January 25, 2021 by Duke Chronicle - Issuu

January 25, 2021

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MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021

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ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTEENTH YEAR, ISSUE 18

A PUBLIC SAFETY SHOOTING Telling the full story of Danny Lee Winstead’s death, 38 years later By Nadia Bey University News Editor

Thirty-eight years ago, Duke public safety officers shot and killed a man in what was, according to Duke, the first death involving University officers. Public safety officers Lt. Edward Godley and Sgt. Gary Mitchell shot and killed Danny Lee Winstead near Duke Hospital North on the morning of Oct. 21, 1982. University spokesperson Don Seaver told The Chronicle at the time this was the first time a Duke officer “fired a weapon at an assailant.” Winstead’s story resurfaced ten years ago in relation to Aaron Lorenzo Dorsey’s death, and Dorsey’s death was in turn highlighted more recently in the demands from the student-led Black Coalition Against Policing. The Chronicle covered Winstead’s death after it occurred, mostly relying on reports from the Durham Morning Herald, but some details and witness accounts were absent. This article pieces together family interviews, news reports, editorials and medical documents to create a narrative of what happened on the day of Winstead’s death and in the aftermath. To aid in reporting, The Chronicle requested the autopsy and investigation reports for Winstead from the N.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner on July 16, 2020. The Chronicle received a toxicology report Jul. 27 and the investigation report Dec. 16. The office informed The Chronicle Aug. 11 that it was “unclear” whether an autopsy existed for Winstead, but the investigation report states that “a more complete description” of the incident was included in the autopsy. Godley and Mitchell could not be reached for this article.

Courtesy of Sherri Winstead Danny Lee Winstead grew up in Roxboro, N.C. and was co-captain of his high school football team. After graduating, he enlisted in the Army.

Who was Danny Lee Winstead?

Winstead grew up in Roxboro, N.C. He was co-captain of the football team at Person High School, and he married his childhood sweetheart, Gladys Love, shortly after graduating in 1970. They were young, Love said, but she was pregnant and wanted her children to have a father. They had two daughters, Sherri and Dawn. Not long after graduating, Winstead enlisted as a U.S. Army private and served in Vietnam. When he returned from the military, the effects were evident. “He was having mental problems before he went to the military,” Love said. “But once he got out of the military, it became more severe.” Winstead seemed paranoid, according to Love. His mental health eventually deteriorated to the point where it hindered his ability to keep a job, and it was then that he began to seek help so he could continue to support his family. He tried “many, many, many times” to seek treatment at the Duke Veterans Affairs Hospital to no avail, Love said. She and Danny Winstead eventually separated when their daughters were young, according to Sherri Winstead. Sherri Winstead said that she had a good relationship with her father, although she was not as close to him as her sister had been. She was 11 when Danny Winstead was killed. “I remember when they came and got us from school after it had happened,” Sherri Winstead said. “The family being around, the sadness surrounding all of this, and the services.” Although Sherri Winstead knew her father had been shot, she didn’t learn the details of the incident until she was older. Despite not having a close relationship, she said she now understands what her father was going through at that time, and she feels his life was disregarded. “There’s so much that he would have missed out on, not being in our lives,” she said. “It’s definitely a loss.” At the same time, she doesn’t hold any anger toward Duke officers and believes they were genuinely acting in fear of their lives. “Of course I wish the situation was handled differently but I do recognize my dad was not in the right state of mind and was doing wrong to even have this situation occur in the first place,” Sherri Winstead wrote in a message. “I have always had sympathy for the officers as they have had to live with that event and the fact that they took a life.” According to the Morning Herald, Danny Winstead was a frequent visitor of the neighborhood where he eventually died. Several people who knew him wondered what happened and relayed positive statements about him to the Herald. One person remarked that “something or someone must have set [Winstead] off” the day of the incident. Gilbert Ragland told the Herald that he and Winstead had grown up together, and that

Courtesy of Duke University Libraries The front page of the Oct. 22, 1980 issue of The Chronicle, featuring a story about the shooting of Danny Lee Winstead by public safety officers Lt. Edward Godley and Sgt. Gary Mitchell. Some details and witness accounts were absent from The Chronicle’s reporting on the incident at the time.

they saw each other nearly every night. “When I went down there [that morning], he was lying in the parking lot,” Ragland said. Love said that it may have been hard for Winstead to receive help as a Black man, because they are often assumed to be lazy. “I don’t think he had a chance,” she said.

to the same report. Apart from budgeting and hiring, Dumas was also responsible for investigating internal cases, including complaints. Dumas died in 2001 at the age of 67, according to a Duke obituary from the time.

The Duke department of public safety

On the morning of Oct. 21, 1982, Winstead was observed striking vehicles with a twoby-four inch wooden board. Henry Bryant, manager of the Dutch Village Motel restaurant, told the Carolina Times that someone entered the restaurant and asked him to call the police because “someone was smashing car windows in the parking lot.” Public safety arrived at the area between

The department of public safety was the direct predecessor to the Duke University Police Department, adopting the latter name in June 1996. Public safety, previously known as the traffic and safety department, underwent its greatest expansion under Chief of Public Safety Paul Dumas, who arrived at Duke in late 1971. “[Public safety] was a good department when I came, but I made changes that fit my own style of administration,” Dumas told The Chronicle in 1984. Under Dumas, the department “more than doubled” in personnel and rearranged its priorities to focus on fire protection, rape prevention and “crime against property.” The traffic and policing functions were separated and a detective unit was formed. The department also expanded to include a division dedicated to protecting Duke Hospital North. At the time of Dumas’ 1984 interview with The Chronicle, the department had a $2 million budget, which he managed. The aforementioned report revealed that Duke budgeted just over $1 billion for traffic and security in the 1978-79 fiscal year, with 47% of the budget going toward Duke hospitals. Budget cuts were proposed in 1980 for public safety but deemed “undesirable”, according

INSIDE — The study guide for your next economics test | Serving the University since 1905 |

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Winstead encounters Duke public safety

See SHOOTING on Page 9

INSIDE Students’ gap semesters From traveling to working for NASA, students pursued their passions while taking time off last fall. PAGE 2

Paintings of health workers Durham area painter Maria Bennett Hock has recently completed what she believes to be her magnum opus. PAGE 5

Editorial: End legacy preference Legacy preference in admissions reinforces nepotism and inequality, the Community Editorial Board writes. PAGE 10 @thedukechronicle | ©2021 The Chronicle


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The Chronicle

Students take gap semesters to get out the vote, work for NASA By Carsten Pran Contributing Reporter

