4 CULTURE
5 ARTS
How NYU students celebrate Easter during COVID-19
Tom Holland can’t stop ‘Cherry’ from going sour 7 OPINION
NYU needs to combat the bystander effect VOLUME LVI | ISSUE 5
MONDAY, APRIL 5, 2021
NYU students ineligible for the COVID-19 vaccine utilize loopholes to get vaccinated Due to the conflicting federal and state guidelines, some students have falsely claimed that they live in congregate living facilities in order to qualify for a COVID-19 vaccine early. By RACHEL COHEN Staff Writer
QASHKA RULINO
The vaccine rollout in New York City has eligibility attachments. Some NYU students have attempted to skirt regulations to get vaccinated.
Liberal Studies f irst-year MaryCharlotte Barnes plans to sign up for the f irst dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on April 6, when she, and all New York state residents aged 16 and over become eligible to take it. But she previously had an opportunity to get the vaccine weeks in advance, despite being ineligible. Ineligible NYU students living in residence halls have utilized a loophole to receive vaccines. These students tell vaccine providers that they live in congregate living facilities, even though university dorms are not considered as such. Some students living in residence halls told vaccine providers they reside in congregate living facilities, even though students living in university dorms do not count as residents of such facilities under New York City guidelines. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
What the normalization of relations between Israel and the UAE means for NYU By RUQAIYAH ZAROOK Staff Writer The Abraham Accords, brokered by the Trump administration and signed in August 2020, formalized the normalization of diplomatic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Despite a recent diplomatic spat between the two West Asian nations and the uncertainty of Israel’s current political deadlock, the accords will likely hold fast and the two states’ economic and political relations will remain unshaken. The accords might also foster increased collaboration between NYU’s Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi campuses because of eased travel restrictions between Israel and the UAE. “The UAE and Israel’s historic agreement to normalize diplomatic ties is an important step towards greater understanding and peace,” Martin A.
Mbugua, the associate vice chancellor for external relations for NYU Abu Dhabi, wrote in an email statement to WSN. “NYU Abu Dhabi and NYU Tel Aviv have always had an open and collaborative relationship … With the normalization of ties, we look forward to opportunities to further strengthen our academic and research connections between NYUAD and NYU Tel Aviv.” Benjamin Hary, the director of NYU Tel Aviv and professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, wrote in a statement to WSN that the site was delighted about the Abraham Accords. “NYUTA and NYUAD have always been cooperating within the regular partnership between NYU global sites all over the world and we do not foresee many changes, except, of course, for the relaxation of visa requirements between the countries,” he wrote. According to professors at NYU Tel Aviv and
NYU Abu Dhabi, the normalization of diplomatic ties between Israel and the UAE could foster further cooperation between the two West Asian states and NYU’s respective campuses. Lior Lehrs, an instructor at NYU Tel Aviv, said the normalization of ties could further cross-cultural exchange. “The fact that NYU has campuses both in Tel Aviv and in Abu Dhabi can enable the university to use the campuses to enhance dialogue and prompt exchange of students,” Lehrs said. “And post-COVID 19, it could bring students from NYU Abu Dhabi to study at NYU Tel Aviv and to travel in Israel and in Palestine and to study and experience first-hand the situation of the conflict.” Leonid Peisakhin, an assistant professor of political science at NYU Abu Dhabi, thinks these ties will make travel between Israel and the UAE — and, by extension, the two campuses — easier, due to
planned direct flights and visa-free travel. Peisakhin agreed with Lehrs, saying the official relations will enhance cross-cultural intellectual exchange. “Scholars will be able to take part more readily in joint research, participate in research trips, seminars and lectures,” Peisakhin said. “Hopefully, students from New York and Shanghai would also be more willing to consider spending time at the Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv campuses in sequential semesters.” Political and economic ties between Israel and the UAE had been quietly warming. The official normalization was unprecedented because it broke a decades-old consensus among the majority of Arab nations that any formal recognition of Israel depended upon an end to the occupation of Palestine and the re-establishment of a Palestinian state following pre-1967 borders. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
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NYU students ineligible for the COVID-19 vaccine utilize loopholes to get vaccinated CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
In New York City, residents of congregate living facilities include people in nursing homes, homeless shelters and domestic abuse shelters. While the New York City guidelines do not count college students in residence halls, the CDC guidelines include “student and faculty housing” within their definition. While some students knew that residence halls did not count under New York City protocols, others misunderstood the contradicting rules. “I know people who have signed up for [the vaccine] knowing that congregate housing didn’t count for college students,” Barnes said. “On one hand, I thought I shouldn’t do that because it takes away from people in the age group or at high risk, but on the other hand, I was nervous about doing something that wasn’t allowed.” According to Dr. Arthur Caplan, a bioethics professor and the founding head of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU’s Grossman School of Medicine, dorms do not present much of a threat to students who wear masks and social distance. “There’s a notion that COVID-19 is really deadly, if not to students, but the students’ parents and grandparents,” Caplan said. “They’re not thinking about how they don’t really need it if they wore
their mask and are socially distanced, regardless of living in a dorm. You can protect yourself well if you choose to, but I think the psychology of scarcity plays into this. Nothing makes people want a vaccine more than saying it’s in short supply.” Caplan says that healthcare workers and elderly people should be first in line to get vaccinated. If it were up to Caplan, prisoners, people with disabilities living in group homes, and individuals developing COVID-19 tests and vaccines wouldn’t be far behind. He also believes New York state should have opened up vaccines to the general public sooner and better defined qualified categories. “The definition of congregate living needs to be spelled out — who they really mean, and who they are talking about,” Caplan said. Caplan has heard of ineligible individuals lying about living in congregate settings, being essential workers, having asthma, or smoking, in order to get the vaccine in the tri-state area. Lying on the attestation form is a misdemeanor and could result in up to a year in jail, as The New York Times reported. To combat line-jumping, Caplan thinks the best solution is to actively impose penalties — like fines or tickets — on people who lie.
