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COLLEGIATE112th YEAR, ISSUE 165 collegiatetimes.com TIMESApril 15, 2016 An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 FILE 2007 A member of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets plays Taps at the candlelight vigil on April 17, 2007, in the fi rst publicly held memorial service to honor the victims of the tragedy. On Wednesday, April 13, 2016, Gov. Terry McAuliffe proclaimed April 16 to be the “Virginia Tech Day of Remembrance.” Read the full story on page 3. Remembrance Day Events Midnight Women’s rugby Lighting of the Ceremonial 9:43 a.m. Candle Moment of April 16 Memorial Silence Campus tackles ALS 9:45 a.m. 3.2 for 32 Run in Virginia Tech women’s rugby will host the fi rst-ever Tackling ALS Remembrance tournament to honor a team member’s mother. Campus 11 a.m. Community SIERRA HUCKFELDT that many close friends that could really sports editor help me through everything, so I ended up Professor Marc Edwards speaks Picnic during a conference to address Commonwealth joining the rugby team at the beginning of Ballroom, Squires 12-2 p.m. Being an athlete on a team sport is about my junior year.” another issue with the water system Reading of the more than catching a pass or setting up a Abbey quickly became immersed in in Orleans, New York on April 12. good pick. It’s about being part of a family, rugby and connected with members of the Bios GLC Auditorium one which supports each other both on and team. In the spring of 2015, she was with her off the field. team on a weekend retreat when she heard 11:59 p.m. Both fans and the media alike often focus of her mother’s passing, two years after her New York Extinguishing on the challenges that athletes face within diagnosis. According to Abbey’s father, of Ceremonial the sport in which they compete, but they Cindy had been doing well just a few days Candle often ignore much more painful challenges, prior. Abbey’s boyfriend traveled seven town faces April 16 Memorial such as emotional and personal battles that hours to the cabin to give her the news, arise off the field. What many people don’t where there was no Internet connection, cell read or hear about are the bonds that are phone service or electricity. Flint-esque made through being on a team, especially “My friend’s family has a cabin up in Open burning in college when young people’s lives are the mountains. I was up there hanging out changing the most. with the team and everyone was getting to struggles When women’s rugby player Abbey know everybody, hanging out and having in Radford Coleman’s mother passed away from her fun. We all went to bed, and in the middle of LEWIS MILHOLLAND brave battle against ALS last year, the team the night there was a banging on the door,” news editor banded together to create a philanthropic Abbey said. “I looked out the window and prompts local event to raise money for ALS awareness. was like, ‘Oh my god, that’s my boyfriend Citizens of Orleans, a small town ALS stands for amyotrophic lateral scle- and his friend.’ I looked at my friend and was in upstate New York, have suspected rosis, and it is a progressive neurodegener- like, ‘This can’t be good. There is no way he for a long time that the Department of controversy ative disease that affects the spinal cord and is driving seven hours from my house unless Transportation’s nearby salt storage brain. Once diagnosed, Cindy Coleman was it’s bad news.’” facilities have been contaminating CLARE RIGNEY given six months. The team united around Abbey and did its their private wells. Fed up with her environmentalism beat reporter Abbey, a senior loosehead prop, was a best to comfort her through this devastating local government’s lackluster response, sophomore at Virginia Tech at the time of time. Orleans resident Stephanie Weiss called “One of the most dangerous and her mother’s diagnosis. After hearing the “We were all there when Abbey had to go on the aid of Virginia Tech. toxic facilities in the nation” is how the news, Abbey decided to join the women’s home a bunch of weekends, and we were all Weiss and her husband Andy Greene famous environmental activist Erin rugby team. supporting her and we were all there when have lived in their current home for about Brockovich referred to the Radford “It was really a lifesaver, to be honest. My she was balancing rugby, work and her mom 15 years and have received inconsistent Army Ammunition Plant. On March 23, family lives in Richmond, so when Mom was being sick. We all didn’t know how she did results from testing their private well-fed Brockovich posted on Facebook about diagnosed, when she was first sick, my sister it because it was so much,” junior Backs tap