Andre’a Brown | Jordan Brown | Kyla Downey | Klara Černe | Brenda Francisco | Phillip Friedlander | Audrey Keener | Rafael Lopez | Kayjel J. Mairena | Brandon D. Moore | Brandon Quinonez | Zachary Sanchez | Isaiah Stacy-Sutton | Yasmina Tyrnakova | Jasmine Villanueva | David Willis | Vahid Zibae
Staff Photographers
Charles Barber | Katy Santa Cruz | Silke Eichholz | Fai Fong | Jordi Garcia
Sosa | Nathan Hanson | Gregory Hawthorne | Caroline Monte | Masie Najafi | Leovijildo Sandoval | Christopher Schroeder | Ana Sanchez Venegas | Lisa Whitmore | Jiale Xian
Cover: Bernie Sanders, a senator from Vermont, speaks at the Fight Oligarchy rally in front of Los Angeles City Hall at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaign across the United States during the Fight Oligarchy to speak to communities on how to fight oligarchs and corporate interests, with many stops targeting districts controlled by Republican representatives. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Male dancers Gui Rosa (left) and Rayshawn Thomas (right) lift Mayu Oishi while rehearsing a piece called “Rise” during a dress rehearsal for Synapse in the Santa Monica College Core Performance Center on Thursday, April 24, 2025 in Santa Monica, Calif. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
Staff Social Media
Victoria Cue | Priyanka Gupta | Crystal Gutierrez | Toni Guzzo, Keala Hadaya | Lindsay Kaplan | Alondra Lemus | Brianna Minor | Samiyah Williams | Ryan Ross
Faculty Advisors
Sharyn Obsatz | Journalism Advisor Gerard Burkhart | Photo Advisor Samantha Nuñez | Social Media Advisor
LETTER
Fourthtime’sthe charm?
HereApril 30, 2025
Issue 4
FROM THE
Volume 128
we are, on the fourth print edition of the Corsair. When our first production day rolled around, we were just getting to know each other, our work ethics and the process of putting these prints together. Each edition serves as a learning experience and adds to a new chapter in our story.
With this edition, I’d like to reflect on our growth. I pose the same two questions I continuously ask my editing staff after every production and publication day: What do we do well and what can we improve on?
In my eyes, I believe we are working closely as a team, even more than when we started at the beginning of the semester. We understand each other’s strengths, communicate effectively and work collaboratively on these twelvehour days. It feels like everyone has grown, not just into their individual positions, but continuing to flourish in supporting each other.
In my opinion, the creativity in our layout design has taken off as well. I will not lie, it’s been a lengthy process to gather inspiration and try to perfectly piece layouts, but our editors continue to exceed my expectations with their designs and ideas. This edition contains some of my favorite layouts of the semester, and I am proud of our staff’s dedication.
However, there is always room for improvement. From small layout changes to edits we don’t catch late at night, there’s usually a fixable tweak we miss. But, it’s okay — even as a perfectionist, I am learning to accept that not everything will work out as planned. As long as we continue to learn with each edition, I am satisfied with the team’s hard work.
I am hoping that the fourth time is really the charm — with all pun intended. I am most proud of this edition to date, as it represents Santa Monica College (SMC) while expressing our creativity. Everyone in the newsroom has aimed to highlight the stories on campus and represent the complete Corsair community.
It feels exciting to pick up where we left off before break. We’re turning the page and beginning a new chapter. We are moving forward, unremittingly honoring what came before us and working towards the future.
RT OIDTo our SMC community, I present the fourth edition for spring 2025 of the Corsair. Hopefully, this edition has its charm; and if not, we always have print edition five.
Thursday, April 10, 2025,
Santa Monica College (SMC) student dancers Pigeon Lee-Spera (L) and Rayshawn Thomas (R) rehearse a piece choreographed by faculty choreographer Karen McDonald at the SMC Core Performance Center on
for Synapse, the modern dance performance that is presented every semester in Santa Monica, Calif. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
Judith is still the Math Lab
Judith Eckstein hasn’t worked as the Math Lab coordinator since March 5, though her return as a tutor is forecast. Several students took to the Board of Trustees to argue her cruciality.
Phoebe Huss | News Editor
Acohort
of concerned students addressed the Santa Monica College (SMC) Board of Trustees at their April meeting to defend Judith Eckstein, former Math Lab tutoring coordinator, and advocate for her reinstatement. The college’s administration demoted Eckstein last month and she has not resumed working on campus since, though she is expected to return to the Lab as a Math Instructional Tutor.
Eckstein’s demotion occurred a little over a week after the school imposed a ban on all food products in the Math Lab. The Lab relocated from the Pearl Annex and opened in the school’s new Math and Science Building at the start of the spring semester. Prior to the ban, Eckstein and other math department personnel personally provided free food and meals to Lab students for years, along with consistent snack shipments from SMC’s Bodega.
“I don’t have to spend this much money of my own money to feed kids, but I do it because I think it reminds me of myself,” Eckstein said to the Corsair.
Academic Affairs dean Sasha King communicated the ban to Eckstein over email on Feb. 24. The next day, at a Facilities Planning Subcommittee meeting, Eckstein said “I hate you!” to King, and subsequently told students she felt her job was at risk.
Eve Sheldon, a Second-year student majoring in mechanical engineering and Math Lab clerk at Santa Monica College (SMC), speaks out against the removal of Judith Eckstein, the Math Lab tutoring coordinator, at the SMC Board of Trustees meeting at SMC in Santa Monica, Calif., on Tuesday, April 1, 2025.
(Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
The Santa Monica College (SMC) Board of Trustees gathers for its Board of Trustees meeting at SMC in Santa Monica, Calif., on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Representatives from Human Resources, accompanied by SMC police officers, approached Eckstein in the Lab on March 5 and installed her demotion.
Students who frequented and/or worked in the Math Lab quickly banded together to resist the no-food policy and the demotion. This group notably enveloped students both mathematically inclined and disinclined. They collected over 200 signatures on a pro-food petition, prepared statements defending Eckstein to send to senior staffers, and produced and distributed merchandise for their cause, including “Bring Back Judith” lapel pins.
At this Board meeting on April 1, three students, Mark Dorji, Samuel Shaffer and Eve Sheldon spoke to the Board during Public Comments. During this segment of all Board of Trustees meetings, any member of the public can speak to the college’s highest governing body on any issue of their choosing for three minutes; however, the opportunity is rarely utilized by students.
That night, all seven trustees were present, along with the college’s superintendent and president, Dr. Kathryn Jeffery.
Shortly after Eckstein’s demotion, Dorji authored a document spread around the Math Lab titled “In Defense of Math Tutoring Coordinator Judith Eckstein,” urging students to resist the demotion by contacting SMC’s senior administration with “thoughtful, impassioned email(s).” Dorji emphasized using personal stories and details while communicating with upper-level administrators who haven’t engaged with Eckstein themselves. He also encouraged students to use anecdotes while addressing the Board of Trustees directly at their meetings.
“I’m terrible at math,” he said to the Board. “I’m just really bad at it, you know? And I came into the Santa Monica Tutoring Center, and Judith caught me.”
“I noticed that she does this a lot. She finds students, she funnels them into the right services, and she catches people,” Dorji said. “I don’t know how many members of the community and how many students she’s done that for. But, I’ve been on this earth for some time, and there are very few people I know that are the same level of altruistic in my time as Judith Eckstein.”
Samuel Shaffer, a data science major, spoke after Dorji. “I’ve been here for, like, a long time,” said Shaffer, who studied at SMC pre-COVID and returned afterwards.
“I would also like to comment on Judith Eckstein, the Math Lab tutoring coordinator, as a student who has consistently sat in the Math Lab to study … Many students, including myself, have trouble studying at home,” said Shaffer, who also implored the Board to reopen the school library on weekends as an additional study center.
Shaffer said, “I can testify that she’s a person of high character who’s always thinking of how to best serve her students. She’s gone above and beyond her job description to aid our STEM students. I sincerely hope she remains a part of this SMC community.”
“I can testify that (Judith) is a person of high character who’s always thinking of how to best serve her students.”
- Samuel Shaffer, data science major
Finally, second-year mechanical engineering major Eve Sheldon took her three minutes before the Board. Sheldon is a Math Lab clerk who attested she found her entire sense of SMC community through the Lab, where Eckstein had reportedly worked for 16 years.
“I take my job very seriously because I really care about the Math Lab. It’s where my community is, where I’ve met all my friends, and I spend all my time there,” Sheldon said. “I can speak on endless statements from my fellow peers that have stories about how Judith has changed their lives, and helped them through their treacherous journeys through highly stressful courses.”
“Judith is the Math Lab, and I really want to emphasize that,” said Sheldon.
She said, “She’s been working there for over 16 years. She has been the main figure of that Math Lab for those 16 years. The Math Lab is something that has grown around her, and her other passion for the students at SMC who seek help with mathematics.”
Sheldon added she doesn’t believe the job could be done right by anybody else.
On April 2, Student Instructional Support Associate Dean Wendi DeMorst informed Math Lab student employees via email that Eckstein is to return to the Math Lab as an instructional tutor. DeMorst added that Donatas Bukauskas, a math instructional assistant, will serve as interim coordinator while a new one is selected, and that light snacks will now be permitted in the Lab in a designated area, as long as proper clean-up is enforced.
DeMorst and Bukauskas did not respond to the Corsair’s request for comment.
“I fully understand and respect her decision if she decides not to return to work at SMC,” Sheldon said to the Corsair after her comments. “I just hope me and my peers’ message was able to have some influence on the board and how they go about this situation.”
Mark Dorji, a student at Santa Monica College (SMC), wears a Bring Back Judith pin and speaks out against the removal of Judith Eckstein, the Math Lab tutoring coordinator at the SMC Board of Trustees meeting at SMC in Santa Monica, Calif., on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Jake Crandall \ The Corsair)
Inside Fight Oligarchy LA, largest Bernie Sanders rally of all time
OnBernie Sanders’ rounds of cross-country, no-cost speaking engagements have produced crowds more populous than the Vermont senator saw in both his bids for President; here, an up-close view on what he had to say in LA, at his largest event yet.
Phoebe Huss | News Editor
Saturday, the Los Angeles leg of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ Fight Oligarchy speaking tour made a roar downtown, filling Gloria Molina Grand Park and backing up the steps of LA City Hall. Clamoring for space, some guests sprawled upwards, climbing up trees or atop playground structures for a better view. With free admission; no banners, signs, or bulky backpacks allowed; and militantlyplaced fencing enclosing the audience, the Park was packed with 36,000 people in close, sun-baked proximity.
Backlogs of interested guests lined up well before 8 a.m. for the afternoon rally, including
David Duncan, the president of Associated Students (A.S.) at Santa Monica College (SMC). In the interim, preceding entertainers were wide-ranging, including folk stars Joan Baez and Neil Young, and congresspeople from several states; but the crowd commotion peaked at the main attraction.
Having waited five hours for the senator, cheers and hollers lasted a solid minute before the arrival of Sanders on stage. All of Grand Park lit up and echoed with “Bernie, Bernie!”, calls which the 83-year-old senator immediately took to the mic to redress: “It’s not Bernie, it’s you!”
Bernie Sanders, a senator from Vermont, speaks at the Fight Oligarchy Rally in front of Los Angeles City Hall at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Bernie Sanders and AOC travel across the country during Fight Oligarchy to speak to communities on how to fight oligarchs and corporate interests, with many stops targeting districts controlled by Republican representatives. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Though Sanders doesn’t plan to run for President again, this LA rally marked the largest audience he has ever attained, surpassing both of his Presidential bids in the past as well as a recent record-breaking night in Denver. For the very first time, Sanders addressed 36,000 people, a number confirmed by both his team and Grand Park crew, with his own classic missives about Medicare for All and abolishing wealth inequality, as well as more temporal messaging against President Donald Trump and his senior advisor Elon Musk.
Sanders’ misgivings about the Trump administration “is precisely why we are here today, to make sure that government of, by and for the people does not perish, and that we do not become a government of the billionaire class, by the billionaire class, and for the billionaire class.” He added, “Your presence here today is making Donald Trump and Elon Musk very nervous.”
