Everything starts with communication. 

“At first, we send emails to management,” Abrams said. “We look up any musical artists that we want. We look up their websites or social media and get in touch with their booking person or to them directly.”

The conversation then goes on to cover any financial aspects. 

“We ask how much they would want — money-wise — from us,” Abrams said. “If we get a response, we then start communicating logistics about the date, maybe trying to lower the price. Then we get contracts from them.” 

Once the day of the concert arrives, we get to Abrams’ favorite part of their job.

 “When I get a good crowd for a show that I put on, it means the world to me,” Abrams said. “It’s a total community-building activity, and it makes me realize how many people love the music that I listen to as well.” 

Abrams’ love for The ’Sco is certainly shared among the Oberlin student community. Thanks to the efforts of Abrams and their five current co-bookers, The ’Sco continues to flourish as a popular evening venue. Promoters rotate to take on individual shows with the musical artists of their choosing and follow them through that process. Abrams is proudest to have personally booked Jeffrey Lewis and Dear Nora last year, among many others.

“There’s no downside to putting on these shows,” Abrams said. “Even if it’s not a huge crowd, we can all just get a little personal concert.”

The bookers also get to meet some of their musical idols in person. One of Abrams’ favorite artists, Jonathan Richman, founded the proto-punk band The Modern Lovers and is a successful solo rock ‘n’ roll singer-songwriter.

“We were able to have a really nice conversation,” Abrams said.

Though Abrams had seen Richman in concert before, this night was special, as the two were able to talk after the show about growing up in the Boston area. However, it’s not only after the concert that bookers get to spend time with the artists.

“We are there when they arrive, and we welcome them,” said Abrams. “We show them around the town if they have time before soundcheck, and sometimes they stay at the hotel. It’s always nice when they do because then they’re close by. We do soundcheck, and they get to chill for a bit before they actually put on the show. Then it’s the show, and it’s very exciting.”

This past Thursday, The ’Sco brought in Suzzy Roche and Lucy Wainwright Roche, with an opening act by Conservatory fourth-year vocalist Sehréa N’dayu. Next week, there’s even more to come. On Nov. 14, The ’Sco will be welcoming Lealani, a multi-instrumentalist all the way from Pomona, CA, along with student opener Whaleshark. This is all the manifestation of the impassioned efforts of our bookers — seeing the process through from paperwork to performance.

Abrams encourages any interested Oberlin students to become involved in the booking process. Otherwise, head on over to the basement of Wilder and enjoy the incredible music and community brought right to your doorstep.

“I think that it’s overall one of the coolest jobs that I will ever get in my life,” Abrams said. “Being able to create such a special space for students is a really amazing opportunity.”

of green growth that stretched to the heavens

and now the great great giant in the sky–

      Yes

      He

      Was

      Here,

rich with wonder, and now he is gone,

ditch or blunder,

fallen twenty-six stories from the sky

over my life, from the eden over my

better judgment, to the dirt at my feet–

       Yes

       He

       Was

       a Hero

and now he is an idea which flickered past

my blinking wheezing fizzing eyes–blink–

sigh–to the grave at my feet–

      Yes

      He

     Was

     Heaven and earth and sea and sky and

the origin of order in my mind all packaged

squarely in the match box, in the coal (of) mine,

and now he is lost in a sea of experience, a

hole in my cerebellum and I thought

      MY GOD

                                                                          I’mmortal.

“I think it’s important because it brings to light the idea that banning books is current,’’ Weir said. 

The 13 most challenged books this year, which include Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe, Looking for Alaska by John Green, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, have many common themes.

“This year, if you look at the books that were banned, it’s mostly over sex, sexual identity and homosexuality,” Weir said. 

Despite bans, many of these books have worked their way into the hearts of  students. Students have a wide range of favorite banned books and are impassioned about why continuing to read banned books is important.

“One of my favorite banned books is Of Mice and Men [by John Steinbeck],” College first-year Olivia Pickens said. “It is such an impactful story and it has incredible themes that challenged concepts of that time, such as the impossibility of the American dream and how humans are often predatory. People should still be reading banned books because many of them carry impactful themes, have weight as a profound novel, and challenge ideals of the time they were written in. It is important to be exposed to sensitive content because these types of books often shift our view the most.”

Other favorites mentioned by students include 1984 by George Orwell, Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, and The Color Purple by Alice Walker. 

College first-year Camille Coker believes that books are banned only in an attempt to censor media in order to promote biased rhetorics.

“Banning books is done out of fear of knowledge, whether that be knowledge of political, religious, racial, sexual, or other ideas that a group doesn’t believe should be accessible, typically to children,” Coker said. “The problem with book bans is that [it’s] a form of censorship, not out of a desire for public safety but with the goal of eliminating opposing opinions, which prevents open and honest discourse with varied perspectives.”

