Issue 59 | Spring 2016 by InterActivist

THE

INTER ACTIVIST

WRITING FOR PROGRESS

LATINO MIDWEST PAGE 12

A LOOK INTO PRIVILEGE Issue 59 | Spring 2016

IA Writing For Progress

The InterActivist Magazine – Spring 2016 Having been raised in an upper-class, predominantly white community, I openly recognize the privilege I have been handed in society. However, I do not feel guilty for having done nothing to earn those privileges. Rather, my privilege empowers me to subvert the system of oppression and to encourage others to do the same. According to feminist and anti-racism activist Peggy McIntosh, “Privilege exists when one group has something of value that is denied to others simply because of the groups they belong to, rather than because of anything they’ve done or failed to do.” This semester’s issue focuses on discussing privilege that exists on Ohio University’s campus, in the surrounding Appalachian region and on a national and global level. While this issue offers various perspectives of people in different social climates, we recognize not all characteristics of identity that can afford privilege have been discussed.

In our cover story, “Latino Midwest”, Photo Editor Eli Hiller explores the Columbus neighborhood of Mann’s Mobile Home Park. With a spike in Hispanic population growth of Columbus, the community faces challenges of language barriers, unequal education rights and limited employment options. Fabiola Garcia, a Columbus resident, shared the story of her family’s move from Mexico City to Columbus and the hardships that have followed. In “Life, Love, and Lily” Lucas Reilly writes about Earl Anderson and his newborn daughter Lily. After a month of drug abuse with the intention to end his life, he said a phone call from his ex-girlfriend regarding her pregnancy altered his life for the better.

THE STAFF Editor-in-Chief Maddi Rotunda

Managing Editor Jessica Hill

Creative Director Rachel Rogala

Photo Editor Eli Hiller

Copy Editor Natalie Esson

Writers

Tess Hickey Hannah Mullin

Designers

Jaci Mullally Lauren Settlemyre Taylor Gardner

The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, has been an ongoing topic of media coverage. While not as highly reported, a similar problem concerning water contamination is occurring in the Appalachian region of Ohio and surrounding areas. In “Our Water is Killing You? Not Our Problem,” Hannah Mullin explores the water crisis incident in Parkersburg, West Virginia and a company’s negligence to fix the problem.

Photographers

I want to thank our writers, photographers and designers for all the hard work and dedication put into this issue and to you for reading.

ON THE COVER:

-Maddi Rotunda, Editor-in-Chief

FOR MORE THAN 10 YEARS, THE INTERACTIVIST HAS COVERED, REPORTED AND ENDORSED SOCIAL JUSTICE AND PROGRESSIVISM IN SOUTHEAST OHIO. It is the second-oldest student publication in the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. It is produced with funding from the OU Student Senate’s Student Activities Commission (SAC), the Generation Progress arm of the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C., reader donations, advertising revenue and fundraising dollars.

Dani Bartley Lucas Reilly Carolyn Rogers

Antonio Francisco Zapata Ramirez sends money weekly to his two daughters, Hadassa Guadalupe, 14, and Carol Judy, 6, who live in Zacatecas, Mexico. He has lived in the United States for 17 years and every few years he’ll pay a visit to his family when he has the finances to afford it. It’s very common for Latino men to travel to the U.S. and send money home to their wives and children.

In this issue... 4

Veganism and Privilege

Vegan on a Budget

Green is the New White (And Privileged)

Latino Midwest

Life, Love and Lilly

24 A Global Perspective to Feminism 26 Our Water is Killing You? Not Our Problem

COVER PHOTO: Eli Hiller COVER DESIGN: Rachel Rogala

The InterActivist is a socially progressive counterculture magazine published once a semester by the student organization InterActivist, covering issues from or related to the Southeast Ohio area, specifically Ohio University, the city of Athens and the surrounding Appalachia. A belief in humanistic equality regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, orientation or biology is core to InterActivists as is a fierce desire to challenge the norms. Since its inception, The InterActivist has evolved to encompass conversation on all the latest in facets of the innovative Athens culture – from art, to music, to science, to religion – and how it relates to its residents and the world at large. The InterActivist’s mission is to speak loudly for the voices that would otherwise not be heard. Although the InterActivist staff reserves the right to reject submissions, the views expressed in The InterActivist belong to individual authors and do not necessarily coincide with the positions of its publishers or co-sponsors, the magazine’s staff or its contributors. For information on joining our staff or submitting work, please email theinteractivist@gmail.com or visit us at www.athensinteractivist.org.