water. Sometimes lead levels soared, the plant, which is located along Prices was in school here with me,” Abbey said. “I Captain and Treasurer Jordan Winston said. sometimes not so much. But what they Fork Road and the New River, and criti- had about a semester with her here, but then and the rest of the community were really cized its practice of open burning. she graduated and left. I didn’t really have see ALS / page 9 looking at was salt in the aquifer — it was For years residents of the New River only after reading about the crisis in Flint, Valley have been protesting against the Michigan, that Weiss began to suspect open burning at the Radford arsenal. lead contamination. Meanwhile there has not been much At that point, the next step was a communication between the plant and Diverse panel discusses no-brainer. locals. “Who did I reach out to?” Weiss said. “Most people who are environmen- “I guess I reached out to people who could tally conscious and aware, when they manifestation of racism help me answer that question. People like learn the truth of what’s happening at CALEB GOVORUHK Marc.” the Radford arsenal ... they generally news staff writer Marc Edwards, Virginia Tech want to help,” said Devawn Bledsoe, professor and face of the Flint Water who began researching the arsenal eight Squires Student Center’s Commonwealth Study Team, has championed the charge years ago. Ballroom turned into a think tank of to expose the corruption surrounding As the founder of the Environmental erudition on Thursday, April 14 as the water contamination. He’s also advocated Patriots of the New River Valley, NAACP’s Virginia Tech chapter presented to improve water infrastructure across the Bledsoe said that her goal is not to its second annual event, “Racism: The country. As Edwards puts it, “Civilization completely stop the Arsenal from open Power of Illusion.” as you know it can end if you don’t have a burning but to reduce the amount they The event was co-sponsored by VT good operating water system.” burn, conduct a general cleanup of the Dreamers and the Muslim Student When Weiss reached out to Edwards, facility and to facilitate transparency. Association and featured three different he put her in touch with Virginia Tech The Radford Army Ammunition panelists, all from different departments researcher Kelsey Pieper, who published Plant began operations in 1941 as the on campus and with different fields of a study last fall that revealed lead levels in Radford Ordinance Works, a manufac- experience. 19 percent of Virginia’s tap water drawn turing plant for the armed forces during The three panelists were Khaled from wells exceed the EPA action level. World War II. Today it manufactures Hassouna, the associate director for Middle The EPA standard is a guideline propellants and munitions. East and North Africa initiatives for the though, not a legal requirement, since The practice of open burning office of international research, education the EPA does not have the authority to involves the collection of waste too and development; Dennis Hidalgo, an regulate private wells. This also means large to dispose of through normal assistant professor in the department of that there are not a lot of data available on means and gathering it into pans, of history; and Natasha Cox, the assistant well water quality, and there are no stan- which the arsenal has 16. The pans are director of the Intercultural Engagement dardized sampling protocols. On top of then doused with fuel and set on fire; the Center. that, because the wells are private, testing resulting 45-second burns are known as “According to an online article published must be done with the explicit consent of “flash burns.” in January of 2016, Pew Research Center the homeowner. The DEQ, the Virginia Department estimates that there were 3.3 million “A lot of my work relies on engaged of Environmental Equality, has granted LOREN SKINKER / COLLEGIATE TIMES Muslims of all ages living in the U.S. in homeowners. So I’ve worked with some the arsenal a permit to burn up to 8,000 Khaled Hassouna, associate director for 2014,” said Rayan Salih, the president of really wonderful people,” Pieper said. pounds a day. Since 1988, the Radford Middle East and North Africa Initiatives, the Muslim Student Association at Virginia “It’s a growing conversation. One of the plant has had a permit to open burn and speaks on behalf of the Islam Student Tech. “And yet, people still don’t know the things I always like to say is, we do a lot of open detonate, which was meant to last Association this past Thursday evening, basics of Islam, the religion that these developing work, and we still have April 14, 2016.

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