A first-year at the School of Professional Studies and resident of an NYU dorm — preferring to remain anonymous over fear of retribution — signed up for the vaccine using the congregate facility loophole. They received a dose of the Pfizer vaccine on March 11. “An hour later after signing up, they took the category off of Walgreens. From my understanding, I obviously knew that it was kind of a shortcut for younger people to get it, but at the same time, we were technically within the category,” they said, although residents living in NYU dorms do not actually fall into this category. The SPS first-year said some of their friends who were also ineligible were also vaccinated. According to the student, four or five leftover doses were given to walk-ups requesting a shot at the pharmacy where those first-years received their doses. A Liberal Studies first-year — who also asked to remain anonymous — signed up for the Moderna vaccine and was vaccinated on March 8, because they assumed residence halls counted as congregate living facilities. They said a friend told them about making an appointment on the Walgreens website, and that they know at least 10 other students who also got the vaccine through the congregate
living loophole. “I thought congregate setting was implied, and NYU never clarified that,” they said. “Even in taking binx tests, the university didn’t say if we should put congregate living. I had been putting that down as well. The CDC guidelines also say that dorms qualify, but New York state guidelines were not specific about that.” The LS first-year said they would not have gone through with their appointment if they knew that living in a dorm did not count as residing in a congregate living facility. “I would have looked into other options,” they said. “Walgreens has a policy that at the end of the day, you can go get a vaccine even if you’re not eligible if they had any extra doses.” Another LS first-year, who also preferred to remain anonymous, also made an appointment at Walgreens claiming congregate living and received the Moderna vaccine on March 11. They also said they did not realize that dorms did not fit the category until the day before their slot and decided not to cancel. “I was really questioning the morality of my decision, but a lot of them are being wasted,” they said. “We’re at a point where it’s not the initial release of the vaccines, and everyone who is high risk is eligible and capable of getting the vac-
cine if they choose. Getting vaccinated is helping people — it is not necessarily a bad thing.” Caplan said lying to get the vaccine is wrong because it pushes eligible people aside. However, he said that young adults, such as students, who obtain leftover vaccines are acting ethically. Over the past few weeks, he has been arguing for New York state to open up vaccination to all age groups to avoid wasting extra doses. CAS senior Jamie Ryu called pharmacies every night for two weeks before one put her on the waitlist for a leftover vaccine dose. “I think if there are so many vaccines being thrown out, they should open it up to everyone,” she added. “I know a lot of people who are trying to get the vaccine through waitlists like this.” Ryu received a leftover dose of the Pfizer vaccine on March 27 after receiving a call the day prior. “It was a painless process, all things considered,” Ryu said. “I thought it was going to be a hassle to get the vaccine from all the stories I’ve been hearing of people trying to sign up. It’s easy to get on a waitlist and get it without lying.” Email Rachel Cohen at news@nyunews.com.
What the normalization of relations between Israel and the UAE means for NYU
JAKE CAPRIOTTI | WSN
NYU operates two campuses in Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi. With the normalization of relations between Israel and the UAE, a new chapter begins for the two schools. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
In March, the UAE announced a planned $10 billion investment in Israel, as CNN previously reported. However, Emirati officials accused Netanyahu of attempting to involve them in his reelection campaign and exploit economic dealings for his political gain, sparking what the Financial Times described as a “diplomatic crisis.” Israelis went to the polls for the fourth time in two years on March 23. Prior to election day, the legislative race and its results were dubbed a “referendum” on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had focused his re-election campaign on Israel’s COVID-19 vaccination program and the normalization of diplomatic ties with several Arab nations, including Bahrain and the UAE.
NYU professor Itamar Rabinovich — the former Israeli ambassador to Washington, D.C. and a former member of the Israeli Defense Force — said this election was primarily focused on Netanyahu’s leadership and tenuous future. Linda Gradstein, a freelance journalist who teaches Journalism at NYU Tel Aviv, said Netanyahu did worse than in the previous election. According to Helga Tawil-Souri, an associate professor in the Department of Middle East and Islamic Studies at Steinhardt, Netanyahu’s electioneering and bragging were to be expected. “Formal normalization with the UAE is a big coup for Israel, so whomever could have overseen the agreement would likely use it as ‘bragging’ rights,” Tawil-Souri wrote in an email to WSN.