Oligarchy is defined as rule by a small select group, typically
one of privilege, that uses its often material strength to supersede pre-existing authority structures, like democracy. Fighting against oligarchy, Sanders said, has spanned his career, but until now, was never quite so potent. Now, “the difference is, I’m no longer talking about how we’re moving to oligarchy. I’m talking about
mass layoffs at the Veterans Administration, preparations to dismantle the Department of Education, and cutting the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), “which, by the way, means that hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of the most desperate people in this world will die as a result.”
“I do not care whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, or independent. The people of this country do not want oligarchy. They do not want authoritarianism. And they want a government that works for all of us, not just the 1%.”
- Bernie Sanders
Sanders urged the overturning of Citizens United v Federal Election Commission (FEC), a controversial 2010 Supreme Court ruling that rescinded restrictions on corporations’ political spending, which Sanders feels has enabled corporate interests to buy elections. Musk himself contributed over $270 million to Trump’s re-election, per FEC filings made December 2024.
how we are living today in an oligarchic form of society.”
Immediate impacts of Musk’s oligarchy, Sanders said, include dysfunction with the Social Security Administration,
Though corporate interference might seem far removed from the day-to-day lives of working people, Sanders quoted former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt: “Economic rights are human rights.”
Other Trump administration actions slandered by Sanders were Trump’s alleged infringing on free speech; overseeing mass detentions and deportations of immigrants; withholding Congressional funds from public institutions; imposing tariffs “that he has no legal right to do”; attempting to impeach judges who rule out of his favor; threatening universities and law firms on the basis of ideology; and souring relations with Ukraine.
Another hot-button topic was the Israel-Hamas war. Sanders’ delay in calling for a ceasefire while simultaneously writing Senate
(Left) Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), 35, representative for New York’s 14th congressional district,
at Bernie
Fight Oligarchy
in front of Los Angeles City
Gloria
Grand
in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Bernie Sanders and AOC travel across the country during Fight Oligarchy to speak to communities on how to fight oligarchs and corporate interests, with many stops targeting districts controlled by Republican representatives.
(Jake
(Above) Merchandise at the Bernie Sanders Fight Oligarchy Rally at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif on Saturday April 12, 2025.
(Lisa Whitmore |The Corsair)
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Molina
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Crandall | The Corsair)
Sandy Reding, president of the California Nurses Association (CNA), alongside other CNA members, speaks at the Fight Oligarchy rally in front of Los Angeles City Hall at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaign across the United States during Fight Oligarchy to speak to communities on how to fight oligarchs and corporate interests, with many stops targeting districts controlled by Republican representatives. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
resolutions on blocking Israeli military aid have drawn mixed responses from the Left since October 2023. Peace and Freedom LA, an offshoot of the Peace and Freedom political party, planned a small demonstration outside the rally to protest what they called Sanders and co-headliner Rep. Alexandria “AOC” OcasioCortez’s “liberal Zionism.”
At the podium, Sanders attempted to provide a clarified position on the subject: “Israel has the right to defend itself against terrorism, but it does not have a right to go to war against the entire Palestinian people… to kill 50,000 people, injure over 100,000 and destroy the entire infrastructure.”
“And as bad as that is, Trump wants to expel the 2.2 million people in Gaza in order to create a playground for his billionaire friends,” Sanders added, referring to Trump’s proposal to “take ownership” of the Gaza strip. “That is beyond insane, and we will never, never let that happen.”
Pramila Jayapal, 59, United States representative for Washington’s 7th congressional district, speaks at the Fight Oligarchy rally at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif on Saturday April 12, 2025. Jayapal is the first Indian-American woman to serve in the United States House of Representatives.
(Lisa Whitmore | The Corsair)
Sanders also reasoned wage theft as why Republicanism entices some working people.
“You want to know why people all over this country are angry and in fact some of them end up voting for Trump?” he said. “Today, if you can believe it, despite a huge increase in worker productivity, real inflation accounted-for wages are lower today than they were 52 years ago. So workers are producing more and more, but all of what they produce, all of the benefits are going to the top 1%.”
At the same time, he said, the wealthy people - the oligarchs - have seen their bank balances skyrocket, with over $75 trillion transferred from the bottom economic 90% to the top 1% since 1975. His labor demands, he said, include raising the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to “a living wage”; passing the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act) to facilitate forming unions; and stopping tax breaks for billionaires.
In addition, he proposed expanding Social Security; allocating funds for low-income and affordable housing; making public colleges and trade schools tuition-free; and, more vaguely, “transform(ing) our energy system and lead(ing) the world into a sustainable energy and energy-efficient country.”
Establishing single-payer healthcare, a hallmark of Sanders’ former campaigns, was once again addressed. “We must do what every other major country on Earth does. It ain’t radical. Healthcare is a human right,” he said.
Sanders is an independent who primarily votes with Democrats, but made clear their party isn’t immune from criticism: “It’s not just Musk and Republicans, it’s the Democratic Party as well… too many Democrats are listening to them.”
But when these programs are implemented, he said, to conclude his speech, “I do not
care whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, or independent. The people of this country do not want oligarchy. They do not want authoritarianism. And they want a government that works for all of us, not just the 1%. Thank you all very much.”
Accompanying the speech from Sanders was Rep. Alexandria “AOC” Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who joined Sanders on the Fight Oligarchy trail in Las Vegas and frequently shared the stage with him since.
“We are here together because an extreme concentration of power, greed and corruption is taking over this country like never before - oligarchy in America. And we must acknowledge the terrifying moment that we are in right now,” said Ocasio-Cortez. She listed anti-LGBTQ targeting, unlawful detention and disappearing of immigrants, and internal market manipulation via tariffs as dire consequences of the Trump administration.
“Big money is how we got Donald Trump,” she said, but aside from him, Congress is also tarnished by oligarchy, in the forms of dark money, lobbying and corruption. As examples, Ocasio-Cortez specifically named Californian congresspeople Daivd Valadeo, Young Kim and Ken Calvert, describing their House votes affirming cuts on Medicaid and Social Security as bought votes: “They are here to serve themselves and the billionaires who paid them - oligarchy.”
“Los Angeles, I’ve made my choice,” she said, denouncing the process for herself. “We must fight the oligarchy that has created this nightmare. And that is why I have never taken money from lobbyists or corporations… You know what, Los Angeles? Because of your support, because of you all showing up, because I don’t have to take a dime in corporate money, you allow me to say no.”
Across both his campaigns for the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, crowd sizes peaked for Sanders at about 28,000 in Portland, Oregon, on Aug. 9, 2015. And on March 21, Sanders’ Fight Oligarchy crowd in Denver
numbered 34,000 attendees, a record broken shortly thereafter.
Denver and LA were two anomalous stops of Sanders’ tour, initiated in February 2025, that mainly tackles cities in Republican districts, with the hopes of turning them Democrat in time for 2026 House elections. Come voting season, OcasioCortez advocated for replacing Valadeo, Kim and Calvert with “brawling Democrats who will stand for the working people of California.” But since Denver and LA are unmistakably blue, the material objective of Sanders’ speaking engagements were less defined.
Onstage, Sanders said the stop in LA was an “obvious” choice:
“Why are we in LA today? The answer is obvious: we are living in a moment of extraordinary danger. And how we respond to this moment will not only impact our lives but will impact the lives of our kids and future generations and in terms of the climate, it will depend, we can depend on whether or not the planet Earth survives. That’s why we’re here today.”
And because “too many Democrats” are capitulating to Republicans, Sanders said, relying on Democrats holding legislative office is not sufficient in combating the danger.
The overarching goal, stated in the rally’s directive and repeated ad infinitum by most all speakers, was building opposition to oligarchy and corporatocracy from the ground up. The senator’s website advertises “real discussions” at these rallies about “how we move forward to take on the Oligarchs.”
Some speakers offered advice on how rallygoers could contribute to this endeavour. Several of them encouraged the audience to join activist organizations, register with labor unions, and push legislative representatives on individual matters by contacting them directly. Others advised the massive crowd, more ambiguously, to “resist.”
“Beyond elections, LA, our goal is to build community: block associations, volunteer groups, church organizations, PTAs, activist organizations, because community is the most powerful
building block we have to defeat authoritarianism and root out corruption,” said Ocasio-Cortez.
Interspersed with music performances, speakers touched on LA-specific issues, including wildfire relief efforts; physical and mental tolls on Hollywood production assistants; allotting city money to police, jails and militia; and the recent five-day hunger strike by mental health workers at Kaiser Permanente.
Another bit of recent LA news was addressed by special guests from the United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) labor union. Georgia Flowers-Lee, special education teacher at a Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) elementary school and vice president of the National Education Association (NEA) branch of UTLA, shared the stage with Julie Van Winkle, eighth-grade math teacher and vice president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) branch of UTLA, to speak on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officers who engaged in federal immigration enforcement in two LAUSD elementary schools last week.
Neil Young performs at the Fight Oligarchy rally in front of Los Angeles City Hall at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaign across the United States during Fight Oligarchy to speak to communities on how to fight oligarchs and corporate interests, with many stops targeting districts controlled by Republican representatives.
(Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
These federal officers were the first to attempt enforcement in public schools in Los Angeles since Trump greenlighted immigration agencies to enter “sensitive areas” like schools and hospitals in January. LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho confirmed the officers were seeking students.
“The uncertainty is destabilizing for our communities,” said Flowers-Lee. However, in both cases, the officers were denied entry by school administrators.
“We’re learning from our students. We cannot passively
group performed both individual sets and songs in duo and trio, including Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” to intro OcasioCortez.
Sanders explained Berniechella: “It’s not just to entertain you, it’s more than that. We’re going to make our revolution with joy. We’re going to sing and dance our way to victory against hatred and divisiveness.”
“I think it’s cool to see more mainstream artists also joining,” said Stephen Baker, a 23-year-old who has supported Sanders since high school.
employees; and more Kaiser Permanente workers of various affiliations bearing “Kaiser: End the Inequity” T-shirts.
“Today we pledge with our brothers and sisters in the trade union movement, we are gonna grow the movement! Millions of workers want to join unions because they know they’re gonna get better wages, better benefits, better working conditions. Let’s do it!” said Sanders.
Though the speaking was done by union leaders or representatives, each speaker was joined by large swaths of their fellow union members onstage.
“I really appreciate them coming out here to talk to us,” he said.
The audiences, stripped of banner-waving abilities, had to express their individual tastes in other ways. Some guests repped political bands, including Bad Brains; blue energy dome hats from new wave band Devo; and a visual monopoly of Rage Against the Machine T-shirts with Sanders’ photograph, which were peddled outside the rally. Close quarters at the park were shared by wheelchair users, full-blown goths, and, notably, people with Kamala Harris paraphernalia.
“We are here today, to make sure that government of, by and for the people does not perish, and that we do not become a government of the billionaire class, by the billionaire class, and for the billionaire class.” - Bernie Sanders
comply with the Trump agenda. As a teacher, I recognize what Trump and his oligarch buddies are. They’re bullies,” said FlowersLee. “They target the most marginalized in our community.”
Van Winkle chimed in, “We hate these bullies. We hate these oligarchs that are trying to privatize our public schools and public institutions. How many of you hate these billionaire privatizers?” A cheer of affirmation deafened. “I’m glad we all agree on that. But it’s not enough to just hate them. More important than hating our adversaries is loving our communities and our city.”
The musical lineup, likened by headliner Maggie Rogers as “Berniechella,” included the Raise Gospel Choir, the Red Pairs, Jeff Rosenstock, Indigo de Souza, and the Dirty Projectors, as well as headlining acts Baez, Young and Rogers. The latter
But also, he said, “I think it’s important that we’re out here seeing Democrats who are actually doing something about what’s going on.”
