Wednesday, April 7, 2021 | 1
@thedailycougar www.thedailycougar.com Wednesday, April 7, 2021
Issue 13, Volume 86
Est. 1934
‘We’ll Be Back’ UH vows a Final Four return after a tough loss to Baylor. | PG. 7
NEWS Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines are 90 percent effective in real-world conditions. | PG. 2
LIFE AND ARTS A look at Netflix’s original series ‘The Crown’ and its many historical inaccuracies. | PG. 6
OPINION America’s history of anti-Asian discrimination must be discussed more in light of recent events. | PG. 10
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2 | Wednesday, April 7, 2021
NEWS
SYDNEY ROSE & EDITORS AMINAH TANNIR,
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
VACCINE
Pfizer, Moderna vaccines 90% effective outside lab conditions, CDC finds AMINAH TANNIR
NEWS EDITOR @AMOUNAJT
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released an interim report last week pertaining to the efficacy of vaccines distributed to healthcare personnel and frontline workers since the initial rollout in December. The report revealed the efficacy rate of the first dose of both the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines was 80 percent effective against coronavirus infections two weeks after being administered. The second dose of the vaccines had a 90 percent efficacy rate, confirming the mRNA vaccines are effective against coronavirus infections in real-world conditions. The study was conducted by having healthcare workers, first responders and other essential workers who got the
vaccines take a COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction test weekly for 13 weeks. The use of a PCR test would give researchers the ability to record positive cases whether an individual is presenting symptoms or not. Following this period, the results were evaluated showing that out of 2,479 vaccinated persons, there were only three that tested positive for coronavirus. The 477 that received one dose of the vaccine had eight individuals test positive. The study mentioned that there will be opportunities in the future to examine the structure of breakthrough infections that were able to bypass the vaccines’ defenses. Although the study looked into the vaccine efficacy two weeks after administration, the actual time period between getting the vaccine and developing immunity is still unsure. Since it’s been under a year from the initial vaccine rollout, there isn’t much data on how long the immunity from the vaccines will last. UH College of Medicine clinical professor Bhavna Lall said that the continuation of this study would help clear up this uncertainty overtime. “By gaining an understanding of the duration of these vaccines’ protection, this
CDC report revealed 80 percent effectiveness against coronavirus infections for single-dose Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. | Gerald Sastra/The Cougar
will also aid in understanding when we would potentially need booster vaccine doses, if needed,” said Lall. Pfizer released data that indicated its vaccine showed continued immunity after six months in their study with over 46,000 participants. Health officials say that the protection is likely to last longer than that. “Longer studies of the various vaccines will continue to give us information and
evidence of safety and efficacy of these vaccines,” Lall said. “These studies will also give better understanding of the duration of immunity from the vaccine and efficacy of the vaccines with the new circulating variants as well.” news@thedailycougar.com
DINING
UH Dining’s COVID-19 procedures to remain unchanged in Fall 2021 SYDNEY ROSE
NEWS EDITOR @SYDNEY_ROSEY
After altering dining plans and procedures this past year in light of the coronavirus pandemic, UH Dining will keep some of the same procedures going into the Fall 2021 semester. With altered dining plans since the start of COVID-19, students have been limited to just one dining hall on campus with socially distanced seating, no self serving food stations and to-go options. “We have adapted our procedures and policies since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and many of those practices will remain in place,” said UH Dining vice president of operation Charles Pereira. “We will continue reviewing safety measures to align with (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and University guidelines,” Pereira continued. The current dining hall open is Cougar Woods Dining Commons, but as Moody Towers may possibly not be housing students next semester, it is up in the air as to whether or not Moody Towers Dining Commons will be open.
As classes for the Fall 2021 semester are starting to go back to in-person and operations are starting to go back to normal, dining is still making decisions on how many dining halls will be open and if to-go plans will remain for the upcoming semester. “Final decisions regarding open dining halls and the to-go program are based on meal plan enrollment, percentage of in person classes and on campus population,” Pereira said. “Meal exchanges will continue to be offered and detailed options will be updated closer to the fall semester.” UH dining is still determining opening additional retail locations and hours of operations once there is more firm information on the state of the pandemic, Pereira said. A plan that was postponed and altered due to the pandemic was the deconstruction of the Student Center Satellite. In replacement of the satellite, the Auxiliary Retail Center was supposed to begin construction in the summer of 2020, but has yet to begin.
