SINCE 1891
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2017
VOLUME CLII, ISSUE 34
WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM
East Side bookstore to leave Wayland Square Used-book store Paper Nautilus to close after lease non-renewal, ending 21-year operation By TESS DEMEYER CONTRIBUTING WRITER
ELI WHITE / HERALD
Candidates for Undergraduate Council of Students and Undergraduate Finance Board elections were announced Wednesday. UCS vice president is the only major position on the council that will go opposed.
UCS presidential candidate runs unopposed Four of five top UCS positions uncontested, one position remains empty, two run for UFB chair By EDUARD MUÑOZ-SUÑÉ SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Chelse-Amoy Steele ’18 will run uncontested for president of the Undergraduate Student Council while Naveen Srinivasan ’19 and Alex Volpicello ’18 will contend for the position of vice president, UCS announced Wednesday night. Yuzuka Akasaka ’18 and Aryan Chhabria ’18 vie for chair of the
Undergraduate Finance Board while Julian De Georgia ’20 and Drew To ’19 compete for vice-chair. Most campaigning materials, such as posters and banners, cost a set number of publicity points. Candidates are allowed to spend up to 100 publicity points and $40. Candidates cannot exceed either limit. For three other major UCS positions, a single candidate runs unopposed. William Zhou ’20 stands for chair of student activities, Sharon Zeldin ’20 for chair of student wellness and Camila Pelsinger ’20 for chair of campus life. For the fourth position, the chair of academic affairs, no student has announced their
candidacy. By the start of the official candidates meeting Wednesday night, those vying for executive positions submitted petitions with at least 400 student signatures while the other candidates submitted petitions with at least 250 student signatures. All candidates submitted a brief personal statement. As the sole UCS presidential candidate, Steele currently holds no UCS positions. She aims to “empower our communities and boldly push for sustainable change,” according to her platform on UCS’s website. Among other goals, Steele intends to push for more resources for undocumented » See UCS, page 3
For 21 years, Kristin Sollenberger has owned and operated Paper Nautilus, a secondhand bookstore at 5 South Angell St. On March 6, she received a letter from landlord Kenneth Dulgarian stating that Paper Nautilus’ lease will expire April 15 and is not up for renewal. Dulgarian did not disclose the reasons for not renewing Paper Nautilus’ lease. The Providence Journal reported that he had signed a nondisclosure agreement regarding plans for the South Angell Street property, and he could not be reached when contacted for an interview with The Herald. Dulgarian owns several other properties in Wayland Square and Thayer Street, including the Avon Cinema and the building that houses Starbucks and Santander Bank. Over the 21 years she has occupied the space, Sollenberger said she never had any problems renewing her lease. “When I called after receiving the certified letter saying he wasn’t going to renew it, he didn’t have any explanation, and he didn’t ever offer (the space) to me for a higher price,” she said. Sollenberger was able to negotiate
for an April 30 departure date, but was surprised that Dulgarian had not approached her earlier about the lease, given their relationship. Nautilus regular Kate Josephson posted a petition two weeks ago to save the store with the help of former Brown literary arts professors Keith and Rosmarie Waldrop. The petition currently lists 1,160 signatures and hundreds of comments from supporters across the United States and beyond. Sollenberger noted that the support has encouraged her to find a new location. Since the publication of Paper Nautilus’ story in the Providence Journal Saturday, Sollenberger has been contacted by multiple real estate agents with suggestions for possible relocations. At the moment, she is unsure where Paper Nautilus will relocate. “Old bookstores like this one are deeply connected with a community. They help people to grow and share thoughts,” wrote one commenter from Aversa, Italy, on the petition. “A huge piece of the community would be missing” if Paper Nautilus is unable to find a place to resettle, Josephson said. While Josephson is doubtful the petition will change Dulgarian’s mind, she feels creating it and reading the supportive comments has made the experience “a little less dismal and depressing.” Sollenberger first came to Providence as a Rhode Island School of Design » See BOOKSTORE, page 3
U. professor, Providence councilwoman discuss female activism Event focuses on women in politics, stresses importance of intersectionality By OLIVIA KATCHER STAFF WRITER
“If women are being assertive, then (we’re told) we should be more humble. If we are more quiet, then (the media) says that we are not strong enough and that we need to find our voice. We cannot win,” said Providence City Councilwoman Sabina Matos. Matos and Francoise Hamlin, associate professor of Africana studies and history, talked about their perspectives on women taking political action at an event hosted by Women, Empowered at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs Wednesday. Matos explained that she entered politics “the same way many female politicians do — someone asked me to.
INSIDE
… I never saw myself as a candidate,” she said. Discussing female involvement in politics, Hamlin insisted that people “cannot be complacent about any of the gains women have made,” though they should not undermine the work women have done in the past. “Women must continue progressing and moving forward,” she said. When asked about examples of effective activism efforts, Matos described her experiences fighting for hotel workers and child-care-provider campaigns. Hamlin said she “paid no attention to the (International) Women’s Day” strike that was held March 8 but was present at the Women’s March on Washington in January. “Seeing how the administration ignores everything, (the Women’s Day strike) is not going to make a difference,” Hamlin said, though she supports the people who took part in the strike. Hamlin believes that it is
“important for young women coming of age to … be involved in something that is meaningful.” Her activism focuses on “being in the classroom, how I teach this work (and) how I can help students find their passion.” In order for progress to continue
for women in the political sphere, they need to “get involved in a campaign or volunteer for something (they) think is going to challenge the status quo,” Matos said. Near the end of the event, Hamlin stressed the importance of
POST- MAGAZINE
coalition-building among activists. “How many people at the Women’s March turn up for Black Lives Matter? You have to show up for other occasions,” she said. The event is part of a lecture series, » See ACTIVISM, page 3
WEATHER
THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2017
ARTS & CULTURE The Magnetic Fields released a new album March 10 that details life of lead singer PAGE 3
ELI WHITE / HERALD
Francoise Hamlin, professor of Africana studies and history, right, and Providence Councilwoman Sabina Matos, left, discussed women in politics and stressed the importance of challenging the status quo.
COMMENTARY Murphy ’19: David Cameron presents nuanced, legitimate conservatism contrary to Trump
COMMENTARY Cardoso ’19: Democrats could learn a lesson from Portugal’s stable leftist political sphere
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