Campus News Spring 18 Issue 21

Volume 75, Issue 21

Single copy free - additional copies 50 cents

Wednesday, May 2, 2018

www.elaccampusnews.com

Laura Aguilar: 1959-2018

BY FRANK PORTILLO Staff Writer Photographer and alumna Laura Aguilar died at 58 in a Long Beach nursing home last Tuesday.

Pilar Tompkins Rivas, director of the Vincent Price Art Museum, said that she was an incredible and important artist who had a brave soul.

“She has really forged a path that is, in my mind, so critical for many of the conversations that are taking place today. Especially within the intersections of all the things that her identity represents... as someone who is queer, an artist of color and a large bodied woman, she represents so many different kinds of communities by virtue of who she was as a person,” Rivas said.

During her career, she took nude self-portraits in landscape backgrounds.

“She was able to put her struggles and her own search for self acceptance in her work by putting her own body on display in the works that she made. By virtue of that, she made tremendously powerful and exquisitely beautiful images,” Rivas said.

Rivas said that Aguilar left a lasting legacy and gift to everyone

PHOTOS BY LAURA AGUILAR

through her artistic practice.

In 1979, as a student at East Los Angeles College, Aguilar was a part of the Campus News staff as a photographer.

Rivas said that Aguilar took photography and Chicano Studies courses during her time at ELAC. “Her time here really helped to galvanize her political

consciousness as a Chicana artist,” Rivas said.

Former Editor-in-Chief of Campus News, Jim Thomas, said that she was very shy, but a skilled photographer. He said that he would give her assignments to shoot at events on campus, but that she was too shy to take anyone’s photo. She was even too shy to take

a photo opportunity of the Easter Bunny while he was on campus.

In order to get Aguilar to complete photo assignments, Thomas would tag along with her.

Thomas said that the two bonded during the experience, as they would joke around to ease her tensions and said she had a great sense of humor.

“I recognized her talent for creating informative and interesting photos for Campus News. I saw no sign of her passively bold expression then. She, like the rest of us on Campus News staff, was just figuring out how to express herself,” Thomas said, “I regret not staying in touch with her. Seeing her amazingly brave photos now, I would have loved to sit

with her and talk about them.”

Her photography was the subject of the last exhibition at the Vincent Price Art Museum titled “Show and Tell,” which ran through February.

Her exhibition was a smaller part of a larger “Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA” initiative from the Getty Foundation.

The exhibition featured photographs of the lesbian community.

Rivas said that the show was in the works for four years and was a result of a partnership with the University of California, Los Angeles Chicano Studies Research Center. She said that the majority of Aguilar’s photographs have been kept at the center for 10 years.

“It’s a tremendous loss for our community, East Los Angeles and the art community in Los Angeles and really the world. Through the exhibition that she had here, I think that people were just beginning to discover her practice, mostly by way of the images that were shared through a lot of press attention that she received,” Rivas said.

Rivas also said that it was a bittersweet moment knowing that her recognition was something that came toward the end of her life and in her passing.

The VPAM released a statement about Aguilar’s passing which can be viewed on its blog website.

Academic Senate votes in favor of zero, low-cost textbooks

BY MARIA MARROQUIN Staff Writer

CN/VICKY NGUYEN

GIMME SHELTER—Fernando Meija finishes construction of his portable shelter with the help of Chris Martinez on Tuesday in the E-3 quad.

Environmental Design students construct portable shelters

BY VICKY NGUYEN Staff Writer Environmental Design 102 students presented functional portable shelters they designed in the E-3 quad on Thursday.

Juan Pablo Onate, who works at the architecture office Adept and a former East Los Angeles College Architecture student, was part of a design jury that gave critique of the shelters’ designs.

News Briefs

“I’d like to have one of these if I were homeless,” Onate said.

Students were assigned a task to design portable shelters that could be easily assembled and moved.

They were only allowed to use wood pallets and other recyclable material that could be easily obtained. The shelters could be used as temporary protection for homeless people or for outdoor activities such as camping.

Fernando Mejia, Holly

Monarrez and Manuel Velazquez had their design chosen for fullscale construction based on their functionality, comfort, cost and ease of use.

After construction, the designers slept in their shelters on campus Wednesday night to test them. This was the first time students slept in their own designs on campus overnight.

SHELTERS Continued on page 2

Mother’s Day Ceramic Sale The Art Department’s Ceramic Sale will run this Tuesday until Thursday May 10 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the F5 Student Center Courtyard.

Senate members voted in favor of East Los Angeles College adapting Open Educational Resources (OER) and zero or low-cost textbooks during the Academic Senate meeting last Tuesday.

The Senate bill 1359 requires all California State Universities and California Community Colleges to promote the selection of course materials that will result in cost savings to students.

Plans of adding an icon in the courses catalog to inform students if the professor they are choosing uses a zero or low-cost textbook are in the works. Although no specific date was given on when this will be implemented, they did mention it should be enforced by Spring 2019.

In addition to saving money, this will allow students to be able to get their homework done without having to wait for financial aid or a book loan to get books on time.

During the discussion, chair of chairs Sherrie Davey explained to the Senate that a system will be developed where professors can go into academic courses and click a button that once uploaded to the matrix, will let students know which option the professor uses.

Potentially, students can choose their courses based on this.

“Every individual, every faculty member, has the right to academic freedom and to choose the book that is right for them.”

SHERRIE DAVEY Chair of Chairs

“Every individual, every faculty member has the right to academic freedom and to choose the book that is right for them,” said Davey.

Members of the Academic Senate

Paid Summer Internships Internship interviews for film, television and the music industries will be held tomorrow at F5-Multipurpose Room. Preregister by tomorrow at www.layouthatwork.org/2018_wrc_elac_0503

in attendance expressed their concerns and support on using this approach. Steve Wardinski, Chair of the Curriculum Committee, said that when he tried this approach on one of his online classes the students took to the notion that because the book did not have any cost they could disregard it.