2 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

A T H E N S I N T E R A C T I V I S T. O R G | 3

Veganism and Privilege story by MADDI ROTUNDA photos by DANI BARTLEY

Veganism was once considered a tradition practiced only by activists, the religious and the health-obsessed. However, recently the practice of eating vegan has grown exponentially, with celebrities such as former President Bill Clinton and television host Ellen DeGeneres partaking in the growing trend. Since veganism has entered the mainstream, nonetheless, the question must be raised as to whether the vegan lifestyle is one for only the privileged of society. To answer this question, I drove with vegan couple, Greg and Terra Milo of Akron, to Krieger’s Health Foods Market, a locally owned and vegan-friendly grocery store located in Cuyahoga Falls. According to Greg, Krieger’s offers the best vegan foods for the most economically sound prices. Terra, who graduated from Ohio University in 2003, has been vegan for about seven years and vegetarian for 19. Greg moved in the direction of a vegan lifestyle around the time that he met Terra. Greg said eating at home vegan has always been easy, “whether it was 20 years ago or last year. In terms of prepared and processed foods, that has gotten easier. But at the same time you can heave unhealthy vegan food.” Greg and Terra spend an average of $2.38 per meal per person, which amounts to roughly $100 spent on food per week. The couple said living a vegan lifestyle is one of the most economical choices a person can make. While in college, Terra was vegetarian and she recalls her dining hall experience at Ohio University to be miserable. Her diet consisted of a daily routine of salad and a grilled cheese sandwich. Since then, Ohio University’s Culinary Services has made progress in the variety of vegetarian and vegan options it serves, earning an “A” rating from Peta2’s Vegan Report Card. However, Moira Snuffer, a student who used to work in the Culinary Services, said on Peta2’s website about the integrity of the Culinary Services’ claims. “Things labeled as vegan are not. Looking at the packaging they contain egg or milk ingredients…Most workers don’t know what vegan is, including the managers…I’m happy I do have a few options but I feel the school could do better on being truthful.” Athens resident and Ohio University graduate of 2002 Corrie Callaghan also made the switch to a vegetarian diet in 2002 and vegan diet in 2012. Callaghan and her husband Peter moved to Athens from Chicago in September 2015 in hopes of starting a tofu company. “We were thinking about where we wanted to do it and Athens rose as a natural choice,” Callaghan said. “We were done with the big city life and Athens is a very vegan-friendly community.” Callaghan said Athens has a collaborative group of local businesses that support each other. Callaghan noted some of

Left: Corrie Callaghan prepares a vegan meal for herself and her husband. Top: Peter and Corrie Callaghan buy many of their ingredients at Bulk Foods Depot. The couple uses substitutes such as nutritional yeast instead of cheese. Right: Peter Callaghan slices bread for a vegan meal.

her favorite places to buy vegan products in Athens are the Athens Farmer’s Market, The Farmacy and Bulk Foods Depot. Callaghan and Peter spend approximately $100 per week in groceries, and she believes they could spend less if they made it a goal. “We choose to buy a lot of local and organic and that’s going to add some cost over other options but we think it’s worth it,” Corrie said. From her experience, cooking meals from scratch significantly reduces the cost. “If you’re trying to buy a pre-made vegan pizza at the store, that’s going to be way more than if you make a pizza at home yourself,” she said. Both the Callaghans and the Milos spend a small sum of money in purchasing food. Yet, most of their cost-saving is due to the fact that they have the time to cook vegan foods. “Can working class people eat vegan? Yes,” Greg Milo said in an email. “Most everyone I hang out with is working class and we all, if we wanted to, have time to prepare meals for ourselves. If I had to work two jobs and take kids to school and prepare meals, that’d be quite different. Could it be done? I honestly don’t know.” There is also much to be said about the privilege in the choices we as Americans can make about the food we consume. “Meat, even in the U.S., can be a status symbol,” Greg said. “In some areas, everything is vegan. …Most diets throughout time were pretty heavy vegan, because meat was a luxury. …The vegan diet gets labeled a ‘Hollywood thing’ just like academics get labeled the ‘liberal elite.’ It’s a label used by some to create an image in people’s minds in order to discredit the concept.” v A T H E N S I N T E R A C T I V I S T. O R G | 5

Vegan on a Budget

The vegan lifestyle can be tailored to accommodate most people’s lives, regardless of income. Many staples of a vegan diet are affordable and can be craftfully incorporated into tasty meals. We included some of our favorite vegan recipes to help you save money and live the healthy lifestyle you deserve.

SWEET POTATO CHICKPEA BUDDAH BOWL APPROXIMATELY $3 PER SERVING MAKES 2-3 SERVINGS

photos by DANI BARTLEY

MEXICAN NOODLE SOUP APPROXIMATELY $0.68 PER SERVING | MAKES 10-12 SERVINGS

2 tbsp olive, melted coconut or grape seed oil 1/2 red onion, sliced in wedges 2 large sweet potatoes, halved 1 bundle (227 g) broccolini, large stems removed, chopped 2 big handfuls kale, larger stems removed 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper 1 15-ounce (425 g) chickpeas, drained, rinsed and patted dry 1 tsp cumin 3/4 tsp chili powder 3/4 tsp garlic powder 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper 1/2 tsp oregano (optional) 1/4 tsp turmeric (optional) 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and arrange sweet potatoes and onions on a bare baking sheet. Drizzle both with a bit of oil, making sure the flesh of the sweet potatoes are well coated and placed skin side down on the sheet. 2. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from oven flip sweet potatoes and add broccolini. Drizzle broccolini with a bit of oil and season with a pinch each salt and pepper. 3. Bake for another 8-10 minutes, then remove from oven and add kale. Drizzle kale with a touch more oil and season with a pinch each salt and pepper. 4. Bake for another 4-5 minutes then set aside.

4–6 large tomatoes, cut into large cubes 1 medium white onion, cut into large cubes 1 clove garlic 2 tbsp. vegetable oil 1 16 oz.-pkg. cut fideo or 1 16 oz.-pkg. angel hair pasta, broken into 1-inch pieces 32 oz. vegetable broth 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tbsp. pepper 2 tbsp. oregano 2 tbsp. cumin Chili flakes, chopped serrano peppers, or diced jalapeños, to taste (optional) Cilantro, soy sour cream, and sliced avocado, for garnish (optional)

1. In a blender, purée the tomatoes, onions, garlic and oil. Transfer to a large pot and cook over medium heat. 2. Add the noodles, broth, salt, pepper, oregano and cumin. For a spicier soup, add the chili flakes, serrano chilies, or jalapeños. Cook for approximately 12 to 15 minutes then simmer until the noodles are tender. 3. Garnish with optional toppings as desired.

