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VOLUME 145, NUMBER 18

MARCH 4, 2016

THE RIGHT RESPONSE?

The administration has delivered punishments to hosts
and attendees of the tequilaparty. BSG has introduced
articles of impeachment against two of its members.
Some students push back, while others continue to
speak up about harms caused by ethnic stereotyping.

NT

BSG debates impeachment

As punitive measures have begun to take form for individuals who planned and attended the tequila party on
February 20, emotions on campus continue
to heighten and debates intensify.
BY MEG ROBBINS
AND HARRY RUBE
Many of the students involved with the
ORIENT STAFF
party have been punished by the Office of
the Dean of Student Affairs, and members of
Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) introduced articles of
impeachment on Wednesday against two of its representatives who attended the party, Class of 2018 Representative Clare McInerney and At-Large Representative Duncan
Cannon 18.
At the party, several students wore sombreros, and the
email invitation stated were not saying its a fiesta, but
were also not not saying that :) (were not saying that),
sparking backlash as the third prominent instance of ethnic
stereotyping at Bowdoin in sixteen months.
According to one of partys hosts, she has been placed
on social probation until March 2017, must participate in
an educational program and Active Bystander Training,
must move out of her room in Stowe Hall into Chamberlain Hall and has been banned from Ivies-related events
and Spring Gala.
A sophomore who attended the tequila party and was
photographed wearing a sombrero said he was placed on
social probation until Fall 2016. Although he confirmed
with a dean that he attended the party and wore a sombrero
in a photo posted to Facebook for a short period of time, he
said he was sanctioned without meeting with a dean or be-

Please see IMPEACHMENT, page 4

STUDENTS REACT

JENNY IBSEN, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

SPEECH ON IMPEACHMENT: A number of students attended the BSG meeting on Wednesday night to discuss the potential impeachment of two
representatives involved with the tequila party. Dana Williams 18 (bottom left) spoke in defense of Clare McInerney 18, one of the representatives
in question, citing McInernys efforts to understnad the hurtful implications of her involvement with the party, while Maya Reyes 16 (bottom right)
spoke to the way impeaching these BSG members can serve as a learning opportunity for the community.

Culture not costume photo shoot to show solidarity

BY DANIEL VIELLIEU
STAFF WRITER

Joe Lace 17 on why punitive measures are not

the best way forward.

The Student Center for Multicultural Life is conducting a My culture

is not a costume and Their culture is
not our costume photo shoot for students of color Wednesday, Thursday
and today as a way to show solidarity
in the wake of recent acts of ethnic
stereotyping and to help educate the
campus community about the harmful effects of ethnic stereotyping.
Director of the Student Center for

Phoebe Kranefuss 16 on how our upbringings

affect how we view and interact with the world.
Francisco Navarro 19 on how PC culture limits
the melting pot.
AND MORE IN OPINION ON PAGES 14 AND 15.

Multicultural Life Benjamin Harris

explained the Center developed this
project to address issues of offensive
parties on campus that have stereotyped particular cultures. Through
this photo project, he hopes to demonstrate that the stereotypical costumes
and themes of certain parties have offended students of color by portraying
important aspects of their cultures in
degrading, insensitive manners.
We will try to educate, be proactive, instead of being reactive when

Students prepare for upcoming caucuses

FEATURES

While it is unclear whether the hype

on campus about the presidential
election will translate into students
actually turning out to caucus this
weekend, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) has estimated it will be
shuttling 42 students to the Brunswick
caucuses. Five Republicans are signed

BABYSITTERS CLUB
Students talk about their
experiences with babysitting
professors kids
Page 5.

up to attend the Saturday Republican

Caucus, and 37 Democrats are signed
up for the Sunday Democratic Caucus. Other students may also be walking or driving to Brunswick Junior
High School where the Democratic
caucus is being held.
I think its really going to be a
[problem], especially if theres partying this weekendpeople wont want
to go if theyre hungover, said Nick

Walker 16. Walker is a leader of Bowdoin Students for Bernie, a student

group that supports Vermont Senator
Bernie Sanderss candidacy for president.
Maine is one of only 13 states
whose parties use caucuses instead
of primaries. Voters must show up to
their meeting placeBrunswick Ju-

LOVES LABOURS LOST

Students and professors co-star
in the Theater Departments
1960s take on the classic.
Page 7.

Please see CAUCUS, page 4

SPORTS

ORIENT STAFF

A&E

BY JOE SHERLOCK

things happen, such as the gangster

party, such as Cracksgiving, such as
the tequila party, said Harris. I envision the photos to show Bowdoin
students from different cultures and
different backgrounds [are] represented, and that representation
is something that as a campus as a
community we should celebrate.
Kiki Nakamura-Koyama 17, an
organizer of the project and intern

Please see PHOTO SHOOT, page 3

CAUCUS LOW-DOWN
For both parties, the deadline for registration is an hour before each caucus.
You can register in advance at Brunswick Town Hall or same-day at the caucus
site (beware of long lines for same-day registration). Students who off-live
campus need to bring proof of residence (i.e. a lease).

REPUBLICAN PARTY CAUCUS: Saturday, March 5.

Greely Middle School (in Cumberland). Doors open at 8 p.m.
DEMOCRATIC PARTY CAUCUS: Sunday, March 6.

Brunswick Jr. High. Doors open at 1 p.m.

A LEGEND LEAVES
Head Coach of Mens Ice
Hockey Terry Meagher retires after 33 seasons.
Page 9.

OPINION

Richard Arms 18 responds to his critics and why

hes trying to expand the conversation.

OSCARS JOKES
Sue Sim 16 writes on why the
Oscars joke about Asians is no
laughing matter.
Page 12.

news

the bowdoin orient

friday, march 4, 2016

STUDENT SPEAK
got a tattoo, where
Q: Ifandyouwhat
would it be?
Hallie Lam 18
I would get a happy face
on my left butt cheek.

Ian McDowell 16
Id get a tattoo of an eye
patch because Ive always
wanted to be a pirate.

Hayley Nicholas 17
I would get a tattoo on my
eyelids of my eyes so that
when I close my eyes, my haters know Im still watching.

SOPHIE WASHINGTON

SECURITY REPORT: FEB. 26 to MAR. 4

Saturday, February 27
Security assisted BPD with a wellness
check for a student at an off-campus residence.
A noise disturbance was reported on the
fifth floor of Osher Hall.
An unregistered event was dispersed at
Harpswell Apartments.
Complaints of noise were reported on the
third floor of Chamberlain Hall. A student was warned.
Two students were warned for excessive
noise in Coleman Hall.
A minor student in Coleman Hall was
cited for possession of alcohol.
A minor student in Maine Hall was cited
for possession of alcohol.
An officer checked on the wellbeing of an
intoxicated student in Winthrop Hall.
A dining staff member requested a well-

ness check for an intoxicated student at

Super Snack.
Sunday, February 28
A female student reported being sexually
assaulted by a male student.
Smoke reported in Brunswick Apartments
U was caused by burning food left in an
oven.
Two students were found in possession
of marijuana and drug paraphernalia at
Brunswick Apartments.
Two unlocked bicycles were reported stolen from a bike racks at Coles Tower. One
bike was recovered nearby.
Monday, February 29
An officer assisted an ill student at 52
Harpswell.
A stolen green Ford Mustang convertible

was recovered in the back parking lot at

Brunswick Apartments. BPD confirmed
that the car was reported stolen in Lewiston on January 28.
A student with a thumb injury was escorted to Mid Coast Hospital.
Tuesday, March 1
A woman was treated in site at the Buck
Center for Fitness and Health after briefly
passing out following an exercise class.
A student with flu-like symptoms was escorted to the Mid Coast Hospital.
Thursday, March 3
A campus lockout drill was conducted
from 3:30 3:45 p.m. The purpose of the
drill was to practice remotely and manually locking all exterior building doors in
the event of a campus emergency.

Emily Lambdin 16
Id have a tattoo in the inside
arch of my foot and it would
be an abstratct design by Isaac
Jaegerman 16.

Charlotte Dillon 16
I would get a tattoo of
Shakiras family tree on my
abs.
COMPILED BY HY KHONG

Bates boosted: green Ford Mustang stolen from Lewiston, Maine

BY CALDER MCHUGH
ORIENT STAFF

SOPHIE WASHINGTON

Residents of Brunswick Apartments were shocked to find

one of the most horrendously ugly cars on the market, a green
Ford Mustang, in their parking lot on February 29. The car,
often thought of as a statement vehicle, is almost blinding
to the eye.
Who could own such a repulsive thing? How could a Bowdoin student buy that car? Brunswick Apartments residents
must have wondered to themselves as they averted their eyes
from the Mustang.
To the relief of many living in the apartments, they received an email from Bowdoins Director of Security Randy
Nichols the next day detailing the whole situation. As it
turns out, the vehicle was stolen from the bustling metropolis of Lewiston.
This new information makes the story come together in
a much more cohesive fashion. This writer has in fact never been to Lewiston, but from knowing Bates students one
would imagine that the campus and surrounding area is
crawling with Ford Mustangs.
In hearing this information, Brunswick Apartments residents had a variety of reactions.
Brunswick Apartments resident Trevor Murray 16 sees
the theft as part of a systemic employment problem on Bowdoins campus.
I think that student employment is definitely getting to the
point where jobs are more competitive, so I can feasibly see,
especially with the living conditions of Brunswick Apartments,
someone wanted to get into the Grand Theft Auto industry,
he said.
After not getting that prime job in the Media Commons, it

seems likely that a disheartened student could turn to a life of

crime to pay for significant expenses such as daily trips to Jack
Magees Pub.
Murray himself seems to have quite a bit of experience with
the stolen cars industry, continuing, Cars are at least running
for 5, 6,000 dollars a pop on the black market and if you can
really get in there, why bother working at the library when you
can just jack cars and take them to Brunswick?
It appears, according to Murray, that the black market in
Brunswick is booming. This could make it difficult for Bowdoin Security and the Brunswick Police Department to get
to the bottom of this crime. We could be dealing not with a
single actor but an entire syndicate; who knows how many
Bowdoin students are involved?
Christina Moreland 17, another Brunswick resident, appears to be one of the uninitiated, saying I really dont know
how to respond. I mean I would question how a student got
to Lewiston to steal a car, or if they just had this stolen car this
entire time.
According to Nichols, the car was reported stolen on January
28, just a day before it was reported to be suspicious (probably
for being a green Ford Mustang) in the lot behind Brunswick
Apartments. This invalidates Morelands theory that the stolen
car had been in possession of a student for a long time.
Nevertheless, Moreland brought up another, potentially
more compelling point, suggesting, if its not a Bowdoin student, then its a shame that theyre stealing student parking
spots in Brunswick Apartments because there really arent
enough parking spots in Brunswick Apartments as it is, for students who actually go here.
The clear lesson from this whole ordeal appears to be that if
you dont even go here, please leave your stolen Ford Mustangs
out of our parking lots .

friday, march 4, 2016

the bowdoin orient

NEWS IN BRIEF

news

PHOTO SHOOT
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

COMPILED BY RACHAEL ALLEN AND SAM MORRIS

MILLS FUNDRAISES FOR DERAY

Former Bowdoin President Barry Mills and Travon Free, a writer for The
Daily Show, will host a fundraiser for Baltimore City mayoral candidate DeRay Mckesson 07 on March 9 in Manhattan. The fundraiser will take place
at the home of Sue Lehmann and Ted Dreyfus on the Upper West Side. Dreyfus, a former Citibank executive, serves on the board of Teach for America,
where Deray worked as a volunteer teacher from 2007 to 2009. According
to Mckessons campaign website, tickets for the fundraiser range from $250
to $6,000. Mckessonknown for his involvement with the Black Lives Matter movement as well as Campaign Zero, a policy-focused campaign to end
police violenceannounced his mayoral campaign on February 3.

CHARLES CONTINUES MEETINGS

After beginning research on Bowdoins racial and ethnic climate two
weeks ago, sociologists Camille Charles and Rory Kramer will return to
campus this coming week to continue meetings. While most of their interviews so far have been with specific committees and groups, the upcoming meetings will be more open to the entire student body. This upcoming
Tuesday, from 6 to 7 p.m. in Daggett Lounge, all students are welcome to
come speak with Charles and Kramer. The next day, a discussion limited
to students who identify as multicultural will take place from 8 to 9 p.m. in
Lancaster Lounge. Interested students are asked to RSVP to Associate Director of Events and Summer Programs Sara Eddy through the Doodle poll
found in Dean of Student Affairs Tim Fosters March 2 email.
As President Clayton Rose announced in an email to the community on
December 3, Charles and Kramer will collect information over the course of
this semester on the way students race affects their experience at Bowdoin.
The sociologists will attempt to understand not only the experiences and
perceptions of multicultural and white students but also the practices and
policies the school has or lacks that contribute to these experiences.Their
research will culminate in a recommendation for how the College may take
action for improvement.

JOURNALIST ALLEN 83 TO VISIT

COURTESY OF SCOTT ALLEN

Scott Allen 83, the editor of The Boston Globes Spotlight Team, will visit
campus next week to give a lecture titled, From Watergate to Spotlight: Investigative Journalism in Democracy. Although he didnt work on the case
featured in the Oscar-winning movie Spotlight, Allen led the Globes 2014
Pulitzer Prize winning coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing and manhunt. Over his 20 plus years at the Globe, Allen has worked as the Health
and Science editor, the Senior Assistant Metro editor and a reporter covering
medicine and the environment. While at Bowdoin, he worked as a reporter
for the Orient, first covering sports. His talk will take place on March 8 at
7:30 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium.

MIDD BANS ENERGY DRINKS

Last week, Middlebury College announced its decision to ban on-campus
sales of energy drinks such as Red Bull and 5-Hour Energy. According to
NBC News, Middlebury College officials say the drinks are responsible for
problematic behavior, including alcohol abuse and high-risk sexual activity and contribute to a campus culture of stress and unsustainable study
habits. The policy, which will take effect on March 7, does not affect sales
of Guayaki Brand Yerba Mate, considered a healthier alternative to more
popular energy drinks.
The Bowdoin C-Storewhich sells Red Bull, 5-Hour Energy, Spider, Body
Armor and organic Runa energy drinksdoes not plan to follow in Middleburys footsteps at the moment, according to Director of Dining and Bookstore Services Mary McAteer Kennedy. She acknowledged that energy drink
sales increase during exam week when students are more likely to feel a need
to sacrifice sleep for academics. However, according to Kennedy, overall energy drink sales at Bowdoin, which are limited to the C-Store, have gone
down considerably over the past three or four years.

