The Harvard Crimson - Volume CXLVI, No. 89

The Harvard Crimson THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873 | VOLUME CXLVI, NO. 89 | CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS | TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

EDITORIAL PAGE 8

EDITORIAL PAGE 8

SPORTS PAGE 10

Harvard College should scrap its event moderation policy.

Harvard should welcome more international students.

Cross Country finds success at Beantown meet.

City Greenlights Harvard-Allston Task Force Meets Cannabis Sales

By RUTH A. HAILU

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

lar cannabis industry.”

Councilor Craig A. Kelley said he appreciates the “good faith efforts” made by all parties in the debate, and that the law, though flawed, is a positive step.

“I think the state gave us a law that was imperfect, and history gave us a series of horrible things that are worse and imperfect, and we all are trying to do our best to bring us to a better place,” he said. “This isn’t where I would have gone, but certainly, I think it’s better than it would have been.”

Though Massachusetts legalized the use of marijuana in 2016, Cambridge did not consider legislation on whether businesses can sell the drug for recreational use until earlier this year.

In recent months, the debate has focused on two proposed amendments — one by Siddiqui and Zondervan and the other by Simmons — to the permitting ordinance.

Siddiqui and Zondervan’s amendment advocates for imposing a two-year moratorium on the opening of recreational

A llston residents and Harvard administrators met Monday night to discuss the state of current University projects on the Boston side of the Charles River, including the construction of the Enterprise Research Campus, which prompted heated discussion from audience members.

The Harvard-Allston Task Force, a neighborhood advisory body for issues related to Harvard’s institutional projects in Allston, convened the meeting to discuss the University’s annual report on its cooperation agreements with the City of Boston and how those partnerships have affected the city.

The majority of the report centered around the Harvard Ed Portal — now five years old — which provides programming and resources to Allston residents and gained 530 new members this year.

Programming areas include arts and culture, workforce development, health and wellness programs, and public school partnerships.

Harvard representatives also updated attendees on ongoing construction projects,

SEE CANNABIS PAGE 7

SEE ALLSTON PAGE 7

­

By DECLAN J. KNIERIEM CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Cambridge City Council passed legislation Monday night that lights the way for recreational marijuana businesses to open in Cambridge.

The council voted 7-0 in favor of the “Cannabis Business Permitting Ordinance,” with Councilors E. Denise Simmons and Timothy J. Toomey, Jr. abstaining. Due to the approval of an amendment by Councilors Sumbul Siddiqui and Quinton Zonervan last week, the legislation will prioritize granting permits to those from historically marginalized groups, including women, minorities, and those who have been impacted by the war on drugs.

Before the vote, Siddiqui praised the measure as an effective way to fight inequity.

“The country’s racist war on drugs has heavily impacted and criminalized black and brown folks,” she said. “It’s our collective responsibility to do the best we can to fight [for] policies that provide equitable access to the wealth and opportunity inherent in this emerging billion dol­

The Allston Task Force discusses the future of the city’s development, particularly Harvard’s proposed plans meant to protect against the effects of global warming. NAOMI S. CASTELLON-PEREZ—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

HUHS Begins Flu Vaccine Campaign

IOP Panelists Talk Labor Advocacy

By JAMIE S. BIKALES CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Leaders from the National Domestic Workers Alliance discussed the importance of domestic workers’ contributions to the future of the labor movement at an Institute of Politics event Monday evening.

Ai-jen Poo, co-founder and executive director of NDWA, and Palak Shah, the group’s social innovations director, spoke at the event, titled “The Future of the American Labor Movement.”

Brittany Butler, executive director of the Kennedy School’s Social Innovation and Change Initiative, moderated the conversation, which covered topics ranging from workers’ rights to intersectionality.

The Poo and Shah started by connecting issues facing domestic workers to the labor force as a whole.

Legally, domestic workers ­

cannot unionize or bargain, but Poo helped found NDWA in 2007 to advocate for their labor protections.

Domestic workers — who are largely women and people of color — hold up society “behind the scenes” as nannies, house cleaners and caretakers, Poo said.

“It’s so important, and yet it is some of the most vulnerable and undervalued work in our entire economy,” she said.

“The overwhelming number of workers are working in poverty or on the brink of poverty, without access to a safety net, without benefits, without job security, without a path to career advancement.”

Shah said that domestic workers are particularly equipped to be leaders in the labor movement going forward because more laborers are facing conditions domestic

SEE LABOR PAGE 7

By MICHELLE J. KURILLA CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

7,578

7,419

By MICHELLE J. KURILLA CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

5,485

5,755

5,000

4,000

3,000

2,000

1,000

Class of 2019

Class of 2020

Class of 2021

Class of 2022

CAMILLE G. CALDERA—CRIMSON DESIGNER

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Harvard Today 2

News 7

Editorial 8

Last year’s Harvard Law School application increase may not be a one-off — the high application numbers have stuck around for another cycle.

The Law School received 7,419 applications for the juris doctor Class of 2022, compared to 7,578 applications from the Class of 2021, and the 5,755 applications it received from the Class of 2020.

Of the 7,419 applicants, 12 percent were accepted.

Though application numbers are down 2.1 percent from last year, the number of applicants to Harvard Law remains significantly higher than in years past — last year saw a 32 percent increase over the previous year.

During the application cycle following the 2016 election, there was a nationwide 8.3 percent spike in law school applications that led some experts to ­

5,207

Class of 2018

SEE LAW PAGE 7

SEE HEALTH PAGE 7

Law School Matches 2018 Applications

7,000

6,000

dub the trend a “Trump Bump” in response to President Donald Trump’s election.

In 2018, Harvard Law School Assistant Dean for Admissions and Chief Admissions Officer Kristi L. Jobson said she thought that Harvard Law admission’s spike had less to do with the national increase and more to do with Harvard-specific initiatives.

“We don’t attribute the 32 percent increase that we saw to a parallel to the national increase because it was much higher,” Jobson said at the time.

“We think that our office has engaged in a systematic strategy in knocking down barriers to legal education.”

Starting in 2018, Law School applicants were able to apply with the GRE test instead of the traditional LSAT if they chose.

The Law School also added video interviews as part of their

Ai-Jen Poo, the co-founder of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, and Palak Shah, the founding director at NDWA, discuss domestic work as the original “gig economy” at the IOP. CAMILLE G. CALDERA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Number of Applications to Harvard Law School 8,000

Harvard University Health Services will provide vaccination coping strategies to students and collaborate directly with the Harvard Athletics Department in an effort to increase the undergraduate flu vaccination rate by at least 20 percent, according to HUHS Senior Director of Nursing and Health Promotion Maria Francesconi.

The new initiatives will be part of this year’s iteration of the HUHS flu vaccine campaign, which begins Sept. 30.

Francesconi said in an interview that roughly half of College students are vaccinated against the flu each year. “[We’ve] held steady for about the last five years where we’re getting about half the undergraduates,” Francesconi said. “The Harvard community itself had a slightly higher rate of influenza-like illness last year than what we saw in the rest of the country.”

HUHS has vaccinated around 3,000 undergraduates each year through their walk-in and dining hall clinics, according to HUHS Infection Control Surveillance Officer Donna Campbell.

Though the walk-in clinics are open to all Harvard affiliates — students, faculty, employees, and retirees — the dining hall clinics are geared toward undergraduates.

In addition to encouraging the general student population to get vaccinated, HUHS is also targeting the Harvard Athletics Department for the first time by reaching out to coaches and holding vaccination clinics for athletes.

“We’re doing some work with Athletics to really target the athletes — athletes, in and of themselves — because they spend so much time in tight quarters,” Francesconi said.

“If they do get it it can run very quickly through teams.”

To encourage more students to participate, HUHS will ­

Sports 10

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |

SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

PAGE 2

HARVARD TODAY

For Lunch Butter Chicken Pork Sausage Sub Palak Paneer

For Dinner Rotisserie Chicken Tonkatsu Savory Baked Tofu

TODAY’S EVENTS The Ethics of the Next Million Years Austin Hall, 4:30-5:30 p.m.

IN THE REAL WORLD Trump Prioritizes Religious Freedom Over Climate Change in U.N. Talks

Feeling like your life could use some more philosophy? Head to Austin Hall 101 to hear Associate Professor Will MacAskill speak about the ethics of the future and why our impact on the years to come should be the highest moral priority of today. He’ll be giving advice on how to choose a career that will maximize long-term positive impact.

President Trump spoke out against religious persecution and crimes against faith, calling it an “urgent moral duty” of world leaders to stop them.

Although it was not on his agenda, Trump attended the panel on climate for 15 minutes, stressing the individual responsibilities of countries to ensure clean air and water for themselves.

American Soldier Allegedly Leaks BombMaking Instructions and Plan to Bomb a News Network Online

Health Promotion Open House 3:30-6:30 p.m., Smith Campus Center The Center for Wellness and Health Promotion will be bringing different health resource offices together tomorrow in the Smith Campus Center. It’s a great chance to learn about the health education resources available to undergraduates. Plus, you’ll be able to enjoy perks like fruit, a massage, and other snacks and crafts.

Think Like a Magician 4:15 p.m., Knafel Center Part magic trick demonstration, part inspirational talk, this event with magician Joshua Jay at the Knafel Center will be sure to impress you.

He’ll be doing magic tricks and discussing how the thinking that magicians employ to create them can be applied to the rest of our lives.

The “Concert for One” installation in Science Center Plaza brings one musician and one listener together for a private performance. MYEONGSEO KIM—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

DAILY BRIEFING Allston residents and Harvard administrators met Monday night to discuss the state of current University projects on the Boston side of the Charles River — including the construction of the Enterprise Research Campus, which prompted heated discussion from audience members. The HarvardAllston Task Force, a neighborhood advisory body for issues related to Harvard’s institutional projects in Allston, convened the meeting to discuss the University’s annual report on its cooperation agreements with the City of Boston and how those partnerships have affected the city. In other news, Cambridge City Council passed legislation Monday night that lights the way for recreational marijuana businesses to open in Cambridge.

Private First Class Jarrett W. Smith, a U.S. Army soldier stationed in Kansas, allegedly posted bomb-making instructions online and revealed plans to attack far-left activists and a news network. He has been charged with distributing information relating to explosives and weapons of mass destruction.

Hundreds Detained After Rare AntiCorruption Protests in Egypt

Some protesters have gone missing following a protest against government corruption that began Friday night in Cairo, Alexandria, and other cities.

Almost 500 people have reportedly been detained on charges of spreading fake news and protesting without permission, although authorities have yet to release the official number of arrests.

AROUND THE IVIES COLUMBIA Columbia administrators announced they will continue bargaining with unionized graduate students despite a proposed rule calling their status as eligible workers into question, the Columbia Spectator reported. The university agreed to bargain in good faith with the Graduate Workers of Columbia - United Automobile Workers last November following a years-long battle with the union that saw both extended legal arguments and a brief strike. The two parties began negotiations in February and have yet to complete their first contract.

PRINCETON

A major Princeton, N.J. road will close for construction, potentially impacting traffic to the university, the Daily Princetonian reported. The project on Alexander Road is slated to begin in November with the goal of improving Princeton’s bus service, widening the road’s shoulders, and replacing two old bridges. The University put $250,000 toward the project at the design stage.

