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VOLUME 114 ISSUE 43
MONDAY, JANUARY 6, 2020 Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida
Not officially associated with the University of Florida
Trump fights anti-Semitism
PROTEST
SOME COLLEGES COULD LOSE FEDERAL FUNDING By Chasity Maynard Alligator Staff Writer
Lily Strickland // Alligator Staff
Robert Sammel, 49, waves an American flag Saturday afternoon during the No War with Iran protest along Northwest 16th Boulevard. About 50 people attended the event, and organizers said it was held to spread awareness for the danger of military escalation in Iran following an airstrike ordered by President Donald Trump that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
Judaism will now be considered a nationality in the U.S. after President Donald Trump took action against rising anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic incidents at colleges and universities. He signed an executive order Dec. 11 intended to combat antiSemitism on college campuses, the New York Times reported. The order gives the government authority to withhold federal funding from institutions it deems biased or failing to combat anti-Semitic discrimination, administration officials told The New York Times. The order designates anti-Semitic discrimination in colleges and universities “a form of bias against their shared national iden-
tity — Israel — rather than just a form of religious discrimination.” This officially considers Judaism a religion and a nationality, protecting it under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, The Times and Wall Street Journal reported. Title VI bans discrimination based on race, color or nationality at institutions receiving money from the government. “The university is committed to protecting the First Amendment rights of our students, faculty and staff while also following the requirements of the executive order,” UF spokesperson Steve Orlando wrote in a statement. Orlando declined to comment further when asked about the university’s plans to follow the order and if the university is concerned about losing funding in light of recent campus events.
SEE ANTI-SEMITISM, PAGE 5
Gainesville, UF react to death of top Iranian general in strike THE STRIKE PROMPTED ANTI-WAR PROTESTS By Hannah Phillips Alligator Staff Writer
An American airstrike killed one of Iran’s top military leaders, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, on Friday. The strike followed a week of rapid-fire attacks and counterstrikes between the U.S. and Iranian governments and has left the fate of the nations in question. Iran promised to retaliate. In response, about 50 Alachua County residents advocated for
peace at the intersection of Northwest 16th Boulevard and Northwest 43rd Street on Saturday afternoon. Members of the local Veterans for Peace chapter held signs denouncing the war and encouraging onlookers to vote in upcoming elections. Some drivers honked their support while others jeered at the demonstrators. This echoed similar protests throughout the country. Paul Ortiz, a 55-year-old UF history professor and member of Veterans for Peace, said he believes Soleimani’s assassination has unified people in Iran against the U.S. government. Ortiz is a third-generation vet-
eran. He said the leaders who orchestrate war do so without consequence, and while they can talk about war, they are not the ones who have to fight it. “It’s my family and other working-class families who do,” he said. “We’re the people who have to fight in the war.” U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi wrote in a press release that Trump had carried out the strike without authorization from Congress. Matthew Barocas, a 20-year-old UF political science junior and the UF College Democrats president, said this sets a bad precedent for
partisanship with national security. Barocas said he is glad Soleimani is dead, but he fears the backlash that will follow and that foreign allies will view the U.S. as an irrational actor. Overseas diplomats may fall victim to a retaliatory attack by Iran, he said. “I’m not sure what we can do besides hunker down,” he said. Jarrod Rodriguez, a 20-yearold UF political science junior and UF College Republicans treasurer, thinks differently. Swift, decisive action is how adversaries should be dealt with, he said. He said the strike sends a message: Trump is not going to take at-
tacks sitting down. “Iran wouldn’t dare to declare war on us,” he said. “We would easily destroy them.” Farad Packdel, a 42-year-old UF alumnus, has children in America and parents in Iran. He said he hopes politicians will de-escalate the situation for the sake of American and Iranian citizens. “Send your daughters to war if you really believe in this,” Packdel said. “Not ours.”
@haphillips96 hphillips@alligator.org
Gainesville woman accused of trying to arrange a murder POLICE SAY SHE PREVIOUSLY TRIED TO CARRY OUT THE MURDER By Samia Lagmis Alligator Staff Writer
A Gainesville woman was arrested Friday after police say she tried to arrange a murder, which she previously tried to execute herself. The Gainesville Police Department arrested 29-year-old Victoria
Leigh Sargento-Graham on charges of attempted murder and attempted solicitation, according to the arrest report. Though the identity and relationship of the victim are redacted in the report, an unnamed law enforcement official identified the victim as Sargento-Graham’s young son, as first reported by The Gainesville Sun. Sargento-Graham called the witness at around 3:30 a.m. and asked him to come to her home. Once he
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arrived, Sargento-Graham asked him to kill for her, according to the report. Sargento-Graham informed the witness of her plan to have him suffocate the victim later in the day, the report stated. The witness said he pretended to agree to this plot and contacted authorities upon leaving her home. The next morning, the witness received another call from Sargento-Graham, the report stated. Their conversation was audio and video
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recorded on the body camera of a present law enforcement officer. During the phone call, Sargento-Graham described a scenario in which her son would shoot himself with the witness’ gun, but decided against it out of fear that the witness would be arrested. According to the report, Sargento-Graham described the world as being cruel and said suffocating the victim while he’s asleep would be the best option. Once arrested and informed of
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her rights, Sargento-Graham claimed the witness was the mastermind behind the plot to suffocate the victim. She later admitted that the plan was Sargento-Graham hers. Sargento-Graham’s bond is set at $500,000. slagmis@alligator.org
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