NEWS: Unions Criticize
University’s Response to ICE
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The Chicago Maroon
NOVEMBER 19, 2025 EIGHTH WEEK
VOL. 138, ISSUE 5
University Trustee Named in New Epstein Documents
By EVGENIA ANASTASAKOS | Managing Editor and NATHANIEL RODWELL-SIMON | Deputy News Editor
Thomas Pritzker (M.B.A. ’76, J.D. ’76), a longtime University of Chicago trustee, was among those whose names appear repeatedly in new documents released by the House Oversight Committee on November 12 as part of its investigation into the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Among the nearly 20,000 pages of documents were more than two dozen emails between Pritzker and Epstein. In the emails, Pritzker and Epstein discussed current events, made plans to see each other, and
NEWS: Class of 2029 CC Representatives Elected, USG Declines to Seat Hall
PAGE 2
shared news articles.
The conversations, which date back to 2010, indicate that the two men shared a close personal relationship that continued long after Epstein pled guilty in 2008 to charges that he had solicited a minor.
The documents also included at least eight references to Pritzker in conversations between Epstein and other individuals.
Documents show that Pritzker was still in contact with Epstein as recent as February 2019 and that Epstein had referred to Pritzker in an email to himself just one week
VIEWPOINTS: Slashing Beyond Prisons Is a Political Choice
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before his July 6, 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges.
The Maroon’s review of the newly released documents did not immediately reveal connections between Epstein and any other current, honorary, or emeritus trustees of the University. The University of Chicago did not respond to the Maroon’s requests for comment.
Pritzker’s name has also appeared in several previously released documents related to cases against Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
Partially redacted versions of Epstein’s 2004–05 contact book released by the Department of Justice in February include
ARTS: A Primer on Weekly Music Events at UChicago, From Pipes to Pints
PAGE 18
Pritzker’s name. Epstein’s “little black book” includes more than a dozen email addresses and phone numbers for Pritzker, along with an annotation from Epstein’s former house manager reading “Numero Uno.”
Pritzker is also listed on the manifest for a December 7, 2000 flight within the United Kingdom from London to the Marham Royal Air Force Base in Norfolk along with Epstein, Maxwell, a person named Kelly Spamm, and another passenger identified only as “1 Female.” That same weekend, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor—formerly Prince Andrew, Duke of York—hosted
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SPORTS: How UChicago Football’s Culture Shift Sparked a Historic Season
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damian almeida baray
Class of 2029 CC Representatives Elected, USG Declines to Seat Hall
By ISAIAH GLICK | Senior News Reporter
The University Student Government (USG) elections committee announced the results of this year’s College Council (CC) elections on November 7.
The Class of 2029, which was voting for all five of its CC members, elected Aaron Horowitz, Audrey Krajewski of the Audrey & Olivia Party, Logan Shim, Gavin Wynn, and Kavon Mouton of the Unfiltered Party.
The Class of 2026, which had two vacancies among its CC members, saw Nevin
Hall—the only candidate on the ballot— receive the most votes, but on Monday CC declined to seat Hall due to his impeachment from several USG positions last year.
The next two top vote-getters were write-in candidates William Kimani, who received the second-most votes, and Fernando Sandoval. Kimani and Sandoval’s election is contingent on their willingness to accept their positions.
In total, 602 first-years voted in the election, about 34 percent of their class.
Hall received 27 votes, only about a third of those cast in the Class of 2026 election. Kimani received 15 votes, and Sandoval received 11.
Horowitz told the Maroon in an interview earlier this month that, if elected, he would push to give students the option to pay for laundry with Maroon Dollars.
“It wouldn’t really create an additional cost for the administration because the funding is already there. But also, if this policy were implemented, students wouldn’t be required to pay out of pocket for laundry.”
Krajewski said she would focus on “promoting wellness more around campus and trying to make sure that students are aware of the mental health resources [available].”
Mouton’s campaign was also focused on mental health and improving student morale on campus. He proposed musical chairs on the quad, additional mental health resources during midterms, and therapy dog visits on campus.
Shim and Wynn declined or did not respond to a request for an interview with the Maroon prior to the election.
UChicago Medicine Resident Physicians
Pass First-Ever Union Contract
By JULIAN MORENO | Senior News Reporter
More than 1,000 resident physicians and fellows represented by the Committee of Interns and Residents/Service Employees International Union Healthcare (CIR/SEIU) at the University of Chicago Medical Center (UCMed) voted to ratify the union’s first-ever contract last Friday, with 99 percent voting in support. This comes after nearly a year of negotiations, including a unity break and two full-day bargaining sessions in the past two months.
The contract provides a 17 percent overall wage increase distributed over five years, along with rideshare reimbursements for long shifts and a $9,000 annual stipend that acts as a recruitment incentive for prospective residents. Additionally, the resident physicians gained due-process protections designed to ensure that specific departments cannot alter their contracts or programs without staff input.
In the union’s press release, residents stated that “the deal will have a direct impact on both their well-being and their ability to provide high-quality patient care.” The union, comprising over 1,000 resident physicians, voted to unionize with a 98 percent majority in May 2024.
The agreement with UCMed comes just over a month after the resident physicians at Northwestern’s McGaw Medical Center ratified their first union contract.
CIR/SEIU described a “contentious months-long contract fight, marked by staunch resistance on the part of the UChicago administration.”
“They definitely made us feel like they weren’t as interested in doing this in a timely way,” said Marin Mazeres, a psychiatry resident and member of the bargaining committee. “There [were] a couple of missed meetings or moments where they essentially left in the middle of meetings while we were still asking questions.”
“We had to escalate, essentially… by doing a unity break or signing petitions,” Mazeres continued. “It resulted in getting two [bargaining] sessions in person that lasted an entire day, which is how we ultimately ended up being able to have this tentative agreement.”
The primary organizing efforts centered on economic proposals aimed at reducing staff burnout and alleviating financial insecurity. Referring to the $9,000 annual stipend to be distributed at the upcoming ratification and every subsequent July, Mazeres said it “is there to represent
Resident physicians rally outside the University of Chicago Medical Center on September 25, 2025. courtesy of cir /seiu.
a coalition of different financial supports that we really felt [UCMed] needed [to offer] in order to remain attractive to future residents who want to come here,” he said. “[We] also [want] to make sure that [in] the couple hours that we are outside of the hospital, we’re not struggling for food or struggling with feeding our families.”
Residents work 80-hour weeks, sometimes with 24- to 28-hour shifts, amid ris-
ing affordability concerns in Hyde Park and Woodlawn. The starting salary for the first-year residents in the 2025–26 year was $75,205.
Through July 2029, “the nearly fiveyear agreement will continue [UCMed’s] support for physician trainees as we fulfill our educational and patient care missions,” UCMed wrote in a statement to the Maroon.
“In response, Epstein wrote, ‘nice to see you, please come more often,’ to which Pritzker replied, ‘Always fun.’”
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Epstein, Maxwell, and Pritzker at nearby Sandringham House for what he described as “just… a straightforward shooting weekend.”
Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers, alleged in a 2016 deposition that she “believe[d] [she] was with Tom once” when asked how many times she and Pritzker had had sex. Giuffre has also accused Mountbatten-Windsor of having sex with her multiple times while she was a teenager, which he denies.
A spokesperson for Pritzker told Reuters in January that he “continues to vehemently deny” Giuffre’s allegations. No criminal charges have been brought against Pritzker in connection with his relationship to Epstein.
The Pritzker Organization did not respond to the Maroon’s requests for comment.
The Maroon compiled every document released last week that references Pritzker in connection with Epstein using the Oversight Committee database, along with searchable databases of the files produced by independent news outlets Zeteo and Courier. Original spelling, capitalization, and punctuation have been retained unless otherwise noted.
A link to the documents can be found in the online version of this article at chicagomaroon.com.
In addition to correspondence, the new House Committee documents include thousands of pages of books, articles, and other media that were part of Epstein’s estate. The Maroon’s review did not include references to Pritzker in those documents, references to other members of the Pritzker family, or references to the Pritzker family’s organizations.
Timeline of Pritzker and Epstein’s Correspondence
2010: On June 14, Epstein sent Pritzker an email with the subject line “Fwd: Fw: [Perl-Cousins] Fw: Nobody knows nobody in Chicago” and seven image attachments. The original email Epstein forwarded to Pritzker includes a discussion of the relationship between then President Barack Obama and former Illinois Governor Rod
Blagojevich, who served eight years in prison on corruption charges for soliciting bribes in exchange for Obama’s former Senate seat.
2012: Epstein’s executive assistant, Lesley Groff, sent him an email with the subject line “2 Seminars-MONEY & POWER possible Invite List,” containing a list of businessmen and politicians including Pritzker, Marc Andreesen, Jeff Bezos, Sergey Brin, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, and Peter Thiel. It is unclear what the seminars were or if they took place.
2013: Pritzker forwarded Epstein an email about an article in the Washington Post reporting on an incident involving his cousin Penny Pritzker, Obama’s second secretary of commerce, who had understated her income by $80 million in tax filings before she was nominated for the post. According to the Wall Street Journal, at least some of the unreported income was the result of her work dividing up Pritzker family assets—work in which Thomas Pritzker was also involved.
“I clearly did something wrong in my last life to have to deal w this bullshit. AND I warned her,” Pritzker wrote. In response, Epstein wrote, “nice to see you, please come more often,” to which Pritzker replied, “Always fun.”
2016: On August 8, Epstein wrote to Pritzker, “glenn?” “Glenn” may refer to long-time Epstein associate and hedge fund manager Glenn Dubin.
Pritzker responded, “I’m working on a date,” followed by discussion of a presentation he gave to “grand pooh baahs of Aspen Strategy Group,” a foreign policy think tank. In a follow-up email, Pritzker listed the notable attendees of the presentation—mostly Obama administration officials—and told Epstein that he was “Looking for a time to come catch up in NY.” Epstein invited Pritzker to visit him in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
In a November 11 email exchange with former Harvard President and Secretary of the Treasury Lawrence Summers, Epstein wrote, “ehud in on sun pritzker mon. you around? dinner woody sunday. or have you gone dark.” Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and actor Woody Allen were both associates of Epstein.
On November 28, Epstein wrote to
Pritzker, “im in wed, fri. edelman?” which he followed up with “barrack and the boys in pb, wild wild.” Edelman may refer to biologist Gerald Edelman, who contributed a message to Epstein’s 2003 “birthday book,” released by the House Oversight Committee in September. Barrack likely refers to Thomas Barrack, Jr., a real estate investor who at the time was serving as President Donald Trump’s inauguration committee chairman. Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s residence in Florida, is in Palm Beach.
Pritzker responded to Epstein by describing an article he read about the relationship between Comey and the Clintons, and why “Comey screwed [Hillary] Clinton.”
“comey knows that denise neeed to pledge 500k to foundation,” Epstein’s response to Pritzker reads, referring to then Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey. He clarified in response to a question from Pritzker that the pledge was cash rather than “in-kind services.”
Denise refers to Denise Rich, the ex-wife of financier Marc Rich. Marc Rich was indicted in 1983 on charges of fraud, racketeering, and illegal trade with Iran. In 2001, Denise Rich gave $450,000 to the Bill Clinton Presidential Library immediately prior to Clinton’s pardon of her ex-husband in the last days of his presidency. Comey, who was a prosecutor at the time, was responsible for the initial charges against Marc Rich.
On December 15, Pritzker wrote approvingly to Epstein about Trump’s decision to appoint Rex Tillerson as secretary of state. “Tilerson is a good move for Trump. Have gotten to know him at CSIS [Center for Strategic and International Studies], he’s the real deal,” he wrote. Epstein replied asking about “karyyna plans,” followed by a remark about how “MBS,” presumably Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman, “sent me a TENT carpets and all.”
“Will call Japan tonite,” Pritzker re-
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“In March, Epstein referred to Pritzker as ‘like family’ and ‘probably worth a meeting for you’ in text messages sent to an unknown person.”
sponded. “A tent? Hmmm... I think that is code for ‘I love you’. Or, maybe code for ‘go pound sand’. Better check your KSA urban dictionary.”
“[K]aryyna plans” may refer to Epstein’s girlfriend Karyna Shuliak, with whom he was in a relationship from 2010 until his death. KSA presumably refers to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
On December 18, Epstein sent Pritzker a link to a Variety article about a Saturday Night Live sketch satirizing Trump’s relationship with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
2017: In a January 9 email with the subject line “see you at 9 am tomorw,” Epstein sent Pritzker the link to a Los Angeles Times profile of Barrack.
In March, Epstein referred to Pritzker as “like family” and “probably worth a meeting for you” in text messages sent to an unknown person. The document does not include a name, email address, or phone number for the recipient, and only a handful of their messages are included.
Epstein offered to connect the person with Pritzker, later writing, “tom has sent you an email.”
2018: In a January 8, 2018 email to himself, with the subject line “Fwd: radical
breakthrough,” Epstein listed names including Pritzker, Allen, and “donalad trup.”
The email was forwarding an email he had previously sent to himself including a numbered list of musings like “skin as part of brain? Memebrane?” among other phrases.
In a July text conversation with another unknown person, Epstein wrote, “tom pritzker with me [in New York] tues at 3.”
The rest of the exchange is unrelated to Pritzker.
On November 28, the Miami Herald published an extensive investigation into Epstein, the plea deal he received prior to his first conviction, and his network of friends and associates. Pritzker was not named in any of the Herald’s reporting at the time.
Less than a week later, on December 4, Epstein wrote in a text to an unknown person that he planned to have lunch with Pritzker the following Monday. The rest of the exchange is unrelated to Pritzker.
2019: On February 9, Epstein emailed Pritzker, “News?” Pritzker responded, saying, “You are news! I am quiet.”
In a later response, Epstein wrote, “sasse was told im a witness against trump. ? others were told I m a witness against clinton. . so my credibilitiy needs destroying, . unlikely . :)”
Sasse likely refers to former Senator Ben
Sasse (R-Fla.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee investigating the handling of Epstein’s case at the time.
