Oct 8, 2020, Vol. 21, No. 3

SPORTS

FEATURE

Search for New Athletic Director Begins Page 8

October will be JÒsefina Lopez month at CSUDH Page 10

B ULLETI N California State University, Dominguez Hills

csudhbulletin.com

October 7, 2020 • VOL. 27, NO. 3

@dhbulletin

Layoffs Loom as CSUDH Faces Huge Deficit

By Brenda Fernanda Verano | News Editor Additional reporting by Carina Noyola, Staff Reporter Of the approximately 400 faculty members and staff eligible to take a retirement program offered by the university in hopes of staving off layoffs, only nine signed up

before the Oct. 2 deadline.

The Early Exit Program (EEP) is one of the strategies the university is implementing to help offset a projected deficit of nearly $4.6 million

to its base, or permanent, budget.

That deficit is a result of COVID-19-related impacts on the state budget, which faces a $54 billion deficit in

the 2020-21 fiscal year, which began July 1.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a revised budget on June 30 that reduced CSU funds by $299 million. Those

cuts were divided up among the 23 CSU campuses, and CSUDHs’ portion was approximately $7.5 million.

But according to a pre[See DEFICIT, page 5]

A Month Lost but a Center Gained

By Yeymy Garcia | Production Editor Like most events or celebrations taking place during the pandemic, Hispanic Heritage Month has lost a bit of luster this year. With no places where large groups can congregate, the sense of solidarity and shared celebration of being part of a diverse community makes it hard to feel a part of it.

However, for Hispanic/ Latinx students at California State University, Dominguez Hills, this is already the norm. If you look at the events on ToroLink, it’s easy to see the lack of Hispanic Heritage Month (which runs Sept.15-Oct.15) celebrations.

Sure, with school being virtual it’s difficult to organize such events, but even if we weren’t in a pandemic,

students still wouldn’t be able to celebrate as the only event CSUDH hosts for Hispanic students is Dia de Los Muertos every November.

Hispanic/Latinx students are rarely recognized or heard as one collective group.

But, hopefully, that is about to change.

Last semester, The Bulletin covered the development of the affinity center for Latinx students (here, here, and here) organized by the student-led group, El Comite, to address the lack of representation for Hispanic/Latinx students.

“I saw an article ranking CSUDH as the university with the highest number of

Illustration by Nova Blanco-Rico

[See HERITAGE, page 5]

DH Student Housing is Sizzling--for the Wrong Reason

By Brenda Fernanda Verano | News Editor For Nat Ratcliffe and her dog Dodson, living in university housing has not been easy.

Ratcliffe, a junior public relations and advertising major, was already struggling to maintain a schedule and her

focus due to the pandemic.

But her anxiety was compounded in the latest heat wage, because one amenity her dorm lacks is air conditioning.

Ratcliffe is blind, and dealing with the heat wave and

not having air conditioning has compounded the stress of an already challenging semester.

“As a blind person, I don’t have the option to hop into my car and drive wherever I want in order to escape the

heat,” Ratcliffe explained.

Dodson cannot guide or support Ratcliffe,a thick-coated golden retriever, if the heat exceeds 95 degrees.

“So imagine me trying to point all the available fans in my possession at him, just

hoping he could be slightly cooler,” Ratcliffe said. She would up calling a family member who had air conditioning so she and Dodson could escape the heat.

[See HOUSING, page 4]

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WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

PERSPECTIVES

CSUDH BULLETIN

Virtual Learning and Children: Their Mental Health Matters Too

By Melany Ruiz | Assistant Opinion Editor Every morning, I wake up to see my younger cousin at the kitchen table, twirling her hair and shaking her leg in desperation, with her headset on and her laptop keyboard clicking away as she types. Katelynn Ruiz is spending her fourthgrade year of school from the dining room table. Ruiz, like myself, is also an only child so we don’t really have anybody our age to play with, talk to, let alone interact with, besides our parents. Ruiz is stuck and is forced to put up with this new version of school all on her own.

To be quite honest, I feel like these teachers are leaving the children so much homework, on top of their Zoom classes when there is so much chaos surrounding 2020. Ruiz is on the computer for hours. Her very first class starts with math, followed by English, speech therapy, and even P.E.. On top of virtual classes, she has of homework due after her last class at noon, and yes, she even has P.E. homework. I see her doing her push-ups from the living room.

“It’s hard for me. It’s hard to log in, with the meeting ID and the password. Sometimes [students] forget [to log onto Zoom],” Ruiz said.

I am so grateful that I can sit down with her, read those math word problems out loud, and read her favorite series“Judy Moody,” for her daily read-

ing log. She doesn’t have her friends to learn alongside her.

Unfortunately, only children also don’t have the advantage to play with someone else, Ruiz is forced to entertain herself on her own during her free time.

Ruiz has a speech impediment and displays early signs of dyslexia, which can cause her to take longer to finish her homework than other classmates. I can see her frustration after,she is glued to her computer for hours and is prohibited to do the things that she likes, such as watching Netflix, walking her dog, and even riding her bike. I have seen her cry because the whole day has passed by and she still has not completed her homework to go ride her bike.

For her English class, Ruiz was asked to write an “I Am” poem. Here are three sentences from the poem she wrote.

“I wonder when we will go back to school.

I hope we go back to school I dream to go back to school” They all mention school.

Eddie Oliva, a CSUDH student and parent, has a 7-yearold daughter, Layla, who is also an only child that is experiencing the first year of grade school within four walls.

“I feel Layla is losing from the school experience,” Oliva said. “These are some of the most important times of her life, and she’s missing out on

Katelynn Ruiz doing math homework from home. a lot of experiences because of the way schools are being conducted now.”

Layla even saod, “I don’t have school, it’s online. Not the same thing.”

Schools usually provide the materials that you need, such as, computers, internet, books, pencils, paper, etc. Ruiz was fortunate enough that her dad could buy her a computer and other materials, but I think about the kids who don’t have that same advantage.

One research from China showed that 22.6% of children reported depressive symptoms and 18.9% of children reported symptoms of anxiety on the related Emotional Disorders Screening. A second study done in the U.S found that 40.1% of parents reported observing signs of distress in their kids.

Seven months of the school year have been taken away from these children all due to a pandemic that can be difficult for them to understand. There is so much happening in the world.Of course, children may be unaware of these events, leaving their parents in possible distress from not being able to explain it to their kids.

School was a place of distraction and engaging in learning for children, now that has sadly been taken away from them, they have no outlet to release their creativity. Having online school and homework on top of it all, I can only imagine the amount of stress and confusion they must be feeling.

As a college student, online school and work stress me out.

I’ll tell you when my lifestyle shifted from going out all the

Courtesy of Melany Ruiz

time to staying at home, I was hit at an all-time low. Now imagine being a child, not fully grasping the understanding of why they are stuck at home?

Why is school virtual? And why can’t I see my friends? Their mental health matters too.

Ruiz and Layla are stuck to put up with and figure out the education on their own. These elementary school level students don’t have phones, they can’t call or text their friends to “hang out.” They are set apart from the rest of the world and shut out from everything else going around them.

