Thursday, October 31, 2013

STOPMore on Tuesday’s domes-tic violence rally inside.

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HalloweenJust in time for Halloween! Five scary movies to watch.

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DavidCatch up on the Bison de-fensive star’s recovery.

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CAMPUS...................... p.2

LIFE & STYLE................ p.7 SPORTS...................... p.9 OPINIONS................. p.11

INSIDE INDEX

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Vol. 97 No.19

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THE HILLTOP | THURSDAY, OCTOBER, 31 2013

School of Education Celebrates 125th year with Inaugural Gala

Emmy VictorCampus Editor

The Howard University School of Education hosted an Inaugu-ral Gala last Thursday to com-memorate the school’s 125th year at the university. The Gala, which was held on the campus of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Northwest D.C., celebrated decades of the School of Education’s histo-ry, introduced key faculty members and student ambassadors, honored and awarded distinguished alumni, and fundraised for a proposed revitalization plan for the Miner Building on the main campus.

Guests checked into their reserved tables in the front lobby and were welcome to tour the Dr. Lawrence E. Graves Museum of Dunbar History and Reception until the ceremony was ready to begin. The Mistress of Ceremony, Ms. Allison Seymour, a WTTG Fox-5 Morning News Anchor, graced the stage and introduced an evening to remember for the members and supporters of the School of Education. Ms. Seymour is a Bethesda, Mary-land native who holds a B.A from Hampton University and M.A in Mass Communications from the University of South Carolina.

Seymour had the honor of intro-ducing the two welcoming address speakers, Interim President Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick and School of Education Dean Dr. Leslie T. Fen-wick, who both hold positive views School of Education.

“In our 146th Year [of Howard

University] we have a lot of things to be proud of- and certainly the School of Education represents one of the things that we should be most proud of,” said Frederick.

Both of the speakers reminded the audience that the school continues to be at the forefront of produc-ing the top educators for African Americans- not just at the Histori-cally Black College level, but in the United States. They also share a common hope to see the school rise to its founding mission with the help of the audience and various mem-bers of the university body.

“We will make a lead on what education should look like,” said Fenwick.

Next, Dr. J. Fidel Turner Jr., Associ-ate Dean for Academic Programs

and Student Affairs and Dr. Mer-cedes Ebanks, Assistant Professor from the Department of Human Development and Psychoeducation-al Studies, received the privilege of awarding the recipients of the 2013 School of Education’s Distinguished Alumni Award. Four Awardees were honored, including Dr. Jean Paul Cadet, the current Principal of Oxon Hill High School in Prince George’s County.

“The School of Education is a representation of ideal practitioners making a true difference in the field of education- I am proud to be counted as one of them,” says Cadet.

The dinner portion began once the food was blessed by Dr. Bernard Richardson, Dean of the Andrew Rankin Memorial Chapel. Guests

chatted amongst another over a plentiful meal, until a Miner build-ing architectural renderings video aired for the audience while desserts were served.The video, which displayed an entire new futuristic layout for the Miner building, provided a perfect scenario to lead into the final por-tion of the event- the fundraising initiative. Using the catchy slogan “Make Minor Pledge,” Dr. Wilma Bonner, Director of Teacher Educa-tion, explained the importance of giving back to the School of Educa-tion in order to get the Miner build-ing running again as extensively as shown in the video.

With introductions from Bonner, the School of Education student ambassadors filed down the stairs on the stage, with platters held in one hand, and a pencil in the other. The ambassadors passed pledge cards to each person in attendance and encouraged them to give back for the $40 million project.

With final remarks for the Mr. Christopher Washington, President of Howard University Alumni As-sociation, and Dr. Milli Pierce, the Director of Development, and a final message from Dean Fenwick and Allison Seymour, the 125th gala was a success and will be remem-bered as an elegant evening for the members of the School of Educa-tion community.

The Hilltop Newspaper

Glynn Hill Editor-in-Chief

Dominique Diggs Chief Managing Editor

Indigo SilvaMultimedia Editor

Emmy VictorCampus Editor

Keneisha DeasMetro EditorMaya Cade

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Stop Domestic Violence RallyJasmine Nealy

Contributing Writer On Tuesday, every pathway on the yard was lined with small red flags that blew in the cool autumn breeze. In the center of it all was a podium attached to the flagpole on the yard. The Howard University Interpersonal Violence Preven-tion Program (formerly known as the Campus Safety First Project) teamed with Verizon’s Red Flag Campaign to host the Stop Domes-tic Violence Rally.

The Vice-President for Student Affairs Dr. Barbary Griffin opened the rally and talked about how the importance of recognizing dating violence, and how the students can play a positive role in changing behaviors

“Dating violence is pernicious, dehumanizing, unacceptable, and it can lead to serious injuries, physical, psychological and emotional,” pro-

claimed Dr. Griffin to the students on the yard.

Melanie Ortel, the Public Relations representative for Verizon for the Metropolitan region, was next to speak about the importance of the Red Flag Campaign. She proudly boasted that Howard University was one of the first universities to collaborate with the Red Flag Cam-paign three years ago. She urged the students to take responsibility for the well being of others.

The Red Flag Campaign is a pub-lic awareness campaign designed to address dating violence and promote the prevention of dat-ing violence on college campuses. The campaign was created using a “bystander intervention” strategy, encouraging friends and other cam-pus community members to “say something” when they see warning signs (“red flags”) for dating vio-lence in a friend’s relationship.

The audience also got to hear from two other speakers, Dr. Tricia Bentley-Goodley who is the director of the Howard University Interper-sonal Violence Prevention Pro-gram, and Pat McGann, the Vice President of Communications for Men Can Stop Rape, Inc and host of the panel in Blackburn later on that night.

Miss Howard University, Tamekia-Terin Taylor, spoke on behalf of the student voice at the riveting rally.

“The most important thing for us to know as students, as young people, we have a voice, and we have an op-portunity to stand up,” said Taylor

Taylor also opened up with the au-dience stating that two of her family members were affected by domestic violence, and she lost another fam-ily member to domestic violence.

October stands as domestic violence awareness month. One in five col-

lege relationships involve domestic violence, and young adults from ages 16 to 24 are the most affected age group.

“[Domestic violence] is prevalent, but it’s not very talked about. We had to start talking about things that were unpopular. That is what Howard is about,” stated Howard University Student Association President Anthony Miller.

“This is something that needs to be talked about, and I am glad that we had this opportunity to talk about it and voice the concerns that many people have.”

To learn more about the Red Flag Campaign go to http://www.theredflagcampaign.org/

Photo by Emmy Victor, Campus Editor

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Campus . Emmy Victor, Campus Editor campus@thehilltoponline.com

Coronation Ball Ushers in the New Mr. and Miss. Howard Bria Taylor

Contributing WriterFamily, friends, and members of the Howard University commu-nity gathered on Sunday for the 2013 Coronation Ball, an annual event held Mr. and Miss. Howard University.

This year’s Coronation Ball entitled “Arabian Nights,” took place this past Sunday at 2 P.M in the Armor J. Blackburn Ballroom. This honored and commemorative event serves at the official crown-ing ceremony for not only Mr. and Miss. Howard University, but the other members of the Royal Court as well. This year’s honored University king and queen is Senior Torrell Mills and Junior Tamekia-Terin Taylor. Both previously served together as the former Mr. and Miss College of Arts and Sciences before grabbing the high throne.

One of the questions among students this year was why the Coronation Ball was placed after the majority of the homecoming events had taken place. In the past, it has been placed before the major events. Royal Court Coordinator Paige Hurston said, “Pageant week was the first week of October, so

we needed more time to prepare for coronation and homecoming. One week to prepare was just not enough time to prepare for our court.”

