November 9, 2018

The Oberlin Review November 9, 2018

Volume 147, Number 8

established 1874

Project Unbound Fundraises for Human Trafficking Victims Yan Jin

Photo by Maria Turner

Khalid Taylor and Elliot Director share a conversation in the MRC.

MRC Faces Staffing Shortage

Jenna Gyimesi, News Editor Anisa Curry Vietze, Senior Staff Writer

Four full-time staff members resigned from positions at the Multicultural Resource Center within the last six months. The office was once staffed by five full-time staffers. The MRC is currently run by Assistant Vice President Adrian Bautista, who is serving as the interim director, Student Life Community Coordinator Khalid Taylor, OC ’17, and LGBTQ Community Coordinator Elliot Director, who will discontinue work Nov. 30.

Director, the most recent staff member to resign, submitted a resignation on Oct. 30. Toni Myers, former Director of the MRC, vacated their position in June. Interim Director Anna Phung and Libni Lopez both left the MRC for alternative positions this October. Students and MRC staff members have raised concerns about the organization’s diminished capacity to provide support for students.

“I think that almost every identitybased student organization was supervised by one of the members of staff,” Director said. “Even in terms of signing off forms, there aren’t going to be enough people here. Folks are going to have to find new advisors. ... There just aren’t going to be enough people to support them. I am genuinely concerned about access in the center.”

The MRC provides a place for students to feel safe and welcomed. Staff members direct students to resources on campus and offer a support system

for individuals who may be uncomfortable turning elsewhere. The MRC also engages in efforts to educate the community at large around issues of diversity.

“I would say that this space serves as an oasis and a bit of a stronghold for students to find sanctuary and find a place to be who and how they are unapologetically,” Taylor said.

College senior EmmaLia Mariner highlights the impact that the MRC and its staff have had in Oberlin.

“You can’t understate the importance of that space,” Mariner said.

“The people that worked there last year really have given their heart and soul to this school, and I really hope that those positions are open for more phenomenal staff members and that the staff members are supported in staying here.”

College sophomore Gio Donovan is just one of the students worried about the future of support at Oberlin.

“I genuinely fear that the MRC is not going to be a thing after this year anymore or that it’ll get absorbed by something else, like [the Division of Student Life],” Donovan said.

Bautista has been approached by concerned students. However, he is confident the MRC will continue to provide support and resources.

“We are continuing to plan essential programs, supporting collaboration within the College, and serving as a campus-wide resource,” Bautista said in an email to the Review.

Director resigned partly because he feels that senior administrators were not providing necessary support for the MRC and its staff to continue their

work.

“I think that we have seen support waning for the MRC and our vision and our agenda from the upper-level administration,” Director said. “I would say even in our basic requests, and needs for support, all of them are shut down. I don’t think that the MRC broadly, and personally as staff members that there is support from directly overhead. It felt like it was time to step back because ... I was not being supported in the way [MRC staff ] needs to be.”

Bautista emphasizes that he will make sure the MRC staff has both adequate resources and opportunities to offer input about the future of the MRC. He also noted that many MRC employees moved on to pursue important career opportunities.

“We are happy to see MRC staff move from what might be considered entry-level posts to next stages in their careers, both at Oberlin and beyond,” Bautista wrote. “We want the MRC to be staffed by incredibly talented, dedicated new professionals who go on to graduate school or a next position that allows them to continue impacting the lives of many others.”

The College has formed a diverse search committee made up of both students and staff to hire a new MRC director, who would ideally begin work spring semester. The committee has already begun reviewing applications. Conservatory senior Jason Arevalo, a student member of the search committee, is confident that process will be thorough.

Project Unbound, an Oberlin-based anti-human trafficking organization, will host their annual fall fundraiser for the Human Trafficking Collaborative of Lorain County on Friday, Nov. 16. The event will be the group’s second in as many weeks; they held a workshop yesterday titled “The Neurological Impact of Slavery.”

“This is the first and only fundraiser [we have done] for the Collaborative, as a way of supporting our partner,” said College senior and History major Kellianne Doyle, who is currently the chair of Project Unbound.

By partnering with the Collaborative and raising funds, Project Unbound seeks to address the issues and help the people who are trapped in human trafficking.

“It is really the biggest event we host all year. We kept it up and I’m keeping it up this year because it attracts such an audience. Just because [human trafficking] is such a heavy topic, it is not something I want to give up, because so many people come on such a rare opportunity to express the issue,” Doyle said.

Sarah Blum, OC ’18, former chair of Project Unbound, feels that this event is particularly impactful and motivating for community members.

“The annual fundraiser was always a reminder of hope for me,” Blum said. “As chair of an antitrafficking organization, I learned a lot of darkness in the world. I always left the fundraiser with a pocket of light as I felt the effects of a community dedicated to change.”

At the fundraiser, students will speak on why they joined Project Unbound and what they learned. It is possible that Mindi Kuebler, director of the Collaborative, will come and talk about how it started and what it does, depending on her schedule.

Additionally, there will be musical performances by students from the College, Conservatory, and from other institutions.

“We try to incorporate the music, because we think it is a good way of lightening up the mood of such a heavy topic, while also giving people the information they need to know and creating a solidarity kind of space, with musicians, artist, and students in the community,” Doyle said.

The Collaborative works to rescue those who are trafficked, support them after they are out, and help them get to medical appointments. The Collaborative also supports their additional needs — for example, if they want to go back to school, if they want to get a job, or if they need to get a house.

Project Unbound works with the Collaborative, helping them to get funds and expand on local campaigns by introducing them to Oberlin College.

Project Unbound also aims to educate Oberlin students on the issues related to human trafficking.

“The organization’s main goal is education, because there [are] a lot of misunderstandings around human trafficking. People don’t know that it happened, and if they do know it happens, [they think] it’s an international problem and not something that’s happening in the United States.

So we want to educate people on how human trafficking occurs, and that it happens all over the United States, and in Ohio, not only in Lorain

See Staffing, page 3

See Students, page 2

CONTENTS NEWS

OPINIONS

THIS WEEK

ARTS & CULTURE

SPORTS

02 Trustworthy Tattoo to Open Downtown

05 MRC Deserves Better

08 OSLAM: Oberlin’s Slam Poetry Team

10 The Glass Menagerie Set to Open Next Weekend

15 Senior Student-Athletes Must Balance Athletics, Academics

12 OTR: Annika Hansteen-Izora, Poet

16 Jenkins Rises to Occasion, Leads Yeomen to Victory

03 Students, Alumni Present Ambar Tom Reid Petition

06 Ohio Residents Should Have Taken Chance on Issue 1

The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

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Oberlin Remembers Hate Crime Victims

Students Organize Fundraiser for

Trafficking Victims Continued from page 1

Students gathered in Peters Hall last Friday to honor those targeted by recent racist, anti-Semitic, and xenophobic attacks, including the shootings at the Tree of Life Synagogue and Kroger grocery store, among other events. Rabbi Shlomo Elkan (center) spoke on the events and their impact. Students, including event organizers and College juniors Ezra Andres-Tysch and Leo Hochberg, hold candles to the left and right of Elkan. Event organizers not featured are College seniors Imke Hart, Chloe Falkenheim, and Roman Broszkowski, sophomore Caleb Knapp, junior Susannah Brodnitz, and first-year Phoebe M. A primary goal for the organizers was to spread a message of intersectionality, sending support to all marginalized people affected by violence and hate. Other speakers included community members, faculty, and President Carmen Ambar.

Text by Gabby Green , News Editor Photo by Pearse Anderson

County but also in Toledo and southern Ohio,” Doyle said.

Ohio is the fifth leading state for human trafficking in the U.S. As the chair of the organization, Doyle is responsible for organizing workshops, meetings, and communicating with the Collaborative.

The workshop on Nov. 8 was meant to be discussion-based. Besides looking at a few handouts and listening to a short lecture given by Doyle, the participants were encouraged to turn to their neighbors and discuss the things they learned and how they felt. As Doyle suggests, a big aspect to teaching about human trafficking is that it is a heavy topic, and people are often hesitant to discuss it.

“We want to present it in a way that people don’t feel immediately depressed upon learning about it,” Doyle said.

College senior Kristen Harris hopes to see more opportunities to learn about human trafficking on campus.

“I’ve seen one or two events [relating to human trafficking] on campus,” Harris said. “But it is definitely not talked about at the rate that it should be.”

Project Unbound has been dedicated to spreading knowledge about human trafficking in Oberlin and beyond, seeking ways for students to face and understand this important issue.

“I really hope that [the organization] will become such a big thing that everybody on campus will have some basic knowledge about human trafficking, based off all the workshop, and events that we host,” Doyle said. “It would be amazing if this group can expand and inspire other anti-human trafficking groups on other college campuses. It is a really daunting task to abolish modern slavery, but even one person can make a difference.”

Trustworthy Tattoo to Open Downtown Justin Godfrey

Trustworthy Tattoo will open in downtown Oberlin at 53 South Main Street by the end of this month. Owner Shawn Patton, Oberlin native and Amherst resident, has 13 years of tatto experience.

Trustworthy Tattoo is filling the niche of a highly-demanded, locally-based tattoo shop. The new establishment hopes to increase business in the downtown area.

Patton describes his style as “American traditional,” often characterized with bold dark lines and a limited range of colors. He is known for delivering a strong outline with a clean look.

“Some of these newer styles may look cool — and I’ll do them — but it’s really just a flash in the pan and I’ll be covering [them] up someday,” Patton said. “Given my chance to do something that I want, I always have a certain style I apply to things, and I look at it like I’m fortifying [the piece] to make it last a really long time.”

His approach comes through in many of the pieces highlighted on his Instagram,

@shawnpattontattooer, as well as his portfolio. Although he has his own style, Patton also likes to experiment with new styles.

Many of his pieces include elements of new school style, such as bright colors and some exaggerated depictions.

Many students have shown interest in the new shop and plan to visit shortly after the shop opens.

“When I first heard there was a tattoo shop opening in Oberlin, I instantly started looking for my next tattoo inspo,” College junior Ariana Gladieux-Carter said. “I am thrilled about having a tattoo shop within walking distance.”

Students like College junior Jason Hewitt believe the shop benefits all members of the Oberlin community.

“I’ve been waiting for a tattoo shop to open in Oberlin since I’ve been here,” Hewitt said. “I’m looking forward to seeing the impact it makes on both the town and the College.”

The world of tattooing has boomed in the past 10 years with social media and shows like Ink Master helping expand it’s

The Oberlin R eview November 9, 2018 Volume 147, Number 8 (ISSN 297–256) Published by the students of Oberlin College every Friday during the fall and spring semesters, except holidays and examination periods. Advertising rates: $18 per column inch.

Second-class postage paid at Oberlin, Ohio. Entered as secondclass matter at the Oberlin, Ohio post office April 2, 1911. POSTMASTER SEND CHANGES TO: Wilder Box 90, Oberlin, Ohio 44074-1081. Office of Publication: Burton Basement, Oberlin, Ohio 44074. Phone: (440) 775-8123

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Editors-in-Chief

Sydney Allen Nathan Carpenter Managing Editor Ananya Gupta News Editors Gabby Greene Jenna Gyimesi Opinions Editor Jackie Brant Cont. Opinions Editor Luce Nguyen This Week Editor Mikaela Fishman Arts Editors Kate Fishman Katie Lucey Sports Editors Alexis Dill Ify Ezimora Photo Editors Mallika Pandey Maria Turner Senior Staff Writers Carson Dowhan Roman Broszowski Julie Schreiber

popularity. Patton believes that the tattoo world’s growth is great because it expands the creative limits of artists and brings people to shops.

However, the growth of the tattooing industry comes at a cost.

“To some people, that is the only education they have in the tattoo world; it changes the expectations of the client,” Patton said.

Some of these changes include a lack of understanding of an artist’s strengths.

“Some of the best tattooers I know, their window of what they do really well is pretty narrow,” Patton said. “That’s not all they do, but you have to teach [the client] in what you can do best.”

Things like portrait and photo recreation may not be in Patton’s wheelhouse, but he will be able to recommend other artists he knows to ensure that clients get the best piece possible.

According to Patton, tattooing really comes down to the responsibility of the artist. He hopes his shop’s name will speak for itself and that Trustworthy Tattoo will be

Layout Editors

Anya Spector Jake Butcher Lila Michaels Lillian Jones Business Manager Jared Steinberg Ads Manager Jabree Hason Web Manager Mikaela Fishman Production Manager Giselle Glaspie Production Staff Olive Hwang Lior Krancer Leo Lasdun Courtney Loeb Devyn Malouf Katherine MacPhail Madi Mettenburg Annie Schoonover

Trustworthy Tattoo prepares to open in Oberlin.

Photo by Devin Cowan

able to work with clients for the best possible delivery of a mutual creative vision.

