Since 1919
Emory University’s Independent Student Newspaper
The Emory Wheel
Volume 100, Issue 7
Printed Every Wednesday
Wednesday, October 24, 2018
HOMECOMING
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
College Council Restricts Public Access Legislators Enter ‘Executive Sessions,’ Redact Info By alBert Zhang Contributing Writer
Ayushi AgArwAl/Photo Editor
Rapper Waka Flocka Flame headlines the Homecoming Ball on Oct. 19 at the Quad.
Waka Flocka Flame Attracts 1.8K Attendees By Calen MaCDonalD Contributing Writer Rappers Waka Flocka Flame and Ugly God drew a crowd of about 1,800 to the Quadrangle for their Homecoming Ball performances on Friday night, according to Student Programming Council (SPC) President Abbey Kelly (19B). Waka Flocka Flame came onstage at 10:32 p.m., after an introduction
from Atlanta-based DJ Big Tiny, who played some of Waka Flocka Flame’s songs to hype up the crowd. The rapper wasn’t afraid to engage with the crowd: while performing his featured verses from Machine Gun Kelly’s “Wild Boy” and Flosstradamus’ “Mosh Pit,” Waka Flocka Flame left the stage to join the crowd. He also performed fan-favorite “Turn Down for What” by DJ Snake and Lil John. Waka Flocka Flame invited
DIVERSITY
Merveille Oluoch (22C) on stage after noticing her enthusiasm, saying “she was literally singing [every song] word for f*****g word.” Oluoch told the Wheel after the concert that she is a long-time fan of the rapper. “I was shaking on stage, I didn’t even know my own name,” Olouch said. “I got to touch one of his dreads
See WaKa, Page 2
College Council (CC) began restricting access to legislative meetings and redacting bills after the Wheel started regularly reporting on its weekly meetings this semester. ‘exeCutive SeSSion’ To bar public observation of an Oct. 10 legislative meeting, CC voted to enter “executive session.” CC leadership says these impromptu sessions are closed-door meetings in which the legislature’s actions and debate are not disclosed to the public. During the Oct. 10 executive session, legislators debated and voted on club funding requests and discussed “internal issues,” according to CC Vice President Hemal Prasad (19C). CC Chief of Staff Jacob Hicks
(18Ox, 20C) said CC can enter executive session because it adopted Robert’s Rules of Order as parliamentary procedure in Spring 1971. However, when the Wheel requested CC’s governing documents, Hicks emailed a “Rules of Procedure” passed in March 2014 that makes no mention of Robert’s Rules of Order or executive sessions. Instead, on the first page, it says that “any student ... shall be admitted to the legislature galley.” Hicks told the Wheel that the legislature may invite guests to executive sessions, but the Wheel was not invited to stay during the Oct. 10 executive session. CC President Radhika Kadakia (20C) said CC would continue to enter executive session for funding bills and possibly other deliberations. “Any other sensitive informa-
See COllege, Page 2
POLITICS
Emory EmoryCreates CreatesChief New Diversity Officer Officer PosiRole Diversity By eMMa SiMpSon Contributing Writer Emory plans to appoint its first chief diversity officer (CDO) by Fall 2019, according to Vice Provost of Equity and Inclusion Lynell Cadray. The position is expected to address diversity issues by examining policy changes, conducting assessments and developing strategic plans, Cadray said. “Many of the initiatives around diversity that we’ve had at Emory ... [aren’t organized] in a collected way,” Cadray said. “We don’t really have a central place where people can go and learn what’s going on around the University.” Cadray said the CDO will serve on Provost Dwight A. McBride’s leadership team and report directly to the provost. The CDO will also work with divisional schools’ diversity chairs, Cadray said. Laney Graduate School and Goizueta Business School already have similar diversity-related positions, and more schools might add similar positions, according to Cadray. “Our hope is that every school will have someone designated and a committee designated to work on these things [improving diversity],” Cadray said. “This will be ... an opportunity to have someone at the senior level at the University that can collaborate with all of our partners within the University to put together a stronger strategic
plan and strategic initiative around these issues.” Cadray said the University first identified the need for a new diversity position when Emory conducted a University-wide diversity engagement survey in 2016. A committee reviewed the survey results and made several recommendations to the provost, including the new position, Cadray said. Cadray noted that the Emory student population is diverse, but the faculty does not mirror student demographics. “Our student diversity is much more robust than our faculty diversity,” Cadray said. The University has faced calls for improving faculty diversity in the past. In Fall 2015, student group Black Students at Emory issued 13 demands to administrators, including an increase in the amount of black and Latino full time, tenured professors. In addition, the Class and Labor 2 Committee found “significant[ly]” low levels of faculty diversity at Emory compared to peer institutions. McBride will begin the search process this fall by hiring an executive search firm and launching a search committee, according to Cadray. University staff, administrators and student-facing personnel formed
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NAssEm yousEf/stAff (lEft), CourtEsy of wikimEdiA CommoNs (r ight)
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (left) says Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s (r ight) confirmation was ‘a very serious mistake,’ calling him ‘tempermentally unfit’ to serve on the Supreme Court based on Kavanaugh’s behavior at the hearings.
Carter Calls Kavanaugh ‘Unfit’ By MiChelle lou Editor-in-Chief Former U.S. President and Emory University Distinguished Professor Jimmy Carter said on Wednesday that he believes Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh is “unfit” to serve on the nation’s most powerful judicial body. The 39th president called Kavanaugh’s appointment “a very
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serious mistake” in response to Alexandra Miljanic (19C)’s question as he addressed Professor of Practice Hank Klibanoff’s Georgia Civil Rights Cold Cases Project class. Miljanic referenced Carter’s Georgia Law Day speech, in which he had called for a strong and ethical judicial system, and asked about Carter’s perspective on Kavanaugh’s confirmation. “Whether or not [Kavanaugh]
attempted to rape [Christine Blasey Ford], I thought he was temperamentally unfit to serve on the Supreme Court because of his outburst during the hearing,” Carter said in a video posted on Facebook by an attendee. Carter’s remarks came after a tense confirmation process for Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault by
See CaRteR, Page 3
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