October 16, 2023

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023

VOLUME 118 - ISSUE 9 Not officially associated with the University of Florida

Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida

Diego Perdomo // Alligator Staff

Statements collected from community members in response to recent events in Israel, Palestine and Gainesville.

Gainesville, UF community divided over Israel-Hamas war HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS ATTENDED VIGILS, PROTESTS

By Megan Howard Alligator Staff Writer

In wake of the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel, affected UF student and community groups came together with split support for Israel and Palestine.

A variety of demonstrations were held both on campus and in the Gainesville community with involvement from both students and locals affected by the ongoing conflict in Israel.

United with Israel vigil

Hundreds came together Oct. 9 in Turlington to show support for the people in Israel.

Students, Jewish community leaders and local residents were among those present at the vigil, which ended in a panic-driven stampede.

Jonah Zinn, the UF campus Rabbi and executive director for Hillel, helped plan the Unit-

SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT

Football Story description finish with comma, pg#

Gators beat Gamecocks on the road. Read more on pg. 11.

ed with Israel vigil. Other organizations such as Chabad, Gators for Israel, Jewish Student Union and Kulanu aided the planning.

“The inspiration for the vigil was that students wanted an opportunity to gather, to support one another and remember the victims of Hamas terrorism and stand in solidarity with the people of Israel,” Zinn said.

At the vigil, Zinn, UF President Ben Sasse and students shared remarks and gave testimonies about alumni and family members who are currently in Israel.

The event ended in a panic when a woman fainted and a man next to her asked other attendees to call 911. The crowd misunderstood the situation and ran off. Several attendees were injured in the scramble for safety.

“It’s unfortunate the way the vigil ended, but I think students have really come together to support one another, to share the range of emotions that they feel and to continue to sort of reflect on and support the people and reflect

SEE DEMONSTRATIONS, PAGE 4

Conservative parents weigh in on school library objections Statewide changes to complaint form upcoming

By Alissa Gary Alligator Staff Writer

Editor’s note: Two parents’ last names were excluded due to concerns of backlash.

When Lauren, a 24-year-old lifelong resident of Gainesville, was 14 or 15 years old, she encountered sexual passages — which she described as pornographic — in an assigned reading for English class at Gainesville High School.

“It was describing very sexual things that I, as a 14- to 15-year-old, did not want to be thinking about,” she said. “It was stuck in my brain forever.”

Ronald McDonald House

Gainesville offers new space for 20 families, pg. 6

Lauren told her mom, who complained to the teacher about the content. By then, it was too late, Lauren said — nothing could be done because she already read the book.

Had it taken place today, Lauren’s mother could have submitted an objection against the book to the school board, potentially having the book removed from shelves permanently.

Following Alachua County Public School’s first book removal under protocols for challenging school library books, conservative parents are skeptical about whether a formalized system achieves its goal of protecting their children from

SEE BOOK BANS, PAGE 4

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2 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023

Sasse hires formerWeather U.S. Senate office Today’s members to top leadership positions Sasse announced the hires Sept. 26

By Garrett Shanley Alligator Staff Writer

UF President Ben Sasse hired two of his former U.S. Senate office members — James Wegmann and Raymond Sass — to top positions at the university.

He announced the “cabinet” appointments in a press release Sept. 26.

Wegmann and Sass were previously identified as members of Sasse’s “transition team” in May. Both were offered six-figure salaries in March to become transition advisers to the President’s Office, documents obtained by The Alligator revealed.

Wegmann and Sass — who live in Washington D.C. and Maryland, respectively — do not plan on moving to Florida to work for UF, The Alligator confirmed with UF communications.

A UF spokesperson said UF’s expanding footprint necessitates remote work in some scenarios.

“At enterprises with the size and scope of UF, having a wide array of work arrangements isn’t unusual — in fact, during this time of digital disruption, it is necessary,” the spokesperson wrote. ”Technology has changed the way we teach and work and it has improved our ability to stay connected: whether team members are in Gainesville or working off campus from a laptop and phone, UF’s administration is built on folks who buy into a hard working big-cause, low-ego mindset no matter where they are.”

The university did not respond to The Alligator’s questions asking whether or not there were open job listings for Wegmann and Sass’ positions.

Faculty representatives expressed support and skepticism toward Wegmann and Sass’ hiring.

James Wegmann

James Wegmann, Sasse’s former Senate communications director, is UF’s new vice president for communications.

In the position, Wegmann leads UF Strategic Communications and Marketing. The office exists to “protect and advance the reputation of UF, and to enrich the value and impact of the University by unifying its voice,” according to its website.

Wegmann replaced Steve Orlando, who served as interim vice president for communications during the transition from former UF president Kent Fuchs’ administration to Sasse’s. Orlando, who has worked in UF media relations since 1996, made $270,000 per year in the position.

Comparatively, Wegmann has a starting annual salary of $432,000, according to his UF employment contract.

Orlando will return to his previous position as associate vice president for communications and will continue to serve as the university’s spokesman, according to

the Sept. 26 press release.

Wegmann has “[spent] more than a decade as a strategist and communicator in the federal government,” Sasse wrote in the Sept.

26 press release. “During his time in policy, politics, and communications, he’s developed a track record of seeing around corners, separating signal from noise, and simplifying complex arguments.”

Wegmann, a Hillsdale College alum, worked for Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN) and Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN).

He began working for Sasse as communications director during his first campaign for the U.S. Senate in 2014. After Sasse was elected, Wegmann became his press secretary. He was promoted in 2016 to communications director, a position he maintained until Sasse’s resignation from the Senate in January.

In 2022, Wegmann’s last full year working for Sasse’s Senate office, he had an annual salary of $181,677.

In March, one month after Sasse left the Senate to become UF president, Wegmann received an offer to become a transition adviser in the President’s office for a starting annual salary of $435,000.

The offer stipulated that: “Upon completion of this temporary appointment, your employment with the University of Florida will cease. You may, however, choose to seek other job opportunities with the University of Florida.”

The Alligator asked UF whether Wegmann accepted UF’s initial employment offer, and the university did not comment.

Raymond Sass

Raymond Sass, Sasse’s former Chief of Staff in the U.S. Senate, is UF’s inaugural vice president for innovation and partnerships.

“In that role, Sass will focus on strategic value creation for the university, at speed, to improve student learning and life-change,” Sasse wrote in the Sept. 26 press release. “He also will work to leverage technology and partnerships to improve measurable outcomes across a wide variety of initiatives.”

Like Wegmann, Sass (no relation to Sasse) has over a decade of experience in the federal government.

Sass became the speechwriter for the secretary at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2005. Four years later, he was promoted to chief of staff to the assistant secretary for Planning and Evaluation.

Coincidentally, Sasse served as counselor to the secretary in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from Dec. 2006 to Dec. 2007.

Sass became Director of the MBA Program at Midland University while Sasse was the school’s president. After Sasse left the university for the Senate in 2014, Sass was promoted to vice president of Strategy for Midland.

VOLUME 118 - ISSUE 9

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Not officially associated with the University of Florida Published by Campus Communications Inc., of Gainesville, Florida

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In 2017, Sass returned to work for Sasse in his Senate office as chief of staff.

Sass made $181,677 in his final year working for Sasse in the Senate, according to LegiStorm.

As UF’s vice president for innovation and partnerships, Sass has a starting annual salary of $396,000.

He will work for UF remotely from Maryland, The Alligator confirmed.

Sass, like Wegmann, received an offer from UF in March to become a transition adviser in the President’s office.

The Alligator asked UF whether Sass accepted UF’s initial employment offer, and the university did not comment.

