The Reveille 2-18-21

Vo lum e 129 · N o. 78

E s t. 18 87

T hu r s d ay, Fe b r u a r y 18 , 2 021

As some LSU students enjoyed two “snow days,” others faced power outages amid freezing temperatures caused by a winter storm.

ON THIN ICE

PHOTO STORY LSU ON ICE: See more photos of a frozen campus on pages 6-7

PHOTO BY ABBY KIBLER

Read on

LSU Nicholson Gateway apartments sit Feb. 15 during the winter weather mix on Nicholson Drive in Baton Rouge, La.

NEWS

p ag e 3

Student Government’s new Sexual Violence Prevention Committee drafts new policies aimed at accountability.

ENTERTAINMENT

p ag e 5

“‘The Dig’ unearths questions of human mortality, while drawing a thought-provoking line through life, death and history.”

SPORTS

page 2

p ag e 9

Despite suffering an emotional loss to top-ranked Florida at home, LSU gymnastics continues to keep its head high.

OPINION

p ag e 11

“This state deserves leaders that stand up to corrupt corporate powers, not ones that parrot their talking points.”

L SU Re ve i l le.co m @l s u r e ve i l le

page 2 PHOTO BY ABBY KIBLER

COLD COMFORT LSU faces continued power outages amid winter storm

BY KATHERINE MANUEL & NICK FREWIN @kmanuel_2 & @itsnickfrewin Baton Rouge spent 64 consecutive hours below freezing temperatures this past weekend, setting records as the fifth longest freeze in its history.

The winter storm brought conditions that caused hazardous driving conditions, power outages and below-freezing temperatures across LSU’s campus beginning on Feb. 15 and lasting throughout the early portions of the week.

The University remained closed on both Feb. 15 and Feb. 17 due to the conditions, with Feb. 16 being the previously scheduled Mardi Gras holiday.

Media Relations Director Ernie Ballard said Nicholson Gateway Apartments experienced some power outages Monday, as did some Greek houses. The buildings impacted by the power outage are on Entergy’s grid.

After the University was made aware that Entergy may not return power until later Monday night, each sorority began making accommodations for its members living in the houses. Ballard said Greek organizations’ housing corporations may have had generators brought in Feb. 15 as well.

Alpha Phi provided hotel rooms for its members and offered extra rooms to some Pi Beta Phi members without power, two Pi Beta Phi members confirmed.

Biological sciences sophomore and Pi Beta Phi member Margaret Turner lives in the Pi Beta Phi house. Turner said the power went out in the house Monday morning, and residents did not have lights, heaters or working outlets. She stayed there for most of the day but stayed with her mom that night through Wednesday.

“All the girls left the Pi Phi house because we knew the house would get freezing cold with it being 18 degrees outside that night and morning,” Turner said. “We have no idea when it’ll be back on.”

Psychology senior Payton Sil-

burn lives in Nicholson Gateway and said his apartment lost power Monday night.

“My apartment was really cold,” Silburn said.

According to an email sent on Tuesday to Nicholson Gateway residents, Res Life was working with Entergy and the facilities team to reach a solution about the power outages. Residents were asked to submit work orders in the housing portal if they are experiencing power or heating outages.

“This simple step helps our team identify where the problems are since all apartments are not experiencing the same levels of outage,” the email read.

Psychology junior Eryn Lowe, a Nicholson Gateway resident, said she relocated to her friend’s house due to the problems persisting at her apartment.

6:30 p.m. Tuesday night through a form.

“If you opt to remain in Nicholson Gateway Apartments, please prepare as if you will not have power and heat overnight,” the email read. “Stock up on blankets and warm clothes.”

Lowe noticed that although Nicholson Gateway was out of power, Tiger Stadium was still fully illuminated.

“Tiger Stadium gets to receive power and be lit up while students are freezing,” Lowe said.

Ballard said Tiger Stadium is on “campus power” while Nicholson Gateway is on Entergy’s grid, so “it’s two separate power sources.”

Some housing communities on campus were still experiencing power outages Wednesday.

Power would be restored to all campus communities by the end

It is very disappointing to see people continue to walk on and slide down the Indian Mounds... they should be respected for the historical treasure they are.

ERNIE BALLARD

LSU Media Relations Director “I wasn’t able to get an internet connection in my bedroom, and my roommate took a shower and said we had no hot water,” Lowe said. “I had to leave my apartment to go to my friend’s house, but some students have nowhere to go.”

At around 5 p.m. Tuesday evening, Res Life sent an email to Nicholson Gateway residents about overnight housing options.

“We are not confident power will be completely and consistently restored to all of Nicholson Gateway before dusk,” the email read.

The email encouraged residents to seek alternate housing options for Tuesday evening.

LSU Housing offered temporary on-campus housing options that residents could apply for before

of the day, according to an email sent out by Res Life Wednesday morning.

At least one tree is down on campus, according to Ballard.

Ballard said Wednesday that there were still icy spots on sidewalks and roads.

Executive Director of Facility Services Tammy Millican said there was very little damage to campus facilities, but there is still work to be done.

“The biggest issues our staff are addressing at this time is removal of downed branches and ensuring that there are no slip hazards at building entrances,” Millican said.

When campus was closed Feb. 15, some students slid down the Indian Mounds in makeshift sleds, and one in a canoe.

The Indian Mounds are almost 6,000 years old, and could be more than 11,300 years old according to recent research by the LSU Geology Department.

The University has invested over $20,000 into researching the Indian Mounds, and the historical significance of the structures has led some students to suggest that the mounds be preserved by the University.

“Whether it’s people climbing them for ‘the view’ or children playing at tailgates, no one has any business damaging these structures, and there should be consequences put in place to discourage and prevent further disregard and damage to them,” LSU geography student Sara Pellegrin told TigerTV. LSU Native American Student Organization President LeighAnne Thompson authored a letter in response to the sledders.

“This blatant disregard of Native American heritage coupled with a lack of adequate signage and protection from the University is unacceptable,” Thompson wrote.

She asked the administration for “immediate funding of permanent and attractive fencing” around the Indian mounds to “ensure their protection.” She said there needs to be “appropriate signage” about the “significant historical value” of the Indian Mounds.

Thompson said NASO will host an open meeting to discuss “A History of the Misuse: The Story of the LSU Indian Mounds.” A letter template created by NASO for students interested in speaking to administrators about preservation of the Indian Mounds began circulating on Twitter.

“It is very disappointing to see people continue to walk on and slide down the Indian Mounds,” Ballard said. “We plan to continue educating people that the mounds are on the National Register, they are estimated to be nearly 6,000 years old — older than the Egyptian pyramids — and they should be respected for the historical treasure they are.”

LSU CAMPUS WILL REMAIN CLOSED FEB. 18.

ABBY KIBLER / The Reveille

Icicles hang off a fence Feb. 15 during the winter weather mix on N. Stadium Drive on LSU’s campus in Baton Rouge, La.

