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Vampire Weekend took the stage Thursday night at 713 Music Hall to perform in front of an almost sold out crowd. 

The venue was filled on all three floors with die-hard fans belting the words to every song they played. 

Before Vampire Weekend went on stage, the instrumental group LA LOM played a 45 minute set with a modern Latin fuse touch. Despite the band not singing any words, people were swaying and tapping their feet to the beat, especially to their most recent release “Danza de LA LOM.”

LA LOM let the crowd know they will be releasing their first self-titled album in August before leaving the stage to let Vampire Weekend perform.

The band opened up their set with “Mansard Roof” from their self-titled album “Vampire Weekend”, “Holiday” from their album “Contra” and “Ice Cream Piano” from their most recent album “Only God Was Above Us.”

Cindy Rivas Alfaro/The Cougar

The crowd went wild for songs like “White Sky” where the colorful guitar intro build up smoothly into the verse. Colin Killalea stole the show for a few seconds with his saxophone meshing with the guitar’s melody. 

Once “Unbelievers” started playing, the audience was jumping up and down and clapping along to the drummer’s beat and singing along to the catchy chorus. 

The backlight to their stage highlighted each member beautifully, with the lights flashing rhythmically to some songs’ tempo. The guitar in some songs also hyped up the crowd as it rapidly took the song into unforgettable bridges and verses. 

With mostly older adults at the show, the audience slipped in and out of the crowd to get some drinks at the bar before finding their way back into the packed crowd. Toward the end of the show, people were gleefully lifting their cups up to the stage in cheers. 

Vampire Weekend finished the concert off with fan-favorites like “A-Punk” and “Mary Boone” before heading into their encore. 

For their encore, they performed a few covers like “1901” by the Phoenix, “Don’t Dream It’s Over” by Crowded House and “Wonderwall” by Oasis. 

The final song of the night was “Walcott” from their self-titled album to go back in time to 2008. 

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“Vampire Weekend takes the stage in Houston” was originally posted on The Cougar

Juana Garcia/ The Cougar

On Wednesday, the Student Government Association held their first summer session of the 61st administration where they passed a resolution condemning UHPD Chief of Police Ceaser Moore following the arrest of two students on campus.

“It has been four weeks since UHPD assaulted students and no response from our representative body has been made. It’s a shame,” said Sen. Jesus Nieto. “A shame that leaders that were trusted by the student body are cowardly waiting for approval of administrators before making decisions that students seek.”

On May 8, Students for Justice in Palestine HTX organized an encampment at the University to call for divestment and draw attention to the Board of Regents meeting that occurred on May 15. Two students were arrested at the protest. 

“I did not partake in the act of encampment, but I was there to see what happened,” said Sen. Mohib Awan. “The way the students were violently brutalized… Let’s remind ourselves that we are in a position of privilege to be discussing this instead of being the one in the encampment.” 

Alongside passing the resolution condemning UHPD Chief of Police Ceaser Moore, the senate passed the Recognition of SGA Muslim Caucus resolution. 

During the meeting, senators also expressed a need for better communication and transparency between the executive and senate branches, especially for the executive branch to convey when meetings with administrative officials would be occurring. 

Director of Public Relations Kristal Crockett-Rodgers emphasized the importance of two-way communication and understanding that everyone has different communication styles. 

“I really want you all to understand that breakdown in communication is not personal, and that while it may not be happening with everyone, we have to give grace so that we can build this communication,” Crockett-Rodgers said. 

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“SGA summer session condemns UHPD Chief of Police” was originally posted on The Cougar

Jose Gonzalez-Campelo/The Cougar

UH’s Period Education Project chapter and the Women’s Health Interest Group will be joining the Alliance for Period Supplies to commemorate Period Poverty Awareness Week that runs through May 20-28, 2024. 

As many as two out of five people are affected by period poverty in the U.S. With one out of four menstruating people struggling to afford period products, Period Poverty Awareness Week works to dismantle the stigma surrounding menstrual cycles. 

