Category: Current Affairs

People’s Market faces a tough financial situation

November 18, 2013

by Veronica Stracqualursi The smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sounds of indie music often come from People’s Market down the hallway of the Student Union. Despite its attractive vibe, the 40-year-old market, one of seven student businesses on campus, is going unnoticed and taking a financial ...

Iconic Old Chapel Needs Millions in Renovations to Reopen Its Doors

November 4, 2013

By David Barnstone Rising nearly 300 feet into the Western Massachusetts sky, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, is known as the world’s tallest academic library and it is one of the most recognizable buildings on the UMass Amherst Campus. But standing in its shadow is a smaller and much older building. Tho...

Transgender actress inspires Homecoming 2013 audience

October 23, 2013

By Christina Gregg A young Laverne Cox was chased home from school everyday because, as she recalls, “People thought there was something different about me and that difference should be punished.” From those days of bullying to addressing an at-capacity Student Union Ballroom as the 2013 UMass...

Yen Nguyen: The face of Berkshire Dining Commons

October 22, 2013

By Ilana Gensler Yen Nguyen is the centerpiece of the Berkshire Dining Commons. She sits tall and proud in her white uniform with her shiny name tag, glistening in the few rays of sun that streak into the cafeteria. Nguyen is a 70-year-old mother to ten children with a playful disposition and a reputation...

Divest UMass campaigns for change

October 22, 2013

By Eric Bosco Dozens of students looked on as the UMass Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign draped a giant orange message over the university parking garage the afternoon of Thursday, October 17. The message asked University of Massachusetts President Robert Caret to “Divest From Fossil Fuels, Reinvest...

A war on molly: UMass students react to the cancellation of EDM shows

October 22, 2013

By Brian Bevilacqua When reports of young adults dying at electronic dance music (EDM) concerts began to surface along the east coast in September, a narcotic known as “molly” began receiving headlines in national newspapers, revealing a lack of knowledge around the drug and sparking a wave of concert cancellations. As the number of deaths approached nearly a dozen, shows were subsequ...