Feb 20, 2015 - Chapel Hill attacks, one of the top trending twitter topics was the hashtag, âMuslim Lives Matter.â T
The
Clarion
Volume 80, Issue 20
www.brevard.edu/clarion
Web Edition
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my.brevard.edu February 20, 2015
BC rallies for divestment By Burton Hodges
Campus News Editor
Nearly 70 people rallied in front of the Beam Administration building at Brevard College on Friday afternoon in support of a campus wide effort to divest the schools’ funding in fossil fuels. Sponsored by the Brevard College Greens club, the rally was part of a student-led initiative to raise awareness on campus and campaign for the Board of Trustees to authorize the process of divestment, which would make Brevard College the first school in the Southeast to do so. “I’m calling on the students of Brevard College to use their powerful and inspirational voices to ignite change on this campus to start a large scale movement for divestment in North Carolina,” said senior Emily Crowley, an Environmental Studies major and organizer of the event. The rally was in conjunction with global divestment day, an event created by the grassroots movement 350.org, which aims to drop global carbon dioxide levels from the current 400 parts per million to 350. The idea of divesting Brevard College was brought to the school last winter by Dr. Jim Reynolds, Associate Professor of Geology and an active member of the Sierra Club chapter in Western North Carolina. With Reynolds’ guidance, Crowley and fellow co-president of the Greens club Rory Northam, began the process of initiating the divestment movement on campus. Petitions for support began circulating around Brevard College receiving over 400 signatures from the student body and nearly half of the faculty and staff. Following a sit-in last November at Brevard College’s J.A. Jones Library, Crowley and Northam were invited to present the petitions and research to the schools’ investor committee, which decided to take the proposal in front of the Board of Trustees on February 19. “I’m very confident that the Board will go along with it,” said Jerry Stone, head of the investor committee. “They will give us the authority under the college’s investment policy to move forward and look for new opportunities to invest in that aren’t involved in fossil fuels.” Nearly 3 percent of Brevard College’s endowment, or $606, 000 is invested in various areas of the fossil fuel industry. The trick, Stone says, is finding new opportunities that will replace these investments. With the goal being complete divestment by 2018, Stone says he’s convinced
Photo by Christina Bailey
BC Students gathered at divestment rally.
Photo by Christina Bailey
Associate Professor of Geology, Dr. Jim Reynolds, speaking at divestment rally.
Photo by Christina Bailey
BC student, Emily Crowley, speaking at divestment rally.
the school can chose better investments and even “start a green fund” within the next three years. “Look at our mission statement,” said Rev. Dr. David Joyce, President of Brevard College, “we are is committed to an experiential, liberal arts education that encourages personal growth and inspires artistic, intellectual, and social action… be careful what you wish for, this is education.”
Housing forms due
Students who want to live off campus in the 2015-2016 academic year need to fill out a form and turn it into Beth Abrams before March 19. This is to establish an estimate before the housing lottery to plan for how many students will need to live on campus. If you have special needs there are applications attached to the email Beth sent out to all students. If you can’t find the email, these forms can be found on brevard.edu under Residence Life. All of the requirements in addition to how to fill out the application are listed there. If you have a special needs application but you won’t be able to get a doctor’s note before the deadline, no need to worry! The note does not need to be submitted with your application, but you do need to turn it into Beth before you are placed in housing so she can accommodate your needs. It’s great if students have the documents to fill out the application, but it’s also fine if student’s need a couple of weeks to go home to get the documentation, according to Beth. The important aspect is to let her know either way. To locate Beth’s office go to the AEC, head up the stairs to Campus Life, turn left once you reach the welcome desk, and her office will be the second door on the right. Students, feel free to email Beth or visit her office if you have any questions regarding Off Campus/On Campus Life or Special Needs.
