WEDNESDAY | 3.1.2017 | MACEANDCROWN.COM | Vol. 60, Issue 19
HATE ON CAMPUS YouTube Video Spawns Outrage
Morgan Engelhardt News Editor An explicit YouTube video went viral on Feb. 21, showing an individual wearing an Old Dominion sweatshirt rapping racist, violent lyrics while brandishing a weapon. The video, titled “White Gal – White Power,” has since been removed from the site for violating their terms and conditions. After someone shared the video over Twitter, the view count hit more than 3,500 and outraged many within the campus community. The controversial rap video also shows the individual in a Donald Trump mask using racial slurs and encouraging the killing of all black people, all while holding the gun to the camera. The individual is later seen putting a cigarette out on a napkin that had “Black Lives Matter” written on it.
Social media, especially Twitter, soon blew up afterwards, attempting to find the identity of the person behind the mask. “As an alumni of this university, if this student isn’t found and removed I will not donate a penny to this place,” one person said in a tweet. Organizations such as the College Republicans quickly responded to the video on social media, saying they “believe that everyone on and off campus should be able to live in a safe and inclusive environment. We would like to clarify that although the individual in the video was wearing [ODU] clothes and a mask that depict President Trump, we as College Republicans do not hold these views and would not condone these actions." The ODU Democrats soon shared the College Republican’s post with the comment “we wholeheartedly agree.” They also held a small discus-
sion during their weekly meeting to talk about the video. University President John R. Broderick and SGA President Rachael Edmonds sent a joint letter via email out to the campus community shortly after the video went viral, stating the following: “This morning, the University community learned of an extremely offensive video circulating online that features a person wearing an Old Dominion University branded shirt. This is an outrageous act of hate and intolerance and we are sickened by this vile video. There is no place on this campus for hate and divisiveness. "These types of incidents stand as a stark reminder that we must continue our resolve to educate on the importance of civility and inclusion. It is what we as a Monarch Nation stand for and represent every day. "We understand that hateful words
and messages cause harm, and our beloved university community stands together to support each other. Our Counseling Center is open to anyone who needs support and the Office of Intercultural Relations staff are available to all who would like to engage in discussion and in support of one another. "We are a caring and inclusive university community, and united, we strongly denounce the video and stand against hate. Our resolve to build a unified campus community is stronger than ever.” Campus police also released a statement the following day, stating that "Old Dominion University Police are diligently investigating this matter. Because it is an active investigation, no further information is available at this time." see VIDEO, page A4
Blood in the Cut Lindsey Lanham Assistant A&E Editor A strange mix of eyeliner-wearing, emo high schoolers, drunk college students and determined elders made their way to The NorVa Thursday night. Though all were of varying ages and attitudes, they were there with one goal in mind: to see one kick-ass concert. K. Flay made her debut appearance at The NorVa on Feb. 23. She jumped around on stage and headbanged as she sang songs new and old. Even with the diverse crowd, everyone was a fan and knew the words by heart. Before K. Flay performed, she sat down for a pre-show interview. Donning a red sweatshirt and chipped black nail polish, she talked politics and music. Kristine Flaherty, better known by her stage name K. Flay, started recording music in 2009. Inspired by artists like M.I.A., her rap and R&B sound has matured and grown over the years. Dan Reynolds, lead singer of Imagine Dragons, recently signed K. Flay as the first artist to his new label, Night Street Records.
“Essentially I had been working on songs for what I anticipated to be an independent release. Dan heard them and essentially reached out to me,” she said. “For me, having the support and infrastructure from a major label and also some of the protection that comes from having Dan involved, there’s more autonomy.” The K. Flay fanbase is nothing if not dedicated. She performed songs released four or five years ago that never made it to mainstream radio and remained underground hits. She alternated between those and newer hit singles, such as, “Blood in the Cut,” which she admitted was her favorite song to play live. K. Flay doesn’t ask, but demands attention on stage. She walks into a room and heads turn. It’s not just the confident attitude, though – she so clearly enjoys what she does. It’s evident through the way she smiles on stage and how graciously she acts with her fans. One thing K. Flay has done on her tour is keep a “Crush Me” book at the merch booth. The book is there for fans to write down whatever has “crushed them” for only K. Flay to read.
“I had the idea to do it. We just went on Etsy and got these books made,” K. Flay explained. “People have been writing beautiful, crazy, really sad, really drunk, just everything. It’s not unique to post s--- on Instagram. It is kind of unique to write something down not only for yourself, as like a physical thing, but a physical thing you’re never going to see again. And it’s something that somebody else is going to read." Working with artists like Reynolds and JT Daly, lead singer of Paper Route, K. Flay is about to release her new album, “Every Where is Some Where.” The singer has already dropped one new single, “Black Wave.” An unforgiving, dynamic track with lines such as, “I swear to God, you don’t wanna test me,” make it apparent that K. Flay has no time for anyone’s nonsense anymore. “Black Wave” was a hit with the
'Rainbow Six: Siege'
Retrospective
Brooke Nicholson Contributing Writer "Rainbow Six," the highly tactical, modern video game franchise following the fictional international counter-terrorist unit, Rainbow, has successfully pumped out 18 games after the initial release of Tom Clancy’s novel in 1998. The strategic firstperson shooter is no exception to the ups and downs of the gaming industry, recently seeing its latest game change from "Rainbow Six: Patriots" to "Rainbow Six: Siege." After Siege’s initial release in December of 2015, the game underwent an evolution and revitalization that brought players back into the fold, but not without a few bumps and bruises. Starting off with a smaller fan base in general with little advertising, "Rainbow Six: Siege" gained little attention at the beginning of its initial launch back in 2015. Players who picked up the game within weeks of its release found themselves with a heap of bugs and issues that plagued every aspect of the game. With its skewed matchmaking system, glitches, light punishment to cheaters and unreliable servers, Siege’s popularity and sales suffered, though it still received critical acclaim for its core gameplay. Players found themselves waiting nearly 20-30 minutes to be placed into a game, only to have their character killed off within 3 minutes of a round, mostly because of rampant cheaters, glitches or unfair rank matchmaking, and having to repeat the cycle all over again. Ubisoft quickly acknowledged these mistakes within the game, and released their first year add-on for Siege, which included major updates and bug fixes that quickly began gaining momentum for players around the globe. see RAINBOW, page D1
Photo by Shamon Jones crowd. The track was released less than a month ago, but the audience still knew all the words. It was easily the most enjoyable performance of the night. The inevitable political discussion made it apparent that K. Flay has no time for discrimination. “I will say for your generation, you
have to empower people to vote and be a part of the process. Especially in these midterm elections,” she said. “I know people my age who are politically disengaged and I’m like, ‘what the f--- are you doing?’” K. Flay played some songs off of “Every Where is Some Where,” such as “High Enough” and “The President Has a Sex Tape.” She also played the hit single “FML.” Each song had the crowd cheering, clapping and made for a genuinely enjoyable set. Afterwards, K. Flay even stayed back to meet fans. see K. FLAY, page B2