6 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

5. While vegetables are roasting, heat a large skillet over medium heat and add chickpeas to a mixing bowl and toss with seasonings. 6. Once hot, add 1 Tbsp oil and chickpeas and sauté, stirring frequently. If they’re browning too quickly, turn down heat. If there isn’t much browning going on, increase heat. I found 10 minutes total at slightly over medium heat was perfect. 7. Once the chickpeas are browned and fragrant, remove from heat and set aside. 8. Prepare sauce by adding tahini, maple syrup and lemon juice to a mixing bowl and whisking to combine. Add hot water until a pourable sauce is formed. Set aside. To serve: Slice sweet potatoes into bite size pieces. Divide vegetables between 3 serving bowls and top with chickpeas + tahini sauce. Best when fresh, though leftovers will keep for a few days in the fridge.

MAC AND CHEEESE APPROXIMATELY $2.75 PER SERVING | MAKES 5 SERVINGS

t e g , n o come

ACTIVE! are you passionate about progressive change?

work with the INTERACTIVIST!

3 1/2 cups elbow macaroni 1/2 cup vegan margarine 1/2 cup flour 3 1/2 cups boiling water 1-2 tsp. salt 2 tbsp. soy sauce 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder Pinch of turmeric 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1 cup nutritional yeast flakes Paprika, to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

designers, photographers, writers, videographers, coders copy editors, and activists of all kinds are welcome!

2.Cook the elbow macaroni according to the package directions. Drain and set aside. 3. In a saucepan, melt the margarine over low heat. Whisk in the flour.

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s at

4. Continue whisking over medium heat until smooth and bubbly.

theinteractivist@gma

5. Whisk in the boiling water, salt, soy sauce, garlic powder and turmeric. 6. Continue whisking until dissolved. Once thick and bubbling, whisk in the oil and the nutritional yeast flakes. 7. Mix 3/4 of the sauce with the noodles and place in a casserole dish.

il.com!

8. Cover with the remaining sauce and sprinkle with the paprika. 9. Bake for 15 minutes. 10. Broil for a few minutes until crisp.

OUInterActivist 8 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

CONTACT US! Maddi Rotunda, Editor-in-Chief // maddirotunda@gmail.com Rachel Rogala, Creative Director // rr405813@ohio.edu

GREEN

is the new

WHITE (and privileged) story by TESS HICKEY

graphics by RACHEL ROGALA

Imagine a life where all steaks come from pasture-raised cows on small, local farms; all bread is made from locally grown, stoneground grains; all tomatoes are of heirloom variety; all coffee of fair-trade variety. A life where there is no need to choose between conventional or organic; there exists no such thing as a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation; food is not the leading cause of the most prevalent diseases in the nation. A life where all food is natural, good and fair. This life sounds like the dream of a modern food activist in the United States. The food movement has emerged in recent decades as a global effort to promote local, organic and fairtrade foods; accessibility of these foods by all members of society; fair treatment and payment to farmers; animal rights and welfare and environmentally sustainable agricultural practices.The movement began in the 1970s as a response to growing concerns of the ramifications of our industrialized food system. Notable pioneers of the food movement include: Michael Pollan, a food journalist and author of The Botany of Desire, The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food; Eric Schlosser, an investigative journalist and author of Fast Food Nation; Joel Salatin, an alternative farmer in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and Alice Waters, the owner of Chez Panisse, a restaurant in Berkeley, California, accredited with starting the national organic and local food trend in the early 1970s. These individuals share a common passion for high-quality food that supports local businesses, environmental sustainability and oldworld cooking traditions. Yet, they also share a common tendency to analyze the food system through a narrow scope that focuses mainly on the troubles of white, upper-middle class Americans. “In terms of the overall picture of farming and food in our society, white people have had a lot of privilege and domination over that sector,” Anna Rachel Terman, an assistant professor of sociology at Ohio University, said. “That’s made it difficult to promote diversity of voices in food justice movements.” Proponents of the contemporary food movement often rely on a romanticized image of the past when describing a solution to the current industrialized food system. Indeed, visions of cows happily munching on grass in the sunshine, homegrown raspberries freshly picked from the backyard and mom cooling a loaf of homemade bread on the windowsill are compellingly nostalgic images— yet this longing 10 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

for the past is not equally felt by all identities in our society. “Access to land is something that’s very stratified in our country,” Terman said. Terman explained how both racial minorities and women have not had access to land in the same way that white men have inherited, causing there to be an unequal distribution of access to agricultural heritage and knowledge. That makes it difficult for those groups to be equally involved in the conversation surrounding the modern food movement. “Our food system is founded on racism, and in a lot of ways it’s also founded on sexism,” Daniel Kington, a sophomore studying English and coordinator of Real Food Challenge at OU, said. “For there to be a food movement… it has to be about the ways that our food system marginalizes already marginalized groups of people.” When it comes to diet, health and food access, there are great disparities among different racial groups in the United States, and those differences are often neglected in the rhetoric of the modern food movement. According to “The State of Obesity,” a collaborative project of the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, more than 75 percent of blacks in the United States are obese or overweight, compared to 67.2 percent of whites. Death rates from heart disease and stroke are nearly twice as high among blacks as whites, and blacks are almost twice as likely to have been diagnosed with diabetes as whites. In terms of access, 25 percent of black families are food insecure, that is, not having consistent access to adequate food due to lack of money or other resources, compared to 11 percent of white families. Predominantly black neighborhoods have on average 2.4 fast food restaurants per square mile, compared to 1.5 in white neighborhoods, according to a study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Issues concerning diet and food access are often linked to one’s socio-economic class, as shown in a 2014 report from The Harvard School of Public Health. The report found that a better quality diet was associated with a high socioeconomic status, and the gap between the highest and lowest levels of socioeconomic status has increased over time. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, blacks experience some of the highest rates of poverty in the country— 25.8 percent compared to 11.6 percent of whites. Thus, race is inevitably tied to one’s diet, health and access to nutritious food and cannot be left out of the conversation when

