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2-28-22 Emerald Media - Monday Edition

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FEB. 28, 2022 Monday Edition

Emerald Media

A BETTER WAY UO professors and other community members push back against the harmful impact of fad diets and discuss better approaches to health.

SPORTS

OPINION

MEN'S BASKETBALL FALLS TO NO. 16 USC TROJANS PG 4

CLIMATE HOPELESSNESS IS NOT THE SOLUTION PG 8

NEWS

OREGON DOJ BLOCKS PROPOSED OFF-RESERVATION CASINO PG 10 M O N D AY, F E B R U A R Y 2 8 , 2 0 2 2

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MOVIE RECOMMENDATION: “Last Night In SoHo” Summary: Eloise Turner is an aspiring fashion designer who finds herself experiencing vivid time traveling dreams to the 1960s. It is here she becomes enamored with the dazzling glamor of a wannabe singer Sandie. As she delves deeper into the past, she uncovers a darker mystery as her reality begins to splinter and meld with her dreams. A psychological thriller, "Last Night in Soho" offers a mysterious trip to the past.

Email editor@dailyemerald.com to submit a tip or a letter to the editor. The ideal length for a letter is 200-500 words, but we publish letters of various lengths online.

Recommended by: Keaton Straub, senior majoring in cinema studies "The film has overall themes of sexism and how history is connected to your current life,” Straub said. “There is a lot going on, and it's all organized really well. If you really like twists and turns, this is your movie."

(Maisie Plew/Emerald) M O N D AY, F E B R U A R Y 2 8 , 2 0 2 2

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SPORTS OREGON MEN'S BASKETBALL FALLS TO NO. 16 USC TROJANS

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BY CHARLES GEARING TWITTER @GEARINGCHARLIE Down by 1 with less than a minute remaining, the Ducks marched up the floor in search of heroics. As point guard Will Richardson became engulfed by defenders under the basket, he looked to the wing where he found a wide open Quincy Guerrier. Guerrier perfected the catch-and-shoot, delivering a flawless corner 3 to put the Ducks up 2 with 25 seconds remaining. Matthew Knight Arena exploded. The floor, seats and backboards shook as if by divine power. But soon, it was made eerily silent and completely still by the hand of USC guard Drew Peterson, who stamped out the Ducks’ dreams with a game-winning 3. Game-leading guard Peterson and the No. 16 USC Trojans (25-4, 14-4 Pac12) defeated the Ducks (18-11, 11-7 Pac12) 70-69 in Eugene on Saturday. Midway through the first half, Ducks’ head coach Dana Altman paced the sideline, shaking his head in bewilderment. Oregon’s mistakes, miscues and near silence from 3 gave way to a 14-2 Trojan run. Trailing by 11, one thing was painstakingly clear: Something needed to change, and fast. Oregon found answers in its supporting cast. A 3-pointer from guard De’Vion Harmon got the pit crew on its feet, and an alley-oop dunk from Eric Williams Jr. incited a 13-0 Oregon run in the following minutes. By the half, Oregon was hanging on by a thread with a 32-31 lead. The Trojans’ strong shooting helped them weather the storm against Oregon’s tenacious and opportunistic play. Despite its timely and lengthy runs, Oregon remained locked in a dogfight with the Trojans up until the final buzzer. The Trojans shot a prolific 42% from 3, in stark contrast to the Ducks 26%. “Our guards, we’ve kind of depended on them all year to be scoring threats,