B-16 Hodges Hall Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, La. 70803

NEWSROOM (225) 578-4811

Editor in Chief BAILEY CHAUVIN Managing Editor LARA NICHOLSON Digital Editor BROCK SANDERS News Editor KATHERINE MANUEL Deputy News Editor NICK FREWIN Sports Editor NATASHA MALONE Deputy Sports Editor REED DARCEY Entertainment Editor ENJANAE’ TAYLOR Opinion Editor GRACE PULLIAM Production Editor JENNIE DELATTE Multimedia Editor ABBY KIBLER

ADVERTISING (225) 578-6090

Layout /Ad Design SARAH FRANCIONI Layout/Ad Design EMILY POOLE Layout/Ad Design SAMIRA AWAD

CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS The Reveille holds accuracy and objectivity at the highest priority and wants to reassure its readers the reporting and content of the paper meets these standards. This space is reserved to recognize and correct any mistakes that may have been printed in The Reveille. If you would like something corrected or clarified, please contact the editor at (225) 578-4811 or email editor@lsureveille.com.

ABOUT THE REVEILLE The Reveille is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication.

A single issue of The Reveille is free from multiple sites on campus and about 25 sites off campus. To obtain additional copies, please visit the Office of Student Media in B-39 Hodges Hall or email studentmedia@ lsu.edu. The Reveille is published biweekly during the fall, spring and summer semesters, except during holidays and final exams. The Reveille is funded through LSU students’ payments of the Student Media fee.

NEWS ABUSE AWARENESS

BY CAROLINE SAVOIE @carolinesavo Student Government’s new Sexual Violence Prevention Committee held its first committee meeting Feb. 10 and planned potential initiatives for the semester.

SVPC plans to draft school policies that reflect transparency and accountability in regard to sexual misconduct. Angelina Cantelli, deputy chief of staff, said that Texas schools like the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M have policies she’d like to implement at LSU. “In Texas, there is a state law that schools have to

switch alleged abusers out of classes with survivors,” Cantelli said. “We don’t have that in Louisiana. LSU is supposed to move survivors out of classes, but they haven’t been doing that anyway.”

She will meet with a lawyer at STAR, a Louisiana-based organization that supports survivors of sexual assault, to draft Louisiana state legislation that mimics Texas’s approach.

UT and Texas A&M have programs that send students an email every time a crime happens on campus, especially sexual assault.

She said programs like

see SVPC, page 4

SG’s new Sexual Violence Prevention Committee KRISTEN YOUNG / The Reveille

Protestors hold up signs Nov. 20, 2020 during the protest following the USA Today article about mishandled sexual misconduct cases at Tiger Stadium on North Stadium Road.

POLITICS

LSU College Republicans seeks to rebrand

BY JOSH ARCHOTE @JArchote When Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy voted to convict former President Donald Trump of inciting an insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6, the Louisiana GOP unanimously voted to censure him.

Blake Miguez, chair of the Republican Caucus in Louisiana, tweeted that Cassidy had lost most people who voted to re-elect him because of his decision. Another Louisiana GOP official called Cassidy a “senator without a party,” in an interview with The Advocate.

Cassidy joined six other Senate Republicans who crossed party lines and voted to convict Trump.

Meanwhile, Louisiana’s other U.S. Senator, John Kennedy,

voted to acquit the former president, calling the impeachment trial “political sport” and “unconstitutional.”

Cassidy, who voted with Trump 89% of the time according to the Advocate, refused to back down from his decision and said he believes more people will agree with him as more information comes out about the attack. He said that he may already represent what most Louisianans believe about Trump’s role in the attack on the Capitol in an interview on ABC. The inter-party debate between anti-Trump Republicans and those who have stayed loyal to the former president suggests a divided GOP after Trump’s presidency, both nationally and in Louisiana.

History junior Ben Smith,

LSU College Republicans’ new president, said the Jan. 6 insurrection was a wake-up call for some Republicans.

“We weren’t fully on board with a lot of [Trump’s] rhetoric, but there were policy things that we liked,” he said. “I think a lot of us told ourselves that rhetoric’s rhetoric - as long as we’re getting good policy out of it then it is what it is. Then, Jan. 6 showed actually rhetoric does matter.”

Now, with President Biden in office, Smith said he wants to see the GOP form more substantive solutions to issues the country faces.

“I think that the message our party is pushing right now is very incoherent,” he said. “It has different factions and different groups saying different things.”

Political science professor and faculty sponsor for College Republicans James Garand said inter-party debate on the left between moderates and progressives seems to be more ideological, while it’s more stylistic and rhetorical on the right.

“There are some policy elements to it,” he said. “You’ve got some people who are very dedicated to Donald Trump and you’ve got others who stick to principles related to free-market conservatism. Those principles didn’t always agree with what President Trump wanted to see.”

Smith recommended embracing the middleground, focusing on issues most, if not all, Republicans can get behind, such as helping the work-

see CONSERVATISM, page 4

page 3

Election dates, Tigercast plans

BY CAROLINE SAVOIE @carolinesavo Chief of Staff Patrick Cormier said SG “can’t wait” for Tigercast, a 12-hour livestream aimed at raising money for the Student Emergency Support Fund. The fund is allocated to students who face financial hardships. Cormier said the fund was allocated five times the amount of money it controlled before, which was around $100,000.

Tigercast is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 19 starting at 10 a.m.

He said SG pre-recorded some footage for the event, including a hot wing competition and a segment in which SG President Stone Cox gets a makeover.

“If we raise $5,000, Stone will shave his head,” Cormier said. “That’s some motivation right there.”

Students can tune in on LSU’s SG Facebook or TigerTV’s YouTube anytime between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. Friday, Feb. 19 to watch the event.

At the Senate meeting on Feb. 10, Election Commissioner Rehm Maham announced the spring election dates. Campaigns must have their tickets filed by Feb. 26, and the election will be held March 24.

Active campaigning is permitted four school days prior to the election: March 18, 19, 22 and 23.

The Sexual Violence Prevention Committee reached out to Residential Life, Women’s Tennis and Black Women’s Empowerment Initiative to recruit members to hold the three remaining committee seats.

On Feb. 12, the SG Department of Safety hosted a Coffee, Candy and Consent program at the LSU Library. Between classes, students stopped at the table and grabbed coffee and candy while discussing consent.

The third installment of SG’s spring drive-in movie series will feature “Love & Basketball” on the UREC fields. Students must pre-register online.

Thursday, February 18, 2021

page 4 CONSERVATISM, from page 3 ing class, ensuring fairness for Americans, combating the use of Americans’ private data by tech companies and combating China’s disregard for human rights.

As for College Republicans at LSU, Smith is taking over at a pivotal moment. The organization hasn’t been active on campus for a year and a half, and the political atmosphere it’s entering this semester is much different than when it was last active.

“We’re coming back in a totally different era,” Smith said.

“Last time we were active, it was a different world. That offers its challenges but also opportunities.”

Politics is not new for Smith, however.

He took a gap year in 2020 to work as the LAGOP’s legislative director from January to March and then communications and political director until October. At 20, he was one of the youngest senior staffers working in Louisiana politics at that time.

He has also worked on three political campaigns, including Cassidy’s in 2014, John Flem-

ing’s in 2016 and Scott McKnight’s in 2019.

Smith was president of College Republicans in 2019, meaning 2021 will be his second term.

“We’re not just going to be a group that stands in Free Speech Alley and hands out buttons and posters and koozies,” he said. “We’re going to be a group that’s working in the community, working in the legislature, working on campaigns and working with other LSU students to advance policies and ideas that are going to tangibly improve the lives of other people.”