Campus News ‘Brazil’s metamorphosis’
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The Clarion
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February 20, 2015
Unrest in Brazil topic of second Great Decisions Lecture Series By Jordan Laws Staff Writer
Liliana Castro presented a passionate lecture covering Brazil and its issues, but trying to discern the topics in question became an arduous task because Ms. Castro was extremely vague. The lecture was hard to follow because of Liliana’s accent (even though it was beautiful and lyrical) and the lack of depth in the topics discussed. It seemed that Liliana expected the audience in MG 125 to have been exposed to some of the Brazilian issues that have taken place in the past 50 years. Liliana’s assumption caused a lack of explanation and understanding in the issues. The initial aspect of the lecture was a geographical lesson on how Brazil’s cities are arranged and how the country itself is related to its neighboring countries such as Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Bolivia just to name a few. In this lesson, Liliana took us on a personal tour of certain cities in Brazil, specific lakes, and particular locations that are near and dear to her heart. Other than to personalize the lecture, this part of the presentation held no relevance to the current issues effecting Brazil. Brazil is a populous country with 200 million citizens. In Brazil, political corruption isn’t anything new. “In 2002 there was a big transition in the Brazilian government with Luiz Inácio taking over; Lula is his nickname. He was a leader of unions. Back in 1975 I went to Belo Horizonte and I didn’t go into the streets because Lula decided to visit and wherever he went chaos followed,” Liliana said. “He did a lot of good things for Brazil but it was not his initiative. Lula even fought against policies that would regulate the Real, Brazil’s currency. The policies eventually
Photo by Ashley Lowe
Liliana Castro
passed, despite Lula’s reservations, and they were good for Brazil.” After discussing Lula’s control, Liliana mentioned chaotic political atmospheres in Brazil. Almost every government official mentioned had been steeped in corruption. Lula himself was accused of buying votes. There were monthly allowances and monies given ‘under the table’ to politicians for certain policies to be enacted. In 2014 the FIFA World Cup was hosted by Brazil and this sparked a massive amount of controversy. The government spent $11.7 billion on the World Cup and that’s a conservative estimation. “This
money would have been better spent on hospitals and education in Brazil. The civilians were not afraid to protest this erroneous decision of their government,” Liliana said. The evidence shows that the Brazilian government isn’t exactly making the correct decisions for its people. Another aspect of the corruption is the tarnished job market in Brazil. The Brazilian government would rather bring foreign workers into the country rather than let the Brazilian workers have the positions, according to Liliana. Technicians and doctors are brought in to do jobs even though Brazilians are aptly trained and could perform the same job for less pay, but the government is either blind to, or refuses to accept, the civilians position. This has created a period of unrest for the Brazilian people and according to Liliana, “Brazilians are ready to make decisions, elect better leaders, and change Brazil’s situation.” Hopefully, they can achieve these goals. In summation, the lecture was convoluted to say the least. The issues were unclear and not adequately discussed. Many of the issues that Liliana took for granted were lost on the audience because right after her presentation ended and the time for questions came, audience members left. What is written in this article is a ‘best guess’ for what the issues are even though they are debatable. The Great Decisions lecture series continues today at 3:30 p.m. with Jagdeep Bhandari of Mars Hill University presenting Privacy in the Digital Age in MG 125. To pre-register or for more information contact Laura Rain Tree at (828)-884-8251 or email her at
[email protected].
ISIS claims responsibility for Kayla Mueller’s death
By Lizzie Graham Staff Writer
The parents of Kayla Mueller, the American aid worker abducted in 2013 by the Islamic State, were notified on Tuesday that proof had been given from the militant group that she was dead, just four days after it claimed she had been killed in a Jordanian airstrike. Mueller’s parents who had once maintained hope of her life, did not specify the proof furnished to them. They only said that U.S. intelligence officials had confirmed the proof’s authenticity. The White House also announced the confirmation of their daughter Kayla’s death. Two people who had been briefed on the proof said it consisted of at least three photographs which were all headshots. They specified that two
photographs showed Mueller in a Muslim head covering with visible contusions to her face. The third photo, they said, showed Mueller wrapped in a white burial dress. It is unclear whether the injuries seen in the photographs were consistent with the Islamic State’s assertion that Mueller, 26, died last Friday from the Jordanian bombs that destroyed a structure in northern Syria where she had been held captive. Jordanian and U.S. officials have challenged this assertion. “We are heartbroken to share that we’ve received confirmation that Kayla Jean Mueller has lost her life,” Kayla’s parents Carl and Marsha Mueller wrote from their home in Prescott, Arizona. “We are so proud of the person Kayla was
and the work that she did while she was here with us. She lived with purpose.” About 200 people gathered in the heart of the outdoor garden to hear from a handful of those who knew Mueller best during her time in college. The tone of the evening oscillated from joyous to somber, and many implored the attendees to take the action Mueller would have done herself. The crowd spanned nearly every demographic; some came to say goodbye to a friend or acquaintance, while other to mourn an inspiring stranger. "We did not know her, but her message is so powerful," said Ellen Van Arsdale, a Sun City resident who happened to be visiting Flagstaff for the weekend. "She's the kind of person who needs to be honored."
