THE ORACLE HAMLINE UNIVERSITY
ST.PAUL
3.30.22
VOL.133
MFT 59, on the line
Welcome to the new Oracle! NO.11
HAMLINEORACLE.COM
What’s brewing
A threatened strike spurs change at the Hamline Starbucks. Lydia Meier Senior Reporter lmeier05@hamline.edu Kayla Tester Reporter ktester01@hamline.edu
PHOTO | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Mpls. educators, support staff, students and the NE community picketing up and down Central Ave. in NE Mpls. while cheering “Who’s on the line? 59!!” “Who are we? MFT!!!”
After 14 days of canceled classes and thousands of educators and community supporters taking to the strike lines, Minneapolis Public Schools have announced a tentative agreement with the Minneapolis Federation of Educators local 59 early March 25. Jack Fischer Senior Reporter jfischer12@hamline.edu Both of the Twin Cities held last-ditch negotiations on March 7 between the cities and their respective teachers unions. Negotiations between Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) and the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers local 59 (MFT) broke down that evening, ultimately resulting in a strike; Saint Paul Public Schools and the Saint Paul Federation of Educators local 28 came to a tentative agreement minutes before district officials were set to cancel classes the next day. One of the state’s largest school districts has been closed since March 8. Over thirty-thousand students enrolled in Minneapolis Public Schools are once again out of classes due to a arduous contract debate between MPS and MFT. The Minneapolis Federation of Teachers represents both teachers and Educational Support Professionals (ESP), and are striking over poor wages for both ESPs and teachers. In the last approved contract between ESPs and the districts, the starting wage for some ESPs is as low as $15.45 an hour. Educators went on strike for a list of reasons, pay being one of them, and another being class sizes. Teachers and their union say they want class size caps included in their new contract. Liam Davis Temple, a Hamline alumni and former MPS substitute teacher, says he frequently worked in classes with well over 30 students. “There’s tons of data around
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smaller class sizes lead[ing] to better learning outcomes. It’s pretty logical, [with] smaller class sizes, students have more attention from the teacher and more focus. You can tailor things more individually to students if there’s 20 students in a class versus 35, obviously,” Davis Temple said. The district has faced immense public pressure from parents, teachers and even elected officials regarding their negotiations. School Board member Josh Pauley resigned during the strike on March 16 after a group of strikers and community activists protested outside of his home. Pauley was endorsed by MFT when he first ran in 2018. Pauley isn’t the only district leadership to leave during this period, a member of the district’s bargaining committee and the Senior Human Resources Officer Maggie Sullivan also announced her departure from the district, and will leave before the end of March. After 14 days of striking, MPS announced early March 25 that they had reached a tentative agreement with the Union. MFT members must vote to ratify the agreement to officially end the strike, despite this MPS has announced and sent automated phone calls to families in the district announcing that school would be back starting Monday the 28. Should union members reject the agreement, the parties would be forced back to the negotiating table, teachers back
to the strike line and students back home. When MPS communicated with parents that the “strike is over,” most striking Union members hadn’t seen the new contract, or understood what was in it. The Union will be educating its members on the tentative agreement over the weekend and a vote is expected to take place this weekend, there is not a clear plan for educators to return from work yet. Regardless of if educators ratify the agreement, students in Minneapolis Public Schools will have to make up missed learning days in accordance with Minnesota State law. The district will add days to the end of the academic calendar, hold classes on previously scheduled “record keeping” days with no student instruction, and potentially extend the school day. Members of MFT local 59 have alleged that MPS’s communication with parents about the “strike being over’’ and that students should expect school Monday is a Union busting tactic designed to blame the Union and teachers, should school not proceed Monday. Regardless of the intent, it certainly is confusing for students and families, and has been for the past three weeks. This is a developing story and was reported on Sunday, March 27. For continued coverage, chekc the oracle at www.hamlineoracle.com.
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The beginning of spring has brought birds and buds back to Hamline, and the campus Starbucks is welcoming the season with new drinks like the toasted vanilla oat milk shaken espresso, as well as some changes that go beyond the menu. In the past, baristas have expressed frustration with the busyness at the Hamline Starbucks, as well as the lack of tips. Katie Mikesell is a sophomore who worked at the Starbucks for two semesters before quitting. “I think the main reason why I left was because it was just too busy for me,” Mikesell said. “I just felt claustrophobic and overwhelmed.” This semester, Hamline students have noticed inconsistent hours at the campus Starbucks in
Anderson Center. This has been frustrating for many of these students. Hamline junior Miki Nakai is an international student from Japan. At Hamline, she resides on campus and has a meal plan with declining balance. She expressed disappointment at the Starbucks closures. “Especially for those who live in dorms, it is not fair that they have $400 DB [Declining Balance] and fewer options to spend it,” Nakai said. Some students worry about staying awake or focusing throughout the day and use caffeine to help with that. However, not all students are concerned about this. “I really don’t care, I’m not an avid coffee drinker nor tea drinker so it doesn’t affect me,” fellow sophomore and
PHOTO | CHETHA NY, ORACLE Starbucks in Anderson Student Center sits closed.
Hamline Theatre’s spring production “The Homing Project” discusses the complexities of home.