Smith said College Republicans are in a rebuilding phase and that the organization will undergo a rebrand this semester.

“We’re going to be more focused on providing that positive vision, an optimistic argument for conservatism - not engaging in petty squabbles, the more charged negative rhetoric - but instead engaging in a much more positive dialogue that is collaborative and wants to get things done,” Smith said.

“We have to make sure it’s an organization that’s filled with people who actually want to do

positive things rather than just sit around and complain.”

Smith said the goal of the organization has not changed, however.

“It is promoting the ideals and values of the Republican Party on campus, getting Republicans elected at all levels of office, local Republicans [and] state Republicans,” he said.

The organization’s first major project this semester will be the Carter Initiative - renaming LSU’s tennis court after former state Rep. Steve Carter, who died from COVID-19 in January.

Carter coached tennis at LSU for over 20 years and was assistant athletic director for some time.

“We think it will be a great way to memorialize him,” Smith said. “We think he’s a great role model for pretty much all Louisiana students for his tremendous focus on early childhood education and his dedication to the students of this state and his fight to improve their lives - that mission is informing our mission. How can we today improve the lives of people here?”

Garand said there are much more similarities between more mainstream conservatives and

pro-Trump conservatives than there are differences. He hopes Smith and the rest of the organization can work to bridge that gap.

“I have hopes that Ben and other members of the College

COURTESY OF BEN SMITH

History junior Ben Smith, LSU College Republicans’ new president this semester.

SVPC, from page 3

KRISTEN YOUNG / The Reveille

Protestors march together Nov. 20, 2020 during the protest following the USA Today article about mishandled sexual misconduct cases at the LSU Parade Grounds.

KRISTEN YOUNG / The Reveille

Students pick up free pins, stickers and information about sexual assault resources Nov. 20, 2020 during the protest following the USA Today article about mishandled sexual misconduct cases at Tiger Stadium on North Stadium Road.

Republicans can have a more unifying influence,” Garand said. “I think Ben [Smith] is going to work hard to unify the Republican group on campus, but time will tell if that will be possible.”

these might not make students feel safer, but it will increase transparency and give an accurate depiction of how dire the issue is.

“It keeps a sense of transparency between the student body and the Title IX office,” Cantelli said. “I talked to [a Texas student] who said they get emails reporting sexual assault two or three times per week.”

The committee decided it will evaluate the Husch Blackwell investigation into allegations that the University mishandled sexual misconduct reports once it is released. The University hired Husch Blackwell law firm to conduct an independent investigation of the University’s handling of sexual assault cases.

“As soon as the report comes out, we need to have something ready to bring to administration laying out what they need to do next,” SG Director of Safety Abbie Grace Milligan said.

SG President Stone Cox said the report should be released in February or March. SVPC plans to meet with Husch Blackwell to open lines of communication about the investigation.

Several members of the committee have met with the law firm already, including Milligan, Cantelli and SG Vice President Hannah Barrios.

Milligan suggested the committee draft a policy statement regarding LSU Athletic Director Scott Woodward’s comments about Executive Deputy AD Verge Ausberry, who was accused of mishandling domestic violence reports.

Woodward told WAFB that Ausberry is a “very, very good employee in very, very good standing.”

“It’s the principle of the thing,” Milligan said. “He acted like no matter what the report says, Verge will have a job.”

Sophomore senator, Olivia Taylor, echoed her sentiment.

“Just because he has free speech doesn’t mean he won’t have consequences,” Taylor said.

In terms of recruiting members-at-large, students on the committee will reach out to LSU’s Black Women’s Empowerment Initiative, Women’s Tennis and Residential Life to fill the committee’s remaining three seats. They are considering recruiting a freshman who lives on campus as well.

“I know a lot of freshmen were talking about how they don’t feel safe in the dorms, so it would be valuable to get that perspective,” Cantelli said.

SVPC plans to invite guest speakers from Tigers Against Sexual Assault, the Title IX department and the international community at LSU to its future meetings.

Other committee members include junior Senator Harris Quadir, Speaker Pro Tempore Alex Basse, Senator Matt McClure and Director of Student Outreach Chandler Black.

SVPC will hold meetings Fridays at 3 p.m. in-person and on Zoom.

The University is under federal investigation for “safety practices” following several sexual assault complaints, according to The Advocate. The U.S. Department of Education will examine if LSU violated the Clery Act, which requires universities to report on-campus crimes and address sexual violence. The 1990 federal act aims for transparency within campus crime policies.

ENTERTAINMENT

page 5

GOLDEN GLOBES Top contenders and other nominees

BY EMMA JACKIMOWICZ @emmajackimowicz The nominees for the Golden Globes were finally announced Feb. 3, and now people are getting excited to see which movies and shows will duke it out this season. The ceremony will be held at The Beverly Hilton on Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. on NBC. In the motion picture drama category, “Mank,” “The Father,” “Promising Young Woman,” “Nomadland” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7” will go head-to-head for the big win. In the comedy and musical motion picture category, “Palm Springs,” “Prom,” “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” and “Hamilton” are the main contenders.

For television, “The Crown,” “The Mandalorian,” “Lovecraft Country,” “Ozark” and “Ratched” are the nominees for the drama category. “Emily in Paris,” “The Flight Attendant,” “The Great,” “Schitt’s Creek” and “Ted Lasso” are the top contenders for the musical and comedy category.

This year is especially monumental in the director’s category, as female directors dominated

the category. The female nominees include Regina King (“One Night in Miami”), Emerald Fennell (“Promising Young Woman”) and Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”). The male nominees include David Fincher (“Mank”) and Aaron Sorkin (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”).

Another special part of this year’s ceremony is the fact that Amy Poehler and Tiny Fey will be hosting the event, which they previously hosted for three consecutive years from 2013 to 2015.

Here are the nominees for some of the other big categories: Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama • Jason Bateman (“Ozark”) • Josh O’Connor (“The Crown”) • Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”) • Al Pacino (“Hunters”) • Matthew Rhys (“Perry Mason”) Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television • Cate Blanchett (“Mrs. America”)

MOVIE

TAXI DRIVER Martin Scorsese

I adore this timeless film. I do not need a surplus of action or to learn the meaning of life; I watch movies to be temporarily intrigued.

This movie constantly builds the main character up to give him a big ending. This is a formula that does not get old. The way time passes in the film keeps the audience informed but does not force too much information on them. It is not too long or rushed. The movie is well balanced.

Gideon Fortune @asapfortunate PERFORMANCE

SUPERBOWL HALFTIME SHOW

The Weeknd

Was it as huge or theatrical as some halftime performances in the past? No, but considering the craziness of the pandemic and everything else, I think The Weeknd killed this performance. This halftime show might have been the final push I needed to go see the singer when he comes to New Orleans next year on tour.