HY KHONG, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

CULTURE NOT COSTUME: The My culture is not a costume and Their culture is not our costume photo shoot hosted by the
Student Center for Multicultural Life aims to show solidarity with students of color and contribute to educating the community
on the hurtful repercussions of ethnic stereotyping. Kiki Nakamura-Koyama 17 (left) and Ashley Bomboka 16 (right) participated in the photo shoot, which took place David Saul Smith Union from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. Wednesday through today.
at the Center, believes this process
will be valuable for students of color
in addition to being educational.
I hope this will help ease some
of the pain that a lot of students of
color have been feeling, Kiki added.
For now, the photographs of various students of color will be shared
on social media. Yet this photo
project is also part of a much larger
campaign the Center will pursue in
the coming semester and year. This
longer-term project will consist of

additional photo shoots and the use

of posters with a similar goal. Part
of Harris goal is to emphasize the
beauty of people and their cultures
and prevent the reduction of components of their identities to stereotypes and things for amusement.
To prevent future instances of stereotyping and help foster a respectful community, the Center plans to be proactive
and preemptive at times like Halloween
to remind the community to be respectful of other peoples cultures when choos-

ing themes and costumes for events.

Were not saying people shouldnt
dress up [in] costumes. Thats not
the case. Theres a million costumes
people can dress up as. Theres a
million themed parties people can
have, said Harris. But we want
students to be more thoughtful and
caring and show respect for other
people on campus because we want
this space and everybody to feel like
this is Bowdoin for them and not
just Bowdoin for a few.

news

IMPEACHMENT
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

ing asked to explain the image.

Dean of Student Affairs Tim Foster
declined to comment on the punishments.
Over 120 students packed Daggett
Lounge at Wednesdays BSG meeting to voice concerns over whether
impeaching McInerny and Cannon
is an appropriate response to their
involvement with the party. The debate centered around whether campus
conversations and safe spaces can
effectively educate students who commit acts of bias, or if more punitive
measures are necessary.
The articles of impeachment stated
that by going to the party, McInerney
and Cannon had violated BSGs constitutional nondiscrimination policy
and had performed injurious actions
to other members of the General Assembly. They also noted that the two
had violated the spirit of their own
previous votes supporting BSGs condemnation of last semesters gangster party and failed to uphold the
Assemblys stated commitment to
demonstrate that cultural appropriation is unacceptable.
This is the first time BSG has moved
to indefinitely remove any member
from their assembly. Impeachment
proceedings will take place Saturday
at 1 p.m. A two-thirds majority of
BSG must vote yes in order to remove
McInerny and Cannon from their positions on the assembly on Saturday.
However, that result will not expel
them permanently: McInerny and
Cannon will still be able to petition to
rejoin BSG at a later date, upon presenting to the general assembly that
they have reflected on and learned
from their actions.
The articles of impeachment were
introduced at the BSG meeting on
Wednesday night by At-Large Representative Lucia Gibbard 18, Vice
President for Facilities and Sustainability Kevin Hernandez 18 and

the bowdoin orient

Inter-House Council Representative
Jacob Russell 17.
Russell noted that the motivation
for impeachment proceedings was to
hold BSG members accountable to the
standards that they themselves had set
for the student body in their previous condemnations of appropriation
on October 28 following the gangster party. He argued that it would be
wildly hypocritical to us for our body
to not hold itself to the standards that
we expect of everyone else on campus.
The public comment time at
Wednesdays BSG meeting revealed a
range of reactions to the impending
impeachment proceedings.
Students like Rob Adams 17 voiced
support for indefinitely removing McInerny and Cannon from the assembly.
Serving on this panel is a privilege,
and its a privilege that we all assign
to the people sitting down If you
dont uphold the standards that this
panel has set to be on this panel, then
you dont have the privilege to sit on
this panel, Adams said. Im not condemning anyones figure, Im not saying youre a bad person, but to attend
an event that hurts other students and
those students put you up there, Im
sorry but you lost your privilege to
represent those students.
Bill De La Rosa 16 echoed this sentiment.
What these students did violated
that agreement that was made on October 28that is a fact, De La Rosa
said. And Ill take it a step further
and I use this word seriouslytainted
the experiences of college students,
first year students on this campus.
They feel trapped to be in this place,
that if they transfer theyll lose their
financial aid, and thats wrong.
These actions have consequences, he added. These are leaders on
our campus that were chosen and
elected to represent the student body.
Those actions did not reflect that last
week.
Other students spoke in defense of
McInerny and Cannon.
By impeaching Clare and the other

student, youre assuming the validity of the conditional that if someone

attends a party, they condone the actions of the party and support everything the party stands for and I think
youre hard-pressed to prove the validity of that condition, said Caleb
Gordon 18.
Dana Williams 18, a close friend
of McInernys, said that McInernys
efforts to understand how her actions
hurt and offended fellow students
should be taken into consideration.
Ive talked to her extensively about
the tequila party and why it was offensive and rather than defend her decision to go, Clare has really tried to
understand, she said. Shes reached
out to students on campus to talk
about why it was wrong. Shes apologized, and shes made a conscious effort. I think that in itself is an important thing.
Victimizing Clare for a large and
complex system of racism will not fix
the problem. We need a space where
all students feel genuinely welcome
to talk about this issue. And so having people like Clare on the Bowdoin
Student Government will make...that
more of a welcoming environment to
everyone. Because without a discussion from both sides that is rational
and calm, nothing will get done.
Joe Lace 17 said that removing McInerny and Cannon from their BSG
positions conflicts with its goal to
educate rather than punish members
of the Bowdoin community.
To me that sounds not restorative in any way, it sounds punitive,
he said. It sounds as if the offended
party is effectively perpetuating the
divide between the offended and the
offender, and where is the learning
process in that?
Maya Reyes 16 responded that impeaching members of BSG can provide an effective learning opportunity
in itself.
People learn through their experiences and consequences, she said.
[By impeaching McInerny and Cannon], this institution will learn that

friday, march 4, 2016

actions like these are not what we
expect from each other as Bowdoin
students who have empathy for their
peers who are already coming into a
situation where they feel marginalized
from the get go, as people who come
to an institution that wasnt created
for them.
Several students in attendance
pushed for increased communication
between offenders and those offended, as well as a clearer definition of
what does and does not constitute cultural appropriation. Others, however,
pointed out that these conversations
have been historically ineffective.
Weve had conversations after
Cracksgiving. Weve had conversations after the gangster party, said
Dash Lora 16. There have been moments to learn, moments for people
to have discussions, but it is not the
responsibility of students of color
or allies of students of color to bring
people to have these conversations.
It is the responsibility of every single
person on this campus to engage in
these conversations. If you are willing
to avoid these conversations, it is not
on us.
We should not have to say, OK we
can have more and more conversations, he added. The conversations
have happened already. We have to
punish people who do these sorts of
things because then they will finally
understand why we want these things
to happen, why we want change on
this campus.
Following the public comment time,
both McInerney and Cannon made
statements acknowledging they felt
that it was wrong of them to have attended the party. Cannon apologized
for misrepresenting the BSG and the
principles that we stand for, and those
harmed through his failure to connect
his actions at the tequila party with
previous actions such as Cracksgiving
and the gangster party.
McInerney delivered a similar
statement.
My failure to connect tequila and
sombreros with their deeper cultural

CAUCUS

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

nior High School for Democrats and
Greely Middle School in Cumberland for Republicanswhere people
will give speeches for and against
candidates.
Republicans vote via ballot while
Democrats will publicly stand in different parts of the room depending
on who they support. Based on these
votes, the number of delegates allocated to that caucus will be divided in
proportion to the support that each
candidate has received. If a candidate
has too few supporters to qualify for a
delegate, those voters have an option
to switch candidates.
Student organizers on both sides of
the aisle worry that the unique nature
of the caucus system may ward off or
confuse students and reduce participation rates.
Its sort of how you would elect
third grade student council, said
Emma Kane 18, a Hillary Clinton
supporter who will be caucusing in
her hometown of Portland.
While both polls and student organizers are unsure which Democrat
will win in Maine, both Walker and
Kane indicated that the youth vote
will be a major factor in deciding the
election for Sanders or Clinton.
Kane thinks that the youth vote
will tilt Brunswick toward Sanders,
but shes hopeful that other towns
with older voters will help secure
Maine for Clinton.
I would be super excited if we
could get maybe a fourth [of Bow-

implications was an inexcusable act of

ignorance and negligence, she said.
The debate over the right response
to the party moved beyond the Bowdoin bubble this week, also adding to
the tensions on campus. A number
of online sites and blogs, such as National Review Online, the Washington
Post and CampusReform.org, picked
up on the debate with posts that
were largely critical of those who felt
harmed by the party. However, several
anonymous blogs went further and
directly targeted individual students
who had been vocal about the harm
caused by the party, including De La
Rosa and BSG Vice President for Student Government Affairs Michelle
Kruk 16.
In a campus-wide email on Tuesday, Foster wrote: Unfortunately, we
are quite certain we have not seen the
last of these situations. We will need
to continue to support one another, to
see these unwarranted and ignorant
attacks for what they are, and to condemn them.
The tequila themed birthday party
on February 20 is the third incident of
ethnic stereotyping at Bowdoin in just
over a year. In October, the sailing team
threw a gangster party that sparked
similar conversations about cultural
appropriation on campus. Last fall, at
Cracksgiving, members of the mens
lacrosse team donned Native American garb at a Thanksgiving party.
The occurrence of the tequila
party and the content of the campus
discussion that followed indicates
that there is still a significant gap
in the understanding of what constitutes cultural appropriation and
ethnic stereotyping and what steps
can be taken to achieve a sense of
reconciliation.
Were up against a complex institutionalized system of racism and
something must be done about it,
[but] I dont think that targeting the
individual characters of the people at
that party is going to be productive,
said Williams at the BSG public comment time on Wednesday.
doin students voting in the Democratic caucus]. Its very hard to tell.
Hillary Clinton supporters have
been quieter in this election, said
Kane. I dont know how theyre
feeling up norththey vote really
strangely up there.
Jack Lucy 17, chair of the Bowdoin
College Republicans, explained that
while he has heard many students
will be driving themselves, the BSGsponsored voter shuttles are integral
to student turnout. Lucy expects between 10 and 20 caucus goers.
Another Republican student, David Jimenez 16, will be caucusing
as the captain for the John Kasich
campaign. He said that the race will
be determined by turnout, which he
estimates will be anywhere between
5,000 and 20,000 statewide.
Jimenez was demure about Kasichs popularity on campus, referring to his support on campus as
basically just me wearing Kasich
attire all the time.
Bowdoin Democrats has not officially endorsed a candidate yet. CoPresident Amanda Bennett 17 said
that the groups goal for this weekend
is just to get students to turn out for
the caucus in big numbers.
Same day registration to vote in
the caucus is legal in Maine, but student organizers have urged students
to register beforehand or submit an
absentee ballot if possible.
The Brunswick caucus has one
of the largest democratic lines in the
state, and that line is almost always
students registering last minute as
Democrats so they can vote in the
caucus, said Kane.

friday, march 4, 2016

FEATURES

the bowdoin orient

The kids are alright: students babysit for professors

BY JESSICA PIPER AND NELL FITZGERALD
ORIENT STAFF

While many Bowdoin students work

with professors in laboratories or as
teaching assistants, some find themselves
doing a different kind of work: babysitting for a professors children.
Babysitting isnt listed on the student
employment website, but students and
professors nonetheless find various
ways to connect.
Genevieve de Kervor 18 found a
babysitting opportunity with Chair of
English Department Aaron Kitch and
Assistant Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures and Cinema
Studies Allison Cooper.
During my first year I was having
a hard time and needed to be part of
a family, she said. So [Dean of First
Year Students] Janet Lohmann said I
have a perfect idea, so she contacted
Allison Cooper.
Recommendations from faculty
members are one way that Bowdoin students begin babysitting.
Its a pretty small world, a pretty small
campus, Kitch said. Colleagues have
had students they recommend to us, and
we try to get a hold of them. Good babysitters are a valuable commodity.
Laura Henry, John F. and Dorothy
H. Magee associate professor of government, says she occasionally picks babysitters from her crop of former students.
If Ive had a student who seems really
sympathetic and energetic in a class, then
the next semester I might just send a note
and say, Are you ever interested in babysitting? she said.
Henry has also found babysitters
through the Bowdoin Childrens Center,
where some psychology students work.
Sometimes it would be clear that my
children were really happily engaging

HY KHONG, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

BABYSITTERS CLUB: Sarah Frankl 18 babysits for Professor of English and Cinema Studies Aviva Briefel, who was her pre-major advisor
with a particular student, and then we
might follow up to see if the student was
interested in babysitting, she said.
Aviva Briefel, professor of English
and cinema studies, said she doesnt
worry about mixing academic and
personal relationships with her student babysitters.
Whereas I initially made it a personal rule not to ask someone whom I was
currently teaching, I dont worry about
that as much now, she said in an email
to the Orient. I feel that both I and the
student are able to keep our classroom
and babysitting relationship separate.
Sarah Frankl 16, a biology major and

an English minor, sometimes babysits

for Briefels kids. Although she took
several classes with Briefel, who was her
pre-major advisor, she likewise finds it
easy to keep academics and babysitting
independent of one another.
I have her phone number, but Im not
going to text her and be like, Are you late
to office hours? she said.
A pre-established academic relationship also means that professors understand their students workloads.
I would never ask a student to babysit
if they had a paper due in my class the
next day, Briefel said.
The academic relationship also makes

Maines take on India Pale Ale

WILL GOODENOUGH AND SHAN NAGAR
Beer has become overwhelming. There
are over 4,000 breweries in the U.S. alone,
each with a long line of unique styles.
From the NASCAR Keystone pounder to
the snobbiest nanobrewery connoisseur,
there is no all-encompassing definition of
a beer drinker. With this ever-expanding
spectrum, even the most casual of beer
drinkers feels the pressure to know how to
tell the difference between Heady Topper
and a Natty Daddy. No longer are words
like nice, smooth or ew sufficient;
instead, hoppy, dry and effervescent
have entered the sipping vernacular.
In an effort to expand our own horizons, this week weve decided to stray
from our previously-trodden path of
mass-produced lagers like Kingfisher,
Budweiser and that Soviet swill from our
last column and instead, venture into the
world of craft brewing.
During the Rajs rule in India, there
wasnt a whole lot for the Brits to do besides play cricket, increase taxes and
get their buzz on. While we commonly
credit them for the antimalarial quininecontaining concoction that we now call a
Gin and Tonic, there is another beverage
for which we can thank our friends across
the pond. In order for beer to stay fresh

Breaking up and finding

the best places to cry
KATHERINE CHURCHILL
KATHERINE GIVES ADVICE
Hello, precious readers! Sad one today.
Dear Katherine,
I love my girlfriend, but I am not
in love with her, and I dont see our
relationship progressing any further.
Should I end the relationship and risk
severing ties with the person I consider
to be my best friend?
Sincerely,
Out-of-love in Osher
SOPHIE WASHINGTON

