The Hoya: October 30, 2015

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com

Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 97, No. 16, © 2015

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2015

THE FUTURE OF MUSIC

For the past 15 years, musicians and policymakers have convened for debate at Georgetown.

EDITORIAL The university should offer better credit opportunities for internships.

CHALKED UP Administrators reinforced chalking and flyering policies this month.

OPINION, A2

NEWS, A7

GUIDE, B1

GU Declines New Admissions Group Despite intent, coalition does not serve low-income students, Deacon says Aly Pachter

applying to colleges more complicated and less helpful to lowincome students.

More than 80 colleges — inThe coalition is developing cluding all eight Ivy League a new admissions application schools, Stanford University, the that it plans to launch in JaUniversity of nuary. UniverChicago, the “It really is a sities will acUniversity of cept both the Michigan and misnomer to think Coalition Apthe University that these schools plication and of Virginia — the Common formed the are all committed Application.

Coalition for The new site Access, Afford- to meeting the full will contain ability and three componeed of students.”

Success in late nents — an September online “lockCHARLES DEACON Dean, Undergraduate Admissions to provide an er” portfolio, alternative to a collaborathe Common tion element Application. Although George- and an application portal. The town’s Office of Undergraduate locker will store material from Admissions was part of the ini- high school courses, accessible tial discussion, Dean of Under- for students starting in ninth graduate Admissions Charles grade. Students can share seDeacon said Georgetown will lected documents with teachcontinue to use its separate ers, counsellors and mentors application system, explaining that the coalition makes See COALITION, A6

Special to The Hoya

Women’s Center Marks 25 Years Emma Rizk

Hoya Staff Writer

A quarter-century ago, the university founded the Georgetown University Women’s Center in a converted Leavey Center storage closet with the goal of providing “a safe environment while respecting all facets of women’s abilities, spirituality and differences,” according to its mission statement.

This October marked the 25th anniversary of the GUWC, which has provided resources and a platform for dialogue on female education and empowerment to the community since its inception.

The GUWC celebrated its anniversary with a reception at the Healey Family Student Center yesterday, where the center announced the creation of the Biondi Copeland Family Lecture Series, a set of discussions on women in higher education.

The lecture series was created through an unspecified donation by Gianna Biondi (CAS ’85) and John Copeland (CAS ’84). Biondi and Copeland also established the center’s Biondi Copeland Family Fund in 2014, which has contributed to the center’s programming and initiatives.

“This series will allow us to provide visibility for women presidents, provosts, faculty and student affairs professionals to share their stories and to work with our students and our community,” Director of the Wom-

JULIA ANASTOS/THE HOYA

ISABEL BINAMIRA/THE HOYA

In the past quarter-century, the Women’s Center has moved its home from a Leavey Center storage closet to the third floor of the building. en’s Center Laura Kovach said.

University President John J. DeGioia praised the GUWC for its contributions to female students and faculty at Georgetown over the past quarter-century.

“For 25 years, the Women’s Center has helped to celebrate and empower women on the Hilltop. Our office is deeply grateful to Laura and all of the See ANNIVERSARY, A6

Beating a Path Through DC, Students Run MCM Charlotte Allen Hoya Staff Writer

On the morning of Oct. 25, runners stood on the road between Arlington National Cemetery and the Pentagon, poised to begin a 26.2 mile race through the District.

Carleigh Douglas (MSB ’16) stood among them, watching in awe as Marine Corps officers parachuted out of the sky holding American flags. Surrounding her were more than 30,000 runners — including several Georgetown students — from all 50

states and 54 different countries.

At the sound of the start gun, runners leapt into action, kicking off the 40th Annual Marine Corps Marathon.

The marathon was the culmination of a weekend of activities that lasted from Oct. 23 to 25, consisting of a Health and Fitness Expo, Kids Run, 10K Run, pep rally and Runners Conference.

Douglas said the MCM was something she wanted to complete before leaving See MARATHON, A6

eliza mineaux for the hoya

The famed steep staircase, located on Prospect Street leading down to M Street, will receive official designation commemorating its role in “The Exorcist” today.

Steps Officially Designated Ian Scoville

Special to The Hoya

In the 1973 horror film “The Exorcist,” a priest leaps from of a window and tumbles to his death down a towering staircase. These famous 97 steps, cemented in film history, are just steps away from the Car Barn.

The staircase, located at 3600 M St. NW and connected to Prospect Avenue, will be officially named and commemorated with a plaque from the city Oct. 30.

At the event, city officials will establish the famous steps as a cultural site in the District and name them “The Exorcist Steps.” The film’s screenwriter William Peter Blatty (C ’50), director William Friedkin, Mayor Muriel Bowser, D.C. Councilmember

Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) and University President John J. DeGioia will attend the evening event, beginning at 4 p.m. and ending with a screening of “The Exorcist” at the Healey Family Student Center.

“I don’t take [visitors] to the monuments. ... I take them to the Exorcist Steps.”

WILLIAM HUFF Director of Community Relations, American University

Friedkin will sign memorabilia for attendees at 4 p.m. before the plaque is unveiled

Newsroom: (202) 687-3415 Business: (202) 687-3947

at 6 p.m. The Council of the District of Columbia will also present a ceremonial resolution that honors the filmmakers and location, marking Oct. 30 as “The Exorcist Day” in Georgetown.

American University Directory of Community Relations William Huff initiated and organized the commemoration in collaboration with Dupont Festival, an organization that hosts activities in the greater Dupont Circle area.

The D.C. Office of Motion Picture and Television Development provided initial funds for the project, while Huff worked with Dupont Festival to raise $7,000 in donations from District residents to fund the project.

courtney klein/the hoya

Runners stream down M Street in Georgetown as part of the Marine Corps Marathon, which saw 30,000 racers, many from the university, traverse the District.

FEATURED BUSINESS Split Your Ride

NEWS Leo on Free Speech

The former university president explores speech and Catholicism.

A8

Opinion Care for All Persons

Georgetown’s openness to gender identities can truly save lives.

A3

A Georgetown grad’s ridesharing app forms user communities.

A10

Sports Good Bye

The women’s soccer team may clinch a bye in the Big East today.

B10

BUSINESS Namaste

Down Dog Yoga will open steps away from campus in November.

A10

See EXORCIST, A6 Published Tuesdays and Fridays

Send story ideas and tips to news@thehoya.com

A2

OPINION

THE HOYA

Friday, october 30, 2015

THE VERDICT

EDITORIALS

A Little More Credit Internships during the school year are an integral part of the student experience at Georgetown, preparing students for the working world and allowing them to try out different career options before graduation. One of Georgetown’s major draws for prospective students is its proximity to internships in a wide variety of industries, from government internships to privatesector internships. In light of the fact that a large portion of the student body participates in unpaid or underpaid internships during the school year — students averaged 2.6 internships by graduation in the 2013-2014 academic year — administrators should offer more academic credits to better recognize students who seek to learn outside the classroom.

Currently, the four undergraduate schools handle course credit for internships very differently. The School of Nursing and Health Studies mandates that three of its four majors include a sizable and competitive internship as a component for their graduation requirements. Meanwhile, Georgetown College and the McDonough School of Business offer a handful of internship-based three-credit courses such as “Public Policy Internship and Seminar,” “Media Techniques” or “Internship in Business.” In addition, the College offers a one-credit course to supplement an internship in the public sector. The School of Foreign Service does

not offer academic credit for internships unless a student gets a Dean’s permission to sit in one of the MSB’s or College’s internship courses. So, for the majority of students who are not in the NHS, there is no concrete way to translate the applicable skills learned in an internship into course credits beyond these meager course offerings.

A significant number of internships, both paid and unpaid, require proof of credit to hire a student. Georgetown’s stipulations, which often prevent students from receiving credit, make students uncompetitive in relation to its Georgetown’s peer institutions.

Additionally, internship classes that require additional coursework increase students’ workload in a manner that is not consistent to credit hours earned and further disincentives students from procuring internships.

Georgetown students need a stronger and better system on campus to concretely reward them for their internships. Easing the entry requirements in the College’s one-credit course or partnering with more firms to offer three-credit internship courses would be innovative ways to tangibly demonstrate the importance of internships in the daily lives of students. Georgetown should recognize that part of educating the whole person should also be reinforcing, through course credit, the professional knowledge built in the realworld experiences that internships provide.

C C C C C

Founded January 14, 1920

Boo-rito — Chipotle is giving out $3 burritos on Halloween to any customer with something “uneccessary” added to his or her costume to highlight the lack of additives in their food.

Sunburn — The White House issued a plan to prepare for extreme solar storms, which can impact power and communications systems.

Go Away Farmville — Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that the company was working on a way to block annoying game invites and notifications.

UberKITTENS — On Thursday, Uber, in collaboration with the Washington Humane Society, drove to offices around the Washington, D.C. area and delivered kittens to customers for 15-minute intervals. The kittens brightened many people’s days and brought in donations for the Washington Humane Society.

The Trumpkin — Ohio Artist Jeanette Paras took a 374-pound pumpkin and transformed it into a likeness of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

The “trumpkin” has become a viral phenomenon, with many people carving their pumpkins to resemble the polarizing political figure.

EDITORIAL CARTOON by Michelle Xu

Reconcile Speech, Values In a summer interview with The Hoya, serialized these past two weeks, former University President Fr. Leo O’Donovan, S.J., upheld the importance of Catholic belief and free speech on campus. O’Donovan explained that while he thought the Second Vatican Council was correct in speaking of abortion as something intrinsically wrong, he still believes in freedom — not suppression — of speech.

O’Donovan’s words illuminate the unique identity embodied by the university. Both students and administrators must continue to uphold the continuity between Catholic belief and free speech at Georgetown in the face of illegitimate opposition.

Conservative critics fail to realize what O’Donovan makes clear: Georgetown’s Jesuit values exist in harmony with and benefit from healthy dialogue on campus. Publications such as that of The Cardinal Newman Society or The Georgetown Academy consistently challenge the university for not being “Catholic enough.” These watchdog organizations urge Georgetown either to “stay true to its values” or to renounce its Catholic identity, citing the existence of

liberal student groups as proof of irreconcilable deviancy on the Hilltop.

In reality, defending free speech on campus is necessary for the expression of Georgetown’s core identity. Becoming “men and women for others” means learning to respect and engage with views the community might not initially understand. Creating a diverse or inclusive campus culture means giving voice to a plurality of opinions and lifestyles. Despite the condemnation of alarmist watchdogs, the notion that some ultimate and urgent tradeoff between Catholic doctrine and free speech exists is a fallacy.

At the same time, administration actions that obscure certain student groups for seemingly violating Catholic belief, through a withdrawal of university recognition undermines the community’s Jesuit spirit and lends strength to the argument that there is a zerosum choice between Catholic identity and free choice. Therefore, rather than advising students to refrain from “over chalking” Red Square in their enthusiasm, the administration should celebrate and foster robust speech and expression on campus.

Reclaim Your Nature November can be a daunting month. Largely free of exams and punctuated by a sorelyneeded Thanksgiving break, the month seems relaxing and refreshing. But as seasoned Hoyas know, the halcyon weeks whiz by, Thanksgiving dinner wraps up and students are packed on Lau 3 reviewing slides for that dreaded “Econometrics” final. As a result, it is easy for November to become a month-long bout of pre-emptive stress. Therefore, as the fall semester comes to an end, take advantage of the resources and opportunities in place to support student self-care and spiritual fulfillment.

Mental health has become a significant rallying point for students. Collaborative efforts on the part of the administration, student groups and the Georgetown Undergraduate Student Association have resulted in important initiatives to improve Counseling and Psychiatric Services and other resources and foster dialogues. Mental health and well-being encompass far more than panel discussions and counseling, though. Students should aim to take courses that aim to address student well-being at a cultural level. An example of this would be “Flourishing in College and Community,” which emphasizes countering the mental, physical and spiritual stress stu-

Katherine Richardson, Executive Editor Daniel Smith, Managing Editor Molly Simio, Online Editor Toby Hung, Campus News Editor Kristen Fedor, City News Editor Tyler Park, Sports Editor Jinwoo Chong, Guide Editor Daniel Almeida, Opinion Editor Isabel Binamira, Photography Editor Shannon Hou, Layout Editor Becca Saltzman, Copy Chief Courtney Klein, Blog Editor Laixin Li, Multimedia Editor

Editorial Board

Daniel Almeida, Chair Gabi Hasson, Irene Koo, Charlie Lowe, Sam Pence, Parth Shah

dents tend to experience at Georgetown. While Georgetown can be competitive and stressful, the university is replete with resources for students to engage in different forms of self-care and avoid burnout before finals.

