“all on a campus continuing to use MLK’s legacy as a marketing point, just shameful”
“Go back to Britain babe!!”
“Get this kid a job at the carwash”
“His actions are reprehensible, utterly vile, and vindictive.”
“i thought we got the british out of boston... no??” @buquestrom
“beyond inhumane”
‘I don’t want him on my campus’
BU community demands administrative action after BUCR president says he called ICE to raid Allston Car Wash
CAMPUS
BY ELIZABETH MEHLER Campus Co-Editor
The Boston University community is calling for administrative action after the BU College Republicans president claimed in an X post last week that he called U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, requesting for the organization to detain workers at Allston Car Wash, the site of a Nov. 4 raid that resulted in the arrests of nine employees.
“I’ve been calling ICE for months on end. This week they finally responded to my request to detain these criminals,” BUCR President Zac Segal posted Nov. 7 above a Boston.com article about the raid.
Todd Pomerleau, an immigration attorney representing the nine employees detained by ICE, said the Allston Car Wash has been “effectively shut down for a week.”
“I don’t see Americans lining up, filling out applications to do car details,” he said.
All nine detainees argued the stops and seizures were illegal, and five bond hearings are scheduled for next week, Pomerleau said.
“The laws are complicated, but all nine of these people came here fighting hard for
FEATURES
PAGE 5
Local businesses, non-profits fill gaps left by loss of SNAP
the American dream,” he said.
“They’re left living a dystopian nightmare.”
Junior Vijay Fisch, vice president of the BU Prison Outreach Initiative, said Segal’s actions caused “immense” harm on a number of community members, and he wants Segal “to feel shame.”
“[He’s]
torn apart and disrupted and destroyed the lives of not just the nine individuals who were arrested and detained on that day, but also dozens of other people, their friends, their family, their coworkers,” Fisch said.
Sophomore Colin Sharpe, a member of BUCR, said he supports Segal’s decision to call
ICE. Segal’s actions are “totally within the balance of the law,” Sharpe said.
“It’s a bit ridiculous that people are mad at him for using a tipping service that the federal government set up,” he said.
BUCR planned to host guest speaker Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, Thursday night, but the group canceled the event shortly before it began. Members of Back Bay Young Democratic Socialists of America arrived ahead of time, prepared to protest.
Several student groups, students and BU alumni have condemned Segal’s actions and called upon the University to respond.
In a Thursday Instagram post by The Daily Free Press about Segal’s tweet, students tagged the University’s main Instagram account along with accounts for the Questrom School of Business — the BU college in which he studies BU — and the track and field and cross country team — of which Segal is a member.
Several comments on the post also questioned Segal’s U.S. citizenship. Segal grew up in London, U.K. but is originally from Miami Beach, according to a 2024 Facebook post.
BU Spokesperson Colin Riley
Continued on page 2
SPORTS PAGE 7
Women’s soccer thrives in Patriot League despite loss in final
Boston
Police Dept. continually hamstrung by systemic failures
INVESTIGATIVE
BY KIRAN RAJAMANI Contributing Writer
Rampant overtime spending, chronic understaffing, a failing crime lab and continuing racial discrimination are crippling the Boston Police Department.
The Daily Free Press investigative team analyzed nearly 1,000 hours of Boston City Council meetings with AI-assisted tools and manually verified each instance of BPDrelated concerns brought up in the city council. The scope of the findings went beyond any single hearing or single incident.
Across more than 200 confirmed instances from Jan. 1, 2024 to Oct. 1, 2025, a consistent pattern emerged: Core police functions were breaking down simultaneously. Councilors repeatedly raised concerns about runaway overtime costs as a result of severe staffing shortages, the lack of a functional crime lab and the department’s promotional system that a federal judge ruled had discriminated against officers of color for more than 50 years.
has exceeded its budget “as long as [they’ve] had budgets,” pointing to years where BPD overspent the allocated overtime budget by tens of millions of dollars. The department surpassed the overtime budget of roughly $40 million by around $50 million in 2024. Weber said while the city council has oversight on budget proceedings, there is no specific cap on how much overtime police can work because of potential public safety concerns or events where police presence is needed.
Weber also noted that some opportunities police have to earn overtime pay are exorbitant. He described a policy in which officers receive a minimum four hours of overtime pay for court appearances after spending a few minutes in front of a judge.
BPD did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Overtime costs far exceed budget limits
City Councilor Benjamin Weber told The Daily Free Press the department’s overtime system
CITY PAGE 11
Boston businesses feel effects of tariff wars
“[Some officers] make [$300,000 to] $400,000 a year primarily from overtime,” Weber said.
The council cannot impose hard limits on overtime for Boston police, Weber said, because rules governing pay, court minimums and special-event assignments are dictated by a collective bargaining agreement between police unions and the mayor’s office. These constraints mean that year after year, the City sets an overtime budget knowing it will be exceeded, Weber said.
Continued on page 11
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2025
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
EMMA CLEMENT Graphics Editor & Layout Co-Editor
BU community ‘extremely appalled’ over BUCR president’s X post
Continued from page 1
declined to comment on behalf of the University.
Senior Angela Choi, an immigrant from South Korea who recently obtained U. S. citizenship, said she was “extremely appalled” when she saw Segal’s post on X.
“I was not only extremely saddened and horrified, but just taken back by how severe hate and violence towards immigrants have become, especially in the city of Boston,” she said. “I chose BU to come to a safe and inclusive place.”
Choi said she hopes BU administration makes a statement in support of the University’s first generation immigrant population and holds Segal accountable.
“I don’t want him on my campus,” she said.
BBYDSA, who reopened their sanctuary campus campaign Nov. 6 following the Allston ICE raid, demanded Segal be reprimanded in a statement posted on Instagram Thursday.
“This is the exact behavior BU administration promotes when they do not accept our demands for a Sanctuary Campus,” the statement reads. “We know that BU won’t punish the actions of this racist scum, yet we DEMAND he be reprimanded.”
Fisch said Segal’s actions emphasize the need for BU to adapt demands listed in the sanctuary campus initiative, including training staff and BU Police Department officers on what to do if ICE shows up on campus.
“BU can’t necessarily change the mind of this individual, but we need to do everything we can to protect our students,” he said.
Associate Professor of Political Science Spencer Piston said he doesn’t believe Segal should be punished but said there is an “imbalance” in how BU administration handles matters of free speech.
“I’m really wary of granting BU administration power over student speech and political action,” he said. “I would prefer that they respond to this moment by revoking their prior politically repressive decisions against antiracist students and committing to cease that repression in the future.”
Sharpe, who said he has worked alongside undocumented immigrants before, said calling ICE is not “cruel.”
“I love the ICE tip hotline,” he said. “I think everyone should use it.”
Piston, who teaches race and policing, said he thinks of ICE as a “lawless organization.”
“It does do some law enforcement, but for the most part, it wields, exceeds and violates the law in service of racialized authoritarian terror,” he said.
Sophomore Caitlin Smith, social media director for BU College Democrats, said BUCD will not be collaborating with BUCR “for the forthcoming future.”
“This country was built by immigrants for immigrants, and it was very abhorrent to see what [Segal] had said and written,” she said.
BridgeToBU, the Student Government executive board, emphasized its commitment to protecting international students in a statement posted on Instagram Thursday. The executive board wrote it will continue calling
for the BU administration to outline a clear plan of action to protect international students, direct resources to supporting affected students and create spaces to celebrate contributions of international students and staff.
“No student or member of our institution should ever feel targeted on the basis of who they are, where they come from, or their immigration status,” the statement reads. “Today, it is evident and imperative that we must collectively work to unite and protect our student body.”
Fisch said Segal’s call to ICE
likely caused the detainees to be sent back to countries they left “out of fear for their lives.”
“In all likelihood, that BU student, Zac Segal, will have led to the bodily harm or death of some of these folks,” Fisch said.
Sophomore Lucy Johnson said although she was not surprised by the post, she found it “disheartening.”
“Having the audacity to go ahead and call ICE about people and ruin their livelihood … and posting about it is just a really terrible, unempathetic thing to do,” she said.
BU alum Andy Cohen, a radio and television personality, spoke out against Segal in the comment section of The Daily Free Press Instagram.
“I lived in Allston from Sophomore-senior years and loved the diversity. This clown should be ashamed of himself,” he wrote.
Reflecting on the post, Fisch said he is scared at “how pervasive white supremacy is.”
“It feels foreign, but it is here,” he said. “It is on campus. It is in our classrooms.”
Sana Muneer contributed to the reporting of this article.
‘Everyone is scared’: BBYDSA relaunches sanctuary campus campaign in light of recent ICE activity in Allston
CAMPUS
BY OLIVIA RUZIC Senior Writer
The Back Bay Young Democratic Socialists of America reopened their March campaign demanding that Boston University declare itself a sanctuary campus and encouraged members of the BU community to sign a petition in support of this initiative, in an Instagram post Nov. 6.