PENN

University of Pennsylvania graduate students’ hopes of unionizing were dashed after the National Labor Relations Board announced it would change its position on the status of academic workers, the Daily Pennsylvanian reported. Unlike counterparts at Harvard and Columbia, Graduate Employees Together - University of Pennsylvania did not successfully hold an authorization election or win recognition from administrators, placing it in a precarious position under the Trump-era NLRB.

THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873

The Harvard Crimson Kristine E. Guillaume President Angela N. Fu Managing Editor Charlie B. Zhu Business Manager

STAFF FOR THIS ISSUE

Associate Managing Editor Jamie D. Halper ’20

Arts Chairs Kaylee S. Kim ’20 Caroline A. Tsai ’20

Design Chairs Elena M. Ramos ’20 Akhil S. Waghmare ’20

Associate Business Manager Amy E. Zhou ’20

FM Chairs Norah M. Murphy ’20 Abigail L. Simon ’20

Multimedia Chairs Kathryn S. Kuhar ’20 Kai R. McNamee ’21

Editorial Chairs Jessenia N. Class ’20 Robert Miranda ’20

Blog Chairs Lorenzo F. Manuali ’21 Trula J. Rael ’21

Technology Chairs Nenya A. Edjah ’20 Theodore T. Liu ’20

Night Editor Andrew J. Zucker ’20

Design Editor Camille G. Caldera ’22

Assistant Night Editors Shera S. Avi-Yonah ’21 Declan J. Knieriem ’22

Photo Editor Naomi S. Castellon-Perez ’22

Story Editors Angela N. Fu ’20 Jamie D. Halper ’20 Michael E. Xie ’20

Editorial Editor Shireen Younus ’20 Sports Editor Matthew Mu ’20

Sports Chairs Joseph W. Minatel ’21 Henry Zhu ’20

Copyright 2019, The Harvard Crimson (USPS 236-560). No articles, editorials, cartoons or any part thereof appearing in The Crimson may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the President. The Associated Press holds the right to reprint any materials published in The Crimson. The Crimson is a non-profit, independent corporation, founded in 1873 and incorporated in 1967. Second-class postage paid in Boston, Massachusetts. Published Monday through Friday except holidays and during vacations, three times weekly during reading and exam periods by The Harvard Crimson Inc., 14 Plympton St., Cambridge, Mass. 02138 Weather icons made by Freepik, Yannick, Situ Herrera, OCHA, SimpleIcon, Catalin Fertu from flaticon.com is licensed by CC BY 3.0.

CORRECTIONS The Harvard Crimson is committed to accuracy in its reporting. Factual errors are corrected promptly on this page. Readers with information about errors are asked to e-mail the managing editor at managingeditor@thecrimson.com.

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 24, 2019 | PAGE 3

ARTS

.

A Wing of Her Own:

‘Women Take the Floor’ Opens at the MFA

THE WEEK IN ARTS

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TUESDAY LARA PRESCOTT PRESENTS THE SECRETS WE KEPT Prescott tells the story of two individuals disseminating Doctor Zhivago during the Cold War. Harvard Bookstore. 7 p.m. Free.

GABRIELLA M. LOMBARDO CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

“Women Take the Floor,” a new exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, surveys the past century of American art created by women, featuring contemporary artists alongside icons like Frida Kahlo and Georgia O’Keeffe through the lens of modern-day feminism. The museum has reinstalled the entire third floor of its Art of the Americas Wing in an effort to challenge the dominant — masculine — narrative of art history from 1920 to today.

At first glance, an undertaking of such scope seems far too big and broad to sequester in any one wing of a museum.

Over the course of 100 years and some 200 works of art, it at first appears that once again, women artists were to be cloistered off, unified only by their gender. But “Women Take the Floor” is a delightfully different mode of women-only display: It manages to celebrate each artist’s individuality while at the same time forging rewarding connections between them. While the exhibit is certainly broad in scope, it also pays passionate attention to the ties that bind together women of radically different backgrounds, from disparate moments in history. The result is a curatorial feat well worth the visit.

On view through May 2021, the time is ripe for “Women Take the Floor.” 2020 marks both the MFA’s 150th birthday and the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment. This singular temporal junction alone dictates that the exhibit will do both cultural and political work, placing women artists at the center of the museum’s birth year celebration of the arts, as well as tracking their development from the year of suffrage until today.

Drawn primarily from the MFA’s collection, the art featured in the takeover ranges from painting and sculpture to textiles and video. The works are organized into several galleries, each one devoted to a particular medium or theme. “No Man’s Land” catalogues six women artists’ reimaginings of landscapes, highlighting how their works communicated with male-dominated movements such as surrealism. Georgia O’Keeffe’s 1936 painting “Deer’s Skull with Pedernal” combines a skeletal object and a vast landscape with a relish of the uncanny. Just a wall away, Doris Lindo Lewis’s erotic exploration of the female body as landscape in her 1934 “Mamscape” responds to the male surrealists’ penchant for incorporating the sexualized female form in their works.

There are also galleries that spotlight alternative media, like the fiber art collection “Beyond the Loom,” which co-opts a medium traditionally associated with women’s domestic work. Certainly not to be found in the home, these large-scale weavings are sculptural testaments to the pioneering women artists who, in the ’60s and ’70s, redefined textiles as modern art.

A highlight of the exhibit is the stunning “Women Publish Women” gallery devoted to three women whose innovative techniques in lithography and silkscreen lifted American printmaking out of the commercial realm and into the world of fine art. Without the aid of male artworks, the collection tells a unique story of a particular time and medium in American art. Of course, it is well worth noting the contributions that male printmakers made to the field during this time in order to get the full picture. Zeroing in on an oft-overlooked subset of printmakers, however, makes that picture suddenly much more vibrant: Sometimes the full story of an artistic movement can only be described after one remarkable thread of that plot is allowed to stand on its own.

This endeavor to let women-made art be by itself informs the entire takeover, and achieves a kind of apotheosis in the central gallery, “Women Depicting Women.” The space features images of women created by women, liberated from the male gaze. Each portrait is a product of the female gaze, and the varying perspectives interact to provide a rich intersectionality. Wendy Red Star’s 2016 photograph of her and her daughter wearing the traditional elk-tooth dress of the Apsáalooke (Crow) nation defies the sepia-toned representations of Native American women in historical photography. A few feet away hangs another portrait, from almost 100 years earlier: The first painting Frida Kahlo ever sold, “Dos mujeres (Salvadora y Herminia).” It depicts two working-class women with all the staid dignity usually afforded only to elite subjects of portraiture.

Seen together in a single gallery, Wendy Red Star’s and Frida Kahlo’s portraits are shown in new light. The respective artists have separate voices, to be sure, but it ought not be ignored that their confluence is arguably even more interesting. Putting one woman’s work in communication with the other’s does not mean that their individual lights shine any less brightly. Indeed, the academy grants male artists this privilege constantly, comparing their works in order to form a composite view of such nebulous terms as “artistic expression” or the art of depicting the so-called human experience. Terms like these are so saturated with maleness that it’s difficult to place women artists inside this frame which was not originally meant for them. It is dedicated projects like ”Women Take the Floor” that carve out the space for women artists to, at the very least, play, and, at the very best, tell stories of artistic development hitherto unknown. In a room of their own, there just might be space enough for their voices to echo.

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WEDNESDAY IMPROV IN THE GALLERIES WITH IMPROVBOSTON ImprovBoston brings spontaneous, thoughtful comedy to the Museum of Fine Arts.

Museum of Fine Arts. 6:30-8:30 p.m.

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THURSDAY

PUBLIC CELEBRATION: 2019 JAMES AND AUDREY FOSTER PRIZE The ICA will be presenting local artists Rashin Fahandej, Josephine Halvorson, Lavaughan Jenkins, and Helga Roht Poznanski the James and Audrey Foster Prize.

Institute of Contemporary Art. 5-9 p.m.

FRIDAY

BWFF: THE TWO FACES OF A BAMILEKE WOMAN This documentary follows Rosine Mbakam as she explores movement, relationships, and womanhood.

The Brattle. 3:30 p.m. $13 general admission.

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Staff writer Gabriella M. Lombardo can be reached ag gabriella.lombardo@thecrimson.com.

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SATURDAY

BLACK LIGHT.

Daniel Alexander Jones as Jomama Jones combines elements of Black American Freedom and spirituality to bring viewers reprieve in our political moment.

Oberon. 4 p.m. Tickets from $25.

SUNDAY

SHAPES + PATTERNS The ICA’s Art Lab provides a space to make collages and magnet art.

Institute of Contemporary Art. 12-4 p.m.

Free.

MONDAY HARVARD SQUARE BOOK CIRCLE DISCUSSES NATALIA GINZBURG’S FAMILY LEXICON A local book club engages in conversation about Family Lexicon, a story of filial drama in wartime Italy.

Harvard Book Store. 7 p.m. Free.

COURTESY OF ANDREA BOWER

24 September 2019 | Vol CXLVI, ISSUE XI Arts Chairs Kaylee S. Kim ‘20 Caroline A. Tsai ’20

Editor Associates Joy C. Ashford ‘22 Kalos K. Chu ‘22 Aline G. Damas ’20

Iris M. Lewis ‘21 Claire N. Park ‘20 Isabel C. Ruehl ‘20 Allison J. Scharmann ‘21 Caroline E. Tew ’20 Shruthi Venkata ‘22 Lucy Wang ’20

Executive Designer Mireya C. Arango ‘20 Ashley E. Bryant ‘22

Design Associates Amanda R. Stetz ‘22 Maia R. Zonis ‘22

Executive Photographers Kathryn S. Kuhar ‘20 Zennie L. Wey ‘20

ARTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 24, 2019 | PAGE 4

BOOKS

Petina Gappah On Strong Voices in ‘Out of Darkness, Shining Light’ at the Harvard Bookstore CHIBUIKE K. UWAKWE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

COURTESY OF SIMON AND SCHUSTER

On September 18, award-winning author Petina Gappah made a stop at the Harvard Book Store during her book tour to discuss her latest novel, “Out of Darkness, Shining Light.” Originally from Zimbabwe, Gappah has written several other widely translated works such as “The Book of Memory” and “Rotten Row.” Her audience was comprised of both those who came to hear her speak and curious book store patrons who first stood in the back, but were then compelled to take a seat for the remainder of the event.

Following a brief introduction by the Harvard Book store staff, which mentioned a nod from Oprah Magazine that praised “Out of Darkness, Shining Light” as a 2019 fall must-read, Gappah noted that she hadn’t realized that Oprah Magazine had reviewed it. “I don’t read reviews when I’m touring a book and talking about it,” Gappah said.

She then read the book’s prologue, and a sweeping silence fell across the audience.

When she finished, the crowd erupted in applause. “It’s very strange. I try not to read the things I’ve written after they’re published because then [I] want to edit…so this is actually the first time I’ve read the prologue,” Gappah said, then transitioned into an open Q&A. The discussion centered on the extensive writing process that went into “Out of Darkness, Shining Light,” a novel that tells the story of the men and women who transported Dr. David Livingston’s body and works across continental Africa to his home in England after he died in the 19th century. “It was actually meant to be my first book.

