The Georgetown Voice, September 25, 2015

VOICE

September 25, 2015

The Georgetown

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

V OICE THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

September 25, 2015

The Georgetown

staff editor-in-chief Chris Almeida Managing editor daniel varghese Executive editors Noah buyon, christopher castano, lara fishbane

Volume 48 • Issue 3

news editor ryan miller assitant editors Courtnie baek, lilah burke, Liz teitz Leisure editor Elizabeth baker assistant editors Jon block, dinah farrell, brian Mcmahon Sports Editor Joe pollicino assistant editor max roberts halftime Leisure editors Mike bergin, erika bullock Sports editors alex boyd, rob ponce assistant sports editor matt jasko Voices editor graham piro assistant editor charles evain

“wheat field with beggar” by Megan Howell

Editorials

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Carrying On: Dressed to Express Eleanor Sugrue

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Hoyas RealTalk More Rachel Coleman

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Keeping Up With the GOP Roey Hadar

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Bucking the Trend Joe Pollicino

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Closing the Gap Elizabeth Teitz

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Reaching Out Lara Fishbane and Cassidy Jensen

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editor@georgetownvoice.com Leavey 424 Box 571066 Georgetown University Washington, DC 20057

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The opinions expressed in The Georgetown Voice do not necessarily represent the views of the administration, faculty or students of Georgetown University, unless specifically stated. Columns, advertisements, cartoons and opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or the General Board of The Georgetown Voice. The university subscribes to the principle of responsible freedom of expression of its student editors.

design Cover editor megan howell editors eleanor sugrue, ellie yaeger spread editors pam shu, sophie super copy Chief suzanne trivette editors Sharon Mo, Hanh Nguyen, Amal Farooqui, Maddi Kaigh Anna Gloor, Clara Cecil, Greer Richey, Hannah Wingett Dana Suekoff, Rachel Greene, Matthew Soens online online editor kenneth lee social media editors sahil nair, tiffany tao Editorial Board chair Laura Kurek associate editors marisa hawley, kevin huggard, sabrina kayser, christina libre Staff writers sourabh bhat, Emilia brahm, Emmy buck, Caitlyn cobb, brendan crowley, Patrick drown, emmanuel elone, joe laposata, maneesha panja, Brendan saunders, thomas stubna, manuela Tobias, colleen zorc staff photographers Ambika ahuja, saman asdjodi, jen costa, megan howell, gavin myers, freddy rosas, Taryn Shaw, andrew Sullivan staff designers Lizzy blumburg, river davis, katie hyland, Johnny jung photo editor joshua raftis general manager tim annick

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

read more on georgetownvoice.com

Pope Francis celebrated the Mass of the Canonization of Junipero SerPope Francis celebrated the Mass of the Canonization of Junipero Serra with over 25,000 people at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on Sept. 23. Read our coverage of his Mass and social media highlights from the Georgetown community on our website.

Joshua Raftis

Late Night Report

By Kathleen Coughlin ACROSS 1. Pilgrim to Mecca 7. Monk’s hood 11. Sternward 14. Clothing 15. Reed instrument 16. Spotted cube 17. Tomorrow in Paris 18. MGM mascot 19. 1040 org.

20. Bird 22. Instead of studying, you spend time calculating the ___ grade you can get 24. Jet 27. Zodiac sign 29. Baseball stat 30. Center 32. Smartphone charger for your car 35. Last week tonight host 37. Split 38. School org.

41. You probably should

have stated yours earlier, in retrospect… only 8 pages left…

42. Pelvic bone 44. Before 45. Tony Shalhoub title character 48. Attribute 49. Fertilizes 51. Elitist 52. The color of the sky in Marseille 55. Court divider 56. Historic period 57. Corduroy features 60. Hatfield’s foe 64. Rink surface 65. Breakfast, for example 67. Frozen fries brand 71. Badly lit 72. Niger neighbor 73. Less attractice 74. Airport info 75. Prayer ending 76. Cops

DOWN 1. Ticked off 2. Plains tribe 3. Seminary deg.

4. Deceives 5. Persian Gulf nation 6. Waiter’s handout 7. TV host who might be considered France’s first lady?

8. Kimono closer 9. Fleece 10. Tonight show host from 2010-2014 11. Parting word 12. Primary 13. A reason you’re experiencing the puzzle’s theme 21. Boxing great 23. Stir-fry pan 24. Range 25. Sunny energy 26. Poppycock 28. Rhyming tribute 31. First lady?

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32. Fiery crime 33. “Champagne Supernova” band 34. You’re up so you can ____ for the test 36. Girl’s name 38. Trim back 39. Private instructor 40. Single-celled organism 43. Unit of frequency 46. Sister 47. Moscow landmark 49. Where you’ll get your coffee fix, maybe 50. List shortener 52. London or Brooklyn, e.g.

53. Sanctioned 54. Swelling 58. Actress Thompson 59. Stitch 61. Masterstroke 62. Class notorious in this puzzle’s theme 63. Cheer

66. Pub order 68. Square root of IX 69. Calendar abbr.

70. Exist

Last issue’s solution:

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EDITOIRALS

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Doubling Down on Going Green Taking a Cue from Pope Francis In case you missed it, Pope Francis was in town this week. In true American political fashion, both sides of the aisle sought to repurpose his moral authority to suit their policy agendas. We’d prefer to let the pope’s unambiguous ambitions speak for themselves. His visit should be seen as a challenge to do more than just pay lip service to the cause of mitigating climate change. The Editorial Board believes the core message of the pope’s recently-released encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’ (On Care for Our Common Home), has gone ignored on the Hilltop and farther afield. We owe it to Pope Francis and ourselves to do better.

Climate change, and the threat it poses, is a deeply politicized issue. Representative Paul Gosar (R-AZ), a practicing Catholic, refused to attend the pope’s speech to Congress on Thursday on the grounds that the ope’s encyclical and subsequent advocacy for environmental reform has reduced him to the status of “a leftist politician.” Climate change is also a hackneyed issue. Anyone with an Internet connection has heard the talking points on each side recited ad infinitum, and just about every Hoya, rendered emotionally exhausted by the scale of the problem, has at one point chosen to ignore rather than engage with advocacy groups like GU Fossil Free.

The Editorial Board knows that climate change poses an existential danger, and that addressing it is a moral imperative. So too does Pope Francis, who has done an admirable job of bringing the issue out of the political arena, to the extent that doing so is possible. We recognize that not everyone agrees

with us—people like Rep. Gosar never will—but we contend that you can harbor doubts about climate change and still believe in the utility of exercising better environmental stewardship. In other words, there are compelling reasons to go green, like reducing pollutants and building up a new national infrastructure, that cut across political lines in the sand.

They must be acted on, with urgency.

For us students, the pope’s visit is an opportunity to breathe new life into the push towards creating a more environmentally-conscious Hilltop. Encouragingly, much has already been done to make Georgetown a greener place. In June, the university notified the student body of its decision to end direct investment in coal mining companies. Three and a half months later, Georgetown has just about followed through on this promise.

However, mutual fund investments in coal, oil, and gas, as well as direct investments in the oil and gas industries still populate the endowments. In a statement to GU Fossil Free, the university admitted its now-divested investments in coal constituted an insubstantial portion of its total investment in fossil fuel.

It appears to be financially feasible for Georgetown to divest entirely. In April, we reported that Georgetown’s total fossil fuel holdings composed 8 to 10 percent of the endowment—valued at $1.4 billion at the end of the 2014 Fiscal Year. This percentage has obviously decreased, however minimally, with the most recent coal divestment. The endowment, however, has increased markedly with

the completion of “For Generations to Come: The Campaign for Georgetown.” The success of this campaign is an example of how Georgetown might compensate for the financial loss incurred by divesting from fossil fuels.

