THURSDAY February 27, 2020
THE DAILY ILLINI The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871
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Vol. 149 Issue 43
LONGFORM: PART 2 OF 4
Unseen, unfed
Food insecurity on campus: Addressing the stigma are fed afterward. Part of the reason the stigma around food insecurity persists is because the problem is easy to hide. And not just from friends, teachers and peers — but from family members, too. Pantin comes from a single-parent household, where her mom worked a lot to support them both. Years later, Pantin learned while she was in middle school, her mom didn’t eat. Taylor Chism, senior in FAA, also knows what it’s like to keep food insecurity a secret. Coming from a middle to lower class family in Joliet, no one talked money in Chism’s home. To this day, Chism still doesn’t really talk about finances outside her close friends. “I don’t bring (my financial situation) up in class or to my teachers,” she said. “I try to keep it more
BY ZAINAB QURESHI STAFF WRITER
A big part of the problem of food insecurity has to do with the stigma it carries, especially in a campus setting. The lack of awareness on college campuses combined with the psychological anxieties makes the issue that much more complex. Jessica Delost, the campus and community connector at University Place Christian Church, feels as though “people are often more open about homelessness than they are about food insecurity.” Delost mentions she’s much more aware of the attendees who have experienced homelessness than those who are food insecure. Delost often wonders whether the reason she has so many volunteers at the community dinners is because she makes sure they
personal.” Growing up, Chism had limited financial resources, so she didn’t always have access to healthy food. Her meals often consisted of PB&Js and hotdogs as a kid. For Chism, trying to institute healthy changes as an adult has been challenging. “The first time I went grocery shopping I had a panic attack in the grocery store because I was freaked out,” she said. “I try to make better choices than what I grew up with because being in college has taught me a lot about health. Not having a car is hard, and County Market is so expensive.” Now, when she goes shopping for food, she often finds herself weighing her health and her budget side by side. Knowing that produce expires much quicker than frozen food and ramen, she halfheartedly sticks to the
inside half of the grocery store, typically where the nonperishable items are located. When she does venture to the other side, she has to ask herself questions like, “Am I going to risk getting this?” or “Am I actually going to eat this?” Ben Joselyn, a coordinator at the Community Learning Lab, has been involved in multiple ventures to aid in the food insecurity epidemic across the community. He said the lack of understanding about food insecurity comes from a lack of understanding about poverty at large, saying “money is equated to worth.” He went on to explain how financial instability can be connected to feelings of unworthiness due to societally bred standards, manifesting anxiety and causing other mental health SEE UNFED | 3A
RYAN ASH THE DAILY ILLINI
A volunteer offers community members milk, eggs and frozen meat at the Wesley Food Pantry on Feb. 20. Wesley Food Pantry hosts a community-wide pantry each Thursday from 5-7 p.m.
Students move from temporary housing Dorm lounges no longer in use as overflow accommodations BY ALIZA MAJID STAFF WRITER
University Housing has announced there are no students remaining in the temporary housing areas after an overflow of students last semester. The study lounges were essentially converted into dorm rooms this fall, said Jessica Skocinski, freshman in LAS. The tables in the study lounges were moved and replaced with four bunk beds. The Ikenberry Commons, ISR and FAR all participated in overflow housing efforts. Since there was a recordbrea king number of freshmen admitted into the University this fall, there was a need for the temporary housing facilities to accommodate incoming students. The University guarantees housing for freshmen, which is why this plan has been implemented. Students who were placed into these temporary lodging areas were given 50% off their housing fee during their stay in these areas. The University does not have this displacement issue every year, but it plans out the housing situation a year and a half before the start of the school year to make sure all incoming students have a place to stay on campus. The record number of first-year students forced the University to turn to temporary housing. “(We were) able to make adjustments to ensure that we were able to put as few residents in temporary housing as we could,” said Chelsea Hamilton, senior director of communications. As soon as people opt out of attending the University or as other living arrangements arise, students in temporary housing would be allowed to move in. “This year we had 25 students who were still in temp housing after fall break, and we leave them there because students have shared with us in the past that they don’t like to move toward the end of the finals because there’s been a concern for academics, so we just felt like ‘OK, we’re listening to a resident,’” Hamilton said.
ETHAN SIMMONS THE DAILY ILLINI
Dunia Ghanimah, senior in LAS and co-author of Illinois Student Government Resolution 03.61, presents her case for the resolution alongside authors Buthaina Hattab and Ahlam Hatib. Since its passing, the resolution sparked divided reactions and issues with voting records threaten to nullify the act.
Vetoed resolution faces potential nullification SENIOR REPORTER AND ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
The executive branch veto of senate-backed Illinois Student Government Resolution 03.61: “Violations of Human Rights in University Investments,” sparked divided reactions on either side of the issue. To opponents of the resolution, it was validation. To authors and supporters, it meant betrayal. Issues with voting records on the resolution threaten to nullify the entire resolution and executive action, potentially leading to a rehearing of the five-and-ahalf-hour senate meeting two weeks ago. The non-binding resolution called for the University to divest from defense companies Elbit Systems, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon, all of which have supplied weapons or defense technology to Israel. It passed the senate floor with 20 affirmative votes, nine
Because the residents liv ing in tempora r y housing were held there until finals were done, they were not moved into permanent housing until the spring semester. The transitioning period would have caused trouble for students during finals season, which is why it was held off until after break.
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Skocisnki said students who have lived in these t emp or a r y hou s i n g areas may have various experiences, but there are certain differences between this arrangement and a permanent dorming area. “It didn’t feel too different from dorms,” Skocinski said. “Except now that I’m in a new dorm, I see the
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things we couldn’t do in the temporary dorm. We couldn’t change our bed arrangements. It was just wherever, whoever got there first got to pick the best bed and desk. It was kind of stressful with three other roommates since we had to be in a quad.”
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Temporary housing units in ISR converted lounges into makeshift dorm rooms using bunk beds and desks. All students living in temporary housing have been relocated this semester.
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against and seven abstentions at 12:30 a.m. on Feb. 13, but online records after the meeting displayed 21 in the affirmative. The petition was filed by Casey Griffin, ISG student senator and senior in FAA. Griffin was one of the student senators whose online voting record did not match the in-person decision. According to Griffin, the discrepancy stems from dead batteries in the iClickers student senators use to vote. When extra batteries weren’t available to fill their iClickers, senators had to use batteries from the iClickers of absent senators or use a different iClicker entirely. For Griffin, the concern is twofold — Griffin wants student voters to know where their college’s senators stand on the issue and wants to halt action on the resolution before things go further. “It’s really important we have accurate voting records and we know who’s voted
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