Faculty leaders are optimistic, skeptical of Sasse’s hires

UF faculty representatives expressed both support and concerns about “cronyism” regarding Sasse’s hires.

UF Faculty Senate Chair Danaya Wright said Wegmann and Sass are both qualified for their positions at the university.

Wegmann and Sass’ high salaries are hopefully indicative of pay increases for “high-performing faculty and staff to comparable levels,” Wright wrote in a statement to The Alligator. “I think it is great that [Sasse] is paying them so well since it shows he understands that it is necessary to pay high-performing employees well in order to attract and retain them.”

“At the same time,” she wrote.

“I hope that he looks deeply and creatively around UF and realizes that there are highly qualified and capable people already here who have experience in higher education and a deep knowledge of the history of UF and that he also promotes them to similarly well-paying positions.”

Meera Sitharam, president of UF’s faculty union, expressed skepticism surrounding Wegmann and Sass’ hiring processes.

Top-level positions funded by public money have to be advertised “widely and openly” and “multiple applicants — even if they are solicited — must be screened and compared to be able to justify the statement that ‘top talent’ is being recruited,” according to Sitharam.

“Otherwise, there is no other name for it except cronyism,” Sitharam said. @garrettshanley gshanley@alligator.org

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023 ALLIGATOR 3

Gainesville Sister Cities: Supporting Israeli and Palestinian communities

Gainesville retains partnerships with Kfar Saba, Israel & Qalqilya, Palestine

By Kat Tran Alligator Staff Writer

For the past 26 years, the city of Gainesville has fostered international connections with its local government by partnering with the cities of Kfar Saba, Israel and Qalqilya, Palestine through the Sister City Program of Gainesville, Inc. With the recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the program is needed now more than ever, according to Gainesville officials.

The organization acts as a bridge connecting local community leaders in Gainesville to individuals and groups in another city.

Steve Kalishman, 70, founder and president of the Sister City Program of Gainesville, Inc. contacted both Kfar Saba, Israel and Qalqilya, Palestine in the face of the Israel-Hamas war, he said.

“Kfar Saba said they had seen a few rockets, but everything was quiet,” Kalishman said. “In Qalqilya, they said that a 15-year-old boy was shot and killed by the army. Then they closed the city because Qalqilya is inside of a wall.”

When he heard news of the boy and the city closing, he contacted the city but did not receive a response.

“They’re in a really difficult situation and they know that we love them and trust them and we’ll do anything to help them. But I don’t want to keep trying to make them tell us what’s going on,” Kalishman said.

Kalishman said anybody in Gainesville interested in the international situation or any other sister city is welcomed in the program. There are no fee requirements, and people do not have to be on the board of the organization to become a member.

The Sister City program offers exchange programs where people can participate in visits to either city.

“If you go as a part of the sister city delegation, you’re going to be an honored guest in that city,” Kalishman said. There is supposed to be a trilateral relationship between Gainesville, Kfar Saba and

Diego Perdomo // Alligator Staff

Qalqilya, Kalishman said.

Instead, Gainesville participates in a dual-track relationship with the two cities separately.

“It’s really unfortunate because the two cities are only about two miles apart. But there’s a wall between them so nobody from either city has gone to the other in the last 20 years,” Kalishman said.

Except for workers coming from Qalqilya to Kfar Saba, who have to come home at night.

Kalishman heard news of a rocket that hit Qalqilya Oct. 12. He did not receive an answer from the sister city when he reached out to them.

“We‘ve been going to these two cities; we have friends in both cities and we’re just concerned,” Kalishman said.

Last October, former Mayor Lauren Poe and two former city commissioners, Adrian Hayes-Santos and David Arreola, visited both cities, Kalishman said.

Poe is the president and CEO of Greater Gainesville International Center,

which works closely with the Sister City Program of Gainesville, Inc. He was able to represent the city at international conferences at sister cities, including Kfar Saba, Israel and Qalqilya, Palestine.

He attributed these experiences to gaining a deeper understanding and appreciation for the citizen diplomacy, direct exchange and economic opportunities exchanged between Gainesville and its various sister cities.

“It really got me motivated to try to put more of an emphasis and more resources towards solidifying first and then expanding opportunities between Gainesville and some of our partner communities around the world,” Poe said.

Gainesville’s sister city partnerships have origins and roots centered on citizen diplomacy, Poe said. Today, its mission is to celebrate, elevate and empower local international communities.

This is seen through economic empowerment services, educational

programs, international virtual and inperson exchanges and direct assistance to new residents in the community, he said.

The Greater Gainesville International Center has maintained an open dialogue with both its Palestinian and Israeli sister cities and has offered condolences to them.

Poe said that their goal is to work toward greater understanding, mutual prosperity and security.

“I’d like to remind our neighbors here in Gainesville, that when you talk to our Israeli and Palestinian friends in both of those places, what they want more than anything is peace,” Poe said.

Poe believes the best way for local residents to get more involved and offer support to affected international communities is by personal words and actions.

“We have to lead by example, even though this is a very difficult time for so many of our neighbors,” Poe said. “We let them know that we’re here for them and that we can support them.”

Additionally, he encourages the local community to take advantage of resources and opportunities at the River Phoenix Center for Peacebuilding, which teaches individuals and groups how to effectively address conflict resolution.

“People might not know how to process and deal with everything they’re experiencing,” Poe said. “It’s easy to default towards anger and hate and the center can help provide resources that teach people how to process emotional responses.”

Kalishman clarifies that the River Phoenix Center for Peacebuilding does not have any direct programs in Israel or Palestine.

Any local residents can contact sister cities through its website or Facebook, or contact the program through the Greater Gainesville International Center. @kat3tran ktran@alligator.org

4 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023

Campus divided DEMONSTRATIONS, from pg. 1

on the situation in Israel,” Zinn said.

Hillel offers a range of opportunities for students to create a community and connect with their Jewish identity, he said.

“Students have been affected by the terrorist attack on Israel in really profound ways and part of our mission is to support students as they deal with this really heinous attack on the Jewish people,” Zinn said.

Hillel doesn’t have another vigil planned as of Oct. 15, but it is focusing its efforts on supporting students throughout the crisis.

Abraham Hilu, a 25-year-old UF political science junior, was at the United with Israel vigil.

He went because he didn’t have anyone to talk with about the attack, he said.

“When I saw that there was going to be an event, specifically for what’s happening right now, I was like, ‘I really want to show my support for Israel because I did go there for a gap year,’” Hilu said.

When the panic broke out in Turlington, Hilu felt his heart race and he ran toward The Hub. “It happened in a blink of an eye,” he said. “Essentially everyone was all quiet, and we were listening to someone that was about to say a prayer. And then I didn’t even hear anything.”

He worried whether someone saw a gun and thought it had to be a terrorist attack, Hilu said.

Hilu and other students ran into the halls of Turlington for cover. In the stampede for protection, Hilu said he fell.

“Everybody was squished in, and I actually fell myself,” Hilu said. “I picked myself back up, but other people fell too, and I felt like I was gonna get trampled.”

The conflict in Israel has deeply impacted Hilu. He knows people who are in Israel and has a friend who had to go into the military reserves, he said.

“It really has taken over my life, in a sense where it’s all I think about,” he said. “I just think about my brothers and sisters that are out there. I have a friend that had to go into the reserves, and he has to be out there.”

Palestinian protest, teach-in

A crowd of around 100 UF students lingered inside and around a Turlington classroom — guarded by several police officers — for “Day of Resistance,” an informational lecture hosted by three UF organizations Oct. 12 about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), Islam on Campus (IOC) and Arab Students’ Association (ASA) hosted the discussion “Day of Resistance,” which the national chapter of SJP declared as a demonstration to all college campuses across the world on its Instagram.