The ceremony kicked off with mu-sic from a live jazz band followed by the presentation of the Royal Court. The Misses of the Royal Court, with the exception of Miss Blue and White and Miss Howard, wore pink knee length dresses. Accompanying them were their Misters, wearing black tuxedos with

pink accents. Staying true to theme, the current Miss Howard was ac-companied out her Mr. Howard in an all-white jeweled-encrusted Arabian styled sari. Mr. Howard wore a white tuxedo jacket with black tuxedo pants.

The event theme was displayed all throughout the ceremony not only through Miss. Howard’s suri, but in the rich gold drapes and table cloths, purple typography, and the pink balloons and flowers used to decorate the room. Even Mr.

and Miss. Howard’s dance was to the Aladdin song “A Whole New World.”

After Mr. and Miss Howard took their thrones, the Royal Court pre-sented them a dance and gifts that signified the necessary attributes of a king and queen. Following the presentation of gifts was dinner and series of special performances from students and royal court members.

Throughout the evening, different staff members spoke of their expe-

riences with Mills and Taylor. Sev-eral speakers attested to the unique quirkiness that sets Miss Howard apart from her predecessors and the hard work and diligence Mr. Howard has always displayed.

Despite the fact that several other homecoming events took place that day, attendance from students, faculty, alumni, and royal court member from surrounding universi-ties was high. Special alumni at the event included several former Mr. and Miss Howards, Actor Lance Gross and Olympic Gold Medalist David Oliver.

“I thought it [coronation] was ab-solutely beautiful. My favorite part, of course, was to see all the former queens to come back because we are so much stronger together,” says Victoria Mays, Miss School of Communications.

Miss Howard University adds to the thought of working together.

“It really is our heart to make sure people outside this institution understand what kind of excellent people we have here and that’s all we strive to do,” says Taylor.

21 Howard Physicians Named Washington Post Super DoctorsSholnn Freeman

Communications Specialist

Twenty doctors from Howard Uni-versity Hospital and the Howard University Practice Plan have been named by their peers as outstand-ing practicing physicians in the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia area.

The number accounts for nearly 10 percent of the university, hospital and practice plan’s staff, and reflects the care the hospital and university use in recruiting and selecting the finest physicians. The results were published Sunday in The Washing-ton Post.

“We are delighted to join The Washington Post in recognizing and congratulating these extraordinary individual physicians,” said Jeanette Gibbs, associate vice president for administration and operations for Howard University Health Sci-ences. “Their service to our patients attests to the high level of training and professional competence at Howard University Health Sci-ences. They are truly making a difference in the community.”Each year, the Super Doctors

research staff undertakes a rigorous, multi-phase selection process. The review team sent surveys to thou-sands of doctors in the area asking for nominees in 30 categories. Each nominee was then evaluated by the Super Doctors team using a set of 10 established indicators, including peer recognition and professional achievement.

After the extensive nomination and research process, conducted by Key Professional Media, Inc., the results were published in Washington, DC-Baltimore-Northern Virginia Super Doctors 2013, a special advertising section in the Oct. 27, 2013, issue of The Washington Post Magazine.

Since 2005, Key Professional Media, Inc., has published Super Doctors lists across the country in newspapers, inserts and magazine special sections. Honorees are also found online at superdoctors.com, where information about selected doctors can be searched by name, practice area and location.

Dr. Babafemi B. Adenuga, Dr. Robert A. Copeland Jr., Dr. Edward E. Cornwell, III, Dr. Bryan Curry, Dr. Robert L. DeWitty Jr., Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick, Dr. Terrence Fullum, Dr. Wendy R. Greene, Dr. Leslie S. Jones, Dr. Gail S. Kerr, Dr. William B. Lawson, Dr. Constance Mere, Dr. Oscar Mims, Dr. Gail Nunlee-Bland, Dr. Alvin V. Thomas, Dr. Terry L. Thompson, Dr. Debra White-Coleman, Dr. Howard E. Wilson, Dr. Michal A. Young, Dr. Kevin S. Smith

via Howard University News Room

Photo by Bria Taylor, Contributing Writer

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Gospel Show Rounds Out EPIC

The 2013 Gospel Show closed Howard Homecoming with a bang on Sunday night in Cramton Auditorium.

Bison’s Best Winner, Yale Cull-ings, opened the show with a lovely rendition of Forever Jones’ “He Wants It All”. The show was hosted by Howard’s own Jobina Fortson and Corey Arvinger and also in-cluded the I.AM.WE. dance team, the Beacon Liturgical Dancers, the Howard Community Choir, and two other Bison’s Best Winners, Howard Daniel and Nikea Marie Jones.

RESOUND, an A Capella group from Richmond, VA, also capti-vated the audience. They ended their performance with their own version of the “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and had the entire audience on their feet with raised fists.

Zenani Greenwell, a junior Political Science major, was the show coor-dinator and had been planning the event since May. “My biggest con-cern was I didn’t want the show to be too denominational or too bias towards one certain type of religion. I still wanted people to enjoy it,” Greenwell said. “…Not too churchy, but just still the right amount of entertainment, as well, to keep the crowd engaged, but not bored.

This year, Greenwell wanted to incorporate more local artists and Howard students into the show. “We have our own talent on

campus,” she said. Because of this, Bison’s Best was created, which was a competition in which students would be able to showcase their talents in the show.

The goal was for this year’s home-coming was for every event to be epic and indeed it was as the four time Grammy winning duo, Mary Mary, performed at the end of the night. “I’m Walking”, “Yesterday”, and “Shackles” are just a few of the songs they performed.

While the night was aimed to be about entertainment, ministry played a huge role, as well. Chris-topher Abraham, a sophomore Political Science major and member of the Howard Community Choir, said, “The inspiration for most of what we do comes from a stand-point of ministry.” This was evident as every performer performed sang and danced very passionately and exhibited a deep spiritual con-nection with their talents and the audience, who reciprocated that emotion.

What really moved the audience was Tina’s testimony, one of the two members of Mary Mary. She revealed that she had contemplated suicide and even “taking the kids out”, too.

“If you don’t have peace, you don’t got nothing,” she said. She then encouraged those in the audience to go to God about their troubles and “let it go.” Many people were moved by her honesty and the two continued their performance with

much enthusiasm.

Although more students attend events like Yardfest, The R&B show, or the Step Show, the Gospel show gives those who are not as interested in those events a way to still enjoy homecoming. Ta’Daviyon Reed, a sophomore Audio Production ma-jor, even said that the Gospel Show was better than the other festivities. “It was more organized [and] the performers were great.”

“We do have a very large religious and spiritual population at Howard and I think that this show caters to them,” Greenwell said.

Howard Daniel, a sophomore Design major and a Bison’s Best winner, agreed, calling the event a “spirit lifter”. He said, “It felt like I was singing in front of my church family on a Sunday morning.”

Daniel added, “[The Gospel Show] brings a balance…a lot of students here were brought up in the church as Christians and other denomina-tions.” According to Daniel, college students can get “buck wild” during Homecoming, but the Gospel Show serves a pleasant ending to a chaotic week.

“Yeah, we’re students. We’re going to fall short, but it’s also good to have the Gospel Show at the end of the week to lift you back up,” he said.

Robyn HutsonContributing Writer

Campus Emmy Victor, Campus Editor campus@thehilltoponline.com

As Domestic Violence Awareness Month comes to a close today, it is important to note that the fight for change does not stop here. This month the Verizon Foundation and Verizon Wireless brought its annual initiative program to our campus entitled “Domestic Violence Aware-ness Month - Rally and Round-table” which brought red awareness flags to The Yard and a discussion about masculinity and how men can become advocates in the efforts to stop domestic violence.

