BERKELEY HIGH
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no. 13
since 1912
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH STUDENT SUBMISSIONS ON PAGE 9 J HORSLEY
SPORTS
Conversation on Menstruation: Athletes Tackle Taboo Topic BY MADELYN PHILHOWER staff writer
When Anna Eisen, a swimmer and water polo player at Berkeley High
School (BHS), was younger, nobody on her swim team talked about periods. Since it was never discussed, “[Eisen] had no idea how to deal with [her] period as a swimmer.” She said, “I used to skip a week of practice
every month because I had no idea what to do.” This lack of conversation is a barrier many athletes with periods have to overcome. Sarah Darzacq, an athlete on the BHS swim team, shared that when she
was younger, myths surrounding menstruation rattled her. For example, “People [often] say, ‘Oh, you can’t swim while you’re on your period, [but] yes … you definitely can,” Darzacq said.
Having a period is a highly individual experience, Lila Crutchfield, the nurse practitioner for the BHS Health Center, explained. Although it can vary, “there hasn’t been evidence that having a period
in and of itself is … a bad factor in terms of exercising. There are Olympic athletes who have performed very well during their menstrual cycles,” said Crutchfield. “Honestly, [my period has] never really PAGE 16
INVESTIGATIVE
Lack of Diversity in Class Hurts BIPOC BY SIMONE FAULKNER staff writer
Natalia Quezada, a junior in Academic Choice (AC) who identifies as Latina, is often one of the only students of color in her classes. According to Quezada, her teachers don’t do an adequate job of acknowledging the lack of diversity in classrooms or making a safe space for Black and Brown students. Though she’s voiced criticisms to her teachers, Quezada has seen no change. Put frankly: “there’s just a ton of white kids.” Quezada’s experience is not uncommon for many
Black and Brown students in largely white classrooms. According to the last available Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) self study, Black and Brown students were reported as making up around 35 percent of the population of both Berkeley International High School (BIHS) and AC. Black and Brown students are the minority in white classrooms and can have a vastly different experiences than their peers as a result. In BIHS, “the majority of students in the program are white,” said Amanda Moreno, a BIHS English and Latinx Literature PAGE 8
NATE POREMBA
NEWS
BHS Students Unmask as Mandate Lifts BY JOSEPHINE MORASKY staff writer
Over two years ago, on March 12, 2020, California announced an official lockdown for the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the mask mandate for California has
come to a partial end. Brent Stephens, the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) superintendent, shared a brief on Monday, March 7, stating that indoor masking will now only be “Strongly recommended.” “This afternoon the dis-
Far-Reaching Impacts: War Touches Lives of Russian and Ukrainian BHS Students
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Students with family from Russia and Ukraine react to Russia’s invasion. PAGE 3
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trict updated our school board meeting agenda for the Wednesday, March 9 meeting to include our decision to follow the state and the City of Berkeley Public Health Department decision to strongly recommend, but no longer require, masking at all BUSD schools,” Ste-
phens wrote. On Monday, February 28, Gavin Newsom announced that the mandatory mask mandate for schools would become optional after March 12. Between February and March, there have been 242 confirmed PAGE 4
Female Masturbation: Why Don’t We Talk About It? BHS students and a reproductive health expert weigh in on the reality of this taboo topic for teens. PAGE 8
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
NEWS BERKELEY HIGH JACKET
news editors: Naomi Rubalcava Levinthal & Clara Brownstein
naomirubalcavalevi@students.berkeley.net
BUSD Won’t Move Forward With Renovations to BHS Theater BY SASKIA FREEDBERG staff writer
When Berkeley High School (BHS) teachers Sarah Cline and Linda Carr first heard about proposed renovations to the BHS’s A-Building, they were under the impression that despite some temporary inconveniences, long term benefits — specifically a dance studio for Carr and improved jazz spaces for Cline — were also a part of the deal. These renovations to the building were part of the last of three planned stages, only the first of which is currently being done. The first phase of construction is happening now and will include updates to the classroom wing of t h e A- B u i l d i n g . B e f ore constr uction began, the A-Building hosted performing arts teachers like Carr, the modern dance teacher, as well as Cline, the director of the BHS jazz program. “We’re like, ‘Okay, well, we’ll kind of take a cut during phase one and two [of the renovations], because [after] phase three, we’re gonna get this great thing for our students and for the school,’” Carr said. “And then right after we went ‘yes’ and signed on the dotted line, the principal at that time was like, ‘We’re going to pursue
phase one, and we’re going to pursue phase two, but I’m no longer backing phase three.’” Carr has been teaching modern dance in the M-Gym since 2020, when construction began. When the A-Building opens at the beginning of 2023, instead of teaching in a new dance studio, Carr will return to her old one, the stage of the Berkeley Community Theater (BCT). Cline is currently teaching jazz in a portable classroom. According to Cline, when she returns to the A-Building, she will be teaching in rooms that are “small and the wrong dimensions” because the new jazz rooms she was expecting are a part of phase three. Phase two would involve renovations and updates to the 575-seat Florence Schwimley Little Theater. John Calise, the Executive Director of Facilities, Maintenance and Operations for Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD), said that because of the specifics of the plans, the renovations to the Little Theater would require work on the BCT as well, leaving the project $35 million over budget. The administration is working to secure funding from the state but is not currently able to move forward with phase two. Phase three, while lowest
on the district’s priority list, is most exciting for Cline and Carr. According to Calise, phase three would involve cutting the BCT down to between 1,200 and 1,800 seats. The BCT is located on the BHS campus and currently has 3,500 seats, making it one of the largest indoor theaters in California. It is maintained and operated by BUSD. In the space created by cutting seats, additional classrooms would be added to the A-Building. Cline said that currently, the BCT is too large for any student performance to fill, and the hundreds of empty seats are disappointing for performers. “2,900 empty seats, that feels horrible,” said Cline. “It’s not the way the performing arts are meant to happen. You’re meant to have an audience that’s close, engaged, and giving you a lot of love back.” Ac c o r d i n g t o C l i n e , the empty seats are also a problem when the theater is not in use. Besides occasional school assemblies and a few performances a year, the BCT is largely unused, taking up space on a crowded campus. Carr said that her use of the stage as a dance studio can also create logistical challenges. With these complaints in mind, a few years ago, when
Carr, Cline, and some other performing arts teachers heard that the school had money to spend on the BHS theaters, they discussed the benefits of a smaller theater and shared their thoughts with the administration. “We pitched this idea to the administration and they actually listened to us,” Cline said. However, after drawing up plans for three phases of construction, Cline and Carr were disappointed to see only the first phase being pursued. “ There was a lot of excitement [about the plans to renovate the A-Building], not just at BHS,” Cline said. “This could be a moneymaker for the school district.” According to Cline, there is no other theater
of a similar size in Berkeley. In the past, the BCT hosted an extensive list of musical and cultural icons. Cline and Carr hoped that an update to the theater would bring new life to the theater through student and community use. Calise said that the master plan that includes all three stages of renovations was also never formally adopted by the board of education. “While there were certain teachers and certain community members who absolutely wanted the [BCT] to be shrunk down and classrooms added, there was also a strong contingent advocating against [it], and for that reason, that was never agreed upon to be done,” Calise
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said. “What the board did do was they authorized the phase one construction of this project.” Calise said the controversy surrounding the rightsizing or shrinking of the theater stems from the BCT’s historic status. “There’s a lot of really rich history deeply embedded into that building. … People don’t want to see it rightsized,” Calise said. Despite these obstacles, Carr and Cline still hope to see the BCT renovated one day. “If you build performance spaces, then peoples’ ideas start flowing,” said Cline. “And I know that students would find ways to put on shows and have concerts all the time. You build it, then it will get used.”
BHS Begins New Classroom Consent Education Presentations BY PHILIPPA ZLATEV staff writer
During the fall semester, Berkeley High School (BHS) students attended consent
education assemblies led by professional consent educator Shafia Zaloom. During the 58-minute assembly, students were provided information and definitions about the topic, so they could determine
if a series of complex romantic situations were consensual. Now, to build off of the assemblies, Zaloom is going to individual classes and delivering more in-depth presentations.
Shafia Zaloom leads a small group consent education presentation in a BHS classroom.
AVA MUSSI
The presentations started around a month ago and will continue for most of the semester. The presentations include six different and complex scenarios about consent for students to examine. Students work together in groups to decide if the activities of the scenarios are consensual or not. Afterward, Zaloom debriefs and analyzes the scenario with the entire class. The scenarios are adapted from stories Zaloom has gathered from survivors and teens who have experienced sexual harm. She said she wants the scenarios to challenge teens to try to process and apply consent to situations that could be similar to their potential encounters.
BHS senior Nathaniel Miles-Urdan, who recently experienced the presentation in his economics class, said he learned a lot. “I liked the presentations,” Miles-Urdan said. “I hadn’t had in-depth consent education before and the presentation talked about sex ed on a deeper level.” Others also expressed appreciation for the consent education presentations. “I really liked the emphasis on the fact that consent it’s not always a simple yes or no situation,” said Philippa Kennedy, a senior in Academic Choice (AC). “The scenarios were more relevant to BHS because one of [them] took place at a party and that’s good since a lot of sexual harm happens [there].”
In terms of providing a variety of scenarios, Zaloom said there was a genderneutral scenario, two queer scenarios, and three gender binary scenarios. However, Kennedy still said that “providing more diversity would have been nice.” The presentations have also been paired with monthly consent videos, which are distributed to classes. According to senior Rosie Bultman, one of the creators of the videos, even though they had been working on the videos for almost a year, Zaloom accelerated the process with her feedback, allowing them to be distributed sooner. Zaloom’s presentations will continue throughout the school year until she has presented to every student.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
NEWS
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BHS Community Grapples With Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine strategies to best support their students. “I think the main thrust of what the staff says is [that] it’s Berkeley International okay to be authentic with kids High School (BIHS) senior and say, ‘I’m concerned too, Beckett Ellis-Chatman grew I’m worried too, and I don’t up hearing his grandparents have the answers, and that’s speak Russian and Ukrainian. okay,’” said AC teacher Jordan His family hired a Russian Winer. tutor to teach him the language AC teacher Angela at a young age. As Coppola said she had years passed, while been closely following his practice in Russian Russian activity since dwindled, his familial 2016, when Russian “I [have] always [known] that i d e n t i t y r e m a i n e d when I come back to Russia, I might inf luence was high strong. have to serve my obligatory military during the United States On Februar y 24, presidential election. Russian forces entered service... but it was never like, fight- In her class, Coppola ing a war.” Ukraine, an occasion posted resources marking a culmination for her students on of years of tension Google Classroom and Filipp Khabur, between the two connected the event to BHS student countries. the Cold War. Ellis-Chatman had Coppola referred been reading on the to the past two years, region’s political situation since When his visa expires, saying, “Students are getting last year, when he began to Khabur will return to Russia b o m b a r d e d w i t h r e a l l y further explore his Ukrainian to live with them. distressing information all the heritage through social media “I [have] always [known] time.” She added that while it and sports. that when I come back to is important to focus on the “I sympathize a lot with the Russia, I might have to serve news, the greater concern is people in Ukraine [and] heavily my obligatory military service,” being able to establish healthy identify with their struggle Khabur said. “It was a running boundaries when consuming … fighting for their identity joke in our family. … It was information. because I share that identity always like, ‘Oh, it’s gonna be When Russia began with them,” Ellis-Chatman military training and living to threaten Ukraine, Ellissaid. “And [Vladimir] Putin like a dog for a year’ but it was Chatman noticed a flood of wants to erase that.” never like, fighting a war.” controversial opinions posted Now a definitive war, Due to his age, Khabur said on Instagram and TikTok. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine his brother might get drafted to Ellis-Chatman said he has included sending Russian serve in the Russian military. felt “frustration on how s oldiers into Uk rainian In their classes, some people were reacting in the b a t t l e f i e l d s . B e r k e l e y teachers are considering how media, sort of downplaying High School (BHS) BIHS to address the event with the threat.” Ellis-Chatman sophomore Filipp Khabur students. Academic Choice said that once Russia invaded said many of these troops are (AC) teachers met to discuss Ukraine, people blamed the
BY LAUREN HUANG staff writer
civilians, serving for the first time due to a law that says Russian men between the ages of 18 and 27 years old must serve two years in the military. Khabur was born in Russia, in a part-Ukrainian household. Today, he is on a visa to attend school in the United States while his brother lives with their grandmother in Russia.