Cougar Woods Dining Commons is currently the only dining hall open to students this semester. | Sydney Rose/The Cougar
“The design for the new retail center, which will be built at the current site of the Satellite, is being finalized,” Pereira said. “Although the demo date has not yet been determined, the Satellite building has been cleared of equipment and is ready for demo to commence.” news@thedailycougar.com
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 | 3 SYDNEY ROSE & EDITORS AMINAH TANNIR,
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
NEWS
FACULTY
UH adjunct professors reveal low compensation by University
EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR IN CHIEF
Jhair Romero
MANAGING EDITOR
Donna Keeya WEB EDITOR
Mason Vasquez NEWS EDITORS
Sydney Rose Aminah Tannir ASSTISTANT NEWS EDITORS
Haya Panjwani Ashley Gwananji
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
James Mueller OPINION EDITOR
Jordan Hart
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Juana Garcia
ASSISTANT CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Gerald Sastra COPY CHIEF
Zai Davis
SPORTS EDITOR
Andy Yanez
STAFF EDITORIAL The Staff Editorial reflects the opinions of The Cougar Editorial Board (the members of which are listed above the editorial). All other opinions, commentaries and cartoons reflect only the opinion of the author. Opinions expressed in The Cougar do not necessarily reflect those of the University of Houston or the students as a whole.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
An anonymous UH adjunct professor wrote a post on Reddit, revealing the low pay received by part-time professors despite their workload and responsibilities. However, what is occurring at UH is also a national problem in higher education. | Juana Garcia/The Cougar
ASHLEY GWANANJI
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR @ASHLEYGWANAN
On the social media site Reddit, an anonymous adjunct professor gained attention for describing the lack of pay increase for parttime professors at UH. The post went into detail about how many adjuncts, like the professor, have worked at UH for years and continue to receive low compensation despite experiencing an increase in workload and responsibilities. Including teaching, adjunct professors are responsible for additional duties such as designing their courses, creating exams, grading and advising students for success in their classes. In return, lecturers are generally paid $3,000 per course with no benefits, although compensation varies based on experience, department and course level. Depending on the factors, they may receive pay as low as $2,000 or as high as $8,000 per course the entire semester. As salaries remain stagnant
for lecturers, they face increasing class sizes, especially those teaching at the undergraduate level. “(UH has) not raised our pay in over 20 years and refuse to do it even today. Additionally, we have to pay over $500 for parking out of our own pockets,” said the professor on his post. “They continue to increase our course enrollment and expectations with not one cent more pay.” A former UH adjunct professor, who prefers to remain anonymous, reveals those who teach undergraduate classes may have over a hundred students in one course. “What is worse than the adjunct pay is the use of doctoral students as adjuncts. Doctoral students who are pre-dissertation receive about $2,400 per class,” the professor said. “My classes were not as large as some undergraduate classes where there can be over a hundred students.” Additionally, burnout among adjuncts is becoming more prevalent, potentially affecting the
quality of education for students. Aside from juggling responsibilities to help with student success, some juggle multiple jobs to receive income for bills, housing and other costs to support themselves and their families. However, what’s unfolding at UH is not unprecedented. Across the U.S., adjunct professors at different institutions encounter the same problems of being overworked and underpaid with no benefits. In a report from the American Federation of Teachers, nearly a third of 3,000 adjuncts surveyed earn less than $25,000 a year, placing them below the federal poverty guideline for a family of four. Another third of respondents revealed making less than $50,000. Additionally, colleges and universities have implemented hiring freezes and budget cuts due to the financial upheaval caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Combined with future fluctuations in enrollment, adjuncts face uncertainty with job security in upcoming semesters.
Part of the adjunct problem stems from an increase in administrative positions and the overproduction of doctoral degrees. After graduating, new doctoral graduates encounter a limited amount of tenure track positions available. Some have trouble securing non-academic jobs due to being viewed as overqualified, according to Education Next. While some have a full-time job and do adjunct work on the side, others settle for adjunct faculty positions, hoping to eventually secure full-time employment while relying on it to suffice their living costs. For those relying on their adjunct positions for income, they hope for their per-course pay to increase, especially as institutions continue to rely on them heavily. “Adjuncts should be able to unionize to negotiate for fair salaries and benefits,” said the anonymous former professor. “UH is depending more and more on adjuncts.” news@thedailycougar.com
The Cougar welcomes letters to the editor from any member of the UH community. Letters should be no more than 250 words and signed, including the author’s full name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major. Anonymous letters will not be published. Deliver letters to N221, University Center; e-mail them to letters@thedailycougar.com; send them via campus mail to STP 4015; or fax to (713) 743-5384. Letters are subject to editing.
GUEST COMMENTARY Submissions are accepted from any member of the UH community and must be signed with the author’s name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major. Commentary should be limited to 500 words. Guest commentaries should not be written as replies, but rather should present independent points of view. Deliver submissions to N221, University Center; e-mail them to letters@ thedailycougar.com; or fax them to (713) 743-5384. All submissions are subject to editing.