Georgetown has proven itself a leader in sustainability in other areas. The Environmental Protection Agency recently recognized Georgetown as the second largest green-power campus in the U.S. And, after making a 2006 commitment to reduce its carbon footprint, Georgetown made a 70 percent reduction through 2014 by slashing on-campus energy usage and purchasing Renewable Energy Certificates, through which the university supports the production of renewable energy.

So, yes, Georgetown has shown above-average level of dedication to the environment. But the university should go the full nine yards. Abandoning investment in fossil fuels is reconcilable with Georgetown’s financial interests and necessitated by its Jesuit values. Smaller but no less important changes can also be implemented with a view towards sustainability, like using recycled silverware as our colleagues down the hall suggested.

Pope Francis’s visit to Washington should spur Georgetown to further its commitment to being a sustainable and socially-responsible campus. And that demands divesting from fossil fuels. Otherwise, the banners around campus that proudly bear the words “Women and Men for Others” ring somewhat hollow. Pope Francis, more than anyone, would agree.

Editorial Cartoon “The Cold Shoulder”

By Samantha Lee

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Dress to Express

Carrying On: Voice Staffers Speak

The Value of Fashion as an Art Form

I never felt more uncomfortable in an outfit than I did on fifth grade picture day. My mother, who I somehow consider my style icon today, dressed me in a pink corduroy knee-length skirt, a long-sleeve white shirt stitched with a variety of colorful flowers, a pink headband, and pink Mary Jane shoes. Seperately, the clothes were perfectly decent. Together, well… I felt like I was wearing a girly eight-year-old’s bedroom set from Pottery Barn. To my misfortune, the camera captured my discomfort, and to this day, I am reminded of the cringe-worthy experience because I am lucky enough to have about twenty copies of this photo in various sizes. Fundamentally, I felt uncomfortable because I didn’t feel like myself. Fashion should never create this feeling—it should allow you to express yourself in whatever way makes you feel most at ease.

Fashion is often seen as vain and superfluous, as an utter waste of time and money. Many see fashion as a shallow and brutally competitive industry, home only to the worst caricatures out of The Devil Wears Prada. Most people see Fashion Week—or more correctly, Fashion Month—as a biannual, four-week long parade of excess, to the tune of millions of dollars. To me, Fashion Week is the greatest art show of the year; a reminder that the idea that fashion is art as well as a method of self-expression should be taken seriously.

ANDREA LANG

Making choices about how to present yourself can say a lot about your personality. Our words and ideas are, of course, important as well, but so are the silent means through which we present our values and preferences. It seems like a notion we take for granted: that what we wear matters. And yet, fashion is such a derided industry, disregarded for its supposed superficiality. I am often met with disdain when I become excited about this season’s new Prada bag or Burberry trench coat. Granted, I won’t be watching the Versace Spring/Summer 2016 show from the front row—or any row—in Milan (my Instagram feed will have to suffice). And no, I will not be making space in my closet for Dior’s inventive heels of the season or Chanel’s new take on their classic quilted bag, as I am well aware that the cost of one designer’s fashion show is roughly equal to the cost of four years’ tuition at Georgetown.

As a nineteen-year-old college sophomore still trying to figure out her life, I’m in no position to casually buy the $3,435 Ruffle Double Breasted Compact Felt and Velvet Coat from Alexander McQueen or the $800 Pom Pom key chain from Fendi. To be honest, it’s difficult to justify the purchase of designer jeans with a three-digit price tag. However, the absurdly high price of high-fashion —as well as ready-to-wear or mass market—clothing and accessories shouldn’t dimin-

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ish their artistic value. An article of clothing’s price should be independent of its expressive value—you can convey as much with sneakers from the clearance rack as you can with anything bearing Alexander McQueen’s name. Fashion should be an source of inspiration, not a financially restrictive burden. Despite the economic hindrance fashion often seems to impose, I believe you can still draw inspiration for how to express yourself from fashion.

What we wear says something—but not everything— about who we are. Wearing jeans or sports clothes or a suit to class makes a statement about your priorities. Do you value comfort over trendiness? Do you prefer to be perceived to be low-key and laid-back or polished and put-together?

Are you meticulous, or does the big picture matter more to you? Do you passively buy every new trend or are you clever with curating what you already have? These, and many more questions, can be answered by your outfit choice. No one style is better than any other, but the very act of making a choice to wear something is essential in defining ourselves.

At Georgetown, fashion serves many purposes, one of the most important being social unity. For instance, members of sports teams wear the same gear and apparel to practice and around campus. Sports teams’ apparel acts as a symbol of unity—everyone wearing the same shirt or sweatpants can feel the nonverbal bond connecting the team. Almost every club at Georgetown has some type of t-shirt or sweatshirt with a logo or inside joke, and wearing that t-shirt or sweatshirt links you to that community.

At the same time, though fashion gives us the ability to symbolically belong to something, fashion is a personal decision that can completely differentiate us from each other, if that is what we desire. At a place like Georgetown, it can be difficult to stand out. Conventionality has almost become a core requirement in the social scene—Vineyard Vines quarter zips and Sperry boat shoes seem almost necessary to socially “succeed.” Those who do want to differentiate themselves through personal style often feel reluctant to do so because it’s “safer” to conform. However, students especially should embrace their individual styles through fashion in order to set themselves apart. Personal style is something that no one can replicate—it is an irrevocably unique form of expression for every individual.

With Fashion Week in full swing, I am reminded of the importance of fashion serving as a source of inspiration in enabling us to convey who we are. Though it is easy to become disillusioned and discouraged by the extravagance the fashion industry seems to constantly flaunt, it is crucial to remember to appreciate fashion for its original, most basic purpose: art. Art is meant to inspire us, to evoke feeling.

Fashion allows us to wear art, and in doing so, it provides an opportunity to distinguish ourselves in a way that majors and minors, clubs, and GPAs can’t. It is a vehicle for self-expression—as long as you leave the pink corduroy skirt at home.

BY ELEANOR SUGRUE

She is a sophomore in the SFS.

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VOICES

6 THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

“A university can give its students a quick tenminute lesson on consent, complete with several entertaining examples, but it cannot expect that to conclusively solve the problem of sexual assault.”

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Hoyas, RealTalk More

Increasing Dialogue About Sexual Assault Throughout the summer, and especially since the Georgetown University Student Association and Georgetown’s administration reached a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the topic last week, there’s been a lot of talk about Georgetown’s sexual assault policy and what it does—and doesn’t—do right. These are important discussions to have. Yet, in these conversations, few have mentioned the first exposure most first-years have to Georgetown’s sexual assault policy.

That exposure is Hoya RealTalk, the hourand-a-half-long program within New Student Orientation (NSO) that discusses a myriad of issues at Georgetown. This program isn’t something you’d see on a tour or during GAAP weekend.

Hoya RealTalk covers everyday problems many Hoyas will face—from partying-‘til-you-drop to locking yourself in Lau all night during midterms.

It also covers the issue of sexual assault.

While, in theory, Hoya RealTalk is a productive way to introduce new Hoyas to resources and tactics to help them deal with and prevent sexual assault, the way it is executed undercuts the program’s potential to do good.

For me, NSO was long, emotional, and exhausting. Sunday, my second day on campus, was particularly taxing. We first-year students stood outside McDonough Arena in our Sunday-best for forty-five minutes before New Student Convocation. Then, we were promptly sent off to a farewell lunch with our families—the last time that many of us would see our loved ones until Thanksgiving or Winter Break. From those few hurried moments, we were immediately directed off to meetings with deans. And with that, in the span of a morning, we became full-fledged college students, completely on our own, with schedules and convocation robes in our hands.

After all that, I needed a nap, some non-packaged food, and some time alone to recover. Instead, it was time for Hoya RealTalk, perhaps the most sensitive, important, and potentially difficult part of NSO—tacked onto the end of what was already a jam-packed day.