LYDIA KIM
United States for escalating the event, when they should have focused their accusations toward Russia. AC junior Ivan Cuatlatl saw rumors of invasion before Russia entered Ukraine, as well as information on social media after the invasion. Jokes about being drafted arose in Cuatlatl’s classes. None of Cuatlatl’s teachers talked about the war and conversations with his friends didn’t venture past the event’s physical parameters. “I thought that people were going to talk about it more,” Cuatlatl said. “It’s a situation that needs to be talked about. … No one really wants to talk about it seriously and really [understand] the consequences of what this invasion could lead to.” Khabur saw “unhinged” posts by people on Twitter, one of a “guy [proposing] to kick
Muffin Club leaders Silas Freeling, Max Huneeus, and Ben Lempkin (left to right) handed out muffins for the second time on 3/15.
NOLAN WHITEHILL
BHS Students Distribute Thousands of Muffins for International Muffin Day BY KAIYA JORDAN staff writer
“It’s lighthearted and fun to have a day where you randomly bring muffins,” said Berkeley High School (BHS) student Benjamin Lemkin. “I know that if I was walking around and somebody [offered] me a muffin, it would brighten my day. To be able to do that for [the BHS community] is great.” Lemkin, a senior in Academic Choice (AC), is responsible for bringing International Muffin Day to BHS and founding the Muffin Club this year.
On February 3, the Muffin Club baked and distributed muffins to the BHS community. “I just started bringing muffins on February 3 in seventh grade. I’d bake around 100 or so muffins and just sort of hand them out to people,” Lemkin said. “[The idea] was sort of random, like, what if there was a day where I brought muffins to school?” The day originally started as a joke between Lemkin and his friends in seventh grade, but later on he sought to build on it and make the holiday more official. “I just kept handing out
muffins until it [became] an annual tradition,” Lemkin said. “I thought to try to expand on it and see where it could go.” The goal of Lemkin’s creation of International Muffin Day was to bring joy, lightheartedness, and humor to the BHS community. “It was inspired by just being able to brighten everyone’s day,” Lemkin said. “The look on people’s faces when you say ‘Want a free muffin?’ [is] warm. It’s nice to try to get that to everyone.” The official Muffin Club at BHS was started this year
after a previous unsuccessful attempt to create the club in Lemkin’s freshman year. Lemkin felt the club could expand and bake more muffins on International Muffin Day if it was more organized and included more people in the effort. On February 3, the club held its first International Muffin Day at BHS. Club members, along with a few staff members, baked over 1,000 muffins to distribute to students and staff. “We collected all the muffins and started handing them out to people,” Lemkin
Russian students out of US universities as a sanction.” He heard BHS students making other generalizations about Russians. While on a field trip, Khabur’s class encountered a volunteer who “cracked a Russian joke every ten minutes.” “ T h at w a s t h e m o s t uncomfortable experience in my life,” Khabur said. “Most of my teachers just don’t care.” Khabur said students should be sensitive about others’ experiences and e d u c at e t h e m s e l v e s b y interacting with Ukrainian and Russian news. “[I] hope that students are able to distinguish between Putin and the Russian people,” Coppola said. “That he is a dictator with absolute control in that country … and people who are living in that country should be empathized with
and not be demonized,” said Coppola. Winer encouraged his students to consult primary sources, such as independent journalists living near the war, to educate themselves on the situation. The conflict evoked Winer’s memories of his adolescence around the end of the Cold War, reminding him of the threat Russia posed to the West. Winer related his childhood perspective to his students’ reactions to the Russia and Ukraine conflict, and decided to talk with them in efforts to help provide context for the war. “I h op e t o s e e m ore student activism in solidarity with Ukraine,” Winer said. “The Russians are out there, protesting, and that’s a big risk … We’re not risking as much,” said Winer.
said. According to Lemkin, International Muffin Day at BHS was relatively spontaneous, with the exact plan and location not being finalized until a few days before the event. Despite the challenges, however, the club was able to get the event off the ground and successfully give out muffins. Aiden Thompson, a sophomore in Berkeley International High School (BIHS), received a muffin on International Muffin Day and thought the day was a success. “The club gave out muffins for free and they were surprisingly good,” Thompson said. “They had a lot of different flavors. It definitely improved my lunchtime experience.” “Even though I didn’t get a muffin on International Muffin Day, I think it’s a fantastic way for students to show they care for their community at BHS,” said Linden Koshland, sophomore in BIHS. “The day connects students and the broader BHS community.” In addition to club members, who baked the majority of the muffins, a few staff members participated in the baking marathon, contributing more muffins to hand
out to the students. “I baked 90-something, maybe 80 muffins,” said Molly Offermann, a BIHS academic counselor. “I thought it would be really fun to see kids carrying around muffins and giving them to other kids. … That’s why I participated.” Similar to Lemkin’s vision for International Muffin Day, Offermann viewed the day as a way to bring joy to the BHS community and connect students through muffins. “It makes people happy,” Offermann said, when asked about the benefits of International Muffin Day and handing out muffins. “Or sick if they’re gluten free,” she added. As the club was only able to distribute a limited quantity of muffins to students on February 3, a second muffin day was held as an opportunity for students to get one if they did not. AC seniors Silas Freeling and Max Huneeus, who help lead the Muffin Club, successfully distributed over 1,000 muffins to students again on March 15. “As the famous President John F. Kennedy once said, ‘Ask not what your muffin can do for you, but what you can do for your muffin,’” Freeling said.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
NEWS
Cultural Club Fair Celebrates Diversity in BHS Community BY AVA RAMSDALE staff writer
Cultural clubs throughout Berkeley High School (BHS) surrounded the campus green to spread awareness and show their spirit at the Cultural Club Fair on Friday, March 11. The event included students from the BHS Native Student Union (NSU), BHS Black Student Union (BSU), BHS Multicultural Student Association (MCSA), and more. Featuring songs, dancing, food, and clothes from a variety of cultures, the fair gave students an opportunity to showcase their cultural pride. The beating of drums rang throughout the school as students watched their fellow classmates perform. Students and staff dressed in clothing from their culture, and others held flags to show their spirit. Dance performances featured students from BHS teacher Xin Chen’s Mandarin class, an African Diaspora dance, and students performing a Palestinian dance. The club fair aimed to
spotlight the different cultures throughout BHS in an interactive way, said Hanim Nuru, BHS senior and ASB vice president. Nuru is one of the coordinators of the club fair, and is a member of the MCSA. She said that being part of a cultural club has allowed her to talk about her culture. Both Nuru and Olivia Eknoian, BHS’s Commissioner of Clubs, initiated the club fair. Nuru said it is important for all cultures on campus to be recognized and appreciated, and she hopes the club fair will continue in future years. “I want to make sure that every person enjoys wearing their cultural clothes and [is] able to express that in a [prideful] way,” Nuru said. Hana Medhkour, a senior at BHS, attended the fair dressed in clothing from her Algerian culture. She is a member of both the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) Student Union, and the MCSA. She said “people don’t know that much about Algeria,” and she hopes the fair will draw attention to other underrepresented cultures.
BHS sophomore Gabi Rawles also attended the fair, drawn in by the unique perspective that the fair brings to BHS. She said the fair is an event specific to BHS, and it allows students to acknowledge and understand all cultures. “It’s important that all cultures get equal representation,” Rawles said. “[The fair] brings people together and helps us appreciate each other’s cultures.” Cecelia Pulu, a senior at BHS, represented Tongan culture, which is a Polynesian culture originating from small islands in the Pacific Ocean. For Pulu, it is important to embrace herself and her culture despite the limited number of Tongan people at BHS. “You should always embrace yourself. Be yourself no matter where you go,” Pulu said. Many of the cultural clubs offered at BHS set up booths around the campus green, passing out food and t-shirts, encouraging students to join the clubs. The Native Student Union ran a booth offering
Students from African Diaspora dance classes performed at the cultural club fair last Friday.
t-shirts, incense, and cookies from their culture. The NSU was founded this year to create an accessible community for students who may not have access to Indigenous groups at BHS, according to NSU members Twyla Piatote and Raquel Matthews. Matthews said the NSU provides a safe space for students to “celebrate a culture that is often deliberately wiped out.” She said it is sometimes a struggle to find students that identify with your culture, therefore hav-
ing a cultural club makes it easier to find new people. “We want to encourage people to get involved with their local Indigenous communities and do the work that needs to be done,” Piatote said. Miles Davis, a BHS senior and the vice president of the Black Student Union (BSU), helped run the club’s booth at the fair. Davis said the BSU attended the club fair in hopes that others would gain a sense of their culture and understand the purpose of
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the BSU. He said the cultural clubs offer a space for students to be part of their own community, and they can meet and interact with students that they might not have met otherwise. It is important to him that the clubs at BHS help raise awareness and gain recognition of diverse cultures throughout the school. “I think it’s important to be familiar with other cultures, especially around the people you share the school with,” Davis said.
District Lifts Mask Mandate as COVID-19 Spread Decreases
A group of BHS students pose in a C-Building hallway without wearing masks.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
COVID-19 cases in all of the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD). Compared to the 653 confirmed cases in January alone, BUSD COVID-19 numbers decreased by 63 percent. Surrounding school districts in the counties of Marin, Napa, Santa Clara, San Mateo, San Francisco, Sacramento, and Sonoma have announced similar changes to masking policy. All will be following the state’s updated masking guidelines, changing them to “strongly recommended.” Maia Wachtel, a Universal Ninth Grade (U9) English teacher, shared her view of the new masking guidelines.
“I trust the guidance from the health department, and I am not an expert, so I’m gonna defer to the folks who are,” Wachtel said. “[However], right now, as long as it is strongly recommended or more, I will continue to mask.” Alex Day, a U9 Ethnic Studies teacher, expressed his concern on how the shift in COVID-19 guidelines might affect classroom environments. “If there are now more kids who feel uncomfortable in a classroom with someone who isn’t consistently masking, that could make [the classroom environment] worse,” Day said. “So because [masking] is something that doesn’t really bother me much and
could help other people stay safe … I am going to continue to wear a mask.” In an informal social media survey by the Jacket of 286 BHS students, 199 students voted for keeping the mask mandate in place while the remaining 87 voted for it to be lifted. Noe Linvill, a sophomore in Academic Choice (AC), noted the divide that may come with optional masking. “[Students] have such strong ideas about what wearing a mask means and how that relates to your political image,” Linvill said. “So I think that some students are going to have certain ideas about other students that might not be accurate. People are go-
spond to the mask mandate being lifted. “A lot of students are, I think, not going to take off their masks, due to [COVID-19] anxiety, due to family anxiety, also I think just due to self consciousness,” Wachtel said. “I think we’ve been trained to not have a lot of our faces shown and a lot of people, especially a lot of teenagers and kids, I think, are having a lot of facial anxiety.” Chiara Hyman, a BHS freshman, expressed similar concerns about how the new mask guidelines might affect students’ perceptions of each other. “Nowadays when everyone talks about mask fishing and stuff it seems pretty minor, but definitely has an effect [on students],” Hyman said. “It might just be surprising to see everyone
date, wondering if it will last. “We had a similar thing last May when we thought the mask mandate was going to be lifted and it turned out it couldn’t,” Hyman said. “So I’m interested to see how this will progress and how long it will last.” Jervis shared her excitement about the new shift in COVID-19 protocols at BHS and her experience in the classroom after the mask mandate was lifted. She also commented on how her classroom environment has impacted her decision to wear or not wear a mask. “I feel comfortable not LILY FROST wearing a mask… [but] I ing to get canceled for [not also think it depends on masking], which I think is the teacher and how they’re so weird, because it’s their conducting the class,” Jerown decision.” vis said. “If a lot of other Romy Jervis, a senior students are wearing masks in AC, expressed or not, that kind of her opinion around [influences] my opinmasking in school “People are talking about it a lot, ion.” and BUSD’s decision Jervis continand people like to talk to other to lift the mask manued and talked about people without masks on … [and the shifts she had date. “I hate wearing have] much higher spirits in that noticed in her classmasks at school,” mates’ behavior. She way.” Jervis said. “I feel so commented on the stuffy and gross, I’m excitement and enerRomy Jervis, tired of it… [and] I gy she saw surroundBHS Student do feel it’s the right ing the new changes time to do it. I think in the COVID-19 people are probably protocols. really antsy to move forward without a mask on because “People are talking about with [COVID- 19] restric- I think we all fill in peoples’ it a lot, and people like to tions.” faces.” talk to other people withWachtel remarked on Hyman went on to ex- out masks on … [and have] how she believes different plain her reservations much higher spirits in that students are going to re- around the lifted mask man- way,” Jervis said.