Some of the most common options for students include retreats sponsored by Campus Ministry, with opportunities for religious and non-denominational students alike. ESCAPE, a popular one-night retreat for freshmen and transfer students, offers a chance to reflect and meet new people at a beautiful retreat center in the Shenandoah Valley. Students from multiple faith backgrounds can take advantage of Agape, reFRESHMENt, Crossroads, Shabbaton and the Hindu Student Association retreat. A hike in the bucolic Shenandoah Valley with Outdoor Education, a daytrip to Gettysburg or a simple, quiet walk around Theodore Roosevelt Island across Key Bridge are only some of many ways to break free from the routine stress of campus life.

Take a walk in the woods like Bill Bryson, or channel your inner Jonathan Waterman.

Georgetown’s Jesuit identity calls for students to be “contemplatives in action” — to reflect on our education in a manner that takes into account both our lives and our world.

This week

[ CHATTER ]

Be sure to check Chatter, The Hoya’s online opinion section, throughout the week for additional opinion pieces.

Rohan Shridhar (LAW ’16) analyzes the complexities to understanding the Chinese market: Any analysis of China th­rough the existing models of development, which, in to­day’s world, derive from the free market economic theories, is likely to lead to the conclusions that do not fit with reality. Never in human history has a population of 1.3 billion been pulled up economically with the combination of paternalism, pragmatism and closely monitored market for­ces.”

“

Find this and more at

thehoya.com/chatter

Mallika Sen, Editor-in-Chief

Brian Carden, General Manager

Deputy Campus News Editor Tom Garzillo Deputy Campus News Editor Ashwin Puri Deputy City News Editor Emily Tu Features Editor Andrew Wallender Deputy Features Editor Maureen Tabet Deputy Sports Editor Madeline Auerbach Deputy Sports Editor Molly O’Connell Paranoia Editor Andrew May Deputy Guide Editor Sean Davey Deputy Guide Editor Kate Kim Deputy Guide Editor John Miller Deputy Guide Edtior Jasmine White Deputy Opinion Editor Lauren Gros Deputy Opinion Editor Jonathan Marrow Chatter Editor Julia Weil Sophie Faaborg-Andersen Deputy Photography Editor Deputy Photography Editor Dan Gannon Deputy Photography Editor Kathleen Guan Deputy Layout Editor Nick Bailey Deputy Layout Editor Cleo Fan Deputy Layout Editor Charlotte Kelly Deputy Layout Editor Matthew Trunko Deputy Copy Editor Nick Greco Deputy Copy Editor Sarah Wright Deputy Blog Editor Catherine McNally Deputy Multimedia Editor Reza Baghaee Deputy Multimedia Editor Rachelle Moon

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OPINION

Friday, october 30, 2015

THE HOYA

A3

VIEWPOINT • Dever

But i digress

The Georgetown That Saved Me Lam Nguyen

The Myth Of Asian Advantage L

ast week, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and University of Maryland professor Janelle Wong published op-eds to NBC News explaining the Asian advantage — why Asians are far exceeding other minority groups, financially and academically.

Kristof suggests that Asian success stems from Confucian principles that foster an environment with an emphasis on the importance of sacrifice for family and education. Wong argues against this thinking, ascribing Asian success to U.S. immigration and selective recruitment policies, such as granting the majority of high-skilled and international student visas to Asian workers and students.

Although valid, neither argument recognizes that the “Asian advantage” is no real advantage at all, since it pits minority races against each other. The advantage only exists in the myopic scope of Kristof and Wong, but as an Asian immigrant, I personally feel that the Asian advantage does not exist in the big picture.

Ultimately, when compared to whites, Asians are still limited because we are a minority. Asians are labeled as the “model minority,” simply to give the whitecentric American culture a paradigm to point out the shortcomings of other minority groups. The statistical success of Asians is used to solidify the hierarchy of race, allowing one group to feel superior because other groups are not up to par.

The “Asian advantage” reinforces the disadvantages of minorities, so Asians don’t have much of an advantage at all.

In order to exonerate the white majority’s role in systemic racism, the current rhetoric pretty much says, “If America is so racist, why are Asians doing so well?”

This narrative implies that racism doesn’t contribute to minorities’ shortcomings as much as the culture and practices of the minority groups themselves. The fact of the matter is that the success of Asians compared to other minority groups and the causes of that success really do not matter. What matters is that a successful minority group is used to overlook the effects of racism and to make other minority groups feel inferior not only to whites, but now to Asians as well.

To illustrate how the advantage does not exist, compare Asians to whites rather than other minority groups. Asian poverty rates are still higher than those of whites.

Skilled Asians are still used to make white CEOs richer. Per capita income for Asians is lower than that of whites. International Asian students are admitted to American universities because they pay a higher tuition. While some of these examples benefit the Asian minority, it still solidifies the disparities between minority groups and whites. If the advantage actually existed, we should expect to see more Asian political officeholders and business leaders, as they are clearly qualified for such positions. However, the reality is that the American economic and political worlds are dominated by whites. I am not saying that we should replace every white congressman and CEO with an Asian, I am just pointing out that the “Asian advantage” only extends insofar as it does not threaten the top of the racial hierarchy.

The construction of the “Asian advantage” is nothing more than a distraction from the white advantage. Although I am happy that Asians, for the most part, are thriving, I am bothered that Asian success is used as an example to condemn other minority groups, while removing the majority from blame for the current racial environment. Labelling Asians as the “model minority” implies that there is finally a minority group that is doing something right. But what are Asians doing differently from Blacks and Latinos? All three groups are simply responding to their respective level of discrimination imposed by the biased majority. The “Asian advantage” is a reminder to all minority groups that they will continue to face inequalities simply because they are a minority. Racial groups should not need an “advantage” to be at equal standing with one another.

Just because Asians are prospering does not mean that we can just forget about the seriousness of racism in this country and carry on with our ways.

As an Asian, I never felt like I had an advantage. My family had to fight and struggle, tearing down barrier after barrier, to be where we are. Minority success is not some phenomenon stemming from our respective cultures and practices, and it certainly does not come from America handing us work and student visas. We are where we are because of each individual’s tenacity to overcome inequalities imposed on us, and that goes for any minority. So celebrate success, but do not undermine it by labeling the process as an advantage.

Lam Nguyen is a sophomore in the College. But I Digress appears every other Friday.

I

read critics’ discussion regarding OUTober. Allow me to explain why we need this. Allow me to explain to you why the work of the LGBTQ Resource Center, the work of GU Pride and the work of Georgetown University to fund these entities is not only a good thing to have at our Catholic campus, but is of fundamental importance.

I write this to critics like The Georgetown Academy because of your discussion, but I do not write this for you. I write this for everyone who holds such views. I write this for everyone who feels that Georgetown must change to include more church teaching, not the other way around. I write this for the Georgetown students, faculty, staff and alumni who believe that respecting life is just about unborn babies.

I am a “man obsessed with dressing up like a woman.” Back in high school, I tried to kill myself twice in one week.

I tried to kill myself because I knew I was an abomination. My “harmful fantasies” were very harmful. I wanted to “slice off fully functioning body parts” and I knew this was horrible. I barely made it out of high school alive.

I was raised a Catholic. My father is an ordained deacon. I was an altar server for my entire youth. I have never set foot in a public school on a weekday. (There was that one time I attended a friend’s talent show on a Saturday.) I know Catholic teaching inside and out. I was never told that the LGBTQ community had anything positive to offer to the world.

Catholicism was everything.

A phone call from my RA was the only thing that stopped me from jumping off the Key Bridge during my freshman year. I was still an atrocity. I was still a freak. Then I started to talk to people. Not everyone, I realized, saw my wayward desires as a prob-

In the ideal that we should respect each other, Georgetown embodies Catholicism better than the Vatican itself. lem. There was even a full-fledged transgender student on campus. The queer community at Georgetown opened my eyes to a world where I could exist and not hate myself.

If Georgetown dropped the Catholic identity tomorrow, I would not be upset. I would be very OK if Georgetown were not Catholic.

But it is. It will always be. You have that going for you. But whether you like it or not, I have made my home here. I have found a space where I can exist. You are correct on one thing: Georgetown does go against the Catholic Church in its acceptance of the queer community. In the ideal

VIEWPOINT • Berman

that we should respect each other, Georgetown embodies Catholicism better than the Vatican itself.

Georgetown has made a space for me and for the queer community.

Some Palestinian guy once said that we should love our neighbors as we love ourselves and when asked for clarification, he used a story about a Samaritan to illustrate that our neighbor is anyone in need. You may know the story.

If Georgetown were the Georgetown you want it to be, I would not be here. I would very literally be dead. The LGBTQ Resource Center, where I work, GU Pride, OUTober

— all of it saved my life.

I am one of the lucky ones. Every year, hundreds of LGBTQ individuals lose their lives to violence or suicide.

Let me take a moment to name a few.

Tamara Dominguez. Amber Monroe.

Shade Schuler. India Clarke. Ashton O’Hara. Jasmine Collins. Mercedes Williamson. London Chanel. Keyshia Blige. Kristina Gomez Reinwald. Penny Proud. Taja Gabrielle DeJesus. Yazmin Vash Payne. Ty Underwood. Lamia Beard. Papi Edwards. Keisha Jenkins.

Those 20 women have all been killed in the United States since Jan. 1, 2015, for committing the horrifying crime of being transgender.

They are not exceptions to the rule, but rather the norm.

Have I told you yet that the average lifespan of a transgender person is 31 years? Let me clarify that: my lifespan is 31 years. If I am “average,” I will be dead within the decade. Let that sink in for a second. There’s a reason I’m not thinking about marriage, children or even long-term career plans. I do not want to plan for a life I probably will not get to live.

I will probably never return to religion. The scars that were caused by such teachings will never heal. In fact, when I look closely, in the right light, I can still see the scars on my wrists from that night in the spring of 2011.

They were just a little too shallow to do the damage I had intended.

The Catholic Church nearly killed me. Georgetown’s refusal to go along with all of its teachings saved me.

You mentioned that it is Respect Life Month. I would like to make a request as you celebrate this. Lead by example. Respect life. Respect queer lives. Respect mine.

lexi Dever is a senior in the College.

OH THE PLACES YOU’LL GO

A ‘Home’ Run South African Students Away From Home Rally for Education

W

hen I left my home in Las Vegas, Nev., to come to Georgetown, I knew I was leaving behind a special part of my life.

I have grown up as an avid fan of the New York Mets.

Having inherited this team from my New York-born parents, I can say with pride this year that I stay true to the Orange and Blue. Each and every day throughout my middle school and high school summers, I sat with my parents and cheered on my favorite baseball team despite its mediocrity and consistent losing seasons. As the Mets had not made the playoffs in nine years, I figured that coming to Georgetown this August would only leave my parents to watch yet another unsurprising, late-season collapse. No sentimental feeling needed in this regard.

But on Sept. 26, the Mets did exactly what nobody expected them to do — they clinched their first National League East title since 2006, placing my parents thousands of miles away from me in one of the most glorious moments in New York Mets history. Though I have never felt homesickness from being away from home for long periods of time, this moment seemed like it was missing something fundamental about the joy that I gained from watching my favorite team. I realized immediately that the passion I have comes from the people with whom I shared the Mets, not the Mets themselves.

But when the playoffs arrived in early October, I walked proudly into the Healey Family Student Center donning my Jacob deGrom T-shirt and Mr. Met baseball cap ready for the first Mets playoffs game since I was in the fourth grade. As the introductions to the game began, more and more Mets fans wearing orange and blue came to enjoy the game in the TV room as well. Each couch quickly filled with people just like me: Hoyas passionate about a team who had already accomplished the seemingly impossible.

As the game wore on, everyone slowly revealed their personalities and attitudes toward the team. Like many New Yorkers, they were

opinionated, sarcastic and oftentimes brutally honest about their feelings toward the players, but our one commonality lay in our undying support of the “Amazin” Mets. I felt that for the first time in over a month, I was watching the game with a family. A new family, in a new home.