In March text messages to an unknown person, Epstein references Pritzker as the owner—through Hyatt Hotels Corporation—of Andaz Tokyo, a luxury hotel.
In a June 30 email to himself, with the
subject line “list for bannon steve,” Epstein listed Pritzker’s surname, along with “barrack,” “summers,” “woody” and “prince andrews.” The purpose of the list is unclear. On July 6, Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking of minors charges. One month later, he was found dead in his jail cell of an apparent suicide.
Unions Criticize University’s Response to ICE
By ISAIAH GLICK | Senior News Reporter
Representatives from five UChicago faculty, staff, and student unions held a press conference on Friday morning outside Levi Hall to criticize the University’s response to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) presence on the South Side. They called for an end to what they called the University’s “inaction” and for more protection for the University community should ICE agents attempt to enter a building on campus.
The University has said it will cooperate with federal enforcement as required by law and directed students to online resources, but union members called for a more direct approach.
fessors (AAUP) at the University of Chicago, Graduate Students United–United Electrical 1103 (GSU-UE), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) at the Lab School, Faculty Forward, and National Nurses United (NNU).
Federal agents briefly detained a UChicago international student last month, marking the first documented instance of a University-affiliated person being detained by immigration authorities on or around campus. Agents have also detained at least four other people in the Hyde Park, Kenwood, and Woodlawn areas.
assistant instructional professor of history and a member of both Faculty Forward and AAUP. “They’re happening in our neighborhoods. They’re happening right here.”
The event featured speakers from American Association of University Pro-
“Violent kidnappings and assaults by federal agents are not happening in some distant Chicago, beyond ‘the life of the mind,’” said Diana Schwartz Francisco, an
Schwartz Francisco called on the University to publicly reiterate that guns are not allowed in University buildings and that ICE agents cannot enter buildings without a judicial warrant. She also asked for “recognition that it is the University’s responsibility to both protect its most vulnerable members and recognize that the federal occupation is a threat to us all, regardless of our immigration or legal status.”
International students in GSU-UE have also expressed concerns that the Uni-
University Trustee Thomas Pritzker (center) with former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (left) and University President Robert Zimmer (right) in 2019. courtesy of university of chicago
Members of several unions gather outside Levi Hall. gabriel kraemer
“We have stopped blowing whistles at recess to call kids in from monkey bars, swing sets, and four square games because they are afraid.”
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versity is not keeping them safe, according to Ksenia Podvoiskaia, a GSU-UE spokesperson and an international graduate student from Canada. In a meeting with GSU-UE last week, the University administration “expressed their shared concern at the violence displayed by federal immigration authorities and their earnest desire to help,” she said. “However, when it came to committing to any meaningful action, they returned to the tiring refrain we have heard from them time and again.”
During the meeting, GSU-UE had requested that the University put up signs on building doors stating that ICE would not be allowed on campus without a judicial warrant, Podvoiskaia explained.
According to the UChicago Department of Safety and Security’s website, “Outside law enforcement personnel generally are permitted to access otherwise open, publicly accessible areas of the University. Without a search warrant, they do not have a right to access non-public spaces.”
NNU will negotiate issues surrounding federal agent presence as a “workplace violence issue,” registered nurse Amber Turi said. Although Turi explained that the University administration had directed UCMed staff to contact Public Safety and Legal Affairs if ICE visits a UChicago facility, “we know this is not enough,” she said.
“When ICE attacks immigrants and other activists, they take the people they
injure to our hospitals. These federal agents bring fear and panic to these places that must remain safe spaces for healing. People are forgoing basic healthcare because they are terrified of ICE,” Turi said.
Concerns about ICE presence on the South Side have also led to changes in the UChicago Lab School’s operations, according to Lab School teacher Quinn Menchetti, who spoke on behalf of AFT. “We have stopped blowing whistles at recess to call kids in from monkey bars, swing sets, and four square games because they are afraid.” He later clarified that students associate whistles with warnings of federal agent activity.
Jeffrey Howard, executive vice president of Service Employee International
Union Local 73, considered UChicago’s larger role in American higher education: “To just idly stand on the sideline and say, ‘We’re doing what’s legally required’—it’s not enough.… It’s sad that one of the leading institutions in the United States chooses to sit on their hands instead of taking the fight to this president and this fascist regime.”
He called on the University to act on behalf of its students: “University of Chicago, do what you’re charged to do: educate the leaders of the future. And you can’t do that sitting on your hands, allowing the things that are happening on this campus to happen.”
Gabriel Kraemer contributed reporting.
South Side Food Pantries Face Demand Surge Amid Changes and Disruptions to SNAP Funding
By STUTI SHELAT | News Reporter
Illinois residents who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits continue to face uncertainty about the future of the program, even after the 43-day federal government shutdown ended last week.
In late October, during the fourth week of the government shutdown, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it would be completely unable to fund SNAP for the month of November. After federal courts intervened, the Trump administration authorized states to issue half the usual benefits using money from a USDA contingency fund.
Since then, food pantries on the South Side have faced increased traffic to their distribution sites. The Hyde Park–Kenwood Food Pantry, a member agency of the Greater Chicago Food Depository, saw a 30 percent increase in the number of households served each Saturday over the last month, according to Margaret Mitchell, the director of the Hyde Park–Kenwood Food Pantry and the Shailer Mathews Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago Divinity School.
Food pantries affiliated with the Hyde Park & Kenwood Interfaith Council (HPKIC) have “seen a surge in visitors since the SNAP suspension began,” HPKIC caseworker Devonte Appleton, told the
Maroon. HPKIC’s partners have reported “longer lines and faster depletion of supplies, particularly in South Side neighborhoods where SNAP reliance is high,” he added.
The Hyde Park–Kenwood Food Pantry also sought to procure more food supply and recruit more volunteers in response to increasing demand during the shutdown, Mitchell said. The pantry has “gone from 26–28 volunteers to nearly 40… on Saturdays to assist with food distribution,” she said. “Serving 150 households in three hours means moving very fast.”
SNAP recipients had already been facing disruptions before the shutdown. In July, Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), which included provisions that restructured SNAP’s funding mechanisms and tightened eligibility and work requirements for recipients.
Specifically, OBBBA introduced a new state matching requirement for benefits, which have historically been funded entirely by the federal government, forcing states to spend significantly more of their own funds on SNAP. The Congressional Budget Office has warned that many states
will be unable to do so, and 23 governors, including Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker, signed a letter to Congressional leadership in June stating that they may be forced to end their SNAP programs.
Mitchell explained that the food pantry had been preparing for a long-term increase in demand for several months due to the new work requirements for SNAP recipients and changes to Medicaid codified in the OBBBA.
“We are trying very much to maintain our regular food distribution and a sense of calm assurance on Saturdays even with larger crowds, [so] that everyone who comes will receive food,” she continued.
According to Appleton, food insecurity is expected to worsen in South Side neighborhoods even after the end of the federal government shutdown. “HPKIC anticipates increased reliance on charitable food programs and fears that already strained resources may be insufficient to meet sustained demand,” he said.
Both Mitchell and Appleton highlighted the impact of the SNAP suspension on newly affected individuals and families,
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“...
SNAP provides
the equivalent of about nine meals for every meal provided by the Feeding America network of food banks.”
CONTINUED FROM PG. 5
noting that no new SNAP enrollees were approved this month. “Those who are newly unemployed, out on disability, or otherwise needing food assistance immediately this month must rely on food pantries,” Mitchell said.
According to Appleton, a lack of “outreach to newly affected families who may not have used food pantries before” has been a “gap” in Illinois’s response thus far. Mitchell emphasized that while SNAP
itself is a supplementary program, food pantries like the Hyde Park–Kenwood Food Pantry “are meant to be supplementary to the supplementary assistance.” According to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, SNAP provides the equivalent of about nine meals for every meal provided by the Feeding America network of food banks. Food pantries alone “are in no way able to fill the gap of those nine meals,” she added.
HPKIC is advocating for expanded nu-
tritional support to offset federal cutbacks from the OBBBA, Appleton explained. He emphasized the need for “targeted state support for hyperlocal food programs, including logistical aid and grant access for small nonprofits.”
The uncertainty surrounding SNAP funding during the shutdown was itself harmful to families in need, Mitchell argued. “The dangling uncertainty about whether or not the federal government will ensure SNAP funding is not only about
the loss of food, but it is also causing acute suffering and fear for our neighbors.… The human cost is great,” Mitchell said.
Although there has been some state and local action to mitigate the effects—such as an executive order by Pritzker allocating $20 million to food banks across Illinois— Mitchell said it “is not, and cannot be, a long-term solution.… The federal government needs to make good on its commitment to the SNAP program on behalf of our citizens and neighbors.”
As Obama Center Nears Completion, Local Residents, City Council Seek to Address Gentrification Concerns
By JULIAN MORENO | Senior News Reporter
As the Obama Presidential Center nears completion, nearby tenants and community advocates have raised fears it will further increase local housing costs.
With the estimated 625,000 to 760,000 annual visitors to the Obama Presidential Center in mind, the Chicago City Council approved the construction of a new hotel near Jackson Park. Aquinnah Investment Trust, led by a real estate developer with connections to former President Barack Obama, plans to construct a $100 million, 26-story hotel at 6402–6420 South Stony Island Avenue.
According to data released by the DePaul Institute for Housing Studies in 2024, approximately 75 percent of Woodlawn households are renter-occupied, compared to a citywide average of 55 percent. In addition, 53 percent of Woodlawn households are cost-burdened, meaning that they spend more than 30 percent of their income on mortgage, rent, or other housing needs. This exceeds the citywide average of 39 percent.
After years of lobbying from local groups, the Chicago City Council passed the Jackson Park Housing Pilot Ordinance, seeking to alleviate displacement concerns in communities surrounding the Obama Center. The ordinance, passed by a roll call vote on September 25, will reserve 25
public lots for affordable housing, provide up to $3 million worth of property tax relief, and give some tenants the opportunity to purchase their units.
An initial draft of the ordinance was introduced in October 2023 and would have included the implementation of Chicago-wide tenant protections, fee caps, and deep affordability requirements. However, opposition from neighborhood groups and alderpeople, including Seventh Ward Alderman Gregory Mitchell, restricted the scope of the legislation. The final ordinance covers the area from 60th Street to 71st Street and King Drive to DuSable Lake Shore Drive.
Fifth Ward Alderman Desmond Yancy, who introduced the ordinance to the committee, told the Chicago Tribune, “What we were able to win is still significant for the folks who are going to qualify, whether it’s the property tax relief or building, hopefully, five new buildings with varied affordability.” He continued, “Ultimately, it’s a floor and not a ceiling; there’s more work to do.”
Future developments on the 25 cityowned lots subject to the ordinance will be required to allocate at least 75 percent of units at affordable rates to residents with incomes under 60 percent of the area median. Preference will be given to tenants who have been displaced from the area
since 2015.
In a press release, Mayor Brandon Johnson, who supported the ordinance, said, “This ordinance is a meaningful step in our mission to grow our city’s housing supply while increasing affordability in our neighborhoods. Importantly, this ordinance was designed in partnership with the community to ensure their ground-level needs are addressed by this legislation.”
Realtors have criticized the ordinance’s provision on the right of first refusal, which grants tenant associations the right to be notified of property sales and the opportunity to purchase the property under the same terms as the buyer.
In a statement to the Maroon, the Chicago Association of Realtors (CAR) said the provision “creates unnecessary barriers or complications for sellers, buyers, and tenants.”
“We are pleased that the Alderperson in Jackson Park co-sponsored a resolution drafted by [CAR] calling for subject matter hearings on all first right of refusal pilot programs (Woodlawn, 606, Jackson Park) to assess their impacts,” the statement continued. “We expect the first hearing to take place in the next few months, where we will be leading the effort to line up impacted parties to share their experiences.”
Mike McElroy, a CAR board member, told the Maroon he supports the goals of preventing displacement but criticizes the
ordinance for increasing “red tape,” which could slow down housing development and hurt local landlords. He said the ordinance, particularly the right of first refusal provision, “adds very long waiting periods that are going to decrease investments into the neighborhoods they’re meant to help. It’s also going to box out smaller local landlords who may only buy one or a few properties in their lifetime.”
“We need to be doing everything that we can to create more housing supply,” McElroy added. “It’s crucial that the city does things that empower the market to create that housing supply as quickly as we can.”
The Obama Center under construction. damian almeida baray
Quantum Research Park on South Side Promises Jobs and Innovation but Sparks Community Concern
By EZRA ELLENBOGEN | News Reporter and ANTONIA ROMM | News Reporter
As construction on the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park (IQMP) picks up speed, Mayor Brandon Johnson has called it an “economic engine” for the South Side. However, many community members have expressed concerns over possible environmental and social risks.
Developers broke ground on the first phase of the IQMP on September 30, 2025 at the former U.S. Steel South Works site on 8080 South DuSable Lake Shore Drive. Construction on this phase is set to be completed in 2027. The project is part of a broader effort to make Chicago a hub for quantum technology and has attracted university partners, corporate sponsors, and the U.S. Department of Defense.
Advocates for the facility include Johnson, Governor J. B. Pritzker, and Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth. Johnson has said that the project could create up to 175,000 jobs and bring $20 billion to the area over the next 10 years. Related Midwest, the Park’s co developer, has projected that it will create 20,000 construction jobs over the next six years.
PsiQuantum, the facility’s primary tenant, says it aims to build “the world’s first commercially useful quantum computers—fault tolerant and on the order of one million qubits.” In contrast to traditional computers, which use bits to represent information through either a one or a zero, quantum computers use qubits, which can exist in multiple states at once, allowing for faster calculations of complex problems. The technology, according to Duckworth, could advance medicine, climate solutions, and other fields, drawing global attention and investment to Chicago.
Although many are excited about the IQMP’s potential, several community organizations such as SouthSide Together and Environment, Transportation, Health and Open Space (ETHOS) have raised concerns about the possible environmental and social impacts of the facility’s construction.