Omar Ateyah, a 22-year-old UF journalism senior and president of IOC, said the three organizations came together to organize the event in hopes of informing students on the nation’s history.

“We decided that it was really important to educate people on the decades of oppression that Palestinians have been experiencing,” he said.

Ateyah spoke during the presentation on the development of war between Israel and Palestine, emphasizing the need for resistance from “settler colonialism and apartheid.”

Students presenting made historical connections of the current conflict to the Trail of Tears in the U.S. and Apartheid in South Africa. Other students highlighted the difference between Zionism and antisemitism, constructing a system of oppression, and propaganda.

Students like 19-year-old UF civil engineering sophomore Dareen Abukhalil said she attended the presentation to stand in solidarity with Palestinian resistance.

“I came here to support Palestine about the ongoing human rights violation happening in Gaza,” she said. “Free Palestine.”

Matthew Boughton, an 18-year-old UF computer science and math freshman, attended the event, expressing concerns for the nation’s vulnerability. Several of his friends are from Palestine,

Parents weigh in BOOK BANS, from pg. 1 inappropriate content at a young age.

Gainesville High School removed the book “Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out” from its library after a parent complained about sexual content, WUFT reported. It was the first Alachua County Public School to do so.

The formalized process of submitting a complaint is new as of this school year: Florida House Bill 1069, signed in May by Gov. Ron DeSantis, enacted sweeping conservative changes to public education, including allowing parents to submit objections about library materials in public schools.

Parents who wish to submit a concern about library material — whether in the school library or in a teacher’s classroom library — can find the form at the ACPS website. The form asks parents to identify the parts of the material they disagree with, what they feel will result from engaging with the material and whether they recommend another material to replace the one that would be removed.

The Florida Department of Education will vote on a revised material complaint form at a meeting Oct. 18. The new template eliminates questions regarding the effect of the material and recommendations for its replacement.

It adds a question asking parents

to identify if the material has any value.

If approved, counties will implement the new form template beginning in November, ACPS Spokesperson Jackie Johnson said.

Crystal Marull, a 44-year-old Gainesville resident, submitted the original complaint, as well as three others at Gainesville High and one at Terwilliger Elementary School, where her children attend.

The book’s sexual content, rather than its subject matter, was her concern, she said.

“From six up, I used to kiss other guys in my neighborhood, make out with them, and perform oral sex on them,” the book writes. “I liked it. I used to love oral. And I touched their youknow-whats. We were really young, but that’s what we did.”

Marull is worried backlash against book removals and the publicization of complaint forms prevents parents from speaking up about their concerns, she said.

Marull, a registered Republican, has always taken interest in her children’s education, she said. She recalled one time, before the formalized complaints existed, she was in contact with her daughter’s eighth grade English teacher about a summer reading list.

Titles on the reading list, which were Michael L. Printz Award winners and honor books,

included “Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging” written in 1999, “Asking For It” written in 2015 and “The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things” written in 2003 — all of which Marull took issue with.

“Of course, I realize my daughter is getting older and content will be more advanced, but incest and thongs? This does not seem to be appropriate coming from school,” she wrote in the email.

Aside from “Beyond Magenta” at Gainesville High, she challenged “Thirteen Reasons Why,” “Being Transgender (Living Proud! Growing Up LGBTQ)” and “Understanding Sexual Identity: A Book for Gay and Lesbian Teens and Their Friends” for sexual content, according to WUFT. At Terwilliger, she challenged “A is for Activism.” None of the books were removed from the school library.

To her, challenging books allows schools to reexamine whether a book is appropriate and helps schools follow state law prohibiting sexual content — she just wishes the formalized complaint system didn’t make way for public backlash.

“I think that's what a parent who’s involved in and cares about their kid’s education will do,” she said. “I think most parents want to be an advocate for the best environment for [their] kids and for kids that are around their kids.”

Since her name was first published in relation to her objection, Marull has received one piece of “hate mail,” as she put it, opposing her challenge against “Be-

and he fears for their families, he said.

“There’s a lot of propaganda, and I hope that people can better understand the situation and they're able to understand that all lives do matter,” he said.

Boughton believes the media should also address the historical buildup of the conflict so students can understand different perspectives of the situation.

“I hope for people to understand more of the 70 years conflict that’s happening right now,” he said.

Later that week, Florida Prisoner Solidarity also held a demonstration Oct. 15 on the corner of University Avenue and 13th Street in support of the people in Palestine.

The event came days after Students for Justice in Palestine held an informal lecture Oct. 12 in a Turlington classroom for Palestine’s Day of Resistance, which had been declared by the national chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine.

Together with Islam on Campus and Arab Students’ Association, the lecture saw over a 100 students attend.

The Oct. 15 demonstration began at 2 p.m., and around 150 people came out in support of the Palestinian people.

Throughout the demonstration, leaders engaged the crowd in call and response chants. The chants were distributed to demonstrators through a QR code.

Joshua Spence-Lehmann, a 24-year-old Santa Fe College political science major, heard about the protest through social media and decided to show his support.

“It seems like not only do we have a good number of people, all of them seem to be feverishly passionate and that’s a good thing,” Spence-Lehmann said. “They all seem committed towards nonviolence.”

He hopes the protest will move public support to Palestine.

“At the moment, I feel like the primary thing we can do is engage the public like this and try and shift public support,” Spence-Lehmann said.

yond Magenta.”

Bart Birdsall, a 56-year-old media specialist at the Sidney Lanier Center, sent Marull the email. He wrote it from the point of view of a citizen rather than that of a librarian, he said.

“I am shocked an educated person such as yourself is taking part in wanting to ban books,” Birdsall wrote in the email to Marull. “It is not what this highly educated community believes in.”

Having worked as an Alachua County school librarian for 11 years, he said he’s seen more students become interested in their phones than in reading. Challenging and removing books further dissuades students from reading, he said.

“You’re not hiding anything from them in a book,” he said.

“They're not coming to our library searching for the gay books or the trans books. They're not doing that. We can barely get them to read books.”

Media center specialists are responsible for picking the library books. Although he often doesn’t have time to read books in its entirety, Birdsall consults reviews and other media center specialists to determine whether he should buy the book for his library.

“It's not willy-nilly,” he said.

“We try to pick books with substance and with quality.”

Since the book challenging process was formalized, librarians are refraining from purchasing controversial or frequently banned books, Birdsall said, because they don’t want to be met with legal battles with parents.

Kat Tran contributed to this report. @meganmhxward mhoward@alligator.org

ACPS allows parents to choose the level of access their children have to library materials. A separate online form offers “limited” or “no access” to library materials, depending on what the parents would like their child to be able to see.

Emily, a 31-year-old mother of a 2-year-old and a 3-monthold, planned to send her sons to public school — she values the diversity of students and experiences available there, she said.

But she’s worried her concerns will be publicized and politicized if she chooses to challenge library materials.

“That would make it really hard for me to be involved in the school system in a way that I would want to be,” she said.

In an ideal world, Emily said, complaint forms would be available to parents, but they wouldn’t be public record — meaning, people outside the parties involved couldn’t see the form.

Under Florida’s Sunshine laws, government documents can be requested by the public and must be made available unless under a special exemption.

While Emily doesn’t identify entirely as conservative, she said she leans more toward the conservative side on most issues. Situations like Marull’s make Emily more skeptical about the schools’ book selection process.

