The Justice, October 25, 2022

VOTING REGISTRATION

VoteDeis pushes people to polls in voter registration event

■ Fellows Garden was packed with students obtaining absentee ballots and registering to vote.

By RIVER SIMARD JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The VoteDeis Campus Coalition, in collaboration with the Brandeis Student Union, held a voter regis tration and absentee ballot event in Fellows Garden on Oct. 7. The event had several booths set up for Brandeis students to receive as sistance, resources, and be walked through the process of having their ballots mailed to them. Students also had the opportunity to register to vote for the first time prior to the upcoming Nov. 8 election.

“There's so many different laws and rules for each state. So we're really here to make sure it’s simpli fied and students have all they need to request their absentee ballot and vote in this upcoming election,” explained VoteDeis volunteer and event co-organizer, Gabriella Li eberman ’23.

In addition to Lieberman, the event was also organized by Vot eDeis co-presidents Mandy Feuer

man ’25 and Maia Lefferman ’25.

Also present at the event were Brandeis Democrats, Brandeis Democrats subcommittee targeted towards gun violence prevention “Students Demand Action,” and the Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation.

One of the ways in which Vot eDeis primarily assisted students in requesting their absentee ballot was by providing the students with en velopes and the proper forms to be notarized on campus and physically mailed in, rather than requested on line. While some states, such as In diana, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, allow the request of an absentee ballot online, other states, such as California, do not. “I do know that I can choose not to vote, but that seems really stupid to me. Because, I mean, this country is supposed to be a democracy. It’s supposed to be representative of everyone’s voice. So why would I not put my voice in there?” explained Tori Lajous ’25, who requested an absentee ballot at the event.

Many of the booths and tables had some sort of giveaway for students, including desserts, buttons, and small copies of the U.S. Constitu tion. At the table for Students De mand Action, students could write the reasons they are registering

Navigating Neurodivergency

For neurodivergent students, understanding, support, and community on campus are vital.

ANIKA JAIN

SCIENCE PROGRAM GROWS

Univ. announces science complex expansion

offered programs.

By ANNA MARTIN JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Brandeis has announced an ex pansion of the science complex scheduled to begin later this year, according to an article published in BrandeisNOW on Sept. 29. This expansion includes the addition and renovation of approximately 100,000 square feet that will be used for classrooms, wet labs, Maker Lab spaces, and core facilities. The physical expansion of the science complex will pair with the expan sion of applied science programs, as it is a main part of the addition of the engineering science program at Brandeis. This new program is anticipated to launch during the 2026-27 academic year and was ap proved by the Board of Trustees in 2021. As the Brandeis science facilities are expanding, so are the

This expansion has been titled Science 2A, as it is the second phase of the Brandeis science facil ity expansion and renovation proj ect, following the construction of the Shapiro Science Center, which opened in 2009. This new building will be located next to the SSC and will connect to it through the main atrium. The Science 2A building will stand at five stories tall and will be compliant with the Ameri cans with Disabilities Act, accord ing to the BrandeisNOW article, meaning that this building will be accessible to every Brandeis com munity member. The article con tinues that 75% of the spaces in the new building will be flexible research labs while the remain ing 25% will be used for learning spaces and other various facilities. There will also be Maker Lab spac es on the first floor, expanding on the current Maker Labs located in the Farber Library.

In addition to the construction of a new building, the article explains that this expansion will

See SCIENCE, 5 ☛

Outdoor space dedicated in memory of alumna

to vote, and by the end of the after noon the table had become covered in sticky notes including comments such as “to vote out antisemitism,” and “my vote matters,” as well as several more that said “hot girls vote.”

In addition to the student activist groups present at the event, mem bers of the Waltham city govern ment were present, including the mayor of Waltham, Jeneatte A. Mc Carthy, and several members of the Waltham city council.

“Brandeis students being who they are, need to get out there and vote. So this is very important. It's important we create these coalitions that include young folk and include us in the conversation because at the end of the day, we will be the next generation leading and taking on these bigger, bigger challenges,” Waltham City Councilmember of Ward 9 Jonathan Paz explained. In addition to advocating that students become registered to vote and re quest absentee ballots, Paz also dis cussed other issues with Brandeis students such as a lack of transpor tation as well as the rising cost of housing in the Waltham area.

In order to learn more about how to

or check existing voter registration, students should visit vote.gov.rally.

Remi Wolf

By AMANDA CHEN JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

On Oct. 7, during Homecoming Weekend, members from the Class of 1986 returned to Brandeis for the dedication of the Barbra Barth Feldman ’86 Circle in Ridgewood Quad. The Barbra Barth Feldman ’86 Circle is a new outdoor space for students, complete with new benches, a center platform, path ways, and greenery.

Brandeis alumni built the space in memory of Feldman, their close friend. She passed away in August 2019, and in the wake of her pass ing, Stephen Weiss ’86, a friend of Feldman, was the first person to suggest doing something in her honor. Feldman’s friends original ly proposed a fire pit on campus, but they were ultimately not al lowed to have one. However, they knew they wanted to create a space on campus that would allow stu dents to gather and have fun in the same way that Feldman brought people together throughout her life.

performed on Oct. 9

By ZOE POPOVIC

ARTS AND CULTURE

Daughter to Mrs. Janet Dubin Barth and Dr. Nathan “Nat” Barth, Feldman grew up in Lawrence, Long Island, with her older sister Rachele Barth Tinkelman. Ac cording to an interview with the Justice on Oct. 4, one of Feldman’s friends, Amy Bergner ’86, de scribed the family as tight-knit and extremely devoted to each other. As adults, Feldman and Tinkelman lived six houses apart to raise their children. Feldman is survived by two children: Andrew Barth Feld man and Samantha Barth Feld man. Barbra loved the theater and passed on that same passion to her kids, the most salient example be ing Andrew, who performed in “Dear Evan Hansen” on Broadway.

There were two main reasons for choosing Ridgewood Quad for the memorial. Feldman lived in Ridge wood Quad for two years as a firstyear and sophomore, and many friends recalled fond memories there. Moreover, according to the plans for the space, the University recognized the need for more out door spaces and had already been thinking about ways to improve Ridgewood Quad.

Feldman’s friends wished to build a space that evoked the same qualities that her friends cher ished in Feldman: inclusivity, generosity, warmth, and openness. Nothing about the architecture of

See FELDMAN,

Another year of success for Giving DEISday

By MARIA ANTONIO

By EDITORIAL BOARD

Hall of Fame honors iconic coaches

By PRATEEK KANMADIKAR

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I ndependen T S T uden T n ew S paper of B rande

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The Editorial Board addresses Harvest Table and Univ. Admin.

■ The project, set to begin late 2023, will include expansions, renovations, and a sprawling outdoor space.

SMILEY HUYNH/the Justice

VOTING : Students gathered in Fellows Garden to register to vote and get absentee ballots for the upcoming election.

■ Fellow alumni, family, and friends of Barbra Barth Feldman '86 gathered for a dedication ceremony.

LOG

Senate charters new clubs, plans for family weekend

The Student Union Senate chartered three clubs and passed two Senate money resolutions at its Oct. 23 meeting. The Sen ate denied probationary status to a fourth club, Brandeis Chi nese Students and Scholars Association, after an extended dis cussion in executive session.

Eyal Cohen ’24, “CEO” of the Brandeis Entrepreneurial and Tech club, returned to the Senate to request that they charter BETA club. Cohen said that BETA’s purpose is to create and support entrepreneurship on Brandeis’ campus by connecting students to each other and to off-campus job opportunities.

The Senate approved BETA for a probationary period at the beginning of the spring term, which is standard in the forma tion of new clubs. This week, the Senate chartered BETA by acclamation.

Marcus Sutton ’23, President of ’Deis Chess, returned to the Senate to ask the Senate to charter the club. ’Deis Chess, which also started its probationary period last semester, pro vides students with chess sets and a space for weekly chess meetings. Sutton said that the club has done events with Northeastern University’s chess club and that they plan on

POLICE LOG

MEDICAL EMERGENCY

Sept. 25—There was a medical emergen cy in Massell Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and transported to a local hospital via ambulance.

Sept. 28—There was a medical emergen cy in the Mailman House. The party was treated by staff and transported to a local hospital via ambulance.

Sept. 30—There was a medical emergen cy in Massell Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and transported to a local hospital via ambulance.

Oct. 1—There was a medical emergency in Rosenthal Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and transported to a local hospital via ambulance.

Oct. 1—There was a medical emergency in Massell Quad. The party was treated by

hosting and attending tournaments in the future. The Senate chartered ’Deis Chess by acclamation.

Keer Xu ’24 and Jenny Zhao ’24, co-presidents of the Run ning Club, requested that the Senate charter their club. They said that the club gives students a group of people to run with in order to make the activity more interesting. The club meets twice a week and runs a 5K at each meeting. The Senate char tered the Running Club by acclamation.

Michelle Yoh ’23 and Joey Zhang ’23 presented Brandeis Chinese Students and Scholars Association to the Senate and asked for the Senate to make it a probationary club. The CSSA is an international organization of students from China studying in other countries. Yoh said that CSSA holds cultural events for Chinese students and helps them make career con nections with professionals from China.

Sen. Maxwell Lerner ’25 said that because there are already three Chinese cultural clubs on campus, chartering the CSSA would violate the Union bylaws against clubs with “duality of purpose.” The bylaws do not allow for multiple clubs with “duality of operations, impact, and appeal.”

The Senate entered executive session to discuss the club further. When the Senate voted on giving CSSA probation ary status, there were seven votes in favor and 5 abstentions. Without a two-thirds majority, the club was declined proba tionary status. Immediately after the vote, several senators who had abstained expressed confusion at their votes acting essentially as votes against the club. A few senators asked if they could change their votes or if the Senate could vote again.

Executive Sen. Nicholas Kanan ’23 said that the votes could not be changed, but that the CSSA could return next week and present again.

The Senate also voted on two SMRs relating to family week end at the end of this week. The Senate voted by acclamation to approve the purchase of flashlights and visibility vests for the Shabbat walk to parents’ hotel rooms Friday night.

Senators also voted by acclamation to approve the purchase of pumpkins and paints for the pumpkin fest, also on family weekend.

