News: Human Library allows for dialogue across differences Page 5
Opinion: A response to conversative Sports: Women’s tennis defeats gun control op-ed Notre Dame Page 10 Page 11
Life: Finding summer housing requires effort Page 18
Old Gold&Black WAKE FOREST’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1916
VOL. 103, NO. 10
T H U R S DAY, M A RC H 2 9 , 2 018 “Cover s the campus like the magnolias”
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Wake ‘N Shake continues growth as a successful event Wake Forest’s annual 12-hour dance marathon celebrates cancer survivors as champions BY ABBY MCMULLEN Staff Writer mcmuaj17@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of Sarah Coldiron
A crowd of 1500 people gathered in downtown Winston-Salem for the March for Our Lives on March 24. Like the movement started by survivors of the Parkland shooting, the march was led by young people.
Students march for their lives Hundreds gathered to demand legislative action in the WinstonSalem March for Our Lives BY AMANDA WILCOX & OLIVIA FIELD Digital Media Editor & Life Editor wilcaf16@wfu.edu & fielor17@wfu.edu At the March for Our Lives in downtown Winston-Salem on Saturday, March 24, Corpening Plaza was filled with the sounds of a Bob Dylan song written in 1964 in the depths of the Vietnam War: “Come senators, congressmen / Please heed the call / Don’t stand in the doorway / Don’t block up the hall … There’s a battle outside / And it is ragin’ … For the times they are a-changin’.” The 1500 protestors insisted that their senators and congressmen “heed the call” today and enact gun control legislation in the wake of a mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL last month. The march, similar to others held in over 800 cities worldwide on the same day, was
part of a movement started by teenage survivors of the shooting, which left 14 of their classmates and three of their teachers dead. A moment of silence in remembrance of the victims was followed by speeches — many of them by high school students — after which the protesters flooded the downtown streets. Rain and snow did not quell the protesters, who held rain-streaked signs with slogans such as “Prayers aren’t bulletproof” and “If I die in a school shooting, just drop my body on the steps of Congress.” Two Wake Forest students shared the role of master of ceremonies. Junior Char Van Schenck and freshman Tris Harper acted to transition from one speech to another while keeping the crowd engaged with chants such as “vote them out” and “this is what democracy looks like.” Although both Van Schenck and Harper are members of the Young Democratic Socialists of America chapter at Wake Forest, a sponsor of the march, they took on their roles as individuals. Van Schenck and Harper said that they contributed to planning the march by encouraging organizers to incorporate the topic of the intersection between gun violence and
white supremacy, as Nikolas Cruz, the Parkland gunman, was trained to use guns by the Republic of Florida, a white supremacist organization that hopes to turn Florida into a white ethno-state. As such, Harper and Van Schenck urged the march’s organizers to diversify the list of high school speakers, which was originally majority white. “This issue, like every struggle, needs to be lead by diversity or else it will collapse into another in a long list of pipe dreams that failed or were used against marginalized people,” Harper said. Freshman Jonathan Trattner also took on duties behind the scenes and on stage, helping to plan the event and ultimately leading the crowd to begin marching. Many of the speakers — including Ira Guttenberg, the uncle of Parkland victim Jaime Guttenberg, and Shawn Roycer, survivor of the 2016 shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando — focused on the problem of easy access to guns and urged listeners to vote against politicians funded by the National Rifle Association (NRA).
See March, Page 6
Special musicians, Dance-Dance Revolution, featured speakers, a mock body combat class, inflatables, minuteto-win-it games and, of course, dancing filled the Sutton Center on Saturday, March 24 as over 1,400 students participated in the 13th annual Wake ‘N Shake. Wake ‘N Shake, a 12-hour dance marathon, is one of Wake Forest’s largest fundraising events along with Hit the Bricks, which both benefit the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund. By the conclusion of the evening, a total of $376,730.29 had been raised from participant fundraising and corporate donations. This qualifies this year’s event as the most successful yet, showing extensive growth from the first Wake ‘N Shake in 2005, that raised $30,000 with only 300 dancers. Over 200 students serving on 10 different committees plus the 39 students on the Executive Board worked to plan and organize to make the event possible. Throughout the event, nine speakers currently fighting cancer or who have already won the battle, called “Champions,” shared their stories. This year, Wake ‘N Shake’s theme was “Dancing Through the Decades.” Each Champion speaker served as a representative for each of the decade teams of either the 20’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, 2000’s or the future. Team Champions for this year’s Wake N’ Shake were: Wake Forest Tri Delta alumni Helen Adair King and Laura McKenna, community member Laura Beaty, author Robert Lipsyte, local elementary school teacher Melody Hayes, IT specialist Manuel Garcia, board chair of Susan G. Komen for the Cure Lisa Rhoades, Wake Forest parent Doug Hotvedt and current sophomore Grace Franzese.
See WNS, Page 7
OGB
Wake Forest “needs to reexamine housing policies This column represents the views of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board.
Earlier this month, students registered for housing for the 2018-2019 school year, hoping that they would get the housing option of their preference. For many, housing registration is extremely stressful and daunting. For others, it is a walk in the park. Before housing registration for the next academic year, many students found themselves in a frenzy. Current sophomores — as well as current juniors — struggled to put together a suite. With a large portion going abroad in the fall and a large portion living on their Greek organization’s halls or in theme housing, alternative options seemed slim. For those who live in housing blocks with their organizations — namely Greek organizations — registering is not a cause of worry. They receive block housing and members of those organizations often go into a lottery to try to live on the organization’s halls.
Wake Forest students are guaranteed housing for all four years, but ... the university risks being unable to keep their promise..." This whole process is done ahead of normal housing registration, disadvantaging other students. However, many students on campus do not have the option to live in Greek or theme housing, and have to fend for themselves to find the best housing option. Students find extremely limited choices, especially for women’s housing, which ran out before all students were placed. In addition, more students go abroad in the fall semester than in the spring, so students can expect even greater congestion when they return to campus. In the spring of 2017, Angelou Residence
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THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF WAKE FOREST UNIVERSIT Y SINCE 1916 JULIA HAINES
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>> SPORTS Lizzie Snyder, snydem15@wfu.edu Ren Schmitt, schmwm16@wfu.edu
>> OPINION Ethan Bahar, bahaea15@wfu.edu Kyle Ferrer, ferrka16@wfu.edu Assistant Editor: Kiley Price, prickj15@wfu.edu
>> LIFE Olivia Field, fielor17@wfu.edu Emily Beauchamp, beauea17@wfu.edu Asisstant Editor: Sarah Boyce, boycse15@wfu.edu
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Hall opened to students returning from a semester abroad. In the fall of 2017 it opened its doors to the first freshman class. For the past few years, the freshman class has increased in size, so Angelou was built to help accommodate the increase in enrollment. However, there has not been an increase in housing for upperclassmen and there has not been a change in the rule to let juniors live off campus. Wake Forest is in a serious predicament when it comes to housing upperclassmen, especially those who do not have the option to live in theme housing nor off campus. Additionally, student-athletes do not have the option for theme housing as other organizations on campus do. Student athletes often find themselves living with non-student-athletes, lending to conflicting lifestyles as student-athletes have varying schedules due to
early practices and travel schedules. Studentathletes should have avenues to live together to accommodate this. Wake Forest should work with the NCAA to find proper ways to do this (student-athletes are not allowed preferential treatment per NCAA rules). College students already have a lot of responsibilities and worries to juggle, and one of these worries should not be where they will live. Wake Forest students are guaranteed housing for all four years, but the process as it stands is stressful and the university risks being unable to keep their promise with the current housing stock. Wake Forest needs to examine its housing policies and make decisions on whether juniors should be able to live off campus, whether more dorms need to be built, whether the university should purchase off-campus housing or find potential solutions to the problem.
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News | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, March 29, 2018 | Page 3
Deacon Profile: Spencer Schiller
BY DANIEL PACHINO News Editor pachdb15@wfu.edu
Since the beginning of this school year, senior Spencer Schiller has led Wake Forest's Student Government as president. In his administration, Schiller has initiated several changes to the Wake Forest community. Some of these initiatives include the Deacon Disaster Relief Fund and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. Now that a new executive board has been elected, Schiller reflects on his time as Student Government president. What are the greatest lessons you learned as president?
As Student Government president, I have learned that adaptability and asking for help are both essential to being a successful leader. In leadership positions within the university system, this is especially true and crucial in efficiently navigating bureaucratic systems. Asking for help from administrators, those with more experience than you and fellow members of Student Government can make all the difference in following through with initiatives and legislation. I have also learned that not taking yourself too seriously is always valuable in improving relationships with fellow students. What do you hope that your legacy will be? I hope my legacy will include the continuation of Mental Health Week. If I can come back to Wake Forest in 30 years and if the school is still focused on the betterment of students' mental health, I would be proud to have played a role in its creation. What is your greatest accomplishment? This year, my greatest accomplishment and proudest moment in office
Photo courtesy of Spencer Schiller
has either been successfully pulling off the Deacon Disaster Relief Fund to benefit hurricane relief or amending the Student Government Constitution to include a new committee focused on diversity and inclusion for all Wake Forest students. In my four years in Senate, my greatest accomplishment is definitely creating Wake Forest’s first ever Mental Health Week, which has become an annual tradition since my sophomore year. Do you have any regrets from your year in office? The only regret I have during my administration’s term is not being able to provide football players on full scholar-
ship with on-campus parking passes. It has been an incredibly frustrating process and hopefully the school will continue to work with next year’s executive branch to improve financial assistance for students benefitting from scholarships.
Personally, I have gained amazing friendships and will always hold Wake Forest close to my heart because of the opportunities it has given me to serve.
How has being president changed you personally?
I hope the next president and administration can break down the Wake Forest bubble more than we have seen in the past. This year, Student Government has focused on engaging not just our students, but also the Winston-Salem community by benefitting Cooke Elementary School. I hope the trend continues. Winston-Salem is such a vibrant, up-and-coming city and I would love to see Student Government play a role in its further development.
Being president definitely pushed my limits from a time-management, leadership and legislative perspective, and has forced me to become better at prioritizing. I have also learned that reflection is one of the most powerful tools to use when planning events or getting to the root of issues.
What do you hope the next president and administration can achieve?
WAKE IN A WEEK Taste of Reynolda Time: Wednesday, April 4 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Location: Reynolda House Museum of American Art The Taste of Reynolda celebrates the Reynolda Historic District with free samples and raffles from local shops. In addition, there will a cappella performances as well as art and activities in the museum.
Science Café: The Epic History of Human Skin Time: Tuesday, April 3 at 7:00 p.m. Location: Kaleideum North Human evolutionary history is written on our skin. Our human ancestors faced many new environments that shaped the beautiful range of skin color we see today. Free and open to the public.
Arnold Palmer: A Golfer's Life Time: Wednesday, April 4 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Location: ZSR Auditorium, room 404 Award-winning author Jim Dodson will discuss his book, A Golfer's Life (with Arnold Palmer), on the eve of Arnold Palmer Day 2018. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
Wake Forest Baseball Time: Tuesday, April 3 at 6:00 p.m. Location: David F. Couch Ballpark Come cheer on the Demon Deacon baseball team as they take on Davidson Wildcats. Admission is free for those with a Wake Forest ID card.
PepsiCo Marketing Underclassmen Info Session Time: Wednesday, April 4 at 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Location: Farrell Hall, room 151 PepsiCo's marketing team will meet with first-years and sophomores to discuss careers in marketing and the recruiting process for PepsiCo in fall of 2018.
Arab Film Series: "Dalya's Other Country" Time: Wednesday, April 4 at 7:00 p.m. Location: ZSR Auditorium, room 404 This film follows a Syrian refugee living in America, who is trying to be a normal teenager. However, with Trump in power, she is constantly reminded of her otherness.
Student Recital Time: Monday, April 2 at 7:30 p.m. Location: Davis Chapel On the guitar, senior Lando Pieroni will perform works by Dilemando Reis, Leo Brouwer, Celso Machado, Garoto and Astor Piazolla. In addition, the program will include a guitar duet with Haochen Wu.
China and America: The New Geopolitical Equation Great Decisions 2018 Time: Thursday, March 29 at 7:00 p.m. Location: Scales Fine Arts Center, room A102 Dr. Wei Chen-Lee of the Department of Politics and International Affairs will discuss China's geopolitical objectives and relations with the United States.
Narratives of Disappearnce: The Curation of Death and Decay with Franklin Vagnone Time: Thursday, March 29 from 5:00 p.m. Location: ZSR Auditorium, room 404 President of Old Salem Franklin Vagnone will discuss the professional practices of public history, preservation, museum and environmental studies.
Old Gold & Black | News
Page 4 |Thursday, March 29, 2018
Transgender author discusses her two memoirs During a conference, author Janet Mock came to campus to comment on life as a transgender woman of color BY KIANA POURTEYMOUR Staff Writer pourk17@wfu.edu
Mock later talked about the idea of privilege. She preached that all those who possess some form of privilege should use it as a platform for activism. Although she is a transgender woman of color, she still recognizes that she has some privileges; she is often seen as not “too dark”, she can “pass as a cisgender woman”, and she has an enormous platform with which she can tell her story. “How do you sit with privilege?” Harris-Perry asked. “You use it for activism.” Finally, Mock concluded by discussing the #MeToo movement, which was started by a woman of color but became something of a “tag line” in Hollywood. Mock discussed the fact that the movement, which may seem inclusive, is still targeted towards society’s “perfect victim.” The movement ignores those who are seen to be in “wrong virtue,” for example, those who found themselves in a position where they had to use their bodies to survive. According to senior Bobby Jacowleff, the tendency for these trends to become widespread in places like Hollywood somewhat “delegitimizes the entire movement for everybody, as it loses focus on the people actually affected.” Mock admits that she, too, was once in a position wherein she had to engage in sex work in order to survive; something that makes her in no way in “bad virtue” but still may cause her to be overlooked by the #MeToo movement.
