The Tufts Daily - Thursday, March 10, 2022

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VOLUME LXXXIII, ISSUE 29

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Thursday, March 10, 2022

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Global Tufts Month kicks off, highlights effects of climate change

by Michael Weiskopf News Editor

Tufts is hosting its third annual Global Tufts Month, a month-long series of activities and events across the university’s schools and centers this March. This year’s theme is “A Call to Action: Global Perspectives on Climate Change.”

Senior International Officer and Associate Provost Diana Chigas explained that Global Tufts Month began as a way to recognize global climate action work by members of the Tufts community. “[Global Tufts Month] is an opportunity to showcase the breadth and depth of all the kinds of things that students and faculty and staff are doing that is globally engaged, and [to] raise the profile and visibility of a lot of our global engagement and celebrate it,” Chigas told the Daily.

The series of events and activities now known as Global Tufts Month began in 2019 as Global Tufts Week and has since expanded in scale to its current month-long form.

Chigas described the categories of events hosted during Global Tufts Month.

“Each year, we’ve chosen a theme that’s broad enough to … be really inclusive of the things that all the schools do, but also lots of different kinds of activities from lectures and conferences to social events, to networking, to a range of types of things.”

She also explained how this year’s theme was chosen. “[Climate change] is a theme that — in terms of both student interest and student work, but also some really interesting faculty research and interdisciplinary research across the schools — Tufts does a lot of really interesting things on,” Chigas said.

Chigas added that her involvement last fall in the Talloires Network Leaders Conference, a partnership between the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life and the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School, partly inspired this year’s conference theme.

According to Christine Hollenhorst, program administrator in the Office of the Provost, Global Tufts Month is an aggregation of many events occurring across the university.

“We’re not really organizing the events ourselves,” Hollenhorst said. “Rather, we’re encouraging everyone across the university to host their own events. … We really want to be open and broad and encourage people to participate and host events in things that they’re interested in.”

Hollenhorst noted that community members can receive grants to host their own events during Global Tufts Month.

“We do have a ‘mini grants’ program where we provide small grants; the maximum is $500,” she said. “Those can be to develop a new event, so it can be a student group that wants to put on a film screening or something like that, or it can be money that goes towards a larger event.”

Nitya Nadgir, liaison director for Alliance Linking Leaders in Education and the Services, said her organization received funding to host an event exploring the impact of U.S. imperialism on the climate crisis.

“ALLIES is planning a speaker event called Climate &

CORA HARTMANN / THE TUFTS DAILY

Program Administrator Christine Hollenhorst is pictured working on the Global Tufts Month flyer on March 9.

Militarism, and we have invited Ph.D. student and political organizer Nick Rabb to speak with the Tufts community on the intersections of the military-industrial complex and the climate emergency,” Nadgir, a junior, wrote in an email to the Daily.

Nadgir explained why ALLIES decided to invite Rabb to speak.

“Militarism is an interdisciplinary issue in the United

States that influences almost all fields of study, from engineering to policy. Because of this, there’s a significant pipeline that leads college students to careers in the military,” she wrote. “Since climate change is one of the world’s most pressing issues, we thought that this would be a great way to introduce Tufts students to the impacts of militarism on see CLIMATE, page 2

Tisch College hosts speaker Samuel Gebru joins series event titled ‘Revolutionary Center for State Policy Nonviolence: Organizing for Freedom’ Analysis at Tisch College

by Elizabeth Zacks Staff Writer

The Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life hosted another installment of its Solomont Speaker Series, titled “Revolutionary Nonviolence: Organizing for Freedom,” on March 7. The event featured Rev. James Lawson and Kent Wong, who spoke to the Tufts

community about the philosophy of nonviolence and discussed their new novel, “Revolutionary Nonviolence: Organizing for Freedom.”

The Zoom webinar event was co-sponsored by the Africana Center, the civic studies program and the Tufts University Chaplaincy.

Dayna Cunningham, dean of Tisch College, opened the

NATALIE BROWNSELL / THE TUFTS DAILY

Rev. James Lawson is pictured speaking with Kent Wong and Peter Levine during a Fletcher speaker event on March 7.

event by introducing the two speakers, emphasizing their involvement in nonviolent activism throughout their careers.

During the civil rights movement, Lawson participated in the Nashville lunch counter sit-ins, the Freedom Rides, the Memphis sanitation strike and the worker and immigrant rights movement in Los Angeles. Lawson was also Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s teacher and worked alongside him and other future leaders of the movement.

Wong is the director of the UCLA Labor Center and is also a union attorney and a labor activist. “[ Wong] has taught a course on nonviolence with Rev. Lawson for the past 20 years and has published books on the labor movement, immigrant rights and the Asian American community,” Cunningham said.

Cunningham went on to introduce Lawson and see NONVIOLENCE, page 2

by Spenser Walsh Contributing Writer

Samuel Gebru, managing director of Black Lion Strategies, was recently named a nonresident research fellow at the Center for State Policy Analysis within the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life. As cSPA’s first nonresident research fellow, Gebru will help state lawmakers who do not have the tools to conduct state-level policy analysis on their own.

Gebru comes to the post with a host of social and economic policy experience. He directed public policy and affairs at the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts, where he analyzed and proposed key state-level policies to help Black business statewide. He also founded Black Lion Strategies, a Cambridge-based consulting firm specializing in social impact, advocacy and policy work, where he is currently the managing director.