Bleary-eyed and a little shell-shocked, the other first-years and I rotated through Leo’s and Gaston Hall for dinner and the show. Hoya RealTalk was followed by a discussion, in which students are meant to openly discuss the sensitive issue of sexual assault with their orientation group, ten people they’d met yesterday and about a dozen others (another orientation group). Of course, little is actually said, because few people are comfortable discussing sexual assault with close friends, let alone strangers. To top it off, everybody is expected to do all this in a neat twohour chunk of time, after which they’re off on

PATRIICIA LIN

their merry way to play ice-breaking games on the multi-sport field.

I don’t think that Hoya RealTalk is necessarily a bad thing. It’s not. Dialogues on tough issues must be kept open—an oft-repeated sentiment, but a true one nonetheless—and, of course, they have to start somehow. The big problem with Hoya RealTalk and other efforts to broach weighty topics in condensed timespans is that they trick people—and universities—into thinking they’re all that’s needed. They are not.

A university can give its students a quick ten-minute lesson on consent, complete with several entertaining examples, but it cannot expect that to conclusively solve the problem of sexual assault. Hoya RealTalk is a good first step to approaching the topic on campus, but that’s all it is: a first step. It is all too easy for students to box it off as “some talk I had to sit through before I could hang out with my friends that night” or for a university to include a solitary lecture and pat itself on the back.

So, then, what is the answer? A mandatory first-year seminar on rape culture? An educational online workshop that must be re-completed every semester? Maybe. But even if these work, they’re not the complete answer. The real answer is that Hoyas have to keep having these discussions about serious issues. These have to be the ever-present dialogues we have, because freshmen might not remember that someone told them during NSO that someone can’t consent when drunk. They’re much more likely to remember if they were just discussing it earlier that day with a friend.

Statistics on sexual assault are difficult to accurately collect, as it is a heavily underreported crime; according to the US Department of Justice, only around 20% of on-campus sexual assaults are reported. Still, the National Sexual Violence Research Center states that one in five

women and one in sixteen men will be sexually assaulted during her or his time as an undergraduate. Really, though, this exact number isn’t important. Regardless of whether it is one in five or one in five-hundred, one is too many. If these survivors aren’t you or me, they’re our friends, our classmates, the people we stand behind in line at the salad bar. If we truly want to be Hoyas for others, we all need to actively work to change our campus and its attitude towards sexual assault and its survivors. We need to keep talking so survivors know they can get help, and where and how to find it. We need to keep talking so that Georgetown hears us.

With the MOU, it seems Georgetown is taking steps further than Hoya RealTalk, and that’s a good thing. However, the MOU poses the same risk as Hoya RealTalk for the university. While it does set deadlines for policy implementation and coordinator-hiring, it doesn’t really change anything. Sure, it shows that the university is at least somewhat committed to solving the rampant problem of sexual assault, but that’s not enough. Just like Hoya RealTalk, the MOU can cause Georgetown to become complacent with respect to sexual assault.

What Georgetown needs is real change, and the MOU—just like Hoya RealTalk—is only one step toward that. We can’t let Georgetown continue to move slowly toward reform; we have to push for faster, greater change for those of us who will survive sexual assault during our four years on the Hilltop.

If there’s one thing that should never be NSO-ver, it’s the sexual assault dialogue and our role in changing our campus’s attitude toward it.

So, Hoyas, let’s keep talking.

BY RACHEL COLEMAN

She is a freshman in the College.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

VOICES

Keeping up with the GOP Politics in the Age of the Donald While watching the debate last Wednesday night, I had a flashback to my junior year of high school. I had written a column for my school newspaper deriding a proposed presidential debate hosted by Donald Trump wherein I resigned myself to the fact that debates would eventually become reality TV programs.

Using some fresh-in-2011 context, I wrote, “It might end up like Jersey Shore, where people look down on [the candidates] but still watch, making them national celebrities.”

That’s essentially what happened with the most recent Republican debate. An estimated 23 million people tuned in to watch Donald Trump call Rand Paul ugly, Jeb Bush admit he got high “at least once,” and Carly Fiorina allude to a non-existent brain harvesting scene in a Planned Parenthood video. It’s hard to tell exactly how many people came to see substance instead of the circus, but in the case of the on-campus debate viewing at the Healey Family Student Center, the split seemed about even.

Now, I understand the idea that these debates are compelling, even bankable, television.

I eagerly anticipated watching this debate as if it were a sporting event. But CNN, as well as any other network hosting a debate, has an obligation to challenge candidates and press them on substance. While moderators Jake Tapper, Dana Bash, and Hugh Hewitt did a good job at times challenging candidates on substantive issues (like abortion and marijuana laws), the debate seemed to go out of its way to provoke conflict, asking questions that prompted candidates to respond to the views of their counterparts rather than forcing them to outline their own opinions. This seemed to lead to candidates criticizing each other’s respective records rather than defending their own.

The problem is that serious issues fell almost entirely by the wayside. Foreign policy was given incomplete coverage, as Russia, Syria, and Iran came up occasionally (most notably when Ted Cruz butchered the name of Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei), but pressing concerns like the Syrian refugee crisis went unmentioned. Other issues, including voting rights, racial justice, gun control, and education were glossed over quickly.

The above list includes some of the most important issues and news events of the last few years, and yet hardly a word at the debate was devoted to any of them. We have seen at least two cases of racial tensions that erupted into weeks of mass media coverage with the violence in both Baltimore and Ferguson. The media also spent many days covering numerous instances of perceived police brutality, but the issue of racial violence was not even brought

up at Wednesday’s debate. This summer alone, we’ve witnessed shooting massacres in Charleston and Chattanooga, but none of CNN’s three moderators challenged any candidate on their loyalty to the NRA. But there is no reason for debate hosts to even bother with policy questions. For networks to draw eyeballs to these events, there has to be conflict. Cable news execs must still be downright giddy because of Trump’s outsized role in this race, since Trump personifies the merging of politics with reality television perfectly. Substance, ideas, reason, and logic mean nothing in today’s media universe, where anything longer than 140 characters or a few seconds of audio takes too long to process, and feeding frenzies develop over the smallest tidbits of political gossip. Trump has sucked up the attention of the news media by playing to these sad truths, whether it’s introducing himself in the debate by saying “I’m Donald Trump, I wrote The Art of the Deal,” or high-fiving Jeb Bush and Ben Carson.

Kali Sullivan

Our politics have borrowed from our social media. The candidates most likely to succeed are the ones who can get their point across and promote themselves in the shortest amount of time. Future elections may be decided less by debates, editorials, and full speeches and more by tweets, sound bites, and GIFs. Candidates also have increasingly less need for interviews, as social media’s triumph over traditional news media allows them to control their message with exactitude. Down the road we may have “Republican Idol” or “Dancing with the Candidates,” as reality television and politics continue to merge into one singular entity.

The reason, I think, that 23 million people tuned into Wednesday’s debate had little do with policy. People wanted to see the spectacle. They eagerly anticipated the next insulting or closed-minded comment to come out of Trump’s mouth, or a shouting match like the one Chris Christie and Rand Paul had in their

first debate. Our popular culture values conflict.

It’s what has fueled the rise of phenomena like conservative talk radio in the 1980’s, “trash TV” shows like “Jerry Springer” and “Maury” in the 1990’s, and reality shows like “Hell’s Kitchen” and yes, even “The Apprentice” in the 2000’s.

Even now, entertainment rooted in conflict continues to endure. If you were to check the most recent Nielsen TV ratings data from the week of September 7, most of the top ten programs on network TV related to football—a violent bloodbath of a sport played by numerous domestic abusers, dogfighters, and performance-enhancing drug users. On cable, conflict-driven programming dominates the ratings as well— college football games, pro wrestling, and Bill O’Reilly’s daily ravings on Fox News combined to take seven of the top ten spots.

