Assoc.Judge William Yu addresses UIC class of 2022 as ‘The guardians of the Constitution and the advocates for the powerless”

(Picture by John Marshall Law, of Assoc. Judge William Yu)

On May 6^th, the University of Illinois Chicago, came together for the commencement ceremony of the 2022 John Marshall Law School. This graduating class is the first class to have an in-person graduation since 2019.

With nearly a full house at the Credit Union 1 Area, the anxiously awaiting graduates were surrounded by family and friends on this special night. As well as a stage full of notable alumni, including commencement guest speaker, William Yu.

William Yu, associate judge for the Domestic Relations Division of the Cook County Circuit Court, welcomed the graduates and families for this joyous occasion.

Read more: Assoc.Judge William Yu addresses UIC class of 2022 as ‘The guardians of the Constitution and the advocates for the powerless”

Welcoming the audience by starting off with thanking the community and the school for asking him to celebrate this special night with the graduates.

While congratulating the graduates, he shared little antidotes of his own law school days, “just being here brings back a flood of memories, and a handful of nightmares.”

But rest assured, Yu chimes in lightheartedly, “But I made it, and so have you all now.”

Congratulating them on this honor alone wasn’t enough but recognizing the dedication and hard work that went into their entire academia.

“Today is a very special day because you all are closing a long, tedious chapter and starting a thrilling new one with one another.” Yu made it known that this was not a process done alone, shouting out the help of peers and families both in attendance and those who couldn’t join us. 

A feeling synonymous with graduates all over the world after enduring an almost entirely virtual college experience.

Calling it a “tremendous triumph” and one that “required great dedication and perseverance”.

He then went on to share a story of Ketanji Brown Jackson, who has to overcome a number of challenges to be the first ever Black woman on the Supreme Court.

An experience many in the audience can attest to and can relate, many of the graduates were 1^st generational lawyers and had their fair share with stereotypes and restrictions.

The story goes that Ketanji Brown Jackson was walking through her campus of Harvard University, and crossed paths with another Black woman who only told her one word, persevere.

Encouraging graduates to adapt to the new normal. That this everchanging world we now live in may not be fit to us and or needs, but by no means should that slow you down.  

Yu offered advice that every graduate, or just any individual anywhere in their live should hear, “Recognize that not all paths are linear.”

A piece of advice that so many people need to hear, especially students who have gone to school through the pandemic, taken all the curveballs with ease and can continue to find their higher education.

Ending his speech with encouragement to the future lawyers of our generation, to “work hard, especially when no one’s watching” All of these words of wisdom seem self-explanatory but for these graduates, their whole education was pretty much self-explanatory.

The entirety of 2021-2022 was held on zoom for John Marshall Law students, no option to even go into campus or meet with anyone on campus.

And yet here they are, they persevered.

The class of 2022 was more than ready to throw their caps in the air and celebrate when the time came.

Following William Yu’s speech was Student Bar Association President, Fredrick T.J. Joshua, fellow graduating member of the class of 2022 to conclude the ceremony.

Rome: ‘The Eternal City’ in film and literature

Dr. Raffaello Palumbo Mosca answers questions from DU students.
[Photo by Charles Schuham]

Mosca from the Universita di Torino came to DU to speak about the eternal city in modern Cinematography and Literature on Wednesday, May 4, 2022.

Dr. Raffaello Palumbo Mosca was initially invited to speak back in 2020 but was canceled due to Covid. Two years later he finally arrived to give his lecture called ‘Rome: One and Many. Literary and Cinematic Representations of the Eternal City.

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Dr. Raffaello Palumbo Mosca Speaks on Rome: “One and Many. Literary and Cinematic Representations of the Eternal City”

Pictured above: A scene from La Ganda Belleza (the primary film mentioned in the lecture) featuring the film’s protagonist [photo via Nori Veit]

Dr. Raffaello Palumbo Mosca, of the Università di Torino in Torino, Italy, traveled internationally from his place of residence in Italy to assume the role of the University of Denver’s Scholar in Residence. The scholar shared his extensive knowledge and wisdom in a lecture-style literary walk, in which the audience was informed of both the splendor and miseries of Rome through texts and cinema by prevalent Italian Authors. 