February 20, 2015
| The Clarion
Sports
Matthew Proffitt leading
BC baseball stomps Montreat By Lizzie Graham Staff Writer
This past Wednesday, the Brevard baseball team took on Montreat College. Kody Spencer had three hits, including a solo shot in the sixth inning, to help the Brevard College baseball team to a 10-5 win over Montreat College that afternoon at Gil Coan Field. With this win under their belts, it brings the Tornados to a 6-2 record, which is the best since they joined the NCAA in 2008. Continuing his streak, Spencer also knocked in five RBI’s as he now
Monopoly
holds the most for the team with a total of nine. Pitcher Hunter Donaldson, received the win going three full innings, with one walk and a strikeout. He also contributed in the batters box with three hits, two runs scored, and bringing in two players across home plate. Ryan Williams also pitched for the Tornados as the longest in relief for the Tornados, pitching two innings: sixth and seventh. He surrendered one hit, struck out three, while facing only seven batters. Dix pulled through for the team while going 4 for 5 at the plate, crossing home plate to give the tornados a point on the board. Then the tornados
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Courtesy of BC Athletics
turned the game into a blowout with a five-run seventh inning. After the first three batters reached base, Allen walked in a run before Donaldson plated two runs with a double to deep right field. Allen then came around to score on a single before Donaldson crossed home plate to add a point to the board. The Cavaliers gave it their all one last time and came back in the top of the eighth by scoring two runs. However, they could only score one run in the ninth. Travis Fetter lined out to the second baseman with the bases loaded before Cox grounded in a game-ending 6-4-3 double-play. Again, it was another great victory for the Tornados and hopefully the start of many more.
by Andrew Gunnin
Opinion
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The Clarion
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February 20, 2015
Racially Biased:
The Oscars and the lack of representation By Gabby Smith Opinion Editor
Brian Williams (left) and Jon Stewart (right)
Nightly news shakeup
Brian Williams and Jon Stewart make news, as they both step down as newscasters By Casey Whitmire Staff Writer
The past week has shaken up the world of newsmen. Two men; NBC's Brian Williams, Comedy Central's Jon Stewart were in the spotlight this week all for different reasons. Brian Williams has been an anchor and the Managing Editor for NBC Nightly News since 2004. He is now under fire for allegedly misrepresenting a story he covered about the Iraq War in 2003. On Feb. 4, 2015 Williams recanted a story he told on the Nightly News on the Jan. 30 broadcast. He claimed to have been onboard a Chinook helicopter that was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, better known as an RPG. Soon after it aired, Williams' story was criticized by Lance Reynolds, a flight engineer who was on board one of the three helicopters that had been attacked. Reynolds and other crew members said they were forced to make an emergency landing, and that Williams' Chinook arrived around an hour later. On Feb 4, Williams apologized and said he had "made a mistake in recalling the events of 12 years ago." NBC News President Deborah Turness announced on February 6 that there would be an internal probe into Williams' story. The next day Williams announced he would temporarily step aside from anchoring the Nightly News . On February 10, 2015 Turness announced Williams' suspension from Nightly News for six months without pay. NBC Universal CEO Steve Burke commented, calling Williams' actions "inexcusable" and the suspension "severe and appropriate." On the same day, Jon Stewart of Comedy Central's The Daily Show, announced that sometime this year he will be stepping down as the host to make room for someone new. "I can imagine