With the way Wednesday night’s debate went, it will no doubt fit right in in next week’s top ten.

The Democrats have yet to debate, but I get the feeling that they will not fall to the reality TV concept just yet. Sure, President Obama rose to prominence as a “rock star candidate,” but most of that was based on the presentation of his ideas. The same is true for the rise of Bernie Sanders, who, like Trump has gained traction by running against the establishment, but has done so by running on substance rather than style. Sanders’ speeches have emphasized issues like economic inequality, affordable college education, and infrastructure funding. Rather than attempting to find conflict, Sanders has reached out to people with different views, exemplified by his speech earlier this month at Liberty University.

The best solution seems to be to treat Trump and his ilk for what they really are— trolls. And I’m not just saying this because Trump’s mane resembles that of a troll doll.

Trump may not be running exclusively to mess with the American public, but he is provoking conflict and attracting attention to himself by making incendiary comments to rile people up.

Anyone who’s explored an Internet comments section knows that this fits the definition of trolling. And those people also probably know that the best way to make a troll go away is to ignore him or her. On an individual level, you and I are not going to do very much to make Trump go away. The national media, however, needs to step up and move on to other issues.

Eventually he’ll get the hint. It’ll be our way of telling him, “You’re Fired.”

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“Substance, ideas, reason, and logic mean nothing in today’s media universe, where anything longer than 140 characters or a few seconds of audio takes too long to process...”

BY ROEY HADAR

He is a junior in the SFS

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Kali SulliVan

Bucking the Trend Georgetown Athletics and Hoya Blue’s Efforts to Increase Student Attendance at Home Games By: Joe Pollicino

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

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ith the fall sports season in full swing and basketball season right around the corner, many students’ Facebook feeds have been flooded with notifications of upcoming athletic events and their email inboxes filled with a steady stream of reminders to purchase basketball season tickets. The majority of these efforts come from Hoya Blue, Georgetown’s student fan group, and the Georgetown Athletic Department to drum up student attendance at home sporting events. Unfortunately, the numbers are against them, as national attendance at college sporting events has been declining over the last decade.

According to annual reports released by the National Collegiate Association of Athletics, the average Division I men’s basketball crowd has declined each of the past nine seasons.

College football is following a similar trend. The Georgetown Athletic Department and Hoya Blue are working together to bring students back to Verizon Center. But this can be difficult in a city that boasts so many sporting attractions.

“One of the challenges Georgetown and other college teams in the area face is the competition in this market…,” said Mex Carey, Assistant Athletics Director for Communication, on behalf of the department in an e-mail to the Voice. “With that said, we are always looking for ways to engage with our fans and the community in order to create the best possible atmosphere at Verizon Center.”

Nobody understands atmosphere more than Hoya Blue President Nick Santaniello (NHS ’16). The senior knows that his band of Blue and Gray hooligans are largely responsible for creating an environment that makes people want to keep coming back.

“We try to be the people at the game who are leading the chants, cheering, and showing up to as many games as possible just to be that presence that our varsity teams want at the games.

We want to provide that.” said Santaniello. “We also want to get other people involved who are interested in sports, who are interested in Georgetown varsity athletics, to not only feel that they are welcome at the games, but, when they are there to get them involved.”

But to get students involved, the students first have to be there. And to get them there, Hoya Blue and the Athletics department have to go where the students are. That means flyering and promoting games heavily online.

“We really try to take advantage of the impact social media has on campus, so we’re always trying to get Facebook events and tweets up at least a week in advance of big games to increase visibility and hopefully reach as many people as possible to start getting them excited about the teams,” said Hoya Blue Promotions Officer Maeve Healy (SFS ’18). “These have been extremely effective in getting the word out and drumming up interest in the different games.”

“Word of mouth still reigns supreme for marketing, so we want to make sure when students attend an event, they enjoy themselves and tell their friends about it,” wrote Carey. .

Despite advertising efforts, there are a number of reasons students stay away from Verizon Center. First, many students find travelling to games difficult. Free University shuttles run from campus to the Rosslyn Metro Station. Students can then ride either the Silver, Orange, or Blue Lines to Metro Center, connect to the Red Line, and then arrive at the Gallery Place stop below the stadium. One-way travel time varies from anywhere between 30 minutes and an hour.

In an attempt to increase convenience, last year the department introduced a one-way direct busing program to men’s basketball games at Verizon Center for all games played when students were on campus. With an advance purchase of a $2 ticket sold on first-come, first-served basis,

“

We also want to get other people involved who are interested in sports, who are interested in Georgetown varsity athletics, to not only feel that they are welcome at the games, but when they are there, to get them involved. students were guaranteed a spot on one of two buses that left outside of McDonough Arena an hour and 15 minutes prior to a home game.

“We thought this program worked well last season...” wrote Carey. “We will look to continue this again in the coming season.”

Although the Athletic Department told the Voice that there was an increase in student attendance last season compared to the prior year, the number of student section seats has fallen over the last two seasons. For example, in Santaniello’s freshman year, 2012-13, the sections behind both baskets at Verizon Center were fully reserved for students. Starting in 2013-14, however, the student section behind one of the baskets has been cut in half, allowing the department more lower level tickets to sell to the general public. The department declined to provide specific figures regarding student attendance at men’s basketball games.

“We’ll have some home games where you expect we would have a much better showing and we don’t,” said Santaniello. “I understand their reasoning. Those are valuable tickets that they can sell for the lower bowl.”

It’s a good idea. The general public is far more likely to be able to afford those seats. At $125, student season tickets for the men’s basketball team are the most expensive in the Big East, 25 percent higher than the next closest league member, Seton Hall at $100. Schools such as Butler, Xavier, and Villanova grant free admission to their students but either on a first-come, firstserved basis or through a lottery system.

Santaniello feels that the current season ticket price is a barrier to some students attending games, especially since students are charged for games that they’re not on campus for due to winter break.

“A lot of those games are not during the time we’re here on campus,” said Santaniello. “I think that should be reflected in the price. That would be a help for students.”

The Athletic Department, on the other hand, disagrees.

“Student season tickets are a great value for students who are interested in attending multiple games,” said the Athletic Department in their statement. “Interest-free, monthly payment plans are available to help make season tickets convenient and affordable. Furthermore, separate from season tickets, individual game tickets are also available to students at heavily discounted prices.”

While Hoya Blue and the Athletic Department both remain focused on creating a fan-friendly atmosphere at Verizon Center, they’re also committed to attracting students to games on campus.

The department has gone about this through various unique promotions including “Dad Bod Day” for a men’s soccer game

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earlier this season and “Hail to Kale Night” for a women’s basketball game last year. The department has even more ambitious plans forthcoming for this season.

“We have some very fun stuff planned for the coming season. The follow-up to Hail to Kale Night will be announced in the next few months and we are really excited about it,” wrote Carey. “We have some great student section themes planned for men’s hoops, as well as some very unique and cool giveaways throughout the season. Our goal is always to do better than we did the season before, so we are really excited for what is to come.”

Hoya Blue, in close coordination with the department, has sought to create a tailgating culture for on-campus athletic events such as soccer and football games. Unfortunately, there are challenges that make creating a widespread tailgating culture difficult on the hilltop, such as the school’s condensed campus and the University’s alcohol policy. Because the student group is not allowed to provide alcohol to students of legal age while utilizing University facilities that are open spaces, such as Leavey Esplanade and Regents Lawn, Santaniello feels that the group loses potential interest from upperclassmen.

“We just need to do something about the tailgating atmosphere. We do think that is something that is very much lacking here at Georgetown’s campus...” said Santaniello. “We think that will engage another demographic, particularly upperclassmen, who don’t usually come to games for whatever reason. What makes it difficult here is that we don’t have locations like a parking lot at other universities outside their football field or basketball stadium where it makes it easy to do that in a very relaxed setting,” he said.