Domestic violence, as defined by thinkprogress.org, is the willful intimidation, physical assault, bat-tery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior perpetrated by an intimate partner against another. Though this definition is widely de-picted and discussed, in contrast it is often regarded as an insignificant issue and many women (and men) of color carry the mentality that “[domestic violence] could never happen to me”.

Ironically so, while many people of color feel the topic of domestic violence lacks relevance in their communities, it is a prevalent issue that sits all ‘too well’ with us. It has become commonplace, something accepted as a norm or non-issue. Recent statistics show that 30 per-cent of African-American women have been subjected to domestic abuse such as - rape, physical as-sault, or stalking - and that African-American women are at a greater risk of experiencing domestic vio-lence than any other demographic group.

Many times during discussion of rape or domestic violence, the stigma that women of color are promiscuous is put on the table, im-plying they were ‘asking for it’, that this is just ‘how things are’ or ‘she’s lying’. These myths and miscon-

ceptions of women of color have minimized the impact of domestic and sexual violence.

These misconceptions also help af-firm the belief that speaking out on the issue of domestic violence will cause embarrassment. The mental anguish and self-imposed and external torment can be the cause of silence and self-blame among victims. The question is then raised: “What can we do for people who are going through situations such as these?”

The solution is not easy when violence against people of color, specifically women, has been historically institutionalized. The tainted view of domestic violence as normality within the community comes as no surprise to many.

Furthermore, the solution is difficult to report when women (and men) are then told that they are to blame for being victimized by domestic violence, and are not only silenced through members of the commu-nity but through the judicial system. We live in a society that tells us to defend ourselves but will then crimi-nalize women for doing just that. In scenarios where signs of domestic violence aren’t immediately visible, stereotypes such as the ‘strong black woman’ or ‘she was asking for it’ are often used against women through media reports and judicial actions.

With all of that being said, it is pos-sible to combat the stigma against men and women put into domes-tic violence situations by helping people realize the importance in the voices of victims being heard, and that silence won’t end the violence against them. While reporting what happens in domestic violence situations is an individual choice, supporting people by listening and advocating for them is a responsibil-ity of the community.

Maya CadeLife & Style Editor

Opinion: Don’tSilence the Violence

Photo by Royell McGary, Staff Photographer

Photo by Khalia Clemons, Staff Contributor

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True Life: I’m ApplyingTo Graduate School

Jasmine TurnerContributing Writer

Many questions can arise when pondering what to do post college graduation. Should I move to a new city? Should I go back home? But one of the most pressing dilemmas for students these days is whether or not they should attend graduate school. With factors such as baby boomers still in the workforce and a stagnant economy, the idea of continuing education has become more appealing to the average stu-dent. Even those who may not have considered higher education before are considering it now.

Tuesday evening, the Howard University Chapter of the National Student Speech Language Hear-ing Association (NSSLHA) held a forum and panel discussion about the ins and outs of applying to and attending graduate school. The panel included the Dean of Gradu-ate Affairs, Dr. Chontrese Doswell-Hayes and Dr. Silvia Martinez, As-sociate Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, along with several How-ard University graduate students. The panel delivered an abundance of information and advice benefi-cial to anyone planning to attend Howard University or any graduate program. They discussed topics such as the application process and how to manage your time once you are in school.

Dr.Doswell-Hayes, a Howard University graduate, stressed the importance doing your research and giving yourself enough time to put together a well-rounded application.

“Schedule a time to meet with your current professors and be prepared when you meet with them, bring your transcript, resume and a letter of recommendation you have writ-ten yourself,” said Hayes

He went on to discuss the impor-tance of cultivating your recom-mendations and giving your teach-ers enough time to complete them.

“Give your professor a deadline of three weeks before you actually need the recommendation and if the school wants three recommen-dations, get four, always leave room for error.”

It would be difficult to discuss grad-uate school and not discuss finances. After paying for four or more years of undergrad, one may be hesitant to enroll in a graduate program that could put them in even more debt.

“Don’t come to grad school with

a brand new car payment. Grad school is a humble lifestyle, it’s de-layed gratification,” Dean Doswell-Hayes said.

Concerning finding money for grad school, the professors and students encouraged using resources as simple as the internet to find grants and scholarships and even corporate jobs that will pay for your extended education while you work for them.

A prominent question the panel also discussed was, why come to Howard? Professor Martinez gave insight on being a minority attend-ing graduate schools such as Boston and Harvard University, discussing the hardships she faced and the les-sons she learned.

“There is no school that cares for their students the way Howard does, and we need our students to attend graduate school at Howard because you are the crème of the crop. We need our students to go out in the world and represent us,” said Martinez.

Dean Doswell-Hayes cosigned on Professor Martinez’s statement say-ing that “Howard does an outstand-ing job of nurturing and cultivating talent.”

While the professors had endless tips on how to get into graduate school, the panel of graduate stu-dents had even more to say on the subject of what to do once enrolled. They emphasized the importance of finding a balance between your academic and social life, though a social life may be non-existent. Also discussed was the significance of getting as many experiences as you can and taking advantage of every opportunity. It was made clear that graduate school is by no means easy but with perseverance and proper guidance you will be able to do your absolute best while attending.

Dr. Martine Elie, Howard Univer-sity’s Speech and Hearing Clinic director, delivered the final remarks of the evening quoting the inspira-tional Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“If you can’t fly, run. If you can’t run, walk. If you can’t walk, crawl. But by all means keep moving.”

For more information concerning graduate school check out www.gradschoolheaven.com and www.gs.howard.edu

Metro Keneisha Deas, Metro Editor deas@thehilltoponline.com .

WASHINGTON, D.C --As the clock on Virginia’s gubernatorial race winds downs, candidates are amping up their campaign efforts as they embark on the final stretch. Polls indicate that Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe is sitting with a comfortable 12 percentage-point advantage over his Republi-can counterpart, Ken Cuccinelli.

Cuccinelli’s efforts to appeal to moderate Virginian voters may have been thwarted by his associa-tion with the Tea Party, especially in light of the recent government shutdown. The current Attorney General has made it no secret that he desires to dismantle the contro-versial Affordable Care Act.

“November 5th is a referendum on Obamacare. If you want to hold back the tide of Obamacare–I need your vote,” Cuccinelli said during a campaign event. Regardless of his plummeting popularity reflected in the polls, the governor-hopeful is not convinced his conservative views and Tea Party affiliation are to blame.

“I don’t think [Ted Cruz] is drag-ging me down,” Cuccinelli said of the Tea Party’s most prominent and

radical leader.

Even with Cuccinelli’s drop in the polls, his opponent, McAuliffe still isn’t exactly a crowd favorite and is considered by many as a candidate of last resort. Voters who say that they intend to vote for McAuliffe also admit that they aren’t neces-sarily supporters of McAuliffe, but rather opponents of his Republican counterpart. Specifically, when asked why they were voting for the Democratic nominee, 64 percent of

DeJanae Evins and Allyson CarpenterContributing Writers

Polls Favor McAuliffe In Race For VA Governor

Things to Do For HalloweenJanelle Berry

Contributing Writer

This is Halloween

The wind is bristling, leaves are falling, and the ghosts are haunt-ing. This can only mean one thing – Halloween! So bring out your coats, scarves, and costumes! The temperature has dropped but there are still several fun activities for young adults to enjoy on this night of the dead and haunting. Here are some of the exciting Halloween events to enjoy:

#HAUNTEDTRAPHOUSE

Ibiza Nightclub is having an 18 and over Halloween party tonight featuring DJ Swerve and Mic Man Mal. It’s free all night with costume, and $20 without. For Howard students, shuttles leave the Annex at 10 p.m.