Past efforts to redevelop the South Works site have faltered since the South Works steel mill’s closing in 1992, partially because of environmental concerns. Since closing, South Works went through a reme-
diation process to break down the harmful chemicals stored in the soil. In 2018, developer Emerald Living cited the soil’s heavy metal quantities as potentially hazardous and carcinogenic, according to Anne Holcomb, a longtime community activist involved in site discussions for over a decade.
“[Emerald Living] did soil testing. And they found out that the ground is toxic,” Holcomb said. “It was not safe to build their homes there and they could not afford remediation. Nobody came along with funds from any governmental level to do the remediation.”
Holcomb said those harmful chemicals remain and that IQMP representatives have been slow to answer questions from her and other residents.
Some South Side residents fear that the facility could further what they describe as ongoing gentrification of the South Side. According to the Hyde Park Herald, PsiQuantum’s tech jobs will largely require advanced degrees, while about 70 percent of residents in the area do not hold college degrees. Activists warn that an influx of higher-income workers could increase property and rent taxes, pushing out current residents.
South Shore resident Dawn Johnson
told the Chicago Sun-Times that she was concerned that the IQMP’s impact could mirror gentrification concerns linked to the Obama Presidential Center, which she says fueled real estate speculation.
Johnson added that the two developments together could cause mass displacement across some of Chicago’s predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods. Former President Barack Obama has pushed back on that claim, saying that “significant gentrification” due to the construction of the Obama Center would take generations to be visible.
Since 2013, the Coalition for a South Works CBA has been pushing for a community benefits agreement tied to proposed new developments on the site to offset potential negative effects of new developments. Currently, the Coalition is aiming to form a legally binding contract with Related Midwest, PsiQuantum, and other developers to commit to investments in the local community and to introduce protections against displacement and environmental impacts.
PsiQuantum and the Obama Foundation did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Student Startup Coclo Creates a New Way to Thrift
By BORIS ARCHIPOV | News Reporter
UChicago students Mai Vu, Laurel Alpaugh, and Samara Blatt saw last year that students didn’t have good local options for exchanging secondhand clothes on campus.
“Besides ReSOURCE, the best option for thrifting is in Wicker Park, which is really far,” Blatt said.
To fill the gap, the three students started Coclo, a student-run clothes reselling app that debuted last spring, designed to let students sell used and homemade fashion items to other students.
Chief Executive Officer Vu (A.B. ’25), Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer Alpaugh (A.B. ’24, A.M. ’25), and current third-year Chief Marketing Officer Blatt began working on the app in 2024 and officially released it in spring 2025. Coclo
reached an all-time high of 1,335 users this quarter and, as of November 10, has processed approximately 400 transactions since its release, according to its student leaders.
According to Blatt, Coclo is designed for the “stereotypical ramen-eating, low-budget college student” who wants a cheap, easy, and sustainable way to buy and sell secondhand clothes on campus.
Blatt said that students wanted a way to exchange clothes exclusively with others on campus to avoid the hassles and costs of shipping. She also pointed out that graduating students often wanted to get rid of clothes in their current wardrobe as they moved away and into more professional environments. “We interviewed nearly 100
UChicago students before even writing any code to figure out their frustrations with existing solutions,” Vu said.
Alpaugh used her experience with other online reselling platforms to create an alternative to options like Facebook Marketplace and Depop designed specifically for the needs of UChicago students. “I bring to Coclo my years of selling secondhand online and in the Boston area,” Alpaugh said. “This pairs beautifully with Mai’s technical background and Samara’s marketing genius.”
“We’re providing a service that is intended for clothing that should be used again and again and again and again,” Blatt said. Because all exchanges on Coclo occur in person, students don’t have to deal with the costs, wait times, and environmental concerns of shipping. “Shipping is one of
the biggest CO2 producers and to take that away is a huge benefit, and I think [Coclo] really would appeal to people who value that sustainability aspect,” Blatt said. “[There’s] also the convenience factor—‘I need something last-minute, and I need it now.’”
Since its launch, Blatt said that Coclo has organized in-person events in collaboration with MODA and the Phoenix Sustainability Initiative to grow its user base and further connect to the UChicago community. “When I go to reach out to a specific organization about doing something, my initial thought is, ‘Is there an area or a community on campus that we have not intentionally served yet’?” she said.
First-year Hunter Green is a Coclo user who discovered the app through a clothing swap Coclo co hosted with MODA. “I found
Photo Essay: UChicago Sees First Snow of the 2025–26 Academic Year
By DAMIAN ALMEIDA BARAY | Staff Photographer and KENNETH YANG | Staff Photographer
Hyde Park received its first snowfall of the winter on November 10, when the city was blanketed by several inches of lake effect snow. Maroon photog -
raphers Damian Almeida Baray and Kenneth Yang braved the cold weather to document snowy scenes across campus.
A squirrel digs through the snow in search of food. damian almeida baray
Two campus security guards, one with a drink in hand, stand together during the snowfall. damian almeida baray.
Community members walk through Hull Gate toward the main quad. damian almeida baray
Students walk beside a tree still full of leaves. kenneth yang
Saieh Hall’s tower is visible behind a tree that is decorated with lights for the holidays. kenneth yang
Snow covers a clearing on the Midway near 60th Street and South Ellis Avenue. kenneth yang .
The glass dome of Mansueto Library ringed with snow. kenneth yang
Students work to build a snowman near the frozen Botany Pond. damian almeida baray
A snowman with a broom leans to the side in a front yard near campus. kenneth yang .
“A huge part of our user base... are people that really value sustainability, and that’s why they thrift and why local exchange is important to them.”
CONTINUED FROM PG. 7
a bunch of neat thrifts—I just wish they hosted more,” he said.
Coclo also won the UChicago Tech Showcase earlier this year. Since then, the app has received support from both LTF Ventures and the Polsky Founder’s Fund Fellowship for further development.
Although most of the app’s funding comes through scholarship and grant programs, Coclo also takes a small percentage from the seller’s end of transactions, Blatt said. “All of the money, if we have any, is go-
ing back into the app,” she said.
Coclo is also constantly responding to user feedback with frequent new updates, according to Vu. Recently, they implemented an AI listing feature that writes a description of students’ items based on a photo of the item and sorts items into categories.
Blatt added that the AI feature was intentionally designed to be optional for customers who are concerned about the environmental impact of AI data centers, and the app also now shows how much CO2 customers save by buying secondhand. “A
huge part of our user base—and I’d even go as far to say the majority—are people that really value sustainability, and that’s why they thrift and why local exchange is important to them,” Blatt said.
These features intend to make it easier for non-thrifters to use the app. “Our marketing is not only, ‘Hey thrifters, come thrift on our app,’” Blatt said. “It’s also, ‘Hey, people that don’t thrift, this is a really easy way to get into this, and the clothes are really cheap, and it’s really easy to upload your clothes, and you can get money.’”
“The process of selling your clothes [on Coclo] is actually very fun,” third-year Coclo seller Marina Mendoza said. “They have an AI listing feature that makes it super easy to list your stuff, and it’s fun to go on the app and see what everybody else is selling.”
“I personally have been blown away by the response from the UChicago community, and it makes me emotional considering the fast reception of the app and seeing the secondhand community come together on the platform,” Alpaugh said.
What Information Does the University of Chicago Police Department Make Public?
As a private police force, UCPD is not subject to Illinois open-records laws or extensive City oversight, unlike police at other peer institutions.
By KALYNA VICKERS | Deputy News Editor and GRACE BEATTY | Senior News Reporter
The University of Chicago Police Department (UCPD) is among the largest private university police forces in the country. Its officers have the same authority to arrest, issue citations, and carry firearms as municipal police.
Created in the early 1960s amid fears of rising crime around campus, it now patrols 6.5 square miles across Hyde Park, Kenwood, and Woodlawn—an area nearly 20 times larger than the University’s campus itself. This area is shared with the Chicago Police Department’s (CPD) 2nd District, with UCPD serving as a primary responder for calls within its jurisdiction.
The department employs about 100
full-time officers certified under the same Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board requirements as municipal police.
How does UCPD’s patrol area compare to other private campus police jurisdictions?
Nearly 1,300 institutions of higher education in the U.S., both public and private, have campus police forces.
Private peer institutions Yale University, Duke University, Wake Forest University, Tulane University, and Rice University each operate a private campus police force with state-delegated arrest authority, bal-
ancing public policing powers and private governance. Each university police force operates under its state laws, and all were created between the 1940s and 1970s—a period when many private universities sought formal policing powers in response to urban unrest and campus safety concerns.
UCPD’s patrol area, which includes tens of thousands of non-University residents and recently expanded to include UChicago’s charter schools, is one of the largest patrol zones among university forces in the nation—larger than Duke’s or Rice’s and comparable to Yale’s New Haven jurisdiction, which spans roughly four square miles.
What information is UCPD obligated by law to release?
Unlike the public Chicago Police De-
partment, UCPD is not required to follow Illinois’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which grants individuals access to public records.
Instead, the University selectively publishes data about its activity, including daily crime and fire incidents, traffic stop data, field interview cards, quarterly crime trends, annual complaint summaries, timely warnings, and crime bulletins. Arrest records are “available upon request” from the department. There is no direct equivalent of a FOIA portal through which individuals may obtain public records via written request.
The University does not disclose information related to the budget allotted to UCPD activities and does not publish on-
“Until then, UCPD remains a police department with public authority but private accountability...”
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line use of force data, body camera footage, or internal investigation outcomes, which has led to criticism from some Hyde Park and Woodlawn residents who live within UCPD’s jurisdiction.
Illinois law does not clearly define transparency obligations for private universities, creating a gray area that places UCPD largely outside of statutory oversight.
UCPD’s patrol area stretches from 37th Street to 65th Street. courtesy of university of chicago safety & security.
Why isn’t UCPD subject to Illinois’s FOIA?
UCPD derives its authority from the Illinois Private College Campus Police Act, which grants private universities police powers without explicitly defining transparency obligations.
Illinois is an outlier in this respect. Yale, Tulane, and Rice are all subject to FOIA laws in their respective states. In 2008, a FOIA commission explicitly ruled Yale’s police a public agency for records purposes, and North Carolina’s General Assembly later codified the same principle through General Statute 74G-5.1 in 2013. The Texas Legislature likewise confirmed Rice’s duty to disclose police records. In Louisiana, Tulane remains in a legal gray zone; its police log is accessible only on site as required by
the federal Clery Act, but it limits access to a physical kiosk.
In 2015, amid debate over a proposed bill that would have subjected UCPD to FOIA standards, UCPD began to include traffic stops and field contacts in the information it makes publicly available.
At the time, the University said its disclosures “go beyond the requirements of Illinois law for police departments at private institutions.”
How does UCPD differ from CPD in officer training and the ability to make arrests and exercise force?
UCPD officers, unlike UChicago’s safety ambassadors, are required to receive the same basic training that state and municipal police officers receive. As a result, officers are able to carry out many of the same responsibilities. They can arrest, cite, detain, and release individuals; enforce traffic laws; and refer criminal cases to the Cook County State’s Attorney. Officers are authorized to carry patrol rifles, which is consistent with many police departments around the country.
“They can write you a ticket. They can arrest you,” Cora Beem, training officer for the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, said in an interview with WBEZ Chicago in 2014. “They can counsel and release you, so yes, they’re real cops.”
UCPD cannot, however, conduct citywide investigations outside of their jurisdiction or independently file felony charges.
How transparent is UCPD about its spending?
The UChicago Department of Safety & Security’s annual reports, which UChicago has published online since around 2012, describe unit highlights, technology upgrades, and reference national benchmarking surveys such as the Security Benchmark Report. However, these reports aggregate spending for the entire Department of Safety & Security and do not list UCPD-specific expenditures or staffing costs. Older reports, like the 2016 annual report, mention efforts to “streamlin[e] services and contain... costs” but do not provide a dollar figure for the police department itself.
Practices at peer institutions vary wide-
ly. Duke and Yale include partial budget details in institutional financial disclosures, while Rice, due to Texas’s open records law, provides access to departmental contracts and salary ranges. Tulane and Wake Forest disclose only Clery Act safety statistics, which track campus crime by category but omit financial or personnel details.
Is UCPD conduct subject to external review by the City or state?
An Independent Review Committee (IRC) oversees complaints made against UCPD officers. The IRC was founded in 2005 and includes faculty, community members, and students appointed by the provost. It reviews misconduct complaints and issues annual summaries but not case-level findings. UCPD is treated by the City as a non-governmental police agency governed by the Illinois Private College Campus Police Act, meaning it falls outside the jurisdiction of Chicago’s civilian oversight bodies, which are limited to City departments and CPD officers.
Unlike municipal departments, whose policies are subject to oversight by elected officials and bodies like the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, UCPD accountability rests solely with University administrators. This structure, transparency advocates argue, leaves unaffiliated residents without formal avenues to review or contest police actions on public streets.
Examples of contested UCPD encounters include traffic stops and arrests of local residents, later publicized by community groups such as #CareNotCops.
Why has UCPD’s authority been controversial?
UCPD’s semipublic jurisdiction has been contested since its inception. When the University first established the department, City officials granted it arrest powers under an arrangement that allowed the University to supplement CPD patrols in surrounding neighborhoods. The Illinois Private College Campus Police Act later codified those powers, giving UCPD legal parity with municipal officers but without attaching any new transparency obligations.
Over time, especially in the 1970s and
1980s, UCPD’s patrol boundaries expanded amid the University’s investment in surrounding property and concerns about neighborhood safety. Its northern reach now extends near the University’s charter school campus at 37th Street. By the early 2000s, the University described UCPD’s role in terms of a “partnership” with CPD and neighborhood safety, but organizers have pushed back, arguing that the model gives the University policing power over non-students without real community control.
Yale and Duke have faced similar tension with neighboring communities, though open records access in those states has allowed for greater public scrutiny of incidents and spending. In contrast to Rice’s open records portal, Tulane’s on-campus access rule limits external review.