“I do try to include questions on quizzes or topics of papers or topics of midterms that are more challenging to answer without the book than with, those materials are kind of required to do those,” said Wardinski.

“Because textbooks are required by the state, we are trying to find ones that are good quality as well as low cost,” said Davey.

‘Hire A Husky’ Job Fair The Career and Workforce Development Center will hold its annual Job Fair on Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Campus Quad.

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News

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018

Career day creates opportunities

BY STEVEN ADAMO Staff Writer Over 45 local and federal agencies shared job opportunities with East Los Angeles College students Wednesday for the Administration of Justice Department’s annual Career Day. The event is held every April and showcases career opportunities in law enforcement, the Fire Department, Emergency Medical Technician services and Animal Control officers.

Officers from the Los Angeles, Burbank, Huntington Park and the County of Los Angeles Police Departments shared stories with students about the steps needed to begin a career in law enforcement.

Officer Kim, who is in charge of recruitment for the LAPD, shared a

story of when she first began training for the LAPD. “I started training when I was 40, so punks half my age were yelling at me and telling me what to do,” Kim said.

Only three of 100 applicants are approved according to Kim, which is why this Career Day is one of many.

If students choose this career path and graduate, they will be trained on how to make an arrest and the procedures involved.

However, once a cadet graduates the academy, they are immediately put on a temporary probation period.

Kim said that events like this help achieve their recruitment goal of 10,000 sworn officers every year.

The number was chosen to offset the number of retirements that

happen every year.

Bureau of Investigation was also on “I want to demystify the hiring hand to answer any questions from process,” Noel Avales, from the Los students.

Angeles Fire Department, said.

Though the minimum age to apply is 23, Garon said that he’s never seen somebody make it at that age.

“Don’t get discouraged. It’s tough, “Some people hate but you can make it,” Garon said. cops because of what is Forensic Identification Specialist happening with police David Alonso was at the event on brutality all around the behalf of the Sheriff’s Department.

“We bring the crime scene to nation.” the court,” Alonso said. Alonso recommended that students further OFFICER KIM their education in biology, chemistry LAPD Recruitment Officer and criminal justice.

A big topic of discussion was the public’s perception of police officers.

“Sometimes good cops have to “The biggest misconception that people have is they think, ‘I’m too pay for other policemen’s mistakes,” Officer Allegates said. old.’ There is no maximum age.”

“Some people hate cops because Agent J. Garon from the Federal

of what is happening with police brutality all around the nation.”

Kim said that everybody should be respectful and courteous to one another.

“I have black friends and I really hate to see what they go through and what their children go through,” Kim said.

The event was coordinated

by Professor Siage Bruce Hosea from the Administration of Justice Department.

Food and drinks were also sold at the event and proceeds go back to fund student scholarships.

Contributors to this report were Gonzalez Guadalupe, Matthew Johnson, Kaleen Luu, Juan Calvillo, Manuel Rojas Gonzalez, and Anthony Aguilar.

Students camp out in makeshift shelters on campus SHELTER Continued from page 1 Monarezz’s design, “A Living Room Shelter,” was inspired by her experience as a mother. She recognized families, as well as individuals, need shelters. Her shelter fit up to four people, included collapsible seating and had padding to protect from splinters.

“I have two little ones. One is 9 months and the other is 7. They love to run around and do all this crazy stuff,” Monarrez said. “My daughter is crawling, and I don’t want her to get hurt.”

Mejia’s shelter, “Tent House,” had a flexible design that allowed a user to easily deconstruct it and turn the shelter into carts for transporting belongings.

Mejia said the project addresses homelessness, an issue dear to his heart. His family had been displaced in the past.

“From one week to the next, we were caught scrambling, having to find a new place to live after 40-plus

engaging assignment.

“In past years, the projects were more abstract, not really functional,” Navarro said. “This year, we started to do something practical, functional, that had a specific purpose.”

There were challenges in piloting a new idea. At first, all designs were to be constructed over spring break; however, the wood pallets were heavy, so construction was done after spring break and in teams rather than as individuals.

“I had to go through a lot of different channels to get this done.

From making sure the sprinklers don’t come on, to security and parking,” Navarro said. He cited CN/VICKY NGUYEN Dean Al Rios and Architecture ARCHITECT TALK—Fernando Meija explains his design of a portable shelter to jurors Juan Chair Michael Hamner as vital to Pablo Onate and Thomas Rivera during a presentation in the E-3 quad on Thursday. Chris Mar- the success of the project. tinez, who helped Meija construct his design, watches in the background.

Navarro hopes the project starts a tradition. years of being in the same property,” r­ealities that are faced by the majority these conversations.”

Full-scale construction of shelters Mejia said. “I felt entirely conflicted of the public and the limitations of Professor of Architecture Alexis took about a week to complete. The addressing this, because I feel there’s approaching this as students. All we Navarro oversaw the project and entire project was completed in a huge separation between the can do is open the platform to have aimed to create a practical and about a month.

ASL workshop features poetry signing to encourage deaf awareness

BY JORGE VASQUEZ Staff Writer The Modern Language Lab hosted an American Sign Language (ASL) poetry workshop last Wednesday.

The workshop featured poetry signings and insight on Deaf culture from ASL professors Marc Bowman, Tomás Garcia and interpreter, Rorri Burton.

Bowman signed the poem “So Happy and So Proud” by Scott Sabatini while Burton relayed his emotions to the room full of students, staff and faculty.

After, Bowman played an older video of him signing his poem “Courage Through Tough Times”.

The poetry served as “access to a new world for hearing people who may or may not have been exposed to the deaf world before. It provides

something positive, written and visual as artistic expression for these people who perhaps have never seen a deaf person and ASL poetry,” said Bowman.