“Our mission is to improve health equity and eliminate disparities,” said senior medical student Carolina Venturi who is the Chief Period Pro, or more commonly referred to as President, of the Period Education Project chapter at UH. “Increasing awareness of menstruation and knowledge decreases stigma. All of those things speak to the same principles.”

The Period Education Project is a national nonprofit organization that spreads awareness through PEP rallies which the UH chapter has hosted. Through these hour-long sessions, they teach attendees about the interior and exterior anatomy of people with periods, menstrual cycles and different options to manage them including tampons, pads and cups. 

Recently, the Women’s Health Interest group at UH that interlaps with a lot of Period Education Project members and their goals, teamed up and donated around 300 to 400 period products to Stephen F. Austin High School in February. 

For Period Poverty Awareness Week, the Period Education Project chapter and the Women’s Health Interest Group will be hosting several events that could be found at their Instagram @whighouston. 

Some events include myth-busters that challenge true or false statements about menstrual cycles, a virtual PEP rally with the Florida State University, flow-fessions where people can share anonymous first period or embarrassing stories that will be compiled into a blog post and a period party with giveaways at the College of Medicine. 

To add on, the Period Education Project reached out to The College of Medicine Office of Student Affairs to make free period products available for students at the college. Through the chapter’s efforts, it is now part of the yearly budget to provide these products in its learning communities. 

“We are still working on getting it funded for faculty and staff so that there are free vending machines of these products,” Venturi said. 

To get in contact with the Period Education Project chapter or the Women’s Health Interest Group, students can email whig@central.uh.edu or Venturi directly at cventuri@cougarnet.uh.edu.

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“UH College of Medicine organizations, groups raise period poverty awareness” was originally posted on The Cougar

Students march toward the UHPD office to call for divestment on Wednesday, May 8. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar

On Wednesday morning, Students for Justice in Palestine HTX organized an encampment at Butler Plaza in front of M.D. Anderson Library to call for divestment and put pressure on the upcoming Board of Regents meeting on May 15.

In a statement from the University, two students were arrested: one for failing to identify themselves and the other for assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest. 

“Students are not okay with being made complicit in genocide through being students at a University that invests in it,” said SJP representative and political science senior Reyna. “This is not something that is going to go away.” 

Students arrived early to set up barricades and tents around the fountain in the middle of Butler Plaza. The only notice of the encampment was through a social media post on Instagram where SJP renamed Butler Plaza to “Gaza Plaza.” 

The encampment was a response to the rise of student protests on college campuses. More than 2,000 people have been arrested across the nation for participating in Pro-Palestinian protests. The University of Texas at Austin, Columbia University, UCLA and the University of Chicago are just a few of the college campuses where protests have been met with police presence. 

Around 9 a.m., police surrounded the protestors at Butler Plaza and dismantled the camp in approximately 20 minutes which led students to march toward the UHPD office. 

“The police presence was very intense and was multiplying quickly as soon as the sun rose,” Reyna said. “They physically and violently tore down the encampments as students were centered in the middle of it.” 

Tents and encampments are not permitted on campus grounds in accordance with state statutes, according to the University. 

The statute the University is referring to is Texas Penal Code Section 48.05 which prohibits camping and calls it an offense “if the person intentionally or knowingly camps in a public place without the effective consent of the officer or agency having the legal duty or authority to manage the public place.” 

Protestors line up outside the Harris County Joint Processing Center. | Cindy Rivas Alfaro/The Cougar

Students then moved to the Harris County Joint Processing Center where they believed the two students were held. Protestors lined up on the sidewalk next to the building and chanted “From the sea to the river,” “Palestine will live forever” and “No more money for Israel’s crimes.” 

Police set up barricades around the area and several cars honked in support of the protestors. 

SJP plans to sit in and attend the Board of Regents meeting on May 15 to urge the University to divest from companies that provide firearms and support to Israel. 

“We wanted to show the University that students are serious about wanting divestment,” Reyna said. “There’s strong student support for divestment and that we’re willing to organize and demand it from them.” 

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“SJP organizes an encampment, police arrest two students” was originally posted on The Cougar