Calls to make UCPD subject to FOIA intensified after the 2018 police shooting of UChicago student Charles Thomas, during which the University later described Thomas as having a mental health crisis. Similar campus police controversies have surfaced elsewhere: Yale police shot at a Black couple off-campus in 2019.
Duke and Wake Forest now release annual summaries of use-of-force incidents. In Illinois, these efforts have stalled and state law remains unchanged.
Could legislative reform lead to increased transparency from UCPD?
Illinois lawmakers, including former State Representative Barbara Flynn Currie (25th District) and Senator Robert Peters (13th District), have proposed multiple bills since 2014 to make private police subject to FOIA. The most recent, Senate Bill 1275, would have required private universities’ police records to be treated as public. The bill stalled in committee.
If adopted, such legislation would align Illinois with Connecticut, North Carolina, and Texas, where private campus police already operate under open records laws. Until then, UCPD remains a police department with public authority but private accountability—one that can patrol streets, detain residents, and file reports with CPD while disclosing only what the University elects to share.
VIEWPOINTS
Institute of Propaganda?
New IOP Director Facilitated Genocide
John Kirby will one day be prosecuted for abetting war crimes. For now, he’s the new director of UChicago’s Institute of Politics.
By STUDENTS FOR JUSTICE IN PALESTINE
“We have seen no indication that [the Israelis] are violating the law of war,” proclaimed John Kirby, the recently appointed director of the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics (IOP), in January 2024, three months into Israel’s genocide in Gaza. As the communications advisor for Biden’s National Security Council from 2022 to 2025, Kirby’s denials of Israeli wrongdoing were commonplace. Two months earlier, when confronted with criticisms of Biden’s insensitivity to the growing civilian death toll in besieged, starved, and occupied Gaza, Kirby had replied, “That’s what war is”—a stark contrast to the tears he shed for Israelis in 2023 and Ukrainians in 2022. Over the course of 2024, as deaths in Gaza continued to multiply, Kirby repeatedly provided cover for the genocidal Zionist state, denying Israeli targeting of civilians—including humanitarian workers and journalists—and asserting, over and over and over again, that the government had not “found any incidents where the Israelis have violated international humanitarian law.”
While civilian deaths mounted and Israel targeted Gazan universities, hospitals, schools, and places of worship, Kirby insisted that judgments of legality and proportionality—precisely the kinds of judgments demanded by international and U.S. law—comprise “a sort of judgment that we’re
not making of [Israel].” But as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch released reports declaring Israel’s assault on Gaza a genocide, and as the International Court of Justice declared that these accusations of genocide were “plausible,” Kirby did offer such a judgment—albeit with a conclusion opposite to that of human rights groups and genocide experts worldwide. Not only did Kirby repeatedly deny that a genocide was taking place, he also repeatedly insisted that Israel had not violated the laws of war or international humanitarian law at all. In July 2024, Kirby took this even further: when the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor applied for an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes, Kirby declared that “we don’t find him to be a war criminal. He’s an ally and a partner and a friend.”
Kirby’s denial of Israeli culpability for genocide and war crimes is consistent with his reputation as “one of the loudest voices” in support of Israel in the Biden administration—a marked achievement within an administration now widely acknowledged to be a core enabler and facilitator of Israeli war crimes and genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. Indeed, as multiple former staffers have described in a joint statement, the Biden administration broke national records in its military support for Israel in the year after the start of
the genocide, silencing all internal dissent and “willfully violating multiple U.S. laws and attempting to deny or distort facts, use loopholes, or manipulate processes to ensure a continuous flow of lethal weapons to Israel” for use in its genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
As a result, NGOs and experts have argued that senior Biden administration officials are legally liable—under both the 1948 Genocide Convention and the 1988 U.S. Genocide Convention Implementation Act—for not only failing to prevent, but in fact aiding and abetting Israeli genocide through military, economic, and diplomatic means. There is nothing to suggest that Kirby could or should be exempt from such liability: in his capacity as National Security Council spokesman—one who made more public appearances than is typical for the role—Kirby repeatedly provided rhetorical cover for the Biden administration’s illegal support for Israeli genocide in Gaza. In fact, he did so loudly and passionately enough to be described as “making the case for Israel” in his briefings. Today, even as other former members of the administration have acknowledged—albeit far too belatedly— their complicity in the Biden administration’s genocidal lies, Kirby has remained noticeably silent.
In appointing Kirby as the new director of the IOP, the University of Chicago has evidently deemed his complicity in Israeli genocide and war crimes, including the destruction of every university
in Gaza, excusable, perhaps even laudable. In the University’s announcement of Kirby’s appointment, President Paul Alivisatos, Provost Katherine Baicker and IOP Board Chair David Axelrod touted his “deep experience,” “expertise,” and “longtime commitment to public service.” In doing so, they suggest that Kirby’s expertise and experience as a statesman is praiseworthy in itself, independently of the actions he committed and the policies he advanced as part of that experience. However, it is incumbent here to ask whether all forms of expertise are intrinsically and equally valuable. Is expertise in advancing war crimes truly the kind of expertise that the IOP, and the University of Chicago, want students to learn from and celebrate? After all, Joseph Goebbels, who served
as Nazi Germany’s minister of propaganda for 12 years, was also an expert in his field. In this vein, we might read the University’s emphasis on Kirby’s service to presidential administrations over the substance of that service as a modified invocation of the Nuremberg defense—one which came 80 years too late and has been roundly rejected as an ethical and legal defense by experts worldwide. Against such claims, the University of Chicago is likely to defend Kirby’s appointment to the IOP directorship in the name of the University’s vaunted commitment to free expression and institutional neutrality. Appointing or rejecting a director based on their political views or alignment with a particular policy, they might argue, would undermine the free
John Kirby speaks at a press briefing on the Afghanistan withdrawal at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., on Aug. 16, 2021, with captions added by Students for Justice in Palestine. courtesy of navy petty officer 1st class carlos m vazquez ii
“This is what Kirby’s appointment reveals... [W]hat we claim is business as usual or an act of free expression and neutrality, is far from it.”
CONTINUED FROM PG. 11
exchange of ideas on campus. However, as Alivisatos claimed in his April 2024 email, “Concerning the Encampment,” UChicago’s commitment to free expression does not extend to activities that undermine “the safety of others.” One might conclude from this that the University excludes expressive activities that directly provide cover for war crimes—like, say, acting as a spokesperson for an administration militarily, economically, and diplomatically facilitating genocide and scholasticide—from its repertoire of activities that are welcome on campus. And yet, the University of Chicago’s IOP is welcoming Kirby with open arms, ethically and legally liable for complicity in genocide as he may be.
As deplorable as this appointment may be, it is also unsurprising: just as Kirby claims not to make a judgment on Israel while continuing to aid and abet its genocide in Gaza, so too does the University of Chicago proclaim a neutrality belied by its longstanding practices in service of U.S. imperialism and violence worldwide. It has never been neutral for the University to profit from investments in death and destruction in Gaza and beyond; for its board of trustees to helm extractive and imperialist operations worldwide; for the University to build institutional partnerships like the Chicago Quantum Exchange (more appropriately named the Chicago Genocide Exchange) with major arms exporters and apartheid en-
ablers; for academic departments to appoint Israeli generals to lecture on so-called “counterterrorism”; for Alivisatos to proudly meet with the consul general to the Midwest of a country committing genocide as bombs continue to drop. It was never neutral for the University to maintain investments in apartheid South Africa and companies financing the genocide in Darfur, or to export neoliberal economics to Chile. Nor is it neutral today for the University to celebrate and appoint Kirby, a spokesperson for genocide and scholasticide, to the directorship of the IOP. Indeed, as countless campus advocates have argued, the University’s proclaimed commitment to institutional neutrality is nothing but a commitment
to business as usual, one that eschews democratic deliberation, accountability, and responsibility to anything beyond the status quo of U.S. power and the University’s bottom line.
But this is how things go, from the White House briefing room to Levi Hall, and this is how they have gone for two years and 77 more since the Nakba. At the University of Chicago, the appointment of genocide enablers and imperialist stooges is just institutional neutrality at work. This is what Kirby’s appointment reveals: that what we do here at the University of Chicago, what we claim is business as usual or an act of free expression and neutrality, is far from it. For the University of Chicago to appoint Kirby—a state-appointed
apologist for genocide and scholasticide, someone likely legally liable for his role in advancing and covering up war crimes—is not simply to fill a vacancy at the IOP. Instead, for the University of Chicago to appoint Kirby is to celebrate his contributions to extinguishing the possibility of free expression and education for the people of Gaza. And, as the Biden administration’s staggering body count testifies, for the University of Chicago to appoint Kirby is to celebrate extinguishing the very possibility of Palestinian life itself.
Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at UChicago is a student organization committed to the liberation of Palestine and justice for all oppressed peoples.
Slashing Beyond Prisons Is a Political Choice
The University’s budget cuts to the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture will end the educational initiative by the end of the quarter.
By TAJI CHESIMET, HARLEY POMPER , and NEOMI RAO
As students and members of Beyond Prisons, a teaching and learning initiative that addresses the injustices caused by mass incarceration, we were shocked to learn in October that the University’s budget cuts would lead to the ending of our program. The Office of the Provost announced a 20 percent cut to the already slashed budget of the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture, abruptly ending the Beyond Prisons Initiative by the end of the quarter. Beyond Prisons, formerly the Human Rights Lab, is led by Alice Kim, a recipient of the
2025 Diversity Leadership Award and 2025 Leader for a New Chicago Award. The program explores the social injustices of mass incarceration through courses taught in Illinois prisons that enroll both incarcerated and undergraduate students; a justice-centered internship program; public events; and partnerships that bring those inside and outside prison walls into shared dialogue, becoming a model for what a university-community partnership could look like.
These cuts are not merely budgetary decisions; they are political choices. They reflect a larger pattern of cooperation with the federal government’s backlash against inclusion. Institutions of higher
education are no longer pretending to care about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)—they are now incentivized to abandon those values. Programs like Beyond Prisons embodied DEI at its most tangible by expanding who has access to learning. What administrators frame as fiscal restraint functions instead as a quiet endorsement of growing political repression—a shift away from programs that build solidarity and toward ones that protect the institutional status quo and, above all, profits. Beyond Prisons facilitated a spring 2024 course, titled Research, Writing, and Mass Incarceration, at Stateville Correctional Center, which was closed down shortly thereafter. The course
Students in the spring 2024 mixed-enrollment class Research, Writing, and Mass Incarceration, held at Stateville Correctional Center. courtesy of noah crutchfield
brought together 10 College students and 10 incarcerated scholars for a quarter of learning, dialogue, and connection at Stateville—cre-
ating a completely unique and powerful experiential learning opportunity for everyone involved.
“Beyond Prisons created a world linking inside and outside students.
The University has abruptly severed access to this world...”
CONTINUED FROM PG. 12
One UChicago undergraduate said of the class, “This course is incomparable to other courses I have taken. I learned more this quarter from my classmates than ever before.” An incarcerated student at Stateville shared, “I’ve never experienced such a[n] emotional undertaking. I know that the future is in good hands. This course has challenged me like no other.”
The three of us, as either students or TAs in the class, shared invaluable experiences and built deep inside-outside relationships that spanned across the prison walls. As individuals, this work has been so meaningful to our scholarship, our career trajectories, and how we choose to live our everyday lives—in committed solidarity with our inside-outside community. Another member of
the Beyond Prisons community is Jimmy Soto, Illinois’s longest serving exoneree, who first connected with Beyond Prisons while incarcerated at Stateville. After his release, Jimmy went on to become a Beyond Prisons justice practitioner fellow. He told us, “As a justice-impacted person, [Beyond Prisons] has offered me a safe space for community both in prison and in the free world to discuss issues surrounding the carceral system.”
Through an archive of writings by over 100 incarcerated scholars, seven art exhibitions, six experiential courses, and more than 100 community events reaching 5,000 participants, Beyond Prisons has been a hub for original scholarship since its inception. Without support, prisons repress the voices of those inside. To make this knowl-
edge public requires navigating opaque bureaucracies, supporting grassroots campaigns, visiting prisons, and facilitating connections with outside publishers. Not only have Beyond Prisons’ inside scholars benefited from the institutional support which makes this process possible, but the greater community has benefited as well. Beyond Prisons created a world linking inside and outside students. The University has abruptly severed access to this world—and in doing so, announced its disinvestment in our mutual development. As one outside student wrote, “[T]his class is immensely rewarding—learning about the injustices is already an act in defiance of the unjust system. The act of resistance itself is rewarding. Even when the feelings are negative[,] I still feel like I be-
came a better (and fuller) human as I learn more about the (ugly) truths of our society.” After the recent suspension of the Bridge writing program, Beyond Prisons stood among the University’s last initiatives disrupting the culture of mass incarceration through humane, community-based teaching and learning. The work it achieved was unprecedented, and its defunding signals clear political intent: to silence a program that fostered community-engaged education and gave platform to those behind prison walls.
Editor’s note: The figures cited in the article regarding the number of incarcerated scholars, art exhibitions, experiential courses, community events, and participants are based on the authors’ estimates derived from stored writings.
Life of the Veteran Mind: Ariel Joiner
Taji Chesimet is the current program coordinator for Beyond Prisons. He graduated from the College with a B.A. in race, diaspora, and indigeneity in 2024. He has worked with Beyond Prisons since his second year.
Harley Pomper is a former mixed-enrollment student and is a current Ph.D. student at the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. They are a former organizer with the Bridge writers program.
Neomi Rao is a Beyond Prisons graduate fellow and residential fellow with the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture and has taught in Illinois prisons since 2023. They are also a current Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science.
An Arkansan’s journey through powerful institutions: the Navy and the University of Chicago.