discussing justice within the food movement. “If [the food movement] is ever going to be successful at instituting real change, then it has to be intersectional and has to focus on the ways that food issues are deeply intersected with issues of sexism and racism,” Kington said. In addition to racism, issues of sexism are often neglected in the modern food movement. In her 2014 article published in Agriculture and Human Values, Rebecca L. Som Castellano, assistant professor of sociology at Boise State University, said typical practices of the modern food movement often fulfill racial and class hegemony. That limits participation in the movement by those who are not white or upper-middle class. Yet, despite the increasing awareness of these inequalities within the food movement’s practices, gender inequality has received little attention and continues to persist. According to Castellano’s research, women have historically held the highest responsibility for food provisioning in our society. Even as women began to participate more in formal employment throughout the twentieth century, they still remained the dominant providers of typical household work, which includes food provisioning. Castellano notes that even in egalitarian relationships, women often remain responsible for the completion of household work. “This is in part, if not in whole, because of gender socialization,” Castellano said in an email. “Girls tend to be taught to be caregivers, and are taught the skills of food provisioning. By enacting these norms around planning meals, procuring food, and preparing meals, we further reinforce these norms.” According to Castellano’s article, masculinity is typically associated with paid work, which is historically more valued in American society. Traditionally feminine tasks such as food provisioning are not paid and are thus less valued. Consequently, men often resist partaking in traditionally feminine tasks. When women partake in those tasks, they are reinforcing gender norms and consequently male privilege and power. In her article, Castellano set out to confirm whether or not alternative food networks perpetuate gender inequality. Castellano defines alternative food networks as those “exemplified by organic, fair trade and local foods, and promote forms of food provisioning that are ‘corrective’ to conventional agriculture and food (agrifood) systems.” In other words, they represent the main practices of the modern food movement. Using research from the 2012 Ohio Survey of Food, Agriculture

and Environmental Issues, Castellano discovered that alternative food networks perpetuate gender inequality. Castellano found that among alternative food network participants, women, compared to men, are more likely to be responsible for the labor of food provisioning, spend more time in food provisioning and engage in more food provisioning from scratch. While many practices of the modern food movement may enable positive change within our industrialized food system, they continue to allow food provisioning to remain a gendered act, thus perpetuating gender inequality and patriarchal privilege. Castellano said while proponents of the food movement, such as Michael Pollan, work to promote positive change within the current food system, they often fail to acknowledge gender inequality within the system. Yet, Castellano notes that “leaders like Pollan are really well positioned to help create change towards the better when it comes to more equally distributing the labor of providing food for families.” When discussing gender inequality within the food movement, Kington said instead of focusing on the way local, home-grown, and made-from-scratch foods were achieved in the past, we should think about how we can build communities capable of doing those things together, without marginalizing anyone. “Instead of romanticizing the past,” Kington said, “we should be thinking about how to create a new future.” When asked how individuals could become more involved in issues of intersectionality within the food movement, Kington suggested examining food justice through a broader perspective than how it is typically perceived. “We need to be taking an intersectional approach when we think about issues with the agrifood system,” Castellano said. “That is, we should be thinking about how gender, race and ethnicity, social class, geography and more come together to shape people’s experiences with the agrifood system.” Castellano also emphasized the importance of acknowledging the macro-level issues within the agrifood system and to be careful when we individualize solutions to these broader problems. “It should be more about collective power, and what we can do together, instead of just as individual, isolated consumers,” Kington said when discussing a solution to the issues within the food system. “We’re much stronger together and much stronger when we build across different groups and coalitions.” v

A T H E N S I N T E R A C T I V I S T. O R G | 1 1

Latino Midwest story and photos by ELI HILLER

s you drive past the ivy-covered entrance of Mann’s Mobile Home Estate, you will pass by turquoise and neon orange trailers with middle-aged men in sombreros blasting ranchera, a form of the traditional music of Mexico. In a side yard, several mothers direct young teens as they repetitively practice a series of dances for an upcoming quinceñera. The high-pitched screams of kids riding BMX bikes are mixed with notes from a guitar accompanying a nearby porch-side bible study. This east Columbus neighborhood has become one of many new homes to the growing Latino population in the Midwestern United States. Between 2000 and 2010, the U.S. Census identified a 153.9 percent increase in the Latino population in Columbus from 17,575 to 44,359. The Hispanic population is currently contributing to 25 percent of the national population growth. The Pew Research Center projects that by 2027, minorities will outnumber whites nationally who are under 30 years of age. Many Latinos have chosen to move to Columbus as opposed to previous destinations such as southern California, Chicago and other southern U.S. cities because of the lower cost of living and more job availability. However, they face unique challenges such as language barriers,

cultural differences, unequal education rights and limited employment options. They regularly reside in segregated trailer parks where they can afford the housing and begin to seek a new life. “At the beginning, it’s sad,” Fabiola Garcia, a resident of Columbus, said. “We came here without a single cent and started from the very bottom.” In 2000, Garcia, her husband, Eulalio Prieto, and their newborn daughter Yaremi came to Columbus from Mexico City. For the next three years, they slept in an unfurnished basement and shared a small house with four other people. Prieto worked 50-60 hours a week at an egg-processing plant in Johnstown, Ohio, that was an hour drive from Columbus; however, neither of them could apply for a driver’s license. Prieto was dependent on co-workers to give him rides, but they were inconsistent, and he would frequently wait for hours. He also lived in constant fear because he knew the local police would regularly throw Latinos in jail or worse—deport them if they knew they were undocumented. “I didn’t know what to do,” Prieto said.“I knew my family had to eat and pay for the bills, and that was worth the risk.” Garcia used to work as a full-time housekeeper

