Central High Times - Volume 107, Issues 2 & 3 - Winter 2020 & Spring 2021

CHT central high times

DOUBLE I S S U E

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: A Review of 2020 pg. 6 Hate Groups pg. 10 IB Elitism pg. 25

Overcoming 2020, Welcoming 2021 Volume 107 / Issue 2 / Winter 2020

IN THIS

ISSUE OPINION Letter from the Editor Cancel Culture

GROWLS

NATHAN SHARP / REPORTER PG. 04

Review of 2020

PG. 05 PG. 06

Blue Light Op-Ed

PG. 07

NEWS

WAGS & WAG We’re halfway through whatever this is.

Leads and Shorts World & Springfield News

PG. 08 PG. 09

GROWL

Hate Groups

PG. 10

It’s cold sometimes, blegh.

The Election Uyghur Muslim Concentration Camps

PG. 12 PG. 13

Homelessness During WInter

PG. 14

SPORTS Athlete Highlight

PG. 16

Why Golf is Bad Archery

PG. 17

GROWL

Club HIghlight Humans of Central: 20 Questions Virtual Class & Stress

PG. 22

Holidays at Central IB Elitism

PG. 24 PG. 25

An Artistic Perspective

PG. 26

PG. 19 PG. 20

HYPE Film Review: Steven Universe

PG. 30

Horoscopes

PG. 32

Streaming Survey Food Review Pros & Cons of Social Media Photo Essay

PG. 33 PG. 34 PG. 36 PG. 38 PG. 40

2

Hey, a vaccine! This is going to help save the world!

PG. 18

FEATURES

Comic

WAG

The world will end, just not from covid.

EDITORIAL POLICY

The Central High Times is a student-produced publication of the Central High School journalism department.

The staff and adviser strive to create an open forum for students and teachers. We take responsibility for accuracy and fairness and for work to be unbiased and responsive to the needs of readers in order to encourage the submission of readers’ ideas. We promise to practice honesty, to run the paper as a business and to avoid printing material that is legally considered obscene, libelous or private.

ADVISER Kori Chrismer EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Khloe Joint & Ashley Stanley PHOTO EDITOR Bailey Dipper & Halle Johnson COMIC ARTIST Keaton Lashley REPORTERS Arden Below, Reid Biggers, Maverick Hill, Addi Jordan, Ania Kovacs, Keaton Lashley, Ned Pickett, Nathan Sharp THE CHT Volume 107 Issue 2 SOCIAL MEDIA @chs.journalism2021 CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL 423 E. Central St., Springfield, MO 65802 CONTACT kechrismer@spsmail.org FONT FAMILIES Franklin, Palladio PUBLISHER The Missourian Publishing Company

G R A D U AT I O N INFO

IN THIS A L S O ISSUE OPINION

Hey Central seniors!

Central’s graduation is on FRIDAY, MAY 21st at 4 PM at the JQH Arena.

Be sure you’ve ordered your cap & gown, yearbook, and that you’ve met all requirements to graduate!

Check the Counseling Commons Canvas page for additional info.

Representation in Media

NEWS Leads and Shorts

PG. 43

Accolades

PG. 44

Fake News

PG. 45

World & Springfield News

PG. 46

Inauguration Day

PG. 47

Civil Unrest

PG. 48

SPORTS

KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR

GROWL Those icky winter storms.

Climate change is bad.

WAG But hey! This spring weather is nice, isn’t it?

PG. 42

Athlete Highlight

PG. 50

Track

PG. 51

FEATURES Club HIghlight

PG. 52

Humans of Central

PG. 53

Hiking in the Ozarks

PG. 54

More New Central Teachers

PG. 55

An Artistic Perspective

PG. 56

HYPE GROWL There’s still a lot of tension and civil unrest between the two major political parties.

WAG Seniors are closer to graduating. Let’s go, Bulldogs!

Food Review

PG. 58

US Political Office Diversity Horoscopes Music Review: Evermore

PG. 60

Film Review: The Truman Show

PG. 63

Simpsons & Predicting the Future

PG. 64

Spring Playlist

PG. 65 PG. 66 PG. 68

Photo Essay Comic

PG. 61 PG. 62

3

Letters From The Editors

KHLOE JOINT & ASHLEY STANLEY / EDITORS-IN-CHIEF

I

am so ready for 2020 to be over. I know literally everyone on earth wants this awful year to end. And I know the date turning over to January 1st, 2021 doesn’t actually mean anything. Nothing will change because time is a man-made concept, and COVID-19 will still be ravaging the world, especially the US during the winter holidays because the idea of wearing a mask is just Too Much for far too many people.

And things will more than likely still suck for a while.

I guess I’m just yearning for some sort of clean slate, hoping a new year will force me to “recharge” at least a little bit, and I can get my mind together. I don’t think I’m the only one wishing for that, either. In fact, I don’t know a single person that hasn’t been severely struggling through these times, so my heart goes out to everyone reading this going, “same”.

October and November have both been quite possibly the most mentally and physically draining months of my life.

While I got to work my first seasonal job–and first job in general—at a Spirit Halloween store with a bunch of really cool and fun people, the job ending has left me feeling lost and unmotivated. I’ve been struggling a lot with my drive for school, and the general drive for any success in my life. I guess I’m not a person with particularly huge aspirations, I have a lot of issues with college and I’m interested in things that America and the average person views as a hobby rather than a career I could live off of. But even the bit of drive I had towards doing something well, or just maintaining a social life outside of my relationship with my parents, is *POOF*.

Gone.

This entire year has been an endless struggle of finding any drive or motivation within me. And needless to say, juggling my thoughts of “the political atmosphere is very uncool right now,” “Covid sucks, when will people stop going outside?” and “I have no purpose!” in my mind for weeks has got me feeling a bit braindead and tired.

But hey! It’s okay, and feeling down through all of the turmoil that the world has been facing this year is normal and valid. I know that it’ll more than likely be a while until things are “normal” and okay again, but in the meantime I think we all owe it to ourselves to relax and take care of ourselves, especially over the upcoming holiday break. Stay safe, wear a mask, wash your hands, and treat people with kindness.

4 / OPINION

2

020, how do you even stop to reflect on such a cascading disaster without getting lost in the mess.

It started just like any year, with the whispers of something that didn’t even phase me at first. Then it became disorienting events that was Covid-19. I could focus on that and how it shook up the world, but what’s the point when we’ve all been living it anyway. This year ungracefully ran head first into a wall of political and social failures.

People arguing about wearing a mask, basic human rights denied. It was a mess, and we all know it. The year continued on cruel and unusual, mounting to an election that had everyone on the edge of their seats. Would we continue down the path before us or would the nation vote for some much needed change? But again, you already know, so what’s the point of wasting your time by bringing up the horrors that were 2020. New Year’s day has come and gone, with it, my 18th birthday. A bittersweet event in all honesty.

It’s the big one, the one that marks you as an adult in this twisted reality. It’s the age you’re supposed to make big educational choices and your first wobbly steps into actual independence. You can vote even though I missed the big one just by a few months. I was born at 12:16 January 1st, 18 years ago so naturally the ball drop is the big thing we do before blowing out birthday candles. We missed the ball drop, we had tuned into New York instead of Chicago and by the time we had come to a conclusion on what was going on, midnight had already come and gone. I think years when that happens are the best. We blew confetti cannons inside the house and counted down from 10 arbitrarily. A not so bad end to a rough year and a hopeful start to this one.

We can’t forget the tragedies that have happened in the last year, but we can acknowledge the breaks we did get along the way. I’m convinced it’s the only way we can keep moving on and improving. So with that I’m thankful for all the people I still have as we charge into 2021and if 2020 taught me anything, I didn’t know the meaning of thankful.

Not really anyway, I couldn’t understand at the end of 2019 what I was really taking for granted. I’m sure as we move further away from the disasters that are still raging overhead I’ll forget again, it’s only human nature but I’ve decided to actively work against that. I encourage you to do the same.

I hope the best things for everyone this year. We can’t lose steam just yet, we have to keep wearing our masks, and we have to keep speaking up for justice.

Cancel Culture A Year Later L

ast year, I wrote an opinion piece about cancel culture, a term that was fairly new and being used everywhere on the internet to call out problematic individuals. Fast forward to today, and my thoughts and feelings are still very torn because cancel culture is such a double-edged sword, but my opinions have also shaped a lot since seeing how people have weaponized and used the term for the last year.

I still completely believe it’s crucial to hold others accountable for their actions. Especially so when those actions are, y’know, racist, or homophobic or just generally offensive and oppressive. Taking accountability means we can recognize what’s insensitive and we can learn from other’s behavior, as well as our own. It also shows maturity and is a step towards individual growth and change.

However, what I’ve noticed as cancel culture has grown like vines onto internet culture is that, rather than us as consumers holding these public figures accountable, we simply decide that one wrong action or iffy joke should lead to the destruction of their career or life.

And while I agree this should be the case for people like Harvey Weinstein, R. Kelly, Bill Cosby, Kevin Spacey, people who are disgusting criminals and have proven to be absolute scumbags, I just can’t see the justification Photo courtesy of YMI today for harassing and threatening someone’s life or career over one insensitive remark. Things like humor and morals have dramatically changed and grown over time, and for the most part, we’ve grown to be more sensitive and understanding of others. Just look at comedians from the 90s or early 2000s-- it’s likely that a few of the jokes they told back then wouldn’t fly today, but they also have realized why that’s not okay anymore. Again, growth and education is important within cancel culture.

That being said, the person that comes to mind when I hear “cancel culture” right now is Shane Dawson. Dawson is a YouTuber known for his both comedic videos and his videos on conspiracy theories and documentaries deep diving into controversial internet figures like Jake Paul and Jeffree Star. Dawson has been under fire for several years for his problematic past, including racism (blackface, using the N word, racially insensitive jokes, making fun of racial stereotypes) and past pedophillic comments and jokes.

Dawson was most known for his use of shock humor, which

My opinion on cancel culture, but fast forward a year. Do I still think it’s toxic? How have my thoughts and feelings changed since last year?

KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR wasn’t an uncommon form of comedy back in 2009-2013.

In short, in mid-2020 there was a lot of drama between Dawson and the beauty community on YouTube after his documentary on Jeffree Star, and after Tati Westbrook’s video talking about James Charles. All of this drama led to fans angry at Dawson and lots of past videos resurfacing of him. Between this resurgence of videos and Dawson’s excuse ridden apology video, the height of his career came to a screeching halt. And frankly, after seeing and hearing all of the things he said and did, he kinda deserves it. I say this as a past fan of him, too.

Overall though, I don’t agree with what cancel culture has turned into. What turned into people online wanting individuals, famous or not, to address and apologize for something problematic they said in the past has spiraled into toxicity and performative activism. The idea of cancel culture just seems to encourage hive-mind. Individuals obsessed with cancel culture have such a “do-good” savior complex and for some inane reason, they’ve convinced themselves that berating and harassing people online makes them a good person.

Instead of canceling people left and right and destroying lives and careers over simple mistakes, can we as a society rather hold people accountable for their actions in the present and allow others to grow and learn? But also— can we stop excusing our favorite celebrities or even friends for doing problematic things? Within cancel culture, I notice a lot of selectivity, in which people are quick to cancel and bully people they don’t like for something they said 5+ years ago, but somehow it’s just a misunderstanding when their favorite white singer or actor actively appropriates black culture or says the N word.

The concept of cancel culture is so complicated and has been blown out of proportion and really, needs to end.

Why can’t we all just be kind and compassionate towards one another? In the end, we’re all human and we all make mistakes. Rather than jumping towards negativity, we need to hold ourselves and others accountable, apologize, educate, and grow. We also need to stop both being complicit and ignorant, and we need to continue standing up for what’s right without being bullies behind a screen.

OPINION / 5

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BY NED PICKETT / REPORTER

2020: A Review

154 Reviews

I

was just trying to find a nice way to spend a year when I came across 2020. It looked like it might be fun, so I decided to try it out. I immediately regretted it. Australia was on fire, and it really messed with the rest of the year. I hoped it was just a blip in the year, and that I could give it the benefit of the doubt, but I was wrong. During this fire, I heard that the year had a pandemic. I was sure that it would be fine, and that it would stay localized to its point of origin, but it immediately began spreading. I was only about a third of the way through the year, so I thought that it could not get any worse than this.

It got worse.

In a few months the virus had gone from infecting a few people to infecting people the world over. I could not leave my house, and I could not do just about anything I wanted to do unless it was inside my house. Somehow, the year became even worse. Apparently, there were hornets that could kill you if you were stung enough times, and they were in the United States now. Most of the West Coast burned down for the fifth time this decade, so that was business as usual, but still did not help to contribute to the overall feeling of the year. Countless people in the public eye died, including many in entertainment and a few in politics.

I would not recommend my worst enemy to go here. It is one of the worst years I have ever been in, and I will never come back.

SEE OTHER REVIEWS:

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6 / OPINION

PAIGE TURNER

Dear God. If I could leave negative stars, I’d leave about -26. Everyone is depressed and society is in shambles. Any deity out there, please help us.

Blue Light Glasses: Worth The Hype?

ARDEN BELOW / REPORTER

A

s students curl up for their many online classes during the winter quarter, they might find themselves in a puddle of their own tears— perhaps from stress, but there may be a more likely culprit. Eye strain is a common problem that occurs with the use of computers and hours spent in the virtual world. Its symptoms of dry, burning eyes have become an issue among high schoolers and young adults. Even I felt like my eyes were tired after spending numerous hours on my Chromebook during my hybrid schedule. In an attempt to fix my eye problem, I tried the common solutions: turning my brightness down, changing the tint of my screen, exercising my eyes, etc., but none of these seemed to do the trick.

That is until I was scrolling through social media one night and noticed many people wearing these trendy blue light glasses. As with all promoted products, I was skeptical at first glance, but I decided I needed a cure for my computer vision syndrome. The product I ordered was the GAOYE 3-Pack Blue Light Blocking Glasses. Again, I was also nervous that the product wouldn’t work because of the cheap pricing— I received three pairs of glasses, three cases, cleaning fabric, and a

An Op-Ed on the trendy blue light-blocking glasses. testing kit with a blue laser for $11.99 on Amazon.com.

The glasses also came in three different colors: black, clear, and leopard print. The style and fit were nice, but I still had to conduct my at-home experiment to decide if the blue light glasses hype was deserved. I spent about two weeks using the glasses, making sure to note if any of my symptoms changed over this period.

The results of my mini research project were shocking to me. I found that I experienced fewer headaches throughout my time using the computer and noticed that my eyes felt, for lack of a better word, more moisturized. Because I spent less time worrying about my vision and putting in eye drops, I was more productive in my workload for those two weeks. I was pleasantly surprised by the success of the blue light blocking glasses considering their price. If the online glasses worked so well, who knows how helpful an optometrist-prescribed pair would be to a virtual student’s success in the classroom?

As I type this wearing my GAOYE clear “hipster” spectacles, I think the blue light glasses trend can be deemed worthy of following.

NEWS / 7

LEAD & SHORT

S

A brief update on what’s happening in the Central and Springfield communities.

REID BIGGERS / REPORTER

CoxHealth Getting The Moderna Vaccine

T

he Moderna coronavirus vaccine was endorsed by the FDA’s advisory committee on December 17th, allowing the vaccine to be used for emergency use around the country. While Mercy Hospitals has already started using the Pfizer- BioNTech vaccine, CoxHealth Hospitals have been waiting for the Moderna Inc. vaccine to be approved to inoculate their front line workers.

While both vaccines appear to have the desired effect, The Moderna Inc. vaccine does not need to be kept at sub-zero temperatures to transport the vaccine.

People are also wondering what the long term effects of both vaccines are since they both were authorized for emergency use, which means that neither vaccine received long term testing.

These two vaccines are incredibly needed, as Missouri and even United States COVID cases continue to climb the charts. The virus has claimed over 310,000 lives in the United States, and over 5,000 Missourian lives.

Covid-19 cases in Missouri from the last month.