The lecture was held at Sturm Hall, a large lecture hall at the University of Denver, on May 4th, 2022. 

Mosca, upon arrival, stated feelings of culture shock resulting from the international travel, but was put at ease by a host of smiling faces in the lecture room. Those of previous residents of Italy, frequent travelers well versed in Italian, and, broadly, Italian and Roman culture enthusiasts. 

“We always come back to life as if it is in a circle,” said Mosca. “From no beginning to no end.”

Thus started a beautifully intricate and articulate description of Rome’s fundamentally unique aspects. Not as commonly perceived, however, but as a result of the author’s own experiences. 

The Italian scholar painted a colorful and elaborate cultural landscape in the mind of the listener, referencing the unity of culture and nature, as well as that of city and countryside. Mosca’s descriptions of the urban aspects of the city, however, were wrought with ghostly images of its former glory. 

“Give us back a city that is alive and complex. A city that happens in literature is not an ideal expectation, however much we may desire,” stated Mosca as an introduction to a series of text excerpts by Italian ultra-nationalist, poet, and playwright Gabriele D’ Annunzio. 

Mosca went on to contrast prominent Roman places of interest, such as the Piazza de España, between the opinions detailed in the author’s novel,  L’ombra di don Allesandro. Manzoni nel Novecento, and the opinions of Gabriele D’ Annunzio. 

In reference specifically to the Piazza de España, Mosca quoted the Italian poet with a figurative description: 

“All the soaring sweetness of Rome is collected, here, in a vase.”

This was only one of many beautifully articulated attributions to the prestige of the city. Other descriptions described Rome as the following:

“Rome is all golden, like a city of the fairest.”

For the second half of the lecture, the Italian scholar contrasted D’ Annunzio’s perceptions of the city with those presented in classical Italian cinematic depictions of Italy’s capital. 

The principle film explored in the lecture, La Ganda Belleza, was a classical Italian cinematic masterpiece that Mosca critiqued very harshly. 

The film is a fictional narrative showcasing the cultural spectacles of Rome and painting it as a principal tourist destination for grand, Great Gatsby style parties. 

“The director is almost 60, the movie should be more serious… and they don’t even know how to dance,” are examples of a few of Mosca’s offhanded comments that alluded to an underlying disgust with the cinematic elements of the movie. 

More serious critiques of specific scenes in the film were also addressed, such as one scene that depicted a chaotic party, complete with drinking and sensual dancing. 

Mosca continued by offering his perspective into the inaccurate portrayal of Rome as a city in the film, referencing its prestige that was mocked and diminished by the party scenes in the film. 

To conclude the presentation, the author presented Rome’s beauty, both as portrayed in the cinema and in the various works of literature referenced in the film. Rome’s unique beauty, Mosca offered, only appears when humans disappear. Societally, as a collective human race, we are incapable of understanding the depth and complexities of Rome’s defining characteristics.

Descendants shed light on the importance of internment camp preservation in ‘From Amache to Denver’

Stacy Shigaya speaks about her parents’ experience in internment camps. [Photo by Lauren Schmidt]

Experts and descendants of internment camp residents alike came together to discuss the history of the Amache internment camp here in Colorado and why it’s so important we preserve it in an enlightening lecture on May 4. 

With this month of May being Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the lecture, hosted by Historic Denver, could not have come at a more appropriate time. 

Condoleezza Rice speaks on Russia, the Middle East, immigration, and advice for students during Korbel school’s 50th anniversary dinner

Speakers Condoleezza Rice and Christopher Hill
Photo By: August Smith

Condoleeza Rice, the secretary of state from 2005 to 2009, is a distinguished American diplomat. Rice studied at the Josef Korbel school of international studies at University of Denver, and went on to have an important political career thereafter. 

During this hour long keynote interview with dean of the Korbel school Christopher Hill, Rice addressed topics such as the political situations in Russia and the Middle East, immigration in America, and gave advice to students in the Korbel school. 