CSPA is a relatively new branch of Tisch College, having

SPORTS / back

FEATURES / page 3

OPINION / page 7

Men’s lax demolishes Colby 27–7

Student-run instagram accounts build lighthearted community

Why the Supreme Court needs Ketanji Brown Jackson

launched in 2020, that serves as a nonpartisan analysis and research hub to break down important details in state policy and legislation.

“Our state lawmakers don’t have the actual internal staff capacity to do this work, and so an organization like cSPA has the unique opportunity to leverage the tools of a major university like Tufts … to be able to provide independent, original, nonpartisan research,” Gebru said.

Gebru’s responsibilities at cSPA will involve analyzing legislation, evaluating key ballot initiatives and working with nonprofit organizations to conduct research.

Evan Horowitz, executive director of cSPA, described the talent and experience Gebru brings to his new role.

“Sam brings a range of incredible skills including a richness of policy and advocacy ideas and a tremendous energy to sell those ideas,”’ Horowitz said.

Horowitz cited Massachusetts’ new millionsee GEBRU, page 2 NEWS

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THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Thursday, March 10, 2022

THE TUFTS DAILY Alexander Janoff Editor in Chief

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ALLIES hosts ‘Climate and Militarism’ event for Global Tufts Month CLIMATE

continued from page 1 the global community specifically with regards to the climate crisis.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, two of the past three Global Tufts event series have been held either partially or

entirely via Zoom and the event was not held in 2020.

According to Chigas, this has opened up many more possibilities for events.

“One of the great things about doing things online is that alumni could often actually Zoom into things that

were happening on campus,” Chigas said. “They also mobilize some of the alumni who are in the various countries to do some really interesting things as well.”

Hollenhorst encouraged Tufts community members who have not already done so

to organize their own Global Tufts Month events.

“The calendar isn’t set,” Hollenhorst said, “We consider it kind of a living thing throughout the month. … [If students are] inspired to put together an event, they can absolutely still do that.”

Tisch College event features co-authors Rev. James Lawson and Kent Wong NONVIOLENCE

continued from page 1 Wong’s novel, “Revolutionary Nonviolence: Organizing for Freedom.” “[ The novel] provides a crucial resource on the long history of nonviolent philosophy and how we can overcome violence and oppressions and organize direct action, charting a powerful road map for a new generation of activists,” Cunningham said.

Peter Levine, associate dean of Tisch College and the event’s moderator, began by asking the speakers about the misconceptions of nonviolence.

“The reason nonviolence is so revolutionary is because it turns on its head the … obsession that we have that violence is the most powerful force in the world, and our use of violence for achieving all kinds of goals,” Lawson said. “Most of the goals — when we really look at their consequences — we’ve never achieved through violence.”

Lawson said the Black Lives Matter movement was effective in that it invoked incredi-

bly diverse nonviolent demonstrations across the world.

“It was indeed, according to many scholars, 96–97% nonviolence, with most of the violence coming from police, looters [and] anarchists,” Lawson said.

However, Lawson said he is critical of the Black Lives Matter movement at the moment because its protesters listened when the Democratic Party told them to “stop demonstrating” with the arrival of the new administration.

“In the ‘60s, the Democratic administration was often telling us … to stop the demonstration,” Lawson said. “I think [the Black Lives Matter movement] would have been wise to say ‘we will not demonstrate in the first 100 days of the Biden administration,’ but then they should have picked up the cudgels again, because 2020, 2021 [and] 2022, [have] allowed the public discourse to be almost entirely dominated by the nonsense of a Republican Party growing in its … chaos and lack of understanding of what it means to be human.”

Levine then asked Lawson to elaborate on a statement from his book, in which Lawson explains the power of nonviolent philosophy.

Lawson explained that although there is more activism, he believes that the approach does not have a personal discipline around the issues of nonviolence to bring about social and political change.

“Too many activists run around on too many issues … you cannot blame them … because so many issues are interconnected,” Lawson said.

“Our society has been largely shaped by plantation capitalism, by violence, sexism, male-domination chauvinism and racism.

These four forces of spiritual wickedness in our country are interrelated and interwoven. …

It’s no longer plainly racism as in the ‘60s. It seems to me the activism has not caught up with this … therefore it’s not as effective as it could be.”

Levine asked the speakers about what youth can do to work on their own understanding of nonviolence.

“The approach that Rev. Lawson and I have taken in our class is to look at the … link between personal transformation and societal transformation,” Wong said. “The philosophy of nonviolence is deeply rooted in addressing and understanding that link … many of the powerful social movements … have reflected that nexus of the personal transformation, the ability of workers, … of communities of color, … of young people, to find their voice, to find their inner strength and power.”

At the end of the webinar, a question prompted a conversation about what nonviolence looks like in higher education.

“We have to challenge the imbalance that exists within the university structure that historically has privileged people based on class and racial bias,” Wong said. “[ We need a] transformation within the university system, whether it be through the establishment of ethnic studies, women’s studies, LGBT studies, the advances of affirmative action and demanding full representation of underserved communities.”

Gebru to help cSPA improve scope of research and analysis GEBRU

continued from page 1 aire’s tax proposal, which is currently being debated by lawmakers in Boston, as a prime example of a cSPA research project.

The product of a collaborative effort between senior Bridget Wall and Associate Professor of Economics Thomas Downes, cSPA’s new report on the Fair Share Amendment analyzes the economic, social and political ramifications of the bill.

Horowitz explained the need for an organization like cSPA within Massachusetts’ political landscape. “[Massachusetts legislators] have no dedicated independent research agency they can turn to and say, ‘Hey, what’s the impact going to be?’” Horowitz said.