and they didn’t shoot it well tonight,” Altman said. “We just didn’t get the looks, didn’t get the shots to fall.” But what the Ducks couldn’t do from 3, they made up for in transition, seizing every opportunity to win boards, create turnovers and break down the floor for points. Oregon forced a much-needed 11 turnovers on Saturday. Richardson and Williams Jr. served as critical linchpins to the Ducks’ transition attack, using their athleticism to cut down the lane and kick the ball across the paint to open scorers. N’Faly Dante and Quincy Guerrier were the primary beneficiaries. The two accounted for 28 of the team’s points, the vast majority of which came from the paint. Guerrier led the Ducks with 15 points. “I thought he did some really good things on the boards, and obviously he hit a few shots for us which was really big for us,” Altman said. “I thought he played really well.” The Ducks' paint presence was proficient on the defensive side as well. Guerrier was a force, putting pressure on USC’s Isaiah Mobley and Chevez Goodwin through physical and disciplined play. He led the Ducks in rebounds, with 10 on the night. The bulk of USC’s points came in the soft spots of the Oregon defensive scheme, from mid-range. Peterson shot 50% from the field, good for a teamhigh 20 points. The Ducks’ shortcoming in Matthew Knight on Saturday has hefty implications. What was once an outside chance at a March Madness appearance has spiraled further. If the Ducks will see the tournament, they’ll almost certainly need a Pac-12 title first. The team will look to right the ship as they take on Washington in Seattle next Thursday.

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COVER

BREAKING DOWN MYTHS UO health experts challenge diet fads and the stigma surrounding weight, encouraging people to eat and exercise in ways that make them feel good. BY AISHA GHORASHIAN • TWITTER @AGHORASHIAN19

Jessica Campbell is an assistant director of fitness at University of Oregon’s Department of Physical Education and Recreation. (Photo courtesy of Jesscia Campbell)

Counting calories meticulously before spring break; cutting out food for 12 hours at a time to lose weight; avoiding certain foods like the plague — even in small portions. These common behaviors illustrate the effects of fad or restrictive diets. Fad diets, quick and easy weight loss programs and restrictive eating plague the fitness world. There are many contradictory fitness and meal plans that different people swear by. What are these fads and diets? Are they even effective? Fad diets are a way to approach meal planning that claim to help you lose weight very quickly. Similarly, restrictive diets, which may be a part of fad diets, are meal plans that emphasize less caloric intake to help you lose weight. Some infamous examples are keto, paleo, juice cleanses and intermittent fasting. According to the Boston Medical Center, around 45 million Americans go on diets each year, and Americans spend $33 billion on weight loss products annually. While they are marketed and packaged well, the actual benefits of fad diets are lacking. Many UO community members are pushing back against diet fads and trying to encourage a different approach. Fitness and nutrition specialists and other experts on campus said diet fads are, for the most part, harmful myths, and there are other ways to promote positive changes to your health. The myth of fad diets The concept of dieting has been around for ages. However, the rise of quick and easy diet programs is relatively new. With the increased popularity of fitness gurus on social media, such as Kayla Itsines and Sommer Ray, dieting trends are circulating like wildfire. But according to Dr. Robert Shmerling from Harvard Medical School, most of these intense diets do not have long lasting effects. Jen Blackburn, a fitness and nutrition specialist at the University of Oregon’s PE and Rec, explains that “yo-yo diets,” which is a pattern of losing weight and then gaining it back again, tend to have quick results that are not long lasting. “People are under the misconception that they can do these fast and easy programs, and this weight stays off,” Blackburn said. “A fad diet is a trendy weight loss plan that promises dramatic results. But people can follow these programs for a short period of time, but

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Alexis Barrett/Daily Emerald

then what? What happens at the end of the plan? When you get to that goal, well people slowly go back to their old habits.” Similarly, Jessica Campbell, assistant director of fitness at University of Oregon’s Department of Physical Education and Recreation, says that most people’s intentions with fad dieting stem from an “ideal body goal.” Alternatively, there is this notion that going on a diet means someone is intending to lose weight. However, according to Campbell, “The word diet is just what you eat. It’s what you fuel your body with every day; it doesn’t have to be the paleo or keto. Paying attention to which foods digest well or give me energy is more important. And that is so different for all of us because of our chemical makeup.” Outside of the fact that fad diets tend to lead to ineffective short-term results, having a healthy body is about more than just cutting back on food. “I think a lot of people think that they are going to lose weight by just being active or eating a certain way, but what is even more important is how we are fueling our body,” Ashley Paget, a group fitness instructor at the Rec Center, said. “Focusing on the way we look does have an unhealthy effect, but people are realizing that what we eat is very important.” The reality of fad diets is that most people gain the weight back and people feel worse afterwards, but these diets continue. One of the driving forces behind them is the weight stigma. Weight stigma There seems to be an underlying fear of gaining weight. Between 2013-2016 49.1% of people in the U.S. tried to lose weight, and there was an even higher percentage among women. Research published in ScienceDirect found that there is a strong correlation between social media and body image; specifically people internalizing various body ideals and wanting to emulate those. Social media influencers and celebrities seem to have “perfect” skinny bodies that people want to emulate. Campbell explains she hasn’t seen one fad diet take over but rather people