Victory after victory brought the Mets closer to the “Fall Classic,” the World Series. Last Wednesday, my new family of fans gathered around a crowded TV in our new family room to watch the Mets play the Chicago Cubs in a potentially World Series-clinching game. In the first inning, the Mets took a commanding 4-0 as a result of two home runs, each one raising us to our feet in jubilation. High-fives, cheers and smiles filled the room with glee.

No m a t te r where we all came from, our undeniable joy linked us in celebration.

Did some of us talk too much?

Definitely. Did I scream too loudly? Probably. But every family has people like this, and we were no exception.

When the final strike of the series sent our team to the World Series, we jumped to the tune of immense joy and shared sibling-like hugs in Georgetown’s Healey Family Student Center.

As a freshman, I had my doubts about where I would find my place in a school so far from home, but in just a month I have realized that the Georgetown community holds the special trait of uniting people in a variety of ways. Of course, the Hilltop lacks the quality of the home-cooked meal, the desert scenery of the Vegas Valley and the genuine comfort of being with family, but my experience with my new friends has brought me as close to my life at home as I could hope. No matter if the Mets can claim the World Series championship this week, I have been assured that the Georgetown community can provide exactly what I wanted in the college that I chose: a home away from home.

I realized immediately that the passion I have comes from the people with whom I shared the Mets, not the Mets themselves.

Sean Berman is a freshman in the School of Foreign Service.

I

n just two short weeks, the #FeesMustFall campaign shook South Africa. Students shut down campuses across the country to protest massive double-digit tuition increases for the following year, namely an 11.5 percent increase at Stellenbosch University. Students faced police brutality in the form of tear gas, riot police, intimidation and arrests, bringing the country to a standstill so their voices could be heard.

South Africa’s current government, led

by President Jacob Zuma of the African National Congress, is widely known for its widespread corruption, a sharp contrast from the days of Nelson Mandela and the liberation movement against apartheid.

South Africa’s government spends nearly 20 percent of its budget and 5 percent of national GDP on education, more than most countries in the world, yet ranks last out of 148 countries in quality of math and science education in grade school. For low income students, who are often black, the uphill battle to break out of the intergenerational cycle of poverty only gets steeper as tertiary education fees outpace inflation.

Neither the government itself nor universities, including Stellenbosch, where I study, find it surprising that Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande proposed exorbitant fees increases overnight without engaging in any dialogue with or Alexander consideration that many students would not be able to return to school next semester. The ineptitude and elitism of the ANC government showed itself at its worst when Blade said on camera, “#StudentsMustFall” and laughed as the protests took place.

Stellenbosch was outraged as a whole, but tangible action started small. Sixy-six students occupied an administration building on campus last Monday afternoon. In response, the university issued an interdict Tuesday morning, hired private security services of towering muscular men in black and brought in riot police against their own students. The Sherriff gave the peaceful occupying students the option to leave or to be arrested. While a few students left, the majority stayed and stated they would voluntarily hand themselves over to be arrested. Instead of the promised peaceful arrest, though, students were blocked in the front by the men in black, surrounded behind by the riot police while being beaten with their plastic shields and batons.

Stellenbosch’s movement snowballed into mass action. The university was shutdown on Wednesday as students gathered by the hundreds in the Rooiplein (the Stellenbosch version of Georgetown’s Red Square) to march. For an hour students gave speeches explaining how this fee increase would prevent them from returning to study, how Stellenbosch University management itself refused to engage in dialogue, how angry they were that both Blade and President Zuma still did not have the decency to even address students.

What started as a small group of students who stopped studying on the eve of final exams and risked arrest for their principles had grown into a mass movement. The past week of classes, tests and studying was disrupted as students protested, calling upon

their peers to put down their books and join them marking their place in history.

Students were willing to sacrifice one exam grade today so there would be a chance for the friend to their left to attend school tomorrow.

Friday morning, more than a thousand students gathered for a midnight rally. #StelliesFeesMustFall leader Lovelyn Nwadeyi outlined the context of the recent events.

With the Internet regularly going down and general confusion about biased media reports and distrusted government statements, laying out the student narrative of events was essential for everyone to understand why and how both the country and Stellenbosch had erupted into protest.

Nwadeyi outlined three clear demands.

First, the interdict against students protesting must be dropped. Second, there must be no fee increase in the upcoming year. Third, students who protest must be accommodated for an exam period.

On Friday, the fees finally fell. President Zuma agreed not to raise the tuition. All three of the demands laid out by Stellenbosch students were met.

But this was only a first victory; the battle, not the war, was won. It will be the responsibility of a more politically active populace led by enlightened students to hold the government accountable. To cut waste and corruption and properly invest in education in order to Bobroske make up for the shortfalls universities will face.

Despite well-disciplined student movements, global media reported unrest and student violence. In reality, less than a handful of people committed these actions. Yes, tensions were high, but police responses were excessive. Student leaders were frequently targeted or arrested. In Cape Town, students broke through the gates of parliament to protest the government itself before being beaten back by tear gas and rubber bullets, which pierced their skin.

White students, at one point, formed a human shield around black students, crossing their arms showing they were unarmed to protect their peers, wrongfully portrayed in the media as an unruly violent black mob.

Following in history’s footsteps of the student-led Soweto uprising in 1976, the “Born Free” generation of post-apartheid South Africa now looks to the future. The world just witnessed how organized and powerful these students can be when they are strengthened and united in diversity rather than divided by color. If these students are to be the next generation of African leaders, we could very well see the 21st century finally become the African century.

What can we learn from South Africa?

How long until we adopt their tactics and demand answers and reform nation-wide for exploding student tuitions? In America, student tuitions have increased by 538 percent since 1985. Imagine what Georgetown students could accomplish if we gathered by the thousands and filled Red Square before joining other universities in a march on Capitol Hill.

Alexander Bobroske is a junior in the School of Foreign Service. Oh The Places You’ll Go appears every other Friday.

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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2015

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Prominent monk and author Matthieu Ricard discussed the significance of altruism on Monday. Story on A8.

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IN FOCUS

verbatim

MUMBAI MP

“

Ideas aren’t dangerous. They’re not going to harm you.

They’re words, and you can respond to those words with arguments.”

USA Today writer Kirsten Powers on the importance of free speech on college campuses. Story on A8.

from

DREAMWORKS PICTURES

KATHLEEN GUAN/THE HOYA

Bharatiya Janata Party Indian Member of Parliament Poonam Mahajan discussed the development of Mumbai and programs for women and children in a speech sponsored by the Georgetown-India Dialogue at Copley Formal Lounge on Thursday.

A FRESHMAN’S GUIDE TO PARTIES Georgetown parties are often “closed,” but fear not! 4E has compiled a guide that will get you into Brown House that works every time! blog.thehoya.com

Pahlavi Talks Challenges in Post-Nuclear Deal Iran SYED HUMZA MOINUDDIN

government. He consistently spoke about the need to bring a nonviolent, concrete change in the region.

Cyrus Reza II Pahlavi, the head “If change is to occur in Iran, it of Iran’s deposed House of Pahlavi, has to occur by means of civil disvisited Georgetown to discuss mis- obedience and nonviolence,” Pahlaconceptions regarding the recent vi said. “All these years my posinuclear deal in light of the evolv- tion has been to encourage change ing political situation in Iran in the driven by the Iranian people themIntercultural Center on Wednesday. selves. They are the only ones who The International Relations Club can shift the balance of power.” and the Delta Phi Epsilon FraterPahlavi also argued how even in nity sponsored the lecture, titled light of successful U.S.-Iran nego“American-Iranian Relations Fol- tiations, the situation has not imlowing the Nuclear Agreement.” proved for Iran’s civilians. Pahlavi The lecture came at a time of in- highlighted the United Nations ternational media attention on Journal of Human Rights, which esUnited States-Iran relations after timates that the regime currently Iran reached an agreement with imprisons and executes more citithe United Nations Security Coun- zens on an annual basis than durcil and the European Union on its ing any other era. nuclear program in July.

“Despite all the hardships and difTerrence Boyle (SFS ’63), an alum- ficulties, Iranians have become far ni leader of DPE and a former attor- more resilient in their civil disobeney, helped organize Pahlavi’s visit dience against the regime,” Pahlavi to campus. Boyle said that Pahlavi’s said. “The population has become visit would more organized draw attention and continues to to the increasprotest much of ingly importhe actions of the tant role Iran regime in power.” will hold in the Pahlavi also near future. criticized the “The evolving strategy of U.S. situation with policy makers Iran and its reand diplomats. lationship with He argued that the [United much of the diaCYRUS REZA II PAHLAVI States] will aflogue between Shah De Jure, Iran fect all our lives both Iran and down the road,” the United States Boyle said. “It is in our own interests, focuses only on the regime of Iran as Americans and Georgetown stu- and its demands. Pahlavi said the dents, to understand and care about majority of the population is often this evolving political situation.” left out in the common discourse, The speech was Pahlavi’s fourth which is not conducive to actual address at Georgetown. Pahlavi, progress against the regime. whose daughter graduated from “In my 35 years in politics, any Georgetown two years ago, was dialogue with Iran and the outside originally scheduled to only visit world is limited to the regime’s DPE members to celebrate the representatives,” Pahlavi said. “I’ve fraternity’s 75th anniversary, al- met no U.S. government official though DPE and IRC later chose to who has themselves attempted to secure a larger space for the gen- interact with any Iranian civilians, eral public. and only by interacting with the Pahlavi has remained in exile country’s true representatives can from Iran for more than 35 years. we all gain a greater understanding Though he was only 18 when the of their situation.”

Islamic Revolution took place, his Toward the end of his remarks, exile has only empowered his activ- Pahlavi made a final call for the ity in Iranian politics and affairs. end of the current Iranian regime.

In his discussions on the media, He said that the current struggle is Pahlavi continues to push for a sec- hardly one of religion, but of values. ular, democratic Iran, and his mo- According to Pahlavi, the only way tivations have helped inspire the to ensure the success of democracy, formation of the National Coun- liberty and equality is through the cil of Iran, a government in exile empowerment of Iranians who concomprised of 40 parties and asso- tinue to suffer every day. ciations dedicated to influencing “This struggle is a question of valIran’s political climate. ues,” Pahlavi said. “When we stand In his speech, Pahlavi focused for the values that have fueled our primarily on Iran’s civilian popula- own human progress, and when we tion and how it is silenced by the bring the needs of [Iranians] to the

Special to The Hoya

“If change is to occur in Iran, it has to occur by means of civil disobedience and nonviolence.”

NAAZ MODAN/THE HOYA

In his fourth address at Georgetown, Cyrus Reza II Pahlavi, former crown prince of Iran, discussed the road to democracy in Iran and the future of U.S.-Iran relations after the nuclear deal in the ICC on Wednesday. forefront … then we are taking the right steps to destroy this regime.”

While Pahlavi highlighted the importance of empowering democratic activists and parties within Iran, some students said that they wished he had focused more on the specifics of those groups, how successful they have been and whether there is hope for their continued empowerment.

IRC Director for Academic Programming Matthew Ellison (SFS ’18), who moderated the conversa-

tion with Pahlavi, said that he believes the significance of the Shah’s visit lies in the outside perspective Pahlavi brings to discourse on Iran and its complex political climate.

“He is bringing a perspective on Iran that we don’t hear very often, especially from the media,” Ellison said. “You don’t always hear elite Iranian voices that talk about democracy and reform, and that alternative narrative made His Excellency’s visit very exciting.”

Zoe Sun (SFS ’18), who attended

the event, said that she also wanted to hear more from Pahlavi on how democracy might be realized in Iran.

“I wish he touched more upon the groups within the country trying to take power and institute democracy,” Sun said. “If there is going to be a democracy in Iran one day, or even a large scale political movement, which groups within the country are working towards that goal now?

Who should we be paying attention to? Those are the questions he should’ve tried to address.”

NEWS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2015

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Policies Define Expression UN Commissioner Discusses Global Refugee Crises, Reform

TARA SUBRAMANIAM Hoya Staff Writer

The Office of Residential Living and the Division of Student Affairs clarified their policies against hanging banners, flags and clothing outside windows and chalking on buildings in two universitywide emails this month, the former of which prompted concerns over their infringement on the Speech and Expression Policy.

