In this episode, Andre Fa’aoso ’27 and Gemard Guery ’28 speak to Tina Li ’27, who wrote an article about anxiety amongst First Generation Low-Income students at Yale who have to interact with the Yale Financial Aid Office for hardship and emergency grants. It is a difficult process that has issues, and we want this episode to elaborate on those hardships and the wider difficulties that students who receive financial aid face when interacting with the office.

Guests: Tina Li ’27, Gia Cook ’26
Producers: Andre Fa’aoso ’27, Gemard Guery ’28, Joanne Lee ’26, Camila Perez ’26
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post The Yalie Ep 24: FGLI Anxiety: Discussing Yale Financial Aid appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The event, which involved months of preparation, focused on sharing the food, arts and culture of the Pacific Islands and showcasing some of the cultures of the diaspora to which Pasifika students at Yale belong. The group hosted the Pasifika Fest at Steep Cafe which they decorated with the flags of the Pacific and filled with Pasifika food. 

Kumu Lelemia Irvine, an Assistant Professor of Physics at the University of Hawai’i – West O’ahu, and ‘Ulise Funaki, a professor in History, Pacific Studies and Anthropology — along with his wife, Sina Funaki — flew in from Hawai’i to assist IPO with the Pasifika Fest. They also helped to lead an ‘Aha ‘Awa, a Hawaiian ʻawa ceremony, as one of the event’s cultural teach-ins. In the broader Pacific, ʻawa is known as kava, a bitter-tasting ceremonial and social beverage made from the root of a pepper plant.

Alongside the ‘Aha ‘Awa, Linda Lambrecht, a practitioner and researcher from Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi hosted a Hawaiian Sign Language teach-in. 

Members of the Pasifika diaspora from across the Northeast were present at the event and were once more immersed in cultural celebration. 

The IPO began planning the Pasifika Fest last fall after initially considering hosting a Lūau. Joshua Ching ’26, a member of IPO said that group members wanted to acknowledge and celebrate more than just Native Hawaiian culture, but also that of the wider Pacific, in recognition of Yale’s growing Pacific Islander student population.

“We finally have enough Pasifika people here now to do something meaningful and to assert our presence, as visitors on Quinnipiac land, but also within an institution that has a long history with us,” Ching told the News. 

The over 150 attendees at the event included Pasifika students from not only Yale but also the United States Coast Guard Academy of Connecticut who participated and performed at the event. 

Executive members of IPO, along with Matthew Makomenaw and Denise Morales, assistant dean and assistant director of the Native American Cultural Center organized the logistics and funding for the event with weekly meetings beginning in the fall. 

Pasifika Fest was funded and sponsored by the NACC, the Yale Chaplain’s Office, the Asian American Cultural Center, Yale Peabody Museum, Andover Newton Seminary and Indigenous student organizers at the Yale School of Public Health.

The packed program presented an interactive experience, where attendees could float between the different stations and be immersed in the various cultures of the Pacific. At the snack station, there was Keke ‘Isite and Piri Piri, Tongan and Tahitian forms of fried donuts, along with Spam musubi. 

Interactive stations also included Lei making, Kalo and ‘Ulu workshops led by IPO, and a Fijian stamping station where attendees could design tote bags. 

Helen Shanefield ’26, who led a hula workshop with permission from her Kumu Hula, told the News that there wasn’t a large Pasifika community at Yale until recently, but that it was good to see people and resources come together to support the event. 

“We had so many people come together to help plan this, and to help make this possible, and so much enthusiasm from all of the members of the community was really nice to see,” Shanefield told the News. 

Throughout the day at the front of the venue, there were dance and music performances showcasing dance and music from across the Pacific and guest performances from the Yale Glee Club and Kasama. 

The dinner service, prepared by Yale Hospitality in coordination with IPO, offered an array of Pasifika foods, new to some but reminiscent of home for members of the Pasifika community at the festival. 

Anh Nguyen ’26, who attended the Pasifika Fest said the teach-ins and cultural workshops allowed her to learn more about the culture of respect and community in the Pacific. 

