10/20/2021

HAMLINE UNIVERSITY | ST. PAUL, MN | 10.20.21 | VOL. 133 | NO. 4 | HAMLINEORACLE.COM

Hate speech conversations continue Students, faculty and administration respond to incidents of antisemitic and racist hate speech on the Hamline campus.

Lydia Meier News Reporter lmeier05@hamline.edu Content warning: this piece includes details of racially motivated and antisemitic incidents on the Hamline campus.

After two incidents of hate speech on the Hamline campus in September, students have responded by asking the administration for transparency and action.

The first incident occurred in a Hamline dorm on Sept. 9, when an unidentified individual wrote a racist slur on the door of a dorm room. Weeks later, on September 27, a first-year posted an image of the cover of “Mein Kampf” by Adolf Hitler on a class Jamboard.

President Miller’s office sent out an email on October 5 condemning the incidents as “unacceptable” and promising more transparent responses. For more information on the specifics of the incidents, see the October 13 issue of the Oracle.

Many student leaders on campus felt strongly about the events, including sophomore Kue Thao.

“As an RA, I was definitely furious … I wish I had more power as an RA to really help the residents that went through the incident,” Thao said. “As a student and a student of color, I was definitely woken up that there are still … racist students everywhere.”

She has heard students express that they feel

unsafe on campus following this incident, as has Jazmin Clausen-Thomas, an RA and Hamline junior.

Clausen-Thomas has heard multiple first-years talk of transferring. “[They are] saying that they’re considering transferring because they don’t feel safe or heard and it breaks my heart because I know no institution is perfect but I feel like Hamline can do so much more,” Clausen-Thomas said.

She said that as an RA, she feels “tasked with stepping up with this issue,” and that it has taken a toll on her mental health.

“I’ll always say Hamline is diverse, but not inclusive,” Clausen-Thomas said, an issue she thinks needs to be addressed.

Clausen-Thomas is the president of the Black Student Collective (BSC) at Hamline, where students have been talking about the incident of hate speech in the dorms. The BSC vice-president Fatima Menawa, a junior, found out from a first-year about the incident at BSC’s first meeting. As vice-president, she reminds students of BSC’s support.

“Our reaction to this is like, how do we support Black students and how do we be there for Black students and hold space for them,” Menawa said.

She says if any students need support, BSC meetings are on Thursdays from 4-5pm in GLC 100E, but mentions that students should identify their privilege, and take part in conversations respectfully.

“Hamline as a system doesn’t know how to handle racism and sometimes they don’t know how to look for their blind spots,” Menawa said.

She would like if there was a university standard for

An art heist update on page 3.

Masking, sporting, and acting on page 4.

A drag show recap on page 6.

For an October activity, see page 12 .

see HATE SPEECH page 2

Support however you need it: Hamline Resources After a recent St. Paul shooting, Hamline’s resources remind students of options for support.

Anika Besst News Editor abesst01@hamline.edu Content Warning: this piece includes brief mentions of gun violence and PTSD. Hamline resources such as counseling and health, public safety and the Dean of Students office want to communicate and remind students of support opportunities if they need them. These resources were sent out through an email on Monday, October 11.

This email was in reply to the shooting at St. Paul’s Seventh Street Truck Park in the early morning hours of October 10 that left one person dead and 14 injured.

Hamline University sits a little over four miles from the incident.

Conversations from an administrative perspective happened quickly after the event.

“As we learned more about the incident and learned

that there were students there, we reached out to students and offered direct support to individuals and groups,” Dean of Students Patti Kersten wrote in an email. “We also sent out the information to the community because we were hearing that students were there and wanted to ensure that we reached everyone who may need support as well as letting the community know that students were present and may ask for support, [especially to] faculty with assignments and midterms.”

The incident exceeded Clery notification requirements (the Clery Act requires campus communities to be timely notified when crimes take place on or nearby campuses). However, with the factors that were in place, Hamline officials thwwought an alert would best support the community, according to Kersten.

Hamline’s email also included mentioning the actions of students in the area at the time.

“We are also grateful to those students who supported evacuation efforts and lent assistance to others,” Hamline’s email wrote.

One of the resources mentioned in the email was Hamline’s Counseling and Health Services. An appointment can be scheduled with the office that is

free and confidential. Appointments are currently held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This office can hold individual, group format and same-day appointments. They also will support any students coping with trauma.

“While for most people who experience a traumatic event, you can expect if they are having some PTSD type symptoms, those to resolve on their own, but if symptoms persist for, I would say, a week or more, that can be an indication that it might be beneficial to get some professional assistance,” Director of Counseling Services Hussein Rajput said. “We have a pretty good understanding of trauma and how to treat trauma at this point, so help is available for those who might need it.”

Public Safety will continue as it has been operating with contributions related to wellbeing and physical safety.

“I am always very conscious of acts of violence either locally or nationally, particularly in any learning environment,” Director of Public Safety Melinda Heikkinen wrote in an email. “No one expects it to happen to them, but we need to continually assess if

see RESOURCES page 2

2 News

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

RESOURCE

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we have appropriately equipped and trained Public Safety, provide information to the campus as to what to do, and make sure we have a structure in place to support the campus community.”

Kersten highlighted other resources such as the Wesley

Center located in Anderson 318, student affairs staff and reaching out to faculty and staff students trust.

“It’s important that all of us support each other in any traumatic experience and we work to provide the support to the students impacted and/or other community members who are impacted,” Kersten said.

