The Harvard Crimson, Volume CXLVI No. 20

The Harvard Crimson THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873 | VOLUME CXLVI, NO. 20 | CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019

EDITORIAL PAGE 4

NEWS PAGE 4

SPORTS PAGE 6

All students have a right to practice creative writing.

Two campus unions prepare for another attempt at a merger.

Men’s tennis unable to muster comeback against Penn.

College To Bartley’s Sued Over Disability Accomodations Review Amnesty Policy

By BRIE K. BUCHANAN and PETER E. O’KEEFE CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

By SHERA S. AVI-YONAH and DELANO R. FRANKLIN CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

The College is reviewing its “amnesty policy” in response to a fall report on the April 2018 forcible arrest of a black undergraduate, Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana said in an interview Friday.

The College’s amnesty policy — first implemented in 2007 and renewed in 2012 — grants intoxicated students under 21 exemption from University punishment in certain cases.

Khurana said Friday the Dean of Students Office is working with the College to conduct the review in response to concerns that the policy’s current wording is confusing to undergraduates.

Under the current iteration of the amnesty policy, students who approach Harvard employees to seek help for themselves or for intoxicated friends will not be punished for underage drinking.

The policy has limits, though. It does not cover other illegal actions students commit while drunk, nor does it prevent local or state authorities from arresting students.

On Friday, Khurana praised the fall report’s findings and said the College plans to make many “fine-grained” changes to how it runs events like Yardfest, the College’s annual spring concert. University administrators issued the report to evaluate its response in the wake of last year’s arrest. The April 13 confrontation sparked allegations of police brutality from some students and made national headlines.

The report found that University resources, including Harvard police and Harvard University Health Services, were stretched thin at last year’s Yardfest, which saw more than five times the number of medical transports that occurred the year before. All transports were for intoxication or overdoses.

University President Lawrence S. Bacow wrote in the fall that two local emergency rooms became so “overloaded” that they refused to accept several intoxicated students that night.

“I think it really pointed out a number of areas that we want to strengthen from the

SEE AMNESTY PAGE 3

Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage, a Harvard Square fixture, is facing a lawsuit filed earlier this month based on allegations its building is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. MIA B. FROTHINGHAM—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

ue to suffer such harm and injury” as long as the building violates the ADA, the complaint states.

The complaint includes a list of nine specific violations that Melo found in the restaurant as well as references to the applicable sections of the ADA. He notes that the list is not comprehensive and asks that Bartley’s be inspected “to determine all

of the discriminatory acts violating the ADA,” according to the filing.

The complaint alleges that Bartley’s and Harvard are discriminating against individuals with disabilities by “denying access to, and full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages and/or accommodations of the Facility.”

The current owner of Bartley’s, Bill Bartley, declined to comment.

Ha r va rdspokesperson Brigid O’Rourke wrote in an emailed statement that the University, working in conjunction with experts, could identify “some readily achievable improvements.”

“Harvard is working toward renewing the lease to Mr. Bart-

ley’s Burger Cottage, an iconic Harvard Square business,” O’Rourke wrote. “It is widely recognized that older buildings, particularly those in urban environments such as this one, can present unique challenges for accessibility, but Harvard anticipates that with the assistance of appropriate experts,

SEE BARTLEY’S PAGE 3

HMC Tech Securities Holdings Zuckerberg Talks Outweigh Peer Institutions’ Ads at Law School 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%

By CONNOR W.K. BROWN

Securities Holdings in Tech Companies

Tech Non-Tech

Securities Holdings

Khurana says admins will consider changes to amnesty policy

A local man filed a lawsuit against Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage and Harvard, which owns the restaurant’s building, earlier this month, alleging that the restaurant violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. The plaintiff in the case, Andres Ramon Melo, uses a wheelchair for mobility reasons and visited Bartley’s “individually and for personal reasons, and also as a ‘tester’,” according to the complaint, which he filed in federal court Feb. 6. Melo alleges that the restaurant facilities are inaccessible to those using wheelchairs, thus putting the restaurant in violation of the ADA. Passed by Congress in 1990, the ADA is a federal law meant to provide a clear national standard with enforceable policies to ensure that people with disabilities “have the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in the mainstream of American life,” per the ADA website.

Melo states in the complaint that he encountered several “barriers to access” when visiting Bartley’s.

Those barriers allegedly included a raised threshold with no ramp or similar way of access and inaccessible counters and public restrooms. When Melo “engaged and tested” those barriers, he “suffered legal harm and legal injury and will contin-

Princeton

Harvard

Yale

Stanford

Texas

MARGOT E. SHANG—CRIMSON DESIGNER

By LUKE W. VROTSOS and CINDY H. ZHANG CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Harvard Management Company, the University’s investment arm, invests more heavily in technology companies than the other four largest university endowments in the country, according to the most recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Com-

mission filings.

Nearly 83 percent of Harvard’s declared securities investments are in four large technology firms: Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, and Alphabet, Google’s parent company, according to its 2018 fourth-quarter filings, which were released earlier this month.

In comparison, just a year ago, SEC filings indicate that

Harvard did not directly invest in tech stocks at all.

The other top four university endowments — Yale University, Princeton University, Stanford University, and the University of Texas system — invest far less in information technology. Out of these four, Princeton invests the most in technology stocks,

SEE ENDOWMENT PAGE 3

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg ’06 took part in a discussion about data security and targeted advertising at Harvard Law School on Feb. 11.