EnJanae’ Taylor @_queenet_ Read the full reviews online at lsunow.com/entertainment

• Daisy Edgar-Jones (“Normal People”) • Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”) • Nicole Kidman (“The Undoing”) • Anya Taylor-Joy (“The Queen’s Gambit”) Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy • Maria Bakalova (“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”) • Kate Hudson (“Music”) • Michelle Pfeiffer (“French Exit”) • Rosamund Pike (“I Care a Lot”) • Anya Taylor-Joy (“Emma”) Best Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture • Sacha Baron Cohen (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”) • Daniel Kaluuya (“Judas and the Black Messiah”) • Jared Leto (“The Little Things”) • Bill Murray (“On the Rocks”) • Leslie Odom, Jr. (“One Night in Miami”) Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy

• Lily Collins (“Emily in Paris”) • Kaley Cuoco (“The Flight Attendant”) • Elle Fanning (“The Great”) • Jane Levy (“Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist”) • Catherine O’Hara (“Schitt’s Creek”)

• “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” (Amazon Studios) • “Hamilton” (Walt Disney Pictures) • “Palm Springs” (Neon) • “Music” (Vertical Entertainment) • “The Prom” (Netflix)

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television • “Normal People” (Hulu/BBC) • “The Queen’s Gambit” (Netflix) • “Small Axe” (Amazon Studios/BBC) • “The Undoing” (HBO) • “Unorthodox” (Netflix)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy • Don Cheadle (“Black Monday”) • Nicholas Hoult (“The Great”) • Eugene Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”) • Jason Sudeikis (“Ted Lasso”) • Ramy Youssef (“Ramy”)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television • John Boyega (“Small Axe”) • Brendan Gleeson (“The Comey Rule”) • Dan Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”) • Jim Parsons (“Hollywood”) • Donald Sutherland (“The Undoing”)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television • Gillian Anderson (“The Crown”) • Helena Bonham Carter (“The Crown”) • Julia Garner (“Ozark”) • Annie Murphy (“Schitt’s Creek”) • Cynthia Nixon (“Ratched”)

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

REV R A N KS

Here’s the scoop on ‘The Dig’

BY AVA BORSKEY @iamavab

“If 1,000 years were to pass in an instant, what would be left of us?”

Netflix’s new original movie “The Dig” unearths questions of human mortality, while drawing a thought-provoking line through life, death and history to connect the past with the present and the future.

For a movie with such a focus on dirt, “The Dig” is anything but dry.

Based on the true story of the actual archeological digs at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, England, in 1939, “The Dig” follows Edith Pretty (Carey Mulligan), the wealthy widow of a property with numerous ancient burial mounds, and Basil Brown (Ralph Fiennes), the skilled yet officially untrained excavator hired to discover what was underneath.

“The Dig” opens with a quaint view of the English countryside.

Basil is first seen with his bicycle on a rowboat and then pedaling down a long gravel drive to an English manor.

Fiennes and Mulligan lead the cast as Basil and Mrs. Pretty, respectively. Joining the two are Lily James as Peggy Piggott, a female archeologist working at the site, and Archie Barnes as Robert Pretty, the young son of Mrs. Pretty who befriends many of the archeologists as he plays among the mounds.

There’s also British Museum representative Charles Phillips, played by Ken Stott, and James Reid Moir, the Ipswich Museum president played by Paul Ready, adding to tensions over an inquest concerning ownership of the archeological finds.

The only entirely fictional lead character is Mrs. Pretty’s cousin, photographer Rory Lomax, portrayed by Johnny Flynn.

The actual photographers of the historical site were Mercie Lack and Barbara Wagstaff, who

were unfortunately left out of the movie so that Rory could serve as both photographer and love interest in an artistic liberty romantic subplot.

Despite these discrepancies and some dramatization, “The Dig,” adapted from John Preston’s novel by the same name, does accurately portray the unearthing of the 90-foot-long skeleton of an Anglo-Saxon burial ship from the seventh century.

Called “Britain’s Tutankhamun,” the tomb underneath the mound is believed to have belonged to King Rædwald of East Anglia. Although this is not known for certain, several important artifacts with origins from across the world were recovered from the site, bringing light to the Dark Ages.

Nevertheless, just as the artifacts preserved the story of the Anglo-Saxons at Sutton Hoo, “The Dig” allows the stories of these archeologists to live on in a way that is both educational and entertaining.

Thursday, February 18, 2021

page 6

BY ABBY KIBLER

BY MATTHEW PERSCHALL

Ice-covered trees sand near the entrance to Cypress Hall.

Ice covers the ground outside of Lockett Hall.

BY MATTHEW PERSCHALL

Icicles hang from a fire hydrant by Kirby-Smith Hall.

Ice covers tree branches outside of Tiger Stadium.

page 7

BY ABBY KIBLER

Ice-covered trees by the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

Ice blankets LSU’s campus in record-breaking freeze over Mardi Gras weekend.

BY ABBY KIBLER

BY MATTHEW PERSCHALL

A truck covered with ice sits outside of Foster Hall.

Thursday, February 18, 2021

BY ABBY KIBLER

The Cox Communications building covered in ice.

Icicles hang off a street light on N. Stadium Drive.

BY ABBY KIBLER

BY ABBY KIBLER

Ice shrouds the exterior of Nicholson Gateway Apartments.

BY ABBY KIBLER

BY ABBY KIBLER

Ice-covered trees by the LSU track and field stadium.

A fallen tree pulled up concrete in the Quad.

BY ABBY KIBLER

An ice-covered car drives along Nicholson Drive.

Classifieds

Thursday, February 18, 2021

page 8

Now twice a week. To place your ad, visit www.lsureveille.com/classifieds and click Submit an Ad

Costs: $0.34 per word per day. Minimum $3.75 per day. Personals free for students

For Rent

Deadline: 12 p.m., three school days prior to the print publication date FOR RELEASE FEBRUARY 18, 2021

make a

splash with YOUR business!

Place your

classified

Condo in Capital Heights 2BR 2BA $1200/mo email leslie. smith3@gmail.com or call 225485-1523.

LARGE 1 BR APT! TIRED OF ROOMMATES? YOUR OWN 1 BR APT! WALK TO LSU! SMALL COMPLEX WITH MOST UPPER GRAD STUDENTS. 225 266-8666

Let Your Business Bloom

Place a Classified

LSUReveille.com

place a classified at

LsuReveille.com!

{ { HE RE

Place a classified at LSUReveille.com

Boil Up

Some Interest!

Place a Classified today!

LSUReveille.com

REEL IN SOME

business!

place a classified at

LsuReveille.com!

smawe’re the rte st Place a classified at LSUReveille.com

THE Daily Commuter Puzzle ACROSS 1 “Zip-a-Dee-__Dah” 4 Fur magnate John Jacob __ 9 Engrave 13 Hoover & Aswan 15 Kitchen appliance 16 Buck, bull or gander 17 __ milk; nonfat beverage 18 Profoundly wise folks 19 Test 20 Pick-me-up 22 Eyeglass lens holders 23 On a __; just for fun 24 Piece of wood 26 Foolhardy 29 Anatomy class prop 34 Arthritis symptoms 35 Not relaxed 36 Poe’s “The Murders in the __ Morgue” 37 Bounce off a cellphone tower 38 Queues 39 Spreadsheet figures 40 Night before a holiday 41 Inaccurate 42 Henry VIII’s house 43 Determined 45 WA’s Mount St. __ 46 Failure 47 Lunch or dinner 48 Thrilled 51 Symbol for “and” 56 Hit the ceiling 57 Chin whiskers 58 Well-__; knowledgeable 60 King toppers 61 Massive 62 Remove a word, for short 63 Most ideal 64 “Come in!”