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4 | Wednesday, April 7, 2021
NEWS
SYDNEY ROSE & EDITORS AMINAH TANNIR,
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
CAMPUS
Frontier Fiesta takes a new form amid pandemic
Frontier Live featured socially-distanced concerts, arts, crafts and virtual events. | Haya Panjwani/The Cougar
HAYA PANJWANI
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR @HAYAPANJW
Frontier Fiesta this year was a little different than usual. In past years, Frontier Fiesta was a week-long affair with carnival rides, competitions, a cook-off and packed concerts. This year, the one thing that did stay the same was a week full of activities. The event donned a new name, Fiesta Live, and adapted to the circumstances brought by the pandemic with new events like drive-in movies, socially distanced
concerts and virtual events. For Rachel Siba, a psychology freshman, this was her first chance to participate in in-person activities with others since moving on campus at the start of the year. “It’s nice to see more activities with people showing up, or at least from what we’ve noticed,” Siba said. “Since me and my friends usually didn’t leave the dorms as much cause of COVID, it’s just nice to see events like this instead of a ghost town” On Monday, Siba and her friends were able to sit socially-
distanced on blankets and paint while listening to live music performances at Lynn Eusan Park. Upon entering, all attendees were screened for COVID-19 by being asked a series of questions and having their temperature taken. Hospitality sophomore Elise Kloster recently transferred to UH mid-pandemic, so Fiesta Live also gave her the opportunity to see who else goes to the school. “It’s cool to finally have the college experience,” Kloster said. “This is the first event I’ve been to,
and I think it’s really neat. It’s nice to see all the students that go to school with me all in one place, since usually we’re really spread out and far apart.” Other events throughout the week included a drive-in movie, which showed “Soul” and “Tenet” at the TDECU Stadium, as well as a socially-distanced water fight and a cultural fiesta called Loteria Night. Viviana Zermeno, director of performances for the Frontier Fiesta Association, said her and her team worked hard to make sure
they could keep Frontier Fiesta running while still keeping the UH community healthy and safe. “Our board has been working tirelessly to make sure that we have a completely COVID safe, partially virtual, partially in person, but entirely (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guideline conscious event,” Zermeno said. “We wanted to do this so that our community could get this morale boost that we really need, especially during a pandemic.” news@thedailycougar.com
VACCINE
UH will administer J&J vaccine on campus HAYA PANJWANI
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR @HAYAPANJ
The University is partnering with HEB to administer 600 Johnson & Johnson vaccines via an on-campus clinic on Wednesday. UH students who live on campus received an email on Monday, allowing them to register for an appointment on a first come, first serve basis. This partnership between HEB and UH Power-Up Employee Wellness is available for
individuals 18 and older. “The University is excited about this new partnership, which will offer the one-dose vaccine,” said UH spokesperson Shawn Lindsey. “Because supply is so limited, priority registration is being given to specific populations, including UH facilities, custodial and housing staff working on campus, and students who live on campus.” Following priority registration, if there are appointments left, the school will share registration information with all faculty, staff and students.
This vaccination clinic follows two other distribution efforts at the University, which administered Pfizer and Moderna to Phase 1A and 1B populations. Texas expanded vaccine eligibility in March, following the announcement of federal efforts to ensure most of the American population is fully vaccinated by this summer. “I hope to have more information soon on another mass vaccination clinic that we are working on,” Lindsey said. “We continue to request more vaccines
UH to administer 600 doses of J&J vaccines on Wednesday. | Courtesy of UH
from DSHS and are pursuing additional corporate and health care partnerships in an effort to vaccinate all of our faculty, staff
and students who want to receive the vaccine.” news@thedailycougar.com
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 | 5 SYDNEY ROSE & EDITORS AMINAH TANNIR,
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/NEWS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
LIFE ANDNEWS ARTS
REVIEW
‘Boogie’ falls flat as Eddie Huang’s debut sports film CHRISTOPHER CHARLESTON
STAFF WRITER @CHRISTOPHEASTON
It’s hard to make a good sports film. Actually, it’s incredibly hard. For every “Remember the Titans,” there’s a “Draft Day,” and for every “Rocky IV,” there’s a “Rocky Balboa.” That’s why when directors are able to capture the essence that sports bring to our lives, the stories that they tell have the ability to live on forever. Eddie Huang’s debut on the big screen in “Boogie” makes “Rocky Balboa” look like “Citizen Kane.” The film follows an Asian American high school student who is supposedly a basketball phenom as he attempts to navigate the recruiting process, relationships and family dynamics, all while attempting to understand how his race factors into each of the above. This is unfortunately nothing more than a glorified table read. Not only does “Boogie” disappoint in each of the most basic aspects of a film, writing, acting and cinematography, it lazily hijacks the most notable elements of African American ’90s and early 2000s cinema without paying any sort of homage whatsoever. Early on, we are told the films main character Alfred (Boogie) played by Taylor Takahashi, is a basketball star who has transferred to a new school as part of he and his father’s plan to propel him towards the NBA. The film’s summary describes Alfred as a basketball phenom, yet Huang does absolutely nothing to prove to us that this
Gerald Sastra/The Cougar
is the case. Nevermind the fact Alfred has zero college scholarship offers as a senior, or the absence of statistics to show that he’s been dominant on the court since a young age or the fact that the actor who plays Alfred is listed at about 5-foot-10-inches. There are no stories told about Alfred dunking on a player ranked higher than him or dropping 50 on someone’s head at Rucker Park. We are simply told that he is a phenom and we’re supposed to roll with it. The film’s depiction of athletics in general is nauseating. This includes an awkward weight room scene in which, for some reason, the basketball team is lifting weights with two young ladies