“We hope this gives them some awareness of what’s going on in the community and encourage them to learn ASL.” continued Bowman.

Bowman and Garcia provided hand-outs which answered frequently asked questions, such as “What is

ASL? How does ASL compare to spoken language? Is lip reading a better option for Deaf people?,” and contained visuals for the signs of letters and numbers.

Bowman and Garcia also established the difference between “deaf” and Deaf”; the former being someone who loses their hearing and has difficulty integrating into deaf culture as opposed to someone who was born deaf and has deep roots in

the culture, they would be “deaf”.

The workshop ended in a Q & A and participants asked questions in English and ASL alike.

Currently, there aren’t more ASL workshops planned but students can request for another poetry signing at the Modern Language and ESL Lab in E3-170 or email instructional assistant, Yangok Chu at chuc2@ elac.edu.

Speech aims to inform students of queer inclusivity

BY ANDREW AYALA Staff Writer Jose M. Aguilar-Hernandez, Ph.D., gave a speech on queer people of color to close out East Los Angeles College and Los Angeles Community College District’s first pride week on April 26 at the S2 recital hall.

Hernandez is an Assistant Professor of Ethnic and Women’s Studies Department in the College of Education and Integrative Studies at Cal Poly Pomona.

He constantly has conversations with and of queer people of color and is able to develop relationships, which allow him to reach out to them through speeches.

“I wanted Hernandez to talk about whatever he wanted to talk about.

I didn’t want to put limits on what he said. I like how he was bringing up his perspective of growing up as a queer person of color and how he can really impact people's lives,” said Joe Gama, student ambassador of the First Year Experience Program and co-coordinator of pride week.

The powerpoint presentation was titled “Adding Color to the Rainbow: A Queer People of Color Dialogue.”

Hernandez began dissecting the meaning of his title by saying it meant “Adding layers and complexity to what it means to be queer or LGBTQ.” He said that his perception of being a queer person of color was taught to him as an undergrad. “ For

queer people of color, the challenge is remaining whole in a society that fragments us,” Hernandez said.

Hernandez said that queer people of color specifically, must try and exist as multiple identities.

This makes it hard for a person to “check-out” of a certain identity in different situations. He says it is important to “Bring visibility to the experiences of being queer,” since there wasn’t much published

or written work on queer people of color as he grew up.

The speech touched on the history, current status and personal anecdotes of being a queer person of color.

“It is important to speak-up.

Advocate.

“When you see an injustice call it out. Commit to your cause and continue to try and expand rights,” said Hernandez.

Voices of people of color have

been silenced historically by erasure or keeping certain subjects and topics under the table instead of bringing them to light and allowing everybody to get their story out.

This makes it difficult to get an understanding of the struggles and issues that queer people of color go through such as micro-aggressions and stigmas that come with being a part of this community.

Although many advancements

www.ELACCampusNews.com

have been made to accept queer and LGBTQ people such as laws that allow equal marriage or safe spaces that have been created on campuses, there are still challenges that they must face in their daily lives.

He said, “The biggest issues of today are erasure and assumptions.”

Since these issues are intersectional, making assumptions is like saying their individual problems aren’t important.

Hernandez, Ph.D. says how it wasn’t until this generation or the previous one, who paved the way for people to identify with their own sexuality.

He compliments the plus added to LGBTQ+ by saying, “Sexuality is more fluid than letters. The plus helped people identify even deeper within the community.”

Being that this is the first pride week not only at ELAC but in the district, Joe Gama and Priscilla Rubio did something different on campus and in the community.

Hernandez said, “I am really proud of the committee that put this on. They are making history by beginning events like this.”

It was hard growing up in the ‘80s and ‘90s as queer because of the AIDS and HIV pandemic, which caused people to believe that the queer community was highly infectious. “Instead of finding a solution, people justified the deaths with God’s doing,” said Hernandez.

For the full version, go to elaccampusnews.com

EDITOR IN CHIEF Gustavo Buenrostro MANAGING EDITOR Rogelio Alvarez ONLINE EDITORS Melody Ortiz Kevin Camargo FRONT EDITOR Steven Adamo

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Feature

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018

Husky forward Williams signs with Boise for fall transfer

“You’ll never be anything.”

Williams said he is better motivated internally.

Staff Writer He said he is driven to prove his worth to himself rather than to It was summer, and Roderick others.

Williams was fifteen years old Williams said that he was on the first day he picked up a influenced by “My Life: Based basketball. on the Book Gifted Hands,” by He played basketball for a couple Neurosurgeon and Politician Ben of hours that day with friends in his Carson. backyard.

Williams said he could relate to They ended up playing every day many of Carson’s struggles growing for the rest of the summer. up in a bad neighborhood and was Williams, now 20 years old, is a inspired by Carson’s perseverance. small forward for East Los Angeles “I think my goals are pretty high, College and has been awarded but that’s how I like it. I like setting player of the year of the South Coast myself up for success,” Williams Conference twice. said.

He is now getting ready to Head basketball coach John transfer in the fall after being signed Mosley said Williams is a passionate by the Boise individual who S t a t e m e n ’s has a clear idea basketball team. of what he As a teenager, wants to do.

Williams “ H e ’s g o t In addition to his continued a motor. He’s p l a y i n g consistent. aspirations for the basketball He’s well-liked National Basketball b e c a u s e on campus,” he saw the Mosley said.

Association, Williams opportunities it Williams said that he plans would open to said that he him. finds value and to become a In addition to strength in his his aspirations engagement cardiologist and get for the National with people. a master’s degree Basketball “They create Association, networks,” and a doctorate in Williams said Williams said, that he plans “Being around cardiology. to become a winning people, cardiologist and being around plans to get a dudes who master’s degree are successful and a doctorate ‒ that’s what in cardiology.

