NYU’s Daily Student Newspaper
WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS Vol. 42, No. 9
University revisits past ban on Coca-Cola By JOHN AMBROSIO
Five years after NYU lifted its ban on Coca-Cola products, union activist and Corporate Campaign, Inc. director Ray Rogers brings the debate over the soft drink company’s labor practices back into the public eye. Rogers sent a letter and a critical pamphlet to 130 university administrators last week, imploring them to reinstate the ban on Coke products. “We are reaching out to you hoping that NYU will do the right thing again and remove all Coke vending machines and products from campus facilities,” Rogers said in the letter. Rogers said the ban, which lasted from 2005 to 2009, was placed due to accusations that Coke was committing human rights violations in Colombia. He said the embargo was lifted prematurely and at the behest of those with interests in Coke’s profit margin in both his recent letter and on his website, Killer Coke. Rogers said Arthur Tannenbaum, the University Senate member who introduced the resolution lifting the ban, attempted to protect the interests of Coke and Barry Diller, a member of both the Board of Coke and the NYU Board of Trustees. NYU spokesman Philip Lentz refuted these claims. Lentz said the decision to lift the ban was based on the corporation’s submission to the demands made when the ban was issued. “[The] University Senate revisited the issue in 2009 and lifted the ban after Coke agreed to an independent assessment of its labor relations in Colombia by the International Labor Organization,” Lentz said. “The information distributed by KillerCoke.org strongly mischaracterizes how these decisions were made.” Tannenbaum also responded to the allegations and said financial gain played no part in his decision to introduce the resolution. “I had no reason or stake in protecting Coca-Cola and never met Mr. Diller,” Tannenbaum said. “I didn’t know he was on the board at that
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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2014
nyunews.com
Sexton, students converse at town hall
By TRICIA WOODCOME
The Student Senators Council hosted its first town hall meeting of the spring semester with NYU President John Sexton on Feb. 11. Prior to the event, students prepared questions to pose to Sexton.
Students asked about privacy, student wellness and funding for the Global Network University. A recent transfer student from the American University in Cairo asked about the possibility of new portal campuses opening or upgrading in the coming years.
“I think between now and 2020, it’s unlikely that a new portal campus will open,” Sexton said. “It’s a huge undertaking.” The same student followed up and asked why certain courses at portal campuses are not the same as those offered in New York.
“As a strategic and general matter, I’m pushing hard that there should be more interoperability among courses,” Sexton said. “And that’s possible [through] communication among departments and faculty, and there should be a presumption against not giving
DENISE FABELLA FOR WSN
NYU President John Sexton sits next to Student Senators Council chair Mariam Ehrari at the town hall meeting on Feb. 11.
Documentary explores marriage equality in U.S. By IFE OLUJOBI
In today’s society, most demographics are concerned about LGBTQ rights, whether they are for or
VIA NEWBLACKFILM.COM
“The New Black” premieres at Film Forum today.
against the issue. Yoruba Richen’s documentary “The New Black,” which opens at Film Forum today, centers on the struggling campaign leading up to the passage of question six in Maryland that upheld marriage equality. Specifically, the film focuses on the influence of the AfricanAmerican religious community. Through the exploration of the black church and the black gay population, Richen looks at this historic event through a new lens and give voice to a group that the media often neglects. Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley signed the Marriage Equality Act into law in 2012. An immediate backlash from both white conservatives and the black church-going congregation followed the ruling. Richen effectively presents the public image conundrum that ensues. White conservatives want to blame the black church for anti-
gay propaganda and petitions. While most black religious leaders were unaffiliated with white conservative groups, both parties share strong anti-gay views, making it easy to effectively “drive a wedge” between the black and gay voter constituencies. The clear problem with this strategy is that it does not account for black gays and lesbians, a community that is often ignored and ostracized. The film spotlights this minority’s unique plight. Viewers meet several homosexual black men, women and couples of all ages and hear about their struggle for acceptance in — or at least coexistence with — the black church, which for many is not only a place to practice religion, but also somewhere to find community, family and support. A segment about gospel singer Tonex particularly stands out as representative of the black com-
munity’s prevalent opinion toward homosexuals. Tonex grew up singing and playing instruments with his father in church and quickly skyrocketed to fame in the gospel world. At the height of his success he felt he could no longer hide his homosexuality, which he had begun to hint at in his music and appearance. When Tonex definitively came out on a Christian talk show, he was cited by a prominent black religious leader as the reason young people were turning away from God. As much as Richen clearly wants viewers to sympathize with the supporters of question six, she does give equal weight and screen time to its opponents. These nay-sayers shed light on the rationale and motivations of many in the black church to oppose gay marriage.
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