COVER trying to reach a certain body type. In her experience, many people will try various diets to reach their ideal body goal. Someone’s reason for working out and eating a balanced diet is what drives behavior, she said. For many people, the root of the thought comes from wanting to lose weight rather than feel good. Weight stigma is pervasive in the United States, and it drives not only cultural standards, but also medical professionals. According to a New York Times piece, many doctors and clinicians focus on the “weight” aspect of health and push various diet regimens on patients. Additionally, UO professors Elizabeth Budd, Nicole Giuliani and Nichole Kelly explained that weight stigma is pervasive and at the core of most health approaches. Kelly said there is an effort in the medical field to do something about larger bodies to limit chronic disease, like type 2 diabetes. “But then people start oversimplifying the problem and attribute it solely to individuals,” she said. “There is this theory called attribution theory which underlies a lot of prejudices.” Giuliani said there is a different culture in the medical profession when it comes to working with patients with larger bodies. “There are no other physical conditions that I am aware of where a doctor thinks ‘I just need to be meaner to get them to change’ in the same way that folks take that approach with people with bigger bodies.” Dr. Giuliani, Dr. Kelly and Dr. Budd expressed that there are unhealthy approaches to weight loss in the medical field and society in general. Budd said that these biases are very ingrained in our system, similar to discrmination around race, ethnicity, sexuality, disabilities, etc. “We do see other biases playing out in the medical settings that are built into our systems and our environment,” Budd said. “Like the size of chairs and airplane seats, bathroom stalls, which lead to discrimination.” When it comes to wanting to be healthy, all of these professionals stated that there needs to be a decoupling of weight and health. Healthy behavior changes There is nothing wrong with wanting to be healthy; it’s the definition of what is healthy that can be limiting and harmful, Budd, Giuliani and Kelly said. There are various ways to approach real behavior changes that are sustainable, healthy and will result in feeling better. One important aspect when focusing on healthy change is caloric intake and foods. Both Blackburn and Campbell urge people not to count calories and restrict various food groups. “No food is bad food,” Campbell said. “There are ways to manage things healthily that may surprise people. It’s more about the behavior behind the food, the purpose.” Similarly, Blackburn urges people who are trying to change to look at external lifestyle factors first. When looking at behavior changes, it’s crucial to see through all lenses. While diet and exercise are important for a healthy body, there are

external and internal factors that play a large part in the process. “Before I dive into the nutrition part, I would also ask, ‘How are you sleeping? What is your hydration like? What is your stress level like?’” Blackburn said. “These are some of the lifestyle factors that we look into that impact people’s bodies. This is because these all impact our health, wellness and how we feel.” In the same vein, Paget urges people to find a community when it comes to fitness. Creating to-do lists, plans and making health a social thing may make it easier to integrate it into an everyday lifestyle change. “Having a plan is very useful. Trying to take Sundays for meal prepping is helpful,” Paget said. “Additionally, find a buddy to do this with. And it’s so important to drink water, and it will make you feel so much better.” Trying to take the focus away from the weight is crucial, Dr. Kelly and her colleagues said. This is because long lasting positive health effects are more likely if your intentions for exercising or changing your diet are about how you feel. Dr. Kelly said that decoupling weight from health is crucial and encourages people to reflect on their motives for dieting and exercising.