DREAMS AND SCREAMS

From 9 p.m. to 2 a.m., this party at Ibiza is also a costume party, featur-ing DJ Ricky Platinum and DJ Dutch Platinum. It is free all night with a costume if you text 545454 to (202)-423-6901.

SCARY MOVIE III

From 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., the next Halloween party to attend at Ibiza is Scary Movie III. The party is 18 and over, and guys pay $10 until 11 p.m. and ladies are free before 12 a.m. with costumes on.

Make sure you attend at least one of these parties at Ibiza Nightclub tomorrow on Halloween night!

1222 1st ST NE, Washington

PRINCE GEORGE’S STADIUM

Tulip Gulch Productions presents the 22nd year of the Haunted House at Prince George’s Stadium for the Bowie Baysox! The shows are all indoors so it will be open in any weather. It’s a $15 in advance admission fee. There are also tickets available at the box office on the night of the event 30 minutes before the end of it. The stadium operates from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Today, WPGC’s Peter Parker will be on site broadcasting live with music, prizes, games and more! Other fright nights are on November 1 and November 2.

4101 Crain Hwy, Bowie, MD

(301) 805-6000

NIGHTMARE MANOR

Nightmare Manor is a historic place for “Steh’s Folly” where ghosts haunted the manor for over 200 years. It is rumored that no one has ever lived for long in the house, so get ready to get scared in this amaz-ing haunted house! Admission is $25 on Thursday through Sunday. The manor is opened on Thursday and Friday from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.They also feature a paintball shooting range, live magic, face painting, bungee run, Shadow-land Laser Adventures, an outdoor theater, and tarot readings!

19000 Darnestown Rd, Beallsville, MD

(301) 948-3141

McAuliffe supporters say they were merely voting against Cuccinelli.

McAuliffe, who served as the Chair-man of the Democratic National Committee, is also enjoying the help of President Obama who is campaigning on behalf of the candidate. Similarly, Rand Paul has extended his support to his fellow Republican, Cuccinelli with hopes to energize conservative supporters as elections are only days away.

via Flickr.com, Ava Reaves Images

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Life&Style Maya Cade, L&S Editor cade@thehilltoponline.com . The Black Characters in Horror Films

Marc RiversColumnist

Halloween and horror films are the inseparable friends at the party. Where one goes, the other follows. You wouldn’t bring up Gladys Knight without also mentioning the Pips. And you just can’t mention Halloween without also mentioning the scary horror flick everyone plans to see. Often the most entertaining moments are the ones happening off screen, like when your friend reels backward at a jump scare, the popcorn leaping out of the bag, or when an audience member mocks a character for a particularly stupid action. Attending a horror film, one gets used to a commentary track provided by the audience: “Don’t go in there!” “He’s right behind you!” “Girl, you deserve to get killed doing that!”

Calling out the stupidity of the

5 Overlooked Horror FilmsMarc Rivers

Columnist

characters in horror films has proven to be a particularly satisfying pastime for black audiences. After all, most of the main characters in horror films are white. While this might normally bother those looking for diversity in their films, when the characters are acting this stupid— checking that strange noise in the basement without turning on a light, splitting up to “cover more ground,” letting the stranger into the house—they’re practically begging to get slaughtered. And if people are going to get slaugh-tered (this is horror after all), well, it might as well be the dumb white folks.

Watching the first “Scream” (1996), it might have initially been terrify-ing to see a young Drew Barrymore stalked and gutted in her family home by the killer with the ghost face mask, but watching it now, all one can think is, “Why the hell

do you keep answering the phone, you idiot?” Similarly, in last year’s “Sinister,” the protagonist (Ethan Hawke) seemed averse to turning a light on in his own home when-ever he investigated a suspicious noise. So maybe he sees better in the dark right? Nope, he carries a flashlight with him, sometimes walking right by a light switch. And then of course there’s the iconic “Paranormal Activity” series, which perhaps more than any other horror franchise is an ungodly affront to common sense. Everyone always asks the same thing: “Why don’t they just get out the house before the craziness goes down?”

If this is how white filmmakers think white people are, it’s almost a small blessing that when a black person does show up in a horror film, they often don’t last too long. Death allows an escape from the dangers of idiocy. And yet, some-

There’s something wonderfully visceral about a good horror film, the way they can creep under the skin and chill the bone. Horror films often work on one’s most primal fears: fear of the unknown, fear of the dark, fear of clowns. The best ones can have you sleeping with the lights on for days. Sadly, recent films in the genre seem to depend on the same tropes and clichés: the face that appears in the mirror, the killer who you think is dead but really isn’t, the screeching noise behind a character that’s only a cat. It all gets a little tedious. It can be almost impossible to find a really good horror film these days. Luckily, there are some filmmakers who can still find unique and unsettling ways to unnerve and startle the viewer, films not as well-known as classics like “Halloween” or “The Exorcist,” but still warrant your at-tention. Of course the horror genre is deeply subjective; what’s scary to one viewer might not be scary to another. But if none of these 5 films creep you out just a little…. Well, you’re just a badass then aren’t you?

“Audition,”Takashi Miike (1999)Anyone who has ever watched a Japanese horror film knows just what kind of bizarre and depraved madhouse is in store, but the distinctly ghastly madhouse that is “Audition” is one that most viewers will probably never want to revisit, and that’s if they even manage to get through it all. The synopsis seems innocent enough: A widower

is offered the chance to screen girls at a private audition so that he might find a new wife. The one he takes a liking to seems perfect. She’s beautiful, smart and mysterious. But soon this perfect woman reveals a rather curious mode of behavior and… Well, see for yourself, and get ready to avert your eyes more than once.

“The Descent,” Neil Marchal (2006)In British director Neil Marshall’s claustrophobic thriller, the dark-ness is an especially impenetrable, endless void that promises nothing but despair and misery. The jagged stalagmites, bloody penetrations, and sweaty female cast lay out an undertone of sexual violence while the deft, insidious pacing has you stiff with anticipation, almost beg-ging for the massacre to start. When it does, it’s a dozy. This is the world of “The Descent,” which evokes also British director Ridley Scott’s seminal horror film “Alien” (1979).

Perhaps Americans don’t have the same affinity for subtext, building up to scares, and developing an effective visual style as their foreign counterparts. “The Descent” does all three in spades, with cinematic references that recall the aforemen-tioned “Alien” and also “Carrie,” “Jaws,” and “Apocalypse Now” while also having its own distinct and rich aesthetic that plunges the viewer into a world of emptiness, fear, blood, and sweat. The title re-fers to the literal descent its heroines take into a cave where they encoun-ter nightmarish creatures that evoke Henry Fuseli’s paintings, and also the psychological descent into the primal parts of human nature. If you need one more reason never to go into a cave underground, this is it.

“Inside,” Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo (2007)All expecting parents stay clear away from this grisly French horror flick, which concerns the attack

and home invasion of a pregnant woman by a mysterious stranger who wants her baby. Wielding nothing but a pair of scissors, the deranged villain spends the entirety of a relentless 82 minutes stalking our protagonist, firmly convinced that the baby is hers. If you think the French are a bunch of romantic softies, you may think twice after enduring this grueling piece of work.