Max Feigelson

BEMCo staff and refused further care.

Oct. 1—There was a medical emergency in North Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and transported to a local hos pital via ambulance.

Oct. 2—There was a medical emergen cy in Ziv Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and transported to a local hos pital via ambulance.

Oct. 3—There was a medical emergency in North Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and refused further care.

Oct. 5—There was a medical emergency in East Quad. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and refused further care.

Oct. 6—There was a medical emergency in the Stoneman Building. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and transported to a local hospital via ambulance.

CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS

■ A photo in the Arts and Culture section incorrectly attributed the photographer as Nora HerndonLazareth. It was corrected to Nora HerndonLazerwith. (Oct. 4, page 5).

■ A photo in the News section incorrectly attributed the photographer as Ceci Wang. It was corrected to Ceci Chen. (Oct. 4, page 15).

The Justice welcomes submissions for errors that warrant correction or clarification. Send an email to editor@thejustice.org.

BRIEF

Oct. 6—There was a medical emergency on Chapels Field. The party was treated by BEMCo staff and refused further care.

NOISE COMPLAINTS

Sept. 30—A noise complaint was made on Dartmouth Street. A report was filed.

Oct. 2—A community member report ed a noise complaint in the Charles River Apartments. Community Living was noti fied to respond.

Oct. 3—A community member reported loud music in Massell Quad. Officers chec ked the area and all was quiet and in order.

MISCELLANEOUS

Sept. 26—Staff members reported the theft of a two-wheel dolly that was left unat tended for 24 hours at the Stoneman Buil

ding. A report was composed.

Sept. 28—A community member report ed missing cash from his wallet. A report was composed.

Oct. 4—A community member reported a suspicious vehicle parked outside Skyline Residence Hall. Officers checked the area and all was quiet and in order.

Oct. 4—A community member report ed the theft of a motorized scooter at the Charles River Apartments. A report was composed.

Oct. 8—A University van was involved in a minor accident off campus. No injuries occurred. A report was composed.

Compiled by Leah Breakstone

September Board of Trustees meeting report

On Oct. 3, University President Ron Liebowitz sent an email to the Brandeis community with a summary of the September Board of Trustees meetings. The Board convened in person for the first time since January 2020.

Three new trustees were added to the Board: Marjorie Hass, Leonard X Rosenberg ’89, and Jay Ruderman ’88 H’18.

During the meeting’s plenary session, Liebowitz provid ed the Board updates on matters related to student life; the “larger-than-expected” Class of 2026, which has 1,007 students; revised COVID-19 policies on campus; and the curriculum. Ad ditionally, Hannah Peters, interim senior vice president of in stitutional advancement, gave an update on fundraising.

Trustees met with a variety of students, faculty, and staff, both in committees and over lunch and dinner, over the course of two days.

Profs. Tory Fair (FA) and Paul Miller (BIOL) were promot ed to the rank of professor with tenure. Also, Profs. Prakash Kashwan (ENVS), Jeffrey A. Lenowitz (POL), and W. Benjamin Rogers (PHYS) were promoted to the rank of associate profes sor with tenure. Liebowitz offered his congratulations to these five professors.

The Academy Committee suggested to the Board to close three master’s programs in the Graduate School of Arts & Sci ences: Global Studies, Comparative Humanities, and Genetic Counseling. During the meeting’s plenary session, the Board accepted the recommendation.

The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee heard up dates on “the status of the university-wide Anti-Racism Plans, the Black Action Plan, … the reorganization of the Office of DEI under its new leadership … [and] plans for a campus-wide cli mate survey.”

The Institutional Advancement Committee discussed six new professorship endowments and an endowment to launch the Samuels Center for Community Partnerships and Civic Transformation. Additionally, the committee talked about pre liminary plans for the 75th anniversary celebration.

The Resources Committee examined Fiscal Year ’22, which showed a modest surplus and projects that FY ’23 will have as well. They also heard updates on the “Science Phase 2A” con struction project. Finally, the committee “discussed the uni versity’s decarbonization study and a comprehensive housing study aimed at improving residential life on campus.”

The Risk Management and Audit Committee reviewed the annual audit of the University’s financial statements and the plans for an internal audit of the University’s payroll opera tions.

Student representatives Inaara Gilani ’23 and Shelley Po lanco ’24 gave a presentation to the Student Life Committee. Gilbert Hinga, interim director of the Brandeis Counseling Center, discussed efforts to expand student accessibility to therapists. Leah Berkenwald, director of Health and Well ness Promotion, and Matt Galewski, director of Student En gagement, talked about how the University uses campus wide events to address mental health and wellness. Director of PreHealth Advising Kate Stutz showed her unit’s work and pro vided updates on new initiatives and programming.

Liebowitz concluded the email by expressing his gratitude toward the Board, and he thanked University staff for their help organizing the meeting and the students and faculty who presented to the trustees.

— Amanda Chen

The Justice is the independent student newspaper of Brandeis University. The Justice is published every Tuesday of the academic year with the exception of ex amination and vacation periods.

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Another year of fundraising success for Giving DEISday

■ The University held its annual day of donations on Thursday, Oct. 6, raising nearly $900,000.

By MARIA ANTONIO JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

For more than seven years, Giving DEISday has been an an nual giving tradition celebrated by students, staff, and alumni all over the globe. It’s viewed as a “celebration of all that makes Brandeis unique” as described by the Give Campus website.

This year, Brandeis raised nearly $900,000 from 2,200 donors, according to Lindsay Roth, director of direct marketing and par ticipation in the institutional advancement office. Over $300,000 bonus funds were also raised based on “the overall participation challenge and the unique challenges created for certain areas of campus,” she said in an Oct. 24 email to the Justice. Sharing stories specific to Waltham Group, the impact of sports, and the Gender and Sexuality Center on social media “was another way to stress the immense impact our donors can (and do!) have on the student experience,” Roth explained.

Previously celebrated the Tuesday after Thanksgiving and of ten called Giving Tuesday, this year the organization changed the annual giving ceremony to Oct. 6 in an effort to create a unique Brandeis holiday, according to the Give Campus website.

Roth mentioned that as Giving Tuesday became a bigger event, it had become increasingly difficult to reach other audi ences through the noise from other non-profit organizations. She also recognized that the change allowed for “the event to align with Homecoming Weekend under a new moniker that cel

ebrates our community and allows our messages to be seen and heard across all channels.”

Similarly to previous years, donors had the opportunity to choose where their money went to, such as The Brandeis Fund — which focuses on designating funds to certain parts of the Universiy with the greatest need — general scholarships, sports, academic departments, and even organizations and clubs on campus. The new giving platform, Give Campus, allowed for alternate payment methods to be accepted, and “40% of our donors came in through mobile wallets,” Roth said. These new changes, such as incorporating Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Venmo, allowed for “instant, secure philanthropy to happen in the same way checkout happens in a retail transaction,” she explained. This change not only influenced the contribution of current students’ donations, but is also a platform that can be used to raise funds for student-centric causes in the future.

Stephanie Grimes, associate director of alumni relations, worked closely with expanding Giving DEISday’s impact to cur rent students and told the Justice in an Oct. 20 email that this year the University organized fundraising livestreams for the first time. Grimes mentioned that the team likes to collaborate with students in order to reach a broader range of donors. In this case, Grimes worked alongside Donna DeChambeau ’24, and the two hosted students, staff, and alumni to chat about their Brandeis experiences, which “gave the audience a real time on the ground look at what is happening on campus.” In addition to the livestreams, other events were incorporated, such as the “Ollie on the Street” segment, modeled after YouTube’s “Billy on the Street,” where Brandeis students were asked trivia ques tions about the University and asked to compete to earn donor contributions for the area of their choice. “The combination of these with the live tabling in the Blue Booths and inside the Sha

piro Campus Center complete with prizes and [a] photo booth brought excitement to a normal Thursday,” Grimes said. Addi tionally, she outlined that both the Institutional Advancement and Alumni Relations Offices’ work “are continuing to build the momentum and excitement for Giving DEISday and to ed ucate students on the importance of giving in support of their passions.” This year, over 100 students contributed to the cam paign. Additionally, the live show allowed Brandeis to give away $4,800 in bonus funds offered by Alumni Association President Lewis Brooks ’80, P’16 and his wife Denise Brooks ’84, P’16.

Patrick McAvoy, assistant director of direct marketing and participation, mentioned in an Oct. 24 email to the Justice that “Phonathon participation is also extremely important to the success of the event overall.” The initiative, which is composed of undergraduate and graduate student callers and overseen by McAvoy, reaches out to alumni, parents, and friends each year to build relationships and secure financial support for Brandeis. This year, after 12 hours of calling, “students raised an impres sive amount of money for the school while helping the Universi ty reach [their] goals,” McAvoy said, contributing to Giving DE ISday with just under $38,000 raised via phone calls. In an Oct. 24 email to the Justice, Phonathon caller Vivi Infante ’25 also mentioned the initiative’s importance by highlighting the all year-round fundraising efforts and discussed how “whether it be the emergency fund, or a certain school like the International Business School or the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, there’s an opportunity to assist every aspect of campus.” This reflects the enormous opportunity of hearing interesting stories from alumni and connecting with fellow student workers while also making an impact on the Brandeis community.

Although Giving DEISday is over for the year, the University is continuing to accept donations.

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Administration responds to student opinions on University COVID-19 policies

By SYDNEY DUNCAN JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The University administration recently shared more insight into the reasoning behind their current COVID-19 policies with the Jus tice. These insights follow an article published on Sept. 20 featuring various student perspec tives about the University’s switch from “yel low” to “green” COVID-19 Passport status in early September.

In the article, students had expressed mixed feelings about the change and the policies as a whole, with some reporting that they feel safer on campus than others. Generally, students no ticed little to no change in their daily lives as a result of the status shift. They were happy with administration’s efforts to make the University community aware of constant updates to their protocols but were also disappointed in the lack of public COVID-19 numbers.