8 / NEWS

SPS’ Plans For The New Semester

W

hile many SPS families have been dealing with the altered schedule for the semester, Springfield Public Schools has been watching the COVID numbers to decide whether to alter the school schedule for the second semester of the 2020-21 school year.

Ultimately, the district decided to continue the schedule that had been laid in place in November, with Kindergarten through 8th grade going to school four days a week, while 9-12 doing two days a week, with everyone having the option to go to school fully virtually. Wednesdays will remain as fully virtual days for everyone to allow for the cleaning of the schools during that time.

“When school begins in January, SPS will continue monitoring data with the health department to assess the impact of Winter Break on COVID-19 cases among students and staff,” SPS released a statement saying.

In late January, SPS will decide whether or not to increase the number of days that students will go to school for the rest of the school year. Then, SPS and Springfield-Greene County Health Department will confer to decide how to approach the rest of the year.

Springfield’s Response to Homeless Needs

W

hile the weather continues to get colder, the Springfield chapter of the NAACP requested that the city allow the homeless to use tents and tarps as shelters over the course of the cold winter months. The organization requested this due to the lack of space in the shelters that are open in the area at this time.

The NAACP Economic Justice Task Force asked the city to lift the anti-camping ordnance. They also requested that tents and tarps be allowed in designated areas around the Springfield community, with meal deliveries, port-a-potties, trash clean up, as well as security patrols.

After careful evaluation of the request, the City turned down the request. They said that the use of tents and tarps across the city would create an unsafe environment. The City cited the vacancy in other local cold shelters in the Springfield area. There should also be three new cold shelters opening soon.

World News T

he Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) was reportedly disbanded on October 11 in Nigeria, where decades of civil unrest still exist between citizens and the Nigerian police force. SARS was a sore subject from the time of its establishment in 1992 and continues to be for the Nigerian people, and now a global audience, who have seen footage and media coverage of events linked to SARS. While the civilianrun police group was created with intentions to control petty crimes, robberies, and kidnappings as the official Nigerian police dissolved for a two week period in the early 1990s, it is now under serious scrutiny as SARS has been linked to extrajudicial crimes.

During mid-October, a series of anti-SARS protests resurged after losing mainstream media attention during COVID-19 and the US presidential election.

On October 3, Twitter user @AfricaOfficial2 released a statement saying that SARS killed a young Nigerian man in front of the Wetland Hotels and proceeded to steal his car. The user also reported that he had video footage of the incident and released it to the public.

The video prompted immediate reactions from civilians and just two weeks later the country faced widespread protests. The hashtag #EndSARS trended on Twitter

ARDEN BELOW / REPORTER for multiple weeks, all the while peaceful protests became violent. According to the BBC, “Nigeria has yet to recover from the shock of massive nationwide antipolice brutality protests that left at least 80 people dead according to the authorities”.

Although the squad was terminated by Nigerian officials after weeks of protest, Inspector General of Police M.A. Adamu announced that SARS would be replaced with the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit. Protesters quickly started a new movement, #EndSWAT, which has the potential to yet again terminate the group and reform the Nigerian police system.

Protesters in Lagos, Nigeria Courtesy of The New York Times

Springfield News T

he 2020-2021 school year has definitely been one for the books. We’ve experienced Covid-19, virtual learning, and split schedules; and that’s not even the half of it. As Covid cases continue to rise, SPS announced the plan for the second semester.

According to an email sent out by SPS, “SPS intends to continue the hybrid learning model at the beginning of the second semester in January, with two days of in-person learning and three days of virtual learning for students in grades 9-12.”

Many students have experienced troubles with virtual learning, and SPS has not ignored this. Extra resources, including tutoring, will be offered to students who may be struggling during this time.

“However, the district will add additional support for students struggling academically, including tutoring. A

ADDI JORDAN / REPORTER

shift from virtual to in-person learning is recommended for any student who has not been successful in the virtual learning environment during the first semester,” the email read.

While many students have expressed issues with virtual learning, the school district is taking the precautions necessary to prevent its students from being at risk for Covid-19.

“SPS intends to transition to four or five days of in-person learning for students in grades 9-12 as soon as possible during the second semester,” SPS said.

“While every effort will be made to restore a regular schedule, the number of in-person days may be altered throughout the spring semester due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic.”

NEWS / 9

HATE HATE GROUPS GROUPS IN IN AMERICA: AMERICA: I

n our modern political discourse, opinions can easily be put out to the world. Using social media, a speaker’s audience is dramatically increased. This has also led to groups with similar interests forming, as they wouldn’t have found each other without these platforms. This has led to a diverse range of ideas to be visible to the public. These groups form for many

reasons, to help or hurt mainly. Some of these groups form around ideas that are dangerous, or are violent to others. These are known as hate groups, groups formed with the purpose of endangering or threatening violence to groups of people they do not like. The goal of this story is to cover some of these groups, their message, and their methods.

The Proud Boys Founder: Gavin McInnes

Current Leader: Enrique Tarrio

T

he Proud Boys are a far-right, neo-fascist, maleonly group. Their protests and demonstrations are known to turn violent, usually ending in fights. Their group was founded in 2016, and is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. They are known for their racism and misoginistic statements.

While President Trump has shown support for the group, their dangerous actions cannot be understated.

One of their main defenses is saying that they defend “western values,“ but the hard facts are that they have said hateful things and incite violence. One of the most dangerous parts of this group is that they make every attempt to distance themselves from groups like their own to try to radicalize neutral parties.

Antifa Technically no leader.

A

ntifa stands for Anti-Fascist. While this hateful sentiment is something most Americans fell towards fascists, the history here is more complicated.

Antifa became prominent after an alt-right rally named ‘Unite the right’. A group identifying as Antifa beat a reporter who supported Nazis and doxxed the personal information of reporters he did not like. This is the origin of Antifa being seen as violent. Nothing

10 / NEWS

can be done at this time, as they are not technically a movement. Groups identifying as Antifa have regularly fought with other groups mentioned in this story, such as The Proud Boys and The Boogaloo Boys.

Who they are, and how you can identify their danger NATHAN SHARP / REPORTER

NFAC Founder: John Jay Fitzgerald Johnson AKA Grand Master Jay

T

he NFAC is a group with a name that cannot be printed in this magazine. It is recognized as a black nationalist paramilitary organization. They advocate for black liberation and separatism. Johnson has recently been arrested on federal charges. The NFAC states they have a strong code in that they only keep the peace.

They carry weapons, but do not aim or fire unless someone else does. One notable thing about their organization is that there are no public conflicts from NFAC demonstrations. They also coordinate with the police before every event.

The Boogaloo Movement No known leader

T

he Boogaloo Movement, also known as the Boogaloo Boys, is an anti-government and anti-police group.

The group is the newest in this article, founded in 2019.

Befliefs of each member varies widely. Some identify as white supremacist, while others support the Black Lives Matter Movmement. Members of the boogaloo

boys are also connected to the attempted kidnapping of Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan. Members of the movement have been arrested for murder and terrorist plots as well. With the group being young and extremely varied, it is hard to fully assess the group.

The Klan

T

he KKK is a a hate group dating all the way back to 1865. This is one of the most transparent of the hate groups listed, as most Americans know the atrocities this group has committed. They are also one of the least active in recent years. Klan activity can still be found in the deep South of America, but most activity is through other groups like the Proud Boys. There is a significant overlap between these groups. Proof of this is the ‘Unite

the Right’ rally, as groups came out of the backwoods with klan symbols. This group is much more secretive and reclusive in comparison. Nonetheless, this group should be treated as an extremely dangerous hate group.

NEWS/ 11

THE THE 2020 2020 ELECTION ELECTION This year’s chaotic, controversial, and historical Presidential election.

T

MAVERICK HILL / REPORTER

he 2020 election cycle has been anything but mail-in votes were counted, they favored the former normal; an ongoing pandemic, only two debates, Vice President by considerable margins, sometimes mail-in voting becoming a normality, the list goes on. north of 30 points.

The presidential election itself These margins were simply was no different either. too much and states that Things were going fairly the Trump campaign was normal and nothing too confident they were going notable early into election to win such as Michigan, night, largely because not Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and many states had closed their even longtime Republican polls. Among the states that stronghold Georgia flipped President Trump had won in to Joe Biden. This marks the 2016, Arizona was the first to first time a Democrat has won flip and move to former Vice Georgia since it was won by President Joe Biden’s column.

Bill Clinton in 1992.

Although his campaign was Joe Biden is currently The results of the 2020 US Presidential furious about Arizona being projected to receive 306 Election from the Associated Press. called for Joe Biden early electoral votes, 36 more than into the night, the problems he needed to reach the 270 were just getting started for electoral majority he needed Donald Trump. to win the election. This Late into election night, makes Donald Trump only the President Trump held healthy tenth sitting President to ever leads in all of the swing lose a campaign for a second states he needed to win and term. more. Michigan, Wisconsin, President Trump isn’t Pennsylvania, North Carolina, going down without a fight, and Florida were all sitting in however, with his campaign the President’s column late filing lawsuits left and right in into the night and even early swing states with accusations into the next morning.

The two Presidential candidates during the of voter fraud. Among his During the very early accusations of fraud is an first Presidential debate. morning hours of November accusation that poll watchers 4, many of the same swing states that Trump was were denied access to watch votes being counted at leading in started counting their mail-in votes. This several polling sites in Pennsylvania. Although many is where the real problems began for the Trump of the campaign’s lawsuits have already been thrown campaign. out, the electorates aren’t actually cast until December Throughout much of the campaign trail, specifically 14, meaning the President and his lawyers still have in the months directly leading up to the election, some time to make a lawsuit stick. That being said, he President Trump hammered into his voter base that not only needs to make his lawsuits stick, but he needs they should avoid voting by mail at all costs because them to change the results of the election, which are he didn’t believe it to be secure. Therefore, when the two very different things.

12 / NEWS

Modern Concentration Camps The Treatment of Uyghur Muslims in China

MAVERICK HILL / REPORTER ver the past year, the Chinese Communist Party, O otherwise known as the CCP, has received criticisms worldwide for the construction and use of

to point to the latter. With millions of Uyghur and other members of ethnic minority groups being put into these concentration camps with no regard to the concentration camps on Uyghur Muslims since 2017. courts or their legal system, it is hard to defend their Though only receiving attention in the last year, actions. these so-called “re-education camps” are part of a There is hope for change, though. In October much larger and deeply rooted genocide of Uyghurs 2019, joint letters at the United Nations showed and discrimination of Muslims by the CCP. 54 nations, including China, supporting the CCP’s In 2014, the CCP rolled out a policy they called actions regarding these camps and only 23 nations “the people’s war condemned on terror”, and them. However, these concentration in October 2020, camps were a part just 45 nations, of this policy. The including China, CCP claims that supported the CCP’s “people’s war on actions and 39 terror” is an effort states condemned to thwart extremism it, nearly double and terrorism in the the number of country, however, condemnations their real intent has from just 12 months come into question earlier. This isn’t as an estimated 1.5 trending in China’s million Uyghurs favor and if this are currently being trend continues, the Uyghur Muslims lined in groups at a Chinese held in these camps UN may become factory. across China. obligated to get More than involved. that, many of these Uyghurs are being put into At this point, it is unclear what involvement from “re-education camps” without any regard for the legal the United Nations would look like, whether it be system. Droves of Uyghur Muslims have reported some sort of sanction against China or more intrusive being detained in these camps without having any measures to stop the use of these “re-education charges levied against them. camps”. It goes unargued, however, that any kind This of course begs the question: are these truly of UN involvement is a step in the right direction of measures to fight terror, or are they simply antirestoring the rights of Uyghurs in China. muslim human rights violations? All evidence seems

NEWS / 13

Resources For Students And Families Helpful Information For Those Struggling Financially SENIOR REPORTER / KEATON LASHLEY

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here are many great resources for struggling students and families, many of which are offered by the hardworking staff members here at Central.

Lucas Clem is the Coordinator of Site Intervention (CSI) and is available to help with a wide variety of things, including getting students without transportation city bus passes.

“I like to compare my role to a switchboard operator. Our Central students and families have many varying needs, and I help connect need with resources. It can vary from food, clothing, tutoring, grade checks, attendance monitoring, attendance incentives, relationship buidling, referral to counselors, etc... It can be anything,” said Clem.

Along with Clem, the school nurse, Laura Smith, is a great resource for families.

She is able to submit vouchers to assist families and direct based on hygiene, food, and clothing needs.

Clem says, “Please know that my office is always a safe space for students, as well as the counselor’s office. No matter what the need is, we can certainly help! There are so many caring adults at Central. I always encourage students to find an adult you trust and reach out.”

14 / NEWS

FOODBANKS Crosslines: 615 N.Glenstone, 417-869-0563 • Monday-Friday, 9am-1:45pm • Bring SS cards, ID, and a piece of mail • During COVID, place order over the phone to schedule a pick up Victory Mission: Mobile Pantry, rotating sites on Tuesdays and Fridays • Sign-up at least an hour prior to pick up at www.victorymission.com/pantry Salvation Army: 1707 W. Chestnut Expwy, 417-862-5509 • Each Wednesday 9:30-11:30 and 1-2:30, they can assist once a month • SS cards for all family members, ID, and a piece of mail are required.

St. Joseph’s Catholic Church: 1115 N. Campbell, 417-865-1112 • Tuesdays 9:30-12:30, they can assist every two weeks • Bring SS cards, ID, and a piece of mail Well of Life/Center City Outreach: 418 S. Kimbrough, 417-862-2865 • Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 11am-1pm, they can assist up to one time a month • Need SS#, DOB, and names for each family member Springfield Dream Center: 829 W. Atlantic,417-720-1065 • Drive Thru Dinner on Wednesdays 6pm7pm

CHS FOOD PANTRY The central food pantry provides free groceries to all central students and families, without any prerequisites or questions asked. The pantry is always accepting nonperishable donations. Anyone can pick up a food bag from room 311 on Tuesday or Thursday after school.

FREE MEALS DURING THE SCHOOL DAY Anybody can receive a free breakfast or lunch regardless of free or reduced status.

Breakfasts can be picked up at the entry doors at 7:40am and lunches can be gotten in the cafeteria during the lunch block.

AFTER SCHOOL SNACKS There are super snacks available for any student participating in after school activities.

HOLIDAY BASKETS

CONTACTS & WEBSITES CHS Nurse: Laura Smith • llsmith@spsmail.org • Contact regarding issues of health, hunger, hygeine, or clothing needs CHS Food Pantry • Mr. Larry Shaefer: lshaefer@spsmail.org • Mrs. mara Vaile: mmvaile@spsmail.org Counseling Center • masweckard@spsmail.org • Contact for acedemic concerns or Mental Health Services CSI: Lucas Clem • lgclem@spsmail.org • Contact about issues concerning transportation, community resources, and connections SPS FAMILY RESOURCE GUIDE • Resources for food, metal health, clothing, transportation, and more.

• sps.org > parents tab > resources > family crisis resources

On the school days before major holiday breaks, there are holiday food bags available for pickup. They are able to be picked up at the end of the day by parents and students.

There are many non-perishable food items along with things like milk, and a holiday meat. All you need to do is have a student ID number and be on time to pick up.

NEWS / 15

ATHLETE HIGHLIGHT

ARDEN BELOW / REPORTER

Makaiya Brooks

Cole Hughes

akaiya Brooks, senior, is a member of the CHS girls basketball team and a highly accoladed player. She has made appearances on varsity in all four years of her time at Central. Her position as a senior captain has helped her leadership skills on the team.

“I play point guard. I think that’s helped me score, and then distribute to my other teammates so that they can start scoring too,” Brooks said. This has been a tough year for students, teachers, and athletes alike. Brooks and her team have learned to adapt to their situation for the better.

“It’s a little weird this year because we went in quarantine at the beginning of the season,” Brooks said. “It kind of makes you lose your chemistry for two weeks, but we have been good about building it back up, especially with conditioning.” She added that her favorite types of practices usually include shooting drills, her favorite skill.

Looking back on her four years in the basketball program, Brooks recalls several fond moments.