By BEN KHADIM DEMOTT
I first came to know Ariel Joiner as a no-BS, critically thinking classmate in K.J. Hickerson’s course titled The Work of the Past: Colonialism, Slavery, Institutions. Joiner enlivened class discussions as she exposed sloppily curated art exhibitions. After Ruby Bridges’s appearance at UChicago’s MLK Day commemoration, Joiner gave us her own Civil Rights History teach-in. Joiner pointed out how the self-organized teens of the Little Rock Nine had been passed over in popular discourse, while Ruby became an icon because she was taken up as the image of an innocent kid caught in the crossfire. Outside of class, I found out
that she is the first Black woman to take part in UChicago’s veteran recruitment program. In front of Cobb Hall, Joiner dished out funny stories and hard truths from her years in the U.S. Navy as an aviation boatswain’s mate—a highly technical position responsible for launching and recovering naval aircrafts. I learned she hailed from a small town: Dumas, Arkansas.
The more I learned of Joiner’s journey, the more I came to believe she embodied a timely counternarrative to Trumpies who have whined about DEI’s harms. She served her nation, and her fresh, distinct perspective on the world was surely a boon to UChicago students and teachers. I asked to interview Joiner about Secretary
of Defense Pete Hegseth’s ugly, stupid campaign against “DEI” initiatives in the military. I wondered if she identified with the qualified minority leaders, Joint Chief of Staff C.Q. Brown and Vice Admiral Shoshana Chatfield, who had been stripped of their command roles. I assumed the Pentagon’s erasure of documentary media on the Tuskegee Airmen and an all-women Air Force crew—part of “anti-DEI” scour of government databases— surely felt like a diss to all veterans and active soldiers of color.
Joiner approached the Department of Government Efficiency changes this year clear-eyed: “There hasn’t ever been DEI in the military.” She brought attention to the fact that ill-fitting uniforms
are a clear example of the lack of equity: “My flight deck uniform was a men’s uniform, and I would just have to get a size up, even with boots.” Per Joiner, the notion that women in the navy had managed to consolidate power was silly. Female sailors have been engaged in an ongoing struggle: “[We have been] trying to rise, change the policies, and help ourselves.”
“Now, she wasn’t on the ship with me, but the fact that I knew that she was pregnant points to how it was such a big deal. You know, in normal society, having a baby is a celebration. To us, it was like, ‘Why would you do that to us?’ You’re not going to let another one of us get in this position,” Joiner recounted.
The deep support for that woman officer to stay in power, according to Joiner, brought home how much women sailors still
Joiner recalled her fellow women service members’ disappointment when one promising woman sailor rejected the high-level warrant officer position. She noted the importance of this position, outlining that there are roughly four to 10 available in the entire navy at a time, and that there hadn’t been a female warrant officer since approximately 2001. One woman during Joiner’s term had a shot at “making warrant.” This officer’s decision to have a baby and put her promotion on hold became a public affair throughout the navy.
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stood to gain. Yet Joiner noted that it was unfair that that officer had to be burdened with representing her women peers; that officer had the right to a private life, to make a family.
Joiner allowed that white male officers didn’t exercise complete rule. But she underscored that pragmatism, not idealism, informs the military’s diverse command structure: “In the middle of the ocean, you cannot worry about if there are enough women, or Black people, or Chinese [people] on the ship because, at the end of the day, this is a war event.”
Joiner imagined true “DEI” initiatives in the military looking like facilitating sailors’ advanced certifications. She had been shadowing a welder in the navy, hoping to become one herself, but she was stymied by a policy that discounted sailors’ future careers: “[The navy] doesn’t want to pay for certain certifications because they want to get their money’s worth.” Joiner talked back to Hegseth’s blabber that the army’s “warrior culture” was diminished by recruitment of minorities. She recalled people of color’s real presence in the military, but she insisted racial capitalism, not DEI outreach, was responsible on this front: “I’ll say that more African Americans, Latino, or Caribbean Americans are in the military now because it is a job that provides insurance and stability. You can take care of your family. It’s one of the only pension jobs left.”
Joiner reminded me, nevertheless, that when you come down to it, “[the navy] is a low-end job.” She remembers her first meager paycheck: “$561.45. So that was after two weeks of being in boot camp. I had a 24-hour job, but I still qualified for food stamps.” (She mentioned too that she couldn’t even take advantage of provision for low-income Americans as an active
“But, if I were Senator Tom Cotton, I’d be nervous if I saw Ariel Joiner on the ballot.”
service member.) Yet, Joiner differentiates herself from other sailors who enlisted out of self-preservation. She came across sailors from Louisiana who had opted for military service instead of jail time. She referenced immigrants who had enlisted to help expedite their citizenship requests.
Joiner’s insight on the military is matched by her sharp perception of UChicago, the next (civilian) institution she’s navigated. “UChicago is a different type of weird,” Joiner told me. “I’m happy I’m here, but sometimes I feel like I’m here to remind rich people that everyday people exist.” In first year hum, Joiner puzzled over her classmates as they read the Iliad. Her peers couldn’t conceive of romance between Achilles and Patroclus. The students overanalyzed the two heroes’ relationship; Joiner argued, “[Homer] is talking about sex. And then we went to a seminar and the professor said that it was a love story. And I was looking at the class like, ‘I told y’all so.’”
Joiner is an economics major now. One recent course struck her as particularly out of touch. “I’m in a tax class looking at Elon Musk’s taxes; no, let’s do a poor person’s taxes!” she said. “That’s the thing about UChicago. I feel like students are getting taught how to be in the top 1 percent.”
She joked, “Maybe that’s one of the reasons why UChicago is in the hood, to give them social skills or something?” But Joiner has real worries that UChicago students can be “so intelligent [that they’re removed] from the real world.” Joiner was quick to caveat that she had no illusions that she was all-knowing.
I was drawn to Joiner’s story because I imagined her as a sort of avatar of the Black South. I saw her military service and sacrifice in the tradition of African American soldiers’ active citizenship—their
efforts to realize American democracy. I was inspired to reach out to Joiner partly because I was reading Omo Moses’s family memoir, The White Peril. Omo is the son of Bob Moses, Freedom Summer organizer and Algebra Project founder. Omo’s book, which bounds from Tanzania to Cambridge, places the South as his family’s heartland and, in turn, as America’s. The White Peril revolves around Omo’s discovery of his family’s legacy of civil rights activism. Sermons delivered by Omo’s radical reverend grandfather preface each chapter. Bob Moses’s reflections on organizing in the Deep South run alongside Omo’s own account of his experience working with students and their teachers in Mississippi who had partnered with the Algebra Project. My reading and trip to Catholic Theological Union (for a history conference put on by the Chicago Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee History Project) got me thinking about how Joiner fit into a grand historical story of the Black South. But in our conversation, Joiner brought common sense to her Uncommon Essayist peer.
Joiner’s hometown is a specific place: “A lot of people only know Little Rock. So they are like, ‘Oh, are you from there?’ And I’ll never say Little Rock. I am from Dumas.” If you look up Dumas online, you’ll find that the town of around 5,000 residents has a quaint main street and a proudly lauded high school football team. Joiner underscores Dumas’s agricultural products and its delta environment in her account of her hometown. She claims Pickens, a town next door that’s “white-ruled [where] the farmers who have the money are white and the people who work at the cotton gin are black,” speaks to the power structure across her home region.
Yet, in Dumas, locals had each other’s backs: “I was raised
around adults from my church—if they were going to do something, they did it. I grew up in, I’ll say, a rich town in terms of community. And I’ll never forget how the community experience felt.” One story of how two daycare teachers, Ms. Janice and Mrs. Smith, taught restless child Ariel to read because she refused naps, brings home the quality of humane attentiveness that defines Dumas’s structure of caring: “In a larger city, they don’t have time for that. If you don’t want to take a nap, they could have put me in a crib and been like, ‘Okay, shut up or whatever.’ But, you know, she took an interest in me.”
Communal Dumas lacks many material comforts: “We don’t have a Walmart there. There’s a quick pathway to nothing, really. It’s a lot of working at Family Dollar.” For kids at Joiner’s public school, academics became the portal to a state university, or maybe even Ole Miss, and then maybe, down the line, a professional career. Ariel could list off her successful peers who made it as doctors and lawyers elsewhere. Joiner was part of a crew of excelling students in her grade. She shrugs off her achievements— awards in Spanish and math and a grade point average that would have qualified her for valedictorian if not for internal school politics.
I had wondered if Joiner’s drive to succeed had been motivated by her grandparents’ example. She had mentioned in her class that her grandfather, a carpenter, and grandmother, a local banker, had overcome Jim Crow’s ruling logic. But for Joiner, there wasn’t a direct connection between academic excellence and the legacy of her family: “I do want to lie to you and come up with this grandiose story, but, to be honest, I just liked school. And I did it because that’s what I did.”
Joiner’s grandparents came up when she humbly referred to her bold decision to join the navy:
“I got into Duke [University], but I didn’t have the money. And my grandparents, they had some money, but I didn’t want them to have to take it out. I knew they would [but] I don’t want them and my mom to be taking out loans. So I was like, ‘All right, whatever. I’m just going to go to the military.’” I wonder how many of her UChicago peers would have done the same.
Joiner insists that her time in the military wasn’t exactly a sacrifice. Indeed, Joiner certainly spent her time well. She worked as an aide in her ship’s sexual assault victims clinic. She is proud of her volunteer teaching and shifts at food drives during her deployments across 15 countries. Yet, she has challenges coming back to school as an older student: “It’s another thing that made me regret going to the military because if I had gone to college after high school, I probably would have already had a doctor’s degree, maybe even two master’s, an M.B.A. and a CPA [certification].”
Joiner isn’t at UChicago to move on up and leave her home behind: “I don’t want to be remembered as the richest lady that ever came out of Dumas, Arkansas.” Joiner underscored that she wanted to be “in service, for enterprise reaching the community.” She suggested using her math skills to become a forensic accountant. She envisions helping people locked in coercive contracts. Joiner mentioned getting into politics later in life, after “she had gotten her hands in the mud.” Joiner may discount her chances at government office. But, if I were Senator Tom Cotton, I’d be nervous if I saw Ariel Joiner on the ballot.
Editor’s note: Joiner reviewed this article before its publication.
Ben Khadim DeMott is a 2025 alum of the College.
“As Required by Law:” UChicago’s Responsibility in ICE Enforcement
The University must expand its protections for students and clearly articulate its position in the face of a heightened federal immigration enforcement presence.
By MAROON EDITORIAL BOARD
In the more than two months since President Donald Trump launched Operation Midway Blitz—the Department of Homeland Security operation intended to target “criminal illegal aliens” in Chicago—Hyde Park and other communities throughout the city have been living in fear of a campaign that claims to improve public safety.
Yet, despite the proximity and intensity of this enforcement, the University’s public stance has remained vague, characterized by a single phrase: it will cooperate with immigration enforcement “as required by law.”
Federal agents have gassed, tackled, and even shot at civilians. They have repeatedly detained protestors, many of whom are lawful residents and citizens, and held them in the infamous Broadview immigration facility. Seemingly no space is off-limits; agents have made arrests everywhere from courthouses to churches to even daycare centers, often without warrants.
Just south of Hyde Park, 300 federal agents conducted a highly publicized nighttime raid of an apartment complex. Although the government claimed that members of the Venezuelan criminal organization Tren de Aragua resided in the building, the 37 individuals detained included citizens, children, and legal residents. No criminal charges have been filed in the nearly two months since the raid.
On October 15, Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (ICE) briefly detained a UChicago international student at East 55th Street and South University Avenue. The student was carrying immigration documentation and was soon released. The Maroon has reported four immigration enforcement detentions in Hyde Park as well as several sightings of federal agents since Operation Midway Blitz began.
As an institution that has long emphasized its position as an “anchor” for the South Side community, UChicago has a responsibility to protect its community that extends beyond bare-minimum legal compliance. The University must take an active role in protecting students and the Hyde Park community.
What can the University do?
In its guidance to students, the University has continuously emphasized that it will cooperate with federal enforcement as required by law and has directed students to online resources like its “Federal Law Enforcement FAQ” website and its therapist-on-call hotline. Additionally, the Law School’s Immigration Rights Clinic provides legal representation to immigrant communities in Chicago and has released several guides on how to safely respond to immigration enforcement.
But most of the University’s guidance on dealing with ICE still revolves around calling the University of Chicago Police Department (UCPD) and carrying all necessary identification documents—advice that does little
to communicate specific actions the University might take to support its students. While important, these forms of support are not a substitute for a clear institutional stance.
Other universities have taken more concrete steps to increase transparency and protection for their students following initial measures targeting international students during the first Trump administration.
In 2016, several universities, including Portland State University and Reed College, declared sanctuary status on their campuses. In 2025, the detainment of Mahmoud Khalil on Columbia University’s campus prompted the Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) to launch a national campaign, leading dozens of YDSA chapters across America to campaign for similar declarations at their universities.
Sanctuary status is defined differently between institutions, though it most commonly includes:
• restricting ICE officers from entering campus without a warrant;
• barring campus police from enforcing immigration law;
• refusing to share or gather information regarding immigration or citizenship status with federal bodies;
• providing confidential legal support to students with immigration law questions;
• allowing students to complete their degrees remotely; and
• reducing or limiting campus police presence during protests and events that tend to include undocumented students.
Currently, the University’s policy includes several of these protections. Outside law enforcement are barred from entering “non-public” spaces on campus without a warrant. Under the Illinois Trust Act, UCPD, as well as local law enforcement, is prohibited from enforcing immigration law.
Still, there are gaps. Though Chicago has the Coordinated Advice and Referral Program for Legal Services, the University does not provide immigration lawyers, specialized immigration advising, or dedicated, confidential legal representation for vulnerable students.
Additionally, UChicago has not publicly committed to limiting the collection and distribution of information on students’ immigration status; it has not articulated any policy on remote degree completion for students who may fear attending classes due to ICE presence; and it has not publicly stated any commitment to limiting UCPD presence at events that tend to include undocumented students.
By contrast, many universities have improved communication and legal protections for their students this past year.