Despite these detractors, Hoya Blue has had some recent success with their newly established tailgates. A beachthemed tailgate prior to the men’s soccer game against thenNo. 1 UCLA on Sept. 7 helped attract nearly 1,000 students to Shaw Field, the largest student crowd in program history.

The group will look to continue this energy into the many events they have planned for the future, including for the men’s soccer team’s game this Saturday against Providence.

The group will be hosting a pre-game party in Bulldog Tavern where there will be food and drink specials for students to take advantage of before heading up to Shaw Field to cheer on the Hoyas.

But Healy and Hoya Blue know that their goal is unfulfilling in nature and feel that there’s always that one more person to whom they can reach out and convert into a lifelong fanatic.

“There’s no such thing as a student section that is too big,” said Healy. “The more people cheering, the better.”

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Closing the Gap Innovative Solutions to Hunger Cropping Up in Food Deserts

by Elizabeth Teitz

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

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resh food isn’t exactly hard to find for Georgetown students. Each Wednesday, the Georgetown University Farmers Market sets up in Red Square, offering fresh fruits to students right in the heart of campus. A Safeway and a Whole Foods sit further up Wisconsin Avenue, but are still within a walkable distance for students, as well as easily accessible by the GUTS shuttle. For those willing to venture farther from the Hilltop, Trader Joe’s is a feasible option while Vital Vittles is the closest source of groceries on campus. And though complaining about Leo’s is a favorite pastime of Hoyas, the dining hall also provides easy access to meals. This convenience makes it easy to forget that vast disparities in food access exist across the city, where food insecurity is a continual and growing issue.

According to 2013 census data, 18.6 percent of D.C.’s population lives below the federal poverty line.

Even more are food insecure, meaning that “at times during the year, the food intake of household members is reduced and their normal eating patterns are disrupted because the household lacks money and other resources for food,” according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. There are many issues that cause insecurity: access to purchasing food, affordability, and the high cost of living in the city all contribute to challenges in feeding households and individuals.

“There are approximately 700,000 people in the D.C. [Metro] area who are at risk of hunger,” said Dylan Menguy, Capital Area Food Bank’s (CAFB) spokesman. The organization, which is the largest of its kind in the area, distributes food both directly to clients and through more than 400 other organizations in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. “[700,000] is calculated based on food insecurity,” he said, considered by CAFB to be those earning less than $21,727.80 per year for an individual, which is 180 percent of the federal poverty threshold. According to Menguy, CAFB includes those earning above the poverty level in this measure to account for the “incredibly high” cost of living.

Additionally, certain populations have seen greater insecurity increases in recent years, further contributing to the high rate of those at risk of hunger. “Hunger is on the rise among seniors as the baby boomer generation ages,” Menguy said. The CAFB “finds that the senior population, because they’re living on a fixed income and have special needs in term of nutrition; they’re often not getting enough food.”

There’s another demographic in the city that’s overlooked in terms of food insecurity, according to Georgetown professor Dr. Marcia Chatelain, who is currently writing a book about race and fast food: young professionals.

“The incredibly high cost of living means that more people need food assistance,” she said. “It’s not just poor working families. There’s a large number of young people working in low-wage professional work because non-profit sector wages don’t keep up with the cost of living. These converge to make [food assistance] enrollment so high in D.C.,” she said, referring to the 21.97 percent of the city’s residents registered in nutritional support programs.

FOOD DESERTS AND INSECURITY

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hile there are a multitude of stores within walking distance of Georgetown’s campus that sell fresh food and produce at different price points, this is not the case across the District: many areas of the city fall into the category of what USDA classifies as a food desert—an area in which fresh produce is not easily accessible due to a lack of purveyors. These areas, which are concentrated in the eastern half of the city, are not necessarily completely devoid of food access; in general, many have corner stores and smaller shops, as well as fast food and other restaurants. However, access to full-service grocery stores like the ones where Hoyas can stock up on fruits and vegetables is limited.

In these areas, one of the primary issues leading to food insecurity is a lack of meaningful access—the practical ability of residents to get to and afford fresh food. Living more than a mile from a grocery store, or a half mile without having access to a car, are the qualifications for a food desert according to USDA. It’s easily clear where these deserts are located in the city of the 45 full-service grocery stores, only two are located in Ward 8, the most southeastern region, compared to eleven in Ward 3, which makes up the areas north and west of campus.

Not coincidentally, Ward 3 is one of the city’s most affluent areas, with a poverty rate of 8.2 percent, compared to 37 percent in Ward 8 as of 2012.

Factor in the city’s high cost of living, which increases households’ other expenses, and this all adds up to one of the nation’s highest rates of enrollment in nutritional aid programs. These initiatives aim to combat this high rate of food insecurity.

This program has been relatively successful in eliminating the gap in daily caloric intake between those and who are and are not enrolled, according to a recent review of nutritional studies in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine.

Overall, the diets of Americans who do and do not participate in SNAP are fairly similar in the number of calories eaten per day. However, a significant gap remains between those who are and are not enrolled in one particular and important category: diet quality. Participants in the program consumed fewer fresh fruits and vegetables, contributing to a lower quality diet in terms of nutrition.

Other benefit programs target various specific populations in need of sustenance support, including the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which provides short-term assistance to those qualified by the DHS as earning “low or very low income, and [who are] either under-employed (working for very low wages), unemployed or about to become unemployed.” Senior citizens can be eligible for programs such as the Commodity Supplemental Food Program and the Senior Farmers Market Program, often referred to as senior checks, both of which aim to improve the nutrition of elderly residents.

“I don’t think the average American knows any kind of details about those programs, and how they’re administered,” said Georgetown professor Dr. Leticia Bode, who teaches a course on Food Politics in the Culture, Communications and Technology program. “They’re broadly construed as welfare, and starting in the 1980s, as a nation we have [had] a poor perception of welfare.”

Despite this, there are a multitude of programs on the local and federal levels working to address these unmet needs, as well as organizations approaching the issue in the nonprofit sector.

MAKING MARKETS AFFORDABLE

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any of these programs that target increasing produce consumption are run through the many farmers markets operated throughout the city. Initiatives such as Produce Plus and the Matching Dollars Program, as well as the acceptance of federal benefits at these markets, aim to contribute to closing the gap in access to fresh produce and help stretch tight budgets farther to support healthy eating.

Markets at 51 different locations in the city accept SNAP, WIC, and Senior benefits, though as Nick Stavely, Market Man-

FEDERAL FUNDS AND PROGRAMS

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he most well known program is the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps. Residents whose income is up to 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines are potentially eligible for this program, depending on the size of their household and other expenses, according to the D.C. Department of Human Services. These residents who enroll receive an EBT (electronic benefit transfer) card loaded with a certain amount of money each month.

Those benefits amount to a maximum of about $4.87 per day, per person, though the exact allocation is determined by a combination of these factors. To put that number into context, a Hoya with a 14-meals-per-week plan pays about $10.05 per meal at Leo’s. The SNAP program is intended to complement residents’ income, and to increase their ability to purchase food; however, given the city’s cost of living, it often falls short of allowing residents to buy more expensive items, such as fresh produce, even when there is access.

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FEDERAL POVERTY GUIDELINES 2014

$11,770 $24,250 11

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ager for Community Foodworks, said, “the benefits are market-specific,” meaning that for those without a local market offering these programs, there is an additional barrier in finding and accessing others.

At the participating markets, “individual vendors can’t accept EBT cards,” said Meghan McGonigle, who has worked with the organization D.C. Greens at the USDA Farmer’s Market. Instead, cards are swiped at the markets’ information tents in exchange for tokens. These tokens “can be used for fruits, vegetables, bread, eggs, cheese, and meat, but nothing that’s prepared,” McGonigle said.