Lashaun Lockhart, the administrative direc tor of the Golding Health Center, and Madison Dirats, the lead administrator of the Brandeis Contact Tracing Program, spoke with the Jus tice on Oct. 7. Lockhart clarified that the differ ences between the yellow and green COVID-19 statuses are very subtle, and this is likely the reason that students have not felt that the change has significantly impacted their lives. She explained that the largest difference be tween the two statuses can be found in the class room, as the green status allows professors to

decide whether they want to make masking op tional in their class, while the previous yellow status required masking in all class settings. In other locations, masking policies have largely stayed the same; previously mask-optional lo cations continue to be that way, and masking is still required in designated buildings, such as the Health Center. Lockhart emphasized that the administration still prioritizes student comfort in making the status shift, sharing that “any student has the freedom to wear a mask if they choose to do so.”

While the status shift has not been largely noticed among students, the lack of student ac cess to COVID-19 numbers certainly has been. During the 2021-22 academic year, the Univer sity’s COVID-19 Dashboard closely tracked and posted detailed COVID-19 data on a regular basis, including the exact number of cases on campus. This year, however, the University de cided to retire the use of the dashboard. Instead of reporting exact COVID-19 data during the 2022-23 academic year, the administration has chosen to reflect the University community’s status through the color-coded system.

While Lockhart acknowledged that this new system of reporting may seem less comprehen sive, she ultimately believes that it will better represent the community’s COVID-19 status.

She shared that data about COVID-19 numbers is often not accurate, as it is easy to make er rors in obtaining a highly specific value. “Rath er than searching for the exact numbers, that status, yellow, green, orange, red, is an exact reflection of how prevalent COVID-19 is in and around our community,” Lockhart explained.

The numbers that inform the University’s color status are measured by the Waltham Board of Health. Dirats meets regularly with this board to report the University’s COVID-19 numbers to the general Waltham community.

The administration also addressed student and faculty concerns about Brandeis’ lack of weekly testing during the 2022-23 academic year, specifically acknowledging the fear that they are missing asymptomatic positive cases.

Dirats responded to this caveat by sharing that most of the positive cases produced by the current strain are not asymptomatic. She ex plained that many cases of demonstrated CO VID-19 symptoms are aligning with reported COVID-19 exposures, so the current offering of testing to both individuals who have symptoms and those who have been exposed to COVID-19 will effectively account for almost all students who are at risk. “We still are doing the PCR test ing, so in the event that we had people who had an exposure and are not showing symptoms, we are going to catch them,” Dirats added.

Given the world’s experiences with previous COVID-19 strains, Dirats understands why stu dents and faculty may be fearful of decreased access to testing in the community. She shared, “I have had COVID-19 and not had any symp toms, so it was also one of my first thoughts, but in terms of missing asymptomatic positives, I don’t think we’re missing any.” Dirats is even more confident in this assertion based on the fact that many members of the community are taking their own rapid tests when they are ex posed to COVID-19 or when they exhibit symp toms.

Students and staff have also reported the worry that the administration’s reliance on self-reporting to track COVID-19 cases may not accurately account for the scale of the pan demic on campus. Dirats does not share their concerns, however, as she feels that most mem bers of the Brandeis community tend to report positive cases. She shared, “for the most part, I think I can safely say Brandeis students have done a great job of reporting it because they

want to know what the next step is, ‘what do I do?’”

One of the few common reasons Dirats has found that students often choose not to report is that they are afraid of missing classes, but the administration is working to combat this. They have had a conversation with faculty about working with students when they are sick and being flexible with attendance and extension policies.

The University administration has also continued to work actively with the greater Waltham and Massachusetts communities to ensure that campus COVID-19 policies create the safest possible environment for all. Lock hart, along with Dr. Colleen Collins, the medi cal director of the Health Center, is a part of a Boston Consortium of doctors, nurses, and administrators based in and around Massa chusetts who come together biweekly to share their communities’ COVID-19 protocols and share the most effective strategies for develop ing and updating policies based on community needs. “We are able to say, ‘how did you guys manage that?’ So that has been really useful to the Brandeis community to be on that consor tium,” Lockhart said.

In addition to the consortium, Dirats meets regularly with the Waltham Board of Health to share COVID-19 data and report on the state of COVID-19 at Brandeis. “With every meeting, we get a thumbs up that we are doing a good job to keep our community safe,” Dirats added.

The administrators reported that they are extremely grateful for student and faculty feed back about their policies. Lockhart was glad to learn that students found practices like admin istration’s emails about policy updates to be beneficial, saying, “the fact that it’s clear, and it’s hitting home, and it’s useful to you all is re ally helpful to us.”

UNPACKING COVID-19 POLICIES

JACK YUANWEI CHENG/the Justice

in the Shapiro Campus Center.

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Trustees long-awaitedmake divestment choice

By

FELDMAN: gathering space dedicated

the space was accidental, and many structural com ponents paid tribute to Feld man’s life and personality. They designed a circular space to represent Feld man’s inclusivity and how she always had room for one more person. Bergner stated that they wanted the design to be soft and round rather than harsh with sharp edg es. There are blue glow-inthe-dark stones scattered in the concrete, and the color blue is a reference to a mul titude of things, represent ing Brandeis, Feldman’s love of the ocean, and the musical Dear Evan Hansen as an homage to her son (the main character Evan Han sen wears a blue polo shirt in the musical).

The center stage is a trib ute to Feldman’s love of theater and connects to the original idea of a fire pit. It additionally acts as a sun deck. The sun deck refer ences memories of Feldman and her friends suntanning together. In an Oct. 11 inter view with the Justice, an other friend of Feldman’s, Bonnie Notis, reminisced on how they would put alu minum foil on record album cases to suntan on the bank of the Charles River. The center platform is made of concrete and is illuminated by LED lights that emanate from the center. Addition ally, five new redbud trees were planted in the quad.

Planning started soon af ter Feldman passed away.

Aaron Louison ’11, the executive director of the Department of Leadership Annual Giving for Brandeis University Institutional Ad vancement Division, was the development liaison for the project, and he worked with donors to fundraise for construction, communicat ed the donors’ interests, and collaborated with Brandeis' facilities staff, architects, designers, and contractors. They spent the next year fundraising, and from fall 2019 to spring 2021, they worked on architectural plans. After they finalized the design, the next six to seven months consisted of a final period of fundraising to reach their monetary goal for the project. The group ultimately raised $200,000 from around 100 individual donors. Construction be gan in early June 2022, and the space was finished just before the academic year started.

Brandeis hired Studio 2112 to design the space, and Brandeis facilities staff managed the entire con struction process. Facilities staff who led this project include Michael McGarry, Casey Russo, and Dan Feld man. Multiple companies

handled different aspects of the construction. Joe Parker, an electrician from Amore Electric, donated all the parts and labor for the project because he was touched by the story behind the space.

Tasks and responsibili ties were split between two committees: the fundrais ing committee and a smaller core committee. The fund raising committee included 20 people, all alumni from the class of 1986 and friends of Feldman. Out of that ini tial committee, a smaller committee of six reviewed architectural plans, pro posed ideas for the design, and had the final say on larger decisions. The core committee consisted of Fran Zarrett Sloan ’86, Sharon Green Leighton ’86, Amy Bergner ’86, Danielle Klain berg ’86, Bonnie Notis and Debbi Winograd Shedlin ’86. Two members of both com mittees, Shedlin and Bergn er, were also co-chairs, and they managed both sides of the process and took the lead on the whole project. Since the dedication happened during the 35th reunion for the class of 1986, there was also a separate reunion com mittee whose goal was to encourage alumni to come back for the dedication and other reunion events. The chairs of the reunion com mittee were Staci Clopper Berkson ’86, Richard Hirsch ’86, and Klainberg ’86.

There were some diffi culties in the process due to the pandemic. The core committee planned to visit the campus in March 2020 to tour Ridgewood Quad and discuss the plan for the space with the designers and facilities staff. Because the beginning of the pan demic conflicted directly with that meeting, the core committee was never able to come to campus and meet with them. At first, they did not form alternative plans because they did not know how long the pandemic was going to last. They waited until early fall 2020 to move forward with the project be cause of the uncertainty on when the pandemic would end. From then on, meet ings with architects and fa cilities were done virtually.

During the dedication event, alumni and Feld man’s friends gathered around the Barbra Barth Feldman ’86 Circle in Ridge wood Quad and caught up with each other while Feld man’s favorite music played in the background. Louison gave an introduction before handing it off to Corey Notis ’84, Feldman’s Community Advisor when she lived in Ridgewood and one of her closest friends. Notis shared many sentimental memo ries about Feldman includ ing when they first met and

meeting Feldman’s family. He called her the “quintes sential it-girl,” and talked about how they became like family. Being friends with Feldman was very easy, and when people entered her or bit, according to Notis, they never wanted to leave.

Notis described Feld man as a kind person who would help anyone out with anything. He recalled how when Feldman spoke, it was a combination of laugh ing and talking at the same time, which he called “laugh talk.” He spoke about Feld man’s love for sweaters from Milan, photography, and beaches, as well as memories of going to Steve’s Ice Cream during the win ter and a trip to Martha’s Vineyard. He said, “We’re all here because we’ve been touched very deeply by Barbra. Our lives have been made better because of her friendship, and we lost a part of ourselves in her passing.”

Two weeks before his own passing, Retired Soci ology Professor Emeritus Gordie Fellman, who taught a course that Feldman took during her time at Brandeis, also gave a speech. Fellman praised the space as a won derful legacy of Feldman’s “innate ability to create a welcoming space.”

Lastly, a video made by Feldman’s son, Andrew, was played, since he could not make it to the event. He described her as “the most incredible person I’ve ever known” and discussed how she was able to make people feel seen. He talked about how his mom’s friends from Brandeis have become his family and stated that he believes building a space for the purpose of bringing people together at Brandeis is a fitting tribute because “she’s continuing to bring people together and to make new friends. … It’s a real honor.”After the speeches, all the attendees gathered around the circle for one last song and a moment of contemplation.

According to an interview with the Justice on Oct. 5, Shedlin said that one of the most important goals for the space is for it to be used by future generations. The space is already showing current students’ influence on it. For instance, Louison stated that when he talked to some students relaxing in the space, they called it the “Barbra benches” rather than the “Barbra Circle.”

While the circle aims to commemorate a past alum na, it also will encourage community members to look toward the future, serv ing as a space for future stu dents to connect with each other like Feldman did at Brandeis.