65 Cereal grass

by Jacqueline E. Mathews

Created by Jacqueline E. Mathews

DOWN 1 Dentist’s letters 2 Live __; Georgia’s state trees 3 Fail to mention 4 Give confidence to 5 Follow stealthily 6 Old Roman robe 7 Microwave, e.g.

8 Antsy 9 Come forth 10 Hired vehicle 11 Boston __ chowder 12 Dress edges 14 Grinning 21 Cathedral service 25 Bullring bravo 26 Higher berth 27 Unsuspecting 28 Chianti & Chablis 29 Good judgment 30 Joint with a cap 31 Exchange 32 Go __ a limb; risk being wrong

2/18/21

Wednesday’s Puzzle Solved

©2021 Tribune Content Agency, LLC All Rights Reserved.

33 Gets closer to 35 Lean 38 Praiseworthy 39 Nincompoop 41 Common ailment 42 Pekoe & oolong 44 Most bizarre 45 Livestock tender 47 Highway sign

2/18/21

48 Snatch 49 Word attached to neck or shoe 50 Long periods 52 Hard-hearted 53 Portion 54 __-do-well 55 Actor Tim __ 59 Sandra or Ruby

SPORTS

page 9

‘THIS IS NOT FAILURE’ LSU gymnastics drops emotional meet to Florida

BY MORGAN ROGERS @morgan_rogers LSU Gymnastics Head Coach Jay Clark sat down for his postmeet interview after his team suffered a heartbreaking loss at home to the Florida Gators.

“It’s a shame anybody had to lose that one,” he said.

The showdown between No. 1 and No. 2 ended in heartbreak for Tiger fans inside the PMAC on Friday night. LSU fell in a tight race against Florida with a final score of 198.150198.050. The meet marked the two highest scores in the nation this season. It also marked the 14th time that LSU gymnastics has scored above 198 in school history.

“I’m so proud of our kids.

They fought toe to toe with probably one of the best Florida teams I’ve seen in a long time,” Clark said. “I have nothing but positive things to say about the way they fought and left it all out there tonight.”

Despite the loss, the Tigers proved that teamwork and dedication can rival those with a large array of raw talent any day. The Gators’ top contenders swiped all four titles of the night, but only managed to defeat LSU by a .100 lead. Top performances by nearly all the purple and gold gymnasts is what kept them in competition with

WOMEN’S GOLF

LSU women’s golf takes silver

BY JOE KEHRLI @joekehrli9

tocols, Sarah Edwards returned with a 9.25, her highest vault score this season. Kiya Johnson and Haleigh Bryant wrapped up the rotation with 9.50s. Johnson successfully landed her first double full this year, granting her a much higher score for this season. Bryant nailed a new ca-

The women’s golf team finished in second place at the Moon Golf Invitational. Three Tigers finished in the top 10 for lowest individual score.

The squad finished 18-under (846), six strokes behind South Carolina.

The star of the week was Latanna Stone, a native of Florida who recently hoisted the trophy at the Orlando International Women’s Amateur event in January. Stone was able to post subpar scores for all three rounds.

She finished round one 4-under, finished round two 3-under and finished round three 4-under. Her round on Tuesday was highlighted with an eagle, two birdies and two bogeys.

Dissecting her scorecard for all three rounds, she was able to capitalize on the 490-yard short par-5, ninth hole. On her first and second rounds, she rolled in birdies, and on her third round she was able to connect and roll in for an eagle (2-under par).

Stone also found success on other holes. She led the field of 93 competitors with an average

see GYMNASTICS, page 10

see WOMEN’S GOLF, page 10

CHYREN MCGUIRE/ The Reveille

LSU women’s gymnastics team gets hype Feb. 12, during LSU’s 198.150-198.050 defeat by Florida in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

Florida that night.

“There’s not a thing about this that’s a failure,” Clark chuckled. “It’s certainly not the end of anything. We know we’re going to see that team again down the line. No matter what, this meet will not be our final destination. We’ve got a lot more growth that we can give.”

The team opened the meet

strong with the highest vault score in the nation this year at 49.600. Chase Brock led the first run and Alyona Shchennikova followed with a huge launch.

Brock matched her career-high of 8.25 while Shchennikova claimed a new career record at 9.25.

After missing out on the meet in Auburn due to COVID-19 pro-

MEN’S GOLF

LSU men’s golf takes home fourth place at Gator Invitational

BY JOE KEHRLI @joekehrli9 On Saturday, LSU men’s golf completed the remaining six holes of Round Two from Friday and finished the 18 holes of Round Three to complete the Gator Invitational in Gainesville, Florida.

The tourney was slated to be a three-day event (18 holes a day), but mother nature ran her course. The squad came in fourth with a score of 21 under par (819), eight strokes behind Florida, the home team and the victors.

“Really solid start for our guys,” LSU Head Coach Chuck Winstead said. “We are just getting started, but I know that this group will improve as we move through the spring.”

After Round One scoring was completed on Friday afternoon, the field took back to the course and attempted to complete as many holes as possible, so play

would not be interrupted due to inclement weather on Saturday.

“It is definitely different to have the format of the event change,”senior Trey Winstead told the Reveille. “[Playing 30 holes in one day] is mentally tiring, being in a grind for that long. You don’t have a chance to sub out.”

The men’s golf team com-

“We are just getting started, but I know that this group will improve as we move through the spring.”

CHUCK WINSTEAD LSU Head Coach

pleted the 18 holes from Round One, finishing with a score of 10 under par, and then went on to complete 12 more holes before play was suspended due to

darkness on Friday night.

Following the 30 holes played on Friday, the Tigers were tied for third place with a score of 14-under par.

When play resumed on Saturday morning following a threehour rain delay, the momentum was with the Tigers. Trey Winstead and Junior Garrett Barber finished Round Two with sub-par scores of 4-under. Both Winstead and Barber rolled in an impressive seven birdies and carded three bogeys apiece.

Freshman Nicholas Arcement also had his sub-par score of 2-under par which was counted for Round Two. His round was highlighted with 14 pars, three birdies and one bogey.

Neither helping nor hurting the team for Round Two, following a low score for Round One, Connor Gaunt contributed an even par score.

On Saturday the forecast was

see MEN’S GOLF , page 10

COURTESY OF LSU ATHLETICS

Chuck (right) and Trey (left) , LSU golf’s father-son, coach-player duo, share a love of golf .

page 10 GYMNASTICS, from page 9 reer-high on vault as well.

LSU headed into the second rotation with a 9.925 seasonhigh by Johnson. Brock and Olivia Dunne followed with weaker-than-average scores for the two. Shchennikova and bars anchor Sami Durante picked up the pace with explosive 9.950s, matching their career-highs.

The team’s overall score in uneven bars was a season high and the second-highest score in the nation.

A look back at the half showed LSU with a .200 lead against Florida. Florida ended its first two rotations with a 49.400 on bars and 49.550 on vault. LSU, ranked seventh on vault, scored above the Gators who are No. 1 on vault. The Tigers also beat expectations when surpassing Florida on bars as well.