TAPPED
OUT

on the ships from London to Bombay,

English breweries produced the India
Pale Ale, a beer that was chock-full of one
of beers primary ingredients: hops.
If you take a whiff of an India Pale Ale,
or IPA, your nose will likely be met with
a floral, sometimes bitter scent, perhaps
with hints of citrus or pine. Those are the
hops, the flowers of the hop plant that
are used to flavor and stabilize beer, and
this addictive aroma has helped lead to
the IPA taking off in the craft-brew scene
across the U.S.
As it seems like every state prides itself
in one brewerys IPA or another, and since
we do not have the time to review them
all, we have chosen an IPA from Maine
and one from California in an effort to
explore a coast-to-coast comparison of
this hoppy style. With Shans car having broken down in Portland, this week
we made our lemons into a Leinenkugel
and ventured into the Craft Beer Cellar
in the Old Port. We sought out the help
of the store owner who pointed us in the
direction of the most obscure Maine craft
beer in the place: Marsh Island Brewings
Downrigger IPA.
When poured into our glasses, this
Orono-brewed IPA presented itself with
a warm, slightly cloudy amber color and
a light head that lingered as we sipped. As
we took a long sniff, we were struck by a
wave of hops. The hoppy aroma is a byproduct of a step called dry hopping, during which hops are added to the beer after
the initial boiling process. As we took our

it easy for professors to trust student

babysitters with their children.
I have never had a bad experience
with a Bowdoin babysitter, said Briefel.
I feel that the time that my kids have
spent with their sitters will be some of
their best childhood memories. They
are always thrilled to hang out with
Bowdoin students.
In addition, the opportunity to connect with a professors family is a welcome break for Bowdoin babysitters.
Frankl said she enjoys the opportunity to
spend time with people who arent college students.
Its really frustrating to only be with

one age group all the time, she said. Its

nice to have a conversation thats completely off-the-wall random because kids
will say the cutest things.
For some students, babysitting can
create a bond that extends beyond
childcare duties.
I feel like theyre my second family,
de Kervor said. I walk their dog when
I have the chance... I always go to their
birthday parties and family events, and
whenever I need anything I go to Allison and Aaron.
This connection isnt limited to a
students time at Bowdoin.
We had a studentshe must have
graduated in either 2010 or 2011who
babysat for us when my younger son was
an infant and a toddler, Henry said. I
didnt have any academic relationship
with her, but she was just amazing and
we keep up with her and see her if she
comes to Maine.
While graduation poses one obstacle
for professors using student babysitters,
another problem is that Bowdoin students arent on campus year round.
The one problem with Bowdoin babysitters is they go away, Henry said. Not
only do they graduate, theyre not here
during the holidays, theyre not here during Spring Break, theyre not here over
the summer.
Even during the school year, scheduling can be difficult for many students and professors.
[Students] are busy, said Henry. So
you might have someone babysit once
and theyre lovely, but if just turns out
scheduling-wise its challenging to ever
have them again.
But when babysitting does work
out, both students and faculty enjoy
the benefits.
Its a great perk of living so close to
Bowdoin, Kitch said.

first sips with great ceremony, we were

surprised by the subtlety of the hoppy
flavor. The Downrigger held interesting

Please see BEER, page 6

Dear Out-of-love,
That, my friend, is a toughie.
Relationships (particularly long
ones) go through ups and downs, ins
and outs. Sometimes one or the other
partner might become a little disillusioned, but often you fall right back in
love again quickly. In the case of a simple rough patch or a bout of boredom, I
would prescribe patience, a few creative
dates and a heart-to-heart.
But, if youre really sure that you arent

in love anymore and could not or do not

want to be, its likely that no amount of
couple time will change how you feel. At
ages 18-21, I think that means its time
to end things. And in that case, Im honestly a little out of my depths.
Im entirely unqualified to give advice about breaking up.* I have never
had a relationship end smoothly (frequent readers, you will perhaps remember a certain incident involving Uggs),
and for that I have always been at least
partially to blame. I have many times
strived for the most coveted iteration of
the breaking up, which is the PaltrowMartin style, were-going-to-each-others-weddings conscious uncoupling,
and I have always, always failed.
Maybe, though, I can share a few
thoughts. And I can definitely tell you
the best crying spots on campus, just in
case you need them.
A list of things to consider before initiating a break up in your situation:
1. Remember that you have a right to
your own emotional response. Breaking up is hard. Even if you are no longer in love with your girlfriend, and
even if you know that youre making
the right choice, you might still be sad.
You probably will be! She is, as you said,

Please see BREAKUP, page 6

features

the bowdoin orient

friday, march 4, 2016

Keeping Eveningstar Cinema alive as Brunswick population ages

ELLICE LUEDERS

ABOUT TOWN

Barry Norman does not sit still. Trying to get a photo of him between facial
expressions is nearly impossiblehe talks
a mile a minute and gestures with equal
frequency. When he talks he goes on a lot
of tangents and pursues them completely.
Im an insomniac, he said blithely. He
doesnt turn off and he doesnt stop.
I have always been an opportunist,
he says. His life story is scattered across
the country and various industries, all
roads ending at Eveningstar Cinema
on Maine Street.
If you want to know why he bought
Eveningstar, all you need is to watch
his preshowit features a clip from a
movie he made where he walks down
Maine Street with his dog, a schnoodle
(schnauzer-poodle) named Scooter. I
first get into Brunswick, and I see the
Little Dog Caf. This is obviously a sign.
When I was looking to buy a movie
theater, I was actually looking to buy
an Art Deco movie theater. There was
one in Lamar, Colorado, only going for
$250,000, which is pretty cheap, and
still turning a profit, but then I would
be living in Lamar, Colorado, Norman
lamented. All the other Art Deco theaters were dark.
He mentions that the unique character of Eveningstar was a draw. It
did appeal to me that it was funky, that
there was nothing like this. This used
to be a garage for Goodwin Chevrolet.
Its eccentricities are evident in his attic
workspace, a loft with ceilings a full foot
shorter than Norman, located above the
box office. To interview him, I had to
use a wooden ladder to get up and metal
handles to get back down.
Norman was raised in Boston, where
he spent time in similarly small theaters.

He appreciated the sense of community he found with the people attending. Today in Brunswick, this
community has changed.
I survive because my older audience,
which is who I cater to, still wants the
community feeling of going to a theater.
They like talking to the owner and seeing Scooter and all that.
They dont want to go to a multiplex
like Regal because there are so many
different screens and so many people
running around and they dont want to
get 10 previews because they need to
promote all of the films that they have
on their screens.
They like coming to a theater like
this. First of all, they all know each other. When you go to a comedy, a room
full of people laughing is a lot more
fun than you sitting by yourself. Same
thing when the movies sad. Emotion is
a shared moment.
He hopes people feel connected in his
theater like they did when he was young.
This is what going to the movies
was; [the community] was a big deal.
Outside of the theaters he cherished,
his childhood was defined by pressures
from his OB/GYN father and family.
My dad never got it, he said. It was so
foreign to him.
I come from a family of famous
physicians. My aunt helped develop
the pacemaker.
Though he went in a different direction than his family, he has applied a familiar focus to his own pursuits. He has
asked himself throughout his career:
Things are shifting, how can we get in
the forefront?
This question led Norman from Boston to Connecticut College to New York
City, where he was living on a park
bench in Washington Square for three
weeks, trying to beg for three dollars a
day, which got me a joint, a Colt 45, and
two slices of Rays pizza.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ELLICE LUEDERS

THE CINEMA MAN: After a long career including covering the Olympics for CNN, Norman purchased Eveningstar Cinema in Brunswick.
He cleaned himself up to score an interview which led him to a job at a magazine distributing office in Denver. After a
divorce, he took a job in Florida and then
another in Atlanta, where he got into film.
Between these moments, he has published
magazines, gone to the Olympics to cover
wrestling for CNN and run alternative
rock radio shows.
Norman has been independent his
entire life, and owning his own business
grants him autonomy in many ways. Yet,
this existence relies upon a customer base
and his is dwindling.
My mature audience, two things
are happening to them, one, theyre be-

BREAKUP
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

I dont like to do things half-assed. So,

if theres any other major challenge, its a
major challenge trying to expand. Ive
been telling people, Im either going to
break through the wall, or the wall is going to kill me. Were getting closer to the
wall killing me.
When I walked into the theater from
the box office, I noticed that the only
poster that Norman keeps up permanently is a one-sheet from The Last
Picture Show. Great movie, Norman
commented. I love the movie. I love the
poster, and the irony.
I dont want to be The Last Picture
Show.

BEER
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

DIANA FURUKAWA

your best friend, and someone you love.

Dont let anyone tell you that youre not
allowed to feel pain because you initiated the break up.
2. Likewise, respect your girlfriends
emotional space. Know that, as much
as you might want to stay friends with
your ex, it might not work out for any
number of reasons.
3. Do not break up with your girlfriend with the intention of getting
back together, or with the expectation
that that will be an option. Maybe it
will happen, but dont bank on it. If
you bank on it, you will end up crying
in the Union.

coming too old or infirm to go out, or

theyre passing away.
How do I become relevant? How do I
stay? When I asked him about his next
opportunity, he replied: Im exhausted.
Maybe something is going to come up
that I dont see, but I dont see it.
Without knowing Barry Norman for
very long, I got the feeling this wasnt
something he said easily.
There is a certain level of burnout. I
dont have that type of stamina anymore.
I was doing the Olympics for 18, 19 hours
a day and when I did the Olympics I also
started a film festival and was running the
film festival from the Olympics, he said.

4. Anticipate changes of habits. Know

that a lot of the music you like will be
ruined. Did you listen to a cool, hip
band with them before? Too bad. Its
ruined now. Do you never sleep alone?
Too bad. You better shop for a body
pillow. They have these nice ones with
arms and oxford shirts now, get one of
those. How do I know? Well I have one.
And as promised, my ranked list of
the best crying spots on campus:
1. The Meditation Room in Buck
those purple cushions are covered in
my tears.
2. The Gender Neutral Bathroom
in Smith Unionso much space for

weeping.
3. The Upstairs couches in Smith
Unionsuch that everyone is forced to
witness your pain.
4. The Glow in the Dark Rock
Roomso you think about how many
happy couples have hooked up there
and sob.
5. The Vault in Mass Hallso you
can lock up your feelings afterward and
never revisit them.
Good luck.
Out,
Katherine

floral notes with a caramelized-orange

tang, and the inevitable bitterness only
appeared as a subsequent aftertaste. The
6.8% ABV became harsher as the beer
warmed, a feature that did not earn any
plaudits from this weeks guest taster,
Mr. Evan Bulman.
Representing the West Coast was the
Enjoy By Black IPA from Stone Brewing Co. in Escondido, Calif. Enjoy By is
produced only a few times a year and,
as the name suggests, is intended to be
consumed quickly after brewing for optimal freshness. This particular batch was
called Enjoy By 02.14.16, and while The
Craft Beer Cellars owner assured us that
these extra two weeks would not affect
the beers flavor, we do concede that he
may have wisely seized an opportunity
to convince two novice beer drinkers to
help clear his inventory.
The first word that sprung to our minds
when we took our first sniff of Enjoy By
was dank. As earthy as it was hoppy,
this beer poured a deep, dark brown that
barely allowed any light to pass through.

Like the Downrigger, Enjoy By retained

a thin foamy head; however, it clung to
the sides of the glass in a way that the
Downrigger did not. In spite of its heavy
alcohol content (a whopping 9.4%
ABV), Enjoy By was incredibly drinkable, likely a side effect of the malty flavor that hits as soon as it touches your
tongue. Malts, which are sugars that
aid in the fermentation process of beer
brewing, help to sweeten beer to give it
some of its yeasty, sometimes bread-like
flavor. Enjoy By also was more hop-forward than Downrigger, with piney hops
that played a starring role in the beers
flavor as well as its smell.
These two IPAs were about as different on the taste buds as they are on the
map. However, they did serve to represent two sides of the IPA spectrum.
If we were to render a final verdict, we
agreed that while Enjoy By offered a
unique spin on what an IPA can be, we
felt that the Downrigger was a through
and through, approachable IPA for beer
drinkers of all walks of life.

friday, march 4, 2016

the bowdoin orient

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Professors star in Loves Labours Lost BCMA to display multimedia

portrait of DeRay Mckesson 07

BY SARAH BONANNO
ORIENT STAFF

JENNY IBSEN, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

SWINGING INTO SHAKESPEARE: Polar Bear Swing Club member Elena Schaef 16 performs in the College Theater Departments 1960s-inspired rendition of Shakespeares Loves Labours Lost,which premiered last night and will run tonight and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in Pickard Theater, Memorial Hall.
BY SURYA MILNER
ORIENT STAFF

In a rendition that speaks to the college experience, the Colleges Theater and
Dance Department premiered a take on
Shakespeares Loves Labours Lost yesterday. It boasts an array of performers,
including the Polar Bear Dance Swing
Club, students and even professors.
Directed by Assistant Professor of Theater Abigail Killeen, the sixteenth-century
play has been adapted to a 1960s collegiate
setting and follows a group of fraternity
brothers who, in the pursuit of their studies, decided to abandon the idea of love.

In the storys unfolding, however, the

young men find themselves enamored,
once again, with a group of women in
a sorority.
On the surface it feels pretty light and
farcical but in several places it also has a
heaviness to it. Thats the idea of Loves
Labours Lostits not a traditional romantic comedy, said Aaron Kitch, associate professor of English, who acts in the
play. Even in the sonnets that are read
aloud, that are supposed to be exaggerations and overly enthusiastic expressions
of love, you can still hear some moments
of deep insight, and I think thats pretty
incredible to have both things going on at

the same time.

Alongside Kitch, Professor of English
and Cinema Studies Aviva Briefel acts
as a professor in the show, an experience
thatdespite hitting close to homehas
still proved challenging.
Anytime youre teaching something to
someone theres a certain performance to
it, Briefel said. Not that Im being fake
or pretending to be someone else, but in
order to keep people interested, in order
to keep myself interested and in order to
keep the material alive, I think it involves
a certain degree of acting. Whats different

Please see LOVE, page 8

New media artist R. Luke DuBois

will unveil a multimedia portrait of
activist DeRay Mckesson 07 at his
upcoming exhibit Now at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art (BCMA)
on March 31.
The multimedia portrait will combine interview footage of Mckesson
answering questions written by Bowdoin Student Government and the
African-American Society with some
of Mckessons preexisting tweets.
Co-Director of the BCMA Anne
Collins Goodyear said that the museum wanted to commision a piece for
DuBois upcoming show that would
resonate with the Bowdoin community, but DuBois was the one who chose
Mckesson specifically as a subject.
From everything I have seen of
DeRay Mckesson, he is someone who
promises to be a really important figure for many many years to come in
terms of drawing attention to important topics, framing ways of thinking
about them and thinking through new
approaches to interacting with one
another, Goodyear said.
She added that this commission is a
unique opportunity for the Museum,
which has previously only acquired
contemporary art and has never before commissioned a piece.
Its very special to commission a
work of art because commissioning
always implies some type of a conversation between the artist and the institution or the individual thats doing
it, Goodyear said. Thats what makes
this work special.
Though the portrait was commissioned before Mckessons announcement of his decision to run for mayor
of Baltimore, Goodyear is excited

that the portrait will also contribute

to questions about todays political
discourse and in particular, conversations about the Black Lives Matter
movement and its political platform.
It will both give us an opportunity
to connect with some of [Mckessons]
private thoughts, the question on
what his perspective is, and what has
made him the political activist that he
is, Goodyear said. The portrait will
very consciously share his public face
which has evolved through the medium of Twitter.
Goodyear has worked with Dubois
before. In 2014, Goodyear helped the
National Portrait Gallery commission
Dubois to create a portrait of Google
co-founders Larry Page and Sergey
Brin. As Dubois told the New York
Times in 2014, the portrait was an abstracted visualization of their search
engine turned on them. It combined
video interviews of the founders and
imagery of real-time Google searches
on the same screen using software
Dubois wrote himself.
Meanwhile, the BCMA has a long
history of displaying portraits. Two of
the original pieces from James Bowdoin IIIs private collection were portraits of Presidents James Madison and
Thomas Jefferson, the latter of which is
the portrait on the two dollar bill.
The Museum, which of course is
part of a college, is able to participate
in a conversation about what political
activism looks like today, what the
Black Lives Matter movement looks
like, what it looks like to give evenhanded and equal consideration to
all citizens, Goodyear said. And, by
extension, I think that [we participate in] this question of what does it
look like for the US to welcome many
different points of view into our political discourse.