SCIENCE: univ. to add engineering

CONTINUED FROM

include both indoor and outdoor renovations. The Science Complex outdoor space, the “Red Square,” will be transformed into a green space with walking paths. As quoted in Brande isNOW, Ginnelle Lang, di rector of campus planning, stated “from the accessible pathways from one build ing to another to the more inviting landscaping, this will be a place to connect.”

The Science 2A project will also include the removal of the upper floors of the Edi son-Lecks Science Building and a partial renovation of the Gerstenzang Science Li brary.

The Science 2A project is being overseen by a proj ect-sponsored group. This PSG is currently being cochaired by Provost Carol A. Fierke as well as Stew Uretsky, the executive vice president for finance and

administration. Urtesky stated in the article that “by building new space and incorporating and renovat ing useful existing spaces, this project will sustainably provide a larger home for discovery and collaboration in the sciences … Science 2A will enable our faculty and students to expand their research activities and con nect across disciplines.”

University President Ron Lebowitz has tasked the PSG with overseeing scheduling, budgeting, programing, and space use guidelines.

Compass Project Manage ment was selected in April 2022 as the Owner’s Project Manager for this project.

The architecture firm Pay ette has also been selected, the same firm that designed the SSC during the first phase of the science com plex expansion. The Science 2A project is set to begin construction in late 2023 and projected to last two to three years, totaling to a cost of

approximately $145 million. Last spring, the Board of Trustees approved the issu ing of a bond to financially support this project, and Brandeis’ Institutional Ad vancement Division has al ready begun fundraising to support the expansion.

In the same Brandeis NOW article, University President Ron Lebowitz speaks of his excitement regarding the growth of the Brandeis science communi ty. “Brandeis’ science enter prise is a vibrant, thriving part of the university with growing student demand ... This sweeping new con struction project will create a welcoming environment that will meet that demand.

One can’t help but be ex cited after reviewing the plans for this project. I am confident we will see lifechanging discoveries — and world-changing scientists — emerge from our revitalized Science Complex.”

SMILEY HUYNH/the Justice

REUNION

Members from

gathered to commemorate the life of their classmate and friend.

Photo courtesy of PAYETTE

FUTURE : It is projected that construction on the complex will conclude within the next two to three years.

Photo courtesy of PAYETTE

GREEN SPACE : The construction plans include a large outdoor area for students and faculty to enjoy.

Photo courtesy

justfeatures

VERBATIM | LESLIE JORDAN

I think our dreams are what sustain us in hard times. Dreams are what keep us childlike. I love that they can grow and expand as we grow and expand.

ON THIS DAY…

In 1955, the first American microwave oven was sold for $1,295 — the equivalent of over $14,000 today. It sold poorly, and microwaves weren’t popular until over a decade later.

FUN FACT

Western honeybee swarms can generate as much electric charge as a thunderstom.

Finding togetherness in dissonance: New group aims to create community

In September, Hannan Canavan ’25 launched Deisvergent, a support group for neurodivergent students. Canavan and Lyric Siragusa ’24 spoke to the Justice about the importance of awareness, understanding, and accessibility within “a system that was not built for us.”

By ANIKA JAIN JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

“When you’re younger, you don’t really notice you’re that different,” Hannan Canavan ’25, student leader of De isvergent, said. “The adults did, because they could see you from the outside, but your peers, they really didn’t. Then, as you get older, there starts to become this barrier, this invis ible wall. Others begin to progress and understand things that you don’t. That’s a very isolating experience.”

When Canavan was ten years old, they were diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety. It wasn’t until they were 14 years old that they were diagnosed with both attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism, on top of their original diagnoses.

“I felt consistently anxious and very lonely because I felt this barrier, like I was on the outside looking in,” they said.“It wasn’t until I met peers who were also neurodiver gent that I started to feel less alone.”

Neurodivergence, or neurodiversity, is a term used to refer to how brains can vary in sociability, learning, atten tion, mood, and other mental functions. Around 15 to 20% of the population is neurodivergent, characterized by autism, ADHD, dyslexia, or other patterns outside the neurotypi cal mainstream, according to the Independent Educational Consultants Association.

This year, Canavan helped launch Deisvergent, a student affinity group created in association with Student Accessi bility Support. The club provides a safe space for neurodi vergent students where they can receive support. “The pri ority is community-building,” Canavan said. In addition to recounting personal triumphs and tribulations every week, the students in Deisvergent also practice activities cen tered around emotional regulation, organizational skills, and more.

“While I definitely want it to be a group where we learn to overcome struggles, I also want it to be a group where we celebrate all the strengths and the beauty of neurodiver sity,” Canavan added. They continued, “Even though there are some struggles with having different brains, there are also so many things that are beautiful about it that help us benefit society.”

Today, an estimated 11% of undergraduate students are neurodiverse, according to the National Center for Educa tion Statistics.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires public and private colleges and universities to provide equal access to postsecondary education for students with disabilities. However, if an institution can prove that accommodations create undue financial or administrative burden, they are not required to make alternative arrangements.

Systemic obstacles related to diagnoses, accommoda

tions, and medications for neurodivergent people are om nipresent on and off campus. “There is no ADA-accessible route from the bottom of campus, other than the Branvan, which is notoriously unreliable,” Lyric Siragusa ’24, copresident of the Disabled Students’ Network at Brandeis, said. “Always assume that there is going to be a disabled and/or neurodivergent person who needs those accommo dations and build them into the structure,” she said.

When Siragusa was four years old, her parents took her to a psychiatrist, expecting that she would be diagnosed with autism. Instead, she was only diagnosed with social anxi ety. Siragusa attributes this to systemic medical biases. Be cause of how people are raised and socialized, symptoms present themselves differently in different demographics such as BIPOC and people who are assigned female at birth. “If a boy doesn’t make eye contact, then it’s autism, but if a girl doesn’t make eye contact she’s just shy or she’s being polite,” she said.

Throughout her childhood and teenage years, Siragusa’s parents remained convinced that she had autism, despite her not being formally diagnosed. At seventeen years old, Siragusa finally received an official diagnosis of autism — three months before COVID-19 lockdowns began. Transi tioning from high school to college at this time was already difficult, but needing accommodations in college made it even more challenging.

“It is hard for us [neurodivergent people] to try to work into the system as it is now. That is what a lot of us have done most of our lives — try to work into a system that was not built for us,” Canavan said. “In a way, we are al ways providing what others need to feel comfortable. There needs to be more equal dynamics of give and take.”

A recurring sentiment among neurodivergent students is that neurotypical members of the Brandeis community need to be educated about how to support neurodivergent and disabled people in academic spaces and other day-today interactions. Canavan said although accommodations help to a certain extent, open conversations and the accep tance of differences should be prioritized by both staff mem bers and students.

Siragusa, who is majoring in both history and psychol ogy, said her experiences with professors in regards to her autism have varied. While some professors were accepting and understanding, others were “adamantly opposed” to providing accommodations.

When she tried to justify the accommodations to her pro fessors, Sirgusa “had multiple instances where I’ve had to sit and listen to people describe my diagnosis as brain dam age or espouse ABA [applied behavioral analysis] therapy treatment.” Studies have found applied behavior analysis therapy to be effective for autistic children, but it is con troversial — early iterations used punishment to change behavior, and critics say the current version pushes autistic kids to change themselves to appear neu rotypical.

Some classes pose unique challenges for neurodiver gent students. One example Siragusa mentioned was foreign language courses, explaining that auditory processing issues associ ated with autism can make these classes especially dif ficult.

These factors make ac commodations vital, Sira gusa said, but she and other

neurodivergent students often run into obstacles that make this process difficult. “If we say, ‘Hey, this will be helpful for us,’ please, for the love of god, don’t make us sit down and explain every single detail of how our neurodiversity or disability works and how that accommodation would help us,” she said.

The burden should not lie on neurodivergent students to adapt to systems that are not set up to accommodate their differences, Canavan said. “There is a need for [neu rotypical] people to start recognizing that the change can come from them,” they said. They shared some advice for students who want to support their neurodivergent peers: “Just pay attention to the emotions that are going across. Look for reactions, they may be subtle. Ask if they’re okay … It’s better to try to [help] than try to ignore it.”

Reflecting on frustrating experiences in class, Siragusa said, “Many times I’ve gotten to the point of tears when in group work, and none of my group mates would notice. If they did notice, they would ignore it and continue on as normal.”

Canavan has also seen how current systems fail neuro divergent people in myriad ways. “People with physical, psychological, and neurological disabilities experience sexuality, stress, and relationships very differently, but the healthcare system does not accommodate for that,” they said. A 2012 study found that compared to non-autistic adults, autistic adults reported more unsatisfactory inter actions with healthcare professionals and were more likely to have unmet physical and mental health needs. Canavan is currently working on designing an Independent Interdis ciplinary Major centered around sexual health with a focus on disabilities. With their degree, they hope to provide re search to contribute to policy and procedural changes that create a higher quality of life for people with disabilities.

“We are everywhere. You can’t find us just by looking at us,” Siragusa said. Whether in the workplace or on the street, everyone will interact with neurodivergent people in their day-to-day lives. “Most of the time, you’re not going to know, because disabilities and neurodivergencies aren’t always visible. Don’t go assuming that neurotypical and abled people are going to be the only people that you’re in teracting with. Be prepared. Don’t be shocked when some body reveals they are neurodivergent or disabled.”

“Sometimes being different can suck,” Canavan said. Their advice to neurodivergent students who may be strug gling? “It’s okay to admit that it sucks, and things aren’t perfect. It’s okay to want to try to improve yourself, but you can simultaneously say that while still loving yourself just the way you are. Know that you are an important member of society and a loved member of society.”

Autism Association of New England and Aspire are helpful resources for children and adults on the autism spectrum looking for support with coping skills and social engagement, Canavan said. They explained that support groups run by neurodivergent and disabled people are vital for creating a community. Canavan hopes that Deisvergent will do the same here at Brandeis.

“Let’s try to create a community that is symbiotic and encourages interaction between neurodivergent and neu rotypical people,” Canavan said. “That’s why Deisvergent is so important, because even though we are all so different in our presentations and our support needs, we have this common trait of feeling that dissonance, and we find togeth erness in that.”