One student started working for NASA. Another found a job as a field organizer for Sara Gideon’s Senate campaign in Maine. Others climbed an 11,000-foot peak in California’s Death Valley and harvested vegetables on a farm on the coast of Connecticut. Facing a radically different semester in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, many Duke students chose to take a gap semester last fall. The fall semester saw a nearly sixfold increase in the number of students who decided to take leave and almost a fivefold increase in deferrals—compared to 2019. This was a pattern that played out in colleges across the country as record numbers of students decided to take gap semesters. For many students, this was an opportunity to explore new paths, nourish their mental health and reflect on their identities. “I think there are many ways to have a productive semester that’s full of growing and learning that don’t involve taking classes,” said junior Julia Lang. “I learned so much about myself. I realized I can construct my path however I want it to be, and that makes my Duke experience a lot more meaningful.” Instead of taking classes this semester, Lang searched for internship opportunities and other programs to participate in. Eventually, she found one: a 16-week-long robotics internship with NASA. In her free time, Lang returned to old hobbies. She started reading, journaling, doing yoga, painting, meditating and cooking elaborate meals. She also taught herself animation and knitting and has fostered three kittens. “I realized the importance of doing random things just for fun—not because it’ll impress people or look good on a resume,” Lang said. I’ve decorated my room with poorly made art

prints, paintings, and stickers, all made by me just because it’s fun.” Junior Dora Pekec also took advantage of her gap year to put her academic interests into practice. Working as a field organizer for the Sara Gideon Senate campaign in Maine, she managed volunteers, knocked on doors, canvassed and met with local Democratic groups. “She was running against Republican four-time incumbent Susan Collins, and it was honestly a very important race because it was one of the close races needed to flip the Senate,” Pekec said. “For me it was super eye-opening to apply a lot of the stuff I have learned in my public policy classes to the real world,” Pekec continued. “It really opened my eyes to what is most important for people and how people make decisions before they go to the ballot box. I don’t think I had ever really considered or talked about that in my classes.” Other students who stepped away from Duke for the semester embarked on entirely novel experiences. Junior Claire Hutchinson found herself on a farm on the coast of Connecticut. She was there as part of a program called World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, where participants join a host family and work on the farm in exchange for food and housing. “It’s a great way to meet new people, learn about farming, meet like-minded people,” Hutchinson said. Hutchinson and the other program members took care of chickens and sheep. During the summer, they tended to vegetable and flower gardens and picked fruit. When the weather became cold, she foraged for greenery to make holiday wreaths to sell at a New Haven farmer’s market. On the Connecticut farm, Hutchinson found a sense of belonging.

Courtesy of Dora Pekec Junior Dora Pekec took the semester off to work for Democrat Sara Gideon’s Senate campaign in Maine.

“It’s been a very community-oriented experience, and because I’m in this small town I’ve gotten to know people in the community through our farmstand,” she said. “Living in a family’s home and eating dinner every night and working together everyday has been the most defining aspect of this experience.” A gap semester allowed junior Maia Matheny to embark on a cross-country road trip she had always dreamed of taking. “I thought it would be super fun to go backpacking for a semester, but I didn’t have the know-how to do that and I wouldn’t go by myself,” Matheny said.

Luckily, she found a travel buddy in her friend Amanda Padden, a junior who also took a gap semester. Together, they drove to many of the country’s iconic natural landscapes—the Badlands of South Dakota, Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. They camped in “random places” along the way, Matheny said. Matheny said the defining part of her roadtrip happened when they reached California’s Death Valley. “We summited the tallest peak of the park, which was above 11,000 feet, and also See GAP SEMESTERS on Page 12

Majorly indecisive: Students use Program II to combine interests By Lucy Callard Contributing Reporter

Some students come to Duke knowing their major from their first day of classes. Others take years to figure out their path. And others find that Duke’s existing majors don’t quite meet their passions, ending up in Program II, Duke’s program that lets undergraduates design their own courses of study.

Integrative Arts and Health: Interventions and Collaborations Senior Autumn Blamoville’s Program II grew from two passions that seemed too distinct to combine: music and science. After attending a performing arts high

school in New York City before Duke, Blamoville wasn’t ready to give up her love of music, but finding time for another major was proving a difficult task. “I knew a lot about music and its effects on the brain with neuroscience, but I had never explored other art forms and how they can work in collaboration with medicine and health care to yield positive health outcomes in older adults,” Blamoville said. While she originally planned to focus her studies on music, her Program II grew to include dance, theater and other forms of art and their intersection with healthcare. In designing her Program II, Blamoville established a partnership with Sarah Wilber, assistant professor of the practice of dance,

who introduced Blamoville to an entire world of working artists in the healthcare system. Her interests led to her work with TimeSlips, a Milwaukee-based organization that uses creative storytelling to engage with persons living with dementia. Blamoville also worked with Dance for Parkinson’s Disease to become a facilitator this past summer. Blamoville is the vice president of the Program II Majors Union and is working to build community among Program II students despite the wide variety of interests. “Our common interest is that we are all so passionate about what we are doing even though it might not be the exact same thing,” she said. Because of the work required by each Program II student for approval of their topic, Blamoville has observed the deep investment of every student in their project. “We are all very determined and want to look past what is in the normal constraints of a major,” she said.

The Evolution of Consciousness

One question stuck out among the rest and led junior Rishi Dasgupta to dedicate his academic career at Duke to answering it: What makes us who we are? To tackle such a big question on the human experience, Dasgupta knew he had to go beyond just one area of study or a traditional major. His Program II curriculum approaches the topic of human consciousness from three angles: biological, philosophical and evolutionary. “If I wanted to ask these kinds of really big questions, I can’t just look at one of these things,” Dasgupta said. It was during his sophomore year that Dasgupta designed a course schedule with classes that ranged from neuroscience to philosophy. Under the mentorship of Christine

Drea, Earl D. McLean professor of evolutionary anthropology, Dasgupta was able to refine his question into a concrete path of study. For Dasgupta, Program II allows him to pursue areas of study that he may never get the opportunity to experience after he graduates from Duke. While he hopes to eventually attend medical school and become a physician, Dasgupta wants to take advantage of every minute he has at Duke to pursue his passions. He also sees his research on human consciousness as being particularly pertinent to one day become a medical provider. “When I think about neurosurgery, you’re connecting with another person in the most visceral way possible,” he said.

The Manifestations and Reproductions of Childhood Trauma

After a summer spent researching at a child abuse evaluation center, junior Carly Jones came back to Duke inspired to design a Program II that addressed the questions she didn’t have time to answer in only a few weeks. She designed a major that analyzes the psychosocial, neurological and genetic bases of childhood trauma and how that trauma is reproduced in communities through victimoffender overlap and increased participation in health risk behavior. “After that summer, I was left with the conclusion that maybe goodness and productivity in society isn’t something that is indicative of personal characteristics but gained by privilege: whether you are born into an environment that is loving and nurturing or not,” Jones said. While she initially planned to major in See PROGRAM II on Page 12


The Chronicle

SHOOTING FROM PAGE 1 Elba and Elf Road near a Duke parking deck at 7:15 a.m. after receiving reports of an assault, according to the Herald. The investigation report says that Winstead struck a woman, but the Herald reported that officers learned upon arrival that Winstead had not struck anyone. Godley and Mitchell were among those that arrived at the scene, but the exact number of officers present was disputed. Bryant told the Carolina Times that five officers drove up to the scene, while Durham resident Joyce Roberts told the Herald that she only saw three officers. Durham Public Safety Officer J.W. Platt told the Herald that six officers were at the scene, including Godley and Mitchell. The investigation report, completed by Durham Public Safety detective David Rigsbee, says that Godley tried to “physically stop” Winstead from harming someone before being “pushed backwards and threatened” with the board. Public Safety Officer P.M. DeTomo told Winstead to drop the board, according to the Herald, but Winstead continued to advance toward the officers. Winstead then struck Godley. “He swung at one of the officers, and the officer threw up his arm to block the blow,” Bryant told the Carolina Times. “And then the cop shot the man who was holding the piece of wood.” Witnesses told the Carolina Times that they heard four or five shots. The Herald reported that Godley fired his revolver three times and Mitchell fired his gun once. At least one witness said that some of the shots fired were warning shots. “I still say the public safety officer done right because they did try to talk to him, and they did fire three warning shots,” Roberts told the Herald. “They told him to drop the club, and he kept swinging.” Durham Public Safety Sgt. Terry Roop told The Chronicle that Winstead was “violent and profane,” and that he had broken the bones in Godley’s hand. The Herald reported that