Though many of his initiatives are still in their early stages, Gebru joined cSPA with his own agenda, according to Horowitz.

“I hope that I will be able to add value to these conversations about what the new normal should look like,” Gebru said of his goals. “How do we make sure that we have an equitable future for everybody?”

Gebru highlighted the timeliness of cSPA’s work.

“CSPA is not looking at things that happened ten years ago …

It’s not looking at things that are going to happen in thirty years,” Gebru said, “It’s looking at what’s happening right now and what is the feedback that [cSPA] can give to lawmakers on the different bills … that they are proposing.”

While many national-scale think tanks focus on similar issues, Horowitz said cSPA distinguishes itself by focusing on nonpartisan policy analysis at the state level. In the past, cSPA has studied policies ranging from the proposed millionaire’s tax to President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan to the efficacy of using the COVID19 test-and-trace strategy in Massachusetts.

Tisch College and cSPA are looking to increase student engagement with their output.

With the creation of Gebru’s fellowship, both Gebru and Horowitz expressed interest in creating new opportunities for Tufts students to engage in policy research and advocacy efforts.

Samuel Gebru is pictured.

Horowitz emphasized involving students in research projects, adding that Gebru hopes to engage students through events and gatherings.

Gebru expressed his excitement to increase the accessibility of cSPA’s policy research work.

COURTESY SAMUEL GEBRU

“I think it’s important that we build bridges that allow cSPA … to collaborate with the wider community on different issues … to bring community to Tufts, but also to bring Tufts to the community,” Gebru said.

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Features

From SMFA Affirmations to Tufts Ice Cream, student-run Instagram accounts shake up Tufts’ online presence

by Kaitlyn Wells

Assistant Features Editor

KIANA VALLO / THE TUFTS DAILY

A computer displaying student-run instagram account @tuftsaffirmations is pictured on March 9. pose. Perez described the tone of Tufts Liminal Spaces. “[The account creates] an activity … [involving working] together throughout campus exploring and looking for dark, spooky places,” Perez said.

SMFA Affirmations seeks to spin self-aware comedy out of collectively-felt issues.

“We’re just trying to come together and make dumb jokes that only, you know, [SMFA students] specifically will relate to, and maybe air out grievances, but not in a way that supposes that we have it the worst of [all] Tufts students,” Monica said.

Monica outlined the effect that SMFA Affirmations is meant to have on the SMFA community.

“Obviously with a meme account, there’s not a lot of very high aspirations … but I do think it’s interesting that, besides just posting relatable things, people will DM me and be like, ‘Hey, there’s something that’s going on … Can you post this on your story? Can you spread awareness about this?’” Monica said.

“Just, getting ideas out there or connecting people to other people is something that I have been doing and totally did not expect to do going into this account,” Jimmy is a pseudonym for one of the administrators of Tufts Ice Cream, an anonymously-run Instagram account that accepts candid photo submissions of students eating soft serve ice cream in the dining halls. In their opinion, anonymity surrounding the management of such an account is a key element of its success. “[Anonymity] adds to the excitement of the account, because we hear people around us questioning our identity which makes it funny for us and fun for others. We also believe people are more willing to send in pictures to an anonymous account,” Jimmy wrote in a statement to the Daily.

Account managers must decide their own terms and conditions for publishing content directly submitted by other Tufts students.

Ethical considerations include the consent of people featured in photos and the anonymity of users who submit suggestions.

Jimmy does not require the expressed approval of the students displayed on Tufts Ice Cream posts.

“It’s a lighthearted account and if the person in the picture is upset they can [DM] us and we will take down the post,” Jimmy wrote.

In contrast, Tufts Fits only accepts consensual submissions after a negative experience that occurred in the early stages of the account. The administrators had posted a photo of a person’s outfit and received a disapproving comment from one of the person’s friends. After that interaction, they decided to only post with a person’s consent.

Independently-run social media accounts certainly amplify student voices, though they aren’t truly democratic forms of expression so much as creative outlets for those who run them. Overall, they service the Tufts student community with spirit and goodwill.

As with any commitment, it takes time and effort to be responsible for a public-facing Instagram account. The results are often worth it, for both the creators and the audience.

“I think my favorite [SMFA Affirmations] post is probably when I ‘yassified’ Tony Monaco,” Monica said. “It took me like an hour … I feel like I got so much brain rot from doing that because I was trying so hard, and it just looks so weird … I think that’s probably my favorite post, just because of how ridiculous it is.”

Tufts Ice Cream has even received multiple requests from people who wish to join the team behind the account or reveal the identities of the administrators. Currently, the administrators have no plans to turn over the account, Jimmy noted.

“We’re not sure how long we will run the account for. We will probably continue as long as it’s fun for us and remains popular,” Jimmy wrote.

Thursday, March 10, 2022

David Wingens Potty Talk

Not-so-Fresh at Carmichael

A

s I have already discussed this semester, Fresh at Carmichael’s Tuesday special — cauliflower gratin — is likely to be the single most common cause of bathroom use at Tufts. This fact alone makes the Carm bathrooms some of the most important restrooms on campus.

AMBIANCE Despite pretty good all-gender accommodations, the gendered bathrooms have a particularly noxious effluvium which, coupled with persistent filth, earns Carm a 4/10.

PRIVACY The all-gender bathroom is reasonably private and is recessed in a strange nook, which adds a nice buffer from the bustle outside of the dining area. The gendered bathrooms in Carm, on the other hand, are some of the most public bathrooms on campus.