I started writing it in 1998, and I saved it on a floppy disk, but before that I had this Livingston story in the back of my mind,” Gappah said.

“The fact that Livingston wasn’t a very successful missionary or explorer didn’t dissuade me from being interested in [him],” Gappah said. “It made me even more interested in him because there was actually [something] very romantic about some-

body who dies failing…but the more I read about Livingston, the more I became interested in his companions because I started to think, ‘My goodness what an extraordinary thing to do to carry a dead body for all those miles.’”

An aspiring writer from the audience asked about Gappah’s writing process. “I am always very excited to talk about process and craft,” Gappah said. “The structure I wanted to follow was inspired by folklore...I had three really strong voices…and then the more I thought about including Livingston as a voice, the more I thought, well, he’s been speaking for so long, for so many years. How about if I silence him so that he appears only in the memories of his companions?”

Gappah’s event attracted both those who were long familiar with her works and those who were intrigued by her latest novel. “Out of Darkness, Shining Light” was the first book by Gappah that Milana N. Mensah ’19, a student at the Harvard Extension School, came across.

“I’ve actually been curious about African writers since I am of African heritage,” Mensah said. “I’ve been trying to discover writers…I grew up with Chinua Achebe, but there are obviously more modern writers coming up.”

Tabitha L. Escalante ’23, on the other hand, was familiar with Gappah’s work, expressing her excitement for the new novel. “I find Gappah’s exploration of the intersection of issues with race, class, and gender to be really intriguing. I appreciate that Gappah exposes us to the perspectives of marginalized voices that we don’t always acknowledge,” she said.

Chibuihe L. Obi, a Scholars At Risk fellow at Harvard, was inspired by Gappah’s work. “I engaged with the idea of writing or telling stories about people that are not represented in the media,” he said. “This book is talking about a part of Africa’s history that we don’t get to hear often.”

THEATER

‘Six’: Slain Queens of Henry VIII Still Slay the Pop Music Game MIRANDA ENG CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

COURTESY OF LIZ LAUREN

Move over, Little Mix — the infamous ex-wives of King Henry VIII have formed a girl band called “Six,” and the lyrical shade of “Shout Out to my Ex” pales in comparison to diss tracks that literally spill tea about the head of state of England. At the American Repertory Theater until Sept. 29, “Six” is a daring, unapologetically feminist musical created

by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss and styled like a pop concert. Former Tudor queens are transformed into different iconic singers, and, tired of being just another notch in Henry’s bedpost, together seek to reclaim history as noteworthy women in their own right. Queens Catherine of Aragon (Adrianna Hicks), Anne Boleyn (Andrea Macasaet), Jane Seymour (Abby Mueller), Anne of Cleves (Brittney Mack), Katherine Howard (Courtney Mack), and Catherine Parr (Anna Uzele) take turns performing sassy solo numbers that detail their individual woes concerning their marriages to King Henry. They seek to elect one among themselves to be leader of the band based only upon this criterion: Who has the worst sob story? Packed with as many radio-worthy melodies as accurate historical facts, “Six” is phenomenally fun, even if its messaging on female empowerment is at times too heavy-handed.

First and foremost, “Six” is visually captivating and makes the most of its crazy girl-band premise. The musical begins like a real concert, with a dark stage on which only silhouettes of six figures can be seen. Spotlights illuminate the women one by one as their voices join the rhythmic, spoken refrain of “Divorced, beheaded, died; divorced, beheaded, survived” that seems intentionally reminiscent of the intro to “Cell Block Tango” from “Chicago.” The costumes are ingeniously fashion-forward in mixing antiquated royal trends and modern music festival garb — for every corset and set of puffy sleeves, there’s also a pair of studded boots and a glittering miniskirt to go with it.

Beyond its aesthetic appeal, “Six” is also wildly successful in its attempt to put a modern spin on telling history. It revels in pop-culture campiness and cheeky slang, spin-

ning narratives about Henry VIII and his ill treatment of his wives that are memorable and instantly relatable. For example, Anne Boleyn’s solo “Don’t Lose Ur Head” features a sassy comment about the king “messaging [her] like, every day,” alluding to how Henry constantly sent love letters to Anne that were met with no reply. Similarly, Anne of Cleves delivers the waspish line, “You said that I tricked you / ‘Cause I, I didn’t look like my profile picture” in the song “Get Down,” referring to the fact that Henry originally fell in love with Anne’s portrait and supposedly divorced her out of disappointment that she wasn’t as beautiful in person.

Too often, productions attempting to “modernize” history run the risk of trying too hard to actively appeal to a younger audience. It’s all the more impressive, then, that “Six” not only pulls off the cool, “in-the-know” tone, but also makes it look effortless.

With its creative lyrics, “Six” cleverly delivers nuanced mood and character development with nearly every song in spite of the limitations of the repetitive pop formula. In particular, Katherine Howard’s solo “All You Wanna Do” maximizes the artistic advantages of musical theater. Acting and singing are simultaneous events that gradually subvert audience expectations of what seems like just another pop song studded with sexual innuendos. At the end of the first chorus, Katherine sings, “The only thing you wanna do is…” and trails off into an air kiss, followed by a mildly suggestive sigh. At this point in the song, Katherine is fully enjoying the abundance of sexual attention she attracts; however, by the last repeat of the chorus, Katherine is no longer posing and primping along to the choreography, and instead stands hunched into herself. She delivers her final line — “The only thing you wanna do is…” — and follows her air kiss with a choked off, gasping sob instead, and the same words take on a new tone of helplessness and diminished self-worth.

Alas, “Six” does have some weaknesses that bring down its many strengths. One issue is that this musical doesn’t seem to have a real crescendo or climax. The energy and au-

dience engagement is at an admittedly high level from the get-go, owing to the show’s concert-like nature, and overall stays constant without much fluctuation in tone or mood.

Part of the problem could be attributed to the fact that there isn’t a strong central plotline holding the story together.

Each of the queens’ solos stands alone both sonically and content-wise, so the musical appears more like six autobiographies in a row rather than a narrative integrating the backstories of six characters. Creators Marlow and Moss were likely aware of this when they crafted a hurried monologue for Catherine Parr to give at the end about how women should support one another rather than viciously compete amongst themselves, in a seeming attempt to tie “Six” together with an overarching feminist moral. The retcon is unsuccessful mostly because of how removed the serious tone of the monologue is from the tongue-in-cheek attitude used to address the same ideas of female empowerment in the rest of the show. It’s a shame that a well-crafted musical with such an interesting premise and sharp, witty characters has to come to an abrupt end on an undercooked, didactic note.

If you’re into the famous YouTube series “Epic Rap Battles of History,” you’ll certainly like “Six.” The lyrics to all the musical numbers are as simultaneously eloquent and cutting as Taylor Swift’s about her exes, with the added bonus that you’ll get to watch Tudor queens dancing in perfect sync in flashy modern garb as they diss King Henry VIII. It’s a concert and history lesson in one. Although the feminist messages that “Six” attempts to deliver often lack complexity and are a bit too on-the-nose, you’re still guaranteed to have a good time if you’re just looking for upbeat music and vibrant visual performances. However, if you’re looking for ruminations on the subtleties of feminism, “Six” still has a ways to go.

Staff writer Miranda Eng can be reached at miranda. eng@thecrimson.com.

ARTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 24, 2019 | PAGE 5

FILM

COURTESY OF OSCILLOSCOPE

‘MS. PURPLE’ PRESENTS A POWERFUL TALE OF PIANO, PALM TREES, AND FILIAL PIETY WOOJIN LIM CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Purple is the color of the hanbok that Kasie (Tiffany Chu) wears in “Ms. Purple” as she trudges in the early dawn, dispirited and worn-down, right in the middle of the road. Purple strobe lights flash in the karaoke and nightclub where Kasie works.

It is also the color of the dream-like, ethereal backdrop with a palm tree silhouette that flickers on-screen without sound or explanation. Put more figuratively, purple may represent a perpetual state of indecision, the grayness between the clearcut, primary colors red and blue, or as a bold sign of Kasie’s pride and dignity — her attempt to preserve her self-worth despite the litany of self-degrading methods she employs to keep her dad alive. Whatever interpretation the audience may have as to the significance of the color purple in the film, there is more depth to it than just its vibrant aesthetic palette.

Directed by Justin Chon and co-written by Chon and Chris Dinh, indie drama “Ms. Purple” paints an emotionally powerful portrait of a Korean-American family and their internalized struggles to define their cultural values. This story reunites two estranged siblings, both with deep inner scars, who burden themselves with the filial duty to care for their comatose father in a corner of their home until his very last moments. “Ms. Purple” proves Chon’s well-rounded filmmaking talent and marks his return to the Sundance Film

Festival (after winning a 2017 NEXT Audience Award for “Gook”). Saturated in colorful allure yet steeped in a soulful hollowness, this film is a slow-burning character study that will leave you breathless.

Kasie works as a karaoke hostess (doumi) in the dark nooks of Los Angeles’s Koreatown. She caters to the whims and demands of drunken businessmen, drowns her sorrows with soju and MDMA, while also caring for her unconscious father, Young-Il (James Kang), who is the reason why she works so desperately hard to earn money. When his in-home nurse unexpectedly quits, Kasie reaches out to her estranged brother, Carey (Teddy Lee), who decides to return home after having severed ties with his father years before. In the last few days of their father’s life, the siblings reunite in an effort to mend their frayed relationship and untangle the repressed family troubles that led to their separation. Carey fights traumatic memories about his mom’s early departure and his resentment towards his unconscious father, while Kasie deals with a number of men — she accepts money from patron Tony (Ronnie Kim) in exchange for sexual favors, receives kind-hearted flirtations from club valet Octavio (Octavio Pizano), and tries to keep her unreliable brother from leaving her and her father again.

One of the central concerns of the film is the conflict between the responsibility one has to one’s family, and personal independence. Kasie must decide whether or not to abandon her impoverished family and accept an offer to move in with the affluent Tony, who gifts her a purple Korean traditional

dress (hanbok), and whether or not to move her father into professional hospice care. Her dilemma resembles the difficult choices her parents had previously made: to leave her family behind in pursuit of a life of luxury as her mother did, or to remain standing beside her family like a sturdy palm tree, a pillar to rely on during times of hardship, as her immigrant father once promised. Kasie’s retort to her wayward brother, who escapes for hours into a computer gaming center to avoid dealing with the brutal reality of this choice, haunts the rest of the film. “Where’d you go?... I’m not going to leave him like you did,” Kasie says. Despite everything, Kasie endeavours to hold the family together. Perhaps the solution to her problems is to let loose with a bottle of soju.

The string-laden soundtrack by Roger Suen and the freewheeling cinematography by Ante Cheng, complemented by moments of pure, reflective silence, suffuse the screenplay with a mournfulness and a kind of bruised romanticism, while leaving plenty of room for moments of delight. From Kasie’s reappraisal of long-forfeited piano dreams, to Carey’s adventures to sunlit rooftops on which he maneuvers YoungIl’s bed as if it were a trolley, and Octavio’s twirling ballet riff to shatter the seriousness of it all — this poignant drama is about rekindling hope and staying true to your roots, wherever you are.