In an email dated Oct. 22, Vice President of Student Affairs Todd Olson said that recently, there have been more instances of chalking on inappropriate locations, such as campus buildings.

“There has been an increase in the number of instances of chalking on buildings, resulting in the need for more frequent removal and maintenance,” Olson wrote. “This damages and degrades campus buildings.”

According to the email sent by the Office of Residential Living on Oct. 20, banners, flags and clothing cannot hang outside any window of a university-owned residential facility, including student room and apartment windows.

Director of Residential Education Ed Gilhool said the ban on hanging items outside of building windows is consistent with the posting and window display policy that Georgetown has had in place for over seven years.

“Students are permitted to display items from within their rooms, visible to the outside, so long as they are consistent with the university’s speech and expression guidelines,” Gilhool said.

“Hanging or placing items outside of windows is first and foremost a safety concern.”

Georgetown University Student Association Secretary for Free Speech Sam Kleinman (COL ’16), who is one of three students on the Speech and Expression Committee, said the ban is a violation of students’ freedom of expression.

“I don’t see any compelling reasons regarding safety to ban hanging things from windows,” Kleinman wrote in an email to THE HOYA. Kleinman encouraged students who are told to remove

anything hanging from their windows to send a complaint to the Speech and Expression Committee.

The Speech and Expression Policy makes one reference to windows, under a section entitled “Exterior Flyers and Marketing.”

“Materials may be posted only on walls (not windows and doors) and only in designated areas,” the policy reads.

Olson’s email, which outlined the university policy on chalking in Red Square, reiterated that while chalking is allowed on the brick pavers, it is not permitted on the exterior walls of campus buildings under the Speech and Expression Policy.

“I don’t see any compelling reasons regarding safety to ban hanging things from windows.”

SAM KLEINMAN (COL ’16) GUSA Secretary for Free Speech

According to Olson, the policy and the recent emails do not violate students’ freedom of expression.

“I believe this policy respects students’ rights to free expression, because there are plenty of places to chalk on the ground, and also places to post flyers [and] signs around campus,” Olson wrote in an email to THE HOYA. Several offices collaborate to manage this policy, including the Division of Student Affairs, the Office of Planning and Facilities Management and the Office of the Provost.

This email was prompted in part by a recent incident in which Georgetown for Bernie, a student group in support of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chalked the outside wall of the Intercultural Center with slogans in support of Sanders.

Co-chair of Georgetown for Bernie Caleb Weaver (SFS ’16) said that the group had violated the Speech and Expression Policy.

“This slip-up was totally our fault,” Weaver wrote in

an email to THE HOYA. “We assumed it was ok to chalk there and encouraged the members to do so. We didn’t know it was against the Speech and Expression Policy.”

According to the policy, chalking in inappropriate locations or with the wrong type of material that results in damage to university property will require restitution from the responsible party.

Weaver said that while the group has not received a specific response from the administration regarding the chalking, it regrets the mistake.

“We apologize profusely for making more work for the facilities workers,” Weaver wrote. “We’ll avoid the error going forward.”

Kleinman said that he agreed with the chalking policy.

“Because a building could be damaged if everyone chalked the edifice often, it’s fairly reasonable to ban folks from chalking on buildings,” Kleinman wrote.

The Speech and Expression Policy was created in 1989 in response to an increased spate of bias-related incidents. It was written by Rev. James Walsh, S.J., who died this July.

Since 1989, the policy has been periodically revised by the Speech and Expression Committee. This group is comprised of four undergraduate students, one graduate student, appropriate staff from the Division of Student Affairs and four faculty or academic administrators.

The committee advises the vice president for student affairs and makes decisions regarding amendments and clarifications on the policy. It also reviews complaints and refers them to a sanctioning body.

The university’s stance on chalking dates from the document’s creation and has remained largely unchanged with the exception of a memorandum in 2014.

Kleinman said that most issues regarding free speech in the past have been caused by the policy’s enforcement rather than its actual content.

“For the most part, the policy is reasonable in its restrictions of speech,” Kleinman wrote. “It does not differ significantly from the rights you have on municipal property.”

CHERYL LIU

a smuggler $5000, but a tourist that wants to go from Egypt to Italy pays $50,” Guterres said.

Guterres said the U.N. should incorporate The United Nations’ High Commissioner for the International Organization of Migration Refugees António Guterres called on the inter- and give it regulatory capacity to monitor the national community to collaborate on resolv- global labor market. ing ongoing refugee crises at the semester’s “Lack of capacity of the international comthird Global Futures lecture in Gaston Hall on munity to prevent crises and to solve them Wednesday. timely is having terrible consequences in Guterres’ lecture, titled “Present and Future the humanitarian dimension,” Guterres said.

Challenges of Global Forced Displacement,” According to Guterres, the international continued the Global Futures Initiative’s se- refugee community has not only grown in mester-long theme on “The Global Future of number, but has also begun to enter developed Governance” by addressing the threat the refu- European countries. Guterres stressed that, as gee crisis poses to global peace and security. public attention often dictates funding, it is The discussion was the third installment in important to view refugee crises holistically. a series of lectures that began with a talk on “It is absolutely essential to make people governing fragile states led understand ... all crises

by School of Foreign Service are interlinked, from NiDean Joel Hellman in early geria to Mali, from Mali September. The second, which to Libya, from Libya to took place in late September, Somalia,” Guterres said. featured World Health Or“It is important to make ganization Director-General sure that those [lesserMargaret Chan in a discussion known] situations are not on global health governance. neglected.”

University President John J. Following Guterres’ DeGioia began the discussion address, Georgetown’s by citing Pope Francis’ call to Institute for the Study of support the refugee commuInternational Migration ANTóNIO GUTERRES nity and said that everyone, Director Susan Martin U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees especially members of the joined the discussion Georgetown community, has an obligation to and inquired Guterres about the role of the help.

United States in addressing the global refugee “The challenges we are facing today … we situation. must respond to as a global community,” DeGuterres said the country needs to greatly Gioia said. increase its humanitarian aid and serve as the Vice President for Global Engagement leader of a global coalition that brings togethThomas Banchoff also said that Guterres’ mis- er key stakeholders in each crisis to deescalate sion aligns with the goals of the Global Fu- conflicts. tures Initiative.

“The resources available for humanitarian “[We] look forward to finding out with the aid are out of proportion, negatively, to the help of the high commissioner how to best existing needs,” Guterres said. grapple with future crisis as a university in Guterres’ address was followed by a questionthe national and international community,” and-answer session with faculty, students and Banchoff said. other members of the university community.

Guterres, who has led the U.N. refugee When a student asked about what Guterres agency since 2005, began his lecture by de- perceives to be the most difficult internationscribing the increasing gravity of the refugee al challenge in the future, Guterres spoke of crisis. The UNHCR was established in 1950 to the evolution of increasingly globalized consafeguard the rights and well-being of refu- flict. gees, and has since grown to a staff of more “The biggest challenge is the combination than 9,300 people in 123 countries. of facing growing needs … and more people af“What has changed is not that the refugee fected,” Guterres said. “We have less resources problem has become all of a sudden much and less access to [reaching] those people.” more dramatic,” Guterres said. “What has Guterres called on the university to engage changed is that refugees, for the first time, in this issue. have come in big numbers to the rich world.” “[Georgetown should] join efforts with other According to Guterres, the number of peo- areas of civil society ... to move towards a sysple around the world displaced by conflict and tem of global governance, of multinational persecution is currently at its highest since connection,” Guterres said.

World War II. Syria, the Central African ReJessica Li (SFS ’19), an attendee, said that public, Somalia and Afghanistan are all in the Guterres’s talk was engaging and educational. midst of large-scale humanitarian disasters.

“I thought it was interesting how Guterres Guterres said that strong, multilateral gover- emphasized the importance of developing nance mechanisms must regulate migration. a more multilateral approach and working “I think it is unacceptable that [a refugee] alongside financial institutions to help the inthat wants to go from Egypt to Italy has to pay ternally displaced,” Li said.

Hoya Staff Writer

LOVE LOCKS submit your ess ays

Love comes in m any forms — plato nic, familial, rom love story cente rs on a partner, antic. Whether a family membe yo a place, a song, r, a pet, a one-nigh ur or some abstract t stand, notion, we want to hear your sto ri es.

Inspired by the New York Time s’ “Modern Love Hoya’s “Love L ” essay series, T ocks” project w he ill publish subm pieces from stud it ted creative non ents, professors fiction and alumni.

The selected pie ces will address love in a deeply in the form of a pers true story — and explore predicam onal, honest way — have dealt with in ents that their w their own lives. riters Stories will be ac cepted in both w ritten prose and images and mult visual forms, incl imedia, and sele uding ct pieces will be special issue of p ublished in a No the paper. Addit v. 6 ional pieces will Hoya’s website. be published on The Send submissio ns (a 30 at midnight. nd questions) to lovelocks@th ehoya.com by O Written submis sions should be ct. words, video su b e bmissions canno tween 600 to 1,0 t 00 exceed five minu be submitted in tes and images sh .jpeg form. We w o ill n uld barring extenuat ing circumstance ot accept anonymous submissi o ns, s.

“What has changed is that refugees, for the first time, have come in big numbers to the rich world.”

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Exorcist Steps to Receive Designation in Ceremony EXORCIST, from A1 “We have people in the neighborhood and across the city who obviously see the value in publicly acknowledging this location, this film and this book, and the cultural significance, not only to the film world, but to our city and to the Georgetown neighborhood,” Huff said.

Huff said he was initially inspired to plan the event because he is passionate about horror films but especially because he loves “The Exorcist” and its relationship with the Georgetown area.

“This is where I bring people. When I have friends or family visiting D.C. I don’t take them to the monuments or the Mall or the Smithsonian. I take them to ‘The Exorcist’ steps,” Huff said.

“And I just thought after all this time and all these years that it was important to commemorate them in some way.”

According to Huff, Friedkin was keen to participate in the commemoration.

“All I did was tweet William Friedkin and tell him that we have plans to commemorate the steps and was he interested,” Huff said. “And he responded immediately that he was interested in learning more. We took the conversation offline, and the more he learned, the more interested and excited he became.”

Blatty, who wrote “The Exorcist” after hearing about a case of exorcism from a class he took at Georgetown, said that he recalled the steps being “spooky and suspenseful” in an interview with USA Today.

In 2014, Blatty started a petition to the Vatican calling for Georgetown to be stripped of its Catholic and Jesuit labels, citing that the university did not uphold Catholic morals. The Vatican replied to Blatty in a letter refusing his request.

Evans said that the event is exciting for the mayor and other city politicians.

“This dedication of the Exorcist Steps is a great example of what makes Georgetown, Ward 2 and D.C. such a great mix of history, culture and community,” Evans wrote in an email to The Hoya. “I’m excited to attend the dedication, and I think it’s really brought the whole neighborhood together.”

According to D.C. Office of Motion Picture and Television Development Director Pharoh Martin, these types of events demonstrate the importance of film to the city’s culture.

“There’s a lot of things that Mayor Bowser and the city’s doing to try to elevate D.C.’s standing as a world-class film location. But this is one thing that we can do that we’ve had in our backyard for many, many years that just had its time due,” Martin said. “We really should have already recognized this set of stairs, but it’s getting recognized

ELIZA MINEAUX FOR THE HOYA

The steps used in the 1976 film “The Exorcist” will be commemorated at an event Saturday attended by movie director William Friedkin, Mayor Muriel Bowser and D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans (D-Ward 2). and hopefully this isn’t the last film location that receives this kind of significance [in] the city.”

Huff expressed hope that the commemoration will draw attention to the

impact “The Exorcist” has had on the D.C. film industry “[People will] be able to look at our plaque that’s going to be installed at the bottom of the steps,” Huff said. “They’ll

see that the District of Columbia recognizes the importance of the film industry, the entertainment industry in the city and the iconic nature of these steps and this location.”

GUWC Celebrates Quarter Century University Rejects ANNIVERSARY, from A1 staff at the Center for the work that they do every day to support our community,” DeGioia wrote in a statement to The Hoya.

The GUWC was founded in 1990, 21 years after the College began accepting female students. Since then, the center has provided resources, referrals and materials for female students and faculty on women’s health and wellness, sexual health, gender-based violence and various other topics. The center hires student employees to help with its operations.