The door to the men’s room is permanently ajar, which, while not a deal breaker, is certainly unnerving. Once you open the door, you are essentially already standing at the first urinal, which has no divider to separate it from the second urinal.

I have not been in the women’s bathroom, but I have heard reports that the stall doors have large openings and that enterprising bathroom goers can probably manage to look themselves in the mirror above the sinks while sitting on the toilet.

For some, a public bathroom is freeing; much like in ancient Rome or the old Yankee stadium, going to the bathroom does not have to be a lonely experience. For me, however, these bathrooms get a 2/10.

CONVENIENCE In some senses, the Carm bathrooms could not be more convenient. Whether it is the mysterious pizza crust, suspiciously good gluten-free pasta or any of the dozens of goulashes and varied forms of mush served at Carm, the chefs there really know how to motivate students to explore their lavatories.

The problem with the convenience of the Carm bathrooms is that if you go midmeal, you risk serious blowback from the employees. This is, of course, not their fault, as they are only seeking to mitigate fraud in our dining halls. Rather, the fault lies with the architects who put the bathroom in the strange “no man’s land” that blurs the line between “Fresh” and “at Carm.” Still, the effect is that I usually hesitate to go until I am departing from Carm, which sometimes is too late. 6/10.

HOW MANY THINGS DO I HAVE TO TOUCH If you play your cards right in the all-gender bathroom, you will only have to touch the door handle and sink faucet. Unfortunately, the toilet’s automatic flushing mechanism was malfunctioning when I was there, so I spent some time trying to trick the toilet into flushing before I resorted to pushing the emergency flush button. 6/10.

FINAL SCORE If you wander into Fresh at Carm on a Meatless Monday, you, like many unsuspecting diners before you, will be forced to use one of its restrooms. Unless you want this to be a public display, I would recommend opting for the all-gender, but either way, you should be wary. 4.5/10.

David Wingens is a junior studying international relations. David can be reached at david.wingens@tufts.edu.

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Tufts inhabits a variety of online spaces, and Instagram is one that represents a motley of cultural life, coming in the form of student-run accounts that are not affiliated with Tufts as an institution. These social media accounts are often anonymous and sustained by contributions from a community of users.

Some accounts cater toward the Tufts student population at large, while some serve a more specific target audience, such as SMFA Affirmations, anonymously run by a first-year student who spoke with the Daily under the pseudonym Monica.

“I’m a freshman, which is pretty obvious from my posts because first-year BFA residents are all on Beacon Street. A lot of my friends saw Tufts Affirmations, … and were like, ‘Oh, my God, we should have one for SMFA, because we have very, you know, hyper-specific gripes and things that we all relate to,’” Monica said.

Other accounts were also inspired by existing trends among American colleges and high schools, and add to a larger network of social media accounts that revolve around the same theme yet are grounded in the context of a certain school.

Tufts Fits, an account run by a group of six account administrators, created a group chat that now includes many similar Instagram accounts that feature ‘fits,’short for outfits, of students from institutions around the country.

Tufts Fits spoke to the Daily under the pseudonym Seymour.

“It’s really strange actually … like sometimes I’ll see [students from other ‘fit’ accounts], and they’ll be following people that I know, so it’s like this kind of little community,” Seymour said.

In the case of first-year Justin Perez, his account Tufts Liminal Spaces was inspired by a similar account made by his friend at another university.

“One of my friends actually started [a liminal spaces] account [at] Johns Hopkins, and he told me about it, and the idea seemed really interesting to me,” Perez said. “And then I basically also told my friends at other colleges like Duke, Northeastern and Berkeley to do the same thing, and it’s a thing now at multiple universities.”

Independent social media accounts might also attract the attention of prospective students. Joey Marmo, an incoming first-year from Levittown, N.Y., came across a couple of student-run Tufts accounts on Instagram after he decided he was going to apply. They offered a special glimpse into the milieu where he would be spending the next few years, directly from his soon-to-be peers.

“I feel like the word that everyone was using on the [Tufts campus] tour was … ‘quirky’ … and [these accounts] definitely [show] how quirky, I guess, [Tufts] is. I hate using that word, … but yeah it just seems like a fun community,” Marmo said.

The content that accounts will post range in tone and intended pur-

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Thursday, March 10, 2022

Luxurious, elegant soundscapes define Stromae’s comeback album ‘Multitude’

by Geoff Tobia Jr.

Assistant Arts Editor

In the sea of artists and bands who made comebacks over the past couple of years, Stromae was one of the most anticipated but unexpected returns in the world.

Born Paul Van Haver, the Belgian singer and producer made a name for himself through various electropop and dance songs, with his extremely emotive singing voice and meaningful French lyrics gaining respect and love from fans across the world.

“Alors on danse” (2010) has been played and remixed by many festival DJs and has been given the Kanye West treatment (the two in fact performed the remix at Coachella together in 2015).

“Cheese” (2010) and “Racine Carrée” (2013) are Stromae’s first two studio albums, yielding many of the songs that made him popular like “Papaoutai” (2013) and “Tous les mêmes” (2013).

However, apart from several behind-the-scenes music escapades and the dropping of a Mosaert’s Capsule 5 clothing line, it took Stromae nine years to release his newest album, led by his comeback single “Santé” (2021). Then, after the dropping of “L’enfer” (2022) earlier this year, the two singles became leads for “Multitude” (2022), Stromae’s third album. Despite all the time that has passed, Stromae’s ability to create beautiful and heartfelt songs has not wavered in the slightest.