Staff writer Woojin Lim can be reached at woojin.lim@thecrimson.com and on Twitter @lim_woojin.

MUSIC

Blink-182 Bounces Back on ‘Nine’ CLARA V. NGUYEN CONTRIBUTING WRITER ‘90s nostalgia is in full swing. From grunge-inspired fashion on runways to the vague sense of apprehension in global affairs, reminders of the decade are hard to miss.

Recalling this period marked by conflict and rebellion — against authority, materialism, and the status quo — one fact remains of little dispute: Few, if any, bands embody the era as definitively as California-based rock group Blink-182. The band’s uptempo, guitarheavy anthems and electric live performances paved the way for many of the pop-punk bands that rose to fame in the 21st century. Fans of the band’s infectious energy will find more than enough in their latest studio release, “Nine,” albeit tempered with a veneer of maturity and self-reflection. The album provides a largely successful, if a bit formulaic, retrospective of Blink-182’s decades-long musical career while also looking to the future.

The 15-song tracklist, packed with autobiographical references to mental health and the challenges of artistic life, serves as a rough chronological journey through Blink-182’s history. At first listen, the album’s opening track, “The First Time,” evokes the thrill and uncertainty of a new relationship. “First love, first high, there ain’t nothing like the first time,” co-lead vocalists Mark Hoppus and Mike Skiba sing. However, the song could also easily represent the beginning of the band members’ lifelong romance with making music — a relationship that, like many, has had its ups and downs.

Expressions of disillusionment and uncertainty figure prominently in “Nine”’s lyrics, sung by Hoppus and Skiba over layers of humming synthesizers, rapid-fire drums and, of course, plenty of electric guitar. Following “The First Time” is “Happy Days,” a deceptively upbeat meditation on “waking up and feeling lost in the world,” according to a statement from Hoppus. Despite the song’s somber themes, its major key and relentlessly propulsive drumbeat ultimately suggest hope prevailing over fear.

Longtime experts at reminiscing about the past, Blink-182 prove themselves to be deeply aware of current events. The 2018 mass shooting in Thousand Oaks, only miles from drummer Travis Barker’s home, compelled him to memorialize the victims in song. The result is “Heaven,” a solemn, resolute condemnation of gun violence and the heightened danger of everyday life in America. The singles “Generational Divide” and “Blame It On My Youth” also highlight changes in society while casting doubt on the extent of humanity’s progress. “We swore we’d be better than the last time,” Skiba and Hoppus shout over rhythmic, percussive guitar chords on “Generational Divide.” before posing a question to listeners: “Are we better, are we better now?”

In many ways, Blink-182’s music is better now: By incorporating modern electronic elements into their songs while preserving their distinctive, punk-grounded sound, “Nine” is sure to appeal to veteran fans and new listeners alike. However, the juxtaposition of new and old is not always seamless. The album’s two songs about romantic relationships, “I Really Wish I Hated You” and “Darkside,” are also arguably its two most egregious examples of gratuitous synth effects. In both songs, already heavily populated by guitar

COURTESY OF BLINK-182/COLUMBIA

and drums, the extensive use of voice distortion and electronic beats distracts from Hoppus’ and Skiba’s emotionally charged vocals.

The album’s synthesized sounds are most effective in tandem with sparse instrumentation, such as in its final track, “Remember to Forget Me.” For much of the song, which takes the form of a phone call from Hoppus to his mother as he describes life on tour, only acoustic guitar accompanies Hoppus’ heartfelt message. The occasional electronic flourishes punctuate the music instead of interrupting it. Contemplative and conversational in tone, the track offers a satisfying end to an album that will once again cement Blink-182’s status as an influential force in contemporary rock. Don’t “blink” and miss it.

ARTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | JANUARY 1, 2018 | PAGE 4

Title Fonts

Bariol Oswald BEBASNEUE

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Credit Tags

BOOKS BOOKS

FIRST M. LAST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

FILM FILM MUSIC MUSIC NEWci MEDIA sum

NEW MEDIA music

FIRST M. LAST CONTRIBUTING WRITER COURTESY OF [INSERT NAME] FIRST M. LAST / CRIMSON DESIGNER

THEATER

FIRST M. LAST / CONTRIBUTING DESIGNER

COLUMN

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FIRST M. LAST / CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Story Text Format (always 2 or three columns) Ramen chefs, poised mere feet away from their customers, are generous stewards of a hallowed, religiously meditative experience—the proper way to eat ramen is to “slurp it up without a word.” The film’s director and narrator, Koki Shigeno, is as much a ramen head as Japan’s most acclaimed chefs and their loyalists. He provides breathy side commentary to orient the audience on its pilgrimage into the kitchen. The notion of simplicity, broached spontaneously by the chefs, serves as a signpost throughout the documentary that genuinely and consistently captures the essence of ramen. The perfect ramen “exists perfectly in the moment and then disappears,” and its impact is in its unceremonious deliciousness. The documentary’s structure is also thankfully contained and to the point: The famed Osamu Tomita and his overarching story allow for easy segues into a diverse pageant of other chef narratives, and a culminating anniversary bit beautifully ties up the film, leaving the audience with a keen nostalgic warmth characteristic of the best ramen. The film’s most obvious flaw is that it becomes aesthetically tiresome and almost indulgently tacky, with constant slow-motion shots of noodles slopping against porcelain bowls, and an especially unsavory history segment that would otherwise have been enlightening if not for visuals that seem inspired by Microsoft Clip Art. The feat of the chatty Shigeno’s casual recounting is a tell-all spirit that somehow

makes intimately familiar a sacrosanct art. All the chefs he features display a monastic devotion to ramen. Tomita’s hole-in-the-wall shop, in the unassuming Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, is known for producing Japan’s best ramen, available for only eight dollars.

Tomita’s ever-changing signature is a muddy, blended broth. Shigeno duly informs the audience of its privilege: Unlike more secretive top-chefs, Tomita shows the camera everything, proof of his self-assurance and his alignment with the democratic spirit of ramen, historically a workingman’s dish. His oil-stained notebook from his own apprentice days is replete with cartoonish diagrams that resemble the machinations of a mad scientist. The ramen bowl derives its perfection from robust fundamentals: It’s not the ingredients that matter, but how the chef uses them. Tomita’s handmade noodles are the result of a painstaking selection process out of hundreds of Japanese flours. He aims for a quality he calls “slurpability,” ensuring that his noodles are longer than most so that his customers can savor their flavor for just the right amount of time. He aims for a quality he calls “slurpability,” ensuring that his noodles are longer than most so that his customers can savor their flavor for just the right amount of time.

Staff Writer First M. Last can be reached at first.last@thecrimson.com.

Interview Format 21 Colorful Crimson is a music collective composed of 21 Harvard freshmen who will open for Lil Yachty and Wale at Yardfest. The Crimson sat down with their president, James A. Mathew ’21, and a member of their business team, Jasmine Hyppolite ’21, to discuss their upcoming performance, the challenges of navigating an artistic group dynamic, and the role of diversity in their art.

The Harvard Crimson: Tell us a bit about the principles of your music.

James A. Mathew ’21: The central piece [in our name] is

“colorful,” which speaks to diversity, which speaks to the fact that the class of 2021 is the first year at Harvard to be majority-minority. We have lots of different racial backgrounds, lots of different socioeconomic backgrounds.

We count our three pillars as creativity, inclusion, and love, which is what we’re really trying to communicate here. If someone hears our music, we hope that they—when they get to know a little about our group—not only enjoy the music for the musicality, but also for those pillars, what we’re standing for.

THC: One of the admirable things about your music is

that it sounds eclectic while simultaneously managing to coherently meld diverse genres—what is the specific artistic process of crafting this sound?

JAM: One thing we do, speaking to diversity, is obviously

have visible diversity in our members but also reflect diversity in our music. In the art we’re creating, we do very diverse things in terms of our stylistic endeavors in music.

We have an opera singer and we have a rapper. Fusing the two and combining elements of rock and jazz gets people’s minds going in terms of this creativity and this diversity and we are still establishing our craft. Talking about that process is difficult, and we’ve had many meetings where we’ve been quite argumentative because 21 minds are never going to agree perfectly.

THC: What are some of the arguments you’ve been dealing with concerning your Yardfest set?

JAM: We’ve fallen into two camps when it comes to

equal representation in terms of the style of music and the other people wanted more hip hop because of the what the Yardfest show is going to be. Some people said, “I hate that idea. That’s too slow. People are going to think that that’s boring.” Other people said, “We need that otherwise we’re just a rap group. We’re no different.” We ended up striking a balance. We found a good compromise of how to show that we are more than just hip hop. We are all these genres that our great artists bring to the table.

Jasmine Hyppolite ‘21: Something that I loved [about

formulating our Yardfest set] was that every single person sitting in that room had a marker on the drawing board, and every single person was able to say, “I think this is right, I think this is not.” It’s: this is all our art, I can’t tell you how to do your art, you can’t tell me how to do my art, but this is our product at the end of the day.

Staff Writer First M. Last can be reached at first.last@ thecrimson.com.

designing our set. Some people were calling for a more

Review Format

Ramen chefs, poised mere feet away from their customers, are generous stewards of a hallowed, religiously meditative experience—the proper way to eat ramen is to “slurp it up without a word.” The film’s director and narrator, Koki Shigeno, is as much a ramen head as Japan’s most acclaimed chefs and their loyalists. He provides breathy side commentary to orient the audience on its pilgrimage into the kitchen. The notion of simplicity, broached spontaneously by the chefs, serves as a signpost throughout the documentary that genuinely and consistently captures the essence of ramen. The perfect ramen “exists perfectly in the moment and then disappears,” and its impact is in its unceremonious deliciousness. The documentary’s structure is also thankfully contained and to the point: The famed Osamu Tomita and his overarching story

Notes

allow for easy segues into a diverse pageant of other chef narratives, and a culminating anniversary bit beautifully ties up the film, leaving the audience with a keen nostalgic warmth characteristic of the best ramen. The film’s most obvious flaw is that it becomes aesthetically tiresome and almost indulgently tacky, with constant slow-motion shots of noodles slopping against porcelain bowls, and an especially unsavory history segment that would otherwise have been enlightening if not for visuals that seem inspired

by Microsoft Clip Art. The feat of the chatty Shigeno’s casual recounting is a tell-all spirit that somehow makes intimately familiar a sacrosanct art. All the chefs he features display a monastic devotion to ramen. Tomita’s hole-in-the-wall shop, in the unassuming Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, is known for producing Japan’s best ramen, available for only eight dollars. Tomita’s ever-changing signature is a muddy, blended broth. Shigeno duly informs the audience of its privilege: Unlike more secretive top-chefs, Tomita shows the camera everything, proof of his selfassurance and his alignment with the democratic spirit of

ramen, historically a workingman’s dish. His oil-stained notebook from his own apprentice days is replete with cartoonish diagrams that resemble the machinations of a mad scientist. The ramen bowl derives its perfection from robust fundamentals: It’s not the ingredients that matter, but how the chef uses them. Tomita’s handmade noodles are the result of a painstaking selection process out of hundreds of Japanese flours. He aims for a quality he calls “slurpability,” ensuring that his noodles are longer than most so that his customers can savor their flavor for just the right amount of time. His apprentices, cultish with their toweled heads and matching robes, partake in a shared ritual, tasting from the same bowl at the end of each working day—an ongoing initiation in a deeply traditional yet ceaselessly inventive craft. By the end of the work day, Tomita hasn’t gone to the bathroom even once, soldered in place above his cauldron of boiling broth, entranced.

