do you care about academic excellence and innovation?’ … They’ll say yes,” Delalue said. “So I, in response, say, ‘Then you care about diversity.’ …You can’t have those things
without diversity.” Throughout Saturday afternoon, alums attended smaller panels and workshops focused on a variety of issues such as ameliorating the racial and economic inequality present in education, resolving racialized harassment in the workplace and the importance of black art and culture today. One event, titled “Intercultural Legacy Narratives: Social Action, Equity and Diversity Across Communities,” featured a panel of alums who shared their experiences as student activists at Brown during different time periods by discussing the struggles that they faced and the lessons that they learned while attending the University. Natasha Korgaonkar ’02, one of the panelists, said the biggest student organizing issue in her time at Brown occurred in 2001 when The Herald printed a racist ad by David Horowitz titled “Ten Reasons Why Reparations for Blacks is a Bad Idea for Blacks – and Racist, Too!” “The incident was that this racist ultra-right wing provocateur took out an ad in The Brown Daily Herald. … (The ad) was incredibly racist and disgusting and super upsetting for many, many people on campus.” In response to the ad’s presence in the newspaper and The Herald’s refusal to apologize for printing it, Korgaonkar and other students removed copies of The Herald from its newsstands around campus. Through her organizing work while at Brown, Korgaonkar said she found it challenging to find a balance between collective action and equitable representation among different identities. “You’re kind of trying to figure out if it’s going to be hierarchical, and if so, what that hierarchy is gonna look like and why,” she said. Though it was important for all different affected
identities to be involved in the organizing, not everyone could necessarily be the “face” of the movement, which often resulted in “hurt feelings,” she added. Another alum, Jessica Brown ’16, spoke about her work advocating for first-generation, low-income students at Brown. Alongside other students, Brown said she “applied for a grant from the Swearer Center (to start) 1vy Gen … (and) laid the groundwork for conversations with a lot of administrators for the founding of the FLi Center.” When asked about the potential complications that multicultural coalitions could present to individual identities, Brown said that while it was important to value the diversity of individual experiences, it was challenging to “affirm everyone’s different struggles.” The reunion weekend closed Saturday evening with the news that the building named for James Walter Wilson, class of 1918, a former professor of biology, would be renamed PageRobinson Hall. The announcement was made at a dinner that also honored former president Simmons with the inaugural Black Legacy Award “for her leadership, activism and commitment to social and educational justice,” according to a University press release. Simmons’ 11-year tenure was marked by the creation of the Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice to examine the University’s connections to slavery and the transatlantic slave trade. She also enacted need-blind financial aid for first-year domestic applicants as part of her Plan for Academic Enrichment. The decision to rename the popular building serves to “memorialize the contributions and the struggles of black alumni,” according to the press release.
At the event, President Christina Paxson P’19 spoke about Page’s and Robinson’s groundbreaking contributions to education. Page, who was born into slavery, “sought liberty and opportunity, and he found them at Brown. He went on to teach and mentor and lead and break down barriers in higher education as the president of not one, but several colleges and universities,” Paxson said. Through her studies, Robinson “broke both a color barrier and a glass ceiling when she graduated as the first black woman from Brown in 1905. … She went on to teach English at Howard University, and she was instrumental in founding the first black sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha,” she added. Following the announcement, Simmons delivered the evening’s keynote address. Simmons highlighted the importance of alumni giving sustained support to the University. “You must not be a visitor and you must not be a supplicant here. You must own this place; it is yours. But if it is yours, you must give back to it,” she said. In addition to supporting the University, Simmons stressed the need for alumni to support the current generation of Brown students. “They are going to falter, they are going to become discouraged, they will have moments when they think it isn’t worth it, and you must be in a position to pick them up and carry them,” Simmons added. To close her speech, Simmons implored the audience to stand up for their beliefs as boldly as the students who participated in the 1968 walkout did. “We must not be invisible and we must not feel we’re obligated to speak softly. … Tell your truth. Tell your truth everyday, tell it when people don’t want to hear it, tell it when people don’t want to listen, because children are watching you to see if you dare tell your story.”