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Godley was treated for “cuts and bruises on his wrist and hand.” “The officer was still retreating when [Winstead] advanced again and was shot,” Roop told The Chronicle. The Herald also reported that Winstead continued to advance toward Godley after the warning shots. However, some witnesses told the Carolina Times that Winstead had been fleeing. “I’m pretty sure one of the shots hit the man in the back,” Bryant said. Bryant’s statement was corroborated by Lilly Poole, who lived nearby. She exited her home after hearing the first shot and said she saw Winstead trying to run behind a car. “I heard three more shots,” Poole told the Carolina Times. “The second and third ones must have caught him while he was turning away from them, but that last shot must have hit him in the back.” When asked if she had heard officers fire any warning shots, she insisted “all the shots they fired were into that boy.” The investigation report stated that Godley fired two rounds at Winstead, both of which hit him. Winstead then approached Mitchell, according to the report, and Godley fired a third time while Mitchell shot at Winstead. Winstead collapsed in a parking lot at Campus Apartments on Elf Street, where a physician began CPR. He was transported to Duke Hospital North where he was declared dead.

The aftermath

After the shooting, Godley and Mitchell were placed on interim suspension with pay pending a departmental investigation. However, Dumas told The Chronicle Oct. 25, 1982 that he was “relying heavily” on the investigation by Durham Public Safety because Duke’s public safety department did not have an internal affairs department to handle the case by itself. When Chronicle reporters questioned Dumas about the shooting, he refused to say how many shots were fired.

MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021 | 3

ON DUKECHRONICLE.COM Former patient advocate files lawsuit accusing Duke of employment discrimination BY MONA TONG | 01/20/2021 A former patient advocate at Duke Health is suing Duke for employment discrimination due to disability, under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Athletics projects $36M in lost revenue due to COVID-19, details positive tests among students and staff BY MATTHEW GRIFFIN | 01/23/2021 Duke Athletics staff gave an overview of their operations and current projects at the Academic Council’s Thursday meeting. “I don’t want to discuss the details of the shooting until I get the autopsy report,” Dumas said. “I’ll just let the scientists tell me how many shots were fired and where the deceased was hit.” Dumas also told the Carolina Times that it wasn’t departmental policy to fire warning shots, but declined to address reports about whether they occurred. The day after the shooting, the Herald reported that Winstead had been shot in the chest, abdomen and hand. In response, Dumas said that he “did not know where the Herald had gotten its information” and that it was “unlikely” Durham Public Safety had already received Winstead’s autopsy. The Carolina Times later reported Oct. 30 that Winstead had been shot twice in the abdomen and once in the chest. This reporter was unable to clarify the discrepancies, as the location of Winstead’s wounds would have been included in the autopsy report which was never received. The investigation report declared the cause of death to be a gunshot wound to the chest. In late October 1982, the case went before a grand jury to determine whether Godley

and Mitchell would be indicted, particularly for voluntary manslaughter. Five public safety officers and five civilians testified during the trial, as well as Rigsbee. The jury eventually decided not to indict the officers on any charges Nov. 2, deeming the shooting justified. A University spokesperson told the Herald that Godley and Mitchell had been reinstated, although Dumas told The Chronicle that Godley was still unable to work due to his injuries. “I’m obviously glad with what the grand jury decided,” Dumas said. Dumas also told The Chronicle that the departmental inquiry was closed and the matter would not be investigated any further. The internal investigation lasted 13 days, in comparison to two months for Dorsey’s death in 2010. Upon reinstatement, Godley and Mitchell had to re-complete firearms training, The Chronicle reported Nov. 11, 1982. Officers had to complete training with 80 percent accuracy in three tests during the day and one at night in order to receive firearms. See SHOOTING on Page 12


The Chronicle

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the chronicle

january 25, 2021

recess

recesshospitality southern New restaraunt Plum serves up Southern comfort food, page 5

45 portraits

New installation at Duke hospital features Duke health care workers, page 5

promising young woman

Emerald Fennell’s directoral debut is a timely twist on the classic revenge story, page 6


The Chronicle

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MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021 | 5

campus arts

‘45 portraits in 45 days’ installation features Duke health care workers

recess New year’s resolutions?

Sarah Derris ....stop touching face

Stephen Atkinson ........antibodies

Sydny Long .......... COVID vaccine

Skyler Graham ..........pass my S/U

Kerry Rork ...... camera on in class

Jonathan Pertile ......... wash mask

Tessa Delgo ..........human contact

Derek Chen ..........leave my house

on the cover: Health care workers from “45 portriats in 45 days” by Maria Hock

local arts

recess

By Sibani Ram Contributing Writer

Durham area painter Maria Bennett Hock has recently completed what she believes to be her magnum opus — “the most important, impactful and historic”— piece of art that she has conceptualized in her past ten years as an artist. Titled “45 Portraits in 45 Days,” Hock’s exhibit features the portraits of Duke Hospital essential healthcare workers who have sacrificed so much in pursuit of caring for those afflicted by COVID-19. The exhibit strives to capture the culture of a COVID facility as it depicts the raw emotions of those working behind the scenes amid the pandemic. Although doctors and nurses make up a significant portion of the collection, Hock wanted to ensure that the unsung heroes in the healthcare field were given credit as well. “I didn’t want all doctors and nurses,” said Hock in a phone interview. “I wanted the maintenance people, people in the cafeteria, and I wanted people that usually don’t get recognized to have some kind of recognition. They’re still putting their life on the line, but they seem to be more forgotten than the doctors and the nurses.” While the exhibit is not open to the general public due to Duke University Hospital restrictions, those with a prior appointment at the Duke Hospital or one of their clinics can view Hock’s artwork. Additionally, Hock has posted some of her paintings online for those who would like to see the exhibit but cannot access the hospital

at this time. While Hock herself worked on painting the 45 individual photos, she herself has not been able to visit the hospital to see the full-fledged version of her creation. She hopes that she will be able to see it before it is taken down. “It was a very emotional project, and it was hard to even turn in the paintings,” Hock said in a phone interview. “I didn’t know [the subjects] in the paintings, but it felt like I knew them. It was a very emotional journey for me in many ways.” For Hock, the journey of completing this exhibit came at a time of personal lossa: a time when her own mother had passed away. After the unfortunate turn of events in her life, she came back and traced the empathetic colors that shaped the human canvas as an artist depicting healthcare workers. Hock mentioned that her favorite paintings in the collection are ones that focus on the eyes and express concern. She also mentioned that the greatest challenge of this entire endeavor was not painting itself but rather the communication because she was unable to frequently interact with her subjects. “We [Duke Arts & Health] spoke with Maria about her interest to do individual portraits of selected hospital employees and began collecting names of staff from managers and co-workers,” said William Gregory, coordinator of arts programming at Duke Hospital. “It was originally going to be 30 Portraits in 30 Days. However, Maria wanted to continue with everyone nominated and it grew to the 45 Portraits in 45 Days.”