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2 NEWS
EDITORIAL & PRODUCTION Editor-in-Chief Andrea Lindner
Managing Editor Elizabeth Lowe News Editor Anika Besst Business Manager Julien Halabi Multimedia Editor Jacob “Coby” Aloi Design Editor Sena Ross Social Media Director Abby Edwards Web Editor Aidian Stromdahl Opinion Editor Robin Doyscher Sports Editor Cathryn Salis A&E Editor Ollie Koski Variety Editor Leo Coughenour Illustrator Abdirahman Ali Senior Reporters Jack Fischer, Lydia Meier, Kathryn Robinson, Jilly Wortman
THE ORACLE
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Staff Editorial: Relaunch and Reflection As you can tell by the length increase, design updates and new logo, the Oracle is relaunching into a new era. With this exciting opportunity, we have decided to take this time to explain how we are not only reimagining the physical appearance of our publication, but also our outlook and position as Hamline University’s student newspaper. The past few years have been a trying time for our world, nation, state and community. Police brutality, hate crimes, discrimination and cultural shifts are just a few examples of issues that we have covered on campus and in our wider community. This sort of coverage, while difficult, we believe is necessary. It is with this background that we as a paper have decided to take a look in the mirror and analyze, both internally and externally, how we have covered these topics and how we can improve. Being a publication as old as the Oracle, we have had a number of moments where we believe we have done excellent work in covering difficult subject matter, such as our coverage this semester of the protests in response to the killing of
Amir Locke, or last year’s coverage of the Derek Chauvin trial. However, we have also made our fair share of missteps, such as an illustration in 2016, that while not purposely ill intentioned, depicted President Miller in a racist light. Another more recent example is our last publication in Black history month depicting only one student of color, and having no stories focused on or even featuring a single Black student to our knowledge. This comes on the heels of internal questions of bias at the paper and conversations on how we can improve—something we want to be as transparent about as possible. This time of reckoning has provided us with the unique opportunity to lay out how we are looking to do better as community members and a news outlet. As a paper we have taken the advice of experts, both in our field and outside, about how best to move forward and implement initiatives to make sure that our coverage is on the right path for inclusion and community development. To paraphrase and invoke the words of the Reverend John Wesley, we want
to ensure we are doing all the good we can, to all the people we can, for as long as we can. Some of these initiatives include new policies for how we follow up with sources after a story is published, reaching out even when there is no story to follow and making sure we are contributing as much to the community as we get out of it. As for internal changes, we have begun implementing changes by conducting conversations on bias in the workplace and how to better support our staff of color. There is much more in the works, which we will continue to be open about, but for now we wanted to let our readers and fellow community members know we are working to redefine who we are as a paper, and how we can do better in the field of diversity, equitability and inclusion. We at the Oracle are deeply committed to accountability and transparency, and we are humbled to have the opportunity to improve and grow. If anyone would like to know more about our plans, reach out to us for more information or to give us feedback, please feel free to email us at oracle@hamline.edu
Signed, The Editorial Staff Andrea Lindner Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Lowe Managing Editor Anika Besst News Editor Jacob “Coby” Aloi Multimedia Editor Sena Ross Design Editor Robin Doyscher Opinion Editor Ollie Koski A&E Editor Cathryn Salis Sports Editor Leo Coughenour Variety Editor
Reporters Cole Brennan, Jason ElyeaWheeler, Eden Fahy, Ethan Hermann, Ma Shwe, Kayla Tester, Charlie Thompson Senior Columnist Emily Brown, Will Nelson Columnists Dean Young, Alex Sirek Photographers Chetha Ny, Rachel Peterson, Nathan Steeves Senior photographer Aidian Stromdahl Distributor Robin Doyscher Advisers Trevor Maine
POLICIES
The Oracle has been published by Hamline students since 1888. The paper is funded through a student fee levied by the university’s Student Media Board. We are a public forum. The opinions expressed within are not necessarily those of the student body, faculty or staff. We do not discriminate in employment. Our mission To cover news, trends, events and enter tainment relevant to Hamline undergraduate students. We strive to make our coverage accurately reflect the diverse communities that comprise the student population. Corrections The Oracle welcomes corrections of quotational and factual errors. Please send such commentary to: o r a c l e @ h a m l i n e.e d u a n d p l a c e “Correction” in the subject line. Direct advertising inquiries to oracle@hamline.edu. The Oracle accepts most print and insert requests. 1536 Hewitt Ave. MB 107 St. Paul, MN 55104 oracle@hamline.edu hamlineoracle.com issuu.com/theoracle1888 (651)523-2268
PHOTO | CHETHA NY, ORACLE Hamline students waiting for Starbucks to be open. Starbucks is located in Anderson Student Center on the first floor.
STARBUCKS (continued from front)
commuter Justice Vue said. Hamline senior Lexi Borgeson recognizes the difficulties of the closures. “I think that this situation is hard for students who want to use their DB for breakfast and morning coffee. While short-staffing is universal right now, I do think that Hamline should try to do its best to keep things open and support its staff,” She said. The “@hamlineconfessions” Instagram page has featured Starbucks in three posts this month. “The Starbucks being closed the majority of the time is starting to
wear on me,” said an anonymous quote in a March 7 post.In the comment sections, students voiced their opinions on the inconsistencies, and a new account, “@hamline_starbuck” was created to update followers when the Starbucks was open. Student baristas were quick to explain that most of the issues this semester were due to short-staffing. Hamline first-year Bailey Winden has worked at the campus Starbucks since the beginning of the fall 2021 semester. He told the Oracle that throughout his time as a barista, a lack of proper training, miscommunication and a manager quitting led to the closures that students were noticing. “We had a situation where most of the employees felt unsupported
and frustrated,” Winden said. “We had way too much on our plates to have been being paid minimum wage for a work study.” When baristas began considering a strike and many threatened to quit, Dining Services Director Courtney Cawthon called a mandatory meeting. Cawthon could not be reached for comment on this article. As a result of that meeting, Winden reports that the Starbucks will be “re-building.” Changes include a better schedule, an emphasis on professionalism and retraining in reducing food waste. They are shifting to asking for customers’ names, in an effort to create community and remember their customers’ orders. Students may see unexpected
closures at Starbucks moving forward. In the past, Winden says that shifts had been understaffed, but moving forward, that will change. “From now on we will only be opening when at least four employees are on the floor,” Winden said. “Meaning that throughout the day we may be closing at random times to wait for more people’s shifts to start. It’s way too much for only two people to be running everything especially in a rush.” After addressing the issues, Winden feels much better, more respected and better equipped. “Expect a lot of good things coming soon,” Winden said, “And hopefully correctly-made drinks.”
THE ORACLE
NEWS 3
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Professor opens classroom for student parents Professor Allison Baker, Chair of the art department sent an email to her students following the closure of Minneapolis Public Schools due to a historic teachers strike, inviting Pipers to bring their kids to class with them at a time when many families find themselves without childcare. Jack Fischer Senior Reporter jfischer12@hamline.edu One of the state’s largest school districts has shuttered its doors to students since March 8. The Minneapolis Federation of Teachers local 59 have been on strike for over three weeks. Once again, students are out of the school and classes are canceled; earlier in January of this year Minneapolis Public Schools had to transition to virtual learning,
have a foot in both worlds. But I think moreover, particularly it’s something that I would hope more faculty have become aware of, [especially] through the course of the pandemic; is that it’s not just students that have children, but it’s students that have caregiving responsibilities for their siblings and or of other young people in the
due to mass staff shortages spurred by the Omicron Variant of COVID19. Professor Allison Baker, the Chair of the Art Department, sent an email to her students opening her classroom for student parents and students with childcare responsibilities to bring their kids or younger family members. “I have always sort of felt really strongly about supporting Hamline students that have children because I know how hard it is to
home,” Baker said. Baker felt called to offer this support, in part due to her own childhood experiences. “When I was really young, my mom was taking night classes to get her associate’s degree... When she was taking night classes, she couldn’t afford a babysitter. So she would often take me to class with her; and we were always really fortunate that her faculty were supportive of that,” Baker said. While no students have taken
her up on the offer yet, she says it is important to have faculty that understand the struggle some students face between their education and their childcare responsibilities. The pandemic exposed some of those struggles, and she argues it is pertinent that we don’t forget the lessons we learned during the height of life’s disruptions. “For me, the least we can do as faculty is support our students that are parents or students that have other childcare responsibilities, where you know, we want our students to be in class and we don’t want our students missing class because they don’t have anywhere to bring their child or they don’t have anywhere to bring their sibling and someone has to be watching them throughout the day. I really, really feel for single parents, like what do you possibly do?” Baker said. While she doesn’t have school aged children in Minneapolis Public Schools, Baker says she is supportive of the teachers and their union’s decision to strike. “They’re striking because they’re trying to improve the learning conditions of these students that they care so deeply about; and it’s at a huge financial cost to them. They’re not getting paid right now,” Baker said. “My heart just breaks for them, like what an awful situation to be in and I wish them the best. I hope that all of their demands are met and they get what they know is best for their students.”