At the ‘Aha ‘Awa teach-in at the end of the day, Irvine and Funai taught through action the importance of this ceremony, a sacred ritual where ‘Awa is consumed. 

Funaki said that ‘Awa is an integral piece of Pasifika culture and he told the News the ceremony was a “representation of the land and the people.” Drinking ‘Awa, Funaki added, is a sign of connection and commitment – a  “bitter commitment” that involves kuleana, or responsibility and commitment. 

“So when you take the land, you take the people, you literally ingest it, you have a responsibility of kuleana,” Funaki told the News. 

As the kahu kanoa — Guardian of the ʻawa serving bowl — Irvine acknowledged the Quinnipiac lands that Yale stands on and that the ‘Aha ‘Awa ceremony took place on. He also acknowledged the Native Hawaiian and Pasifika kūpuna, or ancestors, that came before us at Yale.

“We don’t make the assumption that we’re the first of anything, because we know, people came before us to make it better and paved the way,” Irvine said.

Funaki and Irvine posed a challenge to the Yale administration to honor and acknowledge Pasifika kupuna, or ancestors, who have paved the way for Pasifika knowledge and belonging, both in the islands and at Yale. 

“I would hope that this is an opening to a larger conversation with the university about the Pasifika representation we have on campus not only within the student body but also within our Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and the Graduate School faculty,” Ching told the News. 

Irvine and Funaki emphasized at the ceremony that Yale should elevate and honor Henry Opukahaʻia for his contributions to creating the first Hawaiian language text and Bible, as well as uplift living Native Hawaiian kūpuna, Kekuhi Kealiʻikanakaʻole and Māhealani Pai with honorary doctorate degrees, in acknowledgment of their extraordinary contributions to the revitalization Hawaiian culture.

Henry Opukahaʻia arrived at Yale University in 1809, and whilst in New Haven was taught by former Yale College Dean Timothy Dwight. 

Opukahaʻia was denied an undergraduate education at Yale, but still worked closely with students, alumni and administrators whilst in New Haven to learn Christian bible scripture in multiple languages, with the intent to spread it in his Native Hawaiian tongue of ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi.

Funaki said that he wanted people to take away the extra knowledge of the tapestries of the Pacific, and acknowledge what they perhaps did not know about Pacific culture before. 

“What I hope people take from this event is that our culture is more than just what they thought they knew: more than a coconut shell bra in a grass skirt and fake Tiki,” Funaki said. 

Jairus Rhoades ’26 told the News that he thought the Pasifika Fest was an educational and informative event conducted mindfully. 

Rhoades echoed Funaki and Irvine’s words during the ‘Awa ceremony, saying that this festival was about more than just displaying Pasifika food, art and culture. Rather, the festival also represented a “commitment to how Yale interacts with its indigenous communities of Connecticut and Pasifika communities,” he said. 

The Indigenous Peoples of Oceania group at Yale was founded in Spring 2023 and is the only Pacific Islander cultural group at Yale.

Correction, April 13: Several names and terms throughout the article were updated with correct spelling and additional context.

The post Students host Inaugural Pasifika Fest at Yale appeared first on Yale Daily News.

In this episode, Andre Fa’aoso ’27 is joined by Yale College Council (YCC) President Julian Suh-Toma ’25 to discuss the role of students in the search for Yale’s next University President, as incumbent Peter Salovey intends to step down at the end of the 2023-24 academic year. Also, Diego Alderete ’25 joins Fa’aoso for an exclusive on-the-street interview segment where Yale students share their perspectives on the presidential search and how it affects campus life.

Guests: Julian Suh-Toma ‘25
Producers: Andre Fa’aoso ‘27, Diego Alderete ‘25, Alyssa Michel ‘24
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post The Yalie Ep 23: Inside Yale’s presidential search appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The discussion, which was moderated by Marci Shore, an associate professor of history, highlighted the current state of the war — particularly on a humanitarian scale. 

“It was great to hear from Professor Snyder, Shore and Volodymyr Yermolenko during such an important time in Ukraine’s fight against Russian invasion,” said Ukraine House at Yale member Yegor Rubanov ’27.

Yermolenko has spent extensive amounts of time in war-stricken areas of Ukraine. He has traveled around the world to engage in discourse about the war and spread information about what is happening on the frontlines. 