who seemingly are the most popular girls in school. What should irk viewers right away though, is the fact that everyone in the film looks 37. This is something that I thought directors and casting agents working on high school stories were finished with, due to the fact that this sort of mismanagement has become something of a punchline on social media in recent years. When it becomes clear that Alfred’s temper is withholding him from opportunities to further pursue his dream of professional basketball, his mother hires a recruiting agent to oversee the process. Besides this being an entirely fictional career in regard to high school sports, an amateur athlete working with an agent in any
REVIEW
Sydney Books reviews ‘Daisy Jones and The Six’ SYDNEY ROSE
NEWS EDITOR @SYDNEY_ROSEY
A book like ‘Daisy Jones and The Six’ is able to tell a story in a non-traditional novel format that both showcases a different time period and an environment not many know about. Set in the 1970’s, ‘Daisy Jones’ focuses on a fictional rock band as they go through the typical motifs of drug culture, relationship dynamics and handling fame. ‘Daisy Jones and The Six’ will be
getting a television adaption soon into a mini-series on Amazon. There was no set release date for the project, but production began before the pandemic did and was postponed until later. Part of what makes author Taylor Jenkins Reid, who also wrote ‘The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo’, have a book that is readily available for a TV script is the format in which ‘Daisy Jones’
REVIEW
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Gerald Sastra/The Cougar
capacity is definitely illegal. As the film progresses, a main gripe with the plot becomes more and more blatant. We never see why Alfred deserves a shot. He doesn’t seem like a nice person, and we never get a chance to see that he’s a beast on the court. Still, whether he will or will not make it in sports seems to be the driving force behind the story and that makes no sense. Alfred begins to fall for a girl in his class named Eleanor, who is played by Taylour Paige. The two have solid chemistry, but the dialogue written for them prevents the magic an on-screen couple needs in order to be believable. What their conversations come across as is nothing more than two preteens who don’t quite know how
to flirt. The antagonist of the film is Monk, a basketball player at the school’s cross-town rival, played by the late rapper Pop Smoke. Smoke performs well in this role, but it’s much more limited than the marketing of the film will have you believe, which argues the possibility that those who are in charge of the film’s rollout have attempted to use his death at the ticket booth. At times, it feels like Huang was going for a vibe similar to “You Got Served,” “Juice” or “Above the Rim” with the film, but the knowledge that he lacks in multiple areas stunts the potential of the film fairly quickly. We don’t see much character growth from anyone throughout the film. In fact, what the movie feels like is honestly just one bad decision after another. At the end of the film, suddenly everyone is on the same page without any explanation on how they got there. We’re left wanting more, and not in a good way. Viewers can’t help but think about how so many of the issues in “Boogie” would have been solved by dropping the high school shtick and committing fully to a street ball universe where adults handle their problems like adults. “Boogie” regurgitates chewed up material Huang likely consumed as a child and reveals itself as a project that he simply did not have the skill to properly put together. arts@thdailycougar.com
6 | Wednesday, April 7, 2021
LIFE AND ARTS NEWS
SYDNEY ROSE & EDITORS AMINAH TANNIR,
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/LIFE-ARTS
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
REVIEW
Netflix series ‘The Crown’ and its historical inaccuracies
Renee Josse De Lisle/The Cougar
ASHLEY GWANANJI
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
Netflix’s hit show “The Crown” managed to capture the hearts of many viewers since it began airing in 2016. The docudrama focuses on Queen Elizabeth II’s life from the 1940s to modern times by covering a specific event in every episode. Episodes are often brimmed with scandal, touching on topics from love affairs to political turmoil. While they mostly stick to their historical facts, some scandals are inaccurate for creative purposes. An example is found in the
REVIEW
Continued from page 5 is in. Set up like an interview, the book reads as a character’s name and then their dialogue, no action description or quotes or parenthesis. This shows the storytelling aspect from each different character in the band or related to the band, giving the reader different angles of the story and not letting them know which character is telling the truth. This comes across differently in the physical copy of the book than the audio book, which if a reader prefers audio books this is certainly one to consider. The audio book
drama’s second season, where it conveys the basics of the Suez crisis but deviates from historical facts by showing the conversations between Prime Minister Anthony Eden and the Queen about the situation. Although the two did meet, there was no record of what they discussed, according to the Mosaic. Rather, the dramatized conversations provide the narrative of Eden’s plan to keep the collusion against Egypt a secret. Additionally, season two covers another scandal troubled with inaccuracies – the Marburg Files, a collection of top-secret German
records from the Foreign Minister of Nazi Germany. In the collection is the Windsor File, which contains details of a possible alliance between the Nazi High Command and the Duke of Windsor, Edward VIII, and his wife, Wallis Simpson, during World War II. Although the Nazis considered the Duke and Duchess of Windsor allies, there is no evidence of the Duke colluding with the Germans against Britain, as the show hints. Diving into season three, its third episode depicts the tragedy in Aberfan, Wales, where a mountain of mining debris descends into the town. Accurately telling how the
Queen took eight days to visit the people, “The Crown” also highlights her failure to respond to the tragedy as sovereign. However, the show did a poor job showing her remorse according to Prime Minister Harold Wilson’s former press secretary Joe Hanes. In the episode, the Queen shows a lack of emotion as she forces a tear for the press. Criticizing the show, Haynes explains the narrative the show reveals is “absolute nonsense.” While there are more historical inaccuracies to note, it is understandable as “The Crown” is a drama and not a documentary. Regardless of how it deviates
from history, the show does an excellent job portraying the modern royal family with its stories. From accurate set design to impeccable casting, it is easy to see why viewers can’t get enough. In “The Crown’s” highly anticipated fifth season in 2022, viewers should expect new cast members to reflect the age of the favorite characters and stories likely covering royal life in the late 1990s. After season five, the show announced it would have a final and sixth season, which has yet to have a release date.
