February 24, 2020

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 VOL. CXXXVI NO. 12

THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

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PaperMill Fresh Asian Kitchen to open at Franklin’s Table The vendor is replacing The Juice Merchant HANNAH GROSS Staff Reporter

DESIGN BY AVA CRUZ | PHOTO BY TAMARA WURMAN

Brown-Long gave the keynote address LAUREN MELENDEZ Staff Reporter

Cyntoia Brown-Long was sentenced to life in prison at just 16 years old after killing a man who solicited her for sex. Exonerated after serving 15 years, Brown-Long visited campus to speak at a conference organized by Penn’s studentled criminal justice reform group, Beyond Arrests: Rethinking Systematic Oppression. Titled “Breaking Chains, Building Coalitions: Diversifying the Face of Criminal Justice Reform,” the BARS conference featured numerous speakers and events to advocate for criminal justice reform, with a focus on highlighting

marginalized voices, especially those who have been incarcerated. Along with Brown-Long’s keynote speech, the event included a panel of formerly incarcerated activists, a panel of scholars whose research focuses on criminal justice reform, and a volunteer fair featuring different activist organizations. The conference culminated with Brown-Long’s speech, during which she told the audience about her sex trafficking and incarceration experiences. Brown-Long emphasized the way the public education and criminal justice systems failed her throughout her troubled childhood and adolescence. She said being adopted made her feel like an outcast from a young age, and she soon became known as “the bad kid” at school. Brown said that any small offense, be it an eye

UA to raise awareness for HIVprevention drug The pill is free through Penn’s insurance plan ELIZABETH MEISENZAHL Staff Reporter

An Undergraduate Assembly representative is working to raise awareness about preexposure prophylaxis, an HIVprevention drug, and its availability through Student Health Service. College first-year and UA representative David Garnick said his project’s focus is to make sure students know that they can get PrEP for free through the Penn Student Insurance Plan, or at a reduced cost through SHS. He added that he hopes to create information sessions at the LGBT Center and Campus Health and put posters around campus to educate students on what the pill is and how to obtain it. PrEP is a pill that prevents HIV from establishing a permanent infection, and reduces the risk of contracting HIV through sex by 99% when taken daily. Garnick said one of the main barriers to PrEP is the cost. The drug can cost up to $13,000 a year without insurance. “People just don’t know about it, and then people also can’t afford it,” Garnick said.

SHS Medical Director Vanessa Stoloff said the Penn Student Insurance Plan covers PrEP. Director of Campus Health Ashlee Halbritter said for students seeking access to PrEP with private insurance plans that do not fully cover the pill, SHS and Campus Health work with local public health agencies such as the Mazzoni Center to secure coupons and rebates to lower the cost of PrEP. Halbritter said, however, that PrEP will become free under all private insurance plans in July 2020 after the United States Preventive Services Task Force gave the drug an “A” rating in June 2019. The Affordable Care Act requires insurers to cover services that have a rating of “A” or “B” in the current recommendations of the USPSTF. “There’s only so much we can do with the expenses and the relationships that we have in terms of right bonus coverage or coupons or rebates that the company could give,” Stoloff said. “Once that’s a moot point, there really shouldn’t be any barriers.” Because all private insurance plans will begin covering the drug in July, Halbritter said SEE PREP PAGE 2

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roll or smart remark, landed her in the principal’s office. She was suspended numerous times before being expelled and sent to an alternative school. After bringing a bottle of caffeine pills to school, she was sent to juvenile detention for the first time. Upon returning to public school after juvenile detention, she said she felt more like an outcast than ever. “Something happened to me from experiencing life inside of the system at such a young age,” Brown-Long said. “It was like I was the woman with the scarlet letter, only I had the word ‘monster’ tattooed on my forehead. It was glaringly obvious that I wasn’t wanted, and it was no secret that I was on probation to teachers and students alike.” Brown-Long was in and out

of Tennessee juvenile detention centers before running away from home around the age of 13. She soon met and began dating the pimp who raped and assaulted her on numerous occasions, and forced her into prostitution. In 2004 at age 16, she shot 43-year-old Johnny Allen who purchased her for sex, after he became violent with her. Brown-Long was arrested the next day on counts of first-degree murder despite her claims of self-defense. Brown-Long said she was not read her Miranda rights, and police officers coerced her into speaking with promises of leniency before she was appointed an attorney. Tried as an adult and referred to as a “teen prostitute” in court, BrownSEE BARS PAGE 2