The finale of the meet would come down to the performances on beam and floor. The Gators sat at No. 1 on beam while LSU dominated the nation at No. 1 on floor.

Florida flipped a switch in the third rotation of the night.

The team pulled off its highest floor routine score of the season thanks to powerhouse Trinity Thomas, who earned her second 10 on floor this year. The next highest scores on floor came from gymnasts Nya Reed and Alyssa Baumann at 9.925 and 9.90.

“We came in knowing that those quarter of a tenths were going to be the difference,” said Florida Head Coach Jenny Rowland. “We’ve been working so hard in the gym for those little details – fighting for landings,

MEN’S GOLF, from page 9 not looking bright, but rather dark and wet for Sunday. The field would finish Round Three and complete the event on Saturday.

Winstead continued to find fairways and seek pins as he posted the lowest score for the Tigers in Round Three, finishing 3-under par. In his round, he connected with five birdies, two of which came from long par-5s and two from par-4s. In total Winstead would finish the tournament 9-under-par and tied for fourth for the lowest individual score. This is his highest finish for his senior season so far.

“I definitely scored the ball a little bit better,” Winstead said.

“We were focusing on us. We are just trying to get better, focusing on the present, the shot on hand.”

Gaunt was able to contribute to the team with a score of 1-under par. His collective score of 5-under par tied him for 18th with Barber.

Barber, a Florida native, finished his third round 1-overpar.

Arcement shot a 2-over-par 72 on Saturday. His collective score for the tournament, 2-under-par, tied him for 35th.

Thursday, February 18, 2021 fighting for handstands and fighting to stay present. Tonight there was so much fight all the way through to the very last dismount.”

The Gators’ success on floor did not shake the Tigers though, as they accomplished their highest beam score of the season at 49.550. Christina Desiderio matched her season-high 9.90 while Durante, Bridget Dean and Johnson all brought home 9.925s. Anchor Reagan Campbell struggled a bit this meet, putting up her lowest score of the season.

After the performance, Campbell realized her hip flexor injury would keep her from performing first on floor that night.

Without any hesitation, Clark put Dean in her leading position. Sophomore Johnson ended the night on beam and did not appear for the floor round. Despite not performing on her biggest strength, floor, her season highs on the remaining three rotations prove she may be ready for an all-around return soon.

Dean started the final rotation of the night with a 9.875 followed by a weaker score of 9.750 by Desiderio. Shchennikova and freshman Sierra Ballard swept the highest scores on floor for LSU at 9.925s. Louisiana’s own Ballard, after only performing once this season and scoring a mediocre 9.825 on floor, shocked viewers with her new career-high. Edwards followed with a score high enough to sustain the race with the Gators, who somehow managed to surpass themselves on beam and rake in a whopping 49.650.

The answer to the night’s match all came down to LSU’s leading freshman, Haleigh Bry-

ant. The gymnast went flawlessly into her first two runs of her routine until a stumble into her third pass caused her to fall out of her front double full. The Tigers’ hope for a 9.875 to win the meet seemed to vanish in that moment. This would mark Bryant’s first loss in the all-around.

“That kid is an incredible freshman,” Clark said. “She’s carried us a good portion of this season so far, and there’s no way she should feel any kind of disappointment. We win as a team and we lose as a team.”

“You can’t rely on one person every single time to get the score that you need,” Durante said. “It’s important for us to keep pushing even when that happens. That’s good for [Haleigh] to learn too. We don’t have to rely on her every meet, and it’s okay for her to make mistakes too.”

Florida did not underestimate LSU and packed a punch the whole way through. The team broke its own season high on beam and obtained the highest score on the floor this season at 49.550. Thomas took away every single title of the night and tied with Ellie Lazzari for the beam crown. Megan Skaggs was less than her usual consistent self, falling off balance beam and coming in last on the allaround. Thomas topped the allaround with an insane 39.900, tying her with four others for the fifth-highest score in NCAA all-around history.

“You score like that at a national championship….you’re going to win in most cases,” said coach Clark. “They should be proud. We have to go back to the gym and find those one percents that we can improve

Although LSU was not able to bring home gold, it found much success on the course over the two-day play period.

The squad collectively carded 58 birdies, four shy of Auburn who had the most in the field. It was able to capitalize on par-3s – among the field it was tied for first with Georgia for stroke average (2.99) and score (1-under-par) on the short holes.

Further, this marks the second time out of four events this year that a home team has won its hosted event: Vanderbilt at the Vanderbilt Legends and now Florida at the Gator Invitational.

Another note is that Arkansas placed in the top-three when it hosted the Blessings Invitational.

The Tigers will return home for an off week from competition. The following week, Feb. 26-28, the Tigers will host the LSU Invitational at the University Club in Baton Rouge. More information about the allowance of spectators and starting lineups will be posted as the date gets closer.

“We are definitely excited in hosting an event,” Winstead said. “We take a lot of pride in the course. We are very excited to defend our course. We are focusing on getting better each day and the results will come.”

WOMEN’S GOLF, from page 9 score of 3.82 and score of 5-under on par fours.

Stone and senior Kendall Griffin also topped the leaderboard for most birdies during the three-day event with 12 and 13, respectively.

Griffin, who has been producing low scores for the squad all year, tied for sixth with a score of 6-under. Her thirdround score of 3-under was highlighted with six birdies and

CHYREN MCGUIRE / The Reveille

LSU women’s gymnastics sophomore Kiya Johnson swells with emotion as she sticks her dismount Feb. 12. on, then get ready to go to Tuscaloosa.”

The Tigers will return to action to face Alabama at 7:30 p.m. CT Friday in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The meet will be streamed live on SEC Network+ for fans at home.

“We still have the SEC championship. We have another chance, and we’re going to use that to our advantage,” Durante said.

Although the LSU gymnasts are disappointed in the night’s loss, most of them are proud of the career-breaking success they found in their individual scores. If they have learned any-

thing from Friday’s meet, it’s that they have enough potential and ambition to triumph over Florida and every other team in the nation to finally win LSU’s first NCAA Gymnastics Championship.

“We’re every bit as confident as we were coming in,” Clark said. “We’re hurting a little bit, we’re disappointed. But we can look at it and the logic says this: we can beat that team. And we will.”

With the second-highest score in the country, LSU gymnastics is excited to see how the remainder of the 2021 season will unfold.

three bogeys.

Sophomore Ingrid Lindblad finished in ninth with a score of 4-under. On her third round she shot a 1-under. Lindblad sank five birdies and struggled on the par fives, bogeying three of four. She did not get off to the start she is accustomed to. She opened with a 1-over 73.

Freshman Carla Tejedo Mulet tied for 45th with a collective score of 4-over. Her third round was her lowest score, 1-under.

She rolled in four birdies and

three bogeys.

Junior Presley Baggett did not have her second or third round score counted. She tied for 66th with a collective score of 9-over.

The Tigers will trade the sunshine and palm trees of Melbourne, Fla., for the snow and ice of Baton Rouge. They will most likely hold indoor practices this coming week to prepare for their next tournament, Icon Invitation in Houston, Texas., on Monday, Feb. 22.