Staff Writer First M. Last can be reached at first.last@ thecrimson.com.

- regular stories and reviews can have 2 or 3 columns; interviews must have only 2 - the width of the article text boxes can vary for each article, but must not extend past the page margins - the direction of the flags for each of the two articles on each page must alternate - the font for the titles of the two articles on each page must not be the same - 2 picas between the article divider lines and flag; no picas between image and credits. Other than these, elements of the pages can be placed at any distance relative to each other.

ARTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | JANUARY 1, 2018 | PAGE 5

MUSIC

21 Colorful Crimson Talk Opening for Yardfest and Breaking Old Musical Norms FIRST M. LAST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER idea. That’s too slow. People are going to think that that’s boring.” Other people said, “We need that otherwise we’re just a rap group. We’re no different.” We ended up striking a balance. We found a good compromise of how to show that we are more than just hip hop. We are all these genres that our great artists bring to the table.

The Harvard Crimson: Tell us a bit about the principles of

formulating our Yardfest set] was that every single person sitting in that room had a marker on the drawing board, and every single person was able to say, “I think this is right, I think this is not.” It’s: this is all our art, I can’t tell you how to do your art, you can’t tell me how to do my art, but this is our product at the end of the day.

your music.

James A. Mathew ’21: The central piece [in our name] is

“colorful,” which speaks to diversity, which speaks to the fact that the class of 2021 is the first year at Harvard to be majority-minority. We have lots of different racial backgrounds, lots of different socioeconomic backgrounds.

We count our three pillars as creativity, inclusion, and love, which is what we’re really trying to communicate here. If someone hears our music, we hope that they—when they get to know a little about our group—not only enjoy the music for the musicality, but also for those pillars, what we’re standing for.

THC: One of the admirable things about your music is

that it sounds eclectic while simultaneously managing to coherently meld diverse genres—what is the specific artistic process of crafting this sound?

JAM: One thing we do, speaking to diversity, is obviously have visible diversity in our members but also reflect diversity in our music. In the art we’re creating, we do very diverse things in terms of our stylistic endeavors in music.

We have an opera singer and we have a rapper. Fusing the two and combining elements of rock and jazz gets people’s minds going in terms of this creativity and this diversity and we are still establishing our craft. Talking about that process is difficult, and we’ve had many meetings where we’ve been quite argumentative because 21 minds are never going to agree perfectly.

THC: What are some of the arguments you’ve been dealing with concerning your Yardfest set?

JAM: We’ve fallen into two camps when it comes to

designing our set. Some people were calling for a more equal representation in terms of the style of music and the other people wanted more hip hop because of the what the Yardfest show is going to be. Some people said, “I hate that

Jasmine Hyppolite ‘21: Something that I loved [about

THC: Your group is navigating a lot of concerns dealing with how to balance these individual interests. Are you are producing the best art that you can while keeping everyone happy?

JAM: I think one thing that I find so beautiful about art

is the subjectivity of it. What I’d say is that so far we’ve managed to produce some great work because we don’t just do something to do it. You know if our jazz singer says, “I think I don’t have a good enough of a role right now,” we don’t just put her on the track to kind of appease her. If we’re going to do something, we try and put a lot of work into it and do it right, and I think that that commitment to quality work does make for a good product at the end.

But I think that initially we did have that struggle. Some of our hip hop artists thought that the inclusion of the other genres on the hip hop track kind of devalued that product.

THC: In this process of integration of styles, in this almost

inherent intersectionality in your art, do you ever feel as if you’re almost diluting hip hop as a specific genre? Do you feel like you have any responsibility for upholding musical categories that were born from a specific history?

JH: I would say no. Our team is a melting pot. Our music is

a melting pot. It’s just going to happen, and I don’t really think that we’re super focused on having one song for each genre, or upholding a genre, because we’re not looking to assimilate or affirm something that already exists. We’re trying to break a new norm. We do that through who we are as well as what we make, so I think that we have a very little amount of focus on working on the preexisting structures.

THC: We’ve talked a little bit about the melding ofSABRINA styles G. YATES

WRITER that you guys have, but could you speak a little toCONTRIBUTING if and how personal diversity has influenced your music?

JAM: Our group [gives] a platform for friendships to form

that very likely wouldn’t have occurred otherwise. I think that personal diversity, how different people are, just makes their friendship and their coming together all the more beautiful. It’s really a family already.

THC: In what ways do you see these relationships manifesting in and impacting your music?

JAM: I think that those friendships allow some more spontaneous collaboration. If you’re not too friendly with someone, you’re not comfortable with that person, [and] your collaboration will be very formal. That formality can be kind of restricting, if you’re more comfortable, you might critique the other person more honestly, you might let them know that that note was a little off, we should do another take. That comfort leads to better art, better creation, because again, it’s authentic. It’s real.

THC: It seems like your groups see your music—correct

me if I’m wrong—as having some sort of political or social message. I’m curious, in a group as diverse as yours, how do you deal with differences in political and social values in the messaging of your music?

JAM: I think that when it comes to what we want people

to take away from our art socially and politically, I think that one—there are two sides to it—there is one that is implicit and one that is more explicit. The one that is more implicit: When you take a look at a picture of us, there is kind of a statement in that professional collaboration that does not restrict itself to any lines that we think about— racial, socioeconomic, any of those things. More explicitly, what we’re trying to say in our music, we’re trying to make statements. We’re making a track right now that deals with some social issues. You do bring up a good point, in that everyone is coming from different backgrounds, people are not all going to have the same political beliefs. How we navigate that is over a space where there is a forum for people to chime in that is very respectful. We get to hear all of the views of our members.

Staff Writer Aziz B. Yakub can be reached at aziz.yakub@ thecrimson.com.

FILM

COURTESY OF GUNPOWDER AND SKY

‘RAMEN HEADS’: A MOSTLY DELECTABLE HELPING Dir. Koki Shigeno

FIRST M. LAST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Ramen chefs, poised mere feet away from their customers, are generous stewards of a hallowed, religiously meditative experience—the proper way to eat ramen is to “slurp it up without a word.” The film’s director and narrator, Koki Shigeno, is as much a ramen head as Japan’s most acclaimed chefs and their loyalists.

He provides breathy side commentary to orient the audience on its pilgrimage into the kitchen. The notion of simplicity, broached spontaneously by the chefs, serves as a signpost throughout the documentary that genuinely and consistently captures the essence of ramen. The perfect ramen “exists perfectly in the moment and then disappears,” and its impact is in its unceremonious deliciousness.

The documentary’s structure is also thankfully contained and to the point: The famed Osamu Tomita and his overarching story allow for easy segues into a diverse pageant of other chef narratives, and a culminating anniversary bit beautifully ties up the film, leaving the audience with a keen nostalgic warmth characteristic of the best ramen. The film’s most obvious flaw is that it becomes aesthetically tiresome and almost indulgently tacky, with constant slow-motion shots of noodles slopping against porcelain bowls, and an especially unsavory history segment that would otherwise have been enlightening if not for visuals that seem inspired by Microsoft Clip Art. The feat of the chatty Shigeno’s casual recounting is a tell-all spirit that somehow makes intimately familiar a sacrosanct art. All the chefs he features display a monastic devotion to ramen. Tomita’s hole-in-the-wall shop, in the

unassuming Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, is known for producing Japan’s best ramen, available for only eight dollars. Tomita’s ever-changing signature is a muddy, blended broth. Shigeno duly informs the audience of its privilege: Unlike more secretive top-chefs, Tomita shows the camera everything, proof of his selfassurance and his alignment with the democratic spirit of ramen, historically a workingman’s dish. His oil-stained notebook from his own apprentice days is replete with cartoonish diagrams that resemble the machinations of a mad scientist. The ramen bowl derives its perfection from robust fundamentals: It’s not the ingredients that matter, but how the chef uses them. Tomita’s handmade noodles are the result of a painstaking selection process out of hundreds of Japanese flours. He aims for a quality he calls “slurpability,” ensuring that his noodles are longer than most so that his customers can savor their flavor for just the right amount of time. His apprentices, cultish with their toweled heads and matching robes, partake in a shared ritual, tasting from the same bowl at the end of each working day—an ongoing initiation in a deeply traditional yet ceaselessly inventive craft. By the end of the work day, Tomita hasn’t gone to the bathroom even once, soldered in place above his cauldron of boiling broth, entranced.

He aims for a quality he calls “slurpability,” ensuring that his noodles are longer than most so that his customers can savor their flavor for just the right amount of time. His apprentices, cultish with their toweled heads and matching robes, partake in a shared ritual, tasting from the same bowl at the end of each working day—an ongoing initiation in a deeply traditional yet ceaselessly inventive craft.

His apprentices, cultish with their toweled heads and matching robes, partake in a shared ritual, tasting from the same bowl at the end of each working day—an ongoing initiation in a deeply traditional yet ceaselessly inventive craft.

Staff Writer First M. Last can be reached at first.last@thecrimson.com.

FIRST M. LAST / CRIMSON DESIGNER

21 Colorful Crimson is a music collective composed of 21 Harvard freshmen who will open for Lil Yachty and Wale at Yardfest. The Crimson sat down with their president, James A. Mathew ’21, and a member of their business team, Jasmine Hyppolite ’21, to discuss their upcoming performance, the challenges of navigating an artistic group dynamic, and the role of diversity in their art.

ARTS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 24, 2019 | PAGE 6

THEATER

‘The America Plays’: A Dive into Hidden American History ALINE G. DAMAS CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Founded in 1831, Mount Auburn Cemetery has remained a striking environment that both commemorates its dead and provides beautiful greenery to the Cambridge community at large. From Sept. 12 to 22, the cemetery forged new ground as it hosted a site-specific play created by playwright Patrick Gabridge, the cemetery’s artistin-residence, who brought to life several of the buried to reveal their stories. Though a rather tough sell for most (as it does involve walking amidst the graves at night), “The America Plays” is a fascinating dive into American history, providing thoughtful commentary on each person’s rich life and connecting their stories to what it means to be an American.

The work focused on Mount Auburn founder Jacob Bigelow (Ken Baltin), medical practitioner Harriot Kezia Hunt (Karen MacDonald), associate judge Joseph Story (Robert Najarian), sculptors Edmonia Lewis (Cheryl D. Singleton), Harriet Hosmer (Amanda Collins), and Martin Milmore (Mathew C. Ryan), as well as actress Charlotte Cushman (Sarah Newhouse). “The America Plays” moves across time and dimensions — all the while bringing its audience across the sprawling grounds of the cemetery.