With his wife, Yermolenko produces a podcast called UkraineWorld, which has been reporting on Russia’s invasion since 2022. Their podcast provides a weekly English-language analysis of the state of the war. 

In the podcast, Yermolenko shares human stories and invokes criticisms of the Russian operation in Ukrainian territory as “an attempt to not be silent, to overcome the silence,” he said.

When Shore asked Yermolenko about the purpose behind his continued journalistic work, he emphasized the importance of giving voice to the struggle Ukrainians face along the frontlines. Just two days before arriving on Yale’s campus, Yermolenko was speaking with civilians and Ukrainian soldiers in the formerly occupied region of Kherson Oblast.

Yermolenko, Snyder and Shore have maintained correspondence throughout the war, and Snyder has traveled to Ukraine amid the war as well. 

Snyder spoke about the contrast between “normative” and “normal experiences” in areas affected by the war. Snyder shared his interaction with an elderly woman in Kherson Oblast and her effort to establish a “normative life” within her new norm of being surrounded by destruction. 

“Normal in that village was all of the rubble, but what she meant was in the sense of normative, in the sense of following norms, in the way things should be,” said Snyder. 

Snyder also spoke about the difference between “deoccupation” and “liberation.” He said that regions that have been fought over throughout the war remain “deoccupied.” Snyder said that he has observed a struggle between normal and normative.

Snyder and Yermolenko both spoke about how the human experiences of the war in Ukraine are, as Shore put it, “situated beyond a place that reason can reach” in response to a question Shore asked.

As a journalist, Yermolenko said that he has spent time throughout the war exploring its human toll. Now, he said, he spends “more time driving vehicles to the frontline than reading.”

Yermolenko said that there is “a lot of exhaustion in Ukraine,” noting that for Ukrainians, the war has been ongoing since 2014. But, he said, the spirit and resolve of the Ukrainian people remain.

“Ukrainians are not going to surrender,” Yermolenko told the News. 

A recording of the full panel session can be accessed online.

The post ‘Ordinary people doing extraordinary things’: Ukrainian philosopher and journalist shares insights on Russia’s war in Ukraine appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Topping the list is “Introductory Macroeconomics” — a foundational economics lecture taught by economics professor Fabrizio Zilibotti — with 344 students enrolled. “Bioethics and Law,” with 288 students, is the second, taught by Stephen Latham, a professor of political science and director of Yale’s Interdisciplinary Center of Bioethics. The course focuses on “the treatment by American law of major issues in contemporary biomedical ethics,” according to the class’ description on course search. “Intermediate Macroeconomics,” taught by economics professor Marnix Amand, has the third highest enrollment.

Zilibotti wrote to the News that his course prepares students to understand the world we live in — a world where economics is “pervasive.”

“The course provides the basic tools for understanding the daily debate on very topical questions in our society: growth, unemployment, inequality, inflation, poverty,” he wrote.

Zilibotti aims to keep his course relevant and resonant to our moment in history, he added.

He also wrote to the News that he bases discussion on recent trends including the COVID-19 pandemic, the financial crisis of 2007-08 and recent trends in income inequality.

Zilibotti said that he believes his course, as well as “Introductory Microeconomics,” are popular because they are requirements for the Economics major, though his course attracts students in other majors.

Due to the course’s popularity, it uses a team of instructors, including course director William Hawkins, as well as teaching fellows and peer tutors.

Because of the class’s breadth, Zilibotti wrote that his class does not have enough time to go into great depth on any of the covered topics, though he mentioned that more advanced courses are designed for that purpose.

Ryan Kulsakdinun ’27 described “Introductory Macroeconomics” as “welcoming” due to its “low commitment” structure. The class meets twice a week for 75-minute lectures as well as for weekly 50-minute sections.

Kulsakdinun told the News his main reason for enrolling in the class was for his combined major, Computer Science and Economics.

“Having a good foundation of micro and macro is really important,” Kulsakdinun said, “And I thought taking a macroeconomics class at the college level would be helpful.”

