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Vol. 87, No. 52 Monday, April 18, 2011
Sunny n 75°/ 52° chance of precipitation: 20%
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For coverage of Wednesday’s GayMU drag show, see page 9 Blair Boswell / the breeze
Culture
Celebrate. Appreciate.
FIGHT. Photos by Meredith Sizemore / the breeze
Students, faculty walk in honor of cancer victims at Relay for Life >> For a video of Relay for Life, visit breezejmu.org. By Eloise Banting The Breeze
After rounds of numbing chemotherapy, Betty Cook found an opportunity to celebrate at this weekend’s Relay for Life. Cook said that last year she couldn’t even walk around the track because she was weak from the chemotherapy. Cook and her sister both have a breast cancer gene, making them more susceptible to the disease. Cook’s daughter, Marjorie, is a junior foreign languages major at JMU. The mother and daughter participated in a team together.. Relay for Life, an annual event held across the nation, raises money for cancer research and for caregivers, survivors and people undergoing treatment for cancer. Participants from each team had to constantly walk around the gym for the 12 hours, trading off to other teammates as necessary.
Top contributors
In total, this year’s Relay for Life raised exactly $210,017.79, exceeding its goal of $200,000. GI Dukes, which is the Executive Board Committee team, raised the most money at the event with
TOP During the Lumination Ceremony, students light lanterns in memory of cancer victims. BOTTOM Students walk laps in Godwin Hall’s gym for 12 hours on Saturday night to raise money for cancer research.
$20,455.63. Apha Tau Omega was second with $7,007 and Philly’s Phinest was third with $6,612.55, according to jmurelay.com. The JMU relay website also confirms that the top fundraising individuals are senior Chris Stern with $3,770, junior Nicholaus DeMaggio with $3,702 and sophomore Brenna Hovey with $3,000.
Relay for Life teams
Katri Lindholm, a junior nursing major, started a team last year for Relay for Life with her sorority, Sigma Sigma Sigma. The sorority has raised about $4,000 since then. “I started it with another sister because we have friends and family members that have passed from and see Relay, page 4
Funds raised at Relay for Life >> $210,017.79 in total.
Top teams
1) G.I. Dukes raised $20,455.63. 2) Alpha Tau Omega raised $7,007. 3) Philly’s Phinest raised $6,612.55.
Top individuals 1) Senior Chris Stern
raised $3,770. 2) Junior Nicholaus DeMaggio raised $3,702. 3) Sophomore Brenna Hovey raised $3,000.
Addressing Islamic stigma in US society Student Muslim Association holds student-led discussion on misconceptions of Islamic community By Heather McNelis contributing writer
As students crowded around to discuss views on Islam, Jon Stewart’s segment, “Community Center of Death,” flashed on the projector, poking fun at the controversy surrounding an Islamic center built near ground zero. “We cannot build a mosque and give the terrorists an erection!” he said, screaming, mocking a commentator who addressed the erection of the mosque. “Because that, as you know, is how they make more terrorists.” The controversy was discussed as part of “ ‘Islamophobia’ In the U.S.,” a student-led discussion on views of Islam. The Muslim Student Association hosted the event as part of Islam Awareness Week in the Health and Human Services building Thursday night. The classroom was overflowing with about 60 students standing and sitting on the ground to take part in the discussion. “Islamophobia” refers to the fear of the Muslim community in America that grew around the time of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It has been used by various comedians and a variety of news outlets, like CNN. The MSA took on cultural stereotypes and misconceptions surrounding the Islamic community, such as the improper use of the word “jihad,” the misrepresentation of Muslim women as oppressed and the image of all Islamic people as supporters of the terrorist attacks on 9/11. With an in-depth discussion accompanying the presentation, leaders including president of MSA Waliha Gani and vice president Dalia Desouky led the crowd through a series of news clips that addressed Islamophobia. Gani, a sophomore international affairs major, attempted to fight the problem head-on. “Think about stigma associated with
the Muslim world right now,” she said. “I’m hoping we can break that tonight.” Audience members addressed the ignorance surrounding Islamophobia and the fact that American-Muslims share many cultural values with other Americans of different religions. It “helped eliminate a lot of ignorance that you get from mass media and helped educate people about what Islam is actually about,” said Trey Daniel, a senior history major. Though the discussion mainly involved a portion of the student population educated on these issues, some audience members exemplified the attitude MSA was trying to combat. One student misspoke by referring to “the bad part of Islam.”
“Think about stigma associated with the Muslim world right now. I’m hoping we can break that tonight.” Waliha Gani MSA President
Gani caught the slip but kept her composure as she asked the student to elaborate on what she considered the “bad part” of Islam to be. After some discussion, both Gani and the audience member understood she meant to reference the religious extremism, which is entirely separate from mainstream Muslim culture. Despite the serious issues discussed, the leaders managed to make light of the stigma they experienced as American Muslims. They laughed at clips from “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and see islamophobia, page 9
Election
P.A.C.E. candidates victorious in SGA election Some students skeptical, some confident in outcome
Election results:
About 1,789 student voters participat>> To see the full list of SGA results, ed in the 2011 election, slightly higher see breezejmu.org.
n
By Georgina Buckley The Breeze
Student Government Association results are out and P.A.C.E. is in, elections commissioner Jordan Descovich announced Thursday. Junior Pat Watral, an international affairs major, will be student body president. Vice president will be junior Emily Douillard, a health sciences major. Sophomore Abby Ware, a political science major, was re-elected as executive treasurer. Student representative to the Board of Visitors will be junior Chris Brown, a health sciences major.
than the 1,506 students that voted in the 2010 elections, according to Descovich. Students were able to vote Wednesday and Thursday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Freshman Jay Dertzbaugh said he didn’t even know who was running and said that the campaign wasn’t visible. “I don’t think it was advertised enough,” said Dertzbaugh, a marketing major. “I honestly didn’t see any signs or posters.” Senior Kate Folsom said she thinks the campaign might not promote a variety of opinions. “It sounds like a bit of a monopoly,” said Folsom, a theatre and dance see P.A.C.E., page 4
4/18 Inside 3 news Alternative transportation Student proposes highspeed railway to run along the I-81 corridor.
Executive president:
Pat Watral - 1,650 votes n
Executive vice president:
Emily Douillard - 928 votes
n
Executive treasurer:
Abby Ware - 1,663 votes
n Ryan freeland / the breeze
P.A.C.E. candidates Pat Watral (left), Abby Ware, Chris Brown and Emily Douillard won the SGA elections. Students had mixed reactions to the candidates’ running as a ticket.
5 Donald Trump’s newest
opinion Running for president?
announcement sounds like a great idea.
7 JMU lacrosse team
sports Lose some, win some
overcomes Towson loss by beating Delaware.
Student representative for the Board of Visitors:
Chris Brown - 1,564 votes
9 Comedian Lisa Lampanelli life Queen of mean
puts her snarkiness toward a good cause in JMU performance.