“Layla misses being in school surprisingly. Before virtual learning, she hated going to school,” Oliva said. “Now, she counts the days until she is able to go back and play with her friends.”

A Smudged-Up Window

By Jasmine Nguyen | Editor-in-Chief

The United States boasts of being a melting pot, made up of people from all over the globe who come in search for the American Dream and a better life. These immigrants’ cultures spread and are shared among all citizens, and while it’s a good thing, there is a danger to assimilation: Their children or grandchildren may lose sighrt of the culture they are from.

The loss of heritage is something that I can vouch for.

I’m Vietnamese and Thai but it doesn’t feel that way sometimes.

The homeland my grandparents left seems so far, like a forgotten memory.

The culture, the food, the people I can see but it’s foggy, like a smudged-up window.

My parents were born in the United States and were children of immigrants. My mother’s family escaped to America after the Vietnam War, while my father’s family left Thailand in search of a better life.

I wasn’t really bullied in school for being Asian, maybe a few ignorant comments about eating dogs or being Jackie Chan’s niece; But there was a barrier between my peers and I

due to not relating to the majority Latinx population.

Their families didn’t go to the same supermarkets my grandparents did, they didn’t know what type of snacks I was talking about. They didn’t celebrate Tết ( Lunar New Years ) or Tết Trung Thu ( Mid Autumn Festival ) like me. Not really a big deal, but for six-year-old Jasmine, it was kind of isolating.

So when I finally started to attend my local Vietnamese youth group, I was excited to see other kids, who weren’t my cousins, that looked like me. Not only that, but they ate the same foods as me, and also celebrated the same holidays as me.

Unfortunately, as I grew older, I began to feel isolated at my youth group since most of the kids were first-generation, meaning their parents were the ones who came to the United States while my parents were born and raised here.

My Vietnamese was rusty and awkward compared to theirs, as their parents spoke to them in Vietnamese at home. They could translate easily, while I was used to speaking mostly English at home because it was my parents’ preferred language.

I really only spoke Vietnamese once a week when I would visit my mother’s parents and attend my Vietnamese classes on Saturdays.

My mother didn’t try to avoid speaking to us in Vietnamese, but because she wasn’t fluent in Vietnamese herself, and my father was Thai, she felt speaking to us in English was the easiest way to raise my sister and I. I was insecure. At school, it was obvious that I was Asian, and I was proud of it. But compared to my Vietnamese peers, I felt fake. Even more so with my Thai side due to not speaking the language and only visiting the local Thai temple once a year.

Am I really Vietnamese or Thai if I can’t speak either one of the languages? Or do I not know the culture because I haven’t stepped foot into those countries?

The insecurity seeps in, as my grandfather once asked me, “Why do you say you’re Asian, not Thai when you introduce yourself?”

I didn’t realize I was doing that until he pointed it out. Maybe deep down I felt as though I couldn’t call myself Thai or

Courtesy of Jasmine Nguyen

The writer and her grandmother in an áo dài (Vietnamese dress).

Vietnamese. I was much more comfortable with the broad sense of what it meant to be Asian American.

But as I engaged in more conversations within the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, I realized I wasn’t alone, many others in the AAPI community feel the same way.

I know now that just because I don’t speak Vietnamese doesn’t mean I’m not Vietnamese. It doesn’t mean I’m not a part of Vietnamese culture.

Just because I don’t know every single part of Thai history doesn’t mean I’m not Thai.

I still worry that my family’s culture will die out with me though, soo I’m trying, to learn more about my family’s cultures. Even if it means learning new Vietnamese and Thai words one by one, or just listening to my grandparents’ stories.

It’s small steps, and I feel like I’m playing catch up, that I won’t really be able to fully understand the countries my family left behind.

But I’m hoping that I’ll be able to build something upon what I’ve learned of my family’s past to pass on to my kids in the future.

CSUDH BULLETIN

PERSPECTIVES

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

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When You Wish Upon A Disease: Pandemic Causing More Than Health Issues

By Matt Barrero | Assistant Sports Editor

The second you hear the sweet sounds of Main Street U.S.A. and smell the $5 churros you’re hit with an overwhelming sense of freedom. You know, the kind that elicits nostalgia from when you watched those classic animated movies like “Peter Pan”, “Little Mermaid” or “Bambi” throughout your childhood. It’s a feeling you may not be able to describe entirely, but you know you can’t get it anywhere else, but in the Magic Kingdom itself, Disneyland. I’m a 26-year-old, bearded, burly, male and even I can admit that I run around like a toddler and treat every visit to the park like it’s my first.

Walt Disney famously stated, “Here you leave today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow and fantasy.”

The problem with this quote is that reality overpowers fantasy.

COVID-19 doesn’t give a shit about one’s desire to escape from the outside world or their need to purchase overpriced Mickey Mouse attire or even the excitement to go on the new ride in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Employees, especially, don’t feel any sort of need to return to work with COVID-19 still thriving and some may not have the choice after it was released that the Walt Disney Company would lay off 28,000 employees due to the prolonged closures and capacity limits at open parks.

In the memo sent to employees last Tuesday, Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, detailed the several “difficult decisions” and how workers who were considered part-time employees/non-

Matt Barrero Bullletin

Normally bustling with people, the front gate entrance remains locked up with several signs reminding guests to follow protocols. union would be the ones most affected.

Three individuals – one of which prefers to be anonymous – who were employed at the Disneyland Resort pre-pandemic, understood this possibility since the parks weren’t producing the same revenue as before. Despite that, all three agreed with one certainty: the parks are still not in any position to reopen.

Luis Gomez, 25, a Guest Relations cast member, fears the park is pushing its opening too soon solely based on the fact that COVID-19 will still be around.

“I do not believe that Disney[land] is prepared to open,” he said. “COVID won’t disappear no matter what precautions are taken. The safety of the employees and our guests needs to be the number one priority.”

When asked about the news regarding layoffs, Gomez expressed less concern about his own job security, but more toward his colleagues.

“They can take my position all they want,” Gomez said. “I

was constantly scraping for hours as it is. I just don’t want folks who have built a solid foundation within the company to suffer.”

Savanna Eagleman, 21, a steward at the Smokejumpers Grill in Disneyland’s sister park, California Adventure, agreed with Gomez believing that, despite a drop in total numbers, coronavirus cases are still an issue.

“Disneyland is not ready to open,” Eagleman said. “COVID cases are still bad in Anaheim and we don’t have any idea what safety measures are being put in place. The last time I heard from any of my managers was back in April.”

Eagleman’s job involves cleaning the dishes used for both meal preparations and from guests who have finished their food and understands she is not alone when work needs to be done.

“I’m very big on following protocol not only for my own safety but for anybody around me as well,” Eagleman said. “I don’t feel comfortable return-

ing to a small kitchen where I know I’m not maintaining six feet of social distancing.”

Eagleman is considered a full-time, unionized cast member so the news should not affect her employment however, the fear of not yet knowing for sure is most concerning.

“It makes me anxious,” Eagleman said. “I still could [technically] be one of the ones to not be brought back. It’s just nerve-racking at this point.”