I want to In high school, Williams said he surround myself with.” did well in anatomy, chemistry and He said, however, that it’s not all biology courses. about networking.

He said that he would get mad if During emotional times, Williams he got less than an A. said his coaches and teammates He also was interested in the were there to support him and make cardiovascular system. him a better person.

Williams said that some people Williams said that he was also find cardiology and basketball a affected by men in his community strange combination, but he doesn’t who looked out for him in his mind. younger years.

“They’ll look at you crazy,” It’s important for him to give back Williams said. by doing the same.

He said that he isn’t deterred by He has volunteered with negative reactions and he is used to organizations that help abused people looking down on him. women, foster kids and homeless Williams said that when he was people. late for a class during his sophomore He said that his desire to help year of high school, a teacher looked others is what motivates him to him straight in the eyes and said, become a cardiologist.

BY VICKY NGUYEN

CN/DIEGO LINARES

OH, BABY—Sophomore forward Roderick Williams posterizes sophomore guard Jayvon Brown of El Camino College Compton Center during last year’s Southern California Regional Final.

Delloro Program dedicated to social justice

BY MICHAEL DOMINGUEZ Staff Writer The Delloro program is a twoyear program for a transfer degree in Social Justice.

The program is run by professor Raeanna Gleason, the director of the program.

Gleason has also gotten help from history professor Michael Collings and sociology professor Eileen Ie, to create the program.

“In this program, students will learn to to become powerful scholars, community organizers and advocates for social justice,” Gleason said.

Within the first semester, students meet with a Delloro program counselor to help create an education program on how to transfer and how to write personal statements.

They also provide help with selecting schools that create a personal interest for the student.

Once in the program, students must maintain a 3.0 GPA and must be eligible for English 101.

They must also be committed to taking general classes.

The program offers a four day trip

to all northern California schools each Spring.

The program saw its first graduating class last year.

“ELAC students often come from communities that are underrepresented in higher education because they are from low-income communities, people of color, undocumented, student parents and sometimes formerly incarcerated.

We strongly believe that each person has the right to access an equitable education,” Gleason said.

Giselle Cervantes, who is the third Cohort of the program, said she joined because she wants to be a professor.

She said she feels that being in the Delloro program has opened new gateways to hear about others outside of the community.

“I think the injustice is in the educational system. The system is failing. If you look at communities like Beverly Hills and look at Boyle Heights, there is definitely a decrease in academic scores and we see that from schools not getting the proper funding. Why do schools like Beverly Hills get more funding? Every student deserves equal opportunity,” Cervantes said.

Daniela Gomez, who is a second

cohort, said that she was approached to join after being out of school for six years.

She said she felt that the program allowed her to bond with professors and other peers, and gave her strength to continue.

“Social justice was the icing on the cake,” Gomez said.

She also said Gleason helped her find the power in her words; power within herself that she didn't know was there.

She said she feels that Gleason supports the students like professors should, and how some professors are lacking.

Gomez said that she hopes, once she's done with the program, that she transfers and becomes a professor for ELAC and the Delloro program.

She said she hopes she can be what Gleason is to other students.

The Delloro program is currently taking applications for fall semester and students can apply via the ELAC website under the index for the Delloro program.

The program will hold a meeting on May 17 at noon at E3-311 for anybody interested in joining the program. For any more inquiries, students can contact Gleason at gleasorl@elac.edu www.ELACCampusNews.com

CN/EDDIE MIKE GARCIA

ADMIRATION—Photographer Rafael Cardenas shows off

his work that is currently displayed in the Vincent Price Art Museum.

Photographer finds passion, work presented at VPAM

BY EDDIE MIKE GARCIA Staff Writer Some persons land that great job early in life, while others take more time to find that rewarding career, just like Rafael Cardenas did for himself.

Cardenas worked several jobs over many years before he found his passion in photography. He currently has an exhibit of photographs at the Vincent Price Museum for the next three months.

Cardenas was born in Mexico in the 1970s and came with his family to the United States when he was just four years old.

He was raised in East Los Angeles and attended Belvedere Middle School.

Ironically, he said, he attended Garfield and Roosevelt high schools, both being rivals of each other.

“I am all East Side,” Cardenas said.

Cardenas was part of the first graduating class at the East Los Angeles Skill Center in 1989 and attended East Los Angeles College afterwards.

There, he found a theater class to his liking.

He said it was called the Little Theater, which was in the very spot where the Vincent Price Art Museum stands today.

For about 20 years, he was employed as a paralegal, worked in a doctor’s office and held several jobs in between.

He decided to make a career change because of the

inconsistent pattern.

“I’m tired of working for someone else, it’s time that I work for myself,” Cardenas said.

He said that growing up in the East side all of his life gave him a foundation and passion to shoot photos of people in the various neighborhoods.

Cardenas was interested in capturing the images of everyday life in the very community of which he is a part of.

He said that this proved to be a great opportunity for him to expand his creative skills and talents through photography.

Cardenas landed a job writing stories for a downtown L.A. magazine.

Inspired to do more, he went back to ELAC to take a journalism class to enhance his skills.

It did not take long for Cardenas to learn about and create a blog that shows his black and white photos.

He said that it was important to take at least one picture a day, to be consistent and to perfect his craft.

The result of his hard work, led him to display his photographs in the various social clubs of the community.

Some of Cardenas’ photographs that have been exhibited in the local social clubs of Boyle Heights are “Eastside Luv” and “Espacio 1839.”

“This will be Cardenas’ first solo exhibit here at ELAC. Cardenas and 40 other photographers displayed various prints at a group exhibit at the VPAM in 2016,” said the director of the VPAM Pilar Tompkins Rivas.

