The independent
To uncover
newspaper serving
the truth
Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s
and report
and holy cross
it accurately
Volume 54, Issue 29 | tuesday, october 8, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com
Hand gesture at game stirs controversy National television captures student making disputed symbol at ND Stadium during football match By MARY BERNARD News Writer
Minutes before the start of the Sept. 28 Virginia-Notre Dame football game, an NBC camera zoomed in on the announcers reporting from the student section. Many students were cheering. One was not. This student stuck out his arm, his thumb and forefinger touching to form an upside down OK sign out to his right side. The gesture was fleeting and may have gone unnoticed by many viewers. In a video of the incident, students nearby did not seem to see it. It is the universal symbol for OK, widelyused to signal understanding or approval and even appears as an emoji. But to others who saw it, the
student’s gesture had a sinister cast. In recent years, the OK sign has been appropriated by white supremacists, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). The student’s motives are unknown. Nevertheless, his gesture has become the latest flashpoint in ongoing conversations about the importance of tolerance, the boundaries for freedom of expression and the viral nature of hate speech. The incident also underscores tensions on campus in recent months, where divisiveness — centered around issues as varied as gay rights, pro-life and pro-choice movements — has heightened sensitivity surrounding both political and apolitical discourse. The student who made the gesture — editors at The Observer have chosen not to
identify him by name — has been criticized online since the game. Through faculty in his program, the student, who denied multiple interview requests from The Observer, said the gesture was just an innocent way for him to show excitement about the game. What began as a mockery of liberals has stuck with the white power movement. In 2017, members of the discussion board 4chan began a hoax to convince liberals the symbol has racist connotations in the hopes they would take up the charge and face ridicule. However, white supremacists later began using the sign. The Christchurch mosque shooter, who killed 51 Muslims in New Zealand last March, flashed the gesture during a court hearing. President of white nationalist think
Revived Feminism Club aims to discuss identity By CHRISTOPHER PARKER News Writer
In the hopes of engaging with feminist ideas consistent with the mission of the University, the recently-revived Feminist ND will host their first general meeting of the year in the McNeill Room in LaFortune Student
Center from 5 to 6 p.m. Tuesday. Senior Dinuka Cooray, president of Feminist ND, said she wants the club to provide a space to discuss all topics relating to feminism. “Feminism is a word that has a rather negative connotation, and one that has been historically difficult to define,” Cooray
said. “One definition is that it is the movement to achieve social, economic and political equal opportunity on the basis of the sexes, which generally sums up the motivations of our club. We don’t want to limit our discussion because of the
tank the National Policy Institute, Richard Spencer, was photographed making the gesture outside the Trump International Hotel in Washington D.C. on the night of the 2016 presidential election. The ADL notes context is critical when evaluating the gesture’s intent, and use of the OK symbol in many contexts is completely innocuous. In addition to being used to signal approval, the sign is also used in the “Circle Game,” in which a person attempts to trick another person into looking at an upside-down OK symbol made below the waist. Regardless of intent, public use of the symbol has sparked controversy and backlash. An individual who made an OK hand sign in May at Wrigley Field in Chicago was banned
from the venue indefinitely. A high school near Chicago announced it would reprint more than 1,700 yearbooks after students making the sign were noticed in photographs. This is not the first time a hand sign has been co-opted by a group, effectively changing the sign’s meaning. The gang MS-13 uses a once-innocuous sign which originated in heavy metal culture — a fist with the forefinger and the pinky extended. Regarding the student in Notre Dame Stadium, Paul Browne, the vice president of public affairs and communications at Notre Dame, said, “I’m unaware of evidence that anyone at the game used a gesture knowing it had racist connotations.” see SYMBOL PAGE 4
Club fosters interfaith dialogue at SMC
see FEMINISM PAGE 4
SMC publication Chimes open for submissions GINA TWARDOSZ | The Observer
By COLLEEN FISCHER News Writer
Between studying for exams and writing essays for classes, some Saint Mary’s students find time to be creative. The editorial staff of the on-campus magazine Chimes helps to facilitate a place where student art and creative writing can be published
SCene PAGE 5
and seen by the campus’ community. Last year, the College’s two literary journals, Chimes and The Avenue, combined and published their first joint annual journal. Chimes has been a staple in Saint Mary’s culture for over 100 years. In August, the College honored the publication’s history in a campus-wide email
Viewpoint PAGE 6
celebrating Saint Mary’s 175th anniversary. “Chimes is as deeply-rooted in tradition and history as the College itself. The first issue of Chimes came out in September of 1892,” the email read. The publication officially acts as a club with its president
Students from varying faith backgrounds come together for a crafting session. The event was hosted by the College’s Better Together club.
see CHIMES PAGE 4
see CLUB PAGE 3
Viewpoint PAGE 7
By GINA TWARDOSZ News Writer
Saint Mary’s Better Together club hosted on Monday night “Craft Your Spiritual Journey,” an event designed to engage the campus community in
football PAGE 12
interfaith dialogue through the accessibility of crafting and conversing with friends. Senior and Better Together club president Sophia McDevitt said the goal of the
hockey PAGE 12