“I want to make sure that when people leave here, although it may not be my style, that they still have a good tattoo,” Patton said.

Corrections: The Review is not aware of any corrections this week.

To submit a correction, email managingeditor@ oberlinreview.org.

Students, Alumni Present Ambar Tom Reid Petition

Roman Broszkowski Senior Staff Writer

Nearly 40 students, alumni, faculty, and community members crowded into President Carmen Ambar’s office Monday afternoon as part of a delegation meant to show support for former Associate Director of the Student Union Tom Reid, OC ’80.

Reid — who had worked at Oberlin since graduating — was let go over the summer as part of a wave of staff reductions due to budget problems. His elimination was met with disapproval by students and community members who valued Reid’s contributions to the College and their Oberlin experiences. The Committee to Reinstate Tom Reid formed in early fall with the goal of reversing the College’s decision.

Supporters congregated in Wilder Hall before proceeding to the Cox Administrative Building to present a list of 1,100 signatures to President Ambar asking for Reid’s reinstatement.

Johnnie Kallas, OC ’14, addressed the assembled crowd before leading the march.

“We won’t stop [supporting] Tom until there is an

acceptable resolution [to Reid’s elimination],” he said. “Let’s go advocate for Tom.” After submitting the petition and signatures, Kallas, College junior Jody Shanabrook, College senior Millie Frankel, and James Peake, OC ’06, read prepared statements explaining how Reid had personally affected their lives before asking President Ambar how the College would address their concerns.

“I don’t doubt the impact that Tom has had on you,” Ambar said to the crowd. “I wish I could say [that] we could keep everything the same. [However,] I owe you the truth, and we are not going to be able to [protect everyone’s job] and be sustainable.”

Ambar pointed to a declining number of high school graduates nationally as well as a growing number of people questioning the cost of private education as contributing factors to the College’s growing deficit.

“If we continued to do nothing, we would have had a cumulative projected deficit of $162 million over 10 years,” Ambar said.

Protestors interrupted Ambar several times and were disappointed with her response.

“Nobody here is doubting

that the administration has to make difficult decisions with regards to cost-cutting measures,” Kallas said. “We need to do that in a different way that does not involve taking away the position of someone who has worked here for 38 years.”

In her closing statement, Ambar asked those who disagreed with her to work with the administration to protect the College’s future.

“What I say to all alumni … there are going to be times when you disagree with me. I’m going to need you to find the one thing you do agree with me on and meet me there,” she said. “Here’s why it’s worth it: because the long-term resiliency of Oberlin is at stake.”

As protesters began to leave the President’s office, Shanabrook addressed Ambar.

“We’re not going to roll over on this,” Ambar said.

Supporters encouraged one another to continue the fight.

“We are disappointed the administration does not want to de-escalate this issue,” Kallas said. “We will continue to find ways to advocate about this.”

Some members of the Committee expressed that they

Demonstrators requesting Tom Reid’s reinstatement confront President Ambar in her office.

Photo by Justin Bank

received the response they had anticipated.

“I expected [the president’s answer],” Frankel said. “The administration is focused more on the upper-level problems.”

Organizers asked for alumni to call into the Office of the President and the Office of Alumni Relations in solidarity.

“In total, we’ve received about 75 calls,” said Assistant to the President Ginny O’Dell on Wednesday.

As for Reid, he has since started Tom Reid Coaching LLC, a bowling and mental game coaching company. He told

the Review he was surprised to learn the Committee to Reinstate Tom Reid existed.

“I didn’t know there had been a march until Tuesday [after reading the news],” he said.

When asked Thursday if he would accept an offer of reinstatement, Reid did not decisively answer one way or the other.

“I’m not dwelling on it and [am] moving forward. I’d listen, [but] it would depend on what the situation would be,” he said.

“I still love Oberlin College and I wish everyone well.”

Staffing Changes Raise Concerns About Future of MRC Continued from page 1

“I see how the administration is trying to make sure that we take the right steps to ensure that when we do find the right candidates … hopefully, it will be someone who is sensitive to the needs of students, sensitive to what the MRC has been, and sensitive to bringing their own vision as well,” said Arevalo.

In an email from Dean of Students Meredith Raimondo, the committee asked for student attendance at listening sessions on Nov. 13 and 19. to gain student perspectives.

“We are committed to engaging in a search that has a high degree of student involvement and feedback as well as transparency,” Bautista wrote.

Despite the ongoing search for a new director, some feel the MRC is still in danger of being underfunded and

understaffed due to the College’s financial situation.

“We were met with a lot of expression of difficulty in reconciling the [multiple resignations] due to financial constraints at the College,” said Taylor. “A lot of situations of trying to advocate for more support was met with being told that we are in a deficit model.”

Remaining staffers are concerned that the MRC is missing a clear vision since losing impactful members of staff.

“While I do think it is an important move to bring a director into the situation, I think that that cannot solve the larger issues at play,” Taylor said. “I have more questions than answers at this moment.”

Director emphasized that students may have more influence than they realize in advocating for organizations like the MRC.

“Students forget they have power here,” Director said.

“Their voices in many, and maybe most, ways have the ability to outweigh the voices of staff and faculty if they use them. If there are needs that are … not being met, I think one of the most powerful things students can do is to use their voices individually and collectively.”

Taylor noted that the burden to advocate for resources like the MRC should not fall entirely on those who use the center directly.

“The very origins of this center come from the community wanting it to exist and making it clear the expectations and desires for it to be in existence,” said Taylor.

“That is everyone’s responsibility, not just those who are marginalized.”

MRC staff encourage students to continue to come to the MRC amidst staffing changes.

Ohio Midterm Election Results Mikaela Fishman This Week Editor

The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

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Security Notebook Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018

12:37 a.m. Campus Safety officers were requested to assist with an intoxicated student at Lord House.

An ambulance was requested, and the student was transported to Mercy Allen Hospital for treatment.

1:30 p.m. Officers were requested to assist with a safety inspection violation in a room on the second floor of Tank Hall. Two burnt candles, matches, and a multicolored pipe were confiscated.

2:14 p.m. Officers were requested to assist with a safety inspection violation in a room on the third floor of Tank Hall. Two votive candles, two bottles of wine, and a glass bong were confiscated. The bong was turned over to the Oberlin Police Department.

8:36 p.m. Officers were requested to assist with a safety inspection violation in a room on the second floor of Barrows Hall. A black e-cigarette and a grinder containing a substance consistent with marijuana were confiscated. Items were turned over to the Oberlin Police Department.

8:39 p.m. Officers were requested to assist with a safety inspection violation in a room on the third floor of Barrows Hall. A clear bong was confiscated and turned over to the Oberlin Police Department.

Friday, Nov. 2, 2018

1:39 a.m. Officers responded to a complaint of loud music at a Union Street Housing Unit. There were approximately 40 individuals who left the apartment as officers arrived, and the unauthorized party was shut down.

10:37 p.m. Officers were requested to assist with an intoxicated student on the second floor of Langston Hall.

An ambulance was requested, and the student was transported to Mercy Allen Hospital for treatment.

Sunday, Nov. 4, 2018

1:06 a.m. Officers were requested to assist with an intoxicated student at a house on North Pleasant Street.

The student was able to answer all questions asked and was transported to their dorm.

1:14 a.m. Officers were requested to assist with an intoxicated student in the Rice Hall parking lot. Oberlin Police Officers also responded to the situation. The student was transported by ambulance to Mercy Allen Hospital.

1:21 a.m. Officers were requested to assist with an intoxicated student on the first floor of Kahn Hall.

The student was able to answer all questions asked and declined medical assistance. The student was escorted back to their room for the night.

Josh Keating, OC ’07, Slate Editor

Josh Keating, OC ’07, is a writer and editor at Slate magazine focusing on international news and foreign policy. He returned to campus in October to meet with students, faculty, and staff and to discuss his new book Invisible Countries, which investigates ideas around nationhood, borders, and what defines a country. Keating has been interested in geography and borders since childhood, when he followed global news events like the fall of the Berlin Wall. Over the course of his research for the book, he traveled all over the globe to speak with people about their experiences living in places with complicated national identities. While a student at Oberlin, Keating was a News Editor and Editor-in-Chief for The Oberlin Review, and credits his broad educational base and time spent working for a student publication as the launching point for his career.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Josh Keating,

Sydney Allen Nathan Carpenter Editors-in-Chief

believe it was an Asian American Studies position — and students actually occupied the president’s office to protest the elimination of that position. So I’d say these tradeoffs aren’t new. There’s always that tension of how to make the College economically viable and remain true to the core mission and the things people like about this place, which are not necessarily things that prepare them for careers where they’re gonna be making large donations down the road. So those tensions aren’t new. I think just the nature of the student body being what it is, there’s always some friction between students and the administration. In a weird way, that’s kind of part of the education you get here. It was for me, covering those issues helped me as a journalist. I know people who have careers either in electoral politics or in activism who pretty much got their start in the campus controversies here. So not to downplay the problems that are there, but I think these aren’t unique issues.

Can you talk briefly about the book you just published?

Yeah, sure. It’s called Invisible Countries, and basically, it’s a book about why it’s hard to start a new country, why it doesn’t happen very often anymore, and how we seem to be stuck with the world map as it’s existed for a few decades.

We see very few newly independent countries and very few border changes between the ones that do exist. And so to explore this, I visited several places that are kind of a little more ambiguous.

That could be an unrecognized country like Abkhazia, [near] Georgia. I went to a Mohawk community that straddles the U.S.–Canada border. ... I went to a small island country in the Pacific that’s threatened by climate change and where lawyers are thinking about what it will mean for their nationhood if they have to relocate. So, yeah, those are the kind of issues I was exploring in [the book].

What got you interested in the topic?

I’d always been kind of interested in maps and geography, just as a kid. I think at the time, some of my earliest news [and] politics memories were the fall of the Berlin Wall. I was very young at the time, but just that idea that two countries could become one country or, in the case of the Soviet Union, [that] one country could break apart into 15 countries. [It] was something that really fascinated me when I was a kid.

But then by the time I started doing this professionally, that didn’t really happen anymore, and we kind of have this idea that the map of the world is sort of fixed the way it is, this era of geographical stasis. And so I was interested in why that is and also this idea of national legitimacy, like who gets to decide what a real country is.

Can you talk about some of that field research and what that was like?

Yeah, so the main framing example in the book was a soccer tournament for unrecognized countries. It’s like a World Cup for countries that don’t exist. I went to [it] in Abkhazia, which is a breakaway region of Georgia. So that was one of the places I recorded. I went to the Kurdish region of Iraq, I went to Somaliland, which is northern Somalia. [I went to] a Mohawk community. All of these places,

they’re places that don’t get too much news coverage, so people were surprisingly open-minded and friendly and, you know, maybe more trusting of me than I had any right to expect — particularly given, you know, the current political situation in the U.S. How has it been for you being back on campus, interacting with students?

It’s been great. Surprisingly little has changed, actually. It’s this funny thing where I keep seeing people that I think I recognize and then being like, no, that was 10 years ago, that person would not be here now. But then it’s like, oh no, there’s just types that I’m seeing again.

It’s funny how fast you kind of slip back into [it].

There is a lot of discussion at Oberlin about how being here and getting a liberal arts education prepares people to be journalists. Can you elaborate on that?

I guess I would encourage people who want to be journalists to sort of study the thing they want to write about. The kind of basics of structuring an article or conducting an interview or framing a story, those are things you’re going to learn by doing it, whether that’s as [a] student journalist or an internship somewhere or in journalism school, it’s definitely something you kind of learn through practice. I think in terms of your college education, you’re better off either getting a well-rounded education like I did or if you just want to cover biology then just study biology. Become an expert on that, and that’s going to help you as much as taking a class on how to write a lede.

Currently, one of the big points of contention among students has to do with money, since Oberlin is in some hard financial times. I’m curious if there were times when you were here when the College did fall on hard times in a similar way, and what your perspective is on that now?

Yeah, there was a budget crunch while I was here and we were preparing for a round of strategic planning. I remember there were some faculty positions they were eliminating — not firing people, but just not rehiring. I remember one big story. They had eliminated — I

Oberlin Community News Bulletin Underground History Tour Highlights Freedom Seekers The Oberlin Heritage Center will lead two walking tours through town, sharing the stories of some of the over 3,000 African Americans who passed through and hid in Oberlin while escaping enslavement.

The two tours are being offered Parents’ Weekend, Friday Nov. 9 and Saturday Nov. 10 at 3 p.m. Tours will last 90 minutes and begin at the First Church in Oberlin, UCC. Tickets are $6.00 per person.