Editor-in-Chief Andrea Lindner Managing Editor Elizabeth Lowe News Editor Anika Besst Business Manager Julien Halabi Multimedia Editor Jacob “Coby” Aloi Web Editor Aidan Stromdahl Opinion Editor Vacant Sports Editor Cathryn Salis

GRAPHIC | SENA ROSS, ORACLE

A&E Editor Olivia Koski Variety Editor Eliza Hagstrom Copy Editors Lydia Meier, Jordan Perzichilli Illustrators Abdirahman Ali, Sena Ross Senior Reporters Robin Doyscher, Jack Fischer, Kathryn Robinson, Jilly Wortman Reporters Mia Chiang, Ethan Hermann, Lydia Meier, Alison Pasbrig, Ma Shwe Senior Columnist Emily Brown, Will Nelson Columnists Robin Doyscher, Dean Young Senior Photographers Aidan Stromdahl Photographers Taleah Alldritt, Rachel Peterson, Luke Snow, Nathan Steeves Distributor Robin Doyscher Adviser Trevor Maine

POLICIES

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HATE SPEECH

(continued from front) how a student would be held accountable in instances like this.

Associate Vice President of Inclusive Excellence David Everett says that his office does not have a policy on hate speech, but believes it could fall under the student conduct policy.

“I recognize the level of frustration and concern [that students have],” Everett said. “My office, Vice President of Student Affairs, will be hosting campus convening conversations to think about and talk about what students would like to see from a structural standpoint in response to some of these things but then also help us to think about what can we begin to create … from a policy standpoint that gets at and tackles at some of this type of behavior.”

With the incident in the dorms, it’s difficult to show this accountability because the individual responsible remains unidentified, as there are no cameras in the dorm hallways. However, students still see many ways that the university could hold itself responsible to the community, and especially students of color.

Clausen-Thomas, for one, wants Hamline to make more of an effort to create required discussions for students.

Thao wants professors to speak about racism more during their lectures.

“Students can start to gain more knowledge and help each other more,” Thao said.

In the meantime, Menawa has a message for students: “Be each others’ communities … Speak out and protect people.”

The incident of antisemitism three weeks later on Sept. 27 has led to similar calls for accountability from students and faculty.

Dr. Trevor Maine, who serves as adviser to the Oracle and teaches the class where the incident occurred, says he’s never heard so many students say they feel unwelcome on campus, and believes that “if students feel unsafe on campus, we need to address that.

And we need to address that in systemic ways, as well as interpersonal ways, and cultural ways.”

Just as students need transparency from the administration, Maine acknowledges that students need responses from their professors.

“To do that,” he said, “professors need to be prepared for these kinds of situations.

That means we need training [and] reporting processes that hold individuals accountable and model transparency at every level.”

An anonymous member of the Jewish community at Hamline also believes that faculty lack training, and a “basic understanding of antisemitism and how it works.” However, they also feel unsupported by their fellow students.

“Hamline students need to realize that they have work to do and that yes, they are complacent and part of the problem,” they said.

The incident has been disheartening for Jewish students at Hamline. Eva Silberman is a Jewish Hamline senior, who initially felt sad, when she found out about the incident in the email from President Miller’s office.

“I had Jewish students reach out to me saying they didn’t feel safe on campus …

My first day at Hamline I didn’t feel safe because I was Jewish.” Silberman said, who can only name seven to ten Jewish students at Hamline. “When these antisemitic things happen, it starts to feel very targeted.”

In a call for institutional action and accountability, Silberman made an Instagram post titled “Protect Jewish students” that has been shared over 300 times. Readers can view the post on her account, @eva_sibs.

Besides feeling unsatisfied by President Miller’s email, Jewish students have expressed an issue with its spelling of antisemitism. In the email, the event is referred to as “anti-Semitic” which Jewish people have advocated against for decades.

According to holocaustremembrance. com, “The hyphenated spelling allows for possibility of something called ‘Semitism’, which not only legitimizes a form of pseudoscientific racial classification that was thoroughly discredited by association with

Nazi ideology, but also divides the term, stripping it from its meaning of opposition and hatred toward Jews.”

When Silberman read the email, she felt shocked. “[Hamline] should know how to spell the issue they’re talking about,” she said.

Silberman had a conversation last week with President Miller, and feels positive about the outcome of the meeting.

“I truly felt that President Miller was being thoughtful and kind with what she was saying,” Silberman said.

She feels that Jewish students can see Miller as an advocate in educating the campus community about antisemitism.

The anonymous member of the Jewish community urges Hamline students, faculty and administration to educate thewmselves.

“If you want to be an ally to Jewish people, start at the very basics. Read about who the Jewish people are,” they said. “Jewish people and history doesn’t just exist in the context of the Bible or the Holocaust. There is well over 3,000 years of history, development, struggle, persecution, joy, beauty, and survival to learn about. Myjewishlearning. com is a great resource, the ADL, Hillel, Rootsmetal on instagram, even Jewish Student Life at Hamline would be a good place to start.”

Conversations continue between students, faculty, staff and administrators about how best to support and educate the campus community as Hamline moves forward.

Any students affected by either of these incidents can reach out to campus resources such as Wesley Center staff (including Rabbi Adler and Chaplain Figueroa-Ray) and Counseling and Health Services (counselinghealth@hamline. edu) or to student organizations like Black Student Collective (blackstudentcollective@ hamline.edu) and Jewish Student Life (hujsa@hamline.edu).

Disclaimer: Dr. Trevor Maine is the adviser of the Oracle. He was used as a source in this article without overseeing in an advisory-capacity.

News 3

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

The Hamline art heist: half returned An art theft on campus leads to larger discussions in the Art Department and a percieved increase in public safety measures.