The center has also created numerous initiatives including the Women Advancing Gender Equity fellowship, university-wide program on sexual assault dialogue “Are You Ready?” and yearly programming during Women’s History Month in March. WAGE fellows participate in training and leadership development on issues related to gender equity.

Since its founding in 2008, the WAGE program has seen more than 50 participants and has sent dozens of students to the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders, a national forum for college-age female leaders. Last March, the GUWC hosted two women’s leadership retreats at the School of Foreign Service in Qatar.

SFS-Q established a sister women’s center in 2010 to mark the 20th anniversary of the GUWC, which provides resource and programming to the SFSQ campus. According to Kovach, the creation of the GU-Q Women’s Center was one of GUWC’s most significant accomplishments.

“The center is doing amazing things

and we have partnered on an annual women’s leadership retreat and other programming throughout the year,” Kovach said.

In recent years, the center has increased its work with Georgetown alumni, such as Biondi and Copeland, who have made donations to the center and spoke at its events.

According to Kovach, the increased funding has helped the center sustain and expand its educational and programming opportunities for students.

“We are able to send students to conferences, fully fund our WAGE program, host panels like ‘Women, Faith and Leadership,’ provide resources for a women’s retreat at our SFS-Q campus and bring great programs to campus like Elect Her,” Kovach wrote in an email to The Hoya.

The GUWC also plans to host its first main campus women’s leadership retreat next November with support from campus ministry.

At the reception, Director of the LGBTQ Center Shiva Subbaraman addressed challenges that the GUWC may face as student identities and needs evolve. The GUWC often collaborates with campus groups such as the LGBTQ Center and the Cawley Career Education Center, “I think one of the struggles of the women’s center has been how to reinvent itself for the 21st century, when so many women students on this campus think they do not need the women’s center anymore,” Subbaraman said. “The ones who feel they need the center are the ones who either run into issues or challenges, or those who understand where institutionally they still do not have a voice.”

Mary Rogers (COL ’16), an undergraduate assistant at the GUWC, said at the reception that the center remains an integral part of campus culture.

“I think having a physical women’s center is part of the idea that there is a space for women [on campus],” Rogers said. “People are under the impression that the women’s movement has already occurred and we don’t need a women’s center anymore. …

But I would say that the work is never done.”

Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jeanne Lord, who initially served as an advisory board member of the center, said the center plays an important part in Georgetown’s culture. Lord is currently a supervisor of the center.

“The center has grown and evolved in response to the changing needs of women on our campus and in the world, but has always been an important resource for all Georgetown women,” Lord wrote in an email to The Hoya.

“The center is rooted in our Jesuit and Catholic mission, so cura personalis, or care for the whole person, mind, body and spirit, is a foundational value.”

For the center’s future, Kovach said that they will continue to expand their initiatives in order to further engage the community.

“As we look ahead, we hope to continue our efforts to institutionalize all of our programs, increase our staffing resources and be that place for students to find engagement and education on important issues at Georgetown,” Kovach said. “It’s how we honor the students, faculty and staff who came before us.”

Marine Corps Race Draws 30K MARATHON, from A1 presence throughout the race inspiring, including the “Blue Mile,” a stretch in the middle of the course lined entirely with signs and flags in memory of Marines that were killed in action.

Douglas also spoke about how the injured participants inspired her throughout the race.

“I was really inspired by the people who were both wheeling themselves and being pushed by others,” Douglas said. “The times I was running with them were such amazing moments.”

The MCM was Sara Margolis’ (COL ’16) first marathon, although she has participated in half marathons and 10-milers sponsored by the army and the Marine Corps in the past.

Margolis spoke fondly of her experience. She said friends cheered for her on along the way, some of them jumping in to run small sections of the race with her for support.

“I love races in D.C. that benefit the military, and it is also the most fun and beautiful place to run,” Margolis said. “I would love to do it again every year from here on out if I’m in D.C.” Margolis said that one of the reasons she loves doing military races is that she hopes to join the Judge Advocate General’s Corps, the legal branch of the military. She also highlighted the sense of camaraderie she felt throughout the marathon and praised the organization of the race.

“It is a well-oiled machine,” said Margolis, “They know exactly how far apart to put different mile times and they’ve got everything down to a formula.”

Professional runners sponsored by the organization ran at specific places to motivate the marathoners and run with them if they wanted to finish at a certain time.

Michael Saxon (MSB ’18) said the size of the race was intimidating at

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Several Georgetown students joined more than 30,000 other runners in the 40th Annual Marine Corps Marathon in D.C. first, but emphasized the marathon’s sense of community and focus on veterans and the military.

“There wasn’t a big stretch of time during which there wasn’t a stranger cheering me on,” Saxon said.

“Everyone was very supportive and a lot of people had signs. You made it because there were so many people around you doing the same thing and so many people in it all for the same goal.”

Saxon also said it was difficult training for a marathon while juggling schoolwork and other commitments.

“I would see myself doing another one in a couple of years,” Saxon said.

“It was definitely worth it, but I don’t know if I want to do it again while I’m in college.”

Georgetown Triathlon Team Captain Aaron Lewis (MSB ’16), a former staff writer for The Hoya, also ran and said he was struck by the positive atmosphere and how the course of the marathon involved running through so many different parts of D.C.

“The course definitely showcased D.C.,” Lewis said. “It started in Arlington so you could see the back of the city and had parts where you ran under the Kennedy Center, past the Lincoln Memorial, along the Mall, into Georgetown and finally finished at the Iwo Jima Memorial.”

Megan Wallace (COL ’17) ran as a “Fundracer” for Back On My Feet, an organization she learned about through the Georgetown University Running Club. The nonprofit organization promotes the self-sufficiency of homeless people by engaging them in running to build confidence and strength.

“I am proud to say I beat my fundraising goal, achieved my goal of finishing in under four hours (my time was 3:45) and sprinted up the final hill across the finish line (my own personal goal),” Wallace wrote in an email to The Hoya. “I would really recommend the experience to anyone who is toying with the idea — you are always stronger than you think you are.

Application System COALITION, from A1 through the collaboration platform.

When students begin the application process, they can attach materials from their lockers to submit to colleges.

According to a coalition press release from Sept. 28, the purpose of familiarizing students with the process at an early age should minimize stress during the actual application process and provide a counseling resource for low-income applicants.

“In creating this platform, these colleges and universities hope to recast the college admission process from something that is transactional and limited in time into a more engaged, ongoing and educationally reaffirming experience,” the coalition wrote in the press release.

“They also hope to motivate a stronger college-going mindset among students of all backgrounds, especially those from low-income families or underrepresented groups who have historically had less access to leading colleges and universities.”

However, critics of the coalition argue it will complicate instead of improve accessibility for low-income students. Deacon said he was a part of the original discussions exploring the idea of the coalition after technical complications with the Common Application arose in October 2013. However, the coalition evolved with more expansive ideas than Deacon originally considered.

“We were interested in the discussions, only because we thought it could end up being a very small group of schools that essentially are highly selective and may therefore have a different set of questions that they want to ask than say, the University of Maryland might want to ask,” Deacon said.

“But now they’ve taken it and run with it a bit. Where they’ve run is in somewhat questionable territory.”

Deacon said he believes the coalition is overstating its ability to help low-income students, citing its complicated three-part format.

“I think that they’re overlying it with the intention to help low-income students but that’s not really what it’s all intended to do,” Deacon said. “It could be that that would work. But right now, it doesn’t seem like it would — obviously because it’s actually a more complicated application rather than a simpler one.”

Brian Taylor, director of Ivy Coach, a New York-based business that assists students in the admissions process for highly selective schools, considers the coalition detrimental to the admissions process.

“We think that the Coalition for Access is a mistake, and we think that the colleges that agreed to be part of the coalition agreed to that very prematurely,” Taylor said. “The coalition itself is half-baked.

There are so many parts of the coalition that don’t even make sense.”

Although Taylor acknowledged that the coalition would likely benefit the private college counseling business, he stressed that underprivileged students often do not have access to private college counselors.

Taylor said the coalition’s program for college applications contradicts its stated goals of helping low-income students.

“The whole objective of the coalition is to improve access for underrepresented minorities and for low-income students.

And that’s great. Lots of colleges, lots of highly selective ones, love that. Georgetown, of course, wants to appeal to disadvantaged students and to people who

come from high schools where they don’t actually have great college counselling,” Taylor said. “But, the proposal for the coalition doesn’t address that at all. In fact, it does the complete opposite.”

However, coalition spokesperson Marielle Sainvilus maintained that the program is specifically designed to instill a college-centered mindset in low-income students as a means of helping them in the admissions process.

“One of the things we do want to say is that we are committed to providing students with the best possible college experience,” Sainvilus said. “The research is clear for low-income and underrepresented students that earlier engagement and being part of a college-going culture is critical to their success in the college admissions process.”

Georgetown Scholarship Program Director Missy Foy (COL ’03) also raised concerns about the pressure that could arise from the emphasis of the process on an early start.

“I fear that this new application process, where students can begin building a portfolio in 9th grade, could perpetuate that stress and start it even sooner,” Foy wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Meanwhile, lowincome students may not utilize it.”

In order to qualify for the coalition, public universities must have need-based financial aid for in-state residents and private institutions must meet the full, demonstrated financial need of admitted students. Colleges in the coalition are also required to have a six-year graduation rate of 70 percent or more, a condition Georgetown would meet.

The majority of the schools that have joined the coalition are not need-blind, meaning they take into account a student’s financial aid BRIAN TAYLOR needs when deterDirector, Ivy Coach mining admission.

Georgetown’s needblind admission process considers applicants without regard for their ability to pay, and provides a full financial aid package for each admitted student’s demosntrated need.

Deacon said these colleges in the coalition are not fully committed to assisting lowincome students.

“There’s kind of a hypocrisy there where you’re calling this something for low-income when in fact, the schools that are in it actually give money to people who don’t need it and don’t meet the full need of those who do,” Deacon said. “They figure out a way to be inclusive but it really is a misnomer to think that these schools are all committed to meeting the full need of students.”

Deacon said Georgetown’s decision to abstain from the coalition is not an indication of any unwillingness to assist low-income students. According to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions website, the university’s financial aid packages include subsidized student loans, part-time student jobs and, if required, a scholarship to meet the remainder of student need.

Georgetown has met full demonstrated need for domestic undergraduates for the past 30 years The GSP provides support to 1789 Scholarship students through access to an alumni network, career and academic help, mentorship programs and campus support.

“The only reason that I even say anything about the low-income thing is that I don’t want people to think that we’re not interested in recruiting low-income students,” Deacon said. “In fact, we think that just the reverse is going to happen — that it’s going to be harder for low-income students applying to these schools because they’re making it more complicated.

“The whole objective of the coalition is to improve access for underrepresented minorities and for low-income students.”

NEWS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2015

THE HOYA

A7

Spanish Professor Wins Book Prize HOR Approves DC Metro Takeover Act CHARLOTTE ALLEN Hoya Staff Writer

Georgetown Spanish associate professor Adam Lifshey won the annual Africa-Asia Book Prize from the International Convention of Asian Scholars for his book on Spanish literature in Southeast Asia and West Africa.

Lifshey received the prize for his 2012 book, “The Magellan Fallacy: Globalization and the Emergence of Asian and African Literature in Spanish.” The AfricaAsia Book Prize, which was established by ICAS in 2013, is awarded annually to an exceptional scholarly work published in English, French or Portuguese since 2009 on any topic linking Africa and Asia.

In a statement published on their website, ICAS praised Lifshey’s book for its analytic approach to its topic.

“Through an insightful analysis of two marginalized literary traditions (the Philippine and Equatorial Guinean ones), ‘The Magellan Fallacy’ challenges ideas and concepts we often take for granted,” the statement read. “This is a work masterfully rendered, witty, original in its central thesis and seminal in its scope. A classic in the making.”

Lifshey received the award in a presentation ceremony held in Ghana from Sept. 24 to 26.

Lifshey said that winning the award exposed him to a wider community of scholars in his field.

“It was really a lot of fun and very meaningful,” Lifshey said. “I am used to working in isolation. … Suddenly there were hundreds of people from around the world in this wonderful country who were congratulating me on the book.”

Lifshey also said that he enjoyed the experience of participating in the award ceremony in Ghana.