Deisvergent meets every Friday at 3:30 PM in Room 315 in the Shapiro Campus Center and on Zoom link: https:// tinyurl.com/hts3jyf5

Illustration courtesy

BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY

Design:

Design: Anna Martin and Ceci Chen/the Justice

By OWEN CHAN AND JACK YUANWEI CHENG

JACK YUANWEI CHENG/the Justice

JACK YUANWEI CHENG/the Justice

JACK YUANWEI CHENG/the Justice

OWEN CHAN/the Justice

OWEN CHAN/the Justice

Thanking the Student Union for organizing much needed medication delivery service

The University campus is in dire need of increased accessibility across many aspects of campus life. Thanks to the Student Union, however, a step has been taken in the right direction. On Thursday, Oct. 13, under the directive of Hana Klempnauer Miller ’25, the director of accessibility for the Student Union, the Union launched a new initiative to make prescription medications more accessible via a medication delivery service through the e-pharmacy Capsule. Capsule provides prescriptions in the same way any normal pharmacy does, but instead of having to pick them up in-person at a store, students can have their prescriptions delivered directly to campus in a private manner

and free of charge for delivery, per an Oct. 4 Justice article.

This editorial board commends the Student Union on its dedicated effort in ensuring that all students can have easy access to their necessary medications. There are many challenges that make obtaining prescriptions inaccessible and prevent students from making a trip out to a pharmacy –– such as mobility issues, a lack of transportation, or simply just a busy schedule.

However, the Capsule prescription delivery service will remedy these hurdles, and as such, this board encourages students to take advantage of this important new program.

EDITORIALS

Why the actions by Harvest Table leadership are condemnable and unacceptable

On Sept 7, the University’s new dining provider Harvest Table abruptly fired Kevintz Merisier, a longtime catering lead, with no warning. In the wake of Merisier’s yet-unexplained dismissal, the Brandeis Leftist Union created a petition demanding his reinstatement and organized a joint student-worker delegation on Sept. 22 to deliver the letter, which garnered over 600 signatures. When the students attempted to deliver the petition to Director of Hospitality Clayton Hargrove, he evaded the group and called Brandeis Police for “police assistance.” Hargrove declined to rehire Merisier on Sept. 27, and Harvest Table representatives have refused to provide statements or interviews to the Justice.

First, this board calls on Harvest Table to rehire Merisier. During the spring semester’s Request for Proposals process, dining worker protection and retention were among students’ primary concerns; that a worker was terminated, apparently without cause, is unacceptable. Boston

Local 26, the union that represents Brandeis’ dining and catering teams, prohibits on-thespot termination. This board is appalled that Harvest Table has not honored union protections and applauds the work that BLU has done to bring Merisier’s situation to the forefront of campus conversation.

Secondly, this board condemns Hargrove’s decision to call campus police when faced with peaceful student protestors. We struggle to understand the cowardice of an executive whose role requires interaction with the student body, and we denounce the violence of calling the police on students and workers,

particularly those of color. Although BranPo, to their credit, did not interact with the protestors, Hargrove’s decision to call them was unnecessary and pathetic.

Thirdly, we cannot imagine why neither the University Administration nor Harvest Table has issued a statement in response to last month’s unprecedented events. The dining provider has demonstrated a complete unwillingness to cooperate with student journalists, an unacceptable curtailing of campus media’s investigative function.

Moreover, the campus community expects and deserves better from its administrators. The Justice also reached out to Lois Stanley, executive vice president of operations — the division which oversees dining and Public Safety — with a request for comment about the firing. On Oct. 21, she responded to an email from the Justice with the statement: “This is a personnel matter for which Harvest Table, the employer, is responsible.”

Stanley serves the student body and must provide students with an explanation of her division’s lack of intervention in Merisier’s firing. This board is also disappointed by the administration’s failure to condemn Hargrove for calling the police on a peaceful student protest. Less than six months into Harvest Table’s arrival on campus, this is a dangerous and unsatisfactory precedent.

Harvest Table’s behavior toward dining workers and students over the past month, and Brandeis administration’s refusal to publicly address these incidents or communicate with students, show a lack of respect toward Brandeis workers and students.

Asking for a friend

are you doing to still have fun dur

this time? What hobbies, media, or tv

Photo courtesy of Capsule

The journey to embracing my natural curls

By MIRABELL ROWLAND JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

Growing up, my Mama was always the one who styled my hair. She would do the difficult labor of washing, conditioning, and combing my strong curls. As a young brown girl, I don’t believe I ever realized how much work it took to style natural hair, but I would always cry because I was so tender-headed. I loved the way my Mama did my hair, but I hated being in the “hair chair.” The hair chair, a traditional wooden chair with a pillow in the seat, was pulled into the living room whenev er Mama was going to do my hair. I’d sit there for what felt like hours. Then when I was done, I would rush to the mirror to examine my beautiful braids. Recently, I went down memory lane — I looked at old polaroid pictures and flipped through them fondly. I was amazed as I looked at myself, realizing that when I was young er, my hair was always natural. I realized that, back then, I was free. I was so happy and I never really seemed to think about beauty or question if my hair was an ob stacle to that definition.

As the years progressed, so did my definition of beauty. In high school, I be gan letting society’s beauty ideals influ ence me. So I reached for curling irons and straighteners. At first, I would only straighten my hair for special occasions, but later I would use a flat iron monthly and sometimes even weekly. I often did this not only so that my hair would look better but also because of ease. My hair was just so much easier to manage when I straightened it. And not just for me, but seemingly for everyone else. In case it wasn’t obvious, I was not a “cool” kid throughout school, but for some reason, it seemed that whenever my hair was straightened, the cool kids noticed me more. I was even complimented about my hair looking nice. Whenever my hair was natural, people had the nerve to touch my hair without asking, as if to signal I am different from other people.

Unfortunately, for many Black women and men, the way they wear their hair can be the reason they gain employment or even the reason they are pulled out of class. Recently, there has been a wave of aggression against hairstyles. “Black stu dents are three to six times more likely to be suspended or expelled from school” per the Brookings Institution. Roughly 70% of all suspensions are discretionary, which means it could be because of dress code or because of a student’s hairstyle.

Black women’s hair has been politicized for centuries, as even the most promi nent figures —including Uzo Aduba, Tyra Banks, Zendaya, and many others — still struggle with this.

I can remember the moment when Barack Obama won the election. Sitting on my soft, carpeted floor as a young girl, I watched as “a black family at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue [...] shattered [a] political barrier.” I was so happy to see a first family that looked like me, and Ma lia and Sasha reminded me of my sister and I. Their family was a subversion of societal expectations of a Black family in many ways; yet, in the case of hair, not so much. Just being Black in the White House was controversial enough, and hair would only spark more controversy, so it was avoided by the Obamas.

In a 2009 TIME article by Jenee Des mond Harris, she writes about why Mi chelle Obama’s hair is important. A few people voiced their opinions about Obama’s decision to straighten her and her daughters’ hair, saying this was to fit certain expectations of appearance and professionality. While Desmond writes, “Her hair is the catalyst for a conversa tion that begins with style but quickly transcends outward appearance and ul timately transcends Michelle herself — a symbol for African-American women’s status in terms of beauty, acceptance, and power.”

Michelle Obama has been and contin ues to be one of the most influential Black women to this day. I have always looked

up to her, like many other young girls. I looked to her for wisdom, intellect, politi cal identity, and of course her fashion and hair. As a teenage girl, I would straighten my hair because I wanted my hair to look just like Michelle Obama’s.

There was this idea of what beauti ful hair looked like in my head and Mi chelle’s hair was the epitome of that. So now seeing Michelle Obama wearing her hair naturally was definitely an im portant moment, and quite recently she had knotless braids at the official White House portrait. I was so glad to see the overwhelming support and positivity to ward wearing her hair this way.

As a response to the perpetual and ever-growing aggression against Black hair and the stigmatization in school and workplaces, the C.R.O.W.N Act was cre ated. The purpose was to “ensure protec tion against discrimination of race-based hairstyles by extending statutory protec

tion to hair texture and protective styles such as braids, locs, twists, and knots in the workplace and public schools.” Origi nally started by former California State Senator Holly Mitchell, it has now been adopted by 18 other states, including Mas sachusetts.

From an early age, I always felt as if there was a right choice for my hair. I thought I had to choose between wear ing my hair natural or straight; rocking braids, twists, or Bantu knots; or just be ing free and natural. A recent episode of Black-ish, “Season Six: Episode 11,”which explores Diane’s choice between straight ening her hair or going natural, reminded me that within Black beauty standards, there is no such thing as a wrong choice when it comes to how you present your self or your hair. Because as Rainbow Johnson,played by Tracee Ellis Ross, tells her daughter, “Despite what the world tells us, all Black hair is beautiful.”

I’m still learning, but I’m almost there

By MINA ROWLAND JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Writing a memoir, selling my art, and making a podcast have all been on my list of things to do in my life. I am happy to announce that I am really, really close to completing my list. I sold some of my art for the first time last semester at the Create@Brandeis Craft Market, and now this October I am releasing my very first podcast. After taking Prof. Adriana Lacy’s (JOUR) class on social journalism, my interest in different forms of journalism flourished. I grew up listening to NPR, the “Moth Radio Hour” and a variety of podcasts, but I realized that storytelling is the thread to everything I am passionate about. Film, animation, art, and now journalism all incorporate storytelling. I decided to make a podcast not only because it has been on my list, but because podcasting allows an audience to relate and listen. I learned that through a podcast, you can turn research and numbers into human stories.

My podcast, “Almost There”, was created because of my passion for animation and my focus on how being a woman of color in the industry matters and why. I, a fan of all things podcasts, thought it would be a fun way to extend my interest in animation. For me, podcasts are little nuggets of wisdom often expressed through interviews. What better way to find inspiration than listening to amazing stories of women of color breaking stereotypes and societal molds? My closest competitor would be B‘n’A, also known

as “Black‘N’animated,” a multi-host podcast that also interviews professionals through the lens of their experience and intersectionality with race. However, my podcast aims to focus on women of color in the industry rather than solely focus on Black creatives, of which a larger majority are men.