Lydia Meier News Reporter lmeier05@hamline.edu Professor Andrew Wykes sent a message to one of his classes on October 6, informing them of an art theft. Sometime in the previous week, an unidentified individual stole two 30” by 30” oil on canvas paintings from a stairwell in Drew Fine Arts (DFA).

The paintings hung adjacent to the Soeffker Gallery, where Hamline houses its permanent collection, featuring artists like Francisco Goya, Pablo Picasso, and Andy Warhol.

Wykes reached out to his students and to Public Safety for answers, but found none. Director of Public Safety Melinda Heikennen explained that although there are several cameras in the area around the Soeffker Gallery, none face the wall where the paintings were hung.

After reviewing the security cameras, Public Safety was “unable to clearly identify anyone removing those specific paintings,” Heikennen said.

However, in a strange turn of events, one of the paintings returned.

“Mysteriously,” Wykes said, “The following week … one of the paintings appeared by the painting studio turned facing the wall.”

The other painting is still missing.

The theft has left Wykes pondering the state of DFA. “It does bring up the concerns I have heard from students and faculty about the situation of DFA. Since COVID, DFA has become a shell of what it was. In fact 21 years ago when I was hired the building was thriving with people,” Wykes said. “Recently the division lost its administrative assistant and was told that the position will not be replaced. That means there is no full-time human presence at the office by the entrance. If I don’t put on all the buildings [sic] lights at 8:30 upon my arrival … DFA will remain in semi-darkness all day.”

He worries about a theft from the Soeffker Gallery itself, saying that such an event would send “shock waves to the administration.” Overall, Wykes feels that the DFA has a “distinct sense of being rundown.”

Although a somewhat abandoned DFA could have led to the theft, many art students seem puzzled about the thief ’s motives. Max Ridenour is a sophomore who plans on minoring in Studio Arts and is confused about how this happened.

“It’s

hard for me to imagine what kind of person would have the idea to steal a painting from an institution with such a small art department to begin with,” Ridenour said, “And what they would stand to gain from such an action if they ended up returning it without incident.”

Some art students, like Ridenour, have felt that Public Safety has increased their presence around the art studios since the theft, which has made them feel uncomfortable.

“Public Safety has been incessantly patrolling the studios on Taylor [Avenue] since the theft,” Ridenour said. “They’re supposedly responding to threats to steal equipment from the studios that they received, although I’m unable to assess the validity of these threats, and the heightened presence of Public Safety has felt to me like a nuisance more than anything.”

Heikennen stated that she is not aware of any shift in Public Safety coverage around the studios.

“In order for us to ensure the safety and security of the campus we spend time in a variety of areas for different lengths of time,” Heikkinen said. “We are not there to monitor students moving about campus who just happen to be in the same area at the same time.”

Whatever the case, a perceived sense of increased security has the Studio Arts department buzzing about the incident.

Ridenour, for one, is puzzled by the whole chain of events.

“I’m thankful that the paintings got returned, but I honestly think the entire situation is pretty goofy. I hope we get to learn more about who stole the paintings and why, because it seems like such a movievillain

grade of shenanigans that I have trouble associating with my mental conception of the average Hamline student,” Ridenour said. “I will simply say that I’m impressed by the sheer distinctiveness and wanton behavior of such a scheme.”

As of October 16, the Studio Arts department is hoping for a safe return of the second painting.

PHOTOS | NATHAN STEEVES, ORACLE Drew Fine Arts houses Hamline’s visual, performance and muscial arts. The artwork was stolen from this building.

4 News

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

A “normal” season for extracurriculars?

It is the fourth semester of COVID-19 and extracurriculars from football, to debate, to theatre all are neck deep in a normal-ish semester.

Jack Fischer Senior Reporter jfischer12@hamline.edu The precipitous rise in the COVID-19 Delta variant throughout summer and fall, seemed to threaten another semester of closures, cancellations and disruptions; so far activities, performances, events and games have all gone unencumbered.

Cases of COVID-19 are still steadily increasing week after week, and have been since early July.

Hospitalizations over a seven-day average hover around 1,000 patients a day according to the Minnesota Department of Health, one of the highest we have seen during the pandemic; compared to double that last November and December during the winter surge, when we did not have vaccines widely available.

While campus buildings remain mask-required spaces (with various degrees of compliance), athletes have taken back to the field, court, weight room and pool deck without their “freedom muzzles.”

“The swim and dive team are pretty good at wearing [masks], a lot of us wear them on deck until we work out too.” Sophomore Taylor Atkins said. “A lot of us are vaccinated too.”

The percentage of students and staff on campus who are in compliance with Hamline’s COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements remains a mystery. The campus community continues to operate in confidence that a majority of campus is vaccinated, with professors and administrators having more clear access to information.

Hamline theatre is returning this semester, in person, for the first time since the pandemic began; and actors have also been given the green light to perform maskless.

During the previous year Dr. Laura Dougherty directed a play in the Spring that was recorded and performed virtually. The dance ensemble performed

ILLUSTRATION | ABDIRAHMAN ALI, ORACLE a live-stream rather than performing in person as well.

“So, before there was real concern about the Delta variant, I had asked the Provost, what are we going to be able to do? Because this was not what we were trained to do [digital theatre]... I like the idea of theatre is an ephemeral event and I like the idea of theatre is, we’re all sharing the same space telling stories from people that are right there watching us tell the stories.” Dr. Jeff Turner, who is directing Hamline’s fall production “Our Town,” said.

“The Provost made a case to Mel, [the COVID-19 Coordinator, and the COVID-19 Response Committee] that if athletes can practice without a mask and play without a mask, particularly in indoor settings… ideally maybe we should be as well” Turner said.

While the performers will be maskless eventually, and they technically could be practicing maskless now, they aren’t there yet.