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IGA Plastic Bag Swap Encourages Sustainable Shopping In honor of America Recycles Day, which is Nov. 10, Oberlin IGA Foodliner is repeating its successful bag swap, launched during Earth Week last April. IGA will exchange free reusable bags for three plastic bags Tuesday and Wednesday, beginning at 3 p.m.

Photo by Jason Andrew

What’s one of your favorite stories from your time at Oberlin?

Does the phrase “PSA motherf**ker” mean anything to you guys? ... So it was horrible when it happened. It was like the worst day, but in retrospect it was pretty funny. We sent the wrong file version of the Review to the printer, and we’d had a PSA, just to cover the space, and we hadn’t actually put in the final text yet. So our layout editor had just written “PSA motherf**ker” in really big print on this page. There were mistakes all through it because it was the wrong version of the file. The Grape had a really good time with that — fair enough, to be honest.

So it got printed?

It got printed as “PSA motherf**ker.”

We were talking about whether to just pull it and just not have the Review that week or just run it online. But there was something very important that was being announced that day. We were like, okay, it’s important enough that we get this news out that we will run these humiliating mistakes, including “PSA motherf**ker” in the newspaper. And Robert Kuttner, who was the editor of The American Prospect, the next day he was on campus to give a talk to student journalists. I was there with the rest of the staff, and I asked him some question like, “What do you do if you’ve just made a horrible mistake?” That was a bad day.

Kendal CEO Barbara Thomas Named Lorain County “Difference Maker” Leadership Lorain County named Kendal at Oberlin CEO Barbara Thomas a 2019 “Difference Maker” this week. Thomas will be honored at the Difference Makers Gala and Excellence in Leadership Awards Feb. 15 and 16, 2019. She served as the executive director of Kendal at Oberlin for 11 years before becoming the nonprofit’s CEO in 2003. Since then, Thomas has worked to expand Kendal’s reach by establishing Kendal at Home and Kendal Community Outreach, LLC, both formed in 2010.

OPINIONS November 9, 2018

established 1874

A Thank You to College Faculty Meg Parker Contributing Writer Sitting in Craig Lecture Hall on Wednesday, my fellow student representatives to the College Faculty Committee and I attended the first meeting we were ever invited to. Although students had been official members for over 40 years, due to a lapse in institutional memory, we had not been included in the meetings for as long as many faculty members could remember. During this meeting, faculty members were deliberating on whether to allow students to continue participating in the committee as voting members. After a lengthy discussion, the College Faculty voted to continue student representation.

As an active member of Oberlin governance for the past three years, I have learned extensively about the institution, our values, and the approaches the College has taken toward general administration. I have had the privilege to serve on both College faculty and general faculty committees, through which I have also learned about the efficiencies (or lack thereof ) in Oberlin’s governance. But despite my privilege to sit on the College faculty committee, I did not learn of my voting rights until the end of the fall semester 2017.

As a History major, I have given a lot of thought to the role of institutional memory. Memory informs

our understanding of our roles and how they were shaped. Institutional memory is especially important when considering major changes to the institution, as is the case in the Academic and Administrative Program Review process. As a College dependent on a labyrinthine governance system, we have structures highly dependent on collaboration and communication.

We ensure communication is through representation. One of the most impressive components of Oberlin’s governance is that we include many constituencies in our decisions and discussions. As a member of the Educational Plans and Policies Committee — a committee that makes recommendations for curricular changes — I have been privy to conversations surrounding departmental reviews, the creation of positions, and curricular changes. These conversations are not dissimilar from the votes being had in the full committee, and they showcase how student representation is meaningful and feasible.

I’m very grateful that the committee did not vote to disenfranchise students during Wednesday’s meeting. Maintaining lines of collaborative communication between faculty, administrators, and students is imperative to furthering successful relationships among the three. By voting to maintain the inclusion and voting rights of students, the College Faculty upheld a status quo of representation.

Student Transportation Services Must Be Reenvisioned Elijah Aladin Contributing Writer While the College explores ways to consolidate and improve transportation options between Oberlin and Cleveland, it is important to understand the role that we, the students, play in our current transportation options.

Currently, we spend just shy of $50,000 each year from the Student Activity Fund on transportation services. These funds support the shuttles to and from the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport as well as the weekend shopping shuttle. The funds are allocated to a student organization called OPASS, which is man-

aged by the Student Transportation Coordinator. The Student Transportation Coordinator works with the Office of Environmental Sustainability to negotiate the terms of the aforementioned shuttle services with a company called Airport Oberlin Shuttle Services. In addition to the Activity Fund allocation, each rider must pay $15 for a one-way ride to the airport or $5 for one-way break shuttles to the airport.

SFC performed cost-benefit analyses that sought to answer four major questions: Is the service utilized?

What are the barriers for students in utilizing this service? How do we get rid of those barriers? And how can we ensure that the services sponSee SFC, page 7

SUBMISSIONS POLICY

The Oberlin Review appreciates and welcomes letters to the editors and op-ed submissions. All submissions are printed at the discretion of the Editorial Board. All submissions must be received by Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. at opinions@oberlinreview.org or Wilder Box 90 for inclusion in that week’s issue. Letters may not exceed 600 words and op-eds may not exceed 800 words, except with consent of the Editorial Board.

All submissions must include contact information, with full names and any relevant titles, for all signers. All writers must individually confirm authorship on electronic submissions. The Review reserves the right to edit all submissions for clarity, length, grammar, accuracy, strength of argument and in consultation with Review style. Editors will work with contributors to edit pieces and will clear major edits with the authors prior to publication. Editors will contact authors of letters to the editors in the event of edits for anything other than style and grammar. Headlines are printed at the discretion of the Editorial Board. Opinions expressed in editorials, letters, op-eds, columns, cartoons or other Opinions pieces do not necessarily reflect those of the staff of the Review. The Review will not print advertisements on its Opinions pages.

The Review defines an advertisement as any submission that has the main intent of bringing direct monetary gain to a contributor.

The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

Volume 147, Number 8

Editorial Board Editors-in-Chief

Sydney Allen

Nathan Carpenter

Managing Editor Ananya Gupta

Opinions Editors

Jackie Brant Luce Nguyen

MRC Deserves Better Advocating for social justice is perhaps the Oberlin community’s most strongly-held value. We care deeply about equity, even though we’re far from perfect in achieving it.

One of the most important resources on campus in our ongoing work to be better advocates for diversity, equity, and inclusion is the Multicultural Resource Center. The MRC plays an invaluable role on campus through the support and programming it provides for marginalized communities at Oberlin. Further, the MRC does good work in educating and training other campus groups to be more sensitive to social power dynamics and their own biases.

Because of the contributions that the MRC makes to our community, we have been alarmed to see the deterioration of the MRC in the past six months, following the departure of a number of staffers who have yet to be replaced.

These names include former MRC Director Toni Myers and Interim Director Anna Phung, both of whom moved on to positions outside of Oberlin. Program Coordinator Libni Lopez has relocated to the Counseling Center. And, just last week, members of the Oberlin community learned that LGBTQ Community Coordinator Elliot Director has decided to leave Oberlin at the end of November.

These departures leave Student Life Program Coordinator Khalid Taylor, OC ’17, as the last professional MRC staffer standing — an unacceptable condition for one of the most important resources for marginalized and underrepresented students on this campus.

During this time of staffing shortage, Assistant Vice President and Senior Associate Dean of Students Adrian Bautista will serve as interim director of the MRC. He will also chair the search committee for the MRC’s next director.

Bautista is undoubtedly qualified for the job, having worked in and around the MRC in multiple capacities throughout his time at Oberlin. But the reality is that the MRC needs a full-time director at the helm. Anything less — especially when so many other positions remain unfilled — will seriously compromise the office’s ability to provide the programming and support services that are so vital to our campus community.

While we are sympathetic to the financial stresses the College is currently enduring — and understand that the search for a new director is ongoing — it strikes us as irresponsible that the MRC has been allowed to fall into such a severe staffing shortage. Yes, personnel changes happen — people coming and going from jobs is a relatively unremarkable part of running an institution. But the MRC’s challenges run deeper than just a missing director; an office once staffed by five people will be down to one professional employee at the end of the month.

When such changes happen, institutional leaders make very intentional decisions about which positions to refill, as well as how quickly that happens. While it’s true that the College should take its time and be deliberate in making important hiring decisions, that must be balanced with the need to keep important support positions filled so that students can access the resources that are necessary for their success.

Currently, the College appears to be taking a long-term approach in replacing the recentlyvacated MRC positions. While their consideration and care is admirable, the current staffing situation is unacceptable, especially when other staffing vacancies have been dealt with much more swiftly.

Take the Office of Residential Education, for example. There is high turnover among area coordinator positions within ResEd; similar to MRC coordinators, most people who fill the job are recent college graduates trying to get their foot in the door in higher education.

While ResEd is hardly the benchmark for organizational efficiency, it nonetheless has vacant positions replaced quickly and efficiently, as the College understands that having someone to do those jobs is vital to the campus’ function. It is deeply concerning that the College is not extending the same sense of urgency to MRC coordinator positions, instead relying on Taylor to shoulder the work of an entire office. Have we truly come to view supporting marginalized and underrepresented students as nonessential?

Furthermore, this approach places an outsize level of pressure on student workers at the MRC. While we are extremely grateful for these students for picking up the slack in the face of such adversity, they simply cannot provide the full-time, professional service students need from the MRC. We understand that the MRC’s current challenges are likely due to oversight rather than a concerted effort to drain the office’s resources — but it is nonetheless an oversight that must be addressed immediately. The College must prioritize replacing the MRC’s vacant positions.

On the part of students, we must be diligent in advocating for the programs and services offered by the MRC. Let’s give them our feedback by engaging in the upcoming listening sessions about the search for a new MRC director. We must do all we can to help get the MRC back on its feet.

The MRC is more than a newsletter. It’s a beacon of strength, family, and community for minority, disenfranchised, and marginalized communities — let’s value it the way we should, as a community.

Editorials are the responsibility of the Review Editorial Board — the Editors-in-Chief, Managing Editor, and Opinions Editors — and do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff of the Review.

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Opi n ions

Ohio Residents Should Have Taken Chance on Issue 1 Jackie Brant Opinions Editor Regardless of how these midterm elections went overall, there are many outcomes that we all can and should be proud of. The U.S. went from having its lowest voter turnout rates in midterm history in 2014 — with just 34 percent voter participation — to one of the highest, with almost 50 percent of eligible residents turning out to vote. An estimated 114 million people cast votes, the first time in U.S. history that a midterm election collected over 100 million votes.

Some broken barriers include two Muslim women being voted into Congress for the first time in U.S. history, along with the first Native women and the first Korean woman. Colorado elected the nation’s first governor to be an openly gay man. Several states elected their first female governors, others elected their first female senators, and still others elected Black women to the House of Representatives for the first time. Texas elected its first Latina congresswomen, while Virginia had the first transgender gubernatorial nominee from either of the two major parties. The 116th Congress will certainly be one of the most diverse bodies in congressional history.

Ohio had a chance to join Florida in making groundbreaking criminal justice reform by passing Issue 1, a progressive amendment to the state constitution. If passed, the amendment would have prohibited judges from sending people to jail for violating probation terms (unless they had committed new crimes), reallocated money from inmate care to drug treat-

ment and crime-victim programs, and allowed people convicted of drug crimes to petition the court for resentencing. Issue 1 would have also cut prison time for individuals who complete vocational or rehabilitation programs, except those convicted of murder, rape, or child molestation. It also would have dictated that any fourth or fifth-degree felony drug possession conviction be made a misdemeanor, meaning that most drug possession crimes would warrant no jail time.

The issue was hotly contested before the election. Many notable Republican candidates — including Ohio’s newlyelected Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor — argued that, although Issue 1 seemed well-intentioned, it would have a devastating effect and seriously endanger Ohio residents, and would ultimately gut the drug court systems currently in place.

DeWine has been involved in Ohio politics since 1981 and has been the state’s Attorney General since 2011. In 2011, Ohio attempted its first significant opioid crackdown when DeWine and then-Governor John Kasich busted numerous pill mills and limited the prescription time for opioids. Six years later, in 2017, Ohio had the nation’s third highest opioid-related overdose rate. Out of 4,329 Ohio deaths in 2017, 83 percent were caused by opioid overdoses. As I have explained in previous columns, these crackdowns are cyclical; as long as the government continues to try and put out drug fires, more will continue to pop up in even worse forms, notably heroin and fentanyl (“Opioid Epidemic Cannot Be Fought Through War on Drugs,” Feb. 17, 2017).

Considering the continued failure of Ohio politicians to effectively deal with the opioid epidemic, you would think that politicians like Kasich, DeWine, and O’Connor would realize that the methods they have been using for years are not working. You would think that they would be desperate to save more lives.