Just like there is a struggle for those who do not fit into society’s perception of a “perfect victim,” Mock and HarrisPerry discussed a struggle for those who do not fit into the typical LGBTQ+ stereotype. For example, they discussed the difficulty for men and women of color to integrate into the LGBTQ+ community based on stereotypes that many people have about people of color being “homophobic.” The discussion between Harris-Perry and Mock was emotionally-charged, honest and raw. Many members of the audience was clearly moved by the stories told, and were filled with questions. In particular, Abby Castaldi, a senior who attended the talk, was moved by the discussion of how to use caution when discussing issues with transgender people of color. “I think that the best way to discuss issues such as those faced by trans people of color is to listen to their experiences,” Cataldi stated. “It is important to give marginalized groups of people the platform to allow their voices and stories to be heard.” When asked “What’s next?” Mock told the audience that she will contine to work on her “Never Before” podcasts, engaging in conversation with society’s wide range of cultural leaders. When asked for advice for young black storytellers, Mock emphasized the importance of “start writing what you know,” and then “move beyond what you know to surprise yourself.”
On March 22 and 23, the Anna Julia Cooper Center hosted the second biannual Know Her Truths Conference. The conference was centered around raising awareness about the plight of women and girls of color, particularly those in the LGBTQ+ community, and featured a discussion with activist Janet Mock. The emotional discussion with Mock, a transgender black woman, was held by conference leader Melissa Harris-Perry, and focused on the idea of “forming our own truths,” an idea central to Mock’s two memoirs, Redefining Realness and Surpassing Certainty. In the introduction for Mock, Harris-Perry described the memoirs, particularly the latter, as “brave, clear and startling,” and praised Mock for the care and caution with which she tells the story of her struggles as a transgender woman. In particular, Harris-Perry and Mock discussed one of Mock’s unsettling experiences in Surpassing Certainty that is likely similar to many experiences shared by transgender women of color. Harris-Perry notes that the book starts so simply, with talk of Mock’s reverse halter, and quickly transitions to danger. In the story, Mock dances with a man in a bar when she comes across a woman from high school familiar with her transition. The woman decides to intervene in Mock’s interaction with this man, stepping in to alert the man that Mock is, in fact, transgender. Mock and Harris-Perry discussed this unsettling anecdote as an example of someone stripping another individual of the ability to tell their own truth. This anecdote is one of many that depicts the provocation of danger faced by so many transgender individuals, one that can only be understood with sadness and anger. Another issue Mock and Harris-Perry discussed is the relationships that many transgender women have with men. Mock recounts that men often struggle with the idea of being attracted to a transgender woman, as they believe it calls their masculinity into question. As a result, these men Kiana Pourteymour/Old Gold & Black often tend be violent and overbearing. For the transgender community, violence and danger like this lurks in many Best-selling author Janet Mock sat down with Melissa Harris-Perry as a part of the 2018 Know Her Truths Conference, hosted by the Anna Julia Cooper Center. situations.
Professor explores the meaning of “luggage” in new book English professor Susan Harlan used her new book, Luggage, as an opportunity to step out of her experience writing in academia BY EMILY LAIR Staff Writer lairev14@wfu.edu Luggage can take different meanings. It can be a physical object or a concept; a tote full of items or a bearer of past baggage and burdens, as Dr. Susan Harlan expands upon in her new book, Luggage. On March 26 in ZSR’s Special Collections Reading Room, students and community members gathered to learn not just about the contents of the book but also about the experience Harlan, an English professor at Wake Forest, had when writing beyond academia. Recently published in Bloomsbury’s Object Lessons series, Harlan’s book packs up her readers with her, exploring luggage and its part in narratives of gender, displacement, time, consumption, labor and more. “I think a lot about luggage,” Harlan said. “Luggage creates an infinite capacity to signify about secrets, preservation and about the self; it is both authenticating and constructive.” Harlan discussed how she wanted the structure of the book to feel, in a way, “packed.”
Tying together the idea of luggage in infamous novels and films including Mary Poppins, Anne of Green Gables and others, Harlan explained her desire for the book to explore how suitcases can be disruptive: taken apart and unpacked, but also a space of imagination. “A child’s imagination is fueled by spaces that contain desires,” Harlan said. “Poppin’s bag is a freedom from lack (as her) carpet bag is infinite and full of all of her desires ... her traveling light is linked to her freedom to come and go as she pleases.” In contrast to Poppin’s bag, in Anne of Green Gables, Anne’s bag represents the lack of possession and ownership while still threading a theme of imagination children — and adults — can find in luggage. “The abstract part of luggage like in Anne of Green Gables and the meaning of her bag as she traveled that were personal yet representative [expands on] the possibilities of luggage as a concept,” said Joy Gambill, a ZSR librarian. Harlan shared her challenges, pleasures and overall experience writing a non-academic book with students and community members. “This was a good first non-academic book project for me because it allowed me to draw on my academic training but draw on things that felt more like freedoms (for me),” Harlan said. Harlan expressed her desire to aim the book at the general public rather than a niche group of academics in a particular realm. Utilizing the essay as a form while still draw-
ing on her backbone as an academic, Harlan informed the audience of her experience reaching different audiences through her writing for a short book. “I was really surprised to learn that most academics assume they don’t have a ‘reader’ per say,” said senior Laurel Hagaman. “As a student, I use academic writing all the time when doing research, but it made me reconsider why I use it and realize this is probably one of the few, if only, times I will read academic research.” Due to the short nature of the book, Harlan expressed that leaving out many aspects of luggage became a challenging, yet exciting and decisive aspect: expressing that leaving out length became a silver lining because she could be more concise and accessible to an audience beyond the academic world. “Leaving out [aspects in the book] can be very productive, and for the reader of a shorter book, [it] can exist in a particular moment in your life,” Harlan said. Harlan also expressed how choices considering luggage were important to the writing process because they reminded her of what she physically packs and leaves out of her totes, trunks and luggage. “There tends to be a personal element to non-academic writing, which I personally found to be rewarding,” Harlan said. This event featured a pop-up exhibit of luggage from the Wake Forest University Archives and ZSR manuscript collections.
News | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, March 29, 2018 |Page 5
Human Library creates exploratory conversation The “books” and patrons at Wake Forest’s Human Library engaged in meaningful conversation BY MARY DANIEL CHEEK Staff Writer cheemd15@wfu.edu People became books and Wake Downtown became a Human Library on Friday, March 23 in an event hosted by the Z. Smith Reynolds Library at Wake Forest and C.G. O’Kelly Library at Winston-Salem State University (WSSU). This event was made possible by a Rethinking Community grant from the Office of the Provost at Wake Forest, and was designed to foster authentic conversation about a range of topics, including diversity and inclusion, mental health and living abroad. Faculty and staff from both schools, as well as community members, served as one of fifteen “books” that were available to “check-out” for conversation. “We chose people to serve as books based on their willingness to have conversations across differences,” said Alana James, associate director of community engagement for Wake Downtown. James also served as a book herself and challenged participants to ask her about her experience as a first generation American. Hu Womack, instruction and research librarian at ZSR Library and organizer of the Human Library, emphasized the importance of creating space for intentional conversations about potentially uncomfortable topics. “No one likes to get out of our comfort zones, but once we get out of our comfort
zones, that’s where the magic happens,” Womack said. “We have an obligation to get out of comfort zones.” As a result, over 75 participants stepped outside of their ordinary comfort zones and filled the atrium of Wake Downtown with conversation. Womack was inspired to organize the Human Library event after an email from President Hatch at the beginning of this semester encouraged the Wake Forest community to engage in meaningful conversations. Womack and Mary Beth Lock, director of access services at ZSR Library, collaborated to turn the vision of a Human Library into a reality. They modeled the event after a Human Library hosted by Carol Grotnes Belk Library at Elon University. Molly Keener, director of digital initiatives and scholarly communication at ZSR Library, served as one of the books available for check-out. She encouraged people to talk with her about a variety of topics, ranging from Christian theology to scholarly copyrighting. “One of the best ways we can connect [with other people] is through stories,” Keener said. Talking with students about a topic other than academics was refreshing for her. “The conversations I have had today have been gratifying,” Keener said. Other members of the Wake Forest community who served as books included Nate French, director of the Magnolia Scholars program, Christian Burris, serials acquisitions coordinator at ZSR Library, and Rebecca Alexander, professor of chemistry. The event was held at Wake Downtown due to its central location to both the Wake Forest campus and the WSSU campus.
Mary Daniel Cheek/Old Gold & Black
Members from the community served as “books” available to be “checked out” by patrons who wanted to learn more about them. “We hope students realize that Wake Downtown is a space for them, a space for gathering,” James said. “We are the new neighbors downtown and we are trying to bring community in, while branching out into the city.” Womack echoed the importance of hosting events such as the Human Library outside of the Reynolda campus. “It’s always important for any college to be involved in the community where it is located and this urban campus is right in the heart of the community,” Womack said. Students from both Wake Forest and WSSU acknowledged the value of in-person interactions in an age of increasingly impersonal communication.
Kierra Bradsher and Jordan Waters, firstyear students at WSSU, came to the Human Library to get off their campus and chat with people who were willing to engage in challenging conversations. “Face-to-face conversations help you avoid miscommunication,” Bradsher said. Kyle Flaherty, a junior at Wake Forest, found similar value in Friday’s Human Library. He visited the event after having a positive experience at ZSR Library’s pilot Human Library event last fall. Flaherty enjoyed the opportunity to develop empathy at both events. “Empathy is a skill that is increasingly rare and the Human Library offers people a chance to develop that skill,” Flaherty said.
Best Buddies brings Winston-Salem community together The Best Buddies Friendship Walk celebrated those with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities BY NICK DEMAYO Senior Writer demanj14@wfu.edu More than 50 Wake Forest students and members of the community joined each other in the Magnolia Room Sunday, March 25 for the fourth annual Best Buddies Friendship Walk, an event hosted by the Best Buddies chapter of Wake Forest University that celebrates inclusion of people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD). This year’s event featured games and arts and crafts as well as a “color walk” around Hearn Plaza where participants of all abilities were showered by paint powder. Special guests included Reason to Bake — a purpose-based, gluten-free cookies company based out of Transylvania County, NC — who delivered a keynote address and donated cookies for
the event. Other special guests included members of the newly-created Best Buddies chapter of nearby High Point University and students from Carter High School in Winston-Salem, NC. The event’s theme was “Dream in Color,” which inspired the addition of the “color walk” as well as the arts and crafts and games. At one booth, participants of all abilities could journal about their dreams. Junior Kelly Reynolds, co-director of the Friendship Walk, worked with the organization to pick this year’s theme after hearing the story of Elise Sampson, founder of Reason to Bake, and her daughter Carolyn Sampson. Carolyn lives with an intellectual disability, which often makes finding employment difficult. “Carolyn has always wanted to be a baker, but was unfortunately unable to find any work because of her disability,” Reynolds said. “She didn’t let this stop her, since she then started her own bakery with her mom and Reason to Bake has now become an international hit.”
Reason to Bake not only hires but also trains people with intellectual disabilities to pursue meaningful work. At the bakery, people of all abilities work together to make all-natural and artisanal cookies from scratch, which they then ship all over the country. “We chose to ask Reason to Bake to be our keynote speaker because we heard about Carolyn’s story and thought that it would connect and inspire our participants to never give up and to chase their dreams. They are able to do whatever they put their minds to, just like Carolyn did,” Reynolds said. “Because of Carolyn’s story of turning her dream of being a baker into a success, we wanted to have the theme of our event be about dreams. We believe that dreams aren’t black in white, so we decided to have it be ‘Dream in Color.’” Participants of all abilities found great inspiration in hearing Carolyn share her story in her keynote address. Senior Emma Bowden, vice president of the Best Buddies chapter of Wake Forest, reminded herself of the importance of following her dreams after hearing the address.
“It was inspiring to hear such an incredible story, especially being a senior with plans to follow my dreams of going to Physician Assistant school after graduation,” Bowden said. “Carolyn was a tangible reminder that no matter the dream, working hard and creating opportunities for yourself can lead to success.” For some, the inspiring speech served as a fitting culmination to four years of service to the organization, years which saw Best Buddies grow from a small student organization into a fully-recognized chapter. “Best Buddies has offered me the perfect opportunity to escape the bubble of Wake Forest and make an impact in the Winston-Salem community,” Bowden said. “Being a friend to students at Carter High School has been so rewarding, humbling and just plain fun. The buddies constantly reminded me to take life less seriously and to be thankful for the little things, reminders which I so needed throughout my journey at Wake Forest.”
