Reilly Mullen

Rochester, NY native. Senior English and political science double major. Editor-in-Chief of the SUNY University at Buffalo independent student publication, The Spectrum. Health journalist for University at Buffalo Department of Surgery. 

The Spectrum •

Don’t let your horse get too high

There is no single physical description to connect groups that share the same political beliefs, but I think I’ve gotten pretty damn close. My fuschia hair and septum ring scream “bleeding-heart liberal,” and my Instagram stories extolling the virtues of social justice largely back up that claim. I believe in bodily autonomy and background checks. I think strong social justice programs mitigate homelessness and poverty, and I am passionate that everyone should have the right to express their i
The Spectrum •

UB to nix mask requirements on campus starting March 5

UB will not require students, faculty, staff or visitors to wear masks “in most settings” on campus “regardless of vaccination status” beginning March 5, Vice President for Student Life Brian Hamluk announced in a school-wide email Wednesday. “With rapidly declining case numbers in Erie County and a strong vaccination rate at UB, we welcome this emerging return to normal,” Hamluk said. “As the university continues to monitor conditions in consultation with local health officials, we’ll be sure
The Spectrum •

A conversation with Nikole Hannah-Jones

Nikole Hannah-Jones is not in the business of making people comfortable. The 46th Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Keynote Speaker wore a black Adidas ankle-length velour dress accented from head to toe with pops of red, from her dyed-red hair to her classic black-and-white Nike Dunks with a red swoosh. She donned large gold hoop earrings and a gold jewel-encrusted name-plate necklace. Calm, cool and collected, Hannah-Jones knows that her journalism, often regarding the lives and experience
The Spectrum •

UB holds 11th annual Life Raft Debate

Just over 100 students faced the aftermath of the apocalypse for the 11th year in a row in the Student Union Theater Tuesday to the tune of “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” by R.E.M. Their prerogative? Elect one of six professors to fill the last seat on their hypothetical life raft as it sails away to — hopefully — rebuild humanity on a deserted island. Joseph Costa, instructor of anatomy and pathology, out-debated his five colleagues — law lecturer Paul Linden-Retek, electrical engi
The Spectrum •

Our best stories of 2021

2021 started and ended the same way — with COVID-19 dominating the national, and local, conversation. But while the pandemic weighed heavy on UB community members’ minds, other stories also resonated with the campus population. From One World Café to Starbucks to campus dining closures, food played a big part in the student experience. The same can be said about sports and the arts, which reopened this year, and brought about intriguing storylines, like the hire of Maurice Linguist as head foo
The Spectrum •

Empty tears

Sunday evening, I found myself curled up on my bathroom floor. I wish I could say it was a rare occurrence, but on the days my depression hits the hardest, even lying in bed can be draining. So when the hours have blurred together and my sheets have soaked through with tears, I retreat to the comfort of my bathmat. My depression keeps me company on the days I feel the most forgotten. She whispers in my ear, reassuring me of my intrusive thoughts: “Your friends do hate you. You are a bad writer
The Spectrum •

Christmas music gets a bad ‘wrap’

I listen to it year-round. My friends groan when they get into my car in July and Sia’s “Candy Cane Lane” is blasting from my speakers. But it makes me happy, even though it probably shouldn’t. I remember sitting in my room the week before school let out for winter break. I had just gotten home from track practice. Our house was decorated for Christmas and my three-foot-tall artificial tree, passed down from my grandmother, stood twinkling in my alcove window. I was sitting on my bed, doing so
The Spectrum •

First Distinguished Speaker Series lecture rescheduled to Nov. 4

The first Distinguished Speakers Series lecture has been rescheduled to Thursday, Nov. 4 after being postponed last week due to undisclosed circumstances. Winston Duke, a UB alum and actor featured in blockbuster hits like Marvel’s “Avengers: Endgame” and “Us,” was set to kick off the 2021-22 series on Oct. 14, but requested the cancellation with “no explanation,” according to associate director for national/international media relations Doug Sitler. This is not the first time a DSS lecture ha
The Spectrum •

First 2021-22 Distinguished Speakers Series lecture postponed indefinitely

UB’s 2021-22 Distinguished Speakers Series was scheduled to begin this Wednesday, but the first lecture has been postponed due to “unforeseen circumstances,” according to associate director for national/international media relations Doug Sitler. The series’ first lecture was set to feature actor and UB alum Winston Duke, made famous by his role as M’Baku in Marvel’s “Black Panther,” “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame.” He also starred in Jordan Peele’s “Us.” The Trinidad and Tobago
The Spectrum •

Student services to take advantage of

It’s Week 7 of the semester, and you’re a wreck. Your homework is piling up, you’re stressed and you have some mystery flu that’s been circulating through your dorm or apartment complex. We’ve all been there. But luckily, where Counseling Services falls short, Health Promotion, Health Services and UB Recreation are here to pick up the slack. While their services are not a replacement for traditional therapy, here are some free (or nearly free) services for UB students to enjoy: Health Promoti
The Spectrum •