“When you entrust your child to the care of somebody else, you have to decide how much of their decisions you trust,” she said. @AlissaGary1 agary@alligator.org

MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023 ALLIGATOR 5

UF Black student enrollment remains stagnant despite increase in applicants CAMPUS COMMUNITY SHARES THOUGHTS ON THE UNIVERSITY’S DIVERSITY EFFORTS AND ADMISSIONS PROCESS

By Jinelle Vazquez Alligator Staff Writer

Devanie Adams, a 22-year-old UF public health senior, is a firsthand witness to the consequences of limited Black student admissions at UF. When she first began taking classes on campus her sophomore year following the COVID-19 pandemic, she quickly realized she was the only Black student in most of her classrooms.

“I did kind of feel like, ‘Wow, where are my people?’ I just kind of felt like an outcast,” Adams said.

Only 5.5% of students enrolled at UF in Fall 2022 identified their ethnicity as Black. While UF undergraduate Black student applications reached a record high during the Fall 2022 admissions cycle, admission and enrollment rates for Black students have remained the same over the last 10 years.

The number of Black undergraduate applicants increased by 83% between the Fall 2012 and Fall 2022 admissions cycles. However, Black undergraduate enrollment has remained around 500 to 600 students each cycle during the 10-year period, a trend similar to that of other minority groups.

UF did not respond to questions about why Black student admissions remain stagnant or the recruitment process for prospective Black students.

UF saw a roughly 21% increase in applications between Fall 2021 and Fall 2022. Similarly, Black undergraduate applications increased by 21.5% from, but only 9.5% of the applicants enrolled.

White students have continued to make up half of the estimated offers made by UF admissions between the Fall 2012 and Fall 2022 admissions cycles.

Despite the university’s low Black student enrollment rates, UF faculty says it prioritizes diversity within the admissions and recruitment process.

Emma Hayakawa // Alligator Staff

“We are committed to making sure that students understand that we’re an institution that stands for opportunity and we value the many forms of diversity,” Mary Parker, UF’s Division of Enrollment Management vice president and chief enrollment strategist, said.

UF has not considered the race of students since 1999. Instead, the university uses a holistic review process that considers all aspects of a student’s application, background and qualifications when making admissions decisions, Parker said.

The division offers virtual university tours, sends monthly newsletters to high school guidance counselors and plans to improve financial aid packages to make the recruitment process more accessible, Parker said.

Although Adams is grateful for the academic opportunities provided to her at UF, she said she doesn’t believe the university puts enough effort toward protecting and empowering its Black student population.

UF’s National Pan-Hellenic Council Garden, a tribute to the legacy of Black Greek-letter organizations at the university, was vandalized for the third time last year since opening three years ago. In November 2022, vandals removed letters from four of nine monuments honoring Black fraternities and sororities.

“I think our school puts very little effort into protecting Black spaces,” Adams said.

Stephanie Birch was a UF inaugural African American Studies librarian from August 2016 until January 2022 before taking a similar position

last year at the University of Connecticut library. Birch said she left UF due to ongoing concerns about the state legislature’s impact on her work and the safety of her Black teenager, who identifies as gendernonconforming.

“There is less overt political hostility in terms of legislative action and interference with university business [at Connecticut],” Birch said.

Birch’s departure aligns with the brain drain that has struck UF this past year. The loss of staff can be largely attributed to the passing of Senate Bill 266, which limits diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at state colleges.

A UF Faculty Senate report released in June found that 25 UF Levin College of Law faculty members, including all five African American faculty, left the university in 2023.

When asked about diversity in the admissions process, Birch said UF’s administration does not dedicate enough resources to increasing the number of Black students on campus.

“In the past, [DEI] efforts across campus have typically been lip service, especially in the wake of George Floyd’s murder,” Birch said.

“Now that DeSantis has formally come for [DEI], it will be interesting to see how UF responds in terms of hiring, policy, admissions and funding decisions.”

Black people have historically criticized the university’s practices surrounding race, she added. On April 15, 1971, Black students, fac-

ulty and staff at UF protested for higher Black student admissions and staff recruitment.

Protestors demanded the recruitment and admission of 500 Black students, as well as the hiring of Black faculty in various departments. This day became known as Black Thursday and led to the founding of the Institute for Black Culture and the Office of Minority Student Affairs at UF. David Canton, director of the UF African American studies program and co-author of a research paper on Black and Indigenous history at UF, offered a similar perspective about UF’s small Black student population.

“The reality is many of these firstgeneration or low-income students are not prioritized when addressing issues like scholarship money and summer recruitment programs,” Canton said.

Canton added that prospective Black students may also find UF unaccommodating for minority students in both its campus atmosphere and available resources.

“The perception is that [it]...feels like more of a clinical white space,” Canton said.

Canton emphasized the importance of increasing on-campus communication between UF President Ben Sasse, the Provost Office, the admissions office and other stakeholders to address the issue of limited Black student enrollment.

Although Black student admissions and enrollment have remained stagnant, there are a few programs advocating for enrolled Black UF students.

Satcha Sanon, UF’s Center for Inclusion and Multicultural Engagement Black student engagement program director, works tirelessly to create spaces and opportunities for Black students to connect with their peers and service the Gainesville community.

“It is really beautiful for students to take a sigh of relief while they’re on campus because they feel as though they can do that in our spaces,” Sanon said.

Sanon highlighted the center’s Pledging to Advance Academic Capacity Together program. The welcome initiative aims to help incom-

ing first-year Black students to create connections, learn about campus resources and familiarize themselves with strategies for success inside and outside of the classroom, she said.

Jonathan Stephens, a 20-year-old UF food science junior, said they were unsure about what to expect concerning diversity on campus before coming to UF. “There’s a lot of lived experiences and different aspects of inclusivity seen from a more diverse campus than other campuses that don’t necessarily prioritize diversity in their admissions,” Stephens said.

In their classes taken at UF so far, Stephens said they feel as if the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences prioritizes academic diversity.

The core values of CALS include integrity, diversity, collaboration and service.

Stephens emphasized the importance of connecting with other queer-identifying students through the UF discussion group “Black Queer Table.”

The Black Queer Table discussion group is for Black, queer-identifying individuals seeking a safe space to discuss the intersectionalities of race and queerness through lived experiences, according to its website.

“I’ve built so many good friendships and bonds through that organization…[by] just talking about how life is and how I’ve navigated this world,” Stephens said.

However, intersectionality with race, gender, queerness and disability is often excluded from discussions at UF, they said.

In the opportunities provided to Stephens to assist with UF event programming, they said the discussion of Americans with Disabilities Act accommodations and intersectionality is not a priority.

“There has been a lack of consideration for those experiences,” Stephens said. “We have a lot of work to do when it comes to making sure every decision that we [make]; we think of every person [and] not just the people that traditionally come to those meetings.” @vazquezjinelle jvazquez@alligator.org

Looking back at UF’s Hispanic, Latino history UF STUDENTS LEAD REPRESENTATION EFFORTS THROUGH DECADES

By Garrett Shanley & Melanie Peña Alligator Staff Writers

In 1951, a total of 101 Hispanic and Latino students attended UF. More than half a century later, over 9,000 Hispanic and Latinos attend UF — making up more than one-fifth of the student population.

In 1994, a growing number of Hispanic and Latino students at UF united their efforts to advocate for a dedicated space on campus.

They successfully petitioned the university for a historic house located at 1504 W. University Ave. that had once housed a fraternity and even the UF English department.

The house became known as “La Casita.”

La Casita was torn down in 2017 for structural damage, mold, termites and other issues. After three years of discussions and construction, La Casita was rebuilt as the Institute of His-

panic-Latino Cultures at the same location.

Today, La Casita serves as a hub for over 40 Hispanic Latino student organizations ranging from “cultural to graduate and from social to service,” according to its website.