“Bioethics and Law,” the second most popular course, is a social science course that focuses on timely and relevant issues in medicine, such as abortion access, professor Stephen Latham wrote to the News.

“With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, states are going in wildly different directions with abortion rights,” he wrote. “So, a very large proportion of the topics we talk about in class show up in the headlines every week.”

Latham hopes that the course will equip students with skills and knowledge to argue their positions on bioethical matters thoughtfully, discussing issues such as abortion, assisted reproduction, medical aid in dying and public health responses during pandemics.

In the class, he also teaches about how the American legal debate on healthcare issues differs from that in other countries.

Dean Centa ’25 is enrolled in “Intermediate Macroeconomics,” the class with the third-highest enrollment this semester. Although not originally keen to take the course, Centa told the News he took the class because it is a requirement for his major, adding that many seniors in the class held off taking the requirement until their final semester.

Giovanni Maggi, the director of undergraduate studies for economics, wrote to the News that the reason for the rising interest in economics is multifaceted.

“I have to be a good economist here,” he wrote to the News. “The question of what explains the high and growing popularity of economics courses is not an obvious one, and it would take a rigorous empirical investigation to understand the causes of this phenomenon.”

Still, he cited some factors that may have influenced the department’s popularity: excellent job and research opportunities, high quality of teaching and the fact that certain economics classes are compulsory for majors, including global affairs and economics.

Centa shared similar perspectives to those of Zilibotti, saying that some students take these economics courses out of curiosity, but most take it as a requirement.

“If you go on Coursetable, and look at the reviews, everyone is just taking it because it is a requirement,” Centa told the News.

Centa also told the News that first years and sophomores interested in economics start with “Introductory Microeconomics,” “Introductory Macroeconomics” and onto “Intermediate Macroeconomics” during their Yale career. 

Sean Barrett’s “General Physics Laboratory” and Steve Chang’s “Cognitive Neuroscience” were the fourth and fifth most popular courses, with 247 and 243 students respectively.

The post Economics, political science classes see highest enrollments in spring 2024 appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Organized by the newly founded Indigenous Peoples of Oceania, students celebrated Lā Kūʻokoʻa throughout the week of Nov. 27 through Dec. 4. The celebrations included Lei and Mele Oli workshops, a screening of Boy, a Hawai’i Sign Language panel and speaker events. 

“Our goal really was to bring the Pacific to Yale and have this space be somewhere where everybody on campus can learn about our culture and engage with it in meaningful ways,” Joshua Ching ’26, executive director of IPO, said. 

Lā Kūʻokoʻa is an important time of year for Kānaka Maoli people, or Native Hawaiians, as they commemorate the formal recognition of the sovereignty of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Celebrated every Nov. 28, the holiday honors the 1843 proclamation signed between Hawaiian and Anglo-Franco representatives which recognized the independence of the kingdom. The United States verbally acknowledged Hawaiian sovereignty at this time but explicitly declined to join in on the proclamation because it would be legally binding a require a formal treaty ratified by the United States Senate. Lā Kūʻokoʻa events throughout the week also further recognized the tragedies inflicted by the United States when they overthrew the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1893 and then annexed Hawai’i in 1898.

For Kānaka Maoli at Yale, Lā Kūʻokoʻa serves as a time to reconnect with Hawaiian values, culture and histories within the Pasifika and wider Indigenous community. Aligning with the founding of IPO, this year’s events are the first official celebrations for Lā Kūʻokoʻa on Yale’s campus. 

Financial Director of IPO Amber Nobriga ’27 noted the relation Lā Kū’oko’a has to sovereignty movements throughout Hawaiian history, given that the U.S. violated the recognition agreement of 1843. 

“In Hawai’i, the celebration of Lā Kūʻokoʻa is a protest of the current order of things,” Nobriga wrote to the News. “To the people who understand and who care, the day is spent remembering and educating, and at Yale, we are trying to create that same space of remembrance and education.” 

Planning for Lā Kūʻokoʻa at Yale originated with Ching’s service project for his American Sign Language class which included organizing a Hawai’i Sign Language panel. Once the panel was scheduled for the week of Lā Kūʻokoʻa, Ching then brought up the idea of a week-long series of events at an IPO meeting, snowballing into IPO organizing different events for the whole week. 