ARTS

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018

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VPAM opens new photographic exhibit

BY EDDIE MIKE GARCIA Staff Writer The Vincent Price Art Museum opening reception of Rafael Cardenas photographic exhibit “Backyard Tableaux” was held on Saturday.

The photographs ranged from a downed piñata, poolside relaxation, a backyard party, to cold beverages inside an ice cooler.

This is Cardenas’ first solo exhibit of photos on display here at ELAC. The two-hour event brought many individuals to mingle with the artist and ask various questions about his work.

When asked why is it so important to capture certain moments with a camera, Cardenas said, "For me, documenting is important. A moment becomes something else

once it's photographed – and then it becomes its own thing."

The director of VPAM, Pilar

“For me, documenting is important. A moment becomes something else once it’s photographedand then it becomes its own thing. ” RAFAEL CARDENAS

Photographer of Exhibit

Tompkins Rivas, was also in attendance greeting visitors and providing information about the exhibit.

“Cardenas was also part of two groups photograph exhibits in the

past.” said Rivas.

Cardenas attended ELAC in the early 1990s, taking up theater and also journalism, and remembers how the campus has changed through the years.

He was self-taught in photography since 2010 and has fine-tuned his craft over the following eight years.

The exhibit is located in Gallery 4 on the third floor of the VPAM. Nine attractive Plexiglas framed photos of various sizes are on display, which depict images of parties and social gatherings of the local Eastside neighborhoods.

The exhibit will run from April 28 through July 28, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from noon until 4 p.m. and on Friday from noon to 7 p.m.

Admission is free.

CURTESY OF RAFAEL CARDENAS

PIÑATA PARTY— One of many photographs displayed at the Rafael Cardenas exhibition in the Vincent Price Art Museum.

‘Scream’ changes horror genre

BY GUSTAVO BUENROSTRO Staff Writer Wes Craven’s “Scream” turned the horror/ slasher genre on its head and become a staple in horror.

“Scream” is a film about a serial killer going off and killing unsuspecting teenagers. The premise is the same as any other horror film.

The difference, however, is in the execution of the film. Most films before “Scream” would advertise a certain actor or actress for their films as the lead of the film.

“Scream” did the same thing with Drew Barrymore. She was advertised as the lead of the film.

The trailer made it look like she was the main role. Most people would have probably assumed that she would be the sole survivor of the film.

However, once the film started she was in the opening scene and was the first one to go. Even before the title of the film came on screen.

This came as a shock to audience members who would’ve expected Barrymore to live.

That was the tone “Scream” set up at the very beginning of the film.

It was to show that this is not an ordinary horror film.

Throughout the film, Craven played with many tropes of horror and even played into some of them.

One of the tropes it played with was that there was always only one killer. For the most part, that was true in the film.

It was always the same costume that the killer would wear. But in the end it was revealed it was two killers. This is where the film plays into the tropes.

The audience is made to believe that Sydney's boyfriend Billy, played by Skeet Ulrich, is an unstable individual and early on the audience believes he is the killer.

However, the film makes an alibi for him, clearing suspicion.

The film plays with the audience, stringing them along. This shows not only the film’s brilliance, but Craven’s craftsmanship at work.

In the end, Billy is revealed as one of the killers, along with his friend Stu, played by Matthew Lillard.

The film is also very meta, self-

aware of what it is, a horror/slasher film. Randy, played by Jamie Kennedy, knows about the rules of horror films and explains them to the audience as well as the other characters. Every rule that he states the film breaks.

All of these factors made this film memorable and the legacy it left behind made it iconic.

Many films, not just horror, used the same formula that “Scream” created. It was definitely not the first film to be self-aware but it certainly was among the best to do it.

Films started having multiple villains, instead of one central villian.

Characters in “Scream” were not as they seemed and while it took a while for horror films to catch up, horror films gave more complexity and depth to characters.

Give the audience more reason to care if or when that character would die.

Wes Craven created an iconic character in Freddy Krueger, but he made something better than a character in “Scream” where he made an iconic film.

CURTESY OF DIMENSION FILMS

SCREAM— Drew Barrymore’s character, Casey Becker is confonted by Ghostface.

New dance concert playing soon

BY CRISTAL GOMEZ Staff Writer East Los Angeles College Let’s Dance Company will present the 13th Repertoire Dance Concert on May 18 at 7p.m.

This year the Repertoire Dance Concert will have various performances such as jazz, hip-hop, contemporary and modern dance.

The performance will be directed

by Kimberly Rabins. Each piece will have a different cast.

“There will be 18 dancers from the Let’s Dance Company who will be performing 12 pieces. The dancers practiced for over five months,” Rabins said.

Robert Huerta is the assistant to the directors for the production, Huerta has been dancing for four years and will perform in 10 of the dances. Each piece has a different message. Huerta will be performing a solo piece titled “Bud.” “‘Bud’ is my personal favorite piece from the concert. It will be my time to show off who I am and how hard I’ve worked all these years practicing. I am also excited to dance ‘Dancing.’ For this piece my two best friends will be along my side performing,” Huerta said.

The dancers began rehearsals

during the summer, each week they practiced roughly 12 hours.

“I’m excited to present the entire concert! One of the pieces I am looking forward to seeing the audience’s reaction toward ‘I Won’t Give Up!’.

“This piece was created for this

“There is a special meaning behind it and it is extremely important to me as the choreographer.”

KIMBERLY RABINS Dance Diretor

company many years ago. There is a special meaning behind it and it is extremely important to me as the choreographer,” Rabins said.

Ruby Lugo Flores is the dance officer for the Let’s Dance Company.

Flores has been dancing for two years and did four years of color guard in high school. The dance movements she learned during her time in high school were similar to the dance style at ELAC. She will

perform in nine pieces during the concert.