The discussion, led by Law School Professor Jonathan L. Zittrain, was for students in his course HLS 2433 Internet & Society: “The Technologies and Politics of Control, and Techtopia,” a research and teaching initiative for Harvard students and faculty focused on tech issues.

Zittrain said Zuckerberg’s level of personal control over Facebook policies made him a good candidate for the conversation.

“A change to Facebook’s acceptable use policy has immediate and far-reaching effects on speech that previously weren’t possible through a single private party,” Zittrain wrote in an email. “Mark is the ultimate decision maker for the company in a way that most CEOs are not.”

Zittrain started the discussion asking about “information fiduciaries,” a new arrangement that improves how internet companies handle sensitive data and prioritize users’ interests on their sites, according to a press release about the event.

“The idea of us having a fiduciary relationship with the people who use our services is intuitive,” Zuckerberg said at the talk. “Where this gets interesting is who gets to decide in the legal sense, or in the policy sense, of what’s in people’s best interest.”

The two hour talk also included a discussion of targeted advertising, a practice that has brought Facebook scrutiny in recent years. Zittrain raised the possibility of giving users “a score of how much I’ve earned for Facebook this year,” which could lead to the development of an “informed conversation about an ad-free Facebookscription model.”

“Are we going to let people

SEE ZUCKERBERG PAGE 5

Human Rights Activists Share Personal Stories at ‘Freedom Forum’

By JENNA X. BAO and EMA R. SCHUMER CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Addalaziz Alhamza, a Syrian citizen and journalist, answered questions at the College Freedom Forum on Wednesday. MATTHEW J. MARDO—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Harvard Today 2

News 3

Editorial 4

Sports 6

Political dissidents and human rights activists shared personal stories about their work at the College Freedom Forum held Wednesday evening in a Science Center auditorium.

The event, organized by the Human Rights Foundation alongside the Harvard International Relations Council, brought experts together to educate on global human rights issues.

The speakers at Wednesday’s forum included Turkish dissident and NBA player Enes Kanter, Somali social activist TODAY’S FORECAST

Leyla Hussein, Venezuelan violinist Wuilly Arteaga, Harvard professor Steven A. Pinker, and Chinese human rights activist Ti-Anna Wang. The theme of Wednesday’s forum was grassroots activism, according to IRC president Eliza R. Ennis ’19.

Pinker, the author of two books on human rights, introduced the event by expressing admiration for HRF’s nonpartisan work for advancing democracy and human rights.

Turkish national Kanter, who video conferenced into the forum, spoke about his experience as a dissident of the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to Human Rights Foundation Special Ad-

CLOUDY High: 50 Low: 26

visor Nasser Weddady. Turkish prosecutors issued a warrant for his arrest last month.

Kanter’s participation in the College Freedom Forum drew the ire of the Turkish consulate, which had planned to protest Kanter’s talk, according to Weddady.

“We got some information that there was some organization orchestrated from the Turkish consulate against Enes Kanter because the Erdogan government is trying to silence one of its critics,” Weddady said in an interview after the event.

The Turkish Consulate in ­ Boston did not immediately

SEE FORUM PAGE 5

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Crocs

THE HARVARD CRIMSON |

FEBRUARY 21, 2019

PAGE 2

HARVARD TODAY

For Lunch Dan Dan Noodles Grilled BBQ Chicken Thigh Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese Sandwich

For Dinner Baked Salmon with Dill Roast Beef w/ Peppercorn Sauce Portobello Lentil Patty with Tomato Basil Salsa

TODAY’S EVENTS The Assassination and Legacy of Malcolm X 6-9 p.m.

IN THE REAL WORLD Charges Brought Against Smollett for Faking a Hate Crime

The Taha Collective and Harvard Islamic Society are joining together on the anniversary of Malcolm X’s assassination to honor his life and legacy. Special guest Shareef Nasir will be joining to talk more about his upcoming documentary “Behind the Trigger: The Killing of Malcolm X” and explore the details and societal impact of his death. Head to Ticknor Lounge if you’d like to participate.

Consulting 101 - Preparing For Fall Recruiting 5:30-6:30 p.m.

“What is a consultant, and what does someone in this role actually do?” — we couldn’t say it better ourselves.

Hone your snake-y economics skills at 66 Winthrop St. (right across from the Office of Career Services!) and learn how to land the Goldman Sachs internship of your dreams.

Justin “Jussie” Smollett, who plays Jamal Lyon on Empire, has been charged with a felony count of disorderly conduct. Smollett allegedly made false claims about a hate crime involving homophobic and racial slurs, as well as references to “MAGA country.”

Hoda Muthana Barred From Returning To America, U.S. Officials Say

Harvard undergrads came to Wellbeing Wednesdays at the Smith Campus Center to make crafts, relax, and unwind. MIA B. FROTHINGHAM—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

DAILY BRIEFING Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana said the College and Dean of Students Office will review the “amnesty” policy, citing student confusion over its wording. He also previewed small changes to Yardfest one year after the April 2018 arrest of an undergraduate after the outdoor concert. In other news, Harvard Square staple Bartley’s Burger Cottage faces a lawsuit alleging its building violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.

U.S. officials — including President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo — have stated that Hoda Muthana, an Alabama native who left the country to join ISIS in 2014, should be denied re-entry to the United States, despite the fact that she was born in the U.S. and has a U.S. passport.