In one “scene,” viewers were brought to the day Martin Milmore completed his monolithic Civil War “Sphinx” commemorating the dead. In the next, they were in an alternate reality where the ghosts of Lewis , Cushman , and Hosmer are summoned to air past grievances and finally forgive each other for past hurt. The play also expounded on the journeys of several of Mount Auburn’s Armenian residents, such as Armenian-born architectural engineer Thomas Amirian (1910-1993).

Since many of these characters were contemporaries, Gabridge’s play often focused on their relationships with one another. For example, one focal scene featured a showdown between the Hunt’s ghost and Bigelow, in which Hunt confronts Bigelow about forcing her to withdraw her Harvard Medical School application due to her sex in 1847. The scene functioned both as a recounting of events and an opportunity for its erring character Bigelow to be forgiven and redeemed. In this case, Bigelow is finally given the chance to apologize to Hunt. While it might provide a sense of justice or comfort, it doesn’t seem particularly right to confront history by reimagining it in this way, as it attempts to whitewash the views and actions of its dead.

The apology worked much better when it is not the heart of the scene. For example, the ghosts of the play’s creative female subjects were brought together for a reconciliation. This scene was much more compelling than the one between Hunt and Bigelow because Hosmier, Cushman, and Lewis devote just as much time discussing their close friendship and lives. The women not only speak about their difficult experiences and eventual triumphs within their chosen fields, but also on their queer experiences and relationships. These discussions

COURTESY OF CORINNE ELICONE

move the play beyond an imaginary world, and anchor it in history — a decision that is much more compelling and less fanciful than these confrontations.

While the apologies did not always feel authentic, the painful recounting of experience did. When Edmonia Lewis, the only African-American character within the play, spoke to the added difficulty she faced in her career due to her race, her charged words evoked both anger and hope. This was made all the better by Singleton’s powerful delivery.

The witty repartee and sparring of this scene between women was all the more delightful as it took place at the top of the cemetery, close to where each of the women (save Lewis) was buried. Part of what made the play such an enjoyable experience was its seamless incorporation of the surroundings into the narrative. The hill naturally forged a stage that makes each character’s reflections feel all the more grand, giving them rightful gravitas. And at its essence, that was what the play is really about: Reporting the extraordinary and plentiful lives of people we might not otherwise notice.

Of course, some of the chosen stories were less interesting, such as that of Bigelow and Milmore, which was supposed to provide commentary on the American Civil War and the uncertain political climate of the time.

This scene — due to awkward, contrived dialogue largely meant to provide context and background — felt forced and

wooden. Ultimately the men’s discussion did not provide any new insight into this moment in history. In spite of Baltin’s and Ryan’s fine acting, the men’s dialogue simply skimmed over major issues, providing vague statements about recovery and rebirth that were not as effective or engaging as the later conversations held by the group of women.

Perhaps the most compelling story of all was a retelling

by Amirian (Ryan) of how his family escaped from Armenia during the Turkish genocide of the Armenian people. The whole cast came together to deliver a haunting vision, with the adult Amirian at once reflecting on the events as its first-person narrator and also providing the voice of the young Thomas in the narrative. Because this portion of the play had a concrete narrative and gripping narration, it resonated the most. It successfully transported its audience to a time of anguish and addressed past pain with sensitivity.

Conceptually complex and wonderfully executed, “The America Plays” brought a truly fresh perspective on local and national history. Though it did struggle between commemorating its characters and unnecessarily excusing them, it nonetheless did a creative job rejuvenating these human spirits.

Staff writer Aline G. Damas can be reached at aline. damas@thecrimson.com.

‘Don’t Call Me Angel’ is Fun but Flat KEZ A. DOUGLAS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

COURTESY OF HANNAH LUX DAVIS

“Don’t Call Me Angel” combines the vocal talents of three of the music industry’s top female players: pop princess Ariana Grande, indie darling Lana Del Rey, and musician Miley Cyrus. Even though these singers aren’t from the same genre and have wildly different vocal ranges and styles, the song surprisingly works. This is due in part to the slick production by legendary producers, Max Martin and Ilya, who crafted Britney Spears’s “…

Baby One More Time” and Ariana Grande’s “Problems,” respectively. The title single for the rebooted “Charlie’s Angels” movie, “Don’t Call Me Angel” is a fun, if formulaic, bop that excels in its promotion of shallow girl power.

The first two-thirds of the song, sung by Grande and Cyrus, embody pop and grab the listener after Grande’s first utterance of the word “boy.” Where Grande owns the beat, Cyrus’s voice is not as compelling. The chime of bells on top of a booming bass line that brought Grande success in the past on “7 rings” and “The Light is Coming,” delivers once again. Miley, fresh off of a lukewarm attempt at a pop/hip-hop crossover in her recent EP “She is Coming,” is not as successful at embodying the single’s high-energy and almost erratic rhythm. In contrast, the tempo slows down for Lana Del Rey, allowing her to croon in her signature whisper over production that is more in line with her style. Her part is less “Summertime Sadness” and more “Summer Bummer,” and it fits well with the rest of the song.

Where the single disappoints is its uninspired, shallow lyrics. Grande kicks the song off with the chorus, singing “Boy, don’t call me angel / You ain’t got me right / Don’t call me angel / You can’t pay my price.” Although these lyrics are characteristic of Grande’s songs (think “God is a Woman” and “Knew Better/Forever Boy”), they do nothing to evoke the sexy, kick-ass power of Charlie’s Angels. For “Don’t Call Me Angel,” lyrics such as “You better stop the sweet talk / And keep your pretty mouth shut” and “So don’t you try to come around me / Might work with her, but not me, oh yeah” reframes this power of the female singers — and by proxy of the Angels — on their ability to be unavailable, unattainable, and even unpurchasable by men (or boys, as they are called in this song). This is a tired and disappointing take considering the iconic girl power anthem by Destiny’s Child that heralded “Charlie’s Angels” in 2000.

“Independent Women, Part 1,” casts a large shadow over “Don’t Call Me Angel.”

Whereas the lyrics of “Don’t Call Me Angel” are addressed to a faceless, interchangeable male character, the lyrics in “Independent Women, Part 1” are directed towards the female audience. Lyrics such as “All the women, who are independent / Throw your hands up at me / All the honeys, who making money / Throw your hands up at me” celebrate the Charlie’s Angels of the audience: women who are strong, not because they can kick-ass, but because they work hard, make money, and own their own life. One might criticize the materialism in the song, but in a world where cash is king and material goods equate to power, women who want to be independent seem to have to strive for both. The “Don’t Call Me Angel” of today should take note.

MUSIC

Page 7

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | september 24, 2019

allston From Page 1

cannabis From Page 1

Allston Task Force Meets

Council Greenlights Marijuana Sales

including the Enterprise Research Campus. Several attendees said they are frustrated by the lack of opportunities for Allston residents to give input on the project since the research campus does not fall under the Harvard-Allston Task Force’s purview.

Audience members argued that the City of Boston should create a general governing body to oversee all Harvard developments, regardless of whether or not they are institutional projects. Creating such a group would lead to better neighborhood planning because of the wider perspective, according to Allston resident Jane McHale.

“I think those that have been watching the development over a number of years have a broader view on what actually is all happening,” McHale said in an interview after the meeting.

In response, Boston Planning and Development Agency official Gerald Autler said at the meeting that all members of the task force may be invited to join a group focused on reviewing the impact of the research campus and other related developments, but that the exact structure of this body has not been finalized yet.

The Enterprise Research Campus, approved in March 2018 and overseen by the newly formed Harvard Allston Land Company, has sparked debates in the past. Most notably, in 2017 the Impact Advisory Group raised concerns about housing, infrastructure, transportation, and open space during a BPDA-mandated comment period. In response, the University has said that it plans on creating

affordable construction projects and reserving “upwards of 1,000” units of housing for local residents.

Harvard officials also updated attendees on the progress of a number of larger construction projects. Those updates include the completion of the first two phases of the Soldiers Field Park renovation; the Harvard Business School Pavilion renovation; and the Harvard Art Lab, which had its opening celebration Saturday.

A number of projects remain unfinished, including the new School of Engineering and Applied Sciences complex — set to open in September 2020 — and the District Energy facility.

Harvard-Allston Task Force Chair John A. Bruno also announced at the meeting that he is stepping down from his position.

“Your guidance and your direction...led this group to work with Harvard University and work with the city of Boston to not so much transform, but to make the necessary adjustments in our neighborhood,” Bruno said at the meeting.

McHale said she found the meeting and hearing about the updates to Harvard’s initiatives “rewarding.” “[It’s] very rewarding because I’ve been involved in these meetings for 13 years, and to be in the original meetings where we’re kind of fighting to get benefits, and then to actually see that come to fruition is really exciting,” McHale said. in our neighborhood,” Bruno said at the meeting. ruth.hailu@thecrimson.com

labor From Page 1

Panelists Discuss Labor, Economy workers have experienced for decades.

“In many ways, people are looking to domestic workers as the original gig workers for guidance and leadership around, ‘Well, you all have been living in these kind of precarious conditions for generations, what’s the way forward?’” Shah said.

Poo highlighted how NDWA’s position at the convergence of various activist movements — including ones concerning worker’s rights, immigration, and gender equality — both makes it essential to evaluate their work through an intersectional lens and also offers her an opportunity for innovation in organizing.

“You get to see all the different ways that hierarchies of power are shaping our reality, along lines of race, along lines of gender, and many other lines,” Poo said.

Estela Lacombe Franca ’23, who attended the talk, said she

was particularly passionate about the type of work Poo and Shah were undertaking.

“I am especially interested in the intersection between immigration and different aspects of people’s identities and their role in the domestic labor movement,” Franca said.

“Their approach towards reconciling that with their advances in both policy and reception of domestic workers was absolutely fascinating and extremely necessary.”

Sarah J. Leadem-Castro, a Kennedy School student, said she left the talk feeling “really inspired.”

“As political leaders, we can have great policy ideas in a vacuum, but they have to stand the test of popular support and political will,” she said.

“Thinking about a strategy of policy change combined with cultural change could open the space for new policies.”

marijuana shops whose owners do not come from historically marginalized groups. In a June interview, Siddiqui called the amendment a “head start” for local businesses over larger corporations.

Simmons’s amendment called on the city to allow current registered medical marijuana dispensaries to begin selling recreational marijuana if they contribute annually to a fund that assists “economic empowerment” businesses — those that are run by people who have been disproportionately harmed by past marijuana laws.

In a meeting last week, the

Ordinance Committee ultimately decided to advance a version of the bill with Siddiqui and Zondervan’s amendment — but not Simmons’s — to the council for consideration.

Simmons said before the Monday vote that though she agrees with the intent of the proposal, she is disappointed with its final form.

“I think we are ultimately going to look back at this moment and regret how we have chosen to go about this,” she said. “We will be embracing a moratorium that leads to uncertainty as well as further unnecessary and expensive delays.”

The inclusion of Siddiqui and Zondervan’s amendment also means that current medical marijuana dispensaries not falling under the “historically marginalized groups” conditions will not be able to sell recreationally until the two-year period has lapsed.

