GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com
Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 101, No. 13, © 2019
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
Welcome to My Crib
See how students customize their dorm rooms to reflect their style and showcase their interests.
EDITORIAL Georgetown should provide students a food stipend during short holiday breaks.
CUTTING CLUB SPORTS Budgetary cuts to Club Sports have led to membership barriers, limited diversity.
OPINION, A2
FEATURE, A4
GUSA Members Fail Athletes Face Allegations of Assault To Attend Required Bystander Training AMY LI AND RILEY ROGERSON Hoya Staff Writers
GRACE BUONO Hoya Staff Writer
Many Georgetown University Student Association members have missed their mandatory bystander training sessions, GUSA Vice President Aleida Olvera (COL ’20) said at the weekly meeting of GUSA senate Monday. Starting this year, GUSA members are required to attend a bystander training session run by the university’s Health Education Services to
educate individuals on how to safely intervene in potential incidents of sexual violence, according to Olvera. Only 13 out of 28 senators attended the trainings this fall, which started this year, according to Martinez. GUSA members were adequately informed during previous GUSA senate meetings that bystander trainings were mandatory in advance of the sessions, and attendance was See GUSA, A6
GRACE BUONO FOR THE HOYA
Georgetown University Student Association members have not complied with the organization’s mandate for bystander training.
Georgetown men’s basketball junior forward Galen Alexander, freshman forward Myron Gardner and former sophomore forward Joshua LeBlanc were named in November civil complaints, which include allegations of burglary, sexual harassment and assault. Head Coach Patrick Ewing (CAS ’85) announced Dec. 2 that LeBlanc and former sophomore guard James Akinjo will no longer be members of the men’s basketball team for the remainder of the season. Their removal is separate from the allegations, which do not involve Akinjo, according to a Dec. 3 statement from Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Lee Reed. On Nov. 5, a student plaintiff filed a civil complaint against LeBlanc, alleging he burglarized her off-campus residence Sept. 16 and has since threatened physical harm against her and her roommate. “He continued to threaten me verbally and via text message in the following week,” the Nov. 5 complaint read. “We continue to fear for our personal safety and well-being.” The complaint also names Alexander as an involved party in the burglary. Also on Nov. 5, the plaintiff filed a motion to obtain a temporary restraining order against Alexander and LeBlanc. Alexander and LeBlanc were served papers to appear in court for two separate hearings but did not attend either hearing. The plain-
tiff’s application for a temporary restraining order was granted by the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on Nov. 14. The first plaintiff’s roommate filed a separate complaint against Gardner on Nov. 12, alleging Gardner had sexually assaulted her at her home Sept. 15. The complaint names Gardner as well as Alexander and LeBlanc as participants in the Sept. 16 burglary. A Playstation 4, two controllers, a Nikon camera, a camera lens and a pair of shoes were reported stolen from the property, according to a Nov. 4 Metropolitan Police Report. On Nov. 12, the roommate filed a motion to obtain a temporary restraining order against Gardner. The hearing on the temporary restraining order is scheduled for Dec. 9. Gardner denied any involvement with the crimes described in the Nov. 12 complaint, according to The Washington Post. “I don’t know who you’re getting that from, but I’ve never done those things in my life,” Gardner said in a Dec. 2 interview with The Washington Post. Both Alexander and Gardner played in the Dec. 4 basketball
Councilmember Evans Expelled MOIRA RITTER Hoya Staff Writer
The D.C. Council unanimously voted to expel Councilmember Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) on Dec. 3 because of ethics violations, marking the first time the council has ever decided to remove a councilmember. The vote comes after nine of Evans’ fellow councilmembers called for his resignation following the release of a Nov. 4 report detailing 11 ethics violations by Evans since 2015. The report, which was compiled by a law firm the council retained to independently investigate Evans, alleges that Evans used his council position to promote the interests of clients of his consulting company. Evans, the city’s longest-serving lawmaker, was not present for the vote on his removal. Despite the unanimous vote, Evans’ expulsion is not yet definite. The ad hoc committee that voted for Evans’ expulsion Dec. 3 will need to meet again Dec. 10 to vote on an official expulsion resolution, Councilmember Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) wrote in an email to The Hoya. The council will then need to hold a hearing during which Evans would be invited to testify before it can formally vote to remove him. The date of the hearing has not yet been set.
FEATURED
situation,” Todd wrote in an At the Dec. 3 meeting, each email to The Hoya. “I believe councilmember detailed their anything short of expulsion is reasons for supporting Ev- unacceptable and would send ans’ expulsion. Evans’ actions the wrong message to District showed a lack of respect for of Columbia residents.” fellow councilmembers and Before the Dec. 3 vote, Ward were an embarrassment for the 2 constituents began a separate council, according to the open- campaign for a special recall elecing statement of Councilmem- tion, which would allow voters ber Robert to remove an White (D-At elected official Large). from office be“Right now, fore that offithe only percial’s term has son in this city ended. who doesn’t A petition know that Mr. submitted by Evans must Ward 2 Citiresign is Mr. zens Recall, Evans,” White a group of losaid in his cal residents opening statecampaigning ment. “If he for a recall cannot bring election of himself to reEvans’ seat, MARY CHEH DC Ward 3 Councilmember sign, then we was rejected must vote to by D.C. elecexpel him. We have no choice tion officials, after Evans filed a based on what we know.” challenge to the Board of ElecEvans’ actions have betrayed tions on Nov. 29. The petition the public’s trust, according to garnered 5,588 signatures, exCouncilmember Brandon Todd ceeding the threshold of 4,949, (D-Ward 4), who was himself but was rejected because signaaccused last spring of an ethics tures were deemed invaild. violation when he attempted to The rejection of the petition influence a Washington, D.C. proves that Ward 2 residents State Board of Education elec- are not in favor of his ouster, tion. Evans said in an interview with “It would be impossible to The Washington Post. move forward in the current “One can conclude the voters
“Mr. Evans has betrayed each and every one of us-his colleagues, the government, and the residents of the District of Columbia.”
in Ward 2 do not want me to leave office and others should take note of that,” Evans said. Despite the efforts of Ward 2 Citizens Recall, constituents should not have to be responsible for handling Evans’ mistakes, according to Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At Large). “I know Councilmember Evans’ lawyers have made the argument that we shouldn’t expel him, and that we should let the voters decide, either in the upcoming recall or the primary. I couldn’t disagree more,” she wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We shouldn’t pass the buck, making the voters do our work for us. Previous Councils didn’t have this power to expel, but I imagine this tool was put in place so we could act in a case like this.” The Dec. 3 vote is an appropriate measure to regain public trust in the council, according to Mayor Muriel Bowser (D). “Throughout this investigation, I have called on the Council to be fair and urgent in their considerations, but to act quickly to regain the public’s trust in the Council as an institution,” Bowser wrote in a Dec. 3 statement. “As a former member of the Council and now Mayor, I See EVANS, A6
FILE PHOTO: KIRK ZIESER/THE HOYA
Men’s basketball players Joshua LeBlanc, 23, and Galen Alexander, 11, face allegations of burglary and assault with teammate Myron Gardner. game at Oklahoma State University. Alexander played 13 minutes and Gardner played 10 minutes in the Hoyas’ 81-74 victory in the first game since Monday’s announcement that
Akinjo and LeBlanc are leaving the team. The departure of Akinjo and LeBlanc from the team comes See BASKETBALL, A6
Senior Becomes 1st Rhodes Scholar In NHS History CURRAN STOCKTON Hoya Staff Writer
Sara Rotenberg (NHS ’20) became the first student from the Georgetown University School of Nursing and Health Studies studies to be named a 2020 Rhodes scholar from Canada, according to a Nov. 23 university news release. Winners of the Rhodes scholarship, the oldest inter-
national fellowship in the world, can pursue a degree at The University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Rotenberg, a global health major, will pursue a master’s degree while studying evidence-based social intervention and policy evaluation in fall 2020, according to the news release. Rotenberg first learned she See RHODES, A6
SHEEL PATEL/THE HOYA
Sara Rotenberg (NHS ’20) won the 2020 Rhodes scholarship, becoming the first student in the NHS to receive the global scholarship.
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
Gender Bias in Politics McCourt School fellows discussed how gender bias affects candidates’ electability in the 2020 presidential elections. A7
Ecclesiastes Inspires Haley Talati (COL ’20) uses the message of Ecclesiastes to motivate the progressive fight for political change. A3
An OK State of Affairs The men’s basketball team takes down the undefeated Cowboys with 33 points from sophomore guard Mac McClung. A12
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
Still No Bagels The D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment ruled that Call Your Mother must prove a need for an official zoning exception to operate. A7
Stop Whitewashing Yoga Suhani Garg (COL ’23) discusses the Westernization of yoga and the appropriation of its Dharmic roots. A3
Super Sweet Sixteen The men’s soccer team avenges its loss to Louisville with a 5-1 win over the Cardinals to reach the NCAA Elite Eight. A12
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OPINION
THE HOYA
C Founded Jan. 14, 1920
EDITORIALS
Allow Early Return From Break When Georgetown University students return for the spring semester after winter break, they will not be allowed to enter their campus residences until the day before classes start. After campus closes for winter break Saturday, Dec. 21, residence halls and apartments will not reopen until 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 7, but classes begin the very next day, Jan. 8. This schedule follows the same pattern every year. Georgetown should reopen residence halls and apartments the Saturday before the spring semester begins to give students greater flexibility in travel plans and to provide an opportunity to readjust to the school routine before classes resume. A one-day window to return in January requires students to find their way back to campus on that day specifically, no matter how expensive or difficult that may be. For students flying or taking a train back to Washington, D.C., greater flexibility in return dates would allow more route options, which is one of the best ways to find cheaper tickets, according to Forbes. Students should not have to pay exorbitant ticket prices to ensure they arrive on one particular day. Students driving back to campus with parents or families could also use the extra days to return over the weekend, when it would be easier for many parents to take time to make the trip. Once students arrive on campus, the current policy allows little time to readjust to an academic routine. With classes starting the very next morning, students have a short window in which they must settle back in and prepare to return to their busy schedules. Jet lag imposes an additional burden on the many students traveling to D.C. from different time zones. Georgetown’s undergraduate population includes students from over 130 different
countries and all 50 states. Since jet lag can affect anyone traveling across two or more time zones, students traveling to other countries or across the United States can experience this phenomenon. As jet lag actively impairs cognitive functioning, per a study by professors at the University of California, Berkeley, students could have difficulty learning at the beginning of the semester if they arrive from a different time zone the day before classes begin. Thus, to increase travel flexibility and provide students with more time to readjust to their academic routines, Georgetown should allow students to return to campus at any time starting the weekend before the semester. This year, for example, residence halls and apartments could open Saturday, Jan. 4, at 10 a.m., leaving a fourday window for students to return to campus. Currently, the university needs near-empty residences in January because campus residences and apartments are deep cleaned over the limited working days that occur during winter break, Director of Residential Services Bill Huff wrote in an email to The Hoya. Small adjustments to the process, however, would be well worth eliminating the financial and mental burden that the current policy creates. The university should work with the Office of Residential Living to adjust the cleaning schedule over breaks so Georgetown’s campus can reopen the weekend before spring classes begin. By only allowing students back into campus residence halls and apartments the day before classes begin, Georgetown limits their travel options, reducing affordability and creates additional stress as they rush to get back into their school routines. Students are busy enough as they prepare to return to campus, and inflexible travel plans should no longer be a factor exacerbating the difficulty of starting a new semester.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
THE VERDICT Unidentified Flying Blob — A mysterious, slow-moving blob in the sky caused the White House to be put in lockdown last Tuesday. While officials still are not sure what the blob was, they said it could have been anything from a drone to a flock of birds.
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Shockingly Festive — A Tennessee aquarium has found a way to use an electric eel’s shocks to power Christmas lights. The eel, named Miguel Wattson, has his own Twitter account with videos of his most successful attempts to turn on the lights.
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Unsanitary Thanksgiving— An unknown group set up a full Thanksgiving dinner on the New York subway a few days before the holiday. Many commuters were delighted, but after videos of the incident were posted on social media, some users expressed concern about the meal’s lack of sanitation. Deck the Potholes — A Mississippi neighborhood is protesting poor road conditions by marking a large pothole with holiday decor, complete with a homemade tree, presents and lights. They hope to spread both awareness and holiday cheer. Surprise Slide — Last week, a Massachusetts man woke up to quite the surprise when the evacuation slide from a Delta Air Lines plane landed in his yard. The debris fell for unknown reasons from a plane traveling from Paris to Boston.
EDITORIAL CARTOON by Advait Arun
Offer Food Stipends to Students When Georgetown University closes campus dining locations over Thanksgiving, spring and Easter breaks, students remaining on campus have to find their own food options. But for some students, Washington, D.C. groceries and restaurants are unaffordable, and thus the closing of meal swipe locations means food is altogether financially inaccessible. To ensure that students have access to food when prepaid meal swipes are unavailable, Georgetown should provide food stipends for students with meal plans who remain on campus over short breaks. Students could spend the stipends at on- and off-campus stores and restaurants while meal swipe locations are closed. Food insecurity is a reality for many Georgetown students year-round, according to an April 2018 feature in The Hoya. When all campus dining locations that accept meal swipes are closed during breaks, food becomes even more inaccessible to the students with meal plans who remain on campus. Georgetown allows students to stay on campus for Thanksgiving, spring and Easter breaks, yet it closes meal swipe locations during these periods. Under current university policy, O’Donovan Hall closes after lunch the day before a break begins and opens for dinner the night before classes resume. For example, over Thanksgiving break, Fresh Food Company was the last meal swipe location to close for the break at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, despite break not beginning for students until after all of their Wednesday classes had been completed. The dining hall remained closed until its meal swipe locations opened at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 1. Consequently, students on campus were left without meal swipe options for the four days of break. To address the inaccessibility of food over breaks, Georgetown Scholars Program offers a GSP Break Grocery Stipend to students who receive the GSP scholarship, according to the program’s website. But over half of a sample of 351 Georgetown students, many of whom did not receive need-based financial aid, had experienced food insecurity because of cost, according to a survey conducted by the Georgetown University Student Association in 2016. While
GSP’s grocery stipend is important, its scope is limited and food is clearly still financially inaccessible for many students outside the program. An initiative combating food insecurity among all students is needed. To address the inaccessibility of food for all students over the recent Thanksgiving break, the student-led Hoya Hub provided $25 Safeway gift cards to students who requested them, but efforts to alleviate food insecurity on campus should not rely on student-led programs. Georgetown should build off of the Hoya Hub’s recent Thanksgiving initiative and offer a food stipend to students with meal plans who remain on campus over Thanksgiving, spring and Easter breaks. The university has the infrastructure needed to organize a food stipend program that could be open to all students on meal plans. Students could request and receive a stipend from the university before the break and use this funding to purchase food for the days during which campus dining locations are closed. If the university deemed it necessary to ensure the funds were spent on food, it could require students to submit receipts after the break. By providing a food stipend, Georgetown could combat food insecurity without having to open meal swipe locations over breaks. This solution would still allow campus dining employees to have time off while ensuring students on campus have access to food during the several days they cannot use their meal plans. Furthermore, the university would not be providing stipends to all students, but rather to the small share of students who remain on campus over short breaks and actively request the funds. Georgetown has a responsibility to care for its students by finding the financial resources to combat food insecurity when campus dining locations are closed. Despite the financial costs, the university must invest in providing basic access to food for all students over short breaks, like Thanksgiving, spring break and Easter, through a food stipend program. Access to food year-round should not be a privilege that only some Georgetown students can afford.
Kiera Geraghty, Editor-in-Chief Jake Wexelblatt, Executive Editor Doris Zhang, Executive Editor Samuel Nelson, Managing Editor Amy Li, News Editor Riley Rogerson, News Editor Rachel Gaudreau, Sports Editor Michelle Brown, Guide Editor Allan Navarro, Guide Editor Sela Dragich, Opinion Editor Myroslav Dobroshynski, Features Editor Sana Rahman, Features Editor Sheel Patel, Photography Editor Tarika Kumar, Design Editor Katherine DeMatteo, Copy Chief Colby Schmidt, Social Media Editor Abigail Weintz, Blog Editor Connor Thomas, Multimedia Editor
Editorial Board
Sela Dragich, Chair
Faris Bseiso, Bianca Corgan, Joshua Levy, Haley Wint, Joseph Yacovone, Grant Zangwill
Harrison McBride Academics Desk Editor Sophie Haber Graduate Desk Editor Jaime Moore-Carrillo Campus Life Desk Editor Ashley Zhao Campus Life Desk Editor Clara Grudberg City Desk Editor Joanna LaCoppola Deputy Sports Editor Yu Young Lee Deputy Guide Editor Kira Pomeranz Deputy Guide Editor Megan Wee Deputy Guide Editor Max Hamid Deputy Opinion Editor Katie Hawkinson Deputy Opinion Editor Nate Kral Deputy Features Editor Meredith Miller Deputy Features Editor Julia Alvey Deputy Photography Editor Margaret Fouberg Deputy Photography Editor Kiki Schmalfuss Deputy Photography Editor Eloise Owen Deputy Design Editor Janis Park Deputy Design Editor Dominic Pham Deputy Design Editor Madeline Broderick King Deputy Copy Editor Emily Kim Deputy Copy Editor Victoria Lei Deputy Copy Editor Nora Ma Deputy Copy Editor Grace Jaworski Deputy Social Media Editor Kiera Martin Deputy Social Media Editor Janice Negbesky Deputy Blog Editor Jon Pejo Deputy Blog Editor
Contributing Editors
Susanna Blount, Will Cromarty, Erin Doherty, Harrison Hurt
HOYA HISTORY: Dec. 3, 1982
Students Protest Anti-Feminist Speaker Barefoot and pregnant, the two students stood on the Healy steps with the 50 to 75 other demonstrators to protest Phyllis Schlafly. With chains wrapped around her neck, Sheila DeCerce (CAS ’83) said she wore the costume “to visualize Schlafly’s views of the role of women.” Sponsored by the University Lecture Fund, anti-feminist crusader Schlafly spoke on “Choice vs. Compulsion or Coaxing” on Tuesday, Nov. 30, in Gaston Hall. Schlafly, author of nine books and the monthly Phyllis Schlafly Newsletter, explained her conservative stands against abortion, nuclear disarmament, the ERA, the military draft of women and other issues. Schlafly, an attractive 57-year-old mother of six, looked like she was at one of the PTA meetings she used to attend in Alton, Ill. with her subdued green dress and finished, sprayed brown hair.
