Campus
While I can only speak for myself, I’m sure I’m not alone when I say this semester has been interesting — to say the least. Me and many other students not only dealt with the standard juggle of school, work and family, but also the worsening COVID-19 pandemic and declining mental health as social and political upheaval continues to grip the nation.
It’s been two years since a change to Loyola’s media policy created a crisis that seriously threatened The Phoenix’s ability to do good journalism.
In March 1963, Loyola University Chicago made nationwide headlines when its men’s basketball team, the Loyola Ramblers, beat the Cincinnati Bobcats 60-58 in the final round of the NCAA championship. Their victory marked a turning point in the history of college basketball and the civil rights movement. Never before had an integrated college team starting four Black players on a five-man squad gone on to win a national title.
When Loyola’s Presidential Search Committee announced Jo Ann Rooney was its pick back in the summer of 2016, her elevation marked the beginning of a new chapter in the university’s history. Of 23 presidents to come before her, Rooney would be the first woman and the first non-Jesuit to take the top job.
In the wake of George Floyd’s unnecessary death at the hands of Minneapolis police officers — and the continued demand for comprehensive and systemic change that ensued — Loyola sent a message to the community promising action. It’s created initiatives and pledged to increase diversity and racial education. But these steps alone aren’t enough to create the change necessary: it’s time to ditch Aramark.