Ladeslao Godenaz and his wife Letacia Guzman join their hands in prayer during a sunday mass at the Christ the King Church in east Columbus. In 2003, the church began to have a separate mass in Spanish to accommodate the growing Latino population. 14 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING

to help support her family. She worked the night shift and often did not return to her home until 6 a.m., exhausted from her long shifts. “The first three years were the most difficult for us,” Prieto said. “We didn’t know how to drive, we had no transportation and we didn’t know anyone.” The Prieto family has since begun to find some stability and are starting to carve out a new beginning in their 60-foot trailer. Prieto works as a car mechanic and Garcia sells empanadas to Latino workers during her lunch break out of her dented 2003 Honda Pilot. The Prietos’ story is like that of many new migrant families that come to Columbus. It is common for new migrants to start out in manufacturing and processing plants and later switch to construction or start their own companies. The average income for Latinos in Columbus was $14,241 in 2007 with 22.1 percent of the community living in poverty. Though, many service and construction jobs are seasonal and during the winter months it can be difficult for individuals to find work to support themselves. Some families resort to visiting local food pantries to reduce their food expenses for the month. When families first arrived to east Columbus, many of the trailers had been abandoned for several years and had broken windows and doors, little insulation and peeling paint on the exterior. Now, if you walk through the neighborhood, you will find a thriving and vibrant community of young Latino families who are seeking a slice of the American dream. “People need to learn to accept Latinos in Columbus,” Garcia said. “We won’t be leaving here anytime soon.” v

Left: Claudia Galvan, 27, and her daughter Estefeny Elias, 2, walk into their trailer after visiting Galvan’s mother across the street. The Latino families have revived the east Columbus neighborhood after many houses were left abandoned and in poor condition in the '90s. Top: Pablo Ovando hammers insulation on the side of a house to prepare for winter. Ovando has worked construction for seven years since he first came to the United States. Construction work is one of the most common jobs and well-paid jobs for Latinos that do not acquire official documentation. Bottom: Natalie Garcia, 3, watches as family friends circle her during a traditional dance during her coming-of-age party in east Columbus on Oct. 18, 2015. The Mexican tradition is known as “la presentación” and it celebrates the beginning of one’s childhood. A T H E N S I N T E R A C T I V I S T. O R G | 1 5

Lily & Life, Love

Trials, Tribulations The

Joy

of finding the balance with a new baby girl

story and photos by LUCAS REILLY

“I

stopped selling meth when I heard about her,” Earl Anderson of Newark, Ohio, said. He had been dealing methamphetamine, crack cocaine and marijuana while also struggling with addiction himself. After a month of abusing drugs with the intention of ending his life, he received a phone call from his ex-girlfriend, Amy, of Chillicothe, Ohio. She was pregnant with his baby. On April 18, 2014, then 20-year-old Amy gave birth to Liliana, or Lily for short. Earl and Amy married two months later and moved into a single-bedroom apartment at Carriage Hill Apartments in Athens, Ohio. Amy studies mechanical engineering at Ohio University and took classes right up until delivery. Earl has devoted himself to caring for Lily while Amy is at class and when she is studying. “I’ve done some bad shit in the past, I’d say. Not a very good beginning,” Earl said. He says he’s just happy everything turned out for the best. At 21 years old, however, he has yet to complete his GED. His mother left when he was 2, and his father kicked him out when he was 13. After having a difficult childhood, he is determined to give Lily the best life he and Amy can eke out for her. He plans on pursuing a GED to inspire her to stay in school. He wants to spoil her and considers her his reason to live. The young couple is mainly supported by Amy’s parents with a

budget of $300 every month for food and living expenses. Earl and Amy are quite contrasting individuals, aside from their personal histories. She is a vegetarian and he is not, which affects their shopping needs. He has attention deficit disorder and said she may suffer mild depression. Against adversity, the Andersons rally over 9-month-old Lily and their love for each other. “We’ve got to be a team,” Amy said. Earl takes care of laundry at one of OU’s student laundry rooms using money that Amy’s parents put on her student account. He also juggles watching Lily and running errands while Amy is on campus. They usually shop for groceries together, though, and share a cell phone. In the fall of 2015, the family moved into a larger apartment, which allows for a nursery for Lily and some peace in Earl and Amy’s room. Earl said he doesn’t know what the future holds for them, but he is hopeful. “You’ve really got to make sure that you have enough money to afford these things that you need for kids,” he said. From formula to the inevitable trip to the ER, a key struggle of being a young parent, he says, is the constant worry over the child’s well-being—they’re always on the go. Their plan now is to follow wherever Amy’s engineering career leads them. Earl said he feels blessed for the way things turned out. “It’s just sad I didn’t get to start it right off the start,” He said. “Lily’s what brought us along, so I’d say the future is looking very bright.” v Right: The Andersons take a pass through the baby aisle at Kroger to find a cheap toy for Lily in celebration of her turning 7 months old.

18 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

Above: Earl and Amy Anderson watch as their daughter Liliana plays and works on learning to crawl in their small apartment in Athens, Ohio. Earl has set up a Christmas tree, decorated with help from Lily, for their first Christmas as a family. Below: Earl smokes a cigarette while driving Amy to class at Ohio University as she finishes some last-minute homework in the backseat with Lily. Right: Earl transfers laundry from a washer to dryer while Lily sits on a folding table, pacified with a bottle at one of Ohio University's laundry facilities in Gamertsfelder Hall. When Amy is busy it can be difficult for Earl to do chores while also watching Lily. 20窶ポ窶サHE INTERACTIVIST窶ポ窶ゴPRING 2016

“ Earl lifts Lily up in the air. He hopes to give her the best life he and Amy can. Before she was born, he spent a month smoking methamphetamine in an attempt to kill himself. "She's my reason for living," he said.