Neither Netanyahu’s electioneering nor his possible loss are likely to fundamentally weaken or alter Israel and the UAE’s newly formalized relations, according to Tawil-Souri. “The UAE and Israel have had ‘behind the scenes’ agreements for years now, and the recent normalization accord is more a formality than anything radically new,” she wrote. “Irrespective of which political party may win the Israeli elections, I cannot imagine any change in terms of the normalization agreements. Both nations have much to economically gain from this.” Rabinovich said the future of the Abraham Accords is “only marginally dependent on the outcome of the elections.” Dr. Edan Raviv, the assistant director for academic programs at NYU Tel
Aviv, echoed Peisakhin and Lehrs, saying the normalization of diplomatic ties is typically beneficial for both countries. Although it is difficult to judge the deal’s consequences on the region’s balance of power, Raviv said, the sociopolitical consequences will become more clear once the pandemic ends and the Biden administration grapples with pre-pandemic foreign policy issues. NYU Tel Aviv lecturer Jeffrey Jensen has doubts about the extent of the Abraham Accords’ impact on relations between Israel and the UAE. He thinks the deal’s impacts on Palestine and the balance of power in West Asia, however, could possibly be underestimated. “The push for normalization of relations came from the US with the thought that it would have an effect on US (domestic) electoral politics,” Jeffrey wrote in an email to WSN. The legitimization of Israel by the UAE can be considered a blow to Palestinians and the future of Palestine, according to Tawil-Souri. She said Palestinians hoped for solidarity from other Arab countries. “This is a hope that has been held for decades, even if, paradoxically … Palestinians know that their status is not one that matters much to most Arab governments and heads of state,” she wrote to WSN. “Israeli colonialism has been normalized for a long time already by the fact that it does have normal relations with most of the world and its colonial practices go on largely unobstructed -- even if no one is calling a spade a spade.” Although the normalization of dip-
lomatic ties may herald warmer bonds between NYU Tel Aviv and NYU Abu Dhabi, underlying issues at both campuses linger — even after the university has promised reforms. Labor rights scandals and disputes embroil NYU Abu Dhabi, whose campus was allegedly constructed with abusive labor practices, such as wage theft, poor working conditions and a general lack of worker protections. Tel Aviv University — with which NYU Tel Aviv partners for libraries and research labs — is built atop the ruins of a Palestinian village whose inhabitants were intimated into abandoning during the 1948 war and is allegedly one of Israel’s leading military research facilities. The law firm Nardello & Co. reported that nearly one-third of workers at NYU Abu Dhabi lived in poor housing and received late or no pay, in violation of NYU’s own labor guidelines, as WSN previously reported. Student activist groups at NYU have been highly critical of the university’s labor practices and lack of transparency concerning the construction of the Abu Dhabi campus. “NYU Abu Dhabi … has failed to implement key lessons from a major independent investigation, conducted at its behest, which had concluded that arbitrary, vague, and non-transparent labor standards allowed major human rights abuses to occur in the construction of its campus,” the Coalition for Fair Labor at NYU wrote in a January 2017 statement. Email Ruqaiyah Zarook at news@nyunews.com.
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Police detain and release 9 NYU Shanghai students in drug sweeps By RUQAIYAH ZAROOK Staff Writer Nine NYU Shanghai students were detained in two separate drug sweeps conducted by local police in Shanghai on March 12. Two students were taken into custody at a local bar, and seven others at a birthday party at an off-campus apartment. Police conducted both drug enforcement operations at approximately 10 p.m. local time on the same night. After testing negative for narcotics, the students were released. They are now alleging police misconduct. “The students who were at the bar told us that, just after leaving the bar, they were confronted by a person in plainclothes who showed something resembling a badge that they did not recognize,” Yuhan Xu, the media relations manager for NYU Shanghai, wrote in an email to WSN. According to Xu, the students were uncertain whether the officers were police. They did not know drug sweeps were commonly conducted by plainclothes officers. At the bar, the police kicked a male student in the head and bruised a female student as they took her into custody, according to The Washington Post. According to the article, an anonymous NYU Shanghai student said that the injured student was bleeding from the head, and tried to call NYU Shanghai Public Safety. The anonymous source also said that the girl was beaten after trying to flee the plainclothes officers, who were described as badgeless. “One of [the students] attempted to leave the scene,” Xu wrote. “They sustained some injuries as police sought to detain them. The injuries did not require medical attention. The two students were then detained and tested for drugs along with the other bar patrons and staff, all of whom were Chinese citizens … As for the students who were at the party, we believe that
the police were focused on a particular individual.” A student at the birthday party who was not detained made NYU Shanghai administration aware of the incidents later that night. The NYU Shanghai students — including six U.S. citizens, as well as citizens of Finland, Morocco and Malaysia — were released next morning, approximately 11-16 hours after being detained. According to Xu and David Pe, the dean of students at NYU Shanghai, it is typical to keep detainees until their tests return negative. All nine students detained tested negative and were not in possession of drugs. “Because of the prevalence of law enforcement efforts against drugs in Shanghai, NYU Shanghai educates students about the relevant laws and regulations, and how to respond to them, at student orientations,” Xu said. “Chinese law enforcement has previously indicated that it looks askance upon efforts to intervene before the initial phase of their investigations — i.e., the drug tests — are completed.” The university offered counseling and medical assistance to the detained students. They have also been working with them about addressing additional concerns about the issue of drug enforcement in China. In a March 17 email to students, Pe insisted there is no evidential basis to suggest that the detained students were politically targeted due to their U.S. citizenship. His reasoning was that bar staff and other patrons, who were primarily Chinese nationals, were also detained. According to Pe, NYU Shanghai students encountering law enforcement should contact NYU Public Safety. If the encounter escalates, the Student Life Dean on Duty becomes the principal point of contact. The police have 24 hours to investigate a drug case and decide whether to press charges or release a detained person.