“Predominantly there are some times where an actor really just needs to kind of work their mouth around some of the language but in general we are probably 96% of the time rehearsing in masks, and I’m always in a mask, crew, stage managers are all always in masks, anybody that visits the space,” Turner said.

The show is set to run starting November 12th, there will be limited capacity and social distancing as much as possible. Actors are planning to all get tested before the show opens, and Turner said he is interested in asking attendees to present proof of vaccination at the door.

GRAPHIC | SENA ROSS, ORACLE

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

News 5

An attempt at sharing is caring Shared governance at Hamline has raised concerns about the level of transparency as the school continues to move into the future.

Anika Besst News Editor abesst01@hamline.edu As part of an institution of higher learning, Hamline’s academic departments and programs experience reviews, feedback and changes constantly. Most recently, these changes have sparked conversations about shared governance and transparency at Hamline after such things as the CLA expedited program review of the 2020-21 school year and operating throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

As defined by the American Association of University Professors, shared governance refers to the existing structure and process that faculty, staff, administrators, and trustees participate in when governing an institution of higher learning. At Hamline, this impacts such things as decisions about departments, programs, curriculum and other conversations.

Lately, the topic of shared governance has been scrutinized in relation to how it plays out at the university.

“Shared governance is something that both faculty and our administrators talk a lot about, but my experience is that there is a different perception of what shared governance is,” Binnur Ozkececi-Taner, professor of political science, said. “From the faculty’s perspective, there is a need for faculty, staff and students to be involved as much as possible in the decision making process. From the administration’s perspective, I think it is more about sharing information about certain policies.”

Hamline has a plethora of committees covering many spheres of university needs where faculty is generally represented, while sometimes lacking decision-making power.

As of now, there are no faculty or students that are a part of the Board of Trustees, one of the deciding players in shared governance. One of the Board of Trustees largest roles is fiscally supporting the university.

“Differences in the weight of each group’s voice on a particular issue should be determined by the extent of its responsibility for and expertise on that issue,” AAUP’s website writes.

Chair and professor of the English Department Mike Reynolds, has played many roles at Hamline in both a faculty and administrative capacity. He recognizes the ways in which tension has arised.

“I would say I continue to be frustrated by the lack of communication and clarity about the way things work. Communication, I think is a consistent problem across the whole time I’ve been here but I do feel like it’s been a challenge, the last couple of years,” Reynolds said. “I also think there’s a challenge around consultation versus collaboration, some administrators would say that the role of faculty in shared governance is to consult, but not necessarily to be part of the actual decision making…

Meaningful collaboration, meaningful collective decision making, should happen in various places.”

Recently the approach that has been taken regarding shared governance and decision making as Hamline faces increased market pressures, is what distinguished professor David Schultz describes to be a “top/down” approach. This is in line with something hierarchical, where many professors feel a collaborative approach would be more beneficial.

Schultz also hopes for a different clarity from the “top” and down. With more transparency from the Board of Trustees and administrators. “[Our shared governance] is not as strong as it could be, and it comes at the detriment of the university,” he said. “We have to commit ourselves as an institution to be more transparent about goals and about what the financial situations are regarding a whole bunch of different things. [That’s] a good first step in terms of improving governance and in terms of saying that, ‘okay, we’re going to solicit input and information from, again, all the relevant constituencies,’ as a way of strengthening the decision making.”

The benefit of the shared governance model is irreplaceable in many faculty members’ eyes, acknowledging that there are aspects of Hamline’s that need improvement.

“If we don’t have shared governance, I think the relationship with administration and faculty would be conflictual, and we don’t want that. Having a good model of shared governance is going to make Hamline University a lot stronger than it already is,” Ozkececi-Taner said. “[It] gives the idea and the perception that faculty, staff, students and our administrators work collaboratively. So that model is the model that we should be aspiring to achieve. I don’t think that we are there. I think there needs to be a good faith effort from the administration, and also from faculty so that we could work together to make Hamline, a better place for everyone.”

Interim ProvostAndy Rundquist has also worked in many positions at Hamline and feels similarly about shared governance after the experiences he has had. Part of his role as Interim Provost is he works to help identify the areas Hamline could improve going forward.

“I think the broad strokes of our system right now are exactly the ingredients we need, and I think we can always improve,” Rundquist said. “There are some steps where the process transparency just hasn’t existed before, so we need to launch some new communication paths but that’s not major change.”

Ideas for how the shared governance model can improve include emphasizing collaboration over partisan positions or hierarchical approaches, transparency in decisions and processes, wider ranges in representation and a communal perspective on addressing challenges.

“Shared governance can’t simply be vetoing decisions you don’t like. It has to be taking accountability for the kinds of challenges that we face together,” ” Reynolds said. “I would like to see increased enhancement of some of the structures we have, for instance, I would like to see representation on the board. I would like to see student representation on the board. That seems to me, a crucial step towards a stronger model of shared governance with all stakeholders….if we actually want shared governance in various ways, it should just be consistent across all stakeholder groups.”

ILLUSTRATION | SENA ROSS, ORACLE

6 A&E

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

Drag takes over old main lawn Local drag performers took to the stage for the 25th year of Spectrum’s drag show. Spectrum was able to bring the popular event back in person after the show took place virtually last year.

that they included a drag king,” Maroni said.

“Heartthrob. I liked the 2000s vibes, the rhinestones were everything,” junior Sarah Olson said.

Geiss did much of the planning for this year’s show, and provided some insight into the process of contacting performers.

