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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026

VOLUME 121 - ISSUE 7 Not officially associated with the University of Florida

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Fact check: Does GRACE Marketplace contribute to Gainesville crime?

FLA 52, MISS 28

UF parents have raised concerns about the shelter to officials and in online groups By Hailey Kon Alligator Staff Writer

Bayden Armstrong // Alligator Staff

Florida wide receiver Dallas Wilson (6) reaches to the end zone during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Mississippi, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Gainesville, Fla. Read more in Sports on pg. 10.

UF parents are calling on local officials to examine GRACE Marketplace’s limited screening and whether publicly funded homelessness initiatives account for safety issues affecting students and nearby community members. During the Sept. 17 Gainesville City Commission meeting, 17 parents voiced concerns about a rise in violent crime related to the city’s homeless population. Many shared encounters between students and homeless individuals that were often violent or dangerous. City officials, however, have disputed a connection between GRACE’s low-barrier model and crime. At the meeting, they acknowledged concerns about public safety

but said the city’s homelessness services are intended to house people while maintaining community safety. Melissa Bell, a UF parent and attorney, sent a letter to local officials calling for greater transparency around GRACE Marketplace’s intake policies, including its lack of criminal background checks, drug screening and identification requirements. Here’s what the evidence outlined in the email shows. CLAIM: GRACE Marketplace is a lowbarrier shelter that does not require background checks or sobriety to use its services. VERDICT: True. THE FACTS: Opened in 2014, GRACE

SEE GRACE, PAGE 4

Vision Party to face new party after two unopposed elections NINE CANDIDATES FROM THE NEW HOPE PARTY AND ONE INDEPENDENT WILL COMPETE FOR NINE RESIDENCE SEATS

By Sofia Garcia Alligator Staff Writer

The Hope Party will make its debut in this week’s Student Government elections, replacing the previous Change and Watch Parties as Vision Party’s competitors. Students will vote to elect 50 senators to on- and offcampus seats Sept. 29 and 30. Vision, which ran unopposed last Fall, has candidates running for all seats, and only nine seats are contested.

SG has two elections per academic year, with one hosted each Fall and Spring. While the Fall cycle elects senators to represent student housing areas, which include districts both on and off campus, the Spring election selects others to serve UF’s colleges. The SG executive office is also voted in during the Spring, including the president, vice president and treasurer. All three seats are currently held by Vision members. This Fall, 13 seats will be dedicated to on-campus housing, and 37 will represent off-campus positions. Mikaela Peasron, a 21-year-old UF marine sciences senior, said she hopes SG shows greater support for student organizations uplifting minority voices, such as the Black

College Republicans

SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT Animal testing

Student Union, this upcoming cycle. “I think my vote would be pretty open going to whoever’s the most passionate about seeing an increase in student [organization] funding,” she said. Vision’s platform Founded in 2023, Vision is focusing its efforts on upgrading campus facilities and improving transportation opportunities. The party also wants to create more student resources, improve campus health and safety and enhance existing facilities, according to the party’s Instagram.

SEE SG, PAGE 4

Students react to club’s controversial return, pg. 2

Story description finish with comma, Activists bring anti-experimentation pg# solidarity movement to Gainesville. Read more on pg. 5.

Opinions Is Ed Sheeran in the wrong?, pg. 7

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2 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026

UF College Republicans’ return to campus sparks mixed reactions

Students raise concerns on what the group’s return means for Jewish and immigrant communities By Ellia Mytsa Alligator Staff Writer

Julia Chernobelsky chose to attend UF because of its heavy on-campus Jewish presence. The 20-year-old philosophy, politics, economics and law (PPEL) and mathematics junior is one of the directors of women’s programs at UF Chabad. When UF College Republicans was reinstated as a UF organization Sept. 14, six months after it was banned for an antisemitic gesture, Chernobelsky said she was afraid the club would bring similar controversies back to campus. “I was like, ‘That’s scary that it’s happening here, but this is just the life of being a Jewish student in America,’” Chernobelsky said. A controversial return Six months ago, a photo circulated online of members heiling, causing the Florida Federation of College Republicans to denounce the UF chapter. Left without the affiliation of an official entity of the Republican party, UFCR was unable to operate as an official student organization. The club initially disputed its disbandment and filed a federal lawsuit against UF, arguing the university violated its First Amendment rights. A judge dismissed the case but stated the organization could return if it established the necessary affiliation with an entity of the Republican party. The organization announced its return on Instagram Sept. 14, saying it “fought” and “won” for reinstation. Commenters’ responses to the post were mixed. Some championed the group’s return, while others said they were awaiting the organization’s next controversy. Chernobelsky had never seen someone perform a Nazi salute prior to this past March, she said, despite having grown up in New

York City, where she witnessed antisemitic events such as protests calling for the end of the Jewish race. She expected her transition to UF to offer a safer environment, she added. “I think that everyone, no matter if I agree with it or not, deserves to have a space they feel involved in,” she said. “But they should never be able to become that extreme, where you’re outright offending and hurting people.” But UF’s original decision to ban the organization following the antisemitic gesture assured Chernobelsky the school is willing to address antisemitism on campus, she said. She said she’s comfortable with its return as long as there is no more hateful behavior aimed at Jewish people. For others, the administration’s move raised broader questions about the campus environment, including how the university handles hate speech and whether students feel safe expressing their identities and beliefs. Elizabeth Chapnan, a 20-year-old UF public health sophomore, said she hopes the situation shows students prejudiced speech isn’t acceptable. “I think it was a prime example of what we don’t want in a community like ours,” she said. At a university like UF, where Jewish students make up approximately 18% of the undergraduate population, Chapnan said UFCR’s return has sparked conversations about how political organizations shape interactions among students from different backgrounds. “I think their disbandment was necessary,” Chapnan said. Back to business UFCR held its first event back Sept. 15, promoting it with the slogan “Deport the illegals” event centered on immigration enforcement and mass deportation. Lairalee Ramos, a 20-year-old English and political science ju-