“From the time a person is detained until the result of the drug test is returned, police will not allow the university to intervene,” Pe wrote. “Our past experience has taught us that if the university or a consulate intervenes in a case before an actual charge is made, it will prolong the process.” It is unlikely that NYU will be able to get in contact with a student in the 24-hour period following their detainment, Pe added. The police only notify a student’s university if charges are pressed against them. In such a situation, the university notifies the student’s emergency contacts and their consulate or embassy. Benjamin Sand, a deputy spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, said that the embassy is unable to provide details specific to the students due to privacy concerns. “However, on the record, I can say the U.S. Department of State and our embassies and consulates abroad have no greater responsibility than the protection of U.S. citizens overseas,” Sand wrote in an email statement to WSN. In response to the incident, NYU Shanghai will establish a safety task force charged with reviewing existing response protocols and recommending changes to training, programs and resource allocation for the NYU Shanghai community. The university will also contact all consulates and embassies of NYU Shanghai students, faculty and staff — who hail from more than 80 countries — and ask for citizenship-specific protocols in case of law enforcement encounters. Additionally, NYU Shanghai will host representatives from the Shanghai Pudong Police Bureau — as well as an professional safety and risk experts — to speak to the university community about useful information and resources. Email Ruqaiyah Zarook at news@nyunews.com.
We are telling big stories — the Bling Ring, Venmo fraud, drug donkeys — ones that expanded past our print-standard 500 words, ones that paint pictures with words. This magazine aims to be a platform where undergraduate and graduate students alike can mutter on about their love of the blue-seated MTA trains or put into words the flavor of their love of grandma’s dumplings.
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ECHO CHEN
Three weeks ago, local police detained and released nine NYU Shanghai students in two separate drug sweeps. NYU Shanghai intends to establish a safety task force.
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How NYU students celebrate Easter during COVID-19 By SARAH GIL Staff Writer Easter Sunday, a day usually filled with chocolate bunnies, egg hunts and family meals will look quite different this year for NYU students. While the holiday carries a religious meaning, for many people, Easter is also an opportunity for families to gather and spend time with each other. Global Liberal Studies junior Erin Zubarik holds fond childhood memories of Easter celebrations with her family. “[Easter is] about going to church and then after that being with my family and going on Easter egg hunts and getting a basket with a chocolate bunny, you
know, the classics,” Zubarik said. Liberal Studies sophomore Daria Kowalski also celebrates Easter with her family. Kowalski placed a large emphasis on the holiday’s religious importance for members of her family. “Even though I don’t necessarily know how I feel about the church, I still know that the holiday was so important to [my dad] and family time was as well,” said Kowalski. Both Zubarik and Kowalski stated that their favorite parts of the holiday were the time spent with family. However, family time is inaccessible to most in the current COVID-19 world. Traveling long distances to see loved ones is highly discouraged and requires a quarantine
period that does not rule out exposure. So what exactly will NYU students do to make this holiday feel as normal as possible this year? Zubarik still wants to maintain the festive element of Easter, despite her current circumstances. “There’s a really cute store down the street, and they make these huge chocolate bunnies.” Zubarik said. “so maybe I will get a chocolate bunny for my roommates and stuff like that and make some sort of meal with them because we like to cook too.” Kowalski, on the other hand, will treat Easter Sunday like any other typical day. “Since we don’t have any time off for it I’ll probably just do homework like
any other Sunday,” Kowalski said. “Maybe I’ll get Easter candy, but it definitely won’t be as elaborate as it usually is.” Kowalski added that her family might do a Zoom dinner on Easter, but that is the extent of her celebration this year. Despite these adjustments, both Zubarik and Kowalski said that the absence of their families makes it difficult to fully embrace the holiday. “It’s very different to not be able to go to church since it’s still the best thing to be social distancing,” Kowalski said. “It’s really different going from family time to it being a small group of us and then to just being me.” “Easter is a lot about family to me, and I’m not with my family right now
and I can’t really go back,” Zubarik said. “There is this division that’s been created with the virus that makes it hard to celebrate things the way we once did.” COVID-19 has made traveling and congregating in large groups dangerous for over a year now, with some countries entering new lockdowns. However, the rollout of vaccines offers a glimmer of hope that there will be a day in the near future where holidays can be celebrated the way they used to be before the pandemic. Luckily, this Easter looks far less bleak than last year’s — which is thankfully something to celebrate. Email Sarah Gil at culture@nyunews.com.
JAKE CAPRIOTTI | WSN
A year after COVID, how are students handling their second pandemic Easter?
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Tom Holland can’t stop ‘Cherry’ from going sour
JAKE CAPRIOTTI | WSN
“Cherry” is a film for Tom Holland to stretch his acting muscles while offering nothing else.