PHOTO | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Top right: “Escuelas seguras y estables, apoyos de salud mental, clases más pequeñas, salario digno” which translates into “safe and stable schools, mental health supports, smaller classes, living wage.” Top left: Those on strike carried a variety of signs depicting their demands including increased wages, safer environments and smaller class sizes. Middle right: Signs also included advertising for better mental health support in educational institutions, a topic of discussion across the nation. Bottom: After 18 days on the picket line on 03/25/22, Minneapolis school teachers reached a tentative deal to end the strike.
THE ORACLE
4 A&E
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Constellations of community Dr. Laura Dougherty discusses the complexities of home in Hamline Theatre’s spring production, “The Homing Project.” Eden Fahy A&E Reporter efahy01@hamline.edu Throughout the last few years, the world has seen new levels of destruction and chaos that has left millions of people strewn from their homes, families and communities. This spring, Dr. Laura Dougherty hopes to explore these themes with her devised production “The Homing Project.” The third devised piece seen in this year’s season, Dougherty hopes to continue the conversations in the Theatre department about the creation of theatre, and start a conversation about what home means to individuals and communities. But what is “devised” theatre? “[It is] about collaborative performance creations…together with a cast of performers you create a performance text around a story, or an idea, or a theme, or an improvisation,” Dougherty said. Although in past years at Hamline, Dougherty has focused mainly on producing scripted productions, she says that she has been looking for an opportunity to introduce devised work to the Hamline theatre community. “The Homing Project” was that opportunity. As a member of the faculty that supports the Center for Justice and Law, Dougherty was inspired by
this year’s theme of “refugee and immigrant health and justice.” “Since I have joined the CJL a couple of years ago, I really wanted to talk about how the arts speak to topics and content that we talk about in interdisciplinary circles all the time,” Dougherty said. “The Homing Project” hopes to highlight the similarities between immigrant and refugee experiences and our own. “One thing that I thought was that the idea of building and investing in justice for immigrant and refugee folks is so much more connected to everybody than I think maybe we all think it is,” Dougherty said. “So thinking about coming to home, needing to leave home, building home, home being safe, home not being safe, home being allusive, is something that is commonality between all people [no matter] age, race, ethnicity, experience.” Dougherty has had her cast focus on the general ideas of home. “Thinking about the idea of home, and home as a concept rather than telling stories of any particular people,” Dougherty said. “One of the things I’m working with with the performers is the vectors of home. So like homecoming, homegoing. What tears us from, what pulls us to, how we build, how we lead.” As the cast and Dougherty
get ready for their performance however, Dougherty confesses that the rehearsal process has been incredibly daunting and humbling for her as a director. “It’s different for me from past projects, because the work is coming directly from the working bodies and minds and lives of the participants, when the bodies and lives and minds of the participants are taxed, it’s harder to create the work,” Dougherty said. “One thing that’s always incredibly humbling, that trends happen in devised work, is that people share really major parts of their lives.” Dougherty explains that because of these unique perspectives, many times prompts or ideas that she has generated for discussions and scenes end up going in completely different directions then she would have expected. This however, is something that she greatly encourages and appreciates. “Because it’s real people with real experiences, [the actors] go in such a variety of directions,” Dougherty said. “The way folks who might not know each other, or who might not have as much experience with performing or with this kind of creation of performance making, are so willing to share really big parts of their lives is just such—I just hold such space for it, such respect for the beautiful…courage in vulnerability.”
Dougherty is not surprised though that something like the idea of home brings up such difficult memories and emotions. She believes that these confessions and lived experiences are a part of collective healing, something the world is in great need of recently. “When folks share their hearts and their grief…I think it’s a part of collective healing,” Dougherty said. “You are instantly reminded of, you know, everyone you are in a room with is navigating a story that you don’t know the weight of. It reminds me as a faculty member how much students navigate and bring into every space.” Dougherty explained that there isn’t a goal for the show, but rather she hopes that audience members will simply enjoy being present as they join the cast on stage to create intimacy. She says that she rarely approaches a show with a set goal or ‘ah-ha’ moment in mind. “That folks would share their time and their breath and their lived moments with us is a gift,” Dougherty said. “I love the idea… that something that happens in a performance resonates, and maybe it sticks in the back of your mind and like three months later you think about ‘I saw this thing in a show once and there was this moment between two people and it’s just stuck with me, or it made me mad, or it made me think about
my mom, or it made me think about someone I’m in love with, or it made me think about my dog, or it made me want to plant tomatoes, or it made me want to care about people.’” But Dougherty emphasized that it is just as good to simply engage and share your time with the actors and herself. That to go and share moments of community is more than enough. “We carry those lived moments of community with us [and] I really have to believe that it changes us anyways,” Dougherty said. “I think it creates a constellation of community in our minds and in our lives that we realize that we are people who gather with other people to share moments that are celebratory or difficult or about trauma or grief, or you know, joy, and that’s how we build a life. That lives are built from moments of shared community.” Performances for “The Homing Project” will take place in the Anne Simley Theatre on April 8 and 9 at 7:30 pm. Tickets can be purchased by emailing tickets@hamline.edu or visiting the box office. Join Laura Dougherty and the cast, as they explore the extent, definition and meaning of home across cultures.