Prior to the founding of La Casita, Hispanic and Latino students at UF had advocated for the interests of Latin America.

Tony Manigot, a Trinidadian UF law student, spoke out against the U.S.’ Cuban intervention Oct. 12, 1960, at a panel discussion arranged by the university’s Latin American Club for Columbus Day. “The people look for bread whether that bread comes from the capitalists or the communists,” Manigot said.

Manigot also wrote for the UF Latin American Club’s student-run publication The Latin Way, sometimes called “El Lagartito.”

Read the rest online at alligator.org. @garrettshanley gshanley@alligator.org @MelanieBombino_ mpena@alligator.org

Courtesy to The Alligator

Archive photo of former UF President John Lombardi speaking to the Hispanic Student Association at the Reitz Union.

6 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023

Gainesville’s new Ronald McDonald House boasts space for 20 more families RMH offers housing for families of seriously ill children receiving hospital treatment

By Zoey Thomas Alligator Staff Writer

When Cat Deesse stayed at the Ronald McDonald House of Jacksonville while her 12-yearold daughter received spinal fusion surgery, she had no idea she would later become the chief financial officer of North Central Florida’s own RMH. Deesse joined the RMH staff in January, the same month the nonprofit organization broke ground in its new, 45,000-square-foot location on SW 16th Street. The building, which holds 50 family suites compared to the old location’s 31 rooms, provides housing for families to stay near seriously ill children receiving treatment at UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital.

Executing the vision

The plan for the new RMH began seven years ago when Chief Executive Officer Sherry Houston decided she needed to do something to shorten RMH’s long waitlist. The house was fully booked 24 hours per day, 365 days per year, and turned away 1,962 families in 2021 alone.

RMH’s new space was formerly a Hope Lodge, a community sponsored by the American Cancer Association to provide a free place for cancer patients to stay during treatment, Houston said.

Gainesville’s Hope Lodge closed in August 2020 after suspending operations due to the coronavirus

pandemic in March 2020. After Houston toured the vacant facility with her board, she was hooked on the site, she said.

RMH began renovations on Jan. 2. In less than seven months, RMH moved in, finalizing all renovations for $3.4 million before it cut the ribbon on Aug. 24, Houston said. Families moved in four days later.

The house has been at its full 50-family capacity for about three weeks, Houston said.

Breaking ground on the new RMH was the culmination of a four-year timeline Houston created upon encouragement from her husband, she said.

“I’d been talking about this for seven years,” said Houston.

“I was at the beach with my husband and I said, ‘We’re going to put together a timeline’ … and my husband says, ‘Yes, because you talk all the time, but you don’t take action until you make a plan.”

Houston made the plan, followed it to the letter and finished the entire move one month ahead of schedule, she said.

The house will serve 682 additional families per year than its previous location, but its upgrades go beyond square footage.

While the old house had only bedrooms and bathrooms in each family unit, the suites in the new house include a seating area and two hospitality suites, which are stations where families can grab a cup of coffee or sweet treat with-

out having to go into the common kitchen, Houston said.

Other new amenities include an indoor gym with a peloton, a butterfly garden, three laundry rooms and a large dining room featuring modular tables.

“If you’ve had a really good day at the hospital, you and others can gather,” said Houston.

“If you’ve had a really bad day and you and your loved ones just want to be by yourselves, you can pull the tables aside and have a private meal to yourself.”

Serving the families

For Deesse, the new building feels brighter and airier than the old one, which she hopes makes families feel comfortable even if they would prefer to be in their own homes in their own living rooms, she said.

Though the average length of stay is 91 days, families may stay as briefly as one night or as long as 18 months. Throughout the constant ebb and flow of families moving in and out of the house the stories from each one are what make her job impactful and give her a purpose, Deesse said.

“It’s had a huge impact on me personally, so to see all the families come and go just means a lot to me,” she said.

Opening in time for the holiday season was part of the building plan, Houston said. She can’t imagine what it’s like to have a seriously ill child and be away from your support systems for the

The Gainesville Ronald McDonald Charity House on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023.

holidays, she added. The RMH volunteers do everything they can to make families feel supported throughout the season despite the stress of their children’s illnesses, she said.

Every year, a volunteering group comes to cook a Thanksgiving spread for the guests at the house, Deesse said. Other volunteers hold Halloween pumpkincarving parties or bake sweet holiday treats for families.

RMH has a volunteer program made up of UF students and local businesses alike, Houston said.

Volunteers staff RMH’s family room on the 10th floor of Shands Children’s Hospital and come into the house to do family activities, like teaching Hula-Hoop lessons and offering homework help.

Two of RMH’s most successful volunteer programs involve cooking. For its Visiting Chefs program, groups bring their own ingredients to the RMH kitchen to cook dinner for families. Sweets and Treats sees volunteers coming into the kitchen between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. to bake a cookie, brownie or other sweet treat, Houston said.

RMH’s values of outreach and empathy are reflected in its staff, said Amy Hammons, director of development. The Virginia native, who was just hired at RMH on Oct. 11, said her first impression upon walking into RMH for her interview was disbelief she would be given the opportunity to work in such a warm and wel-

coming environment.

“From the moment I went in there, I felt like they were family,” she said.

As director of development, Hammons hopes to “bust her ass” to keep the house running. Hammons notices people often take for granted the fact that RMH will continue offering housing to families. Those people don’t see the constant work that goes into keeping and growing the house, she said.

Houston, who Hammons describes as a “hurricane for good,” is Hammons’ ultimate inspiration, she said.

“The admiration I have for her is unreal,” she said. “I can only hope to be as successful with the Ronald McDonald House and do the due diligence that Sherry has.”

The new RMH is fully open and at capacity. Plans for the house’s newest $10 million expansion, which include removing the administrative area and building an extra story on the top of the building, are on hold.

RMH will make final adjustments to its current building and ensure its finances are settled before going through with the new project, which would add 30 additional rooms to its existing 50.

The expansion may happen two or three years down the road, Houston said. @zoeythomas39 zthomas@alligator.org

Armand Raichandani // Alligator Staff

MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023 www.alligator.org/section/opinions

Column

SJP’s rhetoric is not helping anyone

T

he “Day of Resistance” Oct. 12, sponsored by National Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), turned ugly on many campuses.

An Israeli student at Columbia University was assaulted, many campuses experienced open confrontations between SJP supporters and those of Israel, and more statements than I can count justified Hamas’s unspeakably bloody face-to-face crimes against civilians in Israel.

I was not surprised once I read the “toolkit” sent by National SJP to some 200 SJP campus chapters. It is a grotesque document, which starts by applauding Hamas’s attack against “the Zionist enemy” as “a historic win for the Palestinian resistance” while showing local chapters how to frame their message, which includes the false assertions that those Israelis murdered last week were “not civilians in the sense of international law,” and that their deaths were the responsibility not of Hamas, but of “the Zionist entity.”

The UF chapter of SJP held a “teach-in” rather than an open demonstration which, if nothing else, was peaceful. Out of some sense of duty, I attended. I’m guessing that I was the only Jew and the only supporter of Israel there. The event, I suppose, could have been worse. Still I saw, in person for the first time, that even in a calm setting, SJP’s dogmatism as recommended from its national center is singularly unhelpful for students trying to understand the conflict, and indeed even damaging.

Theirs is a simple assertion: Zionism is rapacious “settler-colonialism” by “foreign invaders” that aims to “erase indigenous peoples” through “genocide.” All land between the Mediterranean and the River Jordan, meaning Israel itself and the occupied West Bank, is “Occupied Palestine.” Israel as such is thus wholly illegitimate. “Resistance” of any type is justified. Arguments to the contrary are not admissible.