Unions who addressed the crowd onstage included UNITEHERE Local 11, hospitality workers; LiUNA! Local 724, film and television workers from Hollywood; ILWU Local 13, longshoremen; California Nurses Association (CNA); National Nurses United (NNU); National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW), Kaiser Permanente nurses; UTLA; United Auto Workers Region 6; California Labor Federation of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFLCIO); and Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Other significant union cadres in the audience were the University Professional and Technical Employees (UPTE), representing University of California
CNA president Sandy Reding and her associates paused their speaking engagement to step into the audience and administer first aid to someone who collapsed from heat exhaustion, one of several instances of heat-related medical emergencies on that sweltering day.
Duncan, nearing completion of a full year in office as AS president, was attending the rally with friends, and noticed a significant prevalence of Corsairs: “I keep running into people… there’s a whole bunch of SMC students.”
“I really appreciate what Bernie and AOC are doing, especially right now, when so many people in my community at SMC are under threat from the current administration, and supporting more communities is important,” Duncan said. “Immigrant community, LGBT community, just everyone.”
In the past two months, Fight Oligarchy rallies have drawn national attention for bringing together left-wingers of different faiths, uniting diehard Bernie bros with more mainstream Democrat supporters, even those who would have contended with Sanders’ progressive viewpoints in previous years.
“As a Bernie supporter, especially, when I was younger, I always had a lot of beef with Hillary supporters,” said Baker. “So it’s nice to see them come on to the right side of history and recognize that Democrats need to actually fight, they can’t just sit back and take it.”
Fight Oligarchy travelled to Idaho for a rally in Nampa on April 14 and returned to California for rallies on April 15 in Folsom and in Bakersfield. The final stop, so far, is scheduled for April 16 in Missoula, Montana.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), 35, United States representative for New York’s 14th congressional district, welcomes Bernie Sanders, a senator from Vermont, to the stage during the Fight Oligarchy rally in front of Los Angeles City Hall at Gloria Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Bernie Sanders and AOC travel across the country during Fight Oligarchy to speak to communities on how to fight oligarchs and corporate interests, with many stops targeting districts controlled by Republican representatives. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Brawls break out at Republican rally arranged by Jan. 6 rioter, resulting in arrest
There was no shortage of scuffling at the conservative #WalkAway march and rally in Beverly Hills on Sunday. The march’s founder was one of 1,500 recently pardoned by Trump for storming the Capitol.
#WalkAway Rally attendees hold up #WalkAway signs in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. The #WalkAway Rally called on Democrats to leave their political party and consider joining Republicans. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Phoebe Huss | News Editor
Decked in a kilt and wielding cardboard signs against Trump, George Slivka short-circuited tight security at the “American Restoration Tour” in Beverly Hills Garden Park, despite their concentrated efforts to remove all counterprotesters. The 26-year-old anti-Trumper seemed to be peaceably having it out with a few MAGATs, until a red-cap wearer repeated an infamous quote from President Donald Trump: “Grab ‘em by the pussy.”
Slivka immediately snarled and bellowed: “No!”
“Treat women with respect!” he screamed.
They began to shove at one another while Restoration Tourers yelled “Cuff him! Cuff him!” and “Enjoy the gulag, commie!” Eventually, security pinned Slivka to the ground. Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD) officers on standby handcuffed him, detained him in Vehicle 073 and made an arrest for alleged assault with a deadly weapon.
Though this marked the climax of involvement from police and security, the Republican-themed rally in the park bearing the emblematic Beverly Hills sign followed a tight sqaureup between left and right-wing protesters in West Hollywood, at which the ideologues seldom hesitated to get handsy.
The rally’s magistrates were no strangers to law enforcement. The “American Restoration Tour,” which made its Los Angeles stop on April 27, is a product of the #WalkAway campaign, a political action committee founded by Brandon Straka, a gay man, hairstylist and conservative social media personality from New York City. The group is dedicated to excommunicating as many people as possible from the Democratic Party, and ideally, redirecting them to the Right.
“Our message is simply that we have the ability now to restore America, restore freedom, restore our values, restore our borders. It’s time to restore American greatness,” said Straka. “That’s what this is all about.”
Straka spoke at the rally alongside Matt Gaetz, former representative for Florida’s first congressional district; and Shiva Bagheri, local conservative celebrity who threw weekly MAGA parties in that very park in 2020 to protest pandemic policies.
“We just love Donald Trump. We love Elon Musk,” Bagheri said to the crowd. “I’m so thankful for Brandon and how many people he’s gotten to walk away from that nihilistic, horrible political party.”
“They are the movement that allowed this great state to burn,” said Gaetz, wearing a baseball cap that read “Be Offended.” “We are not just walking away from the Left; we are walking towards something. We are building a vision and a country.”
“You know what?” he yelled to the ring of counterprotesters, stationed about 20 feet away. “If you come to our side, we will welcome you with a patriotic embrace.”
Bagheri was charged repeatedly in 2020 and 2021 for holding unpermitted gatherings in the city. A House Ethics Committee report released last December, one month after Gaetz resigned from Congress, displayed evidence of Gaetz committing statuatory rape. And Straka was convicted of misdemeanor disorderly conduct in 2022 as a result of his participation in the attacks on the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“They are the movement that allowed this great state to burn.” - Matt Gaetz
Matt Gaetz, former House Republican representative for Florida’s first congressional district, speaks at the #WalkAway Rally in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Brandon Straka, a convicted and pardoned Jan. 6 rioter and founder of the #WalkAway PAC speaks at the #WalkAway Rally in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
On that January afternoon, as U.S. Congress was in session officializing electoral votes that confirmed President Joe Biden’s office, an estimated 2,000 people, including members of the Proud Boys, gained entry to the Capitol by smashing windows, and proceeded to loot and vandalize the interior until they were cleared out within four hours.
The idea had been popularized and spread through online group chats.
“Obviously, we knew immediately the day after the election, it was stolen… We were very angry, but we didn’t really have a plan or anything. We started seeing the Stop the Steal process coming up in DC with Antifa and Proud Boys fighting each other. So we wanted to get
involved,” said Edward Badalian, Jan. 6 rioter who attended “American Restoration.”
Among the estimated 140 police officers who were criminally assaulted by the attackers, two committed suicide and one perished from strokes after hospitalization. The lives of three rioters were taken as well — one shot by police, one due to heart attack, and one stampeded to death.
The House of Representatives levied blame onto Trump himself, who had labored to spread the claim that the 2020 presidential elections were fraudulent, even declaring himself the winner on the next day. A week after the Capitol attacks, Trump was impeached for incitement of insurrection, and subsequently
acquitted by the Senate.
In the years that followed, the largest criminal probe in U.S. history ensued, and around 1,500 people were charged with crimes related to the riots, 85% of them convicted. And on the date of Trump’s second inauguration, he pardoned or granted clemency to every single defendant, a move that the Associated Press recorded was opposed by 6 in 10 Americans.
This included Straka as well as Badalian, who spent a year in prison on counts of conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, and remaining in a restricted building.
But the rally in Beverly Hills Garden Park, said Badalian, was finally a step in the right direc-
tion for the city.
“I think I’m still kind of in the same mentality that I was the day after, which was like, damn, we need, like, a thousand more of these,” he said. “Because it’s just one big thing. And then it gave the other side one event to focus on to make a big deal out of.”
“I think we need a sustained effort of protesting, like this (one), and it needs to grow, and not shrink,” he said. “I don’t feel like we can rest now that we’ve won. We have to keep going.”
Unlike Badalian, Straka shirked from addressing Jan. 6.
“I’m not going to waste more than 30 seconds
talking about that stupid day that happened four years ago that completely changed the outcome of my life, okay?” he said. “But if there’s any message or any lesson I want you to walk away with, from what happened to me … it’s that you … stand up, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get the hell back on the battlefield.”
The #WalkAway movement, founded by Straka on social media in 2018, encourages Democrats to depart the Left and consider other political opportunities.
“The main issue is to have people understand that they’re not alone,” said Roxanne Hoge, chairman of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County (LAGOP). “Everything in every
elected office, everything in L.A. is run mostly by Democrats. And so it’s just a chance for people to get together and go, oh, wait a second, there’s options.”
“I’m an immigrant from Jamaica. I know that when I came here, I was like, well, it feels like there’s only one option for me. Right?” said Hoge. “No. The American political system is open to everybody. Everybody can choose what side to be on. And so his (Straka’s) point is, don’t think that there’s only one side.”
Bagheri reiterated her sentiment as a fellow immigrant.
“I’m an immigrant from Iran. And we fled Iran because of what radical Islam did to Iran.
Far left:
A Trump supporter is grabbed by a counter protester during the #WalkAway rally in West Hollywood, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Top right:
A Trump supporter holds up an American flag to a counter protester yelling at him through a megaphone during the #WalkAway rally, as the rally attendees march from West Hollywood to Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Bottom right: Chloe Frances Dykstra, an actress, is escorted away from the #WalkAway rally for bringing a sign that said, “BJ s for Tuition Venmo Me Daddy,” to confront Matt Gaetz with, in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
It destroyed it,” she said. “And we came to this country and you’ll never see me waving an Iranian flag. You see me waving an American flag, right? An American flag. Because I am an American.”
Straka named the two key principles he wants conservatives to embrace in order to reinstate and militarize their movement.
“Number one, every year is an election year. There is no such thing as an off-year anymore… The other thing, every election is a national election,” he said.
Under these guidelines, he said, “we can turn California red. And I mean that.”
Earlier that day, the #WalkAway people were joined by a left-wing counterprotesting coalition in West Hollywood’s so-called Rainbow District, packed onto a tiny streetcorner as they bickered and leered. Some signs read, “#WalkAway from the Left.” Another read, “Matt Gaetz, #WalkAway from minors.”
When Straka arrived in WeHo, he was immediately mobbed by fans seeking photos as well as left-wingers looking to accost and douse him in rainbow and transgender flags. Straka, somewhat of a face for gay conservatism, once said, “I’m gay, and Pride Month is torture.”
The choice of a conservative alliance to set up shop in a gay neighborhood, said 19-year WeHo resident Michelle R., was intentionally malicious.
“That’s just pure hate and hatred towards the LGBTQIA community,” said Michelle, who withheld her surname due to fear of doxxing. “It’s pure hatred. That’s all it is. That’s why they chose West Hollywood.”
If there was bitterness from that side, as she noted, it was certainly reciprocated. Hundreds of left-wingers from Protect Trans Youth LA as well as unaffiliated individuals were assembled and militantly vigilant in dispelling the #WalkAway crowd from their stirs. One protester grabbed a Trump supporter’s neck; others shoved at each other and knocked poster boards from their hands.
And whenever a modicum of distance between the ideological factions was achieved, an infernal cacophony rang out in arrhythmia. Trumpers yelled “USA! USA! USA!” while the Left espoused in a classic chant: “No Trump! No KKK! No fascist USA!”
Under these conditions, said Michelle, “nobody’s listening to each other.”
“There’s no conversation between either side, to be honest. I think it’s a little ugly on both sides,” she said. “But I think it’s also warranted for some people who have been targeted by the right.”
This was especially important to defend in WeHo, she said, “a progressive city that’s largely out and proud in a variety of ways. So I came to stand up to them.”
Anticipating controversy, the city of West Hollywood released a preemptive statement on April 24, upholding the #WalkAway group’s constitutional right to assemble while “denouncing words and actions that may seek to devalue, divide, or diminish us.”
The skirmishes in WeHo were the first of their kind for Jessica Bosse, a Santa Monica College (SMC) student studying microbiology. Usually, she said, she witnessed protesters and counterprotesters acting separately, in their own orbits.
“I wasn’t expecting them to be intermingling,” Bosse said.
Eventually, the quadrants migrated to the sidewalk, setting out for Beverly Hills. The two groups marched in the same direction, separated by speed, until the cadres reached the WeHo city limits and the Trumpers broke off, ambling for the park.
“Bye bye, Nazis!” the liberal protesters called as they slipped out of view.
But along the isolated route through the park,
Alex Davis, a self-proclaimed counterprotester, found himself finally able to engage some Trump supporters in earnest dialogue.