Instead, it seems that they and the 65 percent of Ohio voters who opposed Issue 1 are more interested in keeping their vulnerable constituents and fellow community members locked up instead of getting them the help that they truly need.

There were two main concerns with Issue 1. One came from O’Connor, who argued that someone in possession of 20 grams of fentanyl — enough to kill 10,000 people — could get out of prison time completely if Issue 1 were to be passed; the other was that Issue 1 would render drug courts obsolete.

However, upon further inspection, these concerns were minimal. The likelihood that any individual would be holding 20 grams of fentanyl without the intention to sell is incredibly slim; anyone holding 20 grams of fentanyl would still be charged and sent to jail for intention to sell or for drug trafficking. Finally, the concern that Issue 1 would gut drug courts was simply contradictory. Issue 1 was intended to fix the shortcomings of the current way we deal with the drug epidemic, including drug court; it would have essentially replaced drug courts while continuing its legacy of rehabilitation for drug offenders.

Ultimately, Ohio politicians deceived their constituents. They misrepresented facts, and they played on Ohioans’ existing fears. Former Ohio Supreme Court

Justice Paul Pfeifer said, “Underneath [Issue 1] is a cry for help from all the families dealing with drug addiction.” Pfeifer is right — families have been asking for help for years and will continue to cry out if new reforms are not enacted soon.

Issue 1 may not have solved all the drug problems in Ohio, but it would have been a fresh, genuine effort to alleviate not only the problems of drug addiction, but also mass incarceration. Policy Matters Ohio estimated that Issue 1 would have reduced the Ohio prison population by more than 10,000 people, saving $136 million a year.

That $136 million could have been sent directly to helping victims of crime to funding drug rehabilitation centers — centers that are currently dismally underfunded. This is not even counting the amount of people that would receive reduced sentences by completing education or rehabilitation programs while incarcerated. Finally, anyone who has been convicted of a drug possession felony is currently barred from 573 different professions in Ohio; on the other hand, misdemeanor drug convictions only bar people from 250 careers. Issue 1 would have allowed these people to not only help themselves, but to help their community.

Ultimately, Ohioans — politicians and constituents alike — failed the members of their community who are struggling with addiction. Radical problems require radical solutions. By voting against changing the status quo, Ohioans decided that they are OK with the current state of the opioid epidemic. They decided that they were OK with having one of the highest death rates in the country, a rate that will only continue to rise.

SASA Rings in Diwali Celebration with Unique Gusto Ananya Gupta Managing Editor On my third Diwali at Oberlin, I had one of the best Campus Dining Services dinners in my three years on campus.

Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights, a celebration of the triumph of good over evil in the battle between Lord Ram and the demon Ravana. Stevenson Dining Hall exceeded all expectations last Wednesday with their Diwali-themed vegetarian/vegan station featuring chana masala, yellow basmati rice, and paneer butter masala. Particularly in the absence of the India Garden restaurant, this meal was surprisingly soul-satisfying, abetting some of the homesickness I feel this time of year.

Despite having past experiences with perhaps unintentionally appropriating international cuisines, CDS went about Diwali the right way. Eric Pecherkiewicz, Oberlin’s campus dietician, reached out to South Asian Student Association members asking for our input on the menu, recipes, and titles, which resulted

in the first time I had a somewhat authentic South Asian meal at a CDS dining hall. I was especially delighted that they successfully recreated the Sooji ka Halwa dessert item.

I’d like to thank CDS for their initiative and hope we will see them collaborate more with other cultural organizations in semesters to come. This respectful display of our culture garnered massive support from all of SASA as we united in one of Stevenson Dining Hall’s private rooms to eat together Wednesday night.

Granted, some of us felt like the red chili powder and salt proportions had been tampered with, but I am prepared to let it go.

After spending the first 17 years of my life in a Hindu household in North India, I took Diwali celebrations for granted.

It was only after coming to Oberlin that I felt the need to recreate my Indian experiences in a foreign country. For the past two years, SASA has celebrated Diwali at Lewis House, which houses the Office of the Ombudsperson and Religious and Spiritual Life. We dress up,

dance, cater food, and burst firecrackers — each time it is a great community bonding experience, particularly with the Campus Safety car that circles the house every half-hour, squinting their eyes disapprovingly at the crackers.

However, each year, we have deliberately celebrated only the secular, cultural aspects of Diwali at Oberlin, in an effort to prevent any discomfort among members. This never bothered me, because the secular aspects were the only parts that mattered to me when I was in India, though my family also adhered to the religious traditions of the holiday. But in Oberlin, I feel the void of my mother singing prayers, the incense, and the rituals that I’ve unconsciously associated with the festival my entire life. Diwali doesn’t feel the same without my grandmother telling me the same religious stories over and over again, reprimanding me when I touch the food before it is offered to the idols, and then placing oil lamps on every entrance of our home to invite in Laxmi, the goddess of prosperity. I’ve celebrated two years

of Diwali without folding my hands together even once, or thinking about the origin of the day at all.

So this year we are trying something different. SASA is celebrating Diwali today and tomorrow at Lewis House and, for the first time in my memory of the organization, we will be performing an all-inclusive, non-required, Hindu puja or prayer ceremony. While Saturday will be the same Diwali we all know and love, I am excited to have the opportunity to share the religious traditions of the festival on Friday.

My desire to engage with the more religious side of my culture is strange and unsettling, because it doesn’t come out of a sense of duty, familial pressure, or a particular inclination toward gods or Hinduism. This prayer is just a part of the day for me. An aspect I think is important to share, a legacy I don’t want to forget.

Besides, whether or not the Hindu interpretation of life is true, it couldn’t hurt for Obies to pray for prosperity given our current financial situation.

Happy Diwali!

Midterm Election Results Watch Party at the 'Sco College junior Ezra Andres-Tysch views the 2018 midterm elections at a watch party in the ’Sco. The election season brought a red wave to Ohio as the Governorship, Attorney General, and nearly every high-ranking state position went Republican, with the exception of Democrat Sherrod Brown for the U.S. Senate. In Ohio House District 4, Oberlin’s district, Democrat Janet Garrett lost for the third time to incumbent Republican Jim Jordan. Ohio also rejected Issue 1, which would have reduced drug use or possession charges to misdemeanors.

Text by Sydney Allen, Editor-in Chief Photo by Maria Turner, Photo Editor

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Voter Suppression Senate Supports Students In Threatens Democracy the Face of Institutional Change Ilana Foggle Columnist

After more than a year of local and state politicians campaigning around the country, the midterm elections are finally over and the results are in. The much-discussed “blue wave” dominated in states like Nevada, Wisconsin, and Michigan, but failed to reach key races in Florida, Texas, Georgia — and Ohio. Regardless of whether or not you are pleased with Tuesday’s outcome, now is not the time to rest.

The midterm election results show us a couple of things. First, there are many voters in key states who are discontent with the Republican Party and have mobilized to create change. This phenomenon was exemplified in Texas, where Democrats campaigned on both a state and national level for Representative Beto O’Rourke in his uphill battle to unseat Senator Ted Cruz. Conversely, we also learned Tuesday that there are many voters in key states, like Ohio, who are happy with the direction in which our country is headed — or at least content to wait and see.

Second, the results reveal that there are some generally blue states that may not continue to elect Democratic leadership. For example, the governor’s race in Connecticut — which was supposed to be an easy win for Democrat Ned Lamont — ended up being a much closer race than anticipated, with his opponent, Bob Stefanowski, leading in the polls at various moments throughout election night. Third, and most importantly, the election shows us the need for institutional change to our electoral system.

In the two years following Donald Trump’s election, Democrats around the country banked on voter turnout as a way to take back the House of Representatives and the Senate in 2018. The theory was simple. If Democrats raise enough money, run excellent campaigns, and get out the vote, there won’t just be a blue wave, there will be a blue tsunami. And this is exactly what Democrats did. Democrats overwhelmingly out-fundraised Republicans with the help of small donor donations by using fundraising technology like ActBlue. Democrats executed well-run campaigns in highly competitive counties, districts, and states across the country. Early voting numbers far surpassed those from the 2014 midterm election. However, even with these accomplishments, there was no overwhelming blue wave that many Democratic optimists had hoped for.

If this election taught us anything, it is that the biggest enemy to true representation in our government is voter suppression. In Georgia’s gubernatorial race, Republican candidate and Secretary of State Brian Kemp used his powers as Secretary of State to put 53,000 voter registrations on hold, nearly 70 percent of which were for Black voters, by using an “exact match” system, which stops voter registrations if there are any discrepancies with other government records. In North Dakota, voter ID laws prevented thousands of Native Americans from voting, since many of them live on reservations. Many Republican leaders claim that these strict voting laws are in place to protect our elections against fraud. The truth is, these laws are instituted to oppress marginalized groups.

Many politicos will say that now that the midterm election has ended, it is time to start looking toward the 2020 presidential election. This is not wrong. Brian Walsh, president of the pro-Trump America First Action super PAC, said Wednesday, “The re-elect begins today.” Democratic politicians all over the United States have already begun exploratory committees for potential presidential runs.

As someone who has worked on a political campaign, you may expect me to urge you to volunteer on a campaign.

But this is not the issue we should be focusing on yet.

The voter suppression that runs rampant in many states must be addressed. As young people, we need to start mobilizing not just for one candidate, but for the eligible voters all over the country who were unable to cast their votes in the midterm election due to unreasonable voter ID laws, voter purging, restrictive voter registration, and faulty ballot machines. It is time to take a stand against the institutional oppression that prevents disenfranchised communities from having their votes matter. We cannot count on voter turnout to win elections when the very system of electing officials prevents and suppresses turnout.

When you promote 2020 presidential candidates, remember that none of it will matter if we do not make it possible for every eligible voter to vote. Our democracy is rooted in the belief that every citizen has a say in our government’s leadership. In order to save our democracy, we must end voter suppression once and for all.

The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

Henry Hicks Contributing Writer This article is part of the Review’s Student Senate column. In an effort to increase communication and transparency, student senators will provide personal perspectives on recent events on campus and in the community.

Since completing its election process in September, Student Senate has begun working on a slew of tasks: continuing previous semesters’ work with career-related advising for international students, taking steps to improve transparency with the student body, and advocating for students in response to many of the new dining changes on campus this semester. Senators have divided themselves into five different working groups as a way of divvying up tasks and tackling broader topics, including Health and Wellness, Campus Dining, Campus Community, Communications, and Applied Learning and Career Readiness for International Students. These working groups meet regularly and are open to the public. Point people for each working group are listed on the Senate bulletin board outside of the Rathskeller.

Recently, through the work of College junior and Student Senator Priyanka Sen, two questionand-answer sessions were held for student representatives to talk about their work and to answer any questions students may have had.

These sessions were jointly organized by Student Senate and the Oberlin Conservatory Council of Students, whose members include senior Emma Churchill, doubledegree junior Cordelia Mutter, double-degree senior Eilish Spear, and double-degree junior Amber Scherer. The Q&A sessions were held Friday, Oct. 12 in the Mc-

Gregor Skybar and on Wednesday, Oct. 17 in Wilder Hall and were well-attended.

Through collaboration between the two branches of student government, but particularly due to the tireless work of those on Conservatory Council, a permanent grab-and-go lunch option has been installed in the Skybar, operating Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

The Student Senate Campus Dining Working Group, led by College sophomore Patrick Powers, has continued collaborating with both students and Campus Dining Services administrators to make dining on campus a more enjoyable and accessible experience for all.

So far, achievements include small changes to the DeCafé grab-and-go menu, broader swipe options, and opening Stevenson Dining Hall’s balcony to students, among other things. These steps have been made possible by student representation at open Dining Committee meetings every Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. in Stevenson.

Looking forward, Powers says that he’s hoping to “improve the way that students interact with and give feedback to CDS online. This means streamlining the website interface, phasing in a text-based feedback system, and boosting CDS’s social media presence so that special programs and menu items can be publicized.”

Also in the world of dining, Senate’s appointed Sustainability Liaisons, College sophomore Austin Ward and College senior Brian James, have both been regularly attending Dining Committee meetings to emphasize the importance of sustainability. Tangible changes have been made already — DeCafé has reduced its plastic consumption by switching over to the use of more paper materials. Ward and James both plan on working with

the newly appointed CDS student ambassadors to create and implement responsible recycling and composting campaigns around campus.

The Health and Wellness working group, led by College senior Kirsten Mojziszek, has continued to support student initiatives such as Oberlin Mental Health Alliance and Oberlin Bystander Intervention in order to promote student wellness and safety. The working group is hoping to advocate for more staff in Disability Resources this year and plans on running a healthy habits campaign as well.

In order to address communication issues between Senate and the student body and make opportunities for involvement, the Communications Working Group, which I facilitate, has set its sights on a revitalized social media presence, publicizing Senate office hours, and encouraging student participation in working groups. There are lots of ways for students to get involved: Senate holds plenary sessions, open for anyone to attend, every Sunday from 7–9:30 p.m in Wilder 215.