NEWS
PAGE 4 • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
B-Lab encourages, facilitates student entrepreneurship B-Lab, an eight-week summer program, helps students bring original ideas to fruition By MELANIE PINCUS SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Students and recent graduates looking to address problems — from simplifying the process of applying for citizenship to improving the modern sticky bra — found homes for their entrepreneurial ventures in the University’s Breakthrough Lab this summer. B-Lab, part of the Jonathan M. Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship, is an eightweek accelerator program that supports entrepreneurial ventures. Representatives from 12 of the 13 ventures in last summer’s cohort pitched their projects at a showcase Thursday evening. “There’s a difference between studying entrepreneurship and doing it,” said Jason Harry, the director of Breakthrough Lab and professor of the practice of engineering, in an interview with The Herald. “One of the goals for B-Lab is to provide a real world opportunity … to do real entrepreneurship.” Among the projects pitched at the showcase was Koi Prosthetics, which aims to provide affordable prosthetics to amputees in developing countries; Dialogue-Africa, a virtual learning platform for African languages and Reliabra, which has developed sticky bras with removable and replaceable adhesives. “The showcase is really an opportunity to kind of experience the big time and to be able to present to a room with
» HAYES, from page 1 In the book’s title, Hayes quotes a speech Former President Richard M. Nixon gave at the Republican National Convention in 1968, in which Nixon vowed to enforce law and order in America: “Black Americans, no more than white Americans, they do not want more government programs which perpetuate dependency. They don’t want to be a colony in a nation.” Hayes expands on this phrase, connecting it to the way in which some citizens do not feel fairly treated by the law in present-day America. “To me, the reason I found it so important was that fundamentally the issue when we think about Black Lives Matter, police shooting, racial segregation and racial hierarchy is an issue of self-determination and democracy,” he said to Rose. “People exist in America in the year 2018 and don’t feel that their government is accountable to them. They are living under conditions that in some way exactly mirror the precipitating incident of the revolution that brought about the country. It was, in fact, police excesses of the crown that precipitated the American revolution,” he added. “A Colony in a Nation” uses this historical background to contextualize mass incarceration in the United States. “America is a very policed place, across races,” he said in an interview with The Herald. “I think those racial disparities aren’t necessarily just a product of the place but the way the entire society is constructed, particularly in the wake of both the death of Reconstruction itself, the construction of Jim Crow and the Great Migration,” he added. “The reason we have the system we have is because
COURTESY OF BROWN UNIVERSITY
In the past, the B-Lab program has largely taken place in the Granoff Center for the Creative Arts. If the Nelson Center’s new space at 249 Thayer Street is ready by next summer, the program will switch locations accordingly. a couple of hundred people in it,” Harry 2015, primarily featured Brown current in B-Lab and see what they thought and said. It is also “an opportunity to practice students or recent alumni, though one make some improvements on that,” Muhow to tell a venture story,” he added. student from the Rochester Institute of tako said. “But I think the most valuable In remarks at the showcase, President Technology along with one student and part were the connections that we made Christina Paxson P’19 emphasized the one alum from the Rhode Island School through B-Lab.” Nelson Center’s role in enhancing en- of Design also took part. Without the resources provided by trepreneurship at the University. Matt Bruinooge ’21 and Diane Mu- the University through B-Lab, which in“What the Nelson Center is doing is tako ’20 were part of a team that worked clude a $4,000 stipend, “I would probably it’s taking this amazing entrepreneurial through B-Lab to develop Formally, a be working at an internship somewhere ecosystem, and it’s putting it on steroids software that aims to simplify the process in some company,” Bruinooge said. “Inand bringing it together … with a level of filling out forms for asylum, citizen- stead I ended up doing this really socially of professionalism that we haven’t had in ship and visas. impactful thing.” the past,” Paxson said. At B-Lab, “we finished the first proOther projects included Persona, This year’s B-Lab cohort, the fourth totype … for the first form completely, which “aims to reduce internet friction by since the program’s inaugural class in and we got to test it