“I was walking and talking with a number of the pro-Trump protesters,” said Davis. “We talked through tariffs and how, you know, they’re not actually going to re-industrialize America, because we’re tariffing all the things that companies need to buy in order to begin manufacturing things again. We talked about Kilmar Abrego Garcia.”
“I was trying to sort of break through a little and see, like, where are they coming from,” he said. “They are contingent supporters… And their support is based on restoring American manufacturing, a thing that Trump can’t do.”
“When it becomes clear that Trump can’t actually deliver the things that he’s promised, I think some of those people will peel off, and as you can see from my big, beautiful chart, it’s already happening,” Davis said.
Davis wielded a poster board charting Trump’s approval ratings over his second term, bearing a cartoonishly sloped decline.
His buddying up with a Trump supporter allowed him through #WalkAway’s metal barricades and into the rally at first. Soon, though, he was asked to leave, and relegated to the park’s perimeters, along with a steady bandwagon of about a dozen remaining liberal counterprotesters. This group continued to make comments and shout as the rally’s speaking engagements ensued.
Roxanne Hoge, chairman of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County, speaks at the #WalkAway rally in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
“Obviously, we knew immediately the day after the election, it was stolen... We were very angry.”
- Edward Badalian, pardoned Jan. 6 rioter
George Slivka, a 26-year-old, is handcuffed in the process of being arrested by the Beverly Hills police department for assault with a deadly weapon at the #WalkAway rally in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
Jessica Bosse, a Santa Monica College student majoring in microbiology, counter protests at the #WalkAway rally in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025.
(Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
The legion of left-wing resistance consisted of multiple students from SMC, including Bosse. Bosse had resolved to get involved in city politics, but didn’t know where to start until a classmate suggested she attend the Hands Off! rally earlier this month.
The Democratic Party, she said, is not a viable alternative to protest. She agreed with the #WalkAway movement as much.
“When people are feeling bad, they need somewhere to go to. The Democratic Party, largely, has not been very good at that,” she said.
The solution, she said, lies not in Trumpism, but in left-wing populism. “As far as right-wing populism versus left-wing populism, right-wing populism ultimately benefits the owning class,” Bosse said.
Hence, her sign: a black-and-white image of the right-wing populism poster child, Donald Trump, sharing a cheeky glance with Jeffrey Epstein. The words: “This Your Guy?”
Bosse still felt a unique kind of solidarity with the right-wing rallyers, inspiring her to stay, hoist her signs and debate passerby conservatives for the event’s duration.
“I’d say, fundamentally, I agree with them on a lot of things, but they just ended up landing on a different side. You know, they saw things that were happening with corporate ownership of media or just the effects of late-stage capitalism, and the people who got to them first happened to be Republicans,” Bosse said.
Young adults in particular should note the effects of Democratic policy, Hoge said. To college students, “look around and see who screwed you out of the normal high school and college experience. And it was local politicians, right?… In L.A. County, they are overwhelmingly on the Left, and they overwhelmingly screwed everyone out of life.”
“Fundamentally,
I agree with them on a lot of things, but they just ended up landing on a different side. You know, they saw things that were happening with corporate ownership of media or just the effects of
late-stage capitalism, and the people who got to them first happened to be Republicans.”
- Jessica Bosse, SMC student
“I’m not going stupid day that
to waste more than 30 seconds talking about that happened four years ago that completely changed the outcome of my life, okay?”
-Brandon Straka, pardoned Jan. 6 rioter
Trump supporters gather on Santa Monica Blvd. in West Hollywood, Calif., on Sunday, April 27, 2025, for the #WalkAway r ally. (Jake Crandall | The Corsair)
TheMetro E-Line first opened in 2012, connecting downtown Los Angeles to Culver City. Then in 2016, it extended to Santa Monica. It quickly became the primary means of transportation for Angelenos, especially for those commuting without a car.
The E-Line has several stops in Santa Monica and around Santa Monica College (SMC) campuses. The 26th Street/Bergamot station is near SMC’s Center for Media & Design (CMD) satellite campus. One stop later is the 17th St/SMC station, closest to SMC’s main campus.
However, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the number of passengers taking the E-Line plummeted to an all-time low, with just an estimated 8.3 million riders in 2020. Metro hadn’t seen these types of numbers since 2015.
Since then, numbers have rebounded, but Metro hasn’t quite reached the number of riders seen from 2017 to 2019, with 2019 having the highest number of riders at an estimated 19.4 million passengers, and it was estimated that 15.8 million riders used the E-Line in 2024. But with that many riders, how safe is it?
Does the
According to CBS News, between May 2023 and April 2024, there was a 33% increase in violent crimes across the system. There were also 142 reports of weapon crimes and 639 reports of narcotic crimes.
Many SMC students, including myself, have seen incidents that cause safety concerns firsthand. Roxana Montoya, a student majoring in business, takes the E-Line daily to school, with the line being her only mode of transportation. Montoya said she has seen quite a few things that made her feel unsafe about taking the Metro.
“There was actually a guy with like a whole knife in his hand,” Montoya said. “So I carry pepper spray with me now, just in case. It happens a lot with people that have, like, weapons or something like that. So I just stick to the doors now, just in case. There’s always something happening.”
Alexander Espinoza, a student majoring in graphic design, has also witnessed an incident.
“I was going to the beach to hang out with one of my friends, and there was a fight that broke out,” Espinoza said. “It ended up going outside the train because
Jasmine Villanueva | Staff Writer
Illustralion by Jenna Tibby
the Metro E -Line need more security?
E-Line has not only been seeing an increase in the number of passengers, but also an increase in the crime rate.
(security) had to stop the fight and make sure everyone was safe. I was stuck at that stop for like 20 minutes.”
These incidents also affect everyday riders. Ryan Holman, 34, is a resident of Los Angeles. Holman has been taking the E-Line for around four years and takes it twice a day to work.
When he sees E-Line passengers behaving erratically, Holman said, “Usually they’re whatever and don’t really bother anybody.” But when asked if he had ever seen an incident that concerned him about getting on the E-Line, Holman recounted two incidents.
“Just last week, there was a homeless dude on there, who … had a puppy, and it was really afraid of him or something, and it did not follow him off the E-Line when he got off,” Holman said. “It almost got stuck in the doors. He comes back all pissed off after this girl was yelling at him that the dog was still behind and he like, kicked the dog in the face, and other passengers stood up and they were about to, like, beat the crap out of him, and rightfully so. And then he was flipping out at the people, pretending like he didn’t do anything wrong, which is insane.”
Holman also recounted another alarming moment: “I’ve also seen someone on there with a gun, who flashed it for a bit,” Holman said. “They sort of robbed someone for their weed. The gun one was probably the scariest one I’ve seen.”
I’ve also experienced and seen numerous scary incidents, as I have taken the E-Line since my sophomore year of high school. The incidents range from a man revealing he was injecting himself with an unknown substance by constantly dropping the needle and filling the air with the smell, to a man pulling out a knife on a group of teenage boys and even to human feces.
Metro has attempted to reduce the crime rates within the system by increasing the number of police officers and personnel. But it has been proven not to be that effective, as this effort is more evident in specific stations than others.
“You hardly see cops at stops,” Montaya said. “If you do need personnel, they take forever to arrive.”
In contrast, Holman described a noticeable increase in police and Metro personnel presence. “(I see them) all the time,” Holman said.
“Much more now, within the past two years or so. That was a good, hopeful change in the staffing.”
Through a personal observation, I saw there was always more police presence at stations in wealthier areas, such as Santa Monica. Meanwhile, stations that were in lower-income areas had little to no security. I also noticed that the stations that lack sufficient security are often the ones that have the most severe crimes on or around them.
I get off at Western, one of these areas where this observation is most noticeable. I often witness something going wrong – the station is frequently trashed and filled with loiterers, but more severe incidents are not uncommon.
In the early morning of April 21, a man was pursued and arrested for wielding a gun. Later that same day, a shooting occurred in which there were two victims. The suspect was reported to be a teenager who fled on foot.
Metro personnel, overall, are hardly seen, often getting on at one station and off at the next. The stations in lower-income areas are less well taken care of and maintained. The homeless population and presence around these
stations are higher than at most stations in wealthier areas as well.
To continue to try to counteract the rise in crime, Metro announced in June 2024 that they would create its police force. The question remains: Does the E-Line have enough security? Montoya suggested a solution that she believes would be the best option.
“(Metro) can hire more security inside the trains,” said Montoya. “Instead of having to have cops come to stops, because usually they’re not there on time.”
Increasing security or law enforcement on trains and stations could help deter crime and make riders feel safer. However, these efforts have to be made more in the areas that are not getting the same attention and care as the stations and places that are more privileged.
Metro is genuinely concerned for all its passengers’ safety, as the Metro Board has a monthly public meeting regarding customer safety and experience. They vote and discuss matters that would help riders, but their efforts must succeed for anything to change over time truly.
Experiences on Weekend One of Coachella, what changed and how to prepare for the festival.
Andrea Castillo | Social Media Editor
Graphic by Katie Easterson
The Coachella Music and Arts Festival is a very anticipated music event that started back in October 1999 in Indio, California at the Empire Polo Club. It first started as a two-day event, where it brought out many different artists from different genres, soon merging into a three-day event in April of 2007 as it grew in popularity. While it began to popularize back in 2004, the popularity of the festival skyrocketed back in 2012 as the era of Tumblr and YouTube began, which caused the festival to add a second weekend due to popular demand and high attendance.
Over the years, Coachella has become a cultural phenomenon that has brought together many people from different places around the world for two weekends. At the festival, you’re able to meet new people, enjoy or discover new music, appreciate the art that is displayed throughout the festival, take pictures and use it as a way to show your style and fashion.
As the years have passed, Coachella evolved into the event it is today. They began adding sponsorships, changing up the music to attract a bigger audience and even inviting social media influencers to promote the festival. While this may have brought more revenue into Coachella, many people who have attended the festival in prior years have voiced their annoyance about the differences of the festival and the obvious presence of influencers throughout the years.
Over the course of a few years, many people on TikTok have separated both weekends into different categories. A user by the name of Jessica Golich stated back in 2023, “Weekend One are for influencers and those who love to party and aren’t really there for the music. Weekend Two are for those who actually love the music and go for the experience.” Even with these changes, it didn’t stop people from continuing to attend.
I first attended Coachella for the first time back in April 2024, two years after their hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I have always been one to have a deep love for live music and live shows, so being able to attend the festival that has been marketed to me all of my teenage years was very exciting. It would be my first time attending a music festival that didn’t revolve solely around EDM, so I was ready for the new experience.
Safe to say, I had such an amazing experience that I was very excited to attend the festival once again when the lineup and tickets were announced back in December. While I was happy that the tickets were being sold much earlier, I was hit with the reality that they were being put out in advance due to low ticket sales for the 2024 weekends.
In an article written by Billboard, Dave Brooks said, “Sources close to the festival say the dip in sales, down 14%-17% over last year (2023), is not as bad as many had predicted. The first weekend of the festival has historically sold out of tickets in a few hours, but this year (2024), it took nearly a month for tickets to the first weekend to sell out.” As for 2025 weekends, tickets were oversold due to not only the November ticket sales, but also the advanced sale that happened once weekend two was over, and it was very noticeable at the event.
From the time slots being changed last minute, to the festival getting a new security team, many were not too thrilled and were scared of how the festival would run due to these changes. Last year, everyone was let in pretty smoothly, the attendees and those who were camping on the festival grounds. Parking and ride-share/drop-off had their designated entrance, as well as the festival entrance for GA, VIP and artist passes.
This year, since Coachella had moved from security companies, people were left in traffic outside the festival for hours on end. Many streets were blocked off and attendees near the festival grounds were left stuck for hours in the traffic, causing them to miss many artist sets. Some were going as far as getting out of their rides in the middle of the street and walking blocks to be able to make it to their favorite artist’s set on time.
Security located outside of the festival were leading people to different directions, sending them to different lanes and preventing people from entering into the grounds. Security was an issue for not only the attendees, but for the ones that were camping at Coachella as well.