Additionally, senators hold office hours in Azariah’s Café every Monday through Friday from 9–10 p.m.

Working groups meet throughout the week, and contact information for those groups or individual senators can be found in the Senate directory or through information posted to the aforementioned Senate bulletin board.

This semester has proven to be a productive one so far. Senators remain committed to Oberlin students and are currently in the process of planning a Constituents’ Week, in addition to an end-ofthe-semester event, organized by the Campus Community Working Group. Remain on the lookout for these upcoming events!

SFC Revamps Student Transportation Continued from page 5

sored by the Activity Fund are as accessible and impactful to students as possible given the funds available for those services? We discovered there are many barriers that cause the shuttle services to be underutilized, while demand for transportation services — particularly to Cleveland — remains high. The committee identified three issues that were most pertinent to improving the accessibility of transportation services sponsored by the Student Activity Fund.

First, SFC is addressing the additional cost that students must pay each time they travel to or from the airport. Paying $15 to get to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is a competitive price compared to other available options. However, that money still represents a barrier to students who contribute to the Student Activity Fund and deserve access to the services that come from the collective contributions of the entire student body.

To remedy this barrier, SFC members have begun discussions with representatives from the Airport Oberlin Shuttle to assess the cost and timeline for making our airport and grocery shuttles free with an Oberlin College ID. The committee is also looking to understand the impact of the current shuttle schedule as a factor in its underutilization. We often build our travel schedules around our academic responsibilities,

so I believe the transportation services should reflect those schedules. In order to understand more about the travel schedules of the student body, we will be conducting a survey to gauge if the shuttle schedule should change or remain the same.

In addition to scheduling, this survey will also gauge where students would like the shuttle to go.

The final issue that we identified is that there are a lot of transportation options currently available, but they do not function in a cohesive transportation system and the destinations are limited. In making shuttles to the airport free, the committee also hopes to make Cleveland more accessible through the Regional Transit Authority system.

SFC has been exploring the costs associated with expanding the destination options offered through the Student Activity Fund and making them free with an OCID. This initiative requires ample feedback from the student body as well as more of the Activity Fund to be dedicated to transportation. In addition to adjusting our allocation strategy to accommodate more inclusive services and events, we are seeking approval from the Board of Trustees for a raise in the Student Activity Fund for the 2020 fiscal year. This will put more resources back into students’ hands to establish the services and events that we want to want to see on campus. And I believe students should have an active role in shaping our campus environment.

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OSLAM: Oberlin's Slam Poetry

a space where issues plaguing this world can be addressed from a personal, raw standpoint. OSLAM marginalized voices, we aim to disrupt, and we bring people together. We hold weekly team meetin experience or a certain major to become involved with OSLAM — just a willingness to listen, learn visiting poets to campus and compete every year at the College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational, th Jalen Woods (he/him), Junior Economics major I find myself basing a lot of work around extended metaphors and repetition. Additionally, the majority of my work has a heavy amount of rhyme, meter, and sonically-pleasing word choice. The themes I tend to have include: Blackness, indigestion, capitalism, fashion, and drug use. I draw from formative life experiences and ideas tied to my identity.

Hanne Williams-Baron (she/her), Senior Comparative American Studies major I think I write a lot about rage, joy, the color wheel, the strange, climate change and its grief, and wonder. I often find myself coming back to my fat body and the way it moves in the world, how others witness me, how I witness them.

Upcoming Events

Sarah Ridley (she/they), Senior Neuroscience major My process includes reading, watching, reading, and reading poetry, getting inspired and then writing whenever I have the time. Themes include: family, friends, summer, sex, mental illness, Blackness, childhood, butterflies. I usually draw a lot from my life experiences, the big and the mundane, the walks to class, the random hookups.

PHOTO BY PEARSE ANDERSON

The Officers

Amy Sahud (she/her), Junior Biology major My process mostly involves reading. I like to take notes on my phone throughout the day or late at night when I think of something. When I want to write, I like being somewhere where I feel really comfortable and like myself, and then I take all my thoughts and notes and try to fit them together, or I free-write and see what’s been building up in me. And most of the time, I write bad poems! That’s an integral part.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9 The Cat in the Cream • 8 p.m.

Family Weekend Open Mic Night Featuring OSLAM SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10 Wilder Hall room 115 • 2:30 p.m.

Brown Resistance Writing Narratives meeting. BRWN is an open poetry workshop for poets of color.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 17 Wilder Hall room 115 • 2 p.m.

OSLAM club meeting – a poetry workshop open to all.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30 Finney Chapel • 8 p.m.

OSLAM Grand Slam. We have been prepping all year for a chance to duke it out against each other in the biggest poetry slam of the year. For the first time this year, there will be special collaborations with two guest features. Tickets are $5.

Goals for the Future Our goals include publishing a chapbook, collaborating a lot with other artists/groups on campus, and focusing on strengthening our bonds. Also, doing Oberlin community outreach: organizing actions and creating a safe space for people to write, share, and enjoy poetry. We want to make sure that folks who need space to write and process and heal and celebrate themselves and their communities can through OSLAM.

OSLAM is a slam poetry writing and performance collective. We are studentorganized and were founded by students: Annika Hansteen-Izora, OC ’17, and Alison Kronstadt, OC ’16. Slam poetry provides a space for people to get vulnerable, to share in the human experience, and to feel less alone. It’s M is important to this campus because we strive to say things people need to hear, we work to uplift ngs where we check in, plan, and spend time writing/editing/sharing. You don’t need to have prior n, and get to work. We also organize events,open workshops, and meetings. Additionally, we bring he national college poetry slam. Layout by Mikaela Fishman, This Week Editor. Text by OSLAM

y Team

I WANT TO FEEL BEAUTIFUL WHEN I WALK DOWN GEARY BOULEVARD (to be shouted while wearing a sparkling dress) Hanne Williams-Baron, College senior I WANT TO SOLVE EQUATIONS IN 12 SECONDS FLAT! I WANT TO BE REALLY GOOD AT SCRABBLE AND IMPRESS THE WORLD! I WANT TO WRAP A SHOELACE AROUND MY HEAD AND TIE IT IN A BIG BOW! I WANT TO BE PEELED LIKE A HARDBOILED EGG! I WANT TO JUMP OFF A SKYSCRAPER AND LAND GRACEFULLY ON THE SIDEWALK! I WANT TO SWIM FOR THREE YEARS WITH NO BREAKS! I WANT TO EAT AN ENTIRE APPLE FROM STEM TO CORE! I WANT TO HEAR THE CRICKETS CHIRPING FROM THREE STATES AWAY! I WANT TO SIGN MY OWN NAME OVER ZUCKERBERG HOSPITAL! I WANT TO BRING BACK ALL MY DEAD AND TELL THEM I NEED THEM! I WANT TO TRUST THAT I KNOW WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT! I WANT TO SING THE SONGS I LEARNED IN KINDERGARTEN! I WANT TO HOLD MY BELLY LIKE A PRIZE! I WANT TO READ EVERY BOOK WITH A YELLOW COVER! I WANT TO HEAR EVERY HEART BEATING IN SYNCOPATION! I WANT TO PLANT ROWS OF TALL CORN AND OKRA AND NAME EACH STALK! I WANT TO BREATHE CLEAN AIR WITH SHINY PINK LUNGS! I WANT TO BLOW A GUM BUBBLE SO BIG IT REFLECTS MY FACE BACK TO ME AND WHEN I SEE MY REFLECTION I WANT TO FEEL PROUD OF MYSELF! I WANT TO DANCE OUTSIDE WITH NO PANTS ON! I WANT TO GIVE ALL MY LOVERS A HIGH FIVE AND WATCH THEM GRADUATE FROM COSMETOLOGY SCHOOL! I WANT TO TELL A LIE AND GET AWAY WITH IT! I WANT TO GIVE MY SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER AWAY! I WANT TO WALK ACROSS A BRIDGE WITH MY EYES CLOSED! I WANT TO WRITE AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FLATULENCE! I WANT TO GO SOMEWHERE I’VE GONE BEFORE AND SEE WHAT’S DIFFERENT! I WANT TO JUMP IN A RIVER AND OPEN MY MOUTH TO MEET THE ALGAE! I WANT TO CELEBRATE THE CLANG OF THE WORLD WITH A BIRTHDAY CAKE! I WANT TO NOT WANT, BUT HERE I AM ANYWAY

Lifeguard | Thandiwe Augustin-Glave, College first-year i look out and see the beautiful beach friends and family on the beach. i’m waist high in the water looking out to the shore i’m afraid to go under i haven’t fully realized the water is cold against my thighs i mistake the glass and rocks on the ocean shore for sand to comfort my toes i don’t know i’m cold i don’t know i’m bleeding i don’t know if i’m alone in the water i thought i had people with me they are all on the beach watching.

Watching me i turn around looking for friendly faces

all i see is the wave i can’t see over it it’s too tall too blue too blue i tried to run from the wave

but i wasn’t fast enough i wasn’t strong enough i didn’t know i was supposed to swim under no one told me i could swim under i didn’t want to swim away from the shore i was afraid to be away from the shore DON’T TAKE ME AWAY FROM THE SHORE i am under the wave came heavy it came angry it came like i was an unforgiving old friend who wanted revenge it wanted me i went under so fast the wave hit me so hard i couldn’t control my body it had my body i could hear the people on the shore they laughed and the wave got stronger they laughed and the wave got heavier they laughed and the wave laughed too i wasn’t laughing. i couldn’t laugh they thought i was laughing but i wasn’t laughing i was crying my tears only plenished the wave they saw me crying. they thought i was laughing. they laughed. the wave got stronger. the wave was inside of me. choking me. and i cried into the wave. the vicious water cycle. not the one i learned about in school. they don’t teach you how to swim from waves in school or else i would have know i was supposed to go under. i was supposed to go under. but i didn’t go under. i was afraid to go under i was afraid to go away from the shore i was afraid they would laugh i was afraid i would cry i was afraid of the wave. completely surrounded

so lonely

filled with the wave i wished for my lifeguard

so empty

palindrome, after Nate Marshall | Banu Newell, College first-year 2 boys hold their dead brother between their feet grandmother unsees grandson’s picture next to a channel 5 red cheeked officer undraws outline outside our heart mother unhears splatter. unfeels saturn, unrips the sheets at 2am bullets unenter. 3 brothers, 1 resurrection, unsweat in their backyard, and backpedal away from the rim The oldest unfathers. climbs out of love. is still in school. he now has clear arms, clear chest, clear wrist he unreads to nightmares and doesn’t have his own he unwrites the poems about himself.

Unscratches 5ft from the dry wall.

A r t s & C u lt u r e

ARTS & CULTURE November 9, 2018

established 1874

Volume 147, Number 8

The Glass Menagerie Set to Open Next Weekend

The Glass Menagerie , directed by College senior Alex Kohn, explores themes of family dissonance and fragility — notably, Oberlin’s production modernized representations of disability and gender that are a prominent theme in the play.

Photo by Mallika Pandey, Photo Editor

Katherine MacPhail Glass is fragile, and yet — when it shatters — it cuts deep and leaves behind scars that often refuse to fade with time. Glass allows us to see through walls and reflect on our appearances, but also distorts light and inhibits us from truly seeing things as they are. Memory works in much the same way: Sometimes we remember most vividly not the truth, but rather an amalgamation of events and our associated emotions.

Such is the setup of The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, the Oberlin production which runs from this upcoming Thursday, Nov. 15 through Sunday, Nov. 18 in the Kander Theater. The play, directed by senior Theater and History double-major

Alex Kohn, takes place in 1937 and follows the story of the Wingfield family as they navigate disparate familial expectations.

The play follows Tommy, a writer (College senior Nani Borges), Tommy’s disabled older sister Laura (College senior Cat Potts), their mother Amanda (College junior Ronit Schorr), who has specific goals for her two children, and Jim O’Connor (College senior Evan Board) who visits the family. Williams once described The Glass Menagerie as a memory play, told through Tommy’s recollections rather than presenting events as they actually occurred.

This heavily autobiographical play, influenced by his own upbringing, launched Williams’ successful career and became a modern classic.

“Shows become classics because we relate to

them,” Kohn said. “Because they’re relevant. They touch some human truth. They’re done again and again and again, but what’s the point of doing it over and over if they’re the same every time? The Glass Menagerie is Tennessee Williams’s most autobiographical play. It’s heavily based on his own life.

Tom is his self-insert character.”

Kohn decided to cast role of Tom, traditionally played by a cis man, as a trans woman.