Other Ivy Plus institutions have publicly clarified their policies, emphasizing privacy and due process. In an interview with the Yale Daily News, a Yale spokesperson said that the university would decline to provide immigration information to ICE unless obligated by a judicially authorized subpoena. Similarly, Harvard has expanded its legal resources for undocumented
students through the Harvard Representation Initiative.
UChicago should adopt some of these additional measures, even if it is hesitant to officially label itself a “sanctuary campus.” It is also particularly important for the University to clarify how UCPD will interact with federal law and immigration enforcement. As it stands, an FAQ page—last updated on November 5—merely states that UChicago “cooperates with outside agencies as required by law, while protecting the rights and privacy of students, faculty, and staff.” The ambiguity of this statement does little to assuage the fears of students.
UChicago must take steps to ensure that UCPD, as a private police force, is used to protect its community rather than betray it. To ensure that students feel safe, it should state clearly that UCPD will not conduct or aid in immigration enforcement.
What can we do?
Many community members are already mobilizing. Students have participated in demonstrations like the “No Kings” march or the Hyde Park parents’ protest against ICE. Labor unions on campus have issued public statements criticizing the University’s response to federal immigration enforcement presence.
Last month, the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR)—which regularly collaborates with both undergraduate and law students—successfully lobbied for the passing of HB 1312 in the Illinois Gener-
“If UChicago... truly wants to be an ‘anchor’ for the South Side, the complacency of simply cooperating ‘as required by law’... is not enough.”
FROM PG. 15
al Assembly. The legislation improves protections for individuals visiting county courts and restricts ICE’s ability to surveil individuals seeking care in hospitals, among other protections. Students interested in taking on a more hands-on role can volunteer with or donate to groups like ICIRR.
Community members can also supplement formal organizing with practical support networks. The Kenwood–Hyde Park–Woodlawn Rapid Response team, which is affiliated with ICIRR, sends alerts and communications about nearby ICE sightings; volunteer groups
like Watchguard Chicago have implemented on-the-ground protections; and ICIRR’s Family Support Network hotline collects reports of ICE activity to be distributed to its affiliate organizations. Students and community members can—while prioritizing their own safety— contribute to crowdsourced ICE tracking tools like iceinmyarea or the Maroon ’s ICE tracker with photos and videos of federal enforcement.
While community efforts are important, and students should engage with them safely and legally, they alone cannot substitute for institutional action.
The ongoing organizing of
student, faculty, and community groups has been vital in building solidarity thus far, but protests are even more effective when they are backed by clear, unified demands. The community must continue to press for more explicit limitations on UCPD involvement with ICE, protection of student immigration status data, and expanded legal support for vulnerable community members.
Conclusion
UChicago faces a choice about the type of institution it wants to be. Federal immigration enforcement is here, affecting daily life in Hyde Park and Chicago, and
the University cannot remain silent when its neighbors are being detained on the same streets its students walk every day.
If UChicago—both as an institution and as a collection of individuals—truly wants to be an “anchor” for the South Side, the complacency of simply cooperating “as required by law” with immigration enforcement is not enough.
We call on the University to clearly articulate the steps it will take—and the steps it is already taking—to protect this community’s most vulnerable members. The University should clearly define what UCPD interactions with ICE should look like, ex-
What We’re Thankful For
Here’s what’s keeping us warm this Thanksgiving.
By MAROON EDITORIAL BOARD
Snow is falling, and it’s nearly Thanksgiving break! As per tradition, the Maroon would like to take a moment to shout out some of the things we are particularly appreciative of this year:
The Botany Pond, for finally reopening and giving us (and the ducks) a place other than the Reg to contemplate life.
Via , for being free (assuming you consider your time to be worthless).
Alivisatos’s emails, for letting us know that the University cares about us in the most administratively neutral way possible.
The annual quad holiday lights, for being the only reason to go outside after 4 p.m.
Course evaluations, for giving us our quarterly illusion of democracy.
Cathey Dining Commons’ desserts, for keeping us all on our toes. Will it be s’mores pizza or a festive Halloween sheet cake? The thrill of unpredictability fuels our stomachs.
Nevin Hall, for attempting to rise from the ashes like our mascot, the phoenix.
Grad students; your absence will be felt, and we’ll miss overhearing your name-dropping Hegel, Heidegger, and other great philosophers in Plein Air.
The Phoenix, a new student magazine, for being absolutely obsessed with us. We’re flattered.
The Museum of Science and Industry (now the Griffin Museum), for reminding us that even the force of gravity isn’t stronger than a donation.
Professors who cold-call in big lectures, for forming trauma
bonds between everybody who takes their classes and keeping us intellectually humble.
Justin Trudeau, for blessing our campus with his presence via the IOP event, even though nobody was brave enough to ask him about his relationship with Katy Perry. That question will always be “The One That Got Away.”
The cast and crew of Saturn Return, for filming on campus and being mean to us while doing so.
Phoenix cASH, for being completely and totally unnecessary.
The Scav documentary, for showing that UChicago can keep fun alive when it wants to.
Our current reality, where we’re supposed to call the University of Chicago Police Department (to add more guns to the situation! The more the merrier) if Immigration and Customs Enforcement shows up on campus.
For all of our roasting, we really are thankful.
To: the Maroon staff, including our new members, for all their hard work, talent, and dedication—you keep this publication alive from one generation to the next.
President Paul Alivisatos, Provost Katherine Baicker, and CFO Ivan Samstein, for sitting down with the Maroon this past spring and fall to update us on the budget and other university issues.
Ben Waltzer and Nely Rentas de Romo, for inspiring Careers in Journalism, Arts, and Media programming.
The Maroon’s advisory board, for providing wisdom and guidance on running the paper.
pand and publicize the legal protections it makes available for students, and ensure that no one on campus is left to fend for themselves. At the same time, students should continue to contribute to community efforts if they can do so safely.
Chicago has become an increasingly unsafe and tense place in the past few months. The University must now decide where it stands.
Editor’s note: Celeste Alcalay, Tiffany Li, Naina Purushothaman, Nathaniel Rodwell-Simon, and Kalyna Vickers have recused themselves from this editorial due to reporting conflicts.
Jimmy Brown, Tyronald Jordan, and LaSabra Williams, for helping us keep the Maroon a functioning entity.
Nora Titone, Laura Sandino, and the Parrhesia program, for their tireless work in fostering inclusive discourse on campus, creating opportunities for students to hear from some of the most impactful journalists of our day. We’re honored to work with you. Our wonderful guests this quarter from the Baltimore Banner Alissa Zhu, Jess Gallagher, and Nick Thieme—and the captivating Gustavo Arellano from the Los Angeles Times University staff—without you, the University wouldn’t function.
Faculty and students, for their intellectual curiosity and ambition in and out of the classroom.
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at the Maroon!
ARTS Tongji Philip Qian’s Alloyed Commitments Communicates Illegible Feelings
The Logan Center exhibition features stacks of dated black T-shirts, indecipherable papers from the Chinese English quasi-binary, and other artworks staged with conspicuous oddity.
By MATTHEW WEN | Arts Reporter
Reception for Tongji Philip Qian: Alloyed Commitments at the Logan Center Gallery on Friday, October 24, 2025. courtesy of sarah elizabeth larson
“Do you believe the artist, or do you want to break the rule?” asks Tongji Philip Qian, a Harper-Schmidt Fellow and collegiate assistant professor in the Department of Visual Arts. He’s asking you, a potential visitor to his exhibition Alloyed Commitments at the Logan Center, about how you will interact with Perfect Days, the pile of T-shirts blocking a small side chamber near the exhibit’s entrance.
Visitors who “break the rule” usually do so to get a look at Anfang, an engraving featured in the exhibition guide but inaccessible unless one can find a way across the Perfect Days blockade. Other rule-breaking visitors do so by taking a Perfect Days shirt for themselves, committing a class A misdemeanor to add a sweet conceptualist tee to their wardrobe. However, choosing to believe Qian and his implicit instructions opens the exhibition as an extensive inquiry into form, authorship, and the idea of art as the idea behind art.
Curated by Andrew Witkin, the exhibition is the combined work of Qian, his mother, dog, partner, and Today Clothing, a contemporary menswear hub in
Ann Arbor and the source of Perfect Days Plainly drawing from conceptual artist On Kawara’s famous Today series, which consists of almost 3,000 panels painted between 1966 and 2014, the store has printed the date on a T-shirt every day since 2013. The shirts are always for sale on the day of their printing, but sometimes they don’t sell.
“What do you do with the shirts that are unsold?” Qian asked owner Eric Hardin on his second visit to the store. They told him to come back the next morning and lent Qian the shirt labeled “27AUG2016,” along with hundreds of others.
Perfect Days in Tongji Philip Qian: Alloyed Commitments at the Logan Center Gallery. courtesy of robert chase heishman
Perfect Days—named after the Lou Reed hit, specifically the version featuring operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti—does not occupy the gallery’s main space. It sits on the ground in piles in a room to the side. During the 2000 Shanghai Biennale, Kawara chose to not show Today in a typical gallery but rather displayed it in a kindergarten classroom, where kids used the canvases to learn how to count. This was Qian’s first encounter with Kawara, and the 25 years since have made Qian also question the typical
answers to where art ought to be.
On the wall directly facing the entrance is No-risk Hour, one of 7 in the exhibition with the same name. A work of art that hearkens back to the early work of Sol Lewitt through the medium of graphite-onwall, it consists of 25 neat lines of cursive, penciled timekeeping: “It is one o’clock. It is one past one. It was one past one. It is two past one,” and on, and on, all the way until it reaches “it was one to two.” It never reaches two—Qian created the work entirely during the annual duplicated hour granted by daylight savings time. When the clock changed back, Qian reset the writing after a line break: “It is one.”
Alloyed Commitments is just “a nicer way of saying mixed feelings,” Qian explained during a Zoom interview. It communicates his feelings about when art should be made: “I’m not committed to going to the studio and to making art every day.” Like No-risk Hour, Hotel Drawings and Lunch Break Drawings are both temporally restricted: the first can only be made when travelling, and the second in 10 minute time slots during 26 lunch breaks Qian had at a past job in 2022.
Ceaseless, continuous commitment to art evades Qian. “When all artists are so committed and energetic, I think that maybe we’re missing a larger picture,” Qian said with a shrug. Perhaps it is better to work only when the stars align, not just when there are stars in the sky. The creation of art is something that must not become an everyday enthusiasm; it must always be a little bit novel, lest it becomes mundane.
That doesn’t mean Qian is consulting the horoscope every time he picks up a pencil. “It’s not really about artistic expression. It makes my lunch break more enjoyable, and that’s why I did it,” said Qian of his Lunch Break Drawings. Thirteen of
the drawings are pages of graph paper filled with illegible scribbles remniscient of Chinese characters. The other 13 pages are filled with illegible scribbles remniscient of English words. “If it’s English today, the next day, I’ll do Chinese,” he said. Even when no individual word is readable, not reading into the imagined binary is difficult. Certain choices in positioning, like the placement of the drawings in a row at waist level, make it seem like they are begging to be read and understood, emulating documents sitting at the bottoms of vitrines in the Chicago History Museum.
Lunch Break Drawings in Tongji Philip Qian: Alloyed Commitments at the Logan Center Gallery. courtesy of robert chase heishman
Qian writes illegible Chinese because he can write legible Chinese; he was born in Shanghai and played for a team that represented China in the 2010 Ultimate Frisbee World Championship. He formerly taught art during a fellowship with the educational nonprofit Teach for China in Yunnan, where he showed students Sol Lewitt’s instructions for wall drawings. Lewitt, a founder of the conceptualist movement of the 1960s (“the idea becomes a machine that makes the art”), rarely executed his wall drawings himself. Instead,
“It’s not about the artist making the work, but... extending democracy to draftspeople.”
he conceived of sets of instructions on how to make the art and passed the execution to his assistants.
“They responded to it very well, with no preexisting knowledge on art and very little capability [for] doing math. So I was really convinced that conceptualism has an audience—it’s legible, it’s approachable, it’s accessible from a global perspective,” Qian said. “That’s actually how I became an artist.” Lewitt’s 40-year-old ideas were transcribed into reality through Chinese
schoolchildren. “It’s not about the artist making the work, but it’s about extending democracy to draftspeople,” Qian said.
Perhaps the exemplar of Qian’s own unorthodox relation to authorship is Finding the Spiral Jetty, a documentary film shot on cameras strapped to his dog and projected, split-screen, onto the bottom right corner of the innermost wall in the exhibition. The cinematographer captures Qian and Wang as they walk together on sculptor Robert Smithson’s magnum opus Spiral Jetty, a spiraling piece of land art located on the
Great Salt Lake in Utah. Built in 1970, its creation was accompanied by a color film documenting the construction.
“I thought about doing some work with it, but I just realized so many artists have done so many things to activate the Spiral Jetty,” Qian said. “Who am I to change it? So eventually I thought, you know, maybe I can ask my dog to do a film.”
The filming of Finding the Spiral Jetty was done on two cameras: one from GoPro, and one from Da Jiang Innovations. Their playbacks are separated by the six seconds
it took for Qian to turn the second camera on after turning on the first. “So again— the kind of fabricated binary between the Chinese and the American,” Qian said, this time found not in the executed art (as in Lunch Break Drawings) but in the tools used to make it. A binary that is entirely invisible to the visitor—unless you care to check the materials used on the exhibition guide.
Tongji Philip Qian: Alloyed Commitments will run at the Logan Center through December 7.
A Primer on Weekly Music Events at UChicago, From Pipes to Pints
Looking for musical inspiration? We’ve got you covered with three concert series across campus.
By GABBY MANSILLA | Arts Reporter
Tea & Pipes Tuesdays, 4–4:30 p.m., Rockefeller Memorial Chapel.
There is something magical about Rockefeller Chapel. Perhaps it’s the late Gothic Revival architecture, the immense vaulted ceilings, or the cascade of colors from the stained glass above the altarpiece that reflects across the pulpit. But some might say the real centerpiece is the towering E.M. Skinner organ. Built in 1928 and restored in 2008, the instrument features 8,565 pipes arranged in 132 ranks. UChicago alum Thomas Weisflog, who recently celebrated 25 years as the
University’s organist, brings the instrument to life on Tuesday afternoons. Each week, he curates a new playlist, sharing the history behind each piece and the sections of the organ it showcases.