New eatery Plum serves up southern hospitality and comfort food By Meredith Cohen Staff Writer

Authentic tapas, delicious Italian pasta, delicate French cuisine and hefty American burgers: these foods from around the world can be found not far off Duke’s campus in downtown Durham. Durham has been on the rise as a major foodie city for a few years, and now everywhere you turn there is an amazing local restaurant just waiting to delight. Although the streets are not as packed and restaurants not as crowded as they would be sans pandemic, the lull has not stopped the Durham food scene from continuing to evolve and improve. Specializing in southern comfort food, The newest restaurant to open its doors in Durham is Plum. Madi Casey, Plum’s guest services lead, said that she would answer the question ‘What is Plum?’ with just a few words: “We keep coming back to delicious southern food and gracious hospitality.” My first experience with Plum was at the Durham Farmers’ Market back in November when I spotted Plum owner Lisa Callaghan wheeling around a large wagon full of fresh produce and veggies for the restaurant. She was handing out flyers advertising the restaurant’s opening, answering questions from passersby and making friendly conversation with the vendors and customers. This warmth and friendliness seems to keep in line with the restaurant’s goal and what they are all about, which according to Casey, is to welcome and serve the people of Durham. “We want it to be about the people that come in the door everyday,” she said. Callaghan also mentioned that Plum strives to be “accessible” for everybody in the community, making it a place where anybody

and everybody can enjoy a good meal. Casey spoke to the fact that many people are struggling right now due to the pandemic, so Plum is doing their best to connect with and support the Durham community. Perhaps the best example of this is their newly launched $15 or less take out menu, easing some of the price burden of eating out and letting customers know that the restaurant cares about them. “Durham is a very progressive community where I feel like I can, and Plum can, make a real impact. And I hope we do,” Callaghan wrote on her website. Based on their concrete efforts to simultaneously serve and aid the Durham community during these challenging times, Plum is among other Durham establishments fostering a sense of community and support. One of the ways Plum seeks to have a positive impact on Durham and build a sense of community is by raising the minimum wage for any of their workers to $15 per hour, pointint to Plum’s commitment to supporting essential workers as the pandemic rages on. Casey also summed up this sentiment perfectly in a few words: “We’ve got you Durham.” If you’re considering getting some food from Plum for your next meal, you have some options to best suit your preferences. They offer picnic-style dining, meaning that when you order, all of your food is packaged up so that you can either take it to go, sit in their outdoor dining area or sit inside to eat. The interior of the restaurant is warm and comfortable, complete with picnic tables and hundreds of cookbooks lining the shelves on the wall. The food certainly matches the aesthetic of the dining area, with classic comfort foods such as mac & cheese, brussels sprouts and one of their most popular dishes according to Casey:

chicken and dumplings. Callaghan makes sure that each table feels welcomed by delivering their packaged food and making light conversation — a sweet personality that aptly matches her sweet tooth. According to the Plum website, there’s a special place in her heart for dessert: “I have to say — a good piece of fruit pie just makes my heart sing.” It is clear that the menu is true to Callaghan’s favorite foods; there is a dessert item called “Lisa’s Dessert.” The dessert is handmade by Callaghan each morning and changes according to what she feels she would like to make. Her pumpkin whoopie pie is one of her favorite desserts to make and eat.

“She comes in every morning and bakes her heart out. We get to put a piece of her every single day onto the menu,” Casey said. As for recommendations for the best items on the menu? According to Callaghan, one of her favorite items is the catfish. And although I have not tried every dish, my personal favorite so far is the mac and cheese. It’s rich and flavorful, not to mention the ultimate comfort food. It is doubtless that Plum will soon become a Durham staple, and it definitely already ranks among my personal favorites downtown, alongside Bull City Burger and Brewery, Mateo and Viceroy, to name a few. Do yourself a favor and go check out Plum!

Courtesy of Plum

The newest restaurant to open its doors in Durham is named Plum, specializing in southern comfort food.


6 | MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021

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playground

‘Promising Young Woman’ provides a timely twist to the revenge film By Skyler Graham Culture Editor

didn’t participate in the rape, he didn’t stop it from happening, either. He had the power to say something, even if it was to the administration or lawyers. But he, like all the other students there, brushed it off as another party incident, a drunken night shoved to the back of their memory. Each time Cassie confronts someone about the incident and their failure to adequately respond, the conversation, without doubt, spirals into victim blaming. Other women are guilty of this too: Madison, an old classmate who is now happily married with twins, argued that Nina shouldn’t have been drunk all the time; that she shouldn’t have slept around so much. To her, she was just “crying wolf.” Director Emerald Fennell doesn’t ignore the phenomenon that, in conjunction with victim blaming, produces the violent storm of rape culture: sympathy for perpetrators. Fennell shows this toxic sympathy almost satirically. After

Al Monroe, the man who raped Nina, suffocates the protagonist with a pillow, he is comforted by his best friend and reminded that he “did nothing wrong.” He wipes his tears and covers up her death: another boy’s feelings prioritized over a woman’s life. Another case solved too late. Funnier than the middle-aged men dancing like it’s (still) 1999 or the witty banter between Cassie and Ryan, though, is that the film’s antihero isn’t that villainous. Cassie doesn’t wield an axe or steal muscle cars or kidnap unsuspecting citizens. Her biggest threat — and her greatest power — is that she’s aware of herself. She knows that some men view vulnerability as an open invitation. But she also knows that women don’t need brute force to be powerful; their assertiveness is their weapon. She understands that men aren’t necessarily scared of what she’ll do, but rather that whatever she does will be of her own agency. Hmph. Crazy.

CW: Sexual violence “You’re crazy,” she might hear, or “You’re a b—,” “calm down,” “relax.” Or a fun combination of “Calm down you crazy b—!” A great deal of women can say they’ve heard these comments before, usually all for nothing more than raising her voice or refusing to smile. In Emerald Fennell’s 2020 thriller-comedy “Promising Young Woman,” Cassandra “Cassie” Thomas (Carey Mulligan) spends her weekends pretending to be blackoutdrunk in nightclubs in an attempt to see which fedora-clad horndog will try to drag her to bed. Once back to their place, though, she scares her suitor with a clearly sober lecture about their predatory behavior, which elicits those all-toofamiliar responses. While I admire Cassie’s bravery to call it as she sees it, she’s not risking her safety just to prove a point. Seven years ago, Cassie’s best friend Nina was raped by another student in their med school class. Nina hardly received any validation of this traumatizing experience — let alone justice — and died shortly after. Cassie is determined to honor her lost best friend by holding men accountable for their perverted actions. Which, in a dark way, is applaudable: Cassie can’t bring Nina back, but she can try to make the world a safer place for other women by forcing men to think about consent. But this redemption turns into revenge when she runs into Ryan (Bo Burnham), the “nice guy” doctor who attended the same med school as Cassie. Ryan sweeps Cassie off her feet: They go to dinners and movies and giggle in the coffee shop. He’s charming, charismatic and doesn’t pressure Cassie to do anything she’s not comfortable with. But even soft-spoken, kind-eyed nice guys don’t always do the right thing. Cassie later discovers that Ryan was at the party where Nina was raped. Not only was he at the party, but he was in the room. He was on tape, laughing with the other guys about “how f— up this is,” as if acknowledging the crime would exonerate his guilt. Ryan’s situation makes an important point about Courtesy of Sundance Institute accountability and so-called “innocent bystanders.” Even if he Emerald Fennell’s 2020 thriller-comedy “Promising Young Woman” stars Carey Mulligan as Cassandra “Cassie” Thomas.