An anonymous full-time steward for the Disney parks mentioned all they can do is simply sit and wait to hear from management if they will be returning.

In speaking about how the parks could handle crowds in general once reopened, they looked at the procedures implemented at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla and how they can be considered somewhat questionable.

“Disney employees are wiping down surfaces like mad,” they said. “But can do little to mitigate the risk of the virus lingering in air-conditioned

places like restaurants, bathrooms and so-called comfort zones; all areas where guests are free to take off their masks.”

With budget cuts and layoffs, Disneyland will have an entirely new look once they are able to reopen. Employees will have to double their workload with the lack of a normal scheduled staff. Park guests will have to get used to wearing face masks all day, scheduling ride times and social distancing every minute of their visit.

One might ask: Will it even be worth it to go? The answer, I think, is no. The Disneyland of old will never feel the same until the world is rid of COVID-19, and even then it might still feel weird.

It is important to understand that eventually we all need to find a sense of normalcy again. Park employees will return to their daily lives of making guests’ experiences more memorable and visitors of the resort will be able to feel that sense of freedom and imagination.

That time isn’t now.

Suit Up and Stock Up On Your Future

By Jonathan Ghattas | Staff Writer

As a full-time college student, I have my fair share of responsibilities, as we all do. With a car payment every month, along with rent, groceries, and other monthly expenses, the idea of saving money seems impossible.

For students like us, our focus generally tends to be on getting assignments done and graduating, but learning to save and invest your money is as important to your future.

Through “the grind”, the ability to set aside some extra cash and build a savings account is doable, and as someone who works two jobs to stay afloat, I can tell you that this goal is achievable.

One of these ways would be to open up a brokerage account and invest into stocks. This can be done fairly easily through the use of various trading applications, such as TD Ameritrade and Robinhood. Personally, I’ve found using TD Ameritrade as the better option, due to the

functionality and logistics of their application.

I’ve always held an interest in the stock market, but never found myself investing and instead would set my money aside in a savings account.

Though, over time as I began to save more I noticed that the bank’s interest rate was yielding nothing more than a few mere pennies every month.

This prompted me to look into other ways in which I could have my money be protected yet be able to provide me with growth in the long term.

The stock market was the answer, and so my research began.

As a first time investor, there are several things that one must learn and digest. Here are two tips that can help in setting up a long-term successful portfolio.

Tip #1: Patience.

Yes, before anything else being patient is the number one rule when it comes to

long-term investing. This is a trait that must be learned and instilled into an investor from the moment you make that very first stock purchase. Without patience, all other fundamentals fall to the wayside if one is not able to keep a level head.

Being patient is key due to the volatile nature of the stock market, as at times you may face down stretches that will truly test your fortitude.

Having a long term view is critical in order to be a successful investor. As one of the most successful investors in history, Warren Buffett made his fortune by playing the long game.

In an interview with CNBC, Buffett shared some tips for first time investors.

“I know what the markets are going to do over a long period of time,” Buffet said. “They’re going to go up. But in terms of what’s going to happen in a day, or a week, or a month, or a year even, I’ve never felt that I knew

it and I’ve never felt that was important.”

Reminding oneself that the goal of investments are longterm is one that must be done daily, and while at times an individual may feel tempted to take profits, this daily reminder will always be the single best piece of advice.

Tip #2: Diversity.

Having diversity in what stocks an individual decides to own is also important when building a portfolio. Additionally, deciding the amount of money to invest compared to the amount to leave in a savings account is also important.

Essentially, it is best to only invest a certain percentage of savings, this way there is less exposure to the market and a majority of the nest-egg is still intact. By doing this, an individual has already diversified their money and can invest freely.

Now when it comes to being

diverse in the type of stocks owned, investing in multiple companies that cover the various sectors that make up the economy is a move to consider.

While it may be wise to put all the money in the technology sector and purchase stocks such as Apple or Microsoft, it can inherently limit gains. By keeping your investments diverse, and adding other sectors such as energy, healthcare, and financials can help limit your exposure to losses.

I understand it may be difficult to set aside money during uncertain times, but I myself started investing when the pandemic began. The uncertainty of the virus forced a huge sell off in the market, which created the perfect buying opportunity for a longterm investor. It’s during these moments that one must look to the market and seek the best stock to smartly invest their money for the long-term.

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WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

NEWS

CSUDH BULLETIN

After Three Decades, ADA Still Matters By: Daniel Tom | Staff Reporter

Thirty years ago, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law by the late George H.W. Bush. It prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities and guarantees the same rights and opportunities that would be presented to anyone else.

In August, California State University, Dominguez Hills’ Student disAbility Resource Center (SdRC) hosted a virtual open house that talked about the law’s history and why it continues to remain relevant in today’s society.

I know how relevant the ADA is. I am someone who is disabled. As an individual who was born two months premature, I was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at a very young age. As someone who has relied on certain aspects of the ADA to help me navigate life, it protects my rights and so much more.

The ADA remains as important today as 1990, as access to facilities for those who are disabled remains challenging, as many buildings, particularly older ones, are not yet up to the code’s standards.

Elyse Ares, a psychology major and Toro alumna from the class of 2011, is also someone who knows how important the ADA is, as well as the need for the

voices of this enormous (26 percent of all adults have some kind of disability) but yet still underrepresented and neglected population to be heard.

Ares began her journey at Cerritos College before joining the Toro family in 2009.

While in school, she was unsure of what she wanted to do after graduating. She spent a period of time as a student worker in the IT department. After declaring her major, she spent time working as a paraeducator within the Bellflower Unified School District.

“I fell in love with the environment and with the people I get to work with on a day-to-day basis,” Ares said.

“I worked in classrooms with students that had moderate to severe disabilities, which is an area of education that is not talked about much.”

Since receiving her bachelor’s degree in 2011, Ares returned to school and received a master’s degree in special education from Whittier College in 2016.

Since then, she has gone on professionally to work with countless nonprofits to inform and spread awareness about the disability community and what they stand for.

Elyse started with Redondo Beach’s Friendship

Foundation in 2016 where she served as a program manager for one year and was later promoted to the program director role.

The foundation’s mission is to support parents and families who have children and young adults with special needs. It provides a safe and inclusive environment where they can enjoy many activities and have a positive experience.

If there’s one specific activity she enjoyed while working with the Friendship Foundation, it’s the annual Pier to Pier Friendship Walk.

The walk began in 2010 where family and friends gather to walk from Manhattan Beach Pier to Hermosa Beach Pier and back in support of children with special needs and education.

“It’s a great way to engage and create meaningful relationships with community members,” Ares said.

She later took her skills to Child360, a nonprofit based out of Los Angeles which bases its mission to improve and expand early learning opportunities to younger children.

Additionally, she spearheaded the design of a new substitute preschool teacher agency the organization utilizes.

Housing From Page 1

”I don’t expect CSUDH or any other universities to shell out thousands of dollars on AC units, but when you live in Southern California, you’d think there’d be some sort of priority hand-in-hand with heating,’ she said.