“We just keep like a database of queens we’ve worked with in the past, or the ones we’ve reached out with that have said Robin Doyscher ‘oh sorry I can’t this year but maybe next year’,” Geiss said. “If I get Senior Reporter more queens than I can handle then I just say ‘I’m sorry I didn’t sdoyscher01@hamline.edu plan for this many to respond!’”

Miz Diagnosis performed at Hamline for the first time and did not Olivia Koski A&E Editor disappoint. She gave two distinct performances; for “Miz-Toucha” okoski01@hamline.edu she catered to the Halloween spirit with a mash-up including “Touch-A, The excited chatter grew progressively louder as Touch-A, Touch Me” from “The Rocky students gathered with their fall coats and picnic Horror Picture Show” and for “Fergie blankets. When the great clock rang at the top of the BOOO” she brought the essential sass hour, it was time for the show to begin. Spectrum to the classic “Fergalicious” by Fergie. hosted the 25th annual drag show on Another returning performer from the evening of October 14 in front of Old last year’s show and member of Queerdo, Sissy Main, finishing up the Coming Out Week Tops, stunned the crowd with her soulful vocals itinerary. during a performance of “Creep” by Radiohead. Dressed Last year’s show was prerecorded and in a plaid ensemble, the lights flashed a vibrant red during streamed virtually. Junior Ryan Geiss, the song’s chorus. There was praise for both Spectrum’s secretary and interim treasurer for production of the event, as well as Sissy Tops’ use of vocal Spectrum, explained the significance of performance. being once again back in-person for the “I thought it was really cool, especially knowing the swiss anticipated event. army queen. Making your own costumes and doing your own “We used to always do it inside Bush vocals, like who does that? It’s so much work, it’s incredible,” Ballroom … but having it on the grass junior Anika Duckwall said. “I think Spectrum produced it very there was a lot more option[s] for more well. The fact that we were outside and they were able to people to come and social distance for get that quality of sound design and lighting was really what they’re comfortable with,” Geiss impressive.” said. “I remember virtual, we had like a watch The show finished off with another number by Trisha party in our Discord … having so many people Spectacle, who twirled in a bright this year was amazing.”

PHOTO | TALEAH ALLDRITT, ORACLE pink gown to the song “Popular” from Taking place outdoors, the vibrant Trisha Spectacle dazzled the crowd with their lip sync of the hit song, “Popular,” from the musical “Wicked.” garments of performers were clearly the Broadway Musical “Wicked” during this year’s annual drag show. pronounced against the dark fall atmosphere. The pavement in front of Old Main, as well as the steps leading up The annual drag show’s return to the building, served as the stage. Performers could interact intimately with the to a live audience was an overall crowd, who sat on the surrounding grass and held out cash tips. The line up for success. Students and performers this year’s show included four local performers: were able to mask up and socially queens Trisha Spectacle, Sissy Tops and Miz distance safely, while still getting Diagnosis, and king Tyler T. Love. to cheer on and interact with the Trisha Spectacle is a member of Queerdo talent live.

Minneapolis, a local performance art group.

“I also got the final count of She is well known for performances that play 120 people in attendance which off popular media. Regular attendees may recall is a little less than what we would their performance as Velma from Scooby-Doo get pre-covid but much more than last year. She began the show adorned in a who watched the virtual show last striking yellow and black dress, leaving the year,” Geiss said via email. crowd buzzing with the opening number “Bees,” Keep an eye out for Spectrum’s that included audio from “The Bee Movie.” upcoming events. Queer Sex Ed Students had glowing praise for Trisha Spectacle’s is planned for October 25, performances that utilized the multimedia format of where students can discuss drag to tell a story. “She did such a good job,” junior all that was left out of their Riley Maroni said. health classes. The Trans “The Bee Movie routine was everything. The Day of Remembrance Vigil spoken word parts were such a show of technical will also be taking place skill,” junior Clare Foy said. soon. Updates and Tyler T. Love was the only king who performed, and information can be he quickly captured the audience’s hearts with a lip found on Instagram sync to “There’s Nothing Holding Me Back,” by Shawn and Facebook Mendes, providing each tipper with a personal moment @huspectrum. of serenading.

Students appreciated the inclusion of diverse gender representation within the performances. “I really liked PHOTOS | TALEAH ALLDRITT, ORACLE LEFT: At this year’s annual drag show, Miz Diagnosis gave a performance full of attitude to Fergie’s single, “Fergalicious.”

RIGHT: The crowd was in awe as Sissy Tops’ displayed her vocal talent while singing “Creep” by Radiohead.

Opinion 7

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

Not so black or white: my experiences in theatre

Jacob “Coby” Aloi Guest Columnist jaloi01@hamline.edu

How gaslighting, inaction and oververt and subtle racism in white theatre pushed me to leave an industry I love.

It is no surprise that American theatre, a traditionally and predominantly white space, has been marred by accusations and allegations of racism. However, when most people consider racism in theatre, I imagine they think of big, fervent explosions; such as the use of slurs or unsavory hiring practices. While those are indeed elements of the wider issues of race in theater, they are often not the most prevalent. In fact, while I have seen those things first hand, in my experience racism is often more subtle, refined and sneaky— which almost makes it more sinister. This is why I found it important to tell my experience working in various theater settings, including Hamline’s Theatre department.

Before I get too ahead of myself, I would like to acknowledge that I have been afforded certain privileges in the theatre. I am a man, I am rather straight passing and while I am clearly and obviously a person of color, I am rather light skinned. I am fully aware the kinds of things I have seen, heard and lived are far less intense than the things my darker skinned colleagues have experienced. That being said, I am not here to minimize my experiences.