Please don’t call me ‘Oreo’

I don’t look like my family. My caramel skin and dark, curly hair stand out in family photos next to my blonde-haired, blue-eyed cousins. No, I’m not adopted. I’m mixed race, living with my white father in a rural western New York town. I was never uncomfortable with my race as a kid. In fact, I didn’t know that I was different until I was well into elementary school, and my realization then had less to do with the politics of being one of the only non-white kids in town, and more to do with
The Spectrum •

Letter from the editor

I didn’t have class so I spent my day in The Spectrum office, crammed into a crowded conference room with a few other editors, desperately refreshing my email while waiting for an update on COVID-19 at UB. Little did I know that would be the last time I would step foot in The Spectrum office with the rest of our staff — until this semester, when, vaccinated and masked, our journalists will return to 132 Student Union. I am so excited to get back to doing what we all love, which is working tire
The Spectrum •

A Gen-Zer’s take on skinny jeans

For weeks, I’ve chuckled as the and overzealous TikTokers have warned me to prepare for battle. Armed to the teeth with safety pins and measuring tapes, these creators have told me, “We ride at dawn to ensure jeans’ rise-heights around the world don’t fall beneath 11 inches.” And I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of the supposed war brewing between Millennials and Gen-Zers over which cuts of jeans are falling out of style. That is, until I opened my closet one day and shuddered at a p
The Spectrum •

UB President Satish Tripathi talks COVID-19, university rankings

When COVID-19 hit Buffalo, UB President Satish Tripathi saw an opportunity to listen to music, read non-fiction books and catch up on some much-needed sleep. Tripathi, who recently completed his 10th year as the first international-born president in UB’s history, has been busy navigating the pandemic and addressing social justice issues. The Spectrum sat down with Tripathi for about 30 minutes on Monday to discuss UB’s fall 2021 COVID-19 protocols, its commitment to diversifying its faculty an
The Spectrum •

The Student Association is a disaster, but the student activity fee isn’t

Last semester, I voted to make the student activity fee voluntary. And, putting aside the irony of having to specify that I voted “voluntary” last semester, I had every intention of doing so again in Wednesday’s identical referendum. But, despite the Student Association’s fear mongering leading me to want to vote “voluntary” again this week, I changed my mind yesterday. I will vote “mandatory” on the student activity fee, even though I don’t want to give the disastrous and incompetent Student
The Spectrum •

One year later: UB students reflect on COVID-19

March 11, 2020 was a Wednesday. The hustle and bustle of UB’s North Campus continued as classes winded down and students eagerly awaited spring break. COVID-19, which had only recently captured the attention of people across the U.S., was slowly creeping toward the Queen City. Students began expressing concern, especially after reading a story in The Spectrum about a student who recently returned from a trip in Italy, but wasn’t required to be screened for the virus. I was sitting on the lofte
The Spectrum •

Letter from the editor: ‘It’s been a long journey’

Four weeks ago, I sat down in front of my laptop to write this column. But that was before I contracted COVID-19. Before Gov. Cuomo changed the threshold for a campus shutdown. And before the Student Association cycled through not one, not two, but three presidents. So… here we are. Three SA presidents, a 5% shutdown threshold and one deadly virus later. It’s been a long journey to this point. Following the 2019-20 school year, The Spectrum was at a crossroads. We had lost six veteran edito

Football and feminism

Saturday was a big day for college football fans everywhere. At home in Buffalo, we cheered as we watched UB running back Jaret Patterson break record after record, as we’ve grown accustomed to. Patterson was awarded the attention of every major sports outlet, from CBS Sports to ESPN, and was even featured on LeBron James’ Instagram story following his phenomenal eight touchdown, 409 rushing yard performance. Sarah Fuller is a senior medicine, health and society major at Vanderbilt University.

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It’s a lot easier to get an Instagram account taken down than you might think. Last Friday at 8 a.m., I awoke to hundreds of messages from friends, acquaintances and strangers telling me that someone made a fake Instagram, nearly identical to my personal account, offering access to a private Snapchat story where “I” would post explicit photos and nude content. The account, named @reii.mullen (mine is @rei.mullen), was created around 2 a.m. and sported my full name, the university I attend and

‘UB Black faculty are disappointed with UB response to BLM movement’

Sixty-five Black SUNY professors held an unprecedented meeting Monday to discuss their frustration over the way their universities responded to the racial tensions that have exploded across the country since George Floyd’s death on March 25. The meeting also focused on the lack of support African-American and Black studies professors feel SUNY has offered their departments and the lack of black and brown faculty hired and students at their universities. Collectively, they penned a asking for a
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