Zondervan said in an interview Monday that he believes dispensaries will not be significantly affected financially by the new law.

Before the vote, several Cambridge residents spoke about the legislation during the portion of the meeting open to public comments. Nichole Snow, executive director of the

Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance, said she believes medical dispensaries and patients will be negatively impacted.

“Patients aren’t asking for a handout. We’re only asking for our civil rights to be respected, and it’d be delayed for another two years,” she said.

Cambridge resident Richard Harding said he supports the measure.

“You know, sometimes these processes aren’t easy to get through,” he said. “And I know that when emotions are high, different things happen.” declan.knieriem@thecrimson.com

health From Page 1

HUHS Plans New Flu Vaccination Initiatives launch a social media campaign showcasing administrators participating in the flu vaccine clinics.

They will also publicize the times of the flu clinics on Omni — an app that provides information to Harvard students — and give students strategies to distract themselves from the pain caused by getting vaccci-

nations.

“The HealthPALs at the dining halls are also going to bring some stuffed animals, and they’re going to have laptops with cat and dog videos to try to distract people, because we’ve heard that part of people not getting the vaccine is that they’re worried about the needles,” Francesconi said.

HUHS is also delaying the start of its clinics this year in response to CDC research which revealed that vaccines given later in the year cover people for longer, according to Campbell.

She said HUHS used to provide immunization clinics as soon as they received shipments of the vaccine from man-

ufacturers, which could be as early as August.

“Certainly for some of the older folks — some of the employees — it certainly could make a difference if you give them a flu shot in August,” Campbell said. “It’s pretty well worn off by April.” michelle.kurilla@thecrimson.com

law From Page 1

Law School Releases New Class Demographics application. Seat deposits wereeliminated the previous year.

This year, half of the matriculating class will be women.

Roughly 45 percent of the Class of 2022 are students of color, and 14 percent of the Class of 2022 are international students.

The Law School also attracted applicants from a variety of academic and career backgrounds. Of the matriculating students, 24 students are current or former members of the

United States Armed Forces, and 27 earned a graduate fellowship, and 1 competed on the television show “Survivor.”Consistent with Harvard Law’s recent emphasis on “work experience,” more than 75 percent of the class spent at least one year out of college before matriculating to Harvard Law. The Law School had 561 firstyear students begin classes on michelle.kurilla@thecrimson.com

Students eat lunch outside of the Harvard Law School Library. myeongseo kim—Crimson photographer

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

PAGE 8

EDITORIAL THE CRIMSON EDITORIAL BOARD

OP-ED

Moderation or Suffocation?

Harvard Ought to Be an International Institution

T

his past week, the Dean of Students’ Office rolled out a new policy mandating that all extracurricular organizations welcome DSO “neutral moderators” to engagements with “controversial” speakers.

In addition, organizations will have to register speakers with the DSO a month in advance. Moderators will have the power to exercise a “two-strike policy” on disruptive audience members, and the DSO may also cancel events they see as potentially ending in violence.

In brief, we find these new guidelines paternalistic, ineffective, and contrary to the College’s stated goals of free speech.ds When inviting speakers to campus, student organizations no doubt must be held responsible for the consequences of their invitation and event, but the College should also assume these organizations and their leaders to be mature enough to execute effective due diligence in researching speakers and managing audiences.

It’s concerning that the policy draws a line between undergraduate events and those of the broader campus. This infantilizing division not only breaks down the potential for collaboration between undergraduates and their graduate peers, but also sends a message about the University’s lack of trust in undergraduates’ maturity.

The extra guidance is not only unnecessary but insulting.

While we understand the College’s wariness about heated protests, we do not think this policy is an effective way to prevent dangerous escalations. An individual moderator does not have the ability to control an agitated crowd, es-

pecially the sort of the crowds the College is likely most worried about.

We might recall when student protestors interrupted a Kennedy School forum at which University President Lawrence S. Bacow was speaking to demand divestment from fossil fuels. What more could a moderator really have done to stop them or even deescalate the situation?

Beyond issues of efficacy, this policy precludes the spirit of inviting speakers to openly and honestly discuss controversial issues. If student groups have to jump through a litany of hoops from the administration merely to get their approval — or rejection — their ability to promote intellectually rigorous conversation will be drastically limited.

These stringent rules may very well discourage speakers and students alike, while also logistically inconveniencing leaders of extracurricular organizations.It is a great privilege to attend a University where so many significant thinkers and leaders come to share their ideas; making that exchange of ideas more difficult detracts from the institution as a whole as well as the individual experiences of its students.

We are also concerned that this policy will unequally affect conservative speakers, who are more likely to be protested against on campus.

Since the College has a well-established liberal bent, conservative speakers are more likely to be deemed controversial.

It would be easy, for example, to categorize conservative speakers as sparking threatening situations, based merely on the larger number of perturbed students. Just because these speakers rep-

resent a campus minority, however, does not dismiss their right to share ideas.

But more importantly, we feel it necessary to ask what “controversial” even entails and why the DSO should be given the authority to answer that question on a case-by-case basis.

The policy is troublingly vague and, in so being, threatens the autonomy of student groups on campus we have often defended.

What will these moderators do, and what qualifies them as neutral? How will they determine a potential for violence?

What is the formal registration process? How are “disruption,” “controversial,” “VIP”, and “violent” going to be defined? It does not appear to be good practice to institute a policy without fully defining all pertinent terms.

Without trafficking in slippery slopes, we worry that this ambiguity and the unstructured power it affords the DSO and its moderators are not so far off from a system of outright censorship. It’s not the University’s job to control speech, protest, and passionate debate.

The paternalistic control of student forums is not only unwelcome on this campus, but corrosive to the statues of truth and free discourse that undergird Harvard’s purported mission.

This staff editorial solely represents the majority view of The Crimson Editorial Board. It is the product of discussions at regular Editorial Board meetings. In order to ensure the impartiality of our journalism, Crimson editors who choose to opine and vote at these meetings are not involved in the reporting of articles on similar topics.

Submit an Op-Ed Today!

The Crimson @thecrimson COLUMN

The (Re)Gentrification of Harvard Square Ajay V. Singh LITTLE NUANCES

T

he first time I visited Harvard was a few months before I ever imagined I’d be a student here. Harvard is beautiful in the autumn: My mother and I spent several hours wandering campus under mosaic-like bursts of burgundy and ochre foliage; by the end of the day, we were exhausted. One of my favorite memories from that weekend is resting in the warmth of Crema Café, an inviting hug after a long day of physical and mental strain.

When I returned to campus as a firstyear, Crema became a hallmark of my first few semesters.

Sure, the café didn’t have Wi-Fi, and the second floor was usually crowded, but I loved the atmosphere, it was a local business, and I’d cultivated an emotional attachment to the place that was hard to shake.

Among other things, Crema had a vibrant “community board” situated to the right of its entrance; it captured the various events that were being held in the Cambridge community and always made me feel like a part of something larger

The civically sensible option for students is to rally around organizations that represent the interests of Cambridge residents. than Harvard.

So when Crema closed seemingly because of rent practices perpetrated by their new property owner, Asana Partners, I was reasonably devastated.

However, the recent trend of local businesses fleeing Harvard Square due to the greed of new real estate investment firms Asana Partners and Regency Centers, is troubling for more than emotional reasons — it is an extreme continuation of real estate investment practices that have sculpted Harvard’s decades-long housing crisis into what it has become today.

The transformation of Harvard Square is not new. Just as generations of students cycle in and out of Harvard every four years or so, so too does the composition of Harvard Square continually change, albeit on a longer life-cycle. The

past few decades in particular have seen Harvard Square shift from a local marketplace for residents of Cambridge to “a shopping district” for visitors and the relatively wealthy.

Harvard Square’s history of this sort of re-gentrification (a gentrification that cycles through different, but culturally-reliant, phases) began with projects in the 1980s like the openings of the Charles Hotel and the Eliot Street Garage in 1985.

These events began to create a different aura about Harvard Square, one that didn’t reflect previous understandings of class and stature in Cambridge.

The community response was twofold: Community members founded the Harvard Square Defense Fund to restrict and fight aggressive real estate practices; students responded to the rising housing insecurity from rent hikes by founding groups like the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter, established in 1983.

Real estate firms found ways to cope with backlash, however, and in 1994, voters in Massachusetts passed a state-wide referendum banning rent control across the state.

Though it was not singularly responsible for the commercial transformation of Harvard Square, the absence of such basic regulations opened the floodgates for rent hikes and eviction practices that would alter the socioeconomic composition of both Harvard Square and of housing in Cambridge at large.

All of this brings us to the present day.

The recent sales of the Curious George building to Regency Centers and of Brattle Court to Asana Partners in 2017 have allowed for these firms to once again dramatically reconstruct Harvard Square’s identity.

Whereas the definition of gentrification in the early 2010s was hipster coffee/ dessert and old-guard chain restaurants (i.e. Crema, Tealuxe, Sweet, Chipotle), the Harvard Square that Asana and Regency want to create is one inhabited by &pizzas and Milk Bars, trendy national retailers featured in viral Instagram videos, offering prices that are even more exorbitant and questionable.

With an immensely complicated problem such as this one, there is no single solution. But what I do know is that without strong civic action, without pressure

on Asana and Regency from the Cambridge community or the local government, the Harvard Square of five years from now will be even less inhabitable and less economically accessible to many members of the Cambridge community.

We need to hold these firms accountable through policies that afford renters in Harvard Square more rights and protections.

While not all landlords are large investment firms, the lack of any form of rent control or regulation clearly injures small businesses; installing protections for renters and perhaps even revisiting rent control are routes that could redis-

We need to hold these firms accountable through policies that afford renters in Harvard Square more rights and protections. tribute the disproportionate power that currently lies in the hands of landowners.

And finally, for Harvard students: We occupy this strange liminal space in our relationship to Harvard Square and Cambridge at large.

We certainly have a stake in the cultural and economic geography of Cambridge, but it doesn’t make sense for our voices to carry equal weight to those of permanent residents of Cambridge, since our stake is relatively short-term — we’re each only here for around four years or so.

Therefore, the civically sensible option for students is to rally around organizations that represent the interests of Cambridge residents, rather than superseding their interests with policies that might benefit students at Harvard most.

There are so many issues tied into this problem of property ownership and manipulation, especially that of homelessness in Harvard Square.

But in order for us to think seriously about solving Cambridge’s “housing crisis,” we first need to stop these cycles of re-gentrification.

—Ajay V. Singh ’21 is a Social Studies concentrator in Kirkland House. His column appears on alternate Tuesdays.

By JACOB A. FORTINSKY

S

ince the founding of Harvard University 383 years ago, the school has come to represent the pinnacle of American higher education. Though founded before the founding of the United States, it has always been perceived — and perceived itself — as distinctly American and has even been referred to as “America’s university.”

From the scope of its research to its outsized influence on the American political process to the makeup of its students, Harvard is thoroughly American.