I am pretty proud of myself for challenging myself by not doing something I might be more comfortable or familiar with, like writing a newsletter, since I have experience working on Rise Up Animation’s newsletter. I think as a first timer, I am trying to not be so judgmental of how it turned out. As far as what went well, I think the interview process and recording was much better than I anticipated. My first episode was an interview with Natalie Tseng, who is working for Netflix’s creative team for gaming and is currently the newsletter supervisor at Rise Up Animation. I really enjoyed the interview and talking with Natalie about her journey and her experience. I used the Discord voice call system and recorded it internally from my laptop. I was happy to see how clear the audio turned out. I tried to ask engaging and fun questions, balancing the weight of the conversation and inserting some humor when I thought was needed. One of the most important things I have learned is the importance of planning and researching. During the interview, I tried to ask a variety of questions, but she answered some of the questions before I even asked. It was slightly stressful to realize that “you already answered this, but I still want to ask you the full

question” while simultaneously changing the question slightly.

One of the problems I ran into was being consistent and professional. While interviewing Natalie, several “um’s” and “like’s” freckled my questions and conversation despite my attempts to prepare with a script. Moving forward I definitely plan to implement more practice and dedicate more time to work on my speaking voice generally. After Prof. Lacy gave me insight about taking pauses, such as other great podcasters, I looked into it and found that the most famous orators and best public speakers often take several pauses, no matter how awkward.

Regarding tracking the success of my podcast, I really wanted to focus on listens and starts which would be how many people started to listen compared to listening to a full episode. As my podcast is fairly new and not well known, I did not expect many listeners to engage. I was happy, however, to see through Spotify for Podcasters that my data for starts were up to 26; however, compared to full listens it was only 14, which is still impressive to me. Through Anchor, I am able to see 13 plays, and looking at the graph for the last 30 days, I gained the most support from listeners the day of my release. I gained four listeners from Oct. 5 through 11.

It should be noted that some data may be skewed because of myself or others playing an episode more than once. Something else that was interesting was that, while I was unable to find demographic breakdowns of my audience, such as gender or race, I am able to see the streaming location. It turns out, 90% of my audience is located in

Waltham, MA, but a shocking 10% — what I assume is one person — is listening from Nigeria. Being a young Black woman in a space such as podcasting can be difficult, but it is amazing to have my voice heard and to use it to uplift others. I aim to inspire, educate, and create through my podcast. I often feel imposter syndrome, as a student at a predominantly white institution, but through this podcast I am able to make a change by adding to the diversity of voices in our community. When we all make changes in our community, we can make a difference.

I plan to spread the word about my podcast the good old fashioned way: through word of mouth. Kidding! I think spreading awareness, however, is increasingly important as my podcast is a new one. I’ll be updating my personal social media and letting my friends and family know. I also plan on reaching out to some programs on campus that teach or serve as after school programs for middle school students so I can reach a younger audience as well.

I plan on releasing my podcast episodes biweekly with an interview style approach and possibly adding a bonus episode where I talk about my experience as a young woman of color in art with a rising passion for animation, but I am still deciding. Making a podcast as someone with no technical background in Adobe or any software may have started as a dare, but it has been a dream come true! I am happy to have checked off one more amazing thing in my life. All I really want is to make a difference in the world, whether through art, films, or books.

to us

The Justice welcomes letters to the editor responding to published material. Please submit letters through our Web site at www. thejustice.org. Anonymous submissions cannot be accepted. Letters should not exceed 300 words, and may be edited for space, style, grammar, spelling, libel and clarity, and must relate to material published in the Justice. Letters from off-campus sources should include location. The Justice does not print letters to the editor and op-ed submissions that have been submitted to other publications. Op-ed submissions of general interest to the University community — that do not respond explicitly to articles printed in the Justice — are also welcome and should be limited to 800 words. All submissions are due Friday at noon.

Fine Print The Staff

The opinions stated in the editorial(s) under the masthead on the opposing page represent the opinion of a majority of the voting members of the editorial board; all other articles, columns, comics and advertisements do not necessarily.

The Justice is the independent student newspaper of Brandeis University. Operated, written, produced and published entirely by students, the Justice includes news, features, arts, opinion and sports articles of interest to approximately 3,500 undergraduates, 900 graduate students, 500 faculty and 1,000 administrative staff.

The Justice is published every Tuesday of the academic year with the exception of examination and vacation periods.

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Photo courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS

BENZEMA: French forward honored

has proven his worth to Real Madrid. Humorously, there is a clause in Benzema’s transfer contract, signed when he left Lyon to join Madrid in 2009, that states if the striker ever won the Ballon d’Or,Madrid would have to pay a sum of money to Lyon— somewhere around the vicinity of $1 million euros. Hopefully Benzema

can continue to live up to his talent and skill in the years to come, as this was without a doubt one of the best seasons that Benzema has had, and one that many players can only dream of. Karim Benzema has certainly cemented himself in the history books of soccer and as one of the all-time greats.

NBA: Celtics start the season flying with 3-0 record

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their opponent’s jersey color. The NBA has promised the teams and their fans to take a closer look at similar conducts. Excessive conduct from the bench will now be penalized with a technical foul.

On a more exciting note, the Boston Celtics finished off their first week of action with a perfect 3-0 record leading the Eastern Conference. “The Jays,” forward Jayson Tatum and swingman Jaylen Brown, continue to lead the Celtics with their elite scoring abilities, averaging almost sixty points combined per game. New addition Malcolm Brogdom has begun to prove himself with a few balanced performances, averaging 12 points and 3.7 assists off limited minutes from the bench. Power forward Noah Vonleh has also worked hard on the rebounds, taking up an important role in the Celtics’ rotation amid injuries of Robert Williams and Danilo Gallinari.

Celtics’ interim head coach Joe Mazzulla has stepped up after the team’s suspension of head coach Ime Udoka. The Celtics’ players observed an uncommon

sense of confidence from Coach Mazzulla on the opening night, which was his first NBA game as a head coach. Guard Marcus Smart shared with The Athletics, “Usually, most coaches are trying to figure things out, and he comes right in like he’s [been] doing it for years…” Coach Mazzulla boldly decided to give Noah Vonleh more minutes instead of the public projection of bigger roles for Grant Williams or Luke Kornet. The mutual trust between Coach Mazzulla and his squad has been the key to the Celtics’ first-week success.

After visiting the Chicago Bulls for the last stop of their threegame road trip, the Celtics will host the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Washington Wizards at TD Garden this weekend. Projected as the favorite team to win the 2023 NBA championship by Sports Illustrated, the Boston Celtics strive to work together and look forward to maintaining their perfect record.

Want to be more than just a spectator?

BADMINTON: Yuqi defeats Jia in tournament championship

court again. For both seeded players, withdrawing from the Denmark Open will result in large point deductions, affecting their World Rankings and the race to the BWF World Tour Finals in Guangzhou, China.

After the massive win against Axelsen, Loh advanced to the semifinals against Jia. In the first game, Loh quickly gained a comfortable lead of five points from his accurate judgment of the shuttle landing, but Jia clearly had an upper hand with his athletic physique. The Malaysian opponent caught up, bringing the match to 8-8, and the game remained a close fight. In the final four serves of the game, Loh was exhausted by the fast-paced play and began to get caught up in Jia’s strategic backhand strokes, unable to regain the lead. Following the 21-18 loss, game two was an even tougher battle for Loh, yet Jia showed no signs of fatigue. Despite dragging himself to a fifth consecutive point, he was defeated by a lack of stamina and experience. The final score of the second game was 21-15, and the win sent Jia onwards for the chance to win his third championship title of the season.

The other semifinal match was played between Kodai Naraoka and Shi Yuqi. Yuqi, a former World Ranked No. 2 player from China, was playing his second tournament after a 10-month ban by the Chinese National Team. It was commonly believed that the internal ban was a penalty imposed as a consequence of his unsportsmanlike behavior at

for Sports!

the Thomas Cup in 2020. During the tournament, Yuqi resigned against Kento Momota at 20-5. Following the conclusion of the game, Yuqi commented on social media that because he had resigned from the game before Momota had won his 21st point, it was not technically a “loss.”

The controversy sparked rage and criticism; while Yuqi blamed his poor performance on injuries, Momota was also in the process of recovering from a serious traffic accident. Kodai Naraoka, on the other hand, was a new star from Japan, only beginning to win BWF World Tour titles in the 2022 season. In the quarterfinals, he had an overwhelming win over the runner-up of the All Englands Open 2022, Lakshya Sen. After the first eight serves, Naraoka was seven points behind and called a medical timeout. He lost the first game 15-21 but made a comeback in the second, 21-9. The third game was an intense wrestle, eventually settling in a deuce of 22-24 with Yuqi taking the match point.

Facing Yuqi at the championship match, Jia had struggled to keep the lead during the first game. Although both players are roughly the same height, Jia seemed to be more athletic than Yuqi, recovering chance shots from Yuqi with almost inhuman speed. However, Yuqi caught up by the 24th serve, bringing the score to 1212. He set up his game meticulously, striking the shuttle to unexpected corners on Jia’s side. Drop shots!

Kills! Jia was incapable of turning from defense back to offense, losing

the first game 21-18. In the following game, nevertheless, Yuqi was unable to reproduce the same clever tactics.

Jia remained ahead throughout the game, even reaching a commanding lead of 8-1. While the Chinese player scored five consecutive points in the second half, it was not enough for him to take the game back. Jia took the game 16-21. In the third match, Yuqi made a strong comeback, looking comparatively more focused than in the second game. He was solid at receiving, and the long rallies did not seem to exhaust him as much. The game was irreversible when Jia missed seven serves in a row, falling behind by nine points. Yuqi eventually took the final game 21-12 and thus the championship match, winning his first title of the 2022 season.

After the Denmark Open, BWF Super series will continue on Oct. 25 at Stade Pierre de Coubertin Paris, featuring the Super 750 French Open. This tournament will draw international attention, as it shares the same location with the upcoming 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. The top four seeded players of the tournament for the men’s single division are Axelsen, Andersen, Jia, and Chou Tien Chen from Taipei. With two Super 750 tournaments held back to back, the results of the French Open will be predominantly determined by how well each player recovers from their fatigue and injuries.

