Los Angeles Collegian

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Collegian Los Angeles

PLAY BY THE NUMBERS Loosing Conbination for Huskies Page 8

Wednesday, October 8, 2014 Volume 173 Number 2

LACC

The Voice of Los Angeles City College Since 1929

Free Workshops Help Students Tackle Problem Areas

WEATHER FORECAST WEDNESDAY

82/61

THURSDAY

79/61

FRIDAY

82/62

SATURDAY

84/63

SUNDAY

84/64

Campus workshops offer ways for students to overcome challenges they may experience in classes and in life. Students who struggle with procrastination will find support and resources, and those who have specific needs can propose new workshops to the Life Skills Center.

NEWS BRIEFS BY ANGIE RIVERA OLMEDO

Workshops Offered for Paid Internships

BY JAKE CAMARENA

Students in search of a paid internship opportunity may attend a workshop in AD 109 on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month. The workshop runs from 1-3 p.m. and no signup is required.

Ambassador to Appear at El Camino Theatre United States Ambassador-atLarge for International Religious Freedom Suzan J. Cook will speak on campus at an event open to the public on Monday, Oct. 20, from 2:30-3:30 p.m. Cook is a former policy adviser to Bill Clinton and Harvard University dean.

Check Out Chess Club Tournament in Student Union Chessboards and refreshments will be provided at the Chess Club Tournament today at the Student Union from 12:15 - 2:45 p.m. Students and faculty will compete for top honors. The winner will take home a “Chess Not Checkers” Plaque. Walk-ins are welcome from 10 a.m. until noon.

Fall Classic Hiring Spree Brings Jobs Nearly 60 employers will come to LACC to recruit new hires tomorrow during the Fall Classic Hiring Spree. Registration is required. Organizers encourage participants to dress for success and bring plenty of copies of their resumés. To register, go to www. hiringspreela.org

Hollywood Pays Tribute to City Alumnus John Williams Darth Vader and the storm troopers marched on stage to honor LACC alumnus John Williams on Tuesday Oct. 1 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The evening raised $3.5 million for the L.A. Philharmonic Educational and Outreach Program according to the L.A Times. At one point during the concert, Darth Vader and the storm troopers marched on stage to the sounds of “Star Wars.” The audience also listened to excerpts from “Schindler’s List,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” and the theme for the 1984 Olympics.

INDEX

Opinion News Arts & Entertainment Campus Life Sports Scholarships Fashion

Club Rush: It’s Your Move Page 6

2-3 4 5 6-7 8 9 10

PHOTO BY JESSICA BRECKER/Collegian

East Hollywood residents attended a vigil on the corner of Melrose and Kenmore boulevards, where 47-year-old transgender woman, Aniya Parker was shot down early Thursday morning.

‘TRANSGENDER WOMAN’ SLAIN, POLICE SEARCH FOR KILLERS BY CLINTON CAMERON For Los Angeles City Councilmember Mitch O’ Farrell’s district, the September to October transition brings with it more than record heat. A day after the shooting of a transgender woman in East Hollywood, the councilman spoke to a crowd gathered on the corner of Kenmore and Melrose Avenues for a vigil held in the victim’s honor. Police at the L.A. Rampart Division are treating the incident as a “robbery gone bad,” and see no connection between it and the fatal shooting of a Hispanic man last month. “I want to thank everyone for coming tonight and standing with us in solidarity in relation to this horrible crime against this very vulnerable woman who did not deserve to die this way,” O’Farrell said. Police have identified the victim in the early morning shooting on Oct 2, as 47-year-old Aniya Parker. A surveillance camera in the area captured the crime. L.A. City College film student Kerri Cecil identifies as transgender. She worked to organize the vigil on Thursday night in Parker’s honor. Cecil has a different idea about what

may have prompted the fatal shooting. She says it was likely a hate crime. “As a transgender woman, I believe it’s very important that we stand up and say to the world that we are not going to allow you to systematically kill us off,” Cecil said. “[The police] are so quick to make it into only about a robbery. Well, [the suspects] had her under that tree right there for a long amount of time. They had her there. They were just talking. You know what I mean? So, obviously they probably figured out she was trans during the conversation and then it quickly got violent.” Violence against people who identify as transgender is 28 percent higher than those who identify as gender normative, according to a 2010 National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs study. One year ago, two Los Angeles homicides involved transgender men. Parker’s family and area residents left flowers, lit candles and incense and left messages in chalk in support of the LGBTQ community. One day later, someone had come to relight the candles. “Thank you all for your love and support,”