Yet in the wake of prominent conversations about diversity taking place from the classroom to the courthouse, increasingly transnational issues such as climate change, and the detestable deportation of Ismail B. Ajjawi ’23, Harvard ought to reconsider its Americentrist position and firmly establish itself as an international university.

Harvard ought to reconsider its Americentrist position and firmly establish itself as an international university.

It is widely considered objectionable when Harvard and other universities have placed quotas or discriminated against certain minority or underprivileged groups in the admissions process, as as they have against Catholics, Jews, gay students, African-Americans, women, and is being accused of doing against Asian-Americans.

Why do we not apply the same sort of outrage over the implicit cap of international students?

International students have made up a consistent portion of College admits, and, according to some estimates, have an acceptance rate of 1.6 percent, nearly three times lower than the overall acceptance rate.

Just as other sorts of quotas and double standards in admissions are rightly viewed as discriminatory and bigoted, why is the apparent quota of international students not deemed to be similarly xenophobic?

As others have noted, international applicants often face more hurdles in the application process, particularly for those who are less wealthy: a potential language barrier, lack of knowledge of the American university system, improper or insufficient counseling, a difficult visa application process, and tremendous hostility from the American government and president toward immigrants.

Harvard should actively work to make it easier for international students to apply and to increase the proportion of international students in the College, in the name of both diversity and equality. Additionally, international students have to overcome social and academic barriers once at school. More should be done to help integrate them and ease their transition to living in the United States.

But doing so requires more than just changing admissions demographics.

Harvard is in a distinctly privileged position

Just as other sorts of quotas and double standards in admissions are rightly viewed as discriminatory and bigoted, why is the apparent quota of international students not deemed to be similarly xenophobic? and should use its role as a global leader in education and research in order to exert a global impact. Harvard has taken a key role in American politics in Washington and has admirably used its national standing to advocate on issues such as immigration, higher education, and climate change. It should take an equally active role across the world.

From the refugee crisis to climate change to the role of NGOs and transnational corporations, contemporary politics are not confined to national borders and neither should Harvard’s activist role.

In understanding the extent of Harvard’s, and virtually all American schools’, Americentrism, consider how schools abroad handle these issues. The London School of Economics and Political Science, for example, is composed of nearly 70 percent of international students and Oxford is made up of 43 percent international students, whereas Harvard is only 21.1 percent international students.

Of course, some of this is due to LSE’s and Oxford’s proximity to other European nations, but having a more geographically diverse student body, as well as a diverse faculty, allows for a wider range of experiences to be heard and allows for those universities to be more representative of the global population which it should serve.

It also allows for its research to reach different parts of the world and be conducted by people from those places.

However, these changes ought to be seen as more than isolated steps to be more internationally-focused; they should be part of a broader reorientation of how Harvard views itself, whom it should serve, and the scope of its activism.

Harvard College’s stated mission is to “educate the citizens and citizen-leaders of our society.” In order to fully do so, it should commit to a more global outlook and one less Americentric.

—Jacob A. Fortinsky ’21, a Crimson Editorial editor, is a Social Studies concentrator in Winthrop House.

PAGE 9

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

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SPORTS

WEEKLY RECAP

SCORES

MEN’S BASKETBALL VS. BU W, 18-17 ___________________________________________________________

WOMEN’S SWIMMING IVY LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHP 2ND ___________________________________________________________

WOMEN’S HEAVYWEIGHT CREW VS. YALE L ___________________________________________________________

GOLF VS. PRINCETON W ___________________________________________________________

FOOTBALL VS. UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT L, 42, 36 ___________________________________________________________

MEN’S WRESTLING VS. PENN STATE L, 42, 36 ___________________________________________________________

FENCING NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIP 15TH ___________________________________________________________

CROSS COUNTRY

Harvard Finds Budding Success at Beantown

By WILLIAM CONNAUGHTON CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Down in Franklin Park, some 30 minutes from the Harvard campus, both Crimson teams placed fourth in the Battle for Beantown, their best finishes since the tournament’s inception in 2013.

In front of a crowd facing 24 other schools, including for the men No. 3 ranked Washington, No. 13 ranked Syracuse,, and No. 21 ranked Arkansas and for the women No. 25 ranked Dartmouth, No. 27 ranked Syracuse, and No. 29 ranked Georgia Tech, Harvard had a chance to prove themselves. Prove themselves they did.

For the men, senior standout Kieran Tuntivate had the best race of his Harvard career, beating out the pack by 12 seconds.

The Delaware native finished in a blistering 23:58, good for a per mile pace of 4:50. This time for the 2018 HEPs champion, was his personal best in the 8k by over 20 seconds, proving that Kieran is well ahead of where he was last season.

“It’s true I won HEPs last year but our team was second and also missed out on qualifying for nationals,” commented Tuntivate on his motivation this year, “I’m motivated because I want our team to win HEPs and get to nationals. I want to do my part in helping that happen.”

In second for the men’s team was junior Matthew Pereria, who placed 18th, up from 56th a year ago, with a time of 24:47.

Pereria was behind many of those who finished behind and in front of him at the 3k and 5k mark, but Pereria had a strong finish near the end of the race to gain crucial positions for the Crimson. His time was also a personal best in the 8k, and the junior will look to build on this performance this season.

The pair of junior Blake Evertsen and first year Ben ­

Hartvigsen finished 40 and 41 for the Harvard squad, as Evertsen continued his breakout season and freshman Hartvigsen had a huge race, unafraid of the moment in his first collegiate race. To round out the scoring for the Crimson was sophomore David Melville, who finished in 52nd. Freshman Acer Iverson who had a strong opener last week against Yale, followed up with a quality 59th place finished in his second race in the crimson uniform, good for sixth on the team.

“Yesterday’s performance was about making sure our team would practice good habits and get those good habits in motion for the rest of the season,” said Tuntivate about the team’s performance, “[it was about] getting back into the routine of racing and waking up the legs after so long.”

Tuntivate and the rest of the Men’s Cross Country team have their eyes set high on nationals this year. The men’s team finished in fourth with 151 points, just edging a talented ranked Washington team who put up 156 points and a ranked Arkansas team.

The women ran together much like they have so far this season. The standout performer for the Crimson was first-year Isabell Sagar who finished with a time 17:35 in the 5k with an average pace of 5:40. Sagar led the women for the first time in her young career and her 11th place finish was the best in the Battle for Beantown since 2015 for the Harvard women.

Just behind Sagar, a pack of three Crimson women, junior Brooke Starn, sophomore Maya Rayle, and senior co-captain Gillian Meeks, placed 28th, 30th, and 31st. The pack finished within three seconds of each other and the cohesion helped Havard jump many teams in the rankings. Junior Tessa Madrano was Harvard’s final scorer,

FINISHING FOURTH In the seventh annual Beantown, both of Harvard’s teams had fourth place finishes. Both teams had standout first-years who pushed the pace for their fellow teammates and competitors. MATTHEW W. DESHAW—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

placing 38th. While many other teams had more top-heavy lineups, the Crimson women were able to finish together, picking up points as the 3rd, 4th, and 5th scorers of many competitors dropped off.

“We didn’t explicitly plan to stick as a pack,” stated Meeks on the race strategy, “it just sort of

happened that we finished close together. We all ran different races, some of us going out hard and others going out more conservatively, but we all ended up in similar spots.”

The strong effort allowed the Havard women to place 4th and take down two ranked opponents, fellow Ivy-league oppo-

nent Dartmouth, who finished 6th in team scoring, and Georgia Tech, who finished 7th.

In the first big race of the year both teams ran their hearts out on the way to a pair of 4th place finishes, the best for both teams since the race was first started in 2013. This contest proved how far the program has come in re-

cent years and hinted at future program-wide success this year.

After the battle this weekend, the Crimson have two weeks off before they’re back in Franklin Park for the New England Championships on October 12th. william.connaughton@thecrimson.com

SAILING

Sailing Places Third at Hoyt, Fifth at Invitational

By ELIOT MIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

On a gorgeous day at the Edgewood Yacht Club, the wind hovered at a mild 5-8 knots —

not too strong a breeze, but just strong enough to propel Harvard to a third-place finish at the Sherman Hoyt Trophy last weekend.

Junior skipper Eli Burnes,

junior crew member Emily Wang and sophomore crew member Eric Hansen scored an impressive 123 points in the A-Division.

Meanwhile, sophomore

Emma Kaneti and junior Emma Jakobson managed a stellar 100 points en route to Harvard’s second consecutive top-three performance at the Hoyt Trophy. Harvard placed

NOT SO SMOOTH SAILING Despite strong finishes at the Hoyt Trophy and Harvard Invitational, the sailing team still has plenty to improve on as they look forward into their season. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

first at the regatta, which is annually hosted by Brown University, last year.

Although the team finished strong, it was not smooth sailing for Harvard during the entire regatta. In its first two races of the Hoyt Trophy, Harvard Sailing’s A team stumbled to 14th- and 12th- finishes to put the team in a deep hole.

These early struggles threatened to derail Harvard’s performance at the event; however, both the A and B squads put up a string of strong performances to bring Harvard up to third place.

Tying Harvard’s best result of the young season, the thirdplace finish highlighted a weekend of four regattas against tough competition.

According to Burns, staying tough mentally was key in order for him, Wang and Hansen to rebound from the tough start.

“We had a bad day [Saturday]. I was not at my best.” said Burns. “At the end of Saturday — I sailed with [Wang] — she and I were eleventh in the A-division. But Monday we came back and I was super focused and we put together a lot of great races. [The next] day, me and [Hansen], who I sailed with on Sunday, we moved up to fifth and then we got third overall, which is definitely good.”

Harvard also performed well at the annual Harvard Invitational, securing a fifthplace finish against 16 other teams.

In the A-Division, junior skipper Owen Schafer and firstyear crew member Chris Wang scored an impressive 25 points, while sophomore skipper Paul Kuechler and crew members Katie Barkin and Bridget Sands put up a solid 40 points in the B-Division.

Harvard Sailing had an ad-

ditional pair of regattas to close out the weekend, placing 10th in the Hood Trophy and 12th in the all-women’s Mrs. Hurst bowl.

Although these lackluster results were slightly disheartening following the strong performances at the Hoyt Trophy and Harvard Invitational, the team is very happy with their season thus far.

Afterall, the successes of the team were quite telling to what the team can and hopes to accomplish for the rest of the season.

According to first-year walkon crew member Alex Lee, the group has been working hard in practice to prepare for its upcoming races.

“We’re really making the most of our practice time.” said Lee. “We get there, we do our warm ups, then we go right to the drills. A big thing we wanted to work on this year was boat handling, [which is] how the skipper and crew work together. I think we’ve been doing well so far.”

In addition to continuing with their training regimen and work ethic, Harvard Sailing will also focus on training younger, up-and-coming sailors on the squad, such as walkons like Lee. “We have a lot of new freshmen, and we’re trying to train a bunch of new walk-ons right now and that’s really exciting.” said Burns. “A lot of the freshmen are really talented, so as the season goes on, we’ll see how they do.”

The team looks to build on its strong performances in the Hoyt Trophy and Harvard Invitational when it competes in four regattas hosted by Connecticut College, United States Coast Guard Academy, MIT, and Tufts next weekend.