nior and the president of Chispas, a student organization dedicated to serving immigrant communities, said UFCR’s recent event has prompted conversations about students’ sense of belonging on campus. “I think events such as these have the main objective to create this kind of isolation of certain groups of students, or this kind of fear that you won’t be accepted on campus if you’re from a certain demographic,” Ramos said. Ramos said Chispas aims to create an environment that welcomes students from all backgrounds. “It is our mission to make sure that everybody and every group on campus feels as if they belong, because they do,” Ramos said. But, the group’s return attracted a new student to UF. Nick Claus, a 22-year-old interdisciplinary studies senior at the University of Alabama Huntsville, said UFCR’s reinstatement made UF his top choice for graduate school applications. Claus believes UFCR’s national attention and the prominence of its members will benefit the organization because it allows them to claim persecution for their beliefs and portray themselves as victims of political discrimination. “When they got banned, I was like, ‘Hell yeah, they’re going to be able to use all this in the internet culture drama,’” Claus said. “It’s just that attempts at censoring in 2026 aren’t going to work.” With the organization back on campus, Claus expects the club to increasingly attract larger numbers of students interested in conservative politics. “It’s about growing and how they can use this as a means to grow their influence and their cultural capital,” Claus said.

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Parents, city debate connection between crime and housing GRACE, from pg. 1

Marketplace is a low-barrier homeless shelter housing just over 180 beds and providing outreach programs aimed to help people transition out of homelessness. Upon entry for emergency shelter, GRACE does not require proof of identification, a criminal background check, a drug screening, evidence of sobriety or participation in mental health or substance use treatment. In an email to The Alligator, interim CEO Mark Bonner said those requirements are intentionally excluded from GRACE’s emergency shelter intake process. “Many people arrive without identification because it has been lost, stolen or destroyed while they were living outside,” Bonner wrote. GRACE prohibits violence, threats, weapons, illegal drug use and other behavior that places people at risk, Bonner said. Staff can restrict someone’s access or prohibit them from returning to campus when their behavior creates a safety concern, he added. CLAIM: GRACE is one of only two primary low-barrier shelters in Florida. The other is located in Miami. VERDICT: Unclear. THE FACTS: Apart from Gainesville, cities like Orlando and Fort Lauderdale operate shelters with the same low-barrier model. However, there’s no definitive statewide list of shelters that meet Bell’s definition of “primary low-barrier entry homeless shelters.” Mayor Harvey Ward said the shelter’s low-barrier model isn’t unusual. “We are not, as has been alleged, the one of two cities anywhere using

low-barrier shelters. That's simply not true,” he said. “Low-barrier shelters are a best practice that are used in every major city in Florida.” CLAIM: GRACE’s low-barrier model attracts people with criminal histories from elsewhere in Florida. VERDICT: False. THE FACTS: In her email, Bell raised concerns that Gainesville’s low-barrier shelter system could attract formerly incarcerated people from across Florida. “What percentage of the people that are coming to Gainesville for homeless services are from the area?” Bell wrote. “Did they come here because it's a low-barrier setting where they will take people with violent criminal records?” Bell acknowledged she doesn’t have data showing how many people come to Gainesville specifically to access GRACE’s low-barrier shelter. Instead, she said she’s urging officials to explore these statistics and their relation to the safety of UF students. Interim CEO Bonner said the shelter's available intake information shows most of the people staying at GRACE are from Alachua County. “Our shelter beds are prioritized for Alachua County residents,” he wrote. “From the information we collect on intake, it is clear that the majority of people who receive our services are from right here in Alachua County.” Bonner said shelter services are intended for county residents and cannot be reserved remotely. People seeking emergency shelter must appear in person, meaning it provides shelter for those who need it locally. CLAIM: Arrest records show GRACE residents are significantly

contributing to crime in Gainesville. VERDICT: Misleading. THE FACTS: In her email to local officials, Bell compiled 37 arrest reports of homeless individuals between April 2025 and August 2026, with 13 having addresses linked to GRACE Marketplace. Other reports did not have an address or were linked to the now-closed St. Francis House, which was located in downtown Gainesville. She said the records were intended to demonstrate a broader pattern of repeat offenses and convictions rather than allege every person listed in the records was a GRACE resident. She also acknowledged some of the

cases cited in her email involved individuals who were arrested but never prosecuted or convicted. “I don’t think that any single arrest is demonstrative that they lived at GRACE,” Bell said. According to Bonner, an arrest record listing GRACE as an address doesn’t mean the person was staying at the shelter when they were charged with a crime. Some people use the shelter as a mailing address if they don’t have a permanent residence, might have received day services there or stayed there in the past, he said. “An arrest report that identifies someone as homeless or lists GRACE somewhere in that person’s history does not establish that the person

Matthew Bravo, the Vision-affiliated SG president, said he’s looking forward to the election. “Seeing the candidates put forward their ideas to the student body is always an exciting time for our campus,” he said. While Vision's on-campus platform will focus on upgrades to common and study areas, its off-campus platform aims to improve scooter parking, create enhanced digital maps with transportation information and push for a database detailing offcampus study locations. The party is looking to upgrade areas of the Reitz Union, add a meditation space, improve legal resources for student renters and increase exam preparation opportunities. To improve campus recreation, Vision hopes to start a student pickleball tournament with a food donation required for entry to help stock the Field and Fork food pantry, which is run by the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. But for Valery Cohn, a 21-year-old UF economics and business administration senior, Vision’s platform seems disingenu-