“Antichrist,” Lars Von Trier (2009)If you’ve given up on a horror film’s ability to shock you, having been desensitized to and almost bored of the shallow, excessive gore fests of the “Saw” franchise and unmoved by the recent influx of silly exorcist and found-footage films, just wait until you see “Antichrist.” Danish filmmaker Lars Von Trier subverts all expectations and gets under the viewer’s skin with such glee and aplomb that it has to be his mission statement. He does so in intense sex scenes and moments of bodily mutilation that will have any viewer reeling back in disbelief and disgust. But for all its shock value, it is also a scintillating display of filmmak-ing bravado, headed by Anthony Dod Mantle’s darkly opalescent cinematography. His dreamy, milky imagery aided by truly disturbing sound design. At the film’s center: two wholly committed performanc-es by William Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg, who go above and beyond to help convey this twisted parable’s ideas of grief, cruelty, and suffering.

“We Need to Talk About

Kevin,” Lynne Ramsay (2011)Lynne Ramsay’s art-house marvel isn’t a horror film in the traditional sense. There are no ghosts, mon-sters, or masked killers here. The terror here is grounded in reality, and ultimately, a lot more upsetting. Without giving too much away, “We Need to Talk About Kevin” (based on the novel by Lionel Shriver) tells a tale that could be ripped straight from the tragic headlines that defined much of 2012. Do not be fooled by a potentially melodramat-ic plot, which concerns a mother’s psychological trauma at the hands of her son who commits a heinous act. This is a horrific demon child film, and in its bold formal ap-proach and remarkable acting, it is one of the most effective ever made. Avoiding its source mate-rial’s epistolary format and verbose text for more suggestive, visually motivated, and fragmented story-telling, Ramsay creates a palpable sense of mood and dread. With nary an ounce of blood shown, her film practically assaults the viewer through a brilliantly controlled display of sensory motivated film-making. The collage of striking visuals, use of color, and deeply unnerving sound work will com-pletely put you in a haunted state of mind. Tilda Swinton anchors the film in a masterful performance of emotional numbness, deteriora-tion, and fragility, which is matched by rising star Ezra Miller’s chilling portrayal of a sociopath. After it is over, the viewer may feel the need for a shower or long walk, anything to cleanse the body of the distress-ing emotions this film conjures.

what tragically, the black character’s death is rarely called for, not like the other characters. In a horror film, the jock will die because he’s a jerk. The smart one will prob-ably die, too—the one who knows what’s going on, but can’t convince the rest of the group—because we’ve already established that only stupid people can exist in a horror film. The stoners and pranksters often kick the bucket as well; they’re having more fun than the killer, and that’s never okay. But the token black person, often the only thing he’s guilty of is palling around with a bunch of dumb white people.

And just when you think the black guy can make it out unscathed, he might be eaten by a shark (“Deep Blue Sea”), killed by a bunch of rednecks that mistake him for a zombie (“Night of the Living Dead”), or even worse, killed by that raving lunatic known as Jack

Nicholson (“The Shining”). Of course sometimes the black person survives (Taye Diggs in “House on a Haunted Hill,” Brandy in “I Still Know What You Did Last Sum-mer,” Morris Chestnut in “The Cave”), but one might garner that the lesson here is: when the white people want to go to a cabin in the woods, research a serial killer, or go spelunking in a dark cave, the black person in the group should respectfully yet firmly decline or go running in the opposite direction.

That way, black audience members are safe to ridicule and mock those silly, curious white characters who just have to investigate that noise or answer that mysterious phone call, without worrying about the safety of their brothas and sistas.

via Flickr.com, puppetmister

THE HILLTOP 8

THE HILLTOP | THURSDAY, OCTOBER, 31 2013

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In 1881, Dr. Booker T. Washington was 24. He founded the Tuskegee Institute beneath the fiery Ala-bama sky. Tuition? Free. Why? Dr. Washington was not interested in founding an company for profit. He created a school with the intention of collectively lifting Black people out of slavery. He said, “Train your hands, for with your hands you feed the mouth.”

His economic program was predi-cated on the belief that if Black people learned to transform land into wealth for ourselves, then we would be able to realize and exer-cise cultural and political freedom as a people.

This past weekend, 50 Howard University students joined minds from around the country at Tuskegee University for the Build-ing a New World Student Confer-ence. For three days, we discussed economics, freedom, Black politics, agriculture, and a creative cultural revolution. At the end of the confer-ence, we piled back onto a bus, bound for the school on the hilltop; back to the smog and starvation, pundits and police cars.

How do we prepare Howard University for the new world? A planet with an increasing popula-tion and an increasing demand for dwindling resources. Further, how

do we as Black people prepare our Collective-Self to be powerful and healthy? We must not view these challenges independently; the an-swer lies within the nucleus of both questions.

Below, I have identified three ways that Howard University can blaze the trail of innovation and increase our federally-independent revenue, while moving the Black masses towards true freedom:

1. GET ME OUT OF HERE!I am a graduating senior...just not sure when I will be graduating. I am not alone; we have a card-carrying, members-only club. We walk around with long faces, giving out hugs, and releasing deep sighs. The common denominator? Cred-its. Howard doesn’t want a piece of them, or a part of them; they want all the credits. Seniors quietly whisper how many credits remain between them and the stage on the yard like a prisoner discussing his/her sentence.

The problem is one that the uni-versity administration has already identified: graduation and reten-tion rates. Thus, some departments recently reviewed their programs and reduced the required number of credits that the class of 2017 will need to take before graduat-ing. However, problems with simple solutions still run the playground.

For example: I took Spanish 4 and

got a B. I satisfied my language re-quirement. Instead of reducing the amount of credits I must therefore take, my scholarship was rewarded with an oxymoron: 9 credit hours of required electives. As much as I would love to take Intro to Pho-tography or Tae Kwon Do 102, I would rather get my degree and get out of here. This is not just a personal issue; the longer I remain a struggling student, the longer I will not be a successful alum who writes checks--fat checks--to Howard University.

2. Skype Me InIn addition to cutting unnecessary credits from all programs, Howard should develop several new and practical short degree/certificate programs with a heavy concentra-tion on virtual class rooms. This strategy poses solutions for two chronic problems for our university:

Firstly, Howard is has an urban campus where physical space is hard and expensive to come by. Many of us know the headache of sitting in a classroom with thirty desks and thirty-five students; the greatest band in the land has to dodge lacrosse balls during field show practice because we have one field.

Secondly, as Howard fights to remain affordable for all students, a strong curriculum of online-based programs would add additional rev-enue by increasing enrollment. We

can substantially grow our popula-tion without putting greater strains on physical space and facilities if we emphasize programs--short in duration--that working adults can utilize to advance their careers or start new ones. The primary objective should be to shorten the distance between program comple-tion and real world application. The more students we teach, the more alumni we will be able to place in the workforce. Assuming that these cyber-students will be Black, our programs will also make a positive impact on the national employment predicament for Black people.

3. In-sourcing > Out-sourcing

Lastly, at the town hall forum with interim-president, Dr. Wayne Fredrick, a question regarding cutting costs from the operating expenses of the university was posed. Fredrick responded with a simple solution: outsourcing. It is the name of the game in big busi-ness. Instead of keeping a massive staff and all of the costs associated with such, a school or a corporation simply downsizes their payroll and finds private companies to contract services to. In the sort term, it might seem like a cheaper solution. How-ard does not need to provide con-tractors with benefits or raises; they simply select the cheapest bidder on a contract. When that contract expires, the process repeats.

The problem is: outsourcing does

not provide any long term benefit to the university. By having an essentially transient work force, the university will lose institutional memory--the benefit of having staff members who have been around for many years. Institutional memory ultimately helps reduce costs be-cause institutions do not have to reinvent the wheel every time a contract expires with a particular company.