“One of my favorite memories of my time at Central is the lock in we had my Freshman year,” she remarked Brooks recently signed her letter of intent to play NCAA Division I women’s basketball at the University of Memphis. She looks forward to expanding her horizon in her post-high school career.

“I am most excited to experience a different basketball culture and travel a lot more. I want to play overseas professionally in the future,” said Brooks.

ole Hughes, Junior, is also a member of the CHS basketball team. He has played since middle school, but recently earned a team-oriented role on the varsity squad.

“I play shooting guard and small forward so I really don’t handle the ball that much, I mainly just shoot three-pointers,” Hughes said. “How that affects my role on the team is that I rely on other people, so I have to be a good teammate. When we’re all on the floor together, we have to be good teammates, because if you’re not you won’t get the ball that much.”

As a diploma programme IB student, Hughes has learned to use his time wisely off the court.

“We usually do study hall three to four times a week before practice. We share practice with the girls, we split time. Usually varsity has the first hour of study hall and an hour and a half of practice afterwards,” stated Hughes.

As for on the court, Hughes enjoys the gymnasium atmosphere at CHS. “I just love to play. It’s really different playing here. I love playing for Central because of where we play specifically— The Pit is a really cool place to compete in,” said Hughes.

Hughes, similar to Brooks, treasures the friendships that he has made on the team and culture of CHS. “Making a shot and getting your name called is my favorite part,” Hughes remarked. “The Pit gets so loud during a normal year and it is really amazing to experience.”

M

16 / SPORTS

C

Why I Don’t Like Golf And You Shouldn’t Either SENIOR REPORTER / KEATON LASHLEY

H

ave you ever thought about golf? Like, actually sat there and thought about it? Most likely not. What is golf but a boring sport that is reserved for the elderly, the wealthy, and the dullest of people? If you couldn’t tell, this is a golf hate article, and I am going to be detailing to you what exactly makes golf terrible.

First things first, golf is a big waste of space. Think about it like this, there are acres and acres of land that could be used for growing food, shelters for the homeless, parks, nature trails, education purposes, and so many other things, but instead, this land is used as an ugly lawn to hit little balls around.

Now let me tell you, lawns are absolutely terrible. All that dumb grass. It serves no real purpose to people or animals or to waterways.

Habitats for pollinators or other native species? Nope. None of that. Big Golf would rather see our wildlife die than to simply allow animals to the means necessary for their survival. So I mean it when I say that wildlife isn’t exactly welcome on the golf course. Back to grass specifically. Grass takes up so much water and only serves to ruin what could be a beautifully diverse ecosystem. Keeping all of that disgusting grass green also takes huge amounts of harmful and unnatural fertilizers.

About these fertilizers! They contaminate food sources for birds and pollinators, successfully poisoning them and adding to our horrible problem of endangered bees and butterflies. This fertilizer also tends to run off into local waterways and adds to a little something called eutrophication. Hold on, what is eutrophication you ask? Oh, just the excess of nutrients in bodies of

water that allows for the extremely quick growth of aquatic plant life. That may sound like a good thing, but it really isn’t. This burst in plant life can cause dead zones in water by removing all of the oxygen as it dies and decays. You should look up algae blooms and read if you are really curious about the amount of damage that can be done, because the results aren’t pretty. After all of that, what seems like a relaxed afternoon outdoors is actually just the slow and steady destruction of the environment.

Along with the negative fact of golf causing environmental disasters, it is also a sport usually reserved for those who have an excess of money and time. Outside of events funded for school teams, golf is an expensive hobby to maintain. Purchasing equipment and maintaining it. Paying to go on individual outings. Buying a membership somewhere exclusive. These aren’t things that the average person can afford to do. It is something that “higher class” citizens get to do regularly without needing to think of the consequences.

In reality, golf doesn’t seem to be worth the little bit of enjoyment it provides rich folks on a daily basis and the average citizen on the rare occasion. Along with that, it seems to be a pastime for presidents who should really be doing other things.

Think about what these spaces could be. What kinds of things could your community do with all the land that a golf course provides? Maybe it is time that we abolish golf and play less destructive and less boring sports.

Also, I’m sick of going to the park and there being golf balls in the water. It just looks ugly.

SPORTS / 17

Archery S

o you’re looking for something to do at Central.

There are tons of clubs, sports, and programs to be a part of, but figuring out something that fits you just right has been difficult, right? Well, look no further, archery is an exciting option that you may not have known about!

Ran by teachers Audra Uzzell and Dennise Vinton, our archery team is now on its fourth season.

The team is open to all students at Central from 6th-12th grade and there is no need to worry about equipment, because it is provided to anyone who might not have their own. All students need to do to participate in tournaments and events is fill out a district permission form and turn it in! Archery is a good opportunity to hone your mental and physical skills and to feel just a bit more like a real life Robinhood. Though, we do ask that nobody turns to real life vigilantism.

“There are so many skills an archer can gain from being an active participant of the sport. There is something very satisfying about releasing the arrow and knowing where it will go on the target before it gets there, and that can be achieved through the selfawareness that is gained through skillful practice and effort in archery,” said Coach Uzzell.

Archery has been one of Uzzell’s lifelong interests and hobbies. She is well versed in the sport and has been coaching it for years now. She works hard to make sure everyone follows safety rules and

A group of archers wait for direction to aim.

18 / SPORTS

SENIOR REPORTER / KEATON LASHLEY

is having fun, thus making her an excellent person to guide newcomers.

While Uzzell has been coaching at Central for a while, Vinton joined Uzzell as a coach just this year! She is doing her best to learn the in-and-outs of coaching archery and is hoping for great outcomes from everyone’s hard work.

Vinton says that, “Through archery, students will learn to focus and breathe, and that is a great skill to have!”

If you are just starting out with archery, it may be difficult to get consistent good shots, but the journey of improvement is all part of the sport.

Uzzell says, “It really is an exciting sport where you constantly try to beat your personal best each flight.

It is awesome to see archers start out missing the target or all over the target face at the beginning of the season, then have groupings mid-way through the season, and finally to being consistent in their release and follow through by the end of the season.”

With archery being a contactless sport, not much has changed, and practices have remained relatively the same. Everyone takes turns and helps to keep everything safe and organized. Masks are worn and equipment is sanitized at the end of each practice session. The students this year are doing their best, and are having fun, so with that in mind, wish our friends doing archery good luck, or better yet, join them!

Sophomores Connor Vengalli and Tymon Parker-Reece shoot at their targets.

CLUB HIGHLIGHT: LIBRARY CLUBS REID BIGGERS / REPORTER

C

entral’s variety of clubs allow for any student to be able to find something that they enjoy. For some students, that involves reading and the library.

Book Club and Library Archive Club allow students to express their interests through books. Cynthia Mueller and Sarah Gugliotta sponsor the library clubs and continue to try to provide these clubs to students.

Book Club Over the past two years, the Book Club has read Frankenstein and Pride and Prejudice. This year they are reading Alice in Wonderland as part of the Annual Classic Big Read. Each Fall, they select a classic from the public domain and promote it for the semester.

“We strive for awareness of the book rather than expecting everyone to read it cover to cover. Due to the pandemic, we chose something short, fun, and familiar this year with Alice in Wonderland. The pandemic cut down on the fun library activities we’ve done in the past---showing movie clips before school or hosting some trivia contests before school. We are hoping we can do more with the program [soon],” Mueller said.

Along with the Annual Classic Big Read, Book Club is doing the Two Chapter Challenge. Members of the club refer books to each other, and they must read at least two chapters of the book. From there, they can either continue reading the book or return it using the book drop outside the library doors.

Archive Club Have you ever wanted to look at a yearbook from 30 years ago? 50 years ago? The Archive Club in the CHS library inputs digitized yearbooks and news magazines from 100+ years ago. The members of the club make old yearbooks and magazines available online for students to look at.

Along with this, they also adopt an area of the library and doing upkeep on the area.

“Students have 2 main duties: Adopt a section of the library to keep clean and organized, [as well as] help digitize, preserve, and promote the CHS Heritage Collection. Most students have been helping scan old yearbooks and newspapers. One of the members is putting together a slide show of CHS in WWII,” Mueller said, “CHS students are so lucky to attend school in the

A look into two clubs in the library: Book Club and the Archive Club oldest high school in Springfield. [It’s] fascinating to see what has changed over the decades---and how some traditions are still strong. Central has a very rich history and current students are contributors as well,” Along with the Heritage Room in the library, there is a link on the Central website under the Library Media Center tab to an online Heritage Room with links to scanned yearbooks and other documents from many years ago.

If you are interested in reading some new books, preserving Central’s history, and making some new friends, the library clubs are for you! The clubs are sponsored by librarians Cynthia Mueller and Sarah Gugliotta. Book Club meets two Fridays a month from 3:45-4:15, and the Archive Club is available at any time.

Past yearbooks line the shelves in the heritage room.

Sophomores Kalea Aberle and Megan Lierman flip through yearbooks before beginning to scan them.

FEATURE / 19

20 QUESTIONS WITH

MRS. COTTON

ANIA KOVACS / REPORTER

20 / FEATURE

Q: When did you realize art and creativity was your calling?

A: In the tenth grade, I took Art Foundations (aka Art 1) and it changed my life. I chose to put art on my class ring which was a major decision because the ring was very expensive. I still wear my ring today and I am so proud to know that I made a career out of what I was most passionate about!

Q: Who is someone in history that you’ve found to be inspiring?

A: I have always been inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe.

Q: Can you describe your perfect setting for creating a piece of art?

A: I envision it every day. I want to have a shop or barn deep in the woods. I will walk out every morning with coffee in hand and plan to create large scale sculptures in this studio space. I plan to weld as a sculptor in my next career.

Q: What is your favorite medium to use?

A: Welding steel.

Q: What made you want to become an art teacher?

A: My HS art teacher changed the course of my life and I wanted to give that back to others.

Q: What is your favorite thing about working at Central?

A: I enjoy teaching the scholars who are eager to learn and want to give their best every day!

Q: Is there a work of art you have used as a reference many times?

A: I love to teach about the David by Michelangelo. I also often make jewelry or small scale sculpture that is inspired by O’Keeffe’s various works.

Q: What is your favorite mural at Central?

A: The Botanical Society mural outside Mr. Epps’ room. Ms. Kelly let her inner artist shine most in this mural.

Q: Who is your fashion icon?

A: I used to watch a show called Style in HS. Each week there was a runway show in NY, Paris, Madrid…oh my! No particular fashionista, just seeing a cohesive collection is inspiring.

Q: Floral or plaid? Why? A: Floral for the yonic qualities.

Q: Who is your favorite artist of all time?

A: I cannot pick just one. Andy Goldsworthyenvironmentalist, Daniel Merriam- surreal watercolorist, Thomas Hart Benton- Missouri regionalist, Frida Kahlo- for her grit and sass, and Van Gogh- for his impasto brush strokes.

Q: Has art impacted your perception of life?

A: Yes, art is a basic human need. We all need to express ourselves and art has allowed me to be happier, feel more alive, and has truly saved my life more than once.

Q: What is one museum in the world you are dying to visit?

A: The Tate in London so that I can see a JW Waterhouse painting in real life. I have a bucket list of museums. The Grand Egyptian Museum of Cairo that opens in 2021 is now at the top of my list!

Q: What is your favorite piece of art in your classroom?

A: A wish pod wire weaving by my former CHS student Howie Neal. I bought it from him so that I could use it as an example. Also a wire woven bracelet by former CHS student Savannah Stull.

Q: Do you think it is important for everyone to have knowledge about art in general?

A: More important than knowledge is to create!

Everyone needs an avenue to express themselves, we all thrive when we are creating.

Q: Do you have a business aside from teaching?

A: I make jewelry, large scale sculptures, teach at OTC, and currently I am planning a Zoom evening class for adults who need more art in their lives.

Q: How long have you been teaching at Central?

Q: What is integral to making art professionally?

Q: Has art influenced your fashion sense?

Q: Does music inspire your work?

A: This is my 8th year at Central and my 25th year of teaching.

A: Most definitely, the art teacher can get away with wearing anything!

A: Being prolific in the pursuit of making your art will lead to success. I have more ideas than I have days left on this planet.

A: I have an eclectic ear for music. I love to listen to a variety of music when creating art.

FEATURE / 21

VIRTUAL VIRTUAL LEARNING LEARNING ADDISON JORDAN / REPORTER

C

entral has undergone many changes during 2020. We’ve seen everything from new principals to new art and structure installations around the building. Now in the midst of Covid-19, the staff and students of schools are experiencing even more change as we continue to adjust to virtual learning and hybrid schedules.

Trying to learn at home and with little instruction can be difficult, and the students of Central expressed their feelings about the unusual learning environment.

Kaitlyn Silkey, 11, spoke about her experience with virtual learning. “I’ve had three classes in school from the beginning, but it is still [kind of] weird to me to go to school for only a few hours and then virtually learn everything else,” Silkey said. “It’s a lot harder to keep up with the workload and fully understand what I’m learning when I’m not actually in a classroom and with a teacher.”

Silkey was not the only student to mention the absence of a teacher. Another student, who wished to remain anonymous spoke of a slightly more positive experience. “[It’s] not too bad, I’m doing IB and only have two Launch classes, so for me, those classes are the worst because Launch is more time consuming and more work,” the student stated. “But overall I think it’s going well, the biggest challenge is communication with my teachers and the content in some classes can be hard to learn with little instruction.”

A common problem among students is having a sense of direction. The majority of students interviewed said they struggled to learn without actually being in a classroom and that the content they learned just wasn’t compatible with virtual learning. Tristian Dorsey, 12, expressed feelings of overwhelming stress that is all too familiar with high school students.

22 / FEATURE

“So far, it’s not as bad as I thought it would be, but since I only have four classes, my workload may not be as heavy as most students’,” Dorsey stated. “Regardless, it’s really stressful though because I [have] work on top of school. It sometimes is hard to know what direction you’re going.”

Students aren’t the only ones struggling to handle virtual work. Colton Lightner, one of Central’s Spanish teachers, emphasized the difficulties that split scheduling put on his teaching.

“The switch has impacted me significantly,” Lightner said. “Before the pandemic, I would see my students between 200-300 minutes each week. Now, I only get 90 minutes a week with them. Because of this, I feel as though it is more challenging to keep the pace up, thoroughly assess their learning, and offer adequate support.”

Taking time to yourself is important, and students around the school have conveyed this.

One student spoke about their experience, and how taking things slowly has helped them.

“I really like playing this relaxing game called Stardew Valley; it’s kind of like Animal Crossing and it’s good for managing my anxiety.

I think online school, besides getting behind in math class, has made it [easier] to manage my anxiety,” the student said. “I also try to take walks and get outside [and] I enjoy playing tennis. My main advice for anyone is just to make sure you don’t get behind. Once you get behind, the stress builds and you procrastinate more. Just take it easy and slow.”

Dorsey later ended his interview on a positive note, giving advice on how to prioritize work and manage free time.

“I set my priorities based on my work schedule. The weekend is when I have the most

AND AND STRESS STRESS ‘free time’ despite working [then]. I try to get it all done by then,” Dorsey said. “I manage the stress by doing an assignment that I know will be easier to do, and ease myself into the harder assignments.”

Silkey also gave advice on how to manage stress and better mental health.

“I have started getting free tutoring from the Discovery Center to help me stay on track,” Silkey added. “I also try to do something I enjoy and spend some time outside every day to better my mental health during these times.”

Colton Lightner, Spanish teacher here at Central, spoke about his experience working during the pandemic and how he has managed the stress that comes with it.

“I am continuing to work on finding the balance between my personal and professional lives. There is no way around the fact that I am having to work outside of school hours a lot, but I try to make time for family, alone time, exercise, naps, and all the good stuff. What I try to do is dedicate an hour to work, two hours for me, another hour of work, another two hours of me, etc. This pattern helps me stay motivated,” Lightner stated. “ I manage the stress by just being open about it. I try to make it known to my students, coworkers, and bosses that, although I’m putting forth my best effort, I might not be quite myself through the pandemic. By staying open and honest about it, I am allowing myself the grace of dealing with my stress and those around me are also giving me grace and patience.”