On Day Zero of Coachella, campers had lined up at the designated entrance as early as 3 a.m., following the protocols from last year as they were let in around 6 a.m. so security could let everyone in at a timely manner. Campers were not let into the festival grounds until around 9 a.m. and even then, many people were stuck in their cars for more than 12 hours. Campers took their frustrations to TikTok, one user by the name of Liss stating, “We’ve been stuck in line for nearly 10 hours … It’s 100 degrees outside, people’s cars are overheating, they’re running out of gas, there are no bathrooms anywhere for us to use.” Liss ends her video by saying how the whole experience has felt very dehumanizing.
Even after being let in at 9 a.m., many campers expressed how security would take over an hour to check their cars, throw their items out and act very unprofessional and aggressive. Many cars were getting hit by other cars, their camping spots were being stolen and fights were breaking out as well. This became a sign to many people who would be attending the next day how the festival would be going for the first weekend.
Illustralion by Jenna Tibby
Illustralion by Jenna Tibby
Illustralion by Jenna Tibby
Illustralion by Jenna Tibby
On the first day of weekend one, drop-off/rideshare was located near the camping grounds and parking was located about three blocks away. As for the designated festival entrances, Coachella ended up combining both the VIP and artist entrance, while the GA entrance remained the same. On the second and third day, the drop-off and parking was changed back to the original location, which caused many people to be caught in traffic for longer periods of time as they were trying to get to the original location on time.
Because of this issue, many acts had to be pushed back from 30 minutes to an hour at the last minute. This caused issues for the artists as they were experiencing microphone issues, performances being cut off, the microphones not being synched up with the livestream and glitches happening to the screens during their sets.
A majority of these issues were resolved during weekend two, which made many festival goers relieved that the second weekend had a better experience, while others were disappointed that Coachella didn’t resolve them
quickly for weekend one. Many people expressed on Twitter and TikTok how the first weekend must have been the worst one they’ve experienced in years, some asking how this will affect the festival in the coming years. While it might not have been my favorite weekend, along with many others, being able to experience it once again kept me in high spirits as I was still able to see my favorite artists in the same place.
As someone who has been to many festivals and concerts, staying safe has always been a top priority for me, so making sure that I am prepared has helped me be able to experience festivals and concerts a lot smoothly. For example, I tell everyone who is attending a festival for the first time to expect changes and to always watch your surroundings. When people don’t notice the changes in set times, they tend to run quickly to the next set, which can cause someone to get injured in the process.
Since Coachella didn’t give us much time to adjust in the first weekend, a lot of people ended up getting injured since they were
getting shoved by people running in between sets. Thankfully, nowadays festivals have an app where they can tell you what time each artist will be on and on which stage, so I highly recommend having the festival app just in case changes are being made last minute so you don’t end up at the medical tent.
As far as safety goes, always take care of your health. Indio is notorious for having very dusty winds and heat waves around April, so carrying any type of mask or scarf, as well as sunglasses, can help prevent dust from entering your nose or getting in your eyes. For the heat waves, bringing sunscreen and an umbrella can also help prevent getting sunburnt. These items will help when entering the festival since you are walking on a dirt path and the heat will be mixed in with the wind as well. Because you will be walking a lot, getting soles for your shoes or bringing comfortable shoes can help prevent blisters from forming at the end of the night.
Like many concerts and festivals, Coachella tends to raise the prices on their drinks and their food. If
you’re someone who doesn’t like spending so much money on food or drinks, I recommend getting a collapsible water bottle or a water backpack and bringing some snacks. While I do understand that this can be common knowledge, especially for someone who has attended these types of events before, people like to learn from other experiences and learn more about the festival life.
Although Coachella has changed throughout the years and moved away from what it originally was, I do believe that it continues to have a cultural impact on each generation. It continues to evolve with its audience and lets people experience many artists in one place, whether it’s to discover new ones or see artists come back to the stage for the first time in years. While many others online have their own thoughts and opinions on the festival, I recommend experiencing the festival firsthand and building your own perspective. Coachella is a festival that should be experienced at least once in your life.
Illustralion by Jenna Tibby
Finishing first: Corsairs win BIG at the
Western State Conference Pairs tournament
Corsairs’ beach volleyball pairs finish in first and fifth place at the Western State Conference Pairs Tournament at Moorpark College.
Tom Rosholt | Assistant Digital Editor
Santa Monica (SMC) Corsairs’ Nicole Lankton (5) setting the ball during the semifinals at the Western State Conference Pair Championship held at Moorpark College, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Moorpark, Calif. The Corsairs won first place at the Western State Conference Pair Championship. (Tom Rosholt | The Corsair)
On April 25 and 26, Moorpark College hosted the Western State Conference (WSC) Pairs tournament, in which the Santa Monica College (SMC) Corsairs participated. But before the matches started, the tournament honored Bakersfield College (BC) head coach Carl Ferreira. Ferreira is retiring, and this was his last season as head coach of the BC Renegades. Ferreira started his coaching career in 1994 and has been the Renegades’ head coach since 2005.
The first day of competition had a few upsets. Corsairs’ blockers Kyla Dothard and Finley Meyer started the day in the Play-in round, winning their match against Samantha Holmes and Journey Blueford of Glendale Community College (GCC) to move onto the next round.
Dothard and Meyer were then matched up against Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) Vaqueros first team, Nevaeh Tillet and Kaylin Cooney. The Corsairs upset the Vaqueros by beating their top pairs to move on to the Sweet-16 round. Dothard and Meyer then lost in the Sweet 16 round to the Renegades, first seeded team led by Maya Barron and Raelynn Saunders. Split Samatha Harvey and defender Sophia Vandenberg were the No. 2 team for the Corsairs, and had a bye in the first round. In the Sweet 16, they played against the Moorpark College (MC) Raiders’ first team Mia Paculan and Gaby Shirado. Harvey and Vandenberg would go on to defeat the Raiders before moving into the Elite 8.
Harvey and Vandenberg lost in the Elite 8 round to Vaqueros’ Madelynn Papia and Sage Thorne-Thomsen.
The Corsairs’ No. 1 team blocker Nicole Lankton and defender Annah Legaspi also earned a bye for the first round. In the Sweet 16, Lankton and Legaspi were matched up with fellow Corsairs and No. 4 team, defender Makena Gamby and blocker Allison Horin.
In the first round the Corsairs’ No. 3 team, splits Sadie Town and Eden Lorin, played against the Renegades’ Chloe Comstock and Alexandera Watts. Town and Lorin won both sets and later met up against the Ventura College Beach Volleyball (VC) Pirates’ No. 1 team Talia Behrens and Sadie Lishman.
Corsairs’ Gamby and Horin’s first round match was against GCC Vaqueros’ Shiho Uchida and Jessica Casper. They defeated the Vaqueros to move on to the Sweet 16 round.
The second day of the tournament started with a rainstorm that died down right before games began, but would come and go throughout the day. In between matches, players struggled to stay warm and dry. Coming into the second day of the tournament, Lankton was suffering from back pain.
Lankton and Legaspi faced SBCC Vaqueros’ Tana Long and Lina Husek. The Corsairs won both sets to move onto the semifinals.
Corsairs’ Harvey and Vanderberg matched up against SBCC Vaqueros’ Papia and Thorne-Thomsen. This was a close match as each pair won a set, leading to a tie breaking third set to decide a winner. Harvey and Vanderberg ended up losing in the third set.
Hoping to finish strong, Harvey and Vanderberg played against SBCC Vaqueros’ Long and Husek in a battle for fifth place. Harvey and Vandenberg won both sets, finishing fifth overall in the tournament.
In the semifinal, Lankton and Legaspi faced off against the VC Pirates’ Viola Barrios and Shai Daniels, winning both sets to move into the finals for first place. The finals match was between Lankton and Legaspi and SBCC Vaqueros’ Papia and Thorne-Thomsen. Each set was close, with both teams going back and forth with each other, and neither team was able to
build a comfortable lead at any time. SBCC won the first set 21-18, and SMC won the second set 21-19. A third and final tie-breaking set was needed to determine the champion of the tournament.
The third set played out similarly as the previous two. Scoring back and forth, players laid out to save the ball and extend the rally. In the end, Lankton and Legaspi won the set, 15-13, to finish first in the tournament.
“Nicole was less mobile. I tried to pick up those, like, (the ones) she usually can get, but not at that time, and let her handle the hammering,” said Legaspi when asked about the key to winning both sets.
“Honestly, they had to overcome injury. There’s adversity in every single match. It can come in the beginning, in the middle or the end. Then with teams that are this good and the level of play is really high in this conference. You expect everybody to push back,” said Corsairs’ head coach Christian Cammayo.
The Corsairs finished the season tied for first place with the SBCC Vaqueros. The Corsairs’ strong season was validated by sending five pairs to the WSC finals.
“Our five teams advanced, one round, and then they beat the No. 1 team from Santa Barbara, which was a huge upset. Our fourth team beat the No. 1 team from Glendale and then got eliminated by our No. 1 team,” said Cammayo after their achievements in the tournament.
The Corsairs finished first and fifth place in the WSC Pairs Tournament.
Santa Monica Corsairs’ Samatha Harvey (10) contesting the shot at the Western State Conference Pair Championship held at Moorpark College, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Moorpark, Calif. The Corsairs won fifth place at the Western State Conference Pair Championship. (Tom Rosholt | The Corsair)
Santa Monica (SMC) Corsairs’ Nicole Lankton (5) contesting the shot by Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) Vaqueros’ Madelynn Papia (1) during the finals match at the Western State Conference Pair Championship held at Moorpark College, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Moorpark, Calif. The Corsairs won becoming the Western State Conference champions. (Tom Rosholt | The Corsair)
GRAND PRIX IN LONG BEACH: 50 YEARS AT FULL SPEED
After 50 years of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, the anniversary celebration roared through Shoreline Drive.
Kyle Kirkwood (#27) with Andretti Global Racing Team entering into turn 2 during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach with Chip Ganassi Racing Team #10 Alex Palou following behind on Sunday April 13 2025, on Aquarium Way, in Long Beach Calif., Kirkwood won the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach race while Palou finishing in 2nd out of 27 in the 3rd round of the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) Indycar Series. at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
TheAcura Grand Prix of Long Beach roared to life for the 50th time on April 11—13. According to the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach, more than 200,000 fans attended the three-day event. The Grand Prix gave fans an opportunity to spectate diverse styles of motorsports on one track, from standard GT3 racing to sideways drifting with Formula DRIFT.
The Grand Prix weekend began early on Thursday, April 10, with a fan exhibition of the Walk of Fame featuring many famous drivers’ faces cemented into the sidewalk. This year there were three new faces added to the Walk of Fame, including racing driver Chip Ganassi, driver Scott Dixon, Grand Prix Association of Long Beach president Jim Michaelian, and the 26th mayor of Long Beach, Beverly O’Neill. All of those recognized shaped the Grand Prix into what it is today.
Following the Walk of Fame was a Driver Meet-and-Greet at the historic Pike Outlet, featuring many International Motorsports Association (IMSA) drivers and their cars, each of which would later compete in the 100-minute sprint event. During the drivers’ meetup, there was a pit stop competition for the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) IndyCar Series. Rahal Letterman Lanigan (RLL) driver Graham Rahal and his No. 15 pitstop crew managed to have the fastest pit crew, beating Chip Ganassi Racing’s (CGR) No. 10 pit crew with Álex Palou.
Friday opened with GT America starting their first practice session, James Sofronas of GMG Racing finishing first in his Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II. IMSA began their first practice session an hour later and allowed fans a new look at the newest addition to the IMSA paddock. The No. 23 Aston Martin Heart Of Racing Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) Vantage roared to life with their naturally-aspirated 6.5 V12, echoing through the streets of Long Beach.
Nevertheless, it was the No. 25 RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 that took the fastest in Practice 1 for the GTP Class. The fan-favorite racing team, AO Racing, with their No. 177 Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) named “Rexy” adorned with a dinosaur livery, took the fastest time for the Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) class with their one-time appearance. They usually run in the GTD Pro class with higher-ranking drivers.