Muthana has expressed regret for her involvement with the terrorist group.

‘Zombie Deer’ Disease Found in 24 States Chronic Wasting Disease now affects deer and closely related species in 24 states, causing drastic weight loss, aggression, and reduced fear of humans. The Center for Disease Control is cautioning hunters to avoid handling infected meat and not to approach or shoot deer that are behaving strangely. There’s no evidence it can spread to humans (yet), so don’t blow your life savings on an apocalypse shelter (yet).

AROUND THE IVIES UPENN

The Daily Pennsylvanian reported that a Penn undergraduate was hit by a car Wednesday evening. The student was hit while walking to dinner near Penn’s campus. Both University and local police responded to the accident, which may have been caused by slippery streets due to cold weather in Philadelphia. Though the student was treated in an ambulance immediately following the accident, they did not go to a hospital.

YALE

A former Yale dining hall manager pleaded not guilty to a host of charges — including one count of aggravated sexual assault and one count of strangulation — at a Tuesday hearing, the Yale Daily News reported. Local police arrested Yale Hospitality General Manager Mark Lacy at his home on Feb. 1. Lacy began working at Yale in 2013 and was listed at a Pierson College dining hall manager earlier this month. Yale University spokesperson Tom Conroy told the News Lacy will not return to work until further notice.

DARTMOUTH

As Dartmouth College celebrates its 250th anniversary, the Dartmouth reported that local police are investigating the theft of several anniversary banners. Dartmouth police posted a photo of two suspected culprits online last month, inviting locals to help identify them. They posted on Twitter on Feb. 6 that the search was successful, though their investigation into the stolen banners is ongoing. At least two of the three stolen banners have been returned.

THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873

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

Associate Managing Editors Caroline S. Engelmayer ’20 Jamie D. Halper ’20 Associate Business Manager Amy E. Zhou ’20 Editorial Chairs Jessenia N. Class ’20 Robert Miranda ’20

STAFF FOR THIS ISSUE Arts Chairs Kaylee S. Kim ’20 Caroline A. Tsai ’20

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

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

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

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

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

Night Editor Norah M. Murphy ’20

Design Editor Margot E. Shang ’21

Assistant Night Editors Sydnie M. Cobb ’22 Shera S. Avi-Yonah ’21

Photo Editor Mariah Ellen D. Dimalaluan ’20

Story Editors Angela N. Fu ’20 Jamie D. Halper ’20 Andrew J. Zucker ’20

Editorial Editor Isaac O. Longobardi ’21

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.

Sports Editor Spencer R. Morris ’20

CORRECTIONS The Feb. 20 article “Math Faculy Chafe at Admins” misquoted Christopher W, Stubbs. He said, “we are populating the low end of the career stage distribution,” not “We are populating the lowland of the career stage distribution.”

PAGE 3

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | FEBRUARY 21, 2019

Campus Unions Khurana Talks Amnesty Policy May Merge AMNESTY FROM PAGE 1

By JAMES S. BIKALES and RUOQI ZHANG CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

­ hree years ago, when two of T Harvard’s unions proposed a merger, talks with the University fell through.

Now, the unions – one the largest union at Harvard, and the other one of the smallest – are preparing to reopen their case.

The Harvard University Security, Parking, and Museum Guards Union, which has about 80 members, hopes to merge with the 5,200-member Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers before HUSPMGU’s contract runs out in 2020, HUSPMGU President Curt E. Rheault said.

When the two unions first tried to merge in 2016, more than 90 percent of HUSPMGU’s members supported the move. The two unions then approached Harvard with the merger proposal as HUSMPGU’s contract was being re-negotiated that spring.

At the time, the University raised legal questions about the proposal and, with HUCTW’s contract negotiations coming up, the merger was put on the “back burner,” Rheault said.

Now, Rheault wants to restart those talks, saying the issues that affected the union in 2016 are just as salient today.

He said HUSPMGU workers would benefit from being part of a stronger union as they would have more resources.

“We’re a small union,” Rheault said. “We’re the lowest paid union, actually, at the University.”

Beyond strengthening members’ representation, Rheault also pointed to the improved career development prospects and “upward mobility” that the merger could bring to HUSPMGU’s membership.

“There are good and bad and different things. But at the end of the day, we’re just a small unit that wishes to be part of a big unit that’s going to help us out a lot more than our resources can afford,” he said.

In response to the 2016 proposal, Harvard Director of Labor Relations Paul R. Curran responded with a letter that raised legal questions about the merger. Curran cited a provision in National Labor Relations Act that precludes employees classified as “guards” from being in a union with nonguards.

Legal experts, however, said that this provision would not preclude HUCTW and HUSPMGU from merging.

University of Oregon Professor Gordon Lafer, who formerly served as a senior labor policy advisor for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and Labor, wrote in an email that the legal provision limiting guards’ membership dates back to a time when the role of security guards was to act as “company police.”

“Partly the thought was they might be policing picket lines

College’s perspective. We are responding in very fine-grained detail to things about how we manage the large-scale events,” Khurana said.

“I think some of that was evidence in the Harvard-Yale game, but that was sort of off-campus. But I think in Yardfest, we will see those practices put in place.”

Khurana focused on the amnesty policy in particular, citing questions over the behavior it “encourages” among undergraduates.