“I’m very excited to see ‘Falling Slowly.’ The entire company and I have worked hard on this lyrical piece. I think it is a beautiful song and the choreography fits perfectly.

This particular dance is a group piece and I am one of the dancers.

I have an emotional connection when I dance this piece. I think of my mother and the hardships in her life and she still is positive and resilient no matter what happens,” Flores said.

The concert this year will include various alumni who will participate in two performances.

“The group we have this year is very talented and enthusiastic. The audience will see their passion for the art form on stage and won’t want to miss these beautiful performances dedicated to the art form of dance,” Rabins said.

Admission will be $15 and will be held in the Performing and Fine Arts Complex S2 Recital Hall.

Metered guest parking will be available on the fifth floor of the P4 parking structure on the corner of Floral and Collegian.

For more information contact Kimberly Rabins at (323) 265-8740.

Arts 2

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018

5

Marvel’s highly anticipated film smashes box office records

BY FRANK PORTILLO Staff Writer The biggest film of all time, “Avengers: Infinity War,” is a relentless roller coaster ride of emotion that never lets up.

It has obliterated box office records and has claimed the spot as the highest grossing opening weekend film of all-time, surpassing “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

In total, the film grossed $641 million worlwide,which is $100 million more than the previous record holder.

Kevin Feige deserves all the money in the world for his construcion of this masterpiece of a cinematic universe.

His vision has carried over for 10 years and he’s like the modern-day Stan Lee. From the opening of the film all the way to the end, fans will cry as they witness the culmination of the 18 films that comprise the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The third “Avengers” film brings almost all of the characters from the 18 different movies together to fight against the mad titan Thanos (Josh Brolin), who has been hunting down the Infinity Stones since the first installment.

Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely showed off their abilities to balance a large roster of characters in “Captain America: Civil War” and they were certainly the right people for this job.

Balancing about 24 characters, it never feels as if one character gets the short end of the stick.

They waste no time showing why Thanos is, by far, the biggest threat that the heroes have ever faced.

In the first five minutes of the film, the writers make his motivations clear.

COURTESY OF IMDB.COM

ABSOLUTE POWER—The mad titan Thanos uses the power of the Infinity Stones to destroy one of his home planet’s moons to launch it at the team of Avengers who’ve infiltrated his home in Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War.” Thanos makes a lasting impression on the audience by killing off a fanfavorite character in the most brutal fashion.

His actions set the tone for the rest of film as he sets out to collect all of the Infinity Stones, which would give him the ability to wipe out half of the universe’s population with only a snap of his finger.

Brolin was perfectly cast as Thanos.

His deep voice brings the character to life and makes the character intimidating.

His voice, just like Robert Downey Jr.’s, becomes synonymous with his character.

Speaking of which, Downey Jr. comes to play in this movie.

He shines just like always as Tony Stark/Iron Man, especially in his scenes alongside Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland).

The best aspect of the movie is the interaction between all of the different characters.

With 18 films, each entry has a different tone. Joe and Anthony Russo, the directors, nail the different tones and even distinguish the different characters with different theme music when they appear on-screen.

Director of “Guardians of the Galaxy” even chose the song for the Guardians’ first appearance.

Humor and intrigue stems

from watching all of the different personalities collide.

One of the most exciting parts is Captain America’s (Chris Evans) first appearance on-screen.

Having not seen him since the end of “Civil War” will cause audiences to cheer like crazy. Watching him in action again is simply amazing.

From a story standpoint, it’s so beautiful to see the progression of all of the characters. From “Iron Man” all the way until this film, the change in all of the characters is clear in this culmination of everything that’s come before it.

Vision (Paul Bettany) and Scarlett Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) have finally developed a relationship that fans of the comics can appreciate.

With a runtime of almost three hours, this film never feels as long is it actually is.

It is so engaging and fun that it wouldn’t be difficult to sit through another two hours.

There is never any filler material, which will be a problem for people with small bladders, causing them to miss key information.

“Infinity War” resembles “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” in tone, which is funny considering that the film was referenced by Spider-Man in “Captain America: Civil War.” Like “Empire Strikes Back,” this film ends on a dark and bleak cliffhanger that will leave fans, who have loved these movies and

characters, emotional well through the ride home and wondering what the hell they just witnessed.

During some moments, it can even take on a horror feel.

Particularly when Thanos arrives on screen to bring dread to the audience.

Not all of the film, however, is dark in tone. Humor is peppered in throughout the heartbreaking moments.

Sometimes the jokes come right after emotional moments, which will cause crying audience members to suddenly break out into laughter.

The action set pieces are also amazing.

Watching all of the different characters unleash all of their abilities will be a treat for Marvel fans.

There is one post-credit scene for the movie that carries over the film’s dark tone, but ends on a hopeful note.

It will leave fans in serious anticipation for the next untitled “Avengers” film, which is slated to release in May 2019.

Fans who haven’t yet seen the movie should make sure to take tissues to the theater.

Having waited six years to see the heroes face off against Thanos, this movie does not disappoint at all.

Speculation arising from a possible deal with Fox regarding its characters integration into the universe are completely unneccessary, as Marvel studios has plenty of stories to tell with its roster.

Clocking in at 156 minutes, “Avengers: Infinity War” is rated PG-13 for intense sequences. of sci-fi violence and action throughout, language and some crude references.

‘Batman Ninja’ merges anime style with American classic

BY ANDREW AYALA Staff Writer “Batman Ninja” is a spectacular anime version of a Batman adventure where the Dark Knight along with a few friends and foes from Gotham get warped back to an unkown city in feudal Japan.

It is directed by Junpei Mizusaki, produced by Warner Bros. and the creator of “Afro Samurai” Takashi Okazaki is the character designer for the film.