version of “Daisy Jones and The Six” has different voices reading for each character and samples of the instrumentals for songs mentioned in the book. One thing to love about “Daisy Jones” is the music component. Even when the characters are frustrating or you don’t know where the plot may be going, the music is a strong part of the novel, all written by Reid herself who is not a songwriter by any means. And one thing to think about as you read “Daisy Jones” is the characters themselves and their dynamics. From talks about the book that can be seen on social media platforms, first time
readers would assume the main characters, Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne, would be a couple. Then, you meet a character named Camila Dunne, described as Billy’s wife. Throughout the book you see Billy Dunne’s character development from washed up rock star going to rehab, to getting better for his wife and his kids, to meeting Daisy Jones who is not a good influence on his character whatsoever. The thing about a character like Daisy is that she has the aesthetic that could be likeable; woman who never wears shoes, doesn’t care what other people think if she herself knows
something is good… but then she has traits that are slightly less likeable. Daisy herself is a nepotism rock star who had everything come easy, most of her problems being results of her own misguided actions as she does not listen to or respect the people close to her. This leads to a dynamic of enemies to something more with Billy as the characters work on music together and have to be in close quarters with one another. Part of Daisy’s entitlement is believing she had the right to be in love with Billy and to have him love her back even with his wife, family and their careers at stake.
Billy, showed his development by realizing while he did feel an emotional connection to Daisy, they could not cloud what he had done with his life. Other characters and relationships shown in the book create a whirlwind of a storyline that makes the reader feel as though they are witnessing dynamics of a rock band like this of that time period. With a steady plot, interesting characters that you do not always love and do not always hate, “Daisy Jones and The Six” can be an interesting read or listen to whoever is willing
arts@thedailycougar.com
arts@thedailycougar.com
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 | 7 ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS
SPORTS NEWS
@THECOUGARSPORTS
MEN’S BASKETBALL
‘We will be back’: Kelvin Sampson vows a strong return after UH’s Final Four loss
UH head coach Kelvin Sampson embraces Quentin Grimes (24) of the Cougars after a loss to the Baylor Bears in the Final Four semifinal game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on April 03, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Kelvin Sampson thanked his players for their commitment for the season after the game. | Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty Images
ANDY YANEZ
SPORTS EDITOR @AYANEZ_5
INDIANAPOLIS — Saturday’s crushing loss to the Baylor Bears in the Final Four brought a lot of emotion out of Houston inside Lucas Oil Stadium. In a game that got out of hand quickly, the Cougars were left in the dust and were unable to get back in the game. The finality of the season slowly hit them, and by the end of it all, the team had no choice but to let it all out. Once the sting of defeat eventually fades, however, the 2020-21 UH team will be one
that is remembered for years to come. “The people that care about our university and care about our teams, they’ll never forget this group,” UH head coach Kelvin Sampson said after the loss. “I know I won’t. I’ll remember this team for a lot of reasons. Great kids, the love they had for each other and how tight-knit the coaching staff was in supporting these kids. It was fun.” For Sampson, the loss in the Final Four could not take away the rest of the journey the team was put through in the
unusual year. In his words, the team sacrificed a lot to uphold their commitment to the team, and for that, he is extremely thankful. As the seconds ticked away on the game clock in Saturday’s contest, the Cougars subbed out the bulk of their starters, and slowly, one by one, they all took turns hugging Sampson on their way to the bench. Once the final buzzer sounded, and the team reached their locker room, the emotions flowed out even more. “Those guys invested a lot in this,” Sampson said. “We ran
into a really good team tonight. Didn’t play well and that team we played had a lot to do with it.” Sophomore guard Marcus Sasser, who was the only UH player that had a strong performance in the first half against Baylor, held back tears during his postgame news conference. Through short answers, the Red Oak native, at times, had to pause in order to stop from breaking down. But despite that, he was still able to reflect on the importance of this team. “The three seniors we had,
they led us and they taught us a lot for the upcoming years for the young guys,” Sasser said. “We had a great run and just fell short this year.” This year’s team broke barriers, Sampson said. Not only was advancing to the Final Four for the first time since 1984 a remarkable accomplishment but one that he feels needed to be done to continue to advance as a program. “We’re getting the next step,” Sampson said. “Once we got to
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8 | Wednesday, April 7, 2021
SPORTS NEWS
ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS
@THECOUGARSPORTS
MEN’S BASKETBALL
‘Groundsbreakers’: Seniors leave mark at UH
Houston senior guard DeJon Jarreau (3), who was named the Midwest Regional’s Most Outstanding Player, throws up a heart as senior forward Justin Gorham (4) wraps his arms around the New Orleans native as the Cougars celebrate a victory during the NCAA Tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana. | Courtesy of UH athletics
ANDY YANEZ
SPORTS EDITOR @AYANEZ_5
INDIANAPOLIS — When Houston’s season came to an end on the Lucas Oil Stadium court after its Final Four loss to Baylor, so did the collegiate careers of seniors DeJon Jarreau, Justin Gorham and Brison Gresham. While the three will move on with their lives and step away from the Cougars’ program as players, their impact on the team will be felt for years to come and is what head coach Kelvin Sampson will remember about the 2020-21 UH team as time goes on. “Those guys and the leadership they showed for the younger guys,” Sampson said is what stood out to him the most.