Page 6 |Thursday, March 29, 2018
Old Gold & Black | News
March: Protestors insist ‘enough is enough’ Continued from Page 1
“I want to save lives. I want kids to be able to go out and go to school and be comfortable and feel safe,” Roycer said in a follow-up interview. “[I want] the fear level to go down, the respect level to go up, the common sense level to be more forefront. Politicians need to do their jobs.” With the exceptions of Guttenberg, Roycer and kindergarten teacher Christy Robinson, the speakers consisted of high school students from Winston-Salem. While they are too young to have voted in the most recent congressional election, they promised to speak with their vote in the future and made a public plea for others to do the same. “If there’s one truth I’ve learned from this fight, it’s that there’s one thing easier for killers and murderers to buy than AR15s, and it’s [Republican Rep.] Virginia Foxx … It shouldn’t come as a surprise to any of us here that our corporatist, morally-bankrupt politicians choose the NRA over us when they’re on their payroll,” said Aidan McCarthy, a student at Reagan High School. McCarthy added that voters must decide that representatives’ votes against common-sense gun legislation will be the last votes they ever cast as elected officials. Some of the high school students also stated that a consequence of mass shootings is that students no longer feel safe at school. “I go to school to learn, not to worry that it may be my last day,” said Cassie Daukus, a freshman at Reagan High School. “I might have rushed out the door or was mad in the morning and didn’t say ‘I love you’ to my mom, or I said I hated my siblings the night before.” However, some speakers also stressed that mass school shootings are not the only manifestation of the perceived gun violence epidemic in America. For example, Marley Priest, a student of Early College of Forsyth, brought up the fact that many people fall victim to gun violence as a result of domestic abuse. “The wounds from gun violence never heal, and I’m not just generalizing,” she said. “I know it for a fact because I’ve experienced it. It has been five years since my uncle was murdered by his girlfriend using her minor son’s legally-obtained hunting rifle. It has been five years and I still have never recovered.” McCarthy added that he thinks solutions to gun violence should not just be approached from a stance that seeks to end violence in particular areas of society, such as schools, but should be approached from one that seeks to end violence everywhere it is found. “When we have police shooting unarmed black men, a war on drugs that has allowed for horrific violence in our communities, and interventions committed by our CIA in Yemen and in the developing world, we know that we not only live in a society plagued by guns, but a society in which violence has become a part and parcel of being a student and being a citizen of this world,” McCarthy said. To accompany the march, multiple organizations set up booths to advance the cause. For instance, Democracy North Carolina, a group focused on increasing voter participation, pre-registered dozens of 16-and 17-year-olds at the event.
“It was important for me to instill in them the importance of participation in a democracy, how the right to vote was won by blood, sweat and tears and that voting is a way of breaking down barriers that keep us divided,” said Linda Sutton, a Democracy NC Organizer. In addition, the two Democratic congressional candidates for North Carolina’s fifth district attended the march, and both expressed strong support for gun reform legislation. Winston-Salem City Councilwoman DD Adams, who represents the city’s fourth ward, and Jenny Marshall will face off in the primary election on May 8. The winner will eventually run against incumbent Foxx, who has an “A” rating from the NRA. “I won’t take NRA money; I never will — that’s not in my DNA,” Adams said in a follow-up interview. “Anything that hurts a human being, that’s not part of what I believe in and if nobody wants to vote for me because of that, so be it.” Marshall served as a marshal to help direct the crowd. “I’m a public school teacher and a parent,” she said. “I went there to support not only my children but also other people’s children and community members who felt like they wanted to state their opinion about gun control.” Wake Forest students who attended the march said that they were moved by the attendance and the experience of gathering with others who were similarly passionate about demanding change. “The experience was more emotionallymoving than I thought it would be,” said junior Drew Finley. “I saw a young boy with a poster taped to his back that read ‘Am I next?’ on it. In that moment I was reminded how important the march was for kids like him, because in the end it is not a partisan issue: it is about keeping America’s children safe and working towards a country where no one has to live in fear.” Sophomore Lizzie Lordi said that attending the march was important to her because she attended high school 20 minutes away from Newtown, CT, where a mass shooting occurred at an elementary school in 2012, killing 20 first-graders and six teachers. “When the shooting took place, two of my cousins were in elementary school in Newtown, and the time it took me to confirm that they were not attending Sandy Hook was the scariest time of my life,” Lordi said. “I marched because I want to be part of the movement that demands change so that no one fears for their life every time they enter a school building or a movie theater or a concert venue or a home.” Above all, activists at the march reinforced the notion that action does not stop when tents are taken down or handmade signs are put away. McCarthy left with a warning to all elected representatives: “This November, when their contracts end, they will look down the barrel of our outrage and wish they never made enemies of us,” he said. “Today and always, we must struggle to cast out those who are complicit in the massacre of our generation, and forever force them to bear a legacy of a coward who chose the cruelty of silence over the righteousness of action.”
Photos courtesy of Sarah Coldiron
News | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, March 29, 2018 |Page 7
WNS: Personal touches make event special
Continued from Page 1
Executive Member junior Kaela Griswold served alongside her co-chairs senior Mackenzie Adams, sophomore Mary Britton Anderson and senior Lauren Ziereis on the Champion Relations committee. This team worked very closely with the nine champions throughout the past several months to ensure they were each prepared to speak on Saturday and that the logistics of their experience at Wake ‘N Shake would be seamless. Griswold considers the opportunity to get to know and support the Champions throughout the semester a blessing, remembering the role the Champions play. “The Champion’s speeches about their cancer journeys serve as daily reminders and inspiration of why we do Wake ‘N Shake and what an impact it has,” Griswold said. Freshman Harrison Stone appreciated the Champions element of the program, saying that hearing the stories of those affected by cancer made him “recognize that what we were doing mattered, as the stories of the Champions who had battled cancer gave the event a more intimate, personalized touch that inspired everyone to keep dancing into the night.” Hearing the Champions share their stories was surpassingly special for one student in particular. Sophomore Rachel Hotvedt’s father, Doug, was invited as a
featured speaker. Hotvedt, who is still currently fighting his battle with cancer, and his wife flew down from Bloomington, MN for the weekend to speak at the event and spend time with their daughter. Overwhelmed by emotion as her father took the stage and captivated the crowd, Rachel realized how grateful she was that her dad was healthy enough to make it for the weekend, knowing that his testimony was bound to impact others. “It is difficult to articulate the pride I felt as I watched his words touch the hearts of so many,” Rachel said. “I have been overwhelmed by the love and support that my family has received in the last 24 hours. This sense of community established by events like Wake ‘N Shake is what makes me proud to be a Demon Deacon.” Also striking a personal note was the student speaker, sophomore Grace Franzese, who slowed things down as the last Champion of the night. Many around campus know Franzese as a Lilting Banshee, Tri Delta and English major who always has a smile on her face, but a closer look will reveal her childhood battle with osteosarcoma. Now five years clean, and therefore officially cured, Franzese commanded the stage with an emotional testimony of her battle. “The students of this school gave so much to [Wake ‘N Shake], and this was what I could give that they couldn’t,” Franzese said. “I felt like I owed it to them
©Wake Forest University/Ken Bennett
Wake ‘N Shake struck an intimate, personal note as speakers at the event included a current student, parent and alumni. as much as I owed it to myself and other survivors and patients out there. I’m honored to have done my part, and so grateful that so many did theirs.” Franzese has been overwhelmed by the number of students she doesn’t know that have come up to her since Saturday and expressed their gratitude for how her story touched them. With the clock quickly approaching midnight, students began to reflect upon the
©Wake Forest University/KenBennett
need for unity in the continued fight against cancer. “Seeing the entire WFU community come together, forming a giant circle around the gym, gave me chills,” Harrison Stone said. “Arm-in-arm, glow sticks in hand, singing and counting our way down to midnight, we embraced each other as one unified community with a single goal: to fight cancer. It’s moments like these that remind me how special of a place Wake Forest is.”
©Wake Forest University/KenBennett
Activities, ranging from Dance-Dance Revolution to a mock body Wake ‘N Shake brought in nine people who have or have had combat class, kept the students engaged for the whole 12 hours. cancer, called “Champions.” Each serves as a team representative.
POLICE BEAT Underage Consumption • Underage subject consumed alcohol at a Delta Zeta function and was transported from South to WFUBMC for treatment. The report was filed March 22 at 11:34 p.m. • Underage subject consumed vodka and jelly shots at an off-campus party, and was transported to WFUBMC from Poteat. The report was filed March 23 at 1:53 a.m. • Underage subject was drinking punch at an offcampus party and was transported to WFUBMC from Luter. The report was filed March 24 at 1:58 a.m. • Underage subject was drinking on campus on the sidewalk near Lot Z and had to be transported
to WFUBMC. The report was filed March 24 at 2:35 a.m. • Underage subject consumd alcohol at an offcampus party. The report was filed from South March 25 at 3:37 a.m.
Medical • Victim had been reaching up to clean a mirror and dislocated their knee in Martin. The report was filed March 21 at 11:53 a.m. • Victim sprained their ankle while playing basketball in the Sutton Center. The report was filed March 25 at 4:10 p.m.
Larceny • Unknown subject(s) removed an unsecured backpack and laptop from Hearn Plaza near Wingate Hall. The report was filed March 20 at 3:20 p.m. • Unknown subject(s) took victim’s purse from the UCC parking lot March 16. The report was filed on March 22, 2018 at 11:59 a.m.
Vandalism • Offenders were seen spray painting coolers on the rear sidewalk of South. The report was filed March 21 at 1:23 p.m.
OPINION OLD GOLD & BLACK
T H U R S D AY, M a r c h 2 9 , 2 0 1 8
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The views expressed in all opinion columns represent those of the article’s author, not the opinions of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board
“ restore the magic of the cinema MoviePass could Culture
The collective theater experience has been given new life with the advent of MoviePass
Kyle Ferrer
Staff Columnist ferrka16@wfu.edu Movie tickets are expensive. Most people go to the movies only when they have copious amounts of time. Boredom becomes intolerable, and to capitulate to the money pit of a theater is but a mild concession to rid themselves of their blank stares and thumb-twiddling. A ticket ranges from $10-$12, maybe upwards of that at a premier theater (I recently paid $16 for a ticket at one of those avant-garde lounge-chair theaters). Through the lucrative platform of the captive audience, theater snacks compound an outing to the movies into reckless financial brinkmanship. The theaters have ostracized customers because of their outlandish prices, and with the advent of
The small screen, the ability to pause-and-pee, pauseand-snack, etc., hampers the flow of a movie." mass-streaming, the in-theater experience has dwindled to a barely glowing ember. But Mitch Lowe, an early Netflix executive, has seemingly revived the movie-going experience with the creation of MoviePass, a subscription-based platform that, for $8.75 per month, allows you to see an unlimited number of movies in theaters. Upon subscription, MoviePass mails you a debit card (accepted at, ostensibly, any theater that accepts debit cards) that allows you to purchase one ticket per day, excluding IMAX or 3-D showings. Yep, that’s it. When I first heard about MoviePass, I legitimately did not believe the pitch. It sounded like a scam, a too-good deal that had to be exploitative in some way. But unless my bank account is being looted slowly and with nearly undetectable care, MoviePass is not too good to be true. It’s an unfathomable deal that turns nonexistent movie-goers into consistent patrons ,and saves the theater-loyalists from choosing between a ticket and a meal.
There is, I believe, a difference between watching a movie at home and in the theaters. The small screen, the ability to pause-and-pee, pause-and-snack, etc., hampers the flow of a movie. The movie itself is beholden to the viewer, and extrinsic whims can come to dominate the experience, which trivialize your cue card -sized screen into a toy to be played with. In the theater, the viewer is vulnerable, beholden to the movie. Style and content wash over one as a brilliant wave. You cannot pause for a bathroom break; you may miss crucial fulcra. It is the perspectival, power-driven distance between one’s own squint at a small screen versus the theaterscreen’s maw agape — myopic, artistic fiddles versus cascading art. But perhaps I am an archaism in my proselytization of the in-theater experience. Richard Brody, film critic for The New Yorker, has said on multiple occasions that he is able to adequately analyze films from both the theater and the couch. But most people cannot conjure critical energies at will, and the in-theater experience for the layman at least feints towards the viewer’s engagement with artistic merit. On a common level, the social isolation perpetuated by our age of siphoned experience makes private mov-
ie-watching yet another iteration of social malady. Progressing through a movie with one’s fellow citizens (a notion whose value has been corroborated through films like Get Out, Black Panther and on a slightly lower-level, through the mother-daughter strife of Lady Bird) is a sort of collective bargaining with life. It is an exercise that negotiates, both individually and collectively, the film’s ideas. Walking out of the theater catching comments about a certain film, or even walking in a cavalcade of silence (think American Sniper), works to bolster one’s acuity to navigate the zeitgeist. This is an important skill to have in a time of individual dogmatism and despotic opinions. Anything one can do to try to understand another is a valuable (might I say noble?) thing. A friend recently received MoviePass for his birthday. My hope is that we begin to attend theaters consistently as not only a thing for friends to do together, but as an activity that creates conversation. My quixotism about reviving what I believe to be the vital impact of film through MoviePass could be misplaced, but it is platforms like Mr. Lowe’s that raise my confidence. I hope my friend doesn’t cancel his subscription.