By HOLDEN LAY Contributing Writer Driving around the streets of an empty Los Angeles late last year, I found myself overwhelmed by a staggering amount of For Your Consideration billboards for “Cherry.” Behind these vague ads, there was a sense of curiosity about the film that convinced me to watch it. It seemed like they started their Oscar campaign prematurely — months before the film’s release. I thought Apple’s new distribution team had something good on their hands. After watching the film, it has all of the characteristics of a solid piece of bait to propel Tom Holland to some awards acclaim — Holland does hard drugs, he cries before sex, he goes to war, etc. In light of last week’s nominations, I can confidently say that simply having these scenes is not enough to be in the running. Directed by the Russo brothers, the duo who previously worked on “Avengers: Endgame” and “Captain America: Civil War,”
the film tells the semi-chronological story of Holland’s titular Cherry. Having fallen madly in love after wooing his classmate Emily (Ciara Bravo), the couple embark on a passionate relationship disrupted by her decision to move to Montreal. Left wayward by that news, Cherry enlists in the army, only for Emily to soon change her mind and stay with him. Now committed to enlisting, he and Emily have a shotgun wedding and a solemn Cherry leaves for Iraq. Scarred by the horrors of war, he spirals into a life of heroin use, scamming hollow caricatures of drug dealers and robbing banks for his next fix. If that sounds like a lot, that’s because it is. “Cherry” is fully loaded, divided by pretty unnecessary title cards — into multiple sections that end up feeling fairly disconnected from each other. There’s enough material here for at least two movies — neither of which I’d particularly care to see again. It is an insane act of hubris that this movie is as long as “Shawshank Redemption.” To its credit, it wastes no time hitting the ground running. There is certainly enough going on
to fill its nearly two-and-a-half-hour runtime. I’m just not sure that I needed to see all of it to get the point (it feels like there must be 20-something bank robberies in the last act). After 2019’s three-hour-plus “Endgame” made a zillion dollars, you would think that the Russo brothers have experience in making longer movies that engage the audience, but you would be wrong. It wasn’t as hard to get through as I feared it’d be after the first 20 minutes, but all in all, it’s really just a poorly paced, big old slog. If some movies are considered cookie-cutter, then this one is a loose mound of dough. It contains all the elements of your typical cliched college boy’s-plans-gone-wrong movie, but lacks a shred of joy. There are also a ton of clashing technical choices, such as poorly placed flashbacks that throw off what little momentum the film has going, along with an abuse of cutaways and a near-constant voiceover that suddenly disappears, that never coalesce into any actual sense of style. The first section of the film shows glimmers of the potential to be funny — and the Russo brothers directed some of the best episodes of “Arrested Development,” so they know a thing or two about being funny. Despite their previous experience, “Cherry’’ has such a desire to be taken seriously that any opportunity for humor falls flat. There is actually some really interesting technical work, such as a few creative shots and some exciting match cuts to be found at times. But the movie feels like an unfinished project. Apple wanted one of their movies to be an awards-season contender on their platform, but this is not that movie. A large part of the film takes place in Iraq, where Holland’s Cherry checks off every box of awful things that might happen to a young and naive soldier. The film’s depic-
tion of the war is so unrelentingly corny, violent and starving for pathos that it just comes across as desperate. All the usual war movie cliches are there: abusive drill sergeants, a horrible accident that kills the protagonist’s entire squadron and forces him to drag their bodies across the sand, and an absolutely grating subplot focusing on his relationship with one of the local Iraqi children. It’s just all so much, and so predictable, that none of it ever feels real. The Russo brothers’ handling of these sequences strips the meaning from the political sentiments regarding the horrors of the Iraq War that could’ve given this movie any direction. Tom Holland fans will at least be happy to hear that his performance is pretty great. He puts up a formidable fight with the terrible script, delivering some classic lines like, “I take all the beautiful things to heart, and then they f-ck my heart until I just about die from it.” More often than not, he comes out on top. However, the sequence where he takes Ecstasy and throws leaves into the air over his head in sepia-tone color grading is painful. Such obvious and superficial choices like that make the film feel blatantly manipulative. Audiences would probably be quite lost with regards to the subject matter if “Cherry” didn’t hit them over the head so hard that it feels like a toddler could get the gist. Throughout the never-ending trials and tribulations Cherry undergoes, it really does feel like Holland gave this performance all he’s got. However, everything else the Russos throw at him seems determined to drag him and the film down into a pastiche of boring mediocrity. He takes on the challenge of a ton of narration and weirdly placed fourth-wall breaks very well. Holland shines in a genuinely great bank robbery sequence in the film’s last act, which captures his des-
peration in stunning long takes. Holland makes this scene exceptional through his acting choices, demanding the camera’s attention with his breakdowns. It’s a beautifully shot scene that perhaps only works so well because it doesn’t feel like it exists just to teach a lesson. Holland plays Cherry’s transition from awkward and nervous lovestruck college student to a PTSD-stricken veteran and junkie as best as he can. However, it’s hard to shake the feeling that this is his Radcliffe moment, in which he tries to prove he can play more than just the one iconic boyish role by swinging to excess in the other direction. I think he’s a great actor, and I’d love to see him in more stuff that doesn’t feel the need to have him be a nerdy teenager before he becomes something else. There is a comic level of vulgarity in a lot of the dialogue of the film that feels really determined to prove that Holland isn’t just a web-slinger. Ciara Brown has great chemistry as Holland’s co-star. The 24-year-old “Big Time Rush” actress gives an all-around solid performance, with some genuinely harrowing moments portraying the toll of addiction. However, the script never lets Emily seem like anything more than a tool for putting Cherry into even more gruesome and terribly sad situations for Holland to act through. “Cherry” will perhaps be subject to brutal criticism, but the truth is that it’s just so forgettable. Even though the Russo brothers leveraged their production power to bring attention to the subject of addiction, the film is too formulaic for any of its commentary to be meaningful. Overly directed and tonally inconsistent, “Cherry” is a big miss for Apple’s original content. Email Holden Lay at arts@nyunews.com.