Ashley Paget, a group fitness instructor, is very personable and enthusiastic with the students that she teaches, creating a positive environment to exercise in. (Ali Watson/Emerald)

Resources on campus Approaching health, wellness, nutrition and fitness can be overwhelming, but resources and information are available. The university offers a range of resources when it comes to nutrition, body acceptance, positivity and neutrality. There are two PE and Rec classes that focus on eating well and feeling balanced: PEF 344: Eat, Move, and Be Well and PEF 347: Nutrition Daily, which are offered next term. The former is a course that focuses on holistic wellness approaches as a way to elicit healthy behavior changes. The latter is more specific and teaches students about the fundamentals of nutrition, meal planning, understanding nutrition labels and much more. Outside of PE classes, there are some great initiatives that already exist. The Body Love Society runs each term and is a program that female identifying students can sign up for. It’s a four session program where participants learn about the appearance ideal, push back against toxic language and find community. Similarly, the University of Oregon Counseling Services runs an All Sizes Fit campaign which encourages students to embrace health at every size and decrease the pressure that comes with attempting to achieve a certain body ideal. While the UO has some solid resources, Campbell points out that the university still does not have a dietitian, who could really help students. She said whoever fills the role could encourage peer education around body image and healthy habits and focus on group collaboration. This role could help counter unhealthy messages about weight. Despite the prevalence of fad and restrictive diets, the health experts on campus make it clear that what works is trying to find balance and positive motivations for behavior change.

HEALTHY CAMPUS OPTIONS TO EXPLORE PE & Rec Classes: PEF 344: Eat, Move, and Be Well PEF 347: Nutrition Daily Organizations & Programs: The Body Love Society University of Oregon Counseling Services

Ashley Paget is a Group X instructor at the Student Recreation Center. (Ali Watson/Emerald)

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OPINION

CLIMATE

HOPELESSNESS

IS NOT THE SOLUTION Demonstrators make their way down Hilyard St toward downtown. Eugene youth lead a climate strike march on Mar. 15, 2019, ending in a protest at the Federal Courthouse. (Marissa Willke/Emerald)

Tresnit: With near-constant news updates, it’s easy to give up on solving the climate crisis. Here’s why that’s not an option.

BY SADIE TRESNIT Nothing ruins my day like an avalanche of bad news about the climate crisis. Now it’s easier than ever to be inundated with news updates thanks to smartphones, and the mental effects of this change are staggering. Young people in particular experience high rates of climate anxiety. Given the problem’s scale, hopelessness is an understandable reaction. However, losing hope isn’t productive, and giving up isn’t an option. I have to admit: I’m definitely a glass-half-empty person. That way, I’m either right or pleasantly surprised. Unfortunately, this means I tend to fly off the handle at the first sign of bad news. As you can imagine, reading articles about climate change usually stresses me out, and experiencing unusual climate events is even worse. Last summer I was in Portland during the heat wave. It was one of the most brutal weekends of my life. As the temperature crept up to a miserable 116 degrees, I laid on the floor of my non-air-conditioned house and hated everything for three days. I remember texting my friends about the recordsetting temperatures each day and the horrifying realization that every summer for the rest of our lives could be even hotter. From my bedroom floor, in a heat-induced brain fog, I started thinking about how it would be easier to die in another heat wave in a few years than to try to relocate to cooler places for the rest of my life. I was completely ready to give up. One thing that stands out vividly in my mind from that weekend is how often I checked the news. I gawked obsessively at weather reports, and as articles rolled in about hospitalizations and cooling centers, I couldn’t look away. I was glued to my phone, and it