Always happy to greet those who linger after the performance, Weisflog is often promptly surrounded by a small group of students, alumni, and locals who gather around his console. “I just love this organ!” he blissfully exclaimed after his October 14 performance, his joy reminiscent of a painter before a blank canvas.
When asked how he curates each week’s playlist, he laughed. “Sometimes at the very last minute,” he said, before explaining that his goal is to showcase the instrument without overwhelming the audience. “No one wants to listen to 10 minutes of fortissimo,” a lesson he learned from a piano teacher back in the ’60s.
Indeed, while this week’s closing performance of Seth Bingham’s Baroques suite made the floor vibrate with its dramatic, thunderous ending, the rest of the program—including Benjamin Britten’s “Prelude and Fugue on a Theme of Vittoria,” Flor Peeters’s “ARIA,” Felix Men-
delssohn’s “Prelude in G Major,” and Paul Hindemith’s “Sonata No. 2”—offered a well-balanced mix of slow, delicate, and intimate waltz-like melodies alongside more powerful and majestic movements.
Note: Before taking a seat in the pews, attendees can help themselves to a complimentary cup of Rishi tea and a Biscoff cookie. Dog and cat treats are also set out for four-legged companions, who are welcome at all performances.
Live Jazz at Jimmy’s Sundays, 8–11 p.m., West Room of Woodlawn Tap, 1172 East 55th Street.
Woodlawn Tap, better known as Jimmy’s (after its original owner, Jimmy Wilson), has been a Hyde Park staple since 1948. On Sunday nights, the West Room, a long, dimly lit space lined with billiard lights and set apart from the main bar, fills with the sound of live jazz. Shortly before the music started on October 19, regulars and first-timers grabbed a drink in the main room. Among them was Rich Nayer, an actor, producer, and musician whose son once took lessons from the quartet’s trumpeter, Curtis Black. “I can tell you everything you want to know about it,” he said, motioning for me to take a seat beside him. A Hyde Park local, Nayer comes every other week to see Black and his ensemble perform a mix of jazz solos and pieces by Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and more.
It didn’t take a seasoned attendee to notice that Black, a trumpet player born and raised in New York, was in charge. On a stage framed by floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking 55th Street, Black leaned against a side wall. With effortless command, he presided over guitarist Steve Kuhn, bassist Jake Gordon, and drummer Andy Bautista, casually stepping back to sip a cold beverage between
The main console in the chapel’s altar area, where organist Thomas Weisflog performs. gabby mansilla
The jazz quartet, pictured left to right: guitarist Steve Kuhn, bassist Jake Gordon, trumpeter Curtis Black, and drummer Andy Bautista. gabby mansilla .
“Even
before reaching the doors, the sounds emanating from practice rooms
invite you in: piano drifting out one window, vocal scales out another.”
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his trumpet solos. The evening unfolded in three one-hour sets, each followed by a brief intermission. After the first set, Black shared that he sometimes picks the setlist to match the “feeling of the room” or to highlight any additional musicians that join them. Tonight’s selection was designed to accommodate the addition of a castanet (a small, handheld, shellshaped percussion instrument that produces a clicking sound, often used for rhythmic accent).
What began as a jam session in the ’90s, Black said, is now an established quartet with “really great and dependable musicians.” Between songs, he instructed the band the way an Italian grandmother tells you to add “this much” salt to a recipe, as if by feel. “We go A-sharp, then B-minor in the solo, then back here,” he said, pointing at the sheet, “One, two, ah, ah, ah.” While the directions might sound vague to the audience, they were well-understood by the ensemble and resulted in fluid, layered pieces that highlighted not only Black’s trumpet but every instrument in the quartet. Black noted, “It’s the informality of the setting, the intimacy of it that I enjoy.”
Note: Woodlawn Tap is cash-only and open only to those 21 and up. Sunday night jazz performances are free, and a tip jar is passed during intermissions for those who wish to contribute.
Tea Time Concert Series
Thursdays, 4:30 p.m., Fulton Recital Hall, Fourth floor of Goodspeed Hall.
d’amore, accompanied by pianist Daniel Schlosberg, at the October 23 Tea Time Concert. gabby mansilla
As a science major, I had never spent as much time on the music side of campus as I did writing this article. On 59th Street, a plaque in the University’s signature G othic font directs you: “Through the archway and to the left to Goodspeed Hall.” What isn’t written is that, on the other side of the archway, Goodspeed, one of the four oldest buildings on campus, is buzzing with creative energy. Even before reaching the doors, the sounds emanating from practice rooms invite you in: piano drifting out one window, vocal scales out another. As the golden hour light of a crisp fall afternoon filter through the courtyard, the whole building seems to exhale as if it were alive, breathing music.
This corner of campus feels like another world where, every Tuesday afternoon, the Department of Music hosts a mix of student and visiting performers. On October 23, the Vocal Studies Program, accompanied by Daniel Schlosberg on piano, featured an array of performances from lieder to arias. One of the highlights was a rendition of “Gimme Gimme” from the musical Thoroughly Modern Millie by mezzo-soprano Katie Keeley, a creative writing and public pol-
icy student who delivered the song with an easy stage presence that felt Broadway-ready. In contrast, those drawn to a classical repertoire were transported to the late Romantic period through the voice of tenor graduate student Harry Fosbiner-Elkins as he performed Gabriel Fauré’s “Après un rêve.”
The program closed with soprano Zoe Springsteen, who, adorned in a black glistening masquerade mask, brought the character of Rosalinde from Johann Strauss II’s 1874 operetta Die Fledermaus to life. Her rendition of “Csárdás” was so vivid and ethereal that it felt almost impossible to imagine a more evocative interpretation of the aria’s emotional arc. Indeed, the performances that Thursday have set a gold standard for the Tea Time Concert Series.
Audiences will have to wait until next quarter for more Tea Time Concert series programming as the autumn quarter series has ended.
Note: Those interested can head over to music.uchicago.edu/news-events/ events to keep up with upcoming Tea Time performers and other music events.
Arts Core Students Watch the CSO Bring Berlioz to Life
MUSI 101 students visited Symphony Center for an all-Berlioz program
led by Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä.
By ALKIS KARMPALIOTIS | Associate Arts Editor
It’s not every day that students get to take free trips downtown to hear the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) perform at the Symphony Center. On October 18, the three sections of MUSI 101, Intro to Western Art Music, did just that.
MUSI 101, a class I’m taking that fulfills the arts requirement in the Core, brings together students across the University, from people with zero musical
experience to music majors. If UChicago’s aim is to teach us how to think, then the aim of this course is to teach us how to listen, and, more broadly, how to engage actively with the arts.
The course is more than a mere survey of music history: it’s a study of the experience of music. Much of class time is spent listening to pieces, reflecting on our emotional responses, and comparing different interpretations. We
often pair contrasting styles of music to identify the unique qualities of each genre; for example, one week we listened to Renaissance motets and madrigals alongside traditional African American spirituals of the early 20th century, analyzing the similarities and differences between their religious and humanist elements.
MUSI 101 offers the rare opportunity not just to study music, but to live it—and live performances bring music to life in ways that no textbook or recording ever
could. The course offers two options for performances: one at the CSO and another at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. I had the privilege of attending the former. Led by rising star Klaus Mäkelä, the 29-year-old music director designate of both the CSO and Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw, two of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, the program featured an all-Berlioz program, including Harold in Italy — a “symphony with solo viola” with soloist Antoine Tamestit —
Tomino Sun performs “Quanto è bella, quanto è cara” from L’elisir
“It was wonderful that so many of us were able to share in the fun of live concert music, and then talk about it together in class.”
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and the iconic Symphonie fantastique. What the two pieces share is their programmatic nature—that is, they are meant to tell a story. Symphonie fantastique, for example, famously follows the life of a man who, driven mad by unrequited love, descends into obsession, ultimately poisoning himself to the point of hallucination, where he envisions his own execution. Similarly, Harold in Italy is inspired by Lord Byron’s narrative poem, “Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage,” with the viola representing the titular character’s journey.
When the orchestra began playing the opening notes of Harold in Italy, however, there was no violist to be seen. For a few minutes, I wondered whether Tamestit had missed his cue, or if there had been some mistake. I soon realized, however, that this wasn’t accidental but rather a creative decision by the musicians. About three minutes into the piece, Tamestit walked onto the stage, not taking the customary position beside the conductor but instead standing near the back, next to the harp. As the performance unfolded, he moved about the stage, at times next to the podium, other times in between the orchestra musicians. Toward the end of the final movement, Tamestit, along with two other string players, retreated once again to the back of the stage for a quartet passage.
Innovative choreography aside, Tamestit’s playing was undoubtedly the highlight of the performance. One could feel that he was telling a story in every phrase as he shifted between playfulness and tension, lyricism and drama, while bringing out the viola’s deep and colorful sound. Most impressive was his control: he never got lost in the power of the music, yet when the moment called for intensity and force, he delivered it decisively. He interacted closely with the orchestra, often joining tutti passages—another unconventional move—and even reacting in visible shock to Berlioz’s louder moments, such as the sudden outburst at the start of the fourth movement.
First-year Edward Ward, a student in MUSI 101 who attended the concert, said, “It was the best viola playing I’ve ever heard, and the narrative nature of the piece really came across.”
Tamestit closed with a wonderful solo encore of Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1 in G major. The tempo was a tad brisk for my taste, but, then again, what’s the point of a solo encore if not to showcase some technical fireworks?
At intermission, students shared their thoughts on the imaginative movements of the performance. Some found it exciting and engaging; others felt it distracted from the music. Personally, I appreciated that many of Tamestit’s movements seemed in tune with the music, as if he were physically acting out Harold’s journey rather than just conveying it through his instrument. At the same time, the relocation of orchestra musicians seemed a bit too much: their movements disconnected me from the music, and I was honestly more concerned that they might have broken a string than anything else.
In the second half of the concert, we were treated to yet another powerful showcase of musical storytelling: Symphonie fantastique, the tale of an artist overcome by unrequited love. Berlioz’s own program notes, included in the concert program, detail the vivid narrative behind the movements, each one following a distinct chapter in the protagonist’s life, from passion to delirium to death. In class the following week, many students remarked that it was helpful to follow along with the program to get a better sense of what the music was trying to convey.
The symphony is more than a punchy tale about heartbreak; it offers a deep dive into the psychology of suffering and a soundtrack to the profound emotions of love, loss, and sickness. What makes the Symphonie fantastique truly epic, however, are the lessons it imparts upon the listener. Berlioz doesn’t beautify or glorify the artist’s suffering—if anything, he warns us against the intoxicating, and at times destructive, nature of love.
Mäkelä offered a fresh and exciting perspective to the classic piece, filled with energy and dramatic power. You could feel the subtle melancholy of the waltz during the second movement and the sheer brilliance of the cataclysmic finale in the last, as if you were in the mind of the symphony’s tragic protagonist.
At the same time, the youthfulness of his interpretation sometimes came at the expense of balance and consistency. An important component of any great interpretation is knowing when to hold back—understanding not just when to bring out the full power of the orchestra, but also when to let the music breathe. More loudness often has the counterintuitive effect of making the music less impactful: if every brass tutti is a fortissimo, the actual climaxes stand out far less and therefore become less meaningful. A conductor must always see the symphony from a bird’s-eye view, with the entire musical arc in mind; otherwise, the music runs the risk of sounding more like a series of immediate thrills rather than a complete story. Even the softest passages of the first movement must be performed with the ending in mind—that’s how one achieves true balance and narrative cohesion.
Mäkelä’s technical ability on the po -
dium is undeniable, and he has clearly established a special rapport with the orchestra, who advocated for his appointment as music director. What will elevate him from just a good conductor to the likes of his predecessor, Riccardo Muti, will be the refinement of his interpretations.
For many students, this was their first time attending a concert. And if our in-class reflections were any indication, the CSO’s performance was as good an introduction to classical music as one could hope for. Mäkelä, Tamestit, and the orchestra were in perfect harmony throughout the evening, capturing our attention from beginning to end, after which they earned a well-deserved standing ovation.
“It was wonderful that so many of us were able to share in the fun of live concert music, and then talk about it together in class,” Ward said. “That meant a lot to me.”
Experiences like these remind us why the arts, especially music, are so important to education. Beyond entertainment, great masterpieces like this concert offer insight into reality through storytelling, and, by engaging with them, we develop a heightened understanding of humanity and the world around us.
Applause and standing ovation after the concert. alkis karmapaliotis
SPORTS International Men’s Rugby Returns to Soldier Field
New Zealand (the All Blacks) won their rematch with Ireland decisively on November 1 at Soldier Field. The game provides insights into the development of men’s rugby in the U.S.
By JOE BALDWIN | Sports Reporter
In 2016, Ireland faced the All Blacks, New Zealand’s national rugby team, in a landmark game at Soldier Field. The game was part of World Rugby’s (the sport’s global governing body) grandiose plan to expand into the American market and develop rugby in the U.S. Chicago’s large Irish American population and passionate sporting culture made the city the obvious choice to host this contest.
As for the game itself, World Rugby could not have asked for more, with Ireland’s blistering 40–29 win in Chicago now firmly etched into rugby folklore. Not only was it Ireland’s first-ever win over the All Blacks, breaking a 28-game, 111-year losing streak, but this victory came to represent the definitive end of the All Blacks’ unprecedented era of dominance. The string of high-profile retirements (Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Ma’a Nonu, and more) following the 2015 Rugby World Cup—won by an All Blacks team widely regarded as the greatest ever—triggered a rebuilding period for New Zealand rugby, giving other nations the chance to legitimately compete for international rugby supremacy. This is exemplified by the fact that the head-to-head record between the two teams between Ireland’s win over the All Blacks in 2016 and their November 1 clash this year was 5–5. In many ways, the foundations of the pluralistic, dynamic international rugby which has enthralled fans for the past decade were laid in Chicago in 2016.