After GT’s first practice session, the old Formula cars revved their engines to give the spectators a show of the race vehicles from Formula 5000 No. 48 All-American Racers Gurney Eagle from 1975, to Formula 1’s 1977 race winning No. 5 John Player Lotus 77, and 2005 Long Beach winning car, No. 1 Ford Lola 05/00. As the second practice of GT America finished up, Stadium Super Trucks began their first practice and showed how different their driving style is, with the drivers taming their trucks through the corners while pulling one tire off the pavement.
IMSA returned for their second practice session with No. 24 RLL BMW M Hybrid V8, which topped the timing sheets in the GTP class. For GTD, Robert Wickens’ No. 36 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R took the fastest time before qualifying.
Wickens was an IndyCar Driver until August 2018, when he lost control of his car at Pocono Raceway while going over 200 MPH and crashed. Wickens injured his spinal cord, causing him to become paralyzed from the waist down.
“It’s truly amazing that we’re able to have the technology to allow (people with)physical disabilities to (be) able to, you know, pursue their dream and … compete with other drivers… I think it’s really cool that they’re able to do that… Anyone (with) physical disabilities… There’s a way to … hop out on the track and compete against other drivers,” said former Santa Monica College (SMC) student Shane Agopian, who watched Wickens race during the Grand Prix.
Louis Foster (#45) with Rahal Letterman Lanigan (RLL) Racing going through turn 10 at the beginning of Free Practice 1 during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Friday, April 11, 2025. The Long Beach Convention Center Parking Lot, in Long Beach, Calif., for the third round of the NTT Indycar Series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
Once the final practice of IMSA finished, IndyCar began their first practice with their new hybrid system. Will Power, No. 12 for Team Penske, topped the time charts as Penske prepared for their qualifying run on Saturday.
Qualifying sessions started for the GT cars. GT America pushed their cars through the streets of Long Beach with James Softonas’ No. 14 GMG Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II taking the fastest time of the weekend for their series. After GT America, IMSA started their qualifying session. GTP took their turn first, with Philipp Eng’s No. 24 RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 taking the fastest time. GTD took to the street with Parker Thompson’s No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3 finishing fastest in the race.
Formula Drift took over the rest of the night with their challenge event. Rome Charpentier took the win with his Vitour Tires E82 BMW after he maintained the most control over his car during the drift event, officially ending the first official day of the Grand Prix.
“That was the coolest … car event that I’ve ever been to,” said Agopian when talking about the Formula Drift challenge. “It was so sick, you know, I love drifting. I love … that kind of stuff and it’s just so crazy to me how these cars are able to stay within inches of each other … going 30, 40 miles per hour sideways… It’s so crazy to me… It was a fun event.”
Saturday started with the second Historic Formula practice, to prepare their cars for the first race exhibition later in the day. After the Historic practice, IndyCar took to the streets once more as Nolan Siegel’s No. 6 Arrow McLaren took the fastest time as they prepared for qualifying. Historic Formula returned after IndyCar’s practice, and Jordan Roddy in his 2005 Lola IndyCar with a McDonald’s livery took the checkered flag first out of anyone.
IndyCar qualifying began right after with the No. 27 Andretti Global of Kyle Kirkwood being the fastest and finishing first in the race. During the race, however, No. 6 of Nolan Seigel crashed out in the second session of qualifying. This caused both of his teammates, No. 5 Patricio (Pato) O’Ward and No. 7 Christian Lundgaard, to be knocked from the race –leaving them unable to fight for a higher starting position.
After IndyCar’s qualifying rounds, IMSA started their pre-race celebrations and revved their engines for the 100-minutes sprint race event of the Grand Prix. In the GTP class, No. 7 Penske Motorsports Porsche 963 with drivers Felipe Nasr and Nick Tandy won their race class as their strategy allowed them to be ahead after everyone’s pit stops.
For GTD, the No. 117 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 (992) with drivers Jonny Edgar and Laurens Vanthoor won in their class, as they were able to defend their position from the rest of the GTD grid. The No. 34 of Conquest Racing and their Ferrari 296 GT3 crashed out on lap 15 after making contact with the wall at the first turn and causing severe damage, forcing them to retire their car.
Once the IMSA race concluded, the Stadium Super Trucks held their first race. Max Gordon won the first heat, pushing through the jumps and protecting his truck from unnecessary damage.
GT America came after their heat to start their first race, with Justin Rothberg in his No. 29 BMW M4 GT3 EVO from Turn Motorsports taking the first win for the weekend.
Everyone started moving during turns nine through 11 to watch the second challenge round of Formula Drift. Daniel Stuke, with his MspeK Performance Nissan Silvia surpassed his competition, as he was able to take advantage of a mistake by Rome Charpenter during their final run. After the Drift Challenge ended, the 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Foreigner, held a mini concert before day two concluded.
Sunday, the final day, started with IndyCar’s final warm up, during which RLL No. 15 Graham Rahal finished with the fastest time. After the warmup, teams went back to their truck hallers to finish preparing their setup.
During that time GT America rolled out to compete in their last race for the weekend. Turner Motorsports swept that weekend for a double victory with Justin Rothberg’s No. 29 BMW M4 GT3 EVO.
With GT America finishing their weekend at Long Beach, parades began with the Mothers Exotic Cars Paddock, followed by the NTT IndyCar Series Pre-Race Show beginning right afterwards. All drivers were seen in their race suits as their cars sat in the pit lane, all coming out in the order they qualified. After the Pre-Race Show, all drivers retreated to their cars to prepare for the command they had been waiting for: “Start your engines!”
When the command was given, the 27 2.2 liter twin turbo-charged V6 engines roared to life as the tires began to warm up. When the green flag was waved, all 27 drivers raced down Shoreline Drive and dove into turn one of the 90-lap race. With no caution flag waved, they drove at full speed for the entire race. Pole sitter No. 27 Adretti Global Kyle Kirkwood won, able to defend his position for the entire race from three-time champion Chip Ganassi Racing #10 Alex Palou.
With the IndyCar race over, there was one more race left for the weekend, the Stadium Super Trucks. Myles Cheek took victory in the last race of the weekend, with all drivers pushing their trucks to the absolute limit to get to victory.
“I had such a great time… There’s so many cars out there and you know, there’s smaller cars on a smaller track and that’s, it’s super cool being able to see them fight for position. There’s a lot of room for overtakes. You know, there’s a lot of room for improvement. It’s super super cool seeing that… The IndyCar racing was honestly super cool as well. I had a great time watching that,” said Agopian.
The Grand Prix will officially return to Long Beach on April 17—19, 2026, for its 51st year.
Patricio (Pato) O’Ward (#5) with Arrow McLaren turning into turn five during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach with other drivers following behind on Sunday, April 13, 2025 on Queens Way, in Long Beach, Calif. O’Ward finished 13 out of 27 in the 3rd round of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) Indycar Series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
Alex Palou (#10) with Chip Ganassi Racing going through turn two during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach race on Sunday, April 13, 2025 on Aquarium Avenue, in Long Beach, Calif., finishing second out of 27 for the third round of the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) Indycar Series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
(#177) AO Racing GT Daytona Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) “Rexy” going through turn two with JDC Miller (#85) Porsche 963 following behind during free practice one at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, on Aquarium Way, in Long Beach, Calif., on Friday, April 11, 2025 for the third round in the International Motorsports Association (IMSA) Weathertech Sportscar Championship.
(Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
(Center foreground) Patricio “Pato” O’Ward (#5) with the Arrow McLaren racing team poses for fans during the pre race event at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Sunday, April 13, 2025, in Long Beach, Calif. O’Ward finished 13th for the third round of the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) Indycar Series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
Kyle Kirkwood (#27) drives through the final turn on his last lap of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, in Long Beach, Calif.on Sunday, April 13, 2025. Kirkwood finished first for the third round for the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) Indycar Series in the Andretti Global team car. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
The Heart of Racing (#23) Aston Martin Vantage Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) on the back straight braking into turn 9 during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, on Seaside Way, in Long Beach, Calif., on Friday, April 11, 2025 for the third round of the International Motorsports Association (IMSA) Weathertech Sportscar Championship. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
Nolan Siegel (#6) with Arrow McLaren pushing during Free Practice 1 during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Friday, April 11, 2025, at the Long Beach Convention Center Parking Lot, in Long Beach Calif., for the third round of the NTT Indycar Series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
DXDT Racing (#36) Chevrolet Corvette ZO6 GT3 going around with Robert Wickens, who is a paraplegic driver and uses hand controls to accelerate and brake the car, during Free Practice 1 at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, on Aquarium Way, in Long Beach, Calif., on Friday, April 11, 2025 for the third round of the International Motorsports Association (IMSA) Weathertech Sportscar Series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
The Heart of Racing (#27) Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo going through turn six during Free Practice 2 at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, on Shoreline Drive and Pine Ave, in Long Beach, Calif., on Friday, April 11, 2025 for the third round of the International Motorsports Association (IMSA) Weathertech Sportscar series. (Jordi Garcia Sosa | The Corsair)
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BLOOMING WITH SECOND CHANCES
Students gathered in the Student Equity Center to share their experiences with the criminal justice system while creating art.
Nathan Hanson| Staff Photographer
Julyssa Guevara, a licensed clinical social worker, and Gladys Preciado, an art history professor, sat waiting for students to arrive for the event that the two organized titled Blooming With Second Chances, a “workshop to help embrace new opportunities, heal from past setbacks and build community,” at the Student Equity Center of Santa Monica College (SMC) on Tuesday, April 22, 2025.
Guevara, and Preciado were both inspired by their mutual love of art to co-host a workshop dedicated to formerly incarcerated students to share their experiences with the justice system through their art, in recognition of April being Second Chance Month.
“[Second Chance Month] offers folks who have been formerly incarcerated a second chance to come into the community, reintegrate, and really have the opportunity to bloom and be part of society without being stigmatized or living with a label,” Guevara said.
Preciado said, “It’s just about honoring those individuals – honoring their dignity, focusing on second chances, and anyone who is in allyship with them and wants to contribute to the conversation too.”
The theme was to emulate the process of bloom, so everyone was instructed to create flowers out of the material provided: wrapping paper, pipe cleaners and white paper cups.
After they were done constructing the flowers, they were instructed to meditate on a message that was important to them before writing it down on the surface of the cup.
“For me it was more of [...] a general thing,” Preciado said. “And so I just wrote: Our path does not define us. We are worthy of healing. We are worthy of safety. And we are worthy of love.”
Preciado continued, “My brothers have been in and out of jail and so I was just thinking about how that’s affected my family. So that’s kind of what I was thinking as I was creating this.”
For others, such as Leonard Flores, a student at SMC, the cup represented something deeply spiritual. “Mine says, ‘Freedom and Perfect Courtesy.’ It is found in a Bible verse where we’re called to have courtesy toward those who may harm us,” Flores said. “It’s a reflection to be able to forgive those who don’t have the same understanding.”
According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Second Chance Month began in 2017 as a bipartisan resolution from the U.S. Senate and has since grown into a national movement, with support from federal, state, and local agencies, nonprofits and advocates across the country.
Benny Blaydes, left, a lead counselor and Inter-Club Council advisor, and Gladys Preciado, a professor of Art History at Santa Monica College (SMC), banter with students who are participating in the Blooming With Second Chances event, a workshop dedicated to formerly incarcerated students designed to share their experiences through arts and crafts, held in the Student Equity Center on the main SMC campus, Tuesday, April 22, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)
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Approximately 77 million Americans, or 1 in every 3 adults, have a criminal record. A criminal record — which can be an arrest record, criminal charges, or a conviction — creates barriers to jobs, occupational licensing, housing, and higher education opportunities, according to a statistic founded by the National Council of State Legislators, a bipartisan organization that provides research, technical assistance and training to support legislators and staff in all 50 states.
This statistic is a testament as to why Second Chance Month was pro posed in the first place. Advocates for this initiative challenge the pe rimeters of what it means for a society to provide second chances to people who have made mistakes.