OPINION BERKELEY HIGH JACKET
opinion editors: Anjuna Mascarenhas-Swan & Lianna Leung
WWIII Jokes Understate Ukraine Tragedy BY VIVANA HILARIO staff writer
Since February 24, the media has been flooded with coverage of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Among this coverage, however, have been jokes and memes — largely from Americans — poking fun at the tragedy. Although humor can often be a helpful coping mechanism for victims, downplaying a devastating situation from across the globe is outrageously disrespectful. Americans who remain largely unaffected by the war have no right to turn such a
situation into something humorous. Having grown up during a time where the US is consistently involved in conflict, our generation has become largely desensitized to death, and the pandemic seems to have only exacerbated this. Although the origins of this desensitization are clear in a world where death and exploitation have become the norm, it is not an excuse to make light of serious situations. While it is inevitable for Americans to comment on foreign politics, it becomes an issue when they are ignorant to the sentiments of those
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more directly affected by foreign events. The atrocities in Ukraine are nothing to laugh about, and claiming to be “desensitized” is no excuse for any American to participate in such humor. Claiming to use humor as a coping mechanism is equally invalid for the majority of Americans. Of course, feeling scared or saddened by the event, even from thousands of miles away, is a valid and somewhat inevitable reaction. Yet, the second-hand sympathy of Americans is in no way comparable to the fear Ukrainian citizens are forced to wake up to every morning. On many social media platforms, users have been laughing about “World War III,” with TikTok comment sections filled with jokes such as “First war ... what should I wear?” or “Season 3 about to drop!” Frankly, there is nothing to “cope” with in regards to this crisis as an American, and laughing at the deaths of real-life, innocent people and calling it a form of “processing” is absurd. The blatant minimization of the hundreds of deaths that have occurred over the past few days in Ukraine and Russia is unacceptable. However, among the pleth-
ora of coverage of the event in the media are jokes that ridicule the leaders involved in the invasion, mostly targeting Vladimir Putin. This sort of humor can be more difficult to categorize as valid or invalid. Ultimately, bringing political figures off of the pedestals that they have been placed on in society can be beneficial. However, it’s important to ensure these jokes are not taken too far. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the atrocities that have followed are no laughing matter. While this crisis is only a continuation of years of tension and violence, it's an entirely new level of hostility. Along with this increasing level of violence comes an influx of media coverage, leading Americans to attempt to interpret the war in various ways, including through humor. However, as the average American citizen is relatively far from a personal connection to the conflict, the use of humor as a coping mechanism is disrespectful. While placing cat ears on Putin may invoke a laugh or two for people disconnected from the tragedy, it is imperative to remember the reality behind such jokes.
Teens’ Online Privacy Must Be Protected BY ELIOT HERTENSTEIN staff writer
Most students have seen sponsored content before — it’s present in almost every corner of the internet. Whether it takes the form of a banner ad or a post by an influencer, it’s becoming harder and harder to understand what is or isn’t an ad, and how our data is used. It’s time to rethink our internet privacy and put new regulations in place to make sure students know when and how they’re being tracked. The main issue with internet advertising is how it’s priced and who pays. Because companies like Google price ads per click, as opposed to per view, they’re motivated to serve ads that are as relevant as possible to their users. This means that companies are increasingly motivated to track users. While users can take measures to increase their privacy, the reality is that most Americans don’t take their online privacy seriously. America is in a privacy
crisis, and the effects are most serious for young adults and children. According to the Associated Press and the National Opinion Research Center (APNORC), 76 percent of teenagers between ages 13 and 17 use Instagram — which is owned by Facebook, a company that spends a majority of its $390 million advertising budget targeting teens. Since young adults are such a big part of the advertising market, companies use sponsored content, influencers, and other marketing tactics to specifically target this group. While advertising is a large part of why we don’t have much privacy online, it’s far from the only reason. During the 2020-21 school year, Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) installed GoGuardian parental monitoring software on school (and personal) computers. While the district did notify students regarding the change, many are still unclear on what teachers — and GoGuardian — can and can’t see. What’s the fix? First, the
district should reserve class time for education surrounding internet safety, instead of blanket-monitoring activity on Chromebooks. This would not only allow students to be safer on school computers, but would also help them understand which content is actually an advertisement, leading to better internet habits. The district should also allow students to install extensions like ad-blockers, as they are proven to increase security and privacy online.
Additionally, companies and advertisers must have stronger regulations for labeling advertisements. Influencers should use invideo popups or labels when speaking about a sponsored product, and ads should be clearly labeled with language such as “ad” or “advertisement,” instead of “promoted post” or “sponsored content.” As more of the world moves online, the risks of using the internet grow, along with the need for education and regulation.
RIOKA HAYAMA
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
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anjunamascarenhass@students.berkeley.net
A BRIEF HISTORY OF SAPPHIC LITERATURE LILIANE LOZAC'H
In honor of Women’s History Month, I will give a brief history of sapphic literature. Censorship and bigotry have pounded at the door of lesbian literature for practically all of history, reducing women and the love between them to naught. Yet, sapphic books have always been there — you just have to search for them. The foundational works of lesbian literature come from Sappho herself; the terms “sapphic” and “lesbian” are derived from her and her homeland, the Isle of Lesbos. Sappho was one of Ancient Greece's greatest lyrical poets and lived from the early 600s to the late 500s BCE. However, in the 16th century, the rise of Christianity also came with a contempt for homosexuality so strong that it was punishable by death. Lesbian literature was scarcely printed, but there were a few male authors who used lesbianism in their novels as a way to upset the church — which is hardly a display of solidarity. In the 19th century came Ann Lister, who published her secret diary containing her most intimate thoughts (The Secret Diaries of Miss Ann Lister). These diaries are often described as the “Rosetta Stone” of lesbian literature. Wu Zao (1799-1863) was a notable Chinese poet who wrote erotic lesbian verses that were continually published. In the early 20th century, homosexual literature was still banned and censored. However, authors like Vita Sackville West and Virginia Woolf snuck lesbian subtext into their writing, keeping publishers in the dark. At this same time, a genre called “Yuri” was rising in Japan. Popular amongst schoolgirls, it depicted love between two women. During the mid twenties, the rise of lesbian pulp fiction began. Most of these films or books were produced by straight men, sometimes posing as women. However, Anne Bannon and Valerie Taylor were two (real) women who produced such works. A famed novel that also came around this time was Jane Rule's Desert of the Heart (1964) one the first lesbian novels that was allowed a happy ending. In the 1970s, homosexuality was somewhat decriminalized in most Western civilizations, and the Gay Rights movement began. This was around the same time that women of color gained a voice in sapphic literature: works such as Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown were published, as well as works by other prominent female authors, such as Audre Lord. It seemed that lesbianism was no longer tiptoed around, and was finally allowed a stronghold in the world of literature. By the 1990s, works like The Color Purple and Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit were published, exploring not only themes of lesbianism, but also race and class. Now, in the 21st century, we have witnessed a surge in LGBTQ+ literature of all kinds. However, it is important to note that this accesibility to queer media is not everywhere; homosexual literature is still banned in more than sixty countries.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
EDITORIAL
It’s Time to Broaden Our Definition of Diversity at BHS As the world's most highly immigrant-populated country, the US is a nation with high levels of diversity in regards to culture, race, and ethnicity. Perhaps because of this varied demographic, as well as the physical size of the country, it’s unlikely that all US citizens could share any uniform culture. While this principle of individualism may prompt political polarization and disconnect, it also has the potential to make the US the most culturally versatile country in the world. At Berkeley High School (BHS), diversity is held in high esteem. BHS champions multicultural events and clubs, and students push for coursework to include and propel underrepresented voices. However, this well-intended search for representation often produces an unfortunate generalization: the simplification of diversity into the categories of “person of color (POC)” and “white.” These terms ignore the variation between thousands of different cultural heritages and create a divisive understanding of what diversity really is, rather than treat it as an opportunity for more critical discourse and globally centered problem-solving. When we talk about increasing diversity, we often struggle
OPINION
with drawing a line between racial and cultural diversity. In the US, possibly because of a lack of uniform culture, the two become inevitably intertwined. Due to historical racial divisions and discrimination, people tend to unify with those of the same race, especially in times when they face hate or racially motivated opposition. This is completely valid, if not necessary, and serves to provide a community for people who may have otherwise been marginalized because of their race. However, we cannot pretend that this kind of diversity is the only important one. Especially in a community such as BHS, which so intensely strives to cultivate different perspectives, it’s crucial to understand the significance of other kinds of diversity, namely, cultural diversity. If we want to see social progress, it’s vital that historically oppressed groups stand together. This idea is one of the biggest motivators behind the usage of the terms POC and white. However, using these terms constantly, especially in an academic context, inherently implies a somewhat permanent division, and if we continue to use these in our campaigns for diversity, we will find that they will cement themselves in the one place they shouldn’t. POC is a term often used interchangeably with endless groups of people: relatively every person with native roots from Asian, African, and often South and Central American countries gets cramped under the umbrella term, while any person with mostly European roots is grouped as white. These terms — although necessary in many cases — and what they represent need to be deprioritized in the context of diversity at BHS. By grouping people together and simply labeling them Black or brown, we disregard the value of the different subsets of POC and simplify and demean the extensive historical
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value of these groups. This kind of generalization also serves to minimize the suffering of those who don’t fall under the POC category. Polish people have faced one of history's most detrimental massacres but are still thrown into the same category as people with whom they have no cultural and historical ties, with nearly identical value attributed to their perspective. Similarly, the US is home to a vast number of refugees: after the massacres carried out by the Ottoman Empire, Armenians fled to other countries, including the US. While their experiences and cultural changes are unlike any other, they are technically considered to be white. Consequently, they are lumped together with groups such as the British or the Portuguese, who have a long history of colonialism. As such, their trauma is made to seem less significant, and their perspective is attributed much less importance. This same battle with oversimplification can be applied to practically every cultural background. When we strive for representation, we cannot synonymize people with completely different backgrounds, simply because they fall under the category of POC or white. Rather, we should take these differences as an opportunity to learn to interpret conflicts in a variety of ways, and appreciate the multitude of views that people from different cultures can provide. As a community that seeks diversity, it’s important that we both recognize and celebrate taking the global approach, especially considering the remarkable diversity of backgrounds BHS students have. Rather than quantifying the trauma experienced by different groups, we can work to use representation to shine a positive light on different experiences, and in doing so, we will learn to truly value diverse perspectives, and can work to reconcile our outlook on cultural diversity.
BHS Students Must Examine Social Media More Critically BY MIRIAM REICHENBERG staff writer
When it comes to social media literacy, Berkeley High School’s (BHS) ninth grade Ethnic Studies and Social Living curriculum barely scratches the surface, only broadly covering topics such as cyberbullying and social media’s effects on the brain. For the amount of time teens spend scrolling through social media, reposting infographics, and creating posts, there must be more education about the harmful impacts induced by the media we’re constantly consuming and sharing with others. Across the nation, high school students are faced with a lack of specific, applicable, and responsible information about how to interact with social media. According to MediaWise, a project empowering young people to become careful consumers of online content, “the vast majority of teenagers have trouble navi-
gating digital information — from viral hoaxes on Instagram to sponsored content on news sites.” A lack of understanding of how to responsibly interact with digitized content and social media has far-reaching and detrimental social and emotional impacts. While loss of self-esteem is not uniquely caused by social media, usage can amplify the feeling. According to a 2018 Pew Research Center study on teenagers’ experiences with social media, “26 percent of teens say [social media] makes them feel worse about their own life.” Checking social media platforms religiously after posting, and feeling disappointment or anxiety when the “likes” aren’t rolling in is a reality for many of us. This is only further enforced by the unhealthy validation received through comments on the ever-present selfies masked by filters. Today, teenagers often receive news in the form of TikTok reels and Instagram infographics, which don’t provide in-depth or ac-
curate information. When teenagers see informational posts, whether true or not, they tend to react impulsively, reposting and commenting before fully digesting the content. This can rapidly spread misinformation. A 2018 study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that false news stories were 70 percent more likely to be retweeted than true stories. Checking that sources are valid and letting information sink in before sharing are important skills to help limit the spread of misinformation. Despite the absence of sufficient social media literacy curriculums and campaigns, teenagers must still learn to be aware of how they interact with social media and online content as a whole. Schools aren’t necessarily able to implement social media literacy programs, given limitations in funding and staffing, but, as our reality is becoming more digitized, teenagers must take the lead, while strongly encouraging peers and educators to join.
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A student looks at a heavily-edited photograph of an influencer on Instagram.