2021 entertainment preview: 21 releases to look forward to By Devinne Moses Staff Columnist

Manuel Miranda’s “In the Heights” will easily take the musical world by storm, “Dune” will stake a claim for sci-fi fans’ attention and “Matrix 4” will see Keanu Reeves return to his iconic role in the franchise after 18 years. Speaking of long-awaited returns, Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law will reprise their roles as Holmes and Watson in “Sherlock Holmes 3,” and if rumors surrounding the upcoming “Spider-Man: Far From Home” sequel are to be believed, we could see former Spider-Men Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield don the webbed suit alongside Tom Holland to create the ultimate multiverse experience. While many film companies have had to make tough decisions to delay their movie or release it on a streaming service, TV productions were free from this burden and surprised audiences with myriad projects that persuaded eager consumers to subscribe to all the streaming giants. “WandaVision” premiered Jan. 15 to critical acclaim. The offbeat show pays homage to television’s history, yet creates a new and explorative story no Marvel fan would ever expect. Marvel has also given Tom Hiddleston’s “Loki” free reign in his solo show, and while the trailer only leaves us in more confusion as to what the show will be, audiences can comfortably expect tricks and deception galore from the god of mischief. Upcoming TV adaptation “Dopesick” is expected to harrowingly

capture Beth Macy’s bestselling book on the opioid crisis in America, and the surprising announcement of a “Lord of the Rings” TV series on Amazon will expand beyond J.R.R. Tolkien’s famous novels and take a look into the past before any of the events of the Lord of the Rings novels and films as we know it. Fans of “Downton Abbey” will enjoy the same team’s 19th century period drama “The Gilded Age” on HBO Max, while fans of musical comedy and John Mulaney won’t be surprised to hear that the talented kids from his 2019 “Sack Lunch Bunch” special will return for two sequels later this year on Comedy Central. One television special the world missed out on, of course, was the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, since it was delayed due to the pandemic. While there is still uncertainty about whether the games will actually proceed, Olympians and fans alike have missed the international competition and hope to see it bounce back. The pandemic has managed to boost the video game industry as people had more time to spend indoors, and the recent release of next generation consoles indicates the industry’s intent to keep the entertainment buzz going even when things return to a more normal state. Nintendo is bringing some of their best this year by giving “Super Mario 3D World,” a favorite of the Wii U games, a home on the Nintendo Switch with an expansion titled, “Bowser’s Fury.” The Nintendo 64 classic “Pokémon Snap” will also make a (revamped) return on the Switch with new islands to explore and fulfill any person’s photography passions. Sony has several exclusive projects coming out this year, and it’s no surprise that their 2017 success “Horizon Zero Dawn” will be followed by “Horizon Forbidden West,” which is set in a far-future, post-apocalyptic world filled with robotic predators and the last of humanity. However, adventure seekers should look no further than “Deathloop,” a time-bending assassin drama that could define a new generation of single player narratives on the PlayStation 5. Microsoft is hoping that the delay of their next generation headliner ‘’Halo Infinite” won’t affect sales, especially after a poor gameplay demo earlier last year. The developer’s commitment to a well-polished game may signal a new era for Microsoft and gaming at large, where quality is prioritized over corporate deadlines. The 21 projects outlined are only a sliver of what’s to come this year. Productions are hard at work to deliver entertaining narratives while staying safe, so whether it’s in a spaced-out, sanitized movie Courtesy of Warner Bros. theater or an at-home entertainment station, these projects can Warner Bros.’s decision to release their 2021 slate, including “Dune” and “In The Heights,” on HBO Max has been controversial. make 2021 a little more enjoyable for all of us.

This year, more than any other, is about looking forward to brighter, more exciting days. The entertainment industry, after facing unprecedented setbacks due to the pandemic, will look to this year as an opportunity to bounce back and make up for the fairly limited 2020 release schedule. While there are hundreds of projects in the works that will release in 2021, it seems fitting to take a sneak peek at 21 films, shows and video games that will fulfill many media consumers’ entertainment cravings. Marvel Studio’s “Black Widow” is one of the most anticipated movies pushed back to this year. This action-spy thriller follows Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff long before she became part of the mighty Avengers. If her complicated past won’t draw movie fans, the casting of David Harbour and Florence Pugh certainly will. The 25th James Bond Film “No Time to Die” is another spy thriller that has been delayed by more than a year in fears of an unsafe and unsuccessful opening during the pandemic. And for Bond, it makes perfect sense to wait, since it’s Daniel Craig’s fifth and final time playing Bond. And in this installment, he comes out of retirement to face a scarred villain portrayed by Rami Malek. Warner Bros.’s decision to release their 2021 slate on HBO Max has been controversial to say the least, but it means that we won’t have to worry about any delays for three major films. Lin-


The Chronicle MEN’S BASKETBALL

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MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021 | 7

january 25, 2021

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E(K)ON sports


The Chronicle

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8 | MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021

COLUMN

My first postgame interaction with Coach K LOUISVILLE, Ky.—Well, my weekend bingo card didn’t have “Going viral on Twitter” on it, but here we are. I’m sitting here writing this column as my phone continues to light up with more Twitter Jake C. Piazza notifications than I’ve gotten in the six years years I’ve had the app, and I’m still trying to process everything that happened this past weekend. So let’s rewind. Fellow Chronicle men’s basketball beat writer Shane Smith and I decided to make the nine-hour road trip to Louisville to cover the Duke game, and as we rolled into town, my only concern was making sure the sport coat I borrowed from our sports editor didn’t get wrinkled in the trunk. After waking up the next morning to the smell of the previous night’s White Castle sliders, Shane and I made our way over to the KFC Yum! Center for the game, and I prepared to watch my first live sporting event since March. It was a fun game to cover, as all the ones that come down to the wire are, and then we hustled back to the media room to join the Zoom call for the postgame press conference. I asked Matthew Hurt and Wendell Moore Jr. a question each about the crowd noise in one of the few games this season the Blue Devils have played in front of fans, and then head coach Mike Krzyzewski took the podium. I was one of an array of

media members to raise my virtual hand, so I figured my chances of getting to ask my question to him were slim, but all of a sudden I heard my name called by the moderator and began to speak. “I’m just curious as to what the next step forward here is for the team as you guys move into another week of basketball,” I said. Coach K’s response—which you can watch at this link (https://chron. it/3iIukwW) and included him comparing Duke’s loss to an Econ exam—was far from

ideal, but after the press conference I went about writing my postgame article like any other game I’ve covered, albeit slightly embarrassed after being roasted in a room full of my fellow reporters. I then sat at a pizza joint with Shane, oblivious to the Twitter chatter surrounding the encounter I had with Coach K. When I did find out, I didn’t know what I should do. But thankfully, I remembered what I just told Krzyzewski—I’m an economics major. And this is just a good old-fashioned opportunity

sports

Mary Helen Wood | Staff Photographer

Coach K gave Chronicle beat writer Jake Piazza a weekend he’ll never forget.