College Democrat Ed Magarian (CAS ’86) said at the demonstration, “Phyllis may believe that she has the truth but unfortunately her views are hazardous to women, or 51.3% of the American population.” On the other hand, Linda Christal (CAS ’84) said at the lecture that she “agrees with Mrs. Schlafly completely.” Christal said the women’s movement “has gone too far” and that she supports Schlafly’s views of the family “as the building blocks of society.” Schlafly’s extreme views incited the liberal members of the audience to yell and hiss at her while at the same time conservative students cheered and applauded her statements. Schlafly said she approved of college women who never want to marry because “it leaves more husbands for those who do want to get married.” The
crowd jeered and heckled her for that remark, but she looked upon the audience with a pleased, enigmatic smile. Schlafly may infuriate her opponents but her relatively smooth demeanor often reduces them to helpless emotional fits. In an article by Henry Schipper in Playgirl, the author explains how former Indiana Senator Birch Bayh said that she made him want to commit mayhem live and in color during a television debate. During the question and answer session following the lecture on Tuesday night, one woman demanded that Schlafly explain her opinion on abortion. “Do you mean to say,” asked the student, “that all women should remain celibate until marriage?” Tara McKelvey Hoya Staff Writer
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Amber Gillette, Chair Kiera Geraghty, Palmer Hudson, Deepika Jonnalagadda, Aditi Joshi, Yumna Naqvi, David Towell LETTER TO THE EDITOR AND VIEWPOINT POLICIES The Hoya welcomes letters and viewpoints from our readers and will print as many as possible. To be eligible for publication, letters should specifically address a recent campus issue or Hoya story. Letters should not exceed 300 words. Viewpoints are always welcome from all members of the Georgetown community on any topic, but priority will be given to relevant campus issues. Viewpoint submissions should be between 600-700 words. The Hoya retains all rights to all published submissions. Send all submissions to: opinion@thehoya. com. The Hoya reserves the right to reject letters or viewpoints and edit for length, style, clarity and accuracy. The Hoya further reserves the right to write headlines and select illustrations to accompany letters and viewpoints. CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS If you have a comment or question about the fairness or accuracy of a story, contact Executive Editor Jake Wexelblatt and Executive Editor Doris Zhang by email at executive@thehoya.com. TIPS News Editors Amy Li and Riley Rogerson: Email news@thehoya.com. Guide Editors Michelle Brown and Allan Navarro: Email guide@thehoya.com. Sports Editor Rachel Gaudreau: Email sports@thehoya.com. GENERAL INFORMATION The Hoya is published once a week during the academic year with the exception of holiday and exam periods. Address all correspondence to: The Hoya Georgetown University Box 571065 Washington, D.C. 20057-1065 The writing, articles, pictures, layout and
format are the responsibility of The Hoya and do not necessarily represent the views of the administration, faculty or students of Georgetown University. Signed columns and cartoons represent the opinions of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the editorial position of The Hoya. Unsigned essays that appear on the left side of the editorial page are the opinion of the majority of the editorial board. Georgetown University subscribes to the principle of responsible freedom of expression for student editors. The Hoya does not discriminate on the basis of age, gender, sexual orientation, race, disability, color, national or ethnic origin. © 1920-2019. The Hoya, Georgetown University weekly. No part of this publication may be used without the permission of The Hoya Board of Editors. All rights reserved. The Hoya is available free of charge, one copy per reader, at distribution sites on and around the Georgetown University campus. Email: editor@thehoya.com Online at www.thehoya.com Circulation: 4,000
OPINION
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
BETWEEN THE LINES
THE HOYA
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VIEWPOINT • GARG
Haley Talati
Fight Progressive Battle
“W
hat has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Ecclesiastes, one of the Bible’s most lyrically brilliant books, has an unfair reputation for being dark and demoralizing. On the surface, it isn’t hard to see why — the text extensively discusses the fleetingness and vanity of life, the frustrations and disillusionments that come with it, and the endless, predictable nature of all things. But a closer look at the text reveals a far more optimistic view of the world and of human nature. Ecclesiastes encourages hope, love and making the best of what we’re given — a message we would do well to apply to what often looks like the hopeless circumstances of U.S. politics by pushing back against political injustice at every opportunity. At the heart of Ecclesiastes is an ode to the collective nature of the human experience, a reminder that even the cycles of death and grief are universally shared. The writer of Ecclesiastes may repeatedly assert that “all is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 1:1), but underneath that claim lies the implicit message, “so why not make the best of it while we can?” The book’s appreciation for the many ways of finding contentment in life serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of seizing each opportunity to live meaningfully. Ecclesiastes emphasizes human agency just as much as it does futility, and it mandates seeking fulfillment in life: “There is nothing better than that all should enjoy their work, for that is their lot” (Ecclesiastes 3:22). In other words, the limits of the world should not be understood to promote an entirely disheartened outlook but instead to encourage acceptance and passion. Even through this more positive lens, the text may seem to contain a note of resignation. If anything, that makes the political parallel even stronger. Americans are not working with a perfect system. Religious texts and beliefs shouldn’t influence secular policy at all, but conservatives have spent decades allowing religion to play a significant role in our system. All we can do is make the best of the consequences, as Ecclesiastes recommends. So, for the past three months, I’ve tried to highlight the Bible’s potential
to support progressive politics. Developing this potential more fully will be critical for finding new ways to challenge harmful conservative policies like the ones that have been enacted under the Trump administration. Throughout his time in office, women have faced restrictions on their reproductive freedom. The United States has weakened its commitment to fighting climate change. Gun violence prevention bills have been blocked. The list goes on. The effects of the past three years have been devastating, but the message of Ecclesiastes offers a means of responding to them. It’s easy to become desensitized to each new horror, but our takeaway from President Donald Trump’s actions must be a mandate against complacency. The barriers to progressives’ ability to influence policy under this administration don’t exempt us from our obligation to do everything we can to push back against the harms it commits — whether that happens through protests, campaigning or simply calling out injustice when we see it — and to try to find some moral fulfillment in that process. In doing so, we can try to fulfill Ecclesiastes’ instructions by living more meaningfully, hopefully in a way that improves our political system. The first time I thought about applying to write this column, I imagined it would take a very different shape — perhaps one more focused on a rejection of allowing religion to influence politics at all. Instead, throughout the semester, I’ve argued for progressive rereadings of misunderstood biblical passages, and that approach has been the culmination of a significant shift in my personal views of the Bible over the past four years. During my time at Georgetown University, I’ve started to see that biblical interpretation is a matter of not just finding the best or deepest meaning of the text, but also of having the will to see the potential for good even in those things that have historically been exploited for evil or pessimistic ends, as the Bible undeniably has. This fight for optimism keeps with the general spirit of Ecclesiastes as well — or at least with the one I’d like to believe in. Haley Talati is a senior in the College. This is the final installment of BETWEEN THE LINES.
However, something about watching my white peers get trained as yoga instructors and claim to “channel their inner patangali” — all while misspelling Patanjali — has never sat right with me.
Stop Whitewashing Dharmic Yoga Traditions
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have long struggled with sharing certain elements of my culture. Whether it is a bindi at Coachella or the art of mehendi turned into summer “henna tattoos,” forms of appropriation, defined as “the act of taking or using things from a culture that is not your own, especially without showing that you understand or respect this culture,” seem to have taken the place of voluntary cultural exchange. Having grown up in South Asia and lived in various regions of India, I have seen how enthusiastically my culture welcomes foreigners into our celebrations and practices. However, something about watching my white peers get trained as yoga instructors and claim to “channel their inner patangali” — all while misspelling Patanjali — has never sat right with me. It is much easier to recognize the appropriation of objects like a colored dot on the forehead or a religious tapestry, as the reduction of meaningful cultural symbols into mere aesthetic is visible. But the appropriation of centuries-old spiritual practices is more convoluted. South Asian spirituality has been grossly misrepresented in the Western world, stripped of its foundations and placed into a cultish, polytheistic category. Through centuries of colonialism, Europeans as-
cribed titles such as “Hinduism” and “caste” to a culture that initially knew no such words, and consequently outsiders could pick and choose elements of South Asian practices to appropriate. In truth, the Dharmic traditions are neither cultish nor polytheistic. The colonialist misrepresentation of Dharmic traditions has made it easy to ridicule and thus ignore the spiritual importance of practices like yoga. To understand the practice of yoga, it is important to understand what the term truly means. The word “yoga” comes from the Sanskrit word for “union,” but there are many different schools of yoga and therefore many different meanings for the term. According to tradition, each yogic school is a pathway toward liberation or escape from suffering, namely the paths of knowledge, devotion, selflessness and meditation. What we know as yoga in the West is a diluted form of raja yoga, the path of meditation. In Dharmic traditions, liberation is rooted in equanimity. The irony is that yoga in the West has been commodified into a consumable subscription, exploited as and when desired. The Westernization of yoga is clearly a matter of appropriation, not appreciation. Culture appreciation typically occurs when members
of a culture invite an outsider to celebrate an aspect of their culture alongside them, but how many times have you seen a South Asian person on the cover of a yoga magazine? The colonized tradition of yoga in the West is, in fact, not yoga at all. Local yoga studios like Corepower Yoga do not have authority on or knowledge of the roots of yogic philosophy, nor do most white instructors in these spaces. These studios promote workout classes, not schools of yoga. The mindfulness and tranquility that is central to yoga dissipates when the practice is set to workout music and disconnected instructors who speak through the entire session. Our neighborhood yoga studios have chosen to practice a single aspect of a complex culture while misunderstanding and misrepresenting the culture itself. Our Desi yogis have been rebranded and replaced to fit a shiny and washed standard. Our original yoga, a spiritual discipline intended to lead practitioners toward detachment from the material world, has turned into another facet of consumerism. Whitewashing takes place when Western ideals are infused into cultural practices as a means to “improve” them. But the assumption here is that white is better. The white man’s burden
has always been seen as the responsibility to guide inferior people in how to live the right way — the better way. Our local yoga classes, in their erasure of supposedly inferior cultural roots, embody this colonial mindset. The real white man’s burden is the inconvenience that arises when other cultures do not cater to him. To solve this problem and maintain his superiority, he must change and erase parts of that culture. The problem is that this whitewashing occurs in selfinterest. I understand there are good intentions behind the adoption of yoga. Over time, the Western world has realized the transformative effects of meditation, even if colonialism initially debunked raja yoga as a meaningless ritual. There is no easy way to tell my peers that their occasional partaking in an activity with mental and physical benefits is rooted in ignorance. But although it is not the intention, the whitewashed practice of yoga continues to embody colonialism, as it unrelentingly centers whiteness and Western self-interest. By co-opting and simplifying an elaborate tradition into an hour-long Sunday class, we have lost yoga’s meaning and purpose.
SUHANI GARG is a freshman in the College.
VIEWPOINT • FUNG
VIEWPOINT • PARKER & KEKEDJIAN
Finding Hope in Hong Kong
Ensure Access to Free HIV Testing
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part of me feels unprepared to read the news every morning for fear of what my city has become. Hong Kong, the place where I lived all 18 years of my life before coming to Washington, D.C., has been the center of anti-government protests for the past six months. Recent stories have only just begun to reveal the extent of the damage incurred at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, which was caught in the crossfire between radical protesters and police last month. This is not the Hong Kong I know. It is difficult to imagine that the campus where I performed my first ballet recital was also the place where 3,989 petrol bombs, 1,339 pieces of explosives and 601 bottles of corrosives were found after a standoff between police and barricaded students. Pro-government and pro-democracy figures have been victims of a string of stabbings, the metro system still closes down early to minimize the risk of vandalism and many citizens do not feel safe enough to go outside. Something needs to change. The protests began July 9 in response to a bill that proposed the allowance of extradition to mainland China; hundreds of thousands of opponents took to the streets for fear that the bill, if passed, would undermine Hong Kong’s judicial independence and endanger political dissidents. At the heart of the protests lies a deep-seated conflict between pro-establishment and pro-democratic forces with regards to the “one country, two systems” policy. Agreed
to when Britain handed Hong Kong to China in 1997, the policy planned to keep Hong Kong a distinct political, socioeconomic and legal system under a unified China for 50 years. Yet Beijing does not want a democratic Hong Kong, and Hongkongers believe the Chinese government will never allow for genuine political freedom. As clashes between police and protesters become more frequent, violence has become the norm, and there have been no signs of compromise. Even after the bill was withdrawn, protesters claimed it was “too little, too late.” Since then, an 18-year-old protester was shot in the chest with a live bullet as crowds fought police, the government has banned protesters from wearing face masks and a man has been set on fire by anti-government protesters. This level of violence is unprecedented. Furthermore, disinformation is quickly polarizing Hongkongers. As rumors circulate on Facebook, WhatsApp and Telegram, it is becoming harder for the general public to know what to believe. Both pro-democratic and pro-establishment camps are using disinformation to wage a psychological war; thus, the damage extends beyond the violence and vandalism. There is fear, confusion and distrust. As I tell my peers that I will be headed back to Hong Kong — a place that isn’t the same as when I left — for Christmas, some respond with pity. But Hong Kong is still home. I am proud to be from a city where citizens respond to violence and destruction with peace, restoring the roads brick by brick. Home is where 71.2% of eligible
voters turn up to vote in the district council elections — seen as a symbolic referendum on the protest movements — in which pro-democracy parties took nearly 90% of the seats. Home is where people stand in solidarity to defend their freedom. In this home, I find hope. We show up to defend our freedom, but also to defend our home by demanding an end to the violence. The district council election results show deep discontent with Hong Kong’s current government. The government has every reason to reflect on its failures and urgently find ways to restore the trust of its people — even if that means starting difficult conversations on political reform. Furthermore, authorities should launch an independent investigation into the conduct of the police force to address grievances against police brutality. However, the protesters also ought to be realistic about their demands and be willing to compromise if they truly believe in a future for Hong Kong. For example, granting blanket amnesty to all those arrested would only serve to undermine the justice system that we Hongkongers so pride ourselves on. Therefore, it is clear that both sides must be willing to return to the negotiating table and make concessions to repair the damage. It has been said that Hongkongers have long had a reputation for resilience, adaptability and pragmatism. Let us live up to that reputation by defending peace when all seems lost.
BAKHITA FUNG is a freshman in the School of Foreign Service.