BBYDSA Co-chair Hank, who requested to go by a nickname due to concern for family members who are at risk of Immigration and Custom Enforcement, said the group reopened the sanctuary campus campaign in response to an Allston ICE raid Nov. 4, where agents detained nine employees.
Hank said he was present during the raid, and the detained workers “were legally allowed to be here” but not allowed to show officers their papers.
“We thought it was important to start [the sanctuary campus campaign] back up, because we realized how important it is to get these protections in place,” Hank said.
The demands of BBYDSA, formally BU YDSA, reiterate the requests it made in the spring, with the petition laying out a framework for what BBYDSA believes will “protect all students from federal overreach, regardless of immigration status,” an instagram post from BBYSDA from March reads.
The original framework asks for all requests made by federal immigration authorities to be
immediately forwarded to the Office of the General Counsel. Additionally, the petition demands the OGC deny ICE officers entry onto BU property without a judicial warrant, asks the University to refuse sharing student information with federal authorities and that BU administration mandate training for employees to determine contrasts between an administrative and judicial warrant.
Vijay Fisch, vice president of the BU Prison Outreach Initiative, said the Allston car wash raid exemplifies the need for BU to implement BBYDA’s demands.
“We know ICE is here. We know they’re down the street in Allston, where a significant portion of our BU students live,” he said. “We know everyone is scared, especially international students.”
Freshman Gabriella Karp, who
worked with refugee populations throughout high school, criticized ICE’s tactics.
“Law enforcement is meant to keep people feeling safe and to feel secure and for people to feel like they’re being protected,” she said. “All ICE does is instill fear and the sense of unease among communities.”
Fisch said the BU administration must implement a “set of procedures in place to protect students the best we can” if ICE shows up on campus.
On April 7, BU Today published a list of resources for BU international students on campus, including a link to the International Students and Scholars Office and tips to ensure a student’s safety.
Riley wrote in an email to The Daily Free Press that the University expanded its resources and outreach for international students in the wake of recent federal immigration actions.
This includes offering international students up to three hours of free legal consultation with outside immigration attorneys and publishing two new resource pages for students — BU Support Pathways and Safety, Security and Preparedness — which help students understand the support systems and details what to do if law enforcement officials are seen on campus, Riley wrote.
“Boston University is aware of the recent petition calling for a sanctuary campus designation,” Riley wrote.
“While the university does not respond formally to every petition, we recognize that the concerns raised reflect genuine care for members of our community.”
BBYDSA created the lists of demands to the BU administration, and other student organizations are promoting the petition. The Boston University’s Assisting Refugees through Initiative, Service and Education, Puerto Rican Student Association, Alianza Latina, BU Prison Outreach Initiative and
Quinobequin Student Front for Palestine all posted with BBYDSA in support of the petition.
Hank said promoting the petition will be BBYDSA’s focus for the rest of the semester, through outreach with other clubs, professors and tabling. He said they hope to “get as many students as possible” to support and sign the petition.
Riley wrote that although the University will not declare itself a sanctuary campus, it remains committed to protecting international students.
“BU has not adopted [the sanctuary campus] label because it has no clear legal definition and may imply protections no university can guarantee,” he wrote. “What matters most is not the label, but the depth of the University’s commitment to its students and the resources it provides them.”
Alongside the sanctuary campus campaign, BBYDSA announced on Nov. 11 “BU ICE Watch,” a community defense program to verify ICE sightings on BU’s campus and surrounding neighborhoods. In partnership with the LUCE Immigration Justice Network of MA, the program responds to calls from community members if they think they see ICE.
When responding to these calls, “BU ICE Watch” sends out trained ICE verifiers to verify whether ICE is really there. Hank said this program hopes to reduce fear in the community.
“We do recognize that the primary goal of the Trump administration is to enact fear on the immigrant population,” Hank said. “So we do our best to dispel that.”
Junior Claire Wu said she supports sanctuary campuses and hopes the University will protect “every student that we have.”
“Every student should have the right to feel safe on campus and be able to receive an education equally,” she said.
AVA RUBIN | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Allston Car Wash, the site of the ICE raid on Nov. 4.
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
The Back Bay Young Democratic Socialists of America rallies through Boston University’s George Sherman Union. The association reopened its campaign declaring sanctuary status on campus grounds.
Boston Logan Airport flight cancellations impact BU students, travel plans for Thanksgiving break
BY DANIELA GINSBURG Associate Campus Editor CITY AND PARIS ZHANG Contributing Editor
On the night of Nov. 6, Boston University junior Emily Carmichael prepared for an early morning flight out of Boston Logan Airport to Washington, D.C., where she planned to spend the weekend with her best friend from high school.
However, her plans fell apart when she received a notification from American Airlines.
“It just says, ‘your flight to Washington Reagan canceled,’” Carmichael said. “[At] first I was actually confused. I was like, did I cancel by accident?”
She said the airline then rebooked her on a separate route leaving a day later with a connection through Philadelphia, where she would have endured a six-hour layover.
“Instead of getting to D.C. at
10 a.m. on Friday, I then was going to get there at 5 p.m. on Saturday,” Carmichael said. “I decided to just cancel my trip to go see [my best friend] altogether, which was really unfortunate.”
Carmichael’s experience has been far from unique in past days.
Since Nov. 7, nearly 500 flights to and from Logan have been canceled, while over 2,000 have been delayed, according to Flight Aware.
The FAA said the move resulted from the government
shutdown, which has stunted pay for air traffic controllers.
“This isn’t about politics –it’s about assessing the data and alleviating building risk in the system as controllers continue to work without pay,” wrote U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a Nov. 6 statement.
While President Donald Trump signed a funding bill to reopen the federal government Wednesday, the FAA has provided no information on when flight limitations will be removed.
Massachusetts Port Authority urged passengers to check with airlines before heading to the airport in a statement to The Daily Free Press.
“Our federal partners have continued to come to work admirably under challenging circumstances, and we remain in close communication with them, as well as with our airline partners, to minimize disruptions and keep passengers informed,” Massport wrote.
BU sophomore Kayleaa Moore said her Southwest Airlines flight home to California on Nov. 20 had been canceled. After parsing through other flight options, she found most alternatives cost more than usual or were also subject to cancellations or delays.
To avoid rising prices and the hassle of layovers, she is no longer planning to head home for Thanksgiving. She said she intended the trip to be a surprise for her mom.
“It’s just really disappointing,” she said. “There’s probably a whole bunch of other college students and families that just want to be reunited for the
Thanksgiving break.”
BU sophomore Isobel Reed said she booked a flight home to Las Vegas on Nov. 21 for the break.
However, she said she’s already prepared for it to be canceled.
“If they cancel my flight, I can’t fly out any earlier in the day because I have classes,” Reed said. “You want to know you’re going home. You want to be excited to see your family.”
In an email to The Daily Free Press, BU Spokesperson Colin Riley wrote BU plans to aid students who choose to stay on campus over Thanksgiving break, but he is not yet aware of any planned accommodations for students whose flights may be canceled.
At Logan on Tuesday, delays continued to disrupt travel plans.
Saketh Damera, a 22-yearold researcher at the National Institute of Health, was informed of two delays a couple hours apart for his flight back to Maryland while waiting by baggage claim.
He described the delay as “a little inconvenient,” and he was concerned about catching the Metro in Washington, D.C. before it stops running at 12 a.m.
Barry Zhu, a 24-year-old student, received notice his flight to Chicago had been delayed from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. after arriving at the airport.
“It’s an inconvenience,” Zhu said. “I don’t think politics should influence life. I don’t think this should be happening anymore.”
Olivia Rajakovic contributed to the reporting of this article.
In aftermath of ICE raid on Allston Car Wash, community groups work to protect local immigrant population
BY LIAM DUNNE City Co-Editor CITY
After a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid on the Allston Car Wash last week, immigrant support networks, local leaders and neighbors have banded together to support the detainees.
City Councilor Liz Breadon, who represents Allston, said she arrived at the scene shortly after the raid Nov. 4. Nine employees were arrested — all with work permits, said the car wash’s manager, Jose Barrera.
“I’ve talked to many, many neighbors since last week, and I haven’t had one person say that was the right thing to happen,” Breadon said. “Most people are horrified and just very, very concerned that ordinary, hardworking folks are being treated like this.”
LUCE Immigrant Justice Network of Massachusetts has established a “defense hotline” to inform residents of ICE activity in their neighborhoods. When LUCE receives a call, the network alerts trained volunteers in the area to verify the situation.
Volunteers from Boston University ICE Watch, a member organization of LUCE anchored by Back Bay Young Democratic Socialists of America, responded to the raid.
“We gained information, and we provided that to the hotline,” said the BBYDSA co-chair, who wished to remain anonymous because of potential backlash from BU and fears of putting people he knows personally at risk of deportation. “We also helped inform the community about what happened and about the LUCE hotline and what to do if they do
see ICE or ICE comes to their establishment.”
In an X post Nov. 7, Boston University College Republicans President Zac Segal wrote he reported the car wash to ICE numerous times.