On the connotations of clothing: implications of style in crafting identity

JUNE LEI

STREET SMART

My first act of early-teenage rebellion

was buying a sewing machine. I found it
on Craigslist in early July, and so found
myself, 14 years old, exchanging $35 for
a strangers spring cleaning leftovers
a compact, simple-stitch, late 1960s
Singer. I told my Chinese parentswho
thought I was going through a phase
that it was on loan from a friend for the
summer. The temperamental machine
didnt even last that long, perhaps because it was old, or perhaps because
I stayed up until 2 a.m. every day that
summer splitting threads and breaking needles.
At first, it was fun to make colorful,
textural things; then the things made
me. I studied clothing the way a shy,
book-savvy young girl does: through
literature. I hoarded back-issues of
Vogue to analyze fashion trends in
America. While these were phases,
sewingbuilding clothing for my individual, Asian-American, adolescent
bodywas not. When I wore what I
made, I found that it lent me the most
compelling case for uniqueness. The

way I dressed validated my personality

and my body concurrently. It asserted
the reality of my existence.
To align the outer self with an expression of the inner self is a cultural/
political act, especially for those who
face discrimination and stereotyping. In
my experience, being Asian in America
has always come with a set of connotations from assumed identities. Making
clothes let me in on a secret: I could slip
into different perceptions based on the
way I dressed. I was not another nameless Asian if I dressed like a Warhol
Superstar or a Riot Grrrl. By rooting
myself in American sartorial history, I
could assert aspects of my identity that I
wanted to emphasize, rather than those
prescribed to me. This was a revelation:
the power of playing dress up. The care
I devoted to the way I dressed was an
effort to affect the split-second assessment others made of me based on my
ethnicity. Dressing with deliberacy and
style awarded me just a second more
of contemplation.
This valuable extra second has never been a case of life or death for me.
Asians are stereotyped, above all, as
being docile. For other people of color,
stereotypes are different, dangerous. In
2012, a 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was
shot in the gated community in which

he lived while wearing a hoodie. Martins death sparked national protest, with
the hoodie becoming a symbol against
unjust racial profiling. In this case, the
haunting image of the hoodie, which
may or may not have affected how Martins shooter perceived him, is a garment
weighted with cultural implication. In
America, clothing is far more than just
clothing. Perhaps if Martin had been
afforded that extra second, he wouldnt
have been unjustly, lethally judged.
Then again, perhaps not: a reality of
America is that it is not fair.
These two very different situations
emphasize the systematic implications of appearance. Style provides a
flexibility in perception that is radical for people of color in America,
who often control very little about
how they are seen. Fashion is not just
for the vacuous: clothing is a tool for
validating the marginalized body,
for asserting presence and existence
and identity, and thus a tool of power and privilege. With this in mind,
there is something inherently vicious
in using this power to disrespect or
reduce others. To perpetuate stereotype by mocking or appropriating is
invalidating and thus, inhumane. It
engages the same system that creates otherness, that argues that wear-

ing a hoodie as
a black American is a good
enough reason
for death.
Style, Maya
Angelou wrote,
allows [a] person to appear
neither inferior in one location nor superior in the other.
Style elasticizes
boundaries as it
moves beyond
socio-economic
cl a s s i f i c at i on
and
fleeting
judgements. I
learned this by
the lamplight of
my sewing machine. At Bowdoin, we learn
this by way of engaging in our community, which includes
many brave and articulate voices of
color. In America, style can be a weapon
for those who need it. However, it is not
ultimately strong enough to save them
from the line of gunfire. This is the work
that must be done by American institu-

SOPHIE WASHINGTON

tions. It is difficult to change a system to

protect those it has historically excluded.
All the same, it is far more difficult to exist in it. Since this is what Bowdoin demands of students of color, it is merited
that students of color demand institutional change of Bowdoin. It is just about
time for spring cleaning.

a&e

friday, march 4, 2016

the bowdoin orient

Poet Carlos Andres Gmezs performance resonates with students

BY SARAH LIM

ORIENT STAFF

Laughter, tears and snaps filled the living room of Quinby House as students
listened to world-renowned spoken word
poet Carlos Andrs Gmez on Tuesday.
For almost two hours, students were captivated by Gmezs performance, which
explored topics ranging from cultural
identities to genocide to gender roles.
Often speaking from personal experience as a social worker in Harlem and
the Bronx and a public school teacher
in Philadelphia, Gmez delivered a performance that not only brought attention to social issues but also demanded
change. The reading was preceded by a
poetry workshop.
The idea of a complex, multifaceted
identity is a major theme in Gmezs
performances. The workshop he led
focused on creating dialogue across
different identities.
You cant argue with someones story.
You cant have a political opinion about a
story, said Gmez. Its a subversive way
of having people engage and experience
to build meaningful empathy and understanding and complicate peoples notions
of things in a way thats not intellectualized and detached.
Having both first heard Gmez in high
school, Latin American Student Organization (LASO) board member Sergio
Gomez 16 and Quinby House Programming Director Osakhare Omoregie 18
contacted Gmez through Facebook,
hoping he would come speak at Bowdoin
about Latinx identity.
One thing about his poetry that I
felt Bowdoin as a campus really needed
is the focus on humanity, said Omoregie. His poemswhile from first
glance might seem to be targeting certain kinds of peoplein actual truth,
hes bringing up that everyone has their
faults but the first step to recovery is to
admit that theres a problem.
Sensing a lack of discussion regarding

DAVID ANDERSON, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

POWER OF POETRY: Renowned spoken word poet Carlos Andrs Gmez performed a reading and led a workshop earlier this week at Quinby House. He was invited to come to campus by
the Latin American Student Association and the Slam Poetry Society, both of whom wanted Gmez to speak to students about Latinx identity in poetry.
Latinx identity on campus, Gomez hoped
this event would shed some light on the
Latinx experience.
Issues such as immigration are really
hot topics nationally, but not really on our
campus, [which] kind of gave me this
sense of invisibility amongst us, said Gomez. I think its now more than ever that
we could really use someone who can talk
about the Latinx experience and bring a
sense of presence that we are here. We are
a part of this community.
Bowdoins own Slam Poets Society
kicked the performance off with a tenminute opening set. Co-leader Violet

Ranson 16 felt that Gmezs performance provided a new and empathetic

perspective to the issues currently pervading campus, a welcome validation to
many of the members of LASO and Slam
Poets Society.
John Medina 18 similarly conveyed
the importance of Gmezs performance
to many students on campus.
I feel that yesterdays event with Carlos
Andrs Gmez was necessary to remind
us during this difficult time, although
were being told that we dont matter or
people want our voices to be shut down,
were reminded that we are beautiful

people and we do deserve to be here,

said Medina.
Throughout the performance, Gmez
invited audience members to share their
thoughts and feelings about their identity,
empowering listeners to be their most authentic selves in a difficult time.
I want, in my performances, people
to feel seen and affirmed and challenged,
and if they leave with one thing, I hope
that everyone leaves feeling like theyre
enough, said Gmez. I hope that people
laughed and cried and got upset and got
inspired and felt a range of emotions.
Gmez related to the audience humor-

ous anecdotes from his performances in

various cities in the United States that reveal serious social insensitivities and cultural unawareness.
I think about things in an intersectional way, grappling with all of us being human beings that carry multiple
identities simultaneously and thinking about the implications in terms of
power dynamics and access that that
has for all of us, said Gmez. I talk
about race and sexuality and gender, a
wide range of identities, and I hope that
people think about themselves in more
complicated ways.

LOVE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
about acting in a play is that youre taking
on a different character, and thats whats
been really new for me.
Briefel notes that working under
Killeens direction has provided a unique
experience to learn about teaching from
the other side. She admires Killeens energy, organization and ways of motivating students.
In its incorporation of various student
groups and professors, the production
of Loves Labours Lost has provided a
community of collaboration. Most notable, said Kitch, is the opportunity to work
with students on a common ground and
outside the scope of academia.
Its been an absolute pleasure to watch
[the students] in action, Kitch said. Its
humbling. Its a chance to interact with
students in a meaningful way outside
of the classroom. The nice thing about
Bowdoin is that all the professors wear
different hats and get to interact with the
students in different forums.
Katie Randall 16, co-president of the
Bowdoin Polar Bears Swing Dance Club
and a dancer in the show, said that the
air of inclusivity among all cast members
has been a focal point in the production
of the show.
There was always a possibility that
it would end up being dancers versus
actors and director, said Randall. But
weve been able to really weave it in and
now it really does feel like a whole community of cast. And putting it in the 60s
makes it a lot more accessiblemost
of the time we dont even have to act...
Theres a lot of joy in it.

Chosen by Killeen in remembrance of

the 400-year anniversary of Shakespeares
death, Loves Labours Lost promises
to resound with Bowdoin students in
its exploration of the universal themes
of Shakespeare in the context of a modern world.
We have the benefit of 400 years of
production to consider what worked and
what didnt work, Killeen said. The goal
is, fill the text with life again for a contemporary audience. And I believe weve
succeeded in that. I cant presume to know
what the playwright would have thought,
but I try to work with him in mind, hoping that he would be pleased with what
weve done.

LOVES LABOURS LOST: (clockwise

from upper left) Jamie Boucher 19,
Omoregie 18, James Jellin 16, Connor
Lovett 19, Ben Cumings 15 and Aziza
Janmohamed 19 perform in the Theater Departments show, Loves Labours
Lost, which features student actors and
swing dancers and professors.

JENNY IBSEN, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT (TOP AND BOTTOM)

friday, march 4, 2016

SPORTS

the bowdoin orient

After long streak, Meagher ends 33 year career with playoff loss
BY COOPER HEMPHILL
ORIENT STAFF

After a disastrous third period in

which Bowdoin gave up six goals
and a two goal lead, the mens hockey team was knocked out of the NESCAC playoffs, ending its ten-game
unbeaten streak and likely its season
as well.
This game marked what was likely
the final performance of Bowdoin
Head Coach Terry Meagher after
33 seasons at the helm of the mens
hockey program.
Meagher embodied the goals of
Bowdoin Athletics throughout his
tenure, emphasizing student athletes investment in the classroom as
well as on the ice.
If you look at what we do, and
one of the reasons Ive stayed here,
is that inter-collegiate play is an extension of the classroom, he said.
Its part of the curriculum and
the educational component we put
on competition [that] is special. I
think a lot of good athletes crave
that; they want to be able to be a
student, to participate in their sport
and take what courses they want. If
a lab goes over and theyre an hour
late for practice, thats OK. I think
that attracts a lot of good student
athletes.
Meagher has ensured that the
team will be able to carry forward
with an incredibly talented, young
group of dedicated athletes that put
together an excellent winning season with only three seniors out of a
33-man roster.
This group has been a gift, said
Meagher. Every team is certainly
special, but this group is a gift for
many different reasons, everything
from how they are citizens on cam-

DAVID ANDERSON, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

pus, their performance in the classroom, how they approach practice

on a daily level, their support of
each other, their humor and what
they did on our winning run. They
certainly are a gift. But in the end,
they are just young athletes, not
pros, embracing the opportunity
to learn life lessons through sport.
Their only sin being their willingness to compete and represent. That
is what this group is.
Even though the team has the talent to compete in the coming years

CHANGING OF THE GUARD:

Kendall Culbertson 17 (above) battles with an
Amherst defender to gain control of the puck
during Bowdoins first round NESCAC playoff
defeat to Amherst this past weekend. Terry
Meagher (bottom right) gives instructions to
the Polar Bears during a timeout during a regular season game earier this year. The loss likely
marks the end of head coach Terry Meaghers
33-year run as Bowdoin head coach, after he
announced he would retire earlier this year. The
next head coach will have big shoes to fill.

Please see M HOCKEY , page 11

COURTESY OF BOWDOIN COMMUNICATIONS

Womens basketball set to

host, play in NCAA tourney

RISING ABOVE
THE REST: Gabriel
Renaud 16 (center) braces
for a vertical drop during
a race in Munich. Renaud
has risen in the rankings
to become one of the top
64 riders in the world after
only two years of being
on the ice, and currently
ranks 43rd. His last race of
the season was in St. Paul,
Minnesota last weekend
and was attended by as
many as 150,000 people
over the course of the
weekend.