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n Dec. 1, we commemorated World AIDS Day. As of 2018, approximately 38 million people around the world are living with HIV. 770,000 people died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2018 alone, bringing the total AIDS-related deaths since the start of the epidemic to a staggering 32 million people. Treatment access has increased but is still not comprehensive; in 2018, 62% of people living with HIV were receiving antiretroviral treatment. It is important to acknowledge that certain populations are more affected by the HIV pandemic than others. Especially at risk are men who have sex with men, people who use intravenous drugs, incarcerated people, sex workers and transgender people. Other populations such as young women in Southern and Eastern Africa are also at increased risk of being affected by HIV/AIDS. The continuing HIV/AIDS epidemic hits close to home, too. As of 2016, there are nearly 15,000 people in Washington, D.C., living with HIV, and the rate of new HIV diagnoses in D.C. was the highest of any city in the country in 2017. Clearly, HIV/AIDS remains a serious issue around the world. Yet current foreign policy and student health resources on Georgetown University’s campus fail to address this pandemic. Members of the Georgetown community should take a stand against harmful foreign policy that affects global response efforts toward HIV/ AIDS. Moreover, Georgetown must take action to facilitate HIV prevention and treatment by offering free HIV/STI screening programs on campus. U.S. foreign policy under the Trump administration, rather
than using its international influence to lead in global HIV prevention and treatment, has actively harmed these efforts. The Mexico City Policy, more commonly known as the Global Gag Rule, prevents clinics that receive U.S. government funding from advocating or offering information about abortion even with their own money, regardless of the laws of the country the clinic operates in. Since many clinics that offer abortion services also provide HIV screenings and testing, this policy directly affects HIV care. Clinics must choose between providing comprehensive information and care that their communities need and losing U.S. funding. The Global Gag Rule has led to the defunding of programs in areas where HIV/AIDS is most prevalent. For example, a clinic in the Gaza Province of Mozambique, where about a quarter of the population is HIV positive, lost its U.S. funding due to this policy. Subsequently, over a three-month period, the number of people this clinic screened for HIV dropped from 5,981 to 671. The situation in Gaza Province is just one example of how catastrophic the Global Gag Rule has been to global HIV prevention and treatment. Members of the Georgetown community should combat the Global Gag Rule by calling their representatives and urging them to support the Global Health, Empowerment and Rights Act to reverse the Global Gag Rule for good. Furthermore, in light of the continuing threat of HIV/AIDS around the world and in our own backyard, one would hope Georgetown would promote the health and safety of its students
by prioritizing free HIV and STI testing on campus. However, that is not the case. Last year, the Student Health Center hosted free HIV/ STI screenings one Thursday morning each month, but the early timing made it inaccessible to many students who had work or class. However, in a discouraging step backward, the free monthly HIV/STI screenings were discontinued this semester. While there was a free HIV screening on Dec. 2 in honor of World AIDS Day, the event is not comprehensive of all STIs and, as a one-time event, is not institutionalized. In an ideal world, students would be able to walk into the Student Health Center at any time and obtain free and confidential HIV and comprehensive STI screening. We recognize that this would require a major financial commitment from the university, although universities including New York University and Stanford University have found funding for such programs, but doing so would demonstrate Georgetown’s prioritization of students’ health, a vital aspect of cura personalis. In commemoration of World AIDS Day, we are asking the university to honor its supposed commitment to student health by reinstating and expanding regular free HIV/STI services at the Student Health Center. HIV/ AIDS remains an issue around the world, and Georgetown needs to do its part to address it by prioritizing prevention and treatment in its own community.
TALIA PARKER is a senior in the College. CHLOE KEKEDJIAN is a sophomore in the College.
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE Panelists contested policies that prohibit transgender individuals from serving in the military. Story on A7.
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There really aren’t any other major venues in Georgetown so Gypsy Sally’s was a really unique place. ” Pablo DaBoisie (MSB ’20) on Gypsy Sally’s closure. Story on A9.
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Georgetown University College Republicans held contested board elections in White-Gravenor Hall on Dec. 4, and after all votes had been counted, Henry Dai (SFS ’22), right, was elected president, defeating Chris Castaldi-Moller (SFS ’21), left, and Rowan Saydlowski (COL ’21).
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Club Sports Face Barriers to Membership Amid Budget Cuts MAJA OCHOJSKA Special to The Hoya
When Sarah Watson (SFS ’23) came to Georgetown University this fall, she was excited to join the university’s Club Rock Climbing team. The high fee to try out for the team, however, forced her to change her decision. “I was disappointed and embarrassed that, when I first went to tryouts, I realized it would cost over $100 to participate in the initial tryout period,” Watson said. “Having just gotten on campus, not having secured a job yet, I just wasn’t able to even try out.” Watson’s experience is similar to those of other Georgetown students, as significant budget cuts to all club sports’ funding have led to higher fees associated with teams like Club Rock Climbing. In March 2019, the Georgetown University Student Association released its intended budget plan for the 2019-20 academic year. The Advisory Board for Club Sports, the second-largest advisory board funded by the university, faced the largest cut from its requested funding at $84,755. Eight months later, club sports are facing a range of challenges associated with tight funding, ranging from decreased membership to student safety risks associated with participation in competitions.
BUDGETARY BINDS
The GUSA finance and appropriations committee received $1,092,000 from the $84 student activities fee for the 2019-20 school year. FinApp divided the $1,092,000 among nine bodies, including seven advisory boards: ABCS, Georgetown Program Board, the Georgetown University Lecture Fund, the GUSA executive, Media Board, Performing Arts Advisory Council, Campus Ministry Student Forum and the Center for Social Justice Advisory Board for Student Organizations. The initial FinApp draft budget cut ABCS funding by 27.36% — the second-largest budgetary cut of all advisory boards, proportionally speaking. While budget cuts were made to all nine funded bodies, Performing Arts Advisory Council had the largest proportional cut, with 33.33% — $25,000 — of its requested budget being cut. Despite appealing the draft budget in March, ABCS was allocated a final budget that was $84,755 less than its proposed budget of $309,755 to run more than 30 club sports. The allocated money for ABCS was $10,000 less than the previous year’s budget. Budgetary cuts occur for many reasons, but FinApp may not approve of an advisory board’s full
budgetary request if the proposed Taking precautionary mea- understand how the program members to $825, according to budget does not match the previ- sures and checking in with indi- was run,” Sargent said. Club Equestrian co-captain Elsie ous years’ spending patterns and vidual club sports teams before Coen (COL ’20). (Full disclosure: is not in accordance with the FinApp’s annual budget sum- MOUNTING BARRIERS Coen previously served as a Copy club’s needs, according to GUSA mit ensures that ABCS requests Funding cuts to ABCS put pres- assistant for The Hoya.) FinApp Chair Juliana Arias (SFS funding that accurately repre- sure on club sports to increase The ABCS also imposed a ’20). sents the advisory board’s needs, dues and remove access to ad- 15-member cap on the club, “A lot of boards have a ten- Jonsson said. equate coaching, leading to un- which has created further barridency to inflate their request, and This year’s budgetary cuts fur- due financial and physical strain ers to participation, Coen said. we can see from the allocation of ther strained ABCS because of on nearly all students involved in “This is the first year we’ve had past years that they inflate those the addition of three new club club sports. to do tryouts,” Coen said. “We requests,” Arias said. “We cannot sports over the last two years: The budget cuts have impacted had around 20 or 25 people intruly satisfy boards when they are Club Wrestling, Club Table-Ten- membership accessibility in club terested in the team, and we did requesting budgets that are not nis and Club Skiing. Decreased sports across the board, including have to cut a handful of those bereflective of their needs.” funding prevents ABCS from Club Rock Climbing. A reduc- cause we cannot accommodate FinApp members expressed adequately providing resources tion in funding from the univer- that many.” similar concerns during delibera- to both new and old clubs, Jons- sity has caused the rock climbing Dwindling membership and tion on the proposed budget for son wrote. team to increase its dues, limiting high dues are not the only conthe CSJ ABSO, which requested In addition to coping with de- socioeconomic diversity within sequences of budget cuts, as stu$180,042.96; however, concerns creased funding, ABCS struggles the group, according to Rachel dents’ health can be impacted about the leftover $37,000 of un- with internal communication Angle (COL ’20) and Brendan due to a lack of funds for trainers used funds from the previous issues that exacerbate budget- Clark (COL ’20), co-presidents of and bus services. year led to CSJ ABSO receiving ary concerns, according to Club Club Rock Climbing. Men’s Club Rugby no longer only $156,517.16 for the 2019-20 Equestrian co-captain Kather“We understand the financial has a trainer at all team practices school year. ine Sargent (COL ’20). Ali Stowe burden Georgetown has, howev- or games, a shortage that has inABCS Chair Emily Jonsson (COL served as the interim ABCS direc- er, recent cuts have forced clubs creased the risk for serious injury, ’20) disagrees with the notion that tor from the start of the academic to increase dues, leading to under- according to Mark Ingram (COL advisory boards and clubs inflate school year until Sept. 25, leading representation of less economi- ’20), captain and former president their budgetary requests. When to both confusion and a lack of cally privileged students in club of Men’s Club Rugby. budgets are cut, ABCS only has stability within ABCS, according sports,” Angle and Clark wrote in “As a high impact sport, if our the funds for basic club sports op- to Sargent. an email to The Hoya. players don’t get the practice erations and is unable to allocate “The main issue is that there Financial barriers to club sports reps they need, they get hurt funds for new initiatives to build has been a lot of turnover in the participation is a common chal- in games,” Ingram wrote in an healthier social environments club sports board. For a while lenge among club teams. George- email to The Hoya. “This has actuwithin club sports, according to there was an interim ABCS direc- town’s Club Equestrian team has ally translated into more injuries Jonsson. tor, and so it was really difficult at faced heavy budget cuts in recent than we’ve ever had this season “Our request to FinApp last the start of the semester to han- years, causing dues to rise from with 3 different players breaking year reflected this need,” Jons- dle logistics because she didn’t $550 per semester for competing their collarbones.” son wrote in Men’s Club an email to Rugby plays in The Hoya. “Any a competitive funding we Division I AA receive unforconference, in tunately canwhich other not go towards teams have budnew initiatives gets as high as surrounding $40,000, accordcommunity ing to Ingram. building or adGeorgetown’s dressing issues team, however, that appear receives about differently in a one-quarter of sports context, that amount. such as sexual The team’s budassault.” get took about ABCS works a $3,000 budget internally with cut this year all club sports compared to last to ensure alyear, which has located funds made it impossiare properly ble for the team used. At the to hire buses to end of each travel to games, fall semester, according to InABCS requests gram. that each club “Driving buses sport submit for as much as a budget upwe have to is date. Teams a threat to our that are not in safety because compliance we have to drive with ABCS 5 hrs to get somepolicy are not where, play up given a budget to 120 minutes for the upcomof a physically GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY RUGBY/FACEBOOK strenuous ing fiscal year, and according to Men’s Club Rugby faced a $3,000 budget cut this year, leading to a lack of buses for transportation possibly dangerJonsson. to games and increased injuries because of a lack of funding for a trainer at all team practices. ous sport, then
drive 5 hrs back to Georgetown,” Ingram wrote.
FROM CLUB TO VARSITY
For teams like Club Equestrian, becoming a varsity sport could be an option to increase the budget. Varsity sports at Georgetown yield a significantly higher budget compared to their club counterparts: $39,908,405 for the 2017-18 academic year. Universities like Dartmouth College, Brown University and Cornell University all have an equestrian varsity team, and the latter two are in Division I of the National Collegiate Equestrian Association. Georgetown’s club team does not currently compete in the NCEA but competes in a league of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, an intercollegiate equestrian organization. Georgetown Club Equestrian’s biggest competitor in its IHSA league is Goucher College, a private undergraduate school in Baltimore that has a varsity equestrian team, according to Coen. Becoming a varsity team could allow Club Equestrian to remain competitive, Coen said. However, the process of becoming a varsity team is complicated, as it requires intense communication and negotiation with the university, according to Coen. Transitioning to being a varsity sport would be difficult for Club Equestrian because of the lengthy and complex process that the adjustment would entail. When it comes to introducing new varsity sports, increasing the number of varsity sports beyond the current 29 offered at Georgetown remains a possibility, according to university spokesperson Meghan Dubyak. “We also have more than 1,000 students who are participating in recreational sports through more than 30 club teams,” Dubyak wrote in an email to The Hoya. “As a University, we continue to pursue additional varsity sport offerings to expand opportunities that are in alignment with our mission and resources.” Moving forward, receiving varsity funding for Club Equestrian would significantly expand the opportunities available to the team, according to Coen. “This season and last year have been our most successful for sure,” Coen said. “Even without varsity funding, Club Equestrian is able to perform well against varsity teams like Goucher. With varsity funding and all the benefits that it brings, like owning a ranch and being able to host competitions at it, the club’s level of success has to potential to escalate greatly.”
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FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
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CSET Receives $2 Million Grant GU March for Our Lives Calls To Fund New CyberAI Project For Gun Reform at SCOTUS ANNALISE MYRE Special to The Hoya
The Georgetown Center for Security and Emerging Technology is launching a project to study the effects of the rise of artificial intelligence on cyber operations. The Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence project, known as CyberAI, will invite fellows and Georgetown University faculty to research increasing threats to cybersecurity, the effect of automation on cyber defense and the degree to which cyber operations will become faster and more powerful, according to a Nov. 21 news release from the CSET. The project is funded by a $2 million grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, a nonpartisan, private charitable foundation established by Hewlett-Packard co-founder and his wife. Cyber operations specialists utilize computer programs to create an effect across cyberspace, according to the United States Army website. Offensive operations involve targeting an enemy and conducting hostile activities. Defensive operations are conducted to protect data, networks and systems by detecting, identifying and responding to attacks. The CyberAI project will illuminate how artificial intelligence can be an important tool in improving the effectiveness of both offensive and defensive cyber operations, according to project leader and CSET senior faculty fellow Ben Buchanan. “There’s some promise that it can enable defenders to better protect their networks, especially by finding signs of a breach,” Buchanan wrote in an email to The Hoya. “But AI also might enable the offensive side of cyber operations to be faster and more potent.” The project will also examine the potential risks artificial intelligence may cause in cyberspace and national security. AI systems are susceptible to traditional software vulnerabilities that hackers can exploit. Hackers are also able to manipulate machine learning systems to cause the network to fail or reveal confidential information, according to an Oct. 22 CSET news release. Established in January 2019, the CSET is the largest research center focused on artificial intelligence technology and policy in the United States.
The center aims to join experts in the field of artificial intelligence and advanced computing to Georgetown’s networks in security policy to produce analysis of the national security implications of emerging technologies, according to a Feb. 28 university news release. The center opened on Georgetown’s campus this fall. In its inaugural year, the CSET team developed a reputation for rigorous research and thorough analysis that it hopes to build upon this year, according to Jason Matheny, founding director of the CSET. “The CyberAI project will build on those strengths, offering us the chance to provide new insights at the intersection of cybersecurity and AI,” Matheny wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We’re excited to expand in that direction as we head into year two.” Along with conducting research, the CSET also delivers nonpartisan analysis to the policy community, according to the CSET website. AI is an important tool for cyber defense that is complex and often unintelligible to those unfamiliar with the field, Buchanan wrote. Through CyberAI, Buchanan hopes to help policymakers better understand arti-
ficial intelligence. “Our job is to understand it and explain it to policymakers,” Buchanan wrote. “We’re excited to expand the areas in which we can do that.” The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation awarded the grant Nov. 11 for a two-year term. The grant will enable the CSET to expand the scope of work it engages in, according to the statement from the CSET. “The CyberAI project will build on CSET’s strengths: the rigor of our research, our reputation for thorough and impartial analytical products, and our growing data science capabilities,” the statement read. “We are grateful to the Hewlett Foundation for recognizing the importance of cybersecurity’s intersections with AI, and for their confidence in our ability to deliver results.” The money from the grant will enable the CSET to hire experts in the field and focus more deeply on the impact of cybersecurity and AI on national security, according to Buchanan. “We’re building a critical mass of cybersecurity, AI, and national security talent at CSET, and this grant will help us accelerate those efforts,” Buchanan wrote.
Hoya Staff Writer
A greater sense of compassion is needed to combat the persistent homophobia in various parts of the world, author and LGBTQ activist Garrard Conley said at an event Tuesday. The event, titled “Radical Compassion with Garrard Conley,” was hosted by the Georgetown University Lecture Fund. At the event, Conley discussed his experience growing up in a fundamentalist Christian home in Arkansas and being enrolled by his parents in a conversion therapy program at the age of 19. This experience was the focus of Conley’s 2016 autobiography “Boy Erased: A Memoir,” which was later adapted into the 2018 film “Boy Erased.” Conversion therapy is the practice of trying to change an individual’s sexual orientation using psychological or spiritual interventions. Although showing compassion toward those who hold homophobic beliefs may not change their beliefs, compassion can help survivors of conversion therapy process their trauma, according to Conley. “We’re often told that if we just loved people enough, they would accept us. That’s not what I’m telling you here today,” Conley said. “I’m telling you here that I made this choice to be compassionate towards the people who had done bad things to me, as a way to retain my sanity.” Although numerous medical organizations, including the American Medical Association and the American Psychiatric Association, have stated that there is no evidence indicating that conversion therapy is effective in changing sexual orientation, conversion therapy continues to be practiced in many parts of the country.