It’s just sad I didn’t get to start it right off the start,” He said. “Lily’s what brought us along, so I’d say the future is looking very bright.”

A global perspective to feminism will bring about significant change column by JESSICA HILL

The United Nations estimates 5,000 women are murdered each year due to honor killings. Honor killings occur when a woman dishonors her family by becoming a victim of rape or refusing to enter an arranged marriage. That is just one of many oppressions occurring in the world. Many Americans focus their efforts on obtaining gender equality in the United States. It is also essential, however, for feminists to fight for gender equality on a global scale. Women in different countries live in dangerous environments that threaten their lives every day. Local and national feminism are important, don’t get me wrong. Gender equality is not just important, it is a necessity and a human right we should be guaranteed. But we cannot pretend that we have it the worst. There are women who get burned with acid everyday for learning to read or for not marrying a man. Some women get burned and shunned by their families for getting raped. Feminists need to work globally. They need to support all women. The singer Halsey tweeted, “We need a feminism that is not negligent of women of color, trans women, queer women. We need a feminism that protects ALL women. Globally.” This article will contain a few statistics about what is going on with women around

24 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

the world and share real stories about women. These stories are not isolated incidences. They are happening continuously, and until we acknowledge these issues and work to solve them as passionately as we argue about wage and rape culture in the United States, those problems will never go away.

“

We need a feminism that is not negligent of women of color, trans women, queer women. We need a feminism that protects ALL women. Globally. - HALSEY, singer

Contemporary transnational feminism started in the 1970s. The United Nations declared 1975 the International Women’s Year, which was influenced by second wave feminist movements in the early 1970s. The delegates in the United Nations sought to bring gender equality to developing countries. There was a contrast between Western feminism and Third World feminism.

Women in the global South felt Western feminism did not understand their struggles, according to Feminism without Borders, a book written by Chandra Talpade Mohanty. Many Third World feminists saw the Western feminism as ethnocentric, meaning judging another culture by the values and standards of one’s own culture. From Half the Sky, a book about empowering women globally, Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn introduce a girl from Ethiopia named Woinshet Zebene. A man wanted to marry her, but he did not think she would accept his proposal so he kidnapped and repeatedly raped her in order to force her to accept his marriage. What happened to Zebene is not an isolated incident. Another very important issue we need to talk about is female genital mutilation. Female genital mutilation is the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia. In many African countries, this is a common occurrence with which women and girls are forced to endure. Depending on the country, female genital mutilation can be practiced as an initiation into adulthood. Excision of the clitoris may be believed to ensure women will not be like men in regard to sexual appetite or aggression, according to Female Mutilation, a book written by Hillary Burrage.

In addition, some countries believe men’s sexual pleasure will be enhanced when a woman has gone through genital mutilation. More than 80 percent of females between the ages of 15 and 49 have undergone female genital mutilation in countries such as Egypt, Sudan, Mali, Guinea and Somalia, according to unicef.org. Daughters of uneducated mothers are also more likely to be cut. In addition, in more than half of African countries with data recorded, the majority of girls were cut before the age of 5. Most cases of genital mutilation occur in the home with a razor blade or a small knife. One of the major problems with female genital mutilation is the health risks. Cutting has been known to cause severe bleeding, problems urinating, infections and issues with childbirth, according to the World Health Organization. Not only are these side effects dangerous, most genital cutting occurs in countries that have little to no healthcare. Recovering from genital mutilation is a dangerous and risky process. Because of this, genital mutilation can also result in death. Another problem occurring in developing countries is the lack of education. Of the 781 million illiterate adults in the developing world, two-thirds are women, according to Half the Sky. One in five girls who attend primary school do not complete their primary education. Education has been known to decrease fertility, HIV and AIDS,

and increase and foster productivity, crop yields and democracy. “So let us wage a glorious struggle against illiteracy, poverty and terrorism,” Malala Yousafzai, the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, said at a United Nations conference in 2013. “Let us pick up our books and our pens, they are the most powerful weapons.”

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I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” - AUDRE LORDE, writer and civil rights activist

Some issues are being solved already. The world is slowly improving the treatment of women. According to The New York Times, the prime minister of India announced the introduction of free injectable contraceptives in February. This is a great improvement from female sterilization using a laparoscope to sever a woman’s fallopian tubes. In addition, African women’s growing use of vaginal rings has lowered HIV rates by 27 percent. While medicine is advancing and helping more people worldwide, we still have a long way to go to reach global gender equality. Activists such as Malala Yousafzai,

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Sylvia Tamale are increasingly speaking out at a global level. They have written books and speeches about global feminism and gender and sexuality. More women, both nationally and globally, should continue to be encouraged to speak their minds. Feminism should not have boundaries or a jurisdiction. We should work toward a global goal of equality. Wage equality is important, and the rape culture that dominates our society needs to stop. However, it is important to note that we have it better than many women in other countries, and we cannot ignore what happens to our neighbors if we want to see a real change in society. But how do we stop these worldwide injustices? The first step is talking about it. We need to ignite a worldwide discussion about all of the rapes, genital mutilations and the lack of education that oppress women in the developing world. We need to show our support and fight for our sisters. If we can help decrease the global maltreatment of women, then we will see an improvement in our own nation. Audre Lorde, a writer and civil rights activist, said, “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” v

The Wage Gap

72% Canada

69% U.K.