Though managing stress during this pandemic has proven to be difficult for just about everyone, it can be made a little easier by trying to take care of yourself and remembering that stress during these times is completely normal and valid.

“I also try to do something I enjoy and spend some time outside every day to better my mental health.”

“I manage the stress by just being open about it. [...] By staying open and honest about it, I am allowing myself the grace of dealing with my stress and those around me are also giving me grace and patience.”

FEATURE / 23

HOW DO PEOPLE CELEBRATE THE HOLIDAYS? REID BIGGERS / REPORTER ith the holiday season, students and families are preparing to celebrate their traditions as best they can during this very confusing year. From Hanukkah to Christmas or Kwanzaa, students enjoy the holiday season with their family and friends during their very deserving winter break.

Christmas is a very common winter holiday here in the United States, with many people who use it as a day to exchange gifts, as well as Christians celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Many families make a big dinner and eat with their families on Christmas or on Christmas Eve to celebrate.

“I celebrate Christmas with my family and all of my relatives that live here in Springfield. Of course, we put up the decorations, but when it’s Christmas Day, we all come over to this huge party at my house, with lots of food, presents, and family,” Sydney Ngo, 9, said.

Sometimes, people play games such as White Elephant, which is a way to exchange gifts in a group of people. “...We pick a number, and there would be this huge selection of randomly wrapped gifts, and we go up there and pick one gift or we can steal a gift from another person (the one that you touch first is the one you get, and if someone steals from you, then you go up again and pick another gift) in the order of each number from least to greatest and you go when your number is next,” Ngo said.

Although a majority of students celebrate Christmas, there are a lot of other holidays that get celebrated,

W

such as Hanukkah. Hanukkah is a Jewish festival that celebrates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. They celebrate it with the successive lighting of 8 candles in a menorah.

They also make several types of food, such as sufganiyot, which is a type of pastry, and latkes, which are fried potato pancakes. Games are also included, such as the dreidel game.

“Each side of the dreidel has a different Hebrew letter, which tells the player how much to put in, or take out, of the pot. Together, these four letters form the acronym for “Nes Gadol Hayah Sham,” which means “a great miracle happened there,” referring to the miracle of the oil lasting eight days in Israel,” history.com said.

In the United States, approximately 90 percent of people celebrate Christmas, while about 1.4 percent of people celebrate Hanukkah. The remaining 8.6 percent of Americans celebrate various holidays such as Kwanzaa, Yule, and Solstice, or they do not celebrate at all.

“Today, 46 percent of Americans say they celebrate Christmas as primarily a religious (rather than cultural) holiday, down from 51 percent who said this in 2013,” pewresearch.org said.

While students all celebrate different holidays with their families, they all mean the same thing. They represent hope and celebration of the done year, and a feast to start off the new one right. So no matter what you celebrate, have a Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

Tinsel lines the mezzanine after the Central cabinet decorates the halls.

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Many rooms around the building have added decorations, including the Library.

IB “ELITISM” AT CENTRAL ANIA KOVACS / REPORTER

C

entral High School is extensively praised for its academic progress and diversity throughout the student body. While this perception of our school is well deserved, the importance of analyzing constructive criticism still remains. The discussion of equity and inclusivity between the students enrolled in IB courses and students in regular courses has been prevalent for years now, and often in self-awareness. There is good reason to believe there is a “gap” between IB students and the rest of the school, but understanding why is arduous, to say the least.

The separation in socializing between the two groups of students is apparent in settings inside and outside of the classroom. However, placing the blame on a group of people with no justification should not be a method for self-perceived awareness in this kind of situation.

The issue is a persistent social force that adapts to our efforts against it. Along with the course sequences that affect junior and senior schedules, is the inherent nature of programs for advanced placement students to enforce separation, even if it is not intentionally administered.

“IB kids mostly talk to other IB kids, and non-IB kids never really get a chance to join in,” says Alex Shunyakov, a senior who happens to be in the program himself. “Even if they’re in electives or extracurriculars together, they tend to talk to each other and don’t socialize with other students.” The lack of communication causes a large strain in the gap.

Max Scolnick-Schur, a junior that has attended Central for five years, has chosen not to be included in the IB program for his last two years of high school. He is planning on graduating a year early and enrolling in IB classes was not in his best interest. Though he still has connections to students in the program, he can see the detachment of IB students from the rest of the student body.

“I think due to the lack of classes together there is just less common ground between the two”, ScolnickSchur adds. “That definitely leads to their separation.”

A sign on Central’s east wall displays the school’s commitment to the International Baccalaureate program.

Even if students are entirely capable of partaking in advanced classes, there are many factors that might play into their discouragement. The majority of students that hold student council and cabinet positions are in the IB program. These are the most recognized pupils within the student body, which could be intimidating for any outsiders.

“I hope students in grade-level classes are not discouraged from taking accelerated classes, but I think some students are hesitant to try those classes for many reasons,” says Beth McIntyre, an IB English Language Arts teacher. “I think students who can do the work should be in the class, no matter what their background is.”

Despite its tenacity, this is a problem that can be fixed. Living amidst a pandemic does not make that easy, but Central is a school known for its drive and willingness to accept progress.

“The first step, maybe, is to recognize that there is a gap, and to want to bridge it,” adds Mrs. McIntyre.

“Central is the kind of school where we can and should have these tough conversations, and where we can come up with solutions.”

FEATURE/ 25

An Artistic Perspective KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR

Perched Short-Eared Owl

Nina Musiyenko

“Owls are one of the most perceptive bird I can think of. I admired them so much, not just because they give an artist a fun subject but also because of all their cool attributes that aren’t seen right away. For starters, they can turn their heads a full 270 degrees because their eyes are immobile. Talk about problemsolving and looking at things from a different perspective. They also have asymmetrical ears that are located at different heights which allows them to pinpoint the location of sounds in multiple dimensions. I wish I had those talents.”

Meygan Smith

Kaitlyn Hoover

Colors

Puzzle Insanity “Done with watercolor and Micron fineliners.”

26 / FEATURE

Addi Jordan

Fallon Sellers Mushroom Froggo “This froggo wishes you a very pleasant evening!”

Lexus Wingo Macabre Night Dance “It was inspired by Beethoven’s wonderful orchestral music. Along with trying to work out more of background practice. It is a beautiful blonde woman with ocean blue eyes, and a bright red dress dancing with a dapper and well attired skeleton in the moonlight filled ballroom.”

Ariel Vega Peacock FEATURE / 27

We We Need Need To To Talk Talk About About Anti-Semitism Anti-Semitism in in America.

America.

KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR

A

An Op-Ed on anti-Semitism during Hanukkah this year.

nti-Semitism has been a huge issue all over the world for a long time since the Holocaust. In fact, 2019 was the all-time high for anti-Semitic attacks.

Every year, we see attacks, imagery, messages, graffiti, etc. targeting the Jewish community, and we need to address Nazi perpetrators and anti-Semitism here in America.

Hanukkah is a time when most anti-Semitic attacks occur as it’s the most notable Jewish holiday, alongside Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, etc. And this year was no different. Right before Hanukkah, newly elected Laconia state representative Dawn Johnson shared racist and anti-Semitic memes on her social media through a neo-nazi website. As well, the only Anne Frank memorial in the US was defaced with swastika stickers, and the phrase “we are everywhere.”

On the first day on Hanukkah, December 11, a man vandalized a synagogue in Iowa with red spray paint reading “John 8:44,” a verse recounting Jesus calling his critics the spawn of the devil. A public menorah outside of Alameda City Hal in California was destroyed, and racist, anti-Semitic graffiti written in chalk was found outside of Amherst Regional High School in Massachusetts.

Around the third and fourth night is when most of the anti-Semitic incidents occurred. In Lexington, KY, a driver shouted slurs to a group of Jewish people during a menorah lighting, then proceeded to run over a man with his car. This was the fourth anti-Semitic incident at the University of Kentucky’s Chabad Jewish Center this year alone. The night of December 13, a man in Florida was arrested after shouting anti-Semitic remarks to a Jewish family at an ice cream shop, saying he was going to “kill all the Jews” and that “your time has come.”

During his arrest, police found several hunting knives in his backpack. Then, on December 14, the website of a Hebrew Academy in Long Island, NY was hacked with Holocaust imagery, swastikas, nazi songs and messages, alongside the leaked addresses and credit

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card information of students and teachers. Students were also sent horrific anti-Semitic emails and text messages.

The last days of Hanukkah this year followed a Forest Hills Homeowner’s fenced being vandalized with crude anti-Semitic graffiti, a public menorah being shot and destroyed with a pellet gun at Dartmouth College, and a Jewish high school in Brooklyn, NY being defaced with slurs and swatiskas.

Additionally, the anti-Semitic attacks and incidents outside of America have included a shooting in Vienna that killed 4 and injured 15, graffiti found in Barcelona blaming COVID-19 on the Jewish community, a man in Ukraine that filmed himself knocking over a public menorah and shouting slurs, and 4 men in Belgium who took over a train’s PA system, threatening to blow up the train unless the Jewish passengers got off.

The response from the city or police force where almost every single one of these incidents has occurred has been, “We don’t tolerate hate or bigotry of any kind.” And yet, Jewish people, alongside every other minority, are still consistently targets of attack and hate every year. I’m not Jewish, but I’m a queer person with Asian roots and I’m just so tired. I will never understand the standpoint of a racist or bigot, and I’m tired of seeing people stand by and be complicit towards hate. I’m tired of seeing unnecessary, disgusting hate towards the Jewish community, a community primarily focused around peace and love and acceptance. I’m also very, VERY tired of Holocaust deniers. 6 million Jewish individuals—men, women, and children— died in the Holocaust, and yet people actively 1, deny the trauma of their past (which really wasn’t that long ago,) and 2, overlook the trauma Jewish people still face.

Overall, I think it’s fair to say that bigotry has no place in America, and no place in the world. We will never grow and thrive as a community or a country full of hate and division. We need to be kind to others and stand up against bigotry and hate.

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Steven Universe: A Review KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR Cartoon Network has a special place in my heart CHARACTERS as I’ve spent just about my whole life viewing and enjoying so many of their cartoons. From around 1999The heart of this show is by far the characters.

2011, CN was busting out bangers left and right, from Somehow even the worst of characters become likeable the classics like Chowder or Powerpuff Girls, to the few through Steven’s ability to bring out the best in anyone later hits like Adventure Time. While their series like and somehow make everyone realize that they’re Regular Show and Over The Garden Wall holds dear capable of better. I mean, nearly every single non-OG places in my heart, the one show that sticks out most to Crystal Gems character tried to kill Steven before me is Steven Universe. inevitably befriending him.

Steven Universe is an animated series that follows I don’t necessarily love every single character in Steven, a half human-half gem kid, and the Crystal this show, though. For example, Lapis is very popular Gems, which comprises Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl, among fans, but she never grew on me. I loved the three magical aliens that have sworn to protect the appeal of her, but she just occasionally rubbed me earth. Weird to explain the premise, but they go on the wrong way. She appeared very selfish and had adventures and fight bad guys like you’d expect. no regard for the consequences of her actions. But The series ran from 2013 eventually she came around to 2020, featuring five and improved as a character. seasons, a film (Steven Overall, I think nearly Universe: The Movie), and every character is worthy of an epilogue series (Steven appreciation in this series.

Universe Future), and was REPRESENTATION created by Rebecca Sugar, Adventure Time alumni, While Steven Universe and Cartoon Network’s first is probably best known independent female show for it’s often goofy humor creator. It’s fair to say that and dramatic action, this this show is recognized for show got deep into mental many reasons; the lovely Steven during a rather traumatic doctor’s visit. health struggles on multiple animation, the unique occasions—especially the character personalities and designs, the story arcs, epilogue series SU Future. A reoccurring theme seen in and the recognition of things like gender identity and the series is trauma, whether that be reflecting on the mental health. trauma Pearl felt over Rose or Steven realizing he has a There’s so much to unfold from the SU world, I lot of built up trauma he didn’t process as a kid. I loved couldn’t possibly cover everything. And frankly, I don’t SU Future so much for this reason. It was interesting have the brain capacity for it. That being said, there are but also heartbreaking watching this character who a few focal points I’d like to cover in this review, and I’ll I’d grown to recognize as basically a goofy little kid try my best not to spoil anything. Just beware if you’re go through the breakdowns and hardships he did. As behind and want to watch the show in its entirety. far as I know, no other cartoon, let alone a children’s

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cartoon, gone so in depth into childhood trauma. Even though I sobbed my eyes out for legitimately an hour straight while watching it, SU Future was the best thing to tie the SU series to an end.

Another reason SU is so iconic is for its LGBTQ+ representation. All the gem characters are genderless and most commonly use she/her pronouns, Stevonnie— the fusion of Steven and his best friend Connie, is intersex & nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns, as does Sadie’s nonbinary partner in SU Future, Shep.

Additionally, the character Peridot is canonically aroace, and Pearl was in love with Rose Quartz (let’s not forget Bismuth’s crush on Pearl in SU Future, too). The biggest example of LGBTQ+ representation in this show is by far Garnet’s wedding, in which Ruby and Sapphire,

I think it’s obvious that I adore this show, but that also comes with a few things I dislike about the show too. For many seasons we saw many fusions, but we never got to see a fusion with Peridot, one of my favorite characters. I also didn’t love White Diamond, Garnet, or Connie’s characters as much as I wish I could’ve. I felt Garnet was mostly there for her future vision, Connie was just there to be Steven’s love interest, and White’s character arc was way too rushed.

Now, some things I really loved in the show… I really loved how unique the different side plots and character arcs were. We saw so much growth in so many characters, and I think it was refreshing to see

Steven Universe Future is just pain. 20 episodes full of pain.

The bittersweet sendoff of Steven Universe.

Everyone is crying!

the two gems that fuse to create Garnet, got married.

SU made history with this being the first mainstream cartoon lesbian marriage, and the entire episode was so warming to watch as a young queer desperate for more mainstream representation.

BEHIND THE SCENES TALENT The musical and vocal talents in this series are absolutely remarkable. Whether it’s a dramatically tragic song performed by Deedee Magno Hall as Pearl, or a goofy jingle Steven wrote with his ukulele by Zach Callison, nearly every single song just hits the mark for me. Especially so in the film because my god, Disobedient, Change, and True Kinda Love are bangers.

I could probably talk about the music alone for an entire page. But really, the entire crew for the show, lovingly known as the Crewniverse, did such an excellent job of giving SU such a vibrant and special life. They worked so hard to create something so wonderful and timeless, and something that taught so many people about the sheer power of friendship, love, and staying true to yourself.

LIKES & DISLIKES

an animated show targeted towards children often get deep, and consistently stay genuine. SU really brought something so unique and charming to the world of animation. I love that the series also helped open so many doors for more LGBTQ, as well as mental illness representation in children’s TV. And I just love all the characters so dearly. Steven, Peridot, Pearl, Greg and Lars, especially. Overall, more good than bad to this show in my mind.

CONCLUSION Steven Universe taught me about love, it taught me about how trauma can affect a person, and it taught me that (almost) anyone can change and be a good person if they try. This show made me want to be a better person too. It helped me realize that crying is healthy, and so is talking about your issues. SU is timeless, and I know many people dislike the show for the filler episodes and for the rather overbearing fan base. But beneath that, I think STeven Universe is an excellent show all around, and anyone could enjoy it, or at least appreciate it, if they gave it a chance.

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Horoscopes NATHAN SHARP / REPORTER Aries: Mar. 21–Apr. 19 • Taurus: Apr. 20–May 20 • Gemini: May 21–June 21 • Cancer: June 22–July 22 Leo: July 23–Aug. 22 • Virgo: Aug. 23–Sept. 22 • Libra: Sept. 23–Oct. 22 • Scorpio: Oct. 23–Nov. 21 Sagittarius: Nov. 22–Dec. 21 • Capricorn: Dec. 22–Jan. 19 • Aquarius: Jan. 20–Feb. 18 • Pisces: Feb. 19–Mar. 20

ARIES

CANCER

LIBRA

Do you pair your socks?