Hoya Staff Writer
Students from the Georgetown chapter of March for Our Lives joined hundreds of demonstrators outside the Supreme Court to advocate for gun control reform Dec. 2. The case, filed by the National Rifle Association, a gun rights lobbying group, claims that a New York City ban on transporting handguns outside city limits is unconstitutional, according to a Supreme Court report. Gun control activists worry a victory for the NRA will establish an impregnable legal barrier for future gun control efforts, according to CNBC. The city eliminated the law after the court agreed to hear the case. MFOL GU partnered with other gun control advocacy groups at the rally Monday, including Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. The lawsuit, pushed to the Supreme Court by the NRA, represents a desperate effort to prevent gun control legislation, according to Chris Stauffer (SFS ’22), co-chair of MFOL GU and co-state director of MFOL DC. “The NRA knows that it can no longer beat the gun violence prevention movement at the ballot box — just look at the 2018 midterm elections — so it has turned to the courts as a last-ditch effort to protect the interests of the gun lobby,” Stauffer wrote in an email to The Hoya. The rally Monday displayed solidarity among youth activists as they pushed for reform, Stauffer wrote. “It was important for stu-
dents to rally today to show the courts, and our country, that we are demanding change, and we will not stop until that happens,” Stauffer wrote. Frequent and deadly gun violence has propelled gun control to the forefront of domestic political discourse in the past decade. Students created the MFOL movement after a former student murdered 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. Chronic gun violence and powerful student activism inspired Stauffer to join MFOL, according to Stauffer. “I saw the gun violence that was happening across our country and I needed to do something about it,” Stauffer wrote. “Seeing the movement that came out of the tragedy that happened in Parkland — that was led by young people — inspired me to take action.” Stauffer and Margaret Gleason (COL ’22) established the Georgetown chapter of MFOL in 2018. Gleason, the second co-chair at MFOL GU, become involved in MFOL when gun violence impacted her own community, she wrote in an email to The Hoya. “The tipping point was when a fellow exchange student on my study abroad program was killed in the Santa Fe High School massacre in 2017,” Gleason wrote. “I was already determined to do something, but once my community was touched, I knew I had to do whatever it takes.” Young activists often struggle to gain legitimacy and make their voices heard, according to Stauffer. “Some of the challenges that I have faced as the Co-
Chair of MFOL GU. and the Co-State Director of MFOL DC, is simply getting people to take young people seriously,” Stauffer wrote. “On so many occasions, staffers from the offices of elected officials will underestimate, or condescend, the MFOL members that go to meet with them.” Lawmakers stood alongside activists and survivors of school shootings at the protest. Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Congressman Anthony Brown (D-Md.) and Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) each addressed the crowd of demonstrators. The case being analyzed could have lasting implications for gun control policy, according to Brown. “The Supreme Court is hearing arguments that could impact common sense gun safety measures: policies like stopping domestic abusers from possessing guns, red flag laws that keep guns out of the hands of people who pose a threat to themselves or others, and banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines,” Brown wrote in an email to The Hoya. Gun control measures are necessary and reasonable steps to improving safety in American neighborhoods, according to Connolly. “Yesterday, I was proud to stand with gun safety advocates to demand responsible gun control,” Connolly wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Commonsense proposals like reinstating the assault weapons ban, mandating universal background checks, and closing the gun show loophole are a first step in making our communities safer.”
GUSA Begins Initiative To Strive Toward Environmental Standard MARGIE CULLEN Hoya Staff Writer
CSET
Center for Security and Emerging Technology senior faculty fellow Ben Buchanan will serve as the CyberAI project leader.
Compassion Supports Healing Of LGBTQ Youth, Activist Says ASHLEY ZHAO
GIULIA TESTA
In addition to being ineffective at changing sexual orientation, conversion therapy can also have many negative effects on the mental health and wellbeing of LGBTQ people. Studies show that LGBTQ youth who are rejected by their families due to their identities are nearly six times more likely to report high levels of depression and more than eight times more likely to have attempted suicide when compared to youth from accepting families. Conley was able to forgive and rebuild his relationship with his parents in the years following his time in conversion therapy after they realized their mistake in enrolling him in the program. This familial reconciliation can be beneficial for those who underwent conversion therapy, according to Conley. “That bridge that can be rebuilt between those parents and children, it’s like life-saving for a lot of people, and it actually helps them reclaim their past and helps them reclaim who they are,” Conley said. Conley now works alongside other activists to help end conversion therapy in the United States and abroad. Conversion therapy uses shame as a way of forcing people to change their sexual orientation, Conley said. “There was the idea that we had somehow all chosen to be addicted,” Conley said. “I was placed there with people who were dealing with anything from bestiality, pedophilia, marriage issues, they just lumped us all together.” His own traumatic experience in conversion therapy pushed him to share his story to dispel misinformation around conversion therapy, Conley said. “When my parents searched for conversion therapy online,
what came up was like positive results, like you can be cured here. Now what comes up is my story and stories like mine, saying this is evil and there have been this many bans passed on conversion therapy,” Conley said. “It felt like there was this emphasis to tell the story first of all, and to keep doing it.” Nearly 700,000 individuals in the United States between the ages of 18 and 59 have undergone conversion therapy at some point in their lives, according to a 2018 report by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. While stories like his are now becoming more recognized, there is still a need for greater representation in terms of whose stories are able to be heard, according to Conley. “We need diversity in the representation of who is a survivor. There are very few stories of trans survivors that are out there that are mainstream. There are very few stories of people of color who are being elevated to the same level as my story,” Conley said. “It’s actually happening all over and it’s not just in the U.S., it’s all over the globe.” While compassion alone is incapable of solving all the issues facing society today, Conley emphasized the necessity of understanding the conditions under which people may develop homophobic mindsets. “I’m skeptical of my own stance that I’ve taken here. I’m constantly skeptical of whether or not compassion can actually save us from evil or from the horribleness of the world,” Conely said. “I don’t know, but I do know that personally, what I had to do to survive was to actually rely on this kind of understanding that I had cut myself off from and that saved my life.”
The Georgetown University Student Association senate established a Blue Campus working group to explore launching a student referendum to designate Georgetown as the world’s first Blue Campus on Nov. 24. A Blue Campus designation would affirm the university’s commitment to environmentally conscious practices focused on ocean preservation and urge the administration to participate in sustainability efforts. The working group will conduct research related to conducting the Blue Campus referendum and engage with student groups. If the working group decides to move forward with a student referendum, the GUSA election commission would seek to introduce the referendum by spring. The resolution, introduced by Senate Sustainability Chair Leo Rassieur (COL ’23), passed unanimously. Greater student body participation in campus environmental efforts is important to improving sustainability at Georgetown, according to Rassieur. “I really hope that the working group will allow us to write a referendum that takes into account students all across campus, not just people who are in leadership positions,” Rassieur said in an interview with The Hoya. “I hope that it will allow us to get more support from — initially, me — people who were initially skeptical that efforts to make the environment more sustainable actually work out.” GUSA President Norman Francis Jr. (COL ’20) and Vice President Aleida Olvera (COL ’20) expressed support for the Blue Campus project and collaboration with The Blue S.O.S., an international sustainability organization, in a statement published Oct. 15. “We believe that The Blue S.O.S.’s focus on preserving our oceans constitutes a vital aspect of our environmental commitment. Our planet’s oceans serve as a major carbon emissions sink, source of biodiversity, and a resource for many people around the world,” the statement said. “Consequently, the Francis-Olvera Administration of GUSA views the protection and preservation of our oceans as an essential part of responsible global citizenship.”
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A GUSA working group will look into launching a student referendum that would designate Georgetown as the world’s first Blue Campus. With a Blue Campus designation, the sustainability policy coalition, GUSA executive’s environmental policy team, will aim to sponsor educational programs about sustainable practices and partner with The Blue S.O.S. to invest in oceanfriendly student businesses, according to the executive’s Oct. 15 statement. The GUSA executive will continue supporting the senate’s sustainability efforts, according to GUSA Press Secretary Harper Thomas (SFS ’22). “The Norman-Aleida administration stands with the Senate in supporting Georgetown’s designation as a Blue Campus,” Thomas said in an email to The Hoya. “We hope to continue working alongside our counterparts in the senate to encourage legislative progress on this and other important issues relating to environmental sustainability.” The Blue Campus resolution follows a campuswide pivot toward sustainable environmental practices over the past decade. In February, the university established the Laudato Si’ Fund, named for Pope Francis’s 2015 letter on environmental justice sent to Roman Catholic bishops, to encourage collaboration combating sustainability challenges. The fund sets aside $300,000 in grants to help fund student-, faculty- and staff-proposed projects that seek to combat local and glob-
al sustainability challenges. The Office of Sustainability, established in 2013 to improve Georgetown’s environmental footprint, was nominated for a sustainability prize in 2018. The Blue Campus initiative is an important step in campus sustainability efforts, according to Amelia Walsh (SFS ’20), president of the Georgetown Renewable Energy and Environmental Network. “We think that the more focus environmental initiatives get from the campus community, the better it is for all of us and our environment,” Walsh wrote in an email to the Hoya. “We are in support of these initiatives and encourage the entire campus community to take part in these efforts.” By becoming a Blue Campus, the Georgetown community has the opportunity to support an important environmental initiative, according to GUSA Senator Eric Bazail Eimil (SFS ’23). “Honestly, it’s an incredible cause. Oceans are the main resources for documenting climate change, so without policy resolutions, we will not stop climate change,” Eimil said during the meeting. “So if Georgetown can make efforts to reduce its plastic impact, become actually more friendly to ocean ecosystems, be actually good in both and we have a really robust policy that we can use.”
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Alexander, Gardner Remain Rotenberg To Study Disability On Team Despite Allegations Inclusion as Rhodes Scholar BASKETBALL, from A1 after the players expressed interest in transferring from the university, according to Reed’s statement. Akinjo has led the team in minutes played and assists recorded as the starting point guard, according to ESPN. Reed’s statement also acknowledged outstanding allegations against three members of the team. These developments come amid proliferation on social media of a list of alleged perpetrators of violence at Georgetown including predatory behavior, coercion, rape and physical assault. No formal disciplinary action against any of these students has been disclosed. The university does not comment on individual students because of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, according to Reed. Basketball players are not granted special treatment in disciplinary processes, according to a Dec. 4 statement from Ewing. “I address this because I don’t want there to be any question about the culture of Hoya basketball. The G we wear on our uniforms is about much more than basketball,” Ewing wrote. “It’s about a culture that expects the best of our players, both on and off the court. Having a strong culture is also about respecting and supporting those members of our community who come forward to report misconduct.” The university requires that all
student-athletes complete education on interpersonal violence and sexual assault, according to Reed. Basketball players are not granted special treatment in disciplinary processes, according to a Dec. 4 statement from Ewing. “I address this because I don’t want there to be any question about the culture of Hoya basketball. The G we wear on our uniforms is about much more than basketball,” Ewing wrote. “It’s about a culture that expects the best of our players, both on and off the court. Having a strong culture is also about respecting and supporting those members of
our community who come forward to report misconduct.” The university requires that all student-athletes complete education on interpersonal violence and sexual assault, according to Reed. “Please know that we are deeply committed to the integrity of our athletics program,” Reed’s statement reads. “We aspire for our student-athletes to exemplify the excellence and integrity of the Georgetown community and will continue to work to achieve this mission.” Alexander, Gardner and LeBlanc did not respond to The Hoya’s requests for comment.
RHODES, from A1 had received the scholarship in November while she was visiting family in Canada. While the scholarship surprised Rotenberg, it validates her hard work and academic accomplishments, she said in an interview with The Hoya. “It was a bit of a blur, I’d say, and I was with my parents, and we were all very excited. We all cried a bit and hugged each other. It was a good moment,” Rotenberg said. “I’ve worked very hard, and I’ve had a lot of very cool experiences, so it’s nice to be recognized for that, but ultimately I think a lot of it is about what’s next.” At Georgetown, Rotenberg completed studies and wrote a paper about population policies in sub-Saharan Africa with global health professor John May. The two presented their work at the Population Association of America annual conference in Austin, Texas, in April 2019. The pair submitted their paper to a peer-reviewed journal, which is currently considering the work for publishing. Throughout the process, Rotenberg exhibited an understanding of difficult demography concepts and an excellent work ethic, according to May. “I was really impressed because of her quick grasp of the technicalities of demography,” May wrote in an email to The Hoya. “I’m impressed by her drive and hard work, she’s a young person but she knows exactly what she wants to do and where she wants to go.” Rhodes scholars are chosen annually after applicants undergo a written application, a series of interviews and formal receptions with former
panelists and former Rhodes scholars. Thirty-two winners are selected from the United States; however, Rhodes scholarships are also available to citizens of certain other countries. The scholarship had a 0.7% acceptance rate in 2017, with accepted candidates being chosen for their academic merit, character, leadership and commitment to the common good, according to the Rhodes Trust website. While studying abroad in Mumbai, India, this fall, Rotenberg also completed a student fellowship with the Georgetown University Global Health Initiative, studying the accessibility of the Mumbai Metro system, one of the world’s largest construction infrastructure projects to offer suggestions for its improvements. Through the program, Rotenberg worked to design a presentation about making the Mumbai Metro the first universally accessible metro system to individuals with disabilities. The Mumbai Metro planning team officials are receptive to her ideas, according to Rotenberg. “I got to show their planning team how they can be accessible, and they’re very interested in working with me and professor Irfan Nooruddin, who runs the India initiative, and continuing to see how we can do that,” Rotenberg said. “So that’s pretty exciting, and we just want a grant for that so we can continue that work.” The Rhodes Trust was established in 1903 after Cecil Rhodes, a British businessman and colonial politician, organized for scholarships to be set up in his name in his will. Trustees for the Rhodes Trust manage the fund for these scholarships and help ensure
the continuity of the scholarship. Rotenberg is the 27th Rhodes scholar from Georgetown. The last Rhodes scholar from the university was Deirdre Collins (COL ’17), who was granted the distinction from Bermuda in 2018. Alumnus and former President Bill Clinton (SFS ’68) also stands among Georgetown’s recipients of the fellowship, though he was honored after graduating from Georgetown. Receiving the scholarship is a significant distinction that reflects Rotenberg’s overall character, University President John J. DeGioia (CAS ’79, GRD ’95) wrote in an announcement on the university’s website. “This is an extraordinary accomplishment and our entire Georgetown community joins me in offering our sincere congratulations to Sara,” DeGioia wrote. “Her dedication to her studies as well as her advocacy for the equity of people with disabilities embodies the very best of our values as a University, and we look forward to all she will accomplish as she pursues graduate work at the University of Oxford.” The Rhodes scholarship will give Rotenberg the opportunity to continue her work on disability inclusion advocacy in international development, which she has been studying through her major, she said. “My proposal is working on disability inclusion and international development, so it’s really ‘How can I use the next two years to build a body of evidence and inspire policy that is disability inclusive?’” Rotenberg said. “That’s what that means to me and where I’m going with it, and I’m really excited about that.”
DC Council Holds Historic Vote To Oust Evans Over Corruption EVANS, from A1
FILE PHOTOS: KIRK ZIESER/THE HOYA
Myron Gardner, 15, top, played Wednesday against Oklahoma State University despite civil complaints alleging burglary and assault. James Akinjo, 3, bottom, the men’s basketball team Monday Dec. 2.
stand by them as they make these very difficult decisions.” Six Democrats are currently running in the primary set for June 2, 2020, to replace Evans, who has yet to announce a run for reelection. The candidates are Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners Patrick Kennedy (D2A), Kishan Putta (D-2E) and John Fanning (D-2F); former Obama administration staffer Jordan Grossman; and political newcomers Daniel Hernandez, a former Marine, and Yilin Zhang, who is active in the League of Women Voters’
D.C. statehood campaign. The Ward 2 district includes both the Georgetown neighborhood and Georgetown University’s main campus. Although Georgetown University College Democrats will not take a position on the Ward 2 race, they support the council’s vote to expel Evans, according to GUCD chair Rebecca Hollister (COL ’21). “The evidence is overwhelmingly against him, and it seems that he is worse than just a bad representative--he is corrupt,” Hollister wrote in an email to The Hoya. “I will be interested to see how the primary now plays out; it is a very crowded field and
many of the candidates have a lot to offer. At this point the candidates need to just convince Ward 2 voters that electing them won’t lead to more of the same.” Expulsion is the only adequate measure to punish Evans’ behavior, according to Cheh. “Mr. Evans has betrayed each and every one of us--his colleagues, the government, and the residents of the District of Columbia,” Cheh wrote in a Dec. 3 tweet. “I don’t think there is any other action that we can fairly take other than expulsion. Nothing short of that would be proportionate to what he’s done.”
