Good morning, Penn.
Happy Thursday! And — more importantly — happy National Thin Mint Day! I'm filling in for Vivi today.
The United States Senate Commerce Committee recently flagged over a dozen Penn research grants for allegedly promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, and a full-scale recreation of a colonial coffeehouse opened last week in Van Pelt-Dietrich Library's Kislak Center.
But first, more than 300 individuals — including Penn faculty — gathered in Center City yesterday to protest recent federal funding cuts to academic research.
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Photo by Devansh Raniwala
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Penn faculty join rally against federal research funding freeze
Members of Penn’s faculty joined about 300 individuals in Center City yesterday to protest recent federal funding cuts to academic research.
Located outside of Sen. Dave McCormick’s (R-Pa.) office in Center City, the rally was organized by Labor for Higher Education, along with the American Association of University Professors, American Federation of Teachers, United Auto Workers, and other groups. Faculty, students, and staff from Penn joined the crowd to protest recent changes to federal research funding.
“We’re here to push back against the Trump administration’s illegal and dangerous attacks on publicly funded research,” one speaker, whom The Daily Pennsylvanian was unable to identify, said. “Republicans are trying to fire workers, shutter crucial medical research, and kill our economy. We’re here to fight back.”
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FOUR MORE BIG STORIES
 The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee recently flagged 15 Penn research grants totaling nearly $11 million in funding for allegedly promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion.
 The Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts recently opened a full-scale recreation of a colonial coffeehouse in honor of the United States’ 250th birthday.
 Several Wharton clubs hosted a fireside chat with James Gorman, the chairman of Disney and chairman emeritus of Morgan Stanley.
 The Penn Museum and Penn Libraries recently launched multiple Ainu-themed programs, including a documentary screening and media exhibit.
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Photo by Jackson Ford
SENIOR COLUMNIST DIYA CHOKSEY examines how, in a school where everyone is brilliant, status has become the real competition.
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SPORTS
 Read here to see how Penn Baseball shapes up heading into the season as the “Quakeshow” tries for a three-peat in the Ivy League.
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Photo by Samantha Turner
In 2022, Penn’s women’s basketball team beat Brown 67-53, netting 18 offensive rebounds compared to Brown’s two. Last Saturday, in another win against Brown, senior guard Stina Almqvist reached 1,000 career points.
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Click here to play today’s DP mini crossword, which was constructed by Clarice Wang.
And click here to play today’s Password puzzle, which was constructed by Doer He.
Also, pick up a print edition to play Threads and our newest standard crossword, exclusively in print!
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FROM 34TH STREET MAGAZINE
I’m Still Here isn’t just a film about dictatorship, loss, and resistance—it’s a masterclass in how cinema turns grief into something communal, how history refuses to stay buried, and how Walter Salles captures the quiet horror of living under a regime that erases both lives and truths.
Senior staff writer Luiza Louback doesn’t just analyze the film—she feels it. The review unpacks every layered detail, from Fernanda Torres’ devastating restraint to Salles’ use of nostalgia as both beauty and weapon. It’s film criticism at its finest—the kind that lingers, unsettles, and refuses to let history fade. The kind of nuance Emilia Pérez wishes it had. If you’ve ever walked out of a theater with your chest tight and your mind racing, this piece will remind you why movies—and the way we talk about them—still matter.
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Today’s newsletter was copy edited by Prashant Bhattarai.
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