cost problem. I could have cowered in the shadows until a Twitter troll inevitably tracked me down and presented me to the world. Or I could go another route. I could quote one of the multiple tweets that were going viral and show that I thought my question was good in the moment and I still do now. Coming up with the tweet was the fun part considering I didn’t even know what emotion was running through my body. I couldn’t have told you if I was upset at Coach K for roasting me, excited to see myself going viral or nervous that thousands of people were about to flood my Twitter mentions. Ultimately, I settled on saying the only thing that I was sure of: This was not exactly how I expected my first postgame question to Coach K to go. It was entertaining to follow the tweet on our long drive back to Durham, but once I got back to my apartment building, the weekend had another surprise in store for me. My phone rang and Coach K was on the other end of the line. Our call was short, but the sincerity in his apology was genuine. And in the end, I appreciated the call. What I will remember most from this weekend, however, is the support from all the journalists (both sports and non-sports) who reached out or replied on Twitter, and I can’t thank everyone enough for that. As a young journalist figuring the industry out, it was a tremendous confidencebooster to see so many other people in the field encouraging me to keep asking questions, and I fully plan on doing so. Right after I finish studying for my Econ test.

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MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021 | 9

COLUMN

The similarities between this year and ‘95 The potential of Duke being .500 at the end of January was not a topic of conversation entering the season. But through 10 games this year, the Blue Devils have been an utter disappointment. Without a quality win so far and a challenging ACC slate ahead, Duke is on the verge of missing the NCAA tournament. While many view this season as an unprecedented low in the modern era of Duke basketball, it actually bears many similarities to the last time the Blue Devils missed the NCAA tournament in 1995. Let’s go back to that 1994-95 campaign, when head coach Mike Krzyzewski missed the final 19 games due to back surgery and Duke fumbled down the stretch en route to a 13-18 final record. During their nonconference slate that season, the Blue Devils lost at the hands of two major conference opponents in Connecticut and Iowa, falling out of the AP Top 10 by ACC play. Sound familiar? And once conference play began, the wheels came off for Duke. Six straight losses during January proved to be fatal, a losing streak that

Max Rego

this year’s Blue Devils have to avoid by beating one of Georgia Tech, Clemson or Miami in the coming week. You may think that, considering the talent present on the roster, this year’s team is an even bigger disappointment. But are we really sure that the 1994-95 team didn’t have a similar talent level? Cherokee Parks, Jeff Capel and Trajan Langdon, the top three scorers on that 1994-95 club, were current or future All-ACC caliber players. When you juxtapose those three with Matthew Hurt, DJ Steward and Jalen Johnson, the resemblance in terms of pure ability is apparent. The caveat here is that, as previously mentioned, Coach K missed the final 19 games of that 1994-95 campaign. In fact, those Blue Devils went 9-3 in the games Krzyzewski roamed the sideline. But this year’s team can’t use that excuse. Rather, it’s the little things that appear to be the main dilemma this season. Championshiplevel teams make their presence felt not just with high-flying dunks or accuracy from beyond the arc, but also with the stuff that doesn’t get mentioned by the casual observer. These types of teams don’t just do these smaller tasks sometimes, they do it on every possession of every game. Space the floor? Check. Help the helper on dribble drives? Check. Close out to corner shooters? Check. I think you get the

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Courtesy of the ACC

Jalen Johnson has shown flashes of what made him a top recruit entering this season. point. This year’s Blue Devils have checked all these boxes during various spurts this season, but with a schedule that has featured two Big Ten contenders and a deeper ACC, sometimes just fails to cut it. Looking back on everything that’s transpired this season, from an array of schedule changes to the Jalen Johnson injury, having a year filled with disappointment shouldn’t be a shock. Furthermore, Duke followed up that 1994-95 season with two

Final Four appearances over the next six seasons, a sign that the program can easily bounce back from the doldrums. Keeping things in perspective might help the Blue Devil faithful deal with a down year. In the parity-filled world of college basketball, stretches of dominance are tough to sustain without blips on the radar. Whether this is one of those blips, or Duke finds a way to turn around this season, remains to be seen.

The Chronicle What’s your major? Econ: �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������thepizzaman The Chronicle: ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������kolinoscopy Staying up too late: ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ tothemax Student Advertising Manager: �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Rebecca Ross Account Representatives: ������������������ Juliana Arbelaez, Emma Olivo, Spencer Perkins, Sam Richey, Alex Russell, Paula Sakuma, Jake Schulman, Simon Shore, Maddy Torres, Stef Watchi, Montana Williams Marketing Manager: ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Jared McCloskey Student Business Manager ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Dylan Riley, Alex Rose

Cherokee Parks

The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018 Chronicle File Photo For Information Call:rebounds 1-800-972-3550 averaged 19.0 points and 9.3 for the 1994-95 Blue Devils. For Release Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Crossword ACROSS 1 Ingredient in many a sandie cookie 6 Stick in the oven 10 Hooded snake 15 Part of the Dutch Caribbean 16 Voice above tenor 17 Brainstormers’ flurry 18 Relent 19 Lead-in to prompter 20 They’re on their second decade 21 Singer Ella with the 2018 Grammy-winning R&B hit “Boo’d Up” 22 Hot food? 25 Reason for seasonal shots 26 Biblical garden 28 Bad way to be led

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10 | MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 2021

opinion dukechronicle.com

The Chronicle

What about our legacy? I

n December, Duke released admissions decisions for thousands of Early Decision applicants. Hundreds of students received the good news: a place at one of the most elite institutions in the country.

grandchildren of alumni are given special consideration in the admissions cycle. If historical data is upheld, 19% of the incoming Trinity Class of 2025 will hold legacy status. Legacy admissions, whether unintentionally or by design, do very

Community Editorial Board COLUMN Education is always thought of as a great equalizer. However, at Duke, children and

little to reduce the inequalities present in higher education.

hot take of the week

“Not even I know the identity of Monday Monday. I come awake at my desk at each week’s beginning; beside the cold coffee and well-chewed pencils, an anonymous draft, softly glowing.”

—Mihir Bellamkonda, Opinion Editor, on January 24, 2021

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behind a “need-blind” policy, a student’s financial status still lingers over their application as it is expressed through their address, extracurriculars and school history. In this way, legacy status is not the only indicator of a student’s ability to pay, and despite their best efforts, socioeconomic status would be impossible for the admissions office to completely ignore. While it will not cure inequality, abolishing legacy admissions will extinguish the embers of nepotism in this process. Compounding the harmful impact of legacy admissions is the fact that institutions of higher education across the country are facing significant financial struggle due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Although top universities have continued their need-blind admissions processes, the problems with legacy admission could be exacerbated during times where universities may require financial assistance in the coming years to recover from the impacts of the pandemic. Duke is one of those universities. Duke should pursue more meritocratic admission processes over profit-driven legacy admissions to truly compete with peer institutions. A number of peer schools do not use this aristocratic policy, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; the University of California, Berkeley; the California Institute of Technology; the University of Washington; and Johns Hopkin University, alongside the top English schools, the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford. We can and should mirror the universities who have taken steps towards a more meritocratic admissions process. Johns Hopkins, for instance, abolished legacy admissions in January. President Ronald Daniels was deeply disturbed by the socioeconomic and racial inequalities that legacy admissions perpetuates in higher education. In his Atlantic op-ed on legacy admissions, Daniels notes that legacy students “are more likely to be wealthy and white than non-legacy students, the very existence of legacy preferences limits access for high-achieving lowand middle-income students, and also for African American, Latino and Native American students.” The question of which values Duke wants to uphold is inextricably tied to the debate surrounding legacy preference in the admissions process. President Vincent Price, and our entire student body, can no longer stand idle while a policy is in place that goes against every grain of meritocracy that Duke claims to represent. Duke must define what type of school it wants to be and then act on those values. The University prides itself on its role in promoting social mobility, but practicing legacy admissions reduces Duke to another institution that promotes nepotism as the avenue to success.

