the
Justice www.thejustice.org
The Independent Student Newspaper Volume LXXII, Number 1
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
Tuesday, September 3, 2019
CONVOCATION 2019
Waltham, Mass.
COMMUNITY
Liebowitz responds to #StillConcernedStudents ■ University President
Ron Liebowitz detailed a series of policy changes in response to demands of #StillConcernedStudents. By JEN GELLER AND CHAIEL SCHAFFEL JUSTICE EDITOR AND STAFF WRITER
NOAH ZEITLIN/the Justice
WELCOME TO BRANDEIS: New students and their families listened to University administrators speak at convocation, where they told the attendees about the University's history and gave advice about taking advantage of the college experience.
University welcomes new students with Convocation ■ President Ron Liebowitz
and other leaders addressed the Class of 2023 and transfer students. By GILDA GEIST JUSTICE EDITOR
University President Ron Liebowitz, the Orientation Core Committee and other notable Brandeis administrators welcomed new students and their families to the University at a Convocation ceremony on Chapels Field on Sunday, Aug. 25. Liebowitz began with a brief retelling of the University’s founding, which took place in 1949 during a time when several universities were placing quotas on Jewish people in their admissions processes. Liebowitz explained that the University was founded on principles of “openness to self-criticism,” social justice, free expression, pursuit of truth and tikkun olam, which is Hebrew for “repairing the world.” He continued, “our namesake, Justice Louis Brandeis, was a fierce advocate for the underdog and of free speech.” In light of these principles, he emphasized that Brandeis was meant to create a community of safety for marginalized people. Liebowitz gave the new students three pieces of advice as they embark on their Brandeis journeys: Don’t try to do too much, be true to yourself and remember it is not yet necessary to have a plan or have
NOAH ZEITLIN/the Justice
everything figured out. “Please look out for one another,” he added. “Lend a hand to roommates and classmates when you see they need some support." New Vice Provost of Student Affairs Raymond Ou addressed the community, connecting with students through the fact that he, too, was new to campus. Ou, coming from Tufts as senior associate dean of student affairs, talked about his day spent driving around campus during Orientation trying to find where he was supposed to park, often getting lost along the way. “What? Every building is named Shapiro?” he asked. Finally, he said, a student noticed that he looked lost and asked if he needed help. He said she showed him where he needed to go, which reminded him that it is all right to ask for help and to be unsure in a new place. “Students, we’re all in this together,” he said. Provost Lisa Lynch empathized with the parents of new students, revealing that she cried on movein day when sending her student off to college despite working at the school her child would be attending. She advised parents to let go and allow their children some freedom, but to still be there for them in tough times. Lynch also made sure to emphasize to students that they all belonged there, even if they might feel like they were struggling once classes started. “Our admissions office does not make mistakes,” she said. Ou had a story for the parents as
well. Although he had never seen a child off to college, he described instead how hard it was the first time he left his dog at the kennel while he went out of town, but how proud he was when he picked him up at the end and he was happy and healthy. The next time Ou had to leave his dog at the kennel, he recalled, the transition was much easier. Dean of Arts and Sciences Dorothy Hodgson spoke next, explaining that as a top research university with a strong commitment to its undergraduates, the new students had research opportunities available to them during their time at Brandeis. Her advice to students was to explore, take intellectual risks and join clubs. Her advice to parents was to let their children explore their passions. Executive Director of Hillel and the University’s Senior Jewish Chaplain Rabbi Seth Winberg talked about the concept of truth of belief, which involves being able to count on something or someone. He referenced the Brandeis seal, which focuses heavily on the concept of truth. The outside of the seal has the University’s motto, “Truth, even unto its innermost parts,” and the inside has the Hebrew word “emet,” or “truth.” Winberg advised students to be themselves and be there for each other. —Editor’s Note: Justice Editor Andrew Baxter ’21 is a member of the Orientation core committee. He did not contribute to or edit this article.