‘Demonlover’ review: Assayas’ violent, sex-driven commentary on media falls short By NICOLAS PEDRERO-SETZER Arts Editor Olivier Assayas’ “Demonlover” is many things, but it is not boring. Running along at breakneck speed as it hops from one continent to the next, “Demonlover” dips its toes in corporate espionage, hentai and the deep web as it tries to untangle the complexities behind the conglomerate-driven monopolization of the internet during the early ’00s. Assayas, who served as editor-in-chief for Cahiers du Cinéma in the ’80s and ’90s, offers a theory-dense film that jumps from one idea to the next with every passing moment. This can muddle the viewer’s understanding of the narrative at times. The provocative nature of Assayas’ images — leather-strapped ladies and an uncomfortable amount of slimy tentacles — supersede meaning by making effective appeals to the eye that submit viewers to the act of gawking. “Demonlover” acts as the perfect successor to David Cronenberg’s “Videodrome,” which translated Marshall McLuhan’s theories on media into a cerebral body-horror masterpiece. Assayas, however, looks at the internet’s place in society and hones in on his biggest fears concerning the inevitable subjugation of humanity to virtuality. Assayas worries
that people will lose their freedom under the dominion of the internet. To him, everyone will end up under the thumb of cybernetic conglomerates, either by naively hunching over a screen or by slaving away in an oppressive workplace. It’s the latter where the majority of the film takes place. We follow Diane de Monx (Connie Nielsen), a self-assured, cutthroat entrepreneurial force willing to do anything to get ahead — or so it seems. Revelations ensue, and it becomes evident she is way out of her league in a convoluted web of spies. Agents reveal they are double agents, only to declare they are actually triple agents as an additional swerve. It’s all a bit absurd, but it works, at least when the film is placed within the French Extremist movement of the early 00s. “Demonlover” spills blood and shows guts, which makes sense since it’s scored by Sonic Youth’s Jim O’Rourke. The troubling part of the film is that it’s willing to go to gory extremes to make a point, even if it’s to its own detriment. As “Demonlover” begins dipping its toes in murkier waters — murder, pornography, kidnapping and blackmailing — it starts to lose itself, becoming a clear manifestation of style over substance. With “Demonlover” submitting itself to style above all, it becomes difficult to keep up with its narrative because everyone
feels so distant and hollow. Even the film’s lead, Diane de Monx, for all her moxie, feels lifeless. She’s like a video-game avatar, empty enough for anyone to place themselves in her, blissfully unaware that she’s always on the verge of death. Even if she’s the perfect vessel for the viewer to immerse themselves in the madness of Assayas’ vision, her lack of character makes it just as easy for the viewer to detach whenever things get too extreme. As such, Assayas’ attempts at provocation fall flat because it becomes impossible to empathize with any of the characters. It’s all noise; it’s all style; it’s all so distant. But, that may be the point. The film’s final moments point to why this might be. Assayas shows an American teen browsing the web and logging into what appears to be a torture-porn website. He looks unimpressed. He’s clicking links, pushing buttons and typing passwords. Assayas notes that his ability to conjure anything with the click of a button has rendered him perpetually unimpressed. Even his wildest fantasies, the opportunity to play the modern Marquis de Sade are nothing more than headphone groans and visual vomit. The pictures paint a clear picture and it’s quite desolate. Assayas worries the internet will bring about a lifeless reality, where humanity will become unimpressionable as a result of all
SUSAN BEHRENDS VALENZUELA | WSN
Now playing at Lincoln Center’s virtual cinema, “Demonlover” serves as a critique of cyberpolitics.
the images and experiences thrown at them twenty-four-seven.” Olivier Assayas’ “Demonlover” is many things, but it is not boring, even if all it is doing is highlighting how boredom consumes brain waves via blue lights. It’s an exercise in disruption, raising its fists against the idea of a numbed future where no one can feel anything anymore, where everyone has been overwhelmed by the cybernetic
current of shocking spectacles. Assayas’ argument might not be the most original, but it’s certainly something to ponder. He accomplishes his objective by creating a film that’s both startling and thoughtful, unlike the stream of images that consume so many people’s lives. Email Nicolas Pedrero-Setzer at npedrerosetzer@nyunews.com.