After some introductory talk, Hill and Rice open up the conversation by talking about Rice’s experience working with the Middle East. 

Rice, speaking about how the states are governed, stated that “these states were held together by somebody oppressing somebody else…either dictators or monarchs kind of holding people together by royal fiat,”. 

Rice outlined a very complex system of governance in the Middle East, asking “when popular pressures and our invasion of Iraq started to break these states apart, and the revolt against Assad in Syria, what’s going to hold them together?” 

The answer, it seems, is very complex. Then, likening the complexities of these political situations to issues concerning Russia, Rice then stated “Vladimir Putin is an example of why just saying sanctions is a mistake,”

“It feels better that we say something about sanctioning them so that they can’t get short term debt for oil and gas investment but the Europeans don’t do the same thing so it actually makes you look weaker to do those things, so what do you do?”. 

Although this interview took place in 2014, these statements are especially relevant today considering the current situation with the war in Ukraine. 

Rice also had some statements regarding Ukraine, again all the way back in 2014. Rice stated in response to the previous quote that “I would arm the Ukrainians…you want to fight in Ukraine, its going to be bloody and you’re not going to like it because we are going to arm the Ukrainians,”. 

However, she also addressed some inadequacies in the Ukrainian government as well, stating that “the Ukrainians need to get their political act together as well,” about 20 minutes in to the interview. 

Moving on to the topic of immigration, Rice dove right in to the issue, stating that “we the people isn’t an exclusive concept,”. 

“We have got to keep importing the talent…40% of all silicon valley startups have at least one foreign founder,” stated Rice about 26 minutes in to the interview. 

Rice’s position clearly supports continuing to accept immigrants from foreign nations, and even more so supports the idea that America has a responsibility to our foreign brothers and sisters.

Rice stated that “the United States is, in our poorest places, a rich country; so we should take responsibility for people who are trapped in poverty,”. 

Finally, Rice took questions from the audience and provided advice to students in the Korbel school. 

“You have to identify yourself and set yourself apart as someone who can do something,” Rice stated when asked about potential strategies to setting oneself apart when breaking in to the professional world. 

“If you can use a statistical model to buttress what you’re doing, you will be much stronger…people use statistics to obfuscate and you have to be able to push through that,” continued Rice. 

When asked about how she could possibly prioritize tasks within such a large amount of work, Rice again offered succinct and realistic advice:

“There are days you don’t get to prioritize…[but] when it’s not that big a crisis I tried…to say at the end of this month these are the 5 things I want to have moved forward,”.

The role masculinity has in society: an informative lecture by Dr. Tristan Bridges

The panelists and Dr. Bridges discussing masculinity at DU [Photo by Tia Sciarrotta]

On May 2, 2022, a lecture was presented to University of Denver students, faculty, and staff, titled Talking Masculinity: Rethinking What it Means to be a Man. This presentation was conducted by Dr. Tristan Bridges, a scholar of masculinity who studies what people believe masculinity is. He also examines how people’s views and understandings of masculinity can endlessly transform.

This presentation led by Bridges covered an important topic, and one that has often been disregarded by the men amongst our society.

“One of the things that is challenging about studying masculinity, that as a scholar of masculinity knows, is this challenging curiosity,” said Bridges. “Masculinity has this ‘know it when I see it’ quality that it resists being defined.”

Guest lecture gives DU Italian program a glimpse of Rome through eyes of the media

Dr. Raffaello Palumbo Mosca answers questions following his Lecture. [photo by Lincoln Roch]

Dozens of students and professors flooded into an auditorium at the University of Denver on Wednesday, May 4 to hear guest lecturer Dr. Raffaello Palumbo Mosca talk about media depictions of modern Rome.

Mosca holds a Ph.D. in romance languages from the University of Chicago, and a Ph.D. in Italian Literature from the University of Turin. He now works as a professor at the University of Turin in Italy.

The lecture was based on his 2nd book published in 2017 “Roma di carta. Guida letteraria della città.” The book looks at famous literary and cinematic depictions of the city in the 20th and 21st centuries. The book was written for the general public which pushed Mosca out of his academic comfort zone.