“I wanted Tommy to be trans,” Kohn said. “I knew that going into it because The Glass Menagerie has always been my favorite play, and I always heavily related to the role of Tom. As a queer, trans, disabled person, all of those identities are really important to me and are never really represented in theater. So it was really important to me that the theater I do includes these voices that traditionally aren’t included.”

Kohn and the cast are very intentional in their portrayal of disability. Potts reflected on her approach to the role of Laura in an email to the Review.

“For my character specifically, Alex and I talked in depth about the history of disability in the United States, as well as modern-day perceptions,” Potts wrote. “Coming at the role as an able-bodied actor, portraying Laura in an accurate and respectful way is really important to me. We also spent a lot of time dissecting Laura’s neurodivergency based on textual evidence as well as what we’ve interpreted.”

Kohn explained that “all the writing is like poetry” in The Glass Menagerie. “[Williams’ language is] poetic and heightened but still modern,” Schorr said. “It’s been a fun challenge learning how to say Tennessee Williams’ words onstage.”

“I just hope everyone in the audience feels affected and left with something to ponder as they walk out,” she wrote in an email to the Review.

When asked what she hopes the audience walks away with, Potts responded with a quote from the show: “In these trying times we live in, all that we have to cling to is each other.”

The show will feature performances at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. matinees on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $5.

Scuffles between Musicians and Politicians Highlight National Divide Levi Dayan Another election season means, as always, another round of politicians being told to stop using artists’ music without permission. Most recently, Pharrell Williams issued a cease and desist letter to President Trump after rally organizers used his song “Happy” at a campaign event in Indiana.

In his letter to the president, Williams’ attorney Howard King denounced the song choice in the wake of October’s fatal shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue.

“There was nothing ‘happy’ about the tragedy inflicted upon our country on Saturday and no permission was granted for your use of this song for this purpose,” King wrote.

The same week, after “Don’t Stop The Music” played at another rally, Rihanna tweeted “me nor my people would ever be at or around one of those tragic rallies.” Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose also joined the chorus of musicians denouncing Trump for using their music without authorization.

This kind of pushback is nothing new. Famously, back in 1984, President Ronald Reagan stated that, “America’s future rests in a thousand dreams inside your hearts; it rests in the mes-

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sage of hope in songs so many young Americans admire: New Jersey’s own Bruce Springsteen. And helping you make those dreams come true is what this job of mine is all about.”

Reagan’s message clearly wasn’t endorsed by Springsteen, who has a long history of liberal advocacy and was none too pleased by Reagan’s use of “Born in the U.S.A.” — a decidedly unpatriotic song — without his consent.

Since then, similar instances of unauthorized music use have made headlines, from Bobby McFerrin disavowing President George H.W. Bush to the Foo Fighters, Jackson Browne, and ABBA all distancing themselves from Senator John McCain during his presidential run. Trump is perhaps the most brazen figure of unauthorized music use yet; he’s been criticized by everyone from Neil Young to Twisted Sister to Earth, Wind, and Fire for using music without permission.

These political disputes in the entertainment industry have taken on new meaning in the age of Trump.

Late night hosts like Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, and Seth Meyers have experienced booming ratings as a result of embracing anti-Trump humor. Jimmy Fallon, on the other hand,

infamously received enormous criticism after tousling Trump’s hair during an interview, taking a serious ratings hit.

Entertainment industry juggernauts, such as Jay-Z and Beyoncé, have also publicly supported NFL players kneeling during the national anthem — a means of protest against police brutality initiated by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. These protests have entered public discourse and forced the NFL’s predominantly white fan base to reckon with ongoing racism in America.

The question of why musicians and artists consistently counter conservative figures is easily answered. The arts have emerged as a platform for marginalized groups to speak out and tell their stories; politicians from the right have denounced these narratives and identities completely. In many ways, the entertainment industry relies heavily on multiculturalism — the antithesis of Trumpism. With so many entertainers completely opposed to Trump and what he represents, conservatives are left with artists like Kid Rock as their cultural standard-bearers.

While the entertainment indus-

try is largely dominated behind the scenes by white men, it would be nothing without the diverse group of entertainers themselves. One of this year’s biggest movies was Black Panther — a superhero movie written, directed, and almost entirely starring Black people. One of the top American talk shows is hosted by a gay woman, Ellen DeGeneres. And the Billboard charts continue to be dominated by entertainers like Cardi B, Travis Scott, Kendrick Lamar, and Rihanna.

Considering that Trump’s political platform is largely built on the demonization of people of color and the championing of mediocre white men, it makes perfect sense that the president cannot garner any support from the entertainment industry, outside of a few right-wing musicians here and there.

While music has always been inherently political, recent showdowns between conservative politicians and liberal musicians seem to only exacerbate the ideological divide in America.

As we move past midterms and into the inevitably turbulent 2020 presidential election race, it’s clear that musicians will continue to exercise their political beliefs through not only song, but through legal action as well.

Oberlin Opera Honors Bernstein

The Oberlin Opera Theater’s A Salute to Leonard Bernstein opens this week as a centennial celebration of the late composer’s birthday. Act 1 features the opera Trouble in Tahiti, a satire on married life and the false promise of American consumerism in the 20th century. It centers around Sam and Dinah, an unhappy couple who attempt to re-discover what they lost in the monotony of middle-class suburbia.

Act 2 features a showcase of Bernstein’s most recognizable musical theater hits including numbers from West Side Story, On the Town, and Candide. It highlights a wide range of infectious dance numbers, comedic arias, and romantic ballads.

“Very few places else can you hear Bernstein’s operatic and musical theater styles performed in the same evening, let alone by such talented young musicians,” said Conservatory junior Shawn Roth, who portrays Sam in Trouble in Tahiti on Wednesday and Saturday.

A Salute to Leonard Bernstein runs Nov. 7, 9, and 10 at 8 p.m. and Nov. 11 at 2 p.m. in Hall Auditorium.

Text by Delaney Kelly Photo by Julie Gulenko

New Legislation Helps Established Musicians

Carson Dowhan Senior Staff Writer

There’s been a lot of discussion recently around the impact of streaming music on how artists are compensated for their work, given the overwhelming rise of services like Spotify and Apple Music. In a new development, the Orrin G. Hatch–Bob Goodlatte Music Modernization Act was signed into effect Oct. 11. It stands as one of the most important pieces of legislation regarding entertainment and copyright law, but the legal jargon can be difficult to follow for those who are unfamiliar with music industry standards.

The bill, which received bipartisan approval in Congress, impacts all creative rights holders and those who create music — but it affects industry giants much more than small Oberlin bands with music on Spotify. “[The MMA] creates a blanket licensing system with collective administration, which will increase public consumption of licensed music, increase royalties paid out to rights holders, and promote licensing efficiencies,” wrote Julian Ring, OC ’16, who now works for Pandora, in an email to the Review. “The blanket license will empower existing on-demand streaming services to expand the catalogs made available to consumers to lawfully access the music they love. Pandora believes that the MMA brings the rules governing music into the 21st century, and represents a holistic improvement that will benefit the entire music ecosystem.”

The MMA sets a market standard for royalties, altering mechanical rights — streaming on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music — and performance rights, which include streaming on online radio like SiriusXM. Anyone with material on Spotify knows that each time their song is played, they receive abysmal compensation at a fraction of a cent — but this will change a bit with the MMA.

The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

“I think there is a misconception that the MMA is going to make it feasible for anyone who makes music — if you’re not a big-time artist — to make money from your music,” said Daniel Markus, a double-degree fifth-year who researched the MMA for a music media class. “The musicians that this helps the most are the ones that already make the most money.”

This is true — because of their strong listening bases, recognized musicians and people who hold the rights to famous songs will benefit the most from the increase of mechanical royalties, making marginal increases in profit based on streams.

Taylor Swift’s followers play her music more than followers of any Oberlin group — but musicians with smaller fanbases will still profit from making slightly more money per play.

The MMA represents the second progressive leap made by the music industry this year. In June, rights management organization SoundExchange introduced a new service to fight against copyright exploitation. Copyright owners were sent millions of Notice of Intention to Use filings, but the notices could not be tracked, resulting in an “Address Unknown” error wherein licensors did not have to pay royalties to the copyright owners after they’ve used the tracks. In an attempt to combat this, Sound Exchange created a central system to search for song copyrights and their holders.

The MMA builds on this system by doing away with the bulk of the NOI process. A Mechanical Licensing Committee, funded by digital service providers such as Spotify, will be created to provide public access to a database of song ownership information. This ensures songwriters and copyright holders will be identified for their work and paid appropriately. However, there will be a transition time between getting rid of the mass NOI issuance process and establishing a new database and licensing committee.

College sophomore Julian Kaufman is an independent artist who is featured in multiple projects, including MICHELLE and the booyah! kids, and has landed a placement on one of Spotify’s curated playlists.

“Higher royalties are nice,” he said. “It’s impossible to make money on streaming still, though.”

Kaufman interprets the MMA as an act to keep record labels relevant in a time when, prior to the MMA, decreased cost barriers to distributing music encouraged songwriters to publish independently in order to increase their royalties.

“The way I see it, the MMA is a move by big labels and promoters in the music industry to keep their jobs,” Kaufman said. “With the accessibility that exists now to get your songs on streaming and the lack of payouts for songwriters, it just makes sense for more people to become independent artists because they can own the rights to their masters.”

Indeed, it seems that the MMA represents a promise to the dominant players of the industry.

Labels can now entice songwriters with higher royalties for their work, and publishers with the rights of famous works will have higher profits.

Small artists can aspire to one day benefit to a larger degree from higher royalties — currently, touring is the largest source of income for middle-class musicians.

The Music Modernization Act is turning the labor of love into a more profitable source of income for established songwriters, artists, and rights holders. But we are living in a golden age of accessibility; gone are the necessities of labels and tremendous studio time expenses. For musicians in the Oberlin community, it is crucial to know about these changes in order to calibrate what they should be paid for their art — but regardless, they should remember the value of their own music.

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A r t s & C u lt u r e ON THE RECORD

On the Record with Annika Hansteen-Izora, Poet

Annika Hansteen-Izora, OC ’17, returned to Oberlin this past weekend to perform poetry at the Cat in the Cream as the opening act for Porsha Olayiwola. While a first-year at Oberlin, Izora founded OSlam, now one of campus’ most influential organizations, which turned five this year. To quote the event description, she “is a queer Black poet, artist, and activist. She believes in the power of Black joy, of protecting Black girl rage, and uplifting the stories and magic of the women before her.” Some of her work can be found on her Instagram, @annika.izora.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Gabriel Schneier How did you get your start writing and performing poetry?

Well, the women in my family have always been creative.

My mom and grandmother were doing spoken word in the ’90s in Palo Alto, [CA], going to jazz festivals and Black artist pop-ups out in the Bay Area. My grandmother introduced me to it when I was young, and I’ve been writing poems since then.

From that, I got introduced to Youth Speaks, which was a poetry organization in the Bay Area. I didn’t know what Slam was. When I got introduced I was like, “Oh my God, this is everything,” because it was largely Black and Brown kids like me.

They were delivering powerful speeches, and they were my age. So it totally opened up the world to me.

How would you say that traditions in spoken word have influenced your work?

I write to free myself and to feel myself. My family, especially the women in my family, have always done that, since before I was alive. That’s why my goal is to talk about me and my experiences. If it ends up teaching something about Blackness or queerness or womanhood at a societal level, that’s amazing.

My work is also about taking my place as a Black queer artist in the world, loudly, and being unapologetic about that in a world

that usually wants Black people, queer people, women, and artists to apologize.

What is your writing process like? Can you take me from start to finish on a typical poem?

There are so many things that I’m inspired by. When I see something that moves me, I have to capture it. I can be moved to write about revolution or by the color of the sky.

I’m a poet that writes in waterfalls. Once one line comes out, the next thing I know I have a whole messy page. And then I start cutting it down and I really ground it in memory and specifics. When I write, I can hear the song. I can hear the words in my head. I’m just trying to capture it.

Do you feel that poetry has the power to meaningfully engage with politics?

My body is immediately politicized, whether I want it to be or not. It’s exhausting. Everything about what I do [is politicized]. If I take up space, especially in white institutions, that’s a political act in itself. So me speaking, me writing poetry, is inevitably kind of a revolution. For me, writing poetry is a means to talk about revolution in an accessible way that isn’t shrouded in political jargon. A lot of that jargon is from our liberal arts education, which uses

Annika Hansteen-Izora, OC ’17, performed at the Cat in the Cream last weekend. While at Oberlin, she founded OSlam and went to three College Unions Poetry Slam Invitationals quarterfinals.

Photo Courtesy of Annika Hansteen-Izora

terms that actually aren’t accessible to all people. To me, poetry is the most accessible form of revolutionary knowledge.

I know it, my grandmother knows it, the rest of my family knows it.

What does Slam mean to you?