BY MADDIE JODKA
ORIENT STAFF

RED BULL CONTENT POOL, COURTESY OF GAB RENAUD

Renaud 16 continues to improve as

ice cross downhill gains popularity
BY ELI LUSTBADER
ORIENT STAFF

Over the last two winters, Gabriel Renaud 16 has made a flawless transition
from ice hockey to ice cross downhill,
a winter extreme sport that consists of
high speed downhill skating on a course
similar to the luge, but with obstacles.
Renaud has raced in nine different countries in front of crowds that often reach
50,000 people.
The objective of the sport is simple:

make it to the finish line the fastest. However, unlike many winter sports, the riders do not race individually in an attempt
to record the fastest time. Instead, they
are released simultaneously in typically
heats of four, and have to jockey for position at 40 mph over jumps, waves, sharp
turns, and vertical drops. To make matters worse, the ice is often patchy at the
later stages of many multi-race events.
What makes the sport really challenging for me is the ice conditions, Renaud
said. Its not like skating on a rink. A

lot of people will see us on TV and they

think we cant really skate because were
off balance, but this isnt like anything
else. You only have 10 centimeters of steel
touching the ice and one small move can
throw everything off.
Sixty-four riders compete in each
event, and the top two riders in each heat
make it to the next round until the final
round, where the top rider wins the title.
Skaters have been clocked at a top speed

Please see RENAUD , page 11

This week, the Bowdoin womens

basketball team earned an at-large
bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament and will host both the first
and second rounds at Morrell Gymnasium this coming weekend. Although the team lost to Amherst in
the NESCAC semifinals on Saturday,
they get a fresh start this weekend.
This will be Bowdoins 16th
NCAA Tournament appearance,
which is the most of any NESCAC
school. The Polar Bears have only
missed one tournament in the last
16 seasons and have made it to the
Sweet Sixteen 12 times. On Friday
evening, the Polar Bears (20-6) will
face Westfield State (20-7) in the first
round of the NCAA tournament.
Last year, the Polar Bears lost in
NESCAC finals and then made it
to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA
tournament. These results and high
expectations were fresh in the players minds from the beginning of
the season.
It was no secret that the goal was
the NESCAC Championship and
then to go as far as you can in the
NCAAs, said captain Rachel Norton 17. At the same time, I think

we do a really good job of balancing

that with trying to focus on the next
game we are playing. Whichever the
next game is is the most important.
We are just looking to win one game
at a time.
Last weekend, the Polar Bears
went up against Amherst in the NESCAC semifinals but came up short,
losing 63-51. Marle Curle 17 led
the team with 17 points and four
assists, followed by Shannon Brady
16 who finished with 15 points and
six rebounds. Kate Kerrigan 18 was
close behind with seven points and
a team-best 11 rebounds. Amherst
defeated Tufts by one point to win
the NESCAC title the next day. If
Bowdoin advances to the Elite Eight
round in NCAAs, it is possible the
team will meet Amherst again.
Following this loss, Norton believes the team needs to tighten up
rebounding at both ends of the court
and box out better. In addition, she
said that the players will work on
tightening up defense to minimize
mental errors that opponents can
capitalize on.
Despite not achieving that
goal, we took the time to be upset and refocused and watched our

Please see W BASKETBALL , page 11

10

sports

the bowdoin orient

friday, march 4, 2016

Bowdoin Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Club looks to reach the next level

BY ANJULEE BHALLA
ORIENT STAFF

The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Club is branching out and becoming more competitive.
It sent two senior members to the ICON
Sports competition last weekend, one of
the largest Jiu-Jitsu tournaments in Maine.
Phil Koch 15 and Dan Navarro 16 represented the club in the blue belt division
and placed second and fourth respectively,
a strong outing especially considering
their limited competition experience.
"[Phil] and I were not sure how we were
going to do going into it because we were
fighting at blue belt, which is a pretty difficult division and neither of us had done
that before," said Navarro. "The only people we fight are other Bowdoin students,
so it was a little hard to judge how we were
going to compete against these men, a lot
of whom are professional MMA fighters
or amateur boxers or whatever, coming
from all sorts of martial arts experiences,
and we did really well."
Jiu-Jitsu is a submission-based martial
art that focuses on using your opponent's
weight to your advantage and pushing
them past their comfort levels. While the
matches start standing up, most of the
fighting is done on the ground as the fighters use chokes, holds and locks to make
their opponent so uncomfortable they tap
out or are "submitted." Gaining this advantage over your opponent is more about
leverage and tactical maneuvers than
brute strength.
"Part of what I love about the sport is
that it teaches you to use your opponent's
weight against them, so one of the points
of it is that you can beat someone who is
bigger and stronger than you are," said
Elizabeth Miller 18. "Strength is important in this sport, but it's not necessary per
se. So it's just nice to know the ways you

ALEX DOBBIN, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

WELCOMING THE CHALLENGE: Dan Navarro 16 (above) lays down a mat during a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Clubs practice this week. Navarro and Phil Koch 15 have helped grow the club and
recently competed against non-Bowdoin students for the first time.
can handle yourself and have that awareness so that if someone comes up to me in
the street, especially with everything that's
been going on this year, I could hold my
own."
Miller first started Jiu-Jitsu to learn
some basic self-defense moves, which is
a common motivation for newcomers as
the sport's technique focuses on defending
yourself from a larger attacker. However,
Jiu-Jitsu can feel odd and unnatural at first,
especially for those without any wrestling

or martial arts background.

"It was really scary at first and I felt
very awkward, but as you learn you just
get more comfortable with it and more
comfortable with being uncomfortable,"
said Miller. "Everyone is so supportive and
so nice and they're just there to help you. I
love it, I'm so glad I did it."
Perhaps the biggest challenge facing the
club is keeping new members. While the
club has grown substantially since it was
first founded with two members in 2011,

RENAUD

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

KUCERAK/EDMONTON SUN/QMI AGENCY, COURTESY OF GAB RENAUD

MARK ROE PHOTOGRAPHY, COURTESY OF GAB RENAUD

JUST RIDE: (above) Renaud leans around a sharp turn in a race in Edmonton. (below)
Renaud looks to gain an advantage over other riders at the start of a race in Munich. Renaud
just finished his second full season on tour ranked 43rd in the world.

of 51 mph, and the longest recorded

jump was an estimated 27 meters long.
Courses are anywhere between 300 to
600 meters long, and each race is over in
a thirty to sixty second long blur in which
riders can wipe out in any number of
wild ways.
I was racing in Munich and the course
was so fast I ended up doing a totally out
of control 720 without even trying, Renaud said. Other times, though, he hasnt
been so lucky.
My hardest wipeout was probably in
Finland this year. I came into a turn at 35
mph and the ice was so chewed up I just
lost an edge and went straight into the
boards.
Still, Renaud has caught on quickly to
the new sport, and currently ranks 43rd
in the world. Part of his rapid rise has
been his strong background in different
styles of skating. Renaud began playing
ice hockey when he was four, and he and
most of the other top riders in the world
can attribute their success, in part, to a
background in hockey.
Almost everyone in this sport has a
hockey base, because you need to know
how to skate, Renaud said. Red Bull created the sport only a little over fifteen
years ago, which makes everyone on tour
older than the sport itself.
Since the top riders compete in and
travel to so many events together, the
group has developed strong ties despite
fierce competition on the course.
There are like 10 races over the year
and theyre pretty much all with the same
guys. Most of those races take place in a
six week period in Europe in the middle
of the season, and in between those races
Im just hanging out with them so weve
become really good friends and there is a
good camaraderie off the track, he said.
Red Bull sponsors each large event,

for many newcomers the sport can be

daunting and the process of improvement
long and demanding.
"When you come into Jiu-Jitsu, it doesn't
matter how tough you are, it doesn't matter how big you are, the first day you hit the
mat someone's going to submit you and
you're going to feel like you're in danger of
getting hurt and that's a pretty humbling
experience," said Navarro.
"Then to get good at the sport, you really
have to drill it and like any other sport, you

have to do some boring things in practice

and the fun stuff comes after," said Navarro. "My biggest recommendation would
be if you're really interested, come to two
or three practices to try it out before you
really give up, because the people who do
that have all stuck with it."
The club practices three days a week
in the Sargent Dance Studio on the third
floor of Smith Union and welcomes newcomers of all experience levels to contact
Navarro if they're interested.

builds each track and pays the athletes

after the races. According to Renaud,
each track alone costs between $750,000
and two million dollars. Each Red Bull
eventthe entirety of Red Bull events are
known as the Crashed Ice World Championship Series, Crashed Ice for short
usually requires the closure of city streets
for a few weeks.
All the courses are built of scaffolding,
and then they put down these freezing
tubes which are filled with glycol, Renaud said. When this freezes, it creates
cooling mats and they just hose it down
with water on top, which forms the ice.
Its a huge marketing expense for Red
Bull, and all tickets are free.
These events, which all take place in
urban settings and feature the 64 best riders in the world, routinely draw crowds of
up to 50,000 people. Even in Belfast last
year, when Red Bull charged 11 Euros
per ticket, over 40,000 people attended
the event.
One of the frequent locations for
Crashed Ice is Renauds hometown of
Quebec City. The city has hosted an event
almost every year since 2006, and Renaud frequently attended and marveled at
the spectacle when he was younger.
I always knew I wanted to try it out,
he said. It was one of my dreams.
When Renaud arrived at Bowdoin, he
enjoyed a successful first season on the
ice hockey team, and played in 28 of 29
games. However, by the end of the season
he had started to become disenchanted
with the sport he had played for so long,
and felt a pull to branch out into unfamiliar territory.
Sophomore year I tried to qualify
for Crashed Ice and didnt make it so I
trained like crazy over that summer and
won the Chicago qualifier. Then I went to
St. Paul, MN and went on to do well at the
World Championship, he said.
St. Paul is also where Renaud travelled
this past weekend for the last event of

the season. He came into the weekend

ranked 36th in the world, but unfortunately tripped over the waves and was
eliminated in the round of 64, which
bumped him down to 43rd in the world.
On his public Facebook page, Renaud
explained that rollers (waves) were his
weakness this season, and laid out his
goals to practice waves over the summer
and work on improving his balance in
the air.
One of the toughest elements for Renaud has been balancing the travel schedule with being a full time student.
I almost took this semester offI was
really close, he said. However, when my
schedule came out I was so glad because
I knew that I would be able to graduate
on time.
Renauds first race this year was over
Thanksgiving Break, and though he was
still traveling across Europe for a week
after the current semester began, he was
able to arrange with his professors a way
to get caught up with classes.
In terms of the future of ice cross
downhill, there is a chance that it may
become an Olympic spectator sport by
2018, and Renaud hopes to still be racing
when it happens.
Ive been doing the sport for two
years, and Im still young compared to
most riders, he said. The average age is
like 25 or 26. I know that I can still improve a lot more.
I think one of my favorite parts about
these events is when youre up at the top
of a track, about to start a race, and you
see so many people cheering, the music is
so loud and the lights are all around you.
Just an awesome feeling..
In addition to working tirelessly to improve his own skills on the track, Renaud
has also spent recent summers bringing
the sport to young kids back home. He
is also working to bring an event to New
England, which he hopes will materialize
in the coming years.

friday, march 4, 2016

the bowdoin orient

ALEX DOBBIN, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

M HOCKEY
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

without Meagher, it will have to

work hard to continue the high standards of success that Meagher has
implemented during the past three
decades. The formation change
from a three-front to a three-back
system with a group of players who
had no experience with the new
lineup shows the dedication and talent of the team.
This team highlighted the importance of mentoring and leadership, Meagher said. We got this
thing going because of the cooperation, support and talent of our leaders. We were able to pull everybody
together and inspire through their
own performance and their own
play. The quintessential leadership,
maturity and development that I
think would be a model for any team
to follow.
Hockey, in particular in the NESCAC, has evolved greatly over
Coach Meaghers time at Bowdoin.
Like all Division III teams, the competition has been steadily improving
as the athletes continue to grow in

MUCH TO BE
PROUD OF:
Despite a disappointing
loss in the first round of
the NESCAC playoffs, the
mens hockey team is
still very young and rode
a 10-game unbeaten
streak into the playoffs.
Head coach Terry
Meagher described the
team as a gift to coach
in his final season.

talent, numbers and age, as it is now

the norm for students to take at least
one gap year before matriculating
into college.
Hockey in particular has seen
this shift due to the lack of Division III teams throughout the country. The number of players wanting
to play in the NESCAC has grown
tremendously in the past three decades, but the number of teams has
stayed stagnant. The result has been
a higher concentration of talented
players eager to attend NESCAC
schools for both their athletic and
academic offerings.
I think the major program
change has been the emphasis on
recruiting and finding athletes who
are the right fit, said Coach Meagher. First and foremost it has to be an
academic fit, it has to be a character
fit and it has to be a talent fit. So the
amount of recruiting required and
how early recruiting has taken place
has been a big change.
Coach Meagher will be missed,
but he has given this team the tools
and the mentality to carry on the
legacy for success, both on and off
the ice, for the future of the program.

CRUNCH TIME:
Taylor Choate 19 shoots a
breakaway layup during a
Bowdoin home game. There
is no longer any margin
for error for the womens
basketball team as they
welcome Westfield State in
the first round of the NCAA
tournament this weekend.
ABBY MOTYCKA, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

W BASKETBALL
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

film. Now [we are just focused] on

NCAAs and moving forward from
there, said Norton of the teams loss
last weekend.
While the goal in the NCAA
Tournament is of course to get as far
as possible, the Polar Bears are extremely focused on the first round
against Westfield. Westfield plays
a unique and different game, using
what is called the Grinnell System.
The Owls will look to instill a chaotic tempo, force a lot of turnovers
and switch five players in out every
one or two minutes.
Its definitely something we
havent seen, said Assistant Coach
Toby Martin. So were very focused
on the up-tempo game this week.
With that said, our big focus is just
taking care of the ball and knowing that going into the game, we are
going to make mistakes...But if we
can just take care of [the ball] and
be composed and play our game
throughout the craziness, then well
be okay.
Theyre going to look to be putting us in a frenzy, added Norton.
One of the biggest keys for us is
to stay composed and not get into
this crazy running back and forth

and make sure we play the tempo

we want to play and not the tempo
theyre trying to force.
According to Norton, the Polar
Bears will hope to make the right
decisions about when to push the
tempo because they like to run,
but with a team like Westfield,
the goal will be to slow the tempo down.
The Polar Bears are excited to host
the tournament with home court
advantage. Not only is it preferable
to not have to travel, but Brady, the
teams lone senior, has one more opportunity to play at home.
Our team has worked so hard
this year, and I think they all deserve to play at home again, to play
in front of their family and friends,
said Martin.
Bowdoin will host three different
teams in total this weekend. Today,
NYU will play Lehman College at 5
p.m., and Bowdoin will follow at 7
p.m. against Westfield. On Saturday,
the winners of the first-round games
will play at 7 p.m.
I think we really have progressed, said Martin. Were exactly
where we want to be, and I think
weve definitely met expectations,
and I think were hoping to exceed
them this weekend and hopefully in
the upcoming weeks.

sports

11

12

the bowdoin orient

OPINION
Out of focus

he students who hosted the tequila party received a harsh punishment from
the administration. While some of the disciplinary measures seem productivethey will participate in an educational program facilitated by a faculty
member, attend Active Bystander training and write a letter or paper on these experiencesother aspects of their punishment seem arbitrary. They were forced to
move out of their room in Stowe Hall and relocate to doubles in Chamberlain Hall
and they are banned from Ivies and Spring Gala. Whats more, Bowdoin Student
Government (BSG) is moving forward with impeachment proceedings against two
of its members who attended the party. While we have concerns about the impeachment proceedings and believe that aspects of the current punishments miss the
mark, the details of the disciplinary actions are not the most important parts of
this conversation.
It is concerning that the disagreement over punitive measures seems to be overshadowing the larger-scale problems and tensions on campus, both related and tangential to the tequila party and its predecessors. It is troubling, too, that many
seem to focus on rumors about the exact details of who wore what to the tequila
party. This diversion is crowding out the opportunity to think critically about why
some Latinx students (and other students of color) feel disrespected and hurt by this
incident in the first place. Last week, we wrote that regardless of what one thinks of
the rules or the ways they are enforced, the focus in the wake of an event like this
should be on listening and creating an environment that is welcoming to students
who have historically felt unwanted and disrespected here.
Free speech is a right, but it does not excuse us from from being held accountable
for the things we say and do by others who are exercising the same right. Free speech
is necessary and important. However, if you want to be taken seriously, you must be
as willing to hear others opinions as you are to dole out your own.
Despite the conversations weve already had, its clear there is still no solid consensus on campus about what defines hurtful ethnic stereotyping. That said, the
onus should not be placed only on students of color to repeatedly educate others
about systemic oppression and racism. Every Bowdoin student should have the opportunity to grow and succeed in this institution without having to bear the additional burden of repeatedly explaining to others why they deserve the respect of
their peers.
It is reasonable to be conflicted about some of the issues raised by the tequila
party. There may be more questions than answers and we are unlikely to reach a
campus-wide consensus. Students of colorwho do not have a choice about whether or not to care about race at a white majority collegehave repeatedly expressed
that this conversation is inherently painful, uncomfortable and unavoidable. This
discomfort is a choice that white students have the responsibility to lean into.
This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orients editorial
board, which is comprised of Julian Andrews, John Branch, Jono Gruber, Matthew
Gutschenritter, Emma Peters, Meg Robbins, Nicole Wetsman and Emily Weyrauch.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

