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VOL 93: 11 November 11, 2015 torchonline.com
The independent student newspaper of St. John’s University
Breast cancer walk is a success COOPER MIQUELI Assistant Opinion Editor St. John’s students and thousands of other participants met at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park on Nov. 8 for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk, hosted by the American Cancer Society. “We had close to 500 students. The office of community relations worked very hard to increase student participation and I think it was one of the best student turnouts in the past few years,” Student Government Incorporated (SGI) President Ridge McKnight said. The walk took place around the Citi Field area and distanced at approximately 1.5 miles. SGI, Donovan Hall Council and Greek life members were only some of the organizations representing St. John’s at the walk. Throughout the month of October and November these different organizations raised money through different activities and tabling events. “Throughout the month of November, our hall council worked weeknights to spread awareness and raise money for Making Strides against Breast Cancer under the American Cancer Society,” Donovan Hall Council Vice President Matt Sulewski said. “Every penny counts, and we’re so grateful for all of the donations we received.” The event began at 8 a.m. outside of Carnesecca Arena. Students then made their way to the park, where thousands had gathered and many tents for different organizations throughout the New York City area were set up. The St. John’s cheer team, dance team and pep band were at the walk as well, cheering all of the participants on. Continued on page 3
Brandon Stanton: Embrace Failure
TORCH PHOTO/ Meghan Driscoff
AMANDA UMPIERREZ News Editor Humans of New York creator Brandon Stanton urged 3,500 St. John’s students to embrace failure and challenge themselves. “You’ve got to learn to fail, and you’ve got to learn to fail right now,” Stanton said during a Nov. 5 lecture series. The 31-year old world recognized photographer spoke in Carnesecca Arena about the start to his critically acclaimed project, the failures he encountered and the journey it has taken him on since. “It started with the decision that I wanted to do something that I love, and the faith in myself to figure everything else out afterwards,” he said. Before moving to New York City, Stan-
ton had been consumed in drugs, fired from his job as a Chicago bond trader the one he landed after betting on Barack Obama for president in 2008 - and failed out of the University of Georgia. As a dire attempt to escape his nightmare, Stanton bought his own camera. “I bought the camera in desperation, as a way to kind of create some part of my life that was separate from work, just to blow off steam,” he said. Stanton noted some of the difficulties with his photographs, such as the innumerable attempts in persuading his friends to purchase his pictures. He succeeded in one case, when his friend paid $300 for one of his works. Stanton used this money toward paying for his Bedford-Stuyvesant apartment in NYC. He accentuated
his hard work, the defeats that came with attempting to rise to stardom in the big apple and what he learned along the way. “I didn’t have any friends. I didn’t go to concerts. I didn’t go to restaurants. I didn’t go to theatres. All I did was photograph,” he told the students. “It was the hardest time of my life, but also the greatest time of my life because I was doing what I loved every single day.” He said it takes courage and skill to embrace failure. “When you’re not afraid to fail, it’s like having a superpower because you can take any risk that you want,” he said. “When you’re willing to take any risk that you want, you’re gonna be a success.” Continued on page 3
Sports
Entertainment
Opinion
Women’s soccer makes history... again
Diving into the meaning of beauty with “The Souls of Black Girls” Page 12
From Halloween to Christmas: Why are Americans overlooking Thanksgiving? Page 7
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Lifestyle
Torch Eats: Tasting Greek food
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