The major difference between “Multitude” and a release like “Racine Carrée” is that Stromae has dialed down on the energy scale but did not sacrifice one ounce of the beauty that he always mixes into his songs. As a matter of fact, any potential for high-energy songs was channeled into making these songs even more beautiful, to the point

COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

The cover art for Stromae’s album “Multitude” (2022) is pictured. that “Multitude” could easily be considered Van Haver’s most gorgeous work to date.

This is apparent as you listen to the opening track “Invaincu,” which features reverb-drowned

horns and higher-pitched choral vocals, and a grand array of orchestral drums and strings.

This song progresses into “Santé,” which is easily the most danceable song of the album.

The song contains a fascinating rhythm, heavily inspired by Kumbaya music. Stromae modifies it to give a trippy effect, almost as if it’s reggaeton with the kick being delayed. The

song was lyrically written as a shoutout and toast to essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. see STROMAE, page 5

‘The Afterparty’ entertains viewers with a modern take on the murder mystery

by Nate Hall

Contributing Writer

Murder mysteries are making a comeback. In the last decade, we’ve seen adaptations of classic material, including “Sherlock” (2010–17) and “Murder on the Orient Express” (2017), as well as original stories, like “Knives Out” (2019). In recent years, a new subgenre has emerged: the murder-mystery comedy, which is exemplified in recent TV series like “The Flight Attendant” (2020–) and “Only Murders in the Building” (2021–). Combining

humor and suspense, these shows — when done right — can make viewers laugh while also keeping them on the edge of their seats with twists and turns.

The latest example of this is “The Afterparty” (2022–), an entertaining new series that premiered on Apple TV+ this January.

“The Afterparty” tells the story of a group of former classmates attending their high school reunion in San Francisco, which is followed by an after-party hosted by Xavier (Dave Franco), one of their classmates, who is now a famous actor and pop star.

The twist? At the end of night, Xavier is found dead outside of his luxurious hilltop mansion, and everyone at his house is a suspect. Investigating the murder is Detective Danner (Tiffany Haddish), who takes the case despite her superiors trying to convince her otherwise. The suspects include best friends Aniq (Sam Richardson) and Yasper (Ben Schwartz), former couple Zoë (Zoë Chao) and Brett (Ike Barinholtz), along with Chelsea (Ilana Glazer) and Walt (Jamie Demetriou). In every episode, Detective Danner sits down with

a different suspect to hear their version of the night’s events. As each character recounts the story from their perspective, we learn a little more about what really happened at the fateful after-party.

Throughout the series, each character’s testimony is presented in a different genre: For example, Aniq’s story is a romantic comedy, Brett’s is an action movie and Yasper’s is a musical. This helps every episode feel new and interesting, as each person tells their story in their own unique style. However, it can feel jarring switching between

genres, and it sometimes seems like the show has written itself into a corner. Forced to recount the same night’s events over and over, the story has little room for growth. This narrative pattern is broken up by two stand-alone episodes, one which effectively flashes back to the characters’ high school years and another explores Danner’s career as a detective — a good episode, but an odd diversion from the main story when the big reveal is right around the corner. see APPLE TV+, page 5

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Thursday, March 10, 2022 | Arts & Pop Culture | THE TUFTS DAILY

‘Multitude’ is an impressive progression from Stromae’s past successes STROMAE

continued from page 4 Another extremely danceable song is “Fils de joie,” which features an electrifying violin riff and a bubbly percussive effect that persists throughout the track to make the song embody a glass of champagne. However, this glass of champagne is not poured in celebration, it’s poured in protest. Lyrically, “Fils de joie” calls into question the dehumanizing stigmas surrounding sex work, as he sings (lyrics translated to English), “Yes I know, she’s not perfect, it’s true/ She’s a hero/ And I will always speak of her with pride.” “C’est que du bonheur” contains another mind-bending, Latin-inspired rhythm and incredible marimba-like synths, further proving how well-versed Van Haver is in finding the balance between beauty and danceability.

This beauty comes in expressions of sadness as well. In “La solassitude,” one of the more bare-bones and quiet songs on the record, Van Haver sings of the struggles in his romantic attitudes, with the lyrics translating to “Singlehood makes me suffer from solitude/ Couple lifе makes me suffer from wеariness.” The track “Riez” tells the tale of a man seeking success and riches, the things that will make his life feel complete, and Van Haver’s vocals are filled with plenty of emotion on this track. “Mon amour,” on the other hand, tells the tale of a man in a finger-pointing relationship, where he and his partner accuse each other of cheating until he gives up and cries, “Tell me, tell me/ What he has more/ Than me, tell me”. These vocals are each accompanied with magnificent and pretty arrangements.

As mentioned before, Van Haver doesn’t take as much of an EDM-based

approach, but the influence in his music is still obvious, and he also sneaks in some pretty fascinating tropes into his production. If you turn to “L’enfer,” you’ll hear choral vocals and a quiet piano clash with a loud, future-bass-style synth that you would hear in his older songs like “ave cesaria” (2013).

The final two songs of the record end up being two of the more fascinating songs because of a similar juxtaposition of styles. “Mauvaise journée” blends a calm and cool guitar with trap-style horn hits, and the segue into “Bonne journée” is seamless, continuing the trap influence with a drum pattern. This conclusion shows how much talent and genius goes into each of Van Haver’s songs, and some of his most beautiful and clever musical explorations are found on “Multitude.” This whole album sounds like the soundtrack to being fed grapes poolside at a luxurious mansion.