COURTESY OF WALT BEAZLEY

Ingrid Lindbland gets ready to tee off at the Blessings Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark, in October 2020.

OPINION

page 11

Current process to obtain game day tickets is unnecessary, needs reform FROM THE CRO’S NEST ELIZABETH CROCHET

@elizabethcro_

When I found out softball season was starting at the University last week, I was ecstatic. I did not get to attend any games last season, as it was cut short by COVID-19, so I was eager to get a ticket to the team’s home opener.

Then, I got an email from LSU Athletics listing the upcoming sporting events and how students would be able to attain tickets if interested. As I continued to read the email, I learned that only 50 student tickets would be available for each softball game — and they would be given out at the venue on a first come, first served basis.

I was bummed to hear this.

If you know me, you probably know I’m an avid sports fan. Softball season is one of my favorite times of the year. Perhaps I am biased because I played the sport for 15 years, but it is truly underrated.

I understand the University’s obligation to do everything it can to keep attendees safe, but 50

tickets is a harsh limit, especially for an outside event.

But that’s not my main problem. If that is the capacity limit, then so be it. What I really question is the method put in place for students to get athletic tickets.

Tickets are limited, so if a student wants one, they know they have to arrive to the game early to get it. The email stated the ticket booth would open an hour before the game starts.

That means there will be a bunch of people gathered in a relatively packed area, waiting and hoping to get tickets.

The whole point of not letting too many people into the park is for social distancing purposes, yet people can gather together before the game to receive their ticket.

During football season, the student ticket process was handled much differently. Students indicated the games they would most like to attend, then received an email if they were allotted a ticket, which would be accessible on their cell phone. All students had to do was show up with their tickets and walk in. This method was simple, orderly, safe and

time-efficient.

I don’t know why, but someone decided it needed to be changed. I am aware football is a much bigger sport with a bigger stadium and the lottery system used for football is probably not necessary for other sports.

However, that does not mean we should throw the entire process out the door.

I think it would be smart to have an online system where tickets become available for a game at a certain time, and whichever students are able to sign up first are granted the tickets.

This way, you do not have students waiting for hours outside the Pete Maravich Assembly Center or Tiger Park just to be declined a ticket because the stadium reached its COVID-19 capacity. With a new and improved system, students would be able to know ahead of time whether they would get into the game.

The current system might deter students from attending games because they think it is a waste of time to wait hours to possibly get a ticket. These athletes train all year for their seasons, so the least the University

can do is provide a more effective way of allowing students to watch them play.

Elizabeth Crochet is a 19-yearold political communication sophomore from New Orleans.

SAVANNA ORGERON / The Reveille

LSU sophomore outfielder Savannah Stweart (8) waits for the pitch during the Tigers’ 8-4 loss against Duke on Feb. 12 at Tiger Park.

Outside of New Orleans, Mardi Gras is heavily misunderstood EVAN ON EARTH EVAN LEONHARD @evan_leonhard What comes to mind when you think of Mardi Gras?

For millions of people around the country, the iconic New Orleanian holiday is nothing less than a glorified rave, an explosion of hedonistic chaos that engulfs the city for a few days every year.

Tune into any movie, TV show or media outlet that involves or reports on the holiday and you will probably get this image: New Orleans as the drunken, wild Las Vegas of the south, x-rated through and through. It is not for the faint of heart and certainly, under no circumstances, should you bring children.

However, ask a local and you will likely get a much different answer.

As this year’s exceptionally abnormal Carnival season comes to an end, I would like to reflect

on the holiday’s true cultural significance and, on behalf of all my fellow native New Orleanians, defend it against the philistine outsiders who endlessly misunderstand it.

Having grown up in New Orleans, this issue of Mardi Gras’ national misrepresentation is one that has come up for me almost every year around this time.

As a kid I was forced to listen as adults muttered on and on about how the rest of the country simply “didn’t get” the holiday and relayed stories about obscure out-of-towners who were apparently scandalized by the local revelry.

In many ways, this piece is a summary of all those childhood rants. Annoyed New Orleanians have been complaining about this topic for so long that there is little left to say that has not already been bemoaned in the streets on Mardi Gras day.

It seems to me that the central cause of all this misinterpretation is a fundamental misunderstanding about what the holiday truly

means with respect to tradition and the city’s common sense of community.

This is probably rather surprising for some to hear, but, at its core, Mardi Gras is truly a family-oriented holiday.

Growing up, I rarely missed the season. The couple of weekends preceding Fat Tuesday were spent on the parade route surrounded by family and friends, yelling down floats from dawn till dusk.

People of all ages, from newborns to the elderly, can be seen on the streets, often carrying longstanding traditions that have developed a common Mardi Gras experience spanning generations. There is something so wholesome about that.

Of course, if you were to look in the right places, the stereotypical, x-rated pandemonium depicted in mainstream media does exist and is certainly a legitimate aspect of the carnival experience for some people.

However, this is a rather limited phenomenon and is, in all

honesty, mostly a tourist-oriented response to the Dionysian tone of national discourse about Mardi Gras.

I have ridden in a major Mardi Gras parade for six years, and I can assure you that, when looking out into the miles upon miles of eager parade goers, I see nothing that even closely resembles

Bailey Chauvin Lara Nicholson Katherine Manuel Nick Frewin Grace Pulliam

Editor in Chief Managing Editor News Editor Deputy News Editor Opinion Editor

Evan Leonhard is a 20 yearold English and philosophy sophomore from New Orleans.

ABBY KIBLER / The Reveille

A tiger stuffed animal sits with beads around its neck Feb. 10 during the LSU Student Activities Board Mardi Gras Mambo event in front of the Student Union on LSU’s campus in Baton Rouge, La.

Editorial Policies and Procedures EDITORIAL BOARD

hedonistic chaos.

Rather, I see thousands of families and friends gathered together to celebrate life and participate in a generations-old tradition.

The Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, The Reveille or the university. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to opinion@lsureveille.com or delivered to B-39 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must provide a contact phone number for verification purposes, which will not be printed. The Reveille reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration while preserving the original intent. The Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author. Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Reveille’s editor in chief, hired every semester by the LSU Student Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.

Quote of the Week “The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.”

Philip Siekevitz Biologist 1918 — 2009

Thursday, February 18, 2021

page 12

Sen. Cassidy’s Cancer Alley denial a disservice to constituents SULLY’S SCOOP CLAIRE SULLIVAN @sulliclaire In a speech following the signing of several environmental executive orders, President Joe Biden said he aimed to help “the hard-hit areas like Cancer Alley in Louisiana or the Route 9 corridor in the state of Delaware.”

Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy hit back against the president’s statement, calling his use of the term Cancer Alley “a slam upon our state” and going on to say that “propagating the myth of Cancer Alley is not only dangerous but is an affront to the people of our great state who work tirelessly to make the industry cleaner, safer and more efficient on a daily basis.”

Cassidy also denies the industry’s role in delivering Louisiana the second-highest rate of cancer and fifth-highest rate of cancer mortality in the nation, instead attributing these rankings to “lifestyle choices.”

Cassidy, a medical doctor whose specialty is in gastroenterology, fails to acknowledge the very real, very shocking statistics associated with the river communities in this region.