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MONDAY, APRIL 5, 2021
OPINION
Edited by EMILY DAI and ASHLEY WU
UNIVERSITY LIFE
The urgency of supporting the #StrikeOnNYU
By ASHA RAMACHANDRAN Deputy Opinion Editor After nine months of constant stonewalling from the university administration, NYU’s Graduate Student Organizing Committee is holding a strike authorization vote. They’re demanding a living wage, free healthcare, severed ties with the New York City Police Department and the designation of NYU as a sanctuary campus. All of these demands are rooted in the collective struggle for social and economic justice by workers across the country. The NYU community, especially the student body
and faculty, should stand in solidarity with GSOC in the event of a strike. GSOC’s negotiation efforts for a fair contract have been met with consistent rejection and an inadequate counteroffer. For example, GSOC proposed a $40 an hour wage with a 3.5% annual raise as compensation. NYU, in response, offered a mere $21 an hour with alternating 2.5% and 2% annual raises. This was a one-dollar raise from their previous wage, $20 an hour for master’s students. Out of 81 proposals by the union, four were agreed upon and 64 were rejected outright by the administration with no counteroffers. These rejections and meager counter proposals have only added insult to injury for NYU graduate students, who do not make a living wage. These workers earn only $20 an hour and are limited by the university to a maximum of 20 hours per week, while a full-time worker would normally work 40 hours. A $40 an hour wage for a sin-
gle adult working 20 hours a week is hardly a living wage in New York City, so GSOC is not asking for much. Even in the midst of a global pandemic and economic crisis, where workers need more support than ever, the administration has refused to meet its graduate student workers’ demands halfway. NYU has an obligation to its workers that it has failed to meet. Until it is met, its graduate students are under no obligation to provide their labor to the university. A strike would entail the strategic collective withholding of labor by graduate students until their demands for contract negotiations are recognized. It’s an effective tool to pressure the university into providing for its student workers and creating a safe campus and working environment. Past strikes have been decisive factors in graduate student victories. The 2020 University of California at Santa Cruz graduate student strike for a cost-of-living adjustment was
ultimately successful after weeks of picketing and months of campaigning and withholding labor. Additionally, faculty support for the campaign from UC schools and universities nationwide helped broaden the reach of the strike and graduate student campaign across the country. In September, University of Michigan graduate student workers on strike stressed that it was “impossible to overemphasize how important [undergraduate support] is” after overwhelming shows of support from the undergraduate student body. Strike funds, which support student workers while university administrators withhold pay and retaliate against strikers, are also instrumental in allowing for workers to survive while striking. At Columbia, where the graduate student union has been striking for three weeks, a strike fundraiser has raised $180K as the university docks worker salaries. Solidarity from the NYU community, including faculty and the
undergraduate student body, could mean the difference between success and failure for the strike. Acts of solidarity with GSOC include donations to strike fundraisers, joining graduate students on the picket line, and letters, phone calls and emails to the administration in support of the union’s demands. Graduate student workers are the lifeblood of academic institutions everywhere, including at NYU. They deserve a fair contract that guarantees adequate compensation, a safe campus, benefits, and protections for vulnerable workers. In the increasingly likely event of a strike at NYU, the student body and faculty must offer their uncompromising solidarity if the strike is to succeed. As the administration continues to let graduate students down, the community must step up. Email Asha Ramachandran at aramachandran@nyunews.com.
CRIME
Gun control has a racist past
By SRISHTI BUNGLE Contributing Writer The United States has a glaring problem: mass shootings. From Columbine to Aurora to Parkland to Boulder, mass shootings briefly grasp the nation’s attention before joining the tragically long list in history. After each shooting, government officials, political pundits and average Americans argue if and how the government should implement gun control legislation. A Pew Research Center poll conducted in September 2019 indicated that 60% of Americans favored stricter gun control laws, while only 11% favored less strict laws. After two mass shootings occurred within two weeks, President Biden pushed for a new gun control bill that he believes could pass the Senate. Howev-
er, this situation comes with its own set of nuances. Whether it be fines, community service or imprisonment, the punitive language surrounding legislative efforts to curb gun ownership suggests a carceral solution that relies heavily on policing. While the case for improved gun control remains strong, many fail to consider who will bear the brunt of legislative efforts to police gun ownership in the United States: Black Americans. Black Americans are targeted the most often by police, and nothing suggests that the enforcement of gun control legislation will be any different. This oversight deeply ignores how the gun control argument began as a response to the fear of armed Black Americans. The story of gun control begins with the inception of this country. Gun control legislation passed as early as the colonial period — the first law in America that mentioned Black people was a 1664 act that prevented free Black Virginians from owning guns. After the Nat Turner rebellion in 1831, Southern states adopted even stricter measures in preventing free and enslaved Black Americans from
gun ownership. These laws were upheld in the courts when challenged as violations of the Second Amendment — take, for example, the 1844 North Carolina Supreme Court case State v. Newsom. After the Civil War, a major aspect of the “Black Codes” passed was the prevention of Black gun ownership. The passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 declared that many of these “Black Codes” were unacceptable, so racist Southern governments attempted to circumvent the law. Tennessee passed the Army and Navy Law which only permitted expensive military-grade guns to be sold and used — effectively isolating Black Americans from the market. Since they could not afford these military-grade guns, they were not able to protect themselves. Laws like these were commonplace in the South, leaving many Black Americans unarmed to defend against the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist hate groups. The North also overlooked the needs of Black Americans and their need for protection. After a dramatic rise in immigration from Eastern and Southern Europe during the late 19th
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and early 20th century, only then did serious gun control measures come to fruition. The first of the widespread restrictions on guns came in New York — the hub of European immigration — as the Sullivan Law in 1911. This law required a permit from the New York City Police Department to own a firearm, but the people who approved these permits were anti-Black and anti-immigrant police. From 1911 to 1934, multiple states including Arkansas, Michigan and North Carolina adopted similar laws. Up until the 1960s, gun control was mostly a matter for the states. It wasn’t until the civil rights movement that the U.S. government passed major national-scale legislation. The rise of the Black Panthers and their call for “black people to arm themselves” reignited the United States’ fear of armed and oppressed minorities. The Black Panthers encouraged Black Americans and other racial and religious minorities to take up arms to protect themselves and their communities against a corrupt U.S. government. Thus, the Gun Control Act of 1968 was born. At the time, the National Rifle Association urged for
gun regulation and control, because they feared the Black Panthers. They backed the regulation because it was implemented to limit gun usage among Black Americans. “[The act] adopted new laws prohibiting certain people from owning guns, providing for beefed up licensing and inspections of gun dealers and restricting the importation of cheap Saturday night specials that were popular in some urban communities,” Adam Winkler, the author of “Gunfight: The Battle Over the Right to Bear Arms,” said in a History article. Today, white rural Americans are afraid they will lose their firearms to the laws written to curb gun ownership for Black Americans. While their concerns are centered in anti-gun control arguments, they don’t need to worry about the ramifications of future gun control measures. It’s the Black, brown and immigrant people of the United States that will be over-policed, incarcerated and endangered — a pattern in U.S. history that continues to repeat itself. Email Srishti Bungle at opinion@nyunews.com.