Springing into new music Spring proves to be a popular time period for new K-pop releases. Andrea Lindner Editor in Chief alindner02@hamline.edu Sena Ross Design Editor sross09@hamline.edu It’s comeback season! As more snow melts in Saint Paul, Korea’s K-pop scene is blooming like the first day of spring. In Korea, idols and musicians put lots of effort into the end of the year music award shows. Imagine the American Music Awards or the Grammys, but with almost all Korean musicians (there are “Favorite Foreign Artist” categories as well, this year won by Ed Sheeran). Some of the biggest shows are the Mnet Asian Music Awards, the Melon Music Awards and the KBS Song Festival. Because most artists use November and December for preparation and January and February for break, March and April become the hottest times for new releases, also known as “comebacks.” These are some of our top comebacks and debuts of this month. STAYC One of the most promising acts to debut in 2020, STAYC has quickly built up a following of loyal fans after their hits “ASAP” and “Stereotype.” Their newest mini album, “Young-Luv.com” is proving to be just as popular. The lead single “Run2U” has already
earned seven first place Korean music show wins (weekly programs where artists perform and compete to top the charts). Full of ear worms that you’ll be singing all day, “YoungLuv.com” boasts strong vocals from the six member group, in particular during the songs “Young Luv” and “Butterfly.” Based on the popularity they continue to gain, STAYC shows no signs of slowing down. Red Velvet Seven months after their last comeback “Queendom,” Red Velvet released another sophisticated mini album “The ReVe Festival 2022” with the title track “Feel My Rhythm” on March 21. Red Velvet’s group concept of fairy tale imagery with a bit of creepiness has come through clearer than ever with the new song and the music video. The song starts with a sampling sound from “Air On The G String” by Bach and the lyrics of the girls getting ready for a ball night. Even their CD packaging, which is a very important part of K-pop marketing, has a music box version of each member dressed up as ballerinas. Their style is so unique, and we can only hope that this will not be their last comeback from their company, SM Entertainment. (G)I-dle Following their last release in January 2021, (G)I-dle released their first full length album, “I Never Die,” on March 14, featuring
the title track “Tomboy.” After the departure of member Seo Soojin in 2021, frontwoman and leader of the group, Jeon Soyeon, noted that she wrote this album as if it was their first. Full of feminist anthems, punk styling and addictive choreography, “I Never Die” feels like a return to form for the five member group while also being a reinvention of their image. Album standouts include the soft and melodic “Already” and the bouncy “Liar.” Stray Kids Eight member boy group Stray Kids made their comeback on March 18 with their mini album “Oddinary” and its lead single “Maniac.” With a whopping 1.3 million preorders and earnings over 100k in first week sales in the U.S., the group is projected to debut at #1 on the Billboard 200—a feat only reached by three other K-pop acts. Known for writing, composing and producing all of their material (which is somewhat of a rarity in the K-pop scene), the group has fully embraced their title of ‘noisy’ on this album. From the crawling EDM beat on “Venom,” to the high energy flutes on “Charmer,” there is no shortage of experimental sounds not often found in K-pop. The louder sounds are balanced out by softer moments like the pop punk inspired power ballad “Lonely St.” and the sweet “Waiting For Us,” proving the group to be a versatile act in terms of their musical catalog and skill sets.
NMIXX If you’re even slightly interested in K-pop and have been on K-pop internet, you might have heard about the hot debut of JYP Entertainment’s new girl group, NMIXX. JYP Entertainment is considered one of the top three management companies in South Korea, founded by producer J. Y. Park. The reason why NMIXX’s first song became a topic conversation on K-pop internet was because of polarizing opinions in the community. The debut song “O.O” is under a genre called mixed pop which contains two or more song types mashed together. The mix in “O.O” is rather drastic and noticeable, which made fans and listeners have mixed feelings about it. At first, I too was confused and didn’t really know how to feel about their whole debut. However, the more I listened to it, the more the seven members’ amazing singing and dancing talents surprised me, and made me like the song more and more. It is a new genre of music and a bit of a shock, but I would definitely stick around to see what NMIXX has to offer us.
THE ORACLE
5 OPINION
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Straight People Should Really Take Some “Notes On Camp”
Alex Sirek Columnist asirek01@hamline.edu
What led y’all to believe that something is considered camp The year was 2019. I was a sixteen-yearold, disco-loving, John Waters fanatic with a passion for haute couture. Upon hearing that the theme of the year’s Met Gala would be ‘camp’ I was ecstatic. As you may know, camp, as defined in Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay, “Notes On Camp,” is a mode of aestheticism that places emphasis on the exaggerated, esoteric and obscure. Camp portrays life as a form of wonderfully kitschy, genderless, naive, extravagant theater. By exaggerating the performativity of dayto-day life, camp subverts the mundane expectations of the status quo. Up until that point camp had mainly served as a relatively niche element of queer culture. To my young naive mind, this world-renowned fashion event had the power to bring a new appreciation to the artistry of camp. I dreamt of Venus Xtravaganza inspired garments and makeup that would make Amanda Lepore
look like a natural beauty. My excitement quickly turned to disappointment upon realizing that hardly anyone paid homage to the theme–cisgenderstraight people at least. I cannot even begin to describe my abject horror upon seeing straight-professed gay icon, Harry Styles, walking the runway of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in what easily could be mistaken for an outfit that I would wear to get groceries. High-waisted pants and a ruffled collar. Are you kidding me? Where is the campy spirit of extravagance? The status quo will not be subverted by some cishet white guy in a pair of straight-legged trousers. Many straight publications praised Harry, stating that his lackluster pedestrian outfit was disrupting gender roles. Apparently, the very essence of toxic masculinity was destroyed by the singer wearing a pair of tacky two-inch block heels and a singular pearl earring. In a world post-2019 Met Gala, there has been a steady increase in the misappropriation of camp. Over the past three years, I have observed this deplorable offense committed in a multitude of different un-campy contexts. Up until recently, camp was an aesthetic widely revered in the queer community– almost exclusively. But now that members of cishet society have caught onto the glorious opulence of camp, the term is misused so much that many have no semblance of its meaning or origin. For instance, I once witnessed a woman proudly proclaim that an incredibly passé, fast-fashion, pastel pink, body-con dress was campy simply due to the fact that it was mediocre. Even in the development of this piece I was told, “Yes! Let things be ugly!” Why did the perception of camp shift away from subversive aesthetics and turn to the ugly and mediocre? Was the worldwide publicization and misrepresentation of camp
PHOTO | Marlow La Fantastique, housed at University of Michigan Crystal LaBeija, an originator of camp and the founder of the legendary House Of LaBeija to blame? This blatant misuse of the term “camp” may seem menial. However, the misattribution of camp reflects a greater cycle of appropriation. Privileged individuals attempt to pick and choose terms and iconography from cultures they are not a part of and then warp these ideals into something entirely different from the original concept. Due to straight misrepresentation, camp is less identifiable as a counter-cultural aesthetic movement. Instead, camp is viewed simply as cheap and unattractive. I would even argue that Sontag herself appropriated camp by omitting the contributions that black queer people have made to camp. This appropriation is addressed by yet another 2019 Met Gala look. Lena Waithe arrived on the pink carpet wearing a tiffanyblue pinstriped suit with, “black drag queens invented camp” embroidered on the back. By taking a closer look, it is revealed that the pinstripes are actually lyrics to a number of
songs by black queer-icons such as Sylvester, Gloria Gaynor, Rupaul, and Thelma Houston among others. In regards to this look, Waithe stated, “To me, I really wanted to make sure my outfit represented the black drag queens who started this camp thing about being over the top and all that jazz.”