EDITORIAL CARTOON:

just made me more worried about the world. Any trace of optimism I might’ve had otherwise was snuffed out. At that point, I couldn’t vote, and climate protests were effectively impossible due to the pandemic. I felt useless. The world was practically burning up, and all I could do was read about it. This is the effect negative news has on people today. A 2019 Yale survey found that 66 percent of Americans are worried about climate change — a figure that has increased 10 percent since 2014. Instead of just reading local news, we’re exposed to devastating reports from around the world, and the exposure is constant. This compounded negativity invites a sense of hopelessness. What can you do to fix everything? How can you save the planet? You’re just one person, and no one will ever listen to you. It’s maddening. As easy as it sounds, we can’t just give up. When you feel powerless, it’s vital to remind yourself that millions of other people care about preventing climate change. Many of them are working on largescale projects – from building robots to exploring underwater ecosystems to organizing mass school strikes for climate action – to achieve that goal. People around the world with money and power tend to misuse both with little regard for others, but they’re dramatically outnumbered. It doesn’t always feel like it, but your voice has power, and there’s always something you can do to help. But with news coming in from every direction, what are you supposed to do to preserve your sanity? The journalist side of my brain is too intent on staying informed to ever let me try a “news cleanse,” but there are plenty of other options. Dare to let yourself read

good news. I usually just look for positive headlines, but some publications (like Yes Magazine and Good News Network) broadly practice optimistic reporting. It can be terrifying to read climate news on a global scale, which is why focusing yourself is so important. Zero in on one person’s (or one community’s) positive impact on the environment. While policy makers sometimes seem to get everything about climate change wrong, people around the world are working hard to save the planet one cause at a time. If you spend too much time on social media (it happens to the best of us), make an effort to follow accounts that share positive news. My personal favorite is The Happy Broadcast on Instagram. Social media especially encourages tragic and shocking news stories, making it the perfect place to start a panic. Limit your exposure to sensationalism, and focus on healthy levels of news consumption. Acknowledge that we’re dealing with an incredibly serious problem, and it’s normal to feel sad, angry and afraid — but don’t let those feelings overwhelm you. Look for climate activism and volunteer opportunities in your community, and remember that you’re allowed to have some hope for the future. Sadie Tresnit is an opinion columnist for the Daily Emerald. She is a first-year English student from Portland. In her free time, she reads and plays music, and she is passionate about feminism and environmental issues.

"Kevin Johnson's stash" Green Johnson is a first-year editorial cartoonist for the Daily Emerald. With a major in media studies and minor in art, they love to analyze trends through the lens of drawing. He will take any opportunity to talk about his favorite cartoons, so be warned!

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NEWS Several Dutch Bros. Coffee Shops are located around Eugene. The co-founder of Dutch Bros. planned to open a horse racing track with casino machines, potentially directing customers and their money away from Oregon tribal gaming facilities. (Mary Grosswendt/Emerald)

OREGON DOJ BLOCKS PROPOSED OFF-RESERVATION GAMBLING OPERATION “It's not just about the treaty, and it's not about money,” Ashley Younger, a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and former president of the Native American Student Union, said. “It's about years and years and years and years of repeated harm.” BY CARLIE WEIGEL

Dutch Brothers co-founder Travis Boersma’s controversial proposal for a horse racing operation has been blocked by the Oregon Department of Justice. On Oct. 4, 2021, Boersma submitted a proposal to the Oregon Racing Commission in which he requested permission to reopen a racing track in Grants Pass and introduce The Flying Lark, where visitors could use gambling terminals. Boersma said he intended to revive the horse racing industry, but many have said he planned to do so in a way that would steal from and violate the sovereignty of local tribes. The Oregon Department of Justice ruled Boersma’s plans to implement gambling machines as unconstitutional on Feb. 11, and on Feb. 14 the Oregon Racing Commission took its first step toward blocking his proposal from moving forward, prompting him to terminate his vision for The Flying Lark. After Boersma made his agenda public, Native tribal leaders quickly mobilized and called on government officials to reject the initiative. They said that non-tribal entities operating a gambling facility is illegal, based on Oregon laws that give Indigenous tribes an exclusive claim to gambling facilities, which provide funding for public services on reservations. Members of the University of Oregon’s Native American Student Union supplemented these efforts and called for the community to boycott the Dutch Bros. coffee stands that widely populate Eugene. “Why would Travis Boersma as a businessman, and as a non-Indigenous, non-Native man attempt this plot that would impact the legal rights, the state ordained rights of countless tribal members?” Ashley Younger, a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and former president of the NASU, said. “Exploiting someone’s culture for money – that’s so PA G E 1 0