CLARA ELM NETTESHEIM
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
OPINION
Women’s Studies Would Benefit Students
BY ELLORA MOOKHERJEE AMODT staff writer
Throughout the educational system, courses focused on the history and achievements of historically oppressed groups have never been the status quo. In recent years, as American public school systems have become more aware of the history of marginalized communities in the United States, Berkeley High School (BHS) has increased discussions and dedicated more classes to these groups. These courses are integral to achieving equal representation in educational systems, and necessary in the pursuit of justice for all. Although we already have a department for African American studies, as well
as classes for Latinx and Chicanx history, courses on women’s studies are notably missing from the course list. Historically, BHS has done a great job in offering classes that promote inclusivity, such as African American History, African American Psychology, and Latinx History. However, BHS currently offers no classes specific to the voices of women. Over the years, students have voiced their own opinions through outlets such as the Women’s Student Union (WSU), advocating for better representation of women in BHS curriculums. They believe that women’s history is a part of all history and therefore a fundamental building block in our education. In 2022, it’s become common knowledge that students from all backgrounds
LEILAH DOOSTAN
would deeply benefit from a wider range of perspectives on people both similar and dissimilar to themselves. Women’s studies classes cover a wide variety of topics beyond women’s history, such as media literacy, sexuality, race and ethnicity, queer theory, multiculturalism, and more. This would provide the BHS student body with an opportunity to widen the scope of unfamiliar topics they are exposed to, while also allowing them to become aware of personal biases and limitations in prior knowledge. This widened view of the world is especially central to BHS in regards to consent education. As many know, sexual harm and assault have been long lasting issues in our community, and only in recent years have the proper resources become
more accessible. Classes focused on women would allow topics, including sexual harm and misconduct, to be continuously discussed amongst the student body, and allow more opportunities to combat sexual violence. Students have previously made the argument that women-focused content should not make up an entire class, but rather, be included within pre-existing classes offered at BHS. However, in a world heavily centered around the stories and accomplishments of men, it would be incredibly difficult to reconstruct curriculums that have already been set in place. Incorporating the important topics covered by women’s studies would require removing other equally important ones, making it challenging to prioritize. Adding additional courses, rather than taking away some, would be the most effective way to provide students resources who are eager to immerse themselves in women’s studies. An opportunity has arisen to create a safe space for women at BHS, and students are hungry for that change. We must provide every student with the opportunity to be equally represented, and acknowledge the accomplishments of those who have played significant roles in shaping the course of history. It’s high time that BHS creates more women-focused classes to truly serve its students.
Reclaiming Derogatory Terms for Women BY ELLA CREANE staff writer
To be bossy, demanding, and unapologetic makes a leader out of a man and a c*nt out of a woman. Women should aspire to have those attributes and the title that comes with them, unlearning everything they’ve been taught about how to act and who to be. Women must take the very words used to suppress them and turn them into powerful words for self-identification and a redefinition of femininity. Derogatory terms are often used to represent the attributes that someone is not allowed to have. In the case of women, they are words intended to take away her emotional, sexual, or authoritative power, and shame her for wielding it in the first place. The topic of women reclaiming derogatory terms is a complex one, just like most other hateful speech. The long history behind these words stems from centuries
of hate and discrimination. Using derogatory terms can feel like a continuation of values from the past, possibly perpetuating harmful stereotypes. If women reclaim these words, a form of normalization may also occur, where non-women may feel entitled to use the same terms and therefore upholding the same damaging ideals. However, the emphasis on the standard of a perfect woman will continue to be present in our society. Expectations of accommodation, innocence, and nurture permeate the image of femininity. Erasing this is not a simple task. Embracing the very words that embody and enforce these ideas helps women defy that derogatory narrative. If people aren’t allowed to shout hateful things, they will whisper them. To fully remove that dialogue, the power of the words themselves must be taken away. In the halls of Berkeley High School (BHS), one can hear these terms thrown around. Listen for
five minutes during a passing period, and you’re likely to hear these words at least once. However, more often than not, it’s coming from the mouth of one girl to another, not as an insult but casual banter. Acknowledging the weight of each word and choosing to look past it takes away the gravity of its usage. Consequently, the weight of its core expectations is taken away. People only have as much power over you as you give them. To embrace the very words intended to strip one’s
GABRIELLA BUSANSKY
power away is the strongest form of rebellion. As a refusal not only of silence, but of anything less than shouting, these words feed into an even more important tool in fighting discrimination. By acknowledging unfair expectations and then working to embody the opposite, the fundamental, broken systems of society are directly challenged. Words have power, and by understanding how to wield that power, it’s possible to revolutionize hateful speech and turn it into something unifying.
KILLING MOLOCH ELI KNISBACHER
The demon Moloch reclines on a large white throne. Unlike most thrones, his is constructed of the bones of sacrificed children. Moloch’s doorbell rings and echoes around his cavernous lair. Moloch rises, plods across his chamber through a massive front door, and finds a small white package labeled “iPhone 13 Pro.” He loves the new phone. It functions identically to its predecessor, but looks more sleek. Moloch most enjoys the phone’s lifespan. Apple utilizes social pressures and shoddy batteries to force consumers to frequently renew their phones. Moloch calls these tactics Perceived and Planned Obsolescence, respectively. These tactics epitomize consumerism. Consumerism is “the theory that an increasing consumption of goods is economically desirable” (Merriam-Webster). In other words, consumerists believe decadent spending helps the economy. Corporations convince consumers to overspend by advertising to them. Advertisements mislead consumers into buying unnecessary merchandise by associating it with enhanced social acceptance. Yet for an advertisement to be successful, the advertised product requires reasonable pricing. Even Moloch wouldn’t buy a ten thousand dollar phone. Although corporations must produce relatively cheap products, labor is extremely expensive. The Antebellum South exploited enslaved Africans to minimize labor costs. After outlawing slavery, the US switched to foreign sources of cheap labor. Currently, Apple produces iPhones in China, and the company severely underpays workers. Buying an iPhone essentially sacrifices workers in China. By buying an iPhone, one also sacrifices oneself. One buys into consumerism, and consumerism is a cycle of suffering. It’s a treadmill that capitalizes off of human sweat. Each revolution yields a new iPhone. Then back to the treadmill. It promises to eventually stop, but when it finally does, it leaves behind a sacrificed, overworked corpse. Moloch loves sacrifice. His followers sacrificed their children to him in biblical times (hence his throne), and they now sacrifice themselves, their employees, and their planet to him. They follow Moloch unconsciously. Consciously, they follow their Instagram friends. Subliminally, they follow their phones, which are controlled by Tim Cook, but Moloch owns the CEOs. Moloch is consumerism and he adores iPhones. Yet Moloch can be killed. By challenging the system, the Beatniks stabbed a knife into his jugular, as in the poem “Howl” by Allen Ginsburg. By bringing Buddhism to America, Ram Dass kneed him in the groin. In opening the doors of perception, Jim Morrison nearly “broke on through to the other side” of Moloch’s skull. Maybe a more concentrated effort could deliver a final blow. Maybe not. Maybe Moloch is a personal demon, and to kill him we must stop buying phones. We must take responsibility for societal flaws, like consumerism, rather than shifting blame to Moloch. For Moloch is but an embodiment of human greed. To kill Moloch, we must acknowledge our own greed, and take to the streets when powerful people won’t acknowledge theirs.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
INVESTIGATIVE
‘A Ton of White Kids:’ Lack of Diversity in Class Impacts BIPOC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
teacher. Despite BIHS’s lack of diversity, according to BIHS Vice Principal Harrison Blatt, the program has had the most diverse teaching staff out of all of the Small Learning Communities (SLCs). BIHS has worked hard to retain teachers of color, according to Moreno. Still, attracting Black and brown students to BIHS proves difficult. Moreno explained that when many white students choose BIHS over other SLCs, it creates a perpetual cycle of whiteness that discourages students of color from opting in. Moreno
said, “It’s hard to erase that history. … It’s hard to convince students of color to take that risk, to be in a predominantly white space.” One student of color who chose to be in BIHS is junior Neruda Diaz, who identifies as Mexican and Middle Eastern. Diaz feels that BIHS is burdened by a lack of diversity. In one class, he is one of only two students of color. Diaz said that his teachers do an acceptable job of acknowledging the unbalanced racial demographics. However, on a few occasions, Diaz noticed that “kids of color seem to be excluded from groups, or some kids may not seem happy to work with them.”
BIHS junior Neruda Diaz identifies as Mexican and Middle Eastern.
BIHS senior Hanim Nuru identifies as Black.
Although it may be hard to get students of color to take a chance on BIHS, some have made peace with the lack of diversity. BIHS senior Hanim Nuru, identifying as Black, admits that while she knows some students of color who aren’t comfortable in BIHS’s predominantly white classes, she has found a way to live with the situation. “I personally just try to find comfort where I am,” Nuru said. “I know this is the real world situation because there’s not a lot of BIPOC people in America in general.” However, according to certain AC students, their experiences are somewhat
different from BIHS students’. Myah Polzin, an African American and Pacific Islander junior in AC, feels that her race is represented well in her SLC because she has teachers who look like her and classes that cater to her race. Polzin said that teachers address diversity issues adequately but that “the topic usually never comes up until something makes it have to be talked about.” Moreno shares Polzin’s experiences: discussions related to race are more productive and organic in her Latinx Literature class, where there are more students of color. Moreno explained that she has had
BIHS classes with only one Black person, which makes having conversations about race difficult. While Moreno notices this imbalance, she doesn’t always want to draw attention to that person. “While it is important for white people to talk about race, how does it feel to be the only Black student in a class where all the white students are talking about race?” Moreno said. Diaz has seen this in conversations dominated by white students, with BIPOC students unable to share their experiences with racism. This is usually accepted because “no one has ever done anything different,” Diaz said.
“It’s weird to go to a school which is so diverse and integrated but then be in classrooms and small schools which aren’t,” Moreno said. “I think it’s a disservice to students to be segregated.” Moreno proposed eliminating the SLC model and instead adopting an approach similar to Universal Ninth Grade, consisting of heterogeneous classes and more Ethnic Studies courses like Latinx Literature and African American History. “It is something that needs to be acknowledged and ... talked about more broadly,” Moreno said. “What does diversity mean on our campus?”
ART BY GABRIELLA BUSANSKY
AC junior Myah Polzin identifies as Black and Asian.
PENELOPE GILLIGAN
Stigma of Female Masturbation: Why Don’t We Talk About It? specializes in reproductive health, “We live in a society that seeks to control female sexuality, and in particular, female sexual pleasure. From a young age, women and girls are taught that their pleasure is not important, or not valid, and that
of shut down your sexuality,” French said. “Because if you’re oversexualized, you may be seen as stupid, or an “I don’t want my mom object.” telling me about all the Women who are open time she masturbates,” said about their sex lives or who Adeline French, a senior have a lot of sex tend to not at Berkeley High School be taken very seriously, and (BHS). “But it would are given less respect have been nice to than women who “[Masturbating] actively counhave a conversation don’t. Furthermore, with her.” ters rape culture. ... There’s more when women are alFrench, like many agency in knowing what you like lowed to express their women and femme sexuality, it is expected and what you don’t like.” identifying people, to be directed at men. was never told that “Women are meant Raquel Matthews, masturbating is norto be consumed and mal, healthy, or a looked at but not exBHS student way to get to know ist by themselves,” said herself. However, Raquel Matthews, a women masturbate like ev- talking about these things is BHS senior. eryone else. So why don’t dirty and inappropriate.” One aspect of how this “In order to be a pow- concept causes harm is that people talk about it? According to Dr. Shan- erful woman in this day it takes women’s pleasure non Connolly, M.D., who and age, you have to kind completely off the table. BY TOBI HAIMS staff writer
RIOKA HAYAMA
“We’re expected to be the Learning about STI pre- row terms … but it can be pleaser, so for a woman to vention and birth control is any physical sensation that pleasure herself or be the important and practical in- brings you pleasure. So one receiving pleasure is less formation, “but if you don’t masturbation could even be talk about pleasure and how like touching your boobs,” common,” French said. The ideas that promote a that plays into sexual expe- French said. “I don’t feel like woman’s sensuality as weird riences, then you’re leaving we talk about how broad it or embarrassing come from so much information out,” is, and how many ways you can explore your body. It’s the media, where women Matthews said. “At the end of the day, important to encourage the are expected to seek male validation. “A lot of what pleasure is the primary rea- exploration of your own I’ve learned from … the me- son why most people engage body, so that you can … get dia, the movies, and Taylor in sex, and so it’s a shame in touch with this other side Swift songs is about men that we don’t talk about that of yourself.” According to a worker liking me, and finding me more,” Connolly said. Even though it is not talk- — who chose to remain attractive, specifically,” said Juniper Dorado, a BHS ju- ed about, “masturbation is anonymous —at Feelmore, normal, everybody does it,” a sex shop located on Shatnior. This heteronormative said Anton Migdal, a BHS tuck Ave., “[Masturbation is] how you learn your narrative about how womown boundaries. It creates en are supposed to act and boundaries for yourlook affects how womself and your partner.” en view themselves. During the Middle Ages, an While masturbation is “I’ve internalized a lot aroused clitoris was thought normally thought of of ideas around my body as an object and of as contact with the devil. in the context of the individual, it transas something to be During the Renaissance, lates to sexual expericonsumed,” Dorado some anatomists referred to ences with others as said. “I sometimes feel really disconnected the clitoris as the “woman’s well. Masturbation from my body because shameful member.” can also have an imI feel like I’ve gotten pact on a larger scale. into the learned habit actively of objectifying myself,” she junior. Not only is it normal, “[Masturbating] added. “When I disconnect but masturbating is good counters rape culture in a from my body, I disconnect for you. “Masturbation can way that people can advofrom feeling pleasure. … relieve stress, improve sleep cate for themselves. There’s That could be sexual plea- quality, strengthen pelvic more agency in knowing sure, but it could also just be floor muscles, relieve men- what you like and what you strual cramps, and improve don’t like,” Matthews added. emotions in general.” “If I can be confident “We act like [masturba- self esteem and body image,” tion is] something to be Connolly said. “It can make with myself, then I know ashamed of because it hasn’t a person more comfortable how to be confident with a been discussed for decades,” with their own body, and it’s partner,” French said. “And French said. Although it also really safe and can be if I can tell the partner what I like, [then] the experience varies from state to state, very empowering!” “Masturbation, like sex, is going to be better for both US sex education often fails to discuss masturbation. is often seen in very nar- of us.”