“I’ve been calling ICE for months on end. This week they finally responded to my request to detain these criminals,” Segal wrote. “As someone who lives in the neighborhood, I’ve seen how American jobs are being given away to those with no right to be here. Pump up the numbers!”
Segal did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
In a statement to The Daily Free Press, the Allston Brighton Health Collaborative condemned Segal’s actions and asserted that anyone who threatens the safety of community members is not welcome in Allston.
“We are outraged by the cowardly, uninformed and blatantly racist action that BU student Zac Segal said he took to report on local hard working people, ripping families apart and harming an entire community in the process,” ABHC wrote in the statement.
Other organizations have sought to provide direct assistance to detained immigrants, including the Brazilian Women’s Group, a LUCE coalition member.
Heloisa Galvão, co-founder and executive director of the Brazilian Women’s Group, said the group has written letters of recommendation for two of the detainees, who are awaiting scheduled bond hearings.
The organization has also written letters in support of other detained immigrants, secured 54 requests for bond payments on immigrants’ behalf and attempted to provide them with money while
they remain in detention.
Galvão emphasized the importance of alleviating financial burdens — be it rent, utilities or food — in immigrant communities, especially amid uncertainty surrounding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.
“Many times the man [is] the breadwinner, the one that brings income,” Galvão said. “If he’s taken, the woman doesn’t have an income or has very little because she can’t work, out of fear, and also because she has small children.”
Boston organizations who generally do not focus on immigrant support — such as affordable housing nonprofit Charlesview Inc. — have expanded their services to meet the moment.
Executive Director Jo-Ann Barbour said Charlesview has provided food security grants to organizations like the Brazilian Women’s Group and has hosted invitation-only “Know Your Rights” workshops for immigrants and public meetings to inform residents of how to navigate interactions with ICE.
As part of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Progressive Mass is supporting the coalition’s Protecting Massachusetts Communities campaign efforts to push for state legislation centered around immigrant protection, said Policy Director Jonathan Cohn.
The organization is pushing for three proposed pieces of legislation — the Safe Communities Act and the Dignity not Deportations Act, which both aim to hinder state and local police collaboration with ICE beyond what is legally required, and the Immigrant Legal Defense Act, which would provide legal support for immigrants
facing deportation. Cohn emphasized the importance of visible community support for immigrants.
Anna Leslie, director of ABHC, said the organization purposefully does not draw attention to their efforts to support immigrants in the neighborhood to avoid interference by ICE.
“[There’s] a lot of ways that people are organizing more publicly and more behind the scenes,” she said. “We’re up against a force that is stronger than we’ve ever seen.”
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR Posting on a meter in Allston advocating for residents to call the hotline if U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is seen in the area. ICE raided a car wash in Allston Nov. 6 and arrested eight employees.
LEE DWYER | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Boston Logan International Airport during the federal government shutdown. Air traffic controllers across the country are in their second cycle of missed payments, resulting in thousands of canceled flights.
A protester holds an anti-ICE sign during a “Vets Say No” rally on Tuesday at the Veterans Memorial Park
GRETCHEN FULLER | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
‘An ode’ to Penn Station: BU COM professor premieres latest film ‘The Petal Pusher’ at DOC NYC
BY MARY GOETZ Associate Community Editor
David Abel, a professor of the practice of journalism at the Boston University College of Communications, has produced four documentary films mostly about marine life. However, his latest endeavor takes on a more personal tone — documenting the closure of his family’s long-time flower shop in the heart of New York City’s Penn Station.
“I wanted to do justice to this place,” Abel said. “Not just their story, but this whole community of an underground world in Penn Station. This fascinating world that I grew up going to all the time as a kid.”
The Petal Pusher, a flower shop opened by Abel’s father in the early 1970s, stood as one of the longestrunning small businesses in Penn Station before its closure in 2017 — a true mom-and-pop. After his father’s passing in 2011, Abel’s mother, Sydney Abel, continued the operations.
During the busier holidays, Abel and his siblings would assist their parents behind the counters, which Jennifer Krugel, Abel’s sister, described as a “meaningful” tradition within their family.
Though Krugel herself wasn’t featured much in the film, she said it was “beautiful” that her brother wanted to tell this part of their family history.
“I’m just hoping that he’s able
to convey the love that we all had for being a part of the business, the love that we all have for our family and for this tradition of being together,” Krugel said.
As the years went on and Penn Station prepared for renovations, rents rose beyond what the shop could afford, ultimately leading to its closure in 2017.
However, Sydney Abel said the closure’s timing was a blessing in disguise.
“The new Penn Station rerouted all the tracks,” she said. “There were two or three levels [before the renovations], and each had their own entrances for people to come down where we were, so they would pick up flowers and leave. But now, it’s just a whole different course.”
Abel originally shot most of the film’s footage in 2017, with no intention of turning it into a film.
But in 2023, while auditing an editing class taught by freelance documentary editor Mark Chesak, an adjunct professor at Emerson College and Boston University, Abel was moved to tears by a family film — and returned to his own footage.
“As I looked at it more closely, I thought, ‘We could do something with this,’” Abel said.
Penn Station to fill in the gaps. But upon returning, Abel found a place that looked drastically different from the one he remembered.
The 2020 Penn Station renovations — which added a new east entrance, raised ceilings and installed LED lighting — had transformed the station’s appearance and complicated Abel’s editing process.
However, traces of the old Penn Station remained.
Sammy C. Davis, who sings covers in one of the few unrenovated areas of Penn Station, is featured in the background of various parts of the film.
“In the same way … it’s still the same people coming through, and that is what endows [Penn Station] with it being such a unique place in the world,” Abel said. “It is, to me, in a lot of ways, like the heartbeat of New York City.”
For a filmmaker who crafts journalistic documentaries, Abel said capturing a story where he was a part of the narrative felt “weird and wrong.”
“I often thought about the story and how I was telling it through the prism of what my mom or my sister might think about it, or my dad, who’s no longer with us,” Abel said.
The film premiered Sunday at DOC NYC, a documentary film festival in New York City, where his family watched the film for the first time.
“My hope is that people see it as an ode to this place and this bygone era when it was what it was,” Abel said.
Professor David Abel takes down an image of his father as his family’s flower shop prepares to close. Abel released a documentary film illustrating the closure of The Petal
COM introduces Branded Content Production major, prepares students to work ‘across every industry’
BY CARINA MCCALLUM Contributing Writer
Up until a week ago, Elina Chen, a senior studying public relations, hadn’t considered pursuing a masters degree. But when Professor Amy Shanler visited BU’s PRLab, where Chen is a supervisor, to introduce a new BU program, that started to change.
BU’s College of Communication announced a new program this year that will be implemented in fall 2027: a five-year combined bachelor’s and master’s degree in Branded Content Production.
Chen signed up for an info session to learn more about the program.
“I can learn how to storytell the intangible assets, which is the branding of each corporation,” she said. “This is not a program that only specifically fit[s] into one industry, but [works] across every industry.”
The Branded Content Production degree emphasizes interdisciplinary skills and is designed for students in marketing, media science, advertising, PR and film and television. COM professors Maura Smith and Amy Shanler initially came up with the idea and developed the program with help from others in COM.
Shanler said they created the program in recognition of convergence between communications industries and
increased demand for diverse multimedia content.
“By cross-training them, even if they enter the workforce in their track where they have their undergraduate degree, they’ll be better able to collaborate with people across the entire marketing, communication [and] content creation spectrum,” Shanler said. COM is “uniquely positioned” to give students these opportunities, Smith said, given the quality of the programs already offered within the college.
“It seemed like this [Branded Content Production program] is something where we could join forces and create a program that was specifically designed to help our students to be prepared for these positions once they graduate,” Smith said.
Chen said she plans on applying to the program and will likely take a gap year to gain work experience before coming back to BU for the launch of the program in fall 2027.
Though Chen isn’t yet sure what she wants to pursue, she said she imagines the degree could help open the door to a range of different industries.
“One word to describe these programs is [its] cutting edge, like blending all of the majors and minors together,” Chen said. “I feel like this is a very good chance for students to figure out their career path in today’s world, since everything is changing so fast.”
Branded Content Production isn’t the only new program COM
has on the horizon.
Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Anne Danehy said two more graduate programs are in the works, both pending final approval from the university: an online Master of Science in Strategic Integrated Communication to help mid-career professionals who want to take on a more leadership role in their field and a Master of Science in Human Centered Design to prepare students in leading design initiatives tailored to the user.
Danehy, who is also an associate professor of the practice for the Mass Communications, Advertising and Public Relations department, said on top of this, there are other programs in development, and these three are “just the beginning.”
“We’re moving at a really rapid pace and developing both master’s programs, undergraduate programs [and] looking at programs that cut across the College [of Communication],” Danehy said.
Among the student body, COM’s initiatives to create new programs have met various reactions.
Anna McClean, a senior studying PR and the co-president of PRLab, said she found the Branded Content Production program “really exciting.”