Stop doing it. It might just save your life. You never know what could be hiding in a nice mated pair of socks.

Look out for the color neon blue. It is the color that your father was thinking of when he fell asleep last night.

Lucky Numbers: 2, 5, 7, 87693023

As a young adult, you probably don’t care about baseball in the slightest.

That’s okay, only your dad is disappointed.

You will find a hockey stick in the gutter. It has magical powers. You will meet the hockey wizard, and rule an magical kingdom.

Lucky Number: 47,000 and 13 cat hairs under your couch.

Someone dropped $20 somewhere in your area. Pay us $20 for horoscopes+, and we’ll tell you where that $20 might be.

Give me money. GIVE ME MONEY Lucky Number: 99, 81, 8, and give me money.

TAURUS

LEO

SCORPIO

AQUARIUS

Taurus are bulls right?

They have horns and stuff, which is pretty cool. You can be called a Taurus when you’re cool and grow horns.

I ain’t got anything else to say to you. grow horns.

Lucky Numbers: 234567, 765432, and 0.

I bet you’re going to buy furniture polish in the next 6 months. Sure, you’re thinking you have no use for it now. Just wait until you need to add shine to that new kitchen table you couldn’t live without. Make sure you don’t put the furniture polish in the bathroom. You’ll reach for the shampoo and get the furniture polish.

Lucky Number: 5, 24, 34, and seventeen.

Don’t eat breakfast. The most important meal of the day is deadly enough to be your last.

Santa Claus can’t fit down your chimney. He asks that you please widen it. If you don’t have a chimney, he said look for your presents in the dumpster.

Lucky Number: 3, 56, 54, 2, and 70295

Buy a clip-on tie. It goes with anything. It makes you 20% less attractive at a job interview.

Also, in the middle of the interview, look at your phone and scream no over and over and run out of the room.

Lucky Numbers:85, 85645, and 6054969239458

GEMINI

VIRGO

SAGITTARIUS

PISCES

You’re a nerd. Ha ha. Look elsewhere for a horoscope, nerd.

Lucky Number: 14, 368, and a faux leather jacket.

That doesn’t mean you’d look good in a leather jacket.

Do you believe in bigfoot?

It’s for the best you don’t.

Unless you do. In that case, go find him for me. I’ve been looking too. We can all agree that the mothman is fake though. He doesn’t pay his side of the rent, so I don’t like to think he exists.

Lucky Numbers: 678, 1, 4298, and 35 blank sheets of paper.

Your grandmother wants to see you for the holidays, but don’t give in. You know why. Leave a present on your doorstep, and Granny will take it at 3 am. She will crawl home. Do not look at her. Ever.

Lucky Number: 178542300 dogs balancing treats on their nose.

Go find a cow and hug it. It’s therapeutic. Look up cow hugging if you don’t believe me. It may be your new favorite pastime.

Laser pointers are cool, but don’t point them at the sky. You could blind an airplane pilot and make him crash.

Lucky Number: 51, and only 51. Don’t even LOOK at another number.

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CAPRICORN You ever notice how most sandwich places don’t give you much filling? You’re essentially paying a lot for bread. No horoscope for you, I just wanted to talk about sandwiches. Also, Subway is the worst. The workers can’t make a sandwich to save their lives.

Lucky Numbers: 1 stale loaf of wheat bread.

Central Streaming NED PICKETT / REPORTER

With the quarantine and the winter holidays coming up, it feels like a time where you could just curl up on a couch and watch something.

Perhaps you could catch the new episode of the Mandalorian, rewatch The Office for the umpteenth time, or maybe Grey’s Anatomy. Here is the problem: these are all on different video streaming services, and you may not have all of them. This leaves you with either trying to bootleg it or use questionable means to find it, which is risky and can hurt the business, searching for it on one of your parent’s old DVDs, or actually getting the service. Many Central students use these platforms, and use them to watch their favorite shows.

There are four major streaming services that Central students use according to an 82 person sample, which are Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video, which come in at first, second, third, and fourth respectively. HBO Max, Apple TV, and Peacock come in at a far fifth through seventh, although Peacock is sure to shoot up in viewing numbers when several notable names from other services come to it. At the cheapest regular plans, Netflix costs $14 a month, Hulu costs $6 a month, Disney+ costs $7 a month, and Amazon Prime Video costs $9 a month. If you wanted to watch all of the major streaming services for a year, you would pay nearly $430, just so you could watch a few different shows and movies. This does not even factor in the premium plans. This involves ads from Hulu, so you still would have to pay enough for a plan that includes ads, which is fairly expensive.

A fairly interesting statistic from this survey is that what students watch is fairly diverse. There are few shows that more than three or four people watch, and they are mainly big name shows,

such as Stranger Things or Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

A lot of those who answered gave relatively unknown show names for our generation such as Sweeny Todd or the reality show Inside West Coast Customs. Others said that they just like to watch something in a specific genre. If this sort of trend is fairly accurate across the nation, which is possible, it would mean that maybe streaming platforms would not just have one or two notable shows on it and the rest being irrelevant, but could mean that with so many different options across many different services, some people could watch off of only one service. They could ignore the big name shows and just watch what they want.

It is clear to many that the age of DVDs and cable T.V. is dying out. Despite streaming services’ high rates, it is still cheaper to use the four main services than it is to use an average cable plan. This, coupled with the fact that you can watch many shows that would run on cable on demand makes streaming platforms more desirable in almost every way over cable, other than programs that need to be watched live such as sports and the news. There are also hybrid services such as Sling and ESPN’s online service which can provide you with live television. There are few reasons at this point to still use cable.

Streaming services are the technology that helps to dominate our lifestyle right now, and will likely to continue to do so for quite a while into the future. As of yet, we do not know where watching television and movies will go, but at the moment, we still have these services available at the blink of an eye. Nonetheless, we might as well enjoy what we want to watch when we want to watch it.

HYPE / 33

Pizza For Those That Can’t Have Pizza DOMINO’S PIZZA

D

ominios has a gluten free crust but they can’t promise it’s safe from other crusts. So if you’re really sensitive to gluten you probably shouldn’t eat their pizza. They don’t have a cheese substitute but you can ask for no cheese on their pizza. Cheeseless pizza isn’t great, and the crust itself is kind of chewy, and I didn’t finish it. The veggie only pizza there is called the Pacific veggie, and the selection of vegetables is okay. Their crust does have eggs in it, so overall if you have most of the bigger allergies, I wouldn’t eat here, it really isn’t worth it anyway.

LUCO’S PIZZA

T

heir gluten free pizza crust is also 10 inches, which I think is the average size for these type crusts. They did have a cheese substitute and it is very stringy. It had a cheesy flavour and look to it. Their veggie pizza also has the option for a veggie meat replacement, but that is not gluten free so keep that in mind when you order. They have two crusts that are technically gluten free, the gluten free one and then a cauliflower one, but the cauliflower one is not dairy free. There was a nice selection of veggies for the top and overall was a pleasant experience.

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ASHLEY STANLEY / CO-EDITOR

Springfield’s allergy friendly and not so friendly pizzas

THE BIG SLICE

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heir normal pizza’s are true to their name, huge and thin crust like you would expect from a new york style pizza. However I cannot have their regular pizzas and ordered their gluten free crust, which is a whole whopping 10 inches diameter. Smaller than your average pie. They have a vegan cheese now that isn’t stringy but does get really softy and tastes like cheese in my opinion. Their “Garden of Eatin” is the all veggie pizza they offer and it comes with a nice healthy

selection of toppings. The wait is kind of long, so it would be best to call ahead so you aren’t just standing around.

PAPPO’S PIZZERIA

P

appos Pizzeria provided a gluten free crust but no cheese replacement was available when I went but their menu does say that they normally have one. I did the build your own and got all of the possible veggies, which was quite a few. The crust is a thinner crust so it can’t hold a whole lot of weight, so keep that in mind when building your own. The crust was a little too dry and thin for my liking however, and once again no cheese. I think it would probably be best to call ahead here too, to make sure they have what you want and also so you don’t have to wait for too long in your car.

Overall I think I would try them again, maybe when

IN CONCLUSION

W

ith all that being said my favourite was definitely Luco’s but Big Slice was a close second.

Everything was carry out due to the pandemic so I can’t speak for the actual service but Domino’s was definitely the fastest and Big Slice was the slowest. Luco’s and Big

they had cheese in stock, but I wasn’t very pleased this time around.

Slice changed their gloves and utensils when making an allergy friendly pizza but both Poppo’s and Domino’s had a kitchen you couldn’t see into so it was hard to tell if they did the same. When you have a lot of food related allergies eating out can be more trouble than it is worth but everyone deserves a slice of pizza now and then.

HYPE / 35

PROS AND AND CONS CONS PROS ADDISON JORDAN / REPORTER

S

ocial media is good for lots of things, especially in a time where social distancing and quarantining are the norm. As of recently, the way social media affects your mental health has been a hot topic of debate. So, how do you tell if social media is doing you more harm than good?

Social media is a great way to stay in touch with friends, keep up with your favorite celebrities, and stay up to date with trends; but research has shown that social media can lead to unrealistic expectations and comparisons.

An article written

by McLean Hospital touched on the way that social media can negatively impact an individual’s mental health and self-image, describing how “likes” can distress media users. “When reviewing others’ social activity, people tend to make comparisons such as ‘Did I get as many likes as someone else?’, or ‘Why didn’t this person like my post, but this other person did?’ They’re searching for validation on the internet that serves as a replacement for meaningful connection they might otherwise make in real life.”

Alandra Hutchens, a senior at Central, spoke about self-image and how influencers can affect that.

“I think there’s an issue with how ‘influencers’ feed into our lives to almost an unhealthy level. The only reason I say this is because when the word influencer comes to mind it’s probably a skinny, young white girl. There’s no diversity in bodies, ethnicity, or content,” Hutchens said. “So you’ve got all these people who look the same, telling you that they really like these diet pills or detox teas, and it’s extremely unhealthy to see that all the time.”

An anonymous student talked about how they believe social media has impacted them and how it more neutrally affects them.

“I’d say it’s kind of draining,” the student stated. “I don’t like the impact it’s had on my life so I try to limit my time spent in it.

However, social media is a really important way to stay connected and informed, and I do think it’s good for education. I think it’s just important to remember [that] social media

“If we as a society could see that there needs to be diversity everywhere you look, whether it be social media, or teachers, or admin, I think we would be getting a lot farther. In my opinion that’s where society comes into play: not mandating what is posted and such, but the understanding that there is more than one type of person in the world.”

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OF SOCIAL SOCIAL MEDIA MEDIA OF doesn’t always reflect real life. But overall it’s neutral, I don’t think it’s inherently good or bad.”

A large part of the inferiority one can feel due to social media is the amount of “likes” they receive on their posts. You put something out there expecting people to like it, expecting them to interact with it, and failure for your expectations to be reached can be really disappointing. The Famuan (the news outlet for Florida A&M University) brought the science behind social media into perspective.

“When people make a post on social media that receives countless likes, a little excitement is felt by that person. During this state of bliss, dopamine is released from the brain,” The Famuan wrote. “Although they are happy when seeing the number of likes on a post, how do they feel when they do not receive that same feedback on their next post? Envy clouds up their judgment, causing them to dive into depression and comparison with others.”

It has been proven time and time again that social media, from the harsh comments of others to the criticism we give ourselves, can have a more negative effect on its users than intended. But, when taking into account things like self-help pages, online friends, and support groups, the internet can actually be a positive place.

Some overlooked effects that social media can have on its users include the relief of social isolation, social support, and intervention, the strengthening of preexisting relationships, etc.

“I think there’s an issue with how ‘influencers’ feed into our lives to almost an unhealthy level. The only reason I say this is because when the word influencer comes to mind it’s probably a skinny, young white girl. There’s no diversity in bodies, ethnicity, or content,” Hutchens said.

“So you’ve got all these people who look the same, telling you that they really like these diet pills or detox teas, and it’s extremely unhealthy to see that all the time.”

HYPE / 37

Cabinet members Rachael Doel, Bailey Dipper, and Maddie Dimmick, 11, decorate the Commons for the holidays.

HALLE JOHNSON

Dance Team works hard at practice in preparation for basketball season.

Tyren Hendrix, 11, is determined to make a shot during one of Central’s home basketball games.

BAILEY DIPPER

EM GAYLOR

A Central swimmer races down the lane during a relay.

PHOTO ESSAY BAILEY DIPPER AND HALLE JOHNSON / PHOTO EDITORS

REID BIGGERS

Debate student, Tanner Wilson, 11, participates in an online tournament.

BAILEY DIPPER

HALLE JOHNSON Isabella Richardson, 11, and Catherine Dutton, 10, wrestle eachother during practice.

EM GAYLOR Tyren Hendrix, 11, stands at the ready during a Central home basketball game.

Lucy Vanover, 11, and Parker Panza, 10, perform with the dance team at halftime at a basketball game.

A GIFT FROM KERBORT

KEATON LASHLEY / SENIOR REPORTER

CHT central high times

DOUBLE I S S U E

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: Fake News pg. 5 Diversity in the US Congress pg. 14 Civil Unrest in America pg. 8

Representation, Politics, and The Future of America Volume 107 / Issue 3 / Spring 2021

Accurate Representation In Film and Television ADDI JORDAN / REPORTER

R

epresentation in the media is something that audiThe handling of the ASD community is not the ences have been wanting for what seems like ages, only issue with Music. The main protagonist, Music, and it’s finally starting to happen. Shows like Netflix’s I is mixed, and one scene in the film has proven probAm Not Okay With This and Atypical include LGBTQ+ lematic. In the scene, Zeigler is shown with box braids characters, neurodivergent characters, and the mental and obvious makeup enhancement to make her appear and physical struggles of growing up. But where there is browner than she is. On top of that, Sia disregarded the good representation, there will be bad representation, scene, saying that the very obvious blackface was just a such as Sia’s film Music, in which Maddie lighting issue.

Zeigler plays a teenage girl with autism.

The film’s harmful portrayal of people The film has ignited controversy around with autism and the way they should be the internet due to the casting choices, treated raises many questions in regards to and several people with autism have representation: more specifically, should spoken out about how harmful the poor actors be portraying groups that they are representation is. not a part of? Neurodivergent represenThe Instagram page “@the.autisticats”, tation is not the only aspect of film that which is run by three admins who are has been challenged. Questions have also each neurodivergent, has made multiple been raised about whether or not straight, posts about Sia’s film and how harmful it The scene from the film in cisgender actors should play LGBTQ which Music, played by characters. A few LGBTQ actors such as is to the neurodivergent community.

Maddie Ziegler, wore braids Neil Patrick Harris and Jim Parsons have Neurodivergency is a wide spectrum, which includes people with ADHD, ADD, spoken out, saying that they think it’s okay ASD, OCD, and other conditions. In the for cishet actors to play LGBTQ characters. media, representation of neurodivergent In an interview with The Times, Harris characters is extremely crucial. If done corstated, “I’m not one to jump to labelling. rectly, it can be beneficial and educational; As an actor you certainly hope you can be if done incorrectly, it can come off as a visible option for all kinds of different derogatory, mocking, and dangerous. roles.” He also added that if he were in the “But in Sia’s new movie, the autistic position of casting, he “would definitely character Music is shown having sevwant to hire the best actor.” eral meltdowns and being held in prone Big Bang Theory’s Jim Parsons opened restraint,” one of the posts by the.autisup about LGBTQ representation in the ticats said. “For those who don’t know, media in an interview with the LA Times. prone restraint is extremely dangerous.

“There’s definitely this spectrum: I The poster for Sia’s film, Just a few days ago, the story of a 16 year think the fight, as it were, is not about “Music” old autistic boy named Eric Parsa came up having only gay people play the gay parts on the news. He died last year at the hands of police, by but ensure that all parts are open to all actors,” Parson being held in prone restraint and sat on during a meltsaid. “It’s important that gay characters are portayed as down.” well-rounded and completely human individuals.”