The film was released in Japan and the United States for fans to enjoy. However, Leo Chu and Eric Garcia admitted to rewriting the film from the original script written

by Kazuki Nakashima, which as a result created two versions of the film.

The plot of the movie is that Gorilla Grodd built a time machine and used it to bring several villains and heroes from Gotham to the Edo Period of Japan for his own reasons which are eventually revealed.

When Batman arrives, he lands in the middle of the street and gets rushed by samurai with masks that resemble the Joker and soon learns that the crazed clown is not only a feudal lord in the state that pulls strings around town just as he did in Gotham, but also given the title of “The Demon King,” which is said to be the most powerful person in Japan.

The Joker continues to be on a conquest for total control and uses those who get in his way as pawns to his game.

After escaping an action-packed anime-style fight with the Joker and his goons, Batman comes into contact with Catwoman who explains that the Joker isn’t the only

evil lord in feudal Japan.

The Penguin, Poison Ivy, TwoFace and Deathstroke have also become lords in this storyline.

They all serve a deeper purpose than supporting antagonists but it would be nice to elaborate deeper on each of their states and how they rule them.

With help from Nightwing, Red Robin, Red Hood, Robin, Alfred and the Bat Clan, the caped crusader must do what he does best and stop evil in its tracks.

Many aspects of the Batverse come back, such as locations, technology and weaponry that Batman has access to.

With many anime-style fight scenes and correlations, such as music, setting and animation, the creators do a wonderful job of converging an American classic superhero with a pop-culture style from another country.

Viewers are able to see the influences from other anime shows and films, which can be satisfying if you understand the references.

The dialogue between the characters can be odd at times when watching the English dubbed version, probably because the scripts were changed as mentioned earlier.

When it isn’t awkward, it actually works very well and remains true to the tale it is telling. Like any other anime, there are many exaggerations and scenes that those who aren’t used to watching this style of show or movie may find weird.

The feeling of the scene can be perceived either through the dark and saddening colors or the bright and flamboyant ones that are included in the background or characters themselves.

The character designs are one of the best aspects to the film since it shows how emerged and true they are to that period of time in Japan.

It is interesting to see fan favorite characters and villains in a Japanesestyle because not only their outfits are adjusted to the time period or location, but their weapons as well.

Joker and his razor-sharp fans or Deathstroke and his downgraded guns both show a historical influence on modern characters.

The settings are always beautiful and intricate, but never steal the show from the films main purpose, which are the characters in the scene and the actions they are performing.

Throughout the story there are many twists and turns that leave viewers in shock, but ultimately connect to the main plot and allow it to run smoothly.

There are a few points in the film where animation style changes, which is very nice because it shows all the different possible styles that can be implemented in a film depending on the mood or tone of the scene.

Although this is a very different take on an adventure between the Dark Knight and company, it still has the overall feel and style of an action-packed superhero anime that doesn’t stray too far off the feeling of something like “Batman Beyond.”

The film was released digitally in the U.S. on April 24 and will be available on disc on May 8.

With a runtime of 85 minutes full of intense anime-style action and rich story, “Batman Ninja” is rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, and for some suggestive material.

COURTESY OF IMDB.COM

SWORN ENEMIES—The Joker uses his razor-sharp fans and Batman wields his katana in an intense anime-style battle over a scorching building while wearing traditional Japanese robes and battle gear.

SPORTS Husky baseball aims toward playoffs 6

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018

“Sticking to the plan the coaches gave us and good pitches helped me Staff Writer accomplish this,” Jarrard said.

In the bottom of the sixth Husky baseball won its second game of a three-game series against inning freshman infielder Bryan Mount San Antonio College at home Duenas hit the ball to center field and freshman infielder on Thursday 7-4.

East Los Angeles College will Grant Victor reached home plate, faceoff Saddleback College in a that gave the Huskies a 6-3 lead.

Later in the sixth inning, Mt. three-game series on Friday and Saturday away in the California SAC. freshman pitcher Dylan Community College Athletics Needham walked three ELAC Association Southern California players to load the bases. Needham walked a fourth player and forced Regional post season.

The Huskies ended their season the seventh run for ELAC. “Staying focused, getting guys 13-9 in the South Coast Conference on bases and North-play and scoring was the 23-17 overall. key for getting In the bottom “Staying focused, this win,” ELAC of the fourth inning, with getting guys on bases h e a d c o a c h ames Hines the score tied and scoring was the key Jsaid.

3-3, Huskies for getting this win.”

In the top of took the lead the eighth inning after sophomore Mt. SAC. tried designated hitter to tie the game, Julian Zermeno JAMES HINES ELAC baseball head coach but they only hit the ball to scored one run center field by sophomore and sophomore outfielder Nic pitcher Loggan Sandoval.

Gibbons scored for ELAC. This was the first game in the In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Huskies offense continued season were Hines only used one after sophomore outfielder Elias pitcher (freshman Paul Kosanovich) Maldonado smashed the ball to for the entire game.

“Even though I made that mistake center field and Jarrard scored to early in the game, I was able to do extend the lead for ELAC. Jarrard finished the game scoring good pitchings pretty much all the two runs and stole five bases. Jarrard game,” Kosanovich said.

“Paul has been very consistent has 16 runs, nine stolen bases, and throughout the season. He did an 26 hits in the season.

BY JERRY FLORES

CN/NOE ORTEGA

HERE COMES THE BOOM—East Los Angeles College designated hitter Zech Jarrard hits a run batted in so that

sophomore third baseman Matthew Sosa can score the first run of the game on Thursday’s 7-4 win against Mount San Antonio College at home. player on first and third base, Jarrard smashed the ball to center field and allowed sophomore infielder Matthew Sosa and Victor to score for the Huskies.

Victor finished the game with two runs and three bases stolen.

outstanding job. Put pitches were they needed to be. That was big for us in the game,” Hines said.