“Everyone in Ghana was extremely nice to me and I really appreciated that,” Lifshey said. “It was a good opportunity to meet scholars from Africa and Asia that I wouldn’t normally have a chance to meet in a Spanish [or] Portuguese department.”

According to Lifshey, he was inspired to write the book after noticing the lack of available knowledge on Spanish literature in the Philippines and West Africa.

The title of Lifshey’s book is a reference to European explorer Ferdinand Magellan, who was killed in a battle with a native tribe in the Philippines during his mission to circumnavigate the globe for the Spanish Empire.

“I was always interested in things that my teachers didn’t tell me,” Lifshey said.

“I realized … that there was some wonderful literature that I wanted to read and think about and write about.”

Chair of the Department of Spanish

MATTHEW LARSON Hoya Staff Writer

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

Spanish professor Adam Lifshey received the Africa-Asia Book Prize from the International Convention of Asian Scholars in late September. and Portuguese Gwen Kirkpatrick said that the department recognizes the significance of Lifshey’s work.

“The entire department was aware of the importance and originality of his research,” Kirkpatrick wrote in an email to THE HOYA. “We are very proud of his work and impressed with his success.”

Last year, Lifshey received a $266,000 grant from the Andrew W. Foundation for a study on literature in Taiwan and the Philippines.

Kirkpatrick said that Lifshey’s work explored a new field in Spanish post-colonialism.

“I am especially impressed by the work in the Philippines that is based on a great deal of archival research,” Kirkpatrick wrote.

According to Kirkpatrick, other fields of study at Georgetown could benefit from following Lifshey’s interdisciplinary approach in the future.

“It will bring attention to the presence of Spanish in parts of the world not usually associated with Spanish,” Kirkpatrick wrote. “It ties in the story of Spanish colonization to a worldwide system of commerce and exchange of goods and cultures through Asia to the Americas and then to Europe.”

Ross Karlan (GRD ’19), a student in Lifshey’s course, said the award was no surprise, given Lifshey’s enthusiastic and engaging nature as a professor.

“His passion for the subject matter was always apparent,” Karlan wrote in an email to THE HOYA. “His research is very cutting-edge and new. … He is forging new paths for comparative literary studies that move beyond traditional canons. He has essentially become the master of a field that is relatively unstudied.”

Karlan said that he hopes this award will bring more attention to humanities at Georgetown.

“Adam’s award and research shows that we are a dynamic institution with faculty and students who break the norms and try new things,” Karlan wrote.

Lifshey said that the award has encouraged him to continue in this line of study. He will release another book on a similar topic in December.

“It is very exciting and I am very grateful that scholars of Africa and Asia appreciated the work that I tried to do in the book,” Lifshey said. “I hope that it leads to more work on literature in Spanish from Africa and Asia.”

A bipartisan coalition in the House of Representatives introduced a new amendment Oct. 20 to provide legislative approval of the Oct. 9 takeover of the Washington, D.C. Metro by Federal Transit Administration officials.

The “Protect Riders of Metrorail Public Transportation Act of 2015” would legally approve of U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx’s measures to take over the supervision of the D.C. Metro from the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. The National Transportation Safety Board requested that Foxx step in after it concluded that the current supervisor of Metro safety, the Tri-State Oversight Committee, is ineffective.

Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) and Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) are among the bill’s sponsors.

A January electrical malfunction that filled a Yellow line with deadly smoke, sending 84 to the hospital and killing one, sparked these measures. Foxx officially took over the D.C. Metro, explaining why in a letter to National Transportation Safety Board President Christopher Hart on Oct. 9.

“Increased oversight means that FTA will now directly enforce and investigate the safety oversight of WMATA Metrorail,” Foxx wrote. “FTA has the capability to assert this authority and, at my direction, will do so immediately.”

Comstock explained to The Hill that the Metro’s failure to conduct safety inspections has been an outrage and necessitated the federal takeover. The PROMPT Act, Comstock hopes, will allow passengers to feel at ease when commuting to or visiting Washington, D.C. “The safety failures and the unreliability of Metro threaten our commuters and constituents daily,” Comstock said. “This bipartisan legislation reinforces and expands the U.S. Department of Transportation’s authority to conduct much-needed and direct oversight of Metro.”

Norton explained that the main goal of the legislation is to ensure Metro rider safety following poor oversight by the TriState Oversight Committee.

“This action will help protect rid-

ers,” Norton said. “FTA has the experience and background to conduct federal oversight of rail, including performing random inspections.”

Norton explained that continued federal oversight will occur until the District of Columbia, Virginia and Maryland create a new safety board that conducts routine inspections and identifies any risks to passenger safety. The D.C. Department of Transportation will continue to handle everyday operations under federal supervision. “[T]he District of Columbia, Virginia and Maryland [must] develop a state safety oversight agency certified by the DOT Secretary,” Norton said. “The PROMPT Act authorizes the Department of Transportation to administer state safety oversight activities for WMATA Metrorail until [then].”

A DDOT spokesperson declined to comment.

Norton referenced the 2012 Moving Ahead for Progress Act, which gives the DDOT direct safety oversight of transit rail, as legal precedent for the federal takeover. With the introduction of the PROMPT Act, the FTA will be able to take over full responsibility for the Metro.

“Neither D.C. nor virtually any states have had time to set up a safety agency for rail, because authority was only granted to the states in 2012,” Norton said. “The original grant envisions state oversight, or, if necessary, FTA oversight.”

The WMATA Riders’ Union spokesperson Graham Jenkins explained that federal oversight of the D.C. metro is an encouraging step in reducing safety hazards. Jenkins said that almost everyone can agree that such action is necessary.

“The WMATA Riders’ Union welcomed Secretary Foxx’s original announcement of the FTA takeover of Metrorail safety oversight,” Jenkins said. “We continue to hope that the jurisdictions and WMATA will work together to establish an effective state safety oversight agency.”

The Riders’ Union had its first public meeting Oct. 29, where it discussed the need for changes in order to alleviate rider fears.

“The FTA [may] serve as a more capable guardian of rider safety,” Jenkins said. “[But] bold, sweeping changes are needed across the entirety of WMATA, and this is but a small step.”

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THE HOYA

Friday, October 30, 2015

O’Donovan Defends Free Speech on Campus robert depaolo Hoya Staff Writer

KATHLEEN GUAN/THE HOYA

Buddhist monk and author Matthieu Ricard spoke about happiness and altruism in Gaston Hall on Monday as part of his global promotional tour for his latest book.

Ricard Discusses Altruism Owen Eagan Hoya Staff Writer

Prominent Buddhist monk, author, photographer and humanitarian Matthieu Ricard shared his insights on the importance of human happiness and altruism to an audience of more than 300 people in Gaston Hall on Monday.

The former molecular biologist turned monk visited Georgetown as part of a global promotional tour for his latest book, “Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World.”

Ricard is renowned for his 2004 TED talk on happiness and altruism that has garnered more than 7 million views. He also participates in scientific research related to contemplation and founded the charitable organization Karuna-Shechen in 2000, which is currently committed to more than 140 humanitarian projects throughout Nepal, India and Tibet.

In University President John J. DeGioia’s opening remarks, he cited a quotation — “The world is our house” — from Jerome Nadal, a 16th-century member of the Society of Jesus, and said that altruism aligns with Georgetown’s Jesuit mission.

“This idea that the world is our house asks that we embrace a way of life that is welcoming, accepting and in solidarity with all those around us,” DeGioia said. “It asks that we take responsibility for the well-being of each other.”

Ricard began by offering his personal definition of altruism. “[In] altruism ... your primary motivation is to achieve the benefit of others or to remove their suffering,” Ricard said. “So

altruism basically is a state of mind, it’s a motivation and an intention. Of course, it must be followed by action as much as possible.”

Ricard also said that he believes in what he calls “the banality of goodness,” which he defined as the view that all people are essentially good and behave well toward others.

“I think that we have to recognize that if we look at the vast majority of the behavior of 7 billion human beings most of the time … we behave in benevolent, decent, kind, polite and … cooperative ways,” Ricard said.

Ricard said that humanity currently faces many problems including widespread poverty, inequality and globalized environmental degradation.

“We are clearly facing major challenges,” Ricard said. “Here, we are at the edge of tipping points in many ways: our own life, societal life, inequalities that are growing throughout our cities and countries and the environment.”

Ricard also said that in his view, altruism is a practical solution to the problems that humanity faces in the modern world.

“The idea [of altruism] is not just a utopian, beautiful idea, but is the most pragmatic answer to challenges of our times,” Ricard said.

According to Ricard, widespread altruism could help overcome the world’s challenges by altering cultures, institutions and economies to achieve what he calls “sustainable harmony.”

“Sustainable harmony for today is [about] remediating … inequalities — [to bring about] more social justice,” Ricard said.

“Sustainable harmony over time

is to remain in harmony with our environment so that we continue in a sustainable way for the sake of future generations.”

Ricard said that to cause such far-reaching change, altruism must first be cultivated at the individual level through exercises such as meditation on compassion for others. According to Ricard, modern research indicates that meditation changes the structure and function of a practitioner’s brain, even to the level of gene expression, making them more amenable to compassion.

“If you cultivate the innerskill of love and compassion, definitely, you change,” Ricard said.

Ricard also said that a closeknit group of altruistic individuals could unite to change the community around them. Ricard said that this idea is based on the principle that only the smallest proportion is needed to effect change in a larger whole.

“It turns out that to reach opinion, you don’t need 90 percent of people or more than 50 to adopt an idea,” Ricard said. “If there is a strong idea with, say, 15 percent of people, who really make it the point. … Those who are undecided will shift to that and there is a change in culture.”

After Ricard’s keynote, the event included a conversation moderated by associate professor of psychology Abigail Marsh, a question-and-answer session and a book signing.

Daniel Marshall (SFS ’19) said the event was thought-provoking and inspired personal reflection.

“It was a totally distinctive point of view, which took me by surprise, and as a result I know I have some re-evaluating to do,” Marshall wrote in an email to The Hoya.

Panel Talks Religious Rights Christian Paz

Special to The Hoya

The Religious Freedom Project at the Berkeley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs hosted a panel discussion Tuesday with media figures and experts on religious freedom about the increased intolerance toward religion-based and conservative viewpoints on college campuses.

The discussion in Copley Formal Lounge, which was entitled “Illiberal Liberalism? The Fate of Religious Freedom in the Public Square,” included panelists such as USA Today writer and Fox News contributor Kirsten Powers, sociology professor at Pitzer College Phil Zuckerman and Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission President Russell Moore.

Associate Director of the RFP Timothy Shah, who moderated the panel, pointed out recent trends on the decline in freedom of speech in American society.

Shah cited a recent Pew Research Center study, which shows that the United States’ restrictions on free expression have risen from ‘low’ to ‘moderate’ over the last six years, specifically with regard to religion.

“The fact that the U.S. is in the middle range of some 200 of the world’s countries is pretty shocking,” Shah said. “[The U.S. is] a country that traditionally prides itself on its respect for religious freedom … [and] ranked religious freedom as the first freedom.”

Shah asked the panelists what potential causes might be for what he described as a “crusade” against religious liberty, free expression and free speech. Shah suggested an answer by defining the phenomenon of illiberal liberalism, in which politically liberal activists aim to restrict politically conservative opinions.

“Are some self-declared liberals who are traditionally in the vanguard of defending rights to dissent … trying to close down debate rather than open it up?”

Shah said. “The rights of unpopular groups to express unpopular

opinions [have been lessened].”

Powers answered the question by speaking on the influence that campus speech censorship has on creating a culture of illiberal liberalism.

She explained that conservative perspectives on issues such as abortion, the Affordable Care Act’s contracepation mandate and same sex marriage are dismissed and shut down. “[Illiberal liberalism is] worse on college campuses; there’s no question about it,” Powers said.

“But let’s remember where the people on campuses are going to end up. They’re going to end up in our culture.”

Powers, whose book, “The Silencing: How The Left is Killing Free Speech,” documents the trend among college students to be intolerant toward individuals who criticize or disagree with politically liberal principles, said that this prevailing attitude among college students has caused a larger intolerance in society.

“They are being taught at a lot of universities that certain views just are off-limits,” Powers said. “[These include] that you shouldn’t offend certain people, and it’s a one-way street … [But] it’s just certain people who can’t be offended.”

Powers attributed much of this ideology to a concept called liberal care ethic, which dictates that all political opinions should be based on providing for marginalized groups.