Instead of contracting to outside companies with political ties to members of the Board of Trustees, (cough, The Burkes Company, cough, Atlanta, cough, Kasim Reed, cough, cough) Howard University should be a creator of companies and jobs. Instead of lining the pockets of wealthy men as they attempt to get wealthier, we should be an incubator and a test-ing ground. We must not be afraid of innovation. What if we got rid of the Burkes Company, Sodexo, and Georgia Pacific products on campus and replaced them with companies and products created for students by students? One thing is clear: we need to make strategic investments, not conve-nient back-door business deals as we pursue true economic liberation in the spirit of Dr. Booker T. Washing-ton and the ancestors of justice.

Cameron ClarksonOpinions Editor

Opinion: A New World For Howard

To the Howard Community,

The challenge of all great institu-tions is to move beyond the limbo of applauding ourselves for the past and being unsure of what to do for the fu-ture. Instead, they must acknowledge past accomplishments while taking active steps towards advancing their legacy. This is done most effectively through addressing current issues and proactively proactively for those issues they will inevitably face in the future. This is the challenge of Howard University. For there is no question that Howard is, was, and will continue to be great.

The greatness of Howard is exempli-fied in our six Fulbright scholars, the thousands of students we have sent to serve underserved communities through Alternative Spring Break, the launching of the Campus Lean In Circles just two weeks ago by Face-book COO Sheryl Sandberg, and the twenty “super doctors” that serve in our hospital. These accomplishments and accolades did not occur in the 1990s or during the Civil Rights era, each of these has occurred in the last five years here at Howard University.

We mention these not to distract from the current issues at hand, or to be in denial about the future of our university. Instead, we highlight these facts to demonstrate that Howard is a place where all of its stakeholders

HBCU’s Under Attackare actively engaged in harnessing the lessons we have learned from our past successes in order to solve the contem-porary issues.

Have we forgotten why we chose Howard? We didn’t choose it because it was easy. Howard has always been a place that has dealt with controver-sy—whether it is internal controversy or global controversy. We have always been an institution that prides itself on having those difficult conversations and confronting those issues that most would ignore. We have had those conversations and confronted those is-sues not only for the sake of Howard, not just for the Black community, but for all underrepresented, marginalized peoples who have been denied their rightful voice.

It is time for us to change the discus-sion around Howard. It has been time. “I AM HOWard” is the name of the campaign we are starting. This campaign is a celebration and an acceptance of a calling: a calling that we each accepted the moment we stepped foot on this campus. No individual can do this alone, “I AM HOWard” is a personal pledge to be a part of finding the solution, a pledge to be informed, and a pledge to hold our entire community to this commit-ment as well.

The main objective of this campaign is to give the Howard community

an opportunity to share their stories. We also see this, as an opportunity to encourage everyone to support the University through monetary and other types of donations that will directly benefit students.

We must speak about the truth of Howard’s greatness through uplift-ing what makes Howard great: its students, alumni, faculty, and staff. We want to hear your stories, we want you to tell the world about your great accomplishments and share why Howard has and will continue to be the Mecca of Black excellence.

We invite all students to join us on November 12th for our General Body meeting in the Blackburn Digital Auditorium where we will be crafting our Student Agenda to present to the Board of Trustees on November 22nd. Let’s take these next key steps together.

In Truth and Service,

Anthony Miller, President Dominique Perkins, Vice President

The 53rd Administration of the How-ard University Student Association

THE HILLTOP 9

THE HILLTOP | THURSDAY, OCTOBER, 31 2013

Sports Khari Arnold, Sports Editor sports@thehilltoponline.com .

Photo by Rachel Cumberbatch, Photo Editor

NBA Season Takes FlightJerel Sangster

Contributing Writer

Fans are eager for an NBA season that tipped off on Tuesday after waiting for the four-month offsea-son to end. The Miami Heat will look to become the fi rst team to win three consecutive titles since the Los Angeles Lakers (2000-2002). This season will also mark the return of several superstars from injuries: most notably Derrick Rose, Kobe Bryant and Russell Westbrook.

There are several burning questions surrounding this NBA season: How much did a whole year off impact Derrick Rose’s game? Can LeBron and the Heat three-peat? Is it fi nally Kevin Durant’s time? Are the Nets too old or just experienced?

Only time will reveal the answers to these questions but it’s always fun to speculate and receive different viewpoints before the season.

The Return: After suffering an ACL tear in the 2011-2012 playoffs, the Bulls hopes to win a champion-ship declined as Rose was sidelined for the entire 2012-13 season. As a result of his decision not to play after eventually being cleared by doctors, Rose encountered much criticism. This year Rose is back and looking to retain his MVP form from when he won the award in 2011. “ I think he’s going to be the best point guard in the league,” said Theodore Lee, a Howard sopho-more.

The Legacy: LeBron James is the fi rst player since Michael Jordan to win back-to-back NBA fi nals and season MVP awards. He is also looking to win his fi fth regular sea-son MVP award, which moves him

via Flickr.com, symbiosis

into the elite category of Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Also, if he succeeds in his quest to help the Heat win their third title in a row; James will undoubtedly solidify his presence as one of the all-time greats -- if not the greatest. “If he wins another MVP this year, I wouldn’t know what to say because it wouldn’t be his last,” stated fresh-man Juanye Williams.

The Old Guys: Over the summer, the Brooklyn Nets acquired Paul Pierce (36), Kevin Garnett (37), and Jason Terry (36), to play under recently player-turned-coach Jason Kidd. This relatively young coach and his fairly old players look to bring the Nets back to the cham-pion contenders the team once was when Kidd played. “The Nets look nice and their bench is extremely deep so I think they’ll be a pretty high seed in the Eastern Conference despite having such an inexperi-enced coach, ” said junior Brian Hicks.

2nd Place: Kevin Durant told Sports Illustrated earlier this year, “I’m tired of being second… I’m done with it.” After co-star Russell Westbrook suffered a MCL injury—forcing him to miss the remainder of the playoffs—the burden of lead-ing the Oklahoma City Thunder to the fi nals fell directly on Durant’s back. “He has to do more I think. He’s going to have to step up and be a better leader,” said sophomore Aman Johnson. He will be without Westbrook to start the season and will try to lead the Thunder by himself for the fi rst time.

Any athlete will tell you that their natural aptitude is to play the game without an ounce of fear every time they step on the court, fi eld, or up to the plate.

Whether it’s during practice or a game, athletes at all levels play their respective sport cognizant that every decision they make can be held ac-countable in some type of formality. Sometimes that decision can change the outcome of a game, or earn a player a spot on the bench or in the starting lineup for the next game.

The most devastating fashion to suffer from a split decision in sports, however, is well-known.

To face an injury.

Two months ago, a press confer-ence room was left aghast after the announcement by interim head football coach Rayford Petty that star safety Julien David would be out for the 2013-14 season.

With November approaching, David has had to cope with a dif-ferent lifestyle while adjusting to life without football.

The 5-foot-11, 205 pound NFL prospect tore his right pectoral muscle before the start of his senior season, leaving him on the sideline as his Bison teammates take the fi eld on Saturdays.

“Initially it was frustrating. Getting hurt and knowing you’re going to be out for the season is nothing any athlete wants to hear.” said David, who suffered this injury the very last day of training camp. “After a while, it didn’t take me long to realize it was out of my control, and the only thing I can control is how fast and how well I can be when I get back.”

Despite being a senior, David is eli-gible for one more year of football as a student-athlete due to his capa-bility of redshirting this season.