PaperMill Fresh Asian Kitchen will open at Franklin’s Table Food Hall at 3401 Walnut St. in March, replacing The Juice Merchant. PaperMill is a food truck that specializes in fresh Asian foods such as their signature “Spurrito,” a spring roll burrito wrapped in rice paper and stuffed with protein and vegetables. PaperMill’s first brickand-mortar location will be in Franklin’s Table, PaperMill owner Alex Sherack said. The food truck frequents the corner of 33rd and Market streets, The Porch at 2949 Market St., and Pennovation Works at 34th Street and Grays Ferry Avenue, according to a press release from Penn Facilities and Real Estate Services. Sherack said these locations currently make the truck more popular among Drexel University students than Penn students. PaperMill hopes to open on March 2 but may open later in the month due to setbacks from construction, Sherack said. He added that the food truck will continue to operate after the opening. Sherack added that PaperMill’s relationship with Pennovation Works and previous

experience catering to the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly has made them familiar with the Penn community. “We can’t wait to share this with people in the local community every single day,” Sherack said. The menu also features BanhMi hoagies, “Spurritos” that can be turned into “made-to-order” bowls, as well as options for customers who are gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian, according to the PaperMill website. “Our food is inspired by the vibrant flavors of Southeast Asia, the Korean flavors I know growing up with my mother’s cooking, and a touch of influence from Aussie beach culture,” Sherack told FRES. Some of PaperMill’s most popular items are their Korean style beef “Spurrito,” green curry bowl with chicken, and sesame garlic tofu “Spurrito,” according to FRES. “PaperMill is one of the area’s most popular food trucks with a true fan following in Philly, and we are excited that they are bringing their unique brand of fresh, healthy Asian fusion cuisine to Franklin’s Table for more of the community to experience,” Penn’s Executive Director of Real Estate Ed Datz told FRES. College first-year Grace Choi said that although she has never SEE PAPERMILL PAGE 7

CAPS doubles hours for its Let’s Talk program CAPS added four new clinicians and three sites JONAH CHARLTON Staff Reporter

Penn’s Counseling and Psychological Services expanded the hours of its Let’s Talk program this semester, while also adding four clinicians and three locations to the program. The Let’s Talk program, which was introduced in October 2019, initially featured one clinician traveling between five locations each day from Monday to Thursday. The expanded team of clinicians will now travel to Pottruck Fitness Center, Weingarten Learning Resource Center, and Education Commons in addition to the original five locations: The LGBT Center, the ARCH building, Van Pelt Library, the Greenfield Intercultural Center, and the Graduate Student Center. CAPS also increased the program’s hours from 20 hours to 40 hours per week and added times on Friday. Former CAPS Executive Director Gregory Eells, who died by suicide in September 2019, launched the program at Cornell University as the director of Cornell’s Counseling and Psychological Services Department. Nearly 100 universities and colleges nationwide have adopted the Let’s Talk program, according to Cornell Health. The program differs from a regular drop-in appointment at CAPS because students are not asked to complete an extensive questionnaire prior to the conversation, CAPS As-

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sociate Director of Outreach and Prevention Batsirai Bvunzawabaya said. Last semester, CAPS staff psychologist Yacob Tekie was the Let’s Talk program’s only counselor. Bvunzawabaya said that CAPS added four new clinicians in hopes to better meet students’ needs, as some students said they felt more comfortable speaking to counselors from specific backgrounds, such as gender. Current CAPS staff psychologists Brittan Davis, Derik Yager-Elorriaga, Marilia Marien, and Ben Ototivo are the four new Let’s Talk clinicians. “The clinicians asked to join the program,” Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé said. “It wasn’t like we had hours to fill and just chose them. The clinicians heard from students how beneficial Let’s Talk has been for them and asked to join

it.” Bvunzawabaya said that CAPS was able to double the hours for the program with the addition of four new clinicians. She added that the Let’s Talk program increased its hours the most at Van Pelt Library, as Van Pelt was the most utilized of all the original sites. The Executive Director of Penn Benjamins and College junior Rachel Pak pointed to the accessibility of the Let’s Talk program as an easy way for people to get the help they need. “When people hear the word ‘CAPS,’ or even ‘counseling,’ [those words] can be really alarming, even to someone who is seeking out some kind of help,” Pak said. “So penetrating those barriers, whether it be distance, formality or something else, can only help people get what they need.”

Co-president of TableTalk Penn, the Penn branch of a national organization aimed at fostering conversation within college campuses, and College sophomore Brian Song echoed Pak’s thoughts, adding that the program could help students be more “open and vulnerable” when having conversations around mental health in a more comfortable setting. The increase in the Let’s Talk program’s locations, clinicians, and hours comes less than a semester after the program began. Bvunzawabaya added that CAPS plans to expand the program in years to come. “We’re just trying to give students more options to access the program,” Bvunzawabaya said. “Whether that be more times to fit their schedules or location, we are trying to give students the most options to get what they need.”

Want to give your favorite restaurants more clout? Have yourself heard and vote for them in Best of Penn 2020. Cast your vote at: bit.ly/3bLZkIE Voting closes at midnight on Feb. 28th ONLINE AT THEDP.COM

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