alumni affiliation by no means ensures acceptance to Duke, the university… does note alumni status when reviewing applications.” Additionally, the Alumni Association provides “a supporting voice for all alumni children and grandchildren who apply for undergraduate admission.” How this voice is utilized is ambiguous, but it is clear that children of Duke alumni have an advantage that is not given to the rest of the applicant pool. How can admissions be considered fair, just and need-blind when a select, privileged few are afforded a “supporting” voice on the basis of nepotism? Duke’s legacy admissions prioritization must be abolished. No one gets to choose the factors of their birth; they can not decide their sex, their race, their socioeconomic status, nor whether their parents went to Duke University. Every student should be able to apply and receive acceptance entirely off their own merit —truly blind of financial need, and truly blind of the accomplishments of their family. Legacy admissions serves as an immoral detriment to applicants who were not privileged to be born into an alumni family. Legacy status for undergraduate applicants is often an indicator for financial ability. After all, Duke alumni can expect to earn $108,900 10 years after graduating. It is no doubt that the children of many of these alumni have benefitted from thousands of hours and countless dollars spent on application preparation. In a nod to nepotism, their acceptance letter affirms their parents’ investments and sets a dangerous precedent for future students. It is clear why Duke considers legacy status in its admissions process – the University needs the promise of fullpaying students and the continued donations of alumni. Since Duke provides financial aid to approximately half of its undergraduate student body, the school must maintain a minimum number of full-paying students to sustain this practice. Consequently, financial status plays a significant role in the admissions process despite Duke’s need-blind sticker tag. Moreover, accepting an alumni’s child is one way to ensure that former students retain a financial interest in the university. That being said, legacy admissions do not constitute the only immoral and un-meritocratic practice in the Duke admissions process, thus, abolishing this aspect will not take away the inequality in Community Editorial Board Member Ezra Duke admissions. Although the admissions office hides Loeb (T’22) abstained from voting on this edit.

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Duke specifically must confront how its adaptation of this admissions policy impacts the classes they accept. On top of offering special “guidance to applicants,” the Duke Alumni Association states on its admissions page that “while


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Forbidden love with a contact tracer Her lips on mine feel like a streak of “Is this your first time?” reflection dancing across the curves of a I clock her French accent. vintage corvette. “Oui.” We lay beside each other. The morning <<Tu parles français?>> sun peeks through blind slats, wrapping “Oui.” her skin in ribbons of light. She runs the She smiles. I mean, she’s wearing a back of her hand across my cheek, leans mask and also a face shield over the mask in for a kiss. I slink back. My voice falters. and also gloves, but I assume she smiles.

Monday Monday COLUMN “What are we doing?” <<Nous faisons ce que nous voulons faire. Pour une fois.>> “But it’s not just about what we want. This was a mistake. We shouldn’t have done that last night.” <<Dit qui? Pourquoi ne devrions-nous pas aimer?>> “Because you’re a campus coronavirus test administrator. And I’m...I have a job to do. It isn’t right.” I cast my mind back to the crux of all this. It was her first text. It still rattles in my mind. “Duke United Covid Testing: You have a required COVID test tomorrow. Visit a campus site to complete test. Details at https://bit.ly/2XOT11O” It enthralled me. Who was this +1(919) 420-3968, and what was her game? How had she found me? Her confidence was intoxicating. She said exactly what she wanted. I should’ve walked away then and there. But the pull was too strong. Even as I enter Penn Pavilion the next day a part of me still can’t believe I’m going through with it. I’m not the type to hook up with strangers on a whim. But all of the voices in my head quiet as I’m met with the piercing eyes of the woman standing behind the testing station. Eyes that could only belong to my secret admirer. Her instruments lay on the table. Kinky.

I wonder what the gloves are about. I find them kinky. <<Don’t be nervous. It doesn’t go up too far.>> I blush. “I’ve never done anything like this before.” <<Don’t worry. I’ll guide you.>> She tells me to unwrap the swab. I do. The crinkle of the cellophane raises the hairs on the back of my neck. <<Now put it in your right nostril and swirl.>> I’m completely caught off guard. She wants me to do it to myself, and she wants to watch. I didn’t peg her for a voyeur, but I’m into it. I stick it up my nose. It’s exhilarating. I moan loudly as I swirl it around my nostril. The people at testing stations beside us throw looks. <<Now do the same thing with your left nostril.>> I’m floored. No one’s ever asked me to go again so fast. I doubt my refractory period is short enough, but she looks like she’s not going to take no for an answer. I stick it and swirl it. My eyes water. I feel like it’s touching my brain. Once it’s done, I keep following her instructions. I break off the bottom half of the swab with a sensual “pop.” My hands fumble for a test tube. I unscrew it and gingerly stick the filthy, filthy bad-boy

stick inside. Then I put it in a bag marked “biohazard”. Kinky. I seductively lick the edge of the bag before I seal it. <<Oh no wait wait wait! Y-you can’t do that. Now we have to do everything again.>> So we do. And when we’re done, the bag goes into a bucket full of identical looking

She texts me throughout the semester, keeping me around her finger. We start communicating on SymMon. She asks me about my “symptoms” and how I’ve been since my last “report”. She drives me mad. I can’t stand it. She’s an absolute French smokeshow of a contact tracer and I can’t stand it. One faithful day, she arrives at my door. <<I’m contact tracing.>> “I’m trying to trace the path to where my heart wants to go, and it only leads to you.” bags. Call me possessive, but I’m a little <<You look like you have a fever. Do hurt at the thought of her having this you want help?>> intimate experience with any other clients. “I’m not sure.” Penn Pavillion’s testing center is basically <<You’re positive.>>

She tells me to unwrap the swab. I do. The crinkle of the cellophane raises the hairs on the back of my neck.

edit pages a brothel, but I can’t help my naivete. <<You should hear back within 48 hours.>> I cling to these words as I disembark from this life-changing experience of exploration and self-discovery. It was unlike anything I had ever done before, performing for her like that; playing with her toys and being told what to do. I want more.

“Okay, fine! You’ve got me! I am sure! I’m absolutely positive that I want to be with you!” We embrace. Then the rest is a whirlwind. La chronique du lundi lundi, lundi lundi, est publiée tous les lundis. Bagettes et bérets et vin et long, long, cigarettes et macarons et fines rayures.

Price’s statement merely routine President Price issued a statement about Too late, gentlemen, too late. the events of January 6th in Washington. All those who have failed to hold Trump As a holder of a Duke degree and long- accountable, who have used his popularity time employee, I find this statement sorely as a means to feather their own nests, to lacking. eliminate regulations that protect the

I am old enough to remember the Presidential campaign of Barry Goldwater, and the slogan circulated by his supporters after his defeat: ”26,000,000 people can’t be wrong!”