The post later mentioned the trauma that incorrect In summary, representation of neurodivergent and handling of meltdowns can cause, and how dangerous LGBTQ characters is important. When done well, it can it is to normalize such treatment. not only educate the audience, but make them feel at “Prone restraint is deadly. But this film acts like it’s home and validated. normal and necessary,” the post stated.

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LEAD & SHORT

S

A brief update on what’s happening in the Central and Springfield communities.

ADDI JORDAN / REPORTER

SPS’S NEW SUPERINTENDENT

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pringfield Public Schools has announced that a new superintendent will be appointed. Dr. Grenita Lathan will be SPS’s new superintendent, and is coming into the position with 30 years of experience in education. Dr. Lathan is the first woman and African American to hold the position of superintendent in the SPS system, and intends to focus on equity and diversity in the community. SPS plans to hold virtual meetings with Dr. Lathan to introduce her, then later in the spring, she will visit Springfield to meet school leaders in person.

OTC $1 MILLION REMODEL

O

TC is taking steps to do a $1 million remodel of their student plaza. Rob Rector, vice chancellor for administrative services at OTC, mentioned some of the issues with the current plaza during an interview with the Springfield News Leader.

“The existing plaza has been here for a while. We have experienced some unraveling, especially in the concrete,” Rector said. “Some of the concrete, it’s time for replacement after years of weather, calcium salt we put on, especially in the winter months.”

The remodel will make OTC’s plaza more student friendly, add to the environment, and will make the space more accessible.

SENATOR JOSH HAWLEY FACING BACKLASH

M

issouri senator Josh Hawley has been facing backlash after the January attack on Capitol Hill. Hours after the attack, Hawley was back on top of questioning election results, whereas the rest of the country was still reeling from the violence. Hawley’s positions and standpoints are not only being questioned by the left, but also by members of his own party. His actions have lost him major donors, supporters, and a book deal. Thousands of law school alumni and students are urging for him to be disbarred, and it has been confirmed that at least one Democratic senator has called on Hawley to resign.

Pictured above, Dr. Grenita Lathan NEWS / 43

ACCOLADES ARDEN BELOW / REPORTER

Central students have done amazing things — here’s a spotlight of some of their accomplishments during this spring.

Know someone who’s done something cool? Send a message on over to @chs. journalism2021 on Instagram to be featured in the next issue!

SWIMMING TO VICTORY

C

ongratulations to the girls swim and dive team for taking third place overall at the Ozark Conference meet on Monday, January 25! The Central A relay team took first place in the 200 free relay, third in the 400 free relay, and fifth in the 200 medley. Ashlie German (pictured) came out on top in the 200 individual medley and the 100 butterfly with times of 2:18.35 and 1:01.45, respectively.

Finni Werner-Click took second place in the diving event.

The 200 freestyle event saw success with Olivia Janssen taking 5th place. Macie Jungmamann achieved a 5th place win in the 100 butterfly as well. Jenna Skidmore won 2nd place in the 100 breaststroke and 5th place in the 100 freestyle. Great job ladies!

GIRL’S WRESTLING

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n January 11, Catherine Dutton snatched a firstplace win and Isabella Richardson placed 2nd at the Gem City Scramble girls wrestling tournament. Dutton is a returning state qualifier and member of the Missouri Women’s national team. The team is proving to be very successful and competitive under the leadership of Coach Pyck.

LADY BULLDOGS SNATCH DISTRICT 10 TITLE

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n Thursday, March 4 the Central lady bulldogs basketball team won districts for the first time since 1987. The team came out on top of Lebanon with a score of 56-40. Senior captain Makaiya Brooks scored 21 points to add to her already-secured girls career scoring record for highschool and the city of Springfield. Currently, she has 2,326 career points. Brooks also has the record for career 3-pointers made for all SPS boys and girls. The team will advance to play Jefferson city at sectionals on March 10. Good luck, and congratulations lady bulldogs!

THE MANY MERITABLE

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ive Central seniors were named by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation to be Finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program. Rohan Bansal, Christina Kasch, Ethan Lai, Sreya Mandava, and Samuel Stagner were five of six finalists that come from the Springfield Public School district. These students will have the chance to compete for scholarships that will be offered in the spring of 2021. Only 15,000 finalists were named from high schools across the country. More than 1.5 million students started their journey in this program by taking the preliminary SAT (PSAT) their junior year. Great work Seniors!

CELLO CHAMPION

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ongratulations to junior Sam Garvin for being selected as a Missouri All-State orchestra player! The students were selected from a board of musicians that blindly judged each virtual audition. The ensemble of prestigious string players who were selected will be recognized at the All-State Teacher’s Association conference as well as the Missouri Music Educator’s Association conference in a virtual fashion.

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Fake News; NED PICKETT PICKETT // REPORTER REPORTER NED

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n these confusing times, you constantly hear the term “Fake News,” whether it be from a politician such as former President Donald Trump or from a news host describing another source of news. The problem is that while it can be taken at face value as inaccurate reporting, it has been used to a point where it can simply mean negative press coverage. According to Cambridge Dictionary, “[F]ake news is defined as false stories that appear to be news, spread on the internet or using other media, usually created to influence political views or as a joke[.]” This definition covers quite a lot of territory, but there are a few notable categories--satire, low profile fake websites, and real “Fake News,” the sort of news source that are fairly high profile.

Satire can be fairly easy to identify, but it also sometimes looks convincing. In the former category, take this headline from The Onion: “Pope Francis Worried About Job Security After Butting Heads With New God.” It is obviously a joke, and The Onion is a well known source of satirical news. Most satirical news sources will make it clear that they are satire in their website names or “About Us” pages. Despite this, it is relatively common for satirical sites, even those that are clearly labeled, to start urban legends, so if you see something that looks suspicious, check a website such as snopes.com.

Less well known websites can blur the line between a satire website and one that is a badly constructed site.

These sites may attempt to mimic a well known news source or pretend to be a legitimate site, such as a fairly well known false site known as the National Report.

These sites often include inflammatory headlines about celebrities, contain spelling and grammatical errors, will often be outdated, and the authors of a story will typically be fake. These are intended to generate ad revenue or potentially contain malware. These are best to be avoided.

There is also the latter category, which is the kind of Fake News many politicians refer to when they tweet. This is where this concept becomes complicated.

And How How And To Avoid Avoid ItIt To

Although there are definite biases to any sort of media source, which is particularly prevalent in their commentary, most major news sources are fairly reliable. Although there are notable outliers such as InfoWars, most mainstream media outlets are worth reading.

Fake News will never not be a problem. Since we are, however, appearing to come out of a controversial era, perhaps it will be less of a problem in the future. It is important to know how to deal with falsified facts, and to be able to sift through bias. Hopefully, Fake News will become simply a problem that rarely affects our lives.

Most Reliable News Sources Associated Press Reuters Weather.com ABC News The Advocate World Truth TV The National Enquirer The Gateway Pundit InfoWars NewsPunch

Least Reliable News Sources NEWS / 45

World News

NATHAN SHARP / REPORTER

Covid Containment Outside the US:

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n its starting months, 2021 continues to suffer the lingering coronavirus crisis of 2020. As of now, March, three COVID variants have been discovered around the world. The variant B.1.1.7 was discovered in the UK, B.1.351 was discovered in South Africa, and the P.1 variant emerged from Brazil. The WHO contributes the new variant to the record numbers in South Africa, and the Africa CDC is warning about raising death rates in the country. Japan’s government has discovered an increase of variants by studying spread in Kobe. On March 2nd, Brazil broke the record of deaths in one day, having 1,700 died. In the last week of February, Europe recorded 1 million new cases.

While COVID-19 continues to devastate the world, nations across the world continue to vaccinate their populations. Our World in Data cites that 305 million doses have been given, and 66.7 million people are fully vaccinated. Israel’s vaccination schedule is the fastest in the world, giving 56.7% of its 9 million population at

least one shot as of March 5th. Israel has faced criticism for below average vaccination rates in ultra-Orthodox Jews and Israeli Arab neighborhoods. Cuba has sent two of its own vaccines to their final trials, hoping to fight against the new rise of cases after opening international travel in December. The crisis continues, but nations across the world continue to fight.

While the statistics provided are true at the time of writing, they are probably false at time of reading.

Vaccination is happening worldwide. For more reliable numbers, do research from a reliable source.

UPDATE: As of February 26, Austrailia has began to reopen, with zero reported cases over a 40 day period in multiple areas on the country. This was achieved through strict lockdowns and public health policies, and aggressive use of testing and contact tracing. The country reported around 29,000 COVID-19 cases and around 900 deaths in total.

Springfield News O

n February 1, all hybrid-learning students from Springfield Public Schools returned to a four-day week schedule. The announcement was made by the district shortly after the January 19 Board of Education meeting. The decision to return both cohorts was made after reviewing COVID-19 health data. According to OzarksFirst, “Stephen Hall, chief communication officer for SPS, said the district hopes to return to five in-person learning days by the beginning of the fourth quarter”.

Students and faculty alike voiced their concerns on the matter. On the day of the announcement, CHS Junior Sean Lay created a petition on change.org to keep the 2-day hybrid learning schedule. So far, the petition has more than 3,000 signatures, along with several accompanying comments.

Although the district has not made any change

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ARDEN BELOW / REPORTER

in its plan, the petition had a wide reach throughout the city.

“This is outright a poor decision from the stance of public health and safety,” said Sean Lay in the description of his petition. “Greene County has had 25k+ cases and the number is only rising. Now is not the time to start exposing students and teachers to more chances to spread the disease to those at risk.”

Students and staff are making strides in trying to contain the virus and keep the school healthy.

School administration announced that they would be monitoring the staircases more closely to ensure that students are traveling in the right direction. Neither half of the student body has been in the same classroom since March 2020, and in order to attempt to keep the current conditions, precautions are being followed and closely monitored.

Biden’s Inauguration Day

NATHAN SHARP / REPORTER

Schedule of Events 10:00: The ceremony begins 11:30: Swearing in ceremony, Lady Gaga preforms national anthem Shortly before 12:00: Jennifer Lopez preforms 12:00 Biden is sworn in 3:30: The first virtual presidential parade begins.

Around 4:00: Biden and family arrive at the White House 8:30: The Celebrating America event begins

Biden’s Inaugural Address

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iden’s speech was one of hopeful and unifying rhetoric. He mentions past tragedies and wars that the United States has faced and overcome through unity. Biden states that the country must have unity, a plea to both sides of the aisle. Biden thanked every predecessor that showed up, including Pence and Obama. Trump did not appear, breaking the traditional ceremony of transfer of power.

“This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge. And unity is the path forward.

And we must meet this moment as the United States of America. If we do that, I guarantee you we will not fail. We have never, ever, ever, ever failed in America when we’ve acted together” — Joe Biden

Biden in his speech, does not attack the previois president, instead he wishes to start fresh. He states politics does not have to be a raging fire, destroying everything in its path. In the speech, Biden adresses three great issues the country is facing. He mentions our struggle with Covid-19, our struggle with racial justice and equality, and our struggle with helping the environment. These issues are stated quickly, and answered quickly.

Biden says unity will solve it all. Biden then harkons back to Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. He states his whole soul is dedicated to the issues, just like Lincoln. Biden then states things can change, proving this by mentioning Vice President Harris, the first woman elected to national office.

Who Attended/Performed

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he lineup, including past presidents and famous entertainers, was vast. Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama were the presidents in attendance, joined by Mike Pence. Trump himself did not show, breaking tradition, as mentioned before. Senator Bernie Sanders was there, sparking a meme with his attire.

The Marine Corps Band preformed throughout the ceremony, having played at almost every ceremony since Thomas Jefferson’s. Lady Gaga preformed the national anthem. Jennifer Lopez and Garth Brooks also appeared to preform. Biden’s adress was followed

by Amanda Gorman, reading her poem, “The Hill We Climb“. The Celebrating America event, hosted by Tom Hanks, Had its own star-studded cast. This included Bruce Springsteen, John Legend, Demi Lovato, and the Foo Fighters.

Update: Poet Amanda Gorman, stated she was followed home by a security guard on March 5th. She was called suspicious, and the guard demanded proof that she had lived at her home.

NEWS / 47

Civil Unrest in the United States:

Breaching of the US Capitol KEATON LASHLEY / SENIOR REPORTER NED PICKETT / REPORTER

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p until January 6 of this year, if you had mentioned an attack on democracy itself, most people in the United States would have assumed you were talking about a scene out of a dystopian novel. However, after current events, nearly everyone knows that you are referring to the riots that took place at the United States Capitol building attempting to delay the certification of election ballots.

On this day, many gathered to vote on the validity of President Joseph Biden’s victory back in November of 2020, but many incidents led up to the arrival of mobs outside and inside of the capitol building. It had become a right-wing effort to stop the procession using weapons and physical violence. This effort failed, and after several hours, ballots confirmed Biden as the official presidentelect, and on January 20, 2021, he was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States.

While it doesn’t make sense for political leaders to have any harmful intent towards our own country, it seems that the affair may have been orchestrated by multiple congresspeople and even the last US president, Donald Trump.

Throughout many social media posts, speeches, and news conferences, Trump supporters were encouraged to rally outside of the capitol on the day of the election. These people believed that Biden’s win in November was falsified and that the real victor was now-former President Donald Trump. Trump himself has repeated this claim and did not publicly concede until after the riot. While

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the Capitol and its happenings are far away, an instigator and supporter of the rioting is in fact, very close to home.

Missouri senator Josh Hawley was relatively unknown outside of Missouri before the riots.

The 41-year-old Republican graduate of Stanford University and Yale Law School served as the Missouri Attorney General before defeating former senator Claire McCaskill in 2018. Along with several other Republican congressmen, Hawley has been widely criticized for his role in inciting the riot. While walking into the capital, he saluted the rioters, and following the resumption of the ballot counting, Hawley voted in favor of objections of the electoral votes of Arizona and Pennsylvania. Due to these actions, many have called on Hawley to resign.

The far-right conspiracy theory QAnon is also directly tied to this riot. In late 2017, a user of the anonymous board 4chan who identified themselves as “Q” claimed to have insider information of the government. Q left cryptic bits of information here and there, and this soon took off. The basic belief of QAnon is that there is a supposed deep state consisting of Democrats who are pedophiles and eat babies. It has gathered a massive following, and many signs have been seen at Trump rallies. Before the election, Q predicted that Donald Trump would win and that there would be mass arrests of Democrats. Unfortunately for them, Trump did not win, which led to several inane theories stating that Trump is still president,

and that the mass arrests were secret. building, she was shot by a Capitol Officer as she Police brutality and relation to direct actions was climbing through a broken window. There during the riot: has been an outcry from many Trump supporters While Black Lives Matter protesters have acted as a result of her death and demands that she be much differently at honored in her passing. their respective rallies Along with Babbitt, three throughout the past (idk other civilians lost their exact number) months, lives, all of these deaths so have the police. Over being the direct cause and over, there have been of medical conditions. photos, videos, social Benjamin Philips, 50, of media posts spread, Ringtown, Pennsylvania; each one showing brutal Kevin Greeson, 55, of actions and unlawful Athens, Alabama; and tactics used by officers Rosanne Boyland, 34, of when they come face-toKennesaw, Georgia. face with those marching Aside from civilians, Pictured: Trump supporters began climbing for racial justice, and to Brian Sidnick, 42, up walls to breach the capitol. honor the lives of George from South River, New Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain, and many Jersey, sustained multiple injuries from rightothers. Rubber bullets, gas, blunt objects, and wing extremists while on-duty, and even though even sometimes vehicles were used to suppress he received medical attention afterwards, he later protestors in these cases. In the case of an attack succumbed to them the next day. He is the 6th on the Capitol though, it seems that many of those U.S. Capitol Police officer to die in the line of duty participating were in fact officers themselves. Many since 1952. The details of his death haven’t been of those who weren’t on duty could be seen in released, but it is being investigated, so that other the crowd, while most of those who were, acted officers serving do not face the same fate. friendly towards the It is unlikely that our mobs, and could even be country will have to seen showing them the go through another way through, or taking episode like this anytime selfies with different soon. The extreme people. These actions polarization of left and of course do not speak right throughout the past for all police, but they four years built into a do speak of a large and series of eruptions from greatly overlooked issue both sides, both seeking within their ranks. out their own agendas Five individual through methods that lives were lost due to haven’t been so often Pictured: A massive group of “protesters”, the excessive violence seen covered in media seen waving a variety of “Trump 2020”, “Don’t and chaos of the mobs. in decades. Despite the Tread on Me”, and American flags Ashli Babbitt, 35, of circumstances of this Huntington, Maryland, was an Air Force veteran past year and our countries ugly past, and maybe who had flown to Washington DC from San Diego, ugly future, the events of January 6th will live California, to attend the rally. Being one of the on in history books, an infamous date for future members at the forefront of those breaching the generations to learn from.