In 1833, French-Peruvian writer and social activist Flora Tristn (Paul Gauguins grandmother) traveled to Peru to see for the first time her fathers country. There, on the front steps of the
Cathedral of Arequipa, a city in southern Peru, she witnessed the staging of a theatrical play. It
was a religious drama intertwined with a ferocious anti-Semitic diatribe. Having been raised in
nineteenth-century France, anti-Semitism wasnt new to Flora. What was rather surprising to
her was discovering that the anti-Jew discourse was pervasive, ubiquitous and extremely vile in
a country (my country) where there had never been a Jewish community. It was proof that racial
and ethnic bigotry does not need a real, bone-and-flesh enemy in order to exist. Racism in all
its versions is a negative impulse in search of a victim; it is devoid of rationality, able to invent its
victims when there are none and it becomes dangerous when it finds them. Stereotypes want to
present themselves as rooted in reality, but they are always a distorted addition to the real world.
The drive towards stereotyping is previous to the stereotyped object; it is a rejection of reason
which replaces reason with idiocy and a mediocre pseudo-rationality. It is an aberration of rational thought and of humanism in its wider sense and, because of that, it contradicts all that is
to be cultivated in an institution like Bowdoin College.
Gustavo Favern-Patriau
Associate Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures
Director of the Latin American Studies Program
To the Editor:
On Sunday, March 6 at 2 p.m. Brunswick Democrats will caucus at the Brunswick Junior
High. Its a day to engage in grassroots work and to make your Presidential preference known.
We will select delegates to the Democrat State convention and conduct the business that keeps a
local Democratic party functioning throughout the year.
We encourage Bowdoin students to participate but note that you must be a registered Democrat in Brunswick to do so. If you are not currently registered to vote or enrolled in a party, you
may do so at the Town Clerks office in Town Hall, which is located at 85 Union St., next to Hannafords on any weekday between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. or at the caucus. The caucus doors will
open at 1 pm to accommodate those who wish to register to vote there. But we encourage you do
register in advance to avoid long lines and to assure that you are registered in time to participate
in the caucus when it convenes at 2 p.m.
We look forward to the active participation of Bowdoin students in this years caucus. See
you there!
Sincerely,
Trish Riley, Chair of Brunswick Town Democratic Committee
Amanda Bennett 17, Co-President of the Bowdoin Democrats

friday, march 4, 2016

Racism towards any

group hurts us all
On Oscars jokes and the pervasive
nature of Asian stereotyping.
Although I had promised myself I would set aside time to watch the Oscars this Sunday, I predictably ended up in the library, holed up in my carrel. Struggling to finish the
work I had put off over the weekend, I periodically checked the news for updates on
the ceremony as a tentative procrastination strategy.
The end result was that I only viewed the highlights from the show after all the hype
had died down and after I had seen all the GIFs of Leo winning. I
had looked forward to watching Chris Rock perform as host of the BY SUE SIM
awards ceremony. I was hoping that he would offer incisive criti- OPED CONTRIBUTOR
cism of the predominantly white pool of nominees and the deeprooted obstacles for minorities in the film industry.
Instead, one of the first headlines I saw addressed Rocks Asian joke. During the
ceremony, Rock had introduced three Asian children, two boys and one girl, as the
Oscars accountants and named them Ming Zu, Bao Ling and David Moskowitz.
The kids were dressed in suits and held briefcases. Rock finished by adding, If anybodys upset about that joke, just tweet about it on your phone that was also made by
these kids.
Rocks skit exploits the idea of the model minority, or the stereotype that Asians
are diligent workers and excellent students. On the surface, these representations
seem positive. And yet, the label is often associated with the negative implications that
Asians are quiet and subservient. First of all, any sort of generalization is detrimental.
Lumping swaths of people into easy categories is unproductive. In addition, in a society that increasingly values individual entrepreneurship and unconventional thinking,
the branding of Asians as drones of the system is ultimately harmful. These claims
that Asians are the successful minority disguise the inequalities that we still face and
push our concerns to the sidelines.
My initial reaction was frustration, with a healthy dose of anger. In a ceremony
spearheaded by Chris Rock that targeted racism in Hollywood, the host and his writers
believed that a joke playing into Asian stereotypes (with a tinge of anti-Semitism) was
appropriate. Watching those kids on stage, who looked entirely lost, act as silent props
and as the butt of a pretty distasteful joke, I felt like we were taking one step back from
any progress that we had made that evening.
These thoughts are part of a larger debate that I have
struggled with regarding the uncertain position of AsianAmericans in the current discussions of race. My confusion
had begun to take root with the protests over the arrest of
former NYPD officer Peter Liang. I believe that his conviction of manslaughter should not be contested; Liang
is undoubtedly guilty of the killing of Akai Gurley.
However, the arrest brought its share of controversy
when people asked why the only police officer to be
convicted was Asian, despite the fact that other officers in similar situations had not been punished.
The Asian joke in the Oscars ceremony only fueled
these doubts and compounded the sense that AsianAmericans are excluded in many ways from todays
conversation about race. There seems to be little space to
discuss the model minority, which holds an uncomfortable
middle ground because of a brand that sets us apart from
other minorities and yet offers none of the true privileges
that come with being white.
These days, I am exasperated by requests for Asian-Americans to step up to the plate and spark their own dialogue
about the unique challenges they face as a minority, primarily
because I have no idea how these conversations would even
begin. In fact, a small part of me feels that initiating a new
debate might detract from the united front of larger national
movements, but I know that this opinion cannot be justified.
The discussion of race cannot be a binary argument. There
are so many multi-faceted and nuanced divisions among different minorities and within minorities themselves,
and all of them deserve equal exposure. But maybe
some people will read this and groan, Not another article about issues of race. That is distressing
as well, to think that people are tired of hearing of
your problems.
The confusion I feel absolutely does not undermine my
own whole-hearted support of race equality and of
the powerful movements sweeping our country
today. However, that small voice in my head that
asks where I myself stand, as a Korean-American, has grown louder and more strident.
Sue Sim is a member of the class of 2016.

DIANA FURUKAWA

friday, march 4, 2016

the bowdoin orient

opinion

13

Gratitude and speaking out for change arent mutually exclusive

CAROLINE MARTINEZ

SAY IT LIKE IT IS

Since organizing efforts for Michael Brown began last year, students
of color at Bowdoin have become
vocal in ways that Id never seen my
freshman and sophomore year here.
There is more that needs to be done.
It seems like this keeps being repeated
over and over again, but for as many
times as it is has been said, there is
someone saying that we should just
be grateful that were here and suck
it up.
In the past years, elite colleges have

changed their demographics by giving out more generous financial aid

and making stronger efforts to reach
out to underrepresented groups. I
found out about Bowdoin when I was
in high school because it was on an
online list of colleges with a no loan
policy. Colleges with no loan policies
have a financial aid packet that expects no parental contribution if the
student is from a low-income family
and only includes grants. Those policies have given many low-income students the opportunity to attend elite
schools like Bowdoin.
The fact that it was possible for me
to come to one of the top schools in
the country even though I was a low-

income student seemed like a miracle.

I felt extremely grateful.
But now were here as low-income
students and students of color, and
Bowdoin, like many colleges across
the country, doesnt seem to know
what to do with us. In the past, Bowdoin has had a lower graduation rate
for blacks and Latinos compared to
white students. There are constant
racial tensions. Women of color are
the most dissatisfied group on campus. There are still economic barriers for low-income students when
they come here, despite the financial
aid thats offered. I remember asking someone on my first-year floor
if I could borrow their OneCard and

pay them back because I didnt have

any money to do my laundry. I had
to wait for pay day, which if youre a
working student at Bowdoin, is a big
deal. I was lucky enough to only have
to support myself and not have to
work to send money home like other
students at Bowdoin have had to do.
I am grateful for Bowdoins efforts to try to even the playing field.
I have benefited from many of them,
like the funded internships that the
Career Planning Center gives to students each summer. But I also feel
that my sense of gratitude has kept
me and many students quiet for a
while, and now that were speaking out, there seems to be a type

of backlash.
Students of color who want their
elite institutions to change have
been painted as privileged, whiny
kids. There is an attitude of, Shut
up and be grateful. Do I need to be
more grateful than other students
that Im here? Am I not supposed to
want to change a place just because
its elite?
Students of color in colleges
across the country are saying, Were
here. And were not leaving or staying quiet. Elitist colleges like Bowdoin might have been made for
white privileged males, but were
making them ours. This is scary to
many, but for me, its about time.

Im caucusing for Bernie because hes the one who shares my values
JULIA MEAD

LEFT OF LIPSTICK
I dont know if youve ever thought
about my column title. I dont very
often, but I did choose it for a reason. Left means Left politics: redistribution of wealth and privileging the interests of labor over those
of capital. Basically, Im a socialist.
Lipstick is about femininity. To be
left of it is to critique it from a feminist perspective. This has turned
into a lot of writing about reproduction and patriarchy.
So, given this two-pronged ideology and the fact that the primary is
right around the corner (March 6!),
who am I voting for?
Im voting for Bernie. Are you
surprised? Didnt think so.
Who young women are voting
for (or should be voting for) has
been the subject of much chatter
from public figures and think pieces recently. Some of it is insightful.

Most of it is silly. There was Gloria

Steinems much decontextualized
comment on Bill Mahers (insufferable, misogynistic) show about
young women supporting Bernie because thats where the boys are and
Madeleine Albrights comment that
there is a special place in hell for
women who dont support women.
Neither of these bothers me much.
Both are far less antagonistic than
the sound bites make them seem.
Also, its not really how Im thinking about the election. What issues
keep me up at night? Reproductive
rights, definitely. The loss of access
to abortion is happening right now
for women across the country, and
Hillary does have a stellar record on
womens health. But heres what else
keeps me up: climate change. If we
dont have a president who will push
on climate, wereto put it delicatelyfucked. Climate change is not an
opportunity to revamp American
innovation or some such nonsense,
its a lethal catastrophe and a moral
failing, most strongly affecting peo-

ple of color. It is caused by the fossil

fuel industry and is unfolding in real
time. Bernie knows this, but Hillary
has had to be pushed into a reasonable climate policy by hardworking
organizers. On racial justice, too,
Bernie is stronger. And on taxation,
on campaign finance reform and
funding education.
These are issues that affect young
people, and generational solidarity matters.
For a while we were amped up
about Bernie Bros. (Is that fading? I hope thats fading.) The Bernie Bro is a fictive creature. Yes,
sexism within the Left is real and
long standing. The radical womens
movement of the late 60s and 70s
was born out of the misogyny in the
anti-Vietnam War and Civil Rights
movements. But our weary fixation
on the Bernie Bro overshadows the
real reasons young people of all
genders support Sanders. Unlike
so many alleged pragmatists, we,
young Sanders supporters, have internalized that deregulated capital-

ism leads to inequality that is

unjust and unstable. A financial collapse like the one that
happened in 2008 can, and
probably will, happen again.
Were looking at our future
seriously, and were scared.
I dont think Bernie is
starting a revolution. Running for office within an existing political structure is by
definition not a revolution. I
think Bernies claim, or more
likely, his staff s claim, of
starting a revolution is goofy.
I dont need a revolution; I
need a functioning, active
government that will exercise
its power for the good of its citizenry.
Democratic socialism isnt sexy, but
its just.
If Hillary wins the primaryand
Im realistic enough to realize she
probably willI will eagerly vote
for her. Ill phone bank for her. Ill
canvas for her. Maybe Ill even get a
bumper sticker. Because, as Distinguished Lecturer Susan Faludi point-

DIANA FURUKAWA

ed out in her recent New York Times

op-ed, were a Republican to be electedany of themthe policies that
are so important for women (not to
mention people of color, immigrants
and anyone outside of the highest tax
brackets) would be eviscerated. We
cant afford that. But in the primary,
Im going to vote my conscience. Im
voting for Bernie.