“I thought about applying and I haven’t yet. I still don’t know, but it sounded intriguing,” McClean said. “As an opportunity to get my Master’s was only one more year, and without having to apply to a whole new school and re-adjust,
Poster boards featuring content advertisements Boston University students have made for clients and class projects. BU College of Communication recently announced a five-year combined bachelors and masters program in branded content production.
logistically, it makes sense.”
Diya Kapoor, a freshman studying advertising, said she doesn’t plan on going into the Branded Content Production program but hopes interested students will.
“The [Mass Communications, Advertising and Public Relations] program and the film and TV program being together is really important because video production is becoming more grandeur in the ad industry,” she said. “It’s really cool to have courses on that and such so people can be knowledgeable.” McClean attributed COM’s surge in new programs to an effort to bring more students into the school.
“Colleges in general right now are having a hard time gaining and retaining college students,” McClean said. “It’s probably just opening up more doors for hopefully people to walk through and into our school.”
Shanler said the introduction of the Branded Content Production program is a good way to help students figure out their future career paths in today’s professional climate.
“In order for you to grow to the next level and expand your sphere of influence, you need to have a broader connection to all of the communication disciplines,” Shanler said. “That’s the impetus behind this degree program.”
COMMUNITY
IRENE YIMMONGOKOL | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
A scene of employees preparing bouquets in The Petal Pusher.
CAL LAFAUCI | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
IRENE YIMMONGOKOL | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
The promotional poster of Boston University Professor David Abel and Mark Chesak’s new documentary film “The Petal Pusher.” The film details the closure of Abel’s family flower shop that originally opened in New York’s Penn Station in the 1970s.
IRENE YIMMONGOKOL | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Pusher in New York City’s Penn Station.
Looking back at efforts from Boston businesses, nonprofits to aid SNAP recipients amid government shutdown
BY JOHN TATUM Associate Business Editor
AND STELLA FEINSTEIN Contributing Writer
Nearly 42 million people across the United States faced uncertainty about their next meal after Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits ran out Nov. 1 during the longest federal government shutdown in the country’s history.
As of Wednesday, the 43-day-long shutdown is over, meaning SNAP recipients could receive their benefits as early as 24 hours from then.
Formerly known as “food stamps,” SNAP benefits are subsidies that help low-income families pay for groceries.
On the first day of each month, funds are deposited on a governmentissued electronic benefit transfer card, allowing recipients to purchase eligible items at participating stores.
Over the last two weeks, when the government shutdown was still in place, businesses across Greater Boston showed support for the community in light of the food insecurity crisis.
Allandale Farm in Brookline partnered with the Loring Greenough House in Jamaica Plain to organize a
free farmers market — open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. the first three Thursdays of November.
Last week, about 70 people were in line before the market opened, and the farm ran out of food by 11:30 a.m., an Allandale Farm representative wrote in an email to The Daily Free Press.
“We at Allandale think it is unconscionable for our government to let people starve while fighting over whether or not people should have affordable healthcare,” they wrote.
“We are hoping that this market helps ease the burden that our food insecure community members will be feeling and that longtime food pantries will be experiencing during this shutdown.”
Some restaurants in Boston also helped out by providing free “community meals.”
Taco Azul, located near Boston Common, provided free meals from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. every day for SNAP recipients or those who had been affected during the government shutdown. In addition, the restaurant offered free meals for kids any time during its business hours.
Dan Leyva, founder and CEO of Taco Azul, said the community is a “core part” of the restaurant’s business operations, and its response to the shutdown and SNAP pause followed from that focus.
“Yes, we’re a business at the end of the day … and we still have to figure out how to pay our bills and how to pay our employees,” he said. “With that being said, sometimes it’s important for us to forgo any efforts for profit and give back to the community, and so it really wasn’t a hesitation for us.”
Leyva said his team didn’t want anyone to feel embarrassment or shame in asking for help.
“We wanted people to know, ‘We’re here for you,’ whether it’s just a tough time today [or] it’s because of the furloughs,” he said. “They’re getting a whole meal, just as if they were paying full price for it, and we allow them to sit in the restaurant or take it to go.”
Brothers and Sisters Co., a cafe in Brookline Village, has hosted a community fridge for five years, where locals can anonymously take food they need and leave what they can.
“We’ve seen a pretty consistent and steady need for food over the five years,” said Jamie Siracusa, owner of Brothers and Sisters Co. “But, [over] the past two weeks … we can’t keep up with the demand right now.”
As a result, Siracusa said, there was an increase in donations, and customers even began raising funds for the cafe’s initiative. She said although the cafe pays for the fridge’s electricity, the fridge is entirely run by
volunteers.
In May, the cafe partnered with Bowls4Boston, an organization run by six Boston University students that connects food donors with food banks, who offered to build a new fridge for the cafe after the original fell into disrepair.
Now, just across from the Brookline Village MBTA stop, people are greeted by the brand new “Jennifer Coolfridge.”
“Because [the name is] something so fun, I imagine some of it was just to gain traction and to get people to know about it,” Siracusa said. “I think it’s working in that way.”
However, after SNAP benefits were paused, its stock was frequently running low, she said.
“The attention the fridge is getting is definitely higher, and we’re running through things like crazy,” she said.
Siracusa said there are several ways to contribute — whether it be cleaning and organizing the fridge or donating money, which earns the donor a community card that can be used to redeem coffee or a meal at Brothers and Sisters Co.
In addition to businesses, there were also efforts from nonprofit organizations to support those affected by the SNAP cuts.
Brookline Food Pantry, for instance, has served the larger Brookline area since the 1980s, said Elizabeth Boen, the pantry’s executive director.
“When I came on board in 2017, we were helping about 175 families per week,” Boen said. “That changed for us in 2020, as soon as the COVID crisis hit … we went from serving about 175 families a week to serving almost 650 families in three weeks. The need has really not dropped from week to week since 2020.”
The Allston Brighton Food Pantry was another source of food security for those suffering SNAP cuts in the Greater Boston area, serving both neighborhoods.
Grant Haas, Zero Waste fellow at BU Sustainability and recent BU graduate, is a volunteer for the pantry.
Haas said community efforts like food pantries cannot satisfy such high demand forever, which is why they need all the help they can get.
“While the networks we have to aid and assist are incredible, they are not a suitable replacement. We can’t keep going forward like this,” Haas said. “I think that message should be used to both drive people to support their local organizations as much as possible [and] find out where you can best use anything you have.”
Mental health study co-led by BU professor finds college student mental health improves for third year in a row
BY ISABELLE ZHANG Associate City Editor
Mental health for college students has improved for the third year in a row, according to a national survey on mental health co-led by Sarah Lipson, a Boston University School of Public Health associate professor.
The annual Healthy Minds Study has received more than 935,000 respondents since it launched in 2007 launch and surveys college students across the United States on mental health outcomes, knowledge and attitudes.
The 2024-25 report, which was released in September, found 17% of students reported severe depression symptoms, a 2% drop from 19% in 2023. Suicidal ideation dropped from 13% to 11%, according to the report.
Lipson said the study found student mental health consistently declined “for about 10 years straight” until 2022, when the percentage of students who reported experiencing major depression decreased by 3% from the year before.
Lipson attributed this improvement to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led schools to adopt a “public health approach” to mental health support. Using the same public health tactics used to combat the COVID-19 virus — like screenings, preventative measures and testing — the researchers could now address student mental health more effectively, she said.
“The minute that the biggest crisis of COVID was over, schools were faced with the much bigger crisis [of] student mental health,” Lipson said. “It was this really opportune time to [use] everything that we just learned.”
Lipson said she hopes students’ mental health will continue to improve, but educational institutions must maintain and increase mental health resources to make this progress possible.
This means partnering with student organizations, collecting survey data or feedback from an advisory board and visiting residence halls and academic classrooms, Lipson said. To encourage students to utilize these resources, schools need to “meet students where they’re at,” she added.
“One of the biggest barriers for students getting mental health resources and support is just that they’re so busy,” Lipson said. “We’ve seen levels of [mental health] knowledge go up overall, and still, many students aren’t utilizing the resources that are available to them.”
However, Lipson added, this approach is “a two-way street.”
“There’s a huge role for student activism and students to be pushing the administration … to meet their needs, and there’s a huge role and responsibility for the administration to be really proactive in creating solutions that meet students’ needs,” she said. “It goes both ways, and it’s best when the administration and activism are working together.”
This dynamic is reflected on BU’s
campus, where numerous studentled organizations work to address the topic of mental health.
The Mental Health Committee, for instance, is an advocacy group within BU Student Government aiming to “expand awareness and destigmatize mental health,” said Committee Chair Armaan Anthony.
“It’s okay to not be okay. To be able to share your struggles [is] the most important thing, and it’s not something to be ashamed of,” Anthony said. “Being able to come forward and be completely honest and confront some of those issues that you are having is going to be beneficial.”
Anna Simms, a member of the MHC, said some individuals, especially men and people of color, “don’t want to be labeled as weak” or unable to handle their stress.
“We just have to start talking about [mental health] more and make it more normal,” Simms said.
Anthony added the MHC is working on various initiatives, including a fundraiser for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization, as well as a suicide prevention walk.