“We’re doing a review of what students refer to as the amnesty policy and to try to understand, make sure it’s more clear and clarified about what it does do, what it encourages, and also where there’s confusion, to

remove that confusion,” he said.

Khurana added that administrators are considering both

BARTLEY’S FROM PAGE 1

ENDOWMENT FROM PAGE 1

and strikes and therefore management would want to make sure they weren’t in the same union as the people they might be policing in a strike,” Lafer wrote. “But at most universities, ‘security guards’ are mostly doing things like monitoring parking lots and art museums.”

In spite of that, the University is not legally obligated to recognize the merger of the two unions, Lafer wrote.

“This is due to the particular case of security guards – labor law (written in the 1930s) assumes that security guards are different from other types of employees and therefore it won’t require an employer to recognize a union that has everyone together,” he wrote.

“They can certainly say ‘we don’t legally have to, and we don’t want to.’ But it’s not accurate to say ‘we’re prohibited by law from doing this,’” Lafer wrote, referring to the University’s 2016 position that such a merger is prohibited by the National Labor Relations Act. Even if Harvard were to allow the union merger, William B. Gould IV, former chairman of the National Labor Relations Board, said the school could choose not to bargain with the group.

If that were to happen, the merged unions would be unable to petition the NLRB to compel Harvard to bargain with them.

Samuel Estreicher, director of the Center for Labor and Employment Law at New York University, also said that though the merger would be legal, the new union would not have rights enforceable by the NLRB because labor laws limit that body’s recognition of unions with guard and non-guard members.

But that might not be necessary, according to Estreicher.

“If the union is strong, they could go out on strike and compel Harvard to bargain,” he said.

Rheault thinks the merger effort will face three main challenges: legal questions, concerns about how the merger might affect Harvard operations, and financial impacts on the University.

He said he is open to a gradual implementation of the merger to reduce the burden on the University.

“Does it happen over two years, three years, what is it so that the Harvard operations have time to adjust and plan for that?” he said.

Rheault said HUSPMGU reached out to HUCTW two weeks ago and the two sides plan to sit down “soon.”

“We’re constantly in touch with the HUSPMGU leadership and still actively interested in trying to find a way to combine our unions and have them be one unified thing,” HUCTW organizer Bill Jaeger said.

The University has yet to hear a formal proposal from the two unions.

some readily achievable improvements can be identified.”

Melo is requesting that the court issue a permanent injunction ordering Harvard and Bartley’s to “remove the physical barriers to access” and alter the building so that it complies with ADA regulations. He is also demanding that the defendants pay for his legal costs.

The lawsuit against Bartley’s and Harvard is not Melo’s first attempt to litigate against businesses for alleged violations of the ADA. He often serves as a “tester,” visiting public spaces that allegedly have “illegal barriers to access,” according to the complaint. He then photographs and documents the location while assessing the “extent to which there are illegal barriers to access.”

Melo has been the plaintiff in “dozens” of federal suits at the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts over the past decade, according to his attorney, Edward N. Garno. Melo currently has nine open cases in Massachusetts including the Bartley’s suit, five of which were filed Tuesday.

“He’s an advocate for disabled communities,” Garno said in an interview.

Melo is also represented by attorney Todd W. Shulby of Weston, Fla., who did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Melo plans to return to Bartley’s in the future to ensure that changes have been made and that the building owners are complying with the regulations stated in the ADA, according to court documents.

james.bikales@thecrimson.com ruoqi.zhang@thecrimson.com

brie.buchanann@thecrimson.com peter.o’keefe@thecrimson.com

I think some of that was evidence in the Harvard-Yale game, but that was sort of off-campus. But I think in Yardfest, we will see those practices put in place.

Rakesh Khurana Dean of the College

changes to the language of the policy and the way it is present-

ed to students.

“We also learned that the nomenclature itself is confusing,” Khurana said. “There’s a lot of opportunities to improve that communication.”

He said the College will also change Yardfest entry policies and reconsider information sent out in advance of the concert.

“We are also, and continue to do, a great deal of work on understanding the way that we work and the questions that exist among our students around a number of College policies,” Khurana said.

Harvard University Police Department Chief of Police Francis “Bud” D. Riley issued the report on the arrest in November, months after Cam-

bridge police officers forcibly arrested the undergraduate and charged him on four counts.

Prosecutors later dropped the charges in May following protests from other undergraduates and local officials.

In addition to addressing issues of underage drinking and its burden on local hospitals, the report also made recommendations for other College programs concerning mental health.

Riley and other University administrators suggested that House and Yard staff undergo training for “multi-cultural competency in mental health support.” shera.avi-yonah@thecrimson. com delano.franklin@thecrimson.com

Bartley’s Harvard Invests in Tech Cottage Securities More than Peers Faces Lawsuit with just under 5 percent of its securities holdings in technology stocks, according to its SEC filings from the same period.

Technology stocks comprise less than 1 percent of all securities for Yale and Stanford.

Stocks held through exchange-traded funds, while reported to the SEC, are not included in these breakdowns.

The rest of Harvard’s holdings that are not in tech are largely in exchange-traded funds.

Harvard is also an outlier when it comes to investments in one particular D.C.-based real estate firm. Princeton, Yale, and MIT all hold substantial stakes in the firm, JBG Smith Properties.

Princeton’s stake in JBG Smith represents 93 percent of the university’s total securities.

Harvard, on the other hand, had no direct holdings in JBG Smith as of the end of 2018.