“The teams before this team were trailblazers. Rob Gray’s team was a trailblazer … We’ve had teams that were trailblazers and now we had a team that was groundbreakers.” From Jarreau’s maturity and leadership, to Gresham’s attitude and versatility when it came to the roles the team needed him to have, to Gorham becoming one of the best offensive rebounders in the country and best players at his position, that is how they left their impact, Sampson said. This year’s batch of seniors’ influence, however, extended far beyond the hardwood. Jarreau grew into his leadership role, and once he fully embraced it, he passed down lessons to the younger guards like freshman
Tramon Mark, who he roomed with during road games in the regular season. Gorham and Gresham had a similar impact on the younger forwards on the team too. “I’ve (learned) a lot ( from the seniors),” freshman center Kiyron Powell said during UH’s NCAA Tournament run. “Coming in, I thought I was going to be able to do something automatically, but it was a whole different experience and they took me under their wing. “They showed me like, ‘hey, this is something like you’ve never seen before. This is what you got to do to play at this level,’” Powell added. “(Gorham, Gresham and Fabian White) have been unbelievable for me and my game.”
In 2021-22, UH will likely be led by White, who will use the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA, and guard Marcus Sasser, who will have been the longest-tenured players with the team that have played significant minutes. Of course, the biggest question mark is with junior guard Quentin Grimes and what he chooses to do. After Saturday’s loss, an emotional UH locker room digested the end of the season. One of the reasons the team was so invested in each other had to do with the culture that was created by the seniors. “They led us and they taught us a lot for the upcoming years for the young guys,” Sasser said. The 2020-21 Cougars got back
to the Final Four after 37 years. How long it takes them to return to that grand stage, no one knows, but one thing Sampson and the returning players will have to chase is the new benchmark that was put in place by this season’s team. “The perception of our program has changed,” Sampson said. “Our program has changed. I can’t wait to play in front of sellouts next year. This is going to be exciting, but this team will never be forgotten. They broke the ground. They showed it can be done. And now it’s up to these ensuing teams to stake their ground too. Looking forward to it.” sports@thedailycougar.com
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 | 9 ANDY YANEZ, EDITOR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/SPORTS
SPORTS NEWS
@THECOUGARSPORTS
MEN’S BASKETBALL
‘Sustained excellence’: UH’s rise into one of the premier programs in the country
JAMES MUELLER
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR @JDM2186
When Kelvin Sampson took over the Houston basketball program in 2014, Renu Khator, president of UH, had a running joke every time she attended a Cougars basketball game. “If you’re going to watch the basketball game, make sure you wear your sneakers because you don’t know if you’ll get called on to play on the court,” Khator joked. The reason Khator made this joke was that not only did no one show up to games during Sampson’s early years as the UH head coach, but no one really wanted to play for the Cougars either. Khator called Hofheinz Pavillion, the home of the Cougars from 1967-2017, a “ghost town” in the early 2010s. Former UH guard Galen Robinson Jr., who Sampson called one of the “trailblazers” for the transformation of the UH program, recalled going to Cougars games with his good friend Steve after he committed to UH and just how depressing the gameday experience was. “There would be nobody there, (UH) would be losing,” Robinson said. “It was a terrible environment.” Armoni Brooks, another former UH guard, who alongside Robinson, helped pave the way for the program’s rise, remembers how no one cared about the Cougars when he first stepped foot on campus. “For a while, there was a point where no one was hearing about UH,” Brooks said. “It was almost irrelevant if anything about UH was going on.” Despite having all the cards
RETURN
Continued from page 7 the Elite Eight, that’s where you want your program to be. You want it to improve, to get better. I know how difficult it is to get to a Final Four.” From this point forward, making new progress will be a difficult challenge, but it is one that the head coach is confident can be done. Just like when previous teams fell short, a last-second buzzerbeater against Michigan, and a Sweet Sixteen loss to Kentucky, Sampson believes this team has
UH basketball head coach Kelvin Sampson directs his team against the Baylor Bears in the first half of their Final Four semifinal game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on April 3 in Indianapolis. | Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty Images