A tribute to “a small-screen feat: The West Wing Political Art
The West Wing presented a Democratic ideal — unreachable but worth watching Amanda Wilcox Staff Columist wilcaf16@wfu.edu
There’s a sticker on my laptop lid that speaks to my liberal fantasy about a Washington that is more progressive, more intelligent and more fair than real life — it reads “Bartlet/Hoynes ‘98,” a tribute to the fictional administration spotlighted on Aaron Sorkin’s beloved television show The West Wing. If you haven’t seen it, The West Wing is easy to love. The theme music alone is enough to make anyone with a patriotic bone in their body shed a single tear. President Jed Bartlet’s White House staffers are lovable, hard-charging dogooders, and the matters it explores are so real that the analogies between Bartlet’s parallel universe and ours are often a bit uncanny. But it reminds us of a time (did it ever really exist?) when people in po-
The theme music alone is enough to make anyone with a patroitic bone in their body shed a single tear." litical office took their jobs very seriously and wanted to actually govern this country rather than settle scores and appeal to their respective bases. Its uplifting ethos feels eons away from the “stable genius” president and his “well-oiled machine” of an administration, but it conveys an optimism about the power of politics to work for the common good that my devastated post-election self can’t resist. Introduced in September 1999, The West Wing presented the sort of idealistic Democratic government that many wish we had when it was airing in the depths of the Bush administration. It prophesied many of the changes that would come with the election of Barack Obama, the man who came the closest to Sorkinian perfection. For example, Barlet appointed the first Latino justice to the Supreme Court in 1999, something Obama did nine years later when he appointed Sonia Sotomayor. The first season also included a storyline about the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” in 1999, another landmark ac-
complishment of the Obama administration 11 years later. And, of course, there was the election of Matthew Santos, the country’s first president of color, in the last season. In between, The West Wing reflected political flashpoints such as North Korean and Iranian nuclear ambitions, peacemaking between Palestine and Israel, conflict in the People’s Republic of China over the status of Taiwan and invoking the 25th Amendment for an Acting President. Whether dealing with endearingly low-impact problems such as the surprisingly combative “Cartographers for Social Equality” interest group or existential imperatives such as securing the votes for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the attitudes of Bartlet and his White House could always be summed up by one of the series’ mostrepeated phrases: “What’s next?” But the reason why people like me continue to love The West Wing is that it’s just as much about the world we live in now as it was about the world then. As our political system continues to degrade — with a catastrophic president and intransigent Congress — the albeit fictional Bartlet and his staffers offer some small comfort. The most popular political dramas of our day, like House of Cards, are ones where back-alley plotting and murderous presidents take center stage rather
than the ideals of governing, but Bartlet is just an imperfect man who happens to be the platonic ideal of a liberal leader. He has the memory and smarts of Bill Clinton, the legislative might of Lyndon Johnson and the working and personal charm of Jack Kennedy. But the best television shows inspire complex emotion, and the melancholy of The West Wing is that political heroes like Bartlet can’t exist in real life. Insofar as Bartlet is an amalgamation of all the traits we found attractive in past presidents, no politician can embody everything we want in a leader. The powerfully-magnetic urge to watch “just one more” episode of The West Wing speaks to the fact that in some ways, I resent Sorkin for creating such a character as Bartlet. He is an unreachable ideal, taunting us with the best of all worlds. I wish fiction wasn’t the only place where I could find leadership with logic right now. But fiction can also ease the pain of an untenable political situation and make waiting for our Bartlet just a little bit easier. If you’re having trouble finding honesty, competence and morality in the White House, know that those things aren’t gone forever — they’re just on Netflix.
Opinion | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, March 29, 2018 | Page 9
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Politics
Shining a Light on the importance of windows A lack of windows without the constant presence of light can be harmful to health
Kiley Price
Staff Columnist prickj15@wfu.edu
Living in a triple in Palmer Residence Hall is truly not as bad as I thought it would be. My legs are stronger from the lengthy walks to class, there are salt and vinegar chips in the vending machines and the amount of complaining each resident does has really cultivated a sense of community among the hall. However, the one thing that is extremely unsettling about the room is the distinct lack of windows. The one “window” in the room is really just a clear panel that leads into the hallway, which is reminiscent of an observation room used during science experiments. As I started to feel more like an experiment, I slowly realized what the actual research would be studying. In the scientific field of chronobiol-
By simply having a view of nature, a person's focus can sharpen and feelings of stress can decrease." ogy, there is a concept that describes a human’s internal clock called “circadian rhythm.” Controlled by both genetic and environmental factors, the human body works on an intangible “clock” that runs just over 24 hours. Circadian rhythm determines when your body starts to feel tired through release of hormones in a region of your brain called the hypothalamus. One of the most influential outside determinants of circadian rhythm is light, which is why sleep schedules tend to coincide with the day and night. With this pathetic sheet of glass that has the audacity to call itself a window, I have no view of the outdoors for the extended periods of time I spend in my room. What the window does provide, however, is the constant presence of hallway light through the shades. There have been multiple occasions where I have missed an entire rainstorm or taken a nap, then attempted to go get dinner only to realize it was 10:00 p.m. because I have no view of the outside
world. It also turns out that, without a visual to the outdoors, circadian rhythm can become desynchronized with a traditional sleep schedule. There are a range of sleeping disorders that describe the malfunctioning of a person’s circadian rhythm, the most common in college students being Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS). If you have ever wondered why your body feels wide awake at 2:00 a.m. and you are able to deeply sleep until 1 p.m. without waking up, there is a chance you have DSPS. This disorder does have a genetic link in many cases, however it is possible to develop it through unhealthy living conditions, which leads me back to the importance of windows and light. Without the shining sun to wake up to in the morning or the dark sky to remind you that it is time to sleep, there is no environmental signal affecting circadian rhythm and your body will slowly begin to shift towards a delayed sleep phase. Previously, I would have found this difficult to believe because I assumed people just sleep when they are tired, however I have had the pleasure of experiencing this phenomenon firsthand. As I lie in bed for hours at night waiting, attempting to shield my eyes from the sliver of light, what is really happening is a process very aptly named “Lights at Night.”
Being exposed to prominent light at night, which can include anything from the light spilling from this pane of glass to the brightness on an iPhone screen before bed, can disrupt one’s circadian rhythm and cause difficulty with a normal sleep cycle. A lack of proper sleep can result in decreased focus, lowered immune system functioning and depression. Internal clocks aside, windows and natural light provide a view to the outside world, which is proven to be beneficial to mental health. By simply having a view of nature, a person’s focus can sharpen and feelings of stress can decrease. Companies like Amazon have taken the theory of biophilia, or a human’s innate desire to connect with nature, to the extreme by creating large working spaces in Seattle called the Spheres, which are completely transparent and filled with greenery. Scientists are also beginning to develop special glasses for night shift workers that help control when melatonin is released to prevent sleeping problems and correct circadian rhythm. Until Wake Forest brings these ideas into fruition, my best suggestion is to appreciate the light you have and always choose the seat by the window.
til such time that a member with extensive journalism experience holds a position on [The Review’s] board or is able to reasonably contribute to [its] editing process” since “there is a dire need for such reform.” Cherry-picking one controversial article and ignoring the book reviews, movie reviews, et cetera published in “The Independent Newspaper at Wake Forest University” does not demonstrate that it needs reform; it does not even demonstrate that there is a large problem within the organization. At the worst, this example demonstrates that the article itself is flawed. Furthermore, Riemensperger does not attempt to rebuke the facts of “Wake Forest Declines to Enforce Harassment Policies for a Conservative Student.” His attacks are either geared toward the paper at large or possible stylistic problems within the article. If, however, we are to tell organizations that they are not engaged in journalism if they run a flawed article or make mistakes, are there any endeavors to be considered to be journalistic in nature? As mentioned earlier, The Old Gold & Black ran an article with a factual error. They also referred to me as “charming and gregarious” last year. Do these two mistakes render them illegitimate as well? Both organizations (and most news organizations), overall, are good and correct their mistakes. They learn from experience. One should refrain from using local incidents to infer a global problem.
My final problem with Riemensperger’s article is his accusation that The Wake Forest Review “confuses entertainment for journalism.” I agree with Riemensperger’s implied belief that news and entertainment should be separated. The Review, while it has flaws, does not confuse journalism with entertainment. Appearing on a television show with viewers across these U.S. to discuss a news story is not confusing the two. One could, with great power, argue that a story involving an incident at Wake Forest is not worthy of making the national news, but that is a criticism of our around-the-clock news-industrial complex, not of the article or of the paper. Riemensperger, however, did not discuss the problem with having a 24-hour news cycle. Interesting stories are needed to fill up airtime, even if they lack national significance, and Wolfe’s story is definitely interesting. Carlson did not invite him on the air because The Review is filled with entertainers; he invited Wolfe on the air because of the journalistic work of The Review. The Review encourages and expects its managing editors, associate editors, vice presidents, and humble contributors to always act in a professional and honorable fashion. The Review does not confuse entertainment with journalism. The Wake Forest Review, like The Old Gold & Black, is a legitimate news organization, not to be treated like criminals.
“ respect The Wake Forest Review People should Politics
The Wake Forest Review writes a defense of the publication in the face of criticism Tyler Miller
Contributing Writer milltp16@wfu.edu
“Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” St. Matthew 7:5 provides us with sound advice. Before criticizing others, we should be aware of our own faults. I am not writing to claim perfection or to ascribe to others wickedness; I am writing to promote the truth. I am a contributor at The Wake Forest Review. I have served in this capacity for well over a year, and I must admit that I do not agree with every article and editorial published. There are, of course, sound criticisms of The Review, just as there are sound criticisms of any organization involved in writing and news. However, the article that ran in The Old Gold & Black on March 15 misses the mark. I am, of course, referring to Kory Riemensperger’s “The Wake Forest Review practices poor journalism.” If research and accurate reporting are a core aspect of journalism, the afore-
The Review, while it has its flaws, does not confuse journalism with entertainment." mentioned article at one point cannot even hit the side of a barn. Contrary to Riemensperger’s claim, The Wake Forest Review does publish a print copy. The Review publishes multiple print copies a year. However, The Review, in line with twenty-first century realities, publishes very few print copies and focuses on its online venture. This makes The Review more cost-efficient, environmentally friendly and easier to read. Fortunately, we do not overprint copies and have them collect dust in stacks after never being read. While I wish we still lived in the age of ink and paper, print is dead and the screen is our gloomy future. A good example of the death of print on our very own campus is the fate of the Academic Bulletin. Implicitly attempting to undermine a news organizations’ credibility due to its online nature is similar to a town crier saying that they, not the new-fangled newspapers, are the only trustworthy source of information and news. Another flaw in Riemensperger’s article is that he uses one Review article in order to criticize The Wake Forest Review. Toward the end of the article, he decrees that it “should immediately cease all claims to [its] status as a journalistic enterprise un-
Page 10 | Thursday, March 29, 2018
Old Gold & Black | Opinion
A response “to Pickard’s misguided criticism Gun Violence
His article attempting to debase previousOGB opinions fell short of its pursuit Ethan Bahar
Staff Columnist bahaea15@wfu.edu As the opinion editor for the Old Gold and Black, it is well within my authority to admit that my section has what some would call a flaw. Namely, we recieve and therefore publish many more left-leaning articles than we do conservative ones. Campus conservatives, like the ones who write for the Wake Forest Review, often like to point out that liberals create echo chambers for themselves and shut conservative opinions out of the media. Sometimes they are right. This very issue is why The Review’s founders felt it necessary to create a conservative echo chamber of their own. I am very weary of allowing my section to turn into fodder for conservative students — to become another example of a once fine publication that, in their eyes, reached its untimely Restaurant Dissent demise due to its incapacity to withstand the evil grip of “leftist” ideology. Sure, campus conservatives may disagree with articles written by my liberal counterparts and me. I encourage the dissent. However, an overarching goal of mine is to ensure that students respect and understand that my section is a haven for opinions of all political stripes. Therefore, as a resident liberal at the OGB who cannot help but assert his left-leaning opinions in his articles but does not want his section to be characterized as an echo chamber, I took it upon myself to ask my good friend Anthony Palumbo, who happens to be the Editor-in-Chief of The Review, to call upon his writing force to submit a few articles to the opinion section of the OGB. One of the topics on which I was most eagerly awaiting an article was gun policy. Fortunately, Review writer and gun enthusiast Owen Pickard delivered me a conservative opinion on American gun policy. Unfortunately, his article amounted to nothing but pedantic drivel, half-truths and poor logic in an attempt to discredit the articles my colleague Amanda Wilcox and I had written about gun policy one week earlier. I don’t have the space to point out all of the fallacies presented by Pickard, but I will do my best to showcase some of the most egregious ones.