“Liberals have endorsed this idea of a care ethic where everything is about care for marginalized groups,” Powers said.

“They’ve been imbued with this ideology which makes them more sympathetic when people complain.”

Zuckerman said he generally agreed with Powers’ diagnosis of campus speech culture, but directed certain criticisms toward Powers’ book, including what he perceived as the lack of sufficient statistics and data in place of anecdotal evidence. Zuckerman explained that Powers also

neglected to point out the similarities between intolerant liberals and fundamentalists on the Christian right.

“Illiberal liberalism made me think of another thing that I would call the Christian right,” Zuckerman said. “I’ve read the teachings of Jesus, I read everything Jesus said and the Christian right violates that.”

Moore responded to Zuckerman by suggesting that while Christian Evangelicals may feed into the narrative of intolerance, the left is more responsible for hypocrisy because it defines popular culture on college campuses.

“I think that on college campuses, in order to really be identified as a progressive, free-thinking, forward-directed person, then you have to take on this sort of crusade,” Moore said. “[If not], you’re out of the tribe.”

Powers’ advice for students who feel that their ideas are being unfairly neglected is to continue to make their voices heard.

“Ideas aren’t dangerous.

They’re not going to harm you.

They’re words, and you can respond to those words with arguments,” Powers said. “I think it’s a real red flag if someone has to completely silence your point of view.”

Rob Kem (COL ’18), who attended the event, said that the debate was a model for future discussions between liberals and conservatives on free speech.

“It was really respectful. They disagreed, but they didn’t ever call an idea stupid,” Kem said.

“They gave evidence and stated their arguments.”

Kem said that censoring free speech at college, no matter how controversial the matter at hand is, should not be tolerated.

“You always hear things in the news of people being disinvited to speak at colleges because of a specific viewpoint they have,” Kem said. “That’s antithetical to what a college should be where the best ideas will rise to the top naturally in the marketplace of ideas.”

Former University President Fr. Leo O’Donovan, S.J., headed the university from 1989 to 2001 — a time when free speech issues came to the forefront of university discussion. In 1991, pro-choice group GU Choice — which would eventually become H*yas for Choice — emerged at Georgetown, facing harsh opposition from both students and Catholic officials. The Hoya sat down with O’Donovan to discuss the intersection between free speech on campus and the university’s Catholic identity.

This is part three of a three-part interview. Parts one and two are available on thehoya.com.

What is your opinion on H*yas for Choice?

The group — then called GU Choice — emerged during your presidency and started a debate about university recognition.

I continue to think that the Second Vatican Council correctly summarizes Catholic Moral Tradition in speaking of abortion as intrinsically wrong. But stating that principle does not yet address the reasons for the occurrence of abortions and how to reduce their number. I believe society is also obliged to help women who are pregnant and do not know how they can carry their child to term and take care of the child. Strong social policies should provide the medical help, educational opportunities and general support that can lead to reducing the incidence of abortions — which is after all the point, isn’t it? That’s put very generally, I know. But it’s still true that moral principles must be accompanied by moral practice.

It is also true that there are other problems in society that demand urgent address but are hard to identify as intrinsically wrong. And poverty, even in a country as wealthy as ours, is certainly a major one — because poverty also cripples and kills.

I also think that it is indispensable to recognize the full and true equality of women in society. In that regard, I consider myself a feminist. Most of my feminist friends who are women would say, “Not a very good one,” but that’s OK with me.

Whatever they say, I still have to learn from them.

But I firmly believe in the full equality of women.

I believe that should be the case in the Catholic Church as well as in society at large.

I also believe in freedom of speech, and I believe that the suppression of speech is never helpful.

Speech can be used in very irresponsible ways. I’d rather risk irresponsibility while allowing speech.

Still, we all know that you don’t say things in the presence of children that you might say in the presence of an adult. And you don’t say things to adults that will be unproductive, unhelpful. This is an old moral tradition that you can tolerate ignorance in certain situations and let people live as they see best. I think that’s about what I’d say.

Even though official church doctrine says that abortion is intrinsically wrong, you believed it was important to have a conversation about it rather than condemn it because you believe

in freedom of speech. Why is that?

Well, in a university situation I would always favor enabling a conversation in the company of wise faculty and wise moral and religious guides, rather than forcing that discussion underground.

The university is a place where people learn to talk, and talk and talk, and I would suspect every student on the Georgetown campus knows that they learn things from their fellow students and they learn how to wrestle with things that they wouldn’t expect to learn from professors or books.

What do you think of the recent issues at Georgetown surrounding free speech? It seems that students are still continuing to push for a little more free speech. Do you think Georgetown has done enough?

I have absolute confidence in the president of the university, who is, I think, as clear minded and committed to the fundamentals of Catholic teaching and thought as one could be. [Vice President for Student Affairs] Todd Olson, whom I’ve know for years, has been in his position for a long time and clearly has the president’s confidence, so I certainly have no inclination to second guess him. I suppose I would say, as I think I suggested before, that freedom of speech bears its real fruit when men and women are helped to live fuller, truer human lives. Freedom is less about reducing restraint and much more about empowering life. I think that was one of the great lessons of the Civil Rights Movement.

People did not just argue for equality for black people, for the right to vote, for the right to work, for freedom from harassment. In practical ways they voted for people who would represent them well, worked together to renew neighborhoods, formed communities that were sustaining. That struggle was brilliantly presented in the recent show at the Museum of Modern Art, “Jacob Lawrence’s ‘Migration Series,’ and Other Visions of the Great Migration” of African-Americans from the South to the North. It’s not just about freedom, but it’s about living conditions, integrating schools, resisting environments that were in many respects as oppressive as the South had been.

But, as I suggested earlier, argument is of the nature of university life. There are times when I want to ask: What have you done recently to help somebody practically, in addition to assuring them free speech? Do you ever go to a soup kitchen? Have you ever visited a poor school?

Have you ever helped to teach illiterate children? Or are you interested in medical help?

Have you ever helped out in a clinic? Have you visited parts of the country — or outside the country — where people are desperately removed from the comforts of Georgetown?

This interview has been edited for clarity and condensed for print. See the full interview at thehoya.com.

NEWS

FRIDAY, October 30, 2015

THE HOYA

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Alum Rideshare App Competes in Crowded Marketplace RIDESHARE, from A10

COURTESY SPLIT

Ario Keshani’s (SFS ’05) rideshare app allows D.C. residents to take rides anywhere in the city’s core for $2 to $8. The app ueses an algorithim that allows drivers to pick up multiple passengers heading in the same direction, similar to UberPool.

cities of developing countries.

“If we can go to places like Delhi or Johannesburg or Nairobi or Sao Paulo and change the transportation landscape and allow people to get around for cheaper prices, it can really have an impact on the quality of life for people,” Keshani said.

The CEO cited his time at Georgetown as the foundation for many of his company’s policies and values.

“Georgetown was a place where, in a lot of ways, I went from being a kid to being an adult. It shaped a lot of the moral compass with which I’m trying to build a company,” Keshani said. “We are building a company that has a set of core values that we live on and that we make all of our decisions on. … A big part of that is to not only do well but also do good.”

Part of this is ensuring that drivers earn enough to make a living wage, but it goes beyond that, according to Keshani.

“We have an open-door policy — any driver can come hang out with us or chat with us whenever they want,” Keshani said. “Open door, any time, no reservation, no booking. Just walk in.”

They also create group chats with drivers and encourage them to contact executives at any time in order to problem solve.

“Those feel like little things, but they end up being really important when you’re talking to someone who in other companies feels like a number,” Keshani said.

Carolyn Vilter (COL ’17) said she was interested in the company, but favors public transportation.

“I think I would use it,” Vilter said. “It could do a lot to make services like Uber more accessible and more sustainable, which I think is awesome,” Vilter said.

“I’m pretty loyal to public transportation, though.”

Sarina Jain (SFS ’17) heard about Split from a coworker this summer.

“To me, it seems like a convenience versus cost kind of thing,” Jain said. “If you’re not in a rush, this seems fine.

But if you don’t have time to stop and pick up other people along the way, I feel like Uber or Lyft makes more sense.”

Jain added that there’s a safety component that needs to be taken into account with microtransit apps like Split.

“I think I’d use Split this year, as long as I knew that it was safe,” Jain said. “I don’t know if there’s a mechanism for figuring out who the other people in your car are. If it’s at night and I’m coming back from a neighborhood that I’m less familiar with, I feel like I’d prefer Uber to that.”

Twitter Pitch Contest Down Dog Yoga Stretches Its Success Sees Rise in Apps YOGA, from A10

TWITTER, from A10

present them because that’s such an important skill,” Lovegrove said.

This year’s Twitter Pitch accepted submissions from graduate and undergraduate students.

S t a r t u p Hoyas’ other two pitch competitions also accept submissions from any level of Georgetown student.

“We get asked that question a lot,” Lovegrove said. “‘Why don’t you have a different track for the graduate and undergrads? Isn’t that unfair?’ I guess not, because the undergrads do just as well as the graduate students.”

Throughout the year, professional entrepreneurs are also available to advise students interested in creating their own startups. These entrepreneurs could also judge the Rocket or Startup Competition, but according to Lovegrove, they are expected to self-regulate any bias.

O t h e r s t a r t u p pitches to this year’s Twitter competition included an Rahul desai (MSB ’17) online marParticipant, Twitter Pitch ketplace that gives customers the option of Santa and elves delivering merchandise on Christmas, a mobile investing platform for South Africans and a showerhead that simultaneously dispenses soap and water.

“I’ve learned how best to explain an idea in one or two sentences.

Communication is important.”

SUDOKU

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“When I first started DDY, I made hundreds of calls every week and yet no one wanted to rent space to a yoga studio,” Ivey said. “But I always considered myself an entrepreneur, and over these 13 years we’ve changed the face of yoga in the area and we earned respect.”

When DDY first looked to expand closer to Georgetown’s residential area, it began with the idea that the main issue with its Potomac Street location was in its size, or lack thereof. Even though it remains the flagship studio for DDY, it is smaller than is ideal, according to Ivey.

“As charming as our original location is, for anyone new it is very small and cramped,” Ivey said. “And now in this larger space, we can satisfy more customers, have a greater variety of classes and add something more to the neighborhood.”

For Georgetown students who frequent DDY’s Potomac Street location, its biggest draw is its distance from the university. Now that DDY is only a half-mile walk from the front gates, there is even more of a reason for students to frequent the spot.

“I’ve been to DDY before and enjoyed it, but the distance always was an issue,” Aine Boyle (SFS ’18) said.

“To have [DDY] now be a close walk from where I study gives me all the more reason to start going again.”

Though the formal opening for the new location will not be for another two weeks, both students and community

John Curran for The Hoya

Down Dog Yoga is set to open its fifth studio a half-mile from Georgetown University’s front gates on Prospect Street in approximately two weeks. residents are already expressing their personal excitement for the opening.

“I’m no athlete or yogi myself, but I can see this studio being a nice touch for our community,” neighborhood resident Donald McKay said. “For anyone who is a part of this neighborhood, there’s hardly a downside to seeing this new business add some diversity of life to our area.”

This new DDY studio will provide both normal yoga classes and a variety of opportunities geared toward attracting a range of age groups. Some of the programming involves night classes

aimed at Georgetown students and open studio sessions for anyone to practice individually, and there are even plans to include a smoothie bar to create a space for leisure and relaxation.

“Part of our mission is to create community now that we are right in the heart of it,” Ivey said. “We want everyone to find something for themselv hit that conference and really understand what’s going on,” Celenza said. “We’ve talked es in this space, and with our future plans I know we can provide our neighbors with a truly unique experience.”

High Putin Ratings Spell Trouble HOCHBERG, from A10

According to VTsIOM, the government-run organization that conducted the approval poll, Putin’s astronomical rating results from public approval of the Syrian airstrikes the president authorized.

These attacks, which Human Rights Watch deems a legal gray area, are supposed to be targeting ISIS. However, Western officials speculate Russia could actually be taking out moderate rebels to help Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The United States recently criticized Putin’s fondness for Assad, who most likely used chemical weapons on his own people. But outsiders have a hard time characterizing the Russian population’s legitimate opinions toward the fighting due to the authoritarian nature of Russia’s government and the ease of statistical manipulation.