Cancer Alley, also nicknamed Death Alley by some residents and activists, refers to the petrochemical belt that stretches from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. The region holds a troubled history of environmental racism and loosely regulated pollution.

Around the 1950s, local politicians pushed Louisiana toward industry, anxious to turn the economic fortunes of the state. These new petrochemical plants were, by no mistake, built in predominantly Black communities.

As written by Foundation for Louisiana President and CEO Flozell Daniels, Jr.:

“There are disproportionate deaths in African-American communities inherently linked to historic environmental injustice. Industry pollution has historically been permitted to function in African-American communities.”

One of the most affected areas is St. John the Baptist Parish, which contains the Denka-Dupont plant.

This plant produces the synthetic rubber neoprene and releases large amounts of a chemical known as chloroprene, a likely human carcinogen according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

In St. John Parish, chloroprene levels are 40 times the EPA’s acceptable level, and the cancer risk is an appalling 800 times the EPA’s target, making it the highest cancer risk in the entire United States.

One day, EPA chemical readings showed levels of chloroprene 765 times the acceptable level. Tests of local schools have regularly shown chloroprene levels dozens of times the appropriate limit. In fact, the five highest-risk areas of cancer in the nation are all located in St. John Parish.

While Dupont publicly claims the chloroprene release poses no risk to the community’s health, an internal memo shows that the company was aware of the chemical’s lethal and toxic effects in 1941, 69 years before it would be declared a likely human carcinogen by the EPA. Residents were rightfully outraged by these findings, wondering how the Denka-Dupont plant could be allowed to exceed the 0.2 micrograms per cubic meter limit so easily.

When asked why this was the case, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality simply responded that this number was just a “guidance,” and not “an emissions limit.” In other words, this corporation’s gross polluting of St. John Parish is perfectly legal, unchecked by the state and federal

government.

St. Gabriel, a predominantly Black city in Iberville Parish, has also felt the impact of pollution. A hospital receptionist there shared with ProPublica that out of every 10 houses in the city, there were one to two cancer deaths. Residents reported the nighttime chemical release leaves birds dead and coats lawns in yellow mist.

And as much as proponents of industry like to claim that the economic benefits outweigh environmental concerns, the actual residents of St. Gabriel saw little of these supposed gains.

A 1995 survey found that less than 9% of plant employees were from the community itself, the rest made of outside hires. One resident remarked to ProPublica: “We thought we’d get better jobs, but they brought their own people here. They’d say we can’t pass their tests; that we’re on drugs.”

Today, poverty is a persistent issue in St. Gabriel Parish, and environment-related health concerns remain top of mind for many residents.

The consequences of this air pollution have become even more severe with the onslaught of the pandemic. St. John Parish has some of the highest COVID-19 death rates in Louisiana; in April, it had the highest COVID-19 death rate per capita in the nation.

Environmental factors contribute to the disproportionate COVID-19 infection and mortality of Black Americans. In fact, researchers have argued that chronic exposure to air pollution should be classified as a high-risk factor for COVID-19.

Much more research needs to be done in the communities that occupy the region known as Cancer Alley, especially since industry powers use this lack of research to suggest that there is no problem at all.

Industry allies, including Cassidy, have turned to the state’s tumor registry as an attempt to dismiss health concerns linked to petrochemical plants. But the census tracts used to aggregate the registry isn’t the best metric to go by, considering these areas vary in size and emission levels, and privacy limits prevent the publishing of information in less populated areas like St. Gabriel Parish, meaning there are gaps in the data.

Attempting to say that the tumor registry avails industry of any wrongdoing is simply inaccurate.

Meanwhile, the data made available by the EPA over the last number of years shows cause for great concern.

This data shows that petrochemical plants in Louisiana have been allowed to pollute communities, especially low-income and Black communities, for decades with little consequence.

It also shows that pollution puts exposed residents at unique risk for cancer, respiratory illness and now COVID-19. So why, then, is Cassidy determined to place the sole blame of Louisiana’s cancer crisis on its residents?

Questionable intent lurks behind Cassidy’s outright dismissal of industry’s role in the state’s health outcomes. For his 2020 reelection campaign, the senator raised over half a million dollars from the oil and gas industry, with $226,800 of that coming from PACs. In fact, more than 88% of all funding for his campaign came either from PACs or large individual contributions. Put simply, Cassidy is not funded by the low-income communities disproportionately impacted by the pollution he rejects.

Cassidy is being financed by industry, and Louisiana residents are paying the price. This state deserves leaders that stand up to corrupt corporate powers, not ones that parrot their talking points. To

ignore the obviously well-founded concerns of his constituents is a severe disservice.

President Biden recognizing the existence of Cancer Alley is not “a slam upon our state” or an “affront,” as Cassidy claimed. What is very much so, however, is the senator’s determination to let the corporations polluting Louisiana communities off the hook.

Claire Sullivan is an 18-year-old coastal environmental science freshman from Southbury, CT.

ABBY KIBLER / The Reveille

Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy listens to Vice President Mike Pence speak about coronavirus on Tuesday, July 14, 2020 during his press conference with local officials at Tiger Stadium.

COVID-19 testing raffle a waste of resources and energy SPILL THE TEA WITH MARIE MARIE PLUNKETT @MarieC_214 This semester, the University instituted outrageously expensive and under-advertised raffles as a COVID-19 testing incentive.

Despite promising more information on this practice at the beginning of the semester, the University has yet to formally notify students of the actual details of the raffle.

The University’s COVID-19 testing webpage says that students who take advantage of on-campus testing will be entered into a raffle, but no information is given about how or when this will happen, or who takes up the students’ names in order to select winners.

I emailed the Division of Strategic Communications after sev-

eral laborious minutes of scrolling through contact info on the University’s webpage. I received no reply, not even an offhanded redirect to a different department.

I have been able to find no new or more detailed information about how the University is conducting the raffles or which locations students should go to be tested in order to be eligible for the raffle.

The first round of winners has already been chosen. The announcement came as a surprise to many, including psychology and communications studies junior Gaby Welling, who received one of the raffle prizes.

Welling was tested in Coates Hall one day after class and, despite never being told she’d been entered into a raffle, later received an email informing her she won an Apple Watch.

I am all for incentivizing students to get tested – in fact, I’m in

favor of just making testing mandatory to begin with – but the University’s raffle plan is poorly planned and overly extravagant. The whole fiasco just makes the University seem out of touch with its students.

Students don’t need a slight chance of winning an expensive smart watch, they need real financial aid. Instead of purchasing Apple products and giving away $500 Barnes and Noble gift cards, the University should be assessing student financial needs and offering support to those whose academic careers are being put on hold in order to make ends meet.

Clearly, the University has not truly assessed the needs of its student body and isn’t even well enough coordinated to accurately advertise and implement a testing incentive program.

In light of the recent national bad press the University got for covering up rape allegations, ad-

ministration should be doing everything in its power to make students feel cared for — and to make internal affairs seem efficient and well managed.

Which, in case anyone was wondering, isn’t going to happen

just by handing out Apple products and ignoring the actual issues on campus.

Marie Plunkett is a 21-year-old classical studies senior from New Orleans.

MATTHEW PERSCHALL/ The Reveille

A COVID-19 testing sign stands on Jan. 25 in front of the LSU Union Theater.