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After Accidentally Eating Iftar Food, Penn Student Deemed “Muslim Enough” to be Deported by ICE

(03/28/25 5:56pm)

Immigration officials announced late last Wednesday that they had detained Bartholomew Xavier Paul White III (W ‘27) after he inadvertently ate an Iftar meal at English House Dining Hall (KCECH) after sundown. The news comes amidst reports of immigration raids at Columbia University, where students are allegedly being detained for involvement in pro-Palestinian protests, speaking Arabic in public, or otherwise looking vaguely ethnic. Witnesses say that as White entered KCECH, he asked a service worker “where all the American food was” before taking a bite of a lamb kofta. Upon doing so, twenty tactical-gear-equipped ICE officers deployed smoke grenades and rappelled down from the balcony above, tackling White and beating him senseless with batons.


The Daily Pennsylvanian to be 100% Chinese by 2050

(01/31/25 3:56am)

A newly released diversity report from The Daily Pennsylvanian suggests that, in spite of its best efforts, the storied student publication is on track to be entirely Korean by the middle of the century. Statistical regressions indicate that for the past twenty years, the Thailandese proportion of the newspaper staff has been monotonically increasing. Although members of the non-PoC (People of China) community at The DP have voiced their concerns in recent years, those voices have increasingly been replaced by more Himalayan Sherpas.


Under the Button Officially Endorses Whichever Candidate You Were Planning on Voting For

(11/04/24 3:14pm)

This election will be the most important one in our lifetimes. It will be even more important than the 2032 presidential election, or possibly even the 1924 election, because this election will be the one where we defeat fascism/communism/the gay agenda/the patriarchy at the ballot box — once and for all. We need to choose progress over stagnation; people over profits; stability over chaos; profits over people; we need to choose [INAUDIBLE MUTTERING] to be the next President of the United States.



Report: After Budget Cuts, Penn East Asian Studies Department Can Only Afford to Study Local Sophomore Lucas Kim

(09/03/24 2:00pm)

Earlier this week, the Penn Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations announced that it would only have the funding to study Lucas Kim (E ‘26) amidst a broader wave of budget cuts affecting humanities and social sciences departments nationwide. Kim, whose parents were born in Seoul and moved to the United States in 1997, was specifically chosen for his ability to provide insight into the unique practices and customs of the Chinese people. Even though he only speaks English (but took a few semesters of Spanish in high school), Kim has so far been the subject of publications such as “Measuring the Sensitivity of Japanese Consumers to Inflation by Tracking Lucas Kim’s Valorant Purchases” and “Queering Representations of the East Asian Diaspora: Conversations with Lucas Kim, a Heterosexual Man.”


Breaking: The Weather is Beautiful and Nothing Could Go Wrong This Week

(05/06/24 2:00pm)

PHILADELPHIA — As the sun rose upon the sleepy campus of the University of Pennsylvania, with birds chirping mellifluously amidst the backdrop of a marvelously azure sky, the Penn community reported a eudaimonic feeling of peace. Cheery “hellos!” and “good mornings!” were present throughout campus as students settled into their 8:30 AM lectures, with all present reflecting upon the fact that out of all possible worlds, the one we currently inhabit is the most promising one there could ever be. Spontaneous cheers could be heard after the University decided to cancel finals week, inviting undergraduates and professors alike to “enjoy the weather” and “take a well-deserved break.”


OP-ED: Sorry I Took That $90k. It Went to a Better Cause.

(03/01/24 6:18pm)

If you haven’t heard about it in the news recently, the Wharton Graduate Association is in a little bit of hot water. Our mishandling of charity funds have strained our relationship with the greater Philadelphia community. My peers are losing confidence in our ability to serve as an effective student government, and several of our members have already resigned in protest. The Penn community’s shaken trust in our leadership threatens our ability to hold successful Fight Nights in the future. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Philadelphia have even gone so far as to plead with us, telling us that “[the] kids really need this money.” And even if no one’s saying it, the question’s looming large in everyone’s minds: Are we really doing this for the kids? Or are we just in it for the cash? As controversy brews, I realize we haven’t been transparent with the Penn student body; my guilty conscience implores me to speak out.


Has This Generation Gone Too Soft? Not Me, Thanks to Himsᵀᴹ

(02/27/24 5:00pm)

If you’ve ever worked with kids in your life, you’ll know that they’re quick to dub every social interaction they don’t like “bullying” — anything from a glancing side-eye to hushed whispers in the back of a classroom to a well-timed swirly against an unsuspecting nerd. But this wasn’t always the case. In fact, what we now jump to call “bullying” and “ostracisation” used to be considered valid and even necessary forms of social correction. Indeed, schoolyard bullies perform a socially valuable form of public service as we aim to raise a diverse, well-socialized population that takes out its repressed childhood traumas against its peers in the boardroom.