Those tokens can then be redeemed as if they were cash at many of the stands selling produce, although the selection and prices vary across markets. At certain markets, including the Community Foodworks markets in Columbia Heights and Brookland, these benefits can be doubled through a matching program, allowing residents to receive twice as many tokens or vouchers as they redeem.

Produce Plus, a city-wide initiative that the Department of Health started last June, also aims to help alleviate barriers to fresh food. The program offers ten dollars in checks per household to residents who demonstrate enrollment in SNAP, WIC, TANF, Medicaid or Social Security, which can be spent at forty participating markets. “[Produce Plus] is one [program] where there’s more people making a longer trip to find the checks, and that’s due to the fact that there’s no cost to use the checks,” Stavely said, as residents do not need to spend any of their benefits to receive the checks, unlike the doubling programs.

“About one-fourth to one-third of customers are on benefits [at the Historic Brookland Farmers Market],” he said, which is in its second year. This varies from market to market - James Little of Kuhn Orchards estimates that only a dozen of his customers at the Glover Park Burleith Farmers Market use the Produce Plus checks. “It’s not a lot of people that use it,” said Westmoreland Produce’s Anjelica Medina, who sells alongside Little at the weekly market on 35th Street.

While residents have benefitted from the Produce Plus program over the summer, as well as from their ability to redeem benefits at Farmers Markets in addition to grocery stores, issues arise as the seasons begin to change. Produce Plus will end for the year on Sept. 30, and while Farmers Markets shut down for the season at varying times, the majority are closed for a period of several months, throughout the fall and winter.

“We hear from people that they want Produce Plus to continue,” Stavely said, whose market is among those that will close for the season from mid-December through April.

UPROOTING BARRIERS TO ACCESS

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n addition to the organizations and programs working to increase produce sales throughout the city, there are a multitude of groups working to alleviate food insecurity by changing the methods of production from the ground up.

Urban agriculture has gained ground in D.C. over the last decade, aiming to shorten the distance between producers and consumers within the city.

“The area we’re in ... is a food desert, so the closest grocery store is a Giant about a mile and a half away,” said Melissa Miller, farm manager at Common Good City Farm, which occupies half an acre on V Street NW. It grows more than 5,000 pounds of food each year on the lot of a former elementary school.

“They just built a Whole Foods, actually, or they’re building it, about a quarter of a mile away, but that still doesn’t provide food access to people who are on a low socioeconomic scale; that’s not too affordable,” Miller said. To meet that need for affordable and convenient produce, the farm offers communi-

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

ty-supported agriculture, with full-price and income-qualifying memberships for community members who join and receive a bag of fresh produce each week.

“Some people pay as little as $10 each week” for their weekly produce, Miller said. They are also able to attend workshops and educational programs and purchase individual items at weekly markets, where benefits programs are accepted.

Elsewhere in the city, urban farming and community gardens likewise offer a shorter distance between the producers and consumers.

Unlike urban farming, which focuses on producing large quantities for large populations of recipients, community gardens provide plots for individuals and households to plant and maintain individually. There are 26 community gardens under the jurisdiction of D.C.’s Department of Parks and Recreation, most of which are currently full and have waiting lists for plots to open up.

At Bruce Monroe Community Garden, located near the Columbia Heights Metro station, about 100 to 150 people rent plots and are members, according to Gabby Cosel, a volunteer.

“Those folks use shared plots, too, and help plant to maintain them. There’s a larger community in the neighborhood that can come to the garden. Our garden is in the public park so it’s open … and anyone in the community is welcome to pick from the shared beds and plant them, too, if they want to,” she said.

Education also plays a substantial role in the success of these gardens, as well as in markets, when it comes to increasing produce consumption.

“If you put a community garden in an underserved community, and you’re not really connecting with the community, and you suddenly start producing all this produce and selling it at a farmer’s market at subsidized rates, so it’s available, it’s affordable, it’s accessible, people are still not going to buy it because they don’t know how to use it and they’re not used to it,” said Jessika Brenin (NHS ‘17), a resident of Magis Row house, Rooted: Social Sustainable

“There’s not a food bank in the country that will say that need has decreased in any way. Hunger is on the rise. Wages haven’t kept up with inflation.

Food prices have gone up. Housing, shelter, clothing...Those are expensive.”

Service, which focuses on multi-faceted issues of food. “So it’s about education.”

Chatelain echoed this, citing the University of D.C.’s Muirkirk Research Farm as an example of urban agriculture that targets its surrounding community, by growing “specialty and ethnic crops,” including “many herbs and spices from Ethiopia and several species of vegetables from West Africa,” according to their website.

“They grow food that’s specific to ethnic groups in the city,” Chatelain said, “so it’s food that’s familiar,” a key component of making this produce accessible within the community.

MARKETS ON THE MOVE

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he distribution model has also started to undergo changes in response to food inequity, including by those who are looking to overcome the lack of traditional stores in food deserts by operating mobile food markets instead, that bring produce into areas with limited access.

“The real problem lies in the delivery of the food, [not] the production of food,” said Surabhi Agrawal (MBA ‘16), co-founder of Farm Fresh Trucks, a startup that won the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative’s Entrepalooza competition in April 2015. Agrawal and her co-founder, Areebah Ajani (CCT ’15), believe the solution is in bringing food to consumers, rather than consumers traveling to them, and hope to launch a mobile Farmers Market truck in D.C. “We decided that the Farm Fresh Truck model was going to be most effective because the thing is that these larger chains are not going into these markets,” Agrawal said. “One of our goals was to figure out how to be a place that could deliver food, and provide fresh access … it’s like a food truck, but a farmers market version, where you can come and get your produce and things like that.” She and Ajani are continuing market testing and pursuing community partnerships as they work toward launching their mobile market truck.

Organizations such as Martha’s Table, which is based out of the U Street neighborhood, also incorporate this method of bringing produce directly to consumers, offering markets at local elementary schools throughout underserved areas, as well as running trucks that bring nutritious meals directly to those in need.

“Just because you come from a struggling family or situation, you should have the same access to choices as those from different situations,” said Natasha Khanna, Assistant Director of Communications for Martha’s Table.

CALLING FOR CHANGE

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s the city continues to change economically, there are subsequent changes in certain needs - gentrification and economic changes in neighborhoods have caused a realignment of programs in some cases, as well as changed the exact nature of food deserts, such as the area now home to Whole Foods in Ledroit Park. These changes keep organizations constantly adapting, looking to find new models of improving food security on both the federal and local level.

“There’s not a food bank in the country that will say that need has decreased in any way. Hunger is on the rise. Wages haven’t kept up with inflation. Food prices have gone up. Housing, shelter, clothing...Those are expensive,” Menguy said. Whether groups are growing or distributing produce, or working in other roles such as improving education and affordability, it all boils down to a solution that’s already been reached, Menguy said.

“We know the answer, food provides hunger relief,” he said.

The issue that remains is access.

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Reaching Out

Georgetown Students Redefine Engagement with the Immigrant Community through the Immigration and Labor Project

By: Lara Fishbane and Cassidy Jensen

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his semester, the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor (KI), which develops strategies and public policy to improve workers’ lives and advance justice, launched a new Immigration and Labor Project (ILP), replacing the Day Laborer Exchange Program (DLE). Participants in the new project are to engage more deeply with community partners, namely Georgetown’s Center for Social Justice (CSJ) and the D.C. Employment Justice Center (EJC), to support grassroots projects working to address issues of immigration and labor in D.C. DLE began in 2012 as a way to foster relationships between students at Georgetown and D.C.’s day laborer community. According to Ashley Valenzuela (COL ‘18), a coordinator for the ILP, the group usually worked with between 30 and 40 of these workers, who are hired on a day to day basis by external employers without any promises of future work.