Read the rest online | at alligator.org. Ray Garcia contributed to this report. hkon@alligator.org

Mily Moran // Alligator Staff

Grace Marketplace is located at 3055 NE 28th Drive in Gainesville, Fla

New party rises to counter Vision at polls SG, from pg. 1

was staying at GRACE when an incident occurred,” Bonner wrote. The records provide evidence of individual arrests and allegations but do not establish that GRACE residents significantly contribute to Gainesville crime or that GRACE’s policies caused those offenses. Gainesville Police Department spokesperson Art Forgey said there’s no connection between GRACE Marketplace and crime rates.

ous. She said she’s seen Vision prioritize UF’s fraternity and sorority organizations, which have historically staffed and voted for Vision, over the wider student body. “I would really like to see a larger diversity of voices,” Cohn said, “just in general, people who aren’t bending over backwards for the frats.” Hope’s counter Founded by Lane O’Rourke, a 20-yearold biochemistry junior, Hope’s overarching mission is to challenge the current oneparty system. He said the party’s platform is built on aiding immigrant and international students, improving campus affordability and increasing transparency. O’Rourke, who serves as Hope’s president and communications director, said he felt underrepresented by Vision. Vision’s lack of transparency affected his trust in SG, he added, and it fostered unawareness of senate operations. “We want legitimacy in our government because it's currently representing a constituency of a tiny percentage of the student population at this point, and we want students' voices to be heard,” O’Rourke said.

To support immigrant and international students, O’Rouke said Hope wants to expand legal services, advocate for UFPD to end its agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and push for pay raises for students working on campus. The party also looks to increase funding for the Gainesville Regional Transit System, which lost four routes after its budget dropped 28%, expand UF’s childcare program and protest increases to tuition and student fees. Hope is confident its push for changing the status quo will work, O’Rouke said, even if it takes time. “We are building a movement here,” he said. Tyler Sklar, a 21-year-old UF English senior and the party’s ethics and accountability chair, said winning senate seats isn’t the only way to influence campus decisions. Change can come from outside, too, he said. “I think what people should take away from this is that just because the campaign season might end, that doesn’t mean the battle is over,” he said.

How to vote There are eight polling locations on UF’s campus: • Honors Village Small Meeting Room #115 (1512 Museum Road) • Southwest Recreation Center Lobby (3150 Hull Road) • Health Science Center Library (1249 Center Drive) • Institute of Black Culture Classroom (1510 W. University Ave.) • Heavener Hall (1325 W. University Ave.) • Reitz Union Print Lab, Lower Level (655 Reitz Union Drive) • Norman Education Library (618 SW 12th St.) • Keys Complex (2191 Stadium Road) Students must show up to one of the polling stations in person on Sept. 29 or 30. They can check in with polling staff with a valid ID and cast their votes on UF’s digital voting platform by logging in with their UF GatorLink. @sconsuelogarcia sofiagarical@alligator.org

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026 ALLIGATOR 5

Movement to end animal testing arrives in Gainesville KIM-ANNE DODD AND HER DOG, PEACH, HIGHLIGHT NATIONAL SUPPORT TO END ANIMAL TESTING

By Christian Haas Alligator Staff Writer

Peach, a 6-year-old beagle, was once just called “CTU9,” the number she was assigned at Ridglan Farms, a now-closed beagle breeding and research facility in Blue Mounds, Wisconsin. Peach’s former identification is tattooed on her right ear. A tattoo across her stomach reads “WIAE,” which stands for Wisconsin Animal Experiment, a standard practice at animal testing facilities. Over 2,000 beagles were once held at Ridglan Farms, where they were subjected to animal testing and experimentation. A 2022 study found research beagles exhibited increased fear, attachment and abnormal behaviors compared with nonresearch beagles. Kim-Anne Dodd, Peach’s owner, planned a Sept. 26 event for Gainesville residents in solidarity with the March to Abolish Animal Testing, a 200-mile, two-week walk from Albany, New York, to the Marshall BioResources facility, a for-profit company that breeds animals intended for research, in North Rose, New York. Dodd said Peach spent over six years in Ridglan Farms before she was released May 2. A month later, Dodd and her husband adopted her from Big Dog Ranch Rescue in Loxahatchee Groves, Florida. Dodd’s connection with Peach was instant, she said. But Dodd said the years Peach spent caged indoors and subject to testing have presented challenges in caring for her. Peach suffers from PTSD, panic attacks and frequent seizures. She also has dozens of “debilitating” allergies, Dodd said, which limit her from touching grass, disrupt her breathing and cause skin infections and fluid-filled blisters. Peach’s medical complications don’t end with allergies, either. Peach required extreme dental surgery, mammary gland tumor and melanoma removal in the month after her adoption, Dodd said. She also had yeast infections in her ears, patches of missing fur and paws swollen to double or triple a healthy size.

Dodd and her veterinarian determined the swelling was likely from spending almost seven years on concrete and in wire cages, she said, which may have also caused significant tooth wear and decay. Dodd believes Peach’s other medical complications originated from experiments and testing at Ridglan Farms, she added. Despite Peach’s lifestyle restrictions, need for constant supervision racked up in more than $6,000 veterinary bills, Dodd said she is bonded to her. She’s even curated Peach’s social media presence. “I can’t imagine my life without Peach,” said Dodd. “Where she struggles medically, she more than makes up for it with emotional and physical [affection].” Beagles are commonly used for dog testing because of their small size and docile nature, according to the Beagle Freedom Project. “They picked the beagles because they’re so precious, and they just take it,” said Missy Crutchfield, a media coordinator for the March to Abolish Animal Testing. “What they’re doing to them is horrific.” Crutchfield said she met someone who rescued a beagle that spent over a decade undergoing testing at Marshall BioResources before being sold to a veterinary school for more experimentation. The dog was ultimately released because the university did not want to continue paying medical expenses, Crutchfield said. Universities, including UF, and other animal testing facilities purchase animals from Marshall BioResources to use for testing. UF Animal Care Services purchased 19 cats from Marshall BioResources to be used in a 2024 study. The protocols followed in the experiments were approved by the UF Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, according to the article, and all procedures complied with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. UF experimented on nearly 800 dogs in fiscal year 2025, according to annual reports filed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Of those dogs, about two-thirds were part of experiments that reported no pain, distress or use of painrelieving drugs. The other third were used in experiments that reportedly created pain or distress and were given anesthetics, analgesics or tranquilizers in expectation or observation of pain, according to the annual report. UF also selected six beagles to be included, with approval from the animal care committee, in noninvasive sensory testing that applied pressure to the dogs’ skin, gradual in-