Others agreed with that sentiment.

“It’s important to read banned books to understand whose voices are getting silenced and the ideas those in power are afraid of,” College first-year Frances Freais said. 

This year, for Oberlin’s effort to highlight Banned Books Week, Weir created the display on the first floor of Mudd Center. The display is based on real scenes from Florida school libraries.

“We decided to put books on a bookcase and put caution tape over it,” Weir said. “That idea came because when we were looking up information about what was going on this year, there were several pictures from the state of Florida where that was the case. Lots of school libraries had books [that] had to be reviewed before they could be used.” 

This year has been a record in recent history for the number of titles challenged, particularly because since 2020, 90 percent of book banning attempts have targeted multiple books at once, and 40 percent have targeted over 100 titles at once. This is an issue particularly in local libraries and schools, proving that banning books is still a current issue that threatens freedom of speech. 

“Any kind of banning takes away choices from everyone,” Weir said. “So you may see a book that you want to ban or don’t want to read. And if you’re successful in banning it, that takes away a choice from somebody else. But I might also have a book that I’d really like nobody to read. And if I do the same thing, it might be the book you want to read. So in other words, banning books takes away choice. We should all have the right to choose what we want to read.”

Though large-scale issues such as book banning can often leave one feeling hopeless, there are concrete ways to take action.

“It’s very important to pay attention to what’s happening in your local community, because censorship usually is happening at the school level, or your local library.” Weir said. “And if there [are] people active and trying to ban books, [you should] attend public meetings, write letters, et cetera.”

Greenwood will be leading a discussion centered around a work of art on display at the museum and López will lead a corresponding meditation. López has been a practicing therapist since 2011. Since then, his focus has shifted to working with members of the LGBTQ community, adults living with HIV, and trans and nonbinary individuals. In 2019, he partnered with the AMAM to provide “Mindful Meditation” to the community. To adhere to COVID-19 regulations, Mindful Meditation was transferred to Zoom to allow for a more accessible experience, providing a safe and peaceful environment. Despite the transition, attendance persisted. 

“We need to … provide spaces like this, in particular, during a very stressful and uncertain time,” López said. “And ever since we started, it’s been very well attended.”

Despite the artistic theme of “Mindful Meditation,” López admitted his unfamiliarity with the world of visual art. 

“This is something that I was really nervous about initially,” López said. “I don’t see myself as very art-inclined. I don’t really have much background or experience. I didn’t grow up going to museums, I don’t really know much of art. So it’s not just me moderating it, but it’s also me learning about art and integrating it into the meditation. [Greenwood and Lane] usually share with me the pieces that they feel might be good to use in the meditations. They’re always very inclusive and make sure that I’m familiar with where pieces might be coming out and giving me a choice.”

The series kicked off this Thursday with a session featuring the print “Pelota en el agua (Ball on Water)” by Mexican artist Gabriel Orozco. López emphasizes the importance of exploring the art and experiences from many different cultural backgrounds.

“I think it’s very important to highlight different backgrounds so that we don’t become monotonous, that we provide some variety, some diversity,” López said. “And [Greenwood], again, has been very intentional in the pieces that she picked, including the one that we’re doing this coming Thursday.”

In addition to Orozco, this semester’s selection of artists features British-Trinidadian artist Zak Ové, Australian Aboriginal artist Jimmy Moduk, and American embroiderist Anna Von Mertens. López feels particularly connected to this week’s piece. 

“The actual piece of art resembles a very important part right now — this month for me — because for a lot of Latin America, it’s Independence Day, maybe not the exact same date, but along the span of September,” López said. “And so it definitely feels like it’s intentionally including pieces, like, that highlight a lot of diversity, a lot of background.” 

Sept. 15–Oct. 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month. It is rooted in the anniversaries of the hard-earned independence that many Latin American countries gained from colonial Spain on or near September 15. The celebration focuses on honoring and engaging with the cultures and contributions of many Latin-American people in various fields. López is himself bilingual and  has a history of supporting undocumented or DACAmented youth through speaking at local protests and through volunteering at local nonprofits and community groups.

López emphasized that in addition to not needing any background in art, students don’t need to be familiar with meditation. 

“Students don’t have to have any experience or background in meditation,” López said. “This space, I’m hoping, is for everyone. They can feel safe. They can feel affirmed and seen.”

The next session will be held Oct. 26 and will center around Zak Ové’s “Giovanni’s Room,” which features vintage European crochet doilies alongside custom ones made by Syrian refugees and a title borrowed from the James Baldwin novel. It is a selection from the series The Evidence of Things Not Seen, which serves as an homage to Baldwin. Ové has become renowned for diverse mediums such as photography, film, and sculpture. The use of found objects and African/Caribbean aesthetics plays a big role in his art and in his personal connection to his Trinidadian roots.