66% U.S

63% China

50% France

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Our water is killing you?

NOT OUR PROBLEM column by HANNAH MULLIN photos by CAROLYN ROGERS

he United States of America has served as the defender of basic rights and liberties of all for over 200 years. Despite one’s background or economic status, America is the land of opportunity and the protector of freedom. But what about when it comes to making money? Do the life, liberty and happiness of the American people weigh heavier on the scales of justice than the size of the U.S. treasury? Residents of Appalachia and Flint, Michigan, would argue their fundamental rights as human beings are being squashed as the water sources for thousands have been poisoned by hazardous chemicals in systematic corporate and government private agendas to save a pretty penny. October 2015, in the first of 3,500 cases, a Columbus jury fined chemical company DuPont $1.6 million and held the company responsible for negligence and infliction of emotional distress. The jury’s decision holds the multi-billion dollar giant accountable for contaminating drinking water throughout Appalachia with perfluoro-octanoic acid, or C8. The chemical was dumped from DuPont’s Parkersburg, West Virginia, plant into landfills along the Ohio River and was released via smoke stacks. C8 can be found in blood levels of nearly every person globally, according to the American Chemical Society. C8 is manufactured for its nonstick quality and is used in everything from carpet to McDonald’s. Newfound research has found a “probable link’’ between C8 and testicular and kidney cancer, thyroid disease, ulcerative colitis, high cholesterol and pregnancyinduced hypertension, a life threatening condition that can cause miscarriages and birth defects. Plaintiffs accuse DuPont of covering up the hazardous effects of the chemicals for nearly two decades. DuPont’s documentation and emails suggest an extensive cover-up going back nearly two decades. Evidence includes manipulating test results, destroying documents and secretly monitoring sick employees and surrounding residents. Representing the plaintiffs, Cincinnati lawyer Rob Billot notified the EPA in March 2001 of the hazardous effects of C8. The report included hundreds of documents A T H E N S I N T E R A C T I V I S T. O R G | 2 7

recently, ignored both the water crisis in Flint and Appalachia, the negligence of which resulted in death and agony for thousands. The essential question to ask is, is the EPA disregarding its post or is it isolating Flint and Appalachia? According to the 2010 U.S. census, more than 40 percent of Flint’s population was living below the poverty line and nearly 60 percent of residents identified as African American. The 100,000 residents do not have a single grocery store. Furthermore, as of 2014, nearly a quarter of Parkersburg residents were in poverty and less than 15 percent of adults had a bachelor’s degree, according to the census. The simple answer is that the majority of the Flint and Parkersburg impoverished population does not have the financial means to combat legal catastrophes of that magnitude. Government officials and corporate administrators took advantage of

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Communication about lead in drinking water and the health impacts associated with that, that’s the role of DHHS (Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services), the county health department and the drinking water utility.”

-SUSAN HEDMAN, administrator for Region 5 of the EPA residents’ economic statuses and racial minority vulnerabilities to save a pretty penny.

“If you were to put something in a population to keep them down for generations and generations to come, it would be lead,” Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, Director of Flint’s Hurley Medical Center, said in an interview with CNN. “It’s a well-known, potent neurotoxin. …It drops your IQ, it affects your behavior, it’s been linked to criminality, it has multigenerational impacts.” Large corporate companies and local governments are not the only ones to blame for these health crises. The purpose of our government and its subsequent organizations is to serve and protect the people of the United States. Providing clean water is the most basic principle of this commitment. When our protectors turn a blind eye to the systematic deterioration of large portions of underprivileged populations, there is a larger problem than mere corporate scandal. v

The DuPont Washington Works plant is located in Washington, West Virginia, on March 26, 2016. The chemical plant is one of the largest private employers in the area. Joe Kiger of Washington, West Virginia, sits inside his house March 29, 2016. Kiger received a letter in 2000 from DuPont stating an unregulated chemical, ammonium perfluoronoctanoate, was contaminating the water which was provided by the public work system. Kiger recalls his wife Darlene asking, “What does DuPont have to do with our water?” After seeing animals in the area with tumors and kids with health problems, Kiger wanted to know more information about DuPont and the chemicals. That letter was the start of the ongoing 16-yearlong class-action lawsuit.

from DuPont itself describing the company’s dangerous waste removal practices; however, the EPA did not take action for three years. In 2004, the EPA filed a lawsuit against DuPont on allegations of suppressing evidence of C8’s toxicity and of concealing contamination of local water sources for more than two decades. The EPA has fined DuPont $16.5 million, but it has not forced the company to stop using the chemical. In fact, before the DuPont crisis, the EPA never even tested the chemical. C8 has been used for decades, first in nylon pantyhose. When the EPA revised the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, C8 had been used for so long the EPA assumed it was safe without actually testing it. The EPA’s failure to act in Flint, Michigan, also 28 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

resulted in an unprecedented water crisis. Since April 2013, residents of Flint were coerced into drinking unsafe water after a city council vote to switch water sources in a cost reduction initiative. Flint River water contained fecal bacteria, high doses of chlorine and lead. The city’s failure to follow EPA’s corrosion control regulations resulted in extreme cases of lead poisoning. EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman admitted she was aware of Flint’s failure to meet corrosion control standards as early as April 2015. In an interview with The Detroit News, Hedman said Michigan’s Department of Environmental Quality fought with her about Flint’s corrosion problem for six months. During this time, never

did Hedman or the EPA notify the public of the issue. “Communication about lead in drinking water and the health impacts associated with that, that’s the role of DHHS (Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services), the county health department and the drinking water utility,” Hedman said in an interview with The Detroit News. Lead poisoning attacks the nervous system and can affect brain development, resulting in permanent learning difficulties. The EPA’s mission statement reads “all Americans are protected from significant risks to human health and the environment where they live, learn and work; federal laws protecting human health and the environment are enforced fairly and effectively.” However, the EPA has, until A T H E N S I N T E R A C T I V I S T. O R G | 2 9

Meet Our Activists! Lauren Settlemyre

Hey there! I’m a sophomore publication design major from Wilmington, Ohio. I enjoy alternative music, cats, drawing, patterned shirts, photography, playing the piano, traveling and volleyball. My all-time favorite show is “Lost,” and the farthest I’ve been from home is Hawaii. Thanks for reading!