Well, here is mine anyway: Fundamentally, SJP denies any Jewish connection to the land, as such a connection would challenge the narrative of colonialism and legitimize Israel, as well as peace with the Jewish state.

SJP’s arguments also ignore many critical facts, such as the Jewish acceptance of the 1947 UN two-state partition plan as well as peace initiatives including the Camp David summit of 2000 — all rejected by Palestinian leaders who served their subjects poorly, from Haj-Amin alHusseini (who collaborated with Nazi Germany before launching a war in 1947 that brought disaster for Palestinian Arabs) to Yasser Arafat, who destroyed the great promise that accompanied the opening of Gaza’s new airport in 1998. Rejectionism in the form of terror has not

brought justice.

Which brings us to SJP’s stunning refusal to honestly discuss Hamas — from its repressive rule in Gaza to its ghastly bloodletting in Israel last week to its 1988 charter that justifies it all. Instead, SJP argues that the western press, which, it insists, always sides with Israel, “dehumanizes” all Palestinians as “savages,” so as to promote their “erasure.”

Actually the opposite is true. The press rarely sides with Israel (read The New York Times or The Washington Post if you don’t believe me) and Norman even Israel’s mainstream press makes clear distinctions between Hamas J. W. Goda and the Gazans that Hamas has terrified since it took power in 2006. opinions@alligator.org Equally disturbing was the faculty member who opened the program by insisting students “educate” themselves by reading a select list of works. These included Ilan Pappé’s books on Israel as well as work by Norman Finkelstein.

Both authors, the faculty member emphasized, are Jews.

This lent a convenient “even-some-Jews-hate-Israel” tone, useful for an organization that worries, with good reason, about charges of antisemitism. The problem is that real scholars of Jewish history take neither author seriously. Pappé was caught years ago falsifying evidence of a fake massacre and much else. Finkelstein argues that antisemitic tropes about undue Jewish “influence” are actually true, and he wrote last week that Hamas’s attack “warms every fiber of my soul.” Self-hating Jews again deployed as useful idiots.

None of this is to say that Israel has done everything right. Most American Jews, painted by SJP as Zionist enablers, actually hope against hope for a two-state solution one day, and they have been critical of Benjamin Netanyahu’s seeming lack of interest in such a thing over the past several years.

Meanwhile, formulaic post-colonialist dogma such as that utilized by SJP cannot perform the serious work of explaining the conflict’s complexity. I see no contradiction between the quest for Palestinian rights and the open condemnation of Hamas, whose actions last week were morally inexcusable, and which, as we have seen for years, will bring neither justice nor peace to anyone.

The sad part for our campus is that a dialogue between Jewish and Palestinian students ought to take place, if not now, then in the future. It is unhealthy for any university campus when two constituencies of students eye one another with suspicion. With its deliberate misrepresentations, National Students for Justice in Palestine purposely sabotages such dialogue.

Norman JW Goda is the UF Director of the Bud Shorstein Center for Jewish Studies and the UF Norman and Irma Braman Professor of Holocaust Studies.

Column

: My Palestinian blood

T

Editor’s note: This article contains mentions of violence and graphic imagery.

he horrifying terrorist acts of Hamas took the lives of nearly 700 Israeli civilians Saturday, the most amount of Jews killed in one day since the Holocaust. My thoughts and prayers go out to every single Israeli, Jewish person or any family member who has mourned a loss these past weeks.

Now imagine 75 years of that loss.

For Riad Toukhly, my grandfather, that was his reality.

Born in 1941, he only had seven years of youth and life in Jerusalem before Israeli soldiers stripped him of his home, his innocence and the lives of two of his sisters.

This day would be known in history as the Nakba, which means catastrophe in Arabic. Mass displacements, persecution and ethnic cleansing of indigenous Palestinians at the hands of Zionists looking to expand their settlement.

That was 75 years ago, and my grandpa has not been back. He can’t go back. There is nothing left for him to go back to.

I want to make it clear I completely denounce and am horrified by the acts of Hamas. It seems expressing a proPalestianian stance has become a synonymous view with anti-semitism. Suddenly, my identity has become the face of a terrorist group who uses our struggle as a hateful backbone. I feel as scared to say I’m Palestinian now as my parents were to say they were Muslim after 9/11.

A 7-year-old child had to wrap up his dead sisters in carpet in a covered alleyway. With bullet-wounds in their heads, they got to stay home. For the fear of the same fate, their brother had to leave them behind.

So when the horrifying news broke, I was desensitized to it.

“Hundreds dead” and “Israel” in the same headline has been a common read throughout the years, but not like this. This was everywhere. This was detailed. This was impactful.

This was the first time in decades Noor Sukar opinions@alligator.org Israeli civilians suffered close to the same magnitude Palestinians have suffered, and everyone’s attention turned to the atrocity.

The conflation of Palestinians and terrorists has flooded the media as misinformation drowned the news like water from a broken dam. Graphic and gruesome rumors were fact-checked too late as it impressed before being rescinded.

I have done my part to counteract my bias over the years. I’ve grown to research and learn about the Jewish displacement following the Holocaust; how Jews and Arabs alike lived peacefully for some time on the same land.

But “the land without a people for a people without a land” did have people — my people.

Native Americans were helpless to the powers of European colonizers. Too little too late, they were offered “reparations” for the ethnic cleansing and mass genocide of tribes of great numbers. The Palestinian occupation is still active, and we would much rather have resistance than reparations.

I am angry that the media is enforcing a binary of Palestinians versus Jews following Hamas’ actions. I am angry the consequences are going to fall tenfold on Palestinian civilians. I feel angry that Western media did not care for blood shed when it was ours.

Israel gained the U.S.’ support one year after the Nakba. Never once were their war crimes questioned. Instead, the funding of the IDF never stopped.

This is the anger of Palestinians. We are not celebrating the human rights atrocities Hamas committed. We are angry that the majority of the world can recognize that, but they cannot recognize the generational violations of human rights of the Israeli government.

Some would go as far as to say this was justified retaliation, and I vehemently disagree. Some have personally blamed me for who I am because “Hamas is my government,” to which again I completely disagree. There are two extreme sides of hate to this coin that sets us further from resolution.

Hate and violence from both sides digs a deeper scar in this age-old war.

I grew up with this story engraved in my brain. My blood was Palestinian so long as Palestinians shed blood.

But as an American, I had to seek out a much less biased perspective for myself than my traumatized family could.

Why did I have Jewish friends telling me their grandparents were from Israel when my grandpa was from Palestine? With two cultures on one land, every party involved has valid lived experiences, and I had to learn about all sides, not just one.

I’ve learned some people’s grandparents, just like mine, were raised in Jerusalem. Mine had to grow up elsewhere to make room for others to live in their old homes.

A domino of displacement that seems endless.

Contextualization has been missing from so many conversations and media outlets this week. 75 years of history boiled down into one event does not translate well.

I can agree that slaughtering hundreds of civilians unprovoked is an act of terror. Why does it seem easier for everyone else to do that when the civilians are Israeli rather than Palestinian?

Noor Sukar is a UF journalism sophomore.

The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Alligator.

The Alligator encourages comments from readers. Letters to the editor should not exceed 600 words (about one letter-sized page). They must be typed, double-spaced and must include the author’s name, classification and phone number. Names will be withheld if the writer shows just cause. We reserve the right to edit for length, grammar, style and libel. Send letters to opinions@alligator.org, bring them to 2700 SW 13th St., or send them to P.O. Box 14257, Gainesville, FL 32604-2257.

