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Volume 52, Issue 100 | thursday, march 22, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com
Professor explores nuances of autism ND chapter of Minorities and Philosophy hosts discussion on Catholic understanding of disability By MARY STEURER News Writer
Professor Michael Waddell, director of the master of autism studies program at Saint Mary’s, called for a more complete understanding of autistic identities — acknowledging both the struggles and gifts of individuals with autism — during a presentation Wednesday. In the lecture, Waddell read from his personal work exploring autism in relation to the Catholic faith and said he plans to publish a book on the subject in the future. “The task of my book is to search Catholic intellectual tradition for resources that can enrich the way we understand and respond to autism,” he said. Waddell opened his
presentation by discussing autistic identity in context of the “Autism Rights” movement, which advocates for autism to be viewed not as a disability, but rather as a form of neurological diversity. Members of the movement believe that, for those on the spectrum, autism is an intrinsic part of the self, Waddell said. “Accordingly, the muchsought-after cure for autism has been condemned by some autistic self-advocates as an assault on a minority group that is akin to eugenics or genocide,” he said. Waddell said he looked to St. Thomas Aquinas and his writings on the metaphysics of identity and relationships to see IDENTITY PAGE 3
MARY STEURER | The Observer
Professor Michael Waddell speaks on autism and individuality during a presentation in Malloy Hall on Wednesday evening. The event was sponsored by the Notre Dame chapter of Minorities and Philosophy.
Saint Mary’s Math Week promotes camaraderie By MARIA LEONTARAS News Writer
This week, the Saint Mary’s math club is hosting a series of events to show Belles they can count on one another. Math Week consists of math-based events centered on creating shared experiences between Belles — with
a mathematical twist, Pi Mu Epsilon math society president and senior Arianna Iannuzzi said in an email. The conclusion of the week’s events consists of math professor Cheryl Periton’s workshop, “Counting Table/Counters Workshop,” on how people performed large computations before the invention of the
calculator Thursday night, free bagels and coffee Friday morning and the rescheduled math relay race Monday night. Iannuzzi said she participates in Math Week events due to the sense of community she feels throughout the week and the recognition it provides for see MATH PAGE 4
SMC alumna addresses #MeToo movement By IMAN OMAR News Writer
Kate Hennessy, who has worked on films including “Lady Bird,” “Fences” and “Interstellar” and supervised famous actors and actresses including Viola Davis, Anne Hathaway and Sir Michael Caine, reflected on the #MeToo movement and life in Hollywood in the Vander Vennet Theatre at Saint Mary’s
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on Wednesday. Associate professor of psychology Karen Chambers said she read Hennessy’s posts on social media and was inspired to invite her back to Saint Mary’s to speak. “When #MeToo broke in Hollywood, I have Kate on social media because I run the Ireland program and she came to Ireland, I read Kate’s post about her experiences in Hollywood,” she said. “I thought
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she had some really interesting things to say about #MeToo and about what was being said in Hollywood. And so, I put it in the back of my head that the next time she makes one of her many cross-country journeys, that I would see if I could entice her to come back to Saint Mary’s to present.” Hennessy, who graduated from Saint Mary’s in 2012, said see HOLLYWOOD PAGE 4
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STUDENT SENATE
Senate passes election reform propositions By MARY BERNARD News Writer
Student senate passed nine election reform resolutions, voted on the winners of campus-wide awards and heard from residential life regarding the incoming waiver policy Wednesday. Judicial Council president and senior Matt Ross brought the election reforms to the senate, many of which dealt with issues experienced during the previous campaign cycle. All nine passed with no more than four oppositions and abstentions by the senate members, although five members voted to end the meeting prior to discussing the proposals. One resolution prohibited candidates from promising future positions to anyone, calling this “highly unethical behavior, the penalty for which may include a maximum penalty of forfeiture of candidacy,” the Constitution .
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“As far as why we state a maximum penalty of forfeiture … is because including that language in there indicates that it is a very serious offense,” junior parliamentarian Colin Brankin said. “[Promising positions] is something that we hold to be very, very unethical.” The chief of staff is appointed by the student body president early on in the term, raising the question of how to monitor and when to condemn promising a position like chief of staff, sophomore Claire Saltzman, senator from Ryan Hall, said. “All of these positions have to be approved by Senate,” Ross said. “That’s what you guys do the first meeting of the year, you guys approve the entire Executive Cabinet.” The resolution to harshly punish candidates who promise positions to constituents passed with see RESOLUTIONS PAGE 4
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