GUSA Bystander Training Sees Poor Attendance, Cancellations GUSA, from A1 still low, according to Olvera. Senators will face consequences for missing the trainings, she said. “If you didn’t attend bystander training when it was made extremely clear to y’all that it was mandatory, there will be a mark on your name on the directory indicating that you did not attend,” Olvera said at the meeting. Sixty-eight GUSA members indicated they would attend one of the three offered bystander trainings, according to Senate Speaker Juan Martinez (SFS ’20). Of those 68 sign-ups within GUSA, only 26 members were present at the actual trainings. There were a total of three GUSA-specific trainings, one Nov. 22 and two Nov. 24. For a full-time staff member of the university’s Health Education Services to lead a bystander training, a minimum of 10 students is required, according to Olvera. While 11 senators signed up for the single training Nov. 22, the training was cancelled, since only three senators showed up. The two sessions held on Nov. 24 ran, but only 12 participants attended the first session, and only 11 attended the second, according to Olvera. Canceling the Nov. 22 training because of low turnout was disappointing, according to Senator Daniella Sanchez (COL ’20), who was one of
the three GUSA senators who showed up for the training. “I was not able to attend the Sunday sessions, so I’m not sure how that turnout was, but the way Aleida was speaking, we could tell that it wasn’t sufficient,” Sanchez said. Six senators were unable to attend the trainings because of excused reasons, five senators were signed up for the cancelled Friday training and two senators did not sign up for any training. Some senators may not have been able to attend the sessions because of the close proximity to the Thanksgiving holiday, according to Senator At-Large Charlie Wang (SFS ’22). “I think the main reason is that it’s just the week before Thanksgiving and people are slacking a little bit,” Wang said. “But I think in general, I think GUSA is trying to address these kinds of issues, and it’s important to address these kinds of issues as well.” The mandatory bystander trainings are intended to prevent sexual misconduct in GUSA, according to Sanchez. “It hasn’t been implemented like this before,” Sanchez said. “This is a new step that the administration is trying to take to show that GUSA is trying to be proactive in preventing any issues from arising within the senate. This is the first time that this many sessions have been provided for GUSA exclusively.” Former Vice President Naba
Rahman (SFS ’19) and 10 other executive cabinet members resigned Sept. 14 to put pressure on the GUSA President Sahil Nair (SFS ’19) to resign amid sexual misconduct allegations against him. Later that morning, Nair resigned. After an emergency GUSA senate meeting that night, senators demanded all of the resignations be upheld. Rahman and the remaining cabinet members officially resigned Sept. 14. The implementation of these trainings is also meant to combat the negative reputation of GUSA in matters of sexual assault and misconduct after last year’s events, Olvera said during the senate meeting. “I don’t even want to beat around the bush — the sentiment towards GUSA is that we’re full of people who perpetuate sexual assault and violence against women,” Olvera said at the meeting. To respond to the attendance problems for these mandatory trainings, GUSA is set to hold rescheduled trainings next semester, according to Olvera. “We do want to show the student body that we are a different GUSA,” Olvera said at the meeting. “We have this ugly sentiments towards us because we have never shown ourselves or proven ourselves to be different, and this was our opportunity to do so. So I’m really disappointed that there was not a lot of people there.”
AMBER GILLETTE/THE HOYA
Provost Robert Groves outlined the process through which tuition money is allocated to different projects around Georgetown
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DC Zoning Board Postpones GU Signs Brief Supporting Decision on Call Your Mother International Students KELLY ANDERSON Hoya Staff Writer
The D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment postponed issuing a zoning exception to Call Your Mother at a Dec. 4 hearing amid community disagreement on granting the deli a variance. The popular bagel deli, which was slated to open on the corner of 35th and O Streets in October, must provide evidence proving it needs a variance to operate its deli, the board ruled. The variance would allow the deli to operate in a residential area and prepare hot foods. The board, a body that approves applications for zoning variances, postponed its final decision on the application for a variance to grant Andrew Dana, founder and owner of Call Your Mother, more time to pursue other options for obtaining zoning approval, such as corner store rules, which allow commercial use of certain properties in residential zones. The board will render its final decision at a hearing on Dec. 11. Without the zoning variance, the deli would be barred from cooking hot food and could only sell untoasted bagels and pre-made sandwiches, which customers would then have to warm themselves, according to Dana. “We are not asking for some huge leash,” Dana said in an interview with The Hoya. “We are basically just asking, ‘can we turn the toaster around and make the sandwiches for you?’” Under the 2012 zoning rewrite, corner stores can be used for commercial purposes in certain residential zones. In Georgetown, corner stores do not qualify for this rule if they are within 750 feet of a com-
mercially zoned property. Call Your Mother’s location does not qualify because it would be within 750 feet of Wisemiller’s Deli, which is zoned commercially. Frederick Hill, the chairman of the Board of Zoning Adjustment, recommended that Dana see if Call Your Mother could be an exception to the rule, as an alternative to obtaining a variance. Opposition to the deli comes from Georgetown residents who reside in the immediate vicinity of the building. Melinda Roth (LAW ’03), who owns a house on O Street and attended the hearing, supports
“The zoning regulations exist for a reason — to be able to separate commercial zones and residential ones.” MELINDA ROTH O Street Resident
the opening of the deli but opposes the variance due to concerns about Call Your Mother’s location. “This really sets a precedent in the city, which is a very slippery slope, that, if granted, this variance, there’s no street that is safe from someone coming in and opening a business,” Roth said in an interview with The Hoya. “The zoning regulations exist for a reason – to be able to separate commercial zones and residential ones.” Call Your Mother’s opening has prompted fears of residential property being devalued because excessive noise and foot
traffic would deter people from purchasing homes in the general vicinity, according to Roth. “I think some of the other homeowners are very concerned about, you know, rightly so, what might happen to their property values,” Roth said. “As a homeowner and taxpayer in D.C., I do expect the zoning regulations to protect me.” Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E voted to recommend that Call Your Mother’s zoning variance application be granted earlier this year in a 6-2 vote. Call Your Mother has not provided sufficient evidence that the variance is necessary, according to ANC Chair Rick Murphy, who voted against the measure. “I think I can safely say the majority of my constituents in the single-member district favor the granting of this variance,” Murphy said at the hearing. “I oppose the application because the applicant has utterly failed to carry its burden of proving the property owner would suffer exceptional and undue hardship if the requested use variance was not granted.” The vast majority of Georgetown University students support Call Your Mother’s opening, according to Georgetown University Student Association Senator Samuel Dubke (SFS ’21), who co-sponsored a resolution endorsing the deli’s opening that passed Nov. 24. “Every student to whom I have spoken about this issue has expressed overwhelming support for Call Your Mother Bagels,” Dubke said in an email to The Hoya. “It is telling that we voted unanimously in favor of the resolution to support Call Your Mother Bagels. Students are overwhelmingly supportive of the business.”
YALDA ZARRABI Hoya Staff Writer
Georgetown University joined over 100 other academic institutions in signing an amicus brief to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in support of temporary employment authorization for international students Nov. 25. The Optional Practical Training program, managed by the Department of Homeland Security, grants international students a yearlong extension to their F-1 student visas to pursue professional opportunities related to their fields of study. The brief supports an extension to the program for STEM students, which a labor union challenged as unconstitutional in 2016. The opportunity for international students to continue their education through firsthand training is a vital part of the student experience, according to Rachel Rubin, director of International Student and Scholar Services at the Office of Global Services. “Georgetown is a global community — one made stronger by our religious, cultural and international diversity. Georgetown firmly believes in the power that comes from our students bringing knowledge gained in a classroom into real-world experiences,” Rubin wrote in a statement to the Hoya. “The opportunity to undertake internships, employment, or research is critical to student success after leaving Georgetown.” International students are required to hold an F-1 visa to study at any college or university in the United States. Upon graduation, F-1 visa holders can apply for the OPT
program. In 2016, President Barack Obama changed DHS regulations to add the OPTSTEM program, which allows international students who work in STEM fields to extend a general OPT program for an additional two years. The Washington Alliance of Technology Workers, a labor union, sued the DHS in 2016, alleging that the program unfairly causes U.S. workers to compete with foreign workers within the STEM industry. International students in the OPT-STEM program contribute to the U. S. economy and advances science and technology efforts across the country, according to Heather Stewart, director of immigration policy for NAFSA: Association of International Educators, an international student advocacy organization. “Our nation’s economy and educational institutions are undeniably enriched by the presence of talented, diverse, and motivated international students and OPT is a key factor in attracting those very students,” Stewart wrote in an email to The Hoya. “The U.S. is now in a global competition for international students and scholars. To ensure that we continue to benefit from these individuals and their investments in our communities, we must maintain this timetested program.” The lawsuit against the OPT-STEM program was first brought to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in 2016 in the lawsuit Washington Alliance of Technology Workers Union vs. U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In 2019, a judge ruled that the case against the program could move forward after inaction on the case for three years.
If judges were to rule in favor of the challenge, universities and colleges in the United States could expect to see international student enrollment decrease because international students would only be able to extend their F-1 visas for up to a year after their graduation, according to Law 360, a legal news service. The OPT-STEM program must continue, so international students have the opportunity to find employment after graduation, according to Rimpal Bajwa (SFS ’22), activism committee leader for Hoyas for Immigrant Rights. “International students are kind of at a disadvantage when it comes to the job market because after graduating, their visa expires, and the company they work for has to sponsor them for a work visa,” Bajwa said in an interview with The Hoya. “This is an additional step most companies aren’t willing to take. OPT allows international students to not only gain an education, but allows them to translate the skills they’ve learned in the classroom to actual work environments.” Continuing the OPT-STEM program will ultimately benefit scientific research in the United States, according to Stewart. “Attracting international students and scholars is an important way that the United States grows its knowledge economy,” Stewart wrote. “The countries that create the most attractive environment for the world’s finest scientists will do the most to enhance their scientific leadership. Indeed, the very diversity that we gain through openness to international talent itself fuels innovation and creativity.”
Panel: Trump’s Transgender Gender Will Not Influence Military Ban Is Unreasonable 2020 Election, Panel Says BETSY RATLIFFE Special to The Hoya
U.S. policies that prevent members of the transgender community from serving in the armed forces contradict the core values of the military, panelists said at a Dec. 4 event. The Spectra Alliance, a collaboration between the Georgetown University Student Veterans Association and GradPride, hosted the event, titled “The Lived Experience of Transgender Service Members & Veterans,” in Lohrfink Auditorium. The event featured a panel of three transgender military veterans who shared their personal experiences and perspectives on policies regulating transgender members of the U.S. military. U.S. policies that compel transgender people to conceal facets of their identities in the military discredit the military’s character, according to panelist Paula Neira, U.S. Navy veteran and clinical program director at the Johns Hopkins Center for Transgender Health. “We should never ask somebody to lie about who they are,” Neira said. “And we can’t have core values of honor and integrity and courage and expect people to lie to us because that corrodes the core values of the institution.” In 2018, President Donald Trump’s administration implemented a new policy about transgender people joining the military. Anyone who has undergone cross-sex hormone therapy or sex reassignment surgery or who is unwilling or cannot meet the fitness requisites associated with their biological sex cannot join the military without a waiver, according to the Department of
Defense. Most individuals diagnosed with gender dysphoria, which is when someone experiences discomfort or distress that their biological sex and gender identity are mismatched, are disqualified from joining the military. However, individuals with gender dysphoria who have been “stable” for 36 consecutive months in their biological sex and are willing to serve in that sex are permitted to participate in the military, the Department of Defense wrote on their website. The policy does not serve as a ban on transgender people in the military, according to the Department of Defense. The policies, however, effectively prevent transgender people from serving in the military, according to Neira. “If you aren’t in the military today and you’re transgender and you want to join the military, you can’t,” Neira said. “If you’ve had any kind of gender-affirming treatment, you are forever banned from applying to the military under this policy.” In 2016, then-Defense Secretary Ashton Carter lifted the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military for the first time. The Trump administration cited budgetary costs to justify reimplementing policies that inhibit transgender people’s participation in the military. Defense Department data indicates that $8 million, or .016% of the $50 billion healthcare budget for active members of the military, has been used for transgender people between July 1, 2016 and Feb. 1, 2019. The statistic discredits the Trump administration’s arguments that cost justifies regulations on transgender military
members, panelist Charlotte Clymer, a U.S. Army veteran, said. “Cost is not an issue,” Clymer said. “There are no reasons why trans people can’t serve. The only reason a trans person should not serve is if they can’t meet the military standard.” Members of the U.S. military should be judged based on their skills and not excluded based on their identities, panelist Karen Kendra Holmes, a Maryland Defense Force veteran, said. “We have a lot of trans people who are qualified and skilled,” Holmes said. “We put our time, effort and resources into training them and you’re going to get rid of them because they’re transgender? They saw what I was bringing to the unit, not because I was transgender because they didn’t even know.” Over 134,000 American veterans are transgender, and over 15,000 transgender people are serving in the military today, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality. The U.S. government must eliminate barriers to transgender military service, according to Clymer. “Our country should not be debating who someone loves or who they are, ever,” Clymer said. Individuals should advocate for and support all members of the transgender community to combat harmful stereotypes, according to Holmes. “None of us are the same,” Holmes said. “We need you to stand up for us. Stand up. If you hear something negative about somebody, stand up.” “At the end of the day we have to deliver a report that is going to be as objective as possible.”
SHEEL PATEL/THE HOYA
Paula Neira, left, Karen Kendra Holmes, middle, and Charlotte Clymer, right, were the featured panelists at the Dec. 4 event titled “The Lived Experience of Transgender Service Members & Veterans.”
ANNA FERRAZZI Hoya Staff Writer
Gender bias will not significantly influence voters’ election decisions in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, panelists said at a Dec. 4 event. The event, titled “Deconstructing Gender Bias: Implications for 2020,” was hosted by the Women in Public Policy Initiative and the Georgetown University Institute for Politics and Public Service at the McCourt School of Public Policy. At the panel event, McCourt School Fellows reflected on how preconceived notions about individual candidates’ electability may affect the results of the 2020 presidential election. Looking forward to the 2020 presidential election, voters will not discriminate against candidates based on their gender in the general election, according to Katie Walsh Shields, senior advisor for the Republican National Committee. “I don’t believe that, outside of primaries, someone wins or loses an election in this country because of gender,” Shields said. “I think in a general election, specifically a presidential election, I mean, you have to remember that the majority of voters in this country are women.” The event also featured a discussion between McCourt School Fellows Antonia Ferrier, staff director for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), and Olivia Alair Dalton, founder of strategic communications firm Dalton Strategies. Stephanie Valencia, co-founder of EquisLabs, which works to empower the Latino electorate to make their voices heard in American politics, also spoke at the event. Emily Van Dusen, a masters of policy management student and member of WiPPI, moderated the panel. In the ongoing 2020 Democratic primary, a record six women entered the contest for nominations. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (DMass.) and self-help author Marianne Williamson are still running to be the Democratic nominee after Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) disbanded her campaign this week. Even though conversations
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Katie Walsh Shields spoke Dec. 4 at a panel event titled “Deconstructing Gender Bias: Implications for 2020,” in New North. about which candidates are most electable seem to dominate conversations in the lead-up to elections, whether or not someone appears to be electable does not matter, according to Valencia. “I think electability is a little bit of a farce,” Valencia said. “I think, if we look at, over the last few election cycles, including 2016, a lot of people didn’t think Donald Trump was electable. A lot of people thought Hillary Clinton was electable in 2008 and that Barack Obama was not electable in 2008.” Discussions around electability are irrelevant, as the only way to know whether or not someone is electable is to observe the ultimate results of the race, according to Ferrier. “There are a lot of reasons why people win or lose, but if they’re electable, the way you tell is if they win,” Ferrier said. Female candidates struggle to attract fundraising donors due to preconceived notions around female electability. Polling is not representative of the actual voting electorate, which includes a female majority. Additionally, sexism and racial bias are still fervent in both political par-
ties, according to Valencia. Candidates are not elected to positions based on their gender, but rather their qualifications. Lack of campaign success should be attributed to policy failures instead of a candidate’s gender, according to Ferrier. “It’s position; it’s not gender. I don’t doubt for a second that it is harder for women to win,” Ferrier said. “I don’t care what political party they are from if there are problems in their campaign. They had missteps and they choose to blame it on their gender as opposed to they were out of step with voters or their campaign made missteps.” Moving forward, both political parties must work past perceived prejudices when electing the next president in the 2020 election, Valencia said. “We need to deconstruct what makes somebody electable and I think for the most part it’s probably very similar on the left as it is on the right,” Valencia said. “In both parties, I think we have to deconstruct sexism and racism that exists within our own parties about who is electable.”
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ANC 2E Residents Raise Concerns Potomac River Rapist Arrested, Over Ellington Field Takeover Makes 1st Appearance in Court ANNA FERRAZZI Hoya Staff Writer
Local residents voiced concerns that the Department of Parks and Recreation management takeover of Duke Ellington Field would limit access for community residents and public school students at an Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E meeting on Dec. 2. The move sparked outrage because of a perceived lack of transparency in DPR’s communications with the community since the shift was first announced in July. DPR plans to execute the transfer from District of Columbia Public Schools on Dec. 14, despite requests from various community and school leaders to postpone due to concerns that students will be disadvantaged by the change in management. The shift in management will increase neighborhood access, according to Delano Hunter, acting director of DPR. “The transfer of Ellington Field from DCPS to DPR is intended to facilitate improved access for neighbors, the broader Ward 2 community, and neighboring DCPS schools,” Hunter wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We will continue working with the community to meet their needs and consider stakeholder feedback in the process to provide a space all residents can enjoy for years to come.” The field is used primarily by three D.C. public schools: Duke Ellington School for the Arts, Hardy Middle School and School Without Walls High School. The Georgetown University track and field team also uses the field, due to a contract stemming from Georgetown’s role in
funding renovations in 2005. Residents pushed back against DPR’s plan, questioning Ely Ross, DPR chief of staff and the representative speaking at the ANC Meeting. Eric Langenbacher, head of the Burleith Citizens Association and a professor in Georgetown’s department of government, asked for DPR to halt the transfer process and allow more time for receiving community feedback.