stacked against him when he took the job, Sampson believed that UH could become a team that wins championships as long as the University gave him the tools necessary to succeed. And the University delivered, providing the funds for a stateof-the-art development center and practice facility, as well as transforming Hofheinz Pavillion into Fertitta Center to provide UH fans with the best possible game-day experience. Sampson returned the favor shortly after, delivering two American Athletic Conference titles, one conference tournament championship and three trips to the NCAA Tournament, including two Sweet Sixteen’s and most
recently the program’s first Final Four since 1984. Sampson hasn’t just built a couple of good teams, but an elite program that has jumped into the category of an NCAA basketball powerhouse. “Every year there has been progression,” Khator said. “I would say if you look at the last four years,(Sampson) has successfully built sustained excellence. Not just excellence, sustained excellence.” Long gone are the days of empty crowds and zero energy at UH basketball games. In fact, people have to be lucky to get a seat in Fertitta Center as tickets to watch the Cougars play have become a hot commodity all across Houston.
helped expand the standard. “So we’ve had teams that were trailblazers and now we had a team that was groundbreakers,” Sampson said. “I’m disappointed the season is over because I don’t get to coach them anymore. But what a run, what a ride. Final Four, 28-4. Two nets. We got a lot of memories. A lot of memories.” When UH steps on the court again for the 2021-22 season, it will be a different group that will look to make its own mark. For those returning, the leadership from this team will stick around. Fabian White,
Tramon Mark and Marcus Sasser will all likely return. Add to the mix Kiyron Powell, Jamal Shead, J’Wan Roberts, who Sampson listed off, and he believes that they will be in a position to continue making UH one of the premier college basketball programs in the country. “We have good players coming in,” Sampson said. “And obviously, like everyone else, we’ll pick up some kids from the transfer portal as well. “We’ll be back,” he added. “We’ll be good again next year.” sports@thedailycougar.com
Gone are the days of simply hoping to make the NCAA Tournament. Making a deep run in the Big Dance is now an expectation for UH every year. “The expectations are now that the Cougars are going to show their colors,” Khator said. “And I call them my flying Cougars.” All of UH’s recent successes and the development into one of the country’s premier basketball schools under Sampson stem back to guys like Robinson and Brooks, who went to play for a UH program that nobody wanted anything to do with because they believed in Sampson and his mission. While these trailblazers that laid the foundation have
been gone from the program for multiple years now, each one still feels an extreme sense of pride and joy in what the 2020-21 UH basketball team accomplished, and believes the Cougars will reach even higher heights in the years to come. “My junior and senior year, every time we were brought into a huddle we’d say ‘Final Four on three. One, two, three Final Four,’” Robinson said. “That was a goal of ours. Obviously, we came up short but to see (the 2020-21 UH basketball team) reach that goal is definitely surreal. It’s good to know that I played a part in them reaching that goal.” sports@thedailycougar.com
UH sophomore guard Marcus Sasser (0) picks up Rutgers guard Jacob Young during the NCAA Tournament’s second round. | Courtesy of UH athletics
10 | Wednesday, April 7, 2021
OPINION NEWS
JORDAN HART, EDITOR
@THEDAILYCOUGAR
THEDAILYCOUGAR.COM/OPINION
DISCRIMINATON
The history of anti-Asian racism in America should be discussed i
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ANNA BAKER
STAFF COLUMNIST
This past year, anti-Asian racism has been brought to light due to the amount of hate crimes and anti-Asian rhetoric going through our media. For those unaffected, it may seem like this is a new thing. However, anti-Asian racism has been a part of U.S. history for a long time. It’s not extensively taught though, so many people buy into the model minority myth that causes them to ignore and dismiss anti-Asian hate. There are many things that need to be done to stop this hate, and education is one of them. The model minority myth has convinced a lot of Americans that racism against Asian Americans is non existent. Many people have this idea that Asians are as successful as white people in America,
so when Asian people speak up about racism against the community, many people don’t believe it or don’t see it as a big deal. The education on racism in America is severely limited so most people downplay antiAsian sentiment and hate crimes. But, America has a long history of anti-Asian racism. Students do learn about the Japanese American Internment camps in high school but they don’t really learn about how unconstitutional it was. The U.S. completely stripped a group, consisting of over 100,000 people, of their rights based on their ethnicity. The rise in anti-Asian hate crimes during the pandemic is not coming from nowhere. Starting in the 1800s, Chinese immigrants were exploited as railroad workers, being beaten, overworked and underpaid.