Report: I Still Could Have Gotten Into Penn Even If I Wasn’t Legacy

(02/02/24 12:27am)

PHILADELPHIA, PA — A new report released this morning from my chauffeur, James, suggests that I could have still gotten into the University of Pennsylvania even if my parents weren’t Penn alumni. The study was commissioned on my daily drive from The Chestnut to Pottruck after I asked James if I would ever live up to my parents’ legacy or if I would be yet another washed-up nepo baby, wandering driftlessly through life with lots of money but no purpose. “Of course, sir,” the report begins. “Even if your father hadn’t donated enough money to get that small reading room in Stouffer-Mayer named after you, I am perfectly confident you could have gotten into the University on your own merits.” 


SPONSORED: Class Board 2026 Offering Free Professional Backshots in ARB This Saturday

(02/02/24 10:34pm)

If you missed out on getting your picture taken last weekend, you’re in luck! Due to popular demand, the Penn 2026 Class Board is organizing another round of free professional backshots this Saturday. Whether it’s for Linkedin, or a job application, getting your back blown out is always a good idea! Backshots are first-come, first-serve from 2-4pm. Edgers will not be tolerated.




After SFFA v. Harvard, What’s Next for Affirmative Action at Penn? We Asked Two White Guys and the Daughter of a Shanghainese Billionaire

(09/07/23 4:48pm)

On June 29th, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States decided in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard that race-based affirmative action violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, effectively ending affirmative action in the U.S. as we know it. It’s been over two months since the decision, and as the Class of 2028 prepares their college applications in an uncertain, post-SFFA landscape, Under the Button sat down with three Penn students from all walks of (upper-class) life and asked:


Amid Penn Biden Center Controversy, University Denies It is Housing Chinese Students

(01/26/23 8:33pm)

Last week, the United States House Oversight and Accountability Committee sent a letter to University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill requesting information on any and all students living in campus dorms of Chinese descent or with “foreign-sounding last names in general.” The letter, signed by committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), alleges that the University received “millions of dollars from anonymous Chinese sources” after the foundation of the Penn Biden Center and continues to provide “material support” to the Communist Party of China by “allowing Asians” on campus. The letter, merely the latest development in a string of ongoing crises regarding disputed ties between the People’s Republic of China and the Biden Center, comes just days after Congressional Republicans accused Penn of offering Chinese language classes.


Local Chinese Couple Discover They Are From Neighboring Provinces of Rhode Island and Connecticut

(01/22/23 4:04pm)

Mild fascination abounded in a campus dorm room this evening as local Chinese couple Liu Jiayi (C ‘25) and Tommy Wang (W ‘25) discovered that their familial lines descended from the neighboring provinces of Luōdé Dǎo (Rhode Island) and Kāngnièdígé (Connecticut). “Wait, what dialect do you speak at home?” asked Liu. “Western New England English,” Wang replied to her relative amazement. “That’s so cool!” she responded.


Penn Student's English Quite Good for a New Jerseyite

(01/22/23 4:10pm)

A local writing seminar was left in shock last Tuesday after hearing an intranational student introduce himself during an icebreaker. Arthur Hayward (C ‘26), who originally hails from the distant city of Newark, New Jersey, stunned his classmates as he expounded upon his name, major, and one (1) fun fact in impeccable Standard American English. 


Damnit! Local Student Rehearses Question Three Times Before Raising Hand, Still Fucks Up

(09/04/24 2:00pm)

A scene of utter humiliation played out in an intermediate economics class last Friday when, in spite of her best efforts, local student Jane Tsao (C ‘24) raised her hand in the middle of class to ask a question and then proceeded to completely butcher whatever it was she had to say. Witnesses say that Tsao rehearsed her question thrice under her breath before raising her hand, only to sputter out something entirely unintelligible, completely destroying any credibility she had remaining.


Counterpoints: "Penn Must Contend with its Complicated Legacy of Displacement" vs. "Sucks to Suck, That's the Free Market"

(10/28/22 5:49pm)

Editor’s note: At Under the Button, we pride ourselves on providing our readers with balanced coverage of hot-button issues. This week, we’re proud to share the op-eds of Omar Brown (C ‘24), a sociology major from Michigan who lived in public housing until his freshman year of high school, and Jack Rutherford III (W ‘26) of New York, who experienced displacement when his family moved from their penthouse in Brooklyn to a bigger penthouse in Manhattan.


Penn Tops "Most Cartoonishly Evil Alumni" List for Third Year in a Row

(10/24/22 5:45pm)

Penn bested Harvard and Columbia yet again this week after being ranked first in the U.S. News and World Report’s “Most Cartoonishly Evil Alumni” list. The ranking, compiled by representatives from the NRA, McKinsey, and Nestle, scored the University’s alumni on factors like hedonism, self-interest, and mendacity. While U.S. News editors congratulated the University for its strong network of alumni working as fossil fuel executives and consultants for authoritarian regimes, they did note that Penn’s scores had been slipping for some time.


Magill Announces Fossil Fuel Divestment, Crosses Fingers Behind Her Back

(10/20/22 4:36pm)

Renowned prankster and part-time University President Liz Magill announced early this week that Penn would divest its $20.7 billion endowment from any and all holdings in fossil fuel assets as she held her fingers crossed behind her back. While she attempted to stifle a snicker, she explained the rationale behind her long-awaited decision.





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