creases in temperature and electric nerve stimulation. The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment across three days. Solidarity event Ten owners of previous test beagles gathered in front of UF’s College of Veterinary Medicine with their pets Sept. 26 to protest testing on animals or breeding them to be experimented on. Drivers honked carhorns as they drove past the crowd and its signs. “END ANIMAL TESTING,” one sign read. Others showed beagles “before,” when they were still known by their identification numbers, and “now,” with their new names. As horns beeped, two of the five beagles yipped and shrank away from the road. Lisa Sapp, a biochemist with a bachelor of science from UF, attended the solidarity event with her beagle from Ridglan Farms. “As a scientist, I feel like it’s time for us to start looking at alternative methods for making sure that our drugs and our products are safe and effective,” she said. She added that 92% of drugs that pass animal trials fail in human trials. Testing methods like organ-on-a-chip, computer-generated models and artificial intelligence are promising alternatives, she said. Organ-on-a-chip testing uses living human cells to simulate organ functions, while computer-generated and AI alternatives attempt to predict how cells and organs will react to drugs or chemicals based on previously collected data. According to a Harvard article, certain diseases and treatments can only be studied in animals. And alternatives do not sufficiently replace animal testing. Testing on animals can also be more effective at replicating multi-organ interactions than using human cells from individual organs, according to the Swiss Academy of Sciences. Ella Magers, who co-founded the March to Abolish Animal Testing, completed the march on Sept. 26 with about 1,000 others. “We don’t have to choose between compassion and science,” Magers said. “We can have science without suffering.” @ChristianH58745 chaas@alligator.org

Film highlights New College students’ fight against DeSantis-led overhaul

“First They Came For My College” follows student responses to stringent anti-DEI initiatives By Alana Nguyen Alligator Staff Writer

The voices of students outside the entrance of the New College of Florida cried “racist, sexist, anti-gay Ron DeSantis go away,” as Gov. Ron DeSantis arrived to sign papers to approve of the removal of diversity, education and inclusion programs. The scene is captured in “First They Came for My College,” a film that began its theatrical run Sept. 17 at the Hippodrome Theatre, where it showed until Sept. 26. It aims to teach the general public about the “hostile takeover” of New College of Florida after DeSantis’ 2023 Florida Board of Governors appointments. Patrick Bresnan, who directed the film, said it’s meant to document how professors, students and the institution were impacted by the new trustees. Filmmakers collected 300 hours of footage, he said, which were compiled into just under two hours that showed how students found joy under challenging circumstances. After the appointments, Bresnan said, New College’s campus was a

“war zone.” “The goal of this film is that people see it, and they become activated to what’s happening at their own universities,” he said. Students were vital to the process, he said. Steven Walker, who led news coverage of New College’s DeSantis-led transformation in his reporting for the Sarasota Herald, was a “real inspiration” for the film because he helped tell the stories of people impacted by the new policies. “I really saw the students as my colleagues working on this project,” said Bresnan. Before DeSantis stepped in, New College of Florida was known for its progressive policies, DEI efforts and LGBTQ+ identifying students. But after the governor’s appointments and subsequent ban of DEI funding, the school’s retention rates fell from nearly 80% in 2022 to 65% in 2023. Other controversial moves followed, including the removal of the gender studies program and campus police’s adoption of the 287(g) agreements, which allow officers to act as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

Students didn’t remain silent. They protested by creating signs and chants, ultimately grabbing the attention of filmmakers like Harry William Hanbury, a New College alumnus who produced the film. Hanbury came to New College as a conservative student from a Catholic all-boys military high school. But during his time at New College, he gained the courage to come out as LGBTQ+. “I felt like New College saved me from living a lie because it was such a welcoming place to come out,” Hanbury said. But when the DeSantis administration started implementing changes, Hansbury said he felt personally attacked and inspired to take action. “Far-right education reformers in states are trying to erase LGBTQ people,” he said. The title was inspired by a poem titled “First They Came,” he added, which is inscribed in the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum by Pastor Martin Niemoller. Centered on the consequences of staying silent in the face of persecution, the poem describes the gradual takeover of social

groups, and eventually the speaker, because they didn’t speak out. Hansbury similarly likened the Nazi’s book burnings with the thousands of library books thrown away at New College, saying the changes made under DeSantis are reminiscent of 20th-century Germany. “It’s just outright state censorship,” he said. Hansbury described the changes made to the school as “a disaster unfolding before my eyes,” he said, which sparked his conviction to share student voices. “I think every American should see this film,” he said. Audiences react Viewers at the Hippodrome in Gainesville felt strongly about New College’s changes, too. Martha Kern, who attended the Sept. 26 showing, said the book removal felt “intentional and appalling.” Kern’s sister works in higher education, and she felt the need to see it because the film revolved around college students. Seeing UF enact state mandates, including the re-

moval of DEI funding, encouraged her to learn more about educational freedom and rights, she said. “I’d love to see what happened to those students that were so deeply affected by this,” she said. “Have they taken this experience with them? And where are they now?” The film’s ending echoed her complaints as students’ boos overtook the voice of Joe Ricketts, an American businessman, as he took the stage. Students were made further uncomfortable when Ricketts encouraged his audience to find a spouse who will support their postgraduate adventures. Ricketts’ speech was cut off by student jeers that pressured him offstage. “[This] billionaire addressing our student body feels like salt in a wound,” said Gabby Batista, a former New College student and protest leader, in the film. “Despite all of that, we’re going to celebrate our accomplishments.” @Alana_Nguyen12 anguyen@alligator.org