DID YOU KNOW?
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
FEATURES
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Agnetha Fältskog by Elsa Faulders
Gloria Steinem by Elsa Faulders
"I grew up listening to ABBA’s music, so I decided to create a portrait of Agnetha Fältskog, one of the members of the musical group, to highlight her contribution to the music that so many of us know and love."
"I chose to create a portrait of Gloria Steinem to honor her participation in the feminist movement and her achievements as an activist."
Untitled by Ava Murakami
Street Art Displays Berkeley’s Radical Past and Colorful Present
BY SOFIA RODRIGUEZ staff writer
From downtown to the ered citizens of South hills, Berkeley boasts amaz- Berkeley to paint a mural on ing street art. Though each the south wall of the Grove piece is different, they all tell Liquor Store. a story about Berkeley. The project became The wall of Amoeba mu- known as South Berkeley sic is home to the People's Shines. The idea was simple: History of Telegraph, one have each artist fill in a letof Berkeley’s most famous ter to spell out the word communities surrounding historic murals. The piece "shines." Then, neighbors the mural. “The halal referwas designed by Osha Neu- had the opportunity to add ence was to honor the shop mann, a local civil rights their own touch, whether we had chosen for our localawyer, and painted by that be the paw print of a tion. The corner store generO’Brien Thiele, Janet Kran- dog or a handprint. ously offered their wall and zberg, Daniel Galvez, and Monika Lea Jones was served the community with others in 1976. It defood, including halal picts several scenes food for Muslims. It associated with the was great to see the Though street art and muFree Speech Movediversity of religions rals may not be displayed in ment that began on side by side,” Lea Jones fancy museums, the street art campus at the Unisaid. of Berkeley tells a powerful versity of California, Down in Berkeley. These inSouthwest Berkeley, a story about the city. clude anti-war promural named Living tests, the emergence Without Borders/Viof the Black Panther Party, one of the artists who took vir Sin Fronteras sits on the and the People’s Park protest part in this community walls of the Mexican market in May of 1969. project, filling in the letters Mi Tierra Foods. In 2003, Epic Arts, a H and E with art inspired by The mural was created by Berkeley non-profit, gath- the churches and spiritual Juana Alicia, a local artist,
Street art can be found in Berkeley from Telegraph to MLK Jr. Way.
and a group of students from the True Colors Mural Program at Berkeley Community College. Images of Native women provide viewers with some history of those who were here originally, such as the Ohlone, and the patterned cloth highlights integration. The overarching idea of gentrification
— the changing of neighborhoods as a result of an increase in affluent residents and businesses — is strong in the mural, showing how gentrification often creates powerful unseen borders as opposed to physical ones, dictating what and who is allowed within a location. The mural truly shows how
JEROME PAULOS
activism and art can come together and make a difference. Though street art and murals may not be displayed in fancy museums, the street art of Berkeley tells a powerful story about the city.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
FEATURES
Return to On-Campus Elections Inspires Student Candidates sitions were uncontested, including sophomore and senior class president, as well as vice president. This Two years ago, as a freshyear, the position of senior man, Sarah Darzacq was class president alone has five a delegate at the Berkeley candidates, and four stuHigh School (BHS) elecdents are running for senior tion convention. This year, class vice president. she attended the election Darzacq attributed the convention again, instead as lack of candidates last year a candidate for Associated to the pandemic, which ocStudent Body (ASB) vice cupied students’ attention. president, and found “Nobody wants a starkly different ento run for school leadvironment. “[Now] that we're on campus, ership in the middle of “At the election the pandemic,” Darzacq the issues that we see become convention [this said. “This year, everyyear], so few student very real, but we also see more body really wants BHS real solutions to fix them.” delegates were there to be a fun and enjoyto watch, and that's able place to be at, and I a big difference from think people want to be Anna Khan-Akselrod, p r e - C O V I D - 1 9 ,” part of that change.” BHS Commisioner of Elections Darzacq said. “I was Anna Khana delegate freshman Akselrod, BHS’ comyear and it was packed. ... dent participation in recent missioner of elections, Everybody was super ex- years to the less “raucous” suggested that students’ cited. There were tons of and exciting atmosphere of physical presence on camstudents. The auditorium the election conventions. pus has strengthened their was filled. And this year, He described how in past sense of connection to “civic there were really not a lot years, the election conven- duty to the school” and inof people. It was mostly just tion has incorporated sen- spired many of them to run the candidates.” sational elements such as a for office. “[Now] that we're Darzacq suggested that balloon drop and a dance on campus, the issues that this change may be due to break, attracting over 200 we see become very real, but students being constantly students in some instances. we also see more real solu“bombarded” with informaContrary to the lack of tions to fix them,” Khantion about events, unable to student interest seen in the Akselrod said. process it all, or because of convention, more students “[The candidates] spotdecreased access to infor- seem to be running for of- ted these issues that still exmation altogether. fice. Last year, several po- isted at BHS through online BY KIRA RAO-POOLLA staff writer
“With such a big school, a drawback is that a lot of information can fall through the cracks,” Darzacq said. “Especially with the PA system not working, and not everybody watching the morning announcements, it's hard to get a steady information flow.” John Villavicencio, director of student activities, attributed the decrease in stu-
Protestors camp-out in front of Westlake Middle School on February 13.
SASHA BALASUBRAMANIAN
‘No, the F**k They Won’t:’ Locals Fight OUSD Closures BY MIRABAI PARNALL staff writer
On January 25, 2022, Maurice André San-Chez, a chorus teacher at Westlake Middle School, awoke to a list leaked by Mike Hutchinson, School Board District 5 Director. This list included the schools that the Oakland Unified School Board (OUSD) intended to close or merge. The announcement sparked outrage throughout the Oakland community. “At this time, my whole body was inclined and eager to do something
big,” San-Chez stated in an interview with the Jacket. “I needed to make an impact; I needed to make a change.” San-Chez and Moses Omolade, also a Westlake educator, began a 20 day hunger strike, surviving only on water and liquid electrolytes, in protest of the school closures. The list provided by Hutchinson on January 26 included a proposed 13 schools to be closed by the end of the 2022-23 school year. These schools are predominantly low-income, and will affect mainly Black and brown elementary and
middle school students. “There is no coincidence that it is about race, that it is about class, that it is about disability, and about anybody who will not come forward to this structure of mass education that throws away our children,” a local parent shouted at a protest at the Cesar Chavez Education Center (CCEC), on March 5. “So I do urge you and call on you to lift the voices of our disabled students, our Black and brown students, and our educators.” Despite school closures being considered disruptive to learning, this isn't the
school, and even before, but being back on campus, they can see how prevalent it is and how they can work to fix it in some way.” The pandemic has also been observed to have influenced candidates’ campaigns, with students emphasizing mental health issues, which were worsened by the pandemic. She also noticed a theme among candidates of substantive policies, with efforts to combat rape culture and implement consent education. “BHS students take this really seriously,” Villavicencio said. “It’s not like the TV and movie elections where people are like, ‘You want burgers everyday? I’ll give you burgers for lunch!’ We’re
not talking silly, ridiculous offers to the student body. They really want to make a difference in terms of what happens to policies [and] curriculum. They want to make serious change, and if [their policy] is something that a student is interested in, they should know that and vote.” Villavicencio described how low student turnout would be “heartbreaking;” a sign that either students don’t have access to enough information or technology, or that they don’t think their vote matters. “I'm really, really hoping that the election this year is more accessible, and that more students vote, because in previous elections,
voter turnout [was not demonstrative of the entire school],” Khan-Akselrod said. “I'm really hoping that now that we're back on campus, there's a way to excite voters and get them to vote for the candidates that best show their interest.” Students will be able to cast their ballot from March 28 to March 31 through a Google form. Important student resources include the election handbook, videos from the election convention, and the candidates’ individual Instagram platforms, according to KhanAkselrod, which students can use to make informed decisions as they actively participate in student government.
Villavicencio and Khan-Akselrod discuss the elections, which saw an increase in candidates.
PENELOPE GILLIGAN
first time closures have been Mike Hutchinson, another crowd at the CCEC. “I’m not proposed in Oakland. board member, said, “We going to back down. I’m goBetween 2004 and 2019, need to be quickly organiz- ing to fight ‘till the end, I’m Oakland closed 19 pub- ing to fight these immediate going to fight until my feet lic schools, 16 of them closures.” The Jacket reached get tired.” largely occupied by Black out to Yee for commentary, Meanwhile, the teachand Latinx students. “This but received no response. ers continued their hunger dates back to when they After two weeks of strike. San-Chez described closed down Roots [an Oak- strikes, protests, and march- their experience, saying, land middle school closed es, a modified plan to close “In that time, I learned the in 2019], and the other two schools this school year power of community, and schools. There was com- and five in the next was de- what community love and munity outrage, there was cided. The meeting saw four activism looks like.” Omocommunity tears, and [the hours of public comment, lade was hospitalized, and school board] just sat there,” made by students, teachers, both educators had a constated San-Chez. Many of and Oakland residents. siderable health decline, but the proposed school closure The decided vote dis- remained in high spirits. plans have been abandoned mayed many anti-closure Following the strike, Sandue to pushback. During the activists who spoke at the Chez and Omolade contin2011-12 school year, the dis- meetings, and protest con- ue to protest and show up trict was seeking to close 25 tinued. Parents of students for their students. Recently, to 30 schools, but ultimately that were attending or had at a march on Saturday, only closed 5 due to intense attended closed and soon- March 5, San-Chez rallied community resistance. to-be closed schools gave with other educators and The Oakland Board of testimonials. “If it wasn't for locals. There, they urged Education’s recent attempt Brookfield [an elementary everyone to take action, esat closures incited serious school proposed to close by pecially students. “My advoopposition from Oakland the end of the 2023 school cacy is for all students. Ask schools inhabitants. The year], my son would not be for forgiveness, not permisboard representatives pro- so friendly. My son would sion.” They said, “My job is posed a special meeting to not be able to talk. My son to teach students how to use be held on February 8, their voice. Not just 2022. Members would the ‘do-re-mi’s,' but hear a proposal presen- "[I] call on you to lift the voices also speaking out on tation, and vote on the social wrongdoings.” of our disabled students, our consolidation plan. “In whatever Black and brown students, and Within OUSD, there way that you can our educators." are 80 schools, 40 of speak out: do. It takes which were built more everybody," San-Chez OUSD Parent, recently after reports of said. San-Chez spoke overcrowding. OUSD of what students, speCCEC protest District 4 Director and cifically from BerkeSchool Board President ley High, can do. “The Gary Yee, said that having would not have so many bottom line is, we need bodthese smaller schools is not friends. My son is special ies; we need people — stufinancially achievable any- needs. They want to take dents — showing up and more, instigating rounds that space from my kid? No, showing out. Being a voice, of school closures over the the f**k they won’t,” a par- and an advocate, for others years. On the contrary, ent tearfully exclaimed to a that are in need.”
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
FEATURES
Students work in Digital Design and Fabrication.