DLE had partnered with Trabajadores Unidos or Workers United, a group of day laborers, according to Nick Wertsch, Program Coordinator at the KI. Students met with these work-

are unable to fulfill on both organizational and individual levels as full-time students,” Chris Wager (SFS ‘17), a student coordinator for the ILP, wrote in an email to the Voice.

As a result, a small group of committed students decided to meet over the summer and redefine the organization’s mission, name, and structure. Valenzuela explained that the focus of the organization is broadening to work not only with day laborers, but also with the immigrant community at large.

The new ILP has hired five paid coordinators, selected Sept. 10, and has accepted a few volunteers already, but is still looking for a couple more. In past years, DLE has only had two coordinators and fifteen volunteers. “I guess the idea is that the bigger the group, the less people feel accountable to come, but when it’s smaller, you can see who hasn’t shown up, especially if it’s paid,” program coordinator Aissatou Diallo (COL ‘18) said.

Over the summer, coordinators grappled with developing a comprehensive mission statement of the program’s goals and a more general vision statement to fit the program’s new

families, and predict that the recommendations they issue will have an important impact. “We hope that this research will improve license accessibility and decrease the social polarization faced by undocumented immigrants, reduce immigrants’ fear of authorities, and strengthen community relationships,” Guelespe wrote in an email to the Voice.

Student volunteers are working with the CSJ to transcribe and conduct interviews, compile information, and analyze data, according to Wertsch. Those involved with the project also plan to partner closely with community organizations, in particular the Central American Resource Center, which provides services to low and moderate income Latinos in the D.C. area, and Trabajadores Unidos, to aid in Guelespe’s research.

The second component of the ILP will be a partnership with the EJC, an organization which advocates for workers in the D.C. area. Among the services the EJC provides is a weekly free clinic for workers with legal issues, including unjust firing or wage theft. Wertsch also noted that the EJC’s services extend beyond the scope of legal assistance. “If they can’t help some-

“It represents a more deliberate, guided, yet flexible framework for engaging with the labor and migrant justice movement in the D.C. community.” ers on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings at the Brentwood Home Depot in northeast D.C. to educate them about their rights and help them practice their English.

“We would go out in the mornings from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and talk to day laborers about what was going on and really try to establish relationships with them,” Valenzuela said. She then explained that establishing relationships was crucial in order to garner support for a worker’s center for the day laborers through petitioning and canvassing.

Wertsch explained that the creation of a worker’s center run by Trabajadores Unidos would help day laborers better advocate for their rights and regularize the way that they get hired. “Over the last few years, [our focus] gradually shifted to helping support their efforts in the creation of a worker center,” he said.

After working toward this goal for the past few years, however, Wertsch and some of the other coordinators decided that what students could provide as part-time volunteers was no longer in line with what the workers needed. “The current phase of the [project of erecting a worker center] would require us to maintain a more consistent on-the-ground presence at the organizing site and in the community, a commitment that we

direction. They concentrated on creating a mission statement that helped members understand the larger goal of the project, which will focus on the entire immigrant community, and outlines the communities the program will target. “We ended up including both working and immigrant and low-income [communities], actually. We don’t want to exclude anybody,” said Diallo. his year, volunteers and coordinators in the ILP will work on two separate initiatives: one with the CSJ and the other with the EJC. The CSJ project will continue the research that began this summer on D.C.’s new Limited Purpose Driver’s Licenses, which allow undocumented individuals to obtain a license from the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles without having a social security number. According to CSJ Evaluation Specialist Dr. Diana Guelespe, who is leading the research project, her work aims to report on the challenges undocumented immigrants face as they try to obtain these licenses such as an 80 percent failure of the driver knowledge exam and a six-month wait for appointments.

Thus far the CSJ’s research has found that the licenses provide tangible benefits for undocumented immigrants and their

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one with their legal problem or someone doesn’t want to pursue it in the courts, another way to try to get results or to change the way employers treat employees is to try to do some community organizing,” said Wertsch.

Students working with the EJC are to assist primarily with intake and paperwork and to provide support for the center’s campaigns. Diallo mentioned that one way students can directly help workers is by participating in walkbacks. “When someone is fired unjustly and they go to EJC, the EJC would bring back members to walk back with them [to their job], literally, and that usually puts a lot of pressure [on employers] to help the person get their job back,” she said.

Student coordinators say both projects are better suited to students’ capabilities and the needs of the working and immigrant communities, and they represent a crucial shift from the former DLE program’s approach.

“This is important because it represents a more deliberate, guided, yet flexible framework for engaging with the labor and migrant justice movement in the D.C. community,” wrote Wager. “The new iteration of the program prioritizes a deep respect for the autonomy of community members in developing and realizing their own visions for change.”

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LEISURE

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Black Mass: Depp Shines in Dark Places

By Brian McMahon

What makes a monster, and what brings him down?

Black Mass director Scott Cooper (Out of the Furnace, Crazy Heart) explores these questions through Boston crime lord James “Whitey” Bulger. Based on Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill’s book of the same name, the film follows Bulger as he rises from small-time bully to become the most powerful criminal (and perhaps person) in Boston. Cooper paints a dark picture of the city and an even darker one of its psychopathic son, a man thirsty for absolute power and sustained by absolute loyalty.

At the grim center of the movie lies Bulger, played by Johnny Depp with dead blue eyes and a haunting aura. This is certainly his most compelling performance in several years, if not his greatest ever. Every smirk and stare is tinged with the same malice as the murders and shakedowns. The killings and showdowns are certainly memorable, but Depp’s best moments come at dinner tables and in quiet apartments. He keeps everyone on edge, constantly calculating whether or not his friends and allies can be trusted, and always disposing of those who end up on the wrong side of the math.

As a man obsessed with loyalty, Bulger relied heavily on those around him, and Depp’s castmates bolster the narrative. Jesse Plemons (who played Todd on Breaking Bad) starts the movie off with a fistfight as henchman Kevin Weeks and never stops swinging, sitting in awe by Whitey’s side for much of the saga, doing the gangster’s increasingly dirty work. Benedict Cumberbatch plays Billy Bulger, who served as President of the Massachusetts Senate for the bulk of his brother’s reign of terror. Cumberbatch seems poised for a big scene several times, but the narrative never allows Billy to truly stand out. Instead, he mainly smiles and carries on, aware, but never involved in his brother’s wrongdoings.

The true supporting star is Joel Edgerton, the underrated Australian actor who did similarly superb work in The Great Gatsby and Warrior. Here he plays John Connolly, a childhood neighbor of the Bulgers who becomes Whitey’s FBI ally. Edgerton plays Connolly as awestruck and conniving, with the gap between his South Boston loyalty and moral code growing wider and wider as Whitey builds his urban empire. Connolly seems likable at first, but his undying commitment to his childhood hero turns him into a monster in his own right, the type that looks on and says nothing.

The easiest comparison for the film is The Departed, Martin Scorsese’s 2006 Oscar winner. Jack Nicholson and Matt Damon played incarnations of Bulger and Connolly, and the film had plenty of its own killing and corruption. Nevertheless, Black Mass is an entirely different movie in almost every other regard. Whereas The Departed’s violence and gore borders on the absurd and carnivalesque, Black Mass’s gore feels real.

Nicholson’s Frank Costello was creepy and cruel but also ridiculous. Depp’s Bulger is horrifying, the effect only heightened by the truth of the account. Black Mass is a biopic; The Departed is a gangster movie. The former has the fast talk and tense action scenes of the latter, but it lacks the “fun” of Scorsese’s intertwining tale. The Departed

Critical Voices: Paper Gods Duran Duran, Warner Bros. Records

ends with murderous chaos. Black Mass ends in the real world, in courtrooms and hideouts and penitentiaries.

Black Mass does have its shortcomings, but many of these seem to result from real-life circumstances rather than directorial oversight or something of that nature.