Nelissa Julot, former social media coordinator for the Black, Indigenous, People of Color Mental Health Collective at BU, said she is not surprised college student mental health is improving, especially at BU, where students are encouraged to take advantage of mental health care resources.
Julot said the BIPOC Health
Collective has made its own effort to provide university-wide support. The club posted an infographic sharing the University’s resources, hosted a yoga event led by a professional instructor and handed out mental health care kits on International Mental Health Day.
However, Lipson said despite University initiatives to support student mental health, some issues are “outside of the college ecosystem” and fall beyond an institution’s control.
She said schools should focus on
supporting “particularly vulnerable” student populations, such as LGBTQ+ and international students, who often face “enormous stress” from federal actions and policy.
“There’s nothing that a school could do right now to reduce a [transgender] student’s fears about their ability to get an ID that matches their identity,” Lipson said. “That’s not within the purview of what a school is going to be able to do, but a school can certainly support those students and be proactive in recognizing [their] needs.”
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
The Brookline Food Pantry on Egmont Street, which provides food to residents of the Brookline Housing Authority — many of whom are low-income, elderly or disabled. The business has recently stepped up to provide food to residents amid government cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
DANIEL GARBER | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
“Jennifer Coolfridge,” a community fridge located outside Brothers and Sisters Co. in Brookline to assist residents with food access.
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR Workers at Taco Azul near the Boston Common prepare food in the open kitchen. Tazo Azul has stepped up to serve free meals to customers amid SNAP cuts.
Fall sports through our lens.
BY JENNY
Every fall, Boston University student athletes polish their skills and channel their competitive spirits in their attempts to claim a winning record or championship, but as winter approaches, they’re no longer the only teams gearing up for the season.
Among the various branches of photography, sports photography stands out as one of the most technically and creatively demanding, yet the photographers of The Daily Free Press brought the heat during both impressive wins and tough losses. From soccer to ice hockey, the players are not the only ones shining on the field.
CHEN
Freshman forward Jack Murtagh stops on the blue line during start lineup announcements before the Oct. 10 men’s ice hockey game against Colgate University. Boston University played Colgate to a 2-2 tie, which the Terriers won in a shootout.
BEN CLARK | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Sophomore guard Bella McLaughlin attempts a basket during the Nov. 7 women’s basketball game against Dartmouth.
BEN CLARK | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Freshman midfielder Sebastian Otero, senior midfielder Jack Grossman and freshman defender Austin Mobray at the Oct. 14 men’s soccer game against Northeastern.
JENNY
| LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Senior midfielder Giulianna Gianino chases a ball during the Nov. 6 women’s soccer game against Lafayette.
YAN BI | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Senior guard Taylor Williams attempts a layup in the Nov. 3 women’s basketball game against Quinnipiac.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Sophomore goaltender Mikhail Yegorov sweeps aside the puck in the Oct. 11 men’s ice hockey game against Colgate.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Senior midfielder Ethan Gill faces off against the Bucknell Bisons goalie in the Nov. 8 men’s soccer team game.
BEN CLARK | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Freshman midfielder Sebastian Otero watches as his goal attempt is successful during the Oct. 5 men’s soccer game against Loyola Maryland.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR Senior midfielder Mackenzie Stickelman headbutts a ball at the Nov. 6 women’s soccer game versus Lafayette.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
A BU women’s eight crew rows on the Charles River during the 2025 Head of Charles Regatta.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Senior midfielder Diego Rived maintains possession of the ball in the Oct. 31 men’s soccer game against Lafayette.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR BU fan Brian Zive, also known as Sasquatch to BU hockey fans, waves a flag in front of the Dog Pound.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Junior midfielder Maggie Driscoll and senior midfielder Martu Coulo attempt to steal possession of the ball in the Sept. 28 women’s field hockey game against University of New Hampshire. Martu was an All-Patriot League First Team selection this year.
YAN BI | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
Senior forward Anete Adler celebrates a hard-earned point in the Nov. 3 women’s basketball game against Quinnipiac.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR Senior forward Alex Bonnington gives a thumbs up to the crowd during starting lineup announcements before the Nov. 8 men’s soccer game against Bucknell.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Junior defenseman Gavin McCarthy shoots the puck in the Oct. 11 men’s ice hockey game against Colgate.
CHEN Layout Co-Editor BEN CLARK DFP Photographer AND YAN BI DFP Photographer
Women’s soccer rakes in season awards, thrives in conference play despite loss in final
BY IZABELLA LEIDEL Contributing Writer
Despite a slow 3-4-3 start by the end of September, the Boston University women’s soccer team turned its season around, ending as the runner-up in the Patriot League Tournament with an 11-5-3 record.
Coming into the season, excitement surrounded the Terriers. The defending champions earned first place in the 2025 Patriot League Women’s Soccer Preseason Poll and swept the individual preseason awards.
Senior forward Margy Porta won Patriot League Women’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Year, while senior midfielder Giulianna Gianino, senior defender Helene Tyburczy and sophomore goalkeeper Bridget Carr won Preseason Player of the Year awards at their respective positions.
Due to this excitement, the Terriers’ early struggles came unexpectedly. Carr missed nearly the entire month of September, which raised uncertainty about the team’s goalkeeping. During this time, BU allowed seven goals while scoring a mere four goals of their own through four games.
“Non-conference play is always
a bunch of changes, and you’re trying different things out. So, it’s a lot of tactical adjustments,” BU Head Coach Megan Burke said about the team’s slow start. “You’re trying to figure out what works and what sticks.”
Soon enough, the team figured out what works. The Terriers opened up conference play against Navy on Sept. 20 and went 7-1-1 in Patriot League play — marking seven consecutive wins. Throughout BU’s final six games of the regular season, Carr did not allow any goals while her teammates notched an impressive total of 19 goals.
“We’ve grown so much confidence by keeping clean sheets over the past stretch of games,”
Burke said.
The Terriers then moved on to the Patriot League postseason. As the No. 1 seed, they bypassed the first round of the playoffs, proceeding directly to the semifinals. BU triumphed against No. 5 seed Lafayette in the semifinals, winning 4-0 in a thrilling game but ultimately fell 3-2 to No. 2 seed Army West Point in the championship Sunday.
In the Terriers’ two postseason appearances, junior forward Ava Maguire had a particularly outstanding performance.
“She’s so capable of driving at defenders and using her pace as an advantage,” Burke said of Maguire. “That’s where goals came from.”
After scoring twice against Lafayette, Maguire tallied one goal and one assist against Army. She credited Gianino and sophomore midfielder Olivia Avellar for their assists on her first goal.
“I found a lot of success out wide in that first part of the second half,” Maguire said following the win over Lafayette. Gianino had an amazing season. She led the Patriot League with 11 assists and ranked second in points with 25, earning a selection as 2025 Patriot League Midfielder of the Year and first team All-Patriot League honors. Gianino is just one of BU’s star
seniors. The Patriot League named Tyburczy as 2025 Defensive Player of the Year, and she earned first-team All-Patriot League honors alongside Porta and senior midfielder Mackenzie Stickelman. Senior defender Morgan Weaver obtained the second-team AllPatriot League honors.
“The seniors have given so much to this program on all sides of the ball and just off the field,” Burke said following the loss to Army. “I’m so excited to see what they do outside of soccer and outside of college, but [I’m] just so grateful that our paths crossed and so proud of what they gave this team.”
Burke herself had a highlyacclaimed season after earning 2025 Patriot League Coach of the Year — the same year she was promoted to head coach.
Burke said making the Patriot League championship is an “expectation and a standard” at the BU women’s soccer program.
“I’m very happy and proud of what we had to accomplish to get here,” Burke said. “But at the end of the day, we want to win.”
While the Terriers certainly would’ve loved to win their championship game against Army, their season was impressive nonetheless — the accolades speak for themselves.
Inside the Pocket: Too good to change — why the NFL should leave field goals alone
SPORTS
BY OLIVIA BARRETT DFP Writer
The NFL is an ever-evolving league — constantly gaining faster and more powerful players, more dynamic play calling and new rules. Yet one fixture stands true: the field goal.
Despite kickers becoming more accurate and long-range kicks being used more liberally, the field goal remains the purest test of composure in the NFL. Attempts to make it harder wouldn’t significantly change the pressure and drama that makes it an essential part of football.
Even in a league full of athletic freaks, the kicker and his role have stood the test of time and continue to decide outcomes and make history. On Nov. 2, during the Jaguars-Raiders game, Jaguars’ kicker Cam Little lined up to kick a 68-yarder as the first half clock expired. Before the kick, Little told his holder, Logan Cooke, “I’m going to hit this ball as hard as I can.”
Moments later, he pounded his chest and received pats on the helmet by his teammates in celebration.
Little’s 68-yard field goal made history as the longest field goal ever in the NFL.
While Little’s moment remained nothing short of spectacular, it also became part of a growing trend this season. As of week nine of the NFL season, there have been seven 60plus yard field goals. The previous record for 60-plus yard field goals in a season held at five in 2022 and 2023, showing how increasingly regular long-range kicks have become.