with other people allowing users to create accounts, verify from (the) very beginning we’ve constructed the society in which the law is intimately interwoven with the project of maintaining racial hierarchy.” Hayes pointed out that Nixon’s rhetoric of imposing law and order is also espoused by the current president. In a 2016 speech given in Cleveland, President Trump “said he was a law-and-order president; he basically painted the picture of an America under siege,” Hayes said. “In fact, the Trump version is a much crasser, less sophisticated and less sort of smartly pulled off version of a Nixon,” he added. Brown students and various members of the Providence and Rhode Island communities attended Hayes’ talk. Jessica Murphy ’19 went to the event because “the book sounded interesting,” she said. “I want to learn more about American politics because I study international politics, and I was really blown away. He spoke very articulately and with great awareness of many different issues at once.” Kanha Prasad ’21 had a similar sentiment. “I’m really interested in colonies and colonization, so the title of his book was really striking, especially in a historical period where we think that colonization doesn’t exist anymore,” he said. “The whole thing about a colony in a nation is very powerful,” he added. To both readers of the book and listeners of the talk, Hayes urged a greater awareness of the ways in which people may perpetuate racial biases on a daily basis. “At the local level, one of the things we’ve seen recently is a lot of stories about people calling the cops on people that are not doing anything wrong,” Hayes said. “So one thing is like, don’t do that, don’t call the cops on someone because they’re
sitting in a Starbucks, or because they’re cooking out, or because they’re knocking on doors with campaign literature.” Hayes also urged audience members to use their vote to make a difference. “More broadly as a political project, one of the things I say when I talk about the book is, we elect many of the officials that run the criminal justice system,” he said. “Particular prosecutors are elected, sheriffs are often elected. Those elections tend to (have) extremely low turnout, and they tend to produce very reactionary results. If you get involved in those elections, you can have a huge, disproportionate effect because they are such low-turnout affairs.” Hayes told The Herald that attending the University had a huge impact on his career, particularly as a journalist under the Trump administration. Trump has “made the job at some level much easier and much harder. It’s easier because there’s always news, there’s always something to talk about, and it’s harder because it gets that much more difficult to filter and prioritize and not get trapped chasing after things in a kind of loop of reaction.” But Hayes believes his Brown education equipped him to rise to the challenge. “I think the training I got in philosophy was incredible,” he said. “I think it really, really made me a better thinker and writer, it really valued clarity, which I think is a really key value,” he added. “The other thing is that I think the social creative world of Brown theater was massively influential. At some level what I do every day is put a show on, like we make a play everyday,” he said. But he pointed to meeting his wife of 11 years, Kate Shaw ’01, as the most important way Brown has affected him.
passwords and verify that they’re human with a single click,” Eric Dellavalle ’21 said in his pitch at the showcase. “We made a lot of progress, a lot of good time to just code and put in work,” Dellavalle said in an interview with The Herald. “But I think more important than that was … mentorship. We got paired with … Scott Meyer ’91 who had worked in a ton of similar businesses and also at Brown, and so his mentorship was just invaluable.” Pavlo Lyalyutskyy ’20 worked to develop Intellibell, a software for supermarket produce management, this summer. “In B-Lab we really tried to figure out our mission for existence,” Lyalyutskyy said. The team developed a long-term vision “to provide artificial intelligence tools to markets that don’t really have it or would benefit from it,” starting with supermarkets. This summer and in past years, groups have worked out of the Granoff Center for the Creative Arts. Assuming the Nelson Center’s new space at 249 Thayer Street is ready on time, B-Lab will operate there next summer, Harry said. “During the summer … the space will be largely dedicated to B-Lab,” he said. “The whole space is going to be beautifully designed around student venturing.” Last week’s showcase was “a culmination of a huge amount of effort,” Harry said. It took place in a packed MacMillan Starr Auditorium. “I really do believe that it’s interesting to other people because it’s a glimpse of the future,” Harry said. The ideas presented may not always come to fruition, “but it’s fun to see the future, you know, it really is.”