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026 www.alligator.org/section/the-avenue

FILM

‘Primetime’ deserves your prime time ROBERT PATTINSON MORPHS INTO CHRIS HANSEN IN LANCE OPPENHEIM’S GRIPPING DRAMATIZATION OF “TO CATCH A PREDATOR” By Mackenzie Haas Avenue Staff Writer

You see how this looks, right? What would’ve happened if this wasn’t the movie of the year? “Primetime,” which hit theaters Sept. 25, arrived with no shortage of hype. The directorial debut of Oscar-nominee Lance Oppenheim, who’s known for documentaries like “Spermworld,” was stacked up to be an excellent film. “Primetime” tells the story of Chris Hansen, the well-known child predator hunter and host of hidden camera show “To Catch A Predator.” He’s portrayed by the booked-and-busy Robert Pattinson, who’s acted in “The Odyssey” and “The Drama” this year alone. “To Catch A Predator,” a reality television series, follows Hansen and his team as they lure child predators online with fake names, stories and faces. They meet the predators in person, using a decoy actor to give them a false sense of security. Hansen then walks out and announces the “predator’s” face is being broadcast on Dateline NBC. When they leave, they’re arrested by waiting police. “Primetime” stands out as one of the best movies released so far this year. It’s gritty, iconic and beautifully shot. It touches on the many surprises of “To Catch a Predator” and conveys how big of a toll the show took on the crew’s lives. The show is portrayed as just another job for the actors, a chance to make money for the producers and a chance for Hansen to sit on the throne of television — and maybe fix his failing life. “Primetime” depicts Hansen as power-hungry, desperate for attention and spiraling downward. He’s the predators’ predator. Pattinson slips into this role like an old sweater. He eerily nails Hansen’s voice and mannerisms.

Daniela Ortiz // Alligator Staff

“Primetime” revisits the controversial rise of “To Catch a Predator” with Robert Pattinson as Chris Hansen.

I don’t know how to praise Pattinson more. No one else could have sold this role to me in the way he did. I never had to question him or suspend my disbelief. It felt like I had watched Hansen reenact the last few breaths of television history in the final episode of “To Catch a Predator.” The film is shot with vibrant, dynamic colors and rich texture on each shot. Sometimes, it’s grainy; sometimes, it’s rainy; sometimes, it’s incredibly bright; sometimes, it’s incredibly hazy. It all adds to the emotions driving Hansen, written on the face of Pattinson and revealed through the colors and textures of each scene. “Primetime” follows three characters: Hansen, played by Pattinson; Dan Plum, one of the actor decoys that lures the

predators, played by Skyler Gisondo; and Andie Bender, the show’s producer, played by Merritt Wever. It’s also the acting debut of musician Phoebe Bridgers, who plays a decoy named Del. Each actor delivers a layered performance, and each character wrestles with how the show impacts them while remaining invested in its success. This contradiction is one of the film’s most interesting ideas. These characters understand the darkness of the material they’re producing, yet ambition keeps pulling them toward it. They can be selfish, opportunistic and morally conflicted, and that doesn’t make them hard to understand. I genuinely think this is one of the best movies released this year, and it’s a good contender for my favorite movies of all time. I’ve been excited about the film since production photos of Pattinson and Bridgers circulated online last year. I found myself more excited as the movie went on, itching to see how far Oppenheim’s version of Hansen would go. The film follows “To Catch A Predator,” from its spot in primetime television to its eventual unravelling — when the pursuit of relevance begins to spin out of control. “Primetime,” especially Pattinson’s performance, feels built for awards season attention. My only bone to pick is central to what makes it entertaining: It heavily dramatizes the real events that inspired it. Of course, a narrative film needs an engaging peak, especially after spending nearly two hours escalating its central conflict. But the way the film exaggerates how certain events took place left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. The events that occurred weren’t as intense as they were portrayed, particularly at the end of the film. Still, that reservation did little to diminish my absorption in the film. By the time the theater lights came on and Phoebe Bridgers’ “On Video,” written for the film, began playing, I barely realized how much time had passed. “Primetime” is disturbing, stylish and difficult to look away from. Catching it in theaters is worth your time. mhaas@alligator.org

THEATRE

What Gainesville’s youth carry: The powerful messages hidden on the Hippodrome’s columns “A RIVER FULL OF ALL MY LOST LOVED ONES” USED CHILDREN’S DRAWINGS TO TRANSFORM THE THEATER By Kendall O’Connor Avenue Staff Writer What started as a children’s art project during the Hippodrome Theatre’s summer camp program has become a community spectacle. “A River Full of All My Lost Loved Ones” by Conrad Cheung, a 30-year-old assistant professor at the UF School of Art + Art History, is a vinyl art installation that spans the 26-foot-tall columns in front of the Hippodrome. It will be on display until Sept. 28. The vinyls wrap around the