His article amounted to nothing but pedantic drivel, half-truths, and poor logic in an attempt to discredit...” Pickard begins his onslaught by asserting that “a semi-automatic rifle, by definition, cannot be an assault rifle.” If this were true, it would mean that the assertion in my original article, that the AR-15 used in the Parkland shooting was an assault rifle was wrong. However, Pickard chooses to define assault rifle with a confined definition devised by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), a trade association funded by gun manufacturers for the sole intent of selling more guns. Their definition states that “an assault rifle is fully automatic,” and of course the Parkland shooter’s AR-15 was not fully automatic. However, Pickard conveniently leaves out the point that the law of the federal government is inconsistent with the NSSF’s poorly- concocted definition. In its assault weapons ban, the federal government itself defined assault rifle as “a rifle with semi-automatic capabilities [is] an assault weapon if it could accept interchangeable magazines and has at least two of these characteristics: a telescoping stock, pistol grip, bayonet mount, a flash suppressor or a grenade launcher.” The AR-15 used in the Parkland shooting fits squarely within this definition, and is, by all legitimate accounts, an assault rifle. Likely, Pickard knows this fact but chose to cherry-pick a weak definition of assault rifle concocted by the gun lobby in an attempt to keep killing machines like AR-15’s legal and nefariously embarrass and debase my heavilyresearched argument. Another frustrating point made by Pickard can be found when he suggests that I am right that “the violence issue in America ‘is a problem exacerbated by American men,’” but that “The root issue, [as Bahar suggests] however, is not ‘hyper’ or ‘toxic’ masculinity. It is a complete and utter lack of what true masculinity should look like.” Perhaps this is a legitimate point. It leaves me curious though, wondering what Pickard thinks true masculinity actually looks like. Unfortunately, he fails to provide an example. I would ask Pickard, though, if he thinks “hyper” or “toxic” masculinity are not examples of “a complete and utter lack of what true masculinity should look like.” I contend, and I think most rational readers would too, that hyper or toxic masculinity are not healthy types of masculinity for men to express. Pickard, interestingly, seems to disagree. In fact, it seems he loves expressions of hypermasculinity so much that he closes his essay by boldly
proclaiming, “America needs more masculinity, not less. Long live hypermasculinity.” Another shocking point made by Pickard can be found when he claims, “Girls may be less drawn to guns as firearms are stereotypically considered masculine (ie. the piece I am currently referencing). Could this be due to the inherent differences between the sexes? I would ask your biology professor about this, not your Women’s Gender Studies professor. (One of these things is not like the other.)” I was tempted not to even comment on this seemingly outlandish claim — that men are somehow more genetically inclined to embrace guns than women. However, as I am a prudent student reporter, I decided to take Pickard to task. Thus, I asked USC geneticist Hooman Allayee, PhD to comment on this claim. According to Dr. Allayee, “From a biological point of view, it is true that males are the more aggressive sex throughout most of the animal kingdom, including humans. But when considering a social problem, one cannot simply use a biological argument. It is very likely that the problem of gun violence involves both nature (males’ propensity for agression) and nurture. There are other countries (take in the Middle East or South America) that can also be considered ‘hypermasculine’ or macho but do not have the [same] level of gun violence as the US. That is environmental since guns are controlled there (for the most part). There are also counties that may not be perceived as ‘hypermasculine’ but in which guns are allowed. Look up Switzerland for example. They have nowhere near the gun violence as the US and that’s likely because of their culture on guns. In both cases, genetics or biology is not different between males from one country or the other. So to argue that males are drawn to guns as an explanation just demonstrates his utter naivete. It’s the combination of both biology and environment. And clearly in civilized societies, environment can easily overcome any perceived biological wiring or genetic predisposition.” It seems that Allayee respects the job of social scientists and finds Pickard’s comments about his profession laughable. One of the most eye-opening criticisms Pickard makes of my article comes when he claims: “In mentioning the disparity between men and women who die due to the use of guns, the author fails to mention that almost two- thirds of gun deaths in America are suicides. The author repeatedly uses the phrase ‘killed by guns,’ seemingly in an attempt to take responsibility away from the people who pull the trigger and to be able to include suicides in his statistics through the use of this incredibly broad phrase.” This point unveils a startling revelation. Namely, it
seems that Pickard does not view suicides to be equivalent to other gun deaths. However, when people kill themselves with guns, they literally die because a bullet has been released from the chamber of a gun into their body. That is definitively a gun death. Suggesting that it is lesser is not only extremely insulting to the families of gun-suicide victims, but also inconsistent with reality. In another remarkable paragraph, Pickard attempts to dismantle my colleague Amanda Wilcox’s point that the founding fathers could not have conceived of the firepower that exists today when they wrote the second amendment, because a weapon called the “Puckle Gun” had already existed for years when they were writing the Bill of Rights. Pickard enjoyed discussing the limited knowledge Wilcox and I have about firearms in his article. However, after watching videos of the “Puckle gun” online, and reading about its size and functions, I wonder if Pickard has any idea what this weapon looks like or how it operates. It is massive, sits on a tripod or a sled like a cannon would, and takes an extremely long time, along with some expertise, to load and fire. Comparatively, the technology in an AR-15 seems lightyears ahead of the “Puckle Gun.” If the “Puckle Gun” really was the closest thing to a modern Assault Rifle in the late 1700’s, then Wilcox was on-point when she claimed that it would be difficult for the founding fathers to “conceive [of] the technological advances” that occurred to produce a modern AR-15. Pickard chooses to conclude his article with a final jab. He invites Amanda and me to “go up to anyone outside of an isolated academic institution and tell a normal Joe that the problem in America is too much masculinity.” If we try, he says that we would “get laughed out of the room.” He then takes his point a step further, when he writes, “Or try Fort Bragg. I’m sure the 82nd Airborne soldiers will get a nice kick out of you telling them that they’re too masculine and that toxic masculinity is hurting America.” Obviously, neither Amanda nor I think that the 82nd Airborne soldiers at Fort Bragg are too masculine and are therefore hurting America. That’s absurd. However, the greatest takeaway from these points is that Pickard does not think that “normal Joes” and 82nd Airborne soldiers are capable of having a nuanced conversation about American gun policy, where all opinions are considered. This is where he and I fundamentally disagree. If a “normal Joe” or 82nd Airborne soldier wants to discuss hypermasculinity and how it relates to gun policy with me, even if he just plans on laughing in my face, I’m more than happy to have the conversation.
Word on the Quad
Who do you want to be the next commencement speaker?
“Chris Paul” Kellyn Jamison (‘21)
“Kendrick llamar” Wesley Alexander (‘19)
“OprahWinfrey” Jane Isherwood (‘20)
“Cardi B” Sam Bott (‘21)
SPORTS
T H U R S D AY, M a r c h 2 9 , 2 0 1 8
PAG E 11
Online at: www.wfuogb.com Twitter: @sports_ogb Editors: Lizzie Snyder, snydem15@wfu.edu; Ren Schmitt, schmwm16@wfu.edu
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Cinderella teams fight for NCAA title Young talent on both teams show promise for the Wake Forest tennis program BY DANIEL PACHINO News Editor pachdb15@wfu.edu
This year’s NCAA Tournament has truly been the tale of two brackets. The left side (the South and West regions) of the bracket has epitomized the term “March Madness.” Meanwhile, the right side (the East and Midwest regions) of the bracket has gone almost entirely as expected. In the South, the amazing story has been Loyola-Chicago. The 11seed Ramblers have been one of the most amazing "Cinderella" stories in recent tournament memory by becoming the first 11-seed to reach the Final Four since VCU in 2011. Loyola’s remarkable run has been highlighted by its three victories in the first three rounds by a total of just four points. After upsetting both Miami and Tennessee in its first two games, Loyola took on seven-seed Nevada in its Sweet 16 matchup. The game continually went back and forth and went down to the absolute wire, making it one of the tournament’s
most exciting games. Thanks to the Martin twins — Cody and Caleb — Nevada was able to cut Loyola’s lead down to one point with 36 seconds remaining. After letting the shot-clock tick down as far as possible, Loyola guard Marques Townes hit a miraculous three-pointer with just six seconds left in the game to stretch Loyola’s lead to six points and all but seal the game and a trip to the Elite Eight for the Ramblers. In its Elite Eight matchup with nine-seed Kansas State — the first ever matchup between a nine-seed and an 11-seed — Loyola cruised to a 78-62 victory over the Wildcats to reach the school’s first Final Four since 1963. While unlikely and miraculous, Loyola’s run to the Final Four should not be viewed as a lucky “Cinderella” run, as evidenced by their 25th-overall ranking by FiveThirtyEight’s Elo system. For statistical non-believers, Loyola certainly seems to pass the eye test, as they are as well-coached as any team in the tournament and play beautiful offensive basketball. The second team to reach the Final Four was three-seed Michigan from the West Region. Its Sweet 16 game was one of the biggest blowouts of the tournament thus far. Michigan was lights out from three-point range, shooting 14-24, and put on an offensive clinic all
game by running the oversized and overmatched Aggies all over the court en route to a 99-72 victory. Its Elite Eight game against nineseed Florida State, however, was slightly more dramatic and not nearly as high-scoring. This was a low-scoring and sloppy defensive battle in which neither team shot more that 40 percent from the field.
The Wolverines were consistently up between five and 10 points throughout the second half, but never seemed to want to put the Seminoles away until the game’s final seconds, when they were able to win 58-54.
See Final Four, Page 15
Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS
Loyola coach Porter Moser cuts down the nets in Atlanta after the Ramblers beat Kansas State in the reigonal final earlier this week. Loyola will face Michigan in San Antonio.
Wake Forest Women's Tennis beats Notre Dame The Demon Deacons proved victorious over the Fighting Irish last weekend BY WILL HARGROVE Staff Writer hargjw15@wfu.edu
This spring has proven to be one of endurance and challenges for the Demon Deacons on the tennis court, but they are anything but defeated. This season our ladies have battled against some of the best teams across the nation, and they have proven that they are a force to be reckoned with. Only a few weeks into the season, the girls have a strong 14-3 record, 4-3 conference record in the ACC, defeating tough teams including Arkansas, Ohio State, and Auburn. Head coach Jeff Wyshner is beyond thrilled with the work his team has been putting into this semester, and he is ready to see them take titles for Wake Forest. Their most recent victory over Notre Dame inside the Wake Forest Tennis Complex on Sunday proved
to be another match of contention. a third-set tiebreaker 10-5 at No. 5. Thursday against the No. 1-ranked The Deacs fought valiantly against the With the win, the Deacs have North Carolina Tar Heels at 5 p.m., Fighting Irish, despite only having five moved to a power rank of No. 14 in followed by away matches in Wilavailable players for the roster. the NCAA, and they are ready to con- liamsburg, VA to battle William Mary Yes, they did have to forfeit one tinue this momentum straight to the and in Atlanta to compete against the doubles match as well as the No. 6 top of the ACC Championships later Yellow Jackets of Georgia Tech. singles spot, but they brawled against this April in Cary, N.C. Be sure to come and check out one their opponent to win the other two The Demon Deacons will continue of Wake Forest's power house sports doubles matches, as well as all five sin- their five-match home stretch this programs. gles matches. The 31st-ranked doubles team of junior Emma Davis and sophomore Chandler Carter took their match at the No. 1 spot, 6-2, and sophomore Mary Caroline Meredith and freshman Eliza Omirou battled for a 7-5 win at the No. 2 spot. Momentum continued in their favor as the singles matches took place. Davis dominated at her No. 1 spot, winning 6-1, 6-0, with Meredith at No. 4 clinching a 6-3, 6-2 win. The Deacs took the match as Omirou commanded her No. 2 match in a straight set victory. Although the match was already won by Wake Forest, Carter proved her spot in the lineup with her win Photo Courtesy of Wake Forest Athletic Communications at No. 3, and Joanna Zalewski joined Junior Emma Davis returns a ball in her match against Notre Dame. The Demon Deathe winners' circle as well, winning in cons beat the Figting Irish at home to secure an important ACC win.
Page 12 | Thursday, March 29, 2018
Old Gold & Black | Sports
The best of college football prepares for NFL draft With the 2018 NFL combine over, athletes prepare for the NFL draft in late April BY SAMANTHA WEXLER Contributing Writer wexlsn17@wfu.edu
Draft season is quickly approaching. Who will go off the board first? Darnold? Chubb? Allen? Barkley? I guess only time will tell. Everyone is focused on the plethora of pro days, draft parties, exclusive gear and mock drafts. At times, all of the hype seems to overshadow the core of what goes on behind the scenes prior to the draft. In reality, the NFL hopefuls practice the exact drills and workouts that are assessed by each team, most famously the combine. This year, Jessie Bates III represented the Deacs at the combine with a great showing that potentially moved his ranks up in mock drafts. So what actually goes on at the combine and at collegiate pro days, and who traditionally shows well in each of the drills? The most famous event by far is the 40yard dash, similar to the 100-meter at the Olympic games. Athletes are separated by mere seconds that can make or break their draft stock. The goal of this drill is to watch for a start from a static position, looking for the potential to explode off
the line of scrimmage in the game after an opponent or towards the end zone. Traditionally looked at for smaller, quicker guys like a running back or cornerback, it’s an important benchmark for offensive or defensive linemen who will spring to action from a static, hunched-over position. A faster time for someone in this position would signal he may have the potential to fire off the ball and improve draft stock. The bench press is a sheer test of strength with repeated reps of 225 pounds as many times as possible. It’s an endurance event that demonstrates how hard the athletes have worked in college at their lifts. It’s overrated given the small amount of people who thrive at it who might not do well at other things. This year a cool story was about UCF’s Shaquem Griffin, who put up 20 bench press reps with a prosthetic hand. Jumping tests are also of key importance in measuring NFL potential, as the entire game moves at a fast pace and the ability to maneuver well is key. In the broad jump, the athlete simply leaps out as far as he possibly can from a standing position. It is a great measure of explosiveness and balance that will be helpful on the field moving forward. A long, lean athlete typically thrives at this, so if someone that lacks height thrives they can boost their draft stock. On the other hand, the vertical jump is
Abby Drey/Centre Daily Times/TNS
Penn State running back Saquon Barkley is a top contender for the first pick in the NFL draft. Above, he runs through the Maryland defense in a regular season game.
all about power in the lower body. You start flat-footed and jump up as high as you can, something that is important in many of the down-field positions. This gives them an edge to either catch or intercept passes. There are also two cone drills that test both ball-handling and overall skill of the potential players. The three-cone drill is a test of agility, essentially winding around a series of cones at a fast pace to show control and balance in addition to speed. The shuttle run, on the other hand, tests their
balance of explosiveness and control, as the athletes have to both change directions and keep up a high speed. This drill is somewhat underrated, as it truly tests quickness and is normally a good display for the truly elite athletes in the draft class. In reality, it comes down to connections, individual team workouts and interviews with the various teams a lot of the time, but these benchmark drills get many athletes foot in the door, who may not otherwise be seen.