ILLUSTRATION | SENA ROSS, ORACLE
Pandemic Precedence: 2 Years Since It Began
Nathan Steeves Guest Columnist nsteeves01@hamline.edu
COVID-19’s two-year anniversary, how does this pandemic differ from the last one Hamline has experienced? On the anniversary of the start of COVID19 in the United States, I’d like to look back. Two years ago in March 2020, students went on spring break only to be told they would not be returning in person. For many, this transition was a hard one. Going online, being forced out of the dorms all while managing the change that comes with a global pandemic. While not discounting the experiences of students going through this pandemic, Hamline University has gone through something similar before and ended up on the other side. Back in February 1918, the world was afflicted with the influenza pandemic. According to the CDC, the influenza
pandemic afflicted an estimated 500 million people around the world with an estimated 50 million deaths. With the advancements in technology, students were able to continue classes remotely during COVID-19, but during the influenza pandemic, students were still expected to be in class. According to the 1918 Hamline Catalog, students were given 3 absences before professors were able to give the student a special assessment. After 5 absences, for any reason, the student was dropped from the course with an F grade. This policy was continued through 1920. Even with this attendance policy, the Oracle reported on March 24, 1922, there were no deaths due to the influenza pandemic. However, the Editor in Chief of the Oracle, Everett B. Sackett class of 1923, focused on the one-dollar doctor examination fee. During the pandemic, there was a one-dollar examination fee introduced for every time a man needed to be examined by the doctor. Also introduced was a one-time fee of two dollars for women to see the nurses. That one dollar fee is approximately sixteen dollars now. Fortunately for students in 1918, the total semester cost was estimated to be $264 which is approximately $3,745 today or $7,490 per year, whereas tuition for students in 2022 is approximately fifty-one thousand dollars per year for an on-campus student. The average college graduate in 1918 earned $5,762 which is $81,738 today compared to today’s average starting salary of $43,000. It seems that while students had to attend class during the influenza pandemic, students now carry a much
PHOTO | Stastita larger financial burden. Not only is tuition six and a half times more when accounting for inflation, but Hamline University has also raised tuition five percent annually during the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to tuition being decreased by twenty-three percent after the first year of the influenza pandemic and one and a half percent increase after the second year of the pandemic. So, why has Hamline increased tuition during an already challenging time when in the past tuition was decreased? I believe that Hamline is using COVID-19 as an excuse to raise tuition. While enrollment is down, so is total institution expenses. The amount of staff and programs are decreasing and our endowment is getting
bigger. From 2019 to 2021 the endowment grew thirty eight million dollars which is about a twenty seven percent increase, yet the amount of aid given out only increased by three percent. That three percent aid increase does not even cover the increase of tuition making Hamline even less accessible for lower income students. Three thousand people were admitted to Hamline in the 2020-2021 school year. That means that three thousand plus people applied to Hamline yet only four hundred and fifty five people enrolled. Do people really not want to go to college anymore or do they just not want to go to Hamline? Hamline might not go bankrupt but if they continue this trend there will be a big endowment with no students.
THE ORACLE
OPINION 6
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Orthopraxy: Where the old meets new
Dean Young Columnist dyoung01@hamline.edu
How do ethics meld with medicine? What goes up, but never comes down? Riddles such as these serve well to entertain, but do not warrant much attention past a general interest. A much more interesting– and important–conundrum to ponder involves the use of ancient discourse in modern medical ethics. My last two columns surveyed the ethical use of digital privacy and the legitimacy of neuroscientific advances. For the third (and perhaps final) column on ethics, I would like to pull back the curtain on these discourses, and look at some of the motivations behind them. Particularly, I would like to look at the puzzle of religious directions in modern medical ethics. The integration of ancient religious thought with our newest medical advances seems to be a bit of a paradox; it is an odd interface between the old and the new. We have on one hand a system where we prioritize the most recent advances, where we have a desire to move forward–the future is our friend. This much can be demonstrated in a trip to the library: the medical section is littered with updates and editions, the newest always representing the best. Turn to the
ethics section, and the old tomes never go out of date, but instead beg for our highest veneration; the yellowed pages and cracked bindings signify importance, not irrelevance. The trend extends past religious discourse into even secular ethics. Plato carries more clout than Joe Shmoe. In fact, the two worlds could not seem farther apart, in time or in theory. Why on earth, then, should we look to old practices for insight on medicine? What mode of thought would lead us to believe that we should determine future insights by looking back? I have sitting on my desk a stack of religious medical ethics texts. I endeavored to conduct, if not a study, at least a survey of religious thought in medical discourse. I looked at the views of organ transplant in Bhuddism and health care as defined by Islam’s codes. It becomes very evident that these religions have much to offer medical advances by way of reason and tradition. But the question remains, is it broadly applicable? Of course, to the religious, the answer is straightforward. Their religious faith can and should guide their actions; this is presumably the simple outworkings of their orthopraxy. But outside of the practice of devotees there still remains a valued input from receiving the teaching and traditions in years prior. It is not foolish to use old wisdom to new scenarios; in fact, it may be required. Medical advances do truly seem to be bringing the future to us; one can think of Elon Musk’s brain implants, or the at-hand possibilities for human genetic engineering. We simply do not have the experience to dictate what to do in these futuristic situations. We can, however, look to prior precedence. My readings on Jewish bioethics made this clear. The guidance of Jewish Halakhah (religious law; literally, “the walk”), for example, has been a dialogue in excess of three thousand years. The Jewish Mishnah records rabbinic dialogue on this “walk,” a continual refinement of steady principles in new contexts. It is hard to imagine an independent method of establishing an equivalent body of knowledge matching this
PHOTO | Medical Projects, Holly Melvin repository; while such wisdom does not need to be heeded by all, it certainly ought not be ignored. This, I believe, is the core idea behind looking to ancient insight for modern medicine. All technologies were once new, and even our most modern technologies will go old; what was Future for our ancestors is Past for us. What better way to handle the unfamiliar than with the familiar? The untested with the tested? Could not the collective wisdom of many successes and failures be an apt lens for which to view the present? This is not to say other solutions are lacking. A notable and interesting option is found in Sam Harris’ The Moral Landscape, where he argues that science, apart from any religious framework, can provide full moral directions. The idea is interesting and too complex to be dealt with fully here; however, it appears the idea has not fully caught on yet. Something is driving us back to the old ways. It is not my intent to constrain modern medicine with old ideas. Everyday I– intentionally or unintentionally–disregard the bulk of numerous traditions in day-today life. It is also not to say that we must accept all these matters as unquestionable doctrine; in fact, quite the opposite. The goal is to continue questioning, guided by the
ancient principles. While certain points can remain fixed, the main thrust of looking to the past is to continue a discussion that has been going on for millenia. We can use the collective wisdom from these traditions as a means forward: the effort of the past pushing us to the future. At the very least, we can appreciate the deep thought and concern that has gone into these matters, and let it serve as inspiration to look just as deeply into our current issues. Perhaps the riddle has a simple solution.