But Russians probably do genuinely support the airstrikes, if for worrying reasons. Putin’s authoritarian regime has famously issued propaganda through government-run news sources, on which Russian citizens tend to rely heavily for international news. For example, when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 went down over Ukraine, Russian media spun the crash as an intentional provocation by the West.

Furthermore, conflict with other countries has historically tended to foster a greater public sense of unity and nationalism. Russians may have romantic if exaggerated notions of fighting ISIS’s unequivocal evil, but these citizens likely have little idea how often the airstrikes seem to be missing ISIS and hitting civilians instead or how much the fighting actually costs Russian taxpayers.

The public’s warped view of real-

ity likely combines with potentially unreliable statistics to produce Putin’s unreasonably high approval rate. While VTsIOM is governmentrun, it is fairly respected, according to NBC. But realistically, Western analysts know little about the integrity of its polling methods.

Though the VTsIOM approval rate appears the most reliable one available, its data comes from a sample size of just 1,600 individuals, or roughly one-fifth of Georgetown’s undergraduate student enrollment, which is quite small, even for a country as sparsely populated as Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s risky choices may boost his approval ratings but at the cost of Russia’s economic prosperity.

Additionally, Putin’s approval rate is high for much the same reason that Kim Jong Un garnered 100 percent of the votes with 99 percent voter turnout before assuming office in 2011. Citizens of authoritarian regimes tend to respond to surveys in the way they believe they should due to both fear and brainwashing from propaganda. And then, of course, there is the element of vote manipulation.

Similarly, Russian officials have coaxed and coerced their citizens for years into unconditionally supporting the government, and so, by this point, high presidential approval is seen as a fact of life.

All of these nationalist factors have clearly overshadowed the public’s economic worry and frustration. However, this result merely shows the extent to which Russia has manipulated its citizens. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Russian economy seems to be worsening at a slower rate than before, yet research and analysis by Barclays Capital “provide no indication of a speedy recovery.”

Russian citizens view the economic situation similarly. In another VTsIOM poll last month, roughly half of respondents expected the economic situation to continue to worsen. The Russian economy has deteriorated to a point where many individuals are realistically starting to worry about homelessness and hunger, but they think the president is doing a great job.

In terms of repairing the economy, the Bank of Russia has set a target interest rate of 4 percent (one-quarter of what it is now). However, officials will need to do much more if they want to improve the country’s standard of living. Unfortunately, Russia’s unrepresentative government may simply be unequipped to handle a full-on financial crisis like the current one.

At this moment, though, unrealistic Russian optimism may actually help the country. Large-scale unrest could cause massive instability and make the already spread-out population even harder to control. For this reason, though Russians have relatively little freedom and economic prosperity, the president’s approval rate indicates their society is far from collapse … for now.

Gracie Hochberg is a sophomore in the College. By The Numbers appears every Friday.

Business & Tech FRIDAY, october 30, 2015

business Down Dog Opens 5th Location on Prospect bits Syed Humza Moinuddin Special to The Hoya

Study Finds Majority of college students Hold jobs Georgetown University’s Center on the Education and Workforce released a report this week revealing that more than 70 percent of college students over the past 25 years held a job while enrolled in higher education. Today approximately 14 million students are working and receiving postsecondary education or training in the United States, the equivalent of 8 percent of the labor force. Director of the Georgetown Center and lead report author Anthony P. Carnevale said the research revealed that working while enrolled is no longer sufficient to pay for a college education. Students need to both work and take out loans. A student working full-time at the federal minimum wage would only earn $15,080 annually, not enough to cover tuition at most colleges.

Georgetown Law Professor Joins Marco Rubio’s Team Georgetown University constitutional law and federal jurisdiction professor Nicholas Quinn Rosenkranz donated $25,000 to Jeb Bush’s main super PAC, Right to Rise USA, in late April. However, he recently jumped ship to support Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), joining his team as a senior adviser on legal policy and constitutional law. Rosenkranz is also on the board of directors for the Federalist Society.

CMO of MSB Discusses how to market higher education McDonough School of Business Chief Marketing Officer Chris Kormis recently addressed how technology has changed the increasingly competitive market for higher education in an interview with Eli Epstein of Mashable.

Marketing higher education previously involved direct mail and live events, but today webinars, social media and email have become as or more prevalent, according to Kormis. However, Kormis ended the interview by saying that nothing can replace the value of face-toface interactions provided by in-person information sessions.

Tech Expert Walt Mossberg Delivers Talk at Georgetown Walt Mossberg, co-founder of Re/code and technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal, spoke about the future of technology at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business on Oct. 15. Mossberg made the case that the futuristic trends featured in Star Trek are not so far from reality. Things such as self-driving cars, predictive artificial intelligence behavior and sensors and wearables will begin to appear in coming years, according to Mossberg.

He also talked about the importance of maintaining an entrepreneurial spirit in all aspects of a business career from graduate school to employment in a major corporation.

Peek into the store front on the corner of 34th Street and Prospect, and at first glance, you will take the space to be empty. However, on closer inspection, you can spy the the freshly painted walls, the new hardwood floors and a few yoga mats strewn about. In the next two weeks, this unassuming retail space will officially open as the fifth location for Down Dog Yoga.

Over the past year, DDY worked with Douglas Development to renovate the space at 3343 Prospect St. NW into a fully functional yoga studio. It is approximately 2,700 square feet, around 1,000 square feet larger than the flagship space located on Potomac Street, and it will offer a variety of classes including DDY’s well-known style of Hot Power Yoga.

DDY founder and owner Patty Ivey described the space as an embodiment of completeness and simplicity. While the studio seems bare, Patty explained how the sparseness played into her vision of what a DDY studio should look like.

“One of the pillars of our studio is raw sacred space, and this studio encompasses that,” Ivey said. “There is the natural brick, the exposed ducts, simple lights, wood beam ceilings and nothing fancy. It feels very complete.”

DDY opened its doors in April 2003. Its flagship location at 1046 Potomac St. NW remains the same as when it opened, but the business has expanded into both Maryland and Virginia with three other studios. While the chain has found considerable success, Ivey remembers the business’s early days as marked with frustration and difficulty.

See YOGA, A9

John Curran for The Hoya

Down Dog Yoga is expanding with its fifth studio set to open in two weeks. The new location on Prospect Street in Georgetown will be around 1,000 square feet larger than the company’s flagship studio.

StartupHoyas Solicits Pitches on Twitter Jessie Yu

Special to The Hoya

Fifty-four Georgetown students submitted startup ideas to the annual StartupHoyas Twitter Pitch competition, which ended Oct. 23. The competition received approximately 15 percent more submissions than last year’s contest, according to StartupHoyas co-president Beatrice Fabris (COL ’16).

The competition asked undergraduate and graduate students to propose startup ideas in the form of a 140-word tweet, with the winning tweets receiving $140 each.

The competition, as with all of StartupHoyas’ competitions, was funded by private donations and sponsorships.

A core StartupHoyas leader team of 10 students from varying grades and schools judged the competition. Each leader had three votes to dole out to the best tweets — the first vote counted for 15 points, the second for 10 points and the third for five points.

“In part, it was based off how

feasible the idea was,” Fabris said. aged to continue onto the Rocket “Some of the ideas were incredibly Pitch Challenge, where the grand creative and awesome, but it was prize is $1,500.

Participant Rahul Desai (MSB ’17) slightly too imaginative for feasibility purposes. Also, the effort and began competing in the startup thought that went into the Twit- competition his freshman year as a requirement ter pitch idea of the Com[mattered] pass Fellowbecause some ship, a nationideas were al program more fleshed that engages out, and it first-year unwas clear that dergraduates the individual in entreprehad spent a neurship expelot of time rience. Desai crafting it placed second while others last year in were slightly the Rocket more abrupt.”

Beatrice Fabris (Col ’16) Pitch, another Eric Wu StartupHoyas Co-President competition (SFS ’17) wrote offered by this year’s winning tweet. His Oct. 19 tweet StartupHoyas that requires students read, “PhonicChef.co is your hands- to deliver a two-minute elevator free kitchen. User curated, voice pitch for a startup. Following Desai’s controlled, audio-guided recipes participation in the Rocket Pitch, he created the startup Trendify, which via our mobile app.”

Along with T-shirts for his team predicts the success of startups.

“I’ve learned how best to explain and $140, Eric Wu was also encour-

“Some of the ideas were incredibly creative and awesome but it was slightly too imaginative for feasibility purposes.”

Rideshare Startup Offers Budget Rides Melina Delkic

Special to The Hoya

Ario Keshani (SFS ’05) wants to change the way Washingtonians think about city transportation.

His startup app Split allows users to call for cars and save money by sharing rides with strangers who are traveling in the same direction, similar to Uber’s microtransit platform, UberPool, which launched in the District on Oct. 22.

“The idea was to create this hybrid between bus and taxi, which would have the convenience of a taxi while having a price that’s very low and close to the price of a bus,” Keshani said.

He’s experimented with other business ventures before, like a food truck app and a food delivery app, but Keshani saw a need for innovation in the transportation sector, and for more options in the D.C. area.

“We found there’s a lot of demand for good, convenient, quick transportation at a good price in D.C., even though D.C. is a city with a really good public transportation network,” Keshani said.

“There are a lot of parts of the city that are not well connected to each other.”

Keshani said that it takes the average person 15 minutes to walk from Du-

pont to U Street, but it takes upwards of half an hour via Metro.

“In a neighborhood like Glover Park, just north of Georgetown, where they don’t have buses or Metro or anything, it can make people who live there think, ‘I could forgo buying a car,’” Keshani said.

“Those kinds of real behavioral changes can have a very positive impact on people’s quality of life and the quality of the city by getting cars off the road.”

Right now, the app is gaining traction among millennials, college students and young professionals, according to Keshani.

“It’s a dynamic, cutting-edge technology and that’s often what that demographic is looking for,” Keshani said. “In the case of college students, our prices are extremely affordable, often less than half the cost of a ARIO KESHANI taxi.”

Founder, Split The app, released in May, enters a crowded field of ridesharing apps operating in the District, such as Uber and Lyft.

Other competitors include microtransit apps that pick up multiple passengers, like UberPool and Bridj. Carsharing app Getaround also launched in D.C. this year, offering locals a platform to rent out their cars to drivers.

Though Keshani declined to release any official data on its number of users

an idea in one or two sentences,” Desai said. “Communication is important. In startups, the pitch is everything. It’s absolutely crucial.”

Though Desai did not place in the Twitter Pitch competition this year, his submissions were “a computer word processor that has the auto-correct and machine learning capabilities of a phone keyboard.

Write more, faster!” and “an app that controls when people can contact you via phone, email, FB, etc.

Different availabilities for friends, fam, work.”

The annual Rocket Pitch Challenge will be held Nov. 17 this year and precedes the showcase StartupHoyas Challenge in March.

The StartupHoyas Challenge, with its $5,000 grand prize, is set up like a nicer version of Shark Tank, Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative Associate Director Alyssa Lovegrove said.

“Our goal is just to encourage people to think of good ideas and be brave enough to pitch them and See TWITTER, A9

BY THE NUMBERS

Gracie Hochberg

“We are building a company that has ... core values that we live on.”

to expand and encompass all of D.C.’s neighborhoods as demand increases.

All rides cost between $2 and $8 and customers are quoted a finalized price before they begin their rides.

Split hopes to expand to other cities around the world. Keshani noted that, though locals find traffic frustrating in Washington, it is often worse in the big

ussian gross domestic product, inflation-adjusted wages, production and investment in capital have all fallen within the last year. Plummeting oil prices and economic sanctions have pushed the nation into recession and with the inflation rate rising to a massive 16 percent, Russians can no longer afford their own country’s goods. Consequently, national Russian retail sales have reached their lowest levels in 16 years. So why is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating at a record high of 89.9 percent?

See RIDESHARE, A9

See HOCHBERG, A9

COURTESTY SPLIT

Split offers budget rides in Washington’s core. The startup launched in May and its ridership has grown about about 75 percent monthly. or drivers, a July article in The Washington Post said that only 20 percent of rides were being shared since there was not a high enough demand to fill cars.

Still, the company continues to grow.

Keshani wrote in a follow-up email to The Hoya that ridership grew around 75 percent every month since May. Currently Split only operates between start and end points in the core of Washington, but the company plans

Dire Times In Putin’s Russia R