When I first walked into my work-study job on campus I was excited to have the opportunity to grow and learn. I was initially hired as a theater electrician, and after a pretty wonderful year, I transitioned into a management position—a role that oversaw all aspects of theatrical lighting and special effects. Generally speaking, my first couple of productions in the role, while rocky, were enjoyable. Everything was finished on time and I got generally good feedback from my supervisors. I felt supported and cared for. This quickly unraveled once I began working on another show that I shall leave nameless for the time being—even now I am covering for racists and enablers.

When I began working on this particular production, I was immediately faced with an energy that I had previously not encountered. The hostile environment created can be attributed to a number of individuals involved in the project, but primarily fell upon a set number of senior (and white) production team members who I believe did not fully understand how hurtful the actions they exhibited toward their fellow designers and technicians of color were.

Repeatedly in production meetings and in private conversations, my work and professionality were

brought into question—beyond the usual ‘I’m here to help’ sort of language—and became micro aggressive, demeaning and emasculating. However, I was the lucky one. My other colleagues of color got it the worst, being reduced to tears on more than one occasion. Meanwhile, my immune system took a hit and I got stress induced vomiting. For the most part, I was a mess during the final weeks leading up to opening night. I was resigned to doing push ups and crunches to get out my pent up aggression and I also packed on a few extra pounds from stress eating.

From what I understand, this is nothing new to theatre—in fact, I think it’s baked into the culture. From a young age we are taught the industry is small and that if we are difficult to work with, no one will hire us. While having a good attitude and being easy going are definitely good qualities to have, in practice this generally accepted truth in theater is used to silence those who work in the industry.

Last spring we saw this first hand on a national level in the Scott Rudin scandal. For context, Scott Rudin is a famous Broadway producer, and recently allegations of abuse toward staff and crew have come to light. Yet, very few came forward to condemn him—a lot of which I abritute to the fear that has been so ingrained into theatre. If we make a statement, we become unhireable.

Some have found the strength to talk about this ugly environment we have created. Karen Olivo and Daniel James Belnavis come to mind. However, there are few and far between who are taking a stand to actually change something about how theatre operates and how it treats its most vulnerable and marginalized members.

Those with power, even in limited amounts, need to say something. That includes me and it certainly includes my white colleagues when it comes to racism in the industry and department.

To make a long, overdue and hopefully not too preachy column short, I’ll leave you with an anecdote from my personal life. I was walking through my frustrations about how I was being treated as a man of color in the department with a friend and co-worker.

When I asked them why they didn’t speak up when they saw and knew what was happening, they said “This is the only opportunity I have to do theatre. I don’t want to cause a riff.” My response was simply “This is my only chance too.”

I realize now that my comment was snippy and rude—and I apologize for that—but the point still stands.

Yes, it may be hard to see racism and it may be scary to say something about it, but it’s even harder to experience it. To quote the New York Metro slogan, see something, say something. We’ve been seeing it for far too long, it’s time we actually say something.

ILLUSTRATIONS | ANDREA LINDNER, THE ORACLE

8 Opinion

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

To whom it may concern

Will Nelson Senior Columnist wnelson08@hamline.edu Normally advice columns are written by life-weathered mystics with decades of accumulated wisdom. As someone who just recently found out what a mortgage is and who has never once considered separating laundry by color, I cannot claim to be any of those things.

However, mediocre advice can still be useful if it comes from an outside perspective; and who knows, maybe someone out there is looking for the same advice as you and you’ll be helping them by asking!

My close friend doesn’t respect my recently changed pronouns and I don’t know how to ask them again to please use the right ones. They don’t seem to care that it hurts me a lot even though I’ve explained it to them over and over. They are very important to me and I don’t want to lose their friendship.

To whom it may concern, Being repeatedly hurt by someone close to you in that way sounds incredibly difficult, and I’m sorry that you’ve been having to go through this. First off, I have to acknowledge that, as someone who’s never undergone a pronoun change, I can’t fully empathize with the nuances and challenges of your situation.

My initial thought would be to have a one-on-one conversation with your friend in which you explain

to them why your pronouns are important to you and formally ask them to change their behavior. However, you mentioned that you’ve explained why using the incorrect pronouns hurts you to them “over and over,” and I’d imagine that most of those interactions had elements of that conversation in them.

Not all peer pressure is bad. Consider asking your other friends who do respect your pronouns to correct this friend if they don’t already, and maybe even ask them to speak to them about it. Though your friend really should’ve listened to your requests in the first place, hearing it from other people could be the extra push they need.

If nothing seems to be working, it unfortunately comes down to one question: how important is this friendship to you? Is this person important enough in your life to tolerate repeated disregard for an integral part of your identity? Their refusal to change their behavior might not be changed, and you may have to make the decision as to whether or not it’s worth continuing the friendship.

If it comes down to that, the only person who can make that call is you.

Thank you for your response, and may the sun shine warm upon your face.

Kind regards, Will My mom won’t stop calling me all the time even when I’m in class because she’s worrying about me since I’m on campus now. How do I tell her to leave me alone but nicely?

To whom it may concern, A dilemma as old as time! Or at least as old as the development of higher education.

To the core, this is a question of boundaries.

Sometimes, just whipping out that word can be enough to jolt a parent out of their delusions of your incapacity to fend for yourself, but outlining what those boundaries actually are is a healthy move. I would recommend setting up a time to talk with your mom. Tell her you’d like to establish some boundaries and that her calling so frequently is making you feel uncomfortable. Explain that, as hard as it is to accept, you’re old enough to fend for yourself. She might hem and haw a little, but it’s likely she’ll understand.

It’s important to remember that your mom’s concern is almost certainly coming from a place of love. Feeling

frustrated with her is normal, but becoming angry with her will only lead to mutual resentment. Those worried phone calls in class are just a result of decades of care.

