The Harvard Crimson The University Daily, Est. 1873 | Volume CXLVII , No. 18 | Cambridge, Massachusetts | tuesday, february 18, 2020
editorial PAGE 4
news PAGE 5
sports PAGE 6
Political discourse should focus on ideas, not ad hominem attacks
Kennedy School students advocate for climate education in letter to dean
The men’s fencing team won the Ivy League Championship
In Trips, Bacow Takes Univ. Global Indian Official’s Speech Draws Ire By Michelle G. Kurilla Crimson Staff Writer
Roughly two years since his appointment, University President Lawrence S. Bacow has sought to engage with students, alumni, and political leaders in his extensive international and national travels. Bacow has not shied away from discussing national issues such as immigration and the role of higher education in the world during his trips, as well as student protests surrounding divestment activism and the development of an ethnic studies department at the school. In late January, Bacow traveled to the United Kingdom to deliver Emmanuel College’s annual Gomes Lecture at the University of Cambridge. During his speech, Bacow discussed immigration and its impact on higher education. He noted that John Harvard — a colonial minister from the United Kingdom and namesake of the university — immigrated to the United States. “What was once a strong commitment to academic exchange is being eroded by a visa
See TRAVEL Page 5
camille g.caldera—Crimson Designer
By Luke a. Williams Crimson Staff Writer
Students and workers from across Boston gathered at Harvard Business School to protest Indian Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty’s speech at the Harvard India Conference on Sunday. Chakravorty, an appointed representative of the Indian government, was caught on video in November telling a group of Kashmiri Hindus that the Indian government should model its occupation of Kashmir after Israel’s presence in Palestine. “If the Israeli people can do it, we can also do it,” Chakravorty said in the video. According to official government demographic records, Kashmir’s population is over 97 percent Muslim. On August 5, 2019, the Indian government annexed and invaded the Kashmiri lands. Kashmir has been in a state of civil lockdown for months as the Indian government pursues the detention of thousands of Kashmiris alongside other “public safety” mea-
sures. Kashmir’s occupation follows in the wake of the Indian government’s passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act and creation of the National Register of Citizens — legislation that targets Indian immigrants and Muslims seeking asylum and could potentially disenfranchise thousands of Indian Muslims, according to critics. After learning of Chakravorty’s invitation to speak at the HIC, Arshad Iqbal Nissar — the president of the Massachusetts chapter of the global Kashmiri advocacy group Stand With Kashmir — said he emailed the deans of HBS and the Harvard Kennedy School on Feb. 12. Both schools sponsored the conference. Upon receiving responses citing “free speech” as a reason for Chakravorty’s invitation, the activists turned to public protest. “They responded with free speech arguments,” Nissar said.
See INDIA Page 5
Georgetown Divestment Effects on Harvard Uncertain By ellen m. burstein and michelle g. kurilla Crimson Staff Writers
Though Georgetown University’s administration pledged on Feb. 6 to divest from the fossil fuel industry, legal and environmental experts say the decision provides little insight into the decision-making of Harvard’s top administrators as they maintain their stance against divestment. Columbia Law School Professor Michael B. Gerrard said he is unsure whether or not Georgetown’s efforts will have an impact on Harvard’s divestment movement. “I think the Georgetown divestment made a wave,” Gerrard said. “Does it amount to a tide? I’m not sure.” Georgetown announced its decision to divest both public securities and private investments from the fossil fuel industry in a press release earlier this month. No Ivy League university has elected to divest from the
fossil fuel industry. Still, Gerrard said he believes that, if one of the eight schools were to divest, others would do the same. Georgetown Climate Center executive director Victoria A. Arroyo said she believes universities will have to shift investments away from the fossil fuel industry, but was uncertain how it would specifically play out at Harvard. Doug Koplow, who runs the environmentalist organization Earth Track, also said divesting Harvard’s endowment from the fossil fuel industry would take an uncertain amount of time and that implementation details are important. “I think moving a big ship does take a while,” he said. “It is always important to pay attention to the series of steps that are being planned.” Experts said Georgetown’s move raised broader questions about how and why universities decide to divest from the fossil fuel industry. In response to Georgetown’s pledge, University of Virginia
School of Law Professor Cale Jaffe said an institution’s economic interests are often pitted against environmental concerns in debates over divestment. Such contrasts, however, are a false dichotomy, according to Jaffe. “We’re used to seeing the economy pitted against the environment, as if we have to choose one or the other,” Jaffe said. “What the Georgetown statement seems to support is the emerging conventional wisdom that, no, in fact, the best choice from an environmental standpoint will also be the best long-term choice from an economic standpoint.” Georgetown President John J. DeGioia wrote in a Feb. 6 announcement that Pope Francis’s 2015 missive on the environment would “inform” and “strengthen” the school’s attempts to mitigate climate change. Georgetown University is affiliated with the Jesuit religious order of the Roman
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Members of Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard recently protested Harvard’s investments in the fossil fuel industry with an occupation of University Hall. aiyana G, white—Crimson photographer
Harvard Falls Short on PILOT Payment By simon j. levien and austin w. Li Crimson Staff Writers
Boston’s PILOT program encourages medical, educational, and cultural institutions to make voluntary contributions to make up for the fact they they are exempt from property taxes. Steve S. Li—Crimson photographer
Inside this issue
Harvard Today 2
News 3
Editorial 4
Sports 6
For the eighth consecutive year, Harvard’s financial contribution to the City of Boston fell short of the amount city officials requested as part of a program in which nonprofits voluntarily give funds to the city instead of paying taxes. The city instituted the Payment in Lieu of Taxes program — which applies to “educational, medical, and cultural” institutions owning property valued at more than $15 million — to alleviate Bostonians’ tax loads. In the program, Boston officials request that nonprofit institutions whose land is tax-exempt voluntarily pay the dollar equivalent of 25 percent of their assessed property value, according to the city’s website. Harvard contributed $10.1 million to Boston in 2019, approximately 79 percent of the
Today’s Forecast
See PILOT Page 3 rain/snow High: 41 Low: 36
Cambridge Reduces Trash by 30 Percent By maria g. gonzalez Crimson Staff Writer
The City of Cambridge reduced its trash by 30 percent — or 7.2 pounds per week per household — from 2008 to 2019, according to a statement released by the Department of Public Works Friday. In 2009, the city set a goal to reduce trash by 30 percent by the end of 2020 and 80 percent by 2050, compared to 2008 rates. On Friday, Cambridge officials announced the city achieved its trash reduction goal a year early. In the statement, Cambridge Public Works Commissioner Owen O’Riordan praised the city’s efforts. “By adding new programs that encourage diverting items from the waste stream and enhancing our existing recycling programs, we’ve been able to achieve this ambitious goal ahead of schedule,” O’Riordan
said. According to the statement, Cambridge households on average produced 15.6 pounds of garbage per week in 2019, compared to 22.8 pounds per week in 2008. The decrease marks a 32 percent reduction. The statement said the city was able to reach its goal by improving curbside recycling programs and encouraging residents to adopt reduce and reuse practices. Cambridge’s curbside compost program played a particularly important role in trash reduction, according to the DPW statement.The program allows more than 32,000 households in Cambridge to dispose of food scraps, napkins, and paper towels in curbside carts that are collected by the DPW. The department then brings the carts to a facility in Charlestown, a neighborhood in Boston, where
See TRASH Page 3
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