One reason for this spike? A new rule regarding the breaking in of kicking balls.
In past years, kickers received three new footballs at the beginning of each game, which gave them limited time to break in the balls. This year, each team got 60 kicking balls at the start of the season that they could break in throughout the year.
Even with some adaptation to kicking balls this year, I still believe no play in the game is purer than a field goal. No gimmicks or trickery
can replace the feeling of a football sailing through the uprights as the clock winds to zero — no matter how easy or common it’s become.
NFL kickers have become so well-versed in field goals that last year the league-wide field goal percentage was 84% — 6% better than last year’s NBA’s leaguewide free throw percentage. The difference is significant, as basketball free throws are much easier and common than field goals in the NFL. This helps explain why many want to make field goals more difficult.
Last season, the competition committee looked at the possibility of narrowing goal posts, according to an NFL executive. While they didn’t enact any new rules, the chatter itself spoke to the league’s recognition of how skilled kickers have become and the frustration that field goals have gotten too easy.
But if kickers have gotten so good to the point where NFL executives are discussing making kicks harder, why are we constantly hearing about the misses? Again, take the same Jaguars-Raiders game: Just
one minute prior to Little’s recordsetting kick, Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson missed a PAT. Moments like this serve as another reminder of what makes the kick so special: their unpredictability. When the game comes down to three points or less, stadiums still fall silent, thousands of fans still bite their nails and coaches still hold their breath. Kickers may be more accurate
than ever, but that doesn’t mean that field goals have lost their edge. It’s not the difficulty of the kick that makes field goals what they are — it’s the moment of both simplicity and immense pressure.
In a league obsessed with flashiness, the kick is the purest test of composure. It’s the one element that keeps the NFL grounded and reminds us that amid the drama some things are better left as they are.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Senior midfielder Giulianna Gianino kicks the ball.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR
Sophomore forward Olivia Avellar attempts to steal possession of the ball against an Army West Point defender. The Boston University women’s soccer team lost the Patriot League final to the Black Knights on Nov. 8.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR Junior forward Ava Maguire throws in the ball.
JENNY CHEN | LAYOUT CO-EDITOR Sophomore goalkeeper Bridget Carr runs onto the field during starting lineup announcements.
Is
Mamdani bringing
communism
to New York City? Definitely not. | The Anti-Imperialist Club
COLUMN
BY MAROUA RAHAOUI
Contributing Columnist
Zohran Mamdani won. All kinds of emotions have been on blast this past week, but for more than 1 million voters, it’s been a relief and joy.
Mamdani, the current may or-elect of New York City, ran as the Democratic candidate against independent Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. The youngest mayor-elect in nearly a century, Mamdani won the election with just over 50% of the vote. He is the first Muslim and South Asian to run the Big Apple.
Mamdani refer enced his religion of Islam and his mixed background — Ugandan, Indian, South African, New Yorker — in speeches throughout his mayoral campaign.
He referred to not just his own experiences as a Muslim American but also to others’ experiences, tell ing stories of those in his commu nity. At a rally in Queens, Mamdani asked the crowd to raise their hands if they’ve ever been called a “terrorist” — and dozens in the audience raised their hands.
by not just strangers, but by their own neighbors, workplaces and by Western media.
This meant attacks on visible Muslims, Sikhs, South Asians and Arabs. Sikhs aren’t Muslim, and Arab Christians exist — but that didn’t matter to the passerby white supremacist that would yell “terrorist” across the street. As Washington Post columnist and
I’m not the only one — and neither is Mamdani.
I grew up watching the media dehumanizing people who looked like me, branding my religion as one of extremism. The Islamopho bia spike after 9/11 wasn’t a onetime incident.
As someone who was born post-9/11, this is the only reality I know.
In a city that has dealt with the Islamophobic aftershocks of 9/11, it’s healing witnessing a Muslim elected as mayor 24 years later — especially in a society where those who were Muslim or simply “looked” Muslim were targeted
The self-awareness of my hijab walking into non-Muslim dominated spaces. The disturbed looks in white-populated neighborhoods. The “Go back to your country” comments or the “Where are you really from?” questions after insisting I am American.
When the pro-Palestine move ment expanded after Oct. 7, 2023, a study showed a 300% increase in calls reporting Islamophobia to the Council on American-Islamic Relations in the following
This was what it meant to be a Muslim American — reading news of a white man attacking his hijabi neighbor and killing her 6-year-old Palestinian-American son or trying to find major outlets covering the targeted shooting of a Muslim woman in Maryland. High hate crime, low accountability.
But no more.
Mamdani has begun to change that cycle, joining the movement of other Muslim politicians before him. It means something when he attends Friday service at a mosque in San Juan, Puerto Rico after his mayoral win. It means something when he is attacked for eating with his hands and is called a “communist” by the president of the United States.
For far too long, politicians have used “Muslim” and “Arab” as derogatory insults, with the president himself calling Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer “Palestinian” as a slur.
So, it means something when Cuomo, a Democrat, agrees that “Mamdani would celebrate an other 9/11,” and people from both the left and right de nounce his comment as Is lamophobic. That is what change looks like.
Mamdani didn’t just say he was for the people — he showed it. He visited communities of all backgrounds and connected with voters from all generations. Through that, he reinforced his Islamic values of helping others in need.
For others, this was the universal free childcare and affordable housing that he promised. He was for the working class people that made up the city — not the few elite
that pulled the strings. Mamdani is ready to tax the rich and uplift the poor. He’s cutting those strings.
For Muslims, it meant no longer feeling like the odd one out. Mamdani’s win means a city that scarred its own Muslim population with Islamophobic attacks post9/11 is now a city that has chosen a Muslim leader. Someone who is standing for all New Yorkers, of all backgrounds, religions and ethnicities.
In Mamdani’s victory speech, he said, “The sun may have set over our city this evening, but as Eugene Debs once said, ‘I can see the dawn of a better day for humanity.’”
New York City has a Muslim mayor. You never know: We might soon have a Muslim president.
Politics or performative professionalism? | Editorial
EDITORIAL
And so the crime log of 2025 continues. By now, you’re probably well aware that on Oct. 19, France’s crown jewels were looted from the Louvre Museum in Paris. Eight items were purloined, valued at a whopping sum of $102 million, including a crown worn by Empress Engénie, wife of Napoleon III.
Following the heist, the Associated Press circulated a photo of the dapper “detective” supposedly working the case. Dressed in a waistcoat and fedora, clutching an umbrella in hand, he looked straight out of “Sherlock Holmes” or 1940s film noir. The photo became an instant viral sensation — propelled by a post on X by journalist Melissa Chen that has amassed nearly 6 million views.
“Actual shot (not AI!) of a French detec tive working the case of the French Crown Jewels that were stolen from Louvre in a brazen day light robbery,” Chen wrote.
Shortly after Chen posted the tweet, AP News revealed the “detective” had no legitimate connection to the Louvre investigation at all. In fact, an estimated 100 real detectives are working col lectively to piece together the heist that shocked the world — one that has been labeled a “ter rible failure” by the director of the Louvre.
The anonymous “man” was later identified as 15-year-old Pedro Elias Garzon Delvaux from Rambouillet, France.
Oblivious to the covert operation that had oc-
curred, Delvaux and his family made the journey to visit the Louvre. He was photographed when asking the police beside him why the museum was closed.
Drawing inspiration from fictional detectives, Delvaux began dressing in this manner less than a year ago. But social media had already taken off with the narrative.
Of course, Deveux’s case is rather harmless, but perhaps this example of mistaken identity is emblematic of the world we inhabit today — one where presentation trumps actual preparation. The difference, however, is that when a focus on image seeps into politics and law enforcement, accountability is often replaced by appearances.
Today, our society is littered with illusions of authority. The United States specifically has mastered the art
which has become all the more evident in our current political landscape — in much more dangerous ways than before.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers cloak harm under the guise of their badges and uniforms signaling authority. Today, more than 20,000 ICE agents, accused cowards and racists, lurk in predominantly Latino communities, masking themselves for the purpose of preventing “doxing, which can (and has) placed them and their families at risk,” according to ICE.
“just doing their job.”
Eric Balliet, a former federal agent who led investigations regarding misconduct of force for ICE, recalled in an interview with CBS News, “This isn’t policing and law enforcement as I practiced it for 25 years.”
“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers cloak harm under the guise of their badges and uniforms signaling authority.”
However, ICE is actively endangering individuals and separating families in the name of preserving national security, according to its mission. Despite claiming to be protecting themselves, ICE agents are masking their identities to prevent conseMothers and fathers have been thrown to the ground in front of their children. Peaceful protesters have been teargassed, choked, punched and severely injured in risky car maneu-
Motivated by the Trump administration’s nationalist rhetoric and unwavering immigration stance, a record number of 107,000 detainees could be held in ICE dy by January 2026 — doubling the average number of migrants held per day in detention facilities by any prior presidential administration. This isn’t ICE
What’s changed is the sense of entitlement endowed by the current administration and attire worn by these officers to elide accountability while overriding humanity and basic human decency.