So, when Ireland and the All Blacks returned to Soldier Field on November 1, 2025 in a game dubbed “The Rematch,” expectations around Chicago and the rugby-watching world were high.
The game started in an unusual fashion, with Ireland lock Tadhg Beirne being shown a yellow card for a high tackle on New Zealand fly-half Beauden Barrett in the third minute. The challenge looked
fairly innocuous in real time, with the Chicago audience immediately subjected to a lengthy stoppage and the vagaries of “mitigation” in the decision making of rugby referees. In the 10th minute, Beirne’s yellow card was controversially upgraded to a 20-minute red card — a decision that received widespread condemnation from the wider rugby world.
With the faded Chicago Bears logo still visible on Soldier Field, the incongruity of such a timid collision being met with such severe punishment was not lost on the onlooking fans of the NFL, where contact is less regulated and often more resembles a car crash.
Even Barrett—the recipient of the tackle—fervently disagreed with the decision, stating in a post-match interview that he would support Beirne through the official procedures that accompany red cards in professional rugby. Barrett stuck to his word and was instrumental in the rescinding of Beirne’s red card (and correlated one-match ban) at a disciplinary hearing on November 4.
Ireland, however, were unaffected by this early handicap, accruing a 10–0 lead in the 17th minute via a Jack Crowley (fly-half) penalty (equivalent to a field goal in American football) and Tadgh Furlong (prop) try (equivalent to an American football touchdown). The All Blacks, however, immediately struck back with a magnificent team try. Although finished by Ardie Savea (flanker), credit for the score largely belonged to brilliant passes from Cam Roigard (scrumhalf) and Josh Lord (lock).
The score remained 10–7 going into halftime, with the contest as tense as it was sloppy and disjointed. The first half certainly lacked the fireworks of its counterpart in 2016, when a flurry of Ireland tries had the team up 25–8 going into the break. Instead, those in attendance were treated
to an unrelenting display of the tactically astute, chess-like territorial kicking which, much to the chagrin of rugby “purists” who favor “running rugby” and keeping the ball in-hand, has come to dominate the international men’s game over the last decade.
This tension persisted into the second half, with another Crowley penalty being the only further scoreboard addition until the 62nd minute, when All Blacks replacement prop Tamaiti Williams crossed the try line from point-blank range. This made the score 14–13, with the All Blacks having their first lead of the game—and precipitated an offensive onslaught that put the game past Ireland. This included another try in the 67th minute, when All Blacks replacement back-row Wallace Sititi applied the finishing touches to an exceptional move from Beauden Barrett and replacement full-back Damien McKenzie.
Then, in the 77th minute, lackluster Irish defense and dazzling footwork saw Cam Roigard score from the back of a 5-meter scrum. The 24-year-old scrum-half had a near-perfect game in Chicago—almost certainly his best in his young, promising international career. Roigard’s try took the score to 26–13 All Blacks, where it remained at the final whistle. Ireland’s team was thoroughly beaten, with the final score accurately reflecting the one-sided nature of the game.
Ultimately, the Irish majority crowd was largely deflated as they left Soldier Field on November 1, their team having failed to recapture the magic of 2016. Any Irish fan judging 2025 by 2016’s standards was bound to be disappointed, but the flat, unthreatening nature of the Irish team did provide reasonable cause for dejection.
Beyond the result, were there wider positives to take from “The Rematch” when considering World Rugby’s goal of American expansion?
In 2022, World Rugby made a big gamble, selecting the U.S. as host for the 2031
Men’s World Cup. This is the third time hosting rights have been granted to a “tier two” rugby nation—the first being Japan in 2019. In essence, was “The Rematch” the type of event that can stimulate interest in men’s rugby in the U.S., helping to make the 2031 World Cup a success?
In short, no. “The Rematch” largely catered to existing rugby fans, failing to intrigue the archetypal casual sports fan in Chicago and the U.S. Infrequent, high-profile international fixtures between non-American teams can merely supplement the development of men’s rugby in the U.S., having neither the impact nor reach to engender systematic, long-term change. This is not to say that the presence of men’s rugby in the U.S. has not grown at all. Interest and participation in men’s rugby in the U.S. have increased, albeit at slower rates than World Rugby might have aspired to, over the last decade. Youth participation is at an all-time high, with record numbers of registered players in both high school and college during the 2024 season.
Furthermore, in 2018, a professional club league—Major League Rugby (MLR)— was established, providing a domestic pathway to professional rugby for American athletic talent (MLR recruits 75 percent of its players from U.S. colleges) and encouraging the development of authentic, grassroots fan base. The league has grown steadily year-on-year, even securing a lucrative multi-season broadcast deal with ESPN. However, the future of MLR looks increasingly unstable—multiple clubs (including the Utah Warriors, NOLA Gold, and Miami Sharks) folded after the 2025 season—and it appears deeply misguided to place great faith in MLR to provide World Rugby’s desired outcomes for U.S. rugby expansion. Instead, a much larger shift in American sporting culture must occur, with MLR merely providing an institutional architecture that can capture that shift.
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“There is clearly a long way to go before 2031.”
So, what is needed to create this crucial cultural shift toward men’s rugby in the U.S.?
Much can be learned through using women’s rugby in the U.S. as a reference point. Two key factors have led to the recent exponential increase in popularity of women’s rugby in the states: team success and the existence of a genuine superstar. Team success is a vitally important component for capturing U.S. sports fans. In an already-saturated American sporting market, there are few incentives for the average American sports consumer to start following a U.S. team that is uncompetitive at the highest level, especially when there are many other dominant U.S. athletes and teams through which American patriotic pride can be easily exercised.
This is an issue that the U.S. women’s team does not face having consistently been a top-ranked team, winning the inaugural Women’s Rugby World Cup in 1991 and earning a bronze medal in rugby sevens at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The developing, often semiprofessional nature of women’s rugby globally does mean that the relative levels of investment and participation necessary for success are considerably lower in women’s rugby than in the men’s game, with this being a key structural factor hampering the competitiveness of the U.S. men’s team.
Furthermore, U.S. men’s rugby does not have an equivalent of Ilona Maher. With nearly 9 million followers across social media platforms, Maher is inarguably the most famous rugby player in the world. Her combination of on-field dominance, a
hilarious personality and a message of empowerment which transcends rugby has inspired many girls and women, particularly in the U.S., to start following and playing rugby. The “Ilona Maher Effect”—as it has been dubbed—has effectively ensured the long-term success of women’s rugby in the U.S. The potential for this level of superstardom in U.S. men’s rugby is practically unthinkable, so the sport will likely have to rely on other avenues for its growth and development.
Ultimately, were the U.S. men’s rugby team to be successful at their home World Cup, this would undoubtedly consolidate the presence of men’s rugby within the U.S. sporting psyche, actualizing World Rugby’s long-term fantasy of permanence within the American market. This was the case for Japan—the host of the 2019 World Cup—
whose unexpected success at this tournament (a quarterfinal exit with group stage wins over Ireland and Scotland) solidified rugby as a major sport in the country and amassed astonishing television audiences for an event thought to be in the country’s sporting and cultural periphery.
However, six years out from hosting the Men’s Rugby World Cup, the likelihood of U.S. success at their home tournament looks far slimmer than it did for Japan. After all, the “Brave Blossoms” had beaten South Africa—almost unanimously considered the greatest upset in the sport’s history—four years prior at the 2015 World Cup.
In contrast, on the same day that Ireland played New Zealand at Soldier Field in 2025, the U.S. lost 85–0 to Scotland in Edinburgh. There is clearly a long way to go before 2031.
UChicago Cross Country’s Rise Beyond Division Labels
The UChicago men’s cross country team, ranked ninth in Division III and second in the Midwest, placed first at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational after defeating 15 Division I teams.
By ISHAAN VERMA | Sports Reporter
Everything was going great for thirdyear Grant Musick as he finished up his sophomore year at the University of Tulsa, which has a top-ranked Division I cross country program. The program was ranked 31st in the country at the end of the 2024 season, and was ranked as high as No. 9 in 2022. Musick had even set a personal record of 3:53 for the 1,500-meter during the track and field season.
Yet despite his personal and team success, Musick wanted to go somewhere more competitive academically. With his sights set on a new academic chapter, he began sending out transfer applications that spring. Musick matriculated to UChicago through the traditional academic route, joining the University’s largest admitted transfer cohort in history, which numbered approximately 300 students.
In previous years, the team has faced its fair share of heartbreak. In 2024, the team narrowly missed out on a bid to the NCAA Division III Championships. They
were ranked No. 31 the year before that. However, their latest meet results may be a sign that the tide is finally turning.
The team started the season strong by taking first place at the Gil Dodds Invitational, with eight of the top nine finishes in only their second meet of the season, led by third-year Liam Eifert’s sub-25-minute finish. They didn’t stop there, winning the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational on October 3, defeating 15 Division I teams and a handful of Division II teams en route. Going into week six of the season, the Maroons were ranked ninth in Division III and second in the Midwest region. They lived up to their ranking by finishing second overall at the UAA Championships this past Saturday at Washington University in St. Louis, their best conference showing since 2005.
When asked to compare his experience so far at UChicago to his experience at University of Tulsa, Musick emphasized the balance he has found here, both on and
The UChicago men’s cross country team competing at the UAA Championships at Washington University in St. Louis. courtesy of grant musick
off the track.
“Coach Hall is a good coach who likes to keep things fun and doesn’t put any artificial pressure on us,” he said. “Unlike
at Division I schools, most runners at the Division III level aren’t worried about getting a pro contract; they care more about
“Division III runners are closing the gap one meet at a
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their schoolwork.”
However, the absence of professional aspirations does not mean Division III training is any less intense. Musick proudly pointed out first-year Evan Parker, who has become a respected figure on the team for logging 100 miles a week. For context,
Musick runs an impressive 70–75 miles per week, the second-highest mileage on the team.
At even the most academically inclined Division I schools, it is impossible to miss the presence of elite athletes. At University of California, Berkeley, for example, the fact that there are future pro-
fessional athletes sitting in lecture halls rarely goes unnoticed, despite the school’s emphasis on academic excellence. On the other hand, the Division III student-athletes at UChicago often fade away behind the University’s prominent academic culture. It is possible to go an entire quarter without realizing you have shared a class
time...”
with someone on the basketball team. But on the track, at least, it appears that the lines between Divisions I and III are starting to blur. Division III runners are closing the gap one meet at a time, proving that talent and work ethic can drive athletes just as much as professional contracts can.
How UChicago Football’s Culture Shift Sparked a Historic Season
Under first-year head coach Craig Knoche, the Maroons have built more than a winning record. They have built a family.
By JOHN MO | Sports Reporter
“[Coach Craig Knoche] ends every practice by saying, ‘I love you guys,’” UChicago football captain Luke Degner (‘26) shared. “He’s really creating a great team environment, and we’re all playing for each other.”
Since taking over the program in February 2025, head coach Knoche has led the Maroons to one of their strongest starts in recent memory, emphasizing unity, trust, and accountability as much as physical performance. His players describe a shift in energy—one centered less on individual results and more on collective purpose.
Despite his success, Knoche himself prefers to keep the spotlight on his team rather than his own leadership. When asked to give an interview to the Maroon, he explained, “I would prefer to make it player-centered and minimize my involvement. The kids are the ones playing in the games.”
Knoche’s approach, which emphasizes a player-first mentality, has resonated deeply with the team’s four captains, who credit their success to an unselfish, all-in mentality. “It’s not about you, it’s about the other guys on the field,” captain Zach Meyer (‘26) explained. “We’re focused on what we can do for each other, not ourselves.”
With seven wins, the Maroons have already exceeded their win count from last year and continue to impress on both sides of the ball. Players point to what they
call “complementary football,” where offense, defense, and special teams feed off one another’s momentum. “Sometimes the defense just gets beat, but then our offense goes for a 95-yard touchdown or our special teams flip the field. It’s trust, knowing the guy next to you will have your back,” captain Josh Minton (‘26) told the Maroon
That trust has made it easy for the team to stay motivated even as the wins pile up. “Coach always says, ‘Find something to get better at,’” Minton said. “We all have strengths, but we’re constantly asking, ‘What can I do better for my teammates?’”
Amid midterms and campus stress, football has become an escape, a place to reset and reconnect. “School can get hectic, but being on the field with the boys is just fun,” Minton said. “This is our last season, so we’re enjoying every moment.”
In addition to having fun, many seniors are also thinking about the program’s future and the legacy they hope to leave behind. “We just want to leave it better than we found it,” Meyer added. “We’re building something that’ll last for the younger guys.”
That spirit runs deep through the roster. The captains praised the underclassmen for stepping up in key roles, with several freshmen and sophomores now starting regularly. They also highlighted
the grit of the offensive and defensive lines, who “battle through injuries and keep the team moving.”
Outside the stat sheet, captain Stirling Sakashita (‘26) made sure to highlight someone whose impact goes beyond the field: athletic trainer Anicia Mattingly. “Anicia’s been taking care of us since we were freshmen. She manages 80 players while still helping other sports, and she even bakes snacks for us. Without her, none of this would happen,” he said.
It is a fitting reflection of what this year’s Maroons roster stands for: grati-
tude, humility, and love for the people who make the football program what it is.
As the captains look ahead to the final stretch of the season, their focus is clear: keep on building the culture that has taken them this far. “Football is supposed to be fun,” Sakashita told the Maroon. “Forget about school, forget about life for a bit, just enjoy the time with your brothers. That’s what this is all about.”
For the UChicago football team, success is not only measured in wins. It is measured in the bonds built, the lessons shared, and the legacy left behind.
Coach Knoche on the UChicago sideline during a home game. alex akhundov
CROSSWORD
97. It’s a Social Construct
By PIYUSH GARODIA | Associate Crossword Editor
53 “Hey girl, did it hurt when you fell from heaven? Because you’re an ___!” 55