Wake Forest Track and Field season shows early promise Opening meet for both men’s and women’s competition could be an indicator for future success BY LIZZIE PITTINGER Contributing Writer pittej16@wfu.edu
The Wake Forest men’s and women’s Track and Field team proved to be off to a promising start after their outdoor season opener this past Saturday, March 24, at Wake Forest’s Kentner Stadium. The Demon Deacons hosted Davidson, Duke, Harvard and High Point for their first home meet since the 2015-2016 season’s Wake Forest Open. The cold and windy conditions in the 30s for most of the day, were enough for North Carolina State to pull out of the meet and for Duke to withhold their sprinters from competing. However, other than the slight delay in events, Saturday’s inclement weather conditions did not slow down Deacons as they secured seven event titles — five in the field and two on the track — along with setting multiple personal records. Sophomore Elijah Shalaway launched the Deacs into their first title of the day by throwing his per-
sonal best in javelin at 64.88 meters. Senior Jordan Banks, earned the title in long jump, breaking her personal best by over seven inches with a jump of 5.34 meters. The freshman athletes made an impressive debut to their Wake Forest outdoor season careers, claiming three of the seven titles. Redshirt freshman Jack Tiernan placed first in the 3000-meter with a time of 8:32.23. Freshman Cydney Delley secured first in the women’s 400-meter with a time of 59.18. Despite this being the first outdoor meet for both Delley and Tierney, they have been competing with the Deacs since this December’s indoor season. “The indoor season prepared me mentally by allowing me to get into the competition mindset,” Delley said.Delley qualified to compete in the indoor ACC championships at Clemson, last month in both the 400-meter and the 4x400m relay. Another fresh face to Kentner Stadium, Janese Lynch threw 13.33 meters, earning first place in the shotput competition. The Deacs were able to pull off a sweep in the shotput competition, with Max Adams earning the title in the men’s competition by throwing 15.17 meters. Adams also placed second in the discus. Alexandria Florent earned the
title in high jump, clearing a height of 1.67 meters. Florent recently placed second at the ACC Championships with a jump that cleared 1.78 meters, her personal best. Sophomore Robbie Barr returned to the track for his second outdoor season as a Demon Deacon, placing second in the 1500-meter with a personal best of 3:58.10. “Our coaches had prepped us on what to do with regard to the wind
and rain,” Barr said. “We were told to tuck in behind a tall competitor to guard against the weather and wait until the last 200 to 300 meters of the distance races to make a decisive tactical move.” Hopefully, the Deacs should be facing more suitable competing conditions as they head into their upcoming meets. The team will compete in the Raleigh Relays on March 30 and 31 at NC State.
Photos courtesy of Wake Forest Athletic Communications
Junior Alexandria Florent from Santa Clarita, CA won the high jump at Wake Forest Track’s opening meet. She placed second in ACC competition.
Sports | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, March 29, 2018 | Page 13
Spotlight: Jennifer Kupcho BY LIZZIE SNYDER Sports Editor snydem15@wfu.edu Junior Jennifer Kupcho has accomplished a tremendous amount of success in her three years with the Wake Forest Golf program, and has been receiving accolades throughout her entire career including the 2015 Colorado Women’s Golf Association Player of the year, All-ACC team for both her freshman and sophomore seasons, runner-up at the NCAA championship her sophomore year and 21st place finish at the U.S Womens’ Open. Kupcho holds the school scoring record with a 70.61, beating her own freshman record of 73.18 during her sophomore season. As a junior, Kupcho serves as the captain of the team and continues to be a valuable asset to the squad. This Spring alone, she finished ninth in the Evans Derby Experience at Auburn and shooting 65 to tie the school record and was selected for the Palmer Cup team along with freshman Emilia Migliaccio. Going into tournament season Kupcho talks to the Old Gold & Black about this exciting moment in her career as the third ranked ametur in the country. Lizzie Snyder: First of all, congratulations on tying the Wake Forest 18-hole scoring record earlier this month at the Evans Derby Experience at Auburn, shooting seven-under during your second round at play. Can you comment on how the tournament went and what went into your fantastic performance? Jennifer Kupcho: I was hitting the ball very well and got on a birdie grove with another girl I was playing with. In my first round of the tournament I was playing pretty much the same golf except that the second round I was making putts so it was really cool to see how that can change the outcome dramatically. LS: Going into every tournament, how do you mentally prepare to face each individual course and the competition? JK: I prepare the same for every tournament. I sometime practice some different yardages that I know I will get into par threes or into all the holes in the second shots. All courses are different but preparing similar keeps things good and your confidence up.
and pushes you was a great experience. We always had competitions and competed to make each other better. We still support and push each other now even though we are clear across the country. LS: Can you speak to the dynamic of the team this year? How do you motivate each other to perform your best? JK: The team this year is the best group we have had since I have been here. We all get along and do everything tog e t h e r.
These girls have turned into my family and we love to be around each other. We all work and have our own goals which then translate over to the team goals. LS: As a junior, how have you had to step up and be a leader on the team as captain? JK: I think the past couple years being the best on the team but still being an underclass man was hard. But this year I have been able to step up and really demonstrate how to create a competitive and cohesive team.
LS: What has been your favorite course or tournament to date during your college career?
Personal Profile
JK: I really like UNC Wilmington’s tournament. We played it the last two years but not this year but we get to return next year.
Hometown: Westminster, CO
LS: You were just recently selected to be on the Palmer Cup team along with freshman, Emilia Migliaccio. What are you most excited about going into this tournament in France this July?
emy
JK: I think traveling with her will be a lot of fun. I’m also really excited to get to know and compete alongside the men college golfers because I don’t really know that many guys besides our team here. Also France won’t be too bad either. I’ve never been so I hope we get to tour. LS: When you’re not studying or practicing, how do you spend your time? JK: I enjoy spending time with my friends. We like to watch movies and cook. I don’t really have much time so when I do it’s a miracle. LS: How are you preparing for the ACC Tournament and NCAA tournament ahead? What is the biggest thing on your mind going into tournament season?
JK: My brother. Growing up next to someone who has the same goals as you
Class: Junior Accolades: -Just named Colorado Sportswoman of the year - Holds school scoring record - Selected to 2018 Palmer Cup Team - 2017 NCAA Championship Runner-up
JK: I’m trying to get my game back. I’ve kind of had a rough year this year so I’m grinding and working hoping it will all come around for the final tournament. I don’t really have any goals I’m just trying not to worry and work with my team. LS: As the third ranked amateur nationally, do you see yourself playing golf as a career in the future? JK: Yes. I want to go professional. I definitely want to graduate before I go but that has been a long time dream of mine so I can’t wait to make it a reality.
LS: Who is your biggest role model in the golf world?
High School: Jefferson Acad-
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletic Communications
Deac Notes No. 1-ranked Wake Forest men’s tennis rallies to defeat No. 5 North Carolina
Men’s basketball coach Danny Manning to appear on Final Four pre-game show
The Wake Forest men’s tennis team traveled to Chapel Hill, N.C. on Wednesday, March 28, to face the No. 5 ranked Tar Heels. Freshman Bar Botzer proved clutch in the final match to give Wake Forest a 4-3 victory. In a tight final set, Botzer broke at 4-3 and served out to claim the match win. The Demon Deacons never faced a serious threat in the match, taking the initial doubles point and racing to a fairly expediant finish.
Danny Manning was selected to appear on both the the CBS Sports and Turner Sports pre-game coverage of the 2018 Final Four. Manning, who starred on the Kansas Jayhawks 1988 National Championship team, was likely selected due to the fact that Kansas will be participating in the Final Four. Manning’s championship team was nicknamed “Danny and the Miracles,” as he led the team to its second title in school history.
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletic Communications
Photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletic Communications
Old Gold & Black | Sports
Page 14 | Thursday, March 29, 2018
Predicting the 2018 MLB Awards In advance of Opening Day, these star players appear to be the early front-runners to take home baseball’s most coveted awards BY REN SCHMITT Sports Editor schmwm16@wfu.edu
Award predictions are a staple of preseason reporting across all professional sports, and the fallibility of these predictions is simultaneously mocked and celebrated, as expectations are built to be both challenged and affirmed. Regardless, the practice is, at the very least, entertaining, and the evolution of advanced statistics, especially in the MLB, has improved the ability of fans, journalists and front offices alike to assess more accurately the likelihood of certain outcomes. In spite of this fact, 2018 will not be immune to the parity and surprise that accompany a baseball season, but the following players have been deserving of the baseball world’s attention and commendations in the months following up to the season. National League MVP 3B Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs There was a spurious narrative making its rounds last season that Kris Bryant had somehow underperformed or disappointed during his 2017 campaign. The numbers tell a different story, however, as the 26-year-old third baseman earned a .295/.409/.537 slash line in 2017, which stacks up very nicely next to his slash line in his 2016 NL MVP season of .292/.385/.554. Though his home run total fell from 39 to 29, his approach markedly improved in the second half of 2017, and he appears to be set up to ride that momentum into the beginning of the 2018 season. In short, Kris Bryant has shown no signs of regression, and the young superstar is fully capable of outpacing the other MVP candidates again in 2018. American MVP
League
Mike Trout remains the undisputed greatest baseball player on the planet, so while other MVP picks might be more interesting, picking anyone other than Trout would be ill-advised. Trout missed significant time in 2017 after injuring his thumb on a slide, but he still managed to hit 33 home runs and collect an fWAR of 6.9 in just 114 games — these numbers are
National League Cy Young
American League Rookie of the Year SP/DH Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
Shohei Ohtani’s underwhelming spring training performance concerned many Angels fans and disappointed The comedy of errors that has been the proponents of the Japanese two-way New York Mets’ training staff in restar, but his talent is still undeniable. cent history has distracted from just Ohtani routinely touched 100 mph as how dominant Noah Syndergaard a starting pitcher in Japan, and he also has been when he is healthy. Across possesses an effective splitfinger and a seven starts last year, Syndergaard cartoonish slider. At 6’5, he certainly possessed an FIP of 1.31, and a looks the part both on the mound larger sample size in 2016 saw him and at the plate, and he posted earn an FIP of 2.29. a .588 slugging percentThere is plenty of competition for age in 2016 in the NPB this award in the National League, as (Nippon Professional Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw and Baseball). Stephen Strasburg all look poised Furthermore, the to push for the Cy Young in lack of “sure thing” 2018, but Syndergaard’s elite rookies in the AmerRobert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times/TNS stuff separates him from the ican League this season pack. His lat injury should not have any lasting helps Ohtani stand out, effect, and Syndergaard seems ready to peak as he has notable experience playing in 2018. at a professional level, albeit overseas. His season will be heavily reported AL Cy Young and scrutinized, and the Angels will have to balance his duties as a twoSP Chris Sale, Boston Red Sox way player, but if he puts together even a slightly above-average season, Corey Kluber and Chris Sale are likehe will likely receive the AL ROY ly the two most obvious candidates to run nod. away with this award in 2018, and for most of 2017, these two aces were the frontrunners. After an August ERA of 4.38, however, Sale fell out of the race. This will not happen again in 2018. A closer look at the numbers suggests that Sale fell victim to some poor luck in the August, as his 2.43 FIP was much lower than his aforementioned ERA. His strikeout rates last season were also the best of his career, as he posted a freakish K/9 of 12.93. Simply put, Chris Sale knows how to miss bats, and he knows how to do it often. He will continue to do so throughout the coming season. SP Noah Syndergaard, New York Mets
National League Rookie of the Year OF Ronald Acuña, Atlanta Braves
Thomas A. Ferrara/Newsday/TNS
For what it’s worth, he also recorded an exit velocity of 115.1 mph on a single in the Bravesfutures game this spring — a velocity higher than any Braves hit last season. The young star has such a well-rounded set of tools, that even when he inevitably struggles at the plate for periods during his rookie season, his value in other categories can carry him through such stretches.
Though the Braves elected to place Acuña on the AAA roster to begin the season for service time purposes, baseball’s No. 1 prospect should make his much-awaited debut in the middle of April. When that day finally comes, the five-tool prospect will finally be on display at the major league level, and his performances in the minors last season and in spring training this season suggest that he is as close to a “can’t miss” prospect as they come. The 20-year-old improved at each level of the minors last season, posting an .814 OPS at high A, an .895 OPS at AA and a .940 OPS at AAA.
Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS
CF Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
indescribably elite. In fact, his 181 wRC+ in 2017 was the highest of his career. Suggesting that the best player in the league could be improving may sound ludicrous, but it could be true. If Trout stays healthy, he will win the 2018 AL MVP.
Thursday, March 29, 2018 | Page 15
Sports | Old Gold & Black
Final Four: Teams play in San Antonio this weekend Continued from Page 11
Heading into the Final Four, the Michigan Wolverines — winner of 13-straight games — hopes to become the first national champion from the Big 10 since Michigan State in 2000. Throughout the tournament, Villanova has looked like the most dominant team. Villanova won both its Sweet 16 and Elite Eight matchups against West Virginia and Texas Tech, respectively, by 12 points. At no point in either game did they ever seem out of control. Even when they have not played their best, like in the game against Texas Tech, Villanova’s depth and talent have simply been too much for its opponents so far. Their Final Four matchup with Kansas will be their first true test all tournament. This leads right into the Kansas Jayhawks, who are coming off one of the most impressive wins of any team this tournament. In its Sweet 16 game, Kansas narrowly defeated Clemson 80-76, which meant they
would face second-seeded Duke in the marquee matchup of the tournament. The game was surrounded by hype and undoubtedly lived up to it. The game was a nonstop backand-forth between these two blue bloods. With about 30 seconds remaining, Kansas guard Svi Mykhailuk drilled a clutch three-pointer to tie the game at 72. Instead of opting to call a timeout, Coach K let his players run a play, which resulted in an isolation drive for senior guard Grayson Allen. Allen drove and put up a fade-away shot that hit the backboard twice and the rim five times, yet somehow did not fall and the game went to overtime. When overtime came, Malik Newman took over for Kansas, scoring all 13 points for the Jayhawks to lead them to an 85-81 victory over the Blue Devils. The Final Four has the makings to be an epic game. With two true blue bloods left on one side, and a Cinderella story and one of the naWally Skalij/Los Angeles Times/TNS tion’s hottest teams on the other, the tournament is set up for an exciting Phil Cofer (0) of Florida State dunks against the Gonzaga defense in the reigonal semifinal at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. finish.