Nobriga, who organized the speaker events and funding for the week, highlighted that the aim was to uplift Hawaiian culture through events showcasing language, cultural practices, art and discussion. 

“All of the different backgrounds that people came from were able to kind of mesh together and create something that is genuinely so beautiful,” Ching said. 

IPO Media Director Emma Slagle ’26 told the News that her family would wear Lā Kūʻokoʻa themed t-shirts and unfurl three massive Hawaiian flags in their garage to celebrate the day at her home in Hawai’i. 

Slagle also emphasized the significance of celebrating where students come from and acknowledging Native Hawaiian and Pasifika history, as well as creating a sense of community so far from home.

Ching reflected on the programming that his high school organized surrounding Lā Kūʻokoʻa. These events included discussions in social studies classes, and past celebrations were held at the Hawai’i state capitol in conjunction with other community organizations. Ching said he specifically remembered an event in middle school where students received t-shirts with the original document that recognized Hawaiian independence. 

Dane Keahi ’27, who also attended the same school, noted his appreciation of the continued space to celebrate Hawaiian independence and culture, especially in the transition from home to Yale. 

“I wouldn’t want to see it where [Lā Kūʻokoʻa] doesn’t have the celebration,” Keahi said.  

Ching discussed the positive benefits of creating a small home away from home within the IPO community. Nobriga echoed these sentiments, adding that celebrating Lā Kūʻokoʻa at Yale is important because it allows Kanaka Maoli and other Pasifika students to find a community and bond. 

After a year without being able to take part in formalized celebrations, Ching said he felt there was special significance in this year’s events for him. 

“After [my] first year where there wasn’t really much presence of Native Hawaiian-centric or Pasifika-centric events or celebrations on campus, it was really just awesome to be able to have that and hold space in such an important way,” Ching said. 

Jairus Rhoades ’26 discussed the strength Lā Kūʻokoʻa celebrations have in uniting people from across campus. 

“[Lā Kūʻokoʻa] connects Native Hawaiians with their culture,” Rhoades said. “It connects Polynesians with a culture that is very proximate to their own like mine as a Samoan. It connects me with the place I’m from and it connects allies with a history inflicted on these marginalized communities.”

Waihe’e, Osorio speak at NACC

Speaker events the IPO organized at the Native American Cultural Center featured former Hawai’i Governor John Waihe’e and Dean of Hawai’inuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge Jon Osorio over Zoom. On Thursday, Nov. 30, Waihe’e’s talk began with the oli E Hō Mai. An oli is a traditional Hawaiian chant, and E Hō Mai was taught and practiced during the Mele Oli workshop which took place on Nov. 29.

Waihe’e discussed the significance of Lā Kūʻokoʻa in preserving Hawaiian life and identity, sharing historical stories and noting the stream of consciousness that unites all Hawaiians. 

Emphasizing that Lā Kūʻokoʻa is not just a political moment, Waihe’e said that recognition and independence are preservation of Native Hawaiian life. 

 “We have a love for this place, this land, and for who we are,” Waihe’e said.  

Waihe’e shared one specific story about the allyship between Japan and Hawai’i, where Japan stood in defense of Hawaiian sovereignty against American attempts to annex Hawai’i in 1893. Several students at the event mentioned that this was an aspect of Hawaiian history that they were not previously familiar with. 

Following his talk, Waihe’e opened the floor to questions. Following a question about advice for Pasifika students learning and living so far from home, Waihe’e told attendees to, “Never forget who you are.” 

On Monday, Dec. 4, Osorio spoke at another speaker event at the NACC about the importance of talking about Hawai’i’s past colonial struggle within the context of sovereignty and indigenous representation in positions of power. Osorio provided historical context on the American and European influence in Hawai’i before and following Lā Kū’oko’a, particularly the demand for equality and equity for Kānaka Maoli people in Hawai’i. 

Osorio emphasized the importance of Lā Kū’oko’a as a time to further recognize “the devastation to our dignity, to our pride” following the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1893 by the United States. 