University President Ron Liebowitz sent an email to the Brandeis community on Aug. 29 addressing the concerns and actions of the #StillConcernedStudents at the end of the spring 2019 semester. Last spring, #StillConcernedStudents protested policy practices on campus in a widely-publicized rally on May 1. The students marched from the Rabb steps to the Department of Community Living, the Department of Public Safety office, the Bernstein-Marcus Administration Center and the Shapiro Campus Center. Along the way, the students announced a list of demands they had for the University. The movement draws membership and messages from the rallies of the Concerned Students 2015 movement that led the 2015 Ford Hall sit-in. Liebowitz stressed in his email
the importance of ensuring that all members of the Brandeis community are welcome. He mentioned the progress made last year that began with the conclusion of the independent investigation into campus climate following the termination of men’s basketball coach Brian Meehan. According to the email, senior administration officials underwent additional diversity, equity and inclusion training from Rev. Dr. Jamie Washington, a specialist in diversity training for administrators. The group that received the training included Chief Diversity Officer and Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Mark Brimhall-Vargas; Senior Vice President for Institutional Advancement Zamira Korff; General Counsel Steven Locke; Provost Lisa Lynch; Chief of Staff William O’Reilly; Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Stewart Uretsky and Interim Senior Vice President for Communications and External Relations William Walker. The entire team met with Washington four times, and each member met with Washington twice individually. Liebowitz wrote that this train-
See #STILLCONCERNED, 7 ☛
PUBLIC SAFETY
Photos of Brandeis students, staff found on white nationalist forum ■ Nearly a dozen community
members are affected by the anti-Semitic posts, but no threat has been determined, Public Safety says. By JOCELYN GOULD AND CHAIEL SCHAFFEL JUSTICE EDITOR AND STAFF WRITER
The photographs and names of nearly a dozen current and former Brandeis students, faculty and staff were disseminated on a white supremacist forum, according to a statement Public Safety sent to the Brandeis Community via email on Aug. 19. Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan wrote that the posts posed “no direct threat to these individuals or to Brandeis.” In an email to the Justice last Thursday, Callahan said that the “photos appear to have been copied from articles and other public-facing web pages connected to the individuals’ scholarship or work.” Callahan had been in contact with multiple law enforcement agencies, including lo-
cal law enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and determined that the posts were no threat to the Brandeis community. The photos were posted to the white nationalist and anti-Semitic message board “Vanguard News Network” in a thread, which Callahan provided to the Justice, that mocked the appearance of thousands of Jews of varying ages and backgrounds. In the thread, participants called Jews “Greasy,” “Corrupt,” “Filthy,” “Ratlike” and “Pure Evil.” One user commented, “Europeans are the children of God, while [Jews] are the children of Satan!” Another called the international Hillel organization “a group of Jewish supremacist thugs.” A Justice investigation of the 21 pages of photographs and names in the thread found photos of nearly a dozen current and former staff members, faculty, students and recent alumni, as of the publication of this article. The thread also featured photos of students from other universities, including several pages devoted solely to students of Yeshiva University, a Modern Orthodox Jewish university. The investigation into the
See WHITE NATIONALISM, 7 ☛
Inside Orientation
Museum in the desert
University responds to Nelson-Bailey lawsuit
The Justice heard from first-years and OLs about their Orientation experiences.
By EMILY BLUMENTHAL
By ELIANA PADWA AND VICTOR
Against all odds, a multi-national community was formed under a shared destiny.
FELDMAN
By VICENTE CAYUELA
FEATURES 8-9
Photo Courtesy of VICENTE CAYUELA
For tips or info email editor@thejustice.org
Make your voice heard! Submit letters to the editor to letters@thejustice.org
NEWS 3
What if I just don't want to read the news? By HARRISON PAEK
FORUM 12
Kicking off men's soccer season
ARTS 19
By BRIAN INKER
COPYRIGHT 2019 FREE AT BRANDEIS.
SPORTS 16