NOLAN WHITEHILL
CTE Classes Inspire Career Exploration BY MAURICIO SIERRA staff writer
Throughout the history of Berkeley High School (BHS), there have been a vast variety of classes offered to students of all grades and small schools. Recently, however, there has been a trend of decreased enrollment of students in the Career and Technical Education (CTE) classes. Despite this pattern, students and teachers continue to argue for the value of CTE classes as a viable option. CTE classes are designed
to help students further engage in careers outside of the academic-specific sector. Klea Bajala, a BHS teacher who currently teaches Introduction to Carpentry and Digital Design & Fabrication, both CTE classes, voiced her opinion on the value of these courses. “In your core studies, you learn a lot of theory. For example, you learn about the Pythagorean theorem. You understand what it is, but you don’t understand why you need [it]. In carpentry, you use this theorem to build a roof. In any CTE
program, you’re taking that knowledge and applying it to the world,” she said. For Bajala, these classes are very important in the professional development of students beyond high school. She mentioned that “not everyone is going to be able to pay for college [and] not everyone is going to college,” so these classes bring opportunities in different job fields. In California, there are around 1,634,562 students enrolled in CTE classes, according to Advance CTE. Out of these, 53.6 percent are male and 46.4 percent are female. Bajala said she saw a gender bias in her CTE classes. She said that a lot of her female students didn’t really “see a place for [themselves] in this class” and saw themselves doing more of an “academic route because of personal biases against these types of jobs.” Neveah Angel Escario, a junior in Academic Choice (AC) who has taken Digital Design and Fabrication, voiced her opinion on the issue. “I definitely think there is a gender bias, specifically in this class. Being one of the very few women in this class is definitely telling,” Escario said. Escario also mentioned the benefit of being able to
have a woman as a teacher. “It’s empowering to see women just like me doing things usually taught by a man,” she said. A trend at BHS has shown that students drop out of CTE classes as the year advances. According to Bajala, the construction industry has been stigmatized and looked down upon as not requiring an important set of skills, so many students choose to abandon the course, seeing it as something unimportant. “[We] grow up thinking that [jobs in the construction industry] aren’t good jobs,” Bajala said. “If you’re not a doctor or a lawyer, or you’re not going to college, it’s sort of looked down upon.” Despite this mentality, there are “30 million jobs in the US that do not require a bachelor’s degree that pay median earnings of $55,000 or more,” according to the US Department of Education. Andrew Walton, a junior in AC, said his perspective on CTE classes changed upon his taking carpentry. He now sees himself pursuing a CTE pathway professionally. “When you complete a project, you gain a sense of satisfaction,” Walton said.
AAPI Literature Class to Start Next Year BY AELIA GYGER staff writer
It all started last year, when Julianna Loretto and Medina Lam were sitting in class. They were being given a presentation on the Chicanx/Latinx History course offered at Berkeley High School (BHS) when they texted each other, noting how no similar classes were available for Asian Americans and Pacific Islander (AAPI) students. So, Loretto and Lam decided to create one themselves. “In the wake [of] hate crimes against Asian American people, it felt like there needed to be more done,” said Lam, a junior in Academic Choice (AC). “Something that I noticed, [and] I think many other Asian American students were acutely aware of this too, is that there was no representation of Asian students at BHS, [whereas] there is [for] other races, and it’s important that everyone is represented.” At BHS, there are currently no classes specifically focusing on the AAPI community. Sakiko Muranaka, a Berkeley International High School (BIHS) English teacher, helped write an AAPI literature course to be offered next year. “A big focus for this course was to make [it relevant] to our AAPI experiences … while
also linking contemporary context [in] the history of AAPI in America and kind of looking at those connections through literature,” said Muranaka. Le Tran, a social studies teacher at BHS, is another founder of this class, helping plan and design course materials. “This class is a direct response to student and staff requests for more AAPIrelated topics [to] be taught at BHS. We recognize that there is a need to expand our study of AAPI experiences and knowledge,” Tran said. “Part of the intention behind this course is that we want to focus on histories, experiences, and cultures of AAPI topics beyond what is commonly covered in general eleventh and twelfth grade humanities classes,” Tran added. In history classes, most BHS students are only taught about Chinese migrant workers, Japanese internment, and the struggles of Vietnam against imperialism. The new course would provide an opportunity to dive further into different AAPI perspectives, and build community among students and teachers. Muranaka is excited for the new class, and happy students will be able to experience something she never had the chance to at her high school. “I didn’t
really have Asian American teachers. … I can remember maybe one, but I didn’t really have teachers that looked like me. In history, [we] touched on some aspects of Asian American history, but just very briefly,” she said. Loretto said she was glad BHS students would have a chance to learn more about AAPI literature. “This is not something that’s been offered to me, and my knowledge of Asian history kind of stops at the Gold Rush,” she said. According to Time, there are 22 million Asian people in the US, and according to the Census Bureau, California’s Asian population has increased 25 percent in the last decade, making it the state’s fastest growing ethnic population. Loretto also hoped the class will allow people to
learn how Asian history is tied to current events and the racism behind the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’m hoping that … not just Asian students take the class, that everyone takes it, because it’s not exclusively for Asians and I want people to be educated on this topic,” Loretto said. “It’s something that largely is not represented in the curriculum,” Lam said, speaking about AAPI history and literature. “It felt like something that I wanted to be able to learn about my own culture and history on a more personal or connected level to who I am.” She hopes that the class will create a sense of community, and a place for everyone to learn about their own or different cultures that haven’t yet been largely taught about.
GUEST COLUMN: MULTILINGUAL PROGRAM VIOLETA TAPIA-MILLS
I was named after Violeta del Carmen Parra Sandoval, a Chilean composer, visual artist, and social activist. Born in 1917 in San Fabián, Chile, Violeta grew up in a poor family. Her father was a music teacher who played instruments to his children, especially the guitar. Violeta started composing songs at a young age, and then began to perform in small bars and ballrooms. In 1952, she traveled throughout Chile, exploring Chilean folk music. Cueca is one of the most traditional styles of folk music in Chile. It is mainly played with guitar and is meant for dancing. Violeta’s travels inspired her creation of a new type of Chilean folk music: Nueva Canción. Nueva Canción is a genre representing the left-wing social movement. It takes inspiration from folk music and poetic lyrics about social justice. In his song “Vientos Del Pueblo,” Victor Jara, another artist who contributed to Nueva Canción, sings, “De nuevo quieren manchar / mi tierra con sangre obrera / los que hablan de libertad / y tienen las manos negras.” The message Jara communicates is about freedom from war and suffering. It’s about the hope of being able to live in peace with his sons and his brothers. Writing songs was one of Violeta’s passions, but so was art. Her art consisted of sculptures, paintings, and arpilleras, colorful hand-woven quilts. Arpilleras are mostly made by women and became popular during the Chilean dictatorship. The sad stories they told visually about what the country was going through made them stand out. As Violeta became known, she collaborated with artists like Jara, and her art was praised by the public. In 1964, Violeta became the first Latin American artist to have a solo show at the Louvre in Paris. In 1954, Violeta was invited on Radio Chilena, where she sung her songs and explained their meaning. Although Violeta was famous, she was also humble and strong, always fighting for justice. Violeta’s social voice has always shown through in her art. Sadly, at the age of 49, Violeta committed suicide. Throughout her life, the Nueva Canción movement continued, and to this day, it is still practiced in Chile. As Chilean-Americans, my parents taught me about role models like Violeta. They made sure I knew the person I was named after. Violeta inspires me tremendously because of how much she stood up for the left-wing social movement. She should be known internationally for her music, art, and activism because it was and still is fundamental to Chilean culture and Latin American folk music. Violeta’s strong personality should inspire everybody. Nowadays, social justice is being talked about more and more throughout the world, and Violeta is a remarkable role model who fought for these issues throughout her lifetime. Her message and spirit should never be forgotten. The Multilingual Program (MLP) is a BHS small learning community serving students who speak a primary language other than English. MLP students represent nearly 30 different countries and speak over 20 languages.
Sakiko Muranaka helped write the AAPI Lit course. NINA PARRY-FRANKLIN
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
ENTERTAINMENT BERKELEY HIGH JACKET
Entertainment editors: Asha Baudart-Gehlawat & Ruby Freedman
GAVIN’S FROG LOG GAVIN TROTMORE
Hello, readers of the frog log! I hope the weeks since the last log have been soaked and saturated with lots of frog-related frenzies. Although the support has been wonderful throughout the lifespan of this column, from tadpole to now, there have been zero submissions of frog anecdotes and chronicles! Send your stories to gavinsfroglog@gmail.com if you feel so inclined. Anywho, in honor of Women’s History Month, we will be honoring a truly amazing female frog scientist. Sandra Owusu-Gyamfi is a conservationist from Ghana who was also the country’s first female herpetologist. She now is the associate executive director, advocacy campaigns director, and program coordinator of the “SAVE THE FROGS! Ghana” program. Owusu-Gyamfi is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at the University of Ghana, with a research focus on the impacts of exploitation on the distribution and population of frogs. Along with continuing to mentor young women in STEM, she was also the first person to shed light on the prevalence of amphibian roadkill in West Africa. As a Black woman and an underrepresented member of the herpetology community, — and science community in general — we can all look to Owusu-Gyamfi for inspiration! For our next segment, I come bearing a toadly amazing and crazy story. I entered the bus to head home, just like any other day. The bus began to pull out of the stop. But little did I know, the next thing to enter the bus wouldn’t be human. As we let commuters on at the first UC Berkeley stop, a man by the name of Ben Karin entered the bus with a plastic container. I immediately started pondering the question of whether there could be a frog in said container. Laughing with my friend, I opened my sketchbook to a fresh page and thought, what was the point of only speculating? I decided to investigate my hypothesis, clicking my pen out in preparation for the far-fetched idea that I shared the vehicle’s cabin with an amphibian. I approached the man, traversing the moving bus, only able to see moss and bramble in the bin, and asked, “Hey, is there a frog in there?” Miraculously, there was! In the bumping interior of the 65 bus, there hobbled a Dendrobatidae. Astonished that I had come across a poison dart frog, I was commenced an impromptu bus interview. Stay tuned for the next log, where we will take a deeper dive into this interview, and uncover an underground frog society in the UC Berkeley community. In sum, frogs are around every corner, you just have to be willing to look! In a way, they can represent the little things in this beautiful yet unforgiving world, and remind us that something amazing might just be right under our nares. As we part once more, I leave you with this sentiment and an acronym, for whenever you find yourself without a path: “WWAFD.” What would a frog do?
ashabaudartgehlawa@students.berkeley.net
Local Director Calls Out Sexism in Cinema BY SERENNA REDWOOD staff writer
Of the top 250 films released in 2021, only 17 percent were directed by women, according to the Celluloid Ceiling Report. The film industry is extremely male-dominated, with the job of director being one of the most exclusive. Marielle Heller, a female director from the Bay Area, doesn’t let this deter her from working to increase female representation in the industry. Heller was born in Marin County, California and raised in Alameda. She attended Saint Joseph’s Notre Dame High School and began to explore acting at the Alameda Children’s Musical Theater. She went on to study theater at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in England. Heller also did early acting at the Berkeley Repertory Theater. Recently, she played the role of Alma Wheatley in the highly acclaimed Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit. Heller’s writing and directing debut, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, came out in 2015. The movie is based
on a graphic novel about a teenage girl growing up in the Bay Area, a story that was a relatable for Heller. After The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Heller went on to direct A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Can You Ever Forgive Me? and other shorter projects. When Heller first proposed a film adaptation of The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Phoebe Gloeckner, the author of the book, objected to the idea. However, the story meant a lot to Heller, as it made her feel represented in a way she hadn’t been before. “I was like, ‘Oh, this is what boys must have felt when they read The Catcher in the Rye,’” she said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine. “It just really exploded my world.” Heller continued to pitch her idea; eventually, Gloeckner was convinced. Heller is a pioneer in the film industry, creating transparency about what it is like to be a working mother. On its own, being a working mother of young children is certainly not easy. At the time of filming A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Heller had a four-year-old son who she wanted to be able to see at night. The team would
shoot from seven or eight in the morning to five or six in the evening, without breaking for lunch, so that Heller and other workers could be home with their kids in the evenings. Heller believes that film productions need to adhere to more sustainable work hours to allow people with families to continue their work. “Why do so many women drop out of the
workforce at this age, in our late thirties, early forties?” Heller asked in an interview with Variety. “Well, often it’s because we’re raising kids, so let’s be honest about that.” Although the film industry is ingrained with sexism, people like Heller are changing that by demanding respect for the basic needs — like going home to see one’s kids — of working parents.