But performative professionalism is not limited to ICE — it’s prevalent in every political department and sphere.
Andrew Cuomo, former governor of New York and defeated independent candidate in the 2025 New York City mayoral election, donned the look of thought leadership during his campaign to proclaim he would prioritize delivering a “safe New York City.”
One has got to wonder: What’s more unsafe than empowering a man who has been credibly accused of sexual harassment by 13 women? Perhaps, in the name of transparency, Cuomo should have just presented himself as he behaves — like a pig in a tailored suit.
If a boy who simply likes to be chic can be assigned the title of lead detective for a monumental heist by the media, then maybe dressing the part is all it really takes these days. Who’s to say our money shouldn’t go toward investing in our wardrobes rather than our education, in which the cost is constantly rising?
So, if you ever find yourself in a scenario where you’re asked what a faux detective, 20,000 ICE agents and Andrew Cuomo have to do with each other, just remember that sometimes costumes can in fact, but unfortunately, cover for qualification.
This Editorial was written by Opinion Co-Editor Anjola Odukoya.
GIANNA HORCHER Associate Graphics Editor
ASHLEY LA | SeniorGraphi
ASHLEY LA | Senior Graphic Artist
ASHLEY LA | Senior Graphic Artist
EDITORIAL BOARD
THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY
The time change hit me hard, as I’m sure it hit most of you. When I get out of my last class on some days, it seems like it’s nighttime — yet it’s really only 4:45 p.m. But this jump forward in time, the weather getting colder and the semester really heating up takes a toll on us.
feel are important in college — leads us very quickly to burning out.
While it is our futures we’re worrying about and working for, there is really only so much that is in our control. We are still young, and we do have time — even if these moments in college feel sped up.
We first learn about forgiveness when we are young. When a kid hurts you on the playground or calls you a name in class, the teacher comes between you two, asks the other kid to apologize, asks us to forgive them and we quickly forget about what happened.
But as we get older, forgiveness becomes a complicated choice.
On one hand, we are told that forgiveness is a powerful tool — how mature it is to forgive someone, how it’s the only way to help you move on and how grudges cause more harm than good. We hear religious sayings, such as “forgive the sinner, not the sin,” or spiritual beliefs about forgiveness bringing good karma.
But, on the other hand, we hear self-help platitudes that promote zero tolerance for human imperfections, such as cutting off someone over the simplest mistakes. We are told we must do all this to uphold our own moral righteousness or to further weaponize therapeutic beliefs surrounding boundaries or personal “peace.”
All this leads us to wonder what forgiveness is and why we choose to do it in the first place.
Sometimes forgiveness between family can be beautiful and allows us to grow and heal old wounds. Other times, forgiving a family member seems more like a duty than a choice. We have all heard some version of the message that we must forgive someone because they are family — as if shared DNA cancels out harmful behaviors. It doesn’t.
Instead, we should learn to forgive family when they show accountability and a willingness to change. Without that, what’s the point?
It just leads us to carry unnecessary emotional baggage that we pass down to future generations.
Discussions around forgiveness in friendships can get overlooked, but for most people, platonic connections are some of the most intimate relationships. I’ve had friends whom I consider to be the loves of my life, and I also have old friends who have caused me to feel the worst pain I’ve ever felt.
is proof of a true commitment, and “real couples” work through their hardships.
But at times, this type of unwavering forgiveness can be romanticized.
We ignore red flags and think wrongdoings are normal. We forgive our partner not because they deserve it but because we are too scared to admit the relationship isn’t healthy. I’ve had friends who have forgiven partners because they are scared of being lonely or because they hope their partner will revert back to the person they once loved.
They forgive and hope for a change that will never come.
Yet, when there is healthy forgiveness between two partners, it can be beautiful. They can acknowledge the harm caused, be honest with where the relationship stands, adjust behaviors or attitudes and then move on. It enriches intimacy and strengthens trust in the relationship.
Something that I’m still learning is that forgiveness is never mandatory. Sometimes distance is the correct choice. Sometimes forgiveness doesn’t lead to reconciliation — or it’s completely unnecessary.
Another aspect we get in our heads about is the fear of making mistakes. It is a part of life to mess up. Being part of a prestigious school sometimes makes it difficult for us to accept that it’s okay to mess up.
Everyone has their motives when it comes to forgiveness. We can see it as a necessary step to allow us to move on from a conflict. It can be seen as the only way to repair and preserve a relationship. It can be used as a quick bandage to speed up the process of getting peace.
But like every other relationship, no friendship is perfect. There can be miscommunications, misunderstandings and conflicts. But real lasting friendships require some maintenance. Forgiveness can be a powerful tool to restore and strengthen our bonds. At the same time, deep conversations can show incompatibility, and we realize some friendships aren’t meant to last.
I spent a whole month after my breakup working to forgive a truly terrible ex. I wasted hours and money on therapy sessions where I decoded every action of his and repeated mottos, like “hurt people hurt people,” to understand why he did the things he did.
This week’s poem, by Pulitzer Prize winner Mary Oliver titled “I Worried,” really spoke to me, as the feelings of the world and the semester have been weighing on me. As always, I encourage you to read it aloud.
I Worried Mary Oliver
The fear of making mistakes will do nothing but hold you back and add to your stress and worries. And what good is worrying about things you have no control over?
“I worried a lot. Will the garden grow, will the rivers flow in the right direction, will the earth turn as it was taught, and if not how shall I correct it?
Was I right, was I wrong, will I be forgiven, can I do better?
Will I ever be able to sing, even the sparrows can do it and I am, well, hopeless.
Is my eyesight fading or am I just imagining it, am I going to get rheumatism, lockjaw, dementia?
Finally I saw that worrying had come to nothing. And I gave it up. And took my old body and went out into the morning, and sang.”
Throughout this poem, Oliver explores the little things she consistently worries about. It’s very easy for us, especially in college, to be constantly worrying about everything around us. We’re the youth — people are looking to us for the future, to see what we are capable of. But the majority of the time, we still don’t know what we want to do.
As class registration happens and we plan the next four months of our lives, there’s this overwhelming shadow of, “Is this really what I want?”
And as much as people say that college is your time to explore and try new things, it’s hard not to feel like the time goes by very quickly, and there isn’t enough time to try everything you want to do. This creates a stressful environment for a lot of us. Worrying about all of these things while going to classes, studying, working and participating in extracurriculars — things we
When we fall into a state of burnout and mental exhaustion, it often comes from putting too much energy into things we get no reward from. It would serve us better if we let go and let our worries play out the way they will.
In moments of tumult like these, the idea that everything happens for a reason tends to comfort me the most. Acknowledging that situations are out of your control often lifts a weight off you, even just for a moment.
Sometimes it’s hard, but you must sit back and let things happen. Dwelling on the past and worrying about the future will do nothing for you.
The world is harsh — we do not need to be mean and punish ourselves for things that we cannot control. Instead, we should take our worries, let them go and embrace the unknown.
We can plan out our lives all we want, but the world will change — and likely so will our desires. The more you worry about things you cannot control, the more you miss out on the things you have the power to accomplish.
Life is happening all around you. Don’t let the little things distract you from everything you can experience when you live in the now.
Sometimes there are external reasons — we don’t want to cause drama and disrupt group dynamics, we don’t want to be alone, or we want to be seen as the “bigger person.” We can even weaponize forgiveness, arguing that we have forgiven someone for their past mistakes, so they must forgive us for our current ones.
Most of these motives aren’t healthy, but they are human. Through our relationships with our family, partners and friends, forgiveness allows us to understand what we want from these relationships and if they are worth saving.
Sometimes we first learn about forgiveness in the context of our family. Emotional gaps between generations lead to parents not acknowledging past mistakes or siblings who weaponize their insecurities and experiences, which leads to resentment in adulthood.
When someone we care about hurts us, we want to do everything possible to fix the relationship — but some betrayals are so deep that there’s no use. And when that happens, is forgiveness really a healthy choice?
I know these two friends who are always in constant conflict. Friend One is, at times, needy and expects too much from someone who always falls short of every expectation. Friend Two, on the other hand, is bad at commitment and can be unaware of how their actions affect others.
I always hear about their neverending cycles of plans, fights and reconciliation, and I wonder why Friend One continues to put up with this. In their dynamic, I see how forgiveness can sometimes work against us. It can lead us to being trapped in a dynamic where our needs are constantly minimized. When someone knows that every harm they cause is going to be met with our unconditional forgiveness, they see no reason to change.
During my last conversation with him, he proceeded to claim that he didn’t remember any of the wrong that he did, and blamed me for causing the “distance” between us. After some back and forth, he eventually sent a “my bad” text to show his most sincere apologies.
Popular leftist politics are here. Democrats will do anything to
In that moment, I finally realized that he was an awful guy, that our relationship was always awful and that forgiveness wasn’t going to fix anything. If a relationship has always been bad, then there is no reason to waste energy trying to forgive the other person. You can just become indifferent and move on with your life.
