The Justice, March 13, 2018

Page 1

ARTS Page 19

FORUM Promote civil gun debate 12 SPORTS Softball eager to continue their season 16

‘THE DANUBE’ NATALIA WIATER/the Justice

The Independent Student Newspaper

the

of

B r a n d e is U n i v e r sit y S i n c e 1 9 4 9

Justice

Volume LXX, Number 19

www.thejustice.org

Tuesday, March 13, 2018

Richman Fellow Award

Student union

Union presents Coffeehouse ■ Student Union members

met with constituents to discuss students’ concerns and listen to the MAD Band. By Emily Blumenthal Justice Production assistant

Student Union members gathered in Cholmondeley’s Coffee House to discuss relevant issues with constituents and enjoy tea party refreshments during a coffeehouse on Thursday night. The coffeehouse included a performance from Brandeis’ pep ensemble, the Music and Dance Band, which played hits like Michael Jackson’s “I Want You Back” and Adele’s “Hello.” Student Union Communications Director Callahan Cox ’18 said that her goal was was to make the gathering intimate, which drove her choice of venue, music and the tea party theme. In an interview

with the Justice, Cox explained, “Last semester we had a ‘Meet the Union’ that was larger-scale and outside. This time, I wanted to do something more intimate and discussion-based in case people had some concerns they wanted to talk about.” Other Union members agreed with Cox. In an interview with the Justice, Student Union Vice President Hannah Brown ’19 stated, “It was nice to talk informally with people, because a lot of the time the way we talk is kind of stilted.” “It’s great to see the community together. We’re here to listen to everybody, so it’s a great opportunity to come meet us,” Executive Senator Aaron Finkel ’20 added in an interview with the Justice. There were a few constituents eager to discuss critical issues with their representatives, but most in attendance were Union members or MAD Band members and supporters.

See COFFEEHOUSE, 7 ☛

COMMUNITY

CAST Resource Room creates space for artists ■ Monday's opening of

the Resource Room gave CAST and Creative Writing students a creative retreat. By Jocelyn Gould JUSTICE EDITOR

Creativity, the Arts, and Social Transformation and Creative Writing students now have a space to relax, be inspired and create on campus, following Monday’s opening of the CAST Resource Room in the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life. Marcelo Brociner ’18 organized and implemented the creation of the Resource Room as a project for his senior year. He worked with and was mentored by Prof. Elizabeth Bradfield (ENG) and the Rose Art Museum’s deputy director, Kristin Parker, both members of

the CAST Advisory Committee. In an email to the Justice, Brociner described the project as “designing a room that would serve as a space devoted to the creative endeavors of students in the CAST minor” and the Creative Writing program. The Resource Room opened on Monday as a part of the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life’s 20th anniversary celebration. Describing what he sees as the connection between the Resource Room and the Center that houses it, Brociner wrote, “I think the Resource Room and the Center are connected in that the work being done in the Ethics Center is inspiring, important, and progressive, and we want to increase the number of spaces on campus that are devoted to helping students do that same work through a creative lens.”

YVETTE SEI/the Justice

hope as discipline: Vanita Gupta, the 2018 Richman Distinguished Fellow in Public Life, examined hope in her lecture.

Richman Fellow discusses cultivating hope amid chaos ■ 2018 Richman Fellow award

winner Vanita Gupta explored the struggle to hold on to hope in her acceptance lecture. By Abby patkin Justice Editor

For civil rights attorney Vanita Gupta, the future of American human and civil rights reform lies in one simple word: hope. Even as the Trump administration backpedals on years of legislation and civil rights protections, hope will drive reform, Gupta asserted in a lecture last Tuesday. The 2018 Richman Distinguished Fellow in Public Life recipient drew upon her personal experience in the field of civil rights law for the event, which recognized her dedication to strengthening democratic institutions and improving social justice. Gupta, the president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, previously served as the principal deputy assistant attorney general and acting head of the Civil Rights Division at the U.S. Department of Justice under President Barack Obama. She has also held leadership positions

in the ACLU and the NAACP. During her time in the DOJ, Gupta’s division sued North Carolina, arguing that the state’s House Bill 2 infringed upon transgender individuals’ federal rights. The department also conducted an investigation into the Baltimore Police Department, finding that BPD engaged in a pattern of unconstitutional stops, searches and arrests that unjustly targeted AfricanAmericans. Throughout her years in law, Gupta has seen both the highs of legal victories and the lows of abridged rights. However, she told the audience, “I think it’s no overstatement to say that we are at a most perilous time for the causes of justice and fairness and inclusion.” Yet, despite threats to legal protections for many groups and an “acute sense of whiplash from the last administration to this one,” it is crucial to maintain a sense of hope and optimism, Gupta asserted. “Sometimes in the face of these overwhelming setbacks, I can’t help but feel discouraged,” she admitted. “But I’m a civil rights lawyer, and I have been my whole adult career. And as a civil rights lawyer I often talk about hope; in fact, I don’t think you can be a civil rights law-

yer without a profound reservoir of hope.” Hope, she added, is a discipline, the strength of which lies in “the stories of real people and real communities and real leaders who have stared down injustice over some of the most oppressive context and times, and they’ve decided to fight back, sometimes with the help of government and sometimes without,” she said. “And it lies with the knowledge that, though the arc of our universe may be long, very long, it bends towards justice.” The course of American history is altered by those who take a conscious stand against infinite odds, Gupta said, citing examples of students standing up against gun violence or athletes taking a knee against racism. “There is nothing automatic or inevitable about that kind of hope and determination. Our nation’s progress has not been guaranteed. And it never will be,” she said, adding, “Our values, our constitution, our democracy — they don’t protect themselves. Instead, our progress has really been as a result of people pushing, sometimes inside government, but many, many times outside.”

See AWARD, 7 ☛

Where a B+ Gets You

No Time to Panic

Dark Universe

 Elliot S. Maggin ’72 turned a homework assignment into a hit comic book.

 The baseball team is off to a slow start, but spirits are high.

A Harvard physicist talked about measuring gravitational waves from neutron stars.

Photo Courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS

For tips or info email editor@thejustice.org

See CAST, 7 ☛

Waltham, Mass.

Let your voice be heard! Submit letters to the editor online at www.thejustice.org

FEATURES 9

INDEX

SPORTS 16

MICHELLE BANAYAN/Justice File Photo

ARTS SPORTS

17 13

EDITORIAL FEATURES

10 OPINION 8 POLICE LOG

10 2

News 3 COPYRIGHT 2018 FREE AT BRANDEIS.


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