Photo courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS

GOLDEN BOOT: Karim Benzema's 15 goals in the Champions League tournament have awarded him football's highest honor.

Photo courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS

YUQI: After returning to the court from a ten-month ban, Shi Yuqi defeated Jia Lee to capture his first major title of the year.

WOMEN’S SOCCER

STANDINGS

UPCOMING GAMES:

Brandeis Hall of Fame welcomes honorees

■ Brandeis Athletics enshrined four former head coaches into their hall of fame over Homecoming weekend.

By AKI YAMAGUCHI JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The weekend of Oct. 7 and 8 was filled with multiple events featuring alumni and notable coaches from Brandeis Athletics’ past. On top of the main ceremony, there were various alumni events, from a 5K run to a swim meet with an inter-squad competition. The men’s and women’s varsity soccer teams faced off against Carnegie Mellon University for their annual Homecoming matches. There were food trucks, a petting zoo, bouncy castles, and more. This year’s Brandeis Homecoming was especially notable for the honoring of four veteran coaches.

Denise Dallamora

As the first-ever varsity soccer women’s coach, Denise Dallamora’s impact has continued to be felt today through the program’s success. It was only five years into her career that the Judges had their first winning season, and by 1988, they had three All-Americans on the roster. In 2016, the Judges had their first Final Four appearance with multiple appearances in the tournament in past years. Between 2003 and 2019, they made the postseason 15 times. Dallamora was honored as the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Coach of the Year for her Final Four run in

2016. Current coach Mary Shimko ’14 succeeded her after being her assistant coach, continuing Dallamora’s legacy and impact. After her integral role in the foundation of the current women’s soccer program, Dallamora has been honored in the Brandeis Hall of Fame after 40 seasons.

Mike Coven

Looking for the opportunity to build a program at Brandeis, former men’s soccer head coach Mike Coven posted back-to-back winning seasons in his first two years coaching. In 1976, the team won the NCAA Division III soccer championship with All-American Cleveland Lewis ’79 leading the pack. For wins, Coven ranks sixth all-time in Division III and 10th for all NCAA. He led his team to the postseason in 25 of his 44 seasons, and in his last season in 2016, Coven returned to the Final Four for the first time in 32 years. He was named the New England Division III Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2015 and earned University Athletics Association Coach of the Year in 2002. These accolades led him to reach the highest honor in Brandeis Athletics, with an induction to the Hall of Fame.

Pete Varney

Former baseball coach Pete Varney retired in 2015 after 34 years of coaching the team, and he holds career accomplishments that still stand today. He won more games than any other coach in Brandeis’ history and ended his career with a record of 705-528-6. With his 700th career win, he became the fourth Division III coach in New England history to reach that milestone. The current coach, Derek Carlson

’91, played under coach Varney himself and went on to succeed him when Varney retired. A New England Division III Coach of the Year three times (’84, ’87, ’99), he coached three All-Americans and 12 professional players. These accomplishments, along with his championed work ethic, contributed to him being inducted into the Hall of Fame this year.

Bill Shipman

Finally, with a 34-year career, Coach Bill Shipman of Brandeis Fencing has made his mark on Brandeis athletics, as he helped champion a DIII program for fencing that has continued to compete against DI schools. In 1988, the women won their first UAA title and the men’s team won in 1989 over University of Pennsylvania 14-13. The competitive spirit Shipman brought and the addition of Gosman Athletic Center allowed Brandeis to host the NCAA Championships in 1994, as well as three additional occasions (’99, ’04, and ’16). In 1994, Shipman was named the United States Fencing Coaches Association National Coach of the Year. It is no surprise he has ended up inducted in such a prestigious class of the Hall of Fame to honor his accomplishments.

Overall, the Hall of Fame ceremony and induction was a success for Brandeis Athletics. Furthermore, the department far surpassed their goal of raising $100,000 and had more than 50 donors contributing each to seven programs. These iconic coaches helped usher in a new era of athletics at Brandeis, and their impact continues to be seen today.

NORA HERNDON-LAZERWITH/the Justice

CEREMONY: Former Brandeis athletes packed Gosman Athletic Center to celebrate the enshrinement of former coaches.

Sportsjust

BRANDEIS HALL OF FAME ADDITIONS

Brandeis Athletics celebrates its annual Homecoming weekend with fundraising and athletic alumni events.

LUCK OF THE IRISH

NBA adds new rules for 202223 campaign

■ Major rule changes have been made prior to the 2022-23 season, and the Celtics are off to a perfect start in the first week.

By JACKSON WU JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The National Basketball Association started its regular season last Tuesday, featuring matchups of the Boston Celtics hosting the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers visiting the Golden State Warriors. The Celtics wrapped their first week of the season up with three consecutive wins, two of them coming on the road in Miami and Orlando.

There are some major rule changes basketball lovers should take note of. During the summer, the NBA announced that they would heighten the penalty of a “transition take foul,” “a foul in which the defender does not make a play on the ball to stop a transition scoring opportunity.” Take fouls committed on transition will now result in a free throw, which can be attempted by any player on the offensive team, as well as a retained possession for them. This rule change will encourage players to work on transition defense, where, according to the NBA’s Senior Vice President

BADMINTON

overseeing referees and training Monty McCutchen, “[s]ome of our best play[s]” happen. If you have enjoyed Ja Morant’s crazy two-handed blocks above the rim or LeBron James’ iconic chase down swat, be ready to see more of those this season.

The league has also come up with a more efficient way to indicate scoring changes, in light of the crucial cancellation of Max Strus’ three-pointer at the end of the previous Eastern Conference Finals. A blue light will now flash on the scoretable, indicating that a change has been made by the NBA Replay Center in Secaucus, New Jersey. The officials will then stop the run of play at the first “neutral opportunity,” when neither of the teams are in advantage of immediately scoring a basket, to announce the change.

In addition, bench conduct will now be monitored in a stricter manner. In recent years, players and coaches have not been shy in expressing their enthusiasm for the game. This has often resulted in interferences of the game and even unfair advantages. Notable instances include Toronto Raptors’ coach Nick Nurse lingering around the baseline during the 2020 playoffs in the bubble and Theo Pinson from Dallas Mavericks standing on the sidelines in shirts that matched

Denmark Open badminton 2022

■ Over the past week, Denmark Open Badminton 2022, a Super 750 tournament, was played at the Arena Fyn in Odense.

By MEGAN LIAO JUSTICE EDITOR

In the Men’s Division of Denmark

Open Badminton 2022 — which took place from Oct. 18 to 23 in Odense — the most shocking and well-known news was without a doubt Viktor Axelsen’s loss to Loh Kean Yew in the quarterfinals of the tournament. Not only had the match ended Axelsen’s incredible 39-match winning streak, but Loh had also beat the Danish player on his home turf, crushing his dream to reach a 40-match winning streak and reclaim the championship title at home.

After a long break, lasting nearly two months, the Badminton World Federation World Tour series finally resumed competition, beginning with the Super 750 Denmark Open. Of the top four seeded players from the 2021 Denmark Open — Viktor

Axelsen [one], Kento Momota [two], Anders Antonsen [three], Lee Zhi Jia [four] — only Jia was able to make it to the semifinals. Antonsen, a young Danish player ranked number two in World Badminton Rankings, withdrew from the tournament before its commencement due to injuries from training, allowing his first match opponent, Shi Yuqii, to walkover.

Former World Number one player Momota also announced his withdrawal from the tournament in mid-October. After his traffic accident in Indonesia and contracting COVID-19 in 2020, Momota had difficulty returning to the same physical state that brought him his 11-title-winning season in 2019. His loss in the preliminary round of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — carrying the heavy weight of the attention and hopes of his fellow Japanese fans — was a particularly devastating strike on his confidence. Three quarters into the 2022 BWF season, Momota won one title and dropped to number nine in the world rankings. Given his confirmation to also withdraw from the French Open occurring at the end of the month, Momota fans may have to wait a while to see him on the

Real Madrid’s Benzema claims Ballon d’Or trophy

■ Karim Benzema has been nabbed as the soccer worlds finest after becoming an improbable Champions League victor.

By PRATEEK KANMADIKAR JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

One of Europe’s finest soccer players, Karim Benzema, a forward for Real Madrid, has won soccer’s most prestigious individual award: the Ballon d’Or, awarded to the most outstanding player for that year. Benzema won the award with a staggering 549 points, 356 points clear of second place.

Sadio Mane of Liverpool and Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City came in second and third place respectively. The 2022 Ballon d’Or was the first in history to base the award off the full season, instead of the regular calendar year. This was also the first time since 2005 that Lionel Messi, one of the most talented and recognizable players in soccer history, was not nominated. Messi was the reigning winner of the Ballon d’Or and holds the record for most wins with 7. The Argentinian

was dethroned this year by Benzema who had an unbelievable season and rightly cemented himself among soccer's best.

Karim Benzema is a French-born soccer player who started his career with Olympique Lyonnais in 2005, before transferring to Real Madrid in 2009. Benzema is currently ranked second on Real Madrid’s all time goal scoring list, falling just short to his former Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo. Benzema along with Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, and current Madrid midfielder Luka Modric, were an integral part of Real Madrid’s dominance within La Liga in the 2010s. While Benzema struggled in his first few years as part of Real Madrid’s stacked roster, the addition of a few key players helped Benzema prove his value to the club. The French phenom was often looked at as the second man during most of his tenure at Real Madrid, mainly due to Cristiano Ronaldo’s superstar status. However, after Ronaldo left Real to join Serie A side Juventus in 2018, Benzema was able to take a larger role within the Real Madrid squad.

This past season has been quite the story for Benzema. Since longtime captain and friend Sergio Ramos

bid farewell to the club and joined Paris Saint Germain, Benzema was initially named vice captain and later captain at the start of the 2021 season. During the UEFA Champions League, Benzema scored a hat trick with just under 17 minutes to play against PSG to win the match 3-1. Later on in the tournament, Benzema scored another hat trick to claim a 3-1 victory against Chelsea. As Real Madrid creeped into the semifinals, Benzema displayed his dominance as he scored an imperative penalty kick in the final minutes against tournament favorites, Manchester City. As Real Madrid advanced to the Champions League Finals facing Liverpool, the championship matchup was rather low scoring compared to the offensive dominance seen earlier in the tournament. The match ended with Madrid on top as fellow Madrid winger, Vinicius Jr., scored the game's lone goal in the 59’ minute. Regardless of his championship contributions, Benzema proved to be the most valuable player in world soccer this year, and especially in the Champions League as he scored a total of 15 goals, topping all other competitors.