Not forgiving someone doesn’t make you a resentful, cold person — it makes you someone who knows their worth. Forgiveness can be compassionate, but it can also be cruel. It can be simple, but it can be messy. It’s not a one-sizefits-all decision, but one that changes with every relationship. At its best, forgiveness allows us to grow and heal from our pain, keeping us from losing faith in
Sometimes, a simple “I forgive you” can be the most
COLUMN
GIANNA HORCHER | Associate Graphics Editor
City council hearings disclose BPD’s structural failures
Continued from page 1
These constraints mean that year after year, the City sets an overtime budget knowing it will be exceeded, Weber said.
Staffing collapse forces mandatory 16-hour days
City Councilor Ed Flynn said the root of Boston’s overtime crisis is straightforward: The city doesn’t have enough police officers.
At a May 2024 City Council meeting, police officials said the department loses an average of 131 officers each year but hires only about 108, continuing a staffing deficit that reflects a national trend.
“Because of the significant staff shortages, we are forcing police officers to work mandatory overtime, consistently 16-hour days,” Flynn told The Daily Free Press.
Flynn said he has raised the issue repeatedly in his seven years as a city councilor, warning about the physical and mental toll on officers.
Officers working up to 16 hours, Flynn added, cannot be expected to operate at “100%,” which creates safety risks for both the public and officers.
“That’s hurting our department. It’s hurting the city. It’s especially hurting our police officers and their families,” he said.
Flynn said he has worked to prioritize new police hires and more funding, but he noted that many councilors “did not feel it was appropriate to highlight challenges” that BPD is facing, resulting in limited action on staffing shortages.
The shortfall is a primary driver of overtime overspending: Fewer officers mean more mandatory overtime shifts to keep patrols staffed.
Crime Lab leadership left vacant for two years
While staffing shortages strain patrol operations, the City’s
Businesses,
forensic capacity has faced its own crisis. At a September 2025 Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee hearing, councilors described a two-year period during which the Boston Police Crime Laboratory had no permanent director, leaving critical positions unfilled and stalling upgrades to DNA testing.
The Boston Police Crime Lab is the department’s forensic hub, handling DNA testing, rape kit analysis, firearms examinations, fingerprints and other evidence that underpin criminal investigations and prosecutions.
During the meeting, Flynn said the “crime lab has had challenging times” without a director.
Councilors said in meetings across 2024 and 2025 that the lab lagged behind other major police operations because it had not adopted newer DNA testing methods used by Massachusetts and New York City police.
Councilors also noted that Boston continued to miss the state requirement to process rape kits within 30 days. In an April 2024 Public Safety and Criminal Justice meeting, Flynn testified that the crime lab failed to test roughly half of all rape kits within the 30-day deadline in fiscal year 2023.
Those delays pushed Flynn to propose a $1 million budget boost for fiscal year 2025 to hire staff, fill the director position that had been vacant for nearly two years and purchase new equipment.
Although the city council approved the budget boost, Flynn said he hasn’t seen any real progress in the September 2025 hearing.
Flynn told The Daily Free Press he remains “not confident in the Boston Police Crime Lab and their leadership,” citing the extended vacancy and ongoing technological shortcomings. He said the City must ensure the lab
has “the most advanced equipment and technology” and hire “the best people [they] possibly can” to restore confidence in forensic processing.
Testimony highlights decades of racial discrimination
The review also surfaced repeated testimony about racial inequities in the department.
At a January 2025 Government Accountability, Transparency and Accessibility hearing, retired BPD Detective Larry Ellison testified on a long history of discriminatory promotional exams.
Ellison referenced a 2023 federal court decision that awarded more than $40 million to officers of color statewide and ruled that the discriminatory system had been in place “for over 50 years,” beginning before Ellison’s career and “continuing to this day.”
Courts found the statewide police promotional exams discriminatory because they relied overwhelmingly on multiple-choice, textbook-based tests that did not measure real supervisory skills and produced a consistent, statistically significant racial disparity in scores and promotions. Judges ruled the state knew for years that the exams had a disparate impact on Black and Latino officers and failed to adequately adopt less biased, job-related alternatives that were available, violating Massachusetts anti-discrimination law.
Ellison also described retaliation concerns in the hearing. He testified that when he took an oath as president of the Massachusetts Association of Minority Law Enforcement Officers, he did so knowing it would end his career because BPD leadership saw the organization as a threat. The fear he described, he said, discourages officers of color from reporting inequities or pursuing leadership roles.
Boston
Department
As chair of the Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee, City Councilor Henry Santana wrote in a statement to The Daily Free Press that the findings highlight why strong oversight is necessary in building public trust.
“Oversight isn’t about criticism
tour groups grapple with a drop in
— it’s about ensuring that policies, investigations, and practices reflect fairness and integrity,” Santana wrote. “We strengthen public safety when we address systemic issues openly and work toward solutions that protect all residents.”
tourism amid declining international
BY OLIVIA RUZIC Senior Writer CITY
Boston business owners are leaning on local customers amid a decline in international tourism driven by tariff hikes and international tensions.
According to a HereBoston report, Massachusetts is facing a 10% decline in international tourism this year, with an expected 20% to 25% decline in Canadian tourism this summer compared with last year — the largest drop in visitation of all countries.
Chris Stephens, chief operating officer and minority owner of Boston Hidden Gems, a local tour
company, said he noticed about a 33% decrease in Canadian tourists in his tour groups “year over year” — despite being a new and “pretty rapidly growing” company.
Stephens attributed the drop in Canadian visitors to the Trump administration’s actions, including the ongoing trade conflict between Canada and the United States.
“The general vibe between the two countries, politically, is off right now with Trump’s talk of [making Canada] the 51st state,”
Stephens said. “There’s the tariffs going both directions, and Canada’s boycotting American products, and they’re boycotting American travel.”
In stark contrast to the projected decline in tourism for 2025, MeetBoston reported a 12%
relations,
tariff wars
increase in visitation to Boston in 2024 from 2023.
Other companies have seen a popularity shift in their programming as a result of more domestic travelers.
“Not many people who aren’t American care about Lexington and Concord, which is one of our primary tours, but we’ve seen that push a bit harder this year than we might have expected otherwise,” Stephens said.
Coinciding with the decline in visitors, HereBoston also reported some downtown retailers experienced a 40% drop in sales this year. However, most businesses are confident Boston will overcome these challenges with the help of its rich history and tourism organizations.
“We run a historic walking tour company. The Freedom Trail runs right through the center of Boston. It’s never been more popular than it is now,” said Maureen McAleer, operations director of Hub Town Tours, where tourists can book tours around Boston’s historic sites.
“Boston has something a little special to offer that will help at least some of the sectors, some of the hospitality sectors, to sort of weather the storm.”
As well as a decline in tourism, small businesses have been overwhelmed by tariffs.
“It’s a tool that the president is using to line his own pockets,” said Philip Saul, president of the South End Business Alliance. “It’s hurting small businesses in every dynamic.”
Saul’s business, SAULT New England, has paid $25-30,000 in tariffs between his three stores —
money he said he would otherwise invest into himself, the company and his employees.
Within the local community, encouraging residents to shop locally is another challenge.
“It’s important to spend a little bit of time and experience [at] a retail store with the store owner working there or with people that are employed in the neighborhood than it is to click on an Amazon order,” Saul said. “It’s important to know where your products are coming from. To buy locally, to shop locally.”
Business alliances across Boston support their neighboring restaurants and retails stores through community events, such as neighborhood strolls and restaurant crawls.
“It’s about connecting those other businesses and supporting them,” said Saul.
Tourism organizations have
continued to advertise Boston amid the downward trend.
“Meet Boston and the city’s tourism office have been BUSY trying to cultivate partnerships where they can and really sell Boston as a destination,” wrote Kelley Leonhard, CEO of Cambridge Historical Tours and the Boston History Company, in a statement to The Daily Free Press.
Next year’s tourism season is filled with three authentic Boston events all within about five to six weeks of each other, which draw visitors from around the world to downtown, said Michael Nichols, president of the Downtown Boston Alliance.
“It’ll be an amazing year to be downtown,” Nichols said. “Between [the Tall Ships], the World Cup and the 250th birthday … it’s going to be a crazy couple of months in Boston, we think a really successful one.”
LEE DWYER | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER Souvenir shops on Lansdowne Street in Fenway.
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
Police
uniform and badge. BPD has been experiencing notable issues within the department as revealed by Daily Free Press examination of nearly 400 City Hall hearings.
SUMMER LAROSE | DFP PHOTOGRAPHER
The first public school site located in front of Boston’s old City Hall is one of the many historical landmarks on the city’s famous Freedom Trail. Neighborhood event groups, historical tour groups and local businesses have continued to advertise their services despite a decline in the city’s tourism.
AND CORNELIA NESBIT
DFP Writer
JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH | PHOTO CO-EDITOR
City Councilor Ed Flynn outside of the Ianella Chamber prior to the start of the meeting on Wednesday.
