dailygamecock.com UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
VOL. 113, NO. 38 • SINCE 1908
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2013
House of delegates elects Snead to lead 51 organizations represented at first meeting of new body Amanda Coyne
ACOYNE@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
T h e h o u s e o f d e le g at e s m e t for the f irst time Monday night, electing Josh Snead, who filed an organizational challenge to enact the body, speaker of the house. Karthik Chandrasekar, a fi rst-year pre-pharmacy student, was elected deput y speaker, and fourt h-year broadcast journalism student Jen Ashley was elected secretary of the body. Fifty-one student organizations were represented at the meeting. Multiple others contacted Student G o v e r n m e n t ’s S e c r e t a r y o f Organizational Outreach Brandon White saying they would be sending
delegates to future meetings. “ W hen you t h i n k ab out how many students that represents, it’s an extraordinary amount of students’ opinions represented,” White said. If the house maintains its size, it will be slightly larger than student senate, which has a maximum of 50 senators. It has 47 currently due to three vacant seats. T he t y pes of org a n izat ions represented varied widely. Social soror it ie s a nd f r ater n it ie s sent delegates, as did pre-professional organizat ions and interest-based clubs. Many delegates said t hey were exc ited about t he potent ia l t he house has as a body to increase student and student organizational representation within SG. “It can give all the organizations a voice they didn’t necessarily have
Marshall Harkness / THE DAILY GAMECOCK
Student Body President Chase Mizzell speaks at the first meeting of the house of delegates Monday night, which was attended by students from 51 organizations. before, which is great, because each organization is special, whether it has 50 members or 350 members,” A sh ley sa id. “T hey a l l br i ng
something unique to USC, and it’s past time for their voice to be heard HOUSE • 3
Performers highlight domestic abuse Annual talent exposition draws attention to relationship violence Khadijah Dennis
NEWS@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
Clarie Randall / THE DAILY GAMECOCK
Die-In participants lie down on the Pickens Street Bridge on Monday to raise awareness of domestic violence.
Feminists ‘Die-In’ on Pickens Groups lies down on bridge to bring awareness to violence Natalie Pita
NEWS@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
Students crossing the Pickens Street Bridge on the way to class between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. yesterday were forced to think about an issue that usually does not come to mind during a class change: domestic violence. The Feminists Majorit y Leadership Alliance (FMLA) had its annual Die-In to honor Domestic
Violence Awareness Mont h. Members of t he organization passed out f liers and laid down on the bridge to bring attention to facts about sexual assaults, rape and honor killing. “We had people lie down on the sidewalk to serve as a physical representation of people who have died because of domestic violence, and we had them hold posters with facts about domestic violence in the hopes that they would stop and see what’s going on,” said Christiana Keinath, a fi rstyear biology student and member of FMLA. South Carolina had the nation’s highest rate of women murdered by men — 2.54 per 100,000 — DIE-IN • 2
Education, empowerment and entertainment were the words Jasmine Gant used to descr ibe “One M ic,” a n a n nua l talent exposition to raise domestic violence awareness. Hosted by the Association of Minorit y Pre-Health Students, A lpha Kappa A lpha and the Sexual Assault Violence Intervention Prevention Office, the event attracted a crowd in the Russell House Theater. It allowed both women and men to express their feelings and experiences with domestic violence. “It’s a healing process for some people, [and] we have a lot of survivors that perform,” said Gant, a fourth-year public health student. “If we can help facilitate that, then I’m all for it.” Corey Ingram, a SAV IP representative, gave a presentation on sexual assault. He emphasized that students and visitors sitting in the crowd should take the time to think about why and how sexual assault begins. “Men and women, we have different thought processes,” Ingram said. “How do you get a woman to teach a man how to be a man. ... When you really think about that, you need men to be advocates for men to show them the VIOLENCE • 3
Shooting victim remains in critical condition Zeta Tau Alpha holds prayer vigil for 18-year-old business student
Interim CPD Chief Santiago: ‘We want to prevent crime’
Sarah Martin
NEWS@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
Sarah Ellis
In the wake of the weekend Five Points shooting that critically injured 18-year-old Martha Childress, a firstyear business student at USC, students gathered Monday night to show their support for Childress and pray for her recovery. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light,” said Braxton Towery, quoting from Matthew 11:28-30. Serving as representatives of Carolina CRU and Greek Impact, Towery and his wife, Shelley, quoted scripture and analyzed what it meant to them in the context of the tragedy. Towery urged the crowd of students to look to God and scripture for strength.
SELLIS@DAILYGAMECOCK.COM
Interim Columbia Police Chief Ruben Santiago said Monday he did not believe there was anything officers in Five Points could have done differently to prevent the shooting early Sunday morning that left fi rst-year business student Martha Childress, 18, in critical condition after being struck by a stray bullet. “I look at what actions did our officers take and was there something more that we could do. And I can’t say that there was in this case,” Santiago said. He also said he is not currently planning to increase the number of officers in the popular bar district this weekend in response to the shooting, Erin Burke / THE DAILY GAMECOCK
Students gather Monday to pray for Martha Childress, the victim of Sunday’s shooting.
CRIME • 3
INSIDE
VIGIL • 3
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SPORTS
MIX
VIEWPOINTS
The South Carolina women’s soccer team improved its record to 12-1-1 with a victory over Alabama.
From the queen of selfies to the foodie, meet the five people you follow (for now) on Instagram.
Editorial Board: Student leaders must take responsibility for the house of delegates now.
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