The Omniscent Search Engine Is Flawed
Leo Coughenour Variety Editor lcoughenour01@hamline.edu
While search engines are more powerful than ever, they are still just as susceptible to bias. Hi everyone. I’m Leo, the guy who makes the puzzle page every week. I don’t like speaking out or sharing my opinions, but I feel that we need to talk about a really big problem. In our issue published on March 2, I had made a wordsearch named “Influential Scientists You’ve Never Heard of,” highlighting female identifying scientists. When looking up “unknown female scientists” on Google, I noticed that the top ten results displayed a total of 108 women, but only
13 of the people listed were women of color. Four of the 13 were the same person. But wait– how could Google, the 85.55% market share holder in the search engine market, let something like that happen? Well, when Google recommends you a website it mostly looks at two things: HTTPS (that thing that starts almost every URL), and keywords. I won’t go into too much detail about HTTPS, but that’s basically proof of connection security. Keywords are when you look up words like “dream” and either get a Minecraft YouTuber, or websites about what your dreams may mean. Whatever shows up for each keyword depends on what other people who looked up the same word clicked on. The more clicks a URL gets, the higher it goes on the Google results page. The point of explaining how Google works is so it’s easier to understand how implicit bias affects your search results. If there’s a large enough group of people with the same biases, that can drastically change what you see from Google. In my case, most people looking up “unknown female scientists” clicked on articles featuring white women, possibly without realizing that there was a bias at all. Being aware of your sources and watching for biases is important in gaining impartial information. Google isn’t made to detect bias for you and you can’t rely on it as an unbiased
ILLUSTRATION| SENA ROSS, ORACLE tool. I ask that you please keep in mind that just because something is the top result on Google or is a known name, does not exempt them from being able to include unconscious biases in publications. Biases are unavoidable no matter
what search engine you use, and being able to catch them is an important skill to have.
THE ORACLE
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Sudoku
PUZZLE 7
THE ORACLE
8 SPORTS
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
I A C Name Image and Likelihood M round-up
Conversations in powerhouse Division I schools have trickled down to Hamline and other Division III universities regarding what could be considered the new lucrative element of collegiate sports. Cole Brennan Sports Reporter cbrennan01@hamline.edu Doug Edert is the sixth man on the Saint Peter’s University men’s basketball team, a small Division I program from Jersey City, New Jersey. Days before his 15 seeded Peacocks faced off against the 2 seeded college basketball powerhouse Kentucky Wildcats in the NCAA March Madness tournament, he decided to grow out his mustache. His teammates did not appreciate the mustache in the beginning, but that didn’t seem to bother Edert. In the Peacocks’ first game, he came off the bench, dropped 20 points shooting 71 percent from the field and helped his Peacocks upset the Wildcats. The next game Edert rose to the occasion once again scoring 13 points off the bench helping his team beat Murray State, a team that had only lost two games to that point. Edert’s mustache has been solidified in the March Madness folklore forever and he knows it. The best part is that thanks to the new NCAA rules regarding Name Image and Likeness, Doug Edert can profit off of his mustache and Saint Peters magical run into the sweet sixteen. Name Image and Likeness, commonly referred to as NIL, can be described as a collegiate athlete’s ability to make money and profit off of their status as an athlete. All the athletes of the past who have been fined or declared ineligible due to violating this rule may be upset with this change, but the collegiate athletes now and ones of the future will have to navigate through this new era of college sports. It may seem like this rule will only impact higher level Division I athletes, but Hamline’s Athletic Director Jason Verdugo has to be sure he is ahead of the curve regarding NIL.
“I think all the athletic directors at the Division III level are still trying to figure out if this is going to be a touch point for us,” Verdugo said. No one knows how this is going to affect Division III athletes in the coming years mainly because no one even knows how it will affect Division I athletes. Some college athletes with large social media followings have started to garner more attention and grow their bank accounts through this rule. Olivia Dunne, a Louisiana State University gymnast with a TikTok following of over 5 million followers has already signed her first NIL deal with an activewear
brand Vuori. This is an extreme example as Dunne is one of the most popular personalities on the app, but it is possible it may become more common in the future. When talking about being active in the field of NIL, Ally Thompson, a forward on the Hamline Women’s Basketball team said “I feel like it would be something I would do if it benefited the athletic department here at Hamline.” Smaller schools like Hamline are not too concerned about NIL at the moment mainly because major audiences would rather watch the March Madness tournament or the College Football playoffs. But that is not to say athletes would not take advantage of the opportunity if it arises. “It is an opportunity for me to make some extra money and to spread Hamline’s image and attract other student athletes,” said Men’s Soccer player and Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) member Luke Rimington. Both Rimington and Thompson know the benefits that NIL can provide to smaller institutions like Hamline. There aren’t going to be any record breaking contracts signed any time soon, but every college student, whether they are an athlete or not, is always looking for that extra bit of cash. Whether or not athletes at Hamline University ever get paid for their time as an athlete, that shouldn’t matter. “They’re missing out, in my opinion,” said Verdugo when discussing students’ decisions to play collegiate sports at any level. Student athletes at smaller universities have only one thing motivating them when choosing to play a college sport. It’s not to sign an NIL deal, not to gain a large social media following, or get recognized as a folk hero in the month of March. It is to play the game they love and enjoy every second of it.
Transition periods between seasons, spring break trips and a three-week long hiatus from paper publishing has left a lot to be recapped in the sports section. Cathryn Salis Sports Editor csalis01@hamline.edu
PHOTO | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Sophomore Ally Thompson from the women’s basketball team believes that she would participate in the NIL effort if it “benefitted the athletic department at Hamline.”
PHOTO | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Athletic Director Jason Verdugo views the world of NIL as untapped potential for student athletes at Hamline and is doing his best to stay ahead of the curve.
PHOTO | AIDAN STROMDAHL, ORACLE Sophomore Luke Rimmington plays soccer at Hamline and sees many benefits to engaging with NIL at the Division III level.
Distance makes the heart grow fonder, and the Oracle has been away for many a month. Winter seasons came to a close and many end-ofseason awards and events were distributed, decorating the Pipers to the nines. In this leave of absence, sports reporter and photographer for the Oracle Rachel Peterson sat down with junior diver Courtney Broyles after her performance at Zones for a Q and A interview. The interview was published on the Oracle’s website, hamlineoracle.com. The track and field team finished up their indoor season and three Piper athletes were honored the US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Regional Distinction for 2022. Seniors Jenneel Rodney and Alexandra Maddux as well as firstyear Joshua Thomsen were named, indicating they were each among the top five competitors in their event in the region. This is Maddux’s third indoor all-region award and the first for Rodney and Thomsen. Hamline softball took home two for two wins from their spring break trip to Florida, starting their season on a positive note. The Rubbelke sisters, one a senior on her last year of eligibility and one a first-year already making waves, were game leaders in both matches. Senior Megan Rubbelke was named MIAC Athlete of the Week that same week. Softball stands as of 3/27 at 9–4. Women’s basketball ended their historic season with a three-point loss to Augsburg in the semifinals for the MIAC playoff tournament on 2/25. The last 45 seconds of this match was filled with electricity and tension and within the last seven seconds, the Auggies snuck in their winning lead. Two players, Lydia Lecher and Sophie Findell, were named to the 2021-22 MIAC All-Conference team. Six women’s hockey players were named to the 2021-22 MIAC Women’s Hockey Awards and junior Sophie Rausch was named the MIAC Women’s Hockey Co-Player of the Year. Rausch is the second Piper to ever be awarded this honor in program history. Her predecessor was Jordan Hansen from the 2019-20 season. For the most updated stats and game coverage, visit hamlineathletics. com.