Though at times disjointed, ‘The Afterparty’ is captivating

The logo for the Apple TV+ series “The Afterparty” (2022-) is pictured.

APPLE TV+

continued from page 4 One of the show’s biggest strengths is its cast, with plenty of familiar faces that comedy fans will recognize. In the large ensemble cast, Richardson’s Aniq stands out among the pack. Smart and down-to-earth, Aniq is easy to root for, as he seeks to bond with Zoë, his high school crush, and prove his innocence in the ongoing murder investigation.

As Detective Danner, Haddish brings some levity to the show without pulling too much focus away from the mystery.

Other standout performances include Ben Schwartz as Yasper, an aspiring musician, and Zoë Chao as Zoë, a high school teacher. In “The Afterparty,” the characters are much more than just

murder suspects. As thirty-somethings attending their high school reunion, the characters are all trying to escape their mundane daily lives, pursue second chances and make up for their past mistakes.

The series makes fun of classic murder mystery tropes while planting itself firmly in the present, with plenty of references to technology and millennial culture. The script is full of running jokes, like Xavier’s bizarre music career and Walt, the classmate that nobody seems to remember. Additionally, the show makes good use of its score and production design, which both help to set a distinct tone in each episode.

Of course, the most important part of any whodunit is the big reveal, which “The Afterparty” pulls off skill-

COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

fully. In last Friday’s release of the season finale (don’t worry, this article won’t spoil it for you), Danner solves the mystery and ultimately reveals the murderer’s identity, which you might not have predicted. Finally, the season ends with a satisfying conclusion that answers lingering questions and wraps up the main characters’ stories. The series was recently renewed for Season 2, which will feature Haddish’s Danner with a new batch of potential criminals. Although the real mystery of the show sometimes gets lost in the multitude of characters and gags, the series is still an entertaining experience. In the end, it’s not really about finding out who the killer is — it’s the fun of getting there that makes it all worth watching.

5

RaiAnn Bu Micro-Trend of the Week

Die the hero or live to see yourself as the villain

Y

ou either die the hero or live to see yourself as the villainIt is immediately recognizable.

Posted in numerous Instagram pictures and featured on magazine covers, the Miu Miu micro miniskirt has easily become the most desired piece of clothing of the Spring/Summer 2022 season.

Debuting in the Spring/Summer 2022 season collection of Miu Miu, the younger sister brand of Prada, the haphazardly cut khaki micro miniskirt paired with a daringly cropped sweater was an immediate standout piece. Designed by Miuccia Prada, the skirt captures the current fashion landscape with the two most influential trends of the season: academic-inspired wear combined with a strong Y2K influence.

We are now on the shortening side of the hemline wave, going as far as seeing simply a belt as a skirt on Diesel’s FW 2022 ready-to-wear. Micro miniskirts seem to be the determined destination after our brief affair with midi skirts.

However, to fully appreciate the art of the Miu Miu miniskirt, we must recall its inception.

The miniskirt made its first modern debut in the 1960s as a definitive piece of the ‘youthquake’ era. With the invention of birth control, the miniskirt was representative of the new freedoms and sexual liberation in store for women at the time. Mary Quant, inventor of the miniskirt, attributed the clothing piece’s rise to the growth in sexual expression as well as shifting societal dynamics.

The miniskirt can be a synechdoche for an unabashed search for female sexual pleasure, the chase for sex without the goal of conception. Predictably, miniskirts were a contentious fashion piece, with men shaking their fists and scorning these morally bankrupt women with bare legs.

However, when we look at the micro miniskirt today, its popularity depicts something much different. The short hemline has become a standard rather than a choice. As a woman, I rarely encounter items, other than pants, that cover the knee. Instead, a more revealing type of dress is standard, leaning into a culture of inescapable objectification.

Even as a child, I strongly recall shopping in middle school and being unable to find summer clothes in the children’s section that I felt comfortable in, as practically every shorts option cut above midthigh. We’ve got to admit there’s something messed up about Abercrombie Kids selling pushup bikinis.

Fashion often stands as a type of social currency. When trends change, those most sensitive to social inclusion — teenagers and young adults — feel obligated to abide by current trends.

Thus, these short hemlines, once a depiction of rebellion to patriarchal norms, have become a tool for it, evolving to a standard sexualization of girls as young as elementary schoolers.

The Miu Miu skirt has set the impetus for a shortening hemline which may have unintended harms to girls and women.

RaiAnn is a sophomore studying community health. RaiAnn can be reached at raiann.bu@tufts.edu.

6

THE TUFTS DAILY | Fun & Games | Thursday, March 10, 2022

F& G

tuftsdaily.com LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Abi: “My TikTok got taken down for nudity.”

Fun & Games

SUDOKU

LINDA C. BLACK ASTROLOGY

Pisces (Feb. 19–March 20) Follow a curiosity or intrigue to find the heartbeat. Creative impulses lead in interesting directions. Explore a passion. Practice your arts. Connect on another level.

SEARCHING FOR HEADLINES...

Difficulty Level: Having to brainstorm final projects when you’re not even done with midterms.

Wednesday’s Solutions

CROSSWORD

Opinion

tuftsdaily.com

7 Thursday, March 10, 2022

VIEWPOINT

The judge in shining armor: Ketanji Brown Jackson

GRAPHIC BY CECILIA OROZCO

by Kristin Shiuey Staff Writer

The United States Supreme Court consists of nine justices, and currently, six of these judges hold conservative views.