Getting this win secured second place for ELAC in the playoffs.

In the bottom of the first inning ELAC took the lead, with a

“The hitters did a great job helping me score. I was able to get on because of walks.They did a good job putting the ball in play,” Victor said. Then, after an error from Mt. SAC. freshmen catcher Justin Mchale, who did not grab the ball,

allowed Jarrard to reach home plate and gave ELAC the 3-0 lead.

In the top of the third inning, with a player on first and second base, Mt. SAC. sophomore second baseman Anthony Walters hit a home run toward left field and tied

Softball season ends despite positive record

BY NOE ORTEGA Staff Writer

CN/NOE ORTEGA

DOUBLE THE TROUBLE—East Los Angeles College freshman Lingxuan Gu (left) and

sophomore team captain Chinh Chu Lai stand in position in their doubles match against Compton City College on last Wednesday’s win.

Badminton prepares for individual tournament

BY NOE ORTEGA Staff Writer Husky badminton ended its regular season with a doubleheader away win against Compton City College 12-3 and 13-2 last Wednesday.

Although the Huskies ended their season strong, Compton was the only school that East Los Angeles College was able to defeat out of the three other teams faced.

Due to ELAC’s late arrival, both teams agreed to play up to 15 points instead of 21.

The Huskies had a couple of minutes to warm up, but got off to a great start by winning four of their six singles matches.

Freshman Haoyan Alice Zhang won all her singles with dominant scores, 21-3, 21-4, 21-7, and 21-5. Zhang also won both her doubles matches with her partner freshman Shouzheng Carol Zhang 21-11, 21-6, 21-15, and 21-14. Carol Zhang also won all her singles 21-13, 21-12, 21-15, and 21-16.

“Compton is much more endure compared to other colleges. We

also make efforts. We practice a lot in these period, after a game has been lost. I think it paid off with today’s win,” Carol Zhang said.

ELAC sophomore team captain Chinh Chu Lai won both her singles matches 21-15, 21-12, 21-12, and 21-13.

Lai also won her first two doubles matches with her partner freshman Lingxuan Cathy Gu, 21-16, 21-10, 21-7, and 21-4. They struggled to win the first match in the second game of doubles. Lai and Gu won the first set 21-17 but lost the second set 21-16. They ended up winning the third set 21-15 in one of the only two matches that went up to three sets.

“They’re a little bit rusty. They need to play more. They do a lot of mistakes like toward the end of doubles, but I expect them to do a lot better,” head coach Qui Nguy said.

This was the first time in the last five seasons that the Huskies ended the season with a negative overall record. For the past five years, badminton had ended its season with records such as 6-3, 8-4,13-1, and 10-2.

“More consistency. We do more repetition drills so that they can get used to the consistency but we still have to work on it,” Nguy said.

The Huskies played their last game of the season but will compete in the South Coast Conference Individual Tournament this Friday at 9:30 a.m. at the Manhattan Beach badminton Club.

The tournament consists of four schools, Pasadena City College, El Camino College, ELAC and Compton playing for the best eight players. They will go on to play in the California Community College Athletic Association State Championship in San Diego.

“We will practice more...I’m confident with my teammates because we have a doubles team so we can make it San Diego,” Carol Zhang said.

Husky softball ended its season with a positive 21-17 record, but fell short of making playoffs.

East Los Angeles College softball had its best season since the 2013-14 season where they finished 29-11 overall and won the South Coast Conference as well.

Since then ELAC has ended its season with negative records like 15-21, 17-21 and 18-22. Out of the 21 players on this season’s roster, 11 of them played their last season for ELAC. Sophomores like shortstop Angelina Gonzalez, catcher Destiny Avena, right fielder Dominique De Alba, third baseman Sara Serrano, second baseman Samantha Alvarado, infielder Ralynda Delarea, left fielder Natalie Acosta, first baseman Jessica Hernandez, and center fielder Monne’t Manning will leave Husky softball this semester.

The Huskies played 38 games and finished with 223 runs, a batting average of .315 and 14 home runs.

10 of which were from Manning.

Manning ranked first place in most home runs scored, most runs batted in and had the highest batting average, .517, in the SCC-North.

Freshman infielder Julie Granadeno placed fourth in the SCC-North with 35 RBI’s.

Freshman pitcher Angelita Villalvazo played 19 out of the 38 games.

She pitched 64 innings, recorded 41 strikeouts, allowed 67 hits, six wins, three losses and two saves.

Freshman pitcher Majisty Shomo appeared in 33 out of 38 games.

She pitched 141.1 innings, allowed 208 hits, 100 earned runs and 38 strikeouts.

Even though Shomo has a negative record in win and losses, she’s ranked third in the SCC-North with 10 wins.

ELAC softball’s best moment came in March, when they won eight of the 11 games played that month.

They also had a five game winning streak and a conference win against SCC-North champions Mount San

Antonio College.

The Huskies began the season with a win against Los Angeles Mission College in late January, but had a tough February.

With only five wins out of 13 games played in February, including a four-game losing streak and the first conference losses to Mt. SAC and Pasadena City College.

ELAC played 11 games in March, but due to rain, the Huskies had three games postponed until April.

April, however, was a mixed month for softball. Even though the Huskies had more games won then lost, they went through some tough defeats that lead to ELAC’s playoff hopes being crumbled, such as a conference loss to Chaffey College 13-3, two conference losses to PCC, and a 4-2 defeat against Mt. Sac. ELAC softball head coach Erika Blanco said in an interview with Campus News after an 8-3 loss to PCC last month, she wasn’t sure if they would make it to the playoffs due to the performance of her team.

CN/NOE ORTEGA

TEAM TALK—Husky softball head coach Erika Blanco gives her team a pep talk during a inning switch in a 8-3 loss to Pasadena City College last month at home.

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