Who should we blame: an assessment of guilt in Trumpism

DAVID JIMENEZ

MINDLESS PONTIFICATING
The night of Super Tuesday was, to
put it mildly, a surreal one. There was
the utter shock of returns showing a
vulgar, ex-Democrat, thrice-married
casino owner sweeping to victory in the
heart of the Bible Belt. No longer could
I hope that the mass of the Republican
electorate would rightly discern the
wheat from the chaff. Even the Cape
Cod hamlet of Chatham, a place I assumed to be a bastion of Rockefeller
Republicanism after a long weekend of
barnstorming there for the Kasich campaign, went for the Donald.
The degree to which legitimate, if
profoundly misdirected, anger drives
support for Trump makes me less comfortable offering a sweeping condemnation of his voters. But the more unsettling question for our nation is how
Trumpism is an indictment of us all. It
has revealed our tolerance for civic illiteracy, crass moral utilitarianism and
contempt for authoritative journalistic
institutions. Globalization, racial prejudice and the allure of populism cannot
alone explain the Trump phenomenon.
At its heart, as Eliot Cohen points out in
a stunning American Interest essay, is
the moral rot of our republic.
Trumps recent success is undoubtedly our nations chickens coming

home to roost in our passiveness to the

responsibility of education for citizenship. A 2012 Xavier University study
found that one in three native-born citizens would fail the test required in citizenship applications. Strong majorities
of Americans could not name their U.S.
Senators, identify the role of the judicial
branch, recall two
amendments in the
Bill of the Rights or
define the rule of
law. Only a nation
with such civic illiteracy, covered as it
still is with Honor
Roll student car
bumper stickers,
could a mass of
voters consider a
candidate with expressed sympathy
for foreign authoritarian strongmen,
endorsement
of
w at e r b o a r d i n g
and a hell of a lot worse and a history of
bullying through violence and lawsuits
against those using their First Amendment rights to criticize him. Given our
educational privilege attending Bowdoin, it is easy to snicker about this. But
in all honesty, how much attention after
graduation will we give to the condition
of our local school boards? Will we even
know the names of their members?
How proactive will we be beyond social

media about the state of education in

our own communities?
The increasing warmth towards Trump
by a range of Republican establishment
figures sheds further light on a contemporary mindset of vulgar utilitarianism.
I have little doubt that people like Chris
Christie or Jeff Sessions feel uncomfortable
with Trumps racial pandering,
vulgarity or incoherent policy
proposals. But
supposedly good
ends prescribed
by a persons
ideology, in this
case the election
of a Republican
president and
the defeat of
Hillary Clinton,
allow them to
accept whatever
DIANA FURUKAWA means to achieve
it. Make America Great Againwith as minimal moral
qualms about getting there as possible.
I too, like Hugh Hewitt, share his urgent
concern about appointing conservative
judges to the Supreme Court. But even
that good end, as the conservative evangelical essayist Matthew Lee Anderson
writes, does not match the price of support for a chronic liar who knows how
to distance himself just enough from the
racist underbelly of American life. The

Republican establishments potential

Faustian pact with Trump might be extreme, but is their moral calculus about
the supremacy of ends and flexibility of
means much different from that of most
Americans, particularly those in positions
of power? And lest you think such a cult
of utility is the work of evil Republicans
read about Clinton cronyism and the
Democratic Partys destructive, corrupt
management of countless American cities
and ask if moral rot cannot best describe
these operations.
And if Trump were ever to be tried
in court, the media would no doubt be
his accomplice. Legitimate criticisms
can be made of the elitism or privilege
of the media of 50 years ago, but no one
could ever imagine Walter Cronkite degrading his programming into a circus
special on Trump. The slow decline of
established periodicals and their readership has not led to a flourishing of
more open discourse, but rather informational chaos with minimal interest
in good taste, objectivity or disciplined
research. On the right, the Wall Street
Journal and National Review vanish for
Breitbart and talk radio. On the left, the
New York Times recedes into BuzzFeed
and Huffington Post (though thankfully
the recent flourishing of the Atlantic offers a kernel of hope). This decline in
our intellectual life was exemplified in
the recent destruction of the New Republic by Facebook CEO Chris Hughes,
who tried to turn one of the nations pil-

lars of liberal intellectual thought into a

profit-driven digital media company
modeled on Silicon Valley rather than
the magazines own history. Only Donald Trump could be the perfect bard of a
media age where no standard is too sacred to uphold and no story too ridiculous to ignore.
I am as much a victim of these three
vices as anyone. I do not know the
Constitution as well I should. I apply a
results-driven calculus for far too many
of my choices. I accept brief daily scannings through my news apps on my
phone as evidence of being informed.
All of us have quietly contributed to the
monstrosity of Trumpism that will forever tarnish Americas rightful mantle
of global leadership.
Anderson movingly writes that the
Trumpian disregard for the truth and
the virtue is a cancer that has beset us all:
Trump is a candidate for our time, a fitting
judgment upon us who magnifies our sins
and our vices. He may be a caricature; but
he is a parody of us, a morality tale whose
meaning we should heed. Trumpism reminds us that the American experiments
survival cannot depend alone on the
achievements of any politician or movement. It is instead, as Jefferson wrote, in
the manners and spirit of a people which
preserve a republic in vigor. Let us indeed
heed Lincolns warning, that if destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of free men
we will live forever or die by suicide.

14

opinion

the bowdoin orient

friday, march 4, 2016

The ownership of cultures is not a simple matter of race and ethnicity

The notion of political correctness limits the cultural melting pot
BY FRANCISCO NAVARRO
OPED CONTRIBUTOR

What type of bubble do we want Bowdoin

to be? In light of the recent reaction to the
tequila party, I write this article because as
a Latino I believe it is my responsibility to
be a voice of respectful dissent. Whether you
agree or disagree with me, this campus needs
more diversity of opinion.
My complete name is Francisco Nestor Navarro Tamargo. I was born in Miami, Florida, to Cuban parents, but I spent the first fifteen years of my life living in Mexicothree
years in Mexico City and twelve in Merida,
Yucatan. Subsequently, I completed my high
school years in Bayou Country, Thibodaux,
Louisiana, which I now proudly call home. I
am bi-lingual and multicultural, and I do not
believe that the tequila party was an act of
cultural misappropriation and deserving of
punitive measures for the students involved.
Every single one of us is immensely privileged. We live in a great country and attend
a magnificent college. We are very fortunate that the single most pressing issue we
face, which has divided this campus, is one
of race. None of our lives are in danger and
none of our rights have been denied. But
race-related issues are a problem, and this
one must be addressed.
Lets start with the facts. A group of mostly
white students organized a Mexican-themed
party in which they drank tequila and wore
sombreros. The only irrefutable fault I see,

worthy of punitive measures, is that they disobeyed the hard alcohol ban. The rest of the
actions were not acts of bias or misappropriation. Simply because the students were
not Mexican does not prohibit them from
wearing sombreros and drinking tequila.
Sombreros, ponchos, tequila, among other
things, are parts of Mexican culture, but they
do not define it. Culture is not constrained
to objects. I understand the frustration of
those who think that the party mocked Mexican culture by limiting it to those few objects. The party demonstrated ignorance because the Mexican culture is so much richer
than that. But just because the culture was
not fully represented does not mean it was
an act of misappropriation, nor does it mean
the students at the party should be punished.
Last semester, the Catholic Student Union,
of which I am a part, organized a mass and
party celebrating the feast day of Our Lady
of Guadalupe. She is the patron mother of
Mexico and more important to Mexican
culture than any sombrero. It was a beautiful event during which students of all races
and cultures united, sang songs in Spanish,
and ate Mexican food. That day culture was
celebrated, not misappropriated.
Moreover, to say that ones culture is limited only to that which you were born into is
wrong. Every day I live Cuban culture, which
was passed down by my family. Every day I
live Mexican culture, which I assimilated into
and fell in love with over the course of my fifteen years in Mexico. Every day I live American

culture, which I have had the privilege of being

born into geographically and living in the last
four years. The United States is a melting pot of
cultures, and no person can limit another from
participating in it. To say that the students at the
tequila party dont have the right to partake in
another culture because they are white or have
not been historically marginalized against is
ludicrous. May I remind you of No
Irish Need Apply? Every year,
people who are not Irish
or Scottish participate
in parades and parties
in which they wear
fake red beards or kilts.
For instance, a Mexican
wearing a kilt does not infringe the safety of a Scottish person.
Lastly, I love Bowdoin
and I want all it has to offer. But other students and I
cannot live out the offer to
its fullest and carry the keys
of the worlds library if the
library we have access to is not
of the world, but of the bubble.
We should be physically safe, but
we should not create a homogeneous bubble of intellectually safe
space. True diversity goes beyond
skin color.
Francisco Navarro is a member of
the class of 2019.

DIANA FURUKAWA

Responding to my critics and expanding the conversation

BY RICHARD ARMS

OPED CONTRIBUTOR

Hey, its methat anonymous coward who emailed Barstool last week. I
want to make it clear that I do not condone the individual calling out of students on campus, and that I regret any
pain that was caused by certain other
online articles. However, after the Barstool article came out, I noticed various
people on Yik Yak and Facebook were
choosing to criticize me for my anonymity, rather than for my opinions.
No, I did not attend any of the open
discussions on campus in the past two
weeks, nor did anyone who disagrees
with the administration, as far as Im
aware. Theres a reason for that, and its
not because we dont exist. I want you to
imagine walking into a room of 100 outraged students who youve never spoken
to before. Now, imagine standing up in
front of this group and saying that you
disagree with them, knowing you may
well be the only person in the room who
feels that way. Would you do it?
Let me tell you a little bit about myself. I grew up in a small suburb about
30 minutes outside of the great city of
Boston. I attended a small, Catholic, allboys, conservative private school from
seventh grade through graduationa
school that was about 90 percent white.
I am mostly of English and Irish decent and my family has lived in this
country for about three centuries. I am
also a registered Republican. No, I did
not attend the party. No, I am not being disciplined.
When I arrived at Bowdoin last fall,
one of the first things I learned about
this place was that my opinion wasnt
welcome here. Even around my friends,
I found myself constantly ganged up on
in political arguments. My opinion was
a joke to themin fact, I considered
myself the victor of any argument that
ended in the opposition laughing at me,

rather than continuing to argue.

It was at that point that I stopped
talking about my views and beliefs, because I realized that there is no winning
those arguments. People here didnt take
me seriouslythey already had their
thoughts and ideas, and they were not
willing to change them. And that is fine.
If you dont agree with me, it isnt my job
to change your mindI couldnt care
less about what you think.
But that is why I didnt raise my hand
in class and share my opinion, and its
also why I didnt go to any of these socalled discussions. (I say so-called
because I dont think you should be
able to call it a discussion if only one
side of the issue is represented.) You
have to understand how numbingly intimidating it would be for someone like
me to walk into a room full of people
who, according to our administration,
hold the majority opinion and share
my thoughts.
Even when people share conservative opinions anonymously on Yik Yak,
they are ridiculed and treated like their
opinion is absurd. One post I saw epitomized this idea: I wish I knew who
was voting for **** at Bowdoin so that
I would know who to stay away from.
The fact that students here look at dissenting opinions like this is incredibly
contradictory to what Bowdoin claims
to represent. Youre supposed to want to
have your ideas challengedthats how
we create our own opinions. You arent
educated on an issue if you only know
one side of it.
But the student body wanted a name
attached to these viewpoints, so here I
am. If people who refuse to be challenged
judge me or call me a racist for thinking
that there was nothing wrong with the
tequila party, so be it. Im going to say
something that might shock you: I have
never been offended in my life. In fact, I
really dont know what being offended
means. (Wow this kid really needs to

check his privilege.)

I understand I was born into privilege. However, I didnt choose to be born
into a white family or go to a white high
school, thats just how my life is. Just
because Im seemingly more fortunate
than other people doesnt mean I should
be brushed aside as another kid who
just doesnt get it. I want to get it. I wish
I understoodit would probably make
this whole situation a lot easier. But the
fact of the matter is that nothing in my
life has even remotely prepared me for
dealing with this kind of problem. My
parents never taught me that I cant participate in other culturesthe piatas
at every one of my birthday parties can
speak to that.
My high school administrations biggest problem was kids getting into fights
at parties, not kids being hurt over their
culture being used. Offensive is the last
word I would have used to describe the
tequila party email invitation when I
received it, and thats not because Im
racist or intolerantits because Im a
product of how I grew up. And of the
people who Im close friends with who
attended the party, I know this is true
of them as well. How they could possibly have been expected to know that
this could be construed as offensive is
beyond me.
But our administration thinks that it
is their fault. In fact, they think it is so
much their fault that they are willing to
give social probation to someone who
attended the party and was seen in a picture wearing a sombrero. Punishments
were given without any opportunity for
students to defend themselves. The girls
who threw the party are being kicked
out of their room and forced to move, as
well as being placed on social probation.
Anyone who attended also received an
official reprimand from Dean of Student
Affairs Tim Foster.
The way the administration handled
this investigation is nothing short of

comical. They didnt even have a final list

of students who attended the party until
Monday, when my letter to Barstool surfaced. The fact that they didnt even ask
the attendees their opinion of the event
is ludicrous. The administration assumes
that just because someone was in a room
with people wearing sombreros, it means
they are actively participating in offensive
ethnic stereotyping.
Where is the rule in the social code
that says you cant wear a sombrero?
When did anyone from the school ever
tell us that throwing a tequila-themed
party is wrong? When did anyone from
the school ever tell us that wearing a
sombrero is wrong? Yet these students
are expected, just because they attend
this school, to know exactly where
the invisible line in the sand is, and to
magically understand exactly what is
and isnt offensive.
If you want to create this culture on
campus, you have to do it through education of everyone, not through disciplining
ignorance. In the Bias Incident Response
Protocol, it clearly states that there is no
bright line, and that any discipline will
be based on the judgment of the deans.
How can you possibly put someone on
social probation for a judgment call? Who
gave the administration the right to decide whats wrong? Why do you think you
can punish students for acting contrary to
your beliefs? Why do you think its OK to
mandate how vulnerable 18-22-year-olds
should be thinking?
I think its important for this campus
and administration to understand that
there are other kinds of diversity than just
racial and cultural. Intellectual diversity,
differences in opinions and beliefs, is what
shapes our generation, and this mixture
of diversity is what will leave a lasting impression for generations to come. The reason intellectual diversity exists is because
there is an infinite variety of ways to think
about every issue, and people weigh specific parts of each issue differently based

on their background and the information

they have readily available to them. Just
because you feel like you know you are
right doesnt mean that you are, or that a
right answer even exists.
I think it is wrong for students to want
to be protected from certain viewpoints
and opinions. The First Amendment is an
extremely important part of our country,
and it is what has created a variety of phenomenal places for academic engagement
and intellectual discourse. If you dont
want to listen to me about it, listen to this
quote from President Barack Obama:
Its not just sometimes folks who are
mad that colleges are too liberal that have
a problem. Sometimes there are folks on
college campuses who are liberal, and
maybe even agree with me on a bunch of
issues, who sometimes arent listening to
the other side, and thats a problem too.
Ive heard some college campuses where
they dont want to have a guest speaker
who is too conservative or they dont want
to read a book if it has language that is
offensive to African-Americans or somehow sends a demeaning signal towards
women. I gotta tell you, I dont agree with
that either. I dont agree that you, when
you become students at colleges, have to
be coddled and protected from different
points of view. I think you should be able
to anybody who comes to speak to you
and you disagree with, you should have
an argument with em. But you shouldnt
silence them by saying, You cant come
because Im too sensitive to hear what you
have to say. Thats not the way we learn
either.
I hope this article does its job in giving
a voice to many students here who feel
like they arent allowed to have an opinion, educate people about the other side
of the issue and maybe create a less hostile environment for minority opinions
on campus.
Richard Arms is a member of the class
of 2018.