This ratio has sparked intense discussion around the country because of Roe v. Wade: a historic case by the Supreme Court that protects a woman’s right to choose whether to have an abortion without government restrictions. With a majority conservative court, many predict that Roe v. Wade will likely be overturned as states like Texas took to state courts to ban abortions past six weeks, a frightening ruling considering that women, on average, find out they are pregnant between weeks five and six. This means that some women may not even know they are pregnant and by the time they do find out, it might be too late or too little of time to make such a life-changing decision. And President Biden understands the severity of the situation.

That’s why, after Justice Stephen Breyer — a liber-

al member who often voted in favor of abortion rights — announced his retirement in late January 2022, President Biden immediately began the search for his replacement.

His objective was clear: find a young, progressive African American woman who would carry on Justice Breyer’s legacy and be a strong liberal voice for decades to come. On Feb. 28, President Biden nominated Ketanji Brown Jackson as his pick to replace Justice Breyer. This comes as a full circle moment for Jackson as she served a clerkship under Justice Breyer following law school in 2000.

Her qualifications do not end there. At an early age, she picked up an affinity for public speech and debate — a passion that continued as she graduated from Harvard University and went on to Harvard Law School where she graduated cum laude. She most recently served as a federal judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, prior to which she was nominated in 2009 by former President Barack Obama to become the

vice chair of the United States Sentencing Commission. She spent much of her time in criminal defense, advocating for individuals who did not have a voice, and in 2019, she took a stand against former President Donald Trump by subpoenaing his White House counsel, Don McGahn, to give a testimony at the impeachment inquiry on President Trump’s alleged obstruction of justice. Jackson’s 12 years of judicial service have given President Biden near certainty that she is the right fit for the job.

Although Jackson’s place on the Supreme Court would not affect the ideological composition of the court, it still serves as a monumental moment in political history. For starters, Jackson would be the first African American female judge on the Court — a powerful and historic first that will empower women of color for decades to come. It will also reflect the diversity of the American people and provide representation for Black Americans. This nomination will hopefully help excite Democratic voters in time for the midterm elections,

a critical battle for Democrats with seats up for grabs. It may also ease anxieties for future rulings regarding women’s rights. With a progressive female Supreme Court Justice, women around the nation can be assured that their health and safety will be vehemently advocated for.

Herein lies the looming issue: What will Republicans do? During the course of Biden’s presidency, Republicans have been there every step of the way, determined to oppose the pieces of legislation Democrats have proposed. Fortunately, Jackson’s confirmation is a near guarantee with Vice President Kamala Harris’ swing vote.

However, Republicans still have some tricks up their sleeves to make the process as painful as possible for Democrats and Jackson. In an effort to smear her name, Fox News has developed multiple narratives including a story that details Judge Jackson’s participation in a Harvard club with “antisemitic” roots and repeatedly diminishing Jackson’s legitimacy as a judge due to the fact that she is African American. It isn’t abnor-

mal for Fox News to be spreading misinformation, but what do they have to gain from this?

Republicans, with the help of Fox News, are continuing their history of white supremacy and polarizing political discourse. Their lines of questioning will not change the course of Jackson’s nomination. If anything, Jackson’s inevitable spot on the Court represents several decades of progressive votes. Additionally, if Democrats retain a stronghold on the presidency, they may be able to get more progressive judges on the Court in the event that a conservative judge retires. Republicans’ plan to fight against Judge Jackson’s nomination further polarizes the political climate and is based in fear. Their fear is justified: She represents decades of progressive ideology and is a threat to their identities as white supremacists. This should stand as a good sign for Democrats: With Jackson as a member of the Supreme Court, the law will be upheld, positive change will be possible and history can start taking steps forward once again.

8 Thursday, March 10, 2022

SPORTS

tuftsdaily.com

Men’s lacrosse returns, handily defeats Colby

by Caroline Cromwell Contributing Writer

The Tufts men’s lacrosse team had a commanding start to the season on Saturday in its first game and home opener with a 27–7 win over Colby. Tufts brought the intensity in the first quarter against a Colby team that looked defeated in warmups. The game was an opportunity for a lot of young players to see their first minutes on Bello Field and have a positive contribution to the outcome of the game. While the underclassmen played a significant role, the upperclassmen and veteran players controlled the game in every facet.

The Jumbos made a statement to start their 2022 campaign playing against the Colby Mules In the first quarter, the Jumbos came out striking, scoring 12 goals before the Mules were able to net one. The final score at the end of the first quarter was 15–1 which put the Jumbos squad on pace to score 60 goals after the final quarter. Junior midfielder Jack Boyden lit up the first quarter with four goals and two assists, adding another goal and many more assists before the end of the game. Another achievement came at the stick of first-year Charlie Tagliaferri, who scored his first collegiate goal with 11 minutes left in the first. The Tufts squad bombarded the Colby goalie with 28 shots in the first 15 minutes alone.

The Tufts preseason AllAmericans including midfielder Camden Kelleher and attackman Mac Bredahl, both of whom are seniors, combined for eight goals and seven assists. Bredahl, who was also named preseason player of the year, started off hot, leading the Jumbos in goals and assists while earning a spot on the USILA Div. III Men’s Lacrosse Team of the Week.

Although an immense amount of talent returned to the team from last season, the Jumbos had to replace the offense of both attackman Max Waldbaum

Timothy Valk The Wraparound

Time to shorten the NHL schedule?

8

2 games, 246 periods, 4,920 minutes. That’s a lot of time spent doing anything, let alone throwing your body around on ice skates.