as this show is airing there may be information out there that the audience is unaware of,” said Stewart. “So, I will just tell you… Doug Herzog and Michele Ganeless of Comedy Central gave me an incredible opportunity seventeen years ago to pilot this wonderful franchise. Seventeen years is the longest I have ever in my life held a job, by sixteen years and five months. In my heart I know that it is time for someone else to have that opportunity. Not right away, you know we are still working out details. I'm up in Sept., it might be around then, might be Dec., might be July, we're still working out details. I don't have any specific plans, I got a lot of ideas, got a lot of things in my head. I'm gonna have dinner on a school night with my family, who I have heard from multiple sources are lovely people." Stewart has hosted The Daily Show since Jan. of 1999 and is a self described "fake news program" which draws its comedy and satire from recent news headlines and political figures. This news coming only a few months after Comedy Central ended The Colbert Report after, then host, Stephen Colbert transitioned to host The Late Show on CBS. In my opinion embellishing or for lack of a better word lying about a news story is just plain wrong. What makes it worse for Williams' case is that he lied about a war story. I have had nothing but respect for Williams, he has been an outstanding personality and newsman, and I have always been a fan. But, after hearing about this story, I lost a lot of respect for him. Yes, he reported this story twelve years ago, but it was not Williams that almost lost his life as a result. The fact of the matter is that a helicopter was hit by an RPG, and forced to make an emergency landing; the See 'Shakeup' on page 6
When Monqiue Angela Hicks, professionally known as Mo’Nique, won an Oscar in 2010 she made a poignant statement about the ‘politics’ of the Academy, referring to herself as the unpopular choice because of her color. While it would be unfair to cough things up to a racial issue, it is safe to say that a lot of times it seems as if people of color get snubbed by the Academy. There have only been 14 African-Americans to win an Oscar since 1940 while only six Latinos and three Asians have won Oscars, none within the past decade. Native-Americans have never won an Oscar as they are in fact the least represented race in media. Lupita Nyong’o won an Oscar last year for Best Supporting Actress for her role of Patsy in 12 Years a Slave, which also won Best Picture. However,this year there are no nominees of color. Now this wouldn’t seem like such a slap to the face if it wasn’t for the fact that one of the nominations for Best Picture is Selma, the See 'Biased' on page 6
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the the Clarion larion Senior Staff Editor in Chief . . . . Sam Blakley Managing Editor . . . Joshua Cole Copy Editor . . . . . . Kayla Leed Opinion . . . . . . . . Gabby Smith Arts & Life . . . . . . Alex Webster Sports . . . . . . . . Savannah Cox Campus News . . . . Burton Hodges Staff Photogrpher(s) . Ashley Lowe . . . . . . . . . . . . Sarah Fonger Faculty Advisor . . . . John B. Padgett Other Staff
Hannah Cook Lizzie Graham Andrew Gunnin Michael Heiskell Jule Hermann
Jordan Laws Calum McAndrew Sami Quri Casey Whitmire
The Clarion is a student-run college newspaper produced by student journalists enrolled at Brevard College. Unsigned editorials represent the collective opinion of the staff of The Clarion. Other opinions expressed in this newspaper are those of respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the faculty, staff or administration of Brevard College.
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Opinion Acting at its best: ‘The Theory of Everything’ February 20, 2015
| The Clarion
By Michael Heiskell Staff Writer
Nominated for five Oscars and filled with beautiful performances, “The Theory of Everything” is an above average biopic. “The Theory of Everything” tells the life story of famed scientist Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne) as he struggles to find the perfect theory that spotlessly explains the universe. Unfortunately, Hawking learns that he suffers from ALS, which will leave him almost completely paralyzed. However with the help of his wife (Felicity Jones), he strives to find that perfect theory and overcome the pain life has thrown at him. There is a reason that Eddie Redmayne was nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe for this role. He absolutely kills it as Stephen Hawking and completely disappears into the role. It will be a tough battle between him and Michael Keaton for the Best Actor in a leading role at the Academy Awards this year. For an actor who is still pretty new to the public eye, it’s just great seeing him get appreciation from the Hollywood foreign press and other critics.