Osorio added that, since 2016, he has observed Native Hawaiians taking greater action in government to “take care of the land.” He finished his talk with a performance of a song he wrote in 1983 for his grandmother with English lyrics, accompanying his singing with the ukulele.

Slagle noted that the speaker events were her favorite part of the week-long celebrations and she was pleased with the high turnout. 

“It’s a really rare opportunity to be able to talk and interact with people that knowledgeable…you learn things you can’t find in history books,” Slagle said. 

Looking toward the future

When looking to the future of celebrating Lā Kūʻokoʻa at Yale, Rhoades said that his personal goal as a member of IPO is to engage allies and non-Pasifika students. He noted the positive effects of people visiting the NACC and engaging with Indigenous culture. 

Nobriga said that she hopes next year’s celebrations will reach even more people. Reflecting on this year’s celebrations, she highlighted the importance of engagement from members of the Yale community who are not part of the IPO.  

“When people and classmates that you respect show an interest in learning about your culture and your history, it feels amazing, validating, and makes you feel that what you have been doing and advocating for is making a difference,” Nobriga wrote. 

Ching noted some potential events for the years coming. In addition to speaker events, Ching mentioned the possibility of partnering with Yale Hospitality to bring traditional Hawaiian food to the dining halls. Ching also discussed the goal of a large celebration on the day of Lā Kūʻokoʻa. 

“In future years, as these events continue to grow and [Pasifika] presence continues to grow, our intention is for IPO to be an organization that is teaching the wider community about our culture and allowing them to also engage in it.” Ching said. 

IPO at Yale was founded in the fall semester of the 2023-2024 school year. 

Correction: A previous version of this article included numerous diacritical errors, which have since been fixed; details have also been added and amended about historical relations between the Hawaiian Kingdom and the United States.

The post Lā Kūʻokoʻa: Native Hawaiian Students organize week of events celebrating Hawaiian culture and independence appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Yash Chauhan ’26, who leads the Moderate Party, interviewed Steigmann. The two spoke about Steigmann’s upbringing, his career and his continued advocacy work.

Steigmann was born in a Romanian Nazi labor camp in 1939 and during childhood was subjected to medical experiments and starvation, per his website. At the event, Steigmann spoke about the “dire” conditions he and his parents experienced before being liberated in 1944. 

Following the war, Steigmann spent his early years in Transylvania before moving with his family to Israel, where he served in the Israeli Air Force. Steigmann originally settled in Milwaukee, and had a family before divorcing and returning to Israel. He returned back to the United States and settled in New York City, where for the past 15 years he has shared his experience and explained why he thinks we “should talk about the Holocaust forever.”

Steigmann said that since 2008 he has spoken to nearly 250,000 people and told the News that it “means a lot” for him to speak at Yale. Steigmann said he wants people to learn to not be afraid to “speak up and stand up and take responsibility for their actions.”

Chauhan told the News he wanted to bring Steigmann to Yale because he has a “real story” that would inspire Yalies through his energy and “the kind of grace he has.” Chauhan met Steigmann at a networking event in New York City and was engaged by his character.

Danat Kenzhegali ’26 told the News that he thought Steigmann was a “truly inspirational guy” because he emphasized the importance of learning more about the wider impacts of the Holocaust. The Moderate Party hosted a dinner before the speaking event at Silliman College, offering members and invitees the opportunity to talk face-to-face with Steigmann. Chauhan said that it was an off-the-record moment where people were able to “get to know Sami in an intimate way.” 

Netanel Crispe ‘25, who attended the dinner, said that it was “very important” to him to listen to what Steigmann had to say. Crispe told the News that his maternal great-grandfather a Holocaust survivor who escaped through Lithuania. As a practicing Hasidic Jew at Yale, Crispe noted that it was important to hear Steigmann’s “positive message [around] approaching people with positive mindsets and to address people with love and care.”

In his talk, Steigmann also reflected on the importance of learning how to have civil disagreements with each other within the context of a divided American society. He emphasized his motto to attendees, saying that his purpose is to “educate, motivate, empower and tolerate.”

Steigmann told the audience that it is important to learn “what hate can do to a person,” a comment he made in the context of atrocities committed during World War II. 