For me, Slam is the community, and the poetry is the art form. The Slam community has problems, like any. But for me, Slam is one of the most powerful platforms for art, and I’ve heard a huge range of voices there, speaking from across different experiences. It’s been the most accessible way for me to engage with revolution, with community, with freedom. And it’s a space where people listen, where people are really deeply listening to each other and want to take their art and move it into action. It doesn’t stay within a closed space. It always is working to incite some type of action whether that’s thinking deeply or going out into the streets. …

It represents community, in the deepest way.

In your poem “Praise,” you talk about how your experiences navigating life as a Black woman have been

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shaped by your grandmother’s advice. How does identity inform your poetry?

That’s a hard question. I’d say it goes back to what I was saying earlier. As a Black queer woman, the world doesn’t want people like me to exist, so everything I do is about identity. Especially living in a place like Portland, [OR] which is the whitest city in the U.S., even something as seemingly insignificant as me going to get juice is political, because people will touch my body and my hair without permission. I write about those experiences.

[That’s why] identity is part of everything that I write about.

One of the poems you performed at OSlam was about a group text with ex-Oberlin people. In what ways did your time here shape your creative work?

My years at Oberlin were the most transformative of my very young life so far. I was a nerdyass kid from Portland, OR, and never had a Black community before. I’d only been in allwhite environments. Oberlin is a predominantly white institution, of course, but there is also such a strong Black community.

So when I entered Oberlin, that was the first time I was really able to celebrate my Blackness, and the celebration was because of my homies. My homies were everything and continue to be everything — my strongest support system, my rideor-dies, the people who I suffer with, the people who want me to be bigger and better in the world. … I write about joy a lot — the joy that they give me, the joy that I give them. It’s a part of my healing, giving me faith that my writing could really do something. So I wrote about the group text, because that was a source of joy for me.

Do they make art? Is that something that you guys work on together?

All of them do art. All of them are creative. Some are trying to be lawyers, others are working to be doctors and scientists; one is at [Yale School of Drama]. All are creative in their own way, and we’re all hyping each other up in that way. And I think that there’s an idea that you have to be a certain way in the world in order to be able to call yourself an artist. And that’s a lie. If you create, if you make things, you’re an artist.

Acrobatic Conundrum Soars OCircus! to New Heights Teague Harvey In 2004, Terry Crane graduated from Oberlin College with a Dance major. The following year, he auditioned at École nationale de cirque in Montreal — which is arguably the most famous circus school in the world. He went on to lead a very successful solo aerial rope career, touring with various circuses around Europe, before settling back home in Seattle to found his own circus company, Acrobatic Conundrum.

In 2007–2008, after Terry had graduated, OCircus! was founded by an adventurous group of students, and soon Oberlin became known for the club. In the past week alone, I’ve been put in touch with two prospies who wanted to talk about it.

Even though OCircus! came after Terry’s time, I consider him our spiritual predecessor. As one of the best rope artists in the world, he’s contributed significantly to Oberlin’s circus reputation, and every OCircus! alum knows who he is.

Naturally, when we heard that his company was touring, we wanted them to come to Oberlin.

Due to scheduling and budget concerns, it took almost two years of planning, a special combined budget involving two clubs and the Dance department, and a lot of hard work from the OCircus! administrators to make it happen.

Last week, it finally did.

And boy, did Acrobatic Conundrum deliver.

There was something for everybody, with workshops over the week open to all levels in dance/ acro technique, flexibility, handstands, duo tra-

COMIC

The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

peze, rope, and an open contact improv/partner acro class.

Finally, over the weekend, there were two performances of their latest work, The Fig Tree Waltzes.

Now, what pops into your head when you think “circus”? Cirque du Soleil, The Ringling Bros., Barnum & Bailey Circus? Lions, tigers, elephants?

Tightrope over a net that’s on fire? A huge, extravagant, popcorn spectacle?

Contemporary circus is in the midst of a cultural revolution, and Acrobatic Conundrum is part of that. Not just focused on the spectacle of circus, The Fig Tree Waltzes maintained a rich thematic and narrative core, at times feeling more like an experimental theatre or dance show.

To be clear, it was still very much a circus show, with trapeze, silks, clowning, acrobatics, hand balancing, a cyr wheel, and what must be the world’s smallest lyra (aerial hoop).

Each member of the five-person troupe had a chance to shine in a solo, as well as work together in larger set pieces. For me, the incredible character work and flawless transitions between acts were where the show really shined. In other circus shows that I’ve seen, the act boundaries were more obvious, while The Fig Tree Waltzes felt like one continuous show.

So what about the narrative? Based upon the fig tree metaphor in The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, the show was about love and loss, embracing your quirks, and the human drive to keep playing against overwhelming odds.

“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story,” Plath wrote. “From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor... I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest.

And, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.”

It was poetic, and it was powerful. I ended up going both nights, hungry for more.

This past semester, I’ve had a lot of challenges.

A mysterious knee injury has forced me to reassess how I train, to reevaluate my relationship with my body, and to face my ambition in acrobatics. A lack of artistic motivation has me scrambling to try and create something for a senior dance recital next semester. The looming graduation has me questioning where my priorities in life lie.

Acrobatic Conundrum and The Fig Tree Waltzes left me feeling full and grateful for the community that OCircus! provides.

After the show, for the first time since my injury, I felt free and creative in my movement practices.

Inspired by the work I had just seen, I had so many ideas for my own artistic endeavors that I became excited about my senior project again. Most importantly, I realized that maybe I don’t have to live a nine-to-five life.

Maybe I can run away and join the circus, too.

Claire Wang Staff Cartoonist

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Sp ort s

In The Locker Room with Nichole Geist, Women’s Basketball Player IN THE LOCKER ROOM

When College junior women’s basketball player Nichole Geist isn’t with her team, she’s in the library making graphs, memorizing scientific terms, and studying her textbooks as a Neuroscience and Biology double-major. The Sterling Heights, MI, native also keeps herself busy by helping out with the Student Athletic Advisory Committee and playing with the cats in Ginko Gallery. This summer she organized a lung cancer fundraiser, helping raise $3,000.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Maranda Phillips, Staff Writer

What drew you to Oberlin?

I actually had a really good prospie experience, and I’ve always been a huge fan of basketball. I’ve loved basketball since I was a freshman in high school. I really liked the way Oberlin’s campus was set up and how tight-knit it was.

This summer you raised $3,000 at a lung cancer awareness event you spearheaded. What drove you to do this?

It stemmed from me tearing my ACL. What happened was, I had torn my ACL, and within that same month I got a call

from my mom that my godmother had stage IV lung cancer. So that put things in perspective. Like “I’m going to recover, but there’s no guarantee that [she’ll] recover.” Also, during that same time, someone who was really important to me in my life was going through a similar situation with his grandpa. That also played a role, like, “Hey, I should probably do something for this organization.”

I did some research on good lung cancer organizations, and at first I was just going to donate money, but I figured, why not do something different so I [could] incorporate goals that I have for myself, like getting back to running and getting back to doing things that I could do be-

Lung cancer awareness event in which Geist raised $3000.

Photo courtesy of Nichole Geist

fore my ACL? But that year it didn’t work out because ACL rehab is really hard. So I ended up planning it for this past summer, and it was a super cool experience.

We had a great turnout; we raised over $3,000.

I also ended up doing this push-up thing where I did a push-up for every dollar someone donated, and they ended up donating $2,000. So it was crazy! It was a super cool experience, and I loved every minute of it.

What are some setbacks you’ve experienced as a student-athlete?

I would definitely say my knee has been my biggest setback. When I tore my ACL [my first year], that was my first big injury, so it was very much a shock. I, for one, really struggled with the recovery just because I rely on exercise as an outlet, and when I didn’t have that it was really hard for me to adjust. Eventually though, once I got through the first three months, everything after that was pretty smooth sailing. I also struggle with focusing during practice a little bit, but also with the ACL it helped me focus on practice and [watching] the plays.

What about fitness do you love so much?

Like I said, it’s an outlet. I love the runner’s high that you get after a really good workout. I was really into lifting this past summer, getting back from my knee stuff.

I was never super strong before surgery,

Nichole Geist

Photo courtesy of OC Athletics

which probably plays a role in why I tore my ACL. So I made a pact to myself [that] I will never let that happen again, so I really hit leg day hard.

How is the team looking this year?

Honestly, I think that we’re young this year, but there’s a lot of potential and a lot of experience to be gained. Once we learn the roles that everybody plays, I think we’re going to do really well. I’m confident in that, as long as we avoid injury.

What are you planning to do after graduation?

My goal is to go to [Physicians Assistant] school. I’m actually going to a PA school info and interview session this week. It’s actually one of the schools that I would like to look at, [so] it’s super exciting. I got my EMT certification this summer, so I can work after graduation to get the [hands-on patient care] hours.

Men’s BBall Kicks off the Season, Cali Style

Shortly after arriving in the Los Angeles area for their first game of the season, the men’s basketball team traveled to College sophomore Jordan Sacks’ home for their first meal in the state. The team’s California matchup today against the University of La Verne kicks off their season, with the team set to play at CalTech tomorrow. This year, the team welcomes six new first-years to the floor in their annual California games, building up a strong base with five sophomores, seven juniors, and two seniors leading the group in experience.

“I’m looking forward to starting off the season the right way,”said College junior Josh Friedkin. “We’ve been competing against each other in open gyms and practices for a while now so it will be a nice change to have an actual opponent out there. Anytime the team can go on a trip together, it’s a chance for us to grow as a group.

I think more than anything else, that’s what makes these California trips so worthwhile.”

Text by Ify Ezimora Sports Editor Photo by Michael Durkin

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Senior Student-Athletes Must Balance Athletics, Academics, Impending Graduation Alexis Dill Sports Editor At the conclusion of her junior year, College senior and softball player Emma Downing was unsure if she should apply to the Honors Program in History.

She didn’t think she would get in — only seven students were accepted this year — and even if she did, she didn’t know if her schedule would allow for it. Nevertheless, she decided to take the plunge.

“There weren’t any other classes I wanted to take, and I wanted to push myself academically and see what I could accomplish,” Downing said. “I knew that coming up with a question and researching it all year to write a 60-page paper would be the hardest thing I’ve ever done academically.”

The History and Russian & East European Studies double-major maintains an impressive GPA considering how jampacked her days are. Throughout her four years at Oberlin, Downing has juggled several different jobs to help her parents pay tuition. In addition to working for the College of Arts and Sciences Admissions Office and in Philips gym, Downing has been a captain on the softball team for three years.

She now spends a considerable amount of time researching the representation of prostitution in the Soviet Union media and what it reveals about gender roles, sexuality, and the social decline of the Soviet Union during Perestroika from 1985–91.

The idea came to Downing during one of Visiting Assistant Professor of History Christopher Stolarski’s Russian history courses. She did her final project on Russian prostitution during the 17th century

after Stolarski mentioned it one day in class.

“I found it very interesting,” Downing said. “So when I began thinking about what I might want to look into for my honors project, I thought I would further explore that. There was already a lot of research done on this topic, however, so Professor Stolarski and I talked about researching the subject of prostitution while the Perestroika economic policy was in play.”

During Winter Term this January, Downing, who is conversationally fluent in Russian, plans to spend two weeks in Moscow, going through archived police records of interactions with prostitutes, as well as other Soviet publications that are only available in Russia. She will also explore the hotels that prostitutes worked in.

“Part of the project revolves around legal questions,” Downing said. “Was prostitution legal? What statutes were cited?

When did the Soviet Union pass laws declaring it illegal? I’m currently in the process of applying for law school, so I’m just intellectually curious about the subject.”

Downing said she is trying to prove that the way prostitution was portrayed in the media says a lot about morale and the anxiety felt by Soviets at the time. According to her, Soviet men were concerned that women were exerting their sexuality in nontraditional ways, and the general public was concerned about foreigners influencing business in the Soviet Union by sleeping with prostitutes.

“Russians had xenophobic and racist opinions on this thing because they were afraid of Western ideas entering the Soviet Union,” Downing said. “Fear and decay of societal standards partially led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.”

Downing has been working alongside College senior and baseball player Dave Gaetano, who is working on his own project in the History Honors Program.

Gaetano, an Economics and History double major, plans to work as an Associate Consultant with Capco, a management consulting company, after graduation.

He is currently researching the impact of athletics at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, PA, at the turn of the 20th century, specifically looking at how Native American students at this government-sponsored institution used athletics to create cultural continuity with their ancestral past. According to Gaetano, Native American students used sports to connect with their identity as Native people, despite the United States government’s desire to assimilate them into Western society.

“I chose this topic because it brings together a variety of topics I have a great interest in, from the period of discovery, Native American culture and society, American and Native American relations, and, of course, sports,” Gaetano said. “I am not certain as to what the thesis will be just yet, but I have a strong inclination that there was indeed a consciousness to this form of resistance, and it was achieved by using athletes as a conduit.”