NEWS / 49

ATHLETE HIGHLIGHT

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Mitchem Smith-Miller

itchem Smith-Miller, senior, is a member of Central’s Boys’ Swim Team as well as Central’s Boy’ Tennis team. Mitchem has been a member of the swim team for 3 years and the tennis team during all 4 years of his tenure at Central High School.

Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Central’s Swim Team was able to host a full season both this year and last.

“Last year was unaffected by COVID but this year we were very lucky because it’s been difficult for any sport to provide the appropriate concessions for competition,” said Smith-Miller.

Central’s Tennis Team, however, hasn’t been so lucky, losing the entirety of their season last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Though it is still to be seen whether or not Central’s Tennis team will be able to have a season this year, Mitchem likes their odds.

“The CDC finds tennis to be one of the safest sports to do in regard to COVID. Practices, however, will be more difficult but not impossible. For Central, practices are outdoor which makes social distancing more possible,” Mitchem said.

Having won districts two years ago, Central will be looking to defend their district title this coming season.

Although Mitchem has confidence in the team, he acknowledges that winning districts isn’t something that comes easy.

“I think the odds are pretty good. It depends on the people who decide to play or not to play because of COVID, but I definitely see it as a possibility,” said Mitchem.

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MAVERICK HILL / REPORTER

Isabella Richardson

sabella Richardson, Junior, is a member of Central’s Girls’ wrestling team. She has been involved with Central’s wrestling team for two years, one as a manager and this year as a competitor.

It goes uncontested that the COVID-19 pandemic has drastically changed aspects of many peoples’ lives, and wrestling is no different. Isabella acknowledges that many things had to change because of COVID, but was just glad that the whole team didn’t have to quarantine.

“COVID has had an impact on our team and the way we practice but we were lucky and never have to quarantine the whole team. In many ways we had to change our practice like only being able to practice with one person instead of being able to switch to get a feel of the way other people wrestle and always having to take a COVID quiz before practice which can be easily forgotten” said Richardson.

Although she has only been a competing member of the wrestling team for a year, her accomplishments speak for themselves. Boasting a record of 26-7, Isabella ranks amongst one of the best wrestlers in the city, however, she isn’t done there. Isabella says she thinks she can only get better from here.

“I’m very optimistic about my chance at state next year and improving my record. I’ll be doing off-season from now until next year and I already have wrestling tournaments planned for the summer. I know with the help of my teammates and coaches that I can make it to state next year.” said Isabella.

Track & Field KEATON LASHLEY / SENIOR REPORTER

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ach spring Track & Field members work hard in order to compete with the best they’ve got.

This means that both they and their coaches are putting in a lot of effort, so be sure to give the next member you see an appropriate and socially distanced air high-five, or something a little less strange. Words of encouragement work too.

Coaches are excited about this season and are working together with their respective groups on their goals.

Science teacher and coach Mark Kellog says, “We plan to hold a regular season and keep athletes healthy!”

There haven’t been too many changes to practices, except for the exclusion of a group warm-up and students wearing masks when possible. Since each event has its own practice pod, there aren’t as many students together in one spot. This is good, as it allows students to practice without the worry of being in an area that is overcrowded and dangerous. Along with this, students will be receiving more individual instruction from their coaches.

“My plan is to work on conditioning and help athletes find their personal win by setting

goals for themselves,” said English teacher and Coach Mark Barger. “To be successful in Track and Field, one must understand that it is a solo sport.

Yes, we travel as a team, but when you’re on the track or field, it is only you standing between you, and how you choose to define victory. A good athlete must have grit, determination, and believe in themselves.”

Barger wants to work hard on each student’s individual capabilities and their self-confidence. This is a great way to boost each participant’s skills and to give everyone a more positive and rich experience throughout this season.

Football and track coach Joshua Henry wishes to push each student to be their best, not only on the field but in other areas of life as well.

He hopes for everyone to be successful and to develop a sturdy work ethic.

Henry plans to reach this goal by, “changing the culture and bringing some of my Texas style coaching here to Springfield.”

Best of luck to the hardworking track and field team during this very different season. Go Bulldogs!

SPORTS / 51

CLUB HIGHLIGHT ANIA KOVACS / REPORTER

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t Central, we are lucky to have such an innovative student body. With every year comes more student-led clubs to choose from. This year, sophomore Claire Bodnar has taken initiative to start a Project Green Schools chapter here at CHS. “Climate change and conservation have been something I’ve been passionate about for about five years now,” said Bodnar. “I discovered this organization last year during quarantine. Since then, it has been my goal to give students the opportunity to conserve and spread awareness somewhere where we often feel like we personally can’t do much to help the environment.”

Project Green Schools is an organization that aims to inspire students to be the next generation of environmental leaders and pass on sustainable solutions and skills. Its curriculum and opportunities ensure that students are well-versed in public health and climate change.

“The general mission is as the name says, going green, whether that be raising awareness about the climate, learning what we can do, or taking action as a whole,” said freshman Elana Hadi.

PGS meetings at Central are currently held online, but Bodnar works to make them engaging and projectbased. She begins Zoom meetings with a fun fact or a segment from the news about climate change, and then members of the club work on fundraisers or awareness boosters to implement around the school.

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“I’ve been working to get [meetings] off the ground, so we haven’t been able to do as much hands-on stuff as I’d like yet, but within the next month we’ll start doing more things like that,” added Bodnar. If meetings were not socially distanced, she envisions more service projects and interactive endeavors for club members so they can be more involved in the community. She would also like to involve the rest of the school in their projects whenever that may be possible.

Even with these COVID-19 setbacks, the club has made large strides.

“So far we’ve been growing in numbers, have t-shirts, and have a lot of plans to take action,” said Hadi. “Again, it is a very new club, so just these steps are really impressive, especially with all virtual meetings and the current scheduling for school and format for communication.”

Since beginning in 2007, the PGS organization has made a huge global impact. Over 6,300 schools and 500,000 students are involved worldwide. They’ve even included a National Youth Council in which PGS students are given a seat at the table with government representatives and corporate officials. If you are interested in going green but you aren’t sure where to begin, there are amazing benefits to joining Project Green Schools at Central. Contact Mr. Miller in Room 301 to learn more about the club and future meetings.

CATHERINE DUTTON REID BIGGERS / REPORTER

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he sophomore year of Catherine Dutton’s sophomore year is beginning to end. Being over halfway through, Dutton continues to work hard to be able to end the 2020-21 school year on a high note. Being part of wrestling has helped the effort this heavily.

While there are certain COVID restrictions, Dutton

“

continues to make the most of what she is still able to do. Having originally joined the sport in the seventh grade, in the Bulldogs Youth Wrestling Club, Dutton’s motivation to continue the sport has changed.

“I initially joined wrestling because I thought it would be fun to throw people around,” Dutton said, “But then I fell in love with the actual sport and stayed.”

”

“I know Catherine will continue to be successful and improve over the next two years”

Brain Pyck, the coach for the recently formed girls wrestling team, spoke to Dutton’s success on the wrestling team: “She was our second girls state qualifier, first Conference champion, and is currently ranked nationally as 13th in the nation in her weight class,” Pyck said, “I know Catherine will continue to be successful and improve over the next two years.”

Since Dutton’s only extracurricular activity is the Girl’s Wrestling team, she is able to focus and become an amazing teammate to the rest of the Girl’s wrestling team. Dutton, while only a sophomore, plans to wrestle

in college and the Olympics. She is highly motivated and dedicated to being the best that she can be in the sport of wrestling.

As Catherine’s high school experience is on the downhill slide, she continues to impress and surpass the expectations of her opponents. Facing off against the best opponent that she can find has continued to show that she is super determined to be the best of the best.

“Catherine is personable, dedicated, competitive, and very coachable,” Pyck said, “Her teammates and coaches enjoy working with her and she adds a lot to the team.”

FEATURE / 53

D i v e In the United S t a t e s r s i t yCongress

KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR

It goes without saying that this past year has been Congress, these are big first steps to pave the way for one for the history books. One could talk forever about future black and POC politicians here in the US. the chaos and tragedy the world has faced, ranging Next, we saw a huge amount of LGBTQ+ from the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing police brutality representation in Congress this election year as well, cases against black people, and severe, record-breaking the most in U.S. history. Sarah McBride, a Democrat, winter weather across the U.S. It’s hard to put aside the became the first openly transgender state senator in her negatives and focus on anything good that’s happened. state of Delaware, as well as in the United States. Taylor However, with the year rolling over to 2021, let’s take Small, also a Democrat, was also elected in Vermont, a look at a sliver of good in the US now; the effort to becoming the state’s first trans representative and the diversify our political offices.

5th trans legislator in the nation. And in New York, Beyond Biden and Harris being elected—giving Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones became the first two America our first-ever female vice president, as well openly gay black men in Congress, both speaking out as our first Black American and first person of Asian with excitement to have a chance at being positive role descent to take the position— models “for queer youth and this election year, has seen especially queer youth of color.” several important firsts in Alongside Torres and Jones, several US states. Each year, Georgia saw its first openly the diversity within our US LGBTQ+ state senator with Congress positions broadens, Democrat Kim Jackson, as well and this year has brought about as reelecting their first openly both racial diversity, as well as a gay state representative, and wide group of elected LGBTQ+ Oklahoma elected its first individuals. openly nonbinary state senator, First, let’s discuss the Mauree Turner, who is also elections of several black and queer, black, and Muslim.

POC politicians across the U.S., Tennessee also elected its Pictured: Sarah McBride, left, and with New Mexico becoming the two first openly LGBTQ+ Taylor Small, right. first state to elect all women of representatives, Democrat color to Congress. This group includes Deb Haaland, a Torrey Harris and Republican Eddie Mannis. And, Democratic representative who was also the first Native finally, Kansas also elected its first openly transgender American woman elected to Congress in 2018, elected lawmaker, Stephanie Byers. once again in November. It also contains Republican Overall, this long list of wins is crucial to our steps representative Yvette Herrell, a Native American forward as a diverse, inclusive Congress, opening the woman, and Democrat Teresa Leger Fernandez, a doors and paving ways for more women, LGBTQ+ Hispanic woman. Additionally, Missouri saw its people, black people, and people of color to come first black congresswoman, Cori Bush, and Marilyn into power and make changes for equality, as well as Strickland, Washington’s first black congresswoman provide as role models for so many young people within and the first Korean-American woman elected to their groups.

Congress. While there’s still room for racial diversity in

54 / FEATURE

New Staff Of Central

SENIOR REPORTER/KEATON LASHLEY

Ashly Johnson Being a former student here, Johnson is back as part of the bulldog family! She now teaches Algebra 1 & 2 as her students bring fun to each day, keeping her on her toes. Her favourite series at the moment is the Micheal Bennett series by James Patterson. At home she spends her time with her schnoodle, Penny, and her 3-year old, Arabella. She’s glad to be back!

Brandon Kimbrough Kimbrough is both a PE teacher and the Head Boy’s Basketball Coach. After playing professionally overseas for 3 years in Germany and England, he is here and has come to love the school. His favourite thing is the diversity of our students and how the facukty work together to give the school its great atmosphere. OUtside of school he spends his time with his family, including his 2-year-old son.

Carolyn Steensland Steensland is now one of the new Spanish teachers here at Central and is enjoying her time here so far. Her favourite part about school is getting to work with each of her students. In her spare time she likes to be outdoors, so she is most likely looking forward to the upcoming spring!

Josh McCutcheon McCutcheon teaches Health as well as Indidual and Dual Sports. He loves his classes and how the diversity within them leads to great group discussions. Years ago McCitcheon got to take part in a commercial for OTC and now ehn he isn’t spending time with his students, he likes to go to the lake.

Rebekah Polly As an art teacher, Polly most loves the creative nature of Central’s students. Their ingenuity of both the students and stadd has really amazed her. Outside of school she loves to create art, garden, and spend tme with her family. She also has her own business where she sells her own art and teaches other to create their own.

Brianne Brown Orchestra teacher, Brown, really appreciates the safe and supportive environment of Central. and the passion and responsibility of her students. After moving here from Memphis, Brown is inspired to learn and be her best. Outside of school she spends her time with her family, mostly doing outdoor activities together. She’s happy to be a teacher and to give each of her students a voice.

Sean Pyle Pyle teaches English as a second language! Out of all of Centrals good qualities, Pyle chooses the diversity of the student body as his favourite. Outside of school, he loves to hike. He most enjoys doing so in the summer and fall seasons. Also, he someho managed to evaded learning to ride a bike until the age of 19!

FEATURE / 55

An Artistic Perspective KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR

Khloe Joint

Keaton Lashley 56 / FEATURE

Part of my black & white photoset from Photography II. Fellows Lake.

Addi Jordan

Uncertainty I am the hesitant step before dancing, The unsure stroke in the painting.

I am the deep breath before the first note sang, The question left unanswered.

I am the canvases stacked against my desk, The work of art hidden inside my drawers.

I am the mask covering pain, The silent hidden in ones eyes.

More than all of this, I am unsure in who I am.

I am told I am many things, But my mind clouds my judgement.

I am eternally negative, Even the most beautiful positives I ruin.

The voice in my head tells me sweet lies, Makes me comfortable in not being enough.

Kaiti Hoover Collage

So, I am the waves that crash down and destroy, But also the tree that falls in an empty forest.

I am the compliment given when nobody is around, And I am the self deprivation said aloud to others.

I am both happy and sad always, I cannot have one without the other.

I feel guilty if it does happen, So I believe truly... that I am untrue.

Kaiti Hoover

Addi Jordan FEATURE / 57

FOOD REVIEW: REVIEW: FOOD

ARDEN BELOW / REPORTER

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aría’s Mexican Restaurant offers a very unique option for tacos: fried to a golden, crunchy crisp.

The famous fried tacos come with a variety of fillings.

My personal favorite is the carnitas and ground beef “Choose 2” combo. The flavor of the tacos is mouthwatering. Once you order this plate, you won’t ever need to look at the menu again. (You will want to come back!) If you are looking for a great environment to celebrate any occasion with some savory crispy tacos, María’s is the place to go. The restaurant serves two locations in Springfield; one is downtown and the new South location is located on Campbell.

C

esar Ortiz opened his own restaurant a few years ago and it has seen great success in Springfield.

Ortiz is the brother of the owner of another local restaurant, Cielito Lindo. The food served at Cesar’s Old Mexico takes a more traditional approach to Mexican cuisine. I think the authenticity of this restaurant is more prevalent in some of the more Salvadorian meals, like the Big Tijuana (Steak, chicken, shrimp, chorizo, and carnitas topped with cheese sauce), but their tacos are almost equally impressive— they tend to be a little bit more “basic”. The street tacos always a good go-to as well, providing great tasting meat in smaller corn tortillas. The newer location on Sunshine has an amazing environment with colorful decorations and a great night-time atmosphere.

58 / HYPE

TASTY TASTY TACOS TACOS I

f you’re searching for a more upscale Mexican destination in Springfield, Catrina’s Mexican Kitchen and Cantina on Battlefield is a great place to start. Their “gringo tacos” (yes, the name is straight from the menu) are mild and delicious with a cream sauce and crunchy tortillas. The chicken tinga is by far the best filling for any of these tacos. As I am not a huge fan of seafood, I had my mom come along to taste test the “tacos del mar”. She ordered the grilled shrimp version which she claimed was very tasty. I took a bite, and, although I didn’t love the shrimp (to be expected) I will definitely say the lime chipotle sauce was amazing. As stated, this is a pricier restaurant, but the spending is well worth it!