The female characters, for example, do little more than cower in Whitey’s presence, not because of Cooper’s error but instead because of the real man’s effect on people. This speaks to a larger truth about the movie and Bulger’s story: no one really knows the man. To get inside the mind of a psychopath is a difficult task. Various characters testify about Whitey throughout the movie, about his actions and indiscretions, but only Whitey knows the whole story. He preaches loyalty and brotherhood, but he always has something else going on.

One could argue a similar pattern exists in all gangster stories, in everything from Goodfellas to The Untouchables and beyond. We hear traits associated with the evil men, patterns of maniacal behavior, but we will never comprehend their motives, their causes of being. We watch Whitey because his life and actions have been unbelievable, in the truest sense, and unfathomable, in the darkest ways possible.

IMDB

“...But why is the rum always gone?”

commitment to the song’s beat makes the song work. The upbeat style is reminiscent of the classic “Hungry Like The Wolf,” and the chorus is bound to cement itself in the listener’s head.

Unfortunately, not all tracks on Paper Gods are as likeable as others. “Only In

By Graham Piro Dreams” sounds far too similar to both “Paper Gods” and “You Kill Me With Silence” to stand out in comparison to the other tracks. “The Universe Alone” is a lackluster Duran Duran took off in the 1980s thanks to catchy hits and risqué music videos. effort, as the vocals sounding too tired to give the song any energy.

With upbeat tempos and memorable lyrics, the group was able to remain a part of the Still, these are minor flaws musical world for decades, despite touring less over time. The band’s latest offering, the within an otherwise solid alstar-studded Paper Gods , is an excellent return to form after previous underwhelming bum that longtime Duran Duefforts like 2010’s All You Need is Now and 2007’s Red Carpet Massacre . ran fans will undoubtedly enjoy.

The number of guest stars who are featured on the album is striking. Mark Ronson, Paper Gods succeeds with its Mr. Hudson, and Kiesza are a few of the big names on Paper Gods . Thankfully, these wide range of guest stars, and artists contribute more to the album than just their name. Mr. Hudson belts an extreme- the majority of the songs are ly catchy and meaningful chorus on “Paper Gods,” while Kiesza injects “Last Night in extremely fun to listen to.Paper the City” with fist-pumping energy. “Pressure Off ” is perhaps the most fun song on Gods will leave previous fans’ the album, as guests Janelle Monáe and Nile Rodgers give it a feel-good, funky vibe that appetites for more Duran Dumakes dancing along easy. ran pleasantly satisfied.

The songs that don’t feature guests also hold their own. “You Kill Me With Silence” is a slower, more pensive track that successfully combines old-fashioned disco with Voice’s Choices : “Paper Gods,” modern house beats. This combination of old and new styles helps the album succeed. “Last Night in the City” “Danceophobia” could probably have come straight out of the 80s, but Duran Duran’s

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

LEISURE

Get Ready for Landmark!

New Music Festival Comes to D.C.

By Jon Block

The first ever Landmark Music Festival will take place this weekend at West Potomac Park, on the National Mall just south of the Lincoln Memorial. The festival, occurring all day Saturday and Sunday, features Drake and The Strokes as headliners, with forty additional artists across five stages including Wale, Alt-J, and more. In addition to the fantastic musical lineup, Landmark will have plenty of amenities aimed at improving the one’s music festival experience. These include the standard water bottle filling and phone charging stations, as well as numerous bars and a playground for kids! There is also a station, called Landmark Cashless, where you can sync a credit card to your festival wristband. When you get hungry you can head over to the DC Eats food court, with options ranging from Rocklands Barbeque to Ben’s Chili Bowl.

More than just the music and amenities, Landmark Music Festival is supporting a good cause by partnering with the Trust for the National Mall. This organization seeks to improve the National Mall through major renovations to the park that have not happened for the past 39 years.

What better way to support one of D.C.’s most important areas than by rocking your face off?

Whether you’re going to be attending Landmark or not, be sure to follow the Voice’s extensive coverage of the festival. We will be bringing you concert photos and reviews, artist interviews, and much, much, more. Check out our website for reports and stories, as well as on twitter with #VoiceAtLandmark for constant updates.

Landmark Festival

Everest Takes Viewers on Heart-Pounding Climb

By Caitlin Mannering

Why does man want to climb to impossible heights? In one of the first scenes of the movie Everest, Rob Hall,played by Jason Clarke, tells his clients how the human body is not made to function at the same altitude as a Boeing 747, that the human body is literally dying in the last stage of climbing Mount Everest. This scene sets the tone for the movie and gives the audience a first glimpse at the sheer amount of physical and mental strength it takes to reach the summit.

Everest is based off of the true story of a May 1996 climbing disaster, during which eight climbers became trapped and died in a deadly blizzard during their summit attempts. The film closely follows two commercial groups who made summit attempts, led by Hall and Scott Fischer (played by Jake Gyllenhaal). Starting out as a character study, the film transitions into an action thriller. The grandeur of Everest makes people do crazy things; as the weather worsens, the mountain pushes each and every climber to their limits, revealing just how far they’re willing to go for glory. The result is a compelling tale of bravery and bravado, and the dire nuances that distinguish them.

Clarke does an excellent job at portraying Hall, a compassionate and courageous leader whose feelings for his clients cloud his judgment. This is especially evident when he agrees to bring his close friend Doug Hansen, played by John Hawkes, to the summit, even though they are long past the safe turnaround point to descend the mountain. Gyllenhaal, on the other hand, plays funny-guy Fischer, who seems more concerned with breaking out the booze at Base Camp than about the well-being of his clients. However, like other experienced climbers on the mountain that day, Fischer does express doubts about the sheer number of people trying for the summit at the same time. Gyllenhaal seems to settle into this role comfortably, but he fades into the background in the latter half of the movie.

Even if you did not already know that the tragic ending was coming, Hall’s heartfelt, reluctant goodbye to his pregnant wife at the beginning of the movie is less than subtle. Yet, other than this moment of dramatic foreshadowing, the movie is a thrilling, gritty journey. The sweeping glimpses of the mountain and the rest of the world unfolding below it show audiences both the beauty and immensity of Everest. Seeing the film in IMAX gives viewers the chance to almost feel the ferocity of the wind whipping in the blizzard and cling desperately to the metal ladder that stretches over the gaping crevasse.

Along with the stunning visuals, the strength of the supporting cast heightens the story’s drama. Josh Brolin plays the immediately unlikable Beck Weathers, a Texan whose displays of cockiness disproportionate to his lack of climbing experience. He also scoffs at the idea of mailman Doug summiting Everest and ignorantly asks the lead Sherpa if he can speak English.

Brolin does a superb job at getting the audience to dislike him, but an even better job of getting the audience to root for his unlikely turnaround and display of tenacity at the end of the movie.

While actresses Robin Wright and Keira Knightley play smaller roles in the movie, they make their time on screen count. Wright channels her inner Claire Underwood while furiously making

calls to different authorities in Nepal and commandeers a helicopter to make the dangerous trip to save her stranded husband (Brolin). Knightley, on the other hand, brings us one of the most emotionally charged scenes in the movie as Hall’s wife, Jan. She calls her husband one last time as he freezes to death on the mountain and comes to the realization that he will never return to her and his unborn child.

Like any powerful movie, Everest leaves the audience asking questions, questions that survivors of the 1996 disaster probably still ask themselves today. Why were the necessary safety measures not taken? Why did Hall summit with Hansen when he knew that they were way behind schedule to turn around? The movie does not shy away from showing viewers the mistakes that were made that day, and the crucial time that was lost in remedying them. Yet, at its core, Everest serves as a fitting reminder that those who tragically lost their lives that day paid the ultimate price for the ultimate climb. As the peril of the climb comes to a head, Everest, the mountain, becomes the star, its danger and allure taking control of the summiters. The tragedy of the day outweighs the stupidity of the mistaken climbers, who look smaller and smaller as the mountain swallows them whole.

IMDB

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