Technology stocks have done well so far this year compared to the overall stock market.

The S&P 500’s information technology index has increased 12.1 percent since the beginning of the year, whereas the overall S&P 500 is up just 10.9 percent.

The SEC requires investment managers — like HMC — with more than $100 million under management to disclose securities holdings annually.

Managers are not required to report mutual fund holdings, but they must include their exchange-traded funds.

The $475 million Harvard reported in securities last quarter make up a relatively small portion of the University’s overall endowment, which

is valued at around $39.2 billion.

Private equity and real estate investments, at 20 percent and 14.5 percent of the endowment respectively, were the largest sectors of the endowment last year.

Harvard’s endowment, the largest university endowment in the world, has seen weaker returns than its Ivy League peers in recent years.

Last year, only Columbia’s investment returns trailed Harvard’s.

The exclusive group of university endowments that exceed $500,000 per student is bracing for a new 1.4 percent federal tax on endowment returns that will be levied for the first time this fiscal year. luke.vrotsos@thecrimson.com cindy.zhang@thecrimson.com

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | FEBRUARY 21, 2019

PAGE 4

EDITORIAL THE CRIMSON EDITORIAL BOARD

OP-ED

A Right to Creative Writing

Philosophy: The One Subject Harvard Should Require

F

or the past two years, the English Department has seen an uptick in enrollment numbers for its creative writing program, which offers workshops of up to 12 people on specific areas of creative writing. These workshops, varying in content from “Journalism in the Age of Trump” to “Narrative Science Journalism,” are available to undergraduates by application. Of the 477 students — a record number — who applied to the program this spring, around 60 percent were admitted into one of the also record-high 24 workshops on offer.

Pivotal to this increased capacity has been the program’s expansion to the fourth floor of Lamont Library, just recently renovated to accommodate more creative writing classes. These new spaces foster a needed sense of community and belonging for the creative writing program and its students. While the University’s growth of the program is laudable, the competitive application process and the need to submit a writing sample still prevent students with less writing experience — those who stand to benefit the most from the program — from participating.

We believe that creative writing-based classes that emphasize a student’s originality of thought, rather than

their ability to learn and mimic an established academic style, are invaluable.

Harvard preaches the benefits of its liberal arts education, yet its required General Education classes rarely engage students in any kind of creative writing.

Increasing the opportunity for students grow in this capacity is essential in the pursuit of a well-rounded liberal arts education. More broadly, this Board has extolled the values of the humanities in the past; the expansion of the creative writing program represents an encouraging move to revitalize the humanities from their recent decline in prominence.

Even beyond their value for the liber-

Harvard preaches the benefits of its liberal arts education, yet its required General Education classes rarely engage students in any kind of creative writing. al arts, these classes build vital skills for students pursuing careers in fields like journalism, screenwriting, novel writing, and more. Given the modern-day weaponization of rhetoric and the in-

creasingly interdisciplinary bent of academic writing, knowledge of a wide array of writing styles is critical for thriving in different professions.

Unfortunately, only 60 percent of those who apply secure a spot in the program; this statistic leaves room for improvement. The use of writing samples to judge a person’s fitness for the writing program may leave students daunted and perhaps invalidated, while the most polished writers gain access to resources and individualized attention.

To combat this danger, the University should continue expanding even further, offering workshops that are specifically targeted to writers at different experience levels. The English Department should continue making positive adjustments to the creative writing program to ensure that its benefits are available to all.

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.

ISABELLA C. ASLARUS—CRIMSON ILLUSTRATOR

COLUMN

Representation Matters, But at What Expense?

Ifeoluwa T. Obayan REMNANT OF TRUTH

“R

epresentation matters.” This catch phrase has become relevant in various areas of industry from film to finance, academic fields, positions of power, and more. It is a response that defines a rebellion against the default: white, male, and rich.

Often times, when young children dream big, those who actually end up fulfilling their dreams have the advantage of seeing examples of people that look like them. Knowing there is a lack of representation, at times, colors the consciousness of the few privileged underrepresented minorities that end up on a path toward a bright future.

It is a weighty thing to make decisions not only for yourself, but with those whom you represent in mind.

Growing up as a black girl with an affinity for science and math, the encouragement of my parents and teachers drove me to continue pursuing the subjects.

The people cheering you on can only get you to a certain point, though.

When the toughest semesters for STEM concentrators inevitably come amid lab, section, and lectures loaded with information, you begin to understand why they are called “weed out” classes. The difference between then and now forced me to reevaluate what it means to be good at and to enjoy what I do.

For many of us, high school was a breeze. We may have had to work hard and put in time studying, but the grades and relative successes came much easier. We may have had a sense of what we did or did not like, but our inclinations were not really put to the test until we

reached an institution of higher learning. With the pressure now to maintain a certain GPA and build a resume that launches us to the next step after college, struggling to do well and, at times, failing anyway makes you rethink everything.

For those who come from underrepresented backgrounds in certain fields, the existential question becomes who am I doing this for — myself or my people? And is it worth it?

What many of us who are not white, male, and rich discovered when we first displayed some adeptness for these fields is that there were not many people who could relate to our identity.

In light of the numerous negative

What many of us who are not white, male, and rich discovered when we first displayed some adeptness for these fields is that there were not many people who could relate to our identity. consequences that arise when diversity is missing, this births a sense of duty in us to be the trailblazer that future generations can identify as a familiar face.