TODAY
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018 • PAGE 5
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
menu
going out on a limb
SATELLITE DINING ANDREWS COMMONS
Pizza: BBQ Chicken Ranch, Caprese, Sammy Special Tofu Yellow Curry, Make Your Own Salad JOSIAH’S
BLUE ROOM
Dumpling Bar, Mac And Cheese Bacon Burger, Panini Grill
Turkey Chili, Chicken Noodle Soup, Bread Bowl
DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH
DINNER
Roast Chicken With Sambal Chimichurri, Purple Sticky Rice, Beef Lo Mein
Asian Style BBQ Ribs, Hoisin Shrimp Stir Fry, Cauliflower and Potato Cheese Bake
VERNEY-WOOLLEY LUNCH
DINNER
Hummus Bar, Kale and Linguica Soup, Smoked Chicken and Pepperjack Cuban Sandwich
Spicy Pepper Pulled Chicken, Pork Adobo, Asian Sweet and Sour Meatballs, Fried Rice
sudoku
ANITA SHEIH / HERALD
As shopping period comes to a close, students are encouraged to branch out and take courses out of their comfort zones. Students battle for shady spots on the Main Green on sunny days.
Q U O T E O F T H E D AY
crossword
“If we’re going to be known as a university that attracts the best and brightest from all walks of life, then we have to actually walk the talk.
”
— Provost Richard Locke P’18
See Reunion on page 1. CORRECTION An earlier version of the Sept. 21 Herald article, “Lawsuit against University retirement plan proceeds,” referred to Berger Montague as Berger & Montague, P.C.. The Herald regrets the error.
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Study Abroad Fair 11:00 A.M. Alumnae Hall
Massage Monday 12:00 P.M. Stephen Robert ’62 Campus Center
Social Sciences Research Basics 1:00 P.M. Rockefeller Library
Jeff Weaver: How Bernie Won 5:00 P.M. Joukowsky Forum
TOMORROW Resume and Cover Letter Workshop 12:00 P.M. CareerLAB
Study Abroad 101 Information Session 12:00 P.M. J. Walter Wilson
SIG Board Game Night 5:30 P.M. CareerLAB
Telescope Observing Night 8:00 P.M. Ladd Observatory
SPORTS
PAGE 6 • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Pay Le’Veon or Play, Le’Veon? BEN SHUMATE sports columnist Now that the Cleveland Browns have snapped a losing streak that spanned over a full season and nearly two full calendar years, the time to crown the new most dysfunctional NFL franchise is here. There are many candidates vying for the throne. It would seem hard to outdo the Buffalo Bills, whose prospects for this season are so dim that veteran defensive back Vontae Davis retired during halftime of the team’s second game of the season. There are also the Oakland Raiders, who are a lame duck franchise in their own city and who traded away Khalil Mack, possibly the best defensive player in the game, only to have new head coach Jon Gruden lament that “great pass rushers are hard to find.” Though those two teams will be lucky to win a combined eight games this season, they will have to settle for silver and bronze when it comes to dysfunction in the NFL. Fittingly, the gold goes to the Pittsburgh Steelers. At the heart of the problem for the Steelers, who began the season by tying those Cleveland Browns and losing to Kansas City the following week, is a holdout by star running back Le’Veon Bell. Wanting a lucrative long-term contract, Bell refused to accept a $14.5 million franchise tag for one more season with the Steelers. Not only have the Steelers missed Bell’s production on the field, but the prolonged episode appears ready to tear the team’s locker room apart. There are those who are so proplayer when it comes to contract
disputes that they will never draw a line where smart business crosses into petulance. This is becoming the default position among sports media figures, who have been finding new ways of equivocating in favor of Bell quitting on his team since the
I have no doubt that political leanings have an impact on these two poles of opinion. But there also exists a fundamental split in how sports are seen by different pockets of society that could explain the Bell controversy and others just as easily
Not only have the Steelers missed Bell’s production on the field, but the prolonged episode appears ready to tear the team’s locker room apart.