He also said that the only way to combat hate is through education, a sentiment he echoed as part of his wider idea that people should be “upstanders.”

Steigmann also spoke to the divisive political climate and the hate that flows from it, and said that despite the pain and torture forced on him by the Nazis as a child, he said hate is “not in my nature.”

Chauhan told the News that, while everyone makes mistakes, Steigmann’s emphasis on forgiveness encouraged him to “learn from them and reckon with them, and own them and talk about them.”

“Yes, we’re divided, yes we have a lot of issues in this country, [but] it doesn’t matter where you come from, there is one humanity,” Chauhan said of Steigmann’s philosophy.

Steigmann has been a motivational speaker for two decades and in 2016 was recognized by the Museum of Tolerance in New York City and the New York State Assembly for his work educating visitors and students in the city of New York about his life and the Holocaust. 

The post ‘To be upstanders’: Holocaust survivor’s message to Yalies appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Bailey said that the majority of the University’s Black community consists of international and first-generation African students, causing many generational African Americans to feel “unfamiliar” with the Black community at Yale. 

At the University, Bailey feels that the events at the Afro-American Cultural Center and Black Student Alliance at Yale “often cater” to Black international culture. 

“There wasn’t really a space for [generational] African American students,” Bailey told the News.   

Bailey, inspired by a friend studying at Harvard University who told her about the concept of a Generational African American Association, decided to assemble a managing board for a GAASA organization at Yale. Other Ivy League schools such as Harvard University, Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania have similar organizations, according to Bailey. 

Keaton told the News that the GAASA aims to create a new space for generational African American students.  

“The whole point is to add an additional space on Yale’s campus [to] accommodate the growing diversity of the Black community,” Keaton said. 

Keaton added that other Ivy League GAASAs have offered “major support” in their efforts to establish a GAASA at Yale. 

The development of the new group — the only campus organization directed toward generational African American students — has elevated new discussions regarding culture and Blackness, according to Bailey, who said that people tend to “conflate” Blackness with the generational African American experience. 

Bailey, who has spoken to GAASA leaders from other Ivy League institutions, told the News that GAASA organizations at these schools have received backlash from within the Black community for being divisive and exclusive in their purpose. 

Despite concerns of tension within the Black community at Yale, Bailey said that people have been “so receptive and so helpful,” with leaders of the Black Students Alliance at Yale — a campus racial advocacy group that organizes around issues facing Black Yale affiliates — lending support to the board throughout their planning process. 

The goal of the group is not to separate generational African Americans from the Black diaspora, Keaton said, but rather to educate the Yale student body on the generational African American experience, while acknowledging that it is “challenging” for generational African American students to navigate Black cultural spaces. 

While generational African American face unique challenges, Keaton added that they still share common experiences with the larger Black community. 

“The way that you are perceived when you are unambiguously Black is a universal experience, regardless of your ethnicity,” Keaton said. 

For first-year students, GAASA serves as an opportunity for those who are generational African American to come together in a common space, exchange ideas and relate through culture and experience. First-year liaison for GAASA Miles Kirkpatrick ’27 said that it can be a significant transition to move from a generational African American space to Yale’s potentially “unfamiliar”  Black community.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn race-conscious university admissions, GAASA internal community projects chair Vyann Eteme ’25 told the News that there has been a “push” to keep generational African Americans out of institutions of prestige and power. 

Eteme said she believes that GAASA will facilitate dialogue that questions “who is being admitted and excluded from institutions like Yale.” 

GAASA is not eligible to receive University funding until at least after November, when the Office of Student Affairs opens funding applications for the academic year, per Bailey and Keaton. Despite this, Keaton said that the “sky is the limit” for this semester. 

In the coming months, Keaton said the group hopes to form relationships with GAASA organizations at other Ivy League schools. In November, the GAASA board plans to collaborate with Harvard’s GAASA and host events during the week of the Yale-Harvard game. 

Keaton added that the GAASA board intends to launch more intensive event planning going into next year if successful in their application for official funding.

GAASA leaders started planning the group’s formation in June. 

The post “We need this space”: Yalies establish Generational African American Student Association appeared first on Yale Daily News.