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115-year-old Hippodrome’s six columns, transforming the historical building into a colorful display of Gainesville’s youth. They include over 600 drawings of children from the theater’s summer camp programs. The exhibit title is taken from the back of one camper’s artwork, Cheung said. The full sentence read, “IDK what to write here, but … a river full of all my lost loved ones.” The goal of the exhibit was to help children express parts of themselves they might repress, Cheung said. They also had to consider kids who shared something they may not feel comfortable showing the public. For Cheung’s project, they had asked children ages 8 to 17 about

Recapping Florida’s triumph over Ole Miss. Read the rest on page 10.

their emotions, feelings of safety and identity. They described the Hippodrome as a place people can go where their identity will be respected. “It became really, really clear that here was this physically central location that people were treating as a place for a certain kind of quiet liberation in the middle of Gainesville,” Cheung said. One of the most distinctive features of the exhibit is the thermochromic ink, which Cheung used to highlight poems older children wrote as captions to their drawings. When the stone columns reach a certain temperature, the ink disappears and reveals the words. For the rest of the day, these poetic snippets remain undisclosed.

The misspellings on the children’s art also stood out to Cheung, who embraced the jumbled, messy cultivation. Kids wrote about gender identity and stereotypes, they said, topics they might hesitate to talk about at home. “The confusion that kids have was actually delivered with a real clarity that I think needs to be taken seriously,” they said. Some of the art is unreadable, Cheung said, and that’s the point. Challenging viewers to decide what the illegibility means to them, the question is prompted by both the visual art and the musical accompaniment of Colin Self, who composed the exhibit’s opening musical performance on Aug. 28. Cheung expects viewers to be

confused at first glance, but they hope the confusion will lead to curiosity and engagement with the artwork. One confused onlooker saw the opening performance and posted it on Facebook, where they suggested a satanic ritual was occurring. “This is partly probably because all of the performers were dressed in robes that were covered in children’s drawings,” Cheung said. “Colin was singing in this really high, beautiful falsetto that was kind of piercing.” Read the rest online at alligator.org/section/the-avenue. koconnor@alligator.org.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026 www.alligator.org/section/opinions

Column

Stop hitting ‘generate’ T he debate over artificial intelligence seems to never end. Will it take over jobs? Will it turn against us? Does its environmental harm outweigh its helpfulness? AI has quickly become a part of our reality, and it has made our lives much easier. The technology has become embedded in everyday life across generations. From young adults using chatbots to search for information to older adults learning how to utilize AI tools to speed up everyday tasks, people of all ages are interacting with the technology. We know AI is an extraordinary tool — but we also know its consequences. On Sept. 8, AI researcher Jacob Coxon resigned from his role at Anthropic due to his unease over AI companies eventually losing control over their software. Coxon’s resigna-

tion sparked concern from other AI company employees that developers are improving AI models too quickly. Dario Amodei, the CEO of Anthropic, echoed Coxon’s urgency to slow AI development. Amodei even published an essay called “We Must Pace the Frontier” Sept. 18, which explained his plan to monitor and evaluate the safety of AI development. While the past week’s events have inflicted fear, it’s not the first time someone has expressed concern over AI. We are used to whistleblowers who reveal the risks. But what are we actually doing with this information? People have shown surprising apathy when it comes to the dangers of AI. More than half of Americans highly rate AI’s risks, yet about three-quarters admit they continue to use it for everyday tasks. They lack the initiative to take

action. Users are fed the information, like Coxon’s resignation from Anthropic, and believe they are exempt from the issue at hand. They all think: “One person can’t make a difference, so what’s the point?” Yes, AI is convenient and makes life much easier. But that’s not an excuse to continue using it after recognizing it’s harmful. Reacting to whistleblowers with concern is incredibly hypocritical when AI is still constantly being used despite the warnings. The hypocrisy of the situation makes it hard to take people seriously when they express unease over AI use. Continuing to use AI out of convenience is much easier than confronting the consequences behind it. As humans, we are always searching for something to improve our lives. It’s difficult to believe something that achieves this goal is so harmful. We finally created a technology that can seemingly do everything for us. Perhaps withholding this technology scares people more than the dangers behind it. This hypocrisy reveals that we are willing to put our desires over our sense of moral-

ity. It’s an internal struggle to recognize something we desire may be wrong. In this instance, we desire convenience, which AI provides. But the reality is AI is Ella Finkelstein harmful and dangeropinions@alligator.org ous, and we are willing to ignore this for what it offers us. We do not need more whistleblowers to point out the problem. Everyone is aware AI has serious and long-lasting consequences. What we need is not to just hear these warnings, but actually listen to them. We cannot approach the situation with apathy; we need to approach it with the passion to take action. @Ellamfink efinkelstein@alligator.org

Column

Ed Sheeran wants to stay apolitical. Can he?

here are plenty of reasons I would go to an Ed Sheeran concert. Hearing his thoughts on international geopolitics probably isn’t one of them. And Sheeran seems to agree. For most of the singer’s career, he’s kept his politics separate from his public image. But after Macklemore, one of Sheeran’s opening acts, was removed from the Loop Tour after sharing pro-Palestinian sentiments during his set, avoiding politics suddenly became a lot more complicated for Sheeran. During a Sept. 4 performance at MetLife Stadium, Macklemore performed “Hind’s Hall,” a protest song he released in 2024 in solidarity with pro-Palestinian student demonstrations, and ended his set by shouting “Free Palestine.” Two days later, Macklemore announced he had been removed from the remainder of Sheeran’s U.S. tour. Rolling Stone reported several venues had