Injured stars may impact the NBA playoff race Kyrie Irving and Stephen Curry’s injuries might affect Celtics and Warriors BY JONATHAN BELL Staff Writer belljh15@wfu.edu It’s almost upon us. With the Final Four coming this weekend, the absolute peak of the sports year is just entering it’s upswing. Baseball kicks off on Thursday and the NBA and NHL playoffs will ramp up in a couple weeks. It’s also the time when we begin to see which teams are serious in their quest for wins. However, as the NBA winds to a close, one thing can put a damper on any teams’ championship dreams: injuries. Let’s talk about two big injuries and how they’re going to shake up the playoff races. Kyrie Irving Boston Celtics “Minimally Invasive Knee Procedure, 3-6 weeks” This one hurts if you’re a Celtics fan. One of the major questions surrounding Irving as he ascends to superstar status in the league is that of his durability. Irving has played 70 games or more in a season three times, but this year as he finished at 60 games. The Celtics are a whole new team when playing with Irving; Boston’s offensive rating is nearly seven points better when he’s on the floor. Without him, despite
the emergence of Terry Rozier as a playmaker from the point guard position, the Celtics struggle to consistently get good offensive possessions. With ball-hawking defensive specialist Marcus Smart also out (potentially for multiple rounds of the playoffs as well), the Celtics went from being as deep as anyone in the backcourt to suddenly very thin. Add this to key-reserve Daniel Theis being lost for the year, and the Celtics’ roster is lacking the true bench presence it had relied on earlier in the season. Giving significant minutes to Abel Nader and Shane Larkin this deep in the season certainly isn’t ideal and in the playoffs is ghastly. Will the Celtics still probably make it past the Heat, Bucks or Wizards without Irving? Probably, but it’s certainly not a guarantee, especially with their apparent problems staying healthy. As for the later rounds, if the Celtics face fully healthy Raptors or Cavaliers, it’s hard to imagine them finding a way to win without Irving at 100 percent.
Irving. Yes, Al Horford is a great player, but he lacks the ability to take over games. The Warriors are so talented across the board that even without one of their four all-stars they can beat nearly anyone in a seven-game series. But, as the playoffs get closer to the conference and NBA finals, the Warriors certainly need to be at full strength. Houston has won 10 games in a row. The swashbuckling “three musketeers”-esque trio of James Harden, Clint Capela and Chris Paul together lost one game in nearly 40 tries. The Rockets are playing at elite levels only matched
by the Warriors team of two years ago. Even if Curry is back by the playoffs but not 100 percent, the likelihood of the Warriors winning that series doesn’t look great. Traditionally, grade two MCL sprains take around six weeks to heal; that’s how long Durant was out with his last year. If I were coach Steve Kerr, I’d rely on the rest of the team to carry them past the first two rounds and potentially wouldn’t play Curry at all (unless absolutely necessary) to give my team the best possible chance to win when it matters.
Steph Curry Golden State Warriors “Grade 2 MCL sprain, No Timetable for Return” While Irving and Curry are both star point guards in their respective conferences, Curry’s injury affects the shakeup of the playoff race a little bit differently than Irving’s. When Gordon Hayward went down five minutes into the season, the Celtics’ season almost immediately lived and died with the performance of
Vernon Bryant/Dallas Morning News/TNS
Kyrie Irving (11) makes a shot for the Boston Celtics in a game against the Dallas Mavericks. Irving’s knee problem could weaken the team come playoffs.
LIFE
T H U R S D AY, M A R C H 2 9 , 2 0 1 8
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O n l i n e at : w w w. w f u o g b. co m e d i t o r s : Emily Beauchamp, beauea17@wfu.edu Olivia Field, fielor17@wfu.edu A S S I S TA N T E D I T O R : S a r a h B o y c e , b o y c s e 1 5 @ w f u . e d u
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Behind the scenes with the Banshees Although their shows are only an hour long, the Lilting Banshees spend months curating the comedy that goes into their sketches.
BY OLIVIA FIELD Life Editor fielor17@wfu.edu On Wed. March 28, the Lilting Banshees had two sold-out shows featuring hilarious skits about everything from Greek Life, bird calls, the excessively long line at Chick-Fil-a and more. Throughout the hourlong show, the audience could be found smirking, giggling or in all-out fits of laughter. Beyond the event, however, most students have little knowledge on how the Banshees come to have perfect deliveries for their jokes. When I sat down with three members of the Banshees, seniors Samuel Ederle, Robert Shavel and sophomore Cooper Blaze, on the Monday before their show, they unsurprisingly cracked numerous jokes among themselves. However, they also revealed many details about how the comedy troupe functions, both as an organization and a family. “The goal of Banshees is to be an outlet on campus for all students to go and be able to forget about all of the expectations, stress and difficulties that come with being a college student, to go and laugh at themselves, to laugh at each other and have a good hour to just kinda forget everything,” Ederle, who is also the director, said. For this to be achieved, the 22 members of the troupe start to plan the show three months in advance. For most of this period, they get together three to four times a week and pitch ideas for sketches. During this process, Ederle and Assistant Director Meghan Shannon choose their favorite ideas and divide the members into groups to further refine the pitch. By the end of this process, Shavel said they have anywhere from 50 to 100 sketches to work with. “Then, we will spend a whole day doing something called War Room, which is from 10 a.m. to sometimes 1 a.m., and we will talk through every single sketch and make a unanimous decision about which ones get in the show. By then, we are exhausted but really happy with the outcome,” Shavel said.
Olivia Field/ Old Gold & Black
In this skit, the Banshees performed a twisted version of the Teletubbies where they complained about having sexually transmitted diseases, D.U.I.s and kinks, all while dancing around a tree. Although there is an Executive Board that deals mostly with the administrative aspects of the organization, every member has an equal role when it comes to writing sketches and performing on stage. Ederle discussed how one of the most important aspects is Banshee’s creative, non judgemental atmosphere that allows members to share any jokes that come to mind. With a wide range of material coming from a diverse conglomerate of people, each show is a curation of the group’s best work.
Olivia Field/ Old Gold & Black
During the first skit of the night, the Banshee members recreated the story of Adam and Eve. In their hilarious reproduction, however, Adam ate the apple and God ended up blaming it on Eve.
In the interest of this creative climate, the group actually voted against me sitting in on a rehearsal. While making a joke about the Banshees being as secretive as the Order of the 23, Ederle explained the precarious balance between the evolution of their content and their private, yet freeing, environment. “What you guys see on the stage on Wednesday is not what happens at rehearsal on Monday because we are continuously messing with these characters and trying to find different awesome parts to it. I kind of love the secrecy,” Ederle said. Many members join the fall of their freshman year, spending much of their college career as a Banshee. Shavel, for instance, tried out after the director reached out to him because of the amusing jokes he used on campaign posters for Student Government. Freshman Marianna Trabanino is one of the few new members this year, who decided she wanted to audition after seeing the Welcome to Wake show. “I joined because I love to make people laugh,” Trabanino said. “The audition process was insanely long and structured in a way that only those deemed ‘pee your pants’ funny would get in.” Ultimately, the tight-knit group of students have grown to become a family both inside and outside of their duties as Banshee members. Both Ederle and Shavel’s fondest memories include hanging out, getting together for parties and dinners and going on group retreats. “Being with this group not only lets me identify with this family I’ve become a part of, but it’s also the most ‘me’ that I am,” Blaze said. “If I want someone to get to know me I’d say ‘hey, come to the show’ and you’d see what I love and get to see me share it with a lot of people from such a wide range of areas on campus. It’s helped me create such a unique opportunity for me to kind of be ‘me.’”
Thursday, March 29, 2018 | Page 17
Life | Old Gold & Black
Television Show Review | Grey’s Anatomy
Rhimes should return to roots Writers of Grey’s Anatomy should stop constantly bringing in new characters BY BECKY SWIG Print Managing Editor swigrr15@wfu.edu Whether you have been with Grey’s Anatomy from the beginning or got your start on Netflix, you have probably been wholeheartedly invested in the show for 14 seasons. You’ve been there through crazy times like the ferry crash of season three, the mass shooting in season six, the plane crash of season eight and other pivotal and dramatic episodes throughout the 14-year run. Through it all, Grey’s Anatomy has lost main cast members and rapidly replaced them with new ones, as with the departure of Eric Dane’s Mark Sloan and Chyler Leigh’s Lexie Grey, as with their replacements of the “new intern class.” The series has lost numerous main cast members and now has a main cast of 14 characters, with more than a dozen other characters recurring. The show started with nine main cast members. What Grey’s Anatomy has done over the years is replace key characters with more irrelevant characters hoping to fill the void. This changed the cast from a reasonable number of main characters to too many to keep track of, putting many on the backburner and in wasted plot lines.
Photo courtesy of imdb.com
Ellen Pompeo (left) is one of the most well-known cast members. Earlier this month it was announced that Jessica Capshaw and Sarah Drew, who play Arizona Robbins and April Kepner respectively, will be leaving the show after season 14 due to “creative reasons.” Capshaw has been a part of the show since season five and Drew since season six. This announcement has shocked fans, especially as Drew has done an exceptional job this season tackling a tough and newfound version of her character. Additionally, the writers made a big change for Capshaw by bringing her character’s young daughter back to Seattle after being in New York for a good chunk of time. Capshaw and Drew’s characters have been important representatives for the LGBTQ
and Christian communities respectively. Both characters have been pillars and strong icons during their tenure on the show. Fans raised more than $1,000 shortly after the announcement was made to have a banner saying: “We [love] Sarah Drew and Jessica Capshaw” flown over the Grey’s Anatomy studio during the cast and crew lunch break. Fans have gone to Twitter and other social media platforms to express their concerns and unrest regarding the decisions to release Capshaw and Drew from the show. Many have cited the “creative reasons” as a fault on the writers for bringing in so many characters and not being able to balance it all. In season 14, the writers brought in yet another intern class, leaving even less screen time for the main cast. What the writers of the show need to realize is that bringing in too many new characters does not save the show and keep it fresh, it ruins what the fans love so much. If there are too many characters to write for, the writers should consider getting rid of the new interns who do not advance the plot and take time away from plot lines that main characters are involved in. Shonda Rhimes, the show’s creator, and the writers need to reflect on the roots and values of the show, and return to them. Bringing in characters that the fans have no connection to is not a way to freshen up the series. Focusing on the characters that fans love and giving them exciting plot lines will keep fans dedicated and happy.
Event Review | Ida B. Wells workshop
Students learn at journalism workshop Reporters from New YorkTimes and ProPublica shared research tips with students
Courses you will “definitely” ace
As Fall class selection is upon us, here are ten classes that will “surely” boost your G.P.A. By Olivia Field
1.
Accounting 111 Organic Chemistry 122
3. 5.
Computer Science 101 Economics 150 Linear Algebra 121 Spanish 319L
7.
Advanced Painting 222 Intermediate Arabic 153
9.
Biochem:Macromols 370 Finance 1101Mini APRIL FOOLS!
DRINK OF THE WEEK
BY ERIN STEPHENS Senior Writer stepec14@wfu.edu Journalism students spent last Saturday learning investigative reporting techniques from reporters from The New York Times and ProPublica at the Ida B. Wells Society’s investigative reporting workshop. “I thought this was a great opportunity to learn from these journalists, especially since they were journalists of color because they described their experiences as being different than their white colleagues,” said junior Maaheen Hasnain, a Wake Forest journalism student. “Being a person of color, it was beneficial hearing diverse perspectives because I have not gotten the chance to do that much yet as a journalism student.” Ron Nixon and Topher Sanders, two of the four founders of the Ida B. Wells Society, led the workshop using practical examples from their experiences as journalists. The society, named after the African-American journalist who led the anti-lynching crusade in the 1890’s, offers low-cost workshops to equip journalists of all skill levels with investigative reporting skills. Its mission is to empower and train reporters and editors of color in the field. Nixon is currently a Washington correspondent for The New York Times and covers the Department of Homeland Security.
THE HOT LIST
Erin Stephens/ Old Gold & Black
Wake Forest journalism students line up for a group photograph with the investigative reporters who led Saturday’s workshop event. Sanders currently covers racial inequality for the investigative journalism organization ProPublica but was previously honored for his data-driven reporting at The Florida TimesUnion. The day-long event held in Farrell Hall was co-sponsored by the Wake Forest Journalism Program, the Anna Julia Cooper (AJC) Center and WFDD. The workshop featured sessions that ranged from the nitty gritty how-to’s of accessing public records and filing FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests to an interactive lesson on pitching stories to editors. “A great idea goes nowhere if you can’t explain it,” Nixon said, encouraging workshop participants to focus on pitching their ideas the way they would talk to friends about the story.
This hands-on session highlighted the informal and intimate atmosphere of the workshop that Nixon and Sanders cultivated as leaders. Throughout the day they encouraged participants to ask questions during the sessions and share stories from their own varied levels of journalistic experience. Participants included the “BLACK ON CAMPUS” student journalists and professional journalists from around the state. “I really enjoyed the investigative reporting workshop because it was one of the few conferences that I left feeling like I had learned a lot of new information,” said Heather Hartel, of the Old Gold & Black and a Wake Forest journalism minor. “Before, I would’ve assumed I knew a lot about investigative reporting, but this showed me I still have so much more to learn.”
• 1 bottle of Rosé wine • 1/2 cup of white sugar • 1 1/2 cups strawberry lemonade • 1 cup sliced strawberries • 2 cups ginger ale Stir together the wine, strawberries, lemonade and sugar in a large pitcher. Chill the mixture overnight. Right before serving, top with ginger ale and ice. Enjoy!