“What kind of precedent are you setting when you enter into agreements like this and try to privatize our public assets?” MARTIN WELLES Vice President of the PTO at Hardy Middle
“I’m almost a 50-year-old man. I don’t want to beg, but I’ll beg for a second,” Langenbacher said at the meeting. “Please give us more time before you make any kind of irrevocable decisions.” Langenbacher’s call for an extension was echoed by other community leaders. Residents were startled by the transfer announcement, justifying their request for more time, according to ANC 2E Commissioner Kishan Putta. “They were very confused that Councilmember Evans repeatedly wrote and said publicly that the transfer would not happen until after a series of public meetings. That never happened and then this 30-day notice
dropped unexpectedly,” Putta wrote in an email to The Hoya. “So I don’t blame them for being frustrated and for asking for more time - at least till after a public community meeting in January after the holidays, as I requested at the ANC meeting.” A contract with DPR allows The Maret School, a prestigious D.C. private school, exclusive access during afterschool hours to Jelleff Field, a public sports field in Glover Park. There are fears that a similar arrangement would occur with Duke Ellington Field, limiting community and public school access, according to Langenbacher. “Few if any Burleith neighbors I’ve spoken to support the transfer to DPR,” Langenbacher wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Many fear that the field will become another ‘asset’ that the city authorities can permit to the highest bidder--likely a bevy of out-of-neighborhood private schools or sports leagues. The field is not suitable for a big increase in use.” Fourteen DPR properties have been involved in sponsorship agreements, leases and license agreements since 2001, with frequency increasing in recent years. These agreements largely grant private entities and schools priority access to the properties in exchange for funding. DPR’s prioritization of private interests exemplifies bad governance, according to Martin Welles, vice president of the PTO at Hardy Middle School. “What kind of government is this?” Welles said at the meeting. “And what kind of precedent are you setting when you enter into agreements like this and try to privatize our public assets?”
MADIHA SOHANI Hoya Staff Writer
This article discusses sexual assault on campus. Please refer to the end of the article for on- and off-campus resources. The “Potomac River Rapist,” who committed a string of violent crimes in the Washington, D.C. area in the 1990s, including raping and murdering a Georgetown University summer resident, made his first appearance in court Nov. 21. Police arrested Giles Warrick, 60, at his home in Horry County, South Carolina on Nov. 13. Warrick said only his name during the 20-minute hearing, at which Warrick was charged with first-degree murder and sexual assault, according to The Washington Post. Warrick will be held in the D.C. Central Detention Facility until his next hearing, set for Jan. 17, 2020. Warrick is a suspect in 10 rapes in D.C. and Montgomery County between 1991 and 1998, but has only been charged in eight cases he has been explicitly linked to through DNA testing, according to The Washington Post. Among Warrick’s alleged victims was Christine Mirzayan, a 29-year-old summer resident in Georgetown’s Nevils dormitory. At the time of Mirzayan’s death, she was serving as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Academy of Sciences. The Christine Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy Graduate Fellowship was founded in her honor in 1998, and Mirzayan’s legacy is carried on by the program’s participants, according to program director Gail Cohen. “Christine had a strong desire to communicate the excitement of science and its contribution to making the world a better place,” Cohen wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Her desire lives on through all the individuals who
are Mirzayan Fellows.” On August 1, 1998, Mirzayan was attending a party with friends near 44th Street NW and decided to walk home around 10 p.m. alone. Her halfnaked and badly beaten body was discovered in a wooded area behind the Village A dormitories the next afternoon. The prospects of solving the case were originally thought to be slim. Consequently, fear of violent crime increased on campus following the incident, prompting a community response, according to The Hoya’s article. “The murder has heightened concerns about safety on and around campus this year,” the article read. “During the New Student Orientation in late August, school officials placed extra emphasis on student safety education and sent letters to all on and off-campus residents describing the incident.” The advent of genealogical DNA testing led authorities to Warrick, according to The Washington Post. Detectives working on Warrick’s case submitted a genetic profile with DNA that had been collected at the crime scenes over the years to Parabon Nanolabs, a Virginia DNA forensics company. The DNA sample was processed through a large database, looking for genetic matches. Through this process, researchers were able to find distant family members who had similar biological characteristics. From this evidence, investigators were able to narrow down their search by speaking with family members, according to the Washington Post. They discovered that Warrick had spent a long period of time in Maryland and D.C. in the 1990s. After discovering this connection, detectives arrived in South Carolina to get a DNA swab from Warrick that they found matched their known profile. Although the Potomac River Rapist’s crimes are 30 years in the past, issues of
sexual assault and crime are still relevant to Georgetown’s campus. Among undergraduate students, 31.6% of women and 11.6% of men reported experiencing nonconsensual sexual contact since entering college, according to the 2019 Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Misconduct. Furthermore, D.C. experienced record-high homicide rates early in 2019. While the Georgetown University Police Department cannot provide details of their actions during the time of the reported murder, GUPD remains dedicated to keeping campus safe, according to Chief of Police and Associate Vice President for Public Safety Jay Gruber. “Georgetown University conducts coordinated patrols 24 hours a day to ensure campus security and works closely with the Metropolitan Police Department, federal law enforcement agencies, and the District of Columbia Fire Department, to address issues surrounding campus and respond quickly to incidents that may arise.” Gruber wrote in an email to The Hoya. Resources: On-campus confidential resources include Health Education Services (202-687-8949 or sarp@ georgetown.edu) and Counseling and Psychiatric Services (202-6876985); additional off-campus resources include the D.C. Rape Crisis Center (202-333-7273) and the D.C. Forensic Nurse Examiner Washington Hospital Center (844-443-5732). If you or anyone you know would like to receive a sexual assault forensic examination or other medical care — including emergency contraception — call the Network for Victim Recovery of D.C. at 202-742-1727. To report sexual misconduct, you can contact Georgetown’s interim Title IX coordinator at 202-687-9183 or file an online report here. Emergency contraception is available at the CVS located at 1403 Wisconsin Ave NW and through H*yas for Choice. For more information, visit tinyurl. com/GUselfcare.
Journalism Can Help Tackle Racial Injustice, Panelists Say Music Venue Gypsy Sally’s Closing, Converting to Condominiums MARGIE CULLEN Hoya Staff Writer
Effective journalism can encourage activists to address ongoing racial profiling and violence against the black community in the face of continued police brutality, panelists said in a Dec. 4 event. The event, titled “Before Ferguson, Beyond Ferguson,” was hosted by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs in Riggs Memorial Library. At the panel, three panelists discussed the implications of reporters’ coverage of unrest in Ferguson, Mo., after a white police officer killed unarmed black teenager Michael Brown in 2014. More proactive journalism about police violence and racial profiling has enabled activists to organize against the injustice, according to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Wesley Lowery, who covered the 2014 events in Ferguson for The Washington Post. “Our ability for us to so quickly see and hear about what’s happening across the country has allowed them to turn their outrage and anger and apply it directly to try and influence change in the places where they are,” Lowery said. Panelist Teddy Washington made national headlines after he and nine friends were pulled over by police after leaving a restaurant in Clayton, Mo. — which is about 10 miles from Ferguson — in 2018. The officers, who had received reports of a robbery
at the restaurant, forced the group to return to the restaurant, according to NPR. Washington and his friends then showed their receipts to the restaurant management, who confirmed that they were not the perpetrators. The incident transformed Washington’s outlook on racial profiling in the United States, he said. “I’d read statistics about how African Americans are treated in the United States, but it was strictly through statistics and books,” Washington said. “When these things happened to me, it made me question one, what I was doing as far as I was just reading these statistics, understanding how people were being affected, but I wasn’t doing any legitimate work to address these problems.” Award-winning writer Richard Weiss has been documenting Washington’s story as a part of the “Before Ferguson, Beyond Ferguson,” project, an initiative that aims to document racial inequity in St. Louis. Weiss, the project’s executive editor, is working alongside two journalists to publish and compile 12 multimedia stories that chronicle inequality. Though Washington’s interaction with the police was resolved without violence or arrests, Washington and his friends initially feared that the police would initiate violence, according to Washington. Their reaction to interacting with police
was not surprising given the incident’s proximity to Ferguson, according to Weiss. “They know enough that this is the town where Ferguson happened and if they did something wrong, or that the police perceive to be wrong, they could be lying dead on the street,” Weiss said. Stories like Washington’s demonstrate that the racial profiling and police violence that transpired in Ferguson continue throughout the United States, Lowery said. “We wanted this to be a problem that happened over there, that that place must be uniquely bad, must be uniquely wrong and it couldn’t happen where I live, in my backyard,” Lowery said. “But what became increasingly clear, over these years, that the story of Ferguson is the story of America.” Increased public coverage of instances of brutality is changing people’s perspectives about racial profiling and police violence across the country, Lowery said. “If you think about the demonstrations and protests after Ferguson, much of the conversation broadly was about well, ‘what is everyone so upset about; how often do these things happen; and if he did something wrong, well, won’t he get punished for this? Why don’t we just wait and see what happens?’” Lowery said. “We now collectively know a lot more about how these processes work.”
MAGGIE FOUBERG/THE HOYA
Emerald Christopher-Byrd, left, moderated the event titled “Before Ferguson, Beyond Ferguson.” Richard Weiss, middle, and Wesley Lowery, right, were among the panelists featured at the event.
ELIZABETH BRENNEMAN Hoya Staff Writer
Gypsy Sally’s, a local Georgetown music venue, will close Jan. 5 after over six years of operation, leaving behind a legacy of being a communityoriented and welcoming space. Gypsy Sally’s opened on K Street in 2013. The landlord of the warehouse building, which owners David and Karen Ensor rented throughout the venue’s operation, recently sold the property, according to a Facebook post from Gypsy Sally’s announcing the venue’s planned closure. Real estate agency IBG Partners and real estate developer Wilco Residential plan to turn the property into condominiums, according to The Georgetowner. The community of friendship and love for music fostered at Gypsy Sally’s will live on well beyond its closing, according to David Ensor. “While it is important that venues exist for people to congregate and share their love of music, it is the connections between people that count. The venues help facilitate making those connections, but those connections will find a way to be made whether we exist or not,” Ensor wrote in an email to The Hoya. “That is what we are most proud of at Gypsy Sally’s. The friendships formed are far more meaningful and enduring than anything we could have built.” The venue’s spacious layout enabled a wide variety of genres and acts to perform and became an especially popular spot for fans of the Grateful Dead, colloquially known as Deadheads, according to Ensor. “I can’t say that GS changed the music community in any specific way. We would like to think it enhanced it,” Ensor wrote. “It certainly evolved into a venue that welcomed the jam band community and became a home for Deadheads in the DMV.” Artists and fans will miss the venue because of the quality and layout of the performance space, according to Pablo DaBoisie (MSB ’20), member of Georgetown University student band Back to Yours. “The venue itself was super unique with a very good sound system that made for a great
GYPSY SALLY’S
The landlord of the warehouse building, which owners David and Karen Ensor rented throughout the venue’s operation, recently sold the property. concert experience (both for the musicians and the audience). I would say that they probably had the best quality sound of most of the DC venues that we have played so far,” DaBoisie wrote in an email to The Hoya. “The setup of the venue was also pretty cool, with a wide open space for general admission but a number of tables in the back for those who want a more casual concert experience.” Gypsy Sally’s can now be added to a list of music venues to close in Washington, D.C. The closure of The Bayou, a nightclub open from 1953 to 1998 where Mick Jagger and U2 once performed, received national coverage. While many regulars of Gypsy Sally’s are disappointed about the upcoming closure, Ensor is confident that people will be able to continue experiencing good music at other local venues. “Because there are so many music venues open now, I expect the effect of our closing to be minimal. There are still plenty of places to go,” Ensor wrote. “There will be a few folks who might really miss us, but they will find new places to hang out and enjoy the same bands.” Other music venues located throughout the District include the Lincoln Theatre and the 9:30 Club, which are located in the U Street neighborhood. The Anthem, a venue opened in 2017, is located at the Wharf. Although there are other
venues musicians can perform at, there is no place exactly like Gypsy Sally’s for musicians based in Georgetown, DaBoisie wrote. “I think the closing of the venue is pretty unfortunate for the music scene in Georgetown specifically,” DaBoisie wrote. “There really aren’t any other major venues in Georgetown so Gypsy Sally’s was a really unique place.” Georgetown is not only losing a hub for exciting music, growing bands and dedicated fans, but a venue that respects and supports musicians, according to Teddy Scott, a member of D.C. rock band Bencoolen. “We’ve played at Gypsy Sally’s a number of times,” Scott wrote in an email to The Hoya. “They go out of our way to make us comfortable and treated us as professionals.” Gypsy Sally’s will not be forgotten by those who have experienced the concerts and sense of community found there, according to Scott. An emphasis on promoting local groups and holding communitywide events, like open mics and singer-songwriter showcases, will be a significant part of the venue’s legacy. “They take pride in boosting regional acts, hosting open jams, and building a community that flies in the face of the sterile vibe that is swallowing sections of DC,” Scott wrote. “We hope to celebrate what they had and the space they created til the end.”
A10
SPORTS
THE HOYA
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
ON THIN ICE
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Recent Racist Incidents Force Hoyas Falter Late in 65-61 NHL to Face Harsh Reality Loss to UNC Greensboro
Maddy Welch The NHL has suffered from two racism scandals in two weeks: one from a television personality in Canada and another from a head coach. The incidences have forced the entire hockey community to face many of its shortcomings, including its promotion of cultures of secrecy and its preservation of outdated perspectives. The first scandal emerged in the firing of Don Cherry, whose 40-year broadcasting career ended after he commented about the lack of poppy-wearers on Remembrance Day in Canada, specifically targeting non-native Canadians for neglecting the widely supported tradition. “You people — you that come here, whatever it is … could pay a couple of bucks for poppies. … These guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada,” said Cherry in his “Coach’s Corner” broadcast segment. Remembrance Day is a memorial holiday in Canada to commemorate the Canadians who have fought and died in armed conflicts. I find that Cherry’s comments about the holiday reveal a belief that Canada’s immigrant population is somehow less patriotic or grateful for the Canadian way of life than native-born Canadians. More surprisingly, Cherry showed a complete lack of remorse when confronted about the charged statements, simply responding with a back-handed apology: “I know what I said and I meant it.” Cherry’s comments are all the more significant as he is a fixture of hockey for Canada. He hosts a segment during the game intermissions on “Hockey Night in Canada,” a highly televised program that draws in around a million viewers weekly. Even before the emergence of his anti-immigrant comments, Cherry failed at many aspects of his sports commentator career, bringing
into question his suitability for the position. He could not pronounce players’ names correctly if his job depended on it — which it evidently did not — as he often mispronounced dozens of players’ names. He hardly seems capable of finishing a thought coherently, as his co-presenter constantly reminds him of what he’s supposed to be talking about. He has also referred to the Carolina Hurricanes as “a bunch of jerks” for their team celebrations, dubbed concussion spotters as “dum dums,” clearly an opinion with no place in 2019, and generally prefers the “good Canadian boys” over other players, even as the sport spreads internationally. Despite all of this, his brash personality has been a draw for his segment since the ’80s as he brings in millions of viewers, some of whom only tune in to watch his segment instead of the actual game. I have made several references in previous installments of this column to the old guard of hockey, who prize rough play and toughness over skill and strategy. Cherry is the figurehead of this way of thinking and his firing should represent a changing of the guard of television personalities. Just as the dust was settling on the Cherry incident, the horrendous play of the Toronto Maple Leafs set into motion another chain of events. The Leafs finally decided to fire Head Coach Mike Babcock, which was a major decision in and of itself. The Stanley Cup-winning coach was fired for the first time in his career because his team, despite looking amazing on paper, has performed horribly on the ice. When Babcock was fired, it emerged that he had forced Mitch Marner as a rookie to rank his teammates from least to most hardworking. Marner reluctantly obeyed to avoid disappointing his new coach during his first year in the NHL, but Babcock soon made the individuals at the bottom of the list aware that Marner thought they were not hardworking. The hockey world responded with anger at this manipulation of a young and talented player for strange team dynamic gamesmanship. Former player and current NHL analyst Jeremy Roenick called the strategy “an arrogant move”
and one that “stoops way too low” while former player and current broadcaster Ray Ferraro regarded the tactic as “absolutely amateurish.” Then, the other shoe dropped. The emergence of this story led former NHL player Akim Aliu to come forward with his own story of Bill Peters, former Babcock protege and now former head coach of the Calgary Flames. About 10 years ago, when Peters was a coach in the NHL’s minor league affiliate AHL, he referred to Aliu, born in Nigeria and raised in Ukraine and Canada, with a racial slur in reference to the music Aliu played in the locker room. Another black player in the NHL, Evander Kane, correctly points out that even though the Babcock story led to the development of the Peters story, they are not remotely morally equivalent. Babcock used illadvised coaching techniques and will probably work in the league again while Peters referred to players with racist terminology and has rightfully been fired from his position as head coach. These incidents must make the NHL mindful of some difficult realities. First, it cannot let its culture of being a boys club prevent the league from shedding light on injustices that take place in locker rooms. Next, it must avoid becoming an echo chamber: 93% of active players are white and 100% of head coaches and ownership are white. The NHL must make sure its internal mechanisms and even television personalities reflect its external marketing that “hockey is for everyone.” About a year to the day before Cherry was fired, Willie O’Ree, the NHL’s first black player, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder of the game as we know it today. Hopefully, in light of the events that have taken place lately, we can celebrate the anniversary of O’Ree’s induction to remind ourselves and the league about the uphill climb of inclusion and recognize that there is clearly still a long way to go for professional hockey.