In mid-May, President Thomas A. Parham announced that, “the availability of on-campus housing will be severely limited and require meeting rigorous thresholds for physical distancing.”

This was a message that University Housing did not take lightly.

According to Lesley Stevenson, associate director of Residential Life, a committee was formed to determine which students would be able to stay on campus. Criteria included if they were foster youth, housing insecure, were enrolled in in-person classes or had a job or leadership position requiring them to be on campus.

A maximum of 168 students could be housed in the one, two or three-bedroom apartments.

By Brenda Fernanda Verano

CSUDH housing facilities currently resemble a ghost town.

Student Housing, as with other parts of campus that will service students this semester, has implemented additional precautions to the university’s existing health and safety protocols.

Some have come during the past few weeks in order to help prevent an outbreak incident similar to what occured to residential students at California State University, Long Beach.

Since Sept. 8, all CSUDH residential students are required to self-screen at the beginning of each day, with the COVID-19 self-Screening app.

In addition, public spaces like the housing basketball courts and housing

lobby remain closed and no outside guests are permitted inside housing facilities.

The only public space that students continue to share are the laundry facilities.

Additional protections were put in place, according to Stevenson, by limiting each bedroom to one student, and no more than two people per unit.

Yet, even with these precautions, living on an empty campus can be challenging for many students.

Another thing that she has been struggling with is getting her groceries delivered.

Ratcliffe must call ahead to the housing office and inform them that a delivery

Courtesy of Elyse Ares

CSUDH Alumnae gives a voice to the disabled community.

Elyse’s body of work has led her to a life of public service. Earlier this year, she was contacted by Long Beach Mayor, Robert Garcia, about pursuing an opportunity to serve the city when it comes to representing the disabled community.

In September, she was appointed one of two seats on the Citizens Advisory Committee on Disabilities where she’ll voice concerns and issues that affect this group in the city where her family has resided for nearly 60 years.

During the coronavirus pandemic, Ares feels the disability community

is more at-risk than ever before.

“Things like technological assistance or factors of transportation (especially in an election year) are things that concern me,” she added, “I want to see more proactivity as some of these resources are offered at too late of a time.”

In her short, but very productive career, Elyse says the biggest lesson she has learned is that opportunity, unlike people, does not see differences.

“We are all alike [but also] different at the same time, and everyone deserves to have the same opportunities,” she said.

is coming. Then she starts the long chain of contacting the driver to instruct them the way, then notify the office again to let them know the driver has arrived and finally make sure the driver can find her.

“Through no fault of any of the RA’s that might be on duty at the time, sometimes they miss my calls,” Ratcliffe said. “Then it’s up to me to blindly, pun intended, give the driver directions to the correct gate.”

As CSUDH plans continue with primarily virtual instructional for spring 2021, it will also continue with the reduced population in campus housing.

For Ratcliffe, while certain things specific to her disability and accessibility are extremely frustrating, she does plan to dorm next semester.

“I want to help CSUDH improve in terms of accommodations and housing, I have ideas on what a more inclusive CSUDH could look like,” she said .

According to Stevenson, any students currently living on campus have an agreement, “for the whole academic year, they will be allowed to live with us until the end of the academic year in May.”

Students currently staying in housing have to sign the “CSUDH University Housing License Agreement Addendum” which stipulates additional and terms that students must meet to live in housing during the 2029-2021 term.

The four-page licensee agreement contains nine terms and conditions that inform students on things like meals, mandatory community meetings, guests, safety measures, and common areas all specific to COVID-19 guidelines. The agreement also talks about refunds for cancellation or revocation and states that CSUDH will provide students with prorated refunds if any housing payments if students were not living in the dorms due to COVID-19 or any related circumstances.

The University Housing and The Emergency Operations Committee (EOC) have also prepared in case anyone in housing test positive for COVID-19, as has already happened.

In terms of precaution, an isolated building of eight single-bedroom/single occupancy apartments has been set aside for on-cam[See HOUSING, page 5]

CSUDH BULLETIN

Heritage From Page 1

students of color, but if that’s not being represented physically on campus...then clearly it’s a problem,” michelle roldan morales, El Comité member and sociology, and Chicano/a studies major, told The Bulletin last semester.

“We’re being used as statistics and faces on pamphlets as opposed to actually getting something done on campus.”

El Comité argued that the campus is made up of more than 60% Hispanic/Latinx students and other CSU campuses such as Cal State Los Angeles, Cal State Long Beach, and Cal State Fullerton have smaller percentages of Latinx students, and yet they have spaces dedicated to Latinx concerns.

“We don’t want to be a photo-op,” Janneth Najera, El Comité member and Chicano/a studies major, told The Bulletin last semester. “I want to walk into the Welch Hall building and talk to an

Deficit From Page 1

sentation part of a campus budget update webinar in August, an additional $2.4 million in mandatory costs spikes that figure to nearly $10 million. Through a series of cost-cutting measures, including stripping the university’s travel budget and identifying vacant positions that will not be filled, the university saved about $5.3 million, but that still leaves a nearly $4.6 million hole.

Since employee salaries and benefits account for about 75 percent of campus expenditures, that is where a substantial part of that money will come from.

“When we’re talking about finding those budget cuts,, especially to the turn of $4.5 million, we can’t just be looking at operating expenses or sort of trimming around the margins,” Katie Robinson the CSUDH budget director said in an EEP information session held over Zoom Sept.

30. “We really need to start discussing [employee] compensation.”

The EEP program,which was announced Sept. 1 and closed enrollment on Oct. 2, offered a three-month

Housing From Page 4

cupancy apartments has been set aside for on-campus residents who have been diagnosed as COVID-19 positive.

According to Stevenson, once students are in isolation they won’t be able

NEWS

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

5

administration that feels, looks, and understands who I am as a brown, queer Latina.

There needs to be that sense that we belong here and that people with power are speaking our language and are passing on our voice.”

Vice President of Student Affairs William Franklin, approved a Latinx center for this semester after El Comité presented its proposal in March but those plans were delayed due to the campus closing. Matthew Smith, interim associate vice president of Student Life, said in an ASI meeting Sept. 25 that the process is under way to both hire a Latinx Center director and to find a physical space to repurpose for the center.

But why has it taken CSUDH this long to open a Hispanic/Latinx center?

CSUDH was meant to help minority groups after the Watts Rebellion in 1965. Then California Gov. Pat Brown switched the location of a new California State College from Palos Verdes to its present location in large part to provide underserved people neighbor-

ing urban neighborhoods with access to a college education.

However, it’s 2020 and CSUDH has yet to provide adequate and inclusive spaces for Black and Hispanic/Latino students. The small Rose Black Resource Center located in a tiny corner in Loker Student Union is not enough, and Hispanic/Latinx students don’t have a center at all.

The California State University Enrollment Dashboard records student enrollment from 2000-2019. In 2000, Hispanic/Latino students made up 29% of the CSUDH population.

That number inched up to 34% by 2008 but then began skyrocketing. Within four years, there were twice as many Hispanic/Latinx students as any other ethnicity, and by 2013 they comprised half the student body.

But those exploding numbers have not translated into more Latinx representation in terms of professors, staff, events, clubs and physical spaces.

