News & Features

Professor explores the power of personal essays

By IDOIA DIZON and JERRY WU | February 21, 2019

Tressie McMillan Cottom, a sociologist and assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, talked about her new memoir Thick, a collection of essays on politics, culture and life as a black woman, at Red Emma’s on Tuesday. Cottom has appeared on The Daily Show and the Still Processing podcast. Her writing has been published in The Atlantic and The New York Times. 

COURTESY OF HULLABALOO The image of 3 students in KKK robes was found in a 1961 yearbook.

Confronting the history of blackface at Hopkins

By EMILY MCDONALD | February 21, 2019

Colleges and universities across the country are grappling with racist images within their yearbooks following the discovery of a photo depicting a man in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan (KKK) robes on Va. Governor Ralph Northam’s medical school yearbook page.

Talk examines the rise of European populism

By JAKE LEFKOVITZ | February 21, 2019

Cas Mudde, professor at the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs, gave the 12th annual Government and Opposition Leonard Schapiro Memorial Prize Lecture at the School of Advance International Studies (SAIS) on Thursday, Feb. 14. The talk was titled “Populism in Europe: An Illiberal Democratic Response to Undemocratic Liberalism,” and was introduced by Erik Jones, the co-editor of comparative politics journal Government and Opposition and the director of the European and Eurasian Studies program at SAIS. 

COURTESY OF SABRINA ABRAMS The career centered hosted a panel who discussed jobs in the sustainability sector.

Panelists discuss green and sustainable jobs

By SABRINA ABRAMS and KATERINA FRYE | February 21, 2019

The Career Center hosted a series of events showcasing and promoting careers in the nonprofit sector last week. Aimed at exposing students to opportunities in the nonprofit and environmental industries, the Nonprofit Career Week included a Connecting Green Jobs panel and a Careers with a Cause employment fair.

Protesters oppose banks funding private prisons

By RACHEL JUIENG | February 21, 2019

Protestors representing the Families Belong Together coalition participated in a demonstration called “Valentine’s Day Playdate and Protest #breakupwithprivateprisons” on Feb. 14 outside of the Wells Fargo in downtown Baltimore. Though the demonstration was supposed to last 12 and a half hours, police arrived to break up the protest after about 30 minutes.

Students on security advisory committee share perspectives

By MICHAEL TRAUTMANN RODRIGUEZ | February 22, 2019

The University announced in an email to the student body in September that it planned to create a Student Advisory Committee for Security (SACS). Applications for SACS opened that month, and selected students were notified of their appointment to the Committee on Oct. 30. The Committee met twice, once in November and once in December, before the University released the names of the selected students on the Security website on January 28.

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Baltimore activist groups discuss legislative session

By CLAIRE GOUDREAU | February 14, 2019

The Baltimore chapter of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) held its annual Legislative Day on Saturday at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church to educate voters on initiatives and bills related to racial justice. The event featured speakers from five different Baltimore activist groups including: the Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition (BTEC); CASA de Maryland; and Campaign for Justice, Safety and Jobs (CJSJ). 

Activist discusses how to hold a successful protest

By RACHEL JUIENG | February 17, 2019

Writer L.A. Kauffman gave a talk on her new book, How to Read a Protest: The Art of Organizing and Resistance, at Red Emma’s on Wednesday. Kauffman, who has worked in grassroots activism for more than 35 years, details the history of mass demonstration in the U.S in her book.

COURTESY OF SABRINA ABRAMS L.A. Kauffman has worked as a grassroots organizer for 35 years.

Homewood Museum event discusses the history of chocolate

By KATERINA FRYE | February 14, 2019

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, the Homewood Museum invited food historian Joyce White to present an event titled “Chocolate Through Time” on Wednesday, Feb. 13. White presented different ways of making chocolate throughout history and discussed the evolution of chocolate recipes. She invited attendees to taste samples of chocolate, giving each audience member a box of chocolates at different stages of production.

OMA discussion explores black diaspora relations

By TED TAK | February 14, 2019

The Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) hosted an event on Saturday called “Black Diaspora Relations at Hopkins.” The event aimed to encourage students to have conversations about how the mass dispersion of people from Africa during the Transatlantic Slave Trade from the 1500s to the 1800s impacts black diaspora communities today.

COURTESY OF TED TAK Participants were told at the event to come up with discussion questions.
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Why are we having less sex today than ever before?

By ALYSSA WOODEN | February 14, 2019

Based on the media’s depiction of young adults, one would think that all college and high school students are having a lot of sex all the time. There are entire TV shows that focus on the sex lives of teenagers. But recent survey data seem to suggest that people are having a lot less sex than we think they are.

NIH Director explores the ethics of gene editing technology

By JAE CHOI and JOHN FRYE | February 14, 2019

Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), discussed the medical and ethical implications of modern biomedical research as part of the Milton S. Eisenhower (MSE) Symposium on Tuesday. Collins focused on recent scientific advances in gene-editing technologies that could open up the possibility for therapeutic treatments that operate at the level of patients’ genomes.

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SGA Executive President to face impeachment hearing

By DIVA PAREKH | February 14, 2019

During the Student Government Association (SGA) weekly meeting on Tuesday, Executive Vice President AJ Tsang presented impeachment charges against Executive President Noh Mebrahtu. Mebrahtu will face an impeachment hearing during SGA’s next weekly meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 19. This hearing will be closed to the student body, as required by SGA’s constitution.

Police force bill includes youth program funding

By MEAGAN PEOPLES | February 15, 2019

Last week, lawmakers introduced bills to both the Senate and the House of the Maryland General Assembly that would allow Hopkins to create its own private police force. These bills, Senate Bill (SB) 793 and House Bill (HB) 1094, also include millions of dollars in appropriations for Baltimore City youth programs, including the Baltimore Children and Youth Fund, an organization launched in 2016 to support youth leadership and the Baltimore City YouthWorks Summer Jobs Program, which connects underserved youth with paying summer jobs.

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Marijuana possession will not be prosecuted in Md.

By MEAGAN PEOPLES | February 14, 2019

Baltimore’s State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced that she would no longer prosecute marijuana possession cases regardless of amount or past criminal charges on Jan. 29. Mosby also asked courts to vacate approximately 5,000 people convicted for the possession of marijuana. Maryland decriminalized possession of marijuana in quantities up to 10 grams in 2014. 

Hopkins History professor analyzes citizenship rights and race in Baltimore

By DEREK MORITZ | February 15, 2019

The Milton S. Eisenhower Library (MSE) hosted Hopkins History Professor Martha S. Jones on Thursday, Feb. 7 for a talk on her most recent book Birthright Citizens: A History of Race and Rights in Antebellum America. The book focuses on the struggle of free African-American people in Baltimore from the late 18th century until the start of the American Civil War and the challenges they faced in obtaining citizenship rights.

COURTESY OF THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS SYMPOSIUM

Foreign Affairs Symposium's 2019 lineup most diverse in its history

By RUDY MALCOM | February 14, 2019

The Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS) announced on Monday that the theme of its spring 2019 lineup is “Disrupt.” The speakers include: Vice President of the National Association of Displaced Afro-Colombians Erlendy Cuero Bravo; Iranian-American writer Solmaz Sharif; Executive Director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons Beatrice Fihn; artist and activist Boots Riley; a panel on law and social movements; and Togolese activist Farida Nabourema.