episode began. Take to Twitter and search Bell’s name, and you will see a sharp divide between this media stance and fans’ opinions. This is a contrast that is central to other issues in the sport such as the National Anthem protests, concussions and player safety.
as left versus right politics can. Fans critical of Bell believe that teams are the beating heart of sports. Part of that belief comes from the idea that fans see themselves as an integral arm of a successful sports franchise. The angry online fan tweeting to a player
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there. Meanwhile, Bell is not exactly struggling — he’s willing to give up nearly $1 million for each Sunday he stays at home. No Steelers fan thinks they are as valuable to the franchise’s success as Le’Veon Bell, but good luck getting die-hard fans in a blue-collar city to sympathize
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that “I pay your salary” has become a cliché at this point, but it is flatly ignorant to minimize the investment of time and money that fans put into their support. Tickets to tonight’s Steelers’ game against Tampa Bay start at $110 and go up from
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with a player who thinks $14.5 million isn’t enough. On the other hand, sports media tend to see individuals as the heart of sports, whether they are coaches or players. Part of this tendency is built into their job description as journalists — star athletes generate the most attention and garner the most clicks. It is also self-serving, to an extent. Many reporters will do whatever it takes to remain in the good graces of star players, including directing harsh criticisms at their fellow reporters who make a consistent effort to ask pointed questions instead of lobbing softballs. They care much less about how blind defense of players like Bell will alienate fans, even though those fans also pay for newspaper subscriptions as well as football tickets. Bell will mostly likely sit out the entire 2018 season, and the rift developing in the Steelers’ locker room could very well keep them out of the playoffs, despite having no shortage of talent even without him on the field. Such a result would rightly damage Bell’s reputation and turn other teams off from signing him in the offseason. If things get really ugly, Bell could walk away from the sport entirely, a move he has threatened publicly before. Even in this extreme case, because of the different ways team sports are understood, don’t be surprised to hear a chorus of media types claiming that it really was worth it the whole time.
Ben Shumate ’19 can be reached at benjamin_shumate@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
COMMENTARY MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018 • PAGE 7
In a deeply red state, a blueprint for Democrats DEREK SIMSHAUSER staff columnist As the state of national politics devolves into tribally structured warfare, statewide elections have become easy to map along party lines. A mere 12 states have both a Democratic and a Republican senator; within states that voted for President Donald Trump in the 2016 election, Democrats occupy a scant 11 of 60 senate seats. Democrats running in GOP strongholds could not be blamed for electoral fatalism — in deep Trump country, it seems unfathomable that a candidate from Hillary Clinton’s party could surpass her 2016 results. In Tennessee, however, former Gov. Phil Bredesen has emerged as a formidable Democratic candidate. Bredesen, 74, is returning to politics after a seven-year hiatus following his gubernatorial tenure from 2003 to 2011. Running for Sen. Bob Corker’s vacant seat, Bredesen has pulled from the playbook used by Alabama Senator Doug Jones to coalesce support across a broad base of the Tennessee electorate. He has set an example for red state Democrats — focusing on proximal issues should supersede political haggling over one’s fit in the national conversation. Bredesen — who recently polled five points ahead of his Republican opponent, Rep. Marsha Blackburn — is an ideal Democrat for a deep red state like Tennessee. Trump won the state by 26 points, and Republicans have a 28-5 seat advantage in the Tennessee Senate. However, Bredesen has not written off these voters: “there have to be hundreds of thousands of people who voted for me and voted for Donald
Trump,” he said in April. As a former governor, Bredesen entered this race with substantial name recognition within his state. He neither needs nor wants endorsements that would connect him to national Democrats. Much like Jones’ campaign in Alabama, Bredesen has avoided rhetoric that would transpose his campaign onto the national stage. “I’m not running against Donald Trump,” he said in a television commercial, which has proven to be a common refrain during his elec-
veyed to moderate Democrats in the South. “People here support a get-itdone centrist,” he said in a September interview with New York Magazine. “A generic Democrat would not have much of a chance in a Senate race here.” And while his moderate record and support from Republicans would not appeal to his party’s national coalition, it’s perfect for Tennessee, where no Democrat has won a statewide race since Bredesen’s re-election in 2006. By branding himself as a “get-itdone Democrat,” Bredesen encapsu-
pharmaceutical industry in a state that has been hit hard by the opioid epidemic. He discusses his plans to fix the problems caused by Asian Carp, an invasive species that has choked Tennessee’s waterways. And he expends more political energy on the Tennessee Valley Authority than he does on any national issue. Conversely, Congresswoman Blackburn has eagerly adjoined her campaign to the fate of the GOP at large. A Tea Party stalwart, she forged her conservative bona fides as a taxa-
As Bredesen gains in the polls, he proves that hypercompetence remains a better political strategy than merely activating partisan identities.