Issamar Ochoa, president of the MEChA (Movimien-

to Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán), a senior majoring in Chicano/a Studies, said she did not feel represented when she first started at CSUDH. “During my first few semesters at DH I felt out of place, hardly saw any professors that looked like me [in my GE classes],” Ochoa said. “It wasn’t until I started taking CHS classes that I was able to see representation of black/brown professors.”

MEChA is one of the few Hispanic/Latinx clubs on campus currently active. Others are on ToroLink such as Espíritu de Nuestro Futuro: Immigrant Student Alliance, Hermanas Unidas, and Latino Student Business Association, but they do not have upcoming events listed on Torolink and no consistently active social media.

Ochoa says the problem is that clubs and events are not advertised enough and students don’t know how to look for them.

This will be much harder now that CSUDH is virtual.

Without on-campus club fairs, how will students

severance package to employees.To be eligible, employees must have 10 years accrued in CalPers, the state’s public employees retirement system.

The goal of the program was to entice enough eligible faculty and staff to join in hopes to “mitigate layoffs as much as possible by...incentivizing those employees who feel it would be an appropriate move for them,” Porter said Aug. 30.

If no further action were taken to reduce the $4.5 deficit, the university would incur about $375,000 a month in non-funded expenses, she added.

“Bottom line for us is if we don’t get broad participation within [EEP]...we will definitely go to a layoff option,” Deborah Wallace, the vice president of Administration and Finance said in the Aug. 30 session.

The nine employees out of the approximately 400 eligible employees was a “number lower than anticipated,” according to an email sent to the Bulletin by Karine Shirninian, associate vice president of Human Resources Management.

The low number may have been affected by the amount of the severance package.

Some CSU’s were offering a six-month severance pack-

age, Porter said Aug. 30, but CSUDH is underfunded by the CSU due to the system’s funding mechanism, which allocates money per full-time equivalent students. What that means, she said, is that schools with more part-time students don’t get as much money from the CSU. She explained that CSUDH receives about $9,000 per FTE student, while Humboldt State receives $10,000 and the Channel Islands campus receives $11,000.

That puts those campuses in a different budget position than CSUDH, Porter said, in that they “don’t have to use every single dollar of every year, so they can build up their reserves in anticipation of economic downfalls.”

CSUDH doesn’t have that luxury, and because much of its $5 million in reserves is earmarked for other projects it is unable to use all those reserves to cover its deficit, or to offer a more attractive severance package.

Daryl Evans is a business adviser and retention analyst in the College of Business, and chief steward of the Academic Professionals of California (APC), one of seven employee unions on campus, which represents academic and financial aid advisers, and admissions evaluators.

He said the approximately 150 APC members on this campus aren’t necessarily “fearful” of any impending layoffs.

“Enrollment continues to be strong and when you are hands-on with the students [we offer] that is a necessary service,” he said.

Evans said last week that he wouldn’t recommend the EEP to anyone other than employees who were on the verge of retirement due to the three-month only severance package.

“Some of the schools were talking a six month severance package and a minimum of $36,000,” Evans said. “I don’t like [CSUDH’s] agreement at all but [the university] is not in a position to offer a really good incentive for people to leave. All that money has to come from somewhere, a bank account more of less, and we don’t just have it.”

Each of the 23 CSU campuses must decide on its own how to cut costs. And those colleges with more reserves can dip into them to offset their deficits.

CSUDH’s $5 million reserve, while higher than some CSUs, such as Sonoma State’s reported $2.2 million, is dwarfed by schools like San Francisco State, which is spending nearly $8 million of

its reserves to offset its deficit, roughly 35 percent of its total reserves.

Even with that expenditure, 131 of San Francisco State’s staff employees were notified last month that they will be laid off Nov. 9.

Vice President Wallace said in last week’s informational session that if layoffs do come to CSUDH, first employees would be laid off for lack of work, and then lack of funds.

The APC’s contract calls for less senior employees to be laid off first. Evans said that while he cannot speak for any of the other unions on campus, he “suspects” their contracts are similar.

According to Vice Provost, Ken O’Donnell, the Division of Academic Affairs is working to minimize the potential impact that budget cuts may have on class sizes, acceptance rates, and the amount of classes that will be available to students.

“The provost has directed deans to prioritize class availability for students, even when that means making deeper cuts in other areas, he said.

Additionally, O’Donnell said, cuts in staff will not affect admissions.

“We will continue to accept all eligible students who apply for admission,” he said.

to leave the quarantine space until approved by the campus task force. University Housing will work with students to make sure all their personal items needed for self-quarantine are transported to them. Large moving bins will also be available to students who need them, as residents can’t receive moving help

from other students or staff in order to avoid further exposure.

“We would work with [students] on a case-by-case basis to make sure that they have what they need while they are [in isolation], everything we do will be through a contactless manner no one will be in contact with that student,” Stevenson said.

Stevenson said the biggest priority is to keep students safe and support them.

“The safety of any resident is the primary function and priority of our role and that doesn’t change with us living throughout this pandemic,” she said We still want [residential students] to engage and reach out if they need anything, if they need

someone to talk to.

Students can contact University Housing at housing@ csudh.edu If you are a staff, on-campus student, or residential student and have been exposed to COVID-19 or suspect a possible exposure, call the COVID-19 reporting hotline at 310- 243-2076.

know what clubs are active?

How will the new Hispanic/ Latinx incoming-freshman, who are already struggling to adjust to college life especially if they’re first generation students, feel at home and find the motivation to stay in school?

Ochoa says the lack of promotion means that many Hispanic/Latinx students are largely unaware of any existing programs, events and clubs. That lack of awareness creates the perception that there is a lack of demand, and those programs are not expanded. But if students don’t know about them, how can they ask for more?

That is why many feel that it well past time to have one central place where students could go, surrounded by staff and students who understand them, and will help them find the resources they’re looking for. “[A Latinx center] is something that I wish was at DH when I arrived but I’m glad that it will be here soon,” Ochoa said. “Better late than never.”

6

CULTURE

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

CSUDH BULLETIN

ASI Haunting Computers near you...maybe?)

Nova Blanco-Rico Bullletin

A shot of ASI’s Halloween Haunt from fall semester 2019.

By Anthony Vasquez | Staff Reporter The show must go on! This year’s ASI Halloween Haunt will relocate, leaving the activities field, and make its way onto your screens!

Halloween Haunt, biggest festival brought in hundreds of Toros containing Halloween-themed group activities such as scare mazes, escape rooms, and in partnership with student organizations and clubs created a trick-or-treat space.

So what’s going to change?

“This upcoming year being in a virtual state, what we decided to do was just break it down to which components were receiving the most feedback and which ones students

enjoyed the most,” ASI’s Program Coordinator, Stephen Janes said.

The components which Janes referred to are the escape room which will now be virtual and include time slots that students can sign up for with their friends.

“We also recently found another company that can do a virtual murder mystery, this one’s kind of fun because it can be done in smaller breakout rooms on Zoom...it’s something we at ASI did somewhat recently,” Janes said.“Someone basically downloads an app on their phone the app has an additional set of clues along

with a document you can share on-screen and that was really fun.”