RIOKA HAYAMA
Combating Inaccuracies in Western Films BY OCHI GRACE staff writer
Western-themed movies and media have historically been displayed from a single perspective. The archetypal cowboy movie features white men, pistol showdowns, and southern accents. However, this is a completely whitewashed viewpoint that muddles the true origin of cowboys, which really began in Mexico with “vaqueros,” a word derived
from “vaca,” the Spanish word for cow. Vaqueros worked for Spaniards in the 16th century, herding animals and taking care of livestock and ranches. In the early 1700s, vaquero culture started to move in the direction of what are now the states of Texas and New Mexico, but it wasn’t until the early 1800s that white colonists in the area started to adopt vaquero culture. In the 1800s, it continued to expand further and became
OLIVER PARSONS
more widely embraced; soon, African Americans, European immigrants, and Indigenous people began to identify as cowboys. Decades later, the excitement of the Western lifestyle caught the eye of the entertainment business. The first Western-style short film was made in 1903, in New Jersey, and was called The Great Train Robbery. This film set the foundation for the genre of Westerns, marked by iconic gun showdowns. Cowboy movies were also well liked by filmmakers because of their low budgets. When Hollywood took over the movie scene, the lead savior role was reserved for white people. If people of color were even in the film, their roles were always degrading and stereotypical. Not only was this phenomenon racist, but also historically inaccurate: in the 19th century, nearly 25 to 30 percent of cowboys were Black. However, films like The Lone Ranger perpetuated this whiteness, focusing on white characters and highlighting few people
of color throughout its two and a half hours. Ironically, the lead role was speculated to have been inspired by Marshal Bass Reeves, the first Black deputy west of the Mississippi River and a former slave. At long last, the film industry is making movies that reflect the true diversity of cowboys. Concrete Cowboy, released in 2020, dives into the lives of Black cowboys, focusing on the unity of such a community and the trust shared with animals. The film also touches on the idea that there exist different cultural practices to being a cowboy. The Harder They Fall, released in 2021, takes a more ruthless, actionpacked approach by showing the cowboy lifestyle as a means for survival. It too features a mostly Black cast. Instead of glorifying the white cowboy as the sole representative for this culture, we must celebrate the true history of cowboys. More than just unchangeable characters in movies, cowboys are a real, diverse, and complex group of people.
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
ENTERTAINMENT
What Are BHS’s Student Bands Up To? Woodshop
Woodshop is an indie rock band, and in their recent album, they blended a variety of musical influences, powerful vocals, and instrumental expertise. Woodshop consists of Berkeley High School (BHS) juniors Anton Migdal on guitar and Theo Fleig on drums, as well as singer Mina Handlesman from Piedmont High School and bassist Teddy Lee from the Athenian School. “[Our music is] very simple, but very effective for providing cool sounds,” said Migdal. The band plays a mixture of covers and originals, and
they have one album released on Spotify and Apple Music, titled 7Ply. They frequently perform in small venues around the Bay Area, and before the Delta variant of COVID-19 led to more closures, they were planning on opening for the group Run-DMC. Woodshop cites the band Radiohead as inspiration for their most recent sound. Migdal is the writer for most of Woodshop’s songs, and his creative process is flexible. “I always start with [the] guitar,” Migdal said, “and then usually I write a melody and bring it to the band, and we kind of expand from there.”
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BY PEARL GAUTHIER staff writer
“We’re very jazz-influenced,” said Fleig. His beats are specifically inspired by hip hop and trip hop groups, such as the band Portishead. “I try to just mix it up,” he said. Woodshop’s bassist is going to college next year and all of the other members will also be graduating that year. Fleig speculated that the band probably won’t make it past high school. In the meantime, Woodshop is hoping to put out a new album. “Probably in three months we’ll start recording,” said Migdal. “I think we can crank out a couple more songs.”
PAGE DESIGN BY REBECCA BIRENBAUM layout editor
The past year has brought together alternative rock band I’d Rather Sleep. With inspiration from a vast range of genres, I’d Rather Sleep hopes to bring something new to the Bay Area music scene. The band has BHS junior Georgia Fishman as lead vocalist, Albany High School students Riley Newfield and Amalia Gould on guitar and drums, El Cerrito High School student Henry Clayton on bass, and Jackson Hartline, who is homeschooled, on keyboard. Formed in April 2021, I’d Rather Sleep got their start through the School of Rock, and is the the program’s promotional “house band” for the Berkeley branch. Being a house band means that I’d Rather Sleep is expected to
focus on covers of songs, but the group has other plans. “We kind of have just been drifting farther and farther away from the School of Rock algorithm, so we’ve just been spending practices recording and making original music,” said Fishman. The group has a self-titled EP made up of five demos on Spotify, created in late 2021 before Hartline and Newfield joined. It’s hard to put I’d Rather Sleep in a box. “We’re everything, we are so broad,” said Hartline. With a Metallica-obsessed guitarist, rap-inspired keyboardist, R&B-loving singer, and a myriad of other influences, including Yebba, System of a Down, City Morgue, Amy Winehouse, and Thelonious
Monk, I’d Rather Sleep has no shortage of inspiration. Gould said, “I like to say we’re a combination of the Strokes and Metallica.” The group takes pride in that they look up to and support locally-based artists, especially for Newfield — as a Metallica fan. “That’s special for me, [that] I play music where my biggest inspiration plays music,” Newfield explained. I’d Rather Sleep has a show coming up at Oakland Secret on March 19.
Barn Band
PHOTOS BY ROWAN KENNEDY
I’d Rather Sleep
For the five-member jazz group casually referred to as Barn Band, music is guided by friendship and fun. “The special thing about Barn Band is we’re just a group of friends,” said pianist Otto Montgomery. The group consists of five BHS sophomores: Montgomery on piano, Fletch Piper on guitar, Marlow Buettner on drums, Reuben Zinner on bass, and Mason Pancoast on trumpet. The group was formed when they were in seventh grade, and their name came from when they played in a barn in Buettner’s backyard. “We just wanted a group to jam with, but then we got serious,” said Montgomery. They hired a musical
instructor who has been working with them for the past few years. Their music features a fusion of standard jazz, R&B, funk, and soul. “We’re like a chill jazz and soul combo,” said Piper. The five became friends through the band and have all been able to figure out their own roles. “A big part of our dynamic is joking around,” said Pancoast. “I’m like Otto’s sidekick,” joked Piper. “Marlow holds us together, he nevers gets in on the arguments,” said Montgomery, adding, “As the band got closer, our personalities got more similar.” All members of Barn
Band are part of the BHS Jazz Ensemble, and have also taken private lessons. On Monday, they performed with a few other student groups at Yoshi’s, a well-known jazz club in Oakland. “That was our best performance,” said Montgomery. The group exclusively plays covers at the moment, but they are considering writing some of their own music and eventually recording it. Barn Band is additionally aiming to play more live shows, and is currently planning to perform at Star Grocery on April 10.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
ENTERTAINMENT
BHS Students Shed Light on Pinterest: What Is the Appeal? BY MARINA PELLERIN staff writer
Pinterest is a social media platform used to share pictures and ideas, called Pins. People tend to save compilations of similar Pins in different boards. Pinterest is also a place where many find peace outside
of the busy world, comfort in a little red app, one click away. Does Pinterest carry the same toxic qualities of Instagram and TikTok, or have we finally found an app that is friendly, safe, and welcoming? Berkeley High School (BHS) students are generally in consensus that Pinterest is more geared towards the latter, though
some have mixed feelings about the platform. Sam Martino, a sophomore at BHS, explained how he enjoys going on Pinterest to escape his hectic lifestyle. “The fun part of Pinterest is procrastinating for hours looking at what you wish your life was,” said Martino. When contemplating what he gets out of the app,
MAIA KESLER
THE CROSSWORD
he explained that Pinterest unrealistic standards of life pearance, or location, the encourages creativity rather that are unattainable, for the “vision” boards for many than exhibiting negativity. most part, and that could remain a fantasy. “It actually helps me figure make someone develop inNeruda Diaz, a junior out what I want in terms of securities,” she explained. attending Berkeley High style and room decor,” he Pinterest consumers aren’t School (BHS) expressed his said. For those like Martino, actually living the lives that love for Pinterest. “I think Pinterest offers some sort of are portrayed in their saved the most fun part about security, offers help with de- Pins, so the entire phenom- Pinterest to me is being able cision making, and provides enon of creating boards can to see so many different inspiration for our brain’s lead to unattainable and things that I love or things creative outlet. shallow expectations. For I am interested in,” he said. Naia Valenzuela-Aper- example, not everyone will “I’ll look on Pinterest and ribay, also a sophomore at get the opportunity to live see so many different types BHS, said that the of party ideas.” Diaz most fun part of Pinexpressed that usterest is “finding dif- Does Pinterest carry the same ing Pinterest is helpferent images that are toxic qualities of Instagram and ful when thinking of customized solely for TikTok, or have we finally found ideas for his graphic you so they’re sure design class. Diaz to interest you.” She an app that is friendly, safe, and views Pinterest as welcoming? implied that the Exa friendly space for plore page is curated users, rather than an to the individual, app that is harmful. which brings comfort and in a penthouse with the “I think Pinterest is a cool support to a lot of Pinterest view of the Eiffel Tower, way to connect with other users. Valenzuela-Aperrib- which is a common type people and share really cool ay said she uses Pinterest of “aesthetic” present on ideas,” he said. “to find inspiration for my Pinterest. The app also conAll in all, Pinterest apart, outfits, makeup, room, tributes to fashion trends, pears to be a mostly positive food.” In con- which can sometimes stray environment for teenagers. trast to Martino, Valenzue- into the dangerous territory Besides some insecurities it la-Aperribay feels that Pin- of only including certain can bring up, its aesthetic terest can have degrading body types in the aesthetic. and friendly milieu provide effects on the mental health Whether the thing getting inspiration for students as a of users. “It tends to portray in the way is money, ap- whole.
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT
Sasha Wizelman holds up her poetry notebook.
ACROSS 1. Taiwanese computer company 5. Something brief or criminal 9. Diego and Yimmi, brothers on the Portland Timbers 14. Pigeon relative 15. Luke Skywalker’s uncle 16. Canadian family made rich by department stores 17. A two person fight 18. Require 19. South American camelid 20. Distribute on a surface 22. Opposite of faunas 23. Illustrious, magnificent 27. Name for sacred fig tree 30. Divisions of a play 31. Energy transfer unit 35. To come together 36. Silent 37. UN flight regulation body 38. Discolored 40. Dragonfly and damselfly order 42. Large Tuscan river 43. Carpe ____ 45. 43560 square feet 46. Midday 47. Government farming department 48. Torso garment 49. Weston, Juventus and USMNT midfielder 51. Sydney Sweeney’s Euphoria character 55. To determine 59. Popular preparation of mango 60. ____ Driver, Kylo Ren actor 63. ____ on a keyboard 64. Travels on a bike 65. Shoe bottom 66. Gold-medal-winning American speed skater 67. Was not conscious 68. Move in front of 69. Pay installments for temporary use
— Nicholas McGlashan
DOWN 1. Increases 2. A violent takeover of a government 3. Always 4. A bad team’s worst fear 5. An individual unit of housing 6. Shock 7. Look at 8. The last part of something 9. Basic units of life 10. Angelic headpiece 11. Zoroastrian holy fire 12. Team from the Italian capital 13. Gasteyer and de Armas, for example 21. Iverson, 76ers legend 22. Melted together 24. Computer memory block 25. Hospital ward for serious issues 26. An empire or a piece of furniture 27. Old name for a Korean city, which is the site of a Korean War battle 28. Beginning 29. Ivory and ebony instrument 31. Post Civil War repeating rifle 32. Tick and mite subgroup of arachnida 33. Idahoan staple 34. To propose a drink to 39. To draw out 41. “Wonderwall” singer 44. Suffix for possession 49. In the middle of something 50. Designations of individuals 51. Data storage disks 52. A fleshy covering around a seed 53. A location with respect to a center 54. Ooze 56. Eponymous heroine of Charlotte Brontë’s novel 57. Rotate 58. Dispatched 60. Large venomous snake — term Raven Fonseca Jensen 61 Hospital for an already dead patient 62 Nerve disease that sparked an ice bucket challenge
YASMEEN BAWANY
SASHA WIZELMAN is a talented poet and a senior in Communication Arts and Sciences (CAS). She began writing poetry in her freshman year, when her English class entered a poetry unit, and she hasn’t stopped writing since. “The unit introduced me to the idea of poetry as more of a real concept and not just my journaling,” she explained. As she grew more comfortable with her poetry skills, she began to delve deep into the topics of heartbreak, relationships, and personal growth. Now, she uses the art form as a way to share vulnerability from a young, female-identifying perspective. Wizelman draws on the experiences and teachings of women in her life, including her mother and aunt. She explained that she writes about “experiences that a lot of females can relate to, and it’s nice to know that you are not alone.” She hopes that her poetry teaches the lessons of feminism and the struggles of being a woman in today’s society. With lines such as “Every hair I pluck makes me a coward,” from one of Wizelman’s untitled poems, she dives into the specific standards placed on female-identifying teenagers, and is able to express the complex message through succinct prose. Wizelman’s creative voice can be heard echoing throughout the hallways of Berkeley High School (BHS). — Skyler Rockmael Listen to the latest podcast! Meet the ASB Leadership Candidates: Chief of Publicity, Chief of Service, ASB President, and ASB Vice President Scan to listen to candidates speak with Jacket reporters about their platforms and backgrounds.