It also raises a number of other questions: What does it mean to give a second chance to somebody? What does it mean to receive it? Does everyone deserve a second chance? How many chances should we give out to people?
To Guevara, second chances are very personal. “No matter what happens, it’s about being able to bloom from that, and being able to be reminded that things are beautiful in life,” she said.
“Sometimes we know that we can get stuck and there are people around who are willing to help you bloom and nourish you as well — who will be offering first, second, third, fourth, infinite amounts of chances,” Guevara said. “Because in reality, only in community is where we can bloom, where we can grow, and where we can feel united and happy about meeting our goals.”
“My brother committed suicide shortly after the pandemic and my dad died on Christmas Eve,” said one SMC student, who wished to remain anonymous for privacy reasons. “We have a fourth, fifth, millionth chance every day to be alive and breathing. At the end of the day, once we transition up outta here, we’ll all know the truth. There is one God that we all have to answer to. Love one another. Take a chance. We’re blessed. We’re alive. We’re free. That’s what my mom always says: ‘I’m alive and free.’”
Flores shared a little about himself and how he saw second chances. “My whole family, basically, was in and out of prison — my direct family,” Flores said. “And then my oldest brother, he’s basically been in prison his whole life, since he was a juvenile. So, considering I have such a large family, and I’m only able to see not even half of them, it’s disheartening.”
He said, “I just like that aspect of giving people chances, and understanding that we’re all going to need chances to find our way out of whatever we were raised in.”
Guevara and Preciado plan to continue to do other group activities and workshops together in the future to foster a space for people who have had these experiences to be able to express themselves through art and dialogue.
As the afternoon went on and the event began to come to a close, the remaining group sat in a circle to share some of their thoughts on what second chances meant to them.
“We can maybe not like someone but it doesn’t mean we hate them,” Guevara said. “We can coexist without having the same thought process. We can coexist without having the same experience. We’re still human, and we deserve the opportunity to be loved. Because why not?”
Leonard Flores, a student at Santa Monica College (SMC), writes, “Freedom in Perfect Courtesy,” a Bible verse from the Book of Titus, that Flores explains means to “call to have courtesy towards those who may harm us in ways that they might not be perceiving,” for the Blooming With Second Chances event, a workshop dedicated to formerly incarcerated students held in the Student Equity Center on the main SMC campus on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)
Illustration by Jenna Tibby
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Conversation with a Holocaust survivor
As a survivor and advocate, Mary Bauer has made it her legacy to pass on her wisdom to new generations by sharing her story.
Jared Blair | Multimedia Editor
OnApril 24, the Associated Students held “A Conversation with Holocaust Survivor Mary Bauer” in the Health and Social Science (HSS) building at Santa Monica College (SMC). Bauer, a 97-year-old survivor of the Holocaust, returned to SMC for her annual visit to speak on her experiences at Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp and during the Nazi death marches.
Mary Bauer, a Holocaust survivor, recalls chilling stories of being apprehended from her native Hungary when she was only 16 years old, piled into a boxcar for three days, and sent off to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where her entire family, save herself and her mother, would be murdered, after her talk titled “A Conversation with a Holocaust Survivor,” an event organized by Associated Students in conjunction with the Jewish Affinity Group, in the Humanities and Social Science building on the main Santa Monica College campus, Thursday, April 24, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. “Imagine the people – who are normal people from normal lives – entering the boxcar,” said Bauer to a small group of people after her talk. “Now the doors open up and you hope you can breathe some fresh air; and what do you breathe? Burning Jews!” (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)
In 1933, the Nazi regime rose to power in Germany. Shortly after Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor, he began cementing his power by revoking civil liberties and allowing imprisonment without trial. Laws were put in place defining what jobs Jews could have and revoking their German citizenship.
In 1935, Hitler enacted policies
making Jews second-class citizens. At this time, persecution of other minorities like gay men, Black people, Catholics, and others began. Within a few years, antisemitic propaganda was prevalent throughout the country, blaming many of the country’s problems on Jews.
It was in 1937 that the first concentration camps were opened to punish repeat law offenders and political opponents. In November 1938, attacks on Jews and synagogues left hundreds of innocent Jews dead and 267 synagogues destroyed.
As the 1940s began, Jews were relocated into ghettos, and in 1941, the Final Solution was agreed upon. When space in concentration camps for prisoners ran out, camps dedicated to extermination were opened. As the Nazis spread throughout Europe, entire communities of Jews were executed by firing squad, their bodies burned or discarded in mass graves. More Jews died in 1942 than any other year in history.
Bauer was an only child living with her family in Budapest, Hungary when Hitler rose to power. She was only 14 years old in 1944 when she and her family were forced from their home by German soldiers.
Bauer said, “There was a knock at our door early in the morning, and we were told to pack one bag, because we were going on a trip. We were instructed to write our name and the city we live in on the top.”
Like many others, Bauer and her family spent the next few days inside a boxcar until finally arriving at what would become known as the deadliest prison in history, Auschwitz. Bauer said that as they left the boxcar, the soldiers began separating prisoners whom they considered fit to work from those who were not.
She said, “I remember the young German man that decided our fate as we stepped off the train, because he was whistling the song I loved to ice skate to in the winter. And those bags we packed, we never saw those bags again. We were told
Mary Bauer, a survivor of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, hugs Dr. Kathryn Jeffery, the Superintendent and President of Santa Monica College, after her talk titled “A Conversation with a Holocaust Survivor.” (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)
to get naked. I had never been naked in front of anyone before. I was only a teenager.”
Bauer said, “They divided us to the left and to the right. If you looked old or sick they didn’t want you. One of my best girlfriends, her mother had premature grey hair. She wasn’t old, but they separated her from us. This was also the last time I saw my father.”
Eventually Bauer and her mother were sent on a death march. She said, “It was wintertime. We didn’t have coats or boots. Many of us fell down and we were either shot or left to freeze to death. You can’t even imagine the red color of blood against the white snow as we marched.”
Bauer described the moment she saved her mother’s life on this march. “We were exhausted and freezing. My mother fell. The Nazi soldiers came and pointed a gun in her face. I don’t know what got into me, but I knew the language so I said to them, ‘Don’t waste your bullet, she’s going to die anyways,’” she said.
When Europe was liberated from the Nazi regime in 1945, Bauer and her mother were the only two members of her family still alive. She studied in Berlin for five years after the war before moving to New Orleans.
She said, “I was so excited to move to America. Everyone is free in America. I want to be free. But then I arrived in New Orleans and segregation. Whites and Blacks couldn’t be together. This wasn’t freedom. I had been in prison, and this was not freedom.”
Bauer took questions from the audience, including Naama Engel, a member of the Jewish community and an SMC student. Engel explained how she was in Israel during the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks and feels that she is constantly forced to
defend her experience.
Bauer offered her story about meeting 14-year-old Oct. 7 survivor Ela Shani. “I went to a lecture. I was in the audience when she (Ela) was describing what she went through that day and I couldn’t help myself. I stood up, walked down to the front, and I hugged her,” she said.
Bauer said, “We have to be there for each other. We have to support each other. We have to accept each other, particularly in America. There is nowhere as multicultural as America.”
Bauer went on to get married and have two sons, as well as live out her childhood dream of becoming a nurse. She now volunteers at Holocaust Museum Los Angeles (HMLA), speaking with visitors and sharing her story.
Nechama Grossman, Israel’s oldest Holocaust survivor, died at the age of 109 on April 24, 2025, coinciding with Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day. There are an estimated 220,000 Holocaust survivors still alive in the world with the youngest, Samuel R. Harris, being 88 years old.
As a time approaches when the survivors are no longer around to tell their stories, historians and advocates are urging the importance of safeguarding their stories for future generations.
HMLA CEO Beth Kean affirmed the museum’s dedication to survivors’ legacies during their annual Yom HaShoah commemoration ceremony on April 27, which Bauer attended.
“My legacy and my calling is to let them know that if you know what can happen, prevent it before it grows, or before it becomes as dangerous as it had become for me.”
Kean said, “We come together as a community to remember. We come together to reflect on the lessons of the Holocaust. We come together to hope for peace. We come together to renew our commitment to ensure the preservation of survivor voices, and so that never again that becomes a reality.”
Bauer noted the importance of continuing to tell her story to new generations. She said, “I feel when they know it from the horse’s mouth, which is me. It’s not a book, it’s not a film, it’s a living person who went through it.”
She said, “It makes more of an impression to believe, and if they do, then my legacy and my calling is to let them know that if you know what can happen, prevent it before it grows, or before it becomes as dangerous as it had become for me. It should not become for anybody else. That’s the reason I talk.”
Mary Bauer, a survivor of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, center, speaks with members of the audience after her talk titled “A Conversation with a Holocaust Survivor.” (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)
Mary Bauer, a Holocaust survivor, displays the tattoo that she received while imprisoned at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, the largest camp in all of the Nazi-occupied territories during World War II, after her talk titled “A Conversation with a Holocaust Survivor.” Auschwitz-Birkenau is estimated to have exterminated over 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, during its roughly 4.5 years of existence.
(Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)
It’s gonna take a paradigm shift: A lesson from California Sky Watcher
William Selby, a retired Santa Monica College geography professor, urges a shift in public values to tackle climate change and reconnect with nature.
On April 22, the 2025 Earth Day, retired Santa Monica College (SMC) professor William “Bill” Selby returned to campus to deliver a lecture, as well as offer a call to action.
Speaking at the old Life and Physical Science Complex on SMC’s Main Campus, Selby presented his latest book, “The California Sky Watcher: Understanding Weather Patterns and What Comes Next.” It was a culmination of his decadeslong devotion to California’s climate, geography and environmental education. Selby’s message to students and faculty alike was clear: If we’re going to solve the challenges we face, from climate change to unsustainable lifestyles, it’s gonna take a paradigm shift.
“We don’t need to use more than 17 acres of productive surface of earth every year. Four or five earths would be required to support all of the people on earth if they all lived like that. We just need to treat the one we have with more respect.”
The recption of Sustainability Center in the new Math and Science building on the Main Campus at Santa Monica College. (Silke Eichholz | The Corsair)
William Selby, age 71, signs his book for a former student from 1987 after his presentation on his latest book, “The California’s Sky Watcher: Understanding Weather Patterns and What Comes Next.” (Silke Eichholz | The Corsair)
Silke Eichholz | Staff Photographer
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Selby, age 71, has spent his life learning and teaching about California’s diverse climates, from the misty redwood forests to the scorching deserts. His talk centered on reconnecting with nature and using science as a tool to understand, adapt and act.
”It’s not gonna be these little things here and there. Those are good. Yeah, cool, but it’s gonna take a paradigm shift,” Selby said to the crowd. “I can live a wonderful life that’s more fulfilling for me without becoming caught in this crazy consumer society.”
His call is about shifting values - from materialism to sustainability, and from separation to connection.
Despite retiring from SMC in 2017 after teaching for more than three decades, Selby has never slowed down. He leads climate workshops, trains naturalists and educates park rangers, all as part of his traveling “California Sky Watcher Show.” Through storytelling, interactive cloudspotting and DIY weather forecasting, he encourages people of all ages to observe the world around them and understand how deeply weather and climate shape our daily lives.
According to Pete Morris, an SMC geography professor, Selby doesn’t just preach change; he embodies it, staying active and inspired while empowering others to do the same. He said, “As I was going back through this book, change is a thread that runs throughout the entire
book … What I really appreciate about the way Bill presents it in his book, and in my many conversations with him, is an attitude towards change that is flexible, willing to go with the tide.”
Continuing on, Morris said, “But (his attitude is) not in a powerless sense, in a sense that we have the potential for agency, the potential to take action and one of the best tools we have to manage that change, to try to guide it individually and collectively, is the tools of science, through the tools of observation, and that again is something throughout this book.”
Selby’s Earth Day presentation held a reminder that transformation begins with awareness. It’s not just about understanding the science of our environment, but about feeling a responsibility to care for it, whether you’re a student cramming for finals or a professor leading field trips through Yosemite.