THE ORACLE
SPORTS 9
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Inclusivity conversations begin in Hamline’s AD This semester, the Athletic Department has added weekly inclusion group meetings, a space where athletes can discuss identity within the sports world like women, LGBTQ+, BIPOC and first generation athletes.
Jilly Wortman Sports Reporter jwortman01@hamline.edu This semester, the Hamline Athletic Department has created a new lecture series to boost inclusivity within the department. Rachel Pierce, the Coordinator of Athletic Operations, has produced Inclusion groups for the student athletes. Pierce is here due to the Ethnic Minorities and Women’s NCAA grant that funds her employment. “They happen weekly and each week is a different topic that we cycle through women in sports, BIPOC in sports, LGBTQ+ in sports, first-generation in sports,” Pierce said. This is one of many ways the department leads in inclusion. Back in 2017, Athletic Director Jason Verdugo was appointed to the NCAA Division III Diversity and Inclusion Working Group. The group is made up of members from different Division III athletic departments from all across the United States striving for equity. As said in Hamline University’s Statement of Civility, “Hamline University encourages all, whether it be on campus or off, to foster a respectful, and inclusive community defined by a concern for the common good, by developing relationships and through a culture that promotes the rights, safety, dignity, and value of every individual.” Inclusivity is something that Hamline has been striving for for a long time and the athletic department is adding a new space to foster this belief for the student athletes of campus. The athletic department has held inclusion workshops before and have even been recognized for the work that is being done. Back in May 2020, Hamline was recognized as NCAA’s April Diversity Spotlight. The new Inclusion groups, however, are different. “I gathered that in the past we have brought in speakers and had been a once a year kind of thing and the students were like that’s great but it was kind of one and done, nothing actually builds off of that,” Pierce said. The new groups are based around community. Each week students have the choice to participate in the conversations surrounding inclusion and athletics. “It’s more discussion-based and kind of get to know other studentathletes. We’ll bring up some articles, we will discuss them or peoples experiences,” Pierce said. The groups don’t plan on ending anytime soon. “The goal is to take it into a summer series with the coaches, since none of them are in season then we can focus on this and actually take time on it. Then by the fall we’ll start this up again but by then we will have implemented it
Students from various backgrounds share their testimony on inclusion of first generation students. into practices and we’ll start having more pride games and stuff like that,” Pierce said. The student athletes are in
full support of the addition of the weekly inclusion groups. “I think it’s cool that the space exists to have these conversations
PHOTO | RACHEL PETERSON, ORACLE
with my fellow student-athletes,” said Ellie Biggins, a junior on the track and field team. The space to learn and share
experiences is new but mighty, with big plans in the future, Hamline Athletics is ready for change and equity one conversation at a time.
THE ORACLE
10 VARIETY
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Whispers on the walls A brief examination of campus graffiti.
Will Nelson Guest Reporter wnelson08@hamline.edu In a dusty, cobwebbed corner of a gated off storage space on the third floor of West Hall, there’s an Instagram handle written in black ink on a long-forgotten whiteboard. As a freshman, I stood next to a stack of unused filing cabinets and looked at the whiteboard for a long time. The next morning, I messaged the account. The account belonged to Olivia Stevens–a current U of M student who just so happens to have been friends with one of our own reporters in high school. Two years earlier, on the last day of a Hamline writing camp, she was poking around campus and, like me, found herself in the storage space. Not thinking anything would come of it, Stevens wrote
range of divisions, identities, and claims.” Some campus graffiti is sophomoric– phrases like “WYATT ROCKS”, “HU Baseball is garbage!” carved among genitals and the universal ‘Cool S’–but why shouldn’t it be? Some of us are, after all, sophomores. Some graffiti offers genuine critiques on the world. On one desk, the Einstein quote “It’s a miracle curiosity survives higher education,” can be found etched near the words “I don’t get this class.” Another student’s reminder to themselves, “Ask about gravitational lensing,” is eternally memorialized in a forest of hastily scrawled equations doubtlessly drawn moments before a pop quiz. There’s even been a lengthy, albeit informal
PHOTO | RACHEL PETERSON, ORACLE
Graffiti outside of West Hall. her Instagram handle on a whiteboard before leaving. “I don’t personally care about gaining random followers,” says Stevens, “I just thought the idea of someone seeing it in that random room might be worth a laugh.” To me, it was worth more than a laugh. In a small way, Olivia changed my life. My world shrank that day as I stood among the stacks of office chairs and tables, staring at her handwriting. For the purposes of this article, I’m using a broad definition for graffiti, including anything from dry erase markers on whiteboards to Sharpie markings or carvings in bathroom stalls and desks. It’s garnered an unfortunate reputation as a childish act of vandalism– the senseless effort of damaging school property with doodles. At best, that viewpoint is a shortsighted oversimplification. At worst, it’s a dangerous misunderstanding. “From an anthropological perspective, [graffiti] tells us something important about human concerns, inventions, imaginings, creativity, spatial and temporal understandings, and the like,” says Professor Matt Sumera of the Anthropology department. “An analysis of graffiti, provided it is always situated within a broader discussion of systems of power and cultural meaning, can tell us a great deal about how people negotiate a
PHOTO | RACHEL PETERSON, ORACLE Graffiti left on desks inside DCS 119 from Pipers past and present.
debate on the merits of different presidential candidates raging in one stall of a Drew Science bathroom for over four years.
