2 Wednesday, November 1, 2017
NEWS
The Emory Wheel
‘Shame on Emory,’ Hospital Protesters Chant Continued from Page 1 Dickerson must provide proof that he has complied with the terms of his probation for three months before the operation can occur. Dickerson was arrested Sept. 28 and released from jail Oct. 2, in time to undergo surgery for his son’s transplant, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The child was hurried to the emergency room Sunday morning because of an abdominal infection, known as peritonitis, according to the AJC. The child currently undergoes daily dialysis and is also in need of bladder surgery, according to CBS46 News. The family is unsure whether he will survive until January 2018 to undergo surgery. EUH has not changed its position on the transplant operation. Carmellia Burgess wrote in a Monday post on a GoFundMe page that the family is looking into the possibility of having the operation at another hospital, even if they have to travel across state lines. “We are operating at a level of desperation,” said Mawuli Davis, the family’s attorney, at the vigil Sunday evening. Director of Emory Healthcare Media Relations Janet Christenbury wrote in an Oct. 26 statement to the Wheel that EUH adheres to guidelines issued by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) when making decisions about transplants. EUH cannot provide information about specific patients. According to UNOS guidelines,
donors must be screened for good mental and physical health. A team of doctors, nurses, social workers and other professionals try to maximize the chance of success for organ recipients and minimize risk for living donors, according to the statement. “Decisions regarding transplant or living donation are never made by the CEO or any other administrator not directly involved in the caregiving process; however, these administrators support the care team’s decision process and work to create an environment in which sound, ethical decisions are made in the best interests of our patients,” the statement reads. Two online petitions, one started by the child’s mother to urge EUH to allow the surgery to occur have reached more than 54,000 and 134,000 signatures respectively as of Monday night. The mother’s GoFundMe page to support the medical costs has raised more than $8,200 as of Monday night. “The [Thursday] march was a demonstration,” President of the United Youth/Adult Conference Michael Langford said. “[Friday] was strictly a spiritual warfare.” The Friday prayer vigil, which was organized by the Sankofa United Church of Christ, allowed people to express their frustration toward EUH’s decision and to pray, according to Derrick Rice, pastor of Sankofa United Church of Christ. Rice and Michael Langford led the group into prayer. “What does good behavior have to do with [the child living]?” Rice said.
“We are going to need to come out here and march some more.” Langford prayed that God would “move on the hearts of those who are sitting on the seats of power at Emory Hospital.” The group is organizing a Nov. 1 worship service to support the child. Former Atlanta City Councilman and radio host Derrick Boazman helped organize the Thursday protest in an attempt to reverse Emory’s decision. He promoted it on his radio show “Too Much Truth with Derrick Boazman,” Twitter and Facebook. “This really is a human rights violation,” Boazman told the Wheel. “We fight for other pro-lifers, right? We want to protect the womb, but after the child is born, we don’t want to protect the child. It makes no sense to me.” Boazman added that he would continue to plan more protests until the live-saving surgery occurs. Rice, who was also at the protest, said that he believed the hospital’s decision was partially influenced by race. “[It is] difficult to not argue that if this baby was a white child, the transplant would’ve taken place,” Rice said. Protester Abdullah Jihad called EUH’s decision “sickening.” “If we don’t stand up for the life of a two-year-old that can be saved under these conditions, what do we stand up for?” Jihad said.
— Contact Molly Ball at molly.ball@emory.edu
LEGISLATURE
GSGA Debates Attendance Policy Call for Optional Meetings Met With Skepticism By ChriStina yan Contributing Writer The first legislature of the Graduate Student Government Association (GSGA) convened Monday evening to discuss its attendance policy and the possibility of developing a partnership between Emory and campus dining delivery app Tapingo. Candler School of Theology Legislator Byron Wratee (18T) proposed making attendance for legislators at GSGA ad hoc meetings optional. The GSGA Legislature shall meet at least once per calendar month during the academic year, according to GSGA’s Constitution, but GSGA has been having weekly meetings since the beginning of the academic year. Wratee said that mandatory weekly meetings with legislators from each graduate school are unsustainable and unnecessary, adding that the meetings were feeling more like responsibilities than opportunities for “joyful service.” GSGA President Mark Neufeld (18B) disagreed with Wratee’s proposal for optional meetings. “To make anything optional, from a government’s perspective, I think is just selling the position short and preventing a rich conversation,” Neufeld said. “At the end of the day, you don’t have to do this.” Wratee responded that his presence was not vital to each meeting. “I’m gum on the bottom of Adolf Hitler’s shoe,” Wratee said. “I don’t have to be here. This thing will keep running whether I’m here or not. But as long as someone from Candler is here … that’s enough.” Wratee said that he felt current
meeting requirements limited diversity in GSGA. “I am the only black man in the room. … I’m bringing my blackness in the door and I’m handing it to y’all, for y’all to see it and believe it,” Wratee said. “If the culture changes, we will have more black people in here. Nobody’s going to sign up — I’m an exception. … This room is going to continue to look like this if you’re checking attendance at 8 [p.m.] and 9 [p.m.] on Mondays, every Monday. We’re not the type of people to do that. We’re a free people.” Vice President of Finance Deepa Raju (18B) said it was important for legislators to attend meetings. “When you’re not here, that’s a voice the student body does not have,” Raju said. Candler School of Theology Legislator Elyse Cooke (20T) echoed Raju’s sentiments, emphasizing the importance of individual legislators in providing a voice for their schools. “I don’t want you to feel like you’re not a voice here,” Cooke said to Wratee. “We are here because we want to share that voice, and I want you to feel like your voice is important. You are offering something. Everyone here is offering something. I value you.” The legislature voted unanimously to refer the attendance policy to the governance committee and send a survey to GSGA members regarding meeting scheduling by next week. Kylee Borger (19PH) presented a bill for GSGA to request that Emory partner with Tapingo, a mobile app that allows students to order food for delivery from campus dining locations. Both undergraduates and graduate students would be able to use the