“It’s the least academic of my books, it’s a personal experience of my discovery of Rome through my favorite authors,” said Mosca.

Expert gives talk on the state of medicinal plants and sustainable practices

Caption: Chamomile seeds and other varieties provided by the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism. [Photo by Melissa Marin]

On a quiet Tuesday evening near downtown Lafayette, Colorado, a small but captivated audience gathered to hear a seminar on the importance of caring for our soil, plants, and medication development in a sustainable way. Sabrina Tran, a rising student at the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism, presented the lecture on May 3 to bring awareness to the topic.

Tran explained that interdependence is a key part in upkeeping herbal and pharmaceutical medicine cultivation. She explained that humans are essential to the process of land stewardship and in maintaining functional diversity for the future success of medicinal plants.

However, Tran added that “Healthy communities and biological systems depend on human restraint and responsibility in technologies, population, production, and consumption.”

History buffs gather at Tattered Cover Book Store for final historic lecture of the season

Lecture attendees observe historian Dee Cordry’s presentation in the Tattered Cover Book Store [Photo by Katherine Sweeney]

The Tesoro Cultural Center’s 2021-2022 series concluded on Sunday, May 1, with a speech from historian Dee Cordry on Southern Cheyenne history and his new book, Children of White Thunder.

The final lecture of this season began on an irregular note, as attendees were asked to shift to Tattered Cover’s upstairs section due to an oddly placed backpack in the store’s downstairs lecture room.

Despite technical issues that prevented the accompanying Powerpoint from being displayed, Cordry delivered his lecture from memory for the first time.

The likability dilemma: a lecture given by Robin Hauser

[An image of Hauser’s documentary on the same topic. Photo by Ally Olis]

“In our society women are penalized when we behave in ways that violate gender norms.”  

This was said by  Robin Hauser, a documentarian whose content focuses primarily on the female experience, in her lecture focuses on the likability factor among women and the unconscious bias surrounding gender. 

She offers insight into how modern-day sexism is exhibited through subtleties and microaggressions that are undetectable to those who haven’t experienced them but detrimental to those who face them on a daily basis. 

“Women, unlike men, are rarely perceived to be both competent and likable. Why do we perceive women differently when we assert ourselves?” Hauser asks.

She focuses on the manner in which a societal preference is a more submissive woman as opposed to those who are willing to take charge and be more active in their lives. She explains how it becomes commonplace for a woman who serves others to be praised, but one who serves herself to be reprimanded, reflecting in overall work performance.

“Women are not as good at men as negotiating for themselves. Yet, women outperform men when they negotiate on behalf of someone else. Women who negotiate for themselves are perceived as selfish and women who negotiate on behalf of someone else are perceived to be helpful. A helpful woman might be liked more than an assertive woman, but the helpful woman will never be recognized as having what it takes to be a successful leader.” Hauser explains.

She details many instances in her personal life where male entities have upheld the sentiment that she would be unable to follow what they were speaking about because she had no husband to teach her about such things.

“My masculine traits make me the kind of gal that can hang with the guys as long as I’m not their boss,” Hauser said.

A large portion of the lecture looked at how everyone sees themselves as impartial observers of such biases. However, Hauser found that they can easily occur unintentionally between females when one displays more confidence than the other. 

She explains that the only way to remove such biases from our society is to become self-aware of them even at the most basic level. 

“As long as society continues to associate leadership with masculine traits, female leaders will be judged more harshly even when they outperform male counterparts. It’s no wonder that United States female politicians suffer greatly as our elections tend to value likeability over competency.” Hauser says.

She expands to say that such issues are present in every facet of life from education to the workplace as backlash is created when input is given from women. 

“Studies show that women in meetings with both genders are less likely to contribute knowledge,” Hauser said. 

She advocates that the issue can be rectified once society is able to eliminate the notions of the double standard between men and women that are rooted in our ancestral history and the very development of our country. 

“A day when we value each other regardless of gender and for the unique contributions we all bring to the table, that will be the day when I don’t have to worry about being liked. I can just be me.”