Unfortunately, graffiti is also commonly used for hate speech. This has been regrettably illustrated by a string of racially and ethnically motivated incidents on campus in the
Graffiti left on a desk inside DCS 119 reading “WYATT ROCKS.”
past few years. Wandering through Hamline’s older classrooms and bathrooms, it’s not hard to find more. Any form of hate based graffiti should be immediately documented and reported to Public Safety. If possible, it’s best practice to temporarily obscure the graffiti until it can be appropriately dealt with to avoid the retraumatization of marginalized students who might happen upon it. Whittling hate symbols or slurs into a wooden desk isn’t the act of a bored student, it’s the conscious and deliberate messaging of white supremacy. In simpler terms, it isn’t a graffiti problem, it’s a racism problem. Perhaps most importantly, graffiti can be incredibly beautiful. “I view [graffiti] as entirely authentic as it comes directly from the people, with no level of censorship or filtration impeding upon it, and also wonderfully valuable in its temporality,” says Sophomore Max Ridenour, “Graffiti, when created in the spirit of genuine constructive expression, keeps an environment dynamic and vibrant.” It’s raw, unadulterated self-expression, and an important art form. Graffiti also transcends time in a given space. A carved L+M encased in a heart in Old Main could well have been there since before the invention of the airplane. Who were L and M? Where are they today? If nothing else, graffiti reminds us that we’re not alone–that other people, with their own complex thoughts and emotions, have
PHOTO | RACHEL PETERSON, ORACLE
THE ORACLE
VARIETY 11
Wednesday, March 30, 2022 been through the same spaces as us. Past students are whispering to you with their penknives and Sharpies. Listen to them. Whisper back. Life
is short and undergrad is even shorter–make art, make history, even if that just means carving pictures of genitals in a bathroom stall
or writing your Instagram handle on a long-forgotten whiteboard.
The Oracle’s horoscope Read for a telling of your future, which may or may not be influenced by those that dwell below the waters. Elizabeth Lowe Managing Editor elowe03@hamline.edu
Aries: Seahorse Like seahorses, you can be very straightforward and determined. Soon you will be confronted with a large obstacle, and getting past it is entirely up to your wit. I would encourage you to ask for help if needed Taurus: Plankton Typically you go with the flow, and that usually works. With spring slowly starting to emerge, and it being 2022, take a chance. Sign up for that class, deep clean your room, try and set a boundary, or even just buy the ingredients for that treat you’ve always wanted to make. Gemini: Shark You are anything but average and should remember that. This season will bring even more ideas to the table, so remember to not over exert yourself, mentally, physically or emotionally. Cancer: Orca I know it can be difficult to open up to anyone about anything. But the future holds multiple circumstances where you will have these opportunities to grow closer to those you know. It may be taxing, but you are strong. Aquarius may have a surprise for you in the near future.
Graffiti left on desks inside DCS 119 from Pipers past and present.
PHOTOS | RACHEL PETERSON, ORACLE
Leo: Eel Eels are known to gracefully swim around, with sudden turns or bursts of energy. You also emit this. April would be a wonderful time to stop, and celebrate yourself. Work may overwhelm you, so don’t feel bad if you need to take a few breaks. Virgo: Starfish You’ve always had this uncanny ability to know your limits - and I’m jealous. You may be safe this month from any large, surprising events. However, you might have to take a step back and re-evaluate because a few life changes are beginning to happen… Libra: Sea Turtle So majestic. You have touched many hearts with your actions and words. My word of advice is to be open to compliments, and to recognize them as truthful. Not doing so will lead to more tension in all your relationships. Scorpio: Angelfish No matter what you do, people feel the need to protect you. But now, some of those people may need the same. Check in with those you care about - and even yourself. It’s been a rough 2 years, so show yourself some kindness. Sagittarius: Clownfish Have fun. Crazy times await you. Capricorn: Manta Ray You and Taurus both seem to lay low. This works out amazingly for you, so keep it up. Even tag teaming and inching your way into a new activity is a great idea. And, if you were thinking about it - yes, adopt the animal (if you’re ready). Aquarius: Dolphin The grass is starting to turn green, and the sun is shining brightly. It is your chance to branch out and make new connections, so do so! Pisces: Octopus Potentially known as the “therapist” in your friend group, this is your extra validation for wanting to exit that atmosphere. It’s nearing the end of the academic year, and people are getting more stressed. If you don’t want to be the backboard for everyone, tell them so.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION | LEO COUGHENOUR, ORACLE
ILLUSTRATIONS | ELIZABETH LOWE, ORACLE
THE ORACLE
12 VARIETY
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Fireball is back! After a 2 year absence due to COVID-19, the fireball formal is back on. Kathryn Robinson Variety Reporter krobinson12@hamline.edu The much loved Fireball formal is back on after a 2 year absence. There has not been an in-person campus wide event like Fireball in a long time because of COVID-19, and the energy surrounding the event has been full of buzz. From first-years to seniors, everyone seems excited. The Hamline University Programming Board (HUPB) is hosting the event that will take place on April 9th at the Nicollet Island Pavilion. In an informal poll, 78% of students who answered are attending. The majority of the student body is buzzing about what to wear, and their excitement for this event. Junior Miranda Ekleberry had heard about this event her first year at Hamline and knew that she would want to attend in the future. “My first year I had heard lots of older students talk about it, and I actually went thrifting with friends to get a dress for it,” Ekleberry said. “I’m excited about this event. When I was in high school I loved going to dances, and I’m a total extrovert so getting to be with a large group is exciting to me.”
Sophomore Tjessa Arradondo is excited as well. “It’s actually my friend’s birthday and we thought it would be fun to take a group of us and we are all going,” Arradonodo said. “I heard about this event last year and thought that whenever they host it again, I will definitely be going. I also didn’t get a prom my senior year of high school because of COVID-19, so this is a perfect opportunity to experience another school dance.” Senior Raina Meyer and Sophomore Austen Harris have not had the chance to attend this well loved event because of the previous year’s cancellations. “I want to go to Fireball for a few reasons; I haven’t been able to experience it before because COVID-19 caused its
PHOTO | ORACLE STOCK
Image of Fireball 2019 festivities. cancellation my first year. I also love having and dancing to good music with my friends, and especially because I’m graduating, I’m really looking forward to having a great time with everyone I adore
at Hamline,” Meyer said. “Nicollet Island is a beautiful place, and I think it will be a blast.” “I saw it on Instagram and have heard people talking about Fireball. I am attending because I miss going to school dances and getting the chance to dress up is a treat,” Harris said. There are many things students are hoping to see at the event. From COVID-19 regulations to dancing, students have a lot of expectations. “I hope that attendees respect the COVID-19 guidelines so we can all feel safe attending and having fun,” Meyer said. “I hope there is a lot of dancing. I would hate to go and see a bunch of people awkwardly standing around,” Ekleberry said. “My only hope is that it’s a fun atmosphere.” Arradondo echoes the same remarks.
“I’m hoping to see people having fun and just enjoying themselves,” Arradondo said. “I’m also excited to see how HUPB planned and put the event together.” Fireball will take place on April 9th from 7:00-11:00 at the Nicollet Island Pavilion. HUPB will be providing shuttles to and from the event starting at 6:30. Tickets can be purchased at the SALD office. Tickets are $5, and students may bring one guest. All attendees must wear a mask while indoors and be either fully vaccinated or provide a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of the event. If you have any questions, you can reach out to special events hupb@hamline.edu.
ILLUSTRATION | LEO COUGHENOUR, ORACLE