At a recent commuter outreach, Janes asked students what they’d like to see in this year’s haunt and they expressed wanting a virtual costume contest. Janes is still unsure how to move forward with the contest since he wants students to be as safe as possible and prevent any form of online harassment from happening.

Along with these additions, the event could be extended to last more than one day with the addition of a Halloween-themed music night via KDHR Radio’s Twitch, home

to previous events such as this past month’s virtual concert.

The contests will be paired with the possibility of winning gift cards as well.

“We’re definitely looking at incorporating a Halloween-themed music night where we’ll encourage people to join a Zoom room or either record themselves dancing or hanging out to the music,” Janes said.

Other changes for this year’s haunt will be the inability to partner with student organizations because of the lack of in-person connections as well as no pumpkin painting or laser tag. The event would also offer opportunities last year as many

could volunteer/audition to be scare actors or booth helpers for the activities that would take place.

The switch to a virtual platform with timeslots opens up the accessibility for students who previously couldn’t attend.

So when will the events take place?

“Dates are not confirmed yet, but we’re looking to host all events from October 27-29,” Janes said.

For more spooktacular information and updates on the event follow ASI on its social media platforms.

Instagram: @asicsudh Twitter: @asicsudh

New Hulu Original Awakens Awareness

By Christopher Martinez | Staff Reporter When people hear the term “woke” in a socially aware context, they may think of people who do not live in a community where social injustice and racism are a fact of life. But in the new Hulu original “Woke,” the person who is awakened to that reality is someone from that community.

A Hulu original that premiered Sept. 9, “Woke” follows comic sketch artist Keef Knight (Lamorne Morris) as he is enlightened on what it is to be Black in the United States and forced to change his perspective on everyday life. The show has Knight ‘Woke’ as he comes to a realization about police brutality, social issues, and the experience of being Black in America.

“Woke” is an original series that incorporates serious topics into a comedic tale about how one incident changes Knight’s life: going from a cartoonist on the rise to stardom to being falsely identified as a mugger just for being Black. This sends Knight into a spiral and an Awakening that being Black is a crime in itself and that he

Black Lives Matter protesters walking down Bellflower Boulevard in Bellflower this summer. will always be a target.

In the show, Knight’s run-in with the law forces him to confront his inner self, as inanimate objects come to life and talk to him.

Knight has two roommates in the show Gunther (Blake Anderson) and Clovis (T. Murph).

This show is based loosely on the real-life experiences of Keith Knight, its creator, who is also a cartoonist whose work has been featured in The New Yorker and Mad Magazine.

With over 20 years of experience in the business.

This show seems to have

a message of, what can an average person do to help a movement?

In the final episode of the first season, we get the answer: self-empowerment.

The show addresses how much power even the most ordinary seeming person has.

For example, if George Floyd’s death had never been recorded by a bystander, teenager Darnella Frazier, we would have never witnessed the horrible event that led up to his death. But we did and that one video recording sparked months of protest

and, perhaps, America’s long-overdue racial reckoning.

“By using Keith as their protagonist, ‘Woke’ sends a positive message that being passive to social injustice does not make it disappear, but that it is never too late to open your eyes and make a difference and stand up,” Noemy Carrillo, a California State Polytechnic University, Pomona alumni, said.

At least one member of the show’s cast, Blake Anderson, who plays Gunther, is committed to the idea of the series trying to effect

Christopher Martinez Bulletin

change in society. As he told Screenrant.com: “I just always want to encourage the audience to keep an open mind. If you are watching something that is making you feel uncomfortable, maybe that’s all the more reason to approach it and really analyze why it makes you feel that way.

“It’s all just about keeping an open mind, and listening, and being part of the human race, as opposed to protecting yourself from it because it might make you uncomfortable.”

CSUDH BULLETIN

CULTURE

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

7

This Year, Halloween is Hitting the Road

By Yeymy Garcia | Production Editor Before the second wave of COVID-19 hit, the memes circulating on Twitter said, “Please stay home unless you want Halloween to be canceled,” and I said “Please everyone for the love of God, stay home or else I will find you and hunt you down for ruining my Halloween.”

Well...my Halloween is ruined and I’m mad I don’t have someone to blame it on (if only COVID was a person). My annual halloween plans usually involve me, flaunting my limited edition Dia de Los Muertos Mickey ear headband around Disneyland Resort and waiting one hour to ride the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay of the The Haunted Mansion in September. Then in October, me and a group of friends pay to get spooked at Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood and laugh so hard our faces hurt when we see each other get scared.

This year however, Disneyland and Universal Studios are still closed. Halloween Horror Nights was cancelled at the end of July, so I’ve had some time to accept that my halloween is kind of ruined. Kind of, because suddenly, there is hope again.

In order to comply with COVID-19 safety guidelines, smaller companies are hosting drive-thru Halloween experiences. You get to be in the comfort of your own car with your party while you drive through scare zones or watch a performance. If you’re like me and you have the need to celebrate Halloween, here are three events you can experience safely. When participating in any events, please wear your mask and do not leave the house if you are sick.

Stranger Things: The Drive Into Experience | Los Angeles This one is for the Stranger Things fans who may be upset we didn’t get a new season

this year (like me). You will be Halloween event. This year, they immersed into Hawkins and are offering a “drive-in” where drive through Starcourt Mall you get to experience a multiand “witness some unforeseen media story on a 40-foot screen and unusual occurrences.” So if surrounded by horrifying sets you’re a fan of the show, you’ll and scare actors that will help learn new things about Hawkins bring the story to life. that have never been portrayed Tickets vary from $50-$200 on screen. depending on how Hosted by Netflix, many people will Fever, and Secret be in your car Cinema, this event and what seating will run less than you want for the one hour and opshow (Standard, erates from October Preferred, VIP, 2020-February 2021.

Platinum ExperiTicket prices vary from Illustration by Darlene Maes ence). Purchase $60-$160 depending on tickets here. the day, time slot, and the numLocated at the Orange County ber of people in your car (five Fair and Event Center, “guests max). Tickets are selling out will enjoy in the safety of their though, so act fast! To purchase own vehicle a drive-thru where tickets, click here. scare seekers will experience Los Angeles Haunted Hayimmersive story-telling and ride: Live Drive Up Experience terrifying sets” in addition to live | San Dimas (next to Raging performances throughout their Waters) drive and four interactive show The LA Haunted Hayride zones. was already an existing annual Urban Legends Haunt didn’t

“Please everyone for the love of God, stay home or else I will FIND you and hunt you down for ruining my Halloween.””

specify how the interactive show zones will work, but you have to be in your vehicle at all times.

You can roll down your windows, but you must wear a mask and they reassure that all workers will be masked and will not touch you or your vehicle. Speed limit will be three mph with attendants monitoring the route.

Ticket prices vary from $60-$90 plus processing fee depending on the selected day (Wednesdays-Sundays) and time slot (7 p.m-10:30pm). General admission is up to five people per vehicle and Large Group General Admission is up to nine people.