As we trudge past the twothirds mark of the NHL calendar, it’s become almost an annual tradition to ask the question: Should the regular season be shorter?

This query doesn’t come from out of nowhere. Every year around this time, viewers witness the on-ice product worsen

The men’s lacrosse team is seen during its half-time talk during its game against Colby on March 5.

CORA HARTMANN / THE TUFTS DAILY

(A‘21) and midfielder Bryce Adam (A‘21), who were significant contributors to the Jumbos’ high-scoring offense last season.

Despite these losses, Boyden and junior Kurt Bruun filled in the gaps left by Waldbaum and Adams, combining for 13 points.

The performances of Boyden and Bruun showed the impressive depth of the Tufts team.

Members of the team know that some of their biggest competition of the season will be their own teammates who they play against everyday at practice.

Impressive performances did not only come from upperclassmen. The freshman class had multiple players contribute to the victory. First-year Parker Merril proved himself in the faceoff by having 78 percent win rate winning 14 of his 18 faceoffs.

First-year defensemen Michael Ayers and Joey Waldbaum tallied their first goals of their career as well. Connor Garzone, a soph-

omore, got his first start in goal and made seven saves. Another sophomore, Kevin Christmas, made a crowd-pleasing play with a sliding assist from the ground to first-year Max Ettinghausen for his first goal. These impressive plays are a product of an inclusive team dynamic where there is little to no divide between the talent of players of different class years.

“I came in from a place where freshmen were treated like freshmen, but here we are treated as equals,” Merril said. “The seniors want us to succeed as much as they want themselves to succeed which creates a really inclusive and supportive team dynamic that is conducive for us, as underclassmen, to succeed.”

In such a commanding win, the energy on and off the field was through the roof. Fans anticipated the return of the popular and highly ranked Tufts team and were excited to show their

support. On the sidelines, teammates performed coordinated, elaborate cheers and chants throughout the game, adding to the positive energy of the day.

First-year and sophomore players, who were experiencing Bello Field for the first time with a crowd, were amazed and exhilarated by the immense engagement from the stands.

“It was awesome to have fans,” Merril said. “I know that hasn’t been normal for the past two years considering with COVID and everything, so it was great to have everyone, and my parents were able to come up and watch me and my first college game. … The energy on the sidelines was awesome.”

The Jumbos have put the work in throughout the entire school year, whether it was during the offseason or preseason. They have had fitness tests, strength tests, scrimmages and team bonding events

to prepare themselves for the season both physically and mentally. Head Coach Casey D’Annolfo and his staff emphasize the importance of going as hard in practice as the team would in game. This mentality prepared Tufts to come out strong and ready for game-level intensity against Colby. The Jumbos see their offseason work finally paying off.

“We’ve been working so hard all offseason,” Merril said. “We’ve had so many practices, way more than we normally would have had as a team, which has definitely helped us get to where we are right now. We’re definitely a couple steps ahead from where we normally are.”

The Jumbos hope to continue their success into the rest of the season. Tufts will face Springfield on Thursday, March 10 and is back on Bello Field for a game against Amherst on Saturday, March 12.

in what can be known as the February slog. Defensemen look fatigued. Play becomes more chippy. For the fortunate teams, the light at the end of the tunnel — the Stanley Cup Playoffs — should be in sight, but 30 more regular season games shroud it in darkness. For the not-so-lucky ones, the locker room is filled with minds all thinking the same thing: Why are we still playing meaningless hockey games?

Sure, the NBA plays 82 games while the MLB typically plays 162, but unlike in basketball and baseball, NHL coaches don’t rest their players; they’re out there battling every night with a physicality level off the charts compared to that in baseball.

Shortening the schedule to even just 60 games would do wonders for the product of hockey. Fewer matchups means each game matters more, which

would aid the league’s problem with regular season viewership. With more space between games, coaches would be given more time to teach and practice, something that’s unreasonably hard to do when playing four times in seven days.

And most importantly, players would have more juice in the tank going into the NHL’s crown jewel: the playoffs. Who wouldn’t sign up for that?!

Unfortunately, the NHL Board of Governors wouldn’t — and won’t. Fewer games means fewer tickets purchased, and the league’s main source of income is gate revenue. But that won’t stop us fans from appealing for it!

Other thoughts from around the NHL:

the first player since Alex Ovechkin in January 2020 to record back-to-back hat tricks this past weekend.

Robertson is leading an impressive playoff push for Dallas.

In the California sun, the Los Angeles Kings are heating up and the Anaheim Ducks are cooling down. Offseason additions Philip Danault and Viktor Arvidsson combined with an influx of youth are fueling a nice run for the Kings, while Trevor Zegras’ on-ice circus is beginning to spin its wheels.

Speaking of the West, who’s in and who’s out?! Besides the seemingly locked-in Colorado and Calgary, there are nine teams battling it out for six tournament spots.

With the East’s playoff participants settled, the Western

race is one to keep an eye on down the stretch.

4. Forward Nick Schmaltz delivered a rare Coyotes highlight on Saturday against the Senators, picking up a whopping seven points in a single game.

5. The Sabres and the Maple Leafs will face off at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario this Sunday in the NHL’s sixth Heritage Classic.

These spectacles could use some jazzing up — no one blinks an eye at an outdoor game now that we’ve had 18 years of them.

Enjoy the games this week — we’re almost past the February slog!

1.

Stars forward Jason Robertson is blossoming into a superstar, becoming

2.

3.

Timothy Valk is a sophomore studying quantitative economics. Timothy can be reached at timothy.valk@tufts.edu.