toral bid. Candidates like Bredesen occupy a complicated niche within the increasingly progressive ideology of the Democratic party. He is a centrist Democrat, with a pro-business reputation as governor — further bolstered when he moved into the private sector upon exiting the governorship. He understands the political benefits con-
lates the political strategy Democrats ought to employ in red states. Rather than trying to neatly fit into the contemporary Democratic ideological spectrum, Bredesen frames the race within statewide parameters. At town halls and stump speeches, he does not mention Trump. Instead, he focuses on legislation to regulate the
tion hawk in the state senate. Following her election to Congress in 2004, she has fortified her hardline stances on the national stage — a made-toorder Obama critic during his administration and a Trump loyalist since the early days of his campaign. On the campaign trail, she constantly mentions Trump — reflective of her Congressional record, where she votes with the president 91.7 percent of the time.
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Her right-wing views comport with her constituency. Blackburn hails from Tennessee’s 7th district; nestled between Kentucky and Alabama, it is the most conservative region of the state. This area is home to the state’s wingnuts, like the state senator who proposed the notorious “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Her rhetoric is as divisive as her policy; a regular fixture on cable news, Blackburn echoes the conservative grandstanding typical of Fox News. In contrast to Bredesen’s focus on statewide issues, Blackburn’s combative conservatism and devout adherence to Trump delimit a divergent campaign strategy. While Bredesen treats the presidential surname as taboo, Blackburn is gluttonous in her invocations of the president. “Tennessee needs a senator who’s gonna support President Donald Trump,” she said at a September rally. “I am going to be there to stand with President Donald Trump in Washington, D.C.” But her middling poll numbers suggest that at a time of intense dissatisfaction with Congress, national narratives do not dictate statewide elections. Though Tennesseans have wholeheartedly rejected national Democrats, the former Governor has found traction by intentionally distancing himself from the party — he has rightfully framed a statewide election around statewide issues. And as Bredesen gains in the polls, he proves that hypercompetence remains a better political strategy than merely activating partisan identities.
Derek Simshauser ’20 can be reached at derek_simshauser@ brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald. com and other opeds to opinions@ browndailyherald.com.