This event is between Oct.1Nov.1. Purchase tickets here.

The holiday season is coming up fast and how we celebrate is going to be very different from what we’re used to, but Halloween can be celebrated as long as we all act responsibly and wear a mask. I don’t know about Christmas though, you all can ruin that one.

Photo courtesy of: www.urbanlegendshaunt.com

Photo courtesy of: www.strangerthingsdriveinto.com

Photo courtesy of: www.losangeleshauntedhayride.com

8

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

SPORTS

CSUDH BULLETIN

Los Angeles: A Surfers Dream

Chris Martinez Bulletin

Local surfer George Wilson, uncle to Ian Leon, catching a wave and riding down the face at Bolsa Chica State Beach in Orange County.

By Chris Martinez | Staff Reporter “The first thing I think of when it comes to SoCal (Southern California) surf, is the nice weather,” Ian Leon said, a local surfer and University of California, Irvine alumni. “The surf is here all year round and the weather is decent for the most part. I know it gets cold in the winter, but isn’t that why they invented wetsuits?”

Southern California is known to many as the surf capital or the birthplace of surf culture. CSUDH is surrounded

by many famous and popular places to surf, many of which are not seen as a surf sport to the average person but to people in love with finding good surf, it is one of best in Southern California.

Just 10 miles away from CSUDH is Manhattan Beach which offers the perfect mixture of combo swells and defined sandbars. Leon mentioned at Manhattan Beach pier, there are some of the all round waves to ride and to have fun.

Fellow Toro Beau Lawrie, majoring in advertising and public relations within the communications department, gave his recommendations for surfing near CSUDH. “The best spots that I know of to surf just west of campus is Manhattan Beach,” Lawrie said. “I plan to surf some more over there next semester.”

Just 19.5 miles away from campus is one of the most legendary and more popular surf spots in Los Angeles County: Venice Beach. Known mostly

for cultivating the culture of sun, sand and surf, Venice is also known for its famous boardwalk. The mellow waves occupying the waters are ideal for beginners or those seeking a relaxed ride.

Other beach breaks in the South Bay area that extend to beginner to advanced surfers are Cabrillo Beach, Lunada Bay, Palos Verdes Cove, Haggerty’s and Sapphire Street in Redondo Beach.

Stepping just outside of LA County into Orange County

you’ll find some of the most famous surf breaks in the world.

“Personally I love to surf in Orange County,” Leon said.

“Some of the most iconic breaks can be found there.

From the freak of nature Wedge in Newport to the smooth cruising waves of San Onofre.”

Some of the most beautiful and best beach breaks around LA County are right in CSUDH’s backyard. All you have to do is chase the waves.

CSUDH BULLETIN

SPORTS

9

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

Search for New Athletics Director Begins Jeremy Gonzalez | Sports Editor

New interim AD Jamie Bouyer will join the chorus of voices that will assist in the appointment of a permanent AD.

The California State University, Dominguez Hills athletics department has dismissed Jeff Falkner from his position as athletics director and announced last week that Jamie Bouyer will serve as the interim athletic director until a permanent replacement is named.

The reason for Falkner’s departure is unknown as William V. Franklin, vice president for Student Affairs, declined to comment on the departure due to it being a personnel matter.

Franklin appointed Bouyer, who returns to begin a second stint as the interim AD after joining the athletics department back in 2012 as the Associate Athletics Director. Bouyer served as the interim director for most of the 2014 calendar year.

“Bouyer currently serves as the Associate Director of Community Standards in Student Affairs and served as the interim Athletics Director for most of 2014,” Franklin said. “Those credentials alone, when compared to others, point to the fact that she is uniquely and exceptionally qualified to resume this role.”

Bouyer helped the athletics department’s transition the last time they were in search of an AD, which led to Falkner being appointed as the permanent AD ahead of the 2015-2016 academic year, holding the position until this past September when he was dismissed.

“It is truly an honor to return to Athletics during this pivotal time of transition for the department,” Bouyer

said, according to GoToros.

“I want to personally thank our president, Dr. Parham, and our VP of Student Affairs, Dr. Franklin, for entrusting me to lead and guide the department until a permanent replacement is named.”

Franklin also said the university will work with the search firm Athletics Staffing and Consulting to conduct the national search. Franklin and Bouyer will work closely with the Academic Senate, Associated Students, Inc., and President Parham to select and charge a committee that will be crucial in the appointment of a new AD. The university will be looking for someone who can provide strategic leadership, direction and oversight over all aspects of the program.

The athletics director will be expected to oversee the recruitment, educational progress and academic success of the student-athletes here at CSUDH. They will also be counted on to set the expectation for coaches and student-athletes that performance in the classroom and earning a degree are the main goals above athletic achievements.

“We are seeking a transformative leader to serve as our next Athletics Director,” Franklin said. “We want to ensure that the campus community and surrounding communities have much stronger ties with Toros athletics. We want to take intercollegiate athletics to the next level in the Toro Nation.”

Toros Athletics Completes Fourth Decade of CCAA Membership

This year will mark CSUDH’s 40th anniversary of joining the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) since 1980.

Taylor Ogata | Staff Writer The California State University, Dominguez Hills athletic program has been around since 1969 and last year, celebrated its 50th anniversary. But this year, another milestone was reached.

The Toros have now been in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) for 40 years, having joined in 1980. Even before then, CSUDH has had a long history of success.

CSUDH is one of 13 universities in the CCAA, which is the most promi-

nent National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II conference in the United States.

The CCAA boasts 154 NCAA National Championships, including the three soccer championships that our past Toros teams have won, which is far more than any other Division II conference in the nation.

Currently, CSUDH offers nine sports: men’s and women’s soccer and basketball, baseball, softball, men’s golf, women’s track and field and volleyball.

When the program first started, there were other sports offered, like men’s

volleyball and badminton as well as women’s cross-country, but those have since disappeared.

Among the 154 NCAA National Championships within the CCAA, the Toros have won four of them: women’s soccer in 1991, men’s soccer in 2000 and 2008 and women’s track and field in 2011.

CSUDH also boasts nine NCAA West Region championships in baseball (1987), women’s soccer (1991, 1997 and 2009) and men’s soccer (2000, 2001, 2005, 2008 and 2009).

The Toros have also won 33 CCAA Conference Titles:

10 men’s soccer, seven women’s soccer, six women’s basketball, four men’s basketball and three each for baseball and softball.

CSUDH has had a total of 134 All-Americans, including 95 individuals.

Three of those All-Americans have been named most decorated and two of them are females: track and field alumnas Carmelita Jeter and Chanel Parker (six First Team awards each).

The most decorated male athlete is men’s soccer alumnae Kevin Gallaugher, who won four First Team awards (two each in 2009 and 2010) as well as a Third

Nova Blanco-Rico

Team and Honorable Mention award in 2008.

In the Toro Athletics Hall of Fame, there are only two inductees so far: baseball alum Jon Alia and men’s soccer alum Kyle Holland.

The CCAA Hall of Fame however, consists of four CSUDH alumni, which are the aforementioned Jeter, Parker and Gallaugher as well as men’s soccer legend Kei Kamara.