The end result will be a 60- to 80-page paper discussing what the U.S. government wished to achieve by sponsoring Native American boarding schools, the consciousness of Native American resistance through the means of sports, and the impact of Indian athletics on native identity, culture, and past.

Meanwhile, in the Psychology department’s Honors Program, College senior and men’s basketball captain Eli Silver-

man-Lloyd is working to develop a new scale that measures college students’ attitudes toward sexual misconduct. He became invested in helping prevent sexual misconduct after getting involved in the Preventing and Responding to Sexual Misconduct program at the beginning of his junior year. His advisor, Assistant Professor of Psychology Meghan Morean, had the idea for a new scale, and she and Silverman-Lloyd decided to test it.

Silverman-Lloyd is using Qualtrics to publish online surveys for college students, which he hopes will help him develop his new scale by statistically determining the best items to use for the survey. Then he will see if the new scale can outperform the current gold-standard measure, the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale, by testing whether his scale is less prone to social desirability and more likely to predict perpetration of sexual assault.

“I’m hoping to gain insight into how students judge scenarios of sexual misconduct or assault when they are asked to assign punishment to them,” SilvermanLloyd said. “I’m hoping it will better reveal their thoughts on certain issues to better guide intervention practices like PRSM and to see which populations are more likely to hold problematic beliefs surrounding sexual assault.”

Silverman-Lloyd said he has enjoyed conducting research and hopes to continue doing so post-graduation.

While Downing, Gaetano, and Silverman-Lloyd all prepare for the conclusion of their collegiate athletic careers, their senior honors projects mark the beginning of life after Oberlin. All three agree that their respective projects are a fulfilling yet bittersweet way to cap off their undergraduate career.

more or less responsible for bringing all 15 members of the team on-board. But, with no coach and just five returning players, getting a rugby team together in a month is no small task.

Nevertheless, the Gruffs were held scoreless through three games during their opening weekend tournament.

However, what the Gruffs lack in traditional experience, they certainly make up for in sense of community.

Rugby is not a particularly forgiving sport. In order to participate, you have to have a certain trust in your teammates.

While the faces have changed significantly in his four years here, Paul touched on how this part of the Gruffs never seems to go away.

“When I was a first-year, a lot of the people on the rugby team became the people I hung out with,” he said. “They still are — I’m a senior and I hang out with mostly [first-years]. Every year the team is a little different, but we always have the same mentality—it’s to work as hard as we can for the single reason of working hard together.”

Those opening matches were the first ever rugby games for nearly half the team.

In fact, there are just a small handful of players who actually played any rugby at all before coming to Oberlin. Gabriel played forward in a California league for several years, and sophomore co-captain Brendan Aleman won a championship with his team in Chicago. Outside of those two, there is not much experience to go around.

However, whether it’s because of the

brutal, warlike nature of the sport or the way the Gruffs have approached this season, the weekend following their first game, the team took 10 steps forward in a rematch against Tiffin. While they still lost both games, they finished tackles and made clean passes. Gabriel scored the team’s first try of the season, and I even found my way into the hospital.

For the Gruffs’ third game against Ohio Northern, they picked up juniors Will Cramer and Buster Coe. Will, who was the captain of his high school football team, and Buster, who teaches the rock-climbing ExCo, both picked up a try.

Against Ohio Northern’s mythical farm strength, the Gruffs started to look like an actual rugby team. They still dropped both games, but with 15–5 finishes in both matches they were significantly closer to winning their first game in half a decade than they have been in a while.

Tomorrow, the Gruffs will play in their final matches of the season as they travel to Kenyon College to participate in a tournament with Kenyon, Tiffin, and Taylor University. They’re still coachless. Outside of hanging out at the house, organizing team events — from practice to bussing across Ohio — takes every ounce of patience Paul, Gabriel, and Aleman have. Even with all of that working against them, they’re still just one try away from that elusive first win.

“Knowing the rules, making tackles, finishing plays. That was the bar we set for ourselves this semester,” Gabriel said.

“Next semester, that becomes the standard. We have what it takes to be a winning rugby team.”

Buff Gruffs Tough Enough for Rugby Stuff

Senior President Sam Paul is the only senior and four-year player for the Gruffs, the men’s club rugby team. The team plays its final matches of the season tomorrow in a tournament with Kenyon ColPhoto courtesy of Max Shain lege, Tiffin University, and Taylor University.

Luke Sprecher Staff Writer Alex McNicoll Contributing Writer The North Fields are not a pleasant place to be on an early autumn afternoon.

They’re hot, sticky, and full of bugs. Somehow, this is exactly where the Gruffs — Oberlin College’s men’s club rugby team — find themselves every Tuesday and Thursday.

By mid-September, most club rugby teams will be working on rucks — situations where when a tackled player goes to ground, they must release the ball immediately and each team fights for possession of the ball — advanced line-out maneuvers, or even learning a coach’s playbook if they are so inclined. On this particular The Oberlin Review | November 9, 2018

Tuesday, College junior and co-captain Noah Gabriel is showing a group of nine other players — almost half of them firstyears — how to perform a tackle. Ten is a pretty good turnout, as there are just 15 members in all, but the team can’t quite follow Gabriel’s demonstration as they are too busy scratching mosquito bites and recovering from their (optional) one-mile warm-up.

On Oct. 6, the Gruffs lost four scores to none against Tiffin University in their first game of the season. However, the outcome requires some explanation. College senior and club President Sam Paul, who was sick during Noah’s tackling tutorial, was playing in his first game since a devastating ankle injury last semester. He’s the only senior and four-year player the Gruffs have, and it’s safe to say that he is

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SPORTS established 1874

November 9, 2018

Jenkins Rises to Occasion, Leads Yeomen to Victory

Volume 147, Number 8

Marketing the Athletic Experience Increases Donor Relations Elijah Aladin

College first-year and quarterback Tommy Jenkins was subbed into the Yeomen’s matchup with the Hiram College Terriers Saturday when College junior and starting quarterback Zach Taylor broke his fibula. Jenkins’ brilliant play led the Yeomen to a victory in double overtime.

Photo by OC Athletics

Julie Schreiber Senior Staff Writer In the third quarter of Saturday’s football matchup between the Oberlin College Yeomen and the Hiram College Terriers, the crowd gasped as College junior and star quarterback Zach Taylor fell to the ground clutching his leg. Taylor, who had just become Oberlin’s career total yards leader with 7,096 yards a week earlier, broke his fibula and was unable to re-enter the game.

In a crunch and desperate to take home the win, the Yeomen put in first-year backup quarterback Tommy Jenkins, who has talent comparable to Taylor’s but hasn’t seen much playing time this year. Just a few days before the game, Jenkins himself was in a boot, managing ankle pain that had flared up during practice.

Despite the surprise of being thrown into a tight game, Jenkins didn’t falter. He took the offensive reins and helped propel the Yeomen into double overtime, where they won after junior running back Melvin Briggs ran into the endzone with a walk-off touchdown.

“There were only two minutes left in the third quarter when I had to go in,” said Jenkins, who, before Saturday, had only seen action in two games earlier in the season against Wittenberg University and Kalamazoo College.

“But we got the ball back and scored, which eventually sent us into overtime and helped us win.”

Briggs earned North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors for his performance against Hiram, but

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credits the team for his success.

“It was a surreal moment to score the game-winning touchdown,” Briggs said. “Our team came together, and we played a complete game. We had dudes step up when their number was called, like Tommy Jenkins.”

Most first-years don’t get many minutes during their rookie season at the collegiate level. Even on a small team like Oberlin’s, newcomers usually spend their first season learning by watching their older teammates, rather than by playing themselves. But when the opportunity came for Jenkins to prove that he was ready to play, he wasn’t nervous.

“Everyone stayed really calm when Zach got hurt, which helped me for sure,” Jenkins said. “I get nervous leading up to games, but once they actually start, I’m never that nervous. I get into the right headspace.”

College first-year wide receiver Brian Colarusso said he couldn’t be happier for his fellow rookie.

“When Zach went down in a crucial part of the game, Tommy was as prepared as he could possibly be,” Colarusso said. “He knew all the plays and reads and kept the team composed in a stressful game.

That says a lot for a [first-year] to step up as a leader and take control of the game despite having never thrown a collegiate pass before. He is one of the hardest workers I know and deserved his shot to prove himself.”

College sophomore linebacker Luke Buck agreed that Jenkins stepped up for the team in more ways than one.

“Everybody can see the stats and watch the highlights and know that he came up big for us,” Buck said. “What they can’t see is how he stepped up as a leader. Going into and all throughout overtime, guys were looking to him and drawing strength from him. It was special.”

It’s no wonder Jenkins feels comfortable on the field — football has been a part of his life for as long as he can remember. A native of Nashville, TN, Jenkins spent most of his childhood playing football on the playground until he could officially start on a tackle league team in the fourth grade. His family relocated to Blairstown, NJ, for his high school years, and not only did he play all four years at Blair Academy, but his father was — and still is — a Blair Academy assistant football coach.

Much like Oberlin’s squad, Jenkins’ high school team was small but strong and showed him the value of playing sports with a small community.

“I always knew I wanted to play in college, but I really liked the family atmosphere we had on my small high school team,” Jenkins said.

“That feeling has really carried over here. The guys are really close and we all hang out together.”

Taylor had surgery this week and will spend the next several weeks recovering, so Jenkins will have another chance to prove himself in tomorrow’s game against Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania. And there are no doubts among his teammates or coaches that he’ll be ready to rise to the challenge again this week.

Over fall break, I was visiting a friend at Stanford University during their homecoming weekend. I saw droves of students and alumni flooding the campus with their Stanford Tree paraphernalia.

This showout, however, didn’t compare to the scene I saw during the University of Michigan’s homecoming weekend, where the streets were lined with students and alumni covered head-to-toe in maize and blue. I saw enthusiasm and fellowship shared by so many people.

Although my amazement at the sheer number of people present at each event may have simply been a result of the size difference between those schools and Oberlin — after all, each of those campuses do include graduate schools — I began to wonder, how much of an impact do college athletics have on the alumni presence at that university?

As I pondered this question in the context of my own college experience, I wondered about the effect that the performance of athletic programs has on alumni donation patterns as well. According to a 2008 Economics of Education Review article titled “The impact of athletic performance on alumni giving: An analysis of microdata,” written by Jonathan Meer and Harvey S. Rosen, athletic performance does indeed have an effect on alumni donation patterns.

This study, unlike others on the subject, uses alumni donation data to estimate the effects of specific aspects of their college experiences on their giving habits. This strategy differs from other studies’ use of aggregated institutional data to analyze the impact of athletic program (generally basketball and football) performance on general donation patterns.

In addition to giving patterns, Meer and Rosen collected data on athletic participation, undergraduate conference competition victories, and conference competition victories during alumni years, as well as information on binary gender categories, SAT scores, academic honors, ethnicity, type of high school, summary evaluations made by the institution’s admissions office during the application process, and grade point average.

They found that participation on athletic teams, as well as team success, did impact donation patterns of former athletes to both athletic and

general purpose funds. The study used male and female categories and found that athletic participation significantly increased for male donors at a 5% threshold, but it did not significantly affect the giving patterns of women. Interestingly, the basketball team’s performance specifically increased the donations of both men and women to athletic programs.

One of the study’s shortcomings is that it pulls microdata from a single researchbased university, so these patterns could vary across different types and sizes of institutions and athletic programs.

However, the results still highlight an interesting pattern of alumni participation and raise questions about how participating in athletic programs helps bring in alumni money. In my mind, the answer comes down to camaraderie and brand loyalty. Athletes work to defend the pride (and athletic record) of their team and school.

Athletes also end up spending a lot of time developing relationships within their team as well as with competitors.

Logically, the inner network formed within the larger network of the school would continue post-graduation as athletes continue to contribute to the school’s brand. For schools with large athletic programs, like Stanford or Michigan, this camaraderie and loyalty appear to be dominant forces that draw alumni back to campus.

Understanding this information in the context of my own education is difficult for two reasons: The study was done using data from a single university’s development office, and Oberlin’s culture is not centered around athletics.

I believe this is an important aspect of Oberlin’s culture that I am not looking to change.

In fact, I believe that a lot of Oberlin’s values are centered around going out and imparting into the world, not remaining insular to the institution.

I see alumni across the globe that defend those values by living them.

As I approach my own graduation, I wonder if my peers and I will feel called back to campus, whether to spectate events or to fund programming, or if our defense and pride in our school’s values will push us further and further into the world. I think it is also important to consider what brings us together as students and alumni from the same campus as we continue to shape and reshape the experience and culture of this college.