Selby said, “We don’t need to use more than 17 acres of productive surface of earth every year. Four or five earths would be required to support all of the people on earth if they all lived like that. We just need to treat the one we have with more respect.” And that, he insists, starts with a shift in how we live, think and see the sky above us.
Selby appeared at the California Geographical Society Annual Conference on April 25 — 26 at California State
(Below) Ferris Kawar, SMC’s Director of Sustainability welcomes William Selby, as the featured speaker for SMC’s Earth Day Celebration on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Silke Eichholz | The Corsair)
University, Stanislaus, where he presented on wildfire science and climate resilience. He will also lead a guided ecology hike at the annual Field Ecology Weekend for Topanga Canyon Docents in Malibu Creek State Park on April 27.
Further resources, including weather guides, lesson plans, and interactive tools can be found at www. rediscoveringthegoldenstate.com, along with his recent book “The California Sky Watcher.” His latest book is also available for purchase at the SMC Bookstore on the Main Campus.
(Left) Audience, including SMC students, alumni and faculty show hands in response to a question by William Selby during his presentation. Selby is a featured speaker of SMC’s Earth Day Celebration. (Silke Eichholz | The Corsair)
Emeritus Gallery Student Art Exhibition returns with a bustling on-campus reception
Emeritus Gallery showcases its first on-campus reception for part one of the Emeritus Student Art Exhibition since 2019.
Downey| Staff Writer
Debbie Sanders stands next to her work, “LA Palm Trees and Sky,” one of the installations in the Santa Monica College Emeritus Annual Student Art Exhibition on Thursday, April 24, 2025, in downtown Santa Monica, Calif. (Fai Fong | The Corsair)
Emeritus Gallery’s wall #3 tributes the work of the late Roshy Farry at Santa Monica College (SMC) Emeritus Annual Student Art Exhibition. (Fai Fong | The Corsair)
Kyla
Emeritus Gallery at Santa Monica College (SMC) presented part one of its Emeritus Student Art Exhibition on Thursday night with an on-campus reception, which has not been done since 2019. Emeritus College has been a program focused on teaching older students since 1975, allowing them to further explore their interests and connect with others. The gallery included four walls of art, one being a tribute wall for a student who passed last year. Additionally, various sculptures were seen scattered around the exhibit.
The room was filled with chatter as groups of people shuffled into the crowded gallery to experience the artwork created by Emeritus students. The hot room was filled to the brim with artists posing for pictures with their artwork.
Smack dab in the middle of the gallery stood Deborah Kaufman’s sculpture, “Maximillion’s Dream,” a mixed-media piece showcasing a squirrel popping through a canvas while a dog stands on its hind legs pining for the squirrel. Kaufman said the idea came to her in a dream where her dog, Maximillion, was painting and a squirrel popped through the canvas towards him. At first, she wanted the sculpture to be made out of clay, however this ended up being too heavy, so she switched to papier-mache.
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Kaufman has been an artist since she was 10 years old, as she was always drawing. Fifty-two years later, she continued to pursue her love of art at Emeritus College and fell in love with the classes and the community on campus.
Standing near the floor to ceiling windows was Jesse Benson, the Emeritus gallery curator. Benson was the man of the hour, with people pouring their hearts out to him and praising him as an instructor. Anna Conley, a student of Benson’s and artist who had art on display for the exhibition called “Extremities,” which was inspired by anatomical structures in doctors offices after Conley lost the use of her hands, greeted Benson with a warm hug. Conley said “his presence moves me forward,” referring to Benson and his kindness.
Benson explained how part one of these exhibits are usually in-person and part two is online, however, he had been wanting a celebration like this since 2019, but due to health reasons, the exhibit receptions had to be conducted online.
Towards the back of the gallery was Emeritus student Roshy Farry’s tribute wall. Roshy Farry’s wall was covered with her watercolor paintings of animals, landscapes and portraits of her family. Roshy Farry’s son, Amir Farry,
stood in front of her wall talking to guests about his mothers artwork with a glimmer in his eye and a serene smile spread across his face.
Afra Farry, Roshy Farry’s daughter, and Amir Farry said their mother was diagnosed with cancer and watercolor was a form of therapy for her and allowed her to “tap into what she was feeling.” Afra Farry informed Benson of her mother’s passing and he decided to dedicate a wall to Roshy Farry and her artwork. “Art has this way of communicating beyond time and space,” said Benson regarding Roshy Farry’s passing and how her artwork lives on.
The room continued to fill with individuals and artists could be seen all around the room conversing with others about their art and their love for the Emeritus program. While speaking about the program and being a teacher for Emeritus, Benson said that as an instructor, you do not realize the impact you can have on someone positively.
The exhibit will run until June 6, with part two being held online on May 22. The gallery is open to view during gallery hours, which are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Young-He Keh standing next to her work, “A Big Catch,” one of the installations in the Santa Monica College (SMC) Emeritus Annual Student Art Exhibition. (Fai Fong | The Corsair)
Sculpture, “Remembering Cuban Kids,” a work by Karen Mahmoudi, was one of the 60 installations showcased. (Fai Fong | The Corsair)
are the heartbeat of the show
A look behind the curtain of Synapse, a contemporary dance performance
Akemi Rico | Design Editor
Karen McDonald, faculty choreographer at Santa Monica College (SMC), observes the dancers rehearse at the Santa Monica College Core Performance Center on Thursday, April 10, 2025, for a piece called “Short Stories that Live Forever,” that she choreographed for Synapse, the modern dance performance that is presented every semester in Santa Monica, Calif. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
The third floor of the Core Performance Center at Santa Monica College (SMC) is where it all happens. The long hallway is painted red and lined with a long red bench while shoes are strewn about the floor. The dancers sit, stretch, study, laugh and play here.
They are preparing for Synapse, a contemporary dance performance put on every semester by the SMC Contemporary Dance Ensemble. The dancers are diverse in age and ethnicity, and each one brings their own unique experience, enthusiasm and passion to the show. The energy is palpable in the rehearsal rooms as they practice each piece, over and over, to the count of eight.
Auditions for Synapse begin the first week of the semester. Jae Lee, co-artistic director of Synapse, says there were about 30 students who auditioned to dance this year. “Once they are selected, they get a chance to work with faculty choreographers and guest choreographers,” Lee said.
Student dancer Annie Fleishman, age 26, talked about how the auditions felt like an environment of trust and dignity. She said, “I wouldn’t say it’s a competition… I found a lot of peace in just trusting that whatever is meant to happen is going to happen… Less competition, more community.”
There are three student choreographers this semester, also selected by audition. Lee said, “If students [are chosen] as a student choreographer, they get to create the work [that will be performed in the show]. They work with a costume designer, they have to [think about] how they’re portraying their storyline through the movement. How lighting supports their story, their vision. Then they have to
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do compositional work for their piece. We do mentor them a lot when it comes to creating their work.”
The choreography style for Synapse is modern contemporary, and represents personal stories of love, strength, speaking one’s truth, and a range of emotions.
of movements that can correlate to whatever song you’re dancing to.” He has written his process out on a white board and sits staring at it. “I want to give the crowd a sense of mystery. I want to give the crowd a sense of imagination... The music is gonna be slightly intense. Hopefully the lighting will help too.
Michael Howard, a student choreographer, is working on a solo piece called “Lone Wolf.”
Describing the process, he said, “It started off wildly uncomfortable, because as someone who freestyles, I’m not used to thinking (when I dance). But when it comes to choreography, you have to come up with a set
Because.” “It’s sort of this idea of dancing in this very stylistic way, that is filled with the aesthetic of the cool, and all of these things that are born out of jazz music.”
She started dancing when she was four in a strict ballet conservatory, but also experienced Jamaican dancehall parties and Trinidadian festivals with her family. She discovered jazz when she was around ten years old. “I fell in love with jazz because it felt the most familiar to me, in terms of my training and my cultural heritage,” Smyth said.
Many of the students come back multiple times to dance in Synapse. Student dancer Erille Weiss, age 20, has performed in the show twice before. “Synapse has just been the most incredible experience. I’ve grown up dancing my whole life, but I felt like my time here has been the most important and the most beneficial to who I am as a dancer,” said Weiss.
Student dancer Maya Carson, age 20, said, “It’s my last semester, so it’s really going to be fun to just perform with everyone. I love performing. It’s an adrenaline rush.” Carson has been in the show before, and is in three pieces this semester. “When I was in five pieces, it felt like I was either on stage the entire show, or if I wasn’t on stage, I was changing. So it felt like cardio the whole time.”
It’s supposed to give a sense of darkness…”
Several faculty and guest choreographers participate in the show as well. Laura Smyth, a guest choreographer, is full time faculty from Loyola Marymount University. Her piece is contemporary jazz, called “Just
Lee said, “It’s a full commitment. A lot of students think, Oh I get to perform, and they get in, and the first few weeks they think, ‘this is not what I expected!.’ On top of that, they have to take dance major classes, their academics, and some students are working. So their commitment during this whole production, it’s not something that we underestimate. It’s a full load of school work.”
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a
for the
an array of contemporary dance performances, on May 3 and 4
during a break on Tuesday, April 10, 2025, while rehearsing a piece choreographed by student
Mark Tomasic, SMC Faculty Choreographer and Artistic Director of the Synapse theater performance, instructs students during
rehearsal
Synapse performance on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. The SMC Dance Department will present Synapse,
at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica. (Mary Funsten | The Corsair)
(Facing page) SMC student dancers Gui Rosa (L) and Annie Fleishman (R) relax
choreographer April Torres. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
The commitment is palpable inside the rehearsal rooms, the tension is electric. Sweat glistens, fingers splay, brows furrow. Music clips start, stop, rewind and replay, as dancers work on portions of the dance. The choreographer counts down from five to eight and encourages the dancers to embody the emotion of the piece.
“Intention, intention, intention. Eyes, emotions. Now don’t give me plain turns and jumps. Too many dances have been done like that,” said Seda Aybay, faculty choreographer, as she reminds the dancers to connect with the meaning behind the dance.
The piece Aybay is working on is called “Rise,” inspired by Maya Angelou’s poem “Still I Rise.” “Picture the idea of rising, and speaking your voice, and asking for a change,” she said. “There are so many problems on earth. Choose one. Speak for it.”
In another room, Karen McDonald, faculty choreographer and renowned director of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, is rehearsing her piece, “Short Stories that Live Forever.” During a break, she encourages the students, pointing out how far they have come, “Do you remember how on the first day I said, by the time we get to this we should be transformed? You are transformed. Do you hear me?”
Student dancer Christopher Devant, age 20, started dancing with McDonald at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy when he was 13. He said, “She’s just been a really big help in my life. She’s been through it all with me in my life... Now that I’m a student here, wow... I’m so grateful that she sees me for me.” He plans to transfer to a four year university and continue dancing, and wants to perform in music videos with celebrities and on Broadway in New York.
Chai Nwagbara is a dance major who has been taking dance classes at SMC for a year, and is performing in four pieces in the show. “I think that everybody is so supportive, students and teachers, making sure that you have the confidence to go out into the real world… whatever it is you want to do [even if it’s] not involved with dance. They really have your back, and you can feel that.”
SMC student dancers Annie Lee (L) and Erille Weiss (R) rehearse “Short Stories that Live Forever,” a piece choreographed by faculty choreographer Karen McDonald on Thursday, April 10, 2025. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
Student dancer Christopher Devant during dress rehearsal on Thursday, April 24, 2025. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
Sophia Aponte, SMC student choreographer (center), and other SMC students sit between rehearsals on Thursday, April 10, 2025. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
From left to right: Gui Rosa, Mayu Oishi, Akiha Taguchi, Chai Nwagbara and Rayshawn Thomas rehearse a piece called “Rise,” inspired by Maya Angelou’s poem, “Still I Rise,” during dress rehearsal on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Akemi Rico | The Corsair)
Patricio (Pato) O’Ward (#5) turning into the last turn during the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Shoreline Drive in Long Beach, Calif. on Sunday, April 13, 2025. O’Ward finished 13th out of 27 in the third round for the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) IndyCar series in the Arrow McLaren Racing Team #5 car.