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just tasteless and awful, and I just think that integrity is worth so much more than the possibility of monetary reimbursement.” The morning before the Oregon Department of Justice’s ruling, Younger organized a protest in opposition to Boersma’s operation near the Dutch Bros. stand on Franklin Boulevard, culminating in a group of about 12 people. There, protestors etched their frustrations on the sidewalk using chalk. Younger said her motivations to host the protest stemmed from her desire to foster an important discussion and opportunity for learning. “I think that it would be really, really lovely if we lived in a world where we could have a conversation with someone and say, ‘This is really unethical or this is very harmful, or damaging, or just not a good action or a good thing to do. Could you please stop?’ And then have them stop,” she said. “I think that would be really wonderful.” UO student Ryan Oppenheimer said he attended the demonstration to become more knowledgeable about issues related to Native American culture, just as Younger hoped. “I came to watch and learn,” he said. “I haven't really been much of a protest person in the past. I've been more like a silent activist just because I just haven't really pushed myself to speak up about many things, so I’m doing this to get out of my shell and also because I want to become more educated about indigenous issues.” Now that Boersma no longer intends to invest his time or money into The Flying Lark, Younger hopes others will reciprocate the action taken against his operation in the future to make up for the injustice experienced by Indigenous people. “I'm glad that it didn't go through, and I'm grateful

that, at least legally, people recognized, and the state of Oregon recognized and acknowledged, that it's not OK and really did work to keep the sovereignty and also the respect of the tribes and the tribes’ rights,” she said. “But it's so much deeper because it's not just about the treaty, and it's not about money… It's about years and years and years and years of repeated harm.” UO Associate Professor of Native American Literatures and Director of Native American and Indigenous Studies Kirby Brown said these events encapsulate why Native studies should be a core component of general education. “That just illustrates, to me, the need for Native Studies at all levels of the curriculum so that when questions like this arise, people will have an educational and intellectual foundation to understand not just the history, but also what needs to happen in a contemporary moment,” he said. “Native studies is not just for Native people; Native studies is for everyone. So when you have judges or entrepreneurs or lawyers or nonprofit directors who are in rooms, making decisions about land, about economies, about relationships, about resource management, you want those folks in those rooms to be educated.” Younger echoed the intrinsic need for learning and education. She said she cannot imagine herself supporting Dutch Bros. until Boersma proves to have grown from his attempts to interfere with the revenue of local tribes. “I never want the worst for people,” she said. “I always wish people the best, and I want to believe that most people have integrity and are good at heart. If he makes an effort moving forward to try to do something really, really wonderful and really helpful toward the tribes that he was really going to exploit, then perhaps, at that time, I'll consider supporting.”


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tacovorepnw.com 541.735.3518 12pm-9pm daily 530 Blair Blvd. Eugene OR 97401 M O N D AY, F E B R U A R Y 2 8 , 2 0 2 2

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EMERALD

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PA G E 1 1


THE ORIGINAL NORTHWEST SUSHI BURRITO

WINNER 2019 2020 2021 SUSHI BURRITOS

TRY OUR

AND BOWLS STARTING AT

FAMOUS GARLIC & CAJUN CHICKEN

$8.50

Order online at eatsubo.com for exclusive Specials

Burrito sized sushi rolls Delicious Bowls and salads Famous House made sauces

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LOCATIONS TO SATISFY YOUR

CRAVINGS

SPRINGFIELD 42nd and Main

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EMERALD

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M O N D AY, F E B R U A R Y 2 8 , 2 0 2 2

EUGENE 3rd and Van Buren

NEW LOCATION 2568 Willamette


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