read a note from Parker’s family. Among the messages written on the ground, someone wrote, “Support! Trans, gays, lesbians and bisexuals.” People living within viewing distance of the crime scene were hesitant to talk about the incident, but sympathetic toward the victim. Many expressed unease at living so close to the shooting. “We have had so many transgender women and men murdered, and here it is, right in our backyard,” Cecil said. “Many of us live in this area and it’s hard to feel safe with these people going around killing people.” Faultline, a gay bar that often hosts drag queens as their main performers is located no more than five blocks east of the intersection where Parker lost her life. Employees at the bar say they are not surprised by the crime. Some told the Collegian they have seen and experienced attacks motivated by hatred of the gay community. One worker said he was chased down while riding his bicycle home after a shift that ended at 2:30 a.m. “It’s sad because you know the thing is we SEE SHOOTERS VIDEOTAPED PAGE 4

WAITING TO

INHALE

Any currently enrolled students who find themselves in a crisis or who seek support can turn to the Life Skills Center (LSC) for assistance in a variety of situations. Workshops and personal sessions address anger management, stress relief, domestic abuse, sexual assault and finals preparation. The LSC is located within the Office of Special Services in Student Services Village, Room 100 and offers these services in one-on-one meetings and group workshop settings. Program coordinator Joe Exnowski says the LSC’s services may help students find balance in their “overwhelming lifestyles.” SEE FREE WORKSHOPS PAGE 4

Residents on Edge After Two Shooting Deaths Residents who live in the campus community are concerned and bewildered by a spike in violence in East Hollywood. BY JESSICA BRECKER A security camera at Kenwood and Melrose captured it all. The street was dark, but there was just enough streetlight to see three figures. They appeared young by their dress and male by their stature. Then, another figure walks by, tall, dark, with slim legs and with a handbag dangling from one shoulder. The group of three closes in. One of them takes the handbag. The silhouette of the slim figure runs into the street. There is a flash of metal and the video ends. What is not broadcast is the motion as the figure falls down, crawls to the curb, and collapses there. It is the latest of six homicides reported within one mile of Los Angeles City College over the past year, according to the Homicide Report Database. The most recent was the shooting death of a transgender woman identified by police as 47-year-old Aniya Parker on Oct. 2, 2014. SEE RESEIDENTS UNEASY PAGE 4

The latest smoking regulations mean most can breathe easier in the Quad and anywhere else on campus. Meanwhile, smokers must take a hike off campus. BY HELEN BEZIKYAN AND CLINTON CAMERON Regulations approved by the Los Angeles City College Council require smokers to take a hike off campus if they want to light up. The rules went into effect on June 16, and call for a smoke free environment. In 2012, L.A. City College offered a more smoker-friendly policy that allowed smoking in three areas on the 49-acre campus. One month into the fall semester, there is a noticeable change in the Quad: It is free of secondhand smoke. Non-smokers and the occasional renegade smoker now occupy the green metal benches where the missing community used to congregate. The exodus of the smoking community is drawing mixed reviews. “It is kind of sad, because I’m used to seeing that little group of people there,” said Susana Dominguez, a criminal justice major. “Maybe since the new school year started, the smokers have been busy with classes. They might show up again and continue smoking in the Quad like old times.” It is doubtful. L.A. City College joins

PHOTO BY ROCIO FLORES/Collegian

WHO’S THAT LADY?

The One Who Received the Presidential Hug PHOTOS BY CURTIS SABIR/Collegian

35 other campuses in California that were smoke free as of 2013, according to statistics on cyanonline.org. According to no-smoke.org, there are at least 1,478 smoke-free campuses in the. U.S. “Smoking is bad for the health, so I am happy there aren’t any smokers,” said Janet Avetisyan, a nursing major. “It is a nice feel-

ing to walk through the Quad without having to inhale the secondhand smoke.” Smokers now file onto the sidewalks surrounding the campus as they enjoy each other’s company. They smoke their cigarettes and watch the cars and buses go by. SEE SMOKERS LIGHT UP PAGE 4

President Barack Obama hugs Katrice Muribu, a health and fitness instructor at Valley Health Career College after she introduced him to the cheering crowd of spectators gathered at L.A. Trade Technical College for the president’s address on July 23. To hear sections of the president’s address, scan this QR code, or visit: http://youtu.be/g0zdqMZzPf8.


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