Maddi Rotunda

Maddi Rotunda is a freshman in the College of Business, though her passions for the arts and activism exhibit otherwise. She can most often be found creating playlists for people who have no interest in hearing her obscure taste in music. If she isn’t doing that, she is probably wasting her dying-alone time brainstorming nonsensical tweets that are still not as funny as her roommate’s Twitter account.

Jessica Hill

Jessica Hill is a freshman double majoring in journalism and global studies. She is uncannily like Liz Lemon from “30 Rock” and has a passion for traveling, Netflix and Mexican food. Jessica gladly accepts Grace’s need for help.

Dani Bartley

I’m Dani Bartley, a sophomore from Pittsburgh studying commercial photography with an integrated media minor. My favorite things are running, hiking, the color yellow and the Arctic Monkeys. I love long walks on the beach. I’m a Scorpio. My spirit animal is a baby deer, and I am also quite terrible at writing blurbs.

Eli Hiller

Heyyo! I’m a senior studying photojournalism and environmental geography at OU. Yes, not a single one of my classes overlap. I grew up in the Athens area and I fully embrace the identity of a townie. I enjoy humming Frank Sinatra tunes, dancing salsa at Fiesta Latina and taking long bike rides on the Hocking Adena bikeway. I fell in love with photography during a family trip to Yellowstone, but now I’m interested in pursuing stories of people and their interactions with the environment, whether those are harmful, beneficial or somewhere in between. Pura Vida.

Rachel Rogala

I’m Rachel Rogala, a sophomore studying publication design with a minor in marketing and certificate in global studies war and peace. I like to tell people’s stories in a visual way. I am currently struggling with the passion for experiencing new cultures while having a fear of flying.

Grace Hill

Grace Hill is a journalism student focusing on religion and political science. She enjoys reading books and climbing trees in her spare time. She obviously has some selfdiscovery to do. Grace Hill needs Jessica’s help.

Lucas Reilly

I’m Lucas Reilly, a junior studying photojournalism and Spanish. I’m from Athens, but I’d like to think I’m more than just a townie. I enjoy mountain biking and playing the guitar. I have a mustache and am fearful to make the move back to life without one.

Carolyn Rogers

Carolyn Rogers is a freshman photojournalist major and a New Yorker who found her way to Ohio. She is also a feminist and pizza lover who binge watches Netflix.

Natalie Esson is a junior linguistics major with an English minor. She is from Brunswick, Ohio, and watches too many TV shows. She plays the clarinet and really enjoys nachos.

Tess Hickey

Tess is a freshman studying environmental geography. Her free-time activities include visiting spooky places, conversing in German, listening to ‘80s music and making all of the breakfast foods.

Hannah Mullin

I’m Hannah Mullin, a sophomore from Columbus studying strategic communication. I am most passionate about food and music. If I had all the free time in the world, you’d find me reading and soaking up the sun in my hammock, even though I burn easily. My dream is to travel and learn as much as I possibly can along the way. My guilty pleasures include esoteric philosophy, doughnuts and ’90s hip hop.

Taylor Gardner Jaci Mullally

I’m Jaci Mullally, a junior studying publication design and marketing. I’m from Youngstown, Ohio, I enjoy all things design, binge watching any and all shows on Netflix, hiking around Athens, and late night trips to Dairy Queen.

30 | THE INTERACTIVIST | SPRING 2016

Natalie Esson

I am a psychology major with a biological science minor. I watched all 12 seasons of “Grey’s Anatomy” in one semester and now aspire to work in a hospital in Seattle. I hope to get my Ph.D. in clinical psychology and study disordered eating and eating pathology.

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ACTIVIST

agenda Spring 2016

Athens KTC Spring Retreat: The Nine Stages of the Shamata 7 p.m., May 13 - 4:30 p.m., May 14 1210 Pete Smith Road Athens, Ohio 45701 $45 Ash Cave 2016 Spring Gathering 11 a.m. - 6 p.m., May 15 Ash Cave, South Bloomingville, Ohio 43152 Free admission Appalachia Rising Festival 2 p.m. - 10 p.m., Saturday, June 11 Solid Ground Farm, 13262 Liars Corners Road Millfield, Ohio 45761 Free admission, $20 parking

Volunteer With United Campus Ministry Email Melissa Wales at melissa@ucmathens.org See UCMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s schedule at www.ucmathens.org Athens is rich with opportunities to get involved. Give back to your community: Rural Action http://ruralaction.org/get-involved/ Live Healthy Appalachia www.livehealthyappalachia.org/

Hocking Hills Canoe Livery Moonlight Tour 7 p.m., June 18, July 23 and August 20 Hocking Hills Canoe Livery, 12789 State Route 664 South Logan, Ohio 43138 $45 per canoe

PICTURED ABOVE: Yaremi Prieto, 15, gazes into a fire as her family and neighbors roast marshmallows on the weekend. Many new families tend to live in self segregated Latino neighborhoods because they are familiar with the culture and language. Photo taken by Eli Hiller.