app to order food from Emory’s dining locations. “It doesn’t cost anything for the University,” Borger said. “It’s a 30 to 40 cent convenience fee, passed on to the students. I think it would be something beneficial for us to pass and have Emory adopt this system in time for spring, so we can all order our food and coffee, and it’ll just be magical.” Tapingo already has contracts with Emory dining vendors Bon Appetit and card processing company Heartland Payment Systems, which means that implementing Tapingo would take only about four weeks, according to Borger. Sydney Kaplan (19L) moved to table the resolution and said that “it needs a little bit of retooling … reword some of this and come back next week.” Legislators unanimously agreed to table the resolution until next week. The Wheel requested Oct. 18 a vote by the GSGA legislature and the executive board to approve that any Wheel reporter could attend legislative meetings regardless of if they are undergraduate or graduate students. Only graduate students are permitted to attend GSGA legislative sessions, per the GSGA bylaws article 2 section 4. Executive Editor Michelle Lou and News Editor Richard Chess presented to the legislature Oct. 23, and Lou and Editor-in-Chief Julia Munslow presented to the GSGA executive board Oct. 25. Neufeld informed Lou Oct. 25 that both groups voted to allow Wheel reporters into weekly legislative sessions for this academic year.
— Contact Christina Yan at christina.yan@emory.edu
Parth Mody/Photo Ediotr
rSGa presidential candidate rosa abraha (19Ph) makes a peanut butter and jelly sandwich Oct. 31.
All Candidates Agree To Decline Debate
Continued from Page 1
a result, Charania and DeVore organized a public speaking workshop dents to graduate. “I don’t think our education should with Michael Hussey (18PH) for the ever come secondary to any debate candidates to attend, but none of that’s happening or anything extra,” the candidates attended, according to Charania. Because Charania and Abraha said. In lieu of the debate, Charania and DeVore had organized the debate, they DeVore hosted a “Discourse in Public chose Hussey to serve as a third party Health” forum, which was attended by to work with the candidates. Debates are not required for about 50 people. None of the candidates were elections by the RSGA Constitution. Presidential candidates are required present. Charania and DeVore had worked by the Constitution to write a platform to organize the debate, working which are available for students to independently of RSGA and with view on Google Drive. Forum attendees talked about DeVore acting outside his position as RSGA Department of Health Policy creating a third-party organization and Management Representative. to hold debates or petition to make RSGA holds no official opinion or role debates mandatory. Chrystelle Kiang (19PH) saw in the debate, according to DeVore. Although Charania supports the public forum as an important the public service event hosted by opportunity for Rollins students to candidates, she said she does not see it come together and discuss solutions to as synonymous to public speaking and concerns with RSGA policies. “This event was answering questions exciting for me in front of a crowd. “Part of a debate is “We should be very because it’s nice to see that people care. It being able to articulate concerned about reflects to a national your views well while anyone in any scale election and under pressure, and, leadeship position how all it takes are a as president, there when they are few people who care will be high pressure to raise their voices times where you will unwilling to have and for people to not have to address the their ideas tested.” be complacent in the whole school. How are you going to do that — Ed Lee, system. That’s how if you can’t answer Executive Director of things get changed,” questions about your Barkley Forum Kiang said. Mushtaq Dualeh platform?” Charania (19PH) was glad the said. Executive Director of the Barkley public forum took place despite the Forum Ed Lee spoke at the forum debate being canceled. “I expected our leaders to take the that replaced the debate and said that initiative, to speak up and to tell us debate is fundamental to democracy. “Anyone who considers themselves what it is they plan on doing, so that to be a leader should be willing we can learn from them and hold to hold their ideas up for public them accountable for their actions,” deliberation,” Lee said. “We should Dualeh said. “I know [the candidates] be very concerned about anyone in as people, but I don’t know exactly any leadership position when they are what they plan on doing beyond their written platform. I’m disappointed unwilling to have their ideas tested.” Senior Associate in Biostatistics they weren’t here to share their side.” Charania said she plans to vote no and Bioinformatics Paul Weiss said he was excited when he was asked to confidence in the upcoming RSGA moderate the debate and disappointed election. “I don’t have confidence in any when he found out it was canceled. “How do you trust a leader that of the leaders, because I don’t think won’t step up and say, here’s why I getting a piece of candy or a brownie should be your leader?” Weiss said. or a hug or whatever gives me the “This is the first year I have two adequate information to vote for students that are running, and I can’t someone,” Charania said. Voting opened for Rollins students endorse either of them.” One of the reasons the RSGA Oct. 31 and runs through Nov. 3. president did not want to hold a Results will be announced Nov. 6. debate was to prevent putting stress on candidates from public speaking, — Contact Valerie Sandoval at the Wheel reported last week. As valerie.sandoval@emory.edu