In actuality, this self-ascribed or even family and community-driven obligation is an unrealistic pressure to place on ourselves as young people “figuring it out.” What you were good at and maybe even what you liked as a nine year old

may not hold ten years later, and that is perfectly okay because people change, possibly even more so in the first 20 to 30 years of life.

This does not mean that at the sight of any challenge or resistance, we should take it as a sign. Just because high school was a breeze does not mean college and beyond will have the same level of ease, but I do believe there is a grace given to anyone following their God-ordained purpose.

Even in the midst of struggle, it is bearable because deep down you know this is what you are really meant to do and there is something that you love about it that keeps you going.

If this resonates with you, by all means, continue to represent, but don’t allow the lack of representation to be yet another source of bondage, keeping you chained to unhappiness.

Please do not misconstrue my message: Representation does matter but not at the expense of individuality. It is not the purpose of every underrepresented minority to flock to fill the ranks of every subject area where we are woefully lacking.

Rather, we should all try to figure out what we were placed here on Earth to do and encourage those few pioneers in fields lacking representation to keep paving the way for others who are genuinely meant to be there to follow.

—Ifeoluwa T. Obayan ’19, a former Crimson Editorial Comp Director, is a Biomedical Engineering and Social Anthropology joint concentrator in Leverett House. Her column appears on alternate Thursdays.

By PHILIP C. LAPORTE

T

he things I learn in class at Harvard aren’t so important in the grand scheme of things.

Sure, Math 55 is a worthwhile experience — but if you haven’t heard of Sylow p-subgroups and Frobenius reciprocity, I can assure you that you’re not missing out on anything essential to a good life. Or suppose you’ve never learned any computational linguistics — I’m sure there’s still hope for a fruitful education.

But that’s not true, I argue, of philosophy. Can we live deep lives without ever considering why racism and prejudice are wrong, whether God exists, whether death is really the end? These questions matter to every one of us as students, citizens, and human beings — whether we think about them or not. To evade them is to miss out on the most profound and practical truths we can ever hope to know or think about.

That is why, more than any other subject, Harvard should require students to take philosophy.

Quantitative reasoning? We studied that in high school. Expository writing? Harvard liked our admissions essays. (And if they didn’t, we must have had some talent that compensated.) Science and history and economics and music have each changed the world, but anyone can live a meaningful life without knowing much about them.

This is not true of philosophy, which teaches us to examine the very meaning and importance of our existence.

Furthermore, the methods of philosophy are clearly and directly useful in every other discipline. To borrow from the Harvard College Handbook for Students, philosophy teaches “the ability to think and write clearly, the ability to bring to light unnoticed presuppositions, to explain complex ideas clearly, to tease out connections and implications, to see things in a broader context, to challenge orthodoxy.”

Yet we live in a time when philosophy — along with many of the other humanities — is attacked as fruitless, impractical, soft, and unprofitable.

These accusations come even from well-respected thinkers and academics. Take the late physicist Stephen Hawking, who famously said “philosophy is dead.” Or biologist Richard Dawkins, who suggests that a philosopher is someone who “won’t take common sense for an answer.”

Are these criticisms accurate? Is philosophy inferior to science? Is it worth studying? I believe there should be no debate. Not only is philosophy worth studying, it is the only subject that Harvard should require all students to take. Philosophy lies at the foundation of every other academic discipline, including science. For instance, debates about the proper methods and scope of science lie squarely in the realm of philosophy.

Science can’t justify the scientific method without begging the question. Similarly, philosophy informs the study of government, anthropology, theology, and countless other fields of inquiry.

This is why so many of the greatest thinkers of all time, in any subject, have also been philosophers. Albert Einstein once claimed that philosophical insight is “the mark of distinction between a mere artisan or specialist and a real seeker after truth.” For a university whose motto is Veritas, this should be a powerful incentive.

Every Harvard student, regardless of concentration, can profit from philosophy. Perhaps because of this foundational role, philosophy is arguably the oldest academic discipline in the world. Every ancient civilization had schools of philosophy associated with it. From Confucius and Lao Tzu of China to Plato and Aristotle of Greece to Ibn Sina and Al-Ghazali of the Islamic empires, philosophers have commanded the course of intellectual history. To truly understand the progress of human knowledge about the universe, it is absolutely necessary to be familiar with important philosophical developments.

Learning philosophy also helps students think for themselves. Most immediately, philosophy helps students sort through the mass of conflicting claims that come from scholars at the University. For example, Science professor Lisa Randall ’84 has said that “believing in an external deity is an unscientific way of thinking.” Many other prominent Harvard scientists — like Astronomy professor Karin Öberg or Biology and Mathematics professor Martin A. Nowak — are open about their religious beliefs and do not agree with Randall’s assessment. The different messages that students get from teachers at Harvard have a real impact on how they see the world, and it is difficult to evaluate those messages rigorously without some philosophical experience.

Finally, we all think about deep things like religion, life after death, and objective morality. It’s helpful to have those beliefs challenged and bolstered by classroom experience and exposure to more intellectual diversity. This is, unfortunately, not provided by many high schools. The value of studying philosophy is well-supported and clear.

More than any other subject, philosophy addresses the most fundamental and relevant questions for humanity, and in particular for future scholars and academics. Currently, the only requirement that comes close to philosophy is a general education course related to Ethical Reasoning.