Plenty of parents I know have had trouble releasing control over their child as they enter college. Just as it’s a difficult transition for many of us—moving away from home and the support it provides—it’s also a difficult time for them.

Set your boundaries and enforce them, but try to be patient with your mom. Things have changed for you both.

Thank you for your response, and may your green tea never oversteep.

Kind regards, Will I have been feeling down as the weather gets worse and I think a new hobby will help to cheer me up. Do you have any suggestions? What is your favorite thing to do when you’re feeling down?

To whom it may concern, There are two hobbies that I think almost anyone can benefit from: walking and writing.

I’m a huge proponent of going for a nice walk. No music, no audiobooks, no particular destination, just walking– can’t recommend it highly enough. Take some time out of your schedule to reflect on things going on in your life. What’s important to you? What have you been having a difficult time with? What are some things you’re thankful for?

There are some lovely parks nearby—Horton, Newell, Como if you’re feeling ambitious—where you can appreciate the beauty of the natural world, regardless of the season, and reconnect with your sense of wonder.

Nothing puts me in a better mood like a good walk.

Writing, in a similar vein, offers the opportunity for self-reflection while being an enjoyable pastime.

Unfortunately, writing for school puts a bad taste in many people’s mouths, but writing recreationally can be life changing. Don’t feel pressured to write about anything in particular—let yourself explore. It can help you process, access your creative mind, and remember important events. Writing is a fantastic hobby, and it certainly helps me when I’m in a bad place.

Thank you for your response, and may you always get your favorite flavor from gumball machines.

Kind regards, Will

Need some advice? send Will your questions at:

tinyurl.com/oracledearwill

and you may see it answered in an upcoming issue of The Oracle!

Opinion 9

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

Sweden, Britney Spears and the Hamline plan F

Dean Young Columnist dyoung04@hamline.edu

A look at why you should join a music ensemble next semester Britney Spears’ “...Baby One More Time.” The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights.” Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off.” Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling.” Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream.” We all enjoyed these tunes, but few realize that the same musician wrote or co-wrote each one of them. These chart-toppers—along with 20 other Billboard hot 100 number one hits—all have their claim to fame with Swedish songwriter Max Martin.

Who is Max Martin? Karl Martin Sandberg is better known by his stage name, Max Martin; that is, when he is named at all. Max lives a quiet life, turning down even a fraction of the fame that could be his, instead preferring to give it to the singer. In a similar way, he tends to be reticent regarding his approach, making it difficult to determine what is behind his profound success.

However, in one interview with Pacific Standard, he said what might be considered the most revealing insight in his stunning accomplishments: “I have public music education to thank for everything.”

Everything. Powerful words coming from a 21-time grammy nominee. What exactly is Swedish education doing that would imbue Mr. Martin with such profound gratitude for its tutelage?

Swedish music education carries a number of novel approaches, but perhaps the most critical aspect is simply its presence. Sweden prioritizes its music education as a necessary and integral component—much the same as any other staple such as mathematics or literature — rather than an extracurricular add-on. In this regard, America might do well to up its game.

Yes, U.S. schools have music education programs, but often they are lackluster in performance and transitory in effect. American schools may be producing many things, but they are not creating profound musical literacy. The recorder we used to play Hot Cross Buns tends to collect dust after we graduate middle school [note: this is NOT an appeal to resurrect the recorder in high school. I may have tried that - with expected results].

Some would argue against the Swedish model, in an attempt to uphold the simplicity of reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmatic, music education should be kept to a minimum, or even relegated to non-school venues. The arguments are compelling. It would prevent a rise in education tax dollars and would focus music education on those truly interested.

But perhaps that relegation is the problem. If we leave music to those truly interested—and this is ignoring the limitations of those interested but lacking the wherewithal to pursue quality education—we defeat the entire benefit of the Swedish music education. The point of Sweden’s education is so that those set on becoming professional musicians as well as those not so inclined can both gain knowledge and experience in music.

This is the heart and soul of the curricular structure.

Furthermore, some students might not even realize what enjoyment they find in music until after they dive deep into it. I was one such student.

Music education clearly would be advantageous, but detractors may point to this being the start to an everincreasing addition of “advantageous” subjects. What next, hot air balloon piloting?

To counter this, we must recognize that music is not merely an add-on, but represents something integral to our way of life across the globe. It appears fundamental to our humanity; in fact, according to ABC Radio National, it is hard for ethnomusicologists to identify any culture that exists or has ever existed without music. Given this fundamental aspect, perhaps music ought to be treated with more significance than our so-called staple subjects. [As for hot air balloon pilots, comparably.com lists the “top 80% making $147,890”, leading me to ask, why aren’t we teaching this?]

Admittedly, the appraisal of elementary Swedish music education is a niche topic and thus makes a generally poor column choice; but on second glance, the topic might be extremely relevant to us. Though we may have faced an inferior elementary education, we attend a school with a fine arts requirement—a perfect time to wet our feet with music. Given the Hamline plan F, we are required to take 8 credits worth of fine arts; what better use of that than exploring music we would have otherwise missed out on?

It’s often easy to view the Hamline plan as a mere hoop to jump through; I’ve certainly thought that way at times. However, I would encourage all of us to view the Hamline plan F as a way to enhance a music education that may not have been effectively instituted in our earlier years. I have found ensembles to be particularly stimulating, such as my time with the jazz combo and my current involvement in the A Cappella choir.

The benefits to ensemble work are wide ranging: increasing musical fluency, strengthening new connections in the brain, gaining skill on an instrument, and simply having a good time, among other things. We might not be able to achieve the education provided in the way Sweden does—at least not yet—but we can start by increasing the musical experience we have here at Hamline. To use a Max Martin lyric made popular by NSYNC, “I want it that way.”