21+ only!
Coutesy of The Spruce
Page 18 | Thursday, March 29, 2018
Old Gold & Black | Life
Lifestyle Column | Summer Housing
Finding summer housing requires effort As many Wake Forest students complete internships over the summer, here are tips for acquiring the best housing options BY HEATHER HARTEL Online Managing Editor harthf15@wfu.edu As the ambitious, high-achieving young professionals Wake Forest students tend to be, most of you are likely looking for summer housing in cities across the country for summer internships. Whether it be Washington D.C., New York City, Charlotte or somewhere far-west like Los Angeles, looking for housing as an undergrad is overwhelming. Internships, if paid at all, are paid minimally and are by default short-term, meaning no real leases can be signed. For these reasons, being smart and intentional in a housing search is crucial to make sure you’re getting the most out of your summer experience while also not getting scammed into overpaying for rent. Last summer I spent three months in Washington D.C. for a politics internship. Going into the summer I knew I was on a restricted budget because my internship paid very little, and I was also stressed about housing, as I knew nobody in Washington. Eventually, however, I found a space in Georgetown for the absurdly cheap price of $600/ month for my own bedroom and bathroom. This rate for a room in a new Georgetown townhouse did not just happen into my life, however, it came with over a month of searching and reaching out to random people. For luck with your summer housing, here is some advice. Join all of the Facebook groups available. To get your housing from a complete stranger online may sound an
Heather Hartel/ Old Gold & Black
Hartel’s Washington D.C. apartment included one bedrooom and one bath for an affordable price. internal alarm at first, but more often than not, these Facebook users are just other students or young professionals looking for short-term subleases. These Facebook groups
exist in every city, and bigger cities have multiple groups. I found my housing from a Georgetown University subleasing group, but for my job in Charlotte this summer, I looked at UNCC and other Charlotte housing groups. To ensure you aren’t getting into trouble with online personalities, have them send additional photos of the space and sign an official lease agreement with them once you agree on a price and move-in date. Craigslist works the same way, and usually offers even cheaper options than Facebook, but it’s harder to verify the validity of the person listing the apartments on the site. Regardless of whether you use Craigslist or Facebook, try and visit the location before agreeing to pay if possible. If not, either have a friend from the area visit or ask the seller to send you photos and/or videos of the space to make sure it’s what you’re looking for, and what was listed. Another option is to reach out to people you know living in the area. Whether other students or family friends, you most likely have some connection to the place you’re choosing to live and work over the summer. If these people don’t have an extra bedroom to offer you, they may, at a minimum, know someone else that they can connect you with, or have insight into the best places to live in the area. Locals have better advice to offer about their cities than you can find from research, meaning recommending the safest places to live, easiest commutes or even the most fun areas for young people to move to. While searching for and ultimately finding an internship is a stressful process in itself, figuring out where to live in an unknown city is another added layer of stress. For students, it’s easy to overpay for summer housing through other universities or housing organizations, but being creative and using all available resources — such as the internet and personal connections to the city — will allow you to find the best option for the best price.
Music Review | Kyle Craft
Artist approaches music with creative maturity With a humble beginning and original outlook on music, Kyle Craft’s songs are deserving of a large fan base BY HARRISON MCCAMY Contributing Writer mccajh14@wfu.edu Kyle Craft is one of those rare artists that I have been able to follow since his small, self-recorded beginnings; it is all too often that we only discover artists after they have been signed to a major label, I remember stumbling upon songs such as “Melanie,” “Horseshoe Crab” and “The Morning Sum” years ago, while Craft was still recording in a band as Gashcat. I discovered this after searching for Neutral Milk Hotel-esque bands. While comparisons between the two can be drawn largely in the raw vocal and lyrical passion between Craft and Jeff Mangum, Craft has created a unique sound, while still citing David Bowie, Bob Dylan and The Beach Boys as influences. After building up a fanbase and finishing small tours with friends, Craft eventually made his way from his hometown Shreveport, LA to the Seattle W.A. offices of Sub Pop — most famous for grunge bands Nirvana and Soundgarden — where “fate was smiling upon Sub Pop, not Kyle Craft,” as Sub Pop representatives put it. Sub Pop has a notoriously harsh demo policy, bluntly stating on their website that “it is extremely rare that a band gets signed on the strengths of a demo alone.” Craft had shyly
TRIVIA
QUESTION
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left a CD with the Sub Pop receptionist and went on his way. Now, he has successfully released two original albums with Sub Pop — Dolls of Highland and Full Circle Nightmare — and has left his previous lo-fi sound behind with the availability of a full studio. The increased instrumentations most recognizable in songs such as “Gloom Girl,” “Exile Rag” and “Fake Magic Angel.” Craft sings with a full-hearted confidence, not shying away from full-lunged wails. This is most apparent in “Lady of the Ark” and “Horseshoe Crab,” always reminding the listener that he gives every note everything he has. Lyrically, Craft writes about relationships, party culture, religion, love and loss, and is not afraid to tackle tougher subjects, especially in songs like “The Rager” and “Berlin.” Craft’s wit can be found in lines such as, “Lady of the ark, I think you were the start/ I think you were the key with which his heart was closed,” “The jester choked on his jokes in the spotlight” and “Your precious dirge upon the stage was so drowned out/ But I realized it’s not the song or the stage that made you shine/ It’s the way you speak, your soft mystique.” Craft demonstrates a wisdom beyond his years while commenting on priorities in our culture when singing “Gathered the jewelry, melted it down, made for yourself to go idolize.” In addition to his original work, Craft has released an album of covers of his favorite female singers and songwriters, entitled Girl Crazy, featuring covers from Jenny Lewis, Cher, St. Vincent, Blondie, Sharon Van Etten, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Patsy Cline, TLC, Karen Dalton and Patti Smith. Craft has also covered Leonard Cohen’s 1974 classic, “Chelsea Hotel #2,” swapping the guitar for
Q: Where was the Human Library?
A: Wake Downtown
Photo courtesy of amazon.com
Kyle Craft’s first album, titled Dolls of Highland, features his underrated and unique musical prowess. a piano and again demonstrating his vocal prowess. Craft is still young, only 29 years old, and has many fans and outstanding originals under his belt. He leaves listeners looking forward to seeing him expand his musical style, ability and impact.
This question will be featured in the Tuesday Trivia night, taking place on April 3 at Magnolia Room
Life | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, March 29, 2018 | Page 19
Lawrence’s stellar performance saves spy film Red Sparrow benefits from its political moment, but remains an average film lifted by its shining star
BY KYLE FERRER Opinion Editor ferrka16@wfu.edu
Photo courtesy of imdb.com
Director Francis Lawrence’s new film Red Sparrow feels especially relevant in the wake of Icarus, a Netflix original film about state-sponsored Russian doping, taking home Best Documentary Feature at the Oscars. Unfortunately, while Icarus is an exposé worthy of Academy acclaim, Red Sparrow is considerably less venerable. They are different films, no doubt, but only one deserves lasting conversation. While Francis Lawrence’s film does its best to fit the bill of intrigue, it falls short in terms of creative, vivacious filmmaking. It is yet another iteration of the organizational tete-atete we have all become used to in spy films. The tropes of espionage are to their fullest effect, and while the film remains a somewhat intriguing one to watch, it will likely prove to be less a beast of endurance than ephemeral entertainment. It is a flash in the pan of the inconsistent moviegoer, heavier than a Friday night rom-com, but only heavier in the sense of its subject. In its treatment of such a subject, it inhabits a similarly banal world. It’s the classic secret agent version of whodunit — a mole root-out — much like Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, only less sophisticated and intelligent. Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) is the soloist of the Bolshoi, a Russian balletic paradigm poised to keep her spot atop the premier Russian dance company. But when her leg is grotesquely smashed during an on-stage accident (something quickly found to be the jealous machinations of a dancer with a dream), her ballet career shatters alongside her tibia. Dominika uses the Bolshoi’s benefits to pay for her diseased mother’s medical care. Without it, her mother will be sent to the woefully underfunded federal facility. Dominika’s uncle, Ivan Egorov (Matthias Schoennaerts), is the deputy director of the SVR, Russia’s external intelligence agency. He approaches Dominika, post-injury, as the Putinesque bureaucrat she knows he is, and offers her a chance to continue to care for her mother through a favor to him, and to the state at large. She is to seduce a Russian politician and switch out his phone with a statetapped one. A simple task, but of course it becomes the convoluted mess that launches the entire film. During the operation, set in a glittering
Photo courtesy of imdb.com
Russian hotel fit for a king (or the state’s top officials), Dominika is assaulted by the politician, and saved from the savagery by an operative of the state. Though now, Dominika has seen things she should not have seen (things assiduously placed and planned), and is offered what many view as the Russian state’s proposition to all its citizens from birth: serve the interests of the state in perpetuity, or die. The only way for Dominika to continue to be able to pay for her mother’s care is to choose service. Soon after, Dominika is sent to a state-sponsored facility that trains women and men in the art of sexual espionage. Through psychological and physical scrutinization, exacted by the brutally uncompromising Matron (Charlotte Rampling) of the “Sparrow School,” the recruits are trained to be the perfect sexual sociopath. To be a Red Sparrow is to be an inveterate emotional liar. Dominika resists some aspects of her training, but is ultimately pushed through by her uncle, along with General Vladimir Korchnoi (Jeremy Irons) and sent on her first mission, to infiltrate American CIA operative, Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton), in order to find the mole ratting out Russian secrets to the American intelligence agencies. What follows is an intricate devolution of betrayals and semi-baffling surprises as the film dashes toward its 139th minute. A line uttered early in the film is indicative of the Russian state’s men, in both the film and the real world. Nate quips: “You only matter in Russia if important people think you matter.” Dominika responds, “Is that so much different than America?” It is a worthwhile question, although as General Korchnoi puts it later in the film, “at least, in America, personal freedom is an aspiration.” In Russia, it is not even a false pretense. The comparative freedom of America to Russia is evident, but America faces its own, possibly more insidious social issues, and the film’s tongue-in-cheek nod towards domestic unrest is one of its best moments. The despotic chokehold of the Russian state within its own country, and its attempt at sowing worldwide discord is particularly resonant both in the film and in life. Our own domestic quandaries sizzle in the background. Political relevance aside, the saving grace of Red Sparrow lies in the performance of Jennifer Lawrence,
undeniably the best and most distinctive part of the film. Although larger failures abound, Jennifer Lawrence pushes Red Sparrow forward with clenched fists. Her accent may be a bit difficult to verify (Jeremy Irons seems to have made little-to-no attempt to erase his British lilt), but her performance is in no way shaky. She is outstanding, and in the scene-by-scene nuance she concentrates on keeping the film from falling off a precipice. Jennifer Lawrence is a prodigious actor and a pleasure to watch on screen. Her theatrical largesse, giving herself and her character to the audience in fullbodied passion, is something to be lionized. Similar to Jessica Chastain in Molly’s Game, Jennifer Lawrence spearheads another average film buoyed for the most part by its leading actor (although I would put Molly’s Game significantly behind Red Sparrow, if only because Sorkin’s expectations were so high). Both women deploy femininity past the archetypal femme fatale, using their legitimate intelligence to throw the realm of misogynistic men into convulsion. The rest of the film, aside from Jennifer Lawrence, largely sags back onto the template of convention and mass-appeal, but the fierce feminism Jennifer Lawrence exudes is all but a revelation. Sadly, although Jennifer Lawrence digests her role completely, everyone else’s performance seems not quite up to snuff. Edgerton, while charming, does little to bolster the viewer’s emotional investment. He may indeed have some acting talent, but it is not on display in the CIA briefing room. Jennifer Lawrence’s undeniable magnetism is what makes the film tolerable. It is actually a shame Red Sparrow falls ultimately under the umbrella of a satisfying night-out, as opposed to becoming an exceptional genre-film, because it has the whiff of great potential. The story is indeed quite intricate, and Jennifer Lawrence gratifies its every intention. But execution, on the whole, forms little to be excited about. Excepting that the spy is the powerful and noble Jennifer Lawrence, a woman writhing under the weight of the Russian state, the film’s merits are slim. I wish I could sing greater praise for Red Sparrow because it is always a great sadness to see great performances swallowed up by a largely average film. Jennifer Lawrence is a wondrous talent, and has been for some time. None of that has changed. But Red Sparrow, in its delicate balance of double-agency and intrigue, is a fragile film, and ultimately doesn’t take much to crack.
Page 20 | Thursday, March 29, 2018
Old Gold & Black | Life
QUAD FASHION: SPRING EDITION As winter turns into spring, students are taking advantage of the warmer weather. During this transition period, dresses, short sleeves and casual jeans are beginning to pop up around campus.
BY EMILY BEAUCHAMP Life Editor beauea17@wfu.edu
Rose O’Brien, senior
March takes advantage of the first warm day of spring by wearing a casual tank top and comfy high-waisted jeans. She keeps the sun out of her eyes with a pair of black sunglasses and sports a pair of black flats to match.
Emily Beauchamp/Old Gold & Black
O’Brien’s outfit is the perfect way to stay warm during those cool spring mornings while still being prepared for the hotter afternoons. Sporting a long-sleeved dress paired with white sandals, her outfit is functional for all hours of the day.
Isabel March, senior
Jay Thompson, junior
Lorraine Hayes, freshman
Sporting a casual plaid button down and black jeans, Thompson embraces the fluctuating temperatures that come along with spring. As sunny weather is now expected, he sports a hat and cool blues to avoid the heat.
Hayes transforms the average comfy sweater into a spring-styled ensemble by adding a jean skirt. Paired with white tennis shoes, her outfit is perfect for attending class or heading off-campus for the holiday weekend.