It’s surely safe to say that Benzema

Photo courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS

CONFERENCE CONTENDERS: Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics have taken the NBA by storm after a blazing hot start.

Photos: Smiley Huynh/the Justice. Design: Smiley Huynh/the Justice.

‘Sexy Villain’ syndrome: Remi Wolf at The Roadrunner

By ZOE POPOVIC JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Wearing a baggy Harvard Tshirt and plaid cargo pants, Remi Wolf looks like the coolest girl in Tatte thrown into a psychedelic coloring book. She stands on stage surrounded by huge color ful flowers and trees, an energetic band, an abundance of whimsical visuals and lights, and an eager crowd of teens and 20-somethings hanging on to her every move.

It’s no surprise that Wolf drew a huge crowd of young people, quickly selling out her show at The Roadrunner, Boston’s new est concert venue, on Oct. 9. In fall 2020, Wolf’s song “Photo ID” off her second EP, “I’m Allergic to Dogs!,” blew up as a sound on TikTok. The trippy, upbeat track is undeniably catchy and has collected over 100,000 videos utilizing the sound, from edits to fit-checks. Wolf was made for the internet — both in her music and as a performer, she is burst ing with creative, weird-girl en ergy that is deeply relatable to Gen Z, while staying fresh and unique. She released her first studio album, “Juno,” in 2021. Staying consistent to her maxi malist sound, the album is track after track of bubbly melodies, deeply layered production, play

ful sound effects, and abstract, personal lyrics. Truly of her time, the songs are filled with tongue-in-cheek ‘in’ references — “what’s better than two girls two cups?” — and chronically online swag — “super emo, Aqua girl with the rising leo.”

Jordana, an indie rock/indie pop artist known best for her 2021 collaborative album with TV Girl, “Summer’s Over,” opened the show. While I was not super familiar with Jordana’s music, her performance was enjoyable and set a light tone for Wolf’s set. The band buzzed with a young, slightly nervous energy that seemed to loosen up as they let themselves have fun in the music. Jordana took center stage, singing with a coy, slightly sultry energy and rocking out on her baby blue guitar.

The unique energy and relat ability that fills Wolf’s musical catalog translated seamlessly into her live performance. She captivated the audience, bounc ing around every corner of the stage and speaking to the crowd familiarly, like we were her best friends at summer camp. More than anything, it seemed like she and her touring band were hav ing loads of fun on stage. The gui tarist Conner Malone, who ear lier had been twerking, engaged the crowd in a rousing chant of

“I am Dua Lipa!,” encouraging the audience to live our very best sexy “Dua Lipa fall.” To a middle-aged parent, this would have absolutely no significance, but the crowd of college students and teenagers clearly understood Malone’s message and ate it up. Remi performed with an energy that felt joyful, safe, and palpably queer. She had control over the vibe of the show and fostered an environment that was fun and liberating. Wolf’s performance was certainly musically impressive. The band did a great job at replicating the sometimes chaotic instrumentals, and Wolf’s voice live was steady and powerful. She sounded just like her records despite endlessly dancing across the stage and jumping around. She took a moment to slow down and let her impressive range and control shine as she covered Frank Ocean’s “Pink + White,” leaning into a soul sound as she improvised runs. Another highlight was her encore performance of “Disco Man,” a flirty track that got the whole venue dancing. This was my first show at The Roadrunner, and I had a great experience within the venue. Although the show was sold out, the spacious upper balconies thinned out the pit and provided

a clear view to people who didn’t necessarily want to stand in a huge crowd. The floor itself was spacious – unlike my experiences with some other venues in the area, I didn’t feel suffocated and had room to dance in the pit. Staff provided the audience with bottles of water between acts, which is always good to see and much appreciated. Towards the

end of the show, Wolf remarked that “the venue has become sacred to me” and referred to the crowd and her band mates as “a little family.” I had such a fun night at a phenomenal show with my bestie and esteemed Features Editor Natalie Kahn, and we both look forward to checking out more shows at The Roadrunner in the future!

FILM REVIEW

‘Triangle of Sadness’

By ETHAN GERSTMAN JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

“Triangle of Sadness” is the newest addition to the last three months of independent and horror film success. On May 5, 2022, the film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, but it was released on Oct. 7 in the United States. It is already having a significant impact on arthouse theaters. In the independent Nashville theater I saw it in this past weekend, the house was packed. However, the production did not manage to make it on many screens in major theaters, leading to a paltry box office total of $4.8 million on a $15.6 million budget. The film was directed by Ruben Ostlund and produced by Erik Hemmendorff and Phillippe Bober.

The film consisted of three parts. In Part One, Carl and Yaya appear at an audition for a fashion show. Lined up on a wall with a group of other male models, we are introduced to the main character Carl, portrayed by Harris Dickinson. Carl is an overanalyzing, jealous, and self-centered 20-something who seeks substance in his life. We follow Carl to a romantic dinner with his disinterested Instagraminfluencer girlfriend Yaya, played by Charlbi Dean. She is similar to Carl in the sense that both are privileged by their looks.

Both are models who are given opportunities and free things because they are attractive. Their dinner turns into a violent discussion over who has the obligation to pay. Carl believes since he makes less he should not always have to pay, and Charlbi thinks paying is a sign of the man’s ability to provide. This argument is somewhat comical to the audience — both characters are privileged beyond belief.

It comes off as two trust fund kids fighting over who has to use the family credit card. After they make up at the hotel, we transition to the second part.

Part Two begins on a yacht that currently hosts a luxury cruise for the obscenely rich. The passengers include oligarchs, tech investors, weapon manufacturers, and Carl and Yaya. It is full of zany antics and hilarious interactions between the guests and the crew. For instance, there is a ten minute vomiting sequence in which nearly the entire guest list gets seasick and unloads the contents of their stomachs all over every surface of the vessel, with a great score playing in the background, of course. This idea usually never works. Audiences do not typically enjoy watching people vomit, and such scenes, if they exist, are short. But in this case, we somehow enjoy the chaos. Once this scene began, Part Two never de-escalated or calmed down.

Woody Harrelson’s character,

Captain Smith, was very strong in this part. He is a Communist American ship captain who does not care for the health or safety of his privileged guests. While almost every guest is having the worst night of their lives, he does nothing, laughing at the situation. His character compliments the film well. He provides a healthy contrast to the domineering behavior of the stressed-out crew managers, as well as the guests themselves. To a degree, he is the audience, seemingly having no stake in what occurs on the yacht: simply sadistically enjoying the misfortune that ensues.

The over-the-top insanity that occurs in this part of the movie makes you wonder how the filmmakers could fail so definitively in Part Three: The Island. The third part begins with a pirate attack on the yacht, which quickly results in the shipwreck of the vessel and the stranding of nine guests on a deserted island. Part Two is filled with constant action and comedy, whereas Part Three is slow and plodding. All the momentum generated by the previous part vanishes ten minutes into Part Three. Watching the nine characters slowly learn survival skills may be entertaining content for a reality show, but after what was experienced in the preceding part, it is undeniably dragging the plot.

Abigail, a Filipino janitor on the yacht, quickly becomes the

leader of the group due to her superior survival abilities. This is the first time we have seen her in the film. We learn she is a smart and resourceful woman who has been repressed and abused by the other, more European members of the crew. Her sense of humor and brusqueness makes her a natural leader given the circumstances. She teaches them how to start a fire, cook food, hunt, and work together. The film then proceeds to develop new relationships between the surviving members of the cruise. Nothing truly eventful happens from this point to the end of the film. The third part harms the film, because it does not match the pace of either of the two previous parts. Part One is of moderate intensity, and Part Two is insane. Part three does nothing.

Given the pacing mistakes that the film clearly exhibits, it is difficult to imagine how this production won the Palme d’Or, the premier award of the Cannes Film Festival. To provide context, only nine directors have ever won the Palme d’Or twice.

Following his film “The Square” in 2017, “Triangle of Sadness” adds Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund to that acclaimed list of directors. The question, then, is how did this film win? It did not just fail mechanically; it also failed as a piece of satire. In a sense, the film is a worse “Parasite.” It gives the impression that Östlund just discovered the phenomenon

of rich people doing bad things and could hardly wait to tell audiences about it. The comedic moment between the Russian oligarch and Woody Harrelson’s Captain Smith, hilarious as it is, is a perfect example of Östlund’s failed political commentary. They spend at least six minutes debating the merits of capitalism and communism, at which point the audience is tired and wants to move on. Movie-goers, especially to independent films like these, have seen so many interpretations of this argument that for a film like this to work, it must be original. And unfortunately, the version in “Triangle of Sadness” is not. Moreover, the film creates a divide between the perspectives of the crew and of the guests as it mirrors the inequality between the rich and poor, but fails to seriously characterize any of the crew. Abigail’s character is only developed by the last third of the film, but by then, over two thirds of the film is over. She is the only member of the crew fullyfleshed out by Östlund, yet that characterization comes too late for us to appreciate her.

As pure comedy, the “Triangle of Sadness” succeeds. However, as a political satire, the movie misses the mark. It adds no serious new commentary to the cinematic tradition of satirizing financial excess, nor does it present any themes in a way that is unique.

Design:

Rowland and Megan Liao/the Justice

Photo courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS

REMI WOLF: Wolf performed on Oct. 9 in Boston’s new venue, The Roadrunner.

Celebrating

Design:

By MINA ROWLAND

EDITORIAL ASSITANT

SMILEY HUYNH/the Justice

BAASA:

by Brandeis

Association,

Center.

“INCENDIO”:

GARDEN

CULTURE:

singer Milena Ferreira.

TSA “NIGHT MARKET”: Taiwanese Student Association held their annual

Market” event

Fellows Garden.

STREET

By MINA ROWLAND JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Illustration courtesy of SHLOMO FRISHBERG

SMILEY HUYNH/the