ILLUSTRATION | ANDREA LINDNER, THE ORACLE

10 Word Search

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

CRYPTIDS

YETI

BIG FOOT

SEA SERPENTS

MONSTER

LEGEND

THUNDERBIRD CHUPACABRA

NESSIE

YOWIE

MOTHMAN

MEGALADON PSEUDOSCIENCE

GRAPHIC | ANDREA LINDNER, ORACLE

Sports 11

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

Hamline athletics clarifies vaccine rumors Hamline’s Athletic department works with vaccine number to get players back on the field as safely as possible.

Jilly Wortman Senior Reporter jwortman01@hamline.edu The challenges of COVID-19 continue on and with new difficulties with the vaccine. Hamline University has a vaccine requirement for students and staff, but there are allowed exemptions. The Hamline student athletes have a similar ratio of vaccinated to unvaccinated athletes as the University as a whole.

Since student athletes are in contact with so many others there is still a strict set of protocols, especially for the unvaccinated.

“For those who are unvaccinated they go through the same testing protocol as the NCAA, they’re tested every week. It’s a PCR test. For those who test positive we do a confirmation test, it’s just like the general unvaccinated student population,” Jason Verdugo, Athletic Director said.

As of right now, unvaccinated student athletes are getting tested once a week to stay on top of spread and contact tracing.

If an athlete tests positive the response is the same no matter the status of their vaccination.

“Whether they’re vaccinated or not [if someone on the team tests positive] they have to quarantine, there’s a return to play protocol, and that’s whether they’re symptomatic or unsymptomatic,” Verdugo said. “The majority of the positive tests we have had in our league all of them but one have been vaccinated athletes” Verdugo said.

From the past few months we have seen that ones vaccine status doesn’t prevent anyone from getting COVID-19, and the athletics world is experiencing that first hand.

“The notion that there’s this big assumption that we have a bunch of unvaccinated student-athletes is the same as the general student population. The second thing is we’re testing more for those student-athletes who aren’t vaccinated, plus we have a high vaccination rate,” Verdogu said. There isn’t always a correlation between vaccination and test results when you’re in such close proximity with many others.

The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) has instituted a rule that if a game has to be cancelled due to COVID19 the team has to forfeit. This rule adds both complications and implications for the team.

“Just because a game gets pushed or cancelled the general population shouldn’t make assumptions that the whole team isn’t vaccinated,” Verdugo said.

Winter is coming which adds cold and flu season into the mix.

“The one difficulty in terms of the winter is the masking. The Minnesota Wild, the Vikings, the mall, no masking. But we’re masking on campus which makes it difficult because [of ] where

PHOTO | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Despite rumors that many athletes are not vaccinated, Athletic Director Jason Verdugo says vaccine rates for athletes mirror the general student population.

people [fans] lie in terms of their masking or not” Verdugo said.

Overall nothing is 100%, things are as normal as they have been since March of 2020 and seemingly on an upward progression.

“Luckily for most of our teams we have been pretty good up to this point, it hasn’t been perfect, it’s tough but at least we’re playing games,” Verdugo said.

PHOTOS | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Verdugo notes that the majority of positive cases among athletes have been breakthrough cases.

PHOTOS | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Hamline athletics are happy to be back to playing games after a year and a half of not being able to.

Variety 12

The Oracle | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2021

A spooktastic event The Residential Housing Association’s (RHA) Haunted Hallway event is sure to delight as there are many activities and haunts planned for the fun, spooky evening Kathryn Robinson Variety Reporter krobinson12@hamline.edu The chill in the air, the changing leaves and the skeletons hanging from dorm room windows can only mean one thing - halloween is just around the corner.

It’s time to get scared, and rha knows exactly how to do that. Much to many students’ delight, the beloved haunted hallway event is back on this year after a pause last year due to covid-19. The residential housing association plans the event, and this year there is a lot to be excited about.

Haunted Hallway, located in Manor Hall is held each year by the Residential Housing Association before Halloween.

Jessie Luévano, the co-president of RHA, is excited about this year’s haunted hallway event.

“There will be prizes, spooky things and a photo booth to take photos with your friends and your Halloween costumes,” Luévano said. “In the basement of Manor, we

have a bunch of scary rooms and a tour guide that takes you into each one.”

The various orgs and the Residential Program Committees set up these spooky rooms, and they all have a different theme.

Regarding COVID-19 safety, Luévano is confident in the safety of the event.

“We’re trying to make it so the tours are a bit smaller than they have been in past years, just for social distancing,” Luévano said. “We’re confident in being able to keep people away at separate tables, and the attractions are in separate rooms.”

Just like all other events at Hamline, a mask is required as well.

RHA is involved in many ways on campus, not just for the Haunted Hallway event.

“Late Night Study Breakfast (LNSB) is the biggest event in the spring and fall.

We do philanthropic events and last year we did some capital improvements for the dorms,” Luévano said. “Each residence hall has their own Residential Programming Committee, and they put on an event every month.”

Making sure that students’ voices and ideas are heard is a top priority for Luévano and RHA as a whole.

To check out Haunted Hallway and all other events RHA puts on, check out their Instagram @hamlinerha. Haunted Hallway will be Wednesday, October 27th from 8-11p.m. in Manor Hall.

Come dressed in your Halloween costume!

PHOTO | COURTESY OF RESIDENTIAL HOUSING ASSOCIATION Something spooky coming your way. Haunted hallway Wednesday, October 27th from 8-11p.m. in Manor Hall.

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