“It actually hit me that I’ll be able to come back stronger. It gives me another year to watch fi lm and perfect my craft,” David said. “It’s actually a blessing in disguise. I have an advantage not a lot of seniors do.”

The Coral Springs, Fl. native uses this positive mentality throughout the rigorous rehab he faces four times a week at the Antoine Bethea Rehabilitation Center.

“A lot of times I’m doing free weight stuff, abduction, and internal

rotation,” David stated. “It’s build-ing back the foundation of my shoulder muscle and bicep so I can build stability and get my strength and range of motion back.”

Last season, David played a pivotal role in decimating offenses as he led the entire conference with 108 tackles, piquing the interest of NFL scouts that anticipated a scintillating senior year.

Players that happen to have the next level in hindsight are well-aware that an injury will raise questions to scouts, let alone an injury that ends a season.

For David, he refuses to believe this injury will impinge his future in football as his mentality consists of overcoming this obstacle in his career.

“A lot of times with injuries, either two things or going to happen—you’re going to fall, or you’re going to overcome. I have faith that I’ll overcome,” David said vehemently.

The Howard safety is conscious that the ability to successfully overcome this hindrance is indeed possible as his story is similar to former South Carolina running back Marcus Lat-timore, who faced a season-ending injury in his last year as a Game-cock.

“When you see a guy like Marcus Lattimore still make it and get draft-

ed, obviously he overcame. As long as I can stay healthy after I come back, I know for a fact I’ll be able to overcome,” continued David.

Lattimore’s initial and latter reac-tion to his injury is essentially the same of David’s. The current San Francisco 49ers running back told ESPN analyst John Gruden, “It was a real dark day, but I knew I could get back up from it.

“I can overcome anything—any-thing that comes my way. ”

While David recovers, it would be incredulous to believe the high-profi led student-athlete has been marginalized or forgotten by play-ers and coaches throughout this process.

David, who helped lead a stalwart Bison defense to its fi rst winning season in nearly a decade last year, still travels with the team, attends morning meetings, and is on the sideline during games to do more than just root his teammates on.

“[David] does a great job just being on the sideline on gameday, and once the coaches are fi nished talk-ing to players about adjustments on the fi eld, he’s always there encour-aging them,” said interim head coach Rayford Petty. “He knows our system well enough that he can also give some pointers as to what

Star Safety Overcoming AdversityKhari ArnoldSports Editor

DAVID continued on p. 10

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THE HILLTOP | THURSDAY, OCTOBER, 31 2013

Bison AbroadSpain

Greetings Bison!

I just wrapped up week number five in Granada, Spain and since being here have gotten into a pretty solid routine. Filled with class, volunteer-ing, and weekend excursions, my time here is going by quite fast. As November approaches I’m begin-ning to prepare for mid terms and find my days turning into nights before I know it. My skills in the Spanish language are improving each day and even find myself thinking in it. Being immersed in a Spanish speaking country defi-nitely makes making it your second tongue highly unavoidable.

In the midst of the whirlwind of things I’m doing I’ve finally been struck with a case of homesickness. I miss DC’s Chipotles and Star-bucks coffee. I miss picking up The Hilltop every week and saying high to familiar faces as I walk across the yard. I missed an epic homecoming but luckily had the Spanish cities of Sevilla, Cordoba, and the UK

territory of Gibraltar to take up my time. The locals in Gibraltar British accents and speak a mix of English and Andalucian Spanish – the real Spanglish. Atop of the rock is the apes den, where monkeys dwell like our squirrels to in America. In Sevilla I visited the beautiful Royal Palace and Plaza Espana. On my way back to Granada we stopped in Cordoba and learned about the historical city and Muslim mosque turned to modern day Cathedral.

My trip to Tangiers, Morrocco is coming up and so is my flight back to Philly. For as often as I miss home I think about how blessed I am to be here. I’m experiencing some-thing many wish they could do and for that I am grateful. The journey is almost half completed; I can’t wait to see what else is in store for my time in Europe.

Until next time, Bison.

Rachel HamptonContributing Writer

20 Meccanisms1. I still can’t believe we paid for Yardfest, times have definitely changed.2. They thought that decision was gonna blow over well, huh? #NewHoward 3. Did you have more fun at the Tailgate than you did at Yardfest? 4. Tailgate was free, right? #Oohkillem 5. So did you see Roland Martin on campus last week?6. How many of y’all spoke to him? #Gohomeroger7. Did you hear about Kanye getting engaged to Kim K?8. Hopefully, Yeezy follows his mantra and gets a healthy pre-nup or he’ll be the next Michael Jordan.9. Did you see Lamar’s interview with TMZ?10. Was he invited to the proposal or nah? #Questionsthatneedanswers11. Future and Ciara are engaged too, what’s up with all these celebrities buying 15-carat rings?12. How many females out here want a 15-carat ring but don’t even make 15,000 a year? #Newslaves13. So Love & Babymamas premiered on Monday, what did you think?14. Peter Gunz think he Stevie J or nah?15. Is Aminah supposed to be Joseline? 16. Did you like the TLC Biopic?17. Don’t you think that Lil Mama was better at being somebody else than she was at being herself ?18. Has the Washington Post been at our throat or what?19. #ProveThemWrong20. One time for The Hilltop haters though #keepreading

he would do in a situation.

“He’s just as important on the side-line as he is on the field.”

One player who receives that extra motivation and coaching from Da-vid on the sideline is the man who was meant to play right beside him in the secondary this year, safety Cameron Alston.

“I try to make sure I’m helping [Alston] out because sometimes it’s hard for coaches and players to be on the same page. I understand how you can lose that connection so I try to do as much as possible since I’m not on the field,” David said.

As David motivates Alston to be productive on the field, Alston mo-tivates him in return throughout the rehab of his counterpart. Alston is familiar with the position David has been placed in as he also missed an entire season of football due to an ACL injury last year.

“Take your rehab serious. Never miss a day. Make sure you get [the pectoral muscle] back to its full strength, even better to what it was before you got hurt,” Alston initially and still stresses to David consis-tently.

Alston’s actions on the field can be a subconscious inspiration to David as he leads the team in tackles this

year, showing a full recovery from such a gruesome injury as well as the ability to overcome from it.

David believes his journey to reach-ing that point is happening one day at a time. Many precocious athletes have overcame similar adversities before, and David’s ability to do so appears to be no different.

“I have a lot more to offer for my last season, and I plan to double my efforts and come back stronger and better than before,” said David. “Words only mean so much to me, so all I can really say is for people to wait and see come next season what I’ll have to offer next year.”

DAVID continued from p. 9

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THE HILLTOP 11

THE HILLTOP | THURSDAY, OCTOBER, 31 2013

Opinions Cameron Clarkson , Opinions Editor clarkson@thehilltoponline.com . Finding Ground Rules for Intellectual Work:

“Be Present. Read and Write. Speak to Mekhet.”

The three directives above describe a “how to” process for providing a declarative, affirmative answer to the following question:

Can we cultivate students’ desire and ability to undertake and sustain deep scholarship grounded in a working knowledge of themselves as heirs and contributors to long and global arcs of African intellectual work and achievement?

This question has guided my think-ing and work for nearly thirty years. Having no interest in being another “Smart Negro” steeped primarily in identifying the ironies, inequali-ties, or incongruences of Black life in a baldly racist and rapidly reconfiguring modern world system (something I refer to as “death watch studies”). I’ve spent my pro-fessional life commingling study and reflection with direct contribution to institution building, to varying degrees of success. One benefit of

by Katie Downs, cartoonist

Carr’s Corner

Dr. Gregory CarrHoward University Professor

the work has been an increasingly deepening understanding of the centrality and vitality of African contributions to human knowledge.

