Volume LXIX, Number 49 Teenagers Are Focus of Racial Justice Event . . . 8 Ernest Hemingway Does Manhattan . . . . . . . . . 17 Princeton Filmmaker Hugh B . Johnston, 85, Dies . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Composer Moshe Budmor, Who Celebrated his 90th Birthday With a Concert of His Own Work, Dies at 92 . . . . 40 PU Women’s Hockey Rallies to Beat Dartmouth 4-1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 PHS Girls’ Swimming Looking Like a Power . 32
Profiles in Education Features PHS English Teacher Susi Murphy . . 7 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 16 Cinema . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Clubs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Classified Ads . . . . . . . 41 Music/Theater . . . . . . 22 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 15 New to Us . . . . . . . . . . 28 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 39 Police . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 41 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . . 6
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Burger Says Library Renovation Project Is Ready To Begin At what she billed as her final appearance before Princeton Council on Monday evening, December 7, Princeton Public Library’s outgoing director Leslie Burger described the renovation project planned for the library’s second floor and told Council it is being paid for almost entirely by private funds. The $3 million project designed to reimagine and reconfigure the middle floor is being financed 94 percent by private gifts and pledges raised between last June and September, with the remaining six percent coming from previously approved capital funding from the town, Ms. Burger said before introducing the project’s architect, Andrew Berman. Mr. Berman, whose firm is based in New York City, has done work for the New York Public Library and other libraries. Technology has brought major change to the way people use libraries today. “The shift from analog to digital means that libraries have to change, and our library in particular has to change,” said Ms. Burger, who departs January 15 after 16 years. The Princeton institution reopened after a major renovation in 2004 with 8,000 reference volumes, but increased use of digital technology has reduced that number of volumes to 150, she said. That makes for a lot more floor space. The library engaged Mr. Berman to do a feasibility study. His plan for the second floor calls for a quiet reading room, collaboration/meeting rooms, a news publication area that can convert to event space, a copy center, discovery center, and technology seminar area paired with a “computer commons.” “The library is a wonderfully utilized facility,” Mr. Berman said during his presentation. But his plan will create “a very high quality space for people to use the library better and in a more personal manner,” he said, with “a whole range of size spaces and types of spaces.” Books will still be the primary feature, placed turned outward on lit racks. “It is an effort to weave patrons, books and technology into one space,” he said. The construction document process is underway, and the project is planned to go out for bid in late January with work hoped to begin in April. The renovation should take between six and eight months. The library will remain open during the project Continued on Page 14
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Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Debate Continues Over Wilson Legacy
Nearly three weeks after their 32-hour Nassau Hall sit-in, two members of the Black Justice League (BJL) sat down with two members of the opposition Princeton Open Campus Coalition (POCC) to discuss the issues before a gathering of about 200 students in Professor Peter Singer’s undergraduate class in Practical Ethics. Mr. Singer, the Ira DeCamp Professor of Bioethics, invited the visiting students from the rival organizations with the goal of exploring the philosophical and ethical issues surrounding the questions of civil disobedience and the commemorating of historical figures. Not surprisingly, the discussion quickly moved from abstract philosophical questions to the particulars of the current de-
bate at Princeton University. Citing many discussions with faculty and administration before the BJL resorted to civil disobedience, Princeton junior Trust Kupupika claimed that the civil disobedience was necessary and that the BJL did not seek erasure of Wilson’s name from the university, “We’re asking for acknowledgment of who he was, so that everyone will know these people aren’t just these god-like figures,” she said. Speaking for the POCC, Allie Burton agreed that “Woodrow Wilson was a horrible racist,” but questioned “who decides whose flaws are bad enough so that” their legacy should be removed? And she further urged, “Don’t vilify the students who continue to applaud Wilson’s contribu-
tions to this university and the country.” Ms. Burton, who is African-American, asserted that many black students agree with her in questioning the BJL’s methods. A founding member of the BJL, Destiny Crockett disputed Ms. Burton’s arguments and claimed that Wilson’s racist actions and attitudes were “more than just a flaw,” pointing out that the Woodrow Wilson issue was only one of the BJL’s demands. “We feel less than members of this community,” she said. The second POCC speaker, Josh Zuckerman declared that occupying someone’s office for 32 hours was “extreme,” though he acknowledged that “bringing to light issues that have been swept under the rug is a very good thing.” The POCC is “not trying to restrict what is being said only how it is being said,” Mr. Zuckerman added. Continued on Page 10
Princeton Future Will Recommend Changes in Spring
HOME, SWEET HOME: Foxy, a SAVE alumnus who belongs to Jim Adamczyk of Hillsborough, was among the crowd of human and canine visitors on hand last Friday to celebrate the animal rescue organization’s new home on Cedar Lodge Road in Skillman . The festive ribbon-cutting and open house showcased the new facility, much expanded from SAVE’s former, longtime home on Herrontown Road . Architect Max Hayden renovated the historic 1860 Van Zandt mansion, which now serves as headquarters for the organization and was donated by Brad and Cheryl Mills . A modern shelter for 25 dogs and 75 cats has been built on the 12-acre site, and there is plenty of room for exercising the animals and introducing them to future owners . (Photo by Charles R. Plohn)
Not yet “in an advocacy role, we’re still in a listening role,” Kevin Wilkes, Chairman of the Princeton Future Council explained to about 60 community residents gathered last Saturday in the Public Library Community Room. Mr. Wilkes promised that Princeton Future would be in a “recommendation role” by next spring,” but Saturday’s meeting focused on presenting “the results of what we heard from you two weeks ago and offering suggestions on how we might move forward together.” At the November 21 meeting of Princeton Future, some 60 participants each received 12 green dots and 12 red dots — green for aspects of the town they liked, red for those they didn’t like — to stick on large maps of Princeton that were posted on the wall. “This is not a scientific survey,” Mr. Wilkes reminded the group. “Gallup would be outraged. It’s an emotional survey, but emotions are important.” Two out of three dots (397 out of 612) placed on the maps were green. “Our goal is to increase that ratio to 3-1, 75 percent positive,” Mr. Wilkes said. “We move forward in increments, set goals that we can actually accomplish.” Continued on Page 12
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