SPORTS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
Bears’ valiant comeback falls short against Crimson Bruno recovers from 24-3 halftime hole, falls to Harvard 31-17 in national television broadcast By ALEX SMOLAR SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Moral victories are not often desired in sports, but as the football team walked off of the field following a 31-17 loss to Harvard Friday night, the Bears could hold their heads high. After coming out of the locker room flat under the lights, Brown (0-2, 0-1 Ivy) faced a 24-3 halftime deficit. But Bruno was defiant and fought back to be within one score of the Crimson deep into the fourth quarter before Harvard (2-0, 1-0 Ivy) pulled away for the final time. “What I saw was a team that fought, had life, never gave up and was just a few plays away from being a good football team,” said Head Coach Phil Estes P’18. “We need to be complete and make a few more plays.” Bruno’s offense came out firing on their first drive of the game, and quarterback Michael McGovern ’21 made a few impressive plays with his feet to get out of the pocket and gain first downs. The offense stalled deep in Crimson territory, but the Bears kicked a field goal to put the first points on the board. McGovern was five-for-nine with 55 yards on the drive. But the rest of the half belonged to the Crimson. Harvard exploited the Bears’ missed tackles to get into Brown territory, and Crimson quarterback Jake Smith threw a 22-yard touchdown pass down the seam to Henry Taylor for six. On Harvard’s next drive, running back BJ Watson broke away for a lightning-quick 43-yard touchdown run to gain an early 14-3 advantage. Later in the half, McGovern made a bad read and threw a pick to Harvard defensive back Cole Thompson, who took off toward the end zone to give the Crimson a seemingly insurmountable lead.
COURTESY OF BROWN ATHLETICS
Tight end Anton Casey ’19 catches a touchdown pass under the lights against Harvard Friday. The touchdown trimmed the Crimson lead to just seven points in the fourth quarter, and Casey finished the game with four catches, 64 yards and a score. Yet the Bears had their chances and showed life, too. Estes demonstrated some of his gutsy play-calling, and McGovern flashed his arm strength on a deep flea-flicker pass to Jakob Prall ’20 for a 53-yard gain. Prall would finish the game with 120 receiving yards. Bruno also halted a promising Crimson drive with an interception in the red zone by Jorquel Condomina ’19. But stalled drives, interceptions and failed fourth down conversions put an end to many of Brown’s scoring opportunities. Down 24-3 at halftime, the Bears came out of the locker room looking like a reinvigorated squad. Special teams put Brown back in the game and shifted the momentum, as Harvard missed a field goal on their first drive of the half, and a bad snap on a Crimson punt put the Bears’ offense on the Harvard 13-yard line.
Bruno took advantage of Harvard’s punting gaffe, and McGovern rocketed a play-action pass to Jaelon Blandburg ’20 for a four-yard touchdown to cut the Crimson’s lead to 24-10 with seven minutes to go in the third quarter. “Energy changes the game,” Blandburg said. “We get (an) interception and everyone is going crazy, and the offense comes back. Now we’re ready to roll.” From that point onward, the Bears’ defense took control of the game as the once-potent Harvard offense shifted into neutral. With 13:35 left in the fourth quarter, Sebastian Dovi ’19 out-muscled a Crimson receiver for a critical interception to stop Harvard deep in Bruno’s territory. “We can run with everybody, we can run with every team in the Ivy League and tackle with every team in the Ivy League,” said defensive lineman
Michael Hoecht ’20. “We’re going to win. This team is going to win a lot of football games.” McGovern then led the offense down the field, and with the help of a 55-yard gain by Prall, put the Bears on the outskirts of the red zone. On third down, and with the pocket collapsing around him, McGovern managed to fire a strike to tight end Anton Casey ’19. Casey caught the pass and broke free from the linebacker to gallop into the endzone for a crucial touchdown to put the Bears within one score of the Crimson with only 12 minutes left in the game. But on the Crimson’s next series, it was clear that the tough and physical nature of the game had caught up with Brown’s defense. Harvard faced four third downs on the drive, and all four times the Crimson converted.
Harvard’s last conversion was a touchdown pass to Adam Scott that put the game out of reach for Bruno. “This is the difference from last year,” Estes said. “After this, we’d be down, and nobody would have their heads up, and they wouldn’t see what we can become. … It’s different now, they understand that we (have) things to fix, but we can fix this and be better.” McGovern finished the game 2243 from the field for 293 yards, two touchdowns and two picks. The Bears were six-for-16 on third downs and gained 325 total yards. “We’re going to learn how to win, we’re going to learn how to fight and we’re going to learn how to finish,” Estes said. “When we do that, watch out.” The Bears will return to the field Saturday at 1 p.m. for a home contest against Georgetown University.
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