This is almost inconsequential and fails to stimulate interest or enrollment in more rigorous philosophy classes.

Harvard is known for producing leading thinkers and researchers. In order to continue this legacy, the College must ensure that its students learn the lessons that only a philosophy class can teach. To achieve this, the College must add philosophy to its set of general education requirements for students.

—Philip C. LaPorte ’22, a Crimson Editorial editor, lives in Apley Court.

PAGE 5

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | FEBRUARY 21, 2019

ZUCKERBERG FROM PAGE 1

Mark Zuckerberg Talks Data Security and Advertising at Harvard Law Talk pay to have different controls on data use than other people?”

Zuckerberg asked in response.

“And my answer to that is a hard no.”

Zuckerberg instead suggested a soon-to-be-released tool he called “Clear History” which will give users control over certain data that Facebook uses for targeted advertising.

Zittrain wrote that he was impressed with Zuckerberg’s affirmation of consumer loyalty following data breaches on the website in recent years.

“I was pleased to see him affirm on the record the ideal — however much it’s honored in the breach — of Facebook owing a duty of loyalty to its consumers,” Zittrain wrote.

The event was the first of a series of discussions hosted

by Techtopia, which Zittrain co-founded.

“I think it’s vital for us to bring together students interested in these issues across farflung departments, centers, and methodologies.” Zittrain wrote. connor.brown@thecrimson.com

From the Law School to Longwood.

FORUM FROM PAGE 1

Activists, Journalists Talk Human Rights at ‘Freedom Forum’ respond to comment Wednesday night.

Weddady also said President Erdogan disregarded Turkish citizens’ right to protest.

“It’s an authoritarian regime and unfortunately they’re trying to extend their oppression on American soil. And the irony is of course that they’re free to protest — we welcome it — because here in America we respect these rights unlike under Erdogan’s rule,” he said.

Inside the auditorium, however, there was no evidence of a protest. Several Harvard police officers were present at the Science Center and stood guard at

the forum.

Wang spoke about her advocacy for the release of her father, a Chinese political prisoner who has been behind bars for the past 17 years. Meanwhile, Abdalaziz Alhamza, a Syrian journalist, spoke about the power of individuals to affect wide scale change through documentation.

“I knew that I can bring change with my phone. In that second, I believed in citizen journalism,” he said in an interview after the event.

Alhamza defined citizen journalism as “the ability to record the truth in con-

ditions when people can’t talk about it or the media can’t reach it.” Venezuelan violinist and pro-democracy activist Arteaga communicated to the audience through a translator that he was arrested in Venezuela in 2017 for playing his violin at a pro-democracy protest.

He also played the violin at the forum. While imprisoned, Arteaga said he was violently tortured for singing. Today, Arteaga lives in New York, where he plays the violin underground in the subways. jenna.bao@thecrimson.com ema. schumer@thecrimson.com

The Crimson @crimsonflyby

The T closes. We don’t.

Breaking news, 24/7.

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SPORTS

WEEKLY RECAP

SCORES

MEN’S BASKETBALL VS. PENN W, 75-68 _________________________________________________________

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL VS. PENN

W, 80-72 ___________________________________________________________

MEN’S SQUASH VS. TRINITY W, 9-0 ___________________________________________________________

MEN’S TENNIS VS. PRINCETON W, 4-2 ___________________________________________________________

MEN’S TENNIS VS. PENN L, 4-3 ___________________________________________________________

WOMEN’S LACROSSE VS. NEW HAMPSHIRE W, 14-6 ___________________________________________________________

MEN’S ICE HOCKEY VS. CLARKSON L, 5-3 ___________________________________________________________

MEN’S TENNIS

Harvard Mounts 1-3 Comeback in Finals, Falls Short 3-4

UPSET GONE UPSET Throughout the Championship, Harvard dominated over its competition. However, despite their best efforts, the Crimson failed to complete the 3-1 comeback against the streaking hot Penn team in the finals. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

By SHUVOM N. SADHUKA CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

­ fter a strong start to the EastA ern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship, the Harvard men’s tennis team lost a 4-3 nailbiter to Penn in the finals.

At the ECAC Championship, featuring seven of the eight Ivy League schools (minus Columbia), Harvard started the weekend against Brown. Brown came

out swinging early, racking up a quick victory in doubles against senior Christopher Morrow and sophomore Lane Leschly.

Freshman Brian Shi and sophomore Robert Wrzesinski were quick to strike back in doubles, though, evening the score before the Crimson dropped the final singles point.

Nonetheless, Brown couldn’t manage to hold the momentum heading into singles as Harvard earned two victories on

the backs of freshmen Steven Sun and Brian Shi. Freshman Harry Walker sealed the match with a singles victory to give the Crimson a 4-2 victory, extending Harvard’s dominance over Brown to 82-7 all-time.

“We fought hard against Brown after a slow start in doubles,” Walker said. “Brian and Steven played very well right out of the gate and won handily.”

The Crimson then met

Princeton in the semifinals. After dropping the first match behind Morrow and Leschly, doubles pairs senior Andy Zhou and junior Logan Weber and Shi and Wrzesinski respectively won their doubles matches 6-4 and 7-6(5).

Once again, the Crimson’s dominant singles play from freshmen help carried the team into the finals, as Sun and Wrzesinski notched wins against Princeton before Walker once

again finished off the match with a 6-4, 6-3 singles victory. The victory pulled Harvard ahead 55-46 all time against the Tigers.