Caroline Usher GUEST LETTER President Price nods to the conventional pieties by condemning violence and “a campaign to sow mistrust in our democracy.” What is glaringly absent is any acknowledgement of who is responsible for this campaign, for encouraging the mob and the falsehoods about the election. Since it needs to be said, it is President Trump and his enablers in the Republican party up to the most senior levels, reporters in conservative media, pundits from conservative think tanks, and so on. Wednesday the 6th of January showed us why it was wrong to excuse saying the unspeakable, to wink at the transgression of customary boundaries, to accede to the perversion of our political institutions. It was wrong four years ago and it has been wrong every day since. Some, like Senator Romney and our own Senator Burr, are being lauded for strong public statements of principle.

smaller of two numbers. You don’t need to be smart or have a fancy college education to understand what is at stake. To understand the principles of democracy you just have to understand the value of listening to one another, of making arguments based on facts and reason, and of abiding by the established rules for how decisions are made. Stuff you learn in kindergarten.

health and safety of the American people, to sell off our assets and our heritage, to appoint grossly unqualified and extremist judges, to allow a pandemic to rage out of control—all those who should have known better but went along because it suited their personal and political ends should be forever condemned and excluded from public life. I grant President Price is in a difficult position. But there were other things he could have said. He could have said nothing at all. He could have said that Duke University takes no position on political issues and therefore he is unable to comment. He could have addressed the Duke community and asked us to consider how we might engage with the current broken state of our polity. Or he could have condemned the It was absurd then, and it is absurd specific actions and tactics that have now. You don’t need a Department of Caroline Usher, M.A. 1983, is a staff member brought us here. Mathematics to tell you which is the in the Department of Biology.

You don’t need to be smart or have a fancy college education to understand what is at stake.


SHOOTING

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Community response

Some members of the Duke community questioned whether FROM PAGE 3 officers had truly exhausted all means to deescalate the situation. In When asked about the shooting, John Goodfellow, weapons an Oct. 26 column titled “Crucial questions,” The Chronicle’s editorial training officer and chief of Medical Center public safety, said board called for an “exhaustive investigation,” asking how many shots that Duke was “the type of place where were fired and under what conditions. they’re not just going to sit back and “There’s so much that he “Certainly a two-by-four can be a think it’s going to go away.” deadly weapon, but according to some news “Certainly we’re going to do anything would have missed out on, accounts as many as six officers were at the we can to prevent another shooting,” not being in our lives.It’s scene when the shooting started,” the board Goodfellow said. wrote. “If that is correct, it seems odd that Dumas told The Chronicle in 1978 definitely a loss.” they had to shoot Winstead to stop him.” that firearms were only meant to be A Carolina Times editorial argued that sherri winstead while officers could not have been expected to used when the officer or another person was “about to be killed or permanently know that Winstead had a history of mental injured, and after all other means have failed.” In the same illness, his death still could not be justified, given no indication that article, it was mentioned that officers carried mace for “rough he “would have been of any danger to society.” situations” short of lethal force and that an officer who pulled a “Any of us, sane today, could be in a Durham parking lot gun on a dog in years prior was fired. swinging a two by four at cars tomorrow,” the editorial reads. “As An anonymous Duke officer told the Carolina Times that farfetched as that may sound today, ask yourself nevertheless, if it officers were trained to “fire at the largest part of the suspect’s should happen would you want to face an officer who goes from body, which is generally intended to kill.” warning shots to killing shots?”

Know someone committed to service? Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award Nominations due March 2, 2021 This prestigious award is presented to 1) one graduating senior and 2) one member of the faculty, staff, or graduate student body of Duke University or Duke Health for their outstanding commitment to service. Nominees should perpetuate the excellence of character and humanitarian service of Algernon Sydney Sullivan by recognizing and honoring such qualities in others such as: n Recognition of Selflessness n Generosity of Service n Nobility of Character n Person of Integrity n Depth of Spirituality

Nominate someone now by visiting duke.is/m4ybvn or

GAP SEMESTERS FROM PAGE 2 went to the lowest part of the park, which is below sea level. It was mind-boggling—it was just so foreign to me,” Matheny said. “One thing I realized very early on was how ingrained thinking about your next step always is, especially in school because you have to plan out your week, get all of your work done, get everything turned in and think about your next move. I still felt myself trying to plan ahead when I didn’t have to and shouldn’t have to because it kind of detracted from the thing I was doing in the moment.” The students I talked to differed in their reasons for ultimately taking the gap semester. Mental health was the “number one factor” for Hutchinson. “I was considering taking a year off or a semester off even before COVID because sophomore slump hit me pretty hard, and I felt very burnt out,” she said. For Lang, the virtual format of the semester convinced her to take a leave of absence. “I didn’t want to pay for online classes since I learn much better in person, and I also value having an in person college experience where I can hang out with friends freely,” she said. Others were frustrated with not knowing what the fall semester would look like. “It was really Duke’s lack of transparency over the summer telling upperclassmen how the semester was going to look that pushed me to take time off,” Pekec said. Matheny felt the same way. “I reached a point where I was like ‘I don’t want to be in this environment this whole semester with bated breath to see what happens,’” she said.

PROGRAM II FROM PAGE 2 African & African American studies or gender, sexuality and feminist studies, Jones has found an increased freedom through Program II to branch out into other departments like neuroscience and ethics. Jones is mentored by Patrice Douglass, assistant professor of gender, sexuality, and feminist studies, with whom she connected over their shared interests of the intergenerational mobility of harm and trauma. Jones also took advantage of Duke’s interinstitutional agreement with the University of North Carolina at Greensboro last semester. While she has no concrete plans for her senior project yet, Jones is looking forward to returning to a similar environment that began her Program II to apply the knowledge she has gained in the years since. “It took me almost the entire summer to realize the trauma didn’t just start with the kids, it started generations before that,” Jones said. “It helped make me a more empathetic individual, and I want to carry that same empathy and understanding to my future work.”

Applied Mathematical Strategy

When senior Mac Gagne’ came to Duke, she knew she wanted to design her own Program II. But as she took classes throughout her first few semesters at Duke, she fell in love with math and declared it as her major her sophomore year. While she loved the department and working with her professors, Gagne quickly realized her interests fell outside of the major curriculum. “Together, we came up with Program II as a way that I could study the exact area of applied mathematics I had been hoping to study all along: modeling human choice,” she said. With only one semester left at Duke, Gagne said she’s excited to tackle her senior project, which focuses on mathematical modeling to improve the efficiency of triage practices in medicine. By looking at a case study from Hurricane Katrina, Gagne is using math to see if more lives can be saved in emergencies while also taking into account moral and ethical implications, which she feels are too often left out of logic studies. “Understanding decisions, how they should be made, and how they will impact the world around you is like hacking into human potential,” Gagne said. “A good strategy is everything, and the decision really does make the human.” Without Program II, Gagne feels she could have never tackled her interdisciplinary project. While her interests have led her to research and internships at places from the National Weather Service to the Duke Lemur Center, Gagne hopes to break down the stereotype that Program II students can’t settle on one thing. According to Gagne, Program II students are both generalists and specialists who bridge together a variety of fields to specialize on one particular topic. “Program II students often have a very specific goal of what they want to scholastically contribute to the world around them but must move interdisciplinary mountains to get there,” she said.


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