O

n the complete opposite spectrum of Catrina’s is the “always delicious” Taco Bell. Everyone seems to have their classic go-to choice, and mine would happen to be the Doritos®️ Locos Taco. One negative side to these tacos is that a lot of restaurants don’t sell the Cool Ranch variety anymore. While a Baja Blast freeze and a crunchy taco hit the spot during a long road trip or after a tiring day at school, the food is starting to not live up to the price. I find a lot of Taco Bell’s food to be somewhat soggy and underwhelming nowadays. Hopefully, this franchise will wow me again one day with their savory cuisine. For now, I’ll just go to Qdoba.

I’ll give TB 2/5 tacos simply because i love the Crunshwrap supreme.

HYPE / 59

HIKING IN THE OZARKS HAWKSBILL CRAG ANIA KOVACS / REPORTER

BUFFALO NATIONAL RIVER The Ponca and Jasper area in northern Arkansas is home to some of the most breathtaking trails, including my personal favorite hiking spot, the Buffalo National River. While it does take a lengthy two hours to drive there, just the scenery makes the commute worthwhile. There are multiple paths to choose from at this site that range from 3 to 6 miles long. The Centerpoint Trail to Big Bluff will take you through the woods as it winds through valleys in the Boston Mountains. This area also offers kayaking and canoeing for those who find more entertainment in the water. Definitely add Buffalo River to your hiking bucket list if you haven’t already.

LOST VALLEY About 15 miles from the Ponca area resides Kingston, Arkansas, home to the Lost Valley hiking trail.

If you missed out on Mrs. Mendenall’s annual earth science field trip, now is your chance to check it out for yourself. The trail winds alongside a river and multiple caves that are a lot of fun to explore, ending with a reservoir that is safe to swim in. If you go after heavy rains, you’ll have the best chance of seeing flowing waterfalls. This is a kid-friendly hiking spot if you have younger family members that want to join in on the fun.

ROARING RIVER STATE PARK This spot is closer to Springfield, about 8 miles south of Cassville, Missouri. As you pull in, the parking lot sits on either side of the river where anglers fish for stocked rainbow trout. It offers seven different hiking trails of moderate difficulty and family campsites, along with a lodge for indoor visitors. The hiking trails are shorter than most, the longest one being about 3 miles. If you are looking for a longer stay, this is the site for you.

HAWKSBILL CRAG This site is another one of northern Arkansas’ many stunners. An enormous rock jetting out from the mountains’ cliff ends the 2.9 mile Whitaker Point Trail and offers a view unlike any other. You can safely walk onto the cliff and see the Buffalo Wilderness area from miles away. The path to Hawksbill Crag is easy and gratifying, so not much preparation is needed. This is a must-do trail for new hikers.

60 / HYPE

Horoscopes NATHAN SHARP / REPORTER Aries: Mar. 21–Apr. 19 • Taurus: Apr. 20–May 20 • Gemini: May 21–June 21 • Cancer: June 22–July 22 Leo: July 23–Aug. 22 • Virgo: Aug. 23–Sept. 22 • Libra: Sept. 23–Oct. 22 • Scorpio: Oct. 23–Nov. 21 Sagittarius: Nov. 22–Dec. 21 • Capricorn: Dec. 22–Jan. 19 • Aquarius: Jan. 20–Feb. 18 • Pisces: Feb. 19–Mar. 20

ARIES

CANCER

LIBRA

Take life into your own hands. Buy a timeshare. DO it. Why would a salesman lie to you about such a great deal? If it’s just TOO good of a deal for you, bring in some friends. They’ll love you for roping them into such a great opportunity.

Have you looked inside a clock? Any kind of clock-like thing. It could be anything from a clocktower, to a watch, to an alarm clock. Anyway, they’re cool. They have gears and stuff that move around.

A clean hat can be used as a bowl. Soup should only be put in hats with a resealable lid though. However, solid food items can be put in any kind of hat. I recommend putting appropriately themed foods into hats, like barbeque in a cowboy hat.

Lucky Numbers: 5 and 5 again

Lucky Numbers: 12? 45? uh, 3 too?

Lucky Numbers: 85, -85, 0.85.

CAPRICORN Who are you? Did you read the horoscopes of last year? Shame on you if you didn’t. Find it somewhere, and read it. Do it now, and it’ll be like you get a double horoscope right now.

Lucky Numbers: Whatever you got last issue, leave me alone.

TAURUS

LEO

SCORPIO

AQUARIUS

Set 25 cents somewhere in your home. Don’t touch it for like two weeks. After that, look at it. It’s covered in dust. See, that’s why you need to regularly dust your home. Otherwise, your whole house will be as dusty as that.

Don’t invest in the stock market. It’s stupid. Just take any spare money you have, and hide it under your mattress or something. The stock market is more likely to rob you than actual burglars.

How many teeth do you have? I don’t know how many I have. It’s sometimes hard to tell where one ends and another begins. Anyhoo, teeth are fun. Use them to eat a salad out of your hat.

Windows are cool. You look through them, but do they also look through you?

Windows are deep, man.

Go through one, and you go through yourself. Windows.

Lucky Numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6. 5 is for Aries only.

Lucky Numbers: $15, preferably hidden under a matress

Lucky Numbers: 58, -58, 0.58.

GEMINI

VIRGO

SAGITTARIUS

PISCES

Snails. You think about them? They think about you. They care a lot. They take the time to care. That’s something you shouldn’t take for granted. Next time you see a snail, acknowledge it with maybe a wink or something.

It’ll feel appreciated.

Ah, we meet again, virgos.

My distaste for you never lessens. You once again don’t get a horoscope prediction.

Try again next time.

You got a lamp? What color of lampshades do you have? It tells a lot about your personality. If you have more than one color lampshade, that means you are crazy.

Just kidding, it means you probably need a lesson in feng shui.

Pisces means fish right?

And Aquarius means aquarium? So do pisces and aquarius get along or hate each other? Does a fish enjoy its cage? Does a cage enjoy its fish? Find an aquarius, and talk to them about this.

Lucky Numbers: 400,000,000,000

Lucky Numbers: Nothing for you.

Lucky Numbers: 8, 20, 376, 2.

Lucky Numbers: window window window window

Lucky Numbers: Any number you want, sport.

HYPE / 61

Music Review: Taylor Swift’s evermore ADDI JORDAN / REPORTER willow: Such a gorgeous song! From the lullaby-like sound of Taylor’s voice to the romantic guitar, it sounds like something straight out of a romance movie. champagne problems: This song was so melancholy. The piano and defeated sigh of “champagne problems” was heavy in emotion. gold rush: gold rush reminded me of the romace movie scenario where the quiet girl loves the popular boy that everyone else loves, and she can’t seem to catch his eye. ‘tis the damn season: This song embodies high school lovers who are forced to part ways when college rolls around. Very textbook “first love” feeling. tolerate it: This one feels so relatable and personal, like a breaking bond that can’t be helped.

Rating: 9/10 coney island: coney island is sorrowful and has a very remorseful feel to it. It definitely wasn’t my favorite song, but it was beautiful.

It reminded me of lovers who drifted apart and tried to fix it, to no avail. ivy: This track radiates sapphic energy.

It feels like two princesses from different kingdoms falling in love and running away to a cabin in the woods. cowboy like me: Chef’s kiss. Taylor’s vocals mix really well with the male ones. It gives me small town drama show vibes. long story short: Falling “from the pedestal” doesn’t mean you can’t find new beginnings, and I love the way that is conveyed. The line “long story short it was a bad time. Long story short- I survived” has a lot of power.

no body, no crime: This song is definitely my favorite out of them all. The lyrics, the beat, the sinister, vengeful tone was EVERYTHING!

marjorie: Right off the bat I knew this one was going to be emotional. Anyone who has lost someone knows that feeling of wishing you had more left of them, and this embodies that.

happiness: Don’t let the title fool you, this song STINGS. Despite the sadness, it’s a mature take on breakups, and ensures that “there will be happiness after you.”

closure: This one was not my favorite, but I will admit that the sound of machinery in the beginning was really really cool!

dorothea: This song was one of the most upbeat on the album. It reminded me of summer, my best friend, and the good days.

62 / HYPE

evermore: This song is like waking up to sunshine and birds singing. It makes me feel alive, and I have a feeling I’ll be listening to it on repeat.

The Truman Show: A Review KHLOE JOINT / CO-EDITOR

W

ith my TikTok addiction and my wandering brain, I’ve been thinking a lot about the universe and things like alternate timelines, string theory, and living in a simulation or dream. And while thinking about this sort of theory or idea, I have realized that I’ve never seen one of Jim Carrey’s most popular roles as Truman Burbank in; you guessed it, The Truman Show.

The Truman Show is a 1998 film directed by Peter Weir starring Jim Carrey as the titular character. The film follows Truman Burbank, a man who is oblivious to the fact that everything in his life is part of a TV set being controlled by executive producer Christof (Ed Harris) and aired on television 24/7. Christof captures Truman’s every move with hidden cameras and goes to the extent of even trying to alter his mind.

With Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a Jim Carrey movie that steps way outside his brand of humor in this beautiful and dramatic romance movie, being my favorite movie of all time, I had high expectations for The Truman Show despite going in pretty blind to the movie.

As I stated before, this film resonates with society at its peak now, even giving a name to a real delusion known as Truman syndrome, in which one believes their lives are staged or that they’re being watched on camera. And it resonates with the age of reality tv and obsession with other’s personal lives we’re living in now years after the film’s release.

The start of the movie caught my attention, introducing this film as this “married with X amount of kids” sitcom style of acting that I kinda hate. But I started the film already knowing something was off. I really liked learning and noticing suspicious things along with Truman.

This movie also brought about a lot of anxieties I didn’t realize I had. This film questions our place in reality and

“

challenges the idea of life as we live it. It brings about the concept of living in a simulation/dream and gaining awareness of it.

This movie touched on the idea of your own world revolving around you, and in a way it does? We all sort of live in our own little worlds or bubbles. We each have our own unique set of preferences, dislikes, experiences, desires, and feelings. But this movie flips that on its head.

For as long as The Truman Show aired, the world audience was guiltlessly enamored with Truman’s every move despite knowing he’s been on film every second of his life from birth, and every aspect of his life was just a piece of the set; from the sun and the sky to his own job and wife.

And of course, to just tie the intense climax of the film together, The Truman Show ends with such a beautiful scene and a bittersweet sendoff. This movie just hit me like a truck and had me feeling every human emotion, from sitting at the edge of my seat to finding myself upset and scared for Truman.

Not only visually stunning and hitting every mark in terms of comedy and timing, but this movie also presented me with a character I felt worried about and wanted to route for his good ending. Absolutely blown away.

Overall, this movie was plainly excellent and will make me question all means of existence for the rest of my days.

Frankly, any movie that makes me question the universe and meaning of life is good in my book. The Truman Show surpassed every expectation I had, from the intricacies of the set and plot and the wonderful blend of drama and emotion, as well as the sprinkling of classic Carrey comedy without the cringe. The synopsis for the movie alone was enough to pique my interest, and now I need to bring about a resurgence of this film. If you have Hulu, do yourself a favor and turn on this movie now.

“We accept the reality of the world with which we’re presented. It’s as simple as that.”

”

HYPE / 63

HOW THE SIMPSONS PREDICTED THE FUTURE REID BIGGERS / REPORTER

S

itcoms are a time-honored addition to public television. The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom that was created by Matt Groening, and it has been on television since 1989. The show has just finished airing its 32nd season, with over 5.5 million viewers. Over the years, they have predicted several startling events. Below are a few examples of the amazing predicting power of the show The Simpsons.

During the 17th episode of the 11th season, the episode titled “Bart to the Future”, Lisa, a character in the show, becomes the president of the united states.

During a presidential cabinet meeting, she remarks, “We inherited quite the budget crunch from President Trump.” While the episode was originally released in the year 2000, years before the President even considered running for the office, the episode still bears significance to many viewers as one of the great examples of the predictive power of The Simpsons to date.

Believe it or not, even the coronavirus was predicted

by The Simpsons. During the 24th episode of the 4th season of the show, an ill Japanese factory worker sneezes into a box that gets shipped to Homer Simpson, one of the main characters of the show. While the show does not exactly predict the virus, many viewers felt it was close enough to the recent situation around the world to add it to the list of The Simpsons predictions.

During the show, the townspeople, while trying to find a cure for the “Osaka Flu”, accidentally knock over a van filled with “killer bees”. This also predicts the “Murder Hornet” scare during 2020, and left many viewers of the show quite surprised as the show continued to accurately portray what would happen nearly 30 years later.

64 / HYPE

During the 6th season of the show, episode 8 predicted an incredible phenomenon. The episode “Lisa on Ice” showed a gag where the bully, Dolph, wrote the note to “Beat up Martin” on his Apple Newton. The text then fixes itself to the words “Eat up, Martha”, due to Dolph’s poor penmanship. This particular episode was aired on television in 1994, with the first touchscreen smartphone releasing in 2007.

This often-occurring situation known as the autocorrect fail still exists all over the internet today, as people will slightly misspell the words that they want to use, and autocorrect assuming that it means something else.

There are many other examples of show writers being able to predict the future. They range from The Thunderbirds, which premiered in 1965, to Friends, which premiered in 1994. Many shows throughout the years have made startling predictions that continue to blow viewers away like they are watching it for the very first time.

Star Trek predicting the moon landing two years later during a time-traveling episode titled “Tomorrow is Yesterday”. During the episode, they jump back in time and intercept a NASA transmission about astronauts preparing to launch from Cape Kennedy.

Parks and Recreation, another sitcom, also predicted the future. During the final season episode “Ron and Jammy”, the characters predict the Major League Baseball win for the Chicago Cubs while visiting friends in the city of Chicago. Just a year later, the Chicago Cubs broke their 108-year losing streak and brought back home the beloved Commissioner’s Trophy.

Since the invention of televised entertainment, there have been crazy predictions that still hold true to this day. The only question that you have to ask is if you are going to be the next great predictor?

The CHT Staff’s

Spring Playlist

ANIA KOVACS / REPORTER Ms. Chrismer’s Pick

Khloe’s Pick

Ania’s Pick

Addi’s Pick

Ned’s Pick

Arden’s Pick

Reid’s Pick

Maverick’s Pick

Love Story (Taylor’s Version) Taylor Swift

Touch The Sky Kanye West

Never Gonna Give You Up Rick Astley

Hand Clap Fritz and The Tantrums

Keaton’s Pick

Ultimately Khai Dreams

Mom Jeans Heyrocco

Paper Love Allie X

Good Days SZA

Among Us - Trap Remix

Leonz

Nathan’s Pick

Dune Buggy

Presidents of the USA

HYPE / 65

PHOTO ESSAY BAILEY DIPPER AND HALLE JOHNSON / PHOTO EDITORS The Orchestra students perform for 8th graders at the Freshman Orientation that took place in February.

MIA ANDREWS HALLE JOHNSON

ASHLIE GERMAN

Mack Hadi and Sean Lay, 11, escort one another on the 2021 Loyalty Court.

Lexi Goforth and Alair Robles- Smith, 12, perform the Shillelagh dance at the Loyalty Presentation.

ASHLIE GERMAN

Tiana Ferner, 11, cheers at the 2021 Loyalty Presentation with her teammates.

BAILEY DIPPER

ASHLIE GERMAN

Annie Cantrell, 12, and Alandra Hutchens, 12, pose for their Senior Superlative photo.

LAURYN DUGGINS

Central’s Kilties perform during this year’s Loyalty Presentation.

Jordan Altic, 11, Meygan Smith, 11, and Lucy Vanover, 11, perform a routine with Central’s Dance team.

REID BIGGERS

HALLE JOHNSON

Briana Borland, 12, and Theo Luan, 12, are crowned this year’s Loyalty Queen and King!

Elijah Connaway, 12, and Ford Mirowski, 12, pose for their Senior Superlative photo.

KERBORT’S BREAK

KEATON LASHLEY/SENIOR