Columns of about 450 words about original topics and editorial cartoons are also welcome. Questions? Call 352-376-4458.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023 www.alligator.org/section/the_avenue

CULTURE

Gainesville resident and Holocaust survivor remembers the past at 95 years old FRANCINE TAYLOR MOVED TO LOCAL ASSISTED LIVING CENTER THIS SUMMER

By Jared Teitel Avenue Staff Writer

Every day, 95-year-old retiree Francine Taylor sits peacefully in her wheelchair and absorbs the cool winds outside her senior living center in West Gainesville. Her son is by her side, and they hold each other hand in hand. Racing through her head as she stares mute may be millions of memories from her years in World War II Europe, where she and her family were targets of a mass Jewish genocide.

“People need to know it’s still happening,” said her son in reference to the recent attacks on Israel, a predominantly Jewish state, by the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas. His mother looked down in silence, her face blank.

The Holocaust was a Nazi-led extermination and incarceration of minority groups across the continent of Europe under Adolf Hitler’s reign in Germany from 1933 to 1945. The tragedy forced countless

into concentration camps, ghettos and gas chambers. As a result, approximately six million Jewish people perished, reducing the Jewish population in Europe by two-thirds and the world population of Jewish people by one-third.

“All those memories have been flooding back for her,” said Forrest Taylor, her son. “She’s been dreaming a lot about all the family members she’s lost.”

Francine and her father, mother and sister were residing in France at the time of the Nazi siege of the country. She never fell victim to being incarcerated and sent to a camp; however, there were certainly times she and her family came close.

She eventually moved to the U.S., where she lived in Charleston, South Carolina, and dedicated her time to Holocaust education and activism in the local community. In July, she moved to Gainesville to be closer to her son, 66-year-old Forrest Allen Taylor, and settled into an assisted living facility.

“There’s this big need for me to make her feel safe and protected,” said Forrest. “At this time in her life, she really needs it.”

Francine Taylor was born Frida

Ajzensztark in the summer of 1928, in Karczew, Poland. Her parents, Morthé-Mendel and Grina Azjensztark, were tailors who worked out of the tight confines of their Parisian flat to make ends meet after moving to the city when she was just 2 years old.

Due to living in poverty and thus receiving access to only limited amounts and types of food, Taylor became anemic and was sent to the French countryside while the rest of her family went into hiding, according to an essay written in 2002 by her sister, Suzy Baton. She was away when her father was suddenly captured in 1940 during the German occupation. She never saw him again.

“After seven years, he was declared dead,” said Francine Taylor in a frail, shaky voice.

She knew her mother and elder sister were hiding in Saint-Fraimbault through her exchange of letters with them while she was in the free part of France. In her attempt to return to them, she faced a near death experience and only a miracle could’ve helped her escape.

By 1943, she had made her way to a train station with only her will-

Jared Teitel // Alligator Staff

Holocaust survivor Francine Taylor (left) looks at pictures from World War II on Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023, with her son (right), Forrest Allen Taylor, in a document made by a former College of Charleston student. power and her bicycle, which she intended to pedal more than 600 miles to reunite with her loved ones. At the station, she was denied entry into a buggy due to the weight of her bike. She was able to access another carriage and patiently followed behind the first before she saw it captured by Nazi soldiers,

according to a paper provided by Forrest.

Read the rest online at alligator.org/section/the_avenue. @JaredTeitel jteitel@alligator.org

LOCAL

Historic High Springs restaurant facing foreclosure LAWSUIT SEEKS OVER $2 MILLION IN DAMAGES AND PROPERTY RECOVERY

By Bea Lunardini Avenue Staff Writer

The Pink Flamingo Diner and Great Outdoors Restaurant, staples of High Springs’ hospitality district, have hosted members of the community for nearly 10 years now.

Kelly Price, a 33-year-old Newberry resident, has many memories of the restaurants.

“I’ve been going to the Great Outdoors every year for my birthday since I moved to Newberry five years ago,” she said.

Birthdays aren’t the only milestones Price has shared with family at the restaurant.

Two years ago, she discovered she was finally going to be an aunt in the brown leather wrap-around booth tucked into the corner of the restaurant. A year after that, she held her 6-month-old nephew in the same booth.

“You can see why it’s hard to say goodbye,” Price said.

Price may have to say goodbye because the Community State Bank is foreclosing the Pink Flamingo Diner and Great Outdoors Restaurant in High Springs. The bank is seeking over $2 million in damages in addition to lawyers’ fees, interest on the loan and

reclamation of the properties.

The bank filed the suit Sept. 12 and named Dae Jung Kim, Radiant Life Ecoville LLC, High Springs Ecoville LLC and Springs Life LLC as borrowers of a $2 million commercial promissory note.

The note, designated for “investment” purposes according to documents presented in the suit, created a repayment schedule of

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Gracie Kurtz // Alligator Staff Writer

Servers work behind the counter at the Pink Flamingo Diner 19726 NW U.S. Highway 441 on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023.

35 monthly payments beginning in May 2021 and a final payment initially due in March 2024. However, the bank pushed the payment due date up and initiated the suit when the borrowers could not repay the remaining balance.

The bank performed a value calculation through the Alachua County Clerk of Court to determine the amount owed on the loan.

The document, filed on the same day as the suit, stated that $1.99 million of the initial $2 million loan had not been paid. The principal remaining, combined with over $90,000 due in interest, resulted in the suit demanding about $2.1 million from the borrowers.

The suit lists the specific amount due from Kim as a minimum. The mortgage, which was signed on March 18, 2021, holds the borrowers financially responsible for the default proceedings, covering additional costs like filing charges and attorney fees.

Savannah Martin, a 23-year-old second-year law student at UF, said these additional costs could be steep.

“In some cases, attorney fees can be more than the damages in the suit itself,” she said.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if the total damages in the case were closer to $2.5 million by the end of litigation.”

Poor treatment motivates the other case being brought against the Diner at the mo-

ment. Luis Cabassa from Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. is suing the restaurant for damages in excess of $30,000 for violation of the Florida Private Whistleblower’s Act (FWPA) on behalf of Julie Smith, a former diner employee.

The FWPA, a Florida statute filed in 2011, prohibits employers from taking “any retaliatory personnel action against an employee” because the employee initiates or cooperates with a governmental investigation into the company’s wrongdoing.

Smith’s complaint, which was initially filed in October 2022 and amended in January 2023, alleges she was demoted, and subsequently fired, because she informed the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation that diner management used “an unlicensed contractor to perform contracting and plumbing services.”

The response submitted by the defendant, listed as Dae Jung Kim on behalf of the diner, contradicts Smith’s complaint and levels accusations of forgery against her.

Read the rest online at alligator.org/section/the_avenue. @bealunardini blunardi@alligator.org

Diving

Anton Svirskyi aims for Olympic spot with Ukraine.

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023 www.alligator.org/section/sports

FEATURE

Anton Svirskyi hopes to represent Ukraine in Paris 2024 Olympics The diver plans to bring home a gold medal

By Krisha Sanghavi Alligator Staff Writer

As a wide-eyed 5-year-old boy, Anton Svirskyi didn’t wish for mere toys or games when he blew out his birthday candles.

Instead, he hoped for something extraordinary — a gleaming gold medal.

Now, the determined 22-year-old diver is on a relentless pursuit to turn that childhood dream into reality as he aims to represent Ukraine at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

The All-American began his diving career at 4 years old in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine. Growing up, he dabbled in various sports, from football to track and field, but the connection he formed with diving was unmatched.

Svirskyi’s fondness for the sport started from his fear of heights. His parents pushed him into diving to help him face this fear, and as he got used to being up high, he fell in love with diving, he said.