Meet Eliz
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The story has an interesting dynamic between Hawking and his wife Jane. It just isn’t the typical Hollywood relationship. It has struggles and moral compromises that provide some interesting dynamics for Redmayne and Jones to play with. This is especially thrown for a loop when Johnathan (Charlie Cox) moves into the house to help with Stephen with his disability, meanwhile Jane starts to develop feelings for him. While I enjoyed this film, I felt that it was mainly due to the performances, and I felt that without them it would have been a mediocre biopic. The directing was fine, but perhaps a bit sporadic as James Marsh never really seemed to find his vision. This is slightly opposed to a lot of other critics, but I honestly felt like I was watching several movies at once and not one precise film. Overall, “The Theory of Everything” is a good movie with fantastic performances. While enjoyable, I think that it will be slightly forgettable unlike some of the other best picture nominations. I would give this film a 3 ½ out of 5 stars and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in Stephen Hawking or great acting performances
BC welcomes Elizabeth L. Harrison as Director of Communications and Media Relations By Hannah Cook Staff Writer
As the BC family continues to prosper and grow, it is important to have the support of the community. In order for the public to recognize BC from the outside, Elizabeth Harrison has taken on the task of bringing news from BC to Brevard’s community. As the newest member of the BC family, Harrison is serving as the director of Communications and Media Relations. In this position, Harrison works as the “gatekeeper” for all that BC communicates to the public and community. She is also responsible for reporting this information to President David Joyce. “It is so important for us to build relationships with reporters, radio, and TV outlets so that they know about all of the amazing things we are doing here,” states Harrison. In her free time, Harrison enjoys cycling and has recently joined the Pure Velo team. When she’s not riding, she likes to take her golden retriever, Izzy, for hikes. Additionally, Harrison is a freelance writer for the Mountain Xpress in Western North Carolina. Harrison is originally from Columbia, SC. After college, she spent six years working in Montana for the YWCA, an organization that empowered
Courtesy of Eliz Harrison
Eliz Harrison
women and strived to eliminate racism. After that, she worked for a year as the Program Director and Media Coordinator at camp Ton-A-Wandah in Hendersonville, NC. After the year at Ton-AWandah, she made the decision to join the BC
family. Harrison has many ideas for the improvement of relations between the college and the surrounding community. “I believe that we have smart, creative students and I want the community to know all the great things they’re doing.”
Opinion
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Biased
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biopic of Martin Luther King Jr. Selma, which chronicles MLK’s fight for equal voting rights and his march on Selma, stars Carmen Ejogo and David Oyelowo. Both actors are ironically British-born and Nigerian. Ejogo plays Coretta in the movie, which is coincidentally also a role she’s played before. In 2001 Ejogo played Coretta Scott King in a TV movie aptly named Boycott. Ejogo has had a successful TV career that started in the early 1990s. Oyelowo on the other hand has an impressive filmography that boasts works such as: Shakespeare’s As You Like It, Lincoln, The Help, and Lee Daniel’s The Butler. Oyelowo is a classically trained actor having graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. With this in mind, wouldn’t one of these actors be worthy of, at the very least a nomination? This of course is doubly insulting due to the fact that Bradley Cooper has been nominated for his role as Chris Kyle in American Sniper, a movie which has incited massive backlash. How can Cooper be nominated for playing a sniper, but Oyelowo be skipped over for his portrayal as one of the major players within American history and
the Civil Rights Movement? While I am in no way trying to downgrade Cooper’s skill as an actor, or any other of the actors nominated, I do have to ask how can it be that there are no minorities represented within the nominees. One could say that the Academy might have been slightly remiss in this instance, but I’m going to say that this seems more like an outright snub. While MLK’s story is just as important as any other, the main point of the matter is that in 2015, it is absolutely ridiculous to have an award show where no one person within a minority is nominated. The complete lack of representation is appalling and detrimental to the younger generation. If you don’t see people who look like you on TV winning awards for Best Actor and Actress then you have nobody to act as a role model for you to show you that that’s something you can accomplish, yet sadly, that will probably be the case for many as this trend seems to continue. I’m going to boldly state what has been so obvious from the start of this article, the Oscars are somewhat racially biased, and while that’s not ok it seems to be a fact of life that we currently cannot change. But hey, maybe we can just cough it up to ‘politics.’