friday, march 4, 2016

the bowdoin orient

opinion

15

Punitive measures not the best way forward Criticisms of political

correctness are no excuse
BY JOE LACE

OPED CONTRIBUTOR

In no way do I condone the blatant degradation of minorities, especially by those long

considered a part of the dominant culture. I
detest the misrepresentation of those given
no voice, those robbed of their individual
liberties and human rights.
I am a white, heterosexual, cisgender
male. I practice Christianity and hold traditionally conservative views. In other words,
I have tremendous, uninhibited privilege. It
is with this privilege that I attend Bowdoin
and have access to an elite education.
Thats rightBowdoin College, a leading and prestigious academic institution. A
place abound with spaces and environments
meant to further the growth and development of all who attend. A place with nearly
limitless means to attain and pursue any
educationally necessary end.
That is why, given the nature of the
tequila party, the gangster party and
Cracksgiving, I find myself perplexed by the
record of administrative response to student
strife. Each incident has been met with a degree of punitive justice, entailing a breadth
of reprimands and social probations. Even
so, these events continue to happen.
Who would have thought, given the
backlash the sailing team faced last fall, that
anything like the gangster party could
happen again? But here we are, faced with
another Statement of Solidarity, more social
probations and the regurgitation of sentiment from relevant administrators.
I understand the use of punitive force
in response to these events. Meeting each
wrongdoing with what is deemed to be an
equal and opposite corrective action makes

sense. Historically, humans embrace taking an eye for an eye and attaining their
pound of flesh; a quick, firm disciplinary
measure can accomplish this.
But does this ever actually teach us about
the emotional harm of ethnic stereotyping?
What can be found in punishment other
than a new knowledge of what is not to be
done and, for that matter, how to avoid being punished for those actions deemed reprehensible? Had the Tequila Party never
surfaced on social media, had no invitation
ever circulated, could it have, theoretically,
gone entirely unnoticed? Who is to say a
party wont fall within those guidelines in
the future? The students might not get in
trouble or even be found out, thus leaving
them unpunished and, more importantly,
unaware of the harm in their actions.
Whats more, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) is currently considering articles
of impeachment for two representatives of
the assembly who attended the tequila
party. If disciplinary measures taken by the
administration were not enough, one universally elected group of students is now
considering removing two of its own.
With a two-thirds majority, BSG can act
on actions already punished by Bowdoins
administration, thus making the assembly
punitive in nature and essentially an extension of the deans office. As it relates to legitimate expulsion, BSGs Constitution offers
only, A member may be removed from the
Assembly by a two-thirds vote of the Assembly (Article 7, Section 4, Clause a). Removal from office is unprecedented on BSG;
expelling these representatives would mean
action based on previously unwritten rules
and undefined boundaries.
I challenge BSG and all administrators to

act, instead, in the name of restorative justice and of proactive measures with regards
to inequality and injustice. Restorative justice means meeting offenses with a focus on
rehabilitation through reconciliation, both
with the victims and with the community
at large. An example of rehabilitation might
be mandated educational experiences for
those accused, something BSG espoused in
its Statement of Solidarity released last week.
Another approach could be basic face-toface confrontation between the offenders
and offended, something one of the accused
representatives did long before learning
their official punishment.
Similarly, proactive measures foster common understanding. One proactive approach might be to offer more entry-level
humanities courses; this semester, Visiting
Assistant Professor of Sociology Monica
Brannons Sociology 1101 had over 100 applicants for 50 spots, meaning more than an
entire class worth of students was denied
the opportunity to expand their sociological horizon. Another route could be to increase Bowdoins recruitment of minority
professorsa number which, today, stands
at 13.6 percent and puts Bowdoin in the
bottom third of all NESCAC schools. This
is all to suggest that placing emphasis on exposure to diversity of race and of experience
influences an education worlds apart from
lessons learned with solely reactive, punitive measures.
I am largely pointed to as a perpetuator of
a historically prejudicial, dominant culture.
But, Im willing to work with minority studentsmy peers, classmates and friends
in finding the most effective way to establish
cohesion as we move forward.

We must recognize lingering effects of upbringing

BY PHOEBE KRANEFUSS

OPED CONTRIBUTOR

To the students of the College who doubt

the validity and legitimacy of the emotional
responses on campus to the recent events of
racial bias:
Maybe youve grown up hearing yes.
Its Pavlovian, really, when youve been
told yes all your life. Yes to elite Manhattan preschool; yes to firing the babysitter
you hate; yes to a weekend in the Hamptons;
yes to that spring break trip in Cabo; yes,
yes, yes. Perhaps youve grown accustomed
to hearing that word in response to your requests. Youve grown accustomedthrough
no fault of your ownto expecting your demands to be met with a resounding, authority-uttered, definitive yes.
But Id like you to consider those who
arent so accustomed to expecting or hearing this sort of yes, because these people
exist, and they exist on this campus, because
understanding others is important and because that clearly isnt happening at Bowdoin right now.
Ta-Nehisi Coates tells us in Between
the World and Me that black children and
white children are raised differently. (And
please bear with me while I boil down the

complexity and nuance of race relations on

this campus to black vs. white, eliminating
the metaphorical gray, for the sake of argument.)
White children, Coates tells us, command entire sidewalks with their tricycles.
The galaxy belong[s] to them. He points out
that terror is communicated to our black
children, while mastery is communicated
to theirs. While the white body is told to
expand, arms spreading wide in the white
spaces into which it blends, the black body
is told to cower: make itself smaller; occupy
less space.
And of course on a campus where everyone is equal but some have grown accustomed to commanding entire sidewalks
with their tricycles, and others to deference,
theres going to be some conflict. We are all
told to occupy one 1800th of Bowdoin, but
some of us are used to taking up much more
space than is allotted to us, and some of us,
much less.
So perhaps, you doubters, when you were
told you couldnt wear a sombrero to a party,
it was the very first time youve heard no.
And perhaps that was hard. Perhaps you felt
threatened, and perhaps youre scared of the
sidewalk not remaining wide and white for
your future child.

Bowdoin Orient

But Id like to challenge you because this

is no longer about the fear that you experience when youre told you cant have fun in
exactly the way you had decided you wanted
to. This isnt about parties, this isnt about tequila and this isnt about you.
This is about respecting the students on
this campus who are just as entitled to yes
as we white students feel we are: yes to that
research grant, yes to the outing club, yes to
not being called the n-word, yes to being
here at Bowdoin.
This isnt about being butthurt. This
is about empathy and respect and allowing each person on this campus to spread
their arms wide and fill the one 1800th of
the campus that is allotted to each of us
upon admission.
We as white people cant understand exactly what it means to be told no so often,
and we must recognize the limitation in our
ability to empathize with the students of
color who are so profoundly hurt right now.
But we need to try.
And weas Bowdoin studentsneed to
start telling each other resoundingly, loudly
and authoritatively: yes.
Phoebe Kranefuss is a member of the class
of 2016.

BY CARLOS HOLGUIN

OPED CONTRIBUTOR

The fallout over the tequila party is not going away any time soon
with the article on both Barstool
and Turtleboy being put out into the
public sphere, and the subsequent
reaction on Yik Yak afterwards.
Everyone has the right to an
opinion, including those people
who have attacked Bowdoin
students who have spoken out
against this latest act of cultural
insensitivity. You certainly have
a First Amendment right to free
speech. I applaud you for taking this right to heart. The right
to ones opinion that may differ
from others is one of our most
precious rights that we enjoy as
American citizens.
I will quickly address both Barstool and Turtleboy. Both of these
blogs are home to xenophobic,
sexist and racist articles. These
websites are the breeding holes
for those who feel emboldened by
the New Yorker with the huge
combover and orange glow tan
who spews hyperbolic vitriol.
Donald Trump stands for this
bigotry which has become common in this current election cycle.
To have to appeal to websites this
far on the fringe discredits your
argument. For the students who
agree with the articles, this rest of
this article is going to be tough for
you to hear.
On Yik Yak some of you crooned
with pleasure about the articles
from above. We all have the right to
an opinion, and I cannot say yours
is not valid. I can say this, though:
The arguments presented in these
pieces are not even original. Conservatives have not had an original
idea since Barry Goldwater ran for
president in the 1960s. I know its
hard to believe this, but this racist verbiage about political correctness was actually created by
conservatives, and is quite frankly
older than most of the bloggers using it to pour attacks on people who
just need to stop being so sensitive
to peoples attempts to having fun.
Although the use of this term
dates back to at least the 1700s, its
current pejorative meaning, used
by the right wing to attack liberal
ideas and social trends such as
racial differences, was first coined
in the late 1980s to attack, ironically, institutions of higher learning who were, in the eyes of many
conservatives, trying to force
liberal ideals on all students. It
was a reaction to nontraditional
courses of study introduced in
the 1960s and 1970s. For exam-

ple, Chicano, Black and Womens

Studies were turning college and
university campuses into antiestablishment hotbeds, according
to many conservatives. The pendulum had swung too far to the
left, and now it was time to turn
things back to their proper place.
This process is still taking place
today. Havent you heard, its time
to make America great again?
Unfortunately, any attempts by
university administrators to rein
in acts of blatant bigotry here at
Bowdoin and other institutions
of higher learning have resulted
in attacks by people who are
tone deaf to the meaning of their
deeds and words, and who defend themselves by attacking the
political correctness of people
trying to infringe on their First
Amendment rights. Its the same
old tired argument, just a different day, month, year, decade,
heck, century.
Political correctness would not
be an issue if instead we focused
on respect of one another. In simpler terms I am saying we should
live by the golden rule, Treat others how you wish to be treated.
Others took to Yik Yak talking
about how minority students are
being coddled and are overreacting to incidents of this nature.
I will give you points for creativity
because you are shifting the focus
away from the perpetrators of the
event. By saying we are the issue,
you are putting the blame on us
minorities. There is just one problem with this sort of thinking: we
are not the ones who perpetrated
this incident. We are the recipients of acts of this nature, which,
I would add, are unprovoked by us
minority students. Instead, lets put
the blame where it really lies. It lies
with the students who decide to
appropriate and mock my culture.
Im not saying Im blaming those
who went to the party, Im not. Im
blaming those who did not use the
foresight before donning the attire
they did, and laughing at people
they dont understand. They are
the ones who rightly deserve such
blame which seems to be put on
us minorities when events such as
this one occur.
I know this will probably fall
on deaf ears. Its OK, I do not
expect this article to solve the
problem overnight. On a happier
note, I leave you with this. Going to college is supposed to expand ones horizons, not cement
ones bigotry.
Carlos Holguin is a member of the
Class of 2019.

The

ESTABLISHED 1871

The Bowdoin Orient is a student-run weekly publication dedicated to providing

news and information relevant to the Bowdoin community. Editorially independent
of the College and its administrators, the Orient pursues such content freely and
thoroughly, following professional journalistic standards in writing and reporting.
The Orient is committed to serving as an open forum for thoughtful and diverse
discussion and debate on issues of interest to the College community.

bowdoinorient.com

orient@bowdoin.edu

Matthew Gutschenritter
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The material contained herein is the property of The Bowdoin Orient and appears at the sole discretion of the editors. The editors reserve the right to edit all material. Other than in regard to the above editorial, the opinions expressed in the Orient do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors.

16

the bowdoin orient

friday, march 4, 2016

MARCH
FRIDAY 4

EVENT

What does a jacket say about social class

at Bowdoin?
Jesse Ortiz 16 and Assistant Professor of Sociology Theo
Greene will moderate an open discussion about how the
community sees and experiences class at Bowdoin.
Daggett Lounge, Thorne Hall. 4 p.m.
LECTURE

"Manet Slash Degas: Friendship, Rivalry,

and Marriage in Nineteenth-Century
Paris"

TESSA EPSTEIN, THE BOWDOIN ORIENT

TEACHING TEA: Tokyo native Yoko Eguchi and Gregoire Faucher '16 lead a lesson in the rituals of Japanese Tea Ceremony. Eguchi earned her
associate professor of tea title in 2013.

Sebastian Smee, a Pulitzer Prize-winning art critic for The

Boston Globe, will discuss friendships between artists, which
is the theme of his new book.
Kresge Auditorium, Visual Arts Center. 4:30 p.m.
PERFORMANCE

Love's Labour's Lost

LECTURE

LECTURE

"The Animal City: Remaking and

Rethinking American Urban Life in the
Nineteenth Century"

There will be a performance of Shakespeares Loves Labours

Lost directed by Assistant Professor of Theater Abigail
Killeen. The show will feature Bowdoins Polar Bear Swing
Dance Club. Tickets are free and are available at the Smith
Union Information Desk as well as at the door. There will be
another performance on Saturday night as well.
Pickard Theater, Memorial Hall. 7:30 p.m.

The Conservative Foundations of the

Liberal Society

Andrew Robichaud, assistant professor of history at Boston

University, will present his research on the development
of animal cities, which are places full of a wide variety of
animal life. He will explore the process and results of this
development in urban environments such as Boston, New
York, Chicago and San Francisco.
Room 315, Searles Science Building. 7 p.m.

SATURDAY 5
'The Monk Variations'

Steve Grover, a pianist, composer and drummer will perform The Monk Variations, a jazz song cycle based on the
poem by Bowdoins Writer-in-Residence Anthony Walton,
with his ensemble.
Kanbar Auditorium, Studzinski Recital Hall. 7:30 p.m.

Gallery Conversation with Michael Kolster and Honor Wilkinson

BOKA and Ursus Verses will perform a joint a cappella

concert. Manic Optimists from Bates
ORIENT
will also perform.
PICK OF THE WEEK
The Chapel. 8 p.m.

LECTURE

"From Watergate to 'Spotlight': Investigative Journalism in Democracy"

EVENT

Scott Allen 83, the current editor of The Spotlight Team at

The Boston Globe, will be speaking to the community.
Spotlight is the Globes investigative reporting team whose
exposition of the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic
Church in 2001 was featured in last years film, Spotlight.
Additionally, Allen earned a Pulitzer Prize in 2014 for his
contribution to the Globe's coverage of the Boston
Marathon bombings and ensuing manhunt.
Kresge Auditorium, Visual Arts Center. 7:30 p.m.

Quinceaera

The Latin American Student Organization will put on a

Quinceaera Celebration. This traditional celebration
includes a crowning ceremony, a shoe ceremony and a
dance performance by the Quinceaera and her court
of honor. This dance will be performed at 10:30 and the
celebration will continue afterward.
Main Lounge, Moulton Union. 10 p.m.

Spring Break
Begins

VACATION

Spring Break

EVENT

Michael Kolster, associate professor of art, and Honor

Wilkinson, curatorial assistant at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, will discuss how nature and the environment
influence Kolster's photography in a gallery conversation.
Museum of Art. Noon.

Bursurka

12

THURSDAY 10

LECTURE

PERFORMANCE

VACATION

Drawing on thinkers like Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Alexis

de Tocqueville and political leaders like Winston Churchill
and Charles de Gaulle, Professor Daniel Mahoney of Assumption College will present his argument that conservative
foundations can protect democracy from its own excesses
and reveal the proper meaning of liberty. A Q & A and reception will follow the event at Ladd House at 8:15.
Pickering Room (213), Hubbard Hall.
ORIENT
PICK OF THE WEEK
7 p.m.

TUESDAY 8

PERFORMANCE

11

WEDNESDAY 9

MONDAY 7

13

VACATION

Spring Break

14

VACATION

Spring Break

15

VACATION

Spring Break

Reading the River: Video Installations in

Fort Andross

A series of video installations created by students in VART

3030: Site-Specifics explore our relationship with the
Androscoggin River. The videos will be projected onto various
stairwells, windows and more. Dance students will lead
participants through the installations.
Fort Andross, 14 Maine St., Brunswick, ME. 6 p.m.
LECTURE

An Evening with Netflix Co-founder and

CEO Reed Hastings '83

Reed Hastings 83 is the cofounder and CEO of Netflix. He

will be speaking about on-demand media and how the
way people watch TV and movies has evolved. Tickets are
required.
Pickard Theater, Memorial Hall.
ORIENT
PICK OF THE WEEK
7:30 p.m.

16

VACATION

Spring Break

17

VACATION

Spring Break