MADDY WELCH is a senior in
the School of Foreign Service. This is the final installment of ON THIN ICE.
BEN GAVER
Hoya Staff Writer
The Georgetown men’s basketball team, looking to build upon the momentum of hardfought performances against No. 22 Texas and No. 1 Duke in the 2k Empire Classic, challenged UNC Greensboro at Capital One Arena on Nov. 30, ultimately falling by a final score of 65 to 61. Following the halftime break, the Hoyas shot just nine for 29 from the floor in the four-point loss to the Spartans on Saturday. The Hoyas (4-3) began the game with an early lead over the Spartans (6-2). Following back-to-back three-pointers from sophomore guard James Akinjo and senior guard Jagan Mosely, the Hoyas jumped out front with a 10-2 lead with 16:37 to play. After a smooth mid-range jumper from senior center Omer Yurtseven, Georgetown extended their lead to nine behind a 6-0 run, bringing the score to 16-7. Despite their strong play at the start, the Hoyas went on a four-minute scoring drought that opened the game up to the Spartans. UNCG responded to Georgetown’s run with two three-pointers of their own to pull within three. The Blue and Gray committed seven turnovers in the first 15 minutes of the game and allowed the Spartans to tie the game at 22 with 6:06 remaining in the half. After conceding the early lead, the Hoyas regained control of the game behind a jumper by freshman center Qudus Wahab and four points by Akinjo, who made a foul shot and finished at the rim for an and-one to push his team to a four-point lead. Akinjo went on to score 12 points in the matchup, finishing as the leading scorer among both teams. Sophomore guard Mac McClung also contributed to the Blue and Gray run, hitting a three-pointer with 1:37 left to bring the score to 31-24.
RACHEL GAUDREAU Hoya Staff Writer
As its season comes to a close, the Georgetown swimming and diving team sends eight Hoyas to the Toyota U.S. Open at the Georgia Tech Campus Recreation Center in Atlanta from Dec. 4 to Dec. 7. Representing the Blue and Gray, the eight Hoyas are competing for a potential spot in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials next summer. As of Dec. 5, four Hoyas swam in events but failed to record times below the trial cut. The men’s team comes off a second-place finish in the Terrier Invitational, a threeday meet from Nov. 22 to Nov. 24, with the women’s team coming in third. With only four regular-season meets remaining, the U.S. Open provides those athletes still seeking times under the trial cut to close out the season with Olympic Trial qualifying times heading into 2020. On Dec. 4, sophomore Michael Wheeler competed in the 800-meter freestyle, recording a time of 8:13.47 to place 34th overall. Wheeler fell just short of the qualifying time of 8:12.99. Wheeler is the defending Big East Conference champion in the 1,650-yard freestyle and currently sits in first for both the 1,000-yd. and 1,650-yd. freestyle races in the Big East with times of 9:25.00 and 15:33.20. On Dec. 5, Wheeler and sophomore Brett Sherman raced in the 400m freestyle, with Wheeler earning a time of 3:59.54, as Sherman touched the wall in 4:00.93. With a trial cut time of 3:57.29, Wheeler and Sherman miss the mark by around three seconds. Sherman is the reigning Big
East Conference champion for the 500-yd. free with a careerbest time of 4:23.63. He has also recorded the fastest times in the Big East this year for the 500-yd. freestyle and 400-yd. individual medley with times of 4:27.53 and 3:54.86. Junior Drew Carbone took to the pool in the 200m IM on Thursday morning, finishing with a time of 2:07.93. Carbone failed to meet the qualifying time of 2:04.09 and looks to the coming weekend for another shot at the trials. During the remainder of the four-day meet, Carbone looks to build upon his successful performance last year. In 2018, Carbone obtained qualifying times for the Olympic Trials in the 100m and 200m backstroke, earning a ticket to the trials in Omaha, Neb. this summer. Carbone’s qualification for the trials cements him as the second Georgetown swimmer in program history and first male Hoya to make the cut for the trials. To date, Carbone has secured consecutive Big East Championships, placing first in two events in the 2018 tournament and in three events in 2019. Carbone is coming off of a Big East Male Athlete of the Week award in recognition of his performance at the Terrier Invitational and holds the best time in the Big East for the 100yd. back and 200-yd. IM with times of 48.36 and 1:48.18. To round out the day, sophomore Sean Devlin raced in the 50m free and recorded a time of 24.23, coming in just over the trial cut time of 23.19. Devlin became a two-time finalist last season at the Big East Conference Championships in the 50- and 100-yd. freestyle. He also currently holds the top time in the Big East in the 50-yd. freestyle at
20.91 seconds and the 100-yd. freestyle at 46.14. Junior Nathaniel Goldfarb, freshman Samantha Kim and freshman Connor Morikawa are set to participate in the 100m breaststroke on Friday morning in the preliminary rounds. Goldfarb finished as a finalist in both of his Big East Conference Championships appearances in the 100- and 200-yd. breaststroke in the last two seasons. Kim, the only woman among the eight Hoyas competing in the U.S. Open, finds herself in the top five of the Big East for the 100 and 200m breaststroke with times of 1:05.20 and 2:21.21. Morikawa is in his first season with the Blue and Gray and recently recorded a time of 2:02.85 in the 200-yd. breaststroke at the Terrier Invitational, just tenths of a second shy of the school record of 2:02.51. Sherman will return Friday to compete in the 400m IM. Carbone and freshman Josiah Lauver will compete in the 200m freestyle. Lauver, a first-year swimmer for the Hoyas, recorded a seasonbest time of 1:42.81 in the Terrier Invitational in November. Carbone finishes his nationals appearance with the 100m back on Friday and 200m back on Saturday. Also competing Dec. 7, Wheeler will undertake the 1500m freestyle, and Kim and Morikawa will close out the four-day meet in the 200m breaststroke. The evening finals are set to begin at 6:12 p.m. Dec. 7. The swimming and diving team will return to regular-season action Jan. 18, as it takes on The George Washington University at 1 p.m. at the Charles E. Smith Athletic Center.
three minutes, UNCG went on a 7-0 scoring run to take a 58-54 lead. The Hoyas pulled within one after a Mosely and-one with 2:18 left. However, Georgetown failed to capitalize on the most important scoring opportunities of the game as the clock wound down. Yurtseven came up just short on a slam with under a minute to play that would have given the Blue and Gray the lead. After fouling with 27 seconds left, Georgetown, down two to UNCG, missed an offensive rebound on the second free throw that allowed the Spartans to return to the line and extend their lead to four with 16 seconds on the clock. UNCG’s lead proved large enough despite a late layup by McClung as the Spartans held on for the 65-61 victory. In the loss, Georgetown shot 11.9% worse from the floor in the second half which saw the Spartans outscore the Hoyas by seven. Yurtseven, Akinjo and McClung, who combined for 31 points in the matchup, shot a combined 10-for-37 from the floor. The Hoyas’ 19 turnovers and inability to capitalize on opportunities in the field proved costly in the final minutes. Head Coach Patrick Ewing (CAS ’85) expressed his frustration with his young players’ lack of cohesion as a team in the loss. “We’re still building, we still have a long way to go,” Ewing said. “One of the things I tell my team is that until they stop thinking about me and start thinking about we, that’s when we’re gonna win. Right now we’re too selfish and we need to be more unselfish.” Georgetown will look to rebound from the loss as they travel to Stillwater, Okla. for a Big 12 matchup with the Oklahoma State Cowboys at 8 p.m. on Dec. 4. The game will be televised on ESPN+ and can be heard locally on WOL 1450 AM.
EVOLUTION OF BASKETBALL
Warriors Off to a Disastrous Start, Bucks Dominate East
SWIM
GU Sends 8 Olympic Hopefuls to Compete at Toyota US Open
Following a second-chance layup by UNCG forward Mohammed Abdulsalam off a Georgetown turnover, the Spartans cut the Hoyas’ lead to three, pulling within striking distance as the teams headed to the locker room with a score of 32-29 in favor of the Blue and Gray. While the Hoyas outshot the Spartans 42.9% to 32.4% from the floor, UNCG took advantage of early foul trouble and limited minutes for Yurtseven, out-rebounding the Blue and Gray 2119 in the opening half. With a small lead heading out of the locker room, the Hoyas got off to a slow start, unable to build upon the strong shooting and passing that led Georgetown through its successful first half. The Spartans opened the second half with a layup to pull within one before McClung put away two foul shots to extend the Hoyas’ lead again. UNGC responded with seven unanswered points to secure their first lead of the game at 38-34. The Blue and Gray went 0-for-5 from the field in the following three and a half minutes amidst an 11-1 run by the Spartans to push the score to 42-35. Behind five of Yurtseven’s 10 points in the game and five turnovers by UNCG, Georgetown regained a 43-42 advantage with 12:15 to play. The Hoyas’ defense backed this offensive push by preventing the Spartans from scoring a field goal in over five minutes. After a three-pointer from junior forward Jamorko Pickett, Georgetown’s lead stood at 49-44 with 10:07 remaining. The Spartans fought to overcome the deficit, but freshman forward Myron Gardner’s back-to-back and-ones allowed for the Hoyas to cling to a 5451 lead with 6:34 remaining. Down the stretch, the Hoyas’ turnover troubles proved too costly. After committing four turnovers in a span of under
Shane Gilligan After winning back-to-back NBA championships in their 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons and ending their 2018-19 season with a record of 57-25 and the Western Conference title, the Golden State Warriors solidified themselves as a powerhouse team in the NBA. Now, they sit in last place in the West with the worst record in the NBA after the first quarter of the season. This season has been the opposite of what Golden State dreamed. Although Klay Thompson was set to miss the season after tearing his ACL in the NBA Finals last year, the addition of D’Angelo Russell in the summer seemed a suitable replacement after Russell qualified for his first All-Star Game last season. The Warriors’ campaign, however, was flipped on its head when Steph Curry broke his hand in the fourth game of the year and Russell sprained his right thumb soon after. At this point, Golden State Head Coach Steve Kerr had reduced All-Star Draymond Green’s role to fewer than 20 minutes a game with all hope lost for this season. While a return to the NBA Finals seems out of reach this seemingly disastrous season, the Warriors will be back. In the offseason, they may consider trading Russell and using their high draft pick in the 2020 lottery to acquire an All-Star forward or center. Alongside a healthy Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, the same core that won them the NBA Finals in 2015, a high-profile acquisition will help reestablish the Warriors as a top organization in the league. Apart from the Warriors, the top performing teams in the league are, as expected, heading into the season. In the West, the
storylines have been all about the Lakers. Their big off-season, highlighted by the acquisition of superstar Anthony Davis, created high expectations in Los Angeles. The Lakers have not disappointed thus far, winning 14 games in November with their only loss coming at the hands of the defending champion Toronto Raptors. This run included a 10-game winning streak, the longest streak for the organization in over a decade. LeBron James has fallen into a supporting role in the offense, paving the way for Davis as the main offensive force as James averages a career high 10.9 assists per game. This Lakers team, a strong contender for the finals, continues to be challenged by their hometown rival, the Los Angeles Clippers, led by 2014 and 2019 NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard as well as perennial All-Star Paul George, both of whom were acquired by the Clippers this summer. The Clippers made a statement in the opening game against the Lakers with a 10-point win. Kawhi Leonard posted a 30-point game to give the Clippers a promising start to the season, making it appear that the team could win without star forward Paul George, still sidelined with an injury suffered during the off-season. The Clippers experienced some struggles during their opening 11-game stretch, however, as they fell to 7-4 after Leonard received substantial load management. The team’s rocky start was resolved when Leonard and George returned to the court together. The Clippers are 5-1 when the two have played together, losing only to the Spurs. As of now, the Clippers can be expected to continue their winning streak and challenge the Lakers for the top spot in the West. In the East, the story has been all about the Bucks. Giannis Antetokounmpo has only improved since winning his first MVP award last year with averages of 30.9 PPG and 13.4 RPG as of Dec. 3. There was some concern in Milwaukee after guard Malcolm Brogdon signed with the Pacers in the off-season. However, players like Khris Mid-
dleton, Eric Bledsoe and Brook Lopez have proven themselves to be a sufficient supporting cast for Antetokounmpo, although a star player like Antetokounmpo finds enough success on his own. Given their roster of players, the Bucks should expect to return to the Eastern Conference Finals this season. With the loss of Kawhi Leonard in the off-season and the left thumb fracture to Kyle Lowry, it seemed as if Toronto was in for a disastrous season. However, the Raptors have maintained their form from last season and are currently sitting second in the East. Pascal Siakam has carried the team with averages of 25.6 PPG and 8.4 RPG and will likely make his first All-Star appearance this season. He could also become the first player in the NBA history to win consecutive Most Improved Player awards. The Miami Heat, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers are all still in contention for the top spot in the East as they sit within three games of the Bucks. The Heat have been impressive with breakout seasons from rookies Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro. The Celtics lost Gordon Hayward to a fractured hand in mid-November but have still managed to win because of the likes of Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The 76ers have underperformed for their roster but still boast a 15-6 record, including eight wins in their last nine appearances. These teams are just some among many in the NBA that are off to a notable start of the season. The Blazers have found a potential savior in Carmelo Anthony, winner of the most recent Western Conference Player of the Week, James Harden is averaging close to 40 PPG to keep the Rockets in contention and the Nets have actually been better with Kyrie Irving off the court. As all major teams continue to produce in new ways following last season, the NBA has yet to disappoint and promises to get better by the day.
SHANE GILLIGAN is a junior in the College. This is the final installment of EVOLUTION OF BASKETBALL.
SPORTS
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
MEN’S BASKETBALL
THE HOYA
A11
MEN’S SOCCER
GU Hands Cowboys Hoyas Notch Early Goal Against Cardinals 1st Loss This Season LOUISVILLE, from A12
OKLAHOMA STATE, from A12
Senior center Omer Yurtseven added 19 points and graduate guard Terrell Allen, starting in his first game of the season to replace Akinjo, scored 15 points. The game started with even play as the teams exchanged baskets in the opening five minutes. After back-to-back buckets from McClung and Allen, Georgetown led the Cowboys 13-12 with 15:56 left. With 11:56 remaining, McClung and junior guard Jahvon Blair scored five straight points to put the Hoyas up 23-15. The teams collectively went almost three minutes without scoring from 11:26 to 8:54 in the half. Alexander broke the scoring drought by sinking a three-pointer to put Georgetown up 26-17, giving the Hoyas their largest lead of the game. Oklahoma State fought back and after Yurtseven made two free throws; the Cowboys made a three-pointer to go into the half trailing 36-32. In the first half, Georgetown forced nine turnovers and held Oklahoma State to 36.4% shooting from the field. After halftime, Georgetown scored four straight points to take an eight-point lead, but Oklahoma State soon stormed back. The Cowboys went on a 21-8 run to take a 53-48 lead with 12:06 left to play as Ewing called a timeout for damage control. The strong run by Oklahoma State, however, did not dampen the Blue and Gray’s offensive efforts. After Georgetown trailed for almost three minutes, McClung caught fire, making three consecutive three-pointers and singlehandedly going on a 9-0 run to put the team up 61-55, a lead they would not relinquish. The Cowboys fought back to cut the deficit as Oklahoma
State guard Lindy Waters III, who scored a team-high 29 points on the day, finished a three-pointer to pull within three. Yurtseven responded quickly by knocking down his first three-pointer of the season to put the Hoyas back up 64-58. Oklahoma State remained relentless, preventing the Blue and Gray from pulling away by cutting the deficit back down to four points. Despite the Cowboys’ efforts, McClung came through again with a tough driving layup and free throw to propel Georgetown to a 74-67 lead. With 38 seconds left on the clock, Allen made a three-pointer to put the Hoyas up 77-69. The eight-point cushion would prove to be enough to secure the victory for Georgetown. With the clock winding down, the Cowboys had no choice but to foul to stop time. Allen took to the line and made four consecutive free throws to ice the game. Georgetown, in handing Oklahoma State its first loss of the season, outrebounded its opponent 43-29 and made 14-14 free throws. The Hoyas shot 50% from three-point range in the second half. Ewing felt his team played together in the game, something he has been working on with the talented but inconsistent squad. “I keep telling my team, “Stop thinking about ‘me’ and start thinking about ‘we,’” Ewing said in a postgame on-court interview with ESPN. Georgetown will try to keep the momentum going as it travels to Dallas to take on Southern Methodist University. The Hoyas are scheduled for tipoff Saturday night at 9:30 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU and can be heard locally on The Team 980 on 95.9 FM.
half quickly and increased their lead to 3- when junior midfielder Paul Rothrock scored in the 50th minute. Sophomore midfielder Sean Zawadzki dispossessed a Cardinal near midfield and dribbled toward the box. Zawadski played a short pass to Polvara who then quickly played it to Rothrock as he made a run down the left wing. While Rothrock’s initial shot was blocked, the forward scored off the rebound to renew the Hoyas’ two-goal lead. In the 58th minute, Nikopolidis made a save on a point-blank shot from Louisville midfielder Elijah Amo to preserve the Hoyas’ two-goal cushion. Following that save, the Hoyas controlled the remainder of the second half with Montes and Rothrock both scoring their second goal of the day in the 82nd minute. First, Montes hit a free kick from just outside the box on the left side that beat Louisville goalkeeper Jake Gelnovatch at his near post to give the Hoyas a 4-1 lead. Off the ensuing kickoff, Georgetown quickly stole the ball from Louisville to make another drive toward goal. The Hoyas broke quickly and a flurry of passes led to Montes playing Rothrock down the left wing. Rothrock fired a shot on net and beat Gelnovatch on the ground at his near post for the Blue and Gray’s fifth
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gram’s history. The team also tallied five goals in their previous match against the University of Pittsburgh. This also marks the Hoyas’ third trip to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament with their previous trip coming in 2014. Georgetown will host No. 6 University of Washington at Shaw Field on Saturday, Dec. 7 at noon.