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
SPORTS
ALEXANDRA MORGAN
BHS Wrestlers Learn to Drop Weight Responsibly and Safely saw the damage extreme cutting could do. “My junior year I weighed 123 pounds and I was cutting to 112, so I got muscled around by evIn the weeks leading up eryone because I was weak. to a tournament, stepping I don’t think I consistently onto a scale is an everyday ate dinner for four months,” ritual for wrestler Paola recalled Nathan. All around Bedolla Garcia, a Berkeley him, wrestlers were pushing High School (BHS) junior. their bodies to the extreme For Bedolla Garcia, keeping by over-exercising, a close eye on her weight under-eating, and ensures that she ends employing methods up “making weight,” or “At the end of the day, cutting achieving her desired wasn’t for aesthetics, it was for such as wearing trash bags to sweat off extra wrestling weight class. the advantage on the mat.” weight. This culture has When asked about the extreme consequences. importance of making Shiella Paredes-Akimoto, “People were getting weight, Bedolla Garcia BHS girls wrestler heatstroke and dying. laughed. “It generally One to two kids every helps to minimize the year would die from times that you get beat up,” she said. Weight classes tions. “Cutting weight is not heatstroke,” said Nathan. Drawing from these exare designed to match com- a requirement. It’s a personpetitors of similar sizes, so al choice,” she said. Those on periences, Nathan chose to no wrestler is at a size disad- the BHS wrestling team who take a different approach. vantage. decide to cut are supported He doesn’t subscribe to the Like many wrestlers, by a developed program led mentality of losing massive amounts of weight the day Bedolla Garcia and her by Coach Ben Nathan. teammate Shiella ParedesAn ex-wrestler, Nathan before a match. “I specificalBY STEPHANIE JERSEY staff writer
Akimoto employed a popular strategy called “cutting” when they began wrestling. Cutting involves losing weight in order to qualify for a lower weight class, giving wrestlers an edge over their opponent. ParedesAkimoto, a sophomore, said that this aspect of wrestling can come with misconcep-
ly say drop rather than cut because I think of cut as a momentary thing and dropping weight [as] long term,” Nathan said. He makes an effort to educate the team on healthy methods of losing weight. “I tell them to cut the sugar, eat healthy, and drink lots of water,” Nathan said. For most, this, with exercise, is enough to drop weight. Wrestling culture has come a long way, represented by the attitudes of wrestlers Bedolla Garcia and Paredes-Akimoto, who believe that being more aware of their weight is empowering. Bedolla Garcia revealed that it has helped her discover new things about her body. “Weighing myself so much has helped me learn more about my period,” she said. Paredes-Akimoto mirrored this, saying, “Paying more attention to what I’m eating, I’ve learned to eat in ways that make my body feel much better.” ParedesAkimoto summed up the positive impact of wrestling on body image: “Wrestling has made me even more comfortable with my body. This is because, at the end of the day, cutting wasn’t for aesthetics, it was for the advantage on the mat.” While these wrestlers have a healthy relationship with weight, they acknowledge that it can be difficult, given societal pressures setting specific — and often harmful — body standards. “It’s important ... to have good boundaries ... regarding cutting,” said ParedesAkimoto.
Beneath the Suit: BHS’s Beloved Mascot BY MATEO TSAI staff writer
Dressed head to toe in black and yellow and covered in fur, the Berkeley High School (BHS) mascot sticks out among the athletes and the cheer team during BHS sports games. Unlike yellow jackets of the smaller, six-legged variety, the BHS mascot has a friendly face, and it can talk. However, the identity of the individual who wears the costume is a secret, closely guarded by members of the cheer team. Because of the secretive nature of the position, the person who wears the suit, a senior, will be referred to as Jac, which is the name of the BHS mascot. The history of the suit — which is dry-clean only — is surprisingly recent. The suit was purchased five years ago, when cheer coach Tiffany Sutherland took over. “The other [suit] ... it was a little scary. We wanted to get something that looked more like the mascot we were advertising,” said Sutherland. Changing into the suit is
a somewhat lengthy process, explained Jac; the process is around five to ten minutes. Each leg is put on separately, followed by a pair of boots. After that, the fuzzy body is secured, and finally, the oversized head is placed on top. According to Jac, the costume is surprisingly comfortable. “It’s light, it’s not that heavy ... there’s a fan on top, I can turn it on. One time it didn’t have the batteries. That was the one time I was struggling and hot.” To maintain the mystique that surrounds the mascot, Jac shows up to games infrequently. “I want [to] pop up
every blue moon, and it’ll be a surprise, so it wouldn’t be like, ‘Oh, the mascot’s gonna be here because it happens all the time.’” Jac’s friends notice the mascot but have yet to realize that the two have never been seen at the same time. “They’ll say, ‘The mascot came to the basketball game, blah blah blah blah blah.’ And I’ll be like, ‘I wish I was there.’ Mind you, I’ll be standing right next to them [during the game],” Jac said. The position for next year is still open, so anybody interested in becoming the mascot is encouraged to reach
The mysterious BHS mascot, Jac, performs the splits in Donahue Gym.
out to Sutherland. Aside from entertaining, the mascot also has to be able to keep a secret. After all, the identity needs to stay secret for the entire year. Sutherland also emphasized the importance of classroom behavior. “How you act ... on-campus and off-campus, it makes a difference. Because you are the face of Berkeley High,” she said. Next fall, a spirited new recruit will strap on the boots, put on the head, and walk out to roaring crowds, representing the true spirit of BHS.
MALIN MORELL
CONSENT AND COERCION IN MUSIC MIRANDA COUCH
Music is something people turn to for relief, artists and consumers alike. It can evoke emotions, offer advice, or change the way you think about a situation. Many people start listening at a young age, whether to their parents’ favorite songs or to the radio. The issue is that many popular songs use objectification and misogynistic undertones to promote rape culture among young, impressionable listeners. Take “Timber” by Pitbull and Ke$ha. My best friend in elementary school loved Timber, but upon listening back recently, I heard this refrain: “Face down, booty up (Timber)/That’s the way we like the what (Timber)/I’m slicker than an oil spill/She say she won’t, but I bet she will (Timber).” The first two lines in the phrase above would qualify as objectification: “the action of degrading someone to the status of a mere object.” An eight-year-old could subconsciously be influenced by this, as it foster the idea that objectification is normal. The last line is an entirely different form of problematic. It completely disregards consent. If someone initially says no, convincing them to say yes, or continuing to ask until they say yes is not consent, it’s coercion. These comments support rape culture by promoting coercion, and are detrimental to childrens’ understandings of their ability and others’ ability to consent. Similarly, One Direction’s lesser-known track “Why Don’t We Go There” discusses coercion, with lines such as “Don’t say no, just let go.” With One Direction’s fan base being primarily preteen and teenage girls, this message is extremely harmful, as it creates a negative connotation surrounding saying no. This promotes situations where people feel bad for refusing sex, even if they are asked beforehand. Likewise, in “Peer Pressure” by James Bay and Julia Michaels, the lyrics say “I don’t usually give in to peer pressure/ But I’ll give in to yours.” By romanticizing coercion, this dismisses a prominent form of sexual harm. Yet another song that promotes sexual harm is “Breezeblocks” by Alt-J. The lines “She may contain the urge to run away/But hold her down with soggy clothes and breezeblocks” normalizes non-consensual physical restraint, promoting the idea that consent can be taken rather than given. These lyrics may seem harmless to young listeners, but they build a subconscious misunderstanding of the meaning of consent. Even if none of these examples were sexual, they still involve consent. To promote consent in sexual relationships, there must also be consent outside of sexual relationships. These songs are demonstrations of normalization of assault, which contribute to the foundation of rape culture. Consent is something you can practice day to day, on a smaller scale, such as asking before you hug a friend, or recognizing examples of objectification and lack of consent as you consume media. This way, we can begin to understand all the little issues that have created the dangerous culture of sexual harm. For support after sexual harm, two wonderful resources are Jasmina Viteskic in G202A and at jasminaviteskic@berkeley.net, or the Health Center in H106.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2022
sports editors: Luisa Bertolli & Norah Lee
SPORTS BERKELEY HIGH JACKET
norahlee@students.berkeley.net
In Conversation: Athlete and Her Mentor G’azelle Dewitt-Henderson, a Berkeley High School (BHS) junior in Arts and Humanities Academy (AHA), is a member of the cheer team. Dewitt-Henderson sat down with Tiffany Sutherland, the BHS cheer coach and Dewitt-Henderson’s female role model in sports, for a conversation about mentorship and growth. SUTHERLAND: I’ve always liked cheer. So when I had the opportunity to put one of my daughters into cheer, that’s when I was like ‘Yeah, I want to coach this.’ DEWITT-HENDERSON: I just like being loud. I like making noise. And the community was here. I like how everyone’s nice, and how Tiff brings everyone together. S: We try to make it like a family. D-H: Even though we may have our ups and downs, at the end of the day, we all know that if anything happens, we will all be there for each other. Knowing that is a reward. Knowing Tiff is there for you is a reward. You can come to her office if you need to talk or if you’re feeling down; if you’re not feeling good you can come to Tiff.
GABRIELLA BUSANSKY
S: G’azelle’s a junior this year, but I can literally remember her when she came to cheer clinic. We host a cheer clinic a week or two before tryouts to get the 8th graders and other people that have never cheered before to come in and see what cheer is really about. So I remember G’azelle coming in her spring of 8th grade year to try out. She was so shy. Watching her grow from her freshman year to her junior year, I’ve noticed the maturity. That right there is just rewarding. D-H: I wanna give Tiff a thank you, because Tiff helped with my attitude in school. You know, she’s like a cheer mom. I feel like it is important to have [a role model]. S: Let me try to think... Who did I look up to? Growing up, even in my adult years now, [I think of] Bennet Williams, who was an administrator here at Berkeley High. She actually was a cheer coach as well. She’s taught me a lot about how to use my patience, my leadership skills in other ways, so that definitely helped me when it came to coaching. D-H: I like how you carry yourself and how you’re always in a positive mood. That’s a role model for me! You’re always happy; you’re always making sure everyone’s good and doing what they’re supposed to be doing. S: Many times, you guys don’t even know what’s in you, so I try my best to pull it out. I want to make sure you’re bringing all of yourself out, regardless of whether it’s in cheer or in a classroom, or if it’s just you being on leadership here. I just feel like if I don’t help you pull out the best in you, then who’s gonna do it?
BY SOPHIE HORVATH staff writer
Berkeley Unified School District Berkeley High Jacket 1980 Allston Way Berkeley, CA 94704
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PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY POPPY CHAMBERS, SAYLOR COLE, & LOULOU ZIEGLER
Athletes Dispel Period Myths and Stigma CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
affected my swimming that much because I feel like once I’m in the water … if I’m feeling [cramps], swimming usually makes it feel better,” reflected Darzacq. One danger for athletes with periods is referred to as “the female athlete triad,” where athletes with a low body fat percentage overexercise without enough nutrition, leading to the absence of a regular menstrual cycle. “The body stops ... ovulating, so that the person couldn’t get pregnant because nature decides that it probably wouldn’t go very well, [as] they’re not at a nutritionally good enough status to maintain a healthy pregnancy,” said Crutchfield. “That’s because with the caloric deficit and with the hormonal changes, they’re not actually getting enough estrogen to keep their bones strong,” Crutchfield explained. A lack of estrogen prevents adequate bone formation, leading otherwise strong athletes to have low bone mass. Research is being done into how exercise affects the menstrual cycle. The
concept of “cycle synching” focuses on aligning people’s workout routines to their menstrual cycle, factoring in changes to hormone balances and energy levels. According to Healthline, exercises like aerobics can lessen premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms, decreasing discomfort and fatigue. Though period research is increasing, the taboos surrounding reproductive health have historically inhibited funding for and interest in studies relating periods and athletics. Despite athletes constantly being reminded to listen to their bodies, athletes who experience periods are rarely encouraged to pay attention to their cycles. “It’s important to have [conversations about periods] in sports because when you’re an athlete and you don’t know how to deal with your period … you can just feel totally isolated,” said Eisen. Darzacq agreed, “I really [try to] tell younger people that [having a period in sports is] not that bad. It can be hard at times, but it’s definitely manageable and nothing that you should be scared of.”
ATHLETE PROFILE PHOEBE WELLS is a senior in Berkeley International High School (BIHS) and a captain of the Berkeley High School (BHS) diving team. Wells is driven, dedicated to both athletics and academics, and is currently aiming to earn the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma. Wells took up diving as a freshman for PE credits and has devoted herself to the sport ever since as a member of the team all four years. Upon pursuing diving, Wells found out that her dad was a diver in high school as well. This is something that has inspired Wells in her own diving experience, and she appreciates the bond they have been able to nurture because of it. As she prepares to graduate, Wells commemorated her time diving, saying, “It’s very bittersweet. … I think it’s a great place that I will miss, but I’m also just excited for a new chapter.” MARINA PEDEMONTE
— Ariana Yerovam