The Crimson were riding a particular high after the match, as Walker explained, “We made a great doubles adjustment against Princeton and had better energy than any other match this season.”

More than ready for the finals, the hot-handed Har-

vard team advanced to a finals round matchup against equally hot Penn, who had just upset first-seeded Dartmouth in the semifinals. Unlike the past matches, this time Harvard drew first blood with a doubles victory.

The euphoria wouldn’t last too long, as Penn swept straightsets victories against Zhou, Wrzesinski, and Walker to pull ahead to 3-1, putting Harvard on the brink of elimination.

Hanging by a thread, Sun and Shi continued their weekend heroics in singles winning their matches 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 and 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 respectively to even the match at 3-3.

Harvard’s tournament hopes came down to the final point, which it dropped 6-4, 6-7, 6-3 to ultimately hand Penn the ECAC Championship.

Sun’s win against Penn extended his singles record on the season to 6-3 and 7-4 overall and more impressively continued his unbeaten singles streak for the spring.

Following the match, Walker remained positive. “Even though we started strong against Penn in the finals by winning the doubles point, we came up a little short in singles…[w]e all fought as hard as we could and did an amazing job supporting each other on court,” Walker said. “It really just came down to few missed opportunities and execution errors against Penn, but we know exactly what to work on for next time when we play them in April.”

Looking ahead, the Crimson return to the Murr Center on Sunday, February 24 to face off against Memphis.

March has the team traveling to San Diego for the San Diego Spring Classic. They will then finish out the rest of the season against remaining Ivy League opponents in April and May. shuvom.sadhuka@thecrimson.com

MEN’S LACROSSE

Harvard Still Proud in Season Opener Loss to No.12 UNC

By WILLIAM CONNAUGHTON CONTRIBUTING WRITER

­ ith its first game in the books W for the 2019 season, the Harvard Men’s Lacrosse Team has reasons to be proud of its fight.

Strong play from newcomers against a tough Tar Heels team forecasts well for the campaign to come despite the loss.

A UNC (2-0) team ranked No. 12/14 this year defeated the Crimson (0-1) squad 16-11, powering through a well-rounded team effort from the Harvard group.

The Tar Heels capitalized off of a hot start against the visiting Crimson with a pair of UNC freshman attackmen, Henry Schertzinger and Jacob Kelly, who netted three of the first four goals of the game. For Harvard, its own freshman stepped up to the challenge. Attackman Austin Madronic scored his first two goals of his Crimson career in the opening period, brining the game to 3-2.

UNC dominated most of the second quarter, scoring four of the five goals. However, in the last four minutes of

play, junior attackman Ryan Graff added a pair of big goals to bring the game to a more manageable 2 goal deficit. After a strong Freshman season in which Graff ranked third on the team with points (22) and second on the team in goals (20), Graff’s sophomore season was racked with injuries. Fired up and ready to make his mark on the league fully healthy this year, Graff netted a career high five goals in Saturday’s contest, overcoming his previous high of four.

The third period saw Ma-

dronic bag his third goal of the game and junior tri-captain Kyle Anderson score his first, extending his point-scoring streak to 14 games, which tracks back to last year.

Anderson was a dominant force on attack last season, netting a team high 34 goals to go along with 8 assists. He hopes to build on last year’s success throughout the 2019 season.

With crunch time approaching, the score stood at a manageable 8-11 with the Harvard team ready to make a final push for the win.

The fourth quarter saw a hungry Crimson team surging, as Graff added another two goals within the first 8 minutes to bring the UNC lead to only one goal. However, three straight UNC goals put the game out of reach.

On a more positive note, two freshman combined to score a final Harvard goal with 2:38 left in the game. First-time starter Isaiah Dawson nabbed his first career goal, assisted by Madronic, Harvard’s points leader for the game.

“UNC was a good team and

LOSS BODES WELL FOR SEASON Despite a 11-16 loss, Harvard is reading to take on the remaining competition. A close game and eventual loss to the nationally ranked UNC Tar Heels proved that the Crimson is more than ready against its remaining foes. HENRY ZHU—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

it was a very physical game,” Anderson commented on the team’s performance, “I was proud of our guys for standing tall and fighting back. With eight minutes left we were down 11-10 and it was anyone’s game.”

The tale of the tape revealed a good fight against a talented UNC squad. Three freshman — Madronic, Dawson, and Nick Loring — started their first games for the Crimson and two of them scored.

“Overall the college game is definitely faster than high school lacrosse,” Loring commented on the comparisons between the college and high school game, “but the coaches and upperclassmen have been really helpful in getting the freshman up to speed with schemes and gameplay.”

A quality performance from fellow first-time starter sophomore Kyle Mullin in goal kept Harvard in the game with a game-high 14 saves, contributing to their defense. The discipline and responsibility that Harvard coach Chris Wojick ‘96 emphasized over the offseason paid off, as the Crimson squad stayed competitive in the game all the way to the end.

“Unfortunately a couple of balls and shots bounced their way in the end and we didn’t get the outcome we wanted,” Anderson said. “But I think everyone is excited about the start and [is] looking forward to building on it next Saturday at home when we defend against Umass.”

The Crimson begin its home defense on Saturday with a match against the UMass Minutemen at Jordan Field this Saturday. Both teams will be seeking out their first victory of the season.