All athletic activities are suspended until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Toros look to get back to glory once the pandemic has passed..

10

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

FEATURE

CSUDH BULLETIN

Playwright, Chef, Educator, Activist and So Much More

Courtesy of Josefina Lopez

Josefina Lopez portrat, best known for Real Women Have Curves

By Melany Ruiz | Assistant Opinion Editor Once undocumented, battling mental illness and cultural differences in her Latinx family, Josefina Lopez is now an award-winning playwright best known for her play and film, Real Women Have Curves. Lopez’s a destined and naturally gifted writer from a young age challenges gender and sexuality, topics deemed “taboo” for her family. Not only a writer, but a chef, restaurant owner and an activist Lopez and her work is coming to CSUDH. Lopez recognizes the CSUDH theatre department due to producing one of her plays Confessions of Women From East L.A. She will be hosting a webinar on Oct. 13 to talk more about her play that CSUDH will be producing on November.

Lopez just celebrated 30 years of Real Women Have Curves in San Francisco Playhouse, where the story originated.. The play tells the story of Ana who longs to go to college but is stuck working in a sewing factory.

The play is set in 1987 East Los Angeles and touches on topics based around gender, immigration, and body image. Lopez wrote this story from her personal experience by writing this play at only 20

years old.

Lopez was born in San Luis Potosí, Mexico then emigrated to Los Angeles, Calif. at the age of five and was granted amnesty in 1987 after being undocumented for 13 years and became a U.S. Citizen in 1995.

Lopez was aware from a very young age of the gender differences she faced in her Latinx family. Lopez saw the “machismo” from her father transcend into other women in her life and inspired her to write about her life experiences.

“He just had really old fashion beliefs about women,” Lopez said. “So really it was hard to grow up in a household where you just had to accept that women were second-hand people and you couldn’t challenge that.”

Being undocumented, Lopez became depressed as her wish is going to college was fading away, due to her hesitant father not allowing it and financial setbacks. Growing up with ADD [Attention Deficit Disorder] Lopez was angry at her situation and with her father’s beliefs, she longed for an outlet to express herself. And so, writing became her form of therapy. Writing became a way to manage excessive emotions that took a toll on Lopez

and even helped her combat her suicidal thoughts. As an empath, as Lopez calls herself, she wanted to tell stories and represent the Latinx community after becoming aware of the discrimination and racism she saw at such a young age.

Like her character Ana in Real Women Have Curves, Lopez longed to go to college and worked at a sewing factory at an early age. Many scenes from the play and film were directly from her personal life.

“Women would tell all these jokes,” Lopez said. “My mother was there; my sister was there. We basically laughed a lot, that’s what made it bearable.” Lopez said. “It was so hot in the factory. It just got too hot that I actually, one day, decided to take off my clothes.”

A lot of the events that took place in Lopez’s play overlap her personal life. The play was one of the first productions to bring these themes to the table in the Latinx community.

Lopez wanted to celebrate the accomplishment and work of women who get paid very little in this country. The movie, adapted after the play, also touched on new themes that were not in the original story, such as the concept of “virginity” and sexuality.

In the movie, we get to see Ana have her first sexual experience, related to Lopez’s own empowering experience with a man.

“A woman having a positive sexual experience can be really empowering if she does it for herself,” Lopez said.

“Growing up it was always, ‘oh no if you have sex you’re a whore’ and to me, I wanted to challenge that. You can love your body, and your body be whore’ and to me, I wanted to challenge that. You can love your body, and your body belongs to you, that you dont have to be in love with a man to have sex. You just have to be in love with yourself.”

After not seeing many Latinx actors on the big screen or in the media, Lopez wanted to be the voice and example for the community. Lopez owns a theatre in Boyle Heights, Casa

0101, to provide a space that she didn’t have growing up for aspiring Latinx actors in the community she grew up in.

Now, Lopez is a well-accomplished author, teacher, activist, and even owns a restaurant. Lopez always associated cooking food for men as her mom raised her to serve the household.

“I would always be upset because it would be like, “oh, the men don’t have to do anything? They can just sit down, get fed, and they’re kings just because they have a penis?’”

Lopez said.

The restaurant’s idea came from driving more attention to

the matter.

Now, Lopez continues to write, teach, and produce her stories by sharing her creativity with others. Lopez’s play that CSUDH is producing, Confessions of Women from East L.A., consists of nine stories told by Latinx, women in the United States, specifically East Los Angeles, that challenges Latinas’ stereotypes as “virgins, mothers and whores,” composed with humor and poetry. Lopez is also currently working on a play regarding spiritual realms and the root of phobias, inspired by her hypnotherapy studies and training to be a “Curandera.” “We are going to be able

Courtesy of Ed Krieger

Remembering Boyle Heights Ensemble in Casa 0101 her theatre in Boyle Heights, Casa 0101; she wanted to have a place where people could keep the conversation going after a show produced in her theatre. Casa Fina, her restaurant, was inspired after Donald J. Trump was elected President in 2016. Lopez became depressed and realized that negative thoughts attract negative energy; Casa Fina became a form of protest to publicize her pride in her identity and culture of being Mexican.

“No matter what Trump does, I can choose to love my day; I can choose to love my life. I can choose love,” Lopez said.

Casa Fina has become a cultural center of expressing her culture through food for the community around her and allowed folks who came to watch her shows in her theatre, a space to converse after

to create a new world, and sometimes in order to create a new world, the old world has to be destroyed.” Lopez said, “So right now we are in the process of deconstruction so rather than reacting from fear we have to see what is the opportunity, what is the blessing that’s happening here?”

Lopez’s play produced by CSUDH will be livestreamed for students to watch for only $5 dollars on November 12,13 and 14 at 7 p.m.

Lopez will host her webinar at CSUDH on Oct. 13 at 7:00 p.m.

For more information please refer to the CSUDH Theatre and Dance instgram: https://www.instagram.com/ csudhtheaterartsanddance/ Contact: Stefani Baez, director of Confessions of Women for East L.A. for the CSUDH production. sesparza10@csudh.edu

CSUDH BULLETIN

PHOTO ESSAY

Demand for Change

WEDNESDAY, October 7, 2020

11

Following the death of George Floyd, protesters gathered on June 1, 2020 in Riverside, California to cry out against racial inequities and police brutality.

By Nova Blanco-Rico | Photo Editor

Protestors chant George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery.

American flags lying on the ground can be seen as to symbolize the loss of hodpe in the system that has continued to fail Black and brown peo-

Protesters standing in front of police officers shouted different chants such as “No justice, no peace,” “Say their names,” and “I can’t breathe”.

“George Floyd” and “Breonna Taylor,” were among the names chanted.

Demonstrators walk on American flags conveying their message of unrest.

Protesters were blocked in front of Robert Presley Detention Center by a steel barracade and a line of police officers heavily equipped.

Law enforcement came with pepper spray, rubber bullets, and batons. A plane flew a banner with the words, “We love the police. USA thanks you.”

Cars stopped to support the movement.

Police monitored from rooftoops with cell phones.

Some protesters demonstrated from their cars.