The Daily Northwestern Deciding Divestment Friday, May 22, 2015
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Even as students call for socially responsible investing, they face obstacles beyond their control
In Focus
Graphic by Mande Younge
By OLIVIA EXSTRUM
daily senior staffer @oliviaexstrum
On the night of Feb. 18, more than 400 people crowded into Norris University Center for an impassioned debate about a resolution asking Northwestern to divest from six corporations the reso-
Rapper A$AP Ferg announced for Dillo Day
Rapper A$AP Ferg will perform at Dillo Day, Mayfest announced Thursday. The rapper, a New York native, is scheduled to perform at 3 p.m. and is the fourth act to be announced, following Charli XCX, Odesza and Miguel. “The energy that he provides and type of music he plays is a missing link in the lineup,” Communication senior Michael Bass, Mayfest’s director of concerts, said in a news release. “It’s something that the campus has been looking for. We know this is going to turn up this campus more than it’s ever been before.”
lution’s sponsors say violate Palestinians’ human rights. More than five hours after the debate began, the resolution narrowly passed in Associated Student Government A$AP Ferg is known for his songs “Work (Remix)” and “Shabba,” both of which are on his 2013 album “Trap Lord.” “Ferg reaches all types of hiphop fans and NU students,” Medill senior Steven Goldstein, Mayfest’s co-chair of promotions, said in the release. “His hits are tailor-made for parties, but his music incorporates so many influences and subgenres. I think he’ll have fans on their heels the entire performance, and of course, the entire lakefill will go wild when the horns for ‘Shabba’ sound off.” A$AP Ferg will perform in the same slot that Chance the Rapper filled for last year’s Dillo Day in 2014. Dillo Day is May 30. — Shane McKeon
Senate, with 24 votes in favor, 22 votes against and three abstentions. More than three months after the vote, the resolution hasn’t resulted in any policy change — or divestment. Contemporary student divestment
movements face obstacles imposed by forces beyond campus. Today, NU’s investments are much less transparent than in years past after a switch to indirect investment in the 1990s made it much more difficult
to know what the University does or doesn’t hold. Reluctance to stray from what some call a politically neutral stance, coupled with a financial responsibility to make a large return on investments also influence investment decisions. » See DIVESTMENT, page 4
DM names 2016 beneficiary By TYLER PAGER
daily senior staffer @tylerpager
Blessings in a Backpack, a nonprofit that provides weekend meals for food insecure elementary school students, has been selected as the primary beneficiary for next year’s Dance Marathon. Each Friday, more than 3,700 Blessings in a Backpack volunteers distribute weekend meals for children dependent on federally-funded free and reduced price school meals during the week. The organization can feed one child on the weekend for a 38-week school year for between $80 and $100. “(Hunger) could arguably be the biggest problem that our generation ends
up facing,” said DM executive co-chair Arielle Miller, a Medill junior. “Especially on a really socially active and engaged college campus like Northwestern, we are the people that can start to think about how to solve this problem and start contributing on a grassroots level.” This is the first time since 2010 that DM has not chosen a medical-related organization for its primary beneficiary and only the third time in the organization’s 42-year history. The funds raised for DM will first help expand existing programs in Evanston’s Haven Middle School and Oakton Elementary School, DM announced Thursday. Cook County has the fourth highest rate of childhood hunger in the nation. The money will also support the development of new program sites in other
Chicago area schools and across the country, as well as help recruit and train new volunteers. “Childhood hunger is an invisible problem that has spread across the United States,” said Brooke Wiseman, CEO of Blessings in a Backpack, in a news release. “Being the NUDM 2016 beneficiary will allow these kids to know that people in their neighborhood care about them and are working together to keep them fed.” DM is also starting a yearlong service component through which members of the Northwestern community will be able to engage with the beneficiary beyond fundraising. Although the details of the service project are still being worked out, » See DM, page 7
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