FILE PHOTO: KIRK ZIESER/THE HOYA
Junior forward Derek Dodson takes a strike on goal after beating a defender in the box. Dodson, the team’s second-leading scorer, contributed three shots and one assist in the Round of 16 matchup.
Auburn Emerges Triumphant in Rivalry TRAVIS, from A12
momentum with them to a New Year’s Six bowl. While Auburn’s fate remains in the air, it has a strong shot at representing the SEC. Some fans may feel conflicted that this win will keep Coach Gus Malzahn around for another year. He has kept the Tigers competitive during his seven-year career as their head coach but has yet to win the championship, bringing into question whether he is capable of bringing home a title. In another rivalry matchup, Mississippi State defeated Ole Miss 21-20 in perhaps one of the most bizarre endings to a college football game. Down by seven, Ole Miss wide receiver Elijah Moore scored with one second left on the game clock, got on his hands and knees and lifted up his leg like a dog alongside a fire hy-
drant. The referees quickly called unsportsmanlike conduct and moved the extra point attempt back by 15 yards. It was still a routine kick to tie the game, but kicker Luke Logan choked, handing the victory to Mississippi State. The missed kick gave Mississippi State the win it needed to make a bowl game and assert its dominance in the in-state rivalry for yet another year. It also got Ole Miss Head Coach Matt Luke fired and made Ole Miss desperately apologize in an attempt to claim a semblance of morality. This incident was quickly dubbed the “Piss and Miss” and will likely go down in rivalry history and infamy. The No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs and No. 1 LSU Tigers both dominated their much inferior opponents as they look toward the SEC Championship this weekend. On Nov. 30, the Bulldogs toppled Georgia Tech by a score of 52-7 while the
Tigers defeated Texas A&M 50-7. The LSU squad has the best offense in the country and is led by Heisman favorite Joe Burrow, although the Tigers field an inferior defense compared to their opponents. Conversely, Georgia has the nation’s best defense but an offense more lacking than Georgetown’s economic diversity. The Bulldogs’ offensive woes are further troubled by the firsthalf suspension of leading wide receiver George Pickens, who got into a fight with a Georgia Tech player Saturday. This suspension could become an important factor in what promises to be a closely-contested championship game between LSU and Georgia on Dec. 7. While these teams remain closely matched, the Tigers’ superior offensive firepower makes them the clear favorite. If the Bulldogs hope to win, their offense
must have an impressive showing against an admittedly weak LSU defense to compete with LSU’s formidable offense. With this weekend’s games, the SEC regular season comes to a close as the teams now await the announcement of the New Year’s Six bowls schedules. LSU and Georgia still seek the playoffs as this weekend’s game is crucial in determining either’s place in the postseason. The Bulldogs need to defeat the Tigers if they want to make it, but LSU still has a chance even with a loss. If there is anything to take away from this past week filled with football rivalries, it is that we can only expect more astounding games in the coming weeks as the playoffs near. James Travis is a junior in the MSB. This is the final installment of TAILGATES AND TRADITIONS.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Georgetown Splits Pair of Games at LMU LMU, from A12
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goals this season. Rothrock’s two goals were his second and third of the year. The Blue and Gray has been prolific on the attack and its 10 goals through two games are the most among any team in this year’s NCAA Tournament. The five goals scored in this game tie Georgetown’s record set for most goals scored in an NCAA Tournament in the pro-
TAILGATES AND TRADITIONS
FILE PHOTO: KIRK ZIESER/THE HOYA
Senior center Omer Yurtseven soars above opponents for the dunk. Yurtseven had 19 points and nine rebounds against the Cowboys.
goal of the day, just 21 seconds after Montes’ goal. Georgetown closed out the game and emerged victorious 5-1 to advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. Montes led the attack for the Hoyas as he finished the game with two goals and two assists, propelling him past junior forward Derek Dodson as the team’s leading scorer with 10
shooting from the field, a performance recognized by Head Coach James Howard as consistent with his team’s defensive efforts throughout the season. Howard also noted the necessity of the team’s victory after tallying two consecutive losses. “Getting a win after a couple of close losses was really important. Those close ones can make you lose your steam, so to come on the road and win in somebody else’s house was great,” Howard said in an interview with GUHoyas. “I was happy to see us perform on the offensive side, but I commend this team for their defense because they’ve played well on defense in every game.” The Hoyas looked to bring the same success from the LMU game to their matchup against Fresno State on Nov. 30. The game opened with both teams
exchanging baskets for the first four minutes before Georgetown began a 6-0 run to take a 15-7 lead. Fresno State, however, soon closed the gap to just one after a Georgetown turnover. The Blue and Gray responded with a three from sophomore guard Nikola Kovacikova to extend their lead to four. Just before the break, the Bulldogs once again cut into the Hoya lead to trail by just one at the end of the quarter. Barnes opened up the scoring in the second period for Georgetown with a three-pointer. Shortly thereafter, Brianna Jones knocked down a jumper to give the Hoyas a five-point cushion just two minutes in. However, the Blue and Gray failed to find the basket for the next few minutes as the Bulldogs went on a 9-0 run to earn a four-point lead and force a Hoya timeout. Georgetown then answered by reclaiming a 33-30
lead behind a five-point burst from Barnes. Despite Barnes’ efforts, the Hoyas failed to pull away from Fresno State as the Bulldogs took a one-point advantage heading into the locker room after making a jumper just before the buzzer. Fresno State carried this momentum into the third quarter and grew their lead to seven following a pair of triples which forced Howard to call for time once again. Each team would exchange buckets in the next few possessions before a threepointer from Kovacikova cut the Bulldog lead to just four. The Fresno State offense would soon prove too much for the Georgetown defense to handle as the Bulldog lead quickly jumped to eight and eventually increased to as many as 13 points. The Hoyas failed to keep pace with the Bulldogs for the remainder of the quarter and
trailed 53-65 as the horn sounded. Play remained the same in the fourth quarter, with Fresno State maintaining a high offensive pace as Georgetown failed to make a dent in the lead. Fresno State’s lead would reach 17 points with just over five minutes remaining, marking their largest advantage of the game. The Blue and Gray could not effectively reduce the deficit and walked away with the 69-82 loss. Brianna Jones led the way for the Hoyas offensively with 19 points while Kelava totaled a team high eight rebounds along with six points and three blocks on the day. Overall, Georgetown shot 45% from the field while Fresno State shot 53.4%. The Hoyas will travel to New York on Friday, Dec. 6, to face off with the Columbia Lions in search of their third win of the season. Tipoff is scheduled for 11 a.m.
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FILE PHOTO: ALEXA VILLALPANDO/THE HOYA
Senior forward Anita Kelava eyes the basket for a shot in a previous matchup against James Madison. In the LMU Thanksgiving Classic, Kelava combined for 12 points and 13 rebounds in the win over LMU and loss to Fresno State, going 6-for-10 shooting from the floor.
Sports
Men’s Soccer Georgetown (17-1-3) vs. Washington (17-3) Saturday, Dec. 7, 12 p.m. Shaw Field
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2019
NUMBERS GAME
TALKING POINTS
SWIM AND DIVE Eight Hoyas are to compete at the Toyota U.S. Open in Atlanta for a chance to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Trials.
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I keep telling my team, “Stop thinking about ‘me’ and start thinking about ‘we.’”
Men’s Basketball Head Coach Patrick Ewing
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Turnovers forced by the women’s basketball team against Loyola Marymount University.
MEN’S SOCCER
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Hoyas Win 81-74, Georgetown Tops Louisville, Reaches Elite 8 McClung Leads Scoring in Stillwater DREW SEWALL Hoya Staff Writer
The No. 3 Georgetown men’s soccer team avenged their only loss of the season and beat unseeded University of Louisville 5-1 on Dec. 1 to advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. The Hoyas (17-1-3, 7-0-2 Big East) hosted the Cardinals (10-8-2, 3-4-1 ACC) in the rain at Shaw Field for the Round of 16 matchup Sunday afternoon. Having been shutout by the Cardinals in their previous matchup, the Hoyas looked eager from the whistle to grab an early goal. In the second minute, the team’s leading goalscorer,
junior midfielder Jacob Montes, helped the Blue and Gray grab the early lead. Montes pressed high up the pitch and dispossessed Louisville defender Cody Cochran. Montes then took the ball and broke down the left wing toward the Cardinals’ goal. While Cochran recovered well, Montes cut to beat him inside before firing a shot into the far side of the goal to give the Hoyas an early 1-0 lead. Following the goal, Louisville started to gain a foothold in the match and fired three shots at Georgetown’s net in just over ten minutes, all of which failed to find the frame. The Cardinals’ most promising chance to equal-
ize came in the 13th minute as a set piece was played in from the right wing toward forward Pedro Fonseca, who flicked the ball on net. The Hoyas’ defenders blocked the shot to preserve their onegoal lead. In the 26th minute, the Hoyas doubled their lead courtesy of junior forward Jack Beer. Once again the Hoyas pressed the Louisville backline and freshman midfielder Dante Polvara stole the ball just outside the Louisville box. Polvara slotted the ball to Montes who then played it square to Beer. After cutting onto his left foot, Beer fired a shot into the far corner to give the Hoyas a 2-0 lead.
However, the Cardinals soon cut the Hoyas’ lead to 2-1 following a goal from Fonseca. After being played in by a ball chipped over the Hoyas’ backline, Fonseca fired a shot on goal that beat sophomore goalkeeper Giannis Nikopolidis but hit off the post. Fonseca followed his shot and got to the rebound first, burying the ball into the back of the net in the 29th minute. Despite three more shots — including one on goal — from the Blue and Gray in the remainder of the half, the teams headed to the locker room with Georgetown leading 2-1. The Hoyas started the second See LOUISVILLE, A11
FILE PHOTO: KIRK ZIESER/THE HOYA
Sophomore guard Mac McClung shields off a defender as he drives up to the net. McClung tallied 33 points in the win over Oklahoma State.
MATT SACHS
Hoya Staff Writer
In a successful effort Wednesday night in Stillwater, Okla., the Georgetown men’s basketball team captured a big victory amid team turmoil, defeating the previously undefeated Oklahoma State Cowboys 81-74. On Monday, Head Coach Patrick Ewing (CAS ’85) announced that former sophomore forward Joshua LeBlanc and former sophomore guard James Akinjo were no longer members of the men’s basketball team for the remainder of the season, effective immediately. LeBlanc was also named along with junior forward Galen Alexander and freshman forward Myron Gardner in November civil complaints, which include alle-
gations of burglary, sexual harassment and assault. Alexander and Gardner are still members of the men’s basketball team and appeared in the Wednesday game. Playing in its first game since the departure of the two former All-Big East freshman members, Georgetown (5-3) opened the game against Oklahoma State (7-1) with intensity. The Hoyas wound up handing Oklahoma State their first loss of the season days after the Cowboys gained a No. 25 ranking in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Sophomore guard Mac McClung led all scorers with a season-high 33 points in an efficient 12 for 21 shooting performance.
FILE PHOTO: KIRK ZIESER/THE HOYA
See OKLAHOMA STATE, A11
Junior midfielder Jacob Montes dribbles down the field to create an offensive opportunity for the Hoyas. Montes, the lead scorer for the Blue and Gray, netted two goals off a total of four shots in the 5-1 victory over the Louisville Cardinals at Shaw Field.
TAILGATES AND TRADITIONS
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
GU Bests LMU, Falls to Fresno State BRENDAN DOLAN Hoya Staff Writer
After two closely contested losses against James Madison and George Washington, the Georgetown women’s basketball team traveled to Los Angeles over the Thanksgiving break to take part in the Loyola Marymount University Thanksgiving Classic, splitting the pair of games with one win and one loss. Georgetown (2-5) opened the tournament with a matchup against host team LMU (2-6) on Nov. 29, securing a 64-53 win over the Lions. With the win, the Hoyas snapped their two-game losing streak and notched their second win of the season. Despite the momentum of a firstround win, the Blue and Gray fell to Fresno State (5-3) the following day in the team’s final game of the tournament by a score of 6982. The women quickly fell behind 7-0 in their game against LMU, but trimmed the deficit after layups from sophomore guards Cassandra Gordon and Tayanna Jones. Following the opening run by the Lions, Georgetown outscored LMU 1410 and trailed just 17-14 at the end of the first. In the second quarter, the Hoyas outperformed the Lions on the defensive end, allowing only seven points. Tayanna Jones provided a spark offensively, contributing eight of the Hoyas’ 15 points in the quarter. At the half, the Hoyas headed to the locker room with a five-point advantage, leading the Lions 29-24. Georgetown’s five-point cushion, however, quickly reduced to just two after LMU opened up the third quarter with a threepointer. Gordon answered with a layup of her own, but LMU clawed back again with four straight points to tie the game.
In the following possession, Gordon put away a three-pointer to regain the Hoyas’ lead and open up a 14-2 run to put the Hoyas ahead 45-33. The run was aided by four triples, two of which came from graduate guard Taylor Barnes on consecutive possessions. Though LMU cut its deficit to six near the end of the quarter, the Blue and Gray retained an eight-point advantage heading into the fourth. LMU opened the final quarter with a three-pointer off an offensive rebound to reduce Georgetown’s advantage to five. Tay-
anna Jones soon answered the Lions’ offense with a three-pointer of her own. A pair of jumpers from senior forward Anita Kelava helped Georgetown’s lead remain at 10 as the quarter approached its halfway mark. With just under 3:30 to go, the Lions made runs to eventually trim the deficit to just six. However, both times the Hoyas benefitted from three-pointers from graduate guard Brianna Jones that propelled the Blue and Gray to a nine-point lead with just under two minutes remaining. Junior center Breonna May-
field added two jumpers on the Hoyas’ final possessions to push Georgetown’s lead into the double digits and secure the 64-53 win. On the day, three Hoya players recorded points in the double figures, as Brianna Jones and Tayanna Jones accounted for 16 and 15 points while Barnes added 11. Mayfield contributed to the Hoyas’ defensive efforts with a game-high eight rebounds among both teams. The Hoyas also forced 17 turnovers from the Lions and held LMU to 36% See LMU, A11
FILE PHOTO: ALEXA VILLALPANDO/THE HOYA
Sophomore guard Tayanna Jones prepares to fire off a shot against James Madison. Jones led the team with 15 points against LMU and shot 6-for-15 from the field in the 64-53 win. Visit us online at thehoya.com/category/sports
James Travis
Alabama Falls Short Of Playoffs to Rival, Missed Kicks Persist There is nothing better to ring in the holiday season than college football rivalries. This past weekend saw no exception to the action-packed and drama-filled games that characterize college football. The SEC stage specifically saw No. 9 Alabama fall to longtime rival Auburn while Mississippi State soared past Ole Miss in a surprising ending on Thanksgiving Day. In the most memorable Auburn-Alabama matchup since the kick-six in 2013, Auburn took home the Iron Bowl trophy in dramatic fashion. Both offenses were firing on all cylinders, exchanging points with possessions and making the winner likely to be the team with the ball as the clock hit zero. As expected, Alabama secured the last possession with the game on the line and victory within sight, driving down the field to move into scoring position as the clock wound down. Then the Crimson Tide did what no one expected: It failed to find the endzone and was forced to kick a field goal to tie the game. Nick Saban’s Achilles’ heel has long been kicking as the Alabama team, under his coaching since 2007, had tallied 100 missed field
kicks going into Saturday’s game. In the final minutes of the Auburn game, Alabama kicker Joseph Bulovas recorded the Crimson Tide’s 101st missed field goal under the direction of Saban, losing the Iron Bowl and with that their postseason aspirations. The missed kick seems all too reminiscent of Auburn’s defeat of Alabama six years ago, as a missed attempt by then-kicker Adam Griffith fell just short of the posts and was caught by Auburn’s Chris Davis, who returned the kick for the 108-yard touchdown and the victory. It bears repeating that, for the first time since the College Football Playoff’s inception in 2014, Alabama will not make the playoffs. It is a first that will bring joy to the hearts of every other teams’ fans and drive ’Bama fans to wonder where the team went wrong as their playoff dreams end abruptly. However, as long as Nick Saban remains the head coach for the Crimson Tide, they will never be down for long and are surely plotting a revenge tour next season. Auburn, on the other hand, is riding high and hopes to carry the See TRAVIS, A11