indicated they wouldn’t host shows if Macklemore was on the lineup after his “Free Palestine” remarks, and tour promoter Messina Touring Group told Reuters the same. Sheeran has continued to emphasize that removing Macklemore was ultimately the promoter’s decision, not his, and he spent days trying to find another solution. The distinction is important. Sheeran didn’t personally fire Macklemore, and continuing the tour doesn’t tell us how he stands on Israel, Palestine or the conflict in Gaza. But that’s exactly why this situation interests me. Sheeran initially defended his desire to keep his concerts apolitical. He said his shows are meant to provide unity, joy and escapism rather than act as political forums. I understand the appeal of that philosophy. Musicians aren’t foreign policy experts, and having millions of fans shouldn’t automatically obligate them to tell those fans what to believe. There are days

when I use music to relax and escape my responsibilities, too. But Sheeran’s position became more complicated Sept. 20. At his Sept. 19 concert in Philadelphia, his first performance since Macklemore’s removal, Sheeran directly addressed the controversy and apologized for mistakes he made in handling it. He called the Oct. 7 Hamas attack “horrific” and described Israel’s subsequent war in Gaza as “catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate.” He also condemned what he called “systemic injustice” in the West Bank. Sheeran also said he was “deeply worried” about concert venues vetting performers’ content, arguing that although he’s encountered such restrictions elsewhere, it should “never happen in the free world.” But Macklemore’s removal presents a different question. This isn’t simply about whether Sheeran owes his audience a public

stance on Israel and Palestine. It’s about whether remaining “apolitical” is actually possible when political expression directly affects who’s allowed to Shirin Khizzar remain onstage on opinions@alligator.org your own tour. And that’s where neutrality starts to fall apart. Macklemore chose to use one of the largest platforms available to him to advocate for Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. He told Reuters the opportunity to draw greater attention to the Palestinian cause was part of why he agreed to join Sheeran’s tour in the first place. I admire that conviction. Read the rest online at alligator.org/section/opinions. @Shirinkhizzar Skhizzar@alligator.org

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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026 www.alligator.org/section/sports

FOOTBALL

Instant takeaways from Florida's blowout victory against Ole Miss THE GATORS POSTED THEIR HIGHEST POINT TOTAL AGAINST AN SEC FOE SINCE NOVEMBER 2020 By Riley Orovitz Sports Writer

The Swamp welcomed two ranked programs for the first time since 2022, and the bout lived up to the hype. No. 21 Florida (4-0, 2-0 SEC) was brimming with a buzz ahead of the wildly important battle and proved it is one of the top programs in the country. The Gators came out of the 52-28 win with 498 offensive yards against No. 4 Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1) in a sold-out showdown full of fireworks. Florida is undefeated through four games for the first time since 2019. Here are four takeaways from Florida’s first victory against a top-five ranked opponent since 2020. Florida can tango with anyone

Week 4 added a looming question for the Gators: Can they come out and defeat a superior opponent on a national stage? After the 24-point victory, Jon Sumrall and Co. did just that. Florida opened the game hot as Aaron Philo captained an 8-play, 65-yard touchdown drive to put the Rebels on their heels early. After an emotional 32-24 victory in Baton Rouge last week, Ole Miss was riding a wave of momentum but had the breaks put on upon arrival to The Swamp. Running back JT Lindsey took three consecutive handoffs before being blown up in the backfield by Florida linebacker Aaron Chiles on a fourth down, flipping the field for the Gators at the 9:16 mark of the opening frame. "That just ignited the stadium," Sumrall said. "Those critical situations of fourth down stops or fourth down conversions, that's the difference between winning and losing in this league."

Bayden Armstrong // Alligator Staff

Fans yell during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Mississippi, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Gainesville, Fla. In one of the most highly anticipated duels in Gainesville in over two decades, it was important for Florida to start out firing. Its 302 rushing yards and zero turnovers brought loads of optimism for the rest of the SEC stretch. "The offense is rolling right now," Philo said. "We've got to keep our foot on the gas, keep moving forward, keep practicing hard and keep grinding, moving on week by week." After Florida flexed its muscles with a commanding 14-point lead, the Rebels came out of the halftime break fast, cutting into the deficit. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss orchestrated a five-play, 80-yard touchdown drive headlined by a deep shot to Deuce Alexander on the right sideline. The pass sailed 49 yards past a covering Cormani

McClain, setting up Chambliss for an 8-yard rushing score. Florida didn’t stall, though, as the clubs’ threw backand-forth punches in the third quarter. Running back London Montgomery’s monster 41-yard kickoff return aided Florida with impeccable field position with 12:47 to go in the frame. The Gators failed to stop there. They took all five of their second-half drives into the end zone and went on a 28-14 scoring run. Read the rest online at alligator.org/section/sports. @rileyorovitz rorovitz@alligator.org

FOOTBALL

‘The sky’s the limit’: Florida’s offensive explosion headlines rout against Ole Miss THE GATORS ADDED 302 RUSHING YARDS IN THE WIN By Riley Orovitz Sports Writer

All Florida has done through the first four games of the 2026 season is average 532.8 yards per outing and dismantle every opponent that has lined up on the opposite sideline. The game was no different when the No. 4 Rebels (3-1, 1-1 SEC) came into town. The No. 21 Gators (4-0, 2-0) welcomed Ole Miss into The Swamp for the first showdown between two ranked programs since 2022 and left no doubt they can keep up — and take down — the best of the best. With Florida’s 52-28 blowout, Jon Sumrall became the first head coach in SEC history with 200-plus points in his first four games. Sumrall traded in his Tulane threads for the orange and blue and made an immediate impact. The Gators have tallied 214 points in 2026, setting the tone for the remainder of the stretch.