MONDAY, APRIL 5, 2021
Washington Square News | Opinion
STAFF EDITORIAL
NYU needs to combat the bystander effect On Monday, March 29, three men at a luxury apartment complex in midtown Manhattan watched as an assailant beat and kicked 65-year-old Vilma Kari on the sidewalk outside. A man standing in front of the door stood back as the brutality occurred. Additionally, a security guard employed at the building closed the sliding doors on the victim as the perpetrator fled the scene. If one of the three men had stepped in to intervene in the situation, Kari may have sustained fewer injuries. The same day, a video surfaced depicting a man on a Manhattan-bound J train choking an Asian man to the point of unconsciousness before getting off the train. Even though the subway car appeared to be almost full, no one intervened. The Asian man was left crumpled on the ground as the crowd of bystanders looked on. These infuriating incidents expose a key obstacle in the f ight against anti-Asian hate: the bystander effect. The bystander effect is a psychological phenomenon that manifests when the presence of a crowd prevents individuals from interfering in dire situations. In order to f ight the nearly 150% increase in anti-Asian hate crimes over the past year, NYU has an obligation to train its students, faculty and staff about standing up to displays of racist violence. Previously, NYU held “Action Zone Bystander Intervention” trainings which were designed to teach
students and staff effective strategies to interfere in situations where no one else has taken action to help. This type of training is most often applied to circumstances of alcohol misuse, sexual assault, bias incidents and mental health episodes. This type of training is entirely voluntary and only available upon request. Previously, the University Senate, speaking on behalf of NYU, hoped that their bystander training would be effective, but they have admitted improvements must be made. For now, NYU’s bystander training is temporarily suspended. This type of training is crucial in preventing interpersonal violence among college students. One bystander intervention training, called Green Dot, was found to create signif icantly lower victimization rates for sexual violence. While this service is designed for gender-based violence, this type of training is also crucial for race-based violence. Derald Wing Sue, a Columbia University professor who studies the psychology of racism and antiracism, stated that “when no action is taken and people remain silent in the face of racism, it causes pain and suffering to the targets, it creates guilt in the mind of onlookers and it creates a false consensus that racism is OK.” In light of the rise of anti-Asian hate crimes, it is paramount for NYU to design mandatory training to combat all types of racist violence. Bystander intervention
has been found to positively affect both individuals and broader school culture. One study by Elizabeth Paluck, professor of psychology at Princeton University, found that bystander intervention training in relation to race increased the likelihood of an individual intervening when a student is being teased or insulted. NYPD reports that there have been 33 incidents of reported Asian hate crimes as of March this year. There were 11 reported at the same time last year. However, the real number of attacks is likely much higher, due to a combination of factors such as language barriers and distrust of the police. Now, more than ever, responding to witnessed harassment and violence is critical. While we would all like to live in a world where people naturally jump in to help an individual in need, it is crucial for NYU to create community members who are less susceptible to the bystander effect. If NYU wants to live up to its commitment of building university-wide diversity, equity and inclusion, it must offer realistic solutions. NYU still has yet to resume bystander intervention training at all. This type of training should be mandatory university-wide rather than being provided on an opt-in basis. Combating racist violence is an ongoing process, and NYU should do more to address the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes in an actionable way.
Email the Editorial Board at editboard@nyunews.com. CHAIR Emily Dai, Ashley Wu CO-CHAIR Diya Jain, Kevin Kurian, Asha Ramachandran CHAIR EX OFFICIO Alexandria Johnson, Paul Kim, Kaylee DeFreitas
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We are telling big stories — the Bling Ring, Venmo fraud, drug donkeys — ones that expanded past our printstandard 500 words, ones that paint pictures with words. This magazine aims to be a platform where undergraduate and graduate students alike can mutter on about their love of the blue-seated MTA trains or put into words the flavor of their love of grandma’s dumplings.
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