A persistent challenge in the work of those of us who are similarly predisposed has been how to cata-lyze self-sustaining inquiry among students deeply influenced by a political economy and its mass- and socially-mediated lenses that breed notions of Black intellectual inferiority or marginality. While social context may shape a student’s early imagination, our vision can be broadened and fed by content that, when presented skillfully and effectively, feeds our human hunger for study and apprenticeship. Every generation reflects its time and experiences and is eager to declare novelty. Academic institutions serve the societal purpose of gathering human experiences and knowl-edge and presenting them to each subsequent generation, accompa-nied by cultivating skills necessary to contribute something new to

humanity. Majority African institu-tions, like their global counterparts, carry this purpose, but, as W.E.B. DuBois noted decades ago, the idea seems foreign to most that there are uniquely African strains of human experience and knowledge that are something more than derivative or marginal to national and global hu-man futures.

My experience has been that build-ing frameworks for asking differ-ent questions is the most effective expenditure of effort for wedding new information and perspectives to a hunger for knowledge that leads to the cultivation of novel contribu-tions to the human future. Since 1999, I have served as co-designer and Scholar-in-Residence for the Philadelphia Freedom Schools (PFS) initiative. Seeking new questions to frame a program designed to en-hance primarily African-American student achievement, we created a “Pathways” curriculum framework that anchors teaching and learning practices for K-12 students around core techniques for reading, writ-ing, and science. We aligned each core technique with concepts and practices from classical, medieval, and contemporary Africana knowl-edge sources, institutionalizing four “pathways”—to Djehuty (the Ke-metic symbol for mastery of writ-ing); Seshat (the Kemetic symbol for mastery of the sciences); Ma’et (the Kemetic symbol for social justice); and Sankofa (An Akan directive emphasizing the central purpose of remembering and visioning).

The curriculum is used in a six-week summer program where col-lege and high school students guide thousands of younger children through books and other learning

materials selected for their ability to boost academic capacity and reveal core principles of excellence as demonstrated in the lives and con-tributions of Black, Latino, Asian, and other peoples. These materials reflect the student population, an overwhelmingly African (Afro-Ang-lo and Afro-Latino) potpourri from every corner of the city. My work with PFS contributed to our design of Philadelphia’s mandatory high school African-American History course and the creation of Sankofa Freedom Academy Public Charter School, as well as to many elements of my work here at Howard and in other academic and community spaces.

Once a week every summer and continuing year-round, the high school students meet to apply the Pathways curriculum framework to the study of a book or books that provide rigorous and critical exami-nations of African life and memory. Some of the books selected since 1999 include Randall Robinson’s The Debt and An Unbroken Ag-ony; W.E.B. DuBois’s The Educa-tion of Black People, The Souls of Black Folk, and An ABC of Color; Mumia Abu Jamal’s We Want Free-dom; Michael Gomez’s Exchanging Our Country Marks and Reversing Sail; and Ayi Kwei Armah’s The Eloquence of the Scribes, among many others. Our goal is to radical-ize Black student approaches to deep literacy and content mastery by helping young people close literacy gaps through intensive intellectual work. I am happy to say that most of our PFS alumni have gone on to complete college work, including a steady stream I have recruited to Howard, where they have distinguished themselves at the

highest academic levels.Two years into the initiative, during the year-round phase, I sat with hundreds of high school and college students to develop “ground rules” for doing intellectual work. My objectives were clear: (1) to identity what students thought were the key barriers to high intellectual achieve-ment as students of African descent; and (2) to design plain-language practices for dissolving these bar-riers that relied on an individual’s desire and commitment to work, in community, motivated by a deep sense of trust in themselves and each other as reliable links in a long chain of African thinkers. These practices, if followed, would lead inexorably to students who ask new and different questions of them-selves, their texts, their teachers, and the world they live in and seek to transform.

The “ground rules”—as we named them late one night in North Philadelphia after several months of thinking, debate, and simplifying—are applicable to students of all backgrounds. That means they also apply to African students, whose in-tellectual contributions are as deep or deeper—and ongoing—as any people on the planet. There are three ground rules: (1) Be Present (in Time and Space); (2) Read and Write (Repeat and Improvise); and (3) Speak to Mekhet (Past, Present, and Future). Over the next several weeks, I will examine each “ground rule” in sequence. Each has proven to cultivate students’ desire and ability to undertake and sustain deep scholarship grounded in a working knowledge of themselves as heirs and contributors to long and global arcs of African intellectual work and achievement.

The Washington Post published a scathing and slanderous Op-Ed on their website yesterday. Here’s the link if you feel like being disgusted with bad journal-ism: http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/howard-universitys-yardfest-has-become-an-embar-rassment/2013/10/29/bd31138a-40da-11e3-74-d89d714ca4dd_story. tml?Post+generic=%3Ftid%3Dsm_twitter_washingtonpost

Naturally, students, faculty, and alumni are upset. Here’s my take:To the Washington Post:Mention the name Howard Univer-sity, and “world-class studies” comes to mind before “world-famous homecoming.” We just happen to do both very well.

To the author of the trash that appeared on the Post’s website, Courtland Milloy, I will not waste my time educating you on what Howard University has done for you, Washington, D.C., this country, and the world. Deep down you al-ready know it. And it kills you inside that you do.

HBCU’s are still relevant. The Howards, Spelmans, Morehouses, and Hamptons showcase the bright-est that African-American students have to offer.

But deep down the Washington Post knows that. And it kills the editors inside that they do.But Mr. Milloy, this letter isn’t to you. You sir, are simply a puppet, used solely for page clicks and caus-ing controversy. I guess Amazon’s acquisition didn’t help boost

revenue that much. As a satirical writer, you didn’t even pull that off well. Also, the fact that you didn’t open the comment section up for discussion proves that you don’t want to be shown up by thousands of students and graduates.This letter is to the Washington Post editor who decided to publish this slanderous article. As a journalist, your job is to report the news, not spread libel and hate. Even a junior journalism student at what you refer to as a “party school” could tell you that.

And as I sit here typing this, I have an application for the Washington Post’s summer internship open in the other tab. I’ve been working on it for over a month; the application is rigorous, and I wanted to make sure I did it right. The perks are

pretty decent: $750 weekly stipend, mentors who are world renowned journalists and access to breaking news stories.

But I, as both a journalist dedicated to my job and a student at Howard University, cannot bring myself to mail this application to a news orga-nization who demeans my Univer-sity. They can keep their money and their networking opportunities.

The tried and true quote, “if you stand for nothing you’ll fall for anything” comes to mind. This is about standards. And I couldn’t sit in a newsroom knowing that the reporters secretly wish the downfall of Howard University, and will be the first in line to report it. Never mind that every school in DC has its problems, but Howard seems to always be in the news.

What the Post fails to realize is that this University isn’t going anywhere, despite what they choose to report. We will continue to produce doc-tors, lawyers, and journalists. We will continue to protest injustices. We will continue to carry on the missions of Douglass and Mar-shall. And we will, as most college students do, have a damn good time at our University’s homecoming, but will be in class bright and early Monday morning. But thanks for the free publicity, WaPo.

I’ll apply for the New York Times program instead. They have a sum-mer program for HBCU students and NABJ members. And unlike the Post as of late, the Times is commit-ted to reporting the news, not pub-lishing vicious lies and nasty rumors like a high school burn book.

Victoria WalkerContributing Writer

Reaction to Courtland Milloy

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THE HILLTOP | THURSDAY, OCTOBER, 31 2013