Moreover, their 29 touchdowns are one shy of matching the 2025 total — with eight games to go. “I think the sky’s the limit,” Sumrall said postgame. “We’ve been really efficient at scoring points per drive, points per possession this year and, if we do that, we’ll have a chance every week. We just have to continue to capitalize on our opportunities.” While Florida was favored to defeat the Rebels heading into the afternoon, it still had much to prove. The Gators were fresh off their first SEC victory of the year and back-to-back routs of non-Power Four programs, with plenty in store ahead. Ole Miss was a week off a massive top-25 win against then-No. 7 Louisiana State and boasts a rapid-fire offense captained by Heisman candidate Trinidad Chambliss. Even still, Florida emerged firing and muddled the issues that formed in prior weeks: stalling in the second half. The Gators’ offense has been loaded with fireworks through four weeks, but seems to hit a wall coming out of the halftime break. Of

their 162 points in the first three games, just 59 have come in the final 30 minutes of play. That all changed against the Rebels. Florida took an 11-point lead at halftime, but went on a rampage in the latter portion of the contest. The Gators turned all of their second-half drives into touchdowns, punching the ball into the end zone on five accounts. The victory also marked the first time since 2001 Florida has scored 40-plus points in its first four games, marking a new beginning for the program. Sumrall and Aaron Philo’s crew seemed to have everything figured out. Florida’s junior quarterback has looked poised in his first campaign in Gainesville. He sported a passer rating of 155.5 to go along with his 196 yards and two total touchdowns. The first score came on a quarterback sneak with 3:45 left in the third quarter and marked his third rushing touchdown of the year. Philo’s initial effort after taking the snap was followed by a leap over the line of scrimmage for the score. The Bogart, Georgia, native immediately faced the Gator faithful, doing

the celebratory chomp in front of the sold-out crowd. “When you’re playing the game of football, there’s going to be emotions, and I was pretty fired up in that moment,” Philo said. The score opened the floodgates for the Gators, who rattled off a 21-7 run in the game’s final frame. “We gotta keep the foot on the gas, and we gotta keep scoring,” Philo said of his message to his teammates after his rushing touchdown. “I was just trying to make sure everybody was staying locked in and keeping our foot on the gas.” In addition to Philo’s end zone push, Florida excelled on the ground. It added 302 rushing yards in the win and used its backfield depth to its advantage.

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Read the rest online at alligator.org/section/sports. @rileyorovitz rorovitz@alligator.org

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026 ALLIGATOR 11

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Noah Lantor // Alligator Staff

Florida center Rueben Chinyelu (9) moves to the ball during the first half of an SEC Men's Basketball Tournament semifinal game against Vanderbilt, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn.

Rueben Chinyelu reflects on Iowa loss, prepares for senior season THE ONLY TIME CHINYELU WAS HELD SCORELESS LAST SEASON WAS AGAINST THE HAWKEYES By Jeffrey Serber Sports Writer

Looking at Rueben Chinyelu’s 2025-26 season, one word stands out: dominance. Whether it was in the paint or on the defensive end, the 6-foot-10 center from Nigeria had his way in almost every matchup — well, except for one. In Florida’s last game of the 2025-26 season, a 73-72 loss to Iowa in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Chinyelu was held to a season-low 0 points and one rebound. That game tacked on a sour end to his historic season. “I was pretty upset at myself for not being able to do more, a little bit more, just to make sure that we are the winning side,” Chinyelu said. “It wasn't a good taste, and I don't want to taste that.” After a successful season that ended in bitterness, Chinyelu looks to be the anchor once

again for a Florida frontcourt that was among the best in the nation last season, while also improving his game. “It's a beautiful season, and I think everybody is ready for it,” he said. Chinyelu averaged 10.9 points and 11.2 rebounds per game, becoming the first Gator in 50 years to finish a season averaging doubledigit boards. He was also the first player in program history to be named Naismith and NABC Defensive Player of the Year. In the SEC, Florida’s center was named Defensive Player of the Year, Scholar-Athlete of the Year and made the all-conference second team. During his 2025-26 campaign, Chinyelu broke single-season program records for offensive rebounds (137) and double-doubles (19). Dwayne Davis previously held the offensive rebound record with 114 (1988-89), while Bob Smyth held the double-double record with 18 (1975-76). With those records and accolades, Chinyelu’s performance against Iowa seemed like a fluke. The center said he watched the Iowa game once or twice to learn from it. “That day, I don't think I did everything that I can, so I don't want to be in that spot

again,” he said. Like frontcourt teammates Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon, Chinyelu initially declared for the 2026 NBA Draft but later returned to Gainesville for his senior season. He was the last of the three to do so, over a month after Haugh and Condon. During the pre-draft process and the NBA Combine, Chinyelu said he gained experience and a better understanding of his game that he looks to carry into this season. “A the end of the day, you just need to get better,” Chinyelu said. “You know your strong streak, you know what you do and you know what a team [chose] you for.” While defense and rebounding were always strong suits for Chinyelu, his offensive game needed work. Chinyelu averaged 4.7 points per game in his freshman season at Washington State. After transferring to UF for the 2024-25 season, Chinyelu improved his scoring to an average of 6 points per game — he started every game that season en route to the Gators’ national championship — and his free-throw percentage increased by 9.3 percentage points. Last season, his scoring increased by 4.9

points per game and free-throw percentage shot up to 69.5%, a 20.6 percentage point increase from his first year. Head coach Todd Golden wants to see his center improve his low-post game further. “He became a great low-post scorer last year,” Golden said. “The back half of the year he was unstoppable down there. If you can be elite in those areas, then his stock will continue to rise.” Aside from the grind of an NBA pre-draft process, Chinyelu made his first visit home to Nigeria since he joined the Gators. He said he was home for about three to four weeks during the summer. "The visit was really good,” Chinyelu said. “It was quite needed. Just going home and seeing my mom, my siblings." Now, with a clear mind after the Iowa loss and motivation to build on his junior season, Chinyelu is ready to take the court with Florida for his senior season, which begins Nov. 2 in Tampa against Miami. @JeffreySerber Jserber@alligator.org

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12 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2026

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