Some people may remember learning about the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act where Chinese immigrants were barred from entering the United States which wasn’t repealed until 1943. In 1930, a bunch of white farmers attacked Filipino farm workers in California, resulting in the Watsonville Riots. This had followed a stream of antiFilipino rhetoric in the country, describing Filipinos as people who were pushing white people out of jobs. There has also been a number of instances throughout American history of segregation and discrimination against Asian Americans. After 9/11, many South Asians were targeted for hate crimes. There is so much to learn about anti-Asian racism in the U.S. that isn’t being widely taught in schools. It makes
sense that when the pandemic began, people brushed off terms like “China virus” and jokes about eating bats. People don’t understand the dense history the U.S. has of anti-Asian racism. This is dangerous as it has led to many Asian Americans being hurt and not being taken seriously when they speak up about it. As always, one crucial step in fighting racism is education so people can learn the historical context of what they are fighting against. They cannot simply just say “Stop Asian Hate” without understanding that anti-Asian racism in the U.S. is systemic and has been built into this country since the 1800s. Schools need to do a better job teaching about anti-Asian racism and just racism in general. opinion@thedailycougar.com
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Wednesday, April 7, 2021 | 11 JORDAN HART, EDITOR
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OPINION NEWS
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FRESHMEN
Freshmen didn’t get the first year they expected
By Juana Garcia/The Cougar
ANGELA JARDINA
STAFF COLUMNIST
Some goodbyes can be hard, but others, like one being said to the 2020-2021 school year, can be quite easy. Especially for the current freshmen who were forced to make a huge life transition during a pandemic. As students tackle midterms and take on the final stretch of what feels like a marathon no one trained for, the words “goodbye,” “so long” and “farewell” have never tasted any sweeter than they do now. It’s no secret this school year has been one like no other. For many, this year was uncomfortable, disappointing and even agonizing. Much like getting a root canal, this year has been an experience. For the class of 2024, it’s not exactly the freshman college experience they had been hoping for. Long distance relationships are often awkward, difficult and straining. But, it turns out being in a long-distance relationship with your college feels the same
way. Psychology freshman Victoria Loreant was one of the many students whose classes got moved completely online, forcing her to remain at home a year longer than she had expected. While the asynchronous style coursework has been easier for Loreant to manage, the side effect of such a disconnected learning style is that it has made it difficult for (her) to stay engaged with the information and retain what (she’s) learned. On the other hand, students in synchronous online classes are also dealing with feelings of lost connection, even when the Wi-Fi is strong. Simone Green, a liberal studies freshman said even in her synchronous classes on Zoom, she finds it hard to have great seminar conversations because of the lack of relationship she has with her classmates. “It’s hard to get to know your classmates because the only time you see them is allotted to instruction,” Green said. This sense of difficulty in
having online conversations is seconded by freshman Andrew Raymond. “For a lot of people who tend to be more self-conscious, speaking up on Zoom is hard because you can see yourself as you’re talking,” Raymond said. If there’s anything the class of 2024 has learned about building long-distance relationships, it’s that keeping up with meeting times can be hard. While trying to stay involved with the University through clubs and organizations, students who are forced to stay home because of COVID-19 find that the distance element really tends to get in the way. Green, a member of Black Student Union, said she loves the organization and is frustrated she can’t attend the in-person meetings and get togethers, but hopes to hop right into the full swing of things in the fall. So yes, it’s no secret that classroom dynamics and study habits have changed, but have the changes brought by this school year transcended the
classroom? While it’s expected that the first year of college brings about a change in one’s individuality, most current freshmen believe they’ve changed more this year than they would have in a first year without COVID-19. In fact, Raymond said the looser structure of his freshman year caused him to mature a lot faster and acquire a real sense of self-discipline as it becomes easier to get distracted when behind a screen. Along with self-discipline, on-campus freshmen have mastered the ability to adapt to campus as the campus itself is adapting to COVID19 restrictions — making the class of 2024 the number one contender in an “Inception”-type situation. Meanwhile, students that are completely online and living at home notice a change in themselves as well, despite being in the same environment. Leading up to her high school graduation, Loreant says that she had felt hopeful about attending
college during the pandemic, but she now feels “stalled” during a time she thought was going to be momentous and exciting. As for Green, where she used to feel relatively comfortable in social situations, she now feels apprehensive. Not only can these changes alter the way a person views society and their environment, but they can often cause changes in the way they view themselves and their role within society. The class of 2024 looks forward to returning to some normalcy in the coming fall semester with many students heading for campus for a second shot at a first year. Do not be deceived, the freshmen are not defeated, nor are they left weakened by the challenges of the past year. The freshmen are a little weary, but it’s nothing a nap won’t fix. Think of it this way, the class of 2024 are the Cougars 2.0, they are gritty, experienced and ready to achieve. opinion@thedailycougar.com
12 | Wednesday, April 7, 2021