Fifteen years later, Svirskyi relocated to New Jersey with his family. He pursued track and field in high school and quickly caught the attention of Saint Peter’s University, which offered him an athletic scholarship. In his short stint as a track athlete, he claimed runner-up in the pole vault at the Yale Opener with a clearance of 3.85 meters.

It wasn’t long before Svirskyi’s school discovered his diving strengths. He paused his track career and committed to diving at his school.

Eager to advance in the sport, Svirskyi sought out the top-ranked Florida diving

program and managed to get in. He sent a video of his work to diving head coach Bryan Gillooly, but it was clear his dives needed work.

“His dives were rough for sure,” Gillooly said. “But you could also see there was something else there. He did have some good fundamentals and something special there.”

What caught Gillooly’s attention wasn’t Svirskyi’s skill, it was his passion for the sport.

“I could tell how genuine he was and how much he wanted it, how focused he was,” Gillolly said. “It matched what I wanted and how I approach the sport.”

Gillooly focused on helping him readjust to diving once Svirskyi joined the Gators.

“It turned out his drive and ambition matched his talent,” the coach said. “It was just getting him back in the pool game — repetition, [becoming] one with the diving board, feeling his air awareness again.”

Svirskyi’s perseverance paid off. He achieved second- and third-place finishes in his first regular season, and the following year, he secured a spot in the NCAA Championship to earn All-American honors.

Given the diver’s accolades, it came as no surprise to Gillooly when the head of the Ukrainian Federation approached him to work with Svirskyi for the upcoming Olympic competition.

“For them to approach me to take an interest in him … meant something to me,” he said. “He should be very proud of himself that they're looking to bring him on. He worked really hard to get there.”

Svirskyi seized the opportunity and par-

ticipated in a national training camp in Germany months later to prepare him for the preliminary Olympics qualifications.

“It was diving-oriented, nothing else,” Svirskyi said about the camp. “I lived in the pool.”

The diver’s path to the international competition starts with the Ukrainian nationals. The camp was designed to prepare him for this challenge, and he feels confident in his abilities.

“After going to Germany and spending time with the coaches, they said I do have a good shot of going for three meter springboard,” he said. “So we’re kind of focusing on that right now here in college.”

To Svirskyi, the opportunity to compete in the Olympics and represent Ukraine was a dream come true, particularly during the Russia-Ukrainian war.

“Especially in a difficult time like this, with Ukraine representing the country on a global stage, hopefully [I can] bring some good light to the country and the name of it,” he said.

He’s grateful for the responsibility to honor both his country and school, even if he doesn't advance beyond the Ukrainian nationals. Svirskyi views his journey as a testament to his dedication and effort.

“It is always a huge privilege to represent something bigger than yourself,” he said. “A country you're born in and raised in… representing Ukraine is a huge honor, as well as representing the University of Florida.”

Elizabeth Perez, a former Gator diver, witnessed Svirskyi's progress firsthand during his early days in Florida diving.

Courtesy to The Alligator

Senior Anton Sviskrkyi dives during the SEC Championship on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2023.

“I remember the beginning, it was really rough for him,” Perez said. “Because he didn't know how to do some dives.”

Svirskyi worked diligently with Gillooly to address his weaknesses, refining his technique and strengthening his tougher areas.

Even on harder days, his commitment never wavered.

“He has beautiful technique, beautiful form — he has everything,” she said. “He’s an amazing athlete.” @krishasang ksanghavi@alligator.org

FOOTBALL

Florida’s quarterback guides comeback victory against South Carolina

Graham Mertz led two fourth-quarter touchdown drives

By Luke Adragna Sports Writer

Facing a 4th-and-11, Florida redshirt junior quarterback Graham Mertz’s check-down receiver wasn’t his first option.

Mertz was swarmed by Gamecock defenders and seemingly made a desperation throw by trusting his freshman tight end to reach the first down marker while trailing 37-27 with 7:14 remaining.

Despite the circumstances, Mertz didn’t hesitate when he saw Arlis Boardingham hovering along the right side of the line of scrimmage.

Boardingham made it past two swarming Gamecock defenders and earned the first down. Seven plays later, the redshirt freshman tipped a pass to himself along the goal line and walked in for a touchdown, closing the first of two fourth-quarter touchdown drives in the final five minutes of play.

A strike to senior wide receiver Ricky Pearsall with 47 ticks left in the game sealed Florida’s comeback victory.

The Gators (5-2, 3-1 SEC) came back down 10 and defeated the South Carolina Gamecocks

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(2-4, 1-3 SEC) 41-39 Oct. 14 at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina. UF won its first road game of the season.

“What a way to win a football game,” said Florida head coach Billy Napier. “We needed every play all the way down to the end to win it.”

Mertz, who transferred to Florida Dec. 19 after four seasons at Wisconsin, had arguably the most impressive performance of his career. The junior was 30-for48 and threw for 423 yards and three touchdowns.

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“I’m having the most fun I’ve ever had in my life — I’m not really consumed by the stats,” Mertz said. “Stats are good, but it's not my main focus. I just want to help this team win.”

The Wisconsin transfer proved to be an efficient quarterback option for the Gators through six games. However, questions remained if he would be able to lead the offense when it called his name — particularly on deep throws.

Despite completing 80% of his passes, Mertz has failed to hit his receivers on deep, longer

routes. It was crucial for the Gators to dial up the deep ball against a South Carolina defense that ranked among one of the worst teams in the Southeastern Conference in passing defense and points allowed per game.

And, that’s exactly what Mertz did.

Mertz completed six of nine passes 10-20 yards past the line of scrimmage for 102 yards and a touchdown, according to Pro Football Focus. Against the blitz, he was even more effective and threw two touchdowns on a 56%

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SEE FOOTBALL, PAGE 12

12 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023

Gators beat ‘Cocks FOOTBALL, from pg. 11

Ryan Friedenberg // Alligator Staff

Redshirt freshman tight end Arlis Boardingham runs with the ball in the Gators’ 41-39 win against the South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia, SC on Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023.

conversion rate.

The middle of the field also became a focal point for the Gators’ offense. South Carolina’s defense tends to lean toward covering outside zones, which opened up Mertz to go 13-20 for 179 yards and two touchdowns in the middle zones.

“I just thought he was fantastic,” Napier said. “I know how much the guy's worked all the way going back to the beginning of the process. This is a young man that came here on a mission and had a plan, and he's worked.”

Pearsall — who finished the game as Mertz’s leading target with 10 receptions for 166 yards and the go-ahead touchdown — added to his coach’s sentiment when he was asked about his career performance.

“I just want to thank God,” Pearsall said moments before he looked over and directed credit toward Mertz. “And again, with this guy right here.”

Florida’s receivers helped take much of the leeway off Mertz on his career night.

In addition to Pearsall’s performance, freshman receiver Eugene “Tre” Wilson III caught

six passes for 83 yards. He made a miraculous grab on the final drive of the game off a pass intended for Pearsall, which tipped off his hands and landed into Wilson’s arms in stride.

“I owe a bunch of credit to Tre there just making a huge play,” Mertz said.

Sophomore receiver Kahleil Jackson caught two passes for 53 yards and a touchdown, and Boardingham recorded his second consecutive game with a touchdown catch. He has 154 receiving yards and three touchdowns in his last two games.

“We're getting some play from some receivers and, ultimately, we're capable,” Napier said.

Florida’s first half of the season has come to a close, and the Gators are scheduled to have next week off.

“As far as guys’ bodies, everybody’s banged up,” Mertz said. “So it’ll be good to get your body back.”

The Gators’ next matchup will be against the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs 3:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at TIAA Bank Stadium. @lukeadrag ladragna@alligator.org