The Clarion
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February 20, 2015
Shakeup
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helicopter that Williams was in arrived around an hour later. Will Williams be able to come back from this? I hope so, but I honestly don't know if his credibility will ever recover. As far as Stewart leaving The Daily Show, I'm disappointed! First we lose Colbert, and now Stewart?! Comedy Central has brought in Larry Wilmore to host the awkwardly named, The Nightly Show, but in my opinion it's sub-par compared to The Colbert Report and The Daily Show. Comedy Central is looking for someone to fill Stewart's spot. The question on most people's minds are who will they pick? My vote would be for John Oliver, who hosted The Daily Show, while Stewart was working on a film last year. However, Oliver is currently hosting his own talk show, Last Week Tonight on HBO, which could be a potential conflict. Only one thing is for sure, tomorrow there will be more news. We just have to find someone to tell us the stories.
Chapel Hill murders and the media misreporting By Calum McAndrew Staff Writer
On Wednesday, Feb. 11 the murder of three students at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill was confirmed, attracting mass media attention due to the circumstances surrounding it. The problem is that the reporting of the death of 23 year old Deah Barakat, 21 year old Yusor Abu-Salha, and 19 year old Razan Abu-Salha who were allegedly shot by their neighbor, 46 year old Craig Stephen Hicks, has been nothing short of shocking and frankly misleading. Here is how CNN decided to cover it: “Three Muslim students were shot dead near the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Tuesday night.” Here is a quote from the New York Times: “A neighbor, a middle aged white man, was missing – then under arrest and charged with three counts of murder. And how about everybody’s favourite, Bill O’Reilly from Fox News, who reported that Hicks was, “an atheist who has attacked all religions on the internet.” Fox News itself reported that Hicks was “obsessed with religion.” This story has made worldwide news, and has attracted the attention of some of the most powerful people across the planet. The nation of Saudi Arabia even weighed in on the matter, with the Saudi Press Agency, “condemning the heinous terrorist attack.” This is big news, no doubt about it. With racial tensions at an all time high, due to recent terror attacks in Paris and Copenhagen, and the ongoing
threat from ISIS, any attack that can be viewed as a hate crime is sure to make headlines. My question is why, in the 21st century, are we hell bent on ignoring that this murder, and any murder for that matter, is a tragedy of humanitarian proportions. Plain and simple. Instead however, we continue to decide to assign authority to the race and religion of the people involved. Why is it important that the three victims were Muslim? Why is it important that Craig Stephen Hicks was a white atheist? Why do we, as humans, find it necessary to bring substance to trivial facts such as these in order to sell a news story? What is it going to accomplish by suggesting that this was a hate crime, or suggesting the killings in Copenhagen were racially motivated? Who is that going to help? For once, why can’t we just say it like it is? Three people were murdered, and that is a travesty in itself. Three stand out, well-liked, innocent young adults were killed, and that in itself is a problem. There is no need to give fuel to the argument that white, American Atheists are terrible people. Just as there is no need to give xenophobes and racists any room to continue their Anti-Muslim bile whenever something such as the Paris or Copenhagen attacks occur. Now I understand that I am being very hypocritical here by ignoring what I preach, and giving light to the unnecessary details such as race and religion in this story. I promise though, my comments aren’t humbug, and by bringing light to the
situation, I’m hoping to discourage people from continuing to lap up these stories. Lets just say, if I am to be murdered tomorrow, I hope it is reported correctly. I hope that the newspapers and TV outlets bring their cameras, and report the story of how I was killed, simply because I’m a bit of a d**k. I certainly hope, should this happen, that there is absolutely no alluding to the fact that my murder might have something to do with me being foreign, or because I’m a different race or religion to the killer. I hope that the person suspected of killing me is simply reported to be mentally unstable, and not that he killed me out of some sort of racially evoked hate crime. I hope for this because it doesn’t do any good for anyone to blame something as downright wrong as murder on race or religion, as it simply adds to the melting pot of xenophobia, which has been bubbling since long before you or I could imagine. I hope this because I don’t want innocent people of various ethnicities, races and religions to have to answer for the crime against me. They should have nothing to feel guilty about and have no reason to be further discriminated against. I’ll leave with this. In the hours that followed the Chapel Hill attacks, one of the top trending twitter topics was the hashtag, “Muslim Lives Matter.” To me, this is both right and wrong. Muslim lives do matter, just as much as anyone else’s though. Lives matter, and to pin something as unacceptable as murder to something as trivial as religion boils my blood.
